I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! Only Mr. Saxon and the nameless sea creatures are mine.

Chapter One- Two Mermen

Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp, drained the large bottle of water as he sat in his limo. He licked his lips and they still felt dry as did his mouth. He inwardly moaned. Had it been a month already? His dry lips and mouth were two symptoms of a condition that occurred one day or night a month and for at least an hour. He hated his condition but felt lucky that it usually occurred at night and could get to his private bathroom before the serious part of it happened.

The limo pulled up to the mansion's front door. Kaiba grabbed his briefcase and stepped outside; as he mounted the steps, his legs felt weak and panic washed over him. No! Not now! Kaiba thought as he dashed up the stairs, inside his home, and up the staircase. He reached the hall between his room and his little brother, Mokuba's room when his legs wobbled and collapsed. He fell on his stomach and looked back to see a fishtail as blue as his eyes. Damn, he thought as he thumped his tail in annoyance.

His fall and thumping tail had caught Mokuba's attention as his door opened. "Seto!" he exclaimed in alarm at his bare-chested, blue-tailed brother. "You didn't make it this time."

"No, I didn't. Could I use your bathtub this time?"

"Of course." Mokuba stood aside as Kaiba crawled in, his tail feeling heavy and cumbersome as he dragged himself across the bedroom and into the bathroom. Mokuba followed and turned the faucet on before helping Kaiba into the tub which was longer than Kaiba. The brunette gave a brief sigh of relief as the water flowed over his tail.

"My change is staring to occur earlier than before," he said once there was enough water. "I hate to admit it, but I fear that one day I'll change at work. Only by laying in water for an hour can I get my legs back."

"Seto…couldn't you spend at least an hour once a week in the water instead of being forced to change one day or night a month?"

"I could but I prefer not to."

"If you did, then you wouldn't have to worry about changing in public."

"It's a good point, Mokuba, but I dislike being a merman and would prefer to have my legs more often than a tail." Kaiba allowed himself to sink under the water, his way of ending a conversation.

Mokuba shook his head as he left. The night Kaiba turned thirteen, his legs had merged into a tail, scaring the teen to death. Once he had gotten to his computer, he learned that he was a merman, a state that affected very few people; at least one in a million. Kaiba read everything he could before crawling to his bathroom and hoisting himself into the tub.

He kept his condition a secret for a few months before Mokuba found out. Kaiba had been heading to the bathroom, but his legs changed before he got there. Mokuba had screamed when he saw his brother become a merman and it was only Kaiba's explanation that calmed him and he promised to keep it secret, too.

Kaiba made it clear that he hated being forced to be a merman, though Mokuba felt his brother would like it more if he changed more often. Kaiba simply had to concentrate on trading his legs for a tail. But Kaiba refused to do that, claiming he would look and feel like a freak and did not want others to view him that way, much less himself.

But no one sees Seto like this but me and I don't think he's a freak. He saw Kaiba emerge fully dressed and looking a lot calmer and more like his cold self. Mokuba returned to his book as Kaiba left, but thought, If I was a merman, I would enjoy it, unlike Seto.

Sixteen-year-old Atem Moto pulled his car into the beach parking lot with a bright smile. He loved the beach, especially the ocean and drove down once a week, either Sunday or Saturday…unless it was cold or raining, of course.

He turned off the car, put the keys in a duffel bag which he carried to the locker rental center. He used one of its dressing rooms to change clothes and paid for a locker with a combination lock. Once he had secured his stuff, he left the center and strode toward the water. He stood in the shallows as the water splashed on his legs for a few minutes before wading into deeper water. He stroked out until he was out of sight. He closed his eyes, focused, and then opened his eyes before diving down, a blue and purple swirled fishtail appearing briefly before vanishing: Atem was also a merman.

Like Kaiba, it happened on the night of his thirteenth birthday, however he was in the shower when he changed. He had cried out when he hit the tub and gasped at the tail where his legs had been.

His older brother Yugi, who was fifteen at the time, had heard him cry out and burst in with their grandpa behind him. Yugi had stared open-mouthed at his brother having a tail while Solomon had chuckled. He explained how very special people were merpeople who walked among humans and had to change occasionally. They could go at least a month before the person experienced signs of a forced change to their merperson state.

Atem had shuddered when told this. He didn't like the idea of randomly changing in public and began making weekly trips to the ocean, first by bus and later by car when he got his license. Of course, if going to the beach wasn't an option, he would take a bath, trading his legs for a tail.

Atem swam through the water on this sunny Sunday, admiring the sea life around him. He suspected his merman side influenced his admiration for the sea and the life in it. He hadn't seen another merperson in three years and, considering that the merperson state only happened in one of a million people, he figured he was the only one around for miles.

That's okay, he thought as he did a corkscrew. I can tell Yugi and Grandpa what I see and how at home I feel when I'm a merman. Atem swam down to the bottom to look at coral and finding a couple of unique seashells for his ocean collection before heading toward shore. He changed back to human before reaching the shallows. He got up, went to the locker rental, retrieved his bag, went to the changing room to dry off and change clothes, and headed for his car, tossing his bag in the passenger seat.

Atem felt the way he always did after a swim: Calm and happy. He looked forward to next week's swim and wondered if it would be Saturday or next Sunday. Either day is fine, as long as I can swim every weekend.

"How was your swim today?" asked Solomon as the trio had dinner.

"Good. I found two new seashells and the most vibrant coral I've ever seen."

"Really?" Yugi asked.

Atem nodded. "I actually swam to the bottom for the first time. I wish I had done it before. The ocean bottom is like another world."

Solomon smiled at the faraway look in Atem's eyes. The legend of the mermaid or merman had endured for centuries and it was a legend that had been handed down in his family in the event that one of their line became a merperson on their thirteenth birthday. Before plumbing came about, towns and villages lived along sources of water and those who changed had to sneak away to do so. Nowadays, one could change in the bathtub or the pool if they had one. Solomon didn't have room for a pool but luckily, Atem had access to an ocean. It had been a great day when Atem got his license and could drive the family car for his weekly swim or when staying after school.

Which he'll be doing soon. He's been reminding me of his science teacher setting them a research project. The nature of the project is not known, but it will be known tomorrow.