The line-thingys are not working, so apologies in advance for any confuddlsion.
Disclaimer: I owneth not yon YGO. Nor doth I owneth Disney's The Jungle Book.
As Tristan rode on Yami's back through the thick jungle, he looked up at the darkening sky and yawned. "Yami, I'm getting a little sleepy. Shouldn't we start back home?"
Yami took a breath. "Mowgli, this time we're not going back. I'm taking you to a man-village."
"But why?" asked Tristan, startled.
"Because Marik has returned to this part of the jungle and he has sworn to kill you," said Yami, frankly.
"Kill me? But why would he wanna do that?"
Yami leapt over a fallen tree. "He hates men. And Marik is not going to allow you to grow up to become a man - just another hunter with a gun."
Tristan yawned again. "Uhh, we'll just explain him that I'd never do a thing like that."
Yami stopped and looked at his charge. "Nonsense! No one explains anything to Marik!"
"Well, maybe so. But I'm not afraid. And besides I – "
"Now that's enough," interrupted Yami, sitting to allow the young man-cub to dismount. "We'll spend a night here. Things will look better in the morning." He looked around and saw Tristan defiantly walking off. "Man-cub? Man-cub!"
He raced after him and found him making himself a bed of leaves on the jungle floor. He smiled indulgently, and nudged the boy back to the clearing where they'd stopped. "Now come on, up this tree. It's safer up there."
"Uh, I don't want to go back to the man-village," protested Tristan, but Yami was having none of it.
"Go on. Up you go."
"That limb way up there?" asked Tristan dubiously.
"Try," said Yami encouragingly.
Tristan proceeded to try and climb, failing miserably each time. He just couldn't seem to grip the slippery bark.
Yami couldn't hide his mirth. "Is that all the better you can climb?"
"It's too – it's too big around! And besides, I don't have any claws," protested Tristan, not appreciating being laughed at.
Yami walked over and began to give Tristan a boost. Tristan got halfway up the tree, slipped, and jabbed a foot into Yami's eye. Yami grunted and pushed harder, enabling Tristan to reach the branch. Finally. He joined his young charge in the tree, and lay down next to him on the branch.
"Now, get some sleep. We've got a long journey ahead of us tomorrow."
"Uh, I wanna stay in the jungle!" complained Tristan with a yawn.
Yami chuckled to himself. "Huh? Heh, you wouldn't last one day." He yawned and settled down to sleep.
"I am not afraid. I can look after myself," insisted Tristan, not looking at him.
The head of a boa constrictor appeared out of the foliage of the tree above Tristan's head, and snaked (for lack of a better term) down to Tristan's level. "Ss-say now, what have we here?" it hissed.
Tristan made a face and turned away. The boa constrictor moved to face him again.
"It's a man-cub. A delis-ss-cious man-cub."
"Oh, go away and leave me alone," snapped Tristan under his breath.
"Oh, that's just what I should do, but I'm not," said Yami, his eyes still closed. "Now, please, go to sleep, man-cub."
"Yes-ss, man-cub, please…" the boa contrictor's eyes became swirls of colour, and Tristan's gaze was drawn to them. "Go to sleep, please go to sleep… sleep little man-cub, rest in piece."
Tristan's gaze was locked on that of the snake. He was completely under its hypnotic spell. The serpants tail encircled him. "Sleep. Ss-sleep…"
"Ya -- , Ya – Yami!" The body of the snake coiled around Tristan's neck, cutting off his choked cry, making him gulp.
"Oh, no. Look, there's no use arguing anymore," Yami said, eyes remaining closed. "Now, no more talk 'till morning."
The snake chuckled. "He won't be here in the morning."
"Huh? Oh yes, he will ... Mai!" Yami opened his eyes and saw Mai moving Tristan into her open mouth. He batted her head away with a paw. "Hold it, Mai!"
"Ohhh, my sinus-ss," complained Mai. She rounded on Yami. "You have just made a ss-serious mistake, my friend. A very ss-stupid…" Mai began to advance, making Yami back away to the edge of the branch.
"Now, now, now, Mai, I was—"
"Misstake!" ended Mai.
Behind her, Tristan was climbing free of her loosened coils.
"Look me in the eye when I'm speaking to you," ordered Mai lazily, using the tip of her tail to turn Yami's head towards her.
"P - please, Mai…" stuttered Yami, one of his eyes locked on Mai and already beginning to swirl.
"Both eyes if you please." Mai pulled Yami's face totally around and looked at him. Both of his eyes began to swirl and he sat up, very straight and very still. Behind Mai, Tristan struggled with the heap of coiled boa on the branch.
"You have just ss-sealed your doom."
Tristan pushed the coils off of the branch, and the weight of them falling pulled the rest of Mai down. "Oooh!"
"Look, Yami! Heh-heh, look… Yami? Wake up, Yami." Tristan smacked Yami's cheeks lightly, in an effort to get him to snap out of his hypnosis.
Yami's eyes returned to normal. "Ah, duh, wha—"
"Just you wait 'til I get you in my coils," Mai muttered resentfully, slithering away. She suddenly jerked to a stop, as a knot in her tail got stuck between some bamboo stems.
"Yami, she's got a knot in her tail!" Tristan exclaimed with a grin, and began to laugh.
"Hee-hee-hee," Mai mocked. "She's got a knot in her tail." She yanked the knot free and groaned as she slithered away, "Ooo! This is going to slow down my slithering."
Tristan laughed, but stopped dead when he saw Yami's face.
" So you can look out for yourself, can you? So you want to stay in the jungle, do you?" Yami got to his feet, looking disapproving.
"Yes, I want to stay in the jungle!" said Tristan stubbornly.
"D'oh!" Yami rolled his eyes and settled down again. "Now for the last time, go to sleep!"
Tristan settled down with his back against the tree, watching Yami get comfortable. Finally, even his eyes began to droop, and they both slept.
Sorry about the long delay... internet problems, exams, and a bloody huge freakin' project!
Anyway, reviews are encouraged! -grin- Thanks for reading.