AN : Woo hoo, so we finally get to the long awaited Gathering. Before reading this chapter, which is hella long, along with it's sibling, chapter thirteen, please go re-read the previous eleven chapters. During the hiatus of Traitor, I did some major cleaning of the previous chapters with my lovely beta, over the summer. There were some minor changes in the earlier chapters, please refer to the end of this chapter for the reasons why.

Thank you guys for your dedicated support, and I hope this chapter and the next makes up for the long wait. Without your support, I wouldn't be able to post this story and make it come alive. ~

Without further ado, here is the long awaited chapter twelve.


Night Twelve:
Beginning of Change: Part One


"Just look at you! You're a wreck. Damn, it's going to take forever to cover up those dark circles under your eyes. Did you even try to get any sleep?"

Yugi fidgeted in the salon swivel chair he sat in as he was stared down by not just one, but by an army of eight professionals with the specific task of getting him ready for the Gathering. He felt guilty for causing so much trouble for the men and women in charge of helping him prepare for the oh-so important Gathering, but last night had been a sleepless night for the young human. "Sorry, but it's kind of hard for me to sleep before major events, I would have been fine if we didn't have to board the plane so early." Yugi apologized with a soft groan as he relaxed and settled in his chair.

None of this had been the human's fault. He was unable to find sleep when he retired to his bed after his and Yami's conversation last night, fears of having Heba appear in his dreams had plagued his mind. Then, at the ungodly hour of 4:17 am, he was yanked away from the comfort of his warm bed and forced to dress simple and freshen up for the day. The moment he was finished getting ready, Yami's personal henchmen had practically forced him into a car, and then into a plane after arriving at Domino City International Airport. Since then, Yugi had been trapped on the aircraft that was obviously specially modified for occasions like this. Why else would an airplane be equipped with a small beauty salon?

"That's no excuse, Lord Mutou. Everyone needs their beauty sleep, hell, you could have at least put lotion on your skin! It's so dry!" The same reprimanding female makeup artist, with unique bleach blonde and lime green pixie-cut hair, ranted and looked back at her co-stylists, sighing heavily. "Team, we have our work cut out for us. We best get to work or else we'll never finished this brat in time."

"I am not a brat! " Yugi interjected, but was ignored as the men and women moved about the salon to gather supplies to begin 'improving' the human's appearance for the Gathering.

A black styling cloak was placed over Yugi's current outfit of a simple white t-shirt and black athletic shorts. The moment his clothing was covered by the black garment, his chair was spun around and leaned back as the hair stylist began to wash the teen's unruly tri-colored hair. While sweet smelling shampoo was diligently worked into his hair, Yugi closed his eyes as the makeup artist began apply a moisturizing mask on his face. Both of his hands were taken by a professional , who began working on filling his nails and riding the young teen's hands of any hang nails. The entire process was overwhelming to the human. He felt so… girly by having so many people try to make his appearance as regal as Yami's, or at least close to it. Why did some people feel relax during treatments such as this? He felt crowded and babied, Yugi absolutely hated it.

Wanting to distract himself from the obnoxious preparation of his body, Yugi focused on going over all of the major rules of subjugation for feeders. He needed to make sure he knew them like the back of his hands without any flaws. While he was confident he knew them mentally, saying them verbally in front of a crowd of more than a hundred was completely different. Any free moment he had from now until the Gathering should be spent preparing for the moment he would present the rules. He would not lose to his own nerves.

'The first rule a feeder must follow and uphold, is by obeying the word of their vampire. Following the commands and listening to the vampire can protect the feeder from unneeded conflict and potential rage.' Yugi closed his eyes as shampoo was rinsed from his hair and conditioner was massaged into his scalp. 'Secondly, the feeder is to never disobey, question, or ignore their vampire.' The human felt his hands being wiped clean of any dirt that caked them. 'With this, talking back to them after a decision is made is also prohibited.' The young human squirmed as something cool was laid over his eyes. Half of theses rules had already been broken by him, but Yugi didn't care. He just needed to recite them, not follow them.

"Will you keep still, Sir Mutou? I'm trying to make sure I've cleansed your hair completely, " the hair stylist spoke up with a sigh.

"Sorry," Yugi grumbled out softly and tried to keep still for the stylist. He really hated this unnecessary pampering. He would never understand why women liked such treatments.
Trying to relax, the young male closed his eyes and tried to focus on remembering the rules he would recite later that night. Unfortunately for Yugi, the constant tug on his hair, hands dancing along his face and neck, and the feel of another set of hands rubbing a cool sweet smelling oil on any exposed skin on his body; kept him from focusing on the task and caused him to fidget even more.

'I can't focus like this!' The child screamed mentally and groaned aloud. He heard a few giggles from the beauticians as his head was lifted and a towel was wrapped around his head. Yugi rolled his eyes under his closed eyelids. It was good to know his misery was their entertainment.

"Just a little bit longer and the worse will be over, Sir Mutou." The hair stylist spoke up, his voice laced thick with some annoyance.

"I hope you're right," The teen answered with a sigh as the facial mask he wore was scrubbed off and the slimy coverings over his eyes were removed. Opening his eyes once they were gone, Yugi frowned at the sight of two slices of cucumber being tossed in the trash. What was the point of having vegetable slices on his eyes?

Yugi squirmed in his chair again as his hair started to be brushed and concealer was being placed on his skin. "Is this makeup really necessary?"

"Yes! You have to look your very best for your debut. We need to hide your dark circles, it'll make you look unhealthy and stir up drama that will only bring harm to your reputation!" The makeup artist with bleach blonde hair and lime green highlights told Yugi sternly, flicking one of her application brushes at the human. "If you look unhealthy while being the Prince's feeder, then people will question if you're 'good enough', and if they don't find you to be good for the prince, they'll kill you off."

Yugi shivered at the thought and turned his head the other way. He debated his options and the make artist could see it in his eyes. "You have no other option but to wear it!"

"But it's girly! I already lack in the maturity department, makeup will just make it worse!"

"Oh, shut it. When we're done with you You'll look almost as manly as the Prince. Maybe even more," The female counter.

"Yeah right! That guy has had centuries to mature, no way makeup can do that for me!" Yugi argued.

"But you fail to notice that with age, comes the need for more Prince has to wear twice as much makeup than you to hide the crow's feet staring to appear near his eyes-"

"Excuse me?" The mid-baritone voice of Yami caused all chatter in the beauty salon to cease. The royal stood in the middle of the doorway of the small room with narrowed eyes gazing straight at Yugi and the many professionals trying to get the human ready for the Gathering. "What were you saying about me having wrinkles near my eyes?"

"My sire! Forgive me for such a rude comment, I was simply trying to calm down your human enough so he would stop fussing about having to wear makeup for the Gathering." The makeup artist smoothly apologized. She gestured for the girls working on Yugi's hands, to take care of the prince. The female left their job to guide Yami to the black swivel chair next to Yugi's.

Yugi's eyes watched Yami with a clear dislike that he didn't try to hide as the vampire casually sat in the chair and closed his eyes. As Yami's own preparations began, Yugi couldn't help but find it odd as the prince simply took his torture without a single complaint. Grumbling under his breath, Yugi squinted his eyes as the makeup artist's brush danced across his face and blended in foundation into his skin.

"Just close your eyes and relax. It'll be much easier for you and the ones working on your body." Yugi turned his head to look at Yami when the older male spoke up, earning complaints from the professionals trying to get him ready for the Gathering.

"How can I do that? It's too much movement and jerking, " Yugi complained and squirmed in his seat. "It's hard to just sit still."

"Then sleep," Yami returned, not once looking at Yugi as makeup was applied to his face lightly.

The human huffed and face forward again, closing his eyes as he did so. He didn't return Yami's comment and tried to take Yami's advice, though he hated to admit it was good, to either relax or sleep. Letting his body ease, Yugi found the experience much more bearable once he was relaxed. The brush combing through his hair was soothing, the makeup being applied to his features were soft and reassuring, nothing like the fluttering and pulling movements before.

The room fell silent as the artist worked to finish their given the temporary peace, Yugi let his mind drift off to think about the Gathering. He hope the night would pass by fast. If the event was anything like Yami's birthday, Yugi wasn't sure he would be able to survive the night, even with his friends being present to help ease the suffering. It also had him worried about seeing familiar faces within the I.V.H.A. What if Mai or Rebecca were there and saw that he was siding with their enemy? What would they think? Or what will those who know about his family lineage think? The human could feel his body tensing back up from his thoughts, however, a tap on his shoulder was his saving grace.

Opening his eyes, Yugi was greeted by the sight of himself in a handheld mirror being held in front of his face.

"Do you approve of your looks now?" The bubbly blonde makeup artist asked the human with a proud smile.

Yugi was silent as he took in his face. The makeup did make him appear older, highlighting his high cheek bones and bold khol out lined his eyes, making them sharper and his purple irises pop out more. He liked how he looked, he truly did, but his appearance struck a paranoid nerve in his body. He looked too much like him. Like Heba.

"Y-Yeah, I do, "Yugi replied to the female makeup artist, smiling so she would be offended. The seventeen year old just hoped Yami didn't think he looked like his deceased feeder...or others. Then Yugi might really be making a horrible mistake in his life.

"Oh good! What do you think of him, my lord?" The Makeup artist forcibly turned Yugi's head to the left, towards Yami so the other could see him without disturbing the female trimming his hair.

Yami's eyes opened slowly, and the female trimming his bangs paused as the vampire turned his head to look at his feeder. For a moment, crimson eyes betrayed their master and showed his shock, before quickly hiding the emotion with a neutral look. "It'll do, just make sure his makeup is removed after the Gathering. It'll most likely irritate his skin." Yami's voice held no emotion and was steady, but his brief slip in composer was Yugi needed to know that the other seen the identical looks between his current feeder and is previous one. It made the human's heart sink with dread.

The girls working on Yami were finished soon after Yugi's appearance had gained an approval from the royal. The pureblood vampire left the moment he was free, not even bothering with giving Yugi any parting words.

When Yami was out of hearing range, or at least when Yugi thought he was out of hearing range, the human let out a heavy sigh. "Why does he always have to have such a hardened attitude? Can't he just be a decent being for once in his life?"

"The Prince has a hard life Lord Mutou. Try to understand him better, okay?" The male hairstylist spoke gently as he continued to brush Yugi's spiky hair, attempting to tame its wild nature.

"Yami is ...is a lot softer when you get to see past his outer defensive. In all honesty," The blonde make up artist sat down in the unoccupied salon chair as she gazed at Yugi with sad eyes. "I pity the Prince. I've been alive for a long time and I know of his hardships. He's lost two lovers in the worst ways imaginable. One murdered by his feeder, and the other killed by his own kind that had become corrupted. Any living being with a heart would try to keep others at a distance. Who would want to bare another potential loss?"

Yugi looked down at the black tarp that covered his body while he felt his chest become heavy for pity. As he looked at it logically, the vampire had every right to act the way he did, still, Yugi wanted at least a familiar friendship with the man if he was going to be stuck with the other until death. "I know, but… I can't help but wish he would ease up and at least try to form a connection with me. It would….it would make having to adjust to all of this," Yugi gestured to his surroundings, " much easier."

"Just give him time and practice the virtue of patience. You could see some results then," The hairstylist spoke again, Humming softly as his dark eyes narrowed in concentration. "Let's focus on finishing getting you ready for the Gathering. I still need to decide what to do with the mess you call hair. "

Yugi laughed lightly at the frustrated tone in the stylist's voice as he dealt with the youth's hairstyle. He didn't blame the male though, even he got frustrated with his hair. The most he could do with it other than letting it be, was to put it in an awkward ponytail.

After what felt like another hour of preparation in the salon, Yugi was finally released to go change. His hair had finally been just left alone in its natural style, but with hair gel added to keep it somewhat tame throughout the evening. He was ushered out of the salon and into a simple bathroom to change and freshen up as he desired. The human couldn't help but be more relaxed and happier now that he was free from torture. He just the rest of his day and night would be less of a nuisance than his makeover had been.

Finding a jet black garment bag hanging on the back of the bathroom door, Yugi wasted no time in receiving his clothes from the protective covering. With his suit freed from the bag, Yugi hung the outfit up in front of the bag to inspect it. The clothing wasn't too bad actually. It was just a simple grey suit jacket and pants, with a white undershirt and button up long sleeved collared shirt. The vast was obviously made of a silk texture and was deep magenta color, almost the same color as red, but with more purple in the mix. There was also freshly polished grey dress shoes, long white socks, a black belt, and a tie that was striped with grey and the color of his vest.

Yugi got dress in a rush. Once his new outfit was on his body, he admired himself in the mirror. His tie wasn't tied perfectly, but it would do. Other than that, The human was surprised how good he look in the suit. Instead of Heba, Yugi thought he looked like a very young version of his grandfather with brighter eyes. Maybe, now with clothes that flattered his more mature features, Yami would be able to look past his likeness with the deceased feeder.

The human turned to his discarded clothes on the floor and placed them in the garment bag his suit had been dormant in. Before he threw his athletic shorts into the bag, Yugi stuff his hand into the right pocket of the pair shorts and pulled out his concealing stone. Yugi held the stone in the air by its thin chain for a moment as his eyes stared at the dull red crystal made from Atem's blood. He should keep it on his body just in case of an emergency. Slipping the stone around his neck, Yugi let his shorts join the rest of his dirtied clothes before tucking the stone underneath his white undershirt. If Yami questioned him about his lack of scent, Yugi would simply tell him the truth; his grandfather gave him the concealing stone for protection.

Yugi exited the bathroom feeling confident, but the feeling quickly died when he accidentally bumped into something solid.

"Ah, sorry-" His words died in his throat as his violet eyes gazed up into intimidating dark brown. The human took a step back from the man dressed in all black. He was tall, even taller than Mahaad, and it made Yugi feel like a small child standing before the other.

Before Yugi could open his mouth, the man with black hair slicked back, knelt down on one knee and began to fix Yugi's tie, tying the piece of long silk in perfect trinity knot. Once he was finished with that, the man dressed in all black, unbutton Yugi's jacket, only to refasten it correctly. The mysterious male also added a silk handkerchief to Yugi's left breast pocket that matched the color of his vest, golden cuff-links to the cuffs of his jacket, and hooked a golden pocket watch to the front right belt loop of Yugi's pants and stuffed it in the human's right pocket. Finally, to top off Yugi's outfit, the man in black pulled out a velvet red box from his back pocket and revealed a pin with the crest of the royal family on it. The elegant hieroglyphics had been elegantly crafted in white gold, with aged gold in the background of the pin. Yugi drew in a sharp breath when it was attached to the top left lapel of his jacket.

"You are decent now," The man's voice was like a whisper. Yugi barely registered the other had spoken, until the man was standing again and leading him away to a different section of the plane.

They approached a door, which was quickly opened by the man in black, holding it open for Yugi to entered. With a slight blush, Yugi entered the room and muttered a thank you to the man. As he walked in, the human was caught off guard when the male that held door open suddenly began to speak. "Now entering, his highness, royal feeder to Prince Yami Sennen, our young lord, Yugi Mutou."

Immediately the occupants in the room sank to one knee, their heads bowed, a hand over their hearts. Catching the sight, Yugi became flustered, a dark red blush covered his enter face as he noticed the ones bowing to him were Yami's Sacred Guardians, the only one not bowing was the prince himself. Yami's face displayed a highly amused smirk, even showing of his fangs slightly. Seeing that arrogant smirk on the vampire's face, infuriated Yugi greatly.

"That wasn't a very good joke," Yugi called Yami out, storming towards the other while ignoring the muffled laughter of the Guardians. "You'll have to try harder if you're aiming to be a comedian."

"You must be mistaken, this isn't a joke Yugi," Yami coolly defended himself, Taking a step back when Yugi got too close to him for comfort.

"Lord Mutou, the way Sir Bastion introduced you is your formal introduction. It will be used at anytime you are entering an important meeting or event," Lady Isis spoke warmly with her obvious mirth being displayed in her light blue eyes. "It is apart of the tradition in our culture."

Yugi blinked and found his face warming up again with his embarrassment from his lack of knowledge on the formalities that came with his new position and title. Deep, but soft chuckles drifted into Yugi's ears, and the human snapped his attention back to the vampire that had claimed him. Leaning against a wall closer to the back of the dark conference style room, was Yami trying to quieten his laughter with the hand not supporting his body. His crimson eyes were like a burning fire. Those red eyes, those beautiful pools of fire, reminded Yugi of Atem.

"S-Shut up!" Yugi hissed, turning his head away from Yami and felt his embarrassment growing even more intense.

Although he had turned away from Yami, Yugi let his eyes glimpse towards the other male and gaze at his attire. Yami's body was fitted with a sterling white suit without a single blemish. His own vest was the exact same color as Yugi's, while his tie was the dark magenta of his vest with white stripes. He lacked a handkerchief in his breast pocket, but a beautiful red rose had replaced it. Other than the absence of the handkerchief, everything Yami wore was just like Yugi, except where the human wore grey, Yami bore white.

The human cracked a smile as he caught Yami wiping his eye, this was the first time Yugi had seen the other this...relaxed. His reaction hadn't been that funny, at least to Yugi it hadn't been, but maybe Yami was just one of those people who was easy to make them laugh. Yugi's eyes sparkled with his hypothesis, he would have to test it out later when they didn't have to be so formal.

"If an introduction to us had the human flustered, imagine what will happen tonight when he is introduced, "Karim spoke with a chuckle. "He may cause the prince to soil himself."

Both Yugi and Yami froze in their place for different reasons after Karim's statement.

"I would not soil myself, I have a much more self control than you credited me, Karim," Yami quickly defended himself, crossing his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes playfully at the older vampire.

While Yami handled the statement with ease, Yugi on the other hand, did not. The human had briefly forgotten about what his presence at the Gathering would mean. Dropping his head, Yugi let his bangs hide his face as he gazed at his polished shoes. He was going to be introduced not only to the vampires as Yami's personal feeder, but also to the International Vampire Hunter Association. They would know. They would know that another Mutou had chosen to side with the vampires. Like his grandfather secretly had… like his...like his parents had openly done.

Yugi bit his lower lip and balled up his hands. He felt guilt twist in his stomach as he thought about what Mai and Rebecca would think of him after they heard his new title and seeing him stand next to Yami? What if someone leaked out information regarding to his training with the IVHA? A firm pat to his back, caused Yugi's head to jerk up. Violet hues met crimson irises unexpectedly.

"Stop,"Yami spoke firmly.

"Huh?"

"Stop worrying about tonight," Yami replied, his tone softer though his face was an unreadable mask of a ruler. "Focus on yourself and not others, that is all you need to do. You have the Sacred Guardians and myself to help should something not go to plan."

Yugi blinked a few times at the vampire before him. For once, it felt like Yami cared for him rather than just putting up 'the human'. It was oddly...nice of the vampire.

Offering a true smile, Yugi gave a slight nod of his head, "Thanks Yami."

"You need to relax, most of those who are attending the Gathering knows that you didn't sign up for this position." Yami stepped away from Yugi, straightening his own jacket. "Don't worry about what others think your say, it's of no concern to you. You have yet to have done anything that has warranted any foul play, nor have you even abused your position."

"Abused my position? What do you mean by that, Yami?" Yugi tilted his head innocently in confusion, his violet eyes locked on Yami.

The vampire visibly tensed with his shoulders going rigid. "I-I'll tell you later. It's not important at the moment. " The vampire brushed off the question while refusing to meet Yugi's eyes.

"My sire, you have not told him yet?" Mahaad spoke up surprised with his grey eyes focused on Yami's tense form.

"Tell me what?" Yugi straightened up and peered past Yami to Mahad standing on his other side. Yugi could see Yami flex his hands while his bangs created a shadow over his eyes.

"Of all the things,-I cannot believe you've failed to inform Lord Mutou on what his position of being your feeder means!" Lady Isis scolded Yami, her icy blue eyes glaring at the ruler, which Yami turned his head away to avoid her look like a sulking child.

"I've been busy, you're aware of that, Isis," Yami stated with no wavering in his voice.

Sighing Isis closed her eyes before opening them and looking at Yugi. " Yugi, as the Prince's feeder, you are granted the status that is equal to that of a pureblood lord, thus, are of nobility in the Vampire Kingdom. Along with it, you are granted the ability to command servants, have access to all rooms within the Muran estate, you may sit in on the meeting with the pureblood family, you are provided the best services and cares the kingdom can offer, you may fly to any destination of your choice without cost, automatic-pardon from crimes not deemed as capital offenses within the Vampire Kingdom, and any luxuries you may desire. Also, for your service by providing a vampire your blood, you are given a set amount of pay by your employer at the end of each month, and given full health and life insurance for you and your family free of charge, just like any other feeder in the world."

Yugi's eyes widened in amazement, shocked by the newly discovered information Yami nor the I.V.H.A. had mentioned to him. "That's...That's just incredible!" The human bundled his hands to into loose fists as he moved to press against Yami in attempt to gain the other's full attention. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I just didn't-"

"Were you scared of me only wanting to be your feeder out of greed?" Yugi jested.

Yami's cheeks turned a soft pink as he looked away. "Shut up, that wasn't why. "

Smiling Yug, folded his arms behind his back as he peered up at the pureblood vampire. "Uh huh, I'm sure that's the reason why, Mr. Sensitive."

The human couldn't help but feel like the rest of the trip to the Gathering was going be filled with the fun of teasing the prince.


The sky was bathed in the fading warm tones of twilight when the private plane Yugi and Yami traveled on, reached its destination and landed at a remote airport. They exited the aircraft not even a minute after it had safely came to a complete stop, with Yami in the lead. The vampire exited in a rush, onlookers oblivious to the meaning of his urgency to leave the solid black aircraft. Lagging behind him was the Sacred Guardians and the royal vampire's feeder who, was try hard to keep a professional front and not let their laughter ruin their image.

The hour before the plane carrying the Prince and Yugi arrived back on solid ground, was spent with Mahaad and Yugi taking turns giving the pureblood vampire a hard time with their playful taunts and assumptions. In that one short hour, Yugi had seen a side of Yami that he had only witnessed a few times a school with the older male. He had seen Yami blush, become flustered, defensive, and the vampire had even been in a playful mood himself. After seeing the vampire being the most relaxed Yugi had ever witnessed while in his presence, the human began noticing some of the things that must have made Atem fall in love with Yami. Like Yami's laugh, for an example. The Prince had such a pleasant laugh, not to light or dark, with just the right rhythm of 'ha' syllables.

Yugi's violet eyes were soft, but bright as he watch Yami all but run to a group of men dressed in completely white suits. Picking up his pace, Yugi separated himself from the Sacred Guardians to catch up to the vampire. The moment he saw another plane softly glide to a stop on the runway, Yugi perked up even more as he spotted the Kaiba Corp. logo printed on the rear fin of the elegant grey plane. Immediately forgetting Yami for a moment, Yugi turned the direction of his path and started heading to the new plane. He wanted greet his friends and chat with them for a moment before they started traveling again.

Before Yugi could even make it to halfway mark to the other plane, two firm hands grabbed his shoulders and redirected his path of travel towards a black stretched Hummer limousine. Yugi tilted his head back to see it was Yami redirecting him towards the over zealous car. Scowling, the human planted his feet and refused to move, causing the Vampire to look down at him in annoyance.

"You can talk to your friends soon, we need to go ahead and leave. I'd rather not mingle with the nobles, they'll put us behind schedule," Yami answered Yugi's unvoiced defiant comment.

"As long as I get to talk to them before the Gathering starts," Yugi bargained with the vampire, not moving an inch.

"You shall. Marik and Bakura will be joining us shortly, the same with Katsuya and the Kaiba brothers. Now can we please go?" Yami's crimson eyes gazing into Yugi's violet hues, reflected Yami's hidden annoyance and demanded that his request not to be denied.

Silently letting his head lower back to its normal position, Yugi started walking towards the limousine with little resistance. "You better be right, or you will not like me later," The human muttered his reply as he obediently walked to the over-sized black car.

A large man in white with pointed hair, wearing a wired earpiece and black shade, opened the car door as Yami and Yugi approached the vehicle. "Don't worry," Yami spoke up as the human used the lower foot rail to climb into the stretched Hummer, "I already don't like you."

Yugi's breath caught in his throat, but he didn't let Yami's cruel words to show on his outside. He kept silent as he enter the expensive vehicle and tried to keep his emotions from raging out of control. Just when he thought that he and this vampire could settle their difference and forge some kind of friendship, Yami had reverted back to being an asshole. The human wasn't sure if he could handle being around someone so bull-headed and cold like Yami for the remainder of his life.

The human pushed the negativity out of his mind and let his mind become engrossed in the stunning interior of the limousine. It was stunning, with dark hard wood floors, white leather seating, a round seating section in the back, a long row of seats on the right hand side of the car, a love seat on the left with a mini bar stock with like crystal wine glasses and the best of vampire alcohol, and a single seat on the other side of the mini bar towards the front cabin of the limousine.

Quick on his feet, Yugi quickly took the single seat towards the front of the car. Yami had spoiled his mood for talking and the human wanted to be seated by himself during their car ride. He pulled his phone out from him his pocket and turned the device on, now that he was no longer on an airplane. As Yugi waited for the device to hum to life, he looked up and watch as Yami took a seat in the middle of the round sectional of seats in the back while the four Sacred Guardians took their seats. Shada and Mahaad took the two seats on the love-seat, while Isis and Karim sat close to Yami on the long sectional on the right side of the car.

Once they were settled, The door was shut and the car immediately began to move. Yugi let his head rest against the window, Yugi's violet eyes focused on watching the outside world while the inner court of the Vampire Kingdom began to speak to one another.

"My sire, how are we going to explain the absence of Aknadin?" Shada questioned.

"We tell the public the truth, he betrayed the kingdom by trying to kill the leader of the Vampire kingdom and has fled," Yami replied casually, leaning back in his seat.

"Very well, but he nobles know the true truth of the matter," Isis responded calmly.

"The nobles will view it as me implying that it was the late Pharaoh's life that had been in danger not my own."

"You're not thinking of trying to compel the nobles are you? Your power may not be strong enough to do so!" Mahaad spoke up with urgency, causing Yugi who to glance at the man dressed in his traditional white robes of his ancient homeland.

"I am more than capable of doing so, Mahaad," Yami immediately countered. "We five are the eldest living beings with sanity in the world. My blood is much stronger than the nobles, the eldest one is barely in his mid-hundreds. Compelling them will be easy, the difficult task is isolating each of the eleven nobles."

Yugi fidgeted in his seat and returned his gaze to watching the blurry landscape outside of his widow as the car speed to their destination. 'Yami still doesn't know,' Yugi thought to himself. 'So that means Atem is still considered a high class rogue vampire.'

"And your retirement? Are you still planning on announcing it?" Karim asked, causing the car to fall silent.

Yugi let his eyes once again wonder towards the group of vampires again, completely baffled by the question. 'Yami has planned to retire? Since when?'

"I do not believe that is an option any longer, " The royal replied with a soft sigh. "With At-The late pharaoh loose in the world and Aknadin no longer a possible candidate for succession, I must hold on to my claim to the throne until my life has finally been put to an end."

Yugi relaxed and turned his gaze away from the group. For some reason, hearing that Yami had plan on retiring made Yugi uneasy. The human didn't know why, but he didn't like the idea. Yami had been the one to establish peace between the humans and vampires. What if the one who replaced him caused another war between the races?

The rest of the conversation between the vampires was deaf to Yugi's ears. The human was too involved with his thoughts to focus on the chatter. It was his mission to spy on the group debating before him, but the human couldn't bring himself to listen anymore to their conversation. His mind choosing to warp his earlier thoughts and ponder about when Atem became king again. What will happen? What will the reactions be? Will Yami give the throne up willingly? Or will Atem take it by force?

Yugi closed his eyes, imagining the reign of the pharaoh he had saved from death's grasp. In Yugi's mind he imagined Atem would rule much like Yami, but with more enthusiasm and with more passion. He could see the ancient king on a golden throne with his typical proud smirk with Yami by his side. They would be the perfect team; Atem the one with strategy and power, and Yami the one with experience and knowledge. The rogue vampires would be vanquished and the peace between the races would eternal.

With Vampire Kingdom under Atem's rule, the I.V.H.A. would be extinguished. Yugi and his grandpa would be released from the hunters. He wouldn't have to worry anymore. His friends would be safe from Pegasus, his secret would no longer matter, and the best thing of all, Yugi wouldn't have to risk his life by living a double life. With Atem in control of the vampires, everything would be okay. The great king would bring the world the peace it had been longing for so long.

A light shake of his shoulder caused Yugi to slowly open his eyes and turn to see who was shaking him. Isis stood bent over him looking down at him with a kind smile. "Sorry to disturb your sleep, Lord Mutou, but we've arrived at the harbor. You need to wake up so we can depart for the castle the Gathering is hosted at."

Sleep?! Yugi sat up straight and used both of his hands to rub the sleep out of his eyes. "Sorry, I'm up. I didn't mean to fall asleep," Yugi replied sheepishly, feeling embarrassed for falling asleep so easily.

"It's quite all right, shall we get going now?" Isis smiled, despite her suggestion, she was already heading for the closest exit in the limousine.

"Yeah," Yugi replied, following the guardian's lead and exiting the black stretched Hummer limousine. Outside, Yugi was surprised to see the last rays of the sun was now gone and world had gone dark. The New Year's Eve night was a moonless night, and lights from the harbor kept the stars from appearing in Yugi's line of sight.

The human followed closely to the priestess, only catching glimpses of the massive boats the past as she lead him to the vampire he would pledging his life to soon. When they arrived, Yugi was in awe at the massive yacht Isis had lead him to. The boat already roared with life and waited to be released into her voyage. As he boarded the magnificent vessel, the human suddenly found himself surrounded the moment his foot touch the smooth wooden finish of the boat's main deck.

"There you are, Yugi!" Ryou's thick accent greeted him first as his friends rushed over to him as if the human had called out to them. Immediately, Yugi's grogginess from his short nap cleared and he was beaming at his friends with his signature smile.

"Sorry for being late, I fell asleep in the car," Yugi admitted with a light laugh and rubbed the back of his head. "I kinda got bored."

" 'Nough said, pal," Jou slung his arm around Yugi's shoulder and gazed down at him with excitement and humor in his eyes. "I'd be put to sleep too, if I had to listen to those old geezers talk about politics and stuff for an entire car ride."

"Only because Seto Kaiba wouldn't be there to entertain you during it. Marik tells me that's the only reason why you choose to-"

Malik's teasing ended short when Jonouchi released Yugi to chase the blonde Egyptian with shouts of curses and insults spewing from his mouth. Yugi watch the two blondes round around the ship's deck, laughing as Malik managed to evade Jou's grasp each time the vampire came close in capturing him.

"I must say Yugi, you look very dashing in your outfit. I'm quite surprised that Yami put some thought into what would look good on you," Ryou spoke up as he stood by Yugi while they watched their other two friends run around the boat.

Yugi glanced at Ryou and offered a kind smile to his foreign friend. "Thank you, Ryou, but I have a feeling Yami wasn't the one to have chosen my outfit. His designers must have just copied his in a rush to get it ready...given the short time they had to prepare it," Yugi replied skeptical of the royal vampire's input into his current formal attire.

"Actually Yugi, Yami prefers to oversee the designs of his attire. He actually helps me get Bakura dressed for events like the Gathering," Ryou informed Yugi with an all-knowing smile.

Yugi turned to face his friend with an expression of shock, his eyes wide and his mouth open as he stared at Ryou. "Are you serious?"

The white hair male laughed and gave a firm nod of his head to Yugi. "Completely. He only wears things he thinks that makes him appear regal."

"Y-Yeah," Malik agreed with Ryou as he came running over and using his two friends not chasing him, as human meat shields. "Too bad he...he doesn't put that much thought into the actual Gathering. It's so lame!"

Jonouchi came running up to them not too long afterwards, panting as he flopped over and placed his hands on his knees. "Damn! That's cheating Malik!" Jou complained, glaring at the Egyptian as he hid behind their friends with a smirk.

"All is fair in love and war, Jou," Malik teased as he wrapped his arms around both Ryou and Yugi.

"This ain't war, and I for sure don't love your ass!"

Ryou and Yugi snickered at their two friends bickering with each other. As Malik and Jou continued with their friendly banter, Yugi looked around or their other friend; Honda. He dan't seen him since before they departed the airport back in Domino City. "Hey guys, where is Honda at?"

"Oh yeah, you don't know do ya'?" Jou voiced his realization and stood up and straightened out his white suit jacket and dark golden vest. "Honda got a call from his mom, said it was important and had to bail on tonight."

"Ah, I hope it wasn't anything bad, maybe we can hang out after the Gathering," Yugi said as he wiggled out of Malik's grasp. Just as he freed himself From his friend, Yugi found himself losing his balance as the yacht unexpectedly lurched forward and began to pull away from the docks. The seventeen year old fell backwards onto his butt, while his friends had held onto the railing provided on the boat, fully prepared for the boat's sudden take off.

"You good there, pal?" Jou asked Yugi with suppressed laughter and held out a hand or Yugi to take.

"Yeah I am, a little warning would have been nice," Yugi grumbled out as her took Jou's hand and let his best friend pull him up to his feet.

As Yugi dusted his suit off from any dirt that might have gotten on it, both Bakura and Marik exited from the massive cabin of the boat and was stalking toward Yugi and his group of friends. The sinister men were dressed alike in stunning white suits, but with different vests. Bakura had a light blue vest that matched Ryou's, and Marik wore a deep violet vest that also matched his feeder's Malik's vest. When the duo reached the group, the vampires were quick to still their lovers and feeders away from their friends.

"Let's go Ryou."

"Malik, we're leaving."

Jou and Yugi watched as their two feeder friends were stolen away from them without being able to say a proper goodbye. Bakura had pulled Ryou into the cabin with a hand around the white haired teen's waist, while Malik was pulled by the wrist by Marik as the vampire lead him to a different entrance to the cabin.

"Where are they take Ryou and Malik?" Yugi asked jou, looking up at the blonde with confusion.

"Most likely to lay their scent on their partners. It's a thing that we vamps like to do with our lovers before they go into big crowds and stuff," Jou answered and slung an arm over Yugi's shoulders. "Care to move our party of two to the front of the boat?"

Yugi smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "Why not? I wouldn't mind sharing an iconic Titanic moment with one of my best friends."

Jou snorted as he lead Yugi to the front of the yacht and removed his arm from the human's shoulders in favor of putting both his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, but I'm not holdin' your waist or anything if you go and stand on the rail like an idiot."

"And what if I do? Can I trust you to catch me if I fall overboard?" Yugi asked his friend with a teasing smile.

"I'd be the one to push your ass off the boat!" Jou spoke with a bright laugh and walked over to the front railing of the boat. The blonde leaned forward and rested his arms on the railing. "It's gonna be nice getting to spend New Year's with the entire group again, even though we're gonna be at a snooze-fest."

Yugi smiled as he joined his friend leaning against the boat's safety rail, standing next to Jonouchi. "Yeah, it's been awhile hasn't it?"

"Mhmm," Jonouchi gazed out at the darkness ahead of them, frowning. "I can't shake this feelin' I got. It's like somethin' bad is about to happen. I know it's not like me to get all mushy and stuff, but lately life has been goin' to shit for us. I can't shake this feelin' like tonight is goin' to be a bad one."

Yugi looked up at his friend with a concerned look. "So you feel the same way too?" Yugi said with surprise, before gazing out at the large body of water before them. "Maybe it's just my nerves, but I feel like tonight might not be as 'cheery' as we all hope for."

"I don't think it's just your nerves pal," Jou replied to Yugi with a sigh. "Some bad things are happening within our little vampire community." The blonde made his hands into tight fists. "There's this creep that's crazy and on the loose. And before you go a make assumptions, it's not your typical vampire or rogue vampire. This guy is….he's…" Jou looked around them before leaning down to whisper in Yugi's ear.

"He's one of those legendary guys. He's an Original vampire."

The human took in a deep breath and looked at Jonouchi with wide eyes. He could barely believe that Jou knew about Atem. It was even harder for Yugi to accept the fact that Yami had told his best friend of all people, about the potentially dangerous creature Atem is. Yugi was in such great shock, he only mutter a barely verbalized, "What?"

"That's what I said when Yams first told me. I couldn't believe that such a old wives' tale was true," Jou said with a chuckle.

Yugi shook his head fast before looking up at his friend with his still widen eyes. "No, I know the information is true. I'm just curious how you of all people know about it. No offense, Jou."

"None taken', pal," The blonde chuckled lightly, and gave a gentle pat on the back to Yugi. The vampire's hand slid up to rest on his human friend's shoulder and gave it a tight, but gentle squeeze. "See, I've been needing to tell you somethin' for a while now, but I just couldn't find the proper time or way to spit it out. Guess now's a good time to come clean." The vampire took in a deep breath before exhaling it in a loud sigh and let go of Yugi. He folded his arms on the boat's railing and gazed straight ahead, his posture suddenly rigid and stiff.

" 'Bout three months ago, the Prince approached me and asked if I wanted to be a part of an allegiance that was entirely devoted to him. At first I didn't want to and turned him down, but after thinkin' over it, I accepted Yams' offer and became apart of the few men he personal trusts and uses for things he can't be involved 'publicly' with. To make a long story short, I'm now wokin' with Bakura and Marik, but only a few people know about me. That's how I know about this original guy and Yug', I'm worry for you. The more I keep thinkin' about 'him' the more I worry about you and the more keep relating him to your cousin. You've never mentioned having any other relatives other than Gramps…"

Yugi remained silent when Jonouchi's voice trailed off. The human wasn't sure what to say, he couldn't lie to his best friend, but he had too. Clenching his fist, Yugi look straight ahead towards the empty waters in front of him and his friend. He wouldn't lie to his best friend, he couldn't.

"I don't like talking much about my family," Yugi admitted to the vampire and slowly relaxed as his eyes softened to a sad gaze. "It's not a very bright topic, so I tend to keep quiet about it and you don't have to worry Jou. I know you think I could be compelled, but I'm not. Everything that revolves around my cousin has been completely my doing and choice. Besides, I'm not like normal humans. I can't be compelled easily. " Yugi glance to the side at his friend, offering him a goofy smile. "While you were away one your little 'vacation' last year, I took a class offered to the public by the Hunter Association to detect the signs of compulsion from vampires and how to fight it. My mind is a still trap and completely sound. There's no need to worry about me."

"Yug' I'll always worry about you, you're my best pal!" Jou immediately responded to Yugi and almost knocked the younger teen over as he hugged him from the side. "Ain't nothin' in this world that can change that fact!"

Yugi couldn't help but laugh and pat Jonouchi's arm as he was hugged by his best friend. "You know, it's hard to believe that you can't find a girl despite being a very dotting person. " The human gave his friend a teasing glance as he changed the subject to keep from Jou from prying any further about his situation. "Or maybe you aren't looking for one? Hmm?"

Jou let Yugi go with his face turning a pale red as he looked away from Yugi and rubbed the back of his head. "Geez, are you really startin' this shit up again. Can't a guy catch a break around you?"

"Nope!"

Jonouchi groaned and glanced down at the smirking Yugi before he sighed and looked away again."We've been through this. I'm picky about my partners. They've got to have the right stuff, both inside and out. It doesn't do any good if they've got a fine ass but are an ass. Besides, I don't see you sporting anyone on your arm either, Yug'."

The human blushed and rubbed his arm shyly. "Well, it's not out of lack of trying. Everyone I take an interest to is already preoccupied with someone else. So I'm just...you know, waiting for someone to take an interest in me."

"No shame in that, no shame." Jonouchi replied nodding his head. "You never know who you might stumble upon in your life that'll end up being your lover."

"Mhmm," the human hummed, smiling as he faced forward again. With his focus back on the open sea, Yugi was quick to notice the faint glowing in the distance and a dark shape rising out of the water indicating land. "Is that the place?" Yugi asked Jonouchi, pointing a finger at the glowing dark mass that grew slowly before them.

Putting a hand over his eyes and leaning forward, Jou gazed ahead of him before humming in acknowledgement. "That it is, my matey! Land Ho!"

Yugi snorted and elbowed his friend in the ribs gently. "You're such a dork."

"Yeah, but I'm your dork!" Jou teased back with a wide grin before pushing from the railing. "I'm gonna head inside to tell the others, do you wanna come or…?"

The human thought for a moment before shaking his head no. "I think I'll stay out here for a bit. I need to clear my head before I have to start dealing with my responsibilities as a royal feeder."

"Alright pal, I'll see on the docks then!" Jou gave a wave before went to go inside the yacht's cabin.

Once Yugi was sure the vampire was out of hearing range, he sighed and rested his forehead on the cool railing, trying to calm his nerves that started build. He just needed to relax and calm down. The less he worried and stressed over the Gathering, the faster it would pass. Lifting his head and looking towards the dark island ahead of him, Yugi forced himself to relax and smile.

"You'll be okay. Everything will be just fine." He chanted to himself quietly. "You've got this, just remember it's just like a game of chess. It's just a game."


Yugi had never been through something that was as tense as the moment their boat finally docked at the small harbor of the private island the Gathering was being hosted on. Not even the deadliest mission had been on, could compare to this moment in his life. Just minutes before they had made landfall, Yami appeared by his side and gave him brief instructions on how to act and to not leave his side at all until after they had reached the 'staging' room. Yugi had agreed without any resistance, knowing that Yami would protect him from danger. Just like he had promised last night to do, and during the light earlier in the day.

Now, as he stood next to Yami after leaving the boat, Yugi finally felt the reality of the Gathering slowly starting to sink in. It was unnerving and when Yugi's small group of friends started to walk ahead of him and Yami, the human tried to follow, only to be caught by the wrist by Yami; holding him in place by his side. Yugi looked at Yami, expecting and explanation, but only received a cold reprimanding glare. The glare sent a cold chill through Yugi and reminded the human of when the vampire had openly admitted his dislike of Yugi. Biting his lower lip, Yugi turned his head away from Yami, his eyes a downward cast.

He wished he wasn't at Yami's side. Infact, Yugi wished Atem would just hurry up and steal him away from Yami like he had declared he would. Yugi wouldn't resist him, he would gladly go with the former pharaoh. Afterall, Atem was a hell of a lot nicer to him than Yami was, and he and the pharaoh actually had a budding friendship.

When he and Yami started walking, Yugi notice how the Sacred Guardians circled around them, their Sacred Items out in the open and their heads held high. Yugi had once again tried to pull away from Yami to catch up with his friends, But Yami's grip on his wrist only tightened and refused to let Yugi get any farther than a single leg stride ahead of him. Wincing the human turned to glare at the pureblood vampire who kept his gaze straight ahead, not paying attention to Yugi's glare. Huffing, Yugi muttered "Butthole," under his breath, before focusing on following the pathed path way they walked and observed his surroundings.

The moment their parade entered the wooded area of the island, Yugi immediately began to notice a shift in demeanor among their group. He didn't need to wonder why. He spotted several vampire hunters lurking about in the shadows of the trees, out of sight to those not trained or with heightened senses. The human felt Yami's hand tightened on his wrist and Yugi glanced up to see Yami's emotionless poker face showing signs of aggravation and stress. Yugi wiggled his wrist, sliding it out of Yami's grasp and replacing it with his hand. The human gave a gentle and reassuring squeeze to the hand of the vampire hoping it would help him relax a bit.

Their opponent had made their opening move for this game that was the Gathering, and Yugi countered by forcing a confident smile and holding the hand of his vampire. They could not afford to show their weaknesses in front of the keen eyes of the watch vampire hunters.

With Yami's hand in his, Yugi felt more relaxed and it confused him greatly, but he did not show it. Only Atem had this kind of effect on his mind, Yami never could have calmed him like this. Yugi pondered if it was compulsion, but he knew it wasn't for there were no signs of Yami attempting to use any mental methods to try and calm human narrowed his eyes slightly feeling sadden as he came to a possible conclusion, he was starting to compare Yami to Atem.

The walk through the woods was luckily short for the human and the group of vampires he traveled with. Their path had lead them to a massive clearing in the middle of the island where a massive castle like structure laid dormant and was glowing warmly with light and a the light noise of chatter filled the air. Yugi's eyes lit up as he gazed at the scene before him. Although he should have felt intimidated, the young male couldn't help but feel like he was witnessing something from a medieval fairytale. The stone castle was huge and well preserved. The lawn was carefully tended to and a lush green with not a blade of gras out of place. Even the two men standing guard at the massive front doors, seemed surreal to the human.

"How did you find this place?" Yugi voiced his question, still awed as he and Yami took their time to approach the main entrance of the venue. His violet eyes were examining every detail they could.

"I didn't find it, the Eastern Hemisphere's Director of the International Vampire Hunters discovered it a few years ago. It's a Renaissance vacation resort. We rent it for the last two weeks of the year for the Gathering," Yami calmly replied. Yugi felt the vampire's hand relax in his as they approached the door, and it caused the human to smile gently. 'Good, Yami's finally relaxing.'

The seventeen year old had many questions he wanted ask about their magnificent venue, but he held his tongue. They were now at the double door entrance with the two guards stationed in front. One was a man dressed in an all black suit with sunglasses on to hide his eyes, the other was a female dressed in a completely white suit with her own pair of dark sunglasses. Both wore an earpiece, no doubt for receiving and delivering messages with the other security guards working the Gathering.

With no words uttered, and none needing to be said, the guards opened the heavy wooden doors for Yugi and the highest ranking vampires of the Vampire Kingdom. Mahad and Lady Isis had entered first followed by Yami and Yugi with Karim and Shada trailing behind them. The moment Yugi cross the threshold of the entry way, he felt his shoulders grow heavy and his stomach tighten.

This was it. He was here at the Gathering and there was no turning back now. He was willingly continuing the game he played with Devil's minions without Lady Luck on his side. There was no escaping back to a normal life. There was no turning back.

"Calm down Yugi," Yami spoke softly to his feeder, glancing down at the young male as he lead the human towards a room known as the 'staging' room.

Yugi sighed and tried to relax his body, that was when he notice his hand was squeezing Yami's painfully tight. "Sorry, it's just overwhelming," He answered apologetically and loosened his grip on the vampire.

"It's fine, just remember you cannot show them any weakness. You must be firm and stoic like a leader. If the crowd doesn't see you as a one, you have to make them see you as a leader."

Yugi looked at Yami to see the man gazing at him with an emotionless expression, but his eyes were looking at the human with his gaze ahead to watch where he was going, Yugi gave a curt nod to the royal vampire. "I will."

After sever twist and turns, ascending a small staircase, and traveling down several hallways, Yami, Yugi, and Sacred Guardians arrived at their destination. The inside of the staging room was a spacious lobby with light and dark browns accenting the plain beige room. The room itself was nothing special, however, the people inside it was a different story. And when the young Mutou seen just who was in the room, his jaw dropped to the floor.
Yugi was surrounded by legends. People he had dreamed of being able to meet before he was forced into becoming Yami's personal feeder. Before him were seven of the eight legendary hunters of the I.V.H.A., the six hunters who ruled over the divisions within the Association and Maximillion Pegasus himself. While Yugi gawked at the men and women like a child staring at the world's largest candy bar, Yami dragged him along as he began formally greeting some of the most dangerous humans in the world.

Yami used a warm smile and a firm handshake as he greeted each executive member of the International Vampire Hunters Association, before introducing Yugi who dumbly followed Yami's example and shook their hands with a smile.

They had started their round of greetings with Asuka Tenjouin the special ops coordinator and the Australian branch's director. She was fully mature woman with beautiful golden hair and eyes, and wore an elegant deep blue and black cocktail dress that made it easier for her to move in. She had given Yugi a warm smile, but her eyes were cold as she gazed at him with introduced herself and said nothing more, causing unneeded tension between her and the young human. And as they went on to greet the rest of the hunters, Yugi found their own reactions similar to Ms. Tenjouin's.

They went on to greet Zane Truesdale, the Second-in-command of the Eastern Hemisphere sector of the I.V.H.A. and the Russian branch director; Tyranno Hassleberry, the South American branch director, and weapons designer and militia specialist coordinator; Edo Phoenix, the North American branch's director, and the Second-in-command of the Western Hemisphere sector of the I.V.H.A; and Crow Hogan, the Iceland branch director and the frontline coordinator and stealth force leader. It wasn't until Yugi and Yami had greeted Rio Kamshiro, the South African Director and interracial relations coordinator, and her twin brother Ryoga Kamshiro, head of Research and development and the North African Director; when they were greeted with a different reaction other than false siles and bitter judgement.

Rio was smiling brightly at them and instead of accepting a handshake, the female had given hugs to both Yami and Yugi, stating, "It's good to see Yami has finally took up a human partner!"

Ryoga on the other didn't even bother with a handshake or introducing himself, as his gentle sister took care of his own introduction. He kept silent and had his arms crossed over his chest while he glared at both Yami and Yugi.

Finally, Yami and Yugi made it to the one and only, Maximillion Pegasus, the Japanese branch's director, and Head Director/Representative of the Western sector of the International Vampire Hunters Association. Dressed in an all black suit like the rest of the male vampire hunters, Pegasus had distinguished himself by wearing a bright red tie with a red rose pinned to his breast pocket. Yugi felt Yami tense beside him, his smile long gone.

"Director Pegasus," Yami spoke shortly, his free hand not holding Yugi's outstretched for the powerful hunter to shake.

"Prince Sennen, how wonderful to see you again," Pegasus spoke calmly in a carefree manner as he took Yami's hand and shook it, but neither man released the other's hand after the action.

"I caught yet another one of your men treading in a place the shouldn't have been, Max. Care to explain?"

"He was just observing the festive events of your birthday, nothing more. Besides, I've heard that you've been having trouble within your own domain. Issuing a warning to the vampire community without any detail other than to look out for a suspicious 'person'," Pegasus' voice took a darker turn his one brown eye narrowing as he gazed down at Yami. "I see you've even lost one another one of your Sacred Guardians. What a pity."

"Neither of those subjects are of your concern. You should focus on your own kind. Like your partner. I see that the Eastern Director failed to show again. Are you sure he his properly fit enough to govern the Hunters' Association?" Yami countered, his own eyes narrowing, but his voice was flat and never rose with his bubbling anger.

"Hmmm,"Pegasus continued to stare at Yami for a moment longer, before his gaze shifted to Yugi and he smiled brightly at the youth. "Yugi, my dear boy, how are you? I'm shock to see you here with Yami, I thought you wanted to follow in your grandfather's footsteps."

Yugi, jumped slightly when Pegasus suddenly started speaking to him so familiar and even brought up his grandpa of all people. He felt Yami's burning gaze on him and refused to look at the vampire as he tried to cover his ass due Pegasus' words. Sometimes Yugi wondered if the the director loved to see him squirm under pressure.

"I'm well, sir. I hope you are the same," Yugi started off, smiling warmly at pegasus, but his eyes were hard with unspoken fury. "No, I had no intentions of following my grandfather's footsteps. Those were only rumors, I want to be my own person."

Pegasus smiled before laughing and placing a hand on Yugi's shoulder and shaking the boy lightly. "Ah, that answer never changes, does it?" The director asked with a bright smile that made Yugi relax a little and his anger towards the other quickly faded. It had just been idly conversation to fool Yami. "I'm glad you want to stay out of such violent ways, but it is a bit of a shock to see you as Yami Sennen's feeder. Oh, where are my manners? Yami,-" Pegasus turned his gaze to the leader of the vampire race, "Yugi and I know each other through his grandfather. Solomon and I grew up together and I occasionally go over to his home for visits with my old friend, isn't that right Yugi-boy?"

"Y-Yes!" Yugi automatically answered and looked at yami with a nervous smile."Sorry I never told you, It just didn't seem important."

Yami sighed through nose, some of his tension seemed to visibly fade away as he nodded in understandment. "It's fine, but it was quite the shock, I have to admit." The vampire offered a smile to Yugi.

The human felt his chest grow tighter when he seen the smile Yami gave him. It was fake, to make it appear that he cared about and liked Yugi, but the human knew better. Letting go of Yami's hand, Yugi feed himself from Yami's grip and pointed over to a plush arm chair in the far left corner of the room. "I'm going to go sit and wait over there. I need to mentally prepare myself for what's to come."

"Very well." Yami didn't protest when Yugi left his side, instead, Yugi was positive he welcomed it as he engaged in a more political conversation with Pegasus after Yugi's departure.


After taking a seat in the arm chair he and pointed at, Yugi slumped back into the comfortable chair and closed his eyes as he tied to relax his already tired body. He needed to focus on himself, on the official set of rules for Feeders he was going to be reciting to the public in just a few short minutes. His opponent had managed to rattle his nerves with that last moved he had made in their deadly game. Now it was time for Yugi to counter and make a strong comeback.

As the human focused on going over the list of rule mentally, he heard a man addressing the vamp hunters, telling them that it was time for their introductions. Yugi could already hear the familia voices of both Ryuuji Otogi and Mai Kujaku addressing the crowd that awaited him. Minutes passed like seconds to Yugi, causing the human to feel nauseous as his neves slow overtook his senses.

A gentle pat to his shoulder caused Yugi to open his eyes and look at a stern vampire said nothing to Yugi and only held out his hand for the boy to take. He didn't need to, Yugi knew that it was time to seal his fate permanently.

Taking Yami's hand, Yugi let the other pull him up from the chair and lead him out o the staging room and down the hallway. The huma could hear Otogi introducing Lady Isis and announcing he rank with in the Vampire Lady Isis let the line of Sacred Guardians to enter the area the Gathering was being hosted in, Yugi noticed Mahad stepping up to replace where Isis had stood, and Yami following suit. Yugi looked down at his feet. Karim and Shada had already been announced, and now it was almost his and Yami's turn.

Yugi steeled his nerves and thought of the calming feeling Atem always provided him. He needed that familiar sense of comfort right now. Yugi heard Mahad's title be announced and looked up to see the man walking straight ahead with confidence. Yugi took a deep breath and tried to calm himself before nodding to himself. "Alright, I'm ready."

Yami chuckled softly and shook his head. "Than prove it to them."

Yugi cut his eyes at the man before he broadened his shoulders and held his head up high. "I don't need to, they'll know as soon as they see me." 'I'll carry myself like a ruler, like I'm a king. Just like what Atem does.'

"Ladies and gentleman, I now introduce to you our beloved ruler of the Vampire Kingdom. He is strongest of our kind, the purest of pureblood vampires, the last remaining member of the Sennen pureblood line, the mate of our beloved late ruler of the Muran bloodline, with powers unmatched by any other existing vampire, he is well on his way to becoming one of the Original vampire Bloodline. All hail honorable Prince Yami Sennen, ruler of the vampire kind and the Vampire Kingdom!"

Yami began walking at an unhurried pace with his head held high and Yugi, mimicked the vampire with every step they took together. When they came to the end of the hallway, two massive double doors were propped open and revealing the bright open area the Gathering was held in. Yami tightened his grasp on Yugi's hand before raising their hands up in the air still clasp together like he and Yugi were a team of gladiators entering the Roman Colosseum.

Yugi kept his proud poker face in place as he and Yami stepped into the center of everyone's attention, despite how he want to show his surprise at the gorgeous space he was witnessing. He and Yami stood on the top of a massive grand staircase that cascaded down to the large regal appearing ballroom of the castle resort. The walls were a vivid red and the floors a pristine white marble. The high ceilings were vaulted with a massive chandelier of silver and glass hanging beautifully and threatening, over the heads of the Gathering's guests.

"Prince Sennen has been blessed by the heavens this year and has had worthy human who has chosen to stand by his side as his Feeder!" Yugi heard Yami snot softly at Otogi's comment, but kept his eyes on the massive crowd below him. The human noticed the camera crews in the back, recording and airing his debut as Yami's Feeder, live to the whole world. " Hailing from the great city if Domino, in the country of Japan, his highness, Royal Feeder to Prince Yami Sennen, our young lord, Yugi Mutou!"

Cheers and gasp echoed in the grand ballroom after Yugi was announced to the world as Yami's official feeder. There was officially no going back now. The human was officially trapped on the path to Hell, but he would give up hope for his chance of getting into the Heavens. When Yami walked forward, exposing them more to the crowd, Yugi took this chance to make his own impression on the his emotionless vampire counterpart who chose not to smile or look directly at the crowd, Yugi faced his demons head on with a bright confident smile and he head held up proudly.

They stood next to Director Pegasus and only then, did Yami lower their hands and Yugi take his eyes off the crowd to look to the vampire for guidance on what was to come next.

"Welcome to the Twelfth annual Gathering and Thank you for coming to witness history in the making as we come together to celebrate another year of peace between our two races: human and vampire!" Yami spoke loudly, his voice peaceful, but still commanding and fierce.A smile graced his features as he looked at the crowd, more specifically the cameras, and Yugi quickly mimicked the vampire with his own gentle smile on his face.

"Today we welcome another beginning of a year together and celebrate the ending of the previous year that we had spent in peace. We will also be resigning our treat of peace!" Pegasus announced proudly with the brightest smile Yugi had ever seen the man use.

"But before that, my Feeder, Yugi Mutou, will declare his loyalty to the Vampire Kingdom and myself before you all with a speech, as a part of our tradition in the vampire race!" Yami boldly announced and released Yugi's hand in the process.

Yugi masked his nervousness and confusion expertly with his smile as he walked toward the podium both Mai and Otogi stood next to. He wasn't aware that he was going to be given a speech, why hadn't Yami told him that? The human ignored the shocked looked from Mai and the excited thumbs up from Otogi as he took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

Stepping up to the podium, Yugi adjust the microphone's height and distance so the crowd would get the best sounds it picked up. Looking down at the wooden surface of the podium, Yugi notice their was speech that had already been cleverly written for him. That was one less worry he had.

Yugi returned his gaze to the crowd and gave them his biggest smile, one he typically only used around his friends and family.

"To be standing he tonight before so many people, is a great honor and privilege. Just a few weeks ago, never in my life would I have imagine I would be-" 'given the pleasure of being his highness' feeder...I'm not saying that!' The human quickly omitted the sentence from the speech and replaced it with his own. " Attending this special occasion where vampires, human feeders, and vampire hunters all come together to celebrate the peace that the hiatus of the war between the Vampire Kingdom and the International Vampire Hunter Association." Yugi disregarded the speech that had been written for him. He wasn't going to read it like some docile servant. No, he would speak to these people with his own words with true thoughts and feelings behind his words.

"Tonight, we are here to renew our hiatus of the war and celebrate another new year of peace between the human and vampire kind. Becoming the Royal Feeder of Prince Yami Sennen, ruler of the noble and long living Vampire Kingdom, was not something I had planned or even thought of. To be frank, neither of us had planned it and was just a mere chance of faith that it had happened. Just a few weeks before Christmas, I was brutally attacked by a group of rogue vampires on my way home. My life at that time, was close to its end as I was chased down by the rogue vampires and viciously beaten. It was during that crucial moment in my life, that Prince Sennen appeared and rescued me from the newly formed monsters, successfully saving my life."

Yugi paused to let his words sink in, not once had he looked down or broke eye contact with his audience. He scanned the crowd evenly, never staring in one direction for too long.

"That night, I offered my blood to the Prince as a offering of thanks for him saving my life and in the hopes I could repay the debts I owed him for doing so. Now, I stand here before both nobles, commoners, and my fellow feeders of the Vampire Kingdom and before the members of the International Vampire Hunter Association, to pledge my undivided loyalty to the person who saved me from one of the worse deaths the could befall a human. As your Royal Feeder, I swear by the blood that flows through my veins, to uphold the standards given to all feeders, to become a role model that all feeders can look up to, and to help make this world a safer place for not just humans, but for all the living creatures that inhabit it. I promise to always make sure that Prince Yami Sennen, the rightful ruler of the Vampire kingdom, will always be in good health and in peak strength. I vow to Vampire Kingdom that I will protect their king, our king, and to be his faithful servant and companion as long as we both shall live. I, Yugi Mutou of Domino City, hereby pledge my undying loyalty to the Vampire Kingdom and its ruler, Prince Yami Sennen and shall serve the beloved Vampire Kingdom along with its people, and their just ruler."

Yugi felt a sense of warmth flow through his body when the participants of the Gathering started to loudly applaud him, with a few guests even whistling and cheering him on. He smiled even bright, a hint of pink dusting his cheeks when he saw Jonouchi in the crowd giving his two large thumbs up and yelling at him that he did a fantastic job. When the crowd finally calmed down and was silent again, Yugi cleared his throat and gazed at straight at the cameras watching in the back of the ballroom, his smile long replaced with a poker face that resembled Yami's unemotional expression.

"As the Royal Feeder, I represent the population of humans who have devoted their lives to support and aid of the vampire race. As a part of an annual tradition, I shall recite the major rules a feeder must uphold, in place of Prince Yami Sennen."

Yugi was silent until he was sure he had everyone's attention solely on him and during his small pause, he reminded himself that this was his move now. It was his turn to be on the offensive and to show the world what the hours of studying had done for him.

"The Feeder's code, also know as the rules of subjugation, are the set or rules, or laws, that a feeder of any vampire must uphold as the provide their services to a vampire. Rule one, a feeder must always obey the command of their vampire, or it is for our protection that they give us a command. Rule two, a feeder must never question their vampire's decisions involving them, the vampire is always thinking with their feeder's will and protection, in mind. Rule three, a feeder must never abandon their vampire or their duties as a vampire's feeder, especially after the bond has been established. This can cause permanent damage to both parties of the bond. Rule four, the bond between feeder and vampire must always stay intact after it is established, for if it is broken or tampered with harmful effects will be inflicted on both parties. Rule five, do not resist feedings, to do so will on put the feeder in danger by triggering the internal instincts inside their vampire due to their vulnerable mind state. I can cause the feeder to become several injured or may even kill the feeder."

Yugi paused as he felt the weight of the next rule bare heavily on him. He kept a calm and continued look straight ahead as he mentally prepared to continue reciting the rules. He just hoped karama wouldn't come back to bite his after he said this, considering that he has already lied to Yami more than once because of Atem and Pegasus.

"Rule six, never speak lies to your vampire, a feeder must always be truthful for trust is the founding principle of the bond and for the feeder's relationship with their vampire. Rule seven, a feeder must not speak of the habits of a vampire's feeding to another feeder or vampire, it is a sacred event that must not be shared. Rule eight, a feeder is forbidden to enter a vampire infested area without the company of a trusted vampire to ensure a feeder's protection. Rule nine, it is forbidden to allow another vampire feed from a feeder after a feeder's bond has been established with their vampire. Finally, rule ten, a feeder is to never betray their vampire or intentionally cause harm to their vampire, for the same is applied vice versa. For it is the ultimate crime a human can commit against a vampire."

A round of applause loudly echoed through the ballroom and Yugi let out a soft sigh through his nose. He was almost done. All he had to do was state the conclusion and pass the control back to the two men of the hour, Pegasus and Yami. "These are the major rules that all feeders must obey and follow in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, they are the law for a feeder. While some are negotiable to be bent at in a time of emergency, others are not in are strictly in place for the protection of human feeders. At this time, I would like for you to give your attention Sir Maximillion J. crawford Pegasus, Representative of the Eastern International Vampire Hunter Association, and Prince Yami Sennen, leader of the Vampire Kingdom!" Yugi finished strong, letting his proud smile return as he stepped away from the podium and out of the center of attention As Pegasus and Yami took his place behind the podium. He was done, finally he could relax and enjoy his New Year's Eve.

Yugi watched in amazement as a woman dressed in all white escorted by several vampire hunter, approached Pegasus and Yami with a black box pressed snugly to her chest. When she handed it to Yami, the prince held it up for all to see. It was the treaty between the Vampire Kingdom and the I.V.H.A. Once it was placed on the podium, Pegasus and Yami both read the treaty's summary in sync to the participants of the Gathering.

"This document hereby formally declares the hiatus of the conflict between The International Vampire Hunter Association and The Vampire Kingdom. It ratifies that the two sides will not hold hostile battles with one another and will resolve matters through civil and peaceful measures. By signing this document, both sides agree to the consequences that should befall them, should they chose to break this treaty."

Once the two men had stopped speaking, they were supplied with pens and both of the men signed the document together. Camera flashes were going off as they signed and afterwards, when both Pegasus and Yami held up the documented treaty with their signatures. Once the whole ordeal was finished, the document was whisked away by the same woman who brought it out, and Pegasus taped on the podium's microphone to gather everyone's attention.

"Now that all the formalities have been taken care of, let the celebration commence and let us welcome the New Year together as one!"


'Slap!'

"What the hell did you think you were doing?!"

Yugi hissed and rubbed his right cheek with his palm, trying to sooth the soreness in it that was caused by Yami's harsh slap. The first moment the pureblood vampire got to sneak out of the crowded ballroom with his feeder, Yami seized only to reprimand Yugi for going off script.

Violet eyes glared at the vampire with a look of both anger and hurt. "I was giving a speech like you failed to tell me about, and from the audience's reaction I thought it was a pretty damn good one!" Yugi fired back his fist curled at his sides as glared at Yami. "If you thought I was going to read some docile servant speech in front of a room full of vampire hunters and excited feeders, then you really do not know me as well as you should."

"I didn't tell you about it because it was to help alleviate the stress of you having to think about writing a speech for the entire world to hear! You're just a young senseless human, you aren't capable of handling that type of stress!" The vampire snapped back, using a hand to grab Yugi's left shoulder and press him back against the wall of the secluded bathroom they were in. "You should be thankful I was think of you when I had it written!"

"I'm not some helpless creature, Yami! I can handle stress just fine, much better than you give me credit for!"

"You do not know that Yugi! You have never been in this type of situation before. You are a seventeen year old human, you are still but an infant compared to me and my kind!"

"Maybe I would know for sure if I could have handled it, if you would have just let me try it. You only caused me more stress in the end!" Yugi countered using a hand to try and pry Yami's hand off him. "Let me go!"

"I caused you nothing! You did to yourself because you refuse to listen to me," Yami hissed out as he only tightened his grip on Yugi's shoulder. "You need to have more respect from me. In your own words, you accepted this as a sign of gratitude for when i saved your life!"

"How can I have respect for you when you don't even respect me!? You don't even like me!" Yugi yelled out and continued to struggle against Yami, the human felt his eyes sting as his anger grew. "You're such a self-righteous asshole. Have once considered how I felt about this situation? Maybe that's why Atem chose to be sealed away, because you only care about what Yami feels and what Yami wants! Maybe that's why he hates you now! Why he attacked you! Because your an asshole who care about nothing other than yourself!"

The purebred vampire's grip went slack and his eyes went wide with the human's harsh words. Yugi took the opportunity to escape from Yami's grasp and moved away from the vampire. "How about next time you assume something, maybe you should actually stop and think if it is actually correct before doing something based off your assumption," the human informed the vampire before he exited the bathroom and returned to the Gathering in search for his friends. He would worry about doing damage control with Yami later when he was actually forced to. For now, Yugi only wanted to forget about the man and spend time with his friends as he salvaged what little time he had left of his New Year's Eve.

Yugi was able to find his friends, Ryou and Malik, rather easily, and it turned out the they had been looking for him too. When they had located each other, Yugi was greeted by hugs and words of praise or his speech, which the human accepted reluctantly with a blush on his face.

"It wasn't that good, I had to make up on the spot, or else I would have had to read some degrading speech Yami had wrote." Yugi rubbed the back of his head and looked away from Malik and Ryou. "Yami and I got in a fight over because I 'went of script' and didn't do what was expected of me."

"Well, I thought it was a brilliant speech, Yugi. It was well thought out and phrased. And very inspirational for us feeders, I look forward to seeing what you'll do in the future," Ryou spoke kindly to his Friend gave Yugi a warm smile. "I just know you'll do marvelous things!"

"I agree with Ry here," Malik spoke up and placed an arm around both Ryou's shoulders and Yugi's, smiling at his shortest friend. "It's a damn good speech, way better than the one Marik read to me. That one was boring and very bland. Nothing like your little spitball."

Yugi felt his cheeks warm up and he nudge Malik lightly in the ribcage. "It wasn't a spit ball, I made sure not to spit or stutter during," Yugi defended himself.

"You sure? That's not what heard from where me and Marik were standing. What did you think Ryou?"

"Well, he did pronounce some of his vowels rather aggressively in some spots."

The human covered his face and groaned, "You've got to be-"

"Yugi!"

Looking up, Yugi spotted a dark haired kid running up to him with a bright smile. The human's mood lifted as he recognized the youngest Kaiba brother running towards him. The human knelt down and caught the running child in his arms as Mokuba Kaiba all but tackled him in a hug.

"Mokuba, what are you doing running around unsupervised? Someone could have easily kidnapped you," The Royal Feeder scolded the young vampire and ruffled his hair as he stood upright.

"If someone did, it would be the Mutt's fault. Big Brother told him to watch me while he went to go talk the Prince," the young Kaiba claimed as he laughed and showed off his wide toothy grin.

"Hey you, brat! I told ya not run of from me like that!" Jonouchi shouted at Mokuba as he maneuvered through crowd to try and catch the wild and energetic kid.

"Uh oh, got to run! See ya later Yugi! Try not to get eaten up by Yami before i get to see you again." And just like that, Mokuba Kaiba took off past Yugi before the young male could reply to his comment.

"Bye Mokuba," Yugi called out to the boy, suppressing his laughter along with Ryou and Malik as Jonouchi approached them looking very aggravated.

"Why didn't you guys hold'em still for me? I've been tryin' to catch that damn brat since Moneybags made me watch him, " Jou complained as he glared at his three friends with a tired and annoyed gaze.

"Where would be the fun in that?" Malik answered his friend with a jesting question."We wouldn't get to see you get outsmarted by a little kid then."

"Oh fuck you," Jonouchi flipped of Malik before he turn his attention to Yugi and gave the short teen a hug. "You did good tonight pal! Burgers on me when we get back to Domino, got that? I go catch that brat now, but I'll talk to ya' once I catch this lil' punk."

After squeezing Yugi one last time, Jonouchi took of in the direction Mokuba had fled in, chasing the smaller Kaiba in order to catch him before the older and more grumpier Kaiba brother caught onto what was happening.

"So Yugi, do you want to meet some of the other feeders that both Malik and I know?" Ryou asked his friend with a kind smile and hopeful eyes. "They are all very nice and I'm sure you'll have a smashing time meeting them!"

Smiling, Yugi gave Ryou a nodded. "Sure! I would love to meet them!"

"That awesome! Ah man, you just got to meet Mako. He's a character you're bound not to forget," Malik spoke energetically with a light laugh. "Let's go hunt him down." Leaving his friends with no other choice, Yugi and Ryou followed behind Malik to go find the feeder known as Mako, while Ryou explained to Yugi who he was.

By the time Yugi had been introduced to the fifth feeder his friends wanted him to meet, the human was exhausted and tired of being to center of a conversation and was tired of the noisy they had finished speaking to the woman known as Vivian Wong, Yugi politely told Ryou that he needed to step outside for some fresh air. Thankfully Ryou understood and had told Yugi that he would tell Malik and that he hoped Yugi would be able to rest a bit once he was outside.

As the young human made his way outside to the balcony connected to the ballroom, Yugi couldn't help but feel grateful for having supportive friends that understood him. He wasn't sure if he would be the same person he was without them. The were a big part of the rock that kept him steady during the rough times he went through.

"Finally, a break." Yugi pressed his back against the rough stone exterior of the resort the Gathering was being hosted at. Outside, Yugi wasn't the only one that had migrated to the cool outdoors to get away from the chatty and dancing guests in the ballroom. Below the balcony, several hunters, vampires, and feeders had escaped from the party for a temporary change in environments. Relocating to a stone bench on the backside of the balcony, Yugi sighed in bliss as he took a seat and gave his legs a temporary break.

Now alone, Yugi reflected back on his speech as he gazed up at the starry moonless sky. What had been so bad about it? Why had Yami got so upset over him not reading the on he had planned? He should have known Yugi wouldn't have read it. Yugi slung an arm over his eyes and sighed heavily. If he and Yami created their bond now while they were on bad terms, Yugi was positive it would only end up failing. He didn't want that. Yugi wanted to actually get along with Yami i they were going to be partners from now on. He had to find a way to patch things between him and Yami, and apologies for the things he said earlier might be the best way to start making amends with the vampire. Especial before Atem showed up and made thing even more complicated. Who would need Yami to actually like him to survive the pureblood's wrath when he found out Yugi was in cahoots with the Original vampire the entire time since his revival.

"Is this seat taken, handsome?"

Yugi removed his arm from his face when the heard the charming voice of his former teammate. Violet eyes meet another pair of violet hues, and the young male smiled as he slid over to make room for Mai Kujaku to take a seat next to him. "Not all."

Mai hadn't changed one bit since the last time he seen her on Halloween. She wore a solid black skin tight dress that highlighted all of the womanly features of her body. She still wore almost too much makeup, and even though her eyes looked sad, her normal sassy smirk was still in place on her face. "So you sneak into the man's house during his birthday party and then end up getting hitched to him, that's got to be the craziest hook up story yet."

"Ms. Kujaku!" Yugi blushed heavily and curled his hand into fist on his lap as he pouted. "I know you know better than to think that!"

The elder vampire hunter laughed at the teen she had formally supervised and patted Yugi's shoulder lightly. "Kidding, I'm kidding! It's good to see you still can't take a joke," She teased with a sly grin and a twinkle in her sad violet eyes.

"Yeah, " Yugi laughed lightly and looked back up at the sky. He didn't want to see the sadness that lingered in his former instructor's eyes, he couldn't stand the sight. It was very unnatural to him. He must have disappointed her so much. To have fallen to the enemy so easily, and to the leader of their enemy at that.

"I bet you think I'm mad or disappointed at you, don't you Yugi Mutou? Well you're wrong, I'm not."

Yugi turned his head to the side to gaze at the vampire huntress with shock. "You're not?"

Mai's eyes were focused on the dark sky above them as she hummed in acknowledgement," Mhmm, just a little shocked. This situation was explained to me and Rebecca, but enough of that. That's a story for another time. Hawkins sends her regards that she couldn't come to the Gathering. She couldn't get a ticket from South Africa to Japan that would have made it in time for her to hitch a ride with me to the Gathering. "

"Rebecca's in South Africa?"

"She got inducted just a week after Halloween and they placed her under the care of Mr. Kamshiro. She loves it there," Mai explain with a smile. "I got promoted myself, too. Starting next week I will be the co-commander of the special ops with Asuka."

"That's amazing! Congratulations!" Yugi sat up and gave Mai a bright smile. "I know you'll do amazing as a commander!"

The vampire huntress laughed lightly and and shook her head. "That just means I'll be a greater threat as an enemy to you, Mutou."

Yugi's smiled vanished from his face and he tugged at his pants lightly. "Right, I'm one of your targets now." He had almost forgotten about that detail, and it pained him that head forgotten the costs of his mission.

"That's right, but just between you and me, I'll save you for last and make sure to savor the kill."

Yugi smiled at that. "Thanks, ."

"No problem, handsome," She winked before standing up and waving at someone down on the ground below them. "I'll be taking my leave now, stay alive till I get to see you again, Mutou. I want to be the one who gets to see in your final moments."

Yugi shivered at her comment, but nodded and smiled warmly at the maiden. "I'll try too. I'll see you soon."

The blonde nodded with a seductive smile. "Soon," she repeated before taking off in a light energetic run toward whom ever she was waving at.

After Mai left left Yugi, the former vampire hunter trainee couldn't help but miss those days when he had trained under Mai. She had practically taught him everything he knew about self defense against a vampire. He had shared so many fond memories with the woman, she elt almost like a close aunt to Yugi. While Yugi was happy that she was moving up in her career as a vampire hunter, her regretted not being about to properly celebrate with her, not without risking his secret being revealed to Yami. Speaking of Yami, he needed to go apologize to the vampire and discuss about what they were going to tonight regarding when Yami wanted to feed from him and forge the bond.

Standing from his seat, Yugi retreated back inside to the ballroom, however, when he started walking he couldn't help but feel like someone was watching him. Turning around and scanning his environment, Yugi brushed the feeling off as paranoia, before heading inside to track down Yami.

At first Yugi thought that he should go check the bathroom that he had left Yami in, but when he caught the glimpse of the vampire Prince by the grand staircase, Yugi immediately altered his course to maneuver through the energetic crowd towards his vampire partner.

"Hey, Prince Yami-" Yugi cut himself off when he reach the bottom of the grand staircase, only to find it void of the royal pureblood vampire.

Looking around the ballroom, Yugi spotted him near the table where refreshments were being served. Huffing, the human maneuvered his way through the crowd again to where the vampire was located.

"Yami I need to talk to-" Once again, when Yugi reach the area he had spotted the vampire at, Yami had somehow magically appeared on the other side of the room. Annoyed by the vampire's trick and silly game of "Keep Away" he was playing, Yugi decided to ignore the bitter vampire until he came for Yugi. At least Yami couldn't say Yugi didn't try to approach him.

Grabbing a serving of a sweet punch that was being served to the humans, Yugi greedily drank the concoction as he eyed Yami from across the room with an evil glare. The human noticed how the pureblood vampire deliberately kept his back to him no matter where he had moved to, or who he was speaking with.

"Grr," Yugi growled in aggravation as he slowly sipped on his drink. This was going to take more than some damage control. It was going to take a miracle for Yami to actually acknowledge him again. 'I'm probably going to have to be in some kind of danger or he'll have to be starving, for him to actually pay attention to me.'

Suddenly, the entire ballroom went pitch black without warning and screams started to echo throughout the ballroom.

Yugi cursed under his breath, "Shit, I didn't mean that literally!" he hissed as he dropped his drink on the ground after being shoved out of the way by a panicking guest.

Vampires hissed in aggravation, calling out to the feeders and mates in the dark. Feeders cried out for their vampires, and hunters shouted out commands or everyone to remain calm as they unsheathed their hidden weapons and prepared to defend themselves. Yugi slowly walked backwards til his hit something solid that felt like a wall. That was, until an arm wrapped around his waist.

"YAM-" His scream for the Prince of Vampires was silenced as a hand quickly covered his mouth to silence his scream. The huam struggled against his capture, using his hands to try and pry the arm holding him captive, away from his body. While he struggled, Yugi felt his body being lifted effortlessly and his kidnapper moving.

Yugi screamed as loud as he could into the hand covering his mouth. He on stopped once he heard the chaotic sounds of the Ballroom fading and leaving behind the hissing and static like noise. It almost sound like the noise produced by Atem after he had fed from him and became a mature vampire.

Yugi struggled more violently when he realized this, scared that he was being stolen away by another Original vampire. That's when the human heared the soothingly low chuckle that struck fear in his heart, but also instantly made Yugi grow angry as he recognized the deep laughter.

The human kicked his legs trying to aim a heel strike in his kidnapper's crotch. He kept missing, which only add to the human's fury. Yugi swore to the heavens and the great God above that once he was free, he was going to murder this man! 'Just what is he thinking kidnapping the officially claimed Royal Feeder, when I was just presented to the world by Yami? Is he out of his mind making the ballroom go dark and underground cave with vampire hunters and vampires both in the room? Is he truly insane? Does he want us both to die!?'

Yugi heard a door softly open and close, before he was finally rewarded with his captor speaking to him.

"Relax Yugi, everything will be just fine."


Unwillingly, Yugi found his body relaxing as Atem's soothing voice enter his ears. The human teen already had known it was the Pharaoh the moment he had chuckled, though Yugi had a feeling that laughter was meant for someone else to recognize who he was, rather than the human himself.

Slowly, his vision returned to normal and Yugi found himself once again in the staging room, but this time he was alone with the Original vampire. Tilting his head back, the human gazed up at the vampire, who was gazing down at him as he still held Yugi by the waist. The human smiled happily at first before scowling at vampire.

"Did you miss me?" Atem asked with his signature smirk.

"I swear to God, you are the biggest idiot I know," The human snapped at the vampire, not answering his question. "You leave not even a day after you feed from with no words, make me worry for you, and then suddenly reappear at the Gathering and causing a gigantic scene and kidnapped me, just to ask if I "missed you"!?"

"...No, I have other motives than to just talk to you," Atem admitted with some hesitation as he released Yugi and placed him on the floor. "I needed to secure you before I could place the rest of my plan into action."

Once he was free, Yugi turned around to face Atem directly. "What plan-an-an -W-Why are you wearing that!?" Yugi's face turned a bright red as he took in Atem's attire.

The former pharaoh was dressed in slim black dress pants with a silver chain accent on his front left belt that connected to his pocket, a small black cellphone holder was strapped to his left thigh, black dress shoes covered his feet, and a black leather belt held his pants in place on his waist. Atem's torso was covered by a white button up collared shirt, he had the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and the shirt was unbutton halfway down his chest, revealing the Original's bronze chest that was scared from his seal. On top of that, he wore a deep red vest that just screamed for attention, a golden chain necklace Yugi had bought him, thick golden bands around his right wrist that had to be from the time when Atem was pharaoh, along with the assortment of rings that he wore on each hand.

"What? I came dressed properly for the event, did I not?" Atem asked with a smug smile as he stretched out his arms, as if he was putting his body on display for Yugi.

"I...well, Yes, I mean no!" Yugi felt his cheeks burn with a deep blush. "You're wearing red, you can't wear red unless you're…" Yugi trailed off and Atem's smug grin grew larger.

"Unless I'm what, Yugi?" Atem urged the boy to go on.

"Unless you're…"The human sighed heavily and looked at Atem with a stern look, trying to look serious with the bright blush on his face. "Unless you are of the Muran bloodline, or the Original vampire."

"Precisely," Atem confirmed and smirked confidently at Yugi, his upper fangs protruding from his mouth slightly. "And I am both of those, so it is acceptable for me to wear this. And by the end of tonight, everyone will be aware that I am the true king of the vampire race. But first,"

Atem moved closer to Yugi and pulled human into a gentle embrace. "I believe I owe you an apology for leaving you and your grandfather unexpectedly."

Yugi's heart began to race from the sudden emotional contact Atem gave him. He knew he and Atem had a good relationship until the male had tossed him aside like a used condom. But it was never this close!

"Um, it's okay now...It wasn't a big deal, really. But I still want to know in detail why you left." Yugi placed his hands on Atem's chest to the man away, but instead that simply lingered there as he felt the other's muscles retract underneath his touch. His continued to burn a bright red as his eye softened from the reaction.

"It still hurts despite being completely healed, doesn't it?" Yugi asked, tilting his head up slightly to look the Pharaoh in the eye.

Atem's fiery red gaze was warm and affectionate as he gazed down at Yugi. "Mmmm." The vampire leaned his head down and rested his forehead against Yugi's as he gazed into Yugi's violet hues. " Externally, it's healed, but internally the wound hasn't healed completely, so it tends to be a little sore occasionally."

Atem closed his eyes and pulled Yugi even closer to his body. "I am truly sorry for leaving you, Yugi. I also missed you, but I had to go take care of a few things by myself before I could confront Yami."

Yugi felt himself calm down and his blush fade as he enjoyed the calming feeling of having Atem near him again. He had missed the vampire's company. "I missed you too, but I still want to know all the detail about why you left when you did."

Yugi felt Atem's body tense and heard the vampire swear in his native tongue, before Atem pulled away with a look of disappointment on his face as he avoided looking in Yugi's direction.

Now free from the vampire's hold, Yugi crossed his arms over his chest and snorted at the former Pharaoh. "Did you honestly think that flirting with me would get you out of trouble?"

"Well, that damn trick always worked on Heba and Yami, so I wanted to see if it worked on you," The Original vampire defended himself proudly, crossing his own chest and biting his lower lip out o frustration. "It was worth a shot."

Yugi huffed and puffed out his cheeks in frustration. "Atem how many time do I have to keep reminding you that I am not Heba? I may look like him to you, but I'm not like that bastard."

The former pharaoh's cheeks turned a faint red as he averted his eyes from Yugi. "I-I am aware you are not Heba."

Yugi smiled at the Pharaoh proud of the blush he caused to appear on the vampire's enjoyed seeing the flustered side of the vampire and teasing him over his uncanny habit of comparing him to his dead lover, Yugi needed to be serious and have Atem explain himself before the other got his wish and Yugi forgot about the subject.

"Atem...please, tell my why you left. And not just some short bullshit answer," Yugi pleaded with the vampire. "You can't leave me in the dark about these things if we're going to be in a successful partnership as feeder and vampire. Me and Yami already have our own issues, I don't need any between us."

The vampire still kept his gaze from looking at Yugi, but his face became serious as he glared at wall he found so very interesting. It was apparent that Atem was not used to not getting his way.

"I," The vampire sighed before turning to look at Yugi with aggravation clearly marked on his stoic face. "I had to explore what these 'rogue vampires' truly were before I could formulate any defense for myself. While you believed that I wasn't one, I needed to confirm for myself that it was true and I wasn't...one of those unholy creatures. I also traveled to my homeland in search of friends. They informed me on most of the events that had occurred during my absence. I plan on using my powers to retake my throne tonight, prove to Yami and others that I am not one of the creatures they incorrectly referred to as a rogue vampire. I will clear them of their arrogance, rebuild my kingdom, vanquish these vermin that are sullying my kingdom's good name, and finally track that bastard who is the cause of all of this mess and kill him slowly and painfully with no mercy!"

Yugi was quiet during Atem's speech, but as the man started to explain that he was going to retake the throne tonight at the Gathering, caused the human to grow bitter towards his friend. He couldn't let Atem make a mess he couldn't. And by the look on the vampire's face, he already knew Yugi was going to protest his course of action.

Violet hues narrowed into a defiant glare and warm fiery irises hardened into determined pools of lava.

"Atem you can't-"

"I already have, and you can do nothing to stop it, human. My plan has been in motion before you even woke up to get on Yami's aircraft this morning," Atem quickly interjected, cutting off the human. "You can either join me willingly, or I will have to force you into helping me, which I would prefer not to do. So please Yugi, will you not help me as your friend? As your partner?"

Yugi glared at Atem, knowing he had no other option but to aid in the Original's plan, regardless if he wanted to or not.

"YUGI? WHERE ARE YOU?"

Yami angered and worried voiced was clear but soft as it drifted into the staging room. Yugi could already sense that he was going to be in deep shit regardless if he ended up willing helping Atem, or not.

"Are you positive there is no other way?" Yugi asked the vampire, still hoping that Atem would say there was.

"I'm afraid not. All the nobles have gathered all together in one single night and there are cameras here allowing the public to see all that is going on. This is the only moment that I can completely gain back control in one swift move. It's my gambit, with your trust and Yami's, being my sacrifices," Atem clarified for Yugi in a gentle tone.

Yugi glares at the former pharaoh for a moment longer before sighing in defeat. "If I do this, you promise to protect me from Yami's wrath? He's not going to be happy with me or you."

Atem smiled and held out his hand for Yugi to shake, "You have my word. As long as I am by your side, you shall be safe from all threats, even if that threat is Yami or myself."

Yugi offered at a sad smile before he took Atem's hand and gave it a firm shake. "You have deal, just don't go back on your promise."

"I have given you my word, Yugi," The Pharaoh reassured the human. "You can trust that I will keep you safe from harm."


Important Author's note below, PLEASE READ ::

Hey guys! Thank's or sticking with traitor through it's summer and fall hiatus. I needed to address some major housekeeping issues within the story and I had to adjust the
overall outline of the story.
Here has what has been changed in Traitor:

First off, all chapters were officially edited and had all errors fixed in the previous chapters and I have written up to parts of chapter fifteen.
With that said, the story should have a more solid foundation and not be as awkward or hard to read.

Secondly, Yugi's age has been modified to Seventeen instead of eighteen. My reasoning, welp, I noticed with the timeline of the story, that him being eighteen doesn't match up
with his grade level, the age of his friends, or with crucial points in the story. So it had to change. It doesn't effect much o the story.

Thirdly, there has been major changes in chapter eight regarding Yugi's and Yami's conversation about Atem. So, the funny thing with about that change, was that I had to
change it because Atem was never supposed to be brought up only 'Yugi's cousin', and some how neither my beta or myself caught it until I reread it over the summer
and had a mini panic attack over it. I had to address it and it has now been fixed and it needs to be read.

Fourthly, there were minor changes to Yugi's mission briefing letter and the 'threat letter' from Pegasus. Nothing major was re-written, just rephrased to make his point very
clear to the reader.

Lastly, I change the part about Atem having baby fangs. It's still implied he has them, but I changed it to say he hasn't 'fully matured' as a vampire. It sound more professional,
is more easily understood, and its just a better fit.

These are the major revisions/changes to the story. There were other smaller changes, so just reread the previous chapters to see what they are. Most of it was minor phrasing
changes.

Also, Traitor will be updated on a biweekly to tri-weekly schedule from now on. It's for the best so I can get the chapters written without feeling rushed.

Also, chapter thirteen will be held off on being posted directly after twelve for editing reasons. It is a beast. Much longer than this one and it is the conclusion the story's intro.
With that said, Traitor's main plot is about to be tapped in to and our main antagonist of the story will finally get a to step into the spotlight. This also means that the love
aspect of the story, Yugi x Yami x Atem, is going to start developing. It's going to to take time, so be patient. You can't rush love or character development.
On another note, we will also be seeing more of Heba and uncovering what truly happened when Atem was sealed.

This chapter is a total of 20,013 words, not including my long ass Author's note.

If you enjoy Traitor, I have posted up a poll on my profile to determine which story should be posted next, please support me and vote in it. Your vote DOES matter.

Thank you for your support for this story, it means a lot to me!
I love everyone of my readers and I'm thankful or all of you.
Please continue to read, review and follow/favor this story.
It shows me that more than just me and my beta care about it.