Chapter 9: Unexpected Matrimony

Yami awoke the following morning with a fierce determination. That day, he decided, he would tell Yugi how he felt about him.

'Today is the last day for me to tell him how much I love him…for whatever reason…and besides, I can't keep it bottled up forever…surely he'll understand…he must understand…he must've felt it too…that sense of completion…but what if he doesn't?'

He shoved that more pessimistic thought aside roughly.

'He has to…he does.'

Yami pulled on a gray vest over the long-sleeved black shirt he had already pulled over his head and a pair of black leather pants, and then opened the door and peeped outside his room.

Upon seeing Yugi's door open and his room empty, Yami headed toward the staircase into the dining hall; he stopped abruptly, however, when he heard voices.

"Well, I won't lie to you, Yugi, I'm…I really didn't think that you'd find this mystery man of yours…but obviously, I now see…he, in fact, exists."

It was a voice of a man in his last years of living, yet it wasn't weak or frail; it still sounded quite strong and seemed to retain a certain amount of youthful humor. Yami decided it must've Yugi's grandfather, King Solomon.

'But what is he talking about? What mystery man?'

Almost instinctively, Yugi's and his conversation from the previous night sneaked out of his memories back to him.

"…I just…feel awful I can't do anything to thank him for rescuing me…and I am curious about what he called me…'aibou'…it almost sounds like a word in an ancient language-"

"Partner," Yami interrupted.

"What?"

"Aibou means 'partner,'" Yami elaborated, remembering what Ryou said to him before and his heart sinking. "It's a term for life companions…mates."

Yami's eyes widened in horror.

'No…it couldn't be…!'

He peeked around the edge of the staircase to look into the hall where the gray-haired, violet-eyed King Solomon sat facing Yugi and a turquoise-haired man with one green eye and one gold.

"We wish to be married as soon as possible," Yugi stated in a flat tone very unlike his usual cheerful one. His eyes, too, seemed to be quite hollow, but they didn't seem regretful…just blank.

The empty look in Yugi's eyes didn't hit Yami as hard of it should've, though; his love's words had made him freeze in shock, his crimson eyes losing all of the light he'd had this morning and reflecting a similar amount of darkness to the darkness clouding Yugi's eyes. It looked like he lost the happiest thing in his life…and he had.

'Married…?'

Solomon seemed a bit surprised at Yugi's solemn tone: it could be easily deduced Yugi rarely talked to him this formally. Nevertheless, he nodded quickly and assured his grandson,

"O-of course, Yugi…I would be only too happy to. After all, if you are going to be married, I should like to make it the happiest day in your-"

"We want the wedding ship by this afternoon," Yugi cut off Solomon's consideration quite bluntly and without any regret in the slightest, "ready to set sail at sunset."

"O-of course, Yugi…"

Yami stood frozen on the stairs, staring at the scene with disbelief in his eyes. Then he forced himself to turn away and walk back toward his room, very slowly.

'He…he found the one he loved…I should be happy for him…That merman, Dartz…was the one who saved him…I should be glad for that…I should be happy Yugi is happy…but…'

All of the possible feelings of sadness, heartbreak and anger within him mounted at once, shoving each other out of the way in an attempt to reach the front of his heart. Finally the pain reached its peak and Yami punched the wall, his strength driven by the sea of feelings rushing through him.

'I should be happy for him…' he thought, looking at the floor and trying to hold back tears, 'even though…I've lost him forever…'

Dartz smiled cruelly down at the blank-eyed Yugi, his green and gold eyes shining as he stroked the turquoise Orikalkos pendant around his neck with his thumb.

'Now that little Yugi belongs to me, I will win the little mer-prince's soul…and with that, I will win everything: the sea, unrestrained power…and the entire world.'

The plank was raised, the sails were set and the white and gold-adorned wedding ship started its oddly unhappy journey away from the shore toward the reddening horizon.

Yami was standing on the dock, watching it leave. He had been invited by Tea to come, but he had refused, not wanting to ruin Yugi's happiness.

Yugi's friends seemed to be in a similar position to King Solomon, not wanting to be upset for Yugi's big day but still feeling very uneasy about the whole set-up. Rebecca and Chris, in particular, seemed very troubled by Yugi's strange behavior around Dartz; even Sky seemed to be suspicious of Dartz, as he growled whenever he was around him.

Yami, however, wasn't thinking about Yugi's friends' opinions or Yugi's fiancé; he was only thinking about his innocent love happy in another man's arms.

'I thought…he felt the same…'

His knees gave way and he felt to the wooden ground of the dock. Tears streamed down his face as he looked at the sun-reflecting ocean in disbelief and heartbreak.

'I thought…'

His shoulders shaking with silent sobs, Yami threw his head back and howled Yugi's name like a wounded dog.

"YUGI! YUUUUUUGIIIIII!"

He slammed his fist into the ground, making a hole in the wooden planks, as he sat and wept for the one he loved.

'I have no meaning now…I am nothing…if he can't love me…'

"Atemu!"

Yami didn't even look up at the sound of Seto's voice as he, Joey and Ryou swam up to the side of the dock where he sat; he didn't even realize his blue-tailed cousin had called him by his real name.

"Man…what happened?" Joey asked, looking very concerned.

"He's…gone…" Yami moaned, "…he's…gone…"

"Gone?" Ryou repeated, putting a hand on Yami's shoulder in worry. "What are you talking about? We heard this morning from Bakura's friend Marik that Yugi was getting married…why are you here? You should be onboard the ship if you guys are getting married…"

Yami cried out like a maniac, shoving Ryou aside and sobbing even harder. "He didn't…choose…me…I thought…I thought he…but he didn't!"

"What?" Seto demanded. "But then…who…?"

"The merman who…rescued him," Yami choked through his tears.

"That's impossible!" said Joey. "Yami, you don't remember this, but you were-"

"I should…be happy for him," Yami wasn't paying attention to anything Joey said and instead just continued to groan, "but…I feel like I'm dying!"

His three merman just stared at their crying friend, all feeling a terrible mixture of grief and guilt in their hearts. They just couldn't believe this was the end…after everything the mer-prince had given up to be with Yugi…Yugi went with someone else…and their friend's soul would remain with Dartz forever…

"AIBOU!"

Ryou turned to see Bakura splashing toward the group, looking urgent.

"Where have you been?" the longhaired albino snapped at his aibou. "Can't you see how much Atemu-?"

"Yugi's marrying Dartz!" Bakura interrupted him, sounding quite out of breath.

"What?" Joey and Seto inquired in shocked unison.

"That guy…Yugi is marrying…it's Dartz in disguise!" Bakura elaborated, panting as he tried to catch his breath. "I saw him and Yugi through a porthole on their ship…"

Bakura grabbed hold of a porthole on the edge of the white ship, trying to get some glimpse of Yami and Yugi before their big day. When he caught sight of Yugi, however, he was shocked to see a very blank look in his violet eyes.

'What's got his panties in a bunch?' Bakura wondered. 'He's getting married, for crying out loud!'

"Almost ready, little Yugi?" cooed a male voice in a very sinister way.

Bakura's eyes narrowed, both confused and angry, as Dartz came into sight and caressed Yugi's blank face. Yugi didn't make any notice to Dartz's touch or voice, as if he were a hollow shell without any opinions or feelings whatsoever.

Suddenly Yugi blinked twice, his violet eyes lighting up for the first time since Bakura had caught sight of him, and held his head as if it were in pain.

"W-what…?"

Dartz frowned slightly, before the turquoise pendant around his neck glowed.

"I am the one who rescued you from the shipwreck," Dartz told Yugi, his voice quite hypnotizing in nature. "I am the one who called you 'aibou.'"

The green light flowed like a mist around Yugi's head, delving around his eyes and making them as blank as before.

"You are my rescuer," Yugi repeated in an expressionless sort of voice.

Bakura's eyes widened in relization. 'Mind control!'

"You're quite difficult to control long-term for such an innocent, little Yugi," Dartz thought out loud. "But oh well…I don't need to control you for that much longer…only until the sun sets…and the little mer-prince is mine."

Bakura had heard enough. He let go of the side of the ship and fell back into the ocean, before high tailing back toward land to find Ryou, Seto and Joey.

"Don't you see?" Bakura whispered. "Dartz is using Atemu's memory to make everyone think he was the one who saved Yugi…he's even using it to brainwash Yugi into believing he was the one who named him as his aibou!"

Yami stopped crying for the first time in minutes.

"Do you mean," he murmured in a very icy tone, "that he tricked my Yugi?"

"Um…yeah?" Bakura answered, looking a bit awkward at the coldness in Yami's voice.

Yami stood up, his scarlet eyes blazing fiercely.

"NO ONE TRICKS MY YUGI AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!"

"Way to totally miss the fact that if Dartz does get away with it, your soul will be his forever," Seto muttered with a scowl.

Yami wasn't paying attention; without a second thought, he leapt into the water.

He struggled to float for a few seconds, and then tried to swim, only to barely get it. Of course, since he'd lost his memory, he'd also forgotten how to swim well, even if he had once been the fastest-swimming merman in the ocean.

"Atemu!" Ryou cried, rushing to his aid.

"We don't have much time," Seto said seriously, eyeing the sunset with foreboding. "Ryou…you and Bakura get to the ship and do anything you can to stall that wedding. Dogfish…you help Atemu swim for the ship…I think only he'll be able to break the spell on Yugi now."

"But Seto…you're the fastest one out of you and me," Joey argued, "you should go!"

Seto shook his head. "I'm going to gather King Aknamkanon and the High Court in case something goes wrong. It will take quite a while to get them all together and tell them everything."

"But-" Joey started.

Seto put his hands on Joey's shoulders. "I'm counting on you, Joey…look after my cousin."

It was the first time the High Priest had called the blond by his name, and it was immediately obvious to Joey. He stared at Seto for a moment, before nodding slowly.

"Be careful," Joey cautioned him.

Seto smiled slightly. "You too."

With that, Seto let go of Joey's shoulders and delved back into the water. Joey watched the spot where he disappeared for a moment, as if deep in thought.

"You're in love with him," Yami commented rather plainly in Joey's direction.

Joey went red and growled a few unintelligible things under his breath.

"Okay, Bakura," Ryou stated in a business-like tone, turning to his aibou once more. "I really hate to do this, but…call your band."

Bakura looked disbelieving. "But Aibou…you always hate it when they're around…you said I can never invite them anywhere-"

"Forget what I said!" Ryou snapped. "Listen to what I'm saying now!"

Bakura blinked in surprise, before his mouth went up in a huge smirk.

"You've got it, chibi Aibou!"

He put his hands up to his mouth and started making odd birdcall-like noises.

A few seconds later, a flock of seagulls flew over toward them and landed on the edge of the dock. The one in front had an unusual light yellow coloring and lavender eyes, and wore a gold collar around his neck to signify his status as leader.

"Hey, Bakura!" he greeted. "Your nit-picky aibou actually let us hang out with you for a little while?"

Ryou scowled at the seagull leader's reference to him; Bakura, however, ignored it and got straight to the business at hand.

"Unfortunately Marik, this meeting is under less than fun circumstances…there's a wedding on that ship over there that we need to stop."

"Ooh, crashing a wedding?" Marik asked eagerly. "We haven't done that in years! Sounds fun."

He looked back toward the rest of his flock and crowed, "Alright…let's fly!"

And the flock took off toward the ship, cawing and laughing raucously.

"I hate them," Ryou growled under his breath.

Bakura smiled wryly at him, wrapping his arm around him and nuzzling his face.

"C'mon, chibi Aibou…we better get on over there and help them out."

Ryou sighed. "True, true…"

He looked at Joey and Yami. "Hurry after us, alright?"

Yami nodded. "We'll be right behind you."

Ryou nodded, and the two dove into the water and started swimming for the ship after Marik and the flock of seagulls.

Joey grabbed Yami's arms and wrapped them around his neck.

"Hold on," he told his now-human friend.

And the blond pulled Yami toward the ship as fast as his fins could take him.