Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from the anime. I own the plot and the Tide Whisperer.
Chapter Eight – Mystery Revealed
It had been two weeks since Atemu had almost told Seto his sob story, and things have been particularly strained between the captain and the boy.
Seto spent the majority of his day overseeing the repairs of the Tide Whisperer to make sure they were up to his standards. For reasons Atemu didn't quite understand, that ship was the second most important thing to the man in his life; second only to Mokuba. Atemu admitted to minimal curiosity, but he wouldn't ask, because that would lead to him having to return some of his personal information, and that wouldn't do.
Atemu spent the first few days wandering in the town, purchasing his own clothes, weapons, boots, and he took advantage of the food available, as did Jounouchi, Tristan, Malik, Ryou, Mokuba, and Ryuji. Atemu had taken a liking to the misfit bunch of sailors, and found himself highly entertained whenever he was around them. Atemu was glad for the distraction, and he felt almost like family.
Still, something kept nagging at him. In the back of his mind, he felt restless and irritable, finding himself frequently thinking about his family back in Barcelona; of Yugi, Atemu's eleven-year-old brother, in particular.
Finally, against his better judgment, Atemu wrote a telegram to Mahado asking for an update, as well as assuring his older cousin that Atemu was indeed alive and relatively well. He wasn't sure how detailed Seto and Mahado's original plan to get him out and away from Prince Louis, but he was certain that he didn't realize Atemu would have his own plan. A courier ship passed through the seaport just before dawn every day, and Atemu took advantage of the opportunity.
Hopefully now Mahado could relieve some of his unneeded stress.
Seeing that it was still dark out when he returned to the inn the White Dragons were occupying, and he decided that he could catch some sleep now that his immediate worries were soothed.
Seto was having trouble sleeping.
He was beginning to feel a bit stir-crazy about still being stranded on land. He vowed the moment his ship was finished the White Dragons would be back out on the ocean where they belonged. To occupy his mind, he decided to go down to the tavern and grab a drink or two. Alcohol did help him, when insomnia raged, to get him to sleep.
He was on his third glass of whiskey when he saw Atemu trudge through tavern heading up toward the rooms.
What's he up to this early? He wondered before he paid for his drinks and followed the boy upstairs. Atemu sometimes had a habit of thinking out loud when he thought that he was alone, and Seto hoped to catch something useful.
Unfortunately, Atemu wasn't in a chatty mood, even with himself, and Seto watched as he disappeared behind his door.
Seto felt a bit drowsy, and so he made for his own room to catch some shuteye before dawn broke.
"Atemu, come and join me." Seto said, gesturing toward the seat across from him.
Seto was sitting in one of the seaport's restaurants in a corner booth with his back facing the wall. Atemu mentally kicked himself for choosing the same eatery as Seto. Seto continued gesturing, sharply this time, and it was implied that Seto was giving an order, not a suggestion.
Atemu finally obeyed and slid into the opposite booth, and a young woman with long, wavy blonde hair, peculiar lavender eyes, and smooth porcelain skin came over to their table to see if Atemu wanted anything.
"The quail, ma'am." Atemu replied, and then added, "And a glass of cool water, please?" His mama taught him manners.
"Coming right up, doll." The blonde waitress winked at him and left.
"Yes captain?" Atemu turned a semi-hostile tone at the tall brunet.
"I've something we need to talk about." He said, his cerulean eyes boring into Atemu's scarlet ones, not leaving any room for argument. "You see, if you are to become a member of my crew, I must warn you that there will be no secrets." Seto said bluntly.
Atemu responded with his eyebrows shooting up, pointing toward his hairline, before they narrowed suspiciously, "I'm concerned about where this is going, Captain."
"Well then, let me explain. I get how you have things you'd rather keep private, but should you in any way be doing anything that could jeopardize my crew, and more importantly my brother, I need to know about it. The mysterious act is getting old."
"Mysterious act?" Atemu was having trouble comprehending. Why would Seto think he would even consider harming the White Dragons?
"Two days ago, just before dawn, I saw you slinking back to your room. Now, I may not be an expert, but I do know that you value your rest, and that you would be hard pressed to be up before the crack of dawn. Especially when you don't have to be awake."
"You think I-"
"I don't know what's going on inside that head of yours, Santiago. And frankly I'm getting very tired of your secrets. So, I'm going to ask you once. What were you up to that morning?"
Okay, he really needs to redefine "ask" because that wasn't asking.
Atemu debated about telling Seto anything. A part of him was actually somewhat relieved that Seto had cornered him and was demanding that he tell all. The other part of Atemu was furious about being cornered, and was close to bulking at the captain's snobbish order.
He's worried about his crew.
"I sent a letter to Mahado. The courier ship passes by in the morning at five."
Seto cocked an eyebrow, "Go on."
"I-" Atemu cut himself off when the waitress returned with his food. Suddenly he didn't feel too hungry. "Thank you." He said to the woman.
"No problem." And then she walked away again.
"You were saying?" Seto persisted when Atemu didn't immediately continue.
Atemu sighed, sounding tired, "I've been having these strange feelings lately. I feel as though something is going on back at home with my family. I knew that I couldn't reveal to them that I was alive, or else Louis might suspect something and come looking for me. But Mahado, he knew about the plan to remove me from Spain, and so I felt it was safe for me to contact him."
"And that's all?" Seto wondered. "You simply sent a telegram?"
"Yes." Atemu said with a nod of his head.
"You know, I wouldn't have such a hard time believing you if I wasn't so suspicious. In my experience, even those closest to you can be wearing a mask." Seto said.
Atemu glanced around uncomfortably, knowing that Seto was about to demand he tell everything. And then the boy sighed, "Can we not talk about this here?"
"Fine." Seto stood and dragged Atemu to his feet, tossing a few silver coins onto the table to pay for their dinner and Seto led the boy out of the restaurant.
Atemu jerked his arm out of Seto's grip, "I can walk on my own, asshole. No need to keep on hauling me around like a dog on a leash."
"Watch yourself boy." Seto's voice was underlain with threat and promise.
"Then don't touch me." Atemu shot back.
Seto grunted disapprovingly and started back toward the inn where he planned on hearing everything Atemu had to say, by any means necessary.
"All right, continue."
Seto watched as Atemu dropped onto the bed in Atemu's room while Seto sat on a large, stuff chair across from the boy.
"On one condition, Seto. Every question that I answer, I get to ask you a question."
"Bullshit." Seto snapped.
"Then you'll just have to do without hearing anything that I have to say. The doors right there behind you."
Seto snarled at Atemu, absolutely despising his position.
All things considered, Seto and Atemu were at a seaport, and off of the ship, authority would only go so far. Pressing his position wouldn't only create more tension between the two men, even though Seto didn't understand why he cared, and Seto wouldn't be setting a good example for his crew. He never wanted to abuse his position, knowing what it meant to be in his position, and he wasn't about to start now.
He took a deep breath to calm his rising fury and then nodded jerkily, "Fine, I'll agree to your terms."
"Very well." Atemu slid back on the bed until his back was touching the wall, and he crossed his arms and his legs, making himself comfortable for the long conversation ahead.
Atemu finished telling the story of his past, and more exclusively about the past few months following his mother's death, Seto was stunned at how much the boy had been through in his short life. Although, Seto had it pretty difficult growing up as well, it was a bit unsettling to know that bad things happen to the best of us all the time without any explanation.
"All right, your turn to answer my questions. I get five." Atemu reminded the captain of their agreement, and Seto nodded his head in grudging acknowledgment.
"First question, how did you become a pirate?"
Seto sighed, memories of the past that he had tried to keep away came rushing back to the surface in his mind.
"When my grandfather, the former King Charles II, felt his time was running short, the current King Phillip had manipulated my grandfather into naming Phillip his successor instead of my father. Once my grandfather was dead, Phillip had tried to execute my father, my mother, my brother, and I so that we couldn't pose a threat to his reign. He had succeeded in capturing and killing my father and mother, but Mokuba and I had stolen away on a ship that was docked in the harbor. It had been a privateer's ship, and Mokuba and I became enthralled by the sea and everything it stood for. We were not bound to the laws of the country that had turned her back on us, we only had to worry about ourselves and what it meant for us to stay alive.
"We found out, later on that first year of Phillip's rule, that our grandfather had left Mokuba and I something in his will. The Tide Whisperer had been passed down going on three generations, and it has become our home. After we retrieved the ship, we gathered a crew, and we set sail. To be accurate, the White Dragons are privateers and not full-blown pirates, but since we don't have a home country to claim, we are technically pirates."
Atemu was silent, and then he continued, "So you've been out on the ocean for how long?"
"I was twenty when my grandfather died."
"So, you and your crew are practically all you guys have, and the ship?"
"We earned our reputation by protecting our own and being particularly aggressive when the Tide Whisperer was in danger of being capsized. That ship is our home, as it is yours, now that you're a White Dragon as well."
Atemu had two questions left, and he had to make them count.
"Did you mean to get me drunk the other night so that you could get information from me?"
"No. I told you, you were the one who started spill your guts. I simply listened."
"Why did you kiss me? On the night of the siege?"
Seto smiled devilishly, and a single dimple appeared at the corner of Seto's mouth. "Because I felt like it."