Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from the anime. I own the plot and the Tide Whisperer. Enjoy, everyone! Review!
A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews so far, they really mean a lot to me. I like to know I'm not writing this for no reason. ^_^
Chapter Ten Telegram
"Hmm..." A young boy hummed in concentration as he studied to small sheet of paper on his hand. At times, the boy found it somewhat difficult to make out his father's penmanship, and since he didn't have much formal education as of yet, it was also somewhat difficult to understand exactly what the chicken scratch meant after he deciphered the contents.
"Yugi!" A smooth, masculine tenor called out, and the boy glanced up in surprise, a bright smile lighting his cherubic features upon seeing another boy rushing toward him.
"Hi, Leon." He cried out, and the boys briefly embraced each other as though they hadn't seen each other in years while in actuality it had only been a couple of weeks. "How are you?" Yugi asked in enthusiasm.
"I'm doing great!" Leon replied, Yugi's exuberance felt contagious. "How's everything with you?"
Yugi's smile fell slightly at the question, and his lip subtly quivered, "Have you heard about Yami?" He asked.
"No, why? What happened?"
Yugi's expression turned to sorrow, and a single trail of tears escaped from his large, amethyst eyes. "He...he's missing. Everyone keeps saying that he's dead...that some stranger had broken into the castle...Leon, I'm scared out of my mind. And what's worse is that everyone...even dad...thinks that the rumors are true and that Yami was killed." Yugi explained as he took deep breaths, trying to keep his voice steady as he explained even as his chest grew tight, as if his heart was being squeezed by some invisible hand, and it took a great effort to simply breathe properly.
"But you don't believe that?" Leon asked after the initial shock and genuine sadness at the news faded a bit.
"Oh, no." Yugi said confidently, shaking his head violently from side to side to punctuate his conviction. "Yami is much too strong for some strange man to simply cut him down...Yami's always armed, you see, and he would fight to the death..." Yugi paused as those last few words brought painful imaginings. "Yami's not dead...of that I'm sure...but I'm worried sick about what's become of him." Yugi finished.
Leon hesitantly nodded. He didn't know Yamir all too great, the older teen was often working with master Solomon or helping his father out around their property, but what he did know of Yamir told him that Yugi was more likely right about his brother's uncertain fate.
The boys lapsed into silence, and they continued to walk through the streets of Barcelona toward the city market to buy groceries, talking back and forth about less melancholy subjects.
As they walked, three royal guards cam seemingly out of nowhere, blocking Yugi's and Leon's path. They said nothing, even after the boy's demanded to know what it was the soldiers wanted. Leon was suddenly torn away from Yugi's side. The last thing the young tri-colored boy saw was his friend struggling within the grasp of one man just before a linen bag was thrust over his head and shackles were snapped around his wrists.
"Captain." Yugi heard one man call out, "We found the boy."
"Goddamn it, that hurt." Atemu snapped as he turned his head to glare at the captain, who sat cross-legged on the bed directly behind the boy. He was applying the godawful paste that was meant to stem infection but felt more like he was gouging a deeper hole into his back.
"Stop squirming and it won't hurt as much." Seto retorted, pulling the cloth away from Atemu's back when the kid jerked his shoulder away from the wound in reflex of trying to escape the burn, and then went right back to smearing the paste over the kid's shoulder. "Besides, it was your own fault for allowing them the chance to stab you in the first place. You're only lucky that the bastard was too damned drunk to actually aim."
"Well, next time I'll remember to paint a red X across my heart from the front and back so that they won't miss again. "X marks the spot" and all that shpeel."
"That's actually an offensive assumption. Pirates remember where they hide their treasure, they don't need some damned map with a great, red X on it to relocate it. That's just begging for someone to find it and take it for themselves." Seto corrected heatedly.
"You take things way too damned literal. AH!" He hissed as Seto pressed the paste-coated cloth a little too roughly against his stab wound.
"Shut up already. You're voice is grating."
And, to Seto's annoyance, and strangely, slight amusement, Atemu launched off into a detailed description of how he would love to beat Seto into the floor, and exactly how he would do it.
As Atemu rambled on, Seto finished spreading the paste over the boy's wound before he put the cloth down and picked up a square piece of linen gauze. He carefully placed the gauze over the boy's wound, adjusted Atemu so that his arm stuck out slightly from his side, and wrapped a length of bandages around Atemu's shoulder and chest.
"There, you can quit your bitching." Seto told the boy and stood, heading for the door, "Get some sleep, Santiago. You wouldn't want to miss the courier in the morning."
"Seto?" The captain turned toward the boy and quirked an eyebrow, "You're welcome. And thanks."
"Hmm, yeah well, don't get yourself stabbed next time. I would be loath to find a new cabin boy to take care of my ship once we get underway."
Seto shut the door on Atemu's indignant reply.
A small, arrogant grin graced the pirate's face once he knew Atemu couldn't see him, and he turned and walked down the corridor to his own bedroom. You're something else, Santiago. I don't know if that's good or bad...but you are.
Atemu was down at the docks at five the following morning. He wasn't sure how long it would be for his telegram to reach Mahado, or for Mahado's reply to arrive in Sale`, but Atemu wasn't going to take any chances of missing the letter.
A tall, brawny man in a navy blue tunic and matching trousers, with long silver hair and brown eyes stepped up in front of Atemu, "You're Santiago?" He asked in a surprisingly high-pitched masculine tenor.
"Yes." He confirmed, his hands clenching into fists at his sides, his anxiety sent skyrocketing as the older man pulled a cream colored envelope out from his trouser pocket.
"Then this is for you." The man said, and Atemu snatched it out of his hand instantly.
"Thanks." He blurted before he spun and headed back for the inn.
"Dear Yamir...or Atemu Santiago as you so prefer;
I am thrilled to hear that you are well, cousin, and I am grateful to know that Capatin Leandro had arrived in time.
A few days ago, King Phillip stepped down as king, and Prince Louis is now officially the new King of Spain. I don't know
if this is something you care about, but I just thought you should know.
Your father is well, although he is torn up about your "death", and Yugi...Honestly, Atemu, I'm not sure how to tell you this, but Yugi has been taken by King Louis's guards to become his new court-"
Atemu paused in his reading to take a series a deep, sporadic breaths. He hadn't realized he had been holding his breath while he read, and Atemu felt close to hyperventilating as panic set in. Steeling himself, he forced himself to finish reading
"-ier. It would seem that there has been a misunderstanding, and that King Louis had mistaken Yugi for you, Atemu, and he won't listen to us when we tell him otherwise. It would seem that King Louis is adamant about having you to himself..."
Atemu had had enough. He'd found out what he needed to know, and that was all that was important.
Damn it, Atemu knew something was wrong. Why hadn't he thought about the twin-like resemblance between Atemu and his brother? He should've at the very least considered the possibility that this might happen. He should have...
What? Atemu thought, Warn an eleven-year-old that he might be mistaken for his nineteen-year-old brother and become Louis's pleasure slave in his brother's place? Blew your entire plan out of the water to make sure that Yugi's was at least aware of the danger? Face it, there was nothing you could do to prevent this.
Atemu paced the confines of his room, the telegram crumbled in his fist as he thought. After a moment, he paused mid-step, a strange look appearing on the boy's face.
"No...I couldn't do anything to prevent this from happening." He whispered aloud, "But by God, I will put a stop to it from continuing."