The next day, Atemu was felling much better. He was still sick, but it wasn't as bad as the day before. He could stand up but not for long periods of time. He drank water and ate a small amount of oats just incase his stomach couldn't handle it.
As he gently chewed his oats, he heard Yuugi shouting. "I'm sorry, Hime-san, but you can't ride him yet!"
She scoffed. "I'm old enough to ride Tadao if I wanted. You can't tell me what to do, stable boy."
"It's not about age or your skill as a rider." Yuugi insisted. "Yami is still sick! He can't go riding today. Maybe tomorrow if he feels better. Please, understand-"
Hime glared at Yuugi. "You cannot tell me what to do!"
"And you can't ride that horse!" Yuugi yelled. "You can ride him tomorrow, but not today."
Hime was shocked. "How dare you raise your voice to me? I am your master and I will not allow you to treat me like this!"
Yuugi sighed. He bowed his head and with his robotic voice, he said, "I'm sorry, Hime-san. It will never happen again."
"It had better not!" Hime cried. "Now, strap up Isao. I trust that beast is fit to ride?"
He nodded. "Yes, Hime-san."
She smirked at his saddened tone. He knew he had been defeated. Once the sidesaddle was in place, Hime snapped her whip on Isao's rear to start her ride at a fast gallop. For a fourteen year old, she was an amazing rider.
Yuugi sighed and walked over to Atemu, stroking his snout. "I'm walking on pretty thin ice here, Yami. I had better not get into any more trouble if I expect to get paid. My family really needs the money."
When Yuugi's hand touched Atemu's nose, he raised his head a bit into the boy's palm. 'It's all right, sweet one. You needn't fear. I won't let them hurt you.'
Yuugi giggled as Atemu licked his hand. "Thanks, Yami. I needed a boost."
"Stable boy! Get over here!" Negishi hollered.
Yuugi sighed. "I have to get back to work. I'll see you tonight, Yami." He ran over to his master. "Yes, sir?"
Negishi put his hands on his hips. "I have to wait for a customer and they'll be here any minute. However, I also need to get some groceries. I want you to take Amaya into market and get what is on this list." He held the piece of paper out and looked at Yuugi with a firm glance. "Can you handle this?"
"Yes, sir." He took the list and Negishi gave him 31 000 yen.
Before Yuugi went to fetch the mare, Negishi grabbed his arm. "This is more then enough money, boy. If I don't get the exact amount of change I'll know who to fire."
Yuugi nodded. "I understand, sir."
He tossed Yuugi's arm away from him and walked back to the mansion. Yuugi walked over to the stables and pulled Amaya out of her stall. "Come on, girl. We're going to market."
Atemu whinnied. 'What about me? I want to go with you, sweet one.'
Yuugi smiled. "Don't worry, we'll be back soon, Yami."
He huffed. 'That's not what I meant.'
Atemu watched Yuugi attach Amaya to the spare cart and ride off into town.
--
Half an hour later, Hime was on her way back from her ride with Isao. She looked over to the road and saw Amaya and Yuugi returning from market. She smirked and quickly rode down to the stables.
She dismounted Isao and slapped his behind making him run off into the fields. Hime walked over to the outside stall doors and unlocked them. She opened the doors and pulled Yuki out of the first stall. "Come on, you stupid pony!"
Atemu was confused. 'Is she going for another ride?'
Using her high heeled boot, she kicked Yuki in the behind making him run off. She repeated his process with all the horses except for Tadao and Atemu. The others scattered into the field as Hime ran back to the mansion. "Father! The horses are gone!"
Atemu knew exactly what she was doing. 'She's trying to get Yuugi in trouble!'
Yuugi opened the gates and pulled Amaya inside. Immediately, Yuugi looked over at the stables and gasped. All but two of them were empty. 'Negishi-san is going to kill me.'
He quickly untied Amaya and put her back into her slot. He looked over at Isamu's stall and saw the lock of the door on the ground. He picked it up and observed its condition in his hand. Neither the lock nor the door was broken. How did this happen?
"Yuugi!" Negishi bellowed. "What the hell happened? Where are my horses?!"
Yuugi gulped quietly. "Negishi-san, I swear I locked all the doors. I don't know what happened."
Atemu neighed in Hime's direction. 'It was her! She did it!'
But the prince was ignored. Negishi rolled his eyes. "That doesn't answer my question."
"I'm sorry, sir, but I can't explain what happened." Yuugi said. "I swear to you that I locked each of the doors. I wouldn't let anything happen to these horses!"
Negishi sighed. "Damn it. Look, we'll round them up before they get hurt and then we'll figure out what happened."
An hour later, all the horses were brought back to the stables and the locks put in securely in place. Negishi looked down at Yuugi with an accusing look in his eyes.
Yuugi shook his head. "Sir, I swear I didn't do this! I always put the locks in the doors. I-"
"He's heard enough of your excuses, stable boy." Hime said. "Just tell him why you did it!"
"But I didn't do it!" Yuugi insisted. He didn't know how to stress this point any further. "Negishi-san, please understand, I wouldn't let any of these horses come to harm. I always take good care of them! I care about them. Please."
Negishi paused. He carefully watched Yuugi's face as the boy tried to persuade him. Finally, he opened his mouth and said, "In five years you've never screwed up. Then one day you forget to lock the doors? I doubt your that stupid."
Yuugi smiled. 'Thank goodness!'
Negishi turned around. "Hime-chan, I thought you loved these horses. Why would you do that?"
Hime gasped in shock. "What?! You think I did this? Father, please!"
"I know Yuugi takes good care of these horses." Negishi said. "And I also know that you have been trying to get Yuugi fired for some time. The evidence points to you, Hime-chan."
Hime stammered. How could her own father accuse her? But after a moment, she knew she had been caught. "Fine, I did it. I don't like Yuugi. He's dirty and smelly-"
"He's around the horses all day." Negishi defended. "What do you expect?"
Yuugi was confused. Why was Negishi standing up for him?
Negishi crossed his arms. "You're grounded, Hime. You aren't allowed near these horses for three weeks straight."
The two argued back and forth while they walked back to the mansion. Yuugi collapsed to the ground in relief. That was the one time he was truly afraid of losing his job. He couldn't believe Negishi didn't fire him. Maybe he's not that bad after all.
XxX
By the next day, Atemu had completely gotten over his cold. Negishi ordered Yuugi to put a saddle on him. "I'm having a friend come over in a few minutes. He promises to break any horse. Hime is grounded and I'm in no condition to ride a horse. Greet our guest when he arrives and take care of him. I have some other busieness to take care of."
Negishi walked away making Yuugi nervous. Why was he so set on breaking Atemu? Yuugi walked over to the beautiful black horse. "I don't want you to be broken. You're too beautiful. You shouldn't even be here. All horses should be allowed to run free. But as long as you are here, you can't let them break you. You have to stay strong. But don't hurt anyone. Just stay strong, Yami."
Atemu rested his neck on Yuugi's shoulder. 'It's all right. He can't do anything to me.'
Yuugi wrapped his arms around Atemu's neck. "I'm worried about you. You can't be broken. Please, don't let them break you."
He turned his head to the side of Atemu's face would rub against the back of Yuugi's head. 'Don't worry, my sweet one. I'll be fine.'
Sure enough, the trainer came. He was a tall man, at least six feet, with short brown hair and cold blue eyes. He wore black pants and a white button up shirt with short sleeves. His name was Seto Kaiba.
Yuugi welcomed him and lead him over to Atemu. Seto smiled. "He's beautiful."
Yuugi kept his head bowed. He didn't think he could watch what was coming. "Yes, sir."
Seto looked down at him. "You're the stable boy aren't you?"
"Yes, sir." His robotic voice rang though his words.
He smiled. "You have a very deep connection with the horses here. I assure you that I won't hurt him. Negishi-san asked me to break him, but I do not break horses. I train them. I promise you he'll be fine."
Yuugi looked up at him and smiled. "Thank you, Kaiba-san."
He gently stroked Atemu's snout. "What's his name?"
"Yami. I called him Yami." Yuugi said with his regular cheery voice.
Atemu was in too much shock to really be listening to them. 'This man looks exactly like the high priest, Seth, my cousin! It couldn't be him. He's too nice.'
Seto mounted Atemu and took hold of the reigns. He gently tapped his heels onto Atemu's side, signaling the horse to start walking. As they began, Yuugi whispered, "Please be good, Yami."
Atemu smiled inside. 'Don't worry, sweet one. I'll be good. I suppose I can just humor this man.'
Seto pulled the reigns to the left so Atemu would turn in that direction and walk around the stables. He was amazed how easily Atemu understood what he wanted and complied. He looked over his shoulder at Yuugi. "Are you sure he's never been trained?"
"I'm not completely sure, but Negishi-san was told he was a mustang just caught off the fields. No one's actually ridden him, that I know of." Yuugi answered.
Seto turned his gaze to what was in front of him. "Hmm, it was probably a sales pitch. But I might as well see what you can do, Yami."
Atemu nickered. 'I know what I'm doing, you know. I've ridden horses before; I know what the signals are and what they mean. So far it seems the same in my country as it is here.'
Seto smiled. "This field is perfect for training. Let's start on a gallop, Yami."
He tapped Atemu's sides with his heals a little harder. Hearing the word gallop, Atemu jumped into the chance of running around and stretching his legs. He made a beeline through the vast fields, whinnying happily.
'This feels incredible!' He thought with a smile inside. 'I've never felt so free!'
The wind whipped around him, blowing his mane straight back. The soft grass felt so much better then the stiff wooden boards of his stall. He wasn't surrounded by the confinement of the stables. He was free.
Atemu took a moment to focus on Seto. He was surprised at how well he handled the ride. Seto was always perfectly balanced as Atemu rode through the grass. He seemed prepared for anything, focusing on everything around him. But he wasn't that surprised, seeing as Seto was a trainer of horses.
They continued galloping for a moment before Atemu started to slow down. He was panting a bit and Seto stopped him all together. "Don't tire yourself out, Yami. We won't be too long out here."
He pulled the reigns back in sharp tugs and lifted his feet. Atemu knew this as the signal to walk backwards. He took a few reverse steps and waited for Seto to tell him to stop.
"Whoa." He said and Atemu stood still. Seto chuckled. "I came here expecting you to fight or not know any commands. Either you've already been trained or you're just that smart."
Atemu kicked his head in the air and neighed. 'Of course I'm smart.'
Seto chucked. "All right, boy. Let's go back and tell Yuugi how wonderful you were."
Atemu neighed again and ran off at a galloping pace. Seto hadn't expected this but steadied himself quickly. They arrived back at the stables quickly.
Yuugi was surprised to see them back so quickly. As he turned to them, Atemu reared into the air, kicking his front legs while neighing loudly. Yuugi gasped. He wasn't expecting that. He laughed as Atemu set himself back down. "Was he good?"
"Good?" Seto asked as if that was an insult. "He was incredible. I didn't have to train him a thing." He dismounted and gave the reigns to Yuugi. "You won't have to worry about this horse being broken. He's much too smart for that. His spirit is too strong to break."
Yuugi smiled gratefully. He was about to say something but Atemu suddenly pushed his nose against Yuugi's shoulder to get his attention. When the boy was looking at him, Atemu lowered himself onto the knees of his front legs and nickered. Yuugi was confused. "What are you doing?"
Seto smiled. "I think he wants you to ride him."
Atemu lifted his head a bit and nickered again. He waited patiently. Yuugi shook his head. "I'm not allowed to ride the horses unless Negishi-san says I can."
"Don't worry, I'll cover for you." Seto winked.
Yuugi smiled and mounted Atemu. He had ridden horses before, but he was still a novice. Yuugi gasped as Atemu stood up. "Whoa." He laughed nervously.
Seto smiled. "Just relax. Don't be so tense."
"Yeah. It's been a while since I could actually ride a horse." Yuugi took a deep breath. He gently tapped Atemu's sides and he started at a slow walk. Yuugi smiled. "Let's go to the field. I promised we'd go there anyway."
Atemu nickered and turned towards the field before Yuugi even pulled on the reigns. Yuugi giggled. "This isn't so bad. Maybe we could go a little bit faster."
He tapped Atemu's sides with his heels again and the prince sped up to a light trot. Yuugi held the reigns tightly. He had only ever gone on a slow walk with the horses. He hadn't gone this fast ever in his life.
And yet, it wasn't scary. Yuugi wasn't afraid of riding a horse at this speed. He felt safe and at ease. Before he had even realized it, he tapped Atemu's sides again and they were off at a heavy gallop.
Yuugi gasped at the huge increase in speed. But after a minute, he was laughing. It was so much fun! He couldn't believe the rush he felt from going so fast. It was incredible. The thrill, the wind blasting his face: he loved it all. The warmth of the sun on his skin and the powerful, steady beat of Atemu's hoofs on the ground thumping in his ears along with his heartbeat.
Yuugi hollered into the air. He couldn't keep his joy inside him anymore. It was too much! "This is incredible!"
Atemu whinnied. They returned to the stables but Yuugi didn't put him back in his stall. He got the water tub out of Atemu's stall and filled it with fresh water. Atemu drank it greedily. He was tired from so much running but it was worth it.
Yuugi didn't stop running after he dismounted. "Kaiba-san! That was incredible! We were galloping and- oh, it was incredible!"
"I know. I could hear you screaming from here." Seto chuckled. "You should really ride these horses more often."
Yuugi smiled. "I really wish I could. That was the most fun I've ever had."
Seto paused for a moment. "Yuugi, what would you say to coming with me to my ranch?"
Atemu looked up from his water. 'What? Is he taking Yuugi away?'
Yuugi blinked and panted, staying in place. "What? You mean . . . leave Negishi-san's plantation?"
"Yes." He smiled. "You would come work for me and help me out with the horses. You would learn how to train them and take care of horses properly. You've done a wonderful job but you haven't received any real training, have you?"
Yuugi shook his head. "No. But Kaiba-san, as much as I do appreciate your offer, I don't know if I can take it. This is the only place I've known for five years. I couldn't leave these horses. They need me and I need them."
Seto nodded. "I understand. But please, keep it in mind. You may change your mind."
Seto left to talk with Negishi and Yuugi sighed. He turned to Atemu and stroked his neck. "Yami, what do you think I should do? I love you all so much. I couldn't leave you like that. But then…I've heard that Kaiba-san's ranch is so amazing! He's one of the top trainers in the country! I would love to go there but I just don't think I could. Not without all of you with me."
Atemu gently nibbled on Yuugi's bangs, close to his forehead. He wanted so badly to actually give the stable boy a kiss but for now this would have to do. 'Do whatever makes you happy, sweet one. That's all that matters in the end. I'm sure that's all that Seto wants as well.'
Yuugi smiled. "Thank you. It helps."
The boy wrapped his arms around Atemu's neck. He sighed and took a step back. "Let's get you back into your stall."
Yuugi removed the saddle and bridle, leading Atemu back into his stall. After he closed the door and locked it, he sighed and rested his arms against the top of the gate. "Thanks for letting me ride you. I've never had so much fun in my entire life."
Atemu nickered. 'You're welcome, my sweet one. I hope we won't have to separate.'
Yuugi smiled and patted the horse's nose. He walked away and lowered his head, letting a tear escape from his eyes. 'These horses are my only real friends. I can't leave them. Not for anything in the world.'
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The signals Seto were using are the ones that I was told to do when I rode a horse once. I don't know if that's what everyone knows, but that's I was told.
I hope you liked it! Please review!