This chapter is actually pretty long for me, although technically, they all are. Anyway, I would like to say thank you to everyone who reviewed, answers will be at the bottom for those who asked questions.
Not much to say other than that. So, on with the story.
The next day dawned relatively quietly for Yugi. For once he was up early, unable to stay in bed any longer than necessary. Atemu hadn't returned until late into the night and had looked troubled when he walked in. Bakura had been nowhere in sight and Yugi got the feeling that some random person on the other side of town was being mugged. Yugi sighed as he stared out at the bright sky, wishing he would be able to sleep in on a Saturday morning, and not have to worry about anything to do with his father or his brother. In fact, Yugi had been doing quite well without him and now he had come, dragging danger and lord knows what with him.
It didn't take long for Yugi to realise that he was the first one up but he was surprised when he did. He didn't normally get up until late and had no idea what to do right now. He wasn't feeling all that hungry, the worry and curiosity blocked it out, and so he decided to take a walk around instead. Perhaps the fresh air would do him some good and the exercise would give him a healthy appetite for breakfast.
The day was bright and sunny, giving Domino a cheerful feel. Domino city could be a very beautiful place, especially in this area of town so near the park. Since it was early, not many people were around and the park was fairy empty of annoying little children who would scream and shriek throughout the day normally on a weekend. Yugi liked the quiet it brought and could feel himself relaxing. Flower blossoms blew past his face and ticked his nose, making him laugh. He considered collecting a few to give to Tea but then realised that she wouldn't care either way and, anyway, she wouldn't be up yet anyway. That and she consistently told Yugi that she only felt for him what a friend would and refused to indulge in Yugi's crush on her. Yugi had thought that he had kept it secret enough but she had guessed anyway and would only give him that friendly yet sad smile when he tried to bring it up. However, the flower blossoms soon became the least of Yugi's problems.
Yugi had never been very good at sensing danger and he certainly didn't sense it now which was too bad. He hated the fact that he had constantly been picked on and he hadn't been able to stop the bullies nor sense when they would next pounce. So when he crashed straight into someone, it was no surprise that he didn't realise the danger until he looked up.
"Well, if it isn't the little game nerd Yugi Motou," Ushio Myette sneered as he towered over Yugi. Ushio was huge, built exactly like the police officer that his father happened to be, and liked to remind everyone of that. Yugi didn't think that most police children were all that bad but Ushio seemed to think that made him immune to the law let alone school rules. In fact, he seemed to think that it gave him the power to pick on small children and Yugi had been his favourite until Ushio had graduated. Thankfully, Yugi hadn't seen Ushio since then but it seemed that today was not his lucky day.
"H-Hey Ushio!" Yugi said nervously, "Long time no see." Yugi gulped as Ushio glared at him disapprovingly.
"You should look where you're going. Just 'cause you're a shrimp doesn't meant that you can fit through everyone's legs. I think you need to learn a lesson," Ushio growled, showing that he was obviously not a morning person.
"Please, Ushio…" Yugi begged, not sure exactly why he was begging. He hated pleading with bullies but he wasn't built for fighting. He hated violence of any kind which was probably why he was picked on so often.
"We're not in school anymore Motou. Pleading isn't going to help you." Ushio had that evil smirk on his face, the one he always had when he was going to beat the crap out of someone. Yugi recoiled backwards, ripping over a tree root in the process, knowing that he wasn't going to get out of this. He squeezed his eyes shut as the first blow came down. He cried out as one blow after another came into contact with his small, fragile frame. At one point, Yugi heard a crack, telling him that one of his ribs was broken but there was nothing he could do. It wasn't as if Yugi knew how to fight back against the guy.
"Lay another hand on him and I swear I will kill you." Yugi felt his eyes snap open to the sound of his brother's voice cutting into the hell that he had fallen into. He rolled his eyes to the side and caught a glimpse of Atemu dressed all in black, glaring at Ushio with one of the coldest glares Yugi had ever seen. The phrase 'if looks could kill…' ran through his head, redefining its meaning. Yugi had never seen so much hatred in one person's eyes before. Ushio, however, just seemed to think it was funny.
"And what are you going to do midget? I could give you a lesson too once I've finished with this moron right here," Ushio sneered, his smirk still in place. Anger flared up in the depths of hatred in Atemu's eyes as he narrowed them in cold fury.
"I'm warning you, touch Yugi again and I will have no qualms leaving you in an alley for the dogs to feed off of," Atemu growled quietly, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. Yugi got the feeling that he was already struggling not to do just that.
"And what are you going to do about it? You're nothing but a twig for me to break." Ushio laughed at his own muscularity. Atemu scowled.
"Well a least I don't have the brain capacity of a five year old." This time, Ushio stiffened in anger. He growled and then suddenly swung a large, meaty fist at Atemu. Yugi cried out at him, trying to tell him to run while he had the chance but realised that Atemu was no longer there. Ushio's fist sailed through air as Atemu ducked down, sending Ushio a blow of his own, a sharp jab in the stomach. Ushio overbalanced, falling to the ground clutching his midriff in a pain. For a moment he lay there and Yugi wondered how Atemu had felled him in only one blow when he rose to his feet, angrier than ever.
"I'll make you pay for that!" Ushio shrieked his eyes wild with rage. Atemu just stood like a tightly coiled spring, waiting for the chance to strike. The next few minutes were a blur of Ushio swinging at Atemu and Atemu dodging while sending back strikes of his own. Finally, Atemu had Ushio pinned to a tree, one of Ushio's arms pulled up towards his shoulder-blades.
"Attempt to move and I'll break your arm," Atemu growled at Ushio, the cold fury still in his voice. Yugi blinked. He had never seen anyone this mad, not even Bakura. Ushio just spat at Atemu.
"You think you're tough? I'll show you how stupid you are! I'll break your stupid little friend into pieces before-" Ushio cried out as Atemu yanked viciously on Ushio's arm. There was an awful snapping noise and Ushio screamed. Atemu had broken his arm in that one movement, but what was more frightening was Atemu's face. There was no regret, only anger. Atemu looked dangerous, like a panther about to move in for the kill.
The moment was broken by the scream of sirens. Yugi realised that a good ten minutes must have passed, enough time for people to see two boys fighting violently in the park and to call the police. And here he was lying on the ground with Atemu standing over him and Ushio writhing on the floor at his brother's feet. And Atemu looking like some sort of hard-core criminal who has seen death so many times that he has lost caring in it. So Yugi wasn't at all surprised when the two police officers jumped out of the car and ploughed his brother to the ground. Atemu struggled, only to cry out as one pulled out a Taser gun, shocking him to unconsciousness. Yugi wasn't aware that he had cried out until the officers turned to him. It was only then that he realised that one was Officer Myette, Ushio's father.
Yugi had been through many terrible occurrences in life. He had lost his mother, his father and brother hadn't seemed to want anything to do with him and Kaiba Corporation had nearly pushed them to eviction once. But Yugi had never ever been in a police station. Not even when the officers had brought the news of the car crash to their door had Yugi been taken to a police station and Yugi had never been in trouble. Now, he sat opposite a severe-looking woman who looked as she had a permanent scowl, locked in handcuffs to the chair. It was nearly enough to make Yugi cry except he told himself that he nearly sixteen and he would not be seen crying because he had been arrested for something he didn't do. Atemu was sat in the chair next to him, looking as if he hadn't been tasered at all. Yugi wondered how he was managing that.
"You two are in a lot of trouble. You know that, don't you?" Officer Myette had entered the room and relieved the woman of her post. She scowled deeper and rose form the chair.
"They haven't spoken a word Officer," the woman spat, her voice gravelly as she had gargled nails. Yugi winced and looked at his feet. He wasn't sure why they thought that he had done anything wrong since he had been on the floor, but he supposed he had been on the scene. They might have thought that he had been aiding Atemu.
"Now, would you like to tell me why you assaulted my son?" Officer Myette asked in a calm voice although there was an undertone of anger in it. Yugi got the feeling that this man was as nice as his son.
"He was assaulting my brother first. I simply defended Yugi," Atemu said back, just as calmly. Yugi wished that Atemu wouldn't see it that way. They could be charged for bodily assault! They could end up in jail! And Atemu was not only disrespecting an officer, he was also stating that they were related! For all Yugi knew, Officer Myette would take that as them being a team in crime or something.
Officer Myette narrowed his eyes. "My son has never assaulted anyone in his life. He claims that you were attacking unprovoked and the fact that you broke his arm means that I can charge you for grievous bodily harm. Now why don't you start telling me who you are and why you assaulted my son?" Officer Myette shouted, slamming his fist on the table. Yugi winced and he felt Atemu's gaze on him. Yugi had never had anyone but Joey look out for him but Atemu was defending even in this police room which was odd. Then again, Joey had never gotten them arrested.
"My name is Atemu Motou and I am telling you the truth. I followed my brother to the park because he looked troubled and when I caught up with him there was a boy standing over him, beating him to a pulp. I think he broke one of Yugi's ribs. When I told him to leave Yugi alone he insulted me, then came at me with fists so I defended myself." Atemu was looking at Officer Myette with all the pride and majesty of a prince. Suddenly Yugi could imagine him sitting on a throne ruling over people, giving out justice to the cruel and greedy. There was just something about Atemu that screamed royalty. Officer Myette, however, didn't seem to think so. He typed something into the computer, frowned and typed something else. Then he looked away from the computer and back to Atemu with narrowed eyes.
"I can't find you on this system. I have databases on everyone in the world, including some of the remotest people on this planet and your name doesn't come up. It does say that your friend has a brother that lives in Egypt but you're not listed. Now tell me why that is." Officer Myette was smirking like he had just won a hand at poker and Yugi felt Atemu tense in the seat next to him. Yugi was confused. Why did Atemu's name not come up? He had always thought that Motou was their father's surname; however Grandpa's surname was Motou so it seemed that that was not the case. But that still didn't explain why Atemu was a blank on a world database.
"You don't want my full name," Atemu muttered, his eyes suddenly on the floor. Yugi wondered what was so bad about his full name. It couldn't be as bad as Yugi Heba Motou. He didn't have a clue what his middle name even meant!
Officer Myette raised an eyebrow. "Well, I need a name to inform your parent of this charge so he can get the pair of you a lawyer. I'm taking you to court for this assault on my son."
"But he was protecting me!" Yugi cried, speaking up for the first time. He couldn't believe this! His brother had told the officer the truth and yet he still didn't believe them!
"I don't care what you think happened. The fact is that he assaulted my son for no reason and now won't own up to it. So your full name?" Officer Myette looked at Atemu expectantly. Atemu growled and looked at the floor.
"Don't blame me for what you find," he muttered. "It's Atem Yami Sennen Amirmoez El-Amin*." Yugi blinked at all the foreign words, trying to figure out which part was the surname and which part the end of Atemu's names. Officer Myette smiled and typed it into the computer. After a moment his eyes widened and his mouth fell open. Yugi watched as the officer's eyes flicked between Atemu, the computer and himself. A long silence stretched out as the officer seemed to recover from whatever it was that he had found.
"Y-You've got to be kidding me!" Officer Myette finally managed, still staring at Atemu as if the world's most famous celebrity was sitting in front of him. Atemu didn't look back at him.
"I thought you were going to call my father," was all he said, his face shadowed by the long blonde locks in front of his face. Officer Myette shook his head and picked up the phone next to his left hand, typing in whatever number he saw on the screen. He then, surprisingly, pressed the speakerphone button. A female voice answered.
"Hello, welcome to Kaiba Corporation, Egypt. How may I help you?" Officer Myette was the one to speak.
"I would like to talk to Akhnankhamun Hekeb Salam El-Amin** please. It's urgent." There was a long pause. Yugi thought he could hear frantic scrabbling and the woman faintly asking a question.
"Please hold one moment sir, while we patch you through," the woman returned faintly, almost as if she didn't get that request very often.
"Why did it go to Kaiba Corp?" Yugi whispered to Atemu. Atemu just shrugged.
"Probably the only way to get in touch with father." Yugi blinked at the way that Atemu had phrased that. Not 'dad'. 'Father'. Was their dad a strict parent? Or did he just insist on formalities?
The phone was suddenly picked up again, this time with by a man with a deep voice full of authority.
"Hello?"
"Am I speaking to Mr El Hakram?" Officer Myette asked his voice slightly shaky as if suddenly aware that he was speaking to someone of importance. Yugi noticed that his face had gone completely white.
"Yes." The voice was terse, impatient. It was clear that their father wasn't happy with getting a call.
"I have your… um… sons with me. They've been caught assaulting a child in a park." Officer Myette seemed to have lost all confidence in himself. There was a long silence, then,
"That doesn't sound like my children. What was the name of their supposed victim?"
"Ushio. Ushio Myette."
"Would I happen to be speaking to Officer Myette?" Officer Myette, if possible, went even paler.
"H-How did you know that?" he practically whispered, suddenly looking terrified.
"I have my sources. Now, let me tell you something. I have been informed in the past that while your son attended Domino High School, he bullied my younger son, Yugi, simply because he was smaller and weaker than you own son. I also happen to know that the University of Japan would not accept his application for joining the police forces in an apprenticeship because of his violent tendencies. Now, I am sure that Atem has informed you of the actual situation by now and I would not like to be contacted on this number again unless in an actually emergency or because of an actual crime committed by my sons!" Officer Myette looked as if he were going to throw up. Yugi wondered who had told his father all of this and where they had gotten the information.
"O-Of course," Officer Myette stuttered. "I-I won't b-bother you again." The phone clicked dead as their father hung up the phone. Atemu just looked at the phone curiously, as if trying to puzzle something out. Officer Myette just shook his head and came round from behind the desk. A moment later Yugi's hands were free and he was able to stand. Officer Myette just gave him a shaky smile as he let Atemu go as well.
"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you boys," he said as he put the keys back into his pocket. Atemu stood up, massaging his wrists where the cuffs had been put on tightly. "I'll be having words with Ushio later on. You can count on me to make sure this whole mess is cleaned up right." Atemu just raised an eyebrow and Yugi wondered if he was thinking of filing a law suit of his own against the police officer. Yugi just smiled, happy to be able to go.
"I'm sure that's all right. No harm done right?" Yugi said a little nervously. After all, only a few moments ago he had been under arrest. Officer Myette smiled, avoiding eye contact with either of them.
"I'll get you a lift home." Officer Myette left and Yugi turned to Atemu.
"Can you believe it? Star treatment home!" Yugi laughed with relief, happy that he wasn't going to end up in jail. Atemu just looked at the floor and made a noncommittal noise. Yugi frowned. "What's the matter?"
"Nothing," Atemu murmured. "I had just hoped that I would be able to live a little normally for once."
"Oh." Yugi looked at the floor himself suddenly realising that Atemu had probably had the star treatment all the time. The old hatred flared up again but for once it was slightly muted. Atemu didn't look happy at being treated. In fact, he looked as if he wished for anything other than the attention they were getting. Not that his looks hadn't already gotten him noticed.
Silence reigned in the room as they waited for Officer Myette to return. Yugi wanted to talk to Atemu, a sudden need to understand his twin rising in him for the first time however he didn't know how to breach the subject. Atemu was always so quiet when the conversation turned to talk of his homeland. Watching him now, Yugi noticed how uncomfortable Atemu looked. He had obviously never been in a police station either and he probably had never been tasered before. He was rubbing his shoulder, where the electric shock had entered him body and Yugi felt a stab of pity. Being tasered was probably as horrible as it looked and Atemu had only been trying to protect him after all.
The door suddenly opened and the woman with the gravelly voice was back. "There's a car to take you up to Kaiba Corp," the woman said, before leaving again. Yugi blinked. Why on earth would they be going to Kaiba Corp? Atemu looked just as startled, his eyes wide in shock. Well, it was nice to know that something could shock his brother but Yugi was too shocked himself to take any pleasure from his brother's face.
"Why do we need to go to Kaiba Corp? Can't we just go home?" Yugi asked out loud but Atemu just shook his head.
"I don't know," was all he said before following the woman out of the door.
* Ok, I mean no one in the world offense with these names. Mostly I made them up, but I did research Arab names on Google if they mean anything offensive to people. I live in England, so if I have done something offensive just tell me and I'll change it. I know how Google can sometimes give you weird results.
** Yeah, same thing really except almost all of Akhnankhamun's names are made up by me other than his surname.
So moving away from things that I hope are not evil to the rest of the world, I just want to say thank you to the people who reviewed and that things will be explained the further into this story we go! Ok, answers.
Lady Fai: Yes, Yugi will like Atem by the end of this story. Cute fluffy chapters up ahead (some very soon) although there will be some tension between their bond at one point.
CrimsonStrawberry17: I love how you always review every chapter. I find that very considerate of you. The thief court has a purpose in this story but I don't want to give too much away about it because it's supposed to be secret! I'll just say for now that it's an organisation set up and run by Bakura and will have an important part to play in the story later on. As for where their allegiances lie... pretty much anyone's guess. :)
Guest: I'm very sorry for the typo but I can't find it, even after reading the chapter through three times! You have keener eyes than me! As for whether Tea is in this story... I'm not really sure. I've got most of this story planned out in my head (for a change) but she doesn't really feature in it apart from scattered mentions here and there. I know a lot of people like her but I just find it hard to write a character who to me seems so... bland. Even Tristan doesn't get much of a mention in this story. She'll probably feature about as much as Tristan does, which isn't much. Sorry.
If anyone else has any questions I have to qualms answering them. I hope these might clear some stuff up for anyone else who might have similar questions.
Next chapter isn't as exciting as this one although it does feature Seto Kaiba and Mokuba for the first time (and kind of explains their roles in this story).
Please carry on reviewing! I was happy about the extra reviews this time!