A/N: People we know! Finally!
He pouted as Maria dressed him into formal clothes, hating how stuffy they were.
"Why do I have to wear this, Maria?" he asked plaintively.
"We have some important guests arriving soon, Your Highness. We want you to look your best," she replied, smiling as she tied the bottom of his hair with a red ribbon, leaving the ends dangling instead of putting it into a bow.
He was only three, but he already knew that it was important to make a good first impression on 'important' guests. He stopped his complaints and wriggling, allowing Maria to dress him easily.
"There we are. You look very handsome, Yuri," Maria murmured, kissing his forehead before standing up.
Yuri crossed over to the mirror, gazing at his reflection. He certainly did look rather smart...
"Should I be serious or cute?" he asked, looking up at Maria. Depending on the guest would depend on how he acted.
"Do what you want, Yuri. The King has said there's no need to try and win these guests over."
"Oh. Okay," Yuri said, surprised. They must be good friends if his father wasn't needing him to try and get him on their good side.
They headed down to the entrance hall, Yuri taking his place beside his father. A few minutes later, the 'important' guests arrived. Yuri gazed at them in surprise. King Damon leapt off his horse, walking over to the other one and helping his wife and son down.
"Damon, Lana, it's good to see you again," Zane greeted, stepping forward and holding out his arms. Damon returned the one armed hug, laughing.
"We wouldn't miss the opportunity for a visit!" he replied, then motioned to the boy. "This is our son. He's only three, but he's certainly got a smart head on his shoulders. Much like his mother!"
Zane grinned, then placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder. "This is my boy. Three as well, so maybe the two can become friends!"
Yuri gazed at the boy, tilting his head. There was a strange pull towards him...something he'd never felt before. He stepped forward, holding out his hand.
The boy gazed at him with eyes as blue as the sky, then also went forward, taking Yuri's hand.
"I'm Yuri Lowell," Yuri introduced, grinning.
The boy smiled back. "Nice to meet you. I'm Flynn Scifo."
The door slammed open, the two boys jerking awake.
"Alright, get up. We've arrived."
Yuri looked around, disorientated. Arrived? Arrived where? Wasn't he back home?
A boot connecting with his side made him yelp, falling back into Flynn. The blonde quickly steadied him, looking up into the cruel face of their captor.
"Where are we?" asked Flynn, moving forward so that he was between Yuri and the man.
"You'll find out soon enough. Now get up."
Flynn scowled then stood, reaching down and helping Yuri up. Yuri blinked as he saw the chain connecting his wrist to Flynn's. What was going on? How long had he been out? The situation was coming back to him, but he had no idea what had happened while he'd been unconcious.
The two boys headed out, Flynn keeping his grip on Yuri's wrist as they walked down the corridor. The man stepped out behind them, hefting a large sword over his shoulder as he followed them to make sure they didn't try any tricks.
"Flynn, what's going on?" asked Yuri, glancing around.
"I don't know everything, but this guy is selling us off. Turns out he's a slave trader, and we're the slaves," Flynn replied quietly.
They stepped off the boat onto sand, and Yuri winced, raising a hand to shade his eyes as he looked around. They glanced back as their horses were led onto the sand, stamping their hooves uncertainly. The man and one of the others climbed onto their backs, and another man walked over to the two boys holding another chain. He reached for Yuri's wrist, but Flynn pushed the purple-head out of the way, lifting his own wrist. The man shrugged and put the chain on, handing the other end to the captain.
The man eyed Flynn then clicked his horse on, starting to lead them on. The two boys began walking, Yuri keeping his gaze fixed on the ground, though he automatically sought out Flynn's hand and grasped it tightly.
Flynn glanced at him, then smiled reassuringly. "We'll get out of this somehow, I promise," he murmured.
Yuri nodded, though he didn't really believe it.
It took them four hours to reach their destination. The desert heat was unbearable, and the boys soon lagged. Their captor forced them on, and they were given water sparingly. There were no rests, and they both felt close to collapsing when they finally reached the place.
It obviously wasn't fully built, as only the base seemed to have been built, and several people wandered around building it. A man stood infront of them, watching them, and several other people wearing black clothes with red eyes stood around them.
The large man turned as they arrived, glancing at Yuri and Flynn.
"Jonathan, are these the two slaves you promised me? I thought you said they were hard workers!" he snapped.
"They rode two days with no rest, sir, and still managed to remain alert until I knocked them out. They've got a ridiculous amount of stamina," the man leading them, Jonathan, said. He motioned to them. "They've been walking four hours straight through this weather with little water and no rests, and they're still concious," he added.
The large man raised an eyebrow then strode over to them, bending over to get a better look. The two boys glared defiantly back at him, drawing closer to each other.
The large man considered them, then nodded. "Alright, I'll take 'em. Need a couple new slaves anyway, one of mine dropped dead a couple of hours ago, and another looks close to going too."
Yuri stiffened, gripping Flynn's hand tightly, while the blonde stepped protectively infront of him.
"Of course, sir. Then...would two thousand gald be alright?" asked Jonathan.
"Ha! Not on your life. Seven hundred at most."
"One thousand three hundred?"
"One thousand, and that's my final offer."
"Of course sir. Pleasure doing business," Jonathan said, taking the money then passing the chain over to the fat man. Then he and his servant turned before galloping back to where the boat was.
The large man turned to look at them, scowling. "Alright you two. My name is Barbos, and you're mine from now on. Don't ever forget that. If I tell you to do something, you do it, no questions asked. Work well, and you'll be rewarded with extra food and water. Do badly or act rudely, however, and you'll be tied to the post for two days with minimum water and food. Understand?"
They nodded, Flynn barely concealing his glare. Barbos led them over to one of the Red Eyes, passing over to the chain and whispering some instructions. The Red Eyes nodded and Barbos walked off, heading to some shade.
The two boys watched as the chain between them was undone, then another Red Eyes was called over. They had a quick conversation, then the new one grabbed Yuri's wrist, pulling him away despite his protests.
Flynn blinked then turned in confusion, looking at the Red Eyes. "What are you doing? Where are you taking him!?" he demanded.
"You should think about yourself first," the Red Eyes snapped, dragging him in the opposite direction.
Flynn stumbled, his gaze catching Barbos', and he blinked as he saw the man smirking. Anger burned through him as he realised he had just wanted to split the two of them up, and he nearly tried to fight against the Red Eyes leading him just to punch Barbos in the face. Then common sense took over and he quickly controlled himself, casting his gaze to the floor.
...If he did good enough, maybe Barbos would allow them to be put back together.
Days went by slowly yet fast at the same time. Without even realising it, months passed. It was like hell; they constantly had to lug heavy blocks over to the structure, piling them on top of each other and making sure they were perfect before moving on to another. Despite that, Barbos expected them to manage to do a certain amount of blocks each day, and if that amount wasn't met, you were chained to the post for two days.
At nights, everyone was gathered under a tent together. Everyone was given a number, and that number was where they were supposed to sleep. The two boys quickly discovered they were the furthest away from each other, and spent most nights communicating silently as best they could, mouthing the words so as not to alert the guards that they were communicating.
The other people in the camp seemed to realise the two boys knew each other, and shot them sympathetic looks as they communicated at night or caught a glimpse of each other during the work. Others who knew each other were usually together, and no one knew why they specifically had been separated.
One night, as everyone was heading in, Flynn stepped up as his number was called. The number after him was called, and there was a slight shuffle before the person after him followed. They went into the tent in a steady line, walking to their blankets, then Flynn sat down heavily on his.
A moment later a hand touched his arm and he glanced back before blinking as he spotted Yuri. The purple-head grinned, throwing his arms around the blonde. Flynn smiled, hugging him back, then the two of them quickly got under the covers before the Red Eyes noticed. They spent most of the night whispering to each other before eventually falling asleep.
Though this didn't happen every night, people took it in turns to give the two boys an opportunity to be together. Their happy smiles were usually enough to ease everyone's worries, as the two boys were by far the youngest at the camp, and it seemed unfair to make them suffer the most.
One morning, as everyone was coming out of the tent, Barbos stepped forward. Yuri immediately tried to go back to his normal place in the line, but he'd spotted them already and grabbed Yuri by his collar.
"What did I say about ignoring the rules? You'll be chained to the post," he snarled, dragging him away.
"No! Yuri!" Flynn cried, leaping after him, but he was quickly restrained. Barbos glanced back at him, then smirked.
"Take him to the other one. Leave him there for four days," he ordered. The Red Eyes nodded, grabbing Flynn's wrist and pulling him away.
"Flynn!" Yuri shouted, nearly choking as Barbos tightened his grip on his collar.
"Shut it, brat, or I'll have you chained there for a week," he snapped before dragging him away.
A/N: I feel so sorry for Flynn and Yuri in this. I'm sorry I'm so cruel to you! *sobbing*
Review?