Disclaimer: Blah blah blah. I claim no ownership to anything that could end up in a lawsuit.
"So you're telling me that you, my cousin who is inspiring to be a dancer, went on a date with the king of this place after everything?"
Téa sighed, her folded arms rested on top of her knees. The boys were in the same position as her done by Seto. Locked up in part of a dungeon with no one else around except for the illusions that led to fears of the shadows. She noticed how Duke and Tristan would glance around too, flinching if they heard a tap or some movement.
"It wasn't a date Tristan. He just took me to one of the villages in his kingdom because he had official business to do."
"But it was just you two alone, flying in the sky with no other people around Téa . Then he thanked you for a great time," Duke added, only igniting Tristan's cousin and big brotherly instincts.
"You didn't do anything extreme on that date did you Téa ?" Tristan asked, making Téa 's jaw drop.
"Do you honestly think I'd do that on a first date?"
"He's a king Téa . That means he most likely has some type of power to woo women under his clutches! I mean look at all those princesses in the Disney movies!"
Téa 's brows shot up, shaking her head at his words.
"Okay those princesses fell for either a commoner or a prince. I can't think of one that fell for a king. Anyways, how many single women do you see her in the castle," Téa did not even bother to wait for them to answer her question, "I am the only single woman in this castle."
"Doesn't mean he has to go after you," Tristan muttered, receiving an elbow into his ribs by Duke.
"You two should be grateful for what King Atem did," A childish voice called out, making Téa turn around in her chair and look towards the door. Her eyes lit up as a bright grin appeared on her face.
"Mokuba! How are you?" Téa asked the young boy, flanked by Kuriboh who protested at her for not acknowledging him as well. "And you too Kuriboh."
"It's not fair Téa . Everyone else is part of some major meeting. They decided to exclude Kuriboh and me because we are too 'young'. Usually they let me sit with them in the room," Mokuba's eyes furrowed in anger. Téa had to control herself not to mention to that the young boy he had a slight pout because he looked adorable with it.
"It's probably something really important. Maybe we could do something until they're done?" Téa suggested.
Mokuba's eyes lit up with at Téa 's words, running over to her. He grabbed her hand and pulled up from her seat while Kuriboh went over to Tristan and Duke, nudging them out of their seats. He had been afraid they would reject him after what he was ordered to do by his older brother. But apparently it wasn't so as the trio didn't force him to leave or cringe in his appearance.
"Where are we going?" Tristan asked curiously, noticing the excitement radiating off Mokuba.
"The dragon stables."
To say none of the members of Atem's court was in shock was an understatement.
"What do you mean the leaves are changing colors?" Seto demanded, rising from his red velvet seat. His eyes were blazing with frustration, his hands gripping the dark oak table. Seto could not wrap his mind around what his cousin had just told him. "There is no possibility that after all these years, centuries even; the seasons are now beginning to change."
"I saw them with my very own eyes Seto. Are you going to insinuate that I am lying to everyone?" Atem's tone demanded for his cousin to stay in his place. He was still angry with Seto for his actions towards the human trio as he still made no attempt to right his wrongs.
"No I am not but how else do you expect us to react to such news as this?"
"He does have a point King Atem. After all, these years with the weather remaining the same, hearing that it is changing is a shock. How else do you expect us to react?" Mai defended Seto, who sent her a quick look of appreciation.
Atem sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger.
"Yes I know Mai but I cannot simply go to the people of this kingdom and tell them not to worry. We would have to go and help make preparations for the upcoming winter for all of the lands in this kingdom."
The sound of chairs scraping against the stone floor filled the room, indicating that everyone was leaving their king in peace.
Atem's head snapped up when he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Brother, you have come a long way since the curse was placed but I still think you need to learn a few things. I believe Téa will help you learn them," Yugi smiled at his brother's confused look before taking his leave.
"What do I still need to learn Yugi?" Atem asked, rising from his seat to follow his brother.
Yugi laughed at his brother who clearly was trying to figure out what did he mean. "You'll see in time."
"Mokuba, I'm sure this isn't safe to do. Shouldn't we have your brother or someone else with us?" Téa asked as she admired the size of the dragon stables. The building was made of grey, thick stones that were smooth to the touch but looked sturdy enough to survive storms.
'I shouldn't be surprised that this building is enormous. After all, dragons do live in here,' Téa thought.
"I have ridden these dragons before Téa . Well the small ones only," Mokuba replied as he led Téa , Tristan and Duke through the stables.
"So what were the dragons before the curse?" Tristan gazed at one dragon particular. The dragon looked like it belonged in a cartoon with big brown eyes that had a happy twinkle to them. In addition, it looked like it had a smile on its face. It had blue scaling but a tan underbelly, which surprised Tristan. Then again, how much did he know about dragons except from fairy tales?
"Some were horses we had owned then. We found some over the years but with the attitudes they have at times, we wondered if some were human before."
Duke's jade eyes widened at Mokuba's answer.
"Some of them were human?"
Mokuba nodded, gripping onto his staff tightly.
"Yes. Some of them were most likely human before the curse. That's why we need to break it as soon as we can."
"Mokuba," Téa whispered, stopping the boy in his tracks. She kneeled down to his height as she enveloped him into a hug. "We'll do everything we can to help you all break the curse. We'll help you all cope into society as well if need be."
Mokuba, not expecting Téa's sincere words, hugged Téa back but with his cheeks darker than his king's eyes.
Duke muttered pervert under his breath that got him an elbow buried into his ribs.
"You're just jealous that you aren't young enough hug girls like that," Tristan snickered, not bothered that a kid who has mystical powers was hugging his cousin.
"As if. Téa 's like a sister to me," Duke replied as he watched Téa and Mokuba break out of the hug. He noticed a pained look on the kid's face before it quickly curved into a smile.
"There's one dragon I want to show you. All of our dragons are special. However, one is stubborn. She will not let us ride her. She will not even let us get near her. The only one who can get slightly close to this dragon is Serenity," Mokuba explained, leading the three humans down further into the massive stables.
"Wait how many dragons do you have?" Tristan asked, noticing some empty stables until he heard noises behind the gates.
"We have about thirty. I have the dragon that you saw earlier. His name is Skylar because of his blue color. Joey owns two, Mai owns two, and Yugi and the king own at least three. Rebecca and Serenity don't own a dragon and the rest are Seto's except for the one that Seto calls a word Serenity does not approve of."
"You own thirty of these things?" Duke noticed some of the dragon's evil glares when he said things.
"Yes. Here is the stubborn dragon," Mokuba declared cheerfully, stopping at least twenty to forty feet away from its stable.
"She's beautiful," Téa whispered as her eyes fell on the slumbering creature. She saw how the streams of sunlight escaped from the window of the oval dome over the creature's wings. They were the color of pink pearls Téa remembered her grandmother wore everyday until she passed them down to her mother that she later inherited.
"Since are dragons blue or even have hands? Shouldn't they have claws or talons?" Duke asked Mokuba, analyzing the dragon. Téa looked away from admiring the dragon's beautiful sea foam green hair to the hands Duke said was there.
"The question should be since when do dragons wear armor?" Tristan muttered. The bright golden armor stood out to him more than the beauty of the dragon.
"See why I told you this dragon is unique? None of our other dragons are like this unless we had to fight."
Téa glanced at the young yet wise magician. His glassy eyes told her there must have been a time of instability in the kingdom at some point.
'I hope he didn't have a part in any battles,' Téa hoped when Tristan interrupted her thoughts.
"Mokuba, why are the dragon's eyes opened?"
Mokuba snapped out of his daze and looked at the once slumbering dragon. "It's not growling," Mokuba whispered.
"And that's a bad thing?" Téa whispered back, stunned at the giant.
"She always growls when Seto tries to wake it up."
"If I saw a face like Seto's when I woke up, I would be pissed too," Tristan threw in, earning him a snort from Duke and a disapproving glance from Téa.
The dragon poked its head out further, her pale ruby eyes searching for something. Téa froze in her stance as the dragon's eyes fell on her and did not dare to move.
The dragon made a small growl that frightened Tristan and Duke deeply but not Téa . Instead, she felt a warm, comforting presence from the dragon. She did not quite understand why but she felt compelled to move closer to the dragon.
"Téa what the hell are you doing?" Duke hissed, reaching to grab her arm when Mokuba whacked his hand with the staff. Tristan snickered at the stunned expression on Duke's face.
"Don't stop her unless you want the dragon to lash out!"
"Why would it lash out?"
Mokuba wondered how he could explain what was going on without Tristan and Duke getting the wrong idea. "The dragon chose Téa as her bond partner of sorts."
Tristan and Duke stared incredulously at Mokuba when- "BOND PARTNER?"
Mokuba face palmed at the two's reactions. 'Do they take anything seriously without flipping out?'
"Remember how I told you all that almost each of the members in King Atem's court has dragons?" Duke and Tristan nodded. "Well the dragons just don't let anyone ride them. Usually the most powerful dragons we own have some special bond with someone. Joey's dragon will not let anyone else ride him unless Joey is with him or her. It is vice versa with the other dragons and their bond partners. The adults don't know how to explain it but it does avoid transportation issues."
"So now if King Atem or anybody else wanted to ride this dragon, Téa has to be there?" Tristan asked, letting all the information process.
Mokuba nodded.
"Dude, that overgrown lizard won't fit in a dog house. Hell, it won't fit in my house!" Duke said as he watched Téa place a hand gently on the dragon.
The dragon relaxed at her touch, closing her eyes contently. A sort of purring sound emitted from the dragon as Téa gently stroke its scales.
Tristan who was also watching Téa interact the dragon muttered, "It's like a big pussy cat with Téa ."
Mokuba smirked at Tristan's comment. "Threaten her life and the dragon will be threatening yours."
"It wouldn't though because she's my cousin and our scents have to be similar or something right?"
Mokuba shrugged, secretly enjoying the panicking Tristan. "I don't know about that. When I played a trick on Seto one time with Joey, his dragon nearly flipped out on me until Seto stopped it."
Tristan's saucer wide eyes sent Duke laughing as he could tell the Mokuba was egging Tristan on.
'I'll have to enlist this kid's help if I want to prank Tristan anytime soon.'
"Hey come over and pet Fayette!" Téa called to them, never ceasing her movements.
"She named it already?" Tristan muttered, taking slow steps towards Téa .
Much to his dismay, Fayette stopped her weird purring sound when she felt Tristan get close.
Duke on the other hand, was clearly amused. "Oh this is hilarious."
"Oh come on Tristan; she won't bite you."
"You honestly think I'm going to believe you considering all the times you said that before and I ended up getting injured?"
Téa stood akimbo, an exasperatingly look on her face. "Tristan, that was before we became teenagers."
"Time may move on Téa but I still have scars from those incidents."
"I didn't know my cousin is frightened by a dragon that is perfectly calm at the moment," Téa muttered loud enough for Tristan to hear.
"Thanks for wounding my pride Téa."
Tristan continued to move closer to Téa, listening for the dragon to emit her growling sound. To his surprise, one never came.
"I want to pet her!" Mokuba ran over to Téa, pushing Tristan aside. Kuriboh on the other hand, stayed by Tristan and Duke.
"You're afraid too fur ball?" Duke asked Kuriboh. Kuriboh appeared to be concerned as he observed his master petting the big dragon.
Tristan rolled his eyes at Duke's question. "Pfft. Kuriboh has no reason to be afraid. What dragon wants to cough up a hairball?"
"Kri! Kri!" Kuriboh banged himself against Tristan's back, pushing him to the ground. Duke started laughing when he felt something tug at his hand.
"Duke come on and pet Fayette. She won't bite you," Mokuba pleaded, pulling out the puppy eyes.
"What about spit out fire?"
"Maybe but only if you make her mad."
"She sounds like one of Duke's ex-girlfriends," Tristan laughed as Téa nodded her in agreement with a small smile on her face. Some of his former girlfriends could put the craziness of this place to shame.
Duke thought about the consequences of either petting the dragon or not. 'Well you only live once.'
"Lead the way kid," Duke told Mokuba, who eagerly pulled Duke to Téa and Fayette..
Téa smiled as Duke stood next to her, appearing to be relaxed with his hands shoved into his pockets.
"So what gave you the courage to face the 'dangerous' dragon?"
Duke shrugged his shoulders, watching Téa pet the dragon. "If I learned dancing to help you win your high school talent show, I figured this couldn't be as bad."
Téa did not know whether she should be furious at his comment or not. 'At least he had the courage to come and pet her.'
Fayette tilted her head as Duke stuck out his hand to pet her. When she felt Duke's hands pet her snout, she did not snap at him. Instead, her tongue slithered out and licked him.
Enjoying the fact the dragon liked him better than Tristan already, Duke decided to poke some fun at his friend.
"Well it seems like every female, human or not wants me Tristan. Looks like you'll always be out of luck."
Tristan's eyebrow twitched at Duke's insult while Kuriboh seemed to find it hilarious as he made high pitch kri sounds.
Duke smirked at Kuriboh and Tristan's reactions. "See even Kuriboh agrees with me."
Tristan huffed, marching over to the rest of the group. He stuck his hand out impudently either out of fear or anger, Téa was not quite sure.
Fayette on the other hand, saw the abrupt gesture as a threat. She made no hesitation to start growling at Tristan. Tristan, in fear of the growling dragon, grabbed Mokuba and hid behind him.
Téa wasn't pleased with Tristan's actions and she wasn't going to let him get away with it. What ever happened to becoming wiser as you grew up?
"Tristan, what is wrong with you? Hiding behind Mokuba who is half of your size?"
"Size doesn't matter! He can turn that thing into a puny, legless lizard."
"Tristan I can't do that," Mokuba whispered.
Tristan spun Mokuba around to face him, his eyes glaring at the young magician.
"What do you mean you can't do that?"
"My magic isn't as strong as this dragon's right now. I can do things the dragon can't do but changing her into another creature isn't one?" Mokuba lied through his teeth. He did not mind lying Tristan or Duke. His problem was lying to Téa . He hated to do that to her. Lately he wondered how she would react when all of this was over.
"Tristan, you are not making Mokuba change this beautiful dragon into a slimy, ugly lizard. Honestly, I would ask Mokuba to change you into a-"
"A little bunny rabbit?" Duke interrupted Téa, a satisfied smirk on his face.
"I was going to say a dog with a muzzle on but a bunny is good too."
Tristan's jaw drop at his cousin's and best friend's words.
"You guys seriously wouldn't."
Duke shrugged his shoulders, a pose that would have swooned all of his fan girls at home.
"I don't know Tristan. I would love a new lucky rabbit's foot."
"You guys are just horrible." Tristan turned around, his arms folded across his chest. Tempted, Tristan thought about plotting himself onto the ground but Téa probably would tell him he is acting like one of the toddlers she used to baby-sit.
Fayette pressed her snout gently into Téa 's hand, gaining back her attention.
"What is it Fayette?"
Fayette scanned the room until her eyes landed onto what she was looking for. Mokuba, who noticed the interaction between Téa and Fayette, followed the direction of the dragon's eyes. A bright smile lit up on his face.
"Hey kid, you know what Fayette wants to do?" Duke asked, confused as Téa was. They saw that the dragon and Mokuba had their gazes on a saddle but the saddle was not one for a horse. The saddle was massive, clearly big enough for a dragon of Fayette's size. The charcoal colored saddle, beautifully decorated in silver and dark pink mehndi designs around the edges seemed to glisten in the strands of sunlight. Téa could not believe that on the saddle, small jade stones were within circle of every design, no matter how tiny it was.
"Yep I do and I can say that I'm excited as she is!" Mokuba exclaimed, pointing his staff towards the massive saddle.
"Um explain to me what she wants to do because I'm still confused," Tristan muttered, listening the entire conversation now.
"She wants to fly and she wants us to come with her," Mokuba grinned as he placed the saddle onto Fayette's back. "I call the seat behind Téa."
The end of this chapter! Dragons in this story are Fairy Dragon and Decoy Dragon.