:Sometimes life hates me, y'know? I've written out this chapter like twenty times in my head, rewrote the summary on paper twice that amount, after and DURING school when I could, and I'm sorry to say that the Red Nile is not going to be in this chapter, mainly for the fact that the detail I want to put in it is too much. I couldn't just force ya into the play, it would be too rushed. And this is a fifty+ chapter story, I can't rush things. Also I took a ten month break, so still. It's a week late, but there was a death in the family, three essays due, and I have a choir concert tomorrow so let's get through this! I love you guys and please enjoy this chapter!:

Thirty, Thirty-one, Thirty-two, Thirty-three...The prince counted the number of lines he could locate in the cream colored cloth above his eyes. He was laying on his back in his bed, an arm above his head while another rested on his bare chest, his matching beige blanket covered his bottom half as he blinked again and lost track of the number he was currently on. He sighed and sat up slowly, why was he just lazing around? A pharaoh-to-be shouldn't be like this.

He smiled to himself, why should he care about that right now? He usually didn't, but he had to get his mind off his current thoughts somehow. The play was supposed to happen today and tomorrow. He had practiced it many times before in that current week and he had acted it out with his friends. He remembered how Seto would always argue with them, saying how they were supposed to act like what they were and not do such things like play pretend, but in the end he would always end up as the general of the play. Atemu would be Wahankh, Mana would be Khu, and Malik would play the antagonist, it wouldn't always be like that however. There would be times when Seto or Malik would be Wahankh, and even Mana had the role at one point. Whenever Mana was a male role, Malik would play Khu. He was feminine enough and he never argued, so it worked.

The royal smiled at the fond memories, barely noticing as he nervousness began to slowly fade at the thoughts of his past. What should he worry about? He knew this play by heart, he could do it! He smirked to himself, moving his eyes to the side. He could-! His eyes widened as they rested on the picture of his friends and family...and on the small golden crown. His eyes narrowed, their color mixing into a softer shade of ruby. He reached for the small object, stopping himself just before grabbing it. He was hesitate to grab it, he remembered what it was for. It was to crown his fiance when he chose them. His hand turned into a fist, jerking itself away from the golden item as his body moved him into a standing position.

He needed to focus, he couldn't think of...Atemu felt his heart begin to tighten, he felt warm. He needed to calm down. He quickly moved into his bathroom, grimacing as the lights turned on. He needed to calm down.

A bath should help.

()()()()()()()()()

Why did wooden bunk beds have weird swirls inside them? There was two kinds of brown, light and dark, and they just swirled around, unmoving. Yugi was curled up under a baby blue blanket, the warm cloth covering Yugi's entire body and head other than his face. He rested on his side, looking at his bed railing as his friend's slept around him. He created the image of the two colors of brown dancing in the wood, as if they were trapped in it in a dance that would last forever. Why was he getting all poetic? He lifted the blanket up to his nose, closing his eyes for just a moment to soak in the warmth.

He was nervous about today, the play was finally here. After practicing for so long, it was finally here. He always got nervous around this time, yes he knew his lines, yes he knew how everything should go. But who wouldn't be nervous at this time? He had to perform in front of hundreds of people! Usually Joey would help him get rid of his nervousness, but he would be nervous too. He would always be in plays with him, but he wasn't this time...Instead...

Yugi jerked himself up, forcing his eyes shut and slapping his cheeks to rid himself of the sudden blush that had forced its way onto him. Stop it. Do not do this, not today. He should be fine now, right? They had kinda gotten back into their normal friendship. He had to rethink that, they never had a normal friendship. He shook his head, shut up!

He looked to the side, trying to see if Bakura might be awake. From what he could see, his silver haired friend was still wrapped up and sleeping as if there wasn't a care in the world. He didn't have to check if Joey was asleep, he knew he was. Yugi climbed out of his bed slowly, trying not to make any noise as he did so. He knew Joey was a heavy sleeper, but he was still somewhat unsure of Bakura. There would times when he was a heavy sleeper, and sometimes he wasn't. It was weird, but he never really thought too hard about it.

He walked to his desk, pulling out his chair and placing himself in it with a inaudible release of breath. What time was it? He looked to a nearby clock, only around five, huh? He rubbed his eyes with his hands, trying to rid himself of the sleep still remaining inside as he yawned. He looked around his desk, blurriness covering his sight as he did so. He rested his eyes on the bouquet of red roses resting on his desk, his eyes clearing as he he felt his mouth become dry.

Yugi wanted to slap himself, this was getting stupid. But, what could he do? He couldn't just ignore the guy and force himself to stop this stupid...thing... from happening to him. He reached for a single rose, taking it into his small hands and smiling softly at the fact they were free of any thorns. The royal didn't want these to hurt me, huh? He had an urge to stomp the flower, stop thinking damn it. He gripped the rose tighter, not enough to hurt it, but enough to slightly bend it.

Yugi observed the color, hating himself as he thought of an eye color and felt his face become bright. He brought the delicate plant to his nose, taking a gentle sniff as his eyes closed. It smelled fresh still, it was being well taken care of. His eyes shot back open as he thought of what he was doing, he quickly, but gently, placed the rose back in the vase.

He needed to think of a way to stop this, it was going to drive him up the wall at this rate! He opened a drawer of his desk, reaching inside for a dark violet notebook and opening it to the first page, good it was brand new. He looked around his desk for a writing utensil, quickly noticing a blue mechanical pencil and grabbed it. He began to write neatly and slowly, his mind drifting away from the previous thought to the words he was writing;

Khu: "Oh, where is he?"

()()()()()()()()()

Atemu let out a breath of air as he sat himself on the nearby loveseat, a towel wrapped around his waist and a smaller one resting around his neck. He looked down to the nearby coffee table, noticing a silver tray laid out in front of him. He narrowed his eyes down at it, not feeling hungry at the moment as he felt nervousness rumble inside his stomach.

He wasn't nervous about the play anymore, it was just the thought of what happened in the play now. Could him and Yugi really pull it off? And when it came up, would they actually do it? He removed himself from the seat and moved to his dresser to retrieve his uniform.

Knock! Knock!

"Atemu." Said person's head turned, hearing the voice of his adviser. "Are you awake?" more knocks were heard, making Atemu chuckle a little. Didn't he know that he would be awake?

"Yes." Atemu answered loudly, opening his dresser and locating his uniform as he heard Seto begin to talk to him through the door.

"I require you and the others to meet me in the regular room in exactly ten minutes." Regular room? Atemu thought as he clothed himself, he knew what room it was but they didn't have a name for it yet? Well, what would they call it anyway? The resting room, maybe? No, too much like the bathroom. "I have important details to discuss and all of us need to hear it, I will be waiting for you."

Atemu placed the two towels in his hands on top of his loveseat, beginning to adjust his tie as he heard his friend walk away. Important details, huh? It was Saturday and that meant...He felt a sudden weight crash itself onto his heart, forcing it to tighten painfully. Oh...

Those important details...

()()()()()()()()()()

It seemed like deja vu to be sitting like this again, Mana thought, sitting in a velvet cushioned chair. How many times had they used this room? She looked around her, her friend and brother in the same kind of seating in their regular bored poses, Atemu with his arms on the arm rests with one elbow propped with his chin resting in his palm, and Malik leaning on one arm rest with his eyes drooping. This was their regular room for meeting, and she did know why Seto had called it that. It was easy to remember and they all knew what it was. But it was so boring sounding, it needed to sound a little more exciting. Then again...Mana looked down at the hands folded in her lap.

Usually the talks held in here weren't that fun. She thought to Anzu, hoping that this would end soon so she could go see her. Anzu's smile would always make her feel better, so as soon as this was over she would go see her. After this was done, she should be at breakfast.

"Everyone." Seto clapped his hands, waking Malik up from his drowsy gaze. "Now, I know you all already know why I called you all here." A sudden sadness began to envelop the area. "I have to explain our procedure for leaving on Thursday morning and what will happen the day before."

All of them felt a sharp stab in their hearts, knowing this was coming. It was Saturday, they only had five days left in the academy before they had to go back home. They dreaded this moment, but they would have to face it sooner or later.

Seto coughed into his hand, continuing as he tried to force his feelings to stop overcoming him. "On Wednesday-" He choked up a little, clearing his throat and finally gaining control of himself once more. The fellow royals didn't comment on this uncommon event, they knew what he was feeling, they all were the same.

"On Wednesday there will be an event, as there usually is and then after two hours has passed within it, Atemu will be required to choose his spouse." The pharaoh-to-be bit his lip at this, his hand gripping the edge of the arm rest tightly until his knuckles turned white. "After this, the event will last until about eleven at night and we are to go to bed immediately. In the morning, we will wake at six, packing up, meeting up with the chosen spouse, and leaving by eight to catch our plane at ten." Seto breathed out, looking to the others in case they had question.

Mana felt the air begin to tighten, her eyes going to her brother. He looked angry for some reason, like something was bothering him and he wanted to erase it from existence. What was wrong with him? She thought of a question quickly.

"Um-" She gained Seto's attention. "What is the next event?"

Seto smiled warmly at her, forcing her to return the smile with a small one; "The next event is a Masquerade Ball."

Malik and Mana's mood picked up, their eyes shining as they heard this. A masquerade?! They had read stories of such balls and even seen pictures of them, but they had never attended one themselves! Atemu blinked in shock at this, really? The final event was a dance? Well...He supposed it made sense...

"Oh! I have a great idea!" Mana stood up quickly, clapping her hands together. "How about on Monday, we all go shopping with the others for our outfits!"

Malik's eyes widened as he smiled; "That sounds fun, but are we allowed to do that?"

Mana rolled her eyes and made a funny nose with her lips. "Pfft, we're royals!" She had never really brought up their power as royals in this school, but hey they had some. "We can do whatever we want, remember?"

"Mana," Atemu began to comment, his own grin beginning to stretch on his face. "I don't think we should-"

"I'll make Yugi wear a dress." This made Atemu's eyes widen, he had already seen his interest in a dress before, but that was for play purposes and he looked great in one and he wouldn't mind seeing him in one again and he was certain that Yugi would look beautiful in anythin-

"Do not try to persuade him that way." Seto tried to restrain his own smile. "Yugi is already going to be wearing a dress."

"We're still going to do it!" Mana yelled, placing her hands on her hips. She noticed Seto trying to argue. "No! We're doing it!" Seto shut his mouth quickly.

The princess looked to Malik getting up slowly and going to the door; "Where are you going?" The questioned royal turned around, raising an eyebrow with a knowing grin as he rose his wrist and pointed at his watch.

"I'm going to go hang out with the others at breakfast." Malik turned back around and rose a hand to wave as he walked away. "So, have fun."

The remaining three royals stared at him as he did, the princess beginning to suddenly realize what he had just said.

"Ah! I need to go see Anzu!"

"This meeting isn't done yet!"

"So, even the small thought of Joey makes you speak informally, huh?"

"I wasn't thinking about him, he wasn't even mentioned so how could I even begin to think when he-."

"Uh huh, Mana's running out the door by the way."

"Mana! Malik! Get back here!"

()()()()()()()()()

Did Yugi have another test coming up? Anzu pondered, stirring her yogurt as she watched her small friend scribble in a notebook at an intense speed. Her and the others were sitting in their spots at the table, but something about Yugi was off. She knew what was happening today, but he never got so nervous to the point he started to write in his book.

It was one of his studying methods from what she could remember, but she couldn't think of anything he needed to study at that time. He knew the play by heart from what she could remember and most tests were called off due to the play. Of course, there was still the chance of a test after the play was over so...

Bakura and Joey looked at each other, not sure what to say to their writing friend. They had woken up to Yugi doing exactly the same thing at his desk, when they mentioned the time he had barely said anything to them as he dressed and then proceeded to grab his notebook and run out the door. It made them worry and wonder what was wrong.

They scratched out the play and anything school related, they could only think of one thing that could make him panic at the current time, but why was that on his mind? Bakura wanted to slap himself as he took a chomp of a piece of toast he had gotten, Joey looked at him in confusion before he took a drink from a glass of milk.

Why didn't he think of that? Bakura never really paid attention to the play, nor did he know much about it. But he knew about the scene that drove hopeless romantic people to their knees in happiness and tears. The kiss scene, that had to be what Yugi was thinking about, right?

Joey didn't really know what Yugi could be worried about, he thought of the prince but he cast that out the window, no way. He couldn't still be concerned about that, could he? The plan seemed like it was going okay, not great, but at least to the point they wouldn't go insane over each other. Maybe he was wrong...

"Um, Yugi?" Anzu called out softly, her friend's head didn't move, his hand still moving across the page. "Have you eaten yet?"

"No." Yugi responded, turning the page and writing more. He felt bad for ignoring his friends like this, but he couldn't cope right now. If he didn't distract himself, his thoughts would wander and he really didn't want that right now.

"You should eat something." Bakura commented. "Can't be good at acting if your stomach is yelling at you the entire time." Yugi still scribbled on, not hesitating to rewrite the play again, he had to have written the play about five times now.

The small boy began to write the word Khu again, only for his writing hand to be stopped by a tanned one going over his own. Yugi's eyes widened, feeling the warmth of another person beside him, the hand on his own, another arm on the other side of his body, the breath of a person near his ear.

"Yugi." The voice whispered.

Said boy jumped out of his seat in a rush, jerking his hand away and almost knocking over his chair as his chest moved up and down. He let his eyes move over the royal, the man now standing up straight and looking at him with an amused, and slightly worried, gaze.

Atemu smiled at him. "Good morning."

Yugi gulped, feeling his face begin to grow warm, his heart tightened a little, god this was bad. This was really bad. He took a deep breath; "G-Good morning."

Bakura couldn't believe his eyes, Yugi looked as if he was going to have a heart attack, and all the royal did was say good morning! He knew there was tension between them, but now all he could see was the pharaoh-to-be acting polite and Yugi overreacting like a girl with a-...He had to stop his eyes from widening, oh. Oh.

He shook his head with a smile; "It was bound to happen eventually." He whispered to himself. "Finally..." He felt thin arms wrap around his neck, hugging him from behind. His smile dropped for just a moment, turning his chocolate eyes to the one holding him.

"Finally, what?" The person spoke, making Bakura's smile return in an instant.

"It's nothing." Bakura chuckled, gesturing for Malik to move and take the seat to his right. He looked to the corner of his eye, noticing Yugi begin to calm down a little before sitting back down and allowing Atemu to sit next to him. He noticed the prince looking down at his friend's hands, what was he doing that for?

"Well, that was interesting..." Mana whispered, taking her normal spot next to her girlfriend. She reached over, taking Anzu's hand into her own and intertwining their fingers together.

Anzu smiled at the action, tightening the hold on her hand and nodding. Yugi never acted like that before, even when he had a crush on her. He had liked for a long time too, but he was never too nervous around her or too embarrassed. With Atemu, it seemed a bit more serious. That was a good sign.

Joey looked past Yugi, trying not to comment on how he had reacted to the guy he had hated not even 2 weeks ago. Who reacts like that to a whisper? Well, Yugi obviously? Although he had to admit that he, himself, overreacted sometimes in situations too so he shouldn't be too hard on him.

He watched as he viewed the royal adviser coming into view, pouting as he stood up, gaining the attention of his friends before he crossed his arms at the one walking.

Seto rose an eyebrow at this behavior, making his way over to the table and crossing his own arms to mimic his boyfriend. What was wrong?

"What took you so long?" Joey questioned.

Seto stifled a chuckle, he had missed him, that's all. "I had to take care of some things before I departed." He grimaced as Joey glared at him for his way of talking.

"I had to talk to the others and I couldn't walk or run," He glared at Mana and Malik. "as fast as them."

Joey pouted more, he was giving him a slightly hard time, but he couldn't help it! He never had a boyfriend really, and he just wanted to spend more time together. But they had spent time together the other day, so he shouldn't really complain but-

He let out a gasp as he was pulled down, being forced into a warm lap as arms wrapped around his waist. He blushed, his eyesight going to the person he was on top of. What the hell was he doing?!

"Let me go!"

"No."

"Why I oughta!"

"Boys!" Anzu snapped at them, making the two be quiet before they started to truly argue. She sighed, moving her eyes back to Yugi and noticed that he had placed the notebook and pencil to the side. Finally.

"So, what's the sudden gathering for?" Bakura decided to question. "The Mr. Cold-guy never sits with us, what's the big idea?"

Seto glared at him, trying not to notice as the blond on his lap began to laugh a little at the name. "I figured that I should come personally to wish both Yugi and Atemu good luck tonight."

Yugi and Atemu looked to their friend, small smiles showing on their faces. They didn't really expect that, but it was nice to hear...

"Yugi doesn't need luck." Joey scoffed, getting more comfortable in his position and placing his arms around Seto's neck. "He never forgets his lines and he's one of the best actors in this school, he couldn't mess up even if he tried to."

Mana reached for Anzu's glass of orange juice, taking a small sip before she smiled shyly and spoke; "Atemu's no pushover either." She placed the glass down. "He's been practicing ever since he could walk and talk, he's probably the best actor in our palace."

Joey smirked at this, his eyes narrowing and gaining a mischievous shimmer. "Well then, how about we judge them?" He rose a hand, pointing to the two actors. "We'll see which one acts out their part the best, and whoever wins..." He had to think for a moment, before Malik intervened in his thoughts.

"Buys everyone lunch!"

"Hey!" Anzu laughed, happy that the mood had become cheerful and carefree. "Don't make them pay for eight people, even for a prince that's a bit much."

"Oh?" Mana moved closer to her. "So you're saying my brother would lose?"

Anzu rolled her eyes. "This is Yugi we're talking about, there is no possible way he could lose."

"Then it's decided!" Mana stood up, placing her hands on her hips, a large grin pasted onto her face. "Yugi and Atemu will compete to see who acts the best tonight!"

Yugi and Atemu remained silent, the two trying to register what was going on. By what they could tell, they were making the two of them compete and then the loser had to buy lunch. A bit unfair...

Atemu coughed into his hands, trying to gain the attention of the group; "Isn't it just you six competing? Why do Yugi and I have to take the losing penalty?" He questioned, making Yugi look at him.

He did have a point...Yugi mentally smiled, taking charge are you? "Yeah, he's right." Atemu looked to the beauty, his eyes widening, he was agreeing? "How about half of you say I will perform the best, and the other half says Atemu will. Then the losing team has to buy the rest of us lunch, it makes the losing penalty bill cheaper."

Mana thought over this for a moment and shrugged. "Yeah, sure." No one needed to voice who they were voting for. Everyone already knew who was on who's team.

"But is this really necessary?" Yugi thought to himself, looking over to his notebook, tempted to write again. It was another bet, it didn't involve him, but still it reminded him...He reached for the notebook, his hand being stopped and dragged away.

"You'll hurt your hands if you write more." The prince commented, keeping a grip on the small hand.

Yugi's face lit up, not even fighting the hand off as he looked to the royal. He felt his mouth become a desert. "H-How..?"

"I noticed your hands becoming a little red," Atemu smiled, worry laced in his gaze. "Not really healthy for you." He moved his eyes to their group of friends, the other six smiling and talking among each other about who would win the small gamble.

Gamble...He felt sadness overcome him, he shook it off before he dragged Yugi out of his chair and began to walk toward the cafeteria line. The others looked to them just for a moment, knowing smiles taking over their face as they took in the sight of them holding hands as they walked away. Even if it was just Atemu dragging Yugi away, they were still holding hands. The plan, it had to be working a little.

Yugi gasped as this happened, opening his mouth to argue before the royal looked back at him, the blood red stunning him and forcing his mouth to shut as Atemu spoke to him. His voice echoing in his ears.

"Come on, let's get something to eat."

:I had to put some kind of interval between the actual play and the movement from the theater to the next day and aghhh, I hope this didn't disappoint anyone. I'm trying really hard! Next chapter will be the Red Nile, I promise! Have fun everyone! Please look forward to the next chapter!: