Chapter LXXV: Trades

Jonouchi rushed them when they touched the ground. He didn't seem to realize it was Yugi, just that there was another dragon present. Yami bristled and backed away but Yugi huffed, "Jonouchi" as if he were personally affronted. Yami snickered when the Red-Eyes skidded and almost slammed into Yugi who huffed again and scowled. Yami didn't know if he was anxious to go back to Atem before he woke or if it was because he was so scared.

"Yug?" Jonouchi muttered, straightening and shaking himself out. He looked around expectantly, head tilting, and turned back in bewilderment. "Atem isn't with you?"

"Atem can't even know I was here," Yugi answered sharply. Yami looked between them uncertainly, and the movement made Jonouchi glance down and bristle.

"Is that a Uria? By Paradise, how did you find a Uria?" he sputtered, then looked at Yugi with huge eyes. "Did you breed with a female? Is that what happened? Is that why Atem can't know?"

Yugi groaned. "Why does everyone assume that?"

Jonouchi snorted. "Because you're both males and can't have hatchlings? And also because you're a Gandora?"

Yami stepped closer. "Jonouchi."

His head snapped back down. "You can talk? You're so small. I figured you were barely two moons old."

Yugi bristled. "He's eight, almost nine." He stepped closer. "But that's not the point. I need you to listen to me. I need a favor."

"Anything." Jonouchi smirked down at him. "You're so small."

"Look, Jaden is after him." Jonouchi's eyes snapped to Yugi even as Yami stepped closer again and sniffed the air. Why did he smell like a female? Where was she? "He just realized he exists last night and I… Just…look at him."

The Red-Eyes stared at Yugi skeptically for a moment, then lowered his gaze. For a long minute he seemed unimpressed. And then his eyes slowly stretched wide. Every limb stiffened and he gaped.

"That's… No way."

Yugi didn't look at Yami. "He's Atem's and mine. And I need you to…take him for a while."

"Ha!" Jonouchi barked, turning to him and scowling. "Good one."

"I'm serious."

"Why would I ever do that?"

Yami tilted his head. "Atem won't follow."

Jonouchi froze and looked down. "Huh?"

"You're worried Atem will realize and come here. He won't. He has no reason to. You're not a friend of his. You're a friend of Yugi's. As far as he's concerned, you exist but you're not an immediate friend or foe." Yami shook his head slowly. "No, it's not a trick. Yes, I'm reading your thoughts. No, you can't stop me and yes, Yugi knows I can do that."

Jonouchi bore his teeth and turned to Yugi. "How?"

"He's Atem's son. Atem is a God Dragon. It's only logical."

"Oh, yes, forgive me for not knowing Atem reads minds."

Yugi tilted his head. "Huh? He can't read thoughts. If he could, I wouldn't be able to get away with half the things he lets me."

Yami stepped forward and Jonouchi backed up, spitting and arching his spine. His tail thumped but he didn't move forward to lash out. Yami took a seat. "Jaden isn't going to find me if I stay here. And Atem won't know to look for me here. He won't think of you as someone Yugi would come to in a time of need. You're almost estranged in his head. He doesn't even consider you most of the time until you're present."

Jonouchi snarled softly. "Thanks for that. Glad to know I'm so worthless to a God Dragon."

Yami snorted. "He scares you. You should be glad." He smiled. "You can't argue. Yugi showed me when you first met Atem and almost ran away at the gathering."

"Okay, this little trick is getting really annoying."

"You can learn to block him out if you have to," Yugi offered. "He does it unconsciously so if you picture something constantly, it tends to work to block him."

"Yugi uses a lemon tree. Atem uses mist and brambles."

Jonouchi looked at Yugi as if he'd grown a second head. "You want to leave him with me?" he spat. "I'm sorry?"

"You just said any favor."

"And this just became a stipulation."

Yugi scoffed. "No. It didn't."

"Yeah, it did."

"I don't think so. Because that would mean you've forgotten the thousand and one things I've done for you," Yugi spat, stepping forward and baring his teeth. "It would mean you've forgotten I saved your life several times in the time that I was with you. And I don't think anyone would have overlooked that. Now, it's a simple task. You keep Yami hidden. You keep him safe. And by Paradise, keep him in a mud and berry paste mixture until he's at least one, okay? Four more moons and then you can stop doing it."

Jonouchi bristled. "Why would he need…?" He looked down at Yami again. "Jaden is really after you?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"He's afraid of Atem."

"Wow. Is there a group for that?" the Red-Eyes scoffed. He lowered his voice. "Only Yugi seems to be naïve enough not to be afraid of him."

Yami snorted. "I'm not afraid of him, either."

Jonouchi tilted his head. "Yeah, but he's your dad. He's not going to kill you."

He bristled faintly and then glanced at Yugi. The Gandora looked as if he might launch himself at Jonouchi any moment. He turned back. "It doesn't matter. The point is, Atem won't know to come looking for me here. And you owe Yugi. The slate can be wiped clean if you do this favor."

"Oh, is that so?"

"This impacts all three of us. And Atem would be directly affected and hurt if this goes any other way. So, yes. This would wipe the slate completely clean."

Jonouchi narrowed his gaze and slowly looked to Yugi. "He sees things?"

Yugi nodded slightly. "I don't know to what extent, but yes."

"Okay, no offense, Yug, but why didn't you kill it?"

Yugi snapped his teeth, spitting, "His name is Yami" even as the hatchling burst out laughing. Jonouchi flinched away but looked at Yami with his head tilted and his eyes narrowed.

"That was kind of funny," Yami muttered, grinning at his father and hoping to ease some of the tension. He could feel the anger rolling from Yugi in waves and his stomach knotted once more to realize just how much he was giving up. Jonouchi was so unsure and disapproving just of his existence. And Yugi had always defended him no matter what, as he had Atem. There was never a doubt in his mind that Yami and Atem both belonged and deserved every ounce of affection he could offer. "It was rude, but it was funny."

Yugi glanced at him, still aggravated, but smiled faintly after a moment. "You and Atem both," he grumbled, and Yami beamed. Yugi turned back. "Look, Jonouchi, he's right. I'd do anything for Atem and Yami. And if you help me now, I'll never ask another thing of you. I just want them both safe."

"What does him staying here have to do with anything? You really think Jaden won't go after Atem just because? He's been paranoid for a long time, Yugi. No one wants to acknowledge it, but this so-called amazing healer they all used to worship has been gone for a long time now."

Yugi nodded. "And Yami will be under his beak the entire time." Just as I was when I stayed with the humans beneath the mountains… He blinked and looked over. That's it. That's where he got the idea.

Yami smiled and nodded. It had more than slightly influenced his decision. Yugi stared at him for a long time, then turned back. Jonouchi eyed Yami as if he were a creature he didn't know how to approach. They studied each other a long moment and then Jonouchi grimaced and looked to Yugi.

"Are you sure there's no other way?"

Yugi nodded. "I'm sure. Yami is sure. And he's the Divine."

Jonouchi blinked. "Di… Oh, right. Second generation God Dragons; I forgot they had their own special title." He shook his head and turned to Yami. "So, you eat red meat?"

Yami smirked. "I'm sure I can." He jumped to his paws. "Atem usually eats fish, so that was more common, but Yugi would bring me deer every now and then, too."

He groaned and shook his head, turning to Yugi again. "I'm so not equipped to take care of a hatchling."

"He's self-sufficient. Just watch him, make sure he's covered in berry paste and mud and you won't even have to worry about him more than feeding." Yugi glanced at Yami sideways, studying intently. Yami smiled and nodded, searching his face. "All I ask is that you keep him safe, Jonouchi. He's the most precious thing to me but for Atem."

Yami felt the surge of dismay course through Jonouchi. There was a faint tinge of disbelief and frustration as well, but it died almost immediately.

"Fine. I'll do this." Jonouchi locked eyes with him. "But you should realize you're likely making a mistake."

Yugi exhaled slowly. "I have to believe Yami's right and I'm doing the right thing. Beyond that… I don't know." He nudged Yami's rump. "Behave yourself. Don't cause more problems than necessary."

Yami rubbed beaks with him. "I promise." He paused, about to add that he make sure Atem thought him dead. But he could see in Yugi's face that he hadn't forgotten, nor would he slip up. He was determined again, ready as usual to do anything to help him or Atem.

"I'll return when it's okay." He moved toward Jonouchi, then whipped around again. "It'll be okay."

Yugi stared at him as if he didn't believe him, but he nodded all the same. The Gandora padded a few feet away, paused to glance back for a moment, and then turned away and took off back to Atem. Yami watched him go, knowing he'd remember that broken look on Yugi's face for the rest of his life, and turned to Jonouchi.

"All right, kid, you said you see the future, right?" Yami nodded, tilting his head and studying him. Jonouchi watched him with narrowed eyes. "Then tell me what you see happening in a few minutes."

Yami opened his mouth to say that wasn't how his gift worked, that it was limited in definition and he didn't know that he could look into the future so briefly. And then he stopped, smirking, as he noticed the sun coming up. "You're going back to sleep."

Jonouchi crowed, "Oh, we've got a psychic one for sure over here" and whipped around to lead the way back to the den.

Yami broke his concentration and tilted his head. Atem blinked slowly but did not speak, and Yugi gave his mate a hopeful look that quickly died. Yami studied his father for a long time, watching him process, and then the God Dragon looked away and got up to shake himself out. He glanced around as if he'd forgotten where he was, and Yami could tell he was surprised to find how many others had gathered around to see them.

Ignore them.

Atem didn't look over. He stretched his long limbs and took a seat again in almost the exact same position. Yami could tell he was uncomfortable but unwilling to show it around the other dragons.

"All that," Atem said slowly, in such a quiet tone it sounded like a snarl, "to convince me I should forgive Yugi for this."

Yami blinked. "Huh? No." He narrowed his gaze. "No, I know that won't happen anytime soon. I wanted to show you because you've asked me why this happened. This is why. This is what molded my decisions. Do with it what you will. But I am the reason this happened."

Atem snorted and looked at Yugi from his peripheral, eyes glimmering with anger for a single moment. Then it faded into cold frustration and slowly to resignation. Yami looked down at his paws. Atem was livid, seething with betrayal and disbelief. And he still was not properly prepared to understand the implications of the discussion they were having. His mind was still racing, though Yami could taste the bitterness swelling through him.

Of course, came the thought. When Ironheart said betrayal and shadows he meant Yugi. Because who else could do this much damage?

Yami risked a glance at him from beneath the ridge of his brows. Atem's sharp eyes wandered to his and narrowed and the frustration peaked into absolute hurt before simmering into cold anger once more. He huffed a breath as if he wanted to speak but couldn't find words.

I should have known better, Atem snarled in his head, than to expect anything good could have come of any of it.

Yami flinched. "That's not true," he mumbled, though he couldn't help but wonder. If Atem hadn't been so happy with Yugi despite everything, would he have been harder to trick? He'd trusted Yugi so much he'd believed him without hesitation. But Yami sensed it. Atem had been growing suspicious at some point—though not of Yugi—and his old mindset had been slowly raising its head. He was closing himself off somewhat, blocking away the things that would have mattered more to other Sky Dragons. "Don't say that."

Yugi looked at him. "Say what?"

Atem scowled for a moment, then looked away. "Nothing."

The Gandora blinked and turned to him, then quickly back to Yami. "Say what?" he asked desperately, fear bleeding into his voice. Yami flinched and looked away, unsure what to say. Atem's mind felt like a storm cloud about to burst, crackling with anger and burning with hurt once more.

"Yami."

"Leave it," Atem snapped, voice like the bite of winter. "It was a passing thought and I'm beyond it."

But he wasn't. Yami could tell that much. He was still thinking it, about how the life for him as a Sky Dragon for a God Dragon was meant to bring misery. He was thinking of his own birth, hatching on a false moon. He was picturing Yami's egg hatching, the eclipse which had swallowed the sun like a gaping mouth, the darkness which had settled upon the earth. He was remembering Ironheart, how he'd claimed the second eclipse would be when Yami was hunted and openly feared…

Abruptly Atem looked over. "How much has changed?" he said softly. "What in all has your actions changed?"

Yami blinked and tilted his head. "Well…you and Yugi aren't dead."

"What a wonderful start."

Yami couldn't help but grin. "Always so grumpy," he laughed. Atem scowled at him and Yami leaned forward to lick his beak. The God Dragon bore his teeth in annoyance but didn't pull away. "I don't know the full extent of what I've changed. I know my immediate results are that you both are alive and well."

"At the cost of Timaeus," Atem snapped. "You traded his life for ours."

Yami's insides felt like ice. "I didn't know," he whispered, feeling small and stupid but somehow justified as well. He shifted his weight and leveled him a look. "I saved him. I did. He's alive. I shared my heart with him."

Atem snarled softly. "You should have considered the ramifications before you did this. A life must always be bought with another."

Yami bore his teeth. "And yet all three of you are alive right now. Because of me. Because of what I did."

Yugi, who had been silently watching their argument, murmured, "All I cared about was making sure you survived. I don't care what happened in payment for it."

Yami and Atem both froze, then looked over with wide eyes.

"Dimitri could have killed you, and I couldn't allow that. What kind of mate would I be if I did?" he spat, turning on Atem with burning eyes. "I chose you before. I did it when Yami asked me to. And I'd do it again. The world can rot for all I care. As. Long. As. You're. Okay."

The Sky Dragon blinked stupidly, stared a moment, opened and closed his mouth, and then looked down. Yugi huffed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry it came at the cost of the nest and Timaeus, but I don't regret the decisions I've made. Anything that involved the two of you was worth every second, whether it was heartache or anger." He glared at Atem. "You may hate me for however long you wish. I won't blame you. But I will tell you I don't regret it and you can go from there."

Atem blinked again but didn't look at him. Yami studied his fathers for a moment, then smiled faintly. Of all the things to argue about, this seemed so ridiculous. And for Atem to be so shocked…

He snickered. Atem turned to stare in surprise, but Yugi blinked huge eyes and tilted his head. Yami looked between them, then burst into laughter and shook his head, turning away.

"Yami?"

"You're both ridiculous," he laughed. "Atem is shocked that you would choose him over anything even though you made that choice the moment you courted him. And you're angry because he doesn't see that."

But he knew immediately it wasn't that Atem didn't see it. It was that he no longer believed it. He now saw everything as a sham, as if Yugi had decided to court him for status and tricked him into developing even a modicum of affection to humiliate him.

Yami's heart squeezed. Atem had trusted Yugi so easily, almost blindly, and yet they'd wound up here. Yami felt sick and small for a moment.

The betrayal must have hurt so much more now.

Atem had actually admitted to loving him and he'd been gutted and blindsided.

Yami could only fathom a small portion of the pain Atem was suffering for what he thought to be his naivety. The emotion he felt in surges from the God Dragon were nothing compared to what he knew brewed beneath the surface.

Yugi glanced at Atem and back, tilting his head and offering a small awkward smile. Atem continued staring at Yami as if he had a second head before sighing softly. Yami felt the tension between them again like river water. Atem was withdrawing, thinking and blocking him from the millions of wrong assumptions he was no doubt telling himself.

"How do we know what consequences you've caused?" Atem asked quietly. "I don't know which are directly from us and what aren't."

"Us?" Yami blinked and smiled. "Oh, no, Father, I didn't mean you had to remain in the dark forever. I meant that you couldn't know what your abilities were. I need you in the dark for that. I promise I'll tell you when it's necessary, but for now… Entertain me. When did you become superstitious?"

"When two different dragons who saw the future told me similar things."

Yami blinked, losing his smile. "Ironheart."

Atem nodded slightly, risking a sideways glance. "And it seems he was right in more than one regard already," he all but hissed. Yugi turned his head and leveled him with one of the most defiant looks Yami had ever seen. His blue-violet eyes glittered dangerously and his lips peeled back to show the ridges of his teeth. Each muscle was wound so tight his body shook when he breathed. "So, who's to say he won't be correct in all the others as well?"

"You mean a second eclipse?" Yami questioned, studying him intently. He considered him a moment, wondering then how much merit Ironheart's declaration held. What if it never came? What if the second eclipse didn't come? Then what happened? "Do you know who was supposed to see me that would have brought me to be hunted like a deer?"

"I'd assume Jaden, but perhaps it's Dimitri or Noah."

"Noah?" Yami blinked and tilted his head. "Was he spared?"

"For whatever reason. But he's missing." Atem shook his head. "Either Dimitri plans to use him as a decoy to keep the other three distracted, or he means to use him for something else. I don't know what the second option is, except maybe to kill him and acquire a new skin as he did with Timaeus?"

"I don't know how his abilities work. I couldn't tell you what he'd be planning." He hesitated. "Is there a chance he might be found alive?"

Atem fell quiet for a long minute. "I don't…think so, no."

It was a long shot by far. Yami knew that. And he hated that he had to admit it. Even if he were to try to rescue Noah for the fact that his life mattered as well, it would likely be a waste of time and energy. He could probably find him, but not save him.

After all, what did he know of Dimitri and his abilities?

He knew Dimitri was still learning, but that did not give him an advantage. That only made it all the more apparent that the two of them were too young to be so prominent and plot each other's demise.

"What did he say to Timaeus?" Atem asked abruptly. "I know they spoke, but Timaeus never told me directly what was said. I don't know if it was because he didn't want to remind me of what happened or if it was because he just didn't want to tell me."

Yami blinked. "I suppose it won't be too much of a betrayal of trust to tell you," he teased, though it only gained him a flustered look from Yugi and one of cold annoyance from Atem. He sighed and shook his head. "Dimitri said he was going to use Timaeus to lure me out, but Timaeus knew me to be dead because that's what he had been told so many times. He fully believed it and so Dimitri had no choice but to think it true. He said since he could not have me, he would settle for you. He said when he ate your hearts, the strongest God Dragon in existence would fuel him."

Atem blinked once, long and slow. Then he barked a laugh. "Me?" he scoffed, and Yami couldn't tell if it was because he didn't believe he could be the most powerful or if he doubted Dimitri could have killed him. His emotions were too chaotic now, flashing between different peaks and lows and Yami felt almost winded trying to decipher them all.

Yugi shifted his weight. "He wanted you first?"

"I'm stronger than him in abilities. Mine exceed his significantly, in the reach of them anyways. I certainly can't change shape. And I'm sure he's got more than one advantage against me. I know for a fact I'm smaller than him, and I could not tell you which of us might be sturdier. I look like a Uria, but I am sure I do not possess all of the species' gifts and strengths."

But his appearance had gained him a wide breadth when it came to others. Many dragons had fled when they'd taken note of his features. Even being smaller than he should, they turned tail, as if they expected a Uria to destroy them for fun.

He had asked Jonouchi why, and the Red-Eyes had said the world had begun in fire and the Uria were the first to emerge from the flames. They were considered deities in their own right, though not to be worshipped as the God Dragons were. They were simply considered ancient and so they were to be respected and revered and there had not been a single soul who had sought to find him or harm him prior to Dimitri.

Jaden would have to be handled, but it was not impossible.

Yami was sure between himself, Atem, and Yugi, they could hold him off should it become a necessity.