Atem powered through the water, shaking with rage.

Shadi was right. Seto Kaiba was a dangerous human who was skilled at making deals—

"My King!"

Atem jerked his head around frantically, seeing Mahad shooting towards him at breakneck speed, carrying his staff tight at his side, his long hair flying out straight behind him in the dark waters.

"So it was you, Mahad," Atem said as he slowed to a stop, his heart pounding anxiously in his chest as he waited to be reprimanded, but his bodyguard bowed swiftly before grabbing him tightly and giving his arms a firm squeeze. His expression twisted into one pained with worry.

"I heard…I heard it all!" Mahad gasped, his eyes wide with panic. "He deceived you at the last second! What were you thinking, my lord?! He did the exact thing with me on shore while I was bargaining for your freedom! He is a dangerous man!"

"He agreed to the important half," Atem said slowly, feeling a terrible weight settle into his chest and stay there. "He's too smart to start a war, not when we are providing him with dead scales."

"Indeed," Mahad said shakily, giving the king another reassuring pat on the arm. "Although, I do suggest consulting Isis on the first part of the pact. You agreed to return his feelings. Do you know what that means?"

Atem shook his head nervously and continued to swim deeper while Mahad stuck tightly at his side. "I don't. Do you know what it means?"

"No, and that's precisely why we should consult Isis!" Mahad cried, stricken with fear and worry. "If you unknowingly broke the agreement…my king, I fear for you. You've already had your brush with death! Your royal blood is not exempt from the consequences of a blood pact!"

"It's fine," Atem growled, staring down into the solid darkness before them, wishing they could drop the subject. "He wants a companion to wrestle with. He'll tire of me soon."

Mahad said nothing, recalling how the pair had tussled on shore…but it had been coupled with…almost mating. Deciding not to speak of it further, he stayed securely at Atem's side as they swam deeper towards their hemisphere.

It should be fine.
Atem was correct.
Humans were fickle, due to their short life spans.
The consequences of this blood pact, if any, would fade quickly.

Kaiba stepped out of the shower and hissed in pain, standing in place and watching blood stream steadily down his arm.

The scratch Atem had left was more of a deep gash, and the bleeding seemed to worsen when he lowered his arm, so Kaiba decided to keep his arm elevated above his head while reaching for his towel, cursing when blood trickled down towards his armpit.

Hating everything, Kaiba hastily dried himself off with one arm and bundled the towel over his bleeding wound.
It was somehow getting worse now that he had washed hot water over it, and the blood was soaking through the thick white towel.

Cursing, Kaiba stepped out of the bathroom and tried not to panic. This wound looked like it needed stitches. He was also naked because any attempt to get dressed would result in bloodstained clothes.

Holding his breath, Kaiba shut his eyes and counted to ten, his fingertips growing damp as the blood fully drenched through the entire towel. His nostrils filled with a terrible metallic scent, and Kaiba eyed the vials of liquified scales sitting neatly in the open briefcase on his desk.

In a last-ditch effort to stop the bleeding, he dove towards them and uncapped one frantically to throw the liquid down his throat in one gulp.

Shuddering from the sudden icy cold stabbing through his chest, Kaiba coughed and gasped for air, his ears ringing terribly while bright spots dotted the corners of his vision…and then, everything returned to normal.

Breathless with anticipation, Kaiba waited a few minutes before he let the bloody towel fall away from his arm and he inspected the gash, extremely pleased to see that it had fully healed.

Instantaneous.
Magical.

Triumph bubbled up inside his chest, and Kaiba dared to smile.

He walked to the mirror, still fully naked, and examined himself carefully.
No cuts, bruises, or scratches. His skin was pale and flawless.

Leaning closer towards his reflection, Kaiba tugged at his cheeks, amazed to discover that his dark circles had even lightened. He felt clear-headed, energetic, and oddly relaxed.

No one must ever know. Kaiba mused darkly to himself, thinking he had found a miracle cure-all. Although, if there ever were bad side-effects, he was risking his own life, and his own well-being.

Dashing into his closet, Kaiba threw on a set of sleepwear and shivered again, still feeling the residual threads of ice leaving his veins. The cold was probably another long-term side effect he'd feel later.

Mer-people were cold-blooded, weren't they?

Reminding himself to ask the next fish person who surfaced, Kaiba rolled himself up under the sheets and shut his eyes, wishing with all his might for a warm body beside him.

"Isis!" Mahad cried, pounding on the priestess's door with urgency. "Please come out—"

Isis swung the door open and glared at Mahad, eyeing Atem at his side. "Can I help you?"

"Something happened…on shore," Mahad began, throwing a furtive look over his shoulder as two palace maidens swam by, looking curiously over at them from the hallway. "Let us speak in private."

"Shore matters don't concern me," Isis responded haughtily. "Go see Advisors Solomon or Shadi. Good night, men."

And she began to close the door, but Atem interrupted her hastily. "I made pact with the human, Seto Kaiba. I may have agreed to something dangerous."

Sighing, Isis opened her door further and blocked the entryway, giving Mahad an apprehensive look. "Only the King may enter. Go back to the men's wing, Mahad."

"Very well," Mahad replied icily, throwing Atem a meaningful look before swimming away quickly.

"What now, my king?" Isis furrowed her brow in concern and dragged Atem into her room by the arm, peeking out into the hallway for eavesdroppers before she closed it again.

"What does it mean to 'return feelings'?" Atem asked in a rush. His blood ran cold for a moment with dread. Maybe it was something really terrible and he had doomed the kingdom by making this pact with Seto Kaiba.

"I'm not sure!" Isis shook her head and her jewelry tinkled pleasantly in the silence between them. "It has many meanings, and I don't know how you conducted your pact, my king."

"Right…I see." Atem said hoarsely, his throat closing up as he tried to compose himself. Was there no one who could help him regarding this matter?!

"I think it's time for you to make a trip to Confinement," Isis said gently, resting her hand on the door. "Bring them gifts, and they will answer your questions better than I can."

"Can you come with me?" Atem asked desperately, his chest tightening with anxiety at the thought of swimming through the dark chasm alone. The last time he had been down there was with his late father, while he was still a fresh hatchling, and that had been an obligatory royal visit.

"You'll be fine," Isis said with a dismissive wave, opening the door with a certain finality and ushering him out of her room. "You make journeys to shore alone, and those are considerably more dangerous."

The door was shut in his face, and Atem shook his head nervously, swimming away through the palace hallways with a churning stomach.

Fine. Perhaps it was time to seek help from the mer-people who have been to shore more than anyone else.

Rushing into his room, Atem leaned the heavy door open and swam straight for the small stash of hand-strung adornments he kept from his many decades of royal processions, and he picked a set of clear opal bracelets.

Atem thought perhaps the mer-people in Confinement could appreciate the calming glow of an opal, even in their darkness.

Swimming out of his room, he ignored Mana's worried cries behind him as he headed straight for the palace gates, nodding at the first guard he passed while quickly saying, "I'm visiting Confinement. I won't be long."

The guard nodded silently, and Atem set off at a frantic pace, his heart pounding furiously as thoughts of Seto Kaiba filled his mind once more. He was now regretting storming off during their last encounter.

Why did that pale human have such a memorable face?
Why did his eyes hold such captivating intensity?

The air grew thinner the deeper he swam, and Atem swallowed his nerves, willing himself to continue into the darkness.

There was nothing here now, other than a wide expanse of ocean floor beneath him, and all was eerily quiet. He had passed the residential grottos several meters ago while he swam lost in his own thoughts.

The pressure also grew heavier around his shoulders, and Atem barreled on, keeping the opal bracelets safely stacked on his own arm. The way they clinked against his golden armbands provided some comfort, but the king couldn't help but feel truly alone as he pushed through the still waters.

After a few more sprints through the emptiness, a dark jagged step opened beneath him, and he paused, hovering over the fissure while his skin crawled with uncertainty.
This ought to be fine.
This endeavor was for more knowledge of Seto Kaiba and his odd behavior.

Gritting his teeth, Atem dove straight down into the crevice, blinking rapidly as sand and debris came rushing up, suddenly blinding him.

Coughing and cursing, Atem continued swimming down slowly, hearing voices echoing dimly from afar, and his anxiety eased slightly.
There were people down here after all.

The soft glow of bioluminescent fish trapped in handmade orbs were shoved into the cracks along the fissure walls, lighting the way with surprising ease, and Atem began to relax.

This was going to be fine. This was all going to be fine.

"Halt!"

A mermaid's voice rang out sharply, and Atem skidded to a stop, pressing his hand along the jagged wall for support, eyeing the shadowy figure hovering in the distance before him.

"State your name and business!" she cried, and Atem saw the blur of a pointed staff at her side.

Ah...the prison guard?

"King Atem…bearing gifts, and seeking advice," Atem said quietly, hearing his own voice travel oddly in the confined space.

The mermaid approached him slowly, her flowing blonde hair almost enveloping the entire space around them, and Atem held his ground nervously, doing his best not to back down.
Nothing to fear.
Mermaids and mermen in Confinement were people too.

She narrowed her eyes fiercely at him before bowing curtly, lowering her weapon at her side respectfully. "Your majesty. Thank you for gracing us with an unannounced visit."

Atem nodded silently. His voice caught in his throat as he stared at her enormous breasts barely contained in her seaweed corset.

"Come, I'll lead the way," she said sweetly, her demeanor changing instantly. She swam ahead while calling over her shoulder, "you may address me as Mai!"

Atem followed her after a moment's hesitation and tucked her name away safely in his mind.

They floated slowly through the stony gorge, and Atem spied many pinpricks of light coming from tiny caves people were living in.

Giant curtains of dark woven kelp hung in several cave openings for privacy, and Atem looked away hastily.
These people lived without doors…how terrifying.
There was seemingly no sense of privacy here.

"Listen up, you good for nothings! The king is here! Pay your respects!" Mai shouted, banging her staff roughly against the stone wall, and Atem did his best not flinch as several large chunks of rock came loose and tumbled off the side, falling into the darkness below.

Several heads poked out from the caves and disappeared back inside. The silence was deafening, and Atem broke out into a nervous sweat.

"I don't need anyone to do anything," he said hastily, gesturing for her to lower her weapon again. "I'd like to speak to someone who knows human terms regarding 'feelings' and 'love'."

"HA!" a shrill laugh echoed from behind them, and Atem whirled around, startled, seeing another beautiful mermaid lounging inside her cave with two companions at her side, preening themselves with an air of boredom.

"Well, you've got her!" the mermaid jeered, pointing an accusing finger at Mai. "She's the queen of luring and entrapping human men. Ask her!"

"Shut up," Mai shot back nastily, and her demeanor changed again when she addressed Atem. "Follow me. We'll talk privately."

"Yeah! Talk privately about how known you are on every shore!" the other mermaids in the caves began laughing and pelting rocks at them out of their cave openings, and Atem ducked frantically as a stone narrowly missed his ear.

Mai's hand wrapped around his arm and Atem let himself be dragged through the chaos and into the safety of a cave, where another short-haired mermaid rushed to shut the woven curtains behind them.

"This is my cave-mate, Anzu," Mai said carelessly, tossing her weapon down on the floor with a clang and throwing herself down on a ratty sponge couch. "Hey, toss me a tie for my hair."

A familiar piece of cloth soared past Atem's nose, and Mai snatched it up quickly, securing her hair up successfully while Atem stared intently.

It was the thin article of clothing Seto Kaiba wore around his neck, except this one was red and had thin white stripes.

So it was called…a tie?

"H-Hi…" Anzu said shyly, ducking her head down into a polite bow, and she swam away quickly, hovering in the far back, eyeing him with deep apprehension.

"You don't greet a king like that," Mai snorted, kicking back and throwing her tail up on the edge of the couch with an elegant flick. "You do a proper bow."

"Oh shut up Mai, as if you did that," Anzi retaliated cattily, and she clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and panic.

"I did," Mai shot back, and Atem continued to hover awkwardly by the door, his tail sore from the long swim, and he wondered if he could just…sit on the floor, because no one had offered any place to sit.

"So what's your question, O' great one?" Mai drawled, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. "Pretty. Are those for me?" She pointed at Atem's arms, and Atem nodded slowly, lifting the bracelets off his wrist and holding them out to her.

To his increasing surprise, the mermaid Anzu zoomed forward and snatched them out of his hand before he could react, and Mai grabbed onto Anzu's arm as she passed, wrestling her for a bracelet.

Atem gaped, watching the women tussle playfully before Mai bounced back down onto the sponge couch with a satisfied sigh, admiring the opals and seashells on her wrist. "Wow, I haven't seen opals this clear since…a century ago! You really are a royal. People probably throw this at the ground by your fins."

"Shut up, Mai," Anzu muttered from the far back and Atem felt his cheeks grow warm.

He then decided to sit silently on the floor by the door and ask all of his questions in a rush, because he was eager to leave.

"Tell me what it means to return feelings. And about human love, but not human attachment. What it means when a human said he loves you, but not like a brother or a friend."

There was a thick, stifling silence in the cave, and Anzu appeared out of the darkness again, her eyes wide with curiosity. "A man said this to you? Or did a man say this to…another mermaid in the palace?"

"He said it to me," Atem said firmly. He had thought about lying, but he knew his story would never leave this cave, so his secrets were safe here. He was beginning to appreciate Isis's advice more and more.

"Wow, a gay human," Mai mused, looking excited. "What's he like? What color is his hair? Eyes? Skin?"

"Mai…" Anzu muttered from the back again, but she was soundly ignored.

"My favorite human was blonde, like me," Mai declared proudly, squaring her shoulders back and moving to unclasp her corset, before she paused and stopped. "Oops. Forgot. You're a man. I won't undress now."

Speechless, Atem just nodded, wondering where he was. These women behaved so differently, it was hard to take in.

"But you like the man?" Anzu prodded, emerging from the far back again. "You're not interested…in female humans?"

"I don't know." Atem replied impatiently, now feeling as if he was being interrogated for a crime. "Please explain the difference between human attachment and love. And why are you being punished for it?"

"We shouldn't be punished for it," Mai declared. "Love is love. We're all people anyway. Mer-people just have this gross pride about being the better species. Mating with a human makes you 'dirty' and infertile. Now that's a myth."

"I don't think it's a myth—" Atem said carefully, but he was talked over as Mai began to rant.

"Humans love more deeply than any mer-person I've ever met," she declared. "They'll go to any lengths for you. Any. If you wanted a chunk of the moon, they would find a way to bring it to you."

"Impossible," Atem said, shaking his head, wondering if Seto Kaiba would do that for him. "Why? Why would they do that?"

"Because you asked. And because he...or she…loves you," Anzu added unhelpfully. "Human love is like an obsession. Once they've decided you're it…they'll devote their entire life to you. They have a concept called marriage—"

"Another time, Anzu, he's here for the 'feelings'," Mai interrupted, waving a manicured claw over her nose delicately. "I assume you're talking about a Japanese human? He asked you to 'return his feelings'?"

"Yes…yes!" Atem sat up straighter, his mind slowly clearing as understanding began to dawn on him. These two women were smart and knew what they were talking about.

Why didn't they just teach it this way in the schools?
Sure, it was vulgar…but it was less confusing than using the term 'human attachment'.

"You're fucked." Mai cackled, throwing her ponytail of hair over her shoulders and laughing. "That means he's already latched onto you and wants to hear you say, 'I also love you!'"

"He did…think that in his mind…quite often," Atem said faintly, hearing Anzu gasp and cover her mouth again. "I can reverse it, can't I?"

"You can try," Mai nodded ruefully, admiring her bracelet again. "But chances are, if he's seen you more than once, touched you, even if it's just on your hand, they're captivated. That's why it's a crime."

Atem shook his head silently, confused.

"We've ruined their lives," Anzu whispered, sinking to the floor and looking extremely forlorn. "Their short, short lives, they've chose to devote it to us, waiting at the shore for us to appear again. It's cruel. There hasn't been one human who hasn't died a painful death waiting for their mer-lover on shore."

Atem's heart stopped mid-beat and ice shot through his core.
Oh…no.
It was too late to reverse anything he had ever said and done with Seto Kaiba.

"Yeah, once he starts waiting for you on shore, that's it," Mai added sadly. "I mean, I visited him all throughout his life. He even had kids with another human woman. That was painful to see."

Atem clasped his hands together tightly, feeling himself shake.
Seto Kaiba had already sworn to wait for him on shore, even demanding constant visits. The pact had definitely made things worse.
It sounded like his own experience might be going down the same path as these women.

"You will escape persecution though, because you're a royal," Anzu said coldly, gazing into Atem's face with a solemn expression. "It doesn't matter if it's a human man or woman, the kingdom won't throw you down here with us when you've got so much knowledge and responsibilities."

"I know less than you!" Atem whispered hoarsely, hearing his own voice waver uncharacteristically with mild panic. "What do I do? He said he loves me! He wanted weekly visits, which I've managed to bargain down to three moon cycles. We even made a blood pact!"

There was another long, stifling silence. Atem did his best to take steady, even breaths.

He had committed a crime! A crime against a human!

"Oh, shit." Mai whispered, giving Anzu a dark look, which her friend mirrored with a frightened grimace. "A blood pact? You touched human blood?"

"Yes." Atem replied miserably, feeling tears building behind his eyelids, and he willed himself to stay composed. He would not litter his tears on the mermaiden's floor. His opal bracelets had been poorly received and was probably considered offensive.

"Have you met often? Kissed?" Anzu pressed, swimming closer to Atem and sitting closer to him on the floor, now seemingly more at ease. "And how did you meet? Don't make that expression. It's not a crime. Don't let people tell you your love is a crime."

Atem nodded mutely, his shoulders heavy with guilt and his chest tight with memories of Kaiba's lips on his own. Of course the mermaids down here, serving time for their crimes, would tell him that his actions weren't criminal.

"Will he really wait on shore for me until the end of his life?" Atem whispered, unable to answer Anzu's questions while his mind was fixated on Kaiba's silhouette sitting on the tall rock on shore. He had doomed the human for the rest of his life!

"Can you convince him not to?" Anzu asked gently, reaching out to pat Atem on his hand warmly. "I managed to do that, and my sentence has been shortened by one century. Mai here…well, her humans kept coming back, to show her their children, to bring her gifts, so technically it was their fault, but the court deemed Mai guilty on all counts anyway. She influenced them to do it."

"I had a different human on each shore," Mai boasted, completely unfazed. "American humans are the rowdiest, but they sure know how to show you a good time. Japanese humans are quiet, but are really skillful lovemak—"

"No one wants to hear about that right now," Anzu interrupted angrily, inching closer to Atem again, ducking her head down shyly in another polite bow. "Does anyone know?"

"Yes, you two, and my bodyguard," Atem answered automatically, feeling extremely removed from the entire situation. "My bodyguard heard us make the pact, but I don't think he fully understood the full gravity of what I did."

"I don't even think you understand the full gravity of what you did," Mai scoffed, pointing at him playfully. "You look shell-shocked. Give it few moons to sink in. And go visit him some more while you still can before anyone else finds out."

"Mai…that's bad advice, he'll get caught," Anzu argued, grabbing Atem's hand and giving it a tight squeeze. "Humans move through life very fast. Before you know it, he'll have a wife, and he'll forget about this whole thing. You'll be absolved from all guilt."

A crushing pang seared through Atem's chest and he found himself shaking his head angrily. "I don't want to watch him marry and have children."

"Uh…too bad?" Mai laughed coldly before sobering up quickly. "Humans move on whether or not you want them to. You can bind them to you, with eternal love and obsession like we said earlier, but, that's a c-r-i-m-e."

Atem lowered his head, finding it getting more and more difficult to breathe.
This was all terrible news. There had to be another way.

"Hey, king, wanna know how to make Human Love less of a crime?" Mai asked seriously, sitting up straight and propping her elbows up on her fin. "Just do what you both want. Go see him. You want to see him every day? I've got it figured out. You can calculate your weight and journey length to avoid shore-sickness."

"You can do that?" Atem asked, once again speaking without thinking, and he mentally berated himself for sounding interested.

"Yes," Anzu nodded encouragingly. "They tell you you'll get sick if you go up every day, but that's a lie. Our ancestors rose to shore daily all the time. They just changed the rules because of the wars. Just make sure you keep track of time, and don't dry out in the sun, or it'll be obvious you've been to shore."

"Drink and eat before each journey, and make sure no one follows you," Mai said stating the obvious, but looking very serious. "And bring me something, won't you? I want a new tie for my hair. That's the least you could do. Get me a nice color…like green or blue."

"I'll do my best," Atem said solemnly, wondering how he could smuggle a human item blatantly out of the palace without being questioned.

"You can hide it in litter you collect," Anzu said, reading his mind eerily. "Small items and gifts can be wrapped in seaweed and smuggled out. Bring me a lipstick, okay? That can be hidden in your palm."

"A lip…a lip what?" Atem asked weakly, letting the women help him up and escort him out through the seaweed curtained doors.

"The man will know what it is when you ask him," Anzu said calmly. "And no more red. We already have a ton of reds."

"I don't understand." Atem said, feeling unusually weak, and the women gave him sympathizing looks, gently pulling him through the dark fissure, flanking him strongly, keeping him steady.

"The air here is thin, you've stayed too long." Mai said firmly, and Atem tried to draw in a breath to answer but found his chest pounding with pain with every beat of his heart.

"I'm so sorry, we lost track of time!" Anzu cried, her voice echoing mutedly as they rose higher towards the surface of the fissure. "Please be well. Thank you for the bracelets. I love them! It's been so long since I've worn mer-made jewelry."

Atem bid the women goodbye with a formal wave, and he swam up towards the dim light above, hearing Mai call out to him, "Make sure he gives you that diamond ring! That's when you've really won his heart!"

"The cheap diamond doesn't mean anything!" Anzu's voice echoed up after Mai's husky laugh. "Men just like giving jewelry! I've gotten rings from all of my men!"

"Because you're prettier…" Mai's voice was now faint, and Atem arrived at the top of the rocky chasm, taking deep, shuddering breaths of clean air.

Shooting upwards through the water, Atem finally reached warm, comfortable air, and he flipped over onto his stomach to gaze down at the jagged opening in the ocean floor beneath him.

It no longer looked dark and threatening.

Rolling over onto his back, Atem closed his eyes and tried to relax.

The women were right.
There was no reason to panic.
Just because the rest of mer-society saw Human Love as a crime, didn't necessarily mean it was a crime.

Feeling extremely lighthearted, Atem set off back towards the palace, his mind filled with warm, happy thoughts of breaking the news of every-day shore visits to Seto Kaiba.

The look on his handsome face was going to be priceless.

Author's note:

Atem finally learns the difference between Human Attachment and Human Love.
Mai and Anzu make an appearance.
Kaiba ingests more liquified scales to heal his wounds. That man better watch out before he starts showing fish-like symptoms or something.

-edited by setokaibaes-

pwease leave a comment if you liked :D your opinions are the fuel to my writing fire

xo
Ugli