Yami sat on his bench with the spider silk blanket bundled in his lap as he dared to open the scroll to take a look at how many people had joined the quest. 45.
45/500.
Maybe he could hope that it would never fill up?
Just as that thought left his mind, an elf teleported into the middle of the hallway to the jeering and boos of the inmates, and the man strode purposefully to his cell door and handed him another scroll through the bars.
"You are requested to travel dimensions for this quest, and you have been cleared for travel under supervision of a Helper Pixie," the elf said seriously. Yami perked up instantly and remembered to keep the weak illusion up on his cuffs as he accepted the scroll, his stomach turning when he recognized the location marker. It was Domino, Japan again.
"If I must have one, I'm requesting Rina," Yami said strongly, and the elf nodded knowingly.
"Already arranged for you. The Governor of the safe town is aware that you still do good work for us while you may have slipped up this one time," the elf sniffed, his voice drowned out by the loud hissing from the fish demon in the next cell.
"FffFfufck off ELF!" The sea baron hissed, flicking his forked tongue out at him. "Nobody here likessss you!"
Yami swallowed thinly and nodded, stepping back to let the elf remove his cuffs and at last, the dampening collar. It felt like a great weight had been lifted, and he rubbed his shoulders, aching to heal himself, but he would wait…
He was led to the teleportation circle, receiving many warm waves from the neighboring creatures as he was surrounded by the human guards, and vanished in the white light, with the hissing, jeering and booing still ringing in his ears.
He arrived in the top floor of the Questing Building in the safetown, so he dared to let out a tiny sigh of relief as his robes were handed back to him, and Rina was waiting for him in her capsule, flittering around and squealing happily at the sight of him.
"Missed you!" She sang through the glass barrier, and Yami's heart wrenched as he lifted a finger to press it on the glass. "Miss you too…" he said quietly, quickly turning to drape the robes over his prison garbs, covering it with magic, aware of all the eyes on him.
There was awkward silence, and he was led to the dimension portal by the prison guard, and was given a cold instruction, "Be back within 48 hours, as usual. If you have trouble, send a message. But it's the same strain of Greed, you should have no issues finding it and bringing it back."
Yami nodded and quickly drenched himself in a healing spell while he kept Rina carefully balanced in one hand, feeling her eyeing him with questioning looks, but he kept his gaze straight ahead and stepped into the portal, intent on telling her everything the moment they had time alone.
His head rushed as he was transported into a small, secluded park, and Yami threw himself down into the nearest bench and took deep, shuddering breaths. Alone, at last…!
The sun was dipping low in the sky, and a few people were walking home in groups, all dressed the same. It was going-home time, so hopefully he would still be there…
"Atem! Are you okay?!" Rina cried, pressing her hands up against the orb container. "I hear they imprisoned you! You were wearing prison garbs! What did you do this time?!"
"This time…" Yami breathed, leaning his back against the chain link fence and feeling tears building behind his eyes. "It was a demon child with a power level in the millions. They put him in a facility and I'm thinking about portaling there to see him…after this."
"You can't! They put a tracker on me!" Rina cried, raising her arm to show him a red bracelet of gems she was wearing, and he sighed heavily. Fine. Then there was one other person he could visit here that would calm his nerves and make him feel better about everything. Manger Nishio.
Looking into his blue eyes never failed to calm his heart.
"Okay, then let's visit a human I'm fond of first," Yami said, picking Rina up and composing himself. "You'll like him. He's a funny man."
Rina said nothing and kept her thoughts to herself, feeling a rush of sadness. Atem was a bit lost…and his actions were kind, but he needed to be more careful…!
Yami twirled his finger in the air, searching for the soul signature, the golden thread that told him the whereabouts of a cranky, white-haired man always hankering after a cup of good spider's blood. Again, he picked up nothing, so he decided to visit the café by memory, heading to a sidewalk and passing through another series of streets, ignoring the strange stares he got from people who looked Rina glowing in his hand. He didn't care about fooling humans with his appearance now.
He'd experienced horrors in prison these past few sun rotations, and he was eager for some comfort.
Finally, a familiar convenience store appeared around the corner along with the brown café featuring the cup illustration.
Excited to have the handsome man growl at him and then smile, Yami hurried up the steps and knocked on the door which appeared to be…closed? The sign read it was 'OPEN', but no one was inside. It was odd.
To his pleasant surprise, the young man who also worked there opened the door and bowed respectfully, his face obscured by the face covering as he mumbled under his breath and set a pair of slippers before him.
Stepping into the spongy shoes, Yami glanced up at the counter and expected to see the old man bent over the coffee making machine, but the store was completely empty. Even the shelves had been cleared of silver bags of beans. It looked like they were...cleaning up for good.
"Is business bad?" Yami asked lightly, feeling the human eyeing Rina in his palm, and then answering him shakily, "No. I am merely following the instructions from his will."
Yami blinked rapidly and shook his head. W-What?
A will… Meant the human was…
"He…passed away 4 months ago. I'm sorry, I thought you knew," the young man stammered, keeping his head lowered as a lone tear curled down his cheek. "He'd never tell me your name but I know you guys were…i-in love. I saw the footage. I deleted it, I swear. And that was years ago! I know his family would never approve of you, so he'd never…t-talk about you…or even...i-invite you to the f-funeral…."
"He died?" Yami repeated, feeling like he was sinking into a dark pit. "Where…is his body?"
"I'll…get an address…for you," The man mumbled, pulling out a pad of paper from his apron and jotting the location down before tearing a sheet out and holding it out with both hands, shaking. "I'm sorry for your loss."
Numb with disbelief, Yami took the paper and slowly walked to the door, bending down to put on his shoes, feeling like he was floating far…far...away….
He knew it was inevitable.
Humans lived short lives. He kept telling himself that… But somehow, hearing the younger human stammering apologies behind him and wishing him well made it worse.
He nodded blankly at the young man and headed in a random direction, no longer motivated to catch any monster. He wanted to see the human's grave and make sure he was resting peacefully.
"A-Atem?" Rina whispered from her container, but she received a solemn silence and saw streams of tears curling down the mage's delicate jaw. Oh…no…
Seto was rolling their tent up neatly and listening to Bakura coaxing Marik to come with them, but the white-blond elf was refusing, citing fear as the main reason.
"I can't do magic! I don't want to leave this safe haven!" Marik exclaimed, wringing the front of his robes, thinking this wasn't the first time a handsome human or elf had tried to bring him on an adventure with them permanently.
"It's a …hell hole!" Bakura insisted, eyeing the crumbling structures around them, amazed that someone could even live here.
"Don't say that about my home! You haven't seen the area I live in yet!" Marik shot back, his eyes wide as he pointed into the maze of dark hallways behind him. "Come see it and you'll want to leave me alone after you do!"
Doubt it, Seto thought blithely as he stuffed the tent into his pack and hefted it on his back, enjoying his own casting abilities more than he enjoyed hearing them argue.
"Come. This way," Marik insisted, reaching forward to grab Bakura by the hand and leading him into the dark labyrinth. "I'll show you my room."
Bakura frowned anxiously and glanced behind him for Seto, relieved to see the demon child tagging along behind him, all packed up with a bored grimace on his face.
"Be nice when you see it," Bakura said, more to himself than to Seto, and Seto stuck his split tongue out to him brattily.
They let the elf lead them into the maze, and Seto kept his eyes peeled for markings on the wall, intrigued to see more drawings, in color, and writings, in English.
"You speak English?" Seto asked with interest as they turned another corner where an apple was painted at knee-height. "Apple street" was written above it, and Seto felt a pang of something dark swell up inside him. Yikes. This elf had intentionally isolated himself because he couldn't do magic?
"Yes, I wrote it in English. It's left on Apple, right down Ocean Road, and across the way from Amethyst," Marik said conversationally as they passed a giant chunk of crystal sticking out of the wall, and Seto narrowly dodged the hunk of rock bulging out of the wall, irritated.
Gross…?
He saw the elf slide a stone door back with effort, the sound scraping loudly in the muffle tunnel, and an oil lamp was lit and then hung it on the wall.
"See? Home!" Marik threw his hands out to the side, expecting relieved smiles from his new traveler friends, but to his horror, the dragon boy made a grimace, and Bakura looked heartbroken.
There was one lone single bed in the corner up against a wall with more colorful paintings, a small wooden desk with a slanted writing surface, a hole carved out for a closet, and a large luxury bathtub made of stone, looking very out of place in the entire room.
"You…can't do magic, so how do you…get water?" Bakura asked weakly and Seto wished he didn't have to hear the answer, but one came.
"I go out once a month and ration what I can collect when it rains," Marik said calmly, and his anxiety rose when he realized his answers weren't pleasing the travelers. Usually when other strangers passing by heard his way of life, they left him alone.
These two appeared…disgusted…? It was slightly offensive.
"I can't condone this. You're coming with us," Bakura insisted, eyeing the empty room, pity rising. "Where are your things? Clothes, cups, plates? …Paints?"
"In other rooms," Marik said proudly, puffing his chest up. "I live like a king down here."
Help… Seto looked away to hide any strange expressions he might be making and noticed travelers had signed their names on the wall behind him, and he stared at it, interested in the graffiti.
"Look, I'll show you and grab some now! You can sign your name on my wall!" Marik said encouragingly, because this usually made the travelers leave faster, knowing they had 'made a mark'.
He dashed out of the room, hoping he wouldn't be followed, but the human ran after him with surprising speed, followed by the child, and together, they entered the room where he stored everything, and he pulled out several, nearly dried paint pots.
"Just add water," he said cheerfully, handing a few bowls over his shoulder and catching another horrified glance on the two faces behind him.
Seto wrinkled his nose and realized that this elf might be mentally ill. There was a giant hoard of stuff in this room! The was a hint of organization, where the carved-out shelves were overflowing with traveler's clothes that had been discarded over time, but weapons were leaned against the wall, beside large clay pitchers, plates of discarded trash gems, and Seto even thought he saw bones of a beast buried in the trash heap somewhere.
"Pack a bag. You're coming with us," Bakura repeated, his head spinning at the disorganized mess left over from previous wanderers. "You can't live like this. There's more to life than just…this place."
"I don't feel safe," Marik replied flatly, standing up with two more bowls of paint under his arm and walking past the two strangers. "Thank you for your warmth and hospitality yesterday. I will enjoy the fountain you made for many months to come."
AHHH! I CAN'T TAKE IT! Bakura screamed telepathically and Seto winced, giving his companion a kick in the shins before running away to avoid being hit back.
He ran back into Marik's room and saw the elf mashing the paint into the bowl to bring it back to life, and he knelt beside him to add a drop of water from his finger, receiving a kind smile.
"You're a good kid," the elf praised, and Seto gave him a weak smile, asking, "What would make you feel safe outside?"
Marik looked thoughtful and handed the paste paint back to Seto and watched the child smash it around with his tiny hands, his heart warming.
"A place where…no one would judge me for being an elf that can't do magic," Marik replied calmly. This was his answer all the time, and he genuinely wished that, but knew it was futile to hope. There was a magical hierarchy, and this child looked like he was climbing the ranks since he was good at making large bodies of water.
"I know a place like that. I lived there," Seto said calmly, dipping his finger into the pot and painting a big heart on the wall for Yami. "It's called—"
"Japan?" Bakura interjected, appearing in the doorway, looking frazzled because his image was taking effort to keep up. "Another dimension, filled with humans and won't care if you walk around with pointed ears sticking out of your head?"
"No. The safe town," Seto answered sourly over his shoulder before twisting back around to embellish his heart with tiny yellow dots around the outside, writing a big Y in the middle of it. "No one there performs magic unless it's a food establishment, and it's the only town that doesn't have anti-teleporting barriers around it for emergency escape, but teleporting into the street is illegal…which I realize Yami did all the time—"
"Okay, you need to let go…of Yami," Bakura said darkly, his stomach twisting at the giant Y inside the heart that Seto had painted on the wall.
"No, why? Yami is the reason I'm here!" Seto insisted, and Marik looked interested, glancing between them.
"Who? Your mother?" Marik asked kindly, eyeing the red Y heart that the child was now embellishing with flowers, painting over other people's signatures, and he received a hostile hiss from the child.
"Someone I love," Seto replied passionately, and Bakura leaned against the bevel of the door, rolling his eyes.
"But you're right. The safe town is a good place for him," Bakura muttered, catching a frightened look from Marik before adding kindly, "for us. I live there too."
Seto blinked and gave Bakura a sarcastic look over his shoulder, blinking innocently, "uh. Where? ….Dad?"
"A place called Mai's Tavern, where there's a room open upstairs at…all times…?" Bakura replied with the same hostility and Seto instantly regretted telling the demon about his stay in Mai's tiny upstairs illegal closet.
"It's not big enough for two…adults," Seto glanced between the two men, guessing that Marik was slightly taller than Yami, but with the same-ish build. "You won't both fit—"
"It's called 'renovation'. Look that up in your human dictionary when you have time," Bakura replied shortly, turning to face the hallway lest his eyes started turning red from all the arguing he was doing with Seto in front of the pretty elf. "Let's go. We're wasting time."
Seto quickly dragged his finger over blue paint, replying, "I'm not done yet. I'm saying that I was here. That's the whole point of this wall. Want to write yours too, or I'll write it for you? I'll draw a big penis next to it and add red eyes."
Marik laughed and clapped the child on the back, making Seto's finger jolt in the middle of writing "was", and he sighed, deciding not to correct it and writing, "here".
There. And he had enough paint left for a big penis drawing.
Bakura shut his eyes and let his breath out slowly. Seto…really behaved like a child sometimes.
"I'll bring a bag, but I have nothing to pack. I have no other things I want to bring," Marik said calmly, before he added, "I have gems if we need money—"
"Those are worthless," the child interrupted him from the ground. "I appraised them at a glance. They're all pennies. I have gold which I will share. Now, I'm done."
Seto stood up to admire his handiwork and gave Bakura a grin.
Bakura sighed and reached down to grab Seto by the arm, pulling him out of the hallway and dared to feel relieved when the elf was following them.
"So this tavern…in this safe town, is it really safe?" Marik asked timidly as he ran his hand down the walls on his paintings, trying not to let fear stop him from leaving. "I like the sun. A lot, actually…I go out and sit in it when I really miss it…"
"You'll love it there. Seto was safe there," Bakura answered gruffly, and Seto turned to give Marik a nod, annoyed by the way Bakura was holding his hand, but he understood this act was part of "Ryou", so he let it slide. Their agreement was to play along with each other's personas, otherwise the mirage wouldn't work.
"Wrong way!" Marik called from behind them, and he pointed at a crumbling tunnel they had just passed. "This way to Town One."
Ugh, Seto winced at the way dust fell into his hair when they walked into the small opening, but luckily, Bakura had grown tall enough to shield him.
They walked until Seto felt his heels aching, and he had to ask, "who dug this place?"
"My sister and I, with her magic," Marik replied quietly from the front. "It was our escape route."
Weird answer, Bakura thought darkly as he decided to add on, "if you were escaping from something, why are you still here?"
"Because the person we were running from died," came the answer, and Seto felt a chill go down his spine while Bakura's grip tightened around his wrist.
"Then where is your sister?" Bakura asked loudly, trying to fill the horrible silence. "Why has she left you here?"
There was a long silence, and the answer came after a length of walking in the musty tunnel.
"She died too. Protecting me."
I don't like this story! Shut up! Seto cried, giving Bakura's arm a pinch.
"Ow! Seto, you little br—Why did you pinch me?" Bakura snapped, giving the child's arm a vicious shake, his eyes glowing. "Use your words!"
"He doesn't want to talk about it! Stop asking!" Seto cried, and he thought he saw the elf turn around to give them a sad smile.
Marik's heart skipped a beat when he thought he saw the human's eyes glow in the dark, and turned away quickly, thinking through protection spells where it would cause eyes to glow red. None. Only beasts had red eyes.
Either the human was half-something, or the human appearance was a…mask?
Because what's underneath is terrifying? Marik thought nervously, deciding not to accompany this odd duo after all.
The dragon child was hot and cold with his actions and words, and the human seemed unable to get along with the child.
It made him question why they were even traveling together. Everything about them was odd.
Travelers he met always got along merrily. These two…not so much.
They reached the end of the tunnel where sunlight was streaming in through the dusty cracks in an opening above. A ladder was nailed into the rock, and Marik climbed it steadily, preparing himself to say goodbye to the travelers.
He pushed the heavy stone up and nudged it aside, climbing out and offering a hand to Bakura, but was surprised when the child was hefted up first, kicking and struggling, "let me go! You're gross! Don't touch me!"
Me? Marik thought nervously, but the child was fighting with his guardian.
"Can you fly?" Bakura snapped, pushing Seto up over his shoulder with bared teeth. "Want to fall and break your leg again? Remember that?"
Swallowing his rage at Ryou's new helpful personality, Seto scrambled out of the hole and sat beside Marik, feeling his eye-whites clouding over, and he had to take a deep breath.
Marik's fear rose when he saw the whites of the child's eyes darken into inky black slits, and he backed away with a yell, nearly knocking into Bakura who was climbing out of the hole and moving the stone cover back into place.
"W-What's wrong with him?!" Marik asked shakily, wishing he could jump back into the tunnels and run, but his opening had been closed. He'd never seen a dragon whose eyes did that!
"He's broken. Ignore him," Bakura said with a sniff, trying for another soft smile, but Marik was properly scared now.
"No. I don't want to…–you two are strange. I'm not going anywhere with you!" He insisted, inching back to sit beside the stone cover. "Good luck. There is your town." He pointed at the towering wall in the distance where the glow of buildings was hidden from behind it, and Seto jumped to his feet excitedly. District 1! Finally, some civilization.
"Seto, apologize for frightening him," Bakura said sternly, grabbing Seto by the arm and steeling him to face Marik. "Properly please."
Seto huffed in annoyance but bowed anyway, giving the elf a full glimpse of his tiny horns at the top of his head, "I'm sorry for frightening you. My magic is bad because my horns were hacked off when mages came to kill everyone in my village. There."
He straightened up and tugged on Bakura's sleeve. "Leave him. Let's go."
Marik felt his stomach wrench painfully and he struggled to speak, hearing the human advocate for him again, "what! Don't be cruel! We're bringing him to Mai's Tavern!"
"He doesn't want to come!" Seto cried, gesturing at the elf sitting helplessly by the stone cover. "Stop forcing him! He wants to live in the dark hole, he can! Let's ...go! I'm hungry!"
Bakura gave Marik a wide-eyed look over his shoulder and was pulled away by the child, and Marik watched them go, heading straight for the paved path that led into town, and he decided he'd walk them to the town gates and then turn around.
He dusted himself off and rushed to follow them, bursting with questions, "You're both traveling to a tavern to live together in a safe town?" He asked, thinking this odd duo wasn't too bad, because Bakura appeared to care for the child in his own way….
"Yuck, no. We're going to the healing spring," Seto answered, mildly annoyed that Marik was following them. Bakura was happy about it though.
"And then the safe town," Bakura said, raising his eyebrows. "You will at least stop us by there, okay? Seto? Promise me please."
He said please, Seto thought as he bit the tip of his split tongue to hide his laughter.
"Healing spring, I know how to get there," Marik said plainly, and both travelers stopped to stare at him.
"So do we." Came the cold reply from the child, and Bakura was yanked forward again, but he pulled his hand out of the child's demanding grip and turned to face him with wide eyes that were brown…and kind.
"If you've been there, we could use your help—"
"No! We don't! He has no…magic!" Seto called, his irritation rising. He needed Bakura to do magic along the way. He wasn't going to be carrying two deadweights!
"And I made it there and back, with healing water for my sister," Marik insisted, wondering why the child was suddenly so mean.
"And why didn't it work?" Seto asked nervously, crossing his arms and feeling like they were wasting time, loitering in the middle of the path so far away from the town gates.
If Marik had gone to the spring and back for healing water, why was his sister still dead?
"She was…hurt beyond belief! I think…she d-didn't want to…heal…" Marik said in a small voice, his eyes leaking dangerously, and Bakura panicked when he saw tears.
"Don't cry, please! We'll…We're sorry for asking! Seto is sorry for mentioning your sister, isn't he?" Bakura turned to give the child a glare, and to his annoyance, Seto looked equally panic-stricken.
"So is it a lie? The Healing Spring doesn't heal?!" Seto felt his voice rising shrilly but he couldn't help himself. Because secretly, deep down, he held a tiny bubble of hope that the spring water would heal his horns. The texts he'd read hinted that it could 'fix deformities', and he was considered maimed. So…? Were they wasting magic and time trekking there?!
"I...don't know," Marik replied quietly as he swiped the tear off his cheek and took a deep, calming breath. "Maybe it chooses who to heal. I don't know how the magic works. But I assume…" He gave the child's nubby horns a glance, "that you're going there to heal your horns. And you're accompanying him as his guardian," Marik gave Bakura a polite nod, and received a stiff nod in return.
Sure, that's our story, Bakura thought sourly, going for anything that would not elicit more tears from the pretty elf. If the spring could heal Seto's horns, maybe it could turn him human. What a fucking miracle. Maybe that's why it was so elusive?
"Then I've decided to come with you," Marik declared shakily, giving Bakura's arm a warm squeeze, and then kneeling to give the child a warm hug, feeling the kid tense in his arms. "I understand why your moods are so up and down. You're hurt. We'll get you there. You and your guardian are noble for attempting the journey there for your better health."
Hello, awkward… Seto glared at Bakura over Marik's shoulder and received a throat-cutting gesture and a pleading nod.
Goddammit.
"Thanks." Seto said flatly, and pulled out of the hug, his body tingling warmly with the residual threads of Marik's sympathy for him. Yuck.
"So, District 1 gate guards know me well, as the…homeless elf," Marik made a face but pointed at the two tiny humans standing at attention by the tall doors. "I always bring lost travelers out of the labyrinth. That's sort of my job and I thought I was paid adequately, but then you told me the gems were worthless so…I'm a bit…affronted."
Bakura gave an understanding nod and reached down to hold the elf's hand, walking them up the large path to the guards who barely glanced at them and pulled the doors back to let them in, "three visitors!" They called up to the watchtower, where a human made a note in their ledger, and waved at the ogres standing behind the walls to pull the doors open for them.
Seto gaped at the giant feet and hands that lifted the door and realized this was his first time seeing giant ogres.
They walked through the doorway and we're asked to write their names and species down on a magical scroll.
Bakura picked up the feather pen first, neatly writing his name in Elvish and Japanese, "Ryou Bakura, species—HUMAN".
Then he handed the pen to Marik whose hand shook as he took his time writing it out, " – elf," and passed the scroll down to the child who snatched the pen out of his hand, nearly drawing blood with his claws.
"Careful now," Marik muttered, and Seto wrote in large Elvish print, "DEMON LORD SETO" and handed the scroll back up to the guard beside him who gave him a big smile.
Bakura saw that and let out a huff of derision and tried to take the scroll back, but the guard had read it and let out a bellowing laugh.
"Kid, you want to put your real name and species here," the guard tried to return the scroll while the white-haired human apologized. "I'm sorry. He's stuck in his fantasies," Bakura breathed, wondering if they were going to be denied entry because of Seto's brashness.
"That is my real name and species," Seto replied staunchly.
Demon Lord was going to be his new title in adult demon form.
He'd already decided that, and Dartz agreed to it, giving him permission to take it.
After all, there could only be one Demon Lord, and that was him, making himself known, now.
Yami would notice him.
"I am…the Demon Lord!" Seto said loudly, wondering if he should stamp his foot.
He stamped his foot and felt the ground vibrate.
"Okay, okay!" Marik cried, bending down to sweep Seto up in his arms, amazed by how light the kid was. "We're very sorry for angering you, Demon Lord. You're hungry, I heard you earlier."
The guard rubbed his brow and shrugged, handing the scroll back to his co-worker who squinted at the writing and glanced at the toddler kid with stubby horns in the raggedy elf's arms.
"So he's a dragon-mix…?" The guard whispered, and he winced when the kid heard him.
"DEMON LORD!" Seto called, and Bakura stepped in front of him to defend him once more, "I'm very sorry. I can't change his mind. Please accept that…he is the Demon Lord and we'll be on our way quickly."
Damn straight, Seto thought as he stuck his tongue out to show off the split tips and received chuckles from the guards.
"Yeah, leave it alone. Kid's a character," the second guard tucked the scroll away with a wink and dramatic bow. "Demon Lord Seto, welcome to District 1."
"Thanks," Seto shot back brattily and he locked his arms around Marik's neck, announcing loudly, "I'm very hungry. Carry me to a table and feed me before I eat someone's mount."
Bakura grimaced at the guards, hating how they were laughing and enjoying Seto's act.
"And before you ask, no. I'm not changing my title," Seto said, anticipating Bakura's argument. "Everyone must now address me as Demon Seto, or Demon Lord Seto."
"I'm beyond exhausted. You can be Lord of whoever wants to serve under you," Bakura snapped, tossing a lock of his hair over his shoulder and feeling his feet ache. "Let's sit down and eat something before I eat you."
"You can't. I'm the Demon Lord. More powerful than you," Seto replied, and Marik shook with laughter, hefting Seto tighter in his arms as they made their way down a crowded alleyway filled with busy restaurants and food stalls.
Thank you, Marik, Seto said firmly in his mind, and saw the elf tense and then nod fearfully.
"W-Welcome…you're very cute," Marik muttered, patting Seto absently on the back as he aimed for the large family buffet restaurant he usually took big groups of travelers to. If the child was a dragon-mix, he probably needed to eat…a lot.
Author's note:0
seto asserting himself as the DEMON LORD
bakura become Soft Ryou, and they add 1 to their party, magicless elf, Marik.