Fleeing the Shadows

My first thank you goes out to ObsidianJade for being totally a totally awesome beta! Thank you so very much! And thank you to those who have read/reviewed this story! You guys are awesome! You keep me going when I don’t think I can do it anymore!

And to my lovely little reviewer who doesn’t really seem to care for this story too much…*arches brow* I never figured that explaining motives was something that needed to be done up front. This story is slow starting and explanations are drifting in from different points of view, so you need to have a little patience when reading this. It’s not like picking up a novel where you can read it all in one sitting.

I think I have a solution to our little misunderstanding, if you’re game?! Let me know ;)

“Little one, what happened? Did you see one of the men?” Atemu made his way over to the teen. Was that a hint of guilt he had seen in his eyes? Why?

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Busted! Yugi had been surfing the web, looking for news from his home town. He didn’t have to go far; the news of his friends’ disappearance and murders was plastered all over Yahoo. When he saw Atemu reemerge from the bedroom, he tried to erase the evidence of his knowledge, quickly clicking off the web page. But he couldn’t help the tears forming in his eyes.

“Yugi, what did you see?”

The trembling teen started to back away from his protector. The man was going to be so aggravated with him. He had given his word that he wouldn’t go looking for news about his case. Not until the agent said it was okay. And with the man’s uncertain temperament, Yugi wasn’t quite sure how he was going to react. It was better just to stay out of arm’s reach.

Atemu reached the computer just as Yugi backed into the island counter that separated the living room from the kitchen, arching an eyebrow at the teen’s odd behavior. He glanced down at the screen to see that his charge hadn’t made it off the third page of mug shots. Typing in a couple of commands, the site where Yugi had been surfing popped up. The ruby eyed agent glanced up at his charge, then back at the screen, his eyes widening when he saw what upset the teen.

Atemu’s first reaction was plain and simple. Shit! His charge wasn’t supposed to have seen that! Now the boy was going to have another breakdown, just when he was beginning to recover from the last one. That was followed rapidly by a more diverse reaction of essentially the same nature.

‘Damn it! This is why I hate babysitting duty!’ Atemu raged to himself, as raked his hand through his wildly colored locks. “Fucking kid is going to freak now.’

Yugi’s head shot up upon hearing the comment, drawing him quickly out of his shock. The small teen glared through his tears. Babysitting?! So this man thought he was nothing but a burden? A kid?! Well, he’d show him kid.

“I am not a kid! A-and if that’s the way y-you feel about me…” He spun around and marched towards the front door, not even bothering to finish the sentence.

Atemu stared hard at his charge, stunned. He knew he didn’t say that out loud. This boy…this boy could read his thoughts! Then he hadn’t been imagining it earlier. He crossed the room at breakneck speed, slamming the door shut just as Yugi managed to open it a crack, and spinning the teen around to face him.

“That is in no way how I feel about you,” Atemu snarled, his nose centimeters from the other boy’s. Yugi stared back, his eyes wide with fear, before ducking his head, refusing to meet Atemu’s burning crimson gaze.

“You want to know how I really feel about you, Yugi?” Atemu whispered hoarsely. Pushed beyond the point of reason by the look of complete vulnerability in the teen’s amethyst eyes, he pressed his body up against the trapped teen, pinning the smaller boy against the unforgiving wood behind him. Initially he had intended to drag the boy back into the room for a lengthy discussion, but once their eyes met the agent lost all thought of what he was doing. Nothing existed but the two of them.

Yugi barely managed to lift his head in time. Atemu was so close to him that he could smell the mint toothpaste the agent had used earlier, before a pair of soft lips descended onto his, incredibly gentle compared to the brutal body pinning him to the door, and the teen was drawn into his first kiss. Those silky lips moved slowly over his, touching, tasting – demanding that he comply with their intentions.

He gasped in amazement, giving Atemu full access to his mouth. A smooth tongue darted in to taste him, the kiss becoming all the more arousing. He grabbed onto the man’s bare shoulders for balance as the kiss deepened, taking him to another world. A hand grabbed his backside, pulling him so tightly against the muscular body that he could feel the man’s arousal through his jeans, the other one entwined in his hair, holding him still so the man could ravage his mouth. He couldn’t help the pleasured moan that escaped his lips as Atemu taught him the meaning of word erotic.

One taste. That was all it took, and the ruby eyed agent was lost. The dilemma of right or wrong was wiped from his mind as he held the diminutive teen tight, using his tongue to plunder the boy’s mouth. One hand wrapped itself in the teen’s thick tricolor hair; the other one coming up to cup the teen’s perfectly shaped rear end, pulling their bodies together, his hardened length coming in contact with the teen’s arousal. Hearing the boy’s moan of approval, he deepened the kiss, running his tongue over the other’s, coaxing it out to play as he ground his body against his willing captive’s.

This boy, his charge was so beautiful. Wait, his charge…the witness!! Atemu quickly withdrew, berating himself. This should not have happened! He had no right to trap the small teen against the door and ravish him like this. He let go, and the boy almost fell to the floor in shock, catching himself only by grasping onto Atemu’s shoulders.

All of a sudden, Yugi found himself snapped back into reality when Atemu broke away. His legs wouldn’t support his weight, so he grabbed on to what he held so tightly before, not daring to look up. That was his first kiss. Oh god, that was his first kiss! His face bloomed with sudden color, as he studied the carpet.

“I’m so sorry little one…that shouldn’t have happened. I was in the wrong.” Atemu held Yugi’s elbow until the boy was steady on his feet, and then hurriedly turned to leave. The more distance between the two of them, the better off they would both be.

“Wait!” Yugi cried out.

Atemu turned around but he didn’t look up, shame evident in his defeated posture. He was waiting for the teen to object to what he had done, and he deserved every last bit of tongue lashing that the boy could give. His behavior was reprehensible.

But before Yugi could say anymore on the situation, his now working brain reminded him of the one person’s name he hadn’t seen on the list of dead friends, and a wave of horror overtook him. Here he was, safe, enjoying his first kiss – even if it was confusing - when one of his friends was still missing, possibly even dead like the others. Clutching his head, Yugi gave a soft moan as he slid down to collapse on the floor, suddenly on the verge of panic

“Jou! Oh god, where’s Jou!”

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Tortured screams were heard well above the soft chanting in the large candlelit room. The twelve dark robed men kneeling before the altar tried to keep their concentration on their spell throughout the cacophonous noise. This was the third and final day that they would have to listen to those unnatural shrieks. They would know very soon if their offering was received well. The man in front kept his head bowed, his long white hair hiding his face as he led the mantra.

An antique grandfather clock stationed to the side of the stone altar struck for the twelfth time, ending the ritual. A distinct, wet tearing sound was heard just before the last choked, gurgling gasp of the dying sacrifice, indicating the end of the ritual. The white haired man turned to watch as a dull strand of light ascended slowly up into the air, escaping from the torn and broken remnants of body that was chained into position over the altar. The light only rose a few feet before, from out of nowhere; a dark silhouette sucked it up into the shadowy vortex whirling around the top of the room. That was it; it was time for the shadows to hear their plea.

Rising, the man shed his long cloak and approached the altar, exposed, showing that he was not coerced, or armed in any way. He was always sort of nervous each time he did this, for if anything went wrong, he would be the first to pay the price. Kneeling before the many lit candles that were placed carefully around the stone altar, he waited to be acknowledged.

From out of the gloom above the altar, a multitude of rasping voices was heard. “What is it you wish in exchange for the deed done today?” demanded the hissing chorus, sounding like so many hellish snakes. The sound shook the high ceiling room to its foundation.

“We humbly request the same as we did before. Our needs have not changed yet.” The man knew better than to mince words with the entities that were in the room tonight. All it would take would be one wrong word, and he would be on the receiving end of the ritual, which was not where he wanted to be at all.

“You wisshh for more power…more control.” The words were spat back at him. “We can grant this wisshh of yours…but the next time you approach usss…you will need a better offering than thissss puny soul. You have been around a powerful being…one of the essscaped…We can sssee tracesss of his aura on your men once again. Do not be ssso foolisshh asss to hold out on ussss…”

The man shuddered. Of course he did this every time he heard the many voices of the shadows. But this time was different. There was a noticeable threat implied in their ramblings. Normally they just did as he bid them. After all, they were usually sated with the offering. What went wrong this time? It would be in his best interests to placate them before something bad happened.

“I have not held out on you. Really…we have no other in custody. We almost had one, but he got away. Is this who you are referring to?”

“We are referring to the one who left tracessss of his aura on three of your men… you cannot be sssso blind asss to missss that…the next time you call on ussss…It would be in your besssst interesssst to offer him…the New Moon would be a good time…until then we sshhall grant your wisshh temporarily.”

In a maelstrom of wind and darkness, the shadows fled, the many candles scattered about the altar - blown out, pulling the room into total darkness. Once the winds died down, one of the minions lit a small candle throwing a dim light around the room.

The man rose to his feet, shakily gathering his robes about him. This was not good. Only rarely did the shadows accept a sacrifice on the New Moon. And never before had they actually demanded it. Thinking back, they did request it once before. He wasn’t leading the group at the time. That was the job of his predecessor, but he did remember the occasion.

The group had made contact with a tall, lanky teen by the name of Mahado. He would always remember the name, it was so unusual. But they chose to use a different victim due to availability. The situation was somewhat different than this one. Last time, the shadows accepted the sacrifice, and then requested another at the new moon. This time, it wasn’t a request. This time it was a demand.

Well, they would just have to find that kid. He was pretty sure that he knew which one the shadows were talking about. They got riled up the last time he came into contact with the boy. And that was over twelve years ago. The time for playing around was done. If they didn’t find the kid, then all of their carefully laid plans would be ruined. And since they only had a couple of years left before their dreams were fulfilled, he wasn’t going to give up. On top of that, it was his life that was on the line if they didn’t find the kid. And that wouldn’t do at all.

Giving the mutilated body a disgusted look, the man snapped at one of the twenty or so men stationed around the circular room. “Raphael, have a couple of your men dispose of this. Make sure they know the proper method.”

And he and the rest of the robed men left the room in formation. He trusted his man to tend to what was required. He had never been let down before. Their contact with the sacrifice had ended with the confrontation with the shadows. It was time for him and the rest of his followers to take their ritual purification.

Raphael watched as his lackeys cleaned up the room, disposing of the candles and washing away the blood that had made it beyond the symbol around the altar. Everything outside that symbol had to be spotless, pure. No one had touched the body so far - that was the last thing to do. And only those who had been fully inducted into the group could do that. Everything was planned out in this ritual, right down to the burning of the body.

“Crouch, Bartlet!” He snapped at two of the underlings, both of whom turned to look at him. “The two of you are to dispose of this properly. And Crouch, remember…follow Bartlet’s orders to a tee, disposal is still part of the ritual.”

He crossed the stone floor, mindful of the ancient engraving, heading quickly for the exit. It would be his death if he stepped wrong. The shadows weren’t very forgiving, and they were always watching - even if you couldn’t see them. He needed to get out of here before he did something wrong.

As much as the large blonde liked the money that came with his job, he didn’t like the goings on in that large, rough hewn chamber that was built into the rocky mountainside. The voices from the shadows intimidated him, more so than he let on. He would be happy to get away from here. But his boss might have need of him after the purification. He clearly heard the warning that the shadows gave a few moments ago.

As he reached the exit, he congratulated himself again on his choice. He could trust Bartlet to finish this, the man was dumb as a post, and followed commands like a lab rat – he would teach their newest member how to behave. The man needed it, just like he needed to learn to bathe. Where his boss came up with their newest was a complete mystery to him.

With one last check around the room, Rafael vanished through the black-curtained doorway, careful not to let his hand touch the blood-red silk symbol embroidered on the heavy fabric. No sooner had he made his exit than his men lined up and filed silently out of the room. No one even glanced at the mutilated body, other than the few who had had the privilege of carrying out the ritual. Those men gave the corpse a vicious leer before continuing on their way.

“Okay man, here’s what we have to do.” Bartlet said to his new comrade as he unlocked the thick chains securing the bloody remains to the altar. “We need to drive this thing to out to the site that’s already been done for us, set up the pyre and burn it to a crisp. Oh, and there’s a couple of words that need to be said over it before it burns.”

“Why’d we hafta do that?” Crouch asked thickly, scratching at the crotch of his worn out jeans.

The thick, slovenly man was kind of new to this, having only been recruited by the ‘management’ two months prior. He hadn’t hesitated on taking them up on the offer. It was either that or rot in jail for the rape that he was convicted of. Crouch was greedy and cruel enough to like what he had seen so far. It was just too bad he hadn’t been one of the lucky ones, one of the chosen who got to get their jollies off on the victim during the ritual. He was wishing he were. He would have made it extra painful.

Barlet’s beady eyes showed confusion. He had never thought to ask why, only to follow orders. “Hell, I don’t know. I jes’ do what they say an’ I get paid. I ain’t gonna question those men, not after what I’ve saw.”

The rotund man had been with the group for the last ten years. They treated him good, giving him money and getting him out of jail – the three times he happened to screw up and get caught with a whore. He wasn’t about to question their reasons. And if that weren’t enough incentive for him to keep his mouth shut and do his job, the eerie voices he heard in this secret room off of the compound were.

After rolling the tattered corpse up into a plastic sheet, the two men hefted it between them, carrying it out to the waiting Mercedes. They, then, stuffed it unceremoniously into the trunk, checking to make sure that all lights were working before heading out. It wouldn’t do to have the cops pull them over and ask to search the vehicle, even though they were supposedly on official Congressional business. And they had the papers to prove it. It was always better to be safe than sorry.

Their white haired leader watched solemnly, as the car took off, from a window in the dark stone building that stood beside the vast mountain. His gaze followed the car until it was out of sight, beyond the boundary of enchantments that protected the location. Letting go of the curtain, he faced the man who had come up to see him watching as the tall blonde kneeled before him, head bowed.

“Well Raphael? Where do you think you need to start looking? Have you figured it out yet?”

Raphael glanced up, meeting his superior’s memorable eyes briefly. “I think so boss. The kid couldn’t have just disappeared. I’ll need to go back to his last known address and start looking from there. I will do this myself.”

“I should hope so. You have until January first…four months. That should be enough time to make up for the little mistake that was made the first time we came into contact with the boy. Don’t fail me.” Disappointment was apparent in his tone.

Raphael bowed his head contritely. “I won’t boss.”

“I didn’t think so. You may go. This time feel free to take down anyone in your way. And I do mean anyone, I will cover for you. It is imperative that you find this kid.”

Raphael nodded once more before standing, accepting the mission.

The large blonde made his way to the door. It was his fault the kid got away the first time. He had failed to take into consideration that the kid’s grandfather was old school CIA, that the man knew how to forge a paper trail - to vanish into thin air. It had taken them forever to find out where the kid was after that.

And it was only by a sheer stroke of luck that they even found him. If the boy hadn’t registered for those classes, there would have been no record, no picture. It wasn’t as if the kid had an ID or a driver’s license, because he didn’t. Raphael cursed himself for not finishing the job the first time.

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Twenty four hours later:

“That’s it. This’s the place.” Bartlet slowed the car, pulling off to the side of the road to turn down a small farm lane. They always picked a new location to dispose of the bodies, making sure that they were in an area where the remains would be found, but not traced to where the ritual was held. It was the boss’s way of laughing at the cops. This time they had found the perfect location in New Mexico, three miles from one of the larger cities.

They had already done a test run earlier in the week, and all the wood that they needed for the pyre was in place. The only thing they didn’t count on was rain. And from the threatening look of the pregnant clouds overhead, this was going to be a big storm. Oh well, beggars couldn’t be choosers. The sooner this was finished, the sooner they could go spend their hard earned money.

Together the men lifted the body out of the trunk, talking about their mission. They dumped it onto the hastily made pyre. All they needed to do now was to say the incantation and burn the body. Crouch insisted they didn’t even need to stay around until the deed was finished.

“Come on man, no one’ll know. Then we go back to base and pick up our pay. It’ll be easy.” The man whined to his partner in crime. He didn’t like the thought of being caught anywhere near the evidence.

Bartlet considered the suggestion. His partner was right, no one would ever know. The creepy voices were confined to the room. It was the only place he ever heard them, so his partner had to be right. After a moment, he nodded, having been talked into the idea.

The round man did the honors, pouring a little bit of siphoned gas around the smaller bits and pieces of wood before uttering the small incantation. Then he lit the match and threw it on the gas covered tinder. A small “Whuf” was heard as the dry wood caught fire.

“And that’s that, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” Crouch snickered conspiratorially to his coworker as he sauntered back to the car. They were finished here. It was time to head home.

Bartlet nodded and walked back to the car, looking back only once before climbing in the driver’s seat. The two crooks drove away, heedless of the drizzle that was beginning to mist down upon the scene. It didn’t matter if it rained; their work was finished as far as they were concerned.

Not five minutes after the men left, and the weight of the body crashed through the middle of the rickety pyre. Ten minutes after that, the rain began to fall…hard.

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Atemu opened his eyes, to the adorable sight of Yugi clutching at his shoulders - amethyst eyes closed tightly, a scarlet blush spreading over his exquisite features - from where the agent had pressed him down against the couch. Damn, he did it again! This was the tenth time in as many days that he lost control like this! He really needed to stop, before his charge ended up scarred for life.

Atemu had been skeptical about the soul mate idea at first – even after the bringing the boy out of his comatose state. But, the more he was around his smaller look-alike; the more he was beginning to believe. It didn’t matter though. He wasn’t good enough for this beautiful angel. And yet he couldn’t seem to stay away. All he was trying to do, originally, was comfort the boy when he saw that he was having a hard time dealing with his highly charged emotions. And he ended up kissing him again. This was too much.

“Damn it! I…” Atemu pulled back, raking his fingers through his wild hair.

As soon as he could, the agent was going to drop the teen with someone else who could truly protect him. He couldn’t. Not when every time he turned around, he was molesting the boy. This wasn’t good for the boy’s mental health, not to mention his all around health – if the bad guys came around when Atemu had his mind on other things. Besides, Yugi would be better off with someone else. Anyone other than him.

Yugi put a finger softly to his lips as he looked up at him from under his long, black lashes. “Don’t, please. Just let me have this.”

The small teen felt his face heat up at his last comment. Since when was he so forward? But it was true. Ever since that first kiss almost two weeks ago, he hadn’t been able to think of anything else…Or mostly. He was still in mourning for his two friends, and his grandfather. But even then, his protector came to the rescue, by letting him talk for almost a half an hour with Jou on his cell phone.

The conversation did him a world of good, hearing Jou’s voice. Apparently it did the same for Jou. The blonde was unharmed - pissed off - but unharmed. They both shed tears for their lost friends, and promised to keep in touch throughout their time in hiding. Jou even mentioned meeting another teen who was hiding out. The blonde told Yugi the kid’s name was Ryou, but that he didn’t know anything more about him than that. He also said that this shy, quiet teen had yet to say more than a word or two in his presence.

“Are you okay? I didn’t mean to…damn it this is getting out of hand!”

Atemu’s husky voice brought Yugi out of his thoughts as he pulled them into a sitting position. Even though his words were harsh, ruby eyed agent hadn’t let go of him yet.

“I’m okay, really, I just…”

At that moment, the agent’s phone gave a shrill beep. Atemu scowled at the device, longing to chuck it across the room. But he got up to answer it anyways.

Yugi curled up into the space his protector had vacated. He was so confused, and becoming more so by the day. In the space of ten days, the man who was holding him so tightly had become so much more than just a protector. The small teen just wished that he could know for certain whether or not the agent felt the same way. The other was either kissing him into oblivion, or keeping his distance, his signals perplexing – to say the least.

“Yes?” Atemu mouthed his standard greeting into the phone, as he moved towards the bedroom for some privacy.

Yugi understood his need for privacy and stayed in his place on the couch, fiddling with his hands as he thought over their highly unusual situation. They really needed to talk about this. He needed to know where he stood. Did he really have a chance with the stunning, ruby eyed man? But their talk could wait until after the phone call.

Atemu hadn’t even had time to shut the door to the bedroom before the caller voiced his greetings.

“Atemu” Came the not-entirely-unwelcome voice of his adoptive father. “They found the brother’s body in New Mexico. Isis and I are flying there to sit in on the autopsy this afternoon. This time there was enough left to collect evidence.”

Atemu sighed heavily. Although guilt for the boy’s death still weighed on his shoulders, the fact that any evidence could be recovered was a blessing. “I wonder what happened. Can you email me a copy of the notes? I’d like to go through them.” This group was damn near impossible to track. They were like ghosts, leaving behind almost no clues whatsoever.

“I can do that…How are things going with our witness?” Shadi asked hesitantly

Atemu sighed loudly. “Things are a little complicated right now. I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m thinking that it would be best for him if I took him out to be with Seto. His friend is already there.”

“Atemu…that would make his situation even worse than it is now. If you read the book, then you understand what you are to each other. What does he have to say?”

“Nothing yet. He doesn’t know. I don’t know how to explain this to him. Not without explaining everything and I don’t think he could handle that right now. Not in the state he’s in. Hell, he can barely handle being around me. All week he’s either been crying or blushing. I don’t know what to do with him!”

‘Other than kiss him senseless’ The agent’s mind supplied. Atemu’s answer to that comment was to slam his head back against the wall two or three times.

Shadi chuckled before admonishing his adopted son, hearing the noise. “The two of you are a special case, Atemu, you found each other. That is very hard for two half souls to do, especially those of your ilk. I only know of three other cases where that has happened. Let him read part of the book. You need to trust him with this information. The more he knows about his special circumstances, the better prepared he will be when they come after him.”

“I know, I…How is it that you know so much about this? Barring the information from the book.”

There was a long pause before Shadi answered his question. “… I’ve done years of research on this phenomenon. The book isn’t telling the whole truth. There’s more to these half soul occurrences than what you’ve read.”

“Then why did you tell me to read it, if it doesn’t have all the information?”

“I wasn’t expecting our young witness. Isis may have been, but she never told me. His being found takes this case to a whole new level of danger. I wanted you to get your feet wet, and that book gives some truthful answers. Let him read part of the book. And no matter what, you need to stay with him. He’s more than likely confused as to his feelings right now, as are you. Do not fret over it for the moment. The two of you will find your destiny. I have to go now.”

“Keep in touch. Let me know what’s going on.” Atemu rolled his eyes. Great, leave it to Shadi to make cryptic statements like that. Any other time and the man would give him a straight answer.

“Take care Atemu, I will.”

The agent hung up the phone; it was time to have a little talk with his charge, even though he didn’t want to. He wasn’t quite sure how to approach the subject, but it needed to be said, and without letting the teen know all that he had found out along the way to discovering what they were. He understood their circumstances, but that still didn’t mean that he was worthy of even touching the angel in the other room. Not by a long shot.

When he walked out of the bedroom, he saw that his charge had moved, now standing with his hand on the wall, staring pensively out the bay window. The agent cleared his throat awkwardly, bringing Yugi’s attention to him. It was adorable how the boy’s face would turn a light shade of red every time their eyes met.

“Come here a minute. I think we need to talk.”

Yugi sighed heavily, averting his eyes as he walked over to the couch to sit beside his protector. He knew what the agent was going to say – that this wasn’t appropriate. But every time they touched, the small teen felt whole, complete. And he didn’t want to lose that feeling, even if he had to beg.

“I already know what you’re going to…”

Atemu put a finger gently against his lips to forestall the comment. “Listen to me before you say anything. I want you to understand why you are feeling this way towards me.” At the teen’s vivid blush, he continued. “And I do know how you feel; I just want you to know why you feel that way. Then you can decide what you want to do.”

Yugi glanced away. “What do you mean – I can decide what I want? What about you? What do you want?”

“What do I want…? It’s complicated little one.” Atemu ran his hand over the boy’s face, memorizing the contours. “If we had met under different circumstances…but this isn’t right.”

“Why? I mean why not? I do feel the same way as you do. At least I think I do.” Yugi leaned into the gentle caress, closing his eyes at the soft touch.

Ever since that first kiss, the diminutive teen knew this was way out of the league of a simple crush. And he wanted more. He wanted this strong, wary man to touch him, to love him the way no one else had in his short life.

“That’s just it, little one. You think. Right now you’re emotionally drained after what has happened. It’s not fair what my being around you is doing to your emotions.”

“Atemu.” Troubled amethyst eyes found equally troubled crimson, as Yugi changed the topic. He didn’t want to hear the rest of the rejection he knew was coming. “What do these people want with me? Why are they hunting down my friends and family?”

Atemu let him change the subject, getting up from his place on the couch, to wander over to the thick file of paperwork that was sitting on the desk next to the computer. He selected almost 100 or so pages from the mess and brought them back with him, handing them over to Yugi. The boy deserved this at least, to know what he was, and why these people were after him. What he didn’t need to know was what they wanted to do with him if they got their hands on him.

“There’s a book that was found in your grandfather’s house. It’s got to do with ancient rituals. These might explain a couple of things to you. Go ahead and read them. I’ll answer any questions you might have afterwards.”

Yugi took the papers, giving Atemu a questioning look.

“Go ahead, read them. I have to do some work, so I’ll be around if you have any questions.” Atemu ran a hand gently over the side of the teen’s face, before walking over to the computer to do some more research on the case.

Yugi looked up at the man when he touched him. Great, another change in attitude. His protector could turn his feelings on and off like a light switch, and it was driving him crazy. The amethyst eyed teen rolled his eyes and took a seat in one of the soft chairs, to go over the papers. It was just another normal day in crazytown. Whatever was in these pages was driving his protector to the edge of his sanity. If he ever intended on figuring the man out, here would be a good place to start.


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