When the Vongola trio had gotten back to Gokudera's apartment, they were greatly concerned about Belphegor's silence for the entire trip – they knew the Varia member well enough to know that if there was one thing his princely instincts wouldn't tolerate, it was being carried as if he were nothing but a baby.

The issue was, Belphegor's princely instincts weren't kicking in at all anymore.

"The light switch is just beside you, Tenth." Gokudera was closing the door behind everyone, instructing his best friend to turn on the lights. Tsuna did so, just in time to find Yamamoto laying the blond down on the couch as gently as he could.

Yamamoto had expected a lot of things, but what he hadn't expected – and maybe would never have expected – was to find the man covered in blood and dried semen.

"Tsuna..." Yamamoto gestured for his friends to come over, and he wasn't surprised to hear them both gasp at the sight. "Tsuna, he..."

"..." Tsuna knew he should be getting Bel straight to a hospital, but would someone like Bel who was so used to his freedom want to be confined to a hospital bed, especially after going through what they could only assume he had...? "Does anyone know where Doctor Shamal is?"

"It's no use, Tenth; he won't treat Belphegor..." Gokudera hated to admit it, but part of him felt sorry for Bel – he couldn't imagine what it must be like to have been raped and left for dead.

"But... someone's got to help him!" The brunet's soft eyes were hard with emotion. It had been a while since Tsuna had felt this worked up, but Belphegor – albeit not a direct member – was still a part of his family, the Vongola and Varia united as one.

"What if we take him back to Italy?" Yamamoto suggested, running a hand through dirty blond locks. "I don't mind flying him back, Tsuna."

"We don't know what his mental state is going to be like, Yamamoto... He may not be able to handle a flight back to Italy."

"Tenth, he's moving again." Gokudera moved closer to Bel, briefly brushing blond bangs away to see that the eyes that had been squeezed tightly shut during the walk home were now blinking in confusion as Bel tried to take in his surroundings. "Belphegor...?"

The blond started to shake as he looked up at Gokudera. His heart was beating rapidly against his chest, and never before had he felt so cold.

The Varia Storm tried to open his mouth and speak, but he couldn't seem to form anything other than incoherent noises.

Yamamoto instinctively reached out to touch the older man, but it took a mere second of the Japanese male's fingertips brushing against Bel's body to draw out a loud scream and cause the smaller male to recoil from the touch.

"Gokudera-kun, I'm going to try and get hold of Shamal," Tsuna said as he left the living room to speak quietly over the phone in the kitchen instead.

"B-belphegor!" Yamamoto was shocked by the adverse reaction the weaker male had – Bel was generally a calm, calculating person who never let anything faze him. Had what he been through so terrible, he couldn't help but be scared...? "Belphegor, we're not going to hurt you!"

The blond felt sick – not just because of what had been done to him, but because illicit drugs had been injected into his body, along with sexual stimulants. Bel had never done drugs before, had never planned to in his life, and it seemed his scrawny body either couldn't keep up with whatever he had been drugged with, or the amount he had been given was too much for his weight and height.

Bel just moaned in discomfort, not knowing what to do; his mind was spinning with everything that had happened, and he just wanted to be alone.

Yamamoto felt his heart break as tears started slipping down Bel's cheeks. He tried to reach out and wipe them away, but he was quickly stopped by Gokudera grabbing his wrist.

"Don't touch him, idiot," the silver-haired male said quietly.

Yamamoto bit his lip as he nodded, knowing his friend was right. He desperately wished there was something more he could do other than just stand here and watch, but how was he supposed to help someone he barely knew? Sure, the Vongola and Varia had interacted multiple times over the years, but when it came down to it, no one really knew anything about the Varia members.

Bel's mind just continued to spin as he hyperventilated, his eyes darting around the room. He didn't know what was wrong with him – sure, he was in pain both physically and mentally from what had been done to him, but he didn't think he'd have a reaction like this... Bel had always been strong, near unbreakable emotionally – but then again, he also had never thought he would be drugged and raped by a bunch of men...

The trauma that Bel had experienced was really taking a toll on his mind, and it was no surprise to the others when the blond passed out once again.

~~XX~~

When Bel next came to, a familiar brunet he knew as Doctor Shamal was leaning over him, examining his body. The Vongola trio were close by, paying careful attention to what was being said. Bel didn't want to be touched, but he felt as if he were paralysed.

"He's suffered severe physical trauma and there's traces of illicit drugs in his system." The doctor said all this with a blank expression, as if he didn't care for Bel's wellbeing. "It seems he was given an overdose, but it didn't kill him as expected. He's going to suffer some side effects which may be attributed to the way he behaved prior to my arrival."

"Will he be okay?" Yamamoto's dark eyes looked greatly concerned.

"Look, I don't treat males." Shamal shrugged. "If you care that much for him, take him to the hospital. I'd make sure he's treated for STDs as a first priority."

"How do we look after him?" Tsuna questioned, wishing that Shamal had been more helpful towards them.

"Keep him calm and comfortable." With that said, Shamal was gone.

Gokudera just sighed at the doctor's departure. "Lot of good he did, Tenth... We may as well just get him to the hospital."

Tsuna nodded, knowing his friend was right. He went to reach out for Bel, only to recoil as the blond man screamed loudly.

The Vongola Decimo was torn between two decisions – one; he could put Bel through more trauma by taking the older male to the hospital, or two; he could risk the blond's health decreasing further by leaving him with Gokudera until he was well enough to go to the hospital himself. Bel was badly hurt, but he was a Varia member, a prince – someone used to being independent and free.

What was the right decision here?

"Could we call for a doctor to come out tomorrow morning and look at him?" Yamamoto suggested. "He could get some sleep and hopefully feel better tomorrow."

Tsuna nodded. "Ahh. Good idea, Yamamoto. Gokudera-kun, can you get him a blanket?"

The silver-haired male nodded as he moved to the corridor, pulling a spare blanket from the linen closet. He brought it back out to the living room, draping it over Belphegor's shaking body.

"Gokudera-kun, may I stay the night?" Tsuna asked, wanting to be around in case Bel needed him. He smiled gently as his older friend nodded, turning to Yamamoto. "Are you going to stay, too?"

"Yes." Yamamoto's heart was just too big to ignore what was happening.

Gokudera didn't mind; he knew he would need the help anyway.

~~XX~~

None of the Vongola was sure what time it was, but what they did know was that they had been awoken to hearing Bel crying loudly from the living room. It sounded as if he was in both pain and fear, but none of them could blame him – not after what he had just been put through.

Tsuna had gotten out of bed to check on the blond, having been sleeping in the spare bedroom, but he stopped as he heard Gokudera's bedroom door open and the silver-haired male walk out to the living room.

"Belphegor...?" Tsuna recognised that tenderness in his best friend's voice; Gokudera cared. "Belphegor, it's okay..."

Bel's cries didn't stop, but Tsuna knew that Gokudera hadn't left the older male's side – when he would walk out into the living room the next morning and find his friend curled up on the floor by the couch, he would have all the evidence he needed of that.