Kiryu's head felt foggy and his limbs were too heavy to move. It took a lot of effort to open his eyes, and then the light seemed so bright he immediately shut them again, but not before he saw that bastard, his savior, his enemy, Divine. "What did you do to me?" he groaned, wishing he could get up from the hard floor.

"I didn't do anything. Don't you remember sneaking into my office and taking medicine you found there? I suppose it wasn't what you were expecting."

"But it looked like-!" Kiryu spoke so fast he ended up biting his lip. He winced as blood trickled into his mouth. "You did that on purpose. You tricked me."

"Do you know how predictable you are, Kiryu?" Divine sounded amused. "All it took was a well-placed newspaper and a warning not to go anywhere and you end up in the house of Rex Godwin. Truthfully, I expected you to be there longer before coming back for more medication, but I wired a device in my desk drawer to send my phone an alert when it was opened, so I was able to get back in time to find you sprawled out here in the doorway.

Enough strength had returned to Kiryu's body that he could sit up and glare at Divine. "What if I'd just taken the medicine with me? Then what?"

"That was a risk, but when do you ever wait to do anything?"

That his plan had failed and he was back in Divine's clutches was so bitterly disappointing that at first Kiryu didn't understand all of Divine's words. Then, he realized how strange what he'd said was. "Why are you acting like you wanted me to go there?" It was too late to ask how Divine knew he'd even gone; Kiryu'd admitted as much already.

"Because I did. You see, I have unfinished business with Godwin. I won't be satisfied until I've exacted my revenge upon him."

Kiryu pursed his lips, then said flatly, "You want to blackmail him like you blackmail all my customers." A camera placed in a hotel room beforehand, a simple threat in the mail the next day- what would the public think of the people who run the world fucking a prostitute? Whatever Divine was paid for the initial encounter was nothing compared to what he received in the years to come for keeping quiet. One person had thought to ruin Divine's business by warning a friend. Kiryu'd read two interesting obituaries the day after that.

"Of course not. Godwin would never fool around with a prostitute. But someone might." Divine smiled at Kiryu, who realized in horror just how much he'd been playing into Divine's hands.

"You want to blackmail him about me and Jack doing something!"

"Is that a problem for you? I'd think Jack Atlas was a much more appealing target than any customer you've ever had."

Kiryu was shaking his head. "I never agreed to that and there's no way even you could get cameras inside Godwin's house."

"That's why I'd need your cooperation. Before you refuse, consider this: if you help me ruin Godwin, the rest of your debts are gone."

Kiryu's eyes slowly widened. "I won't owe anything more?"

"Not a cent. But only if Godwin's name is ruined for good."

It sounded too good to be true, and Kiryu'd learned about deals with devils, so he didn't simply agree. "I'll think about it." He'd thought he could fix his situation by getting Jack to fall in love with him and pay off all his debts, but if Divine took care of them, he wouldn't have to try to seduce him anymore. And to be honest, Kiryu was getting tired of being expected to seduce every man he ended up alone in a room with.

"Don't take too long. I've been waiting for years for an opportunity like this."

It was the best. He would be free before he knew it. It was the best, it was the best, it was the fucking worst thing he'd ever heard. At first, it hadn't upset Kiryu too much, but the more he thought about it, the more pissed he became. He was a pawn. Divine used him more than anyone else had- and plenty of people had used him. Kiryu wanted to be free, he wanted to kill Divine, he wanted Jack Atlas to love him, he wanted to never be fucked by a stranger again. Three of those things were currently impossible or impractical. The latter, though- Kiryu had a say in that.

He wanted to be free, but not more than he wanted to fuck Divine over.

The customer was waiting for him naked. Kiryu hated the eager ones most of all. Hands were under his shirt, pawing at his jeans almost before he'd closed the hotel door. He knew which corners Divine had put cameras in and he was tempted to flip them off, but what he was going to do would be so much better. He let the customer push him onto the bed and roll his shirt up- and then he slapped him and stood up. "No," he said.

The customer looked confused more than angry. "I didn't ask for any rough treatment. I don't know if that's normally how you do things, but-"

"I don't care what you fucking asked for, you're not getting anything, you disgusting pervert. Go die for all I care." He smoothed his shirt out, tossed a final glare over his shoulder, and slammed the door behind him.

Walking home, he was almost giddy. How amazing it felt to take control again. He'd once been at the top, never having to answer to anyone... Divine was going to be furious at him, but Kiryu didn't care. He'd smooth things over somehow with the jilted customer, find some form of recompense. In the meantime, Kiryu would enjoy the walk home, picturing all sorts of ways Divine could die by illness or accident to pass the time.

The fifth stabbing he was mentally putting Divine through was interrupted when he realized a car had pulled up beside him. He looked over in annoyance, waiting for the catcalls and then the "oh shit, he's a guy." His eyebrows raised when he saw who it was. "Divine?"

"Kiryu." The false gentleness was all gone from Divine's voice, which had turned acidic. "Get in the car."

"What if I don't want to?"

"It seems you don't want to do lots of things tonight. Did you think I'd let you say no to a customer?"

"You didn't have to let me. I just did it."

Divine shook his head, looking at him like he was a bug begging to be stomped on. "Get in the car or I swear I'll run over you."

Kiryu rolled his eyes at Divine's dramatic words and got into the passenger side. If Divine wanted to yell at him or hit him, he could go ahead and get it out of his system. Divine deserved having his name ruined. It would be sweet karma for how many names he had ruined- not that Kiryu had pity for any of those men.

As soon as he got in the car, he felt a jab on his arm and clutched at it in surprise. There was a needle connecting to some vial in Divine's hand. "What the hell!?" The world was turning blurry and he slumped in the chair, almost losing consciousness.

"I'm going to show you what happens when someone defies me," Divine said in a quiet, lethal tone.

Kiryu could barely move or see and he didn't know how much time passed before the car stopped. Divine half-dragged and half-carried him into a building Kiryu'd never seen before. He was too weak to fight Divine off, though he felt a huge, growing need to do so. Adrenaline tried to overcome the effects of whatever Divine had shot him up with, but to no avail. The next thing Kiryu knew, Divine had tossed him on the ground and was tying him up: his wrists above his head, his legs spread out and tied separately to wooden beams spaced throughout the room.

And then he left.

"...Divine?" Kiryu tried to call after him, but his voice was as weak as his body. He struggled with the ropes, but Divine had tied them tightly, so that they dug into his wrists and made them bleed when he moved too much. Fear was clearing his mind, or maybe whatever Divine had given him didn't last long.

He heard Divine return several minutes later, and his footsteps weren't the only ones. He raised his head and saw four or five shadows behind him. Divine barley looked at Kiryu as he said, "Do what you want with him, as long as you don't kill him."

"What-!" Kiryu struggled again, ignoring the pain in a desperate attempt to free himself. He couldn't undo the ropes, though, and then five people were surrounding him, men in their twenties and thirties looking down at him with amused grins.

Kiryu closed his eyes. There was nothing he could do. There was never anything he could do in the end to save himself. Nothing he could do to keep his clothes from being cut off, nothing he could do to stop fingers and dicks being shoved in him, nothing he could do to keep from crying.

All he ever did was fall further.

Carly's fingers trembled as clicked on another article title. A simple google search of his name had revealed that Kiryu Kyosuke was a felon, and with the digging of a devoted reporter, she found out every detail that had ever been published about him: one newspaper mentioned stealing, another, a stabbing, and those were just the start.

Arrested three times before the age of 20...One count of attempted murder...Pleaded not guilty for reason of insanity...

Carly closed her browser and buried her face in her hands. This Kiryu Kyosuke was a monster and he was trying to sully Jack in some way, she just knew it. There was no way Jack would voluntarily get involved with a guy like that!

"I have to warn him," Carly murmured. She grabbed her car keys and pulled on her shoes. The drive to Jack's was short, which was why he normally walked it, but she didn't want to take the time when Jack could be in trouble.

Unfortunately for her, Godwin was home, and he was the one who answered the door.

"Ah. Miss Nagisa." He said her name with subtle disdain, but not so subtle that it didn't register and make her cringe.

"Hello, Mr. Godwin," she said with a forced smile. "I'm here to see Jack."

"Now, what business could you possible have with my son?" Carly could easily hear the rest of the message: You're a nobody, after all.

She tried to think of some reason that sounded sophisticated enough to warrant entrance, but luckily, a voice boomed down the staircase right then. "Is that Carly? Let her in."

"Jack!" Carly took the opportunity to dodge by Godwin and meet Jack at the bottom of the staircase. "Sorry for coming over without calling first."

"It's fine. Come on." Jack and Godwin exchanged a cold stare that made her uncomfortable before Jack led her upstairs to his room. She never understood why they didn't get along, because if Godwin had wanted to adopt Jack, surely he loved him. It troubled her so much she almost wasn't excited about being in Jack's room again. Almost.

"So, what's up?" Jack asked, sitting on the edge of his bed. Carly looked around, decided not to be so bold as to sit beside him, and took the armchair near the window.

"I have something important to talk to you about," she said. Jack raised an eyebrow and she went on. "It's about the person you mentioned the other day- Kiryu Kyosuke."

"I told you to forget about that," Jack said irritably.

"I know you did, but I couldn't." She tapped her fingers on the armchair, full of nervous energy. "I read about him, and he's bad news, Jack. He's stolen things and attacked people and he even burned down someone's house once. I don't know what connection you have with him, but I think you should cut it before he drags you into something bad."

Jack gave her a strange look. "Where did you even read those things?"

"It's in the newspapers and I saw some court records too and-"

"Carly, listen to me. Someone like you could never understand what it's like to commit crimes to live. Someone I knew... He stole things to keep the other children in the orphanage warm at night. I won't make excuses for the other things, but you're a reporter. You should know better than anyone that there's always more to the story than what one side shows."

"J-Jack?" What did he mean, someone like her? She was reminded of how little she knew about Jack's life before college and how little he spoke of his feelings in general. "I was just trying to look out for you..."

"I know. But I don't need you to."

Carly felt herself deflate. She'd come over here on a mission and was told she'd been doing the wrong thing all along. "I see. I'm sorry. Will you at least tell me how you know him?"

"It was chance, but he's out of the picture now. There's nothing for you to worry about."

"Okay. I'm glad everything's fine." She smiled at him. "Your safety is important to me, Jack."

Jack didn't say anything else. Carly shifted uncomfortably in her seat and looked around Jack's room. "You should go now," Jack said.

"Oh."

Jack sighed. "Because it's almost time for dinner and you don't want to stay for that. Trust me."

"Okay." Carly felt a bit better when Jack said that. She came over and gave him a hug, which he barely reciprocated, as usual. "I'll see you later, then."

"I'll walk you out."

After she waved goodbye to Jack on the doorstep, Carly got in her car and went back home. All the while, she brainstormed ways to learn more about Jack's past, so that she could be closer to him in the future.

Yusei was so preoccupied with his thoughts that at first he didn't see the stranger staggering down the street he'd just turned onto. When he saw he wasn't alone, his instinct was to put his guard up, but he quickly realized that was unnecessary when the stranger collapsed into a heap.

Cautiously, Yusei approached him, in case it was some kind of trick. But when he saw the bruises and the stranger's torn clothes, he knew it wasn't. This person seriously needed help. And when he looked at his face, he recognized him as the person from the club he'd met not long ago.

The club. Yusei had to get back there; he was sure a lead was just around the corner. He took a step away and peered down at the street in the club's direction. He had to go, but... He looked back at the collapsed man and sighed. There was no way he could leave him alone.

After checking for any signs of consciousness, he ended up hauling the stranger onto his back and making his way back to his apartment. He wasn't heavy, but he was bigger than Yusei, so it was something of a challenge. Yusei went in the back so as not to get any weird looks from the guard out front and, after a tough walk up the staircase, went into his room and put the man on his futon.

First, he had to check for any wounds more serious than the bruises littering his bare arms and face. Yusei paused when he lifted up an arm, noticing pale scars all over his wrist. Then he shook his head and continued checking the man over. Satisfied he had no cuts or broken bones, he got a glass of water from his kitchenette and put it next to the sleeping man.

An hour passed or maybe two before the man stirred. His eyes opened slightly then he started awake, looking around at his unfamiliar surroundings. To put him at ease, Yusei said, "Don't worry. You're safe."

The man looked at him uncomprehendingly and tried to sit up before hissing in pain and falling back onto the futon. "Where...?"

"This is my place. I found you collapsed on the street."

"...I've seen you before." The man's voice was labored, as though it hurt to talk.

"Yes. At the club."

After a moment of silence, the stranger managed a chuckle. "Aren't you going to give me a name, my kind savior?"

"...Yusei."

"I'm Kiryu." Kiryu noticed the glass of water and took a few drinks from it. "...Thanks."

"No problem. I don't have any painkiller..."

"Don't worry about it." Kiryu watched him go back to the kitchen and rifle through his cabinets. "You're weird, you know. You haven't asked what happened to me yet."

"None of my business." Yusei found a box of crackers and brought them to Kiryu. "Are you hungry?"

"No."

Yusei left the crackers beside him anyway and sat down on a chair close to the futon. Kiryu said, "Can I ask something?"

"Go ahead."

"Why were you at the club that day?"

Yusei was irritated- Kiryu'd asked that question that day, and now he was asking again, as though it was that important for him to know. But then again, maybe this was a good thing. Maybe Kiryu could help him.

"I'm looking for a friend who's gone missing."

"Oh... I'm sorry. Was your friend a regular? Maybe I knew him."

"He wasn't. As far as I know, he only went there once, but that was the last place he was seen."

"That's not a good place to disappear," Kiryu murmured.

"Do you know what might have happened to him?" Yusei asked, trying not to feel too hopeful about his chance of getting useful information.

"I hope not, because it wouldn't be anything good." Kiryu sighed. "I know the owner has workers there who try to get younger people hooked on drugs and then selling them. And there's a prostitution ring and god knows what else. If someone disappeared there, they could've gotten involved in anything like that. What's your friend's name? Maybe I've heard something."

"Crow. Crow Hogan." Yusei felt a pang of sadness when he said Crow's name. It had been too long since he'd seen his friend, his only friend in the world for years now.

"Crow... No, I haven't heard that name before. But I'll be paying attention for it now."

"Thanks. I don't mean to be rude, but I need to get back to looking for him. Is there anywhere else you can go?"

"Actually..." Kiryu paused. "You know where Jack Atlas lives?"

The day Jack confessed to him, Yusei was in awe. For all his intuition and intelligence, he'd never expected Jack to like him. He wandered around, starstruck, until Crow found him sitting on the orphanage's staircase by almost tripping over him in a rush downstairs.

"Wha- Yusei, what're you doing just sitting here?" he asked after he regained his balance.

"He called me Stardust."

"What? Who did?"

"Jack."

"That's gay," Crow snickered. When Yusei didn't react, his eyes widened. "Oh god, he is gay. Oh god, you're gay! You're gay together!"

"Crow!" Yusei flushed. "I mean, what if we are?"

Crow thought for a moment then shrugged. "Nothing, other than if I ever see you two kissing I'm gonna gag. You're like my brothers, after all."

"You're getting ahead of yourself." Yusei hugged his knees to his chest. "I still don't know how to respond to Jack's confession."

"Well, do you like him?"

"I don't know. I hadn't really thought about it..."

"Yusei, trust me. It's not something you think about. It's just something you feel."

Yusei tried to analyze his feelings when Crow said that, but he was still too frazzled. And then he understood that his overwhelming feelings were themselves the sign that maybe he liked Jack back.

"...I'm going to accept."

"Go for it, then." Crow helped him up and patted him on the back. "But remember. No kissing in front of me."

Things were forever different after that, and in the best possible way. He and Jack had always been inseparable; now they were together in a different way. Jack was a leader, and he chose the pace for their relationship- fast, but not too fast, just enough so that Yusei always felt exhilarated.

For someone who'd never kissed anyone before Yusei, Jack was an amazing kisser. Not that Yusei had anyone else to judge by either, but he knew anyway, because Jack stole his breath and made his heart race faster than he thought possible. True to his word, Yusei made sure their kissing was done in secrecy, away from anyone's prying eyes. It was difficult to arrange in a crowded orphanage, so when they did have a spare moment alone, they never wasted it.

"Jack!" Yusei gasped. Jack had pushed him back onto the mattress, kissing his neck and jawline. Yusei shivered and threw his arms around Jack, rubbing his crotch against Jack's. Jack moaned into his neck.

"Damn it, Yusei, that feels so good..."

"Give me more, Jack," Yusei whispered.

Jack's eyes flickered to the door to make sure it was locked, and then he climbed onto the bed on top of Yusei. He slipped his fingers under the band of Yusei's jeans and felt his hardening cock through his boxers. Yusei closed his eyes and let his head fall back, breathing hard. "Touch me, Jack. Really touch me."

"Are you sure, Yusei?"

"Right now." Jack was much too considerate when it came to things like this, always making sure Yusei was comfortable above all else. Yusei supposed that was a good thing, but not when there was a fire inside him demanding Jack feed it.

Jack tugged Yusei's jeans and boxers down. They were both flushed, partly from awkwardness; they'd never gone this far before. Jack got his confidence back first and starting pumping up and down Yusei's cock. Yusei'd had no idea it could feel so much better when someone else did it, but it was like nothing he'd ever felt before.

"Jack..." he moaned. "Faster."

Instead of complying, Jack did something else entirely- he leaned down and took Yusei into his mouth. Yusei gasped at the sudden wet, warm sensation; it sent electric shocks up and down his spine. Jack moved back and forth until Yusei was fully aroused and leaking precum into Jack's mouth. He wanted to come, but he wanted to hold off at the same time, so the amazing feeling would go on and on. Tangling his fingers into Jack's soft hair, he steadied his breathing- until Jack grazed his teeth along the top of his arousal. Unable to resist any longer, he came before having time to warn Jack. Blinding white light overcame him and when he came to, Jack was spitting into a tissue. "Sorry," he said meekly.

Jack tossed the tissue away and gave him a tender smile. "Don't be. I wanted to make you feel good. I did, didn't I?"

"More than I ever have before. ...You have to let me return the favor." Yusei was already crawling towards Jack. He reached out to unzip Jack's jeans when they heard feet padding along the floor and stopping at the door. They froze. Ann, a seven-year-old who hadn't been at the orphanage long, called out, "Why is the door locked? Who's in there? Big brother Crow?"

"Crow's not here, brat," Jack called back. "Try somewhere else."

"Jack? What are you doing in there? I wanna come in!"

Yusei and Jack exchanged tense glances. Yusei said, "We'll play with you later, Ann. We're, um, studying right now."

"Ew, boring!" They heard her take off, as though if she didn't get out of there right then she'd have to do calculus homework. They sighed in relief.

"This place is so difficult sometimes," Jack muttered.

"It's fine now. So where were we?"

It didn't take them long to get back into the mood. Yusei found Jack's size a considerable challenge, but he was determined to make Jack feel as good as he'd made Yusei feel.

And then there was another knock.

"What is it?" Jack snapped as Yusei quickly released Jack and sat up.

Crow's voice answered. "There's someone here looking to adopt. Looks real important. Martha wants everyone to come out."

"Why bother?" Jack said. "People always want the brats, not us. We're too old."

"Whatever, Martha still wants everyone."

"We'll be right there."

"Oh, Yusei's with you, huh?" Crow teased, "Sorry for interrupting. Finish up and come out!" Laughing at his own double entendre, he ran off.

"He killed the mood," Jack said.

"Yeah," Yusei agreed wistfully.

They pulled on their clothes and helped pat each other's hair down before going out to where Rex Goodwin was waiting to adopt.

A/N: And God said let there be kingcrabshipping. Though treasonshipping will forever be my OTP, kingcrabshipping is important to me and I think there needs to be more of it out there.

Thanks to Rita Hearts, K8wolfx, and 5dshadesofgay for reviewing! If you're reading, please let me know what you think. It matters a lot to me.