A.N~ Heyy guys! Here is the next chapter… very uneventful, but I wanted to add some angst on Heba's part and pretty big clues as to what happened between Heba and Atem and a childhood flash back!…. Also, Yugi is in this one, and you get to see how he is handling the whole situation!

NEXT MATTER OF BUSINESS! I do NOT want this story to be just one couple, but I really am at a loss of who I want to pair up, so if you have any special request of pairings you would like to see, I will add it in some way! So far the pairings are: AtemXHeba, RyouXBakura (only because I have been reading a lot of fics about these two) but the rest are undecided. (FYI Heba and Yugi are two entirely different people in this fic, so if anyone wants a specific pairing for Yugi, tell me!)

I am actually really proud of myself. For the first time EVER! I actually met a deadline for one of my stories! XD SELF DISIPLINE! Mind you, the ending was rushed… I mean really rushed, you'll see the difference when you read. I will fix it before I post the other story though I swear!

Lastly, I want to thank Doragon-chan, Angeldrkfire, and yugixyamiyaoilover for reviewing last chapter… I will now start replying to reviews from this chapter on BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE IT!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Yugioh… I mean do I really need to tell you that? If I did, would I be writing this story right now? No I would be rewriting Yugioh to add more yaoi smexiness and a lot more MIND CRUSHING! "Got a problem…? MIND CRUSH!"

Chapter 2: Good friends are better left forgotten

He knew he shouldn't have fought back. He should have just taken everything in stride and just shut his mouth like they had ordered. He should never have screamed, he should never have struggled, he should never have tried to kick them off of him. He should have just closed his eyes tightly like he had done many times before, and pretend he was somewhere else.

But he didn't…

He didn't want to be weak and small like he knew his pharaoh believed him to be. He wanted his pharaoh to look at him like he was more than a wimp, a nuisance… He wanted to be worth his time. He wanted him to forget what had happened between them, forget all that he had heard and return to how everything was before Heba had gotten greedy and foolishly wished for more.

That was why he fought back…

…And that was why he was beginning to regret his decision.

He had never been in so much pain in his life.

Another boot slammed down on his arms making Heba scream in pain. Another was aimed at his chest, probably breaking bones, but Heba didn't care what happened to his body at the moment; he just wanted the pain to end.

It wasn't like no one had ever hit him like this. He – being the smallest, more fragile slave – was usually the main target for attacks, but it was never like this. They were trying to kill him.

Heba had always imagined leaving the world and his pain behind, but now that he was finally at death's door, he was scared. He didn't want it to be over. If he died, that meant there would never be a chance to prove himself to Atem. He wouldn't have a chance to be happy… But all of that was irrelevant now as merciless blows rained down on his already broken body, he was going to die and he was so scared.

The blows suddenly stopped which scared Heba even more. What would they do now? Would they leave his dying body on the floor for someone to find him? Would they allow him to live, just so they could "play" with him another day? Would they call the healer? Heba seriously doubted the last thought, but decided it was best to hope for the best rather than expect the worst.

Voices began to fade in and out as the pain in his body became unbearable. Suddenly he was pulled into familiar warm arms and breathed in a calming scent that had once lulled him to sleep. 'Atem…?' He thought, unable to vocalize his thoughts due to the pain. 'I-Is… Is that you?'

He could only rest his swollen body in the man's arms before he was too tired from the pain to move and his world turned black…

'You were always so cruel…'

(Flash Back)

Heba was exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to go to sleep and rest his heavy eyes. His whole body ached from the strain, but he pushed on. It wasn't like he could ask for a break.

Heba moaned in pain as his head began to pound again. He had been sick for a while, and instead of getting better, he steadily grew worse until he found it hard to do simple tasks, even as eight year old Heba made his way to his future pharaoh's room with the plate of food he had ordered, he found it hard to stand upright.

He had never been in the royal hall before, and the fact that he was here was simply a fluke, ironically, the normal servant was sick and was unable to work. However, Heba didn't have such luxuries and was currently carrying the golden plate of Egyptian delicacies toward the young prince's room.

Heba knocked on the door quietly, feeling his heart beat speed up. He was nervous. Everyone knew that if the wrong word was spoken to the prince he could be cruel in his punishments, and Heba had a thing of saying exactly what would get him punished.

The trembling slave knocked again when there was no answer. When there was still no answer, he quietly tested the door knob, sighing with content when the door creaked open and walked in, only to lock eyes with a seething prince.

"What possessed you to open my door without my permission?"

"U-Uh…" Heba stared wide eyed at the prince. He was much more stupid than he originally thought. "W-well, when I deliver food to the soldiers, they- "

"Do I look like a soldier to you?"

"N-No! I – uh- I just…." Heba blinked his eyes as he shook with fear, what would the 'horrid' prince do to him now? He doubted he'd been forgiven, but he refused to believe a young child, only a few years his senior would be capable of any of the terrible things the other slaves had told him. "I-I'm sorry…"

Heba blinked back tears as the pharaoh rolled his eyes. "Gravelling won't help you, and I'm not one to fall for pity, so you can stop shaking now."

The slave furrowed his brow in confusion and looked down at his hands. He was shaking a lot more than he thought he was. Heba whimpered in pain, grabbing his head, letting the tray of food fall from his hands and scatter all around the floor.

"I-I said stop it!" Heba heard the young prince's voice, as shaking hands reached out to keep him up. "Are you alright?" Heba almost wanted to smile at the sudden change of tone from the prince, but was shaking too hard to do so. "Ra, you're burning up." He moaned in pain again as he was lowered gently down onto soft satin sheets. "I'll be back." He said, brushing the hair from his face. "Please be okay."

The last thing that passed his mind before he blacked out was that the big bad prince didn't seem so scary anymore.

When Heba finally awoke, his bruised back was rested on a soft cushion, causing him to sigh with content. They had taken him to the healer. At least they weren't completely horrible people. At least they had a conscience.

Heba whimpered softly as his slight shift in position jostled his wounds. Maybe they should have just killed him. Anything was better than the pain he was feeling now.

Heba turned his head, weary of the pain in his side to move off of his sore ribs when his eyes caught a glimpse of tri colored hair not unlike his own.

Heba's eyes widened in realization as he was met with the intense violet eyes of his pharaoh hovering just above him, the pharaoh had been the one to save him from his attackers? Heba found that hard to believe but couldn't contain the joy that overflowed in his body.

"Are you alright? Heba wanted to nod his head yes – though he was the exact opposite of "okay" – but could only watch in disbelief at the pharaoh. "I would have gotten there sooner, but I didn't know it was you."

Heba felt his face turn a deep shade of red, and it as all he could do but turn away to hide the reddening of his cheeks. "Y-You remembered me?"

"How could I forget?" This only caused Heba's cheeks to turn a shade redder and his heart to beat erratically and out of control. He had truly missed him. He wasn't like any of the people in the palace who simply put on a smile to pleas the usually tempered pharaoh. He had missed the pharaoh more than he could even describe. Atem had been all he had to hold on to whenever he couldn't take it anymore, and without him he was lost.

Heba moved his arm in an attempt to hide the mad blush still emanate on his face, but knelled over as excruciating pain shot up from his damaged arm. He let out a pained filled whimper, feeling tears trickle down his cheeks.

His whimpered turned into a sound of surprise when he felt strong arms surround his quivering body, and somehow, soothe the pain that had been coursing through his body before that.

"I'm so sorry…" Heba blinked his eyes in confusion at the uncharacteristic words of his pharaoh. In all his life he never thought he would hear Atem say that. Atem was never one for words so the sudden change left Heba wondering what he was apologizing for. The pain he had caused him? The unforgivable acts of deceit, the harsh words that to this day, stung more than any bruise he could have given him? But he really had no need to apologize, because Heba had already forgiven him for all of that.

Was he sorry for allowing him to be hurt? He had no problem with it before, he thought dryly, but immediately shook the thought from his mind.

Heba clenched his eyes tight, and softly gripped the silky fabric of his pharaoh's tunic. Had he finally forgiven Heba for his mistake? "I've always wanted to hear you say that…" He breathed, and it was true. He had always wanted to be of some kind of importance to his pharaoh, and those three words were proof that the pharaoh cared.

The warm arms tightened around him, still careful not to jostle his wounds, and Heba pulled himself closer to the warmth.

"I thought I would never see you again Yugi…"

Heba stiffened at the pharaoh's words. What had he just called him? He could see the confusion on his pharaoh's face as he pulled away – quickly missing the warmth – and blinked his eyes in fear and despair. "I-I'm… Who's Yugi…?"

"What?"

Heba shrunk back, fear visible in his violet eyes. He hadn't meant to make his pharaoh angry at him, but he figured ignoring his pharaoh's inquiry would only make him more so. "Who's Yugi?" Heba bit back tears. He shouldn't have said anything. Just the thought of what his pharaoh would do to him sent shivers down his spine. He shrunk back, expecting a string of stinging insults but was greeted with something much worse than that.

"Then who are you?"

"I-I-I…" He really didn't know how to answer that question; he was in too much shock. Had the pharaoh mistaken him for someone else? Heba found himself seething with jealousy over this "Yugi" or whoever the pharaoh had mentioned. Why was he entitled to the pharaoh's kindness? Did the pharaoh hold this Yugi so lovingly all of the time? Was the apology meant for him? If the pharaoh had thought him to be Yugi, did that mean he cared for this other person?

By the look on the pharaoh's face, he wanted his question answered so Heba chewed his bottom lip in contemplation before holding his aching stomach with his good arm, and turning away to hopefully mask some of the betrayal and hurt in his eyes. "M-my name is Heba…" He choked out the words, feeling his voice shake as he spoke.

"Are you sure?" Heba cocked a brow at the odd question but by the desperation in his voice, he knew the pharaoh wasn't joking.

"Y-yes... "Heba felt his heart break at the disappointment in the pharaoh's eyes. Would he rather he have been Yugi? "Uh…" Heba contemplated not asking the question, but then quickly decided his day couldn't really get any worse. "Who's Yugi?" He asked for the third time, feeling the angered eyes of his pharaoh on him.

"No one you need concern yourself with." Heba jumped at the usual anger in his pharaoh's voice. He should have known better than to believe Atem could hold him like that.

The pharaoh's eyes glazed over with shock as he shook his head. "I didn't mean to yell." He sighed and leaned away from the trembling slave. Heba noted that he had leaned as far away from him as possible before sighing loudly. "You just look so much like someone I met while I was gone."

Heba blinked tears away from his eyes and whipped them away vigorously. So the pharaoh had met someone…

"Are you okay?" Atem asked, noticing the tear filled eyes of the slave.

Heba nodded his head and smiled faintly, silently praying the tears away. "It just hurts." He gave the pharaoh a pain-filled smile, though the pharaoh had no idea how much it hurt.

Atem studied Heba's pained expression before sighing again. "We'll have to reattach your arm before the healer gets here if the pain is bothering you so much. I was going to call her in the morning so you could sleep, but..."

Heba simply nodded his head, the idea of reattaching his bone didn't sound fun, but he couldn't trust his voice to say otherwise.

"Alright…" Heba 's face flushed as the pharaoh pulled him onto his lap and held him to his chest. "Hold onto something, and bite down on my shirt, alright?"

"O-okay…" Heba bashfully did as he was told and leaned his head on the pharaoh's chest careful as to not lean on his sore ribs. He had missed this. Just laying together, though the circumstances of their revived ritual was extremely cruel.

"Just breathe…" He whispered in his ear before a sharp wave of pain traveled up his arm and throughout his body.

Heba whimpered and moaned in pain, his sounds muffled by the fabric in his mouth and tightened his grip on the tunic. When the pain had subsided, Heba sobbed uncontrollably against the pharaoh's chest.

He had started his day with the sole purpose of proving himself to the pharaoh, but all he had done since they had been reunited was cry, but he couldn't help himself. He was hurting so much. He was scared, he felt humiliated and ashamed. All he had wanted to do was talk to Atem again for at least a little while, but even that was denied to him. All he wanted to do was see him again, but now how could he look at his pharaoh when Heba knew there was someone else he was thinking about?

Heba cried harder, his back wrenching as a hand soothed him gently. It wasn't fair… It wasn't right… All he had wanted was now out of reach for him and he knew that. He cried for his pain, and the innocence that had been stolen from him. He cried until his sobs turned into silent whimpers. He should have listened to the other slaves when they told him sometimes good friends are better left forgotten.

It's less painful that way…

It was hard to be happy lately, Yugi Muto thought as he and his friends sat silently in his grandfather's game shop. It seemed as if since Yami's disappearance, everyone's smile had left their face. No one said much on their way back to Japan, and it was equally as quiet now. Everyone watched each other, waiting for the painful silence to be broken.

Yami had only been gone a day and everyone could feel the tense atmosphere… They all missed their friend, but no one knew what they could say to make the other feel better.

"It was for the best…" Everyone turned to Anzu who was the first to break the silence.

"He seemed real happy." Jounouchi added. "I'm sure where ever he is, he's fine."

Yugi nodded, looking around at his friends. His body felt light without the millennium puzzle around his neck. "Do you think so?"

Anzu nodded and Yugi sighed. He only wished they could have said proper goodbyes. There was so much more Yugi wanted to tell the spirit now that he was gone, but there was no way he could now. By the look on his friend's faces, they all felt the same.

"It feels different with him gone…" Honda added woefully.

"Maybe… we should have let him stay…" All eyes were on Yugi now as he looked down at his feet. "It just that, when he left… I don't think he really wanted to go…"

"Yugi, he doesn't belong here. He's probably happy to be with his family in the afterlife now." Yugi sighed at Anzu's words. She didn't understand. No one did. Yugi had a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach that said that something was wrong. Something was horribly, horribly wrong, but he had no idea how to tell his friends this.

"You're right Anzu…"

"We should probably get goin' now. You sure you're gonna be alright Yugi?" Yugi nodded at Jounouchi's words and walked his friends to the door where they parted ways.

"Yugi, can I talk to you?"

The short teen nearly squealed at the sudden voice, but sighed in relief when he was met with the frowning face of Ryou. He had almost forgotten he was there with how quiet he had been. "Yeah, sure Ryou."

"I-" Ryou stopped as if trying to evaluate his words. "I think something's wrong."

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked his heart racing. Ryou had been a Hikari just like him; could he sense the disturbance like he could?

"I don't think that Yami went to the afterlife at all." Yugi cocked a brow at this. That was impossible. Yami had died, he should have gone there.

Suddenly, an image of a bodiless soul floating aimlessly for eternity crossed his mind, and caused him to shiver. "How do you know this?"

Ryou bit his lip and blushed. "W-well…" He looked down and shifted his feet uncomfortably before he said: "Don't be angry at me please!"

"What Ryou?" Yugi asked his voice laced with worry for his friend. When it seemed like Ryou wasn't going to speak, he finally blurted: "I won't be mad, what's wrong?" Ryou jumped, and Yugi immediately felt sorry for snapping, but then again, the albino teen kind of deserved it.

Ryou looked around shyly before pulling out a large, familiar, gold ring necklace from under his shirt.

Yugi's eyes widened at the ancient artifact that should still be in Egypt. "Ryou, where did you get that!"

"You said you wouldn't be mad!" Ryou pointed out, but Yugi brushed that aside with a wave of his arm.

"That was before I knew that you… What did you do?"

Ryou blushed and held the necklace close to his heart. "I-I just wanted him to stay…" He laughed quietly at the confusion in the shorter boy's face. "My Yami…"

Yugi's mouth hung open at Ryou's sudden confession. "Ryou, what do you..?"

"I know, he tried to kill, me and you and he did all of these really, really, awful things, but… I don't know… I feel so lonely without him there." Ryou slumped in the couch and sighed heavily. "Whenever we got rid of Bakura before, he would always come back. But when I knew I would never see him again, I panicked." He brushed his thumb gently along the smooth surface of the golden ring and smiled. "I know I shouldn't have done it, but I had to. If Bakura went to the afterlife, he wouldn't be anywhere good." Yugi could only gape in confusion as Ryou continued. "I know you guys might not all think, but he isn't that bad. He did horrible things, but…The way he talked to me sometimes… He's not all bad."

"How did you get the ring?" Yugi asked when the taller teen was finally done, with a deep blush on his face.

"Well, I did live with the Thief King for half of my life; I kind of picked up on things."

Yugi shook his head. It was hard to believe that the shy, kind Ryou could steal anything, but pushed aside his shock. "Just tell me what's wrong with Yami."

(Flash Back)

Heba awoke to a warm feeling all around him. The last thing he remembered was falling, and the rest was a blur.

"You're awake!" Heba turned beside him and shot up at the sight.

"P-Prince!" He cried, trying to push the covers off of him, only to be held down by the taller boy. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to drop your food I swear, I was just tired, and-"

"Will you shut up?" The Prince sighed, finally succeeding in calming the eccentric slave. "I'm not mad. How do you feel?"

Heba thought for a second before he smiled brightly at the older boy. "Sore, but I'm fine. Much better!"

The prince smiled at the goofy grin, and began playing with the satin sheets in front of him."G-Good."

"Um… Prince… You saved my life…"

The Prince laughed, still not looking up to meet his violet eyes. "Don't be stupid, all you needed was rest."

Heba shook his head. "No, if anyone else had been there, they would have let me die." The prince blinked his eyes as if shocked that anyone would do that, causing Heba to laugh.

The prince pouted at the slaves laugh. "What is so funny about you dying?"

Heba smiled and shook his head. "No, I just was thinking." The prince finally looked up at the younger boy. "You're a lot nicer than I thought you'd be."

The prince's face turned a shade of pink and turned away from the slave. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?"

Heba nodded his head eagerly. "You're much nicer than most of the people I know…" Heba's smile suddenly turned sullen as he continued. "Sometimes I just want to end everything, you know. People can be cruel at times… You're lucky. No one would dare to challenge you."

"Don't say that." Heba looked up at the prince's deep violet eyes and found himself caught in the genuine kindness and understanding in his eyes. "No matter what happens, you have to fight for all your worth. It's better to hope for the best than to expect the worse, right?"

Heba smiled and nodded. "I am in you debt, your majesty…"

"Please, just call me Atem."

The younger slave laughed at this and grinned brightly. "If you need anything, I'll be there. Just say the word… Atem…"

"Uh…" Heba cocked his head at Atem as he stumbled with his words. "Did you want to play? W-when your better I mean." When he saw the look on the young slave's face he quickly added: "I mean, only if you want to. Mahado can't play all of the time and I get bored.

The younger of the two first stared in disbelief before smiling brightly.

"Only for you…"

Heba blinked his eyes open, only to be welcomed by the familiar pain. It had been a dream.

The slave turned to where the pharaoh was laying on a plush chair by the bed where he was currently lying. He looked so serine when he was sleeping. So peaceful. Atem had been his best friend, and regardless of what he thought now, was all he had left. But everything had changed, and there was nothing Heba could do to change what happened. He wished he could have taken back those words. But he couldn't. It was his secret that he should have kept, but he had wanted Atem to know.

It was his entire fault…

Heba pushed himself off of the bed, whimpering in pain. It would be best if he just left before he could mess anything else up.

He turned to the sleeping figure, and ran a hand through his hair knowing that this action wouldn't wake him up. Atem was always a heavy sleeper. "I still do…" He breathed, kissing the sleeping pharaoh softly on the forehead before leaving the room cradling his wounded arm against his chest.

If that boy Yugi could make him smile like he used to, then Heba had no right to intrude. He could give up his happiness for Atem. He could try to forget.

'But only for you…'

Heba clenched his eyes tight and left the pharaoh alone in the room. Never had such a simple task of turning away seemed so hard in his life.

A.N~ CHAPTER DONE! I hope you liked it! Please review and leave your thoughts and any ideas for the story!

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