Natsume woke up in a haze of pain. He had trouble breathing for some reason. As he opened his eyes he saw Tsubasa laying beside him tear stains down his cheeks. How long had they been asleep? It was impossible to know, but he would guess quite some time. Natsume looked down himself and saw the untreated whip-marks. They had to be treated but he didn't have the strength and didn't want to wake Tsubasa, he needed the sleep he probably hadn't slept properly since they had been captured. Natsume eyesight blurred and he soon struggled to see as dizziness overwhelmed him. He panicked slightly but enough to start hyperventilating because he was short of air from the start. Natsume panicked a little more until he willed himself to relax and breathe as deeply as he could. He struggled a couple of minutes but finally got his breathing under as much control as he could get. Something was wrong with his lungs and it wasn't good. The dizziness had also passed.

Natsume studied Tsubasa's sleeping face while focusing on breathing.

Suddenly the pain Natsume always felt because of his alice grew larger, until it was burning inside his chest.

Damn, it's probably been more than a week since I last took my pills. Why did this have to happen now? I haven't even used my alice since the battle. I was wondering when the damage would show itself. – Natsume thought.

Natsume curled up into a ball and tried to block out the pain while keeping his breathing in check. This proved to be extremely difficult as he started coughing. He was drowning the sound as much as he could by pressing his sleeve against his mouth, trying not to wake Tsubasa. It didn't work. He heard Tsubasa shout his name and felt him grab his hand. Natsume could feel the blood soaking through his sleeve. Tsubasa was grabbing his hand harder and harder as the time went by.

When Natsume finally felt the coughing stop he started to try and regain his breath. First gasping for air and then gradually getting more stable. It hurt like hell to breathe. He felt the healing alice stone heat up on his chest but it wasn't having much effect, the pain burned on. It was like the stone was fighting a lost battle. He let out a few more raspy coughs and breathed as deeply as he could even though it pained him.

After some time Natsume rolled onto his back and opened his eyes. He stared straight into the worried blue eyes of Tsubasa. Natsume sighed and closed his eyes again, not having the strength to talk at the moment. He felt Tsubasa let go of his hand and heard him stand up. Clothing was ripped and the water bucket was being lifted.

Tsubasa came back to sit beside Natsume and soon he felt a cool cloth being put on his burning forehead. He opened his eyes again and saw Tsubasa look down at the whip-marks sadly. He started to unbutton Natsume's shirt and wash the wounds on his chest with cold water.

Natsume started shivering despite the warm temperature of his body. Tsubasa glanced worriedly I his direction, but kept washing the wounds. He had torn his shirt to get the cloth for Natsume's forehead and the cloth that he was washing him with right now. The water in the bucket was gradually becoming more reddish as the blood on Natsume's chest was washed away leaving only the red cuts that weren't bleeding much now. Luckily they weren't very deep but to avoid an infection they had to be bandaged. Natsume also had a nasty looking bruise on his ribs. Tsubasa suspected that one or two of them had cracked.

Tsubasa stood up also feeling the weight of his own injures. He supported himself on the wall as he moved towards the door. Then he banged on the door loudly. He heard the shuffling of feet and then the split in the door opened.

"What is it?" The man who was set there to guard them asked angrily as if he had just been woken from his dream. Which Tsubasa thought since he had heard snoring.

Tsubasa wanting no more than to hit the man still kept his voice calm and asked. "Can we get some bandages?"

The slit in the door slammed shut without any warning and Tsubasa thinking that was a no sat down beside Natsume again and dipped the cloth that he had on his forehead into the cold water again and put it back on his forehead.

Suddenly the door opened and an emergency kit was thrown into the room. Tsubasa looked surprised and happily at the kit. Natsume also had heard the sound and his head had moved towards that direction.

Tsubasa quickly got the emergency kit and opened it. There were bandages and a lot of other things, but nothing sharp or any weapons. They had taken precautions.

"…Can you sit up?" Tsubasa hesitantly asked Natsume, "I need to get some bandage around your chest."

Natsume took a deep breath and then slowly started pushing himself up into sitting position, he grimaced as he felt the movement jar his ribs. Tsubasa saw all the color leave his face as he sat up. Natsume held his hand up on his face as his vision blackened. As he waited for it to pass he felt Tsubasa grabbing hold of him and steadying him so he wouldn't fall down. The darkness left his eyes and burned like hot fire along his forehead and leaving him with a mind shattering headache that luckily only lasted a couple of seconds.

"Are you okay?" Tsubasa asked him worriedly when he saw Natsume look straight into his eyes again.

"…I'm fine." Natsume said hoarsely.

Tsubasa gritted his teeth knowing that he was most certainly not fine, but he wanted to get the bandage on so Natsume could lie down again and rest. He got the bandage out and began wrapping it around Natsume's torso as calmly and quickly as he could. He finally tore the bandage and tied the knot. Natsume, clearly exhausted, now lowered himself down again onto the stone hard floor. His eyes searched Tsubasa's body dismayed as he saw that all of his wounds were untreated.

"…Take care of yourself now… idiot." Natsume said.

"No you still need more treatment." Tsubasa said frantically.

Natsume frowned at him. "Tsubasa you've done enough."

"It's not enough! You're in pain! You're in so much pain, I know you're trying to hide it but I can see it in your face! I can hear it in your voice! If I have done enough then why are you still in pain? Why can't I remove that pain? You're just a kid I'm supposed to protect you! Why is it like this? Why can't I protect you? You should never have had to endure this kind of pain! I-" Without warning Natsume smacked him hard against the cheek.

The effort had left him panting, "Calm down…" He muttered after catching his breath.

"But-"

"You've done enough Tsubasa… This is no hospital and the supplies we have are limited… There is nothing else you can do. Take care of your own body… You're wounded yourself. If we're going to survive this we have to be at… our best."

Tsubasa looked down at him tears streaming down his face. He reluctantly began treating his own wounds. He didn't make it very far before the door opened and the boss and one other man who they recognized as one of the two who had the pain alice.

The boss looked over at Tsubasa, smiling as he saw the tearstains down his cheeks. "So one of them has finally broken. I think I found your weakness." He looked down at Natsume still smiling then looked up at the other man and nodded at him.

Shit! He can't handle this right now! – Natsume thought.

"Tsubasa this is not your fault." Natsume whispered so only Tsubasa could hear it, "Whatever happens don't say anything. It'll be worse that way."

"What do you-?" Tsubasa started whispering, but his breath caught in his throat as he heard Natsume groan and saw his face grimace in pain. With his mind slowed from shock Tsubasa didn't know what was going on. He started shaking Natsume by the shoulder confused asking him what was wrong.

The boss laughed and dragged Tsubasa away from Natsume, who was struggling not to make a sound and keep the pain hidden as much as possible because he knew Tsubasa couldn't cope with it.

The fact that the other man was using his alice on Natsume slowly started to sink in.

"This is all your fault." The boss' icy voice coaxed behind him sending chills down his spine. Dread started filling Tsubasa as he looked at Natsume. "You were the one who got captured and because of that his little body is in so much pain right now."

Tsubasa's mind started to numb with shock and guilt.

"Tsubasa…" Natsume said as loudly as he could in the moment, "…Don't listen to him."

Dismayed the boss looked at the other man and immediately Natsume felt the pain increase.

The guilt in Tsubasa's eyes didn't diminish at Natsume's words because he knew it was true, but he did become angrier with the boss.

"Do you want me to stop the pain?" The boss asked.

Tsubasa nodded.

"Then tell me everything you know about the academy."

Natsume felt as if his head was going to explode from the high fewer, the pain and also the immense concentration levels he used to breathe and make sure as little pain as possible escaped from him in neither voice nor expression.

"Don't." He still managed to say although his voice was shaking. Tsubasa turned to look at him and they gazed right into each other's eyes. Tsubasa looked torn. Tears glistened in his sorrowful eyes as they look into Natsume's. Whose crimson eyes revealed deep pain, but also determination.

Tsubasa knew he couldn't say anything about the academy, or they would suffer Persona's wrath after this. Still this was the hardest kind of torture they could possibly give Tsubasa. Seeing his friend in pain, knowing it was his fault and he couldn't do anything about it. He could only listen as Natsume's jagged breath sounded in the room, knowing the pain he going through was getting worse and worse by every passing minute. There was noting he could do about it… Nothing… Bitterness tore through him.

"Tell me everything you know about the academy or my friend here will unleash all his power." The boss said getting impatient.

Tsubasa willed the next words out of himself, "…I ...Can't." Sadness etched his voice. He looked down at Natsume who smirked at him.

"Good… boy…" Natsume whispered with exhaustion etched in his face.

The boss tightened his grip around Tsubasa's hands not pleased. Tsubasa winced slightly. But he immediately regretted it. He was being weak. Compared to the pain Natsume was feeling that was nothing.

"Do it!" The boss barked at the other.

Natsume whimpered not having the strength to hold it in anymore as the pain intensified. His vision blackened but he refused to let himself black out before they left the room. Once again the pain doubled Natsume bit his lower lip to keep from screaming. He knew Tsubasa couldn't handle it if he did. Nails clawed into the surface of his palms and he realized that he had curled his hands into fists, tightly as if that could help the pain go away. The sound of him gasping for breath filled the air.

"Scream!" The boss shouted at him wanting to break Tsubasa. He was seriously getting annoyed of this seriously tough kid. He stood up and walked over to Natsume. "Scream!"

Then without giving Natsume a chance to prepare himself he smashed his foot into Natsume's broken ribs. A scream filled the air.

The other man stopped using his alice in shock. He too hadn't seen it coming.

The boss knelt delighted by Natsume's side, "See I knew you could do it."

Natsume coughed up some blood his breathing coming in small gasps. He glared at the boss. "Go to hell…" He cursed defiantly.

The boss smacked him hard across the head, sending him into the black oblivion.

"Natsume!" Tsubasa shouted when he saw Natsume's head roll unconsciously to one side.

The boss smacked the unconscious Natsume again, just for good measure.

"What are you doing?" Tsubasa roared at him. The boss stood up and stepped over towards Tsubasa but before he reached him he heard shouts. He and the other man went out of the door to see what was going on and left Natsume and Tsubasa alone in the cell.

Tsubasa crawled over to Natsume. He lifted Natsume's head and put it in his lap, trying to comfort him. He started brushing the hair away from Natsume's sweaty forehead. Heat radiated from him… the fewer had grown worse. His breathing was anything but even as his lungs struggled.

They needed help and soon Tsubasa knew or else Natsume wasn't going to make it. Tears started pouring down his face as he realized that. He bent over Natsume sobbing.

I should have protected him…