Pharaess Cleopatra: Hello again everyone! Oh God, you guys are gonna hate me! Shit is going down in this chapter, so get ready to cringe (and maybe cry) because this one's all about poor little Yugi. I'd say enjoy, but...I kinda can't... So instead, read on!

P.S. Small rape scene in the beginning, so kiddies, turn away! Avert your virgin eyes! (JK)

Chapter 10: Dire Need

Tears streamed down his face, his hands tied to the bedrail, giving the boy little to no movement at all. His body was bruised and battered, soft, cream colored skin littered in red marks along with black and blue splotches scattered about, and this was only the beginning of the punishment. No, it only got worse from there. Have you figured it out yet? No? Let's fix that then... Yugi gave out a sharp cry when Dartz plunged into his small frame. He couldn't hold back his cries of pain and agony, until Dartz slammed a hand over his mouth, those whines now muffled. Yugi felt so helpless, so dirty, and so disgusting. That was a feeling he never wanted to feel again, but here it was, hitting him like a damn train, if you don't count the situation he was in now. God, he hated this... He felt something warm slid down his legs, but he knew it wasn't that sticky white substance. No, this was different. It was blood... He had been brutally ripped open and now he was bleeding because of it. Yugi just wanted this to end, but he knew this was only the beginning. Dartz brutally thrusted into the small boy. Why, you ask? He enjoyed other's people's pain, if that wasn't obvious, and this was just the icing on the cake to him. Rape... One of the most cruel and horrific punishments there is... Yugi's innocence was forcibly stripped away from him, and there was nothing he could do about it.

"You're nothing but a worthless slut..." Dartz hissed as he continued to thrust into the boy, much harder and faster, tearing him open even more.

Yugi couldn't speak for his mouth was still being covered, only muffled whines and cries being heard from him. Suddenly though, he gave a muffled screech when something hot filled him up to the brim, more tears staining his face. Dartz removed himself from within the boy before untying his hands, only to throw him to the floor. "Put your damn clothes on, you disgusting rat..." The teal haired man spat as he exited the room, though it wouldn't last. Yugi weakly complied and dressed himself in his tattered clothing just before his stepfather came back into the room, only the grab the small male by his hair, yanking him to his feet as he began to drag him.

Dartz threw Yugi onto the cold cement floor as he gave a weak cry before his hands were shackled together, but the boy's eyes suddenly widened when his stepfather grabbed a leather whip, knowing what came next. His worst fears were once again being realized, but this time, tenfold. "You're nothing, you hear me?! Nothing! All you are is a useless little slut and that's all you'll ever be!"

Crack!

"Ahh!" Yugi yelped as the leather whip made contact with his back, tearing his shirt to create a new wound.

Yugi had several cuts and bruises littering his body, and true, he'd had something like this before, but never to this extent. New whip marks were being made on his back, more burn marks, more cuts, everything... His hands were bound by cold, metal shackles and chained to some sort of wall, leaving him completely defenseless to try and protect himself. The boy's eyes were puffy around the edges, red, and bloodshot from all of his constant sobbing and crying, his body wracked with blinding pain from all the abuse he's been forced to endure, and his throat ached with a blistering pain due to all his screams that no one seemed to hear... Yugi hated this, absolutely hated this... He wished for all of this to just be another one of his horrible nightmares to which he would soon wake up from in the comfort Yami's warm, strong embrace he came to love, but sadly, it was not one of those times... The wretching pain throughout his body told Yugi this was the cruelty of reality... This was all real, and all he wanted was for this torment to just end so that he could be in the arms of the prince again, his prince, or simply just die altogether. That certainly would make it easier, now wouldn't it? However, nothing is ever that easy either.

Crack!

Yugi flinched horribly as the whip cracked against his back again. "Y... Yami..." He mumbled.

"You really think that rich cat prince is coming for you, much less even give a damn about you?" Dartz laughed bitterly. "Yeah right! He could care less about you, boy!"

"Y-you're wrong..." Yugi croaked in a small voice. "H-he will c-come... He p-promised..." His voice was very raspy, scratching at his already sore throat.

Dartz gave another bitter laugh. "He's a prince, so what the hell are you to him, his steward? He could care less about a useless little runt like you."

Yugi hung his head. "N-no..." He protested, weakly. "He does c-care... M-more than y-you ever d-did..."

Crack!

"Nugh!" Yugi grunted as he was whipped again. "H-he cared about m-me... T-to him, I m-mattered..." More tears slipped out of his eyes, dripping into open wounds that stung slightly. "I l-love him..." He whispered, mainly to himself.

Crack!

"Nugh!" Yugi grunted again.

"Love? Ha! No one could ever love a worthless piece of shit like you!" Dartz shouted.

Crack!

"Ahh!" Yugi let out a choked yelp, this crack of the whip harder than the last one.

"You're nothing but a useless waste of space, you sorry excuse for a slave!"

Crack!

"Ahhh!" This one was even harder than the last, each one only worsening with every crack he heard.

"No one will ever come to get you and no one will ever love you!"

Crack!

"Nagh!" Yugi gasped, more tears escaping from his eyes.

The torment went on like this for almost another hour, nothing but hurtful words and agonizing pain, and when Dartz finally dropped the whip, Yugi's back was bloody and covered in even more wounds. "You worthless piece of shit..." He spat. "I'll be glad once you're good and dead..." Dartz hissed before stomping out of the chamber, slamming and locking the door behind him.

When Yugi was sure Dartz was gone, he began to sob quietly, the tears dripping from his eyes onto his legs and into his wounds, causing them to burn, but he didn't care. All Yugi wanted was to get out of there, out of that hell he thought he had escaped from... He wanted to be in Yami's warm, loving arms, cooing to him that everything would be okay and that he would always protect him. Suddenly though, Yugi flinched violently when he heard the steel door to the chamber he was locked in open. He held his breath as he trembled like mad, until someone very gently placed a hand upon his shoulder, causing him to slowly lift his gaze only to be shocked as his tear-filled eyes widened.

"T... Tea...?" He croaked in a scratchy voice.

"Shh... Here, drink this; it will help with your throat..." She said, holding a glass of water up. Tea gently pressed it to Yugi's lips and slowly titled it, the boy drinking the liquid that began to ease his sore throat. Once he finished the water, Tea gave him a gentle smile. "Better?"

He nodded slowly. "Thank you... But...why are you doing this?"

She hung her head a bit. "Dartz is a very cruel person... What he is doing to you no one deserves, not even the other servants who can do an even poorer job that you ever did; at least you got the job done right the first time... He is relentless and needs to be stopped at once." She said sternly. "Please allow me to clean and bandage you wounds so they don't get infected."

Yugi nodded as the girl crawled behind him. Tea grabbed the white cloth she had brought in and dipped it in the bowl of warm water she had also carried in before holding it up to Yugi's back. "Take a deep breath, Yugi, because this will hurt..."

He nodded and sucked in a breath before the brunette gently pressed the cloth to one of his wounds. Yugi whimpered upon the contact, Tea whispering in apology as she cleaned away all the blood from every wound covering the boy's small frame, and when she was finally finished, the cloth was stained with red as she set it on the edge of the bowl containing the water that was also tinted a red color. Once Yugi's wounds had been cleaned, as tedious as it was, the brunette haired girl gently wrapped his lacerations, Yugi's whole body covered in white bandaging. When Tea finally completed her task, he gently cleaned Yugi's face, placing small bandages on his cuts and wiping away the dried tears upon his delicate face. Tea then gave Yugi a tender smile as she gently caressed his cheek with her thumb, staring into Yugi's puffy, reddened, bloodshot eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Yugi that you have to endure such torment, but I will ensure you do not suffer any longer... Whenever my father makes new marks on you, I will clean and bandage them, alright?"

Yugi weakly nodded.

"I will do my best to make sure you're okay until the prince arrives, but I fear that will be too late. I will set out to his castle tonight and bring him at once because no one should be forced to endure this kind of punishment. Can you please hold on for just little longer? I will return as soon as I possibly can as try to stall Dartz from hurting you any further if I can so very well help it."

He nodded again as Tea smiled before getting to her feet. "T-Tea...?" Yugi then called.

"Hmm? What is it, Yugi?"

He looked up at the brunette haired girl, giving her a weak smile. "Thank you..."

She returned the smile. "You're welcome, Yugi... I will return as soon as I can, so please hold on until then." Tea then made her leave with the items she came in with, leaving Yugi alone in that room as he leaned against the wall and let his eyes slip closed, falling asleep, even if only for a little while...

Tea ran as fast as she could across the courtyard, trying to get to the stables so she could get to her horse. When she finally reached her destination, the girl leaned against the wood to try and catch her breath, but once she steadied her breathing, Tea opened the door to the stable and removed her horse. However, before she got on the saddle, she looked down at her dress, frowning. She knew it would get in her way, so lifting the skirt, she ripped at it furiously until it was just above her knees. Tossing the torn parts of her dress aside, Tea hopped onto the saddle of her horse, and cracking the reins, the horse cried out before taking off, the brunette heading for the castle at quick speeds.

Yugi... Please hold on... I won't let you die, not like this... You have suffered long enough under that man's control, and that will end now!

She gripped the reins tightly, cracking them again as the horse increased its speed. It took nearly an hour and a half until Tea finally reached the castle, and when she did, she quickly hopped off of her horse and tied the reins to a nearby tree before searching for a way inside. Heading around to the back, Tea noticed some vines growing up the wall to an open window. She decided to take her chances and began to climb of the green foliage to said window. When she quietly slipped inside, she gazed up to see the princess, Hikari, at he vanity set absentmindedly combing through her hair, a sad look on her face in the reflection of the mirror. The brunette took a deep breath before slowly approaching Hikari, gently touching her shoulder to get her attention. The princess turned back to see Tea, but didn't make an outburst when she saw the worried look on her face and her dress being torn at the bottom, a few holes in her stockings, which caused Hikari's eyes to soften a bit upon seeing this sight.

"Might I ask who you are?" Asked the princess.

"My name is Tea, your highness, if you didn't already know that... But I need the prince's help; it's about Yugi."

Hikari immediately pounced to her feet upon hearing that name as she grasped Tea's shoulders. "Yugi!? What of him!? Is he alright!? Please tell me he is still alive!" She began in her frantic state until Tea quickly hushed her.

"My stepfather, Dartz, has locked him in a chamber and has hurt him very severely. Now, I say "stepfather" since we are not related, but I have known him since childhood. But besides that, I did what I was able by cleaning and bandaging Yugi's wounds, though he will not last much longer if this hell continues. I need your help to get him out of there... Please, help me save Yugi..." She pleaded.

Hikari nodded. "Follow me then." She took Tea by the hand and went over to her bedroom door. Cracking it open, she peeked into the darkened hallway. No one. When she was sure the coast was clear, Hikari slipped out into the hallway, pulling the brunette along as they quickly, but quietly made their way to the prince's room. Once there, Hikari quickly glanced around before turning to Tea, holding a finger to her lips. "My brother should be in here..." She whispered.

Knock knock knock...

Yami was standing on the balcony of his bedroom, staring up at the twinkling stars as a gentle breeze blew. Tears brimmed his crimson eyes as the thought of Yugi crossed his mind, but was pulled away from it when the sound of soft knocking reached his ears. He glanced back to follow where the sound came from, leading to his bedroom door.

Knock knock knock...

The knocks sounded again, and he let his curiosity get the better of him to see who was at the door at this late hour. Yami swiped the tears in his eyes with his arm before making his way over to the door. He cracked it open to see his sister, so he opened it a bit more until Tea came into view, causing him to glare. "What is she doing with you, sister...?" He hissed a bit with his question.

"Brother, please, give her a moment... She has come asking for our help; it is about Yugi..."

Yami's eyes widened for a moment at hearing his name before he allowed his sister and Tea into his room, closing the door behind himself as he leaned against said door, taking notice to Tea's torn dress and ripped stockings. "Now, what is this about Yugi?" He asked, calmer this time.

"My father has locked Yugi in a chamber," Tea started. "He is hurt very badly, but I have done what I can to clean and bandage his wounds, however, if this abuse continues, I'm afraid of what will soon happen to Yugi... Please, Yami, I'm not asking you to do this for me, but believe me when I say he has been put through a hell no one should be forced to endure, and what is worse, Dartz gets pleasure out of torturing him..." Her voice began to break. "Please, help me rescue Yugi... It's all I ask... I don't care if you don't want to do it for me, but at least do this for him... I know how much he cares for you, I've heard him myself, and just by looking into your eyes, I can tell you feel the same way."

"And how exactly could you have known that?" Yami then asked, genuinely curious.

"The eyes are the window to the soul, brother." Hikari spoke up. "How do you think I am able to tell how you are feeling just by gazing at you? Your eyes tell your story, and as of this moment, they hold nothing but pain and sorrow, all of it for Yugi..."

Yami turned his gaze away from the two, clenching his fist. "I do not wish to help you, for I have heard many things about you and your family..."

"My sister and father, yes, but I have never once laid a hand on Yugi, you have my word on that. I was always the one who tried to stand up for him, but all my attempts were in vain regardless of what I said. Hate me if you wish, I simply do not care, but know that the longer we stand here arguing over this, the less time Yugi has. My father would love nothing more than to kill him right now, but he has not, so I highly suggest that unless you wish to cradle his lifeless body, you will drop this facade I know you are hiding behind and help me rescue Yugi!" Tea sounded stern, but not forceful, though it got her point across.

Yami began to tremble slightly out of anger. "I don't..."

Slap!

Yami was cut completely off guard as his sister had suddenly slapped him across the face. He lifted is gaze and grasped his burning cheek, a very pissed off look in Hikari's violet red eyes. "Hikari...?"

"Brother, forgive me, but I simply will not stand for this nonsense. Do you love Yugi or do you not?"

"I..."

"Answer the bloody question, Yami! It is a simple yes or no!"

"Yes, I do, but—"

"Then by the almighty Ra, why are you acting this way? If you do truly love Yugi, then you would not have hesitated and you would have simply agreed to help Tea, who is offering her assistance without requiring anything in return. The brother I knew would not have thought twice about saving something most dear to him, or is it that you simply do not care and want for Yugi to perish?"

"No!" Yami suddenly shouted. "By the Gods, no!"

"Then what is the issue?! If you love Yugi that bloody much, you will stop acting so damn blasted proud and help her without question! I want for Yugi to return home as well, but if you do not act now, he may never return back here alive! Damn you, Yami!" Hikari cursed, Yami suddenly burying his face in his hands, holding back the tears that threatened to fall as his sister took a deep breath to calm herself. "I will ask again, do you love Yugi, or do you not?"

"I do, I truly love him, sister..."

"Then what is it you wish to do?"

Yami lifted his gaze, swiping the tears in his eyes. "Bring him home safely." He said firmly.

Hikari then smiled. "There is the brother I know and love so dearly... Now then, please bring Yugi home alive, Yami."

He nodded. "Where is Yugi located again?" The prince asked Tea.

"In a chamber down in the basement of my home. There are two keys, one to unlock the door and the other for the shackles binding him within the chamber, but my father holds both of them, and I am unaware of how to get to them without my loud-mouth sister ratting me out."

"We shall come to that bridge when we cross it. However, for now, we must make haste and leave at once. I will meet your father now instead of wait the remaining two days. While I meet with him, I shall distract him long enough so that you may find the keys."

Tea nodded. "I believe I know where he keeps them... Once I have acquired the keys, I will give them to you."

Yami gave a nod. "Very well, now let us hurry, and Hikari?"

"Yes, brother?"

"I need for you to stay here. If father questions my absence, do not tell him of my location."

"If I must, I will have to lie to father then?"

"That will have to be the case, and if I have not returned within one day or so, then you may come search for me, but do not come alone."

She nodded. "I understand. I wish you the best of luck, Yami, and...please return Yugi home..."

"I will, I promise. Farewell, sister."