This is quite a long chapter, and is the start of a lot of angst.

Thank you again to everyone who reviews.

~*~Angels Fall First~*~

The next few days passed without any changes; Yami had stopped trying to get Yugi to open up, they were still being refused entry to see his grandfather and the stress was getting to Yugi. The said boy wouldn't eat, and if he slept Yami didn't know, he spent the majority of his time curled into a ball on his bed.

Yami sadly watched from the doorway as his hikari softly cried into the pillow, it pained him to see his aibou so distressed. He slowly made his way to the bed, lying down and wrapping his arms around the smaller. Yugi instantly reacted to the warmth and cuddled closer into the embrace.

Suddenly the phone rang, Yami cursing in his mind as he uncoiled himself from Yugi's still form. Casting one last glance to the now sleeping boy he walked to the phone in the hallway.

"Hello? Yami speaking."

"Mr. Mutou? Your Jiichan has been moved from the ICU, and we will be allowing visitors as of tomorrow morning. Visiting hours start at ten, please go to the main desk to ask for his location."

"Thank you, bye."

"Good bye."

Yami mulled over the forced politeness of the woman, who had been sharp and to the point, as he walked back to Yugi's room, however the shorter teen was already in the hallway, eyes shining for the first time in days.

"C-can we see him?" Yami smiled slightly; glad to see Yugi finally happy.

"Hai, tomorrow morning at ten, why don't you go take a nice warm bath and I'll get us something to eat? You know Jiichan will worry if he sees you like this."

Yugi nodded, slightly embarrassed at his appearance. Yami was right, he hadn't washed his hair in days it was limp and thinning out. His face was pale and he had lost a little weight, hopefully he could cover this up so he didn't cause concern for his Jiichan.

"Anything you particularly want for dinner?"

"Anou…ramen?" Yami nodded and walked down the stairs as Yugi made for the bathroom.

Yami made it to the kitchen and grabbed a pack of instant ramen while listening to the sound of bathwater running. Reading the instructions on the packet his eyes fell on a sheet of paper, it was Yugi's timetable. School started in a few days, Yami just prayed to Ra that Yugi would be well enough to go…

Yugi watched the water filling up the tub, steam rising from the water as he poured in some bubble bath. The sweet scent of Camomile filled the air as Yugi happily breathed in deeply. He yawned and rubbed at his tired eyes, the lack of sleep catching up with him.

He stopped the water just in time to hear a pained yell from the kitchen area, but a quick check through the mind link confirmed that Yami was alright, merely annoyed at the microwave.

Yugi laughed slightly, the sound foreign for so long made him happy. He was happy and nothing would change that.

Right?

~*~

Wrong.

At precisely ten in the morning Yami, being dragged from his car by a bouncing Yugi, was pulled right up to the front desk.

"Mr. Mutou? Let me check." Yami knew instantly it was the woman from the phone, she had a bored voice and her actions were slow. She clicked her mouse until she reached the required information then turned her expressionless face to the two. "Room 524."

"Thank you." Yami smirked (he had attempted to smile, but found he couldn't) and he spoke with an icy tone.

Yugi hadn't detected his Yami's rudeness; he was too preoccupied with the lift. Pressing the 'up' button a hundred times Yami feared he was going to break it.

"Anou, Yugi? I think you've pressed it enough…"

Yugi grinned up at his Yami, eyes shining slightly as the lift doors opened, the highly annoying woman's voice announced their destination.

"Third floor, door's opening…"

Yugi instantly reached for Yami's hand, gripping it with as much strength as he had. Yami gently caressed the smooth hand and guided him to the private room right at the end of the hall. The room was fairly small; beside the bed was a single chair. Yami sat down and pulled and teary eyed Yugi into his lap.

They had been told that Jiichan had suffered a stroke, and that his chances of survival were slim to none. As were his chances of waking up. Yugi was softly crying into his darker half's shirt, the constant beep of the heart monitor gently lulled him to sleep…

~*~

The next morning Yugi slept in. Yami didn't bother to wake him knowing that the hikari could use the rest. He was currently sitting in the living room half heartedly duelling Jou, it seemed that his opponent also had things on his mind though, as he played a trap card; which turned out to be the Red Eyes Black Dragon.

They instantly froze as movement was heard from upstairs; tiny footsteps could be heard pattering around the first floor, and the sound of the bathroom door opening and closing ended the noise.

Jou looked up into Yami's garnet orbs.

"So, is he okay? You never told me how it went yesterday down at the hospital." Yami sighed and placed the cards in his hand down on the table.

"I don't know. He cried a little, and I can't really blame him, but he didn't seem overly upset. There's still a chance Jiichan will pull through, I think he's clinging to that hope."

"Yeah, I hope he's feeling better by Monday though, I don't think he's in any state to be going to school."

"I don't know anymore, if he wants to go who am I to stop him?"

Yami picked up the cards and continued with the duel, not noticing he was holding them upside down.

~*~

Yugi sat in the corner of the bathroom, he had finished taking a shower, brushing his teeth, changing his clothes…but he still didn't feel like facing the world today. He knew he was worrying his friends and Yami when he didn't smile; it was so natural for him to be happy that whenever he felt upset of depressed everyone made such a big deal and he felt even worse for upsetting them.

The answer? Smile.

But recently he hadn't felt like smiling, he just wanted to mope around for a while, not have to mask his emotions, but apparently Yugi Mutou was not allowed to be depressed.

He shakily rose to his feet, using the sink to pull his tired body into a standing position. He had slept for hours, yet he still felt exhausted. Both physically and mentally, and school was starting in two days.

He stood in front of the mirror, and was slightly shocked at his reflection.

"Is this really me?"

His skin was deathly pale, and pulled tightly over his thin frame, his shirt literally hanging off him. His large amethyst eyes had lost their special sparkle, yet still held their innocence, but underneath dark lines marred the pale skin. His hair fell limp about his face, and he hastily brushed a golden bang behind his ear.

"I just need some more sleep and I'll be fine, I don't want to worry Yami…"

He made his way back to his bedroom, mentally noting that the conversation in the living room had died down. He cringed slightly; under normal circumstances Jou and Yami would be locked in a fierce duel, trying to outwit the other, while using verbal tactics to distract one another.

But all he heard was a card being overturned and an unenthusiastic; "Activate mirror force…" from his Yami. And he knew it was his fault. It was his fault they weren't having fun.

He made his way to the bedroom he shared with Yami, and threw himself onto the bed. And it didn't creak in protest. Yugi sighed.

"I haven't lost that much weight have I?" He looked over to the full length mirror at his gaunt figure.

"I guess I've changed a little recently."

His gaze lingered on the mirror for a while, before turning to his desk. There lying on top was a copy of his infamous timetable. He didn't regret the amount of subjects he was taking; it would keep him occupied instead of worrying so much…

He felt a sharp stinging sensation in his arm, and looked down to find that he was digging his nails into his arm. He hadn't realised what he had done, and he instantly assessed the damage; the skin had not broken, and the red crescent shapes were already fading, they should disappear within the hour.

He felt a slight sadness over come him, sadness that the marks would be gone. He moved his fingers over the now pink lines when the door opened revealing Jou and Yami. He quickly pulled his sleeve down.

"Hey, Yug, we were just wondering if you wanted to come have something to eat?" Jou sat down next to him on the bed, unaware of the self inflicted marks.

"Um, I'm not really hungry…" Yami sat down the other side of him, brushing a few strands of golden hair back.

"Please try to eat something?"

The pleading in Yami's voice was terrifying; Yugi had never heard the tone from his Yami before. He really was worried. This upset Yugi further, knowing that he was the cause of this.

"Maybe I'll eat a little…"

The other two boys smiled slightly and exited the room, Yami uttering a small thank you. Yugi peeled back his sleeve and took another look at the fading marks with a smile of his own.

~*~To Be Continued~*~

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