Hey happy-chans, sorry I was longer on updating... My apologies...

Anywho, chapter 8 is up and here! Hope you like it, and a word of adivce... Prepare yourself when you start reading... You'll find out why when you find out ::wink::

eight: Memories

"Shhhh..." The blonde-headed Egyptian cooed as he hugged Ryou close, rocking soothingly back and forth as the other light cried into his chest, clinging to him like a lost child.

Ryou cried and cried into his friend's shirt, holding onto him tightly with his eyes clamped shut.

"Ryou... Ry-chan you have to stop crying... Tell me what's wrong," Malik said softly, lightly caressing said others back to calm him.

The cotton-haired light nodded softly, muttering an apology as he pulled back from the comforting embrace.

"You don't need to apologise for anything Ry-kun, now," Malik started, wiping away tears from Ryou's cheeks, "Tell me what all this is about."

The hikari nodded, harshly rubbing his eyes before he spoke. "Ba... Bakura... He, he said so many things..." he said softly, replaying his Yami's words through his mind.

Malik's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he let out a sigh, "What did he say? Start from the beginning Ryou, else I can't help you..."

The other nodded his head, stray pieces of platinum hair falling forward. "I, I asked Bakura why he didn't tell me about... Marik, sooner. He told me he was protecting me from him because Marik said if he told anyone, he'd hurt them..." Ryou explained, wiping his tearing eyes. "I, I didn't believe him at first and something triggered inside him when I called him heartless..." he trailed off slightly, glancing at Malik who was listening with his up most attention. Sighing deeply, Ryou continued. "Bakura... He sort of snapped... Telling me to stop calling him heartless and cold. Asking how I would know... Then..."

"Then what Ryou? Tell me exactly what Bakura said," Malik said kindly, lightly running his hand down Ryou's arm in a comforting way.

"He said... 'How would you know that I was acting like I hated you so Marik wouldn't bother hurting you because he thought I didn't care less about you? How would you know that I feel more and more like... Shit... After every day from what I've done to you? And... Hikari, how would you know that I wish every, damn day I could take it all back?" Ryou repeated to Malik, word for word as he saw the images of his other Yami blurting out the words to him, and it simply caused more tears to gather in his puffing eyes.

Malik bit his lip slightly as he listened, and seeing more tears in his friend's eyes, the blonde pulled him back into a hug, lightly kissing his cheek.

The hikari grasped onto Malik, letting the tears fall from his eyes, stifled moans of sadness escaping him

"Then... Then he said... I was too wrapped up in how... I was feeling to so I didn't know that he loved me," Ryou cried out, burying his head in deeper in the crook of Malik's neck.

The Egyptian rocked lightly back and forth, "Shhh... Ryou let it out..." he cooed, feeling tears streak down his neck.

"Why? Why Malik... Why didn't he tell me about Marik... He didn't trust me!" the light whimpered softly.

"Shh... Ryou he does trust you. He just didn't want you to get hurt that's all. He was protecting you from my Yami."

Ryou sighed huskily, sniffling softly, clinging to Malik tighter.

"Ryou... Is there anything else that happened?" Malik asked, feeling the hikari tense in his arms.

The light nodded slightly, barely moving at all.

"Ryou, tell me what it is," the blonde said softly, lightly lifting said others chin so their eyes met.

Chocolate depths blinked slowly before opening to stare back up at Malik, "We... Kissed," he said ever so softly.

"What?" the Egyptian questioned as if in disbelief.

Ryou pulled away from the hug, acting as if he was ashamed, "Kissed..." he repeated.

"I, thought you were arguing, how did you end up... Kissing?"

"I don't know... It all stopped so suddenly, something... Clicked... And I kept saying I was sorry to Bakura, he hugged me... Then it happened," the hikari said quietly, "... I ran away from it..." he added with a heavy sigh.

"You ran? Ryou, why, I thought you liked Bakura," Malik questioned, confused to why Ryou had done what he did.

"I was scared... I though Bakura could show nothing but hate... Yet, when he kissed me, I felt... So much more," Ryou whispered as off in a world of his own.

The Egyptian sighed, running his hand back through his hair as he thought about what he had just found out. They kissed? The blonde thought silently to himself, why did Ryou run away? Bakura... Must be so... Hurt right now...

"Ryou?" Malik asked softly.

"Hmm?" said light replied, rubbing his eyes with his wrist.

"Why did you think Bakura could show nothing but hate?"

"I... It was the only thing he mostly showed when I was around... And when Marik was around, he was... Cruel," Ryou replied, head low.

"Ryou... Your Yami is anything but cruel. What he went through when my Yami was around, is just... Something any of us wouldn't be able to cope with, but he took it head on," Malik said with a soft sigh.

"What... Exactly did Marik do to Bakura, Malik?" the cotton-haired teen asked, looking directly at the Egyptian.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

Ryou nodded, Malik sighed.

"Don't tell Bakura I'm the one who told you... You're bound to find out sooner or later..." Malik took in a deep breath before he began, "Because I was trapped, pretty much in my own mind when Marik took over. I knew exactly what he was doing, so I knew all that he was doing to Bakura. I just happened to see the worst thing my Yami did, I used what little power I had over Anzu to just... Take a look at what was going on when I found out Bakura was with him. When I saw it, I could've just broke down there and then..." the blonde trailed off, the corner of his eyes shimmering, clear that tears had began to gather, yet Malik refused to let them fall. "It was the first time I'd seen your Yami cry Ryou, and the first time I heard him scream out for help..."

Ryou's eyes instantly widened with horror as he waited, dreading to hear what Malik was about to say.

"Marik... Raped him..." Malik muttered, his voice barely heard.

"No..." Ryou gasped, hand slapping against his mouth as more tears gathered in his eyes, "No... No Malik you're lying... Bakura wouldn't let that happen to him, he's too strong..."

"I'm not lying Ryou, you know I'm not. You've seen it yourself, the scars on his back, those were from Marik pinning him down so roughly. What my Yami did was true Ryou, though I wish every damn day it wasn't," Malik stated, his eyes narrowing slightly, a single tear falling from his lavender eyes.

His eyes still gazed out of the window, cheeks stained with dry tear tracks that once twisted down his pale skin. He leaned forward slightly with his forehead resting against the freezing glass. I wonder where he's gone... Bakura thought silently to himself as he lazily traced circles with his finger on the window. He might have gone to Malik... But they haven't spoke in a while, maybe Pharaoh's little hikari... They seem to get along... he let his thoughts wander as he contemplated where his other half might be, eventually settling on Malik as Ryou knew he didn't approve of Yami and Yugi. Why did you run hikari? I thought you loved me back... Obviously not...

FLASHBAK

"NO! No stop it!" he shouted out as hands were tugged violently behind his back, "Fuck off! Stop it! Please!"

His cruel, nasty, outrageously bitter laughter sounded as he pinned down Bakura's hands on his back, dragging his head up by the back of his hair.

"You better behave..." he hissed sinisterly.

Kicking and yelling, the white-haired Yami tried desperately to get the psychotic Egyptian off of him, but to no avail, his mind only filled with pure panic as he felt cold hands run down the back of his legs.

FLASHBACK FINISH

Growling lightly to himself Bakura lifted his head back from the glass; cursing himself for letting his thoughts remember such things, such weakness.

"This is all your fault..." he muttered to himself, sliding his hand down the window pane before stepping back, only to bump into something at his ankles.

Eyes averted down to the floor, to see the tabby cat looking up at the spirit with big green eyes.

"Tch... What do you want?"

The feline simply meowed softly, rubbing and curling round the Albino's ankles before he bent down and picked the cat up on his shoulder.

Bakura rolled his eyes when the feline in his hold began to purr loudly rubbing on the side of his neck with it's face, much to the fiends annoyance. His hand slowly moved down the cat's body, lightly stroking his fur when suddenly the tabby clawed onto Bakura's shoulder, causing him to hiss.

FLASHBACK

Brilliant white fangs dug deep into the junction of Bakura's neck and shoulder, causing him to whimper silently in pain as well as putting his struggling to an end.

A smirk graced his lips when the platinum-haired Yami beneath him ceased to struggle and he removed his mouth from his skin, licking his lips of the blood that was drawn, and that was now trickling down Bakura's shoulder.

Immense pain suddenly shot through Bakura's lower body, hands gripping the sheets at the side of his head until the pain grew even more, just as fast as it came, and the Yami screamed out in pain, as well as for help.

FLASHBACK FINISH

Biting his lip, Bakura slumped his shoulder and the tabby instantly jumped down from him and ran out of the room. His hand slid up to his shoulder, lightly pressing his hand to his skin as his chocolate depths saddened. Why am I remembering all this? I haven't even thought about it in this past year...Why now? Bakura asked himself as he let his arm fall to his side.

The two hugged one another, sitting in nothing but a dead silence that engulfed them both.

I can't believe it... Bakura's so strong, brave... I didn't think he'd ever let something like that happen to him. Yet it did. I was so nasty to him, being so cruel by saying the things I did, and all this time... That had happened, and I had no clue...He could've been thinking about it all the time, constantly in pain... Ryou thought to himself, swallowing hard as he clung to Malik tighter, his body trembling.

The Egyptian felt the teen in his arms cling to him and he began to get worried. I shouldn't have told him, if Bakura finds out he'll hate me... He probably kept it from Ryou for a reason...

Sighing softly to himself, Malik pulled back slightly, "Ryou... I have to go to the bathroom, sorry... I'll be right back," he said, receiving a weak nod in response before getting up and heading down the hallway, eventually coming to the phone he picked it up and dialled.

A faint ring could be heard coming from downstairs, causing Bakura to look up from his hands.

"Tch... Stupid phone..." the spirit mumbled as he got up and quickly went downstairs to answer.

"What?"

"Hello to you too Kura," Malik's voice said from the other end.

"Malik?"

"Yeah."

"Why are you whispering?" the Yami asked.

"I just am. Anyway, Ryou's here I think you should take him home... He's pretty shaken up," Malik said softly, his voice saddening.

"What? Why, what's happened?" Bakura asked.

"Look, we can talk when you get here just come and get him all right... He really needs you," the blonde replied.

"All right, I'm on my way..."

"Ok... Bye..."

The soft click echoed down the receiver as Malik hung up first before Bakura grabbed his jacket and heading out.

The blonde sighed heavily, leaning back against the hallway wall as he ran a hand through his hair. I can't cope with this all over again... he thought to himself as he got up and started back down the corridor.

Malik walked into the living room to see Ryou curled up on the couch, head buried in his knees, still crying. It isn't right to cry for this long... What's going through his head? He thought as he went over to Ryou, pulling him into an embrace not long before a knock at the door was heard.

Hmm... Yeah... Hoped you liked it happy-chans...

And I must ask you all a favour! Please, if you leave a review, pretty, pretty please put a number 1 or 2 at the end of your review. I seriously can't pick which plot to go with, and the next chapter can go either way... So please, just pick randomly if you do...

This fic will either stay a romance/angst or it will turn to a romance/tradgedy...

R&R

S4K