Happy Halloween everyone. I'm 16 and I still trick-or-treated. But hey, the candy is free so how could anyone pass that up?

Chapter 2- The End of the Rope

Ryou froze when he reached the end of the bed. "Y-Yours?"

Marik rolled his eyes and sat on the bed. "Come here."

"No..."

Marik raised a brow. "Excuse me?" he asked.

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because I can. Now you'd better come over here before I get even angrier."

Ryou winced and slowly crawled beside of Marik. He shut his eyes waiting for the worst, but no blow came. Instead he was pushed backwards harshly and straddled. Ryou's eyes shot open and he came face to face with Marik's haunting grin.

"Hm..." Marik mused, "What should I do with you?" He traced a slender finger down Ryou's pale cheek and paused. "Your skin is strangely soft. You must not spend much time in the sun. Then again, Yami must keep you locked up tight somewhere where he can watch you at all times. Tell me, what were you to the Pharaoh? His slave? Boy toy perhaps?"

"His friend," Ryou muttered out.

"Oooh, his friend. Friends are useless. They betray you one way or another. Trust doesn't even exist in this foul world. There's only pain and suffering... just like what's in store for you." He looked at Ryou's trembling figure. "You know, I did have horrible things that I was going to do to you, but I'd hate to be the one to mar your pretty body, because believe me, someone will. Instead... let's play nicely, shall we?"

Marik grasped onto Ryou's shirt and pulled it off letting it drift quietly to the floor. Next he slid the short white sarong off.

Ryou wanted to panic. Here he was being de-clothed by a well-known evil guy and all he could do was freeze up. And then Marik kissed him, sealing their lips together for a brief moment, but Ryou couldn't do anything for fear of Marik killing him.

Marik pulled back grinning sadistically and seemed to contemplate something. "Your lips are even softer than I would've thought." He ran a hand through the ivory hair that fanned out on the bed. "You've heard the stories haven't you?"

Ryou was confused, "Stories?"

"Oh come off it. Me supposedly raping innocent children." Ryou swallowed hard. "You look at me with fear even though I've done nothing to you."

"You hit me!" Ryou childishly accused.

"Oh, I'm going to do more than just hit you." He began to remove his own mauve sarong. "Now you're allowed to look at me with fear." His evil grin returned. "After all... I am the bad guy..."

Ryou squeezed his eyes shut and trembled. He felt his hands pinned up above his head and wanted to scream. That would be a joke. He probably couldn't be heard for miles.

"Look at me Ryou," a demanding voice said.

Ryou opened his eyes and looked up at Marik. It was strange... he had beautiful eyes. They were an enchanting lavender that seemed to have unimaginable depths and contrasted so well to Marik's deeply tanned skin. Then there was that sand-colored hair that seemed to have a mind of its own shooting up in many spikes.

Strange that he would be thinking all these things at a time like this but he couldn't help it.

Marik held Ryou's chin in his hand, tracing his thumb over his bottom lip. "By Ra, you are beautiful..." he whispered.

He lowered himself onto the smaller teen, ready to take him, and-

"Please don't!" Ryou pleaded.

Marik raised a brow and looked at him for a moment, noticing the fear and innocence in his eyes. For a millisecond...he actually felt...guilt.

He got out of bed redressing himself and turned back to glare at the Ryou, "Get dressed, and when you are finished join me outside. Do NOT make me wait long, understand?"

Ryou nodded quickly and said, "Yes."

Marik stormed out of the room and leaned up against a nearby wall cursing in disgust. "Why couldn't I do it?" he whispered harshly. "Why?!"

"Is something wrong, Master Marik?" one of his robed followers asked.

Marik glared at him and said flatly, "No. Go prepare the horses. We're heading out to the hideout as soon as the boy's ready."

The hooded person bowed, "Yes Master," and disappeared.

Inside, Ryou had redressed and sat quietly on the bed hugging his knees to his chest. He had almost died... almost been raped... Why had this horrible person not gone through with it?

A loud knock on the door shook him from his thoughts and he quickly rushed outside to where Marik stood waiting.

"You take forever to do everything," Marik said and shook his head. He grabbed ahold of Ryou's arm and dragged him to where the rest of his lavender-clad followers waited on their horses ready to go.

"Will he be getting his own horse?" one of them asked.

Marik shook his head, "No, he's riding with me. I don't trust him." He mounted a horse and sat Ryou in front of him. "Let's go."

--

Ryou wasn't sure how long they'd ridden, except that it had been for a while. He had been blindfolded and smacked at least ten times for "not staying still". He could tell it was getting later in the evening because through his blindfold it had gotten increasingly darker.

'I really wanna go home...' he thought. 'Maybe this is just a bad dream...maybe I'll wake up soon and be in the Palace with Yami.'

A tear slid down his cheek soaking into the blindfold. Ryou knew it wasn't a dream. He knew this was for real. There was no way to reverse what had taken place earlier and happening now.

Sighing in defeat Ryou slumped back and nodded off to sleep. He was so tired...tired of so many things.

Marik noticed the shift in weight and lifted his hand to slap Ryou but stopped. "He's asleep?" he mused. He held onto him with one arm making sure he didn't fall off the horse and held the reigns with the other.

"Master Marik," a robed man said, "We have arrived..."

Marik nodded and smirked, "very well."

The horses all came to a stop and everyone dismounted, including Ryou who was roughly awakened. Marik removed the blindfold from Ryou's face and walked him over to a massive stone that sat strangely in the middle of the Egyptian desert.

As Ryou looked closer he noticed the small eye on the stone that matched the one on Marik's forehead. He looked up at Marik who extended his hand and waved it over the small eye. It glowed brightly for a moment then the stone disappeared revealing old stone steps that descended downwards.

"Go on Ryou," Marik said, pushing him forward. "You're not afraid are you?"

Ryou shook his head quickly and proceeded to walk down. Immediately he was met with a musty smell. He kept on walking and turned around just in time to see the last man in knock three times on the top step causing the large mysterious stone to reappear and block the entrance.

"Keep going," Marik said harshly.

Ryou turned around and noticed light at the bottom of the steps. He quickened his pace but near the end Marik grasped tightly onto his wrist and jerked him back to his side.

A tattered old sheet was the 'door' into the lighted place and Marik walked right through dragging Ryou with him.

At first the light blinded him after being in the dark corridor but soon his eyes adjusted and he clearly saw he surroundings. "Wow..." he breathed out. It was a large development hidden under the sand. People went about their daily lives selling items or raising their families. There were many small buildings serving as houses for people and a small river ran through the center of the 'city'. At the top serving as a ceiling was more sand that had to have been held up by powerful magic. Small openings in the sand provided light to the area.

"If you're done blocking the rest of them out there, I suggest you keep moving," Marik said, obviously angered.

Ryou was quick to move, "Where exactly am I going?" he asked.

Marik rolled his eyes, "must I lead you everywhere?" He grasped tightly onto Ryou's arm (once again) and led him all the way to the opposite side of the area to a structure more detailed and developed than the other buildings.

Ryou looked behind him and noticed that the robed men had all gone their separate ways and left him alone with Marik. 'Just great...' he thought and swallowed hard.

Marik pushed him inside sending him tumbling to the ground and couldn't help but laugh. "This, if you haven't guessed by now, is where I live. Now I have to go meet up with someone, so you'd better stay here. If you don't..." he glared, "I'll know. I'll have Rabaku watch you and make sure you don't go anywhere... Farewell, until tonight," he flashed a conniving grin and disappeared out the opening.

Ryou groaned and ran a hand over his face. He was going to be dead before dawn. Who knew what Marik was planning for tonight? Probably something awful. 'He most likely wants to finish what he didn't get to earlier,' he thought.

"Hm... So you're Ryou..." a voice said, startling him.

Ryou looked up at the cloaked figure before him. "Are you Rabaku?"

He nodded, "I am. Master Marik seems to have taken an interest in you if he didn't kill you already...Although...it's not that hard to see why..." He kneeled in front of Ryou and raked his eyes over his figure. "How peculiar..."

Ryou blinked, "What?"

Rabaku shook his head, "Never mind." He stood up and looked out one of the rock windows, "Just keep quiet..."

--

Night came soon and darkness crept over the large city. Ryou stayed awake the whole time stressing over his fate. He feared the moment Marik would return. Rabaku kept an eye on him the whole time, making sure he didn't leave so that was definitely out of the question.

Finally Marik returned, dismissing Rabaku, and heading to his chambers... but not before grabbing Ryou and bringing him along as well. The place was humongous. Large halls branched off into different directions and many rooms were accessible. It almost had the appearance of a smaller and slightly duller palace. No words were spoken from either of them. Ryou was too afraid and Marik just looked like he didn't want to talk.

Before Ryou knew it he was being pushed up against the wall and Marik's lips were crushed against his own. He struggled but Marik was just too strong.

Marik pulled back and glared at the pale boy, "What is your problem?"

Ryou cast his eyes downward, "Nothing..."

Marik stepped back and tapped his finger on his chin while pondering. "I try to play nicely, you don't want that. I try to kiss you, you don't want that either. Do you actually enjoy pain?"

Ryou shook his head quickly and said, "No, of course not."

Marik shrugged, "Well, it seems I'm at the end of my rope with you." He smiled evilly, "Let's play rough."

Before Ryou had a chance to analyze Marik's last sentence, he was pushed onto the bed and pinned down. The sleeping chambers were large as well. Dark colored tapestries were strung throughout and the bed was covered with soft, linen sheets.

Marik laughed, "Well, well, well... this scene seems familiar... But this time..." he pulled a knife from his belt, "if you scream I'll cut your fingers off."

Ryou's eyes widened in fear. He felt Marik gently kiss his cheek but almost immediately felt a sharp pain in his neck as Marik bit it hard. He wanted to scream but the silvery glint of the dagger's blade stopped him. Instead, tears leaked silently down his cheeks and onto the cold stone floor.

Marik looked at him and laughed, "I love knowing I have power over you. You're powerless against me." He wondered aloud, "I'm still trying to find out why the Pharaoh valued you so much. Was it because of your pretty face? Or maybe because of your services..." he smirked, "Then again, you said you were only friends with Yami." He ran a finger over one of the tear streaks, "I'll tell you what. Instead of killing you tonight, I'll wait until tomorrow. You'll have one day to think things through. By then, if you're willing to give yourself to me, I won't kill you... Deal?"

Ryou said the only thing he could. "...Yes."

"Good boy," Marik said and sat up. "Now... I know I can't leave you out of my sight anywhere so I'll have to do this for now." He wrapped some rope around Ryou's wrist and attached the other end to the bed making sure it was knotted tightly. "Goodnight dear Ryou," he mocked and lay down.

Ryou quickly got off the bed and sat as far away from Marik as he could before he ran out of rope.

"No blanket for you then," came Marik's harsh but tired voice from the bed.

Ryou didn't care.

Ok, that was a lie. It got very cold at night and Ryou was so tiny that he froze up easily. He hugged himself for warmth but it didn't help.

Suddenly a blanket was thrown to him. He looked up quickly and noticed that Rabaku had tossed it to him. Rabaku put a finger to his lips silently telling Ryou to be quiet and then left.

Ryou blinked but quickly wrapped the blanket around him. Rabaku was strange, but Ryou was thankful for his kindness. He quickly fell asleep on the cold stone floor and waited for the morning.

--

"Wake up, Ryou..."

Ryou slowly opened his eyes and his sleepy gaze was met with darkness. He sat up quickly and noticed it was Rabaku. "Oh..."

The cloaked person untied the rope from Ryou's wrist and inspected it. "Your skin is so soft that it left a nasty bruise. Come on, Master Marik has requested that you eat with him this morning."

Ryou exhaled and stood, rubbing at his wrist. It hurt to even bend it. "Do I have to?"

"If you want to live, that is. If not, go ahead and stay."

"I guess I have to go then."

Ryou followed Rabaku out of the building and into the brightly lit open area of the development. A few people turned their heads and stared at Ryou with slight curiosity.

"Don't worry about them, they just haven't seen you before, let alone the fact that you look so attention-grabbing. They're all nice people once you get to know them. Just stay away from Master Marik's other robed followers. They're very dangerous people and not to be trifled with."

Ryou nodded and followed him over a small bridge that ran over the river and into another building. Fancy décor colored the walls and people moved freely in and about it. Rabaku stopped by one of the rooms and motioned for him to enter.

"Red means no," he whispered before shoving Ryou in.

Ryou turned around quickly but Rabaku had disappeared.

"So good of you to finally join us," Marik said.

Ryou faced him quickly meeting that well-known smirk. He said nothing.

"Come take a seat. Don't just stand there Ryou," he said.

Ryou swallowed hard and quietly sat beside Marik. In the center of the room were plates and bowls filled with many foods.

A young girl dressed in bright silks stood by the doorway. "Are you sure you should keep him, Marik? Can he even speak?"

Marik raised a brow, "Trust me, he talks. He's smarter than he lets on."

"Where did you find him?"

"I stole him from the Pharaoh's palace."

The girl gasped, "Are you serious? That's amazing. Should I...?"

Marik nodded, "Go ahead."

She smiled behind her veil and picked up a small bowl filled with berries, then walked over to Ryou and kneeled beside him and instantly Ryou could smell their sweet aroma.

"Would you like some, Ryou? They're really delicious," she said, holding the bowl close to his face.

Ryou looked at the berries noticing their bright crimson color. He had seen these berries before. Red means no... he remembered. "No, thank you..." he said.

The girl cocked a brow, "Really? Are you sure? You must be hungry..."

Marik watched the whole exchange with interest.

Ryou shook his head, "Those are the poisonous Kai-Tzu berries of the Northern region. Most are used for tipping the end of spears or other weapons. If I eat it, I'll be dead before the sun sets."

The girl blinked and sat the bowl up on a ledge. "Well, it seems he is smarter than he looks. Very smart indeed. Guess you get to keep him. He passed."

Marik smirked, "Everything will depend on what happens tonight."

"Oh, I see." She grinned.

Ryou felt sick again. He didn't want to be reminded of that. Heck, even if he didn't eat the berries he'd be dead. Dead by Marik's dagger.

"Well, eat whatever you wish. Nothing else is poisonous, I assure you," she said.

Ryou looked at the food laid out before him. He couldn't lie... he was hungry. Finally he gave in and ate a few seeds and dried squash.

When Ryou was finished, he turned to see Marik's glare.

"I think I figured it out..." Marik said, "Was it for your intelligence?"

Ryou didn't know what to say. He was afraid to tell him about his powers for fear of Marik's reaction. Would he treat him the way people used to treat him? Push him away and mock him. Well... it wouldn't be any different from life with him now.

A lady rushed in with tears streaming down her face. "Master Marik, you must help me. It's my husband, he's burning up. He's dying! Please help me!" She got on the ground and bowed.

Marik glowered, "I can't just heal him in a second. If I could I'd-" He stopped himself there. For a moment, Ryou saw pain in his eyes, but in an instant it was gone. "I can't help you."

The lady looked up at him knowing her husband would die. She knew Marik was her last hope and he was no help. Slowly, she got to her feet and walked to the door ready to leave and-

"Wait!" Ryou said standing up.

The woman turned around to face him, slightly startled. "Yes, dear boy?"

"Take me to him," Ryou took a deep breath, "I can heal him..."

---TBC---

Yey, another chapter finished. In the next chapter, it's 'Bathtime with Marik'... It may or may not be as fun as it sounds... for Ryou that is. Please review and thanks for reading!

AmethystRoze