---Windy-chan, you little Grammar Nazi, must you always remind me how bad my stuff is BEFORE you beta it. -.- I already know my stories suck.

Toothy One, nice seeing you again, thanks for all the wonderful comments... I'll keep them in mind for the future gives you cookie

Lil-Riter, All chapter titles for this fic are LP song titles. I couldn't fit as many of them into the summary as I would have liked cause there was a limit. But I put all the major parts into it. I think.

Oh my god! Look this chapter is slightly longer then the others. Five pages, can it be so?

Notes: a sphinx cat is hairless

Disclaimer: why yes I do own Mr. Fuzzy and compressed rabbit food... but that's about it (this will all make sense in the end(

Warnings: clichéd Ryou abuse (got to love it)---

Chapter Four

Run Away

Malik huddled in a corner of his Soul Room. He wasn't very fond of his Soul Room; it reminded him too much of his childhood years. The years of living underground away from the modern world; away from basic needs, like the sun.

His Soul Room consisted of four stone walls. The floor was hard and covered by a thin layer of sand; it was too dark to tell if there was actually a ceiling. Malik guessed there wasn't because he could feel a cold wind on him sometimes.

The room held no light, save for the small candle that eternally burned in the middle of the room. There was only one other thing in the room besides himself and the candle; a stuffed sphinx cat plushie, Mr. Fuzzy. Malik had always had Mr. Fuzzy ever since he was a kid.

Malik crawled over to the plushie and pulled it into his arms. He looked around the room. He was scared. The only time he was ever trapped here was when Marik was in control, and he had no way of knowing what was happening outside.

Hugging the plushie close to him, he backed into the corner. He felt so small in this room, like a child, and also alone. He held onto the plushie for security, as if he would be stricken down if he let go.

He closed his eyes and rocked slowly back and forth. He prayed that he would be let out soon, and that Marik wasn't causing too much trouble in the real world.

The dark spirit stood over the threshold to his light's room. Ryou was still sleeping. Bakura leaned against the door frame watching. A small beam of moonlight shone though a crack in the wooden panels that had been put up on the windows to keep out the light. It fell over Ryou, alighting his angelic features.

A cloud moved over the moon and the light faded and disappeared. Bakura felt a twinge of pain in his heart. The spirit had shed so much darkness on the light's life. He'd tainted his purity; stolen his innocence. Ryou was no longer the angelic person everyone sought him to be. Bakura knew that with just one look of his other's Soul Room.

The light stirred and his eyes opened slowly, meeting the raider's. The two stared into each other's eyes in silence, neither of them wanting to speak to the other. The cloud moved, shining slivery light over Ryou once again.

Bakura growled under his breath and disappeared into the darkness. Ryou cocked his head at the spot where the spirit once stood and rolled over, facing the other direction. He closed his eyes. From his Soul Room, he peeked out to look at the door in front of him; the door to Bakura's soul room. Ryou sighed, closing his door. Blackness fell over him as he went back to sleep.

The next morning, Ryou woke up to a terrible pain. He sat up, clutching his stomach; he hadn't eaten anything in the past few days. He was used to starving himself and not eating much, but the pain still got to him sometimes.

Ryou lay back, curling up in ball. He felt like he was going to throw-up and his whole body hurt even to just move. He clenched his eyes shut, trying to ignore the pain until it passed.

Soon, the pain faded enough until it was bearable and Ryou sat up again. He decided to get something to settle his stomach and climbed out of bed. He stumbled over to his dresser, grabbed a pair of blue boxers and slipped them on.

He continued slowly on his way to the kitchen. His chest was still tender from the day before and the pain in his stomach wouldn't go away.

"I feel like shit," Ryou said quietly to himself as he scanned the kitchen for some food, "I probably look no better."

He went over to a glass jar that sat on the counter and took the lid off. He reached in and grabbed a crunchy oat bar from the jar - compressed rabbit food he'd like to call it - and headed to the family room.

He sat down on the couch, nibbling on the 'compressed rabbit food'. Just the thought of eating made him feel more nauseous, but he forced it down. He soon finished it off, not sure if it made his stomach feel better or worse.

The clock in the kitchen chimed; it was seven in the morning. Ryou sighed. Because of the break he had no school, which meant he had the whole day to do something. But he had nothing to do.

He decided to go over the Malik's to apologize for leaving so early the day before. Maybe they could hang out together for the day. Ryou smiled at the thought. He was sure Bakura wouldn't mind... as long as he got home before it was too late.

Ryou got up and headed back to his room. He didn't know whether it was the food or the thought of being with Malik that made him feel better. Once in his room, he grabbed a pair of clothes that were lying around and put them on, flinching as the fabric of his shirt touched his cuts. He shrugged it off though and went to put on his shoes and coat. Soon he was ready to go.

Ryou nearly jumped out of his skin, however, when he opened the front door to find Bakura standing there with a piercing glare.

"And where do you think you're going, my little light?" The spirit asked the shaking boy in front of him.

"I-I was just going out." Ryou said. It wasn't actually a lie.

"Without my permission?" Bakura smirked at the fear in Ryou's eyes. He knew the light knew exactly where he was 'going out' to.

"No... I thought-"

"Oh, you're thinking now, are you?" Bakura said, walking closer to his other, forcing him back inside the house. "Did you ever think that you'd be breaking one of my rules? Or are not capable of something that advanced?"

Ryou stared at the spirit, tears coming to his eyes with the verbal assault.

"You want to know what I think?" Bakura asked. Ryou shook his head carefully. "I think you were headed out to Malik... which is against my rules. And you know what happens when you disobey the rules."

"That's not a rule!" Ryou protested.

"It is now." the raider smiled.

"You can't do that!"

Bakura backhanded Ryou. A few tears fell from the lights eyes as he clutched his cheek.

"You are not in the position to be telling me what I can and cannot do, boy." Bakura growled raising his hand again, "Now you listen to me, yadonushi, you will not visit, contact, or see Malik in any way, shape or form whatsoever. Do I make myself clear?"

Ryou didn't answer; he whimpered and looked away from the spirit. Bakura grabbed Ryou, shaking him violently and forcing him to look into his eyes.

"Do I make myself clear?" Bakura asked forcefully. Ryou nodded meekly and the dark let go of him.

"Why are you so bent on making my life a living hell?" Ryou asked angrily.

"Hell?" Bakura repeated thoughtfully. "You know nothing of hell."

"Then why are you taking everything I care about away from me!?" Ryou cried.

"I'm just merely trying to protect you." Bakura shrugged. "I just get a little taken away at times."

"A little taken away!?" Ryou shrieked, "You got a little taken away when you put all my friends in a coma!? When you killed my father!? When you-"

Bakura slapped Ryou again, this time with enough force to send him to the floor. Then he kicked Ryou in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Ryou curled up into a ball, coughing.

"Listen, you pathetic little thing," Bakura growled, "I don't know why I waste my time with you. But god forbids you disobey me one more time and you will wish you were in hell."

Ryou looked up at Bakura with tearful eyes. His cheek was bright red, and he was trembling, still trying to catch his breath. He made a noise like the mix between a mumble a whimper and groan and then instantly scampered to his room. Bakura heard the door slam shut. Bakura walked over to Ryou room and placed a hand on the closed door.

"Ryou, I'm sorry," Bakura whispered just loud enough so he could hear it. "But you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Inside the light's room, Ryou lay on his bed crying. He hugged his pillow close to him as the tears leak from his eyes. Bakura had taken so much away from him already, and now he was going to take away the only person that cared about him.

Ryou couldn't stand it anymore.

He looked around his room for a way out, any way out. There was a pair of scissors lying underneath his desk. He moved to the edge of his bed and reached over for them when he saw something. Light shining on the blade of the scissors. He looked over to where the light was coming from, the crack in the paneling on the windows.

Ryou grabbed the scissors and went over to the window. Peeking out, he could faintly see the roof and tree. He could climb out the window; he could go to Malik's. Ryou wiped away his tears, smiling eagerly. He could go to Malik's.

He carefully and quietly used the scissors to take out the nails holding the wooden boards up. As soon as he had taken enough down to get out the window he put the scissors in his back pocket and slipped out the window into the snow on the roof. Praying he hadn't made too much noise, he made his way over the tree. He grabbed one of the branches and climbed down until he was sure he was a safe distance away from the ground so he wouldn't hurt himself.

He jumped down into the soft snow on the ground. He stood up and brushed off some of the cold powder. Then he quickly and quietly left the yard, practically sprinting to Malik's.

---maniacal laughter is heard while lighting flashes in the background as I go off to write more My December---