Okay, sorry that this one took so long; actually, the first four pages of this has been written for almost half a year, but I forgot about it. Luckily I emailed it to myself and found it. Okay, so here's the next chapter. That's one down and a few more to go.

--

For the next week or so, Yami had noticed an unusual change in Yugi's behavior; for instance, the boy only spoke when he was spoken to; and when he did, he only spoke a few words

For the next week or so, Yami had noticed an unusual change in Yugi's behavior; for instance, the boy only spoke when he was spoken to; and when he did, he only spoke a few words. Also, he always appeared as if he was tired. Yami knew that Yugi was getting enough sleep, he just could not figure out why the small boy always looked so sleepy. But the most unusual of all was the fact that Yugi constantly had his mind closed off towards the ghostly Pharaoh. Every so often when Yami gathered enough energy to create a physical form, he would try and ask Yugi why he would not open his mind to him, but the answer was always the same:

'… I have my reasons …'

This was really starting to get on Yami's nerves. He needed to speak to Yugi, and he needed to speak to him now. Currently, the younger was upstairs, asleep; he had been sleeping a lot as of late. "Yugi, wake up." There was no answer, which really seemed to piss the ancient spirit off even more. "Yugi, come on, you've been sleeping far too much lately." There was still no answer. Yami groaned and gathered up energy so that he could physically shake his small host. He did so, but still, the boy did not awaken. 'This is beginning to get very strange; Yugi has never been this heavy of a sleeper; usually, a small noise is enough to wake him.' The dark spirit thought to himself. Taking the Puzzle and putting it around his own neck, he went to call the others to see if they could help him figure out what was going on with his small charge. He just hoped that it was not something medical, something he had no control over and could do nothing to help with. Little did the unsuspecting Pharaoh know that the problem did lay inside, but not at all what he thought.

Inside his own mind, Yugi's soul scrunched up in a corner, hugging himself. He sobbed lightly, having no idea why. Slowly, his memories were leaving him. He could no longer remember why he was here, or even where here was. He could not remember who his parents were or if he even had any parents. Even small memories had left him; meaningless things such as his favorite color, or the name of his pet, or what his hobbies were, had left his mind completely. So all he could do was sit in that tight, dark little corner and cry to himself. "Why … why is this happening to me …?"

"Because you need to learn to obey your master." A deep, monstrous voice answered. Yugi gasped. There was one thing he was never allowed to forget, and that was to whom that voice belonged.

"Oh no … he's back …" Just then, in front of Yugi's eyes, a bunch of shadows fused together to form the tall, dark, and hideous figure of Marik; the man that always claimed to be Yugi's master. Yugi whimpered and moved further into his corner, but could only go so far.

"Have you learned your lesson yet, Slave?" Yugi always resisted, but as time went on, his resistance continued to fade, just like his memories and this time was no exception. The poor, broken boy looked down at his bare feet and let a tear drop next to them.

"… I … I'm not … y-you're s-slave …" Each time, he said that, and each time he was dealt with the same punishment: a harsh beating. Marik grabbed the small boy by the front blonde locks of his hair, practically pulling them out and punched him in the cheek, then kicking him in the side and finally stepping on his spine. Had this been Yugi's actual body instead of his soul, he would have a few broken vertebrae now, but since it was not, all it did was hurt like hell. As Yugi lay on the floor of his, now dark, soul room, Marik circled him like a vulture circling its dead prey.

"Poor, sweet little one; you know, if you would only obey, you would not have to suffer so much." Marik never called Yugi by his name anymore. He the earlier the boy forgot his name, the better chance he had that said boy would never break away from the spell. Yugi did not respond. His breathing was labored as he continued to lie on the cold floor.

"Please … just let me go …" Marik chuckled that evil chuckled that Yugi had grown to loath.

"Sorry, Sweet One, but you are vital to my plan, and there is no way that I am going to give you up so easily." Marik sat down on the floor and took Yugi into his lap. Yugi could hardly move so he could not resist at all. He groaned in pain as he was placed in the lap of his captor. Marik began to pet Yugi's hair as if he were a cat; that treatment sent shivers down the boy's spine, and not in a good way. Marik's evil smirk widened when he lowered his hand under the long, white shirt that was used as Yugi's only protection. Yugi gasped and his eyes widened in horror when he felt that hand on his bare skin.

"No, stop!"

"Hush; I've waited long enough. You're going to learn to obey even if I have to reduce to drastic measures. Marik's hand kneaded Yugi's private area. One would think that in the mind, this would not affect the soul.

"… H-How?" Yugi's question was interrupted by his constant squirming, trying to get away from that dreadful hand.

"I control your mind, Little Slave; since this room is a part of your mind, I control everything that goes on inside of it, including what you feel." Marik's hand went lower, causing Yugi to squirm even more. The blond psychotic loved to see this small treasure squirm in his arms. This was his piece of art in-the-making. Soon, Yugi would have no memory, he would be obedient, and he would be the Pharaoh's downfall. Finding a very soft inner spot, Marik grinned and pinched it, using his control over Yugi's mind to multiply Yugi's feeling of pain. The broken boy screamed his mental lungs out.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

Yami gasped.

"Is something wrong, Pharaoh?" Tea asked. The ancient ruler looked around, as if searching for something.

"Uh … yes … I just thought I heard something …"

"Like what?" Joey asked. Yami did not answer; all he did was stand up and begin walking towards Yugi's room, where the boy continued to sleep. Joey, Tristan and Tea soon followed. Upon arrival, the four friends could see that Yugi still had yet to wake from his unnatural sleep, but his eyes were squinting, as if in pain. Immediately, Yami was by his side as if he were covered in blood.

"Yugi? Yugi, wake up!" He shook his lighter half, quite harshly, and still, no movement was made. "See what I mean? He won't wake up! This is very unusual for him!" Tea gasped.

"What do you think is wrong with him?!" Joey pushed past her and harshly grabbed Yugi by the shoulders.

"Nothin'; you're just not doin' it hard enough." Even in his half-sitting-half-laying position, Yugi still did not awaken. Then suddenly, Joey forcefully began to shake the smallest boy back and forth. "WAKE UP, MAN!!" Even that plan did not work. However, Joey did not seem to want to stop and this began to worry everyone else.

"Knock it off, Joey, or you're gonna give him brain damage!" Tristan said as everyone else tried to stop the blonde. Finally, he let the smaller go, who had dropped back onto the bed like dead weight. Yami was about to strangle Joey for even placing his hands on Yugi like that, but then something happened. Suddenly, his amethyst eyes opened, but they still seemed to hold that tiredness to them.

"Yugi … you're awake!" Tea announced. The small boy did not answer. There was silence amongst the group. It was a bit creepy if one thought about it long enough. Joey noticed it and decided to break it.

"Uh … Yug' … you okay?" There was still no answer. Tristan stepped in front of him and waved his hand in front of Yugi's face, which gave no response.

"Wow, this is really starting to get creepy." Then, there was a movement. Yugi moved his feet from the bed to the floor and stood up, surprising everyone. After a paused second, he began to slowly walk out of the room. He walked as if he were sleep-walking. Yami walked in front of the smaller to stop him.

"Yugi … what's wrong?" He tapped Yugi's cheek, but there was no response. He tried again. "Yugi?"

" … I must … find … my master …" Yami gasped, as did the other three friends.

"What's he talkin' about?!" Joey asked. Yami cringed. Pure anger and hatred showed on his face.

"I think I know …"

--

A few miles away, in the abandoned warehouse, Marik smirked that evil smirk that always had people running off in the opposite direction of him. "I believe it's time the Pharaoh finally knew." He said to no one in particular. The Millennium Rod glowed with a yellow light as he summoned his new puppet.

--

Suddenly, Yugi's eyes began to glow a bright yellow. Then his head bowed, making it so that his eyes could not be seen. The three friends were awestruck as to what was going on at this point. Then, Yugi's head rose, but his bangs still covered his eyes. Yami took a step forward, carefully.

"Y-Yugi …?" Yugi's head slowly tilted up, his eyes dilated, still glowing yellow. The friends also noticed that the infamous Eye of Horus (or whatever it's called …) was glowing brightly on his forehead.

"Hey, it's that Millennium eye thingy …" Joey announced. Tea hit Yami in the elbow.

"Stop doing this to him!"

"I'm not." The Pharaoh said. In Yugi's mind, Marik's dark voice spoke to him.

'Repeat these words, my slave. Hello, Pharaoh.' Yugi obeyed.

" … Hello, Pharaoh …" However, he repeated them slowly and sleepily. The others could tell that Yugi was being controlled by Marik. It all made sense now. Why Yugi was sleeping so much and why he always seemed so sleepy no matter how much he slept.

"Marik!" There was a dark chuckle in Yugi's mind, but Yugi did not repeat that.

'Correct.'

"… Correct …" Yami's ectoplasmic blood was boiling. (I realize that's not a real word, but remember: he only has a solid form because of all the energy he has from the puzzle.)

"What have you done to Yugi?!"

'Just gave him a re-education.'

"… Just gave him … a re-education …" Joey growled and held up a fist.

"Why you no good Son of a Bitch! I oughtta castrate you right here and now for doin' this!" Marik chuckled again, but they did not hear.

'You blonde idiot; you do that, and you hurt your little friend here. Remember, I have so much control over his mind right now, I can command him to kill himself if I want to, and he would have to do it.' Marik continued his gloating as his hypnotized servant repeated his statement. And of course, Yami's denial was not helping at all.

"No, t-that's not true! Yugi, wake up!" Marik laughed like a maniac again.

"It's no use, Pharaoh." Yugi repeated.

"… It's … no use … Pharaoh …"

"His mind belongs to me now."

"… His mind … belongs … to me now …" Yami gritted his teeth as his fists tightened in anger.

"What do you want?"

"Simple." Yugi repeated. "I want my slave back."

"You'll never get your hands on him!" Joey said.

"That's what you think, Idiot." Yugi repeated. Both Tristan and Joey had to hold Yami back from tackling Marik, whom was speaking through Yugi. "If you refuse, I can make Little Yugi kill himself right here and now." At hearing Yugi repeat those words, all four friends gasped.

"Y-you wouldn't …" Tea said. She tried to make her voice seem brave, but a slight tremble over Yugi's fate was caught in it. Suddenly, Yugi started to choke. His face turned red as his left hand went around his throat and he fell to his knees. Marik had commanded him to hold his breath. The redness in his face began to turn purple. Yami could not stand it anymore. He realized that Marik was willing to kill Yugi in order to get what he wanted. Tears appeared in Yami's eyes. How could he let Yugi down like this?

"Alright, we'll bring him to you!" Finally, Yugi took in a breath and circulation was returning to his face. The friends helplessly watched as oxygen began to run through Yugi's body again. In Marik's hiding place, he smirked. Yugi finally regained his position. He used to Rod to communicate through Yugi as if he were a real puppet.

"You can see that Little Yugi is very obedient to me. Now, I want him back by sunup or I will shut his mind down completely." Once again, Yugi repeated. Reluctantly, Yami agreed. If it was the only way to free Yugi, than he would have to do it.

"Alright, Marik; tell us where you are and we'll … bring him to you …" Marik smirked and told them the directions to the warehouse.

"I'll be waiting, Pharaoh."

"… I …will be waiting … Pharaoh …"

"I expect to have my slave by tomorrow morning."

"I … expect … to have … my slave … tomorrow morning …"

"Until then,"

"… Until then …"

"He shall sleep."

"… He … shall sleep …" As these words were repeated, Yugi instantly fell to the ground in a deep sleep. Yami ran and caught him before he hit the ground. Yami almost cried. The only thing he could do for Yugi now was to try and save his life by surrendering him.

"So, does anyone know how to get to this warehouse?" Joey asked. Yami shook his head, cradling Yugi in his lap.

"No, but we better find out fast; we only have until dawn."

"How are we going to find it in only five hours?" Tristan asked. Tea shrugged her shoulders a bit.

"W-well, there's one person we haven't thought of …" The boys looked at her.

"Who?" They said in unison.

"There's always … Kaiba."

"Kaiba?!"

"Well yeah; he does, after all, have unlimitedresources." The boys looked at her as if she had grown a second head. Tristan was the one to break the silence.

"Tea, why on earth would Kaiba be willing to help us?" Tea smirked.

"Simple; since Mokuba is our friend, we get him to sympathize with us and he'll play Kaiba right into our hands." Joey blinked.

"You manipulative bitch … I like it!" So it was settled. They would head to the Kaiba mansion and ask Mokuba to get them access to his brother's database.

--

Once there, they, of course, had to explain why there was a darker version of Yugi holding the unconscious real Yugi in his arms. The teenagers had to explain the situation a few times, repeating some parts, before Mokuba finally understood. The younger Kaiba Brother said that he began to suspect, that Yugi was not the plain high schooler he claimed to be, some time ago.

"So we really need your help in finding Marik. He still has that dual disc attached to his arm, so we figure you can track him." Tea explained. There was a long pause before the silence was broken.

"No." The friends all stared at him with hanging jaws.

"Why not, ya prick!?" Joey yelled. Kaiba glared at him.

"Because what you've just told us is physically impossible."

"Then how do you explain this!?" Joey yelled, pointing to Yami who was holding the sleeping body of Yugi. Kaiba raised a brow. He had to admit, that one was a toughie. As usual, he only thought it was some sort of magic trick, which in a strange way, he was kind of right.

"You're gonna have to do better than that." Tristan had to hold Joey back from pounding Kaiba into the floor. Since begging and pleading were not working, Tea decided to give sympathy and guilt a try.

"Kaiba, please. How can you be so heartless that you would even not even consider helping us? Especially after he has done so much to help you!" To add to her act, Tea forced herself to form tears in her eyes. Kaiba sighed. Not out of sympathy as Tea was expecting, but out of annoyance. Sometimes, that girl really got on his nerves.

"Oh, cut the water-works, Garner. You should know that I'm immune to that by now." Tea looked insulted. Kaiba snickered.

"If there's something wrong with the kid, it's your problem, not mine. Now, get out before I have security escort you out by force." Kaiba's brother, Mokuba looked at his older brother with disappointment in his eyes.

"But Seto, Yugi needs our help." Kaiba did not even look at him when he responded.

"He's not getting it from me." Yami clenched his teeth. He had heard enough. Forcefully, he passed Yugi to Tristan and ran up to Kaiba's desk, surprising the teenage CEO.

"Look, Kaiba, I'm getting a little annoyed with you being so arrogant all the time. You should be grateful you're even still alive." After recovering from his shock, Kaiba glared. Now that this guy was up close, Kaiba could see t he differences in one from the other. How had he not noticed it before?

"And why is that?" Yami smirked.

"Because Yugi is the reason you're alive." Kaiba raised a brow. Yami stood up, still smirking. "You have no idea how many times I wanted to reach out and kill you for putting Yugi down, Kaiba." Mokuba Kaiba showed pure terror on his face while Seto Kaiba remained emotionless. He and the ancient spirit in physical form eyed each other for a few seconds before Yami continued. "Yugi was the one that held me back from that. There are at least five times that I came so close to killing you, but Yugi always spared you. Had it not been for him, you'd be dead right now." Yami's voice was low and dark. "So, I think you're in a debt to my little light. Now, either you help us find Marik, or …" He chuckled. "well, Yugi can't stop me this time." Seto Kaiba did not so fear. However, inside he could feel that the room had just lowered at least five degrees. He looked at Yami's hand and was shocked, but did not show it, to see a black mass forming in a circular shape around it. "Well?" Yami asked in that dark tone. Kaiba just stared at him until Mokuba placed his hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Seto, please … I think he means it …" The elder brother exhaled exaggeratedly. Inside, he was terrified, but he did not let it show on his face.

"Fine, but only because you're scaring my brother." He turned towards his computer and began typing. As he did, the black mass around Yami's hand disappeared.

"Hurry up."

--

End of Chapter