Disclaimer – I do not own YuGiOh, or any of the characters therein. This is a work of FAN fiction, which means I'm not making any money off it, even though I could REALLY use the extra.

Author's Notes- slips a note out from under the bomb shelter door Hello, everyone. Yes, it's me, and I'm still alive. I know many of you have been frustrated, if not downright wanting to grab a pitchfork, torch, or anything else handy to hunt me down, and I do apologize. I won't go into the whole sordid story, but suffice to say that my life since my last updates on ANY of my stories has not been conducive to writing AT ALL. It's only recently that I have been able to pick up the threads of my writing talent and begin again.

I hope all of you will forgive me.

With that said, I am going through and updating the stories I HAVE gotten some done on, and I will promise that more will be forthcoming. In fact, I have managed to work on a few brand new stories for your enjoyment.

I hope to see you all around, and please … leave a review. Trust me when I say that at this moment, they would be very nice.

Chapter 20 - Hopeless

Bakura moaned, the sounds of beeps and dripping fluids registering slowly to his hazy mind. His body ached everywhere . . . and for a moment, he could not remember why.

It came back in a flood, causing him to sit up abruptly, only to hiss in pain and collapse back against the pillows as fire shot up his spine. He glanced around wildly, taking in the hospital room in one glance. Had they somehow been rescued?

"He's awake!" He turned to see Ryou at the door to his room. The white haired boy hurried over to the bed, gripping his hand tightly as innocent brown eyes studied his face. "Bakura?"

"Hello Ryou," he whispered, his voice hoarse as his throat clogged with pain. "Where . . ."

"You're in the hospital . . . you've been here for three days now. The doctors found you dumped outside the emergency room entrance, unconscious."

"Marik?"

"He was with you . . . he's still in a coma. The doctor's . . . the doctor's say he was raped and beaten pretty badly. What happened to you?" Bakura shook his head.

"Where's Yami?" Ryou sat back, his eyes anxious.

"We were hoping you could tell us. It's been a week since he disappeared . . . the only thing we've had from him is a letter to his lawyer, turning everything over to you, Marik, and Yugi, and a letter of resignation to Kaiba. We haven't seen him." Bakura closed his eyes in pain, knowing instinctively what had occurred. "The police are going to want to talk to you," Ryou continued solemnly.

"No police. How is Yugi taking his cousin's disappearance?" Bakura asked quietly. Ryou sighed.

"Not well . . . the doctor's have had to sedate him several times. Bakura . . . what happened?"

"Malik happened, little one," he murmured, his eyes closing in remembered pain. "He . . . grabbed me out of the parking lot of Gravitation and used me as bait to lure Yami and Marik into a trap. Marik and I . . . have been at his mercy for god only knows how long . . . while Yami was forced to watch from an isolation chamber up above. I . . . I think Yami might have agreed to submit to him if he let us go."

"Oh no!" Ryou whispered, his voice choking. "Oh my god . . . no, it's not possible."

"It's the only explanation I can think of, Ryou," Bakura said softly. "I . . . oh gods, Yami." He broke suddenly, turning his head away to hide his tears as he thought of what Yami had given to make sure that he and Marik were safe. He hissed softly as soft, warm arms suddenly enveloped him from the side, Ryou hugging him gently. Unable to cope with the show of affection in his battered state, he turned into the embrace, burying his head in the smaller boy's shoulder as he sobbed.

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Yami choked as the collar around his neck was suddenly yanked, bringing him to his knees in front of a naked and aroused Malik.

"Suck!" the blonde commanded. Closing his eyes, Yami complied, doing as he knew Malik liked with as little thought as possible. If he thought about it too much, he would vomit . . . which would only earn him more bruises to add to his growing collection. He gagged as Malik came in his mouth, but swallowed it all, knowing that to lose any of it would cost him several days worth of pain. "Good . . . you learn well, Yami," Malik growled, dragging him up by his hair to lay a brutal kiss on his mouth. Yami went boneless, allowing the blonde to do as he wished as he turned his mind to other things, blocking out the humiliation and anger. He was too numb to really care anymore . . . even his powers had stopped responding as his mind slowly began to disappear beneath his forced slavery.

"You have him trained exceptionally well, Malik," Pegasus murmured from his place on the sofa a few feet away, being ridden by one of his favourite toys. "He hasn't uttered a single word to anything you've done to him." Malik grinned, pushing Yami away to his feet, keeping the chain short so that the tri-haired man couldn't move away as he was wont to do when given a long enough leash.

"It helps to have leverage," Malik murmured, stroking the multi-colored hair possessively as Yami kneeled silently at his feet. "Should he do anything to displease me, I could simply re-acquire Marik . . . or perhaps that look-alike cousin of his." Yami's eyes narrowed, but otherwise he ignored the empty threat. Malik wouldn't dare to lay hands on either of them . . . or anyone else Yami cared about, for that matter. If he did, their deal was broken . . . at which point, Yami would happily tear him limb from bloody, hateful limb.

He wondered how they were . . . his lover's had been in terrible condition when he'd finally struck his deal with Malik, and he knew Yugi and the others were probably worried sick about him. It couldn't be helped though . . . in order to protect them, he had to do this. He only hoped that, when he finally died of a broken heart and mind, that he would be given the chance to see them one last time.

A hand groped him through his leather pants, and he forced himself to sit still as one of Malik's buddies pawed at his groin. That was part of Malik's standing order . . . anyone was allowed to touch him, to grope him all they liked, and he had to sit there and take it. It was disgusting and humiliating . . . as was some of the things Malik forced him to do to other's slaves while he watched, but he did it all with an empty heart and mind, going through the motions of passion even though the fire's inside him had died. They had died with his last glimpse of Marik and Bakura.

"Malik, he's such a beautiful catch . . . are you sure you won't share him, just once?" the woman simpered, her hand fluttering against his groin annoyingly as she looked up at Malik.

"No, Sylvania . . . I don't share my toys with other masters out of hand, you know that." She sighed, whimpering at his rejection, but moved away. Yami suppressed the urge to shiver as Malik moved behind him, climbing gracefully to his feet and pulling his pants back on before tugging sharply on the leash in his hand, bringing Yami to his feet. "Time to rejoin the patrons, my pet," he murmured into Yami's ear, licking a warm trail up the slender column of the shorter man. "Time to show you off some more." Yami followed him sedately into the crowd, keeping as much distance as the leash allowed between him and his psychotic 'master'. He wasn't sure how long he had been dealing with this . . . the weeks blurred together in one great amalgamation of disgust and heartache for him. He only hoped that he would die soon . . . before he was forced to do it himself.

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Bakura shuddered as he spied Malik moving through the crowd, Yami linked to him by a studded leather collar and chain. He tugged at his hair anxiously, hoping that the dyed color would hide him as he peered over darkened sun-glasses. He felt Marik wretch nearby, and lay a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.

"At least we know he's alive," he whispered softly, his eyes never leaving his bound love. Marik sighed.

"Maybe in body . . . but look at his eyes, Bakura. He's not there anymore. Our Yami is gone . . . and who knows if we can ever get him back."

Bakura sighed, forced to agree with Marik's assessment. Yami was broken . . . or as close to it as he could get without being dead entirely. You could see it in his eyes . . . those crimson orbs were lifeless and dull, the fire that had once burned inside them gone. Turning, he shot a glance at Duke, who was standing in the opposite corner of the room. The ebony haired man nodded, moving out into Malik's path. He dodged the blonde deftly . . . but made sure that he brushed shoulders with Yami, pushing a note into the man's hand before disappearing back into the crowd.

Yami started as he felt something pressed into his hand, glancing around wildly to look for the person, but he saw no one who was familiar to him. He gripped the note tightly, slowly slipping it into the pocket of his leather pants, hopefully to read later on. He wondered who it was from . . . but he didn't dare try to find out now. His eyes roamed over the crowd slowly, taking an interest in his surroundings for the first time in what seemed like forever. He stumbled when he met a pair of familiar chocolate eyes attempting to hide behind dark sunglasses . . . and then nearly froze when he met warm lavender. His cheeks flushed with shame and he ducked his head, refusing to meet their gaze again. Why were they here? He didn't want them to see him like this . . . he wanted them safe and happy somewhere far away, remembering him as he had been with them, not as this broken shell that they saw now.

A harsh yank on his chain caused him to stagger forward, bringing him abruptly back to reality.

"You are not supposed to be looking at anyone," Malik hissed into his ear, a fist yanking at his hair so that he had to meet those angry violet eyes head on. "This will call for punishment when we get home." Yami bowed his head quietly . . . anything to get out of here and away from those that he loved. He gasped as his chin was gripped roughly, fingertips pressing into tender skin along his jaw as Malik forced his head back up. "You will obey me, Yami. You are mine now . . . remember that!" the blonde hissed, and then lashed out and slapped him. Yami allowed his head to roll with the blow, simply returning to his submissive position as he followed Malik through the crowd. He didn't care anymore . . . as long as Marik and Bakura and his other friends and family were safe, Malik could do whatever he willed.

Bakura winced at the slap, forcing his eyes away as he watched the blonde stalk away with Yami in tow.

"I'm going to rip that arm off and feed it to him . . ." he growled before pulling Marik into a hug. "It's okay Marik," he whispered to the shivering blonde.

"He wouldn't even meet our eyes, Bakura," Marik moaned, burying his head in his lover's chest. "It was as if he didn't even see us."

"No, Marik . . .he saw us all right. He just didn't want us to see him like this," Bakura replied, running a gentle hand through the purple dyed hair of his friend. "Gods, what he must be going through . . ." he murmured. He knew Marik hadn't seen the bruises that spotted Yami's once unmarked skin . . . or the cuts and bite marks that were half-healed. But he had seen them . . . and they made his anger and determination burn all the hotter. He was going to get Yami back . . . even if it killed him.

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Yami lay on Malik's bed, bleeding and battered from his latest 'lesson' as he listened to the blonde turn on the bath water in the other room. Forcing himself to move, he crawled over to the edge of the bed, digging in the pocket of the discarded pants for the letter he had gotten earlier. He opened it carefully, keeping it from crackling as he smoothed the paper against the bed.

Yami,

We're coming to get you. Hold on . . . and don't do anything more stupid than you already have by giving yourself to him for our freedom. Life isn't worth living . . . without you beside us. We love you . . . never forget that.

Bakura, Marik, and your family

He sobbed quietly, clutching the paper gently to his chest as the words echoed in his mind, crimson eyes closing at the pain that lanced through his heart at those simple words. Standing, he stumbled to the fireplace, throwing the letter into the blaze there and watching it through tear hazed eyes as it turned to ash. He whirled as he heard Malik enter the room behind him.

"Did I give you permission to get up from the bed?" the blonde snarled, snagging a handful of hair and dragging him back to the piece of furniture roughly. "It seems one lesson wasn't enough!" And even as Yami felt bones breaking underneath the beating, he smiled inside. Bakura and Marik still loved him . . . which made this all the more worthwhile if it ensured their safety.

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The beating ended up landing him in the hospital several towns away, several broken ribs and a broken arm that required being set and placed into a cast. He was slightly relieved . . . the damage would keep him from being at Malik's beck and call for the next couple of months. He refused to answer the doctor's questions about how he had come about the wounds . . . actually, he refused to say anything. He allowed his 'master' to do all the explaining, which Malik did with the typical 'he fell down the stairs' routine. Of course, that didn't explain the bite marks or half healed cuts, but the doctor had to accept it.

Malik was in a foul mood when they finally got back to the apartment, taking out his frustrations at having his favourite play toy out of action on one of the other slaves. Yami winced as he heard the girl whimpering in pain, but could not move to stop it. Malik had locked him into his room . . . a windowless little cell that had a naked bulb as its only adornment outside of the pallet. He hadn't actually seen this room in a while now . . . most of his nights had been spent at Malik's side, chained to his bed. He found he actually welcomed the dismal little cell . . . anything was better than having to submit to everything the demented blonde wanted to do to him.

He sighed, laying down on the pile of blankets Malik had provided for a bed absently as he played the words of the letter over and over again in his head silently. He let the words warm him, let them break the fragile shell of numbness that he had built now that he was alone and likely to be left that way for some time. He let the tears flow down his face, closing his eyes as he remembered his time with his lover's fondly . . . his last kiss, their last embrace, the feel of Marik around him, the taste of Bakura's essence. At last, he drifted into the first peaceful slumber he had seen in a long time, letting his dreams remind him of happier times.

The days passed within the room slowly, his memories and dreams the only thing that kept him sane as he heard Malik go on with his version of life. The moans and screams as Malik played with his other slaves kept him awake most nights . . . but during the day, he slept, his dreams reminding him that this hadn't always been his existence. The skin and bone under his cast itched horribly as he healed, but he was used to ignoring his body's feelings at this point, so it didn't disturb him. His ribs healed as well, allowing him to breathe easier with each passing day.

He wondered what Yugi had told the police of his disappearance . . . the letter to Kaiba and his lawyer would have made it seem like he had willingly disappeared, which was why Malik had allowed him to write them at all. And his lawyer wouldn't have raised any red flags . . . he had frequently disappeared over the years, so this would have been just an everyday thing to the man.

He was disappointed the day Malik took him to the doctor to have his cast removed. A return to health meant a return to Malik's affections . . . but he comforted himself with the knowledge that now Malik's other slaves wouldn't suffer because of him. Malik left them alone when Yami was at his disposal.

He was ready for it when Malik pounced on him the moment they were back in the apartment. He put up no resistance, even taking the pain silently, crimson eyes staring absently up at the ceiling as the blonde grunted and moaned, enjoying the pleasures of his body with no help from him.

"It is so good to have my favorite toy back," Malik murmured as he finished and stood up, tossing a towel at Yami. "Get yourself cleaned up and prepared to go out . . . the patrons at Riptides have missed you." Yami shuddered inside but did as he was ordered, silently hoping that Bakura and Marik would not be there this time . . . nor ever again. He hoped that, not having seen him for several months while he healed, they had given him up as dead.

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"You're sure he's going to show up tonight? We haven't seen him in months . . ." Bakura murmured. Duke nodded.

"I overheard Malik talking about his 'favorite toy' coming back to play tonight. Apparently, he beat Yami senseless and broke several bones that had to heal up." Duke shuddered. "Gods . . . how much longer until we can get him out of there?"

"We'll be doing it tonight, if everything goes according to plan," Bakura growled. "And I'm going to make Malik pay for every mark and bruise I find." He cracked his knuckles, the fingers white where he fisted them too tightly. Marik and he were both back in their 'master-slave' disguise, settled comfortably in a corner of the floor as they watched the couples around them. Most were willing participants . . . or at least, they seemed like it.

They had managed to get close to Pegasus in the time that Yami had been missing . . . Pegasus now considered them on his 'favoured patrons' list, which meant that they could go into the private backroom where Malik seemed to spend most of his time when he was here. Some of the things they had seen in there disgusted them both . . . and had brought Marik nightmares of the times he had spent in that backroom with Malik, but they had persevered through it, knowing that it would probably be their only chance at getting close enough to Yami to get him away from Malik.

Bakura was worried about what time under Malik might have done to Yami's mental state. He remembered quite vividly the story Yugi had told them of Yami's father's 'conditioning' of his son. Being dealt beatings at Malik's hand could very well have brought those memories to the surface . . . although he held out hope that it hadn't. They hadn't heard of any cataclysmic disasters hitting residence's in the city, and Bakura was pretty sure that would have happened if Yami had suddenly remembered everything from his past.

Marik's sudden gasp drew his attention to the door, and chocolate eyes narrowed angrily as he spied Malik with Yami in tow. Yami was much thinner than he had been . . . there were dark circles under his eyes and his skin was paler in places where casts must have been.

"Oh gods, what did he do to him?" Marik whispered, lavender eyes welling up at the sight of his battered love.

"He'll pay for it, Marik. Trust me . . . he's going to pay for everything he's done to Yami," Bakura murmured. "Let's go." They were both wearing skin tight leather that covered them from neck to ankle . . . Marik's skin color would be a dead giveaway to Malik, which was why he was also wearing a mask, his hair dyed a rather stunning shade of blue. Bakura's own dishevelled locks were blonde, rather than white . . . he'd thought about doing black, but dreaded trying to get such a dark color out of his white hair.

Nodding to Duke, he moved off through the crowd, Marik trailing behind him submissively. Entering the back room, he nodded to the proprietor before taking his own seat in a dark corner, Marik kneeling at his feet with his eyes downcast. Bakura caressed his hair lovingly, letting him know silently that he was there and that this was just a temporary measure . . . he had no wish to undo the good Yami had done for his friend.

Malik entered the room not long afterwards, yanking Yami forward so that the slight man fell to his knees in front of Pegasus, who looked up with a grin.

"So, he's all healed?" the platinum haired man asked, leaning forward to study the tri-haired young man, who was looking at the floor. "How wonderful, Malik."

"Yes . . . and now I believe I owe you payment for how I came to acquire him," Malik murmured, a sadistic grin crossing his features. "Meet your master for the day, slave. Pegasus, he's all yours . . . but remember my restrictions if you want to continue our arrangement." Handing Yami's leash over to the proprietor, he left the room.

"Ah, Yami . . ." Pegasus murmured, reaching out to raise the bowed head slowly so he could look into crimson eyes. "I have heard so much about your prowess . . . and I have longed to sample those treasures. You know . . . the tales of you have reached even over here from Gravitation. If I thought I could get Malik to agree to it, I would set you up as my new bartender. I'm sure you would provide an endless source of income . . . for various reasons." A slight shiver echoed down Yami's back, but he hid it well. "Nothing to say, beautiful slave? That is fine . . . I have other uses for your mouth." Bakura was startled when Pegasus motioned to him.

"Pearl, I am about to do you a great favor. Malik very rarely allows his toys out of his hands . . . and he has the best toys out there. Come sample his finest and newest toy . . . I am sure you will be pleasured." Bakura rose unwillingly . . . only to freeze as Yami crawled on hands and knees over to him, never once looking up. He sank back into the chair, shaking horribly as Yami reached for his pants and unzipped them, freeing him from the tight constriction before taking him in his mouth. He groaned, fighting the urge to crush Yami to him as he felt his lover swallow around his cock, gritting his teeth to keep from screaming at the inhumanity of it. He started when he felt Marik caress his knee, calming him.

Marik moved slowly, careful not to draw attention away from Bakura as he slowly reached out to grab Yami's hand, running his thumb over the lightly tanned knuckles that bore new scars. Crimson eyes drifted over to his, their gaze dull and unfocused . . . only to sharpen as they met his lavender gaze.

Ma . . . Marik? Yami whispered into his mind, and Marik sighed at the missed sensation.

'Yami . . .' he replied. 'We're here to rescue you . . .'

We?

'Yami . . . Pearl is Bakura.'

Oh gods . . . I can't . . . not like this, Yami whimpered silently, causing Marik to grip his hand tightly as he moved to pull away. He saw Bakura's hands tangle in Yami's hair, his white-haired lover struggling to keep up appearances even as he was disgusted by what Yami was being forced to do. Please . . . just go away. If Malik catches you . . .

'Let him,' Marik growled fiercely, the anger in his tone catching even him by surprise. 'We're getting you out of here . . . to hell with the consequences! Yami . . . oh gods, Yami, we've been so worried . . . please, Bakura and I don't care what happens to us, as long as you're back where you belong . . .' He saw the tears leaking out of the corner's of Yami's eyes, and resisted the urge to wipe them gently away with his free hand. 'Just hurry . . . Duke will start his distraction soon.' He felt Yami's hopeless acquiescence, and watched Yami begin to really work on Bakura, causing his other love to moan, out of dismay or pleasure he couldn't really tell. He felt Bakura tense, a scream ripping from his throat as he came, Yami swallowing his seed hungrily as if starved. Right on cue, a fight erupted in the other room.

"God damn it," Pegasus growled, standing slowly. "What the hell do I pay those fools for if they can't keep the peace around here?" He walked out of the curtain . . . leaving the room to Yami, Bakura, Marik, and his slaves. Bakura moved quickly, leaning down to capture Yami's lips in a gentle and hungry kiss.

"I'm sorry, love . . . we could think of no other way to get near you. Let's get out of here . . . Marik, lead the way to this back exit you said you'd seen." Marik nodded, standing quickly and pulling the mask from his face before pulling Yami to his feet and into a fierce hug. He moved to let go . . . and cried out when Yami couldn't support himself.

"Bakura . . ." he whimpered, holding the still form as he looked down at his love. Yami had passed out.

"Shit . . . here, I'll carry him. Just go!" Bakura swung the limp form up into his arms as Marik swiftly removed the collar, swearing in disgust as the marks beneath it were revealed from where it had bit into skin from being too tight. Marik dashed towards a crimson curtain in the far corner of the room, revealing a hidden door.

"Through here," Marik said, moving to punch in the code. He froze as a familiar and hated voice whipped through the room.

"Pegasus, god damn it . . ." Malik snarled . . . and then froze as he spied Yami, cradled against Bakura's chest while Marik stood with his hand outstretched, fingers hesitating over the keypad. "Well, well, well . . . come to rescue your lover, Marik?" he growled, chuckling. "Too bad he won't want to leave with you . . ."