So due to the big computer crash that took out all my files to which they couldn't be saved and my back-ups were deleted. It was hard coming up with something close to what I had originally. The point is, sorry for the long awaited chapter and enjoy.

Warnings: M. Yaoi. . Sex scenes. No spoilers here. The plot is mine and that's all.

Chapter 12: Crushes.

Bakura sat in the corner of the shower. Malik had so graciously forced him into taking. The water hit his back soothingly as his head was in turmoil. Did it always take Ryou this long to find him? What had gone wrong? He tried to remember Ryou's harsh words of never forgiving him, sifting through his thoughts to find out why his Host would say something like that to him... had he done something?

Bakura pulled at his hair in frustration, he wouldn't admit it out loud to anyone, but right now, he was thinking that Ryou might have banished him for reasons only his Host knew. If Ryou had banished him there wasn't a reason Bakura could come up with that he could have done to warrant something so... No! Bakura hit the back of his head against the hard cold tiles of the shower; Ryou wouldn't have done something so nasty, not when the boy had almost killed himself every time the Pharaoh and his friends had banished him to bring him back.

That void of nothingness seemed to widen even more and threatened to consume him whole. It was getting harder and harder not to just give in and slip away from everything. Bakura sighed titling his head back and glancing up at the ceiling. He would slip away into the void of nothingness, let all his thoughts and worries fade away just as soon as he found Ryou.... maybe his Host was the answer and once he found Ryou, everything would be right again.

"Bakura?" Malik's voice cut through into Bakura's thoughts like a knife. "Are you alright?"

Malik waited outside the door, worried when no answer came, he was about to knock again when the door opened and Bakura stepped out. Malik backed up, the other looked clean, his hair was white again, all traces of blood gone from his body.

"Yeah," Bakura muttered walking by him, Malik followed close behind.

"So, do you remember anything at all?" Malik asked and suddenly the boy found a hand around his throat and he fell backwards onto the sofa.

"Do not ask me that!" Bakura snarled, he was tired of everyone asking him, why, why couldn't they tell him where Ryou was or what happened. Malik gasped for a few moments and struggled to push the other off him, he needed air. "If I knew everything that happened I wouldn't be here." He pulled away releasing Malik from his hold and backed up.

Malik fell to the floor on his knees holding his throat and coughing. "I'm only trying to help." He rasped out between gasps of air. Despite his best intentions, Bakura just didn't take well to being asked questions.

A soft gasp came from behind them; Malik glanced over the sofa to see his sister drop the bags in her hands and paled considerably. "Ishizu," Malik got to his feet. "I found him wondering about the city, so I brought him back here. I thought maybe you could..." He didn't get to finish asking for her to help the dark Spirit.

The slap echoed in the room, Bakura's head snapped to the left. "You deserve this and more." She spat slapping Bakura once again across the face. "Out of all of them I hate you the most!"

"Stop it!" Malik grabbed his sister and pulled her off the other. "Ishizu!"

"I knew! I knew the moment I laid my eyes on you!" She yelled at him, Bakura stood where he was glaring at her, his cheek burned. "I knew you were the only one that had a warped enough mind to kill your own Host."

"What?" Malik let her go and stumbled backwards out of shock. Bakura's eyes were downcast searching his mind for anything that told him she was lying. "Ryou's dead?" Malik couldn't believe it, he had plagued Ryou's mind back in the battle city tournament and there had been nothing that could have led Bakura to doing something like that... unless, there had been something Bakura had blocked up in the back of his mind, walls and barriers that Malik couldn't penetrate.

"You looked shocked Bakura." Ishizu pointed out moving closer to the silent dark soul. "Are you surprised by this bit of information?"

Bakura was and there was an emotion that was painfully eating away his insides, he fell to his knees... had he really killed Ryou? Was it the reason he felt so disorientated and even time held nothing on him... days blurred together.

"You singlehandedly killed every Host that had unfortunately taken possession of the MillenniumRing." Ishizu lent down so she was eye level with him and whispered. "What made Ryou any different from the others?"

Bakura swiftly rose to his feet and backed up from her. "I didn't... I couldn't have..."

"You used that poor boy like he was your personal puppet. Ryou never stood a chance against you." She moved forward slowly as he backed up. "What did you do? Smother him in his sleep?"

"Shut up." Bakura growled at her.

"Carved him up like a Sunday roast in an abandon warehouse?"

"No!"

"Or did you do it the old way and stabbed him to death while he ate breakfast?"

"SHUT UP!" Bakura lunged at her and pinned her to the floor, Malik was instantly on him trying to pull him off.

"It's all you Bakura; you did all those things to your past Hosts." She hissed at him. "You're a murderer!"

"NO!" Bakura yelled right in her face. "I couldn't hurt Ryou."

"Look at you, it tells me otherwise." She hissed back.

"I didn't kill him or hurt him." Bakura got up, even though his mind was in such a mess, he knew he was telling the truth.

"What was so special about Ryou?" Ishizu asked sitting up, she didn't believe him at all.

"I love him." Bakura said, glancing at them both as he slumped to the floor. "There... there was this day. I don't remember to clearly. I had been attacked and I had barely made it home. I called Ryou's school, by the time he got to the phone I was on the verge of passing out. Without so much as a word Ryou knew it was me. I woke hours later, bandages on all my wounds; he had cleaned me up and put me to bed, never left my side." Bakura gave a sad smile. "Ryou takes care of me more than all of you know. To hurt Ryou would be to hurt myself and it's something I'm just not into."

"How come I never sensed Ryou in battle city?" Ishizu asked, having calmed down somewhat.

"He was too weak in the body and mind from an illness he had gotten a few days before the tournament. I resumed full control for him while he rested." And that had been the turn point where he had been betrayed. "I didn't kill Ryou."

"Then what happened?" She asked fighting off the feeling of wanting to strangle him. "What happened to you and Ryou? Why isn't he with you?"

Bakura frowned biting his lip as he pulled forth all his vague thoughts... there were so many that were jumbled together. "Something happened... someone was in the house that night. There was so much blood... I was protecting Ryou. " Bakura suddenly cut himself off he grabbed at his head and growled in frustration as thoughts started to slip once more and his voice became strained. "... There was a flash of light then nothing but screaming and darkness."

Ishizu moved closer without the hostile intentions, but pure interest now. "What's... what's the first thing you remember after the screaming and darkness?" Her judgement had been all wrong, she had always had a personal hate for the Spirit of the Ring and flew into a rage upon seeing him, not really seeing what was in front of her.

"I was... standing in Yugi's bedroom." Bakura found that strange now that he thought about it.

"Can we help him?" Malik asked, he gasped as Ishizu grabbed his arm and pulled him away out of earshot. "Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Yes... his appearance frightened me; I thought the worst right away." She ran a hand over her face. "It's not Ryou, its Bakura."

"I knew the moment I saw him. I had hopped I was wrong. Can we help him?" Malik asked again, his sister now seemed shaken.

"We can help him once we find Ryou." She shook her head, how did she miss something so important and let her anger get the better of her. "I need to know everything that happened that night." They both glanced over to see Bakura had vanished. "Bakura's information is very vague and we shouldn't push him."

"How will we tell Bakura that he's dead?" Malik bit his lip.

"We don't." Ishizu said softly. "Best we leave that for the Host once we find him." Ishizu turned to retrieve her bags. "A visit to Marik might help us." Malik backed up paling greatly in his face and his eyes darted about the room in fear. "Malik, you don't have too..." It was too late, Malik had turned and rushed to the bedroom and locked himself in.

She was never going to get him out again.

Marik was silent as he watched Ryou hold the hot drink in his hands; he looked so depressed and hurt like the boy had no one left in the world that he could call friend or family and it just about broke Marik's heart to see him like that. "They came after us in ways you couldn't imagine." Ryou muttered, leaning against the kitchenette counter. He might have been standing before Marik, but his mind was a million miles away. "It was our own private war. Bakura and I against them. Yami was so determined to get rid of Bakura for my sake that he forced him into battle, made me watch while he tore Bakura apart before my eyes and then banished him in the most painful of ways... It is painful to be banished." Ryou glanced up at Marik; the other would know what he was talking back for he too had felt the former Pharaoh's rage.

"I wised up, I banished Bakura myself after that to save him from some of the pain... it never worked, I was plagued by nightmares whenever I slept." Ryou snorted in a kind of a laugh. "They would tell me afterwards that I was better off without him, that I would be safer now that he wasn't around."

"You are safe." Marik said, he was lent against the fridge.

"Safe!" Ryou yelled at him. "Safe is having no idea what happened and I waking up in a hospital with you beside my bed with no recollection of what happened." The apartment was quiet for a moment until he noticed the blood stain on Marik's shirt and remembered that the other had been injured as well. "I... I have something for that." Ryou put his cup down on the counter and rushed off, coming back moments later with a small box in his hands; he placed it all down onto the counter and turned about. "Take off the shirt." He ordered closing in the distance between them with a cotton ball.

Marik was still silent as he removed his shirt and jerked with a hiss at the cold touch. "I-I do feel safe with you." Ryou glanced up at him as he still worked on the cut across Marik's stomach. "I thought you were so brave coming to my aid like that.... though stupid for challenging someone with a knife."

"I had too." Marik spoke for the first time since walking into the apartment. He lifted Ryou's chin up, the boy straightened up a little more. "I wouldn't have been able to endure seeing you get hurt again."

Ryou bit his lip and lowered his head; unconsciously Ryou's fingers were fiddling with the hem of Marik's pants. "There is still so much I don't know." Ryou glanced up at him tears filled his eyes. "I'm scared all the time Marik when I'm not with you, whoever did this is still out there stalking me and I don't know why."

"Shh." Marik wrapped his arms about Ryou and pulled him against him. "You're safe here and I won't let anything happen to you." Marik closed the distance between their mouths and pressed their lips together, hearing the other's sharp intake of breath. Ryou let his eyes shut as he kissed back, gripping Marik tightly as the kiss became heated and passionate. He tangled his fingers in Ryou's snowy hair and deepened the kiss. Ryou's ankles give out on him due to standing on tip toe for so long; Marik bent down slightly and lifted Ryou up, the boy wrapped his legs about Marik's hips, he cupped Marik's face and continued to kiss him. Marik moved them towards the counter.

His hands roamed down the sides and back of Ryou's body as they continued their deep kiss... Marik hadn't realised how much he wanted this himself, to have Ryou in his arms, not because the other was frightened or needed protecting, but from the pure fact that the Ryou wanted him just as much as Marik wanted Ryou.

Ryou for a moment pulled his lips away to get his breath, Marik pulled him back against him and smirked Ryou eliciting a soft moan before their lips pressed together once more. Marik grind his hips against the other, pleased when Ryou moaned again and his face almost instantly flushed pink.

Marik placed Ryou onto the counter by his waist as Ryou's hands pulled at his shirt, they separated for a moment to removing it, lips then locked back in a passionate kiss, Ryou's hands were now free and they roamed Marik's body, running over his well muscled shoulders, biceps, chest and stomach, Ryou's hands unfasten Marik's pants with shaky hands.

Marik pulled back only for a moment and pulled everything off from around Ryou's waist and then stepped back in-between the other's thighs while grabbing a bottle of oil and poured a good amount over his fingers. Ryou watched him intently as Marik dropped the bottle, with a gently nudge Ryou's legs parted, one resting on Marik's shoulder the other about his waist. Marik pressed a finger into Ryou's body and he shuddered at the feel of the tight heat and the gasp that fell from Ryou's lip. "Marik." He practically fell limp over the kitchenette counter.

Marik added another finger as he pulled Ryou a little closer to him, he lent down kissing, nipping and licking over the span of Ryou's chest, neck and stomach. Locked in another kiss, Marik added a third finger, stretching Ryou's body for something bigger. "I want you." Ryou wrapped his legs about Marik's waist in which forced the other to remove his fingers from Ryou's body and he firmly pressed his chest to Marik's.

To see Ryou like this would hunt his dreams forever and not in a bad way and Marik could foresee a cold shower for every morning. Marik wasn't complaining, he wanted this too, with one hand Marik shoved his pants down and kicked them off as he grabbed Ryou securely under his thighs and pulled him off the counter.

Ryou squeaked and tightened his arms about Marik's neck and legs about his waist. "Easy Ry, the bedroom isn't far." Marik had every doubt in his mind that they would make it to that bed. Ryou was writhing against him so hot and in need that Marik's short walk was the hardest he had ever done and he couldn't take it. He pressed Ryou's back to the hallway wall and pinned the other with his chest. Using one hand as a guild, he entered Ryou's body.

Ryou shuddered against him with a cry as Marik pushed all the way in. "Shh." Marik panted in his ear soothingly. "Relax, it'll pass." The comforting words weren't for Ryou alone but himself as well as Marik's body screamed 'yes!' and wanted to fuck Ryou into that wall.

Ryou panted, opening his eyes from when he had shut them to help block out the sudden sharp pain. "I'm okay."

"Good." Marik gave a somewhat feral growl, capturing Ryou's lips into another kiss as he pulled his member out half way and drove it back into Ryou's willing body and found a study rhythm almost right away. "Fuck!" Marik cursed along with Ryou's cry, he wasn't going to last long... it had been ages since he had anyone like this.

Marik pulled Ryou from the wall, still embedded in that tight little body to stagger towards the bedroom. Ryou was moving his hips up and down Marik's member on his own accord. "Fucking damn it!" Marik's legs gave out and they both tumbled to the hallway floor, Marik took the blunt of the fall on his back, Ryou pushed himself up bracing his arms on the other's chest. "Are you alright?" There was a small laugh to his concerned voice.

"Yeah," Marik then rolled and Ryou yelped when his sweat damp back hit the cool floor. Grabbing Ryou's leg and hooked it over his shoulder and the pale thigh about his waist, Marik retook up his rhythm once more.

Suddenly the pale body that was wrapped so tightly about him, tuned tanned, limbs were suddenly longer, body was a little fuller and he was now staring down into bright pools of liquid lilac that was shadowed by light blonde hair. Marik just started, his breath caught in his throat as it was now his former Host that writhed beneath him, suddenly the grip on him tightened and Malik gave a cry and his whole body trembled with the force of his climax "I love you." It came out faint like someone had whispered the words in the back of Marik's mind and with only a few short thrusts of his hips he followed over the edge coming deep in the body under him.

"That's it Grandpa." Yugi sighed happily as he flipped the sign to 'closed' on the shops front door. He paused a moment to glance about the dark street.

"It's been one long day." The old man said dropping an unopened box onto the counter. "I'll start on dinner."

Yugi frowned at suddenly seeing his reflection come into focus and his stomach twisted up in nervousness. "Where is Yami?" It was rare that Yugi lost track of Yami for the boy liked to know at all times what Yami was doing and where he was.

"Oh." The old man thought on it for a moment. "I sent him to the basement to look for those..." He was cut off as Yugi sprinted by him and rushed down the hallway into the house and to the basement door.

"Yami!" Yugi shouted rushing down the stairs of the basement and coming to a stop.

"You sounded like a herd of elephants coming down those stairs." Yami's deep laugh sent nothing but chills down Yugi's spine as his dark half sat before that old antique wardrobe.

"What are you doing?" Yugi was on the verge of a panic attack. 'Has he seen it?'

"Hopefully he's going to hang himself." Bakura said on the other side of the basement.

"In your dreams thief." Yami flipped him off with a one finger salute.

Bakura only snorted and smirked in nothing short of amusement. "Don't let pride get in your way Pharaoh, I'll teach you how to do a noose, only if you left me push you."

"He's something I'll teach you, fuck off!" Yami growled, Bakura just laughed, it never seemed to become tiresome to get Yami angrily frustrated.

"Stop arguing!" Yugi shouted. "Yami what are you doing down here?" He tried again and hopefully without Bakura's smartass sarcasm.

Yami pulled out of the wardrobe a few more boxes and one of them was the shoe box. "Grandpa sent me down here for a box of old cards..." Yami sighed opening each box one at a time. "Something about them coming back into circulation," He muttered offhandedly.

Yugi's mind was shutting down as he tried to think on what to do, how to get Yami away from that box without him looking into it, his eyes darted to Bakura for an answer, but the other was watching him. 'It's still closed... he hasn't looked in it yet.' Voices whipped through Yugi's mind. 'Breathe Yugi; just tell him dinner is ready.' Yugi took that deep breath. "Dinner... Grandpa wanted a hand with dinner." The lie was a little better. 'Just don't stare at the box you'll make him suspicious. Stay cool.' Yugi smiled when Yami glanced at him. "He could really use your help... my arm is really hurting today." He rubbed at it for the extra effect.

"Jerking off will do that, you need to change hands more often." Bakura commented so casually and ducked the old brush that was amide at his head.

Yami muttered darkly under his breath. "Sure I'll just..." He turned his attention onto the shoe box.

'HE'S GOING TO SEE!' Yugi jumped when he saw that Yami was about to open the box in his hands. "NO!" Yami stopped and glanced back over his shoulder at his former Host with narrowed eyes.

Bakura raised an eyebrow; it wasn't often that Yugi yelled at his other half.

"Grandpa told me he found the cards in the storage room in the shop and you shouldn't waste your time down here."

Yami frowned looking at the shoe box in his hands.

'Put it back, put it back, put it back.' Yugi gripped the railing and let out a sigh of relief when Yami shoved the shoe box back into the wardrobe followed by everything else he had pulled out before hand.

"Alright," Yami got up. "Is Grandpa in the kitchen?" He asked approaching his former Host.

"Yeah." Yugi watched him go up the stairs and vanish from sight, he would have to move the box later tonight and find somewhere where it would be safely out of Yami's reach. Suddenly Bakura was right before him; Yugi yelped and jumped back into the wall.

"Your time is running out." Bakura hissed leaning in. "and once I'm free you're dead." A cold chill ran up Yugi's body setting off goosebumps all over. Yugi turned without a word and rushed up the stairs locking the basement door behind him, knowing it wouldn't keep that dark Spirit down there, but it helped ease him a little.

Marik woke sometime later, still laying in the middle of the hallway, a pillow under his head and a sheet thrown over him, the smell of cooking lingered in the air. "Ryou?" Marik sat up, his body stiff from laying on the hard floor, noises in the kitchenette told him exactly where the boy was. He groaned, it happened again, every damn time he had sex with anyone those three stupid words he would utter and he'd have to do damage control which left a range of broken hearts or stalkers in his wake. He had hoped that Ryou of all would be spared from his mental fuck-ups. He spotted all his clothing folded neatly beside him. Marik growled as he got up grabbing his jeans and pulled them on and then headed for the kitchen.

Ryou moved about so easily knowing where everything was, the boy was fully dressed again, he even had socks on. Marik cursed under his breath and made his presents known. "It smells good." Marik stopped just behind him and was able to see over his shoulder on what was cooking on the stove. Ryou stiffened for a moment, his heart leaping into his throat and his breath stopped.

Marik rubbed the back of his neck and with a sigh and tried to fix what damage might have been done, for Hosts were so easily persuaded with such words. "About before, what I said when we were..." He trailed off. Ryou waited, if Marik hugged him right at this moment the other would have meant what he said, Ryou's heart now sped up painfully in his chest. "I didn't."

"It's okay." Ryou turned about, his heart sinking to the souls of his feet. "What we are doing is a crush at best. Don't worry I'm not going to look into what we did too deeply. It was just sex after all." Ryou kept his voice even, though his eyes were burning with tears he tried to hold them back. Now he just felt cheap and dirty. "And people say stuff like that all the time; it's only to make the other feel better, right?" Ryou didn't really know what was said or done when one was having sex, he only presumed on this from what he got from watching movies.

Marik was shocked and relieved at the same time that Ryou was taking the situation for his 'I love you' words so well, better then all his past partners had. "Right." Marik agreed with a smile tugging at his lips.

Ryou turned back around and adjusted the setting on the stove before he turned back around once more to face Marik who backed up a little. "This will be ready in ten minutes; I'm going for a quick shower." Ryou was gone, heading down the hallway before Marik could say anything. Ryou stopping briefly to pick up the pillow he had placed under Marik's head and the sheets.

Marik turned with a growl cursing as he angrily kicked the cupboard door a few times, almost putting his foot through it. Why did he have to destroy a good thing? This was why he kept his distance from everyone, because his damn Host still to this day plagued his mind and it didn't matter how far he ran, Malik in some way was still fucking with his life.

TBC.

A lot of stuff came out in this chapter, well I think so anyway. I have a feeling that from here on in it's going to get more interesting, don't think there are too many chapters left... R&R (love and Cookies)