"Shiba, do you know my name?" Ayumi asked suddenly as he visited her the next day. While alone in the cell, because Shiba couldn't stay with her 24/7, she had a lot of time to think. And, she kept thinking about the events that unfolded yesterday. She questioned if it was really okay to fall in love in a situation like this. Though, okay or not, it seems to have happened. Then, her mind drifted into examining every little detail she could recall. It was a jolt realization that she didn't think he had ever said her name. She found it hard to believe, because she was almost positive these people had to have that information. They specifically hunted her down, from what she gathered, and they plan to possibly force her family into paying ransom. So, they had to have access to it. Still, as she thought back to their interactions, she never heard him say it once.

"Just your last," Yoshiki answered. He hoped he'd finally find out her name, but he hadn't really expected the conversation to come up. He guessed the realization kind of came with yesterday's events. "The boss probably knows your first, but he didn't tell us. It wasn't necessary," he further explained, since she was probably wondering about that too. With their knowledge of where she would be, about her family, and so on, it was weird that he didn't know her first name, probably. But Koga didn't find the first name much of a necessity in finding and capturing her. So, all he knew was Shinozaki, but that was it.

Ayumi had to think about how weird all this was. She fell in love with a boy who only knew her last name, and she also only knew him by a nickname she came up with on the fly. Though, given their situation, the name exchange just didn't really come to mind until she viewed him in a different light. She didn't care if he knew her name before... "Well, I'm Shinozaki Ayumi," she told him. She knew even with what developed, she still wouldn't be able to find out his real name. Which was for the best, because she didn't trust herself to keep the real name from slipping. Besides, he was Shiba to her now.

Yoshiki looked over to her, smiling slightly. "Nice to finally know," he commented, glad to be able to call her Ayumi now in his thoughts. Though, he found his mind drifting back to this whirlwind of a situation... She really had no reason to believe him at the beginning of all this... After all, he was with these people, he had helped in the initial kidnapping. He had held her against her will... It was a miracle she had believed in what he said, at all. He could have been just as rough, and had been playing some kind of sick joke on her. What had happened, where she was, her panicked mind, all of those factors pointed to distrust, yet she had accepted without exactly knowing what was ahead of her... The sudden thinking back on all this gave him a welling feeling of gratitude. She had, indeed, put her trust in him, for something so important, and it was a good feeling to prove that he was deserving of it. "... Thanks, for giving me the benefit of the doubt, Ayumi...," he spoke up, looking to the side. It was a nice first thing to say with her name...

Ayumi returned his small smile, glad that he finally knew what to call her. She didn't expect what came out of his mouth next. She remembered what she told herself when she made the decision to just listen to him. He was the lesser of two evils. She'd argue that maybe it wasn't such a thing. Maybe it was evil and good who was forced into evils... At least, that's how she interpreted it now. "...I'm really glad I did," she admitted, looking at him. "You're completely different than the other men in this place...," she said, thinking back to the others she encountered. His 'boss', the one that had been so rough and that creepy, greasy guy and the other guys that came to toss food and water in, or the guy who took the photos of her... they all had a look in their eyes that showed they didn't care if they hurt anyone else. They were only out for their own self-enjoyment. Shiba was different... and she really hoped he knew that.

Yoshiki kept his eyes to the side, feeling no better at her words. Technically... yes... He wasn't like the other men here, with disgusting agendas and lack of morals. But yet... the fact that he didn't lack a conscience made him denote himself. And in a way, a person who felt bad about these crimes but did nothing, seemed at fault too... If she had been any of the other girls before this, she'd hate him just as much as the others because he did nothing to help. "... If that's what you think," he replied after a long silence, not looking back over at her. Maybe it was true... that he was different. A different kind of bastard.

Ayumi frowned at his response, realizing he probably didn't think himself much better than the others. She shifted towards him, taking his hand. It felt weirdly intimate, more so in some regards than the sex they have had. "Shiba, the fact that you're doing this for me... the fact that you actually care about someone other than yourself and are going through such lengths puts you leagues above them," she told him firmly. She didn't know why he was doing these things... he had made it sound like he was pushed into a corner where another option wasn't very viable. But, that was all guessing on her part. She couldn't, wouldn't believe that he was a bad person, though. He just made bad choices...

Yoshiki was going to remain silent, and his eyes away from her, but her hand grabbing his easily took his attention. His eyes were attracted to her's, his heart doing one of those annoying jolts at the sincerity they held. He knew she meant it... and was glad she thought of him as such, the part of him that loved her. But his conscience wasn't letting this one good deed erase all of the things he let happen in the past, and the fact he helped kidnap these girls, fully knowing what their fate would be. That, and if he ever did something Koga didn't like, something horrible would happen to Miki... His little sister, that had done absolutely nothing wrong but be his sibling. He let her down with his decision to be with these people in the first place... "The fact that I've helped ruin lives and let these guys do horrible things... cancels this out. I don't deserve to be leagues above them," he replied, his tone solemn, and his gaze averting her's again. Girls before her... wouldn't say such kind things, that much was for certain.

Ayumi's eyes narrowed slightly, a sad look in her eyes. She knew he had assisted in the kidnapping for countless girls... and, yes, that was a hard pill to swallow, but he hadn't gone out of his way to molest or violate the girls. She wished this wasn't all so confusing and drenched in gray. "Well... then... keep making decisions you can be proud of," Ayumi said after a stretch of thoughtful silence. "Until you can look at yourself and see you're not a bad person. Just someone who has been misled." Ayumi refused to see Shiba in such a negative light. He was saving her life everyday, and while she wasn't sure what her future would hold, at least she knew that not all men are evil.

Yoshiki said nothing further, letting the silence deepen. Though, he found his eyes drifting over to her's as she began to speak again. Of course he'd try to keep doing the right thing... but the same question loomed over him all the time. Could he really make up for the past? "... Is there really... a point like that?" he asked her, unsure he'd ever view himself in a different light, no matter what he did to try and atone for his bad decisions made in the past.

Ayumi look aside, trying to think of a response. He has been doing this stuff... for a couple years, she believed. He had the rest of his life to try and atone. But, even if he spent those years doing good, he would never be able to shake the knowledge that he had assisted in making girls become sex slaves. "...I don't... know...," she answered honestly. She didn't know what it was like to have such a heavy guilt on your shoulders. "You'll just have to find that out yourself...," she said, eyes moving back onto him. It was something he'd have to figure out for himself, because she couldn't give any real insight on it. "But... I'll help, in anyway I can," she added, hand tightening around his. She didn't know what she could do, but she wanted him to know she was there for him... no matter how it ends up.

Yoshiki listened intently to see what her answer would be. He couldn't say it was really helpful, but... the support lifted the weight slightly. He smiled sadly, finally grabbing onto her hand back. His other hand went to the back of her head to lean her forward slightly. He moved to kiss the top of her head, then laid his against hers. "Thanks... I really don't deserve someone as nice as you..," he admitted in a soft, quiet tone, his hand's grip on her's tightening. He was growing much too attached to her... He knew this, yet he couldn't help but be close to her. He was already too accustomed to her warmth.

Ayumi melted into his touch, a blush rising to her cheeks as he kissed the top of his head. His gentleness was always soothing to her fragile state. She smiled faintly as he spoke, and she wished he wouldn't always put himself down. "Shiba...," she muttered, voice trailing as she considered for a moment what was about to escape her throat. They may have grown deeply attached to one another, but saying this aloud was playing with fire. But, this warmth, this flame in the darkness... she couldn't ignore it. She also didn't know what would happen, so living in the moment was something she had to keep in mind. "...I love you," she whispered, her hand gripping his tightly as her only lifeline.

Yoshiki felt a slight shock at her confession. Even though they're feelings were obvious, he hadn't expected her to say it. It just... solidified the knowledge, which made him happy... and nervous, at the same time. Not only would this make dealing with Koga harder and more dangerous, he really couldn't continue a life with her. He was leading her to a definite path of heartbreak out of his own selfishness to feel what love felt like... While it wasn't something he could really be proud of either, this helped keep her willpower up, he guessed... No matter the outcome, nor pros or cons though, his voice couldn't help but reply. "I love you too..." With this utterance, their fate was sealed.

Ayumi clutched her head tightly, as if the external pressure would relieve the internal pain. That guy -the 'boss'- had come in earlier... sometime before. She really didn't know how long she had been recovering, but it felt like forever. There had been no words, no warnings, no clarity on why he would bother to hurt her. The first action had been to grab her by her hair and throw her head against the wall, the cracking vibrated painfully and disoriented her. Then he kicked... leaving her breathless and gasping. She had never been in so much pain before. She had been a cautious kid, so she had never experienced anything past a tumble. After sometime, the guy seemed to have proved his point, or he became bored, so he left. Honestly, some part of her had been glad that it was only an assault of that nature. She forced herself to sit up, resting against the cold wall. Her stomach and lower abdomen felt so sore, her lungs only allowing shallow breaths. Her head was the worse, the pain biting on her brain and making everything feel worlds more painful. She registered after a while that some blood dripped by her eye. She hesitantly raised her hand, wiping off her forehead. As she inspected her fingers, she could see there was blood. He must have split her forehead or somewhere on her scalp or something. She really didn't want to go poking around for where the blood was coming from. It wasn't an overly heavy trail... it'd scab over quicker if she just left it alone. She was amazed by the fact she wasn't crying, she just stared blankly at the wall ahead of her as she tried to drown out the static in her brain. She wanted some pain killers so badly, but more so she wanted Shiba. She didn't know where he was... but the worry that something had gone horribly wrong sunk into her head. Was he somewhere, bleeding to death by the hands of these bastards? That thought caused her eyes to burn, but she bit back the tears. She had to stay calm... crying would only worsen her headache. He'd be around... he had to come around eventually...

Yoshiki had come around, already seemingly urgent. The guys in the main room... had been giving him eerie sneers, ones that gave him a horrible feeling in his stomach. Of course, he had to hide his urgency. He came into her cell, almost not bothering to close the door, but he had to at least appear calm to anyone who may see. His calm demeanor was in tatters when he finally saw her, her blood making his stomach flip. He quickly approached her, getting on his knees and taking her into a tight embrace. His fury escalated, so much so that he was shaking slightly. "What happened? It was him, wasn't it?!" he asked, his anger evident in his tone. "That bastard... I'm going to kill him..," he swore, his heart blazing. She looked awful... At least, worse than he ever wanted to see her. He may have also done something sexual to her... which only made the fire grow brighter. He was going to fucking kill Koga!

Ayumi felt a rush of relief as Shiba entered the cell, meaning that their setup was still safe. She moved into his embrace, her arms moving to wrap around him as well, though her grip was weak. The action hurt a little bit, but once she felt the pose for a moment, the pain subsided so she could focus on his comfort. She blinked slowly as she realized he was shaking, his anger expressed in body and words. "Shiba, calm down," Ayumi said quietly. "You can't act reckless or things will just get worse..." she said urgently. He needed to recollect himself before he lost it and tried to charge his boss. "I'm okay... he only hit me," she said, hoping that might relieve some of his own worries. Although she didn't think it was okay he hit her nor did she really feel okay, everything could have been much worse. She'd take a beating over being raped.

Yoshiki had to agree with what she was saying, but his mind was much too clouded to act rationally. His eyes narrowed, his grip on her secure. "You're not okay! Damn him to hell...," he continued with the same level of frustration. If he was clear-headed, he would know that this was bait. But now that he accidentally let such strong feelings develop, he was easily falling right into Koga's hands.

"I'm alive, he didn't touch me, and I'm still your's. We're okay," Ayumi said firmly, burying her head against him. "I was worried... he found out what you were doing... I'm just glad you're here," she sniffled weakly, her hands grasping at his clothes to increase her grip on him. She had been so scared he wouldn't come back, that she'd never see him again... She was okay with how things happened. Although, she was more scared about the future and whether or not Shiba's boss was figuring out their arrangement.

Yoshiki still felt furious, until he felt her head bury into him, and her grasp on him get tighter. He was... her only hope in this hellhole... Going against Koga... By himself, it would be no big deal, but of course he would have everyone else waiting to gang up on him. After all, Koga was a cheap, cowering leader that hid behind others. He... didn't stand a chance against them all. He'd be beaten, close to death if not all the way, for being a traitor. Then Ayumi... she'd be left to the dogs. His shaking ceased as he was talked down, his gaze softening. "Yeah... I am...," he said, to remind himself that he was all she had here. If he went charging in... there was no chance he'd get to stay with Ayumi. They would... do horrible things... All of them, even though some hadn't initially been interested in Ayumi, they all hated him and Koga liked to punish. Despite his anger... that Koga had hit her, he needed to calm down, and think rationally. If he didn't take the right steps, it was over...

Koga waited for a reaction from Yoshiki. He was really expecting it. But, time went by and Koga knew for a fact that Yoshiki was well aware of what he did to his reserve. Yet, there was no reaction. He had expected Yoshiki to try breaking down his doors and attack him. Hell, Koga was hoping for him to try something so he would finally have the chance to break him. True, he was acting out of a hunch that Yoshiki was trying to pull something off under his nose, by his weird behavior with the Shinozaki girl. Maybe Yoshiki was just a fucking weirdo with an unpredictable personality. But, he knew he had to figure out what that bastard was really like before the threat to his leadership even arose. He sat in his room, staring forward with an even gaze. He knew how he could test Yoshiki, past a beating to his reserve. He was so freakin' possessive over anyone even getting near his cell... but it was well known that anyone who had a reserve would have to yield if Koga wanted her. So, he'd see how well Yoshiki followed the rules... and if he actually cared about his reserve. He stepped out of his room, approaching one of the guys lounging around. "Hey! Ito! Go fetch me Kishinuma's reserve. I think I'm in the mood for something different today," Koga issued with a small cackle. This would be interesting... "And make sure you and the guys hang around outside my room," he added with no more explanation. Ito was too stupid to even be curious why, he would just follow his orders.

"Alright, c'mon," Ito grumbled as he tried the girls arms before her back. It wasn't easy given her squirmy movements. Yoshiki had done a god awful job training her. "For fuck's sake, stop moving," he growled as he tightened the rope. She let out a gasp of pain that he chuckled at lightly.

"W-where... are you taking me?" Ayumi asked, panic rising. This hadn't happened before and now scenarios kept racing through her head. Had she been sold off? Or maybe her family paid the ransom? But, what about Shiba? With no reply, as Ito moved down to unshackle her ankle, she moved her free leg to kick at him. She needed to know what was happening.

The kick barely hurt, but the gesture showed that she wasn't even close to broken. At this point, it was supposed to be a guaranteed thing she wouldn't fight. He tossed the shackle away, his hand tugging at the rope. She grunted in pain. "You should be honored. The boss requested ya," Ito explained with a glint in his eyes. Everyone was pretty well aware that Yoshiki was the only one who had gotten his hands on this one.

Ayumi paled, a stone sinking in her stomach. She opened her mouth to scream for Shiba, giving anything away be damned, she didn't want this to happen! Though, Ito was well accustomed to dealing with panicked girls. He shoved a gag in her mouth, clipping it on. He didn't say another word as he dragged her backwards by the rope tied behind her arms. Ayumi was forced to stumble along, too weak too put up a fight.

"Here ya go boss," Ito said, shoving her into his room. Koga shooed him away with a hand motion. Ito left the room and Ayumi immediately backed up to the door. Her eyes narrowed at Koga, disgust crawling over her skin like maggots.

Koga laughed lightly, walked by her and locking the door. "We don't want any interruptions, right?" he asked her, shoving her to the bed in a swift motion. He crawled on top of her, a twisted grin on his face and a sinister glint in his eyes. "Let me take that off for you, because I certainly want to hear you scream," Koga purred in her ear, unhooking the gag and tossing it aside.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Ayumi screamed, consequences not entering her mind as she felt his bulge brush against her leg. Koga just laughed, a hand grabbing her throat.

"We both know that's not what you really want to scream, right? What is it you call him? Inu? Kiba... no...no, Shiba, right? Why don't you call for your dog? I can assure you he won't get in," Koga taunted against her ear, his tongue tracing. Ayumi would have tried to move her head, but Koga's hand slipped up from her throat to her jaw, keeping her head from moving. Ayumi went bitterly silent as tears began to slip from her eyes. "Go on. Try it," Koga growled in her ear, his grip on her jaw painful.

"Go to hell," Ayumi hissed out. Koga looked at her flatly.

"Wouldn't you say we're already there?" he laughed lightly, his hand going under her skirt.

Ayumi wanted to remain steady in her resolve to not give Koga the satisfaction he wanted, but the moment his hand went under her skirt and began to strip her, that resolve faded fast. "SHIBAA! SHIBA!" she began to scream desperately, fear overriding everything as she tried to kick and squirm and make it impossible for Koga to get what he wanted.

Koga just seemed genuinely amused by all of this. Perhaps he'd finally get to the bottom of what type of person Yoshiki was after all. And even better, it seems like he has the power to finally break Yoshiki into nothing but another mindless worker.

She isn't here... Ayumi isn't here... Yoshiki could barely think straight as he made the walk to Koga's quarters. He was mainly there to ask where she was. Had she been sold without his knowledge? Just that simple assumption got his blood boiling. But he had to keep his head level... even if there was the possibility that he had failed in keeping her from being sold. That her trust had been misplaced... He was stopped by Gato.

"No one's allowed inside," he said with a sneer, his hand grasping Yoshiki's shoulder, "Especially not you, Kishinuma." He had to wonder if him just showing up was evidence enough that something more was going on here. He eyed Yoshiki suspiciously. There was something fishy here... He had smelled it way back when Yoshiki had first made the reserve.

Yoshiki returned the gaze with a glare, feeling the same sickening feeling that something was up. He looked at everyone, wondering why they were all stationed in the same place... "And what's going on that's so important?"

"Heh, that's-"

"SHIBAA! SHIBA!"

A-Ayumi?! Something broke inside Yoshiki. All rationality was pushed from his mind and his expression grew with a mix of shock and ire. He shoved past Ito and Gato to get directly to the door, ramming it with his shoulder first. He didn't even try opening it the normal way, certain it would be locked.

"Whu-, hey!" Gato called, grabbing Yoshiki roughly by his arm. Now he was certain... Yoshiki was a traitor. No one went against what Koga wanted, no matter what.

Despite being held back, Yoshiki was still raving. He began kicking at the door, quickly busting the lock before anyone else could grapple onto him. He elbowed Gato in the nose to make him let go, before charging the door. It swung open, slamming against the wall, but before Koga could probably register it, he swung a punch that sent him to the ground. Yoshiki couldn't even register Ayumi through his blinding rage, following Koga to the ground. One hand grabbed his collar to pull him up, the other repeatedly giving him hard, fast punches. He slammed him against the floor again, his grip tight on his throat. This dog's ferocious protection had been triggered by his name, and couldn't be snapped out of it. "YOU NO GOOD FUCKING BASTARD! GO TO FUCKING HELL!" he yelled, pulling the spew of curses from his fury.

Koga had been sure his guards and the door would keep him safe. He hadn't questioned for a second that the barriers he set up would keep Yoshiki from reaching him, if he was in fact out for his blood. Koga's amusement at Ayumi's pitiful screams and squirming didn't last long as suddenly the door cracked opened and he was hit to the ground. The punches and hit happened quickly, his brain hardly able to keep up. "Get him the fuck off me!" Koga snapped, hit head feeling ready to burst at the multiple impacts. It was only seconds after Koga's command that his henchmen seemed to snap out of their stupor to go into Koga's room and pull Yoshiki off him. He was then pulled out of the small bedroom, since there wasn't enough room to let everyone get a hit. Koga hissed, rubbing his face painfully. 'I fucking knew it! Even after all this time, he's out to ruin us all!' Koga thought, looking over at Ayumi who was sobbing on the bed. Tch, whatever power she had over Yoshiki was surely a great one. He grabbed a chain he kept on his bed for when he had visitors to his room and clasped it around Ayumi's neck. He left her pathetically sobbing, mumbling 'Shiba' over and over again.

He stepped outside his room to see what the men were doing to Yoshiki. The beating was quick, guys moving in and out of the inner circle to get hits off at him. While none of them would be dumb enough to bring out knives, since killing him wouldn't be so fun, they found other weapons to replace them. Ito had a baseball bat, one guy held a chain that he used as a whip, one guy even just had a wooden plank. As Koga stepped up, a few guys stepped away to give him access to Yoshiki. He sneered down at the blonde with a disdainful glare. "So, it seems like we have a traitor among us," he said, kicking Yoshiki in the stomach as hard as he could handle. "How fucking long did you really think you could keep this charade up? You think we couldn't see how fucking weird you were acting? Gotta say, you really need to stop letting little girls be your soft spot," Koga snickered as he held his hand out expectantly to gain some type of weapon. Someone dropped a chain in his hand. Koga's grin spread across his face as he wrapped the metal around Yoshiki's throat. "You've made a very, very poor decision today, Shiba," Koga hissed at him with narrowed eyes.

Yoshiki was still cursing and putting up a fight as he was grabbed and pulled out of the room. He was still being held, until there was a cracking hit against his head that assured the others he wouldn't recover. At least, not fast enough before they continued the beating. His head felt like it had been split open, the hit definitely not caused by a fist. He couldn't hardly move past the pain in his head before there was a hard hit of metal against his back. He shouted at the unexpected, sharp pain, tossing himself onto his side. Eventually, he couldn't differentiate the blows, his brain could only register the devastating increase of pain throughout his entire body. He was writhing in agony when the guys stopped to let Koga at him, but he couldn't even tell there had been a pause. Every piece of him felt broken, and all his brain could think about was these being his last moments. He gave an agonizing yelp at the hit to his stomach, his instincts controlling his movement's now as his hands clutched at his stomach. He couldn't even really hear Koga, as static went off in his head by the multiple blows it had received. If he could feel anything but the pain, he would know blood was running down his face from the injury by the baseball bat, and was also being coughed up onto the floor. He could barely react before the chain was wrapped around his throat, and all that came into response of Koga was choking and gagging, and the occasional cough that brought blood up his throat.

Koga released the chain as he felt himself grow bored. He almost wished the guys would have slowly built up his punishment so Koga could have taunted him a bit. But, him in pain on the floor was just as good. "Leave him here. If he bleeds to death, oh well," Koga sneered. The guys backed off, seemingly disappointed. Koga would like to mess with Yoshiki a bit more... finally make him submissive to him. If he died, though, it wouldn't be the end of the world. Though, if he did recover, Koga figured he'd need a little more of a buffer to keep Yoshiki in line.

"What do you want us to do with the girl?" Ito asked, glancing back to the bedroom. The gross sound of sobbing and calling 'Shiba' continued to come from her.

"Put her back. I'm not in the mood," Koga growled. He would get to that later. Yoshiki fucked them over with that one, considering she should be completely broken in by now. Worse is that she was attached to Yoshiki, which would make controlling her that much more annoying. Ito nodded at the order, going to grab her. "Oh, and let her see his body." Ito nodded once again.

"Shiba? SHIBA! NO, NO, NO! Let go of me!" Ayumi began to scream, tears staining her face as she stared horrified at Yoshiki's bleeding, broken body. Ito paused for a moment, holding her back as she jerked forward to try to get to him. Ito had a faint smirk on his face as he pulled her away, back in the direction of her cell. Her screams didn't stop.

"Sato, cancel the mission for today. I have a new one in mind," Koga said with a glint in his eyes. Yoshiki would regret ever laying a hand on him or disrespecting his authority.