Thank you al for your kind reviews and your patience. This will be the chapter that explains what Atemu did to those men. You'll see what I mean when I wanted to wait. I wanted this little event between Kaiba and Jounouchi.

Warnings: Mentions of torture and language

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Chapter Twelve

Jounouchi didn't know what bothered him more. The fact that Kaiba was more distant than ever before, or that he wouldn't talk to him about what he was feeling. The two still shared the same bed, but the blond was beginning to think that Kaiba didn't want him in the house. He friends went from living in the mansion with him and Kaiba to just visiting every day. Doctor Tsuzuki cleared him a week ago, and said that he was finally breaking free of his shell. He wasn't having as many nightmares as before, but he still couldn't answer the one question that Kaiba wanted him to answer. Jounouchi sighed and bowed his head. No matter how long the doctor talked to him or how long he thought about it, he still couldn't remember what the man he called master looked like. It was like retrieving his old memories meant burying that one thing he wanted to remember the most.

The blond stopped pacing in the large parlor and sat down on the leather chair directly in front of the fireplace. Being towards the end of summer, the fireplace remained empty. He heard quiet footsteps above him. He knew that Mokuba was in his room playing video games and the younger man wouldn't move for hours on hand. He assumed it was Kaiba moving out of his office and walking down the hallway. Footsteps tapped against the wooden surface of the stairs while a hand slid down the railing. Jounouchi stood from his seat and glanced out the doorway and into the hallway. He locked eyes with Kaiba who was in the process of just walking by. Jounouchi held out his hand. "Wait," he found himself saying.

Kaiba turned and walked into the room. "Did you need something?" he softly asked. He knew that he was acting distant towards Jounouchi, but he couldn't bring himself to being close to the blond. He wanted nothing but to the ravish him and hold him close, but he knew the smaller man wasn't ready. He hated himself for those thoughts. The more he stayed away from the blond, the less he thought about how much he wanted Jounouchi. However, right at this moment, he hated himself more because of the hurt he saw in those brown eyes. Jounouchi opened his mouth but quickly closed it. His shoulders dropped along with his head. Whatever the blond wanted to say seemed to be lost. Kaiba walked over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. "You can say whatever you want."

Jounouchi moved his hand to lift Kaiba's scarred hand. "If I tell you what happened in that house, will you tell me how you got this scar? I remember you leaving with Atemu, and when I saw you next, your hand was wrapped in gaze. You refused to tell me what happened."

The brunet guided Jounouchi to one of the chairs. "Let me get some tea for us." Kaiba knew that he was only delaying the inevitable, but he didn't have a choice. Jounouchi deserved to know everything. He wasn't planning on letting the blond relive his nightmares under the assumption that he had to give up his knowledge in order to gain knowledge. He boiled the water while he took out a couple packages of Chamomile tea. He poured some water into two of the cups before putting the remainder of the hot water in the teapot he placed on the tray.

He returned into the parlor to find Jounouchi still sitting on the chair he pushed him into. He set the tray down on the table separating the two chairs. Kaiba reached for his own cup while watching Jounouchi reach for the other one with shaky hands. The CEO hid his frown by taking a sip of the tea. The warm liquid slid down his throat and warmed his body. "To start, I don't want you telling me what happened in that house until you are ready to share it with someone other than your doctor. I didn't know this wound bothered you."

Kaiba took another sip a tea before sitting back in the chair and balancing the cup on his crossed knee. "Atemu was tired of waiting for Roland and his man to come back with information on the man you called master. He thought that if we scared them with a bit of magic, then they would open up more. I agreed with him and decided that it was time to get the information I needed to find the man that tortured you. I want his blood more than anything."

The brunet finished his tea and poured himself some more. "Roland didn't like us getting involved only because the police were still looking for those men. When we got there, we put all the men in the same room, thinking that the others would start talking if they watched one of their own being tortured. Atemu assured me that he had enough control over his shadow magic even though the body he is in was weaker than when he resided inside of Yugi. I trusted him even though I had some doubt on his control. At first, Atemu was fine. The first man proved stronger than I thought. No matter how many bones the shadow monster broke, the man refused to give us any information. Atemu slit his throat and let him bleed to death before we started on the next person."

Jounouchi put the empty cup down on the tray. He noticed that his hands were not shaking as much as they were before. Kaiba was watching him closely, but made no motion to indicate that he saw Jounouchi's shaking hands. He continued with his story anyway. "Atemu did basically the same thing to the second and third man. I knew that I wasn't going to get any opportunity to have my own way with them, considering that Atemu was taking his time punishing all of them. All I wanted was the name of your master. I knew that once I had that information, Atemu wouldn't be torturing that man. By the time Atemu reached the fourth man, he was running on reserved energy. I didn't notice that he was tired until the last second. He summoned a creature from the Shadow Realm, but it half came through and turned on us. It quickly devoured the man in front of him before Atemu could try to get some information out of him. Atemu tried to banish it back to the Shadow Realm, but the monster jumped at me and bit firmly into my hand. It took everything Atemu had to get the monster off my hand and banish it."

Kaiba reached down to his hand and rubbed it gently. "He was worried that the monster might have poisoned me with its darkness, but luckily Atemu got to him before that happened. Once we got back to the mansion, he bandaged it and kept a close eye on the wound for a few days. I was surprised that none of those men revealed who hired them. I tried to go through the evidence that I had in order to find this mysterious man, but unfortunately, the only one that may lead me to this man would be you. I don't want to make you tell me, and I know once you remember you will tell me. That is all I can hope for. If we don't catch him soon, that man will get away free. Now, I told you that story not because I want to hear what happened in that house, but because you asked me, and I wanted to tell you. That goes the same for you. I don't want you telling me things you are not ready to talk about."

Jounouchi poured himself more tea, realizing that as he drank the warm liquid, he felt calmer. "Was Atemu worried because you are light?"

"Yes, he said that my soul has too much light in it to handle something dark being injected into it. He worried that with a small amount of darkness it could harbor that personality that he banished from me when we first met. I was worried about that as well. You were still recovering, and I didn't want that part of me to be reawakened. He would hurt you."

"I'm sorry that you have all that pressure. I wish I could help you find that man, but something inside of me is not letting me remember. Even when I was locked inside of my mind, I don't think I could have told you what he looked like. I don't even know his name. I wish I could remember because I know you are worried about him coming after Mokuba and I. I appreciate that you want me to be ready to tell you my story, but if I keep it locked away from the person I trust the most how will I be able to recover? I want to tell you something that is very important that you know."

Kaiba set his cup down, giving Jounouchi his full attention. He wanted to make sure that the blond knew that he cared about what he was going to say. "For the first couple of months, I fought everything they wanted to train me to do. Their punishment severely hurt me. I became delusional from the pain. I would imagine myself with all my friends in a field during the summertime. Everyone was there including you. My imagination was the only thing that kept me going in that place through the pain and humiliation. Slowly that image began to fade, and I saw nothing but darkness. I became the dog they wanted me to be."

Jounouchi stopped, wondering if he had the will to continue, but it seemed to become easier as he continued on. "They burned the soles of my feet to prevent me from walking, but when that didn't work; they broke both of my ankles and left them to heal that way. It hurt to even crawl because I had to drag them behind me. They kept me naked with that plug in my ass so that they could fuck me any time they wanted to. I was grateful for that plug but hated it at the same time. I hated it because it was too humiliating to keep inside of me and grateful because they never prepared me before they fucked me. It kept me lose enough for most of the men that the man sold me to. Unfortunately he was huge and tore me every time."

Kaiba felt his anger boil inside of him and wanted to growl as his temper increased, but he didn't want to scare Jounouchi. "I developed this new image at night while I tried to sleep, but it was always cold in that cell and the tail prevented me from sitting or lying painlessly. I kept seeing this giant white dragon that I remember now as the Blue Eyes. In front of it stood someone that I could never see. I knew it was a male and he was tall, but I couldn't see who it was. I realize now that it was you. You were commanding the Blue Eyes, and I would wake up right before the attack started. It was like something was telling me you were willing to fight this battle, but you couldn't find me. I don't remember much of what happened in that place beside all the pain, but I remembered needing to see that person in my dreams. I knew that as long as I continued to dream of the Dragon Master I would eventually be free."

The blond smiled bright. "You saved me just like I hoped you would. I'm sorry that I can't tell you right now what that man looks like or who he is, but hopefully soon I will remember just like I remembered that it was you that stood in front of the Blue Eyes. Will you have patience with me? I know it's frustrating that you can't find out who this man is, but don't push me away because of it."

Kaiba was shocked. Jounouchi thought that he was pushing him away because he wouldn't give him the one piece of the puzzle he needed. The brunet moved off the chair and walked over to him. He knelt in front of the blond and wrapped his arms around his waist. He half pulled Jounouchi off the seat to bury his face into his stomach. "That's not why I was pushing you away. I would never blame you for not remembering what he looks like or who he is. I was ashamed of my thoughts towards you. I want to show you how love should be experience, but I know you are not ready. I was afraid that I might push you too far and decided it was best to keep you away from me. I'm sorry for making you feel that I was upset with you."

Jounouchi ran his fingers through Kaiba's hair and sank down on the floor to hug him more comfortably. "I trust you. Why can't you trust yourself? I know you would never do anything that would purposely hurt me. You are right. I'm not ready yet for anything serious, but I also know that you will patiently wait for me. That is something I greatly appreciate. Thank you for telling me everything. Are you done working for today?"

Kaiba smiled and pulled Jounouchi off the floor. "I could be. Do you want me to hold you?"

The blond nodded. "I'm sorry for always needing to feel your comfort."

"Don't worry about it. I feel privileged that you want me of all people to comfort you. Eventually we will be able to figure out who this man is and live happily. Until then, I will protect you. I promise." Jounouchi smiled at him and walked hand in hand up towards Kaiba's room. He trusted Kaiba more than anyone in the world. He knew that the CEO would protect him with everything he had. The blond crawled into Kaiba's bed, knowing that it was still early in the night, but he was exhausted and knew that the brunet was as well. Kaiba shut the light off and slid under the covers. He pulled Jounouchi into his arms, happy that the barrier that started to form between the two of them had finally broken.

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I hope you like that chapter. The next chapter will be a continuation of this chapter. It will have more things revealing. We are on the way towards the end. I hope I'm not losing anyone yet. Thank you all for reading. Please review. See you on Monday.

Angel Dov