Author's note: *rushes in* I'M STILL ON TIME. Even though it's technically Monday here and I gotta get up early, bUT I'm here.

Thanks for all your fab reviews!

A rather heavy stomachache woke Yami up from his slumber. The last time Yugi had given him some water was probably last night (he was too disoriented to remember), but since it was nearly impossible to drink with those cuts, it had hurt too much to drink properly. His mouth was so dry that it felt like he had just swallowed a cup of sand.

He experimentally opened his mouth behind the cloth and found out the wounds had somewhat healed. As he carefully ran his tongue over them, he winced lightly at the burning sensation and quickly halted his actions. Dried blood covered his lips and Yami grimaced at the horrible, sour taste.

There was no sign of Yugi. Since he always turned off the lights whenever he left, Yami had completely lost sense of time and it was making him feel quite paranoid. There were no windows or other doors, and Yami curled up his fingers at the horrible thought. It was so incredibly quiet that it was maddening because the only thing he could hear was the sound of his own ragged breathing.

That last thought made him sit up. The minute he had walked into this room, the voices got blocked out immediately.

Yugi had lied to him. No one could hear him and there was definitely no way someone could hear him. Then why…?

He curled up his fingers again and he stiffened right away. Something rough and wet had brushed across his skin. Yami looked down at this hand and saw that his wrist had grown thin; he had lost weight. The ropes around his wrists were no longer tight and he almost choked on his own saliva when he found out he could slide his hands forward.

"…" Letting out a small breath through his nose, Yami carefully slipped out of the ropes. Trembling hands reached for his ankles and gently untied the knots. His forehead glistened with sweat while he tried his best to free himself as quickly as he could. The last thing was the cloth around his head and Yami practically tore it off, trying not to stare at the large bloodstain.

There was a good chance he wasn't able to run since the wounds in his thighs were so deep and fresh. There was absolutely no way they could have healed in such a short amount of time. His entire body shook as Yami steadily pushed himself out of the chair and he bit his lip to keep himself from crying out. Warm blood trickled down his legs and Yami saw that the friction had caused his wounds to spring open again.

The aching muscles trembled under his weight while he walked over to the small pile of clothes and clumsily knelt down. He reached for his throbbing head as he saw that the room had started to spin, or at least, that was what it felt like. When he looked down, he saw that his handcuffs were broken, the pistol was unloaded and that there was a large tear in jacket. He could have known that Yugi would be one step ahead of him.

"Fuck," he breathed and ran a hand over his face. It would have been too easy, anyway.

With a loud squeak, the door opened and the lights were turned on.

Yami's body automatically tensed as panic seeped into his brain. His bloodshot eyes fell on Yugi who was standing in the doorway, head tipped the side and looking at him as if he was only slightly confused at the sight. Neither of them said anything and Yami was growing more anxious as the seconds silently ticked by. Yugi just stood there, watching him with a small, almost endearing smile and took a few steps forward, closing the door behind him afterwards.

"Still hanging in there, Yami?"

Not expecting such a weird question, Yami stared at him, flabbergasted. "What?"

Yugi crouched down next to him and brushed his bangs aside. "I asked if you were still doing okay."

It had come to the point where Yami wanted nothing more than to scream at the top of his lungs every time Yugi came too close to him, or that he would panic whenever he saw a knife. Even now, when Yugi tenderly massaged his scalp and held his injured jaw with a warm hand, it was frightening. So, instead of answering, Yami somewhat managed to nod and Yugi's eyes softened in response.

"Really?"

"'m fine," Yami managed to mumble, being very careful not to move his lips too much.

"Hmm." Yugi ran a hand over his torso and stopped somewhere halfway, gripping his chest. "If you say so."

"… You lied to me."

Another silence fell over them and Yugi looked at him through his dark eyelashes. One of his eyebrows disappeared under his blond bangs and the corner of his lips twitched. "Oh?"

There was no going back now. Yami had kind of blurted it out and was now desperately trying not too back down, but his body had grown so stiff that it was very hard to continue. Yugi's soft hand had slipped down to his waist, its warmth spreading all over his upper body in an odd, yet soothing way. Dark violet eyes kept watching him like a hawk, making his insides squirm.

"I can't hear anything when you close that door," Yami finally uttered. "There was no need to cut my lips."

"Ah, about that…" Yugi rose to his feet, raised his right hand with a small grin and placed the tips of his middle finger and thumb against each other. "That's because I forgot to do this."

Snap.

Voices, footsteps, laughter, glasses clinking together, murmuring… Yami could hear everything.

Beyond confused, he looked up at the ceiling and could have sworn that someone had just placed their foot on the spot he was looking at. He knew that he was somewhere under the building, but it couldn't be that Yugi could control the sounds.

Yami narrowed his eyes at the so-called magician. "You really think I'm gonna fall for that?"

"Fall for what?" Yugi folded his arms over his chest, that same grin still plastered on his face.

"You're trying to freak me out," Yami said in a low voice. "You just needed an excuse to cut up my face, didn't you?"

However, the rumbling of footsteps and the voices became louder. At some point they were so loud that it was as if there was someone talking right next to him, and he felt his faint reflexes kicking in every time someone burst out laughing. Yami was sure he was going insane because the noises were deafening and giving him a migraine. His body shook with each breath he took and then his eyes widened when he realized this was not the first time something like this had happened.

Snap.

Yami raised his head and blinked at Yugi who was still holding up his hand. "What is going on?"

The other didn't say anything, merely pursed his lips and lowered his hand until it was by his side. Yami remembered the maddening buzzing noise he had heard when he was talking to Yugi for the second time. Maybe Yami had already lost his grip on reality and was falling deeper and deeper.

"Feel like you're losing it?" Yugi asked sweetly and put his hand in his pocket.

Yes. "What are you playing at?"

"Like I said, sometimes I forget that I already blocked out all the sounds."

"And like I said, you're just good at distracting people. It's obvious you've got some kind of tape hidden somewhere in this room and you're using it to freak me out."

Booming laughter easily bounced off the walls, sending multiple shivers down Yami's back and making the hairs on his arms stand up. Yugi had thrown his head back and was leaning on the chair to maintain his balance, clearly amused by Yami's wordings. He even wiped away an imaginary tear as he straightened up and stared at him with a small smile.

However, that smile turned into a frown and Yugi rolled up his sleeves. "All right, the gloves are off."

With one single flick of his wrist, the chair was thrown into the air, smashed against the wall and broken into a million pieces. Yami could merely watch, his breath caught in his throat as Yugi advanced towards him, his steps echoing loudly. He tried to walk, but his legs just shook pathetically under his weight and he collapsed.

"This isn't real, this can't be real," Yami stammered stupidly and tried to get up by gripping the wall.

"Questioning my powers?" Yugi frowned, stretching out his arm towards him. His fingers slowly curled inwards as if he was making a fist, and Yami felt an invisible hand wrapping itself tightly around his torso. "Here, let me show you."

Flex. Just like the chair, Yami was slammed into a wall as Yugi extended his fingers, holding him there. The air was knocked out of him right away and pain coursed through his entire body. Real pain. This was truly happening.

"After all those weeks, you finally manage to get your ass over here and all you do is insult me," Yugi took a step closer and Yami groaned as the invisible hand squeezed the air out of him. "and make fun of me. I'm starting to wonder if you were really worth all that trouble."

Those glowering violet eyes fastened on him and Yami felt his heart skip a beat. "Wait… You were trying to get me to you?" Then, he gritted his teeth and tried to escape from the grip, but he was practically glued to the wall. "It was you! You were the one who broke in, you lured in those kids, you stole my father's body from the autopsy room!"

"And look who's finally caught on," Yugi smiled sweetly and slightly loosened his grip so Yami could breathe normally for a moment. "I had to provoke you, otherwise you wouldn't have shown up."

"Fine, I'm here and I'm all yours. What, you're gonna kill me, too?"

Yugi's eyebrow twitched and Yami screamed out in pain when the wounds at the corners of his mouth started tearing. He was roughly dropped to the ground, but that didn't stop his skin from ripping. The cuts kept extending until Yami felt them in the middle of his cheeks and he desperately pressed his hands against his face to stop it. Blood was continuously pouring out of the wounds, wetting his face and hands, mixing with the tears that were escaping from his eyes.

"I can keep going till your face splits in two," Yugi growled menacingly.

"Stop! Stop!" Yami screeched hoarsely and the skin stopped tearing right away. His body instantly calmed down and he let himself fall to the floor, breathing heavily.

"Do you want the pain to stop?" Weakly pushing himself up, Yami glared up at Yugi who was leaning over him, glowing with pride. "If you want, I can end it all in a heartbeat for you. Just say the word and it'll be quick and painless."

Wanting the pain to stop… Yami kept looking at him, searching his eyes. Those were the words all the adolescents had used before they ended up killing their loved ones. In order for the pain to stop, they had to kill someone else. They had all reached insanity and Yami would be lying to himself if he didn't admit that he was close to losing it as well. There was some kind of unwanted desire to put an end to everything, to make it stop, to make it all go away. And then, Mana's tear tracked face flashed in front of his eyes and it hit him. It all made sense.

"You motherfucker!" Yami shouted and grabbed Yugi's collar, pulling him closer until their faces were only an inch apart. "What did you do to my sister?! Where is she?!"

As soon as those last words left his mouth, Yugi's eyes started glowing. Within less than a second, his eye sockets were bright yellow and Yami let go of him, literally terrified. Smirking widely, Yugi wrapped his fingers around his neck and hauled him back onto his feet, his piercing eyes almost blinding him.

"I want it. And I want it now."

His voice had changed and Yami immediately recognized it as the voice that spoke to him on the phone when Mana had called him. The same voice in his premonitions. The voice that—

The iron grip on his neck grew stronger and Yami gasped for air, struggling wildly. Yugi pushed him up against the wall, breathing hungrily like an animal that was about to tear its prey to shreds. His free hand came to rest on his chest and even though Yami was wearing a shirt, he could have sworn he felt sharp nails poking at his flesh. The scream got stuck in throat as he felt those fingers penetrating his chest, pushing in deeper and deeper.

"Almost there…" Yugi whispered against his lips, almost nipping at the torn skin. "Don't worry, it'll all be over soon."

Just when Yami was about to bite off his tongue, a bullet flew across Yugi's arm, going right through his sleeve. Yugi immediately pulled back as if he had burned himself, his eyes back to their usual violet color. Yami ended up on the floor, choking and coughing, holding his bruised throat.

"I swear, if you even think about moving a single muscle, I won't hesitate to put a bullet through that fucked up head of yours," a familiar voice growled.

Yami shakily pushed himself up to look at the source of that voice and his eyes widened in relief.

Standing in the doorway, holding up a gun that was aimed at Yugi's face, was none other than Kaiba. His eyes contained a spine-chilling coldness and his lips had turned into a thin line, making him almost unrecognizable.

"We both know you won't do that," Yugi chuckled and dusted off his clothes.

Not even a second passed before Kaiba had already fired the gun. Yugi's knees shook before he was forcefully pulled to the floor by gravity. Kaiba had shot him in both calves in less than two seconds and Yami couldn't help but be impressed by his skills.

"You're right," Kaiba snarled and stomped over to him. "Because I'm not a freak like you."

Without any sign of hesitation, Kaiba rammed his gun against Yugi's head, causing him to slip into unconsciousness right away and end up on the floor right next to Yami. It took Yami a moment to fully register what was going on and it wasn't until more people came rushing in, calling out his name that he realized what was going on. Policemen circled around them, muttering to themselves and pointing at Yugi's body.

"You found him!" Mai's voice practically shrieked. The clicking of high heels grew louder and louder until his captain dropped down onto her knees in front of him and held his cheeks. "Oh my god, what— Your face. What the hell did he do to you? Listen, I'm so sorry for not believing you, I— You're… Oh, Yami…"

Mai bit her lip, silent tears streaming down her face. Then, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. Yami could merely let his head rest on her shoulder as she squeezed him soothingly, still shaking like a leaf because he could still feel Yugi's hand around his throat.

Jounouchi rushed over to him as well, putting an arm around his shoulder to help him to his feet.

"Can you walk?" he quickly asked, eyeing him worriedly.

"U-uh, I dunno," Yami mumbled lamely as his legs did a poor job at supporting his weight.

"Here, Mai, gimme a hand…"

From the corner of his eye, he saw Kaiba looking at him, gun still in his hand, along with a pair of handcuffs that were undoubtedly for Yugi.

Tokyo, Japan
September 25h, day 46, 1:20 am

It was beyond horrible to tell them everything. Even though Yami was sitting in a very comfortable bed with Anzu by his side, rubbing his arm, it was really hard to report. It was as if he was back in that room and Yugi was standing in front of him, cutting him everywhere with that knife and Yami had to constantly remind himself that he was in a hospital, surrounded by the people who had saved him, but his body simply refused to believe it.

Kaiba was sitting at the foot of the bed, listening intensely to every word, Mai was leaning against the window, shaking her head and looking like she was about to burst into tears any second, Otogi kept cursing under his breath next to her and Jounouchi had balled up his fist, appearing to be ready to punch someone.

And lastly, Anzu, who was crying silently next to him, pressing her lips together every time Yami had to pause for a moment to take a deep breath. His voice was hoarse from all the talking and on top of that, he was so exhausted that it took ever ounce of his willpower to not pass out on the spot.

The weirdest part had yet to come. The part where Yugi had started to blatantly defy the law of gravity, throwing the chair and him at the wall with a mere wave of his hand, his eyes changing color, his voice, his fingers almost boring through his shirt… It was hard to say whether they were going to believe him, since he wasn't exactly sure of it himself. Maybe Yugi had simply managed to trick him like he thought in the beginning, or it was a buildup of his fatigue and anxiety, causing him to hallucinate.

And then there were the parts that Yugi had sexually assaulted him and that was so utterly humiliating that Yami kept choking on his words. He could feel Yugi's hands wandering down his chest, those hot lips on his own, the whispering in his ear that made goose bumps appear all over his body—

Yami noticed he had stopped talking for a while because he saw that everyone was staring at him with wide eyes.

"You insulted him and then?" Kaiba pressed somewhat urgently.

"Give him a break, will you?" Mai huffed and folded her arms over her chest. "The poor kid's been through enough as it is."

"I need to know what we're dealing with here," Kaiba shot back, clearly irritated.

"Think we already got a pretty clear picture," Jounouchi spoke up, pushing himself off the wall and running a hand through his hair. "I'd better call the office to see how they're doing over there."

"And I'm gonna get some coffee," Otogi joined in and both men walked out the door, giving everyone a quick wave and closing the door behind them.

With a small sigh, Yami rubbed at his forehead, wincing slightly. "Sorry, Kaiba. I'm trying really hard here."

"Then try harder!" Kaiba suddenly yelled and Yami jumped, accidentally knocking over his tray of hospital food that was placed next to his bed.

Everyone grew silent while Anzu quietly rose to her feet to clean up the mess. Yami brought his shaky hand to his gown and tugged at it nervously, feeling beyond embarrassed. Tears had formed in his eyes again at the sudden outburst and he didn't know what to do anymore. He felt so weak and powerless for reacting like that, and not being able to talk about everything that happened. It was his fucking job to stay calm in situations like these, but it was just too difficult.

"Out," Mai snapped at Kaiba and pointed a finger at the door. "Before I throw you out."

Kaiba didn't need to be told twice and left right away, mumbling something about getting some coffee as well. A twinge of guilt hit Yami at the sight of his boss leaving the room and he bit his lip, absently rubbing his bandaged fingers together. He looked at Mai as she closed the curtains.

"I guess we'll all be going then," she said after she was done and turned back to Yami. Clasping her hands together, she continued, "I'll make sure to take Kaiba with me so he won't bother you anymore. You deserve some rest and… I-I'll come visit tomorrow."

Smiling faintly, she left the room as well. Yami hesitantly looked up at Anzu who was fiddling with her blouse. She was the only one who hadn't said a word ever since they arrived and Yami really wanted to apologize to her for not listening, but he simply couldn't muster the courage to get the words past his lips.

Instead of saying something, Anzu carefully climbed onto the bed and went to lie down next to him. Yami moved over so she could get comfortable and sighed when she placed her head on his chest, wrapping an arm around his waist.

"I'm sorry," he croaked and his voice broke.

But Anzu shook her head and stroked his arm with the tips of her fingers. "It's okay. It's over."

Author's note: Eh? Eeeeeh? We have officially reached a climax, guys. FINALLY.

I should probably mention that I'm gonna go on a trip next Sunday for two weeks and I dunno if I'll be able to update then. I will put up one more chapter before I leave, so there's that~.

Please review!