Title: Beyond the Warzone

Summary: After Yami shields Joey and Mai from Ra's flames, he is left with the painful aftereffects of an attack from an Egyptian God. Kaiba realizes the extent of his injuries and takes matters into his own hands.

Rating: T

"Yami, please! You need to lie down!" Yugi cried, watching his other half as he stumbled through the doorway to their bedroom. Leaned heavily against the wall for support, he limped inside with a groan of discomfort, sliding the door shut behind him, barely remembering to lock it before sauntering towards the bed. He collapsed face first into the sheets, his legs hanging off the bed as he was too weak to pull himself up.

He had just taken a blast of fire from the mighty Egyptian God Ra, and damn did it hurt. Every inch of his body throbbed in pain as liquid fire coursed through his veins. Yugi begged him to switch places so the spirit could rest but he vehemently refused, not allowing his lighter half to experience the excruciating aftereffects of a God's power.

"Yami…" Yugi whispered pitifully, wishing his incorporeal body could help his closest friend onto the bed where he could finally rest. The Pharaoh's body trembled involuntarily, face paling as he let out another cry before gritting his teeth to silence it. The pain came in waves and in their height it took all his willpower to stay conscious as it tore through layers of his skin, seeming to burn the very soul trapped inside.

"I'll be fine, Yugi." He answered at last, his voice hoarse from his struggles. "Listen, it's late. I know it's the last thing you want to do right now but you must sleep. We have an important duel tomorrow and I need you in your best shape."

"Pharaoh how could I possibly sleep when you're hurt like this?" He practically shrieked, tears pricking at his eyes as he watched on helplessly.

"Yugi," He sucked in a raspy breath, "please understand. I need you tomorrow. I can't duel without you. This is one of the most important duels of our lives and a lot is at stake. In this condition, I won't be able to help you like I usually do. Think about what's on the line… I-" He clenched his eyes shut and arched his back as another wave of torment forced him into silence. Yugi put a comforting hand on his darker half's shoulder, but his hypersensitive skin burned at the touch and he jerked away with a hiss of discomfort. "I'm sorry, Partner…"

"Don't be. I'm the one who should be sorry." Yugi replied sorrowfully, sighing as a feeling of helplessness overwhelmed him. He couldn't even comfort his other half during his unbearable agony. A moment passed between them as the Pharaoh's discomfort subsided and he was left shuddering and panting in a defeated slump against the sheets.

"Yugi… you need to sleep." He reminded gently, daring to crack open an amethyst eye to glance upon his worried partner who avoided meeting his gaze. He fidgeted with the puzzle around his neck before nodding reluctantly.

"Promise me… promise me you'll be alright." He pleaded, clenching his fists as the salty tears finally escaped his eyes. Yami did his best to force a smile to his lips.

"I promise." He nodded, "Now go to sleep."

"Goodnight Yami." Yugi whispered uneasily, taking a shaky step towards his darker half before allowing himself to become sucked into the puzzle as he took refuge in the safety of his soul room for the night.

Finally alone, Yami allowed his walls to crumble as his own unshed tears finally spilt and he cried silently into the sheets below him. Still too weak to pull himself up, he resorted to rolling onto his side, the effort earning him searing pain within his torso, radiating through his limbs and a broken sob escaping his lips. He was only thankful no one was there to see him in such a pitiful state.

Minutes passed like hours as the Pharaoh lay curled into himself, overwhelmed with exhaustion but forced to remain conscious by the liquid heat tormenting his body. He could feel his own heartbeat pounding in his chest and broke into cold sweat at the thought of what would happen if Marik found him in such a pathetic state. He couldn't remember if he'd locked the door in his pain-fueled delirium, but trusted his instincts and prayed to the Gods that no one would intrude during this hour.

Apparently, his prayer fell on deaf ears as seconds later he heard a brief knock at his door. With a scowl, he clenched his eyes shut and hoped whoever was trying to reach him at this hour would assume he'd be asleep and leave him to his mind-numbing torture. He basked in the comfort of momentary silence before he heard the fumbling of something outside the door.

Wiping away the tears, he forced his screaming muscles to comply with him as he sat up. The door slid open simultaneously, revealing a confident and dignified Kaiba, holding a drink in one hand and a card key in the other.

"Kaiba! What-" Yami was cut off by another bout of pain, causing him to cry out and curl back into himself. Kaiba narrowed his eyes and closed the door behind him, lock clicking in place. As he regained his senses, the Pharaoh summoned all of his strength to look boldly into the man's eyes, unwavering despite Ra's devastation torturing his weakened body. "How did you get in?"

"In case you've forgotten, this is my blimp."

Yami growled at the man's snarky attitude and clenched his fists as he could feel the trembles returning against his will. "What do you want, Kaiba?"

"Don't play dumb with me." He scoffed. "I have cameras in the hallways you know. You spent the last two hours roaming around like an injured mutt with no home. You barely managed to support yourself and then you come crawling in here and never show your face again. I thought you died."

"I didn't realize you cared so much about me, Kaiba." Yami teased weakly despite himself.

"Don't flatter yourself." He grumbled, "I wanted to make sure you don't die on me before our duel."

The Pharaoh was about to taunt the brunette again when another wave of agony washed over him, intensified by his moment of distraction. He couldn't hold down the screech as his body convulsed. Burying his face into the sheets to hide the fresh tears, he mustered up his most intimidating voice and growled angrily at the intruder that had so rudely interrupted his silent suffering.

"Go away."

His voice cracked.

Searing pain coursing through his veins, he could do nothing but grit his teeth and wait for the feeling to pass, hoping Kaiba got the hint that he wanted to be left alone. Instead, he hissed as a pair of cold hands grabbed his legs and forced him unceremoniously onto the bed.

His overly sensitive skin burned from the sensation, but he silently thanked the brunette for his help, as he could finally relax into the bed he'd been too weak to climb into. As the worst of the pain slowly subsided, he panted from the exertion on his body, He blinked away the fresh tears to risk a glance into icy blue eyes that watched him with an expressionless gaze.

"Drink this." He ordered, shoving the glass of clear liquid into the spirit's face. He blinked in confusion before narrowing his eyes and scrunching his nose in distrust.

"I don't know what that is." He growled, turning his head away in defiance. "And I don't necessarily trust you to not poison me and take the title of King of Games that way."

Kaiba scoffed in response, shaking his head in disbelief. "For being an ancient Pharaoh, you sure are stupid."

Yami's ears perked at this. The brunette always claimed he didn't believe any of their "hocus pocus magic" and simply addressed him as Yugi, leaving him to believe like everyone else, Kaiba couldn't see the difference between the two. Clearly this wasn't the case. Amused with his new findings, he turned to face his rival again.

"Why would I bother poisoning you? In this condition, I could've easily killed you a hundred times over by now if I wanted." He reasoned,

He couldn't argue with that. He was about to thank the CEO when another bout of pain ripped through him. He yelped and heard the glass being set down on the bedside table before hands gentler than he'd thought possible of Kaiba's pulled him into a sitting position. He hunched over, wrapping his trembling arms around himself as Ra's power worked its way through his body. There was nothing he could do but wait for his battered soul to heal.

A hand supported his back and he tried not to focus on the pain despite the featherlight touch. The glass was presented to him a second time, practically forced against his chest. Kaiba kept his free hand underneath to help the Pharaoh support it as his quivering fingers wrapped around it. "Drink. It'll help."

Finally giving into his rival's request, he reluctantly took a sip of the mystery liquid. It was sweet tasting like honey and soothed his throat which was raw from screaming.

"Thank you, Kaiba." He murmured, pain ebbing away as he took more plentiful gulps of his drink. The CEO didn't respond, taking a seat beside the Egyptian and watching him intently. The Pharaoh wasn't bothered by his actions and focused on the rippling of the surface of his partially consumed drink within the cup, squinting his eyes as it began to blur.

Startled, his head shot up, but he was met with a wave of dizziness as the room began to spin around him. The cup was taken from his shaky fingers and he reached to press the palm of his hand against his eye as the world around him distorted. He could feel his equilibrium slipping away and he sagged uselessly against his rival, feeling an arm wrap around his body and holding him securely so he didn't fall further.

"What…" He groaned, pushing both palms against his tired eyes. "Kaiba… what's… going on…" he slurred. Anxiety heightening as his limbs became lethargic, his arms dropped into his lap and he blinked rapidly at the CEO in alarm. Kaiba's hands reached for his shoulders, gently guiding his slackening body down to the bed. Realization hit the horrified Pharaoh too late.

"You drugged me…" He breathed, too stunned to react otherwise. He felt betrayed and weak as his eyelids grew heavy against his wishes.

"It's for your own good." Kaiba countered, watching the Pharaoh's eyes glaze over as the sedative started to take its effect on the king.

"But Marik…" He murmured uselessly, head lolling to the side in a weak attempt to fight. He had to protect Yugi from the danger. It was his duty. He couldn't fall asleep if it wasn't safe.

"He won't hurt you. I made sure of it." Kaiba insisted confidently.

He wanted so badly to scream at his rival, to tackle him to the ground and shake him by the shoulders and demand to know what he was thinking, but the corridors of his mind began to shut down as he was losing the battle. He admitted to himself that he would appreciate the quiet night the CEO granted him, but Kaiba would never hear a thank you. For all he knew, he'd be waking up to find his Egyptian God card stolen. His fingers twitched with his last failing efforts to overpower whatever the brunette had dared to poison him with. He could only hope his rival's intentions were as pure as he claimed as his mind finally succumbed to the welcoming blackness.

Kaiba watched as Yami's eyes slipped shut and shook his head with a satisfied smirk. "Stubborn." He scoffed.

Finally relieved of his pain, the CEO positioned the Pharaoh properly in bed, resting his head against the pillow and covering him with the blanket. Sighing tiredly, he gathered the half emptied glass and vowed to get some sleep himself before the big day tomorrow. He turned to look at his rival one last time, pleased to see him resting comfortably, chest rising and falling with deep evened breaths.

He gently ruffled Yami's tri colored hair like he would his brother's before rising to his feet. "Sleep well, Pharaoh. I need you in top shape when we duel for our Egyptian Gods."

With that, he slipped out silently, ensuring no one was aware of his presence within Yugi's room as he reactivated the locks. Casually striding through the hallways, it was his confidence that the Pharaoh would have no memory of tonight's incident that allowed him to maintain his stoic facade.

He'd keep it that way.

-fin-

A/N - I found this as a prompt somewhere on Tumblr awhile back and decided to throw it out there while I'm working on a multi chapter fic. Reviews are greatly appreciated!