Title: Lost Lambs

Author: Chocobo Mushroom

Rating: M

Pairing: Yogi & Gareki

Disclaimers: I do not own the characters of Karneval or Karneval. But if I catch anybody using my sensory details... oh boy.

Warning: Hardcore and not for kiddos.

A/N: So I decided to make this personal and immortalize my personal opinions by writing this authors note that nobody with ever read... First fic for Karneval, but not the first ever. Just decided that my hardcore fics should go on a different account than my normal ones. I think that publishing this early is a good idea- I bet you that in 3 years, Karneval is going to be the next -Man, or something like that. Just you watch! Now, I won't hold you to it any longer. Enjoy! -CM

The festivities had already begun. As the blood orange light soaked over every available surface, people began to mingle into the main streets, where a procession of flying colors and acrobats had already taken place. The halogen lights were burning dimly on the cobblestone street side as striped tents were propped up, and Circus propaganda was being sold, ranging from tchotchkes to gypsy card readings. Wherever Gareki and Nai went, confetti seemed to be constantly snowing down from the sky. This was the third festival that the both of them had gone to. Tsukumo was behind them, in a ribboned uniform, perhaps a costume for one of the acts.

"You guys should go have fun. We'll be watching from afar, but don't do anything stupid," she said, with an air of blatant accusation. They were both guilty of some actions in the past... mostly because of Nai's impulsiveness. Her sharp glance made it clear that Gareki was in charge of guarding Nai for the few minutes that Tsukumo would be gone.

Gareki replied to her with a slacking ease, but not enough to make her change her mind about giving them some freedom. "Yeah, yeah. We can take care of ourselves." He probably shouldn't have said ourselves because the younger party had obvious trouble with simply staying put. Nai had already begun to wander off before Gareki yanked on his hood and dragged him back. Tsukumo gave a contemptuous sigh before easing off into the crowd with backward glances back at the pair. She knew that anymore mistakes could really get the second ship's crew into some trouble. She hoped that Yogi was somewhere in the vicinity so that if anything did go wrong, God forbid, Hitori wouldn't show up to save the day. She'd lose all hope for sure.

Nai was skipping ahead of Gareki, his white locks bouncing side to side as he arched his neck to see the contents of every stall as they ushered by. Gareki had unwillingly grown used to being the watchdog over Nai. As reluctant as he was on the outside, he didn't actually know how he felt about tagging along all the time. It was a nuisance, that he was sure of, but whether it really bothered him, he didn't know. He almost felt obligated now that they had established themselves within Circus. If he left now, no one would be able to look out for Nai. The superiors of the damned institution could easily command a biopsy, or even an autopsy, on Nai in order to investigate the inner workings of his DNA. But if he followed that logic, what was the purpose of him being there? He wouldn't be able to do anything if they really did decide such a thing. His conclusion made him shuffle to a stop. The sun had disappeared now, and a raven blue consumed the colorful ocean that swam before him, creating a brewing storm of auburn laced clowns and costumes streaming past. A little girl that was holding balloons was going on about fireworks to her mother as they were walking by.

Suddenly he jolted back into consciousness.

"Nai?" The boy was gone. The boy that he was supposed to watch over, the critical component that ran Circus's present functions, Tsukumo's career that was entrusted to him, was gone.

"Okay. Calm down. It's mostly his fault, that stupid brat. No, it's mostly my fault. Nobody can know." He thought, swiveling his head in all of the directions in search for the child's distinct hair.

He ran the way they had been going and asked the nearest merchant if they had seen a young kid with cotton colored hair. The merchant eyed him suspiciously at first, but said that the boy had ran off to the right. Did he really look that sketchy? Gareki dashed off without saying a word. He couldn't believe that the brat had ran off again! Even though he was mostly at fault this time, Nai never learned to stay put when he was lost. Then again... Gareki was the one that was desperately lost this time, in many ways. After his depressive line of thought, a sardonic frame of mind whispered for him to leave Nai here and to escape. He batted the thought away. He remembered having the wind knocked out of him by Hitori with a wave of a hand, as if Hitori had tossed a bag full of feathers.

He shook away the fear of Hitori's condescending attitude and conspiracy theories by looking up at the periwinkle sky. The glitter obstructed the natural brilliance the sky had to offer. With sudden determination, Gareki swore to himself that he'd find the Niji before Tsukumo got back. Right after his fervent declaration, a streak of white noticeably disappeared into the fringe of trees, along with Nai's barely traceable echo, calling his name. It was more likely that Nai would be in the streets, attracted to the aromas and the stunts, but he was positive that he heard his name in that direction. Without another doubt, he plunged into the woods. It probably wasn't the wisest move, without his precious gun, but he was sick and tired of having the Circus fly in and be the fake hero, not to mention treat him like a kid. He almost spit at the thought. Gareki started to climb an incline, and looked back at the street and up into the sky to make sure he could get back. The blanket above began to morph into a black canvas, sewn at the seams with sparkling jewels. The moon was nowhere in sight.

He looked suspiciously into the woods again. As if right ahead, Nai's voice rustled through the brush. It was ghastly dark out, even with the festivities behind him. The branches were gnarled and caught onto his clothes.

"Shit, these are borrowed...! Never mind that-" Gareki thought as he ran up the sloping hill. The leaves made the climb difficult, as a mild rain the past day covered the landscape with slippery moisture. The bark of the trees dug into his hands has he barreled his way though the foliage.

"Nai? Where are you? Get down here!" Gareki yelled, continuing his ascent. But wait, he had just heard that there would be fireworks. Could Nai have went up the hill in search for a better spot to see them? The darkness made the wind that rustled the leaves seem to wave eerily at him. Usually Nai responded quickly and came running if he was ever lost. Wait, did Nai sound the same each time he heard his name...? Did Nai even know what a firework was...? By the time Gareki could properly think through everything, he had broke through the last wall of trees. The moonlight created an eerie ambience unfound in the rest of the forest. A clearing was atop the grand hill he had just climbed, with no Nai in sight. A soft glow poured upon every visible surface. He breathed in deep as the chilly air brought him staring back at the sky. The moon was hanging low at this point, a silhouette of a rabbit in its wake.

"Beautiful isn't it?" A creepy voice interjected from across the clearing. "Too bad you won't be able to see it any longer," the voice purred, cackling when Gareki flinched.

He jumped back and reached for his gun subconsciously, where his fingers found no purchase. He cursed inwardly. Did they have Nai? How was he going to get him back? Was it a trap?

Two figures walked out from the brush. They were the Valga from Rinoll... though he couldn't exactly remember their names.

"What do you want?" Gareki growled, pretending that he had a gun. He looked off into the side nonchalantly, but he was actually scanning the area for a good sized stick, a rock, anything.

"Don't you mean, what do you want?" The goggled shorty said, pressing a button down on the side of a small mp3.

"Gareki? Where are you? Gareki? Gareki?" It was Nai's voice that emitted from the device. They had lured him up here. But he could have sworn that he saw Nai going up the hill- did that mean that he was in the vicinity?

"Where is he," Gareki demanded, not asking now, but commanding them to give him up. If the Valga laid their hands on him, it wouldn't just be a biopsy they were talking about. Nai would be sure as dead.

The taller man with unsightly make-up laughed like a hyena.

"What if we said we wouldn't tell you? What are you going to do about it?" He looked pointedly at his empty side pouch, where his gun was supposed to be. He knew that he was unarmed.

Before he could make up a lie, Kagiri, the goggled one, groaned loudly.

"Awww, his clothes are torn. I knew that we shouldn't have brought him up here! Why didn't you choose somewhere else to lure him?" He complained, stomping his foot down.

Kiharu snapped back, "Shut up! That doesn't matter!"

Gareki evaluated their manner of speaking, "What are you actually here for?" He couldn't really understand. If they wanted Nai, they would have left already. If they wanted his clothes, they would have killed him first off. "There are 20 or so members of Circus right below us. You would have killed me already if I was your goal."

Kiharu leaned down and started laughing uncontrollably again.

"Hi hi hi HEE HEE HAAHAA HAA."

"Now, no rushing is needed. We just wanted to have some fun..."

They were quick. The taller one flew in from behind and tried to hit his pressure points. Gareki swung from under him and managed to punch him in the gut. The shorty yanked his hair and kicked into the small of his back. He rolled away for distance and tried to catch his breath back. Again, they were fast. So fast. Kiharu pulled him from under his feet and Kagiri stomped onto his diaphragm. He coughed to the side. Was that blood...? Kiharu giggled at the sight of it. Gareki attempted to spin upright, but received a right round house kick to the jaw. He was sent flying into his right shoulder. A jarring pain made his back spasm. He shivered as he attempted to sit upright.

"Che." He stood up and spit to the side. He didn't even know if they had Nai. Was he going to die here? Without a weapon he didn't know if he could handle two Valga.

"How pathetic...! Hee hee hee..." The shorter one, with regained confidence, went for a right hook. Gareki stomped on his thigh and rammed his elbow into his ribs, throwing his body weight. Kagiri went into the dirt. Kiharu sent a blow onto his shoulder, making him unsteady. Fast back on his feet Kagiri went around, took his arm, stepped on his back, and crackwent his left arm.

With a strangled gasp Gareki tumbled into the grass. The moonlit blades made his world soft and fuzzy, as if for a few seconds time slowed down just for him. His left arm and shoulder felt like it was on fire; as if half his body decided to go to Hell and soak in a lava pit.

"He's down already!" Kagiri squealed, and kneeled beside him. Gareki grit his teeth.

"This is going to be so much fun!" The valga hissed, and he axe-kicked him, hard, in the ribs. The black haired teen had no air as he inaudibly screamed into the soft grass below him. He was on the verge of unconsciousness.

A ringing voice sounded in the distance, like interrupted bells.

"Hmm... Hee hee... HA HA HA HA KYAAAAHAAHAHAHA!"

Was that one of the Valga? No, it sounded more like... Yogi... But that wasn't his usual voice-

"To bring an innocent into this war of carnage... I hope the hell I bring you is as fun for me as it is for you..." Sang a voice oh-so-familiar.

"Oh shit, Kagiri, he's the one from last time!"

"We'd better make a quick exit on this one..." Kagiri's voice quavered, scared by the approaching figure.

"Oh? Leaving so soon? I don't think so!" Gareki couldn't move from where he had fallen, so he couldn't exactly see the fighting going on, but he could hear everything. A sickly sloshing had vibrated from the ground, as well as the slump of two bodies onto the cold ground. In reality, they began to crawl away in a bloody attempt to escape. Yogi paid them no mind. They could try to escape, but Circus would get them anyhow. Finishing them off would leave them no time to grovel and experience torturous pain. Slow footsteps approached Gareki's body from behind. Cool hands drifted onto his right side. With sudden and frightening power, he was flipped onto his back.

He yelled with sharp agony as he convulsed. He saw red behind his eyelids. He finally glanced upwards. It was Yogi... But his golden hair was now silver, as it reflected back the moon's palette of colors. His eyes looked as if possessed by something demonic, otherworldly, with a grim frown upon his lips.

"Seeing them hurt you was interesting at first... But it made me very mad afterwards. I wonder why that is...?" This strange Yogi caressed Gareki's jawline, as if pondering a thought.

"H-hey... What are you..."

"We never finished playing that other time, now did we?" He assertively commanded. This Yogi was completely different. His eyes had a look of insanity, but a smirk of mischief and cruelty played on his lips.

"I remember you very well. You have the sharp eyes and the keen tongue." Yogi pressed his fingers onto his left shoulder. Gareki hissed and bit back the edging scream he had on his tongue. A gentle finger brushed across his lip, leaving a trail of cold fire. He shivered, from the pain, or the cold, or from Yogi, he couldn't tell.

"Stop- You're not- y'need to get back to the ship." Gareki muttered through grit teeth.

"But you ran away, and got caught up in a nasty brawl with the Valga. Don't you think you should be punished?"

Gareki tried to shake his head. That wasn't what he was trying to do! Nai was still-

"Wha- no, I was looking for-"

"I can't accept excuses. Not to mention, you got away from me the first time. When Yogi-chan returns, he won't give you the things I can offer." This person, be it Yogi or someone else, had completely broken Gareki's comfort barrier. Cool fingers traced small patterns into the nape of his neck and the small of his back. He painfully tried to jerk away.

"My punishment is severe. Prepare your heart, for it was far too weak last time... " Yogi whispered in a sultry voice into Gareki's ear. He shivered. Before he could push him away with his good arm, soft, demanding lips, danced with his. They fluttered to his throat and back. He tried to stay still by pursing his lips and waiting for the normal Yogi to return. Sensing no response from the younger boy, Yogi squeezed his left shoulder to show who was in control. Gareki hissed against Yogi's sadistic lips. Seizing this opportunity, Yogi flicked his tongue against his lower lip before gaining entrance. They twisted and lilted, waltzed and fought. Yogi was fierce now, crushing any efforts of Gareki to leave. It wasn't like Gareki wanted to push him off. The whole time Gareki was wondering if it was really Yogi that wanted act like this, if it was his subconscious, or if it was just some kind of adrenaline combined lust.

"Mm.. Nnn- Stop- " Gareki had no power left as Yogi pinned him into immobility.

"This is wrong." He put his right arm against Yogi's torn shirt and tried to elbow himself away.

Once again, Yogi squeezed his arm. Gareki screamed in agony into Yogi's shoulder. Yogi tsked. Gareki felt a stabbing pain in his ribs when he doubled over. A numb feeling spread through his midsection, more painful than his arm.

"Now, now, be a good boy and stop the rebellious attittude. Having you is going to be a lot harder with you squirming like that."

Gareki was furious now. How could this second ship lieutenant torture him through sexual harassment? Even if not all of Yogi was here, he couldn't let him take advantage of his position. Both of them would deeply regret it... wouldn't they? As Yogi continued to caress him senseless, Gareki's mind became more and more numb. The damp cold at his back had him arching towards the heat that Yogi emit, even though he felt a jarring pain with each breath he took. Yogi decided all of Gareki's half-assed rebuttals were signs for him to continue. A searching hand drift across his waist and down his navel. Sensing Yogi's apparent distress and ferocity, Gareki attempted to rip out Yogi's now silver hair. Instead of being a warning by having his hair yanked, Yogi thought that it was approval of his actions. His hand purposely dropped onto Gareki's sensitive member. He gasped in response.

"Hmm... this is no good, Reki-kun. We'll have to deal with this immediately..." Yogi whispered through the shadow of his hair. His ear tingled with his cool breath. Gareki's hold on Yogi's thin shirt tightened. He gave in to the strange feelings around him and clung tightly to the strange sensations. The numbing pain in his left arm had begun to pound, and sweat dripped down his neck. Yogi nipped at his ear and tugged at Gareki's jacket zipper, enticing as his hand swirled around his neck. He kissed the corner of Gareki's mouth and drew away. Gareki shivered and squeezed his eyes shut. He waited, but further approaches never surfaced.

"But because you were such a naughty boy, this will have to wait until another day. Let it be your punishment, even though I'd like to further our exploration." Yogi suddenly untangled himself from the young boy and stood. A whoosh of cold air hit Gareki's semi-exposed stomach. He shivered and felt sick. That cruel monster was a horrible replacement of Yogi. He faintly process what had just happened to him. Did he just let him to that...? Gareki was about to protest in outrage, but before he could make any comments, Yogi tumbled to the ground with a dull thud. His hair began to turn to its normal straw gold. Gareki sighed- it took him long enough to change back. He tried to sit up and check if Yogi was okay, but the pain from his ribs made him catch his breath. Grunting, he forced himself to stand. The pain from his midsection made him fall back down with an oomfph.

Before he attempted to stand again and look for the damn brat, rustling came from the bushes on the left. A voice called out.

"Gareki-kun? Yogi-san? Are you there?" It was Nai. Relief swelled in his heart, though he quelled it by thinking about how ridiculous the situation was. Instead of him saving Nai, Nai was saving him. Tsukumo and Nai emerged from the foliage. Nai must have searched for Tsukumo after realizing that Gareki was gone. Her long hair jerked when she saw the two bodies on the ground. She covered Nai's eyes, but decided that preserving his innocence wasn't going to work and ran to her teammates side.

"Oh my-" She rushed to Yogi and Gareki and kneeled.

"Yogi, get up! Hey, can you hear me? Get up!" She put two fingers to his neck to check for a pulse.

"He's... alive... I think." A haze of black veiled him as he finished his sentence. By being surrounded by the people he knew, he dropped his guard and let his willpower that was keeping him conscious slip. His world slid sideways as echos of his name reverberated around him. He noticed that his head was lying on the cool dewed grass, the ticklish bedding as comforting as the fleece of a lamb. He drifted off into a dreamless sleep, far away.

'Gareki! Gareki-kun! Hang in there!'

A/N- Thanks so much for reading! Reviewing would mean more to me than a hippo recycling a bottle of coke that exploded over the Earth and created a coke fountain that flew over Mt. Everest and morphed into candy, hot chocolate, and oranges every five hundred miles! So, it means a lot! So, I'm planning to write more, but without encouragement, I seriously doubt I can. I'm a crybaby that needs a rope around her neck to wring about each and every step. So review! Dooooo eeeeet. You'll be feeding the imaginary pandas that live in my backyard!