One-Shot Summary: Two friends talk about life and other things and share a sweet moment in their meadow at sunset during the summer. Cute~. (Thiefshipping. Genderbended Marik. AU.)

Short Story Summary: Bakura and Marik used to be the best of friends, who were looking forward to becoming something more. Then, high school came, and Bakura turned rotten for various reasons. Now, they're bitter enemies, and Bakura's always tormenting the girl who he used to love. Will anything be able to change this relationship-gone-wrong? Will seeing things through Marik's eyes help Bakura realize that what his actions do affect others, and that he still loves Marik? (Thiefshipping, Genderbended Marik and Ryou. High School AU. OCs.)

A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you enjoy this, whether you're here for the one-shot or the story! (It works for either way you wanna read it. At least, I think it does O.o).

Chapter 1: Summer Sunsets

"That cloud looks just like your hair," Marik said, pointing up at the sky. "White, fluffy, pointy – OW!" she turned to him angrily when he bonked her on the head. "What was that for?-!"

They were in their special place; a little meadow a little ways behind Marik's house. They were lying down by their favorite weeping willow tree, but far enough away so that the branches wouldn't block their view of the sky. Flowers in full bloom were all around them, and the sun was close to setting on the teenagers.

"I told you, my hair is not fluffy!" Bakura responded with his trademarked smirk. No, really, it was trademarked. Between them at least; Marik drew the smirk on a piece of paper once and drew that little "®" symbol next to it and proclaimed to him, "There! Now no one can steal your signature smirk. And if they do, we can sue 'em!" Bakura just laughed at that and ripped up the paper, throwing it into the air. "Oh please, like anyone other than me could pull this off anyways."

Currently though, Marik just pouted at him. "Come on, just look at your hair! It's totally fluffy and puffy and C-U-T-E~!" she said as she grabbed some and bounced it around, laughing. Bakura rolled his eyes and took a lock of Marik's straight blonde hair, lifting it up and playing with it. This stopped her right away; she tore her hair out of his grip, blushing a bit. "Don't do that!" she hissed at him.

Bakura chuckled. "You were doing the same to my hair not two seconds ago." He turned his attention back to the sky then, knowing full-well that Marik was right. His hair was pure white and impossibly fluffy, which he hated. Extremely. But what could he do? It was his genetic makeup's fault anyway.

He turned on his left to look at Marik better, who just turned her head slightly to show that she was paying attention to him. Bakura smiled at her, looking at her purple tank top with a red ruffled skirt and noticing the way her golden hair was sprawled about on the grass… She looked absolutely beautiful, especially when a light blush came upon her face again and she turned her straight again, embarrassed. "Don't just stare at me!" she complained. "Actually say something, you pervert!"

Bakura laughed and stood up. "Sorry, I was just thinking that maybe we should go to the beach soon."

Marik hesitated for a little bit before sitting up and looking at him again, curiously. "What made you think of that?"

Marik knew she had walked right into a trap when Bakura smirked. "The thought of you in a bikini," he said slyly, his British accent sending shivers down Marik's spine.

She blushed, bringing her knees up and hiding her face in them. "… You know why I can't…" she said weakly.

Bakura sighed and rubbed the back of his head. Yes, he knew about the scars her father had carved into her back when she was ten… Her dad had always blamed Marik for "killing her mother," since she died giving birth to Marik. Of course, one night he came home dead drunk and wanting revenge, and who better than the ten-year-old who killed her? The very thought of it filled Bakura with rage, but it's not like a fourteen-year-old could do much now; they were two years older and the father was securely locked away in a mental rehabilitation center, leaving Marik's older brother in charge. "Yeah, I know, but come on! People would just think it was a tattoo –"

"Please, 'Kura," Marik interrupted sadly. "Like anyone would believe a twelve year old has a tattoo."

Bakura shrugged. "I still say you should go for it."

"… There's, another reason why I don't… wear a bikini," Marik muttered under her breath, avoiding what little eye contact she had maintained with Bakura.

Bakura raised an eyebrow and bent down a little to look at her better. "Really? What's that?"

Marik turned her head away as she said, "I'm, not exactly, the… biggest, girl, on the block…"

Bakura stared at Marik for a second before a smile wormed its way onto his face and he burst into laughter, rolling back on the ground and covering his stomach from laughing so hard. Marik turned to him with daggers in her eyes and a blush still evident on her well-tanned face. "Don't you dare laugh at me!-!" she yelled at him, pulling his hair.

Bakura stopped laughing when his hair was pulled, but he still smirked up at her. "I'm sorry, it's just… I didn't think you cared about that sort of thing, Marik!"

Marik put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "What's that supposed to mean?-!"

Bakura laughed again, looking back up at the clouds. "Well, you've already got a few male suitors, so I didn't think you'd worry about your, your," Bakura couldn't help but snicker before saying this next word, "size."

Marik blushed more as she crossed her arms over her chest and turned her gaze away from her best friend. "I don't have any male suitors, stop saying that already. Isis says I'm too young for that stuff anyways."

"Oh, what does your sister know?" Bakura said, waving that comment off. "She hasn't had a date in her life, and she's seventeen!"

Marik glared at Bakura. "She was kind of busy with our father and taking care of me, Bakura. Remember?"

Bakura sighed and sat back up. "Yes, I know…" Bakura smirked again, wanting to joke around some more. "Although, I think her size has something to do with that too."

Marik smacked him in the back of the head. "That's my sister, you pervert!-!"

Bakura just smiled as he rubbed the back of his head. Pretty soon, he was going to get a concussion from this girl. He was sure of it. However, even though he knew this wouldn't be in his best interest, he leaned towards her and whispered in her ear, "If it makes you feel any better, I'll show you my small package."

Marik's entire face turned red as she stared at him. "B-Bakura!-!" was all she could exclaim.

Bakura laughed. "I was talking about through my underwear, duh. What were you thinking?" Bakura raised an eyebrow, smirking at her.

Marik glared and took a swing at him, but he dodged just in time. "What would anyone think from that statement?-!"

"It's not like it would matter anyways," Bakura said, leaning in close again to whisper, "after all, apparently we used to take baths together."

"When we were like, three!" Marik said, blushing even more. She felt hot all over now, and she had no idea how to protect herself from all this embarrassment.

Bakura laughed. "And what's changed since we were three years old?"

Marik narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm not even going to answer that stupid question."

Bakura chuckled, looking up at the sky again. "I wouldn't worry about size too much anyways," he said, actually being serious now. "Most girls develop later on, don't they?"

"Most girls hit puberty at age ten or eleven," Marik mumbled. "At least, according to our health book. Boys are the ones who develop at twelve or thirteen."

"When do we end?"

"For girls it's fifteen to sixteen –"

"See? You have time," Bakura interrupted, smiling.

Marik pouted at him. "And boys finish around sixteen or eighteen," she finished, choosing not to respond to Bakura's last comment.

"What worries me is that you know that by heart," Bakura teased. "Knowing the facts is not going to make it happen anytime sooner you know."

"I know that!" Marik said, glaring at him. "It's just… it helps, I guess."

Bakura shrugged and then just continued smiling at her, knowing she'd tell him to look away eventually.

Surprisingly, Marik kept glancing at him and then averted her attention to the sky. She did this about five or six times, fidgeting after each glance until she turned and stared back at him. "Stop staring at me already. Per –"

"Pervert," Bakura finished. "I know," he smirked, scooting closer to her. He could see and almost feel her tense up. "You know, you might want to stop calling me that."

"Why?" she asked, now looking directly into his eyes. "It suits you."

"Because," he said, slowly moving his face closer to hers. Marik's eyes widened and she kept bending down to avoid him, but soon she couldn't bend anymore and she did a sort of crabwalk backwards to get away from him. Bakura almost fell over laughing from the sight, but he held it together and crawled towards her. Eventually, she hit their willow tree, and her face paled before blushing bright red as he crawled over her. Their bodies weren't actually touching, but he was just there, hovering over her, and she wasn't sure how to feel about it… "I just might turn into one~," Bakura purred, making her close her eyes. Though, she wished she hadn't done that when she felt Bakura's fingers brush up her waist. She let out a little squeak of surprise before kicking him back.

"GET THE HELL OFF!-!" she yelled as he fell on his back. He got the wind knocked out of him when he landed, so he was left gasping for breath, and Marik coming up and resting her foot securely on his stomach didn't help matters. "Pervert!" she yelled at him, not caring that he was struggling for his breath at this point.

Bakura could only roll his eyes, not being able to talk at this moment. They stayed like this for awhile, the sun dangerously close to the edge now. They both knew they'd have to go home soon. Eventually, Bakura felt normal again, and then he noticed something. He lifted up Marik's skirt and said, "You wear shorts under here?-!" He was completely shocked; he had always thought the point of skirts was so that girls didn't have to wear pants or shorts.

Marik blushed, wrenched her skirt from his grasp and pulled it down tightly, stepping off of him. "Yes!-!" she yelled at him as if it was completely obvious. "It's to protect myself from perverts like you!"

Bakura rolled his eyes. "But what's the point of wearing both? Why not just wear shorts then?"

Marik sighed. "I already look too male, I don't need pants to help with that."

"Why do you care so much about being female anyways?" Bakura asked, standing up and brushing himself off. "If I were you, I'd slap on some jeans and a T-shirt and trick people into thinking I was a boy!"

Marik sighed. "I don't know…" she smirked at him. "I guess I just wanna be girly around such a big strong man," she said, putting her back to him and wrapping his arm around her waist. She turned her head to look at him, happy that she finally got this pervert to blush! "Maybe I just wanna be protected," she purred.

Bakura stared at her for a second before picking her up bridal style, much to her displeasure. "Put me down, Bakura!" she said, glaring at him and trying to push him away.

"I thought you wanted to be female?" he replied with a smirk, keeping his hold on her.

Marik groaned and lay limply in his arms. "Not funny, Bakura," she said. "You know what I meant."

Bakura rolled his eyes and set her back on the ground, but when he did, she attacked him with a hug. "How much trouble do you think we'd get in if we didn't come back right after sunset?" she asked, staring at the steadily falling sun. The sun was at that height where it produced the most magnificent purples, pinks, yellows, and blues that Marik had ever seen; they wrapped around her like a child's security blanket, making everything else seem dull in comparison. Well, except for the other person in the meadow. She smiled and closed her eyes at the thought, feeling very warm when Bakura hugged her back.

"Probably a lot," Bakura replied, "but that's the fun of it, no?" He chuckled before letting go and walking backwards a few steps. "Unless you're scared and wanna go back early~?" he dared.

Marik shook her head. "No way, José!" She turned her back on him, knowing that he'd come next to her and do something; he didn't like being ignored.

She was right; Bakura crept up on her and blew hot breath down her neck. "Ack!" she exclaimed, putting a hand to her neck and turning with an unbelieving smile. "Why the hell did you do that?" It was obvious that she wasn't expecting that, but she wasn't frowning or glaring, so Bakura took that to mean that it just felt weird; maybe that she even liked it.

"Oh, no reason," Bakura said, his hands behind his back and his eyes looking up at the sky while his mouth fought a smile.

Marik shook her head, but then her eyes widened as she turned to the sunset. "Shhhh! The show's starting!" she said, putting a finger to his mouth and staring at the sun avidly. Bakura just rolled his eyes and gently bit her finger, making her let out another squeak of surprise as she tore her finger away and glared at him before turning back to her glorious sunset, that impossibly happy smile on her face. Bakura had to smile at the sight before he turned to watch it with her.

As the sun declined, the colors all around it changed and moved. It looked like the day was following the sun, "Wait up, Sun! I'll come with you to the next part of the world, you need your day!" The colors turned richer, darker, soon the yellow disappearing altogether, the prominent color being a pink magenta. And as the colors around the sun changed, so did the colors everywhere else in the sky. A dark blue slowly moved in from the other side of the horizon to the thin blue ribbon of day that was right before the richer, sunny colors. Night was coming in to take over the day, or maybe it was trying to follow the sun too, and was just not as fast as the day? "Wait up for me, sun!" or "I'll watch this part of the earth for awhile, sun!" It was most likely the latter, because the night had the moon, even if it is just a reflection of the sun's rays.

Either way, the colors morphed and shifted in the sky, causing delight to all those privileged enough to witness it, especially Marik. Soon, the deep sunset colors descended over the horizon, and Marik knew that somewhere, someone was enjoying a beautiful sunrise. She turned to look up at the dark night that had taken it's place, already being able to see the moon and even a few stars. "Okay," Marik said, "let's go h-" she stopped speaking when she felt Bakura grab both of her wrists and turn her towards him. She stared at him, his hair practically glowing in the halo of night. She could see him swallow nervously, and all she could wonder was, "What's he going to do now?"

She soon guessed it when he started leaning in. She just stood there, frozen for the time being, wondering if maybe, this time, she'd let him…

Bakura could actually feel his heartbeat, and it was moving just a bit faster than normal… Will she let me kiss her? he wondered as the distance between them became slimmer and slimmer…

They both closed their eyes when they felt lip contact, but it only lasted for a second before they both pulled away, blushing madly. They took a step back from each other and looked away, Marik covering her mouth and Bakura fiddling with his fingers.

Silence stretched out across them, switching from awkward to serene as often as it wanted. Why couldn't the silence make up its mind?

Eventually, Bakura coughed, ridding the wishy-washy silence. "So, um…" he began, rubbing the back of his head, "We should… Go, now…" He felt like slapping himself; that was so lame. Much to his surprise, however, Marik grabbed his hand again, and when he turned to her, she kissed his cheek. Bakura blushed slightly as she gently pulled him forward. "Come on!" she said, smiling. "We have to get home!"

Bakura stumbled after her, dazed for a second, but he quickly righted himself and ran next to her.

The two ran through the night hand in hand, almost as if they were following the day and chasing after the sun themselves. They smiled at each other, thankful for these wonderful summer nights, and when Bakura dropped Marik off at her house, they kissed again, this one just a little longer than the first.

They both had happy dreams that night, which of course included the breathtaking sunset and the happy moments shared there.

Heehee, hope you all enjoyed~ ^^ I had fun writing it :3

Now, if you came here for the one-shot, then you're done! Congratulations! You may now read something else! But if you came here for the story, then sit tight; the next update will be next week =) Maybe earlier if I get ten reviews~ (hint hint).

LET THE READING GAMES BEGIN.