One year had passed since yami Bakura was defeated in Egypt and vanished forever. Yet Ryou Bakura transferred to another school one more time. No, Yuugi and the others did not hate or despise him for deeds of the spirit of Millenium Ring, they saw the difference between the two personalities. But he had his reasons…
As usually. the transfer started with a choir of maiden squeaks and offers to show him around. As usually, he got confused and found some excuse to head straight home after the classes. And as usually, he did not get far, just to the nearest shady side lane where he was dragged by a bunch of new classmates. Most husky-looking ones. And maybe a couple of guys from other, even older groups. Beating a newcomer is a rare pleasure and should be shared.
"Whaddya thinking sassy boy? Just come by and steal our gals?" A sleazy sneer.
"N-no, I… I did not steal anyone, I do not lay any claim to–" Ryou hated the trembling in his voice but he could not do anything about it. Even without any evil spirits around, he was losing control over his own body. His legs went rubbery, but a wall was too far to leant on it without taking a couple of steps back, and he could not even move a foot.
"Lay… what? Don't put on air just cuz teachers like ya!"
"Shaddup Sano, does he mean our girls ain't good enough for him?" Another guy interfered with even a wider grin.
"But it does not make any sense!" Ryou tried to sound confident but failed. "Y-you disagree if I pay attention to the girls and if I ignore–"
"'Shaddup!" the second bully roared and hit Ryou in the cheekbone, missing an eye just for half an inch.
For a second Ryou saw sparks, and crushed back against the chirped not-very-clean wall. He shielded his belly with arms against a well-aimed kick but failed again.
He did not know what to do next. Usually he'd faint in the very beginning of such rendezvous and come to senses at home, with his knuckles bruised. On the next day, the offenders would be missing.
For a split second Ryou wished that yami Bakura was back. But that wish scared him even more than current pain and humiliation. Yes, these guys are unfair, evil so to say, but bringing up another evil to fight them would not make the world better. You cannot wash dirt away with another dirt, he believed. So he just gritted teeth and braced himself to withstand anything. That 'anything' ended rather quickly when one of the guys cried, "Look, Shinohara's sneaking away, catch him!"
Ryou dared to look around. The guys were clearly out for another victim and would probably return to the same lane, so it was time to escape. He tried to spring up and run but managed just to stagger for some meters past the closest garbage bins. At least some shelter, so he kneeled down behind the stinking refuse bins. Just in time. The lane got filled with jeering and lonely sobs. Some boy from their school (judging by the uniform) was clutching to his schoolbag and trying to cover his head, not unlike Ryou some time ago.
"Where's money? Did I promise to break you a finger every day until I get fifty bucks?"
Ryou wanted to stop his ears but that would not stifle thoughts.
Yami Yuugi would beat the crap out of them and still remain on the good side. Damn, Yuugi would try to stop them even without his yami.
At that point, Ryou stood up and stepped forward thinking belatedly that Yuugi alone would manage just to get beaten up. But he was noticed. And there was no way back. On a hunch, he grabbed a lid from a trash can. Rather convenient loop handle, perfect weight, light but hard aluminum. It felt so cozy, but Bakura was too scared to notice it. He was too scared to notice anything.
Two thugs turned from the whining boy to face him. One guy reached a hand to grab Ryou by the collar... Bakura did not faint, but his body moved almost on its own. He jerked the opponent by the outstretched hand and shove the can lid in the guy's smirking mouth.
A wet thwack, a choked cry, some teeth rattling on asphalt, a generous red splash. Confusion turning into terror in the other guy's eyes as the blood-stained cover hits him straight in the face. Cries and curses from the gang, the tallest of them (probably the leader) fished for something in his pocket but he was too slow to take out a knife as Ryou was already by his side, spinning around to kick the chief in the crotch harder, and swinging the can lid up and forward to the opponent's chin as the guy was folding in two–
And his neck would break, a dispassionate thought floated up in Ryou's mind.
At the last moment he managed to turn his hand away a bit and just chafed cheek and ear skin. The tall guy shrieked and rushed away catching up with the others. Their victim sat up – a small feeble first-grader in glasses, his eyes wide with terror. One glass was broken, but the other reflected his savior: distray clothes and hair, stained metal disk in one hand – and a predator smirk.
Ryou froze. With an effort he loosened his grip on the bin cover. It fell with a clank at the kid's feet, the latter startled, sprang up and ran lopsidedly out to the street.
Ryou staggered and leant on the wall. "Are you there? Bakura? Answer me!"
In a dirty stinking lane, with red spatter on his clothes, Ryou listened warily to himself. But only terrified and pained cries echoed in his ears. No other sound or movement. His vision remained torturously clear. "Another me... Or just one me?"
He walked slowly out from the lane and looked at his reflection in a lightbox. Sure his hair was rather disheveled but did not remind bat's wings at all.
Forever in our hearts.
"Damn you!" Ryou cried out loud and hurried away not to scare anyone else.
But he did not go home. Not to the empty room. Not to listen to the city sounds and tremble waiting for… that. Instead, Ryou took a train to another end of Domino city, where a small card game shop was hiding in a quiet street. Please, let Yuugi be at home.
The boy with spiky weird hair opened the door, gasped.
"Sorry for coming at such a late hour, but I- I'm really confused now and I could not think of anyone else to talk to. You will see why, when I tell what's the matter... Sorry I don't make much sense now, right? Can I talk to you alone?"
"Of course, come in. Grandpa is rechecking inventory, it would take him a long time."
Yuugi switched light on in the hall and observed Ryou's clothes.
"Strange, it didn't rain. Where did you manage to get splashed all over?"
"I have almost killed a person today," Ryou replied in a not too steady voice. Seeing disbelief in Yuugi's eyes he told the story in brief while the master of the house fished a pair of spare slippers from under a coat hanger. Hearing the last bits Yuugi sighed visibly and dragged the guest to bathroom to change clothes for his own spare pajamas. Sleeves and pant legs were rather short but its width seemed to fit well. In a verbal shower of trifles about sizes, washing machines, all school and home trivia, the guest was then dragged to the kitchen and supplied with a large cup of steaming tea. With a teabag, though. Such mundane fuss dimmed the stabbing memories of the day, and Ryou felt almost at ease. Easy enough to find words when Yuugi asked him what he can do to help.
"Of all people, you can help, I hope," the white-haired boy said quietly. "You all guys kept on recollecting the Pharaoh along the lines of "he'll be always in our hearts", and you personally, with your usual "another me", or pondering about how much you had learnt from your other self, about "it was fate"… I just could not keep from drawing parallels with my own state."
"Oh," Yuugi was all puppy-eyes. "I'm sorry. You're right, I did not think really how it sounded to you."
Ryou just shook his head.
"Sorry, I do not want to blame you, but still every time it would make me shiver. Must it be that I was also doomed to obtain that cursed ring? But what is my lesson then? He did not talk to me much. He would just push me back and lock the door, so to say. Probably you know him better than I do. So… Please tell me everything you know. Maybe I will see the sense behind it."
"No, I think you're unjust to yourself," Yuugi muttered through a mouthful of cookies. "Well, as I see it, you did learn a lot about standing up to protect your friends. To play an active part. Hmm, Dark Bakura couldn't save his close people but he rose against Pharaoh to avenge them. He just got carried away by revenge…"
And he told everything he remembered of the ancient spirit during events of the Island of Pegasus, Monster Game Tournament, Ancient Egypt.
Ryou was silent. To let him digest it, Yuugi stood up to make more tea and sandwiches. So much storytelling made him thirsty and hungry. All along his guest was sitting in exactly the same position, looking precisely on the same spot on the table. Yuugi put a plate with sandwiches on that very spot, and said, "Maybe even when yami Bakura was gone the body remembered all the fight, and mere reflexes kicked in. And your face put on familiar expression as well".
Ryou glanced up.
"So he did protect me, always. Like my dad said when he gave me that damned hanger. Always, even if I had no notion about his presence. Always, even when I scorned and fought him. Not only from being hurt but from hurting others as well. But unlike you, I did nothing to change my yami."
Yuugi sighed, tapped lightly Ryou's hand clutching a cup.
"You cannot teach someone who doesn't want to change. And there is another thing, but since you've come you must be close to another point. Wow, I sound so clever, must be a cold day in hell today. I mean, Bakura-kun, you don't have to cope with everything alone. Look, even your yami accepted help from demons and Mariks. There's nothing bad with depending on others sometimes. So come to us any time, we'll help, we're friends after all. Let's meet right tomorrow. I'll call Jonouchi and Honda, they are specialists in street brawls and know better than me how to control a fight. Okay?"
Ryou heard a door clicking in the hall, and stood up to take leave.
"Fine. Thank you, Mutoh. I'll think about it. I hope your grandpa will not mind you having a guest so late. And hope my clothes are dry already."
Grandpa did not mind at all, and even offered Ryou to stay for a night, but the boy insisted on leaving while the trains were still running.
Ryou was walking down to the station through warm darkness, smells of cut grass and zooming sounds of cicadas. The fear did not return. Yet, a tinge of regret itched somewhere in the corner of his mind.
Still, maybe I could have helped him.