Just in case you readers get confused, "Ryou" is Bakura's good half. Or in other words, his "vessel" or "host, or whatever you call it. If that is incorrect, then I apologize. I hope you enjoy the story!

Ryou shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He could feel his millennium ring humming against his chest again, and he knew what that meant. The spirit was getting restless. He pressed his lips together, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms across his chest. He was trying very hard not to panic. He was in the middle of class! Surely the teacher and his friends would notice- especially Joey, seeing how suspicious of Ryou he was…. He took in a jagged breath, and sunk deeper into his mind, trying to find the spirit- Bakura. He closed his eyes.

'Bakura?' he called, trying not to tremble. He was afraid of the spirit of this ring. Afraid of how demented and twisted he was… Bakura, the Tomb Thief….

'Yes?' Came an irritated voice. Ryou jumped, and then struggled to calm the beat of his heart. He looked around to try and spot where the spirit was, but he could see nothing. He gulped.

'You're restless?'

'Very. Why does it matter to you?'

'I just….' Ryou held back a whimper. Then, out of the blue, an almost ear deafening, manic laugh pierced his ears. His heart jumped up into his chest then, and he found that he felt he lost his voice.

Then Bakura revealed himself, that sadistic smile largely plastered on his face. Ryou couldn't help the shudder of fear that rippled through him. His resolve of asking the spirit to wait to possess him again until later wavered, and all he wanted to do then was run away- run from his own body and never return.

'You are afraid of me Ryou?' Bakura chuckled darkly, obviously enjoying Ryou's torment. Ryou didn't move. He didn't really want to give the evil spirit satisfaction, but then again, he was too scared to do anything anyways.

'If it pleases you to think that.' Ryou finally whispered after a few minutes. Bakura's smile widened generously. He finally chuckled and closed his eyes. He felt a pang of guilt for making Ryou shake in his boots, but Ryou would get over it later. Bakura shrugged it off his shoulders, marking it as nothing.

'There was something you needed? Make it quick- I don't need you wasting my time on nonsense.' Bakura snapped. Ryou nodded, some of his fear fading a little.

'Yes… I just need you to…. you know, wait a while before taking me over again… please. I-'

'Do you take me for a fool? A damned idiot? Just because I'm restless does not mean I am impatient enough for idiocy. Joey- he is suspicious is he not? If I were to make myself seen now, they would know that I've returned. That would be bad for the both of us. So stop bothering me with moronic questions and get back to this "school" you skip off to every day.' Bakura sneered. Ryou sighed mentally, nodding. He knew better than to try to argue and correct Bakura. That would definitely not end well. Besides, he would rather be a worry- some moron than a nuisance.

Ryou backed out of his mind just before the teacher called on him to answer a problem on the board. He wasn't worried- he knew the answer anyways. He recited it, making the teacher's eyes widen in surprise. Ryou smiled sweetly at her, making her glare at him in response.

"Please pay attention." Was all she said as she turned back around to the board, sighing. Ryou's smile slowly faded. He put his chin in his hand as his mind began to wander. He kept his mind strictly off the topic of Bakura, for the worry of irritating him. Instead he wondered about what he was going to do while Bakura was in control. Ryou had no choice in the matter of having the millennium ring and being possessed all the time, so it was no use trying to fight it anymore. This body was no longer his- or at least, only his. No matter what he tried to do with the millennium ring, it always found a way back to him.

The bell ringing snapped Ryou out of his depressing thoughts, and he forced a smile on his face. He stood with his book bag, shoving all the books on his desk into the bag, along with pencils and other school necessities. He slung the bag onto his back and started towards the door.

"Ryou!" Came a voice from behind him. He whipped around, startled, to find Joey, Tristan, Yugi, and Tea over by a desk, hovered over cards. Yugi seemingly was the one who called out to him. Ryou came slowly over to the desk, then shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Yes?" He asked hesitantly.

"Wanna play? We're playing duel monsters, and I figured since you liked to play the game and you have your own deck, that maybe you could play with us. I mean, if you're not busy." Yugi chimed, obviously excited. Ryou was a little shocked. Weren't they suspicious of him? Wary, even? Bakura mentally rolled his eyes.

'What?' Ryou asked the spirit, confused.

"Hey, are you alright?" Tea asked warily. Ryou shook his head and nodded, laughing nervously.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay. What makes you think I'm not?" He replied, smiling.

"It's just… you got this far away look in your eyes, and it looked as if- "

"Well, I'm fine. And I really can't - I have errands to run right now. Sorry I can't. But I'll see you tomorrow in class?" Ryou stammered as he backed away from the group.

"But-"Joey started.

"Sounds great- see you later!" Ryou shouted as he ran out the door, waving, down the hall, and into the school parking lot. He didn't stop until he was safely in his car and going down the street. Bakura appeared next to him, sitting in the seat next to him, with his arms crossed, looking quite irritated.

"You know, if you weren't my host, I would suffocate you for your immense stupidity." He growled, staring straight ahead. Ryou lowered his eyes.

"I know. I'm an idiot, a moronic shame of a person." Ryou spoke quietly, not wanting the verbal abuse right then. Bakura said nothing, surprised at Ryou's response.

The drive home was very quiet- neither of the two boys said a word, or even looked at each other. When they did reach Ryou's house, Bakura faded, going back inside Ryou's mind. Ryou didn't move, didn't think- just stared straight ahead, his hands on his lap. He was starting to feel depression prick at his insides again. Bakura pressed his lips together.

'Are you going to move somewhere, sometime soon, or am I going to have to make you move?' He growled impatiently. Ryou sighed and unbuckled his seat belt, opening up the car door and getting out. He walked up to his house, pulling out his keys and unlocking the door, and going inside. Ryou had a pretty decent size house- it being big enough for two. 'Two people… two spirits…' Ryou thought sadly.

Ryou let his bag fall off his shoulder onto the floor, forgotten, as he made his way to the kitchen, planning on eating before Bakura decided that he wanted to take over again. He opened the refrigerator and looked around for at least five minutes, then closed it and looked inside his cupboards and lazy susan. After a while of looking in there, he finally decided that he just wasn't in the mood to eat, and he went and lay down on the couch. It had been like this yesterday, too. He came home- hungry as all get out- letting his mind wander for a little while he hunted food down, and then out of the blue, he lost his appetite. Then he sat on his bed and did nothing- absolutely nothing- for at least a couple hours, until Bakura got sick and tired of Ryou and took over for the night.

Ryou did nothing. He said nothing. After a while, he curled up in a ball, hugging his knees as close to his chest as he could, and clamped his eyes shut, waiting. He hated the fact that he had to be out of control, but it had been this way for a while now- at least two years- so why did it matter to him now if Bakura did this or not? But… that was exactly it. It did matter. This was exactly the reason why he came home every day and felt sadness prick at his heart. Because Ryou wasn't Ryou anymore. He was Bakura. A bad guy. Someone who shouldn't be trusted. Someone who has killed... Ryou gulped, shuddering at the thought.

'Will you quit your annoying crying already? It's driving me insane!' Shouted a very irritated spirit. Only after his shout did Ryou realize that he was crying. He felt an urge to sit up and wipe his face, but…. he found that his body would not let him move anymore. He sniffed, embarrassed, but the emotion quickly faded and a sob escaped his throat. He clapped his hand over his mouth in shock, and then relaxed as he found he didn't want to fight his feelings anymore. His heart sank, seemingly to the floor- no, through the floor, right into the fiery pits of hell. Due to Bakura and his previous killings and overall actions, Ryou felt he didn't deserve to have a heart anymore- didn't deserve to think, to act, to smile…. He was robbed of that right, because inside of him was the sadistic spirit of the tomb thief, Bakura.

Ryou sniffed again, putting a small, not very tight lid on his emotions for right now. He felt a little bit- if even that- better. He took in a jagged breath, not moving or planning to move any time soon. Bakura said nothing, just sighed in irritation. It wasn't going to be too long now- Ryou could feel the ring humming again.

One day, he was going to end it. Be it soon or later, he would. Not even a week ago, he bought a gun at a sporting store, and he looked at it every day before he went to school, trying to gather up courage, while Bakura was slumbering inside him. He wanted so badly to make it all end; to be free of this curse, but the courage he always summed up in the morning left him as soon as he put his finger on the trigger, ready and willing to pull it. Every try ended in a sigh, and he would grab his bag and hurry off to school. The ring's hum became stronger all of a sudden, and it snapped Ryou out of his thoughts.

Ryou's eyes opened wide as he was being pulled into darkness. His vision slowly faded, and he panicked. He always did this when he was being possessed and forgot to close his eyes or to keep them shut. It always looked like he was dying, being possessed, and it felt like it too. He lost complete control of his body- still being able to feel everything Bakura felt, and see everything Bakura saw. Ryou saw things differently than Bakura saw them, as if he were looking into a mirror or a lake, but he still saw them, in dream- like quality. It was absolutely terrifying to him. He sighed shakily as he let the arms of darkness pull him inside all the way, further and further into his gut- wrenching nightmare.