Lila stared up at the main building of her new school with an unpleasant mix of awe and trepidation. On one hand, she'd always loved school and had never attended one so grandiose while living in America; she was eager to explore its many chambers and halls and finally behold its world famous library. However, starting at a new school was never easy, even for her; the prospect of meeting new people, learning new rules, and adjusting to a foreign social order was daunting and her stomach was in knots. The bell rang, summoning her unconsciously forward and sealing her fate. Although she was surrounded by dozens of other students who decided to linger outside and enjoy their last taste of freedom, Lila had never felt so alone as she trudged up the stone steps into the main hallway. Recalling the directions to her classroom from her prior memorization of the map, she turned left then took another right until she saw room 105 on the left side of the hallway. Well, she didn't so much move of her own volition so much as she was rammed and shoved by the other students making their way towards their classrooms. However, since she'd been small her whole life, she was used to holding her ground and moving swiftly through crowds to avoid being trampled. At 5'1", she was much smaller than the average 17 year old, so she doubted if the other students even noticed her amongst them. Frankly she was perfectly content with not being acknowledged as she dove into her classroom and took a seat towards the back of the class, keeping her eyes down as much as possible. Around her, she quietly observed her fellow students chattering loudly and playing that popular Duel Monster card game that still made no sense to her. One group towards the front of the classroom enraptured her the most, three boys and a girl playing cards; one blonde boy, two brunettes—a boy and girl—and a boy with the most outrageous hair she'd ever seen. His hair was multi-colored and spiked up; she'd read that Japanese people had colorful style and beauty preferences, but this was the most outlandish she'd seen in person so far. Lila was so transfixed by his hair that she didn't notice the girl of the group was looking across the room at her, smiling brightly. Lila smiled back shyly, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks as she looked towards her desk quickly. The final bell signaling the start of classes pierced the air just as a pretty, middle aged women entered the room and started commanding the attention of the still unruly students. Lila snapped out of her daze and finished organizing her school supplies on her desk.
"Good morning class, please take your seats!" The final students fell silent under her kind but stern gaze. "I'm Professor Arya Hikashi, and you may address me as Miss Hikashi or simply professor. I will be your homeroom teacher as well as your mathematics instructor, for those lucky enough to have me." A few students snickered and Lila furrowed her brow in confusion. "Congratulations on making it to your junior year! I'll pass out your final class schedules, go over a few rule changes for this year, and then set you loose again before class lets out. But first, I've been told to introduce our new student, Delilah Clark, who's joining us all the way from America." Miss Hikashi scanned the crowd until her eyes fell on Lila, who wilted like a dying flower under her gaze. "Delilah dear, please come up to the front of the class and tell us a little about yourself!" Her tone allowed for no negotiation.
Oh Christ, not this… Lila groaned internally but put on her brightest smile as she stood, straightened out her dark blue skirt, then carefully tread to the front of the class and faced her peers.
"Hi everyone, my name is Delilah Clark, but please just call me Lila, or Dell, or even Lil. I prefer anything but Delilah, although I have been called worse," Lila stated dryly. Soft laughter broke out amongst the class, and Lila smirked; she'd always been told she had a quick, dry wit and great sense of humor, which took people by surprise given how mild-mannered and sweet she appeared.
"I was born and raised in America, but moved here recently to further my education in health science; I've heard Japan has among the best healthcare programs in the world." Liar, she scolded herself; it's not like she'd reveal the real reason she was here, less she be stigmatized again. "I'm really excited to be here, and thanks for being so welcoming." She concluded and took her seat, her classmates applauded and someone even whistled appreciatively before being scolded by the professor. Despite her best attempts to occupy herself and avoid further embarrassment, she couldn't help but glance up again as the feeling of being watched overwhelmed her. She pretended to stretch so she could look around as nonchalantly as possible, and noted the piercing, intense blue gaze of a boy in the back of the room, a few desks down from her. Along with the coolness in his bright blue eyes, the first thing Lila noticed was his striking handsomeness; he appeared tall even while seated and despite his put-together look, wore his dark hair in the tousled, messy style that Lila found irresistible. Too dumbstruck to even smile, Lila just stared back, intimidated by his scrutinizing gaze.
"Thank you, Lila. We're happy you're here. Now the moment I know you've all been waiting for, your final class schedules! Please wait until I've handed all of them out before you start moving around, it'll go much quicker. After everyone has their schedules, it's free time until class lets out." Professor handed out everyone's schedule and Delilah opened hers eagerly, determined to know where her next class would be so she could make her way to it quickly without having to stop and talk to anyone on the way out of homeroom. After the schedules were all distributed, everyone scattered to compare theirs with their friends, but Delilah stayed put and took out the book she brought, the newest terror-suspense story from her favorite author.
"Excuse me?" A sweet voice chimed beside her, startling Lila out of her novel and back into reality. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! I just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. My name is Tea Gardner." Tea was the girl who had smiled at Lila earlier. Her bright blue eyes sparkled excitedly as she flipped her short brown hair aside. "Also I wanted to invite you to sit with me and my friends, if you want." Tea grinned kindly. "Seriously though, no pressure. My friends are the greatest people on the planet though, so you'd totally be missing out, just saying…" Tea teased, eliciting a shy grin out of Lila. Lila was always shy around new people, but Tea seemed nice and she could definitely use friends.
"I'd love that, thanks Tea." Tea beamed as Lila packed her stuff and walked over towards Tea's friend group.
"Hi Lila, my name's Yugi Moto, it's so great to meet you!" The small boy with the insane hair stood up and offered his hand, which Lila shook gratefully. Lila's gazed then honed in on the unusual necklace he was wearing, and she felt a strange jolt of energy pass through her as she took the boy's hand. The surge of power was comparable to an intense sensation of déjà vu tinged with something dark and sinister; it frightened and compelled her, and she found it difficult to look away as the boy introduced her to his friends. "This is Joey Wheeler, and Tristan Taylor," he motioned towards the blonde and the brunette boy, respectively, who each grinned widely and waved before arguing about whose turn it was in the game.
"Dude, stop trying to cheat! I've been keeping tabs on turns the whole game, and I know it's my turn!" Tristan declared, his hazel eyes flashing.
"Oh how convenient that you're keeping tabs and it's magically your turn!" Joey retorted in a heavy Brooklyn accent.
"You're from Brooklyn?" Lila asked, snapping out of her fugue state to engage in the conversation.
"Yep, born and raised baby! I moved here with my dad a couple years ago after my parents split. You ever been?" Joey inquired, honey brown eyes soft and inquisitive.
"I lived there for a while actually, but only for 8 months. We moved around a lot…"
"We meaning?…" Tristan asked.
"Just my mom and I." Lila stated, in a tone that she hoped conveyed that that's all she wanted to say on the matter. Yugi at least seemed to pick up on it and changed the subject.
"So, what brought you to Domino City?" Yugi asked.
"Well, I know how great the science programs are here, and there's great opportunities for scholarships if you work at certain companies that are affiliated with them. My top choice would be Kaiba Corp., but I'd be happy working with Industrial Illusions also."
"Good luck," Joey scoffed. "Not because I don't believe in you, just because I'd rather be strung up by my balls than work for that arrogant asshole, Kaiba."
"Joey!" Tea exclaimed. "Watch your language!"
"Yeah, we wouldn't want Lila knowing what a completely uncivilized animal you are so soon!" Tristan snickered, eliciting a scowl from Joey.
"Like you're not all thinking the same thing! Seto Kaiba's the most narcissistic, cold- hearted, stuck-up prick I've ever met, and I grew up in the ghetto part of the Bronx; I have a degree in knowing who's an asshole!"
"Shh, Joey, he'll hear you! You can't afford to get into another fight and sent to detention, especially on the first day of school! This was supposed to be a fresh start for you!" Tea warned.
"Eh, I could take him! Besides, he can't hear me with his head that far up his ass!"
"Wait, what do you mean 'he'll hear you'? Is the school bugged by corporate drones or something?" Lila laughed skeptically.
"No, he's right over there," Tristan tilted his head to the right. "The tall guy sitting in the back." Lila casually glanced towards the back of the class, although she already had a guess as to who she'd see. Sure enough, Ol' Blue Eyes was still scowling sternly down at his book.
"That boy? How does a kid our age run a multi-billion dollar corporation? Doesn't Japan have child labor laws?" Lila questioned.
"When you're richer than God, the rules don't seem to apply to you," Tristan said bitterly.
"Well, thanks for the heads-up, but I'm still gonna try to get employed. CEO's don't normally interact with lower level employees anyway, and it's not like I'd have to be his personal slave or anything, right?" Lila was surprised how easy it was for her to open up to these people, practically strangers, but she felt so comfortable with them already. "Anyway, he can't be that bad, maybe he's just misunderstood." Lila cringed at how cliché that sounded, but the sentiment was true; you never knew what someone was going through, what front they had to put up to protect themselves. She'd know as well as anyone, and she'd hate to be judged before being given a chance to show her true colors. She regarded the somber boy curiously before re-focusing her attention on her new friends. "So what was up earlier with Professor talking about how she's the best math teacher? I thought teachers were supposed to pretend not to be biased."
The group, Tea especially, scowled in unison. "There's only one other math teacher for our grade level, Mr. Kano, and he's a total pervert. He's always looking at the female students' legs and chests, trying to touch them, and I heard he attacked a girl at some after school tutoring session he made her go to!" Tea cried fearfully; this was not an attempt to haze her; Lila knew how genuine fear sounded.
"That's awful, hasn't he been reported?" Lila asked.
"There was an investigation two years ago after the alleged attack, but nothing came of it. There was no evidence, and since it was the student's word against his, they pretty much brushed it off as a girl wanting attention. Since then he's gotten more careful, but I still see him creeping on girls; he's disgusting." Tristan spat angrily. "I guess he's creeped out Ms. Hikashi too; he just gives off a bad vibe; but again, without evidence, there's not much anyone can do."
"I have his class next…" Lila murmured.
"I have his class next too, Lila. I'll have your back!" Yugi stated sternly, violet eyes determined.
"It's true, Lila, Yugi's always got your back, and don't let his size fool ya; he's tough!" Joey affirmed, ruffling Yugi's hair affectionately.
Lila smiled shyly again. "Thanks guys." The gang talked until the bell to excuse first period rang, and Yugi and Lila separated from their friends to face Mr. Kano. On the way over, Lila again found herself inexplicably drawn to the unusual jewelry Yugi sported around his neck. That same foreboding feeling she'd experienced earlier enveloped her more than ever as she examined the necklace more closely. It resembled an upside down pyramid made of solid gold, and was comprised of many different interlocking pieces, engraved with an archaic symbol resembling an eye.
"That's a really interesting necklace, Yugi. Where'd you get it?" She asked, trying to sound casual despite the increasingly gnawing obsession with the jewelry.
"Oh this! It's actually a puzzle, an ancient Egyptian artifact that's part of a series of instruments called 'the Millennium items'. My grandpa brought it home after an archaeological dig some years back. It took me forever to put it together, but I've always loved games and puzzles, so it was a neat experience!" Yugi explained, gazing down at the puzzle with pride. Watching Yugi admire the puzzle, she sensed his connection to it, and it was something beyond mere ownership. Awe and wonder—along with fear, uncertainty, she realized- shone in his violet eyes, and she knew that Yugi must experience the same enraptured feeling as she did.
"Do you know any of the history behind it?" Yugi frowned.
"Hm, no, I wish. I've been doing research on it since I finished it, but I haven't had a lot of luck so far…"
"I like doing research, and history is so interesting; maybe I could help you? Two people working on figuring out a problem can be better than one…"
"Wow, you'd really do that?" Yugi exclaimed wondrously.
"Sure, if you'll have me."
"That sounds great! What I do know so far is kind of a long, crazy story, so maybe we could set aside some time this week to talk on the phone and then we'll figure out where to go from there."
"Sounds good to me!"
"Perfect! You're the best!" Yugi gave her a warm hug and Lila accepted gratefully, eager to discover the reason behind her strange attraction to the artifact.
Kaiba's POV
Seto groaned in exasperation as the bell signaling students to class rang shrilly; only 8 AM on the first day of the school year, and he was sick of this shit already. By law he was required to attend the equivalent of 3 whole school days each week; the rest of his time he dedicated to running his company and looking after his younger brother, Mokuba. Although he hardly paid attention during school, today he couldn't seem to tune out the incessant prattling of the students around him as the teacher announced the new student. He glanced up from his book to acknowledge the new addition, a small, fair-skinned girl with dark hair and large dark eyes. She introduced herself as Lola, or maybe Lily…something like that; Kaiba was already disinterested in the plain, meek girl. The students tittered with laughter as she said something apparently funny, and he rolled his eyes at how easily amused they were. Not that he was surprised; they were simple, stupid children with nothing more interesting in their pathetic lives than fussing over a girl like she was a shiny new toy.
"Thank you Lila, we're happy you're here…" He heard professor excuse the girl from the scrutiny of the class and she returned quickly to her seat a few chairs to his right. Having nothing better to do, he decided to steal another glance at the girl to judge her with a more skilled, critical eye than his so-called peers. Upon closer look, he found her less plain; she was worthy of a second glance at least, and he could see why she appealed to the simpletons in his class. She possessed a simple, approachable beauty: a trim, softly feminine figure; dark, wavy hair in a low-maintenance style; clear, luminescent skin; expressive eyes—that are looking right at me! Christ how long have I been staring? He thought in horror as he realized the girl—Lila, if he remembered correctly—was assessing him with a stunned, quizzical look. He shifted his gaze away and returned to his book, hoping he appeared casual and uninterested, because he was…right?