Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or any of the characters that are portrayed in this story. I do, however, own Lucia, her mother, and any other original characters who will be used in this story.

Note: To those who read my Shaman King fan fiction A Touch of Destiny: I promise, I am working on getting the next chapter written, but college work has made it hard to reach my inspiration. I'm hoping to get the next chapter finished as soon as possible. Also, the yamis and hikaris both have their own bodies in this. Bakura is the dark one while Ryou is the good one. Marik is dark, while Malik is light and Yugi is light, while Atem is dark.

Chapter Three: New Beginning

"Lucia," a voice said in the distance, dulled by my fatigue. "Lucia, wake up. We're here."

I groaned as someone lightly shook my shoulder and I stirred, awakening from my slumber. Who was talking and why the hell was he trying to wake me up?

…Wait, he?

Letting out another groan, I forced my eyes open and sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Next to me, I spotted a boy with long, white hair and the memories rushed back to me; I had moved to Japan, after months of preparation.

"…Ryou?" My tone was hesitant as I hoped I remembered his name correctly. After saying that, I glanced out the window and noticed we had parked in a street with single-standing houses. Only then did I realize we had arrived at his house, my new home. A slight frown crossed my lips, but I quickly forced it away and turned back to Ryou.

"This is where you live?"

Ryou nodded, "Yes. Usually it's just Bakura and I when dad is travelling, but now it will be the three of us." He smiled and I couldn't help but copy his expression; now that I had gotten some sleep, I realized how polite he was. I had expected it to be the opposite, which showed that I knew nothing about him.

A soft yawn escaped me and I quickly stifled it with my hand. "What time is it?"

"A little after eight," he answered as he climbed out of the vehicle. I watched him walk around the front of the car and open my door for me. "You slept the entire drive."

"T-Thanks," I muttered, a slight blush covering my cheeks as I got out of the car. "Sorry I slept the entire time… that was rude of me."

He shook his head, shutting the door. "Not at all; you were tired and that's understandable after such a long trip." After opening the trunk, Ryou turned back to face me. "Is there anything you need right now? I'll have Bakura bring in your other suitcases later… once he gets up." A slight scowl escaped him.

I smiled at his empathy and nodded. "I'd like some clothes and bathroom supplies," I said while walking around the car to him. "So I can take a shower." Like earlier, I didn't mention his brother, though wondered if he was truly that bad.

Ryou nodded and helped me find the right suitcase and put it on top of the others. Once located, I fished out some clothes to wear for the day, my bathroom supplies and hairdryer. As I collected the things in my arms, Ryou zipped the suitcase shut and closed the trunk.

"Try not to wake up Bakura," Ryou warned as he led me to the front door of his house. "He can get extremely grumpy if someone wakes him up; I tried to wake him up earlier this morning..." He frowned and shook his head, sticking the key in the lock. "He was not happy in the least."

"I'm sorry for causing so much trouble," I said, eyes downcast.

"No, no!" Ryou shook his head. "Please don't misunderstand me; Bakura's always like that and I usually leave him alone, but I wanted him to come with me to pick you up." He opened the door, holding it open for me.

"…Alright." A slight smile graced my features and I accepted his invitation inside. "Wow." My eyes grew wide as I looked around.

Whereas most people decorated their houses to one specific style, theirs was a mix of different styles, cultures and countries. Asian, African, European… there were artifacts from every continent and a variety of different styles. The stunning part was that it had been arranged in such a way that everything fit together, instead of seeming like a mish mash of random objects.

Ryou smiled and closed the door. "Dad runs Domino Museum," he explained, somehow knowing what had me in awe. "That's why we have so many different cultures in our home."

"That's amazing…" I had expected to learn more about Japanese culture, not a variety of cultures. Brownie points were given for that aspect; I adored learning about different cultures, hence why I hadn't fully despised the idea of moving to Japan.

"Would you like me to take you to the museum after you've taken a shower and we have breakfast?"

I nodded, excitement entering me, "I'd love that."

Ryou smiled. "Alright, I'll arrange that then. Oh, the bathroom is upstairs, the second door on your left."

"Okay, I shouldn't be too long." With that, I ascended the stairs, eyeing my surroundings. Paintings of different sceneries and cultures hung on the walls; it gave the house a truly unique feel. The last stair creaked as I put my weight on it and I flinched, glancing at the doors down the hall.

I hope that didn't wake Bakura up, I thought, letting out a soft sigh. I couldn't help but wonder if he was as bad as Ryou portrayed him to be; I found it hard to believe, considering how kind and polite Ryou acted. But then again, I often heard that twins were the opposites of each other.

The stair creaked again when I removed my weight, but I ignored it and headed down the hall. The second door on my left, I remembered and opened the door when I reached it, entering the bathroom. After locking the door behind me, I glanced around the room. The bathroom had a fair size and came equipped with a bathtub with shower capabilities, a toilet, sink, a small cabinet with a mirror on the door and a rack that held the towels.

A soft smile graced my lips as I undressed, tossing my clothes into a clothes hamper, and took the hair tie out of my hair. It took a few moments, but I managed to figure out how the shower worked and turned it on. Once the water had reached the ideal temperature, I stepped in and pulled the curtain shut.

I let out a content breath as the warm water caressed my skin and relaxed my muscles. Maybe now I won't have to be as stressed, I thought as I lathered shampoo into my hair. The scents of citrus filled the room and I smiled, shutting my eyes slightly as I allowed myself to relax more.

Despite my relaxed state, I forced myself to rinse out the shampoo and finish up sooner than I would have liked; I didn't want to leave Ryou waiting for too long. Once I finished, I turned the shower off and stepped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel, I first dried my hair and then my body. It didn't take me long to get dressed and once dressed, I plugged my hairdryer in (luckily I had brought a handful of converters) and properly finished my hair.

By the time I finished getting ready, my long blonde locks had been collected in a messy bun again with shoulder-length strands and my fringe framing my face. I had also put on a minimal amount of make-up, mostly to cover the bags under my eyes, and accentuate my eyes.

Smiling, I straightened my clothes - a pair of dark jeans and a low-cut violet tank top. On my left wrist, I wore a couple thin silver and violet bracelets and a matching necklace hung around my neck; a silver chain with a silver heart. The heart was decorated with small, violet stones that traced the shape.

I cleaned up after myself and unlocked the door, exiting the bathroom afterwards. As I left, I nearly crashed into Ryou and I gasped. "I'm so sorry," I exclaimed, flushing in embarrassment. "I didn't mean to do that!"

Ryou shook his head, a soft laugh escaping him. "It's alright, it happens," he stated. "I was just coming to tell you that I'll be starting breakfast now. Your room is the last door on the right; feel free to have a look." Ryou smiled. "I hope it's alright… Oh! Your school uniform is on your bed."

School uniform? Wonderful. Despite my skepticism, I nodded. "Okay, thank you." As Ryou headed back down the stairs, I followed his directions to the end of the hall and entered what was evidently my room.

The room itself was still rather bare due to the lack of my things, which would be fixed soon enough. On the other hand, however… it was perfect. Two opposite walls were a dark shade of violet while the other two were white, yet had a violet streak that ran horizontally along the middle of the walls. Besides that, a desk, closet and cabinet stood in the bedroom, along with a bed. The blanket and pillow matched the color scheme of the room, yet also had Japanese symbols on them.

Mum must've told Andrew about my favorite colors and things I like, I decided, smiling. The smile faded as I walked to my bed and picked up the garments that lay upon it. The uniform consisted of a blue skirt that would come to just above my knees, a white shirt with a long-sleeved pink jacket for over it, and a blue ribbon for around my neck.

"Over my dead body," I muttered, staring at it in disbelief. "I am not wearing that, no way. No." I tossed it back onto the bed, shaking my head. There was no way in hell would I wear such a monstrosity.

A soft chuckle came from behind me and I turned around to face the intruder. "I guess you don't like the uniform," the intruder said, a smirk crossing his lips. The guy leaned back against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest as he regarded me with brown eyes.

Ryou..? I thought and then shook my head, smacking myself mentally. No, that's not Ryou.

Eyeing him closely, I noticed small, distinct differences. The clothes he wore were different, his hair was spikier and he had a darker look to him; his features were sharper, as well. The way he acted and carried himself also differed from Ryou; he had a more… arrogant air about him.

"…You must be Bakura."

Enter Bakura! Finally, at the end of chapter three, Bakura has made his presence known. This is where the real story begins.

If you spot any grammar/spelling mistakes, then please tell me so I can edit them.