A/N: You guys are too cute! I adore the reception this story is getting and, I have to admit, I never would have thought that a gender-bender story could be so much fun. A lot of people seemed to think that Yami Malik would not be returning. I distinctly said that Malik would not want him back, but I didn't say that he wouldn't be in the story. I can be a bit sneaky that way, I'm afraid. Enjoy!

Note: I reply to all reviews if possible, but some of you have your PM feature disabled. Please enable it by going to your Profile if you want me to respond.


After folding and putting her new clothing into her locker, Yuugi walked to her homeroom and sat down in her seat. She was the first person there, and she kept her head down and acted like the contents of her backpack were so fascinating that she didn't even notice the rest of the students coming in. That worked right up until someone gave one of her spikes a gentle yank, and she looked up into the friendly face of Anzu. "Oh... Good morning, Anzu-chan," she said sheepishly.

"You were concentrating hard, Yuugi. You didn't even hear me say your name when I came in." Anzu sat down at the desk beside Yuugi, placing her bag on the floor in between them, and stretched her hands over her head. "Another weekend come and gone... I can't believe that it's Monday already, can you? Do you think..." She glanced over at her friend and stopped, blue eyes widened slightly. "Yuugi... is that a new uniform?"

"Err... yes..." Yuugi said slowly, sensing that she was not going to like the direction their conversation was taking.

"It's smaller than your old one was."

"Yes," she said again. It seemed to be the safest answer.

Anzu was frowning. Suddenly, she leaned forward, putting her face so close to Yuugi's that Yuugi instinctively jerked backwards, only just stopping herself from falling out of the chair at the last minute. Some of the more childish students in the class began whispering at their close contact, but Anzu ignored them as she intently studied every inch of her best friend with narrowed eyes. "There's something different about you," she said finally. "Yuugi, is there something that you would like to tell me?"

"I..." Yuugi trailed off, her mouth opening and closing uselessly.

"Hey Yuugi!" A backpack thumped down onto her desk and Yuugi jumped. Anzu straightened up as Jou sat down in front of them and Honda stood beside him, leaning against Anzu's desk. Jou grinned and reached out, making a vain attempt to get an arm around Yuugi's neck, but the girl skilfully ducked and leaned out of reach. "No fair!"

"Very fair," said Yuugi wryly, a small smile tugging at her lips. She was so grateful to Jou and Honda for interrupting the beginning stages of Anzu's interrogation that she was almost willing to allow Jou to give her a noogie. Almost.

"Where's Ryou-kun?" Honda asked, glancing around the classroom. "He sick?"

"Still?" Anzu looked concerned.

"No, he's here. Norito-sensei asked for his help in setting things up," Yuugi told them. It wasn't exactly the truth, but it explained why Ryou would have gone down to the gym early.

Their teacher chose that moment to walk into the room and call the class to attention, and her friends scattered back to their proper seats before anyone could say anything further. Anzu tried to catch Yuugi's eye as their teacher began taking attendance, but Yuugi pretended she didn't notice. For once, she was actually looking forward to class if it meant that none of her friends would be able to ask any more questions. Hopefully by the time break rolled around, they would have forgotten about the fact that she had shrunk practically overnight. It was unlikely, but hey, a girl could dream.

"Mutou Yuugi-kun?" the teacher called out. He looked in Yuugi's direction and added, "Mutou-kun, you're wanted in the office."

"I am?" Yuugi blinked. "Right now?"

"Yes. Please gather your things together. One of your classmates can fill you in on anything that you might miss."

"Yes sir." Confused, Yuugi shrugged in response to Jou's raised eyebrow and put her things back into her bag. Obviously whatever she was being called down for was going to take a while if she had been instructed to bring her things with her. She stood up and slung her pack over her shoulders, walking towards the door and feeling the weight of twenty-five curious pairs of eyes resting on her shoulders as she left the room.

The halls were eerily empty and she headed quickly down towards the office, her pack thumping solidly against the bottom of her spine in a way that was still new and strange. One of the receptionists looked up at her with a blank, exhausted gaze when she arrived and motioned for her to go inside without saying a word. Yuugi frowned but entered, pushing the door open and allowing it to swing closed behind her. The principal's door was open and she stepped forward, absently chewing on the inside of her cheek and wondering if this was so serious that the man was actually waiting for her.

Well, someone was waiting for her.

Just not the principal.

All it took was a single glance at Isis Ishtar, who was the one sitting behind the desk, for understanding to crash over Yuugi, followed by a flood of horror so icy that she choked from the force of it. Her knees felt weak as she remembered, instantly, where she had felt that strange presence before. It was so clear that she couldn't believe she had forgotten. Yami Malik. She'd never faced the demon without Yami at her side, and time had successfully blurred the memories that had once kept her awake at night, but the new, raw memory of that bitterly cold chill swept through her all over again. Breath catching in her throat, Yuugi staggered, her hands shaking, a mantra of panicked 'oh my god' raging through her mind.

Two warm hands took hold of hers, and she dimly heard voices talking to her, though their words were meaningless. The hands began a steady rhythmic squeezing that was oddly comforting. Gradually, she felt her ragged gasping for air slowing and growing more controlled as she began breathing in and out to the tune of the hands slowly squeezing hers. After a few minute, she looked up, blinking to see past the dancing black spots, and found herself staring into familiar lavender eyes framed by pale blonde hair and tanned skin. Malik gave her a shy smile and sat back on his heels without releasing his grip.

"Alright?" he asked cautiously. "You were having a panic attack."

"I'm... I... Why are you here?" Yuugi's voice was filled with a certain amount of resignation. It was only once she saw Malik's eyes widen that she realized she'd forgotten to lower her voice. Panic flashed through her all over again and instantly that soothing squeezing began once more, encouraging her to keep breathing at a steady pace.

"You know why we're here." Isis had come around the edge of the desk at some point and was now standing in front of it. There was a grave expression on her face.

"God, yes, but I... I had hoped that I might be wrong." She closed her eyes briefly, feeling dizzy, and curled her fingers so that she was clutching Malik. "Yami Malik has returned, hasn't he?"

The abruptness of the question made Malik wince, but he still answered readily. "Yes, he has."

"But I don't understand. You're still…" Malik was still male; there was no question about that. He was wearing a pair of tight pants and a loose tank top that left little to the imagination. And it wasn't as though he would have wanted his yami back, anyway, much less have been willing to sacrifice something to that end. Unconsciously, she tightened her grip on his hands. "How? How did this happen? I thought that he was destroyed during the duel."

"The Shadow Realm is a complicated place," said Isis regretfully, folding her arms across her waist in a protective gesture. "It seems that Yami Malik valued his life enough that he took some precautions in the event that he lost. We suspect that he has been building his strength during the past year, waiting for the right opportunity to strike."

"Why now?" Yuugi asked, bewildered. A jolt of pain ran up her wrists and she looked down blankly to see that Malik was holding onto her even more tightly than she was to him. Her fingers had turned white and she had lost all feeling in her hands. She raised her gaze to his face and saw that his eyes were closed and his lips were pressed into a thin, frightened line.

"Someone opened the Shadow Realm. That would take a great deal of strength now that the Pharaoh is gone, and he likely wasn't powerful enough to do it on his own. But once someone else did - "

"He had a way into this world and he could open all of the portals he wants," Yuugi finished, her blood running cold. Yami Malik would have had twice the opportunity to get in, wouldn't he? Once from Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, and once from Change of Heart. "Oh God, I think I'm going to be sick."

Isis grabbed the trash can from beside the principal's desk and set it down beside Yuugi. "I take it from your reaction that you have encountered him already."

"I believe so." Shuddering, she leaned over the can, but though her stomach was twisting and heaving and her throat had tightened, nothing came up. She felt unbearably cold, though, like she would never be warm again. "I just didn't know that it was him until now. I knew I recognized that feeling, but…"

"You just didn't want to accept it," Isis said gently, "and the Shadow Realm was supposed to have been sealed with the death of the Pharaoh. It's understandable."

"In more ways than one," Malik mumbled. He was looking at Yuugi carefully, head tilted slightly, lavender eyes filled with confusion that bordered on knowing. "Yuugi-kun… you sound… different."

"Err…" It suddenly occurred to Yuugi that she was holding hands with the one person who would have cause to be truly furious with her if he found out about her part in Yami Malik's return. Flustered, she regretfully twisted her hands until Malik released her and then stood up, instantly missing the warmth he had been providing. Her hands tingled with pain as the blood began to return to them and she folded them under her arms, trying hard not to shiver. Was there any point in trying to lie or omit the truth? Surely they of all people deserved to know the truth… she just hated the thought of admitting it. "I'm sorry, Malik-kun."

Malik just looked at her. "What happened?"

"I… I missed Mou Hitori no Boku… Yami. I missed Yami. I mean, I tried my best to move on, I really did, I wanted to, but I couldn't." The words came out in a tangled rush. "And Ryou felt the same way. About Bakura, that is. I realize it's probably hard for you to understand because our yamis were nothing like your yami, well Bakura sort of was, but still they were different people and when we had the opportunity to get them back again we had to take it, we couldn't say no, and… and I'm so sorry. If we hadn't missed them so much our monsters wouldn't have opened the Shadow Realm to make us a deal for their return and if I'd known what it meant I wouldn't have… well okay I still would have done it but I'd have warned you first, and she would have too, and I'm sorry!"

For several minutes, Malik just stood there, staring at her as he struggled to understand everything she'd blurted out. At last, he said in a dazed voice, "Did you just refer to Ryou as a 'she'?"

Yuugi blinked and mentally ran over her words. With a fresh jolt of horror, she realized that she had done exactly that. "Um… no?"

"Yes you did!" Malik shook his head. "I thought something was different, but… what did you two do?"

"I…" Yuugi began and then stopped as something occurred to her. She looked from Malik to Isis with a frown. "Hang on a second. How did you know that Yami Malik was back? And why did you come here? I appreciate the warning, but..."

"He appeared to my brother," Isis told her, stepping forward and resting a comforting arm around Malik's shoulders. "Briefly, just long enough to deliver a warning and a promise. He wants revenge, Yuugi, and he vowed to start with the lights that lit up the darkness." She lowered her head. "There could be many different interpretations to that statement, but we felt it best to assume that he was referring to you and Ryou and make sure that you were both safe before we did anything else. As we got closer to Domino City, I felt his power growing, and realized that our guess was correct."

"Revenge?" Yuugi breathed the word and felt her skin crawl. She had never wanted Yami as much as she had in that moment.

"That's right. You will both have to be exceptionally careful from now on. Yami Malik hates you very much, and he will wait until you are alone and defenceless to attack. Now that he has the power to open the Shadow Realm at will, you are in a great deal of danger." Isis lifted her head and looked at him sadly. "We should warn Ryou as well. Where is he?"

And that's when it hit her.

"Oh my god… Ryou!"


Please review!