SW: Surprise! Happy One Year Anniversary to me! (Well, technically it was yesterday but I posted this at midnight so screw it, it's my anniversary)

Malik: You've been writing for a year?

SW: Yep! And to celebrate I worked extra hard to write this between last update and this one so I could update twice!

Bakura: *snort* If anything you should've skipped the last update to make the readers squirm.

Marik: And not PM-ed any of them to explain yourself! *cackle* They'd all hate you.

SW: *horrified* Why…Why would I want that?

Thank you to White Weasel (Thank you for the reassurance! And for the compliments! I'm excited for the court room too!) and samaurai (Yeah…Dartz is going to be trying his hardest to make the hikaris look bad) for reviewing!

Happy Anniversary! (Also, I know I said I would be basing my court system on the American one, but I want you to know that I am not perfect, so there may be things that I miss or are incorrect. I am sorry but I did my best.)

((((((LINE))))))

The rest of the week passed without a hitch, at least for Yugi. But when his grandfather pulled into a parking spot in front of the towering building that held the court rooms, he immediately regretted eating breakfast that morning. He slowly got out of the car, dressed in a black suit and dress shirt with a purple tie, and watched a motorcycle zoom past him before coming to a halt in another parking spot a row over.

He wringed his hands together as he walked up to the doors that looked incredibly normal when you realized that behind them was where Maximillion would hopefully be sentenced. Yugi jumped at the sudden flash of a camera and looked up in surprise before he felt a single drop of cold sweat drip down his back. There was press everywhere. How was he going to get through? There were so many people…

"Clear a path! Police! Make way! Don't block the entrance, you dumbasses! We have people that need to get through!"

Yugi looked over to Ryou, who was sheepishly following behind Bakura. The older was forcefully shoving his way through the people trying to get the newest scoop on the Millennium case and was making a path that Yugi hurried to get through before it closed.

He lost his grandpa in the crowd and swallowed roughly as he looked behind him to see the press literally scrambling over themselves to fill the gap behind him, determined to get his attention and a response. Without thinking, he reached forward and grabbed Ryou's shirt, so he could lead, focusing on his feet moving and making sure to breathe.

The violet-eyed boy knew that this kind of reaction to crowds wasn't normal, and after a seriously terrifying moment at the mall when a new sale had started, Yugi told his grandfather he needed to see Shadi again.

The man had said it was actually quite normal to be reacting this way, even though Yugi had 'only' spent six months inside of a cage. The world was loud and crowded and rushed, not at all what Yugi had gotten used to. It was a type of anxiety, but it was all in his mind.

All he had to was convince himself that the people weren't going to do anything bad, that it was normal and okay for them to be crowding him. Yugi needed to keep his breathing calm and to think clearly. That was the way to get through the panic attacks.

A lot easier said than done. Still, Yugi was able to reach the doors and get them safely closed behind him without getting the feeling that his chest was closing up. He let out a sigh of relief and closed his eyes briefly to listen to the lobby music playing, not caring if Bakura and Ryou got ahead of him now. At least he could breathe.

"Yugi?" He opened his eyes in shock to stare at his grandfather, who was grinning mischievously.

The younger shook his head but held a hand over his heart as if to still its beating. "Grandpa! I thought I had lost you to the wolves!"

"Seems like they don't like to pay attention to the ones who appear to have nothing to do with the case," the old man laughed, a twinkle in his eye, "I merely walked around the crowd and got to the door that way."

Yugi rolled his eyes and walked past him, heading to the front desk and blocking out the sounds of the crowd of press yelling again. Someone else must be coming through. He coughed and looked at the unamused secretary who was talking on the phone. "Um, excuse me, but could you tell me where-"

"Ay, yo, Yug'!" He looked as his name was called a second time, surprised to see a slightly ruffled Joey and Tea standing beside Yami and Mai. "Do ya 'ave to deal with those freaks all the time?"

He smiled at the sight of his friends and dodged the question with another one. "What are you guys doing here? I didn't tell you that the trial was today."

"And why didn't you?" Tea huffed and crossed her arms, "Honestly, Yugi. We're your friends, you should have known we would've wanted to be there for you. Your grandfather knew that, he invited us."

Yugi blushed and looked down, happy they were here but not wanting to admit that it would probably make it harder on him to testify if he knew his friends were going to hear it. "Thanks, guys."

Joey shrugged, "If I can't be at court for my friend, what does that make me? As it is Tristan and Duke aren't able to come, the deserters…"

"I'm just happy that you guys came! I wasn't expecting any of you to, so it's not like I can be mad at them." Yugi smiled brightly, ignoring the annoyed scoff from the secretary as she turned her chair around to better focus on her call. "Besides, I'm sure they had a good reason for not being able to make it."

Mai cleared her throat and walked over to Yugi, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "I really would like to let us stay and chat, but we're almost late and I need to let the judge know that his bailiff has arrived." She winked at Yugi, before looking over at Tea and Joey. "We're in Courtroom 3C if you want to come with us."

"Of course we do!" Tea reached out and grabbed Yugi's hand, her eyes slightly narrowed. "Lead the way, Mrs. Mai."

The woman raised a slender blonde eyebrow, before she shrugged, not mentioning that she was in no way married. Mai straightened and stepped away from Yugi, who was staring at Tea in confusion, and started to guide the group through the maze of hallways to their allotted court room.

Yugi sighed and looked around him. Mai was strutting proudly forward in her stilettos. Grandpa was walking just behind her and to the right. He could hear Joey's loud footsteps behind him and he could practically hear the plan to step on the back of his shoes running through the blonde's mind. Tea was holding his right hand softly, rubbing it with her thumb to help calm any nerves he might have. Yami was at his left, hand twitching as if he wanted to grab Yugi's hand as well but unsure if it would be allowed. Everyone around him was there to help provide support.

He smiled and, deciding for his boyfriend, grabbed Yami's hand, giving it a hard squeeze before they stopped in front of the door. Dropping both Tea's and Yami's hands and rolling his shoulders back, he followed his grandfather and Mai into the courtroom, wanting to appear like he was confident and wasn't weak.

((((((LINE))))))

Ryou fidgeted in his seat again, hearing Yugi enter behind him. He had felt bad about leaving him alone in the lobby when he was obviously overwhelmed, but Bakura had not let him pause for a minute. Fidgeting again in his chair next to Rishid, he looked down at his tan suit, white dress shirt, and navy blue tie. He felt washed out, especially in comparison to Rishid, with his dark skin that was complemented by a blue suit, matching tie, and silky green shirt.

"Stop moving. You'll look nervous and then they'll be extra hard when they're questioning you."

He heard the whisper Rishid gave him, and tried to still his movements, but the problem was that he was nervous. He was the lead witness, the one who came to the police first, so he was the one who would stay in the one chair beside the prosecutor. It was nerve-wracking. To know that there were a hundred people that could stare at him from behind and he wouldn't know it. That he would be judged and examined without even getting to say a word.

Suddenly, he felt extremely jealous of Malik and the rest, who got to sit in the first row of seats behind the bar. Thankfully, though, he wasn't the only one shifting. He could hear the ruffle of clothes directly behind him and knew Malik was pulling on his white suit, maybe loosening his white tie from his dark blue shirt before Isis inevitably forced him to tighten it again.

Risking a glance to his left, he saw Dartz already looking him over, probably deciding how much false information he could get him to say. Maximillion was sitting next to him, dressed in a one-piece white jumper and handcuffed to the chair he was sitting in. The fact that he knew Maximillion couldn't escape was a comforting thought, so he was able to offer a small smile to Mai when she walked past him to stand next to the judge's raised desk.

"All rise for Judge Rafael!" Who knew Mai could make her voice so booming?

Everyone did as she said, except for Maximillion, who merely smirked and jangled his handcuffs. Mai was obviously resisting the urge to roll her eyes as she turned to where a tall, blonde man was entering from a side door. The jury followed quickly after, taking their seats at the side of the court room, making sure to grab the folders that were placed on their chairs.

The man moved to his raised chair and sat down, making sure he could maneuver in the long black robes he had on. "You can be seated." His voice was deep, and he scanned the court room before nodding and looking over the papers that had been set on his desk. "In case there are those of you who are unaware, today, the state is charging Mr. Maximillion Pegasus with multiple accounts of kidnapping, rape, human trafficking, assault, and first degree murder." He looked to the jury, speaking with a calm and collected voice, though it could be seen as cold, "Most of the information you will need is in the folder. You will have it when you leave to go decide on a verdict. There must be a unanimous vote on one, singular conviction. Whichever verdict you chose, it must be beyond a reasonable doubt that he is as such. Do you understand?"

There were quiet murmurs of consent and the judge nodded once again, his eyes swinging over to Dartz. "Do you and your client understand the charges?"
"Yes, your honor."

Rafael nodded for the final time, before looking at Rishid, giving him the go away. "Alright. You may begin."

The man nodded, standing up and buttoning together the middle of his suit. He walked over to the middle of the pit, facing the jury and ready to start his opening statement.

((((((LINE))))))

Yugi: So this was the surprise…

Bakura: You're a little late there, squirt.

Yami: He has his reasons.

Marik: Was he sulking in his room?

Yami and Yugi: …

SW: Ok, so anyways…Hope you liked it even though it probably isn't up to par with my other chapters because I was rushing.

Review please!