Episode 10: The Pressing Mask of the Beautiful Teacher

It was a gorgeous Tuesday morning for everyone in Domino. The students were heading to their school, as they were walking up to the gates. Miho and Anzu walked together, it seemed like a peaceful day for the girls. However, as they were walking with the other students, they noticed a particular Sensei that was walking towards the building. She was a very beautiful woman, with fair skin and a small mole under her left eye. She had heavy eyeshadow and red lips, complimenting her crimson hair that seemed straight but at the end was rolled up. She had on a green outfit, with a skirt and blouse, matching her color scheme. As she was walking with her dusky pink purse, many teachers and students of the male gender were greeting her.

"Good morning, Chouno-Sensei." A student spoke to her with a blush.
"Chouno-Sensei, good morning." A teacher greeted her. She smiled at them greeting them back with some pep, being polite to everyone. Anzu and Miho noticed how she was interacting with everyone. She had transferred to Domino High at the beginning of the school year, and she was making such an impression on a majority of the school.

"Chouno-Sensei looks beautiful again today." Miho noted as they were a good distance away from the red headed teacher. "I wish I could learn her secrets."

Anzu turned towards the periwinkle haired girl as she tried to reassure her. "Whether the teacher is beautiful or not doesn't matter to the students in the end. Besides, even though she looks pretty, it isn't her only trait."

"Excuse me, you." The two girls looked over, seeing Chouno-Sensei pointing at a briefcase that belonged to another female student. "What is that on your bag?" The teacher asked, pointing to it.

The young student looked at her charm. She looked worried, like she had gotten into trouble. "It's a small mascot from my favorite show." She explained.

"That's against school rules. Hand it over." She didn't give the student a chance, reaching out and grabbing the small charm from her bag. She smiled as she held up the charm, as if she got a prize. "Don't bring stuff like this to school again." She then walked away, taking the item from the student without even giving her a chance. Anzu and Miho saw the whole thing, making the brunette sigh as she shrugged.

"She is really strict when it comes to the rules."

"But every teacher is like that, right?" Miho asked, not sure what the big deal was.

"But most of the newer rules that we got this year came from her." Anzu added the fact. "And she's creating more rules that are far stricter than any other schools in Japan. Rumor has it that most of her proposals are being processed right now and may even pass."

"You're kidding!" Miho gasped, surprised by this news.

"I wish. She wants to make this the most dedicated school in the country, even if that means rewriting so many of the rules." Anzu sighed. She hated the rules the most because it was what caused the students to not seek after school jobs. Which was why she couldn't get one as of now, she didn't want to risk getting caught and expelled. Even though she was doing all she could to save up some money for graduation. "And because of her charming beauty, most of the male staff have already decided to agree upon her wishes."

"She can sure be very scary when you put her in that kind of light." Miho noted.

Their conversation was interrupted by a familiar voice that called out to them. "Um… Anzu? Miho?" The two girls looked behind them, seeing a familiar green haired student who was looking down to the ground. She had those shy eyes, with a very nervous posture.

"Oh, good morning Cosmo." Miho greeted the young girl.

"Did you need something?" Anzu asked.

Cosmo held her bag tightly, biting her lip for a second before looking back up at the girls. "I… I wanted to ask you about some advice."

Miho and Anzu looked at each other, curiosity getting to them as they wondered what she wanted. Cosmo was never usually this forward, yet even though she was having trouble with what to say, it seemed she was steady in her choice.

"Sure Cosmo, what do you need?" Anzu asked, smiling as she was willing to help out a friend of theirs.

The green haired girl shook her head. "Could we talk during a break? I promise to find you two once the first period is over."

It was an odd request for the most part, but they agreed since the bell would be ringing soon. Cosmo then rushed off to her class, her whole face flushed as she ran off. "What do you suppose she wanted to talk about?" Miho wondered.

Anzu shrugged. "We'll just have to wait to find out ourselves."


Miho and Anzu kept their word. Once the first period was over, they cleaned up their desk and waited for Cosmo to show up. Anzu was the first one to get her stuff together for the next class, since they had fifteen minutes before the end of the break. The purple haired girl looked up at her friend. "Do you think Cosmo will come and ask us the advice she wanted?"

"Well, she seemed serious about it. I think she will be here soon." Anzu stated. "I'm just wondering what it is she wants to talk about."
"Did you guys say something about Cosmo?" The two girls turned, hearing the voice of Yugi as he was walking up to them with Jounouchi by his side. He titled his head in confusion as he only heard part of the conversation.

"Cosmo wanted to ask us for some advice." Miho explained. "She approached us this morning."

"Did she say what for?" Jounouchi asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Anzu admitted.

Yugi was baffled by what it was the young girl wanted. He hoped it wasn't anything serious, the last thing he wanted was for her to be in danger or hurt. Though she didn't seem like the type as far as Yugi knew. He wanted to ask a bit more, but was cut off as the female herself appeared in the room. "Miho! Anzu!" Cosmo came through the door, calling to the girls as she approached everyone. She paused though, seeing Yugi by Jounouchi, making her flush a bit. "Ah, Yugi!"

The shortest of the males smiled at her. "Good morning, Cosmo."

The green haired girl smiled at him. "Morning…" She seemed shy as she spoke to him, but looked happy regardless. Anzu, Miho and Jounouchi saw her eyeing Yugi mostly, looking at him as she had a small smile. "Are you doing alright?"

Yugi raised a brow, curious about what she meant. "I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?"

The young girl rubbed her arm as she looked down, as if embarrassed by what she was about to say. "I heard that you and Honda got into a fight with that yo-yo gang that was terrorizing East Domino for a while."

"Eh?!" Anzu gasped. "Yugi, is this true?!"

The shortest of the men looked over at the brunette, trying to put on a brave grin, but he was very nervous. They still didn't tell the girls the details about what happened when they were looking for Jounouchi. However, word about the gang being taken into custody had made headlines. Since Yugi, Jounouchi and Honda were in that area during that time, many rumors that they had a confrontation with the group buzzed around like wildfire. It was more surprising that Anzu and Miho haven't questioned them about it sooner, seeing as how they like to gossip.

Yugi wasn't sure what to say, he didn't want to explain what had happened for fear of hurting Jounouchi's reputation. Thankfully, it was the blond that stepped up and put what happened into his own words. "They cornered me and had me on the ropes, which was why I went missing. I gave them a heck of a fight, but they overpowered me. Honestly, I probably would have been dead if Yugi, Honda and Sparkle didn't show up. The cops helped to." Jounouchi winked at Yugi, assuring that he was able to handle this. The short guy sighed in relief, nodding towards the girls.

"I'm surprised you didn't get hurt." Miho commented.

Yugi waved his hands. "Oh, we did. But it wasn't too bad." He tried to reassure the girls. "Anyways, we are alright now."

Cosmo sighed. "Thank goodness."

Anzu saw the relief wash on Cosmo's face. She added in her own comment. "But she did have a reason to be worried. You do tend to find yourself in trouble at times." Yugi only laughed at the statement, he didn't even deny it. Anzu then turned towards the green haired girl. "So, what did you want to talk to us about?"

She looked over at the taller girls, then eyed Yugi for a moment before blushing. "Uhh… could we go out to the hallway and speak?" She requested.

"Alright, come on then." Anzu walked out towards the door, not even questioning it this time around. Miho followed her then Cosmo, heading out to the hallway. Just as they crossed the doorway, Honda came in and stomped over towards the other two boys in the classroom. He was calling out to Jounouchi in an angered tone. The females avoided that as much as they could, leaning against the windows of the hallway. Once they were all alone, they went to the main reason for being here. "So, what did you need to ask us about?" Anzu asked as she looked at Cosmo.

The green haired girl looked down at the ground, moving her arms from side to side as if she was scared to admit something. Even when she spoke, it was a whisper. "I… wanted to ask you two… advice about giving gifts."

"A gift?" Miho repeated. Her eyes then lit up as she smiled. "Aww, are you giving something to someone?!"

Seeing her excited face, Cosmo jumped back as she felt this was a bad idea. But she managed to gather up the courage to try and confront this. If she backed down now, she wouldn't be able to come back from it. "W-well…. Sort of… but I wanted to give it to someone. That I really liked now for a while. Someone you may or may not know…"

"Oh? Who is it? Is it someone from our class?" Miho asked, getting far more excited than she should.

Cosmo's face began to flush, as she knew she would have to spill the beans. "Well… he is in your class and grade…" She admitted as she looked to the ground. "He uh… is a close friend of mine… at least, I consider him a close friend as he considers me one."

"Oh?" Anzu blinked. She and Miho looked at her, wondering who she was referring to. Cosmo knew that she would have to admit who she was talking about if she was going to get anywhere. She knew it was something she may regret, but what other choice did she have?

"I… wanted to give something… to Yugi." She blurted out as she looked at the girls.

Miho gasped, her eyes wide as she got the answer. But it was Anzu that was far more shocked. "You mean you like Yugi?!" Thankfully her mouth was covered by Miho. Cosmo squeaked, terrified that the brunette would reveal her secret out loud. Miho was just in time to silence her though.

"Anzu, hush!" The purpled haired girl warned.

Cosmo even put a finger up to her lip, begging her to lower her tone. "Anzu, please! Your voice is too loud."

She took Miho's hand from her mouth, pushing it away from her. "I get it. I'm sorry… it's just… do you like Yugi?"

Upon hearing that question, Cosmo once again found her face flushed. "W-well… he's been very kind to me since we've met." She admitted as her eyes were downcasted, but a smile played on her lips. "The first day I transferred here, he talked with me and helped me feel more at ease with this school. Inviting me to hang out with you guys, even when I felt I didn't belong. Showing me such cool games…"

"I suppose so… but…" Anzu and the other girls looked back into the classroom. That was when they saw Honda pointing at Jounouchi, while Yugi was holding up his hands to try and convince the fighting to stop.

"You damn slacker! You skipped out on your cleaning duty yesterday! This is the fourth time you've done this! Do you have any idea how much you've insulted the Beautification members? I won't forgive this!" Honda shouted, making Jounouchi back up as he looked like he had been caught red handed for a crime he commited.

"Come on, Honda. I had something important that day, so I couldn't stay behind. Can you please forgive me if I promise it won't happen again?" The blond clapped his hands together in a prayer like manner, pleading for forgiveness.

Yugi stepped in to try and defend his friend. "If you want, I can help cover the shifts he missed or help him out on his next one." Honda didn't seem to be buying any of what the two were trying to sell. He seemed more crossed with the blond than anything.

Anzu scratched the side of her head, trying to understand the situation. "Just what is it that you like about Yugi, anyways?"

"Well, he is really confident." Cosmo pointed out.

Anzu turned to glance at her, raising a brow. "Be serious."

"I mean it!" Cosmo spoke in a much louder tone. "He's very caring towards his friends, putting their needs above his own. He isn't scared to say what he believes is wrong. And even though he lacks any physical strength… I think he's pretty strong when it comes to his emotions." The smile reappeared on her face once again. She was speaking so highly of him, praising him despite him not living up to what everyone else could see.

"I guess?" Anzu still seemed unsure about her response.

Miho was the one that detested the brunette. "You shouldn't be so doubtful, Anzu! Especially towards our friend. Besides, love is love no matter how you look at it." Miho cheered as hearts appeared in her eyes.

Cosmo was glad, despite their opinions, the girls seemed keen on helping her. Though she was still at a loss for the main goal. "I wanted to ask you two if you knew what Yugi likes." She then looked up at them with courage on her features for the first time since they had met her. "That way, I could give him a present. As a sort of thank you for his inspiration and for all of the good he has done."

"Awww, that is so romantic!" Miho gushes as she closes her hands together. Cosmo flushed more, her face heating up at the thought of romance.

"I-I doubt he would really b-be interested in m-me…" She admits as she stutters. "B-b-but… I r-really want to give him s-something to show my gratitude. I wanted to ask you two since I figured you would know."

Anzu hummed, tapping her cheek with her finger. "What would Yugi like?"

Miho came up with a suggestion. "Oh! I heard him talking to Jounouchi about wanting to see a lewd video one time!"

Cosmo blushed intensely, but for a different reason. She imagined herself recording a video of her doing very unspeakable things. She shook her head as she was embarrassed for even picturing herself doing such an unsavory action. "There's no way I can give that as a present!" Anzu and Miho realized this as well, taking in her shame. "There has to be something else I can give him…"

"But what though?" Miho wondered as she seemed just as stumped. Anzu was thinking as well, Yugi seemed to like about anything since he was a people pleaser. But she knew that he would want something that brought him joy. Something he would love to have and really spoke to him. Nothing came at the top of her head, but she did have an idea of her own. Her eyes lit up as she had a smile upon her face.

At this point, Jounouchi was grabbed by the collar as Honda forced him closer to his face. "I know you, Jounouchi! You won't keep your word!"

"Stop it, Honda! Jounouchi already said he was sorry." Yugi begged as he was still trying to get the pair to cease the argument.

The brunet turned towards the shortest of the three, as he pointed at Jounouchi who had an innocent smile on his face. "Look at him, Yugi! Does he look sorry to you?"

"But he-" Yugi was still trying to stop this fight before it officially broke out. He was cut off though as a female voice called out to one of them.
"Jounouchi!" The three boys turned to the door, seeing Anzu there as she waved with her hand in a "come here" motion. They could also see Comso and Miho behind her, looking in from where they were standing in the hallway. "Can you come here for a minute, Jounouchi." Anzu had a sweet tone that she was using to address the blond. While it was enough to make Honda release his hold on him, it did raise the brows of the three. Anzu never called for Jounouchi, and when she did it was usually something that wasn't good on his end. However, seeing the other girls with him did make him believe it wasn't going to be anything bad or humiliating. Either way, he figured it would be a fate better than what Honda had in mind. So he rushed out of the room and into the hallway.

Honda was too astonished by Anzu's request to even be mad at the blond. Yugi was just as baffled as he stepped forward. "Did you want us too?"

Anzu gave an intimidating glare at the other two boys, her voice getting stern again. "You two aren't needed. We just need Jounouchi!" She declared before slamming the door.

Now they were even more disturbed. Yugi looked up at Honda, wondering if he knew what just happened. "What do you think that was about."

The other high schooler only shrugged. "Dunno." He admitted.

The blond walked up to the girls, wondering what he was needed for. He didn't care, at least he got out of a physical fight with Honda. "So, what did you need me for?" Jounouchi asked the brunette in curiosity.

"We need you to tell us some things that Yugi likes." Anzu explained.

The blond raised a brow. It was an odd request he admitted, but it wasn't anything too humiliating as far as he was concerned. "Something that Yugi likes?" He repeated. Making sure he heard right.

She crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. "Do you have any ideas?"

Jounouchi hummed, looking up at the ceiling as he had to think for a good minute. A grin crossed his face and he chuckled. "There's only one thing he would most likely want." The girls leaned in closer, waiting to hear what he had to say. "Some lewd videos!"

The other three partially fell to the floor upon that answer. Anzu got upset as she bawled her hands into fist, glaring at the blond. "Not something like that, you dumbass! It has to be something that a girl can give as a present."

Jounouchi raised a brow, having a hand on his hip. "A girl could give that as a gift."

Anzu placed a hand over her chest as she was talking sternly with Jounouchi. "Not in that sense! Cosmo needs to give a gift to Yugi to show her gratitude towards him!" She pointed at the green haired girl. When Jounouchi looked at the flushed face on Cosmo, his eyes became brighter as he now understood the situation.

"A-Anzu! Please don't say such embarrassing things out loud." She begged as she began squealing again.

"Don't worry, I won't tell Yugi." The blond assured with the wave of his hand. "But why do you want to keep it a secret? Can't you just give the gift to him yourself?"

Cosmo bit her lip, looking down. "I'm worried he might not like me that way, and I don't want him to be put in such an awkward situation. Plus, I would be too nervous to even give him the gift myself in person, so sending it to him might be the best option." She admitted as she twirled her fingers around one another.

Jounouchi could understand, but he wanted to help more than ever. After all, Yugi getting a gift from a girl might help boost his confidence far more. And Cosmo was a pretty nice girl, short, shy and likes games. Even if Yugi didn't see her as a girlfriend, this gift would have to be one that wouldn't ruin their friendship. "Anyways, about the present you want to get, that is something that should be obvious." Jounouchi waved his finger with a sly smirk. "Yugi is a huge fan of games, so just give him something of the sort."

"Of course! He is a gaming nerd. Can't believe we didn't think of that." Anzu admitted, disappointed she didn't think of that herself.

"But, what kind of game should I give him?" Cosmo asked. "It would have to be something he hasn't seen before."

"Ah, that is true." Jounouchi admitted. "And since he lives in a game shop, chances are there isn't a single game he doesn't know…" The blond had to think about this one. Though speaking of Yugi's home, it wouldn't be a bad place to at least get an idea. "Wait, why don't we go over there to the game shop after school? Maybe his grandfather will have something you can give to him!"

Anzu smiled at the suggestion. "Good idea! We can go there after school before Yugi gets home."

"But we will have to make sure we get there before he does." Miho pointed out.

"I'll ask Yugi to take one of my cleaning shifts today. That should keep him busy for at least an hour after school." Jounouchi assured. "And I'll convince Honda by saying I'm helping out you girls. Once he knows Miho is involved, he will not ask any questions." Which meant he would also get out of another janitor night with Honda once again. He really had to remind himself to thank these girls for getting him out of such a terrible after school job.

"Alright, it's settled. We'll all head there after school to look for a present for Yugi." Anzu declared, setting the plan in motion. Cosmo was happy, this meant she may have a chance to give a gift to Yugi. Hopefully everything else would go well. For now, they went back to get through the rest of their classes. It was a long process, as it seemed time was being much slower with them than usual. But the final class, study hall, round the corner in no time. Jounouchi kept his word about having Yugi take his cleaning duties after school. In return, he promised to treat Yugi to some burgers on Sunday for their hangout. Yugi agreed, mostly for the burgers. He also informed Honda that he had to leave with the girls for something important. The brunet seemed to be suspicious, especially when Miho was involved. Jounouchi was able to avoid any further interrogation as he was running out of the classroom just as everyone else was leaving for the day.

He met up with the girls and walked together to the game shop that belonged to the Mutou residents. When they walked through the door, Sugaroku was behind the counter, looking over at the high schoolers as they came in. "Ah! Welcome everyone." The old man smiled as he saw the four come in, but noticed that among them, his grandson was not there. "Isn't Yugi with you?"

"He had to stay behind to do some cleaning." Jounouchi explained.

"Mr. Mutou, we were wondering if you could help us with something." Anzu told him as she wanted to get straight down to business. "We're trying to find a game that is unique, and one to help showcase strong feelings towards someone."

"A game of feelings?" Sugaroku repeated.

Cosmo stepped up to further explain. "Like a present to give to a loved one. But in the form of a game of sorts."

The store owner crossed his arms over his chest, humming as he closed his eyes while thinking. "Some sort of gift to give to someone that is full of feelings and meaning. It sure is nice to be young these days." He sighed all dreamily at the thought. Everyone listened to his muttering, as it was very audible for them to hear.

Cosmo leaned over to Jounouchi. "Hey, Jounouchi… are you sure this is a good idea. What if he doesn't have what I'm looking for?"

The blond whispered back to her assuringly. "Don't worry, if it's game related, he is bound to have it. He may seem a bit perverted, but you can trust him."

Suddenly, the old man slammed his fist into the open palm of his hand. "A-ha! I've got just the thing that will work!"

"Really?" Miho asked, leaning in closer as she was intrigued.

"Believe it or not, this is how I confessed my feelings to Yugi's grandmother. I should have it up here." He turned around, rummaging through an old box on a high shelf. As he was messing around with the contents inside, dust began to fall from the shelf, which caused him to cough a bit. The four watched him, conquering the dirty air, as he took out something from within the box. "Here it is!" He presented it to the group, an old square box that has some more dirt on it. He blew away the powder, making the other four choke a bit from the dirt in the air. He then placed the box on the counter, removing the lid to show what was inside. "Here we go."

In the box was a white jigsaw puzzle, inside a light blue frame with a few hearts engraved in the corners. "This is just a jigsaw puzzle, isn't it?" Anzu asked, checking over the item.

"It's all white though, nothing drawn on it." Miho noted.

"That's the whole point." Sugaroku stated. "This puzzle is that of a canvas, a letter for you to write. You create a message on the pieces and then dislocate the puzzle. Then the receiver will put the puzzle back together one section at a time, making the message expand until they make it whole and read it from there. A true romantic gesture."

Jounouchi looked at the puzzle, a small snicker came from his mouth as he admitted the idea was slightly funny. Anzu used her elbow to hit him in the side, making him wince in slight pain. Cosmo looked at the puzzle as her eyes went wide, sparkling with anticipation as she held her hands together. "It's lovely! A very cute and romantic idea! I'll take it!" She assured as she reached into her pocket, getting some cash out for the old man.

"I'm glad you like it. I'm sure whoever you give it to will be very lucky." Sugaroku placed the lid on the box and began to wrap it up to give to the green haired girl. Cosmo paid for the puzzle, holding it in her hands. She seemed really happy, and she was determined to see this through to the end.

"You sure about this, Cosmo?" Anzu asked as she looked over her shoulder to see the puzzle.

"It will work!" She assured her. "I feel really good about this." Her smile faded, looking over at the three high schoolers with a confused look. "But, what am I going to write?"

"Just write how you truly feel." Miho urged her. "All the things you said you admired about him. You have all night."

That did make Cosmo feel better, and more confident in what she was going to do. "Thank you again, everyone! I am going to do my best!" Anzu, Miho and Jounouchi smiled, glad that Cosmo seemed happy about this. They wondered what she was going to say to Yugi and how the young high schooler would react to said message. They would only have to wait until tomorrow to see what would happen. Cosmo had a faint blush on her face, her heart skipped a beat as she was excited.


It was now morning, on a Wednesday in Domino, Japan. The day seemed pretty perfect for Yugi as he walked to school. He was walking all on his own, heading into the grounds as he was wondering what today would bring him. By the time he had reached the lockers and gathered his shoes, he was greeted by one of his friends. "Ah, Yugi!" The short high schooler turned his head, looking over to see Jounouchi approach him.

"Good morning, Jounouchi." The young high schooler smiled as he gathered his belongings for his first class. He walked with the blond to their morning class, smiling as they talked.

"Sorry about ditching you yesterday," Jounouchi stated. "I hope you guys didn't have a lot to clean up."

Yugi shook his head. "I was in charge of taking out the garbage, and thankfully there wasn't a whole lot in the classrooms." Yugi assured him. He didn't mind cleaning up the classes, after all he thought it was a good chance to work as a team and connect with people. Though it was not really his ideal way of being part of a group. Speaking of which, he looked up at the blond and asked him something. "By the way, what was it that the girls wanted to ask you yesterday?"

Jounouchi blinked, rubbing his neck. "Eh… nothing too serious. Just advice about stuff." He tried to be vague, as he didn't want to admit what the reason was. He made a promise not to mention it to Yugi as Cosmo wanted it to be a surprise. He still remembered coming there earlier that morning than when he usually does. Anzu had called him that morning and surrounded Yugi's desk with Miho and Cosmo. The green haired girl had managed to finish the letter she was going to give to Yugi, and set it in his desk. It would be up to the blond of the group to ensure that the receiver would wait until after a break to see the gift. Once they were in the class, Yugi took the seat but was unaware of the present before him. "So anyways, as promised I'll treat you to some burgers this weekend."

Yugi looked at Jounouchi as he mentioned that. "Are you sure you want to pay?" He asked. Yugi now knew the financial situation Jounouchi was in, and the last thing he wanted was to make him pay for things that he could hardly afford.

The blond gave a smirk. "Don't worry, I've been saving a bunch lately and got myself a job as a delivery boy."

Yugi blinked, hearing that news. "You got a job? But I thought Domino High didn't allow students to have jobs."

Jounouchi waved a finger in his direction. "Technically, the rule was no after school jobs. And my delivery services are on the weekends and school holidays, so the rules can't put me down. Once you find the loophole, you can do anything." Yugi gave a smile back, Jounouchi was one for figuring out some way to get out trouble, though not all the time. Still, he was happy his friend got a job and is currently working. Hopefully once he graduates, he will have enough saved up to move out of that place and get away from his drunk father.

The rest of the students soon came in, taking their seats as they were ready to start the first class of the day. Yugi began to get his books out, smiling as he was looking forward to this lesson. He studied the homework last night so he was confident in what they were going to be learning today. "Alright, let's take a look at the notes." Yugi told himself as he began to get his book out from his desk, which had a small space under the surface. As he went to grab it, his hand felt something forgein. Yugi was confused, looking in and seeing a strange box. He took it out and examined it, as it had green wrapping paper with a red bow on the far right corner. "What is this?"

Jounouchi watched Yugi take the gift, knowing that he found Cosmo's present to him. Though he had to make sure to wait until it was revealed. Jounouchi looked over, trying to act as if he didn't know what it was. "Oh? Looks like someone is popular with the girls." He mocked.

Yugi blushed, looking at his friend with an embarrassed smile. Based on the colors and the decor of the box, he guessed it was a girl that made it for him. But this was something new for the young high schooler. He never got a gift from a girl before, especially from another student. Surely it must have been a joke, after all he wasn't really much of a ladies man as Jounouchi called it. Then again, it did seem pretty genuine. The only way to know for sure was to open it. But obviously not right now, the teacher would be coming in soon. "I'll have to wait until break to figure out what's inside."

Jounouchi was glad that Yugi had common sense, unlike him. The blond gave a nod. "We'll head up to the roof and see what it is." He stated. The roof of the school would be ideal, since it would be far away from everyone else, and Jounouchi could see the reaction of Yugi's face on his own, then report back to Cosmo and the others. He looked out of the corner of his eye, seeing Anzu giving a curt nod to him. Jounouchi slightly nodded back, making sure that he would be playing his part in this. Yugi put the box back inside his desk, and stayed seated.

Soon enough, the teacher came in. The red headed woman herself, Chouno-Sensei, entered the room. Jounouchi looked at her, seeing her heavy makeup face even from here. As she went to her desk, everyone stood up, bowed, then sat back down as a sign of respect for the teacher as she entered. "Good morning everyone," The teacher said to her students.

"Good morning, Chouno-Sensei." They repeated back.

Jounouchi looked at the lady with a raised brow. "She doesn't seem pretty happy today." He whispered to Yugi.

Yugi looked up at his friend, wondering what he meant. "She looks the same as she always does."

Jounouchi leaned in closer, making sure to keep their voices quiet so she wouldn't hear them. "I heard she had another marriage interview last weekend. That woman is so old fashioned."

Yugi had to agree. He couldn't really see the teacher getting married anyways. She seemed far too strict and more focused on her school career than anything. Not to mention, she had gotten 10 marriage interviews since early this year according to some. Yugi thought she was a strange woman, and a bit manipulative seeing as how she could get the male teachers and students to do her bidding. It was kind of scary when he really thought about it. "Now then class, before we open our textbooks, I would like you all to empty your bags and desks and place them on the desktops. It is time for the weekly inspection."

A few students gasped, but some were prepared. Chouno had this thing where she would do a random desk clean in the middle of the week, but the days were always changed. Jounouchi and Anzu knew that of all days was the worst day to do a desk inspection. Especially when the teacher would notice the gift left for Yugi. The young high schooler hated the idea of being busted with the present, but he couldn't refuse either or he would be in even more trouble. So he laid everything out and could only wait until the teacher came around. She looked over everyone's belongings, his heart pounded a bit as the teacher came to him, looking over his desk and immediately noticed the decorated box.

"Yugi Mutou... what a cute bento lunch." She noticed as she picked it up.

Yugi gulped, looking up at the teacher as she was fidgeting in his seat. "I-I don't know if it is… but it isn't mine, I just found it in my desk." He admitted.

"Not yours? So you think someone put it in there by accident?" She asked a rhetorical question as she went back to her own desk, setting the box down as she glared at every student. "However, no matter what, I as your teacher have always told you not to bring things that aren't class related to class. So then, do you know what this is, Yugi?"

The short student began to grow flustered, as he was feeling all eyes on him. His friends grew sympathetic towards him, as they knew he didn't like this kind of attention. "I swear, I have no idea. I haven't even opened it yet." Yugi stated as his voice squeaked.

"Really?" She smiled still, holding onto the box with both her hands, as she ripped the paper off, and ended up revealing a few white puzzle pieces. She looked at the desk, as they fell on top. "Oh! A jigsaw puzzle? This is not acceptable. You shouldn't bring a plaything like this to school grounds. So, what kind of picture does this one reveal?" She played along, putting the pieces together. "Something like this, you could easily lose yourself to. It really disrupts the studying." She already put a few of the pieces together, making a bit of the message appeared. She gasped in surprise, putting her hands in the air. "Oh! How interesting! Instead of a picture, it's a message that comes out. What does it read, I wonder?" She looked at the message that Cosmo had made the night before. Though it was only the first sentence. "Ever since I met you, you have been an inspiration to me…" She giggled, covering her mouth. "Oh my, is this a love confession?"

The students began laughing, either entertained by the puzzle or the fact they wanted to to be on the teachers' good side. Yugi became even more embarrassed, as he was having a love confession read to him in front of the class. He knew for a fact that he would most likely get in trouble along with the one that sent him this message. "That is no good. This would be a terrible distraction. Which means this is against school rules. No doubt this would lead to expulsion. So then, whoever is the one that wrote this, come forth. Or I could continue and find out for myself." She reached for more pieces, ready to write more.

Anzu glared at the teacher, hating everything she was doing. In a fit of rage, she stood up. "Stop it, Sensei!" Anzu demanded.

Chouno looked over at the brunette, raising a brow. "What was that, Masaki-san?"

"That puzzle holds a letter, a message to the receiver. It would be too cruel to read other people's feelings to everyone else." She said in a serious tone.

"Curel?" For a split second, the teacher seemed upset by her response. But quickly covered it with a forced smile. "But as a teacher, I must know who brought this to school during this time. And by putting the puzzle together, I may be able to see who it was from."

Anzu knew that Cosmo had signed the letter, and she would get expelled if that happened. She didn't want the poor girl to suffer, after all she had just gotten some courage in her personality and the last thing the brunette wanted was to see it being crushed. So, in a desperate attempt to cover the true culprit, Anzu spoke up. "I...I'm the one that wrote that letter…" The moment that Yugi heard that, he gasped, blushing as he looked over at Anzu's direction. She wrote this letter to him? In the form of a puzzle? Yugi believed it must have been some sort of joke. Anzu didn't have any romantic feelings for him… at least, he thought. Jounouchi and Miho looked over in the burnette's direction, just as surprised by her taking the blame. She looked in the direction of the blond and periwinkle haired girl, giving them reassuring eyes. Anzu would tell Yugi that she did it to cover up the true owner of the letter. He would understand, it was Yugi after all.

"I see…" Chouno-Sensei noted as she had her hands on her hips. By the tone of her voice, she didn't seem to truly believe it, but Anzu was taking the fall and as a teacher, it was her job to see to it she would be punished. "It was you, Masaki? Well then, when class is over, I would like to speak with you in the advisor room." Anzu nodded, taking her seat as she knew what was to come next. Yugi only looked over in her direction, still thinking about the idea that it was her that wrote the puzzle letter. He wondered if it really was true. If so, he admitted that he wouldn't mind it.


After the end of class, Miss Chouno took Anzu to the advisor room to talk more about the puzzle. Yugi, Jounouchi and Miho decided to go with, wanting to know what would happen. Jounouchi had a sinking feeling that she would get expelled. After all, Chouno was a ruthless and merciless teacher, expelling anyone for the smallest and stupidest of reasons. Miho and Yugi hoped that wouldn't be the case, but were still worried regardless. They listened in, trying to make out the conversation as best they could.

Miss Chouno had the half finished puzzle on her side of the table, looking over at the brunette. She held a few of the pieces in her hand. "I will tell you again how bad something like this is to bring to school." She began as she crushed the pieces a bit then let them fall on the frame.

"I don't think a puzzle or letter is a bad thing." She retorted.

Chouno looked over at her, clearly by her scrunched up eyebrows she was a bit annoyed by that response. "What was that?"

"The purpose of the puzzle wasn't to bother anyone. It is only for the receiver and they could see it in their own free time when they had no one else. Something this private shouldn't even be read or done out loud. It would be no different than if someone were to play a mobile game on their phones during a break."

"The rules clearly state that anything that could be considered disrupting during class can lead to punishment. The fact of the matter is, it was inside Muotu's desk and therefore he could have taken it out and worked on it during class." She stated.

"But you have no way of knowing for sure he would do something like that." Anzu pointed out. "Besides, what is considered a "distraction"? As long as he does it during free time or on his own, it wouldn't bother anyone. The recent rules have been much more strict recently, even for a modern Japanese school. For example, banning part time jobs would be ignoring the concept that the students could gain life skills from such jobs and prepare them for the world when they graduate."

Miss Chouno turned in her chair, rubbing her chin as she mocked how cheeky her student was being. Clearly her passion and ideals were far too strong to be repressed, unlike most of the students.

"Am I wrong?" Anzu asked.

The red haired woman turned around, still sporting on that fake smile of hers. "Even though you make good points, what about the other students and their ideals? Do you think they share the same values?"

Anzu was a bit caught off guard by that question. The teacher was never one to ask what other people think. Usually she just did what she wanted, and had the rules as strict as possible. "I think that they do." Anzu replied.

"Thinking and knowing aren't the same, now are they? However, if you really want to prove that there should be some changes, I'll give you a chance by gathering signatures of the students. If you can get evidence that the students want changes to the school, gather their signatures and bring them to the staff meeting."

"Even about the part time jobs?" Anzu asked.

"It depends on what the students say." Chouno added.

This made Anzu smile, for there was a chance that the rules could be lightened. After all, she did hear a lot of the students complaining about the recent regulations, so she was sure to get their support. "I understand!" Anzu stood up from her chair, excited about this proposition. She bowed to the teacher and went to the door. She opened it, and headed out into the hallway where the three other students were waiting for her. "So how did it go?" Miho asked, worried for what was to come.

"What did she say?" Yugi asked.

Anzu only smiled at the group, before turning to Yugi. She then revealed a box in her hands, handing it to him. "First off, here you go."

Yugi looked at the present, then smiled as he realized it was the same one that the puzzle was in. "She gave it back to you?" Yugi took it, realizing that he had yet to finish it and see what it said. But for now, he had to worry about what was going to happen next.

"That was easy, but the rest we will have to work hard on." Anzu smiled. They all looked at her in confusion, wondering what her plan was, so they followed her to see what was in store for them.

It took a little bit during the lunch break, and with the help of Miho, however she finally managed to get to work on her school project. Anzu had the help of Miho, Yugi and even Jounouchi as they set up a poster of the school on a large billboard in the hallway. Above the drawing of the building read, "Let's make a change!" highlighted in Kanji. Anzu made sure to put it up, making it be the center of the billboard for everyone to see. "This should be good." She stepped back, admiring her work and nodded.

Yugi looked up at the image, amazed that the girls were able to make something that impressive in such a short amount of time. Still, a part of him was worried about this. If this didn't work out, then it would backfire and Anzu would get in even more trouble. "You're really sure about this, Anzu?" Yugi asked as he was not as confident.

Anzu held her fist in the air, still determined with her end goal. "I'm doing this for every student. It's not like we are going full anarchy, just to bend some of the newer rules and give students a bit more freedom. Besides, if they are gone, that means I'd be free to work." Yugi could see her point. She made it clear that she wanted to move to America once she graduated from high school. But that alone would be expensive, which meant she would need a job to help get the money she needed to prepare herself for the life ahead of her. With the rules now, that would be nearly impossible, but if she could revise them then she would have a better chance of moving from Japan to America once she was finished with high school.

"So, what do you all think about the recent rules?" Anzu asked as she looked at her friends.

Jounouchi had his arms crossed as he looked at her with a raised brow. He gave his response, still a bit skeptical. "I think I'd be better without them."

"Then here!" Anzu handed him a clipboard with rows and columns of charts. She smiled at him, pleased with the answer. "Give me your signature." Jounouchi took the clipboard, with the pen attached to it and wrote down his name. He muttered how much of a pain it was but signed anyways. He then passed it to Yugi, who put his name in one of the rows. "We just have to set the rest of the posters up, and I think if we take shifts and go around different parts of the school, we should be able to get at least half of what we need. We just need at least one hundred signatures and that should be enough to revise the rules."

Yugi handed the clipboard to Miho, then looked over in Anzu's direction. "In that case, I will help out however I can."

"Really?" Anzu was glad to hear that. She turned towards the skinny box, which contained the posters. She handed a rolled up one in Yugi's hands. "Alright, can you put up this poster on the west tower?"

"Got it!" He began running in the direction where the tower was located.

"Ah, Yugi!" Anzu's voice stopped him, making him turn to face her. She smiled at him, her eyes full of passion and hope. "Thank you." Seeing her smile made Yugi blush, as he thought back to the puzzle letter that was inside his desk. Which was what caused this whole situation to come about in the first place. He couldn't help but start to truly believe that it really was Anzu that created that letter for him. He thought about it more as he headed to the west tower to put out the poster.

And thus, the campaign began. During the breaks, whenever they could, they would be near the bulletin board and try to gather some signatures. Anzu would bow to any students going by, she would say something along the lines of, "Please give us your signature to change the rules."

Jounouchi, Honda and Miho watched from the side. "They sure are working hard." Jounouchi noticed.

"I hope she can get enough signatures." Miho prayed.

Honda tried to reassure her with a smile. "Don't worry. They only just started, but surely some students will be on their side."

"Let's make part time jobs and accessories allowed as part of our school." Anzu declared as she looked around for other students to sign the petition. She was pretty dead set on her goal, and it was one that she would make come true no matter what. For her, her friend and the other students at Domino High.

As they were waiting for other teenagers, a familiar one approached them. "Um… Anzu… Yugi…" The two from class 1-B looked over to see the girl from one class above them.

"Ah, Cosmo!" Anzu greeted. "Are you here for the petition?"

She nodded, smiling as she reached out her hand and grabbed the clipboard. "I heard about what had happened… and I felt guilty so the least I can do is help out." She began writing her name on the list, handing it back to Anzu. Yugi had a feeling Cosmo would want to sign the paper as a way to help out those she considers her friend. But he was confused about why she was feeling guilty.

"Thank you Cosmo. Every signature helps." Anzu smiled at the green haired girl.

Cosmo looked at the list again, seeing that there were only six names in total, counting hers. "Not a lot of names…" She noted somberly.

The brunette assured the young girl. "We only started this an hour ago. By the end of the week, we should have enough to revise the rules." She seemed hopeful as her eyes were lit up.

"Well… if there is anything else I can do… I'd be more than happy to help." Cosmo offered.

Anzu was glad to hear that. She smiled as she handed her the clipboard and spoke. "Actually, could you stand here and take the shift? I need to check up on the posters and see how the other sign up sheets are doing."

Cosmo looked up from the paper to the taller girl. She only nodded, wanting to be as much use as she could. "O-oh! Of course! I don't mind."

Anzu nodded, turning towards Yugi. "Stay here with Cosmo for a few minutes, Yugi. I'll be back soon." She said before running off to check on everything else. This left Cosmo and Yugi alone in the hallway, together. Jounouchi and the others went with Anzu to check the posters and the sheets. For now, Cosmo and Yugi were busy trying to get everyone to sign as possible. The boy looked over at the green haired girl, talking to her.

"Sorry for having you take over for Anzu." He apologized.

Cosmo looked over at him, shaking her head. "Oh no, it's not a bother. I want to help out because I owe Anzu." She admitted. Yugi noticed that her eyes were downcasted to the ground, her hands holding the clipboard as she swung her body back and forth. There was a small silence between them for a moment. It was pretty awkward, since neither of them knew what to say or do.

"So…" Cosmo gulped as she began to speak. "W-what exactly happened? I only heard rumors, but I'm curious about what Chouno-Sensei had done and said to Anzu."

Yugi raised a brow, wondering what it was that Cosmo heard about what occurred this morning. It was probably just telltales from the students and teachers, but he was the one that was there so the least he could do was fill her in. He sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. Yugi was still slightly embarrassed to admit what happened, but he had to get her up to speed. "This morning, Chouno-Sensei had every student do a desk cleanout. I had gotten a small gift on the desk, where it was a puzzle that spelt out a message. She found it and tried to put it together, but Anzu stopped her. Told the teacher that it was her's…" A small blush crossed Yugi's face as he told her that. He still couldn't believe it, his childhood friend had sent him a romantic letter. It didn't seem like Anzu, but there was no way she would pull such a prank on him.

Cosmo perked up upon hearing the part about the letter puzzle. She seemed confused, especially when he mentioned that the gift was from Anzu. "A-Anzu… sent you that puzzle?" She asked him.

Yugi snapped out of his daydream, looking over at her and answered. "Yeah, she admitted to it. She talked with the teacher, and said that if she could make Chouno-Sensei see that the rules are too strict, she will drop the puzzle letter. That's why she is getting the signatures for the petitions." Yugi explained with a smile. "And I want to help her out as much as I can."

Cosmo's eyes wavered, she couldn't hear the rest of the explanation. Anzu took credit for the puzzle? The one she wanted to send to Yugi? The young girl knew she did it to protect her, and she was grateful for the brunette's sacrifice. However… This meant that Yugi would not know who the true sender of the gift was from. The green haired one's heart sunk a bit, the courage that she once had before was now suddenly gone. "So… did you like… the message?" She had to ask, her voice low and slightly bitter. "That was on the puzzle?"

Yugi noticed the different tone Cosmo had on her. It was strange, but he didn't think too much of it. "Well, I haven't actually finished the puzzle myself." He admitted. "So I don't know what it all really says. But the first chance I get, I will see."

She gulped, knowing that Yugi didn't know the truth yet. She wanted to say it, admit what really happened. There may be a possibility she could get in trouble, but this could be her only chance. She gulped, trying to swallow down her fear. She looked over at Yugi, shaking slightly. "Y-Yugi… I… There's something I need… to tell you." The words were hard to form, she wasn't sure how to phrase it.

"What is it?" Yugi asked.

Cosmo kept shaking, all the confidence she had yesterday completely faded. Even so, she had to get an ounce of it if she was going to confess. She felt the knot in her stomach expand, telling her to go against this idea. Her heart however begged to differ. "A-About the puzzle… well… it wasn't… I mean, it's from… It's actually from…"

"So, how's it going?" A high pitched voice called out. Yugi and Cosmo turned, seeing the red haired teacher standing in front of them. Chouno was looking at the two, noticing Cosmo instead of Anzu, but didn't question it.

"Chouno-Sensei!" Yugi gasped.

Before he could even give her an answer, the teacher snatched the clipboard from Cosmo's hands, reading over the signatures that were there. "Oh my, you hardly got any." She noted.

"We only just started, and we do have some to go on." Yugi tried to assure.

"Well, let's see if you can get any other signatures." She shrugged as she walked away, a sly smile on her lipstick face. Yugi wasn't sure what that was about, but he didn't want to have her disrupt him and their goal.

"She seems pretty confident." He notes. "I bet she doesn't want us to get any."

Cosmo looked over at Yugi, after watching Chouno-Sensei leave. "W-well… they are her rules. She wouldn't want them to be revised, especially with how much she wanted them to be passed."

"That's true." Yugi agreed. He then looked back over at the green haired girl. "So, what were you going to say?"

Cosmo gasped, blushing again as she bit her lip. She rubbed her arm, starting to lose that confidence she just had. Her eyes downcasted to the floor, trying to make her voice as quiet as possible. "I-it's nothing." Yugi brushed it off, too busy focusing on wanting to get more signatures for Anzu's cause. He gave her a smile, nodding before going back to getting more people to sign the petition. The young girl tried holding back her tears, she felt so embarrassed. What was worse was that she was upset by the fact she couldn't muster up the courage to say how she really felt. Now she may never get to.


The end of the day arrived. Anzu and Yugi stayed late, since they tried to gather more signatures. So far though, less than ten people have pledged for the petition. It was much harder than the brunette previously thought, as she was sure to have gotten more of the students on her side. She walked with Yugi, Jounouchi and Miho back to their homes. Everyone was a bit bummed out by the lack of progress, but Anzu tried to be optimistic. Even as she attempted to be persuasive, in her hands it told a different story. She carried with her some of the posters that they had put up in the school. Most of them had been vandalized, where they said bad things such as I'm against school reformation or stop being uptight. Nothing too exaggerated, but it was very harsh.

"How mean…" Miho noted as she looked over the ruined poster.

"It's just a few words, we can change the posters in the morning." Anzu said.

"I can't believe they would go that far. Not signing is one thing, but to do graffiti, that is just bad taste." Jounouchi stated.

Anzu sighed, rolling the poster and tucking it under her arms. "I just wish the students would be more brave and sign. We need all the signatures we can get, and just six of us won't be enough."

Miho looked over at the brunette, raising a brow as she seemed worried. "Anzu… haven't you heard the rumors?" Everyone stopped, wanting to hear more of what Miho had to say.

"What rumors?"

The purple haired girl looked everyone dead in the eyes as she explained. "Apparently, the students were threatened not to sign for the rules revision. They say that those that do will be targeted by Chouno-Sensei herself."

Upon hearing this, Jounouchi and Yugi looked at one another. They had to admit, as crazy as it sounded they wouldn't have been surprised if that were the case. She was the one that didn't want the rules to change. Her rules. So of course she would do whatever it took to keep it that way. She was known for manipulating the teachers into helping her and her cause.

"But… there's no way that can be true." Anzu still seemed doubtful.

"I'm not sure who said it, but that is what I've heard." Miho admitted.

"Honestly, that teacher is just one bad apple, and a hypocrite. She wants to keep the students in line and follow the rules, but when it comes to her, she does whatever she can to cheat just to get her way." Jounouchi shook his head in disapproval.

The other girl of the group looked over at the blond, smiling still. "Rumors or not, we still have a mission to do. Once we have enough signatures, it will make her realize that the rules have to be changed."

"But Anzu…" Miho was about to say more, only for her girl friend to wave her hand.

"Don't worry, tomorrow is another day! The second day is usually better than the first!" Again, her determination and cheery demeanor is what made her believe that this goal would work. And as much as Yugi wanted to be as hopeful as her, he had a bad feeling of what the next day would bring.

It was another morning for everyone at Domino High school. This time, Yugi and Anzu were at the front entrance. They were trying to gather signatures that morning before the first class. It was already day two and the next meeting between the faculty was Monday. Time was running out for Anzu and her goal to revise the school rules. But she was not giving up. "Everyone! Let's change the rules, together!" Anzu bowed in respect to everyone who was entering the building. Yugi was there, supporting her however he could. Jounouchi and Honda watched from the sidelines, noticing how hard the two were working so early.

"Anzu, do you think we will be able to make the deadline?" Yugi asked.

The brunette looked at her childhood friend, a smile still on her face. "Don't worry. The second day is usually better than the first." Anzu tried to assure her friend. Yugi still wasn't quite sure, but he didn't want to let her down either. He went back to begging the students to sign, then looked up to see three male students approaching them. Two with short hair colored green and orange and the third with long, plum hair.

"Oh! Are you here to sign?" Anzu asked, getting a bit excited. Yugi, however, had a bad feeling.

"Who would want to do that?" The plum haired one asked.

"The rules are fine just as they are!" The orange one said with a sly grin.

"No one will sign such a thing." The green one stated. "The teachers will just hate you, so it's useless."

Yugi could only watch as the three students mocked them. He knew that this was trouble, but he could only look back and forth to see them. Anzu became annoyed by their banter. "If you don't want to sign it, then fine! Stop bothering us!" She demanded. She lost her composure as she felt her clipboard with the sign up sheets taken from her. The orange haired guy looked it over, laughing. "Look at this! You don't have many at all!"

"Really? Let me see!" The other laughed. Anzu went over, trying to get the clipboard back. But they kept it from her. Yugi tried to stop them, telling them to cut it out and hand it over. But the plum haired student pushed him to the ground, earning a wince from him.

Anzu looked over, seeing her friend in the dirt. "Yugi?"

The orange haired guy then took the papers. "Heh!" He then tore them in front of Anzu and Yugi, they could only see for themselves in horror. All of that effort, no matter how small, was gone before their eyes.

"Hey! Cut it out!" Jounouchi yelled, appearing out of nowhere.

"Jounouchi!" Anzu gasped, seeing the blond by their side, fist ready to fight.

"Oh? You're with them? These good for nothing?" One of the harassers asked.

Jounouchi grabbed the collar of the orange harried bully, shoving him on the ground. "Cut the bullshit! You're the ones that were harassing them!" He then jumped on the orange haired one, holding him by the collar.

"Stop it Jounouchi!" Anzu begged.

"You'll get in trouble if you do!" Yugi added.

The blond didn't care, no one hurts his friends on his watch. He was intending to make those punks pay for ruining their hard work. He raised his fist in the air, ready to punch the one he held down. The other two lackeys could only watch as they thought their friend was going to be hurt.

"What's the meaning of this?!" A familiar female voice called out. Everyone turned, seeing the red haired teacher approaching, a smile on her face but her eyes held anger.


"A fight on school grounds is a serious infraction." Chouno stated as she looked at Anzu, Yugi and Jounouchi, who were sitting across from her in the room. She had taken the six students with her to speak with them about the matter. She was talking with Yugi and his friends first, while the harassers were outside, waiting for their turn. They were no doubt in big trouble for what was going to happen, and they had to deal with the wicked woman to top it all off.

"They were the ones at fault." Jounouchi pointed out.

"But you were the one that engaged in the fight, and the one that threw the first punch." Chouno added.

Anzu tried to speak up, wanting to defend Jounouchi as they knew it wasn't true. "It wasn't Jounouchi's fault!"

"I suppose that is true." She admitted, giving them a moment of false security before she added more. "After all, you were the one that started this whole thing." She eyed her cold blue eyes towards Anzu. "It wasn't necessary to rethink the rules, it seems. For the students and teachers both say they are fine the way they are."

"That can't be…" Anzu whispered to herself.

"Anzu Masaki, depending on this matter, I might have to expel you." The three students gasped, looking in absolute terror. Especially Yugi, who realized that Anzu was the one that was in most danger. "Well now, I'll have to think it over once I get the other's verdicts. Hurry off." Chouno dismissed them, and the three walked out of the room. Miho, Honda and Cosmo were waiting for them, wanting to know the verdict. As well as the three boys that had started the fight in the courtyard. The red haired woman looked over at them, beckoning them to come in so she could talk to them. They filed in, while the teacher looked directly at Anzu. "Once I get my report together, I'll bring it to the faculty meeting's agenda to determine your punishment."

Jounouchi scoffed, walking away as he was sure he would get in trouble just for the hell of it, knowing that woman. Honda followed, trying to catch up with him. Anzu was the one that would suffer the most, Yugi believed. She just wanted the rules to be less strict, and didn't see any harm in it. The brunette walked away, slowly and solemnly. Miho headed towards her, wanting to catch up to her. Yugi reached out towards her, feeling upset about her fate that was yet to be decided. The teacher closed the door, giving everyone some privacy.

Cosmo approached her friend, looking at Yugi with some guilt in her eyes. "Yugi…"

"Anzu didn't do anything wrong." Yugi stated.

The green haired girl sighed, biting her lip. She knew how Yugi felt, and it made her feel even worse. "I wish there was something we could do…" she seemed upset, they both were. Yugi sighed as he seemed ready to go after Anzu, wanting to try and make her feel better. He would even carry some of the blame if it made her in less trouble. Yugi had to do something, he didn't want Anzu to suffer anymore than she already has. He decided to speak more with Chouno, even if it meant he would be walking a fine line. He was about to open the door, only to hear her voice speak.

"Well done, everybody. Thank you so much."

Yugi blinked, was she speaking to the three students that harassed him and Anzu that morning? He leaned in closer, the door slightly open for him and Cosmo to take a peek inside. The students were sitting across from her, as she donned on that malicious smile of hers.

"It wasn't a problem at all." The plum haired one assured as he blushed.

"If it's a favor for you, Chouno-sensei, we could never refuse." The green haired one stated.

The red haired teacher placed a hand on her flawless face, looking over the boys with her sparkling eyes. "I can't deny that. As a reward, I'll make sure to erase all your past violations." She promised. Yugi and Cosmo's eyes went wide as they heard that. They looked at one another, mouths gaped in shock. Chouno had told them to harass Anzu and ruin her work in exchange to get them off the hook. That was against the school rules, and yet she was allowing it just to keep hers safe?! Jounouchi was right, she was not only a hypocrite, but the lowest of the low.

"So, can we go now?" The orange one stood up.

"Of course. However, if you violate any more rules, I will have to expel you." She warned. Yugi backed away from the door, his whole face went pale as he now understood the truth.

"I don't believe this!" Cosmo gasped. Her face heating up with anger. "How could she?! She went ahead and broke the rules just to keep hers safe? That's absurd!" Her frustration was justified. Yugi was still not sure how to take this, but it proved that Anzu really wasn't at fault here. "Yugi?" Cosmo noticed how quiet he was.

"Cosmo… what can we do now?" Yugi had to ask.

The green haired girl blinked. She wasn't sure about the question, but she wanted to make sure that he knew that they wouldn't stand by and watch this happen. "Don't worry, I'm certain that with this evidence, we can bring her to justice! We should go and find the others and tell them about this!"

Yugi looked over at Cosmo, seeing how certain she was that everything would be alright. However, he wasn't so sure. Even though they heard this, who would really believe them? They had no real proof, and it was their word against the teachers. Chouno already had everyone wrapped around her finger, so they would stand no chance. But Yugi knew something had to be done. He wanted to ensure that Anzu wouldn't be expelled. Looking over at the young girl, he gave a nod. "You go on ahead, I'll catch up." He assured her. Cosmo looked at him confused, what was he going to do? She didn't want to question him though, because she knew how important Anzu's safety was to Yugi. So she turned around, heading to where the girls went to. Yugi watched her go, once she was out of sight, he knew what he had to do. This time, he wasn't going to be afraid. He had to step up, now that Anzu's school life was at stake. He took a deep breath, feeling the illumination of the puzzle cover his body.


Things seemed to have been going well for Chouno-Sensei. She walked down the hallway, heading towards the faculty to discuss Anzu Masaki expulsion. A confident grin on her makeup face while she strutted down the many doors. She may have won with that female student, but this meant she would have to make the rules even more stricter if she wanted to keep those brats in line. For now, she would just focus on discussing the punishment of said student with the rest of the teachers. Chouno stopped walking though as she noticed a shadow leaning against the wall of the hallway she was walking down. She had to take a closer look to see who it was, and when she did she was slightly surprised.

'Yugi' was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest as he wore his jacket like a cape. A confident smirk played on his features, as his sharp, magenta eyes looked over at the red haired teacher. "I've been waiting for you, Chouno-Sensei. It's game time." He declared.

"A game?" The woman raised a brow, pointing at the student that seemed so different from the timid boy she knew. "What are you blabbering about all of a sudden?" She questioned.

"If I win, Anzu Masaki will not be punished." He told her.

Chouno only scoffed, continuing her way to the office as she didn't pay any attention to 'Yugi'. "I'm afraid I don't have time to play with you. Run along before you get in trouble." She warned, giving him a verbal caution.

"If I lose…" He went on as he was not finished with the wager. "I promise not to tell the teachers that you used the other students to interfere with Anzu's work." That caught the female Sensei off guard. Making her stop and turn to face the cocky boy.

"What do you think you are saying?" For a brief moment, a look of fear was in her blue eyes. Did he overheard what she told those three boys? If the other teachers found out about her dirty tricks, no doubt would she be looked down upon. But surely no one would believe the words of a single student, especially one that was working with the girl to rechange the rules.

"You can play dumb all you like, but the only way I'll keep quiet is if you beat me." He told her.

She faced him, realizing now that she had to agree to his terms if it meant keeping up her image. "Very well. But if I win, I'll not only expel Anzu Masaki, but you as well." 'Yugi' nodded, agreeing to her extra addition of the terms. He had no doubt that he would be victorious anyways. So, he led her back into the office where she had talked with Anzu and the other students. Closing the door to give the two of them some privacy. They were on opposite sides of the table, staring at their opponent so intently.

"The game will be a jigsaw puzzle. However, we will be using mirrors." 'Yugi' informed her, holding up two squared reflecting glasses.

"Mirrors?" Chouno wasn't sure about this, but she already agreed. 'Yugi' tossed the two mirrors in the air, watching as each one landed on either side, breaking apart into many pieces upon impact of the table. Chouno was awed in amazement, she had to admit. Once the puzzles were set, it was time to explain the rules to a more full extent.

"The rules are fairly simple. The first one to assemble the mirror together wins. However." 'Yugi' held out two purple cloths in his other hand, as he was about to put the condition in order. "We will be covering our eyes with these. And since we are playing with glass, best to use these." He handed Chouno not only her blind fold, but also a pair of white gloves to protect her hands.

"Very well then." The teacher smiled, knowing the full rules of the game and figured it would be easy. Once they had donned on their blindfolds and even their gloves, they sat down in their chairs. 'Yugi' gave the both of them the okay to start. They began gathering some pieces, trying to put them in the places they thought they belonged. It was much harder though since they couldn't see, but at least they could feel so it was somewhat doable.

However, Chouno was not one to take the hard way around. She didn't understand the point of this game, or the rules. 'What's the big deal with this game? Is he just stalling for me to get to the office? Such a stupid kid.' Her hands moved up to the blindfold she had on, taking it off for her sapphire eyes to see what was infront of her. 'I can just keep playing the game like this, and he would never even know, would he?' She giggled to herself, watching as 'Yugi' was still struggling with his puzzle, completely blind. She set the blindfold aside, and began to piece the rest of her mirror together, half of it was already done. "Sounds like it's going well for you." She commented.

"Oh, I forgot to mention an important detail…" 'Yugi' said as he continued moving piece by piece around. "This is considered a Shadow Game."

"A Shadow Game? What is that?" Chouno asked, growing curious about the sudden eerie tone in his voice. Did he always sound like that?

"If you break the rules, then you will be met with a terrible punishment." A cryptic warning, but one that she paid no attention to. It was probably just his way of saying he would be a sore loser if he lost the game. It wasn't his fault that she was the one that took advantage of his blindness. Once she won, she would expel him and Anzu, and go about the rest of her day and career.

The minutes passed, as the teacher only had a few more pieces to put in place to make the mirror whole again. "How's it going?" 'Yugi' asked. "I'm already halfway done with mine."

"Oh no! I haven't even gotten that far yet." She cried in a bluff. For she was far more ahead of him than he should have realized. It was really a simple game, one that she had done many times before. Picking up the final piece, a victorious smile shone on her lips. She could already feel the win at the end of the line. She finished his silly game, and would end up delivering punishment to the both of them. She placed the final piece in the puzzle, making the mirror back to itself, minus the cracks.

"The door of darkness has opened." 'Yugi' said. Chouno looked up from her mirror, seeing the student across from her. What was he muttering now? "Chouno-Sensei. You have used your position as a teacher to hurt those around you, including Anzu." What was he going on about now? Talking things that they both already knew. She wanted to protest him, only to be stopped as she heard a strange crackling noise. She wasn't sure where it came from, but her face felt heavy for some reason.

'Yugi' stood up from his seat, pointing at her. "You claim to want to make the rules strict and to help the students, but when it comes to you, you cheat and steal. You only wear the mask of a perfect teacher. That mask hides your true intentions, your true fears and true ugliness.

"W-what is…" She couldn't form a full sentence, her whole face going numb as cracks, looking like puzzle pieces, began to spread across her face.

"Just as a mirror reflects the true personality, for the people you have hurt will reflect your punishment!" 'Yugi' declared as a glowing third eye appeared on his forehead, just above that of his blindfold. With the powers he evoked, the punishment that he warned Chouno about came to. The puzzle like cracks in her face began to fall apart. Her once porcelain skin was now wrinkly, older and had bags under her eyes. The shiny blue orbs were replaced with beady black pupils. It wasn't until she looked at herself in the cracked mirror, noticing the puzzle pieces of her face on the desk.

She screamed in terror, seeing the ugliness that had been given to her. She held her new face, peering into the horrors she hated the most. "My makeup! My face! I'm hideous!" Chouno covered herself with her gloved hands, crying as she ran out of the room. Despite winning the game, the result of her cheating made her lose something she cared deeply about: her beauty. 'Yugi' knew she was not following the rules, his ability let him see through it. Besides, a Shadow Game is really about revealing a person's true character. The teacher may have been one to uphold the rules, but she was a rule breaker herself. Kind of ironic when one really thought about it. He removed his blindfold, watching as the teacher ran out of the office. He then looked down at his unfinished mirror puzzle, seeing the face of the more gentle Yugi within. "As I said, break the rules and you receive the true punishment. Had you just followed them, even if you had lost, you would have been safe."


Yugi wasn't sure what had happened, all he remembered after finding out what Chouno had done to get Anzu expelled, he had a sudden black out. He found himself in the hallway again, but felt time had passed. So far, there wasn't any word in regards to expelling Anzu at all. The red haired teacher seemed to have kept quiet for now. He wasn't sure why, but Yugi didn't question it. The rest of the school day seemed pretty slow and intense, everyone was waiting for the verdict about what would happen to their brunette friend. There was no word from the teachers or faculty, unless they were planning on discussing her explosion with her parents? That was an even worse punishment. For now, they could only wait for the calm to ride out and prepare for the storm.

The end of the day was upon them. Yugi was gathering his belongings from his locker and was going to head out. He slipped on his sneakers from home, sighing as he felt his hands clamming up. He tried looking for his childhood friend, but after the final class Anzu was nowhere to be seen. He figured it would be best not to bug her, the last thing he wanted was to give her false hope. At the moment, no one knew if they were safe. Once he had gotten his home shoes on and placed his school ones in his cubicle, he began to walk to the door and started heading through the courtyard. Yugi kept his head down, praying that there would be a way for Anzu to get out of this mess. He didn't want to see her switch schools, he wanted her to be off the hook. But at the moment, there didn't seem to be much he could do.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a familiar voice from nearby. "Yes, he should be getting out by now."

"Are you sure you want to stay here?" Yugi recognized one of the female voices, but didn't know the other. He looked around, seeing where it was coming from. Near the gates of the school he could see the green hair of Cosmo, talking with someone way older. Yugi could see the female she was chatting with, and he had to admit, she seemed far too professional to be here. The woman turned towards him, for Yugi to get a better look at her. She had smooth, dark cyan hair that flowed past her showers, only to curl up at the ends. Her eyes were a piercing lilac that were slanted. Strangely enough, her facial features resemble closely to that of Cosmo's. However while the green girl had more of a heart shaped face, this woman had a teardrop chin. Her clothing was also far more fashionable in a professional stance than he had ever seen. She had on a teal vest with dress pants and flats. Her dress shirt was white, with some frills around the neck, being a nest for what looked like an oval amulet the same color as her eyes.

The younger girl looked over, turning to see her friend. "Ah, Yugi!" The young boy looked over between the two women, not sure what was going on.

The one in the teal outfit approached him. "So, you're Yugi Mutou?" She asked him with sharp eyes, glaring at him. Admittedly, he was kind of nervous upon her question. The stance she was in told him that she was very sophisticated and meant business. He couldn't lie to her, he felt like she would somehow be able to see through it. So he nodded. The woman gave a small smile, but held her eyes on him. "So you are one of the witnesses…"

"Witnesses?" Yugi repeated, not fully understanding what that meant.

"I'm sorry to ask you this of short notice, but would it be alright if you come with me?" It was an odd request that took him off guard. What did she want with him? And what did she mean a witness? He gripped onto the straps of his backpack tightly, why was he so scared all of a sudden? He had no real reason to be, right?

Cosmo noticed how nervous he was, and wanted to try to persuade him. "You aren't in trouble! Galaxina just wants you to testify against Chouno-Sensei." Yugi looked over at the green haired girl, blinking as he heard her explanation. Testify? Did that mean they were bringing her to a trial? That seemed exaggerated, then again he was willing to do whatever it took to keep Anzu from being expelled.

"You do not have to, if you prefer." The woman that was addressed as Galaxina noted. "However, if you agree to this, I assure you that the teacher that has been abusing her power will be in trouble. Your testimony to her actions against the rule revamp could be enough to indulge the vice principal to realize the shady deals happening behind blind eyes." There was something about her tone that made her have a cold exterior. It sounded more like a threat than a promise. Yugi didn't know who this woman really was or what she would do, but if she would be able to bring Chouno to justice he had no reason to disagree. He swallowed the nerves down, slowly nodding his head.

The cyan haired woman nodded, walking towards the school doors with a briefcase in her hand. Cosmo and Yugi looked at one another for a moment, then followed her. She took the lead, walking past many students who noticed her. They stepped away, mostly due to feeling the chilly atmosphere around her. Yugi wanted to ask Cosmo who this woman was, to learn what was going on. However, his mouth stayed shut as he dared not even speak while she listened. She just kept marching her way through the halls, passing by many remaining students and teachers that were there. Eventually, she stood at the door of the faculty office, where the teachers go to take care of their jobs. She knocked on the door, waiting for a response. The two students watched as the door slid open, revealing the vice principal.

The man was very old, having gray hair and black eyes, wrinkles etched into his skin. He had on a brown colored suit with a red neck tie. "Ah… Miss Seedrian…" The vice principal greeted her nervously as he had her enter the room. She walked over with him, the two behind her followed as she sat down on the chair that was across from his desk.

"I first must thank you for granting me this meeting on such a short notice. Of course, given what I have discussed with you on the phone call, I trust that I do not need to explain my reasonings for being here?" Galaxina asked, seeing the vice principal take a seat behind his desk. Cosmo and Yugi stood behind the woman, letting her do the talking.

"Yes, of course. You wish to discuss Chouno Sensei…" Yugi could sense that the vice principal didn't get flustered at the mention of the female teacher. Usually many of the male faculty would be all giddy at the mention of her name. The fact that he was not at all pleased by the woman showed that he was scared of the one in front of him.

Galaxina opened her briefcase, taking out many documents and laying them on the desk before him. "As you know, I have been given this case by a third party to look into this teacher. I have heard about an incident that she wished to punish a student for wanting to change up the rules, specific rules that Chouno herself had created for the students at Domino High. As you are aware, she gave the student, Anzu Masaki, the chance to prove to her that the rules were strict and hard on the teenagers that attend this school. It appeared a simple and fair assignment, but I have reason to believe that she had managed to persuade many of your teachers and students to go against this protest. In fact, the many documents here show the statements that many of the teachers had given to me when I asked them about her. They were more than convinced that she was doing the right thing, and yet when I asked them if they agreed that the rules were a good thing, they only mentioned that it made her happy."

The vice principal looked over the files, seeing every note on the people that were questioned. They didn't say how they felt about the regulations, they were only concerned that the teacher who made them was happy they passed. "I also have audio and visual evidence about her involvement to disrupt the petition by her own means. As well as testimonies from two students who overheard her using three males from the twelfth grade to harass and even frame her and her friends for causing an uproar." Galaxina looked over at Cosmo and Yugi, who blinked as they were suddenly put in the spotlight. Now Yugi understood why he had to come to this meeting: to provide evidence against the female educator for what she had done. He was still unsure if they would even believe him or Cosmo for their words alone. Even so, he trusted Galaxina. She seemed to have the vice principal listen to what she was saying, and he seemed inclined to believe her. With some confidence, Yugi admitted what he had heard when he listened in on Chouno's conversation with the three students that had tormented him and Anzu that morning and ruined what little progress they made. Cosmo also said the same thing, backing up Yugi's claim.

The young boy could see that the vice principal didn't believe them at first. True to her words, the cyan woman took out a small cam recorder. Pressing a button, she played a clip that was loading on it. That video was from after Chouno announced she would expel Anzu, and told the three boys that they served their purpose. The vice principal gasped as he saw the audio and visual fee that Galaxina had promised him. He looked up at the lilac eyed woman who stared coldly at him. "This video was recorded this morning in the faculty room, right after announcing the punishment that would be given to the student that would be wrongly accused."

"H-how did you get this?!" He demanded to know.

"I assure you, this was by legal means." She handed him another piece of paper, then began to explain more once he took it and began reading it over. "About five weeks ago, the red haired teacher issued the installment of security cameras inside certain rooms of the school and around the building. She said that it would be for safety measures, however her main objective for this order was to spy on the students to crack down on delinquents. I was able to obtain a warrant to use this as evidence."

The vice principal sighed, looking down at the written, audio and visual testimonies that were used against Chouno. Yugi and Cosmo watched, letting Galaxina take over the rest of the case. "As you are aware, she had been wanting an increase in rules and punishments in regards to the Domino High quota. While it is not uncommon in many Japanese schools to have such strict systems to discipline their students, I have no quarrels to go against it nor will I wish to change your mind about it. However, I do find it very strange that most of these newer rules regarding no after school jobs, no personal items, and others, were from only her proposals and no one else. And I am wondering how it is possible that these rules were passed so quickly, at every meeting."

The man behind the desk held his hands on the surface, trying to protest. "Chouno-Sensei wanted to make Domino High the best school in the country. She figured that by compiling a new regulator on the rules and punishments, that would do the job. That's why-"

"That's why, it was okay for her to use dirty methods in order to ensure that the rules would not change and to have one of the students take the fall?" Galaxina interrupted him, her chilly voice made his eyes waver in fear for a moment. She grew serious now that she was getting to the main reason she was here.

The man looked away, shaking slightly as he responded. "N-no… of course not." His answer was hesitant, but he did give her the one she was looking for.

The cyan haired woman sighed, looking over more of her notes. "From the evidence that was gathered, Chouno has committed many crimes within this school. Each of them spanning a certain number of years that would land her in prison. Corruption: the dishonest or fraudulent conduct by those in power. She displayed this by using her position to hurt many of the students, this would give her a max of up to ten years. There's also the hate crime: A motivation by prejudice on the basis of race, religion, sexual orientation or other grounds. In this case, wanting to change the school rules, that would add on at max six months. Harassment: aggressive pressure or intimidation, which she used by having the three male students ruin the progress the activists were making. Another six months added on to her jail time. And of course, bribery: the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. That would give her a full year in prison. I am certain there is more, but those were the ones that she had done based on evidence alone.

"With that being said, chances are if this comes to light in the eyes of the public, she could very well face up to at most twelve years in jail for her actions. Although, I would be willing to keep quiet about this case and not bring it to light. In exchange, I want you to make her pay for her actions by removing her from this school, as well as taking away her license. I would also like you to revise the rules she made as a way to apologize to the students."

"Y-you want me to fire her and take away her teaching career?" He asked, shocked about the proposal.

Galaxina's lilac eyes glared into him so hard, it was like she was staring into his soul. "If you would rather continue to cover for someone guilty of these crimes, then you had better prepare for the consequences that will occur for this."

The vice principal gulped, shaking out of fear as he looked at Galaxina. "W-what do you mean?"

The cyan haired woman sat up in her seat, looking at him. "Then I will take this case to the Education Court." The vice principal gasped, as Galaxina went on. "As I stated before, there is enough evidence here to convict Chouno for the crimes she has committed. I will also be taking this case against her, and bring it up within the system. They will hold a merciless but fair trial, and considering how many crimes she commited, I can assure you she will pay. But, there is the matter of you and the other teachers. Let us not forget, you allowed these rules to pass. That and you and the other male teachers helped her try to dissuade the petition by having them lecture the students incharge of it. Meaning that you and them are considered accessories, people who aided or abetted another person in the commission of a crime. If this trial does happen, and this comes into light, I can guarantee that you and those other teachers that were responsible with helping her and her cause, could end up facing a maximum of three years.

"However, in an event that Chouno and the others manage to get off scot free, which is slim to none, the public will still have knowledge about what happened. No doubt this will have a negative impact on your school. No doubt that there will be some reporters and many protests. I bet even the parents of the students that were expelled would end up suing the school once they found out about this scandal. I do not believe even you could come out of this, all of you." It was clear that she wasn't going to give him a choice. He could throw Chouno under the bus and have this go by quietly. Or risk the reputation of the school and the teachers, and suffer one lawsuit after another. Seeing how badly he was trembling, it was obvious what choice he would have to make.

"I-I understand… I will remove Chouno from the school and revoke her teaching license. And as for the rules… I will have them revised immediately. It may take some time, but any ones that she proposed will be removed." The vice principal bowed, giving in to her demands.

Galaxina nodded, pleased with the answer. "If you don't mind, I wish to stay here and watch you fire her myself. Just so I know for a fact that you kept your word." Again, he nodded, knowing he would have to obey in order to please her. The cyan haired woman got up from her seat, turning at the other students. "Cosmo, Yugi, you two can go now. Thank you for your testimonies."

Yugi watched her, for a split second her lilac eyes seemed to have been soft as her voice sounded more like a motherly tone. Perhaps since she got her way, she was more than willing to be less threatening. Even so, Yugi was pleased to know that Chouno would end up losing her position. Which meant that Anzu would be safe from explosion, and she would win against the strict rules that were recently placed on the school. The young boy got up from his seat, bowing at the woman in the suit, then began to head out. Cosmo waved at her before following him as the two headed down the hallway of the school, and left the building. Both wondering what would happen tomorrow, but had hope that it was going to be a good one.


The next day seemed pretty peaceful. Chouno-Sensei was not in any of the classes, nor did any of the students saw her. However, rumors quickly spread across the school as many teachers could not keep their mouths shut. During this time, Yugi was with Jounouchi, Honda and Anzu up on the roof during their lunch break. They were talking about how quiet the red haired teacher seemed to be, despite her warning against Anzu.

"It's kind of weird how we haven't heard anything from Chouno-Sensei…" Jounouchi noted as he leaned back against the barbed wire fence. "I guess we are in the clear?"

"Yeah, I was actually expecting to be expelled this morning, but they allowed me into school. The teachers haven't said anything to me either. Though they did tell me not to worry about the lessons I seemed to have missed." Anzu admitted.

Yugi didn't tell them what occurred yesterday after school, he wanted to wait and see if it was confirmed that she was gone before he would mention the cyan haired woman Cosmo had brought in yesterday. Honda looked between the two, raising a brow. "You guys haven't heard?" All attention was on the brunet now as he explained. "I heard from some members of the Beautification Club that Chouno-Sensei got fired, and revoked her license." The blond and brunette gasped, unable to believe such a thing. "Apparently, someone had called her out and exposed her corruption that took place behind the scenes. The vice principal agreed to let her go and remove her privilege to teach so long as word did not get out about this scandal. I even heard some students saying they saw her yesterday evening being kicked out of the school grounds. She was begging at the gate to be let back in, but they wouldn't."

"I can't believe it…" Anzu was still in awe.

"Heh, good riddance, I say." Jounouchi scoffed as he had a satisfied grin on his face. "Serves her right for being such a hypocrite."

"I agree, I didn't mind the rules. But the way she was trying to uphold them was unreasonable." Honda added.

"But this means that you're safe, Anzu!" Yugi smiled over at the brunette. "And I heard that some of the rules that Chouno-Sensei had proposed will be removed."

"I heard they would consider allowing part time jobs to students so long as they showed good grades." Honda added.

Anzu smiled, pumping her fists in the air. "That's amazing! I know I should feel bad for her losing her job and career, but I'm happy that all that hard work paid off in the end. Not in the way I wanted, but I'll take it!" Yugi saw how happy Anzu was, glad that she was going to be okay and that she would be able to follow her dreams now. When he saw her this morning, all he could think about was how she would react to such news. Now it seemed she was pleased and excited.

The door to the roof opened up, revealing two other females that came up. Miho and Cosmo arrived and approached the group. "Hey, Honda, did you tell everyone the good news?" The perwinkle haired girl asked in a peppy voice.

"Yeah, just did." Honda stated.

"I'm glad it worked out for everyone." Cosmo admitted as she was giving a grin of her own. Yugi still had to talk to her about what that was yesterday, about that woman that had managed to get Chouno fired.

"Uh… Cosmo, could I talk to you for a minute?" Yugi asked with a slight blush. He didn't know why he was embarrassed all of a sudden. It was probably the whistle that came from the other two boys that made him nervous. Thankfully, Anzu was able to silence the two by pulling on their collars, telling them they had to go. Jounouchi and Honda begged to stay and watch, but Anzu would not allow it. Miho went over to Cosmo, whispering in her ear good luck, before heading off with her friends and gave the two some privacy.

Coincidentally, Cosmo also wanted to talk to him about an important matter. Once everyone was gone though, she became flustered but did her best to try and hide it. She looked over at Yugi, wanting to be the first one to speak. As scared as she was, she had to get this off of her chest if she was going to have any closure. "Uh… t-thank you… for staying after and giving your testimony yesterday…" Cosmo began. "I know it may not have b-been ideal or… what you wanted to do but… I figured that it would help if there was m-more than one witness."

"Ah, no, it was alright." Yugi assured. "I'm glad I could help in protecting Anzu. Though, I was wondering who that woman was. She kind of looked like you."

Cosmo laughed a bit, smiling as she suddenly felt her nerves calm down. "Well, she is my sister, so that probably explains why."

Yugi's eyes went wide at that explanation. "Wait… your sister?"

"Yeah, my older sister. She's the one that has been living with me in the flower shop." Cosmo explained. Suddenly, she felt much more confident in talking now that they were discussing a familiar topic to her. "She's the one that was going to school. She's learning to become a lawyer, and she's very serious about it. She only has a semester of her schooling left, but she already has an internship at a local office as an apprentice and has learned so much. In fact, if this whole Chouno case would have been taken to trial, she would have had the honor to prosecute against her. She is a bit sad she didn't get to, but was happy to know that she was able to get her removed from her position."

Yugi nodded. "Well, based on the evidence she did have, she would have surely won. I have to admit, she was really cool!"

Cosmo rubbed the back of her head, giggling about his comment. "I hope she didn't seem too scary. She does have that effect when she is serious."

"Well… she was pretty intimidating, I'll admit. But I understood where she was coming from. I'm surprised she wanted to help out." Yugi admitted.

Cosmo had a blush on her face, rubbing her arm as her nerves got agitated again. "I… I kind of told her… about Anzu being expelled for wanting to change the rules. To be honest, I told her the first day when she was in trouble and she agreed to look more into it. I didn't want to bother her, but I knew it was an emergency so I had to ask." Cosmo had her eyes downcasted while she spoke. "I guess it was a bit cowardly. I had to get my sister involved to fight this battle."

"Eh?! What are you talking about?" She looked up as Yugi was the one that was talking. "If you didn't get your sister involved, Anzu would have surely been expelled and Chouno-Sensei would still be around! You were thoughtful enough to do what you could to help, and I think going to her was really brave." The green haired girl's eyes went wide as he said that. He thought she was brave? Even though she had to get help instead of facing the problem herself? She admitted that it was kind of weird, but then again, Yugi wasn't like any other person she had met.

"T-thank you, Yugi." Cosmo smiled, her eyes lighting up as her face flushed.

The star fished haired boy nodded. "Your sister was really amazing! I have no doubt she will be a great lawyer!"

Cosmo nodded. "Yeah, I really look up to her. She's a great sister… I'm hoping she will get a good job and make something of herself. She's helped me so many times, so I want to return the favor!" Yugi agreed with her, he wanted to support her sister as much for her help. "I… guess we should head back then? Lunch will be over soon."

"Oh yeah!" Yugi smiled as he gathered his belongings. "Wanna walk together?" He offered.

Cosmo shook her head. "I need to head back on my own. There's something I need to take care of."

"Ah, alright. But maybe we could walk home together after school?" He offered.

Cosmo bobbed her head. "Thank you, Yugi." She bowed as she then headed to the door, but as her hand grabbed the knob she froze for a moment. She looked back over at him, a small smile on her face. "Hey, Yugi…"

"Yeah?" He asked, tilting his head as he wondered what she was going to say next.

For a split moment, she was frozen to the ground. Her mouth tried to move but no sound came out. She bit her lip, looking at the ground for a moment. Only to come back up and gave a smaller grin. "Thanks… for everything. Being yourself I mean. You're a great person, and a wonderful friend."

Yugi had to admit, that comment made him blush slightly. But he had to admit, it was a great feedback. He rarely got such praise, even from his friends. "You too, Cosmo." He gave his own smile.

The green haired girl waved at him, opening the door and closing it. Her back was against the wall, sighing. "That could have gone better…" She admitted as she reached into her bag. She took out the box with the confession puzzle. Cosmo had gotten it from Anzu, who gave it to her before the start of lunch. She wanted to give it to Yugi, admitting that it was from her and not Anzu. She didn't want to lie to him but, no matter how much confidence she got, she could never confess. "Then again, it didn't go any worse…" She admitted. Maybe Cosmo wasn't ready for a relationship, or maybe Yugi wasn't the right one for her to fall for. Even so, she was glad that she and him could still be friends. She put the box back in her bag, sighing but still smiling. "I may not have gained anything, but I didn't lose Yugi so nothing changed." She assured as she began to head back to class. "Still, Yugi is a sweet guy. I hope he finds someone that will make him happy and remind him how much he is worth." She then began to walk off, knowing Yugi would soon be heading through the door.