Sanctuary

by Chi Yagami

When Marik begins stalking Téa and ruining her life, Ryou offers up his home. He wants her safe at any cost, but he is continuously ill. Téa finds herself left with only Yami Bakura for protection, but the tomb robber is far from anyone's savior. As Marik's attacks grow worse, Téa finds that not everything is as it seems... [formerly Blood on the Moon]

9. we never got that far

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh.

Longest chapter yet, 50 pages!

Rated M for language and mature content

Summary: When Marik begins stalking Téa and ruining her life, Ryou Bakura offers up his home. He wants her safe at any cost, but Ryou is continuously plagued with illnesses. Téa finds herself left with only Yami Bakura for protection, but the tomb robber is far from anyone's savior. As Marik's attacks grow worse, Téa finds that not everything is as it seems...

---

Sanctuary

By: Chi Yagami

---

"It's rude to stare," Marik said when they did not respond.

"It's also rude to kidnap someone!" Téa retorted angrily. What the hell was he doing here? And why was he wearing a school uniform? …Don't tell me he actually goes to school here! She cringed. Did they not recognize him from Battle City? Internally scoffing at herself, Téa supposed she couldn't expect everyone to watch card games on TV, but the school officials should at least do a background check on prospective students! Then again, Marik had probably just drawn out his Millennium Item and mind-controlled them into enrolling him.

"Yes, well, it is also rude to break a sacred Millennium Item!" Marik spat, voice dripping with venom. He turned to Ryou directly. "If I ever see that sorry excuse for an Egyptian again, I will murder him."

Ryou's shoulders were trembling, and as much as she hated violence, Téa really wanted to give Marik a swift kick to the balls.

"Marik, why did you burn down my house?" she asked crossly, folding her arms across her chest.

"What?" He stared at her with nothing but pure surprise. "Why would I burn down your house?"

"Well, apart from Ryou and Bakura, you are the only other person who knows where I live," she answered, narrowing her eyes at him. Marik narrowed his eyes as well.

"Well then, why don't you ask..." he glanced at Ryou, trailing off. Téa barely caught the confused expression on Marik's face before it smoothed over into nothing. And just like that, Marik blinked and narrowed his eyes again.

What the hell was that?

"Well then why don't you ask the tomb robber?" the Egyptian continued. "He is the one who attacked me with a knife! And didn't he almost break your neck, Téa? Hmm, remember that?"

Yes, how well she remembered. Téa had not forgotten about Bakura's violent tendencies, but there was no way he burned down her house; he had been with her the whole day!

"It wasn't Bakura," she stated, loud and clear. She saw Ryou twitch from the corner of her eye; Marik was probably scaring him to death.

"I think you're confused, Téa dear. By the way," Marik added, smirking, "what do you think of my new look? Doesn't the uniform make me look even sexier?"

"I think it makes me gag," she declared, absolutely disgusted.

"I think you're in for a lot of trouble, Ishtar," a deep voice boomed.

They all turned to see Yami staring at Marik with a fixed glare. Yugi, Tristan, Duke, and Joey were standing behind him, also looking at Marik with hatred in their eyes. Téa stepped aside when Yami approached the tanned Egyptian.

"What are you doing back in Japan, Ishtar?" Yami demanded.

"I live here, Pharaoh. And as for what I've been doing… why, I've just been visiting sweet little Téa," he replied with a wicked smile. "She and I have been getting… reacquainted."

"What?" Yami inquired forcefully. "How dare you bother Téa! Get lost, Ishtar, before I Mind-Crush you."

"Blah, blah, blah, Pharaoh. Is that all you ever say?"

"Get. Out."

Marik smirked again, and, after eying Téa up and down in a creepy manner, he slid from the lunchroom. Everyone stared after him, even after the doors had closed behind him. Then, Téa felt all eyes fall on her.

Shit. Did she have some explaining to do…

It took nearly the entire lunch period to explain Marik's appearance to her friends. Téa told them almost everything, leaving out the parts about her feelings for Marik, moving in with Ryou, and almost getting kidnapped. All of their reactions happened exactly as she had expected: Yami was furious; Yugi started fretting about her safety; Joey listed off ways that he was going to "make dat sucka pay for hurtin' my friend"; and Tristan and Duke discussed possible reason for why Marik was really here.

"So that day at the mall, you ran into Marik?" Yugi asked.

"Yup."

"And when Miho told me that she saw you at Burger World with some stranger, the stranger was actually Marik?"

"Yup."

"Hmm, and you first saw him at the hospital on the day your locker was broken into?"

"Yeah."

"Téa," Yugi concluded slowly, "do you think it's possible that Marik is this mysterious locker man?"

"I've already reported him to the police," she told him grimly. "However, he is managing to evade them by turning them into Mind-Slaves."

"Never fear, my Téa," Yami interrupted, striking a pose, "for I shall protect you from this vile Egyptian rat!"

"Yeah, Téa, you're safe with us," Tristan added, patting her on the back.

Considering that the last few years of hanging out with them had brought nothing but danger, Téa wouldn't hold her breath.

"So, Téa, are you attending this Prom?" Yami inquired suddenly, scooting his chair closer to hers. "I'm not exactly sure what it is; Yugi makes it sound like a party with dancing… And I hear that we are to bring dates—"

"You don't have to," she interjected quickly. "Some people go to the prom without dates, or they go with large groups of friends."

"—well, seeing as how I want to go with a date… Téa, my love, will you accompany me to this Prom?"

"No."

"Ah, I knew you couldn't resist my— What?!"

"I said 'no' Yami." And with those final words, she left, leaving the pharaoh to mull things over.

---

. . .

---

After purchasing yet another set of textbooks, she headed for home with Ryou. The boy had been pretty quiet ever since lunch; she supposed he hadn't wanted to say too much, or give away something he felt Téa might want to keep secret, but he wasn't usually this quiet. At least not when it was just the two of them. She wondered if he was planning ideas for their geometry project. She was drawing blanks, so she hoped Ryou could think of something. Yugi and Miho were making a model of a pyramid, so that was out of the question. What could they build?

And then there was the prom. Until now, Téa hadn't really given it much thought, since most of her time had been occupied with solving bigger problems, but now that she took the time to think about it, she might not even attend. If she went alone, she would be stuck hanging out with Yami. Téa normally wouldn't mind going with the group, or with Yugi, but right now she just didn't feel like going through all the drama (she had quite enough of that already). Too many girls got stressed out over it; Miho would likely be depressed when they came back to school after the dance: as far as Téa could tell, Duke hadn't shown any extra attention to the poor girl. She was also positive that Duke had his heart set on Serenity, although Miho had said that the younger girl already had a date… Serenity must be going with an upperclassman, because only juniors and seniors were allowed to attend; but who? She wasn't going with Tristan; Téa was quite sure he had asked that Rhodes girl from chemistry class. Maybe Serenity was going with Joey? Téa wouldn't doubt it; Joey had probably asked his sister just so she would be unavailable for prospective suitors.

"Ryou, why so quiet?" she asked, coming out of her thoughts and inspecting her best friend. He jerked slightly, as if waking up from a daydream too. Smiling bashfully, he shifted his book bag from one hand to the other.

"Oh, sorry, Téa. I was just deep in thought…"

"What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing important… Just thinking about Battle City."

"Battle City?"

"Yeah… Back when Bakura was pure evil."

Téa still thought he was was pure evil… "Battle City gives me the creeps. I'll never forget all the horror," she said quietly, shivering. Ryou looked sorry.

"I didn't mean to remind you of anything bad!" he apologized. "I forgot that Marik took over your mind…"

"Ugh, yuck. Hmm, but I haven't really watched any Duel Monsters since that final duel… well, unless you count those Orichalcos freaks."

"I do miss Duel Monsters," Ryou voiced, looking thoughtful. "But I suppose I never really had a deck of my own; it was more of Bakura's deck than mine. Did you ever have a deck, Téa?"

"Yes… but I didn't use it much," she replied, trying to remember which cards she owned.

"Ah, because it was weak?" he teased. She stuck her tongue out.

"No! I did collect those cute cards," she admitted, "but they weren't the only cards in my deck. Joey bought me a bunch of cards for Christmas, and I put together a better deck with those. Heh, I haven't looked at it in so long, I can't even remember which ones I have…"

"Do you still have it?"

"Yeah, in my desk drawer."

"I say, Téa, let's have a duel!" Ryou suggested excitedly. "I've wanted to try out my own deck for a long time, but Bakura just says I'm not even worth the effort…"

"Why haven't you challenged Yugi?"

"I don't know if you've noticed, Téa," he replied cheekily, "but Yugi always wins."

"He lost to Kaiba on that rooftop…"

"Only because you stopped him," Ryou argued with a smile.

"Fine, I'll duel you. But we're not gambling or anything… no bets, no Locator Cards, no Millennium Items or Star Chips or anything," she clarified.

Ryou snorted with laughter. "Sure thing! I haven't dueled for fun in so long…"

They arrived home to find Bakura gone. Ryou explained that sometimes the spirit liked to go out and walk around town. Téa bet he did… going around, conducting his shady business behind everyone's backs. Why hadn't Shadi come to condemn him yet?

"Let's start with 8000 life points. Duels with 4000 life points end too quickly," Ryou decided, clearing a space on the coffee table.

Too quickly? She seemed to remember every duel taking at least an hour…

Téa had glanced through her deck before shuffling, trying to hide her surprise. She didn't even remember getting some of these cards… It was not a bad deck, if she did say so herself, but she had no clue which cards were in Ryou's deck. From all she had seen over the years, decks were usually constructed with some sort of theme (Yugi – magicians; Kaiba – dragons), and hers didn't really have a majority of card type... unless the cuteness factor counted (which it doesn't, she told herself). Watching her friend shuffle his own deck, Téa wondered if Ryou was using that freaky Destiny Board Bakura had used in Battle City. Since he wasn't as sadistic as his other half, Ryou's cards would probably be less wicked, but she could not underestimate him: Ryou definitely knew his Duel Monsters.

"Ready?" she asked, finally done shuffling her deck. Ryou nodded, and Téa waited.

"Téa? Are you ready to play?" Ryou spoke up after a moment, tilting his head to one side.

"I was waiting."

"Waiting for what?" He looked even more confused, and she smirked.

"For one of us to say it…"

"'It'?"

"It's time to duel!" she announced as manly as she could, imitating Yami's deep voice.

Ryou busted out laughing with her. "You sounded just like him!"

"Haha, I don't know about that," she replied, still giggling. "So, who goes first?"

"Well, after you finish shuffling, split your deck, like so," Ryou demonstrated, "and then see which card is on the bottom. The duelist whose card comes first alphabetically goes first."

"Did you make that up?"

"It's how you play when you don't have any of Kaiba Corp.'s inventions," he winked.

"Well, I have Protector of the Throne at the bottom," Téa revealed, looking at the last card in her deck. Ryou had Spellbinding Circle, which meant she would go first.

Téa drew five cards and then a sixth, beginning her turn: Spirit of the Harp (monster), Fissure (magic), Royal Magical Library (monster), Swords of Revealing Light (magic), Waboku (trap), and Neo the Magic Swordsman (monster). Not a bad first hand (at least she didn't think so… she may not be Yugi, but Téa had learned a bit from watching all of his duels). Since she was going first, she couldn't attack Ryou yet… but she could ready herself for his turn.

She placed Waboku face down, and then set Royal Magical Library on the table in face-down Defense Mode (ATK 0 / DEF 2000).

"Placing face-down cards already?" Ryou asked when she ended her turn. He drew a card and then stared hard at his hand.

"I think I'll start off by activating the magic card Dark Hole," he mused, placing the card down. "It destroys all monsters on the field, so there goes your monster."

Argh… she put her Library in the Graveyard and waited for his next move.

"Now, I summon Dark Blade in Attack Mode! He'll attack your life points directly!"

"Not so fast!" she stopped him. "You've activated my trap card, Waboku; it reduces the damage to 0."

Damn, that was close; she almost lost 1800 life points in the first turn! They had just started and he already had the upper hand… Her turn, and Téa drew Hibikime. Time for a little payback…

"I play Fissure, a card that destroys your monster with the lowest attack points, and you only have one."

Ryou frowned lightly as he placed his Dark Blade in the Graveyard.

"Now, I summon Neo the Magic Swordsman in Attack Mode!" (ATK 1700 / DEF 1000) Téa grinned as she said, "Direct attack on your life points, Ryou."

Ryou smirked and drew his next card. "First, I'll use Change of Heart to take control of your Swordsman. Next, I'll sacrifice him to play my Summoned Skull, which attacks you directly!"

Crap, he had just stolen her own monster and used it to summon another with 2500 attack points! There went a chunk of life points… For her turn, Téa drew Dancing Fairy. Nothing in her hand could defeat that Summoned Skull… so Téa chose to play Swords of Revealing Light!

"Now, Ryou… you can't attack for three turns!"

Ryou smiled good-naturedly. "My, Téa, for someone who has only dueled once, you're pretty good!"

"I've dueled more than once!" she defended, pouting. "I dueled Mai at Duelist Kingdom, I've dueled Joey and Yugi at school, and I even dueled one of the Big Five in Noa's virtual world!"

"One of the who?" Ryou asked curiously. Oh, right. Ryou hadn't been there for that.

"Uhh… that was during the time when you were unconscious on Kaiba's blimp, right before the Battle City Elimination Rounds."

"Ah," he replied, taking his turn and drawing another card. "I summon Darkfire Soldier Number 1, and then I end my turn. You'll have to tell me about these big five sometime."

Great, it looked like he was gathering up an army to attack when the Swords stopped working… Her cards could not do anything to him… So she could only set Spirit of the Harp face-down in Defense Mode (ATK 800 / DEF 2000) and end her turn. Ryou too set a monster face-down and ended his next turn.

"One more turn, Téa."

Ugh, this wasn't good… She set Hibikime in face-down Defense Mode (ATK 1450 / DEF 1000). Téa prayed that he didn't summon a third monster next turn… None of the cards in her current hand were any good; she just had to hope that her defenses would hold.

"I'll set one monster face down in Defense Mode and end my turn," she said sadly. After this turn, her Swords would be over…

"I end my turn," Ryou announced after he had drawn a card. What? He didn't even do anything! He must not have had a good hand either. She wished she could draw something useful.

Yes! She found it silly that Pegasus's signature card was in her deck (a humorous gift from Joey), and that her 'belief in the heart of the cards' had let her draw it, but this was just what she needed!

"I play Toon World," she stated proudly, laying the magic card on the table. "To activate it, I pay 1000 life points… Then, I'll sacrifice my Hibikime to play Toon Summoned Skull!" Now they both had a Summoned Skull on the field.

"You have Toon monsters in your deck?" Ryou asked, amused. "I wonder how Kaiba would react if you used them in a duel against him."

"He'd probably start hallucinating and stuff," she joked back. Too bad Toon monsters couldn't attack in the same turn that they were summoned, or her Skull could have done some massive damage (ATK 2500 / DEF 1200); Toons could attack an opponent's life points directly, if there are no Toon monsters on the other side of the field (just not in the first turn, unfortunately).

"Not bad, not bad…" Ryou praised as he drew a card, but his smile told her he had just gotten something that would destroy her. "But you'll have to do better than that. I play Mask of the Accursed, and I attach it to your Toon! Now it can't attack, and you lose 500 life points every time I begin my turn!"

CRAP.

"Now then… My, ahem, original Summoned Skull shall attack your face-down monster… A Spirit of the Harp? That's not bad; it has 2000 defense points. However, my Skull still beats it with 2500 attack points. And I end my turn."

If she didn't find a way to get rid of that stupid Mask magic card, Téa would surely lose the duel! Plus, she would have wasted 1000 life points for nothing… She drew her next card: Graceful Dice. Useless right now. She decided to set Cure Mermaid face-down for defense purposes, and then she ended her turn, losing 500 life points as Ryou drew his card. Now she was losing the duel 4000 to 6300.

Ryou had his Summoned Skull attack her Mermaid and sent it to the Graveyard. Now it was Téa's turn again… Woodland Sprite. This card was useless as well; it only had 900 attack points and 400 defense points! Frustrated, she placed it face-down and motioned for Ryou to begin his turn. There went another 500 life points, thanks to that stupid Accursed Mask.

Ryou set another monster face-down (now he had two face-down monsters; she wondered what they could be) and had his Skull attack the Sprite. Sooner or later, her defenses would run out… For her next turn, Téa drew the trap card Magic Drain and set it face-down on the field. Now, if Ryou tried to activate a magic card, she had a chance at stopping him. Not a guaranteed success, but a chance. Too bad she hadn't had it when he had played that Mask. Another 500 life points down the drain… now it was 3000 to 6300.

Starting his turn, Ryou flipped one of his face-down monsters to reveal the Magician of Faith, one of Téa's favorite cards. Her special ability allowed him to get back one of his magic cards from the Graveyard, and he chose…

The Change of Heart! NOOOOO!

"Remember this card, Téa?" he teased deviously. "It's my favorite card."

She groaned and nodded. Of course she remembered it; how could she forget? Téa had never heard of it until that fateful day in Duelist Kingdom when Ryou came out of the bushes like a stalker. The group (her, Ryou, Yugi, Tristan, and Joey) had all discussed their favorite cards and then somehow ended up dressed like said favorite Duel Monsters in some shadow game that Yami was playing with Bakura's evil side. She couldn't remember all of the details, but she did recall Ryou entering the game dressed as his favorite card, the Change of Heart. Then he took control of some female monster and Yami forced Ryou and Bakura to trade places. Bakura was sent to the Graveyard… and somehow came back. This was why she didn't play games with her friends: they all ended in disaster.

"So, I shall take control of your Toon Summoned Skull for the remainder of the turn."

"Not so fast: I activate my quick-play magic card, Magic Drain. Unless you can discard a magic card from your hand, your Change of Heart goes straight to the Graveyard," she proclaimed with a smirk.

"Well, unluckily for you, I happen to be able to sacrifice a magic card from my hand," he replied, placing Stray Lambs in his Graveyard and wiping the smirk from her face. "Now… back to what I was doing before you tried to stop me," he continued, grinning. "I'm going to take control of your monster."

"You are aware that he can't attack, right?" she reminded him smugly. "Your stupid magic card is still in effect."

"I am well aware of what cards are in play," he responded smartly. "However, without your Toon protecting your life points, my three monsters can attack you directly!"

NO! His Magician of Faith, Darkfire Soldier Number 1, and Summoned Skull could attack her life points directly! That was a total of… 4500 attack points! And she only had 3000 life points! SHE HAD LOST!

"I win, yay!" Ryou cheered, smiling happily. "Téa, that was a good match. You just had rotten luck, huh?"

"Want to test that theory?" she asked, being a sore loser. Grrr…

"What?"

"Let's duel again!" she suggested, hoping for a rematch. Ryou smiled and agreed enthusiastically.

---

"Rotten luck it was indeed," he laughed, scanning the tabletop. "You're doing fairly well this round, Téa."

Of course she was! Despite rarely dueling, she hadn't lost a duel yet. She had even managed to beat that perverted penguin man all by herself.

"However," he continued, "my Dark Blade attacks your Celtic Guardian and sends him to the Graveyard."

Her elf had been in Defense Mode, so no damage done, but she needed to pick up the pace before he drew something good. Right now, Téa had Protector of the Throne in Defense Mode (ATK 800 / DEF 1500), and Ryou had Dark Blade in Attack Mode (ATK 1800 / DEF 1500). She was winning with 7200 life points to his 6800.

Her turn… Labyrinth Wall! This card had 3000 defense points! It required a sacrifice, which would be her Protector…

"I sacrifice my Protector of the Throne to summon Labyrinth Wall in Defense Mode!"

"Bugger," Ryou mumbled, drawing his next card. He placed two cards face-down: one monster and one magic/trap. "I end my turn."

Téa drew a card... Monster Reborn! This was just the card she needed…

"I play Monster Reborn and bring back my Serpent Night Dragon!" (ATK 2350 / DEF 2400) "My Dragon will attack your Dark Blade and destroy him, costing you 450 life points!"

"Don't worry, Téa," he replied knowingly, "you'll get yours." He set another monster face-down and ended his turn. It was her turn again…

And this time, she drew The Forgiving Maiden (ATK 850 / DEF 2000). However, she decided not to set that one; Téa felt like taking the risk of playing a stronger card. Ryou seemed to be on the defensive side.

"I play Dancing Fairies in Attack Mode, and it attacks your face-down monster," she announced, point to the one on the left. He flipped it to reveal Mask of Darkness (ATK 900 / DEF 400). It had a flip special ability of retrieving a trap card from the Graveyard, but so far Ryou hadn't used any trap cards. He smiled as he places it aside. Hmm. She bit her lip. What was he planning?

"And I will attack your other face-down monster with my Serpent!"

"You've activated my trap, Sakuetsu Armor. Your Serpent Night Dragon is automatically destroyed."

What? Screw him and his trap cards! She had wasted a Monster Reborn for nothing! Grrr… she wanted to win! Téa knew she wasn't super good or anything, but she felt like Ryou was mocking her dueling skills, and she wanted to prove him wrong. She was just having rotten luck… At least she still had Labyrinth Wall and Dancing Fairies (ATK 1700 / DEF 1000).

Ryou grinned mischievously when as he drew his next card. Oh no, what had he drawn…?!

"Ah, I must thank Bakura for this one," he mused, looking up at her. "Téa, do you remember destroying my Mask of Darkness, Sangan, and Night Assailant?"

"Yes…" Where was he going with this?

"Well… all three of them are Fiend-Type monsters."

"So?"

"So… They were just what I needed to special-summon this card."

She felt a chill on her back. This seemed oddly familiar…

"I remove my three Fiend monsters from play, in order to summon this!" he said triumphantly, placing another Fiend-Type card on the table. She moved closer to see what it was…

Dark Necrofear.

"Isn't that Bakura's card?" she asked, remembering how the spirit used it during Battle City.

"Was. He gave it to me after claiming he needed to make room in his deck for better cards," he explained, shrugging.

"But isn't that his favorite card?"

"Of course not. My favorite card is and will always be the Destiny Board."

Téa hit her head on the edge of the couch from whipping it up so quickly. Bakura was standing at the entrance to the kitchen, leisurely leaning on a countertop, watching them through narrowed eyes. How long had he been there?

"Bakura, what the hell?" she asked, glaring dangerously at him. "Can't you just announce your presence like a normal person?"

"Would you prefer 'Honey, I'm home!'" he mocked, mimicking a high-pitched voice.

"Where have you been?" Ryou inquired, watching the spirit grab a water bottle from the fridge. Bakura then proceeded to… sit on the floor next to them! Téa didn't want him watching!

"Go away," she said wearily. "I don't need any spectators watching my defeat…"

"You don't know that you're going to lose yet," Ryou reasoned. "And Bakura, why are you interested in watching? Where have you been all day?"

"If you must know," he replied irritably, "I was at the Domino Museum, talking to Ishizu Ishtar."

"She's here in Domino?" Téa knew Marik was back, but she hadn't realized his sister was here, too.

"I was reporting to her about Marik of course, you mortals! He's been getting away with too much crap lately. Plus, I wanted to find out how the Millennium Rod cracked; the Items are supposed to be much stronger than that…"

"What did Ishizu say?"

"She wasn't sure… She said she was going to speak to Shadi about it, and that she would also talk with him about Marik."

If Marik had been running around stalking her already with Ishizu here, Téa doubted he would suddenly stop now.

Wait, if Ryou still had Dark Necrofear, does that also mean…?!

"Ryou, do you have Dark Sanctuary in your deck?!"

Ryou's face dropped. "Of course not! That card was freaky! Plus, Bakura wouldn't give it to me."

"Out of sentimental reasons?" Téa guessed, grinning at Bakura.

The spirit frowned. "No, you idiot girl. I lost that card. I'm not sure what happened to it. Anyway, don't you two have studying to do? There's a giant post-it note on the fridge reading STUDY STUDY STUDY!"

Ehehehe, Téa forgot she had put that there. Right! The history test! "Ryou, we have to study!" she exclaimed, abandoning the duel. "We forgot about the history test! We'll finish the game later! And Bakura," she added, "don't do something mean like switch my cards around."

"As if your weak-ass deck needs it..."

---

. . .

---

Téa hated Chemistry. It was absolutely boring. Plus, her teacher was a total drag, and her class was full of idiots. For example, her lab partner: he was an egotistical rude jerk with nothing to say but idiotic remarks meant to sound insulting. Which they were, actually… okay, so he wasn't so much an idiot as he was an ass… Seto Kaiba.

"Gardner, stop daydreaming about Yami and get back to work," he ordered. "I won't fail this class because you can't stop thinking about 'the pharaoh.'"

"I wasn't thinking about him!" she hissed, snatching the test tube from him and measuring out some Sodium Chloride.

"Oh, that's right; you're in love with Ryou Bakura now, aren't you?"

She blushed and turn away. He was so completely off… Why did he have to make comments about relationships when they were working together? He kept making her think about that day in the rain, when she had realized how good-looking he was.

"Ah, you're wrong…"

"Hmm, I seem to have proven my point…"

"What?!"

"Never mind."

Jerk. Why did she have to be attracted to the villains? First Marik, now Kaiba? Okay, so she hadn't been attracted to Marik, at least not his looks, and Kaiba wasn't technically a villain… more like a bad good-guy. Which didn't really make sense, but whatever. She wondered if he was going to the prom… Téa thought back to last year's winter formal: Yugi had been following her around for an entire week, dropping hints about wanting to take her to the dance. However, she completely ignored them and tried to avoid him. She had been hiding out in the library during lunch, about three days before the event, when Kaiba had sat down across from her. He had stared at her for a long time before finally asking if she would go with him to the dance. Téa had been pretty shocked; immediately she had asked if he had a crush on her. He glared and informed her that Mokuba was trying to get him to be more social. Kaiba said he'd rather ask Téa to a dance then some random fangirl. She couldn't blame him… so she had accepted the offer. And that was how plain Téa Gardner ended up going to a dance with Seto Kaiba, the most evasive rich bachelor in Japan.

"Say, Kaiba, remember how we attended the winter dance together last year?" she asked, watching him mix two chemicals for the lab assignment.

"I thought I told you never to speak of that."

She rolled her eyes. It wasn't as if it was some big secret; everyone had seen them at the dance together. And since Kaiba clearly didn't find her company the worst, perhaps he wouldn't mind...? No, he'd likely refuse. He wouldn't be going. But on the off chance...

"Well," she continued, ignoring his remark, "let's umm, make it a tradition…?"

"Are you asking me to prom, Gardner?" he drawled.

Well, yes… damn, why did guys have to be so blunt?

"Yes…"

"I already have a date."

He what?! She had thought for certain he would say he wasn't going; something as trivial as a high school prom was surely beneath Seto Kaiba, CEO of one of the largest companies in the country. Guess not…

"Who are you going with?"

"You'll just have to wait and see…"

Was he teasing her? She wondered if he was lying to make an excuse… But Kaiba usually told the truth; it tended to hurt more than the lies. And Kaiba enjoyed hurting people.

"Look, Gardner, if you're desperate for a date, why not just go with Yami? Or Ryou?"

"I don't like Yami! And Ryou and I are just friends…"

"So go as friends. Do you think I intend to get married to my date the day after?"

Definitely not. Kaiba was too antisocial. Téa had rarely seen him chatting with girls; well, chatting with anyone really. Also, Kaiba was pretty young to be getting married. If he ever did get married (which she doubted he would, no doubt he would consider a wife a setback or something to slow down his career), it would probably be for show as to have a legal heir to inherit the family fortune.

"I don't know…"

"If you want an easy date, just ask Ryou," Kaiba repeated, going back to the chemistry assignment.

Téa reluctantly agreed that his idea made sense in a logical way… She could skip out on the prom, but knowing herself, in twenty years she would probably regret it. Plus, if she didn't go to prom, she'd have to stay home with Bakura! Eep! No way! …And she did want to have fun with her friends, and shopping for a dress sounded nice. She hadn't been shopping in ages! Well, there was that time at the mall with Marik– WHICH DIDN'T COUNT. No, she hadn't been on a shopping trip in a while, and she was actually looking forward to it. It would take her mind off everything else.

And so, taking Kaiba's advice seriously, she decided to ask Ryou to the prom. But first, she wanted to go dress shopping…

---

There were A LOT of dresses to choose from.

"So, where should we start?" Miho asked, glancing around at the different colors and styles.

Téa had invited Miho and Serenity along to come with her to the mall. They were currently in a small dress boutique that was filled with dresses. Miho hadn't selected a dress for the prom either, and neither had Serenity. The auburn-haired girl wouldn't say who she was going with, only that she was really excited and had had a huge crush on the guy for several years (which ruled out Joey). Must be some guy Téa didn't know, or didn't talk with much. Serenity had probably met him through Joey though. So all three girls were searching for prom dresses right now, and none of them had any clue as to what they wanted. So much for women's intuition, she thought.

"This one is pretty," Serenity cooed, holding up a lavender strapless dress. She glances at the price and puts it back. "That dress is ¥42000 yen!"

Most of the dresses in here were that expensive, or more. Téa didn't even see a single dress that she could afford! Better yet, she didn't even see a single one that she liked. None of these are 'me', she thought. This one was too revealing, too froufrouy, too much, too little. Miho and Serenity already had several dresses draped over their arms, but she hadn't discovered a single one that suited her. The obvious color choice would be blue, to match her eyes, but all of the blue dresses seemed... lacking… She didn't want white, brown, gold, or black; Téa definitely didn't want green (green made her look like a weed!). She didn't want a v-neck, short skirt, or pattern. It had to be reserved without being overly conservative… Téa ran a hand through her hair, frustrated. She was being too picky. Why was she so worried anyway? Who was she trying to impress? It wasn't like she was trying to get a boyfriend… She blushed. She might be going with Ryou, but she did still like Kaiba. …what, was she going to steal him from his mystery date? No, she wasn't that mean. Besides, Kaiba didn't seem interested in her, so she might as well get over him; but… he had never actually said he didn't want to go with her, only that he couldn't… Oh what the hell, this was Kaiba she was talking about; he wouldn't date her even if he wanted to. So what was the point in even buying a dress? She might as well wear something she already owned.

"I can't do this…"

"Do what?" Serenity asked, emerging from the dressing room with a few dresses that didn't fit.

"I can't buy a dress," Téa told her. "It's too much money. And I'm not even going with a date; I'm just going with Ryou. And I haven't even asked him! He could turn me down!"

"Téa," she laughed, patting the girl on the back, "why would Ryou turn you down? Aside from being his best friend—"

"Best friend?" the other girl interrupted. Where had Serenity pulled that from? She couldn't possibly know how much time they'd been spending together. Téa hoped she didn't know about their living arrangement…

"Of course; Ryou has told me that you're his closest friend," Serenity nodded, continuing. (And just when had the younger girl heard that? She didn't realize the two were on regular speaking terms.) "He speaks very fondly of you, Téa; I can tell he cares about you a lot. So, aside from being his best friend, you are also smart, pretty, and friendly; there's no way Ryou would refuse! You yourself said you'll ask him just as friends, so he shouldn't worry about you having a crush on him and ruining your friendship."

Sometimes, Téa felt it was the other way around…

"What if he already has a date?"

"Does he?"

"I don't know. He didn't the last time I spoke with him." Which had been right after school, when she'd informed him that she was going to the mall.

"Then don't count your eggs before they hatch," Serenity replied cheerfully, returning to the dressing room with more clothes. As she entered, Miho emerged, wearing a very puffy gown.

"You look like a green beach ball," Téa commented, stifling a laugh.

The lavender-haired girl blushed and agreed, "I know… that's probably why it's one of the cheaper dresses. I really need something to capture Duke's attention!" She rushed back into the room, and Téa left to browse the racks.

No, no, no, too small, no, no, definitely No… no, never, hello circus clown… Hmm, this one wasn't too bad, and it was marked at half-price! Téa took it to the cashier.

"Excuse me, Miss, why is this dress marked so low?" she asked. She wanted to know what was wrong with it before she bought it.

"Oh, that one. It's been sitting on the rack for three months. No one seems to want to buy it. We could have donated it… but," the woman lowered her voice, "the higher-ups don't want to lose money."

It looked about her size; Téa took it to a dressing room. Well, it was a bit short… but if she took off her platforms, it fit perfectly! She had planned to wear heels, but if the dress could work with flats, she could manage! Flats were more comfortable anyway (even if she thought heels looked better).

"Wow, Téa, you look great!" Serenity exclaimed when she let them see.

"Ryou will be all over you," Miho teased, inspecting the dress. "And it's a really good price!"

"Thanks," Téa replied. "What are you all buying? Did you find a good dress?"

"I figured mine doesn't have to be perfect, since it isn't my prom," Serenity said, holding up her dress. It was a short, skinny black dress that came to her knees; it looked fantastic on her. And Miho's dress suited her perfectly: a yellow halter gown with sparkling sequins (no doubt she'd accessorize with a yellow ribbon in her hair). All three friends left the store with less money in their wallets, but a dress for success in their bags.

---

. . .

---

Now that the prom was tomorrow night, Téa thought she might die of nervousness. She thought only grades were supposed to be stressful. She was Téa Gardner; social events were her expertise! She had just been so wrapped up in her exam studies that she hadn't had much time to think about the dance. Thankfully tomorrow was her last exam, Geometry; it was her worst subject. She was so glad to be in the same class with Ryou; the two were currently studying together at the kitchen table. Plus, tomorrow was also the day they would get their project grades back! She was also extremely nervous about that: she and Ryou had built some 3D model of a thirteen-pointed star; it had almost fallen apart on the way to school! At least they managed to turn it in to the teacher in one piece (who knows what had happened to it after that…). Téa couldn't take much more of the stress; she was relieved that asking Ryou to prom was a cinch. She had asked him two weeks ago, a couple of days after buying her dress. He had been happy to be her date, and he'd even joked about renting a limo and getting Bakura to be the driver (Bakura had threatened to send him to the Shadow Realm if he ever mentioned the idea again).

Also, she hadn't had much time to think about Marik and the other threats. She had seen him again at school, once or twice, but thankfully he didn't try to talk to her at all. He mostly skipped class and seemed to be lying low, not that any of her friends had given Marik the chance to approach her. They surrounded her like bodyguards, and Yami always glared at the tanned Egyptian until he slunk from sight. Hopefully Ishizu had scared him into leaving her alone. Téa prayed wouldn't go to the dance tomorrow…

"Téa, is something troubling you?" Ryou inquired. "Something besides the tangent of triangle 5?"

"Hmm? Oh, no, Ryou. I'm sorry I spaced out there. Let's get back to studying."

"Gardner, you're pathetic," Bakura sneered from the living room.

She really wished the kitchen had a door… Why did Bakura always have to put his two cents in? It had been like this for the past two weeks: for every statement she would make, Bakura would add a snide comment. He had also burned her favorite shirt with the iron and called it an 'accident'. Oh it was an accident, sure, because Bakura always tried to iron other people's clothes for them. Yeah right, he didn't even iron his own clothes! In fact, Téa was surprised that he even knew what an iron was; she was pretty sure those hadn't been invented yet back in ancient Egypt.

"At least I don't have sex with dead people," she snorted, voicing the first comeback that came to mind.

Did the coffee table just flip over?! Holy shit! Bakura was fuming. She'd forgotten just whom she was trading jabs with.

"Is that why you like to hang out in graveyards?" Ryou asked thoughtfully, blinking. "And here I thought you just liked the creepy atmosphere… Ah! So you're the one who dug up those three female graves last year! Bakura!"

"Sick," she snickered, covering her mouth.

Bakura looked ready to kill. "I did NOT dig up graves! Nor have I EVER had sex with a CORPSE!"

"Have you ever even had sex?" Téa contemplated suddenly. "I mean, you were like a thief in your past life, right? Did you steal someone's virginity as well as their riches?"

"Gardner, you go TOO FAR," Bakura growled through clenched teeth. "You have no right to talk about my life, yes my life. Not 'past life'. I never actually died; I was sealed in a Ring for three thousand years, or did you not know that?"

Sheesh, he needed to calm down. "Whatever. You don't have to be so mean all of the time."

"I'm being honest," he shrugged, surprisingly dropping his rage and returning to the living room to put the coffee table upright. "There's obviously something bothering you, so don't go lying about it when Ryou and I already know the truth. Give Ryou some credit; he's not that dumb."

"Bakura!" she warned. Then Téa turned to Ryou. "Sorry, it's just that I'm worried about Marik. What if he tries something tomorrow?"

"Don't worry," Ryou reassured her. "I'll be there."

"Ha," Bakura scoffed, "like you can offer much. You can't even protect yourself."

"Go away, Bakura. Ryou and I are trying to study!"

"I'm already in another room."

"Then go to your room."

"Whatever," the spirit griped, going into his room and slamming the door.

Had Bakura actually just obeyed a command? A command from her, no less? Hell had frozen over…

"When did Bakura become so obedient?" she asked, dumbfounded. Ryou shook his head and laughed.

"I don't know… maybe he's finally feeling that whip you've been cracking…"

Ha, ha… But, seriously, Bakura never did anything Téa told him to do; was he sick? Maybe he was finally tired of arguing… which would mean she had won! She had bested Bakura for authority! …Hmm, seemed too easy, though. Téa figured she'd better watch her back and keep her guard up around him. He could be plotting something.

"Now, about tomorrow night," Ryou spoke suddenly, "you shouldn't be worried about running into Marik. Bakura told us Ishizu was going to do something, and all of your friends, myself included, will be there to protect you!"

"Thanks, Ryou," she replied, feeling better. Her everyday life with these two was becoming a rollercoaster: Bakura said something nasty that brought her down, but then Ryou would say something positive and make her smile. They were like two halves of a whole, light and dark, black and white, good and evil…

"Téa… I, ugh… I don't feel too good," Ryou stammered, clutching his stomach.

Oh God! Not again! Ryou was always getting sick; couldn't he ever get a break? Couldn't, just for once, Bakura get sick instead of Ryou?! Téa supposed Ryou's mad dash to the bathroom answered that question.

And Ryou just threw up in the toilet. Poor boy had it rough.

"Ryou, are you okay?" she worried from the doorway, watching him lean over the toilet. She slapped a hand to her forward. Of course he's not okay, stupid, he just hurled his dinner into the toilet.

"Mmhm… nuhuh," he tried to answer, shaking his head. "…sick."

Obviously. She sighed and grabbed a towel from the linen closet to help him clean up. This was great, just great. Now how were they supposed to study for Geometry? Ryou would probably miss the test, too. And...

Shit. PROM!

---

Ryou had the flu, or something similar. Téa had already talked to the Geometry professor and set up a date for his make-up exam. Lucky! She wished Ryou had gotten her sick; she totally flunked the math final! She had no idea what the secant of X's cosine was! She guessed she had gotten maybe half of the answers right, the half that Ryou had helped her with. After she had helped him wash up, Téa had sent him straight to bed for rest. But he threw up again this morning while running a fever.

She shoved several books into her new locker before taking out her history book. She closed the door and turned to find Yami standing behind her, looking incredibly smug. This couldn't be a good thing.

"So, Téa, I hear that Ryou is ill?" he purred, not sounding concerned at all.

"Yes…" She could see where this was going…

"So, I can assume you are now dateless for Prom?"

And she had been right.

"No, I am not."

"But Ryou is—"

"Ryou is still my date for Prom," she asserted, putting her hands on her hips. "We'll be there."

"Fine," he sneered. "But if not, I will be there to entertain you." He left, running a hand through his spiky, gelled hair and muttering to himself. Damn Egyptian hot-head, she thought.

Damn it! Now what was she going to do? She had just told Yami that Ryou would be there! She couldn't force Ryou to go tonight, not in his condition. Even if the boy claimed to be fine, she wouldn't be a good friend letting him go. Oh crap, oh crap, crap, crap, CRAP! What am I going to do?! she thought frantically. She couldn't go to the prom with Ryou, but she also couldn't show up alone or Yami would be all over her (literally). She couldn't go like this...

That was it. That was the only way. She would just have to stay home and play board games with Ryou. She would miss out on the prom, but it was better than going alone and being at Yami's mercy, or worse, Marik's. She mourned the loss of the money she'd spent on the dress and tickets. Well, unless she gave Bakura her prom ticket; he could go and poke fun at everybody or whatever. It would get him out of the house. She shook her head; Thief King Bakura attending a high school dance, that would be the day!

"Téa?" She looked up to see Tristan walking towards her.

"Yes?"

"You went dress shopping with Serenity, right?" he asked nervously. She nodded.

"Who is she going to prom with?"

Hmm, Tristan didn't even know? "I don't know," she answered truthfully. "She wouldn't tell me. She wouldn't tell you either?"

"Nope. I asked her but she said she already had a date."

"You asked her before you asked Alexis, right?" she questioned. "Are you only taking Alexis so that you'll have a date?"

"N-No!" Tristan stammered, looking guilty. Téa stared at him doubtfully. "Oh, fine… After Serenity turned me down, I asked Alexis to prom. I didn't want Serenity to see that I was upset."

"No," she agreed flatly, "you just wanted to show her that you've forgotten all about her and moved on."

"Well, yes I— What? No! I don't want her to think I've moved on! I'm still interested!" Tristan buried his face in his palm. "Damn, what have I done?! Now she'll think I'm not into her anymore!"

If she could hear this she would definitely know he's still into her…

"It's not as bad as you're making it seem, Tristan. Just don't get too involved with Alexis Rhodes; make sure to save a dance for Serenity."

"I just didn't want Serenity to think I was obsessed with her."

"Tristan, you are obsessed with her."

"But I don't want her to know that!"

Serenity likely already did; it was obvious to anyone with a brain that he and Duke worshipped her.

"So I hear you're going with Ryou," he commented; she nodded again, still thinking about his obsession with Serenity. "Are you two going out? Before the break, Joey says he saw you two cutting class. Actually, I think it was the day your locker was damaged…"

"It was," she replied hesitantly. Téa had hoped no one had noticed that… "I just hadn't been feeling well and Ryou offered to take me home. And, No, we aren't dating."

Tristan opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off, continuing, "I felt disconnected with everyone. Our group has been hanging out less and less, and Ryou was the only making any effort to communicate with me."

Tristan sighed and nodded his head slowly. "We don't hang out daily now like we used to. The past couple years, seems I saw you guys every waking moment. We were always doing stuff: Duelist Kingdom, Battle City, that Dartz guy and his Seal crap… But we're seniors now; most of us don't spend all day playing a children's game anymore, because, well, we're not children. We're adults thinking about college and careers and the rest of our lives. It's only natural for us to drift apart."

Whoa… Who knew Tristan could be so insightful?

"I'm sorry if you were feeling ignored," he apologized. "You can always call me if you want to hang out."

"Or give you advice on Serenity?" Téa teased playfully.

He laughed sheepishly. "I always welcome advice on girls."

"Well, I've got to get to history class; Professor Crowler excuses no one," she grumbled, waving goodbye to Tristan.

"See you at the prom!" Tristan called out with a wave.

Uhh, oh no… err— "See you there!" she replied before she could stop herself, inwardly cringing from guilt. Her friends all thought she was going. Hopefully they wouldn't feel too let down when she didn't show...

---

. . .

---

Hmm, Titanic was airing at eight-thirty, maybe she would watch that. However, the movie was overly romantic and sad, and Téa didn't want to cry into Ryou's shirt all night. Or Bakura's.

"Téa, it's already seven o'clock; shouldn't you be getting ready?" Ryou reminded her, before blowing his nose into a tissue.

"I'm not going."

"What?! But you have to!" he argued. "Don't stay home on my account; go out and have fun with your friends!"

"Our friends," she corrected. "And I would… but Yami will pounce on me if I show up alone, and Marik might be there! I don't want to face them alone."

"But it's your prom," he insisted.

"It's just a dance. Besides, most people only go so that afterward they can go to their rented beach house and have unlimited sex."

Ryou blushed heavily, and Bakura entered the room just then.

"Who's having unlimited sex?" the spirit wanted to know. "Not you two, I hope. Don't you dare have sex while I'm here!"

Ryou's blush darkened, but Téa merely shoved her middle finger in Bakura's direction. "We're not having sex; don't get all excited."

"Excited?! I—"

"You need to get dressed," Ryou interrupted. "Just get Bakura to drive you; I still have a slight fever or I'd drive you myself."

"I told you: I'm not going."

"Why not?" Bakura demanded. "Aren't girls always raving about weddings and dances? Isn't dancing your thing, Gardner?"

Téa peered at him curiously, surprised at his interest. "Different type of dance, Bakura. I don't want to go alone because Yami and Marik will be there, and it will just be wasted time." Not to mention she would have to endure Kaiba's sexiness being owned by another girl.

"So you're scared?"

"Yes," Téa admitted. "Now, if you'll leave me alone, I'm going to play some Solitaire before Titanic comes on."

"Hell no!" Bakura shouted, startling the other occupants in the room. "I am not watching that damn movie again!"

Ryou snickered, and Téa gaped at the tomb robber. When had Bakura watched Titanic?! How in the world had Ryou gotten him to watch that?

"Get up," Bakura ordered, pointing at her. "We're leaving."

"What?" she asked, confused. "Look, we don't have to watch the—"

But Bakura had already gone into her room and come back out, throwing her prom dress into her lap. "Put it on," he commanded rudely, and then proceeded to drop some black flats at her feet.

"What is this?" she challenged. "I said I'm not going!"

"Just shut up and get ready! Ryou, give me your suit."

Wait… Bakura wanted to take her to the dance?! Like hell! She was not going anywhere with him!

"Bakura?" Ryou questioned, very confused. "What are you talking about?"

Bakura looked at the other two if they were oblivious morons. "I'll state it very clearly, again: Téa, get dressed; Ryou, give me your suit. I'm taking the woman to her stupid dance so I don't have to hear you two arguing or watching mushy movies and making out all night!"

Ryou blushed again, but Téa just stared at the tomb robber with suspicion. "You have some ulterior motive behind this, don't you? Are you and Marik planning to crash the dance or something?"

"Just shut your mouth and get dressed," he demanded in reply, sending her a major death-glare. Eep! She took the dress and went into the bedroom, shutting the door.

What the hell was going on? Was he serious? Did Bakura really intend on forcing her to go to the prom with him? How did his twisted mind work that one out? If it were anyone else, Téa might guess they had a crush on her and were using the situation to their advantage, for 'alone time' or whatever. But this was Yami Bakura, psychopathic freak Yami Bakura. Was this another one of his bizarre 'nice' moods? She undressed and slipped on different undergarments. If Téa was as trusting as she had once been, she might have believed he was trying to turn over a new leaf and make up for his rotten past. But she knew better now. Téa was not falling for this act, not after what had happened with Marik. Of course, none of these thoughts mattered, because Bakura would prefer to swallow screws rather than think of her that way. And honestly, that thought hurt her a little. Even if she wasn't interested in Bakura (which she most certainly was not), the fact that he treated her lower than dirt did hurt her feelings. She tried not to let it bother her right now. And why was she thinking of Bakura anyway? She should be thinking of other guys, like Seto Kaiba.

She mentally slapped herself. I thought I had decided that Kaiba was just eye-candy, she reminded herself as she hurried into the dress. She had told herself no more dating, not after the Marik incident. Actually, she supposed she had said that she would never fall in love again or trust as easily; Téa had never said anything about loose dating… Oh god, loose dating? Since when would she even consider that! Why was she thinking such horrible thoughts? She would never date just for the physical pleasure! There had to be some emotional involvement. Damn her hormones and Kaiba's good looks. Damn them!

"Are you ready yet?" growled a peeved Bakura from outside the bedroom door. He seriously needed to calm down. Didn't he know how long it could take a girl to get ready, especially for a dance? Well, probably not; Téa realized they probably didn't have these sorts of things in Ancient Egypt. Err, at least Bakura hadn't attend these sort of things; Yami, on the other hand, had likely thrown a large banquet every night.

"Ready!" she announced, exiting the bedroom and glancing around for the shoes Bakura had thrown into the living room.

Ryou blushed for the third time that evening. "Téa, you look amazing," he complimented, watching her twirl around for his benefit. Bakura simply stared and chewed on his cheek. Téa noticed the tomb robber actually didn't look half bad in a suit. His hair, however, was still spiking out in random places; she wished he'd done something with it…

Ryou was still ogling at her dress. The fabric was a deep crimson, almost maroon color and stopped just before it hit the floor. The front was very conservative, with a high, laced halter neckline. Her arms and shoulders were bare, and while the front of the dress was modest, the back was completely open, stopping at her waist. Before Bakura had shouted at her, Téa had managed to wrap all of her hair up in a somewhat-neat knot on the top of her head, pinning the bangs back and layering everything with hairspray. She even had a few minutes to apply minimal makeup. Who knew all of those ballet recitals with pressed dressing time would come in handy now?

"Come on, damn it," Bakura urged. "Let's go already! You can put your shoes on in the car."

"Wait!" Ryou blurted, rushing into his father's room and disappearing. Téa glanced to Bakura, who ran a hand through his hair, making it even messier.

"Here," she offered, pulling a spare hair-tie from her wrist. "Tie your hair back with this."

"Why?" he asked, looking at it as though it was acidic.

"Just tie your hair in a low ponytail; you'll look much nicer."

"Whatever," he grumbled, but complied nonetheless.

Ryou returned suddenly, holding a small box. "For you," he said, handing it to Téa. "I want you to wear it."

She took the velvet box and opened it curiously. "Ryou!" she gasped. "What is—?!"

"It was my mother's," he explained cheerfully, taking the necklace from her. "It was her favorite; she loved the simplicity of pearls." He clasped it around her neck and looks at Téa like a father would look at his daughter.

"I can't accept this," she cried, watching Ryou's smile grow even wider as he knew she was just being humble.

"Oh yes you can," Bakura barked, ruining the moment. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her to the door. "Hurry up and heal faster, damn it!" His last comment was directed at Ryou.

"Don't exert yourself too much," she called before the door closed.

Bakura practically shoved her into the passenger's seat before buckling himself in. Why was he so insistent on going? Wait— Bakura was driving?!

"Bakura, are you sure you should be driving?" she asked nervously, and he glared back. "I mean, do you even know how to drive?"

"Yes," he snapped in response. "Ryou taught me how last summer."

"Do you have a license?"

". . . . ."

"Bakura!"

"What?! So we don't get ourselves pulled over and we'll be fine. Quit your yapping."

Bakura shifted the car into gear and pulled out of the driveway. Téa was close to hyperventilating; Bakura was driving! This night could very well be her last!

"Slow down!" she squeaked, clutching the car door.

Bakura smirked. "I have a need for speed," he quipped, stepping on the gas pedal.

"Why are you taking me?" she demanded, ready for some legit answers. "What are you up to?"

"I… I didn't want to hear your whining," Bakura explained as they turned onto a main road. "I know you want to go even if you won't admit it, and, seeing as how you wouldn't go by yourself, I decided to stretch my activities and take you to your stupid dance so you won't be all mopey."

"Watch out for that mailbox!" Téa screamed, grabbing the wheel and twisting it rapidly in the opposite direction. "Are you trying to get us killed?!"

"Calm down. I would have seen it in time."

"No, no you wouldn't have! I'm driving home, and that's final!"

She let out a huge breath and thanked Ra that she was still alive as Bakura did a horrible parking job in front of the school. Her feet happily touched solid ground as Téa got out of the car and smoothed out her dress. She saw groups of students entering the gymnasium up ahead; there was also a long limousine sitting near the door with several students getting out. Bakura slammed his door shut and muttered various swear words under his breath at Ryou's car. He caught Téa staring and narrowed his eyes.

"Let's just get this over with," he groaned, as if she was the one who had dragged him here.

"Stop complaining; it was your idea to come. And what am I supposed to tell my friends? 'Hey guys, look who I brought! Our charming buddy Bakura!'" She flashed a sardonic smile and started walking towards the school. Bakura caught up with her on the sidewalk and held out his arm.

She raised a wary eyebrow.

"Isn't this what I'm supposed to do?" he muttered harshly, sounding unsure of himself. What he's supposed to do…? Oh! Was he offering his arm to her like a real date would, like Ryou would? Téa almost blushed at the thought of Bakura being charming, but then she remembered that this was Bakura and Bakura didn't do charming. So she laughed instead.

"What?" he growled. She continued to laugh, which only ticked him off further, but she also slipped an arm around his, which seemed to mollify him against his will.

"Nothing, sorry," she lied, leading him to the entrance. "I just remembered something funny."

Bakura looked insulted and opened his mouth to retort back, but she yanked on his arm and hauled him over to the table where several members of the prom committee were taking tickets. Téa handed over two tickets and smiled at the girl, Kari from another class, she recognized, who handed back the stubs in return. "Keep those," she informed them, "because they have your numbers for the prize drawing." Téa nodded and shoved them into her black clutch before continuing inside.

"This? This is what you and Ryou paid ¥6900 for?" Bakura scorned. "What's so special about this?"

Téa had to agree somewhat; they could have done a better job (this was what happens when she wasn't on the committee). First and most importantly of all, they hadn't even tried to reserve a hotel or banquet hall. No, they had just decided it was fine to have the dance at the school gym. Who wanted to remember their last senior dance by the smell of sweat and dirty socks? Also, there were barely any decorations at all. Just a banner with the theme, A Night To Remember. Ironically, this looked as boring as the fall formal. At least they had music and food. This prom would not have survived without those vitals.

"Téa! Ryou!"

She came out of her thoughts to see that Bakura had lead her past the doorway and over to a table where Tristan and Alexis were sitting. Tristan's hair was slicked back with gel, and Alexis looked pretty in a flowing blue gown.

"Hi guys," Téa greeted, sitting down next to Tristan and forcing Bakura to sit down next to her. "Where's everyone else?"

"They're all getting their pictures taken," Tristan explained. "The line was really long when we got here. Why are you two so late anyway?"

"Well, Bakura caused—"

"Bakura caused some fuss," the spirit himself interrupted with a voice that didn't sound like his at all. It sounded softer and higher. "Sorry we're late," he apologized, sounding forced.

"No problem," Tristan said, giving Bakura a suspicious look.

She stared at him in disbelief. 'Bakura caused some fuss'?! What did he think he was doing, pretending to be Ryou? Téa didn't entirely believe Tristan had bought that, and there was absolutely no way Yami or Yugi would; she bet they could tell Ryou and Bakura apart almost as well as she could. Err, well, Bakura actually kind of did look like Ryou, with his hair tied in a ponytail. He was dressed nice and acting nice, things Bakura did not do. And Bakura surely wouldn't attend a high school dance, right? Well, that's what she had thought thirty minutes ago.

"You and Ryou should go get your pictures taken soon," Alexis said, startling her. "The camera man said he'd only be here for the first hour."

"Great idea," she replied with a smile. "Come along, Ryou, let's go take pictures!" Anything to get away and ask Bakura what the hell he thought he was doing.

She stood up, pulling Bakura with her, and headed toward a line near the visitor's sideline of the basketball court where she could see camera flashes every couple seconds.

"What kind of stunt are you trying to pull?" she hissed at Bakura. "Pretending to be Ryou?! Are you crazy?"

"It seems to be working," he replied dismissively.

"Tristan may have believed that, but you won't be able to convince Yami so easily."

"We'll see. Besides, wouldn't you rather have me act as Ryou? Have you thought about what might occur if you tell your friends you brought me as your date?"

"You brought me!" Téa responded bitterly. "You should have thought about this!"

"I did."

"And your plan was to impersonate your better half?"

"Better half?!" Bakura growled angrily. Several people in front of them turn around. He was going to blow his cover!

"Just shut up and act like Ryou," she conceded for the moment, crossing her arms. Bakura smirked at her submissiveness before falling back into his 'Ryou persona'.

"So what's the point of all this anyway? I may not know much Japanese culture, but I'm pretty sure this is a Western thing, is it not? And the clothes are Western too, right?"

Hmm, Bakura was pretty perceptive about this stuff. "Yes, you are right… But after an increase in the number of Western transfer students several years ago, the school decided to add some 'cultural diversity'. Not that the students complained, I mean look how many are here. And most of them like experiencing new things, but I see a few girls in kimonos…"

"Why does your school have so many transfer students?"

"Because we have the most diverse teaching staff," she explained. "True, most transfers are English, but I'm pretty sure we have several Chinese students."

Not that any of that bothered her. She liked the idea of Western dances and culture. Actually, there were only about six girls wearing kimonos, and most of the guys were even in tuxedos. The dances (Fall, winter, and Prom) were the biggest Western events of the school, besides the Halloween party that the American Club always hosted. Téa guessed to an outsider like Bakura, the city was very Westernized, but that was really due to the massive amount of foreigners that lived here (helped along by Kaiba Corp's global company of course).

After taking several photos for show, she and the tomb robber returned to the table to find most of her friends sitting and chatting happily.

"Téa!" Yugi exclaimed. "You look gorgeous!" She blushed.

"And Ryou cleans up pretty well too, huh?" Joey chimed in, patting 'Ryou' on the back. It was probably taking Bakura all of the self-control he had to stop from biting back.

"Thanks, Yugi," she replied bashfully. "Umm, where's Yami?"

"Oh, don't worry," Yugi replied, following her thoughts, "he's currently entertaining Mai on the dance floor."

"Mai?" Bakura asked. Téa stared at him; was that an act or is he really interested? Or did he not remember who she was? That seemed more likely.

"Yeah," Joey confirmed, "Yami said he was nervous 'bout dancing, and Mai offered to help him relax." So she was safe for the moment…

She looked around the table to see Miho making small talk with Duke. The girl smiled and waved when she caught Téa's eye, before returning to her conversation (trying to prove she was better for him than Serenity, no doubt). Speaking of… where was Serenity? Téa didn't see her at the table, so she must be out on the dance floor with her mystery date. Yugi left, escorting Rebecca out to the floor; Tristan and Alexis had wandered off in search of drinks; Joey was talking to that foreign exchange student, Alex O'what's-his-face; and, for some reason, Jaden Yuki was sitting across the table winking at her. Ugh. How did that kid get in here? He was a sophomore; he must be here with an upperclassman, but who was desperate enough to ask Jaden to the prom? Jaden and his little group of friends were the only ones seriously into Duel Monsters anymore, even if they weren't very good. Jaden liked challenging Yugi to duels, but Yugi always refused, saying he was too busy with schoolwork, and Jaden was left to duel Joey (not that Joey complained too much; he always won).

"Who are you looking at?" Bakura asked suddenly. She shook her head and looked around the gym instead, trying to locate Serenity and her date. Téa spotted Yugi trying horribly to dance with Rebecca… She caught a glimpse of Mai teaching Yami how to do what looks like the waltz (she was amused to see that Yami was failing horribly)… There was Kaiba with his date… Kaiba! She sat up a bit straighter, trying to see around Chumley Huffington, and looked at the girl he was currently dancing with.

…Damn. Téa couldn't tell from this far away. It was just some short, auburn-haired girl in a black dress. She probably wasn't anyone Téa knew, since she didn't know any short girls with auburn hair other than Serenity.

She drew in a breath and replayed that last thought in her mind. Serenity had auburn hair. Serenity bought a black dress just like that. Seto Kaiba was dancing with Serenity Wheeler, his date for the prom. Her brain stopped functioning properly.

"Gardner— I mean Téa, are you okay?" Bakura sounded worried, placing his hand on her shoulder. His hand felt so warm… Or maybe she had just gone cold at seeing Serenity with Kaiba. So that's why she wouldn't tell anyone; Serenity hadn't wanted the news to spread around to Joey (although Joey didn't seem too concerned that his baby sister was dancing close, dangerously close, to Moneybags). Had Kaiba asked her, or had it been the other way around? Neither seemed the type to ask the other, but Téa couldn't believe that Kaiba would agree to take Joey's sister to a dance, no matter who asked who. Kaiba would rather drop dead than touch anything named Wheeler. Yet there he was, touching Serenity. Why were they here together?

"Téa, you look sick," Joey noted, breaking her train of thought. "Did you eat some bad meat?"

"What? No, Joey, I'm fine, really… Say, would you like to dance?" she asked the blonde distractedly. Joey glanced from her to Bakura and then back to her again, finally nodding. She took his hand impatiently and they left the table together. She looked over her should to find Bakura looking pissed about something, but Téa had no time to dwell on it as Joey pulled her into a line dance.

Yugi and Rebecca were several people in front of them; Rebecca seemed to be having fun, even if she was clearly doing it wrong. Miho also looked like she was enjoying herself, but Duke gave off a sour mood (he was watching Serenity dance with Kaiba). Téa followed his line of sight and frowned as well.

"Téa, you finally made it!" Mai greeted excitedly, approaching her. "And you look like a movie star!"

"So do you," she replied, returning the compliment. Mai actually looked very stunning in her large purple dress with laces and ribbons.

"Téa, you look divine," Yami complimented smoothly, joining Mai. She smiled slightly and thanked him. She had really hoped to run into him later, or, better yet, not at all.

"Come on, Mai, let's go get some refreshments," Joey suggested, taking her hand.

"Is food all you think about, Joseph?"

"Sometimes."

She laughed as they head for the snacks table, leaving Téa alone with Yami.

"Téa, I've been wanting to talk to you for a while now," he started before she had a chance to excuse herself.

She cut him off before he could say anything more, "Yami, I am not interested in you that way. I've told you this before."

"I know," he replied seriously. "And I want to apologize for my behavior."

He what?! "Really?" she prodded.

The former pharaoh nodded. "I know I've been acting strange… and I'm sorry. It's just that…"

"Just what?" Téa pleaded exasperatedly. "You followed me into the bathroom once!"

"I was afraid I was losing you," Yami mumbled sadly. "We're all growing apart… Yugi is the only one I feel close to anymore."

"What are you talking about? You hang out with Tristan and Joey every day."

"True… but we don't really do much. And you were becoming so distant with us, Téa, and we were doing the same to you. I suppose, out of a childish impulse, I latched onto you because I was afraid I might lose your friendship."

And here Téa had thought he was trying to get into her pants. "Yami, that's great that you were worried about losing my friendship, but you completely went about saving it the wrong way. You freaked me out and made me avoid you even more. I thought you had a huge crush on me…"

"Well, I do."

Oh.

"But I know that you are not interested in me like that anymore, and I wish for us to be friends again. You were my closest friend next to Yugi," he said gloomily.

What had gotten into her friends suddenly? Yami and Tristan both… Was it Friendship Week or something she didn't know about? Perhaps the realization of senior year had finally hit them. This was their last definite year (months now) together. Next semester they would be at different universities and jobs. Who knew when they would all have time to visit each other?

"We can be friends," she agreed, relieved. "Just as long as you stop following me like you're my shadow."

"Deal," he replied enthusiastically, shaking her hand and pulling her into a bear hug.

Oh how she had missed this… Téa missed hanging out with her friends. She missed cheering them on at Duel Monsters games and picking them up when they get knocked down. She missed standing for friendship and sincerity, and she missed her friends teasing her over the fact that she was a friendship nerd. She… she missed being needed. They didn't need her anymore like they used to.

"Ahem," a voice edged in, causing her and Yami to jump and break apart. Bakura was glaring at Yami and tapping his foot.

"Look, Ryou," Yami tried to explain, "I'm not stalking Téa, really! We just talked about stuff, right Téa? See, Ryou? No need to blow a fuse…"

"If you don't mind," Bakura stated in a barely-Ryou-like voice and linking arms with Téa, "I'd like to dance with my date."

"Sure," Yami relinquished hastily, walking away. Téa watched him return to the table and strike up a conversation with Yugi, occasionally glancing at the tomb robber. She couldn't believe Yami hadn't recognized Bakura! All the better for her, she supposed… though the pharaoh did continue to glance at them every now and then. She prayed Yami hadn't caught on…

"What was that bastard doing?" Bakura inquired dangerously. "Did he do anything to you?"

"What? No, Yami was just talking to me," Téa hurried to explain, alarmed at his tone. "Honestly, Bakura, you get worked up over the smallest things. And since when have you cared if Yami does something to me? Last time I checked, you thought I was in love with him."

"That was last time you checked."

"Ugh… Well, what do you want?" she asked, glaring at him. Bakura appeared almost sheepish…

"I, uhh, wanted to dance with you…"

"That's your cover story, but what did you really want?"

"No, seriously, I really wanted to… dance with you."

He was pulling her leg… Bakura seriously wanted to dance with her? Never in a million years. Oh, right, he was just trying to keep up the Ryou façade (Ryou likely would ask her to dance). She had forgotten.

"Think you can handle it?" Téa asked mischievously. Bakura's face turned sour.

"Handle what? You have nothing over me."

Bad move, Bakura, she thought… Téa hadn't taken thirteen years of dance for nothing…

"Shit, woman, what are you doing?!" the spirit gasped as he tried to keep up with her on a particularly fast song. Téa just grinned and gloated in his discomfort. It wasn't often that Bakura was uncomfortable.

"You're not acting very Ryou-like," she whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean Ryou is a much better dancer."

"Why you little—!"

"Ryou, such vulgarity! When did you pick up Bakura's dirty mouth?" she mocked, enjoying the look on his face when he had to respond with something Ryou-ish.

The song ended and a slower-paced one began play. Bakura regained a bit of his composure and looked very smug.

"What?" she dared to ask.

"This I can handle," he stated confidently, wrapping an arm around her waist and bringing her to him. Bakura's other hand found Téa's right one and he intertwined his fingers with her own.

She had forgotten that, while she could enjoy Bakura's embarrassment during the fast songs, she did also have to slow-dance with him as well. His fingers burned her skin where they rested on her back just above her waist. He wasn't a good dancer, but he was managing to lead them in a circular sway. Her free hand gripped Bakura's sleeve tightly, though she wasn't sure why. Being this close to him was unnerving.

"Bakura—"

"Yes?" he replied, his thumb stroking her bare skin reflexively.

The whole room was beginning to feel hot. Téa couldn't understand it; she had been just fine a moment ago! Perhaps all of the dancing had worn her out already?

"I'm tired; let's sit down," she hastily suggested, dragging him back to the table. Bakura frowned but could say nothing without blowing his cover.

"So, Ryou," Yugi said from Téa's right side, "what is Bakura up to? Is he still giving you problems?"

Bakura's hand gripped hers tightly; she hadn't realized she was still holding it. "He… Bakura is as bad as ever, I suppose, haha. At least he isn't killing people anymore, right?" Bakura laughed weakly, trying to dismiss the subject.

"I dunno, man," Tristan replied, his eyes watching Serenity on the dance floor. "Bakura was one sick freak. I don't think people like that can change."

The grip on her hand squeezed with such force that Téa started to feel the circulation stop.

"Bakura— Bakura isn't so bad," the spirit snapped. "Get off his back and focus your attention on the real psychos, like Marik!"

Yugi was taken aback at the sudden coldness and glanced at Yami; they stared at each other for a while before Yami nodded slightly, and Téa hoped they weren't figuring things out. Taking advantage of the loss of their attention, however, she stamped vehemently on Bakura's foot and hissed, "Let. Go." Spying their joint hands, he let go at once, realizing what he had been doing. Téa continued to glare at him until the sound of laughter brought her attention back to the table. Serenity had just arrived, fresh from the dance floor, and was talking with Rebecca.

"—and so then I told him, 'Now, Kaiba, if you are going to escort me to your prom, you need to lose that cold attitude and be able to have fun with me and my friends.' And he just smiled and reassured me that everything would be okay. Isn't that so romantic?"

Serenity giggled again as Rebecca said dreamily, "Who knew that you'd be the one to melt the ice on Kaiba's heart!"

"I know, right? I wasn't even aware that he was interested in me! I've been sulking at home and feeling sad about not having his attention, when all along he was feeling just as miserable about not seeing me!"

"What?" Téa asked in spite of herself, before she could stop. The girls turned to her and squealed.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Rebecca concurred. "Kaiba has been crushing on Serenity since Battle City! They're star-crossed lovers who didn't even realize the other liked them! How romantic…"

"Oh Téa! I'm sorry I couldn't tell you guys the juicy news," Serenity apologized. "I just wanted it to be a surprise! That, and I didn't want the story circulating around for my brother to hear."

"Does he know?" It was all Téa could manage to ask, picturing Joey's face when he discovered his baby sister with Kaiba.

Serenity giggled yet again and blushed. "Kaiba came over two hours early to tell Joey the news. He also brought him a gift certificate to Burger World."

"So Kaiba is buying his time with you?" Téa tried to wrap her head around the entire situation but found she couldn't.

"No! He brought the certificate as an act of kindness!"

No way, no way in hell would Kaiba ever buy Joey anything (Kaiba never bought anyone anything)! This was not possible… Kaiba had turned her down because he already had a date, Serenity. And he had apparently been crushing on the younger girl since Battle City? It was just not possible! Kaiba hated Joey, loathed Joey too much to become interested in Serenity. She… Téa had thought there was a chance Kaiba could be attracted to her, after all, he had taken her to the dance last year. It would have been a long shot, but she was a hopeful person, and, well, Téa had considered getting his attention tonight. But now… Now he was in love with Serenity (err, she never said he loved her, but it was only a matter of time, probably. Who didn't love Serenity?) and she wouldn't stand a chance. Serenity was sweet and innocent, and adorable. Téa was plain and boring, and… and just not good enough for Kaiba it seemed. The giggles of Serenity and Rebecca infiltrated Téa's thoughts, causing anger to swell up within her. It felt like Serenity had stolen Kaiba right from under her nose. Téa was destined to be single, stuck with feelings of hurt after the whole Marik thing.

Instantly Téa felt guilty and horrible. Serenity had not known that Téa was interested in Kaiba; and if Kaiba had been crushing on the girl for over a year now, Téa hadn't stood a chance anyway. It was only a matter of time until both of their feelings arose. Kaiba always got what he wanted, by any means necessary.

"I bet Mokuba will be happy that his brother finally has a girlfriend," Rebecca commented, smiling. "I bet he gets lonely."

Girlfriend?! As in, they were already dating?! When had all of this even happened?

"Oh, I know he's just going to be thrilled!" Serenity agreed, twisting a strand of hair. "I hope he lets me call him 'Seto'…"

Too much. Téa had heard all she could take before she kicked someone (probably Bakura, since he had dragged her here). She made to stand, causing Bakura to get all pissy again. She didn't know what his problem was, but he needed to ditch the sour look. Ignoring Bakura's twitching eyebrow, Téa left the table in search of some much needed punch. Literally. She wanted to punch a wall right now…

What the…? They were out of punch? Already? This was the single worst prom in the world, Téa was sure of it! What else could go wrong?

"Gardner," Kaiba addressed, stepping in front of her. "I've been looking for you." Téa had spoken too soon it seemed.

"What, Kaiba?"

He frowned and crossed his arms. "No need to get fresh with me, Gardner. I was interested in Serenity long before you asked me to the dance."

. . . . .

What did he just say?! What the— "How dare you assume my attitude has anything to do with you! You don't know, don't care about the half of it, so you might as well not get me started. Go away!"

Which wasn't exactly true, she was in a bad mood because he was here, with Serenity of all people.

"Good god, Gardner. Get over yourself. That winter formal, that was a One Time Thing," he expressed slowly. "How was I supposed to even know you were interested in me? You were always hanging around Ryou Bakura and flirting with Yami—"

"I WAS NOT FLIRTING WITH YAMI!"

"—You never told me your feelings or anything. And it didn't matter anyway, because I had noticed Serenity even before the dance last year. She was just too young then."

"Oh and fourteen is SO much older than thirteen," Téa sneered immaturely.

"You're acting like a brat," Kaiba noted, crossing his arms. "Stop fantasizing about me and move on. Because it's never going to happen between us."

Fantasizing… He thought she had been fantasizing about him?! Of all the self-absorbed things he had ever said…! Though he was right, a tiny voice in her head admitted, that day in the rain… she'd a few hot dreams about that. Not that Kaiba needed to know! No, she couldn't lose her front; Téa wouldn't let him know how much he was getting to her.

"What makes you think I want anything between us?" she jeered bitterly, stamping her foot.

"You asked me to prom, remember?"

"According to you, I was just looking for an easy date!" she snarled. "YOU need to get over yourself. Not everyone in the world is fantasizing about you, Kaiba! Not even half of them, and especially not ME. So, SOD OFF!"

He raised a confused brow at that last part. Good, finally something the oh-so-superior-Seto-Kaiba didn't know! Téa had heard Ryou use that phrase a few times… something like the British version of "FUCK YOU". Plus, she had said it in English, so it might take a while for Kaiba to find the meaning, even with his decent English language vocabulary.

"What did you say…?"

Téa turned slowly to find that a group of people had been watching, mostly her friends… including Serenity. Joey had asked the question, but many of them were confused as well. Only Bakura had understood what she'd yelled, because it was he whom Ryou always said that to. Okay, so Ryou had said it six times maybe; he usually didn't have enough courage to tell off the tomb robber. So, instead of being confused, Bakura just look even more pissed (what was he mad about?). And Serenity… well, she looked worse than anyone. Betrayed, hurt, and… guilty perhaps? Maybe, if she had picked up on the fact that Téa really did have feelings for Kaiba.

"Téa…" Yugi started. But she didn't have anything else to say, particularly not to Kaiba. She had heard enough of his crap, heard enough of his deep, sexy voice—

"Téa!" Serenity called after her. Several others shouted her name as well.

It was a good thing that the music was loud enough to muffle their cries, or else the whole school would have seen her running across the gym. Where to go, where to go?! She couldn't hide out in the bathroom: everyone would be waiting when she decided to come out, and Serenity could follow her in. Thankfully she was not crying yet; Téa was too angry still. Téa only ran because she knew that if she had stayed any longer, she might have done something stupid, like thrown the empty punch bowl at Kaiba.

Not that what she did wasn't childish. She should have just ignored Kaiba and gone "Yeah, I'm over you already!" Instead she had pretty much thrown a temper tantrum and pulled the old "It's not my fault!" Which it mostly was.

She had never told Kaiba how she felt. Of course, Téa hadn't realized her attraction to him until a month ago, by which time he was already well head-over-heels for Serenity. Still, she had no right to be angry with him, with Serenity… they could love whoever they wanted! Right?

So why did she feel so miserable?

---

Sitting behind a large bin, Téa was currently hiding in the locker room, the one where everyone put their outside shoes. Hopefully no one would think to look in here. She had heard Yami and Joey run by earlier, talking loudly about how she was probably on the roof (because, according to Joey, that's where heartbroken teens went to commit suicide; just what kind of person did he think she was?!). Téa wanted to run home, to jump under her warm blankets… sleep until the afternoon and wake up to her mother cooking hot cakes and toast and rice porridge…

And then of course she remembered that her parents hadn't been home for months. And that Marik had burned down her house.

That she didn't feel entirely comfortable running down the street in this dress at night all by herself.

"Woman!" a voice barked, scaring the crap out of her. "Why are you hiding, mortal?"

Bakura had found her. Thankfully, no one else was with him. How the hell had he known where she was?

"First of all, stop the name-calling. Second, I'm not hiding," she informed him, holding up one finger, then another.

"Oh? So then what are you doing?" he asked with a smirk, sitting in front of her.

"I'm uhh… I'm… I'm sitting…" she replied stupidly. She couldn't believe he was sitting on the floor with her.

He laughed at that, a real laugh, nice sounding… He should do that more often, she found herself thinking.

"What happened?" he inquired seriously. "Were you and Kaiba having a lovers' quarrel?"

Where had he picked up this modern language, she wondered? Although, if he was watching movies like Titanic…

"No!" she answered defensively. "Why would you think that!"

"Well, you two were pretty much screaming about it," he replied dryly, picking at his tie. "I know Kaiba turned you down, anyway."

"I didn't even ask him out!" Téa defended, curling her fingers into fists. "Kaiba just started accusing me of sulking because he's with another girl!"

Bakura shifted, somewhat like Ryou did when he was uncomfortable. Then the spirit asked, "Well… are you?"

"What?"

He shifted again. "Are you sulking because Kaiba is with Serenity?"

Why was Bakura so uncomfortable? Téa should be the embarrassed one. Knowing Bakura, he would normally laugh at her face and talk about how big of a slut she was for going after Kaiba. Seriously, what was up with the tomb robber these days?

Sulking? Of course! But she lied, "NO! I'm not pining after Kaiba!"

"Oh," he said with a sigh, relaxing. "Well then pull yourself together and stop acting like a child."

Téa glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm fine," she said firmly.

Bakura looked doubtful, but he dropped the subject. Instead, he pulled a plate seemingly out of nowhere and handed it to her. It was piled with fruits and desserts. He shoved it in her direction.

"Eat," he commanded, forcing it between her hands when she didn't respond.

Téa stared at the plate. "What is this?" Why was Bakura giving her food? How random.

"You're too thin," he replied with scrutiny. "You need to eat more."

She pursed her lips. Clearly he didn't understand that weight was a sensitive subject for girls. "I eat just fine," she argued, holding the plate back out for him.

He pushed it back at her. "Ryou may not have the brains to notice, but you rarely eat. And when you do, your plate is always half-full when you finish. Food gives you strength, and lately you've been awfully weak. Now eat."

She frowned harder. Téa didn't like people bossing her around, especially about her weight and eating habits. Her teachers used to do that when she was in dance class, and it had been exhausting living up to their expectations. She looked down at the plate again. She had a dance review coming up... she groaned internally. And like it or not, Bakura was right about her strength. She couldn't go into her dance classes malnourished. She hadn't been eating as much lately, but she hadn't really thought about it until now. She had been so stressed with everything going on, it had taken a toll on her diet.

And Bakura had noticed this?

"I'm sorry," she apologized sheepishly. "I've just been so stressed that I guess my appetite wasn't really there–"

Bakura pushed a cake square into her unsuspecting mouth. She coughed and forced herself to swallow. "What the hell?" she demanded angrily. "You think you can just–"

Another dessert was popped into her mouth.

"Are you finished talking?" Bakura asked smugly, picking up another piece of food.

She opened her mouth to answer, but found a strawberry slice on her tongue before she could respond. This time, his fingers grazed her lips before leaving to pick up another piece of fruit. Téa blushed from head to toe and yanked the plate back, stuffing her face with food. Bakura smiled, extremely satisfied.

God, did he even realize how sensual he had just been? Probably not. Téa felt hot again. What was going on tonight? She stilled when Bakura ran a hand through her hair. His fingers gently probed at her scalp, brushing across her forehead and under her hair. They couldn't do much though, as Téa had locked her hair down with maximum spray.

"Your injury seems to have healed," he said quietly, still trying to examine her hairline.

She swatted him away. "I covered it with some makeup, but it doesn't hurt too bad." She wished he would stop touching her. It unsettled her like nothing else. But she also couldn't help relish these quiet moments with Bakura, as they were few and far between.

"Come on," he ordered, standing and pulling her with him. "I've had enough of this teen drama crap and I think you have, too. Let's go home."