They were able to easily accommodate Marik inside their wagon, despite Joey's initial insistence that the Urodelas' feed, changes of clothes, and water didn't leave a lot of room for guests. If Marik caught on that Joey was just being stubborn about the ex-Golem's admittance to the group, he didn't let on. This pleased Serenity, who joined Marik in the wagon amongst the stores to talk more with her newest companion.

"So, what kinds of places did you imagine visiting?" Serenity asked him at some point.

Marik cocked his head to the side in thought. "I've always wanted to see the big cities way off in the distance," he said at last. "Living on the countryside gets a little dull after a while."

Serenity nodded. That was perfectly reasonable. "You know," she said, "Joey and I are on a quest to find the Sorcerers –"

"Hey!" Joey interrupted through the window. "Don't go telling him that. It's a covert mission. You know, secret?"

"But he's traveling with us now. He's bound to find out eventually. Besides, I trust him. Don't you?"

Joey said nothing. Instead, he starting grumbling grumpily to himself.

"Anyway," Serenity continued, "we're on a quest to save the Black Magician King."

Marik nodded slowly, feeling the weight of such a noble quest. He had heard of the Black Magician King from passing travelers, but never imagined one day having anything to do with him, let alone meeting his very saviors. "Is he in danger?" he asked, immediately cursing his naïveté of the situation.

Serenity tilted her head to the side in contemplation. "Well...not the kidnapped kind of danger. Or the running-from-a-dangerous-animal kind, either." She shook her head to clear her mind of all the sudden images of just what kind of danger a King could get himself into and levied Marik with a direct look. "He's sick. I...accidentally passed it onto him, and now we have to gather the items from the other Sorcerers to help heal him."

"And who are the other Sorcerers?"

Serenity opened her mouth to speak but realized that she, in fact, didn't know the answer. Instead, she turned to Joey, prompting Marik to do the same.

Joey noticed the sudden silence from behind him. "You mean, you don't know?" he called over his shoulder to Marik. Then he shrugged. "Well, I suppose you wouldn't, living in the Betwixt and all. There are four Sorcerers in all. His Majesty's Kingdom is to the east. The Oracle, who we're headed to now, is in the west. The Dragon-Tamer's Palace is in the north and is the most heavily guarded. And the White Mage is in the south. He's pretty secluded and...odd." Joey didn't elaborate. "Anyway, that's the roster. They each have their own items and abilities."

"That's amazing," Serenity said in awe. She was already impressed by the Black Magician's Kingdom, so the thought of seeing more wonders, all unique in their own right, overfilled her with enthusiasm. She turned to her new companion. "Isn't it?"

Marik nodded and smiled. "I can't wait."

Marik and Serenity continued their chatter, with occasional interruptions from Joey to offer his expertise. Before long, the dirt road beneath their wagon began to smooth and widen, indicating that they were entering a town. Indeed, Joey noticed a worn signpost beside a pair of large open gates. He tugged at the reins to slow the Urodelas to a trot, which prompted the two passengers to poke their heads out.

Before them lay a small cropping of low huts and houses, over which towered a wide domed building. Joey pulled into the rest stop by the town's entrance, and the three companions hopped out.

"What do you suppose it is?" Serenity asked Marik, who only shrugged in reply. They turned to Joey.

"Don't ask me," he replied as he tied the Urodelas to a post. "We gotta wait for the Urodelas to rest up, so why don't we check it out?"

The three left the rest stop and trekked through the town on their way to the grand structure in the distance. Serenity was dismayed to see some of the townsfolk eyeing Marik warily and giving him a wide berth, but if the ex-Golem noticed, he didn't let on. Rather, he had eyes only for the compact shops and taverns lining the streets they walked. Most of them had their wide entrances propped open, inviting a steady stream of passers-by to enter and leave as they pleased. Children zig-zagged through the pedestrians' legs from hut to hut, laughing when shop-keeps chased them away. Colorful banners and flags advertising the wares inside flew gently in the midday breeze.

At last, the trio reached the large building. It was lined with a series of arches for entrances, allowing the companions to see the throngs of people, counters and stern clerks arguing with patrons, and even more shops lining the walls. The three walked inside and marveled at the vaulted ceiling and visible upper floors as they dodged hurried shoppers.

"What is this place?" Marik asked in awe.

"And is it always so busy?" Serenity chimed in. They both turned to Joey, who merely shrugged. Instead of answering, he tapped a random man on the shoulder.

"Hey man, what is this place?" the blond asked.

The man raised an eyebrow. "The Grand Bazaar, of course." He rolled his eyes when he saw the three blank faces blink back at him. "This here is the trade capital of the Betwixt," he continued. "The Grand Bazaar is where merchants the land over come to do business. Now, if you'll excuse me," and he turned to walk away, mumbling something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like "Damn tourists" to Marik.

"Well, that explains all the shops," Joey said, returning his attention to his companions. "I'll bet everything here is super expensive. Don't touch anything." Marik and Serenity nodded and followed behind Joey around the Bazaar.

"Hullo sir!" cried a tall and thin man dressed in fitted and shiny robes. "Might I interest you in opening an account with Laird and Quest?"

Joey stopped and looked around, convinced the man was speaking to someone else. "Who?" he asked.

The man's eyes widened. "You mean, you haven't heard? Why, Laird and Quest are only the largest bankers in all the Betwixt! Throughout the Realms, even!"

"W-what's a bank?"

The man chuckled, but it was Serenity who answered. "It's a place that protects your money," she said. "You leave it with them, and they hold it until you need it again."

Joey hmphed. "That sounds a little too good to be true."

"It really works," Serenity said. "We have them in my world, too."

"But what if I needed my money and I was really far away from this...bank?"

"That's the best part!" the man said. "You can go to any Laird and Quest bank and access your funds. We give you the amount you ask for from our stash and then transfer the money from where you left it to us to pay the difference."

Joey stroked his chin. "But what's in it for you? How do you profit?"

The man rubbed his hands together nervously. "Th-that's really too much to explain right this moment."

"I don't know," Joey said, "still sounds too farfetched for me. Pass." And he started to walk away, prompting the others to do the same.

"Have you really never used a bank before?" Serenity asked.

Joey shook his head. "Never. You?"

"All the time! Well...my parents do."

"I think the man was telling the truth," Marik said, "or else the other merchants wouldn't have trusted him, either."

"Yeah, well, why don't you leave your money with 'im then?" Joey grumbled.

"I don't have any."

"I know, that was the – ugh, never mind."

The companions explored the Bazaar for a little while longer before deciding to continue their journey. They returned to the Urodelas and prepared to enter the wagon and leave the city when Joey noticed something.

"Wait," he said quietly, eyeing the flap covering the opening warily. It looked like someone had hastily moved it back into place, and the latch certainly hadn't been refastened. "Get behind me," he said to Serenity. She obeyed.

Joey gestured for Marik to get ready to open the flap as he quickly thought of a charm to incapacitate who – or what – was inside. With a sharp nod from Joey, Marik threw the flap open. A person sat hunched behind one of the crates, hands flying to shield his eyes from the sudden onslaught of natural light.

"What are you doing here?" Joey demanded.

The man lurched forward (incidentally revealing a head full of snowy white hair) and grasped for the flap in Marik's clutch. "You fools, shut the flap! They'll be here any moment." He re-covered the opening and peeked through the gap. "Pretend I'm not here."

Before either of the companions could respond, a group of burly men marched by, knocking over barrels and ducking behind booths – they were clearly looking for something. Serenity shrank away as the group approached them, and Joey instinctively took a half-step forward.

"You guys seen this thief?" one of them asked, holding up a poor drawing that nonetheless depicted the stranger in their wagon.

"Oh, um," Serenity began, glancing nervously at the wagon, but Joey cut him off.

"No," he said, his expression guarded. "We're just passing through."

The man growled but stuffed the picture back in his shirt. "Well, if you do, let us know." And he gestured for his group to continue down the path.

When the men were out of earshot, Serenity turned to Joey. "Why did you lie? We could've gotten rid of the stranger!"

Joey shook his head. "I didn't like the look of 'em," he said. He turned back to the wagon and threw the cover back. "And you!" he said, pointing accordingly to the white-haired man, "You owe us an explanation!"

The fugitive looked between the three of them, making no indication that he was ready to leave the wagon any time soon. "What do you want to know?" he asked cautiously.

"Oh, I don't know," Joey replied sardonically, "maybe why you were hiding from those guys. And why in our wagon, of all places!"

"You could at least start with your name," Serenity piped up.

"My name is Bakura," he said with a slight smirk at Serenity. "I'm a woodsman with the Farodin Company. By day, at least."

Joey quirked an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means people tend to notice their pockets lighten around me." Joey's eyes widened, and he frantically began checking their stores. Bakura laughed at him and said, "Relax, I only target other thieves."

Serenity and Marik exchanged a glance, both apparently unsure of what to make of this stranger. Joey, on the other hand, merely huffed and crossed his arms. "Okay," he said, "you've been in there long enough. Hop out so we can get going."

Bakura stayed put. "Where're you headed?"

"The other side of the Betwixt," Marik said.

"We're on a quest," Serenity added.

Joey turned to glare at the both of them over his shoulder. "That's enough, you two."

"Crossing the Betwixt, you say," Bakura repeated, stroking his chin. "Mind if I tagged along? I'm clearly not welcome here anymore." He glanced furtively past the group in the direction that the men from earlier had headed.

"What? No!" Joey said. "We've indulged you long enough."

"Oh, come on," Bakura drawled. "I'll make it worth your while." He turned to something on the other side of him and pulled an item out. He held up a golden wristband patterned with blood-red jewels.

Serenity ogled the jewelry, wondering how much Bakura had stolen if he was offering something so precious as mere fare. She noticed Joey examining the band, as well, and could practically see the resolve in his face ebb away.

"Where are you going, exactly?" Joey asked begrudgingly.

"Oh, nowhere in particular," Bakura replied, twirling the band. "Just as far away from here as possible."

Joey groaned but snatched the band and pocketed it. "Fine," he said tersely. "But you're staying back here." He turned to Serenity. "Mind staying back here to keep an eye on him?"

Serenity shrugged. "I don't mind, but will you two be all right up front?" she asked, gesturing to Joey and Marik. She had really wanted to ask if Joey was still going to be standoffish and cold to Marik because he used to be a Golem, but she didn't know how to say that without making Marik feel bad.

"Sure, why not?" Joey said. "This way Marik'll get to see the Betwixt, which was the whole point of bringing him along, right?"

Marik's eyes grew at the mention of the new sights he'd witness soon enough. Serenity beamed at them both. "Okay, then. Let's get going!"


The troupe, now another member larger, was once again on the countryside. From the peeks Serenity stole from the back of the wagon, she knew she wasn't missing much. These roads reminded her of the ones just outside the Kingdom of Black before they found Marik. She figured that this was what all the space between towns and cities must look like: open fields, small homes, large farmhouses, the occasional brook or pond.

Bakura had taken to rummaging through his sack, apparently counting his loot. Serenity wondered if he trusted her enough to reveal his treasures, or if he just didn't see her as a threat. Either way, she was prepared to use that to her advantage. She cleared her throat. "So," she began, "you said that you only steal from other thieves. Why is that?"

"Why, they make for better marks," he replied without looking up.

"And those men who were after you – they were thieves?"

Bakura nodded as he tossed another trinket into his sack. "Part of the notorious Fang den," he said, looking up to give her a meaningful look. At Serenity's blank expression, he quirked an eyebrow. "You don't know the Fang? You're not from around here, are you?"

Serenity shook her head and thought it best not to confuse matters by mentioning other worlds. A stubborn part of her wondered still if this were an elaborate fever dream (though she knew she wasn't clever enough to concoct schemes involving thieves' dens). "And you? I take it you're not from that town if you're so eager to leave it. Where are you from?"

"I'm from nowhere," Bakura replied resolutely. "Even took up contracting work with Farodin's so I could move around. For all the good it's doing me now," he added in a huff.

"What do you mean?"

"The work's dried up. There's a woodrot spreading through the forest Farodin contracted, so he's had to let some of us go. Hence the supplemental income." He gestured to the loot bag.

"What caused the woodrot?" Serenity asked, leaning forward with interest.

He shrugged. "Some say it's sabotage. Others say it's a curse."

"And what to you say it is?"

"Bad for business."