Chapter 4
When the yamis came down the next day the first thing that Harry's gang noticed was that Marik's earrings were missing. The long dangly golden shapes were hard to miss. The next thing they saw was that they were all wearing small studs now. Yami was wearing earrings with small red studs, Bakura's were black, and Marik's studs were a light purple color that matched his eyes.
"We decided that we were going to get our ears pierced as a sort of symbol of a new life in a new world." Yami told them noticing that their gazes were fixed on the earrings the boys were wearing. "Marik already had his ears pierced but he has agreed not to wear any other earrings until our ears have healed."
"Cool," Ron exclaimed. "Why didn't I think of doing something like that to show that I was different once I'd been accepted into Hogwarts?"
"It's a neat idea but I don't think that your mother would let you get your ears pierced just to make a statement Ron. And besides, don't most boys only get one earring?"
"We don't fit in the category 'most boys' no matter how you mean it." Bakura's eyes were sparkling with mischief.
"Yes, I'd have to agree with you there. We are not like most boys."
"No, of course not, you're wizards. What wizard fits under that category?" Harry agreed.
At Potions, their first lesson for the day, they met Malfoy again. "Oh, it's you is it?" he sneered at them "Didn't learn anything from our last encounter?"
"Shut up Malfoy, I'm trying to listen to Professor Snape" Marik said absently as he added more ingredients to his potion. "No, Bakura you idiot!" Marik grabbed his hand, just barely managing to stop him from adding in the wrong ingredient. "Honestly, you may be good at other things but just let me take care of these, okay? No wonder you can't cook."
"Aw, are the little babies having trouble?" Malfoy said his upper lip curling.
"Yes we are having trouble. Trouble in the form of a slimy little boy named Draco." Yami retorted, "Now why don't you follow Marik's suggestion and shut your mouth. Maybe that way you won't get hurt."
"Oh, and just what could a bunch of second-rate newbies do to me anyway? Have you met Crabbe and Goyle yet?" He gestured to the two hulking figures.
"Man, do they ever look thick;" Bakura spoke up for the first time "Probably can't even read. Do you think they even have enough brains to tell which side is theirs in a fight?"
Crabbe glared at him speaking in his slow voice "I know that you're not on my side."
"Oh, wow, someone give the kid a gold medal, he knows how to talk." Yami exclaimed sarcastically. Crabbe and Goyle lunged at him. Yami sidestepped adroitly and looked to Bakura, who was the nearest, for help. Bakura grabbed Goyle and with a quick flick of his wrist sent the large Slytherin crashing into the wall as Marik did the same with Crabbe.
Everyone turned to stare at the boys as they turned back to their cauldrons with apparent nonchalance. Crabbe and Goyle were huge and these two were acting as though throwing them across the dungeon was nothing. Snape was not pleased that his class had been interrupted. He swept over to where Marik and Bakura were standing and glared at them.
"I do not tolerate disruptions in my class. Ten points from Gryffindor each. I trust that you are not neglecting your work for these foolish displays?" Snape stirred Marik's potion looking for any flaws in the mixture. Finding none he sniffed and stalked off, glaring around at the class impartially. "Get back to your work," He stopped to ridicule Neville's potion, which seemed to put him in a better mood.
Crabbe and Goyle got to their feet and lumbered back to Malfoy. They rubbed sore heads and glared at the group in a way that promised revenge once they got out of class. Harry swallowed audibly as their gaze passed over him and was surprised to see the three new students unaffected by the unnerving stare.
Later at Care of Magical Creatures Malfoy tried to set a Chimaera on them but Yami said hello to it and the beast stopped its snorting and bumped its head into his chest. Bakura muttered something about bugs and Marik elbowed him hard in the ribs.
"What did you do that for?" Bakura complained "It's not like I was really going to summon my bug. He would scare the whey out of everyone."
"Um," Yami put in curiously "What exactly is 'whey'"
Bakura gave him the Japanese word and, after Professor Grubbly-Plank had complimented Yami on his way with the Chimaera, the class went back to normal.
"There's something strange about those three isn't there?" Hermione asked Harry on the way back to the great hall. "I mean, first of all they're new in their fifth year, and it would take powerful magic to conceal their talent from Dumbledore. Then they come in, talk like they can do everything, throw Crabbe and Goyle across the room, and tame a Chimaera. It's strange you know; they shouldn't be able to do any of that stuff."
"Yeah," Ron said thoughtfully, "It does seem a bit... off, but still, surely there can't be anything really wrong with them can there? I mean, they are first year students after all, and Dumbledore wouldn't have brought them in if he thought they would be dangerous."
"I think we should ask them." Harry said firmly. "It wouldn't be right to go behind their backs but Hermione's right. There is something strange about them and I want to know what it is."
"Hey wait up." Ron yelled
"Man, you guys are slow," Yami commented as they waited for Harry's gang to catch up to them.
"Yeah, well actually we were sorta talking about you, so..." Ron flushed putting a hand in embarrassment.
"We figured," Marik told him. "Otherwise we would've slowed down. You're still slow though."
"So what is it you want to know?" Yami asked them as they reached the Great Hall. "And is it urgent or can it wait until after lunch?"
"Well," said Hermione briskly, "What we want to know really is, well, just what is so special about you three?"
"Can you give us an example?" Marik asked "I'm not sure what you're talking about."
"First off, why didn't Dumbledore find you before? I know we asked you already but you might have thought of something else since then. And then whatever you did with Crabbe and Goyle, and that thing with the Chimaera."
"Huh, that's a tall order. Yami said, amused "Okay then, first things first, yes I have been thinking about why Dumbledore didn't spot us before. I think it's because we just moved to England with Isis. She somehow got Dumbledore to look at us and he agreed that we have magic. I don't understand all that but I think that since we were in Japan for most of our lives we might have escaped Dumbledore's notice. This is an English school after all. As for those two muscle-bound idiots Bakura and Marik study jujitsu."
"Actually," Bakura interrupted "We study many different types of martial arts from all around the world. Jujitsu is merely the one that we are currently working on perfecting our knowledge of. And as for the thing with the Chimaera it's just that Yami gets on well with strange creatures."
"Yeah, okay then, I think I understand that." Harry told them, "But how did you see those Thestrals? You're not supposed to be able to see them unless you've seen death."
"We've all seen death." Marik's voice was somber, his mischievous gaze turned solemn for once. "My foster brother died trying to control the dragon."
"Oh," everyone fell silent feeling as though they had trespassed by prying into the boys' business.
"Come on, lunch is over so let's go up to our rooms to study." It was Bakura who finally broke the silence.
"We've only got a little while before the next class!" Hermione sounded panicked, "What has everyone got next?"
"We've got the same schedule," said Yami, taking over for the group as usual. "Transfiguration's next."
"Oh good," Hermione said, pleased, "That means we're together."
Once safe in their room Marik wasted no time in withdrawing to his soul room, presumably to take out his anger on Malik. Bakura did the same for reasons of his own and Yami, after making sure the door was locked, separated from Yugi. Yugi hugged him, happy that he had been let out and that Yami wasn't angry at him any more and the two of them started talking about Yami's day and what had happened to Rishid.
As has already been mentioned Yami wasn't as bad as the other two yamis but he had changed drastically since that time in Battle city. Rishido had summoned the winged dragon of Ra in his duel against Joey and the monster had rebelled. It had turned all of its considerable powers against Rishido striking a glancing blow off Joey and knocking him unconscious in the process. Rishid had been killed and everything had changed. Isis had given Yami and Bakura all of their memories in one great lump and Yami had once again become the cold calculating pharaoh. Marik, (who had been freed by Rishid's death) and Bakura had been the only ones who were brave enough to go near him for a while.
The two had managed to get him to a more normal frame of mind, but he had been changed that day and remained so. Before that he would never have even considered making friends with the other yamis, or condoning their treatment of the hikaris, but now he found that normal. It was how slaves had been treated back in his own time after all.
"You moved." Bakura leaned against the doorway staring at his now motionless hikari. Ryou didn't move or in any way acknowledge his presence. "Down boy," Without raising his eyes from the floor the hikari sank to his knees. "Now, why did you disobey my order?"
"I have no excuse master," Ryou's voice was almost a whisper.
"Good, I'm glad you've learned that much at least." Suddenly Bakura was standing in front of where Ryou had been a moment ago and the unfortunate light was lying crumpled against the wall. "Idiot." Ryou pulled himself up to his knees, resuming his former posture of submission. "Now, what should I do to you, my disobedient little light?" The kick Ryou received a few seconds later told him he should have answered the question.
"Do whatever you wish Bakura-sama, it's your decision." Ryou bit his lip as another kick reminded him that he hadn't finished. "I was wrong and I deserve whatever punishment you choose to give me."
"Too right you do," Bakura snarled at him. The yami picked Ryou up by his hair and slammed him into the wall again before shoving the light onto the floor and twisting his arm roughly behind his back. Ryou screamed at the pain; it felt as though his arm would be ripped out. "Now," Bakura continued, placing his knee on the boy's back, "You will learn not to disobey me."
It felt like hours before he left although in normal time it was only a few minutes. Ryou's throat was hoarse from all the screaming he'd done and he had been reminded once again of why he obeyed his yami. No-one could stand that kind of punishment for long without breaking, and he and Malik had both learned that. Actually, in that he was the lucky one. Marik just wanted something to take his frustrations out on. He didn't care whether or not Malik had done something wrong he would still find something to punish him for. At least Bakura only hit him when he had done something wrong.
And he had done something wrong. He wasn't allowed to move when Bakura told him not to and he'd twitched at the sight of their lunch on the screen Bakura had set up. It only appeared when Bakura wanted him to see something and it would show whatever Bakura wanted it to show. At that time it had simply been showing what Bakura was doing. Ryou hadn't eaten for days and when it had shown the lunch that the others had eaten he had reacted.
He didn't physically need to eat inside his soul room. Bakura ate and since Bakura was using his body he wouldn't die without food. He was still hungry though. Actually he was starving. Even though it wasn't necessary for him to consume food to survive he couldn't survive without energy and he was used to his energy coming from food. When Bakura wasn't feeding it the ring drained what little energy he actually had. He sometimes thought that that was the only reason he was ever allowed to take control. The ring couldn't get enough energy just from him. Bakura, however, was used to being a conduit for the energy of the shadow realm. That was what made him and the other yamis so powerful.