Disclaimer: Full disclaimer on first page.

Thanks to all reviewed the other chapters! Review replies at the bottom! Oh, and this will not be all a sick Ryou, it goes farther than that. I will change the summary soon.

/...../yami's thinking

/...../ hikari's thinking

"......" normal speech

'......' normal thoughts

(A/N:.....) author's note

Chapter Three

Yugi came home with apprehension. The house was still standing, thank whatever god was listening. He opened the door and went inside, and like when he went into Ryou's house yesterday the TV was on and the end of "The Mummy" was playing. Ryou was curled up on the couch, watching the movie.

/Funny, I wouldn't of thought "The Mummy" would be a movie Ryou would watch./ Yugi thought to his yami.

Yami separated from his other half, and when in his transparent spirit form he walked over too the couch.

Ryou looked up at him and smiled. Yami smiled back slightly.

"Bakura's asleep, so I would prefer not to involve myself in too much conversation otherwise he might wake up. Even though I'm feeling better, he evidently is not." Ryou said to the unspoken question in Yami's eyes about Bakura.

"Oh." Yami said.

"Did Bakura want to watch this?" Yugi asked as he leaned against the couch to watch the movie and do his homework. He handed Ryou the homework he had picked up for him.

Ryou pulled a face. "Thanks a lot." He said, reluctantly opening the first book.

"So how is it that you feel better but Bakura is not?" Yugi asked as he skimmed a page in his history book.

"I don't know. He occupied my body long enough to get sick, but he's a spirit, how could he get sick?" Ryou turned to Yami, raising an eyebrow.

"It is possible, but I don't know how." Yami said.

/Fancy that, the pharaoh actually doesn't know something./

Ryou jumped at the sudden sound of Bakura's voice. The other two looked at him curiously until his Ring glowed and Bakura appeared in his spirit form.

He glared at Yami. "You do know that it is rude to talk about someone when they aren't around." He snarled, trying to cover the slight scratch in his voice and the pain in his head.

"You were around. Just snoring."

"You pompous, in-bred, high-to-do, baka, sorry excuse for a pharaoh!" Bakura roared. He hadn't had a good yell at anyone since he had been sick. It was high time to change that.

"You yell at me?" Yami said, feigning surprise. This infuriated Bakura even more, and continued despite his light trying to stop him.

He proceeded to roar Egyptian obscenities at the ex-pharaoh, and said pharaoh was amused at the tomb robber's lack of his normal aloofness and calm.

"Bakura! That's enough! You........." Ryou began, but stopped as Bakura suddenly stopped in mid-rant because a coughing fit overtook him.

As surprising as it was to have a see-through spirit coughing, Ryou became worried when the coughing didn't stop. Yugi and even Yami looked on in shock and maybe even some concern as Ryou tried to get his yami to stop coughing. Tears leaked from Bakura's eyes as he suffered the coughing spasm, doubled over and holding his chest in an effort to stop.

He suddenly disappeared as he retreated to his soul room. Ryou's eyes widened.

"He's still coughing. Oh, Bakura!" He sobbed, before coughing once or twice as his yami's sickness affected him slightly.

"Let him take control!" Yugi ordered, running into the kitchen.

Just as quickly as he disappeared, Bakura took control of Ryou's body and fell to his knees. Ryou had allowed him too, even begged him too.

Yugi came running up with a glass of water, shoving it into the coughing tomb robber's hands.

Without questioning, Bakura drank the water, and it eased the scratching in his throat. His coughing fit died down, and he separated from Ryou into spirit form again.

Walking over to the couch. (A/N: Can the spirits sit down? Oh well, in my story they can.) Bakura dropped heavily onto it, resting his head on his arms.

He heard Ryou and Yugi talk, with the baka pharaoh once in a while speaking up. Listening to them was boring, and the movie was over, so he fell asleep, vanishing into his soul room first.

Ryou frowned. "So why do you think Bakura is still sick while I'm getting better?" He asked, with a fair amount of concern. (A/N: Here's your answer to your review, Anime Crazed.)

"I think it might be because you can use medicine, which lessens the effects of the illness, but the medication doesn't help Bakura, so he still feels it." Yami replied, shrugging unworriedly.

Ryou nodded slightly. "Makes sense." He muttered, before getting to work on his homework.

Bakura woke up feeling much better. That means Ryou's body must be getting better. Good. Now he wouldn't have to stay in the baka pharaoh's house any longer.

Peeking discreetly out of his hikari's eyes, the tomb robber saw his light speaking with the pharaoh's light as the two copied something off from a black board. Ryou must be at school.

/Yami! You're awake and feeling better!/ Ryou squealed mentally. Bakura winced. He was reserved and not given to emotional outbursts, while Ryou was.

/Yes, I'm awake, NOW BE QUIET!!/ Bakura roared back, causing Ryou to wince mentally and lower his eyes physically, but he was quiet. His yami was back to his bad tempered self.

Yugi noticed Ryou's sudden quietness, and looked up curiously as he finished the last note.

"Are you okay, Ryou?" He asked worriedly, hoping he was not getting sick again.

"I'm fine." Ryou replied. "Bakura is awake." He whispered.

Yugi raised an eyebrow and nodded.

"He's back to normal." Ryou muttered softly. Yugi winced. They had gotten along so well when they were both sick, and now their old relationship had surged into motion again.

Sighing, he began flipping through his book to start his assignment.

After school...(A/N: I don't understand, my star and wavey thing is not working, and my double slash isn't working. sorry if this is going to confuse everybody when the hikari's and yami's share the single slash for internal thoughts.)

/Baka mortal! You allowed those kids to copy off from you? WHY?/ Bakura snarled in Ryou's mind.

/They're my friends, yami. Duke was just playing a joke. It's nothing too bad./ Ryou pleaded.

/'NOTHING TOO BAD?' He knocked you down at lunch, into a pile of that refuse you call food, you were drenched in scum water from a nearby custodian bucket, and the entire CAFETERIA LAUGHED AT YOU! And it is NOTHING TOO BAD? He humiliated you! And you LET HIM! Baka, foolish mortal!/ Bakura ranted in Ryou's mind.

True, Duke HAD done that.

First he had 'accidentally' bumped into Ryou, knocking him into the kids behind him, which coated the pale boy with food. Then, when trying to stand up, he tripped on a custodian's bucket that had been 'coincidentally' set there earlier, which ended up with him covered in food and that dirty water. The entire student body had laughed.

And now his yami was angry at how he had allowed that to happen.

/Stupid fool./ Bakura hissed.

/Yami, I am tired of this. I didn't want to make a scene by confronting Duke, and it was just a joke..../ Ryou began.

/'Just a joke?'/ Bakura repeated. /That 'joke' made you look weak. Incredibly weak. How baka can you be to not notice what was going on until to late?/

/Then why didn't you warn me if you realized it?/ Ryou snapped back.

Bakura growled at Ryou's tone of voice.

/I did./

Ryou blinked. He did? That's right, he did say 'watch out' and tried to point out the obvious but Ryou had things on his mind. Homework, and the like, so he had ignored his yami.

/And don't get that tone of voice with me./ Bakura threatened.

/Oh, shut up./ Ryou snapped without thinking. Then froze as he realized what he had said.

He heard Bakura growl, then his body was forcibly taken over by the spirit.

Once in control, Bakura didn't hesitate. He ran and slammed his shoulder hard into the wall. He had done this before to Ryou. It was a way to hurt his hikari without damaging the body seriously.

He continued slamming himself into the wall until he felt it was enough, then vanished back into his soul room and locked the door.

Ryou gasped as the pain of his shoulder overwhelmed him suddenly. A large bruise was almost already beginning to form. Rubbing it slightly, hissing at the pain, he tried to contact his yami.

No use. Bakura had sealed his end off.

Shaking his head, Bakura went into the bathroom trying to find something to help. It had been awhile since Bakura had hurt him physically, and Ryou had hoped he had changed, but he evidently had not.

Finding some assorted items that should help, Ryou began applying them to the large, ugly bruise that was forming around his shoulder.

/Yami?/

There was no answer. Bakura must really be mad at him. Why? Because he didn't stand up to Duke for the prank? Because he didn't notice the upcoming joke until it hit him? Because he ignored the tomb robber's warning? Ryou didn't know, and probably won't for a while.

School the next day proved to be just as boring, even though people whispered behind their hands or smiled and laughed at Ryou as he walked down the halls.

Bakura was speaking again, that was good, but he was in a bad temper and was saying and threatening stuff about the other students in Ryou's mind, distracting him.

Ryou entered his class room and saw that Yugi, Tristan, Joey, and Duke were there earlier than normal. Kaiba was there, but that is no surprise. He is always there early, and always was reading a book or typing on his laptop, which he was doing at this moment. The steady click clicking of the keys went in the background as Ryou's friends called greetings to him, though the snickered as they did so.

Bakura growled in Ryou's mind, but Ryou ignored him and smiled, wincing as his shoulder stung. Bakura had done a good job in reminding Ryou on how far he will go when angry.

"You okay, Ryou?" Yugi asked worriedly. He had seen the wince. Ryou nodded, but the others noted how he gingerly held his left arm.

"Lemme see." Joey said, grabbing Ryou and pushing his sleeve up. Joey, being a former gangster and living with an abusive (though the others pretend not to know) father, he was good with medical stuff.

"Ouch, where did you get that?" Joey said, as he examined the large bruise. Ryou's friends crowded around, the smarter ones guessing correctly on who it was.

"Think, Joey. Who would do this to Ryou when he is at home?" Tristan said; using the voice you would use for a child.

"Um.........not him!" Joey's eyes widened in sudden realization and turned to Ryou, who nodded slightly.

"Can't believe you didn't think of that right away, Joey." Duke said jokingly.

"Can you be surprised?" A cold voice sneered. They all turned to see Kaiba watching with iced curiosity.

"It's called THINKING, mutt. Ever heard of it?" Kaiba went on. He ignored Ryou and the obvious bruise, trying to bait Joey into a fight.

Of course, Joey responded. "How many times must I tell you that I AM NOT A DOG?" Joey snarled, which caused Kaiba to smirk. That angered Joey more, and he would have continued his tirade, but the teacher walked in at that moment and Joey didn't need detention, so he stopped.

They took their seats, and Ryou was not really paying attention as the teacher took roll call and began their lesson. His yami was getting blood thirsty, muttering and snarling something in Egyptian.

The tomb robber was planning something, but what Ryou couldn't tell.

Bakura, in a quick switch that Ryou couldn't prevent, took control, but continued to write notes on the piece of paper in front of him for appearances sake. Every one was intent on keeping up with the teacher's fast paced speed, and were writing notes furiously, so they didn't notice the sudden change in 'Ryou'. Bakura frowned. He really needed to figure out how to get his hair to lay flatter so that it wouldn't be so obvious to those who pay attention to details (and he glances at the pharaoh's light.)

He wanted to get back at Duke for being so callous as to humiliate Ryou when Ryou was not yet confident enough to take care of himself.

/I CAN take care of myself, yami./ Ryou retorted, but was ignored.

So, the perfect plan was already in mind. Okay, it was forming in his mind as he went. Spotting something on the floor, he purposely dropped his pencil to give the excuse to lean over towards the floor.

Perfect. Now the teacher was leaving the room. With the absence of authority, the kids began talking softly to each other.

With a discreet glance for witnesses, Bakura snapped his wrist under his desk to send the object flying towards a certain CEO who was taking the notes on his laptop instead of on paper like the normal, common people. Bakura sneered the word 'common' in his thoughts.

He had never liked Kaiba. Knowledge of how the rich CEO had been the High Priest 5000 years ago never sat well with the ancient tomb robber.

"HEY! WHO THREW THIS?" Kaiba bellowed, trying to scrape the used gum off his laptop with a pencil. And not having much luck, Bakura noted with a mental grin. He sensed Ryou's horror.

/Bakura! Why did you do that? He did nothing to us!/ Ryou cried, but got a very violent 'shut up' from Bakura.

Kaiba looked around the room, and met only innocent faces, though Joey, Tristan, and Duke were grinning. Those three he glared at, suspecting them.

The rest of the class went back to the business of talking and looking busy, darting glances towards the closed door, while Kaiba continued to eye the three who commonly pulled pranks.

He heard someone clear their throat slightly. Turning his cold gaze over, he saw Ryou motioning slightly towards a certain blonde haired kid.

Raising an eyebrow in surprise, Kaiba turned back to 'Ryou.' The silver haired boy tilted his head towards the two with Joey, and Kaiba remembered the prank that was pulled on him yesterday.

With a snarl, Kaiba stood and began a fight with Joey.

"WHAT? It wasn't me!" Joey protested, and Kaiba decided not to mention 'Ryou' telling him about it.

Joey ran out of the room, as Kaiba looked ready to hit him, and Kaiba followed. Bakura stood. This was going so well. He left the room as well, telling Yugi he had to go to the restroom and if the shorter kid would please inform the teacher when she came back.

Once out of sight of any room, Bakura went to the nearest fire alarm and pulled it.

/YAMI!/ Ryou screeched in his head. If Bakura was caught, it would be Ryou dealing with the punishment.

With the alarm going off, Bakura went into the nearest bathroom and hid until he couldn't hear kids moving through the halls towards the doors.

In truth, Bakura wasn't doing this just because Ryou had been humiliated. He was doing it because he hadn't done anything fun in a while and wanted to cause a little mayhem. A little delicious chaos.

Walking – actually, he was sauntering – through the hallways, he reached Ryou's class room and went inside. As he had expected, Kaiba had been chasing Joey when the fire alarm went off and had not been allowed to go in and retrieve his laptop.

With a grin that wasn't all sane, Bakura began to mess with the laptop. He had seen Ryou get on a computer a couple of times, and had seen Kaiba work, so he knew the basics.

Once he got the gist of it, Bakura began with his plan.

If this worked, Kaiba will be very unhappy with a certain Dice Master.

Oh, the fun that was being presented to the tomb robber!

The entire student body waited outside until the teachers announced that it was a false alarm and probably a glitch in the system or some joker. The students headed inside.

As Yugi and the rest of the class was moving towards the doors, 'Ryou' came running up.

"Sorry, I was at the restrooms when the alarm went off, and couldn't find the class until now." He explained to the teacher in that cultured voice of his.

The teacher (A/N: Remember, I'm horrible with names.) smiled. Ryou had always been a good kid and there was no reason to disbelieve him.

(A/N: In case any of you are wondering as to why Yami is not sensing Bakura right now, it is because the yami's normally sleep during school, so Yami is not 'awake.' Does that make sense?)

Once in the class room, routine took over once more.

That is, until Kaiba found the message on his laptop.

(A/N: alright, since my stars and waves aren't working, I'll announce it. THE END OF THIS CHAPTER!)

Thanks to all reviewers!

Anime Crazed: Not a stupid question at all! As I have explained farther up in this chapter, Ryou can use medication to dull the effects, so he feels better. Bakura can't do that, so he still feels all of it. Thanks for your review and I hope that makes sense!

Windshadowolf: Thanks, glad you liked that.

EZ: You liked the "puzzled over the puzzle?" thanks!

Winter Blaze: Aww....thanks Felisha! Glad you liked that little bit!

Inulover28: lol, sorry, but I didn't want to go too far and that was a good place to stop.

CaptainRUbberDuck22: Thanks a lot!