Summary
Months after Battle City has ended, Ryou Bakura's days still seem empty and alone. But, when he meets Dani, his life begins to change...but there are more secrets hidden in the shadows of which he is unaware of....yet.

Last chapter (chapter 2)

Dani has just started school, the same one our other favorite Yu-Gi-Oh! characters go to, Domino High. As soon as she steps into the classroom, all the boys go ga-ga at her. But, hidden in the corner, one person has taken for her(loves) in a wrong way....but that isn't the only secret being kept in the school. There are more hidden secrets needed to be revealed....or maybe.....kept unknown..

Now on to Chapter 3! (japanese translations are at the bottom)

Chapter 3-Meet Me After School;Clues Have Been Found

"Geh! Senkou da!!!" a student yelled as the teacher was coming into the classroom. At that alarm, the students scrambled to their desks, hoping that the teacher didn't notice. The teacher walked in and took a good look at the class, surveying them quickly, and then looked away.

"Ohayo, Minna-san," the teacher greeted the class.

"Ohayo, sensei," the class replied. After a few moments, the teacher picked up a piece of chalk and began to write on the board.

In the near back sat Dani, taking notes from the board and quietly humming a tune of a song. Ryou, behind her taking notes as well, picks up on the tune and looks around. He quickly finds out it's Dani humming and blinks. Ryou then leans over a bit and whipsers softly.

"Anou..excuse me, but what are you humming?"

Dani blinked and turned her head to his. She blushed a bit but smiled slightly and whispered back,"I'll tell you later.." Then she turned her head back to the board and continued writing notes. Ryou blinked again and sat back in his seat wondering why she wouldn't tell him.

"Probably just because the class has started,"he thought,"She'll tell me later..I guess."

The bell rang hours later and it was lunch time. Just like yesterday, everyone goes into little groups with their friends. Dani reaches to the side, pulls her school bag up, and takes out her lunch of three onigiris. Then she turns to Ryou behind her and smiles, holding up her lunch box.

"Would you like one?" she asked politely.

Ryou nodded and took one of her onigiris. Then Dani took one and bit into it. After Ryou swallowed his first bite, he looked at her and spoke up.

"So..anou.."

"Oh, the song,ne?" she asked for him. Ryou blinked but then nodded.

"Hai, what was it you were humming?.." he asked shyly.

Dani paused for a moment as though she were trying to decide whether she should tell him or not. "....Maybe I can....Yes! That's a great idea!" she thought.

"Well...If you want to find out..."

She turned to her desk, pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil and started writing something down. Ryou blinked in confusion but waited until she turned and handed the paper to him. He skimmed it quickly, finding out it was directions to a cafe, and looked back up at her confused. "Anou..."

"Meet me here after school," she said, "The directions are easy to follow and the place isn't far from here."

"Demo...what does-"

"Don't worry," she cut him off," You'll see. Trust me."

Ryou blinked at her a few times then sighed and nodded. She smiled but then was cut short by the bell and started putting her things away. As Ryou put his things away, he couldn't stop thinking about why she wanted him to go to the cafe. It just stood there in his mind, waiting to be answered. Stuck between the twists and turns of brain, trying to break free. It even got into the mind of Bakura inside his soul room.

"/Hm...heh heh..Do you think it's a bar instead of a cafe? Maybe she's a strip dancer! Hah!/" he said with a wide smirk.

"YAMI!!" Ryou thought back to him.

"/Kukuku.../"

Ryou sighed. The last thing he needed was Bakura's comments. Especially since most of them are perverted. But he put those aside and concentrated on his school work.

After school, the students ran out of the building, celebrating the sweet tatse of freedom from books, teachers, and the school itself. As the last of the students stray out of the building, Ryou comes walking out of the school gates, about to turn to the street he usually walks down to go home, but stops and pulls a paper out of his pocket.

"I need to go..." he started off, looking to the right, "This way."

Ryou then turned to the right and started strolling down the street. He's walked down that way times before but for some reason it seemed unfamiliar to him. Could it have been the new signs on the stores? The new resturants that opened? The many people he's never seen walking past him? Maybe it was the sky growing dark making everything look grey. Or maybe the horns of the cars having trouble at the nearest intersection. Whatever it was, he couldn't put his finger on it. Yet another question stuck in his mind. The question was soon put aside once he finally reached the entrance to the cafe.

It was a pretty simple size for a cafe; Not to small; Not to large. One large window took up most of the wall, with the kanji of "Cafe Karaoke" painted in brown with white trimmed letters. Underneath the title was a painting of a round, white cup with coffee or esspresso in it on a little white plate. Next to it was a black and grey colored microphone with one music note above it. The wall was made of a shiny dark brown wood and inside would be flat grey stone. The door was the same shiny brown wood but with more detail of leaf and tree patters stretching down it and curling around the golden door knob. Ryou peered inside the window to see if anyone was inside, and indeed there was.There were around fifteen to twenty small round tables with soft curved edges, each with a big oval shaped candle on it. The chairs were medium sized stools with soft red cusions on the tops for a comfortable seat. The walls were flat grey stone with assorted framed pictures of calming scenes such as the ocean, a sunset, the forest, clouds, etc. In the back left corner stood the counter where the clerks brewed the finest coffees and cappuccinos for each customer. The most noticeable, and largest feature was a round stage that stood next to the counter and filled up the empty back right corner of the room. There were five large stage lights hanging above it pointing downward illuminating the entire stage showing the floor boards, red velvet curtain, and one single microphone that stood alone on the stage, bare and black.

Ryou took a breath to take all of it in. It seemed to be a friendly place. Of course, he couldn't be too sure these days, but what harm could it cause? He hesitated a moment, looking at the door knob. It reflected back the face he disliked and was disgusted with; His own. he sighed and walked to the door, reached and grabbed the knob, turned it and opened it. A sudden rush of warmth, and the strong soothing smell of coffee and espressos hit him in the face like fire. He never smelled such soothing scents in his life before. He never felt such warmth-calming warmth- in his life before. It made him feel relaxed. All the tension he had felt before he opened the door was wisked away from him and carried out into the grey world behind him. He closed the door and looked around for a good seat, trying not to trip on anything since the lights were dimmed for a more relaxing mood. One he found an isolated table he took the stool, sat down and put his hands on the table top. He closed his eyes, letting the smells and warmth sink into him.

"/Damn, I thought it would be a bar../" grumbled Bakura in his soul room. Ryou ignored. He didn't need to hear him now. Not now. Not when he was all nice and calm. But he almost forgot why he came to the cafe in the first place: To meet Dani. Ryou opened his eyes and looked around for Dani, but the cafe was too dim lighted to see anyone's face clearly. Yet, Dani would be able to see him. His long snow white hair wasn't hard to miss in the dark. But if she saw him, she would walk up to him. But she didn't. Where could she be?

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by tapping on the microphone. His ears perked and he looked to the stage to see a clerk wearing a dark red-ish T-shirt, brown pants, and a small white apron with three pockets. The clerk's chocolate brown eyes were slightly covered behind small clear glasses and black coffee colored brown bangs. He had a simple smile on, seeing that he caught everyone's attention, and began to speak, his voice as smooth as the coffee he brewed for his customers.

"Arigatou, minna. Now, the moment you've been waiting patiently for has arrived. "

The audience smiled, some clapped, for the best part of the whole cafe was about to begin.

"Presenting, probably Domino City's best karaoke singer, Dani-chan-chan!"

Ryou was shocked. Dani was going to sing? That was unexpected. The clerk smiled while the audience applauded, some even cheering, and turned to the curtain where they opened and there stood a figure in the shadows. The figure stepped out from behind the curtain, revealing herself. It was Dani. She was wearing an interesting onsomble. Her long sleeved shirt and pants were half black and half white. A twisting line ran between the middle, when it turned left into white, (her right) it was a curved line, but when it turned right into black, (her left) it was in a point. Her pants did the same on each side making it have white on the sides and black in the middle. The ends of her shirt sleeves were different as well. Her right sleeve on white had curved ends, while her left sleeve on black had pointed ends. She had on black sneakers, her sparkling hazel eyes, and of course, her black and white heart bracelets around her wrists. She walked up to the microphone and smiled at the audience. "Konbanwa, minna-san!" she said, waving her right hand to the audience. The crowd applauded in response. dani shifted her eyes around looking for the person she was hoping to see. And there he was, looking at her in astonishment. She giggled a bit and waved at him, mouthing out "Hello, Ryou-san!"

Ryou blinked and raised his hand up a bit to wave back. Ryou found himself blushing at her beauty and tried to shrug it off. The clerk looked at Dani with a sweet smile.

"What will you be singing for us today, Dani-chan-chan?" he asked. She looked at him and smiled back.

"It's one of my favorite songs sung by an American band called Linkin Park. It's called "Easier to Run"," she replied.

The clerk turned to the audience,"You heard her, folks!" He raised his hand in the air, fingers spread apart and palm facing the ceiling, "Let the music begin!"

The audience cheered in excitement and the clerk stepped off the stage. Ryou looked around at all the people clapping and cheering. Was she really that good? The lights dimmed more and the stage was the main focus of the room. Dani put her right hand on the microphone, signaling that she was ready, and the audience hushed themselves. Once all was silent, dani took a deep breath, let it out, and began to sing as the music started to play.

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something numb
It's so much easier to go
Then face all this pain here all alone

It was only the beginning piece, but it amazed Ryou beyond belief. Her voice was that of a chorus of angels.

Something has been taken
from deep inside of me
A secret I've kept locked away
No one could never see
Wounds so deep they never show
They never go away
Like moving pictures in my head
For years and years they've played

If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would
If I could
Stand up and take the blame I would
If I could take all the shame to the grave I would
If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would
If I could
Stand up and take the blame I would
I would take all the shame to the grave

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something numb
It's so much easier to go
Then face all this pain here all alone

The audience was completely silent. No one cheered, for if they did, it would ruin the balance. The song had to flow out from her heart in silence. Cheering would come afterward.

Sometimes I remember
The darkness of my past
Bringing back these memories
I wish I didn't have
Sometimes I think of letting go
And never looking back
And never moving forward so
There would never be a past

If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would
If I could
Stand up and take the blame I would
If I could take all the shame into the grave I would
If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would
If I could stand up and take the blame I would
I would take all the shame to the grave

Just washing it aside
All of the helplessness inside
Pretending I don't feel misplaced
It's so much simpler than change

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something numb
It's so much easier to go
Then face all this pain here all alone

It's easier to run

If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made

It's easier to go

If I could change I would
Take back the pain I would
Retrace every wrong move that I made I would
If I could
Stand up and take the blame I would
I would take all the shame
To the grave

The music faded. Dani panted. The room was silent. But in an instant, the room was filled with excited cheers and claps. Everyone stood up with wide smiles on their faces. Dani smiled and bowed saying her thank you's. When she rose back up she peered over to where Ryou was sitting. He was standing now. His hands slapping eachother to clap along with the crowd. And, for almost the first time in a long while, he was smiling. Not JUST smiling. He was smiling brightly; almost the brightest in the crowd. It made Dani smile. She finally got to see his smile. Even better how SHE was the one to make him smile.

Moments later, after half of the customers left the cafe, Dani walked up to Ryou and sat down on the stool across from him. She smiled at him, "Hello, Ryou-san. How was I?"

"..Amazing," he told her, still with a smile smeared on his face, "Absolutely amazing. I didn't know you could sing so well."

Dani blushed,"A-Arigatou."

"How did you learn to sing like that?" he asked a bit shyly.

"Well...I didn't exactly learn it. I had it in me all my life but I never found it until I started to sing along to a song on the radio." She answered, blushing more,"Once I noticed I had something good, I practiced on my own and eventually..well...here I am."

They continued with their chat until it grew darker and it was around five forty-five. Ryou offered to walk Dani home and she agreed. As they walked to her apartment complex, something struck Ryou's thoughts again. Why would Dani choose such a song? It was practically a depressing song. Filled with sorrow and guilt. Why would someone with Dani's personality sing such a song as that? He had to give it more thought. The two were silent again as they walked; The only sounds they made were from their footsteps. Ryou glanced at her as they walked, looking at her unique outfit. Her left side was to him and her black sleeve was ruffled up slightly. He squinted, for he saw what seemed to be a band of black and blue and red on her arm by her wrist. When her arm swayed beside her, it lifeted up a bit showing more of it. It was long. It was big. It looked painful. It was a bruise. This shocked him but he kept a straight face. He thought it was best to mind his own buisness and keep quiet. No. That wouldn't help, he knew. But it was best. It wasn't HIS problem. Maybe, just maybe, Dani would explain it to him one day. But he had to put it aside. He looked away back at the path ahead, and before he knew it, they were at her complex. Dani turned to Ryou and bowed.

"Thanks for coming," she arose with a smile,"And walking me home."

"Do itamashite."

Dani nodded and turned to the doors, looking behind her shoulder to wave at him saying "Ja mate ne!"

Ryou waved back saying "Ja" and started heading back to his complex. As he walked back, his thoughts ran through his head like a highway. Normally, so many thoughts would give him a headache, but this time, he had something to sooth his head. Something to relieve him of such stress. It was the song Dani sung. Her voice was the right cure for anything. As he thought of the song, he hummed it out, making himself feel more relaxed as he walked down the sidewalk in the city that was still dripping grey from the clouds above his head.

End of Chapter 3

yay! Arigatou for reading!!

PLEASE COMMENT!! I get lonely..and...need.....reviews....yeah...JAPANESE TRANSLATIONS NOW!

Geh! Senkou da!-Gah! It's the teach! (compliments of Shounen Jump :D)

minna/minna-san-everybody,everyone

-chan-honorific (like -san) for females, mainly(can be used for males), meaning little or younger. also used for couples.

and again, THANKS FOR READING! please review and tune in for the next chapter! :D Ja!