Disclaimer
I would just like to state that I have no rights Yugioh, or any of the other pop culture references used in this story. Emma however is my own creation.
Research has gone into making this story but may not be 100 accurate.
It is written based mainly on the US dubbed version of the show, as that is what I am more familiar with.
This story has been rated M as it contains scenes of violence, and death that some people may find disturbing.
This is the third story of a five part series.

Chapter 1

The gang had spent all day together hanging out and having fun. They where currently at Bakura's place as they were about to go their separate ways for the rest of the day. It was nearing time for Tea to start her latest part-time job as a dancer but she sat in the hall with her back slumped against the wall next to the closed bathroom door as some of the others started to join her in her wait.

"You've been in there for over quarter of an hour." Tea shouted as she banged on the door.

"Well when ya gotta go, ya gotta go." Joey joked, only to receive an un-amused look from Tea.

"I can't do this!" came a muffled cry from the bathroom where Emma had locked herself in.

"I did everything I could to get you this job and now you're not even going to give it a go!" Tea said quite angrily.

Since she had announced that she was staying in Domino city, Emma had been living at Bakura's and jumping from job to job to pay her way. Of course she didn't have to do this as her brother, Maximillion Pegasus, had offered to pay for everything that she wanted, but she had refused as she needed to be independent for herself.

"Para-Para dancing for fun is one thing but this…" Emma began to tell Tea but stopped to find the right word that best described what she felt without hurting her friend's feelings. She couldn't find one. "Well, this is something else."

Sarah pushed her way through the now crowded hall to reach the door. She was the newest member of the gang after meeting Bakura just a few weeks back when he had bumped in to her as she entered Yugi's Game shop. She was a very friendly person and had gotten along well with the rest of the gang. "Oh come on, it can't be that bad." she assured.

There was a brief pause of silence before the lock could be heard turning as Emma opened the bathroom door. She stood in the doorway wearing an outfit that Tea had brought for her, which consisted of very high platform shoes, long knee high socks, a micro-mini skirt, and a short cropped shirt. Tea had applied make-up to Emma's face and bunched her hair in to pigtails.

"I look like a SailorMoon reject." Emma complained, as she saw Sarah cover her mouth with her hand and Joey, Tristan, Duke and Bakura trying their best to contain their laughter.

Yugi being the nice person that he is, tried to make Emma feel better as he told her; "Actually I think you look ……" but was cut off by laughter from Sarah and the rest of the boys.

"That's it, I'm not going!" Emma yelled as she retreated back in to the bathroom, slamming and locking the door once more.

Tea glared at the others who stopped laughing instantly. "I'm leaving in the next five minutes with or without you." she told Emma before she stormed off down the hall.

Emma stood leaning against the door pouting at the thought of making a fool of herself. At first it hadn't sounded so bad when Tea had suggested the idea, but on seeing the outfit half an hour ago she knew that it was a mistake. There was no way she was ever going to leave the safety of the house looking like that.

But she couldn't help feeling bad about herself. Tea had helped her out when she needed it and here she was throwing it back in her face. She let out a big sigh as she unlocked the door. The least she could do was give it a go.

This evening they had been assigned to dance in a bar that was popular amongst many businessmen, mainly for its karaoke Emma told herself over and over again as she felt uneasy from all of the unwanted glances that she was receiving. She tried to extend her skirt length but to no avail, as she saw that Tea seemed unaffected by all of the attention.

She could hear the music start for the next song and forced a huge fake smile on her face as the two of them began to dance to the beat of the music before the singers had even said a word.

There was something in your voice,
That was telling me don't be too sure,
Arousing my suspicions,
I have never felt before,
I thought we had it made,
I thought you'd never go away.

But now you're suddenly like a stranger,
And you're leaving our love behind,
Of all the things I was ever planning for,
This was the last thing on my mind.

Glancing across at Tea once more, Emma wondered how she would ever manage to do this all evening, and was surprised that Tea could do it day in day out on a regular basis. She must really want those dance lessons that she was saving for.

As the song finished Emma was exhausted. She knew there was no way that she would be able to keep it up for much longer. She told Tea that she needed the bathroom for 'girl issues' and made her way off the stage and through the bar in search of an exit out of the place. She didn't care that she was giving up as all she wanted to do was get out of this place, even if that meant abandoning her friend. She'd find a way to make it up to Tea eventually.

The exit was now in sight and Emma quickened her pace as she curved her way around the tables, only to stumble in the hazardous shoes that she wore. She felt herself land on the lap of a young businessman who was seated nearby. She quickly got back on to her feet and apologised before she gasped. "Seto? What are you doing here?"

Wearing a smart business type suit and not being instantly recognizable out of his usual style of outfits, Kaiba stared back at her blankly. It also took him a moment to recognize Emma. "Nice outfit." he smirked. "I should ask you the same question."

"I …. erm …" she stuttered as she tried to extend the skirt once more as she felt herself burning from embarrassment. What was she meant to do or say next? "It's a job and it pays." she forced a smile across her bright red face.

"So you'd rather humiliate yourself here than work for me?" Kaiba glared at her.

"We've already talked about this." Emma protested. Kaiba had offered her a job at his company which she had refused more than once as Joey was already starting rumours about the two of them saying that she had stayed just to be with Kaiba. This was partly true even though she wasn't going to admit it. She seated herself next to him and lightened the tone of her voice. "You're avoiding my question, why are you here?"

"I'm waiting to meet with some possible business associates." Kaiba told her as he continued to type on his laptop like he had been doing before Emma had fallen on him. He looked up to meet Emma's sceptical stare. "Believe me, this wasn't my choice of place to hold the meeting."

"So what's the story about these people?" Emma asked.

"The company's called Checkmate, and they specialize in 3D-TV imagery." he informed her still typing away.

"Sounds dodgy to me." Emma told him as she thought it over in her head.

"I've done my research." Kaiba went on. "They're a fairly new company that's only been around for a few years. I've seen nothing negative about them, and just recently their advances in technology are almost as great as my own." He glared at Emma in a friendly type way. "But since you don't work for me further details aren't necessary for you to know."

Emma watched as she saw Kaiba's eyes flash back at his laptop screen before he quickly slammed it shut. "You okay?" she asked as she knew what had just happened after witnessing it happen before. Someone somewhere was sending paedophilic images to Kaiba's laptop, which was disturbing on it's own, but these images were of himself and his stepfather which disturbed him even more.

"I'm fine." Kaiba replied with his eyes closed. "With all my new security programmes in place they're not happening as frequently." He opened his eyes and for a moment stared out across the crowded bar.

Emma stared in the same direction and watched Tea as she continued to dance. "I don't know how she does it." she told Kaiba. "She's always so happy and has a positive outlook at everything. Sometimes I wish that I could be a stronger person like that."

"And what happened to just being yourself?" Kaiba asked.

"There's nothing wrong with wanting to have qualities the same or similar to that of a friend." Emma told him more sternly than she meant to.

"I think you're fine just the way you are." was Kaiba's reply to Emma's previous statement.

"Thanks." she smiled back at him and could see a group of three men approaching their table. She got up and walked away so that the meeting could get underway.

Emma stared at the exit and then back at the stage. Surely if Tea could put up with the dancing night after night then she could do it just this once. She let out a sigh and turned to head back towards the stage. If she wanted to be a stronger person then she was going to have to start sooner or later.