On days like this, Ryou wished he were old enough to drive. Grocery shopping was hard work when you didn't have a car. Today, Ryou had purchased fifteen bags worth of groceries. It was quite a struggle for one person to carry it all home on foot.
Nevertheless, Ryou was in a happy mood today. And why's that? Because his father was finally coming home this evening! Ryou hadn't seen his father since a few days after they first moved into Domino City. How long was that ago? A couple of months, probably. Anyways, that was the reason he bought so many groceries. Now that his father was coming home, Ryou would need to cook twice as much food as usual. The two of them were going to have a very large and extravagant meal tonight, complete with miso soup, tempura, nikujaga, fried vegetables, and rice. It was going to be amazing.
Ryou was happily frying the vegetables when suddenly the phone rang. He turned the heat down and picked up the phone. "Hello?" he said.
"Ryou, it's me."
"Hi Dad! I'm in the middle of cooking. I should be finished in about an hour I think. What time are you coming home?"
"Listen, about that. I'm actually going on another trip."
"Another…w-wait, what?" Ryou's voice broke.
"I won't be back for another few days. A week at the most."
"But…but you promised!"
"I know, Ryou, I know, but this is too good of an opportunity to pass up! The Minister of Egyptian Archaeology contacted me. She's offering to donate two of her most valuable stone slabs to the Domino Art Museum. I absolutely must go meet with her." Mr. Bakura's voice was full of excitement as he spoke. "Take care of yourself, alright? I'm getting on the plane now so I'll call back later."
The line went dead.
Ryou hung up the phone. Was it weird that he wasn't surprised anymore? This kind of thing happened all the time.
When he finished making dinner, he suddenly had an idea. He couldn't eat a meal with his father, but there was somebody else he could share it with.
After setting the table, he ate half a portion and then asked the Spirit of the Millennium Ring if he wanted to switch in to eat the other half. "This is highly unnecessary," the Spirit had said, but Ryou insisted.
"Since my father isn't coming home today, I figured I'd share it with you instead. I bet you don't get a lot of opportunities to eat, considering you don't have a body of your own. Go on, get out here and help yourself to whatever you like."
It was true that Bakura hadn't tasted solid food in a long time, and his host was admittedly a very good cook. Halfway through the meal, he threw down the chopsticks and started wolfing down the food straight from the plates and bowls, finding it more enjoyable to eat with his hands. It was a very satisfying dinner…except something was missing.
Bakura looked in all the kitchen cabinets but could not find what he was looking for. Oh well, he thought. If his host didn't have any inside the apartment, Bakura would have to go outside and get it. He headed out to the grocery store, not bothering to bring any money or coat with him.
Ryou woke up the next morning feeling terrible. His head was spinning, his stomach was retching, his mouth was dry, and the sunlight was so bright that it gave him a headache.
"What on earth happened last night?" Ryou asked aloud, but there was no reply.
The only other time Ryou ever felt this sick was when he stayed up for three days straight playing an online computer game. The only thing he wanted to do right now was to curl up in bed and try to go back to sleep. But alas, it was Monday, so he had to go to school.
As usual, Ryou's fangirls were waiting for him at the school's front steps. "Bakura, you look terrible!" one of the girls said as he approached. Ryou barely acknowledged them and simply kept walking towards his classroom, hoping that they'd leave him alone. But as usual, they crowded around him and followed him through the halls.
"This is no good! Bakura's wonderful face has lost its perfection," said a second fangirl. "How am I going to get through my morning classes without his beauty to charge up my batteries?"
"Don't worry, I'll lend you some pictures I took of him last week," said a third fangirl.
"If you ask me, his sickly face is kind of cute. I want to savor this," said the first girl as she took out her phone to take some pictures.
"Please stop," Ryou said weakly, shielding his eyes as the phone's camera flashed a few times.
Ryou sighed. He wished he could call these girls his friends, but he knew they weren't. He could deal with the squealing and stalking, but he didn't particularly like it when they took pictures of him without his permission, or worse, touched his hair.
By now, Ryou had reached his destination. As soon as he entered the classroom, he ditched his fangirls and joined his real friends.
"Good morning Bakura!" Yugi said.
"Good morning, Yugi," said Ryou, almost tripping over his own feet as he sat down at his desk.
"Did you drink any alcohol last night Ryou?" Jounouchi asked.
"Of course not! I'm underaged!" said Ryou.
"Yeah, why would even you ask such a thing? Bakura's not the type of person to drink," said Anzu.
"Sorry, it's just that you look a whole lot like my old man when he wakes up from a hangover every other morning. But I'm probably just imaging it," said Jounouchi, scratching his head.
"He probably just stayed up all night again writing RPG stories," said Honda. "You need to stop doing that. It's bad for your health."
"Yeah, you almost look like a ghost with how pale you're getting," said Jounouchi.
"I read in a book once that pale skin is a sign that a ghost might be haunting you," Ryou said excitedly. He leaned forward closer towards Jounouchi with wide, innocent eyes and a creepy smile. "Do you also see any dark circles underneath my eyes? Or cracks in my skin? Because if so, there just might be a ghost –"
Jounouchi shrieked and recoiled away.
Ryou giggled lightly to himself. Messing with Jounouchi always fun.
After that, Yugi and Jounouchi started talking about Duel Monsters, but Ryou stopped listening to them.
A hangover? Ryou thought. Is that why I'm feeling so sick? That spirit…
The morning dragged on, and Ryou couldn't focus on anything the teacher was saying. When gym class rolled around, Ryou still wasn't feeling much better, so he decided to ask the gym teacher, Mr. Karita, if he could sit this class out.
"Yes, of course, Mr. Bakura sir!" said Mr. Karita, sweating nervously. "You deserve a break! Let me know if you need anything else."
Mr. Karita didn't exactly remember the time his soul was trapped in a lead figure, but he was still subconsciously afraid of Ryou. The other boys in the class glared at Ryou enviously, thinking it unfair that he got the day off while the rest of them were forced to run laps around the gym. However, none of them dared to do anything about it, for they were either too scared of the gym teacher, or too scared of Ryou. Or both. Normally, Ryou would be bothered by the fact that a large chunk of the school still feared him, but today he was just relieved that he didn't have to do any exercise.
That afternoon, while all of the other students were going home or heading to their extracurricular activities, Anzu walked alone down to a teacher's office and knocked.
"Come in," said a voice from inside.
"You wanted to see me, Ms. Chono?" Anzu said, entering the room.
"Yes, pull up a seat and sit down," said Ms. Chono, who was seated at her desk, dabbing make-up on her face.
Anzu did as she was told, feeling intensely nervous. This is it, I'm going to be expelled, Anzu thought to herself. Somebody must have found out about all the after-school jobs Anzu had been working. Usually, students would be suspended for that, but Ms. Chono was notorious for her habit of expelling students who broke the most trivial of school rules. She was known as the Wicked Witch of Expelling for good reason.
A couple of minutes passed in silence, Anzu fidgeting in her seat and Ms. Chono putting on make-up. Finally, Ms. Chono appeared to be satisfied with her appearance. She put away her make-up and said with her voice tinged with sugary sweetness, "So, Ms. Anzu Mazaki."
"YES!" Anzu squeaked, straightening up in her seat.
"You're a nice girl. Good grades, good social standing with all of the teachers and students. You're friends with Mutou Yugi, correct?" Ms. Chono said.
"Yeah?" Anzu said, a little apprehensive.
"I would like to get to know you more. As fellow women, we should help each other. Tell me, is there something you're interested in? Perhaps it's jewelry, or make-up, or a handsome young man you've got your eye on? I can give you hella good tips on dating."
"I'm alright, ma'am. Thank you but – "
"Hold on just a moment." Ms. Chono picked up her make-up again and started dabbing powder furiously onto her face. "It just never stays on properly," she muttered angrily. A few more moments passed before she finished with the make-up and composed herself. Clearing her voice, she smiled pleasantly and said, "Now, where were we? Ah yes, we're talking about your interests. Do you have any personal hobbies you'd like to share?"
"Well, um, I enjoy dancing. It's my dream to be a dancer, actually."
Ms. Chono clapped her hands together joyously. "Perfect! What do you say I hook you up with a dance internship of some sort? I have plenty of connections. I can even persuade the vice principle to give you the semester off."
"Really? You mean it?" Anzu said, growing excited.
Ms. Chono nodded gleefully.
Anzu frowned – deep in her gut she could feel something fishy going on. "Wait, why are you doing this?" she asked.
"I just want to be your friend. Is that so hard to believe?" Ms. Chono said, blinking her long eyelashes innocently.
"There's a catch, isn't there," Anzu stated as a fact.
"Ah, yes, but nothing too big for you to handle. You know that pendant hanging around Yugi's neck? I want you to ask him if you could borrow it. If he says no, just take it from him when his guard's down and then bring it to me."
"Never."
"WHAt did you just say to me, young lady?" Ms. Chono said, barely masking her temper.
"My answer is no. I'm not going to betray my best friend no matter what you offer me," Anzu said with determination.
"Why are you even friends with Yugi anyway? And those other three boys as well. Why do you bother with any of them? The only reason they cling to one another is because they all come from abusive or neglectful households, but your family is normal. You're too good for them. You should find other, better friends who are more like you."
"How do you know any of that?! It's none of your business!" Anzu shouted angrily. "A teacher shouldn't pry in on a student's family life! It's unbelievably invasive!"
"I am TRYING to reach an understanding!" Ms. Chono screamed, slamming her fist her the desk. "Do you know what Yugi and his slimy little friends did to me? Look at my face! Look at it!" Ms. Chono pointed to her face where the make-up was already peeling off in large chunks. "They ruined my life! I can't go three minutes without having to re-apply my make-up. Three. Fucking. Minutes. I don't know how they did it, but I know the pendant's involved. I NEED that pendant! I have to change everything back! And then, I'll get revenge!"
"From what I've heard, everything's your fault. You started this whole mess, and you got what you deserved," Anzu said, standing up and pushing her chair back where it was before. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm outta here."
"You'll pay! You'll all pay! You'll regret having trifled with me! I'll get you for this, each and every last one of you!"
"Have a good evening, Madam," Anzu said stiffly as she shut the door behind her on her way out of the office.