"I told you it would work, Yugi," Yami chided. "And besides, we would have had to re-bond eventually."

Yugi still hated the fact that he had to be infected—again. It was a very unpleasant feeling, especially when he did his best to remain conscious. "Next time you leave my body, you're not coming back in."

Yami chuckled lightly, although he was a little disappointed. Being able to stretch his fins was a wonderful, if brief, experience. He didn't mind sharing a body with a human, but it was a shame that he wouldn't be able to swim again for a long, long time.

"Wait, Yugi, this thing with the water supply is going to last all the way until Saturday, and I won't be able to drink anything. How are we supposed to manage without water?" Yami asked, suddenly feeling frantic as he realized.

"Don't worry. We humans have something called 'bottled water'. The alcohol will only affect the water from the tap." Yugi explained.

Yami was a bit confused. "Tap? Is that like the style of human dance Tea mentioned a few wanes ago?"

"No, silly," Yugi said, laughing. Apparently the tides were the only way of measuring time in the Karish world. The "waxes" and "wanes" were the only way of telling time. Yami hadn't completely gotten used to the idea of the sun and the moon and how they related to days and months. "The tap is that metal thing in the kitchen that the water comes out of."

"So there are other ways to get water…" Yami mused. "I wish there was some way to know if our plan worked."

"The only way to do that would be to be there with another Karish as they were drinking the poisoned water…"

Yami thought for a moment. "Yugi, do you know where your friend Ryou used to live?"

"Down on Main Street. Why?"

"Because there's an old friend of mine I want to see."

The next day, Yami knocked on Ryou's door, hoping that Bakura would be there. They had gotten a phone call that the first dose of alcohol had been mixed with the water and that it was fully operational. Now all he had to do would be to watch as Bakura unknowingly drank poison.

The white-haired human shell opened the door. Since their last encounter Bakura had learned to open the door when a person knocked on it. One friend of Ryou's had knocked for ten minutes until Bakura finally opened up and cut her heart out.

"Yami," Bakura greeted coldly. "What are you doing here?"

Yami tried to appear contrite. "I have been thinking a lot about my life… and what you're planning to do with the humans. My entire existence has been to protect the creatures that tried to kill us and would do so again." Yami looked up at Bakura, a false fire burning in his eyes. "I've been wrong all this time, and I came to ask of you your forgiveness. I made a terrible mistake."

Bakura examined him. "So you would join us in our quest?"

"I would," Yami said convincingly. "Indeed, the pleading of the human began to irritate me. I could barely sleep with all that racket. So I consumed his consciousness with my own. He was no match for my power."

Bakura grinned widely. "Yami, my friend! You have joined us once again! Come in, and let's have a drink to celebrate!"

Good, this is exactly what Yami wanted. Bakura got some glasses and filled them with water straight from the tap. Yami took his glass and felt a sting of sadness as Bakura downed his without a second thought. He had known this Karish. They had once called themselves family, and now he had gone to incredible trouble to end old friend's life. It was a stinging betrayal.

Yami took a small sip of his, just to avoid seeming suspicious. Bakura leaned back in his chair. "It is good to have you on my side, Yami," Bakura said softly. "I always thought that we would conquer the humans together, even when we were just yearlings. I miss—"

Yami never got to find out what Bakura missed, as he reeled over suddenly and clutched his stomach. "You…" Bakura spat. "Traitor! You did this to me!" Ryou's body choked up a dark scaled fish, no longer able to maintain his connection now that he was so ill.

Yami grabbed Bakura quickly and put him into a plastic container on Ryou's shelf. He filled it with the bottle of water he had brought along. Yami couldn't help it - it was mercy. Bakura could do no more harm. The portions of his tendrils that allowed him to take control of human nervous systems were completely rotted by the alcohol. He didn't deserve to die like this, even if he had incited thoughts of genocide. He was the product of all the propaganda that was fed to him throughout his life.

Ryou, the real Ryou, stood up shakily and looked between Yami and the fish in the box. "Hello, Yugi. What… exactly are you doing here?" he asked, confused.

"Maybe you should take over, aibou," Yami said quickly. "What is Ryou going to think when he finds out what I am?"

Yugi switch places with Yami and placed a comforting hand on Ryou's shoulder. "Don't worry, Ryou, everything's going to be alright now."

"That creature… I heard it say terrible things to me. I couldn't move, I couldn't do anything," Ryou stammered. "How did you know how to stop it?"

"I… have a friend who knows about these things," Yugi explained.

Ryou's hands were shaking and his eyes darted from left to right. He looked like a rat in a cage, and that's what he must have felt like after being trapped inside his own mind for a week. "Is it… is it going to come back?" Ryou asked fearfully, staring at the dull gray Karish who had collapsed on the bottom of the container.

"No, he can't," Yugi said soothingly. "You don't have to worry about that ever again, okay?"

Ryou nodded, his eyes watered. "My family… it killed my family…" he said, and tears ran down his cheeks. "It-it killed my family with m-my own hands…"

Yugi hugged Ryou, and Ryou cried heavily. "I'm sorry, Ryou… I'm so sorry."

"Yami, what are we going to do with him? Bakura, I mean," Yugi asked.

"He's no longer a danger to humans directly, but his idea to consume the minds of humans one-by-one must not be allowed to spread. I spared his life, but it was at a cost. He can never return to the Sea."

"Where can he go? I don't think Grandpa's going to let me fly all the way to the Atlantic coast just to drop off a fish."

"I'm not a fish," Yami complained.

"You look like a fish, you swim like a fish, and I know for a fact that you smell like a fish. I think that makes you a fish." Yugi joked.

"Maybe Kaiba would like him," Yami offered. "As a pet, of course."

This idea seemed good enough to Yugi. Ryou seemed to have calmed down a bit. "Yugi, I don't have anywhere to go. My father is in Egypt and my mother and sister…"

"Why don't you stay with us?" Yugi offered before he even thought about it. "I'm sure I'll be able to convince Grandpa to let you."

"Really, Yugi?" Ryou asked hopefully. "T-thanks… It will only be until my father comes back a few weeks from now. Maybe he'll let me come with him on another expedition."

Ryou packed some of his things and high-tailed it out of his house, which only held evil memories for him now. Ryou knew the way to Yugi's house, so Yugi made a quick detour and dropped Bakura off at KaibaCorp's Research and Development facility. One scientist was particularly interested, and Bakura had a long life of poking and prodding ahead of him in exchange for his hatred.

"I think we make a good team, don't you?" Yugi said as he walked home from KaibaCorp.

"Indeed. I had dreamed since childhood of meeting a human face-to-face, learning about their culture and their ways of doing things. But I didn't know how I was going to be able to do it without hurting anyone. When I met you, I got a wonderful opportunity. I got to be partners with you."

"We've only know each other for about a week, but you seem like an okay guy. I wouldn't mind having you around. Twenty-five years seems like a long time, but I think we'll manage alright."

"As do I, aibou. And until death takes me, you will have my fidelity."

"I know, Yami. You've already shown me."