Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or the song Evil Angel; they both belong to their respective owners.

Chapter Three

Tomoya sat down in his third period class, sighing as he set his books down on his desk. He leaned on his hand, staring at the covers of his books before sitting up and rolling his shoulders. This was the one class of his day that he didn't have anybody that he knew, yet. It didn't help that mathematics wasn't his favorite subject, especially not this early in the morning.

He looked up as the teacher walked in, freezing as he recognized the teenager that walked in behind the teacher. His hands tightened on the edge of his desk, his eyes narrowing as the whispers ran around the room at the appearance of the teenager, Tomoya hearing Yugi's name tossed about a few times.

But he knew better. He knew better than all of these people who this was. He recognized this teenager. And he hated him.

"Class, this is our newest student, Atemu Seti." The teacher paused to sneer at the teen, moving over to his desk. "He's from…the slums."

Tomoya smirked at the reaction from the class, enjoying the looks of pure hatred that were shot at Atemu. The bastard deserved every one of them. Especially after everything that he had done to Yugi. The teenager had murdered Yugi's mother and stolen Yugi away from his home. What Atemu was doing here Tomoya didn't know, but he didn't care. All he knew was that Yugi was here as well, which means that he had escaped from Atemu.

His eyes widened as the teenager sat down in the seat diagonally to his right, staring at the back of Atemu's head. If Atemu thought that he would be getting to Yugi than the teenager had another thing coming. Tomoya would be able to find Yugi's friends and they would get the teenager out of the high school before Atemu could find him. Atemu would not be harming his friend any time soon.

"How about you, Atemu?" Tomoya jumped as the teacher spoke, having forgotten that he was in class. He turned his head to look up at the board, seeing that the teacher had written up a problem. He glanced back at Atemu, smirking at the scowl that was on the teenager's face. The teacher must have noticed it too, because he leaned back against his desk. "What's the matter? This a bit over your head?"

To Tomoya's surprise, Atemu answered with a smirk of his own before striding up to the front of the classroom and taking one of the pieces of chalk from the base of the board before going to work. Atemu was done in a matter of seconds, stepping back to stare at his answer before dropping the chalk back into its place. "Not at all, sir."

Atemu sauntered back over to his desk, sitting down and leaning against his elbow as the rest of the class stared up at the board. From what Tomoya could tell, the answer was right, which surprised him. The rest of the class was staring at Atemu was well, unable to comprehend why a teenager from the slums was able to keep up with the rest of them. Atemu leaned back in his seat, waving one hand. "Please, don't let me distract you."

The teacher gave a stiff nod and plunged into the lesson, calling Atemu up to the board at every chance that he got. Still, the teenager foiled all attempts at making him look like an idiot, the smirk that had appeared at the start of class still on his face. The teacher seemed to be on the point of giving up when the bell rung, releasing them from class.

Tomoya scrambled to pack up his things, shoving them haphazardly into his bag. He cursed under his breath as Atemu stood up before him, grabbing up the last of his books and rushing out of his desk. Tomoya looked out into the hallway, his stomach dropping as he realized that Yugi was waiting across the hall from him. He saw the teenager break into a smile and wave at him, tensing as he heard Atemu make a sound like a chuckle and tuck his books under his arm.

Tomoya lunged for the clear space in the front of the room, biting back a scream as Atemu beat him to the space, walking quickly to the door. Tomoya broke into a run, sprinting out into the hallway, only to realize that he was too late.

Atemu had crossed the hall to where Yugi was, one arm braced against the wall beside Yugi's head as he leaned closer to the teen. Tomoya swallowed nervously, gathering his courage before shouldering his way through the crowd while still trying to see his oldest friend. He shoved another person out of his way, gasping when an elbow found its way into his ribs. Rubbing his side, he pushed out onto the edge of the crowd.

Yugi was still leaning against the wall, looking up as Atemu rocked away from him, his hand coming off the wall. Atemu looked down the hallway before leaning forward, the motion pressing Yugi closer against the wall. Tomoya made to lunge forward just as Atemu leaned over to kiss Yugi, his one free hand pulling the slight teen closer to him.

Tomoya's mouth dropped open in shock, eye going wide as Yugi wrapped his arms around Atemu's neck. He stumbled to a stop, staring at the two and shaking his head. How was this even possible? This was the teenager who had murdered his mother and stolen him away from everything that Yugi had known. Why would Yugi do this…unless…

Stockholm syndrome.

It was the only thing that would explain this. There was no other explanation for this behavior. He knew Yugi, and Yugi would never do this.

Tomoya pushed his bag into a more comfortable position before storming over just as the two were pulling apart for air. Atemu didn't let go of Yugi, still keeping the teenager close even as they both looked over at Tomoya. Yugi gave him a shaky smile, Tomoya's gaze moving from his friend to the teenager that still held him, glaring at Atemu.

Atemu was smart, Tomoya would admit that. The teenager blinked once at him before letting go of Yugi, but he didn't step away. Tomoya shook his head and looked over a Yugi, his glare disappearing from his face. "Are you alright, Yugi?"

"Fine." Tomoya tensed as Yugi reached out to hold Atemu's hand, carefully watching the other teenager. "So, ready to head out to the next class?"

"Sure." Tomoya smiled and began walking away, stopping when he saw at Yugi was still holding Atemu's hand. Tomoya shifted, leaning back against the wall and crossing his arms. Yugi slowed down too, looking confused.

"What?"

"He's coming?"

Yugi shifted uncomfortably for a moment before nodding. "Yeah. We…we have to stay close."

Tomoya shook his head at the statement and the glance that Yugi gave Atemu. Yugi was still obviously intimidated by his former captor. But Yugi had said that he had gotten away from his kidnapper.

Apparently, he had lied.

And that hurt, more than it should have. He trusted Yugi not to lie to him, they were best friends. Or, they had been. Tomoya stared at his friend, his blue eyes wide. It didn't matter how close they had been in the past. It did matter that Yugi was lying to all of them. He was living safely with his grandfather, Tomoya had seen the man around when they had been looking at their new house and when he and Yugi had walked home. Yugi had probably lied to his grandfather about being safe from his captor.

Tomoya let it go as they headed for their next class, making an effort not to talk to either Yugi or Atemu. Thankfully, Atemu's class was reached for theirs was, making it necessary for Tomoya to wait for the two to finish a quick hug before Yugi was free to walk off with him again.

The two slipped into their classroom, Tomoya thankful that the period after this was lunch, hoping that Atemu wouldn't be there at the same time. He needed time to talk to Yugi without the influence of his former captor. Maybe he could convince Yugi to break off all relations easily. After all, the teenager had completely destroyed his life; it should be easy to convince Yugi to take the final step.

Yugi sat in lunch, slumped at the table as he waited for Tomoya to show up. Unluckily for him, he had lunch with only one of his friends, the others spread out. He sighed and let his head fall forward until his forehead rested against the table. He had really hoped that Yami would have lunch with him. He frowned at that thought, lifting his head slightly to look around for Tomoya, the other teenager having to purchase his food.

What had happened in the hallway earlier? Yugi shook his head and pushed one hand up through his bangs while the other rested on the table. Tomoya's reaction to Yami had been strange, leaving Yugi not knowing how to react. He had hoped that his friend wouldn't have slipped into the mindset of Domino already, that all the people from the slums across the river were trash. After all, Tomoya had lived in similar slums for half a year until his father had gotten a new job.

Yugi sighed, the sound abruptly cut off as Tomoya slid into the seat in front of him, looking equally as troubled. The tri-color haired teen decided that now was as good a time as any to sort this business out. He didn't want Tomoya shooting him looks whenever he was with Yami.

"Hey, Tomoya-"

"Yugi-"

They both spoke at the same time, the realization causing a short awkward silence as they looked anywhere but each other. It was Yugi who gestured for Tomoya to go first, a nervous smile appearing on his face. The blonde haired boy seemed to be relieved a bit, adjusting his glasses before leaning on the table. "Yugi, what's going on between you and Atemu?"

Yugi hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. "We're together." He saw the flash of anger in Tomoya's blue eyes, resisting his instinct to back off. Tomoya had to understand this. "It's been that way for a while now."

"But he…he…" Tomoya shook his head, mouth working silently for a second before he glared down at his food. "After all he did to you, you have the gall to actually go out with him?"

"What has he done to me?" Yugi swallowed nervously, the full story of what Yami went through running through his mind. The only thing that he could think of was the fight that he had overheard between Ryou and Yami. But that had been over two years ago. All had been forgiven and Tomoya hadn't even been there.

He watched the gambit of expressions that ran across Tomoya's face, leaning back just before the blonde teenager lunged forward, having the foresight to push his food away before he did so. "How could you have forgotten what he did to you? What he did to your mother?"

"What?!" Yugi leaned forward himself, forcing Tomoya to lean back. "Yami was framed! I know who kidnapped me and murdered my mother. He's long since gone."

"Is that was Atemu told you to get on your good side?"

"No!" Yugi sat back, shaking his head. "Yami wouldn't lie to me about that."

"How can you be so sure? He's probably lied to you about other things."

Yugi opened his mouth to retort, eye widening as he realized that Tomoya was telling the truth. Yami hadn't told Yugi the original reason for his rescue until well into their friendship, or the fact that he had died saving Yugi from the sinking Baroness. But neither of those lies hurt anymore, he had managed to put them behind him. After all, Yami was here with him now and, after all they had been through, he was not going to destroy what they had with his doubts.

He leaned back against his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. "He has, but never about that. He cares for me."

"He kidnapped you."

"Yami was framed."

"There was evidence. He was in jail, Yugi. They were ready to sentence him to death for his crimes."

Yugi stiffened at that, his eye narrowing. Tomoya must have realized that he had crossed some line because he sat back, Yugi straightening up as he glared at his oldest friend. "Without Yami, I would not be here. If he had been killed, I would still be trapped in some wrecked steamboat on the other side of the river, possibly looking for ways to end my own life by now."

"But…the evidence-"

"Was faked." Yugi tapped one finger against the table with those two words. "I can even get you the number of the person in charge of Yami's…" Yugi struggled to find the correct word before giving up, "parole if you can't believe either of us."

"Are…are you sure about him Yugi?" Tomoya fiddled with his napkin, refusing to look at him. Yugi shook his head in exasperation, glaring at the table. He didn't want to sit here and go through this interrogation, but he would stay, merely because he wanted to make sure that Tomoya had gotten the facts straight. "I mean he did-"

"Tell me one thing that Yami has done for sure?"

Tomoya stared at him with an open mouth before shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I just can't trust him, Yugi. I spent this whole time thinking that he held you against your will and then, on top of that, he's from the other side of the river."

Yugi groaned and let his face fall into his hands, shaking his head. "I thought you would be able to see past that."

"I have to survive Yugi." Yugi looked up at the statement, confused by it. Tomoya looked sheepish for a moment before gesturing at the rest of the cafeteria. "To avoid their notice, conform. It's simple."

"Too late for that, Tomoya. They all know about where I spent my time before coming here. I cannot begin to count the number of times I was attacked for surviving through living on the other side of the river. I can't conform anymore, life isn't that simple." Yugi had suddenly lost his appetite, not wanting to stay around and listen to any more of Tomoya's ideas.

Yugi gave his friend a curt nod before gathering up his lunch and walking out, intending to find a quiet spot on the school grounds away from everyone else. He was used to being alone, even with Yami and his friends in nearly constant attendance. There were times he even sought out a place to be alone, just for the silence to hear his own thoughts.

He knew that he shouldn't have walked out on Tomoya like that, but he wanted to get out of there before his friend had said something that had pushed him over the edge. Tomoya was right about that being one way to survive with the bullies that plagued all high schools, but Yugi just couldn't bring himself to do that anymore. The self that he had created now was formed from all the challenges he had been through, too much to suddenly break apart just to meet someone else's standards. Besides, Yami loved him for who he was now, and that was enough for Yugi.

The teenager slumped against a wall, sliding down it to sit on the ground, resting one arm against his knee. He would figure out how to apologize to Tomoya later, once he had calmed down. And once he figured out what he would say.

Yami sighed in relief as he walked back into the gym locker rooms, ready to peel off the sweaty uniform that he wore. Thankfully, he had gym the last period of the day, meaning that he could just go home and shower instead of having to shower in front of the rest of the guys in his class.

He limped over to his locker, staring at his aching leg. Of course he had been treated more roughly than the other guys, a soccer ball to the head three times going beyond the usual hazing. And the teachers had done nothing to stop it, not that he had expected them to. After all, he was just a kid from the wrong side of town, why would they stretch out their necks to help someone they thought was beyond saving.

Yami carefully made his way to his locker, spinning the dial for his combination as the rest of the class came in, leaning down to look at his leg. There was already a bruise forming. That would be painful for the next couple of days. He reached one hand down to rub at the area before straightening up, pulling his pants out of his small locker and putting them on. Around him, the rest of the guys talked loudly.

He rolled his eyes, pulling his shirt, jacket, boots and books from his locker before throwing his gym shorts in. Yami leaned down to tug off the old sneakers that Yugi had forced upon him before peeling off his shirt and tossing it in after the rest of his gym clothes. He was reaching down to grab his shirt when he realized that the teenagers closest to him had gone silent.

The reason for it hit him moments later, Yami groaning and shaking his head at the stares of amazement. The guy beside him was opening staring at the four circular scars that ran down his side, the marks pale against his skin. The teenager rolled his eyes, going to pull his shirt over his head when the guy to the other side of him walked around, jaw dropping as he saw the other set on the other side. "Dude, it's on both sides!"

Yami yanked his shirt down over his head with a muffled growl, blocking the scars from their sights. He slammed his locker shut, the noise snapping the teenagers out of their dazes. He leveled a glare at all of them before beginning to cut off their question. "Yes, they're on both sides. Yes, they match up perfectly on either side. No, I will not tell you where I got them from."

He slipped on his boots and was out the door with the bell, sighing as he shifted his books in his arm. That could have gone better. Yami forced himself to come to a stop by his locker, quickly inputting the combination to retrieve the rest of his things before slamming the door shut again.

"Yami?" He turned abruptly at the sound of Yugi's voice, a smile breaking across his face as he turned to face the smaller teen. Yugi rushed up to him, jumping up at the last minute as he wrapped his arms around Yami's neck, the momentum from the move pushing them both against the lockers. Yami laughed, wrapping his arms around Yugi in a hug. "Missed you."

"Really?" Yami pulled back slightly, a smile on his face at Yugi's confession. "Aibou, it was barely a day apart."

"Still." He shivered as Yugi kissed his neck before sliding down his body. Yami stayed leaning against the lockers, staring at Yugi as the smaller teen gathered up the books that they had dropped. "I got used to having you around all the time."

Yami took a deep breath before accepting his books from Yugi, offering his free hand to the teen as they began to walk out of school. He caught Yugi looking at his limp, his leg still sore from the many times the soccer ball had been kicked into it. The taller teen shook his head and gave Yugi's hand a squeeze. "Don't worry about it. Gym was just a bit…rough."

"Oh. The whole…"

"Yeah." Yami watched Yugi bite his lip, worrying over Yami. He chuckled and squeezed Yugi's hand, drawing him out of his funk. Yugi's purple eyes remained troubled for a moment before they cleared, the teenager swinging their hands as they stepped out into the sunshine.

"Hey Yug'!" They both turned at the sound of Joey's voice, Yami having a single moment to remember that he had avoided them since he had come back before he watched Joey's hand drop. The other two jumped backward as they looked at the two, Yami taking a step back at the stares. He looked over his shoulder, spotting Yugi's friend walking up from behind them.

He took a better stance so he could see the two different groups, feeling Yugi stiffen beside him. They were now paying for their need for keep to themselves for the week before. Now they would have to explain everything to their friends as well as figure out what the deal was with Yugi's blonde friend from his old city.

Yami jumped as Yugi jerked his arm forward, beginning to walk towards the game shop. He followed without an argument, watching as Joey, Tristan and Tèa jogged after them. Yami glanced over at Yugi's other friend, watching as he too rushed after them.

"Yug', wait up!" Yami felt Joey's hand on his shoulder before the blonde caught up with them, rushing around to stand in front of them, stopping their escape. "What's going on?"

"I'll…" Yugi turned around then, realizing that they were surrounded. Yami tensed at the realization too, his free hand curling into a fist. He didn't like to be trapped, years on the other side of the river pounding that fact into his head. Only the feel of Yugi's hand in his kept him from jumping forward, standing close to his charge as Yugi tried to handle the situation. "I'll explain, I promise. Just…Can we go back to the game shop?"

Joey, Tèa and Tristan nodded, Yami watching Tomoya as the teen gave a slow nod. He narrowed his eyes at the motion, knowing that Tomoya wouldn't be so easily convinced. The teen had something against him, something that he was not willing to share with any of them. He blinked at a sharp tug to his hand, Yugi pulling his attention away to Tomoya.

The six of them began to walk back to the game shop, Yugi sticking close to Yami even as he tried to carry on a conversation with the rest of the group. The only hint that Yugi was nervous was the stronger hold that he took on Yami's hand. Slowly, the strained conversation trailed off as they reached their destination, Yugi walking into the shop in silence with the rest trailing after him into the living room.

Yugi settled Yami on the couch before sitting on his lap as the other arranged themselves around him. Yami remained quiet as Yugi cuddled back against him. He rested his chin on Yugi's shoulder, waiting for the smaller teen to talk, knowing that it was Yugi's story to tell. He would allow Yugi to tell the story, but he would lend his support.

The teenager sighed, shaking his head before reaching for Yami's hand and holding it. All eyes were drawn to the move, Tomoya taking a deep breath and looking at the two of them disapprovingly.

It was Tèa that made the first move towards them, carefully tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "Yugi, we're just confused about this. You told us he was dead." There was a short intake of breath from Tomoya at the statement, Yami glancing over at the teenager as Tèa continued. "You were miserable for weeks and we understood that you were mourning. How is this possible?"

Yami reached up without really thinking about the motion, searching for the watch that wasn't there. It had been the thing he had turned to for comfort when things got difficult. He knew Yugi had felt the motion because the teenager leaned slightly back, his hand releasing Yami's to brush over the golden band that was on Yami's wrist. A silent reminder that he didn't have the watch anymore.

"I…I was wrong." Yugi swallowed, his purple eyes flickering up to look at the ceiling for a moment before he looked back down at the group of people. Yami carefully kept his face from showing no emotion. Yugi was lying to his friends for him, because they would think that the whole story was crazy. Yami sighed and pulled the teenager a bit closer to him in silent thanks for doing this. "I panicked and he was still alive, but barely. His friends brought him here because he wouldn't stop asking about me."

Yugi let the story end at that, the both of them knowing that it was not a convincing lie. But, seeing as three of Yugi's friends had witnessed the world that Yami lived in, it probably made them less inclined to argue with them. If Yugi didn't want to talk about a subject, they figured that the content was probably enough to give them nightmares. It was the kind of trust and loyalty that Yami respected.

"I don't believe you." Yami lifted his head up as Tomoya spoke, his eyes narrowing as he spotted something. He must have been too absorbed with school to notice it before and felt stupid for his slip up. Dartz was standing near Tomoya, invisible to the rest of the people here but perfectly visible to him. The guardian angel was staring at him in awe, looking between him and Yugi before giving a shrug and jerking his head up towards the roof.

Yami gave a small nod, watching out of the corner of his eye as the angel spread his wings and took off for the roof, intending to join him there as soon as he felt safe leaving Yugi. Which wouldn't be any time soon if Tomoya continued on his current tirade.

"I cannot just assume that he's not after you."

"The evidence was false, Tomoya."

"What evidence?" This was from Tristan, the others looking slightly afraid from the content of the conversation.

Tomoya shook his head. "You didn't tell them that he was suspected of kidnapping you and killing your mother?"

"No," Yugi leaned forward, "because it's not true. Yami saved me."

"Then…then…" Tomoya looked around, obviously feeling a bit trapped if his expression was anything to go by. "Then who am I supposed to hate? I've hated him for so long because of what he did. What do I do now?"

Yugi slid off Yami's lap, kneeling on the floor. "Just let it go."

Yami smiled at Yugi before standing up himself, pulling Yugi back into a hug before leaning forward to whisper in his ear. "Angel business. I'll be back."

Yugi gave a minute nod before he sat down on the ground with his friends, their voices dropping as they went into deep conversation. Yami smiled at Yugi before trudging up the stairs, heading for the roof and the angel that waited for him.

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