Thank you to all who have reviewed and/or read my story. Be paitent for updates. I'll be able to heaps during my holidays but during the rest of the year, it'll take longer (Blame my parents).

What happened so far: Now in Domino City, Sass is not sure where to go or what to do...


Transformation

The wind seemed to blow right through her. Sass wrapped her arms around her, her teeth chattering so much she could put a plank of wood through them and it would come out as woodchips. Sass looked around her. The square was completely devoid of humans. The only things still open was the train station and the airport, with the only cars appearing were taxi drivers. Sass was curled up on a bench, right next to the fountain, and looking up at Saint Grace. The motel didn't have any vancancies for tonight and all the others were in the business district. It was eight o'clock at night and Sass was tired, cold and hungry, having miscalculated her money and didn't have enough for dinner (Maths was always her weakest point), she really didn't want to walk all that way. She had spent the last 9 hours wondering around the shopping district and window shopping, which was incredibly irritating. Clothes shopping made want to die of boredom and seeing all those music, movies, books and games and not being able to buy them was pure torture.

Sass study Saint Grace's face more carefully, now that she had nothing else to do. Her eyes still looked upon her kindly, like she was fond of the young girl lying on the bench. To Sass, it looked like she was trying to show Sass something. But what? Sass half-heartedly hoped that it was a room with a heater and a soft bed but she just pulled her jacket tighter on her and continued to shiver. Sass cursed herself for being impulsive. If she hadn't just gotten up and walked out, she wouldn't be freezing to death on the street. At least when she went for her walks, she had somewhere to go home too. But, as before, Sass was still alone...


The dim light of the kitchen made it hard for Sass to see, but she couldn't turn the bigger light on or risk waking up Bakura and Papa. Sass looked through the door to see Bakura lying on the lounge, his favourite book wide-open on his chest, and his long legs dangling over the arm of it. Sass looked up at the kitchen clock: ten o'clock. Her father would have fallen asleep over an hour ago. She sighed and looked down upon the piece of paper that lay in front of her.

Dear Papa and Bakura,

I know that you only wish for the best for me. I know you both care for me so much. I care for you too. You are my brother and father, despite not being related in blood. But I need to find me.

When I came to you, I knew only my name and age. It had never use to bother me, but as I grew older and my personality developed, I became frustrated. You both have a history, a past. There have been good times and bad times, some heart-wrenching times, but you use those experiences to make you a stronger and fully-rounded person. I have only the four years which I have spent with you to reflect on. A four-year-old cannot reflect and learn and that is what it feels like for me. I need to know that I didn't just come out of nowhere.

Sydney is beautiful, I don't deny it. But, like everywhere else, I still am the outcast. Everyone looks upon me as the strange kid, the quiet kid, the smart kid... they never call me Sass or Saskura. I need to find a place where people won't go, "There's the wierd kid", but instead will say, "It's Sass! Hey, Saskura, how are you?"

When you wake up, I will have been gone for nearly eight hours. I will write, but don't bother to search for me. Please remember how much I love you, but I need to do this. I hope you can understand or will learnt to over time.

Love always,

Saskura

Sass read over the message once more before folding it and placing it in an envelope marked only 'Bakura and Papa'. She grabbed her locket off the kitchen table, now attached to a new silver chain which Sass had bought while she went for her walk. Picking up her backpack and duffle bag, Sass went to leave. She paused only for a second by the lounge, where Bakura's head rested on the pillow. She gently kissed his forehead and slipped the envelope in his hands.

"Goodbye, big brother" Sass whispered

She headed through the front door, remembering to carefully close it without the hinges creaking, and ran to the taxi that waited out the front of her house. Sass quickly closed the car door behind her and the taxi started off. She watched her home fade in the back window as the taxi drove away, somehow just knowing that it would be the last time she ever saw that house.

"Where to?" the taxi driver, a 40-year-old Lebanese man in a pressed-clean shirt, looked at Sass with narrow eyes in the review mirror.

"The airport, please. Could you please hurry? I'm catching at a plane at half-past 11" Sass told him

"Where do you want to go, so late at night?" the taxi driver raised an eyebrow

"Domino City" Sass replied, adding in her thoughts, 'And my future'...


Sighing, Sass rubbed her arms, trying to increase the blood flow and generate some warmth. Sass turned on the bench and saw the train station. Maybe she could get her large leather jacket and use that? Sass sat up and, still rubbing her arms, slowly headed off towards the train station.

"Where are you going, sweetheart?"

Sass turned to see a man, around 20, with a Billy Idol haircut and a lip piercing. His eyes reminded Sass of the flight attendant: cold and domineering. But this time, he wasn't hiding them behind a fake, pearly-white smile. His lips, scarred with cuts, twisted into a smug snarl. Sass got into a defensive stance.

"What's it to you, brighteyes?"

The man took a step forward, causing Sass to take a step back. He wore a black suit with a white collared shirt. Sass could see where his jacket gently swayed in the breeze that his belt was lined with an assortment of knives.

"We don't like your tone, missy"

Sass turned to see a black boy with dreadlocks in a classic gangsta outfit while an black-haired emo boy, dressed like Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance, leaning against one of the trees and staring at her too. Sass backed up against the bench while the boys closed in on her. Sass looked around furiously for a weapon and cursed to see that the area was clean. Sass fell and sat on the bench as the Billy Idol boy began to stroke her cheek. She resisted the urge to bite it.

"How about you come with us?"

Sass moved her arm to push herself back, but it slipped and fell into the fountain water. Water... Sass looked at the Billy Idol boy with a fiery gaze.

"How about you go to hell?"

Sass threw a handful of water at his face. Temporarily blinded, he stumbled into his black friend abd the emo boy. Sass instinctively executed a round-house kick, knocking all three of them down like they were Dominos.

"Bowling for Dummies" Sass sniggered and took off like a shot down the shopping district.

"Get her!" Sass heard the yell from the Billy Idol kid, "She ruined my hair. She won't get away with this"

'Oh, great. A metro boy. Should've known' Sass rolled her eyes and quickened her pace. Over the sounds of her feet hitting the pavement and the rapid beating of her heart, Sass could hear them running behind. No more than 50 feet, Sass estimated. She looked from her right to her left, for some sort of place to escape to. Finally, her eyes came upon an alleyway, leading to a road. She took a sharp left and ran through, heading towards the road. Her heart beat harden. Her head began to feel dizzy. She was tired, hungry and running. She didn't know how long she could keep it up. The running footsteps behind her were gaining fast. Exiting the alleyway, Sass continued to run up the road. She could see lights in the distance. At that moment, however, the clouds opened up and rain started to sprinkle down. Sass used this as an opportunity. If the rain began pouring heavily soon, it would make it harder for the hoods to catch up. Sass could see the lights getting closer as the rain got heavier. But the running footsteps seemed to be getting faster. Sass didn't want to look back. It would slow her down. Her heart was racing as it was and her head was spinning like an out-of-control carousel. When she was only 50 feet from the lights, her exhausted legs gave out and she went tumbling onto the road. Thankfully, it was a quiet road, no cars, but she grazed her knee on the asphalt as she fell. She let out a loud exclaimation of pain and struggled to get up. However, her arms wouldn't let her.

"Well, well, our little jogger seems to have lost her will to run" Sass turned to see the Billy Idol kid smiling ruthlessly at her, "Grab her"

The emo kid and the black kid grabbed an arm each and held her against the nearby wall. Sass tried to struggle, but her limbs were too weak. She wanted to shout out, but her lungs weren't recovered enough from the run to do it. The Billy Idol kid began to stroke her cheek again, this time with the blade of his army knife.

"Once again..."

"Let her go!"

They all turned to across the street, where the lights were. A figure was emerging from them. As he got closer, Sass made out a small boy, probably only an inch taller than her, with large spiky hair. It was blonde with streaks of purple shooting through it. He was in a blue school uniform, which Sass couldn't make out properly due to the heaviness of the rain. Sass' blue-green eyes stared into the new kid's violet ones. They seemed so innocent but brave and loyal, a definite contrast to the Billy Idol kid's cold grey-blue ones.

"Who are you kid?"

"Does it matter? Just let her go. She doesn't want you"

Sass watched him slowly clutch a string around his neck, which was attached to a strange-looking object around his neck. Judging from the shape she could make out, it looked like an upside-down pyramid, but Sass put it down to fuzziness due to the rain. The Billy Idol kid and his crew began to turn on the small boy.

"This don't concern you" the black kid snapped

"Get back to your cozy cubbyhouse" the emo boy snickered at him

"I'm not leaving" the boy's right hand clenched into a fist, which began to shake. Sass didn't know whether it was from fear, anger or the cold. The two boys let her go, causing her to slid to a heap against the wall, as they began to gang up on the boy.

"Fine by me" the Billy Idol kid turned to his lackeys, "Let's go, boys. A second treat"

As they went to circle him, Sass' heart leapt into her throat. They were going to destroy him, and he was defending her! She went to get up but she was too weak. She prayed for someone to help her.

'Please,' Sass pleaded to the gods above, 'Help us'

Then, like an answer to her prayers, the eye symbol on the Millennium Bracelet began to glow again, this time more brightly and lasting longer. Sass looked at it in shock but was distracted by a similar golden glow out of the corner of her eye. The small boy's object had begun to glow as well. Sass felt a feeling of absolute tranquility engulf her before the glow of the Millennium Bracelet and the boy's object slowly vanished.

At first, Sass didn't notice anything different. She still felt like Sass. It was still her in her body. But suddenly, Sass looked down and saw that her arms, usually quite short with small hands, was now longer with slender hands. Sass then noticed that her exhaustion, hunger and generally tiredness was gone. In fact, she was now brimming with energy. Suddenly, a booming voice echoed around her.

"I said, leave her alone!"

Sass looked up to see the small boy, but he wasn't as small anymore. He looked like he had shot up a couple of inches. His hair had grown too, with a couple of extra golden blonde bangs joining his 'do. His voice, once innocent and higher-pitched, was now deep and commanding. It was like he had gotten a puberty boost in the past minute. The hoods flinched at the order, but still got out their weapons.

"Or what, hedgehog?" the Billy Idol kid sneered at him.

"Or you'll have to deal with the both of us"

Sass didn't recognise her voice at first. It seemed deeper and more elegant, a commanding voice. Sass stood up and walked past the hoods, who stood in shock at Sass' transformation. Sass was actually at Billy Idol Boy's height now, not looking up at him. She had grown a couple of inches, but she was still shorter than the spiky-haired kid. Sass' walk felt more elegant and graceful, not the brash run or laid-back walk she usually had. She stood next to the spiky haired kid, and faced off against the trio of hoods. She seemed to gain courage when she stood next to him.

"Do you still wish to against us?" Sass asked in the same dangerously quiet tone Bakura had used on her.

"Two against three and one of them is a chick" Billy Idol sniggered, "I guess we'll be fine"

Sass felt the anger build up in her like a volcano about to explode. But then the black boy turned to her and leered at her, "This'll be fun, girly""

She snapped. When the black boy touched her cheek, she grabbed his arm flung him over her shoulder, landing him on his back in the middle of a puddle. The Billy Idol kid and the emo kid both went for the spiky-haired kid. He was able to keep back the emo kid, who was really just a stick in clothes. All he had to do was give him a quick punch in the chest and a kick to the adbomen and he was down for the count. The spiky haired kid smiled at the sight of the emo kid but didn't have time to gloat. He was suddenly tackled to the ground by the Billy Idol kid, army knife unsheathed, and was wrestling to keep the knife away from his face.

"Say goodbye" Billy Idol Boy snarled angrily at the spiky haired kid, the knife inching closer to his cheek.

"Goodbye" Sass announced as she round-house kicked him to the head and kicked the knife out of his hand. Quickly recovering, Billy Idol Boy went for a round two, arms outstretched ready to strangle her. Calmly , Sass stopped him in his tracks with her first instinctive attack: a swift scissor kick to the nether regions. He curled up on the ground in pain as his lackeys, both injured and limping, went to help him up. The spiky-haired kid walked over to them, his now crimson eyes ablaze with anger.

"Now, get out and don't you dare come anywhere near here again" he warned them in a voice so menacing, Sass felt the blood in her veins shiver.

They didn't need a second warning. They all ran down the road, further and further down the road, until their shapes were disfigured by the rain and they became just shadows in the distance. Sass never thought she could see wounded men run so fast. When they finally vanished, Sass turned to the spiky-haired boy right next to her.

"Thanks, mate. Thought I was a goner for a moment" Sass told him

"It was no problem. I would have done it for anyone" he replied to her.

"Yeah, but not many people would do it for me" Sass held out her hand, "Thank you"

When the boy took her hand, Sass felt a tingling go up her other arm. Looking down, she saw her Millennium Bracelet glowing again. The moment it finished, Sass felt her new-found strength ebbing from her. Her handshake got weaker and her legs gave way, causing her to fall to her knees.

"Oh God" Sass gasped out as the boy grabbed her and lay her gently on the ground.

"Are you OK? Grandpa! Come help! Grandpa!" the boy looked her, his voice growing softer, "It's OK. I'm gonna help you. Everything will be OK"

Sass looked up at those large, innocent violet eyes, the last thing she saw before she slipped into the dark grasps of unconsciousness. Everything will be OK....


Thank you people for reading. Review please and the next chapter will be up as soon as possible.

Next Chapter: Life at Domino High