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: A month has past since Sass discovered Kira and has kept it secret from her friends. However, life takes a sharp turn one school morning...


The Exchange Student (Pt 1)

"Hey, Sass" Joey waved at her and Yugi as they approached the front gate, "C'mon, the sub won't be happy if we come late to roll call again"

"Yeah, yeah, we're on our way" Sass called back as they finally reached Joey

"I still wonder if the sub's figured out your age yet, Sass" Yugi grinned.

Sass shook her head, "Dude, if they don't know I'm two years younger than everyone else by now, they'll never know"

Sass had skipped two grades up to the same grade as Yugi and Joey when she started at Domino. She breezed past everyone in the grade and the principal was forced to put her in Yugi, Joey, Teá and Tristan's class. Now that she was in a class where she was mentally challenged, Sass couldn't keep smart mouthing the teacher and disrupt the class. That was the real reason they moved her up in the first place. Sass grinned to herself as they headed up the corridor to their homeroom. Everything was perfect. Everything was how it should be.

They turned to go in the homeroom and Sass was startled to see that the sub was already there. However, it was the student that the sub was greeting that made Sass' heart leap into her throat. A boy around the same height as Teá dressed in the uniform in a prim, proper way with long purple white hair and big brown eyes. Sass quickly threw herself out of the room and backed up against the wall right next to the classroom door. Oh, God, he was here. Bakura.

Joey walked right in, not seeing Sass, but Yugi turned straight to her, confused, "Sass, are you OK?"

Sass was close to hyperventilating, "Yugi... I can't go in there"

"What? Why not?" Yugi raised an eyebrow.

Sass pulled her bandana out of her hair and tied it around her face, hiding all but her eyes, "Listen, according to you, I'm not here! I never was here! Meet me at the courtyard during lunch"

"Sass, what the-" Yugi didn't get his question out as Sass bolted down the hallway, leaving him staring after her.

Her feet hit the ground with clunks as she headed for the rooftop courtyard. She ducked behind lockers and pillars to avoid teachers patrolling the hallways and snuck up the staircases to the rooftop courtyard. Sass peeked around the door to see that no one was in the courtyard before heading out. Sass dumped her bag next to the fence, ripped her bandana off her face and threw it next to it. She began pacing back and forth in a furious manner. Why did he come? Why was he here? How did he know where she was? Aargh!

Sass lashed out and hit the wire fence. She laid into it, delivering punch after punch after punch until her knuckles were raw red. Sass could sense Kira leaning against the fence in her spirit form, watching her with her arms crossed.

"You do know that taking it out on the fence won't make him go away?" Kira inquired, raising an eyebrow

"It helps me feel better, emotionally" Sass replied as she continued to hit the fence

"Hmmm" Kira nodded, "How about physically?"

"Hurts like hell"

Sass turned and leaned back on the fence, clutching her knuckles, and slid down to the ground. She just sat there, muttering curses under her breathe as Kira sat down beside her, just watching her for a moment. Kira's deep blue eyes analysed Sass' nervous behaviour, intrigued by her reaction.

"They're obviously worried about you" Kira spoke, "They're still your family, Sass"

"If they were really worried, why didn't they come after me four months ago?" Sass snorted, crossing her arms around her knees, "Why didn't they follow me when I was being left on the streets and had nowhere to live?"

Kira shrugged, "They wouldn't be able to drop everything, you know. Your father's a bust archaeologist. Your brother would have had to go back to Eton and organise everything before leaving and coming here"

Sass' arms shook violently. Sass didn't know if it was from anger or fear or the cold, but she didn't care. Finally, she sighed, "They'll take me back to Australia. I don't want to go back. This place... I've never felt more at home here, more whole. After I met you and Yugi and the group, I've felt the happiest I've ever been. Hell, Seto Kaiba is paying for my education! I can't just walk out on it!"

"Maybe if you explain it to them, they'll understand" Kira stood up and look out at Domino City through the wire fence, "I don't want to leave this place either. My only link to my memory and past is here too"

"You mean, Yugi and his Puzzle?" Sass looked up at Kira. Her face was etched with a distant, pensive expression. Sass looked at those deep blue orbs which have intrigued Sass since they first met. They were glazed over in thought. She always had this look on her face whenever they discussed the Puzzle.

"Still have no clue what the spirit has to do with you yet?" Sass asked, maneouvring herself to face Kira properly.

Kira shook her head, closing her eyes, "I have limited memories, Sass, but I do remember being particularly close to the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. I just wish I could meet him as him. Maybe he remembers something about the past"

Sass looked out through the fence, watching the bustling Domino City with Kira, "I can't go back to class. Not for a while. Even if you possessed me, he'd still recognise me"

"Sass, the main reason he would recognise you is your hair. Not many people have topaz blue hair" Kira pointed out, "If you just hide it under a hat and wear sunglasses, you'd be fine. You could wear a wig if you want"

Sass thought about it carefully, "I could get a blonde. Bakura knows how much I hate that colour. I'd be fine"

"We can go shopping this afternoon" Kira sat back down next to Sass, smiling, "We can't really go back to class after Yugi just lied to the sub"

"But the look on Yugi's face would be priceless if we walked in right after he said how sick I was" Sass snickered

They both just laughed. Sass and Kira had been sharing moments like this increasingly over the past month. Sass now understood how Kira was half of her. Kira thought almost exactly like she did and guided her when she was troubled by a situation. The Millennium Bracelet glistened in the morning sun as Sass and Kira continued to discuss ways of getting priceless facial expressions off the group...


Sass and Kira were so absorbed in their conversation that Sass nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the school bell for lunch ring. Sass pulled her bag closer to her as Kira stood up, looking straight at the door leading to the rooftop courtyard.

"Brace yourself" Kira warned, "Goodbye"

Kira faded away, back into the Millennium Bracelet, as the door burst open. A stampede nearly broke down the door as the horde of teenagers stormed through, each trying to get to their reserved area of the courtyard before a rival clique gets it. Sass just sat the fence, watching the many heads rush past until she saw the spiky tri-coloured hair she was looking for. Yugi, Joey, Teá and Tristan edged through the crowd and hurried over to her. Yugi kneeled down in front of her, eyes wide with concern.

"Sass, are you OK?" Yugi asked

"Yeah, I'm fine" Sass replied, smiling nervously up at Yugi

"Yeah, Sass, what gives?" Tristan demanded as Joey and Teá walked up beside him.

Joey sat down next to Sass, "Yugi told us that you freaked the moment you came to class this morning and took off"

"Did you have a panic attack?" Teá's eyes widened in concern.

"C'mon, the sub's not much of a looker, but I didn't know it could cause this much damage" Tristan laughed, "I thought only Joey could do that"

"Watch it, Tristan. It wasn't me that made the librarian's baby cry when they said hello to it" Joey growled

"It was hungry" Tristan crossed his arms defensively

"Guys, you're getting a little off- subject here" Teá snapped at them, turning back to Sass, "This is about Sass"

"C'mon, Saskura. Spill" Yugi got into a comfortable sitting position, crossing his legs. Tristan and Teá each took a seat on either side of him.

Sass took in a deep breath before beginning, "Did you guys see a new student in homeroom? Around Teá's height, long purple hair, kinda a British accent?"

Joey laughed, "Oh, yeah. The new exchange student. Looked like a right nerd!"

What happened next shocked Joey out of his jovial mood. Sass leaped to her feet, her fists clenched and her eyes ablaze, glaring at Joey, "Don't you say one more wrong word against him or I'll tackle you to the ground and we'll fight a good ol' one-on-one, old school style"

Yugi grabbed Sass' arm quickly and held her back, "Sass, what has gotten into you?"

Sass realised what she had done and dropped her arms, sliding back to the ground again. She sighed and threw her head back, hitting the fence. It hurt like hell but Sass didn't care.

"I'm sorry, Joe. It's instinctive reaction. I didn't mean to" Sass shook her head, "Did you guys hear his name, the name of the exchange student?"

"Sure, his name was Ryou. Ryou Bakura" Teá replied, "The last name sounded familiar... Oh my God"

"And the penny drops" Sass muttered as Teá's eyes widened in shock, looking at her.

"What?" Yugi, Tristan and Joey looked at Teá with raised eyebrows. Teá began to shake almost gently.

"Bakura... that's what Sass called her brother" Teá's whisper was almost inaudible, "He's your brother, isn't he?"

Sass looked down and nodded. Joey and Tristan shouted, "What the-?" at the top of their lungs and glared at each other and her in shock. Sass looked up to see Yugi's reactiong and just saw him smiling sadly at her. His eyes just looked at her with deep understanding. Sass smiled back at him. Now she knew why she trusted Yugi far more than the other three. Yugi didn't assume or overreact. He was just understanding and calmly listening.

"Yes, Bakura's my brother, my adopted brother. I don't know how, but he knew where I was and came to find me" Sass' voice was barely a whisper but they all heard her crystal clear.

They didn't speak at all for about two minutes. They just soaked in the news.


Thanks for reading. Sorry it took so long to put up but have had a major case of writer's block.

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