9

"Whatever we refuse to recognize about ourselves has a way of rearing its head and making itself known when we least expect it." -Debbie Ford

"He keeps glaring at me," Yugi whispered to Naomi as she wrote something down from a book they were sharing.

"I can't think of anything you've done if that makes you feel any better," Naomi stated, frowning at some information before double checking it, "Honda-San has his own issues that he's projecting on you, so ignore him."

Yugi hummed at that and thought about how strange the situation was. The teacher had paired the two of them together for a project and he found the quiet between them comforting. A smile appeared on his face. He wouldn't have believed that they would be friends! Naomi looked up from the paper and felt goosebumps rise on her arms at the sight of Yugi smiling.

It was kind of horrifying if she were to be honest.

The rest of her day wasn't filled with any more strange smiles and she stretched a little as Yugi gathered his stuff. Fred was forcing her out of the house. Meaning, he wanted her to spend time with her friends. She'd say he was more like a father, but Pegasus took the cake with that title. He even had her brother's backing. The emails she got from him were starting to get ridiculous.

But she couldn't help but smile at them before replying with how her days were.

"Do you think you'll win?" Yugi asked Naomi and she tilted her head in thought.

"Maybe, I'll be the first to admit that I mostly button mash when it comes to fighting games," Naomi stated, "Fred says it's hilarious to watch me panic."

"He's an interesting guy," Yugi agreed, and Naomi paused.

Yugi would be one of the few people that could pick up on the strange nature of Fred. She rubbed the back of her neck in thought. She stopped herself from thinking about the future. It always sent her into a spiral, and she needed to stop those. Yugi gave her a tiny smile and she faltered for a few seconds.

"You're a nice guy, Yugi-kun," she informed him and he blinked in confusion, "don't let anyone tell you differently."

"That's the first time you've called me by my name," Yugi stated, his eyes wide.

"Don't make such a big deal out of it," Naomi sighed, her gaze was to the side as the tips of her ears turned red.

Yugi knew that was a giant step with his friend and inwardly grinned. She was starting to show her true self around him, and the girl she hid was a little sweeter than people thought she would be. The help she had given him on his English homework told him that. He could gather one thing for sure, she was loyal to a fault.

"Would you quit your glaring, Honda-San?" Naomi snapped at said teen, her voice still low to disguise herself.

"Tch," Honda looked to the side.

"We're gonna join you today," Jounouchi informed them, shooting Honda a look, "we actually have something to discuss."

"You aren't going to ask them?!" Honda exclaimed and Naomi glared at him. "Are you joking?!"

"Cool it," Jounouchi sighed, elbowing him in the side.

"But if he knows then he's going to tell the entire school," Honda stated, "Yugi has a grudge against me."

"That's unlikely," Naomi sighed, "just what would Honda-San need help with, Jounouchi-San?"

"Right, you know Ribbon-Chan?" Jounouchi asked.

"Nosaka-San helps out in the library, she's quiet, but a nice person," Naomi confirmed, nodding her head, "why?"

"This idiot went and fell in love with her," Jounouchi answered and Honda let out a loud sound as he hid his bright red face in his hands.

"You laughed didn't you?" Honda growled at a surprised Yugi, reaching for him only to be stopped by a person standing in front of him.

"Even though he doesn't have a chance of getting Ribbon-chan he still fell head over heels for her," Jounouchi said, hitching a thumb behind him, "so, what we wanted to talk about was…a present to get her attention. I thought of you because your family runs a game shop."

"I think Ji-chan might have something," Yugi said in thought before turning towards Naomi, "sorry, Naomi-Kun."

"It's fine, we can still play a game some other time, if it's okay with you," Naomi suggested and he nodded his agreement.

The walk to Kame game shop was awkward to say the least. Naomi pulled out her phone and informed Fred that conversing with other people wasn't her forte, and it was incredibly uncomfortable. She got a response that informed her that Fred found it hilarious. She shoved her phone into her bag with a harsh expression on her face. She looked up at the shop with a thoughtful expression. Maybe she could buy another game while there, a puzzle or something.

"What game are you getting?" Jounouchi asked as he noticed her looking around.

"A puzzle, I think," she murmured as she began to peruse the shelves.

Yugi smiled at the sight of his friend looking at the different products. She couldn't find her rubik's cube anymore, and she gathered Fred had hidden it from her so she wouldn't fidget in front of her friends. She picked up a cube and felt her shoulders relax. Right, she was getting a new one, and she would keep doing so until Fred stopped hiding them. She caught sight of a puzzle that would create a 3D model of Notre Dame. She snatched it up with a blank expression.

"What can I do for you?" Sugoroku asked as he rang up the two items that Naomi had picked out.

"Do you have anything that a girl might like?" Yugi asked, scratching at his cheek. "Or one that could help to convey a message?"

Naomi could've helped him with this as Sugoroku hummed for a few seconds. Honda could've done this with a milk puzzle. A laugh came from the old man as he rubbed at his beard. Ah, so he did have an idea. Naomi held onto her purchases with an iron grip as Jounouchi raised a brow. Right, she didn't know how to relax.

"I have just the thing," Sugoroku stated as he reached up onto a shelf behind the register, "this was how I got your Grandmother, Yugi."

"Really?" Yugi asked, looking at the box in surprise.

"It's a blank puzzle," Sugoroku informed them, "you can write down your feelings and then break it up to send to her! As she puts it together, your words appear."

"I couldn't imagine Honda with this," Jounouchi laughed while Naomi smiled softly.

"I think it's sweet," she admitted and Honda flinched in surprise at the tone.

"Are you actually a hopeless romantic , Naomi-chan?" Sugoroku kindly asked, and he watched said teen turn a bright red as Jounouchi looked towards her with a giant grin.

"He…She's right!" Honda agreed with Naomi, finally figuring it out. "I'll take it!"

Yugi and Naomi shared a look and he couldn't help but notice that the blush refused to leave her face. It was cute to see her so flustered. Naomi mentally cursed at the fact that they got genuine reactions out of her. Damn her fondness towards the elderly! And…she didn't mind showing her true self to her friends. They would be the last group of friends she'll have, and they were incredibly precious to her. Her mind slowly drifted towards that looming despair and she swiftly snapped out of it.

"I…I've never written a love letter before," Honda said, before slowly turning towards Yugi, "y-you write it, Yugi!"

"But it wouldn't be your feelings," Naomi pointed out, "and as a girl, if someone sent me a love letter and used someone else's words I would turn them down immediately because it would be a false confession."

"Has someone done that to you before?" Jounouchi asked in surprise.

"No, most people are too intimidated to confess their feelings to me," Naomi admitted, giving a shrug that showed she wasn't bothered by it.

"I'll do it then, all I have to do is write from the heart, right?" Honda asked, his face still a bright red.

"Yes," Naomi confirmed.

He rushed out of the store with a thoughtful frown on his face. Naomi tilted her head to the side in thought before shaking it. Boys were ridiculous. Yugi watched as she looked down at her games in thought. Her phone began to ring and she gave an apologetic bow before walking out of the store to take it. She wasn't about to take a phone call while in a store, it was one of the few things that she didn't miss about smartphones.

"Pegasus?" She asked, answering the phone. "What's wrong?"

"Must something always be wrong for me to call my baby sister?" Pegasus asked, his tone light as she heard liquid sloshing on the other side. "I want to declare you as my heir, isn't it wonderful?"

What?

"What?" Naomi asked, her monotone getting her confusion across perfectly.

"I want to entrust the company to someone I trust to follow my ideals," Pegasus explained and he heard her breathing change from calm to panicked, "the future is unknown and I'd rather have the peace of mind that Industrial Illusions would be in good hands."

"I…Can it wait for a little while longer?" Naomi asked. "Until I'm more sure of myself?"

"Of course," Pegasus softly said, knowing that might've been too much for his sister.

Cyndia had been one of the few people to give his sister news without making her panic. The thought of his love made his chest hurt. He ran a hand through his pale hair and heard someone talk to his sister. It was amusing to hear her talk to her friends. He heard a side of his sister he hadn't heard in a long time.

"Jounouchi-san, don't go making things difficult for him," Naomi warned, "I don't want him going after Yugi-kun if you do."

"I won't, I promise," this Jounouchi promised with a tinge of fear, "I've already seen what you do when mad, I'm good."

He heard his sister sigh and chuckled at her reaction. They were good for her, and she most likely didn't notice. She didn't react to people like she used to, like they were pawns or idiots. She was acting as though she wasn't going anywhere, as though there was no longer a guillotine hanging over her head. He heard Crockett moving around in his office and tapped his fingers against his desk.

"I would like to meet your friends, one of these days at least," he commented to his sister.

"Maybe when you finish building and hold your tournament?" She suggested. "I know Jounouchi might want to participate in it."

"Will he do well is the question," Pegasus commented and Naomi gave a soft snort.

"He's the luckiest person I know, he'd make the top five if not the top two," Naomi stated.

That was high praise from his sister. He gave a hum of agreement and she gave a soft cheer. He couldn't see it, but he knew she was victoriously grinning. Good, he liked it better when she was happy.

"I've got to go, I think Yugi-Kun wants to play a game after all," Naomi informed her brother.

"All right, just be ready for the announcement of my game in Japan," Pegasus informed her and her eyes widened, "seeing as you're well known in the fashion industry, you'll be the spokesperson."

He hung up before she could deny that. Naomi gained a small pout as she looked at her phone. She pocketed it and hurried back inside, Yugi had been watching from the window with a kicked puppy expression and it made her feel a little guilty. It was those eyes that made it work.

"Street fighter Ex?" She asked as he held up the game. "Sounds fun, are you sure Mutou-ji-San doesn't mind?"

"Not at all, he's glad I have a friend that's willing to play games with me," Yugi stated.

She didn't want to point out to him how pathetic that sounded. She took her shoes off when he did and trailed behind him as he lead the way through his home. She could say one thing, it was a very comfortable home. She was reminded of her original house, with the pictures and knickknacks everywhere. Sugoroku was a collector of Egyptian sculptures, and Naomi liked how it pulled the rooms together. It felt more like a home than her own.

Yugi set everything up and soon Naomi was button mashing and watching Blair Dame spastically move. Yugi snorted before he started to laugh a little. Naomi sighed before giving a few chuckles of her own. It was kind of ridiculous. Yugi leaned against his friend and struggled to stop laughing. Naomi tensed for a few seconds before relaxing a bit.

It was nice to be surrounded by warmth again.

They continued to play until the screen was stuck on the menu. Sugoroku heard the looping music and went to investigate. He smiled at the scene before him. Both teenagers were out like a light, resting against one another's shoulders. He chuckled to himself before shuffling inside to turn off the TV and game console. Naomi shifted in her sleep and he thought the slightly taller teen was going to wake up. Her head simply drooped a bit more, her chin resting against her chest. She was going to have one heck of a crick in her neck the next morning. But, he would let her learn like a normal kid.

He doubted that she got that opportunity very often.

The next morning found Naomi rubbing at her neck as she tried to work out a crick. Yugi couldn't keep the smile from his face as she did it for a fourth time in a row as they walked to school together. He scratched his cheek in thought before glancing her way. She looked like she had slept well, the dark circles under her eyes were nearly gone. She blinked, and looked his way.

"You look well-rested," he commented and she let out a strange sound.

"Mutou-Ji-San said the same thing," Naomi informed him before her head tilted to the side, "if you tackle me, Jounouchi-san, a foot to the back is the least of your worries."

"Damn, eyes in the back of your head," Jounouchi groused as he hurried to join them in heading to school, "Honda's joining us a little further up."

"I wonder if he got any sleep," Yugi softly muttered.

"Knowing that idiot, probably not," Jounouchi sighed.

"Right," Naomi agreed, "hopefully his confession doesn't creep Nosaka-san out, she's too nice for that to happen."

Jounouchi gave a small nod of agreement before thoughtfully frowning. Naomi…she was definitely different from his first impression of her. He watched as she rubbed at the back of her neck before wincing slightly. Did she hurt her neck or something?

"Do you think our tie in Street Fighter will ever be broken?" Naomi asked Yugi and Jounoichi's eyebrows raised.

"Maybe," Yugi stated, "if you learned to not button mash."

Naomi was giving him a look and he quickly glanced to the side in amusement. Jounouchi couldn't believe what was happening before him. He then had a sudden thought.

"Where's your stuff?" Jounoichi asked.

"Oh, Mutou-ji-san said I could swing by later and pick it up," Naomi answered, "he didn't mind holding onto it for me."

Sugoroku hadn't minded doing so, even if Naomi felt like she was being a burden. She wasn't used to such kindness anymore. Anyone who was kind to her had to be treated like they wanted something. Sugoroku didn't. He was just treating his grandson's friend as though she was another grandchild of his. She pulled herself out of her thoughts and saw their last member waiting for them at a bus stop.

"Oh, he's sweating hard," Naomi commented, looking at Honda as he joined them.

"Shut up!" Honda snapped, his face a bright red before deepening as Jounouchi grinned at him.

"You have three different ways to give Nosaka-San the gift," Jounouchi informed him, "give it to her directly, mail it to her, or sneak it into her desk."

"Her desk," Honda immediately stated.

"That's as fast as possible," Naomi muttered.

The walk to school hadn't taken them that long, in fact that were some of the first students there. Honda couldn't stop fidgeting and Naomi shot him a look before setting her stuff on her desk. It would be best if she acted like they had just arrived at school together and nothing else. She wondered why she had wanted to be pulled into this insanity. Jounouchi saw her slowly distancing herself from the group and wrapped an arm around her shoulders before pulling her back in.

"There, we did it," Jounouchi stated.

"If this goes well, it's hamburgers on me," Honda stated, wiping at his brow.

"Depends on how good of a letter you wrote and how much feeling you put into it," Naomi informed him, smacking at Jounouchi's arm until he released her, "seriously, stop dragging me places."

"It's too easy because you're so short," Jounouchi shrugged and he felt his blood run cold at the glare sent his way.

"It's normal for me to be short, I'm a girl," Naomi practically growled at him and Yugi rubbed the back of his head.

She was still taller than him! He hadn't hit his growth spurt like his Grandpa said he would. He coughed a little and she glanced at him. She stopped glaring and gained an apologetic glint to her eyes. They hurried to their desks when they heard people taking outside. Naomi grabbed a book from her bag and started to read it. Yugi read the title and tilted his head. Lord of the Rings? That big book was just a single story?

"How long is that book?" Yugi asked her and she blinked.

"Books, it's all three of them," she answered, tilting her head in thought and flipping to the back page, "it has over a thousand pages."

Yugi wondered if she would be able to finish it by the end of the week. The class slowly filled up and Anzu waved to her friends and got one in return from them. She watched as Naomi went back to her book and ignored the hushed whispers of her Fanclub. It had to be the hair, and she knew that Naomi would agree with her on that.

"She seems to be in a mood," Naomi whispered to Yugi as their home room teacher walked in.

"Everyone stand," Anzu called and they did so, "bow."

Chono preened under the forced respect as Anzu called for everyone to sit down again. She pushed her hair over her shoulder and inwardly glared at the students in front of her. Yes, this group would be the best to use to blow off some steam. She gave them a smile and Naomi's hackles raised. She had never trusted the woman.

"All right everyone, before we begin I would like your attention," Chono announced, "empty the contents of your desk and bag onto your desktop, it's inspection time."

"What?" The class erupted in noise and Chono sent them a look.

Naomi emptied her bag and desk contents onto her desktop as did the other students. A small drop of sweat started to go down her face as she glanced over at Miho and watched as she pulled out the present from Honda. She mentally cursed. She had forgotten that Chono had been dumped and was going to look for a way to punish the students. She looked back towards the woman and narrowed her eyes. She was going to be gunning for her, the back of her neck heating up when a few of the girls around her realized what had been in her bag.

"Are those…" A girl whispered to her friend.

"They are," the friend answered, "that means that Crawford-san is a girl."

Anzu winced when Naomi simply sighed and crossed her arms across her chest. There wasn't anything she could do about it. Her secret was out and she'd have to start wearing the girls uniform. She couldn't fight the annoyed expression on her face as her Fanclub decided it didn't matter. More power to them she supposed.

Chono looked at the students as some of them guiltily looked at their desks. She was so ecstatic at the ability to do this to them. She knew they were horrors outside of the school, some of them delinquents that even held jobs. She wanted to expose them, to make their peers turn their backs on them. She mentally cackled. Oh what would she find? Cigarettes? Lipstick? Or condoms? All items that were prohibited. Her eyes fell onto the glaring teenager and she locked in on them. She'd been wanting to expel the little brat for a while.

"Oh, what's this, Crawford-kun?" She asked, walking up to the pale-haired students desk.

"It's a pad," Naomi informed her, not allowing herself to be embarrassed by the woman, "I am a girl after all, I do need them every month."

"Then why are you out of uniform?" Chono pressed, and Naomi sighed.

She then shot the older woman the most unimpressed look she could muster and reached into her pile to find the rule book that had been given to her by the principal. She opened it to the dress code and gave it a quick search before turning it towards Chono.

"Tell me," she dryly stated, "where does it say that a girl can't wear a boy's uniform?"

"It's odd," Chono said, not allowing her smile to drop, "starting tomorrow you will start to wear the female uniform."

The underlying threat to her friends wasn't lost on her when Chono looked at Yugi and then Jounouchi. Naomi reluctantly nodded before tossing the book back onto the pile. Chono stalked away and studied the other piles. Naomi discreetly took out her phone and texted Fred, informing him of the fact that she now needed a couple girls' uniforms for school. He texted one name back after confirming that he would do so.

Chono?

Naomi looked to the side. Just how bad was she that even a god didn't like her? It was a bit ridiculous really. She took in a deep breath, and felt the binder constrict a little. That's what she got for sleeping in it. Her ribs were starting to hurt. She tugged on a few strands of her hair before closing her eyes. Well, she wouldn't have that problem tomorrow. To present as a girl at school was an oddly terrifying thought. How many people would reconsider her? How many would shun her? Yugi gently reached forward and pressed a hand to her shoulder. She opened her eyes and glanced back at him. His sweet smile told her that he didn't judge her at all. Ah, if only there were more Yugi's in the world.

And less hers.

"What's this, Nosaka-kun?" Chono sweetly asked and Naomi jolted in her seat.

"I…I don't know…" Miho softly admitted, "I found it in my desk…"

Chono ripped the present apart and Naomi narrowed her eyes. Jounouchi and Honda flinched at the sight. Chono was horrid as she laughed at what was inside the box. Naomi couldn't really read the pieces from there, but the slightly shaky kanji and hiragana informed her that Honda had been nervous about telling her his feelings. For once, she felt bad for him.

"Oh, a jigsaw puzzle?" Chono asked, giggling to herself. "How cute, if you put the pieces together you get a message."

Chono began to solve the puzzle. Yugi felt the air grow a little stuffy and looked towards Naomi. Her eyes were narrowed so much that he could barely see them. She was absolutely livid at the teacher. Her jaw was clenched and she had her arms in such a tight grip he was sure she would bruise. All to keep herself from snapping at Chono.

"What's this, 'my beloved ribbon, your yellow ribbon makes your brown hair shine like chocolate' what a cute message," Chono gleefully stated, enjoying the way said girl uncomfortably shifted in her seat. "Who gave this to her? It's in the school rules, underage dating is strictly prohibited! This puzzle is a date waiting to happen, now will the sender please stand up, I might forgive you if you confess."

"I sent it," Naomi stated, standing up with a cool expression on her face.

"No I wrote the message," Yugi said, standing up as well.

"It wasn't those two, I put it in her desk, teach," Jounouchi added, joining them.

Honda looked at them in surprise as did Miho. She looked towards the boy- no girl- that helped her in the library sometimes. Her violet eyes slowly met her own and she got an apologetic glint from them. Miho knew it wasn't her, but someone else. She looked at the two boys and wondered which one of them it truly was. She watched as a fourth person stood up, a bright blush on his face. It had been that one, she was sure of it.

"Thanks guys, but that's enough," Honda stated and the three turned to look at him, "it's my message in that puzzle!"

"Why are there four of you?" Chono asked, looking at them with a strained, saccharine smile, "Only one of you is guilty, someone is lying."

"None of us are lying," Jounouchi stated as Yugi felt his face heat up when girls around them muttered.

"Is that so?" Chono stated in a singsong voice. "I just need to finish the puzzle and these last four pieces will reveal the guilty party's name, and when I find out who it was, they're expelled."

She began to count as she put the pieces together. Naomi wasn't close enough, or magically strong enough, to change the name on the puzzle pieces. To muddle them so she wouldn't be able to read it. She felt sweat gathering on the back of her neck as Honda looked down in defeat when the second piece went in. He was glad that the three of them were his friends.

Naomi stilled as shadows filled the room, brushing against her cheeks and making her feel sick to her stomach. She clenched her jaw a bit as cold air followed the shadows. The pharaoh had switched with Yugi. She looked back and saw that he was glaring at Chono as well. He was starting up a spell, she could actually taste metal in the air from the nature of it.

"I have the name, the person being expelled is-" Chono trailed off as her face broke into puzzle pieces before falling off.

A scream rang out as the students backed away from the scary face she had. Even Naomi was startled by it and took a step back, the glare being sent her way made her a little nervous. She hadn't even done anything. She was a light user, to use the kind of magic that did that would make her pass out. She hadn't recovered fully from her use of shadow magic! A hand against her arm made her flinch in surprise. The pharaoh was giving her a look before swiftly changing with Yugi.

"This class never happened! If you reveal my secret, I'll get you all!" Chono informed them before rushing out of the classroom, covering her face with a hand.

"Did you see her face?" Honda asked Jounouchi as he came to stand next to the three.

"Yeah, but man was that close," Jounouchi sighed in relief.

"Did I…" Yugi murmured to himself and Naomi sent him a confused look.

Oh right, the pharaoh left him without any memories of what happened when they first started switching. She felt bad for Yugi before slowly turning her gaze on Honda. She needed him to step up and get over this silly crush. Miho deserved that much. He gulped slightly at the intense look sent his way.

"Confess to her, you dolt."

That was how Honda Hiroto found himself confessing his feelings to Nosaka Miho after school, only to be turned down and how he ended up at burger world with his head on the table as tears went down his face. Naomi wondered if she had been too harsh with him. She picked up her soda and decided she hadn't. Matters of the heart were difficult to begin with, it was how a person responded that mattered.

"So cold," Jounouchi informed her.

"Not really, he did what was right," Naomi shrugged, "it doesn't always have a positive outcome, but he's more prepared for the future."

"N-Naomi-chan," Honda stated, looking up at her.

The face she made at being called 'chan' by someone other than Sugoroku had Jounouchi cackling. Honda soon joined in before Yugi had to look the other way as she glanced at him. He saw a car outside with Fred sitting next to it. The guard had a book in his hands and was waiting for her. He felt… sad at the fact that she would be heading home soon.

"Are you going to wear the female uniform now?" Honda asked Naomi, at ease with how her words lost their bite towards them.

"I'll have to," she sighed, frowning a bit, "Chono-sensei might've lost face today, but she'll make sure the principal knows. It's better to be ousted as a girl than to be expelled, I wouldn't want to explain to my brother why I was expelled. He wouldn't be too happy if it was because of a uniform infraction."

"Doesn't your brother run a company?" Jounouchi asked.

"He likes to check in on me," Naomi shrugged, "that's what older brothers do, yeah?"

Jounouchi gained a guilty look and made the mental note to check in on his own little sister. Naomi was right, that is what brothers did. He picked up a fry from their shared basket and downed it before sipping at his soda. Damn, he'd been a shit brother. He hadn't enjoyed that being shown in his face.

"Naomi-chan will look cute in the uniform," Yugi assured his friend and he watched as she blanched before turning a bright pink.

"I need to get going, see you guys tomorrow!" She stated, quickly making her escape before anyone else could attach a 'chan' onto her name.

The three boys chuckled as she dashed out of the restaurant. It made sense that she would be like that. She was used to being seen as a boy, and not cute. The people who thought she was cute were people she didn't really know. Yugi gave a small smile. She really was sweet.

"I hate the uniform," Naomi stated as she looked at the pink and blue monstrosity next to her in the car.

"Wear a purple undershirt," Fred shrugged, "the boys wear regular shirts under their uniforms, and your dress code doesn't say anything about under clothes, just the blazer and skirt."

"If I get expelled, I'm sending Pegasus your way," she warned Fred.

Only to get a snort out of him.

He watched as she stomped into her home with a glare on her face. The longer she was around her friends the more she acted her age. The teen angst was hilarious to see from her. She slammed the door to her room shut and he laughed in amusement.

"Reign in your temper."

The soft voice made Naomi's shoulder drop a bit. The black magician, or rather Mahad as he wanted to be called, had begun to move more. He was teaching her magic of all things. She ran a hand through her hair and moved to sit at her desk so they could begin their lesson for the day. Bast got a gentle scratch behind the ears as she passed by.

"What's today's lesson, Mahad-Shishou?" She asked and he gave her a thoughtful look.

"A shield," he answered, "you already know how to make a mage light, so we'll move onto the next step in practical magic."

Naomi nodded before listening to his instructions on how to craft a shield. Her face was stuck in a frown at one part. He was slightly amused by that. His newest student was quite intelligent, easily picking up on his lessons. Yet, even she got stumped.

"Any sized shield would work?" She asked in disbelief. "Even a rondache?"

"Yes," he confirmed, though he would have to have her elaborate on what a rondache was.

"It's a medium round shield made from wood and metal," she explained, "it was popular well after your time."

"Ah, there are no books here on history," he informed her and she gained a thoughtful expression.

"Could I set up a book in front of your portrait?" She asked, and his brows raised. "With the portrait seemingly active completely, you should be able to use minuscule amounts of magic to turn the pages."

"That would be easy to accomplish," Mahad stated with a nod, "but it would also be easier for you to shrink my portrait down to carry with you at all times."

"I could also carry your card around," she dryly stated, looking over her desk to find the envelope from her brother, "Pegasus finally made it."

"It's uncanny," Mahad said, studying his own card, "no comment this time?"

"I mainly said it to mess with you and my brother," she shrugged, chuckling at his expression, "don't worry, you're very easy on the eyes."

"I believe that my pharaoh comes first in yours," he informed her and watched as her shoulders tensed, "you carry the mark of his magic, it was difficult to figure out."

"Am I getting the older brother talk from you, Shishou?" She asked, amused.

"Don't hurt him."

Magda watched as her mouth opened before she closed it. He knew he was asking the impossible from her, but he needed that certainty that she would look after him to the best of her abilities. A small nod was her answer. He closed his eyes for a few seconds. His student was going to fall apart when it was all over, he just knew it.

"I'll be fine," she stated, making him open his eyes, "be more worried about him when he comes back to you…can you promise me you'll take care of him?"

Mahad flinched at her question before nodding. He would. He would always look after his pharaoh, his oldest friend. A smile appeared on her face. This one showed her true emotions. Sadness, yet relief. She then tilted her head to the side.

"Then let's begin," she stated, "I'll carry your card around so you can learn more about the world and we can both keep an eye out for him."

He would shake her hand on that if he could. What kind of teacher was he when he couldn't even make a deal with his student. She gave him a thoughtful look before holding a closed fist to his portrait. The knuckles touching the canvas made a shiver go through his body. He frowned in confusion.

"We modern Americans call it a fist bump," she explained, "we can't shake hands, but we can fist bump."

His own closed fist hit the barrier that separated him from the world of the living. Her eyes gained a light and he saw them lighten a bit. Ah, so they weren't supposed to be that dark of a purple. No wonder others couldn't figure out she was a light mage. She hid it well. He brought his fist back and she did the same.

"Then craft your shield," he instructed and she smiled.

"Of course, Shishou."