Ryou sat by the window, watching the mainland slowly grow on the horizon. After waking up, briefly visiting the KaibaCorp medics, and raiding the kitchen of the blimp for sustenance, he'd returned to his room alone. He needed to process what his friends had told him about the Battle City finals, about Yugi and Kaiba, about all of it. He sighed and leaned against the wall, wondering how much more time they had before the blimp landed.

A quiet knock on the door to his room made him straighten up and turn his head.

"Yes? Who is it?"

"Ishizu."

"Oh." The sound popped out of his mouth in surprise.

"May I come in?" she called.

"Yeah, sure."

The door slid aside for the woman as Ryou stood from his chair.

"How are you feeling, Ryou?" She looked at him with gentle concern creasing her elegant features.

"Better now that I've eaten." He rubbed the back of his head with an awkward laugh. "Who knew the Shadow Realm could make a person so hungry?"

"How is your arm?" Her gaze dropped to the bandages on his upper arm.

"Oh, it's alright. The doctors just changed the bandages. They say it should keep healing just fine as long as it doesn't get infected. It's not a big deal."

He was trying to play it all off as casually as he could. Trying to hide the true damage.

"You must be very brave."

"Huh?" Again, she had surprised him, and he blinked wide eyes at her.

Ishizu clasped her delicate hands together in front of her chest, sadness shadowing her gaze.

"I didn't even know that it was possible for a person's entire being to be sent to the Shadow Realm. I knew that it could take someone's soul, but their body too…" She sighed, air passing her lips with barely a sound. "I'm so sorry for what happened to you. If I had done my duty by Marik, none of this would have happened."

"You can't make yourself responsible for his decisions." Ryou smiled at her with sad understanding. He knew what it was like to blame yourself for another's misdeeds. "At the end of the day, you did your best. Nobody could ask you for more."

"Yes, but…" She looked away, closed her eyes, and sighed again. "I'm sorry. I didn't come here to talk about myself." She looked back at him, dropping her hands to the front of her dress. "I wanted to make sure that you're alright after the time spent in the Shadow Realm. That there aren't any physical side effects—besides the hunger of course."

"Honestly, I don't feel any different." He shrugged. "It was no worse than a nightmare, and now that I'm back, that's what it feels like."

"I see." Again, she looked troubled. "Do you have nightmares often?"

Ryou's attempted smile faded and he looked away. He walked over to his bed and sat on the edge, then patted the spot next to him. This wouldn't be a short answer.

Ishizu hesitated, then crossed the room to sit beside him, her proper posture a contrast to the slouching teen.

He placed his hands behind him and leaned back on his arms, giving him a view of Ishizu in profile.

"How much do you know about the Spirit of the Millennium Ring?"

"I'm aware that he's as ancient as the Pharaoh himself," Ishizu answered slowly. "I know that he's tied to a deeply evil entity, one that I don't fully understand." Before she even realized what she was doing, her hand was at her neck, reaching for the Necklace—but it was gone, in Yugi's possession by her own choice. She had become so accustomed to having it that it would take some time to adjust.

"Evil is a good word for him." Ryou braced himself; the Spirit was never an easy topic of discussion for him. "He's done a lot of terrible things, more than I ever want to know." His eyes drifted back to the small window. From here, he could only see the sky and the ocean, extending endless in every direction. "I never know what he's doing while he possesses me. But sometimes his memories come to me as dreams. My mind doesn't remember what happened, but my body knows."

"Fascinating," she murmured, then realized how insensitive that might have sounded. "I don't mean to discount the distress this must cause you," she added hurriedly.

He smiled faintly at her.

"I think it's fascinating too. I don't know how it all works, but I've been keeping notes. I want to understand it. Thinking about it academically makes it easier to handle, I think. I'm detached from it, even though I'm not. If that makes any sense."

He laughed again, quiet and unsure. He wasn't used to opening up about this. The Spirit was a sour subject that he avoided, and the one time he'd tried talking to Yugi like this, his friend had quickly become distraught.

"It does make sense. You look at things objectively to help you function in an otherwise upsetting situation."

Ishizu turned her head to face him, and something in her expression told him that she'd done the exact same thing with Marik.

"I'm glad that you understand." Ryou's face softened. "I worried that I was kinda strange for it."

"I don't think it's strange at all," Ishizu assured, her voice warming. "It's a survival tactic. We do what we must so we may keep moving forward."

"Yeah." Ryou's smile became more genuine. She really got it. He felt relieved. "You're not going back to Egypt right away, are you? When we get back to Domino, I mean."

"No. My exhibition at the Domino Museum will be on display for at least two more weeks. I will be traveling with the artifacts back to Egypt when the exhibition closes."

"I'd like to see your exhibit, and maybe we could share notes on the Shadow Magic?" Ryou lifted a hand to comb his fingers nervously through his own hair. "I'm sure you understand it a lot better than I do, and I probably got some things wrong."

Ishizu lifted her hand to place it on the center of her chest, bowing her head slightly.

"I would be honored for you to share your research with me."

Those kind words brought a full grin to Ryou's face, and he couldn't remember the last time he'd smiled like that.

Ishizu dropped her hand to her lap, smiling serenely back at him.

"I will be at the museum every day the exhibition remains open. Please, come by any time to see me."

"And maybe after we compare notes, we could… get something to eat?" Ryou asked, cheeks turning a faint shade of rose. Spending more time with Ishizu sounded really nice, and it could actually be relaxing, as long as they weren't interrupted.

Instinctively, his hand went to his chest to press the ring to his skin—but it was gone, in Yugi's possession by nobody's choice.

"I would enjoy that," Ishizu answered after watching his movements.

Relieved, he dropped his hand back to the surface of the bed and accidentally touched hers. He pulled away immediately, blushing more.

"S-Sorry," he stammered, unsure of what else to say.

"It's alright."

Ishizu stared back at him, patient, pleasant, curious. She didn't seem the slightest bit embarrassed, and maybe that made it easier for Ryou to push the feeling aside.

"Ryou."

"Yes?" He liked the way his name sounded in her softly accented voice.

"Do you like tea?"