It happened quickly. The tail end of the train ride grew rapidly more and more agonizing by the second. By the time he left the station, he was short of breath.

"Bakura, it's hurting you," Hikari said, alarmed. Bakura's hands were darkening slowly, creeping over with shadows. The strain made his eyes water.

"I'm fine," Bakura ground out. He held up his head and squared his shoulders. He passed the glass of a darkly tinted window. His reflection showed red, slit-pupil eyes.

Bakura walked faster. He lowered his head a bit, keeping his gaze fixed on the ground. He hadn't even noticed the severance of magic to his eyes. The worst part was that, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring it back.

It was like the pool of magic was running dry. He gasped and clutched at his chest as the pain ripped through him. He took off a bit faster. The house wasn't so far away. Only ten minutes. He could definitely make it that far.

"Bakura, the sigils," Hikari warned. Bakura couldn't afford to spare the glance, but it didn't stop him from seeing the edges of the paper beginning to decay. Shadows whispered along the edges.

"We're so close," Bakura panted. "We can make it." He winced. The mark felt like fire on his chest. Except when he brushed his fingers against it, the sign of the shadows was colder than salted ice. It burned the tips of his fingers. "Ah, shit."

"Let me go," Hikari said. "I'll be fine, just let me go!"

"We can make it," Bakura replied. "I'm stronger than I look." His hands ached. A migraine began to pound behind his temples. Every glancing beam of light, reflected off windows and metal and other such things, seemed blindingly, painfully bright. "I can make it. I can make it."

He wasn't talking to Hikari anymore.

"Bakura, it'll be fine. You're hurting yourself."

"House, right, there," Bakura panted. The neighborhood crept by at a snail's pace. Every step proved harder than the last. "Not weak."

"I never said you were!" Hikari was spinning rapidly now, trying to free himself. "Bakura, Bakura!"

He tuned out the little soul. The porch was right there. It awaited, so close, like a desert oasis under the heat of a miserably dry sun. He could almost see the property's border like a shimmery black line.

"So close…" His feet slipped from under him and he hit the ground hard. He held the bottle in his fingers. The sigils were almost decayed. They were barely legible. Any second, the magical bindings would snap.

He crawled back up to his feet. 10 feet, six, four, one…

He gasped as he passed over the line, crashing hard onto the grass. The mark hurt so badly he wanted to scream. He bit his tongue.

The paper crumbled to dust and Bakura yanked the salt ring from the bottle. Hikari popped free from the top like a cork. A soft, silvery glow suffused over his skin. The recoiling snap struck him in the chest like a suckerpunch, and it was over. The endless drawing out of the darkness was severed.

"Bakura, your skin, it's all burnt," Hikari cried. The thicker-than-air tendrils fluttered softly over his skin, cold as snowfall. Bakura couldn't bring himself to move. He couldn't bear to open his eyes.

"Ugh," he managed. His tongue was thick and useless in his mouth, and it tasted metallic. Late afternoon sunlight stabbed painfully at his corneas. He lifted a hand. His flesh was smoking and charred, but returning to its original deathly pallor as he watched. "Gah. Shit."

He went limp in the grass.

"Eloquent," Hikari said. "You made it. Happy? That's a great way to kill yourself you idiot! What if the house was ten feet further? What if the train had been delayed? You should have let me go!"

Bakura started to laugh. He couldn't help it. It was deep and cold and humorless but damn if he couldn't stop. He had made it.

He'd pushed himself to the edge. This was where the line was drawn. And he'd made it, just like he'd said he would. "Hikari, I did it. I freaking did it."

Hikari still seemed upset and highly put out. "Congrats," he said stiffly, but the cold glow of his light seemed to soften even as he hovered above Bakura's head. Bakura grinned and forced himself up. It hurt so badly he had to pause.

Ugh. His mind slipped back to a time maybe four years ago, when an older kid on the street beat the shit out of him. Bakura had managed to find a great little score, enough food to last him the next week easy.

But this kid wanted it. To this day, Bakura didn't know his name. Not that it mattered. The kid took it all. Bakura fought back like any self respecting street rat. But he'd left his only knife in the hiding spot in case he got caught by police, so when the kid threw him to the ground, Bakura had nothing.

There are vivid memories that stand out beyond all passage of time.

A fist coming toward your face. A foot pounding endlessly, again and again into your sides as you cry out in pain and fury. The feeling when your body refuses to do what you want it to do, when you just want to stand up and destroy the life of some punk ass little twerp, but all you can muster is enough spit to piss him off and to dirty his fucking face.

This was what it felt like now. Not the fresh pain, but the humiliating ache that had lasted for weeks after. There had been no hospital trips for him. There wasn't anyone left.

When Bakura could finally walk without wincing, he was already on the move. Knife in hand, he found that kid. Made him pay. No one messed with him again after that, and Bakura never went anywhere again without a knife.

It was the same now. He'd shown the shadows what he could do. He knew what he could accomplish. And if he kept pushing himself, who knew where he'd end up? Bakura grinned.

After a few shuddering breaths, sitting up wasn't as painful as laughing had been.

"Next time, let's be a bit more careful, shall we?" Bakura said with a cough. Hikari didn't laugh. "Come on, let's head on inside."

Aunt Aiko wasn't in the living room anymore. The clock on the wall showed that it was nearly four o'clock, so they had been out and about for around five hours. Bakura didn't care where the woman was, as long as she wasn't pestering him about what he looked like.

His backpack felt infinitely heavier than when he dragged it downstairs this morning. Climbing the stairs left him short of breath once again. Hikari was darting around his head, concerned.

"Bakura, are you going to be okay? Do you need help?" he asked.

"I made it this far," he muttered. He left the backpack in the doorway of his bedroom and shuffled off toward the bathroom. He looked like hell warmed over.

His hair was an absolute mess with pieces of grass sticking out. His eyes were brilliant and red and entirely conspicuous. He looked even paler than before, a bit sickly and still a little crispy around the edges. And to make matters worse, the mark on his chest was glowing. Not just swirling over with darkness as it tended to do usually, but full on glowing through his shirt.

He twisted this way and that, eying the faint crimson glow peeking through the fabric. "You see this, right?" he asked.

Hikari nodded. "Yes. If you're worried about it, I don't think anyone who isn't shadowtouched can see it. However, if Yugi saw you…"

Bakura grimaced. "Lucky he's probably busy with that stupid game thing he's putting on."

"Game thing?" Hikari asked.

Bakura shrugged, pulling down the collar of his shirt to study the mark. It was still icy cold to the touch, but it didn't burn him on contact like the last time. "Yeah, Mouto made a big deal about how he wanted me to see his stupid game shop for some tournament."

"Are you going?" Hikari asked warily. He hovered near the mark, inches away from the skin. Bakura let the shirt slide back into place.

"Wasn't planning on it. Certainly won't go if I look like this. No sense painting a target on my back for no reason. Plus, it seemed really suspicious in my opinion. Might be a trap, and I don't feel like making any more poor life choices today."

Hikari gave him a dirty look. "Don't pretend you're sorry you did it, you smug idiot."

Bakura grinned unrepentantly. "And another thing, I don't have time for games. I go there, and I'll want to play them. I start to play them, I lose track of time. I lose track of time, and then when am I gonna figure you out?"

Hikari fluttered appreciatively. "Well, I mean…" he said, looking elsewhere. "Still, what if you can use it to find out something about him? I agree, there's no reason to take unnecessary risks, but…"

"I'm not going. Plus, just imagine how pissed he'll be when I don't show up," Bakura added gleefully. "It'll be hilarious."

"You're so mean, Bakura," Hikari said. "And you still look terrible. If you were smart, you'd take a shower and do a cleansing ritual as soon as possible, before your aunt sees you."

Bakura considered it for all of a half second before sighing. "Yeah, you're probably right." He stripped the shirt off and grabbed a towel from the closet. "I must reek of shadow magic right now."

Hikari nodded grimly. "It's… certainly potent, yes."

Bakura cracked his neck. It gave with a series of sharp pops. "Damn, I hope Naraki doesn't push me too hard tonight."

"Another hour, I think," Naraki said, leaving the kitchen area.

"Fuuuck," Bakura groaned.

The smell of the brewing potion was noxious. It was hard enough holding the dumbbells aloft with just the shadows. It was doubly hard when he was exhausted still from earlier, and having to breath in carcinogenic fumes from Naraki's attempts at making whatever it was he was making in there.

"I don't know why you're struggling with this so much," Naraki said. "You haven't been working outside of class, have you?"

Bakura grinned. "What, me? You know I don't do homework."

Naraki let out a shallow bark of laughter. "True enough. Just keep that up." He turned his back to Bakura, thumbing through the pages of an old yellowed tome.

Bakura's attention pricked. "What was that?" he asked suddenly.

Naraki sneered. "Don't think you can distract me, boy. I don't care how hard it is. This is a great way to make you stronger."

Bakura heard it again: a distant rattling noise somewhere below them. The knocking grew louder. Suddenly, the air was pierced by a large crashing sound. Naraki swore colorfully and sprinted for the basement door, the one Bakura wasn't allowed to touch.

"Don't move," Naraki ordered.

The door opened at Naraki's gesture and Bakura's teacher vanished into the gloom of the downstairs area. Bakura glared at the dumbbells that hovered in the air. He would have killed to know what that sound was. He contemplated dropping them, but in seconds, Naraki returned.

His normally professional-looking professor was ruffled and suddenly haggard, sweating and panting. "Ah, yes, ahaha, all taken care of," he said, looking rather flustered. "Little piece of…" He trailed off into vague mutterings.

Bakura watched as Naraki sealed the door back up with a prolonged gesture and a snap of his fingers.

"What was that?" Bakura asked.

"Just an experiment," Naraki said dismissively. He wasn't looking at Bakura, but had instead turned his attentions back to the weathered book. "Ahem. Anyway."

He consulted a pocket watch he had tucked away. A spasm of irritation flickered over his face.

"Damn stubborn little…"

"Something wrong?" Bakura asked innocently. Naraki had seemed on edge for most of the night, but it wasn't until just now that he seemed remotely inclined to share with the class. He was pissed, and it was showing.

Naraki scowled. "Go ahead, put that down." Bakura let the dumbbell hit the floor without hesitation. "There's been someone wandering the edges of my territory for a while. Last thing I need really, with my experiments where they are at the moment, but…"

"Do you mean Yugi?" Bakura asked. He sent a contemptuous look at the weights and wrinkled his nose. It smelled like decay and fresh cut grass in the room, and the mixture was altogether unpleasant.

Naraki didn't look up from the book. "No, someone else. Not sure yet who. They know they're in someone's territory, us Shadowmages have ways of showing our presence that the watchers don't know about. Ten to one they're sizing me up, seeing if this place is worth challenging me for it."

"What do they want it for?" Bakura asked.

"Safe place to work, private, away from watchers and other mages. Lots of people around to blend in with. Big cities are easier to blend into than small towns, as you might imagine."

Bakura nodded. It was as though there was something else that Naraki hadn't mentioned yet, and didn't seem inclined to share. But Bakura couldn't tell what it was, so he hummed.

"Right, so what do you do about it?"

Naraki finally looked up, a malicious grin on his face. "We scare them away, of course. Show them it isn't worth the trouble."

"Protect your territory," Bakura clarified, and Naraki laughed coldly.

"Care to watch?"

But Naraki didn't even need to ask. They both already knew the answer to that question.

They slipped into the lengthening shadows of the evening. Sunset drew closer, and the city was stained orange. Bakura followed the winding fractures in the pavement.

Naraki moved with purpose.

"Where are we headed?" Bakura asked. The houses fell away behind them, shifting into the city proper. They boarded a train and still Naraki was silent.

His teacher checked the small pocket watch again. It seemed a bit out of place in his possession, until Bakura realized the truth. Instead of a normal timepiece, its face showed a mishmash of glowing symbols and swirling darkness. A few of the runes looked vaguely familiar, but Naraki snapped the timepiece shut before Bakura could identify any.

"We're going to one of the markers. There's one near the school. That's where we're headed to now. Any luck and we'll catch them while they're still loitering around."

Bakura narrowed his eyes. Naraki seemed more overconfident than usual. Questions still burned in the back of his mind.

"What's the difference between them and me?" Bakura asked. "Why didn't you just kick me out?"

Naraki gave him a bored look. "Now you ask this? It's common sense, kid. Power level, attitude, and ignorance. You're not gonna fight me. Hell, you still couldn't fight your way out of a paper bag."

Bakura glared, then swallowed it back. Naraki was lying. There was something else to it, he could tell, but Naraki wasn't inclined to share yet.

He wasn't going to call Naraki out on it yet, though. There was still so much he didn't know. Much better to grin, he quickly decided. "Look at that. Charmed my way into magic school. Won't mummy be proud."

Naraki smirked. "There you go." He didn't even seem to notice his slip.

The train rocked slightly, like a ship on gentle waves. It was almost empty at this hour, and the sleepy passengers around them seemed out of it.

Naraki noticed Bakura's gaze and laughed quietly. "Look at them. Humanity. Reduced to this from just a small dose of shadows."

"You're doing this?" Bakura said, shocked. Naraki laughed.

"I'll show you how to do it next week, how about that?" Naraki said. He was grinning.

Bakura nodded. "Sounds good."

They departed from the train soon after. People blinked as they left, raising their heads and rubbing at their eyes like they were waking from a dream.

The school was only a short, brisk walk away.

"It took years to figure these sensors out," Naraki said as they finished the last leg of the journey. "They aren't the most effective or sensitive things in the world, and they only pick up humans, but they're better than a kick in the ass."

Beside the old oak tree in front of the gate, a lone figure stood, twirling a ragged string of darkness through her fingers. It grew lighter and brighter the closer they got.

It was a trace of the shadows, except instead of black, the fluttering ribbons were a poisonous shade of violet. In the light of a nearby street lamp, Bakura could just barely make out that this color was the same as the woman's eyes.

The lamplight flickered threateningly.

"So you're the one who left these here," she said. She flicked the flag-like ribbons away, and they vanished from sight.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't pull up my marks," Naraki said easily. He flashed a smile at the blonde-haired woman, but there was no warmth in the expression. It was cold like ice.

"You mean these?" the woman asked, opening her hands. More of the ribbons spilled to the ground and vanished on contact with the pavement.

Naraki ground his teeth. "Watch closely, Kurokawa-kun." Darkness flared in his hands, shooting up like black flames through his fingers. "This is a valuable learning lesson."

"Oh look, you've got yourself a pet," the woman said, looking at Bakura for the first time.

Bakura eyed her back. She certainly cut an impressive figure, tall and thin and rather busty at that. It didn't hurt that she was also attractive.

"Hey, kid, want to learn how to use real power? Drop that poser and join me. I've always wanted a little pet." She sounded overconfident and just slightly amused. "The name's Mai by the way. Mai Valentine."

"Nah," Bakura replied. "Got it pretty comfortable here."

Naraki grinned. "See? My territory, my apprentice. And you're not welcome here."

"For now, maybe. But I think things may change by morning." She narrowed her eyes and flicked her fingers through the air, tracing out a sigil.

The lines hung heavily in the air, black and flickering through with more of the violet. A flash of light tore the character apart, and it was quickly washed over with a wave of darkness that seemed to unzip into a roughly oblong structure as Bakura watched.

Claws reached out from inside the darkness, grasping the jagged edges of the black oval between them. Mai began to smirk. A head slowly emerged through the doorway.

The doorway was small, maybe only two feet tall and one foot wide, but the thing that crawled out seemed much larger. First a woman's head, then a body crested in feathers.

The colors rippled like the darkness and then grew vibrant and bright. It stood upright on the ground, fierce and proud, easily as tall as Mai.

It raised its clawed hands in the air. Wings connected to each over-long arm. It looked like a beautiful woman, but when it opened its mouth, it let out a horrible screech. Shivers rocketed down Bakura's spine in spite of himself.

But Naraki only laughed. The fire in his palms grew larger, crackling and snapping outward.

"Aren't you going to summon a fighter?" Mai asked innocently. He shook his head, grinning. She smirked, cold and cruel. "Good. Just don't feel bad when my harpy tears you to shreds!"

She looked at Bakura one last time.

"You've still got a chance to join me, kid." Bakura hesitated, but crossed his arms and shook his head. No, Naraki was pretty confident in himself. Surely he wouldn't lose…

Could Bakura get away if he did? Naraki insisted that Bakura would be torn to shreds by another of their own kind. His teacher might not know the extent of Bakura's true power, but even still.

Bakura wasn't given much choice. In the blink of an eye, Mai raised her arm and pointed to Naraki. "Attack, Harpy Lady!"

The harpy screeched so loudly that Bakura covered his ears. But Naraki roared back. A twitch of his hands cloaked him in massive tongues of that churning black fire. The sight of it stung Bakura's memory, creeping down his spine.

Bakura shivered in spite of the warm night. His body was struck immobile by the sight, everything happening as if in slow motion. Black fire. He'd seen something like it before. Bile rose on his tongue.

The fire, burning, screaming, deafening in his ears. So much agony. Someone yelling his name. Blood painting the walls of a ramshackle house. Brimstone stench like hell itself.

Bakura shook himself. No! He was in Domino, he was alive! He blinked the phantasmagoria away.

Naraki bull rushed toward the harpy, dodging past her swiping claws. He grabbed her by the neck, capturing her in the fire and then burning her with a flare of the darkness. The harpy screamed. Flames reached ten, twenty feet high before receding as quickly as it started. The harpy's body hit the ground with a dull crunch.

Mai gasped, clutching at her chest. Naraki strode forward. He was still on fire, the tips of his hair crackling, his footsteps deafening in the sudden silence left by the cutoff of harpy screams.

He stared dispassionately down at her. "I'd appreciate it if you left my markers alone," he said.

"Have mercy," she gasped. Blood dribbled past her lips, staining her teeth and chin red. "Please, I'll leave-"

"And then return later when I'm not expecting it, I know the drill," Naraki said. He placed a hand on her head. "So here's a warning. Don't come back." A shrill scream split the night. Fire roared through her.

She slumped to the ground and did not stir. Her eyes were open but lifeless. The fire finally flickered out. Bakura took a few measured steps closer.

"Is she dead?"

"No," Naraki said. "But she'll be like that for a while."

He looked back at where the harpy had fallen. In the span of seconds, the creature had begun to decompose, feathers decaying into crumbling ash. The wind carried it away like dust.

"Most shadowmages use avatars to fight for them. Usually demons, or the like. Sometimes they're just entities of the shadows. Most of them don't like to dirty their own hands."

"You're teaching now?" Bakura said.

Naraki wore a grin as he kicked the pile of dust. "No better time than now." He stooped down beside Mai, placing his fingers on her throat. After a moment, he nodded, grabbed her by the back of the jacket, and dragged her to the bushes. "Might be a problem if she's still laying here when class starts tomorrow."

He wasn't wrong. Bakura helped him arrange the branches back into place. Naraki stood up with a groan.

"I'm getting too old for this," he grumbled. "Still. Most shadowmages use avatars, so they don't really expect to face someone who doesn't. Knowing how to do both is a valuable asset indeed. Taking them head on may just surprise one of them enough to give you the edge you need."

Bakura nodded. "Sure, but are you going to teach me either of those things?"

Naraki gave him a cheeky look. "You can't even hold those weights up. Get stronger, and then we'll talk." Bakura scoffed under his breath. Naraki checked his watch. "It's getting late. Head on home, Kurokawa-kun. I'll walk with you to the train."

"Still, it's interesting to see how shadowmages self-govern like that," Bakura said.

Hikari hovered closer. His featherlight touch was cool on Bakura's shoulder. "Naraki just left her there? Will she be alright?"

"She attacked him," Bakura said. He reclined back on his bed. He'd already retrieved one of the old books from the cabinet in the attic, and he thumbed it open to a random page. "She got what was coming to her. But Naraki said she'd live, so she should be okay. Wonder what he did to her…" Bakura mused.

"You said Naraki tried to teach you while you were there. Didn't he show you how to do these things?" Hikari asked. "Not that I approve, but… defending yourself is important too." His tendrils curled faintly.

Bakura scoffed to himself. "Yeah right, like Naraki would ever teach me anything useful when I wanted to learn it. It's always 'next week, Kurokawa-kun' when I ask."

Hikari was quiet, and Bakura leveled him with a look.

"Yeah, I'm thinking it too," Bakura said. "Something about Naraki is… weird. I don't know if he's just a bad teacher or what, but…"

"It seems like he's hiding something from you?" Hikari said. His color darkened. "I've been thinking it for a while, but I wasn't going to say it. You would have thought I worry too much."

Bakura chuckled. "You do worry too much. But if it keeps me alive then… Maybe I don't really mind so much." He smiled, maybe a little more earnestly. Hikari glowed.

It was strange. Bakura actually meant it. Usually when he said stupid things like that to someone, it was a trick to manipulate them into working with him for a while.

People were so gullible. Make them think you like them back the way they like you, that they're oh so useful… Usually they were just an annoyance that served a temporary purpose.

Hikari was a ghostly little wisp though, not a person per se. He really did depend on Bakura for any sort of companionship. He needed Bakura. That kind of weakness usually pissed Bakura off.

But Hikari was different somehow. Something genuine without being cheesy. Bakura did like Hikari, and maybe he did like Hikari's constant struggle to keep him alive. It was entertaining.

Hikari drifted closer still, shedding bright light over the pages. "Please, just be careful, Bakura. Shadows are dangerous, regardless of who's using them. And strangers are an unknown element we can't afford."

"True," Bakura agreed. "Strangers are definitely a bad thing."

At school the next day, the rumors were back at it once more. Bakura overheard the drama as he walked to his classroom.

It would seem that one of the coma patients had died last night, the first one in the string of suspicious patients. It was more than just brain dead. It was as though their body had simply stopped functioning. Even life support didn't seem to help.

Now, in the wake of the death, some of the other victims' families were now considering taking their loved ones off life support. The outlook seemed more bleak.

In the classroom, Yugi was already hunched over his desk. His brow was furrowed, and he scribbled on a map with an agitated look on his face. Bakura gave it a sideways look as he sat down, trying to disguise his interest.

There were several spots indicated on the map, one of them near the school. Several others were scattered throughout Domino City. Bakura even noticed a dot near where Naraki and he would practice.

Bakura thought back to last night. Hadn't Naraki mentioned that he'd put markers down all throughout Domino? Yugi was a shadowwatcher, he was trying to pin Naraki down anyway. How unreasonable was it that Yugi had found them?

Bakura busied himself with a few papers until Naraki arrived. When he saw his chance, he pulled the teacher aside, using an old homework assignment as cover. Yugi didn't even glance up.

"Yugi may have found your markers," he said quietly. "He's drawing marks on that map on his desk." Bakura listed a couple of spots that he could remember off the top of his head.

Naraki's face purpled. He bit his tongue, holding back a vicious glare at Yugi. He turned his back to the classroom so that only Bakura could see his furious expression. "Damn, he's closing in," he growled under his breath. Then he smiled. "Ahaha, but at least Miss Valentine so kindly picked them all up for me. And she thought she was being a pain."

The ribbons spilling to the ground… Mai had grabbed all those from around town.

"Still, if he knows where the markers were, he may be able to figure out who placed them there in the first place. I need to get rid of that brat, and soon. But how…?" Naraki mused.

He turned back and looked at his classroom. "Take a seat, Kurokawa-kun. Class will be starting soon."

Bakura picked his way past his other classmates. Most of them were half asleep. A few played on their phones before class started. He took his seat.

Finally, Yugi looked up, casually brushing papers over the map. He pouted. "You didn't come to my tournament," he said.

"I had to do some shopping. Couldn't find the time," Bakura lied easily.

Yugi made a disappointed noise. "Awww, but you said you'd try!"

Bakura made a face. "Are you sulking right now?" Yugi shook his head, but Bakura knew he was right. "Come on, you're in high school. Get it together, man."

Yugi shrugged, his lower lip still jutting out. "Well, it was really popular. Grandpa said it was the best turnout he'd ever seen. We're going to put on another one next month. Think you could make it then?"

"Don't know," Bakura said airily. "Hard to say so far out. But I'm going to hazard a guess and say 'no'."

Yugi groaned. "You're so mean, Kurokawa."

"Never said I was nice," Bakura replied, settling himself comfortably in his desk. "Be glad I'm not meaner."

But it would be silly to really try and ruin Yugi's life. The last thing he wanted was to be on Yugi's bad side when the kid held his future in his hands. With that demon lurking around somewhere, who knew what Yugi did and didn't know? Bakura didn't have a death wish. Not yet, anyway.

Bakura pursed his lips, glaring down at the surface of his desk. He needed to know more about demons.

Naraki said that most shadow users had demons or avatars serving them. That would explain why Yugi had a demon in the first place. But it didn't explain the reasons why they would have them, or what benefits they could provide for shadow users.

Yugi was snooping around. Gathering proof, or evidence, or something. What it was or why, Bakura wasn't sure. But it wouldn't do for Bakura to attract attention to himself either.

There was another question that was bugging Bakura as well, an itch at the back of his mind that had lurked there for a while.

Bakura waited until all of the students left the classroom. It took a while, their chattering dragging on long past when Bakura could cover his slow, deliberate packing of supplies.

"Hey, teacher," Bakura called out. He shouldered his bag. Naraki eased back in his chair, twining his fingers into a steeple. He was listening. "How do you cover your tracks?"

"I told you, we have ways of hiding from the shadowwatchers. There's a few techniques for masking your presence. You already disguise your eyes and cleanse your magic, which are the first steps. What more do you want to know?" Naraki asked.

"Yugi doesn't know where we practice. How come? Surely all of that magic in there is like a beacon or something."

"Oh, it is," Naraki said wryly. "Demons are like bloodhounds when it comes to the shadows. Which is why I put up wards. They're covered up by wallpaper and rugs, but they're definitely there. It keeps everything contained.

"That's why you shouldn't practice magic anywhere except where I've put up wards. Don't want those damn watcher dogs tracking this back to us, do you?"

Bakura made a face. "No, can't say I do. Maybe I could put some up on my place, though-"

"No," Naraki said sharply. "There's too much that could go wrong, and too much time spent outside of the wards. Best not to mess with that until we can get rid of Yugi."

"But if we get rid of him, then what's the point?" Bakura asked.

Naraki drew up short, scowling. "Don't question me. There's a method to my madness."

Bakura readjusted his bag. He wouldn't be getting anything more out of Naraki today. And if he didn't back off now, he could make things harder in the future.

"Ok," he said easily. He turned around and headed out. He could feel Naraki's glare following him out the door.

He rode the train home and walked quickly back through his neighborhood. His aunt was making dinner. He tiptoed up the stairs before she could notice him.

"Bakura, you're home!" Hikari greeted. His tendrils were arranged in a way that always somehow reminded him of a smile. Maybe it was Hikari's way of smiling.

"Yo, wisp," Bakura replied with a two finger wave.

"Anything exciting happen today?" Hikari asked.

Bakura rolled his eyes. "Ugh, like you wouldn't believe," he groaned. He flopped back into his desk chair. "Where do I start? Ok, so first of all my classmates are the most annoying-"

He spent a while droning on, complaining about how annoying his day had been. Eventually he got around to complaining about Yugi and Naraki and the tedium of shadow magic.

"By the way," Bakura added, "how much do you know about demons?"

Hikari shrugged. "They're not good to mess around with. I don't remember specific examples, but I know they're tricky."

"How powerful are they?" Bakura asked. "What can they do?"

Hikari bobbed back and forth, considering. "Well, different ones have different powers. Amaimonettes, Pucks, and other such demons are common. They don't generally have their own names, but they're fairly weak. Named demons usually come from one of the circles of hell and are much stronger. Ever read Dante's Inferno?"

Bakura gave him a look. "Do I look like the kind of person who's read that?"

"Just suggesting it," Hikari said. "In the book, Dante is guided by Virgil through the circles of hell, each one designated to a different sin and ruled by various demons whose duty it was to tempt, punish and bring about suffering in those that deserved it, their punishments relating to their crimes."

"So how many circles were there?" Bakura asked.

Hikari flickered hesitantly. "Nine concentric circles, each one worse than the last. Limbo, for the virtuous non believers; the second, for those who were overcome by lust; the third, gluttons; the fourth, greed; fifth, wrath. Then on is the city of Dis, guarded by fallen angels and containing the final circles: six, heresy; seven, violence; eight, fraud; and nine being treachery."

Bakura hummed, sitting back in his chair as he considered all of this. "So. Hell is real?" he asked.

Hikari shrugged. "Dante said it was. All I know is that the demons, at the very least, group themselves according to those nine circles. It could be the true organization of hell, their own personal hierarchy, or simply different breeds of demons entirely for each circle. They like our confusion and strife, so they don't usually tell humans what they do with our souls beyond making midnight snacks out of us."

Bakura grinned. "And sometimes they serve us? Seems a bit odd, doesn't it?"

Hikari shivered in the air. His color began to mottle. "They have their own reasons I suppose. Doesn't everyone?"

"Fair enough," Bakura said. He kicked back in his chair, leaning precariously on two chair legs. "Wonder what Naraki's deal is. And what he's got in that basement of his."

"Probably something similar to your attic, surely. What else could it be?" Hikari said.

Bakura chuckled under his breath. "You're the expert here. You tell me, Professor Inferno. Are we talking a dusty old broom closet full of the same kind of books that are in that cabinet upstairs? Or is this full on mad scientist laboratory?"

"Why don't you just look? Surely he's shown you all of his sanctum by now."

"Yeah right," Bakura scoffed. "If I so much as look at that door, he loses it. I mean, I could try to break in, but he probably has it all warded up-" Bakura broke off.

The gears were turning now. If Naraki wouldn't show him the basement, he could always just sneak in… Naraki didn't have to know.

"Bakura…?" Hikari asked.

"He told me he's got the place hidden and protected," Bakura said. "But I'm pretty good at sneaking into places I shouldn't, and you know a lot about magic sometimes… If I brought you there, do you think you could identify his security measures?" He rubbed his hands together. "I really want to see what's down there."

"Breaking in? That sounds illegal…" Hikari said hesitantly.

Bakura patted Hikari on the head, his hand passing right through each time. It was like bathing his palm in ice water. "There there, we're allowed inside the house, we're just sneaking into the basement. Taking a look is all. Consider it a preemptive measure so I know what to expect."

Hikari was quiet for a while. The shifting brightness and hue betrayed his whirling mind. "I probably could. But when would we do it? I'm assuming you don't want Naraki seeing you as you do this?"

Bakura grinned. "When? During school of course."

Next chapter should be up in a matter of days, it just needs to be edited. Apologies for the delay on this chapter. Life is super busy right now, and I've got a dozen different things all vying for my attention. Should be good soon. Thanks for the patience!