A/N: A one shot. Congrats, I finally cracked away from my main story .O Pretty desperate.

Anywho, this picks off right as the Millennium World arc takes places. Yami Bakura - "Bakura" - decides to throw good Bakura - "Ryou" - in with the melting pot of chaos.

This is Ryou's story.

"Oh, why the hell not?" Yami Bakura laughed as he dragged Bakura into the Millennium World. Once they reached the fake skies of the game, he threw him down into the fake gravity.

The young boy fell and fell fast - his body unharmed as he fell into the busy street of Egypt. He looked up to the sky, bewildered. "Where.. where am I?" He did not get a reply. The former spirit that dwelled in his body somehow flew off and left him all alone.

Alone in the busy street of Egypt.

"Hey - move it, kid!"

"Watch out!"

"I'm walkin' here!"

"What the hell are you doing in the middle of the street?!"

The voices. So many voices. He was shell-shocked. How did he end up in Egypt?

"'Ey. You." A strange, yet somewhat familiar voice stuck out and brought him back to his senses. He looked in the direction he believed it came from.

No way...

A figure stood still as countless dirty civilians passed in front of him. He was tall, lean, and carried himself in an arrogant posture. "Yeah, you. Get out of the streets - you'll be trampled in seconds."

Speechless, Ryou continued to stare at the white-haired thief that stood before him. It wasn't because of all the gold draped around his arms and waist - it was those eyes. "I... know you."

"Look out!"

"Hey, kid!"

"Someone help!"

A speedy chariot with two horses were within feet of smashing poor Ryou into the ground.

"Ah!" he cried out, now realizing the doom that approached him with deadly force. Suddenly, He was pushed out of the way; tumbling into more dirt. The pain of the sudden twist of joints and the grains of sand clogging his lungs and watering his eyes was almost enough to make him cry.

But, someone held him. It was a comforting embrace - a certain warmth that he knew wasn't hostile or had ill intentions.

Arms wrapped around his side, he looked up at his savior.

Those eyes.

"Dammit, guy, what did I just tell you?"

Ryou wiped the sand out of his irritated eyes and blinked, once again confused. "Who are you?"

The thief sighed, "Not the brightest oaf, are ya'? Here; stand." He helped the boy up to his feet, dusting off his shoulders with a couple of swipes. "I'm just a lowly king."

"Thank you," he winced a bit, grabbing his own arm at the sore muscle, "I'm Ryou."

"Whatever. Just stay off the road, guy."

"Wait! Where are you going?" Ryou held out a hand to stop his savior from walking away.

"To the bar - where else?"

"Can I.. come with you?"

The thief paused, intrigued, but rather annoyed. He shrugged without turning around or slowing his pace. Ryou strugged to keep up with the gold-cladded man and follow him into the closest bar.

As soon as he sat down at an empty table, the thief threw out a gold bracelet on the table. "Here's your pay! Now bring me food! Lots of it." Ryou sat across from him, slightly awkward at the fellows that surrounded him at other tables. He could feel their peircing eyes sizing him up. His fears were temporarily interrupted by his company. "So tell me, why do you dress funny?"

"Huh? Oh. I don't know. This is just what I wear."

"Hmph. You still look funny." He shrugged it off and sulked with shifty eyes.

"Ahh!" Ryou screamed in horror, pointing just slightly above the head of the thief.

"What? What? Stop pointing!" He slapped his hand down with a stern look of disgust. "Oh. Him." He pointed behind him at what looked like to be a winged devil with a serpent's tail. "Diabound."

"D-d-diabound?" Ryou coward at the sight of the abomination, unsure if it was friendly, natural, real, or even a sick joke.

"Yeah. He's my Ka."

"Ka?"

"Pfft. You don't even know that? Where are you from, guy?"

Before Ryou could answer, Diabound left the side of his master and approached Ryou. "Gahhhh!"

"Stop screaming! No one else can see him - you look like an idiot."

"S-s-sorry. I've never.. he's not.. can't be.. what is.."

"Spit it out." He was getting more and more irritated.

Ryou could smell Diabound's foul breath as he got face-to-face with the boy. "Heh. Good little demon! Nice demon." Ryou tried to coo to it as he nervously patted him on the head a couple of times. Diabound took a liking to this and forged a smile. "Eh? What did you say to my Ka?"

"Aww! I think he likes me!" Ryou continued to pat Diabound on the head until finally withdrawing to scoot back a bit and observe the creature. "What is he? Your pet or something?"

"He's not my pet!"

"He's kind of cute if you look past the fangs and muscle." Ryou smiled for the first time since he got here.

"Ugh! Where's the food?! ... HEY! What are you doin'?!"

"I'm playing with Diabound, of course." Ryou had the demon bickering with it's own tail until it finally started to chase it. "Haha, how adorable! It is just like a puppy."

"Stop that", the thief said without hesitation and a solemn look.

Ryou tossed a stray twig he plucked up from nearby his chair and tossed it out of the door. It probably hit someone on the way out, but Diabound continued to look with anxious energy at the boy. "Go get it! Ah-ha! Good boy!" The demon had flown out the door and brought back the stick, giving it back ever-so loyaly. "Go get it, boy!" Ryou threw it a second time, but the cobra tail had caught the twig within seconds after it was tossed and coughed it onto the boy's lap. Most people didn't notice the twig always hovering back to the boy; nor notice that he was yelling to what appeared to be absolutely nothing.

"Stop that", he repeated again, with more anger and stress in the undertone.

"Oh. Sorry. I think he likes it, though."

"Leave my Ka alone."

"I didn't realize it bothered you."

Silence.

"Here you go, sir! The best food in the house!" A waiter brought several plates of meat and bread.

Ryou was almost disgusted at the quick rate of how his company devoured several plates at once as more were being brought to the table. He got up and walked with Diabound out of the building to play somewhere in the open streets.

Several brutes and thuggish men were overcrowding the area, watching the hungry thief. Most, if not all, stood up and encircled him.

"Hey, nice meal."

"Yeah, looks like you gots plenty of money on ya."

"And gold to spare.."

"Hey... isn't he thatthief?"

"Yeah, let's kill him..."

"Hey! Close the door so no one comes in!"

The thief, not even realizing that Ryou had left with Diabound, glared at the men. Suddenly, he broke into a wicked grin, "H-heh heh... Want to die?"

"Huh?"

"What'd he say?"

And then he realized his error. They charged at him, fists clenched and evil intentions bared at his existence.

Ryou, at the time, was safely rubbing Diabound's belly with a happy little grin on his face.

His savior, as did before, tumbled out of the bar, scooped up Ryou in his arms, and fled down the streets. "Dammit! What the hell are you doing to me, guy? Why is my Diabound hanging around you?!"

"He likes me better, I guess. Is that so wrong?"

"Uh - yeah."

Ryou, in the midst of this flight into several winding alleys to escape their pursuers, just noticed the bruised and beaten down thief. "Oh no! Your face! What happened?!"

"Long story. No time. Shut up, guy and make sure that Diabound is with you."

"Alright. Yeah, he's following us."

"Since he won't listen to me, you get him to kill those guys."

"What!? No! I can't make anyone kill anyone."

"Do it!"

"No!"

He continued to run while carrying the youth, overtime losing his stamina. "I can't.. keep running." Ryou could hear the pain behind the voice. That made sense - he'd get tired, too, if he had to outrun someone while carrying another person.

Ryou whistled, motioning with his hand to beckon Diabound to come closer to him. "Make them stop following us!" The monster halted it's flight and awaited the mob. As soon as they were within reach, the cobra tail whiplashed them backwards and into buildings within the narrow corridors. As soon as he felt satisfied that they were knocked out, he flew ahead and caught up with the boy and the thief.

"Good boy!" Ryou said, happily.

The thief sighed, slightly pissed off at his current situation. The cobra layed a sloppy wet lick on Ryou, pleased with it's master. Upon seeing it, the thief couldn't help but laugh. "You're not bad, guy, but you are in desperate need of a spine."