Bakura dragged me through the dark city all the way to the alley where he had first revealed his motives to me. He was silent for a while, and all we heard was the busy streets of Domino City. Finally, we reached the alley, and he stopped, letting his hand linger on my arm for a second too long before pulling away.

"So," he said, "I assume you are confused about some of the things you saw."

"A little, but I think I've figured it out. Duel Monsters has been a game for millennia that we stole from the Ancient Egyptians. Did they play with carved rocks, though? Or did they have drawings on paper?"

Bakura sighed. "You're only half right. Duel Monsters is a game that people have been playing for millennia, but the Ancient Egyptians didn't play it with cards or carvings. They played with real monsters."

"Real monsters?" I was stunned. These monsters on playing cards.... They're real?

Bakura nodded. "And the carving that appeared to be Yugi, was in fact the Pharaoh, who sealed away the monsters into stone tablets, and in doing so, trapped himself inside the Millennium Puzzle."

"So Yugi is the Pharaoh that you want to defeat to take over the world?"

"Yes, and I'm afraid the only way to do that is to beat him in a Shadow Game."

I was confused again. "What's a Shadow Game?"

"It's a duel in the Shadow Realm. Losing has dire consequences, such as lost memories, or being trapped in the Shadow Realm until someone decides to set you free."

"Where is this place?"

"Another dimension." Bakura smirked. "Would you like to see it?"

I was instantly scared, backing up until I hit the wall, which was only a couple of steps. "You're not trapping me, are you?"

He let out a loud laugh. "I wasn't planning on it." He offered me his hand. "Don't let go, and you won't get stuck."

I cautiously took his hand, light in my own. He gripped mine tightly, and the wind began to pick up, whipping my white hair all over the place. Bakura's Ring began to shine brightly, and I closed my eyes to protect them from the wind and the blinding light. Then, suddenly, we were enclosed in darkness.

I cracked my eyes open, and could feel Bakura smirking at me. I opened them completely, and found myself gazing, wide-eyed, at the purple shadows around us. It was like being trapped inside a cloud. The walls and sky all seemed to have the same texture. It was dark. And cold.

I shivered. Bakura held my hand tighter as I wrapped my other around myself. I was beginning to feel light headed as well. I started to lean on Bakura.

He noticed immediately, and he wrapped his other arm around me. The next thing I knew, we were back in the alley in Domino.

Bakura gently set me against the wall. "You'll have to build up your strength if you want to last a full Shadow Duel."

I sat up a little taller, my head still spinning. "How am I supposed to do that? Lift weights?"

Bakura slapped his hand to his face. "Ugh, you idiot. I meant your mental strength."

"How do I do that? Bakura, I want to help you."

"I'm aware. It seems a good first step could be frequent trips to the Shadow Realm, get you used to the environment there. Maybe that will be all you need until you find a way to control Shadow Magic yourself."

"I could do that?"

"Honestly, I was hoping you wouldn't be able to. Power like that can drive a person mad. But if I'm correct..."

"About what?"

Bakura suddenly shook his head. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with. We should get you home. Can you stand?"

Bakura offered me his hand, and I took it. He pulled me to my feet, where I swayed for a second before grabbing onto his arm to steady myself. I smiled at him. "Maybe."

Bakura sighed in what I assumed to be annoyance, and put on hand behind my back and the other behind my knees, then lifted me up. I squealed, not expecting it. He walked out of the alley, and started to carry me home. I looked around, scanning the area for people. But a part of me didn't care who saw Bakura carrying me home. I liked being in his strong arms. And at the time, I didn't even care that we would walk straight past Ally's house. I leaned my head against Bakura's shoulder. He didn't make any move to stop me, and I felt myself drift off to sleep in his arms.

***

Bakura woke me when we reached my house. The door was locked, and he couldn't do anything about it with me in his arms. He set me down, and I pulled my house key from my pocket. I unlocked the door and stepped inside. Mom wasn't home because she was out of town for work, so it was just me.

I turned back to face him. He was looking down at his feet, shuffling them. It appeared that he wanted to say something.

I smiled at him. "Goodnight, Bakura. Thank you."

He gave me a small smile in return. Not a smirk, but not a full smile, either. "Don't mention it. Goodnight."

He turned and started back down the sidewalk. I had no idea if he was going to go home or somewhere to search more for the Items. Either way, I knew he could take care of himself, but I felt bad about him being all by himself.

I closed the door and shook it off. I couldn't worry about him. If I was going to be returning to the Shadow Realm frequently, then I needed to get a good night's sleep.

I locked the door and made my way to my room, instantly crashing on the bed and falling into a deep slumber.