Author's Note- Hello! My name is FrostSnap and this is my first story. I'll say right now, only the plot and a few names belong to me. Everything else Yu-Gi-Oh related is not mine. Only the original characters are. So, I hope you like it.

Warning: This story is rated M simply because there will be lemons later on. First few chapters, do not get your hopes up. And I have a filthy mouth sometimes, so beware of possible swearing.

The snow was falling in large flakes, covering the city like a thick white blanket. It was nowhere near a storm, but the previous night had covered the roads and sidewalks with snow. By morning, the roads had been cleared, but the sidewalks were still missing, hidden beneath the freezing whiteness, making the usual morning journey a difficult one for the students at Domino High.

'The snow's pretty, but couldn't they have cleared the sidewalks too?' Were the thoughts of one white-haired and brown-eyed student as he trudged unhappily through the eight inches of snow.

Even at a height of five feet, eleven inches, Bakura Ryou still had a difficult time making it through the snow.

Hurry up. I can feel this cold too, you know. A dark voice ordered from within his mind. Bakura sighed, knowing that the voice came from the ring dangling on a chain round his neck, hidden under his uniform shirt.

The voice belonged to Yami Bakura or the Thief King, as he sometimes preferred to be called. He lived in Ancient Egypt and his soul had been sealed within the Millennium Ring to prevent him from causing any more trouble in that era. At first, Bakura didn't know of the soul's existence, and so, when the soul took over his body, he had no idea what was happening. But now, the two had a peace treaty, Bakura got to keep control over his body, and Yami stopped trying to commit evil acts once he took over.

I said, hurry up! I hate the cold! Yami's voice echoed throughout the ring, and while it seemed loud to Bakura, no one else on the sidewalk could hear it.

Bakura sighed and ignored the voice, but he picked up his pace anyways. Sometimes, he wished his relationship with Yami was like the one between Yugi and Atemu. Yugi Mutou, a classmate and friend of his, had solved the Millennium Puzzle, and so, he had released Atemu, a pharaoh from Ancient Egypt. At the beginning, he was much like Bakura, and had no idea when Atemu took over. But after a while, the two became extremely good friends, and Atemu had a friendly personality which allowed him to make friends whenever he possessed Yugi.

That pulled another thought to the surface. Sometimes, it was just too troublesome, keeping Yami and Atemu secret from other people, plus preventing Yami from going on a warpath to find the remaining Millennium items, usually accompanied by a long rant about how the collection of all the items would grant absolute power, etc, etc.

So wrapped up in his thoughts, Bakura didn't notice where he was going until he bumped into someone much smaller and lighter than him. Stupid people need to pay attention! Anyone should have been able to see you coming! Yami grumbled. "Oh! I am so sorry! I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. Are you alright?" He asked as he stumbled back slightly from the impact and looked down at the girl he knocked over, extending his hand to her.

The girl was much shorter than him, barely standing at five feet. Her hair was a pure black but as it came into contact with the snow, it appeared to have streaks of blue and purple in it. It was cut short however, just barely hanging lower than her chin. The girl was wearing Domino High's winter uniform, the dark blue skirt and sweater with a red necktie.

She reached up and took his hand, pulling herself to her feet. As she brushed the snow off her skirt, Bakura looked at her face. She had a sweet, heart-shaped face with her bangs cut to frame it and put emphasis on her large charcoal eyes. "Again, I apologize. Are you alright?" He repeated once she had stopped brushing the snow off her skirt and black briefcase.

"I am alright..." The girl's voice was soft and she spoke slowly, as if she was unfamiliar with Japanese. Bakura gave her a relieved smile. "That's good. Bye now." He turned to walk towards the school, intent on getting out of the cold and pacifying Yami. However, he was stopped by a small tug on the back of his coat. Looking over his shoulder, he saw that the girl had reached out and stopped him; a slightly hopeful yet lost expression in her eyes. Now what does she want? "Excuse me... Where main office, please?" She questioned, locking her eyes with his.

His nod was hesitant, but it was there all the same. "The main office? Yeah, I can take you there. Just follow me." Bakura said with a small smile as he turned and began to walk back to the school, the girl following after him.

Fifteen minutes later, Bakura was seated in his desk, staring nonchalantly out the window when all of sudden, two hands slammed down on his desk. "Yo, Bakura! Who's that girl you were with earlier?" The owner of the voice was a taller boy with a head full of shaggy blonde hair. Two other boys and two girls surrounded his desk as well. "She was just a new student who needed to go to the office." Bakura explained.

"Good, good. Miho doesn't want Bakura to have a secret mistress." The girl with the long white ponytail said, shaking her head. "Oh, Miho, it is none of your business what Bakura does with other girls." The other girl sighed. "Anzu! Be nice to Miho!" The boy, who was the same height as blond boy, except that he had brown hair, exclaimed. "Honda, could it be that you're more protective of Miho than usual?" The blonde boy questioned, raising an eyebrow. "What did you say, Jonouchi? Bring it on, if you're going to say something stupid!"

The other boy, who was about the same height as the girl from earlier, had remained quiet throughout the entire conversation. Bakura noticed this and looked to his friend, smiling lightly. "Morning Yugi. Anything wrong?" He asked. Yugi shook his head. "I'm alright. I just stayed up too late, trying to solve another puzzle." He replied with a sheepish grin.

Before they could say anything else, the teacher walked into the room and knocked twice on the chalkboard. "Everyone, attention, please!" She called out. Once everyone had been seated, she smiled and looked to the door. "Alright, we have a new student today. She used to live in Japan, but for the past eight years, she has lived in England, studying abroad." As the teacher spoke, the door was pushed open and a girl walked in.

Bakura looked up and his eyes widened. It was the girl from earlier! And she used to live in England...Well that explained her strange way of speaking. In England, Bakura doubted that she had a lot of uses for Japanese.

The girl stood in front of the classroom and smiled shyly. "I am Aoimori Hotaru. Pleasure to meet everyone." She said politely, as she bowed respectfully. Some of the classmates, including Yugi and the others, gave their own polite physical greeting. Others laughed slightly at her awkward and super polite way of speaking.

Once it had quieted down in the classroom, the teacher smiled again. "Alright then, Aoimori, please take a seat next to Ryou. Ryou, would you raise your hand and agree to show Aoimori around the school?" The teacher asked. Bakura raised his hand and nodded. "Yeah, that's no problem." The teacher thanked him and Hotaru hurried over to sit down in the empty desk next to him.

As the teacher started the lesson, Bakura looked over at Hotaru, surprised that of all the classrooms, she would be placed in the same one as him. It's not that big of a surprise. This is a small class. Stop staring at her like a fool. Girls will only mean trouble for us. Yami snapped. Despite how he acted, the ancient soul was aware of the danger if they were to be found out. Bakura sighed and heeded Yami's words, turning his attention to the teacher.

The first two periods had gone by smoothly and when the bell rang, signaling the end of second period, Bakura stood up and looked over at Hotaru. "Shall we go then? If your schedule is the same as mine, it is time for gym." He said, waiting as the girl stood up and placed her belonging back in her briefcase before looking up at him.

"Yes... Thank you much. I want not to be of trouble to you." Hotaru said politely, bowing again. Bakura shook his head while Yami laughed. Dear God, her Japanese is terrible. That alone is troublesome enough. "Oh no, you're not any trouble at all. I don't mind, especially since we have the same classes." Bakura said with a smile. Hotaru smiled back and followed him out of the classroom.

Half an hour later, the boys and girls had separated to either side of the gym, both genders playing basketball. Dressed in the red shorts and white t-shirt that was the male gym uniform, Bakura glanced, ever so often, over at the girls' side of the gym, checking on Hotaru. Would you knock it off? Since when do you care about how one girl does? Yami questioned. If he had a physical form, Bakura was sure that he would be glaring at him. I am just curious. I remember what it was like to be a new student, so my actions are of empathy and curiosity. Nothing more. Pacified, Yami went silent and Bakura turned his attention back to his class.

On the other side of the gym, Hotaru leaned against the wall, watching her classmates play against each other. Instead of the white t-shirt, she opted to wear the white sweater and had her hair secured under a headband, with only a few stubborn locks left to frame her face. It was harder than she thought to speak Japanese again, and the students had changed so much since she left. Before she had left for England, Hotaru had been in the same class with the same people and they had gotten along. Now, maturity seems to have eluded them, along with their memories.

Sighing, Hotaru glanced over at the boys' side of the gym, only to notice a pair of brown eyes focused on her. Hotaru blinked, surprised. Why was Bakura looking over here? Did she look weird amongst the other girls? Self-consciously, Hotaru pulled on the ends of her hair, her gaze dropping to the ground to avoid Bakura's eyes. Amongst all these girls with their womanly figures and long hair, she assumed that she must look like a child and thus, Bakura was comparing her to the others.

"Hey, how come you're not playing?" A voice asked from right next to her. Startled, Hotaru looked up to see the smiling face of Anzu. "Oh, Miss Mazaki...I waiting for my turn." She answered with a hesitant and shy smile. Anzu merely smiled again and shook her head. "Call me Anzu. We're friends, aren't we?" She asked. A happy smile lit up Hotaru's face and she beamed up at the taller girl. "Really? Very happy! Thank you very much, Anzu-san!"

Back on the boys' side, Bakura smiled slightly when he saw Anzu chatting with Hotaru. There. She looks to have made friends. Now will you stop acting so difficult? Yami asked. Before Bakura could answer, Yugi walked up, a small smile on his face. "Hey Bakura. How's the tour going?" Yugi asked, glancing over at Hotaru and Anzu. Bakura looked down at the shorter boy and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's alright. Aoimori is still having trouble with speaking Japanese, so she's been quiet. I'm just glad that she can understand what we're saying. Things would be so much more difficult if she couldn't understand us." He explained.

Yugi nodded but then smiled again. "Even if she couldn't understand us, Bakura, you have the highest English score in our grade, so I think you would still be the most suited for helping her." Bakura sighed and pushed his bangs back from his face. "This is all so troublesome, though. Yami doesn't like the cold, so he's in a bad mood, and Aoimori-san, honestly, isn't helping by shadowing me." Bakura explained with another sigh. Yugi also sighed. "I know what you mean. Atemu is becoming cranky too. But he won't express it, so I can't sleep."

The two boys looked at each other and sighed before laughing in union. Sometimes, it helped to just talk about the burdens of having a second soul, especially if the soul was temperamental or troublesome. "Hey, later, do you wanna have a duel? Just for fun?" Yugi offered. Yami became interested. So the pharaoh wants another go, huh? I'll take him on any day! "No! It's for fun, only! I will duel Yugi!" Bakura said aloud in a firm voice, causing Yugi to jump slightly. "A-alright then. Atemu also understands and promised not to interfere." Yugi said before his name was called. Waving good-bye, Yugi ran off to take his turn.

Left alone, or as alone as he could be with two souls, Bakura looked over to the girls' side. Hotaru hadn't moved, but Anzu did, so the girl stood alone once more. As he watched, she raised her head and stared up at the high windows, her small hand reaching up to her headband. With a quick tug, she freed her hair and it rejoiced by falling around her like a silk curtain, the sun catching it and creating a halo around her. Her eyes had been closed, but now they were open once she had felt him stare at her, and she was staring back at him, a questioning expression on her face. Bakura gulped and quickly looked away. Don't tell me you are starting to fall for a girl like that? I mean, if you have to jeopardize our entire existence, you could at least go for a prettier or smarter girl. That one doesn't even talk and she's rather plain, don't you agree? Yami taunted. However, the soul was ignored as a whistle blown and both classes turned and fled to the locker rooms.

The day flew by rather smoothly, until it reached lunch. Both Bakura and Yugi wolfed down their lunches so that they could spend rest of the period dueling. Once they had two desks pushed together, they pulled out their decks and began. Anzu and Jonouchi gathered behind Yugi, while Miho and Honda had gathered behind Bakura. Hotaru stood between the two duelists, watching with an intense stare. Fifteen minutes into the duel, and Yugi was winning, but not by much. However, Bakura was in a tough spot, having lost one of his best monsters already. Hotaru leaned over and glanced at his cards before tapping two of his magic cards and glancing to the one monster he had on the field. "Are you sure?" At her nod, he picked up the two cards. "Alright then. I'll activate my magic cards and equip them to my monster and then I'll attack your Dark Magician." Once it had been completed, every one except Hotaru was staring in shock. With one attack, Bakura had wiped out the remainder of Yugi's life points.

"No fair, that was cheating! You can't use Hotaru-chan in this!" Anzu protested while both Bakura and Yugi laughed. "It's alright." Yugi said as he turned to Hotaru. "But how did you know how to do that? Do you duel as well?" Hotaru smiled and nodded. "Yes...I sometimes Need more practice. Japanese tournaments very tough." She answered, noticing that Miho was staring at her. Bakura grinned up at her. "Thanks for the tip. I've never been able to beat Yugi before." I'll admit, that was impressive. Yami mumbled grudgingly as Hotaru managed to stop Anzu's barrage of questions

When the final bell rang, Bakura packed his bag, said his good byes, and left quickly. On the walk home, he sighed and looked up at the sky. "Why is it that the shortest people are always the best duelists?" He asked aloud. Yami snorted and shook his head, but remained silent all throughout the remainder of the evening. Once Bakura was asleep, Yami slipped out of the ring and stood in his shadowy form, surveying his host.

This can't continue. Even I now long for the peace that comes with hiding. No one needs to know about the duo souls. That girl cannot be allowed any closer. No matter how strong she is, or what changes she can bring. She cannot be trusted. Yami thought as he glanced out the window. Without revealing his existence, he could easily scare her away. Girls didn't tend to like his personality, and even the strongest of men found him intimating when he tried. This girl will not be a challenge. With that final thought, he disappeared into the ring.

At seven a.m. the next morning, the same routine was repeated. Bakura trudged unhappily through the snow and Yami complained because of the cold. The only difference was, Bakura didn't run into anyone this morning.

When he reached the classroom, he sat down in his desk, sighing with relief at the warmth of the classroom. However, a gentle tap on his shoulder interrupted his peace. Opening his eyes, he looked up to see Hotaru standing near him, a friendly smile on her face. "Forgive me for to disturb you. Follow please?" Her speaking was still extremely polite, but it seemed that the time she had spent with Anzu made the Japanese flow more easily from her lips. Bakura nodded and stood up, again towering over the girl. "Sure. What do you need?" He asked. Hotaru shook her head and smiled while making a motion for him to follow her.

After a couple of minutes of silent following, Hotaru led him to a slightly empty hallway. "I want not be rude but Jonouchi –san is loud." She said quietly. Bakura nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he can be a little loud sometimes." He sighed. "Now, what do you need, Aoimori-san?" He asked, looking down at the girl. She smiled shyly and held up a small box wrapped in a colorful handkerchief. "To show thanks, I cook for you. Manga says that it best way to thank boys." She said as she bowed once before extending the box to him.

Oh, this ends now. Before Bakura could respond, the Millennium Ring glowed and his head bowed. When he raised his head, his brown eyes were much colder and he had a horrible glare on his face. Startled, Hotaru blinked up at him. "Ryou-san? What is wrong?" She questioned, her surprise forcing her to speak in English. He advanced towards and raised his hand. With a swift motion, he slapped her hand, knocking the lunch box to the ground. "Will you take a hint? I don't need an annoying little girl following me around!" Taking the girl's silence to be an acceptance of defeat, Yami turned and began to walk away.

Reaching the end of the hallway, he ducked into the boys' bathroom and after checking that it was empty, Bakura took control and Yami appeared in his shadowy form. "What did you do that for? Aoimori-san wasn't doing anything wrong." Bakura protested, staring at his second soul. Yami shook his head and returned the glare. "She was getting too close. Except for Anzu, no other girl needs to be that close. In fact, if it wasn't for that dammed pharaoh, I would have chased away Anzu as well." He explained before glancing away from Bakura.

"She wouldn't find out! All she wanted was to thank me for helping her!" Bakura argued. As he spoke, Yami moved so that he was standing about two inches away from him. "Listen and listen well, boy. I have agreed to give you back your body, but I will not allow some girl to become that close. I like keeping my existence secret and acting through you, so don't you dare protest. If I have to, I will banish you to the Ring and I will keep your body. Do not tempt me." That said, he vanished, leaving Bakura to stand still.

When the bell rang, he turned and went back to class. As he sat down, he glanced over at Hotaru's desk, not entirely surprised to find it empty. The teacher, too, was surprised at Hotaru's absence, but she continued class anyways. About twenty minutes into class, the door slid open and Hotaru walked in, a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry for be late. I make lunch spill in hallway and want to clean. Then not able to remember where classroom" The teacher nodded, satisfied with this excuse. "Fine, don't let it happen again." That said, she turned back to the chalkboard. Hotaru bowed once before hurrying over to her desk. Sitting down, she pulled out her notebook and began taking notes, not looking, not even once, over at Bakura.

The white-haired boy sighed and resumed taking his own notes. It was to be expected. She didn't know about Yami, so she must not know what to think about that outburst. Her feelings were probably hurt, and she would most likely not approach him on her own. 'Are you happy now?' He thought as the Millennium Ring vibrated contentedly. For the moment. I'm not surprised that she's reacting like that. Hopefully she took the hint and has some brains in that tiny head of hers. 'Shut up. You won, so shut up.' Bakura grumbled, glancing over at Hotaru once. Even though Yami had yelled at her, she didn't look the slightest bit upset. The only physical evidence of the confrontation was that the back of her left hand was the faintest shade of red.

Even with the current situation, the first two periods went by smoothly and quickly. When the bell rang, ending second period, Hotaru was the first person out of the classroom, nearly running in her hurry to leave the classroom. 'I guess she is upset.' Bakura thought as he stood up and went to the gym at his own pace.

Once he had changed and went on out to the gym, Bakura glanced around before sighing again. Once more, Hotaru was nowhere to be found. But as he began to make his way to one side of the gym as the two classes began playing basketball, he heard the sounds of someone running towards him. Turning around slightly, Bakura saw Hotaru running towards him, an unreadable expression in her eyes. Just as he was about to move out her way, Hotaru stopped right in front of him and smiled sheepishly up at him. "I sorry for morning. My food is terrible. Next time, I ask first how you want me thank you. Sorry." She said, stumbling over her Japanese as she bowed several times. Bakura took a step back, surprised. "Ah, no...I mean..You don't have to apologize, you didn't do anything." He said as Yami growled slightly. She's a persistent little pest. I am going to have to try harder to scare her off.

"But, I make you angry." Hotaru protested, staring up at him with her charcoal eyes. You got that right. As Bakura thought of a way to answer her, someone had lost control of their basketball and it went flying straight into the back of her head. A slightly stunned expression on her face, Hotaru's eyes rolled back into her head as she fell forward against Bakura, out cold. "Hey! Aoimori-san! Are you alright?" Bakura asked, supporting the girl in his arms. One of the boys responsible hurried over. "Sorry 'bout that. She alright?" He asked as other students from the class began to surround them. "She's just unconscious, she'll be fine. Tell the teacher I took her to nurse." Bakura said and picked Hotaru up bridal-style, and oblivious to the stares from his classmates, he began to carry her out of the gym. Oblivious to Miho staring murderously at Hotaru's unconscious form.

What are you doing? Yami demanded, the ring throbbing in his protest. 'Shut up. Aoimori needs to get to the nurse. Can't this wait?' Did you see who threw the ball? 'What do you care?' Bakura asked as he walked through the halls, the surprisingly light girl in his arms. Concerning the girl, I don't. Someone threw a ball at us. I want revenge. Seeing as how they were alone, Yami appeared in his shadow form and stared at the girl in Bakura's arms. Bakura was about to reply, but Hotaru began to stir in his arms.

Her eyes slowly opened and blinked a few times before falling on Bakura's face. "Ryou-san...What happened?" She murmured, her English tongue taking over, her hand going to the back of her head. Her eyes flickered past Bakura and locked on Yami. "Two Ryou-sans?" Her eyes wide, she stared at the thief for a few seconds before a sigh left her lips and she slumped against Bakura, fainting again.

This is absurd! There is no way she could have seen me! Yami shouted, his surprise mingled in with his anger. 'She must have been hallucinating, or else she'll think she was.' Bakura thought, hoping to calm down the spirit as he began to walk towards the nurse again.