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Ryou had hoped that escaping to Domino City would fix everything. A new beginning, a new school, new friends - it was going great. After everything that had happened to his family and friends, he was starting to feel confident in this new life he had created.
One night, about a week after he got settled in, he decided to make a simple bowl of noodles. It was a cold night, and it was a comfort food of his. "Hopefully the noodles will warm me up..."
Ryou sat down at his dining table, humming softly. While he ate his dinner, he saw something move in the corner of his eye. Startled, he whipped his head to the right, his eyes meeting a full length mirror next to the table.
Nothing was there.
He stared for a while, his brows furrowed. Usually, he wouldn't feel perturbed; maybe he was mistaken and his brain was just playing tricks on him, but this time, he wasn't so sure.
After a few minutes, Ryou sighed in defeat, unable to prove that anything was amiss. It didn't bring him much comfort, however.
— —
After a few more weeks, the voices started appearing.
They started out small, mostly unassuming, and Ryou thought he just needed more sleep. So, he slept more, ruined his sleep schedule, only for the voices to get clearer as time went on.
Early one morning, Ryou woke up feeling more exhausted than he was before sleeping. He walked to the bathroom in a haze, brushed his teeth, and put on the Millennium Ring.
"Wake… up…"
Ryou collapsed, hitting his head on the side of the sink in the process. He groaned as he tried to pick himself back up. As he raised his head, he came face-to-face with the bathroom mirror.
It was hard to see, but Ryou's body went cold. His shadow loomed above him, unnaturally twisted. It was almost as if it was… its own person. The outline of its hair appeared similar to Ryou's; however, its body was grossly curled and disfigured. Ryou felt as if it was mocking him.
Ryou sprang up, tripping clumsily in the process. Adrenaline pumping, he ran out of the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him. He fled to his bedroom, locked the door behind him, and jumped onto his bed, covering himself with the thick duvet.
He hoped that under the blanket barrier, the shadow couldn't reach him.
— —
To Ryou, it felt like his world was collapsing while the rest continued as normal. No one on his commute noticed his strange shadow in the subway mirrors, no one at school seemed to be haunted by anything. He felt utterly alone and possessed at the same time.
Everytime he looked in a mirror, the shadow appeared to grow. When the reflection in the subway windows began to overwhelm him, Ryou started to walk to school. After a few days, he noticed the circular mirrors at the top of the electrical poles. He tried his hardest to ignore it, but everyday it felt like the mirrors were multiplying, and in turn, amplifying the shadow, giving it more power.
Ryou's friends started to notice. He refused to tell them what was bothering him; this was his burden to bear alone. Truthfully, he wanted to ask Yugi for advice, since he also had a Millennium Item - maybe it was related to his troubles? However, the fear of spreading whatever disease Ryou was suffering from far outweighed his need for answers.
"Hey Ryou, do you wanna go to the mall with us later?"
Startled, Ryou jumped and almost fell out of his chair. Still dazed, his eyes met a blurry Yugi, looking down at him.
"Oh… sorry, Yugi, I didn't see you there. I have some chores to do, so…"
"That's okay!" Yugi replied, lowering his voice, "It's just, you know, we're all worried about you, Ryou. You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but we really want to help in whatever way we can."
Ryou was about to object, but began to think about the logistics. If he didn't go, his friends would continue to worry, and he didn't want them to think something was wrong with him. If he did go, there was a chance he would finally be able to enjoy himself for once, but what if he saw that thing again?
"Can I… think about it?"
"Of course! Just let me know by the end of the day!" Yugi smiled and walked back to his own desk.
When Yugi was out of earshot, Ryou sighed softly. Everything was too stressful, too irritating, too… terrifying. He wanted to disappear, he didn't want to burden his friends with his problems; on the other hand, maybe they could help?
All he had left to turn for comfort was the Millennium Ring, however, Ryou began to wonder if it was actually a curse. It was a gift from his father, an item that usually brought him solace. He had once thought, "Maybe this can bring me closer to my family."
It did... but only for a little while. Ryou wasn't so sure anymore.
— —
The bell signalling the end of the school day chimed happily, cheering up the dreary atmosphere. Most people left, excited for what the rest of the evening had in store for them.
Except, Ryou didn't feel the same way.
He barely even noticed the bell or people leaving the classroom. His mind was still racing nonstop, thinking of every possibility. There would be tons of mirrors at the shopping mall - he wasn't sure if he could handle it, but he wanted to see his friends. He wanted to be normal.
"Hey, Ryou! Have you thought about coming with us yet?"
Ryou turned his head towards Yugi, trying his best to smile as he saw the rest of his friends looking at him expectantly.
He needed to face his fears.
"Yeah, sure!" Ryou replied impulsively. He immediately regretted agreeing, but he knew he couldn't take it back.
"Great! Let's go!" Yugi pulled Ryou's hand softly, and Ryou shivered from the sudden contact.
He hoped he wouldn't regret it.
— —
Ryou tried his best to keep up with the conversations his friends were having, but he could barely hear them over his still-racing thoughts.
As the group walked, more and more mirrors seemed to appear. Car mirrors, his reflection in the windows, those damned electrical pole mirrors. Everytime he looked in one, the foreign voices in his head would start yelling, and that accursed shadow kept following him, tormenting him. The words it spoke were incomprehensible, but the emotions were apparent - whoever was talking to Ryou was angry.
Ryou was snapped out of his thoughts when Yugi tapped his arm. "Ah, Ryou? Everyone else ran off, do you want to go somewhere just the two of us?"
Ryou nodded absentmindedly.
The duo walked in silence for a bit before Yugi spoke, "So, have you been enjoying Domino so far?"
"Mostly," Ryou replied, already wanting to change the subject, "I'm sorry for asking, but… I wanted to ask about your Millennium Item."
"My Puzzle? Sure! What about it?"
Ryou pondered for a moment. Honestly, he had forgotten that it was a puzzle. He could barely remember anything Yugi told him about his item, which made him feel incredibly guilty.
"Yeah, so… have you ever experienced anything… weird? Has your item done anything… unnatural?"
Yugi's expression changed and his tone got flatter. "Oh, sometimes. It's just in my head, though. It's not real."
Ryou was taken aback by Yugi's sudden shortness. "So, you hear voices, too? Do you see things? Or-"
"Yes," Yugi interjected, "but it's not real. None of it is. Just remember it's all in your head. It's not your fault; none of it can physically hurt you. So it doesn't matter. It's… a lot easier to think of it that way. Trust me."
Ryou looked down, regretting starting the conversation. "I'm sorry."
Yugi smiled, although it looked forced. "It's fine, let's just get some new clothes."
— —
The mood shifted positively once the entire friend group was together again.
Yugi pretended nothing had happened. He seemed to be overcompensating for his harsh words by trying to help Ryou pick out a new sweater.
Despite his initial fears, Ryou was actually having fun. To his surprise, he hadn't heard or seen anything since the walk to the mall. He almost felt… safe.
Yugi held up a red sweater, pushing it against Ryou's chest as they both looked in the mirror.
"See? That color looks great on you!"
Ryou looked at himself. This wasn't his body. It didn't look right.
Then he saw it.
The shadow. It was behind him.
A lump formed in Ryou's throat. He watched as it moved its gnarled hand towards Ryou's shoulder.
He felt it.
Why did he feel it? It wasn't supposed to be physical.
Ryou pushed Yugi over as he ran out the doors. He ignored his friends yelling as he dashed towards his house. He didn't look, but he knew it was following him.
When he arrived home, he grabbed his sledgehammer from the porch. He started breaking every mirror he could find. In the dining room, in the living room, in his bedroom. He watched the shadow writhe in pain with every mirror he broke.
Then he walked into his bathroom. He walked up to the vanity's mirror, placing his hands on the porcelain sink.
Ryou glared at the spirit in anger. "What do you want from me?" he growled.
He didn't expect it to speak, but unfortunately, it did. "My body. You're hogging it. It's mine."
"Wh- what do you mean, it's yours?"
He watched as the spirit started taking form. It looked uncannily like him, except for its longer, wilder hair and deep red eyes.
Ryou blinked, and suddenly they were in a void. The sink disappeared and the mirror multiplied into dozens, fully engulfing the space. He couldn't escape his reflection.
The spirit didn't answer.
He tried another approach. "Who are you?"
"I'm you. I'm Bakura."
"No, no! I'm Ryou, not Bakura! You're not me!"
'Bakura' smiled unnaturally, "I'm still you. We share the same body, we are one. You just have to admit your undying love for this side of you."
"Are you haunting me? Why don't you just go back to the Millennium Ring!"
'Bakura' shook its finger condescendingly. "This isn't about my previous home. This is about my new home - you. We are going to fully become one with each other. I'm just the ugly side of your consciousness that you hide away; you will love me. You do love me. You enjoy being sick in the head. I'm all the proof you need."
"No I don't! Get… out… of my head!"
Ryou screamed, grabbed the sledgehammer that had fallen next to him, and attempted to shatter the mirror. However, the hammer simply bounced back, making him lose his balance and fall over. When he looked back up, the spirit had moved to a different mirror.
The spirit coldly stared at Ryou. "It's useless. I'm sick of you being my landlord, so I'm taking back my body. You can't defeat me. Give up."
Ryou slouched in defeat. He didn't know how to stop what he knew was inevitable.
The spirit's form multiplied and started materialising out of the mirrors around him. Its long tendrils grabbed every part of his body, and Ryou quickly felt like he was losing control.
"Giving up? Pathetic, but understandable. You can't escape your eternal love for me."
As Ryou let the infection take over his body, 'Bakura' held his face in its tendrils.
"You can't escape our love, Bakura," the spirit said. Ryou felt its lips touch his and he didn't have the energy to fight it.
Ryou Bakura knew his life would never go back to the way it was.