Title: Her Day in April
Author: Raykushi
Disclaimer: Rights to Yu-Gi-Oh belong to Kazuki Takahashi and others. This is a fan piece only and no monetary gain comes from its publication.
Prompt word: Blood (although some took this prompt in the literal sense, I used it as a synonym for 'family')
Summary: It's the anniversary of a Mutou family member's death, and Yugi will be the only one home.
Warnings/Pairings: None. Takes place toward the beginning of the series.
Community: ygodrabble . livejournal . com (Please go visit and feel free to join if you like writing Yu-Gi-Oh drabbles! Erase extra spaces when using link.)
Word count: 850
Her Day in April
The anniversary of her death fell in April, and for as many years as he could remember, the weather on that day always dawned fair. He liked to take it as a small sign from her; she had always said the best thing about "that desert country" of his was that it never rained.
Said desert country was coming between them once again, but he knew she would be waiting for him to finish his adventuring and come home again, as always. That she was waiting for him now at the Mutou family headstone instead of the Kame Game Shop didn't change anything.
Still, as Sugoroku stood in the doorway of his shop with his two small bags of luggage, facing his earnest grandson, guilt spurred him to say, "Are you sure you'll be all right?"
"Of course, Jiichan!" Yugi's ever-present smile never wavered, despite this year being his first time going to the cemetery alone. Sugoroku's daughter-in-law was visiting childhood friends outside Domino. His son spent more and more time in Tokyo these days, a drearily normal businessman in a suit and tie, who had never honestly felt comfortable in the home of the eccentric, world-traveled gambler.
Perhaps the shrewd insight the young boy seemed to have recently acquired was coming into play now, because he seemed to be following Sugoroku's chain of thought. "I won't be alone, Jiichan," he said reassuringly. "My friends are coming with me."
Immediately Sugoroku felt the worry drain from his stiff shoulders. At times like this, he recalled the hieroglyphics on the side of the golden box that housed the Millennium Puzzle. He had given it to his grandson only because he hadn't really thought it could ever be solved, not completely. The promise of dark powers inscribed on the box was an ominous warning, but for eight years Sugoroku didn't worry, until he saw the golden pendant hanging around his grandson's neck.
But perhaps it was all fate after all. Or perhaps any dark power granted from the object was drowned out by the light in the boy's heart. Whatever the cause, it was heartening to see Yugi with the confidence to finally reach out to others.
The two embraced in the doorway, and then Sugoroku saw the taxi pull up outside and picked up his bags.
~ . ~ . ~
The next morning the sun was shining, and his friends were waiting for him on the sidewalk outside the game shop. As they walked together to the Domino Cemetery Yugi told them stories, like the time his grandmother locked his father out of the shop because he came home one night long after dark. "She kept saying she knew he had been out at a bar, but it turned out his train ran late." Their laughter made any lingering sorrow melt away like late March snow.
When they reached the cemetery, the temple priests greeted them and lent them supplies before they walked out into the quiet rows of rectangular stones. Yugi led the way. Their chatter was gone now, the atmosphere in the place requesting a more somber mood. The short boy stopped before one of the many rectangular stones standing shoulder to shoulder in uniform lines. The characters for Mutou were carved on the stone's face, the names Kameko and Sugoroku underneath, the latter painted red.
Anzu, carrying the incense sticks given to them by the priests, placed them in the small brazier that stood in front of the headstone and lit them with a match that made a small plume of smoke curl into the morning air when she shook it out. Jounouchi and Honda had straw brooms and swept the area around the stone free of dirt and dry leaves, and Yugi wiped the stone with a soft cloth.
After the cleaning was done they bowed their heads together, and Yugi introduced his friends one by one. And then he quietly murmured to his grandmother that another friend was here too, even if he wasn't seen, and felt an echo of pleased appreciation from the spirit of the Puzzle.
Another moment of revered silence passed, and then Yugi turned to his friends. "Jounouchi-kun, do you have your deck?"
The tall blond blinked in surprise. "'Course I do," he said, as if Yugi had asked if he had shoes on.
"Will you duel with me right now?"
Surprise registered on all three of his friends' faces at the odd request in the quiet atmosphere of the cemetery.
"Baachan loved games!" Yugi explained, remembering fondly the brisk figure trundling around the kitchen when he was younger. "Every year Jiichan and I come here and after we're done, we play Duel Monsters for Baachan to watch. ...But, if you don't feel comfortable, I understand."
Jounouchi grinned cheekily. He turned to the headstone and bowed his head in a quick up-and-down jerk. "Baasan, you're in for a treat. I was in the Top 8 in the Domino City Tournament, ya know! This is going to be one awesome game!"
Yugi beamed and started to shuffle his cards.
~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~
Author's Notes: Ever since I visited Japan and saw the amazing cemeteries there I wanted to write a fic to include one, so I finally got this drabble out of my head. The traditions described here (aside from the dueling of course) are real customs a Japanese person would do on the anniversary of a loved one's death. The red lettering on the family headstone is painted on and signifies the person hasn't passed on yet. It gets removed when the person is buried.
How much of Yugi's family is canon in this fic? Kazuki Takahashi has stated in an interview from one of the Yu-Gi-Oh manga that Yugi's father isn't around because he's always away on business, and Yugi's mother makes a small appearance in the anime, so presumably she lives with Yugi and his grandfather at the game shop. The rest here is from my own imagination.
Notes on Japanese words/names used in the fic: Nothing too complicated here. Jiichan obviously means 'grandfather' and Baachan is 'grandmother.' Yugi uses the -chan suffix for his grandfather in the anime/manga, which is a familiar way of talking about your grandparent, showing that they're close. Jounouchi uses Jiisan, the -san being more polite. (Probably the only person Jounouchi actually speaks politely to in the whole series!) Anzu, if you're curious, uses the full word for 'grandfather' and calls Sugoroku Ojiisan. (It's common for boys to drop the 'O' at the beginning of such words, but girls usually don't. Which is why Shizuka calls Jounouchi Oniichan but Mokuba just uses Niisama for Kaiba, without the 'O.')