I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the affiliated characters. I do own Starlyte.
Black hair flew behind her, while a silver jacket rippled in the wind. Thoughts of her life raged in her head. Not one thing was truly clear, but she understood the most important thing.
When this tournament was over, she would take over Industrial Illusions.
Nothing inside her relished the idea. However, if her brother went down, he would give the company to her, and she would run the company, just as she had promised her bother she would do since he started it. Her name was Starlyte Pegasus; she was the only heir to Maximillion Pegasus, since his fiancée and he had never wed and he refused to take any other woman as a wife. She was the heir to Industrial Illusions, and Duel Monsters, her brother's pastime and creation.
She stared over the water, out into a horizon that was anything but clear. Hands resting on the rail, she seemed poised for any kind of threat against her brother. She wouldn't let him go under, not unless it was deemed to happen.
Yet, again, the picture she had been shown of Seto Kaiba loomed in her mind. He was the one who ran KaibaCorp. Her brother was trying to take over the company KaibaCorp. Why it sounded so familiar, was because it was the leading company in gaming products. It rivaled even Industrial Illusions.
Her left hand moved to her hip. She stroked the hilt of the sword that she was carrying. It was the only thing that truly reminded her of Cecilia, her dearest friend and, almost, sister-in-law. She wanted her brother to succeed in his takeover with a desire that threatened to eat her away completely. She wanted Cecilia back just as much as her brother did.
Cecilia had died due to a disease she had contracted in Europe. It happened not long after Starlyte's fifteenth birthday. So, she cherished all her memories of Cecilia. They were what kept her going.
She let out a gentle sigh. It was not known to be common, especially to those who knew her character. Strong-willed and rebellious, she stood her ground against all those that tried to mess with her. Inside she only wanted to be understood, although she'd never admit it to herself. Never had she kept a friend for very long; they all had deserted her or had grown far too different.
Again, her eyes were drawn out over the water. No one would dare to approach her. Not here, not so close to Duelist Kingdom, not so close to their destination. Most would be asleep, and the few that would still be awake stayed away from her. None knew who she was, but they felt the danger of her. They felt the strength, the pure undeniable power she gave off. She, herself, had embraced it her entire life. Those around her, they feared it. Two knew what it was, only her brother and she.
The view found her breathless every time she saw the broad expanse of the Sea over which they sailed. It surrounded her on all sides, and its power frightened her. She loved the power the Sea had as well. The Sea could capsize a boat, or throw a human off course and still be able to prove that it is merciful. The Sea was stronger than any machine.
She smiled lightly, thinking of a saying Cecilia had told her. 'The Sea doth have its pearls, but there is danger in retrieving them. The Sea doth have power; a beauty rivaled only by that of the Wind.' Starlyte had never understood it fully, but she knew Cecilia would not have told it to her if it meant nothing.
She'd only loved one other person, that was her brother. Even though she didn't show the love, it was there, revealed only when he was in danger. Nobody else had ever passed her barriers. 'Strong as steel' as her brother often called them.
Her eyes drifted shut as she began to think clearer. Thoughts still came in a rapid procession, but they were no longer jumbled. Another picture shown through, only instead of Kaiba it was someone else. He looked no more than a grade-school kid, but she knew otherwise. 'Yugi Mutou.'
Lids that concealed eyes that rivaled even the purest of silver, lifted. Her head turned towards the sound of a splash. Her reflexes were as sharp as ever, as were her eyes. It looked like some kind of idiotic blond. He was chasing after something. Her eyes barely caught what they were before she took off down the deck.
She half hung and half balanced on the rail. What she had seen were Duel Monster cards. 'Rare ones' her inner voice spoke. The person in the water, male by scent, was thrashing about, trying to capture them in his grasp. She wasted not one second. Throwing her jacket onto the deck she dove into the, currently, unmerciful Sea.
The water was cold; bone-chillingly so. She took pleasure in the feel of it. The shock of the water had opened senses that were previously dormant. Every movement of the waves and the smell of the water that stung her eyes and nose were relished.
She barely caught the shape of the blond above the waves. He was, almost, completely under. It seemed as though he could barely hold himself up, and yet he still tried to grab at the cards. Starlyte took a hold of his arm and slung it over her shoulder ignoring the cries of protest at the loss of two cards. She used her feet to propel herself and the boy to the ship.
A rope fell down in front of her.
Shaking her head out of her own stupidity for not checking if there were people on the deck, she was careful to keep a tight grip on the blond's waist. Holding them to the rope, she and the blond were pulled up to the deck. The boy almost lay down but he found the strength to hand the star-headed one, three of the five cards he tried to gather. 'Yugi Mutou.' Starlyte grabbed her jacket, turned away, and walked down to her previous spot. She cared not for the one she saved or for his friends. She pulled her jacket on.
She blocked all sounds out. Thinking came hard to her, because when her battle senses were up she could hardly process any logical thought. The thrill of the swim and the cool wind was sending shivers up and down her body, even with the jacket on. She hoped the others would not approach her, but knowing the little bit about Mutou that she did, she knew they would.
Other matters were on her mind, ones more important.
'Yugi Mutou. That is he then, the one my brother wants. The one he needs to fulfill his plans.' Her thoughts had been cleared completely by the water, and by the strength that the Mutou kid was giving off. 'Strength rivaled only by that of the Wind, so a portion of Cecilia's prophecy comes true now. Indeed, Wind and I meet here on this boat, though I am not the Sea. That honor belongs to another, one who better personifies the Sea.' Starlyte let a small smile lift the corner of her mouth.
Once again, she was at the spot near the bow of the ship. She paid no attention to the movement of the ship now; her mind was wandering. It drifted to a faraway place, her hidden sanctuary. She found herself in a state of peace. Though lost in the forest of her mind, she was aware of the others coming up behind her.
They stood apart from her, about five yards away. Conversing amongst themselves, they decided to let only one member of their group to step up to her. The one she saved, the blond, was the one they chose.
He froze not more than three feet away from her.
Starlyte's eyes were open and blazing. She had drawn her sword and it now rested at the blond's jugular. Her movements had been too fast for any of the others to see.
The sword, itself, shone with an eerie light. The jewels embedded in the hilt shone with the strangely luminescent light. The light bounced off the water and reflected on the two facing each other.
Starlyte wore a look of pure annoyance, while the blond's look was the utmost of contradictions to hers. He looked almost afraid, but merely just surprised. The fact he had a sword at his throat had not registered in his mind yet. Starlyte could tell purely upon the blank look in his eyes.
Starlyte sheathed her sword, extinguishing the light in the process. She spoke not, but the blond decided to step back. At the looks of fright, annoyance, and one sympathetic glance from the girl, Starlyte was verging on pissed.
"What do you want?" her first words since stepping on the ship, and they were cold and caustic.
"I-I just wanted ta thank ya for savin' my tail. Ya dove in wid'out a moment's hesitation. Ya must have a really good heart." The blond let out a mawkish grin as he placed a hand on the back of his head. Starlyte tried to hide her disgust, but she still felt a wave of nausea hit her in the pit of her stomach and the rise of bile because of it. "I'm Joey by tha way, if ya were wonderin'."
"Starlyte Pegasus and I don't have a good heart. I just like to know that I can overpower the Sea at turns." Her gaze shifted and landed back out over the water. She could feel their gazes on her back. There was a strong, bitter taste at the back of her mouth. 'Anger, surprise, but more noteworthy, it's utter hatred. What could my brother have done to make them hate my last name so much?'
Confused by their reactions, but more overwhelmed by the emotions that rose because of them, she turned and left. 'Mutou is powerful, but he will not take my chance having Cecilia back away from me. I've lived for nearly three years without her and it has been torture. I want Cecilia back.'
A single tear escaped her eye. It left a dark trail down her cheek.
It was a lonely walk, but it was also a lonely life. Starlyte, at the moment and as much as she despised the feeling, wanted to be held. She was tired of being the lone wolf; tired of being who she was. She wanted a pair of loving arms to take her up and just hold her. She pulled her jacket closer about her, the cold forcing memories and thoughts of a different life away.
She was not about to think any more tonight. She entered a darkened room, the only light was a candle that burned steadily in the corner; she flipped on the light. The candle she blew out and she gazed around the makeshift lair her brother had made for her.
Her things ranged in number and importance: candles in a plentiful supply; incense of all sorts; copies of her spell books. They all had their singular importance and number was strength, in a few cases. It looked like her room at the castle, and her room in Domino. Black walls with black curtains blocking the light from entering; a small round table within the center was covered with things she used, and a small black encased bed rested in the corner. Carefully, she took out a Black Love incense stick and lit it.
She set it in a commonly bland incense holder as she sat down in front of the table. Tarot cards, an answer deck, spirit-color-stones, and her deck of every-day spells were spread in a small semi-circle. She reached out to her tarot cards then pulled her hand back with a quick jerk.
"No. I'm not going to look into the future when what shall happen is so clear. But, I can do this." She picked up the bag of spirit-color-stones. "Perhaps I can know what I am truly fighting here though. Yes, that is a very stable plan, since Mutou's color in still unknown to me." She loosened the strings that held the bag closed and reached in.
The bag held exactly forty-three stones. There were exactly forty-three different colors. She closed her eyes and concentrated upon the fields of energy that everyone casts out. In her minds eye, she saw her brother's aura, and her own. One was of a deep burgundy and the other silver. Slowly she moved her vision to that of Yugi Mutou. The shroud around him was colorless, yet, not at all; the color was not known, so she could see none then.
Her hand closed around a stone. She knew she would see her brother's color first, and the stone she held in her hand was indeed burgundy. She replaced the stone, shook the bag, picked out another, and it was silver. She envisioned Mutou again and drew out a third stone after dropping hers back in and shaking the bag.
She closed her eyes as she let it drop back into the bag.
'Green, I should have known. Indeed. I truly do fight the Wind here. Nevertheless, I am not the Sea. I am not its true other side. The color of blue belongs to Seto Kaiba. The Sea and Wind, they shall clash before my brother falls. That is what Cecilia meant. But this cannot be the only thing. There must be more.' She shook her head, she would find out in time. She tightened the strings upon the bag. Carefully she set the bag down as she picked up the answer deck.
She knew all the cards, and she trusted in their meanings. Slowly she chose her question. 'What will the outcome of the clashing of the Sea and the Wind be, and what will happen afterwards?' her hands moved with a deftly precise movement, shuffling from side to side. She stopped, and spoke her question aloud, her hands waiting to continue their work, "What will the outcome of the clashing of the Sea and the Wind be, and what will happen afterwards?"
She split the deck into three random sized piles. Closing her eyes, she chose a card and placed it next to the second deck. Again, she picked up another card and placed in below the first one. Following the pattern, she created a small square, three down, three across. Only the center square was empty.
She picked up another random card and placed it there. Taking a deep breath, she flipped each card in the direction one would turn a page. She carefully looked down at them
The first two, which represented the past, were new beginnings and jealousy; the next two, which represented the present, were the master and the troubleshooter; the next four, which represented the future, were storm, battle, judgment, and challenge. The ninth card, the one in the center, the one that told the outcome of her question, was victory, only it lay facing the wrong way.
Starlyte realized, merely with the cards, that they both had a deeper past that neither cared to know about or reveal. There were their personalities, so much alike, yet so different that they clashed with a glorious might. Their future would lead to many battles, and victory was never certain either way, though it seemed the card tended to lean toward a victory for the Wind. But the center card, the victory card, was upside down. She knew the answer to her question. 'Kaiba will win the duel against Mutou, but he will lose to my brother. Then since Mutou loses this one, he defeats my brother. Indeed. I must tell Maximillion. These cards have never lied to me.'
She stood, putting the cards away, and dousing the incense stick with a few drops of water. She dressed for bed, her wet clothes fighting to come off her.
As she climbed into her bed, she thought again of Kaiba. 'There is something hidden about Kaiba. Something I want to find out. I cannot let my brother get hold of him until he has dueled Mutou. I must reach him before then. Of what my brother thinks, I will pay no heed. I will not go against my better judgment.' She smiled to herself as she thought that. 'Judgment indeed, I am the one to stake risks upon all this am I? So be it, whatever they may be.' She lay down and was asleep in a matter of minutes.