If We Met in a Dream
Summary:
Because as Signers, the six of them were connected in more than one way by the birthmarks they share.
A/N:
I was listening to some of the piano arrangements for Touhou Project when this came about. It's AU in the sense that it assumes all six signers have already awakened, and Rudger is not in the picture.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's
She awoke to the whispering of the wind as it wrapped around her figure, sending strands of burgundy hair sweeping before her eyes. She blinked, watching as the painted canvas of an indigo sky greeted her with scintillating stars and thin wisps of silver clouds a film over the backdrop of twilight. Skeletal trees, with thin canopies stretching to the heavens far above her reach, littered the area sparsely, their leaves almost silver in the moonlight. White flowers stretched beyond the skyline, abloom amongst the silver-green grass, glowing magnificently in the night. Hesitantly, she drew in a deep breath. A sweet vanilla fragrance filled her lungs with a sense of peace and nostalgia, and she smiled in recognition.
She was here again, in world of dreams, the space that both defied and defined reality.
But it was not just any dream. This was a realm, created from their shared dreamscape. His realm: a serene midsummer's night in nature's embrace, of fields and wild flowers, of silence and a quaint beauty. It was a realm filled with contradictions: wild with untamed growth, yet beautiful all the same; silent, with the whispering of the wind. It spoke much of his personality, and yet it didn't. It wasn't like any of the other worlds she had been in. And she was inwardly glad that she stumbled onto his world today.
The events of the day played through her mind and she winced sharply, shaking her head free of the thoughts.
She moved forward along the brown dirt path leading away from the flower field, heading obediently in the direction it took her to. The road was long and winding, twisting here, there and meandering between seas of night phlox. It was like a labyrinth in a field of snow, only without the extra paths to lead you into a dead end. Looking down, she noted for the first time the condition of the beaten road. It was marked with foot prints of all sizes, all heading towards the same direction, but never from. She felt a twinge of jealousy. He had many friends, and unlike her, he knew how to keep his.
What felt like an eternity's walk was suddenly over as soon as it came. Aki felt her eyes widen as she gazed at the tree that she was sure was not there before, and it was then that she saw him, sitting on its lowest branch, his emotionless gaze cast towards the starlit sky. Her heart pounded in excitement. Drawing a deep breath, she took one step forward.
Water splashed and rose up to her ankles.
She gasped in surprise and withdrew her leg, gazing at the lake of crystal clear water before turning back to Yusei, who was now watching her intently from the corner of his eyes.
Neither spoke. There was no need to exchange words.
He nodded, and she took a nervous step forward. The water rippled outwards from the tips of her toes, but didn't give way like it did before. Taking a few cautious steps on the marble-like surface, she moved towards the trunk of the dead tree and leaned against it, hands behind her back, her eyes to the mirrored water. It stayed that way for several tense minutes.
"You can just tell me, you know?"
Aki started at his voice as it cut through the silence and gave him a questioning look.
"You always come to me when you're upset or troubled," he explained, already anticipating what she was about to say. "You'd usually go to the twins or Crow if you're lonely, and Jack complains that you always destroy half of his realm every time you visit. We're all connected, remember?"
Aki's hand moved to subconsciously rub her right forearm, where the blood-coloured mark of a claw was etched into her pale skin. It was glowing softly, its powers serving to stabilize her visit to the boy's realm. Years ago, she could remember cursing it for ruining her life, for taking everything away from her. Now, she could not imagine what it would be to live without it, for it was the only thing allowing her to connect to the other children sharing her birthmark.
She'd met Jack first. A boy with spiked blonde hair, an indignant violet gaze, and a permanent scowl across his features, she didn't exactly have the best first impression of him. Neither did he, as a matter of fact, because he had been unnerved that she had somehow entered his dreams. But then she recognized the look in his eyes that was the yearning of acceptance, and realized that he wasn't all that different from her. They'd spend the next few years trespassing in each other's realm until the other children came into the picture.
It was only recently, however, that she had met Yusei. He was a couple of months younger than Jack, older than Crow, but he was definitely the more mature of the three. While she had been pretty shocked when he announced that he had known about her for quite a few years (according to Yusei, both Crow and Jack were his childhood friends – they even lived in the same orphanage in Satellite - and had told him everything about their meetings with the girl), she found it the easiest to talk to him about her problems. Because unlike the others, he would understand and listen.
"Tell me honestly," she began slowly, drawing in a deep breath. "Do you think I'm a monster?"
Yusei looked down from his skyward gaze, an eyebrow raised.
"Papa said I was a monster," she continued without waiting for his reply. "And then, just this morning, I injured another classmate in school during a duel. You don't know the looks they gave me, Yusei! They looked at me as if I were some sort of freak! Like I was some sort of… monster."
"But are you?"
Aki drew in a sharp breath.
"If you allow yourself to believe their words, then you will fall into the trap of shaping yourself into that name," Yusei leaned back casually. "In the end, it doesn't matter what people say about you or think about you. All you have to do is be yourself and ignore them."
"You say it so easily…" she muttered, looking away.
"I say it because I know what it's like," he replied. "Everyone in Satellite does."
Aki perked up in interest.
"We're nothing more than scum and trash to those who live in the city, even people who don't deserve to be there. People like doctors and orphans, people like Martha and Jack and Crow," he spoke quietly, sadly. "You once thought of Satellite residents in the same way, didn't you?"
She turned away guiltily.
"There's so much pain and suffering in Satellite just because we didn't get the better end of the stick. If we were to dwell endlessly on our fate, we'd all eventually be driven mad. That's why we occupy ourselves with work. That is how we were able to survive. If we can do it, you can too."
"How? I can't… I can't even control them…"
"Duel me."
Aki spun around to face Yusei, disbelieving what she had heard. The boy leapt from his seat, landing lightly on the lake's surface.
"W-What?"
"Duel me," he repeated. Duel disks materialized on their arms as he drew five cards. "I'll go first. Draw."
"Don't you understand?" Aki protested, just as the boy's Shield Wing appeared in defense position on the field. "I can't control my powers in a duel! You'll get hurt!"
"I won't," he answered calmly. "I set two cards face-down. End of turn."
"Draw," she bit her lip, hesitantly pulling the card from her deck. "I play Phoenixian Seed, and send it to the graveyard to Special Summon Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis in defense position."
The beautiful plant materialized on the field, its crimson petals bright against the backdrop of navy and white. It batted its eyelashes and began to furl its wing-shaped leaves.
"Trap card activate," Yusei interjected, pressing a button on his disk. "All-Out Attacks."
Aki gasped.
"All monsters that are special summoned are changed to attack position and must attack during the turn they are special summoned."
The plant-bird hybrid paused mid-way in its actions and threw its head to the air, spreading its wings and glowing with an aura of murderous rage. The girl glared at her opponent. Because of the trap card that Yusei had played, she had to attack him, no matter what. She glanced at the Shield Wing on his field and frowned. Even if the monster was protected from destruction, it wouldn't be able to prevent her monster's effect.
"Battle," she announced. "Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis attacks Shield Wing."
The hybrid monster's eyes turned red.
"Trap card activate, Astral Barrier."
"What?" Aki cried out in horror. "Yusei, what are you doing? I don't want to hurt you!"
"When the opponent's monster attacks a monster on my side of the field, I can change that attack into a direct attack."
Turning swiftly to her monster, she ordered, "Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis, stop your attack!"
The blazing spirit of the Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis rose out of its body and hovered in the air. Ignoring its summoner, the ethereal spirit rushed at Shield Wing and exited the otherworldly barrier protecting it, diving straight at the raven-haired teen.
"Stop… Stop!"
Tears fell and splashed against the mirrored surface of the lake as Aki shook her head. If Yusei was hit by a direct attack like that, especially in this dreamscape, his spirit would be destroyed. He'd never wake up again.
"STOP IT!"
The firebird's spirit phased through the boy's body before circling back to its master's side and repossessing its discarded body. However, the attempted repossession ignited the entire plant and caused it to explode into a fireball, sending stray sparks shooting in the boy's direction. He didn't so much as flinch from the attack. Again, the fire passed by harmlessly, leaving nary a scratch.
As Aki looked on in shock and confusion, Yusei turned to her and smiled triumphantly.
"I told you that I won't be hurt."
"H-How…?"
"You didn't want to hurt me, so you didn't. It's as simple as that."
She stared at him in amazement as their duel disks vanished.
"But-!"
"Throw away your hatred, Aki. That's the reason why you couldn't control your powers. Subconsciously, you wanted to punish them for everything you've been through."
"No! I-!"
"You accidentally hurt your father because you wanted to punish him for leaving you alone on your birthday. You couldn't control your powers when you were dueling, because deep down inside you hated your classmates for calling you a monster, for the way they looked at you. But you didn't hurt me, because you thought of me as a friend, didn't you?"
"I…"
"Throw away your hatred. That's the only way you'll be able to control your powers."
"D-Do you… Do you really think so?"
He nodded. Aki fell to her knees.
"How…" she sobbed. "How can you be so confident in me? How can any of you be so confident in me?"
Stepping out of the field of night phlox were Jack and Crow, who had already been there from the very beginning. Ruka and Rua, on the other hand, poked their heads out from behind the tree, blushing sheepishly at being found out.
Jack snorted.
"Why are you asking such a stupid question?"
He earned a jab in the ribs for his crude remark.
"Isn't it obvious?" Crow asked, ignoring the deep scowl sent his way by an irate blonde.
"Because," Rua emphasized, "You're our friend."
"And because of that," Ruka continued, "We'll help you out in any way we can."
A shadow fell over her face and she looked up at Yusei's cobalt irises. His hand was held in front of her, the crimson sigil of a dragon's head glowing brightly on the back of his forearm.
There was no need for words.
Smiling, she eased her hand into his.
So that you know you are not alone...