A/N: Pictures can be so inspiring. I was making a video for my youtube account. (Just a slide show really. If you want, feel free to check it and my other videos out. I'm Lillymu961. Anyway, I found one picture on google images that just spoke to my heart, and so...I decided to write a one-shot based on it. The picture is the cover image of this story. Great pic! I know that the pic is from photobucket, but I don't know who made it. I wish I did though, then I could tell them how awesome it is! But anyway, I'm getting too wrapped up in this picture business, so let's move on to the story.

Warnings: It has been a while since I've seen the show...so I'm basically going off the wall with this. You could consider this an AU story though dueling and such is still somewhat involved. This story is also rated M for excessive mentions of blood and over the top crazy angst. (My aim here is to make you cry.)

Disclaimer: I do not own YU-GI-OH 5D's or any of its characters, plotlines, and yada yada. No copyright infringement is intended so please don't sue...I have absolutely no money. (Seriously, I can barely pay for school.)

Heart of Thorns

I...

She couldn't believe it. She couldn't fathom the cruel reality that was staring her straight in the face.

No...this can't be happening. How could I have done all this? I was sure...I was sure that I had complete control of this now...how could this have happened?

Akiza's amber eyes widened in complete horror, tears threatening to spill down onto her pale cheeks as the weight of a body pressed against hers. The body was limp, thin but muscular in stature, one arm curling around her waist and the other behind her head of red hair in an almost protective hold as a strangled gasp escaped into the chilling air of the dark night.

No...no, no, no! Yusei!

Akiza couldn't breathe, her eyes practically bulging out of her head as she watched streams of crimson blood roll down the man's shoulders and chest; the streams falling onto the concrete ground beneath their feet. His blue jacket was stained with the substance, the fabric ripped to shreds in various places. Vines-the thorn ridden vines she controlled with her psychic powers-were wrapped tightly around his torso, around his legs and both his arms in an unbreakable grasp, almost like an embrace.

But the young psychic duelist knew better as she continued to watch Yusei's blood ooze out from his wounds. Though the two of them were locked in a passionate embrace, it was an embrace of death.

Death that she brought to him.

Tears finally seeped out of her eyes, the droplets landing in the expanding puddle of blood beneath them. Her arms shook uncontrolably as she fought to hold him up, helplessly listening to his labored breathing as he attempted to speak, to soothe her with empty words of how none of this was her fault, that she wasn't to blame for his untimely fate, but his words held no meaning. Her entire world had been crushed with the startling realization of what she had done.

Yusei was dying and she was the sole reason why.

There was no way around it in Akiza's mind. So many events had led up to this moment and all of them were flashing across her eyes. It had started with a simple walk in the park with just her, nature, and a strawberry milkshake, which had recently become a favorite of hers. After drinking the milkshake she had sat down on one of the park benches to read for a bit and soak up the rays of the setting sun. The weather was perfect, the setting was perfect, all she really needed in that moment was the perfect guy to watch the sunset with.

This brought about thoughts of Yusei Fudo, the one person who had been able to break through her shell and convince her to leave the Arcadia Movement and her life as the Black Rose Witch.

Since then, life had really taken a turn for the better. Akiza had reestablished a relationship with her parents, had gained new friends that actually liked her for who she was, and had even gained the courage to go back to Duel Academy to finish her studies. All the while, she learned how to duel using a Duel Runner. The young woman smiled at the memory, relishing in the feelings that coursed through her when she attained her licence as a Turbo Duelist. She could still remember the smile on Yusei's face and the sparkle that had filled his cobalt blue eyes.

She also thought of when Yusei first started teaching her. They had gone to the roller rink together to practice learning how to control movements and speed. Akiza had laughed, thinking of all the times she nearly fell on her butt...

Nonetheless, she never touched the ground. Yusei had always been there to catch her whenever she fell.

Right as she was thinking of this, someone touched her shoulder.

Akiza turned, half-expecting to see her dream come true...

And found her worst nightmare staring back at her. Red hair curled into a weird style, dark eyes filled with malice and cruel intentions. His smile, oh that blood curdling smile, sent warning chills up and down her spine as she blinked in surprise.

Her reaction was immediate. Without thinking, Akiza bolted from the bench, not bothering to ask how Sayer had found her or why he wanted to find her in the first place, knowing that the answers to both questions held obvious answers. She wasn't about to fall for any of his sugar-coated lies a second time. She wasn't about to fall back into the arms of someone who could care less about what happened to her. Akiza knew what Sayer wanted, but she had decided long ago that she would never let anyone control her ever again. She would decide her own path, her own fate.

The sun descended over the horizon, the hue of the sky changing as she sprinted away from the park. Despite the speed she was running in, Akiza could feel him closing in right behind her. Panic filled her mind as she frantically reached into her bag for the cell phone Yusei had bought for her birthday. She barely glanced back as she hit the "one" button on her phone, the spot reserved for her one and only, even if said guy had no idea of her feelings.

Yusei answered after the first ring, but before Akiza could properly answer him, Sayer grabbed her wrist. An involuntary scream fell from her lips as Sayer locked both of his arms around her waist. Akiza kicked and screamed, dropping her purse and cell phone in the midst of the fray. Another scream escaped as she felt his lips press against her neck.

"Akiza!"

Yusei's voice echoed from out of the phone. Akiza shouted out her location and that she was in trouble-though it was blatantly clear from all the screaming she was doing-just as Sayer slammed his foot down on the device, ending the call.

From there the images flash in a blur. Akiza had put up a decent fight, escaping his hold and attempting to reach for her deck and duel disk in order to fully defend herself. Unfortunately, he kicked away her bag, the contents of it spilling out onto the concrete. Akiza gasped, turning to punch him, but Sayer reacted too quickly. He dodged her attack and used his right foot to knock Akiza off balance. She hit the concrete with a thud, leaving her helpless when Sayer sent a bone crushing kick to the side of her head.

Darkness consumed her for a long while.

When she awoke, the unthinkable had happened.

For a good ten seconds she had glanced around, finding Sayer lying in a pool of blood in the corner of a completely trashed alleyway in the Satellite. Her eyes widened when she saw that Jack and Crow were also nearby and in similar conditions. Akiza blinked over and over in shock, wondering just when they had shown up. Sharp breaths fell from her mouth as she watched vines laden with deathly sharp thorns surround her like a protective shield. Her red hair whipped about in the violent winds created from the vines whirling around, the metal beret she normally used to keep her powers under control having slipped away at some point during her state of unconsciousness. She wasn't sure of how much time had elapsed, where she was, or what Sayer had done to her, or what had caused the madness that was apparent in every direction she turned.

But in the end, none those things mattered.

Akiza's amber gaze locked on Yusei as he shakily rose to his feet in front of her, pain reflected in his cobalt blue eyes as blood ran down from a cut across his left cheek. He gritted his teeth, holding his left side. Akiza's eyes drifted to the spot and gasped as blood stained his brown glove. On his wrist he wore his duel disk, the Stardust Dragon in play and hovering high above him. Noting this, Akiza glanced up above her head, her eyes widening further when she sees the Black Rose Dragon hovering there.

He breathed out her name, stepping forward with a pleading look in his eyes.

"Yusei?" she questioned, worry lacing her voice as she focused her gaze back on his wounds. "What's going on? What happened? Did I..."

Yusei smiled in response, completely oblivious to her questions as he took slow steps forward. "You finally...recognized me..."

Akiza couldn't understand what he was saying and though she tried, she couldn't form the questions that needed to be asked. Her throat constricted, a feeling of dread rising in her chest as he continued to come closer. He reached out with the hand that had cupped the wound to his side. More blood oozed out from it, but Yusei continued forward, his steps shaky yet firm. There was fierce determination in his eyes, like there was something he needed to say, something she needed to know.

A growl escaped from the Black Rose Dragon, a threat laced within it. The thorny vines began to circle around Akiza's body faster, preparing to attack the man in front of her.

"No!" she screamed, glaring up at her dragon. "Don't! Please stop!"

Akiza's words went unheard by the dragon. It screeched out loudly, the sound forcing Akiza to cover her ears. She wanted to close her eyes, but they stayed open, watching hopelessly as the vines struck out towards Yusei without any hesitation.

"Nooooooooooooo!"

The vines circled around him, stabbing and cutting his body. Blood sputtered out, creating an instant puddle where he stood. Even so, somehow he managed to keep moving forward, even as the vines continued to tighten their grip around him.

"Yusei, stop!" Akiza screamed, her body shaking as the thorns tore at him, the metallic stench of the blood wafting into the air. As the onslaught continued, blood splattered onto her body, staining her clothes and dripping onto her face.

That was when his arms snaked around her, bringing her back to this exact moment.

"Yuesi...I'm sorry," she whispered, her tears flowing freely as she gently returned his embrace. "I'm so sorry."

A ghost of a laugh fell from his lips. He lifted his head slightly, strands of his spiky ebony and gold hair touching her face. His cobalt eyes, the eyes that were normally so full of life were now dimming. His normally tan skin was becoming increasingly pale.

But his smile was just as bright as usual, like nothing had changed.

Like he wasn't dying.

"Akiza...don't...blame yourself..."

"How can I not?" she questioned, venom and self-loathing lacing her words. "You're dying Yusei!"

His smile faltered, but his eyes still held lingering traces of his usual optimism. "Don't take the blame for this, Akiza. This wasn't your fault. I chose this fate. I chose to save you because...I..."

Akiza couldn't respond to his words.

"I love you...Akiza...please...be...happy..."

"How can I possibly be happy without you?" she asked, her breathing shallow as tears clouded her vision of him. "You're the only person I could ever love, Yusei. Don't leave me."

His head once again fell to her shoulder. "I'm sorry Akiza...I can't protect you anymore..."

Yusei's breathing hitched suddenly and then, to Akiza's complete and resounding horror...it stopped.

For a moment she just stood there, holding his limp body in her arms and watching as rose petals flowed into the dying wind. An aching feeling filled her chest as Yusei's arms fell limp, the grip of his hands loosening until he wasn't holding onto her anymore.

Akiza sucked in a shaky breath. "Yu...sei?"

He didn't respond. The thorns uncoiled from around him and the Black Rose Dragon disappered from sight as Akiza tightened her grip around the one man who understood her.

In the background, Jack and Crow recovered a bit, their injuries not as extensive as Sayer's. They stared at Akiza in terror, watching helplessly as Yusei finally slipped out of her shaking arms and splashing into the sea of blood on the ground.

Every inch of her was stained with the substance. Her hands, her arms, her chest, her legs, her face...all stained with Yusei's blood.

Akiza glanced between the liquid dripping off her delicate hands and Yusei's corpse. She fell to her knees, the shock keeping the tears at bay.

But the shock didn't last for very long, eventually as she continued to stare at the serene smile on Yusei's face, sobs wracked through her body. Her hands clenched up into fists, tears streamed down, making small dripping sounds as they splashed into the endless pool of Yusei's blood. She screamed up into the heavens, her eyes locking onto the full crimson red moon and the screeching Stardust Dragon...

Akiza abrubtly sat up in bed, beads of sweat running down her face as she threw the covers from off her pajama clad body. Her breathing erratc as she glanced around the small bedroom, her bedroom...no their bedroom.

Her breathing slowed a bit as her gaze fell to the man lying next to her in the bed. She took in his spiky hair, his tanned skin, and muscular build. With slight hesitance she poked his shoulder with her index finger, just to make sure he was actually there.

Yusei shivered a bit, his mind groggy as his eyes fluttered open. He turned over, expecting to see his wife of three years with the comforter and sheets fully wrapped around her body but instead found himself getting poked in the forehead...hard.

"Gah! Ouch!"

Akiza jumped back a bit, edging to the other side of the bed. She muttered out an apology, watching as Yusei sat up fully while messaging the spot where she had roughly poked him.

"What's wrong Akiza?" he questioned, his tone of voice showing more patience than he actually had at the moment. "It's not like you to assault me...well at least not in the middle of the night like this."

"I..." she trailed off, sighing as her gaze fell to her left hand. The small diamond ring gleamed in the dim light streaming in from the window.

Yusei nodded in understanding. "Another nightmare?"

"Yes," Akiza replied, exhaling slowly. "I'm sorry for waking you. The dream was just so vivid...I thought..." she couldn't bear to say the words.

Yusei smiled gently, scooting towards his wife before wrapping one of his arms around her waist. "You don't have to say anything. I understand."

Akiza smiled, wiping away a lone tear that had fallen onto her cheek. "Thank you, Yusei."

"You're welcome, now, let's try to get a good night's sleep," Yusei stated, placing a quick kiss on that same cheek. "We have to get up early for the tournament."

"Right," Akiza agreed, laying back down. She snuggled closer to her husband. "We have to prove that we're the best dueling couple in the world, right? Wouldn't want Jack and Carly to beat us."

Yusei chuckled, his arms wrapping around her waist again. "I don't need a title to tell me that we're the best couple out there, but you know Jack."

Akiza smiled. "I do..." she trailed off for a moment. "Yusei?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

With slight hesitance Akiza met her husband's gaze, her amber eyes narrowing on his lips as she leaned forward. Yusei caught onto what she was doing and closed the distance, their lips gently coming together.

After a moment they both pulled away, smiling broadly at each other.

"We'll win for sure!"

A/N: Okay, I had to have a happy ending because all that angst was just...well crazy. Let me know if the characters were a bit OC. It really has been a while since I've seen this series, so I may be off in some areas. Anyway, I hope you still enjoyed the story. Feel free to review. And feel free to check out my other stories too.