Hey hey all! Okay, just a quick AN before you read this story. This is actually a background fanfic for my original character (used in The YGO Musical and in Enigma), Rowenna Wheeler. She's Joey's big sister, and if you follow Kitsune777 and I's timeline, she's two years older than Joey and his group of friends, and shows up right before Duelist Kingdom, shortly after Joey and Yugi become friends, and Yugi completes the Millenium Puzzle. Also,
And, because for legal purposes, I suppose a disclaimer is needed, ne? I don't own YGO, or any of the characters referenced in here that are original YGO characters. Forgive me for warping them so. I do own all of the lyrics in here that Rowenna writes, they're original. It's okay if you think they're crap, I don't mind, you can tell me. I also own Rowenna, as she came out of my head. Well, enough of my rambling. On with the fic!
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Sleep was escaping her. Of course, after three hours of fighting with your two parents, through the phone, sleep would escape you, too. And tonight had been one hell of a fight.
Rowenna Wheeler had recently come back to Japan for the first time in a year or so. And today, she'd gone to the D.S.S. office in Domino City, and asked for papers to fill out so that she could take custody of her little brother.
Joey, Serenity, and Rowenna's parents were stories unto themselves. Mrs. Wheeler (even after the divorce, she'd never changed her name back, claimed she couldn't afford it.) was a in the closet drunk, who was sober during the week because she had to work. But on the weekends, when she was free, she got trashed, and had her twin sister, Marie, come over frequently. The woman was a walking mental breakdown waiting to happen.
Mr. Wheeler, on the other hand, was not a closeted alcoholic. Instead of using the child support he was given to take care of Joey, he used it to buy himself booze. The apartment the two lived in was in the slums of Domino City, and the inside was just as horrible looking as the outside. When Rowenna had tried to crash there for the night when she'd come back in July, she was met with a beer bottle being thrown at her head, and a stumbling drunkard, who passed out before he could manage to hit her. Even though D.S.S. had been called on James Wheeler before, he still beat his son on a daily basis, and the poor teen had evidence of that. Rowenna was sure that with that evidence to back her up, she would get legal custody of the fifteen year old.
Unfortunately, she couldn't find any evidence to stack against her mother, so she couldn't legally get Serenity out of there.
Joey had been illegally living at a friend's house, but Rowenna was uncomfortable with that. If she was back in Domino City, to stay, she wanted Joey to at least live with family. He was a good kid, and he deserved better than what he had. She was planned to make it up to him.
The fight had been stressful. The papers were all filled out, but the only problem was, now D.S.S. had to go interview her father. And that had not made Mr. James Wheeler happy at all. Not one bit.
Rowenna was still a little fuzzy as to exactly what her Mother had to do with all this, as she had completely abandoned Joey and Rowenna at their father's apartment when she left the bastard all those years ago. And why had Maureen left him? Because he was a drunk who beat her regularly. So she left her children with him?
She shook her head, blinking repeatedly, staring at the clock. 3:30. Contemplating sleep, she walked towards her room, but stopped at her bookshelf. A little note-book was sticking out of one of the shelves. Not entirely recognizing it, she picked it up, and flipped open to the first page. Recognizing her own lazy scrawl, she realized that it was a song book, and sat down in her armchair, turning on the light behind her and reading through her old songs.
Tell me when it's over
'Cause I can't stand to watch this anymore
My life is being ripped to shreds
And no one seems to give a damn
My brother is hiding in the corner again
While sissy cries at Mommy's knees
She's screaming at the top of her lungs
About Daddy's problems
And the whiskey on his breath
But Mommy's got a slur in her step
And I'm not sure Mommy should talk
Tell me when it's over
'Cause I can't stand to watch this anymore
My life is being ripped to shreds
And no one seems to give a damn
I'm walking forward to help him again Tell me when it's over
While sissy gets in the car with Mommy
Daddy's screaming at the retreating car
And he spills his precious elixir on my arm
Brother's crying in the corner again
And Daddy's calls him names while he hits me
Once for Brother, once for me.
'Cause I can't stand to watch this anymore
My life is being ripped to shreds
And no one but me gives a damn
"I'm sick of this, James! I'm sick of it!"
"You can't leave me woman! I'm too important for ya! I'm everythin' ya got!"
"I have more than you'll ever be able to give me! I'm taking the kids, and I'm leaving!"
"No ya ain't!"
James Wheeler rushed at his wife. But she'd had this planned for almost two months now, and she hadn't let a single detail go. No, her abusive husband was not keeping her and the children anymore. She had Serenity in her arms, and she ducked out the door. She called to Rowenna.
"Rowenna! Get Joey! We need to get out of here!" She yelled, desperately.
Rowenna came out of her room, and looked at the scene in front of her. Her father, drunkenly trying to open the screen door, her mother and her little sister, standing outside the door, next to the car, motioning quickly for her to come. She turned behind her and saw Joey, eyes wide, tears showing in his quivering brown eyes.
"Serenity? Rowenna…what's goin on?" He asked, wiping the sleep away from his eyes.
"Mommy's leaving! Joey, we gotta go!"
The two children saw one major problem in this plan. And boy, was he a big, drunken problem.
"I ain't lettin' ya take tha kids! That child support'll do me good!" He shouted, smashing the bottle of whiskey on the wall and turning around to face them. "Ya ain't goin' nowhere. And if ya try, I'll cut ya."
Joey looked at her, terrified. "What are we gonna do?" He hissed.
"Just follow my lead." She whispered back. "Run for the door, Joey. Run." He looked at her, scared, but nodded. And he ran as fast as he could.
At the same time, Rowenna dived forward, grabbing her father's knees, hitting them with all of her weight. His knees buckled, and whiskey spilled all over her arms. He tried to pick her up, but she moved quickly out of his way, dashing for the screen door and slamming it behind her.
Unfortunately, all she saw was a scared, confused four year old, lying on the pavement, with tears in his eyes, and the tail lights of a retreating vehicle.
"She left us alone wit him Ro!" He sobbed. "She left us alone! She took Serenity and now they're both gone!"
The seven year old grabbed her little brother, laying his head in her lap, shushing him and telling him it was all going to be okay. She glared at the retreating head lights that were no longer there, cursing them in her head.
"Okay Joey. I'm gonna go in and take care of Daddy. Go sit by our window. When it's safe, I'll help you up, okay?"
"O..okay." He said, sniffling. She smiled at him, and handed him all the money she had in her pocket; 5 dollars.
"If you need to, go call someone at the pay phone, okay?"
"Mmhmm. Are you gonna be okay?" He asked her, getting up and turning to walk towards their backyard. She nodded at him, cleared her throat, and ushered him along. She watched as he moved behind the house, and then walked towards the screen door.
"Daddy? Mommy's gone."
"Get in here ya little skank! I'm gonna make ya pay for what ya mother did."
She looked at the tear soaked paper in front of her, sobbing lightly. "Memories always come back to haunt ya." She said, sighing. She looked at the date. "1991...Goddess, I was 7 when I wrote this. This book must be…" She stopped and laughed at herself. "Well, I sure as hell was a smart 7 year old. That song ain't that bad."
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So...um...review, if you'd like more?
Your faithful fanfiction slave monkey,
Pengwinn