Give and Receive

Disclaimer- I do not own Yu-gi-oh Gx or its characters. Just my own :)

Plot Summary- As Zane's 22nd birthday is approaching, he starts becoming secretive around Aster. Is he unhappy about the relationship? Or is it something else completely.

Chapter 2: New Beginnings

Aster's POV

My original plan wasn't to leave the apartment today. I had been working so hard on my comeback; I've hardly been home at all. But I got a call around 9 to meet Sirena at a café. Zane didn't seem to mind.

"I have an appointment anyway." Zane said as I was brushing my teeth. For whatever reason, he was looking over his past decks and extra cards. "I thought about what you said and I think you're right. I think I'm going to take up a coaching opportunity."

I was surprised by how enthused he sounded about the opportunity. Much happier than he was yesterday. I spit out the tooth paste. "Do you already have someone in mind?"

"Maybe, right now I'm just meeting with her."

"Oh her?" I asked, rising off my tooth brush. A playful smile pulled at my lips as I walked out to the living room. "Are you getting bored with boyfriends for awhile?"

Zane seemed to have a preference for men, but he had once told me that he found women to be attractive too. In fact, his first kiss was from a girl. He chuckled. "Yes, that's exactly it. This whole I can't duel anymore thing is an elaborate hoax to date girls."

I wrapped my arms around him and made my voice high. "Oh Mr. Truesdale, you're my favorite duelist!"

He laughed almost uncontrollably. "Pretty dead on… Wonder how you'd look in a dress."

"Not on your grave." I growled, walking towards the doorway.

He continued his teasing. "Maybe some hair extensions, you'd be the prettiest girl at the ball."

"Zane, you're not funny."

"You started it." I put my shoes on and opened the door.

"I'll see you later; have fun with your 'appointment'."

"You too, Asterina."

I glared at him and his pathetic joke. "Nice try, Aster's already a girl's name...You can thank my dad for that one."

()

Sirena was sitting in a booth when I arrived at the restaurant. For whatever reason, I had expected Sartorius or Larius to be with her but she was alone. I noticed the worried look in her eyes and felt concern wash over me.

"Hey." Sirena lit up when I sat across from her. A red smile coming across her lips.

"Thank you for meeting with me. I have a very large favor to ask of you." She said carefully. I was shocked; Sirena didn't ask for favors. She usually kept her requests small and was grateful for what she got. She usually considered asking favors to be rude.

I remembered when we were younger; Sirena had given me a sketch pad for Christmas, knowing how much I wanted to draw like my dad. However, when I tried to give her the meditation incent that I had bought especially for her. She tried to give it back. I had to practically force her to put it in her room. I wasn't about to turn her only favor down. "Sure, anything, what is it?"

"What can I get you folks?" The waitress asked. Sirena closed her mouth and looked away shyly. That private huh? I placed my order and encouraged Sirena to quietly make her own. When the waitress walked away, I asked her about her favor again.

"Well, I'm not sure how to say this but… I'd like your help in setting up a date." She finally said. I leaned over the table; she had my full attention. I certainly wasn't expecting this. "You see, I've become…quite taken with one of Zane's friends."

My mind quickly navigated through a list of 'Zane's friends'. It was difficult to determine which one she was speaking of. The only one I knew that she had met was Atticus. "Um…Sirena you know Atticus is gay right?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Yes but I don't see how that affects his sister."

Contrary to my beliefs on sexuality—never once did I consider Alexis an option. But I did vaguely recall how well the two women got along when we celebrated Jaden's birthday. I also remembered how fidgety and nervous Sirena had been around her. It still struck me as odd since Alexis and Sirena could be considered—really polar opposites at times.

"You want me to set you up on a date with Alexis?" I asked. She growled, getting quickly defensive.

"Why? You think Alexis's would never want anyone like me? I'm too much of a freak for her?" I backed as far as I could into my booth.

"No…I'm just…shocked you'd want someone like her. She's not really the most spiritual type." I was relieved when Sirena's defenses let up.

"I apologize; I'm just very edgy about this… I'm not sure if this is a gamble worth taking."

"Can't you just use your precognition to find out what she'd say?" I asked. The waitress came back and set our food in front of us. Sirena waited for her to leave before she continued.

"I can't use my precognition on myself….It's too easy for me to picture what I want as opposed to what will actually happened. I tried to find out about Alexis's future but… well, my powers were too hazy. For some reason, she's immune to my powers."

"Aster, please! I can't do this alone." She practically begged. I swallowed the food that I had shoveled into my mouth. I didn't really want to play matchmaker, and from what I knew, Alexis wouldn't appreciate it either. I wanted to tell her just how bad of an idea this was—that her chances of success were not so good. "I've never asked for anything from you and I never will again if you help me with this."

I had never seen Sirena so desperate in her life. Usually, she held herself with a high dignity. It was heart breaking to hear her beg and trying to say no. My hands were tied.

"I'll need an excuse that won't seem out of the ordinary."

"Tell her I'm having difficulties." She said all too quickly. She composed herself and cleared her throat. "As in, difficulties only another female would understand. And set it up so you and Zane will be there too… that way, it won't make her uncomfortable."

Not a perfect cover, but it worked. "Alright fine, I'll help…but I reserve the right to declare myself neutral and you owe me…big time."

Sirena smiled and put her hand on top of mine. "Thank you Aster… I promise, this won't put you in a difficult position."

I sighed and took another bite of my food. I wish I could believe her, I sincerely did. But something told me that she was dragging me in the middle of something fierce. Something I wouldn't like.

Zane's POV

Evelyn was taller in person than I could have imagined. Even wearing flat tennis shoes, she rivaled my height. It was odd to see a girl literally eye to eye but her thin body and friendly eyes made it difficult to be intimidated by her.

She didn't come alone. A man with long brown hair and black framed glasses. He was dressed in a modest crimson-red shirt and black pants. He was maybe an inch taller than Evelyn, making him about my height. "Thank you so much for meeting with me Mr. Truesdale!" Evelyn said warmly. "I hope you don't mind, I brought my brother…he's kind of my guardian."

"Oh no, its fine…It's nice to meet you Mr…"

"Dr. Byron Frances." He offered his hand. I shook his hand, surprised at how firm the grip was. "I prefer Ronny."

"Okay, Ronny it is. Um, what kind of doctor are you?" I asked steeping aside and letting them walk by. Evelyn looked around, taking everything in with interest. Ronny remained dignified.

"Well, I special in Cardiology but really I'm more interested in research pertaining to heart disease. Actually Mr. Truesdale, not to be rude but I used you as an example in my medical journal, which was about the effects of holographic on the body."

"Is that right?" I covered my annoyance fairly easily, but I wasn't too happy about being 'used' in a journal. Particularly when it wasn't technically holographic dueling that destroyed my heart. "Well…I'm glad someone got something good out of that…and it's actually just Zane."

"Wow first name basis already?" Evelyn asked, making herself comfortable on my couch. "I feel honored."

"Well…it is my name." I responded. I motioned for Ronny to sit down on the couch but he politely declined. I shrugged and sat down next to Evelyn. "So…I guess let's start with your deck, may I see it?"

"Oh! Yeah, defiantly." She pulled a deck box from her belt and handed it to me. "This one's the one I prefer to use. I have like ten more but this one seems to be the only one that gets me anywhere."

I went through it pretty quickly. It was an okay deck—probably won her quite a few matches in the school yard. It wasn't going to cut it in the pro leagues though. "Evelyn, do you know why most duelists have a themed deck?"

She pressed a finger to her chin and shrugged. "I always thought it was just to make them look cool."

Well…that was a cute assumption. I shook my head and sighed. "Not exactly—it's so they'll have more options for every card they draw…Thing of this way, suppose you have a magician themed deck, and you draw a magic card that only works on sorcerers. Well that's not a problem because you literally have a deck full of sorcerers. While, if you had a mixed deck, your chances of being able to use the magic card decrease tremendously. The only real problem you run into with theme decks is that you're left prone to type isolating cards. But if you're smart enough, you can get around that."

"Huh, I never looked at it that way before." Ronny said. A new person wouldn't. It was the first lesson of dueling usually. I set the deck down and faced Evelyn.

"First things first… You need a new deck. A theme that kind of fits your personality. You need to learn everything about your deck. You have to know every card you have and how it's used. Next, we're going to get you practicing with amateurs—people just entering the pro leagues…We'll take it from there."

I was surprised by how natural it felt to lead another person. How powerful it made me feel. I hated to admit it, but with everything in my life spinning away—it felt nice to be in control of something.

"How much is this going to cost?"

"Ronny!" Evelyn glared at her older brother. I held my hand up.

"It's a reasonable question…And actually it won't cost you anything." I explained. "Well, at least not if she succeeds. To me, Evelyn will be an investment. I'm going to pay for everything to get her on top, and if she makes it, than I'll take pay back if she decides to go solo or a fee to continue her teachings…If she fails, then I loose my money, but Evelyn's chances of becoming a duelist well…Let's just say it takes a lot to get up again once your down."

I spoke from personal experience. I had to hit bottom before I could climb back up again. And even then, the means barely justified the ends. But seeing Evelyn's smug smile and Ronny's thoughtful look—well, I was hopeful that her story would end differently.

"So, do we have a deal?"

Evelyn looked to her brother with concerned eyes. He stared back at her and then to me. "Well…if we have nothing to loose…"

Evelyn practically jumped out of her seat. "Mr. Trues… Zane… I'd be honored to become your pupil."

"We start tomorrow." I decided, feeling a little giddy myself. Maybe this condition wasn't the end after all. Maybe I could live my dreams through Evelyn.

I shook her hand—hoping to god that I was making the right choice.