Hey guys! Welp, looks like I got some good things from this! Especially with two reviews so far, so lets make it four or a higher number. Anyways, I'm glad that this is getting some people reading the story here. So, lets gets some more people and more reviews, shall we?

16 years later...

August 25th, 2034

Afternoon Clear Skies

Yohane Futo was not an average kid.

After being born in Morigami Hospital, his mother and father had taken him home to their tiny apartment near the city center. Shortly after, his father had moved the entire family to the countryside, because of business relocations. Takeo Futo joined another independent video game company that was located in town, and he spent every day, and night, working there.

It was a mostly lonely childhood for Yohane, being that he was, in fact, a little different than usual kids. Instead of being a cheerful little guy, he ended up being a face in the background, with the burden of loneliness on his shoulders. It was enough to make him cry, and that was enough. His mother called his father one night and they just argued and argued.

Then, Takeo packed his bags and left for the city again.

The company had moved offices, and the marriage would have never stood afloat for a little longer. After his slow rise from middle school to high school, in the summer of his freshman year, his mother had told him that there was an esteemed high school in the city, and that there were already applications on the table if he was ready to fill them out. His grades from the previous year were extraordinary, and the school had noticed him because of it.

Yohane agreed, and now he stood there, at the train station with his suitcases near his feet, and rereading the acceptance letter from Ichigami High School for the Intellectually Growing.

"Dear Mr. Futo. It has come to our attention that, with your academics being exceptional in the field, we have decided that you are a candidate for being part of the next class of 2038. Congratulations. See you at your Orientation."

Yohane looked up, then to the left to see if the train would come.

Nothing.

Only train tracks caught his gaze. He sighed heavily, and pulled out his circular headphones before putting them over his ears. For a lonely kid, he looked like any other student.

He was tall, a little skinny, about 5'10 in height, had black hair that was matted on the front half and stuck up in the back, had icy blue eyes, and angular features. He wore a white t-shirt with grey jeans with his school jacket half zipped up, so that his crudely tied on dark red tie didn't blow in the breeze.

The jacket itself was a light blue-grey, with a patch with a sigma symbol on his right breast, and links on the cuffs of his jacket. His collar also had symbols on them, a sigma on the right side, and a roman numeral three on the left.

He was just a typical Japanese high school student with headphones in his ears, nothing to see here. He tapped his right foot impatiently; it had already been 20 minutes. The train schedule said it would be there ten minutes ago. Either he was missing something, or the train was being lazy. He sighed and pulled out his phone, unlocking it and flipping through the music he had on it.

Would he listen to the Fresh New Start Playlist? Or the new band that his school friend Yuuka put on it? The band sounded a little girlish to him, but Yuuka claimed that they were not "any old dumb boy band." Whatever, Fresh New Playlist it was, then. He clicked on the icon, and already the American band, "Duncan Vs Life", came on with their single "Roller."

Music wise, Yohane was a well-rounded music lover, with bands ranging from rock, alternate, or techno. He couldn't stand dubstep though, ugh. Ruins his eardrums every time he listened to it. As the guitar riffs started halfway through the song, Yohane finally saw the train.

It stopped at the station and the doors opened. He picked up his bags and stepped through it, walking into the front car. Already there were five people getting off, but ten stepped on, including him. He showed his pass to the ticket master, who took it with a nod and gave back to him.

Yohane, with bags in tow, went to the middle car and placed the suitcases in the rack before sitting down in his seat. The conductor then announced their leave, and the train slowly went out of the station. Yohane sighed and relaxed in his seat. Well, he was off. Yohane looked out the window. Already, the countryside was going fast with the trees whizzing by. For this age of technology and information, at least some places have been left untouched… mostly.

He smiled softly and yawned. Maybe he shouldn't have stayed up all night just packing his cases and sending goodbye emails to the few friends he had. It wasn't his fault for having only three friends; He just needed to work on his courage, charm, and understanding, really.

Yohane was a bright student, at times, and really worked on the entrance essay that was required for enrollment. It was a good thing he did work on it, because if he hadn't, he'd be stuck in a dismal classroom for the coming year. He sighed and a new song started to play, a soothing melody to counteract the raucous train. He checked the time on his phone, high noon. It would be a while until he reached the city station. A nap would be well situated for this time consuming thing. With a sigh, he slowly closed his eyes, and was fast asleep.

Blue.

Nothing but it.

When Yohane Futo had slowly opened his eyes, he almost jumped from his... Stool? What? He sat on a blue leather barstool where a bar was set up, the wine glasses and beer mugs were hanging from the hooks above the taps of drinks. Bottles lined the wall of the bar, softly glowing in the light. As Yohane turned in his seat, he was surprised how small the bar room was.

Only five tables were set up, with chairs neatly pushed in. A stage was set up, with a lonely piano in a blue spotlight. Blue wallpaper was hung on the walls, and a bulletin board was hung near a blue glass door with the title: "Past Guests." The board was groaning with old Polaroid pictures of teenagers, both boys and girls of Yohane's age, maybe older or younger, with various weapons in their hands.

Swords, spears, guns, even a folding chair. You name it; it would be there in the hands of some person. The air of the place seemed heavy, like the air was holding its breath for something big to happen. It was a little too much for him. He coughed and turned back to the bar.

He nearly jumped in his seat when he saw that a woman, nearly 20, walked out from a curtained back room. She had white blonde hair, which was shortly cut and tucked with a blue hair band, and yellow eyes. She wore a blue tank top and blue jeans, the same blue that was apparently the color scheme.

Black boots clicked the linoleum that was the floor behind the bar as she tied a barkeeper apron around her waist. He said nothing as she got a small glass, filled it with a brown liquid from one of the bottles and drunk it in one gulp. When she finished, the woman looked up.

"Oh,"

Her voice sounded educated, like a college student. She straightened, stretching her back muscles.

"Who do we have here?" She mused to herself.

Yohane tried to say something, but the words were caught in his throat.

"You certainly look lost, don't you?" The woman continued. "By the looks of it, it seems you have strayed from the path."

Yohane was taken aback.

"Strayed from the path?" He asked.

"Indeed," She said, "But-"

"Clara!" A shrill voice, like a bird's call, pierced the silence. It came from back room. "Do we have someone who's here?"

The woman, Clara, turned her head to the curtain. "Yes, Sir! We do have someone here!" She called back.

The voice cackled and then said, "Let me see who it is!"

Clara sighed and mixed herself another drink, and again, throwing the contents into her mouth before swallowing.

"Come on, then," She said, opening a part of the bar and motioned for Yohane to step through.

He got out of his seat and walked past her, hands in his pockets.

"By the way. Try not to notice my master's nose." Clara muttered.

As he entered the room, the first thing he noticed was the old man with the bulbous bloodshot eyes. He was bald, but had wisps of grey hair at the side of his head. His nose was large and curved, like a heron's beak. He had a smile on his face, like it was made to only be in that expression, a creepy, almost pedophilic, smile. The man wore a suit and… well, his arms and legs were too long for his small body. He rested his arm on a table with a blue cloth on it, and a deck of cards was placed in the center. The man's eyes looked up, and his everlasting grin grew.

"Please, pull up a chair." He said.

Yohane looked around for a chair, realizing that the only one was on the other side of the table, right across from the man. The chair itself was made from a silvery wood, with a blue and white velvet cushion. The back was carved in the shape of a full moon, with the individual craters placed in the right spots. Yohane sat down, hands on his lap.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room." The man said, as if he had said those words so many times. He placed his hands together, interlacing the fingers.

"This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter." He grinned wider. "My name is Igor, I'm delighted to make your acquaintance."

Yohane nodded his head in acknowledgement. Igor appeared to be one of those characters that knew everything about you, but didn't really say.

Igor chuckled as if he read Yohane's mind and continued, "Now, then, why don't you introduce yourself?"

Yohane was confused, but before he knew it, Yohane parted his lips and the words spilt out of his mouth.

"Yohane Futo." He said.

Igor leaned back slightly.

"Yohane Futo," He mused, "I see…"

His wide smile lessened, but then came back. "It seems that you have a very interesting destiny that lies ahead of you," He continued without a beat, "But do not be worried, it'll come to pass many days before now, or, it could be happening right now!"

A destiny? what? Yohane questioned this.

Igor nodded. "Yes, An intriguing one indeed. But, lets not focus on that," The strange man leaned forward and gestured at the deck of cards. "Do you believe in the concept of fortune telling?"

Yohane shifted in his seat as he looked at the deck. The back of the cards looked like eerie masks, and it started to make him uncomfortable. Igor took no notice as he picked up the deck and started to shuffle them in deft movements.

"The cards, by chance, can either influence a future you so happen to choose. Being that you are a guest here, it appears that the cards will indicate a destiny that would occur in the near future, or if you go down a different path like the one that you are going down." Igor placed the deck on the table. "Now. Pick the top card." He commanded.

Like a robot, Yohane drew the top card. He stared at the picture. It was blank. Yohane looked up with a raised eyebrow, but Igor cackled.

"In due time, you'll find out what that card is." He said.

Then, like a viper striking prey, the strange man swiped it from Yohane's hand. He then gently placed it on the table, drawing the next two cards and placing them facedown. Igor then flipped the card to Yohane's left and smiled wider.

"The Tower, the card of destruction and creation. That card in the upright position represents… hesitation, and mystery." He looked up. "A mystery will be upon you, with a crossroads; one to destruction, another to creation. But what path will you choose?" He chuckled and then flipped the other card next to it.

A grinning skull guarding a door met his gaze. He felt his tongue getting too big for his mouth. Death? No! He can't die! Not at his age!

"Death. The card of change." Igor looked up at Yohane. He noticed the terrified, almost petrified look on the boy's face.

"What?" Igor asked, "You thought that it meant your death? Of course not."

Yohane breathed out. Oh, thank goodness.

"This card means a change that will influence your decisions. The choices you make will change your life. So let go of the things you held onto in the past for comfort, and take hold of new ideas and people you will meet." Igor leaned back. "Of course you would feel afraid, this arcana is one of the most mysterious and feared of them all, which makes it very powerful. We had a guest here who understood it completely."

He sighed, and his smile became bigger, "We helped him find his call, his meaning of life. But, his followers' still doesn't understand. Well, only some."

Igor seemed to be in deep thought for a moment, but then shook his head. "You will soon enter a contract between you and this place, in this velvet room. But, first, I must introduce someone else."

Igor looked behind Yohane and called, "Clara? If you may?"

Clara burst through the curtain in a huff. "What is it?" She asked, hastily putting on a blue leather jacket with gold rings on it as she stepped to Igor's side.

"I was only introducing you, don't make a bad impression."

"All right." She said.

Clara straightened up and sat down next to the man, producing a leather-bound book from underneath a cushion. "My name is Clara. I will be assisting you as well as my master. You only have to ask, and like a bartender, I will comply." She recited, as if she was only there to say those words.

Yohane interlaced his fingers and leaned back, nodding. "Thank you. I'll have that in mind." He said, a sudden sense of etiquette washing over him as he spoke.

Clara raised her eyebrows. "Such manners! Like other guests, you don't cease to surprise!"

"Yes." Igor interrupted, "So please. Feel free to come back."

Yohane was confused.

Just how was he supposed to come back? He asked the question.

Igor only chuckled at it. "In time, you will find out." He then raised his hand, motioning for Yohane to leave. "Now, the waking world awaits. And it calls too… Listen…"

Yohane stood up, and turned, watching as the curtain pulled back, and light streamed from it, beckoning to come…. Walk through to see…

Yohane woke up with a sharp intake of breath, his heart beating at a quick pace.

"Now entering: Morishibe Station. This is our last stop, please take all belongings with you." The intercom droned.

Yohane sat up, his hands fumbling for his phone. How long was he out for? Yohane checked the time. It was 10:30pm in American time, and 21:00 in Japanese. Was it really that late? He sighed, ruffling his hair in realization.

Yohane then looked out the window. The city was spread out next to him. The lights and neon buzzed throughout the entire province. The buildings seemed to be touching the sky, with the smaller buildings reaching only halfway to the bigger ones. A full moon glowed in response to this spectacle. So this was Morishibe City.

Yohane softly smiled at this as he grabbed his luggage from the rack as the train pulled in. Welcome home. He thought.