CHANGE OF HEART

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything related to Yu-Gi-Oh. I only own the story.

Author's note: Right, well. Sorry it took so long. Summer school has been busy and my work schedule is relentless. Thanks to all who read and reviewed. You have kept me going and given me the confidence needed to go on.

Super-special-awesome Pirate: Thank you for your kind words and I will take your advice in kind. Thank you also for looking out for grammar mistakes and the like (I was surprised to hear you say that there were close to none!). And I'm happy you appreciated all the little details, as sometimes I think I ramble on and on incessantly. You are also a very talented writer and I hope to follow in your footsteps.

Dancers of the night: You have pretty much read and reviewed all my stories. I thank you for that. You were one of the first who took notice of my writing and have kindly pushed me to write more. You have given me the strength and confidence to continue my writing and I hope you know that your words have not gone unnoticed. I think you are also an awesome writer and I will look to you for guidance.

Ichika7walkure: Thanks for reading and reviewing! I'm glad it wasn't too lengthy for you!

Atem-Tea love 4ever: You have also taken the time to review pretty much all my stories. Thank you for taking the time to do that. I take your words of encouragement and use them to fuel my inspirations. Thanks!

Alright then. Now I present to you….


Chapter 02: For Earth. What say you, human?

Choice. It is a powerful concept that nearly everyone takes advantage of. We would not get through life without it. Life itself is a choice. Where would humans be without free will, without sentience? We would be no better than mindless ants, living only to serve their queen.

But then again, maybe that is what humans are, serving an unseen entity. If that were the case, then, ironically, we have no choice but to choose. Confusing isn't it?

But I digress.

Choice is a tremendous yet terrifying force. To choose means that we have total, absolute control in that specific moment of time. But with every decision we make, we indirectly affect the lives of those around us, often without our knowing. Events are intertwined in ways we cannot always see. Sometimes, small things can make huge differences. They say a single butterfly, beating its wings in China, can affect the way the wind blows on the other side of the ocean.

But how does the butterfly know when to beat its wings?

How do you know what the right choice is? Even if you had the power to see each and every intricate connection made, can you still know?

What if your choice had the power to change life as you knew it? What if it already does?

See how frightening that can be?

What would you do if the fate of any one person was in your hands because of what you choose?

What would you do if the fate of two people were in your hands? Three? Ten? Ten billion?

Maybe choice isn't so easy as people think.


Day unknown
Location unknown
Time unknown

The first thing that hit Anzu's senses was the smell of grass. She opened her eyes only to find herself in the midst of the tallest trees one could ever find on Earth. Moonlight shone through the treetops, giving the area a ghastly glow. She looked over and caught sight of an unconscious Atemu about a foot away from her.

What happened? she wondered, massaging her temples. The last thing I remember was an earthquake over at work. There was a child… Mutou saved me… Ughh…

"Mutou," she said, reaching over to poke him in the chest. No response. She put her ear to his chest. At least he's breathing. "Mutou," she tried again. "Wake up, this is no time to take a nap." A drop of moisture suddenly fell on her cheek. "Great," she grumbled. "Can this get any worse?" A soft drizzle then coated the area, adding to the gloomy atmosphere. With a sigh, she started to drag Atemu's body to the nearest tree for shelter. However, she quickly reconsidered her actions, as she caught movement from the corner of her eye. Setting Atemu back down, she stood, sharply turning her head left and right to catch sight of whoever else might be there with them. The rain was pouring now, making it hard to distinguish shape from shadow. Anzu heard, rather than saw, the bushes around her rustle. From the wind or from something else, she could not decipher. She had seen, however, disfigured shapes darting around the trees so fast, she could not hope to count them.

"W-who's there?" Anzu called, in what she hoped was a steady voice. "I know you're there. M-my companion and I are in need of assistance…" Suddenly, the rustling stopped and all is eerily quiet. All Anzu heard was the rain falling and the wind whistling amidst the trees. She released a breath she did not know she had been holding, her eyes swiftly looking left and right, in front and behind.

Suddenly wolves with fur as black as charcoal appeared, as if they simply materialized out of thin air. Anzu counted five, not that it mattered. One wolf would be more than enough to take on. She shivered as she glanced into their crimson eyes. The bloodlust in them was as clear as day. They growled, showing off their razor sharp canines. As lightning blazed across the sky, Anzu made out two cages behind the wolves, one empty and the other holding captive a boy and a girl. Oh, God, we're going to be captured. Is this even real? A wolf snarled and bit the air, as if responding to her thought. Seems real enough. She glanced down at Atemu, who was still unconscious. "I hope he doesn't have a concussion," she muttered under her breath. She considered her options. They were not surrounded so she could pick up Atemu and run in the opposite direction. However, the wolves would catch up with her, no problem. And she was not about to leave Atemu. He had saved her life and she be damned if she abandoned him now. So that left fighting. She slowed her breathing, relaxing her muscles. Wolves may have speed and endurance but she had human ingenuity. She prayed that would save her.

--beside you. Your heart-- Startled at the voice, Anzu looked down at Atemu, thinking he was the one who said that. After seeing him still unconscious, she slowly looked beside her to find a pair of twin daggers, glinting against the moonlight. How did those get there? she wondered. How did I not notice them before? Timidly, she picked them up. As she did, a warmth flowed through her fingers, echoing a power she had never felt before yet so familiar as if she were born with it. The hilt of the daggers fit her grip so perfectly, it was if they were built just for her to wield them. As the warmth travelled along her body, Mazaki Anzu felt as though she can take on the whole world. It was this feeling she rode on, straightening her stance and sharpening her eyes. It was the ultimate adrenaline rush. She sneered at the wolves, taunting them to make the first move. One wolf decided to take on this challenge, leaping towards her, canines at the ready. With a smirk, Anzu lunged, dodging its teeth and thrusting a dagger into its midsection. The wolf leaped again, aiming its teeth towards her throat. She jumped quickly to the side and delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to its jaw. Before the wolf can get up again, Anzu plunged the other dagger deep in its heart. Dead now, it turned to ash. She picked up the daggers and glared at the remaining four wolves.

"Come and get me."

With a loud howl, they bounded towards her, but it was no use. Anzu was unstoppable, using a combination of forceful kicks and rapid thrusts. Soon, the wolves were no more. She limped towards Atemu, clutching a deep gash on her abdomen. She attempted to use the rain to clean the blood out of her hair.

"D-damn it, Mutou," she hissed. "I guess w-we're e-even now. What the heck were those things anyway? And where did I learn how to fight like that?" Kneeling next to Atemu, she brushed his blond locks away from his eyes. He groaned in response but did not open his eyes. "Mutou?" She gently shook his shoulders, not wanting to move him too much as she was unsure of his physical condition. "Wake up, please! Tell me you're okay!"

"Oh, child, he is far from okay, I assure you," a melodious voice answered. Hovering protectively over Atemu, Anzu scanned the area, gripping her daggers.

"Who's there?" she called.

"Mazaki Anzu. So you are the child he speaks of. You have disposed of my little pets very efficiently." A young woman walked out from the cover of the trees with a bemused look on her face. Anzu gasped in surprise for the woman was very beautiful. She had porcelain skin, a narrow face, high cheekbones, voluptuous curves, long blond hair, and piercing blue eyes. She didn't look a day over 21.

"Who are you?" Anzu asked, curtly.

"My, my, young ones these days don't have any manners do they?" the mystery woman haughtily laughed, then looked over at Anzu. "But you're a pretty young thing, aren't you? My name is Cyndia. And I will be the one who will take you and your pretty boy there captive. Guess if you want something done," a long katana slowly materialized in her hand, "you have to do it yourself." She lunged towards Anzu with bloodlust in her eyes. Anzu parried her katana and attempted to kick her. However, Cyndia blocked it with her free hand and shoved Anzu away from Atemu.

"Well look at what we have here," Cyndia said, looking down at Atemu's still body. "Up close, he really is handsome." She moved to pick him up but freezes as Anzu threw one of her daggers, landing it a few inches away from her foot.

"Stay the hell away from him!" Anzu snarled.

"Oh, so the little fireball has some life in her, does she?" Cyndia sneered, picking up the dagger and inspecting it. With a scoff, she tossed it towards Anzu. "Let's have it then. I'll show you not to play with fire." Like lightning, she streaked toward Anzu, her katana suddenly engulfed in flames.

Quickly, Anzu snatched her dagger from the ground and jumped out of the way. They danced like this for awhile, Cyndia's flaming katana clashing with Anzu's daggers. But Cyndia was slowly gaining ground, as Anzu's injuries started to take its toll. Seeing this, Cyndia planted a powerful kick to Anzu's wound on her abdomen. With a painful gasp, Anzu faltered and leaped away into the shelter of the surrounding trees, but not before Cyndia sliced her leg, leaving a very deep gash.

"Oh, you can't hide from me, dear Anzu," Cyndia mocked. "Or are you abandoning your precious boyfriend? How cruel you are."

"Damn her," Anzu hissed. She knew Cyndia was just trying to taunt her into coming out. As far as she knew, she needed both of them. What can I do? She dared not make a move, lest she gave away her position.

Use the power of Earth. Do not be afraid, child.

What? Anzu wildly looked around for the source of the voice. It's the same voice from earlier! But who? Where?

Look inside yourself. Focus. It has been there all along. A strange hum reverberated from her daggers and the same warmth that had coursed through her body the first time was possessing her once again. She closed her eyes and abandoned herself to the feeling. Once again, that same sense of familiarity entered her mind, as if she had, indeed, done this all her life. With confidence, now, Anzu strode out from the trees and walked toward Cyndia.

"Ah, come back to play again, my spitfire?" Cyndia taunted. Without a word, Anzu jumped high into the air and hovered.

"So the fireball has a few more tricks up her sleeve, I see," Cyndia muttered. "Well, I have a few of my own!" But before she could do anything, Anzu flew down towards her and managed to place a deep, large laceration on her shoulder before she rolled out of the way. Gingerly touching the wound, Cyndia snarled at Anzu.

"You'll pay for that, you little bitch!" she shouted, and ran towards her. Wordlessly, Anzu stabbed both her daggers to the ground and, suddenly, the ground cracked open towards Cyndia. She managed to avoid falling into the crevices but lost her footing and stumbled to the ground. Seizing the opportunity, Anzu quickly pounced on her and stabbed her through the heart. With a death defying scream, Cyndia turned to ash.

Doubling over, Anzu violently coughed, hacking up blood. The blood loss was taking a toll on her now, as her vision blurred.

"Haha! You think you can get rid of me that easily?" Anzu whipped her head around. "Oh, don't worry child. I'll give you another chance to fight me later. Tell that boyfriend of yours I say hello, will you? Hahahaha!" Cyndia's laughter faded into the distance.

Suddenly, she heard a groan not too far away from her. "Mutou!" Forgetting what Cyndia had just said, she dropped her daggers and stumbled over to him.

"Oi, Mutou?" she shook him. "Come on, wake up, we gotta get out of here!" He opened his eyes.

"Mazaki?" he sat up, placing a hand to his forehead. "Mazaki… Holy hell, what happened to you?!" He gripped her shoulders.

"Well, while you were off in La-La Land, I got into it with five wolves and some blond bitch from hell." Anzu shook her head, attempting to clear the blurriness from her eyes. "Now we're even, Mutou."

"Even? For Chrissake, here." He removed his jacket and places it on her. He then proceeded to take off his shirt and wrap it around her abdomen, serving as a makeshift gauge for her wound. "Even if it was just to return a favor, thank you for saving my life."

"I… would have done it even if not to return the favor." She looked away. "Thanks for the jacket. And your shirt."

"Right." He looked in the direction she was looking at. "Hey, what are those cages?"

"What? Oh!" She had nearly forgotten about them. "The blond girl, her name is Cyndia, was going to capture us. I saw two other people in one cage, though. Let's check it out." She made a move to stand up but faltered. Atemu then grabbed one of her arms and threw it across his shoulder.

"Lean on me," he said, simply.

"R-right," she responded, turning away, hoping he wouldn't see her slight blush. When they got there, they were shocked to see that the two captives looked their age. They were also twins, both with brilliant green eyes and dark, magenta colored hair.

"Are you alright?" Anzu inquired. Turning to Atemu, she said, "Look for something to bust the lock with."

"That won't be necessary, my dears," the girl answered. Nodding at the boy, they both closed their eyes and, just like that, the cage dissipated.

"Well," Anzu said, dumbfounded, "why didn't you do that at first? You could have escaped a long time ago."

"You have awakened our powers, my child," the boy cut in. He closed his eyes and summoned the daggers to her. Gingerly, she touched them. "They are yours. They are meant to be yours."

"I don't understand. How can they be mine? What powers did I awaken? Who are you people?" Anzu gripped her daggers, though, in her state, she doubted she can do anything if something were to happen.

"I shall explain," the boy answered. "First, introductions. You are Mazaki Anzu and Mutou Atemu. I am Koryu and she," he gestured towards the girl, "is my twin sister, Kinyo. We are the spirits of the twin daggers you hold in your hand. And we are forever grateful to you for setting us free. We have been waiting so long for the right person to wield us. You must help us." He gently cupped her face and closed his eyes.

"O-oi, what are you--" But stopped as she felt her wounds start to close.

"We have found you, descendant of the Mazaki clan!" the boy, now named Koryu, stated proudly.

"Wait, what? How am I the right person? How would you know? How do you know us? And thanks, by the way." She stood upright, no longer needing Atemu's support. Frowning, Atemu released his hold on her.

"Wait a minute," Atemu interrupted. "How can we trust you? How do we know this isn't some elaborate plot to make her do your bidding?"

"Mutou Atemu," Kinyo responded, "I'm afraid you have no choice but to trust us. The world as you know it will change if nothing is done. And we have always known you." She took a deep breath and took a long, solemn look at Atemu and Anzu.

"The world has always been guarded by what are known as the 'Elemental Beasts.' They provide balance and stability, for without any one of them, this world will fall into ruin. Everything on this Earth is governed by countless elements but each fall into six main ones: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Light, and Dark. Thus, there are six Beasts."

"Seven," Koryu cut in.

"Brother, we have been through this. We are one entity," Kinyo sternly replied.

"Yes, but we have two separate bodies."

"Whoa, whoa, wait," Anzu held up her hands. "Are you two….?"

"Yep," Kinyo arrogantly replied. He gave Kinyo a smug look. "We are two of the seven Elemental Beasts. We are Earth."

"Fine. Seven Beasts, then," Kinyo rolled her eyes. "Long ago, we worked together with other chosen humans, keeping the balance. We were passed down to subsequent generations, faithfully serving our master. For example, we have always served the Mazaki family. In order for us to work with our human masters, we channeled our spirits into weapons, such as your twin daggers. Fusing their energies with ours, we were able to produce magnificent powers. You felt it Mazaki Anzu, I know you did."

"I did," Anzu whispered. "I did and it was the most wonderful feeling I ever felt. It was like I could do anything. But why me?"

"The Mazaki family was chosen to wield Earth. As to who the other families are, we cannot recall. But you must find them and their Beasts."

"Can't you call them? They're like, you're family right?"

Kinyo shook her head sadly. "About 3,000 years ago, a great sorcerer named Pegasus, along with his wife, Cyndia, sought to control all the Beasts and rule the world. They almost succeeded. As of now, they hold one of us captive: Ahiru, the wolf of Darkness. Only his human master can free him. The rest of our brethren have sealed themselves into their weapon, waiting for their chosen human to come and claim them. Help them, Mazaki Anzu, before it is too late."

"But I don't know where to start!" Anzu exclaimed. "What if you have the wrong Mazaki?"

"You felt the power. Only one who is meant to wield us can feel that. Look inside yourself. You know this is true."

Anzu closed her eyes. She had felt that power. But what of it? She had a life of her own, she could not just go off gallivanting on a worldwide search for weapons to fight some supposed sorcerer trying to take over the world. She opened her eyes and was faced with the pleading eyes of Koryu and Kinyo. For some odd reason, she did not doubt their story, as ludicrous as it seemed. Their eyes held truth, determination, and helplessness. Anzu looked towards Atemu. As usual she could not read what was in his eyes, despite knowing him since childhood. Would Atemu do it? she mused.

"Mazaki," he said, breaking her train of thought, "I think--"

"No," interrupted Koryu. "She must decide on her own. Mazaki Anzu, you have the power to save this world. But you do not wield it alone." Taken aback, Atemu glanceD at Anzu. For some reason, he, too, believed their story. Indeed the earthquake at BurgerWorld was not a normal phenomenon. Would she do it? he wondered. Would I?

"I wouldn't know where to start," Anzu replied, meekly.

"Right next to you," Koryu replied. "For you, Mutou Atemu, also possess an Elemental Beast, do you not? Yes," he smiled at Atemu, "you have the sword of Tsubasa, the dragon of Air."

Surprised, Anzu glared at Atemu. "You knew about this? Why didn't you say anything?" Though, I am a little glad that I'm not alone in this. Even if it is Atemu.

"I have never seen him. But yes, I do own the sword. My grandfather tends to it." Atemu frowned. But what of Grandfather's story? Is it that same sword my ancestor used to kill himself and Mazaki's ancestor? Is there more he is not telling me?

"Your grandfather, Mutou Sugoroku, is more than what he seems," Kinyo stated.

Atemu glared at her. "What--"

"I'll do it!" Everyone looked over to Anzu, surprised. "I said I'll do it. I'll help you find your brethren. Besides, I have an ass-kicking to settle with Cyndia. More importantly, I won't be outdone by you," she growled at Atemu. It seemed petty, but it was the only way she could get him to join her. And he fell for it.

"Oh, really?" Atemu chuckled. "You're in for a grim surprise, Mazaki, for you will never outdo me."

"So you are both going on this dangerous quest, not to save the world from impending doom, but because you do not want to be bested by the other?" Koryu asked, incredulously.

Anzu and Atemu looked at each other and smirked. "Yeah, I guess. It sort of makes things easier." Koryu and Kinyo smiled at each other.

"Whatever works, then," Koryu said. "Our work here is done." With a bright flash of light, they nestled themselves in their daggers, home at last, with their rightful master.

And once again, everything went dark for Atemu and Anzu.


How does the butterfly know when to beat its wings?

It doesn't. It survives the best it can and hopes everything will work out.

Humans, in the grand scheme of things, are still a young and primitive race. But they are capable of learning.


Afterword: The names Koryu and Kinyo come from the manga "The Record of a Fallen Vampire," by Kyo Shirodaira (which I don't own). In it, Koryu and Kinyo are the names of twin swords. Oh and sorry this is so awkwardly written. I had a massive writer's block on this one. I mean, I knew how I wanted it to turn out, but I had one hell of a time working out the details. Thanks for reading (and reviewing)!