A/N: What's this? An update at last? Despite writers block, time constraints, and, admittedly, a little laziness? Yay! At least it's long… I wanted to keep this fic short, yet it's already 25 pages or so long… (Sigh) Ah well! Coming up in this chapter- Az's role in the Oricalcos series! An assault course! Ryou's engagement! Tristan's story! Raft building! And the indications of some romantic feelings…?
Disclaimer: I do not own. As usual.
Three- Sun
Maya rolled her eyes. "Relax. I thought you trusted me." She pointed behind Yami's head, where there was a small fishing boat bobbing it's way towards them. Maya must have spotted it right from the top of the cliff. Amazing. The boat cut it's way over, riding the swell. With each dip, curled green writing on the side of the little sail boat. A head stuck out of it.
"What are you doing out there?" A voice said, curiously.
"Um… hoping for a lift, mostly." Maya admitted, sheepishly.
A strong arm reached down, grabbing hold of Yami's hand, as hers was the closest. "Then climb aboard- I just want to know why you came from the top of the cliff!"
They really had just jumped from a cliff, Yami realised- if it was a low one or not. And they'd escaped, at least for now. Still… it was one of those things you couldn't go through with another person and not end up as friends. Perhaps this truly was the beginning of something.
Eventually, the two were pulled out of the water and onto the safety of the boat. As she climbed on, Maya finally got to read the name on the side.
The Water Charmer.
Sitting on deck, she wrung some of the water out of her hair. "Thanks." She said, looking up at the captain of this ship and smiling. "I appreciate it."
"That's just fine." He replied, not looking at her, but at Yami, who was doubled over, coughing up a little sea water. "Are you okay…?"
Yami straightened up. "I'm just fine now. It's a good job you were there. Thank you."
"No problem." He answered, though he still sounded concerned. Maya watched with interest. There defiantly seemed to be something there… She smirked to herself, and cleared her throat. The two jumped in surprise, and then dropped their gaze guiltily.
"So, may I ask your names?" He asked, as the three of them got to their feet. His skin was tanned, as though it had seen much of the sun, his hair was thick and black, sticking out at odd angles. He also seemed to be wearing only seventy-five percent of his clothes, with long shorts and a loose blue shirt that had sleeves down to his elbow. He seemed to be about their age, though as he returned to the helm of his small boat he seemed to have many more years experience then could be possible. He was a natural at sea.
"Oh!" Yami said, remembering they were just random strangers on his boat right now. "Yes- I'm Yami Motto, it's nice to meet you." She answered, formally.
The guy twitched a little in recognition of the name.
"I'm Maya Kaiba," Maya added, as they seemed to be going for the full formalities. "Thanks for the lift, um…?"
"Tomasu." He said, smiling shyly. "My name is Tomasu Tsunami, and this is my boat; the Water Charmer."
"Tsunami?" Maya echoed. "Now, that's a name I know."
"Yeah," Yami nodded. "Your dad was a famous water duellist, right?"
"That's him." Tomasu answered, shortly. "But, there's no need to ask who your parents are. Even so, I'd like to know how you came to be sitting in the middle of the ocean…"
"We jumped." Maya said, matter-of-factly, as Tomasu began heading for shore. "From the cliff."
"We were being chased by Yankees." Yami added, evidentially not thinking Maya's explanation had been adequate.
"Um… Why?"
A pause. Maya and Yami looked at each other.
"Actually, we never got around to asking…" Yami said, sheepishly. "We just legged it."
"I see." Tomasu lied. "So, what are you all doing all the way out on this island anyway?"
"School trip." Maya answered. "What about you? Shouldn't you be in school somewhere?"
Tomasu cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well… Yes… but I entered a race at the weekend, and… well, she isn't made for racing, and… we've gone a tiny bit off course."
"How much is a tiny bit…?" Maya demanded, but was ignored, as Yami hastily changed the subject.
"The sunset looks so beautiful out on the ocean." She commented.
"There's nowhere more beautiful in the world." Tomasu replied, smiling. "I've been sailing with my family since I was young, and I saved all my money for years; until I could buy an old boat from the scrap yard. She was in a terrible state when I got her, and I spent the next year patching her up, even naming her. The day dad said she was seaworthy was one of my best. Since then, we've been more or less inseparable, this boat and I."
"You did a good job." Yami answered. "…It must be nice to just be able to sail away…"
"No better feeling."
"It feels free." Yami laughed happily, as spray shot up from the side and splashed her a little. "She has a spirit all of her own!"
He nodded. "You should see her in a storm. Normally, a boat like this would capsize straight away, but my Water Charmer just keeps going."
The two of them continued to chatter away about the boat and everything else. Maya stood and watched the ocean, feeling a bit of a third wheel.
"Maya! Yami!" They were in shallow waters now, the boat about to run aground, and Michael had splashed his way out to join them, ahead of most of the students there. "Are you okay? What happened? Did you fall?"
Maya looked over to where Yami and Tomasu were still talking, oblivious to their surroundings. "One of us has certainly fallen…" She muttered, then hopped over the side, into the shallows; the boat unable to go any further in. She stumbled a little, but luckily, Michael grabbed her arm before she was able to make a total fool of herself.
"Maya, you just fell off a cliff." He said, exasperated. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"We didn't fall. We jumped." She informed him, sloshing her way back towards the beach. Michael planted himself in front of her.
"Do you not have any sense?" He demanded. "What were you playing at?! You could have smashed straight off those rocks at the bottom, Maya!"
"Well, we didn't." She answered, levelly. "So stop getting so het up over it!"
She forced her way past Michael, who was feeling quite bewildered. He didn't know of anyone who would willingly jump off a cliff and not be at all bothered by it.
He blamed the parents.
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Solo performance time. Anna swallowed nervously. Ever since she had been forced into the Young Musician of the Year awards, she'd been performing, despite the fact she had not come close to winning. Even so, you'd think she'd be used to it by now. Instead, the nerves were killing her still- and she was with such a friendly group. After being seen in the contests, she'd been invited to the International Youth Jazz convention in the States, and so far the trip had been fun, letting her meet like minded people and make new friends. When they performed in a group, it felt wonderful. But now she had to play on her own, she felt as nervous as anything.
"You'll be fine." Yaten, one of the lads on the trip with her reassured her, patting her shoulder. She'd really hit it off with him- he was a great guy. Kind, funny, a little bit bizarre; who seemed to love the things she did and hate the things she did. They never ran out of things to talk about, and even after knowing her for such a short space of time he could tell she was worried. "You're an awesome sax player. They'll love you! You have no reason to be nervous!"
She smiled gratefully at him, giving him a quick hug. Yet, he didn't know that there was more to her nerves then just stage fright. It was worry- Seto was out there somewhere. He'd missed some of her previous shows because of some incident involving his stocks, and so he'd sworn he'd come to this one- even if it meant coming so far across the sea. Now, that made her feel special. But what if, after all this, her playing wasn't worth it?
She needn't have worried. When she got up there, in front of a large crowd, she didn't have to look too hard to know he wasn't there. Swallowing her disappointment, telling herself there would be a good reason, she raised the saxophone to her lips and began. The music stopped her from thinking too much, put her in an almost trance-like state. Even so, she almost swallowed her instrument in surprise when she noticed several very familiar faces in the audience.
Suddenly, she knew why no-one had been in touch online.
After the show, her friends came to her, congratulated her on her performance, but the sentiment was under a shadow. They were worried. She was confused, and naturally wanted to know what on Earth and in the Floating Cities they thought they were doing there.
So they told her. Monster attacks in Domino. Some bikers using a strange card and stealing the God Cards. Souls going astray, Pegasus calling them here. Seto being blamed for the monster attacks.
That made her angry.
Very angry.
And marginally confused, but she was used to that by now.
Trying to get her head around it all, she went to be on her own for a while, and hid away in the cupboard where their instruments were kept, furiously typing onto her laptop just to try and get her thoughts in order. It was Yaten that found her, coming in to get his stuff for his imminent performance.
"So this is where you're hiding," He said, warmly. "Why hide? You were great earlier."
"Nah, but thanks." She returned, absently. "Oh, are you next? Good luck!"
"Who were those guys you were with earlier?" He asked, nonchalantly, suddenly. "That Seto Kaiba of yours wasn't there, was he?"
Anna shook her head, still typing. "Well, no, but they were friends of mine. They…" She trailed off slowly, hearing the blare of motorcycle engines. "Oh, crud…"
"What's up?" Yaten asked, as she stood up urgently.
"I have to go!" She said, flustered. "Oh, your performance! I'm sorry, I…" She floundered, looking back and forth between him and the door. She was fairly sure she wasn't supposed to ditch in the middle of a convention.
"Oh, go on." Yaten shook his head. "I'll cover for you. Go with those friends of yours. Just promise you'll come back!"
She nodded and left, not realising the relevance of his words, nor noticing the feelings behind them. Yaten couldn't help but sigh.
It seemed she was really hung up on her boyfriend, and he didn't even keep his promises. What a git. If it were him, he would make sure to never let her down. If it were him, if he could hold her, he wouldn't let go.
If it were him.
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Yami laughed raucously again, trying desperately not to spit her food out of her mouth, as Michael and Tomasu chuckled and even Maya smiled a little. Somehow, the girl's reaction was funnier then the anecdote itself, as Yami struggled to contain the marshmallow she was consuming, having finally managed to roast one on the bonfire the students were gathered around. Maya watched in vague amusement as Michael thumped her on the back, trying to stop her from choking.
"Gosh, if you can't eat and laugh at the same time, don't." He said in mock sternness.
"I'm a woman." Yami gasped, still giggling. "We can multi-task."
Michael snorted. "Right. It wasn't even that funny a story…"
"But… Just imagining you and your dad trying to put that tent out…" Yami began to laugh again. "You never told me about that before." She added, accusingly. Michael shrugged, and just then the flames flickered as a slight wind blew across the ocean and skittered over the beach, sending the sand shuffling as another wave broke. He looked out across it, the embers of the fire drifting over to drop in the water, and the others followed his gaze. The two elements meeting seemed somewhat beautiful that first night.
"I love the ocean." Tomasu said, suddenly, softly. He'd been hanging around with them all that evening, apparently having nothing better to do- and if any of the teachers noticed the sudden addition to their ranks, they didn't seem to care. He smiled slightly.
"It's so beautiful." Yami agreed, wistfully, watching more waves break on the shore. "…Can we go paddle?"
Tomasu nodded, and the two of them began to remove footwear, Michael joining in. They began to walk away over the cool sand, but then he paused, and turned.
"Hey." He called up to their previous spot. "You coming?"
Yami looked back too, seeming surprised. "Hey! Come on Mac, don't spoil the fun."
Maya gazed back at them, feeling somewhat surprised. She'd always been more or less left to her own devices- welcome to join in if she wanted too. But now she was being asked, invited. It was such a small thing… but it felt good.
She gave herself a mental shake not to get so emotional over meaningless things as she kicked off her sandals and moved to join them. Yami ran joyously into the sea up to her knees, Tomasu following somewhat more sedately beside her. Michael paused at the edge of the waves, waiting for Maya, and then the two waded in just a little way, up to their ankles. Standing there for a moment, she enjoyed the feel of the cool water, the sand moving beneath her feet, the smell of the salt.
"Want to take a walk?" Michael asked, and, nodding, the two set off, wading along parallel to the beach. For a while, they were silent, but, seemingly awkward with this, he attempted to make conversation. "Look… I'm sorry for yelling earlier. I guess it wasn't really any of my business…"
Maya shrugged. "Don't worry about it. See, recklessness is in the blood."
"Oh?"
She nodded. "Or so Mokuba- ah, my uncle- would have me believe. He insists that he once blew up a door using only a wrist watch and a couple of lemons."
Michael looked at her in confusion. "Um… why?"
Maya laughed a little at his expression. "Well, he was a major kidnap victim when he was younger, people trying to get at my dad…" She pointed up at the top of the castle gatehouse, squatting at the top of a cliff ahead of them. "He's pretty reckless too, if he really did threaten to jump from up there…"
Michael didn't bother to point out that she had just done a very similar thing, choosing to say instead "Why? Don't you know?"
"Well, my dad never talks much… Mokuba reckons that I must remind him too much of-"
"Stealth attack!" Yami yelled suddenly, appearing from nowhere and splashing them hard. Michael laughed and splashed back, even Tomasu shyly joining in. Maya threw water about absently, wondering if she would have been able to trust him enough to finish that sentence anyway. Actually, it was probably a good job she'd been interrupted. Then, the thunderous voice of the teacher, clearing them out of the water, still not noticing that there was one not of their number. They couldn't help but laugh silently as they moved back to reclaim their spot.
Unnoticed, Asuka began to put her socks back on. Good. She hadn't really wanted to go into the ocean anyway, if she could avoid it. As she did so came the whistle of a microphone, and then the voice of the young Geography teacher.
"Listen up, please, ladies and gentleman!" His voice came cheerily over some portable speakers. "Tonight is not entirely free time- we are about to commence and in depth study of an aspect of our culture and heritage that is loved the world over." There were groans, but he continued regardless. "I speak, of course, of the ancient art of… karaoke."
Cheers and laughter, this time, and names were shouted out; most met with more giggles. Suddenly, the first brave candidate went up, hyping it up for the crowd, chose his track on a little CD player, and treated them all to a performance that made up for in passion what it severely lacked in talent. Some people got up and began to sway and cheer, and soon they were all dancing.
"You should go." Michael told Maya, as she swayed a little self-consciously from side to side. Yami nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes! Defiantly!"
"Karaoke isn't really my thing…" Maya mumbled.
"Go on, I'd like to hear you sing again." Michael pushed. "You know you'd outshine anyone else here. We may as well hear one decent song!"
"Are you a singer, Maya?" Tomasu enquired, politely.
"Is she ever!" Michael put in before she could modestly dismiss the notion. "Go on!" He pushed her up towards the microphone, which the guy was just finishing with, and there was an almighty cheer. It seemed her reputation preceded her. Sighing, seeing she had no choice, she scanned down the tracks; eventually setting on the dance track to the song 'Heaven'. Smiling, because this was, after all, what she loved, she began to sing. She was so caught up in the song, she didn't notice everyone dancing, enjoying themselves. She didn't see Yami in hysterics as she tried to teach Tomasu how to reverse a box step. She didn't notice Asuka approach Michael, take his arm, and begin to dance with him. She was probably the only one. Could it be? That Michael and Asuka were an item? The idea was almost laughable, yet, to see them together…
Later that night, as they were finally forced up away from the cool sand and into their rooms, someone decided to breach the subject with Michael. He was seated on the bottom bunk, brushing tiny grains of sand from his feet; his room mate Tatsu already lying on the bunk above. He looked down on him and chose his words carefully.
"You seemed to be getting on pretty well with Asuka." He commented.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Michael answered defensively, sliding into his own bed. "And why am I on the bottom? My legs are a good inch longer then yours, at least…"
"Should have got here faster." Tatsu shrugged. "Anyway, come on, what's the deal with Asuka? You like her?"
Michael reddened a little. "Why ask something like that so suddenly?"
Tatsu leant over the edge of the bunk, and Michael could see the wry expression on his upside down face. "Because she's been flirting with you all day?"
Michael batted his friend's face in mild irritation, causing Tatsu's hasty retreat. "Don't be stupid."
"I'm not!" Tatsu huffed. "But what about it? What if I am right?"
"I… I don't know. She's pretty, I guess, and nice… and quite quirky too, in a funny way…"
"Hmm. What does Yami make of it all?"
"Why does that matter?" Michael shot back, genuinely confused by this.
Tatsu seemed equally bewildered. "Um… well, we all assumed you were all over each other."
"What?!" Michael sat up very suddenly and smacked his head off the bottom of Tatsu's bunk. His curses and his 'friend's' laughter echoed out of their room and was lost somewhere in the bowels of the castle, never making it to the girl's room, where Maya was climbing up onto her bunk and Yami was taking a last look out at the ocean.
"It's such a clear night." She commented. "You'd never see this many stars in the city!"
"How do you get so enthusiastic about things like that?" Maya sighed. "Go to sleep, already."
Yami laughed. "Sorry. I'm hyperactive, or so people tell me."
Maya did not dignify that with a response, deciding to change the subject. "Asuka seemed to be getting pretty friendly with Michael." She said, keeping her tone carefully neutral.
"I know!" Yami grinned. "Awesome, isn't it?"
Maya looked down at her quizzically. "You don't… mind?"
"Why would I? He's so shy- it's about time he got himself out there, don't you think?" She looked at Maya's expression critically. "You seem surprised."
"Well, you're always with him. I thought the two of you were a couple."
"Eww." Yami protested, but then saw the funny side of it and began to laugh. "Nope- see, our parents are so close; and being an only child, I grew up playing with Michael and then Wren. So dating him would be like dating a brother or something, I guess…"
"Wren?" Maya asked, blinking.
"His sister. Well, one of them. There's Lisa as well, of course, but she's a lot younger."
"Oh." Maya was about to continue, but Yami was still going.
"Then there's the twins, Ben and John."
"How many of them are there?!" Maya said, surprised. Yami grinned.
"Lots. It's a very… alive house."
"I'll bet…" Maya settled back into her pillows, trying to imagine what it would be like to live in such a busy house. Her house was always so quiet bar whatever music was playing- her uncle's rock, her father's Jazz, her own mix of whatever took her fancy. And what would it be like to have siblings anyway? Wouldn't it just mean there were tons of arguments? "I don't envy him…"
Yami chuckled, and turned away from the windows at last, drawing the curtains. As she did, she took a final look at a dim light almost hidden in the curve of the bay, bobbing in the ocean, and couldn't help but frown a little. She hoped it would be there in the morning.
That light was, of course, coming from the window of the tiny cabin of the Water Charmer. Inside that faithful vessel, Tomasu was drinking a mug of some sort of hot beverage, listening to and feeling the slight, calming movement of the ocean beneath him and trying to decide what to do. He had most certainly lost the race by now, and he should technically have been in school. Plus, his parents were probably worried.
But, then, it wasn't like he hadn't done this before. There would be other races, and he could catch up with his school work. And his parents probably weren't unduly concerned, the amount of times he'd sailed off for days before.
Then there was the small matter that he wasn't entirely sure how to get back to the mainland from here. Yet, if he waited till the end of the week, he could just follow their ferry back, surely.
Then there was the even smaller matter of the people here.
So it was probably better that he stayed, just so he could find a safe route home. That was the only real reason, and the fact that she was here was nothing but a small bonus.
Tomasu blushed at his own thoughts and went to turn off his light, so that here, in the middle of nowhere, the only light beyond the stars and moon was a solitary window, behind which Asuka was talking to Fai.
"You seemed to be getting on pretty well with Michael Wheeler today…" Fai wheedled, sensing she was onto something. "Anything you want to tell me, Asuka?"
"Not really." Asuka shrugged. "I'm just playing around. At the moment, anyway."
"Oh, come on. You could have any guy you want. Why him?"
"He has certain things that other guys don't." Asuka answered, cryptically. "We'll just have to see how it goes, no?"
But, so far, it was going pretty well.
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"Ruth!" Ryou called upstairs, carrying plates from the kitchen to the table. "Come down, okay?"
"One minute! I have to wash my hands!" She called back.
"One minute, then." Ryou rolled his eyes. The two women in his life were just never ready for anything. Jenna emerged from the living room now, tapping a pen against her notebook and went to sit as the table. He put the food down, and she took the time to look up at him.
"Thanks." She mumbled distractedly, as Ruth came and joined them, sliding into a seat.
"Notebook off the table, my love." Ryou said in mock sternness to his wife, who merely replied in the form of the lyrics she was working on.
"Ryou? Everyday, it's the same, See him sitting there on that same old train, Sitting in the same old seat…" She trailed off, taking a bite of her food. "So. What's next?"
He shrugged. "How should I know? Is this the one for that Indie band?"
Jenna nodded. "Man, I hate writing Indie. Sounds great when it's done, but it's a nightmare to do. And I'm rubbish with lyrics. There's a rhyme in there… Sitting in the same old seat… Hmm…"
"Some dead beat from a council street." Their daughter piped up suddenly, pausing to eat a forkful of mash potato before continuing with. "Heading down the route to nowhere."
Jenna nodded appreciatively, writing it down, but did not stem the flow of creativity with praise just yet. "Trying to avoid the pain… unavoidable…" She mumbled.
"Unobtainable!" Ruth added, excitedly, leaning in to look at the book.
"But pass him by…" Jenna read as she wrote. "He's sold his soul, doesn't want to know…"
"That guy," Ruth suggested.
"The one you used to be." Jenna completed in satisfaction. "And presto chango, we have a first verse!" She gave her daughter a high five. "You're scarily good at this, Ruth."
"Alright. Now, please, put it away, and forget your work for a few minutes, right?" Ryou put in, removing the notebook and placing it out of reach on one of the sides. Jenna groaned and complained as Ruth giggled. Ryou smiled to himself, feeling very lucky. They had a pretty good life, the three of them. Jenna had continued to take commissions, made quite a bit of money from song writing. The wall of her study was adorned with the records of her top ten hits, of which there were around seven, and then, in pride of place, her two number ones. There were also pictures of their wedding, their honeymoon, and, of course, their daughter. There were similar pictures all around the house, and in his slightly more organised office a small pile of photograph albums, the favourites the ones from before they were married, back in their travelling days. There were only three photos on his desk, in amidst the mountains of paper work being a teacher generated; one of the three of them together, another of him and his sister many, many years ago; and the third from his last trip to Japan, for Anna's wedding. This one had been taken at the reception, and all his friends were there. On the edge, he stood, his hand just visible around Jenna's. Next to them, Joey was grinning like an idiot beside Tristan, his other arm wrapped around Mai's shoulders- who Ryou recalled had been rather reluctant to be photographed in such a way. On the other side was Yugi and Téa, just before she left for America. Then there was Mokuba, smiling happily and looking, now in his late teens, like he was going to be just as tall and handsome as, and perhaps even surpass his brother. Seto stood beside him, looking, for once in his life, happy, with his arms around his new wife's waist. She was holding him around the neck and grinning widely at the camera, eyes glowing. He often wondered, when he looked at that photo, what had become of her. They'd used to exchange E-mail a lot, but then, after Anna had given birth, she'd had less time; and, for some reason, about two years later, they'd stopped entirely, and she hadn't responded to any of his messages. It was a real shame too, as she was really the only link between him and the others, passing on his news to them and their news to him. In fact, as the correspondence had disappeared not long after his own marriage, they probably didn't even know they had a daughter, let alone one that was almost eleven now.
But was he ever lucky to have her. The day he'd become a father was one of the most bewildering, frightening, downright bizarre but wonderful days of his life. He looked across the table at the girl opposite him, pondering on the last ten and a half years, thinking about all the things that had happened. She was reaching the age where she would no longer merely accept what people told her, but was forming her own opinions. Actually, she had been for ages; reading books aimed at teenagers. Yet, Ryou thought, it was those opinions that would shape the adult she'd become one day. They had to help her make the right decisions; or at least to see when she'd made the wrong ones. He was probably the worst kind of person to ask about their kids, but he really was proud of her; and it still amazed him that she was somehow part of him. So lucky.
He'd been very lucky, really. First he'd found some amazing friends, then someone amazing to love. He remembered when Jenna had first suggested they give Ruth the middle name of 'Amane', and how much that had meant. He'd probably cried then, he usually did. But not out of sadness, not really. More out of gratefulness. To look at what he had was to look at all he wanted. No, life wasn't perfect- there were rows, irritations, things that went wrong, or people that let him down…
Still, it was pretty darn good.
"Then a hope, a whispered word, about the House of Runaways." Jenna commented, bringing him out of his thoughts in a snap. She was scribbling on the notepad again, her plate cleared.
"I thought I told you not to do that at the table?" Ryou inquired.
"You shouldn't zone out, then, dad." Ruth reprimanded. "You were away with the Fairies. Where do you go all the time, anyway?"
"Now, that's a secret." Ryou winked at her as she politely began to stack the finished with plates. "But I'll tell you it's pretty nice there."
"I have a place I go to as well." Ruth said, confidentially, before going on to describe an elaborate fantasy setting that she was apparently planning to use in her debut novel. Ryou considered wryly how he had no doubt that she could do it if she wanted to; as he listened to a complex description of this utopia. She went to tell a thrilled Jenna how there was an enchantress that had been sealed inside a tower that was just like her.
"So, what am I doing in this tower? Looking beautiful and waiting to be rescued?"
"No." Ruth said, sounding disgusted at the suggestion. "You could have got out ages and ages ago if you wanted. You just decided it would be easier to take the evil warlock down from the inside."
Jenna laughed as Ryou commented that it sounded just right to him. Then Ruth turned her attention to her father.
"You're there to." She added, as though it went without saying. "You're the knight that silently guards the tower, to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid; and so you can help her beat the warlock when the time comes."
"Sounds right to me." Jenna said, slyly echoing his earlier words. "So then, Roo. Tell me how this story actually goes…"
Ryou sat back, quietly listening to the conversation. He was in a good place right now.
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He was twitching again. Fidgeting. He was eating, yes, but it was in a fidgety way; playing with his fork or drumming his fingers on the side of his glass. He only got this way when something was on his mind; sometimes excitement, more often nerves. Jenna was getting rather impatient, because she knew he wanted to ask her something, and wouldn't be terribly disappointed if he did. She sighed a little.
Ryou heard this and felt worse then before. How was he supposed to ask her? He'd been scared plenty over the years, in a way had almost become desensitised to fear, but it had him now, tying his stomach in knots. He'd always said that if something was worth doing, it was worth doing scared, but…
"Will you just ask, already?" Jenna said quietly, sounding almost amused. That surprised him. He swallowed.
"So… um… you know what I want to say?"
"Yes." She rolled her eyes. "Go on, get on with it."
Ryou frowned, thinking that was somewhat easier said then done. "If you know what I'm going to ask, then why can't you just tell me the answer?" He asked, despairingly. Jenna shrugged.
"Well, that would just be rude, wouldn't it? Come on, spit it out, it's not that hard…"
Ryou swallowed again, steadying himself. Then he looked up, met her eye, and dived in. "Fine. Jenna, will you marry me?"
She jolted forward in her seat, eyes widened in shock, spluttering. "…E… I… I thought you were going to ask what I wanted for my birthday!" She blurted. "Oh, my life, I'm so sorry! I totally killed any and all romance, and you wanted to… ask… the question! Why would you want to marry a mouth like mine? Gosh, I'm such an idiot- I never expected you to… I mean, not that I don't like it, but I was sure- when it's only two weeks away and all- not that you have to get me a gift, I just assumed-"
"Jenna." He said, quiet and shy. "You're babbling."
"I…" Her frantic speech suddenly deserted her, and she was left without a single word in her mouth, the wave of emotions washing them clear away. She stood, walked around the table, and grabbed hold of him; hoping her embrace would tell him all she wanted to say.
"Yes?" Ryou asked, hopefully.
"Yes."
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"…Then, as you climb out from under the scramble nets, it's just a simple matter of taking the monkey bars across the stream, along the wobbly plank, and you're done! See who in your pairs can get back first!" The instructor finished, cheerily, as though the list of obstacles on the island's course was something to be enjoyed. Michael sighed.
"I have to say, this really isn't my ideal thing to be doing in the morning…" He commented quietly.
"I haven't had chance to do one for ages." Yami said, smiling. Smiling. Michael truly didn't understand her sometimes.
"I've never done one before." Two voices said together. One was Maya. The other was Tomasu, who had come and joined them shortly after breakfast. The teachers still hadn't noticed, and the students didn't care, so that was fine.
Well, almost fine. He'd like one of them in particular to care…
"Really? Never?" Yami answered, chuckling. "Then, be my partner. Come on, I'll race you."
"You're on." Maya smiled icily. "Just know this- I wasn't raised to lose."
Yami smiled pleasantly back. "Yes, well, neither was I."
Michael sighed, somehow knowing exactly how this was going to turn out. Tomasu, meanwhile, looked on in slight bewilderment as to whether this was friendly competition or not.
"I should warn you, Yami can get really competitive…" Michael tried. Maya shrugged, the glint in her eye suggesting she could match anything. No more was said between them as they waited for their turn. Finally, Maya and Yami were called up, and both were off like a shot, running to the first obstacles- over and under bars.
Before them were wooden hurdles, set to different heights, the idea being to go over one and under the next, alternating between. The first was barely at knee height, and Maya realised she was going to be practically on her stomach for this one. Her hesitation cost her, as Yami suddenly crouched low and ran under the hurdle first.
"At last!" She crowed, triumphant. "Being small pays off!" Then she ran straight into the next hurdle, which was up at chest height. "How the heck…?"
Maya passed her, vaulting smoothly over the beam and then throwing herself to the ground to get almost seamlessly beneath the next. Yami grinned. So that was how it would be. She stretched one leg up onto the bar, and swung over, hoping she could gain ground as they eventually ran for the next obstacle. It was obvious to all those watching that she had inherited her mother's grace.
The net shuddered as Maya made impact on it. She'd never done anything like this before, and it was fun. She couldn't help but smile as she put her feet in and began to climb up the A-frame. She made a good headway, but then, as the net shuddered with Yami jumping onto it, her foot slipped; and she suddenly found her leg falling all the way through the hole. Yami was quickly level with her, took in the situation, and helped her get untangled. They both began to climb again.
"What was that for?" Maya asked, as they swung their legs over the bar at the top. "This is a contest."
"Yeah, but it was my fault you slipped, right?" Yami replied. "But I will win."
Maya merely smirked, and then simply let go of the net, jumping a metre or more to the floor and setting off at a run. Yami frowned and climbed as fast as she could without missing her footing. By the time she had reached the ground, Maya had already begun the next task- the swinging tyres; a row of them suspended before them, when you had to climb from one to the next. Maya had a rhythm going, and with her longer reach, did it easily. Yami, however, had more difficulty but quickly realised that she would have to swing the tyres a little; and completed the row without slipping off once. She caught up with Maya at the entrance to the next obstacle, a crawl through a small dark tunnel; where the taller girl was hesitating.
"What's up?"
"Just making sure you didn't get killed on the tyres." Maya smirked back, and dived into her tunnel, Yami in the one next to her. Yami got out first, but less then a second before Maya came out and scrambled back to her feet. She was still struggling to regain balance as they came to the see-saws they had to run over and lost precious seconds preventing herself from falling off. Luckily, the opportunity to regain those seconds lingered just up ahead, with a net pinned close to the ground. In contrast to Maya's speed at getting up, she was very good at getting to the ground, whereas Yami was the other way around. As they emerged from beneath the net, she was back in the lead again. Then it was the monkey bars, above the stream. With sudden memories of children's playgrounds with her uncle, she jumped, grabbed the first bar, swung a little to get her centre of balance, and reached for the next with the rhythm that made her a musician. Then, she heard a little yelp, and turned her head to see Yami, a bar behind, hanging on by only one arm and looking a little precarious. She wouldn't be hurt if she fell; it would just be unfortunate. But Maya didn't want to win because her opponent fell, so she grabbed Yami's arm, got it back into touch with the bar, and swung on.
"Why did you do that?" Yami called out.
"I don't want to win by default!"
Yami laughed and the two raced for the wobbly planks before them. The trick to this was to take it slow, but just quick enough to beat the other. Maya finished a second before Yami, but the other was a fast sprinter and got the distance. As they finished, it was impossible to tell who won.
They stood in front of a disbelieving Tomasu and an exasperated Michael; the whole course having taken no more then five minutes. They were panting, sweating, covered in mud and grinning manically.
"A draw!" The instructor announced.
"A draw?" The two girls echoed disappointedly, looking at each other.
"This is unacceptable…" Maya murmured.
Yami nodded.
There was a slight pause.
"Go again?"
"Just what I was thinking."
And before anyone could protest, they were off.
"They do it twice, but it takes them half the time…" Tomasu pointed out, impressed despite himself.
Michael said nothing, listening to Asuka somewhere behind him complain how unladylike and undignified it was to just throw yourself into the mud; and smiled in amusement.
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
By the time Anna got outside, her friends were already there, facing up against three bikers with awfully funny hair styles. On seeing her, they smirked.
"Well, here she is, the star of the moment." One mocked.
"We heard you play, it's quiet a talent." A second continued.
"What a pity your precious Seto couldn't be here." The third grinned sardonically. Anna glared.
"What do you want?" She demanded, as Téa placed a reassuring hand on her arm and Yugi- or, more accurately, Yami- began to argue with them.
"You want to watch your tongue." One, called Alistair, replied and looked back at Anna. "And the question is not so much what we want, but what we have."
She stared, knowing somehow what he was going to say.
"Why do you think that boyfriend of yours isn't here?"
"We have him."
"We can take you to him. If you do, maybe we won't take his soul just yet."
Anna looked down at the ground, silently, staring. Téa wrapped her into a hug, feeling her friend shaking.
"You had no cause!" Yami yelled at them, angrily. "Kaiba had nothing to do with this, and neither does Ann! You scum…" He glanced back over his shoulder at where Téa was still clinging onto the poor girl. "I promise you this- we'll get him back!"
And finally, Anna spoke.
"There's no need." She said, quietly. Everyone looked at her in surprise as she pushed Téa off and met Alistair's gaze levelly. "They're bluffing. After all, if they already had Seto, one of the most powerful people in the country, what would they want with me, right…?"
Silence for a moment, and then the biker's began to laugh.
"Ha, she's sharper then she looks!" Alistair commented. "Now I can see why that guy keeps her around! It figures he'd be unable to fall for someone's looks…"
"Yeah," A second biker agreed. "He probably just keeps her around for show anyway. It's not like he could ever love anyone."
"Nothing except that company of his." The third added. "But look where that is now, eh? He's got nothing and the Boss has it all!"
"He doesn't even have parents to run back to." The knife was twisted in deeper with Alistair's words. "I'll bet they're not even dead. I bet they ditched him as soon as they realised how worthless he and that brother of his were."
Now she was angry.
"You guys are dead!" She yelled, leaping forward. Joey and Tristan grabbed her, trying to make her see sense, that she couldn't take them on. She stopped, but continued to yell. "What the heck kind of dirt are you?! What do you want from people?! Are you just out to feast upon people's hearts?! You're scum! Filth! People like you shouldn't roam the streets!"
"You want to fight? Do it in cards, babe." Alistair said, activating his disk.
Two of the bikers merely laughed, kicked their bikes to a start, and drove off. The others went to go after them, then hesitated.
"Go on. Chase them." Anna said, suddenly deceptively calm. "But I am going to take this guy apart."
"Ann, don't be dumb!" Téa protested.
"You haven't seen them," Joey tried. "Ann, you wouldn't stand a chance!"
"I can flipping well try!" She snapped back. "This guy's been messing with my head since he got here! You have to go after the rest of them, but this creature is mine!"
They looked at her, silently. Then, somehow understanding that she had to do this, Yami handed over his duel disk, and lead them off after the others.
"Promise you'll catch up later." Téa begged. She said nothing, slotting her deck determinedly into the slot. Her friends left, not knowing that when they returned there would be no sign of Ann, and Yugi's disk would be lying abandoned on the floor.
Because, after she and Alistair were alone, things got a whole lot worse.
He started to say… things. Things that she ignored at first, but slowly began to somehow make a twisted kind of sense. Influencing her. Preying on her feelings of resentment, commenting on how Seto wasn't here, her friends weren't here, and how she didn't belong here; if it wasn't for people like them she would have belonged in Wherever. There was something in those words that got into her head, that she couldn't escape from. He convinced her. She belonged with them. The duel was left unfinished, the disk left to rust on the floor, and she was left to go with him; to do her part in reviving the great Leviathan.
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Although no-one had quite the same enthusiasm for the assault course as Yami and Maya had demonstrated, it was still figured that they could use something slightly less active. And so it was that they came to be standing on a spot that had once held meadow duel field, though they did not know it, learning how to fire an arrow at a target some metres away. Again, it was Yami and Maya who achieved moderate success at this, although when Tomasu came in with arms of steel from years of raising and downing sails, he couldn't fail to be the best, in his quiet and unobtrusive manner. He didn't really say much, and it seemed only Yami and her amazing people skills could get him to speak at all. And he seemed to talk to her rather a lot, Maya couldn't help but notice. Perhaps Michael noticed too, but he seemed to be too deep in conversation with Tatsu and Asuka to even notice what was happening around him.
Maya ignored them all and fired another arrow. It hit the gold. No-one noticed.
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Seto was edgy. Who wouldn't be? Back at home, he was having a major crisis with Kaiba Corp being blamed for what appeared to be monster attacks; yet here he was, dragging his brother down a dark alleyway in America; in order to meet up with the others, who had recently informed him they'd 'lost' his girlfriend.
He felt ashamed. He'd promised to go and see her in those shows all those weeks ago in Japan, and hadn't made it to one. Then he had sworn he would come all the way out to the states to watch her, and he really had meant it. But then, these monster attacks… he couldn't have left his company then. He just hoped she'd understand, because, at that moment, he didn't understand himself.
A movement. On one of those annoying metal fire escapes they have in the States. Seto immediately went and stood a little in front of Mokuba, determined not to let any thug hurt him. But, as the figure jumped gracefully down, he realised this wasn't a thug. It was dark, and she'd had her hair cut, but somehow, he could just tell it was her. It surprised him that she'd managed to execute such a jump when normally, she even managed to fall out of bed. At that moment, though, he didn't really care.
"Ann!" Mokuba said, clicking too. "What are you doing here?"
She said nothing. Seto, relieved to see her after so much worry, suddenly got his movement back, and went to wrap his arms around her. He just wanted to hold her again, know she was safe. But he didn't come close, as she pushed him away.
Now he was sure something was wrong. He'd seen her angry before, but this was something else. Instinctively, he found himself tensed, defensive, standing in front of his brother again.
"Az, what's the matter?"
"What's the matter?" She echoed. "Don't you know, Seto?"
"…I'm sorry." He said, honestly. "I know I should have come like I promised. But, with the mon-"
"Not that." She snorted. "As if I care about that anymore. You're just another in a race of liars, another dishonest, heartless human being. Don't act like you care now, when you never cared before!"
"What are you talking about?!" Seto demanded. "Az, of course I care! I-"
"Shut up!" She roared. "Lies! More lies! I've woken up! I know better now… it may have fooled my mom, but not me! It's thanks to you, and dirty scum like you, that I ended up like… like this! Half and half. Not human, not muse- a mess, a mistake! Human kind ran the muses off the Earth, sent us up into the sky, where we don't have night, or weather, or natural water… and yet, we let you get away with it. So you could be exploited! So we could use you! Like the savage, worthless animals you are! And yet… to think…" She stared down at her hands. "To think that filthy blood runs in my veins…"
"Az…" Seto said, slowly, swallowing. Behind him, Mokuba looked fearful. "That's not true. You're fine as you are."
"No, I'm not!" She screeched. "Caught between two worlds! The shame of my parentage ties me to this disgusting species! Without that tie, I would have been alright! I could have taken my rightful place in the city! And then you tried to trick me to! It's all your fault! Everything is!" She seemed to compose herself a little. "But… that's okay. Because soon, we'll revive the Leviathan. And this 'society' that's been built will be exterminated, the blight on us gone… the Muses can retake their place on the Earth, and build it as it's supposed to be… And I can be redeemed…"
Seto tried to remain visually composed, looking down at the floor. In reality, his heart was tearing in two. He'd heard this from that weirdo on the plane on the way over, the one he'd been forced to duel. The one that had played that weird card. But to hear it from Az… from her…
"You're right." He said, still looking at the floor. "I did lie to you. And I let you down. And I'm sorry that it happened and that it will happen again. But…" He looked up at her, his eyes hard and determined. "I know you're not yourself. I don't know what's gotten into you, but I promise I will get it out."
"Another promise?" She smirked, raising her eyebrows.
"This one I'll keep." Seto insisted. "If you were yourself, you wouldn't want to be left… this way. I don't know what happened, but I will do anything to get you back to normal!"
Her reply would weigh heavily on him for the rest of his days.
"But you should like me like this, Seto." She said, sweetly. "Now I'm cold and heartless, just like you."
"No…"
"You say you'll do anything?" She asked. "Then duel me! Gamble your soul!"
"Ann…" Mokuba protested, taking a step towards her.
"Mokuba." Seto answered, looking down at the floor. "Get out of here. Run. Go and find the others."
"But…"
"Go!"
It was lucky that Az would not remember most of that duel later. But, she would always remember the end. She had, somewhere along the line, played the Seal of Oricalcos, but in the end, it hadn't done her any good. Now her defences stood open, Seto had his Legendary Dragon out, and it was his turn.
But he hesitated. He could not attack, not knowing what the seal was supposedly capable of doing. He looked over at Az, that green mark on her head, the way she looked at him like she hated him; like she hated everything. He couldn't bear to leave her like that. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to attack her, either. He'd have to forfeit.
"Seto." She said, and, just for a moment, when he looked at her eyes, he could see her there, frightened. She gave a little smile. "Do it." Then she was gone again, adding. "Go on! Give my soul to the dragon, if you dare to."
"I do dare to." Seto answered, slowly. "Because, for just a second, I saw the real you in there. So I'll do it."
Without further hesitation, he attacked.
Az wouldn't forget the feeling she had then. She couldn't remember the attack, but she remembered feeling so good again. When you've been full of hate, and then the good feelings, moral values, love, happiness, and all the rest come rushing back, it feels so good. And, above all, she felt safe. She couldn't see him, but she knew he was there, holding onto her.
"I knew you'd come…" She muttered, so quietly she'd never know if he'd heard her. With that, her soul slipped away, into it's temporary prison.
Seto kept holding her anyway. At that moment, he didn't know what else to do. He felt as if he'd failed her, because she wouldn't wake up, no matter how hard he tried. She was alive, he knew, but nothing more. He knew he'd set her free from the hate the Oricalcos had bound her to, but he hadn't managed to save her. Not properly.
That was the scene that greeted the others when they arrived with Mokuba. Seto was crouched in front of them, his back to them, next to Az. She was out-cold. Soul-less.
"Kaiba…" Yugi said, softly.
"You…" Joey began. "You idiot! You played the card, didn't you?! I knew you were low, Kaiba, but to play the card on Ann?! What the hell do you think you're playing at?!"
Seto turned around then, and Joey stopped dead. Suddenly, it all became clear, and his accusations fell down dead. Kaiba looked a mess, his eyes red, almost as if he'd been…
"Let's get her somewhere safe, okay?" Téa said, eventually. He nodded, and lifted her still body up off the ground.
Somehow, he would always doubt he had done the right thing. But he had.
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"Into fours!" The instructor called, as they stood in a cluster around the edge of the lake, already having been forced into life jackets and helmets. "The sooner you're in teams, guys, the sooner we can get this underway!"
They didn't know what 'this' was just yet. All they knew was that, at lunch, they'd been told to wear something they didn't mind getting wet, and now they were in all this health and safety gear. They'd assumed they would be doing cannoning or something, but now they were getting into teams…
"Pity that Tomasu guy isn't here." Maya grumbled. "He'd have been great for a water activity…"
"Will I do instead, Mac?" Yami asked, as if it didn't go without saying. "And Elwood here makes three, right?" She gestured at Michael.
"Why Elwood?"
"Because."
"Can I join you?" A voice cut in, and it was that belonging to Asuka. She looked around at them, smiling.
"Sure." Michael shrugged, before anyone else could say anything. All around them, groups were forming in a similar fashion. Maya turned her gaze instead to the shed behind the instructor. Peering into the gloom, it appeared to contain large plastic barrels, ropes, and planks of wood. She began to get a feeling of anticipation. This looked like it could be fun.
"Raft building!" The instructor declared, when everyone was eventually ready. "You're going to enjoy this, guys… Right, then. Each group will be supplied with an oar each, some barrels, and some planks. Your job is to construct them into a raft; which you will then be sailing across the lake, turn around and come back again. The winning team will be the first ones back! Give me a shout if you need any help, okay?"
And that was that.
"Raft building?" Yami asked, dubiously. "But I've no idea how to build a raft…"
"That's half the fun." Michael informed her, grinning.
Maya nodded. "Besides, I think I have an idea. Couldn't we-"
"I know the way we should tie the knots." Asuka put in. "I'll show you how to do them. As long as we tie them the right way, it should be fine."
Maya said nothing. Arguing over a juvenile interruption wasn't worth it. Even so, Yami looked back and forth between them, concerned, as Michael chattered happily enough to Asuka about how to do these knots of hers. Maya wasn't at all sure they'd work, but just let them get on with it. She wasn't worth the effort.
It was like that the rest of that session. Asuka seemed to like to be in charge rather a lot.
"She's a little bossy, isn't she?" Michael muttered to Maya, as he helped her carry a plank over.
"She has to be. If she didn't have people to do it for her, no work would get done."
Michael laughed. "Heh… That's a little harsh. Probably true, though."
Maya laughed too. "Well, perhaps we should build it so there's only room for three."
"Or two." Michael added, innocently, watching as Yami screamed in frustration again and chased after a runaway barrel. "They'd probably notice, though."
"We could throw them overboard."
"That might work…"
"Have you two got it yet?" Asuka called. "Come on, we only have half an hour left, and with Yami losing her barrels…"
"I didn't lose it!" She said, indignantly, rolling it back up towards them. "Let's get it strapped back in, alright? Asuka, can I have a hand here…?"
"Sure."
"Let's do this side then, Maya." Michael smiled. She smiled back, and they set to. Before too long, they had completed a raft of some description, and armed only with small paddles that hardly deserved the title of 'oar', climbed aboard, Maya and Michael at the front, Asuka behind him, and Yami behind Maya. As the instructor yelled at them to go, Asuka and Yami shoved hard against the bank and they were off. They paddled as fast as they could, and got to the opposite side of the lake without too much trouble, though their course was rather wobbly and their progress not as fast as they'd perhaps hoped.
But it was fun.
"A little left!" Maya declared, sounding happier then she ever had before, and jostled Michael's elbow. "Do it, Elwood!"
"Don't you start!" Michael yelled back, exasperated, but still sounded amused as he paddled hard, swinging the raft around and back towards the centre of the lake.
"We're coming apart, captain!" Yami shouted, suddenly. "The ropes are coming undone! Help!"
"We're gaining water! We're slowing down!" Asuka added.
"I'll-" Maya began, but Asuka overrode her.
"I'll go and fix it!" She said, determinedly.
"No, wait!" Michael protested, but Asuka had already disappeared over the side of the raft. A moment later, she slipped from view, and did not resurface. Michael cursed violently.
"Stupid girl!" He screamed. "You two, keep paddling!" He demanded, and before anyone could stop him, had jumped off the side too. A second later, he had fallen beneath the deepest waters of the lake. They churned around him as other teams, not aware of what had happened, paddled past, making it hard to see. Their own raft was drifting off ahead, but Asuka was not with it. He spotted her a second later, thrashing madly but blindly, panicking and so not swimming properly. He grabbed her, held her to him, and, somehow, managed to drag them both back to the surface of the water. She began to cough and splutter madly, as he slowly got them back to the shore, the one that was closest being about quarter of the way around, muscles burning. He set her down, but it was not concern in his eyes. Anger shone from them as she sat up.
"What the hell were you playing at?!" He yelled, watching as she sat there, shivering from wet and cold, a small cut on her forehead. "Of all the stupid things to do, Asuka…!"
"I thought you wanted to win…" She tried.
"Not if it means you're going to get hurt!" He snapped back. "It was just some loose knots! What on Earth possessed you?!"
"I thought I could fix it…" Asuka whispered, looking miserable. "But then I was hit by Kaiba's oar, and I panicked…" Tears of fright began to fall. "And the water was so dark… I didn't even know which way was up…I thought I was going to die…"
Michael softened a little, sighing. "Yeah, we all did, Asuka…" He sat heavily down next to her, sighing. "Don't do such reckless things!"
"I'm sorry…" She sobbed. "I… I was so scared!" Shaking, she grabbed hold of him, huddling close. Awkwardly, he hugged her back, comforting as best he could. Just because he was angry didn't mean he could ignore such fear. It reminded him of when his siblings had got scared over the years, and they'd always come to him, even before their parents. Lisa still did, on occasion. He found himself thinking back to Wren, his closest sibling in age, and how frightened she used to be of the noises that came from their garden at night. He remembered one night, when she had come running in, afraid, and he had taken her down, out into the garden, and shown her that it was nothing more then some fox cubs playing. She wasn't afraid after that. The only problem was, she wanted to watch them every night, but was too scared to be there on her own. He'd lost a lot of sleep that way. Lost in the memory, he closed his eyes.
Asuka, though she was shaking, kept her eyes open fully, looking over Michael's shoulder as everyone dashed around the side of the lake to see if they were okay, lead by their other two team mates.
"Asuka, Michael!" Yami called, aghast, and Michael released her. "Are you alright?!"
"We're fine, Yami, don't worry." He answered. "Asuka probably needs a plaster, though."
"I'd need more then that if it wasn't for you." She replied, sweetly. "Michael… thank you."
Out of the corner of her eye, Asuka noticed Kaiba looking away. Perfect.
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I've just remembered why I didn't bother to make friends before. Maya wrote, angrily, sitting alone in her room during that free time session. Everyone else was down on the beach. People are idiots. Thank goodness for you, my ever silent friend- I might just lose my sanity were it not for you. After lunch today, we had a raft building contest, and had to sail from one side of the lake to the other. I somehow got lumbered with Asuka, and, as usual, she seemed to be out to totally discredit everything I did. I had a good idea of how to best structure the raft, too, but, as usual, the loudest voice prevailed, and we did it Asuka's way. I wasn't in the least surprised when it started coming to pieces, considering it was the knots she tied. But, it was almost fun up to then, and everyone's else's rafts were coming apart too. We could have carried on, we could have won. She didn't have to dive so dramatically overboard, now did she? She just wanted to look brave- probably thought I was going to volunteer and wanted to beat me to it. More fool her, I was just going to say that I'd try and keep us out of the waves the other teams were making. Either way, the idiot almost managed to drown herself; and an even bigger idiot- namely MICHAEL- decided he was going to play the hero too and dive off to save her. He managed to, of course, but what if he hadn't?! Do these people have no sense whatsoever?! She was scared to death over it too, or so she said. Um, excuse me? She was in a waist-deep lake. I was in the ocean having just jumped off a cliff, and I didn't make such a fuss. I refuse to apologise for cutting her head by hitting her with my oar. There are three very good reasons as to why:
1. I don't think I hit her because I didn't feel anything.
2. The cut's the wrong shape. It's been done on a bit of rock, or a splinter of wood, but it's not neat enough to be an oar.
3. And if I HAD hit her, it would serve her right for her idiocy.
But, naturally, she's the centre of attention again now. I can't stand people like that. It also makes me highly suspicious about her 'accident' anyway. She was probably trying to outdo me; or, more likely, trying to steal my new found 'friend'. Well, she's welcome to the silly git. I can't believe him… She would have been okay, she didn't need to be rescued. He was only putting himself at risk as well, and I don't have any love for stupid people.
Except… I sort of do, I guess. In the time we've been here, he and Yami have done plenty of silly things. Even I've jumped off a cliff. I suppose I'm sort of getting used to it. And the rest of the day, pre-Asuka-the-amazing-stick-up-her-bottom-girl, was almost fun. I turned out to have a surprising knack at archery, as did Yami. Michael was pretty impressed, though he spent more time trying to work out why she was calling him Elwood all of a sudden. She's a strange girl, Yami; but I sort of get the impression there's more to her then it would first appear. I mean
As though the words on the page could summon her, Yami entered the room, smiling a greeting. It wasn't the first time. She clearly hadn't liked the idea that perhaps Maya preferred to be alone, but had eventually left her to it. Now, though, as she shrugged off some sand-covered sandals, she tried once more.
"We're about to go down to dinner." She said, lightly. "You coming?"
"Sure." Maya shrugged, attempting to casually conceal the book. However, Yami still saw.
"What you got there?"
"A journal." Maya said, shortly, and climbed off her bed then. That evening was a barbeque on the beach, and she had consumed a saddening small amount of hot dogs in her time. Of course she was going to dinner.
And maybe that idiot friend of hers would be there too, and she could taunt him about being so overdramatic earlier.
Michael was there, and she did indeed tease him. He reminded her that she was the one who had thrown herself off a cliff. She could only laugh.
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It was growing late as he walked back through those familiar gates, feeling guilty that he had not passed through them for quite some time now. He leant his prized old motorbike, the first he had ever brought, against the stands of the old dirt track and sat there for a moment, looking over it and remembering all the times he'd had upon it. He'd started to come here in high school, riding around the track in the dead of night, because it was free. By day, he was nothing more then a mechanic. Here, he had been able to forget that, lose himself in the roar of the engines and the rush, the thrill, of such speed. He remembered the night he had brought her here. She had not been very impressed.
He sighed, standing again and taking his bike up to the starting line. He hadn't thought of her in a long time, and didn't want to now, an old hurt that was more or less ignored, just taken out on occasion when there was nothing else to do. He had loved her at the time. Not anymore, she was long since gone from his life. But he couldn't help but wonder…
He kicked the bike into a start and then began to accelerate madly, taking the corner fast enough so that the thoughts were chased out of his mind. So he wouldn't have to think about the night, some years ago now, when she had come down to the track to meet him, and he'd been so pleased that she'd ended up pregnant. So he wouldn't have to think about the day she told him. He'd been surprised, but happy. Over the moon. So he wouldn't have to think about how he wanted to marry her, raise a family, do it properly. So he wouldn't have to recall those dreadful words, that awful laugh: Marry you? Is this just because that idiot friend of yours got hitched, and we had to sit through that crappy ceremony? Why would I want to do a thing like that with someone like you? You're a mechanic! A loser! You'll never be anyone, and you'll never be anyone to me- you're a nobody that was fun for a while. You get real old real fast, Tristan.
So he wouldn't have to wonder what had become of that child.
Another corner. Faster. A slide, a skid, dirt thrown to the stars, bend so low his elbow was practically at the ground. That's the way. No way was middle age too old for this.
There had been happier times here to. Good, golden evenings before he met her, when he was a kid. And those long, empty nights afterward when he could forget the world, perfect his art. Then, at his peak, there was that day when he was not all alone on an empty track.
They were stood in the stands, waiting for him to finish. Anna and Mokuba, the former so heavily pregnant that he wondered if the engine noises were a good environment for her to be in. She didn't seem to worried, as she grinned down at him.
"What are you two doing here?"
"We've come to offer you a job." She answered.
"Or, more accurately, ask a favour." Mokuba amended.
And had it ever been an opportunity. That night, he rode one of the best bikes he'd ever found, his favourite even now. It just wanted to go, but still handled beautifully, could turn at a moment's notice. Whoever Mokuba had hired to help him and his sister-in-law with the design had done a beautiful job. But they didn't just want him to test the thing. No, they offered him something much more then that.
A tight curve. He swept around it at speed, graceful, not leaving the track for a second.
"It's a good bike." He told them approvingly, reaching the end of the course. "I'd buy one."
"How about selling them?" Anna asked, smiling.
"Pardon?"
"The thing is, we need someone who knows how to handle the bike to use in the ad campaigns." Mokuba explained. "Well, more then that. All the demos, all the tests, the whole publicity deal. Could you help us out?"
Agreeing had been one of the best decisions he'd ever made. He got good money off Kaiba Corp as the motorbike quickly became one of the best selling models, so even Seto couldn't really complain about it not being what the company usually made anymore. And Tristan got noticed. That, he mused as he slowed a little, was really how he got started. He was invited to race, and he won. A lot. And somehow, he hadn't been a nobody anymore. And yet, as he nudged the bike up to the finish line, he knew it was almost over. He couldn't race for much longer, at his age. It saddened him, perhaps even angered him.
Still, as long as he still had his bike and this track where it had all begun, then he'd be okay.
Movement.
He finally paid attention to his surroundings, looking to his side, where there was another guy, sitting astride a bike just as he was, hands tightening on the handlebars. So, tonight, he was not alone. Both were wearing heavy helmets that the real racers were forced to wear, so their faces could not be seen. But they didn't need to. By some unspoken agreement, they both kicked off.
This was what it was all about for Tristan as he raced once again around the twists and turns, bewaring the rough or slippery patches, the bike leaping into his grip. The thrill of speed had nothing on the thrill of competition. No time to think. It was over fast enough as he skidded to a halt at the line, no more then half an inch ahead. He removed his helmet, and smiled at his opponent.
"I haven't had a race that close for far too long. I didn't think anyone else drove this course either." He said, happily. "You're good, mate. Are you professional?"
"Nah, my dad never let me when I was kid, and now… well, I'm not getting any younger." They replied, removing the helmet to reveal a woman about his age, perhaps slightly younger, with short spiked hair and a ready smile. "Plus, no-one really takes ladies seriously in the big-time. You'd know about that, right?"
"Not really." Tristan answered. "I'm old news now. They don't tend to have people over the age of thirty compete."
"That's because no-one under the age of thirty would have a hope of winning against us." She snorted. "I'm telling you- unless they're old enough to appreciate the KC Rider rather then take it for granted, they're not worth the time it takes them to get around the track."
"Now, that was a bike…" Tristan muttered, still half in his memories. "So, do you have a name, my worthy adversary?"
"Julie." She answered, shortly. "And what about you, Kaiba Corp's bike salesperson?"
"Tristan."
She shook her head in exasperation. "Like I didn't know that, from all those races you won. Idiot."
"Well, that was quite a time ago." He reasoned. "I haven't won anything in a while."
"You won me." She shrugged. "And that gives you the right to buy me a coffee. It's in the middle of the night, I'm tired, and I lost all my loose change flying around the track."
"Fine." Tristan laughed. "And, while we're there, I'll tell you about this wonderful invention for pockets called a zip…"
And so, on that old dirt track came another chance for another beginning.
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The room was darkened, though the curtain was not closed, the window open so the two girls could be lulled to sleep by the sounds of the sea. It seemed to work on Yami, as the girl yawned widely.
"Man, what a day…" She said, sleepily. "Still, tomorrow won't be so hectic, if it's just the mazes… If they're as hard as my dad says, it should be fun…"
Maya said nothing. The idea of thin, dark chambers was not the same as her idea of fun. Not that she would ever say that.
"Goodnight, Maya… Tomorrow's another day…"
"Night." Maya replied, remembering those familiar words. She'd sung about that, in the concert all those months ago, when the trip was first announced. And, as she lay awake, it beat around her brain until, eventually, it had to come out. She moved to the window and sang it to herself, not wanting to wake Yami. Little did she know, the other was a very light sleeper, and awoke just enough to hear the words, drifting out across the dark night.
"And you probably don't want to hear tomorrow's another day, but I promise you you'll see the sun again; and you're asking me why pain's the only way to happiness, and I promise you you'll see the sun again…"
Yami rolled over sleepily, thinking how sad, how lonely it sounded. Vaguely, her half-asleep brain wondered if Maya was that lonely, and, if she was; what they could do about it.
At length, Maya climbed back up into her bed, pulled the covers over her, and tried to grab an hour or two's sleep. She'd need it later. Gradually, her breathing slowed, and she settled into a dream of a small, dark place; where she cried and cried but nobody came.
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A/N: And there we have it. Two days of five are down! What happens on day three? Why does Michael need to phone home? In the card game tournament, who will emerge triumphant? What exactly prompted Joey to propose? Did Seto and Az ever come close to breaking up? Will Maya ever read Az's letter? Will they ever even get out of the maze? And what role does Asuka have to play…? Coming up in Fall or Fly Chapter Four: Steal…