Sorry for the wait! I got dragged off to camp with my family. I'm back now though, complete with the smell of campfire, wilderness, and sunburn!
Ch. 11: Frayed Bonds
Grandpa laughed. He could not remember the last time he had done so. It had been nearly one month since he found Yusei broken at the bottom of the chasm separating B.A.D from the Satellite. From there, he had carried the boy through the ruins to an equally ruined shop, situated right on the end of a square. A giant pole lay broken in the middle of the square, a busted clock at the end. The name of the store was long gone, but Grandpa knew its name off by heart.
Yusei still could not walk, but he was starting to be able to sit up without crying out in pain. His face still distorted against the pain slightly, but every time he went to check on the boy, he would force himself into a sitting position. Grandpa liked that about Yusei. He liked how the boy was strong and confident. He reminded him of himself when he was younger.
Shortly after Yusei arrived, he had removed the boards covering the windows to let some natural sunlight in the room. It wasn't healthy for a growing boy to be cooped up inside all day, but since he was still bedridden, there was not much of a choice. Yusei seemed to like the light anyway.
"Ah. Your awake." He smiled as he walked into the old bedroom, "Don't strain yourself, I can help you sit up you know." But it was too late, Yusei had already pulled himself into a sitting position. Grandpa laughed, "I bet you're hungry?"
Yusei nodded. He looked like he wanted to reach out and grab the bowl from the other, but Grandpa had securely tied Yusei's broken arm to a small pole, keeping it immobilized while it healed, and because of the extensive bruising to his left shoulder, that arm was useless as well. He tried though, every morning he tried to feed himself whatever Grandpa had been able to find for breakfast. It wasn't easy. Finding food for one person in B.A.D was hard enough, but feeding two was nearly impossible. Sometimes, Grandpa even went hungry to feed the injured child. It was only natural after all.
Grandpa sat on a stool he had placed next to Yusei's bed and began to spoon-feed him again. Yusei looked displeased, not being able to try for himself this morning, but the boy did not argue. Grandpa sighed and placed the bowl aside, moving to open the rotting curtains he had placed over the window.
Sunlight engulfed the room, and Yusei had to momentarily close his eyes to let them adjust. He liked it every time the Old Man opened the window, the sun felt nice, and when it engulfed the other, Yusei realized just how young the old man actually was, under all the stress, dirt, and grime.
"Papa." He said suddenly. Grandpa jumped back, he blinked a few times and looked over at Yusei with a startled look. Yusei did not even blink an eyelash, "You don't look old enough to be called Grandpa… why do you want me to call you that?" It was true. The 'Old Man' in the darkness definitely looked old, but in the sunlight, Yusei could see more colour in his bi-coloured hair, even though it was still heavily greyed. In the light, the man looked like he was either midlife, or a little older.
Grandpa smiled and turned back towards the door, "Maybe because… I'll never get the chance to be called Grandpa."
Yusei frowned, "Why?"
"My son, along with his mother and all my friends… died here in Zero Reverse." He stated,
"Your son?" Yusei repeated quietly.
Grandpa turned and walked over to the dresser. He opened the top drawer and pulled out an old photo, the frame was cracked, the glass was missing, and the image was so badly water-damaged that you could barely make out the faces on the images anymore. With a sigh, he walked over and sat down on the stool again, angling the photo so Yusei could see it.
Yusei suddenly felt sad as he stared at the image. In the image, a young man stood beside a woman who was holding an infant. The infant was smiling wildly, and reaching out towards his father. The young man beside the woman had one arm around her, and then one hand reaching out to grab the little baby's outstretched hand. There were several people standing behind them that Yusei did not recognize.
"That is me, my wife, and our child." He hesitated, "He was probably around your age when Zero Reverse struck."
"Was this your home?" Yusei asked,
"Yes." The old man turned away, putting the image back in the drawer, "I was a bit of a Pro-Duellist back in my day, and I was out of town at a tournament when Zero Reverse happened."
Yusei's eyes widened, "You were a Pro-Duellist?"
Grandpa shook his head, "I guess it can't be helped. Here… I want to show you something."
He walked over to Yusei, and the little boy reached out his arms as he picked him up. Gently carrying the child so he did not hurt him, he carried the boy from the room and down the hall, and into another room. Yusei gasped as they walked in.
The room was nearly sparkling with trophies, ribbons, and 'Victory Cards'. Nearly every tournament prize in existence lined the walls of the room. The glass displays that once held them in place were shattered, but it looked like someone had cleaned it up. There was only one thing that looked out of place, an old Duel Disk, probably one of the originals, was thrown aside. When Grandpa walked by it, without paying it no mind, Yusei reached out with his bruised arm to grab it. The motion hurt, and he knew he could not lift the device… but the thought of it rotting there disturbed him.
"That's… my old Duel Disk." Grandpa stated, he picked it up and held it up to Yusei,
"Why is it here?" Yusei asked. There were no cards in the deck slot.
"I guess now, it only serves as another reminder." Grandpa sighed,
"Reminder?" Yusei asked, his eyes preoccupied with the 'new' device,
Grandpa looked away so the boy could not see the glitter of tears in his eyes, "A reminder of the day I was busy using this in a tournament… instead of being with my family when they needed me."
… … …
Kako stepped out of the Vortex with a dark scowl. How could he have failed? The only thing he could think of was that Yusei was still alive… and he had to stop him. His goal today was nothing more then gathering information. Where was Yusei? How did he survive? Was there a way to kill him? It seemed this boy must have divine protection…
It did not take him long to find out most of what he needed to know. He walked by the orphanage and saw the caretaker crying in a rocking chair, holding an old worn out blanket, and a picture… it was obvious Yusei had not returned to the Orphanage. So… his 'family' thought he was dead? That worked for him. He just had to make sure their beliefs came true.
But if Yusei was not dead, how could he make it so that he could not return home before he had a chance to kill him?
He looked across the street - at a young family walking with their small child, a boy around Yusei's age - and a smirk crossed his face. He felt stupid for not realizing it earlier.
By this time tomorrow - even if Yusei did survive the fall, and if he somehow survived his next attempt at killing him - at least he could have some 'satisfaction' in knowing that the boy cannot return home.
… … …
The knock on the door startled Martha out of her thoughts. She had no idea how long she was sitting there, in the rocking chair, just rocking back and forth. If all she knew, she might have even fallen asleep. She stood up and walked over, cracking the door open. On a bright sunny day like today, all the kids were outside. So, when she saw a man in a Sector Security outfit, her heart skipped a beat. She wouldn't know what to do if anything else happened to her children.
"Good morning Ma'am." The officer said, "Are you the caretaker of this Orphanage?"
"Yes…" She replied cautiously, "What do you want?"
Without a second's hesitation, he pushed a small child in front of him. The child had long silvery-blue hair, and dull brown eyes. "This child's name is Kiryu Kyosuke." He said as he pushed Kiryu at the woman.
Martha gently wrapped her arms around the child's shoulders, "Another orphan?"
"His parents were murdered earlier. It is unknown if he has any other family, so until someone comes up to claim him - he will be put in your care."
Martha frowned. She stared at the boy and all she could see was Yusei, and in an instant, she felt as if she had already failed this new boy. Kiryu seemed to just realize Martha's arms around his shoulders and wrapped his own around her thick body, she could hear him crying into her dress, and wrapped her arms around him. Maybe this was what she needed? Healing Kiryu's pain could help her forget her own. Maybe she could get Jack and Crow to help the boy as well, and maybe he can help those two get over Yusei?
The thought of replacing Yusei sent a wave of guilt through her body, but she told herself that she could not think that way. Yusei was dead and she needed something to fill the hole in her heart that he had left… Kiryu might do just that…
She nodded at the officer, "Seems Sector Security can do something right for once." And with that, she slammed the door in the officer's face, and gently pulled Kiryu inside.
"Jack! Crow!" She called.
Crow came bounding down the stairs, and came to a sudden stop when he saw Kiryu's unfamiliar face, "Who's that?"
Martha waited a moment, looking at the top of the stairs. The girl with brown pig-tails was pulling Jack by the hand down the stairs, her face as bright and cheery as ever. Martha nodded at the girl, "Thank you Stephanie."
Stephanie pulled Jack close and wrapped her arms around his arm, "Jack didn't want to come down! But I thought it could be important…so I dragged him!"
Jack made a face, but said nothing. He looked at Kiryu without much emotion.
Martha pushed Kiryu in front of her, the boy looked terrified as he stared at the two unknown children. "This is Kiryu. He just joined our 'family' today. I would like it if you showed him around."
A large smile crossed Crow's face, "Sure!"
"Where's he gunna sleep?" Jack pouted, without looking at the boy.
"I was going to assign him with Yusei's old bed…" Martha replied,
Jack glared sharply at his Caretaker, "If you expect to replace Yusei with this whelp, I want nothing to do with him."
"Jack!" Martha snapped.
Jack turned to Stephanie without a moments hesitation, "Stephanie. You'll be my new roommate. I don't want to even be seen with this guy!"
Stephanie cheered, "Yay! Ok Jack!"
Crow frowned, "Well then… Kiryu! You can be my roommate! Come on! I'll show you my room!"
And without a seconds hesitation, he grabbed Kiryu's arm, and pulled him up the stairs. Martha watched them go before turning back to Jack and Stephanie. The boy would not even look at her, the look of disgust was clear on his face. Martha felt the guilt clench her heart. How could she get Jack to move on?
… … …
Aki burst out laughing, "Are you serious?"
Jack frowned, "Stop laughing! This is a disaster!"
Aki was clenching her sides, laughing as hard as she could, "I'm sorry J-Jack! T-That's just so funny! You a father?"
Ruka was trying so hard not to smile herself. She was hiding her face behind her hand, "W-Who's the lucky girl?"
Jack fought hard not to blush and turned away, "Stephanie…"
"That girl who works at the Blue-Eyes Café?" Ruka asked,"The girl that's SUPPOSED to work at the Blue-Eyes Café." Jack grumbled, "This is a disaster!"
"Well, we'll just have to fix it won't we?" Aki said, trying to get a hold of herself again.
"How?" Ruka asked, "I mean… its not that we can just go out in the open and search. Do you know how hard it was just to get into the Satellite to find you? Your once again trapped in the Satellite, Aki is once again 'the Black Rose Witch', and I am supposedly a Signer who works for Goodwin."
Jack folded his arms. It was bad enough he was wearing an a-shirt in public, and married with children, but to be once again referred to as 'satellite scum' was almost painful, "We'll do whatever we must to get things right again. Starting with finding Kako, or an alternate way into the past."
"We can't just jump back in time." Aki retorted,
"Why not?" Jack snapped, "Zone, Aporia, Paradox, and the others had no problem doing so… it should not be impossible for us to figure it out."
Aki and Ruka exchanged quick worried glances. They had to fix things… and they had to do it fast. Not just for Yusei's sake anymore, but for Jack's and everyone else's…
Next chapter: Kako goes out of his way to make sure Yusei does not return to the orphanage, while Yusei continues to get better everyday. What will Kako do to keep Yusei from returning? What will Kiryu's appearance do to change things?
