"The Rose Duelist"
A Yu-gi-oh Fanfic
By: Seto's Princess
Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh… I only own Maki, Mr., and Mrs. Kaichi.
HI! Today (June 24, 2005) is the one-year anniversary of the day I joined Thanks to you people, I have reached a grand 1,208 reviews this year with nine stories. However, I did have three stories deleted so I might have had a few more, but that is okay. You guys are the best! Thank you all so much for reading my stories; I enjoy writing them. To celebrate my anniversary, I am posting the next chapter of the first story I posted on this site, The Rose Duelist. (Not counting the first two times "Whose Line" was deleted for being in script form.)
Chapter 13 – Moving Day…
"MAKI! Maki, what's wrong?" Mrs. Kaichi asked and put her arms on her daughter's shoulders.
"NO! DON'T TOUCH ME! LET ME GO!" Maki screamed and tried to jump off the couch, but in her attempt to get away, she tripped over her mother's legs and landed on the floor, face forward, with a thump.
"MAKI! MAKI, ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Mrs. Kaichi screamed.
Maki started sobbing on the floor, not from pain, but rather from fear.
"Maki, what's wrong? Why did you scream at your mother?" Mr. Kaichi asked.
Maki continued sobbing on the floor and buried her face into the carpet.
"Maki Kaichi, speak to us!" Mrs. Kaichi demanded.
"Huh? What?" Maki asked and pushed herself up to sit up on the floor. "Mom? Dad? Oh, it's you…"
"Of course it's us. Who did you think we were?" Mr. Kaichi asked.
"Uhh… No one… Never mind. I'm sorry. Uh… Did I just yell at you?" Maki asked.
"Maki, tell us what's wrong!" Mr. Kaichi demanded.
"Um, excuse me…" Maki said and walked off to the bathroom.
…
Maki sighed and washed her face. She pulled up her right shorts leg to look at her knife scar. She thought back to her dream.
…
When the soldier stabbed her right thigh, Maki howled in pain, elbowed the soldier in the stomach, turned around and kicked him in the shin with her left leg.
"MISS KAICHI! ARE YOU ALL RIGHT?" the person from before asked frantically.
"Sort of…" Maki replied.
"It's not safe for you to be here!" the person said as she ran up to Maki. She had long raven hair that went past her shoulders. "However, we can't transport you out of here."
"Ishizu, what do I do?" Maki asked.
"…The lake! Hide in the lake," the person, now known as Ishizu whispered to Maki.
"What? What do you-AGH!" Ishizu interrupted Maki by pushing her off the hill. Maki rolled down the hill, into the lake at the bottom.
"I'm sorry Miss Maki, but we can't afford to lose you," Ishizu said and ran off into the continuing battle.
…
Maki fixed her shorts and walked out of the bathroom.
"Maki! Are you alright now, dear?" Mrs. Kaichi asked as Maki walked up to her parents.
"I'm… fine mom. It was just a nightmare."
"Oh no. Young woman, you are going to tell us right now, what is wrong. You've been spacing out a lot and now you just had a nightmare that scared you practically to death! Please tell us what's wrong!" Mr. Kaichi demanded.
"I… can't. I'm not ready yet. I promise I will someday, but right now, you wouldn't understand. It's… complicated. I think I just need some rest now," Maki said as she lay down on the couch.
"Well… I guess it is late. Maki, aren't you hot in that jacket? Why don't you take it off?" Mrs. Kaichi asked as she reached for the jacket.
"NO!" Maki screamed and clutched her jacket tightly around her. Her parents gave her a quizzical look. "Um… I mean, uh… No, that's fine. I want to keep it on." 'I can't let them see my scar…'
Her parents gave her another questioning look but said nothing and retreated to their room after saying goodnight to Maki.
…
Maki managed to sleep without another dreadful nightmare. The next morning the Kaichi family ate breakfast and gathered the last bit of their belongings while they waited for the moving truck to come.
The ride to Domino was quiet and uneventful. No one spoke; no one mentioned anything that happened the night before. Maki stared out the window during the whole trip and watched the blur of trees and buildings as they drove by with the moving truck only a few feet behind their car.
They had left around three o'clock and they reached Domino around five o'clock.
"Well, we're here. This is our new home," Mr. Kaichi announced.
When they stepped out of the car, Maki walked up to her parents.
"Would it be alright if I went to the park for a while? I would like to help you unpack but I need some time to think," Maki requested.
"You mean… alone?" Mrs. Kaichi asked.
"Yes… May I go?" Maki asked.
"We'd rather you stay with us, Maki," Mr. Kaichi replied.
"We couldn't bear it if we lost you again!" Mrs. Kaichi added.
"Mom, I always went to the park alone when I was younger. Nothing ever happened to me."
"Perhaps… but Domino is a much bigger city. Not to mention everyone knew who you were, back home," Mrs. Kaichi explained.
"Yes, but… It's just that… I really need some time alone… to think… Please?" Maki begged.
"Well…" Mrs. Kaichi said.
"Fine… Take your mother's cell phone. If anything happens, call mine. My number is in her phone book," Mr. Kaichi said.
"Morosou," Mrs. Kaichi began to complain but Mr. Kaichi held up a hand.
"I think we'd better give her the time. I think she needs it," Mr. Kaichi said.
Mrs. Kaichi still wanted to protest but she whipped out her cell phone ad gave it to Maki nonetheless.
"Thank you… Don't worry, I promise I'll call if anything happens. I'm not sure when I'll be back, so don't worry about me," Maki said as she took the cell phone, put it in her pocket and walked off.
"Do you think it was a good idea to let her wander off alone?" Mrs. Kaichi asked worriedly.
"I don't know, Yakima. She did make it on her own for three years. She seems to be healthy and I think she can survive one day at the park."
"I hope so…"
…
When Maki reached Domino Park, she immediately walked over to the swings and sat down. She played on the swings for a while and then slowed down to a stop. The cool summer breeze blew her hair in different directions. A small group of kids ran past her and into the sandbox while their parents sat down on the park benches. An old couple walked by eating ice cream cones. Maki sighed deeply and looked up at the sky.
'It's been such a long time since I've seen a day this nice before. Everything is so calm and peaceful. Everyone looks so happy as if they hadn't a care in the world,' Maki thought. 'In the three years I was gone… all I saw was a sea of blood, fire, grayish skies. Everywhere I went… it was a battlefield…'
Maki glanced around the park and she froze as she saw a group of people walking towards her.
'No! Not them! Are they following me? Why do I keep running into them?' Maki thought.
"Hmm? Hey, look! Isn't that Maki?" Tea asked.
"Yeah, I think it is," Yugi replied.
"Cool! Her family is done moving already?" Serenity wondered aloud.
"Let's go ask her," Tristan said and the group walked up to Maki who remained frozen on the swings.
"Hello, Maki!" Tea greeted.
TBC…
Well, I hope you liked that chapter. A little more of Maki's past in there… What will Maki say to Yugi and Co.? Find out on the next chapter of "The Rose Duelist." Please Review. You people are great!