Jade's face said it all: disappointment. Aster had never seen someone sit so gloomy at a coffee shop before. She refused to order anything while he and Sartorius drank hot chocolate and chatted. Sartorius had chosen the place, which Aster found it quite charming. A small coffee shop in front of the T.V studio where Mr. D was hosting an interview. They turned their faces towards the large T.V screen as the presenter introduced Mr. D. After his victory, he had become quite a celebrity.
"He is very confident" Sartorius commented, Aster heard Jade sigh. D sat comfortably in the brown leather sofa cracking jokes and explaining his strategy. Aster grabbed a bite from the cheesecake that was in Sartorius plate, he turned towards the girl and pointed at her with his fork.
"Want some?"
She shook her head and said nothing. Jeez, girls were difficult. He examined her: her eyes glued to the T.V, he already said he was sorry, and after much talking she understood. Aster was not exactly thrilled of partying ways with her, but it was part of life. Mr. D had told him that. Perhaps they would meet years later, like two people destined to run into each other again, or perhaps, that was simply the end of their friendship. Sartorius elbowed him and made him look back on the TV.
"Now" the presenter turned serious while looking at the audience. He looked as gloomy as Jade at the coffee shop. "Digging some research, I know you have an adoptive son, is that correct?"
"Yes, that is correct. His name is Aster, and he is eight years old".
"Must be hard...especially adopting a child so old...what brought you to do it?"
"Well, Aster is the son of the well known card designer Elias Phoenix".
"The card designer who was found dead in his penthouse?"
Murdered, Aster thought.
"The same one. And when I read the story…" Mr. D made a pause "I was in such shock."
"You see, I knew the guy. We did High school together...then I lost contact with him, and years later I met him again." he continued.
"How did you meet again?" the presenter insisted. Aster held his breath, he knew the answer:
"Mr. Phoenix's wife, the boy's mother of course. We met at a golf course, and there I met Elias again, Aster was already born at that time".
"Well, Elias, he was such a good man; and a very talented card designer! When I heard the news, I knew I had to help in any way I could, so...I decided to adopt the boy. As he had no other living relatives other than his father"
"That is very noble" the presenter answered.
"Thank you. But I don't care about the compliments. I just want the boy to grow into the amazing duelist he is...perhaps in a few years he will be sitting in this same chair!". The presenter moved on to ask about gossip, if he had met a nice woman or was married, which Aster did not find very interesting.
As Mr. D was finishing his interview, the group crossed the street. Aster approached, hiding backstage and was surprised that Mr. D was in front of a live audience. The place was packed as the crowd cheered and clapped at the interview. Mr. D had not exponsed Aster to the camaras, and the boy was perfectly fine by it. Aster knew he was not 100 percent anonymous, he was sure some people may recognize him as cameras were quite present and followed Mr. D outside whenever he stepped out the street. He noticed some faces turn around, mostly looking at him with pity in their faces rather than surprise. The orphan kid whose dad was murdered...not the nicest way to be recognized. However, because of his "tragic story", Mr. D had requested reporters to not bother him with questions and surprisingly, they obeyed.
He noticed Jade standing behind him. He gestured her to approach and look at the live audience. Her face changed to an amused expression, her eyes darting trying to catch every detail of the studio. Aster wondered about the time when he would be invited to a talk show. He smiled to himself imagining Jade, Mr. D, Sartorius and Serena sitting in first row supporting him…
They saw Mr. D stand up from the leather couch and shake hands with the presenter. Instantly, the kids took a few steps back standing in the middle of the room. Both men continued a brief talk backstage, Aster caught Mr. D's eye who gestured him to come forward. He introduced him to the presenter who kneeled and shook his hand.
"So you are a duelist too, huh?" the presenter asked.
"Y-yes" the boy answered. Mr. D patted his shoulder and brought him closer:
"And what a duelist he is! Remember this: in a few years, he will be quite the sensation!"
The presenter gifted Mr. D a bag, which Aster soon discovered it was a bottle of wine. They made their way towards the car and Mr. D asked the driver to leave them in the nearby park that was below Domino Bridge.
They sat near the river bank. More than a year ago, he had been sitting in the same spot with Jade and her mom. Looking over the river Aster remembered the commotion caused by a body of a woman, which Aster later found out to be of his mom. He only remembered her pale body and her dirty fingernails. It seemed a long time ago, to the point of being almost surreal.
All his previous life seemed to rest somewhere so far away...He turned towards D who was quietly looking at the same direction he was. He slowly allowed himself fall into the grass staring at the sky. There, Aster noticed the dark circles under D's black eyes, a few grey hairs showing through his raven hair. The boy noticed he looked tired.
"Let's go to the river bank!" Jade suggested Aster. "Let's skip stones!" The kid turned towards his tutor who patted his arm:
"It's okay, but don't wander off!"
Jade began running fast, he barely had time to call Sartorius who came running after them. It had rained quite recently, the smell of wet dirt and the river slightly overflown. Jade grabbed a small rock and threw it towards the river: it skipped twice and sunk. Sartorius tried it, however his stone simply sunk after throwing it. Jade laughed, and continued throwing stones. As she kept throwing, without keeping her eyes off the stones skipping she said:
"It's a little creepy isn't it?" Aster knew exactly what she meant.
"Things have changed a lot, haven't they?"
Sartorius sat in one of the rocks also starting at the body of water that was in front of them. Aster grabbed one of the stones, he threw it with Jade and it skipped three times until sinking.
"Yes, but change doesn't always mean bad, doesn't it?" Aster wondered. He turned towards Sartorius who was quietly hearing the conversation.
"What do you think?" the boy asked him.
The older boy was about to answer when Jade interrupted him:
"That doesn't mean I like it".
Sartorius finally spoke:
"It's part of growing up, weather we like it or not. There is nothing left but to accept it."
If looks could kill Aster wondered...Jade turned towards the fortune teller, the boy was almost sure that, if she could, she would have developed lazer eyes to evaporate the violet haired boy from the planet.
"Yeah, I heard that before" she spat. "Actually...I think, you told me that in Kaibaland"
She threw another stone towards the river with such force it fell with a plop sinking fast in the water.
"You seem a little...angry" Sartorius commented.
Oh no, Aster thought. The girl's cheek grew red and clenched her fists.
"Well, I am a little tired of playing nice" she answered. Aster noticed she had turned on her duel disk. Usually the kid was the first one to enjoy watching a duel but for the first time, he wished it didn't happen.
"Okay" Sartorius answered calmly as he stood up and faced the girl.
"Allow me to beguin" Sartorius answered, his expression non-changing. He activated a magic card: Cup of Ace.
"If I may, I predict it will be facing upwards." The golden cup once on the filled began turning in front of Sartorius and just as predicted, it was upwards. "This means I can draw to cards".
Next, he summoned Arcana Force III: The Empress (ATK 1300/DEF 1300). "You are being quite stubborn, and because of your blind hatred you are giving me the advantage" he declared, the card facing upwards:
Each time your opponent Normal Summons or Sets a monster, you can Special Summon 1 "Arcana Force" monster from your hand.
"My turn!" Jade declared as she looked at the card she drew from her deck.
"First, I activate my spell card: Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen" The ground began to shake changing to a stone white hall with large columns engraved in vines and a red carpet. "Using it's effect I summon, Guardian Angel Joan! (ATK 2800/DEF 2000)" A bright light briefly blinded Aster. When he opened his eyes, there she was, one of his dad's last creations shining in all its glory. The boy felt butterflies in his stomach. He remembered thinking so hard about the card's design and its effect. She declared an attack on Sartorius monster making him lose 1500 life points. Activating Guardian Angel Joan, Jade had an increase of Life Points of 1300 points, the original attack of Arcana Force III: The Empress, leaving her with 5300 life points while Sartorius remained with 2500.
Jade triumphantly ended her turn.
"Very well" Sartorius grabbed one of his cards, "I understand this card is very important to you". Jade did not flinch.
"First, I activate my spell card Light Barrier! And with this, fate is on my side as I can choose any Arcana effect cards" he made a pause, "I place this card face down". Sartorius did as so. Finally, the fortune teller summoned Queen's Knight (ATK 1500/DEF 1600) in defense position.
"You are a coward!" Jade answered as she drew her card. As Jade was about to begin her Standby Phase, Sartorius revealed his trap card: Tour of Doom. As the coin tossed revealed Heads, Sartorius smiled pleased:
"Fate is still on my side".
"Ugh! Whatever" Jade answered angrily. Because of the trap effect, she was not allowed to normal summon, and as she had Guardian Angel Joan on the field, she could not use Valhalla's efect. Jade choose to attack with Guardian Angel Joan, Aster noticed she had not placed any trap or magic spell card. Sartorius did not suffered any damage.
Sartorius activated his spell card, Selection of Fate. Sartorius only had two cards in his hand.
"Now, Jade: I will allow you to pick the next card for me...Choose carefully, as it may be the card that seals your fate."
The girl rolled her eyes. Once he made her choice, Sartorius asked again:
"Is this your final choice?"
Aster could see Jade was becoming frustrated, she was not interested in conversation.
"I warned you, you brought this to yourself because you refuse to accept change". Arcana Force VIII The Strength (ATK 1800/DEF 1800). Using Light Barriers effect, Sartorius predicted Heads, activating the cards Upside effect Take control of 1 monster your opponent controls. Aster could see the color in Jade's cheeks was completely drained of color.
Guardian Angel Joan was now on Sartorius side of the field, and Jade was completely exposed, without any trap or magic cards. Her field was open to any attack. First, Sartorius attacked with Guardian Angel Joan. Jade winced in pain as her Life counter dropped to 2500 points. Sartorius attacked once more with Arcana Force VIII, and Jade was only left with 700 points. The fortune teller still had 2500 points.
As Jade drew, Sartorius once again activated his continuous trap card: Tower of Doom. Aster could see Jade was frantically scanning her hand with her green eyes.
"I place one cards face down!" She activated her spell card, Dian Keto The Cure Master and had an increase of 1000 life points, she drew three cards but discarded two of them. Aster could see she was becoming agitated.
"Using Valhalla's effect, I special summon Athena (ATK 2600/DEF 800), and I declare an attack on Arcana Force VIII The Strength!". Sartorius life points were reduced and he was left with 1700 points, as well as Jade. Guardian Angel Joan returned to Jade's side of the field. Sartorius drew and activated his spell card Reverse Reborn, summoning once again Arcana Force VIII The Strength. He repeated the same strategy as before, once again taking control over Guardian Angel Joan.
"As you see, Jade I only have one card left in my hand...which was the second card you could have chosen with Selection of Fate". Sartorius sacrificed Guardian Angel Joan and The Strength to summon Arcana Force XXI The World (ATK 3100/DEF 3100). Using Light Barrier he activated The World's upside effect:by sending two monsters you control to the Graveyard, you skip your opponent's turn. Jade was left with 1200 points, Sartorius remained with 1700. Once again, he activated Tower of Doom and Jade could not normal summon.
Jade bit her lip. She placed two cards face down, ending her turn.
Sartorius drew one card. He summoned, Arcana Force III, The Empress (ATK 1300/DEF 1300), once again using the card's upside effect.
"At the beginning Jade, I warned you….You were being stubborn" Sartorius warned her. Aster noticed Jade become more and more agitated, as if an animal who had been trapped in a cage. Sartorius attacked Athena with the World, making her loose 500 life points. The girl remained with 700, he attacked again with The Empress ending the duel.
Jade fell to her knees. Aster fell completely silent, he approached the girl who noticed had began forming tears in her eyes. But Jade pushed him away:
"Stay away!" and run.
Sartorius approached:
"I didn't mean to upset her, Aster. Perhaps she would like to be alone an-"
"Are you kidding?" Aster jumped. "No way!", and rushed to chase her. He was happy Sartorius had not followed him. Afterall, it was his fault. He should have told Jade sooner, he should have listened to her more. He should have...The clock was ticking, as he was leaving in two days. He rushed past Mr. D, who probably had seen Jade run away and assumed Aster was following her. Once again, he was thankful D had not chased them.
He could see Jade's black hair as she run through the street. Aster skipped and dodged the people walking by, he heard some complaining for his rudeness. Aster almost caught Jade at an intersection but as he was almost brushing her hair with his fingertips, Jade began running again. The street light turned red. He had to do it. Aster run, making cars stop abruptly, a white car even stopping only a few centimeters from his face.
"Hey kid!" he heard the driver screaming. But he kept on running. He could see her, Jade had turned the corner, he increased his speed. He was a few steps behind her.
"Jade! Jade stop!"
She stopped abruptly as a street light in front of her turned red, making Aster bump into her.
He held her wrist.
"Please…" he said out of breath "...stop...running". He took a deep breath. Jade said nothing. She was about to cross anyways with the red light, as in slow motion Aster saw a black Mercedes driving full speed almost crushing Jade's leg. Aster instantly pulled her back to the sideway, avoiding an accident.
"Jade…" he said again "...Why don't we...have a seat? You almost got yourself injured!".
She frowned, but complied. Aster holding her wrist to make sure she would not run away again. They sat together on the bench, Jade refused to meet his gaze.
"Why did you run?"
"Because you were chasing me" she answered frustrated. Okey, Aster thought to himself, it's going to be like this I guess…
"What was the deal with the duel with Sartorius? I mean...I didn't even noticed you had your duel disk."
"I wanted to teach Sartorius a lesson...but I-."
"What lesson?"Aster pressed on the matter.
"That I'm…" a Jade's cheeks become slightly pink "That I am worthy of being your best friend."
Aster snapped.
"What are you talking about, Jade?"
"I…" she held her hands towards her lap caressing "I...I know you are quite drawn towards Sartorius. Ever since he showed up you mostly spoke about him"
"And...I can't blame you. He is a fortune teller, his deck is quite unique and he even can see the future!"
"And I...well, I'm just a girl. I'm an average duelist, I don't have any special abilities...I do not have chances of going Pro as you, or Mr. D…"
"Sartorius is your best friend, and I get it I guess, he is quite a cool best friend to have!" she said rolling her eyes. She blinked rapidly.
"And now, you are going to the other side of the world, and I'll just be... here" she sighed.
"Jade, you are my best friend"
"And so is Sartorius!" she replied angrily.
"So? I can have more than one best friend! You hang out with other girls and I don't get jealous...I understand sometimes you want to talk with them about things perhaps you are not interested in talking to me…"
Aster approached her, trying to meet her gaze.
"I'm not sure what will happen in two days, Jade...And honestly, I do not wish to ask Sartorius about it!"
She glanced back at him with interest.
"I told you, Jade. The only reason I have to stay in Domino is you...and if perhaps it was simply to try my luck without Pegasus' sponsorship I would refuse to go."
Aster chuckled.
"You know, Dad sometimes used to talk about people he met in High School...and he had no idea what they were up too! But he always talked about fond memories he had with them, and how important they were for him." the boy made a pause. "And I always wondered, 'well, why aren't still around?' Why didn't Dad bothered talk with them? And Dad, that it simply was difficult"
Jade looked at him puzzled.
"He said, that with daily life it was quite difficult to meet them, he even said that he was not sure where some of his High School friends ended up! But he told me, 'no matter what, I'll always remember them with joy'...And to him, that was all it mattered."
Aster make a pause, it was as if something inside of him cracked open.
"And I guess…that's how I'll remember you, your parents, Domino...and" he made a pause, his voice slightly cracking "Dad...with joy" he gave Jade a reassuring smile. But Aster could not stop:
"Sometimes...people leave us, and we meet knew people who reminds us of people we have met. Or other times...we simply cannot replace certain people, and we have to get used to the hole they leave in our hearts…" he made a pause. The past month had been a test of him to move forward. He was not sure if the hole of his father's absence would ever recover, he had accepted it would probably won't happen. But he tried to do everything is father would have wanted him to do, and imagine his father would be walking by his side every step he took.
"I think, part of growing up is allowing people to go, sometimes they don't return...but if they do, I think it's important for them to leave the door open." He turned towards Jade who was looking at him, her eyes filled with tears.
"The doors for you will always be open, weather we meet in two years or in thirty years. No matter how famous I may become, I'll never forget who was my first best friend" he placed his hand on top of hers.
Jade opened her mouth, but she did not said anything. Instead, she hugged Aster and whispered:
"I love you"
As Aster was about to answer, he saw Mr. D and Sartorius who run towards them.
"Jade!" Mr. D cried "You scared me, I told you kids not to wander off!"
Jade let go and without looking at her feet she said quietly to Sartorius:
"I understand that Aster can have more than one best friend…"
Aster smiled to himself, the only thing he wanted more in the world was for both Jade and Sartorius get along. The best of both worlds, the two people who represented different stages in his life: his life before and after his father's death.
"Could Jade stay over tonight?" Aster asked D with pleading eyes.
"Don't give me the puppy look" Mr. D jokingly looked away.
"Of course she can!"
Ideally, both kids would have stayed up until sunrise. However, the duel with Sartorius made Jade quite exausted, and at 12 while watching a movie, she had quietly fallen asleep. The boy gave her a little shake:
"Hey, we were supposed to stay until the next day!"
"Huh?" Jade answered in a sleepy tone. She closed her eyes again and instead of resting her head in Aster shoulder she turned around to face the opposite direction.
Aster yawned. The movie was becoming boring. He looked around, the room was completely dark and silent, except for Jade's breathing. He covered her with one of the blankets in her room and brought his sleeping bag, placing it next to the large sofa.
As he began falling asleep, he saw it: a white light comming from the window.
Hey people! Probs the last update of 2019!
And if anybody was wondering: No, I had not forgotten about The Light of Destruction which was brought up in previous chapters.
Happy new year everybody! See you again in 2020 :)