Chapter 6: false identity

"Sometimes the people closest to you betray you, and your home isn't a place you can be happy anymore." – Kristin Cast

Stardust flew over the woods in grim silence. Yusei too carried a heavy silence with him on Stardust's back, his jaw set tight and his lips pressed thin. Compared to his misery, Aki was light in his arms. She was sitting sideways to accommodate her dress, and she had fallen asleep leaning into his torso during the flight, lulled to sleep by the wind and her own exhaustion—and the security of his arms as he held her upright within them. He rested his chin on her head as well to keep it from drooping, and with eyes fixed ahead, he stared at the city walls that were growing closer.

He could see the city, but his mind was too absorbed to think on it. Those walls were large enough to hold an entire royal city, but not nearly large enough to hold the anger that kept him hot against the wind's chill. Nor his own regret for leaving her, for not coming back fast enough. Nor his contempt for the cruelty given to her in exchange for her trust. Nor his frustration at being unable to return what was stolen. He felt like a thousand tight and wretched knots being pulled tighter and tighter, and with no way to get release.

His vision kept flashing red and dark when his mind turned to the one who had done this. This mentor that had deceived and manipulated Aki into speaking of him with such respect and gratitude. As far as Yusei was concerned, that man was deceiving everyone with the appearance of a human when in truth, he was something else.

He was a monster.

Yusei ground his teeth. The noble knight in his heart was transforming into the ferocious monster slayer that came out in times like these. Some people needed to be saved from others. Some needed to be saved from circumstances. Some needed to be saved from themselves. Monsters were those who couldn't be saved, who had been completely taken over by the vile corruptions in their hearts and were beyond redemption.

Unforgivable.

By the time Stardust was gliding over the walls, the sky had become a dusky lilac. Some people had noticed the dragon approaching and were peeking out from windows or stepping onto their balconies to watch him fly overhead. Though by now they were familiar with him from his visits, a dragon was still a dragon, and everyone was interested in that rarity. Especially one as beautiful as Stardust, he thought, his vanity flattered by the attention—though not so much today.

The city itself, however, was not their destination. He flew right over it, aiming toward a small town sparsely populated in the open fields nearby. He passed over a few lone houses before he landed in a garden wide enough to accommodate his open wings, one next to a very large and humble wooden house. From all three stories, small faces were pressed against window glass, mouths and eyes wide with smiles upon seeing his arrival. Stardust didn't put on a show of flare as he normally would in front of the awestruck children. Instead he focused on landing gently for the sake of his passengers.

While looking toward the house, Yusei felt Aki shift and heard her soft voice, though she didn't open her eyes. He thought she might be on the brink of waking, so he tested her.

"Aki," he murmured by her ear. "We're here."

Aki heard him and dragged her mind out of sleep enough to open her eyes. She didn't feel the wind anymore, but Yusei's arms were still firm around her body. The air smelled different here, and ahead of her was a house she didn't know. She turned her head just a little. Yusei had one arm around her shoulders and the other hand held her legs in place.

"Are you ready to get down?"

Aki didn't feel ready for anything except to lie down for a hundred years, staring into space. But she answered him with a nod.

"Ok. I've got you."

He pulled his hand from her legs and instead slipped it under her knees so he could pick her up across both arms. She instinctively reached up with her own to wrap them around his neck and bury her face against his shoulder. Yusei easily maneuvered himself on Stardust's shoulders and slid off. He landed on his feet with knees bent, then stood up straight and carried Aki across the open meadow all the way to the front door.

By then, some of the children had made their way outside and were running up excitedly to Stardust. Aki peeked up from Yusei's shoulder and regretted it. Seeing Stardust now only hurt. He should be so much brighter than he looked. The world itself should be lit up and sparkling with the flow of magic—even in the dark of night. Those lights were gone, and they had taken the light in her heart as well. She put her eyes back on Yusei's shoulder.

"You'll be safe here," Yusei said quietly. "I promise."

She just nodded without lifting her eyes. Yusei left it at that.

The door was left open by the children, so Yusei was able to cross the threshold without assistance. And there to meet him, approaching through the entrance hallway, was a middle-aged woman, her skin brown and her black hair set in thick dreadlocks that framed her motherly face. She wore a modest dress that gave her the air of a nun and covered the whole of her stout body. She looked at the new arrivals with concern in her gray eyes.

"I'd like to say it's nice to see you, Yusei," she said before he eyes drifted to Aki and her battered appearance. "But that can wait."

Yusei nodded. "I'm sorry to just burst in on you."

She waved at him dismissively. "You can come and go as you please in your own home."

Yusei managed to smile, but it was small and weak. "Thanks Martha. I need your help."

"That's what I'm here for. Come on." She waved him in further, and more little children peek at him from around corners, looking curiously at the unfamiliar person he was carrying and giving each other questioning glances. Yusei kept his eyes straight ahead as he followed Martha to an empty room where he could lay Aki down on a bed. She let go of Yusei's neck reluctantly, but once she was on the bed she went limp and just stared up to the ceiling. She didn't move and didn't notice when Yusei pulled a blanket up to her shoulders, nor when Martha shooed away a group of children who had gathered at the door to peek inside from around the frame.

To Yusei she felt light, but to herself, Aki's body felt heavy with exhaustion. In contrast, her mind was speeding through a stormcloud of thoughts as fast as lightning. She felt like such a fool. How could she have gone so long never feeling anything off about Sayer? Surely there had been signs. Had she missed them out of naïveté? Had she ignored them, explained them away to fit her own image of him? She wanted to replay her whole life with him and pinpoint everything she should have noticed.

But what good would that do now? It wouldn't turn back time. It wouldn't heal her wounded trust. It wouldn't get her magic back. Could anything? Could she? On her own? Or was this . . . would this last forever? Could she live like that? Could she accept a life like this? Who should she blame? Sayer? Or herself? Sayer because he did it, he tricked her, ravaged her. Herself because she had been tricked, and too weak to protect herself.

Pathetic. She felt so pathetic. To be used, abandoned, rendered weaker and more helpless than she already was. How could she have been so stupid and weak as to let this happen? How could she stand living knowing she was this pathetic?

But what had her life been anyway? Had she been planning to live forever alone in a forest with Sayer? Was that all? Just a peaceful existence to herself? Maybe some power in the universe had decided that wasn't good enough. Maybe Sayer had been allowed to take her magic because he had something better to do with it than she had been on the path to. She felt so small and small-minded. If she had been more ambitious, more adventurous, maybe she could have become stronger, found a purpose that would have led her away from Sayer before he could have ruined her. It was her fault.

It was Sayer's fault. He was the one who chose to do it. But it was her fault too. She should have been better. She should have been so much better. And now it was too late.

As she stared up at the ceiling, tears slipped silently from the corner of her eyes and down her temples. She didn't blink, so they fell smoothly, uninterrupted. She didn't notice when Martha and Yusei left and closed the door.

The living room was more open space than furniture, and what it was furnished with was well-used, but also well-maintained. Martha didn't have much money—or much funding—so she found practical and creative ways to make things last and to make sure the children she took in were comfortable. Yusei knew how hard she worked—and how much she cared. She had been a mother to children before he had met her and continued to mother new children after he had left.

Martha sat down in her usual padded chair while Yusei sat on the edge of a couch with his elbows on his knees.

"Thank you," he said with a heavy, tired voice. It meant a lot that he could rely on Martha even now when he was living on his own.

"It's nothing. I'm glad you know you can come here when you need to."

While staring at the floor, he nodded.

Martha knew his solemn silence meant he had a lot on his mind. He had been that way even as a child. She folded her hands in her lap. "So who is she?" she asked patiently.

"Aki."

"And who is Aki to you?"

Yusei's hands were hanging from his wrists, but then he grabbed one with the other and squeezed. "A friend." He clenched his jaw and swallowed. "She saved my life."

"Oh really?"

He nodded to the floor again.

"How did she do that?"

He squeezed his hand tighter.

"She healed me. I was going to die, but she healed my wounds until they were nothing. It was amazing magic."

"Magic?" Matha repeated, leaning forward suddenly. She whispered, "She's a witch?"

Yusei clenched his teeth hard and furrowed his brow. He breathed deeply through his nose. "She was," he answered tightly. "Her magic is gone. Her mentor stole it."

"Oh."

"He almost killed her."

Martha observed Yusei closely, his tense muscles, his angry downward frown, his tight grip on his own hand. "Did you stop him?"

Yusei closed his eyes and shook his head. "No. I wasn't there. And I found her when it was too late. He was already gone. I didn't do anything. I couldn't do anything."

She could hear the frustration in his voice. "But you brought her here. And she's alive, so you can still help her."

Yusei sighed. "I don't know if I can get her magic back. But. I swear I'm going to find that man. Maybe I can force him to give it back. Or at least, I can . . ." The knight inside wanted to say "bring him to justice," but the monster slayer wanted to say "give her a bit of revenge."

"I know you'll do what you can," Matha said.

Yusei nodded.

"And I'll do what I can," she added. "That's why you brought her here, right?"

"Yeah. She doesn't have anything or anyone else."

"Hmm," she sighed compassionately. "Poor girl."

Yusei frowned hard. "She doesn't deserve this. She's a good person. I should have been able to stop it."

Martha sighed again and stood up so she could cross over to the couch and sit next to him. She put a hand on his arm. "Don't blame yourself. I know it's hard, and I know you're hurting, but it's not your fault. You're only responsible for your own choices. It's only the fault of the one who hurt her."

"I wish I could have stopped it."

"I know." Martha put her arm around his shoulders for a side embrace. "It always hurts to see someone you care about suffer. But I know you'll find something you can do for her now."

"I just don't know if it'll be enough."

Martha was quiet and just let Yusei be her little boy again. There was no fixing his mood right now. It was too raw.

"No, there's no way to know that," she agreed. "But give it your all anyway." She moved her hand from his shoulder to his cheek and pulled him in so she could plant a kiss on his forehead. "I'll go get a bed ready for you." She stood up and pat his head before walking past. Yusei finally lifted his eyes from the floor to watch her back. When she disappeared around a corner he looked at his hands, and then he lifted them to rub his eyes and then form a thoughtful temple against his face.

Aki rolled onto her side and pulled the blanket tight around her shoulders. She breathed in deeply and thought the air didn't smell right. Her eyes opened a little, not yet ready to open all the way. It was enough to see a color she didn't recognize. This wasn't her bed. And the lighting in the room was different. She lifted her head enough to take a look around until her confusion was replaced by the memory of arriving in this new house. She worked to sit up and rubbed her eyes until they were clear of sleep. She pushed the blanket off and slid her legs off the bed and lazily pushed herself onto her feet. When she was about to stretch her arms, she looked up—and then jumped backward, landing on the bed. There was someone else there in the room.

She realized quickly enough that it was Yusei. He was sitting at a table, his arms folded on the surface and his forehead resting on top. She could see his shoulders rising and falling slowly, and seeing that he had no reaction to her surprise, she assumed he was asleep.

She crept over to him, tiptoeing lightly so she made no noise. He still didn't show signs of noticing her, and she didn't want to disturb his rest. She tiptoed across the room to the door and very slowly, very carefully opened it. Through the window she made, she could see some children playing on the floor in the living room with pebbles of some kind. She didn't recognize the game, but they were very excited about it. The oldest one shushed the group every time they raised their voices.

Aki instinctively found herself nervous at the sight of so many people. Her shoulders tensed and she watched them closely as if she needed to calculate an escape just in case. But then she remembered she was like them now. They didn't need to be afraid of her for being a witch, so she didn't need to be afraid of their fear. Though that didn't improve her mood. Her shoulders sank with her heart.

Then one girl in the living room happened to glance toward Aki's door and saw her standing there in the opening. The girl quickly pointed and shouted, "Look!" Aki jumped, startled by the sudden attention, and as all eyes turned to her, her stomach knotted and she had the urge to slam the door shut. One little boy jumped up from the floor and ran from the room shouting, "Martha! Martha!" The little girl also got up from the floor, leaving the pebbles as they were, and bounded over to stand on the other side of Aki's door, looking up at her through the opening.

Aki wasn't familiar with children, so she stayed quiet and stared back. She guessed the little girl was about five. Beyond that, the most she could say was that the girl was pretty.

"Hi!" she greeted brightly. "What's your name?"

Aki met the girl's smile with a nervous one of her own. "Um . . . Aki. And you?"

Before she could hear the little girl's answer, Aki felt a weight appear on her shoulder and jumped with a loud gasp.

"Sorry!" Yusei said quickly, stepping backward and raising his hands innocently. "I didn't mean to sneak up on you."

Aki forced out a weak laugh. "It's ok. I'm surprised I didn't hear you."

"Guess we're both used to being quiet."

"Yeah . . ."

The little girl watched curiously through the door as Yusei and Aki avoided meeting each other's eyes. Eventually Yusei asked, sounding apologetic, "How are you?"

Aki pressed her arms across her torso and folded her shoulders forward. "Well . . ."

Yusei shook his head. "Sorry," he murmured. "Bad question."

"No, it's fine. I . . . I appreciate you."

Yusei looked utterly miserable at being shown gratitude. Aki didn't know what to say to make him feel better. She didn't know what to say or do to make herself feel better either. Not really. But she did have a few needs that could be attended to.

"I am hungry," she offered as she pushed her arms into her aching stomach. "And I could use a bath."

Yusei nodded. "I'll show you the kitchen." He opened the door to find several children had gathered there along with the first little girl, and they all jumped back to give him and Aki space to walk out. Aki followed him through the living room and into another that had a large table that could seat more than fifteen. Martha was in the kitchen next to it, stirring a large pot over a fire.

"Well hello there," she greeted noticing their arrival. Martha hung the ladle and met Aki by grabbing one of her hands with both of hers. "I'm Martha. Yusei told me a little about you. I'm so sorry for your loss. You're welcome to stay here as long as you need."

Aki didn't know what exactly Martha knew about her or what Yusei had said about her "loss", and she didn't feel like getting into any details. So she just said, "Thank you."

"You must be hungry. You've slept the whole day," Martha said, which was a surprise to Aki. "Here, sit down and I'll bring you something." Martha guided Aki to one of the chairs at the table and then returned to her pot. Yusei sat down at the table too, across from Aki, and after a moment Martha set a bowl of hot soup in front of Aki, and the fragrant steam rising from it made her mouth water. "Eat as much as you want," Martha said encouragingly.

"Thank you," Aki said again, and then blew on her first spoonful until it was cooled enough to put in her mouth.

"You too," Martha said, putting a similar bowl in front of Yusei. "I haven't seen you eat all day either."

Yusei didn't deny it. He took the spoon she offered and began to absently stir his soup.

"And all of you!" she said lastly, turning toward all the little faces peeking into the dining room from the hallway. "I know you've eaten. Let those two be so they can have their dinner."

"We won't bother them!" one little boy promised. "So is it ok, Yusei-nii-san? Can we come in?"

Aki watched Yusei give them all a smile and nod, and then watched the children all rush in and crowd around him. It was fascinating to see the intimidating knight so adored by small children. Aki gathered that none of them were related, since they didn't look alike and certainly didn't look like Martha. But they still seemed close and warm like a family. Aki focused on her soup and easing her aching stomach so that she didn't feel awkwardly out of place among them.

Martha also offered her bread and fruit to accompany the soup, and she politely accepted. She wished she could have enjoyed the food more, but mostly it was just weight to fill her empty stomach with. After dinner, Martha prepared a bath for Aki and left her alone to soak in the water. Though had she had only just woken up, now that her stomach was full, Aki felt ready to go back to bed. But since she was there, she stayed in the comfort of the water for a time to clear her mind—or at least try to.

When it was obvious that feeling clean wasn't going to make her feel refreshed, she dried off and put on the clean clothes Martha had given her, since her own dress was quite torn. She moved slowly, feeling no energy and no need to rush anyway. She made her way back to her room and went to the window to look out at the night. She also noticed there was a small pot on the window sill with a seedling sprouting out of the soil. She hesitated, then wrapped her hands around the pot and sought out the roots with her senses. She began to sweat from the focus, but the seedling only shivered. Aki let out a breath and bowed her head.

Then came a knock at the door and she looked over her shoulder.

"Aki?"

It was Yusei's voice, so she went to meet him. "Hi," she said softly when their eyes met through the opening.

"Hi," he said back. "Can I . . . Can I come in?"

"Oh, yes." She stepped back and opened the door further to grant him entry. He stepped in and then closed the door quietly behind him. For a moment they both just stood in the center of the room, glancing around in every direction as they waited for something to happen. Finally it was Aki who asked, "Do you want to sit?"

"Um, sure."

Aki sat down first on the bed, and Yusei followed, sitting down with enough space between them to fit another person. Aki waited again, thinking now it was Yusei's turn to contribute something. He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and holding his hands together. "I'm sorry," he said after a long silence. "I can't think of the right thing to say."

Aki pulled her legs up to hug them. "There might not be a right thing to say."

He sighed. "Yeah. I just . . . I guess I just want you to know . . . I hate that this happened to you. And I want to make it right. If there's anything I can do, I swear I'll do it. I won't leave you alone, I promise."

He was finally looking at her firmly, and she looked back. His promise wasn't as confident as before. This time when he said it, he sounded uncertain and apologetic. Aki felt numb inside, but she was able to give him a sad smile. "Yusei, listen," she said quietly. "I know you feel guilty because of what happened, but I mean it when I say I don't want you to. I don't blame you for anything, so please don't put that burden on yourself."

Yusei opened his mouth to speak, then closed it, and instead he sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel like you needed to cheer me up. This isn't about how I'm feeling. You're the one . . ." He drifted off. He didn't want to say aloud unnecessary things. They both knew what he meant.

"You don't need to try to cheer me up either," she said, her voice hushed but heavy. Yusei looked at her, and she could feel the weight of his guilt in his gaze. Well, if they were both going to be relentlessly miserable, she might as well say what was on her mind. "To be honest, I don't know what to do. I don't know how to live without magic. I don't know how to be around people. I don't know what to do with myself. If I try to imagine a future where I'm like this forever, I see nothing. And I feel so many things. I'm scared, and angry, and frustrated, and sad, and I feel like a complete idiot. But at the same time I somehow feel empty, like all the life has been sucked out of me and I'm just . . . empty. Nothing." Her eyes drifted to the seedling on the windowsill, draped in moonlight.

Yusei followed her gaze to the plant and could guess what she felt to see it. "Is there any way to get your magic back?"

"Well, Sayer could give it back," she answered dully.

—Ah, Sayer. So that was his name.—

"That would be the best way. It's also possible balance could be restored naturally and I could gain magic over time by absorbing it from the earth. But there's no guarantee of that, and that process could be so slow that I wouldn't live long enough to get back nearly as much magic as I had before." She grimaced. "And then there's the option of what Sayer did: find a large source of magic and steal it. But even if that wasn't despicable, it's dangerous. There could be an incompatibility that tears your body apart, or it could just be too much magic and overwhelm your body. Sayer was able to do it because he had a crystal that helped him bear it."

Yusei hadn't known that. He knew some principles of magic, but he hadn't been in a position to learn too many specifics and details.

"Is there anything Stardust could do? Could he, maybe, give you some of his magic?"

Aki shook her head. "I doubt it. Our magic doesn't seem very similar, so I doubt I would be compatible with him in that way. And anyway, I don't want to take his magic. It would weaken him. With all the dangers right now, he needs to be as strong as possible."

Yusei stared out the window as he sat still in thought. And then very quietly, he asked, "What would happen if he died?" Aki looked at him, but Yusei kept his gaze ahead. "Would your magic come back to you then?"

Aki stared at him, and in that pause he turned to meet her eyes. "I don't know," she answered just as quietly. "Maybe. Or it could go out with his. I don't think there are records of this kind of thing happening."

Yusei sighed. "I wish I hadn't left you alone."

"This would have happened eventually," she said with a dull tone. "It seems he had been planning to do it from the beginning. He was just waiting for the right moment. And apparently the right moment was when he found out I had brought you and Stardust home."

Yusei wondered why, but instead he asked, "What can you tell me about him? I want to find him. I want to try to get your magic back from him."

It hurt Yusei to see in her eyes that though she appreciated his sentiment, she didn't seem confident that he could do it. To be honest, he wasn't confident either, but he wanted his resolve to mean something. He wanted her to believe he could rather than humor him with a wan smile.

"Well, he told me he had been exiled from Domino, so that was why he had to stay hidden."

"Exiled? Why?"

"His story was that he had reported corruption in the palace and the king didn't like it. He had been a noble before, but after that happened, he hated the king, and now he hates anything and everything associated with him—nobles, knights, the castle, everything. I don't know how true the rest of what he told me is, but I can tell that his hatred is real."

"Hm." Yusei couldn't recall hearing about anyone exiled for reporting corruption. Unless it had happened more than ten years ago, before he had met Rex and become a citizen involved in the workings of Domino. "And what does he look like?"

Aki was still hugging her bent legs when she started rocking back and forth slightly. "I'd say he's tall. The top of my head only reaches his shoulder. I think he's around thirty. He has green eyes, and his hair is a kind of dirty red color. It's about shoulder-length, and some of it covers his right eye."

Yusei could feel his mind working as she spoke, like a librarian speeding through thousands of records and catalogues in search of something that was teasingly just beyond recall. But then he hit upon it, and the sought memory flashed in his mind, freshly dusted though a little warped with time.

A young man—a prisoner. His face hot with fury. Teeth bared and gnashing. Shouting. At the king. The details were hazy, but Yusei thought the descriptions could match. The age seemed about right, and the more he thought about it, he did remember that he had been exiled rather than executed—which would have been a fitting sentence for someone who had attempted to kill the king, who he apparently hated. And he had been a witch too. So many things seemed to fit. He just couldn't remember what the prisoner's name had been.

"Do you know anything else about him?"

Aki let out a long, slow breath through her nose as she looked down to her bare feet. "I don't think I could tell you much about his past. I didn't really ask him about it. I just focused on our own life and learning the things he taught me about magic." That made her wince. She didn't like being reminded of how stupidly she had been living. "I guess that's why it was so easy for him to fool me."

Yusei wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know if there were any words that could help. After a heavy pause he said, "You're not a fool for trusting him. He took care of you when you didn't have anyone else. It's only natural that you would get attached to him. And I'm sure he put a lot of effort into making sure you never suspected him."

Aki pressed her mouth against her knees and hugged her legs tighter. She didn't want to reject his attempts at consolation, but the truth was it didn't help. She didn't respond and just stared past her feet to the floor.

Yusei responded to her silence with more silence and left it at that. For a while they just sat there in the quiet, dark room, each one staring down and feeling lost. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable, it was just sad. Yusei lifted his eyes up to the window to look out to the sky. The moon was too high for him to see, but he could at least see the light it cast down from beyond the window frame.

When he was thinking maybe he should just leave her for now, she spoke, nailing him in place. "You know," she murmured, "it just feels ironic. I spent most of my life being afraid of normal humans, and then it was another witch who actually hurt me. I guess I forgot that people can hurt their own kind, no matter what they are."

Yusei nodded. "Yeah," he sighed. "I imagine he'll end up hurting a lot of people from here on."

Aki turned her head to look at him. "And you want to stop him, don't you, oh noble knight."

Yusei looked at her as well and nodded resolutely. "I do. And if I know more about him, I'll have a better idea of what I'm looking for."

Aki shook her head. "You know he's dangerous. He could kill you. Easily."

"I can't let that stop me."

She sighed. "You're not scared of anything, are you?"

"It's not that I'm not scared. I'm just willing to do what I have to do anyway."

"Why are you the one who has to stop him?"

"Because I think I can. I have Stardust, and other resources. And I'm ready. And because he hurt you. Just for that, I can't leave him alone."

Aki looked at him, her heart aching and lip trembling. Then she shook her head. "What if he hurts you? What if something happens because you got involved in my problem?"

"It's not just your problem," Yusei insisted. "He must have taken your magic for a reason, right? You said he was probably planning to do it for a long time now, which would mean he has something in mind to do with that extra power. I have to protect the people who could be his next victims."

Aki looked down and then pressed her forehead against her knees to hide her face. She knew how strongly he felt about that, but she was so used to not caring about humans that it hadn't occurred to her to do so now. But she could remember how good it had felt to heal Yusei, and how excited she had been at the thought of being able to do more magic like that. There had been a spark in her that had wanted to help others. But even if she had still felt that spark now, she didn't have that power anymore. She didn't even have the choice to put her skill to use or not.

She didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to think about other people and her relationship with them, or what it could have been.

"Do you know," Yusei started, leaning slightly toward Aki, "or, do you have any idea what he might be up to? Or where he might have gone?"

She shook her head while keeping her forehead on her knees.

Yusei's heart sank and his shoulders sagged. "I'm sorry, I don't want to bother you, not when you're . . ." He was going to say "dealing with so much," but that didn't seem to quite cover it.

Aki shook her head again. "You're not bothering me. It's everything else that is."

Yusei kept looking at her from the side, at her buried face and folded body. She looked like she wanted to disappear. He wanted to reach out, but he stopped himself. With a soft and doubtful voice, he asked, "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I don't know," she answered in a whisper. "I'm sorry. I feel like I don't know anything."

"No, it's all right. I understand."

"I want to help you." Her voice cracked as she said it. It was true. He was the only one she truly wanted to help. "But I can't do anything. Not anymore."

"That's not true." He finally reached out then, laying a hand on her shoulder. "You've lived with him for years. You know things, even if you don't think you do. Maybe nothing about him stood out obviously, but you know his habits and patterns. You know the things about him that are familiar to you. That's something. I can start something with that."

Aki turned her head just enough to see him from the corner of her eye. Then she lifted her head and put her chin on top of her knee to think. "Well," she said slowly after a minute, "he worked in trade. That was how he made money. He'd buy something and then find someone else who would buy it for even more. He'd read all the time and when he had a book memorized, he'd sell that too. He bought and studied all sorts of magical items and practiced new spells all the time. He was devoted to all the work he did. He even taught me a lot. Not everything. Some things he learned he kept to himself, but I just assumed that was because those things were too advanced for me. Now I'm not so sure."

"And you don't know if he was studying magic for any specific goal?"

"Well, he never told me if he had a goal. If I had to guess, I would say it might have something to do with getting back at the king for exiling him. But that's just a guess, and I don't know how he would want to go about doing it."

"And what about the timing? Do you have any idea why he chose now to do this?"

Aki caught a wrinkle of her dress between her fingers and rubbed it back and forth. "Not really. We were sitting in the living room talking. He asked about what I'd been doing while he was gone, and eventually I told him everything about finding you and healing you and bringing you and Stardust home. That was when he started acting strange, when I told him about Stardust. He's always been fascinated by dragons, but that's nothing unusual. I don't know why telling him about a knight and a dragon that had already come and gone would mean anything to him."

Yusei didn't know either. His mind was spinning trying to put pieces together, but again, there was too much missing to make the connections.

"Did he teach you about dragons?" he asked, thinking that maybe learning what kind of information he valued about dragons could be a clue.

"A little. Not in depth. It seemed like he focused more on teaching me practical things I could do that would help me in daily life, or in emergencies. I don't think he expected knowing a lot about dragons would be useful to me. But he definitely studied them a lot for himself. Especially this one book. After he got it, he became obsessed with it. He was reading it every chance he got."

"What kind of book was it?"

"I'm not sure, he never had me look at it. I just know it was about dragons."

A book about dragons . . .

"Oh and apparently it's written in a way that only witches can read. Humans with no magic wouldn't be able to. So that's pretty unusual."

Yusei's head throbbed as his pulse got heavy and fast. "Where is that book?" he asked, restraining the sudden urgency in his voice as best he could.

Aki looked at him curiously, wondering why he would want to know. "Well, he kept it in his study. So it might still be there—in all the rubble. Though, I'd guess he probably took it with him when he left. I can't imagine him just leaving it behind."

His throbbing head made the room sway. Oh, shit.

"What's wrong?" Aki asked, noticing his sickly expression.

Yusei had been staring into space as his mind began to run through all sorts of scenarios, none of them good. He forced his eyes to focus out of it and onto Aki. "I think this might be worse than I thought."

"Why?"

"If that book is what I think it is . . ."

"What do you think it is?" she pressed.

Yusei looked at her while taking a deep breath. "Listen," he said seriously, "this isn't common knowledge, so don't talk about it with anyone else, ok?"

She nodded and leaned toward him intently. She didn't bother to say she had no one else to tell. Even if she did, if he was sharing a secret with her, she would keep it for him.

"Ok. There's a book that belongs to dragons. It's important to them. Really important. It's got all kinds of information about dragons and magic, secret knowledge that could cause a lot of problems in the wrong hands. It's supposed to be kept in a safe place that only dragons can find, but it's been taken from there before. If that's the book Sayer has, then it must have been taken again."

"What makes you think it's that book?" Aki asked curiously. Nervously.

"Well, it's a book that someone who wants to gain power and who is fascinated by dragons would be obsessed with. And I need to assume the worst so I don't underprepare."

"If this book is so dangerous, how are you supposed to fight him when he has it?"

"I'll come up with something," he said flatly. "But I need to act quickly. The best thing I can probably do is get to him before he makes any more big moves."

Aki worried for him. Why did the one person she felt like she could trust have to be so recklessly brave?

"He must be powerful and resourceful already," Yusei continued, thinking out loud, "if he managed to find the book and steal it without the dragons noticing."

"He didn't find it," Aki corrected. "A woman gave it to him."

"Who?"

"I don't know." Aki shook her head. "That was all he said when he brought it home. That a woman came to him directly and gave it to him. He didn't know her either, but since he was so excited to have the book, he didn't seem too bothered by it."

Yusei's brow furrowed. He didn't know what to do with this strange new information. So he focused on things he thought Aki might be able to provide. "Can I ask you one more thing?"

"Yes, of course."

"How exactly did you end up living with him, anyway?" He asked because if they assumed that Sayer had been planning to steal her magic from the beginning, there might be a clue to something in the story of how he found her.

But after hearing his question, Aki's eyes dimmed and she went very still. She didn't say anything for a moment and then she bit down on her bottom lip.

"What's wrong?" he asked in a sensitive tone.

At that, Aki released her legs and stretched them out so she could rise to her feet and walk to the window, keeping her back to him. He stayed where he was to respect her desire for distance, and he watched her as she hugged herself, gripping her arms tightly.

"I'm sorry," she said softly without turning. "I've been afraid of telling you since we met."

Yusei stood up but didn't approach. "You can tell me anything. I can handle it."

Aki's breath was choppy when she inhaled, like she was on the edge of crying. She exhaled it out slowly, fogging the window. And then still without turning, she started, "He found me after . . ." She swallowed. "After I killed my parents." Her shoulders rose and tightened and he could see her nails dig into her arms. "I didn't mean to, I just lost control. But that doesn't matter. I still killed them. And no one was going to accept me after that, so I was relieved when Sayer said he would take me in."

Yusei let a solemn silence hang in the air for a moment. It was a heavy thing to hear, and he wanted to reassure her. But there was a nagging in his mind. "How did he find you?"

Aki also paused, creating a thoughtful silence until she was ready to answer. "I don't know," she admitted. "It was just happening, there was fire everywhere, the whole house was burning, but it's the smell of their bodies that I remember the clearest. And I couldn't stop it. I wasn't even that young. I was thirteen, maybe fourteen, but even then I couldn't control my magic well. But then Sayer showed up, and he was able to stop the fire. Then he took me with him before the whole town could hunt me down."

Yusei felt for her, but he couldn't stop thinking. "But, why was he there?"

Aki shook her head. "I don't know. I never asked." Aki winced as she felt her head begin to ache. She kept digging into the memory. "I think at some point I just assumed he had been there for a trade deal. That was the main reason he left the house." She kept thinking, wondering if maybe he had said something after their meeting. What exactly had he said to her? She couldn't quite recall, she just remembered feeling so relieved and reassured to have someone accept her.

But, had he been carrying anything? Some kind of item he might have bought along the way?

She felt a stabbing sensation in her temples and raised her fingers to massage it. She closed her eyes, but it didn't help. Everything stayed so fuzzy. Well, it had been some years ago, five or six. It wasn't surprising that the details would have rubbed away. But she didn't understand why trying to remember caused such a striking headache.

"What's wrong?" Yusei asked when she bowed her head and groaned. He came up behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"My head," she said tightly. "It hurts all of a sudden."

"Here, relax a little." He took her gently by the arm and guided her back to the bed where she could lie down. "Do you need anything? Water?"

Aki shook her head and breathed slowly. "No, it'll pass. I'm sorry, I'm not being very helpful."

Yusei sat down on the edge of the bed next to her and put his hand on her forehead while she continued massaging her temples. "Don't worry about that. You're still exhausted."

"But you're in a hurry."

"I don't want to pressure you. You've already been through enough." Too much, he corrected to himself.

Hearing that, a tragic laugh bubbled up from Aki's chest. "You know," she said, and Yusei could hear the tears in her fragile voice, "I always wondered if it was ok for me to live so happy and carefree like I was with Sayer. I always thought, surely I don't deserve this. Surely I'll get judgment for what I did. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is what I get for . . ."

Yusei didn't hold back. He leaned over her and put both hands on her cheeks. "Don't think like that." Aki opened her eyes and a tear slid out of each. Her breath caught at seeing Yusei's eyes right above hers. "The world doesn't work like that. This didn't happen to you because you're a bad person or because of anything wrong you may have done. You're not a bad person. Things you can't control are not your fault."

Aki's lips trembled hard. "But it was still me. It was my magic. If I hadn't been a witch, they wouldn't have died."

"That's not your fault. You didn't choose to be a witch, and you didn't choose to kill anyone. It was just a horrible accident. You don't deserve to suffer for it. And there's no great force out there that's dealing out judgments. Things are too inconsistent for that to make sense. Call it bad luck if you have to, just don't tell yourself this is what you deserve."

Aki sniffled, and when she blinked, more tears fell from the corner of her eyes. "I thought you'd be scared of me if I told you."

Yusei laughed. "Weren't you the one who said nothing scares me?"

Aki chuckled weakly. "I guess I was. But you know, I'm special." She didn't know how she could manage to be playful. Yusei was just irresistible that way, she supposed.

"You are," Yusei agreed. She didn't know what to say to that, or what to do with that kind smile he poured down on her. Even if she didn't deserve her suffering, she had no idea how she could deserve something as good as him.

Yusei then withdrew his hands from her face. "I need to talk to Stardust," he said. "Will you be ok by yourself for a while?"

She nodded. "Yeah. My head's already feeling a little better."

"Ok. I'll just be outside, so if you need anything . . ."

She nodded again. "I got it. Thank you."

He got up and went to the door. Honestly, Aki didn't like to see him go. But there was a whole kingdom out there beyond the four walls of this room, and she couldn't keep him from caring about it. And she had to remember that Stardust was out there too, and even for a dragon like him, Sayer could be a threat. If nothing else, Aki didn't want anything to happen to him.

And Yusei similarly thought that he had to warn Stardust and get his opinion. He looked one more time at Aki before closing the door behind him, and he told himself he had to make sure Sayer's damage ended here.

Stardust had left soon after dropping Yusei and Aki off at their destination. He liked humans in a theoretical way, but in reality he found himself more comfortable by himself than among too many of them. So it took him a little while to come back when he heard Yusei call for him.

Even after all these years, Yusei still wore the pendant Stardust had given him as a child—almost religiously. He didn't dare take it off, not only because it was a precious gift, but because it gave him comfort to know his friend was always reachable. He just had to take it out from under his shirt and say Stardust's name, then wait, as he did now.

He saw Stardust's light in the dark before he could make out his shape, but he flew fast enough that once he was in sight it was a matter of seconds before he landed in the empty meadow. Yusei had a feeling some of the children who were staying up past their bedtime would notice the dragon and be looking out the window right now, but as long as they couldn't hear anything, Yusei didn't mind. Martha was the mother around here, not him.

"So, how are things?" Stardust asked with genuine concern.

Yusei took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Oh," Stardust said before Yusei even spoke. "That doesn't sound good."

Yusei shook his head. "Aki told me some things. Things you need to hear."

"Oh."

Yusei tried to make the story he had put together from Aki as coherent as he could and explained his conclusion about the book Sayer seemed to have. Stardust's reaction was to involuntarily dig his talons into the dirt.

"Celestial spheres," Stardust hissed. "I swore I put it somewhere more secure than this."

"So you think it's possible it's that book?"

"I do, yeah. The things I've been feeling lately give me the impression of some big, powerful magic, and our book would definitely fit that."

"I was hoping you might have another explanation."

"I wish I did. But it makes sense. I don't like it, but it makes sense."

"If I had any idea where Sayer was, I'd say let's go after him. But I don't have a clue, so I'm thinking we need to go straight to Jack."

"Yeah. I agree. And I may need to get in touch with Archfiend, especially if we don't find Sayer before things get even worse."

"You think he'd help?"

"If our book is involved? Yes."

"That's reassuring."

"If you say so. But don't get too much at ease. I won't feel good about this until I get our book back."

"Right."

"Ok, let's go."

Yusei nodded and mounted quickly. As Stardust flapped his wings, launching hard into the air, the wind he created shook the windows of the house, including Aki's, which rattled in front of her face as she stood watching the dragon take off in a great rush.

From Martha's house, the royal city was visible in the distance, framed by the mountain range behind it. The castle was easiest to see because, by design, it was built at the top of a hill while the rest of the city coated the slopes and lower surroundings within the thick walls. From its lofty height, it was meant to inspire awe from those looking up to it, while those at the top could look down at their subjects—and fancy themselves gods in their heaven—or keep an eye out for enemies who might approach from any direction.

In the darkness, the guards in the castle towers would certainly be able to see Stardust approaching by his glow, and Yusei hoped they would announce it to either Rex or Jack before they arrived, saving them some precious time.

He had been thinking too far ahead.

Stardust dodged just in time to avoid a sudden ray of magic aimed at him from the forest below. He had sensed the energy of it in the split second before it almost grazed his wing, which didn't make sense. Surely he would have been able to sense the source of it long before that. Both he and Yusei looked down and saw the feathered black dragon, and only then did Stardust feel the energy of its presence.

"How the hell do you do that!?" Stardust roared while swerving through the air so as to not be an easy target.

While Stardust was occupied with the dragon's inexplicable ability to make itself undetectable, Yusei was more interested in the silver-haired rider on its back. Who are you? he wondered while clinging tight to Stardust, whose slippery movements jostled him.

"Guess we have to turn around now," Stardust muttered as another bright beam came crackling past his neck and over the city walls. Leading an enemy right into Neo Domino wasn't an option.

"There's a clearing," Yusei said, looking to the western forests just beyond the walls. "If we can get him to land there, maybe we can make sure he doesn't get away again."

"Right," Stardust agreed, then made the bold move of darting straight toward the other dragon just as it started to screech out another blast. He circled around the green light as he drew closer, and then he rammed right into the dragon's torso, knocking it backward and off balance. While it flapped its wings to right itself, Stardust kept flying straight—toward the clearing. When he could hover above it, he turned and launched his own bright blue blast from his open jaws. He wasn't expecting the attack to hit, he just wanted to taunt the dragon into chasing him. While Stardust's blue magic faded harmlessly in the distant and empty sky, the black dragon came toward him in a wide arc. Stardust spun to keep facing it and pulled back to lure to it in closer toward the clearing.

It seemed to be working, but just to be sure, Stardust pushed himself up higher with mighty thrusts of his wings. The black dragon began to follow, but when it was in range, Stardust spun himself to give his tail a strong enough momentum to strike the dragon's face like a hammer at the end of a whip. The dragon screeched and fell, and Stardust darted down to follow him right into the clearing.

At that rate, the dragon was going to land back-first on the ground, crushing its rider. The dragon seemed aware of that too, because it spun, taking the risk of showing its rider to Stardust for the chance to land on its pincer-like legs. Stardust didn't care either way, as long as he could catch the dragon on the ground. Stardust was about to tackle the dragon, landing right into him like a comet, but the dragon had managed to turn and face him. It didn't have time to release another blast, but it did meet Stardust head-on.

The impact of their bodies jarred Yusei, but he kept his place on Stardust's shoulders. From there, it was hard for him to keep track of what happened, but he could tell it involved teeth and claws, not unlike a ferocious dog fight. Stardust again used his tail like a whip and a bludgeon, while the black dragon used its prong limbs to swipe and stab. Even in the midst of vicious battle, both dragons took care to protect their riders.

Then Stardust took advantage of his human-like arms and grabbed the black dragon by its long neck and wrestled it to the ground. At that moment, the rider jumped off and dashed away without looking back. Stardust didn't blame him, but it bothered him that the human didn't seem to even care that his partner was in danger. Angered, Stardust snarled and drew up his magic from within his chest. When he was ready to fire, he jumped up into the air, giving the black dragon time to cover itself with its wings. Stardust's blue light crashed against the dragon like a torrent until he ran out of breath. When he was done, the shiny, metallic feathers of the dragon's wings were scorched and smoking.

Seeing the dragon's weakened condition, Yusei jumped off of Stardust's back to chase the other rider, who hadn't gone far, only to the edge of the clearing to watch his partner take the attack alone. Yusei frowned as he pulled his sword up from the sheath on his back and spun it a few times in his hand as he approached.

"You ready to tell me who the hell you are?"

Stardust landed back on the ground to guard the dragon, and making no sign that he was distressed by the turn of events, the rider simply turned and ran into the forest.

"HEY!"

Yusei sprinted into a determined pursuit. He wasn't going to let him get away again. And he knew how to run through a forest, so he would have the advantage there.

He didn't make it to the trees.

He didn't trip so much as something grabbed him by the leg, making him fall before he knew what had happened. He was quick to try to get up, but by then his sword-carrying wrist was caught as well. Then the other. His eyes went wide when he realized it was roots that were ensnaring him, bursting from the ground with precision like living traps. They wound up his legs and arms and strapped around his waist and torso, getting thicker as they grew until he was thoroughly bound in place.

He intuited what this was, and his mind made all the necessary leaps to catch up.

This was Aki's magic. But Aki didn't have her magic. Sayer had Aki's magic. Therefore:

This was Sayer.

As Yusei struggled, the roots clamped down tighter, squeezing into his flesh, while brambles began to rise up and snake up along the roots to pinch thorns into Yusei's skin as well. Shit!

Then he saw a bright light fill the clearing from behind him. Despite the thorns that had climbed to his neck, and despite how it was so bright he had to shut his eyes, he turned toward it. Blinded, he couldn't help but cry out, "STARDUST!" in the hopes that he would get a response that might help him understand what was happening.

Then the light died down, and as Yusei opened his eyes, the black dragon launched into the air. Yusei's skin stung against the thorns as he looked up to watch it ascend higher and higher. "Stardust, go after him!" he shouted. "Don't worry about me! Just go!"

He had raised his voice as loud as he could, but he got no response, and Stardust didn't give chase. Yusei looked down.

"STARDUST!"

Yusei began struggling again in earnest, ignoring the deep stings and the blood running from the wounds. His friend was frozen, caught in a sphere of light with his jaws wide open and silent. Yusei could just make out the tremors in Stardust's body as he struggled against his paralysis, but the most he could do was make his talons twitch. Yusei tugged as hard as he could to try to rip the roots out of the ground, but his efforts only made the thorns sink in deeper. He screamed in pain and frenzy, waiting for his adrenaline to give him the strength he needed.

"STARDUST!" he screamed again to encourage himself. He had to get to his friend. That sphere of light scared him. It was beautiful, swirling with misty light like breath on a winter's morning, but disturbing. And then the light began to swirl around Stardust faster until the clearing filled with a strong, spiraling wind that blew dirt and debris up from the ground.

All the flying detritus scratched against Yusei's face and eyes, and he had to duck his head to the side to avoid it. When he could open his eyes safely, he found himself looking at a figure standing at the edge of the clearing, opposite from where the dragon rider had run. It was a tall man draped in a thick cloak, and Yusei knew. He just knew. He bared his clenched teeth as he continued his futile struggle.

Sayer didn't seem to even notice him, though if he was controlling the roots anchoring him down, then he knew Yusei was there. He just wasn't of any concern. That stung as much as the thorns. He watched and screamed as Sayer held out a single hand toward Stardust, the glove he wore on it shining faintly. And though Yusei couldn't see his face beneath his hood, Sayer's eyes shone unnaturally bright.

Feeling the heat building in his chest, head, and belly, Yusei heaved out steaming breaths until he screamed, "SAAYEEEER!"

That got him one brief glance from the figure, which only confirmed what Yusei already knew. But then Sayer's eyes flicked back to Stardust, and Yusei turned back in fear to see the state of his friend. By then, Stardust wasn't frozen in place anymore. Instead he was slumped on the ground, as if he had lost even the energy to stand. He was moaning too, pitifully, in a way that, to Yusei, sounded like the weak gasps from a deathbed. That thought froze his burning heart, making him sick.

"He almost killed her."

He had said that about Aki. What if he would have to say something worse about Stardust? He didn't understand how one witch could handle absorbing all the magic a dragon contained, but Yusei wasn't hopeful that Sayer's attempt would backfire. Things weren't working in his favor so far. He had to change the odds himself.

His sword would be too bulky to use with his hands constrained as they were, but he could maneuver them around enough to pull out the dagger at his belt. Under normal circumstances, he would have been more confident in his accuracy, even from this distance, but he was stressed and had limited movement, so he filled the hole where his confidence should be with desperate hope.

Sayer wasn't looking at him, so he used his left hand to cut through some of the roots holding his right. When he had loosened their strength enough, he took the dagger into his right hand, set his eyes on his target, and threw. With the slack he had gained, he had been able to send the dagger flying straight and true, and because Sayer wasn't paying attention, he didn't notice the blade until it had pierced straight through his forearm. His yelp of pain gave Yusei some small satisfaction, as did watching Sayer fold up his arm and stare in amazement at the dagger caught in the flesh of his arm, fresh blood soaking his sleeve.

Yusei hoped that would be enough, and just as he turned to check, Stardust was already sucking in air, and then he heaved out a spray of blue flames. Sayer dodged the second attack after pulling the dagger out and tossing it away with an irritated grunt. The sphere around Stardust quickly faded, the wind dying and the light dimming until it dissolved completely. When it was gone, Sayer gasped and bent over on all fours, his limbs shaking. Stardust also collapsed to the ground, and from his entire body smoke began to rise, quickly becoming so thick Yusei couldn't see him through it.

Then the other rider reappeared, running through the clearing to Sayer's side to help him up. Yusei strained to hear what they said to each other, but the pain lighting up his whole body and mind made it difficult to focus. The most he was able to make out was Sayer calling the dragon rider "Kiryu".

From above, a new wind blew into the clearing, and the black dragon descended down and lowered itself enough that Kiryu and Sayer could climb onto its back.

Yusei grit it teeth. No!

He struggled but quickly stopped. He had reached his limit. The pain was too much and he couldn't force himself to endure more, especially so futilely.

They can't get away!

But they were. They were going to get away so easily, and there was nothing he could do to stop them. Then out of the blue, his mind popped with a detail that had been filed away so deep in his memory that it had taken until now for his inner librarian to find it. He heaved his breaths loudly, half growling as he bore the pain of the thorns, and when the dragon flapped its wings to lift itself from the ground, Yusei sucked in one full breath and screamed as hard as he could.

"DIVINE!"

From the dragon's back, Sayer turned to look at him. Yes, that was it. That had been the name of that young man, the one he had seen brought to face the judgment of two kings. And now Yusei was sure it was the name of the monster before him.

The black dragon continued its ascent, flapping its scorched wings despite its fatigue and wounds, until it was carrying its passenger high above the forest and out of Yusei's sight beyond the canopy. It was then that all the roots and brambles went slack, then withered until they broke into crumbles and dry flakes that fell softly from his body. Yusei groaned with the relief of release, the thorns no longer piercing into his body. But the wounds still remained and he felt them throbbing deep in his arms, legs, and torso. But he didn't have time to rest. He pushed himself up, pushed himself through the pain, and began to limp toward the large mass of smoke in the center of the clearing. It started to thin, and Yusei was troubled that he still couldn't see Stardust even when he should.

He hurried, hobbling on weak legs until he was there. And instead of Stardust, the smoke had faded to reveal a young man lying on the ground, unconscious, and naked, save for the long—long—white hair draped lazily across his body. Yusei didn't recognize him.

No. No, that wasn't it. He felt the truth before his mind pulled the coherent thoughts together. The face was unfamiliar, but he did know this person.

Yusei got close enough that when he dropped to his knees, he was right next to the man and placed a hand on his bare shoulder. "Hey," he croaked as he gave him a gentle shake—and part of him was surprised that he could actually touch him, that he was real and not an illusion. After a moment the man began to rouse and slowly opened his eyes.

Yes, he knew those eyes. Eyes gold like a king's crown.

Though now they were centered in human whites and carried dilated pupils within. Yusei stared down into those eyes with his mouth hanging, unable to speak. The man struggled to sit up, and he craned his neck to look around, his nose wrinkled. Then he looked at Yusei and blinked several times, his whole face creased with confusion.

"Yusei . . . you're bigger."

Yusei shook his head. "No, I'm not."

"Yes you are," he insisted, then he pointed a finger. "Just look at—"

He came to a sudden halt and froze, his eyes caught by the sight of his hand. Yusei watched his face as he stared at that hand, stared as the fingers rose, wiggled, flexed, and as the wrist twisted left and right—all under his control.

He raised his other hand and looked down into his open palms. He flexed all ten fingers. Then he raised those fingers to his face and pushed against the soft flesh of the forehead, nose, cheeks, jaw, and ears he found there. From the ears the fingers trailed down some of the length of the hair, gripped a lock and pulled it in front of his eyes. He examined it by pulling it apart into single strands. Then he followed the rest of the length with his eyes and found it piled heavily across his lap and bare legs.

For a moment he just kept staring. Yusei stared too, holding his breath and waiting for the man—for Stardust—to react. But for a long, silent minute, the not-so-dragon-like dragon stared at his feet with a wide-eyed, blank expression. Then he wiggled his toes. And then he slowly turned his wide eyes back to Yusei, who braced himself in case his friend might start to panic and wail.

Instead, Stardust only had one thing to say, and it came out in a slow, lamenting groan.

"Fuck."