Chapter 19 - Game Start
Warmth… such pleasant… drowsy… warmth…
There's a cool breeze ghosting over her skin. Or is it cloth - featherlight and just as soft, still slightly chilled from the night? But if it's touching her… doesn't that mean there's a breeze, anyways.
She doesn't know. Can't really get herself to care - she's too comfortable for that.
Her eyes slowly open, heavy and bleary, still oh so tired and longing to just close again and take her back to dreams.
(Dreams… but isn't she already dreaming?)
Red light of early dawn bathes everything in crimson. A mesmerizing vision.
Red… all she can see through her lashes is red.
Beautiful… deep red… and then, in the distance… birds?
No… not birds. And not red like the morning sun, but...
...The glaringly bright red of her digital alarm and that hellishly loud beeping declaring that her time in dreamland is up for now
Blinking awake, Youko stares at the clock before smacking it off with a groan and burying her face under the covers.
"What was that?" She wonders sleepily. "What an odd dream." She thinks vacantly before rolling over and going back to sleep.
Or she tries to anyways.
"Muoto-chan, it's time to get up! I know it's morning and you hate mornings, but we mustn't be late for our first day of high school!" Her far too awake roommate chirps excitedly.
She gives a groan that turns into a whine in response. "Curse morning people. How do they do it?"
She's never been a morning person, in this life or the one before. Morning people are baffling and honestly, she thinks an entire different species of human.
"Mutou-chan! I will get your sister if I need to~!" Is the sly response her evil roommate gives.
That has Youko bolting up from bed. No way does she want to deal with any of her family's wake up calls, especially Hinata's. "Alright, alright! I'm up Yukimura-chan! No need to do anything so drastic!"
"If you woke up on your own I wouldn't have to take drastic measures!" She says with a laugh before giving a farewell and heading out.
Youko rubs at her head, once again silently marvelling at how convoluted and strange her world is.
Yukimura Keiko… at Meiou Academy. With her and all of her many siblings.
What has her life become?
(She often wonders just how many different series from the before are part of the same world, but since she's already encountered too many to count, she'd rather not think about it in too much detail, honestly.)
Shaking her thoughts away, Youko scurries around her dorm room to get ready for the day.
Within minutes she's dressed in her new high school uniform and out the door.
Meiou Academy.
In one universe an elitist school for rich kids. In this universe… still an elitist school for rich kids, but they've got nicer uniforms and an option to live on campus, which is one of the best things Youko didn't know she needed.
It's the friendly rival school to Ouran and Seiyo, the three making a neat little triangle in the Tokyo suburbs, kingdoms that are at once allies and rivals.
Ouran is the most elite and expensive of the three, focusing on wealth, prestige, academics, and lineage over all else. Only offering two scholarships per year, one for a female and one for a male.
Meiou is elite but more affordable. It focuses on the arts and life skills a bit more than normal academics. (But still demands good academic grades.) They have special classes and lesson plans set up to help all students understand their studies and do well. Meiou has a special scholarship system set up and offers many more available spots for students to get in. Payment and scholarship money is determined by how much a family can afford, they even take special plans for if unexpected financial issues arise for students.
Seiyo is the most affordable of the three and is, while not as famous as its "older siblings", a solid place to get an education, regardless of social status or academic achievements. Most notably known for its tropical greenhouses and on-site observatory, most of Seiyo's students thrive in the scientific field, though their artistic department is nothing to sneeze at, either.
After moving to Hanafuda and things settling with the company, Grandpa had been contacted by Meiou. Apparently the school has scouts and keeps watch for talented children in any skill and field. While not often, the school will invite children to join, offering scholarships and the like.
They saw talent in the massive gaggle of new and old Mutou children. They saw a lot of it.
And none of said kids have ever been known to look a gift horse in the mouth - especially after all they'd gone through.
And so… after but a few weeks living in their new house in Hanafuda… almost all of them moved into the Meiou Academy dormitories, to begin a new life at a new school. Only the Domino Q and Seto stayed behind in the townhouse, but it wasn't long before he, too, accepted the invitation and joined the rest of them.
And that's how Youko finds herself almost tripping into the kitchen of their floor, trying to juggle adjusting her tie and not fall out of her slippers. Hinata, Yukimura, and all the others, are already there, gathered at the table.
"You're a blessing, Hina," she sighs as she slides into the seat saved for her, a plate of food already put together for her.
Hinata, in return, shakes her head with an exasperated smirk. "You know you're hopeless, right? You, save the world? You can't even take care of yourself properly."
"Excuse you, I am a healthy, responsible adult thank you very much." Youko responds with a huff, "it's just-"
"Mornings are evil and fuck them and whoever invented them?" Hinata asks with a wry smile.
"You're not even an adult," Tristan points out, not turning away from the manual on engineering he's reading.
"I'm more concerned that there is a belief that she needs to save the world for some reason." Marik says teasingly as he shovels his food into his mouth.
"Yeah, that's my job."
The dry quip comes from Seto as he sits down with a cup of espresso. From the looks of it, it's his second.
"With how much coffee you drink, I doubt you'll live long enough to do that," Joey adds from his spot down the table, a book open next to him. Seto promptly yeets a teaspoon at his face.
Yukimura takes that as her moment to leave. "I swear you guys are worse than Yusuke sometimes, but I suppose that's why you've got more fun," she comments, picking up her bookbag. "See you tonight, then - say hi to Shuichi when he arrives for me".
"Will do, see ya in class Yukimura."
Comfortable silence reigns as they all enjoy each other's company and mentally prepare for the day ahead of them.
"So," Duke starts, "how's the permanent roommate doing today?" He asks casually.
They all turn to Hinata who is making a face "He's a big troublemaking, whiny bitch is how he is" she grumbles before scowling down at the necklace around her neck.
Youko snorts, "When isn't he a troublemaking, whiny bitch?"
"I don't wanna hear anything from you." Hinata hisses, pointing threateningly at her with her spoon "the fact that you two get along so well is terrifying."
"I swear, sometimes I think you both got the wrong items and spirits." Tea mutters, warily eyeing the Millennium Ring that is around Hinata's neck. (Not that she's scared of the Ring's spirit. None of them are, but they are wary though. They know he can be dangerous. He tolerates them though. And after 4 years, he's somehow opened up, or at least taken a liking to Youko.)
Youko laughs and pops another spoonful of rice into her mouth. "That's only because Yami's not quite awake yet. That means I don't quite count as a threat".
"I still think that won't change when he wakes up. You and ring boy get along too well and are both way to sarcastically fatalistic and stubborn to have that change."
"That's the mysterious thing about these things," Marik points out, putting down his chopsticks. "Even when you're bonded to an item, or even a spirit, you might still have the potential to harmonize and bond with others, or the ones you have bonded with might suddenly reject you. Like with my darling sister and myself - I had already begun training with the Rod when the Tauk rejected her, and now I have a much stronger bond with the Tauk than I'd possibly ever have with the Rod. Remember, it goes both ways to Bond - you're partners, not adversaries… at least not in the most traditional sense".
That was another change in the timeline that Youko and Hinata had quickly had to adapt to, but which had turned out surprisingly pleasant.
A year or so after their enrollment at Meiou, they had had an unexpected set of visitors on the summer solstice.
Rishid Ishtar had knocked on their door, followed by a young, eager, and definitely not emotionally scarred Marik.
Youko will admit to feeling pretty awkward during that first hour as Rishid spoke of the history behind the Tomb-Keeper clan, and why they had come to see them. How they had been watched almost since birth - likely since the day Grandpa obtained the puzzle in the first place - and why they hadn't contacted them until then.
(Youko doesn't know how to feel about that aside from beyond unsettled and creeped out and a bit mad. She had wanted to snarl and growl at them, wanted to chew Mahad and Mana out for not telling them. Luckily she's older and more in control of her emotions and body and checks herself, mostly. Her magic is more subtle but they can all feel her displeasure and she takes small satisfaction in their obvious unease.)
Then Marik had come to the rescue.
"We haven't watched closely, of course," he'd told them - young, but already much more experienced in them, concerning dealing with… everything. "It was generally agreed to take the position of distant observers - to let you figure things out and not interfere with your lives. But then, well… we ran into some… complications".
And that was how they learned of Ishizu's betrayal.
That took the meeting from awkward to downright uncomfortable, as Youko and Hinata discovered one of the biggest changes caused by their birth in and of itself.
"We do not know what she saw exactly, of course," Rishid had tried to offer as comfort. "Ishizu has always been very tight-lipped about these things, but whatever she saw, it drove her into a… bad place. Bad enough that the Tauk rejected her… and found a new Keeper".
Youko's mind was a mess at the news. So many small changes are easy to ignore for the most part, it's all normal, they're used to this life and not the story that is slowly fading from memory. Something so vital, so huge as this though? It's hard to not be physically sick from the implications of this.
(Especially when they learn that she had recently just up and left, stealing the Rod and disappearing to god knows where without a trace. A worrying development).
They quickly wrapped up the meeting, exchanging info and promising to meet up again for more talks.
The next big shock though, came when they were leaving.
Rishid had turned to Hinata and pulled out the Millennium Ring with little fanfare. He handed it to her with a simple "This is yours." And walked away with Marik following him.
They all had been too shocked to chase after them or say anything.
Hinata looked pained for a moment before sighing in resignation, shrugging and putting the ring on.
And that was that.
They have been a thorn in each other's side ever since.
The walk between the Meiou campuses and the dorms is one Hinata has always found enjoyable. Rain, sun, or snow, there's always something interesting or pretty to look at, in her opinion.
The light layer of frost covering everything on their first day of high school, coupled with the slowly spreading warmth of the April sun, is particularly pretty in her opinion, and feels like a good omen of things to come.
Of course… someone else usually has an opinion about her opinions concerning "trivial" matters like her morning and afternoon walks to and from school, and unlike civilized people, they're not ashamed to make those opinions heard.
"I still don't get why you get so excited about gods damned frozen water on grass".
"Well, nobody fucking asked you to get it, did they?!"
"You literally complained about the ice in that ice box of yours back at the shop, and that thing's entire function is to freeze things".
"That's different! It had grown out of control and needed to be cleaned!"
"I don't see much of a difference from where I stand, and I'm in your mind".
Oh, how she envies Youko and the relative silence she's got of Yami still sleeping.
"And speaking of-"
"Oh look, we're here! Time for you to shut the fuck up!"
"Yeah, Seto, why you gotta be such a chatterbox?" Youko quickly covers up for her, though it's not very helpful, as Seto hasn't said a word all throughout the walk, and some of their passing classmates still stare a bit.
"Oh, my apologies," Seto comments dryly. "I didn't know you'd taken up mind-reading, like some kind of magician".
Youko snorts and grins like the imp she is "Well you know me, I'm a girl with many talents."
"Does that include being a short ass midget?" Seto asks blithely.
"I will strangle you," she hisses viciously
"You're not tall enough for that."
"You've sunk low enough where I can reach your scrawny neck."
Hinata smiles fondly as the two continue to bicker good naturedly and the others watch in amusement, some adding their own comments to continue the chaos.
Yes, the walk from the dorms to the campus is definitely enjoyable.
The morning is as lively as ever in the Meiou Academy Middle School Dormitory - the MAMSD for short, though Yugi is open to suggestions for a better acronym. Their Dorm-Mom is rushing from room to room to get the last few stragglers up and going, the chatter is going at the tables, and Mokuba somehow managed to get a pancake stuck on the ceiling while cooking.
Chaos and good times.
He likes it! It reminds him of home, so he feels less homesick. Doesn't hurt that his three favorite people in his age-group are right there next to him.
Serenity takes off her glasses and pinches the bridge of her nose. "What I don't get is how you were even allowed to help out with cooking in the first place".
Mokuba shrugs and takes a bite out of what looks like a pretty mangled omelette roll. "New year, new kitchen groups. I guess they wanted to give me an eighth chance?"
"This is why we need to post a note on the bulletin board that Moku isn't allowed to cook. Ever." Ryou adds from- somewhere else in the kitchen.
It's smoking a little too much for anyone to see clearly. Aaand there's the fire extinguisher going off. Guess their Dorm-Dad finally got enough control of the chaos.
"This is a highly praised and distinguished school," Yugi comments cheerfully as he looks around at the chaos.
"Cheers," Ryou says, appearing from the fog with a mug of tea, lifting it to no one in particular and then downs everything.
"Excuse me, Mutou-san?"
Without missing a beat, they all share impish grins and turn as one to answer "Yes?" to the, very much new faculty member (who has yet to learn of their big family and the chaos they bring it seems.)
The woman looks extremely flustered at this, and then stutters out "uhm… W. Mutou?"
"That would be me," Serenity says politely, getting up from her chair and putting her glasses back on. "What can I help with, Sensei?"
"If you would follow me to the Faculty Office?" She says, getting back her composure. "We've got a task for you as Class President of class 1-B".
"Yes, of course. I guess I'll see you guys later," she gives a quick wave back a follows, stopping only to put on her outdoor shoes and pull a coat over her shoulders, trusting her friends to bring her bag to class for her.
The new secretary of Housing, as Serenity comes to learn she is, is quick to explain the situation. That a last-minute transfer student had been accepted, and since they could see that Serenity's dorm had a bed open would she please be a dear and show around this new student and help her settle in? She would not be punished for any class-time missed, they could promise her that.
Serenity still remembers the feeling of being in a new school and unsure of everything. Her family had seemed so far away in their different buildings and dorms, and while they had plenty of opportunity to go see each other, it just hadn't been the same. And this new girl had none of that security.
"Of course, it's no trouble at all!" She smiles brightly. "I'll make sure Transfer-chan will feel right at home with us in Class B!"
The secretary smiles right back. "What a nice and polite young girl," she comments, completely forgetting the earlier mischief, as she opens the door to the faculty room. "Well, if I may introduce, then. This is Yamagawa Hanabi".
Hanabi knows who the girl is before the woman even gets a chance to mention her name. She's seen her face so many times in the files that she was told to study long before arriving here, read all about her personality and mannerisms in them, too, to the point that she's not even sure she even has the ability to treat her like a stranger.
Serenity Wheeler. Adopted into the Mutou-family at a young age. Biological mother divorced her father and left her in the care of Solomon Mutou, making her the 6th adopted sibling in that family.
A perfect "in" to start with, as she had been told.
From Serenity Wheeler, she will get close to Kaiba Mokuba, Mutou Yugi, and Bakura Ryouichi. From those three she will gain access to Kaiba Seto, Mutou Youko, and Bakura Hinata. And having access to those three means access to not only the technology produced by Kaiba, but also the Puzzle and the Ring.
This plan depends on her. She will not fail.
She just has to play her cards right.
And so she smooths out her dress and bows. "Nice to meet you! I'm Hanabi - please take care of me".
Game. Start.
Authors Notes:
Holy shit you guys! We're alive!
So sorry that it's been so long! Life is seriously intense and a lot has been going on for both Nordic and myself. (And most of it isn't fun stuff.)
Since our last update on February 15th (which is EXACTLY 7 months ago to the day!), CitG has turned 2, and the CitG blog turned 2 today!
Goodness. I don't even know. Work, mental health, and family drama as usual have been going on for me. Depression and anxiety suck and make it hard to do anything. Plus new and old fandoms pulling my attention away from ygo doesn't help.
My mental health goes up and down tho. It's a struggle to be productive or get anything extra done besides the bare minimum. But I am trying for sure.
…..stuff has happened. That's all I can say. I can hardly recall all that has been going on this year. I have a shitty memory and depression doesn't help with it.
So yeah. Life. It happens. (And fandoms. So many fandoms. Like Breath of the Wild…..don't get me or Nordic started on that one XD)
We will never leave CitG! It's important and special. (It's my very first story posted!) so it will be finished! It just may take a long time.
Uh, no notes really for this chapter. So if you're lost on anything feel free to ask for clarification.
Thanks again for staying with us and for all your patience everyone. We really appreciate it.
(Let's play "how many fandoms/series/references can you spot?!" ;D)
Shoutout to all of the people who viewed and all of our current followers and faves and our new followers and favorites (Tahkaullus01, tsyMyst, TribalGrayFox, TARDIS-girl01, Okamishiru, xenoah, Jayleenf1, darklight66, Paraiso, Chitsuki-Tokiwa, il2swim57, Arzel Seiken, SilverStar56, Shiovaun, 21firemario, Chaosblaze94, girl falcona, KingOfCombos, and sparda191) And thanks to everyone who left Kudos!
And EXTRA thank yous and love for the reviews/comments!
Please, PLEASE leave us comments and reviews, especially if you have any questions or are confused! We love them so very much! We get motivated to write when we get reviews!
Thanks again to the amazingly talented and lovely Moirei for Beta-ing for us, as always :)
Please check out our side story, Beyond the Game. It's got (or is going to anyways) missing scenes from what wouldn't fit into chapters, and also details of certain events that we (or you) wanted to expand upon.
Please don't forget to check out the CitG tumblr blog (caughtinthegame dot tumblr dot com) as well, we post links to the chapters and if we remember, we post chapter progress (or are trying to do that anyways). We will also post other little things now and then when we can.
We also have our other SI story called "Judgement of Our Sins" for the Seven Deadly Sins/Nanatsu no Taizai series! Please check it out! All three of us (Nordic, Moirei and myself) are super excited for it and to share it!
Anyways, that's all for this chapter. Stay safe and have a good rest of your day, week, or month(s). Until next time duckies!
C. S. Stars
An addendum from Nordic:
What Stars said. I was pretty much working on finals and essays since March, and these coming months aren't going to be much easier. Why in the name of all that is holy I decided to pursue a Master's degree, I have no idea, but I'm too stubborn to quit now.
Also, shortly after the last update, I got glasses. Suddenly everything got so much clearer regarding my frequent migraines. It was a real eye-opener, so to speak. (Puns intended).
As for other fandoms dragging people in, I've been working on a solo-project for Oban Star Racers. It's called "The Stars Will Be There Tomorrow" and it's currently up on AO3, if any of you guys are interested!
Thank you so much to all of the commenters and the ones who lurk and leave Kudos. We appreciate you all!
Nordic Twin
Edited/Beta by Moirei
Finished & Published: August 15, 2019