Disclaimer: I do not own any Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's characters! I only own my OCs!
Chapter 19: Proof of Friendship
While I lived with Yusei in Satellite, before we went to New Domino City, Satellite wasn't as scary as it was portrayed in the anime in broad daylight. At least, that was my kinda naïve thought until I got to see Satellite in the night for the first time.
The ruined buildings with shattered windows and open walls cast scary shadows around me, Rally, Nervin, Blitz, and Tank while we pushed Yusei's Duel Runner across the empty streets. I was pushing the Duel Runner from the back while the boys walked next to the Runner and steered it. I felt a shiver run down my spine when sinister laughter echoed from the ruins. That meant trouble was coming.
"I could really go for a donut right about now", Tank groaned, his stomach growling due to hunger.
"When could you not go for a donut, Tank?" Blitz grumbled.
"We still got a long way to go! Don't you start complaining now!" Nervin said.
"Try to hold back the hunger until we get to Martha's place, Tank. Maybe there, if we're lucky, she might give us some bread", I said calmly.
The laughter from earlier now sounded very close, as if it was coming from the open street. I peeked from the back of the Runner to see a group of men in shabby clothes, all of them marked, had blocked our way, forcing us to stop walking.
"You five lost or something?" one of the bad men asked nonchalantely.
"Uh-oh…", Nervin cold sweated.
"Need a ride home?" another man mocked.
"Nice Runner", another one commented.
Blitz and I turned around as several men had blocked the way behind us. "Any ideas?" Blitz asked the rest of our group.
"There is a toll for passing through Outcast Alley, you know", one of the people said.
"That shiny red bike you tow'd take care of it", a fourth person added.
Blitz picked up a metal pole that lied right next to his feet and used it to push away a man with long hair. "Just back off, buddy! Why don't you crawl back into the sewer you came from?!"
I gritted my teeth in frustration, knowing things would soon escalate. I activated my Duel Disk and picked up my Extra Deck to find the best Synchro Monster to chase off the thugs.
"Trident Dragion, come out and help us!" I called as I placed the Monster card on the Duel Disk.
A gate appeared at the same height as the tallest building in the area before the three-headed dragon flew out and roared so hard it caused the ground to shake. Yusei's friends gaped in surprise as the thugs stared at the dragon in disbelief. Trident Dragion lowered his three heads to one of the thugs and cried straight onto his face, spraying saliva everywhere while drenching said thug. The men ran away in fear when they realized the Duel Monster was real. In less than five seconds, the street was clear with no thugs left around.
"Wow… That was something", Tank commented.
"But that's one scary dragon…", Nervin swallowed nervously as I walked past the group to reach Trident Dragion.
Trident Dragion lowered his center head, allowing me to give him a hug and a small kiss on the muzzle, making him rumble in delight. "Thank you for your help, Trident Dragion", I smiled softly.
"Anytime, Priestess", Trident Dragion purred.
"Hey, I noticed it before with Blue-Eyes White Dragon too, Estelle", Blitz called, getting my attention. "How're you able to touch the holograms without your body going through them?"
"It's part of my powers", I explained as Trident Dragion dissipated behind me. "My Star Mark gives me psychic powers, so I can summon the Duel Monsters as if they are real and can cause real damage."
"You're like a psychic Duelist? Cool!" Rally smiled widely with shiny eyes.
"Cool or not, we need to go before those thugs come back and try to steal the Duel Runner again", Nervin reminded us.
XXXXXXXXXX
It actually looked like we were going to reach Martha's place without any other issues. The thugs didn't come back, but they must have warned other people about Trident Dragion because I spotted the shapes of humans in several corners, but they left us alone.
Nervin, Tank, and Blitz wanted to take a break once, but Rally convinced them not to because Yusei needed their help now, reminding them of the times Yusei helped them out when he was once sick and traded things with his favorite cards. It showed how selfless and noble Yusei was and how he treasured his friends.
At one point, Blister caught up to us, saying he wanted to see if we were okay when he felt the ground shaking in Satellite, so he left the children at Crow's place. He got worried when he heard the Signer got hurt and needed medical attention, so he followed us to our destination.
It felt like we had been walking the entire night, but it only took an hour to reach Martha's orphanage. Crow's Duel Runner was parked outside and a few lights were on. We parked Yusei's Duel Runner next to Crow's and secured it to make sure no one would try stealing it before we walked into the house. Crow was leaning against the railing of the staircase with his arms crossed and a worried expression.
"Any news, Crow?" Blitz asked as we approached him.
"Nothing", Crow shook his head. "They're doing a surgery to remove the shard from Yusei's abdomen. Where've you guys been?"
"We couldn't walk faster with Yusei's Duel Runner", Nervin shrugged.
Crow blinked in surprise. "Wait… You actually pushed Yusei's Runner through Satellite?"
"Yeah", Rally nodded as he walked to the stairs, where Yusei's helmet rested, and picked it up before sitting down. "We couldn't leave it behind. It's important not just for Yusei but for everyone."
"How long have they had the surgery?" I questioned as I sat down next to Rally.
"'Bout an hour", Crow shrugged. "How were you able to avoid the thugs that lurk around in Outcast Alley? A Duel Runner is real bait in that area."
"Estelle used her powers to make the Duel Monsters real and chased them away", Tank replied.
"I hope Yusei will make it", Blister commented. "From what you told me, that shard must have pierced him too deeply, so his life's at stake."
His words caused us all to grow silent. The thought of losing Yusei was terrifying. He had become like a little brother to me during the time I had been in this dimension. I did have a crush on him before in my dimension, but those feelings kind of calmed down as I got to know him. I still had feelings for him, but they weren't as strong as before. It felt more realistic and the crush I once had was growing into an actual love.
XXXXXXXXXX
The time felt like it went by in a snail's pace while we waited for words about Yusei's condition. I had wrapped an arm around Rally's shoulders, making him lean against my chest to rest a bit. I wanted to give him as much comfort as possible.
We all jumped up on our feet when the door to the infirmary opened. Dr. Schmidt walked out first before Martha followed him.
"Tell us, Doc! How's he doin'?!" Crow asked worriedly.
"It looks like he'll make a complete recovery", Martha informed us with a gentle smile.
"He'll need a few more days of rest in bed, but he'll be just fine", Dr. Schmidt added. "Just keep him from underground Duels for a while, okay?"
We all sighed in relief and relaxed our tense bodies. However, just as my body wasn't so stiff anymore, I felt how heavy my eyelids were. I was very close to fall asleep onto Rally, but I caught myself by grabbing his shoulder.
"What's wrong, Estelle?" Rally looked at me confusedly.
"Just a bit tired…", I replied as I covered my mouth while yawning.
"So what now?" Nervin asked all of the sudden.
"Now, we'll find Kalin and make him pay!" Crow growled.
That declaration snapped me out of my half-asleep state. "Out of the question, Crow! You saw the power Kalin possesses. If anyone of you Duel him, a non-Signer, you will end up dead, and Yusei will be devastated and feel like it's his fault he couldn't protect you."
The others shared a glance and thought about my words. Martha and Dr. Schmidt looked confused, since they had no idea what was going on.
"She's right…", Blitz nodded. "Right now, the only thing we can do to help Yusei is to repair his Runner instead of runnin' after Kalin and pound him into oblivion."
"Right", Nervin nodded. "And it's very late, so we can't do that much now."
"Yeah, I'm ready to hit the sack…", Tank yawned.
Crow pouted with a growl before snorting. "Fine! Then I'll go after Kalin myself!"
"I don't think so, young man", Martha spoke up before the Blackwing Duelist could step out of the house. "I don't know what's going on, but Kalin must be very dangerous if he was able to hurt Yusei like this, so I suggest you stay away from him. I don't want to see another one of my boys in the infirmary with their lives at stake."
Crow turned to his foster mother who gave him a strict glare. That look caused him to turn a bit pale before he shook his head to recover from the hidden threat. "Alright, fine. I'll just go back and check on my nest. See ya all later!"
The young man closed the door behind him before we heard the sound of an engine purring to life. The sound faded slowly, so we knew Crow had left.
"Alright, everyone", Martha called as she clapped her hands. "It's late and we should all head to bed. Boys, you know where the bedrooms are, so help yourselves." She turned to Blister. "Dr. Schmidt will show you to a vacant bedroom, Mister…"
"Blister, ma'am", Blister nodded.
Martha returned the nod. "Blister. Alright." She turned to me with a warm smile. "Then I'll show you the way, Estelle."
I blinked confusedly. "How do you know my name, Martha?"
"I watched the Fortune Cup with the children who live in my house", Martha replied.
"Ah…"
The group walked up the stairs to the first floor where we split up. The men headed to the left side of the house while Martha led me to the right side.
"In my orphanage, the boys and girls sleep separately for many reasons", Martha explained as we walked past several closed doors. "There's a bathroom in both parts of the house, so you don't have to share it with the opposite gender."
"I see", I nodded.
Martha stopped in front of a door and opened it to reveal a small bedroom that had one bed, a nightstand next to it, an armchair with a lamp in a corner, a small desk, and a bookcase in another corner. There was a window two heads from the bed.
"It's small, but it should be enough for the night", Martha said.
"It's more than enough, Martha", I told her as I approached the bed before removing my Duel Disk and satchel.
"I'll bring you a towel in the morning if you want to take a shower", Martha offered.
"Thank you, Martha, but I've got one in my satchel", I shook my head while I took off my jacket and placed it on the armchair.
Martha nodded, "The breakfast is usually around 8 a.m., but you can sleep in if you're tired. I always save some breakfast for the heavy sleepers."
"Thank you very much", I nodded before I covered my mouth for another yawn.
"Make sure to rest up, child. It's been a long night."
"I will. Good night, Martha."
Martha nodded with a smile before she closed the door. I stretched my body before I removed my boots and put them by the side of the bed. I pulled back the covers and lied down, but not before removing my glasses which I placed on the nightstand. Within seconds, I fell asleep on the soft bed, but my thoughts were still around Yusei, praying he was going to be okay.
XXXXXXXXXX
The singing noise of the birds outside woke me up from the deep slumber. I opened my eyes and slowly sat up before stretching my arms, purring like a cat that was stretching after a good rest.
For a second, I forgot where I was until I realized I was in Martha's house. I rubbed my eyes before putting the glasses on my face and got off the bed. I picked up my satchel and took it with me to the girls' bathroom. I could hear voices coming from downstairs, so people in the house were awake.
The bathroom looked like those toilet stalls in public; both the toilets and showers were behind closed stalls. I went to the toilet before I took a quick shower to refresh myself. It felt nice to be clean again.
Once I was dressed again, I washed my face, brushed my teeth, and even wiped my glasses before I realized I had forgotten something. My hair was still wet and dripping and I had no idea where Martha kept a hairdryer.
I merely shrugged and used my towel to dry the hair as much as I could, but I looked like a furball when I was done. I used a brush I had in my satchel to comb the hair down and make sure it didn't stick up, but when you had thick and half-wavy hair like me, little stray hair would still stick up while air-drying.
I brought my satchel and wet towel back to the bedroom I slept in and put them there. I picked up my jacket and brought it with me downstairs. I found the source of the voices in the dining room where five children sat by the table and ate breakfast. Rally and the others were there too, plus Martha and Dr. Schmidt. Martha stood by the threshold that led to the kitchen, surveying if someone wanted seconds.
"Good morning", I called.
The children blinked their eyes before one of the two girls gasped in realization. "It's Estelle! The girl who has Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Before I knew it, I was surrounded by the five children who looked at me in awe and told me how they liked my Duels at the Fortune Cup. The others chuckled and smiled at the scene before they continued eating the breakfast.
Martha clapped her hands. "Okay, kids. You can ask Estelle questions after breakfast. Your food will get cold if you don't eat."
The children ran back to their seats to eat the rest of their breakfast. I giggled softly before I headed over to the only vacant chair. I put the jacket at the back of the chair before I sat down. Martha approached me with a plate consisting of a cooked fish with some boiled potatoes and carrots, and a dill sauce.
"I hope you have an appetite, Estelle", Martha smiled.
"I do", I nodded before doing a quick pray as they usually did in Japan. "Thank you for the food." I sliced a small piece of the fish and dipped it in the sauce before bringing it to my mouth, chewing and enjoying the warm breakfast. "Mmm… It's delicious."
"I'm glad you like it", Martha chuckled before she sat down by the table to eat her share.
I ate another piece of my breakfast before questioning something. "How is Yusei? Is he awake?"
"He was still sleeping when I checked him", Martha replied. "I'll go and check him again after breakfast."
"Meanwhile, we'll look around and see if we can find spare parts for Yusei's Duel Runner", Nervin informed me.
"Yeah, it's pretty banged up now when we saw it in daylight", Tank nodded.
"We'll also try and fix at least the exterior, so Yusei will have half the work left", Blitz added.
I smiled gently at the young men. "I'm sure Yusei will appreciate it when he wakes up and hears the news."
"He's always been there for us, so it's only fair we're there for him too", Rally nodded.
"Can we help too?" one of the small boys of the orphanage asked. I think his name was John.
"You're too young to know adult stuff, so you better not get close to the Runner or else you get hurt", Rally said with a bragging expression and a smirk.
"But you're a kid too, Rally", Blister commented before he sipped his cup of coffee.
Rally's prideful smirk quickly switched into a red face while he looked very embarrassed. The other children started laughing by Blister's comment and taunted the preteen boy as he made himself small on the chair.
Martha and Dr. Schmidt looked at each other before smiling, probably liking how lively it was with the children. Their relationship had always been a mystery to me. I knew they weren't married and they were very close friends, but I still couldn't help but wonder if they actually had feelings for each other.
XXXXXXXXXX
I followed Martha to the infirmary to check Yusei. He was sleeping deeply on a bed that was surrounded by a drapery. He was covered with a blanket, but when Martha pulled it back to check his wound, I couldn't help but blush when I saw the young man's exposed chest. His abs and slight muscled arms had a perfect shape. I had never seen naked men up close like this… Okay, maybe at the pool, but I hadn't been to a pool or the beach in my dimension since I was eleven years old and back then I didn't even think about eyeing the opposite gender.
"How is he?" I asked as I turned my head aside to hide my red cheeks.
"The stitches Dr. Schmidt sewed to enclose the wound are still intact, but the wound will rip open if Yusei makes any harsh moves", Martha replied as she changed the bandage around Yusei's abdomen. "But it looks clean. It's a miracle Crow brought him fast, or else he might have been suffering by blood poisoning right now."
The thought of blood poisoning made me shiver in disgust. I once had a close encounter with a rusty screw that hit my arm when I was ten years old, but luckily I didn't suffer any more damage than a small scar that was barely visible on my snow white skin.
I turned back when I saw Martha covered Yusei with the blanket and walked away to throw away the old bandage. "He might wake up any time now. The anesthetic Dr. Schmidt injected before the surgery will wear out soon", the foster mother added.
"Is it okay if I stay and look after him?" I asked.
Martha turned to me after throwing the bandage before nodding with a smile. "Sure. I'm sure Yusei would love to see his girlfriend's face when he wakes up."
I couldn't resist the urge to hold back my groan in tiredness and roll my eyes. "Yusei and I are not a couple. I'm getting very tired to hear that every single time now."
"So you're not together?" Martha blinked, looking a bit confused. "I'm sorry. It's just I've never seen a girl among Yusei's friends before. He's always been in his own world with mechanics and Duel Runners that he barely paid any attention to the opposite gender."
"Really?" I asked, surprised to hear that Yusei never had a female friend before.
Martha nodded, "Yes. I remember the few times he, Jack, and Crow came over to visit when they were part of the Enforcers. Crow and Jack always teased Yusei in front of me of how he ignored the cute girls that tried to approach him, but he never paid attention. Of course, he was kind and polite to them, but he never caught the hints that the girls wanted to get to know him."
That was new. I had no idea Yusei could be so slow when it came to girls who wanted his attention. But then again, I was pretty much the same. I had never experienced true love before, only crushes. There had been boys in my life who tried to approach me, but I was kinda afraid to get hurt again after the bullying at school and I didn't really catch the hint until a while later.
"Call me if he wakes up and needs something", Martha told me as she headed to the door.
"I will", I nodded, watching the elderly woman leave the infirmary.
I found a chair by a desk and carried it to Yusei's bed and sat down next to him. I watched his sleepy face, soft noises emitting through the thin line of his lips. He looked different while he was sleeping, like he was in peace and could finally relax. I noticed he often looked pretty stiff and kept his shields up, but who didn't do that?
I stared at his face for a while before I noticed a change. Yusei's eyebrows moved in his sleep and he started to grunt and whimper in fear. Was he suffering from the trauma after facing Kalin and the Earthbound Immortal?
I turned my eyes on his right hand and saw he was clutching the bed sheets in his nightmare. I quickly placed a hand on top of his and used my other hand to try tangling his fingers free from the bed sheets without waking him up. Once I did, I cupped his hand with both my hands and tried transferring gentle and warm feelings to distract him from the trauma.
I watched how his cold sweated face started calming down and he seemed to return to a gentle slumber. I sighed in relief that I managed to help him. I instinctively reached my left hand to wipe the cold sweat off his forehead with my fingers, taking the opportunity to brush his spiky bangs to feel the soft texture. I always thought Yusei's hair was stiff because it was so spiky, but it was actually very soft.
I leaned in closer to wipe off more sweat. My face was literally hovering above Yusei's when his eyes suddenly snapped open and his body flew up, causing our foreheads to collide with one another. I yelped in pain and pulled my head back to put a hand on my forehead.
"Aj… (Ow…)", I hissed lightly as I used my other hand to adjust my glasses that almost fell off my face.
"Sorry…", Yusei grunted as he rubbed his forehead.
"It's fine…", I nodded as I slowly removed my hand to check Yusei. He was sitting on the bed and had his full attention at the covered wound on his abdomen, flinching in pain whenever he tried to move.
"Stay in the bed, Yusei", I quickly told him. "You have several stitches after the surgery."
"Surgery…? What happened?" Yusei asked, looking very confused.
"You got pierced by a metal shard in your abdomen when you got thrown off of your Runner. You must have been in so much pain you didn't notice it."
Yusei got lost in his thoughts for a moment before his eyes widened in realization. "Oh yeah… Now I remember the pain. So that's what it was."
"Besides that, are you okay?" I asked.
Yusei looked aside, but he nodded slowly. "Yeah…" He then noticed the interior of the infirmary. "Where are we?"
"In Martha's house", I explained. "Crow brought you here. I'll get Martha for you." I stood up from the chair and pushed it aside. "You want something to eat or drink?"
Yusei shook his head. "Thanks, but not right now."
I let out a soft sigh through my nose, but I didn't argue. "Okay."
I didn't know what else to say to Yusei to comfort him after the incident with Kalin, so I left the infirmary. I leaned against the door once I closed it, letting out another sigh. I could sense Yusei's doubt and fear in my Mark, making me touch my right arm. He was now afraid to face Kalin and the Dark Signers after seeing the Earthbound Immortal that had almost killed him.
I understood his feelings completely. Who wouldn't get traumatized by almost seeing their life flash by in just one second?
If I took my time to collect my thoughts and talked to Yusei later, would that even be enough? The saying said that action speaks clearer than words, so maybe I needed to do something more to bring him out of the trauma. After all, it was my duty as the Crimson Star Priestess to look after the Signers and be a motherly figure for them. It wasn't easy, but I wanted to be there for my friends I had gained in this fictional dimension that was now very real.
I had to protect and support my new family.
XXXXXXXXXX – Yusei's POV
I was very surprised when I heard from Martha how my friends had pushed my wrecked Duel Runner through Satellite and risked their own lives to protect it from the thugs that lived in Outcast Alley. Blitz showed up in the infirmary and told me the details. Apparently, Estelle used her powers to materialize her dragon Monsters to scare away the thugs and cleared the path for them.
After I ate a light breakfast and got the clearance from Dr. Schmidt, I walked outside to get a closer look at my Runner. I had to walk in a slow pace to not rip the stitches open. The wound still hurt a lot.
The front of the Runner was almost crushed, but the back part was luckily saved, except a few dents on the frame. The tires were also safe, so I only had very little work to do with it. It miraculously survived the last part of the Shadow Turbo Duel when that Earthbound Immortal almost killed me. My Duel Runner had saved me.
"Yusei!" Rally called.
I turned around and saw the boy and Nervin appear from the corner of Martha's house, both of them looking relieved that I was up.
"Hey, how're ya feelin'?" Rally asked.
"Much better", I replied.
"Are you gonna be able to fix your ride?" Nervin wondered as he looked at my Duel Runner. "If you need us to scavenge some new parts, just say the word."
"Are you sure?" I questioned, not wanting my friends to overdo it. "You guys have already done so much."
"Sure I'm sure", Nervin smiled. "What are best friends for anyway?" Rally nodded in agreement. "Whatever you need."
I couldn't resist the smile that crept onto my lips. "You guys rule."
Rally and Nervin grinned brightly before they ran off to get some spare parts. Once I was alone, I couldn't help but doubt myself. Even if I fixed my Runner, could I face Kalin again after the last Duel with the Earthbound Immortal?
The Earthbound Immortal's hand that almost crushed me still haunted my mind. Whenever I closed my eyes, I would see it hovering above me with its palm open. A shiver ran down my spine as I felt something in my heart that I had rarely felt during my 18 years of living.
I was afraid of very few things, but this…was pure dread.
For the first time, I truly doubted myself and my Dueling skills. Could I really take on the Dark Signers? Could we Signers defeat them even if we faced them together?
I snapped out of it when I heard a small commotion from the front of the house. I walked over to the corner and saw Estelle had materialized Blue-Eyes White Dragon due to the children's wishes. The dragon lowered his head down to Estelle who patted him on the muzzle.
"So cool!" one of the three boys exclaimed in awe.
"Are you a Kaiba? Is that why you have Blue-Eyes White Dragon?" another one of the boys asked Estelle.
Estelle giggled softly while shaking her head. "No, I'm not a Kaiba."
"But you have brown hair and blue eyes! Weren't those Kaiba's features?" one of the two girls asked.
"Yes, Kaiba had brown hair and blue eyes, and so does many other people on the planet", Estelle replied.
Blue-Eyes White Dragon rumbled from his throat as he nudged Estelle with his muzzle, causing her to giggle before patting him with a smile. "Alright, Blue-Eyes, you little rascal."
The Duel Monster let out a noise that sounded like laughing before his image dissipated. The children went on their own to play around the house now that the show was over. Estelle removed the Blue-Eyes White Dragon card from her Duel Disk before she looked up and turned straight to me.
I blinked in slight surprise, but I didn't move as she approached me with a concerned expression. "Are you okay, Yusei?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine", I nodded, trying to hide my fear with a poker face.
Estelle didn't look convinced as she shook her head. "Don't lie to yourself. I know you're scared."
I blinked my eyes confusedly. "How…?"
Estelle placed a hand on her right arm with her Star Mark. "I can sense your feelings through our Marks. Your feelings are as visible as a naked sky."
Right… I forgot about the bond thing with our Marks. I had to learn how to shut the bond so Estelle and the others wouldn't sense what I was feeling.
Both Estelle and I said nothing for a short moment before the brunette suddenly opened her arms. I looked at her with a raised eyebrow at the gesture.
"Do you want a hug?" Estelle asked.
A hug… It had been a long time I got a hug from someone. I just nodded as answer and before I knew it, Estelle pressed her body against mine and she wrapped her arms around my abdomen, above my wound. Her chin rested on my shoulder because we were around the same height. I flinched for a second by the sudden action, but I then relaxed and wrapped my arms around her thin waist.
It felt nice. The warmth from another human body against mine and the sense of feeling safe in someone else's arms was comforting.
"It's okay to be scared", Estelle said softly as I felt one of her hands sneak up to the back of my head to caress my hair. "It's okay to cry when you go through a trauma. Don't hold back. I'll be your shoulder you can rely on if you need to let it out."
I was silent as I comprehended Estelle's words. Slowly and surely, my arms tightened the hold around her waist as I tried to pull her closer to me so I could rest my chin on her shoulder. I inhaled a slight shaking breath before I felt a few tears run down my cheeks.
"Thank you…", I whispered softly into Estelle's hair, feeling relieved and grateful to have someone by my side in a time like this.