Daileywishaw24: Thank you for reviewing, glad you liked it! :) And yes, growing up wasn't easy for Serena with such parents…

I only own my OC's!

I kept looking back at Aster, not knowing what to say. The more he was looking at me directly, the more nervous I was…

That was when he pulled something out of his pocket. My eyes widened once he lifted it up. It was that grey stick…

"Mind explaining to me what exactly this is?" He asked coldly. "I thought Jaden had told you." I frowned, folding my arms. "I want to hear it from you." He frowned back at me. I stayed quiet for a few seconds, observing the silver-haired guy. If this was what he wanted to talk about, then it looked like he was still freaking mad about my little trip to Sartorius' room…

"There are three more like that one," I pointed at the stick in his right hand. "Four of the Prince's agents carried them in separate boxes during his duel with Sartorius. When he won the duel, the Prince gave the case with the controls to the satellite to him. He also gave him boxes with those sticks. I'm not sure what exactly it is, though…" I finished, trailing off.

Aster looked at the stick, and then at me. "And how did it end up with you?" He demanded calmly. "Before Sartorius entered the room, I had already put one of boxes inside. My guess is the box opened from force once he pushed me to the floor. The thing remained in my backpack without it." I shrugged my shoulders.

The silver-haired guy eyed me coldly for a few moments. "I really think what you had done was sheer stupidity." He put the stick back in his pocket.

As much as I was nervous, I was also angry at that moment. I knew I made a mistake. I knew trying to steal the satellite from Sartorius was idiocy. But did he have to repeat it over and over again?! Did he have to keep proving how I was useless compared to him?! I'd known that already!

"If you're here to again make your point that I'm an idiot, then I'm not willing to listen. Once was more than enough." I spoke up with a glare. "I'm not here because of that," Aster started, only for me to cut him off. "Then why?!" I demanded icily.

His dark blue eyes looked into mine. "I wanted to see whether you were fine." He changed his sitting position, putting his left leg over his right one. "Why would you want to know that?" I glared, still angry from his previous words. All of a sudden, he cared about my wellbeing… Why would he?! He told me I was either crazy, or stupid, and then he told me to stay out of the whole thing…

"I heard from Jaden you broke some of your ribs." The guy straightened up in his chair, folding his arms. "And, from what I know, that's rather painful…" His eyes then landed on me yet again. I stayed quiet, looking back at him.

Honestly, I really didn't know what to think about this guy anymore. He and Sartorius were close, I knew that. But then he said all those things to me a while ago… Rightfully so, I deserved it… But being told that really stung. I was useless compared to both him and Jaden, and trying to help Ben and Sartorius only made things worse…

"I also wanted you to tell me what exactly happened with Sartorius back there." Aster then spoke up firmly. "I've already told you." I frowned at him. "You didn't explain," He gave me a cold look. "Why his left hand is bandaged now."

The moment he said that, nervousness washed over me… How… How in the world did he figure out Sartorius' wounded hand had something to do with me?! I mean, he was right, but I never mentioned Sartorius decided to switch his target from me to the hand!

"What makes you think it had something to do with me?" I demanded with a frown. "I've seen him walking away from the main building while wrapping bandages around his hand. That happened shortly after your reckless behavior." He replied matter-of-factly with his eyes closed.

I let my arms fall to the side, still frowning. "It is because of that incident." I admitted reluctantly, looking at my bed sheets.

There was no point lying to him. He figured it out.

"Did you do that to him?" Aster then opened his eyes, raising an eyebrow. I shook my head immediately. "Then what was it?" He demanded. I bit my lip, not knowing what to say.

I wasn't exactly sure myself what happened back there. I didn't want to mention it to others until I had some sort of idea. The only reason I told Jaden that was because he was there when Mrs. Fontaine came in to get those bandages…

However, it was still so… Confusing.

Since Sartorius came to this island, I'd been threatened twice so far. But it was only when I barged in his room that he actually took a knife in his hand… And when he did, he wasted a freaking good chance to kill me! He couldn't have missed the target that easily! No one in their right mind would stab their own hand instead!

"If you know what's good for you, then you'll stay away from me. Consider this a warning." Those words were whispered in my right ear. At that moment, I just didn't have courage to look him in the eyes…

I was grabbed by collar of my jacket violently. "Are you mocking me?" Sartorius demanded in a deadly tone. "No, I really don't get it." I whimpered, quickly looking away in fear. Suddenly, I was let go. I landed on the ground with a yelp. "I've already told you to stay away from me. Next time, I'll be even worse if you come near me." I looked up to see him giving me a threatening look.

I let out a scream and quickly looked away. Then, I heard a shout. I looked up, my eyes wide. The hand let go of my arm. Instead, Sartorius was holding his own hand, which had a knife in it. "GET OUT!" I was shouted at immediately after.

While all that happened was still frightening to me, what left the biggest impression on me was Sartorius' shouting… Most probably because he rarely got that angry. He wasn't a person you would want to make mad. When that happened, it wasn't pleasant at all…

Both Sarina and Sartorius had incredible patience, and tolerated me causing trouble as a kid. Yet, the only time I angered the latter that much happened when I was very small… Sarina never got angry.

He was absolutely furious when I ran after my ball I had dropped. It started rolling towards street, and I nearly got hit by a car. If I remembered correctly, I even started crying out of fear due to his shouting. That picture was still a bit terrifying to me, even after all those years… It wasn't a clear one, but I could still remember how scared I was.

I couldn't remember everything about that event. I had been quite little after all. I knew it happened when I was about four. That was when Sartorius and Sarina started looking after me. I wasn't thrilled about that at all, until I got used to the latter. She and Aunt Maria would play with me.

For some reason, at first, Sartorius wasn't as nice as Sarina. He was there only to scold me if I did something wrong. It wasn't until after that incident that he started acting a lot nicer. I didn't understand it, nor remember why, or what else happened…

I only knew the shouting from few days ago reminded me of that 'ball' incident.

I did stupid things in both cases, and I was shouted at… I stopped breathing for a few moments.

The reason I was shouted at back then was because I could have been hit by a car. If I remembered correctly, Sartorius even mentioned Aunt Maria, asking what he was supposed to tell her if something happened to me, or something along those lines.

He was reasonably upset back then. But now, he had no reason for that. While under the control of the strange force, he was set on getting rid of me, even threatening his own sister to do that. Sarina was perfectly clear about everything.

I didn't understand why he only said threats before finally taking that knife. But, if he wanted to kill me, he was so damn near it at that moment… He even plunged the knife in my direction! There was no way he could have missed me like that. No one could be that blind. A person would have to know not to accidentally injure themselves…

Much less, why would he tell me to get out if he wanted to get rid of me? It completely went against everything I've known so far! When you want something, you don't just tell it to go away… And you definitely don't let go of your victim's arm like that!

This wasn't the first time something odd happened with Sartorius. There had been one more case before…

"Ever since you've gone insane." "Insane? Serena, I'm not insane." Words from that day were echoing in my head.

While I wasn't sure what that was about, one thing was clear. It sounded more like Sartorius I was used to, rather than that crazy force… If he had known about me planning to steal the satellite, he would have told me not to dare do that.

Whenever I got in trouble, he would both scold me and help me, especially if I got hurt in some way. In fact, that 'get out' was something he would say… He would warn me not to do something stupid or dangerous.

Based on everything that happened so far, seeing that Sartorius was acting more like himself at those moments…

Could that… Could that mean that…

"Will you answer my question or not?" Aster's voice broke my train of thoughts. I looked up with a yelp of surprise. He was frowning at me, with both of his arms folded. "Could you repeat it?" I asked. "I asked you what exactly happened with Sartorius back there." He repeated. It sounded as if he weren't pleased with me forgetting his question.

There was no point in not telling him. He asked me twice. Besides, maybe he would figure it out himself…

"You remember what I said about him trying to kill me back there?" I asked slowly while looking up. Aster nodded.

"Well, during our chase, he pulled a knife out of one drawer. He then pushed me to the floor, and tried to kill me with that thing." I stated, with those events replaying in my mind. I could clearly remember dropping the case and boxes, and Sartorius grabbing my arm harshly…

Aster's eyes landed on my bruised arm, before looking back at me. "What happened then?" He questioned. "I looked away just as he was about to plunge the knife," I frowned. "But instead, I heard shouting.

"When I looked up, his hand had the knife in it." "Knife in it?" Aster's eyebrows furrowed. "You mean, as in… Stabbed?" His eyes widened slightly. I quickly nodded. "He then shouted at me to get out. I locked myself in his room and jumped through that window." I finished explaining.

By now, Aster was staring at me. "You do know that sounds…" "Insane? Impossible? Yeah, I know… But it's the truth." I cut him off. "Surprising." He corrected me firmly, making me blink in surprise. "Oh."

We were then sitting in silence. I was looking at my bracelet, while the professional duelist was straightening his sleeves.

Aster sure wasn't wrong about that being surprising… It only reminded me of what I had thought earlier.

Could it mean Sartorius had actually tried to help me? It sounded kind of crazy, he was under that force's control after all… But that idea sounded crazy as well, and turned out to be true.

At that moment, my guts told me to just stop with bringing up excuses. I wasn't sure how it was possible, but I was convinced Sartorius did what he had a few days ago to help me. That also meant he took that stab to save me from my own stupidity… It made me feel guiltiness.

However, it also made me feel joy and hope. That meant he was still there. That meant there was definitely a way Jaden and Aster could save him… And with that, Ben too, and everyone else!

"He's still there, I know he is." I spoke up with a smile, making Aster look up at me. "What did you say?" He asked slowly. "There's definitely a way you and Jaden can save Sartorius." I explained, my excitement growing.

The professional duelist eyed me for a few moments. "Why are you so happy all of a sudden? The only thing that's happened so far was your failed theft attempt and injuries." He frowned. "Because I now understand what happened. By taking that stab, he saved me!"

I knew things were far from perfect. I knew we were in a lot of trouble with the Society Of Light on this island. But, I hadn't felt so happy since Sarina had told us everything… I trusted her words. However, being told something and seeing it for yourself were completely different cases. Feelings of guilt weren't as strong now. I did something stupid. But I finally saw the positive side of it!

Aster stayed quiet, observing me. There was this strange look on his face. I couldn't figure out what exactly it was…

"If you say so." He finally said neutrally. "You don't think so?" I asked perplexed. "I don't know what to think." He replied, keeping that neutral tone. "But," He shrugged his shoulders. "What do I know, since you seem to know him so well…" He trailed off, looking away, towards a nearby window.

I could have sworn there was something else in his tone when he said that. I couldn't place it…

"You do too." I pointed out with a frown. Aster's head turned in my direction. "And how would you know?" He demanded with a raised eyebrow. "Intuition." I guessed, making him stare at me. "I mean, I knew you were lying when you said the only reason you two were close was him being your manager…" I then started talking, only to be cut off.

"Why are you so interested in how we know each other?" He frowned. "You wanted to know how I knew him, and I told you." I pointed out with a shrug. "Besides, you're the only other person around here that knows him well too…" I then trailed off.

The professional duelist looked up, his dark blue eyes staring right into my light blue ones.

"I've known him since I was six." He finally spoke up in that neutral tone. "How, if I may ask?" "Doesn't really matter." The silver-haired guy replied. It was as if he wanted to say as less as possible… "How long has he been your manager?" I asked, trying to get at least something out of him. "For more than a year now." He replied coldly, looking away from me for some reason.

It gave me this feeling he either wanted to stay quiet, or had something against me… If the latter was the case, I didn't understand why. I didn't do anything to him…

"Do you happen to know anyone named Maria Accardi?" Aster suddenly looked up at me with a frown. I was caught by surprise. "I do…" I trailed off. "You're related?" He presumed. "She's my aunt." I nodded.

Frankly, I was surprised he knew my aunt's name… Did that mean he knew her as well?!

"Do you know her?" I spoke up, my eyes wide. The silver-haired guy looked at me coldly for a few moments. "I do." He said indifferently. "How?" I gaped. "She was my dad's friend and colleague." He said simply. "Was?" My eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

If she was his colleague, then that meant Aster's father worked for Industrial Illusions too…

The professional duelist nodded. I opened my mouth, wanting to ask him what he meant by that, when…

The door opened. Our heads immediately turned to that direction.

"Serena!" Jaden ran towards my bed before stopping. "Oh, hi, Aster." He then greeted before turning back to me. "Sorry it took me so long," He rubbed the back of his head. "But Pegasus came here because one of his employees stole a copy of Ra, and then we had to find him… We did, and Pegasus has just left. He had some urgent matters to take care of." He quickly explained.

I had no idea what in the world he was talking about with that 'Ra' thing… It only reminded me of the Ra Yellow dorm.

"Did you ask about my aunt?" I asked hopefully. "I did." He nodded. "They have no clues yet; they're still looking for her and other missing employees." "Your aunt is missing?" Aster glanced at me in surprise. I nodded in his direction before looking at Jaden again. "Thanks." I let out a small smile.

I was upset they still had no clues where she was… How was it possible?! The only reason I smiled was not to show I was worried…

"You know her aunt?" Jaden looked at Aster slightly surprised. "My dad used to work with her at Industrial Illusions." The professional duelist gave a nod. "What's his name?" I asked curiously. He looked at me with a frown. "Hiro Phoenix." He finally said curtly.

"Wait… Your dad…" Jaden suddenly gaped. "What about him?" Aster glanced at him expectantly, raising an eyebrow. "I remember that name… He was involved in that scandal!" He exclaimed with his eyes wide.

I glanced at him in surprise, not aware of what he was referring to. "What scandal?" Aster apparently didn't understand it either. Until… His eyes narrowed.

"How do you know about that?" He demanded. "My parents were caught up in it as well. They…" Wait, wait," Aster cut him off. "What's your mother's name?" He quickly asked. "Naomi Suzuki." Jaden replied without hesitation.

The professional duelist's eyes widened. "Then that means your mother…" "Your dad…" They were pointing at each other in shock.

"What are you two talking about?!" I demanded in confusion. "Reporters accused his mum," Aster looked in Jaden's direction for a few moments. "Of cheating on her husband with my dad. It was everywhere in newspapers about ten years ago." He finished explaining with a frown. My eyes widened.

That definitely wasn't what I expected to hear… Hell, I didn't even know Aunt Maria knew Aster's dad!

"I never knew the details concerning the scandal. I only knew the reporters harassed her for some time about it." Jaden stated truthfully. "I kept newspapers because of dad. It happened shortly before he disappeared." Aster replied coldly.

"Your father disappeared?" I demanded in surprise. However, the silver-haired guy didn't respond to that. Instead, he was looking at Jaden. "Then that means Mum knew your dad…" The latter trailed off. "They used to be friends. I've even seen her a few times." Aster responded in a neutral tone.

"Small world this is…" I trailed off a bit more quietly.

Suddenly, the door slammed open. My head whipped around in surprise at sudden noise.

A person came inside. They walked closer to us. White cape was covering their face, so I couldn't see who it was. It was also covering the rest of their body…

"Who are you?" Jaden demanded astonished. The person remained quiet. All three of us were staring at the figure… Until it turned around, getting ready to walk out.

At that moment, Aster ran to the figure and quickly pulled the cape off their head. My eyes widened once I saw dark brown hair falling to the person's shoulders. They then turned around.

My heart started beating like crazy, and I felt like I couldn't breathe. It became even worse once her light brown eyes came into my view. They looked so different… Sinister, and yet empty… Those were nothing like warm eyes I was used to seeing…

"Aunt Maria?" I gasped before quickly grabbing my left side in pain. Jaden and Aster looked at me as if I were crazy before looking up again. They seemed to be equally shocked…

My aunt eyed us with this smug look on her face. "Serena, dear…" She trailed off sinisterly, her eyes landing on me. They then moved to two guys. "Jaden, Aster, how you've grown… Good for you." She observed nonchalantly.

"Mrs. Accardi, what happened to you?" Jaden spoke up worriedly. "Nothing you should concern yourself with. Let's just say I see things clearer thanks to the Light." She responded smugly, her light brown eyes looking at him from head to toe.

I took that moment to observe her. Apart from the cape, she looked just like before… And except for the eyes of course. They reminded me of Sartorius' eyes… Dread washed over me. Based on my previous experience, I knew what happened to her… And it felt like a stab. Another one from my family was under the control of that insane force…

First Ben, then Sartorius, and now her too?! Who was next?! Why was it that only Sarina and I managed to avoid it?!

"Did Sartorius send you here?" Aster suddenly spoke up with a frown. "No, I came to see where you were for myself…" Aunt Maria glanced at him with a sinister grin. She then looked at me. "And I came to warn my niece not to dare pull off something like that theft again, or I'll deal with her personally." She spat venomously.

I found myself cowering under her glare with my heart rate faster than ever. She never threatened me like that…

"Then you'll have to go through me first." Jaden jumped in between two of us, guarding me from her with his hands stretched out.

I looked from behind him to see Aunt Maria glaring at him. Her glare then moved to Aster, and finally me. Without another word, she walked out of the infirmary.

Jaden put his hands down with a sigh of relief. "So she's the mysterious duelist that's been on the island for the past few days…" Aster commented in realization. Jaden and I looked at him in confusion.

"I've seen her a few times, winning duels with a deck I'd never seen before." He briefly explained. "What was it like?" Jaden asked curiously. "From what I saw, it involved using elements of Water, Air, Fire, Earth and Aether." The silver-haired guy stated. "Like?" "There was a stag which looked like it was made of earth and soil. Then there was a serpent made of water, and an eagle out of air."

Jaden and I exchanged glances of surprise. "It reminds me of your deck, Serena. Apart from monsters made from earth and all that." He rubbed the back of his head. I nodded, thinking the same. It was very similar to what my deck (half of it, actually) looked like… I didn't even know Aunt Maria had that deck with her!

Aster looked between us back and forth. "Then that means your aunt is caught up in this as well." He let out a sigh. I nodded, not knowing what else to say.

It came down to this. That insane, stupid force thought it wasn't enough with controlling two people I cared about. It had to go and take my aunt as well. I clenched my fist, feeling my blood boil.

Well, I've had it enough. That thing was going to pay.

As soon as I got out of here, the first thing I planned was going to the library. I was going to find out what that force was, no matter what it took. Aster and Jaden would help Sartorius. I couldn't do much there, since my stupidity caused more harm than good. I didn't want to cause something like that again. Besides, Sarina asked them to help him, and Aster told me to stay out of it. But as soon as I got strong enough by dueling in the tournament, I was going after both Ben and my aunt.

No one hurt people I cared about and got away with it!

Well, yeah… Serena's aunt finally reappears! I spent more time trying to figure out how to write the interaction between Serena and Aster, so I hope it was convincing!

I hope you liked it and until next time! :)