Princess Viv: And here I am, writing a Shobu/Mimi fic. I'm warning readers that if they're looking for quick updates, then please don't kill me, because writing this fic wasn't on the top of my priorities list, but I broke my rule, and I am doing it. I've got to finish my other priorities before I will be able to write the second chapter to this. But, I'll leave you with a taster now…

Full summary: Three years after the defeat of Hakuoh, life for Shobu Kirifuda is good.But what will he do when someone he hasn't seen for three years shows up unexpectedly? And a mysterious guy is stalking him… Suddenly, Shobu's life goes berserk…

Disclaimer: I do not own Duel Masters.

Duel Masters: Over The Rainbow

Chapter 1: Heartbreaking Memories


Shobu is now a world famous Kaijudo master; Rakudah is a duel master's cards specialist, and travels with Shobu, helping his as much as possible; Saiyuki is a duel master's cards strategist, and sometimes accompanies Shobu and Rakudah, but on several occasions, she remains in their hometown, running her duel master's group and teaching kids to play the game. She also helps Winstrum (Pop), Rekuta's father, with the running of his shop; Mimi, with her twin brother, Benny Haha, left Japan after the events (don't worry, she'll be back!); Hakuoh is dating Sayuki (don't ask…). He refuses to participate in tournaments like Shobu, but he plays duel masters frequently. He also trains Mikuni in duelling frequently; and Knight is engaged to Kathy (once again, do not ask), and is Shobu's manager.

The other duellists, Kintaro, Toru, Jimirah, etc, are leading normal lives, and also participate in the championships; Kintaro also keeps in contact with Shobu. And Kokujo has mysteriously disappeared…

Shobu is now back in town with Rakudah after his latest tournament…

"Shobu! Rakudah!" a high-pitched female voice ripped through the quiet atmosphere at the airport, causing many people to turn and look at her, irritated; but the red haired girl ran past everyone as if she barely noticed their frowning faces; she raced towards two male teenagers sitting outside a shop, many suitcases at their feet.

One had spiky black hair, and slightly tanned skin; he was tall, even when sitting down, and had a rather handsome face; his dark, brown eyes twinkled with young spirit, and a smile was forever stretched across his features; he wore a plain, long sleeved purple top, white trousers, and a pair of black boots; around his waist was a black belt which held a small, square shaped box.

The other boy was much shorter and chubbier; people at first would think he was still in his early teens, or even worse, a young child, but in reality, the boy was seventeen years old; he had chestnut brown hair, brown eyes, and wore round, thick-rimmed glasses; he wore an orange jacket, beige shorts, and a pair of old trainers; slung over his shoulders was a small, green bag; the boy was sipping at a carton of orange juice.

"SHOBU! RAKUDAH! You idiots, are you deaf?" the girl skidded to a halt in front of the two teenagers, her emerald green eyes blazing with unconcealed annoyance; she wore a pale pink, short sleeved summer dress, which, though simple and plain, showed her curves and made her look quite pretty; if she hadn't been causing such havoc in the airport, maybe she would've turned a few male heads.

The shorter boy choked on his juice at the arrival of the girl; he coughed, trying to get some breath back, his face turning redder by the second. The girl rolled her eyes, and noticed the other boy still hadn't noticed her presence yet.

The black haired boy, who had his arms folded across his chest, had been staring into space, thinking about something, oblivious to the happenings of the world around him. As the girl suddenly appeared in his line of view, right in his face, he jumped. "Saiyuki!"

"Finally! Shobu Kirifuda, I swear you are deaf and blind!" Saiyuki exclaimed as the brown haired boy continued coughing in the background. "Even Rakudah choked on his drink the minute he heard and saw me, and he wears glasses, for goodness sake!" she pointed at the boy beside Shobu.

"Sorry." Shobu grinned sheepishly, scratching his head. "Guess I was daydreaming… again. Hey, Rakudah, you okay man?"

Rakudah nodded rapidly, taking deep breaths. "I-I'm… fine… S-Shobu…"

"Sorry Rakudah." Saiyuki apologised now, smiling, "I was slightly angry at you guys, since I was yelling this place down, and yet you still couldn't hear me! Everyone was giving me annoyed glances."

Rakudah nodded, finally recovering. "It's okay Saiyuki."

Shobu looked at his female friend. "Hey Saiyuki, did you come here on your own?"

She shook her head. "No. Hakuoh drove me here, and he should be around… somewhere."

"I'm right here." An amused, male voice said. Saiyuki turned around to see her boyfriend smiling nonchalantly at her.

"Hakuoh! I wondered where you'd gone!" Saiyuki exclaimed, flinging her arms around him and embracing him tightly.

"Hey man. It's been a while." Shobu nodded, smiling at the blue haired teen.

"Hi Hakuoh." Rakudah also greeted him.

"Hey." Hakuoh flashed them a smile. "Was Australia fun? I heard you won, yet again, Shobu." He addressed the eighteen-year-old.

"Oh, it was fantastic." Shobu enthused, "There were so many sights to see, and each one was amazing. The weather was absolutely great - it's always so hot! And yes, I did win the Australian tournament, but it was pretty hard. There were some good duellists there."

"Shobu, I'm sure you want to share with everybody your great story, but don't you want to get out of this stuffy airport?" Saiyuki interrupted, grabbing some suitcases.

"Fine, Saiyuki." He turned to Hakuoh. "I see she hasn't changed much."

Hakuoh laughed. "No, of course not."

Quickly, Saiyuki's blue haired boyfriend led them away from the seating area and to the car park.

"Saiyuki said you drove her here. I thought you couldn't drive yet." Rakudah commented to Hakuoh as they walked.

"I recently got my license," the seventeen-year-old brought them up to date, smiling broadly. "I bought a great car! I think you'll love it, Shobu."

The four reached an open-top, metallic neon blue sports car; Shobu and Rakudah stared at the beauty in awe, and gaped and gawked. Saiyuki was beaming at the car proudly. "Isn't she gorgeous?!"

"It's… magnificent, Hakuoh." Shobu murmured. "It must've cost a fortune!"

"It did!" Hakuoh gave his friend a lopsided smile, "But it was definitely worth it!"

"Okay, everyone into the car!" Saiyuki ordered. "Come on Shobu! Your mum's waiting for you really impatiently, you know that? Don't want her to be disappointed!"

"Shobu, darling! You're home!" Mai Kirifuda burst out of her house and to her son, who was standing on the path, holding two suitcases. She gave Shobu a tight hug. "I missed you."

Saiyuki, Hakuoh and Rakudah stood awkwardly behind them, smiling.

"I missed you too, mum." Shobu smiled, closing his eyes. Over the past three years, he had grown taller than his own mother! "It's great to be home at last."

A tall, slim girl wearing a black, one-piece dress with flowing sleeves and silver flowers embroidered on it, and ankle-high black boots slipped into a black Jaguar, a small smile playing on her ruby red lips. Her sunglasses hid her eyes, and her long, sleek violet hair played in the warm, summer's breeze. She slipped the keys into the car's ignition, and revved the piece of machinery into action. The girl drove into the horizon, towards town.

"… I'm back… At long last…"

Shobu lay in his bed that night, his eyes wide open, staring out of his window; he hadn't shut the curtains properly, so a sliver of bright moonlight shone into his room, and onto his desk, where a box was placed.

"I can't get to sleep…" he thought, sighing. Turning over onto his back, Shobu stared at the ceiling. Suddenly, a picture of his old friend, Mimi, appeared. He shook his head and closed his eyes tight. "Try not to think of her, Shobu…"

But however hard he tried, he couldn't stop thinking of his old friend. "I miss her so much…" her face flashed through his mind. "She's been haunting me for the past three years…And recently, I keep remembering more, and it grows forever more painful… I remember the day she left…"

Flashback…

"Hey, Shobu!" a fifteen-year-old turned to see his thirteen-year-old friend, Mimi, run up to him.

"Hi Mimi." Shobu's heart did a small flip, and he smiled at her. It had been a fortnight since his win against Hakuoh, and he felt great.

Mimi stopped and stood in front of Shobu, then cast her eyes down, and her smile drooped. "Shobu… I have some news… Bad news… About… Me."

"What?" Shobu frowned, worried. "Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine." Mimi looked up, "Thanks for your concern… But… Shobu, I---" suddenly, the younger girl broke down into tears and collapsed into Shobu's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Mimi! Are you alright?" Shobu asked anxiously. He couldn't bear to see her cry like this.

"Oh, Shobu, we're leaving!" Mimi cried into his chest.

"Leaving?" Shobu's blood ran cold, and he froze at the words, trying to understand them. "What… What do you mean?"

"Benny and I are leaving Japan tomorrow. We're going to America!" Mimi continued.

Shobu's head spun. "What?! America? Why?"

"I don't know!" Mimi replied, still sobbing softly, "But we have too. I really don't want to, but…"

"No way!" Shobu exclaimed. "You… You can't go!"

"But I must, Shobu." Mimi sniffed, looking up.

"I…" Shobu began. Inside, he was crying, just like Mimi. "I… I'm going to miss you Mimi."

"So will I, Shobu." Mimi laid her head on his chest.

Shobu's heart beat faster as he felt her resting against him. "I… I hope you have a better life there. Can we… Will we still be able to keep in contact?"

Mimi shook her head sadly, "I think we'll be moving countries every year or so…" another teardrop escaped her eye.

"Don't cry, Mimi. I'll always remember you, no matter what." Shobu found the courage to embrace her tightly. The two held onto each other for a long time, neither wanting to let go.

"Have you told the others yet?" Shobu asked hoarsely.

"No…" Mimi whispered. "And I'm not going to."

"Why?" Shobu asked, surprised.

"I don't want to see them too… I'd just break down and cry like I've just done."

"But… Why did you tell me?"

"Because… Because I trust you Shobu… And you're the first ever good friend I ever got. I promise I'll never forget you."

The two parted. "I won't be seeing you ever again, Shobu. But I also promise I won't ever forget you." Mimi stared into Shobu's eyes. "I… I… I…" Mimi seemed to have lost the gift of speech. There was an awkward silence. Then suddenly, Mimi stood on tiptoe, and brushed her lips lightly over Shobu's. "Thank you." She whispered. "Goodbye Shobu" then she turned her back, and walked away slowly. She turned her head one more time to look at him with sad eyes, and faded away…

Shobu, frozen from shock, felt tears well up in his eyes as his friend disappeared forever… "Goodbye Mimi…"

End of flashback…

A teardrop fell from his eye as Shobu remembered. How many times had he lain in his bed, thinking of her? How many times had this same scene replayed itself in his head? Shobu had lost count. Slowly, he closed his eyes, and finally fell into a fitful, sad sleep.

Princess Viv: You like? Please review!! This is my first Duel Masters' fic, and I do welcome constructive criticism.