Chapter Three: Irreverent Revenant

When Johan awoke this time, it was to the smell of coffee and the tell-tale sensation of tingling in his lower back. A cursory probing with his newfound energy revealed to him that his spine was in two pieces, parted cleanly where a disc ought to be. His stomach lurched even as he pushed the idea of "wholeness" forward into reality, laying very still on the cushy couch he'd apparently been laid on.

He didn't know where he was, but judging from the blanket that had been laid over him and the pillow beneath his head, he was likely safe for the moment. With that in mind, he took his time with his injury, closing his eyes again and focusing deeply.

After what could've been ten minutes or a hundred, the pins-and-needles sensation stopped, and he opened his eyes again. This time, though, he wasn't alone: a boy with turquoise hair pulled back into a high ponytail was leaning over him, peering at him with curious, brownish gold eyes. Upon meeting Johan's eyes, though, the boy all but leapt back, an embarrassed look on his face as he called out into another room.

Johan didn't pay attention to what the boy was saying though, he was too distracted. Once again, a name had come unbidden, though this one with emotions that couldn't have been further from the last time.

Rua.

There was a vague sense of warmth and positivity, though no specific memories to point to as a source, unlike how things had been with—

His teeth ground against one another as he forced his face out of his mind. He was away from that filth in human skin now, and hopefully things would stay that way.

He snapped back to reality at the sound of two sets of footsteps, one pair light and probably belonging to a child—

Ruka.

—the other heavy enough to belong to an adult. Johan slowly sat up with a grunt of exertion, his gaze briefly meeting that of the young girl whose name his fragmented memories had already provided. She was very clearly Rua's twin, sharing the same hair color, eye color, and even height with the boy, with the only major differences between the two being their hairstyles and the colors of the shirts they wore beneath their unzipped hoodies: red for Ruka and blue for Rua.

Johan realised he'd begun to stare when Ruka shifted uncomfortably and slid behind her brother a bit, so he averted his eyes with an embarrassed cough and turned to look at the other person in the room.

His own ice blue eyes met with a firm and considering darker blue pair, a golden line stretching from beneath the young man's left eye and continuing down his cheek past his popped collar.

Yusei Fudo.

His hair was spiky and very dark, either an extremely dark brown or outright black, save for a pair of gold streaks on either side, the four spikes of hair curving out and up like a crown or perhaps the horns of a dragon.

Tail of the Crimson Dragon.

The man's outfit was less ostentatious, the only standout parts of the denim jacket and pants combo being orange shoulder and knee pads that appeared to be sewn into the fabric by hand.

Hero.

Johan scrubbed at the side of his head with a grunt, breaking eye contact with the man who could only be Yusei. "Ugh...where am I? What happened?"

"Um…" Ruka spoke up shyly, still halfway behind her brother. "Rua and I found you and Mister Yusei in an alley. He was unconscious and had crashed, and…" The timid girl trailed off, looking over at Yusei.

The serious-looking young man finally spoke, his voice deep, though anything but unkind. "I was at fault. I lost control of my D-Wheel and did not see you until I was already on top of you." He bowed deeply, a self-recriminating scowl on his face. "I am truly sorry, sir. I am thankful that you seem to be unharmed, but I still ran you over."

Johan blinked a few times, very rapidly, before saying, "Please, raise your head, Yusei, was it?" The younger man did so and Johan continued. "Under normal circumstances, I'd be pretty pissed about getting run over. But these are some pretty unusual circumstances, and I was lucky enough not to get hurt—" at least in a way he wasn't capable of repairing "—and something tells me that you're the responsible and principled sort."

Johan spread his hands in a gesture of 'what can you do'. "I'm in a pretty good mood as well, so I'm willing to let bygones be bygones if you are."

An expression of faint frustration mixed with incredulousness crossed Yusei's face for a split second and he protested, "Sir, I—"

"Please, just call me Johan," the living corpse interjected. "You're gonna make me feel old with all this 'sir' business. I'm only twenty-six, I'll have you know."

Yusei made a constipated face, looking like he very much did not know how to handle Johan's behavior. "Johan, then. I appreciate your willingness to forgive, really I do. However…" The younger man grappled with his words for a moment, then finally burst out, "You could have died!"

Johan grimaced, then replied, "Yeah, well, I didn't. And even if you want me to be angry at you, I honestly don't have the energy for it at the moment."

All the while, Ruka and Rua watched the back-and-forth like it was a tennis match, a look of wide-eyed wonder on Rua's face and a look of open concern on Ruka's.

For a while, Johan and Yusei just stared at one another. Finally, the revenant broke eye contact with a sigh and raised his hands in defeat. "Would it make you feel better if I said you owed me a favor or something? Work with me here, Yusei."

The spiky-haired young man looked like he'd swallowed a lemon, but gave a nod. "That will have to do. And I will follow through on this debt." His hand rested on a small box at his hip. "I swear it on the deck built from the bonds I cherish."

As overwhelmingly cheesy and camp as that sounded to Johan, he could tell that Yusei was deadly serious, so he merely gave a short nod.

...The seriousness of the oath was rather undercut by a shining eyed Rua whisper-squealing "so cool!" immediately after. Any remaining gravity was then summarily executed in the face of Ruka's admirable but ultimately futile attempt to not giggle at her brother's embarrassed blush as both men turned their gazes to the young boy.

Rua babbled an apology, and then, in a blatant attempt to change the subject, burst out, "Yusei, Yusei! You're a Duelist, right? Right!? You gotta be; you've got a D-Wheel and everything! Duel me, Duel me! Pleasepleasepleaaaaaase!"

The boy huffed for breath after his verbal deluge came to a close, eyes sparkling with real excitement. Ruka let out a fond sigh and shook her head. "Honestly, Rua. You really don't have an 'off' switch.."

Yusei let out a quiet chuckle, his furrowed brow smoothening and his posture relaxing. "Sure, I don't mind. Show me what you've got, Rua."

The turquoise-haired boy pumped both arms in the air. "Yeah! I'll show you why my Power Tool Dragon is the envoy of love and justice!" He charged out of the room, almost tripping as he crossed the threshold before righting himself and continuing at full speed. Moments later he returned, a poorly fitting blue Duel Disk rattling back and forth on his arm.

Yusei was quick to rectify that issue, using a spare bit of cloth to fashion a makeshift tie for the device before Rua charged out the door, calling for Yusei to follow him. Apparently, the twins' family was wealthy enough to have their own personal tennis court, which he and Yusei could use for the Duel.

Johan briefly entertained the idea of following and spectating, but something about Ruka's demeanor gave him pause. She seemed nervous, yes, but almost...curious, as well. As he looked on, the young girl seemed to work up her courage and come to a decision, nodding firmly to herself before taking a seat opposite him.

As though in response to an unseen signal, a brown fluffball with lime green eyes and a ridged tail decorated with a bright red bow shimmered into being beside Ruka. Johan goggled at it for a moment, then realisation dawned.

"You can see Duel Spirits, can't you, Ruka?"

The skittish girl startled, gaze flickering between Johan and the Duel Spirit beside her before she exhaled and gave a nod. "Y-yes, Mister Johan. You can see Kuribon too?" When the man nodded, she gave a slight smile. "I-I'm glad. Kuribon wouldn't show herself to a bad person. E-even if…" Ruka trailed off nervously, and the floaty ball of fur that was Kuribon let out an encouraging chirp and nudged her, before settling in her lap and letting her wrap her arms around her for comfort.

"Even if you're not human, I'm sure you're a good person!" Ruka finally burst out, hugging Kuribon to her chest tightly.

Johan inhaled sharply. "H-how'd you know?" he blurted out, not even thinking to deny the assertion, shocked as he was.

Holding her Duel Spirit seemed to have calmed the girl's nerves, as she didn't stutter or squeak as she quietly answered the question. "It was two things, really. Rua didn't notice when we carried you in because he had your shoulders, but...your back..." Her complexion paled. "Your back was broken, but you're fine now."

Johan swallowed. "A-and the second thing?"

Ruka rested her chin on Kuribon's head, the little fairy humming comfortingly. Finally, she replied, "You...feel different. Like a Duel Spirit, but not the same. I don't know how to explain it." She ducked her head, then mumbled, "'M sorry."

Johan leaned back and let out a long, tired sigh. "No, Ruka, don't apologise. You have nothing to be sorry for. In fact, this just makes me all the more grateful that you took me in. A couple of unconscious strangers is one thing, but somebody who could be some kind of monster?" He looked at her and gave a small smile. "You're a kindhearted girl, Ruka. Don't lose that."

She buried her already-reddening face in Kuribon's fur, and Johan let out a wry chuckle. He could relate; he couldn't take compliments for shit either. Kuribon seemed privy to his amusement, and let out a chuffing "Ku-ku-kuri" that might've been laughter, causing Ruka to raise her face from the fairy and shoot them both glares that could've killed, but only through the vector of diabetes.

After it became clear that her intimidation tactics were sadly ineffective, Ruka let out an exasperated, if good-natured sigh and muttered, "Boys." Kuribon let out an affronted chirp, and the girl quickly clarified, "I-I didn't mean you, Kuribon. You're a good girl...most of the time."

Johan chuckled at the byplay, and then nearly jumped out of his seat when a familiar tinkling laugh joined his. As though she'd been there all along, Yuki was now sitting beside him on the couch, her sleeve covering her mouth as she giggled.

Almost immediately, the atmosphere of the room changed, as Kuribon narrowed its eyes and rose from where it'd been sitting on Ruka's lap, positioning itself between Yuki and Ruka. Despite it being ostensibly as dangerous looking as a dust bunny, Johan swallowed nervously. He couldn't help but recall the miniature blizzard Yuki had called down the night before, despite her own slight and unthreatening appearance.

"W-what's wrong, Kuribon? Why're you upset?" Ruka asked nervously, eyes darting between her spirit, Johan, and Yuki, who for her part looked to be the picture of composure.

"What is wrong, young Ruka," a new, deep voice rumbled from behind Johan, "is the manner of spirit that you've brought into your home."

Sweat beaded on Johan's brow as he slowly turned his head to see what was behind him. Ice blue eyes met slit-pupiled gold set in a feline face the size of his torso. A single, pointed horn sprouted from the great white cat's forehead, and a mane of spun gold wreathed its face like a mantle of royalty.

In those eyes, Johan saw a deep wisdom and intelligence, but so too did he see the capacity for violence, should such a thing become necessary.

"Now," Regulus, White Lion of the Ancient Forest boomed, his voice a gentle thunderclap, "tell me, fledgling Mayakashi:

"What are your intentions regarding my charge?"