Disclaimer: You're an illusion. I'm an illusion. This story is an illusion. Everything's an illusion.
GOD IT HAS BEEN FOREVER I AM SO SORRY. I've been slacking extra hard I'm sorry all I can say to you guys is I'm sorry~! But anyway, here's a new chapter!
"Duel monsters…have spirits?"
"They are spirits," Akiza corrects me. "That's how dueling started. Duel spirits got bound to tablets and the Egyptians used those tablets to duel."
If you ask me that sounds vaguely like an illegal animal fighting ring and not a harmless card game.
"Do you remember how they look?" Yusei asks, a hand holding his chin.
I know all too well. The spirits were in my nightmares when I tried to sleep. When I would sit up in bed, they were all I could remember. I'd drawn them over and over again in the moleskine—which I forgot to bring because I was caught up in trying to figure out exactly what a "team meeting" entailed.
"I can draw it, if you want."
Jack, who hasn't said a word since I confessed, places a pen and sheet of paper on the table. Whatever is going on in that mind of his, I'm just relieved he isn't screaming and breaking doors down.
The spirits aren't complicated to draw—a giant head, tiny body, and eyeless eyes. I pass the sheet to the middle of the table and the four hover over it.
"Judging from the looks on your faces," I say while watching their expressions change from intrigued to puzzled, "you guys haven't seen that before, have you?"
Crow scratches his head. "Since dueling has been around for forever, this card could be ancient."
"We can always ask Ruka, though," Akiza pipes up when she hears my sigh. "There's a chance she's seen them."
I asked earlier that if this was supposed to be a team meeting, why weren't the twins around? Akiza said they were with their school friends, and that the meeting was planned this way because no one knew what kind of information Ushio would bring back about Yliaster. One of them, most likely Yusei, would give the twins a cleaned and revised version later.
It's bad enough none of us know what we're up against but the fact that the twins have to suffer through this too is heart-wrenching. Leaving them out was a good idea, something I would have done.
But hearing that Ruka is the only one who might have a clue what the spirits are makes me wish the twins came. I know it's just impatience but I thought I'd never get answers—hell, for a while I thought I was crazy—and this entire time the answers may have been staring me straight in the face in the form of a twelve year old girl.
"Why are you making that face?" questions Crow.
"What face?"
He pushes his eyebrows together and puffs out his cheeks, then relaxes and blows out air. "You look like a blowfish."
What he's really talking about isn't a face I was making, but me thinking so hard that I was forgetting to breathe again. This is the first time someone's noticed, and though I'm glad it's not Yusei, I still wish he wouldn't have said anything.
I slink down in my chair, both from embarrasment and my bare arsenal of comebacks. "You're…you're a blowfish."
"Ouch. Think I'm gonna need an icepack for that one."
"Is something else bothering you, Maria?" Yusei says next.
I glance at him, see the same worried look I saw the night on the porch, and immediately turn away.
"Annie's missing," I mumble.
"Your cat?" Akiza asks. "Doesn't she disappear all the time?"
"Yeah, but not for days at a time. She's usually just wandering the house or the yard. I checked everywhere and didn't find her."
"Do you think she ran a—"
"What does this have to do with anything?" Jack's voice finally booms. "It's not like your cat has something to do with these spirits haunting you— You've got to be kidding me! She does, doesn't she?"
I raise my hands. "I mean, I may have kinda sorta found her in that spirit forest I mentioned earlier."
"You found your cat in a ghost forest and that didn't strike you in the least bit as fishy?" I hold in a laugh as Crow lets one go. Jack misses his own ball for a second, then shouts: "That was not a cat joke!"
Once I'm back on track, I say, "One, I thought I was dreaming. And two, when I see a stray animal I don't instantly assume I'm on some ghost hunting adventure. By the time I realized the forest was gone, I'd already named and claimed her."
"How do we know she's not some demon cat, huh?"
Akiza groans, "She stole your ramen one time, Jack. Let it go."
"How can you even say that? It was my favorite and the last one we had!"
Now I know that if I ever want to truly offend former king, Jack Atlas, all I have to do is hit him right in the ramen stash.
I don't say anything until he's calmed down. "I have thought about the possibility that she's a ghost. But if she's anything, she's on our side."
"Because she's your cat?"
"Because the last time she saw one of those spirits she tried to claw its face off."
Crow turns to Jack and mocks, "Can't have that pretty face of yours getting ripped to shreds, now can we?" He gets a glare as response.
"Well, if she attacked the spirits, maybe she's missing because they attacked her back," Akiza ponders. She immediately tries to cover it up when my jaw hangs open. "T-that's not what I meant!"
"They took my cat," I breathe out. "They're gonna sacrifice her."
"That's not what I said!"
"It's a possibility! I mean, they already attacked me and look where—"
I cut myself off. Blink a few times, too. Why hadn't I thought of this before?
"The spirits were following me. Then I came in to this open area and it was like something was forcing me to the ground. All I could see was this white fog, but maybe it wasn't fog—it was a spirit."
"But you haven't done anything, right?" Akiza says. I shake my head no. At least I don't think so. "And anyway, aren't duel spirits good?"
"There's a good and bad to everything. Maybe we're dealing with the bad ones," says Crow.
The kids are up and running fully charged this morning, much to my dismay. I roll over in the sheets. Grab the pillow and pull it over my ears. When my elbow rubs against fur, I whip the pillow to the floor.
"You!" Annie uncurls herself and sits in my lap. "Where have you been?"
I initiate a stare contest, hoping to break her, and notice something.
I thrust her into the air. "Did you get bigger? And heavier?"
It could be that I haven't seen her in who knows how long, but if I've learned anything from having Annie around, it's that things are never what they seem. And she didn't seem this big when I last saw her.
I bring her closer to my face and see the orange tint to her paws. "Is this mud?"
It feels just like fur between my fingers. It isn't only on her paws, but on the tips of her ears and tail too.
She licks my nose as I study her face again, and note her golden eyes. The same gold rings I have in mine.
"This is weird. This is really weird," I say while climbing out of bed. "I don't know what you are or what's going on—"
"Maria?" Martha opens my door. "Who are you talking to?"
Maybe I'm the reason people keep seeing me at my worst and weirdest. I have the world's crappiest timing.
"Annie," I sigh.
"Oh, you found her?" I nod, not feeling up to an explanation so early in the day. "That's good. But come downstairs. Dr. Schmidt wants to see you after breakfast."
—
Annie's ears twitch at the sound of tapping feet. I look to the side and see the twins racing toward our seats, the guys not far behind.
"Why didn't you tell us you can see spirits?!" yells Rua as he jumps up and down and pumps his fists.
Ruka must be equally as thrilled because, for once, she doesn't correct or scold him. Her golden eyes twinkle; I don't think I've ever seen her so delighted. But looking in her eyes draws my attention back to Annie in my lap.
"See you've found your cat," Crow chirps as everyone sits down.
"Do you really believe she's a ghost?" Rua gawks.
I really don't know what to believe anymore. "The problem is that animals are reported to have a higher sensitivity to the supernatural. Maybe her attacking that spirit was just instincts."
"So there's a chance she could be something and, at the same time, nothing?"
I nod. "But when she came back this morning, I noticed a couple differences." I place her on the ground before everyone. "Does she look bigger to you guys?"
They scrutinize her for a minute then give me muddled expressions. I pick her up again and hold a paw in my hand. "What about this? I thought it was mud or dirt but it's her fur. It was never this color before."
Everyone is more or less equivocal. I was hoping they would back me up so I don't sound like I'm looking for answers in empty spaces. Though I prefer everyone to believe what they believe rather than agree just to please me.
"Sorry we can't be of more help," says Ruka. I can tell right away that a pinch of guilt is settling inside her.
I shake my head and rest in the seat next to her. "No worries. We should be focused on rooting for Akiza right now, anyway."
"Oi! It's Ushio!"
Everyone faces the course as Ushio pulls up near us. Akiza rides beside him, donning her crimson riding suit and helmet.
"This test is designed to make you fail," he says to her, bearing a pompous smirk all the while. "Just about no one's passed it today. Good luck."
Akiza doesn't even bat an eyelash. He's just trying to get in her head and she knows it. The duel starts in an instant, with Akiza rounding the corner and taking the first turn. She tries playing a Speed Spell immediately.
Crow sighs, "What is she doing?"
"You need speed counters to play a Speed Spell," Rua whispers to me. I smile back at him, quite surprised that he remembered I don't know a thing about any of this.
I can tell from here that Akiza's trying to shake off the mistake, but it's made a blemish on her concentration. It doesn't help when Ushio rams his D-Wheel in to her back wheel and yells at her to hurry up.
"That's dangerous," I gasp. "Is he allowed to do that?"
"Happens all the time in actual duels," Jack answers. "He's showing no mercy out there."
I scoff, and continue watching.
Akiza whips out her ace card in no time, Black Rose Dragon—a humongous black dragon with rose petal wings and thorny vines shooting out of it. She sends it to attack Stygian Street Patrol and sends Ushio down to 3200 LPs.
"You've never seen Aki duel, have you?" asks Ruka.
"No. I've never seen a Riding Duel, actually," I say.
"Not even on TV?" Rua exclaims.
I give a guilty smile. "Only bits and pieces, never a full one. And even then, it isn't the same as being in the stands. I like this much better."
"Things sure are different outside the city, huh?"
I agree, "More than you think."
By now, Ushio has his Stygian Sergeants on the field and Akiza's hanging strong. When Ushio orders them to attack twice in a row, Akiza plays a trap that halves the monster's attack points until the End Phase. She survives with 1300 LPs until Ushio plays a Speed Spell that blows away 1000 more.
"This is bad," I hear Crow mumble.
Akiza makes a comeback, though. She summons Splendid Rose, uses its effect to half Stygian Sergeants' attack points, and deals Ushio down to 2100 LPs. Then she plays Blossom Bombardment, a trap card that hits Ushio with damage equal to half his monster's attack points when it is destroyed by a Plant-Type monster.
An explosion on the side of the course sends beams flying across the track.
"Aki!"
Thin streams of smoke cover her spot on the course and it's difficult to see anything. I'm at a stand still, my mind starts spinning in a frenzy. I put a hand to my heart on reflex. But everything turns out fine; Akiza dodges them with expertise turns and glides and flies out the smoke without a scratch.
"Incredible," I say along with the twins.
Akiza uses another one of Splendid Rose's effects that ultimately gets it to attack again, dropping Ushio's 1000 LPs to 0.
I nab Annie and everyone jogs to the field to congratulate Akiza as she rolls her D-Wheel off the track.
"We should celebrate!" the twins cheer.
A shadow runs across Crow's eyes. "We don't have money for that."
"Celebratory ramen, it is!"
Akiza goes off to find the dressing rooms. The rest of us meander outside the main facility to wait for her. Ruka asks me to come inside with her so she can find a bathroom. I tell Rua to keep an eye on Annie while we're gone. He takes that as permission to investigate the things I said earlier and examines her with fascination.
"Well, I'm glad he believes me," I say to his sister. "I was beginning to think I sounded crazy."
"You're not crazy," she grins. "You could be on to something."
"True, but to be honest I really don't want to be right. I just want answers so I can stop questioning every little thing that happens, and stop feeling so paranoid."
We turn the corner and stop at the bathroom entrance. "I understand. If you want, I can tell you what I know." She looks around for a second. "But not here. I don't feel comfortable talking about it in public."
"Of course. Maybe we can meet up one day and chat all about it."
I look down the hall before she says anything back, find nothing, and eye the other end. That noise…
"What's wrong?"
"Hmm?" I play it off with a wave of my hand. "I thought I heard one of the guys call my name." For once, I'm believeable and Ruka doesn't give me the usual questioning frown. "Is it okay if I wait out here?"
She nods, and the buzzing stays as Ruka leaves. There's nothing I can do about it, so by default I have to take the noise and incoming pain in stride. I'll tough it out—for the noise to increase and pain to become a shooting headache. But it doesn't happen.
Every sound in the building is hushed under the buzzing but it doesn't increase to a static, just a lulling hum that fills my head. No pain comes, either.
Maybe I'm imagining it. I walk to a nearby window and pull my bangs from over my forehead.
My mark is indeed glowing, and only my mark. Even the way it glows isn't the same. At the gala, it was so overwhelming that it looked like I could use my own forehead as a flashlight if I wanted to. The mark is flickering this time, pulsing like a heartbeat and steady as a metronome.
The windowglass wavers like water and I poke it, expecting it to run over. Instead, it grows into a pond with strange looking trees and thin tufts of grass. My reflection in the pond shows that my mark pulses still.
"What are you doing this time?" I mutter at it.
"We can head back now," Ruka tells as she trots up to Maria.
Kuribon mews to life at Ruka's side. Then she flies above Maria's head in circles.
Ruka taps her friend's shoulder and she doesn't reply. The pigtailed girl moves in front of Maria and her eyes widen at the sight—Maria's mark is glowing just as gold as her own eyes.
Something clearly isn't right. Ruka's standing right in front of her and, yet, Maria can't see her at all. Ruka turns to get everyone else but stops in her tracks. If she would've kept going, the girl may have just stepped on Maria's cat.
A square hut appears at my side and inside it is a ruckus of yelling and screaming. I wander out of the underbrush and onto the sandy path that leads to the hut.
Thundering footsteps come from behind. A man and two women jog past. A sudden queasiness wracks over my body afterward.
No, they didn't run past me. They ran through me.
I shiver at that. Where can I possibly be that allows people to pass straight through me as if I'm not here? Another blackout dream? A vision?
If that's the case, I need to find a way out and the only way to do that is to follow along with whatever my mind is trying to show me until I'm back in reality.
Nothing is happening outside so entering the hut is the obvious winner. With every step toward it, the pond and dirt path deteriorate in to gold dust.
"Whoa," Rua marvels at Maria, "it's like she's frozen solid." He waves his hands in front of Maria's face, which gets no response.
"I think her mark is causing it," Ruka shares while the rest of the gang crowds around.
"Maybe this is what happens when she blacks out too," Crow says.
"If this is the result of her mark then it's happening with good reason," Yusei adds. "We just have to wait until it passes."
"Maybe she's talking to spirits," says Rua, enthused as always. He turns to his sister, "Like at the Fortune Cup when you visited the Spirit World but your body was still here."
"That's not it," Ruka replies. She glances at Kuribon and repeats what she says to the rest of the group. "Kuribon says she's still here, just not completely."
Rua jumps at the sudden feeling of something brushing at his leg, and crashes right into Maria. The brunette falls over on impact, and Yusei catches her before she touches the ground.
"Rua!"
The boy chuckles weakly and scratches the back of his neck. "Oops."
Annie saunters away from Rua's legs and to the center of the circle. She reaches Maria and sits down in front of her.
"That cat gives me the creeps," Jack grumbles.
Yusei glances over his shoulder. Employees continue up and down the halls. None of them pay him and his friends much attention, other than whispering about asking him for an autograph or picture.
"Let's get her somewhere else," he says, standing with Maria in his arms. "The last thing we need is a crowd."
The hut isn't that large to begin with, but add animal skin furniture and five other people and you've got yourself a claustrophobic's worst nightmare. I walk through the two women I saw earlier, suffer that same unsettling quiver and stand beside a lean, barely clothed man.
Now that I notice it, they're all barely clothed in vibrant colored tunics and dresses. They all have incredibly tanned skin and share similar, dark hair tones too.
The disturbing thing (because there is always something disturbing when stuff like this happens) is that none of them have faces. Yet they're talking, and in some foreign language I've never heard in my life.
I know. Just gets weirder and weirder, huh?
It was the woman in the middle of the huddled group that had been yelling, I realize. She was giving birth.
"Thanks for the front row seat, but I've already seen the health class video," I say to no one. "And it is not pretty."
I face the wall until I hear a newborn cry. The other people in the hut chatter happily, and the mother hugs her baby close as a man, most likely her husband, leans over her shoulder. I do the same.
Something tells me I was sent here because of the child and when I peer over the woman's shoulder I know I'm right. Her baby is the only one in the room that has a face.
Everything sparkles in to nothing after witnessing that.
I always imagined the moment Maria tells the gang about the spirits to be serious but I'm super glad it turned out this way. Now that Maria's realized she needs to be apart of the group, there'll most likely be less scenes of her on her own.
Also if you've ever seen Princess Mononoke, those little spirits are basically what Maria describes when she draws the picture. Those were the first things I thought of because they look really creepy and fit perfectly.
If I write duels again, they'll probably end up similar to how I wrote them in this one. I skipped over some moves here and there but that's just about the summary of what happened in episode 75.
I'm almost positive (Ruka's) Kuribon is a girl. By the bow on its tail and its eyelashes I think it's a safe bet.
Thanks for reading and all your guys' support!
TTFN