Hello, my dear readers! Finally an update! I actually promised someone I would update before the end of the month and...I did. So happy.

BTW, there was someone who reviewed my fic and called Cindy a Mary Sue. Well, I sorta agree on that except that she reviewed till chapter 4. Till then it was a self-insert, sorta. This fic was supposed to be a self-insert though it's not anymore. If you are reading this, I'd like to talk about it. I mean if you are just gonna say stuff like Mary Sue then tell me how can I improve instead of just accussing me, okay? I tried to send you a message but you have that off. I had no way of contacting you.

On another note, good new. I commission someone to do a few comic pages of the fic. It was a small scene back in chapter 6. Here is the link for the first page: http:/ . com /favourites/ 46129878#/ d49gs88 of course without the spaces. Also lately I have been active in DA so be sure to check it out, okay? I'm also uploading the fic there along with a few drawings of Yori.

Okay, I've talked enough! I hope you like this chapter. Something unexpected happens too.

Chapter 24: mastermind

Class had started when they had come in and the teacher ordered both Aoi and Yori to take their seats. Additionally she had told them they would have extra homework as punishment.

'Extra homework?' Thought Cindy. 'I hate this!' She sighed as she took her seat with Aoi, who was sitting next to her. 'Still, this might help me stay away from-' her cheeks tinted pink when she remember what had happened a few minutes ago. '-Yusei…'

Aoi noticed her face reddened and frowned. It was easy to guess what she was thinking about.

'I can't believe he did that!' Yori continued thinking as she proceeded to take out her book and open it as instructed. 'But, I don't understand why he did it.' She kept looking down trying to fool everyone else that she was reading. 'It's not like he likes me, not like I do, at least…was he against my plan that strongly?'

Yori had been so immerse in her thoughts that she had not heard the teacher call her name. Several times.

"Miss Tenma!" The teacher raised her voice in exasperation. There was a flare on her green eyes as she looked fiercely at the aforementioned girl.

Hearing the sniggers behind her and the glare from the teacher returned her to the present world. She sat up straight and gulped. "Miss Tenma, read, please. Or have you not been paying attention to my class?"

'Oh no,' Yori panicked. 'Where am I supposed to read?' She took the book in her hands instinctively. "Y-yes!"

"Next page," Aoi whispered discreetly. Yori without hesitation turned the page. "I know my head isn't screwed on straight." Aoi said in English though it didn't make a difference to Yori.

Yori was a little taken aback by those words. 'I know that, but why is he saying that now?' she thought. Then she saw those same exact words on the next paragraph.

"I know my head isn't screwed on straight." She repeated those words out loud in English this time as she began to read. "I want to leave, transfer, warp myself to another galaxy." Those words, she couldn't help but feel them as they were her own. "I want to confess everything, hand over the guilt and mistake and anger to someone else. There is a beast in my gut, I can hear it scraping away at the inside of my ribs. Even if I dump the memory, it will stay with me, staining me. My closet is a good thing, a quiet place that helps me hold these thoughts inside my head where no one can hear them." She finished. (1)

Speak, was the name of the book. She hadn't read it till just now, even though she was supposed to. Yet she felt a connection with the character. She knew Sayori probably did too. However, she did not have the time to think about that. Not that it was irrelevant; probably everyone felt that way at some point anyway. Perhaps.

"Nicely done," praised the teacher. "Miss Mishima, please translate." The teacher instructed.

"Yes!" The girl with auburn hair replied and proceeded to translate.

Yusei arrived to the garage. It seemed that in a few days he and the others had been away dust had gathered. He would have to clean later, he decided. Right now, he needed to cool down and rest a little. He went up to his room and took off his jacket. From his drawer he took out a change of clothes and a clean towel before heading to the bathroom.

He undressed as he stepped into the shower. Warm water fell upon his body. It was refreshing. Thoughts raced in his mind. He hoped they were fine. He hit the tiles in frustration but it was like Yori had said; there was nothing they could do right now.

Again Yori came up to his mind, she had said 'everything will be alright' so confidently like she knew that they were going to be okay. Somehow that soothed him a little. Still he was a little uneasy and he was still worried not just about Aki, Rua and Ruka but Yori as well. After taking his shower he returned to his room where he laid in his bed.

He sighed. What would happen if she was wrong? What if Aoi was actually a good guy and was trying to help her like he offered before? What if he really liked her…?

"He likes Sayori, not me." She had assured him.

He couldn't help but think it sounded a little strange. Even if she had been referring to how she acted in school rather than her usual self, most people wouldn't refer to themselves in third person. It wasn't the first time though. However every time she would say 'Yori' or 'Sayori' it felt like she was talking about someone else.

He closed his eyes as he tried to stop himself from thinking. It didn't make sense what he was thinking.

He had been taking care of Yori with little to no sleep. That was probably one of the reasons why his brain was not working properly. He needed to rest.

It was past ten when Aki started stirring in her sleep. She had exhausted herself the day before from over using her powers. Rua and Ruka were worried about the older signer but there was nothing they could do except watch over her.

The room in which they have been shoved in was enormous. There were two twin size beds in the room, a desk with a computer but no internet; a huge TV and a phone which was only connected to other rooms within the house. There was also a sofa and a small fridge with food and drinks.

The room was located in the second floor and had a nice view of the city. There was also a balcony but the doors were electronically locked. They had tried breaking the windows by throwing the chairs against them but it hadn't worked.

Without her deck she had no monsters to summon, yet she had used her powers on everything she could throw at the windows to no avail. Perhaps if she had been alone she would have managed to escape by using her powers at full strength but she was afraid.

Aki knew that she could control them but what made her powers stronger was her anger and negative feelings. She had gotten so used to using those feelings to make herself stronger she was afraid she might use them without meaning. Whenever she would use them when she felt like that she had caused chaos and so much destruction. What if she lost control? What if she accidentally hurt her friends? She had been afraid of that and so she had not been able to use them at full power.

"Rua, Ruka," Aki said as she sat up.

"Aki-nee-chan…" Rua said relief when he heard her voice.

"Aki, are you alright?" asked the younger teal haired girl.

"I'm fine." Aki replied with a reassuring smile. "Has anyone come in or heard anything from those guys?"

Ruka shook her hear. "Not a word."

"Not since they caught us," finished Rua while looking down as he recalled the events of the day before after school.

"I'm sorry, miss, but I'm afraid you have to come with us." Said one the men in black from behind her.

She had just gotten out of school and was waiting near the gates for the twins.

She did not turn around but looked from the corner of her eye at him. "What if I refuse?" she asked with a low and dangerous voice.

The man sneered. "Unfortunately, you are not allowed to refuse." Aki turned around ready to use her powers if she had to though she didn't want to cause a scene. Then again, there were not many people around any more.

Most had already gone home by four though the three of them had stayed behind because of day duty.

"Let. Me. Go!" She heard Rua's voice as he struggled against his captor but it was futile.

The man simply shoved him inside the card along with his younger twin who was already inside it.

"Rua!" Ruka exclaimed when he fell on her lap. Her mark was glowing under her uniform sleeve.

Aki glared at the men. "Now, miss, please come on in our master is inviting you to his house."

"Who is your 'master'? What does he want with us?" asked Aki defiantly, not moving an inch.

The leader of them, the one who was doing the talking sighed. "Miss Izayoi, please, don't make things harder. We were order to bring you three," He made small dramatic pause. "By whatever means necessary."

Aki tensed up.

"I assure you no harm will come to you or them-" he pointed inside the car. "-if you simply cooperate with us. You are far too important to our boss' plans." He said with sadistic grin. "Now, please step in."

Reluctantly Aki walked to the car. "Are you guys ok?" she asked them.

"Yeah," Rua replied and Ruka nodded.

Aki lowered her voice. "On my signal run,"

"Miss Izayoi, we don't have all day." The man who was holding the door for her said.

"NOW!" Aki yelled as she pulled them out of the car. As she was pulling them she pushed the goon holding the door down and made a run for it.

"After them, quick!"

They tried running towards Yori's house, they had managed to ran two blocks away from school and in the distance they saw the guys on their duel runners. Everyone's birthmarks were glowing.

However, they never met with the others as they were intercepted and pushed unceremoniously into a van this time. The guys tried following but in the end the bad guys managed to lose them.

"Don't worry I'm sure Yusei and the others will come save us," Aki said reassuringly.

"You don't think they'll do anything to us?" asked Rua a little nervous, fearing the worse.

Aki shook her head and smiled reassuringly. "No, I don't think so. Remember what they said to us?"

Rua nodded. "That we're important to that person's plans, right?"

"Yes," replied the red haired girl. "I don't think they'll try to hurt us." She said reassuringly. 'At least not for now.' She added in her mind.

She wasn't sure how long she would be able to ignore the piercing glares. Actually, she couldn't ignore them anymore; she could feel every single one of the cold stares. The atmosphere felt heavy and thick making it hard for her to breathe normally. Yet, she tried to keep her composure.

Her pride would not tolerate defeat against them. She would not allow herself be seen in a weakened state. However, she couldn't help but wonder whether that was a good or bad. Acting like she did not care at all and maintaining her cool was certainly making her tired not to mention she wasn't able to concentrate in her classes at all. She was being too self-conscious of every single thing, afraid she might let her poker face slip.

The bell announcing lunch finally rang. She almost let out a sigh of relief to leave the room. As she stood up from her seat a girl ran into her from behind and managing to throw her to the ground.

"Sorry I didn't see you," the girl said mockingly not even suppressing her smirk.

Yori heard the muffled giggles from the other girls as well as the murmurs from the boys that were still in the room.

"This doesn't look good," said one of the boys in a low voice as he and his friend fled through the back door.

'I'm Sayori. I'm Sayori.' She repeated in her mind to calm herself down a little. It took her about ten seconds but she finally looked up at her aggressor.

The girl was rather tall and robust. Her nameless classmate was still smirking while looking down at her.

She stood up and brushed off the dust from her uniform. Yori smiled warmly, her angelic smile. The girl gulped as she felt shivers go down her spine. Despite smiling, when Yori opened her eyes and looked at her the coldness of her eyes was startling.

"No harm done" Yori spoke in a gentle tone yet her eyes were glaring. "Be careful next time. You could end up hurting someone," she made a pause as she turned around to go out of the room. "Or yourself." She added with an icy tone.

"Yori-chan," a now familiar male voice called from the entrance of the classroom. "Let's eat lunch together."

Yori nodded happily. "Yes," she gathered her things and left the room with Aoi.

"Mishima-san!" Yori heard the other girls called from the classroom. "Are you alright? Can you stand?" Yori smiled at those words but quickly hid it.

She wanted to laugh or at least giggle at that but she couldn't. 'Oops, I think I went Natsu on that girl.'(2) Yori thought as she continued walking with Aoi to the cafeteria.

Despite that little incident her mind wondered back to Aki and the twins. She became worried again and this time it was accompanied by a headache.

"Are you alright?" Asked Aoi as he noticed her rub her temples.

They were sitting on the rooftop, where she would usually eat with Aki. At first she had thought it would be easier to get him to show his true color if they were alone. However, it was slightly windy and her skirt kept fluttering, making her nervous and uncomfortable since she was wearing it a lot shorter than usual. She was not used to it.

"I'm alright," Yori replied with little credibility. "It's just…" she made a pause.

Suddenly doubts filled her. What if she was wrong and he was a nice guy. Yusei's words and warning played back insider her head. He had been against her plan. Heck, he had kissed her just to stop her. She bit her lip as she thought of that.

"Yori-chan?" asked Aoi as he waved a hand in front of her.

She looked down and let out a sighed. "Sorry," she finally spoke. "It would seem I am not good company at the moment."

"Not at all," denied Aoi. "It would seem like something is on bothering you though," he commented. "Could it be that you're thinking about your friend kissing you?"

Since she had her head downcast, her hair was cascading over her face and covering it. It also covered her blush and she was glad for that.

"No," she shook her head. The doubts in her heart were not allowing her to make her move. However, she couldn't back out either she used her instincts. "Please," she looked up to him with a tear-eyed face. "Do not tell anyone but-" she looked away. "-My friends have been kidnapped." She used her hands to cover her face as she started making sobbing noises.

Even if she did wanted to cry, her pride wouldn't allow her. Showing weakness in front of someone to her was unforgivable. Even that one time she cried in front of Yusei was something shameful although those had been tears of joy.

Aoi put a hand on her shoulder acting sympathetic. She felt her muscles stiffened when he touch her and tried her hardest to calm down and stop herself from spurning his hand.

She could not see his expression since she was covering her face and facing away from him. So there was not knowing on whether or not he was playing along or those were his true feelings.

"Please," started her voice slightly hoarse and breaking. It truly sounded as if she was crying. "Help me!" she threw herself into his arms surprising him. "I have no idea of what I should do." She allowed her eyes to become misted as she pretended to wipe off her tears. "I do not know who to trust or turn to."

"I'll help you," replied instantly as he could have not refused. "Do you have any idea or clue as to who kidnapped them?" he asked.

Yori shook her head sadly. "I know it was yesterday but I was unconscious and did not find out till this morning." She answered.

"Yes," Aoi realized. "I remember you were absent. What happened? Why were you unconscious?"

'Oh no,' Yori thought. 'That's not how this conversation should go.' She panicked. "Well," she started a bit hesitantly. "About five months ago I was in an accident and despite everyone thinking I was aboard dueling I was actually in a coma. I only awakened about a month ago and well… I have not fully recovered yet." She decided to say. "I had lost my memories too," she added.

"You have amnesia?" Aoi asked with a surprised tone but she noticed it was too exaggerated. It seemed fake.

'So, he knew, huh?' she thought. Yori nodded sheepishly. "Do no tell a soul, I beg of you!" she exclaimed. "If you do then-!"

Aoi put a finger over her lips shushing her. "No worries, I won't."

"You have my gratitude." She replied.

"There's no need for formalities, you are my girlfriend after all." He said as he pulled her closer to him and smiled a boyish grin.

It could not be denied he was rather handsome. Her face became slightly red. He certainly looked as the grown version of the guy she had had a crush for quite a few years, Echizen Ryoma from the anime and manga The Prince of Tennis. He leaned in and she became flustered as fear over took her. If he was to try to kiss her what could she possible to do prevent that? As his girlfriend and those words together gave her chills, it would be strange.

The school bell rang as it announced the end of lunch break.

"Guess lunch is over, I should hurry I need to change my clothes for dance class." She said as she felt relieved.

Aoi looked slightly dejected and disappointed at missing his chance. "Yes, well, there's always next time." He smirked when he said that.

Yori looked troubled and tried to act it as she was simply embarrassed.

"As for your friends," Aoi said as they were coming down the stairs. "I promise I'll have something tomorrow. They will be alright, don't worry. I can assure you no harm will befall them."

Yori made a fist as she wanted to punch him when he said those words. There was something in the way he said it that made her sure he was the one responsible. It sounded mocking.

"I apologize but I will not calm down till I see them safe and sound and with me again." She said as her voiced sounded neutral. It was all she could do too keep the anger from surfacing.

They arrived to her classroom. "Yes, I understand. I will see you later, my princess." He said as he kissed her forehead.

She forced herself to smile. "Bye," she replied.

As she turned around, she noticed all the eyes from the girls looking in her directing. If glares could kill she had died a hundred times already. The atmosphere sure felt hostile and she felt slightly breathless again. Being the main focus of attention was hard for her. It madder her nervous.

"Two-timer" she heard one of the girls murmured.

"Everyone here?" said the teacher as she entered the classroom. "Good, now please you know the procedure. So chop-chop!"

As the other girls went to the changing room Yori remained in the spacious room. As the other girls were leaving she heard quite a few insults, names and even curses for her.

"Miss Tenma," said her teacher. "I do believe I said to change."

Yori looked at her surprised. "Eh?"

"I won't ask you to use your hand since it needs time for the wound to close completely but that doesn't mean it will affect your feet. So, go on and get your clothes." The teacher instructed.

"Yes," Yori replied as she went back to her locker to get her clothes.

She sighed before entering the classroom. 'This is going to be the longest two hours of my life.' She thought as she continued to the changing room where all the other girls were.

"Yusei," the black haired teenager heard his name being call in his dreams. "Yusei!" the male voice called again, this time louder.

He opened his eyes and rubbed off his eyes as he tried to do the same with his sleep. "Jack," Yusei said when he saw his friend standing next to his bed.

"I knew I'll find you here when you didn't return," the blond said.

"What is it, Jack?" asked Yusei as he sat up. "Did you find anything new?"

Jack shook his head. He made fist with his hand when Yusei said as it reminded him of his powerlessness. "No," replied "but you have a visitor."

Yusei by now had finished putting on his boots again. "A visitor?" he asked as he stood up.

"Hello," greeted a light blue haired young man slightly older than the teenagers.

Yusei looked at the guy with a surprised look. "You are-!"

"Here." Ren who was dressed with dark blue jean, a white shirt and a black leather jacket tossed an envelope on Yusei's bed.

"What's that?" asked Yusei as he took the envelope. Jack silently watched.

"Open it." Replied Ren as Yusei opened the envelope to see what was inside it. Jack peered over his friend's shoulder.

Inside the envelope were a few pictures of Aki and the twins inside the room while they had been sleeping. There was also a blueprint of the house though it was impossible to know whose house or its location since there was no address or anything except the distributions of the rooms. One of them marked with an X.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked Jack angry as he marched over to Ren. Jack tried to hold him by the collar but Ren block him. It didn't take long as they started fighting both of them dodging each other's attack.

"Jack, stop! Ren-san, please stop too," said Yusei.

He didn't understand what this meant. Actually it was more like he did not want to believe what he thought was happening.

"Were you the one who kidnapped them?" asked Yusei giving him the opportunity to explain himself.

Ren chuckled. "No, not me." Jack let go though gruffly.

"However you could say I was the mastermind." He smiled sadistically.

Jack became even more enrage and was about to lash at him again. "Jack!" Yusei exclaimed as he tried to restrain him.

"How could you?" asked Yusei. "Were you the one behind Yori's first attack too?"

"If you mean the one when she first came here then yes," Ren replied as he sat down on Yusei's bed. "That was my idea as well."

Both Yusei and Jack glared at the young man. They were horrified as well to learn that it had been Yori's own brother the one behind it all.

"How could you? Your own sister!" Jack spat.

"Why would you put her through all of that?" Yusei asked angrily. "Do you have any idea how she feels?"

Ren stood up. No longer smiling but looking serious. "I came here to give you two options," he started as he stared almost glaring at Yusei. "One: use this information I'm giving you -" he pulled a small piece of paper from a pocket in his jack with an address. "And take your friends back-"

"What?" both Yusei and Jack were completely taken aback.

"Do that and never show yourselves, including your friends, in front of Yori ever again." He continued. "Or two: refuse my help and gamble on whether or not you will ever find them. Make your choice." He smirked.

Author's Note:

1. That paragraph was an excerpt from the book Speak. I remember reading that back in HS.

2. 'Oops, I think I went Natsu on that girl.' That referred to the manga Skip Beat vol 22, I think it was. Kyoko, the main character of the manga has been cast for another bullying role but her co-stars don't like her at first. So two of them hide part of her costume and blame it on her for losing it. Anyway, Kyoko catches on and kinda threatens them without saying it for hiding it and while smiling and glaring.

I bet a lot of people didn't see that coming, huh? To be honest, neither did I. Two days ago I had another dream of this again. It had been awhile since I started. My dreams have always guided me in my writing so I decided to write what I dreamt. Well the last scene I didn't actually dream it but what happens after. Anyway I hope you liked it!

Please review! I'd like to at least reach the 200, I thought I would with last chapter :'( And check my DA account too ;) Link it's on my profile