"I… hate flying…"

Those were the first words that parted the boy's words while he was gathering his belongings from the plane and following the personnel's instructions for an orderly disembark from the plane. Van's body surely felt the first experience as his back, neck, and one of his arms was aching -a lot-. Presently, there was one thing that the boy REALLY wanted to do, but he held that urge back. Instead, he chose to remember his mother's instructions and followed the 'Baggage Claim' signs, written in multiple languages. And quietly waited for his bags, just then is when he took a moment to look around and admire what was shown around him.

The boy's mouth was slightly open in awe by the marvel that was Domino's International Airport. He couldn't tell if it was the same size as the one from his home, but it was certainly prettier. With a superior edge on technology, though, if he applied the logic of the tech used for a mere cards game… then seeing that advance on other fields shouldn't be that surprising. Of course, none of this logical thinking went through his mind.

"Can I help you, sir?"

Van blinked and quickly turned around, "Huh?" was the only thing he could let go before looking at a member of the security personnel standing in front of him. The woman in question, naturally, was speaking to him in Japanese.

"Are you lost?" The guard then asked. This time around, however, in English with a very audible accent. With Van's visible youth being the reason of her approaching him, and ask those questions. Perhaps in the guard's mind, he had separated from his group or family. Showing a calm and yet, a slight curiosity at what the boy would reply.

A faint, embarrassed smiled would spread on the young man's face, with a single tiny sweat drop on the left side of his forehead. A single finger reaching to scratch his right cheek, replying, "Oh! Hahaha, no I'm fine, sorry to bother you… It's just…" then the boy blinked again, changing his expression back into one of an impressed curiosity, giving one more look at his surroundings, adding "This place is… wow!" All in a surprisingly good Japanese.

The woman was genuinely surprised, as the boy was clearly acting like the typical foreign teenager who had just set foot there for the first time. Yet, his Japanese was not from the typical foreign traveler, nevertheless, she was quick to go back to her Japanese and ask "Are you on your own?"

"Ah yes, yes! I should get going to customs right now. Haha, thank you for your concern." Now rubbing the back of his head, and slightly bowing to the woman to reinforce his thanks. His manners were still a bit off, but he was showing clear knowledge.

The guard then proceeded to point out the direction, "That's right, just follow that direction. You won't miss the big sign".

The boy adjusted his sunglasses as he looked over the pointed direction, with a clear expression on his face that hinted attention to what he was being told. He then smiled at the guard with a nod, "Got it, thank you again!" quickly reaching to his bags, pulling up the handles of his roller bags. While standing in line for customs, Van pulled out his phone and sent a message to his mother, notifying her that he had arrived to Domino. And she didn't take long to give him a reply.

"Great! Take care Botsu, we'll talk tomorrow." All in Japanese Kanji.

Van then blinked and thought about it. Tomorrow? It's not like he minded, the flight was exhausting, and he still had to get to his uncle's. From that point, things at the airport carried on without issues, Van presented all the documentation, filled all forms and adjusted the time on his phone.

"Finally… I've been waiting so long for this…" Van muttered to himself as he stood just past the airport's entrance. The one thing he wanted to do the most since he arrived to that place, something both his body and mind couldn't contain the urge no longer.

"STREEEETC-HHHNNNGHH….!" Exclaimed in a suffocated tone, starting with his back bending and stretching backwards, "Aaargh, that damn plane seat…" He'd let go a loud sigh before stretching his arms. And as he did, the boy looked around for the entrance of the subway. Van just had to walk around for a bit before spotting the entrance, with two sets of mechanical stairways going in and out.

"There it is… now let's see if it is as much of a puzzle as mom pictured it to be." And oh boy it was… Van remained with a shocked grin on his face, eyes wide open as he couldn't help but to mutter in his home language, "H-How on earth can any human understand this in any language!?" And then facepalmed. He cursed under his breath, knowing that he would be stuck there for a while as he tried to figure the subway's map out.

He pulled out from his bag the notes his mother had given him, and then looked at the map.

The whole thing to him was a mess. A big, white map with lines EVERYWHERE. There was a salmon pink one that did a big circle all around the center of the map. And many others with different colors like bright red, blue, green, yellow that mostly followed two patterns. Some went from top to bottom, with their respective turns and curves, though mostly focusing on those two directions. Then it was the same with others, but going from left to right. All of them, however, at some point did cross that Salmon-Pink one which did that big circle route.

Still, his eyes twitched a bit as he tried to look between his notes and the map of the stations he should follow, "E-eh… this o- nno…. uhmm…" The boy sighed with frustration as even his sunglasses were unadjusted to his face. And at that point, he didn't care.

Who knows how much time he spent there, but after a tortuous time trying to figure things out (and some help from the station employees) the boy was back on route, knowing well which combination should he take. Van then was greeted with the wonderful experience of a typical Japanese train in the morning hours. Packed to the brim.

"Nothing like arriving to my uncle's smelling like somebody else." muttered to himself as he got off one of the trains and took a stop in the station to stretch his arms again. In his little break, the boy took the chance to figure out which exit to take, and noticed a couple of girls walking by. They were looking at him and talking among each other in whispers, before giggling and pressing up their phase past him.

Van lifted one of his eyebrows and folded his arms in front of his chest, "Hm?" He relaxed his arms as he looked around and down at himself, checking if there was something on him that could give an entertaining impression. A dark green jacket, a blue and white T-shirt, dark jeans, matching walking boots; nothing seemed really odd to him. His eyes then narrowed, and his lips pressed before letting go a silent "Heey…!" understanding at least that the reason was simply because he was a foreigner.

He was annoyed, but that feeling would go away as he was about to head to the exit tunnel. Just now, he noticed an ad for Duel Monsters, featuring no apart from Yūgi Mutō. With his characteristic fierce look in his eyes. A vague fantasy of him becoming just as grand as him flashed through his mind… "King of games…" muttered before just chuckling to himself and shaking his head, moving on with his trip. "There is reaching to the top and be among the best. Then there are delusions Van, come on…" And that was the kicker for things in his head to start gearing up to bring all of those negative thoughts that were haunting him back in Germany. However, that was rapidly blown away, but what he saw once he crossed the light at the end of the tunnel.

"No way…" muttered, as he was left without anything else to say. He was there, Domino City in all of its beauty. The colorful buildings, the trees, and plants carefully taken care off to decorate the city, blooming with the arrival of spring in this region of the world. To top it all, it didn't take Van not even five minutes to spot people sporting dueling disks as a common thing. That alone gave him the clearer view of how this city. Even though Duel Monsters is still a relatively young sport, here it was treated like an old classic in contrast to the scene from where he came from. While present, it was clear that it was still in its infancy.

He pressed on his phase, as that short sight had already given him the wishes of being hands free to explore the city, but first he wanted to get rid of his bags and rest from his trip. What his mother suggested was taking a short bus ride that would lead him right around where his uncle lives, but he simply chose to take the sightseeing route until he finally reached to a big apartment building. The building was big, big enough for the boy not being able to tell how many apartments were really there. Located around a small square with many high trees.

"This must be it, now which apartment was it… ah yes…" said to himself as he read the notes of his mother. The boy then moved in and walked up the stairs to the first floor, where his uncle's apartment could be found. Standing before the door, the boy rang the bell.

"Yes?"

Van cleared his throat and responded, "Uh, hello, uncle Daichi? It's me… Van" rubbing the back of his neck slightly shy since it was the first time, at least that he could remember, he was speaking with his uncle.

"Wait, Van? That can't be right. That's not what Hinata said." could be heard from the speaker.

Van slowly hanged his head back and rolled his eyes. Then with a sigh he corrected himself, "Sorry, I meant Botsu…"

"Right, one moment…" A couple of minutes later, the figure of a male would open the door. His hair was short and fading from dark to gray, thick lips, his face showing clear signs of aging with lines running across it, dressed in simple, casual clothes. Daichi then looked down at Van "Well look at you!" the man said showing a cheerful grin, "My sister's son finally on Japanese soil. Let me help you with those." said as he reached out for one of the bags. "Oh, and remember to take off your shoes!" his uncle exclaimed, almost forgetting about that detail.

Van stepped in and sat down on the step that separated the greeting area from the rest of the apartment's main room. Just part of the greeting area, there was a short hallway with two doors. The one on the left had a tiny plaque with 'storage' written on it, of course in Japanese. When reaching the end of that short hallway, one would have access to the kitchen, directly to their left. Small one that could also be described as a smaller hallway. A sink, a stove, and a small counter; with a kitchen extractor and shelves at the top. On the opposite side, separating the kitchen area from the dining area, stood a breakfast bar.

Against the wall, and between both the counter and the bar, the fridge stood. Besides the fridge, on the kitchen counter there was a microwave and a toaster, while on the opposite side of the fridge, resting on the breakfast bar; there was a coffee maker.

"Make yourself comfy, boy, pretty sure you are spent from your flight, right?"

His ears caught that, though before he replied, the boy's eyes quickly scanned through the rest of the room. It was open, well, furnished - two more doors on one side of the room, the wall other side and the end there was a big sliding window that lead to a nice balcony. At the other side of the breakfast bar, there was a small table with four chairs, the dining area. At the same time, past the dining area, there were several couches surrounding a coffee table. A table with a TV, and a desk with both a line phone and portable computer were both against the wall. The room's floor as far as it could be seen was made of bright, pristine wood, except the greeting area, which shared the cement of the apartment's exterior.

"This is quite nice, do you like here on your own, Uncle?" Asked as he followed him over to the living room area.

"That's right", Daichi said before motioning him to leave the bags over one of the couches, "I don't see myself as much of a family man. In any case, welcome boy!"

Van then dropped on one of the couches letting go a relaxed sigh "Ugh, my back is killing me…" said before asking "Oh! By the way…" the boy quickly pushed his body up sitting with his legs crossed, "Are you sure there is no problem of me staying here?"

Daichi was taken aback for a second by that question and responded teasingly, "Yes, you are right. That -is- a dumb question, hahaha!" He then waved him off, adding, "You just relax boy, your uncle has everything covered!" Bumping his chest, a couple of times. Then, his eyes shifted into small rounded forms, and blinked a couple of times, hanged his head back and brought a hand to his chin as he looked at the roof in thought, "Wow, it feels weird to say that… I guess being an uncle wasn't really hitting until now." He spoke.

A ding sound echoed in Van's mind as he slightly tilted his head and his jaw slightly dropped, "Huuh?" confused by his uncle's statement. Both perfectly round shaped, entire white eyes blinking behind the lenses of his sunglasses. "Are you sure you can look after me, uncle?"

SMACK

A swift fist landed on the now smoking head of the kid, a large bump quickly growing from that spot

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT? COURSE I CAN, AND SHOW SOME RESPECT TO YOUR UNCLE!" His eyes were now white and sharp, with veins popping on both his forehead and clenched fist.

On the other hand, Van was now clutched on the couch, giving his back to his uncle with both hands holding his head and a river of tears dropping from his white, round eyes.

"Now then!" Daichi said, "we still have some days until the new semester starts. HOWEVER!" The man paused and pointed at his nephew, "We got work to do here! You will have to learn your way around if you are to live here." Then lifted a second finger, "we will have to visit the school to do the final arrangements of your enrollment and pick up your uniform." Then a third one, "finally, the matter about your parents' support. AND your place."

Van blinked at the last statement and quickly turned around, lifting one of his brows, "Wait, what do you mean 'my place'? Thought I was staying with you…"

That's when a grim and devilish smile spread across Daichi's face, with a dark aura building up around him. Seeing that from his uncle reminded him of his mother when she gets mad at him, and thus, figured that it must be a family thing.

"Uh… uncle?" the young man asked with hundreds of sweat drops running down the back of his head, over his hair and everything.

Then, his uncle would rush into one of the rooms to look for something, closing the door behind him, "Where is… here! No? No! Damn it, where did I put that." It could be heard from the other side of the door.

"Well, I guess my uncle has a few screws loose…" muttered as he stared at the room's door with a mixture of both worry and disappointment, but then he was startled when Daichi busted out of the door again.

"AHA!" exclaimed as he stood in a triumphal pose, with a clenched fist up, clearly holding something in it. "Alright, pick up your stuff, let's go!" Said as he walked over to the apartment's entrance and put on a pair of flip-flops.

"Wait, what do you mean go? WHERE!" the boy exclaimed

"Shut up and follow me to find out!" His uncle responded.

With no other real choice than to trust his eccentric uncle, Van decided to do as he said and followed. They would actually head two floors above. As they did so, they came across some residents of the building. Curiously, every single of them knew his uncle. However, Van didn't really pay much attention to what words they crossed, and simply limited himself to be polite with them whenever Daichi introduced him as his nephew.

Finally, they stopped at an apartment door on the fifth floor. Then, Daichi turned to face Val. "Alright, Botsu or… Van—Whatever! Listen." He paused briefly and proceeded to explain, "I did say you would stay with me, though I never specified your parents it would be under the 'exact' same roof."

Van frowned, confused at his uncle's words. "Wait, what are you-" That's when he was interrupted by the revelation of what his uncle held in his fist. And now was being held with two fingers, in front of him. A small ring which held both a key, and a wooden holder with a number on it, which matched that of the door. "- no way" The boy said gasping in awe, "Did you actually went your way to rent another apartment for me!?" Exclaimed

"Hehe…" That's when his same aura from before started to build up again. "Heheh… I didn't rent this. Your mom didn't want to listen, you see…" He turned his back to Van, sounding like he was building up anger as he explained everything to his nephew; "I told her that I had a WICKED good streak of luck in the Casinos… then hung up, before I could even tell her…" Then his eyes started sparkling like shining stars, Daichi spun where he stood once and made another victorious pose, "I DID PUT A GOOD USE TO THAT MONEY AND BOUGHT THIS BUILDING!"

"WHAAAAAAAT?" Van exclaimed, with a lightning shock flashing behind him, signifying the surprise the revelation represented.

"YES…" Replied to the boy, dramatically turning over his shoulder, the features of his face now looking very well detailed, stoic and stern "YOUR MOTHER THOUGHT ME THE SAME DAICHI FROM DECADES AGO…" Both clenched fists were held in front of him, with a burning background representing that anger inside of him, "AND THAT WITCH HAD THE NERVE OF GIVING ME A SCOLDING AS IF SHE WERE OUR MOTHER!" The man then pointed at a random part of the sky as he could see the visage of her younger sister, "YOU THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO BURN THROUGH THAT MONEY, BUT NO, LITTLE SIS. I'VE PROVEN YOU WRONG, AND I HAVE YOUR SON AS WITNESS. DO YOU HEAR ME, HINATA? DO YOU HEAR ME!?"

Then everything went quiet… save from the crowing of crows in the distance.

Van was speechless and at this point he was sure the ONLY reason Daichi welcomed him with open arms during his stay in Domino, was to outdo his mother. They, of course, had history as brother and sister.
The boy then slowly lifted his hand, "So… does that mean I get to stay in an apartment of my own?"

Daichi turned around in a blink of an eye and gently tossed the keys to him, "Oh yes, yes! However, remember you will have to be responsible for taking care of it. On that regard alone, I will hold you like the rest of the tenants." The man then waved his hand, motioning his nephew to use the key, "Go on, go on. I'm sure you'll also love having all that space for yourself."

The boy inserted the key, and with two turns unlocked the door. Revealing an apartment of a similar layout as his uncle's. While the location of the rooms, and shape, were different. The overall layout was mostly the same. Small kitchen, an ample room with a dinning and resting area. Unlike his uncle's house, this one seemed to hold just one bedroom, but that was more than enough for him.

The boy stepped into the apartment, looking around. While it wasn't like his Uncle's, there was some basic furnishing. The kitchen already had a fridge, the dining area had a table and some chairs.

"So that one would be the bedroom, and over there the bathroom. Make sure to check the water heater is on before you take a bath, though. Any questions, feel free to ask." Daichi said, pointing out each door as he named the different rooms and later the water heater by the kitchen area. "But now, I'm pretty sure you'll like to lay down and rest for a while. My number is on the bar. Let me know once you get up, we'll go out for dinner, how does that sound?"

The boy then simple nodded at him, with a smile on his face. "Alright, that does sound good, yeah."

It was then when his uncle left the apartment, leaving the boy on his own to rest. Van locked the door and then explored the place a little. He opened the sliding window at the back of the room and took a look at the view from the balcony. He could see the square across the street, and the breeze from spring could be felt pretty nicely from there.

Then went back in and headed over to, which would be his room. A closet, a bed, and a desk with a chair, nothing too crazy. However, he didn't really take much time to appreciate the room before he took off his sunglasses, dropped them on the desk and then dropped himself on the bed.

An exhausted sigh parted his lips before he turned around and stared at the ceiling, his eyes becoming very heavy before eventually falling asleep. It was actually a good rest, perhaps from the mix of the exhaustion and the current serenity in his mind which allowed that along with the comfort of laying on a bed after that annoying and long flight. Hours later, during the night, the vibration of the phone he held in his hand through all his rest finally woke him up. The boy blinked a couple of times and sat on the bed, then checked the screen of his phone. He rubbed one of his eyes and yawned while reading a text on the screen.

"Up to go out for dinner, boy?" A clear text from his uncle.

Van, yawned again and started typing on the touch screen, "Sure, I'll go down in a minute" replied then got up to quickly go to the bathroom and wash his face with some cold water and then head downstairs. To tag along with his uncle, who was already waiting for him at his apartment's door.

"That was fast, guess you are starving, eh?!" Daichi said with a smirk on his face.

To which his nephew rubbed the back of his head and smiled shyly, "Well, I haven't really eaten anything since the flight's meal so…"

"Airline food? Dear lord, we gotta fix that quickly. We'll go to a small place I usually go to."

The kid then shrugged and crossed his hands behind his head, "You lead the way then, uncle.".

As they headed over to the street, they were greeted by the night version of the streets it had walked earlier. Now illuminated by the city lights, giving a whole new vibe to the place. The streets were quite lively, with couples, families, and groups of friends out and going on their business.

The boy followed his uncle closely, with his eyes checking every scene around them. "Hey, is it always like this?"

His uncle hummed and quickly replied, "Well, kind of. Technically, classes haven't started yet, so it's a bit more lively than usual. Specially during this last week, kids want to make the best of it. "Daichi then paused for a moment and took his turn to ask a question, "Hey, I'm surprised you don't struggle with the language, how come? Did you prepare in advance for this trip of yours?"

His nephew calmly shook his head with a faint smile, "Nope! Mom taught me little by little, I think, since I was… 7 or 8? Can't remember exactly" shrugged before adding "But yeah, she taught me how to speak and read it"

Daichi then blinked a couple of times, impressed, "Woah, I didn't know she had it in her to be a teacher!"

"Ehh…. yeah…" That's when Van looked to another direction, showed a bit of an embarrassed smile, with a single sweat drop on his cheek as he remembered the lessons his mother gave him. With the mental silhouette of her, in all her terrifying anger, holding a thin stick. "She is a very…. passionate teacher? Yeah! Passionate" Figured not to really provide the details to his uncle. One, so he couldn't give him any ammunition in their ongoing sibling rivalry, and… to avoid the potential rage of his mom that would involve in that.

"Right, right, I see. And what about your dad? I haven't seen him in ages." asked, as he reached to a package of cigarettes from his pockets and a Zippo. Then lighted up a cigarette before asking, "Heard that you were having some issues at school back home?"

"Well, he is running a sports Magazine he started along with some of his friends. And is doing fine" When the second question, came, Van quickly pulled his head back and closed his eyes, with his teeth grinned in annoyance, "Tsk, do we really have to talk about that? I -really- don't want to talk about that if you don't mind."

"Well, fair enough. But we need a bit of a conversation topic, is that right?" Then gave it a bit of thought, "And what's your plan regarding the real reason for being here?" the uncle asked.

"What do you mean?" the boy asked, tilting his head and lifting a brow.

"So are you planning to challenge every single duelist randomly under the sun" The uncle retorted

"Wait… it doesn't work like that?" asked, with his eyes in perfect rounded shapes and completely white. Blinking confused as, admittedly, that was his original plan.

Daichi fell on his back quickly getting back up very tempted to smack his nephew's head once again however he simply yelled at him "OF COURSE NOT!" Then facepalmed at how clueless his nephew was.

Moments later, they arrived to a restaurant where he planned to explain things thought to Van. "Alright, so that method used to be KIND OF the right way to do things. The old fashion way, so to speak." The man crossed his arms and rested them on the table and continued" You duel and duel, build up experience enrolled in amateur tournaments and went your way up from there."

Van listened to him, slowly nodding as he took another bite from his dinner, and commented "Well, that's how things worked back at home"

"Mhm… BUT…" Said, as he lifted a finger, "It would appear there are plans to change things a bit."

"Wait, what?" The boy asked estranged, "Also, how do you know all this? You seem well-informed with the news about Duel Monsters."

His uncle knocked his forehead softly with his fingers, mocking the boy, "Hello, is somebody up there?" Then sighed, "Where do you think we are? This is Domino City, dueling is literally the local sport nowadays. And besides…" Then, the man then pulled out a small case from his pocket, "I have gotten my fair share of dueling, boy"

That really did catch the teenager's attention. It was a Deck's case "Wait, how, when!?"

"Pft, not long after I got to Domino. The apartments maintenance has kept me busy, though. So, I haven't been as active in it as I used to be. And no, I don't know the details of how they want to change things for dueling here. I just heard different versions of something that Industrial Illusions and Kaiba Corp-mainly Kaiba Corp, are trying to make the scene more accessible."

Van then narrowed his eyes and let go a grumpy grunt under his breath, "So we got nothing then… how annoying."

Daichi then knocked the table a couple of times to catch his attention, "Hey, hey, hey! Don't start getting all worked up and distracted with dueling. You are still here PRIMARILY to attend school." The man then leaned back and picked a toothpick from a tiny basket on the table. As he cleaned the food between his teeth, he added, "So let's not forget that. Specially since I would really like to avoid having your parents coming at my throat for not keeping you in check with your studies. Besides…" He then shrugged and looked outside the window, "Still got plenty of time, don't rush. Dueling is out there, and it gonna stay." Then he hummed for a moment and snapped his fingers, "I got it! Tomorrow, I will get you to a cool place that will help to get your dueling anxiety to cool off a bit."

"What?" Van replied with a question.

"Oh, relax, it's nothing great. Up for something sweet after dinner?"

The boy then blinked and with a smile gave his uncle a nod.

Not much would follow that night. Both uncle and nephew headed home, chatting on their way back. However, having slept through most of the afternoon, Van was still feeling well enough to dedicate some time to his apartment. Took the time to unpack his clothes and belongings from his bags, once done, he walked out to the balcony and enjoyed the night spring breeze.

Calm, almost even too calm for him as not only the environment was serene, his head was uneasy, but out of excitement. An excitement that he fought to control cautiously, the boy didn't really want to get much too excited and probably mess things up ahead. He then looked up at the sea of stars above, he couldn't remember he saw a sky that clean. It was at that moment when a message notification took his attention away from that sky and to the device and find out it was a message from his mother. Still, writing him in full Japanese Kanji.

"Everything okay over there, Botsu?" the message read

The boy showed a pleasant grin and responded, "Great so far! How are things at home?"

"Everything is okay! But tell me how was your flight, did you have troubles at the airport? Was the subway too confusing? Have you eaten anything yet? What about your Uncle, are you two alright in his place?"

The questions kept coming and coming, the typical interrogation of a mother away from their child. The boy tried to keep up with the questions, responding to the ones he could. But it appeared that with each reply he delivered, three more questions came in relation to that answer given. The boy was kept entertained by his mother until it is quite late at night, when he decided to call it and finally go to bed.

His first night in the city, and hasn't gone half bad.

Author's Note: Well, another week, another chapter. Thanks to everyone who took and take their time following this story. I appreciate any feedback, I do hope my descriptions in moments of super deformed styles are fitting enough or if I should avoid them entirely. Then again, being my first time working in a long term story, im bound to make tons of mistakes for sure. And my hopes are them being bearable enough and listen to what any readers have to say.
With this, I wish you a nice weekend and see you next week.