Vile: Well, I managed to get in a second chapter today. Lucky me. ^^

Kotori: You still haven't explained what happened last chapter.

Vile: Easy, Kotori. It'll get there. On a different note, we bring someone new into the story with this chapter.

Tokunosuke: My time to shine, Ura! *grins*

Yuma, Tetsuo, Shark: *snickering at him*

Tokunosuke: What's so funny, Ura...?

Shark: How are you so sure that it's you?

Tokunosuke: I just AM, Ura!

Vile: Before this turns into a brawl, let's move on, shall we?

Cathy: The disclaimer's on the first page. No need to reprint it, nya.

Vile: And with that reminder, here we go!

39 & 13 means Love

Chapter 2

Yuma ran through the city toward the card shop, still grinning. 'I hope they have a good selection of cards today!' He thought hopefully. Yuma eventually reached the shop in question. "Finally, I made it!" He stopped to calm down and catch his breath before entering. Once he was fully calm, he entered the card shop.

The card selection was vast today: just his luck. Yuma noticed a variety of Winged-Beast monsters, but most of them were few and far between. As an added minus, he barely saw any Winged-Beast support cards or Xyz Monsters. "Oh, man… why does the variety have to be against me?"

"Don't get teary-eyed just yet, Ura!" A voice said from behind him, startling Yuma. It was clear who it was, though. Only one person he knew said "Ura" in each sentence he spoke. He turned around and saw Tokunosuke.

"What do you mean, Toku?" Yuma asked the bespectacled Duelist.

Tokunosuke let out his trademark sneaky giggle. "Yuma-kun, don't forget that there is a hidden side to everything, Ura. The cards you see on the wall may not be desired, but the right selection can always be found in some way or another, Ura." The small boy walked up and tapped on the owner's counter, addressing the owner. "Go aisatsu, Kodoa-sama, Ura."

The owner turned to him. "Ah, go aisatsu, Tokunosuke. What can I help you with?"

"Two things, my friend, Ura. First I need an Omotengu card, the rarest version you have, Ura."

"Omotengu? You're in luck, my boy. I just got one in yesterday." Kodoa said as he rummaged through a box. "Here you go, an Omotengu card in Super Parallel Rare, my rarest copy. Is this for my daughter, by any chance?"

Tokunosuke smiled. "You read MY hidden side this time, Ura. Yes, it is for Hikaya-chan, Ura."

Kodoa chuckled. "In that case, it's on the house."

Tokunosuke gasped and bowed. "Doumo arigatou, Kodoa-sama, Ura."

"'Twas nothing, Tokunosuke. Now, what else did you need?"

"Oh yes, of course. Yuma-kun, come over here, Ura." Yuma walked over to the two of them. "This is Yuma Tsukumo, one of the friends I told you and Hikaya-chan about, Ura. He needs a good Winged-Beast-themed Deck as a gift for someone, Ura."

Yuma scrambled. "H-How did you know that?"

Tokunosuke's trademark giggle came again. "I can see your hidden side, Yuma-kun, Ura. You need this Deck for Kotori-chan, am I wrong, Ura?"

Yuma just laughed sheepishly. "Got me."

Kodoa smiled. "A gift for a special one, eh? How cute. I have just the thing for you, Yuma." Kodoa walked towards the end of his counter and pulled out a black box. Opening it, he re-arranged objects inside until he picked up what looked like a Deck. "Here we go." He closed the box and put it back before handing it to Yuma. "This is Structure Deck: Beating Wings. It focuses on Winged-Beast monsters and has some strong Xyz Monsters to boot."

"Whoa… Nice!" Yuma commented, but then he noticed the price: 1400 yen. He went through his pockets for any loose money, but came up with 1260 yen. "Dang it… 140 yen short!"

Kodoa looked at him sympathetically, then smiled. "Worry not, Yuma. Since you're a good friend of Tokunosuke, and the situation calls for it, I'll give you a 300 yen discount. You can have it for 1100 yen."

"R-Really?" Yuma stuttered, with Kodoa nodding. Yuma shook the man's hand. "Thank you so much, sir! I owe you for this!"

Meanwhile, Astral noted the situation. "Observation #22: Bargains are made between humans under the correct circumstances."

"You don't need to owe me anything. The satisfaction of my customers is what means the most to me." Yuma handed Kodoa the money and received the Structure Deck. As they were leaving, Kodoa said, "Good luck, my boy!"

"Arigatou, Kodoa-sama!" Yuma said back. Both he and Tokunosuke left the store, their "prizes" in hand. Suddenly, Yuma grinned and poked Tokunosuke in the head. "So, who's this 'Hikaya-chan' you mentioned, eh…? Someone I should know about…?"

Tokunosuke was clearly blushing, but his signature smirk kept him cool. "That's a part of my hidden side, Yuma-kun. Good luck reading it, Ura!" He let out his trademark giggle. "At any rate, good luck with Kotori-chan! Sayonara, Yuma-kun, Ura!" Tokunosuke ran off, laughing for seemingly no reason.

Yuma scratched his head at Tokunosuke, but decided to worry about the current matter. Pulling out his D-Gazer, he dialed the connection to Kotori's D-Gazer and waited.

Kotori was brushing her hair at home when her D-Gazer began beeping. She picked up the device and activated it, seeing Yuma's face. "Oh, hey, Yuma-kun!"

"Hey Kotori." Yuma replied. "I was wondering… if you weren't doing anything today… you wanna go around the city with me? Just us?" A sheepish smile formed on his face.

Kotori, on the other hand, was blushing. "You mean… like a… date?"

It was Yuma's turn to blush now. "Y-Yeah, I guess so…"

"O… Okay. I'll be there soon. Where should I meet you?"

"In front of Kodoa's card shop. I'm there right now."

"All right. See you soon."

"See you… Kotori-chan." Yuma said, hesitating on the last word before hanging up.

'Did he just call me… Kotori-chan?' The green-haired girl thought, her heart pounding. Her face was as red as her crush's eyes, but a smile made its way onto her face. 'Yuma called me Kotori-chan… and he asked me out… on a date! This is like a dream come true!' Kotori closed her eyes and let out a sigh of content, placing her hand over her heart. "Yuma…" She breathed, failing to notice wind blowing in from the open window, trailing a white slip of paper in through the opening. The object was blown into Kotori's coat pocket, resting there. Kotori opened her eyes. 'That's it. I'm tell him today. I'm tell him how I feel.' The girl grabbed her coat and ran out of her house, not even noticing the blank card still wedged in her pocket.

Tokunosuke: I knew it would be me, Ura!

Tetsuo: Sure you did, pal. Sure you did. *laughs*

Akari: Aw, that was cute at the end. My little bro's getting a girlfriend!

Yuma: How'd you get in here, sis?

Akari: *points back* Open door.

Yuma: *sweatdrops* Right... At any rate, to those who don't know, "go aisatsu" is Japanese for "greetings."

Vile: Thanks for that, Yuma. Things are getting mysterious now. Cathy's feeling off and Kotori has a blank card. Who knows where this could lead?

Shark: Something tells me it ain't gonna be good, but we'll have to wait and see.

Kotori: Hey Vile, Yuma had a point. Who was that "Hikaya" person?

Vile: ...If it doesn't show up later, that'll be in another fic. ^^

Kotori: Okay then... *to viewers* If you like this story, make sure to leave lots of reviews!

Yuma: Yeah! Vile can Kattobingu better with 'em!

Vile: Ehehe... thanks Yuma, I guess.

Computer Voice: Vile, logging out.