AnimeKiwi369: *To Copper*. Do I always seem bored to you?

Copper: Yeah. But hey, that's the price for being a kid.

AnimeKiwi369: I guess so. This chapter focuses mainly on you, Yusei, and Nan. And relationships that Copper and Yusei have with others.

Yusei: Is this a filler chapter at all?

AnimeKiwi369: A teeny bit. But there is something important that will play a bigger role later.

Copper: I don't like that sound. Time for the disclaimer.

AnimeKiwi369: Yeah; I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's or its characters, just my own characters and the storyline. And sorry in advance if any actual characters from the show are out of character.

Chapter 9

Relationships

Time stood completely still as the two words hung in the air. The silence was so thick you could have cut it with a knife. The dark-haired girl felt so strange just watching this. All she could hear was the sound of her heart pounding in her chest and blood pounding in her ears. Copper held her breath as her father and grandmother stared at each other, both looking in disbelief at each other.

Yusei couldn't even believe his eyes. His mother was awake! He couldn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. He couldn't even name what emotions he was feeling. This was amazing. He was truly seeing his mother for the first time. He used to dream of this when he little after Martha had told him and the guys what had happened to their parents.

"It's you…It's really you…" he trailed off slightly, slowly going by her, "Mom…"

"Yusei…" Nan repeated. She couldn't believe this. He was all grown up! He looked so much like his father… He wasn't the little baby he was when she had last seen him, "You're grown up…"

He nodded a bit numbly, "I can't believe how wonderful this is. You're awake!"

The brunette shakily held up her hand. The dark-haired Signer took off one of his gloves and put his hand against his mother's. To Copper, it seemed like something from a movie. She felt extremely awkward just watching and silently slipped out of the room into the hallway; she still watched secretly from the hall. Neither the blue-indigo-eyed mother nor son noticed.

Nan couldn't describe what she was feeling. She was seeing her son again. After believing him dead for so long, he was there, in the flesh. This was so amazing! She hadn't felt his hand since she had to give him to Hakase to save him from the Reactor's meltdown. Her heart filled with relief seeing him again. So that girl, Copper, really was her granddaughter… She had looked an awful like her son. She wondered if he felt the same way towards her as she did towards him.

The Signer thought that the only other times he had felt this ecstatic was on his wedding day and the day his little girl was born. His heart swelled like it had on those two days. He wondered if the love he was feeling in his heart was what Copper felt for him. He had felt something similar to this when he was growing up with Martha. It must be the way a child feels towards the ones that gave them life. A parent-child relationship. But it felt a bit strange. Yusei had never truly felt that…until now.

The Signer couldn't help himself and embraced his mother, "Mom…" he repeated, unable to say anything. His voice trembled slightly.

The brunette wrapped her arms around him. She hadn't been that close with him in what seemed like an eternity. She had always loved holding him close when he was nothing more than a baby. It felt...right to hold him. He must be feeling what she felt seeing him again. After a while, he pulled away from her and sat in the chair his daughter had previously occupied.

Silence lapsed back into a strange state. Neither one of them knew what they should say to the other. What could they say at that moment? Copper was silent as she watched. She desperately wanted one of them to say something…anything. She was half-tempted to go in there and start the conversation.

"W-What happened?" Nan asked awkwardly, "I-In your life, I mean."

"A lot of things." He responded shortly, "And many unpleasant, but also a lot of pleasant things."

"Who raised you?"

"A woman named Martha. She raises orphans. And she raised me and my friends Jack, Crow, and Kalin and she still does."

"Wh-What caused you to be in The Facility?" she asked, unsure how he would react. The dark-haired man seemed unfazed.

"After Zero Reverse, part of the city broke away and called Satellite. And those from Satellite were illegal in New Domino City without a permit. I went to the city and after a duel I had, Sector Security found and arrested me. But that was the past; I'm highly respected now. My friends are, too."

"Why is that?"

"Because of," he began, pulling up the sleeve of his jacket, "the Signer-Dark Signer war."

"Roman had a Mark just like that…" the brunette commented absently. She looked at her son, "You're a Signer?"

Yusei nodded, "Yeah, so are my friends Jack, Crow, and Luna; and so is my wife, Akiza. And recently our eldest kids became Signers, as well."

"How?"

He sighed and relayed what had happened in his lifetime with the whole Signer-Dark Signer fiasco. He noticed his mother's eyes widen as he told.

"And that's how that happened." He finished.

"And how did your and your friends' children get the Marks of The Crimson Dragon?" she asked.

The dark-haired Signer wasn't sure how he should explain. He noticed Copper looking into the room, while trying to stay hidden. She had been watching them. Yusei motioned her inside. She was slightly hesitant, but obeyed her father.

"I think you should explain." He said to her and pulled her down onto the chair next to him.

"All right, dad." She responded and told her own tale of a few weeks ago. She was able to fight tears as she told her duel against Sayer. She held her wrist again. She pulled her jacket sleeve up and her glove sleeve down, showing the overlapping patterns.

"Both of you have been through much." The brunette commented. Both nodded, "And all of caused because your father's invention." She directed it towards Yusei.

The young psychic thought about that for a few minutes. What her grandmother said was absolutely true. If Zero Reverse didn't happen, all of the things that happened wouldn't have happened most likely. Even with her mother discovering her powers. If both sets of grandparents had known each other, then her parents would've known each other growing up and would probably get along as they did now. And her mother wouldn't have been so angry at her father.

"Cyli?" her grandmother's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked at her.

"Yes?"

"How old are you?" Nan asked. How much of her granddaughter's life had she missed out on? A lot like with Yusei or not that much?

"Fourteen and a half. Fifteen at the end of October." She responded.

"At nine thirty-eight a.m., October 29th, you'll be fifteen." The dark-haired man told her absently.

The girl looked at him, surprised, "How do you even remember that, dad?" she asked. He smiled at her, momentarily forgetting his mother was there. Yusei put his arm around her shoulders.

"Because you're my baby girl." He responded, kissing her forehead.

"Oh, daddy." She replied, smiling as she moved closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder, nuzzling his neck a little.

The brunette watched the dark-haired father-daughter pair. They looked like they loved each other so much. They were so relaxed and comfortable with each other. It was obvious that they were very, very close. It warmed her heart seeing that her son was experiencing that affection with his daughter. But it also wrenched her heart because she had never really experienced that with him because of Roman's betrayal. He had only been a baby when she thought he hadn't survived. She wondered if her son's daughter had that kind of relationship with her mother. A thought came to her mind as she remembered what he had said about his wife's name.

"Yusei?" she asked, gaining his attention again.

"Yes?" he inquired.

"Your wife's name, Akiza was it?" he nodded, "Did her maiden name happen to be Akiza Rose Izinski? And is Hideo and Setsuko Izinski's daughter?"

The dark-haired Signer was taken by surprise, "Yeah. How did you know that?"

"Your…Your father and I knew the Izinskis before the Reactor's meltdown. You met with Akiza when you were about eight months old and she was about two months old. You were…both quite fond of…each other."

The dark-haired girl silently let her 'I-knew-it!' look flash across her face and run through her mind. I knew that mom and dad just had to have met after I saw that vision of Nan and Hakase in the hospital talking about grandma and grandpa Izinski. She thought, suppressing a grin.

"Oh, wow." He commented.

"That is so cool." The psychic put in.

"I don't see any reason for you to stay in this hospital now that you're awake, mom." Yusei told the brunette.

"Where would I go, Yusei?" Nan asked, "I doubt that the apartment your father and I had when he was…still alive is still ours."

"Maybe…maybe you could…live with us…" he suggested unsure, "We've got plenty of room. But…I'd have to speak with Akiza about it."

"The doctors will probably want to run some tests on her before they release her, too." Copper added in. Her grandmother nodded.

"If that's all right."

"I know it's all right with me…" the dark-haired man commented.

"It's all right with me, I guess." The mostly blue-indigo-eyed girl put in. Although she said it was all right with her, she wasn't positive it would work. It would be strange for a while. But her life was already strange, so what difference was this going to make?

The brunette was unsure if living with her son—who she was seeing for the first time since the Reactor's meltdown—was the right thing to do. She hardly knew him anymore. He wasn't who he had been when she had last seen him. He was an adult. He had a family; he was a professional duelist. He wasn't a baby anymore. How was his wife and kids—if he had any others—going to take this? She felt like this was going to be a burden on them.

"Yusei, I'd feel like a burden to you." She voiced her thoughts.

"You wouldn't be a burden." He tried to reassure her, "Mom, I want to know you. I've wanted to know who you are my entire life. Plus, having you live with us would be a great way to get to know you."

"All right, Yusei." She sighed, "Only if it's all right with your family." She repeated.

"Like I said, I'll have to see with Akiza. It's already all right with me and Copper."

"It's…It's only you, your wife and daughter?" she asked.

"Yep!" Copper responded for her father with a proud smile.

"Yeah, it is just us." He said, ruffling his daughter's hair a little, playing a little with her braid.

"Dad, do you want me to give you two some time to catch up some more?" she asked sincerely.

"It's all right; you don't have to go, baby." He told her, "Only if you want to."

"I think I better go." She said, standing up. The dark-haired girl kissed his cheek, "I'll let you two catch up and I'll see you at home."

"All right." Yusei responded, "I'll see you at home. And if I'm not home by the usual time, tell your mother not to worry."

"Okay." The dark-haired girl began to leave the room, "Bye."

Copper slipped out of the room and let out a breath of relief as she got into the hallway. She had felt strange in there. The dark-haired girl left the building and remounted her runner. She looked one last time at the window of her grandmother's room before speeding off back to her house. She dismounted to lift the garage door and pushed her runner the rest of the way in.

She went inside and took her helmet off as she entered her bedroom. Her bangs were sticking to her forehead a little. She still felt drained from playing that spell card. She went into the bathroom and examined herself. The dark-haired girl thought she was a little paler than she should've been. She removed her gloves and splashed icy water on her face.

The psychic momentarily left the bathroom to retrieve a towel and some fresh clothes. She let her long tresses from their tight confinement, slowly unbraiding the perfect braid from earlier. She silently took a shower, letting the water run over her for more than half of it, thinking over what she had done. She had brought her grandmother out of unconsciousness. More like my psychic powers did. She thought, hugging herself.

"And I thought he and mom were powerful." She said to herself, "Is it possible that dad was right back then and that I am going to be just as powerful as mom was at the age she was when she learned how to control her powers?"

She remembered that day well. The day her powers showed up. She had been afraid because of what her mother told her. But then Yusei had helped her see that she had nothing to be afraid of. Copper sighed a little. Life was so weird sometimes. She turned off the hot water spigot. She wrapped the towel around to herself as she stepped out of the shower.

The dark-haired girl heard her phone go off from the counter she had placed it on. She tossed her hair to the side a little, so as not to get the small device wet when she put it to her ear. She looked at the ID on it briefly before putting it to her ear.

"And you're calling me for what exactly, Jonathan?" she asked.

"We heard what happened?" he told her, like he did a few days ago.

"And what do you mean by 'we'?" she asked.

"Lane told Raven and me separately, but we know." He told her.

"Didn't you have something to do with your sis and mom today or something?" she inquired curiously.

"Yeah, I just thought you might want to talk or something since there's a break in…family time."

"Jonathan Atlas, you have got the strangest personality and genes of everyone I know." Copper told him, "Arrogant one day and compassionate the next. I'll never understand you…blondie."

"Don't call me 'blondie'." He commanded.

"Like I ever do anything you tell me." She shot back, "Besides, you can't tell me what to do."

"I'm older."

"I'm smarter."

"Shut it, Fudo."

"Make me, Atlas." She shot back as their mostly playful argument stopped. They didn't fight as often as the blonde and ginger did, but they did fight sometimes. Friends did do that after all. At least once in a while, anyway.

"Seriously, what happened between you and your grandmother?" he asked on the other end.

"Not much. Just talked a little until my dad came and Lane left."

"What else?" John demanded on the other line.

"I'd rather not talk about it right at this moment." She told him.

"Oh and why not?" he commanded.

"Because, Mister Atlas," she addressed formally, "you caught me getting out of the shower in nothing but a towel."

"Oh." The blonde responded, sounding embarrassed.

"'Oh' is right, John." Copper told him, "I'll call you, Raven, and Lane later and we'll meet up in a couple of days. 'Kay?"

"Fine and by the way, I didn't need a mental picture."

"Sorry," she giggled, "But that's what you get when call me straight from the shower."

"Whatever. I'll hear from you later." John hung up without another word.

"He sure is impatient today." She laughed a little to herself as she got dressed and wrapped her hair in a separate towel. She gathered up the clothes she had been in previously and put them in her laundry hamper as she left her bathroom.

She had different relationships with her friends. John was someone to occasionally fight with and just someone to have around. But he was useful to give sympathy when the genes he got from Carly took over the Atlas ones. He was someone to help put in their place and/or encourage them when they were down, like Jack could be…sometimes. Raven was the friend to confide in with more than just 'girl things'. She was also the one to make you laugh when you needed it. She was the one that did silly things on purpose just to lighten the air. And also the one who could just make someone laugh with her actions, like her father.

And Lane…was something more than a friend. He was the person to go to with problems that wouldn't judge; someone to ask what was wrong. He had especially done that with her. Before their crushes of each other had really developed, if she had been upset, he would brush his hand against her cheek and softly ask what was wrong. If she hadn't answered, he would tip her chin and ask again. And when she would finally tell him, he would simply just embrace her.

Copper lied down on her bed and stared at the ceiling through the canopy of her bed she had put back on in the past couple of weeks. She sighed and lifted her Marks in front of her eyes again. The afternoon light seeped through her window as she closed her eyes. She could almost see those visions again. The dark-haired girl let a slight smile cross her face.

But as she smiled, her mind drifted to what Roman had done to her family. Not just her grandparents, but her father, too. She tensed up as another vision she hadn't seen flashed through her mind. She saw both of her parents encased in a fiery purple barrier, standing across from a man with a dark tone of skin and unnatural eyes. They had black where white should've been and he was wearing black and red. His light hair was pulled back and there were odd marks on him face. There was a giant black and red spider on his field. Was that Roman?

She couldn't decide. The vision disappeared before any of them spoke as a pounding starting in her head. The scene changed to her father turbo dueling someone who looked oddly familiar, but she couldn't tell who it was. She heard and eerily creepy cackle from her father's opponent. W-Was that Kalin?

The scene changed again to a normal duel. She saw her mother, but…her mother was different. There was a sinister look in her eyes and her hair was wild (which didn't look that bad). She wasn't her mother—she was The Black Rose. She was facing Misty, whose eyes held nothing but desire for revenge.

She sat upright, gripping her head. Wh-What was that? Copper wondered as the pounding began ceasing, Did…Did I see…the past? The dark-haired girl didn't even notice her bedroom bathed in a crimson glow that came from her arm as her Marks glowed. The crimson glow faded as the psychic looked up.

"This day is turning out to be very, very strange." She muttered to herself. She looked at the clock. An hour had passed since she had lied down. She got up and put the towel that was no longer drying her hair, but rather on the floor, in the hamper before going downstairs.

Copper went into the garden outside, going straight to the roses. Her favorites were the extremely rare red marbled with silvery-white ones. She carefully touched its delicate petals with points that made them look like stars. Her parents had always called them 'star-roses'. She had always loved to play in the garden when she was little, usually while Akiza was tending it. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath of all the scents of the garden. She faintly heard the door open and footsteps approach her. Whoever it was wrapped slender around her. Her mother.

"Hey, mom."

"Hey, Copper." The Signer replied, "How are you doing? I mean since what happened at the hospital."

"I'm all right." She told her, "Not a hundred percent, but I'm okay."

"Nothing like this had ever happened with you before. I know it's hard the first time a spell's materialized. And being as inexperienced as you are with materializing cards as powerful as Second Sight, I wouldn't be surprised if you weren't all right. But I'm glad you are." Akiza told her, holding her closer.

"Thanks, mom." The dark-haired girl turned into her mother's chest and wrapped her arms around her mother's waist. Her mother reciprocated and pressed her cheek to the top of her head, like how her father did. Copper had such a good relationship with them.

At the Hospital

Yusei listened to the lapsing silence again. It was…difficult to start the conversation with his mother and vice versa when they hardly knew each other. Strangely, the Signer didn't mind. He was just glad he was actually with his mother. He wanted to build their relationship; after being deprived of a true mother-son relationship his entire life, he wanted one more than anything.

He had good relationships with everyone else. Martha had been like his mother for him, Jack, Crow, and Kalin when they had been growing up. The relationship he had with the blonde, ginger, and ice-blue-haired men was a brotherly one; they had grown up together. And as far he was concerned, they were his brothers. With Leo and Luna, it was similar as the previously mentioned relationship; they were like the little brother and sister he never had. They felt he was like a brother, too. The one with Akiza was love in the husband-wife kind of way; they were that after all. And then he was Copper's father, which was their relationship to each other.

"You look so much like him." His mother's voice snapped him out of his thought about relationships he had with his friends and family.

"Hmmm?" he asked, looking at Nan, who was looking at her lap.

"Your father." She answered, "You look so much like him."

"Oh." He responded, "So I've heard."

"Your daughter looks like you, too." She said quietly.

"Not completely, but she does mostly," he replied, "She had her mother's eye shape and facial features. She's strong yet delicate like her mother, too."

"She seems…" she paused, trying to find the right word, "…sweet."

He chuckled a little, "That's typically what everyone says about her. She's very sweet—my and Akiza's sweet, baby girl."

"Are you close to your wife?" she asked strangely. She wasn't sure how he would take that.

"Akiza and I have been close for a long time. Even when we were just friends, we were pretty close."

"Then you're pretty close to your other friends too, I take it."

Yusei nodded, "Though, there have been times I haven't been. It was especially like that during the Signer-Dark Signer war and a little before that."

"That's what your father hoped for after you were born; that'd you'd be able to be close to others and have good friends." The brunette commented, almost absently.

"Were you close to…dad?" the dark-haired man asked. His mother nodded, as if in a trance. He glanced at the clock and stood a bit reluctantly, "It's getting late; I should probably get going."

"All right." Nan responded.

"I'm going to talk to Akiza tonight about you living with us." He told her as he began to leave.

"All right." She repeated, "Yusei?"

"Yes, mom?" he inquired.

"Yusei…I-I…I love you, son." The brunette told him.

That stopped him in his tracks. The only people he had ever said that to him (that he could remember) was Akiza and Copper—his family. He wasn't sure how he should respond. He hardly knew his mother. What should he say?

"I…I do…too." He told her slowly, "I'm going to stop by tomorrow. Bye mom."

"Bye, Yusei." His mother told him, "Until…Until tomorrow."

Next Time in Lost and Found...

"Akiza. How…How would you feel if my mother lived with us?"

"I don't know. It'd be a little strange at first, but I'd get over it. If she has no place, you're right; we do have plenty of room. And it'd be a great way to get to know her. It's all right with me if your mother lives with us."

"And you already know it's a-okay with me, dad."

"Thank you, Akiza, Copper. This means a lot. Will you come with me tomorrow when I see her, Black Rose?"

"I would love to."

"Mom, this is Akiza. Akiza, this is my mom."

"It's a pleasure to be able to meet you, Mrs. Fudo."

"Likewise, Akiza."

"I'd like you to know, Mrs. Fudo, I have wanted to meet you since I fell in love with your son. It's an honor to do so."

NEXT TIME—CHAPTER 10: DECISIONS, DECISIONS

AnimeKiwi369: Well, that's that.

Copper: I have a bad feeling about those visions you made me see.

AnimeKiwi369: *Innoccent tone*. I don't know what you're talking about.

Copper: I'm keeping my eyes on you.

AnimeKiwi369: Good luck with that. Anyway, I'd like to know what you thought.

Copper: In other words, review.

AnimeKiwi369: Yeah. *Sighs*. I didn't get as many reviews as I wanted for the last chapter. So I'm taking a step back.

Copper: What do you mean?

AnimeKiwi369: I'm only asking for a mere ten reviews instead of fifteen if that's okay. But at least I have 101 reviews.

Copper: 101? For just the prologue and the first eight chapters?

AnimeKiwi369: *Nods*.

Copper: *Squeals in delight*.

AnimeKiwi369: Yeah, well, I'm going onto the review request. Please be kind and please review and thank you who are reviewing/have reviewed so far. ;D