WUN: Among the Stars

by stellartrishula

A collection of oneshots and side stories set in the Waking Up Normal universe, told by a variety of characters throughout the timeline of the story.

4. Another Suitcase In Another Hall II

Anako

---

Shinji and Reika seem to be doing okay in the morning, which makes me feel better. Shinji seemed to take the whole me disappearing for a year and a half without explanation, while only being in contact with Reika thing pretty well.

"So, you're going to help Kaoru control his powers?" Reika asks as she's making us all breakfast.

"Yeah, he seems like a good kid." I swirl my coffee with a spoon absentmindedly. "He has exams coming up in school, so I figured I'd help. He's only got Yuuka, and she's not exactly the best at explaining things, is she?"

"You do have a point," Reika hums. "It just seems weird that you'd offer to do that right out of the gate."

"She's probably doing it to get close to Yuuka." Shinji raises an eyebrow at me from where's he standing, beside Reika at the stove. Reika turns to look at me. She makes a face like that's the most reasonable explanation there is. It's the right one, but I'm not letting them know that.

"What?" I frown. "Am I not allowed to do something nice for someone else without it being suspicious?"

"We didn't say that," Reika shrugs her shoulders.

"Your face is red." Shinji points out, which only makes my cheeks feel warmer. "I think I just hit the nail on the head."

I look down at the kitchen table, just to avoid those two altogether. It's then that I notice notification pop up on my screen.

Hey, what time are you free at today? Also, where do you want to do the whole training thing? Yuuka brought me to a spot in the park yesterday, but it's too cold for that today. Any ideas? -Kaoru

Yuuka really is immune to the cold, she told me once that it's just an effect of her growing up in the Satellite. She walks around in winter in skirts with no jacket and be completely fine. But where to train him? Normally, I just would have used somewhere around Black Flag. But now, that's not really an option.

"Do you two know somewhere I could train Kaoru?"

"I mean, you two can use the living room if you want. Both Shinji and I are in work today, so there's that."

"You sure?" She doesn't turn to look at me, but she nods. "Thanks." I text Kaoru this and include Reika's address.

It works out that Kaoru arrives before Shinji and Reika leave for work. We sit around chatting for a while, because Kaoru looks very nervous. We all head into the living room. Reika gets Shinji to move the coffee table, so we're able to sit on the rug in the middle of the room.

"So, tell me exactly what Yuuka did with you yesterday?" This is a start, I guess.

"Well, she just got me to try meditating." He sighs. "I'm very not good at it though."

"Don't worry about it." I reassure him. "Meditation isn't the only solution. What works for Yuuka mightn't work for you. You have the same aura, but that shouldn't affect this much. In case you're wondering, dueling really isn't a part of trying to control your powers. I mean, they're how you know if your control is strong enough, but that's a whole different thing."

"Then what are we doing to do?" Kaoru's brows are furrowed slightly. He's very impatient.

"Well, nobody really understands what an aura is." I begin to explain. "The best way to explain it is like… a psychic's energy. Close your eyes for me." He does as I say. "Can you feel something different about me? Compared to Reika, let's just say. Reika makes eye contact with me from where she is on the couch. The look in her eyes are telling me that she just wanted to be a silent observer, which she will be.

"Yeah, I can feel it."

"What does it feel like?" There's a pause.

"It sounds weird, but like… beach waves? Does that make sense? You know the little ones, just like little ripples."

"I get you," I chuckle. "That's what an aura is. Every psychic has one, you'll be able to tell who's a psychic or not quite easily. Can you feel your own aura? What does it feel like?"

"Static electricity," he replies so quickly that I think he already knew the answer. "I feel like it's concentrated in my chest and hands."

"Interesting," I begin. "I've never heard anyone say their hands. The chest and head are the most common places. Don't worry, it doesn't really mean anything." There's silence. His eyes are still closed. "Take a deep breath for me. In… and out." I continue to repeat that over and over, until I feel his aura calm. Reika's watching us with intent eyes from the couch. Shinji has his arm thrown around her shoulder and is scrolling on his phone. It's weird that they're dating now. I mean they were on the cusp of it for a long time, but it finally happened after I left.

"Now, draw that energy from your hands and chest. Let it spread around your body. Moving into your abdomen, your legs and your feet." He exhales deeply. "As it spreads, you should feel the pressure lighten. You're not getting any stronger or weaker. That power inside you is just redistributing itself. Do you feel it?"

"I do," he nods slightly.

"Okay, open your eyes." His eyes open very slowly, almost like he just woke up. "That's what it should feel like. It looks like you were approaching that meditating state."

"Did it?" He blinks in surprise.

"Yeah," I nod. "That feeling you had is what it should be like. Maybe this isn't exactly how it works, but it seems like it. When that energy is condensed in your chest, or wherever, it tends to expel itself in one go, and that's when you do damage. At least, that's how I feel, and other people agree with me. Having that energy spread out through your body will stop it coming out in big bursts. Does that make sense?"

"It does actually." I can hear the hint of surprise in his voice. That makes me smile.

I spend the rest of the day trying to help him meditate. He manages to last a few minutes in the state before snapping out of it again. I ask him how he feels at the end of the day. Tired is how he answers. There is really no doubt that he's Yuuka's brother. His real answer is that the energy in his chest doesn't feel as tight. He doesn't get the joke when I ask if he suffers from heartburn.

"Is your sister going out with anyone?" I ask suddenly as he's getting ready to leave. "No one seems to know the answer. I figure you'd know, cause telepathy." I know this as fact now. I asked Kaoru if he has noticed any other powers outside of materialisation, it's not uncommon after all. He told me about the telepathy. It's only with Yuuka, and vice versa. I'm confused as to why, since telepathy would normally mean all psychics.

"Don't think so." He scratches the back of his neck. "There's the thing going on with Raiden, but I don't think it's official."

"Yeah, I heard about that."

"You're not mad about that?" He raises an eyebrow. "I thought you were going out with him before…"

"Wasn't official either," I answer. "I just think there are better people out there for your sister than him. You haven't met him yet, right? He's an absolute asshole, I don't recommend meeting him."

"Like who?" He asks, and I feel my eyes widen. "Cause if someone asks about someone else's relationship status, that means they're interested in them." I gulp. "Apparently."

"Well-"

"You like my sister, don't you?" He really just came out and asked that.

"Well, Kaoru," I sigh, "I'm not going to lie to you." I say nothing more and keep my eyes focused on a spot just over his shoulder.

"I'll take that as a yes." I feel the heat in my cheeks. "I mean, out of everyone that could potentially date my sister, you're probably the best."

"Me?" I put my hands to my burning cheeks.

"Yeah," he shrugs his shoulders. "You seem genuinely nice and caring, that's always good in a person." Kaoru scratches the back of his head and glances away. Despite being pretty much the male version of Yuuka, Kaoru has got his own charm. "I-I should get going."

"You're right, you probably have homework to catch up on." He nods curtly. "At least Christmas break is coming up soon." Kaoru leaves after that without much of a goodbye. He certainly is a strange one.

Kaoru's pretty cute, I think to myself. But do I think he's cute based on his own merits, or because he looks so much like Yuuka? I suppose he's a good backup if things don't work out with Yuuka. I start to chuckle, then I stop. Could I even go with a guy again? I shudder and push that thought to the back of my mind. That's not the first time I've thought that. That question is only becoming more and more frequent in my mind.

I sit on the couch and watch television with Reika's mom, who comes back from bingo not long after Kaoru leaves, until Reika comes home from work.

---

Kaoru tells me that he's busy the next day. Considering that Shinji is also busy, I know that he's really helping Yuuka leave Black Flag.

Shinji comes back to Reika's house late in the evening, covered in dust with blood smeared on his clothes. Reika nearly knocks over the kitchen chair when she stands up.

"It's not my blood," he reassures.

"Is Yuuka okay?" are the next words out of her mouth.

"I take it that Raiden didn't take too kindly to you leaving," I say. Shinji stares at me for a second, then he peels his jacket off.

"Oh no, he had no problem with me leaving." He hangs his head. "Yuuka, on the other hand. He dueled her. He was using his powers, and he brought down the entire Black Flag base. We were outside of the base when it happened. Yuuka barely escaped. She was bleeding heavily. Kaoru called an ambulance. They took her in. She's been in and out of surgery already. She should be fine. Kaoru's still up in the hospital now."

"Dear gods," Reika says, moving to sit back down in the chair. Shinji sits down beside her. There's a silence hanging in the air.

At least she's okay, I repeat to myself.

The next day, she still hasn't woken up.

And the day after that.

And the day after that.

Shinji makes me defend the remaining Black Flag territory with him. It's easy, I just form a barrier and shoot attacks out from behind it. The territory shrinks, but it's still there. We know for definite that Raiden's vanished. That's why everyone suddenly swarmed the territory. That makes Yuuka the leader now, doesn't it? She can't do much from a hospital bed.

On the sixth day, I go up to visit her. I wait for a time that I can go by myself. There's two people, the maximum number of visitors at one time, in the room already, so I have to wait until they come back down.

Two guys walk into the lobby and sign the visitors book. I recognise their faces from a gang. Onyx Slicers.

"Do you think she'll get the flower language?" The taller blond asks.

"She's not as stupid as she acts, Takumi." The smaller dark skinned boy sighs. "Yuuka knows that revolution is coming."

The nurse comes over to tell me to go up, and to sign the visitors book. Takumi? I know that name. Shinji's mentioned him a few times. I think he's involved in gangs somehow. But why is he here and what's this revolution?

I walk into Yuuka's hospital room. A private room, so it's just her. No doubt it's because of Yuuka's family, they're filthy rich by the sounds of it.

She looks so much paler than normal, especially when she's surrounded by the pure white of the room. I notice all of her cuts on her body. Most of them have healed, only leaving small scars which will probably disappear soon. Thick bandages are still wrapped around her head and torso. I take a seat in the chair beside the bed. I notice the big bouquet of blue flowers beside the bed, only now because I was too busy looking at Yuuka. Flower language. I look it up on my phone and try to figure out what the type of flower is. Going by the picture online, I'm going to say that they're Morning Glories and the meaning is wilful promise. That's such a strange meaning. A revolution and a promise? Is this revolution the real reason she left Black Flag?

Yuuka lies in the bed motionless. Sometimes, I become uncertain that she's still alive and then her fingers twitch. The experience is very mind numbing. Looking at her lying in a hospital bed is bringing no emotions out in me. I just feel… numb. I want to take her away from here, I know she hates hospitals. I place my hand on top of hers. I try to feel for her aura, but it's faint. It spikes every time that her hand twitches. Is she dreaming, I wonder. I've heard that happens when people are in comas.

According to Shinji, there is nothing wrong with her. No severe internal damage, no brain injuries, no fractures. Just some cuts and bruises. Yet, she still won't wake up. The doctors are saying that it could be stemming from the trauma. She had tried to kill herself a week before that building collapsed on her. I suppose that's trauma enough. Or maybe it's something more. No one knows what really happened to her in the Satellite, aside from her and Yusei.

I squeeze her hand and pray that she'll wake up. I press a kiss to her forehead. Maybe that's as close as I'll ever get. The thought crosses my head. I hope not, but still it's a possibility. I try not to think about it and let myself dream.

I go to leave, but the door opens before I reach the handle. Yusei Fudo, I recognise him in an instant. Not hard when his face was plastered everywhere for weeks, even months.

"Oh hey," I mutter.

"Hey," he replies. The awkwardness of that exact moment is so strong, I swear it was tangible. "Did you bring those flowers?"

"Oh no, they were there when I got here." I shake my head. "Nice flowers though." I don't bring up Takumi Chiba. I get the feeling that no one was supposed to know about their visit.

"Yeah, they are." He nods slowly.

"See you." He barely replies before I'm out in the hallway with the door closed behind me. You might have some competition when it comes to Yuuka, Shinji once said to me and it's starting to make sense. I start walking through the hallways and back outside, signing the visitor book on the way out. I purposely take the long way back to Reika's house, taking in the cold December air.

---

Yuuka has been kicked out of her apartment and lost her job in the boutique. Not only that, since Raiden abandoned ship, she's also now the leader of Black Flag. To be keep her safe while she recovers, she's staying with her friends from the Satellite, which include Yusei. Every time Shinji brings up Yusei, I can't help but feel jealous. He talks about him like he's the one most worried about Yuuka, like he's the one who matters most here besides Yuuka herself.

Once Shinji break that news to her, she said that she was planning to give the title to Yuudai. I point out that Yuudai was the kid who died on Cardinal Dragon territory. Shinji tells me that there was someone else with that name. He makes a face but says no more.

Kaoru tells me the day that Yuuka is moving her stuff from the old apartment. I hang around, just to see her. I tried to invite her to Christmas at Reika's house, but I couldn't get the words out. Her friend just glanced at me every few seconds like I was wasting their time. I wasn't wasting her time, right? No, we're friends with the possibility to become more. I want it to become more, but I don't know if she does.

"What's your sister doing for Christmas?" I ask Kaoru at the next training session after that.

"Having dinner at Yusei's place, with all their friends. Our mom's going away for Christmas, so she invited me over."

"Would I know anyone else?" I press.

"It's mostly Yusei's friends, I think. None of Yuuka's other friends are going."

"Are you implying that she has friends other than us?" And by us, I mean Shinji, Reika and I.

"Well, you probably don't know Takumi and Kenta." My head perks up.

"Not really, did you meet them?"

"Oh yeah, we ran into them the other day." Oh yeah, I doubt it was accidental considering he cancelled one of our weekend slots for it. He didn't say it outright, and his excuse seemed flimsy at best.

"What do you think of them?" I ask, seeing if I can get Kaoru to spill the beans. It must have something to do with that revolution. Yuuka must dragging Kaoru into it because of their telepathy, a useful tool I must admit. Note to self, teach Kaoru the best way to defend yourself from a psychic.

"I mean, Takumi's pretty good looking." His eyes widen all of a sudden. "Not that I'm gay or anything."

"Gotcha," I answer. Kaoru's at least a little gay, good to know. I remember I used to be like that, then I stopped lying to myself.

"Do you want to go for food?" He asks at the end of the session. "I'm absolutely starving."

"Sure," I answer.

"One thing," he interjects. "My friend Emiko might be joining us, is that okay?"

"Your school friend? Yeah, that's fine." The way he describes her makes it seem like that they're practically dating, but Kaoru seems oblivious to it. Apparently, Emiko was there when he met up with Yuuka again. Which somehow led Emiko to becoming good friends with Shinji suddenly. It's very confusing, especially considering that I haven't actually met her yet.

We head further into the City from Reika's house in the suburbs. We find a small cafe, called Melon Jelly, on a side street. Kaoru says that's a regular place for him to go, since it's small, quiet and out of the way. We walk into the cafe. I notice the rainbow pride flag draped on the back wall, just seeing it warms my heart. My eyes go from the flag on the wall to the table nearest to it. A girl, sitting by herself at a table for four, shifts in her seat when she notices us. A waiter comes up to us, but Kaoru tells him that his friend already grabbed a table. Kaoru leads me to the same table.

"Emiko, this is Anako." He introduces me as soon as we approach the table. "Anako, Emiko." Emiko has very tanned skin with dark hair, and striking gold eyes. I find it hard to believe that Emiko is Kaoru's age, she looks at least four years younger than him. Yet, I know for a fact that she's one year below him in school and two years younger than him.

"It's good to finally meet you." She looks like she's going to hand my shake but stops at the last second. I'm trying to tell if the smile on her face is genuine, but I'm getting nothing from her. Kaoru gestures for me to sit across from Emiko, so I do, albeit a little confused. I expect him to sit down beside Emiko, and apparently she did too, because her face falls when he sits down beside me. "Especially since you've been helping Kaoru so much lately." I notice a hint of venom in her words.

"Yeah, you too." I nod, pretending the venom wasn't there. "I've heard a lot about you." This seems to put her at ease. I notice her stealing glances at Kaoru.

Kaoru does most of the talking. He talks about his training. Emiko seems to ask him all of the questions, even about the spiritual side of things. You think she would have asked me, considering I'm the one who's teaching him this, but no. She's cute, so I let it slide for now. The conversation topic moves to school and their exams after the Christmas break, so I just absentmindedly stir my caramel macchiato.

Our food arrives, so the conversation slows down a little. I notice that Emiko never directly talks to me. If she ever looks at me, it's a cold gaze. Yet somehow, whenever her attention is directed towards Kaoru, she's a ray of sunshine. It's quite easy to see what's going on here.

Emiko is jealous of me, and it's completely obvious.

Kaoru doesn't seem to get it. I don't think he gets a lot of things, bless him. Once the lunch is over, Emiko is quick to drag Kaoru out of the cafe. She even pays for our whole table in an attempt to get out quicker. She conveniently forgets to invite me. Kaoru goes to point it out, but I shake my head.

If she's just going to hate me, I don't want to spend my time around her. Regardless of how cute she is.

---

Yuuka and I have, surprisingly, been texting a lot, despite how little I see her in person. It's mostly small talk. She's a lot more closed off than she was before. It's hard to get her to open up in any meaningful way. She won't talk about what happened to her after I left the City. Anything from that time, not just her time in the Satellite which no one seems to know about. She says it was just a big misunderstanding, and it's all cleared up now. She always diverts her attention to the book she's reading. Emiko apparently just throws books at her and she reads them. I start reading, just so we have something in common. Then, I finish five books in two weeks on top of my new job of answering calls for a psychic helpline.

She's so secretive, and it hurts me. I want her to open up to me. I want to exchange the more hidden parts of ourselves and understand each other. But sometimes, it's like talking to a brick wall. Why won't she open up to me? If only she knew how I felt.

Kaoru definitely knows, which makes me question how Yuuka doesn't because of the telepathy thing. Kaoru says that Yuuka doesn't intrude on his thoughts unless there's a reason to, something Kaoru doesn't reciprocate. He's a surprisingly good wingman. He makes it so that I accidentally run into Kaoru and Yuuka, or Yuuka runs into us. It's a very good arrangement. Yuuka is apparently hard to get a hold of lately, so I feel kind of lucky for once.

Shinji comes into Reika's house one day while I'm reading upside down on the couch. "She's in work." I say, as he sits down on the loveseat.

"I know, I'm here to talk to you." I raise my eyebrows, putting down my book and turning to sit the right way up. "It's about Yuuka."

"Yuuka?" Shinji nods, with a strange look in his eyes. "I want to ask your opinion on something."

"Go ahead," I say cautiously.

"So, Yuuka gave the leadership of Black Flag to some kid called Yuudai. Now, he's gone and formed Team Liberation. A group dedicated to taking down every gang in the City."

"Are you serious?" He nods again. "You'd call that a revolution, wouldn't you?"

"I suppose you would." Shinji tilts his head slightly. "You know something, don't you?"

"I have a suspicion." I sigh. "Keep talking, I'll tell you if it's relevant."

"Here's the thing about Yuudai." Shinji rests his elbows on his knees and leans forward. "It's true that the old Yuudai was murdered on Cardinal Dragons' territory-"

"By the Onyx Slicers." I finish. "Raiden didn't go after the Cardinal Dragons, but soon after, a hit was put on the leader of the Onyx Slicers. I doubt it was a coincidence." Shinji's face falls, but it hardens up again for him to continue.

"That Yuudai was murdered. Just over a year ago, another Yuudai joined Black Flag. He went up in ranks very quickly, but he was very rarely seen by anyone. He went on a lot of recon missions for Raiden. People reckon that Raiden managed to nab him from another gang. I don't believe that."

"Why?"

"Let's put it this way. The very few times that I saw him, Yuuka couldn't be found anywhere."

"So Yuuka is the one liberating the City?"

"I think so," he nods solemnly. "I don't know what she's thinking."

"It wasn't her idea," I say slowly. Shinji raises an eyebrow. "Do you remember that a bouquet of blue flowers suddenly appeared in Yuuka's hospital room?" He nods. "I know who put it there. A blond guy, quite tall-"

"Takumi." Shinji says. "I knew it."

"You know him?"

"He's a friend of ours." He nods. "Turns out that he's the current leader of the Onyx Slicers." I gasp. I go to ask a hoard of questions, but Shinji keeps talking. "We met him before we knew that. Once we did, we manage to come to a truce between our two gangs."

"That's good at least. It means nothing now that they're taking down all the gangs."

"Admittedly, a few months ago, Takumi asked me about this idea of taking down all the gangs in the City." He explains. "I said no, because I knew I wanted to leave Black Flag. Yuuka hadn't made up her mind at the time. Then, a lot of stuff happened with Yuuka and I haven't talked about it to her since."

"So, what now?" I ask. "We know that Yuuka is leading Team Liberation, what do we do now?"

"I don't know." Shinji holds his head in his hands. "She'll deny everything if we bring it up to her. She's using that secret identity for a reason."

I think about bringing Kaoru up, but I stop myself at the last second. So, I just nod along.

I decide it's best for me to approach Kaoru myself. He's become comfortable around me, so he should tell me if I press him.

"How did you get those scars?" I ask as Kaoru takes his hoodie off for a session. I see the panic in his eyes, instantly regretting the simple action.

"Got jumped the other day, they didn't manage to steal anything." He says rather coolly. "I'm lucky Yuuka was there."

"Oh really? Was it someone from the Jackals?" He freezes. "I heard they got taken out the other day. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

"Oh no, I wouldn't." He doesn't blink at all for a few seconds. "No."

"So Yuuka introducing you to Takumi Chiba, the leader of the Onyx Slicers, wasn't a coincidence? It wasn't all of you planning some revolution, liberating the City or anything. You've never heard of Team Liberation?"

"How do you know that?" His face hardens slightly.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out." I don't tell him about Shinji also knowing, that's for another time.

"You're right about everything." He nods slowly. "I am part of Team Liberation. But don't get me wrong, I'm only doing this to protect Yuuka."

"I want to help you," I say earnestly.

"I don't think I can help." He refuses to meet my eyes. "Takumi only let me join them because Yuuka insisted. I don't think Takumi would listen to me."

"Then, I'll do what I can to help you." I sigh. "I don't know what I can do for you, but all you have to do is ask me."

"I will," he nods curtly.

---

Kaoru tells me about each gang encounter after it happens. After the leader of the Phantom Riders challenges Yuudai to a Riding Duel, Kaoru suddenly becomes inspired to pick it up himself. He goes out and spends a good portion of his savings on a new, sleek, black D-Wheel. Reika complains that she could have fixed up a used one for him and saved him a lot of money. But Kaoru, being from a wealthy family, seemed confused by that prospect. He starts going for lessons, which blows big holes in our regular training schedule. But dare I say, that he mightn't need them anymore. He had a dueling test in school, and didn't blow a hole in the ceiling, or materialise at all.

Kaoru: Hey, going to that roller skating rink with Yuuka now. Maybe you could pop in?

I'm so glad, in that exact moment, that I wasn't working. I wish he had told me in advance what day he was going, and when, because I have to suffer on the bus until I get there. Yuuka decided that Kaoru should go to the rink because he was suffering with his balance. I was surprised because I've never heard of that before, but also not, because it sounds exactly like an idea that Yuuka would come up with.

"Kaoru!" I call out to him once I enter the little spectator area outside the rink. As soon as I do, Emiko immediately leaves Kaoru's side, only to grab onto Yuuka's arm and practically drag her around the rink. Kaoru grips the edge of the rink. He's really expecting me to walk all the way around to him. "Hey, how's it going?"

"I don't know," he says as he keeps his iron grip on the rail. That really says it all.

"So, it's worth me paying the money then?"

"Oh yeah definitely." He nods, a little scared.

I realise, as I'm putting on the skates, that black skinny jeans mightn't be the best thing to wear for this activity. But I'm already here, so I'm just gonna go through with it. I come out into the rink. Kaoru is still going around the edge slowly by himself. Yuuka and Emiko are doing laps closer to the centre. I start to skate forward to Yuuka and Emiko. Just as I reach them, I somehow trip over my own feet. I fall forward, but I end up grabbing Yuuka's waist to keep me from falling. All three of us let out a shriek. Yuuka gives me her hand to steady myself, but I pull my hand back immediately after.

"There she is," I put that hand on my chest, "my favourite." Emiko says nothing and skates off, leaving Yuuka and I alone. I can't believe she honestly thinks that I'm here for Kaoru, it would make me laugh if I wasn't in public. Like I'd ever go out with a man again, ew. As soon as I realise what I've just thought, I suppress it.

"How are you doing?" Yuuka asks, as I link arms with her as Emiko did. We do laps of the rink together, overtaking Kaoru and Emiko in very little time.

"Pretty good. Been training a lot with Kaoru. He's gotten so good. I'd dare say he's better than you." Yuuka blinks in surprise and frowns. "But anyway, how have you been?"

"Okay, I guess." She sighs. "I've just had a lot going on. I need to go back to the gym. I've gotten very unfit since my accident, and it's starting to annoy me. I can't run as well as I used to. I kinda miss just going out for a jog."

"Oh, I get you." I completely understand. I stopped going to the gym when I moved up north, but at least I've started back. "I mean, you could always just come to the gym with me. I kind of need a gym buddy with me anyway. I lost touch with all of the friends I had before I moved away, so I'm kinda on my own now." It's true. Reika is my best friend, so I kept in contact with her. I was afraid to contact anyone else, and I suffered because of it. Shinji and Yuuka are the only people that I've gotten back in contact with.

"Yeah, I'll go with you eventually." She answers.

"Aw, that would be great, I'm looking forward to it." I give her an actual genuine smile. Just thinking about the friends that I've lost makes me sad, which is why I don't think about them. At least now that I've come back, I've gained Kaoru as a friend.

I've thought about how I could be of use to Team Liberation. I have the ability to change my aura. I can make myself feel like someone else. I brought up my idea to Kaoru. He thinks it's a good idea. I want to tell Yuuka that I can be useful, I've been practicing with Kaoru's help, but I don't want to tell her that I know she's the leader. If I drop the hint, maybe she'll understand.

"But if you need help with anything," I begin, "you can always ask me, right." I look her in the eye and change my aura. I feel it shift and grow, until I feel static in my fingertips. Her eyes widen. I shift my aura into Yuuka's. She shivers and stops in her tracks completely. I relax my aura, and it returns to normal. I think she knows what I was doing. I can only hope that she sees its use. I see Kaoru looking at us from the corner of my eye.

"Yeah," is all she says. She's clearly shaken by what I just did, so I slowly bring her around for more laps.

"So, what do you think of Kaoru's D-Wheel?" I change the conversation topic.

"It's really nice," she says. "It's black just like my soul."

"Oh my gods," I put on a fake surprised voice, "our souls match."

"No way!" She puts on an equally fake surprised voice. The two of us burst out laughing at that.

"I like it too, but I think I actually prefer your D-Wheel." I pout.

"It's because it's made with love," she nods with a smile on her face.

"Damn bitch, you're right." I chuckle. Reika made her D-Wheel look like her favourite ace monster, Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier. It's something that just makes her D-Wheel feel more personal. She has lightened up so much since we started talking about D-Wheels. It makes my heart flutter, honestly.

We keep talking as we make laps around the rink. I think we're at least twelve laps up on Kaoru and Emiko by the time he decides to call it quits. Yuuka's face falls once she's around Kaoru again. Does she blame my little stunt on him? Wait. Does she know that I know about Team Liberation? No, that's impossible.

Needless to say, despite how the skating may have helped Kaoru's balance, this was a bad experience considering no one's really looking at each other. Well, Emiko and I are looking at Kaoru and Yuuka, but that's about it.

---

There's radio silence on all fronts, from both Kaoru and Yuuka, for a few days. That is, until Kaoru calls me one evening.

"Don't panic," is the first thing he says. Not even a hello.

"Meaning, this will cause you to panic, but don't."

"Yuuka is in hospital again-"

"Oh dear gods, what happened to her? Is she okay? Is she alive-" Kaoru's sigh cuts me off.

"She was taking a night ride on the highway, and someone challenged her to a duel. They caused real damage, and she crashed. From the looks of it, she has a concussion and she's pretty badly scraped, since she was just wearing a shirt and leggings when she crashed. At least she had her helmet on, cause her head was bleeding and she's pretty disorientated."

"But she'll be okay?"

"Yes." At that, I sigh in relief.

"But who?"

"She doesn't remember."

"Was it someone from a gang?" I ask.

"Probably," he responds. "There's someone else attacking people on the roads, but this accident doesn't feel like the other ones. They're writing it off as a Ghost attack, but I think otherwise."

"Me too." I hold my head in my hands. "It was mostly likely someone from a gang that you've already taken down. Maybe the Jackals, they're known to be pretty vicious."

"I'll keep an eye out," he says. There's a pause. "Can you do me a favour?"

"Yeah," I say even though I don't know what it is.

"Can you come to my house? I need to give you something." I hum, signally yes. "I'm on my way from the hospital, I can pick you up if you want."

"Please," I say. I know Reika's house isn't exactly the farthest from his house, but I'm just lazy.

Kaoru's silent from when he picks up until he pulls up into the garage. Their house is actually bigger than I imagined. Even what would be the tiny hallway is surprisingly roomy.

"I thought about your idea, making yourself appear as Yuuka with your aura." He starts going up the stairs, two steps at a time, so I do my best to keep up. "Now, that Yuuka might have to be on the sidelines for a while, I had an idea myself." Kaoru opens the door to a room, and judging by the rather feminine decor, I'm guessing that it's Yuuka. I stand beside the door, not waiting to intrude on her privacy, regardless of whether she's here or not. "This is what I have."

"A cape, a hoodie, and a mask?" I say as he shows me what he grabbed from Yuuka's room.

"They're Yuudai's." My eyes widen, I look up at him for a better explanation. "I was thinking that, since you're the same height as Yuuka and you can change your aura to be like hers, you could fill in for her, should we need it."

"That…" I mutter, taking the mask, hoodie, and cape. "That could work."

"If we're really stuck, I'll make sure to call you." I nod, folding them up neatly. "Oh, also Yuuka thinks of everything and has spare versions of all of those, so she's unlikely to notice."

"That's good."

"Also, I don't think it's a good idea if you hang around too long. If my mother sees you here, she will not leave you alone until she learns what you want with me and your entire life story. She's up in the hospital still, and I don't know when she's coming home."

"Good point," I raise my eyebrows in a yikes fashion. "Right, I'll see you later." I say once Kaoru's walked me to the front door.

"Have fun at work later," he says.

"I'll try my best."

---

Kaoru: Hey, want to go to the Daimon Area and check up on Yuuka? He's tracking down the dickhead who make her crash, make sure she doesn't get hurt again. Also bring a duel disk, just in case.

I borrow Reika's duel disk, since I left my old one behind when I left the City. A crowd begins to disperse in the centre of the Area when I arrive. I see Yuuka talking to someone on the ground. Then, I get a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. I listen to my instincts and I start running. I look behind me. I see a dragon on a rooftop, and it's moving to attack.

I put everything in summoning Chaos Goddess, my ace monster. I will my monster to appear beside Yuuka. It shields her from the dark energy that was spiralling towards her. I reach her just as the smoke starts to clear. I look back at that rooftop.

Dark End Dragon.

That's Raiden's ace monster. Is it possible? He left the City, he ran away. How could he be here? I meet Yuuka's eyes, and they're just as wide as mine.

"Stop trying to kill my best friend!" Takumi yells at the dude on the ground, who I assume is Yuuka's attacker.

"I swear it wasn't me, this time." He scoffs.

"He's right," I say. "That monster. It could only belong to…"

"Raiden." Yuuka finishes.

"Raiden?!" Takumi freezes, looking between both of us. There's a wild look in his eyes. Meanwhile, Yuuka's turned alarmingly pale. To be fair, the last time she saw Raiden he did try to murder her.

"It has to be. Who else could it be?" I ponder. It's Raiden. I look at Yuuka to see if she has an answer, but she's just staring at the roof, from which both the psychic and dragon have vanished. "Can you get a good read on the aura?" I ask her. "I'm not strong enough to read it from this far away."

"I don't know," she mutters. Her eyes dart all over the place. Is she doubting herself? She's only making me more convinced that it's Raiden.

"I've never met the guy, so I couldn't tell you either." Yuuka's attacker says out of the blue. I turn and glare at him. I don't appreciate his sarcasm right now. "But I mean…" he continues, "It's just Dark End Dragon. Surely that could be any given psychic, it's not exactly an uncommon card."

"But that's just it!" I argue. "That's something Raiden would do. Completely anonymous."

"I trust Yuuka's instinct." Takumi interjects, even though Yuuka give a definite answer.

"I don't know," she says. "It could be anyone, but still…" Her eyes stare at the rooftop. It has to be Raiden. Who else would attack her in broad daylight like that? Yuuka's attacker found her by her aura on a highway at four in the morning. This was a deliberate attack, while she's already weakened.

And that's exactly something Raiden would do.

Make a deliberate attack, and then take advantage of that weakness. He's done it before in Black Flag, and he'll do it again now.

"Come on," Takumi puts a hand on Yuuka's arm. "Let's get you home." Yuuka barely nods. Takumi turns to look at Yuuka's attacker. "If you even think of trying anything again, I'll come after you myself." He doesn't even look at me. He leads Yuuka away, without as much as a goodbye.

Could it be that Raiden's back? I want to say that it's impossible, because he left the City. But I came back, and so could he. And he's going for Yuuka. That's what scares me. He nearly killed her the first time, who's to say that he won't finish the job this time? Or that his attention won't turn to me, and get rid of me once and for all?

---

All of sudden, Shinji starts talking about the WRGP, the big Riding Duel tournament they announced a few months ago. Knowing Shinji the way I do, that means he's planning a team for it. The WRGP is different from other Riding Duel tournaments. Two teams of three enter. Then, they duel by one-on-one, and when a duelist loses, they leave the cards on their field to the next person in their team.

He tries to make Reika form a team with him. I know this because she was complaining about it to me. Reika's not the best duelist, and she knows this. Besides, dueling in front of a big crowd would give her unimaginable anxiety, and she doesn't want or need that.

Shinji's eye then turns to Kaoru and his shiny new D-Wheel. He says yes, I know that. That's two out of three.

Then he asks me.

I was surprised by this. Mainly because I haven't dueled in two years. Then I realise it has been two years since I first left the City. And Shinji knows this.

"Yuuka actually suggested that I ask you." There we go. "Don't give me that face. I didn't even know that you still liked dueling."

"I've been a little too busy to duel." It's actually true.

"But do you want to join us?"

"Yeah, I'm up for it." Shinji fist bumps me in response.

"Now that means we have four members, but that just means that someone has to sit out during the match. I suppose we could just take turns-"

"Hold on," I interrupt him. "What do you mean four? I thought Reika said no." Shinji flinches. "Don't tell me. Please tell me that Emiko isn't on our team."

"Well, I'm not going to say that she's not on the team."

"Shinji-"

"Listen, she's very talented." I raise my eyebrows as he tries to rationalise me being on a team with a person who hates me. "She's fourth in her year in a dueling school. Not including her could work against us."

"Then why do you need me? You already have three." I huff.

"Listen, I'm gonna be the bench warmer and not you." Shinji sighs. "You're a better duelist than I am. You, Kaoru and Emiko would make a great team."

"But-"

"I'm sure Kaoru will be very disappointed when he finds out that you didn't join our team because you won't play nice for once in your life."

"I can't say no now!"

"Exactly," he says with a shit eating grin.

Reika picks our team name. Team Delta, after the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet because there's four of us on the team. I argue that there's five since Reika is our pit crew, but no one listens. Emiko rolls her eyes whenever I speak. Kaoru better appreciate what I'm doing for him.

---

Kaoru: By the way, the WRGP Premiere Party is this Saturday. You'll need something nice to wear.

Anako: Are you kidding me?

Kaoru: If it helps, I just told Emiko now too.

Oh yes, very helpful. What would make me happier than shopping with Emiko?

Finding Yuuka wandering around, clearly looking for a dress.

I start to panic. I pick out the first red thing I find, a short turtleneck dress made from a stretchy material. The red would go nice with her complexation, and her eyes.

"Is this what you're looking for?" I hold up the dress to her. She jumps slightly, looking up at me. "No? Alright then." I put the dress back on the rack further down.

"Ah no," she interjects, "that's a really nice dress. I just wasn't expecting it, that's all."

"Gave you a fright, didn't I?" I chuckle, realising that I actually surprised her. She must have been deep in thought, since she didn't even feel my aura.

"You did," she smiles. "How have you been?"

"Pretty good," I smile back. "And you? Trusting you haven't attacked by more psychics."

"No, I haven't been attacked, thankfully. So, I'm doing better than before." I laugh and play with my hair. That's when I realise that just her presence is making me nervous.

"That's good," I respond. "You've had a rough time recently."

"I have." Her eyes widen as she shakes her head.

"I heard Shinji asked you to be on his WRGP team."

"Yeah," she nods. "I said no though."

"Oh," I know she said no but it's still disappointing. "He asked me too."

"What did you say?" Yuuka asks as she begins to look at the racks of clothes beside us. She picks up the dress that I picked out for her.

"I said yes," I say as I rub the back of my neck.

"You should be a lot happier," she says, "considering Kaoru is on the same team and all." She grins at me like she knows something that I don't.

"Oh yeah, I guess." Hold on, she thinks that I like Kaoru, doesn't she? Why does everyone think that? I mean, sure he's great, but no.

"Oh, hey Anako." I have to suppress the urge to roll my eyes. Emiko's voice is just about as flat as her chest. Her eyes narrow as she looks at the dress that's Yuuka holding, and then to me. I notice the pile of dresses that she's carrying in her arms, and the bag from the expensive boutique upstairs. She was picking dresses out for Yuuka, and I found one that she actually likes. Jealousy will really be her own downfall.

"Hi Emiko," I respond. I have to be nice for Kaoru, and by extension, Yuuka. To my dismay, Emiko and Yuuka are actually friends. Could you imagine such a thing?

"Have you picked out a dress for the party yet?" She asks me with a completely straight face. Is she trying to ask nice as well? No doubt that's Shinji's doing.

"Think so," I hold up the skin tight black dress that's in my basket. "I just need to try it on." I was trying to see if there is anything else that I like before going on.

I think Yuuka's picked up on the animosity between us, since she starts to wander around looking at the racks of clothes. She followed by the girl who standing behind Emiko. I recognise her as that one duelist from the Fortune Cup final, Aki Izayoi. She's a psychic, known as the Black Rose Witch. She only became known in the gang circles once I left and she joined the Arcadia Movement. Yuuka is friends with her, and she's in Emiko's class, which explains why she's here. Kaoru told me that Yuuka and Aki are the pit crew members for Yusei's team in the WRGP.

I notice both Yuuka and Aki are glancing over at us while whispering. Emiko just ignores me as she looks at the clothes in the pile on her arm, with her boutique bag on the ground between her legs.

"Here, give me the pile." I say. "It'll make it easier to look through."

"I suppose so," her face softens slightly. She gives me the pile, picking up the top dress. She shakes her head and puts it on top of the clothes rack. I count the number of dresses, twelve. There's even a nice shirt and a pair of slacks in there.

"Are these all for Yuuka?" I ask.

"They were," she sighs. "The dress you found is the one she'll go with. I know that. The colour, the cut and the fabric all suit her very nicely. You must have an eye for that sort of thing."

"I suppose I do," I chuckle. I swear that I get the hint of a smile out of her. I pick up the last three dresses. "We'll give her these three to bring into the dressing room. These would look nice on her." There's a long black dress, a long blue and white dress, and a short pink dress. There's a wide range, but there's thought in each choice.

"You think so?" She asks, looking rather bashful.

I was right. All four dresses looked very nice on her, but she did choose the one I picked out for her. It accentuates her curves very nicely, which made me very happy. She throws a blazer that she bought earlier over the dress, which brings an extra layer of sophistication to the outfit.

The black dress that I found did fit very nicely. Yuuka added a wolf whistle as a joke, but it made me lose my mind. I ran back into the stall with my face burning red.

Once everyone had bought a dress, we all go to the coffee shop not too far from the shop we were in. I get a mocha, while Yuuka goes for pure black coffee. I still don't understand how she can drink that stuff. I only drink coffee for the caffeine, not because I actually enjoy its bitterness. Aki and Emiko both get a flavoured tea.

"Apparently Takumi is planning a huge night out." I say, looking straight at Yuuka. "Y'know, to celebrate."

"To celebrate what?" Emiko asks.

"No idea," I say, directing my attention away from Yuuka. I know that Team Liberation are close to conquering the entire city, there's only one gang left. Kaoru told me about this because he's never been to a club before. At this point, I wonder if he ever went outside before becoming a psychic.

"Yeah, he's been bugging me about going clubbing for the last while," Yuuka explains, "so that's basically what it is." She's keeping her answer purposefully vague. I notice that Aki is squinting slightly at Yuuka. She must be suspicious of what's going on, or maybe she already figured it out. There's a noticeable silence. Emiko seems to be the only one unaffected by the comment.

"Oh Aki!" Emiko's face lights up as she remembers something that can create a conversation. "Kaoru told me you're becoming a D-Wheeler!"

"Are you excited?" I ask her, hoping that this can get rid of the somewhat awkward silence.

"I am," she smiles. "Wouldn't that make everyone here a D-Wheeler?"

"Yeah, it would." I nod. "Good thing too. We always need more female D-Wheelers, maybe then we'll actually be taken seriously."

"If you need help with anything, you can always ask us." Emiko flashes a peace sign, like the fourteen-year-old girl she is on the inside.

"Yeah, I can beat up guys who make fun of you." We all laugh at Yuuka's comment, but I know that she's being completely serious. You don't get her build from fighting with words. Also, she will probably get made fun of. Seriously, why is sexism still a thing?

"Yuuka's actually making my Riding Suit," Aki says with pride. Both Emiko and I snap to look at Yuuka, who just stares at her cup of coffee.

"Why aren't you making me one?" Emiko puts on her best pout.

"Yeah, I'd love a suit made by you." I put on my best smile, while resting my head on the back of my hands.

"Oh, you know what she can do?" Emiko turns to me suddenly. "She could make the suits for our team! And they could all match, it'd be so cool." Our gaze turns to Yuuka, expectantly.

"I'm too poor for that," is the first thing out of her mouth. "Besides, I'm having a hard enough time designing my own suit."

"We'd pay you, of course." I wink at her, as I say that. Yuuka's got a talent for sewing. She's shown me some pictures of stuff she's make for herself. It's a tragedy that her talent was wasted in Raiden's mother's shitty boutique.

"Yeah," she says, looking intrigued at the thought of money. "Sounds like fun." Okay, that sounds like a lie. I think she just wants the money.

"Yes!" Emiko claps before grabbing my own hands. She beams at me, before realising what she's doing. Her hands snap away from mine, and I just lower mine slowly. I swear that I start to see a faint red tinge appearing on Emiko's cheeks.

The conversation moves on, ignoring that little incident. But I can't do the same. I do one nice thing for Emiko, and suddenly she's acting like she's my friend and blushing. I must be going crazy. She couldn't possibly be that good of an actress, could she?

---

Emiko's sudden burst of kindness continues through our getting ready for the party. While I wouldn't call us friends, but we're not as vicious towards each other as we once were.

"Pass the straightener," Emiko practically shouts as she makes a grabby gesture towards me.

"Give me a few minutes, geez." I shake my head and roll my eyes, as I continue to straighten my hair. I have a lot of hair, so it takes me a while. "Why didn't you bring yours?"

"Yuuka said she was bringing hers, I didn't think I needed to!" She pouts at me.

"I brought this straightener, and I don't think I'm even going to get to use it." Yuuka turns to Aki, who hands her the straightener from her bag. Aki just shakes her head while smiling, as Yuuka hands it to Emiko.

"No, don't straighten your hair." I tell her. There's a slight curl to her hair, since it dried naturally. It suits her face so nicely, it would be a shame to straighten it now.

"She's right. It's such a shame that you always straighten your hair." Emiko adds, even though she admitted to straightening her hair every day no less than five minutes ago. "I think you should leave your hair like that." Yuuka puts her hand on the headband she's wearing while putting on makeup. At first, I think she's making a joke, but then I see how genuinely confused she is. "You know what I mean." I swear Kaoru and Yuuka are more alike than they give themselves credit for.

"Guess I will then," Yuuka says before turning to put eyeliner on. I notice that her mouth contorts into a weird shape as she applies it.

"So, I see you're perpetuating the stereotype of girls being unable to keep their mouths closed while putting on eyeliner-"

"Shut up Anako." She replies so quickly that I practically have whiplash, which earns a laugh from all of us.

Aki's dad arranges a driver to take us to the party. I wouldn't call it a limo, but it's definitely bigger than a normal car. I know Aki's dad is a senator, but damn how much money do these people have? We lose Yuuka and Aki as soon as we walk into the main hall. Emiko and I look back to see them talking to Yusei and their other friends. We walk around looking for Shinji, Reika and Kaoru. It's not hard considering how tall Shinji is.

Shinji and Kaoru are dressed just in shirts and slacks, while Reika's just in her plain clothes. I love Reika and all, but sometimes she just hurts me. I notice something unsettling. Shinji's dressed in a black shirt with black slacks, the exact thing that Raiden used to wear. I wonder if he has noticed. I know he likes to wear black, since it compliments his muscles or something. We make small talk, until Shinji spots something behind me that's apparently right over my head.

"Oh, look who it is." Shinji says as I turn around. Yuuka just rolls her eyes. "Such a shame, you could have been here with us." He tuts as if that doesn't mean dropping somebody, meaning me, from the team.

"I already told you, I'm here with those losers." Yuuka looks back, I follow her line of sight only to see Yusei's hair poking out of the crowd.

"Why are you wearing that dress?" Kaoru scowls at Yuuka. "It's too short." I get that he's protective of Yuuka, but this is going a little too far.

"Dude, she's worn a lot shorter dresses than that." Shinji looks at him with wide eyes. I don't think he expected Kaoru to pull this bullshit either. Kaoru just huffs. Wait, shorter dresses? The dress reaches just over halfway down Yuuka's thigh. I'm mentally adding another reason to the list of reasons of why I regret leaving the City all that time ago.

"Let her wear what she wants, stop being a butthole." I sigh. I can't believe Kaoru is really bringing up this stone age bullshit. Butthole, I hear Emiko chuckle as she repeats it to herself. I have to resist the urge to smile at that. I look back to Yuuka who suddenly seems on edge. I put my hand on her arm, and I smile. Thankfully, she calms down, at least a little bit.

Some weird clown looking guy comes onto the screens around the room and explains everything about the WRGP. Admittedly, I stop caring very quickly, and I think Yuuka does too. They preach this whole unity thing, especially once we joined with the Satellite, but they don't do anything for it. If you're not the exact picture of a model citizen, you might as well be dirt beneath the upper class's feet. I work for a psychic helpline, I know this too well. I have to deal with people calling that they'd rather just hide than come out to their parents, they were kicked out because they told, or they're just one more slur away from killing themselves. Things don't get better for people from the Satellite. The lack of accommodation in the Satellite means that they have to move into the City, so rent shot up and so many people are homeless. I'm still living in Reika's house because I can't afford anywhere else. Yuuka's been looking for a job for months now, but still hasn't gotten a single interview, all because of her mark. This City claims it's a utopia and values unity, but I see no such thing.

Yuuka leaves once the introductory talk is over. She practically runs to the buffet table where I see Yusei standing.

"There's so many people here," I hear Emiko say.

"That only means more competition." Kaoru huffs, clearly not in a good mood.

"We're still gonna beat them all, it doesn't matter how many of them there are." Shinji laughs.

I say nothing and just stare at the crowd around us. I hear lots of thick accents, the competition has generated interest from all around the world. We're not just dealing with homegrown teams here.

"But dude," Shinji sounds very serious all of a sudden, "leave Yuuka alone. She's a grown ass woman and she can dress however she wants."

"You saw those guys over there staring at her." He snarls. "She needs to be more careful. And she's worn shorter?"

"How she chooses to dress is her own business." Reika is using her mom voice. "If anything happens to her, that's a reflection of the men or women around her than the way she was dressing. Yuuka's a strong person, she can take care of herself."

Kaoru goes to respond but the sound of a D-Wheel approaching catches our attention. There's screams and the sound of glass breaking.

A D-Wheel lands in the hall as glass flies everywhere. Shinji and Kaoru throw Emiko and I behind their backs. Reika's hand shoots out and grabs my arm from behind. The screams of everyone in the room are deafening. The D-Wheel begins to move. The crowd parts, but someone still stands in the path.

Aki's ace monster, Black Rose Dragon, materialises and hits the D-Wheel with one of its thorns. The D-Wheel flies back out a window, sending more shards of glass everywhere. Security officers jump through the holes in the windows to follow the D-Wheel, which has since started driving away.

Wow is all I can think. I feel like I have whiplash since all of that happened so quickly. I can't believe Aki's first reaction in that situation was to protect everyone. I was too focused on ducking to avoid the shards of glass flying everywhere.

Kaoru starts running towards Yuuka, as she runs towards Aki. I run after him. He reaches Yuuka and starts shaking her violently by the shoulders.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He practically shouts at her, over and over. Yuuka's too shaken to even respond, so I have to pull Kaoru off her.

"If she isn't okay, she would say so, dumbass." I huff. I hear Emiko on the phone with her dad, she sounds really worried. "I'll make sure she gets home safe."

"My dad is sending a driver out here," she says to me as she hangs up. "I can give you a lift home, if you want."

"I'm staying with Reika, so it's fine."

"Oh, I'll just give everyone a lift home then." She shrugs her shoulders. "I'm sure that my dad won't mind."

The ride home is pretty awkward. None of us really say anything. The event maybe lasted fifteen minutes before some random guy crashed into the building and ruined everything. And then, the little time we had to talk was spent teaching Kaoru how to be a decent human being. The night was a failure by all standards. At least I saw Yuuka for about five minutes, that's something I guess.

---

"I want to tell you something," Kaoru exhales deeply as we sit in the Melon Jelly cafe, "but I don't know how to tell you."

"Oh gods, where did you hide the body?"

"What?" Kaoru looks at me wide eyed. "Wait- No- I'd never do- Why was that your first immediate thought?"

"I don't know, you're in a gang and I thought something might have happened."

"No," he sighs as he pinches the top of his nose. "I've only told a few people about this-"

"Who?" I ask.

"Shinji and Emiko."

"What's something you couldn't tell your sister about?" I hum. "I thought you two were real close."

"We are, but I'm scared to tell her."

"What secret could be so bad that you can't tell your sister? Who, I remind you, can hear your thoughts." I lean back in the seat and cross my arms. I soften when I see the fear in his eyes. I sigh and lean forward into the table.

"I-" He begins. "What I want to say is- I think I-"

"Take your time," I whisper softly.

"Anako, I think I like someone. But I don't think I should like them." He meets my eyes. I nod at him, letting him continue. Who could it be? Obviously, it's someone that Yuuka's close with, otherwise he would have told her. And it's not Emiko, I realise. I bet she didn't take that well. No, I must focus on Kaoru right now. "You remember Yuuka's friend Takumi, don't you?"

Takumi.

"Team Liberation Takumi?" He nods slowly. Then I realise why this is such a big deal. Poor Kaoru thought he was straight. Then, he goes and falls for someone who is very close to his sister. "So, you're gay then?" I lean back in the chair.

"I- I don't know," he sighs.

"That doesn't matter now," I shake my head. "Thank you for telling me. That must have been hard."

"It was."

"How long?" He looks at me funny. "How long have you felt that way?"

"I don't know," he shrugs his shoulders. "It's been a while coming."

"Do you think he likes you back?" I stir my mocha, even though that it's half empty.

"Who knows?" Kaoru makes a face. "I mean, he's really nice to me. But then I'm thinking, what if he's like that with everyone?"

"Hey," I smack my hand on the table and he practically jumps. "You don't have that attitude in this house."

"But I have anxiety," Kaoru complains.

"We all have problems, so deal with it." I nod. "Not that your anxiety isn't valid- But- Okay- It's okay that you have anxiety, but you're not letting it control your life."

"Okay," he says as he raises his eyebrows. "Have you made any progress with my sister?"

"Nope," I say with a roll of my eyes.

"Once this whole Team Liberation thing is over, she'll have a lot more free time." He fiddles with the coaster on the table. "You'll have your shot then."

"I hope so," I sigh.

"I thought we didn't have that kind of attitude in this house?"

"Shut the hell your mouth."

---

The sound of my phone vibrating on the bedside table wakes me up. The sun isn't properly coming through the curtains yet, but I can still tell it's early in the morning. I pick my phone and answer it, only to hear a steady sequence of beeps.

I scoff and check my phone. A missed call from Kaoru. I suddenly feel uneasy, something's wrong. I know he said that they'd be going after the last gang soon, but I didn't think it would happen this quickly. The Cardinal Dragons are making the first move. My phone vibrates again.

Kaoru: Daimon Area. Disguise. Now. At Cardinal Dragon base now, will meet you there.

I move as quick as I can without waking anyone in the house. Public transport isn't even available yet. It's nearly five in the morning and the sun is barely peeking over the horizon. There's no public transport, so I call for a taxi and chuck the change at him. I get out of the taxi in the side streets. As I start to walk, I hear shouting.

It's five in the morning, and there's very loud shouting.

I feel auras radiating from the Area as I approach it. Then, it hits me. Yuuka's aura is ever expanding, swallowing up everything around it. The air feels crisp and cold. I swear that I see my breath fog up in front of me, despite that the fact that it's not cold enough for that.

I start running.

"A few days after the Fortune Cup…" The voice is so sharp that it carries all the way to me. "Wasn't that when you went to the Satellite? Could it be that your traumatic experience was so bad that it triggered his powers and that's why you can hear each other's thoughts?"

"No!" I hear Yuuka scream, I stop in my place. "No! No! No! No!"

"Yuuka!" More screams.

"Ben, that's enough."

"I'm just doing what I was told." Yuuka has fallen to the ground, barely supported by Shinji. Her mask and wig are gone, and there's blood all over her face, coming from a cut on her forehead. There's pure trauma on her face. I doubt she would hear me if I called out to her.

"Doing what you're told? Please. You're a monster, that's what you are!" I shout back at him. He turns to look at me in dismay. I recognise him. He was the second in command at the Cardinal Dragons before I left.

"Jasper, they have the same aura! What's going on?" He shouts to the man that I don't recognise, who must be his second. Yuuka manages to lift herself on the ground with Shinji's arm. "And who do you think you are?" He sneers at me. Benjamín, that was his name.

"Exactly who you think I am." I answer. "I'm Yuudai, plain and simple. I am that boy who died on Cardinal Dragons' territory all those years ago. I am fighting against what my death represents. I'm here to finish this."

I look over to Benjamín's second, only to realise that he has summoned Dark End Dragon. The dragon is manifesting some kind of cage that is trapping the rest of Team Liberation and Yuuka's friends. Something definitely happened.

Then I feel a sudden queasiness.

I look over to Benjamín, who has suddenly hunched over. Yuuka's hand is reaching out towards him. Her face is contorted as she moves her hand and wrist. Benjamín begins to cough violently. His entire body trembles, which only worsens the feeling in my stomach. Yuuka is doing this, I realise. Her entire eye is glowing orange, not just her iris.

Someone slips out of the cage behind me and runs to Yuuka. They manage to strike Yuuka, so that both of her arms go numb.

"What are you doing?!" She screams, her voice starting to break.

"Yuuka, stop!" They scream back. "Can't you see what you're doing"

"Kenta, I need to do this. He needs to feel my pain!"

Then, Kenta does something unthinkable. He slaps Yuuka right across the face.

"Stop it, Yuuka!"

"No!" Yuuka screams, turning her attention back to Benjamín. Her arms are still numb, so she glares at him. He immediately falls to his knees, and I feel nauseous. I feel rooted in my place. My body, itself, is afraid to move. Yuuka has become this powerful. Is this what Raiden saw all that time ago? Did he know this power laid dormant?

The second jumps in between Yuuka and Benjamín, so her attention switches to him. He barely avoids falling flat on his face but falls to his knees instead. Blood dribbles down his chin and starts to form a puddle beneath him.

I hear people screaming. I should do something, I keep thinking. My feet remain firmly on the ground, and do not move. The sheer power of Yuuka's aura scares me. My body is afraid to move in case it's becomes a target. The air feels thick with her aura and makes my stomach sick.

Then suddenly, everything disappears. Both Yuuka and the second fall. Kenta and Shinji help down to the ground, so she doesn't hurt herself. Then, I start to run.

"Hey, get us out of here!" I hear Kaoru scream at me.

"Not now."

"You came for me, did you? Help us!"

"No! I came for her!" I scream. "I love her! I told you that!" I ignore the fact that I just said the L word and kneel in front of Yuuka. She can barely open one of her eyes because there's so much blood on her face. I delicately hold her cheek. "Are you okay?" I whisper.

"Who are you?" She asks with a hoarse voice. I suppose she knows now, that I've liked- no, loved- her all this time. I remove my mask. "Anako!" She exclaims, before going into a fit of coughs.

"It's okay," I try to soothe her. It doesn't work. Her eyes move like she's figuring something out. She looks to Shinji. Somehow, she pulls herself onto her feet without any help.

"Where is he?" Her voice is completely straight. I feel Benjamín's aura quiver, but he sighs to hide it.

"You need to be more specific."

"Where is Raiden Kimura?" She screams at the top of her lungs. Everyone gasps, but me. Raiden's been suspecting of plotting with this gang for a long time. It does not surprise me that he might know. "You know where he is. He's the one who told you everything."

"So what?" Benjamín scoffs. "I don't know where he is. Last thing he told me, he was in Singapore. He orchestrated this whole thing, y'know. He told me exactly who to attack, where to attack. He even told me who everyone on Team Liberation would be, with one exception, but I figured that one on my own." He sighs dramatically. "Don't blame me, honey. I'm just doing what he told me. Follow this step-by-step guide and Team Liberation will not be able to beat us. And it's working, isn't it? Raiden told me what you did."

"Ben," the second injects. "He lied."

"What?" Benjamín exclaims.

"I heard her thoughts. Raiden is to blame. Her actions when Black Flag fell were justified."

"What? What am I supposed to do now then?" He sighs. All of a sudden, Yuuka stands up off the ground with an air of calm around her and walks towards Ben. "What do you want? Haven't you caused enough pain already?"

"I have," she nods. "But I'm setting that right. I won't fight you."

"Then how are you going to claim our territory?" He tries to egg her on, but she doesn't falter.

"My name is Yuuka Sasaki," she sighs. "I barely survived in the Satellite. As I was approaching death's door, I was saved by a woman who had lost her own family in the Zero Reverse. Everything led me to witness the formation of Team Satisfaction, the greatest duel gang to ever grace the Satellite. They had one goal, unifying the Satellite. Our existence was poor, at best. They thought, if we couldn't escape it, why not make it better? That's exactly what they did. I carry their legacy on my shoulders, I want to do the same."

"I didn't ask for your life story." Benjamín says as he rolls his eyes. "Besides, how do you know this will make the City a better place? Where's your proof?"

"You've already seen it yourself. The endless cycle of hatred and revenge is nearly broken." Yuuka takes a step forward. "We haven't solved this through violence. We've made people see our way of thinking. This violence doesn't have to continue!" Benjamín doesn't seem too entertained by Yuuka's words, so she turns to his second. "You don't have to stay here. We can leave this all behind and move on, have a normal life, settle down. Isn't that what you want, Jasper?" This gets a gasp from Benjamín. "Am I right?" Yuuka says with force.

There's silence. Jasper sighs and leaves Benjamín's side. He walks slowly and stands by Yuuka's side.

"I'm with her," he says calmly.

"Jasper, how could you?"

"You've said it yourself, Ben. You've thought about leaving for a while."

"Yes, and giving the gang to someone else! Not give it up entirely!" He screams back.

"Why would we not take this chance?" Jasper pleads. "I believe in what she's doing."

There's silence, and Benjamín contemplates his own situation. Jasper looks to me, and then the cage containing Yuuka's friends. Kaoru looks like he'll break down the cage himself if he has to. It looks too small for any of the psychics to summon monsters.

"If we give up here," I hear Benjamín say, "our own gang will attack us, beating us and someone will take our place." His attention turns to Yuuka. "If you can fend these off, I'll give you our territory." I feel it. There's auras approaching the area. How many people are there? It's hard to tell.

"Understood," she agrees.

I summon Chaos Goddess and get it to break the cage. Everyone runs to Yuuka, barely acknowledging me.

"Are you okay?" Yusei asks as he reaches her first.

"I'm fine," she answers curtly.

"Are you sure?" There's doubt in Kaoru's voice. "You didn't seem like that a minute ago."

"You doubt her?" Jasper asks. "You can hear her thoughts, can't you?"

"How do you know that?"

"I can hear your thoughts in her head. Not that she pays much mind to them." Kaoru merely scoffs.

Lots of people are talking, but Yuuka seems oblivious to it all.

"Yuuka?" One of her friends asks. "Your eyes… They're orange."

"It's because she went berserk just there." Jasper explains. "I don't know if you saw it. Her entire eye, including the whites, glowed orange. Once she snapped out of it, only her iris was orange."

"It's happened before, powers were a bit too much for me." Yuuka sighs.

"It's a miracle you're still standing." Shinji raises a hand to his mouth. Yuuka's glare shuts him up. Could stamina be her real weakness? I notice Yuuka moves a hand to her stab wound.

"What are we doing now?" Takumi asks her.

"Fending off everyone who's coming to attack us now." Yuuka looks all around her. I can tell that she wants to pace, but she doesn't have the room or energy for it.

"Form a line here or move out, that's the question." Takumi wonders, but he's met with silence. Then, something in the air changes.

"Yuuka, are you okay?" Yuuka's face is starting to light up. Her eyes dart all over the place, like she's trying to catch a plan that's right before her eyes.

"Shinji," she says as she suddenly turns to look at him. "One last time?" She puts her hand out for a fist bump. Shinji hesitates, but then he smiles.

"One last time." His fist meets hers. He pulls it back, only to realise that his fingers are covered in Yuuka's blood. The hand she used to fist bump was the one she held her stab wound with, and the blood wasn't entirely visible because of the black leather gloves she's wearing.

"Kenta!" Everyone moves as she starts to pace. "I need a favour."

"Sure," he responds.

"Okay." She says as she puts her hand out in Takumi's direction. He hands her a backpack. She takes out what looks like two handcuffs on either end of a piece of rope, and several of them at that. Wait, Yuuka told me about these before. Team Satisfaction used them to force people to duel them. "Most of them are coming from that direction." She points towards the largest entrance to the Area, then she turns her attention to another entrance. "I'll take that side with Shinji and Kenta. Anyone who wants to fight can. I recommend taking one of these. They are a lot of psychics out there, be careful."

"Yusei, take my duel disk." Shinji says, holding his duel disk out to Yusei, who's the only person without one. "I don't think I need my duel disk, do I?" He looks at Yuuka.

"You don't," she confirms. There's a pause. Jasper throws a card at Yuuka, who merely smiles and puts it away. "Okay, come on, we're moving out."

Yuuka practically runs off, with Shinji and Kenta following her. Takumi begins to form a plan with everyone else. I can't bring myself to listen or to care in that exact moment. Kaoru and I fall behind as everyone starts to move out. He tells me to put my mask back on.

Yuuka heard me saying I love you, she knows it was me, and yet she said nothing.

Granted, she had more important things to be worrying about, but still. She didn't even acknowledge it. Not even a we'll continue this later. Have I ruined everything?

A bolt of lightning flies between Kaoru and I, barely missing the both of us. He immediately activates his duel disk and brings out Judgement Dragon, and I bring out Chaos Goddess. I concentrate on my aura, and make it feel like Yuuka's. I feel the familiar static in my fingertips.

Kaoru takes the offense front, while I try to protect everyone else from enemy fire. I hear the roar of a D-Wheel, which parts the crowd of enemies in front of us. The person standing on the back of the D-Wheel uses a dragon to take out a good portion of them. Everyone seems to be putting up a good fight, even if they're not psychics.

I start to think that Security will arrive soon, but I realise that the people of the Daimon Area know better than to call Security when psychics are on their doorstep. The area has long been fought over between gangs.

There's three distinct roars of dragons. Stardust Dragon, Dark End Dragon, and Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier all fly over the top of the buildings. Then, I feel it. Raiden's and Yuuka's auras. Everything comes to a standstill for just a second.

Some people run away. We let them go.

Some people try to attack the dragons. Trishula makes quick work of them.

Some people continue their attack. It doesn't take much longer to get rid of them, now that the numbers are starting to even out.

A few of us keep watch on every entrance into the Daimon Area. It's coming up to six now, which means that people will be waking up soon. It's a Sunday, so I'd say we have a bit more time than normal.

Everything seems to have stopped, but we don't celebrate.

Especially when Shinji come back into Area carrying an unconscious, bloody Yuuka. He lies her down on the ground, in the corner of the Area. He refuses to let anyone get closer to her. He only lets Kenta, who had been with them.

"Nico, it's me." He sighs into the phone. "You know exactly who I'm calling about. Two knife wounds, lot of blood lost, overuse of powers. I don't care, I'll pay the extra." He sighs again. "Just come to the Daimon Area, now please."

Somehow there's a sense of calm in the air, despite the current situation. Then, I realise that Kenta is creating it. I've heard of psychics being able to manipulate auras like that, but this many at once is quite a feat.

My brain's still trying to comprehend everything's that's happened. Kaoru tells me that the Cardinal Dragons kidnapped Yusei to lure Yuuka out. Yusei was fine, but then the leaders came out. Jasper was the one who stabbed Yuuka. Then, Benjamín tried to break Yuuka mentally. He told everyone that she did something horrible in the Satellite, gave herself alcohol poisoning to try to forget it, and then when that failed, tried to kill herself. Not only that, but whatever happened in the Satellite was so traumatic for her that it caused Kaoru's powers to manifest and that's why they can hear each other's thoughts.

Nico arrives and being checking over Yuuka. I can't see what he's doing from where I am, but I hear something about closing the wound. Takumi says that he'll cover the cost of everything.

I ask Kaoru how he feels about that, since it's technically Yuuka's fault that he got dragged into this mess. He says he doesn't blame her, because he's gained so much from being a psychic.

That was the part that I overheard, and what caused her to finally break. Maybe that's why she didn't react to the I love you. It makes sense.

"Most of the bleeding seems to have stopped," Nico says as he stands up again. "Though, she might be out for a while with all that blood loss."

"I believe congratulations is in order," Shinji begins since the atmosphere has started to lighten up a bit. Though, he's ignoring the conversation that Nico's having in Spanish with Benjamín and the former leader of the Phantom Riders, who showed up on his D-Wheel with the former leader of the Red Serpents.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru interjects. I would have assumed Shinji was talking about conquering the City, but apparently not.

"When I was carrying her back here," Shinji gestures towards Yuuka, "she was muttering about her boyfriend." Boyfriend? She couldn't possibly have… Surely, she would have said something. "I know Yuuka. That could only mean one person."

Of course. It's Yusei, isn't it? Who else would it be? I'm so stupid.

The other conversation, that's in Spanish, continues. Then, Yuuka holds herself up with one arm, yells in Spanish, and lies back down.

"She said she's not going to the hospital," Nico explains. So, their conversation must have included something about Yuuka's condition. Considering she's awake now, a hospital trip seems less likely.

"Didn't know she knew Spanish," Benjamín blinks in surprise.

"Me neither," the former leader of the Phantom Riders shakes his head.

"She learnt it in Duel Academy." I hear the anger in Kaoru's voice. Oh, that's why she never said anything. If Kaoru was giving out about the length of her skirt, what would he saying about her dating a boy? Given the fact that I'm quite close with Kaoru, it must have thought it was a good idea not to tell me, just in case. I understand, but it doesn't exactly make me feel better. I came back to this City for Yuuka, but now, I fail to see the point of it all. Kaoru has walked over to where Yuuka is lying, he squats down on the ground. "Yuuka." His voice is sharp and cold. Her head turns away from him. "I know you can hear me." She turns onto her side, so that she's looking away from him.

"Yuuka, don't lay on that side. If your stab wound opens again, I swear to the gods, I'm leaving." Nico sighs dramatically.

"Yuuka, why didn't you tell you have a boyfriend?" Yuuka practically jumps up into a sitting position, barely avoiding her head colliding with Kaoru's. She doesn't answer. "Yuuka," he says in an even sterner tone.

"I thought you might try to murder him, so I just didn't?" There's an incredibly fake smile on her face, but there's pain on every inch of her face.

"She looks like she's crying." I hear Takumi whisper to Shinji as they both start laughing.

"Who is it, Yuuka?" Kaoru pulls Yuuka onto her feet.

"Who do you think it is?" Her eyes are so wide that they might pop. She nervously brushes away the hair that's fallen into her face.

Kaoru is silent. I see both of them glancing at Yusei, who looks like he wants to be on the other side of the world right now.

"Kaoru, how'd you not know they were dating?" Shinji laughs. Is he saying that I should have known too? No, it's just the telepathy. At least, that's what I tell myself.

"Dude, I don't even think he's noticed that Kenta and I have been dating the entire time?" Takumi absolutely howls with laughter.

"What?" Kaoru exclaims as his face falls. His face is contorted by the confusion. He looks to me. I see disbelief, and a hint of betrayal in his eyes. I just shrug my shoulders.

It might sound bad, considering he's my friend and all, but I'm finding it very hard to care at that exact moment. Kaoru has only known Takumi for a couple of months and liked him for an even shorter period of time. I've liked Yuuka for over two years. I was forced from Black Flag because I tried to protect her. I came back to this City just, so I could be there for her. I did all that because I loved her. But now, that's all pointless. Everything I done has been for nothing. The last two years of my life have been wasted.

All because Yuuka Sasaki fell in love with someone who wasn't me.

"Here," Benjamín says as he extends a hand for Yuuka to shake. That's it. Team Liberation have officially conquered the entire City. They have a little team huddle. I wonder how long I'll have to stay here, feeling awkward. I don't want to be the first one to leave, but at this point, I might.

Then, Benjamín's phone begins to ring. Yuuka freezes dead in her spot and stares at him. Hold on, could he really be calling? Benjamín looks at the name on the screen. His eyes dart between Yuuka and the phone. Oh no.

"Hello?" His voice shakes as he answers the phone. "Yes." He gulps. "She did." Impossible. "Put you on speaker? Sure." He shoots a look towards Yuuka like he's sorry.

"Yuuka!" Raiden's voice sounds muffled through the speaker. It sounds exactly like I remember it. "Congratulations on conquering the entire City. You really surprised us all." There's clear sarcasm in his voice. "What comes next, huh?" Yuuka stumbles backwards. Takumi and Kenta grab both of her arms to keep her from falling. "You have the entire City in your hands. What will you do to lead it? Because you're on your own now." He laughs, but more to himself than anything else. "Guess I'll have to come and snatch it back. Cause remember we were going to do that together? You little bitch." He curses with pure venom in his voice. It reminds me of the time he made me leave the City, I shudder at the unpleasant memory. "Until next time then, cause I'm coming for you." The line goes dead. There's pure silence as everyone stares at Yuuka, waiting for her to react.

But she doesn't.

She just stands there, with a vacant expression on her face. She slowly begins to walk. She picks up the remains of her mask. There's a clean cut between the two pieces, starting where the scar on her forehead is. She takes off her cape and holds that in her hands too. Shinji hands her a lighter. She throws what she has in her hands to the ground. The fabric of the cape billows, while the mask falls with a clatter. She kneels on the ground and catches the flame of the lighter on the fabric. The fire starts small. It grows, its warmth rising into the air. Shinji makes her stand back from the fire.

I hold my replica in her mask in my hands. I walk over to her side and throw it into the fire. Her shoulder brushes off mine as we watch it burn. I watch her face, as the light of the flame flickers in her eyes. I feel an anger starting to bubble up from inside her.

Then, I understand why.

She's tired. Raiden let her take over the City for him, only for him to try to sweep in and take it back. She's tired of being used. This anger is because of Raiden Kimura, and everything he stands for. Her face contorts in her rage. I see the look in her eyes. She wants revenge.

The flames start to die quite quickly. The vacant expression washes back over her face. There's pure silence. Yuuka begins to walk away, all of our eyes follow her. The only person to follow her is Yusei.

I want to say that I hate him, but I can't bring myself to carry through with it.

I know the truth, and it mocks me.

Kaoru moves to console me, but I run away in the opposite direction.

---

I go to Reika's house, only to change clothes before leaving again. I go to the only place I can think of in that exact moment, the Melon Jelly cafe. I text the one person who could understand what I'm going through right now, Emiko.

"Why did you ask me to meet you here?" She says once she sits down. "Did you get involved in the Liberation thing too? You're covered in cuts and bruises."

"I did get involved today, yes. It's all over now." I nod. "But that's not why I asked you to come here. I asked you because- Let me put it this way- How are you doing? Y'know after Kaoru told you that he likes Takumi." A sudden realisation comes over her face.

"Not well," she answers. "I've liked him for years. We've technically been on a bunch of dates, but he's never said anything. I thought I finally had a shot. Nope. Turns out that was all a lie." She sighs deeply. "I imagine you're feeling the same right now. I mean, you haven't known him as long as I have, but you get the idea."

"I never liked Kaoru, you know that right?" I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Wait- What?" She blinks rapidly in surprise. "But I thought you- Then who-"

"I've liked Yuuka all this time, loved her even."

"Yuuka?" She echoes. "But doesn't she like-"

"She's dating Yusei now." I sigh. "I learnt that today."

"Oh dear, I could have told you that if you just asked," she mutters. "How long have you- y'know?"

"Two years," I nod slowly. "Did Kaoru tell you that I left the City a while ago, and came back just recently?" She nods back at me. "I never told anyone why, but I suppose I can tell you. I left the City because I tried to protect Yuuka. I didn't work. Once I left, the things that I tried to stop happened and that's why Yuuka is the way she is now. I only came back because… well- let's just say that I couldn't stand the way things turned out."

"You did it because you loved her?"

"Yeah," I answer softly.

"You feel like everything you've done up until now has been pointless." I gasp and meet her eyes. They've lost some of that light that always seems to radiate from her. "You know you need to move on, but you don't know how. Your life has been so centred around them, that trying to do that just feels impossible. You just feel so alone-"

"Are you reading my thoughts?" I say, cracking a small smile as I sip my second mocha.

"I guess we're just more alike than we thought," she chuckles softly. A small part of that light returns to her eyes.

"I suppose you're right."

"Do you know what?" I say suddenly. "They don't even have anything in common, besides being from the Satellites and having markers. Isn't he some sort of super genius mechanic? I know for a fact that Yuuka couldn't care less about that shit. How do they even talk to each other?"

"Well," Emiko begins, "it's not that simple. I've seen them interact, and there just seems to be this mutual understanding between them. I can't speak for them, obviously, but maybe that's enough for them."

There's a silence between us. It's neither awkward nor comfortable, but existing somewhere between. Without a word, Emiko's hand reaches across the table and grabs my own. There's a different mutual understanding between us right now.

"I don't know what to do now," I mutter. "Maybe I could go back up north. This city holds nothing for me anymore."

"That's not true," Emiko says as the crease in her brow betrays her smile. "At least wait until the WRGP is over. You're a talented duelist, it would be a shame to lose you."

"You've got a point," I chuckle. I stare at our hands, still holding onto each other, as Emiko rubs her thumb over the back of my hand. "I suppose I could stay, just for a little while." Emiko smiles, genuinely this time.

"Have you got your deck with you?" She asks. "If we're gonna be a team, we're gonna need to know each other's decks inside out." She orders a pot of tea for us to share.

"You're right, teamwork will be important." I nod with a smile. "Do you really carry your deck with you everywhere?"

"Of course, I'll never pass up the chance for a duel."

"Do you want to duel now?" I raise my eyebrows in a taunting gesture. "Just to familiarise ourselves with each other's decks."

"You're on." She smirks at me. She takes her deck out and starts to shuffle it, so I do the same.

"You're run a Naturia deck, right?" She nods. "I run a Spellcaster deck myself."

"Nice," she keeps nodding. There's a pause. "You know if you need anyone to talk to, I'm always there."

"I know that," I smile, "thank you."