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.

7. Ignorance I

Character: Kenta Morinaga

Summary: Sometimes your problems go from hating your boyfriend's friends to that boyfriend trying to take over the world, and all you've got is sarcasm.

---

Kenta

---

I don't know why I'm so surprised. Being gay and trans simultaneously isn't that big of a deal, he saw that coming. But being a psychic, that's clearly taking it too far. It makes me wonder how accepting he was to begin with.

So what's the first thing a now gay, trans, homeless, psychic kid does after his dad kicks him out? Join a gang, of course. The Onyx Slicers aren't hard to find, surprisingly. Then again, their members tend to show off the tattoos for the world to see. They don't believe when I say that I want to join.

The idea makes sense in my head. From what I know about gangs, they'd hardly let one of their own sleep on the streets.

They let me in, solely based on the fact that I'm a psychic. I'd need some training, of course. But I'm in. I'd have to sleep inside the base until they can figure something out for me, but that's better than the streets.

When it comes time for the initiation, I start to panic. Withstand a beating from a good chunk of the gang. I'm lucky that another guy is going through the initiation at the same time as me. He tells me that his name is Takumi, but I'm too scared to even pay attention to him. I survive the initiation somehow, though I'm convinced I have a broken rib. Takumi's still in pretty bad shape when we're getting the tattoos.

"You don't seem that bad," Takumi says to me as we arrive at the tattoo parlour, one that's very familiar with the Onyx Slicers. There's very obvious bruising on his face. "Clearly, I got the worst of it." He's right. Takumi's much taller and buffer than me, he can clearly take more of a beating than I can.

"Yeah, I guess." I nod slowly. He's being overly friendly, smiling at me and talking to me. Honestly, it's confusing me a little. Now, that I'm no longer paralysed by the fear of getting beat up. I get my first good look at Takumi. My head barely makes it past his shoulder. His yellow blond hair is short, minus the classic emo fringe in the front. His brown eyes stare down at me, like they already know everything about me.

The tattoo of the Onyx Slicers is the outline of two knives overlapping each other in the shape of an x, in black naturally. Takumi immediately takes his shirt off to get the tattoo, and I must admit that I definitely stare longer than I need to. The worst part is that he notices. Despite Takumi looking like he's only a little bit older than me, he has definitely started working out a lot. It's a very small tattoo parlour, and it's very late at night, so there's only one person working. He gets the tattoo at the top of his back, right on the spine. He barely flinches as he gets the tattoo. I must say that I'm impressed, considering that's a fairly painful spot.

Then, everyone looks to me, expecting me to take my shirt off too. I can't do that. I don't know these people. They'll see my bandages binding my chest, they'll know.

"Yeah, I'm getting it on my shoulder." I say as I take off my flannel and roll up the left sleeve of the t-shirt underneath. Takumi's eyes narrow, and I have to ignore it. One of the leaders that's with us, who I can't seem to remember the name of, just stares at me before nodding at the tattoo artist.

The tattoo artist tells me that the shoulder, on the bicep side, is a good place to get a first tattoo. It still hurts like a bitch, don't get me wrong. I just clench and unclench my toes to deal with the pain. The tattoo artist gives me all of the usual care advice, most of which is already familiar to me. The leader just pays for our tattoos, which is a lot cheaper than what seems to be advertised. I suppose the Onyx Slicers do seem to have a deal with this parlour. Once we pay and we're outside, he just walks away and leaves Takumi and I alone.

"Are you gonna head home then?" Takumi asks me nonchalantly. I see the time on his phone, it's pretty late. I notice that the sign on the tattoo parlour says closed.

"If by home, you mean the base." Takumi turns slowly to look at me. "Why do you think I joined this gang?"

"Nonsense," he scoffs. "You're staying with me now, come on." Takumi begins to walk, only to realise that I'm not following him. "Kenta," he sighs. I'm not sure how to respond, so I say nothing. "Listen, I can't have you sleeping under a blanket on the floor in that base. You can stay at my house. A couch is better than a concrete floor."

"Alright," I mutter, "thank you." There's a sadness in his eyes that I can't quite place. His eyes lower to the ground as his eyebrows furrow.

"It's this way," is all he says before he starts walking again.

"You don't have to do this." I say, a few minutes into the walk to his house.

"But I do," Takumi sighs.

"Why?"

"Well," he exhales deeply. "I feel bad. You're homeless, a psychic, and really gay-"

"How did-"

"That oversized flannel ain't fooling nobody." He chuckles, and I can't help but feel a little flushed. "I don't know which one got you kicked out, but it's not fair that this happened to you. The system in this City is cruel. But hey, if I can make your existence slightly better, then why shouldn't I?" I go to respond, but Takumi beats me to it. "Now that you asked a question, am I allowed to ask one?" I nod, unsure of what he's about to ask. "Why did you refuse to take your shirt off in the parlour?" I feel my face fall. "Now, you don't have to answer that if you don't want to. It's just… I have a sister and-"

"She's trans?"

"Yep," Takumi smiles. "I've seen what she's been through, and I was wondering if…"

"I am," I say with a deep exhale. "Props to you for spotting that. Most people assume I'm just a kid who hasn't gone through puberty yet."

"I mean, considering you're short, you pull off that look quite well." Takumi starts laughing. "Maybe if you're lucky, going on T will give you a growth spurt."

"That's not how that works, I looked it up."

"Oh look at you, Mr. I'm an intellectual." Takumi puts on a really fake posh laugh. I can't help but roll my eyes and chuckle.

"It's called the internet, learn how to use it sometime."

"First of all-" Takumi starts laughing before he can continue.

---

Takumi's mother was surprisingly understanding when her son showed up with a stray gay kid that he found. I was expecting to meet his sister, but I learnt that she had recently moved out with her girlfriend.

One day, Takumi comes home with a strange parcel, which was clearly ordered online. "Here," he says as he hands the parcel to me. I open it slowly, the curiosity building inside of me. It's a plain white binder in my size. "It's a binder. I was looking online, and it said that you shouldn't be using those sprain bandages to bind, so I got you that instead."

I stare at him in the silence. For once, Takumi seems nervous. This isn't the first thing he's done to help me. He brought me to a barbers to get a proper haircut, complete with undercut. He keeps buying me clothes from the mens' section, even though his mom's apartment is starting to run out of room. And now this. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't developing feelings for him.

All I can muster is a small thank you, as I wrap my arms tightly around his waist.

Things in the Onyx Slicers were going well, for a gang that is. They made us go on patrols a lot, spray paint our gang sign on some buildings.

That is, until the leader of the gang is murdered.

We've been fighting with Black Flag recently. We nearly took over their entire territory, only stopped by a psychic with hair a vivid shade of lilac. People are immediately pointing fingers at their leader, even though he hasn't known to have done anything like that before. A new leader immediately steps up, his former right hand man.

Then, he gets taken out.

The next person reluctantly takes the job. He doesn't last long before getting shot in the head.

The gang verges on the edge of collapsing. It's only been a few months since I joined, and it's already come to this. Takumi assures me that I can still stay with him.

Something unthinkable happens. The person who should have taken the leader position abandons us. The Onyx Slicers slips into further chaos. There's no clear successor. Every authority figure in this gang has ran away or has been murdered.

"My vote's for Chiba." Someone says as we discuss who should be the next leader. Takumi freezes and says nothing. The voices around us descent into a frenzy.

"Votes for Takumi?" There's silence, and then a near unanimous vote. The group dissipates and Takumi gets dragged off by some of the older members.

---

So, just like that, Takumi becomes the leader of the Onyx Slicers. A little piece of that light in his eyes fades away. They tell him that he's just a filler until they can find someone better. They still teach him how to run the gang, someone should know. Where are the problem areas, like we don't know from patrol. Where to buy the drugs, who to sell the drugs too. He always keeps me at his side. No matter what meeting is going on, he refuses to attend unless he can bring me.

"Because you're my right hand man," he answers when I ask him why.

Our first major fight happens with Black Flag, as expected. Takumi insists on leading the fight, because what kind of leader would he be otherwise. Ironic, considering we fought Black Flag. Their leader is known for doing everything from the shadows. Rumour has it that he's in control of the drug trade, I doubt it. Takumi gets hurt in the fight, badly. I just remember a knife and blood everywhere. I lose control of my powers. There's ice everywhere, and everyone retreats. It's neither a win nor a loss. Everyone just wanted to avoid frostbite.

They take Takumi to a psychic doctor. I ask why, since Takumi isn't a psychic himself. The doctor's name is Nico, and he deals with all of the gang stuff, no questions asked. Well, maybe some questions, because he's nosy.

I sit opposite a pale, blonde girl in the waiting room. She must be from Black Flag. She seems to rather impatient. One of Nico's assistants trails behind the tall, dark guy that walks towards her.

"Took you long enough," she says as she puts the magazines down. "I told you there was nothing wrong with you."

"Do you honestly think Reika would let me walk around with a stab wound?" He raises his eyebrows at her. "Really now, especially now that Anako's gone."

"I know, but it was barely a slash." She looks pointedly at the bandages on his arm. "No stitches?"

"No stitches," he echoes.

"Told you." She then turns to Nico's assistance. "Thank you again, and put the charge on Raiden's bill." The girl walks out without saying much else.

Nico's assistant turns to me, and tells me to follow him. Nico leaves one of the rooms, just as we're about to walk in. I imagine he must earn big money if he managed to turn a duplex like this into a doctor's office. Takumi half sitting up on an examination table, he raises his eyebrows at me jokingly as I sit down on a chair beside him.

"Told you it wasn't serious," he chuckles as he gently pats the bandages completely covering his torso. "Nico said that I'll have a scar, right down here." He trails from his left collarbone, straight down the centre of his chest, stopping just above the belly button.

"That sucks," I mutter. I smooth out the bandages on his torso. "You better take care of yourself, that wound might get infected."

"What if you take care of me?" Takumi smiles at me. This is different, there's no teasing or that hint of humour that I've come to associate with him.

"Well, I do need to return the favour of you taking care of me."

"But do you want to?" He tenses slightly.

"Of course I do," I feel him relax underneath my hand that's still on his chest.

"If you were taking care of me, I'd throw myself into danger a lot more." A hint of teasing comes back with a raised eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I raise an eyebrow right back at him.

"Can I kiss you?" I freeze in place. I feel Takumi's heart rate quickening underneath my hand. I bite my lip for a second, no thoughts run through my head. For once, it's silent.

So, then I decide. I press down slightly on his chest, as I lean over to kiss him. Our lips barely brush before I pull back on instinct. Takumi just sits there with a content look on his face.

"So when's the next fight?" He asks smugly, and I can't help but roll my eyes. "Are you free next Saturday at 8?"

"Takumi, I'm literally living at your house, you know when I'm free." He keeps staring at me, expectantly. "Yes, I am free and I'll take up that offer."

---

Takumi was expecting us to have a long talk after that date. You know the one that everyone dreads, the what are we conversation. Apparently, that was lost on me because I assumed, not wrongly, that we were already dating. Takumi was relieved, at least.

I officially become Takumi's right hand man, in more way than one.

For someone who claims to be a party animal, Takumi sure seems to be clever with his money. Within a few months, he manages to pocket enough money from the gang to buy us an apartment. It's a one bed apartment, not too far from the Daimon Area, but it's cozy. Not long after that, he saves enough that I'm able to start taking testosterone.

Only after all of that, Takumi realises that we've never been to a club together. So, naturally I get dragged to Psycho, the biggest psychic club in the City. When I get inside, I realise why I've never been to a club before. Loud music and having too many people around me. I spend a bunch of time in a bathroom while covering my ears. That was partly because I was convinced that some people were doing nasty things in another stall. At least the bathroom was cold, compared to the humid dance floor where Takumi was waiting.

By the time we leave, Takumi is drunk and I have enough alcohol in my system that I'm slightly buzzed. Takumi keeps trying to make out with me as we walk back to our apartment. We could have gotten a taxi, but I wanted to walk and get the alcohol out of my system. I don't want to make out with my boyfriend on a random street, so I keep pushing him gently away. I don't think he gets the message, because he keeps trying anyway.

"C'mon, I'm just trying to have a fun time."

"I told you, wait until we're home." I sigh.

"But I wanna make out now." He drags out the now. I notice that he's about to walk into a pole. I try to grab his arm.

"Takumi-" Too late. I hear people laughing behind us. I grasp Takumi's arm tightly, and pull him along. "You okay?"

"'M fine." He rubs his hand over his face and checks for blood, none. At least he didn't break his nose or something.

I hear a thud behind us, and more laughing. Takumi bursts out laughing when he realises that the same girl who laughed at him for walking into the pole, just walked into the same pole. The tall blonde girl, who's dress has now ridden up to dangerous levels, points at Takumi and laughs. Takumi starts to do the same. The blonde girl's drunk friend joins in on the laughing and pointing.

They begin their drunken babble. Of course, they form a natural connection, and Takumi invites them to our apartment for more drinking. I don't like the idea of strangers in our apartment, especially when I literally know nothing about them. But I don't want to ruin Takumi's fun, especially when he's done so much for me.

I've decided that I already hate the blonde girl. She's the most loud and obnoxious, and really gets on my nerves. She's the whole reason I'm stuck in this uncomfortable situation. I learn that her name is Yuuka Sasaki. She's honestly ignored me this entire time. At least her friend Shinji tries to include me. I appreciate the effort, but I retire to bed quite quickly. Not that I sleep with them being so loud.

By the time I wake up, Sasaki and Shinji are leaving, still in last night's clothes and Sasaki has makeup smudged all over her face. I spot something worrying as they leave, and Takumi doesn't see it.

"What?" He asks me as soon as the door closes.

"You didn't see it?"

"What are you on about?"

"Shinji had a tattoo at the top of his back," I reply. His shirt dipped low enough that I managed to spot it.

"So?"

"It was a Black Flag tattoo."

Takumi freezes for a second. I knew they seemed familiar. I saw them in the lobby of Nico's practice, just after our flight with Black Flag. Raiden is the leader of that gang, and the charge of them being there was put on his tab.

"It's fine," is all he says.

"But-"

"We could form an alliance, if I play my cards right." My eyes widen. Are the cogs in his brain already turning that quickly? "I have their numbers, I'll arrange a get-together soon. Those two are close with that Raiden guy. I had my suspicions, but you just confirmed it. If I get in with them, maybe I'll get in with Raiden."

"I didn't think of that," I mutter.

"Want to go to that little Vietnamese place down the street and get Pho for breakfast?" He says it so nonchalantly that I get a shiver down my spine. Almost like that power play never entered his head. He's thrown that idea to the back of his head to let it sit, to let it take shape.

---

Somehow, over the next few months, Shinji and Sasaki become the almost constant companions of Takumi. Something which angers me ridiculously. I have to listen to Sasaki's obnoxious laugh on a regular basis now, when they come in from Psycho early in the morning. I've stopped going with them, something which Takumi finds no problems with. I learn to tolerate her presence, and by that I mean, be in the same room as her.

It's a good thing that I did.

When Shinji and Sasaki find out who we are, they don't run. Sasaki's face showed a smugness that tells me that she knew all along. I wonder if she had the same idea as Takumi but kept it to herself, because Shinji seemed surprised by our identities. It's then I learn that Sasaki may not be the vaguely gloomy, ditzy blonde that she appears to be.

Turns out that Sasaki is very close to Raiden, and is basically his right hand man. We negotiate some sort of peace. Raiden was hesitant to make an alliance, but we settled on a ceasefire. Regardless of what fight breaks out, Black Flag and the Onyx Slicers will never face off against each other. However, we have nothing making us fight side by side should we need it. I have a nagging feeling in the back of my head that that might cause trouble in the future.

It's surprising how easy that made our lives. I didn't realise how much of our time was taken up by Black Flag. It almost feels peaceful for awhile.

"Hey Kenta," Takumi says to me one night. Neither of paying attention to the movie playing in front of us, while we sit on the couch. "Yuuka was telling me about gangs in the Satellite the other day."

"Really?" I can't deny that piques my interest. That could help us if we used that information in the right way. "How different is it?"

"Basically the same as here, maybe even a bit worse." He hums. "But there was one thing that stuck with me." I wait for him to continue. "She used to be in this gang, called Team Satisfaction. Their existence had only one purpose, make the Satellite a better place. They wanted to get rid of all the gangs, and unify the Satellite. Could you imagine such a thing?" There's a pause. "No gangs, no wars. If only."

"I'm sure it could be done." Takumi turns to look at me. "If you knew how to go about it." His eyebrows furrow. I can see the gears in his head turning.

"We could do it," he says softly. "Our lives would be so much easier. No fighting, we could just be together. Not living with the reality that everything we own was bought with drug money."

"Sounds nice, but how would we ever do that?" I sigh.

Apparently Takumi's answer to that question was recruit people familiar with the territory.

Shinji says no. He wants to leave gangs entirely. His girlfriend, who's also in Black Flag, has been considering leaving for months, ever since Black Flag members got murdered on Cardinal Dragon territory. Surely he knows that joining us means everyone gets to leave gangs, that's what Takumi says. I understand Shinji's decision. Staying out of the game keeps him safe. He wants to settle with his girlfriend. Dragging both himself and his girlfriend into this war puts them both in harm's way. That's what I'd do if it weren't for Takumi. I don't like playing the dangerous game and he knows that.

Sasaki says she'll think about it. Which is something I'm on the fence about. She would be useful, but I would have to put up with her loud, obnoxious ass for longer than I would like.

The idea of destroying all of the gangs never leaves Takumi's head.

"I hate this stupid circle of violence," he says while sprawled out on our couch. "One gang attacks, and you're stuck fighting them for months because someone got hurt."

"I want just one day where I don't have to deal with all this shit."

"One day."

"Could we not just leave the gang, and leave it to someone else?" I ask one day.

"No," Takumi frowns. "It's the principle of it. If we walk away now, we're admitting the system can't be changed and it's better to escape than fight. We need to fight this. We're not just fighting for ourselves anymore, we're fighting for everyone who's trapped in this vicious cycle and can't escape. Do you understand?"

"I do."

---

Takumi keeps pressing them for an answer. Shinji says no. I run into Sasaki at the Fortune Cup, for Takumi's sake, I press her to join us. Something changed in her. I think she could join us now. She seems shaken by the marked competitor, an old childhood friend. I must be getting soft. I felt bad for her. There was something else going too, I could it in her aura. I offered to calm her down using my powers, something I just learn I could do. I may have accidentally mellowed Sasaki out when she was annoying me. She figured it out pretty quickly and allowed me to test my powers further.

Immediately after the Fortune Cup, Sasaki drops off the grid entirely. For three months. Shinji gives no explanation. Takumi tries to get through to her, but it's missed call after missed call. He tries to go to her apartment, but no luck there.

Then, out of nowhere, we hear that she's in the hospital because Raiden collapsed a building on top of her. Shinji tells us it was because Sasaki tried to leave Black Flag. Takumi's hand shoots over my own.

"She was leaving Black Flag to join us," he mutters. I only hope that he's right.

We visit her in the hospital. Takumi tells me to get flowers that mean something specific to us and our mission. I manage to find some Morning Glories, which mean willful promise. Sasaki knows about flowers, she should get the idea.

I think she does.

She and Takumi arrange to meet in the park, a fancy gazebo by the lake. I think I've seen people drinking alcohol in here before, which explains why those two chose here. Sasaki is bringing her brother, Kaoru, something she says will explain itself.

Takumi paces the gazebo as we wait for them. Sasaki has a bad leg since the building collapsed on her, so we were told that she might be late. And she is.

I feel them approach before I see them. So, I turn around to face them. I glance between Sasaki and her brother. There's definitely a resemblance, particularly in the eyes and nose. The only difference is that Kaoru has hair closer to light brown than blond, and orange eyes as opposed to pink. They even have the exact same look of uncomfort on their face. Then, I try to read their auras.

"Oh dear gods, there's two of them." They look pretty similar, same facial expression, same aura. The possibility that I might have to deal with two Sasakis at the same time creeps into my head, and I don't like it.

"What do you m-" Takumi turns around to see what I mean. His gaze lingers on Kaoru before turning towards me. "I mean they look alike but-"

"No, it's not that." I put a hand over my mouth as I watch Sasaki hobble over to a pillar to lean on it. It's definitely her ankle that she hurt. She's avoiding putting weight on one of her legs entirely. "Their auras, they're practically the same."

"What does that mean?" Kaoru looks to me, anxiously. No one must have pointed it out yet.

"I don't know," I answer. I've never met siblings that are psychics. I can't say that's the reason. Yet, I also can't help but feel there's an underlying reason.

"Could that be why we can hear each other's thoughts?" Kaoru asks me again, ignoring Sasaki who's clearly in a lot of pain.

"Could be. Unusual, considering most other telepaths can't hear your sister's thoughts at all." I've heard this secondhand from Takumi. That's something very unusual from what I've heard, excluding my new findings.

"Telepaths?" Takumi's eyes narrow. He focuses on Sasaki before turning to look out onto the lake.

This is why Sasaki brought him here.

Telepaths could change the entire game. We'll be working on a small team, and their contribution could be priceless. They could be the key to winning.

"Besides the point, what's the story? You disappeared for like three months." Takumi asks. I glare at his back, because this is neither the time nor place. I'm sure Sasaki wouldn't want to discuss that in public in front of me, and maybe Kaoru.

"It's a long story," she sighs.

"You always say that," Takumi turns around and leans on the railings.

"Believe me," she frowns, "I mean it."

Long story. Would that explain why she left Black Flag so suddenly? Would that explain why the City broke out into a giant gang war? Would that explain why Raiden left, leaving a crippled Sasaki in charge of a wounded gang, which is barely clinging on at this point? Black Flag has exactly one member right now, and it's Sasaki.

"You better spill." Sasaki looks at me in shock. "What did you think you were doing? Leaving Black Flag? Look at what you've done! Everything's a mess and it's all your fault."

"What would you rather have me do?" She tries to defend herself. "I couldn't have known that was going to happen. What? Not leave and be stuck in that hell forever?"

"Yes," I respond curtly. I feel Takumi glaring at me. He clearly knows something I don't. "What do you think about all of this?" I turn to Kaoru.

"I mean, I think she was right in what she did." And he's exactly like Sasaki. "But," apparently not, "I think she could have gone about it in a better way." I'm so glad that Kaoru seems to be rational. A big change from Sasaki, indeed.

"There's no doubt that she could have gone about it in a better way." I nod at him, before turning my attention back to Sasaki. "You should have known better. You know what's Raiden like." I've heard small details from Takumi. Apparently he's very protective of Sasaki, only letting Sasaki be friends with Takumi because he's gay. So, a very shitty guy to say the least. Not to mention, I don't know, collapsing a building on top of her.

"I didn't come out here for a lecture," Sasaki straightens up against the pillar. She looks down at me, as if trying to intimidate me with her height. Even though she's a head taller than me, in her crippled state, she could do nothing to me right now.

"Calm down Kenta," Takumi intervenes. "You know why she did it. Some things went wrong, this changes nothing. It's not going to stop our plan." Takumi has been surprisingly calm. Even when Sasaki went into hospital, he's acting like everything is going according to plan.

"What plan?" Kaoru glances rapidly between Sasaki and Takumi.

"What? You haven't told him yet?" Takumi raises an eyebrow at Sasaki. She raises her eyes, and that alone tells me she's guilty.

"No, I can't have him blabbering on about how this is a bad idea to certain people." I've heard that Sasaki has been staying with the same Yusei Fudo who won the Fortune Cup, and who just happens to be her childhood friend, for safekeeping. She must be talking about him.

"What's going on, Yuuka?" I see Kaoru's jaw tense.

"You know how I left Black Flag?" She begins casually.

"Yeah, you said that you're done with gangs." There's a beat of silence.

"Well, I'm not."

"What?" Kaoru raises his voice, which causes Sasaki's eyes to move to the lake. "You can't! I mean," Kaoru's voice shakes ever so slightly with fear, "you're not strong enough. You can barely walk without being in a heap-"

"I'm not doing anything now, dumbass. I know that." Sasaki turns her head back to Kaoru. She speaks with such refined ease that I can't help but feel like she has the entire situation under control. Perhaps Takumi and Sasaki are more in sync about this war than I know. "Nothing's going to happen until I leave Poppo Time." Sasaki looks at Takumi, who seems quite amused. Maybe I'm just as left out as Kaoru is.

"What's going to happen then?" Kaoru asks.

"Well, it's simple." Takumi answers. "We're going to rid the City of gangs." It takes that idea a few seconds to register in Kaoru's head.

"Wait, what?" His head turns slowly back to Sasaki.

"Exactly what he said," Sasaki responds without missing a beat.

"No, not that. Why am I here?" Sasaki starts to play with her hands, something I've learnt that means she's nervous. I focus on her aura to see if I'm right. I feel my eyebrows furrow. Her aura… It's muddled. I can't quite get a solid grasp of it. It's still her aura, no doubt. It's muted, it's weaker. I can't read it no matter how much I try.

"Well, you're going to help us." Sasaki closes her eyes, as if to avoid the response. I know she's nervous, but I can't feel it.

"No! Nope, not doing it. No way." Sasaki gives her brother a pleading look.

"Please, just listen." She interjects. He sighs, letting her continue. "As you know, we can hear each other's thoughts. If you don't join us, it's going to be hard for both of us. I can't keep an eye on you. People might use you to get at me, I don't want that to happen."

She's clever.

Sasaki knows that this telepathy could be a great weapon in this war. But she couldn't tell him that. For once, she's using that brain of hers. Telling Kaoru that they'll both be in danger if he doesn't join. For as stupid as she is, I must admit that Sasaki can be a great strategist when she wants to be.

"Fine." Kaoru holds the bridge of his nose and exhales. "I'm only doing this so I can protect you. The minute you get hurt, we're leaving."

"Okay," I feel Sasaki's aura twitch. She's lying. As if the legendary Fabled Bitch herself would step down from a fight just because she got injured. She nearly died not even two weeks ago, because of gangs, and she's already heading towards another war. If Kaoru thinks he can control her, he's wrong. My only question is how can I control her, and stop her from doing stupid things that jeopardise the entire mission.

"Is that why you haven't been answering me? Just so you can hide your little secret?" Kaoru's eye twitches slightly. Not answering? Yuuka averts her gaze, but she's not guilty. I can tell that much. It wasn't on purpose, so it must be…

"No," I interject. I turn my gaze back to Sasaki. "There's something wrong with her. Her aura, it's different. You can't hear his thoughts, am I right?"

"That's right." She covers the bottom half of her face and stares at the ground. "Nothing works, I can't sense auras either."

"How is that possible?" Takumi stares at her, wide-eyed.

"I don't know, ever since that duel-"

"Wait, didn't you say that you didn't have control of your powers during that duel?" Kaoru steps ever so slightly towards her.

"What?" I blurt out. Sasaki. Someone who is known for control over their powers. She trained constantly to control them, mentally and physically. Suddenly lost control of their powers? This doesn't make sense.

"Yes," she sighs. "During the duel, no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't control my powers." Maybe that's why her aura is strange. There's a darkness to her aura that wasn't there before.

"Do you know why?" Kaoru's face softens.

"I reckon it's to do with her emotions." I stare at Sasaki as I try to grasp at straws with her aura. That darkness must mean something. "A lot has happened to you since I've last seen you, this could be the result of that." Having a building collapsing on top of you is traumatic enough. Something else must have happened to make her go silent for three months. Trauma can do crazy things to a person.

"Probably," she blurts out. Her eye slowly moves to Takumi. "Enough about me. What has happened since Raiden disappeared? Shinji's only told me so much."

"Right," Takumi says as he pushes himself off the railings. "The fighting has calmed down a good bit now. There's only seven gangs left in the City, that includes us," he gestures quickly between us, "and Black Flag."

"I assume the other six got taken over," Sasaki slides back down the pillar, so she's sitting on the ground.

"Right," Takumi continues. "Aside from us, only the Phantom Riders, Cross Syndicate, Red Serpents, The Jackals and Cardinal Dragons are left."

"Wait, you keep talking about us, are you in a different gang?" Kaoru blurts out. Surely that would have been obvious from the wording. Sasaki doesn't seem fazed by the question. He must be the type to ask silly questions.

"We're called the Onyx Slicers by the way," Takumi answers quickly before starting to pace. "After Raiden disappeared, all the gangs made attempts at getting more territory. Black Flag is now technically the smallest gang in the City. We managed to take down two gangs, which is good. It'll make our job a lot easier." He looks to Sasaki and Kaoru for questions, but receives none.

"Our best bet is taking out The Jackals first," I explain. I've spent time planning out the order in which to take out the gangs. "They're the smallest next to Black Flag. They're also the only gang that didn't take over another gang in the last week or so. Probably means that they're the weakest right now, and that they should be our first target."

Cardinal Dragons will be left until last. They're the biggest threat, no doubt. Its leaders are very good at playing mind games. Heck, they managed to convince Raiden Kimura to strike when two of Black Flag's members were murdered on their territory. Granted, I know the truth that an old leader of the Onyx Slicers ordered that to happen. But Kimura certainly didn't know that. At the time. That leader got taken out very soon after, no doubt Kimura found out.

"Sounds fair," Kaoru responds. "We should wait until after the New Year. That'll mean Yuuka has more time to recover, and we can enjoy the holiday season too." I feel my eyes narrow. Despite being a bundle of nerves, I feel a sense of level-headedness from him. A big departure from Sasaki. Maybe, he could be useful for more than just his telepathy.

"You're nothing like your sister, you know that?" I can feel myself smirking as I say it. Though, I do get to have the satisfaction of seeing Sasaki roll her eyes.

"Right, I know we're all having a lovely time here." Sasaki struggles to get up off the ground with her bad ankle. "But I am in pain, and want to get back before I can't walk anymore."

"Also, Yusei-" Kaoru starts.

"Will complain if I'm out too long." She finishes. "They all will. Crow will absolutely nag at me for the rest of the day. Yusei will just give me the neutral face of displeasure."

"What's the neutral face of displeasure?" Takumi chuckles. Sasaki puts her hand under her face, and just gives Takumi a disappointed look. "Oh that's the look you gave me after I puked outside Psycho."

"We were waiting in line to go in and they didn't let us in after that," Sasaki sighs. "I got dressed up for nothing."

"Wait, you two went to that sketchy nightclub downtown?" Kaoru looks between the both of them in shock.

"Dude," Takumi squints at him. "The bouncers know us by name at this point. Like now, they just let us in when they see us coming."

"And now, I'm going to leave before this conversation gets uncomfortable." Sasaki sighs again while hobbling down the gazebo stairs. "I have to deal with him on the way back, thanks Takumi."

"You're welcome," he says as he waves her off with a sarcastic smile. Sasaki flips him off without even looking back.

Takumi stays silent until the both of them are out of earshot. I can't help but watch him as I wait for him to speak. He still seems amused from what just happened. But then, the facade falls.

"What do you think?" I ask, done with waiting for him to start.

"I don't know." He answers. "Is he good enough to replace Shinji?" Ah, there we go. "This kid has no experience. He didn't know Yuuka was in a gang until two days before Black Flag fell. The only thing he has is his powers. Is that enough? Telepathy with Yuuka, and powers he can't control."

"We're just going to have to take that risk," I answer. "You know how I hate risk. We're in a risky business right now. Kaoru is the only option was have left, because I don't think three is enough. I also need someone to make Sasaki more bearable, and you only encourage her."

"I do not-"

"You two are very alike, you both get worse in each other's presence."

"Hey, now-"

"Because there's always alcohol involved."

"I can't help it."

"Sure."

---

The fight with The Jackals goes alright. We win, of course. I didn't doubt that we would. They didn't try to take over any territory when Black Flag, so I figured that meant they would be easy prey.

That wasn't entirely the case.

Takumi treated Kaoru like a child, assuming he would be dead weight. He was wrong. A friend of Sasaki's taught him how to deal with psychics, something I find suspicious. Did he ask, or does that friend know? That same friend has been teaching him how to control his powers. I suppose that's something to bring up to Sasaki at a later time. Kaoru, continuing on, was not dead weight as expected. Instead, it seems that he was integral to us succeeding. He managed to distract the enemy by crashing the elevator down into the basement. Not only that, but according to Takumi, he took out the boss of the gang within a few turns.

Takumi and I were apprehensive about Kaoru. But it seems that he has proved his worth.

If only Yuuka hadn't been such a dead weight though, especially compared to a literal newcomer. She wasn't ready to go back to fighting in a gang. I had a feeling. She seemed more nervous than usual. I thought she was worried about Kaoru. Turns out she was worrying about herself.

If only I had been slightly more apprehensive about the head on approach. I only agreed with Yuuka's idea to make Takumi feel more at ease. I knew I shouldn't have listened to that stupid bitch. They may not have listened to us like she said, but it was at least worth a shot.

"Then speak up next time." Takumi says as he changes the bandages on my arm. Of course I had to injure my right arm, the arm I use to do absolutely everything.

"I do you one favour, only for all of us to be covered in bandages." At least I don't have the worst of it. Both Sasaki and Kaoru are both in bad shape, they both have big gashes on their waists. At least they have that quick regeneration that some psychics have, they're very lucky. I reckon that they won't have scars from that. They had mostly healed when we got back to our apartment.

"Don't be that way." Takumi tuts. "You're in a gang, surely you're used to this by now."

"We need to change our approach." Takumi finishes my bandage so I rub my hands over my face. "The head-on approach isn't going to work when Sasaki can barely stand after summoning one monster." Takumi's mouth forms a hard line. He didn't witness her in action much. But her state afterwards was very telling. Even Kaoru seemed worried for her, well, more than normal.

"What would have us do then?" I hear that mistrust in Takumi's voice. "It's not like they'll listen to us. Give up this lucrative money maker, and go back to a civilian life. Not everyone is like us, Kenta. Do you really think we can convince people to give up their drug empires because we told them about a better life they could have if they just stop? I don't think so. What's wrong with you? Normally, you're the realist in this relationship."

"I can't help it." I sigh as I rub my hand over the fresh bandage on my arm. "I've been thinking about something Sasaki said."

"You listening to Sasaki?" Takumi scoffs. "Tell me another one."

"I'm being serious." I roll my eyes. "I know that sounds so unlike me, but it's true. It's something she said after we formed Team Liberation, the reason why she finally said yes. Take your guilt and turn it into something better."

"Why is that sticking with you? What have you to be guilty about?" He narrows his eyes at me, and sits on the opposite side of the couch, facing me.

"I've hurt people with my powers, Takumi." His eyes soften. "As much as I've hate to admit, I lie awake at night, thinking about the people I've used my powers on. Have I ever accidentally killed someone? Have I ever paralysed someone because a chunk of concrete fell on their legs? You're not a psychic, Takumi, so you can't understand." He tenses. "I don't expect you to understand. But Sasaki does. I've never asked her, but I know that's what she does too. When you're a psychic in a gang, you don't know if you've ruined someone's life or not. I don't think I have. But here's the thing. I don't know what crimes I'm guilty of. I can't help but worry, Takumi." I feel my eyes starting to burn. "If I could do something to make that all better, I would. If I could prevent more people getting hurt in this cycle of violence, I would do anything. Someone we hurt in The Jackals could come back and hurt us, just because I dueled them. We have to do this, Takumi. If we going to destroy every gang, we have to do so that no one gets hurt. Please. I just want to escape this, and not worry about our lives."

Takumi puts his hand over mine. His eyes seem glassy. I can't expect Takumi to understand, and I'm not going to. I just want him to consider things from my point of view. I've been through things because I'm a psychic, and he'll never go through that because he's privileged enough not to be cursed with these powers.

"We can try," he whispers. "I don't know how it will go, but we can talk to them."

---

Our next move is The Red Serpents. We choose them because they've had a change in leader recently, and he's been referred to as weak-willed. He's doing the exact same thing as the last leader did, and nothing else. I'm hoping he can listen to reason.

When Takumi said we can talk to them, turns out, he meant Sasaki.

Just before we go inside, he pulls her aside and gives her a speech. I need you to do something for me, he starts with.

I want you to be the face for our movement. This City is going through some big changes. You're the only one who can lead. You're the only one who can do this. You, a marked psychic, are going to be change that this City needs. This City has its eyes on you. You've got to step up and lead.

He might as well have stabbed in the heart. He said all this while I was in earshot. Kaoru looks at me, and I can feel sympathy in his aura. I don't think he knows that we're in a serious, long-term relationship. But he understands that we're close, and this hurts me. It fucking hurts, and I won't sugarcoat that.

I'm sacrificing a lot for this.

I could have just walked away. I could have left in safety. For once in my life, I'm ignoring my survival instinct and doing something nice for other people instead. I'm putting every other person before myself. Only for my own boyfriend just to up and ignore me. All for someone who's obnoxious, could ruin the mission, who is a threat to everyone around her. For what? Because she's a marked psychic. What does she have that I don't?

I see how it is.

In this game, we're all equal. It doesn't discriminate. If I want Takumi to recognise me as his rightful second, I suppose I'll have to work for it.

I thought I knew Takumi.

In all the time we have been dating, I honestly thought I knew him better than this.

I can't believe he's putting this war in Sasaki's hands. All while I'm standing right there. I've been the one at his side. I've been the one who orchestrated this entire thing. I've spent so much money paying off informants to find out every single possible thing about each remaining gang. I've spent hours pouring over the data, trying to find the best possible path to victory. I've stalled and waited. I took my time. I waited for this chance.

Now, he's leaving this war to this fool. That's what she is. If Takumi isn't going to play fair, then I won't either.

Somehow, Sasaki manages to pull it off. I manipulated their auras, Sasaki and The Red Serpents' leader. I made them calmer, and easier to lead to a certain conclusion. Luckily, that conclusion was in our favour. Their leader, Felix, was easy to manipulate. But how Sasaki did it, is the real issue here.

Sasaki, being the absolute idiot that she is, blabbed about Team Satisfaction. The very gang that led us to where we are. She didn't say that she was part of them, luckily. But she spoke like she knew them personally.

That's where the danger lies. I'm sure finding information about her would be an easy task for an informant, if you're paying enough. Someone could come along and take her out, easily. Felix says he's on our side, but I don't trust as far as I could throw him, and that's not very far.

Sasaki put very valuable information in Felix's hands. If he decides to use that, we could be in very real trouble. I don't know about Sasaki, but that's not a situation I want to be in.

Unfortunately for Sasaki, someone uses that information just after we leave that base. She starts running, very fast, too fast. We follow her, but Sasaki is too fast for us. Kaoru manages to keep up with her, leaving Takumi and I behind.

Once we catch up, I spot the silhouette of Yusei Fudo walking away. My eyes turn to Sasaki and Kaoru, who have their dragons out. Kaoru's Light End Dragon is already starting to disappear. But Sasaki's Trishula stays. I ask her about it. Trishula appeared on its own, like it was protecting Yusei of its own free will. Sasaki puts her hand on one of Trishula's heads. I feel its cold seeping into me. It's a familiar cold, the numbness of death. That's an unmistakable cold. I take Sasaki's hand and lead her back to the apartment. I hope that I can absorb some of that cold which always seem to radiate from her.

It sounds strange to say. But Sasaki seems to just emit the cold that only death can bring. Maybe that's what the Satellite does to someone. No doubt she's no stranger to death, it seems more like a constant companion to her.

Then, I remember that I'm mad at her once we reach the apartment again.

"What do you need to talk about?" She mutters once I drag her into the kitchen, after Takumi finishes making hot drinks for everyone.

"You need to keep your mouth shut." I feel my jaw clench. "You talk too much. Keep quiet, you're going to give us away. All that Team Satisfaction stuff? Nobody needs to know." I take a deep breath, as that will get the point across more. "Talk less."

"All that talking got us the Red Serpents' territory." Sasaki's brow furrows, and she seems oblivious. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure, but we keep running your mouth. You're getting us into trouble." My mouth forms a hard line. "Have you not noticed yet?"

"Notice what?" Her shoulders slump as if she's considering, for the first time, that her actions might have consequences.

"The moment you mentioned Team Satisfaction, Yusei got attacked. Wasn't he part of that? Did you not think about that? How could you not have noticed? Someone's figured us out, Sasaki. And I'm pointing my finger at you!" For emphasis, I point my finger in her face, despite how much of a stretch that is from where I'm standing.

I just want to get through to her. Maybe she'll become more tolerable. Maybe she'll listen to other people before just acting. Acting like her actions have consequences. I hate her. She walks around, oblivious to the fact that other people are suffering as much as she is. Everything around her is The Yuuka Show. She's the one saving the City, when I'm here working just as hard as she is, if not more. I wish she'd just wise up to that.

"No. That wasn't my fault." She stutters out. Will she ever take the blame? Put her hands up and say something was her fault. As far as I'm aware, she's never done anything of the like.

"Oh okay, you're not taking the blame like usual. Who done it then Sasaki? Tell me." I feel my shoulders start to shake. I can't help myself. This day is pushing me further and further towards the edge and I don't know how much more I can take.

"I felt Raiden's aura, before you arrived." I stumble away from her. But she's looking at me with such certainty. She's telling the truth?

"Sasaki, that's not possible. You know that. He's gone." I try to reason with her. She's suffering some trauma, I understand that. Something else that could have been traumatic, had she not intervened, nearly happened. Things happen.

"I know what I felt." I feel her aura heat up as I read it. She's being steadfast. She's not lying.

"You'd know better than I would, better than anyone." I sigh. I turn, looking around our small kitchen as I try to comprehend what that could really mean. "I hope you're right."

"Honestly, each option is as bad as the other." Sasaki's right. "Red Serpents know who I am, they spill to other gangs. They might find out who you are through association. Raiden knows." She shakes her head. "We're doomed. You, me, Yusei, everyone."

"I hope you're wrong. For the both of us." I put my hands over my face, and stare at Sasaki through the gaps between my fingers. Is Raiden really as dangerous as she claims? Given how solemn her face is, I'm inclined to say she's right. "That it's just a coincidence. Wrong place at the wrong time." I lower my hands, and stare at them. "Did I hide my skin enough?" My skin is several shades darker than any plain Japanese person. Damn my half Indian skin, could this be something that could give us away? "I have nobody they can use against me." I have Takumi, and he's already involved. My mother's dead, and my father disowned me. Except for Takumi, I'm alone in this world. "So, they figured out who you are and attacked Yusei."

"Don't be silly. It was just a coincidence. It was probably some Cross Syndicate kids off their turf." Sasaki goes to rest a hand on my shoulder but pulls away at the last second. God, do I yell at her that much that she refuses to touch me? Are we that repulsive to each other that a simple gesture isn't possible? I'm starting to see what Takumi means.

"Yeah, it was." I try to convince myself. It wasn't Sasaki's fault, it wasn't my fault. "We're fine." It wasn't anyone's fault.

Or was it?

I know how to deal with psychics. I remember Kaoru's words. Could he have? I've been taught by Anako. He must have.

"Go take that turtleneck off. You'll feel better." Sasaki starts to move towards the kitchen door. I've been pulling at this turtleneck for a while. Even though it makes me very uncomfortable, I've been wearing to cover up my dark skin, something quite recognisable. Strange that she picked up on that, considering how oblivious she is normally.

"Keep your eye out, Sasaki." I tell her, my voice barely above a whisper. "It could be someone on the inside." She stares at me, wide-eyed. She nods, she understands. I think she knows exactly what I'm talking about. Kaoru is naive. He doesn't know what consequences could lie waiting for us.

---

"Kenta, calm down." Takumi says as he interweaves his legs with mine on the couch. "I'm sure another gang out there already figured out who she is. Yuuka told that only Raiden knew that she used Yuudai as a double. He probably told the Cardinal Dragons or something."

I can't help but feel like he has a point, but something still lingers in the back of my head. I'm remembering the pain-filled auras of The Jackals. One of them is bound to do something. Maybe someone recognised her aura from the Satellite. A lot of former Satellites have joined gangs after the unification. Hell, one of the gangs left was one of the gangs that appeared not long after Team Satisfaction disbanded. At least, that's what the informant said.

"We just need to keep going," he rubs my leg in an effort to calm me down. "You saw Yuuka at The Red Serpents, right? Don't you believe that we can do this?"

"It's a stronger possibility now." I answer. I don't feel certain enough to say yes. This could work. Or maybe Felix already wanted out, and we just got lucky. I can't help but worry. We need to stay out of things for a while and rethink our strategy.

"I was thinking about what we'll do after this, y'know? Once we finish in the City."

"What do you mean finish in the City?" Is Takumi implying what I think he is? "I thought we were done, for good."

"See I thought about that." Takumi shifts in his seat so his back is straighter. "But here's the thing. What if we kept doing this?"

"What?"

"Y'know, like, go to different cities. And just, keep going until the world is free of gangs."

"Takumi," my tone is harsh. "Once the City is free, we're done. We're retreating and having a nice, carefree life together. Isn't that what you want?"

"I do, but-"

"Takumi, please."

"Listen to me, Kenta. We have the possibility to free everyone in the world from gangs. And what? We're just not going to take it? What happened to us doing the morally right thing?"

"We're doing the morally right thing by saving ourselves after this is over. We're already putting enough on the line for this City. Takumi, someone could just shoot us through our door tomorrow because of Team Liberation. And you, you want to turn this into a global mission. Takumi, we need to get out of this, alive."

"I thought I knew you better than this, Kenta." Takumi stands up from the couch and begins to pace the room. "You're ignoring every suffering person in this world. For what?"

"Our safety," I feel my jaw tensing and my teeth grinding against each other.

"I'm going for a walk," is all Takumi says before he walks out of our apartment and slamming the door behind him.

---

The topic doesn't come up before we fight the next gang. The Phantom Riders, the very gang who conquered the Satellite after Team Satisfaction disbanded and left the poor island in chaos. They have challenged Yuudai, or should I say Sasaki, to a Riding Duel. The prize? The winner gets the other gang's territory. This means we get part of the docklands, and the entire Satellite. The thought of that sends a shiver down my spine.

I can't help but feel like an ambush is waiting for us. Sasaki actually agrees with me for once. Something else surprising is that she seems to be slowly warming up to me, ever since I yelled at her. Maybe because I was starting to have a panic attack, and she briefly saw some vulnerability, before I reigned it in and saved that attack for later.

But back to the topic at hand, all four are just standing by one of the newly constructed bridges, waiting for part of The Phantom Riders to show up. Ambush seems more and more likely every minute. We're all dead silent. Things are awkward between Takumi and I. Kaoru's looking at his phone. Meanwhile, Sasaki stares off into the distance as she leans on her D-Wheel, seemingly unaware of the awkwardness around her. Or maybe she's just ignoring it. Sometimes, I wish I could just zone out like her.

"So you know the way Aki was called the Black Rose Witch?" Kaoru asks Sasaki as someone finally tries to start some conversation. We all turn to look at him. "What would you be called? Like the Fabled Witch or something?"

"It rhymes with that." I resist the urge to chuckle.

"What do you mean it rhymes?" Kaoru turns to me instead.

"The Fabled Bitch," Sasaki answers. Kaoru seems shocked by her language, but that seems surprising, considering he can hear her thoughts.

"I came up with it." I chip in. This was not long after I met her. We needed a name to refer to the right hand man in Black Flag, and well, she uses Fabled monsters and she's a bitch. It works so well, and I just couldn't help myself.

Sasaki practically jumps out of her skin when we hear the distant sounds of D-Wheel engines coming straight for us. Which is fair, considering the sun has just risen, and no one would be a joy ride at this time. Five D-Wheels pull up not far from us. Four of them stay back, while one approaches us. He stops only a few metres from us.

"You're the one I'm facing, I assume?" He takes off his helmet. I inhale sharply but I don't know what I was expecting. His tanned skin is covered in markers. Two thick lines go either side of his face, with another line going across his nose. His mop of curly red hair stands out against his baby blue eyes. Despite how tall and broad he is, even more so than Takumi, I can't help but be in awe of his face. It's soft, unlike everything else about him.

"Are you Miguel?" Sasaki asks.

"That's me alright." He steps forward, and offers his hand to shake, which Sasaki does. "This might sound bad, but do you mind taking your mask off? I hate dueling someone I can't see the face of."

That baby face hides the gang leader that's inside, I should have known. I can't forget that Miguel is still a gang leader, no matter how cute he is. Did I just call another boy cute, when I myself have a boyfriend? I can't believe this. Then, I remember telling Shinji he had a great ass, before slapping it. And somehow, that makes me feel better.

Sasaki, hesitantly, takes her mask off. From where I'm standing, I can see that she's put plenty of makeup on her face. Wait, are those blue contact lenses? That sly bitch. She must have known that her mask didn't fit under her helmet.

"You're just a kid," is all Miguel says. He has a look of surprise on his face. I sense no aura from him, so he mustn't be a psychic. But he does seem genuine enough, maybe we can trust him to hold up his end of the bargain.

"I'm older than I look." This gets a laugh out of Miguel. I see Takumi turning to look at me from the corner of my eye. I have a mask on, surely he can't tell what I'm feeling. "You're from the Satellite, yeah?"

"Born and bred," he answers. That seemed obvious from his marks, but it's Sasaki we're talking about her. He seems surprised when Sasaki answers with a me too. She must have covered her marker with concealer. "Okay, down to business." He rubs his hands together. "I thought instead of yous hunting us down and everything that follows, we'd issue a challenge. That seems fair, right? I'd actually like to avoid violence. It's just the kind of guy I am."

Takumi, Kaoru and I all stare at each other, before our gazes slowly shift back towards Miguel. I think he's heard about us, and how we took down The Red Serpents. I've heard something about their gangs being linked. He must know what our mission is now, ending that circle of violence.

"I would too," Sasaki answers. I'm reading her aura, and she feels the same way I do.

"Thank you, I appreciate it." Is Miguel one of those rare cases where a gang leader isn't a total psychopath? It seems like it. "You win, you get all of the Phantom Riders territory. I win, I get all of the Team Liberation territory. We cool?" Unless he's hiding a trick up his sleeve for this duel, which is still a possibility.

"Yeah," Sasaki nods. "Wanna go straight to business now?"

"Sure thing." Miguel grin and sticks his hand out to shake Sasaki's again. "Good luck. You'll need it, my deck is pretty strong."

"Really?" Sasaki smirks right back at him as she shakes his hand. "Mine is too." They both set off towards the entry for the highway. The rest of The Phantom Riders cheer as they set off, we're a bit less cheery.

"I'm surprised," Kaoru says. "He seemed so cool."

"He did," I answer. "I wonder if he's hiding anything." I look over to his friends, they seem innocent enough.

"I don't think so," Takumi weighs in. "Miguel is friends with Felix from The Red Serpents. He knew about us. Maybe this is Miguel's way of seeing if we're really capable of keeping to our word."

"I suppose that makes sense." Takumi looks at me. There's silence. Even though we both have masks on, our gazes have weight to them. "Dueling is a good way of seeing someone's true intentions." Now that I've said that, I feel like a duel between Takumi and I is inevitable.

The duel starts. Miguel's friends cheer for him, while we're all standing here awkwardly. Kaoru tries to make comments about Sasaki's dueling, but no one responds.

The duel is over quickly. Far quicker than any of us expected honestly. Miguel's friends shut up as soon as Sasaki summons Trishula, and it's over in a matter of seconds after that. As much as Sasaki calls herself an amateur, I must admit when she's on a roll, she's unstoppable.

After they ride back to where we're waiting, Miguel shakes Sasaki's hand again. His helmet is off and I can see the sorrow in his eyes. "Good duel. You really got me there with Trishula."

"Yeah, it was. Lavalval Dragon had me panicking for a while there." Sasaki replies.

"Boss," one of Miguel's friends speak up. There's a hint of fear in his voice. "Do you realise who that is?" Oh no.

"No, should I?" He asks, turning around to them.

"That's The Fabled Bitch." I have to resist the urge to cackle. The fear in his voice, paired with that name, makes for an entertaining situation. Sasaki and Yuudai as The Fabled Bitch are interchangeable at this point. Just because they know that identity doesn't mean that can track Sasaki down that easily.

"You know what?" Another of his friends ask. "I thought The Fabled Bitch would be a chick, you know, with that name and all."

"Dudes can be bitches too, Callum." This makes Miguel laugh.

"Well, Yuudai," he turns back to Sasaki with a sombre face, "you get all of the Phantom Riders territory." He bites his lip. "You're doing a good thing. Maybe you're what this City needs. Best of luck." Miguel shakes

"You tried your best, Boss." One of his friends say as they all circle him. One of them grabs him in a headlock. "We still have each other."

The despair is almost tangible in the air. Sasaki's and Kaoru's aura sink. In fact, Sasaki's aura is spiralling. The deafening silence between us continues as they drive away.

Takumi walks away, followed quickly by Kaoru.

But I stand there, and wait.

I wait for Sasaki to say something. She looks at me, her mask still not put back on. She looks guilty. Still, she says nothing. She turns away from me, and stares towards the Satellite. I suppose she has nothing to say to me. After I thought things were starting to change, this happens. I suppose it felt nice to get closer to her, when Takumi only seeming to be getting further and further away from me. I start to walk away, when I hear the roar of Sasaki's D-Wheel.

---

One night, Takumi's phone rings at four in the morning. I assume the worst.

"Kaoru?" His voice is groggy from sleep. Something happened to Yuuka. "Wait, what?" My blood runs cold. Takumi is panicking. "Do you know who?" I sit up in the bed and place my hand on Takumi's back, which is turned to me. "I suppose we'll see when she wakes up then." A pause. "What do you mean don't come to the hospital? I don't care if your mom is there, Kaoru. Oh, Yusei gets to be there and I don't? My best friend is in critical condition and I want to make sure she's okay." Critical? I flop back onto the bed, unable to hold myself up anymore. I feel sick to the stomach. What actually happened? Waiting until Takumi hangs up seems too painful to bear. "Too suspicious? I'm her best friend, Kaoru. Not some sketchy guy showing up." Another pause. "Fine, I'll go during visiting hours." Takumi hangs up suddenly without saying goodbye.

"So?" I mutter into the darkness of the room.

"She's not dead-"

"Yet."

"She was just in a Riding Duel accident."

"It's four in the morning." I glance at his phone, still on the lock screen.

"I know, they don't know who she was dueling…"

"So, someone from…"

"Yeah, we need to figure out who did it." He sighs. "I bet you it's Cardinal Dragons."

"No," I mutter. "That doesn't feel right."

"It doesn't matter who did it." He starts to lie back down. "As long as we get them back." There's a pause. "Let's just go back to bed, since we can't do anything right now."

The only sound is Takumi shuffling to get comfortable again. The room is just about as dark as my mind right now.

"I can't believe you're trying to sleep while your best friend could be on her deathbed."

"Kenta-"

"You go out of your way to tell people she's your best friend. Yet, you don't seem very worried about her. All you're talking about is getting revenge. I thought Team Liberation is about ending that cycle of violence."

"It's obviously a gang that's still left, Kenta. We have to fight them anyway. Whatever gang that was, we'll fight them next. Show them that no one can mess with Team Liberation."

"What if it's not?"

"What?" Takumi asks in surprise.

"What if it's someone we've already taken out? What if they're continuing that cycle of violence? What then? Then, we're only making that problem worse."

"No, it's The Cardinal Dragons. I'm sure of it."

"I'm not sure of it." I sigh. "It's The Jackals. I knew something was going to happen. And now, Yuuka is in the hospital and I don't know if she'll be okay."

"Yuuka?"

"Yes, she's in the hospital. That's what we're talking about."

"Not that." There's a pause. "You've just never called her that before."

"Don't change the topic of conversation. I'm still mad at you."

"I was just-"

"No, The Jackals are the ones who did this." I pause. Takumi doesn't respond, so I continue. "That's what I'm sure of. I can feel it."

"Let's talk about this in the morning." Takumi's voice is definite.

That's all what he says.

He doesn't even kiss me. He's always done that. Whenever we've woken up during the night. He's always used to either kiss me or cuddle me until I fell asleep. And now? Nothing. Not even a goodnight. This relationship is starting to crumble faster than I can comprehend.

And the next morning? We didn't talk about it. Takumi simply pretended like last night's discussion didn't happen. We try to visit Sasaki, only for the nurse to tell us that Yusei Fudo has been sitting in her room for the last three hours. I, surprisingly, convince Takumi to leave them alone and just come up again tomorrow at the start of visiting hours. To my surprise, we beat everyone else to the hospital and get in first to see her.

"How are you doing?" Takumi asks once we've greeted her and sat down. I also left the cup of hot chocolate I got in the hospital shop on her little tray table. I figured she'd appreciate that.

"Head hurts, but I've been worse." Sasaki looks reasonably fine. Her head and arms are covered in bandages. Kaoru said something about not having protective gear and the tarmac roads shredding her arms when she crashed. Her concussion must be really bad if she's not mentioning her arms, which must be raw red. Sasaki seems a bit out of it. But aside from that, she seems to be okay. But there's something about her aura. She seems shaken. I suppose that accident would have done that, but that doesn't feel right.

"Yeah, that's why I got you the hot chocolate." I respond. "All of the caffeine in an Americano would have been too much for you, probably." In that moment, I see a glimpse of genuine surprise and softness in Sasaki. She smiles at me, for what feels like the first time. That act of kindness is probably what she needs right now, when everyone else is freaking out around her.

"Was the attack deliberate?" Takumi ruins the nice atmosphere with his question. Sasaki's face hardens.

"Seems like it," she answers softly. Sasaki seems uncharacteristically scared, and quiet. I send a glare to Takumi. She's clearly not ready to talk about this, and we shouldn't force her.

"Do you know who did it?"

"No," she sighs.

"What do you mean no?" Takumi's body language becomes incredibly stiff, while Sasaki seems to make herself smaller.

"I can't remember."

"Why can't you remember? It happened yesterday."

"Takumi, she has a concussion." God, can't he shut up for once? Even Sasaki knows when not to keep pressing.

"But still, she's a psychic. Her healing factor should have kicked in. That's no excuse." I spot Takumi gritting his teeth. He's completely focused on me, not even paying attention to Sasaki. He came here to visit his best friend, and this is what it's evolved into. A continuation of the argument when she got into the accident.

"She was out for a week last time. I think it's fair to say that it doesn't apply here." I turn in my seat so that I'm looking right at him. He just huffs at me.

"You should have been able to read their aura." Takumi completely ignores me, and turns back to Sasaki. "Wouldn't you have recognised them?"

"It wasn't an aura that I was familiar with." Takumi narrows his eyes, and lowers his head as to avoid everyone's eyes. Sasaki didn't interact with neither the boss nor the second in The Jackals. It must have been one of them.

"So, it was either Cross Syndicate or Cardinal Dragons." Sasaki flinches, she must agree with me. "That's what you're saying." Given the fact Sasaki was in Black Flag, I think she would have recognised a Cardinal Dragon member, even at least partially.

"Not necessarily." I speak up. "It could be someone from The Jackals or The Phantom Riders. You never know."

"Why would they attack her directly? We have a base if they want their territory back." I say nothing. Takumi just runs his hand through his hair. "This whole thing is giving me a headache." Did he really just say that in front of Sasaki, who is currently suffering from a concussion? I look at Sasaki, shake my head and sigh, before standing up.

"I think it's best that we leave." Takumi looks at me, confused. I keep staring at him until he gets the message. "I hope you get out today, Sasaki. I know you hate hospitals." I nod to her, which she subtly returns. Takumi leaves without saying anything.

I realise something. They attacked her directly because they recognised her aura. But that aura isn't hers alone. Kaoru has the same aura, and he was the one who dueled the leader of The Jackals. I leave that to the side for now. Because, at this point in time, I have more beef with Takumi than Sasaki's attacker.

"You just proved me right." I say once we're outside of the room. "You're not acting like you care about Sasaki at all."

"She's fine, Kenta. You saw her. She'll be fighting with us again, once she gets over that concussion."

"Once she-" I shut myself up while we're walking through the lobby. I give a small nod to Yusei, as he makes his way up to Sasaki, since we've been introduced recently. "Takumi, she is your friend. You can't talk about her like that. She's not a weapon. You're sounding like Raiden." I've never had the displeasure of meeting him, but that's the impression I got of him from Takumi. "I don't know if you're in a bad mood or something. But, I do not like the way you're acting."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I know Yuuka won't let you treat her like Raiden did." I sigh as I see Takumi trying not to listen to me. It's then I realise. Yuuka is more on my side now, than Takumi will ever be. "She'll leave, Takumi, and she won't come back."

---

Takumi, although he pretended to ignore, took my words to heart. He helped Yuuka track down her attacker, who she dueled against and won. And who was he? The former second in The Jackals. Who would have guessed it? Oh wait, that's me. He attacked her because he thought she was Kaoru, who defeated his boss. Maybe I should be a fortune teller, and have a big sign that say psychic outside of my shop. Now, Takumi is being overly friendly to Yuuka, to make up for him being a dick in the hospital. If I hear him asking her to go to Psycho once more, I'm going to scream.

We move onto the next gang pretty quickly. We can't let everyone know that we were weakened by an attack. I'm sure everyone has heard about it by now. Yuuka has said that she's in good enough condition to fight. Takumi and I sit alone on a random wall near the base, waiting for Yuuka and Kaoru. He's complaining that Yuuka being injured might jeopardise us later on, as if he's expecting a fight. I tell him to shut up, which puts me in a bad mood. He, then, gets excited at the thought being able to go with Yuuka to Psycho soon. I don't think she's actually agreed to go, but I don't say anything.

There's another reason I decided to act now. The reason that I'm acting rashly, something which I don't like doing. To stop Takumi taking his worldwide idea too seriously. If we take out the gangs sooner rather than later, maybe, just maybe, that idea won't come to fruition. Then, and only then, could we leave gang life peacefully. I don't want to go down fighting for Team Liberation in a distant city. I want to live in peace after all this is done.

"So, when are we going to Psycho again?" He says as soon as she arrives. I mentally try to block the conversation immediately, but I know my brain likes to process every single thing around it. I start to pace. I can't handle small talk right now.

"Isn't Psycho that one psychic bar?" Kaoru asks, then looks at Takumi. "Why would you go there?"

"I'm allowed to go. I support psychics, nothing can stop me going." Takumi can be so pathetic at times. He's insecure that he's the only non-psychic in a psychic world. He's at a natural disadvantage for once in his life. Can you imagine? The tragedy of not being a psychic, heartbreaking, I know.

"Some non-psychics go there." Yuuka shrugs her shoulders. "It's a fun time. I'll probably go back once this whole thing's blown over." There's silence. I think the small talk has ended.

"Come on," I look to Takumi. I put my mask on, a sign that I'm ready to go.

"Maybe we should wait," Yuuka says as soon as everyone else starts to move. For once, Yuuka is being the patient one. I want to tell her why, but I can't find the courage.

"Why would we wait?" Takumi asks.

"I think we should too." Kaoru says while staring at Yuuka.

"No." I answer. "There's no point in waiting. We're walking in, talking and walking out. We don't need to wait." I want to tell them, but I can't. I start walking, Takumi right behind me.

"Ah." I hear Yuuka gasp in pain. "I've been binding for a solid half an hour, and I'm already in pain."

"What are you using to bind?" I ask without looking at her.

"Ace bandages," she answers.

"Don't do that. You'll hurt your ribs." She asks what should she use instead, but I don't want to get into that now. I just want to get this over with. Besides, I don't think Kaoru knows I'm trans yet so there's that.

We finally reach the Cross Syndicate's entrance. I feel the building tightly packed with auras. This is dangerous. They knew we were coming. Are we looking at an ambush?

"We're Team Liberation. We demand to see your leader." I shout at the guy waiting at the door for us. He towers over me, so I feel the need to shout at him.

"So, you're inviting yourself in, are you?" A deep voice booms out of the man. "You do realise that you're showing up uninvited?" Uninvited? We told them we were coming. Granted, they didn't respond. Responses aren't always expected in gang wars, direct action is.

"Bring me to your leader."

"And what if I refuse?" He's baiting me into a fight. He's leaning on the door frame, with this big smirk on his face. I have to play this game.

"Then, I'll duel you." I hold up my duel disk. This is my best option, it's non-violent. This guy isn't a psychic, so he shouldn't know that I'm one. I feel the auras inside the building flare. Is this it?

"Now, Kevin." Takumi grits his teeth and uses my undercover name. "Let's not cause a hassle."

"Well now, I'm not a duelist." The guy guarding the door says. "But since you're looking for a fight, we'll give you one." He points up to the building. The auras start to shift one by one. The guy guarding the door pushes me back. I trip over my own feet and fall to the ground. He jumps in the door, locking it behind him.

The first attack, a lightning arrow, rains down and hits Yuuka's arm. A fire attack comes down next, but misses. Takumi pulls me off the ground and behind a dumpster. We must be out of sight as all of the gang members hopping out of the ground floor windows give chase to Yuuka and Kaoru.

I take a deep breath and activate my duel disk. This is an ambush, and they planned this. I suppose we're not playing fair anymore. I place Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier on my duel disk. I will it to materialise. The dragon's appearance scares people out of the building. Gungnir attacks the top floor of the building, which is empty. I grab Takumi's arm and make a run for it. People follow us. Gungnir blocks the path with ice shards, which are destroyed in a matter of seconds, but they're being slowed down.

My power is enough to attract a lot of people. I summon Brionac to keep them back, but it's not enough. Kaoru comes to my side to help, and that he does. I feel Yuuka's aura suddenly manifest. Was she just unconscious? I send Kaoru after her.

The leader of The Cross Syndicate walks straight up to me and challenges me to a duel. If he wins, he gets our territory, and vice versa. Either way, the fighting stops. I look at the ground underneath my feet, and in the courtyard that I'm standing in. The entire thing is covered in ice. I must be panicking more than I realise. I agree.

In just a few turns, the duel is over. Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier takes longer to disappear because I put the most effort into materialising it. The leader is on his back. His scream was enough to get the attention of Yuuka and Kaoru, who make their way towards me. I start to walk over to the leader.

"So I won," I begin. I feel my aura flare, and then flicker. God, I hate dueling with my powers. My eyes are glowing, it makes it difficult to see, especially considering my mask is on. "That means-"

"I surrender!" The leader throws his hands up. I begin to walk away, and I already hear him scrambling.

I hear Takumi laughing and patting Kaoru on the back. One more. That's a lie. Takumi is lying. He's using us. Takumi did nothing just there. He stood by while we fought those psychics for him. He gets to claim all of the glory as leader. He's profiting off us.

I lean against a wall to catch my breath, which I'm starting to lose. The inside of my mask feels wet. Blood, no doubt.

"What's wrong?" Yuuka asks as she approaches me.

"Nothing," I mumble. She stares at me, no mask. Her face is covered in blood. This is Takumi's fault. We're risking our lives, while he does nothing.

"Kenta." Yuuka's voice is firm.

"Everything's all wrong." My head starts shaking violently. Everything feels tight, I can't breathe. I rip my mask off, throwing to the ground, in an attempt to get air into my lungs. Is Takumi even doing this because he believes in this? Or is he just using us to get power for himself? Is this just a game to control the entire city? He knew Yuuka wouldn't leave Black Flag unless there was an incentive, and this was it. "It's only getting worse." Tears start building up in my eyes. How much more will Takumi lie? Has our relationship been a lie? I can't tell what's real anymore. Yuuka's hand moves towards me, but I jerk away.

"Kenta, what's going on?" Yuuka lowers her voice, to not much more than a whisper. My head shakes violently again. As Yuuka moves closer to me, I only get further away.

"I can't…" I whisper. "I just can't tell you." Yuuka looks confused and moves even closer towards me. I panic and jerk away from her. I do the only thing I know, run. I nearly trip over my mask, which sends it flying towards Yuuka's feet. But I keep running.

I need to rethink a lot of things.

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A/N: I call this a "one"shot series, but part 2 of this oneshot is coming next week!