Chapter 3: Page of Wands
In all honestly he shouldn't be here. This was the Ra Yellow dorms and Sho was only an Osiris Red. While there was no rules stating that students couldn't visit other dorms, other than boys weren't allowed near the female dorms, the prejudice between them made it very difficult for such things to occur, or at least it should be.
He still remembered his first day, all the dirty and smug looks he was shot just because his blazer was red. 'Slacker', they had called him. 'Dropout', 'worthless'. And the teachers all turned a blind eye, some even subtly encouraging the division between the dorms.
Yet when he approached the Ra Yellow dorms, he wasn't chased off or hunted down like his unfortunate encounter with that trio with Obelisk Blues. Though the students he asked still had that look of disdain but nothing more had come of it, not even a passing 'slacker'. Some looked almost weary when they saw the speck of red in the sea of yellow, but all were agreeable enough in pointing him in the direction of one Dennis Macfield.
It hadn't even been a formal invitation, just an offhand comment from Aniki to seek Macfield out if he wanted more information. Sho had originally searched through the Osiris seniors only to be told that Macfield had been promoted the previous year. Which made no sense to him. Aniki was obviously wearing an Osiris uniform, albeit one that was a decade or two out of date. Maybe he had been one of those students that kept the same uniform even when moving up to a higher dorm?
Come to think of it, Sho didn't even know Aniki's name or much else for the matter. When he had been tied up, he had heard mentions of 'Lily' and 'Moon' during the duel. Also Aniki seemed pretty familiar with Asuka - no, Tenjoin-sensei and he did use a classic HERO deck.
Yes, it all boiled down to the fact that Aniki used a HERO deck and had come to his rescue in a time of need (regardless of what he did afterwards). Just like what Sho had imagined a big brother should be like.
Gently, Sho rapped at the door. Macfield's room, he had been told. Behind it he heard some muffled grumbling before the click of a lock.
A bleary eyed ginger, a good head taller than Sho and wearing a yellow blazer missing its right sleeve, appeared. "Look, Tenjoin-sensei." He said, with a distinct American accent, looking directly over Sho. "He hasn't been back for the past several days. Sure he pops in every once in awhile but ever since the pot plant incident…" The yellow's eyes widened as he realised that he had been talking to thin air. His gaze drifted down to the red, slightly shuffling at the new attention. "You're not Tenjoin-sensei."
"Um...uh, Sho Marufuji, Macfield-san!" Sho spluttered, trying to avoid eye contact. "Aniki told me to come to you if ever…"
"Aniki?"
Sho could feel his face heating up. "Um...you know, slightly taller than me with really pale skin and purple hair. He uses Elemental HEROes and wears the old Academia uniform."
Silence.
Sho ducked his head down lower. This was a bad idea, he shouldn't have come. It was only a matter of time before Macfield started laughing at him or something.
"Come in."
Wait...what?
Sho looked up wide eyed to see the older student standing aside, leaving the doorway open for him to come in.
"Come on, don't be shy. This room is his as well and yours too by extension, I guess." Macfield was smiling, kind and inviting. "Not too long ago, I was red too."
Sho hesitantly entered the room. It was definitely bigger than the Osiris dorm, at least twice the size of the room he shared with Saotome. Though unlike his room which, despite being much much smaller, was made for two or three people, this one looked as if it had been hastily converted to accommodate an extra person if the air mattress by the window was anything to go by. The walls though, were covered in posters of pro duelists much like his own, albeit more sparingly.
"Don't be shy, take a seat." Macfield said as he plugged in an electric kettle.
Hesitantly, Sho sat himself on the air mattress, the plastic dipping deeper than he expected it to. "Um...aren't food and drinks not allowed in the dorms?" Sho asked. When Macfield began to chuckle, he quickly said. "B-but maybe the rules are different in Ra Yellow with you guys being a higher dorm and you're a senior too right so that means you got to have some privileges and-"
"No, the same rules apply to me as they do everyone else." Macfield interjected, though remaining good-natured. "Tenjoin-sensei and the head of dorm do tend to give me a little leeway though. I guess it's a consolation prize for being able to survive this long."
Sho gulped. "Is moving up to Ra Yellow really that bad?" Very rarely did students get promoted from Osiris Red with most either dropping out or remaining in the dorm for the rest of their Academia years. It was a depressing fact known by all and deepened his regret for flunking the entrance exam.
"Not really. Once you get past the seniors' hazing attempts, it's only a matter of maintaining your grades and staying out of trouble. It's more about...how do I say this nicely?" Macfield laughed again, sounding a little nervous. That did nothing to help Sho's nerves. "Well, what's Yuri like around you?"
"Whose Yuri?"
Macfield froze. Sho held his breath. The kettle clicked.
"You know, pale skin, purple hair, purple eyes and old Academia blazer?" Macfield said slowly. "Your big brother? That's what 'aniki' means right? Like 'onii-san' or adding '-nii' to the end of someone's name."
Sho almost didn't want to respond. Macfield had thought he was actually related to Aniki,or Yuri as he found out, when he actually knew next to nothing.
"Well…" Sho said, looking down. "'Aniki' is mostly used to refer to your older brother but also anyone you respect like an older brother and...well, there's also fellow street gang members-"
"Yuri's in a gang?!" Macfield exclaimed, backing himself against a wall and spouting random phases in English.
"What? No! Wait...maybe? I don't know!" Sho spluttered, jumping to his feet. "I don't know anything about Aniki, really! I only found out his name just now. He uses Elemental HEROes, saved me twice and nearly set some people on fire. That's all I know!"
Macfield seemed to have calmed down slightly, though he still remained tense. "So you're not related to Yuri?" he said slowly.
"No."
"Nor are you in the same gang as him?"
"I'm not part of a gang anything!"
"And you can't summon man-eating plant spirits from thin air?"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
Macfield sighed and straightened himself up. "So why are you here?"
"Because...because…" Sho stopped himself there. Why was he here? What about that boy who threatened him and nearly killed three people made him want to follow even the most slightest suggestion? In fact, why did he follow him instead of turning back in the opposite direction? It would have saved him the trouble of being called 'pervert' by several pretty Obelisk Blues.
In all honesty, it boiled down to the HERO deck. Sho remembered one of his brother's friends, Yuki-san, who used the same deck. Yuki-san, Tenjoin-sensei and Nii-san had all gone to the Academia together and became stronger duelists because of it. That was why he had applied. When everyone else said he wouldn't be able to make it in, even Nii-san who called him weak in character and skill, Yuki-san believed in him. It was Yuki-san who told him that it was okay to be a red, he had been a red his entire school career and was an opponent even Nii-san, the reigning OCG Traditional Champion, struggled against. It was Yuki-san who saw him off at the docks with the promise to meet again in the Pro League Circuit. It was Yuki-san, supportive cheerful Yuki-san, who he wished was his actual older brother.
And Sho, alone in a competitive environment which saw him as nothing but a worthless dropout, imprinted all this on the first person who ever stood up for him in the Academia who just happened to use the exact same deck as Yuki-san.
A hand was placed on his shoulder and Sho looked up. Macfield, having lost all his previous fear, had a reassuring smile painted across his face.
"Looks like we both got dragged into his orbit." Macfield said. "Maybe we should start a club, or a support group."
"That would be nice." Sho smiled.
"How cute."
And there, standing in the doorway surrounded with empty plant pots, was Aniki.
"Hey, Yuri!" Dennis greeted as the red swept past. "It's been a while."
"Not long enough." Aniki muttered, crouching down and sifting through the closet.
Sho eyed the plant pots suspiciously. He remembered seeing them bouncing behind Aniki when he ran off yesterday but right now they appeared as nothing more than innocent, inanimate objects.
"You know, Tenjoin-sensei's been looking for you." Dennis said.
"She knows where I would be. Why even bothering coming here is beyond me." Aniki said off handedly, tossing various items out of the closet, mostly clothing. "And congratulation to the prey for actually coming to you."
"Uh...thanks?" Sho said. "Oh, and my name's Sho Marufuji by-"
Aniki turned to him abruptly, sending a chilling glare. "Was I talking to you?" his voice was far from deep but there was a snarl and predatory aura that simply radiated from his being.
Sho stumbled, his mouth was open but no words came out. This was too close to the Aniki that stared him down among the ash and dying embers, a hungry wolf to a lost sheep.
"Yuri, play nice." Macfield said. His tone was light and there was a smile across his face but everything else suggested a more assertive stance. "Marufuji-kun is your dorm mate and you guys need to support each other, not antagonise. Especially since you're both Osiris Red."
"Oh?" Aniki replied, a sly interest spreading across his face. "And who are you to say that? You left the dorm as soon as you could while I don't even want to be on this island." He stood up and turned to face Sho. "Dear little Marufuji-kun is the only one here in a dorm based on skill, not circumstance. He must have had such high hopes, coming to this illustrious school, and quite a legacy to live up to but to be shafted into red? It must have been simply heartbreaking and quite embarrassing to your brother."
Sho couldn't help but bow his head at what Aniki had said. It was the simple truth. What hope did he have when he was already at rock bottom, the red zone? He had come to the Academia to show Nii-san is worth as a duelist but to start off so low…
Macfield strode forward, placing himself firmly between Sho and Aniki. "That's enough."
That did nothing but amuse the other red further. "Trying to be like Tenjoin-sensei? You're far from a peacemaker, Macfield. What can someone who idolises that coward even do? Try to make me laugh? Smile?"
At that moment, a particularly strong gust of wind blew in the windows, sending papers and any lightweight objects flying.
"Wha-?" Macfield gaped while Aniki was muttering under his breath.
A piece of paper blew into Sho's face. When he pulled it off, though he didn't mean to read it, he instantly recognised the handwriting. It was the same messy scrawl with random words in English that he received near fortnightly since coming to the Academia. He was even able to pick out some familiar phrases of encouragement.
"You know Yuki-san?" Sho said.
"Give me that!" Aniki growled, pouncing at the other red.
Macfield grabbed the back of Aniki's blazer to try and pull him back but the momentum dragged the both of them forward, falling onto Sho in a mass of tangled limbs. The letter left Sho's grasp and joined the cyclone of papers, stray cards and clothes that Aniki had tossed out of the closet earlier. The wind wasn't subsiding, if anything it was growing stronger.
"What is this?!" Macfield exclaimed as the increasing gales had started lifting off more weighted objects.
"Damnit, I don't need this! Just stop already!" Aniki yelled to the room before leaping into the mass of miscellaneous flying items. "Dears, some assistance please!"
Said 'dears' materialised in a mass of vines and tendrils of various lengths and widths. The larger ones were strong enough to go against the wind and attempt to grab at the flying letter while the thinner leafier one were swept into the maelstrom. Meanwhile Aniki made leaps and bounds over objects caught in the cycle, jumping from desk to bed to leveraging himself over the airborne air mattress to join in the mad pursuit of letter.
Control was far from present as some vines were whipped in Sho and Macfield's direction, mere bystanders to the chase unfolding before them. It was only due to their lack of length that the flailing limbs hadn't knocked either of them unconscious yet.
"Hey! Watch where you're aiming those things!" Macfield exclaimed as he pulled Sho down to the ground to avoid a particularly large vine flying in their direction. His cries went unheard by Aniki and his vines. If anything, it served as encouragement as the tendrils made wider more exaggerated movements that only missed the two of them by a hairsbreadth.
The yellow seemed to have had enough near misses and growled, "This has gone too far!" before somersaulting with acrobatic grace into the madness of the chase.
Sho regretted ever setting foot in the dorm. It was pure and utter chaos before him. Macfield was locked in what appeared to be an interpretative aerobatic dance with Aniki over small and not so small pieces of furniture while Aniki remained locked on the breezing form of Yuki-san's letter with the vines and tendrils flailing madly with a sole purpose of making this an even larger mess. He couldn't leave the door was on the other side of the room and he wasn't quite confident jumping out the window.
Standing rooted in his current position was apparently not the best course of action either. Another wayward vine came swinging in his direction and Sho, lacking in Macfield's reflexes, was swept off his feet and, due to the increased strength of the mysterious winds, was sent flying off into the twist.
"WHAAH!"
"Marufuji-kun?!" Macfield exclaimed. His split second loss of focus was enough for him to lose his footing as well and fall to the will of the gale.
Aniki seemed oblivious to the fate that had befallen his roommate and Sho, with the letter just barely out of his grasp. However, that was the moment the smaller red was blown into him, throwing off his balance and sending both of them hurling into Macfield. The three of them were now as weightless, and helpless, as paper, victims to the ever growing storm.
"Aniki! Do something!" Sho cried, gripping tighter to the boy behind him less the winds change and separate them.
"Like what?!" was Aniki's harsh response.
"Just tell whatever spirit that's causing this to stop!" came Macfield's indigent shrill.
"The spirit causing this is one of her's not mine!" Aniki yelled. "I have no control over tha-Oh so you want to help now?!" he broke off. "What- you can't...but how? Grr - then, I won't- don't think that...fine! We'll do it your way!"
Somehow, Aniki manage to get to his deck without his cards being blown out of his hands.
"Quick-play spell, Transcendent Wings!" he declared as the card glowed a bright light. The shadow of giant white wings filled the room. "Winged Kuriboh, your target is her dragon!"
With a cry of "Kuri!" the wings flapped, subsiding the winds with a flurry of white feathers and red rose petals. The three boys were dumped unceremoniously onto the ground amidst the wreckage that had once been a decently neat dorm room.
Aniki was the first to orient himself and scrambled to his feet.
"Where's the letter?" he called.
There was a guilty burp as a black sludge was wretched onto the floor by a not-so-empty plant-inhabited-pot. Aniki bent down to pick up the remains of the letter, only to immediately drop it with a hiss.
"Sorry, Yuri-chan." came a soft feminine voice.
"It's not your fault, dear." Aniki said soothingly. However, when he turned to face them, he looked downright murderous. "Droserea."
And a vine wrapped around Sho and Macfield's legs, and they were defenestrated.
{~~~}
"You should consider yourself lucky." Tenjoin-sensei said.
Ayukawa-sensei had just finished her check up of the both of them. Considering that they were thrown from a two-storey window to the hard unforgiving earth, Sho would have expected more injuries than a sprained ankle and a mild concussion. Then again, Macfield had taken the brunt of the impact.
They were in the medical bay of the main Academia building. Tenjoin-sensei had found them almost immediately with several other staff members prepared with stretchers and a first aid kit. It was as if she had been expecting them to be tossed out of that window.
Macfield shrugged, surprisingly calm and cheerful despite being covered head to toe in bandages. "It's Yuri. Bodily harm is pretty much a given when interacting with him."
"But you shouldn't have to even consider it." Tenjoin-sensei bowed her head in guilt. "It's my fault for forcing him to be your roommate. I thought Judai's old partner would be enough to keep him in check."
"Well the worst he can do is command a bunch of vines and they didn't even leave that much of a bruise." Macfield waved his bandaged leg to illustrate his point. "And besides, Burstinatrix-san doesn't seem like the type to let him get away with mass murder."
"Yes, but-"
"Though if you do want to make up for it, a bit of information on him would be nice." A sly grin spread wide across his face along with an overly devious look.
The teacher chuckled slightly. "You drive a hard bargain, Macfield-kun. Alright, I'll tell you a bit about Yuri-kun."
Sho straightened himself in his cot. This was exactly why he sought out Macfield in the first place.
"Yuri is the nephew of one of my former classmates, Judai Yuki." Tenjoin-sensei explained. "Technically, their first cousins once removed but that's a minor detail that no one ever brings up."
"So by Judai Yuki you mean Yuudai the Great Hero?" Macfield said with wide-eye disbelief. "I can't say I know the guy but I've seen him duel. He's the closest thing you can get to an Entertainment Duelist without stepping on an Action Field. Sure Yuri plays a HERO deck and he does use some summoning chants but I find it hard to believe that they're related."
Sho, however, didn't find it that jarring. Sure, personality wise, Aniki was the farthest thing from Yuki-san but there were subtle cues that were all too familiar. Aniki would sometimes talk to thin air like Yuki-san would and he always looked kinder when doing so. He also had recognised some of his combos, though Yuki-san had only used them when he was at his most ruthless which he rarely was.
"Yuri-kun...he wasn't always like this. Yes, he's always been a bit hostile but he'd never command the spirits to harm anyone. Judai noticed his strong connection with duel spirits at a young age and had taught him how to interact with them and to treat them with respect. For a long time we thought he'd grow up into a more serious version of his uncle."
Duel spirits, Sho had always been doubtful of their existence. Though now, after several close encounters with Aniki's plants he was more certain they existed, he had always thought in the past that Yuki-san, no matter how brilliant he was, had been a few cards short of a deck.
"Something happened, right?" Macfield interjected.
Tenjoin-sensei nodded. "It was an unfortunate string of events. His father disappeared, the duel school his family managed fell into disarray, one of his brothers was severely injured during a duel and another never came home one night...Yuri-kun's the eldest of his siblings. We think that the pressure and responsibility from stepping up to his father's place overwhelmed him so much that he just - gave in to the bitterness." She bowed her head. "At one point, he considered us, me, Judai and our other friends, to be part of his extended family yet…. we did nothing to help them in their time of need. We might have even made the situation worse."
"It can't have been that bad." Macfield said, in hopes to comfort. "Things happen. You can't blame yourself for something that was out of your control."
Tenjoin-sensei sat up and steeled herself. "Macfield-kun, a duelist's deck is their heart and soul and I keep Yuri-kun's divided and under lock and key. There are so many things about Yuri-kun,about his family's situation, that I have no right to disclose."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Macfield questioned, matching her steel with his own.
Then there was a knock at the door.
Tenjoin-sensei smiled, one that said 'We'll continue this later.' "Come in." She called.
The door slid open and there was a familiar small figure in a red blazer and an oversized cap.
"Saotome-kun?" Sho said.
"Um...pardon me Tenjoin-sensei," his roommate said meekly. "but Daitokuji-sensei said that Sho-kun got sent to the medical bay and-" his eyes fell on Macfield and he gasped. "You're Dennis Macfield!"
"That's my name." Macfield said with a charming smile though he seemed slightly taken aback by Saotome's starstruck attitude.
Sho muffled a groan into his hands. He knew that tone all too well, him having used it when they first introduced themselves. Saotome was a complete and utter otaku when it came to anything to do with the competitive field, both TCG and OCG, able to recognise pro duelists by name, deck and even combos better than Sho could ever hope even when a good portion of the duel community had been his babysitter at one point or another.
"I just loved your exhibition match against Jack Atlas three years ago!" Saotome gushed. "You were the sole reason that Pepe dominated the meta for the next couple formats. I don't think anyone would have else would have come up with a deck like that or even made it look that entertaining! It's no fair that you were just part of the opening ceremony. You should have been part of the Friendship Cup line up, and you would have won too! It's unfair how Atlas got to stay on his runner while you just had to leap around the Action Field. It had to be rigged! That last action card should have been yours and-"
"Saotome-kun, I think you may be a little overwhelming for Macfield-kun at the moment." Tenjoin-sensei cut in gently. "He needs time to recover from his injuries."
Saotome sobered slightly. "What happened to him? What happened to the both of you?"
"Oh, it was nothing!" Macfield said with a slight laugh. "Just a little scuffle with my roommate that got a little out of hand. The wind today was just plain ridiculous, I really shouldn't have left that window open. Though, I'm surprised that I'd have any fans at all. That duel was barely a debut."
"But you put the 'Entertainment' back into entertainment dueling! You're exactly what the OCG needs to kick off a proper Action Circuit. The show must go on!" Saotome finished with a grand flourish of arms that made Macfield go red.
"So what bring you here, Saotome-kun?" Tenjoin-sensei said before the boy could run off on another rant.
"Oh, here. Notes for Sho-kun." Saotome said pulling an unholy amount of paper from his book bag. "Daitokuji-sensei said that they were critical for the promotional exams in next month."
Sho blanched at all the papers. "That's everything on the test?"
"Nope." Saotome said a little too cheerfully. "There's still another five study points and there's rumours going around that there will be ten page evaluation question at the end that will make up a third of your theoretical mark."
"Eeesh, chain links and activation timing?" Macfield said, leafing through the first section of notes. "You aren't supposed to go into this stuff until the start of second year, or at least for the old study design. By the looks of this, you might even have to do a case study on the intended effects Link Summoning was supposed to have on the meta and an analysis why it poorly received by the community."
"I'm never going to get out of red!" Sho cried. Maybe Aniki should have finished them off. Death seemed a whole lot merciful than exam period.
"Don't worry Marufuji-kun." Macfield said reassuringly. "At least you don't need to worry about subject scaling and rankings too much yet."
Sho only graced him with the response of muffled screaming.
{~~~}
Sho was released to from the medical bay a little more than a week later and was severely behind in all of his subjects. All his teachers, with the exception of Daitokuji-sensei and Tenjoin-sensei, gave him no leeway for his absence. Since 'Symbolism and alternate Properties of Duel Monsters' was an elective and not a core subject, thus not being part of the promotional exams, Daitokuji-sensei was willing to postpone not only his but the entire class's exam by a week. Tenjoin-sensei was also willing to give him time to catch up on other subjects in 'Pastoral Care' instead of having him participate in the group activities.
But still, it was likely he was going to be stuck in a red blazer for the rest of the year.
Sho entered his dorm room downtrodden, making sure to avoid the gaze of poster Nii-san as he climbed onto his bed. Even if it was only a picture, Sho felt that anything it could see his brother could too. And it was always judging him. The same steeled eyes, those pursed lips that were only moments away from falling into a disapproving frown…
His eyes wandered to the poster by the door, between the one of Neo Domino's Shooting Star and the original King of Games. It was one of Jack Atlas on his D-Wheel standing before the towering figures of two magicians, one orange and the other white. Sho had originally thought that it had been a pair of twins but now he could see that it was Macfield and his ace monster, Performage Trapeze Magician. To think, that there was a (sort-of) celebrity attending only a year above him. A duelist who went up against a Pro League champion, albeit in an exhibition match but still, and managed to make such an impression to reckon the admiration of his peers. And he had been a red too!
That should have been enough to be inspiring but could he really do it? Could Sho rise through the ranks and become a duelist that would make his brother proud?
His thoughts drifted back to Aniki. The other red treated him with disgust and scorn, reminiscent of the tauntings of an Obelisk Blue, but there was something that was more grounding about him. Even though Macfield had treated him with kindness, treated him like an equal, there was something alienating about him. It didn't stem from his apparent ten minutes of fame but a nagging feeling at the back of Sho's head from the moment Macfield opened the door. That Macfield was supposed be someone else. More studious, maybe, with walls covered in equations rather than posters. It was the same nagging feeling that made him see Aniki as Aniki, made it feel wrong to think of him as 'Yuri', made it so easy to overlap him with Yuki-san. If only he were born fifteen years earlier, maybe, just maybe…
"Heyas, Sho-kun!" Saotome said, popping his head into the bunk.
Sho squeaked and, since he was lying so close to the edge of his bed, fell out of the bunk and onto the floor.
"Ow…"
"Whoops! Sorry Sho-kun!" Saotome said while climbing down the ladder of the bunk bed.
"No, no. It's okay." Sho said, sitting up to rub his head.
"And what are you doing in bed already?" Saotome asked. "Shouldn't you be studying? You've got a hell-lot to catch up on."
Sho's head, and mood, fell at the mention of exams. "I've given up. None of the teachers, except Daitokuji-sensei and Tenjoin-sensei, care about one pathetic Osiris Red. There's no way I'll be able to pass these exams. It'll be better just to wait for the next set to come about."
"But that will be at the end of the year!" Saotome exclaimed. He pulled him up to his feet and turned him to the poster of his brother and Yuki-san locked in combat. "What would they think if they saw you like this?"
"They'd be disappointed."
"So what are you going to do about it?"
"Crawl under a rock and die!"
Saotome gave him a solid whack on the head with a mini mallet. "No! You prove them wrong! You rise to the occasion and dominate that exam! Judai Yuki can turn a duel around no matter how far he's been backed into the corner. Ryo Marufuji, the Hell Kaiser and your brother, has never lost regardless if he's facing Lightsworns or Dinosaurs or freaking Zoodiacs! If they can do all that, one exam should be nothing to you."
"But they're them! And I'm me…" Sho said, deflating further. "I run Vehicleroids, for crying out loud, an outdated archetype with a worthless legacy. What hope do I have?"
"Then make another deck, like Cyber Dragons or HEROes. You know how those decks work, right?"
"But if I mess up, it'll reflect badly on them! What will people think of Nii-san or Yuki-san if I made a stupid misplay using their decks? I don't even…" Sho trailed off. 'I don't even have the right to play Power Bond.'
Saotome threw his hands up in exasperation. "How is it that you can be taught the game by some of the greatest duelists in the OCG yet have barely enough self-esteem to fill a teaspoon! You should be inspired not discouraged."
"But they're the people who raised me, the last thing I want to do is disappoint them."
Saotome's face crumpled, looking as if he was going to have another frustrated outburst, when suddenly he lit up. "What you need is an idol."
"A what?"
"An idol!" Saotome said, with a slight spin in his step. "You need someone who you both admire and find inspiring. While I admire all the professional duelists worldwide, there's only one that has inspired me." He slapped his hand on one of the posters.
"Macfield-san?" Sho would have expected Saotome's idol to be someone more already in the Pro League, not one of their seniors.
Saotome nodded. "Don't get me wrong, Kaiser-sama and Yudai-sama are the best on the competitive field but it's Dennis-sama that I idolize. Believe it or not, it was his exhibition duel with Jack Atlas that got me to consider going into Duel Monsters competitively." His eyes grew distant yet bright, probably flashing back to that time. "While I did know the game, I was only a casual player at the time and didn't think much of it...until I went to the Friendship Cup three years ago. I thought the idea of Solid Vision was stupid, like why waste money making holograms of cards when it could be used for better things? And on motorcycles too? That was taking it to a new level of crazy. But then, when the duel started, everything went dark and someone fell from the rafters. Everyone gasped, someone started screaming and we all thought something had gone wrong when suddenly the guy was scooped up by a flying white figure and coloured lights and holographic lights exploded onto the field. Dennis-sama and his ace Trapeze Magician were in the middle of the stadium pulling all sorts of acrobatic tricks while summoning more and more monsters from his deck. I don't remember being so hyped for anything in my life and the duel hadn't even started yet!"
"And the point of all of this was?" Sho asked, a little too used to Saotome's rants.
"The point is that was what inspired me to try and taking dueling on professionally. If not, I'd probably be married off to someone my stupid grandpa accidentally engaged me to. There has to be one person at least that inspires you to duel. Someone that you want to face one day as an equal and not just as a fan."
Sho thought about that for a moment. Saotome had a good point there but who was it that inspired him? His brother, Yuki-san and any of the other Pro League duelists that he knew of were to personal and tangible to idolise while Macfield just seemed to surreal. But then there was Aniki…
A sudden beeping brought him out of his thoughts. It came from Saotome-san's duel disk.
"It's already that time?!" Saotome exclaimed, dashing around the room, pulling out a camera from his drawer.
"Wait, time for what?"
"Dennis-sama will be dueling Arena Three!" he gushed.
"But isn't Arena Three for examination duels?" Sho said. "You're not allowed in there when a duel is going on unless you got permission from a teacher."
"I am not going to pass up a moment to get pictures of Dennis-sama dueling!"
"Uh...I'm pretty sure Macfield-san wouldn't mind if you just asked him…"
"Sho-kun." Saotome said seriously, slapping both hands onto his shoulders. "Rule number one about having an idol: never approach them directly unless you meet them by accident or if they approach you first. This is to capture them in their natural state. Ok, bye!" And then he was gone.
Sho couldn't help but sweat-drop. "Isn't that also called stalking?"
{~~~}
"What do you want, pervert?"
Sho shrunk under the glare of the Obelisk Blue. Apparently she had yet to forgive what happened the last time they met. 'Rule number one' be damned, he should have taken his chances with talking to Aniki directly or maybe find Macfield again, he would definitely be nicer, but that would mean having to deal with Saotome while he's in full blast 'otaku mode'.
"Well?"
"Um...you see, I was wondering if you knew anything about Aniki - I mean, Yuri uh -" What was her name again? "Tsuki-san?"
"My name is Selena!" the blue growled. "Not 'tsuki' or 'moon' or anything like that!"
"Eeek! Sorry Selena-san!" Sho said quickly so not to offend her further. He really should have gone to Macfield.
Selena sighed. "At least you're more polite than that bastard. But I've got as much a clue of who he is as you do. Tenjoin-sensei seemed pretty familiar with him, she's your best bet."
"Oh…" Sho said, deflating. "Okay then, thanks anyway…" and after all the trouble he went through to try and get her attention. He hoped that he would never use a pencil holder, Mokey Mokey plush and a toothbrush like that ever again. Maybe he should try his luck with Macfield or Tenjoin-sensei again.
As Sho wandered off, the blue called after him, "Oi, uh-kid!"
"Yeah?"
"Isn't the Osiris Dorms the other way?" Selena asked.
"Yeah…" Sho said. "But curfew isn't in for another couple hours so-"
"Unless it's urgent, you should start heading back." Selena interrupted. "Not that I'm scared or anything but with all those rumours, it's better to be safe than sorry."
"Umm...what rumours?"
"You seriously haven't heard?" she deadpanned, crossing her arms. "It's been running in the gossip mill for nearly a week. Even I know about it and I generally keep my nose out of these things."
"I've been in the medical bay for the past week." Sho said nervously. What had else had he missed besides schoolwork?
The blue sighed again. "Well, that can't be helped." Selena said. "The thing is, there's someone attacking the student population."
"Wait, what?!" Okay, how had he missed something as big as this!?
"At first it was just some Obelisk Blue seniors so not many people cared. Those guys were known assholes so they either were making everything up or just got what was going for them.
But recently…" She drew closer, looking almost nervous. "More people have been found injured around campus, duel disks active and out of lifepoints but any trace of a duel absent from their duel log. Obelisk Blue, Ra Yellow, Osiris Red and even some teachers. Some say it's the work of the Black Rose Witch but there's been no proof."
"Th-the Black Rose Witch?!" Everyone knew of the Black Rose Witch, a real life boogey story passed from seniors to their juniors. No one knew who exactly she (or possibly he) was, the teachers made sure to keep that knowledge a secret, but the entire island had been scarred by her presence. Scorch marks in some of the duel arenas, shaken figures waddling out of the medical bay and the roses that invaded the surrounding woodlands. If a rose can be seen then it was time to turn back because that marked the territory of the Black Rose Witch, a vengful spirit or a rogue student or possibly something else altogether.
"And there's a good chance she might be targeting us." Selena added in a near whisper. "I know my knots, you should have fallen unless someone had cut the rope, and someone had. Black thorns and red petals. You, me and even that bastard Yuri…"
"I'll head back." Sho said, thoroughly shaken by the information.
"Good."
And with that they parted ways.
When Sho got back to his dorm room, he dove straight under his covers, not even bothering to turn off the lights. Even though he was in the safety of the dorms, his body couldn't stop shaking.
Sho could still remember falling into Aniki's boat and then into the lake. The sudden drop from being suspended in thin air to falling into the cold water. Scrambling for breath and every move in hopes to buoyant himself only seemed to drag him deeper into the depths. And to think that was all caused by the dreaded Black Rose Witch…
His anxiety must have rocked him into an uneasy sleep because by the time Sho had peeked through his covers, the sun had already set.
It was too dark. Sho should have at least turned on a lamp or plugged in Saotome's nightlight (though for some reason Saotome claimed it was his). An inky black void surrounded him with a heavy silence that blanketed the entire room. The slightest ruffle of his sheets was near deafening only to then be replaced by intimidating silence, as if slumbering behemoth lurked in the confines of his room.
"Sa-Saotome-kun?" Sho called quietly.
No response.
"Saotome-kun?" he said a little louder.
Still nothing.
That was strange and every bit concerning. Saotome was a ridiculously light sleeper, though he never minded if Sho woke him up in the middle of the night (as long as he was allowed to rant about the Pro League until they both fell back asleep).
Climbing out of his bed and onto the ladder, he slowly scrambled up to Saotome's bunk at the top. Sho turned on his duel disk and shone the dim light over the bed. And it was completely empty.
Sho gripped the ladder tighter, lest he fall off. Saotome should have been back by now. What happened to him? He climbed down the ladder and landed on the floor with a light thump, taking several deep breaths to calm himself.
Saotome had broken curfew before, multiple time actually, and had never been caught. Maybe he lost track of time and was on his way back now.
But the Black Rose Witch was active and lurking.
What if Saotome got caught?
But then Sho remembered that he could simply call Saotome and check if he was alright.
He nearly face palmed at his stupid oversight and began scrolling through his contacts on his duel disk until he reached Saotome's.
One ring.
Two rings.
Three ri-
"Moshi moshi?"
Sho sighed in relief. "Hey Saotome-kun. Where are you now? It's already past curfew."
"Meh, I've still got another hour before the teachers start making rounds." Came his digitalised voice. "I'm at the Ra Yellow Dorms."
Sho's heart immediately fell to his stomach. "Eh?! Why?"
"To sneak into Dennis-sama's room of course!"
Sho didn't even bother question how illogical and stalkerish that was. But… "What about the rumours of the Black Rose Witch?"
"You actually believe that?" Saotome scoffed. "That's just some baloney made up by the blue seniors. There's no solid proof of the attack or the Black Ro-AAAAAAAAHHHH!"
"Saotome-kun? What was that? Saotome-kun?!"
The call ended.
Sho offered no time to thought and immediately balled out of his room. Consequences be damned, the Black Rose Witch had gotten to Saotome!
He blindly raced in the direction of the Ra Yellow Dorms. There was no time to waste.
Then someone grabbed him by the shoulder.
Sho nearly shrieked before he saw who it was. "Macfield-san?"
"Marufuji-kun." Macfield said, face covered in stoic seriousness. "Have you seen Yuri?"
"No, I haven't seen Aniki since the window-thing." Sho said, his terror cultivating. "W-why?"
Macfield raised his hand. He was holding a battered copy of Elemental HERO Burstinatrix...and a black thorned red rose.
Sho opened his mouth to respond when a white shriek pierced the night.
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
"Saotome-kun!"