Apologies to anyone who got confused with the last update. Apparently FanFiction lied and said it was a new chapter, as in this next one, but it was really a redo of the 4th/now 5th chapter. I've enrolled the awesome Phantasm Angel as a beta, and so we've been going through fixing up some grammar and plot points. Nothing too drastic has changed, so you don't have to go back and re-read. A huge majority was just grammar/spelling. Apparently it didn't alert you guys of the other chapter updates, as they were simply updates, but that's what I've been doing. I didn't know that it informed you guys of the update in that way alone, but since you guys seemed to get confused, I won't do it again. Thanks for all your patience and loyalty as I've strived to make this story better for you all.

"Ah! Do my eyes deceive me?" a voice rose above the chatter of the building. Truthfully, I couldn't see what was so dangerous about this place. It looked like a bar if anything, though there was a chalk drawing of a duel field on the ground. Was Kaze worried that some drunk people would attack me, or was it something else...? After finishing my scan, I turned back to where the voice had come from just in time to see an elderly man weaving his way through the crowd. He must have been in his fifties, as wrinkles and gray hair were beginning to line his countenance. The man was dressed in a black vest and white undershirt, not unlike what a bartender wears. Normal bartenders don't have jarring scars across their right eye or a criminal marker though. "Ah, they don't! It really is the Red Demon!" the man exclaimed cheerfully before enveloping Kaze in a one armed hug, seeing how I was still latched onto his other hand. My companion was clearly discomforted by the hug, looking at me for a second with panic before gathering his wits.

"Stop that...! I've told you a thousand times before, that's not who I am anymore," Kaze muttered, as if trying to bring the man into whispers as well. 'Not who I am anymore', though...? Putting that and the duel field together... could this be a dueling facility? One with tournaments and the like?

"Right, right. And that's why you've come back to a place like this," the man mused, a light smile lining his face. His smile seemed to be mocking us, like that of a Cheshire cat.

"Believe me, Keisuke, this is the last place I ever wanted to come back to," Kaze said, causing the man's smile to drop a bit. "We just need some shelter for a while, and then we'll be on our way."

"We?" the man asked, noticing me for the first time. He stared at me quietly, a blank expression on his face so that I couldn't read what he was thinking. Kaze turned to me as well, pausing momentarily. Since he seemed unsure of what to say, I decided that it was up to me to talk to the man.

"I'm with him. The name is Aki Izayoi," I introduced myself as I extended my free hand to the man. He looked a bit startled by the action at first, but then a wide grin spread across his features and he firmly grasped my hand and shook it.

"Name's Keisuke. I'm the owner of this joint. Kaze and I go back quite a bit," Keisuke said cheerfully, though the brunette beside me wore an expression of the opposite emotion, "Speaking of which! I oughta congratulate you! I knew you'd end up finding someone eventually!"

"What are you talking about?" Kaze asked. To answer our question, the scarred man pointed to our hands, which were still intertwined. We both blushed and released out hands before rebutting his claim.

"She's not my girlfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend."

The grin returned to Keisuke's face and he began to guffaw, making me a bit uncomfortable. What was that about? Kaze and I being together? Sure we arrived together and I had his jacket... and we were holding hands... but that didn't mean anything!

"C'mon, Aki. Let's get out of here. I'll call a taxi," Kaze suggested. He started to reach out to pull me along when Keisuke's laughter grew louder, making him pause.

"Oh, my apologies! I must be looking really rude right now," Keisuke apologized, but with that grin of his, I wasn't sure if I could accept it at face value.

"It's fine. We'll just be going to the back now," my companion spoke curtly before making a move to leave once more,

"Hold up, don't leave just yet," Keisuke's words came out more as a command than a request. It was more than enough to stop Kaze in his tracks once more. "It's been bugging me. She looks familiar."

"What do you mean?" I asked, figuring that he was referring to me. I hadn't even known of this place. How would he know me?

"You don't happen to go to the Duel Academy that's close to here... do you?" His question startled me, so much that I didn't answer at first. Was it my uniform that gave me away? Or was it...?

"Used to. She's moving to my branch," Kaze answered for me. The man wasn't satisfied yet though.

"I hear lots of tales 'bout students from there, but there's one that gets around quite a bit. They call 'er the Black Rose Witch." I felt my body go numb, though I didn't quite know why. He'd heard about what I've done. What does that mean for me? Does that mean he's going to kick me out? Is he going to call the authorities? What were his motives behind bringing this up? Now, of all times, when we were leaving in a few minutes... Keisuke must have seen the panicked expression on my face, for he began laughing once more, as if my fate was some kind of joke. "Relax, kid. You're among friends here. People just like you," Keisuke smiled. This time, it was genuine.

"Just like me?" the question came out a whisper. Were my powers really not so rare? As intimidating as this Keisuke character may be, if he really does have connections to all kinds of people like me… maybe I can finally learn to control my powers…!

"That's right. You're among your people. Your friends. Tortured souls with nowhere to go, nowhere to belong. The only thing they have left is the company of others just like them. Just like you," Keisuke emphasized his last words as he took a step forward. Kaze quickly got between us through.

"Aki, don't listen to him. These people... They aren't friends to anyone!" Kaze declared.

"Now why do ya gotta go 'n talk about us like that," the man before us asked, feigning hurt for a moment before his face returned to its normal Cheshire state, "We gave you everything that you ever needed and wanted here. Food, clothing, a bed, companions, a home. Don't tell me you've forgotten who you are, Red Demon?"

"I know who I am!" Kaze snapped back, taking me by surprise. It was a side of Kaze that I don't think I'd ever seen before. It utterly surprised me, especially as Kaze turned to me with his eyes burning with determination, "And Aki knows who she is too! She doesn't need you telling her what's what!" With that, Kaze took hold of my wrist and began to drag be away from Keisuke.

"Kaze, what are you doing?" I asked him, taken aback by his sudden abrasive attitude.

"It was a mistake to bring you here. It was a huge mistake," Kaze seemed to be mumbling to himself before he turned and met my gaze once more, "Aki, we need to get going to DA. If we start walking, we can meet a taxi at the next town and-"

"I don't want to leave here," I said. Kaze froze almost instantly before releasing my wrist and turning to face me.

"Aki, what are you..." Kaze trailed off.

"Why should we leave, Kaze? If we leave and go to DA, I'll be right back to where I started! I'll be mocked, ridiculed, feared... I've finally found a place where I can call home and I won't leave it!" I declared, hoping that the determination in my voice matched Kaze's.

"Aki, you don't know what it's like in here... These people, they're-" Kaze's words failed him once more, allowing me to take the upper hand.

"They're what, Kaze? They're freaks? Not normal? Look at me! I'm not normal! I will never be normal! These people are willing to accept me... accept US. We would never have to run or hide again. You haven't given me one good reason why we SHOULDN'T stay," I pointed out, causing Kaze to avert his eyes, letting me know that I was right, or at least I hoped so, because the hand landing on my shoulder may have been the reason too. A shadow appeared over me and when I turned, I saw Keisuke smiling warmly.

"She has a point, Red. Why don't you just stay here, just like old times?" Keisuke questioned.

"You of all people should know why not," Kaze answered simply. "Aki, you just have to trust me on this one. Things are better at DA. It's thousands of times better than here," Kaze turned his attention back to me, though he was still avoiding the topic at hand. What was so wrong with this place? Kaze came here back when he was a kid, I understood that much, but things were different then. Things were much different, not just for him, but for me too. We were nothing like our past selves, out to destroy anything and anyone in our way. We had restraint. At least, Kaze did... but still, they're willing to feed us and give us shelter. They'd never exclude us. We'd actually be the cream of the crop. I just didn't see what's so wrong with this place.

"Here. How about this, Red. You and Rose here duel, for old time's sake. If you win, the lass goes with you. If she wins... well, we can have a nice 'Welcome home' party for you," Keisuke smiled leisurely. Kaze hesitantly looked towards me, as if checking my opinion on the matter. To be honest, even I was apprehensive about it. I had dueled Kaze before. He won. Since we registered each other on the school's PDA system, I got to see his dueling profile as well. It was nearly flawless. Kaze has been in tons of duels and he rarely lost. That data was only from his time at DA. Given his past, he's definitely a dueling veteran. Knowing Keisuke proved that much. Could I really win? Though, 'could'... I did stand a chance. My record wasn't that bad either. All I had to do was win this one duel and the two of us could be home free. Granted, this place was too near home for my comfort, but I was sure Keisuke would work something out for us since he was so gung ho about us joining. Or at least, Kaze joining. Just one duel, and we'd never be ridiculed or mocked again... we'd never have to fear anyone... I met Kaze's gaze with my solidified resolve and nodded, showing that I accepted the proposal. Kaze looked a bit surprised that I accepted. In fact, I think I even saw the slightest bit of fear, though it could have been my imagination, thanks to that hat of his…

"Alright," Kaze relented as he pulled at his necklace, as if for some strength or resolve. "We can have the duel... but it can't be-" Kaze started to set up some conditions.

"Hey everyone! The Red Demon's back!" Keisuke bellowed, causing a chatter to rise across the floor.

"-broadcasted," Kaze dejectedly finished before Keisuke eagerly took hold of our wrists and threw them into the air, almost like what they do in wrestling matches when there's a victor.

"In just a few minutes, he'll be facing a newcomer! The one and only Black Rose Witch!" Keisuke continued to holler, only increasing the excitement around us. I suddenly felt what seemed to be hundreds of eyes upon me. It made me nervous at first, so used to the glares from Duel Academy, but then I thought about it. The stares weren't glares at all. Rather, they were simply... curious. The kinds that everyone had the first day Kaze came in. Curious and appraising. It was as if they were looking at me to evaluate my skills as a duelist. After that, they didn't seem to bother me anymore, though Kaze still seemed apprehensive about them. "Hehe. Come on you two. It's time to get you ready for your duel," Keisuke spoke before he began weaving through the crowd, still latched onto our wrists. I took the walk as an opportunity to gaze over the many people here. Most of them had some kind of criminal marker or scar, which got me thinking about a few things. Is this what would have happened if I continued as I was..? Would I have eventually been caught and marked as a criminal for something I couldn't help? If they were the same as me that had to be the case... Soon enough, we arrived at what I assumed to be a closet door for the assortment of refreshments that couldn't be fit on the shelves. When Keisuke opened the door, however, it revealed stairs that lead down quite a bit. "After you," Keisuke smiled cordially as he released our wrists and waved us down the corridor. Seeing as Kaze was still hesitant, I took the first move down the stairs, which caused him to follow after. After a few steps, his hand landed on my shoulder.

"Aki... There's still time. We can turn around and get out of here," Kaze whispered to me, seeing how Keisuke was still relatively close to us at the top of the staircase.

"And why would we want to turn around?" I questioned, but the answer soon presented itself to me. Underneath the seemingly run-down bar was something I never would have believed. Duel arenas like the one from Duel Academy were spread out fairly generously throughout the wide area, though they had chained fences around them and they were colored a pale brown. Several duels were in place when we arrived, and large crowds of people were gathered around them, cheering avidly. Off to the side, there was a room with a window carved out of its wall. People were lined up there, all eagerly standing and looking up to the electronic board above the window. Listed on it were the names, faces, and life points of who I assumed to be the duelists in the arena. Were they placing bets on the duels...? Several seconds after our arrival, I noticed our names, or at least our aliases, were placed on the board on the bottom. A picture of a seemingly younger Kaze appeared next to his name while all I received was a question mark. I assume that's because I'm not in their database... So this was how Kaze spent his childhood... Given how many adults here here, it just seems... odd that a kid like Kaze would choose to live here. Though, I assumed he didn't have much of a choice.

"Brings back some good memories, doesn't it, Red?" Keisuke questioned as he finished his descent and stood next to us. Kaze chose to remain silent, as if knowing that responding would leave him worse off. His unresponsiveness made Keisuke chuckle a bit, however, as if there was some unseen joke. "Ah, good ol' Red. Duel Arena 5. Think you can lead yourself there?" Keisuke asked another question.

"Yeah," Kaze answered shortly before beginning to walk off. I quickly took off after him, once again looking around as we walked. All of the duelists seemed to be wearing some type of equipment. A collar around their neck and bands on their arms and legs. I couldn't quite judge what they were for, as I had to keep up with Kaze's quick strides and couldn't observe them. Soon enough, we arrived at an empty arena, where two men were waiting. Upon seeing us, they began to turn and open what appeared to be a suitcase. "It's fine. We won't be needing them," Kaze told the men, who, albeit hesitantly, closed the suitcases and returned to their previous position. They must be some sort of guards... The fact that there were guards puzzled me a bit, but eventually I reasoned that if they were having bets, they must have some sort of security, should something go wrong. Pushing aside any doubt, I positioned myself on the opposite side of the field as Kaze, who still seemed a bit apprehensive about the whole thing. If that was the case... I guess it was my job to get this duel rolling...!

"I'll start this duel," I declared as I activated my duel disk, drawing Kaze out of his stupor. It was as if he was just realizing that I was serious about having a duel. Regardless, he took after my lead and activated his duel disk before we each drew our five cards.

[Aki: 4000LP] [Kaze: 4000LP]

"To start things off, I'll use Terraforming to add Black Rose Garden to my hand," I started off my usual strategy by obtaining my field spell. Following this, I just had to... "Then I'll summon Botanical Leo!" I shouted as my wooden lion appeared before me, landing with a thud on the arena. [Attack: 1600-1900] "I'll now set down one card and activate the Field Spell Black Rose Garden. With that, I end my turn," I finished up the combo as roots and various plants erupted from the stadium beneath us. This was a bit of a different strategy than what I usually used with Black Rose Garden, but I couldn't take any chances with Kaze. Knowing him, he could summon Brionac and return my field spell to my hand. If I would have played Black Rose Garden before summoning my monster, that would have left it powerless before Brionac, even with the field spell taking away half of its attack. Not only would this stop a Brionac counter attack, it would stop every counterattack. As far as I knew, Kaze's deck didn't control a monster with more than 4000 attack, which is what he would need to trump my Leo. All I had to do to win this was keep Black Rose Garden on the field whenever he summoned a monster. That's simple enough, given that a majority of Kaze's cards revolved around returning my cards back to my hand.

"I'll start my turn off with three cards face down. Then I'll summon Oyster Meister in attack mode," Kaze spoke as the man in oyster-themed armor appeared before him. While it was a valiant move, my garden soon reached out and latched onto his monster, restricting it's movements and taking its attack down by half. [Attack: 1600-800] After restraining his monster a bit, my garden then spawned a Rose Token on my field, which, if my plan worked out, would help me more than it would hinder me, thanks to my lion. [Rose Token: 800ATK] [Botanical Lio: 1600-2200ATK] "With that, I end my turn." It took me back a bit that Kaze didn't have more of a turn around. Given, if he had a bad draw, I could understand the weak turn, but his very movements... They seemed... restrained...? It was as if Kaze was holding back against me. I couldn't tell if I should be enraged or flattered by his act…

"Kaze, understand that I won't be holding back!" I called out as a bit of a warning to him as I took my draw.

"Trust me, I'm not holding back either," Kaze said as he threw his arm out, activating the trap 'Dust Tornado' as he did. "With this trap, I'll destroy Black Rose Garden!" So quickly...? There goes my supposedly fool-proof plan... not that it mattered, though. Even if he did summon Brionac on his next turn, its attack couldn't compare to any of my ace cards. Keeping this reasoning in my head, I gave Kaze a slight bit of confidence as he believed he destroyed the one thing in his way of victory.

"Fine then. I'll summon Evil Thorn in Attack Mode! But don't get too used to this one, for I sacrifice it to not only deal you 300 points of damage, but also summon two more Evil Thorns in Attack Mode!" I shouted out my combo. Soon after my first plant began to inflate until the point where it busted open, sending its thorns Kaze's way. He quickly put up his arms in defense, leaving him with only a few scratches as the thorns ripped through bits of his sleeves. [Kaze: 4000-3700LP] With this effect out of the way, two new thorns began to take root from the stage. [Evil Thorn: 100ATK] [Evil Thorn: 100ATK] [Botanical Lio: 1600 - 2800ATK] "Now, Botanical Lio! Attack Kaze's monster!" I ordered. My monster gave out a roar before lunging for the kill.

"Not so fast! I activate Aegis of the Ocean Dragon Lord! For the rest of this turn, any Level 3 or lower monsters can't be destroyed," Kaze explained his card's effect as my lion harmlessly scratched at Kaze's own monster.

"Even if it survives, you still take damage though," I pointed out as my lion made to re-aim his attack to Kaze. My opponent's monster quickly caught onto the danger and intervened, taking the attack once more to keep Kaze out of harm's way. [Kaze: 3700- 1700LP] Kaze suddenly took a step forward and murmured some things to monster, but being quite a distance away, I couldn't hear anything. Not that it mattered, that is. "You can take your turn," I concluded. Kaze nodded before returning back to his original spot on the duel field and drawing.

"I'll summon Geomancer of the Ice Barrier! She won't be sticking around too long, though, because I'll be tuning her with Oyster Meister!" Kaze said. The woman with a mirror shattered into three green circles, which the fellow Water monster flew through. There was no question about what monster Kaze was summoning at this point. "He who was born from the blizzards of the past! Break your frozen shackles and freeze all who dare get in your path! Synchro Summon, Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier!" With a booming roar, the ice dragon appeared, sending a gust of frozen air as it floated to the ground. [Attack: 2300]

"Ah, it really is him! It's the Red Demon!" a voice shouted, taking both of us by surprise. I looked to the side of the arena, where a small crowd had gathered.

"Go on, Demon! Trim the rose!" a voice called out. Similar calls arose, but they weren't necessarily all for Kaze. Some of them were cheers for me and despite how overly violent they seemed, it was still nice to know that I truly wasn't ostracized here. I turned back to Kaze so we could continue our duel, which is when I saw Kaze beginning to shake, murmuring something to himself.

"Kaze?" I asked. Upon hearing my voice, it seemed to draw Kaze out of his thoughts, but he still didn't seem quite... normal.

"Brionac! Attack Evil Thorn!" Kaze suddenly commanded. The serpent let out a roar before gliding forward and using its tail to knock my monster away and send a cool gust of wind my way. [Aki: 4000-1800LP] "That will end my turn."

"Alright then, my move. I'll set one monster face-down before attacking Brionac with my Botanical Lion!" I declared my move, but Kaze was already one step ahead of me.

"I activate Book of Moon! With this, I can flip your monster into face down mode," Kaze explained, thus saving his monster before mine could even pounce. With a simple move like this, Kaze managed to nearly turn the tide for the duel. He could destroy my Lion, for his monster's attack was high than my monster's defense, and he could use Brionac's effect for anything else. Things weren't looking so good all of a sudden, and the crowd responded according.

"Then I guess I'll switch all of my monsters to defense mode and end my turn," I finished my move.

"It's my draw! Since I have a Water monster on my field, I can summon Cyber Shark without a tribute!" Kaze said as his blue shark with orange armor on its head appeared. [Attack: 2100] "Cyber Shark and Brionac, destroy the face down Lion and Evil Thorn!' Kaze commanded his monsters, to which they responded with vigor, ramming violently into their targets and destroying them. Luckily they were in defense mode, or that would have been the end... Though Kaze still had one card in his hand. Was he going to sacrifice it now to return one of my cards to my hand, or was he saving it for something...? "That's my turn," Kaze finished, meaning that Kaze was probably banking on the later, should I manage some reversal card. Granted, he'd have to stop it by then, but... regardless, I took my draw.

"I sacrifice Rose Token to summon Queen Angel of Roses, which I can do due to her effect, which allows her to be summoned with only one tribute given that it is a Plant monster," I explained briefly as I summoned the monster that would surely lead to my victory. [Queen Angel of Roses: 2400ATK] That is, as far as I knew, this monster was stronger than all of Kaze's. Once I destroyed Brionac, I should be in the green. "Queen Angel of Roses! Destroy Brionac!" I ordered my monster. In response, the woman in rose attire tightened her grip on the lance she wielded before charging forward. Brionac put up a valiant fight, no doubt trying to protect Kaze from any physical damage that would result. In that sense, Brionac succeeded, as my monster never got near Kaze, but while it won the battle, it didn't win the war and was destroyed. [Kaze: 1700-1600LP] "That will end my turn," I concluded.

"It's my move! I summon Abyss Soldier so that I can use his effect! By discarding one Water monster, I can return one monster to the owner's hand! Of course, I choose Queen Angel of Roses," Kaze said as the whale like creature appeared on the field and used its trident to send my Queen back to my hand. That, of course, leave my field open to his assault. "Cyber Shark! Attack her face down monster!" Kaze started his attacks off carefully, not knowing what my face down monster was. Unfortunately, it would have been destroyed regardless, as Wall of Ivy couldn't put up much of a fight with only 1200 defense. After my field was left wide open, all that was left was Abyss Soldier, who, ironically, had just enough attack points to end the duel.

"That's it, Demon! Strike her down! Kill her!" a voice pierced the cheers, causing me to freeze up. Kill..? Sure, the crowd has been using synonyms of it, such as trim the rose, but never had they so blatantly came out with killing. I turned back to Kaze, who had begun to tremble once more. The shadow that his hat created made him seem even more distant than he probably was... "Trim the Rose! Burn the Witch!" a chanting began to rise up from the crowd, disturbing me even further, more so for the names then the threats they carried in them, "Unleash the demon already!"

"No!" The entire room seemed to go silent. I slowly turned my attention back to Kaze, almost unable to believe that it was him who screamed the word. It was the loudest that I had ever heard him. We all stood there in a sort of terrified silence, though it may have been just an uncomfortable waiting as we watched for Kaze's next move. "You win, Aki... I can't do it," Kaze murmured, so softly that I almost didn't hear him at first. Without even giving me time to respond, Kaze spun around and departed, leaving me in my stunned silence. It was only when the crowd began to lash out angrily at Kaze's surrender that I snapped back to my senses and left after Kaze. That's when Keisuke showed up.

"Nicely done, Rose. Never seen anyone make-" Keisuke started to compliment me as he stuck an arm out, probably to shake my hand, but I rushed right past him. My search seemed to be fruitless, as I couldn't catch sight of the red hat that would clue me off to Kaze's presence. Eventually I decided that I wouldn't be able to spot Kaze in the overcrowded arenas, so I retreated up the stairs to the bar area. That way, if Kaze came up through here, I could- My thought process was cut off as I saw Kaze sitting at the bar with one hand on his head and the other on his phone. No one else was there, as they were presumably all down at the arena. Kaze wasn't doing anything specific at the moment, just staring at the screen. At the picture of Rei and his other friends...

"You still want to stay, don't you?" Kaze's whisper took me by surprise. I had to swallow own my fear before talking.

"Why didn't you tell me...? About that... about them?" I asked in return.

"I tried...! You were just so set on staying, and Keisuke kept interfering... This is what I meant... They're insane here. They'll only accept you if they can give you a good show. They get a sick thrill out of watching people slowly lose their humanity and hurt people...!" Kaze growled. It was then that I almost instantly regretted my choice. How could I have not picked up on the hints...? This is where Kaze was when he was like me... it must bring up a lot of bad memories, and I so selfishly tried to force him to stay...

Kaze slowly looked up at me, making our first eye contact since the duel. His eyes looked rather dark, and I couldn't help but realize that it was my fault. "You... you still want to stay, don't you...? Even knowing this?" I found myself breaking the eye contact, staring elsewhere so I could formulate a response. Kaze had a point. This place wasn't what I'd call a safe haven, as Keisuke had portrayed it. On the other hand, we weren't necessarily persecuted here either... but then again, we wouldn't be at DA either, if what Kaze said about his friends was right. Though, because of me, there's no way that we could make the ship. Had I really ruined our future so easily...?

"No... Kaze, there's another ship, right? We could find another ship...! Sure, we'd be a few days late, but still," I tried to plan out. I could have sworn I saw a little spark of life put back into Kaze's eyes.

"Yeah..! If I call Rei, she can get Chancellor Sheppard to arrange another ship...! And then we can get back and sign you up for the next semester," Kaze added in, quickly getting to his feet.

"And just where do you think you're going, demon?" a familiar voice asked, stopping us in our tracks. We slowly turned around to see a rather irritated Keisuke with his arms crossed. "I thought Ms. Rose won that duel. That means you're staying here, does it not?" Keisuke continued to ask.

"Sorry, but we changed our minds! We're going back to Duel Academy," Kaze declared with a sudden gusto as he took hold of my hand, as if to show the strength in our choice. Keisuke just stared at us blankly for a few seconds and I noticed Kaze's grip tighten with every second that ticked by. Soon enough, a smirk broke across the owner's face.

"Ah, is that so? Well, I figured as much when I saw that look on your face. Guess it's a good thing that I'm going to send that video off then," Keisuke said dismissively as he began to turn around

"What video?" Kaze asked, causing Keisuke to pause. The man turned his head around to glance at us, that same vexing smirk on his face.

"Oh, caught your interest? Figures as much. After all, it will be sent to your precious little Duel Academy. They'll see it long before you arrive," Keisuke continued to speak vaguely. It only served to irritate Kaze further, as the brunette tightened his grip around my hand even further, though he was still careful to not hurt me.

"I said 'What video'," Kaze repeated, anger slipping into his voice as he did. Keisuke simply reached into his pants pocket and pulled out what seemed to be a remote before turning to the TV balanced on the shelf not too far away. The fact that he had this already prepared slightly terrified me. It was as if he knew exactly what we were thinking... as if he knew that those people would change our minds. After a bit of static, a duel arena came into clear view, as did a certain boy in red. "No," Kaze whispered, apparently knowing what was going to happen next. While that was the case, I had no idea what this video would show. As a result, when clips of Kaze as a child using Brionac to strike down his foes played in succession, I was taken aback. It started out with seemingly harmless clips, where Brionac did no apparent harm aside from the normal shocks, but as the video progressed, the violence escalated. Soon, opponents began to get impaled by ice shards or left in a frozen prison. Of course, none of the wounds ended up being serious to the point of death, but they still drew blood and terror. Kaze seemed more apprehensive than pained though, "Even so... Rei and the others will-"

"Oh, I don't doubt that they'll accept you... eventually. That is, they'll realize their mistakes after they chase you away for being a Shadow Duelist or whatever they're called," Keisuke said as he crossed his arms once more. "So, I'll ask you once more. Where do you think you're going, Demon? Because if you leave, you know what happens," Keisuke reminded, as if the video behind him wasn't enough of a reminder. The Osiris beside me looked at the ground as he considered his next action, and I couldn't blame him. He was choosing between his past or losing the present.

"Look, Aki," Kaze began shakily.

"Don't. I'm staying with you. We're partners. You never once abandoned me, so allow me to return the favor. Whatever you choose, I'll still be here," I did my best to offer a reassuring smile. Kaze opened his mouth as if he were about to rebut, but he seemingly decided against it.

"Thank you," the brunette murmured before turning back to the man before us. The once affable and charismatic front that he once put up was now gone, exposing Keisuke for the slimy snake he was. Using other people and their pain for his own benefit... People like him are the reason why we're so looked down upon...! "Fine. You win, Keisuke," Kaze spoke, gazing straight at him with an intense stare. It was as if while he was giving in at the moment, the Osiris beside me knew that things wouldn't play out in Keisuke's favor in the end.

"Hehe... That's a good boy. I'll go prepare you two some rooms," Keisuke's smirk spread a bit wider before he turned and departed down the stairs. Once the man was gone, however, Kaze's facade dropped.

"Oh, god, Aki, I... I-" Kaze tried to choke out, but I quickly interrupted his stuttering.

"It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself. Even if you weren't here, I would have ended up in the same place. At least this way, you'll be here to guide me, won't you?" Kaze seemed taken aback by my question at first. After understanding what I was asking, however, he smiled.

"Of course...! Let's make Keisuke regret this!"

Reviews:

- Zeroman'slegends: Despite what it may seem, I'm a girl, just so you guys know. As for more of Kaze's point of view, there will be more. A few chapters are planned to be for Kaze's view. You have to keep in mind that this story will be going from Duel Academy (Pre-5Ds) up to at least the Dark Signers (2nd arc), so quite a bit needs to be covered still.