Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, Yu-Gi-Oh! Gx, or Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds or any characters from the Yu-Gi-Oh! Franchise. I do own any OCs I make, but most will be likely be minor characters (even more so than the minor characters in the show - save for Nozomi and Hiroshi. My fingers ran away with them, and I like the dynamic they made too much to change it. I find them amusing). I make no money from this fanfiction as it is a tribute to a fandom I really like and want to play around in. If you see this on a paid site, please note that someone has plagiarized me and let me know so I may take steps to prevent fines or whatever. Also, I will be using the Japanese names, so if you're only familiar with the English, 4kids swapped two names: Blitz is Nerve and Nervin is Blitz.

We're gonna do a minor timeskip this chapter. Nothing big, just a few days. I've established enough about Yusei's time in the Facility for my plans now, time to move a bit closer to the release date for the Head Signer. (For the record, he has the tail mark as per canon right now, but I have ideas and, well, let's just say, if one of the others is older than Yusei in canon, they're not anymore because of the ideas. Not saying more, spoilers. You're free to make guesses as to why that's important though.)

Also, as of this chapter, I have a beta/co-conspirator - I mean, co-author! Co-author is what I meant! Shenluen (FFNet and AO3) is helping me with tying the plot together in a nice little bow - and giving my muses more ideas.

And now the chapter. (Look at this, I'm on schedule!)

WARNING! DO NOT EAT OR DRINK WHILE READING THIS CHAPTER. I WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE IF YOU CHOKE. *looks to her absolutely insane muses and points* THEY ARE!

Yusei was ready to start literally climbing the walls again. Prison life was boring. Routine. Dull. And Yusei didn't do boring. Why else would he love the speeds he could reach on his D-Wheel? He admitted it, he was an adrenaline junkie, and was going through withdrawal. At this rate, he'd simply die of boredom.

"Geez, kid, what's got you so mopey?"

Yusei turned his head - which was planted face-first on one of the cafeteria tables - to glare at the guy who disturbed his brooding. Was it childish? Probably. But he was barely 18, had to grow up fast, and was bored. Give him a break.

The guy chuckled, finding Yusei acting his age for once oddly refreshing. Having a teen that was way too serious and stoic for someone twice his age actually acting like the mopey, hormonal brat he should be was an odd relief. And the punk kid had somehow managed to win nearly everyone over in just a little over a week. The only ones who still saw him as Satellite trash were the worst criminals in the joint (including the more corrupt guards like Takasu). Most of the guards actually tried to make life easier for him - discreetly of course. Sneaking him books and other innocent things to try to keep him entertained. Because as everyone had quickly discovered, a bored Yusei was a mischievous Yusei, not that anyone could figure out how the hell he got out of his cell, evaded the cameras, snuck into Takasu's office, and booby-trapped the place with pranks in the middle of the night, all without any evidence that it was really him. (All they had to go on, really, was the smug smirk when Takasu screamed in rage before appearing in the auditorium covered in glue and feathers minutes later. The next couple days where everyone was confined to their cells was worth it.)

"Booorrreeddd," the teen moaned, not caring how immature he was being. He was bored, dammit, the guards couldn't get him more books to read until tomorrow, and he'd finished all that they had. Even that trashy romance crap that rather embarrassed guard let him borrow in desperation to keep him busy a bit longer. They were still stunned that he read 50 books in just 5 days. (Though at first they thought he was pretending because of how fast he flipped through the pages, until he recited, verbatim, a paragraph from an engineering book one of the repairmen let him look through. He couldn't wait to get out and use some of the things he learned from that to upgrade Hope.)

Alarm spread through everyone within earshot. It got worse when Takasu came in.

"All of you rejects, to the auditorium! Now!"

Himura quickly grabbed Yusei by the scruff to keep him from doing anything reckless - again - and dragged him to the auditorium, putting him down in the exact center, away from any walls to climb, with a member of his gang on every side, Yanagi right in front, and Himura was in the back, behind few people, so he could keep a hawk's eye on the brat. Turned out they had a "special" guest today. A certain Director who kept looking to Yusei during his speech, which was clearly a warning. A warning that was just as clearly pissing the kid off. Well, at least he wasn't bored anymore.

"Geez, no wonder we couldn't find you! What made you so desperate, you fled to the Satellite of all places? No offense to you guys, but your home's a dump. Literally."

"Gee, thanks, Auntie Rei, we didn't notice how the people here are forced to live, Hiroshi and I thought we were fleeing to a pristine sanctuary," Nozomi snarked right back. Tirano Rei - formerly Saotome Rei before her marriage - just rolled her eyes and waved in a "well, get on with it" gesture, causing Nozomi to huff and say one word, "Divine."

The teal-haired male leaning against the wall snarled much like his Topaz Tiger at that. He immediately knew why this was Nozomi's best sanctuary, and unfortunately, the bastard was as slippery as a snake. Any evidence of crimes he'd committed was always mysteriously "lost", witnesses would go "missing", and only some were found with no memories - or motor control, since they were Jane and John Does in the coma unit. Johan Anderson was only safe because of his position. He was a very public figure, so it'd be difficult for Divine to make him disappear. Not for a lack of trying, but having a very protective family in the form of Duel Spirits made things a bit difficult for would-be attackers. Well, that and a Herald for a best friend. Judai wasn't happy about the attack he thwarted, though he was less happy about the fact it was Divine. All the Herald of Gentle Darkness would say on the matter of why he wouldn't step in was, "I wish I could, but it's not the right time yet." Given how he seemed to know some things before they happened and would always go off somewhere to rage against not being able to stop it because it had to happen (his words)... Johan suspected time travel. When and how was the question. But Judai was obviously trying to ensure the loop was stable, no matter how much he hated it. And if Judai was trying to keep a stable time loop instead of changing things, then it must turn out okay in the end.

"I'm calling Judai," Rei stated, pulling out her phone. Johan whipped around and opened his mouth, but Rei cut him off. "I know he said he can't do anything yet, but he might have a way to at least make sure my niece is safer. Plus, I needed to call him anyway, I need an update on how the investigation on the corruption in this city is going."

"How would Uncle Judai know that? Didn't his last postcard come from Puerto Rico?" Hiroshi wondered, having looked through all the postcards their "uncle" had sent over the past few years.

"Why would the Supreme King of Dimensions need to physically be somewhere when he has plenty of subjects invisible to most of the human population that can gather information for him?" Johan answered with a smirk, causing Hiroshi's mouth to form an "o".

"Wait, wait, wait, back it up, Supreme King of Dimensions? What're you going on about?" Nerve demanded. Rei and Johan looked to Nozomi who raised her hands in a placating gesture.

"You're the storyteller, not me, Auntie Rei. Why don't you share the stories Hiroshi and I grew up on with them?" Nozomi suggested with a smirk. Rei answered with her own.

"Okay, gents, gather round, gather round, and prepare to have your world shaken to it's core because everything I'm about to tell you is 100% true…"

Yusei was pissed. Godwin had threatened his friends - his family. If he harmed one single hair on any part of any of their bodies, the Director was as good as-

"Yusei!" A hand grabbed his shoulder, and the fighter automatically grabbed it and flipped the guy over to land on back, aiming a punch at the throat before catching himself and stopping scant millimeters from collapsing Himura's windpipe. Quickly letting go and backing away, Yusei breathed heavily, eyes wide at what he'd nearly done in his blind rage. Himura sat up slowly, moving carefully and deliberately to avoid accidentally setting off Yusei's "fight or flight" response again - especially since it seemed permanently locked on "fight".

"It's okay, I'm not hurt. Now what's got you so worked up? What did Godwin say to you?"

"He's going to hurt them. My family. He's targeting them to keep me in line. I won't let him hurt them. I won't let my family be torn apart again, haven't I lost enough already!?" Yusei was screaming by the end, everyone nearby (guards included - luckily no corrupt ones were there at the moment) turned to the source of the desperate cry, and saw Yusei shaking with pent-up emotional pain. A wind was beginning to whip around him, building into its own scream and the lights flickered ominously. Fear coursed through everyone at the display of power, power clearly uncontrolled because of Yusei's current emotional state. Which he was snapped out of through an equally shocking source.

Burst Lady lowered the hand she had used to literally knock sense back into Satellite's Hope via a slap across the face and leveled a stern glare at him. "Godwin won't be touching them. The Herald will make him regret it if he tries, Laws of Non-Interference be damned," she stated in a strong, stern voice.

"Wh- You're Burst Lady, aren't you? You're a Duel Spirit, how are you…?" Yusei was stunned. That wasn't a common occurrence. Everyone else was too shocked to speak. It's not every day a Duel Spirit walks among humans - most humans think they're nothing but myth after all.

Burst Lady snorts. "Let's just say the Herald has an interest in your sister's safety and leave it at that. He also knows what's going on with you, but can't help. Though he will advise you use hot compresses and anti-inflammatories to help with the discomfort and pain. He can't tell you what's going on, it could cause undue influence he's not allowed to cause."

"Well at least someone knows what's going on. Will I ever be told?" Yusei grumped. He was bored, pissed, and now frustrated. Where was a punching bag when you needed one? At least killing that would just require someone buying a new one.

"Yes. When the right time comes and not a second before. I apologize, but if you were to be told now, there'd be potentially devastating consequences. Not through any fault of your own, but because the Herald was involved in time travel, and there's consequences to knowing what will happen before it does. Any change can destroy the future. It could also save it, but the future was pretty decent, so the Herald is trying to keep things on a similar path. Best to stay on the road you know will turn out well then go blind trying to fix something and possibly dooming everyone. Granted the path isn't exactly the same, but it's headed in the same direction. Now I've said enough, you've got some answers and I need to make sure Featherman and Sparkman aren't being idiots while I'm gone," Burst Lady said before turning and stepping into a shadow, vanishing from sight.

"...Your contact calls himself the Herald, right, Yanagi?"

"Yes."

"And is that par for the course for him?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I think he enjoys the shock he gives people. And given you've shown signs of similar temperament when bored - if you two ever team up, please give me a warning so I can flee the ensuing chaos."

"No promises."

"Lovely."

And that's a wrap. My muses decided to channel Jack Frost this time, it seems. Oh dear. Especially seeing as how I've given Yusei a love of heights, preternatural grace and balance, a strange relationship with gravity, and soon - the ability to fly. Now Yusei has a prankster streak and he's canonically good with kids… Oh boy. Yusei's mind melding with Jack Frost here. Master strategist prankster with a genius intellect. What have I created? What hell have I unleashed?

Well, at least I can point him at the bad guys and enjoy the show. Anyone got popcorn?