11 "Beyond Recognition" Atlantis, then Post-Canon

implied self harm

"Raaaain! We made you more teeea!"

I blinked awake and pushed away a mountain of blankets. Vivian wore a brightly colored jumper that managed to make her look even younger than eight. Her pigtails bounced as she shifted from foot to foot.

"I see," I murmured.

"Your voice is totally clear!" she exclaimed. "You've gotta be feeling one hundred percent!"

My hand ringed my own neck, fingers glancing the bruises I'd memorized. "I wouldn't... say that."

She frowned but swiftly adjusted, plastering on a smile and waving at the cup. "I made you something special! It's an oolong, which Ranue said you like, and it's got *dragonfruit.* I knowww how you like dragons!"

The heat of the porcelain cup burned my lips. I drank the scalding liquid anyway, glad for the relief on my throat. My eyes widened. "It's... good."

"Don't be so surprised!" She wore a smug grin. "I'm a cone sir!"

"Connoisseur?"

"That!"

The door to the bedroom cracked. Wenn, Vivian's older brother, slipped inside holding a mug. He said, "Oh, you're awake. Vivian already brought you some? Did you wake her up?"

She gained a sudden interest in her toes. "Noooo."

"No trouble," I said. "It's your house, after all."

"That means guests should be treated with upmost respect and grace," Wenn said, shooting Vivian a glare. "I wanted to inform you of your brother's upcoming visit."

"Ranue? He's coming? Here?"

He chuckled. "Correct. In fact, I'm glad you're excited. He came early."

The door flung open and banged against the wall. Ranue sprinted towards me and stopped at the foot of the bed. He planted his hands on the bedframe. "How are you? Are you okay? Do you need anything? Are you comfortable-"

"Stop," I said. I closed my eyes and the corner of my mouth jumped with a smile I tried to suppress. "I am... recovering."

"Listen at that! Voice clear as a bell!" He turned his excited expression towards Vivian and Wenn, who mirrored it. "I can't thank you two enough!"

"It's no trouble." Wenn grasped his mug in both hands. "You two... forgive me for perhaps speaking out of turn, but it's difficult to believe you are King Dartz's children."

Ranue spat air. "In case you were wondering, he privately disapproves of me and publicly- well, you know about Rain."

"If it helps, Crown Prince, I look forward to the day you're coronated," Wenn said. "Vivian, let's give the two some privacy."

She groaned and moaned but followed him. Once the door was shut, Ranue gave me the "Well? I'm waiting" look. I folded my hands in my lap and studied them rather than the optimistic shine of his golden eyes. "My throat is better. The nightmares have gotten worse."

"Shame. In the labs, they've invented new sleep aids-"

"No thanks. I'm too afraid I'll be trapped in them."

He glanced from my face to the crown of my head. "Your roots are showing."

I clapped my palm over them and peered at the mirror over the nightstand. Silver shone at my part behind the raven color I'd dyed it. Ranue said, "And to think the black was juuust starting to suit you!"

"You don't think it did?" I muttered. I touched my face and watched the visage do the same. I avoided the mirror as much as possible, but the return of the white transfixed me. "I need more dye."

"Huh? Really?"

"I have to be-" I grit my teeth. "Unrecognizable. I can't be her again."

"You know..." His voice wavered. "None of it was your fault. You're just- a person. You're the same Rain as when you were born, which is a kickass genius, in case there was any doubt."

I dragged my fingernails down my cheeks. He grasped my wrists and whispered, "Are you hearing me? Hey, I'll get you more dye. Don't worry about it. Can I change these? They're getting dirty."

His index finger touched the gauze on my forearms. "I- I can change them myself."

He didn't have to... see that.

"Please? You should get a full disinfect, and I'm experienced."

He's right. I had no clue how to. I waited while he brought the bandages and strong-smelling liquid. He unwound the gauze, and we both made a face-me at the stench and him at the rows of horizontal scars barely healed. He closed his eyes for a moment, and his twitching cheeks told me he was trying not to cry.

"You know," I said, "I've been dueling here. For fun. I thought the game could be... that."

His smile was trepid. "That's good. You still switching around, or sticking to Blue-Eyes? This will sting."

The liquid burned my wounds. I showed no reaction. "Blue-Eyes more. I'd forgotten how fulfilling they felt to use."

"I'm happy," he said though he appeared anything but. He carefully wrapped the bandages, fresh and smelling like antiseptic. "All done."

"I appreciate it," I whispered.

"We're in this together. Always." This time, he put up a bright grin. "The white and black - both work, I think. A kaleidoscope of Rain!"

I laughed a little. "Er, I think there would be more color."

He patted my hand and said, "You'll get there one day."

/\/\/\/\/\/

I blew on my nails, painted every color of the rainbow. Carly showed her tangerine nails off to Jack on video call, and Aki admired hers, ruby red and embellished with detailed roses. I kicked my feet on the bed in Carly's apartment. My smile grew.

Aki's eyebrows lifted. "You look like a schoolgirl who just got a text from her crush."

"Meh, crushes are the worst!"

"Aren't you married?" she said.

"Yeah, but that's different! No, I..." I hopped up and stood before the full-length mirror. The woman within wore pajamas in pale pink and baby blue. My fuzzy slippers stood out in neon green. White hair tumbled down my shoulders.

Tears pricked the corners of my eyes. "All the color- it, it just makes me happy, y'know?"

12 "On Our Own" The Facility, then Dark Signer Arc

Hunger resembled a trapped beast, growling and clawing at my insides. I related. Sometimes I used my little strength to push on the iron bars of the Facility cell out of pure delusion. On occasion I swore I saw Crow crouching outside the barred window, glaring, unforgiving.

"Kalin?" Rain knelt beside our cot. She caressed my cheek. "You're looking so hollow… I think you need some water or something."

I smiled. It was a wildly twitching thing from the effort, but I did it. "I'm fine. Get some food in you."

She frowned at the cafeteria tray. Every section but one the guards left empty, the bastards. All they slid us was a block of white stuff resembling gelatin, a card-sized blob barely enough to sustain a single person. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, 'm good. They slide another at night. You're a hard sleeper."

Her brows pushed together, but she trusted me and ate it all.

Through the night there were no visitors. There never were. The constant ache in my abdomen made me nauseous. I wretched but only spit dribbled out of me. I wrapped an arm around myself and collapsed on my side.

It's fine. It'd be okay. The only reason they treated us this way was because of my bombs. Once I was gone, she'd be perfectly fine.

The pain inside was like a wild animal tearing my organs to shreds on repeat. I pressed my hands to my temples and curled in on myself. The intensity of my grit teeth threatened to crack them. Saliva built in my mouth. I dreamed of Jack's stupid ramen. The popsicles Crow gave out to the kids. Yusei's stir fry.

Fuck you. Fuck you.

All this I could endure alone, but she's here with me. It's not fucking fair, and it's all his fault. I hoped they all suffered and died and rotted in the Satellite trash like they deserved. I hoped I could get out of here just to see it happen. See what happens when they don't trust me.

Who needed them, anyway. Just us two on our own now. All we needed. All we ever needed.

Warm hands lay on my shoulders. She was shaking me. "Hey. Hey, Kalin!"

I tried to speak. My dry lips cracked and a voiceless breath escaped.

A deep and resounding voice echoed throughout my mind: You face death. If you so wish, I can make it not so; I can revive you and gift you the opportunity of exacting revenge on the Signer, Yusei Fudo.

Another delusion.

But I would want it, more than anything. I didn't want to die. It shouldn't have to end like this.

I want

to see you again.

/\/\/\/\/\/

I floored my runner through the Satellite wastes. The black clouds above stretched on, blocking the moon. I followed the streak of red I'd watched fly from the battlefield.

That damn Crimson Dragon. I'd wring his flaming neck with my own two hands for keeping Yusei alive with the crash he caused.

Suuure, I'd have other chances and more opportunities to cause him suffering, but I wanted him done. Snuffed. Less than a thought. It's the only possible way for a dead man like me to feel at ease–knowing I'd righted my wrong and removed a heinous criminal like him from the world.

My headlights illuminated a silhouette. I slammed on the brakes, skidded to a stop, and tossed my helmet aside. This was one thousand percent where that Dragon landed, so-

I froze.

There she was, free as a bird, no more Arcadia bullshit. The violet from my dark mark reflected off her metallic criminal mark, the one she earned on my behalf. "Rain? Rain, is that you?"

Her eyes were wide, and her hands quaked. She remembered me. It was her, then, back to herself. Immense relief washed over me. I ran forward and wrapped my arms around her like we used to, like I hadn't been able to in agonizing months. "Rain, I'm so glad you're okay!"

She shoved me off. A pinching feeling started up in my chest. "You think you can just show up and act like everything's fine?"

It didn't make any sense. It was a reunion for real this time, the kind I'd dreamed of waking and sleeping. "Why're you acting like this?"

"Y-You're a Dark Signer. I know what that means. You're here to kill Yusei!"

"Oh. You know about…" I ran my hand through my hair. She had no clue what he'd done, and should she have to know about his betrayal of her? Or should she have a chance to hold onto that ignorant bliss? I shook my head. "I'm sorry. I didn't want it to be like this. I went to the ends of the earth trying to find you. I really did. You have no idea."

She didn't, because she wouldn't remember the night at the premiere, her in her Arcadia robes and on Sayer's proverbial puppet strings.

"Is that supposed to matter? You want my friend dead!"

Fine. Fine, let's shatter the illusion for once. "He only acts like your friend. He's the reason you ended up in the Facility–in the City at all and went through that shit."

"No. No, that was my decision to save you. I can see now that was a mistake."

Panic and pain rioted in me. She was inching away, and I found myself reaching for her without thinking. "Look, partner, I can explain-"

"Don't call me that. My real partner died."

She turned her back on me.

"And should have stayed that way."

She ran away.

I called after her, stupidly. A vise closed on my chest. I bit down hard on my own knuckle. The thickness in my throat threatened. I bore my bite down harder instead. I could complain that they'd gotten to her first but it would accomplish nothing. She was on their side, as any sane person without the whole truth would be.

But I'd seen the cards. I knew what me and the other Dark Signers were capable of, so I understood the end result was inevitable.

She was on their side though, and as long as she was…

I roared into the night and slammed my fist into my runner's frame. Any way you sliced it, we'd meet again.

As enemies.

13 "From Childhood" WRGP

I wiped sweat off my brow and onto my thick utility glove. Tarps covered mine and Misaki's runners; I worked on buffing the scratches marring Toru's runner's frame. His crash yesterday played in my mind over and over. When I'd went at the frame, I'd imagined it was rearranging Primo's face instead.

I stood up and swayed. My injured abdomen throbbed still. I held myself up using the computer desk and counted my breaths, in and out. Our next WRGP match was in a matter of days. I needed to get it together so our team could keep on.

"A little out of breath, are we, Orichalcum?"

I spun, my hand flying to the sheathed sword at my hip. Primo threw the tarp off my runner. The white sheet matched his ivory robes. His single eye appraised my duel runner then flicked to me. "Look at the stance. Impeccable, like a samurai's. It shows you were bred to be the perfect soldier from childhood. If only you had a brain that worked beyond following simple orders."

The worst thing I could do was react. Yet my Orichalcos necklace glowed with its attempts to suppress my anger, and my scowl deepened. "And you know exactly how that ended for people who treated me like you do."

A fountain running red; me sitting upon it and smiling.

I snapped, "How did you get in here, anyway?"

"Oh! I'm so glad you asked." He folded his arms over his chest and nodded at the entrance. "The door is open."

The folding garage door was half-rolled up to let air in. I groaned and let my arms fall to my sides. Exhaustion weighed me down. Though he was here, I slid to the floor. "Why do you even want to be here? You obviously hate me and my partner. Because of you hitting me with your sword yesterday, I'm struggling to stay upright on my runner."

"What?" He scoffed. "You must be lying."

"Why would I-" My voice was too loud. I cleared my throat. "You've seen my whooole history. You know I wouldn't lie about that."

"Going by your whole history, Rain Orichalcum would slash me to pieces on sight."

"Rain Orichalcum wants to," I grumbled. "At least I know proper manners. You haven't even offered to help me up."

A choking sound came out of him. "As if you'd accept it!"

I lay back against the wall and stared into empty space. "It could've all gone so differently. I'd grow up and get to marry a real gentleman and be a noble. I'd never have to meet you. Life would be amazing."

"Humph. Ironic how childhood is meant to be the most nostalgic and joyous time to look back on." His head tilted, shifting the shadow of his hood away from his bright mauve eye. "Then there's you, stuck in your imaginary alternate scenarios. Woe is you. Should I have brought streamers for the pity party?"

"I hate you, I hate you so much I hope you die. I hope you have a heart attack right now and die and I'll spit on your body. I won't even call the ambulance."

"The spit will serve as evidence making it a potential murder, and you'll be tried! With your record-"

"Don't care. I'd go to the Facility again if that's the cost of spitting on your cold dead body. I'd go back and be happy with my new criminal mark that will never let me forget what I got to do. Please die."

Primo laughed and spread his arms. "I'm so alive, you could kill me a thousand times and I'd come back again and again."

"Are you giving me permission?"

"No." His eye thinned. "My childhood wasn't idyllic, either."

"Now you're using fake words. Die."

"It means happy, you dunce," he spat. He tapped the hilt of his sword. "Our opportunity to complete the circuit and change the future means millions of children will lead their picturesque childhoods. Millions more humans will have their chance to live out full lives. Your opposition to such a future is incomprehensible."

"Because it doesn't have to come at the cost of destroying the City!" I roared. "Because you're an asshole who kidnapped me, made me relive my worst experiences, and hurt me and my partner over and over. Because you used me against my friends. Because I could never trust someone who does those things to be following the right goal. How could I? I know I'm not smart. I know it, but I'm not so stupid I'd follow along with *you.* You're evil."

"Evil?" Amusement curled his eye, and his knuckle touched the underside of his chin. "What does that make you?"

"Condemned to hell a thousand times," I said, unflinching. "I did become the perfect soldier, and I'll live with that blood on my hands. Doesn't change I still have the chance to do the right thing, and I refuse to believe that's joining you. You're right. I was raised to follow orders without question. Now, that couldn't be further from the truth."

"Sorry? All I heard was that I'm right."

I shouted and threw my sword at him. He sidestepped easily. The blade clanged on the floor. I sat still, heaving, sweat pouring down my skin. He took a look at mine and Toru's runners. "How cute. You and your teammate match."

My eyes widened. The scratches on Toru's mimicked the ones I'd suffered when I crashed against Kalin in our Shadow Duel. He knew that like he knew everything, and like he knew exactly how to twist the knife.

"This isn't fair." My voice cracked. I fell on my side and shut my eyes. "It's not fair you know every weakness and hurt me with it every day. I don't understand. You pretend to be some hero saving the world at the same time you're killing me slowly. I'm a person, too. I don't deserve this."

Metal clinked near me. I opened my eyes and gasped. Primo knelt next to me, his expression concerned and… sad. He rested my saber next to me. His head dipped low enough for his hood to shadow his face.

"I suppose you are correct," he whispered, and the softness of his voice shocked me. "Even enemies should be treated with respect; otherwise, they get the other hand." He peered up at me but there was no smirk, no hidden meaning. He reached for me, and my heart seized up. His index finger brushed the underside of my jawline. "Chin up, Orichalcum. However this ends, I'll be making sure our future is bright."

His touch lingered. My cheeks warmed. His eye widened and he stood abruptly, shaking out his hand as though I'd burned him. He stormed outside and fully closed the folding door on his way.

I, meanwhile, couldn't… move.

14 "What You Swore to Destroy" Ark Cradle

A rainbow stretched from the old Daedalus Bridge towards the thing swallowing the sky. A group of vehicles raced up the spectrum strip. I knew I had to keep going, but I squinted to find Rain's runner. Though the tiny group was impossibly far away a naive part of me swore I could pick her out wherever.

Yet my eyes were drawn to the Ark Cradle instead. A city's worth of decimated architecture cobbled together to form the wide disk, which blocked out the entire sky. I moved along a freeway full of empty cars; the existence of the Ark shut down their engines.

Shit, what was I even thinking? No way could I make it all those miles to Satisfaction Town. My empty stomach ached but it felt impossible to eat more than a bite these days. The sweat clinging to my pale face sprung from more than the effort of walking.

I watched the Ark. The gray decimation above me lowered inch by inch. Each second brought me that much closer to being crushed.

"There's a certain irony to it. Did you notice, Kalin?"

The feminine voice startled me. Rahlin as my semi-translucent Duel Spirit lay on the road with her head propped up on the curb to see the Ark. "The destroyed buildings making it up are from New Domino City and the Satellite themselves. Our future is here to reduce us to ashes."

I resisted the urge to make a comment that it'd be a fitting end for me. It wouldn't end here, though. It couldn't. "That thing'll be ashes in a sec."

Rahlin made a noncommittal hum. "The term Z-ONE used. 'God.' Who could be so egotistical to call themselves such? Yet I lay here and watch Z-ONE's creation, and I understand. Have you heard the term deus ex machina?"

"Nah."

"It means 'god in a machine.' It originated from criticisms of media that use plot devices such as the sudden appearance of a god to instantly wrap up a conflict. Z-ONE created a solution for this erred world that will correct it in a flash. Z-ONE's deus ex machina."

"No way!" I snapped. "No, calling it godlike or whatever makes it sound impossible to beat, but it's just like any other machine. It can crumble and rust and break down."

"Yet you and I lie here, so very mortal in our inability to affect the outcome. There's nothing more we can do."

I said, "We can't give up so easily."

"It is not giving up to admit the ending isn't up to us," she said. "The Signers and Rain can stop Z-ONE's penultimate machine. We aren't chosen, and of course. We are so imperfect. Once upon a time, humanity was what I swore to destroy. We are mere hours away from that reality. It is my punishment, surely. I have humans I love and care for, and doomsday arrives after my change of heart. I suppose it's because I understand, now, the horrific implications of the wish I once made. Billions of thoughts, of emotions, of empathies, of hearts, of minds, of connections and love and hatred and bliss extinguished like all the stars dying at once."

Her lips peeled back from her teeth. She pushed her hands through her hair, shoving it back from her hairline, and I swore she might scream.

"This is the sky I wanted and the sky I created."

I lay beside her on the empty streets. Faraway car alarms blared and screams from the evacuees pierced the air. I rested my hands on my stomach and studied the Ark.

"Speaking from experience, gods have lost to the Crimson Dragon's bunch before," I said. "Thinking the deus ex machina thingy is just gonna be another to add to their list."

Her shivering eye thinned.

"Please," she begged, and me, too.

15 "Lessons in Failure" Post-Dark Signers (between seasons)

Rain's hospital room was a chorus of beeps and the inflation of the ventilator. I added water to the vase of goldenrods beside her. Her bruises were fading. My focus moved down to her abdomen, to the bindings I knew wrapped her up like a mummy beneath the hospital gown.

A shoe squeaked at the threshold. I spun to move out of the nurse's way. Instead, I met Akiza Izinski's glare. I bristled but kept still. She strode to a chair by the window, her eyes never leaving me. She sat with one leg crossed over the other and studied Rain.

I waited for her to speak. More beeps and breaths. A gurney rolled down the hall. I cleared my throat and took a chair against the wall opposite her. I tapped my leg, and my foot jittered.

The regular nurse entered, offered me a cursory glance, and showed surprise at Akiza. "Oh, Kalin, you brought a friend today?"

"No," she snapped.

The nurse laughed. "Oookay. Vitals looking good. Need anything?"

"All good," I muttered. "Thank you."

She hurried out. Akiza had so thoughtfully moved her glare from Rain to me. My sigh came out as a hiss through my grit teeth. I ran a hand through my hair, getting pretty damn long now, but who has the time for—anything?

I stood up and locked eyes with her. "Why are you here?"

"For Rain."

"So, what? You want me to leave? Y'know, it's possible for you to ask that instead of dragging other people into… whatever this is."

She shot to her feet. "Why should I have to say anything? You shouldn't be allowed in this room. We should've hauled you out and banned you ages ago. If Yusei wasn't such a saint, that's how it'd be. You know why?"

I knew. Of course I fucking knew, but I kept my mouth shut and eyes thinned, waiting for her to let it allll out.

"Because you're the reason she's comatose!" Akiza shouted. "And I want to be here and support her and do whatever I can to help her. I hate being here with you, and I hate knowing you're here. You're just a- a reminder I failed. I couldn't protect Yusei or Rain from you. The Crimson Dragon counted on us to work together and keep each other safe, and I couldn't do it."

She dropped into her chair, her forearms crossed over her knees. She said, "You probably don't know this, but the mark connects us in more ways than one. When you made Rain crash, I felt… everything. Despair forever. I'd been there before. I can't believe you put her there and got away with it. You get to walk around scot free. When my parents showed up at the hospital like nothing had gone wrong between us, like they'd done nothing wrong and everything was suddenly fixed, I was so furious I could burn down the world. Why should Rain have to go through the same?"

I stuffed my hands in my pockets and scrutinized the flecks of black on the floor tile. "If it helps, you're not the only one who failed to protect somebody."

"I don't want to hear it," she snapped. "When you choose to Shadow Duel someone, you know exactly what you're doing. I know what I'm doing when I know I'm angry and choose to duel. You wanted to hurt her."

Nothing I could say would convince her otherwise.

It pissed me off, though.

"What about you, huh?" I glared at the gauze on Rain's arm. Underneath, a wound spiraled up her skin from Black Rose Dragon's thorns. "You're not innocent enough to get to be here, either."

"I didn't want to hurt her." Her eyes met mine through slices in her bangs. "I wanted to hurt you."

"Congratu-fucking-lations." I spread my arms. "Mission accomplished. You done and gonna leave yet?"

She pushed to her feet. I braced myself. She said, "I've learned my lesson. You're the scum of the earth and I hope you get everything that's coming to you, but I made a mistake. Even you don't deserve the things I did when I dueled you."

She met my eyes and said, "I apologize. To both of you, but… Rain's will have to wait."

I flinched like I'd been slapped. "Huh?"

Akiza moved past me. "Some of us are able to be adults and take responsibility. Good-by, Kalin."

She walked out. I rested my hand over my heart. Sheesh, I thought she might murder me, but she apologized. I leaned out the door and shouted after her, "I forgive you!"

As the elevator dinged, she called back, "I don't really care."

16 "Wake Up Call" Team Satisfaction

mortal wounds, blood, knife

I climbed the stairs of an enemy hideout, Rain at my heels. We reached the next floor and crouched behind cubicles. Office chairs stripped of leather littered the floor. I motioned for her to stay in place, and I approached the single light in the room. It flickered over a thrown-over desk and shattered fish tank.

A shout rang out behind me. I reacted too late. Pain exploded on the back of my skull. I collapsed forward. Dizziness and nausea caused my limbs to weigh tons, and my vision doubled. I heard the gang members' voices and attempted to crawl forward. A foot slammed down on my calf. I cried out and crumpled. I fell on my back and held up an arm to try to fend them off or, or anything.

The second dude jerked his chin, and the first one stepped aside. His switchblade extended and caught the light. My eyes widened, and I tried to leap to my feet. He kicked me in the gut. I grunted and tasted blood from biting my tongue.

"Been waiting for this a long time, Kessler," he hissed. "You 'n' your buddies think you own the Satellite. Nah. This'll show everyone who the real bosses are."

He jerked towards me.

A hand snatched his wrist. Bones cracked. He screamed, and his switchblade fell into Rain's other waiting palm. She swept her arm as elegantly as an artist painting a brush stroke upon a massive canvas. The blade cut through the soft flesh of the man's neck. The splatter of blood arced and colored the cubicles crimson.

The other gang member whimpered the name "shadow." Rain cast her arm out once again, an orchestra's conductor, and the edge of the blade opened his jugular. He collapsed next to the other twitching and blubbering.

Upstairs, heavy footsteps rattled the hanging lamplight. It swayed and shifted the shadows in the hollows of Rain's face. She appraised the switchblade and the red staining it like a doctor who'd performed a successful operation. Those contemplative and empty eyes moved their focus onto me.

Where she walked, her bare feet left partial scarlet footprints. I held my breath. I wanted to believe this was like the moment with the Securities. She had no clue what she did, and she just wanted to protect me.

But.

But during those two swift strokes that ended lives, she'd been smiling.

She wore the same smile as she approached me. It curled her eyes in a way I'd never seen from the Rain I knew. She eased onto my thighs and pressed her hand onto the floor beside my head. The hand holding the knife was out of sight.

I kept my breathing steady and my stare locked with hers, with that mocking grin. She said, "Kalin Kessler."

Breathe. Normally.

"I know what you are," she whispered, and she leaned closer so her chest pressed against mine. Pain flared in my thigh. I grit my teeth as the switchblade cut through my jeans and drew blood, hot and thick. She slowly dragged the blade up towards my hip. Her smile decayed into a scowl.

"I know you're lying to me. You're a liar, and a coward, and one day, you using me as your tool will mean the death of everyone you love."

The pressure of the knife left my leg. I panted and tried to look anywhere else. She caressed my cheek, and it brought me back. The handle of the blade lifted the hem of my shirt.

"I'll be back," she whispered into my ear. The thinnest edge of the blade opened a shallow cut on my stomach. The point moved up and hovered over my heart. "And when you see me again…"

I felt her smile stretch. She pushed up, her nose close to mine, her hair curtaining my face. My heart hammered my ribcage.

"I'll make sure you die last."

"Who-" I started, and she pushed the point down just enough to draw a bead of blood.

"Who am I?" Her head tilted ever so slightly. The laugh that escaped her was a guttural and empty note. "Why would I want to spoil the surprise?"

A long breath passed her lips. Her grip slacked. I snatched the switchblade away, but she didn't react. Her eyes were unfocused. I hazarded a, "Rain?"

Nothing. I shifted upward and moved her back so she was standing. No resistance whatsoever. I grasped her forearms and said, "Rain?"

Her teeth clenched, and she breathed heavily. I started, and the switchblade slipped from my hand. I shook my head and doubled down. "Are you there?"

Her eyes locked on me, and her jaw dropped. She fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around me. "You're okay!"

"D'you- Rain, you don't remember what happened?"

She sat back on her calves and glanced at the bodies in the dark. "I don't know. Everything sort of went black. There were two of them?"

I swallowed. From this angle, all the shadows kept them from looking murdered. They could be unconscious for all she knew. Which… made sense, because this Rain couldn't even comprehend-

"Are you… okay?" she asked.

No, she had no clue whatsoever. She hadn't noticed the stain on my leg, either. I took her hand between mine and said, "Thank you."

"W-what for?"

"You don't know it, but you just saved my life." She trembled, *trembled* at the concept. I held her tighter. "I need to ask something of you."

"Okay."

In the dark, I wiped the blood off the switchblade. Her eyes never left mine. I placed the handle in her palm. "Take this and free Crow. Afterward, I need you to go home and rest."

She protested because of course she did, but in the end she took the order. She could take apart the zip tie the other gang put on Crow, so it worked out. It worked out.

I wrapped my hands around my stomach and pressed my forehead against the wall. Blood dripped beside me, a single red tear trailing down the wall.

Whatthehellwhatthehellwhatthehell

Right, right, it couldn't have been Rain. What was with the shit she said? I'd never think of her like that. And I was lying, sure, but only to protect her from Security. Plus, if anything, I was the tool. No clue what else that person could've been but, but no possible way they're the same. That was the danger of getting to know an amnesiac, though. Think I know every bit of her and suddenly she'd become someone else. Could happen any day.

It'd be a good day, though. A great one. I'd get to learn her favorite color and the kinds of food she liked, and she could tell me all about her home and family.

The pooling blood touched my shoe. I gasped and shot to my feet. Shit. I could cut her off, but then what? She lived with Martha. What would she do to all those kids?

I kicked the wall. I couldn't think this way about Rain. She'd saved me from Security on instinct. All this was- a freak accident. Giving up on her would be the same as giving up on the Satellite. Just because it had potential to be a fucked up wasteland didn't mean I should expect it to be only that. Made me no better than the goddamn City looking down on us.

I thought of when she'd joined the team, of her bending down next to those flowers and excitedly whispering to them. "I am a member of Team Satisfaction!" The angle of the blood dripped and landed on glass shards. I grabbed my temples and ran my hands up through my hair.

"And I'm gonna believe in you till the last," I whispered.

17 "Weakness" DOMA/Waking the Dragons

The CRT in the corner played footage from the tournament. Steam rose from two cups resting beside each other. Behind the counter, the worker slid fresh eclairs to the front of the glass display.

"Tempting," Rahlin said.

Ryo hopped up and bought two. He placed one on his side of the table and the other on Rahlin's. People passing by the café storefront windows openly stared at her. She acted as though she needed to scratch her temple but she kept her hand there, blocking out the strangers.

"Ah…" Ryo frowned at his half pastry. Cream oozed out of the center. "I wanted to ask something of you, but I'm afraid I will offend."

She licked chocolate off her fingers. "I think my existence is so offensive I cannot, legally, be offended."

He chuckled and tapped his sneakers together. "Would you be willing to show me the Seal of Orichalcos?"

Rahlin's brows lifted. "Why?"

"My curiosity is always to my detriment!" He steepled his fingers and smiled. "Nevertheless I continue to be a cat."

"Me-ow," she muttered. "Ouija board next?"

"My favorite!"

She snorted. "Okay. Sure."

They cleared away and cleaned the center of the table. Rahlin rested the heavy card upon it. Ryo's eyes shone. He reached forward and hesitated. "May I?"

She nodded. He lifted the card. "Heavy. Are they real gems?"

As he moved the card, light caught on the dark green stone inlaid to form the six-pointed star. "Orichalcos. It's a very special mineral. I suppose it wouldn't be common anymore."

"What does it do?"

"Lots of things, but overexposure has adverse effects on humans," she said. "As in more devastating than radiation kind of effects."

He dropped the card. She waved a hand. "No, it'd take years of you touching it several hours of the day for you to see lasting changes. No problem with touching the card."

"What about you? Isn't it dangerous to have in your deck?" He traced the star. "And, doesn't the difference in weight make it technically cheating?"

"Does it?" When she lifted her teacup, amber liquid stirred. She took a sip, and it ran hot down her throat. "I never know until I lift it off my deck. Hm, I suppose if I looked carefully enough at the side. And, no. It's not dangerous to me."

"But you said-"

"I have a special immunity!" Rahlin pushed crumbs around her plate. "You worry too much."

"Guilty," he whispered, and she smiled. He said, "What do the symbols mean?"

Her fingernail rounded the ring, touching each word as she translated. "Two worthy souls meet in combat upon sacred, scarred earth. The bested becomes as sacrifice towards the world's purification. The Orichalcos will not cease until a soul is Sealed."

"It creates ritual grounds," Ryo observed.

"Hm, it is something of a ritual, huh."

"Are the sealed souls going towards some sort of goal, or do they serve as punishment?" he pondered. "Ah, apologies. You said it was a secret."

"Look here." Rahlin slid Orichalcos Deuteros and Orichalcos Tritos beside the original. "I made these as well for a more specific ritual."

"You made?"

Outside, rain drizzled. Droplets traveled through condensation clinging to the glass. Rahlin massaged her temples. "Sorry. That wasn't me. It gets confusing. I saw her make it. She used a laser cutter on the raw mineral to etch the shape."

"Who?"

The summer rain harshened to a downpour. "Just a memory."

Blessedly, he didn't pry. "What do the additionals do? I don't believe I've ever seen you use them."

"Right! I haven't in a duel, ever. In fact, I need to return them to… who deserves them." She cleared her throat. "A third creature is allowed into the Seal. One monster, one bridge, and one human cross paths atop the star. Two souls may leave the Seal's bounds when one conquers another."

Her hand moved to Tritos. "A monster and human conjoin souls within the Seal. Two become one in the human's vessel. A clash of wills decides the body's commander."

"How intriguing!" Ryo said. "What sort of monster could it refer to? It's thrilling to know anyone wearing human skin could be one."

"There is a basis here for the argument that Duel Monsters once shared the world with us." Rahlin wrapped her hands around the warm porcelain cup. "You've seen them in ancient Egyptian depictions, and the same is true of Atlantis. Both share similar monsters. But, a long time ago, the monsters and all traces of them escaped into a realm of their own. It's a far-fetched theory normal people laugh at."

Ryo scooted forward, his features alight. "But?"

Lightning split the sky. Rahlin shook her head. "No but. I figured you'd find it interesting, though."

"I do! I've never heard such a theory. That would mean these rituals would change a human into a walking Duel Monster!"

"Yes, and the human would be a prisoner in their own vessel."

"Terrible!" he said, appearing ecstatic. "I've always wanted to be an archaeologist focused on Egypt, but you're convincing me to add Atlantis to the list."

"Is that so? I figured you had a future in drawing."

"Nonono!" he said. "It's- a hobby, mainly for making sure everyone imagines my TTRPG characters just right. My father always comes home with the grandest stories of the most haunted tombs you could imagine. I've been captivated since I was a boy. He's warned me of the difficulties, the dangers, and worst of all, the intense schooling. I am far from an academic, but I'll do what it takes!"

"How interesting. You don't like school?"

He dramatically dropped his elbows on the table and lowered his head on his arms. His muffled voice came: "Ugh, I cannot stand it! So many hours sitting still. It can't be good for us! I'd like to be anywhere but a desk, thank you."

His enthusiasm was infectious. She pressed a fleck of pastry onto her fingertip, and the butter stuck it to her skin. "About the souls…"

Ryo's head popped up instantly. "Yes?"

"They're…" Rahlin chewed her lip. She lowered her head, and her bangs shadowed her eyes. "Once the Seal takes enough, every human on Earth will vanish. It'll go back to the way it's supposed to be."

The barista's milk steamer screamed. Rahlin couldn't meet Ryo's eyes. He said, "Hm."

She interlocked her trembling fingers on her lap. She wasn't… supposed to tell anyone.

"It's like a sort of eco-terrorism plot!" Ryo said. "I suppose it adds up. We've right messed up our world, as I understand it."

Rahlin's mouth dropped open, and she raised her head. He appeared a note sad as he watched the storm. She cleared her throat and tapped the tabletop. "Right."

"And you're fully behind the cause, I take it?" he said.

"Me? I…" She sighed through her nostrils. "I'm more like a soldier following orders."

"Oh."

Her brows pushed inward. "What do you mean 'oh?'"

"Forgive me!" He shut his eyes. "It only sounds unlike you, in my eyes! My opinion of course, but you… I suppose you've struck me as a decide-your-own-fate type. Headstrong, in the best way! Especially in your duels, you seem so assured I'm jealous."

"Assured," Rahlin repeated, flicking the flake away. "I was, once."

His stare was inquisitive. She started to speak but faltered.

Across the city, a burglar stabbed a victim in the rain and sprinted away with her purse. A lone father overdosed on the couch while the toddler in his high chair ate strawberries, juicy and red. A woman with full pockets exited the supermarket, and the alarm went off. She sprinted for her car.

Outside the café, a woman in a car screamed at a man jaywalking. The other side of the street was busy with foot traffic. A young girl in a pink raincoat watched the aggressive exchange with tears pricking her eyes. Her father lifted her onto her shoulders and belted out a nursery rhyme. The people around him stared but his daughter smiled, tears absent, and sang along.

The remnants of the eclair Ryo Bakura had so kindly bought her remained on the plate. He sat across from her speaking in such gentle tones despite the footage behind them of Rahlin reaping her opponent's soul in tournament. She recalled Mai Valentine's unrelenting assistance upon her horrific injury; she remembered the smaller Yugi's mercy when she could hardly walk to her tournament match.

"I'm more weak than assured," Rahlin whispered. "You know those dragons- the odd ones Yugi, Joey, and Kaiba have been using?"

"Oh, yes! The pretty blue and red and black ones! I'm quite interested in their fusing effects. I've never encountered cards with such abilities."

"They're very unique," Rahlin agreed, still unable to raise her volume. A woman entered the store, purchased a loaf of bread, and took it out to the homeless man beneath the awning. "It was my job to keep those cards out of the hands of anyone opposed to DOMA. Oh, how I've failed."

Ryo laughed. "That's quite a smile for failure."

"Quite," she agreed, watching the homeless man pinch a piece of bread and share it with his pitbull.

/\/\/\/\/\/

A fang the size of a scimitar impaled Rahlin's stomach. She collapsed to her knees. Blood dribbled down her body armor, and the fluid ran black as oil—nothing like the crimson ordinary for this world.

How foolish of her to believe she'd ever belong.

She gripped the bone-white fang. When she pulled, the agony and blood flow worsened. Her breaths withered. She doubled over, and she saw her reflection in her fallen helmet's visor.

Her pale, pinched, and sweaty face did nothing to hide her pain. Her quaking hands moved away from the mortal wound.

That future of his…

Light laughter escaped her and devolved into a coughing fit. She lifted her head. Past the fallen Dartz, the wall of souls awaited their freedom.

He'd have the future he deserved. He'd accomplish his schooling and delve into the past, and he'd kindle that wondrous joy of his over and over again.

Cracks formed in her body. The sacrifice was worth every one of their futures. Like any other monster, she shattered into pieces molecule by molecule, just a consequence of the rules of the game.

But, she-

She thought it a shame, was all.

She'd wasted so much time imagining her place in that future of his.

The shards of her vanished, and the duel ended.

18 "'But I Love You.'" Atlantis, then Post-Canon

The gurgle from the waterway running through Ranue's underground lab filled the silence between us. I swallowed and wrapped a lock of hair around my ear. His stare was–horrified, and I couldn't hold it.

"You're joking," he said. "Tell me you're joking, Rain."

I flexed my fingers. "Y-you're not understanding, I don't think. It was a gift. He said it's, uh, representative? Symbolic! It's because I don't have to work hard on anything anymore. I don't have to worry about eating."

"He's not an idiot." Ranue stepped closer to me. I backed an inch away, and he stopped. I stared squarely at my dirty toes. "He knows it's not work for you. It's your *hobby.* I promise you he knows that."

"You shouldn't make promises when you don't know all the facts."

"I know who he is!" he exclaimed. I flinched. "He burned your garden. If I say it enough times, will it sink in? He took something from you that you loved."

"No, it's- you didn't hear what I said earlier."

"I'm used to his bullshit excuses." Ranue shoved a finger in my face. "It's pure manipulation."

"He wouldn't do that. He loves me. He says it all the time."

"But I love you!" he shouted. "Of course it's not the kissy canoodling kind of love–I mean, I'm your brother–but even if I'd done something like that to Celine, I hope she'd leave me. She supports me being here. She asks me about my projects every day and is genuinely interested, and I could watch her sew for hours. If I'd thrown all her things out, or if she trashed this place, it's unforgivable. Disrespectful, uncaring. I can't even imagine doing something so terrible to her, *or* to you. That's because I love you both!"

My fingers curled into fists, the nails cutting my palms. So what if he would sit beside me at the piano and talk about how terribly I was playing, or how awful I was at Duel Monsters, or how I'd never sew clothes that looked presentable?

So what, so what. "You're just b-bragging."

"I'm sorry," he said, and his voice was suddenly breathy and strained. "I'm so sorry, Rain. I know you're lonely. I know you've never had anybody else, and I know how ecstatic you must be at the idea of someone loving you. Words are only words, though. He doesn't love you."

I slapped his hand. "You can't tell me that." Tears built and ran down my trembling cheeks. "You can't know that. Just because- because you have it so much better-"

"That's not it at all." He held up his empty hands. "I care about you. It's better to be lonely than to be with someone who would burn something you love. Do you know what immolation is?"

"Immo- um, no."

"It's fire so unquenchable it eats away at you until your life extinguishes. Fire so consuming, all that's left of the victim is ashes. I'm afraid-" He grasped my shaking hand. "That's what'll happen to you."

I chewed my lip, tore off skin, and tasted blood. "I think you don't get it. Love. Belonging to someone."

"That's not what it is at all," he said, and it sounded so- desperate. Pleading.

"I shouldn't have told you anything."

He gasped. "Sorry, Rain. I'll stop talking about it. Is that better?"

I gazed into the fire roaring in his hearth.

"I…" I snatched my hand back from him and turned away. "I think I should go."

/\/\/\/\/\/

Immolation.

I compared the word in the workbook to my poor replication. My cramping hand kept writing the "A" backwards. Kalin snapped his fingers, and I started. He said, "Yoohoo. You in there?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. This word just, uh, reminded me of. Something."

"Yeah?" He rested his cheek on his fist. His half of the desk was cluttered with ledgers and worker's comp paperwork. Mine was all composition books and English writing exercises. "Sheesh. That's a hard one. Do you know what it means?"

"Yes."

He blinked. "And?"

"Oh. You don't know?"

"Hell nah."

My smile inched up and fell again. "It's… when fire snuffs something out. Destroys it completely."

"Ahhh. Well, for such a long word, you nailed it."

"This letter's backwards."

"Yeah, only one this time! Progress!"

I laughed. "Low bar, huh."

"Not at all." He rolled his chair closer. In the kitchen, Nico and West played a tabletop duel and argued about card effects and chain resolution. He rolled his eyes and shut the door. "Aaanyway, I can't imagine having to learn this stuff as a grown-up. Shit, I can hardly learn my coworkers names. Your 'M's aren't running together anymore, look, and it's a lot clearer the difference between your capital 'I' and lowercase 'L.' I'd call that pretty damn good."

I dropped my pencil and threw my arms around him. He was stiff for a moment before embracing me. He whispered, "Hey, hey, what's wrong?"

My tears left wet stains on his shirt. "I love you a lot. Th-that's it. You're so supportive and nice and… everything."

"I would make a mean kickstand," he said, and my laugh broke off into a hiccup. He set a hand on my head. "Somethin' you wanna talk about?"

"Nah." I picked up the pencil again. "I'm okay, now."

I wrote those letters: L-O-V-E.

And I smiled, comfortable in my understanding their definition to the fullest now.

19 "Look Away" WRGP

Dust whizzed in the light from the crack between the curtains. I reached for the light switch. A hand shot out from under the blankets. I sighed and let my arm fall. Rain hugged onto her stuffed lion, and her kitten shared her pillow.

"Safe to assume you're not going out today?" I said.

"Aporia…"

Hearing my true name stiffened my spine, as always. "Yes? Do you need something?"

"I'm afraid-" She buried her head in the pillow. Her words came out muffled.

I neared her, and my hand inched over the sheets. My fingertips halted short of her shoulder. "What? I can't hear you."

"I don't know if I'll ever get better," she said. When she raised her face, I saw how wet her eyes were. "My crash, the coma, my ribs, and now after Antithesis and Antinomy I- I'm afraid to even walk."

I inhaled through my grit teeth. I threw off the covers despite her protests and threw open the curtains. She groaned when the sunshine hit her. "You will walk to the garden."

"What? No! I just said I can't!"

"You can." I stood at her bedside. "I will not allow you to give up. You are wounded but not broken, and you will not remain in this room for the rest of your life."

"Isn't that what you want?" she whined. She flopped backwards. "As long as I'm just laying here, I'm no danger to your plans, and no way Antinomy or Antithesis would come here…" She inhaled sharply. "Would they?"

"They wouldn't, but that's not the point. I refuse to allow you to wilt away in this place. You have an entire world bursting with life." I gazed beyond the window panes. "You are not allowed to squander such a gift."

"You can't tell me what to do."

"Petulant child," I growled, and I threw the blankets over her. She squealed, and the kitten ran out of the room. I started after it.

"Wait!"

I paused. "Only if you apologize."

"Sorry you're such a big baby."

I spun on my heel, primed to launch into a verbal assault. Rain rested on her folded legs with both arms out towards me. She wore a tiny smile and asked, "Would you help me?"

Say no. Say no. Her touch was- uncomfortable, surely. Her hand on my chest from yesterday still felt like a brand of banishment upon me. My teeth grit, I said, "Fine."

She gripped my upper arm, and electricity jolted from the contact. I breathed, telling myself to focus on the task at hand. Her feet touched the floor. Her knees quaked as she took a step forward. Her leg bent sideways. She collapsed into my arms. I scanned her for damage, saying, "What is it that's wrong?"

"I don't know," she murmured. "During the duel, his monsters hit me in- a lot of places. Everything could be wrong with me."

"Then I have no choice but to take you back to the hospital."

Her face fell. "No, please, let me try without your help."

"Rain-"

"Please!"

I exhaled through my nostrils, stood, and backed away. She rose on legs as wobbly as a newborn giraffe's. Every muscle in me was taut as violin strings. Rain stepped forward without incident. On the next, she careened. She caught herself on the door jamb and held up a hand to stop me.

"You have to know," I started, a bead of sweat rolling down my temple, "the utter agony you are inflicting upon me by forcing me to simply watch."

"Then-" She stepped beyond the threshold. Rain fell on the hallway carpet. I dove to her side in an instant, but she pushed me off. "Look away."

I forced myself to turn my back to her.

"I don't understand," I said. I heard a thump and winced. I wanted to stab something or smash a fist into the drywall or burn the grass through the night. Why. Why such pain unto her, unrelenting? And most of all- "He forces you to crash, you suffer irreparable damage, and yet you stayed with him anyway."

She spoke between deep breaths, eternal consequences: "It doesn't matter any*more*, does it?"

The sheer sharpness of the edged words cut. Though I should not have, I looked at Rain, drenched in sweat and using the wall to support herself. I wrapped my arm around her waist and said, "Not for a few more days, so I suppose I'm left the dirty work."

"...What?"

"Nothing so important," I said, "as you not faceplanting down these stairs. Right foot."

"Uh, o-okay."

Her foot bent at a wrong angle, and she clutched the fabric of my suit coat like her life depended on it. I held her upright without issue. "Good?"

"Um." Pink flooded her cheeks. "Yes."

"Then you have no excuse to stop. Left!"

"Yes sir!"

We made it outdoors together, breeze tossing her hair and unfairly tousling mine. She rested beside the rhododendrons and studied the passing clouds. "It is… beautiful, isn't it?"

I closed my eyes. It was not a world–a future–I had the opportunity to savor nor appreciate nor truly live in.

However.

She would.

"I suppose," I relented, "you are correct this once. Now get up. We're not done walking."

20 "Just Breathe" Post-KC Grand Prix, Pre-Memory World

A tower of onion rings stood between Rahlin and the pharaoh. Before the appetizer arrived, four other customers had asked the pharaoh for autographs, photos, and duels. He very kindly requested respect of his privacy, and they seemed to have reached a quiet moment.

Men at the bar roared cheers as their team scored. Rahlin took the top onion ring, fried to a golden brown, and bit down to a satisfying crunch. "Wow. That's onion-y. I guess I don't know what I was expecting."

The pharaoh cleared his throat and rested his fists on the table. "Rahlin."

"Prince," she said. "Ah, I wish I had a name to call you by. 'Nameless' is offensive, isn't it?"

"Call me whatever you like. I asked you out in regards to something very important."

"Whaaat?" Wearing a lazy smile, she rested her cheek on her fist. "You mean you didn't want alone time with me? Fresh off the KC Grand Prix, too. Safe to say I was shocked to see your name on my phone."

"I know you must be busy with your schooling, so I appreciate you making the time."

Rahlin sighed through her nostrils while the pharaoh chewed a ring. She was busy indeed and should have been studying. "You're overthinking."

"In that case, I'll get right to the point." He sat up straight. His violet eyes pierced her to her core. "In approximately two months, my friends and I are traveling to Egypt to return the Millennium Items to their rightful home. I believe what awaits me there is vital to my hidden history. I count you among those friends, Rahlin. I'd like for you to join us, if possible."

Rahlin's jaw was slack.

A cheer rose throughout the bar, and beer sloshed onto countertops. Rahlin couldn't hold the pharaoh's stare; she picked at her wool university sweater.

"I'm sorry," she muttered. "I can't go."

The sudden quiet was unsettling. Spilled froth dripped onto the floor. The pharaoh said, "I apologize if I have caused offense in my offer."

"No, it's not that. I'm busy. The time you said is close to finals."

His stare dropped to his lap. "I see. I appreciate you taking the time for this lunch. Ah, excuse me."

He made for the restroom. Rahlin groaned and dropped her head on the table. Scurrying footsteps approached, and palms slammed on the table. Rahlin jolted upright. Yugi Muto gazed at her with a pleading tilt to his big, shining eyes. "Please go! I know it's difficult, but he's absolutely destroyed at you saying no—saying no without even trying! I'm sorry. I don't want to be mean or cruel. But he was so nervous about this, and he wants you there so bad. He genuinely sees you as a good friend, and with your connection to his dad, he was super super hoping you'd be there alongside him. Please?"

Rahlin blurted, "I lied."

"What?"

"That's not anywhere near finals." She buried her head in her hands. "I won't be a benefit to your trip. You say all that, but I'm sure you're asking because I'm close to Ryo. Listen. I'm flattered you want to include me, but you don't have to. We both know the whole time I'm there, I'll just make everyone uncomfortable. Duke and Serenity won't speak to me, and Joey, well… the tension is constant."

Yugi took her hands away from covering herself. Tears sparkled in the corners of his eyes. He tried to speak but stumbled and stuttered. She said, "H-hey. C'mon. Just breathe."

"I c-can't! I can't, because it's awful you feel- Look, we've invited Seto and the Ishtars, too. There's been bad blood in the past between us. Things aren't always perfect between friends. There are times we don't get along and we fight about the stupidest things, right? I don't care. We don't care. It means the world to the pharaoh, you being there for him. Nobody else. What do you say?"

Shouts rose up. The home team lost. Glasses shattered, and punches were thrown.

Rahlin wiped a tear off Yugi's cheek.

"I'll," she started. The bartender blew an airhorn and called for everyone to settle down. "I'll see what I can do."

Yugi clutched her hand and jumped up and down. "Thank you, thank you! Oh, gosh, I can feel the pharaoh's mood lifting by the second. Egypt is beautiful, too! All the ruins- gosh, I'm talking too much. Be right back!"

As he left, Rahlin considered Egypt. Neon signs spilled their colors over her as she cut an onion ring in half. That place of no moisture and of embalmed dead and of that which has stood longer than memory. Rahlin ran her finger up her forearm, tracing memorized scars.

The man ancient as those pyramids wanted her there.

She supposed she couldn't blame him.

The televisions blared, and cars honked on the street outside.

To be with a kindred spirit, feeling as fish out of water as herself, was a precious connection indeed.