Dawn broke to something completely unexpected for the average Poppo Time morning – everyone inside was asleep. Hoshi had managed to somehow enter into a locked room and was snuggled comfortably at the end of the bed. Some hair had fallen across Akiza's face where she still lay against a sturdy chest with pounding heart. The heart inside was pounding because the owner was waking from the deepest sleep they had had in over four years. No matter how exhausted it could become, a highly trained instinct couldn't be ignored forever. After only eight hours (of the many hundreds he had stored up) Yusei was begrudgingly drawn back into the land of the living.
'Dragged' was probably a better term. Part of him was perfectly happy with the bit that came before waking up and continued trying to point the upsides of the situation (such as not dying) even after he was awake.
Opening his eyes was an unusually pleasant experience for the first time that he could remember. No headache, bleeding eyes, spewing bile or horrifying realisation that it had been only a few minutes and that the bad stuff was still on the way. Seeing the cuddly cat companion comfortably curled near his feet was a nice start. An oddly comfortable pressure was leaning against his side with a smell he couldn't quite identify. Then his brain got back from the first vacation in eight years and the most obvious scenario sprang to mind.
"Akiza? Akiza!" Waking up to a friend shouting in one ear is either the sign of deep trouble or a great night. This was exactly midway between them both.
"Urgh, ssshhh!" Rubbing her eyes, Akiza was quicker on the uptake than her companion from frequent experience with sleep.
"What did you do?!" Shaking her slightly in his overwhelming fear, Yusei had jumped to both the worst and most incorrect scenario possible he could have drawn from the available data.
"What? Nothing!" Slapping both hands away, she stumbled from the bed and pulled her jumper into order. "What's wrong with you?" Part of that question was just reactive but part of her was wondering if there was some new development in his symptoms.
"Akiza, I've been asleep and I have no idea how." Such an innocuous statement went without recognition for a moment before her eyes widened in understanding. "Did you do something?" Finally realising what he might be afraid of, she flinched slightly at the thought. Healing such a grievous injury with her Psychic abilities could have easily turned fatal and it was out of this panic that he was reacting.
"Believe me when I tell you I have no idea how or why you were able to sleep last night," Every word resounded with sincerity and Yusei had complete faith that she was telling the truth. Then real life came back. "Look, Ogino messaged me yesterday to come in early. Come by the lab later and we'll run some tests. Maybe your body has managed to find some way to cope by itself or we might be able to recreate this event with medication. Either way, this is a big step forwards." She hurried out of the room to get to work, rush through the meeting with Ogino and start making some serious progress on her research.
Sliding himself from the edge of the bed, Yusei stretched and felt as if an intense burden had been lifted for a moment. Feeling so invigorated and filled with life made him feel like there was nothing he couldn't do. So he decided – since it would be impossible to get any work done with the media circus outside – it was long overdue to answer an old question that had been burning in his mind a bit more brightly of late.
"Sorry I'm late." Hair still fluttering into place, Akiza felt that she had sprinted from Poppo Time directly to Ogino's office at the SRC. Mainly because just about every accessible pathway was crawling journalists and reporters. Most of the SRC was having fun by going up to them and explaining various avenues of science until either the journalists did something to warrant getting removed or they left of their own accord. "Are you going somewhere?" A bag was being back on the chair behind the desk and Ogino looked more unhappy than usual at the delay.
"A friend in Poland has fallen ill but didn't go to a doctor until it was almost too late. She was always too stubborn for her own good." Tidying up a few more files and folders, Ogino gently closed the top of her leather satchel. "Breast cancer. Her sister and I will be helping her during recovery... or whatever may come." Much like Akiza was having to prepare for the possibility that she couldn't save Yusei, her superior was having to do the same for a friend of her own. There was still plenty of hope for each but they had to acknowledge that hopes could be let down.
"Sorry to hear that." Therapies had come a long way but more advanced cases still had lower chances of success. Ogino would have to be extremely precise in her treatments. "How can I help?"
"Somebody will need to keep an eye on things while I'm gone." It took a moment before Akiza was able to speak again. This was a big job.
"I'm flattered but," Gruff laughter cut short her attempts to turn away the promotion that hadn't been coming anyway.
"What, did you think I was going to put you in charge of the entire medical division?" Flushing slightly, Akiza realised that she had been expecting so momentous after being called to the office and told Ogino was leaving. "You're good but not that good. And you haven't exactly been here long enough to fill in for me." Gentle criticisms complete, she held out a thin slip of plastic for the doctor to take. "But there is one thing I want you to take off my hands." Taking the blank card, Akiza turned it over to realise a new copy of her SRC identification card.
"What's this for?" No noticeable change marked it as different from her current one than the lack of tiny nicks and scratches accumulated from any use.
"Remember when I originally hired you?" How could anyone forget? It had been a mysterious job offer by somebody she vaguely remembered. Then when Akiza had recalled Ogino's former occupation as the Minister of Health and signed up to what she had assumed would be basic medical duties scant seconds before Yusei arrived with a look of vague horror. His retaliatory joke of declaring the new hire 'Deputy Medical Director' had taken Ogino weeks to clear up.
"You said you wanted somebody unafraid of authority." By which she had meant somebody who wouldn't be overwhelmed by Yusei's celebrity status or influenced by his position.
"Try and hold onto that thought. You're in charge of Yusei's case while I'm gone." Peeling off her lab coat, Ogino hung it on a rack by the door and switched it out for a tan jacket. "Your new card has access to everywhere in the SRC as long as Yusei is there. Let me know if there's any progress on a cure. Have fun." With no more intensity than putting on a hat, she quietly left her office as the words started to sink into Akiza's mind.
"Waitaminute!" Chasing her boss down the corridor, it was possible to see the gears turning inside her head. "Shouldn't this be something for whoever fills in for you?"
"Yusei was extremely clear that he wanted the circle of people who knew about condition kept small." Which hadn't kept that circle from slowly expanding. First Ogino as a confident, Martha as his mother, Akiza when she found out. Then his brothers, their friends. Even Din knew about the medical side if not the patient themselves. And that was just the people that Yusei had told. "Don't worry, I left instructions to back whatever decisions you make. I was hoping to tell Yusei as well but he hasn't been in yet. Do you know where he might be?"
"Dear, have you seen my cufflinks?" Pinching the ends of his cuffs together in one hand, Hideo Izinski was sadly aware that his ability to track the political field was only matched by his inability to keep an eye on his own possessions. Setsuko did her best to mitigate these frequent disasters but there was only so much she could do. Hurrying down the stairs, Hideo began looking under cushions and furniture in the living room. How they would have found their way there from his bedroom would have been a question for the ages. "Dear?"
"On the side." Hearing that particularly non-wife voice paused Hideo in his search. Peeking his head around the corner that led into the kitchen, an unpleasant surprise was waiting for him in the most unexpected package. "Sweetie."
"Yusei!" While the young man was always a welcome guest to the household, Hideo usually had a bit more warning he was coming. "When did you get here?"
"A few minutes ago. Setsuko let me in as she was leaving. She said you put your cufflinks on the side so that you wouldn't forget them." Sitting in the middle of the island was a small box that held Hideo's cufflinks for casual occasions. "She also told me to remind you where you left them when you did forget." There are few limits to the knowledge a good spouse had of their partner. Hideo was secure enough to admit that his wife was the better half of their relationship.
"It's nice to see you." Carefully pinching the fabric between two fingers, he deftly slid the tiny metal bolt home. "Are you here to apologise for the mess you left me in after dropping everything to run to America?"
"Surely having the King of Games on payroll makes up for that tiny inconvenience?"It was true that losing the event would have made the repercussions a lot worse but Hideo was still under pressure from what many people saw as his employee/responsibility taking an impromptu holiday without any warning.
"Not even close." Getting two mugs from a cupboard and flicking the kettle on, Hideo measured two spoons of coffee grounds out without asking Yusei if he wanted one. The young scientist was drinking more coffee than Jack these days. "Congratulations though." One hand moved towards the fridge before Yusei cleared his throat.
"Setsuko asked me to make sure that you didn't have too much milk. Apparently, you're on a strict low-fat diet." Metabolism slowing as the years built up, the seasoned politician was starting to sport an extra layer of 'insulation' beneath his jumper. Between cuddly looks and small jokes from his wife, Hideo had arranged a frequently avoided diet to get himself back in shape.
"Is there anything she didn't tell you?" It was endearing how much effort Setsuko put into keeping her husband healthy but it could go overboard on occasion.
"Only that your office has been told not to purchase any sweets." Turning around with an incredulous stare, it was met with a perfectly calm look. "Setsuko told Akiza, the concerned doctor told me." A good gossip chain was hard to build yet a virtual goldmine once it got started.
"Since you're having so much fun at my expense already," Equal measures of water were poured into each cup and one was passed over to a grateful Yusei. Despite his acceptance of the caffeinated concoction, Hideo had the uncanny feeling that this was the most rested he had seen the young man in years. "I'm guessing this is a social call?"
"Mostly. I want to know what it is I can't remember from eight years ago." It was said with an equal level of intensity as asking about the weather outside so Hideo could be forgiven for missing the significance for a moment.
"I'm not sure that I can be much help. We weren't that close back then." Smiling in apology at prior their lack of connection, Hideo gently swirled his coffee until the grounds were entirely gone and he could put the spoon in the sink to be cleaned later.
"It is precisely because we weren't as close friends as the others that I came to see you." Coming to Hideo was not just the smart choice but really the only one. Everyone else who knew the truth had made some sort of agreement to not let Yusei know. As Akiza's father, Hideo would likely be privy to at least some fragments of knowledge to light the way. Yusei was counting on their friendship that had grown since those missing days to convince him to share that information. "My friends seem intent on keeping something a secret from me."
"Maybe it's all for a good reason. Did you think that they might be trying to protect you from something?" It was obvious Hideo was uncomfortable being put on the spot but at least he showed cracks in that resolve.
"Of course. Then I wondered what danger a dying man could be in." Hideo had been one of the few people Yusei had told his condition to. Leaving him the trouble of explaining why Yusei had run away to America was one thing but forcing him to deal with the fallout of an unexpected death would have just been cruel. "Please, Hideo. I need to know." A deep sigh told him that the ploy had worked.
"I do not know all the details nor do I truly wish to." Gently closing the fridge door, Hideo gently added a daring dash of dairy into his coffee as a rare luxury. "Your friend, Bruno, was in some sort of danger." No, that couldn't be right. Bruno had vanished inside the Ark Cradle. Musume had rescued him. "Musume came to you. No idea where she came from or how she knew what she knew but that young maniac had some harebrained scheme to help Bruno." Returning the milk to the fridge, Hideo returned to his seat opposite the troubled young man. "I guess it took a few days to organise because the lot of you kept chasing each other around the city for Duels." Had they? Why were these memories so blurred to Yusei? He knew he had met Musume at the viewpoint over the city and... had they Duelled? Then he could clearly recall was watching her depart along a road in the distance of the Turbo Duel Highway. Everything after that became increasingly hazy.
"Next thing I now, there's the biggest storm anybody has even seen. I'm talking thunderbolts the size of trees, lightning falling almost faster than the rain." That was a complete blank for Yusei. He had read about the storm in the news over the next few days but had absolutely no memory of it actually happening. "You were found right in the middle of the highway with Musume. Officer Trudge took you both to hospital to recover, I'm guessing from being hit by lightning." No, that had been Crow. It had singed his hair and given him toilet trouble for a few days. Had Hideo been lied to then or was he doing the lying now? "Comas for both you and Musume. After a few days, you woke up with a few gaps in your memory. That's it." And Yusei would have believed him. He would have apologised for the intrusion, thanked Hideo for the coffee and then walked away without another question. But that conclusive 'that's it' that had overplayed the act.
"What is it?" Slamming both hands down on the counter, he rose to stare down the old man opposite him. "What aren't you telling me?!" To his eternal credit, Hideo did little more than sip his coffee through weathering the outburst. "Can you imagine what it's like? To realise that there's a part of your own life that you'll never know about? I only have a few months to live and this is the only thing that I want." Setting down the cup with a gentle clink shattered that intense rage Yusei was feeling as Hideo looked at him with eyes more serious than the younger man's. Any anger that he might have felt was boiled away in the intensity of that stare.
"Then I am afraid that I cannot help you." Now that his judgement wasn't clouded, Yusei started to employ the overwhelming power of his mind. There was no mystery in science that could resist the scope of his intellect and Hideo wouldn't require days of research to even get started with. They were, after they had been through together, old friends.
Old friends. So why would the gentle senator refuse to help him? Only three reasons made sense: somebody was forcing Hideo to keep quiet, he was doing this to protect Yusei from something or it was all for something more important than either of them.
No fear nor outward signs of stress. If he was being kept quiet, it wasn't under pressure. Bribery and corruption were far beneath somebody of his integrity of character. Whatever reason he had for keeping quiet was his and his alone. So it was possible that Hideo was lying on behalf of Yusei.
Except that there was nothing to save him from. While there were probably hordes of Duellists already on their way to lay siege to his life in an effort to wrest the King of Games title from him, there was little Hideo could do about him. Yliaster was appeared to be keeping their distance for now – though only because Yusei was unaware of the events currently going on in France. Even though his endless days without sleep were numbered...
"You bastard." It all came clear in that moment when he realised that he had slept soundly at least once since realising his few remaining years. "For her." Yusei was almost a son to the old man who had taught him so much. Who would he betray Yusei for except for his actual daughter? And that realisation had revealed the pattern of loss in his memories. It didn't begin when he met Musume but stopped being reliable shortly before she had arrived. Yusei had always attributed that earlier blank part of his life to the intense grief of losing a friend only to now realise it was quite the reverse. "Not one word, all this time?"
"Only since you told me you were dying." Releasing the cup let Hideo interlink his fingers beneath a perfectly calm face. This fight had always been a possibility he had been prepared to accept. "Part of me always hoped that you would remember on your own. When you showed no outwards signs of doing so, I chose to let Akiza lead her own path."
"Why not tell me?" Nobody knew the secret that Yusei had kept for eight years but it was on the verge of revelation. Just not to Hideo, not then. "What did I do to make you so angry?" Yusei had never really had a father so he couldn't compare the disappointment he felt in himself with actual paternal upset.
"Quite the opposite – you were always the one person that could make her happy no matter how bleak the situation was." They had no actual relation but Yusei made Hideo as proud as it was possible for any father to be of his offspring. "Once you told me you had an incurable terminal condition, I couldn't risk her falling into love with you for only to lose you so soon." It was a simple equation and not one only Hideo had made. Fortunately – and unfortunately at the same time – somebody else had created a similar equation with a far different outcome and arranged the circumstances that directly brought about the conversation the pair were having.
"That wasn't your call to make." Although Yusei completely understood why Hideo had made it and begrudgingly agreed.
"Perhaps." Sipping his coffee, it was clear to Hideo that the younger man had already finished his. "But I made my decision. Now you know what I know," Setting down his own cup, Hideo finally managed to step down his overprotective nature that had grown from a guilty conscience after abandoning his daughter once already. Now he was forcing himself to let go again. "It's time that you made one of your own."
"Okay, I'm a literal genius in just about every field worth mentioning." Sitting on the side of his laboratory, those tough leathery hands of Din's were able to hold a bulging bowl of berries in one palm while grimy fingers picked and swallowed. "But can you explain to me one more time why we're going to squish some berries into our patient's head?" As with every third sentence, it was meant to be an aggravating statement. Especially since Din had put most of the formula together.
"For the fourth time," What she had realised very early on was the impossible nature of trying to move forward in research without Din being fully onboard with the next stage. Part of her suspected that he forced her to repeatedly explain the current stage so that he could work on the next one. Although she was growing to hate him for it, Akiza had to admit that she probably couldn't have kept up such a rate of overall progress without her lab partner. "Berries are just a dietary supplement. Oxidative stress has been linked to dozens of neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's due to mitochondrial dysfunction. We might be able to slow the progress significantly by reducing the number of free radicals." Which would require some ironically radical treatments. Most doctors would have preferred a slower approach by altering the patient's environment. Akiza was going to be a bit more proactive but stopping short – against Din's strenuous attempts to demonstrate on a disturbingly fresh skull he pulled from a cupboard – of opening up Yusei's brain and poking around inside.
"All I'm saying," Picking up another chisel – Akiza running out of places to lock up the others – Din mimed stabbing it into one temple and levering the top from his head.
"You realise that most scientists prefer to run tests first?" Brains and chemical charts were lined up along the far wall and floating through the air of the empty part of the lab. Since securing their extra hardware to run more tests, there hadn't been a single flicker on the holograms or complaint from neighbours. "Use samples to test theories? Run multiple experiments to verify results?" Each was a very good way to approach a medical case or science experiment.
"Question," Squeezing in one final strawberry, Din wiped his sticky hands less dirty across his stained coat. "What happens when your floaty brains go up in smoke?" Turning around, Akiza was less pleased to see that Din was right than usual. "What's the problem?"
"I'm not sure." Tapping away at the tablet, Akiza was hoping it was just a power drop or temporary system glitch. "I don't know what's going on." Then the answer became clear in the most unforeseeable way.
"I'm shutting down your research." Standing in the door with a heavy heart was the simmering figure of Yusei Fudo. "Effective immediately."
"Listen to me, you insolent little toerag," Such mediocre insults were his way of showing respect for the leader of the group but said leader was in no mood for posturing.
"Din." A marked change had come over Yusei. Scientific curiosity usually floated up from every footstep and a sort of electric thrill radiated off him. Yet with a single stern word, he was able to momentarily overpower the perpetually enraged dwarf. "Get out." Any attempt to refuse was crushed beneath the weight of his stare as the stuttering genius found himself backing away into the corridor to watch from outside. Violating several dozen SRC rules, a few laws and the odd corner of social convention, some unknown persons might have set various trackers on and around the door to track the eccentric attacker. Making themselves easy suspects for conspiracy, every lab on the floor and the ones immediately adjacent were connected to at least one of these devices.
"What's going on? Din and I just started making progress on a cellular" Any attempt to explain her latest theory was dismissed with a wave of one hand as the bodies started gathering at either end of the hallway outside. Din had never been outside his lab so long without making a scene and they needed data.
"It doesn't matter." Probably a therapy based upon the mitigation of cellular regeneration or to prevent the degradation of his brain tissue. Both had been tried and failed already. Scientists were gathering in the corridor outside. Not only had Din left his lab but it had been under orders and everybody wanted to know what was going on.
"Your project is terminated, effective immediately." Nobody had ever heard such a casual dismissal by their leader. It was outstandingly rude by his usual approach. "Feel free to join any other research or start a new project of your own."
"You can't do that." Gripping her upgraded card in one hand, Akiza was equal parts furious, enraged and overwhelmingly authoritative.
"Actually, I can and have." Drawing on every dreg of his presence, their battle of wills was so overwhelming that people in the corridor actually fled back to their own areas of study. Only Din, scattering the onlookers away from him with angry snarls, remained in earshot as the intensity continued to grow.
"Actually, you can't and won't." Literally billions of people would have paid money to get the sort of view that Din was taking perfect advantage of. Every tiny detail was a diamond of gossip currency. "Ogino put me in charge of your case before she left. It's not your call anymore." Stone would have melted and boiled under the intensity of his glare. It was one of the few times that Yusei was actually angered by the actions of one of his staff as opposed to exasperated or merely disappointed. "Suck it up." Somebody else under the comforting umbrella of SRC leadership had once told Yusei the exact same thing. Seeing the director assigned to the project the next day was enough to ruffle feathers. When he started to patch up all the holes in their equations, a swift apology was issued.
"Then, as your patient, I no longer wish for treatment." Somebody else in the otherwise deserted hallway handed Din an open packet of popcorn which he took without looking. No entertainment was complete without snacks and this was fundamentally entertaining.
"Because your condition qualifies as life-threatening, the SRC has the authority to actively pursue medical options." Even though the patient reserved the right to refuse any treatment, Yusei had made sure that everyone under his protection would have all the available courses to choose from. "Since you also happen to be the first recorded patient to have this condition, the medical division will be filing a request to observe your symptoms as they progress." She was on shaky ground at this point. Few completely new diseases were actually discovered, mutations and offshoots far more common. Institutions like the SRC and CDC would try to catalogue as much data as they could to find some treatment, any treatment, for this new threat to human life whenever they first appeared. All they knew about his condition was the effects and that it appeared not to be contagious. Nobody had a clear idea of what might have caused it. Well, neither of them.
"You cannot be serious." Questioning authority was practically encouraged by leadership at the SRC. It helped encourage different avenues of thought and led to people trying to understand conflicting points of view. On the rare occasion that authority overruled debate, it was because the risks far outweighed the benefits. Right then, there was no question in Yusei's mind that saving himself was not worth putting Akiza in danger again. Either she didn't see things the same way or had weighed the risks differently.
"What? Because I'm not willing to throw away any chance to save your life?" This conversation was going a little differently from what Yusei had expected. Akiza had been expected to argue the point but there was no doubt she was actually winning. Especially when she was using Yusei's own rules against him.
"I am ordering you to stand down." Commanding people was generally far outside his comfort zone but Yusei actually trying to tell Akiza what to do. Different circumstances might have made it funny but the topic at hand was his life so it was only amusing in passing.
"As the medical personnel in charge of your case, I would deem that grounds for mental instability and have your access revoked. That is, if you even had the authority to begin with." Intelligence does not necessarily equate to wisdom. Knowing all the facts in the universe is no good if you cannot apply them properly. Yusei might have been the more intelligent of the pair but Akiza could only cause him further embarrassment with the assorted stories Martha had imparted to her in sworn secrecy. Nobody had been so single-handedly superior in an argument with Yusei since records began. Then Yusei dropped the truth bomb that he had been reserving as a last resort.
"Hideo told me what happened eight years ago." And just like that, the balance of power shifted further than he could have imagined.
"So?" What little chance Yusei might have had of persuading Akiza to consider his point of view vanished as she was freed from the impromptu promise she had made to Musume so long ago and came out swinging. "We went on a couple of dates, you banged your head and forgot before we went out separate ways." Not exactly a lie but without the raw emotional truth as well. "That has nothing to do with this."
"Would you be going this far if it was Jack?" That was a low blow by any standards. Both the twins would have been easily worth the effort and Crow was Akiza's weird alternate-future-daughter-baby-daddy. He had picked the one person that she liked the least and they both knew it.
"No, because Jack wouldn't be so thick-headed as to refuse treatment." Nor would he have been intelligent enough to complete the sort of research that Yusei had already covered. "What about you? Would you stop if it was one of your brothers instead?" Things are said in arguments that people wish they can take back but what she said next needed to be heard. "What if it was me dying and refusing to let you help? What would you do then?" Any argument was a retreating vanguard at that point. One of them had just obliterated the other and everybody knew it.
"Then let me ask." Some people could live without pride and others lived with humility. Yusei had taken the nobler path than Akiza's father. "Please stop." It was a desperate gamble that never paid off outside the unstoppable energy of a Duel.
"Stop what? Trying to save your life?" It sounded insane when she put it like that and she could see his resistance gently folding in on itself. "If there's nothing else," Holding out an arm to indicate the door, she indicated it was time for him to leave. "My colleague and I have work to do." Unable to find a suitable argument, Yusei walked into the corridor as Din was summoned back in by force of will alone.
"Din," Placing a hand on the shoulder required little effort. It was basically the same height as his wrist. "Surely you can talk some sense into her?" Doing favours and keeping people happy helped get things done but Yusei was resorting to outright bribery. "I can reinstate access to the library if that's what you want." Quite how Rubinek and Head managed to get such an astounding collection was a secret known only to the mismatched fat-thin pair but the SRC library was almost a world standard.
"Honestly?" Looking up from under his sloping brow, Din was only marginally exaggerating his words. "She scares me a lot more than you do." Scurrying into the labs, doors closed themselves behind Yusei's ashamed back as Din returned to his now disgustingly warm bowl of berries as Akiza continued to work away on her tablet.
Exactly how ashamed Yusei could be without dying was a matter of science: slightly below heart failure but just above the constant feeling of betrayal. Staff up and down hallways – that generally flooded out to see their leader whenever he passed – sensed the change and didn't approach. Logic and reason had been his guiding graces for years now and he had still let emotion overcome his better reasoning. Carefully leaving the building without smashing anything, a loud bellow managed to make the brooding scientist jump slightly as he walked the path back to his office in Building Eight. It was then he saw the visitor waiting outside the main doors. Security had finally lost patience with all the reporters roving the grounds and taken to detaining anyone caught without identification. The mayor was given an exemption from this rule though.
"Yusei!" Raising both hands in a congratulatory gesture, Lazar seemed genuinely happy to see his friend.
"Mayor Lazar." A curt greeting, single nod. Yusei was obviously keeping a professional face on things. "How can I be of assistance?" For somebody who had just etched their name into the most important legend in modern history only a few days before, Lazar would have expected Yusei to be a bit happier in his outlook.
"Can we talk in your office? I come bearing gifts!" Every sentence with the short man was usually dramatic so Yusei gave him no conversational starters until securely seated in the comfortable chairs in his solitary office. There was no way to avoid him then.
"Would it be possible to shorten this down at all?" Not exactly the traditional request of a victor but some people preferred to avoid the spotlight and fawning that came with it. "There are some things that require my attention." Namely calling his brothers and chewing them out. Not that it was possible to tell beneath that unmoving business face he was sporting.
"New Domino city sends official regards (and some politician to kiss your rear)" That last comment was muttered under breath, just below the fine line that marked the boundary between the professional and personal opinions. "Also, Industrial Illusions has been working overtime to deliver new cards to you and your friends (their rep will be here in a few days for the royal buttock treatment)." Not a stir from the stony face. "KaibaCorp is going with the best traditions of Seto Kaiba himself and putting in as little effort as possible. Some time capsule was meant to be buried up in the mountains for a century but they're breaking it open a decade early. Lucky them, the actual date is next week so that's something to look forward to." A crack finally appeared in that motionless visage.
"Did you know?" Leaning back in his chair, Yusei was being unusually casual right then. Conversations with the mayor were usually far more formal. "About Akiza and I eight years ago?" It would be nice to have at least one friend he could rely on. Even though they had been reliable in all other areas of his life, Yusei was rapidly losing faith after discovering everyone was keeping one secret from him.
"What thing with you two?" Context caught up to the clown. "Do you mean that awkward dating thing you tried out? My wife said you were perfect but I thought you should have waited a bit longer." An unreactive stare deadened his words. "Okay, I admit it!" Raising both gloves with a helpless smile, Lazar unburdened his conscious. "My wife said you should have waited."
"Why did I not think to just ask you?" Even being a literal clown mayor wasn't enough to stop Lazar from being overlooked.
"Excuse me?" A close work relationship had been no help with trying to slowly piece together those few missing days but knowing Lazar was still on his side was enough for Yusei to give his brothers a slight stay of execution.
"Nothing. I'm sorry if I've been rude but you have my full attention now." Except for those parts of his mind focused on personal matters.
"Lucky you, there's just one more thing to cover." Drawing an embossed slice of card from within his jacket, he handed it across the table. "New Domino is – with the help of a few sponsors – throwing a masked ball for you. A chance to meet rub elbows with the rich and famous, raise lots of money for charity and avoid any invasive conversations at the same time." It was certainly the perfect party for somebody of his legendary status to safely attend. "Now, I must dash. We can speak at the party. All the information is on the card." Standing up, it was instantly obvious that Lazar could be picked out no matter how good his mask. "Have a nice day." Darting off to another press release to bring more money to the new home of the King of Games, Lazar left the young man to his thoughts.
Sitting alone in the emotional wreckage of his life, Yusei looked at the invitation in one hand. What was starting to occur to Yusei was that nobody at the party would treat him normally without a mask. Heh. He would have to thank Lazar for that stroke of genius.
Although – and this was the sort of problem that should have really been noticed much further in advance than it eventually was – it did also create an easily exploitable way to just walk right in.
Exactly five minutes had passed since Yusei had left the room and the only noise had been berries getting eaten and Akiza working on curing the most reluctant patient ever. "So," Breaking the uncomfortable silence, Din launched right towards the most awkward topic possible. It was good that he had never been one to follow social rules. "You and Yusei?"
"Din." A warning note accompanied a look strong enough to curl his matted beard.
"Hey, I'm not one to judge." Most people would have raised their hands but Din's unique posture would have toppled him in such an event. "One of my girls married a prince, the other one settled down with a farmer. So what if you had a fling with your boss before he was your boss?" That stunted logician had a point. Whatever relationship they had long ago was buried long ago. Their new dynamic as adults might be based on their experiences as teenagers but it was also different.
"Din!" Waddling over to the window, Din leaned out slightly but not far enough for Akiza to push him. Not that she was considering it. Memories of that bar fight provided testimony that he would probably just bounce off the ground and come up swinging.
"Vella!" On his walk of shame and simmering anger back to Building Eight, Yusei actually jumped in surprise. Those meaty lungs of Din's could be heard across the compound and even up in the sky by a tiny dot circling on thermal patterns coming from the city. Plummeting from the sky in a hunting dive, the hunting falcon made such astounding time that records would have been set if any of the scientists had been actively taking note.
Falling back as the bird playfully clawed at him, Din tumbled to the floor as it circled around his swearing form. "Anyway." Finding his way upright, the bird settled on his shoulder and nibbled affectionately on one ear. "Can we be honest for a minute?" It was a rare thing to hear him talk without anger. Maybe the last time had been his moderately confused cheers during the Pegasus Trinidad Tournament – Din didn't really understand Duel Monsters beyond the technical aspects.
"Of course." The last time that Akiza could personally remember him sounding even close to this lucid was following the legendary bar brawl where he could blow off some of that legendary steam he built up. Curiosity pushed her forward, if nothing else.
"People like me," Not scientists, not constantly angry dwarves, but the one in billions who ended up with the sort of outward appearance as he did. "There's not exactly a lot of places in life for us to go. I can't eat out without small children crying, servers get angry at how I look, other customers ask to eat away from my table. Not exactly traditional dating material." Burbling slightly, the hawk on his shoulder fluttered both wings as it settled. "Vella saw past that. Likes me for me, never feels that she needs to stay for no reason. Really puts effort into her curses." Akiza had been privy to stranger things in life than a man who talked to birds but few people could back up their claims to understand the birds. If anyone was smart enough to understand feathered friends, it would be Din.
"Are you getting to a point or not?" While Din could wax lyrical on the concepts of sub-atomic particles – no, really, he had written a paper entirely in rhyme to settle a bet – he tended to ramble unless kept on track.
"Just ask yourself: only Ogino had access to his case for more than half a decade. Yusei didn't even have the decency to tell me – the smartest guy on staff – who we were working on." Not that it had stopped Din from figuring out their patient. Neural patterns were more identifiable than fingerprints. Dozens of people in the SRC had undertaken some neural mapping for various studies and Din had recognised the brain on day two. Day one had been slightly hungover. "When I say somebody is good, they're really good. There are some really good neuroscientists here that he chose not to involve instead of you. It doesn't take a genius to see Yusei doesn't want to call you off either. So what happened eight years ago?" An external view sometimes lets people see things those inside might miss. It was why the dark figure who had given Din popcorn had seen this day coming long in advance. It was why Din was understanding it now.
Few people rarely found out what might have happened had they made different choices. All Akiza had to do was pick up the phone and call Musume to find out but she never thought to pry that deeply into the life she might have lived. Then part of her brain kicked in. Not the science part. She was far too wound up for that part to work properly. It was intuition tingling up and down her spine. Akiza remembered when Din and she had first found the deadly part of Yusei's condition. Complete shutdown until neural overload in the amygdala, prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. All emotional centres of the brain.
Many people completely misunderstood the idea of memory. They thought it was just a string of events and recollections but it was processed in dozens of different ways and parts of the brain. Hearing music could stir emotions long before somebody actually remembers where they know it from. So even if somebody cannot remember exactly what happened, they might still feel the effects.
Yusei had several completely blank points in his memory eight years ago. No knowledge of what had happened, no recollection at all. Only a heightened emotional state that practically forced him to keep going. Now, after speaking to her father, Yusei was suddenly trying to keep her at arm's length. Logic warred on one side, intuition coming from another. One realisation kept coming up no matter how many times she went back over the information. There was no way to avoid the truth that Akiza had just shown herself. An old German word crept up out of her vocabulary as she blurted out in an unstoppable reaction to the revelation. "On, Scheiße."
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This chapter is dedicated to all those tiny mistakes that helped me to be a better writer.