Nary a soul was as titillated as the commentator in magenta. Though it is his job, he could stand to be a tad more somber after Yusei's victory.
The little girl on my left grunts, a rubicund light shining from under her sleeve. When she rolls it back, the mark of the dragon peers back at us.
I'm shocked and distressed by the revelation. "No... You're just a kid. Why do you have this?"
"Ruka, you're also a signer?" Yanagi wonders, scrutinizing the mark. I feel the urge to hug the girl, to comfort her. But her brother is already on the job.
"Yanagi, think about this rationally." I stare at the white-haired man, a lecture waiting on the end of my tongue. "Back at the detention center, remember what they did to us to find out about Yusei's mark? Remember what they did to Yusei? This is bad. Ruka..."
"Everyone!" The shout makes me turn to the stairs by our seats, finding the source to be Yusei bounding up the steps. "Everyone, hurry up and leave the stadium."
"What? You're joking." I gape at him, unnerved.
"But An-chan, you still have your duel against the King!" Yanagi mentions.
"There are four signers in this stadium. It's too dangerous when signers battle against each other." He looks back at the people in the stands. Many are receiving medical attention now. "You should know, having witnessed my duel just now."
"But Yusei, what about your friends?" Ruka's a sweet girl, worrying about our friends whom she's never once met.
"I'll talk with Godwin. You should leave here immediately."
I stand. This doesn't fly with me.
"No! How can we run away? If it's so dangerous, it means we have to be here! We can't leave you to deal with it by yourself."
"Please. I want you safe." He leaves a parting caress on my cheek, but he doesn't spare me a second glance, taking the stairs two at a time to get back down to the contestant's area in a jiffy. Rua and Ruka exchange unsure looks, wondering what to do.
Yanagi answers their silent question. "If that's what An-chan wants. We should leave, even though I'm a little disappointed." He hauls himself from the plastic bench seat, hands behind his back.
"Urgh! Men!" I sit pointedly back down, bent on staying and supporting my Satellite companion. "You guys can go, but I'm not leaving. What if something happens while we- Hey!"
I'm plucked off the chair and thrown over a shoulder before I know it.
"Himuro! What am I, a sack of potatoes? Put me down!" The taps of his feet and the upside-down view of the stairs tells me that we're leaving the stands.
"Nope. Yusei has enough to worry about right now. And there's no telling how much trouble you'll cause."
My fists fall against his broad back, slamming into it with the most power I can muster. To him, it's probably like flies buzzing. Himuro is built like an ox. I'd have to stand on my own head to reach his height. "I'm telling you, that's why I need to stay! What if he needs me?"
"He won't. What about all the "faith" you have in him? Give him this."
"Shit..." I make an attempt to hold back the tears, sucking in my bottom lip, but a number of them slip past my lashes. I can't dig in my heels if they're not on the ground anyway. "Damn it. You're not really giving me any options, but... Fine."
The doors to the seating shut behind him and he finally returns me to my feet. We take just three steps before we're cut off. Out of thin air, several men in suits take shape. They corner us, moving to block every side of our group. Reflexively, I step behind the kids, making sure they're all within reach, and shuffle them into my grasp.
It's the creepy giggle that gives it away. The clownish man steps into view from behind the lackeys, filling the gap between them.
"Yeager! You..." I have to remind myself there are children present. I wish I didn't care about being a good influence sometimes. "You rude guy!"
"Sorry, but I cannot allow you to leave."
While I prepare to be corralled back inside, Himuro takes a more brutish approach. "Then I'll force my way through!" He moves ahead, twisting Yeager's collar in his grip, and raises him off the ground.
"You don't care what happens to their friends?" His sly green orbs meet my own, meaning embedded in his gaze. Himuro drops him. "I know you care about friendship. You can't do it. Now hurry up and return to your seats."
Our party of six sits in the stands, quiet but not calm. Or at least, we do for a time. Yusei and Jack duel on the track, none of us able to look away. We were all on edge but I knew the stillness would eventually end.
"What's that?" When I look at the younger twin, she stares skyward.
"Uh, I don't remember a storm in the forecast," I mumble, following her gaze until my eyes look up at the heliotrope cosmos.
"It was sunny just a little while ago," Rua adds.
"Can it be? Just as An-chan said, is there really a curse when signers battle against each other?"
"There's no way that's true!" Himuro's argument isn't convincing. "More importantly, make sure to cheer for Yusei!"
"I've been slacking..." The shame rushes as a wave upon me, but I brush it off. Yusei plays a trap card, resurrecting Junk Warrior at level 4 with 0 attack and defense points. Summoning Hyper Synchron next, he uses it to tune the warrior monster. "Kick his butt, Yusei! Show him how to flip a flapjack!"
"Four plus four is..." Yanagi trails off for the benefit of Rua and Tenpei who shout out the answer.
"Eight!"
"Have you been studying math or something?" I can't help but chuckle at their glee. "Well, there's only one monster that could be."
"The wishes come together to form a new shining star! Become the path that lights the way!"
"It's like he's in a play." Yusei's dramaticism never fails to make me smile. He really is a serious guy, but he has so many other sides to him. "It's cute, right?" I turn to Ruka, the only girl that I could hope to agree with my statement.
"Huh? No. Boys are gross."
I guess not. I keep smiling, throwing in a wink for good measure. "You'll understand someday. Let me know whenever you gain interest."
She isn't listening anymore. As Stardust takes shape on the field, her expression turns burdened. She's pained, clutching her arm and pulling up her sleeve. Her mark is shining. It's like he said, but maybe it isn't a curse. I hope that it's not, for Yusei and Ruka's sake.
Hyper Synchron's monster effect adds 800 to Stardust's attack points. Somehow predicting his move, Jack activates a trap card allowing him to special summon one of Yusei's synchro materials. Hyper Synchron appears on Jack's field.
"Stardust Dragon attacks Red Daemons Dragon!" Yusei declares, throwing out his arm.
"The King already knows what you're planning to do!" Jack states, eyes crazed. "I activate my trap! Tuner's Mind! When my synchro monster is attacked, it reverts back to its synchro material monsters!"
"Stardust Dragon attacks Twin Breaker! Roar! Shooting Sonic!" However, the beam it shoots hits the other tuner monster instead. "What?"
"I told you! I already know all your strategies! The tuner monster that appeared due to Tuner's Mind must battle against your attacking monster!"
"I activate the continuous trap Synchro Blast! With Synchro Blast, when my synchro monster attacks, you take 500 points of damage."
"Yes! Yusei's number one!" My pom-poms bounce with each exertion of force from my lungs, red and white dancing in tandem. I cheer my hardest when they pass our stand. "You can squirm all you like! He's still gonna wreck you, Jack!"
The blonde man growls, focusing on the battle in front of him as much as he can. "Since Dark Repairer was sent to the graveyard, I get to draw one card." Yusei's turn ends, letting Jack take the ropes once again. "My turn! Hyper Synchron tunes Twin Breaker! The pulse of the King now forms a line here! Witness the power of the rumbling heavens! Synchro summon! My soul! Red Daemons Dragon! Look at this glorious sight! My most powerful servant and I walk the path of the King together! Since Hyper Synchron was used as synchro material, Red Daemons Dragon gains 800 attack points! Take this! Absolute Powerforce!"
Compared to Stardust's 3300 attack points, Red Daemons easily overtakes it. Yusei takes 500 points of damage, but his dragon remains on the field.
"Since Hyper Synchron was used as synchro material, Stardust Dragon isn't destroyed in battle!"
"I know that! I activate my trap Demon Cannon!" Yusei takes another hit from it, putting him at 900 life points. "If I failed to destroy your monster in battle, you take 500 points of damage!"
"Yusei! Brush it off!"
"Yusei!"
Rua and I shout our hearts out. Himuro analyzes the duel.
"This is bad. Yusei's life points are below 1000."
"I've had it up to here with your Debbie Downer routine. Make with the cheering, Himuro." I mark a spot up to my forehead with one of the pom-poms. "Holy shit!" Lightening strikes near the duelists, vibrating the atmosphere and covering us in its cerise tint.
"What?" Himuro's crossed arms never move, but his face betrays his worry.
"Can it be?" stammers the old man sandwiched between us.
"The Crimson Dragon. It's the same as the last time they dueled here!" I watch the red beast come to form amongst the other dragons. "But why is it here? What are its intentions?"
Nobody else in the crowd has any inkling as to the monster's origin. The select few of us who do sit in a group where no one else would dare. The seats around us are barren, as the wind from Yusei's duel against Aki had scared them off.
"What? My mark is burning..."
I look at Ruka upon hearing her words. The glowing mark is brighter than before. "That's what Yusei said the night we came here. After his first time seeing that dragon, he said he was too hot. Will you be alright, Ruka?"
"I think I'll be okay, it just... stings. You know?"
I can only comfort the girl, for now, hoping she isn't in too much pain.
"We finally meet, Crimson Dragon!" Jack is his usual big-headed self, speaking directly to the beast. "Watch our duel closely!"
"Jack, this is dangerous!" Yusei pleads, pulling up next to his opponent's D-Wheel. "If we continue this duel, I don't know what will happen!"
"Are you scared, Yusei? A person who's afraid of the future has no right to be a duelist! Even if earth and heaven are destroyed, I'll continue to duel!"
Ruka flinches again. A gale sweeps up from the track, threatening to throw me out of my seat. The kids and I grip each other, our combined weight the only things holding us down. Then the world goes blank.
The light above the stadium makes everything ghostly. The figures I feel beside me appear as nothing more than faint silhouettes of white on off-white. The intensity forces me to close my eyes. Looking away from the source does nothing, all the surfaces near us reflect back the stinging beams only a minutia dimmer.
Even looking at the inside of my lids, a bedazzling glow seeps through. The strength of it rises before it falls, presenting the opportunity to finally reveal my soft green orbs to the world anew.
"What happened?" asks Himuro, tense.
"Just when I thought the Crimson Dragon flew away, everything in front of me became really bright!" Yanagi stutters, turning to me and the three youngest of us. But I'm not paying any mind to them, eyes glued to the stage.
It's over. The duelists are stationary. Stardust and Red Daemons appear as shadows, crumbling into bits and dissipating in a glittering flurry. The scorecard clearly shows the life points of each participant.
"Zero... Jack has zero life points!" I shakily rise from my seat, hit by the finality of it at once. "Oh my stars!"
"Yusei won this duel," Ruka confirms, staring straight ahead.
"Yusei!" I can't think of anything to say, but I'm ecstatic. Yusei had won the Duel of Fortune Cup. "You won! You did it! Yusei, you look so cool right now!" My brain-to-mouth filter has completely evaporated in the sheer emotion that floods me. The ant-like figure of Yusei dismounts, running to the fallen Jack Atlas.
"What happened?" stammers the announcer, looking around the arena furtively. His face appears in the bubble-like screen in the air. "It's finally over! The winner is Yusei Fudo! King Jack Atlas's undefeated legend is over, and we're witnessing the birth of a new king! The new King's name is Yusei Fudo! The new King is from Satellite!"
The words over the loudspeaker play as an accompaniment to my mad dash down the stairs. There are crowds packing the walkways, but my short stature allows me to slip under their arms. As his self-proclaimed number one fan, I've got to be the first to congratulate him for his stellar victory.
The crowd erupts. I never thought I'd hear this many people chanting my name, but it falls flat at the expense. My old friend, Jack, lies on a stretcher. My Satellite friends were endangered, as well as my friends here with me. Pinoko, Himuro, Yanagi, and the kids should have left, but I had distinctly heard the Satellite woman calling me from the bleachers.
Pinoko hadn't wanted to go. I knew Himuro would make her leave, just to keep them all safe, so what had gone wrong? The blonde teen is rolled off the track, two medical professionals at his sides. Jack, what we saw was...
"Satellite punk! I know you cheated!"
"You're a brat with a marker!"
"I won't accept a King born out of Satellite!"
"HEY! If you think you can do better, come duel him! Hell, I'll beat you senseless before Yusei gets the chance to take a swipe at you!"
Her voice is hoarse from cheering me on, cracking in spots when she speaks. When I look back, I find Pinoko facing the crowd, standing close enough to me to touch. She's defending me... but she couldn't fight any of them. I'd better stop her before she finds a taker.
"Pinoko." I put a hand on the woman's upper arm, drawing her attention back to me.
"Yusei!" she cries, spinning on her heel. "I told you you would win! Everyone was cheering for you. Rua helped me hold up the sign. You were captivating out there!" She throws her arms around my neck and my hand instinctively comes to rest on the small of her back. She leans on me, her balance off with her stance. She has to lift herself to the tips of her toes to reach my shoulders like this.
"Thanks. When I thought it might be over, I always heard your voice calling to me." I almost forgot about all the people surrounding us, the fragrance of peaches wafting from her ruddy hair. Rustling the long strands with my nose, her scent fills my senses, her soft curves settling under my gloved hand. Her face is flush with the crook of my neck, my own nuzzled into the crown of her head. Pressed up against me, her bosom flattens against the planes of my chest.
It's the first time I've felt like this about anyone. I don't want to let her go.
"Yusei!" Rua's shout brings me back to reality. The boy runs up to us, Yanagi and Himuro in tow. Pinoko steps back. I let her go, swallowing the disappointment before it can show on my face.
"An-chan, Pinoko, let's flee!" I don't know what Yanagi's so afraid of until he points back at the gaggle of paparazzi behind them. "Look over there!"
Each reporter cries their plea for my face on their cameras.
"Yusei Fudo! We have some questions for you and your girl!"
"New King! Please give me an interview!"
With the force of their pushing, the low boundaries meet their end, the railing falling down easily.
"Eh?" I can't keep in the shudder at their number. I can barely believe that all these people are asking for me. They're sprinting toward us, but there's nowhere to run. The former pro rushes around, preparing an escape, I hope.
"Yusei, Pinoko! Hurry!" Himuro calls us.
"Right." The girl from Satellite stores agape at the sheer number of tabloid reporters with their sights on us. I wrap a hand around her own, pulling her behind me to follow Himuro's path. He leads us underground, to what looks like a service tunnel. Ruka is there, standing by my D-Wheel.
"It seems like we lost them. What is this place?" The other Satellite examines the tunnel, looking all about the place, her hand still grasping mine.
Himuro responds swiftly. "They used this passageway when they were building the stadium."
"I never knew this existed." Tenpei shares Pinoko's wonder at the area below. The three children are all near her, seeming comforted by her presence. I wasn't gone long at all and she'd already managed to become their defacto guardian. Bommer may have been right when he called her mama bear.
"It's because no one uses it anymore." Himuro looks back at me, smirking slightly. "I heard about this place from Saiga."
"Anyway, An-chan, you're awesome. You actually became the King." Yanagi's manner is the same as always, pleasantly surprised by my win.
"I always knew you would become King, Yusei!"
Tenpei nods in agreeance with his friend, but the copper-haired girl with her hand in mine repudiates the claim.
"Hmm, that's weird. I seem to remember you second-guessing him quite a bit. Anyway, I was Yusei's fan first so get in line."
"This isn't the time to celebrate," Himuro says. "They kidnapped Yusei and Pinoko's friends. We don't know what they're capable of."
"Yeah. They're why we didn't leave." The shorter Satellite turns to me, her soprano dropping in tone almost immediately. "I don't like admitting it, but I wasn't going to leave until Himuro forced me, but Yeager stopped us on our way. Sorry, Yusei."
"It's alright. Thank you for being honest." I'm not upset with her in the slightest. I knew she wouldn't go willingly anyway. Himuro's eyes trail down to our joined hands before flicking back ahead. He pushes my D-Wheel in silence for a beat, speaking his thoughts once he's gathered them.
"For now, we should stay at Saiga's hideout. It'll also be safer if Rua and Ruka stay with us."
"Really?" Rua's eyes sparkle. "Hooray! I get to be with Yusei and Pinoko again!"
The two of us smile at the boy, his enthusiasm catching us in the moment, but his sister speaks before we get carried away.
"Yusei..." The girl looks down, uneasy. "I saw your duel against Jack in the light. Satellite was.."
As much as it shocks me, it also surprises the other Satellite. "What? Ruka..."
"What was that?"
"I don't know," I reply honestly. "However, if that was a vision of Satellite's future, I'll stop it. Pinoko looks back and forth between us, nearly cracking her neck.
"W-what happened to Satellite? Yusei, what did you see happen to our home?"
"I..." I don't know what to tell her. All the words I know jump out of my brain, forcing me into silence. "It's... hard to explain. Ask me later." She says nothing else, but her fingers start to intertwine with my own, warmth seeping under the leather of my gloves. Is it her heat? Or is it just because it's Pinoko holding my hand?
"What's a signer?" Ruka's innocent question spurs Yanagi into a long-winded explanation. The sound of his voice fades out when I focus on the feeling in my palm. Even at this distance, I can smell her unique scent of peaches, honeysuckle, and bergamot. The weight of her hand and the comfort of her fragrance makes it possible to forget what I saw. She gives me peace.
Tenpei had gone home, being the one of us that's not directly involved with the situation. The other six of us had gathered in Saiga's place. It's where we started this mess, the place where we had originally been brought by Saiga. The abandoned office space is much the same, but there seems to be more couches than there were on our last visit.
Yanagi sits on the rolling chair, a piece of A4 paper sprawled out on the desk before him. Rua and Ruka stand together on Pinoko's right, whilst I stand on her left. Himuro watches from Yanagi's other side. He does his utmost to replicate what he'd seen on paper.
"It's something I saw a long time ago. I don't remember exactly, but it's something like this." Yanagi caps the marker, leaning back to reveal his drawing. I suck in a breath. The tail of the Dragon looks exactly like the mark on my arm.
"Yusei... Doesn't it look like..." Pinoko shifts her eyes to my arm, then back to my face, sending a silent signal to me. She doesn't want to put me in an awkward spot by revealing it herself. I'm grateful for her tact at times like these.
"Yusei, Pinoko, what's wrong?" Rua asks, worried by the looks on our faces.
I unveil the mark. It had been permanent since my duel with Aki had ended. The other four stare agape at the mark that imitates the drawing perfectly.
"Ruka, what about you?" Rua asks his sister, turning to face her. She rolls back her sleeve, showing a mark very similar to my own depicting a foot or claw. "Ruka has the claw. What does this mean?"
"According to the legend of the people of the stars, the Crimson Dragon's head, wings, claws, legs, and tail were split into five parts and sealed away as marks among people known as signers," Yanagi explains with his eyes lidded.
"Hold on," Himuro interjects, pointing a finger. "There are only four signers that we know about: Yusei, Ruka, Jack, and Aki Izayoi. But the Crimson Dragon still appeared."
"You don't think..." Pinoko starts, hand curled under her chin as she bites her bottom lip. "I mean, it's not out of the question that Godwin had the fifth one nearby, right?"
I can't stop the narrowing of my gaze, thinking of the possibilities. Pinoko was probably close to the truth, but who knows how close. Godwin and Yeager seem to follow no rules, cruel and uncaring in their approaches. It could be anyone.
The tension, it seems, has gotten to the youngest one of us. Ruka scrunches her eyes closed before she starts to fall, her knees buckling beneath her. Yanagi catches her, saving her from a nasty spill.
"Ruka!" Pinoko immediately leaves my side, rushing for the young girl. Rua and I quickly follow, hot on her heels.
"Ruka, what's wrong?" asks her brother. He knows her best, so I stand behind him.
"I'm okay." She raises her head, quelling Pinoko's concern ever so slightly. I can see it in the bend of her shoulders letting out a bit of tension. "I'm just a little tired."
"That's alright. A lot happened recently, you deserve some rest." Pinoko softly strokes her hair, cooing at the girl. "I'll watch over you. You'll be able to sleep peacefully, I'll make sure of it."
If we were alone, I might press a chaste kiss to the woman's head. She's important to me, and I can see her becoming important to everyone around her. She's a light in my life, one I didn't know I was missing.
She helps Ruka out of Yanagi's arms, guiding her to a couch. The sky is just beginning to darken, a few sunbeams catching her profile, setting her hair alight. She's aflame with the luster of its coral rays reflecting off her back and hair. "I'll find some blankets for us. I know where he keeps a couple of extras," she promises, turning away from her to walk out the doors. She exits around the left of the room, the opposite side of the entrance and a side of the building I'd never been to.
It takes me a moment to realize I'm following her out to the hall. It's her soprano reciting my name that does it.
"Yusei? What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just... I wanted to tell you about what we saw."
"The vision of Satellite?" She passes several doors before coming to a stop, swinging open the hollow door at the end of the hall. "It's alright if you don't want to say. I believe you, you know."
"What do you mean?" I watch her as she takes a few sheets and blankets from the cupboard's shelf. "What do you believe me about?"
She smiles, handing me half of the covers before shutting the closet. "You said you would stop it. I believe that you will, so I don't need to know about that vision." She turns her soft grin on me, making a blush up to my ears. There's something in her expression that makes this more than a declaration of friendship. "It will never happen."
I let a matching grin cover my face, baring my teeth in a full smile. She makes me so happy that there are times I can't control it. I make it a point to be the reliable presence that my friends need, but around her, I can simply be. She simplifies everything so easily like it's second nature. She makes everything seem like a foregone conclusion.
I want to hold her again, but she has plans.
"Come on, let's get back." She turns her face away, though I catch a flush on her neck and ears that she can't hide.
"Yeah."
I follow her, dutifully carrying half the blankets back to our friends. In what feels like only a short moment must have been at least half an hour. The sun has almost finished setting, the four we'd left behind snoozing away on the sofas. Himurp is sitting up with his eyes closed. Rua and Yanagi lean against each other in slumber, while Ruka sleeps soundly laying on the last couch.
Pinoko creeps up to the girl, laying a sheet over her carefully so as not to wake her. I lay one blanket over each Yanagi and Rua, leaving the last one across Himuro's lap. Pinoko is kneeling on the ground by Ruka, but I can't see what she's doing without going closer.
When I round the desks in the middle of the room, I see that she's laid the only comforter on the ground, a makeshift bed for the last of us. It makes sense, there being no couches left, but...
The last time we slept close to each other, I woke up with a... problem. I'll have to keep a bit of distance, that's all. We'll be fine.
She smooths out the last of the wrinkles, placing a rolled-up throw blanket at one end to be our pillow. It's very thoughtful, like a bird making a well-done nest. It's cute.
But I can't fall asleep yet. "Thanks, but I'm pretty awake. I'll come by later, you get some rest." She doesn't put up any fight, so she must be exhausted. I can see her in my mind's eye, arguing that she would keep me company if she could keep her eyes open.
I walk away, looking down at Yanagi's representation of the Crimson Dragone once more. It gives me an ominous feeling, thinking back to how the Crimson Dragon appeared and the fate of Satellite. Looking back at the one I want to protect the most, she's already asleep, not a single wrinkle in her expression. She looks peaceful.
I turn to the window, walking closer to view the night sky. As Bommer said, there are no stars to be seen from here. Only the moon is bright enough to be seen through the smog.
"You'll show him. There's one star you can see from the city, you know."
"Really? Which star?"
"The shooting star of Satellite. And he's right here with me."
I grunt, a pain radiating from my forearm. I peel off my glove, finding my mark to be glowing bright.
It's throbbing, but it feels different than usual. It feels like it's being gouged out.
I return my gaze to the outside. I start, seeing a hooded figure in the streets. One arm holds a Duel Disk, the other a glowing mark like my own. The light it emits is almost purple, a symbol too small for me to make out gracing his skin. Is he a signer?
I can't let this go. I try to be quiet as I grab my own disk and race down the stairs.
A/N: Snap back to reality. Oh, there goes gravity. Oh, there goes Rua he choked. I'm sorry Eminem influences me too much. Every line makes me think of a song in one way or another.
