"Yukie!"

Standing on the sidewalk, Yukie looked at the road extending infinitely ahead of her.

"Are you coming or what?"

Harui called out to her from the middle of the road, waving her hand at her.

"Come on, we're gonna be late!"

Like a stone statue, she was incapable of moving. She could only watch.

"Aren't you coming? I won't move an inch if you don't!"

Her fingers briefly wiggled.

"Come on, Yukie!"

Her legs started shaking.

"Hurry up and join me already!"

Her hand reached out to Harui.

Harui smiled.

The front bumper of the incoming truck violently impacted her body, and was gone in the next moment.

A destroyed and battered body was all that remained in the middle of the road, its white hair stained red by the pool of blood surrounding the corpse.

Yukie fell to her knees.

Her crying eyes remained locked on the body. Her mouth moved, but she couldn't utter a sound. That was, until her eyes began following the river of blood that moved towards her, dragging along a single, destroyed eyeball.

Her mouth prepared to scream.

But Yukie covered it just in time to stop herself from yelling against her will.

She glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand by Harui's bed. 3:45. They had fallen asleep around midnight, so taking this long to wake up because of that recurring vision was a new record. Usually she'd only get two hours of sleep before her reflexes stopped her from waking up someone else.

Yukie wiped her tears away and looked at the bean bags on the other side of the room. Bachi usually slept on top of those, but he was on the floor with his belly up instead. He must have rolled off in his sleep. He was a heavy sleeper, the building could collapse and he wouldn't notice a thing.

She turned to face Harui, who was also sleeping. Her mouth was slightly open, but for the loud snorer she was infamous for being, she was uncharacteristically quiet.

A bit too quiet.

Yukie moved her fingers near her mouth and nose. Breathing, check.

Then she moved them to side of her neck. Pulse, check.

Finally, she moved her head closer to Harui's chest, but that's when the not so sleeping beauty wrapped her arms around her and pulled her into a hug. Heartbeat, check.

"Gotcha..." Harui quietly chuckled. "I'm still kicking, you can be at ease now..."

"Did I wake you up?" Yukie asked, moving her arms behind Harui's back.

"Of course not. Bachi did. He's sleeping but his butt isn't..." The white haired yawned. "But I guess in a way, you did. You got him the beans."

"Lesson learned." The other girl chuckle and snuggled closer. "Harui..."

"You don't need to say it out loud if you don't want to... It was that dream again, wasn't it?"

"Mhm..." She nodded.

"It's alright... I'm still here. And I don't got any plans of going anywhere without you. No place is good unless Yukie is there too." Harui spoke, her hand caressing the back of Yukie's head. "Better?"

"A million times..." Yukie yawned.

While she at first kept her hand behind the other girl's back, Harui moved it to her waist, where Yukie's hand rested. She grabbed it softly, swiftly interlocking their fingers. It wasn't the most comfortable sleeping position, but it was her favourite.

It wouldn't be long until Yukie drifted back to sleep, especially with Harui stroking her hair and breathing down her scalp. Harui herself would fall asleep again shortly after, this time unleashing her awful snoring upon the world once more.

Feeling Harui's touch, her breathing, and even her heartbeat, Yukie slept peacefully.

And then she woke up to the smell of beans being breathed directly at her face.

"Good morning, sweetie..." Yukie muttered between a yawn, reaching to pat the dog's head, but instead encountering the note someone left there. "Went to make breakfast... I think we can sleep a bit more then."

"Bor-borf..."

Yukie snuggled closer to the half sleeping canine and burrowed her face into his fur, but the cozy moment would be given an abrupt end when Bachi shook her away from him and ran out of the room. He smelled breakfast being ready.

Rubbing one eye, Yukie sat up and yawned once more.

"Men..."

But she got up regardless and followed the dog into the kitchen after putting on a robe, where she was greeted by the white haired tanuki and the spread she had laid out waiting for her.

"Harui, isn't this... A bit too much? Or just... Too much in general?" Yukie asked, sweatdropped.

"For Yukie? Nothing is too much!" Harui proudly declared, pulling a chair for her girlfriend. "We got some amazing miso soup that I didn't get from the supermarket because I forgot to buy miso paste yesterday with tofu and scallions, we got plenty of rice with whatever seasoning you heart desires from the spice rack, we got pickled daikon and cucumbers that I can't have yet because of my stupid medication but I still laid it out because you like it, we got some tasty stir fried greens, and, thanks to the special leap year sale at the fish market down the street, instead of the typical yet boring salmon, we got grillled codfish!"

Bachi looked at the boiled cod on his bowl. That wasn't his usual dog food, nor the beans he was promised.

"B-borf..."

"Eat your cod, it's good for you." The white haired stated.

"It's a lovely breakfast and I'm thankful for all the work you put into it, but isn't this too much? Can we even finish all of this in one sitting?" Yukie asked.

"Probably. And if we don't, we can save the leftovers for dinner. No way I'll have the energy to cook after the amazing day I got planned for us! And guess what?"

Harui rushed to the sliding glass door between the living room and the balcony and yanked the curtains away, showering the apartment with light.

"The weather gods heard my prayers! Clean skies with a shiny sun! No cloud in miles! Our aquarium date is so back!"

"Then we don't have time to waste, right?" Yukie asked, flashing a confidant smile with her chopsticks in hand.

"That's my girl!"

Against all odds, in defiance of god and all things holy, the two of them managed to devour the entire breakfast together. It'd impressive but the fact they emptied the rice cooker just made it concerning.

With that out of the way, the two returned to Harui's room to get dressed for their date.

Harui was faster, having alreay decided what to wear the day they settled on spending the weekend together. A fashionable combo of a black turtleneck tucked into her jeans under a black trench coat, paired with black over the knee heel boots, leaving no skin except the one of her face and hands visible. Being a very special day, she wore the most important item of her oversized earring collection, a pair of silver drop earrings that had a silver diamond-shaped plate hanging off the chain attached to her ear, and then a shorter chain that ended on a spike. They didn't graze her collarbone by mere millimeters.

Yukie herself was still getting ready, but was almost done. She chose to go with the same over the knee boots as Harui, though hers didn't have heels, and opted for a white shirt with its top button undone that she tucked into her navy blue high wasted shorts. Later on she'd finish her attire with a dark blue trench coat that reached exactly where her boots ended, but for know, she brushed her hair in front of the mirror in Harui's desk, the one next to her earring collection.

And Harui was being a sleezebag and staring at Yukie's behind, somehow looking deep in thought as she did so.

"I recommend against it." Yukie said.

"I'm not thinking about that, I know I can't win against you in my current state." Harui replied, lifting herself from the bed to walk up to the sliding door next to her desk with her arms folded. "Not even the element of surprise will work... Or will it?!"

And she made her move!

In a quick motion, she unfolded her arms and swung her right hand down. She calculated the distance perfectly, nothing could stop her hand from feeling the touch of a soft butt! Physics were in her side!

And physical superiority was on Yukie's, who swiftly grabbed Harui wrist, spun her into her arms and pinched her where it hurt!

"M-my butt!" Harui cried out.

But that wasn't all.

Yukie spun her again, this time into having her arms and torso locked between her right arm and her abdomen.

Then she revealed her object of torture.

"OH GOD, NO, NOT THAT, ANYTHING BUT THAT! I BEG, NOT THAT!"

It was actually just an eyelash curler.

Bachi was sound asleep on the couch at the time, snoozing off the cod he turned out to enjoy more than he expected, but the yell Harui let out almost made him fall off the couch.

"See? It wasn't so bad. It didn't even take a minute." Yukie giggled, having already released Harui, who went back to sit on her bed.

"Because you're a pro... What if it was Probie? What if it was me?! I'd rip my other eye out with that thing! I need at least one for when I'm cooking pasta!"

"I know, I know." She chuckled.

Yukie tied her hair into a low ponytail, leaving two bangs to fall off each side of her face. Bar her white lily necklace, she didn't use any accessories, so all she did after finishing her hair was put on her jacket and grab her teal flap bag.

"Shall we go?"

"Depends on far we go without me passing out from the heat stroke the sun next to me is gonna give me."

Harui got up from her bed and grabbed Yukie's hand, interlocking her fingers with hers. With a swift swipe, she picked up the grey flat cap on her desk and put it on. She flashed her with a big smile.

"Better put on sunscreen then. I won't leave your side for a second." Yukie showed a small smirk in response.

"Only if you're the one putting it on me."

But they wouldn't be spending too much time under the sun.

Afterall, their date location was an aquarium.

To be more exact, it was the Sumida Aquarium, which was a lovely hour on the train from Ikebukuro to the prefecture, not that either minded. Afterall, that just meant they could spend an hour flirting and giggling to each other on the ride.

The aquarium had its entrance on the fifth floor of the Tokyo Solamachi, the mall complex at the base of the Tokyo Skytree, though the start of the exhibition began on the sixth floor with the Natural Aquascap.

But first, Harui had to do some complaining while the two walked up the stairs towards the first exhibit.

"Thirty six thousand yen for two high schoolers... How come middle schoolers pay less?! We're all kids alike! If I'm not old enough to drink, then I'm not old enough to pay almost twenty bucks for anything that isn't cardboard."

"Prices have inflated over the years. This aquarium opened when our parents were younger than us." Yukie chuckled.

"I guess... At least we didn't pay the adult fee. I mean, twenty five per adult? That's fifty bucks down the drain! For fifty bucks they should let me pat the penguins and take one home!"

"Would Bachi play nice with a penguin sibling?"

"If he stays away from the beans, totally."

The two arrived at the first exhibit, the Natural Aquascap, an aquatic ecoystem filled with luscious green plants and small scale sealife, all concentrated into a single tank.

"I don't get it... It's a normal aquarium?" Yukie lightly tilted her head to the side. "I think we had something similar when I was little..."

"Nyehehehehe." Harui rubbed her nose with a cocky grin. She had the entire brochure of the place memorised. "It's a self-sustaining environment, like those bug terrariums you see online."

"Really? How so?"

"See the lights above the tank? The plants inside the tank use it to do their photosynthesis, in turn releasing oxygen bubbles into the aquarium, which the organism inside it then use to breath. They then release carbon dioxide, which the plants use to do photosynthesis again, rinse and repeat. It's a piece of a greater ecosystem stuffed inside a tank I could totally fit in my room... Maybe I'll ask Izuru for one of these for christmas..." She whispered that last part.

"It's amazing... I see you studied before coming here." Yukie teased with a soft chuckle.

"Of course. I gotta keep tricking you into thinking I'm smart somehow." Harui joked. "Ready to move on? The coolest exhibit of the aquarium is the next one!"

"I'll take your word for it."

The two stepped into the next room, though it wouldn't be an overstatement to say they entered a new world.

The next exhibit was the jellyfish room, where countless of tanks containing various species of jellyfish illuminated the pitch black space with blue hues.

"This is... Beautiful..." Yukie muttered.

"But not as beautiful as you." Harui replied, putting on a poetic tone. "This is all natural light. Jellyfish are-"

"Bioluminescent. They make and glow their own light. It reflects in the water around them, making the room be filled with glowing blue lights." The other girl explained as she looked at her girlfriend's surprised face. She giggled. "I need to trick you into thinking I'm smart somehow."

"I'm falling head over heels all over again..."

"Please don't. It's quite dark in the room even with the jellyfish lights, someone may trip over you."

"They won't if I fall into your arms."

"Are you pulling your moves in here, Ibuki Harui?"

"I stand with god and the rhopilema hispidum behind you as my witnesses."

The two shared a laugh at their silly jokes and moved along the dark hallway. Harui began to hum as she looked at all the jellyish surrounding them.

"What's on your mind?" Yukie asked.

"Aquariums are jellyfish propaganda. The scary part? It's working."

"And why is that?"

"They make them look so cool. They glow in the dark, make for a breathtaking spectacle, look so serene and beautiful, some even look cute enough to pat... But they can kill random people in the sea who accidently touch them. We could have goofy glowing mushy bubble beings in our seas but they had to evolve into having stingers."

"I suppose they had to figure out a way to hunt and defend themselves somehow."

"Yeah... Maybe if they had developed tools like us, they wouldn't have the need for stingers."

That's your conclusion?!

"Then again, the brochure did say jellyfish have remaines unchanged for hundreds of millions of years." Yukie pointed.

"Fair enough, I guess. I suppose we were still hitting things with sticks and stones back then or something."

The surrounding darkness continuted into the next room, where the third exhibit resided, though the light in it came from actual lights, not the creatures in them. It was the coral exhibit, made up of four tanks containing a variety of corals and other sea creatures.

"Corals are funny. They're the prime gaslighters of aquatic ecosystems." Harui said.

"Huh? Why?" Yukie blinked, confused.

"They look like rocks."

"Maybe from a certain angle... I always thought they looked more like plants."

"And that's how get you. They look like rocks, but they're too colourful to be rocks, so they have to be very hard looking plants, right? Wrong. Corals are animals."

"They are?"

"That's what I said!"

"But they don't look very edible... Or edible at all."

"That's what Satoru said! You hear all these news about how pollution is killing coral reefs all the time and they always make it sound like they're plants. And honestly, that's the problem. The general public isn't aware that corals are actually animals."

"Would that make a difference in stopping the pollution of the seas? It keeps happening even with millions of known aninals inhabiting them. We still use paper straws for a reason."

"My beef with turtles regarding straws aside, humans always show more empathy towards animals than they do with plants. I mean, let's say you're eating a burger. You'll get approached by someone saying you're killing an innocent cow a million times before being approached by someone saying you're killing an innocent tomato. They don't even have the dignity to just tell you you're about to eat an objectively bad vegetable."

"Tomatoes are fruits." Yukie pointed out.

"Oh, right." Harui said. She chuckled at herself. "Tomatos suck so much that even I'm a better fruit than them."

Yukie nudged Harui's arm with a small smile, getting a laugh out of the white haires girl, who grabbed her hand and pulled her along.

The sixth floor ended with the coral exhibit, but the tour didn't. Following the coral room was a ramping path that lead visitors down to the largest room of the aquarium in the fifth floor, where the penguin and fur seal tanks were. Visitors could peer into both open tanks from above as they made their way down, and once on the fifth floor, they could see the animals in both tanks from the side.

But before heading to see either of them up close, Harui and Yukie made their way to the exhibit in one of the corners in the room, a huge tank themed after the Ogasawara Islands containing over fifty species, grey nurse sharks and stingrays included. In front of the tank were a few seats for visitors to rest on, so that's where the two girls decided to go to enjoy the exhibit.

"It is... Nothing short of surreal, yet it feels like I'm not giving it enough credit with that word." Yukie commented.

"I couldn't have said it better." Harui cackled, taking off her hat. "It's sights like this that let you forget just how terrifying the sea is. A dark and cold place that we still haven't completed explored, and yet it's also so majestic..."

"I still wouldn't be caught dead swimming."

"Oh, same here, can you imagine getting stung by a jellyfish while out at sea? I'm not gonna get taken out by some squishy friend with a stinger. I'm dying fighting god or I'm not dying at all!"

"I'd rather if you did the latter." Yukie chuckled, giving Harui a quick kiss on the cheek, then resting her head against her shoulder.  "This date has been lovely, Harui."

"Nyehehehe." Harui had a big stupid grin on her face. "Aquarium dates may be cliche as heck, but I make them different. Could anyone else provide you with brilliant commentary about jellyfish and tomatos?"

"I severely doubt it." The other girl lightly laughed. "Do you want to go see the penguins next?"

"The penguins and the seals kinda are the main attraction, so I was thinking we could leave those for last."

"What do you have in mind then?"

"Let's go behind the tank. There's something cool there." Harui wiggled her eyebrows.

"You could put more effort if you want to take me to a dark place no one can see us." Yukie teased, gettting her cheek lightly pinched in return.

"You know what's behind the tank, you lecherous geezer."

The two shared another chuckle and left their seat, going around the tank and into the dark hallway behind it, where the wall was filled with small round windows. The exhibit was the Aqua Scope, which aimed to let visitors experience what it's like to be under the sea by using the windows to peer into the tank, which was what the two did when they found a window with their height.

"Look, look, a shark!" Harui pointed out.

"And that there is a lionfish." Yukie said.

"How do they even catch those in the first place? They got enough spikes to poke someone's eye out."

"I don't think those are spikes..." The other girl sweatdropped. "Look, there's a ray down there looking at you."

"With an eye gap that big, I think it's looking at you too. I bet if we kissed, we'd get in the blindspot between its eyes!"

"Hm... Your theory is so- Look, a grouper!" Yukie exclaimed.

"Wow, that thing is butt ugly! And that one looks like a giraffe!"

"That's because it's a honeycomb grouper. This tank also has starspotter groupers, but I can't see one from this window. What else is here... Look at that red one. It's a blotcheye soldierfish."

"Blotcheye? Why is called-" Harui looked at the fish in question. "Oh... I wager someone wrote blotcheye because botchedeye sounded too mean..."

"Indeed..." Yukie sighed. "I can't see either the morays or the eels, same with the drummers and sergeants. Let's try another window."

"You got it. Show yourselves, you little fishes!"

They found the little fishes the second they looked back at the hallway.

Well, they found one little fish.

She was just short, actually.

And holding her head low with sunglasses on instead of shouting or kicking cans like last time they met.

Oh and Akafuyu was also there.

"Wha-wha-wha-wha- What the hell are you doing here?!" Harui asked.

"N-not so loud... Please..." Kiru winced, covering her ears. "My head is still pounding..."

"I suppose you must be Kagami-san." Yukie said, looking at the young man by Kiru's side. "Kiru-san has mentioned you here and there."

"Entertainment business student, Kagami Akafuyu. Please, just call me Akafuyu. It's what everyone calls me."

"You don't need to do that dragged out introduction, your name is just enough... Dumbass..."

"Why's that moron so sluggish? And why are you here in the first place?!" Harui asked once again.

"Her physics teacher held a surprise test yesterday. She wasn't prepared and drank my carpet into an early retirement." Akafuyu explained.

"I'm sorry about the carpet, I can clean it later..."

"If the kind lady at that chinese place can't, I doubt you can. And we aren't here for you. This was pure coincedence."

"This place is great for hangovers... Pitch black, silent... The fishes are pretty too." Kiru explained.

"It's also pricey. Twenty five thousand yen per adult. That's fifty bucks out of my pocket. Can you believe that?"

"I know, right?" The white haired replied. "But why an aquarium? Can't you just rest at home? It's quiet if you don't make noise and dark if you get under the covers."

"Yeah but the place smells like cheap beer and I don't have anywhere else to crash..." Kiru sighed.

"It's a whole cycle that puts a dent on the monthly budget. Beer is cheap but the cleaning products needed to wipe the mess you make are not."

"Bite me, I'm coping with the struggles of my educational choices..."

"You're coping, alright." Akafuyu rolled his eyes.

"...dammit..." Harui muttered.

"Harui?" Yukie looked at her girlfriend, who began groaning.

"Dammit...!!!"

Their next stop was the Penguin Cafe near the penguin enclosure.

All four of them.

They sat around one of the tables there, and against all odds, Harui sat next to Kiru instead of Yukie. She was helping the girl drink some coffee with one hand and rubbing her back with another.

"It's bitter..." Kiru whined, sticking her tongue out.

"And it's the number two weapon against alcohol, so says my mentor. So drink up." Harui said.

"What's the number one weapon then...?"

"Drowning your sorrows in something else."

"Don't give her any ideas, we're broke college students, not pros getting paid to advertise some crappy card." Akafuyu said, eyes focused on his phone as he took some pictures of his cute penguin-themed parfait.

"Huh..." Yukie sweatdropped as she watched the two sisters. She couldn't even come up with anything to say to them so just started some small talk with the other person there. "You said you were an entertainment business student, Akafuyu-san. Are you aiming to join the cardfight entertainment field when you graduate?"

"Oh, absolutely not." He replied. "I got a title and am worth some points, but that's the extent of it. The industry I plan to join after graduation is the idol industry, I'm following my hero's footsteps."

"Lame..." Kiru coughed. "Ugh, the bitter taste went back up my throat..."

"Kidani Takaaki is a national hero and it isn't a slob who buys mecha kits with her student loan money that'll prove me wrong."

"As if you don't waste yours on stupid porno mags..."

"Leave my porno mags out of this. They're within budget, unlike your kits and the extra shelves they force me to buy."

"How aren't you two homeless by now...?" Harui asked.

"I own the apartment." Akafuyu answered.

"In this economy?!"

"Loud..." Kiru whined. "He got it from his gramps when he kicked it..."

"Ah. That makes more sense. Maples will get cheap the day a college student can buy an apartment in this housing market."

"You said it." Akafuyu nodded. "But since you brought the topic of Vanguard to the table Yukie-san, I believe someone forgot the deals she made this past week."

Harui shived and looked away.

"I-i don't know what you're talking about..."

"Yes, I heard about Harui and Kiru-san's meeting on wednesday..." Yukie sighed.

"Maybe Satoru won, maybe Satoru lost, I wasn't there to see it so it's his word against Kiru's." Harui huffed.

"You know dang well who won, tanuki..." Kiru groaned.

"That aside, my choice stands. No Yukie, no me, my credibility be damned."

"I respect the dedication. Dedication never hurt anyone." Akafuyu said. "Except maybe Kiru, but that's not my problem. However, the matter was left unfinished, and if there's one thing they teach you about the idol industry is to... Not leave any loose ends."

The three girls stared blankly at Akafuyu. It didn't take long for him to clear his throat and rephrase himself.

"Let's end this Blackout matter with a second match. Kiru is in no condition to fight, and Harui chose to have a retainer fight for her, so it comes down to us, Yukie-san. Care to put an end on this matter on Harui's behalf?"

"I'm right here!" Harui pouted.

"Things have really derailed this much..." Yukied sighed. "I'm always telling her to lay on the bed she makes... But if she doesn't want to join Blacksync, then I'll make you back off."

"Great to see we're on the same page." Akafuyu grabbed his deck, but looked at Kiru instead of his opponent. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask, are you sure an aquarium was the best place to come for a hangover?"

"What? Didn't I explain it already...?" Kiru asked.

"Yeah, but this place is full of water and your bladder isn't the strongest."

"Wha- That's not-"

A growl escaped from the green haired girl's torso, making her the target of everyone's eyes. She looked down and shyly tugged her sister's sleeve.

"Harui... I need to pee..."

"I'm supposed to the be the little sister here!" Harui cried.

With the two sisters off to go look for the nearest bathroom, the ones that would be doing the fighting in their steed began to step up for their game.

After Yukie shuffled her deck and placed it down, she allowed her jacket to slide to her shoulders and began to put on the short leather gloves she carried in his purse.

"Can I ask you something?" Yukie asked.

"Sure."

Yukie narrowed her eyes at Akafuyu, but she might aswell just have glared at him. Even the small and easygoing smile she usually had around Harui was gone.

"What's your goal here?"

Akafuyu chuckled and drew his starting hand.

"You got a keen eye. But so do I. You can't hope to join the idol industry if you don't have an eye for talent."

"So? That's why you cornered me into a fight I couldn't refuse?"

"Something like that, I guess. I agree with Kiru, Harui's pretty strong and a rising talent, but she's also... Well, you know her better than anyone else, you get what I mean."

"Hardheaded, I know... I'd rather she didn't deprive herself from things like this because of me... But she already decided not to join Blacksync, so if that's her choice, I'll stand by it."

"Exactly. I'm not as interested in her as I am in you. The Lycoris, always worth exactly one million points less than The Excommunicated."

"Word travels fast."

"Hearing and confirming the validity of rumours is crucial in the idol industry. Can't be a good manager if you don't know how to keep close tabs on the flow of information."

"You want to confirm what you heard about me?"

"There's no shortage of proof out there, truty be told. The red flower that blooms from the graves of those slayed by The Excommunicated... You're like a boogeyman to the people fighting for points."

"Harui is aiming for the top. She deserves more than someone she already defeated before. That's why I fight in her shadow, to put those who try to get their stupid revenge in their place."

"You protect her from the weak so she can focus on the strong. A guard dog. Like I said, I respect the dedication. Are you not interested in reaching the top?"

"Your goal is to join the idol industry, mine is to make Harui's dreams come true. Vanguard is the same to the two of us. A hobbie."

"And a means to an end. I'm not gonna try to recruit you into Blacksync since I severely doubt you'd say yes, but since we're already here, I might aswell see the real thing. How The Lycoris fights. So in a way, yeah. I want to atest the stuff I've heard about you. Tons of evidence may be good, but it's never as good as seeing it in person, right?"

Yukie adjusted her gloves one final time.

"If that's what you want, then you can burn like the rest."

"Heh, even the catchphrase the same as in the rumours.

Akafuyu and Yukie exchange a final glance in a clash between the latter's glare and the former's curious look, just as the sisters returned from their journey to the toilet.

"Stand up, Vanguard!"

"Diva of Night Moon, Iasanthe!"

"Knight of Heavenly Admired, Admis!"

"You guys are only starting now?! We were gone for like ten minutes!" Harui exclaimed.

"We got distracted talking." Yukie responded, showing a small smile. "How are you doing, Kiru-san?"

"My stomach still hurts like a fish but I'll manage..." Kiru sighed.

"Try not to die." Akafuyu snickered.

"Like hell I'm getting taken out by a bad hangover... I'm dying fighting an alien invasion or I'm not dying at all!"

"It runs in the family..." The fighting girl sweatdropped.

"I don't think I wanna ask." The young man sweatdropped. "Anywho, back to the good part. Or start it, I suppose. Draw for turn. I ride Sniping Eyeful, Leranje! Her skill, I soulblast and ditch one to draw. And since my soul is empty, Powerful's active. Turn end."

Akafuyu
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

Yukie
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

"So he really plays Lyric, huh? I expected it because of the whole idol industry business." Harui said, lightly humming. "Though I wouldn't have guessed Herminia. I thought it'd be Kyouka."

"Because of Kiru's snide remark regarding my magazine collection?" Akafuyu asked.

"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, he plays Herminia because she's got fat tits and looks old enough to drive..." Kiru groaned.

"I think this is all besides the point..." Yukie deadpanned, eyebrow lightly twitching. "Draw. Ride! Knight of Heavenly Sword, Fort! Admis' skill, I draw one, then energy charge! (0>3) I call Serugaon. Battle! Fort attacks! Serugaon's skill, add 5k! (8000>>16000>>21000)"

"Dog in Bastion, interesting... No guard."

"Drive check! (Grand Heavenly Sword, Alden)"

"(Burgeoning Tone, Signe) No trigger."

"Serugaon's skill. He retires himself, I scry two, add one to hand and move the other to the bottom. Turn end!"

Akafuyu
Hand: 5
Damage: 1
OXO
OOO

Yukie
Hand: 7
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

"That's my girl! Banger first turn! Beat his ass into Onslaught of Dragon Souls format!"

"Stop yelling...!" Kiru whined.

"Bastion's strengths are the solid numbers and free attacks he does in the mid to late game, not to mention the extra drives. But, it first needs to get there. Any deck with a semi-solid early can eat it alive."

"I thought you said Vanguard was a hobbie." Yukie recalled.

"Keep tabs on the flow of information never hurt anybody. Draw. Energy charge. (0>3) Leranje's Powerful! My ride up's free, so ride! Attract Peach, Ertines! About that semi-solid early, I call Rose of Exaltation, Custodia! Her skill, soulblast to scry five for a unit with Powerful and either call it or add it. I call Pumpkin Breeze, Lybitta! Next up, I call Best Moment, Stolas, who revives Immense Aptitude, Relie in front of her! And since now I got three rears with Powerful, Stolas gets Boost. I also call Inconspicuous Ambuscade, Museta. Battle! Lybitta boosts, Custodia attacks! (10000>>18000)"

"Gurgant. (23000)"

"Museta boosts, Ertines attacks! (10000)"

"No guard."

"Drive check. (Pumpkin Breeze, Lybitta) No trigger."

"Damage check. (Sword of the Nation, Bastion Accord)"

"Stolas boosts, Relie attacks! (10000>>20000)"

"Arshes. (23000)"

"Turn end. Lybitta's skill, she and Custodia bounce back to hand."

Akafuyu
Hand: 6
Damage: 1
XXO
XXO

Yukie
Hand: 5
Damage: 1
OXO
OOO

"Stand and draw. Energy charge. (3>6) Ride! Knight of Heavenly Spear, Rooks! Fort's skill. I reveal Grandeur Edge as tso grade 3s from hand to call the top card of my deck if it's a unit. Call, Regulastar Dragon! When called, I soulblast one and reveal Bastion Accord to retire Relie. Battle! Regulastar attacks! (10000)"

"Lybitta. (15000)"

"Rooks attacks! (10000)"

"No guard."

"Drive check! (Sword Light Dragon, Skylizen)"

"(Rose of Exaltation, Custodia) No trigger."

"Turn end!"

Akafuyu
Hand: 5
Damage: 2
OXO
XXO

Yukie
Hand: 6
Damage: 1
OXX
OOO

"Stand and draw. Energy charge! (3>6) Ertines' Powerful is the same as Leranje, my next ride up's also free."

Akafuyu picked up the last card of his ride deck.

"All whom have been guided by the one in a million star, the time to pay your tributes is nigh! Humans, dragons, even gods, pay up! Ride! Coming Beauty, Herminia!"

"I call Custodia back into the field and use her skill again to call Relie this time. I'll also call Lybitta back, aswell as Signe over Stolas. Battle! Signe boosts, Relie attacks! Relie's Powerful! Counterblast two to add 10k! (10000>>18000>>28000) Oh, and since my vanguard's Herminia, she also gets to do drive checks. I guess our decks aren't so different."

"I beg to differ. No guard."

"Drive check. (Transparent Snowy Night, Beretoi - Draw) Power goes to Custodia and I draw one. (10000>>20000)"

"Damage check. (Eternal Light Dragon, Regulastar Dragon)"

"Signe's skill, she stands after boosting. Museta boosts, Herminia attacks! Museta's Powerful, my front gets 2k! (20000>>22000) (13000>>21000>>23000) (20000>>22000) Ultimate Idol, Forced Shutdown!"

"No guard!"

"Twin drive! (Best Moment, Stolas) (Pumpking Breeze, Lybitta) No trigger."

"Damage check! (Healer of Heavenly Staff, Arshes - Heal) Heal trigger! On Rooks and I heal one! (20000)"

"Now's the time for the master plan. Herminia's Powerful! With no soul and no open counterblast, I discard one to restand Relie! Next time I pay a counterblast cost, it's reduced by one! Museta's skill, she gets botdecked and I countercharge! Once more, Signe boosts, Relie attacks! Counterblast to add 10k and do drive checks! (22000>>30000>>40000)"

"No guard!"

"Drive check. (Enduring Beauty, Herminia) Jackpot."

"Damage check! (Apex-surpassing Sword, Bastion Prime)"

"And finally, Lybitta boosts, Custodia attacks! (22000>>30000)"

"Prorobi and intercept with Regulastar. (35000)"

"Turn end. Once again, Lybitta and Custodia bounce back go hand. Your move, Lycoris."

Akafuyu
Hand: 8
Damage: 2
XXO
XOO

Yukie
Hand: 5
Damage: 3
OXO
OOO

"So like... Is his chant about Herminia taking over the world with idol power? What's up with the attack name too? Is she shutting down other idols by being the best one or something?" Harui asked.

"You call your attacks stuff like Boogie Blues Beatdown and Cerulean Underveiling, I don't think you get to question other people's wording choices." Kiru replied.

"Huh, actually, Cerulean Underveiling is a skill name and it's a very clever word play, thank you very much!"

"Stand and draw. Energy charge. (6>9)"

Yukie placed her hand on the last card of her ride deck, her eyes closed.

A silent moment passed...

...before she swiftly picked up the card and swung it down onto the field like a blade.

"Set all nations ablaze, and condemn the spineless bunch who dream of a foolish vengeance to the burning pyres! Ride! Sword of the Nation, Bastion Accord!"

"That's... Fiery." Akafuyu said.

"Don't be fooled by my unit's name. The deck I like playing reflects me the least." Yukie advised. "Rooks' skill! I reveal Grandeur Edge and Alden to draw one, then draw one more off the discarded Skylizen! Futhermore, I energy blast seven to draw with my Energy Generator. (9>2) I call Alden! With his skill, I counterblast two and soulblast one to call Grandeur Edge from hand and draw two cards! Grandeur Edge's skill, add 10k! (13000>>23000) Bastion Accord's skill! The grade 3 rear-guards in my front row get 5k and cannot be chosen by your effects! (13000>>18000) (23000>>28000) I call Serugaon! Battle! Grandeur Edge attacks! (28000)"

"Guard with two Lybittas. Their Powerful gives them 5k shield each. (33000)"

"Bastion Accord attacks! Serugaon's skill! (13000>>21000>>26000) Flashfire Daybreak!"

"Hm... No guard."

"Twin drive! (Apex-surpassing Sword, Bastion Prime) (Blade Feather Dragon - Critical) I give the critical to Bastion Prime and the power to Alden! (26000>>26000/2) (18000>>28000)"

"Damage check. (Enduring Beauty, Herminia) (Inconspicuous Ambuscade, Museta)"

"Bastion Accord's skill! Granduer Edge stands and gets a skill! Serugaon's skill, scry two and add one to hand. Grandeur Edge attacks again! With his new skill, I counterblast and discard Bastion Prime to make him perform twin drive during this battle! (28000)"

"Judith, perfect guard!"

"Twin drive! (Sword Light Dragon, Skylizen) (Eternal Light Dragon, Regulastar Dragon) No trigger. Alden attacks! His skill, add 5k! (28000>>33000)"

"No guard. (Rainbow Jeweled Beast, Olpirais) Oh, my one off."

"Turn end."

Akafuyu
Hand: 4
Damage: 5
XXO
XOO

Yukie
Hand: 11
Damage: 3
XXX
OOO

"Stand and draw. Energy charge. (6>9) As much shield as Bastion's cards get, Ket hand is Ket hand. Can you keep up, Lycoris?"

"She can and she's gonna whoop your ass, you porno mag collector! You shilled your idol during the wrong aquarium date!" Harui yelled.

"Stop that! You're making a scene!" Kiru groaned, holding her sister back.

"Try it, Collector."

Akafuyu smirked.

"Stand and draw! Energy charge! (6>9) The time is nigh! The doors to a new universe governed by the ultimate star have opened! Humans! Dragons! The entire world! All will relinquish their life to her as tribute! Persona Ride! Enduring Beauty, Herminia!"

"(10000>>20000) (13000>>23000) I draw one. Energy Generator's skill! Energy blast seven to draw one more! I call Museta, Stolas, and with her skill, Custodia from drop! (10000>>20000) Stolas also puts the last card in my soul into the drop. Battle! Signe boosts, Relie attacks! Signe's Powerful, counterblast to give Custodia 5k! (20000>>25000) And since I have three used up counterblasts, Herminia's skilll is online! The counterblast costs of Powerful units in the front are reduced by one! Relie's skill! Counterblast one, add 10k and she drive checks! (20000>>28000>>38000)"

"No guard!"

"Drive check! (Rose of Exaltation, Custodia)"

"Damage check. (Serugaon)"

"Signe's skill, she stands. Custodia attacks! (25000)"

"Blade Feather. (28000)"

"Museta boosts, Herminia attacks! Museta's Powerful! (30000>>32000) (23000>>31000>>33000) (25000>>27000) Ultimate Idol, Universe Reboot COMPLETE!"

"Perfect guard! Palladium Zeal Dragon!"

"Twin drive! (Nocturne of Flickering Lambency, Judith) (Nocturne of Flickering Lambency, Judith) No trigger. Oh well. Herminia's Powerful! The cost becomes a counterblast since I persona rode, but that cost gets reduced by her first skill! So at no cost, Relie and Custodia stand! Museta's skill, countercharge! Once again, Signe boosts, Relie attacks! Both their Powerfuls activate! Signe gives Cutodia 5k, Relie gets 10k and does drives checks! (27000>>32000) (32000>>40000>>50000)"

"Over Guard! Light Dragon Deity of Honours, Amartinoa! (63000)"

"Drive check! (Precious Tune, Edwige - Critical) All effects on Custodia! (32000>>42000/2) Stolas boosts, Custodia attacks! (42000>>52000/2)"

"Once more, Palladium Zeal!"

"You lived through all that without even breaking a sweat... The Lycoris really is a boogeyman." Akafuyu lightly laughed at himself. "Yeah, I'm cooked."

Akafuyu
Hand: 8
Damage: 5
XXX
XOX

Yukie
Hand: 5
Damage: 4
XXX
OOO

"Stand and draw. Energy charge. (2>5)"

"Hey Ki-"

"I-i gotta pee again, let's go Harui!" Kiru exclaimed.

"But Yukie's turn- Aaaaaaaaaaaargh goddammit!"

And just like that, Akafuyu and Yukie were alone again.

"Well, that was easy." He said.

"Is this really necessary? Or are you scared of asking things while Harui is present?" Yukie asked.

"She'd probably bite me, so yesn't. There's a detail I didn't mention before we started, a piece of information I got that I can only attest in person."

"What is it?"

"Kiba Yukie never rides a grade 4, but The Lycoris never persona rides, as if the two were different people. Is it true?"

Yukie clicked her tongue.

"That Jiei..."

"I'll take that as a yes. It made me curious. What's the deal with that?"

"Is it necessary for your information network, Akafuyu-san?"

"No, just sheer curiosity. I get Prime's not the best card anymore, but you gotta have a reason to not ride it even when it can close a game better than Accord."

A brief yet silent moment passed before Yukie answered.

"A vow."

"A vow?"

"To never shine brighter than Harui. That is my vow. That's why I don't ride Prime. It's a needlessly flashy card."

"A flashy card, huh... I guess it is a grade 4 that stays on the field, unlike G-Units that always go back into being grade 3s."

Yukie glared at Akafuyu.

"I got it right. If you don't mind me sounding like a broken record, I respect the dedication, but isn't this bordering on being... Too much?"

Yukie looked down for a brief moment, but then looked out towards the penguin enclosures.

"Do not be fooled by my politeness... Death is in my air."

Akafuyu didn't understood her words, yet he didn't question them either. A part of him understood the longing look in her eyes, yet the other was left puzzled.

"Will you use Prime against me?"

Yukie looked at Akafuyu.

"Why? Aren't we having a casual fight?"

"Yeah, sure... But I'm The Collector. I may want to collect Harui one day. Wouldn't it be better if The Lycoris put the fear of god in me and taught me my place before I had the chance?"

She chuckled.

"If you insist, Akafuyu-san."

Yukie closed her eyes.

She took a deep breath.

(Media - Inferno)

And then she showed her opponent a resolute look that shook his very soul.

"What the-" Akafuyu gasped.

"The walls that once soared heavenward have fallen, and so comes the undefeated, peerless warrior. The champion of yore, who becomes the blade of the present. For I am the red flower blooming in a violent inferno, The Lycoris! Ride! Apex-surpassing Sword, Bastion Prime!"

"I call Sapient Owl! With his effect, I move a Bastion in drop to the soul to give my vanguard 5k and countercharge! (13000>>18000) I move Grandeur Edge back and call a second Alden! With his skill, I call a second Grandeur Edge and draw two cards! Sapient Owl retreats for me to call Skylizen Dragon! His effect will give both Grandeur Edge Dragons Boost during this turn, then he retreats for me to call a second Sapient Owl and reuse his effect without countercharging! (18000>>23000) Grandeur Edge's skill! (13000>>23000) (13000>>23000) Sapient Owl's skill, add 2k and two grades! (8000>>10000) Bastion Prime's skill! My front gets 2k! (13000>>15000) (23000>>25000) (13000>>15000) Battle! Boosted by Grandeur Edge, Alden attacks! His skill, add 5k! (15000>>38000>>43000)"

"Intercept with Custodia, then guard with a second Custodia and Edwige! (48000)"

"The other Alden attacks! (15000>>38000>>43000)"

"Judith! Perfect guard!"

"Boosted by Sapient Owl, Bastion Prime... Attacks! (25000>>35000) Red Gaia Daybreak!"

"Judith again!"

"Triple drive! (Sword of the Nation, Bastion Accord) (Sapient Owl) (Serugaon) Bastion Prime's skill! Until only corpses remain, none will escape the red flower's equinox! Scarlet Helioignite! I soulblast Bastion Accord! All my grade 3 units stand! Add 10k! (20000>>30000) (23000>>33000) (10000>>20000) (23000>>33000) (20000>>30000) Boosted by Grandeur Edge, Alden attacks! (30000>>63000>>68000)"

"I never had a chance, did I..." Akafuyu laughed at himself again. "Yeah, I'm beyond cooked. No guard. (Enduring Beauty, Herminia)"

Akafuyu fell back on his chair and sighed.

"Boogeyman my ass, she's something else entirely... I'd have a word for it if I was a japanese major."

"Thank you for the game." Yukie bowed to her opponent and began packing her things. "I believe this puts the Blacksync matter to rest."

"Not like it ever existed. We'd look like nutjobs if we tried to take a high schooler to court because she didn't join our team. 'Sides, you think we can afford those legal fees?"

"I thought as much."

"Yeah... So, how far will this protect Harui from the weak thing go?"

"What do you mean?" Yukie asked, narrowing her eyes at the young man.

"If you don't mind me using idol industry lingo, a manager has to know how to protect their star from both bad and good rep. Bad rep for the obvious reasons, good rep so that their star isn't built up to fail by the smallest of mistakes. It's a perfect balance no one really knows how to achieve, if we're being honest. But in your case, you only fight the bad rep. What will you do when someone far stronger than Harui comes along and thoroughly breaks her spirit?"

Yukie didn't have an answer.

She became lost in thought, but heard a familiar voice calling out to her. She looked at Harui and Kiru as they returned to their table and smiled.

"I don't need to do anything. She's Harui. She'll just win."

"I wish I had the balls to have that much faith in anything that isn't Kidani or my mags." Akafuyu admitted.

"What?! You guys are done already?! You and your weak bladder made me lose the ass kicking my girlfriend dished out on your landlord!" Harui exclaimed.

"Leave my bladder outta this, my bladder isn't weak!" Kiru replied.

"Wow, you're assuming I lost? That's not nice." Akafuyu said.

"You fought Yukie, so yeah, you lost. No two ways about it. She's just that good. Are we done with the Blacksync thing now?"

"Ouch... Yeah, we're done. You're officially free from us, Ibuki Harui. Both in regards to Blacksync and this place. It's time we go home anyway. I wanna pee."

"There's bathrooms in the aquarium, dumbass." Kiru said.

"I like pissing in my own toilet. It's my god given right as housing owner."

"Sounds like we aren't need here then!" Harui grabbed Yukie's hand and started pulling away. "See ya later, schmucks! Get well soon, Kiru!"

"T-thanks! Stay in school or something, kid!" She replied.

"Stay in school? Really?" Akafuyu asked.

"S-shut up! I don't deal well with pressure, my hangover exists for a reason!"

And it was back to the aquarium date, not that was much left to see. After the penguin and seal exhibits, there was the Edorium, an Edo-themed display of various breeds of goldfish.

In no time, the two were back outside, taking in the fresh air before a notification on her phone made Harui yell loud enough to scare the people passing by.

"CRAP! CRAP, CRAP, CRAP, CRAP, CRAP!"

"W-what's wrong?!" Yukie asked.

"My reservation expired because we spent so much time with those two!" She cried.

"...huh?"

"Back on monday when we decided to spend the weekend together, I managed to get a reservation on this really famous seafood place... But the place is so good you can lose your reservation if you aren't there on time..."

"Oh, that's it? That doesn't sound so bad. Maybe we can go have dinner there instead."

"Their earliest free slot is in July now..."

"J-july?!" Yukie exclaimed, but then sweatdropped. "We don't need some five star restaurant to be romantic, right?"

Harui looked at Yukie. One of her overconfident grins showed up again.

"Hell yeah. Let's go, Yukie! Romance awaits us!"

Said romance was a scrumptious lunch of sandwiches and sodas from the most delectable vending machines around them.

But they were eating them in the cabin of a ferris wheel with a view of the sea, so it all worked out in the end.

"The unscheduled meeting with the broke pissers aside, I'd call this date one for the books." Harui said, putting an arm around Yukie.

"Do you need to call them that?" Yukie asked with a chuckle, leaning in closer to rest her head against Harui's.

"They were the ones talking where to pee. Or pee in general. I hope Kiru doesn't have something wrong with her bladder..."

"So you do care for her."

"O-of course I do..." She blushed. "She's not Neetama but she's still my sister... Well, anyway, I'm free from my Blacksync obligations. It just wouldn't be the same if you weren't there too. Thank you for fighting for my honour, o' my knight in shining armour."

The two shared a brief laugh that was broken by Yukie raising her head.

"What's wrong?"

"It's about what went down with Blacksync. You know you could have joined them without me, right?"

"Yeah, but... I wanna be with you. If I'm not on the same team as you, why even bother?"

"Harui..." Yukie sighed. "This could have been good for you. If the rumoured tournament ever happens, you could already have a team to participate with... I need you to make a vow."

"A vow?"

"Something stronger than a promise. Something you mustn't break no matter what. Going back on your vow might aswell be the same as cheating."

Harui suddenly sat up straight and looked at Yukie worriedly.

"Y-yeah, absolutely! What is it then? Yoi're starting to scare me..."

Yukie tightly grabbed Harui's hands.

"Don't deny yourself something because of me. Even if I'm not by your side, I'll always be cheering you on no matter what... So never deny an opportunity just because it doesn't include me, okay? I don't want to be someone who holds you back..."

Harui pulled Yukie into her arms and hugged her tightly.

"You got it... I vow to never hold back because of you."

"Mhm... Thank you, Harui."

They sooned returned to their previous position, with Harui's arm around Yukie as she leaned her head against hers.

Harui decided to make a question.

"Aren't vows also that thing people say when they get married?"

"I suppose so. Why? Are you planning your wedding already?" Yukie teased.

"My wedding? Nyehehehe! Nah, I already got my whole life planned. Well, the skeleton of it. The rest will comes as I live."

"You make it sound like a deck." Yukie chuckled. "What's that skeleton then?"

"First I become unparalleled throughout heaven and earth, that's just obvious. Then we graduate, do whatever we want for college, get hitched along the way, find a home of our own, get Bachi a sibiling and some other pets, and then way deep into the future, I'll get you knocked up-"

Yukie pinched Harui's cheek with a small smile, making her laugh.

"I'll build a family with you. Get some snotty-nosed brats running and yelling around the house, watch them grow, watch them live their life, grow old with you, and then one day, way, way, waaaaaay into the future... Sleep by your side forever... But! I kinda need you to be with me for that skeleton to work. So what do you say? Wanna spend the rest of your life with me?"

Yukie chuckled and snuggled closer to Harui.

"That was my plan all along."