Dueling life in a futuristic world

 You know… Eating together with these three really brings me back to when I first got summoned here. I was nervous as hell that my dueling skills would be insufficient; I was insecure about myself and why I was here; and I was dreading living as a woman and being shy as hell because of it.

 Now I’m a cheerleader in a club that operates not unlike a sorority, eating out with my duelist buddies, who, from the looks of it, are about to win a tournament with decks I gave them at a dueling space station arena… Oh, how the world turns.

 Speaking about my lifestyle. Yasuna finishes cleaning her mouth and asks. “So, Yuumi. I have to ask, how’s it being a cheerleader?”

 I also wipe my lips on a paper napkin and respond. “Well, it’s fun to jump and dance around up on that platform, especially with the cheers and chants we can make the audience follow.” Hunching down, I continue with the bad parts. “But, honestly, it’s exhausting at the rate we’re going for this tournament. At least for me, my club mates have outlandish stamina.”

 “Haruna, Naeko and Nanako, right?” The green-haired sporty girl names the three. “I never spoke with them…. Well, more like they never gave me the light of day. They only accept blue-ranks or above into their club and you remember what Haruna said to me when we met?”

 “Yeah, pretty demeaning. I almost refused her offer because of it.”

 “Right… Well, you haven’t begun acting like them, so I guess that my biggest fear was unjustified. Still, there’s a bunch of rumors and stories about the cheerleading club on the forums, some even claiming their club activities have massive orgies. How much of that is true?”

 “Hm.” I smirk, then turn her question into an offer. “Why don’t you join the club? You like action duel class, right? It’s just that, but more fun.”

 She recoils, leaning back on the small chair around this public table, then stammers. “M-M-Me? Nooooo, I couldn’t! They only accept blue ranks or above.”

 I lean in and push. “Oh, come on, you’re not that far away from being forced up to yellow rank. And with these matches your elo must be reaching 1000 by this point.”

 “B-but, didn’t you have to go to a crazy initiation or something humiliating like that?”

 “Oh, yeah.” I flick my cheer club badge that makes it shine with a dark-pink glint, a show of me having passed that initiation. “Don’t get nervous because of that. It’s not as bad as it sounds.”

 She leans back in her chair, glancing to the side. “Well, thanks for the offer, but I think I’ll just remain an action duelist, haha.”

 Her nervous laugh doesn’t get lost on me, but I just shrug. “Oh, well. Suit yourself, I guess.” I glance at the other two and extend the same offer. “By the way, that offer also extends to you two.”

 They also get flustered and respectfully refuse. Leaving me thinking if my tolerance to embarrassing things is just higher than most other girls.

 I shrug it off, leaning back on the chair I’m sitting on and looking down at my phone. I just got a message from Sonia telling me that my father contracted another maid to serve as my personal one now that she’s a trained assassin. Also, my room in the mansion was ready… his keenness would surprise me if it wasn’t for the memories of Yuumi, which told me he was just fantastic at getting things done quickly. Anyway, it may be interesting to visit there during the winter break in the last two weeks of December, but right now I have better things to spend my time on. Like what to do with my remaining NWDA Duelist Credits. I can buy packs on the app and have the results delivered by tube when I return to the island, but I have 375DC and wasting short of 400DC on packs just seems a little wasteful.

 Right as I’m swiping through some items I could get for DC, Mia awkwardly interrupts. “*Cough*,*cough*, really Yuumi? Light-green? You know what they say about girls that wear that?”

 I look off from my phone to try to understand what she’s talking about. It’s then that I notice the position I’m in. I have my legs raised and crossed, with my thighs leaning against the table and my feet in the air. Now, while this is a public spot, there's really not many other patrons around, so I don’t really care about looking dignified, this is much more comfortable, but it also has the side effect of showing off my underwear to anyone looking from Mia’s side.

 Instead of shame, I can only get annoyed and grumble. “Ahf, so what? Do you think I care about people looking up my skirt after literally spending most of yesterday’s duel above the stands getting up-skirted? Let them look for all I care.”

 As I make my declaration, I catch Yasuna muttering under her breath, a slight smile on her lips. It’s hard to make out her exact words, but I sense a hint of teasing in her tone. “So some of their traits did rub off on you.”

 I’m not ignorant enough to miss what she means, but I honestly don’t care. Shame is just another thing that only exists to hold you back, and unless you take it too far, it is mostly harmless to be a little shameless. Hell, she probably knows that too. Why would she always run around that exposing sports uniform if she cared so much about being proper?

 Seeing an opening in the conversation here, I decide to come clean about something. “Right, can I get you girls’ attention for a moment? I have something I need to tell you all.”

 They look up from their various devices and focus on me.

 “Right… So, there’s a particularity about my life I haven’t been completely clean about. The Director knows this for official business, but I haven’t told anyone else.”

 Various brows shot up and heads tilt, Yasuna being the only one to speculate. “What? Were you a top star duelist in the streets or something? Cos that would explain a lot.”

 I smirk, but counter. “No, actually I feel like it’ll only bring up more questions…” I take a deep breath and lay it down. “I only became an orphan 4 years ago…”

 ……

 As I expected, silence fills the space, only broken up by the occasional background noise of the food court.

 Yasuna is frozen with her maw hanging open and eyes distant. With the twins sharing a much more reserved but still unmoving reaction.

 I sigh and look back down at my phone, letting them take as much time as they need to process what I just revealed.

 ‘Oh, 50% discount on eyeliners and base pallets from sea-diva cosmetics? Now that’s a good deal. Maybe I should also try those nano-bot based artificial lashes. They look fly as hell on Naeko.’

 “I-I’m.. So sorry, Yuumi… Uhhh, I d-didn’t expect you to say something so serious!” Yasuna stammers out. “Just… If you want to talk about it… What happened?”

 “Yasuna!” Mia cuts in. “Don’t ask things like that so simply! This is serious!” She gazes at me and requests. “Why didn’t you tell us this before? You’ve always said you were an orphan since birth!”

 “Oh, and legally I am. Matsunaga isn’t a last name that will show up on Dragoon City family databases. And since this wasn’t relevant until now, I didn’t see why I would tell anyone.”

 This explanation of mine only appears to leave them with more questions. I expected this, of course; I just told them half of what they know about me was a lie.

 After a bit of back and forth between the three, Aiko is the one that asks the simple question. “Yuumi… If it wouldn’t be too tough… Could you just… Tell us the complete story?”

 The three stop arguing and all turn to me.

 I finally put my legs back down and sit in a proper position, not about to give this story so nonchalantly. Then, I slide my phone down in my hidden skirt pocket, and hover my arms over the table, interview style. “Right… It all started with my biological brother in 23MT. Actually, how about I just tell you my real last name? It’s Katayama, your standard two generation spanning business dynasty.”

 That immediately sets of some feelings among the three, but they let me continue my story out of respect.

 “In 23MT, my brother decided he wanted to be a duelist. Don’t ask me what his inspirations were. I wasn’t old enough to understand that. Now, my father — who had basically groomed him to be the family heir — hated this, yet he wasn’t cold enough to deny my brother’s dream. Which meant Toya — My biological brother’s first name — enrolled in the NWDA at 18.”

 “That’s pretty generous. I heard that people in those positions rarely get what they want.” Mia comments.

 “I retrospect, it was.” I agree with her, then continue my story. “Now let’s skip five years, 28MT, my brother’s 23, I’m 11, and he just graduated at Cyan rank from the NWDA.”

 Expressions of shock and awe appear on the three, even more than when I told them I wasn’t really an orphan my whole life.

 I hold my hand to tell them to wait and let me finish.

 They thankfully oblige, taking sips of their various drinks in the meantime.

 “Right, after graduating, he rocked the Dragoon City dueling world. He was a superb duelist.”

 “I guess it runs in the family then, huh?” Yasuna quips.

 I grin and half-agree with her. “Maybe, but that’s not the important part.”

 They all somber down hearing that.

 “Two years later, 30MT, he’s 25, I’m 13. During a tournament I have all but forgotten the name of, he dueled an opponent with the nickname ‘Thunder Strike.’”

 “Pfff.” Yasuna spits out her drink after hearing the name. She hurries to clean her mouth and apologize. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean that! Just that nickname… It’s terrible…”

 This sentiment appears to be shared by the others, as Mia and Aiko are also stifling laughs.

 I let them calm down before continuing. In retrospect, ‘Thunder Strike’ is a cringe ass nickname for someone to call themselves.

 After they all settle down. I continue. “Right, my brother was in the final round of the tournament, facing Thunder Strike. He was winning by far and it was pretty obvious who would win the round. Some turns passed and eventually my brother delivered the final blow… With a board full of unnecessary monsters, he summoned to show off.”

 “Oh, no.” Yasuna mutters.

 “‘Oh, no’ Indeed. I don’t have a good explanation for what happened next, but my biological father insists Thunder was blackmailed.” I inhale a deep breath. “Thunder… Didn’t surrender… And forget paramedics. There wasn’t enough of him left for the family to identify, just a red stain on the arena where he was standing.”

 It’s like a dark cloud descended on the table. A wave of depression and melancholy, that I almost feel bad for telling the story, but it was necessary for me not to leave anything out if I was going to be fully transparent with them.

 Yasuna turns to me and requests. “So… What does that have to do with you?”

 Mia looked like she wanted to chastise Yasuna for being that direct, but she was curious.

 So, I simply continue. “I wanted to follow in my brother’s footsteps… I wanted to be a duelist. But after that disaster, my father had hidden him and I never saw him again, save for a few family dinners close to the disaster. To that effect, I did what every teenage kid does when their parents don’t allow them to do what they want. I rebelled.”

 “You had everything you could’ve asked for and you rebelled just to duel? I will never understand you people.” Yasuna spits back, rightly so, in my opinion.

 Before Mia can tell her off like she probably will, I butt in. “Yeah… When you get everything you want since birth and then suddenly what you want the most gets denied by the same people who gave you everything, what do you think will happen?” I feel blood rush to my head, an unexplained anger hitting me at once. I stand up from the chair, leaning against the table with my eyes focused on Yasuna. “You don’t have to tell me I was naïve and stupid to be so brazen. I know that now better than you probably ever will!”

 She pales, stuttering under her breath. “I-I didn’t mean it! S-Sorry.”

 I close my eyes tightly, thinking to myself. ‘What the fuck am I doing?’

 I sit back down and take various deep breaths before finishing this tale. “One day, I had gotten ahold of a fake ID and got a real duel disk… I came back home bleeding. That was the final straw. They kicked me out at 14 and changed everything about my identity… I lived for 4 years taking the worst abuse of my life day in and day out… Until I could finally show what I was capable of at the tryouts. You know the rest.”

—

 A heavy silence descended around the table. The three brewing in their own thoughts.

 I will accept whatever their reaction is. Be that hatred for having lied about who I was. Or even pity, which I’m not expecting even the slightest.

 After a good ten minutes pass, Mia is the first to say something. “So… Why are you telling us this now?”

 It’s a good question. If there weren’t for another event, I would probably just leave them in the dark to save them this trauma… Even if the concept of lying to someone to try to protect then is… misguided.

 I nod. “Well, I’m guessing you probably have an idea. I revealed myself as a capable natural penta-summoner… They want the clout from having me as their daughter, even if they face the embarrassment of having to admit what they did. Right now they’re offering honey for me to come back… I don’t know when that will turn into vinegar.” I lean forward onto the table. “There’s also another problem. The city wants to recruit me to their SV force… Well, ‘want’ is putting it nicely. I just got a draft notice.”

 “What? But you’re part of the ADF, aren’t you?” Yasuna keenly points out.

 I glance her direction and respond. “Yes, I am. And that’s why I told the Director. He’s trying to figure things out.” I turn my gaze to the table. “But if he’s unable to swing the council, I will have no choice but accept the ‘Honey’ deal my father gave me not too long ago.” I lean back on the chair and reveal. “That’s why I’m telling you three this now. If I’m suddenly revealed to be a lost family member of a rich dynasty, I want you three to know exactly what’s happening.”

 “That’s… Nice of you.” Aiko comments.

 I turn to her and tell. “No, it’s not. It’s the minimum I can do.” Gazing to the side, I mumble. “The nice thing to do would be not having lied in the first place. But I can’t change the past.”