So I decided to write a loose squeal to Fever. I feel like that there is so much I can do with what I set up so these will be little shorts about various topics. I'll even take suggestions about what to write next. Leave your suggestions in reviews.

…..

Astral looked at his new appearance. Being human was something that he imagined in passing but here he was in the flesh, literally. Yuma had made a great sacrifice for him offering half of his soul. But the process was not painless. Yuma had insisted that he was fine during the process but his screams of pain still haunted his memory. Right now Yuma was recovering in bed from both the soul extraction and the illness that lead up the decision. So Astral was left with some time to himself to get used to his body. It was weird to feel anything. The touch of skin, the rubbing of fabric, running his fingers through his hair, eating was his favorite. Upon his introduction to the Tsukumo family Grandma had made a grand feast to celebrate the occasion, though Astral had to be stopped several times from putting wasabi on his food, once he ate it straight he understood why. It had only been a few days but Astral already learned so much about being human, and understood why Yuma had lied about what exactly happened inside a bathroom.

"Astral….is Yuma doing alright?"

Astral heard Yukari's hesitant voice. Out of everyone in Yuma's family, she seemed to be the slowest at accepting his presence. He figured it was because she was unaware of his and Yuma's fate and had to be filled in. The reactions she had as she heard more and more, at times cursing herself for not noticing the times Yuma was in danger. She had also freaked out when she realized that Astral had been a ghost in their house. Ever since then she had kept her distance, only talking to him when absolutely necessary.

"He's still sleeping Akari. Though once Grandma makes good he'll wake up."

"Of course he would…" Akari closed the door as fast as she could. Astral sighed, he hoped she would accept him soon.

Akari couldn't help but look at the door of her brother and his….friend's room. How was she supposed to accept that this boy was Yuma's invisible friend that helped him duel and saved the world and was magically human? Mom and Dad were all smiles upon hugging him and declared that they were going to adopt him as their own while Grandma just went with it talking about how it was nice to have one more mouth to feed. Hearing him call them Mom, Dad, and Grandma. She didn't like it one bit. There was no way she could see this person as her brother. Storming back to her room she sat back down at her desk. There were still articles she had to write.

"How can he just waltz in and take a place here?"

"He is a part of this family Akari."

Akari didn't look at her father. "Why are you so instant on that?"

"I thought you would understand. He is Yuma's best friend and part of the destiny that he fulfilled."

"That's why I tried to forbid him from dueling! He's just a kid!" Akari protested. "And now you have Astral…who is supposed to have been this invisible friend…living under our roof. You think I would be okay with this?"

Kazuma sighed, "Can you please just give him a chance?"

"But it's his fault that Yuma's suffered so much!" Akari's patience was running out. "I'm never going to accept him! Ever!"

A glass breaking was heard from the kitchen followed by storming footsteps. Kazuma poked his head out to catch the tail end of someone running upstairs. "Oh boy…" Kazuma rubbed his forehead and went upstairs. He had a good feeling as to who it was that over heard them. Yuma and Astral's door was slightly ajar allowing him to hear the sobs coming from inside.

"Shhh….it's alright Astral."

"S-She….she said…."

"Just give her time."

"What…..what can I do?...She hates me…."

"We'll figure something out. Don't worry."

Kazuma was grateful for his son's caring heart as he went back down stairs into the kitchen where his wife was cleaning up the broken glass.

"I don't have to guess what happened do I?" She asked.

"I suppose not….what are we going to do? We've been out of their lives for so many years….we barely know our own kids." The sound of Kazuma's heart breaking was almost audible.

"We have to learn to be a family again," Mirai said sweeping up the last of the glass, "But Akari was always stubborn. I don't want to force her to accept Astral but if it goes on like this…."

"Oh don't be so down you two." Haru said as she entered the kitchen, "I know of the perfect way for those two to make up.

….

"Oh no….you did not just do this to me!"

Akari crumpled the note in her hand. Both of her parents and grandma had left the house and had asked her and Astral to take care of dinner preparations! She could of done it herself but the workload left to her needed two people. And there was no way she could ask Yuma because he was still bedridden. But Astral had been reluctant to leave his room lately, not that Akari minded but right now she did need some help.

"No….I can do this myself." She threw on an apron and got to work, chopping vegetables, mixing meat, and heating the oil for frying. It was a lot of prep work for one person to feed six in the time she had but she wasn't going to be beaten by this challenge. She was hurriedly trying to form croquette balls when the smell of something burning caught her nose.

"Crap!" She forgot about the cooking oil! The pan was way too hot and was starting to boil over! One drop of the grease made contact with the gas fire combusting the whole pan into flames. She had to put it out before the fire spread. Grabbing a dish cloth Akari tried to beat the fire out as much as she could to at least get to the burner to turn it off but the hot oil was splattering everywhere and the heat was immense.

At this rate the fire is going to spread! Akari tried to hurry and think of a solution when someone ran past her grabbing the still burning pan tossing it into the skin and smothered it with a dish towel.

"Are…are you alright?" Astral asked out of breath.

Akari was in shock. "Do you know how dangerous that was?! What if you spilt what was in the pan!"

"I-I'm sorry!" Astral seemed rather timid now, "I read that water and smothering a fire would extinguish it. Was I wrong in my method?"

Akari had to resist the urge to smack herself in stupidity, of course Astral wouldn't know how to deal with a kitchen fire. Yuma said he wasn't able to touch anything until recently so everything he knew was second hand or was from reading. He wouldn't know that he wasn't supposed to touch a hot pan. Oh crap….

"You're hands."

"What?"

"You're hands….let me see them."

Astral blink but held up his hands palms up. Parts of them were an angry red from the hot metal and oil.

"Yep…you've burned them."

"Burned?"

"You burn your skin when you've come into contact with fire or hot metal. It's an injury and I need to treat it." Akari simplified her explanation seeing that Astral was still confused.

"Oh…I'll go get the medical kit…"

"No I will…don't touch anything. We don't want to risk infection. Run them under cold water until I get back." Akari went to the bath room to retrieve the first aid kit and took a moment to think. "Stupid….stupid stupid me…." Akari knocked her head against the mirror. Her stubbornness nearly caused the house to catch fire. She should have asked for help that way she would of kept a better eye on the oil. And now Astral went ahead and got himself burnt over her mistake. She had treated him rather coldly yet he still came to her aid. Especially with her conversation with her father the previous night that it was obvious that Astral had overheard. "I hope he can forgive me…." Akari collected herself and went back to the kitchen seeing Astral keeping his hands under water just like he was told.

"That should be good." Akari turned off the faucet and collected a clean towel. She carefully dried off his hands not to agitate the sensitive skin then rubbed the burn cream on the affected areas.

"That feels cold…and weird." Astral muttered.

"The cream is supposed to be like that….I'm surprised that you aren't screaming in pain."

"It does hurt but Yuma never cried at physical pain so I thought you weren't supposed too."

Akari let out a groan, "That Yuma…..he's teaching you bad habits."

"He was the only one who could see me for some time. I only knew what he cared to explain to me."

"Was it….lonely?" Akari found herself asking.

Astral seemed surprised at her question, "The feeling of emptiness….and sadness that I got when ever Yuma wasn't talking to me….yes it was lonely."

"Oh…I'm sorry."

"You have no need to apologize…that was in the past and this was my mistake…"

"No Astral…it's mine. I was being stupid. I was thinking more of myself. I didn't think of how Mom and Dad felt. I didn't think of how Yuma felt…and how you felt. I was so caught up in my own head that I didn't think how this could have been the greatest thing that has happened to you." Akari stared to wrap up the burns. "And for all those things I said….I'm sorry. Do you think you can give me a second chance?"

Astral smiled, "Yuma believes in second chances…so I will."

Akari breathed a sigh in relief, it was like a big weight was lifted off of her chest. Then she looked over the state of the kitchen, "There's no way that dinner will be ready on time."

"I can help. I've observed Grandma preparing food several times."

"There's a big difference between watching and actually doing it." Akari let out a smile. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad having another brother.