Title: Stained

Synopsis: Doubts have filled Aki's mind since the Fortune Cup, but she finds that the one thing that she cannot release, doubted or not, is a man by the name of Divine.

Rating: K+

A/N: This fic is based on my theory that Divine is actually a sociopath. Sociopaths are known for a lot of things, but one specific trait of is that they want their victims to be willing. In a case of murder, for example, they easily walk themselves into the place where the sociopath wishes to kill them and waits eagerly. That sort of thing. Look up sociopath if you want to know more. But after reading a book about a sociopath I began to think that Divine was one, so I started writing him as if he were one, which is how something like this came along. By the way, this is set before the Arcadia Movement falls, sometime in between the Fortune Cup and then. Yeah. :]

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's because if I did Divine would have found some better way to die than being eaten by a giant lizard.

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There was a dent on the wall of his office where he had thrown the mug. Aki could see the shattered remnants of the porcelain and the growing stain where the coffee had spilled. Instinctively Aki took a step back towards the door. When Divine was like this he reminded her too much of the past, too much of her father and her own experiences.

Since Divine was the one shining beacon, and the one angel in her life, she needed to maintain that image for herself, or else everything would go to hell.

An almost primal grunt came out of Divine's mouth as he looked at her. That look was something all too familiar to Aki. She had seen it in his eyes before; when they kissed that look would be in his eyes before his tongue got more aggressive and in their training that look would be when he was about to make some kind of almost unbeatable card combo.

But in a moment, it was gone. Sitting easily in his chair, Divine cleared his throat. "I was just a bit angry about something." Their eyes both scanned over to the destroyed mug. For a moment Aki's eyes were caught on the ever-growing stain. Each moment it would get just a bit larger and would cover just a bit more of the industrial beige carpet with a brown stain. Eventually her eyes were ripped away by the continuation of Divine's voice. "There's no need to worry."

For a moment, Aki had forgotten about how she had entered the room. The sound of the shattering material against the wall, the yell, as if Divine were in some sort of agony and her own feet as they ran towards him as if they were being pulled by some sort of magnet. A thought had not even crossed her mind the entire time; she just knew that if Divine were in some kind of pain or some kind of trouble, she would help him. It was all that she could do; to run to him and maybe to comfort him. To see him in a moment of weakness like he had seen her in hers.

"I'm glad that there is nothing to worry about." The words were forced and thought through too much. It was always like that with Divine; she didn't know what to say or how to say it. Sometimes it felt like their relationship was built on that. Shaky words and rocky eye contact. There was just something about Divine that put her on edge sometimes, and she was never totally at ease around him. Nevertheless, he was the most important thing to her. Everything in her life and the one thing that she would die for. "I'll leave you alone then."

As Aki turned to walk out of the room, she noted how the stain had swelled even further. It extended for almost two feet. The fact that it had grown so large amazed Aki. Just a cup of coffee thrown in a moment of anger would forever leave this reminder to Divine. Just like the scars of abuse on her own body would forever remind her of the terrors of her childhood.

"Is there something on your mind Aki?" Swiftly Aki turned her head to look back at Divine, who was now sitting casually with the same cool expression that he always had. A familiar expression and the one that was most suited to his face. It was undeniable that he was a handsome man, but Aki could understand how many people put him at a distance. There was something just a tad bit cold about his emerald eyes, something a bit mocking in his smile and something frightening in his demeanor. With every passing day Aki could understand a little bit more how people could have looked at this man and tried to push him away. "Because if there is Aki, I will listen to you."

A part of Aki's mind wrestled with itself; she could tell him about her doubts and how she was beginning to fear him more than love him. It would be easy to air out all of the thoughts in her mind and unload them to this man as she had for so long, but there was the seed of doubt. It had been planted at the Fortune Cup when she had seen someone else who had been through the sort of terrors that she had and yet reached out and waned to be her friend.

A friend. Such a foreign word and idea to someone like Aki, but yet, something that she found intoxicating. The idea of someone who wanted to be with her, not just out of pity or of shared circumstances, but someone who found her to be interesting and beautiful. Deep down she knew that Divine would not have reached out o her had she not been so gifted in physic dueling, but she knew that Divine loved her. He had to. Everything he did told her the same thing, that he loved her and that he cared about her, yet, she found herself doubting him. Hesitating and being uncertain because when she looked at him she found herself thinking about Yusei and the fact that despite so many factors, he wanted to be her friend, as if she were a real person, not just a physic duelist.

Staring him straight in the eyes she answered his question quickly. "No." She said hoping that the subject was closed. The thoughts of rebellion that she was having needed to stay in her head; if they were to escape then the results would be catastrophic.

It was only after hearing Divine's chair move backwards and the clunk of his feet on the plastic mat that sat below it that Aki realized that her attention had yet again shifted from the man in front of her to the stain that his coffee was leaving. It had continued to grow, and a part of Aki was disappointed. Her eyes tore themselves away from the carpet and onto Divine, who was now moving across his large office over to Aki. The office was dark and the large windows showed a brilliant view of the city below it. The nighttime hustle and bustle of the citizens could be seen and for a brief moment Aki wondered what it would have been like to be down there. To have plans on a Friday night and a place to go to like a normal person. A warmth surrounded her and she realized that Divine was behind her, wrapping her in his arms.

He whispered into her ear, something that he had done since they had met. "Don't worry, there's nothing to be worried about. Just listen to me and thinks will be okay." The words that were once reassuring to Aki and the arms that were once her strength were beginning to become tiresome and irritating. With all of the doubts that had been so firmly planted running around in her brain, she was finding it difficult to listen. She loved Divine, and she always would. He was her savior, but this different light that he was standing in was frightening and unwanted.

She wanted the Divine that had saved her, not the one that really existed.

For a moment she let herself enjoy this. When she had first met this man she had dreamed of this sort of encounter and when it first happened she had been overjoyed. It was a feeling of elation; that out of all of the women and physic duelists in the world, this man had chosen her. Small, insignificant, unimportant Aki was who he wanted, and she wanted him back. Those seemed to be the happiest days of her life, and she did want to return to those days where she didn't need to think.

Divine buried his face in her neck and the warmth was not unwelcome. This man was familiar and safe in so many ways. It was not his fault that there was such a battle going on her mind and that the contradictions concerning him were many and significant.

Safe, dangerous.

Truth, lies.

Angel, demon.

Protected, caged.

The list went on and on. The doubts went on and on. Her eyes flitted towards the stain, still growing, and thought about the similarities. How the stain would continue to grow and grow and would never be able to be removed. Eventually the doubts would pile up so much that maybe one day she would have to leave Divine and leave the life or the lie that she had been living.

Then suddenly, she was being turned towards Divine, his hands on her shoulders. "You don't look well, go to bed and get some rest." He pulled her in and embraced her tightly, like something that he never wanted to let lose. She let herself relax in his grip, feeling protected. "I do not know what would happen if something were to happen to you Aki." Then his arms were back on his shoulders and a smile was on his face and the doubts were flushed out of Aki's mind.

Maybe, even if it all was a lie, she could live like this for just a bit longer, just to see him smile like that again.

Intentionally averting her eyes away from the stain on the floor, Aki left feeling hopeful and satisfied for the first time in quite some time. As soon as Divine could no longer hear her footsteps he walked briskly over to his desk and unearthed a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from one of the drawers. After popping a cigarette out of the case and lighting it he took a long, slow drag, filling himself up with the smoke until he was content. Then, aggressively, he stabbed the butt into a tray that he kept on his desk. After staring at that for a moment, he threw that against a wall, the opposite wall from the coffee mug. He needed to make sure that she did not return.

Because if she returned she may start asking questions.

And if she were to start asking questions then the entire illusion may be shattered and if that were broken, Divine would not know what to do.

He needed Aki, maybe not for the same reasons that she needed him, but if he were to lose her all Hell were to break lose. The letter that had prompted the first thrown object stared at him from on top of his desk. Just a plain letter on plain paper with plain writing that meant so much more. It was a letter from a young man who wanted to meet with a young woman. It just so happened that the young woman was the one thing that another man needed, so the young man would have to be pushed aside, unless he were to be the man's downfall.

Divine took the letter addressed from Yusei Fudo and held it up in the air. With a pop the flame from Divine's lighter reappeared and in an instant the flames engulfed the letter, making the perfect white paper turn brown and crumple. A smile spread across Divine's face as the last bits charred and turned into nothing.

"I feel no remorse." The words were a whisper and said to himself, but prompted a hearty laugh to escape from Divine's lips. It was true; he was sincerely a real puppet master.

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Fin