Chapter 2: "Hajimemashite! I'm Atsuko, desu!"

A/N: I never thought I had the opportunity to type up the next chapter for this. Zexal ended, Arc V started and during that time I completely forgot about my 5ds fan fiction. What got me into continuing to write this was few people who PM'd me and reminded me about this story. I was like: "Holy crap!" So here we are now, the third chapter of the Legendary Signer!

Okay, I've re-read the previous chapters and I'm deciding to fix them later. But for now, it is best to give you the third chapter now and revise later. ;)

Several Years Ago:

Summer. The hottest season of the year. But that doesn't mean it can stop certain boys from playing outside. From the small orphanage in the Satellite Area, three boys, Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas, and Crow Hogan, ran outside, not far from where they previously left.

"Be sure to be back at noon!" Martha called out to the boys.

"We will!" Crow replied back. As the three stopped, Jack was the first to suggest a game.

"Hide n' Seek, again?!" Crow sighed at the blonde boy.

"Of course! It's your turn to count anyway!" Jack replied to the orange haired boy.

"But I did it the past five games!"

"Exactly!" With a sigh of defeat, Crow turned to the nearest tree, covered his eyes and counted to twenty. This gave both Jack and Yusei enough time to hide. The problem was, for Yusei, was that there wasn't enough places to hide. The best hiding places were deeper into the forest. It can't hurt to walk deeper into the forest to hide, right? This 'little walk', however, turned into a nightmare for the raven himself. There was one word that can describe his current state now.

Lost.

How long would he be lost? Maybe 'till the end of time? What if no one finds him? What if he will never find a way back to the place he calls 'Home'? Ugh! This is ridiculous!

As Yusei walked aimlessly around the forest, he heard a small snap coming from behind him. He tried to be brave and ignored it, taking small footsteps as he walked.

"Who goes there?!" a voice boomed into the damp air. Yusei paused, holding in his breath.

"Who's there?" he managed to say.

"You're worst nightmare!" then suddenly, a girl with messy white hair, wearing a black robe jumped in front of Yusei, making him scream as the girl made screeching noises. Yusei ran, making sure the girl wasn't on his trail. After passing a few shrubs and trees, he bumped into an orange-haired boy, knocking him down in the process.

"Y-Yusei!" Crow snapped at the frightened boy. "There you are! Jack and I were worried about you!" Jack walked up to the two and sighed. Then he noticed Yusei's pale face.

"Oi! You okay, Yusei? Oi!" he started to wave his hand in front of the boy's face. Crow started to get worried too.

"Yusei?"

"...monster..." he whispered.

"Huh?"

"Would you believe me if I saw a monster?"

"..."

"..."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Jack and Crow laughed hysterically.

"It's true! You guys!" Yusei pouted. "Stop laughing!"

"Okay! Okay! We will!" Crow stated, trying to hold in his laugh but failed to do so. "Sorry, Yusei! You know there is no such thing as monsters! Duel Monsters, I understand! But c'mon!"

"Now, Crow," Jack put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Yusei looks serious. If he did saw a monster, then let's check it out and see. If not, you can laugh all you want!"

"Alright!" Crow smiled. Yusei rolled his eyes and led the duo to the forest. As time went by, Crow started to feel a little uncomfortable, knowing that Martha will scold them if she finds out they're doing this.

Then, the same snap occurred behind the trio of boys, causing them to stop dead in their tracks.

Crow spoke up, "Uh, Yusei... Why did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"That snapping sound?"

"That wasn't me."

"Jack?"

"Not me either." the blonde replied, slightly afraid as Yusei and Crow started to hide behind him. Suddenly, a small patch of darkness started to swift past the trio from side to side, causing Crow to kneel down in fear. Jack kept his composure as Yusei tightened his grip on the blonde's sweater.

"Stay back!" Jack yelled out as he held out a stick. "I got a stick here and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Then...

"ROAR~~!" the same girl from before roared as she appeared in front of the boys. Jack screamed and fell to his knees while Yusei did the same with tears in the corners of his eyes and Crow started to wet himself. The screaming kept on going on and on after the girl stopped roaring, much to her amusement. "Hey..." she spoke up, much calmer. "You okay?" Slowly, the screaming died down, to the point everything was silent. "Tee hee! You're funny!" she laughed. The boys didn't reply. They were actually shocked that she was actually acting like a human being for once. "Atsuko is no monster," she pointed at herself as she started to remove her black cloak, only to reveal a white dress the reached to her knees. "Atsuko is in costume!" then she started to remove her white hair which turned out to be a wig. Short blue hair fell down mid-way towards her shoulders. Once again, Atsuko smiled brightly.

Silence.

Then Crow sat up and started to laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" he laughed. "See? I told you, Yusei! There is no such thing as monsters! It was just a weirdo girl after all!"

"Look who's talking broom-head! You wet yourself!" Atsuko shouted at Crow who blushed in embarrassment.

"She's right, you know." Jack mused who quickly recovered from that horrifying moment. Yusei didn't move, for he is still shaken up from that moment. Atsuko took note of this and sat next to the boy, faces inches away from each other.

"Hey~!" she said to the raven. "You alive?"

Yusei blinked, "Huh? Oh. Yeah..." he stood up shakily. "I'm fine."

Atsuko also blinked and pointed at the spot between Yusei's legs, "Huh? You peed too!" she laughed. Yusei blushed at took a few steps back, completely embarrassed. Jack and Crow laughed. Martha is going to have a hard time doing laundry later.

"D-Don't laugh!" the raven boy looked away.

"Don't be embarrassed, Yusei!" Crow laughed. "You're not the only one!"

Atsuko stood up and started to walk up towards Yusei. She smiled as his cheeks started to turn even more red. "Tee hee! Yusei! Cute!"

"Dō shita no?" the blue-haired girl said to the completely frozen Yusei. The eighteen year old, blinked, recovering from that trip down memory lane and smiled at the girl he knew.

"No. It's nothing." he assured as he pulled the blue-haired girl into a hug. After all those years... Atsuko was here all along. He doesn't know how or why she's here. But that can be pondered on later. Now, it is best to enjoy the moment and recover everything that happened...

"Yusei missed Atsuko? Right? Yusei is still Atsuko's friend, right?" the immature girl questioned. Yusei went to let go of Atsuko and nodded. The girl's eyes brightened in happiness as she pulled the boy into another hug. Then, Ushio appeared, rubbing the back of his head knowing that this is an awkward situation to walk into.

"Sorry to break up your little reunion, but, Yusei, I would like to talk to you for a minute. If that's okay..." the officer spoke up. Yusei nodded in return as Atsuko went to release him from her hug.

"Can you stand?" Yusei asked the girl. With no reply, Atsuko stood up on her feet and started to wobble. Suddenly, her legs looked as if it fell apart as she was about to land on the floor, only for Yusei to catch her in time. "You okay?"

"My legs..." Atsuko started to panic. "It's numb! Atsuko can't stand! Yusei, do something!"

"Shh!" Yusei comforted the girl. "Deep breaths," he spoke softly. "Inhale and exhale. Can you do that for me?"

"Atsuko will try..." So Atsuko copied Yusei's action. Inhale... Exhale... Inhale... Exhale...

"There. Is Atsuko better?" Yusei smiled as he rubbed the girl's back. Atsuko nodded. "You're legs are asleep, that's all."

"When will they wake up?"

"Soon."

"Then carry me!" Atsuko commanded the raven childishly. She stretched her arms out towards Yusei, making the scene look like a father-daughter-thing. Yusei rolled his eyes with a small chuckle and went to let Atsuko climb on his back.

"Comfortable?"

"Yep!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed. "Forward... March!" Atsuko exclaimed as if Yusei was her slave. It didn't affect him though. But it still kept him wondering. How could this girl still be this immature? It's not like Yusei minded the thought, he did find Atsuko's baby act cute, but still... So as Yusei followed Ushio down the halls of the Facility with Atsuko on his back, Ushio finally spoke up.

"So what are you going to do now?" he asked, concerned. "Since you found your long lost friend, what now? I still find it hard to believe that she's been locked up in here and no one reported it. In addition, she's not even marked."

Ushio's right. It still doesn't make sense. Yusei's been in the Facility before, and he never sensed Atsuko's presence anywhere. And even with all those criminals locked up next to her...

Bzzzt! Bzzzt!

"Tee hee!" Atsuko giggled. "Phone sounds like a bee!" Ushio dug into his pockets and reached out for his phone. Yusei and Ushio stopped in their tracks as the phone called was being made.

"Yes..." Ushio spoke up. "What?! Okay...! I'll be right there!"

"What is it?" the Signer asked the Officer.

"Sorry, Yusei! No time to talk!" Ushio started to run towards the exit. "We'll continue this conversation later!" Sooner or later, he was gone. Yusei and Atsuko stood there in silence. What could be so important at a time like this?

"He's fast!" Atsuko pointed out in awe. Yusei nodded in agreement.

Until...

Atsuko grabbed Yusei's hair spikes, causing him to yelp slightly.

"Hey, what are you-!" before Yusei can finish his sentence, Atsuko dragged his head to the left, causing him to move towards the rail of the hall. Yusei stopped dead in his tracks when half of his torso was hanging towards the edge of the rail. He tightened his grip on Atsuko's legs as she started to squirm in his grip. As this action was performed, Yusei could've sworn he felt her boobs on the back of his head. Atsuko stood up straight and slowly screamed out:

"ECHO~~~~!" she screamed out, giggling as her voice started to bounce off the walls. "ECHO~~~! Okay, Atsuko's done!"

A Few Minutes Later

After that small moment with the echoes, Yusei finally managed to leave the Facility. All he has to do is get his D-Wheel, and he'll finally bring Atsuko back home. So he went to sit Atsuko down a nearby bench and patted her head gently.

"I'll be back. I'm going to get my D-Wheel and bring it here, okay?" Yusei said to the girl.

"No!" Atsuko shook her head as she clinged onto Yusei's arm. "Yusei stays with Atsuko! Yusei don't leave!" Atsuko exclaimed. Said boy sighed. Yusei's already exhausted from carrying this girl but she's too attached.

"Why not?"

"If Yusei leaves, bad man will take me! Bad man will leave Atsuko alone and hurt! Atsuko feels safe with Yusei!" Atsuko's words puzzled the man. Is she afraid of being alone? Who is this 'bad man' Atsuko speaks of? Or is he just imagining things? Whatever the case may be, it may be best to bring Atsuko with him...

Meanwhile, back at the garage, or should I say, across the garage, Jack Atlas himself stared at the newspaper in front of him, reading the news for the day. But one column got his attention as his eyes narrowed.

"What?! I thought he disappeared?" Jack thought to himself. How? Last time he saw him was when...!

Suddenly, Yusei's D-Wheel pulled over by the garage, catching the blonde's attention. Jack left one eye open as he drank his coffee and eyed Yusei at the same time. Sooner or later, Jack ended up spitting his coffee out, making a huge mess after a familiar blue-haired girl climbed onto Yusei's back. He sat up, knocking his chair over, shoved that important newspaper into his jacket and ran towards the entrance of the garage.

Yusei sat Atsuko down on the couch gently and slumped down next to her, pretty exhausted. Today was a little too much for him, noting the fact that his best friend from years ago turned out to be alive and mysteriously locked up in the Facility. What he's worried about is how he's going to explain this to everyone, including Jack and Crow.

"YUSEI!" Jack slammed the door open. Yusei flinched. Speaking of the devil... "Yusei, I saw you come here and-!" Slowly, Jack locked eyes with Atsuko herself, his body struck with lightning. In other words, he's shocked, speechless. All he can do is walk up to the girl and fall on his knees. "Atsuko..." he breathed.

BAM! XD

"Stop staring at Atsuko, Jack!" the blue-haired girl shouted at her friend, her fist jammed into the blonde's head. Jack, in shock, fell on his back, trying to recover from that hit. But his mind kept on racing with past memories, memories he stored away after he heard that Atsuko died. The girl looked down at him and slightly giggled at his current state. "Tee hee! Jack looks funny!" she laughed. Silence. "Jack? Is Jack okay?" Yusei shrugged his shoulders, slightly amused after what just happened. Then, Jack's hand shot forward, grabbing Atsuko's shoulders.

"Atsuko! You're alive!" Well, no shit. "The hell were you all those years?!" he shouted.

"Jack," Yusei spoke up. "Atsuko was in the Facility this whole time."

"What?!" Jack exclaimed, confused. "How? Why? She's not even marked!"

"I know. That's what I'm trying to figure out, too."

The door opened.

"Hey, guys! I'm back!" Crow said as he entered the room. "I got my pay! How about we order some take out-!" he then paused. Like Jack, he locked eyes with Atsuko, only this time, he turned white. "A-a-a-a-a-a...! T-t-that g-g-girl...! Is she...?"

"Crow," Jack walked up to the orange-haired boy. "I know this is crazy..."

"It is."

"But..." Jack took in a deep breath. "Atsuko is alive."

"WHAT~~~~?!" Crow exclaimed to the top of his lungs as he started to rub his eyes over and over and pinch himself uncontrollably to see if this is a dream or not. "Are you a ghost?" Crow questioned Atsuko as he started to poke Atsuko to see if she was real or not. Atsuko giggled uncontrollably.

"Crow, stop! It tickles! Atsuko is real!" she giggled.

"OH MY GOD! It's a miracle!" Jack and Crow started to cry pathetically. Atsuko sweat dropped, not really surprised by these reactions. But she still hugged the two, happy herself. Very happy...

The rest of the day passed and went. Yusei was waiting for the Twins and Aki to come by so he can introduce Atsuko to them, but they failed to come since something came up. So tomorrow, he promised himself that he will.

Now, he is getting ready to rest for the day. So he closed his laptop shut and covered the D-Wheels with sheets of blankets. He turned to Atsuko, who was slightly dazed and tired too. But she still managed to stay awake. Until...

"Atsuko, c'mon. It's time to call it a day." Yusei whispered to the girl. Atsuko shook her head.

"No! Atsuko is not sleepy! Atsuko stays awake!" she protested with a pout. Yusei sighed and rubbed the back of his head with a yawn.

"Atsuko, Yusei is tired. Yusei must rest and Atsuko should too."

"Give me one good reason why I should sleep!"

"Because, if Atsuko doesn't sleep, she won't have enough energy to play tomorrow." Yusei reasoned with the girl with another yawn.

"Really...?" Atsuko yawned. "But... I'm not... sleepy..." Slowly, she collapsed on the bed, tuckered out.

Yusei sighed. He knelt down next the girl and studied her face. She was smiling. Calm. No other words can describe her sleeping face. But all Yusei can see was just that cute, babyish smile plastered across Atsuko's features. The raven smiled and slowly picked the immature girl up in his arms, trying not to wake her up. He headed upstairs towards his room and placed her on his bed. Before Yusei left, he felt Atsuko's grip on his shirt. He tried to remove her hand away but failed to do so. Atsuko shifted and whispered:

"Please... Yusei... Don't leave..." she said. The raven didn't know how to react to Atsuko's statement. He's tired. Very tired that his eyes closed every two seconds. But either way, the Signer complied and lied down next to his friend, eyes closed.

Tomorrow... He'll introduce Atsuko to everyone... Show her to Martha and say that she's alive... Then, he'll do some research about Atsuko... About how she lived and how she ended up in the Facility...

So much things to do...

Somewhere in a small café in Neo Domino City, Jack and Aki sat in front of each other, the atmosphere clearly intense. Aki was clearly in a bad mood, showing that she hasn't slept yet. She was about to sleep before but Jack dragged her out of her home, which also showed that this was important.

Jack on the other hand clutched his newspaper tightly. He NEVER wanted to bring this up to Aki. But with Atsuko alive and here and all that, it was pretty difficult to reach Yusei or Crow on any matter since the girl never leaves their side. The Twins, Rua and Ruka, are the first two to ever find out about this and Jack was the only one they can contact.

So now Jack's here, ready to tell Aki the news.

But before the blonde can speak, Aki went to cut him off by saying:

"So," she said. "What is this about?"

"I think you should read this," Jack replied, handing the girl the newspaper. "I know it's not entirely good news..."

Aki's eyes widened, her heart starting to beat faster and faster by the second, "What?!" she thought to herself. "This...! This can't be true...!" Aki covered her mouth with her hands as she dropped the newspaper. A bystander passed by and took a glance at the newspaper. In big bold words, it read:

"Leader and Founder of Arcadia Movement, Divine, has claimed independence against the world. Sources say that he has created a new Arcadia Movement, bringing Psychic Duelists everywhere from around the world to gather together to create a new group...!"

Atsuko shifted slightly next to Yusei in a painful manner. She took in deep breathes as she held her heart close to her chest. She nuzzled against Yusei for more comfort and fell back to sleep, beads of sweat on her face...

On top of the Arcadia Movement building, Divine, along with a girl with blue hair stood. Divine's sadistic smile was plastered across his face. The girl on the other hand stayed neutral...

From the depths of the Satellite, seven cloaked people stood, their eyes glowing bright red...

"In one month," the Leader spoke in a deep tone. "We'll attack..."

Me: Phew! End of this chapter! Took a long time to do this!

So everything is covered. Remember what the summary said? 'An old enemy returns and a new enemy rises.' This is going to get interesting. Oh, and this is before the 5ds team separated so think of this as a special arc. ;) And if you're wondering, Atsuko won't be immature for long and she'll duel. But not right now. In addition, there will be a WRGP that will be taking place later in this story so... yeah.

The thing I don't like about this chapter is that it keeps jumping from one place to another, making this chapter short. Not to mention that the reactions towards Atsuko seemed corny. But what am I going to do? This is for now. I will revise later. But for now, enjoy what I gave you for now.

Read and Review please. NO FLAMES!