Chapter Text
Deep in a pile of garbage bags, a small child was curled around an even smaller wooden box. A strong gust of wind swept through the alleyway that the pile was hidden in, nearly taking one of the lighter bags with it as it swept past a fight. Despite the volume of the wind and shaking bags, loud voices drifted into the ear of the child, catching their attention.
Slowly, the child moved slightly so they could see the end of the alleyway. Barely in their line of vision was a fight between several teenagers attacking a young boy, who was doing his best to win despite being severely outnumbered. Unseen to all combatants, the child’s eyes flashed silver, and in the blink of an eye, the teens started to attack each other rather than the boy.
Completely stunned, the blonde haired boy staggered back to the wall, watching in shock as one by one the attackers fell to each other’s fists. When the final one was left, they realised that numbers were no longer on their side, and raced off, leaving behind their unconscious associates.
As peace returned to the alleyway, the blonde boy looked around just in time to see the child’s head vanish back into the pile of bags. Cautiously, the boy approached the hiding spot, and spoke in a quiet voice, "Did you do that?"
The child peered out of their pile, shyly nodding to the boy, "Uh-huh."
He held out his hand, "My name is Jack Atlas. What's yours?"
“Yusei. At least that’s what the videos in this box call me.”
Jack’s hand wrapped around their wrist, "We should go to Martha. She’s really good at figuring things out."
As Yusei inched out of their home, they clutched a small box to their chest with their free hand. The duo had only made it a few steps down the alleyway before a sneeze burst out of the child, and Jack draped his jacket over their shoulders, "It's a good thing we're going to Martha's. She can make you feel better."
“Do you promise?”
He crouched to look in their eyes, “I promise that Martha will help you. And I promise that I’ll keep you safe.”
Jack led Yusei into a surprisingly clean house, calling out at the top of his lungs, “Martha! I found a sick kid!”
Within seconds, a woman appeared and walked over to them, “Hello. My name is Martha. What’s your name?”
The child held out their box, “Yusei. That’s what the box calls me.”
Martha looked at the lid of the box, carefully reading the kanji on it, “Fudo...Yusei? That’s a nice name. Who takes care of you?”
Yusei shuffled their feet, “I do. Everyone’s scared of my magic.”
Jack spoke up, “Yusei somehow made some thugs beat each other up. It was so cool!”
Martha crouched in front of Yusei, “What does your magic do?”
“Sometimes I accidentally make people feel the way that I do.”
Yusei sneezed, rubbing their nose, “Sorry.”
“Let’s get you some clean clothes and warm food, maybe that will help you feel better.”
Yusei crouched next to a door frame, quietly listening to a conversation, "Jack, have you noticed that she follows you everywhere?"
She peeked around the corner to see Martha looking down at Jack, who looked at the ground as he nodded, "Yeah. Why does she do that?"
Martha chuckled and crouched in front of him, "Because you might have been the first person ever to show her kindness. She looks up to you. But she needs to stay in the house for a couple days. Do you mind staying here with her instead of wandering around?"
He nodded, "Okay. If it helps her recover faster."
"I'm sorry, Jack. I don’t want you to be stuck here because of me."
Both of them turned to look at Yusei, and Jack ran over to her, "It's okay, Yusei. Martha can teach us how to play some games while you get better."
Martha chuckled as she smiled at the two of them, "I'm glad that Jack finally met his match. Yusei, you are everything I ever hoped for if I had a daughter of my own."
"Even my magic?"
She pulled me into a hug, "Your powers are as much a part of you as your hair. If you didn't have them, you wouldn't be the same Yusei. So, yes, I love you with your magic."