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Ai thought that this was it, that he would never wake up again. But apparently he was wrong, because after some time (he really didn't know how long he had been asleep for) he simply woke up again, albeit once again in his eye form.
Did that mean he would be able to see Yusaku again after all? It felt a bit selfish, after all he had done, but he couldn't help but long for the other. To love others... He understood what this meant, now, even if it hurt.
He had seen what his love for the other would do to everyone, so he had to stay back, had to die, but of course he couldn't even do that right.
Eventually, after moving around and trying to figure out where he was, he found a hole in the code and due to his curious nature, of course had to investigate. Big mistake, in hindsight. Because the moment he got close to it, he was sucked in and spit out somewhere that looked eerily similar to the city he already knew.
“Weird...” Ai muttered and suddenly realized his voice was deeper again. That's when he figured out that he was lying on the ground, staring up at the sky, in his human form, somehow. Slowly sitting up, he tried to find a way out of wherever he was, but to no avail, it was like his connection to the network was interrupted.
He had a bad feeling about this.
“I still have no idea why these hearts are dueling rewards,” an all-too-familiar voice asked and he froze. If Takeru was here, how far away was Yusaku? Had he already found him? Did Ai subconsciously go to his Origin?
The following exhausted sigh only confirmed his hunch. Ai's resolve was weakening. He should just walk away, absolutely not turn around to face the one he–
“Maybe someone's in love~?”
What?
“Ai, please,” Yusaku huffed fondly and Ai felt his heart swell, but... considering that there seemed to be another him, this wasn't directed at him. (He desperately wanted to talk to Yusaku like they always had, in the past. But he knew that it wouldn't ever be the same again.)
So then, what was going on?
Was he still in the network? If he wasn't, he couldn't imagine why one of his clone bodies would just lie around the streets like that, so there was no way he was out in the real world. That wouldn't make sense anyway, unless Yusaku had somehow managed to make another him. (He knew that was impossible, but the thought still stung.)
“No, he's got a point,” Takeru responded and laughed, “I wonder who it is... Hey, do you think it's–”
They went silent and stopped walking. Ai gulped. It was pretty obvious why they had stopped, they had to have noticed him in his fancy get-up with the big dramatic cape. Which he didn't regret wearing because it's great but it wasn't working in his favor right now.
“You...” Yusaku started and Ai held his breath, scared that he recognized his back (and wasn't that just a ridiculous thought). He hated that another part loved the thought of Yusaku recognizing him. He had to stop. He had to stop before his resolve to stay away was completely broken. He had to keep him safe, for god's sake. And the way to do that was by (unfortunately) never seeing him again. “Are you new here?”
And of course he only wanted to ask about that. Ai tried to not show how nervous and devastated he actually was and slowly turned around, chuckling awkwardly. “Yup!” he said and after one accidental glance at Yusaku's face, felt his mood worsen again. “That's me! Sorry I was just standing in your way, I uh...”
“We get it, don't worry!” Takeru reassured him and playfully smacked his shoulder, “Arriving here can be pretty overwhelming.”
That's when he realized. If they didn't recognize him, and another version of him was somehow here... he didn't dare to look at Takeru's duel disk. He couldn't.
“Hey, you...” the other version of himself squinted at him, hand on his chin as he leaned forward and Yusaku looked down at him, eyes furrowing slightly.
“Do you know him?”
He had to leave. He wanted his Yusaku to look at him and not–
He quickly turned around. “Sorry, I have to go!” He didn't know where to, but he'd figure it out. Surely. He just had to do it like when he was on the run, it had been easy back then (to be all alone, unseen), wasn't it?
Takeru called after him, confused, while an all-too-familiar voice told Takeru to leave him alone if he wanted to be. He appreciated the support, but hearing the voice of someone that was long gone didn't do the best things to his already damaged psyche.
...Maybe, somewhere deep down, Flame knew who he was and wanted to help his friend out even if he was confused. But maybe that was also just wishful thinking from someone that missed him a lot. Either way.
He had... to say something. Give them a warning, at least.
“One last thing,” he started, not turning around this time but standing still. “Never leave this place.”
More confusion. Of course they were.
Ai chuckled bitterly and ran.
They didn't follow him. Because why would they? There was no reason they would. He should stop thinking about that encounter and start trying to find a way out, to find a hole in the code. (Yusaku would have found it by now.)
But he couldn't sense anything. So he might be stuck here for the unforeseeable future. Which meant more opportunities to come across Yusaku and the others. Another version of him. An Ai that felt just as real as he himself did.
And so he wandered through the world for a while, possibly days, no goal, only trying to avoid the people he once knew. He knew that they probably wouldn't recognize him, but that was beside the point. (That was even worse.)
Sometimes the others spotted him and seemed to want to talk to him, but Ai always quickly left before they had the chance to. Other times Flame would advise them to leave him alone. (Wouldn't it be funny if Flame just thought that Ai was a weirdo?)
“Ai...!”
Ah, not again.
Well, time to leave again and hopefully find a hiding place that would be difficult to spot next time. He was about to leave, when he suddenly heard the footsteps get faster and louder, seemingly running towards him.
What?
That hadn't happened before.
He was about to turn around and figure out what was going on, before someone crashed into his arms and made them both hit the ground, Ai cushioning the person's fall.
Ai winced and chuckled awkwardly, thinking it was just a mistake, opening his mouth to say something as he opened his eyes– before his mouth abruptly slammed shut at who was holding onto him tightly, hugging his torso, body trembling just a bit, almost unnoticeable to anyone but Ai.
Because this was... Yusaku.
“I've finally found you...!”
His... Yusaku...?
Ai chuckled nervously. “You must be mistaken,” he responded, voice shaking, “I'm not the one–”
“Stop lying to me, Ai!” Yusaku said, looking up at him angrily. No, not anger. There was relief in his eyes. Relief, sadness, hurt... Ai leaving must have really... hurt Yusaku...?
“Are you...?” Ai started, flabbergasted, his Yusaku being the last one he expected to see here. “Are you the one who–”
“The one that held your body in his arms as you faded away and then had to deal with about a hundred or more of your lifeless clones directly after?” Yusaku raised an eyebrow. “Yeah.”
Ai winced. Right. His clones. “Sorry... about that...”
“Well, you could start your apology by coming back?” Yusaku suggested and to be honest, Ai would like to do nothing more than that, having been separated from his other half for far too long. However...
“You know what will happen...” Ai shook his head and gently pushed Yusaku away, even if his mind was screaming at him not to. To go back, to never leave again. To watch Yusaku smile, laugh, cry. To do those things with him together.
“No,” Yusaku stood up and grabbed Ai's hand to pull him up as well. “You are coming back with me. If you want to or not.”
Ai blinked as he was pulled up and promptly dragged towards Yusaku again, who was hugging him again. He never knew that his partner liked hugs that much. Then again... Ai winced. Maybe I'm being a bit unfair.
He hugged him close hesitantly and he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it. “I don't have a choice?”
Yusaku shook his head. “You don't.”
Ai had to hold back a burst of fond laughter at how cute he was. Then, he quickly sobered up. “Yusaku... you'll be in danger–”
“I don't care!” Yusaku looked up at him, determination in his eyes. “We'll hide you. It'll be alright. We can even change what you look like, can't we?”
Ai pouted. “But I like what I look like...”
“Ai...” Yusaku sighed and Ai snorted.
“Yeah, yeah, okay...” he relented. “You're right. We can at least... try.”
(He was far too weak.)
Yusaku started to smile and Ai couldn't help but think that it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. (Okay, maybe he was a bit biased but still!)
“However,” Ai continued and Yusaku sighed once more, “If it starts to escalate... promise me you will keep yourself safe. I'm an AI, I'll be fine with a backup, but you... you only have one life.”
He had been made painfully aware of that in the simulations.
Yusaku seemed to want to disagree, but knowing that Ai wouldn't let go of this condition, Yusaku nodded eventually. Even if he really didn't want to, wanting to protect Ai just as much as Ai wanted to protect him.
Ai sighed, asking himself if this was really the right thing to do. His heart... if something like that even existed... was telling him to, to never let go of Yusaku again, to protect him at all costs. It was conflicting with what he had seen the future to look like, but...
“What's going on...” someone behind them muttered to themselves and Ai looked in their direction, spotting the other Yusaku standing there, the other version of himself staring at them with wide eyes and Ai knew that the other him had finally realized who he was.
The Yusaku in his arms slowly let go of Ai's torso– sliding his hand into Ai's, both of them fitting as if they belonged to each other– and turned around to them as well, starting to smile apologetically. It was a foreign expression on Yusaku's face to the newcomers.
The other Yusaku furrowed his eyebrows, a disbelieving expression on his face, obviously wanting to say something but not knowing what.
“Sorry for confusing you earlier,” his Yusaku said and Ai realized that he had probably met his other version before. (Later, Yusaku would tell him what exactly went down and Ai would break down in laughter.)
“Never leave this place...” the other Ai asked out loud, “What did you mean by that?”
His Yusaku turned to him with a raised eyebrow and if he could, Ai would flush red.
Ai cleared his throat. “I can't tell you,” he said dramatically and the Yusaku next to him rolled his eyes at him fondly. Ai decided to spare them a dramatic monologue about fate and destiny. “You'll know in time.”
He squeezed Yusaku's hand, making sure that his other self saw it.
“You'll know.”
And then he turned around and gently pulled on Yusaku's hand to tell him to go along with him (which, obviously, he did). Actually, he had no idea where he was going and Yusaku would have to get them out of here, but he couldn't leave without a dramatic exit, okay? That was kind of his thing.
And so they left.
“You have no idea where you're going, do you?” Yusaku asked and Ai could almost hear the raised eyebrow.
“Nope,” Ai chuckled, “Do you?”
“I do,” Yusaku, always the reliable one, nodded and opened some kind of screen mid-air with his free hand. Then, he looked back up at Ai with a gentle smile on his face. “Let's go home?”
Home.
Ai went through several emotions at once, but couldn't find the right words to tell Yusaku just how much he meant to him and that home was wherever Yusaku was– so instead, he smiled as well, albeit shakily, and nodded. “Let's go home.”
And then they were gone.
On their way back home.
Together.