Tear Jerker / Between My Brother and Me: Ab Initio

Lux ex Tenebris

• In general, every time Shooti mentions how he made a mistake, when in reality, none of this is his own fault. He blames himself for every single thing he didn't take warning of, and beats himself up that makes you wonder how much self-confidence he has about himself.
• The opening narration of the prologue starts with Shooti dead before it rewinds to how it got it there. Already do we know that it's not going to be a happy story.
  • And what we learn in later stories, Team Satisfaction are all going to be dead too.
• Chapter 1 "Stranger Things": Carly tell Shooti that she has just seen Jun, his Childhood Friend, jump alongside 24 other students into an oncoming train, killing himself. Shooti just stands there in absolute silence before he drops his phone in shock and cries in Bel's arms. and then he learns the truth that Jun has been dead for three months now and has been resurrected as a Dark Signer Acolyte.
• Chapter 2 "We are the Strange": Kamitsure reveals how Molly died. Namely, the doll she was gifted was placed in the attic, manifested Doll Chimera, and then hurled Molly out of the attic where she died. Then, Kamitsure resurrected Molly and made Alice a real girl and re-wrote Spencer Hale's memories to believe that Alice was his own daughter to begin with. Ouch.
• Chapter 2 (Part 2) "Five Characters in Search of an Exit": Shooti utterly breaks down in front of Korni upon learning about his best friend's death.
  • Mikuri sheds a Single Tear on the aspect that he will never get to live a normal life with his love, Daigo Tsuwabuki.
• Chapter 2 (Part 3) "Died in Your Arms Tonight": Kiryu reveals to Yusei the truth about what's going to happen to Team Satisfaction (namely they must all die and give up their lives to the Dark King of the Afterlife so he can turn Domino Below/Satellite into a paradise by unleashing the "Gates of Hamunaptra") and he's telling Yusei to run. What does Yusei do? Take the knife that Kiryu was supposed to kill him with and slices his throat, all while Shooti (hiding in a wardrobe) and Kiryu look in horror.
  • Kiryu is absolutely in tears at this point, trying to soothe Yusei by singing, "I'll Follow You Into the Dark" before he breaks down at the final chorus. Yusei is revived at that time, but still...
    • Even worse? Yusei reveals a horrifying truth in this story: his father enacted Zero Reverse and Yusei is going to follow his father's work in unleashing the Gates of Hamunaptra and also saw how Jack and Crow are going to die.
  • When Shooti returns to his apartment, Carly immediately hugs him, tears falling down her eyes as she assumed that he has gone and committed suicide too. Which, as we know from the opening of the story (and what is confirmed in later stories) isn't too far from the truth...
• Chapter 3:
  • Shooti breaks down in front of his mother, wishing he could hug her all day and confess what he learned about Jun and sobbing when he tastes her food. It doesn't help that the ending narration states that it will be one of the last times he will actually eat dinner with her...
  • Kurotsugu telling Shooti that he's essentially helpless in regards to his own son being used by the Dark Signers as bait.
  • Sayaka Sasayama confessing the death of her older sister while confronting Shooti.
• Chapter 4: Shooti encounters Crow at Satisfaction Town and has a chance to tell Crow that he and Jack will die soon and join Kiryu and Yusei to unleash the "Gates of Hamunaptra" but knows that he's unable to. If he tells? Crow will believe Shooti's crazy or Crow could confront Kiryu or Yusei and end with Crow dying sooner. Says nothing? He leaves Crow and Jack to their fate.
• Chapter 5: Shooti asks Primo to make him see scenes of the past with one of them being when Jun is going to jump in front of a train. Primo shows concern at how Shooti pushes himself to see that scene even though Shooti knows how it will end.
  • After Shooti returns from seeing how Kiryu became coverted to the Dark King's cause, he questions why Kiryu and Yusei have to go through with this, stating that they could have had a happy life together.
  • The end of the chapter has Shooti silently enter his brother's empty bedroom and plays "I Need Some Sleep" to help him go to bed but not without requesting that Primo let him see Bel dueling in Domino Below. Primo silently tells Shooti to have sweet dreams before disappearing.

In Somnis Veritas

• Chapter 4 (Falling Down): Akari learns that her brother is the White Rabbit that has sent various people into comas. But there's one problem: Yuma's been in a coma himself for the past three months and somehow people have seen him while she has to see her brother in the hospital, unconscious. She breaks down in tears without anyone to comfort her.
• Chapter 5 (Beyond): Shinji asks Shooti and Bel what happened to his brother and neither of them are able to explain the truth. Which becomes worse when...
• Chapter 6 (Sideways): Shinji encounters Reiji, who asks if he's alive. Reiji just answers...
  Reiji: No Shinji. I'm... I'm dead.
  • Shinji doesn't accept this at all and asks Reiji to prove himself by answering three questions: favorite lunch, favorite video game, and Shinji's most precious Duel Monsters card. Reiji answers: onigiri and oyakudon, Shadow of the Colossus and Bunilla even showing the card that Shinji gave, which was on his body when he died. Shinji looks in disbelief and is hugged by Reiji...and then promptly pushes his older brother away, furious that his brother was "alive" all this time and never bothered to tell Shinji about it.
    • Even worse? In order to retrieve Crow's memories, Wenet asks for four items, one of them being "Something old". Reiji coldly takes Shinji's Bunilla card as payment, even though he knows how valuable it is to his little brother.
  • Haruka is jumping for joy having to duel Crow Hogan, as she is a big fan of Team Satisfaction. Then she learns the cold truth.
  Masato: (through a mental link) Haruka...Crow's dead.

  • And then we get her thoughts about it.
  "Crow Hogan is dead...Crow "The Bullet" Hogan is dead...Crow Hogan of Team Satisfaction is dead..."
  • Earlier, Wenet hands over the memory as to how Crow Hogan died.
  Crow: I don't know about this...Are you sure...
  Kiryu: Think about it, Crow. If you do this, you will be reborn, and we can build a land where no child will ever have to grow hungry again; where no child will be separated from their parents. They can be forever young, forever happy, forever free of any and all burdens that could come to them. They can have their satisfaction here when the Gates of Hamunaptra open.
  Crow: Forever...
  Kiryu: All of this can happen if you pull the trigger. I’ll be with you when you come back from the other side. So will Yusei, and so will Jack.
  Crow: Jack is...
  Kiryu: Do it, Crow. For our sake. For everyone here in Domino Below. For the Dark King.
  Crow: (as he raises the gun to his forehead) For Hamunaptra...
  Except for Shooti and Bel, who have already seen this particular scene in real life, everyone flinches and turns away when they hear the gunshot. Seconds later, they see Kiryu cradling the red-haired man in his arms, simultaneously laughing and crying as the yellow markings on Crow’s face darken to a burgundy color, and his grey eyes darken into the color of shadows.
• Chapter 7 (Lover's End):
  • After Crow repeats what happened to him, Masato snaps and starts stabbing Crow with an icicle all while screaming why Crow would even consider killing himself before he's reduced to tears.
  • Before Shinji and Hikari go to confront Fubuki Tenjoin, Shinji and Reiji share a small smile with one another.

Alea Iacta Est

• Special 1 (Before the Storm): Haruka has had a whirlwind evening in a Turbo Action Duel with Yugo, falling in love him and kissing him in front of a stadium of people. As she is about to open the door to his room backstage all while singing, "It Only Takes a Moment", she opens the door to find Yuri in there, hypnotizing Yugo and then kissing him on the lips. Her whole world has shattered at that point.
  Yuri: (while hypnotizing Yugo) Reunite as one...
  Yugo: Reunite...reunite as one...
  • And then it's later revealed that Yuri is supposed to be Yugo's soulmate, not her, even though Team Satisfaction said that she and Yugo were supposed to bond. In her anger, she asks for something to burn, so Team Satisfaction projects an image of a forest at night and an old tree.
  The girl grits her teeth as she stares at the tree in front of her. With a deep breath, she summons her red magic circle with the five petal flowers and crushes it in her hand before releasing it, the magic circle now a kaleidoscope of fiery butterflies that flutter in the air before landing on the branches, flapping their wings like tiny flames dancing in the dark.
  Then, as tears fall down her eyes, Haruka screams.
  A large gust of wind begins to blow. The butterflies combust and the flames flare out, consuming the tree as the girl sobs. Then, she opens her mouth once more and screams again. A larger breeze hits and the fires burn and burn onto the rest of the forest to reflect her anger, confusion, wrath and sorrow at everything she has just learned.
  She continues to scream and sob as both Team Satisfaction and Team Satisfaction dolls watch on, unable to comfort her.
  And as the tears fall down Haruka's eyes, and the sound of crackling burning wood fills her ears, her half of the Victory Ribbon that was clenched in her fist all this time drops to the ground, unnoticed.
• Roll 4 (So Weird):
  • The narration describing what Shinji's life was like before Hikari brought him to her house. And remember, this is set before In Somnis Veritas...
  • Hikari's entire story as to why she detests the Crimson Signers. Kengo tempted fate to summon a Rabidragon to capture her and take her to the mountains...only to learn that the Rabidragon wanted Hikari to play music for her babies. But soon enough, Kengo and some of the villagers arrived to save her and Kengo's Crimson Signer mark appears as he summons Buster Blader. The Rabidragon mother is killed and the cave collapses, leaving their babies to probably die. For this, Hikari tossed a kettle of hot water at her friend's face, declared that she hated him and tore his Buster Blader card in half.

Do ut Des

• The prologue has Wes apologizing to Rui for causing them both to die, but Rui reassures him that Wes being with her prior to their deaths was worth it.
  • The first chapter explains a few things: Wes had just taken the Snagem Machine from his former team and saw Rui in a burlap sack taken away by an Academia soldier. After Wes duels said soldier, Rui is thrown out of the truck bed with Wes freeing her and grabbing her as they plummet into a large sinkhole. Wes's final thoughts just cement it.
  Wes: "At least I did something good..."
• In the beginning of the second chapter, after the reality of their new state sinks in, Wes pounds on a table in anger as Rui tries to calm him down. Wes states that every time he gets someone close into his life, it ends badly for them.
  • The end of Rui's duel vs Yuri. Not only has Rui utterly decimated her opponent, she's now brainwashed Starving Venom Fusion Dragon to attack Yuri directly (and Yuri's lifepoints are low due to her Earthbound Disciple Geo Cherubim's attack to constantly half his lifepoints) before Wes jumps in the way to take the blow. Wes's response to her sells it.
  Wes: Is this what you wanted? Is it, Rui?!
• The beginning of the next chapter has Rui blaming herself for causing Yuri's current state. What doesn't help is Elaine mistaking Yuri for Yugo and tearfully asking Rui who would do such a thing.

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