I was a dancer.
A DDR specialist to be specific.
I was Domino's true champion of the machine.
Not only that, but I was the holder of one of the rarest cards in existence. Only 6 in the world out of the original 666. Nightmare Arches. One of the first trap cards to come out, and one of the rarest as it was only released once. It was the pride and joy of my deck.
There was only one thing I was more defensive over...
My Title.
I was Domino's DDR champion. I had won more official DDR championships then any one else in Japan. I was only second in the world before my incident with a malfunctioning machine. The resulting explosion put me out of commission for over six months. I spent three years rebuilding what I lost in my down time. Now. I was back. Dragon Dancer Ryumai had returned to reclaim her title.
I had gained a vicious scar across my left eye, fortunately the wound never affected my sight. My hair, now far longer then it ever was, covered the scar and the hood on my jacket covered the rest of my face. No one knew me. No one remembered me.
Then I spotted the machine. A young girl, probably 18, 19 at the most from the looks of it, was dancing away on the arrows that once gained me my title. It was here so many years ago that I was injured. Strange how fate lays in the same situation. I had beaten her just a few moments before the machine exploded and took my title with it.
There was quite a crowd around her, all of them chanting her name as she beat the highest score.
'Anzu.'
I growled slightly. My jelousy was rising, as was my hate.
That was my throne, and she had taken it.
Now. I am back. And I am taking back what is mine.
I slowly walked up to the platform, undoing the zipper on my jacket as I went. A feral grin had spread across my face at the thought of regaining my former glory. She knew who I was. She would remember me as the only one who had beaten her so brutally at her own game in the past. I slid out of my jacket and let it pool to the floor. I stepped up onto the platform and selected my song of choice. As was tradition, the challenger always chose the song. The song I had beaten her with in the past was 'You're Not Me'. Now, the song was truly fitting, 'I'm Back'. She knew what this was. A direct challenge. I turned to face her and she saw my eyes. My hair had grown to just past my knees and was a wild cut at the ends. My eyes however, had not changed. The same fire. The same spark. The same look of superiority.
She knew who I was. She remembered me.
My grin grew slightly when I saw the look her face held. She was having trouble believing it was me.
"Surprised? No one remembers me Anzu. No one. You are the only one that remembers. You were my last opponent. And the most worthy to take the title of 'champion'. But you will never be The Dragon Dancer. That title belongs to me alone. I lost it however, three-and-a-half years ago. Now. I'm Back. And I am here to reclaim my title as best of the best. Do you accept, Anzu? Or are you going to back down before a fallen legend?"
She stood still. Then the fire returned. She had accepted my challenge. In that moment, time stood still. It was only us in the room.
Just us and our opponent, just as it had been in the past.
"Good. Now. Let's take this like the experts we are." A grin slid onto her face, one that mimiced my own.
It was on.
Legend versus Champion.
We matched each other beat for beat, step for step. Our motions, were our own however. On the last note, a double step was required, one that she missed. Then the scores rolled in. Both of ours had beaten all other scores. Mine however, blew hers out of the running. I had won. DDR Japan's Legend, Dragon Dance Ryumai had regained her title.
I, Ryumai Kaiba, had won.
I had beaten the best to regain my title.
The one thing my step-brother never could do.
I had taken the very song that was written with him in mind, and beaten my rival with it.
This was my skill.
Not dueling, as most thought.
But dancing.
I was The DDR Dragon.
Forget Blue Eyes.
This dragon was truly a legend.
I finally stopped typing after almost an hour of writing and two more of editing. I had finally written Ryumai's legend down. I was her daughter. Setsuna Moto. She had received an injury during the explosion that had gone unnoticed until it was far too late. Somehow, her injuries caused her to die just over ten years after the incident. She had told me her legend, now I had written it down. This was the end of my novel.
'The Dragon Dancer, Ryumai'
