Fic rec - Placing the Stone to Move Forward

[sakura_no_miko]

Title: Placing the Stone to Move Forward

Author: Lisa_Telramor

Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh / Hikaru no Go

Rating: G

Pairing: none, gen

Warnings: canon character death, depression

Other notes: friendship, grief/mourning, card games, crossover

Length: 2k + sequels

Summary: Yuugi is minding the game shop when an odd young man comes in looking for a game. Hikaru just wants to play a game of go. A game of go might just be what Yuugi needs right now.

Or, Yuugi and Hikaru have a lot more in common than they realize.

 

Ah, I’m feeling nostalgic. I’m not sure what prompted me to go look at Yu-Gi-Oh fics. All I’ve determined is that I have no idea what any of the ship names actually mean, and that there was a new movie they made for the 20th anniversary that sounds kind of fun and also tempts my shipper heart.

On the other hand, I never actually watched Hikaru no Go, and yet I feel nostalgic for it? Early anime fandom is a little odd for me, because I read a ton, but I didn’t actually have access to a lot of the shows I read about. So I have knowledge of characters and plots I never actually saw. Also, Hikaru no Go was yet another show where the music was pure pop happiness. I’ve still got Get Over on my cheerful/karaoke playlists.

I joke about “crossovers that really shouldn’t work,” but there are also “crossovers that work so well holy heck why didn’t I think about it.” In fact, I was chatting with a friend while doing my reading, and, while I was explaining the plot of Hikaru no Go, eventually I went, you know, it was kind of a ‘90s version of Yu-Gi-Oh, lol. Well, in the broadest story beats — a young boy becomes involved with the ghost of a brilliant gamer and they rise in the ranks of their chosen game until the ghost has to leave, and the boy questions his own talent and happiness with the game. -ish. I’m skipping a lot of details.

Anyway, this fic — this fic works, man, it just works in a way that smacks me in the gut. Because it focuses on what happens after the ending. After Sai and Atem go to the afterlife, leaving their best friends behind to live on. And, while everyone deals with grief, both Hikaru and Yuugi have the issue of not being able to tell anyone about the supernatural events that changed their lives. They’re left to grieve alone.

But also, this is a fic where time has passed. A lot of shounen anime follow the basic plot of, a young boy wants to be the best at (insert activity here), and goes on a long journey, making friends and enemies along the way. Barring the shows that do timeskips, shounen anime tend to be about kids and teenagers. You know, those times where it’s so easy to make friends, and you’re all stuck in school together, and you’re all kind of working towards a similar goal of becoming adults.

But Yuugi and Hikaru here — they’re trying to figure out their jobs. They’ve had friends move away. Like, this fic implies that the characters we know and love — have broken up. Gone separate ways. And this just…happens. Story ends. People move on. There’s the big, dramatic separation of a boy and his ghost, and then there’s just growing up.

But — but, even in this time where both of them are grieving, there’s still these chances to grow, to change, to move forwards, to make new friends, and realize you’re not so alone in the world.

Man, this fic is both really heartbreaking and really affirming.

Hmm, it’s hard to pick just one section, I like, but:

He wasn’t sure, but it felt like this was the same friend Hikaru noticed Yuugi mourning when they met. If it was anything like the situation with Sai, even the slightest bit, a mentor figure and friend who left a hole when they vanished from their life, then Hikaru understood. He’d have avoided Dueling and held onto some part of that person. He still did with his fan and his hoarded kifu and his Go. Yuugi’s lack of an answer was answer enough.

“Maybe you can take the parts that fit you from both decks,” Hikaru said, “and then make a new one.” He scratched his head. “It’d…It’d be keeping a part of him in your Dueling to acknowledge how he fit in your life but taking part of you and showing how you’ve grown.” Not grown past or grown from, just grown, Hikaru thought.

My heart ;___;

I also do like the third chapter, because Kaiba is an adorable ass. Ironically, if I’m understanding the anniversary movie correctly, it ended up being Kaiba, not Yuugi, who got obsessed with finding Atem, lol. Canonically Yuugi seems to have accepted things okay.

Hmm, other fics. I’m still poking the Yu-Gi-Oh fics, but I did really enjoy lessons, which is a sweet little character study. And I really haven’t read any Hikago fics lately, but I have a soft spot for Taking Things As They Come, which was the first Hikago fic I read, ha. Hm, I may yet write another Hikago rec, but Five People Hikaru Kind of Told About Sai (And one He Actually Told) goes well with this fic. Oh, and — this is a bit of an offshoot, but there are an awful lot of anime about games. On of those was Shion no Ou, about a young girl learning traditional Japanese chess. Ever After is just the sweetest fic for that show.

 

(Looking for more fic recs?)

Crossposted to pillowfort