I don't own Zombieland Saga

So, I needed to get this out before Saki's episode this week. I just... needed to. Anyway, this is one of my takes on Yugiri's backstory. I have several ideas, but this is the first one I got fully typed up. So, here ya go! Hope it's alright!

Night had descended on Saga once more. The mansion was dark and quiet, save Romero howling at the moon and the occasional buzz of nocturnal insects. In one room, Kotaro Tatsumi lounged on a couch, looking over the list of gigs he'd procured for his idol group. In another room, said idols were all fast asleep, getting rested in preparation for more exhilarating practice.

Well, almost all of them were fast asleep. While the others snoozed quietly, a blonde head popped up. Saki snickered as she crept from her blanket. It was time for some pranking. Tonight's target was their hardly fazable big sister. Yugiri rarely had a reaction to anything going on around her. Saki assumed it had to do with whatever she smoked in her pipe.

Still, Saki was going to be the one to get Yugiri good. Sure, hiding her pipe would be adequate, but even the Egghead could think of something like that. No, Saki would do one better. Even Yugiri wouldn't be able to avoid surprise waking up without a head on her shoulders. Saki wouldn't be able to see the initial surprise on her face, but she's no doubt she'd see panic when the others found the hidden head.

Being careful not to wake Sakura, who had taken to sleeping closer to Yugiri, Saki gently took hold of the older woman's head. Unlike Tae's or Sakura's, it was lodged on more snugly thanks to the stitching. However, Saki didn't become the leader of Kyushu's baddest gang by being weak. With some precise turns and tugs, Yugiri's head loosened enough for Saki to pop it off.

Backing away from the rest of the body, the blonde couldn't help a low laugh. This would be way too easy. No one would even suspect where she was going to hide it either. This would be priceless-.

A shriek echoed off the walls of the room, resonating from the head in Saki's hands. The biker was so shocked, she nearly dropped it. Yugiri's body shot up in bed, followed quickly by the others in the room. Even Tae was up and alert at the echoing howl. Yugiri's body felt for what was missing and when she realized her head was gone, the courtesan released a deeper, more guttural scream.

Saki stared down at the head in shock. Sure, having the head scream outta nowhere took her by surprise, but what really stumped her were the tears flowing from Yugiri's eyes as her body looked around desperately for her head. By this point, everyone else was wide awake and Ai hurriedly hit the lights, catching Saki red-handed.

"Saki!" Sakura gasped. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I was pulling a prank!" the blonde retorted. "Now, I'm holding Yugiri's panicking head."

"Put it back!" the redhead sobbed, her body crawling closer. "Put it back! Give it back to me!"

"Whoa, jeez!" Saki hurriedly handed the head back to the outstretched hands. "Sorry. It was just a joke."

Yugiri's body hugged the head close before securing it back in place as best it could. Turning her neck every which way, Yugiri felt the rest of her body to be sure everything was in place. The others moved closer, wanting to check her condition.

"Yugiri?" Sakura asked slowly.

Everything happened in a whirlwind. Before any of them could so much as blink, Yugiri had spun on all of them. Quick as a snake, she lashed out, sending anyone close by backward with a powerful strike. Saki slammed into the wall, Ai flew back into Junko, Sakura smashed into the floor, and Tae's head went soaring through the air. Yugiri growled at the last person cowering before her, but just as she dove to strike, Lily cringed and caused the distraught woman to pause.

Time froze for Yugiri as she eyed the terror on the little girl's face. She pulled her hand back, staring at her trembling fingers in shock. She… she hadn't meant to… "Lily?" she croaked, holding her hand out soothingly this time. "Lady Lily, I am terribly sorry."

The poor girl relaxed minutely at the soothing tone while the others recovered from the blows dealt them. Junko rubbed Ai's cheek to soothe some of the lingering ache. Sakura pulled her head from its nest in the floorboards, shaking splinters from her chin and forehead. Saki popped herself free of the implant she'd created upon contact. All of them turned their attention to the trembling woman and Yugiri swallowed thickly.

"I-I just… I didn't mean… M-my head…"

"Hey, it's okay," Sakura told her, inching forward with her hands outstretched to show peace. "We understand. It just took all of us a little off guard."

Yugiri nodded and took deep breaths to remain calm. "I… Please excuse me." Before any of them could stop her, she was up and out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Instantly, all eyes turned to a suddenly sheepish Saki.

"What the hell, Saki?" Sakura demanded.

"Fuck you say?" Saki growled, but Sakura didn't back down, Ai and Lily joining her.

"She had her head cut off, you idiot!" Ai snapped. "Why would you think taking it would be a good idea?"

"Tae and Sakura had their heads pop off no problem and didn't feel a thing!" Saki pointed out.

Sakura gripped her hair irritably, taking her head off and shoving it in Saki's face. "Because the two of us weren't decapitated as method of death!" She set her head back in place and huffed, "Of course we'd be okay with it! Our necks had nothing to do with how we died!"

"And from the looks of things," Junko piped in boldly. "Yugiri appeared to have been awake for her decapitation. It clearly brought bad memories with it."

"Alright, I get it!" Saki grunted. "I screwed up. She'll probably get over it in a day or two. Junko and Ai took a few weeks, but they're fine now, aren't they?"

Ai and Sakura shared a glance before both of them moved closer, Lily and Junko right behind. Saki stared at them apprehensively. "What are you doing? Hey, back off! Cut it out!"

Meanwhile, Kotaro was jolted from sleep by the sound of rapid knocking at his door. Groaning, he grabbed his sunglasses and slipped them on before heading for the door. With a yawn, he opened it up and cocked his head at the distraught woman on the other side.

"I know it's late," Yugiri told him quickly. "I deeply apologize for the hour, but I implore you."

"What's up?" Kotaro muttered behind another yawn.

"I need you to restitch my head into place," Yugiri explained, pointing to the broken stitches at her neck.

Kotaro groaned and his head fell back in frustration. "What happened?"

"Lady Saki-." A rush of nausea hit Yugiri and she hurried to be sure her head was still in place. Thankfully, Kotaro had heard enough.

"Can't it wait until morning?" he asked slowly, only to take a step back when Yugiri knelt before him.

"Please!" she begged, tears leaking from her eyes. "Please, sir. I know I've no right to ask this, but please stitch it now. I don't… I don't want to lose it again." She choked back a sob. "Please don't make me lose it again…"

Kotaro's expression softened and he leaned down, gently lifting Yugiri back to her feet. "Okay, come on. Let's get you stitched back up. Then we can all rest up, right?"

Yugiri nodded and wiped her eyes, allowing Kotaro to lead her to a chair. He rummaged around in his drawers for his sewing kit and returned to her side. "I'm going to need you to lie down a little," he explained. "First time I did this you were unconscious, so, you know…"

"O-of course." Yugiri lowered herself onto his couch and gasped when her head loosened. Before she could panic, Kotaro caught her and pressed her head firmly if gently back in place.

"Make sure to hold it," he said quietly. "I want it to be comfortable and tell me if it's too tight."

Yugiri gave a soft sigh and kept a steady hold of her head. "Thank you," she whispered.

Kotaro said nothing, getting right to his task. They sat in silence as he expertly stitched Yugari's neck back together. Yugiri took measured breaths, focusing on the fluid motion of the needle going through her skin. When Kotaro was nearly finished, working on the back of her neck now, there was a knock at the door.

"Yo, Kotaro!" a rough voice called. "I know Yugiri's in there. Do you mind opening up?"

Kotaro glanced to the courtesan, who shook her head. "Nope." He continued his task, focusing on getting the last stitch just right.

"Come on, man! I just wanna talk to'er, honest!" Kotaro said nothing, tying the knot at the end and sealing up the last bit of skin. "I know I messed up, okay? I just wanna, you know, apologize and shit. Get her side of the story." Yugiri tested her neck, tenderly turning it side to side. With the stitches the way they were, she couldn't turn her head very far, but it was enough. She gave a relieved smile and bowed to Kotaro. "I'm not going back to the room until I talk to her, dammit! I don't actually have a choice in the matter!"

Kotaro facepalmed and walked to the door. He looked down to find a head and an arm in front of the door, Saki glaring up at him. "They all took my limbs," she said in explanation. "I'm not allowed to have them back until I've listened to Yugiri's side of things."

Kotaro lifted Saki's head and the courtesan blinked. After a moment, she nodded and the manager set Saki's head beside Yugiri before exiting the room. Neither knew what he could possibly be going to do this late at night, but it didn't really matter.

Yugiri turned to face the head, pulling her knees up onto the couch as she gazed at Saki calmly. Saki, for her part, had the sense to look somewhat sheepish. Her eyes stayed low as she waited for Yugiri to speak.

"Where is the rest of your body?" the redhead finally asked.

"They took it as punishment for not getting your side of things before trying to take your hea-." Saki stopped at the way Yugiri stiffened. Her phrasing must not have been ideal. "For trying to steal your body parts."

"So you are doing this simply to get your body back?" Yugiri clarified.

"Well, yeah, mostly," Saki huffed. "I'm itching and I can't scratch it because Tae's laying on my arm." Yugiri's lips pursed. "But I also wanna know what's up with you. That freakout wasn't like you. The whole point of the prank was to see you surprised, so I guess I already got what I wanted. But you're usually all in control and above it all, so what happened?"

Yugiri stared down at her blankly for a few moments. A sigh slipped through her lips and she gently lifted Saki's head, bringing it to her chest as she leaned back on the couch. "It's quite a story," she pointed out.

"I listened to Ai tell me about her getting struck by lightning while we were in the middle of a thunderstorm," Saki reminded her. "I think I can handle anything after that."

Yugiri hummed noncommittally and took a deep breath. "It was a few months before my nineteenth birthday, then. Did you know I'm younger than Lady Junko by two months? She was born in September, I was born in November, and we both died in December. How ridiculous time seems now that I'm immortal."

Saki rolled her eyes, but she'd committed to this shitty situation, so she better listen. Besides, Yugiri's tits were pretty soft and warm after being on the floor. So, she settled in and got ready for a story.

"I was an acclaimed entertainer from a young age. European courtesans were more… intimate, but in Japan, we prided ourselves on entertainment for the masses and the elite. That garnered attention, both good and bad.

"There was a man. He enjoyed my shows enthusiastically, requesting my group specifically as often as he could. His eyes never strayed from me whenever I performed, even if I was not the centerpiece that evening. I always held his focus. It was nothing new, of course. Admirers were common for us, so it made sense he would be one as well. Unfortunately, he fell into the dangerous category."

Yugiri shuddered and Saki looked up at her. Red eyes shone with pain and fear as Yugiri recalled every moment of the events leading up to her death. "He sent letters, gifts, anything in the hopes of reaching me. I was never allowed to respond to any of them. Response might have caused him to think I reciprocated his feelings. Instead, while I could keep some of the gifts, everything else was burned by our group owner. I never had direct contact with him until December."

Saki felt heat and realized Yugiri's body temperature was rising. Damn, these memories really are hard for her, huh? she thought. If she could kick herself, she would've. They hadn't even gotten to the actual death and Yugiri was breaking down faster than Ai.

"He requested our group again. Everything was normal, a regular performance. However, as we were preparing our leave, bowing in thanks for their acceptance of us, warriors—by today's standards, I believe the term is 'thugs'—surrounded us, separating us all. None of us were prepared for a surprise attack. Though we were trained in forms of self-defense, they merged on us too quickly for us to retaliate. I was knocked out. The last thing I saw were some of my group mates attempting to flee. And when I awoke…"

Red eyes snapped open, swiveling in every direction. The room was unfamiliar. She tried moving any of her limbs, but found that she had been bound with thick rope, her body couldn't move. Even worse, screaming only garnered muffled sounds around the gag in her mouth. She had been compromised.

The door on the other side of the room opened and Yugiri's eyes widened. The requester that had drawn them here. So it had been a trap the entire time. What did he want with her? Where was the rest of her group?

"You are nervous, flower," he whispered, reaching out to cup her cheek. "No need. I will take good care of you."

Yugiri highly doubted that, but she didn't want to do or say anything that would make him angry. He clearly was not sound of mind and could resort to something drastic if things were not as he wanted. Her best course of action was to remain quiet and listen.

"Tell me, flower," the man said conversationally as he removed the gag in her mouth. "Why have you not spoken to me these last few months? I have sent letters and none of them have received a response. Were you unhappy with what I said?"

"N-not at all," Yugiri responded hoarsely. It was best to play along. She may not have known what the letters said, but she needed to stall as long as possible.

"Then why no response?" he inquired. "I understand that a flower as colorful and fragrant as yourself must have many admirers. Was there someone else instead?"

Yugiri quickly shook her head. "There was no one," she replied. She wasn't sure if this is what he wanted to hear, but she also wasn't going to put some faceless nameless stranger in danger for her own sake. "I spoke to no one else."

Within seconds, a blade was at her throat and her breath caught. Manic brown eyes glared down at her and the man growled, "Then why, flower? Why, when I reached out a hand, you did not reach back? Why have you allowed me to bathe in my own feelings for so long instead of coming to my side?"

Yugiri swallowed thickly and she whispered, "I-I was f-forbidden-." The blade pressed into her skin and she flinched back. "Please-."

"Forbidden?" he snarled. "Forbidden means nothing when our hearts beat as one, like the ocean and the rivers that return to it. You have avoided me for too long, flower. Do not deny the passion you feel when we are together."

"I-I would never!" Yugiri stammered.

Banging sounded throughout the building around them and the man cursed, moving closer to her. He gripped her hair, pulling her head back enough to press the blade firmly against her flesh. Yugiri dare not even move for fear she would pierce herself by accident. Footsteps thundered through the house, alongside softer ones that were almost indistinguishable if not for her honed hearing. Did they bring ninja as well? Whoever was here had put her captor on edge, so perhaps that meant they were there to save her.

"You will be mine, flower," the man growled into her ear. "We will meet come the next life. We will be together as fate has foretold."

Next life?Yugiri thought in confusion. Her eyes widened in horror. He can't mean-!

Before she could even finish the thought, the door crashed open. At the same time, she felt the grip tighten on her hair and she felt the blade slice easily into her throat. Blood spilled over her collarbone and chest, flowing freely down her torso and soaking into her clothes. Ninja hurried into the room, but this only urged the blade deeper. Her vision rapidly faded as the blade kept going. Even as everything went black, she could still feel it, severing into her neck until, at last, she felt nothing anymore.

Saki stared up at the older woman in horror. She'd lied. She could not handle that. That was so far beyond messed up. "I-I didn't… those kinds of people… here?"

"He was actually an oddity," Yugiri said. Her voice had taken on a mechanical tone, as if she were distancing herself from the memories. Her eyes stared blankly down at the biker's head. "He was the first we had ever encountered that went about things in such a dishonorable way."

"Dude, I'm sorry," Saki breathed. And she meant it. Sure, she'd had the pleasure of dying doing what she loved, but Yugiri died because of what she loved. Saki couldn't even begin to understand how that must have affected her once she got back. Though, it probably made her feel a little better knowing that dirtbag wasn't around anymore. From that moment, Saki swore she'd drop kick anybody who made her big sis uncomfortable, starting with herself.

"You had no way of knowing," Yugiri sighed.

"But I know now," Saki huffed. "And… I'm sorry for tryin'a take your head. If I wanna prank ya, I'll just, like, hide something or marker your face or somethin'. It's really my bad."

Yugiri smiled down at her. "Thank you, Lady Saki," she said quietly. "That truly does mean a lot coming from our fearless leader."

If Saki could shrug, she would've. Since she couldn't, she settled for a lopsided grin. "What can I say? I gotta be there for my crew, especially when I'm the one that screwed up." Yugiri giggled at that and Saki relaxed. "Now that I know your story and all, do ya mind convincin' the girls to give me my body back? My back is seriously killing me and I need to scratch it hella bad."

Yugiri blinked down at her before shifting on the couch, bringing Saki's head to a more comfortable position on her chest. At this angle, she could hug the head just fine and settled in for some much needed sleep. After all the fuss of the night, she could definitely use some shut eye.

"Yugiri?" Saki called. "Uh, Yugiri? Ya hear what I said? Come on, you're not gonna leave me like this! Ya got nice knockers, but come on! Yugiri!"

I know, really angsty, sorry. I just can't think of anything comical for her death right now. Hopefully, the show gives us a Yugiri episode with something way lighter than what I could come up with.

Remember, updates and sneak peeks are available on my tumblr, gothalbinoangel-fanfiction. I recently opened commissions!