'Lo everyone. Fox Queen here. Just a little one-shot here taking place in the fourth season. There's a lot of OOCness here, which kind of bugs me, but it would mean that I'd have to tear down the story and re-write it, which I don't see working out. As it is, this is a one-shot that doesn't really feel complete. But please don't ask me for a sequel. I've now learned that if people ask me for a sequel, I never do it. So just assume this is done. Finito. Anyway, hope this isn't too bad, considering I've been off the series for a while. Enjoy!

Jaden wasn't really aware of what was going on around him. He could hear echoing screams. He could see people fleeing in front of him. Away from him? But he couldn't figure out what was going on. His head hurt too bad. His conscious hurt too bad. He'd sent his own friends to the stars. Maybe that was why they were all running from him.

He didn't deserve his friends. He didn't deserve to keep struggling. Jaden just wanted to melt away into the darkness. That way, he couldn't keep reliving the moment he sent his friends to the stars. So he couldn't see all those people fleeing before him like he was disease.

But just before he faded away, he felt a rush of burning rage. It wasn't his fault that his friends were sent to the stars! What else was he supposed to do? He was backed into a corner. He was either going to be forced to lose or lose his friends. And how many times had he saved them before? He'd tried! He'd tried so hard to protect them all the time. How long was he supposed to keep saving them?! Why couldn't they figure out a way to save themselves for once?

And these people running away from him. What right did they have to judge him? He didn't see most of them sacrificing themselves to save his friends. He was just so tired of it all. People were so hypocritical. They wanted heroes to take care of all their problems. But when that hero makes one little mistake, those backstabbers had a scapegoat to blame everything on.

So why should he show them any mercy? There was a challenger in front of him now, looking defiant, but barely holding himself up on shaking legs. Well, let's just show him how terrible real life can be. The hero won't always win. But since he had the guts to show a bit of bravery, Jaden decided to end him quickly. He smirked and raised his favorite card into the air. His opponent nearly fainted in fear. Good.

"I activate...Super Polymerization!"

Jaden shot up, banging his head on the bunk above him. He swore harshly, rubbing his head. It was the fifth time this week he had woken up that way. The nightmares just wouldn't leave him alone. Ever since he'd become the Supreme King, Jaden couldn't escape them. Even now, after the whole ordeal was over and he was back at the Duel Academy, he still couldn't sleep peacefully.

It didn't help that everyone looked at him differently. Sure, they acted friendly, but Jaden could see it in their faces. They were afraid of him. Afraid of what he did. After a couple of days acting like nothing happened, Jaden just couldn't take it anymore. He stopped going to class and began avoiding his friends. After all, if they couldn't handle the Supreme King, how were they going to react when they found out he wasn't entirely human anymore? That Yubel was a part of his soul?

In other words, Jaden was miserable. Everytime he saw his face in the mirror, he could almost swear he was looking right at the face of the Supreme King. Harsh and cold. He didn't have anyone to talk to except for his cards and Professor Banner, who was more of a nuisance than a real confidant.

"Koru," Winged Kuriboh cried, appearing at Jaden's side.

"So they're coming again, huh?" Jaden asked, already swinging his legs over the side of the bunk. Hassleberry and Syrus were coming again to try and catch him at the dorms. It was a wasted effort. Jaden had decided he wasn't going to ever try and talk to them. Plus, it was for their own good. He was just going to cause them more trouble. Maybe he should leave the Academy.

"Koru!" the winged monster repeated, more urgently. They must be pretty close.

"Yeah, I know. Thanks, buddy," Jaden said quietly, pulling on his shoes. He'd fallen asleep in his clothes again, so at least he didn't have to get dressed.

He slipped out of his room and made his way down the stairs. Were should he head today? Since he started avoiding his friends, Jaden spent most of his time exploring the island. By now, he knew of every good hiding spot across the island.

But Jaden wasn't really feeling up to going too far. He just wanted to clear his head and get some much-needed air. So he went along the cliffs towards the pier.

"I hope Jaden doesn't expelled because of all his absences," Syrus worried, walking next to Hassleberry through the forest.

"I'm starting not to care," retorted the dino duelist. "He obviously doesn't want to be here anymore. He doesn't talk to us, and he hasn't even duelled once since he got back. A duelist who's too afraid to duel doesn't deserve to be here," Hassleberry snapped.

"Yeah, I know," Syrus replied, trying to appease him. "But he went through a lot in the duel dimension."

"We all did," Hassleberry muttered viciously. Syrus remembered then that Hassleberry had been sent to the stars and felt like an idiot. He tried to think of something else to say, but couldn't. So tense silence fell over both of them.

It wasn't long before the red dorms appeared between the thinning trees. It looked more beaten down than ever now that Jaden was its sole resident. Hassleberry quickened his pace and Syrus had to jog to keep up.

Syrus knew that Hassleberry still hadn't forgiven Jaden completely for what happened in the duel dimension, but he was trying. He was still concerned about Jaden, even if it didn't seem like it. That's why he agreed to go look for the truant Slifer with Syrus today. Usually it was Alexis that went with him, but she was busy with classwork and couldn't go.

Syrus wished Jesse were still around. Jaden probably would've talked to him. But no, he'd left before Jaden had returned and Syrus had no way of contacting him.

The tiny Ra was so lost in thought that he nearly ran into Hassleberry. When had they reached Jaden's door?

Hassleberry pounded on the door loudly. "I know you're in there, Sarge! Quit avoiding us already!"

"Actually," Syrus said sheepishly, he probably isn't here."

Hassleberry either didn't hear him or pretended not to. "Open up, or I'll just come in myself!"

He paused, waiting for a response. Not hearing one, he growled in anger and burst into the room. And like Syrus expected, it was empty.

It was weird. When Syrus used to be a Slifer and even after that, the curtains were always open because Jaden loved looking out at the ocean. The room had always felt comfortable and lived-in. But now, the room was dark. There weren't any clothes on the floor. The walls were bare and the wasn't anything on the desk except something in the far corner. If the bed sheets weren't rumpled and out of place, Syrus might've guessed that Jaden had just moved out completely.

Syrus stepped further into the room, feeling a faint chill when he did. The room was also a few degrees colder than it was outside. It never was before.

He inspected the object on the desk and realized it was a picture frame placed face-down. Curious, Syrus flipped it over and felt a sharp pang. It was a picture that had been taken shortly before they got sucked into the duel dimension for the first time. Jaden was in the middle, smiling happily with his arms around Jesse and himself. Jesse was grinning and Syrus almost chuckled at his own sheepish expression. Alexis was grinning off to the side of Jesse and Jim was on Syrus' side with Karen on his back. He hadn't wanted to be in the picture with a bunch of slackers, but Alexis had dragged him in anyways. Hassleberry and Blair were in front. Blair was holding Pharaoh in her arms. Chazz was hovering on the edge of the picture with a sour expression.

The picture was like a ray of light piercing through a dark cave. It reminded Syrus that the cheerful past wasn't just a dream. But the picture had been laying facedown. Did that mean that those years meant nothing to Jaden? Did Jaden just want to forget all of them? Syrus didn't realize he was lost in thought until Hassleberry laid a hand on his shoulder. He was also looking wistfully at the photo. His expression was a lot softer than it had been earlier, anyway.

"Come on, it's pointless to stay here," the dino duelist said softly.

Syrus reluctantly put the picture back down on the desk how he had found it and left the room, leaving it as cold, dark, and empty as he'd found it.

Alexis found herself weaving her way through the woods. She'd told Syrus and Hassleberry that she was too busy to look for Jaden, but the reality was that she just couldn't do it anymore. It hurt too much. Jaden was obviously avoiding them and that stung. Alexis wouldn't have ever admitted it to anyone, but she had started to like Jaden. It was obvious that Jaden's only love was dueling so Alexis never confessed, but now she felt like her heart was being ripped apart slowly.

She'd been glad that he came back from the duel dimension, even after what he'd done as the Supreme King (which she'd heard stories of) and sending her to the stars. She'd understood that he'd been so tormented by his mistakes that he'd kind of...shut down. Collapsed. But when he came home, he'd seemed normal at first. Almost like he'd bounced back like he used to after makin a mistake. Alexis wasn't sure if she could forget what happened, but she had talked to Jaden like she used to. Then all of a sudden, Jaden had wanted nothing to do with anyone. He made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with anyone, even her.

So that's why Alexis was going to the pier she and Zane used to visit. She needed a place to clear her mind and relax. The ocean salty air never failed to calm her down.

The footing had gotten a little looser since Alexis had started her term at the Academy; probably because she visited the pier so often. So Alexis had to focus on the cliff face as she moved her way down instead of looking out at the sea. That's why she didn't notice Jaden fishing at the edge of the wooden pier.

By the time she noticed him, she'd already made it down to the other end. She briefly considered going back the way she came, but decided against it. She might as well try to talk some sense into Jaden. It wasn't like he had anywhere to run now.

She managed to sneak up quietly on Jaden. "So is fishing your new hobby?" she asked, attempting to be cordial.

Jaden jumped slightly. He hadn't heard her approaching. "I guess," he answered, keeping his answer short and vague, not encouraging a conversation.

Alexis tried the more direct approach. "Why are you avoiding everyone?" she snapped. She hadn't meant to sound angry, but her temper had flared again when she thought about Jaden turning his own friends away.

"I'm not-"

"Don't try to deny it! You've been weird ever since we lost Jesse. And now, we're back home. Nightmare over. Get over it!"

"The nightmare is never over," Jaden muttered quietly. His eyes were downcast, not looking at her. Alexis didn't hear him, but she could see him shutting her out again and rage took over.

"Look," she snarled. "I don't know about all the things that happened while you were the Supreme King, but you've been a real jerk, before and after. I mean, you don't talk to anyone now, even though we're all willing to try and forget everything that happened. But even when we entered the duel dimension together, you didn't even seem to care about any of us! We were all helping you look for Jesse, and you just let us get sent to the stars! Did our years of friendship mean nothing to you?" she yelled.

Something in Jaden's eyes snapped. It was startling to see his face suddenly go cold with rage for a second. He was obviously struggling to hold back his anger. Jaden never did that. Jaden worried, smiled, laughed, smirked, told lame jokes, and occasionally became indignant on someone else's behalf. But he was never angry.

It made Alexis take a step back in surprise. The moment passed quickly and Jaden's face relaxed as he looked up at her for the first time.

"I don't know. Did you really ever consider me a friend? Or just a convenient hero, one you could call on for every little problem? Well, guess what. I'm just a normal person, someone who makes mistakes. I'm not a hero, and I'm not anyone's scapegoat. You want to stay safe, be happy? Then defend yourself for once!" he retorted with a feeling of finality.

He pointedly turned away, clearly telling Alexis that their conversation was over. Alexis was frozen in place. She couldn't believe it. Did Jaden really just say that? Had he really felt like that this entire time? Alexis felt hollow. She didn't know what to say. Was this really Jaden? Where the cheerful friend she'd had so much fun with?

"Is that really how you feel?" Alexis asked, voice shaking uncertainly. When Jaden ignored her, the rage came back. Her voice was sharp and cold. "Fine. If you want to be alone, I won't ever bug you again." She turned sharply on her heel and walked away. So much for calming down.

Jaden felt horrified. Not that he'd driven Alexis away. He'd intended to do that. She was better off not being around him. It also wasn't because it was the same thought he'd had during the dream. No. What made it so terrifying was that he meant it.