A/N: Alright, here's the next (long) chapter! Enjoy! We don't own Yugioh GX.
It was a long walk back to town. Johan hadn't realized he'd gotten that lost; but, apparently, he had. Along the way, they discussed the unfair fact that wild duel spirits could appear in a physical form, yet the ones in their cards could only become real when in the presence of a wild one.
"Every time I fight those two outside of Yubel's territory, I summon my Behemoth and have him chase Judai back to their turf. Since that's a monster attacking her servant, Yubel usually follows, trying to stop my forest guardian. After all, he's the king of all animals, right? Anyway, I figured it out when I summoned a monster to attack one of Judai's and it actually showed up. Not just a hologram, either! The actual monster appeared! At first, I was a little surprised, but I so wasn't complaining."
"So, the monsters in the cards actually become real around a wild duel spirit?" Johan asked, stunned.
"Uh-huh! It's cool, right!? Though it seems that's the only time. I've never been able to get any of my cards to take on a real physical form when I'm anywhere away from Yubel," Kathleen responded.
"That's weird... Why do you suppose that is?"
Kathleen shrugged. "It's hard to say. I mean, I guess it could be that tame duel spirits don't have to maintain a physical form...but that doesn't explain why wild ones do..." She shrugged again. "It's just the way things are, I guess!"
"I guess," Johan agreed.
When they finally arrived at the edge of the forest, Kathleen stopped.
"Well, here we are! This is as far as I can take you, though. I've never been in a city before." She stared at the skyscrapers thoughtfully for a second before continuing, "Well, good luck! Don't get lost again, okay!?"
"Okay, I'll try!" Johan said, grinning. "No promises, though."
"See ya around, then!" Kathleen said, turning to leave.
A bark at her feet caught her attention. Looking down, Johan saw a little Shiba Inu by her feet. It had a green bandanna tied around its neck and a little sword with a bone for the handle—a tamed duel spirit, Shiba Warrior Taro.
"What was that?" Kathleen asked, looking at the little spirit. "Keep an eye on him? Why?"
Johan was startled—sure, they'd been talking about how lousy it was that only wild duel spirits could appear, but he hadn't thought that she could see them, too.
"Wait, you can see duel spirits?" he asked.
Kathleen didn't seem to hear him. "Really?" she said to the spirit as it yipped again. "No sense of direction, huh? Well, that's not my problem. We both know I can't go down there. Then it's gonna be me who's lost!"
"Um... 'scuse me, but...you're talking to a Shiba Warrior, aren't you?"
"Hmm?" Finally she turned her attention to Johan. "Say something?"
Johan sweat. Yeah, twice!
Pushing that rude remark away, he repeated, "You can see duel spirits?"
Kathleen blinked. "You know about duel spirits, too? How?"
"I've got another deck," Johan answered. "The monsters in it are like a part of my family. I'd introduce you, but I kinda let my friend borrow them for the day... That's why I was lost." He sweat a bit as he finished.
"Really? And how's that make a difference?"
"Uh, one of the cards, Ruby, has a way better sense of direction than me. He usually keeps me from getting lost," Johan said, grinning and rubbing the back of his head.
"Ruby, huh?"
"Arg!" an irritated voice said from nearby. "Johan? Can't you go anywhere without a tour guide?"
The two turned to see a boy with glasses and spiky red hair coming their way, looking annoyed.
"Hey! Amon! How's it going?" Johan called to his friend.
"A lot better if you would stop getting lost, already," the red-headed boy answered in annoyance. "I said near the forest, not in it!"
Johan sweat. "Well, uh...heh."
"Uh, who's this?" Kathleen asked.
"This is my friend, Amon. He's the one who's got my other deck."
"Really?" Kathleen asked, looking at him in awe.
"And who are you?" Amon asked.
"Name's Kathleen. And I just saved your friend here from a terrible witch! Please keep an eye on him!"
"A witch? There's no such thing."
"No! It's so true!" Kathleen exclaimed. "You see, she was turned into a monster by an evil witch, and now she's the witch, and she has a servant who's even scarier since she took him in and raised him to hate people!" She paused, blushing. "Oop! Sorry. I'm babbling again. I do that whenever someone says that. My bad!" she added, giggling and rubbing the back of her head.
Amon just stared, speechless. Who is this girl?
"Uh, yeah, and I need to talk to you about that, Amon," Johan said. "Along with Jim and O'Brien."
"Why? Do I really want to know?" Amon asked, getting the way wrong idea. She's crazy, I know it...
"Who's Jim and O'Brien?" Kathleen asked.
Johan answered Amon, "Well... I'll tell you later. Something I saw out there has me worried, that's all."
"Ugh. I told you, it's okay! Why don't you believe me!?" Kathleen asked, clearly irritated. Some people just never learn.
"Well, he just seemed way too scared! I mean, there's almost gotta be something up!" Johan retorted. "Think about it. If he runs away that much, how come he always goes back? And what did he steal from her, anyway?"
"Well, if you ask me, they're both nuts! He seems to have two sides to him, and I think her problem's obvious. Besides, all he does when he does that is torture innocent campers for no good reason. Yubel just hates leaving her home all the time, that's all. Trust me. I've known them longer than you have, and they're fine."
"Okay, now I'm curious," Amon said. "So, let's go find the others."
"Yeah, okay. Bye, Kathleen," Johan said. "Thanks."
"Hey! You're not gonna get your friends involved in this crazy theory of yours, are you!?" Kathleen demanded.
"Only if they think it's worth looking into!"
"It's a waste of time, but, if that's how you feel, then take me with you!" she said. "You only know half the story, after all."
Johan shrugged. "Okay," he said.
"Great, just one thing... Cities are safe, right?"
Johan hadn't expected that. "Uh, yeah, if you..." There were so many things he thought he should tell her about cities, but not nearly enough time. "Just stay with us, okay?" he said finally.
"'Kay!"
With Amon leading the way to prevent them from getting lost (either at Kathleen's hands or because of Johan's lousy sense of direction), they set off to find the others.
"WOW!" Kathleen exclaimed, looking around in awe. "This is like soo cool! I never knew the buildings in a city could be so big!"
Amon rolled his eyes. "Sheesh. A country girl, huh? Johan, where do you find these people? She's more out of place than you are."
"Come on, be nice, Amon!" Johan said, looking back at Kathleen and smiling. "It's cute, isn't it?"
"Whoa! So, that's a subway, huh?"
Before either of the boys could even decide if they were going to answer, a voice with a heavy Australian accent called out, "Hey! Amon! Johan!"
A black-haired boy with a green eye—the other being bandaged—stood nearby, smiling. There was something on his back that looked distinctly like a live crocodile.
"Hey, Jim!" Johan called, running over. "How's it going!?"
"Oh, can't complain," Jim answered as Amon and Kathleen joined them. "So, who's that?" he asked, looking at Kathleen.
Kathleen stared at his back in awe—that WAS a live crocodile!
"Wow... Who knew you could have those in a city. I've obviously got a lot to learn..."
"This is our friend Johan's new hero," Amon answered. "Kathleen the country girl. She saved him from the woods, so I guess we should be wary of that possibility from now on."
"Ah. Well, thank you, sheila, for taking care of our Johan," he said with a smile. "The name's Jim Cook. And I see you're especially interested in Karen." He pointed to the crocodile riding on his back.
Kathleen didn't seem to be listening...which Johan was starting to think was normal for her. "I see, so you're Karen, and you're Jim's friend and partner?" she said, seemingly talking to the reptile. "What do you guys do?"
As Karen explained that she and Jim were a sort of volunteer police force—finding lost kids and pets; scaring off unwanted pests, like bears and snakes; and things of that nature—the boys just watched.
"Hello?" Jim asked, trying to get her attention.
Amon looked disturbed. "Hey, is she talking to the crocodile, or is it just me?"
Jim looked at Karen and asked, "Karen, would you be so kind as to tell Kathleen what I said?"
"Huh?" Kathleen asked, looking at Jim. "Say something, sir?"
"Nah, never mind," Jim said. "It's not every day I meet someone who doesn't scream when they first meet Karen. You're something else, I'll give you that, sheila."
"Why would I scream? She seems nice enough," Kathleen asked naively.
"Ah, Jim, we found you."
The group turned to see a dark, well-muscled boy flanked by two girls. One had long purple hair flowing down her back and orange eyes. She was trying to cling to the boy's arm, but he wouldn't let her, so she gave up and charged Amon, latching onto him. The other, a short-haired blond girl with piercing blue eyes, seemed to be trying to ignore this other girl.
"Honestly, big guy," the blond said, "you shouldn't be so hard to find. I mean, 'Have you seen a guy with a crocodile on his back' isn't something a lot of people ask."
Jim laughed. "Sorry about that, sheila!"
"Who are they?" Kathleen asked.
"Who are you?" the blond responded.
"Uh, guys, Kathleen," Johan answered, slightly nervous. "Kathleen, Akiko, O'Brien, and Haruko." He gestured to each in turn, showing that the blond was Akiko and the clingy one was Haruko.
"Hi, there!" Haruko said, still hanging onto Amon's arm. "Nice to meet you!"
"Hi!" Kathleen answered. "You Johan's friends, too!? 'Cause, I gotta tell ya, he's quite a handful!" She giggled.
Akiko closed her eyes. "Where did you get lost now, you idiot?" she asked, exasperated.
"Uh...the forest."
"I see...and what were you doing in the forest?" Her tone radiated disapproval.
"What was he doing? Angering the witch of the deep, dark woods," Kathleen answered. "Luckily, I was there to save him."
"Was I talking to you? I didn't think so."
"Hey, ya wanted an answer, didn't ya?"
"Yes," Akiko said, "but I'd rather get one from the idiot I'm talking to, not another idiot."
"Who you calling an idiot!?" Kathleen demanded indignantly, glaring at the offending blond. "I'm not the one dumb enough to pick a fight with that witch and her wicked servant for no good reason!"
"Now, now, sheilas," Jim interrupted. "Let's not start, alright?" He turned to Kathleen and added, "Kathleen, I'm sorry. Akiko doesn't take too kindly to strangers. She'll warm up to you in time."
Kathleen humphed, turning her back on the blond and crossing her arms. "Keep that one on a leash. Obviously, she doesn't know her manners..."
"Aw, Akiko," Haruko chided, "you hurt her feelings! Apologize!"
Akiko turned her back, crossing her arms as she said, "If you're saying I should, then I won't."
"What if I asked real nicely?" Jim ventured.
Akiko sighed. "Sorry."
Johan looked at Kathleen and said, "Her bark is worse than her bite, trust me."
Kathleen just humphed again, so Johan decided to stop wasting time and get down to business.
"Anyway, guys, I need to talk to you. Akiko, be nice. Haruko, stay on one guy and don't go bouncing around," he said, laying down some ground rules before getting started.
"Whatev," Akiko answered.
"Amon it is!" Haruko chimed, earning a sigh from the boy in question.
"So, what's wrong?" O'Brien asked.
"Nothing," Kathleen muttered. "He's worrying too much, is all. Sheesh."
"Well, like Kathleen said, we were in the woods, and this monster came through chasing a boy. He looked terrified. The monster was yelling at him to 'give it back,' but I don't know what 'it' was. Anyway, I tried to help him, and he got defensive of the monster. Kathleen says he's the monster's servant and he's loyal to her, but I'm not sure that's really the case. I challenged her to a duel for his freedom, and he was worried about my safety. He seemed pretty happy when I won, but she didn't let him go. He started complaining and arguing, but she hissed his name, and he stopped. Then he agreed that he should stay with her, but he didn't look too happy about it."
Out of this whole monologue, the detail that Amon zoned in on was one Johan considered extremely irrelevant. "Please, Johan, now it was a monster? You said it was a witch earlier." Silently, he added, That's it. I'm never letting him get lost again. He's clearly going nuts.
"Well, she calls it a witch," Johan said, pointing at Kathleen, "but it looked more like a duel spirit to me."
Haruko draped an arm across her face. "Alas, my dear, sweet Johan has gone insane!"
Akiko gave her friend a lame look and said, "I thought you were in love with Amon today?" Muttering, she added, "Then again, I also thought you were in love with O'Brien..."
"It's true!" Kathleen said. "There is a witch! She has magic powers and everything! She can get inside someone's head and reveal the darkness in their hearts! Then they wind up doing horrible things because of it!"
"Well, I don't know about that, but what do you guys think about this servant of hers?" Johan asked his friends. "I mean, clearly, he doesn't want to be with her. He keeps running away!"
"Yes," Kathleen said impatiently, "then he goes and attacks innocent people and returns! I'm telling you, he's fine!"
"But is Yubel always around when he does this?" Johan countered. "Maybe she's watching from somewhere, or maybe she finds him, and he's afraid to do what he wanted to because of it. I mean, you said she's a witch. Who knows what she could have done to him?"
"Did I mention I've seen them enjoying torturing intruders they'd caught before? They both laughed at their suffering. No hidden emotion there!"
"How close are you when you see this stuff, and do you actually look, or are you just saving the victims?" Akiko asked, wanting to get all the facts straight.
Meanwhile, nearby, the topic of their debate stood in an alley, catching his breath. When Yubel was mad, she had a tendency to forget important things...like, say, the object he had stolen. She had left it behind when she went to find a suitable punishment somewhere, giving him the perfect opportunity to grab it and run.
"Okay...now what...?"
He looked at the object in question—a small remote control, with only one button on it that he was guessing was the last thing he wanted to push.
So, If I want to get that thing off, I need a key? That's no fair!
"Guess I'm gonna have to make sure Yubel doesn't find me again... I'm dead for sure if she does."
The rattling of a trash can right next to Judai startled the runaway. He cried out wordlessly, jumping backward, away from the offending object.
"W-who's there!?" a timid voice asked from the trash can. "Th-there's nobody here, so just keep looking! And there's especially no one here by the name of Sho, so just g-go away, okay!?"
Judai relaxed slightly. "Uh, well, Nobody-by-the-name-of-Sho trash can, you didn't hear me either. Okay?"
"Huh!?" Gray eyes poked out from under the lid of the trash can, followed almost immediately by a small boy with blue hair. "Why, you're not Gorisuke! Who are you!?"
"The name's Judai. I take it your name is Sho?"
"Uh, yeah, maybe..."
Judai laughed lightly. "That's not the best way to hide from someone," he pointed out.
"Says you! You should try it sometime! It works okay as long as you don't startle me!"
"Hmm...maybe I should try it," Judai mused.
"No way! This one's taken! Go find your own place to hide!"
Judai sweat, grinning slightly as he said, "I wasn't talking about here..."
"Hey, you!" a voice rang out down the alley, driving Sho back down into his trash can. "Ya seen a useless little shrimp around here, anywhere!? He owes me some money!"
Judai looked and saw a big, mean-looking boy. He looked like he was ready to beat the tar out of someone.
"...Nope," Judai said calmly. "Sorry, I can't say that I have."
"Really? Are you sure? He's easy to forget, after all. I mean, for one thing, he's totally lame. A useless piece of trash who's about as brave as he is tall. So, you see, he's hard to notice."
Judai pretended to think about it for a moment. "Hmm... Sorry. If I've seen him, I can't say for sure. I mean, you said it yourself, didn't you? He's hard to notice. I'll keep an eye out for him, though."
"Arg. As usual, the kid may as well be invisible," the boy muttered. "Hey, Sho! Quit hiding and pay me that 2,000 yen* you owe me!" he yelled, running off in search of his victim.
Sho popped out of his can when the coast was clear.
"Why did you do that?" he asked.
"Because that guy seems like a jerk," Judai answered simply.
"Yeah, well, so what? He just so happens to be right. I'm a disgrace who will never amount to anything. I'm not worth protecting." His tone told Judai that he actually believed this, almost as if he'd said it or heard it countless times.
"Why's that?"
"Cause I am, that's why! I can't duel, I'm super short, I need glasses, and, above all, I'm a huge wimp!" In a mutter, he finished, "So says everyone."
"Well, are you sure everyone's right?" Judai asked. "I mean, so what if you can't duel? So what if you're short? There's got to be something you're good at."
"Well, I'm super good at running away and hiding," Sho said dejectedly.
Judai tried to turn that lemon into lemonade. "Bet you're hard to beat at hide-and-seek. You fast?"
"Sure am! I can outrun a car if I'm being chased by someone!" He looked down. "See? I'm pathetic."
"No, you're not," Judai said gently. "You're just overlooking your talents, that's all. I'm sure there's a lot of things you're good at. You just can't think of them right now."
A voice off to the side said, "Sho. Are you telling everyone how pathetic we are again?"
Judai and Sho turned to see a...Des Koala?
"'Cause they already know," the koala said.
"Des Koala!" Judai cried, startled.
"How many times I gotta tell people!?" the koala said indignantly. "I'm not a koala, I'm Hayato!"
Upon closer inspection, this was a human—with black hair in a style that greatly resembled koala ears and a big pink nose that didn't help with that resemblance much.
"Hey, pal," Sho said to Hayato the not-koala. "How's it going?"
"Oh, you know. The usual. Say, wanna go get some grilled cheese?"
"Sure, why not," Sho said. "Later, Judai."
With that, the trash-hider and the koala-boy walked off. Judai blinked.
"That was weird..." Silently, he added, And I shouldn't stand around here too long.
"For the last time, quit worrying!" he heard a familiar and loathsome voice exclaim.
"Huh!?" He looked, hoping he was wrong. Was that Kathleen? Not again!
Unfortunately, it was Kathleen. She and the boy from earlier were standing across the street from this little alley, arguing. Four other people—two boys and two girls—were watching.
"I can't!" the teal-haired boy said. "What if you're wrong? I want Jim's opinion! He's a good judge of character!"
The tall boy with a cowboy hat shifted and said, "Oi, leave me out of this..."
Judai stepped a bit closer, standing in the entrance to the alley. His opinion on what? What are they arguing about?
"I agree!" Kathleen said in reference to Johan's comment. "Karen said that, too! So, Jimmy? Who's right? Me, the girl who's known those two for years; or Johan, who just met them? Well!?"
"I can't say!" The tall boy—apparently Jim—said. "I haven't met the bloke, so I can't tell you who's right. I mean, with all due respect, knowing someone for two years as an enemy doesn't really count for much."
"Hah!" the blunette said.
"Then again, Johan does have a tendency to exaggerate," Jim continued.
Wait, are they talking about me? Judai wondered. He didn't know if Kathleen had a lot of other enemies, after all.
"Thought so!" Kathleen said. "Those two are the best of friends! Trust me!"
Realizing that they were indeed talking about him, Judai grinned. Oh, this'll be fun...
He walked over to the group, still grinning. "Hey, Kat, how's it going?" he asked, knowing full well she hated that nickname.
"Judai! For the thousandth time, don't call me 'Kat'!" she snapped. Then she paused as what she just said sank in. "Wait, Judai!?" she asked, turning to face him. "Oh, great. What do you want now?"
"Judai!" Johan exclaimed.
One of the girls—a blond Judai didn't know—glanced at Jim and said, "So, I take it this little spat can be settled easily now?"
Jim—who Judai just realized had only one eye and a crocodile strapped to his back—stared at Judai, boring into his soul and making him squirm.
"Hey, mind your manners, will you?" Judai said. "It's rude to stare."
"So, Jim? What do you think? I'm right, right?" Johan asked.
"You're nuts is what you—" Kathleen started, but Jim cut her off.
"Crikey. I'd say so, mate." Silently, he added, Though there's something else... What's this bloke's problem?
"Wait, what!?"
Judai just looked at them in confusion. "He's right about what? What's going on?"
The blond smirked. "His word is law on this subject, Kat. Don't argue with Jimmy."
"Look, nobody asked you, Aki!" Kathleen retorted. "And don't call me 'Kat'!"
"He's not a trouble-maker on purpose," Jim said, which, Judai assumed, was meant to be an explanation. "In fact, if I had to guess, I'd say you're in trouble right now, aren't you?"
Judai looked away. "Well..."
"Don't be shy," O'Brien said. "Maybe we can help you."
The brunette hesitated before saying, "Anybody know anything about..." He trailed off, eying Kathleen, uncertain as to whether he should ask this around her.
"About what?" the red-head asked. "What's wrong? Have a falling out with Yubel?"
He decided to just come out and ask. "Look, you guys wouldn't know where I could find Kenta Yuki, would you?"
"Kenta Yuki?" O'Brien asked.
"He's my dad."