All right, here's the update as promised, as well as a thanks and shout out to all the reviewers. I will not update again until 70 reviews. I know that's asking a lot, but hey, I made it to 40, so my head just inflated. Lol. If I can get another 30, that'll be awesome, and there will definitely be a new update when it happens. Anyways, to thank my reviewers who are awesome and got this story to 40 reviews! You guys are great! Thank you so much for reading this story and letting me know that it's worth writing! Thanks to:
07WinglessOrphans: Yes, this update was quicker... I think, but a little shorter and a little less action packed than the last. By the way, I don't get your display name, but I love it! ;)
Sasu-Sama' Sarukiji-Sempai: Thanks for the feedback. I read over that review quite often because I don't even remember writing that, but it's one of my favorite parts. Hopefully it's getting even better with each chapter.
AngelDove: Yes, the story is sad, but the premise is that not everything in life is as horrible as one thinks. There are always people who have it worse.
Tearfull Pixie: For loving the story.
Magnetic-Paw: Well, I apologize if I got you in trouble. Thank you for the review, and I'm glad that it sucked you in like that.
Kishaa: I see where you're coming from with Jou's friends being evil, but they're not. He still loves them, but he simple resents them at the moment. He feels abandoned. As for the evil versions, they're barriers that his mind concocted that he has to get past in order to advance through the Grey World and make it back to the world of light.
YgoGeass: Well, you can see it finally got to 40 reviews!
sanriolover: Yep, thanks to a good friend!
Inyoface: I know it was extremely angsty when I started it, and I'm thankful that it's not as much now. As for Kaiba's character, I like making him the loveable bastard. It works for him.
Neon021: I apologize for any inconsistencies in the story that I did not catch during editing, but I probably will go through the chapters when I have more time and make sure that spelling and names are correct. Thank you for pointing that out.
Blissful Imperfection: LOVE CHU! I'm glad you liked this chapter hon. We're both -very- similar in our impatience.
Amber Dawn-Chan: Thank you very much for the review. I'm glad you like the story.
HEsperance: I'm glad you liked the last chapter. Their interactions are what makes the story what it is!
Anon: Wish granted!
baby-gabby: Sorry for leaving you on the edge of your seat. Here's another update to leave you wondering some more!
Dark-Angel-Princess 01: Wish granted!
Anonymous: Sorry, there really wasn't any room for fluff in this chapter, but next chapter, I shall try to incorporate some! ;)
sazyboo: They couldn't just leave their best friend like that. They may have been a bit selfish, but their not heartless.
Ultimate Puppyshipper: Thank you for being the person to put me at 21 reviews and 40 for the overall story. It means so very much to be able to update again!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own, nor do I claim to own any of the copyrighted material used in this story. I am not getting paid for this story. It is purely fanfiction!
I do apologize for this chapter being a little short! And now, on with the story!
~Flashback~
"I'm looking at you through the glass...
Don't know how much time has passed
Oh god it feels like forever
But no one ever tells you that forever
Feels like home sitting all alone inside your head
How do you feel? That is the question
But I forget.. you dont expect an easy answer
When something like a soul becomes
Initialized and folded up like paper dolls and little notes
You cant expect a bit of hope
And while your outside looking in
Describing what you see
Remember what your staring at is me
Cause I'm looking at you through the glass...
Don't know how much time has passed
All I know is that it feels like forever
No one ever tells you that forever
Feels like home, sitting all alone inside your head
How much is real? So much to question
An epidemic of the mannequins
Contaminating everything
When thought came from the heart
It never did right from the start
Just listen to the noises
(No more sad voices)
Before you tell yourself
It's just a different scene
Remember its just different from what you've seen
Im looking at you through the glass...
Don't know how much time has passed
All i know is that it feels like forever
No one ever tells you that forever
Feels like home, sitting all alone inside your head
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That shine for you
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That lie to you.. yeah-ah
I'm looking at you through the glass...
Don't know how much time has passed
Oh god it feels like forever
But no one ever tells you that forever
Feels like home, sitting all alone inside your head
Cause I'm looking at you through the glass...
Don't know how much time has passed
All i know is that it feels like forever
But no one ever tells you that forever
feels like home, sitting all alone inside your heaaaaddd
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That shine for you.. yeah-ah
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That lie to you.. yeah-ah
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That shine for you.. yeah-ah
And its the starrrssss
The sttarrrsss
That lie to you.. yeah-ah yeah
Ohhhoh when the starrs
Ohhh oh when the starrrrs that liieee."
It had been one week since Jou's father had abused him. Kaiba had no idea at the time, of course. For some odd reason, Jou had the strangest urge to tell the CEO, as if he would actually care. However, no matter how many times he played out the scenario in his head, which usually ended in him being held, kissed, and protected by the CEO, he could just never get up the courage to say a word. Kaiba was, after all, the Ice Prince, and Jou just couldn't deal with the disappointment of him not caring on top of the emotional trauma he had recently been put through. Instead, Jou kept to himself. There was just no reason for him to approach Kaiba with his problems.
~End Flashback~
Jou looked around himself. So that voice might actually know what he was talking about then. That was a surprise. He was still trying to figure out why that voice was familiar and who Kaiba was, but it wasn't coming to him. The only way for him to push forward and solve the mystery was to face his demons in the form of one of his closest friends. Yes, they had abandoned him, and yes, he resented them for that, but that didn't make them evil. They were just a little inconsiderate as far as Jou was concerned.
He turned his focus back to Yami Yuugi and Red Eyes. Yami seemed shocked at the new presence. Jou was pretty certain that he hadn't expected him to put up a fight. He was in for a surprise. Yami pointed Jou's way, and the next thing he knew, the Dark Magician was behind him, staff aimed and ready for an attack. However, Red Eyes seemed to have noticed, and was quick to sink its teeth into the monster. Jou watched with wide eyes. When the Dark Magician disappeared, he turned back to this deranged version of Yami, who seemed annoyed, though not really phased. Apparently that was only the beginning of what he had up his sleeve.
The battle raged on as Jou used Red Eyes to defeat such tricks as the combination of Kuriboh and multiply. This had to be the most difficult duel of his life. Only once had he ever faced his best friend, and even then it had been hard for him. He had to remind himself that this person was nothing more than a monster, a version of Yami concocted by his twisted mind to test him mentally and see if he was ready to return to the world.
The final monster was Slifer the Sky Dragon. This wasn't shocking to him, but he felt himself tensing up at the god card's presence. Jou had never held one of those cards before. The idea of the card alone was overwhelming, as was it when he had seen it only as a spectator. As he looked onto it now, he was not overwhelmed. Really, he was frozen in fear and awe. However, he heard a cackle that pulled him out of it.
He felt that he was beaten, but Jou had a tendency to underestimate himself, probably because everyone else did. "One card short, one day late..." He shook his head, clearing that thought from his mind. Jou tried to muster up some courage, some will, but he failed. He fell short as always. Jou slumped in defeat. Red Eyes paid no attention to him though. The smaller dragon focused on the god, knowing precisely what to do.
He stood in front of Jou in a protective manner. The blond looked up at him, dull eyes as he chose defeat. Slifer attacked the dragon, but because Red Eyes was smaller, he was able to dodge the attack. The only problem was that he didn't see the second attack coming. It hit his tail, and he growled in pain and anger. Yami didn't say a word. He knew that Jou was as good as defeated. After all, the stupid dog didn't have it in him to fight anymore.
Red Eyes took no more than a moment to recover, and then he was on his guard again. Slifer kept a close watch on him, but Red Eyes still managed to slip past him. The god looked around, trying to spot him with no success. There was a loud roar signaling the dragon's anger, and he aimed his attack at Jounouchi. However, at that moment, another monster stood in his way. Obelisk the Tormentor stood before Jou, his fist colliding with the other monster. Jou watched in shock as Slyfer disappeared. He had never held a god card. Only Yami and... those two other people that he could remember had. He shrugged though. Then Jou remembered Shadow Yami. He looked up in time to see the demon his mind had created disappearing.
Red Eyes came back to him, turning into a drakling and curling up on his head, going to sleep. The blond looked up, but all he could see was the tail that was now draped in front of his forehead. Apparently his hair made a great bed. Obelisk turned into a small statuette of architecture of the same name. Jou grabbed it and put it in his pocket. From there, he continued on this path. Slowly, his memories were coming back. There was a brunet... He really liked that brunet... But that brunet was a bastard. That was how much he had gotten back of Kaiba.
Then there was that voice. It was also the voice of a bastard. However, at the moment, Jou was too distracted to put two and two together. He gave a small sigh as he looked around. The Grey World had gained a small amount of color. It wasn't anything of extrvagant compared to the world of light, but it was far more desirable than the splotchy grayscale that he had been staring at for far too long. The path was clear and bright, and he noticed that it reminded him of something. Maybe that weird, trippy movie with the follow the whatever song in it that Yugi and Anzu had forced him to watch. Jou had had nightmares about munchkins singing and a tornado sweeping him away for months.
Seto watched quietly, practically holding his breath as he watched. He had placed Obelisk in Jou's hand and then watched it come to life in that strange world that Jou was stuck in. It was strange to think that if someone had told him that they could see what was going on in Jou's mind, and described exactly this, he never would have believed them. To be honest, after all that he had seen, Kaiba just had to believe in magic. There was no other way to explain half the events that he and the others had been put through. Of course, there was always the chance that he was insane and hallucinating, which Kaiba wouldn't dismiss.
He ran his fingers through those blond locks again, which had become more of a habit than anything lately. What was he going to do when Jou was done with rehab? Seto would no longer have an excuse to visit him. Accepting that he cared for the blond had taken some time, but Kaiba had finally managed, though it would take him probably twice as long to accept that he was in love with him. Still, even without knowing that, the temptation to kiss Jounouchi grew stronger. And because that temptation was what drove Kaiba right now, he gently brushed his lips against Katsuya's, curious as to what it would feel like. There was a warmth that tingled against his lips, but nothing else. Kaiba hadn't really thought about it before, but the kiss would have been more satisfying had he gotten a reaction. When disappointment hit the CEO, he decided that the kiss was simply a temporary lapse in judgment. It was probably better if he didn't attempt to do it again.
The brunet felt strange suddenly. What if he was somehow intruding or breaking the rules by watching Jounouchi's ordeal? It wasn't meant to be... confidential, in a word, was it? Then again, if it was, then why would be be able to see it through the blond's eyes. He sighed and shook his head, deciding to dismiss that thought. If he wasn't meant to see it, then he would have no window to view the entire ordeal from. That was what he decided. Kaiba looked up and noticed that it was getting late, and he knew the center would be closing soon. Seriously, it seemed like he had literally just gotten here. Apparently he'd been so engrossed in what was going on with the mutt that he'd lost track of time. Had that battle really taken so long, he wondered a bit. Then again, with the way Jou's version of Yami Yuugi had been talking, it wouldn't surprise him. Kaiba had never realized before just how irritating it was when your opponent wouldn't shut up. He would have to keep that in mind from now on when he was dueling. Kaiba had a tendency to go off on tangents, but it was probably better if he just stayed focused on the task at hand.
Speaking of tangents, Seto had just done it again, though it was a somewhat related matter. Still, it was something he had to work on. Looking up at the clock, Seto sighed and stood. He didn't want to leave Jounouchi here alone, but he had no choice. Mokuba needed him too. Seto's life suddenly seemed more complicated than it had been before. He was split between the two most important people in his life. He wasn't sure when Jou had made that list, but Seto was now certain that there was more to these emotions than he had first realized. Spending time with Jounouchi had caused the small amount of loathing that Seto had felt for Jou to disappear, replaced by something that he had never before experienced. It was love on a whole new level. Seto was in love with the mutt. However, even though he now realized and was willing to accept it, he wouldn't allow anything to come of it unless Jou made it out of this state. Seto just couldn't stand the idea of having his heart broken.
Jou's eyes widened as the path disappeared again. What the hell? All he wanted to do was finish the goddamn trek back to consciousness, but he couldn't even do that. The blond was irritated, though it only lasted for a moment before he decided that it wasn't worth it. Instead, with a sigh, he went to an area on the path that had a tree and ended up laying against it, going to rest there. It wasn't the most comfortable of places to rest, but it would have to do. He wasn't sure what kinds of other obstacles he was going to face on the way down the trail, but he had a feeling that things were only about to get more difficult. At the same time, it couldn't be much more difficult than facing his best friend, right? Well, that was what Jou believed anyways. And with that thought, he fell into a light sleep.
Seto was home sooner than he thought he would be, considering the rush hour traffic. He sighed a bit as they pulled up to the mansion. Already Seto was missing Jou, but he couldn't stay overnight, though he had seriously considered. Mokuba probably would have been fine, but Seto didn't want to take the chance. His brother pulled back the door after confirming it was him. He didn't even get yelled out for not using the ridiculously elite and pointless security system, which told him that his big brother's mind was somewhere else. He had probably left it at the clinic with Jounouchi. Mokuba had been worried about the blond ever since he had found out about him trying to commit suicide. His heart had nearly stopped when Seto told him that Jou was the teen he was counseling. Was he really that bad off? And why?
"Mokuba, do you want... pizza... for dinner?" There was a nod from the younger brother. He could tell that his brother just wanted an easy night in, so he decided to make it as simple as possible. They sat in front of the television that night, a rare sight, eating pizza and just 'vegging out', so to speak. Both brothers had had a long day, Mokuba's at school, and Seto's with Jou. He told Mokuba about everything that had been going on with the younger teen lately, and the younger sibling listened intently. His brother seemed to be taken with the situation in a way that actually relieved Mokuba a bit. Seto was starting to care about something else, which was indeed a rare commodity.
After simply chatting with the younger boy for awhile and pretty much ignoring the television, Seto decided he needed to go to sleep. He didn't bother with a bath before bed this time, deciding that it would be better if he got as much rest as he could. He headed to his room and changed clothes quickly. Seto slid under the covers and let out a relaxed sigh, but almost instantly felt guilty. The thought of what Jou was suffering, and the fact that Seto had left him alone made him feel like a terrible person. Jou was his personal responsibility now, even though he had only been assigned this task because of community service. He had decided that he was not going to stop seeing the mutt until he was fully recovered. And until then, Seto would not be going to work either. The vacation was greatly needed anyways, even if in a way he was still working.
The CEO had no idea when he had actually slipped into sleep, but when he woke it was still dark. He looked at the clock. 5am. What had woken him up exactly? It took Seto a moment to remember. He had an idea to help Jou cope with everything that was going on. It would be good for the blond to see his friends, even if he wasn't fully aware of what was going on. At least they might be able to get through to him better than Seto could. After all, the two had never really been close the way that Jounouchi and Yuugi had, a fact that made Seto somewhat jealous and angry. He grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down his idea, knowing that if he didn't, he would forget about it later, and that wouldn't do the mutt any good.
"Not mutt. Puppy," he said to himself. His beautiful, broken puppy. Seto was going to fix him one way or another. With that thought, he fell back into the dream world.
A few hours later, at about 8am, Seto was awake again. He yawned and stretched a bit before pulling back the covers and getting out of bed. The day was perfect from what he could see in the window. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and there were a few clouds that just seemed to add to it. Everything seemed so... green. This was the kind of thing that could put even the cocky, arrogant CEO in an extremely good mood. He went into the large walk-in closet and put out a different outfit from usual. He almost always wore his infamous trench coats, but Kaiba wanted a change today. Instead, he wore a sky blue short sleeved silk shirt and a pair of straight legged darkwash jeans. Seto's hair was as neat as ever after a moment. He pulled on a pair of dark brown sneakers and he was ready to go.
Mokuba was surprised by the change in his brother, though he did notice that Seto was wearing the usual KC belt around his jeans. However, the lack of trench coat was a change. He smiled to himself. His brother had always worn long sleeves due to a past experience that had left his wrists scarred not long after they had moved in with Gozaburo. Apparently his brother finally felt confident enough to show those scars without a qualm. Seto ruffled Mokuba's hair a bit, and a rare smile made its way onto his face. His brother was absolutely beautiful when he smiled, which was probably why it was so rare. After eating breakfast together, Seto gave Jou's friends a call. They were surprised to hear from Kaiba of all people, and even more so when he explained the condition of Jounouchi to them. After all, the two had never gotten along before, so to them, it made no sense that he had been taking care of their best friend. And honestly, Seto didn't feel like the deserved an explanation after the pain they had caused Jou.
He met them each at their house in his limo. Once they were all picked up, Marik spoke up, deciding to be the brave one of the bunch and asked how Kaiba knew what was going on with Jounouchi and why he seemed to care so much. However, Kaiba did not entertain an answer. He didn't feel that they had any right to know, so instead, he stared out the window, something he was notorious for doing whenever he was being driven somewhere. Marik simply rolled his eyes at the lack of answer. However, Bakura wasn't the type to know when to shut up, and he was the one who spoke up next, starting to irritate the impatient CEO.
"Isn't if obvious? Kaiba's really quite taken with Katsuya and is only now realizing it." He laughed a bit, thinking he was simply joking. However, a telltale glare from the CEO said that he was right, and also to tread lightly unless he wanted to be thrown out of the limo and into oncoming traffic. Bakura quieted down after a quick 'sheesh, get a sense of humor Moneybags'. Surprisingly, at least to the CEO, Yami and Yuugi were the quietest of the bunch, imitating Kaiba and staring out the window in deep thought. Kaiba had to wonder what they were thinking about. He wondered if they blamed themselves for what had happened the same way that he believed the fault was his own, but there was no way to be sure. When they pulled up to the clinic, each of Jou's friends seemed a bit nervous to see him. The only one that was currently not among them was Anzu, who had left a couple of days before to begin attending a performing arts school for dance. It must be nice that something good was happening to one of them, Kaiba thought angrily.
Otogi seemed like he was pretty anxious to see Jou, as did Honda. The fact that the two were dating was honestly beyond Kaiba. Otogi was smart and good looking. And Honda was not... Well, at least, he didn't seem to be. The yamis and hikaris made perfect sense though. Then there was Mai and Anzu... Where had that come from? Oh, well. They were Kaiba's least favorite people, and to him, they didn't really matter. They exited the limo one by one, the CEO taking up the rear. However, as they entered the clinic, he took the lead and signed them in as visitors for Jounouchi Katsuya. The secretary opened her mouth to protest, but one icy glare from Kaiba and she knew better than to even bother.
Once signed in, Seto took the lead again, leading them now to Jounouchi's room. When they entered, the gang were surprised by what they saw. Jounouchi was laying there, stiff as a board. His eyes were blank and wide, aimed at them, but looking right through them. In each hand was a card that Seto had given him: Red Eyes and Obelisk. It took some time before reality sunk in. This was totally their fault. They had caused Jou to become... this. Each of Jou's friends blamed themselves in the same manner that Seto believed that he was at fault. However, blame was not going to bring Jounouchi back.
Jounouchi woke up to what seemed to be a... a somehow bright day in the Grey World. It could have even been beautiful if it wasn't all grey, but brightness was more than Jou could have asked for. However, as he looked above him, he was given a bit of hope. Above him was a green and brown, healthy looking tree. Jou stood and stretched a bit, then turned to get a better look at it. After a moment, he noticed that there was a face in the tree's trunk. It wasn't a face that he really recognized, but it was there. The blond wasn't really sure if he should be creeped out or not. He poked the sleeping tree face nervously. Apparently it wasn't very pleasant upon being woken up.
"Er! What do you want!"
"Uh, hi. My name's Jounouchi." The tree face glared at him. "Um, I'm sorry to wake you, but I was just curious as to who you were."
"My name's Midori. Why?"
"Nice to meet you Midori. What are you doing in the Grey World?" Midori looked around and shrugged.
"Don't have any place better to be." Jou was beginning to wonder if this was another enemy he was going to have to face. He hadn't thought of that before waking Midori up. Or maybe this was a companion sent to keep him company on his trek. Or maybe Jou was just completely wrong and he simply had a piece of wisdom to offer. Jou sighed and shook his head.
"There's gotta be a reason for you being here," he replied. Midori thought for a moment.
"Well, I was supposed to deliver a clue to one Jounouchi Katsuya. And help him along his journey."
"That would be me," Jou replied happily. He had never thought he would be so happy to have companionship.
"Ah, well the clue is that your friends are your foes until you've found what you lost." Midori smiled a bit when he saw the confused look on Jou's face.
"That's not a clue."
"Well, it's the best you're going to get." Jou sighed and nodded. When he looked up again, he was surprised to see the path reappearing. Stupid path. Why did it have to disappear in the first place? If it just stayed there, he might have actually been out of the Grey World by now. His frustration with this place was quickly growing. Nothing made sense in this place, which Jou found completely frustrating.
"Well, we should probably get started now Jounouchi. Otherwise the path will disappear before you can make any progress." It seemed strangely shorter today than it had when it disappeared the night before, which was strange.
"Midori, why does the path vanish?" The tree chuckled.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that. Let's just say it has to do with someone you didn't realize that you cared about... or cared about you. That's all I can say." Jou nodded, but it still just didn't make any sense to him. He didn't remember anyone that well besides his father and the group of friends that had abandoned him when he needed them the most. There was someone missing, he could just feel it, but Jou still had yet to figure it out. As they walked along, he noticed that more flowers were popping up. The blue and white ones were still there, and on the other side now were purple flowers with golden stems. He wondered what those could be for.
As Jou and Midori continued on, a fog rolled in, covering the clear grey sky. Clear and grey... those things just didn't seem to go together. The fog was thick and dark, and Jou struggled to see through it, putting his hand to his forehead. Still nothing. He blinked a bit to try and help clear his vision, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that he just couldn't see through the dammed fog. It took what seemed like an hour to clear, and the next thing he knew... he was facing two more shadow versions of his friends: Honda and Otogi. Jou gulped when he saw Otogi holding a very familiar dogsuit. Damn did this suck.
Kaiba watched as the others sat with Jounouchi and talked to him a bit. His eyes would move a bit to 'look' at them, but otherwise, he didn't really react. However, somehow Kaiba just knew that it had helped his puppy to be able to see his friends. He sighed as he waited, becoming impatient about spending time with his puppy. Maybe he should have picked a different day to bring them. All he wanted to go was curl up with Jounouchi and hold him, never to let go. The CEO kept reminding himself that this was for the puppy's own good, and that he couldn't be selfish. He moved to sit by Jou's head while the others visited with him and Kaiba looked into his eyes. He saw... a talking tree... Okay, he supposed that was... well, it really wasn't possible in the real world, but in the Grey World the impossible seemed to come to life. He watched as they traveled together for some time. It was when Jou came across Honda and Otogi, though, that Kaiba became truly engrossed in what was going on.
A talking tree? Seriously? I have no idea where that came from! All right, I am going to repeat myself in case you forgot or didn't read the top. Until this story hits 70 reviews, there will not be an update! Please do not send me flames for the amount of reviews I requested. as itis already been a pretty horrible day for me. if i feel that it's taking too long, I will update sooner. if you are going to flame. don't bother reviewing. i really don't need the confidence breaker at the moment. Thank you...
