I'm gonna cut to the chase; here's chapter nine of One Touch, One Kiss!

Chapter 9-Trials of the Soul Crystal

From night into daylight, everyone was anxious about talking to Serenity about the Soul Crystal, even though Yugi was still sleepy since he and Tèa were up all night looking for Bakura, finding out that Marik sent him into the Shadow Realm as a result of his loss. Joey, on the other hand, was still awake since he was looking over the room of where Serenity was now sleeping in. Tristan and Duke caught up with the group, with Maria following up with them. It was hard to actually confront Serenity at this point, since some of them have their doubts on whether or not to tell her about their sudden acquisition of the information on the Soul Crystal.

Serenity, on the other hand, was trying to gather up a story about last night's events since her brother and friends didn't buy the whole injury incident that she lied about to cover up for the fight with the creatures that was somehow after the Soul Crystal. The spirit, however, wasn't phased by any of the events unfolding right now as she annoyingly watched Serenity paced back and forth in the room.

'What am I going to tell them?' Serenity thought. 'Joey and the others didn't buy my story last night and I'm afraid that if they do get mixed up in this...I can hardly think about the consequences right now! Damn, I don't know if I can protect everyone from those creatures and beyond that.'

'Shit; they must have found out about me from someone else who knows about the crystal's legend. Although, they can't stop you from doing the trials since they are quite secluded in areas that only I know.'

'Speaking of those trials, when are you going to tell me about them?'

'Better to tell you now than later. See, I have to know whether or not you are good enough to unlock the true power of the Soul Crystal. These trials will test your mental, physical, and spiritual strength; although, I don't always give out the same trials as the other contenders that possessed me.'

'So, are they really that hard?'

'Depending from your perspective, yes. Much harder than those Shadow-hunters we fought last night.'

'So, how long until whoever gave me the gem comes back to claim it?'

'Not for a long time. Stupid guardian of mine had to sleep on the job; it isn't much to say that those damn demons are after this raw power. Trying to protect those idiotic pals of yours will be just more than a problem, if they insist of getting involved in the mess that you gotten into. I can't be responsible if they do get hurt as a result of their meddling.'

'They're not idiots! My friends are really worried about me, except Maria; she's always wanted me to become independent...'

'Look; right now, we're in a tight bind as it is. Your pals know about me and will try to take it out of you, as well as those cretins that we fought last night are after you. We're gonna have to make a decision right this minute.'

'You mean if I have to...'

'Yeah; you're gonna have to abandon all your pals and stay isolated if you want to protect them.'

What was she going to do? Serenity didn't want to abandon her family and friends! They were what kept her going to fight off her blindness; her own fears! But, what if something did happen to them when she's fighting off those creatures from last night and she couldn't be able to protect them? As much as she hated to admit it, the spirit was right. If Joey and the others continue to intervene in her mess than in the one they have right now with Marik, then they could end up hurt...or worse. She loved her brother so much, but she knew that he had to let her go one day.

'...As much as I want to let them go, I can't.' Serenity thought. 'However, I will have to leave them if they keep pursuing me on the matter of your presence inside me.'

'Understood.'

As Serenity walked outside, everyone stood I front her, asking question after question about everything that they learned about the Soul Crystal last night, although the spirit was now inhibiting her body since she knew that her friends were starting to pester her...a LOT!

"Shut the fuck up, you imbeciles!" Serenity shouted, causing everyone to stop talking. "For crying out loud, if you guys knew about the crystal's powers, then stop bugging me about it!"

Yami knew that this was the crystal speaking, and switched with Yugi to confront the said spirit. He was not gonna give up on his best friend's sister, not after what Ishizu said about the dangers that Serenity have to face.

"You must be the spirit of the crystal." Yami remarked. "What's your business doing on this very planet?"

"Hmph, like I tell you." Serenity said. "People like you should stay out of other people's business, asswipe! Besides, you idiots already know that you cannot help your precious friend no matter how many detours you can take."

"Look here, you delusional spirit of the damned!" Joey yelled. "Serenity's family too; I'm not gonna let you take over her life just because someone's after your power!"

"Oh, and you think that I'm the only one being targeted?" Serenity asked. "Many people that inhibited me in their bodies happened to be targeted as well; their personal lives intertwining with the dangers that are set to come. She's made her decision to keep you guys out of her life until she can sort this out...alone."

Joey was seeing red all over; that spirit just told him off and covered for Serenity's lies! The others were quite shocked from what was said, though Yami knew that they were going to intervene no matter what the spirit said to them. As she brushed them off and headed further into the halls, Serenity gained control of her body once more to think over her fateful decision. She knew that everyone wanted to help, but thinking over the options and consequences of them intervening, she knew this was the only way to protect them from what or whom was coming their way.

When she turned the corner though, she bumped into Seto Kaiba and looking straight into his eyes. Something was definitely off with his mood today, but it was the other way around for Seto. He overheard the little conversation between the group and now had the perfect opportunity to have complete control of the situation.

"Kaiba, what are you doing here?" Serenity asked.

"My dear, I'm quite insulted." Seto mocked. "I just happened to walk in the same direction that you were heading towards and couldn't help but hear that you wanted to be set free from whatever was controlling you."

"You know a way to remove the Soul Crystal?" Serenity asked, disbelieving that such a task is possible.

"Maybe I do." Seto said. "But, I don't suppose a beautiful young girl like yourself want to be around me. I mean, from what your brother said about me, I'm nothing but bad news. On the contrary though, I am the only one that knows how to get that crystal out of you. Trust me, Serenity."

What was Serenity supposed to do? She wasn't the type to question such information, although the spirit thought otherwise.

'I don't like this guy. Something's definitely odd about him. I'm taking over again.'

And the spirit was true to her words as she took over Serenity's body, glaring at the tall brunette with questionable doubt. Was he really trying to get the power of the Soul Crystal as well?

"Why should I trust you, asswipe?" Serenity asked.

'This tone...so the spirit took over my angel's body and questions my motives. Interesting.' Seto thought.

"Of course I question your motives, dumbass." Serenity said.

Seto didn't quite realize how the spirit knew about his thoughts, but concluded that she must have other abilities as well, including reading another's mind.

"Seems I can't keep my thoughts away from you, now can I?" Seto said.

"What are you really after?" Serenity questioned him.

"That crystal's power." Seto said. "I want to destroy my opponents into the ground so that only I reign supreme over them. No one would dare question my authority and challenge me to only see their demise. I just need to have Serenity be at my side in order to find out if I could obtain that power through necessary means."

"She'll wind up dead if she's at your side." Serenity retorted. "Your heart's been driven into darkness and revenge; you should know by now that only those pure of heart can control me, and I don't think that Serenity wants to deal with you right now."

"Really?" Seto smirked. "Well then, I should be off. But both of you should consider my offer; I'll be waiting for an answer anytime."

"Do you honestly think that power solves everything?" Serenity asked. "It only creates war and drift us apart from those we loved; I didn't want Joey and them to be involved in a situation that only I can solve. Besides, I can't trust anyone right now because of what's going to happen over the next several months. I don't want you to get hurt, Seto; explaining to your brother about your injuries isn't in my agenda. Please, don't talk to me again unless you really have a good reason why."

And with those parting words, Serenity left a confused Seto in the hallways. She was desperate to get away from him as much as possible, but something deep inside of her told her that both of them will cross paths again. She overheard the conversation, and she was quite surprised that Seto only wanted to get near her close enough to extract the crystal out of her.

She wanted to get everything back to normal as soon as possible; hopefully to even have a chance at a normal life once more.


Finally done! This story's going on hiatus until somewhere late October. Now, I'm going to work on three other stories along with the drafts for "Temptation to Madness," then I'm going to set the chapter release schedule for each of the stories that I'm currently working on.

R&R, people!

P.S.: I'm still searching for a beta writer for both "Synchro Beast, Crimson Rose," and "Temptation to Madness"! Please apply if you guys haven't done so!