Chapter 10: X-mas at Manjoume's
Part 1
It has been about a week already but Jaden and Jun didn't get much closer since they had their first true kiss, mainly because the raven had to catch up with everything she had missed, thanks to her feelings for the chestnut haired, her frights and all her visits at the infirmary. But it wasn't just this, Syrus also begged her to give him and his friends some tutoring. The girl was much stricter than Misawa Daichi and helped the bluenette and his koala friend, Chumley if she wasn't mistaken, a lot. Jaden on the other hand hadn't much interest in tutoring but he didn't know what else he could do without his friends so he sometimes joined them. It was something which turned out to be a great mistake since every time the boy was about to fall asleep the raven girl hit him with a book. She was pretty strict after all…
"Oh please! I beg you, can't you learn a little later?" Jaden pleaded his girlfriend. The two of them were sitting in the raven's dorm room and the girl tried to learn a bit but the chestnut haired had other ideas. They were all alone for once and that was something the brunette couldn't enjoy the last few days since Jun and he were officially together and Jaden wanted to savor it as much as they could, unfortunately the girl had something else in mind.
"No, I'm in the mood to do some studying now and besides you will always be stuck in Slifer red if you keep being a slacker!" The girl complained.
"But Jun…I like red, I wanna stay here!" The boy didn't even realize how the raven just distracted him from his actual goal and said girl sighed deeply.
"You just say that because you're too lazy to learn."
The brunette scratched the back of his head and sweat dropped. "I guess… but I really do like red! It's the color of passion! Pulsing blood! And..."
"And also the color of hatred and losers", the raven answered smirking however said brunette wasn't so pleased over that comment. "Aww come on! I was just kidding with the loser part!" Abruptly the boy wore his goofy smile again and now it was the girl's turn to sweat drop. "You're utterly hopeless, you know that?" Jun sighed.
Before Jaden could give her another (in her opinion) stupid answer, Syrus stormed into her dorm room fully breathless. "Jun…Principal…see you!" By the way, the raven and Syrus also became close friends and to the bluenette's surprise she also allowed him to call the girl by her first name. The Slifer boy suspected she only likes him because they seem to share the same brotherly problems but it was better than nothing. After all, the girl helped him with his studies very much.
Entirely clueless about what Syrus was trying to tell her, Jun raised an eyebrow. "Uh, could you say that again?"
Said boy took a few deep breaths and started talking again. "The principal wants to see you. It was something about your family." The raven haired starred with a hollow expression at the boy who just told her about this joyful news. She totally forgot about her family! What are they going to say if they find out about her demotion? Will they disgrace her or force the girl to leave school and give her private lessons? All of the sudden Jun felt like throwing up, running away or hitting her head somewhere to knock herself out! The girl could barely stand on her feet and needed to sit down. What was she going to do now? The raven knew she had to talk to them sooner or later although she preferred the later part. Unexpectedly Jun felt a warm touch on her shoulder and she immediately relaxed. One look at those soft hazel eyes which were observing her with care melted Jun's heart right away. "Don't worry! We will go together!"
"Th…thank you", she said relieved yet the worry in her eyes didn't seem to disappear.
"And…you can also squeeze my hand if you get scared", the brunette joked making the girl's heart pounding.
"Hah! Like I'm sacred of them", the raven answered though it didn't sound as brave as it should have.
"I'm coming too! I want to support you too Jun!" The bluenette inferred.
"Of course you're coming too! That's what I expect of my friends!" The raven said grinning like a Cheshire cat however she was just joking and didn't really want her friends involved; still she knew it was futile to tell them they should stay behind.
Together the three of them made their way to the principal's office and the closer they got the more nervous Jun became. The girl desperately wished she could slow down and think of something to avoid this meeting, her body started to stiffen and every step she took became harder and harder for her to take but it was also like some invisible power was pushing her forward. When they arrived the girl stopped breathing yet she bowed and greeted the head of the school. "Good day Samejima-sama you called for me?" The raven was somehow surprised to also see Professor Banner.
"Hey there!" Jaden said insolent as always but shortly after the raven slapped him in the back of his head. "Ouch!" Said boy whined.
"Show some respect, idiot!" Jun scolded the brunette but the girl started to calm down thanks to Jaden's action; otherwise she might have choked if she had kept holding her breath.
"Ahem!" The principal cleared his throat to bring the girl's attention back to him.
"Ah I'm sorry!" She panicked a bit and bowed again to apologize. "So uh…yeah you called for me?"
"Well there are a few things I would like to discuss with you but I guess your mother wants to hear the story too, if you may Professor Banner." Said man nodded and made his way to a big TV screen and started to type around on the remote, suddenly a young woman with long black hair which reached her hips and eyes which are blue like the sea itself, appeared.
"Oh my darling! There you are!" Came from the TV screen.
Said girl sweat dropped. "Hi…uh…mom…"
"She…she's you're mom?" Jaden and Syrus gasped in unison. "She…looks so…young?" The hazel eyed continued.
"Oh my, what sweet little friends you have there", Jun's mother said smiling but soon her expression got serious and scary. "I hope for them they are as innocent as they look!"
The two boys startled and hugged each other, at least now they knew by whom the girl had her temper from. "Chill mom! They are just friends, okay? JUST friends, got it?"
As you would expect those words made the chestnut haired confused, why did she deny their relationship? "But Jun…" The boy tried to say but the girl put her hands over his mouth to stop his words and turned with him away from the screen.
"It's better if she doesn't know we're together. She could suspect you for being just a greedy asshole that's after my money. I'm sorry for denying something that's so important but my family would only cause you a lot of trouble, believe me!" She whispered.
"What are you two whispering about?" The mother asked with a twitching eye.
"Oh, uh nothing, mom!" The raven sweat dropped. "Well uh, the big guy here is Jaden and the shorter one…"
"Hey!" Syrus pouted
"…well sorry but you are shorter, anyway the blue haired guy here is Syrus. They are my dorm neighbors."
"What?" The older dark haired gasped. "But shouldn't you be in a girl's dorm and why are you wearing black?"
"Yeah…that's what I wanted to talk about with you…" The girl scratched her back awkwardly. "I uh…kinda got demoted to Slifer red…" Jun's mother was about to open her mouth and wanted to say something but the girl continued. "Wait it was my idea…I wanted to be demoted because I uh…well I needed to start everything over…it's a long story, you know. I just want to say that I'm fine being a Slifer red and no one in that dorm dares to do something dirty to me so you can relax, mom."
"I can confirm that" Professor Banner interfered. "I'll take care of your daughter and watch that no boy will do something to her."
"Well, that's what I wanted to ask you in the first place", the principal also interfered. "I wanted to know why you got demoted…but it seems like you really like to stay in Slifer red, so I guess…its invalid now."
Everyone seemed to be okay with Jun's decision only her mother still wore an uncertainty gaze. "Please, mom! Jaden and Syrus are my best friends…and I don't want to be separated from them."
"Hm, I guess it's really okay then", the woman answered beaten but was still pouting. "Well that's aside I wanted to tell you to come home at Christmas Holidays."
Jun's eyes all of the sudden filled itself with horror. The girl just stared blankly at her mother, her hands were visibly shaking. The girl's heart started beating like crazy she suddenly had an urge to scream and she could already feel the tears fighting their way onto the surface. Something was odd here the brunette thought. Why didn't the girl want to stay at home on the holidays? Jaden took the girl's hand and the raven started squeezing it pretty hard. She was as horrified as a prey that desperately tried to escape from its predator. "What's wrong, Jun?" The chestnut haired whispered and tore the girl back into reality.
"I uh…but I want to stay here!" The raven answered and tried to sound as calm as possible, fortunately her mother wasn't one who paid much attention to her girl only if she did something that could ruin their reputation so the woman didn't notice the girl's uneasiness.
"But dear! I haven't seen you for so long! I want you to stay at home on the holidays!"
"Yeah okay…" Jun said beaten but suddenly a great idea popped into her head and she started grinning again. "Oh but, how about Jaden comes with me, mom? I want to show him Domino City!"
"Wait Jun! I can't Syrus would be alone then!"
Said girl blinked in confusion. "But Chumley's still there, isn't he?"
Jaden sighed deeply. He really wanted to go with his love and have a nice time with her and also he would be able to see Domino City but the brunette couldn't just leave his best friend behind, all alone! "Chumley isn't staying here, only me and Sy so uh, well he would be alone if I go with you."
"Okay no problem, then Syrus will come too!" The raven answered flat.
"What?" The bluenette gasped in disbelieve.
The girl crossed her arms. "It's not a problem we have plenty of guest rooms in our Mansion."
"Oh, that's a great idea!" Jun's mother agreed. "I would love to have such cute looking guests in our house and of course I would be able to learn more about the boys my daughter calls… friends. I can't remember ever hearing that word from her."
"Good!" Jun clapped her hands together and smirked. "Then it's settled! Bye, Mom!"
"But…" Jaden and Syrus gasped in unison but the raven's mother already waved good bye and hung up. The two boys looked at each other and sweat dropped. "Looks like we going to have to celebrate Christmas at Manjoume's then!" Jaden established but he also felt a little excited about traveling to Domino City well okay he wasn't just a bit excited he felt like jumping around and screaming hell yeah I'm going to Domino City but he tried to suppress his feelings. Well he had been there some times before but he was living so far outside the city he never had time to enjoy a whole day at downtown. Now he had the chance to relish everything to the fullest and on top of that he may get some time alone with Jun. Okay her parents were there and they might not like that he was close to their daughter at all but it was still better than not being able to see her for two weeks.
A few days later the Holidays finally started. Jun, Jaden and Syrus took the ship back to Domino City but before they left they saw everyone off. "I wish you a lot of fun with your two friends there!" Asuka wished Jun while Misawa adopted his other two buddies.
"Wow, you really hit the check pot, huh? Never thought that Manjoume-san would invite you two to her estate."
"Me neither". Jaden answered scratching the back of his head awkwardly.
"Yeah see you after holidays", Fubuki waved Jun good bye and then turned to the chestnut haired. "Oh and take good care of my little sister or you might get beaten up too." The boy said jokingly to Jaden which didn't get the hint at all. Zane however didn't like Fubuki's act and punched his friend with his elbow in the side.
"You're going to give away out secret! Stop joking around!" He whispered into the taller brunette's ear before he turned back to everyone's attention. "Enjoy your holidays! You don't get every day the chance to stay at such a big estate like Manjoume Mansion."
"We'll enjoy it to the fullest, no worries!" Jaden and Syrus answered in accord while Jun just sweat dropped, she felt a little utilized however it was her idea in the first place so she couldn't really complain.
"Well let's get on the ship before it leaves, Jaden Syrus you two don't mind carrying my bags too, right?" The girl only let it sound like a question to sound more polite but it was actually an order, this little favor they had to do was the least they could do for the raven due to letting them stay two weeks at her manor. Fortunately for the two of them the girl had less luggage than expected, for a girl she didn't have much stuff but on the other hand, she never acted like a girl. The two boys also got on board with the raven's stuff, they waved their friends a last time good bye and the ship took off.
They had to spend one night on the ship till they arrived at Domino City harbor where a limousine already waited for Jun and co. After what felt like a pretty long trip the three arrived at the Manjoume estate. The raven barley left the limousine and was already crushed by her mother's strong embrace. "You're back sweet heart! I missed you so much, my sweet, little, sugar, honey…"
"Whoa stop it, mom. You're squashing me!"
"Seems like your mother really missed you", Jaden implied and also left the limousine together with Syrus and as soon as they got into the sight of Jun's mother the woman crushed them with her embrace like she did with her daughter a few seconds ago.
"Awww you two are so sweet! I can understand why my little darling sees friends in you!" The older woman nearly exclaimed.
The chestnut haired and his friend sweat dropped. "Nice…nice to meet you to…" The taller of them said.
Annoyed the youngest of the Manjoume family put her arms on her hips and rolled her eyes. The girl's mother can be so stupid sometimes! She kind of reminds her of Jaden…maybe that's the reason why she couldn't stand him at the beginning? And yet there was something about the brunette that told the raven haired, he really cared for Jun, in her mother's case it always seemed so…halfhearted…and she felt…lonesome. "The heck, Mom! Stop choking my friends!"
"O...o...of course sweetie" With an apologetic gaze she let go of the boys and dusted Jaden's clothing off. "Well why don't you show your friends where they're going to sleep tonight?"
"Yeah while we're at it…which room are they going to sleep in?" The raven asked her arms crossed in front of her chest.
"They are going to sleep in guest room 5 and 6…see you at dinner, ta ta!" The dark haired woman adopted.
"Why so far away from my room?" Jun murmured.
"Did you say something?" Syrus asked.
"N...no nothing!" The girl answered with an awkward smile. "Anyway let me show you your rooms. Come with me!"
The Manjoume estate felt like a labyrinth at least to the chestnut haired and his friend, the halls were much higher and far longer than the ones in duel academy and the worst was that nearly everything looked the same, the only difference were the decorations. Dozens of expensive vases, precious pictures, large windows, beautiful chandeliers and other stuff passed their way to their rooms. As you would expect of Jaden and Syrus, they were more focused on all that useless stuff than imprint the way they had walked… "We're here, this is your room, Syrus, feel like at home…though I doubt it will be anything like it at your home…" The bluenette glared daggers at the girl. That comment was really unnecessary! Still the boy kept silent took his luggage and rushed into his room which will it be for the next two weeks. Then the girl walked into the opposite direction and headed towards the room on the other side and opened a large double-door and walked inside. "And that's your room!"
The chestnut haired followed his lover inside and took a look around. The area was a bit too large for him; he was used to smaller chambers than this one. A personal touch was also missing but it was a guest room so you couldn't expect much more. It was filled with a lot of wardrobes and in the middle of the room was a big poster bed, next to it a few inches away was a big glass door which led to a balcony on the outside and in the corner next to the balcony door's stood a desk where at least two person could sit and last but not least in front of the bed was a big flat TV screen. "Wow…it's really…big…" Jaden observed.
"That already impresses you? You should see my room!" The girl said smirking at her boyfriend.
"Yeah right? Show me your room!" The brunette wore his goofy smile like he always did but there was also curiosity in his eyes.
"Well…I…uh…can't show it to you…a girl's room is a secret you …know? He…he.." She answered nervous nonetheless.
Jaden only raised an eyebrow and tilted his head to the side. "Okay…if you say so…" Jun gazed nervously around the chamber she needed something to distract the boy…she couldn't show Jaden her room at least not yet. There were things she still had to get rid of and Jun wasn't even sure if it was cleaned up. Sure the maids could have tidied up everything but she never let them go near her room. That was Manjoume Jun's territory only; no one was allowed to go in there, not even her parents! "Sweet! That bed is so soft!" Jaden suddenly exclaimed and the girl turned her head to the chestnut haired in disbelieve. He was jumping on the bed like a little kid.
"Remind me…why are we friends again?" The girl crossed her arms and sweat dropped.
"Oh don't be like that it's fun! You should try too!"
"No thaaaaa…" before the girl could decline Jaden already pulled her on the bed and jumped together with her though Jun didn't enjoy it as much as the brunette did. "Sto…stop….it…stop it!"
"Not until you start to enjoy it!"
"I said no!" To be honest the girl did enjoy it quite a bit it was funny after all, but she just didn't want to sound like a little kid and certainly not act like one. After some more jumping the boy got bored by the girl's attitude and stopped.
"You're no fun!" he pouted and puffed his cheeks. To Jaden's surprise the girl started to laugh all of the sudden. She was laughing so hard the raven needed to hold her belly while her hazel eyed friend only blinked in mixed-up. "Hey what's so funny?"
"You…..ha ha ha…your…ha ha…face…awesome... ha ha ha!" Said boy was a bit confused about Jun's sudden outburst; nevertheless he chuckled too. The girl was so beautiful when she was happy. Jaden wished Jun could always be like that but she soon gets her serious side back and her eyes would fill themselves with this said gaze and coldness again. Still there was something he wanted to do for a longer time now and as long as the girl was in a good mood he just had to try it. Of course Jaden's serious expression wasn't unnoticed by the girl and she looked worried at her friend. "What's wrong? Are you okay?" The brunette didn't answer; he just laid his arms around Jun's waist, pulled her close and gave the raven a fleeting kiss on her soft, porcelain white cheek.
The girl just stared blankly at her boyfriend. "I…I'm sorry" Jaden gasped. "I just wanted to do it so badly the last few days we never got close and never were alone and…" The raven put her fingers on the boy's lips to shush him.
"It's okay", Jun nearly whispered and laid her head on the chestnut haired's chest to hide her blush. The girl became scarlet red because of this sudden show of affection. "I guess I'm the one who needs to apologize…I said I want to be your girlfriend but…I mean…I wasn't trying to avoid you on purpose…I'm sorry that I was so focused on my studies and neglected you so much."
Jaden grazed through the girl's hair and drew her even closer. "Naw, it's okay. I'm glad you invited me to come with you. I guess those two weeks would have been…hard on me…" Suddenly the girl pulled away and looked confused in those lovely hazel eyes.
"What do you mean by that?"
Said boy sweat dropped. He talked too much, how in the world should he explain to her that there was a certain urge he had since he got closer and closer to the girl. "Uhm…nothing I mean I guess I would have been lonely…"
"Oh! I…see…I guess…"
"Hey uh…I always wondered…" The boy tried to change the subject quickly…The girl might see him as pervert if she finds out more about his problem. He wasn't sure himself if that was normal or not. "…how did you meet your dragon?"
"You mean… Drago?" The girl dropped her head saddened. Her friend never talked to her since she had stolen Misawa Daichi's deck, Jun wasn't sure if it was still there or not.
"Don't be sad little tomboy", a familiar voice suddenly echoed through the room and the dragon appeared in front of the bed. It was the first time Jaden actually saw the dragon and wasn't just hearing its voice. "I'm still here. I was always here to protect you."
"But…I thought you were mad at me!" The raven gasped.
"I was", the dragon answered calmly. "Still I was there to protect you."
"Yeah that's true!" The chestnut haired interfered. "Back when that asshole obelisk blue attacked you, Drago was the one who warned me."
The raven gazed confused between her friends back and forth. She was rather speechless and she also felt a bit betrayed. "But…why didn't you talk to me!"
The spirit closed its eyes and shook its head. "I wanted to give you some time to think about your actions, however it seems I'm not able to be angry with you for long.''
"So…you're going to forgive me? I'm so sorry for everything I did. I promise I will never do something like that again but please just forgive me Drago, you're my partner, my friend, you're a part of me and I need you!" The girl's eyes were filled with tears she wanted the forgiveness of her dragon so badly she would do anything. Jaden on the other hand couldn't endure seeing the girl cry like that so he pulled the raven closer and stroked through her hair like she did back when he was about to cry.
"Please don't cry Jun."
"He's right my little tomboy you don't need to cry. It's only natural that I forgive you." Said girl looked up at her duel spirit and smiled. She felt happier than ever which was only logical after all Jun was close to Jaden and her friend forgave her for doing something so cruel to Misawa. "Oh I nearly forgot about your question Jaden. I guess I should tell the story then?"
"Surprise!" all of the sudden Syrus jumped on the bed and scared the hell outta Jaden and Jun. They both where hugging tighter than before and the raven got her eyes pinched while the other was pouting.
"Sy are you crazy? You scared us!" And before anyone noticed the dragon disappeared.
'Maybe next time', the spirit thought before vanishing completely.
When the girl noticed who was the culprit, which scared the shit out of her, Jun got really angry and snapped a pillow throwing it into the bluenette's face. It hit him so hard that he fell from the bed. "Hah! Serve's you right, chibi!"
The young Slifer sat up and rubbed his hurtful butt. "You're no fun and stop calling me small! Jaden already told me what chibi means."
"He's right Jun! You're hurting his feelings." Great! Now Jaden wants to lecture her too! The girl rolled her eyes, got off the brunette and fixed her skirt.
"Yeah whatever…we should go to dinner now. You can change later."
"But…"
"I said now!", the girl exclaimed annoyed. It Seemed like she didn't like it much when Jaden was on Syrus' side.
"Okey dokey!" Both boys answered sweat dropping.
The dinner felt nothing like in Slider red. It was dreadful to be honest. Everyone was sitting in a large dinner room with a table where at least 50 men could dine. Jaden and Syrus where sitting farther away from Jun and her parents because her father didn't like the company much but they were still in earshot. "Uhm…Mom, can I ask you something?" The raven asked nervously normally no one talks at dinner still she desperately needed to know something.
"What's wrong, my dear?" Her mother's voice was filled with worry.
"Is Shoji nii-san coming home today?" The girl was somehow sweating and she seemed anxious nonetheless. Jaden could clearly feel the fears of her brother by just mentioning him. What kind of monster must this man be to scare his little sister like that?
"Hm, I think not he's really busy today."
"Oh, I see", suddenly the girl relaxed again.
"Is something wrong, my dear? You seem to like it not seeing your brother…"
"What? I…uh…no it's not that. I really miss him, I was just wondering, you know…that's all."
The brunette knew there was definitely something odd with Jun's brother but he kept silent until they were finished and left the dining room. He told his blue haired friend that he should go first and that he will come later. When Jaden was finally alone with the raven he decided to talk to the girl. "Jun? Why are you so scared of your brother?"
The girl was trembling by just hearing about him. "I…it's nothing, really…"
The raven wanted to go away but the chestnut haired took her by the wrist and pulled her back. "Tell me, I'm worried about you!"
The girl tried to free herself from the brunette's grip but he didn't budge. "Let me go already!"
"Jun, I beg you!"
"I said no!" Yet again the girl tried to free her but for some reason the boy was much stronger than her. "If you don't let me go now I'll scream and my parents will kick you out!"
"But…"
"I give you 3 seconds…one…two…"
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry", the boy said annoyed and let go of the girl. "Fine, do it in your own solitude way, like always!" Jaden shouted at her, he was totally pissed at the girl, the brunette just wanted to help and the girl treated him like he wanted to rape her. He left her alone and walked straight back into his room.
Jaden let himself fall onto the bed in fury. "That girl!" He yelled to himself. "I can't believe she treated me like a molester!" The boy pouted. "Well forget about it I will just go to sleep." Jaden changed into his pajamas and went to bed. Unfortunately for him he couldn't sleep one bit. He normally lies down and sinks into the beautiful world of dreaming in no time, but the fight with Jun got to him. Maybe he was a bit harsh to her? She might just be too afraid to tell him anything, right? Jaden was wondering if something really bad might happen when he finds out the truth. What should he do now? "Damn I can't sleep like that! I need to relax!" All of a sudden an idea popped into his head, there was a way to relax but it felt wrong…he would do it in a foreign bed and also in the Mansion of his girlfriend nevertheless he had to relax so there wasn't much choice anyway…
The brunette gulped and moved his hand down his pants and was just about to touch his member when someone knocked on the door and said brunette nearly jumped out of his bed. Jaden looked at the clock which was standing next to the poster bed. It was nearly midnight. Who in the world could knock on his door so late in the night? "Sy if that's you and are going to tell me you scared to sleep alone I'll rip your head…" He murmured annoyed the lack of sleep already got to him.
However when he opened the door there was no Syrus, no…Jun stood there and it was a horrifying sight… Her eyes red from crying, her hair was messy and the collar of her nightgown was torn. On the girl's neck you could see some strange purplish stains and she was hugging a little Ojama plush toy so hard it would have chocked if it could breathe. "Can…I …come in?" The raven said with hoarse voice.