A/N: Sorry for the long wait (again). I actually have an excuse, though! School. It's the middle of the semester and I'm working on an independent study project this year, so I've been busy studying for midterms and working on my project. And writing stories with Shadgirl2, which will be posted at a much later date than now. Speaking of her, I've also been working on a duel for her story, "A Second Chance," which is why that hasn't been updated lately. (Sorry about that one, too.) Anyway, with midterms behind me and that project of mine being on track, I'm hoping to get back to quicker updates. So, without further ado, here's the next chapter! Enjoy! I don't own Yugioh GX.
Ryo arrived much quicker than Jim, and Johan was beginning to worry. He had decided to meet the two at the edge of the village, leaving Judai with Braeden and Asuka in the meantime. But they had been waiting for an hour, and Jim still hadn't shown.
"What's taking him so long?" Johan wondered.
Before Ryo could answer, Jim came barreling through the woods. His clothes and skin were torn, blood trickling out of small cuts all over his body.
"Jim!?" Johan ran over. "What happened!?"
As the Australian caught his breath, he said, "I ran into someone I think might know something about what's going on here. And he wasn't too friendly."
"What do you mean?" Ryo asked.
"There was this boy. He came up to me looking like Manjoume. After I figured him out, he chased me through the woods. I just barely lost him."
"A shape-shifter?"
Jim shook his head. "A genie."
There was a moment of silence as the other two processed this. To most, this would seem an impossibility, and Johan was just about to point out the ridiculousness of that idea. After all, dealing with Duel Monster fiends was one thing, but genies? Unless it was a Duel Spirit, Johan wasn't ready to believe it.
Catching the look on Johan's face, Ryo said, "It wouldn't be the first time a creature that isn't supposed to exist has attacked us. When I was still a student at Duel Academy, a vampire came to the island."
Johan started. "A vampire?"
The older man nodded. "As well as an Amazon shape-shifter. And the spirit of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh."
Johan blinked. That just sounded insane. But, if Ryo was saying it had happened, then who was he to question the man? After all, he and the others had wound up traveling dimensions thanks to Yubel once, and they were currently standing in one of those other dimensions.
"Okay... So there's a genie messing with us?"
Jim nodded. "He impersonated Judai earlier. When I called him out on it, he scowled and all but admitted it."
Ryo crossed his arms. "So someone's trying to frame Judai. But why? What could he hope to gain from turning us against him?"
"Well, the last time we were here, Judai fell to the darkness after we left him all alone. I'm not sure if that could happen again, but, if it can, then this bloke seems to want Haou back."
"Haou, huh?" Johan asked. "That would explain it. It seems like Judai's gotten worse since we've been here, and he was already pretty upset to begin with."
Ryo looked thoughtful, then said, "Genies have magic powers that involve fire. You don't suppose that the man Judai saw the day his cousin died was the boy you saw, do you?"
"It's possible," Jim admitted. "Or there could be more than one involved."
"That's true, too," Ryo said as Johan nodded.
"We need to tell Judai about this," Johan said. "Come on. He and Asuka are staying with a girl named Braeden."
He turned and led the way back through the village to the woman's home.
Asuka stared at the floor, blushing, her hands in her lap. Ever since Johan had left to get the others, Judai had been staring at her. She wished she hadn't let Braeden talk her into wearing this getup, but it did seem to be distracting Judai quite a bit. He hadn't said a word in over an hour as she and he sat at the small table in Braeden's home. Their hostess was currently busy in the corner, though Asuka couldn't see what she was doing, exactly.
Unable to take the silent staring anymore, Asuka said, "Are you going to stare at me all day?"
He started, then laughed awkwardly. "Sorry. I'm just not used to seeing you dressed like that. In fact, I never thought I would see you dressed like that. Why are you dressed like that?"
She smiled slightly. "Braeden got it into her head that I needed a new outfit, and I guess she thought this would look good on me."
"Well, she was right," Judai said, then blushed. "Th-that is, uh..."
Asuka looked at him quizzically. Is he nervous? What for?
She thought about it for a moment. Braeden had thought that dressing her like this would distract Judai's mind. But why? Honestly, Asuka had thought for a time that Judai was asexual. Then, when Johan had arrived, she'd decided that he might be gay. She had always harbored feelings for him, but she had never believed that he returned those feelings. He had always been so naïve about matters of the heart—her duel with Mitsuo (or Boy, as he called himself); that so-called love duel Manjoume had forced her into; and, even earlier, that incident with the tennis captain Ayanokouji. Each time, Judai had seemed totally unaware of the implications of these guys' behavior.
And yet, thinking back, there were a few times she could think of when it seemed Judai might have some clue about romance. And that he may have liked her. His first words to her when she had told Manjoume off for picking on him that first day at Duel Academy: "Could it be you've fallen in love with me at first sight?"
Judai Yuki, flirting? With me?
She had never thought of it that way—not since that first day, at least. He'd seemed so oblivious most of the time, so why would she?
"Judai, there's something I need to tell you," she said.
"Huh? What is it?"
She took a deep breath. She had tried this once before, but she had chickened out at the last second. Now, though, she was going to tell him. He needed to know. Especially with what was going on now.
"I—"
The door flew open, and Johan came in, along with Ryo and Jim.
"Judai! We know who really attacked us!" Johan said, a fierce fire in his eyes.
Judai stood and backed up, slightly startled by the look on his friend's face. "Really?"
"That's right," Jim said. "I ran into him on the way here. A genie."
"A genie?" Asuka asked, her irritation at the interruption fading away quickly. "What do you mean?"
"I mean a real genie. Formed from smokeless fire, can change his appearance, maybe even set fire to buildings."
As the pieces fell together in Judai's mind, his expression darkened. "Wait, are you saying that a genie started that fire? That a genie killed Shelly? And attacked you guys?"
Johan nodded. "That's exactly what we're saying, pal."
"But why would a genie want to do this to Judai?" Asuka asked.
"Possibly to reawaken Haou," Ryo said. "And rule through him."
"Haou takes orders from no one," Judai growled. "Besides, I've got him under control now."
"Right, but is it possible that Haou could take over again if you lost control of your own emotions?" Johan asked. "And, maybe, this genie thinks that he can use his magic to control Haou."
Judai's eyes widened slightly. "That's why..." He growled, his hands clenched into fists and shaking at his sides. "So I'm being toyed with. Somebody's hurting the people I love to bring Haou back."
Ryo nodded. "That's what it seems."
"Okay, now I'm mad! This creep's not getting away with this!" He looked at Jim and asked, "What did the guy look like?"
"Well, when he showed up, he looked like Manjoume. But, after I called his bluff, he transformed into a ten-year-old boy with greasy black hair."
Judai blinked. "That's not the same guy I saw, unless he was taking on a different form. He was older, with blood-red hair and eyes."
A gasp came from the corner of the room. The group started, then turned to see Braeden suddenly standing, looking startled.
"D-did you say red hair? And eyes?"
"Yeah, why?" Judai asked.
The young woman paled. "Oh, my. Did he have a silver chain around his neck, by chance? And was he dressed in black?"
Judai's eyes widened. "How did you know that?"
Braeden's hand flew up to cover her mouth, and she fell to her knees. "Elliot. That's where he went."
"Elliot?" Asuka asked. "You know him?"
"I...I believe I do...or I did. You see, several years ago, when Haou took command of this world, my friend Elliot disappeared. Most assumed he was dead, but I was not as certain. He had been acting strangely in the days before he vanished, and I had feared that this had somehow been related to his disappearance. Now I know."
"What do you mean, he was acting strange?" Ryo asked.
"He...he started chanting in a foreign language. And strange things would happen to his enemies, as if by magic. His reactions to these events always left me with the impression that he had caused them. He would smile cruelly, as if proud of some horrible trick he had successfully executed."
Judai stared at her for a moment, then said, "He must have gotten this idea from somewhere, which means that he's not the only one we're dealing with. There's more of them." Turning to Jim, he said, "That kid you saw might be another one, Jim."
Braeden shook her head sadly. "I never thought that Elliot would do something like this. He was always such a good friend."
Judai looked at her, sympathy showing on his face. "I'm sorry, Braeden. I hope, for your sake, that it's not him, or that there's some good explanation. But, if there's not, I'm not going to hold back. Nobody gets away with hurting the people I care about! Especially not if their reason is world domination!"
Asuka's blood boiled at those words, but she decided not to point out the irony of that statement. He had, after all, let Yubel get away with hurting them. Granted, he had stopped her, but he had done so by fusing with her. She didn't understand why he would do such a thing if he really cared for them.
She shook her head, driving those thoughts away. What am I thinking? It's Judai! He's loyal to all of his friends, and Yubel was a friend, too. Maybe he thought she had a "good explanation" for her behavior.
As much as that annoyed her, she was going to try to pretend she didn't care. After all, she had heard about Haou from Sho, and he didn't sound like someone she wanted to meet. Keeping Judai from falling was their top priority right then, so she'd worry about his double standards later.
"So what do we do? We need to find the one's responsible for this, don't we?" she asked.
Judai nodded. "Any ideas?"
"Well, first off, I think we should tell the others," Johan said. "I'll be back!"
As he ran out to get the rest of their friends, Judai, Asuka, Jim, and Ryo tried to come up with some sort of a plan to find and stop these new enemies.
