A/N: Oh no! I'm SOOO dead now! Please don't kill me! I've already killed myself for this a hundred times! shows cut wrists see:-P lol cries yes, I did have this planned out 5 chapters ago. . . um. . . yeah. . . enjoy. . . thanks for reviews, too:-D Please don't stop reading cuz of this chapter and this chapter only. :-)

xXx Chapter 13 – Now or Never xXx

xXx In Class xXx

Lisa had done as Judai had said. She let her hair down that day instead of pulling it in a bun. For some reason, Lisa now felt better about herself. . . less confined to her physical appearance. She felt a kind of freedom.

She knew the teacher who was ranting on didn't care a single bit whether his students actually paid attention, unlike the others. So she knew there was no way, she could repeat what happened last time she dazed off in class, and decided she could look back at Edo without any worries.

In all honesty, she was worried. The Pro looked very angry at. . . someone. . . He was doing very well to hide it, but somehow Lisa could see his emotions emanating off his body. . . ever since that day she had touched him.

Maybe it has something to do with the tag team tournament, she decided in order to change her train of thought. But thinking about the tournament sent herinto a bad mood, all over again, once she remembered she still hadn't found a good partner.

Pondering what Judai had said the night before about having the courage to ask someone, Lisa tried to understand what to do next. She had no time, however, for class was excused at that moment.

Lisa was stepping down the steps to the door when a hand touched her shoulder, forcing her to stop. She flipped around to see who it was and immediately blushed. "Hi, Edo," she said. "What's up?"

He shrugged to reply and started to walk down the steps, Lisa trailing slowly behind him. He seemed like he had wanted to ask her something. . . but was too afraid of the answer to ask.

"Um. . . Edo?" Lisa asked him.

"Yeah?"

"What is it?"

"What do you mean?" Edo countered, apparently trying to avoid saying anything he was planning on before.

"Didn't you want to ask me something?" she explained.

He hesitated, pausing to decide if he really wanted to ask the question. "No," the Pro duelist finally stated. Then he continued walking away.

Lisa folded her arms and stopped following him angrily, but, at the same moment, Judai popped up in front of her eyes.

"So? What'd he say?" the brunette asked excitedly.

Lisa suppressed a laugh as she and Judai continued moseying toward their next class. "You're so funny sometimes, Judai," she commented. "And what do you mean, 'What did he say?'"

Judai acted as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Edo, of course. What'd he say?"

"I still don't get why it's so important. . ."

Judai laughed slightly. "I think you'll see soon."

"What are you talking about—"

Judai silenced her by shaking his head. "Never mind, you'll see when he asks. By the way, you're hair looks nice." The two were barely entering the class.

Lisa smiled. "Thank you, Judai. . . for everything."

"Sure," Judai answered. "No problem."

The two took their seats in the classroom, and waited through the last class before lunch.

xXx Right Before Lunch xXx

Edo watched as Lisa got up from her seat joining Judai, Kenzan, and Shou. He saw them pass a few words to each to her, and then Lisa watched as Judai and his two other friends left to get to the cafeteria.

Edo calmly stepped toward her after the brunette was gone. Lisa didn't even seem to noticed because she was so deep in thought, just standing there. "Lisa. . .?" Edo tried to draw her attention.

Lisa slowly did a double-take as she glanced at him. "Oh, hi," she said, and Edo almost wanted to smile at how she blushed every time she looked at him, but he kept his facial features composed.

"So who's your partner for the tournament?" he asked.

Lisa's smile disappeared abruptly before her face tilted down. "I. . . I don't h-have one yet." Suddenly she did something very unexpected to Edo. She started pacing quickly away.

Edo caught up with her quickly. "What's wrong?"

Shaking her head, Lisa weakly smiled at him as she continued her fast pace away.

"Lisa, stop for a second," Edo said.

She hesitantly obeyed but did not meet his eyes.

This was it, now or never. "Lisa?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't have a partner for the tag team tournament either," Edo started. He saw her eyes lift up not in happiness but in fright. He continued anyway. "I don't really know many people around here," he continued, "and Judai's already got a partner. So I was just wondering. . . if you would be my partner."

Lisa looked shocked that he was asking this. Except Edo knew he didn't really have a choice. Everyone else had either graduated or partnered with each other. Judai himself couldn't think of any other options for him.

Lisa's eyes closed. "I-I don't want to… um—"

The same blonde, who had once tried to become Lisa's friend a long time ago in order to become closer to Edo had been listening closely and interrupted their conversation. "If she doesn't want to be your partner, I will, Edo-kun."

Lisa turned angrily and glared. "Leave me alone," she said. "This is the fifth time you and your selfish friend bothered me."

The blonde laughed tauntingly. "I'm not talking to you." She turned back to Edo. "So?"

Edo continued to look at Lisa, ignoring the blonde.

Lisa's eyes filled with water, and she turned away. "Edo, I. . ." She faltered. "You're better off with her." Gesturing at the blonde, Lisa shuffled her feet away from the Pro. "I'm not a good enough duelist to be your partner, Edo. . ."

Sadly Edo watched Lisa leave, and after he looked at the blond who was waiting patiently, he got angry. The blonde was smirking at Lisa's hesitance to be Edo's partner, and, no doubt, was telling herself, "Edo's all mine now."

But she had no idea how wrong she was. Edo's blue eyes looked down into her brown ones. "If you ever talk to Lisa again, and I find out, you'll regret it."

The blonde girl looked somewhat surprised. "Oh, I'm sorry," she responded quickly. "I didn't know she was your friend. I won't bother her anymore."

Edo decided that she was anything but a "dumb blonde" since she was able to recover from a hit so easily.

"But, Edo. I'll be your partner. I don't have one yet either." She smiled devilishly. "I'll make sure we'll win first place."

Edo glared at her. "I don't care so much about winning," he stated, "as I do keeping friends."

"Oh, but I'll be your best friend, Edo-kun." The blonde stepped in front of him as he started to slowly chase after Lisa.

"You don't get it, do you?" Edo explained since she wasn't letting him get around her. "You don't want to be my friend, you're just another girl trying to draw my attention, and your tricks will never work on me. I have to go now, so move."

The blonde closed her eyes, sadly and moved out of the way. Apparently she knew when to give up.

Edo tried to stay calm as he hunted down Lisa. For some reason, ever since that day when he got out of detention, he had been having trouble with anger. Well, he was having problems keeping it deep down within his heart. . . somehow it was managing to surface, but just a little.

Finally, the Pro found Lisa sitting on a bench near a deserted area of the cafeteria. She was reading a book although it seemed as though she was just flipping the pages and rolling through the words rather than comprehending them. He sat down next to her, but she completely ignored him, her nose still in her book.

They just sat there for the longest time, Edo looking ahead, Lisa reading her book. Neither of them threw words at each other for several minutes until Edo finally decided to speak.

"Lisa—"

Lisa snapped the book shut and looked at him. "I can't, Edo, I just can't. You won't win if I'm your partner. Why don't you go be that one girl's partner?"

"Because I don't like her much," Edo answered. "I want you. Are you really choosing not to be my partner just for your own selfish reasons while at the same time you know I have no one else to turn to?"

"I'm not being selfish!"

"Actually, you are in a way." Edo didn't flinch in the least when Lisa glared at him.

Suddenly she put her head in her hands after placing the book on her lap. This is what Judai meant, Lisa discovered. He told me not to be afraid to partner with someone better at dueling than me. . . but I still can't.

"Lisa, please be my partner for the tournament," Edo asked politely.

She bit her lip, still frightened she would mess him up.

"I don't care if we win," Edo said. "But I do care about at least participating in the tournament."

It took a long time, but Lisa finally nodded. "A-all right. . ." She seemed scared of something else now, something Edo knew about all too well. "It's going the way. . . He. . . wants it to."

"You'll be okay, Lisa," Edo assured her. "When this 'something' happens, we'll be ready."

She was shaking her head before he finished. "I won't be okay, Edo. . . neither of us will."Before Edo got a chance to ask what she meant, Lisa had a smile on her face. "Lunch is almost over," she said. "Wanna go to class?"

Standing up with his hands in his pockets, Edo nodded, and the two new partners strode to class.

xXx In a Dark Room xXx

"So?" the hooded man asked through a small, black phone. "Is the plan ready to unfold?"

From the other line, Tanjiro's voice loudly sneaked through the other line and into the acoustic room. "Almost," he said. "I just need her to duel someone. . . me preferably. . . and I want her to duel alone. I need to discover her strategy."

"That's all very nice, but you better quicken the pace. At this rate, the whole school will suspect you by the time the girl duels Edo. And I grow tired of waiting."

"With all due respect, we have waited six months. It won't hurt us to wait another few days," Tanjiro commented. "Plus. . . to everyone's knowledge in the school, I have seemingly disappeared. There will be no problem."

"Fine," the other man replied. "Just be sure to alert me when you are ready. And I mean, ready to carry out the plan for real."

"Of course," Tanjiro said quickly. "Our plan is bound to work with both of our patience and the precautions we have made."

"Yes, with one of my enemies it will work. . . that is almost a sure thing. But with the other. . . well. We'll just have to see."

xXx

A/N: Okay, I'm still alive. . . yeah. . . You know, in chapter 11, I think, well, I never said the little partner thing WOULDN'T happen. . . I just said it wouldn't happen like THAT. :-P lol. Read and if you have time, reviews are always welcome. ;-) g2g write a chapter for another fan fiction now. See ya:-)