Chapter XXVIII: Piercing Darkness Part II
Welcome back, everyone to the next chapter of Darkness Falls. We are glad to see you back again, even as Darkness makes his move and the gang deals with its own darkness. Thank you, everyone as usual, for reading and reviewing! And before we go on, your co-authors would like to make an announcement. We are proud to present our new forum, RESPECT! It's in the General forums, so everyone from every fandom can participate. We want a fun, safe place where young authors and seasoned authors can relax and enjoy themselves. Check it out! And so, onto the story!
Last time on "Yu-Gi-Oh GX: Darkness Falls," Trueman came and took a horrendously depressed Bastion. And then, the gang realized just how to stop Darkness and Trueman from taking anyone else in their group. And so Axel, Jim and Blair shared their inner pain in the Ra Yellow common room. And then Alexis volunteered to tell her own fears and pain. So what will happen next? Just stay tuned!
Disclaimer: Must we go over this… again? We don't own the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise. We, Peach and Ani, wish we did.
Authors' notes: Alexis's darkness definitely differs from canon here. Rather than dealing with her fear of being a bad teacher, she deals with the darker fear of losing the people she loves most. As for Aster, one would assume that he had issues from losing his father and then the man that was supposed to love and protect him turning out to be his father's murderer. Aster might seem a bit out of sorts here, but we think it's understandable and we don't see every moment of a person's life on screen.
Warning: This is a very intense chapter and there are mentions of physical, mental and sexual abuse, as well as something sexual done in desperation. Your stomachs may turn at this.
"Babe, I'm right here," Jaden murmured. "Do you want to lie down?"
"No...That's okay. I'd rather sit," Alexis answered, taking in a deep breath to calm herself.
"Okay," he answered.
"Sis, do you need us?" Chazz asked, standing up from his chair next to Atticus.
"Yeah...I think I will... Can you guys sit over here with me?" Alexis asked.
"Sure thing, sis," Atticus answered. Her brothers sat on the couch along with her and Jaden.
"We're right here, Lexi," Chazz said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah...just take your time and talk it out," Atty added, placing a hand over hers.
Alexis sighed and nodded. "I know... I really need to talk about this, because...last night, I got a nightmare about it..."
"Okay, Alexis... all of us are here," Jaden said, remembering how Annie had talked. "And we aren't leaving... just talk it out..."
"Sis... it's okay," Chazz reassured her. "We don't want you to disappear too..."
"Well... All it really is, I guess, is this guilty feeling I have... That I haven't been able to protect you guys at some point, from something... Like, Chazz, I wasn't able to stop your brothers from beating you outside that restaurant," Alexis explained, frowning deeply and looking at her black-haired brother.
"But I was okay," he said, and then caught the look in her eyes... "You... saw me dead?"
She bit her lip and nodded slowly, looking down. "You died...and there was nothing I could do... And all I could feel was the guilt of not being there to protect you..."
Jaden moved aside, keeping his fiancée's hand in his, but giving Chazz enough room to hug his sister. "Lexi... I lived... And you protected me... even when I didn't think I was worth being protected..."
Alexis hugged back, comforted by the embrace and his words. "I know you lived... I just wish I could have protected you more...each time you were hurt by those monsters..."
"You did what you could... and it was more than enough," he answered gently. The young man that was hugging her now had evolved beyond the boy that he'd been when they first met. He was now more comfortable with himself and grateful to be her brother and friend. And now, he wanted her to feel better.
"Maybe...but you weren't the only one... Atty, Jay...I couldn't protect either of you... I couldn't protect Atticus from getting taken and used by Kagemaru... And I couldn't stop your nightmares from terrorizing you, Jaden..." This fact obviously pained her, tears wanting to form though she held them back.
The young men who loved her best held her in a tight hug. "Babe... you did help me through it," Jaden murmured. "I couldn't have made it through without you... You held me... You let me know you weren't going to disappear..."
"And Lexi, sis, you were there to protect me... You didn't give up on me while I was gone, and you were there for me the whole time I was in the infirmary," Atticus reminded her, brother love in his brown eyes.
Alexis couldn't take it, and she felt the tears come and spill over her cheeks. "I...I care about you guys so much... You're always protecting me...I want to keep you safe too..."
"Babe... let it out," Jaden murmured. "You keep us safe."
"And you keep us from doing really stupid stuff," Chazz added gently.
"And you stand up for us too," Atticus stated quietly. Alexis knew what they said was true, and felt the guilt that had collected over the years ease slowly out of her with the tears. She really had been protecting them all this time, to the best of her abilities. Alexis buried her face in Jaden's shoulder, crying out her fears of failing the men she loved.
Jaden rocked her softly, murmuring reassurance as she cried against him. "It's all right...shhh... let it out, babe... it's okay... We're all gonna be okay... shhh..."
After a few minutes of crying, Alexis had cried out all of her tears. She pulled away slightly, sniffing a little with red and puffy eyes. "Th-Thanks...guys... Jay, Atty, Chazz..."
"Love you, babe," Jaden answered.
"Yeah... love you, sis," Chazz added, taking the tissue box Annie held out. "Here... take this."
Alexis took the tissue gratefully and dried her eyes. "Thanks, bro..."
"And you know your big bro loves you too, little sis. Always have and always will," Atticus stated with a grin.
Alexis couldn't help but smirk a little, giving her brother a shove. "You're such a ham..."
"Yeah, big bro! You make William Shatner look calm onscreen," Chazz smirked.
Atticus pulled his little brother into a playful chokehold, using his free hand to give him a noogie. "Oh yeah? Well I like the spotlight, thank you very much! Mr. Shatner was a big role model for me."
"Oh, lord," Annie groaned, laughing. "Atticus, do not sing Rocket Man! For every note you sing, I shall kill you," she said, imitating Stewie Griffin.
"Funny, that's what Zane said the last time I told him Mr. Shatner was my role model," Atty said as he released Chazz.
The entire room erupted with laughter, and the teachers, watching outside the room, laughed as well. "Oh, my goodness!" Fonda laughed happily.
Don laughed along with her. "It's wonderful that Atticus can lighten the mood so easily."
"That's his gift," the nurse smiled. "This is going very well... But what's coming?" she wondered, sobering.
"I'm not sure, Fonda. Let's hope it stays this way...and nothing gets out of hand," he answered.
Back in the room, Aster stood up. "Can I go next?" Everyone knew the white-blonde blue-eyed teen had issues, but still, for him to volunteer was a slight shock.
"Uh... sure?" Jasmine answered, eyes wide.
"You don't need to go now if you don't want to, Aster," Atticus added.
"I think I need to," Aster countered, meeting the other's brown-eyed gaze. "And... you guys are all going to be surprised by some of it. I didn't tell you certain things about what happened with my dad and then Kyle... You heard Kyle died..."
"Yeah... Do you know how he died, Aster?" Syrus asked.
"Yeah... he... died when his yacht blew up..." Aster took an unsteady breath. "You see, I was there when it happened... I found out from Sartorius that Kyle had the card that my dad had made right before... it happened..."
"So...you went to get the card from him?" Jesse asked.
"He invited me," Aster explained. "I guess he knew I was going to track him down, so... he decided to confront me himself. And... 'Tie up a loose end' because I'd go to the police and his dueling career would be over..."
"Wait a second. You don't mean that bloke tried to kill you, do you?" Jim interrupted, causing everyone to look at Aster in anticipation for his answer.
Aster looked away for a minute, closing his eyes. When he opened them again and looked back at the group, there was the unmistakable sheen of tears in his eyes. "Aster?" Annie asked softly, remembering the dinner back nine months previously.
"I couldn't tell any of you then... but...he did want to kill me... like he murdered my dad. All that time... from he adopted me... He knew my dad was dead and he was the murderer. And... The only reason he ultimately took me in was because... he didn't want to get caught!" Aster's face contorted from pain to anger and back again. "He... he didn't really care!" the young man in the dove-gray suit cried out.
For a few seconds, the group couldn't help but sit in stunned silence. And then, Atticus stood and went to the silver-haired young man. But he didn't touch him yet; he knew that might be a bad idea to do too soon. "Aster, calm down a little... It's good that you're letting this out, but too much will only make it worse. Just relax a little," he said soothingly. Atticus pulled a lot on his brotherly instincts for this, remembering the few times Alexis or Chazz had been upset.
"You... you weren't there," Aster managed to say in a slightly calmer voice. "You... didn't see him. It wasn't just that weird light..."
"The Light of Destruction?" Jaden asked for confirmation.
Aster nodded again. "Yeah, it wasn't just that... He wanted power... and he thought taking that card my dad designed would give it to him." The young man kept his breathing even with great effort. "He'd seen the card... because of me..." And then, the usually calm Aster Edward Phoenix broke down crying.
Atticus, once again on brotherly instinct, pulled the younger teenager into a hug. "It's okay, Aster... Let it all out... What do you mean he'd seen the card because of you?"
Aster hugged back for a long moment and then sighed. "This was back when Dad and I lived in San Jose, near Industrial Illusions' offices there. And that day, my dad's drawing of this new monster dropped out his window. I ran after it and this guy had found it... That guy was Kyle, and that night he came to our house... I was five and my whole world died that night..." He shook in Atticus's arms. "It was my fault... My fault..."
"Aster... You were five. How were you supposed to know that guy was dangerous? He could have been any other stranger on the street," Atticus said comfortingly.
"He said... I led him right to Dad and me..."
"Aster," was the mutter around the room.
"That poor boy," Vellian Crowler muttered in the teachers' area, even though he was one of the few people who knew the truth.
"Aster... could you have predicted what happened that night?" Annie tried gently.
"No... But I should've."
"How could you when you were only five?" she asked him.
Aster hadn't considered that. "I don't know..."
"You could have run into anyone else on that street, Aster. It was only chance that you ran into him...and that he did what he did," Syrus added.
Aster blinked. "Yeah... I just... wish I could've saved Dad..."
"Aster... you couldn't have known... And Kyle fooled everybody all that time... and maybe on some level... he did love you as a son," Jaden tried.
Aster groaned. "I don't think so now..."
"Aster... What was your life like with Kyle?" Syrus asked, hoping the pro duelist could focus on happier times.
It was a good question for Syrus to ask. And it was one that Aster hadn't really talked about. "You've all read about me... I had everything a kid could want after Kyle took me in. He was the Pro League champ and could buy me toys, send me to the best schools and let me do whatever I wanted. He was away a lot and so I got taken care of by nannies and then I could take of myself..."
The platinum-blonde teen closed his eyes, thinking back. "When I was about 8, I got through high school... and by the time I was 10, I got a BA in pre-law from USC. And when I was 12, I got a business degree from Domino U. And that summer, I got tired of school, so Kyle let me stay out and go back when I wanted. I was already taking different sports classes, so I started taking up more dangerous stuff. I wanted to do more risky stuff and... I needed to find out who took my dad. He was gone without a trace, and I was going to find him, no matter what it cost me... And some of those things I learned to do... I felt a rush..." A slight smile came to the young man's features, thinking of his snowboarding, skydiving and waterskiing. "It was... incredible... and I didn't hurt when I did stuff like that."
"The rush of adrenaline cleared your head, mate. It made you focus entirely on what you were doing," Jim explained knowingly.
"I didn't have to think about how I felt... I just focused on that feeling... And at least I felt something. I actually felt... alive..."
"You mean... you just felt numb," Chazz offered. It wasn't a question. It seemed the raven-haired Slifer was digging from his own experiences. "That's why you did crazy stuff..."
"Aster," Annie asked slowly, grateful for her research into the various facets of psychology, "were you ever treated for trauma or dissociative disorders?"
"No... I was fine..." He stated it matter-of-factly, but no one was buying it.
"Aster... were you really okay?" Jaden asked, knowing that same tone.
And the young man with the sapphire-blue eyes looked straight at the other young man. "No... But... that's what Kyle needed me to be... It could've been damaging to his career if I was anything less than okay."
"Do you think he knew something was wrong, though?" Alexis asked, knowing it was possible.
"He knew... he just didn't care... I had nightmares after Dad was gone and I was getting used to the new house with Kyle, but... But he said I just needed to let it go and tell the social worker I was happy... I didn't think anything of it at the time..." Aster's voice had taken on a flat, emotionless tone.
Atticus was still holding the teen in a hug, not having let go because Aster hadn't let go. Now he knew what needed to be brought to light. "Well, Aster... He may not have cared... But all of us do. We care about you and what you're feeling, and we want you to be able to be happy. Everyone deserves that much."
Aster held onto the large Obelisk. "That's not the worst, though..." His voice was just above a whisper and everyone leaned forward to listen. "When I confronted him on his boat, he showed me where part of my dad was... And when we dueled... I... had to let Dad go..."
"Aster, what do you mean? What happened?" Annie asked.
"He was trapped in the wings of Destiny Hero Plasma... And I had to use Destiny Hero Dark Angel to destroy it." The usually calm boy's voice rose uncontrollably as he tried to fight hot tears again. "I know he was gone already, but I couldn't free Dad without blasting him!" And then the tears fell. Aster's calm facade broke, revealing a very vulnerable young man in extraordinary pain. Aster sobbed hard against Atticus's chest, letting all the pain and hurt of the past 10 years pour out. He had held so much in over that time that now he was feeling every emotion he'd held back.
Atticus just held the silver-haired teen, rubbing his back soothingly and muttering words of comfort. He found himself enacting his big brother role a lot lately, but he didn't mind. He was glad to help his friends. "It's okay, Aster...shh... Just let it all out..."
And then Aster felt more pairs of arms around him, letting him know he wasn't alone. "Aster...Remember what Zane, Sy and I told you at the end of summer right before the all-night party?" Annie asked him. Unable to speak, he nodded. "And what Will and Darla said?" Another nod. "You have all of us. And we're glad to be your family..."
Finally, the boy got control of himself. "Th-thanks, guys... I don't feel so weighed down anymore. It still hurts but... it's not as bad anymore..."
"It might hurt for a while longer, Aster. But it'll slowly heal... And we'll help you, okay?" Atticus explained reassuringly.
Aster managed a smile. "Yeah... Thanks everybody... And... I'll help you, too..."
"We know you will, Aster... And we also know you have already," Jaden grinned.
Once Aster had fully calmed down and the group was relaxed again, it was time for someone else to go. Those who had yet to do so exchanged nervous and wary glances. Charles Xavier Rhodes looked at his friends and his big brother and sister. "I'll go..."
Atticus had been about to say the same thing, but decided maybe it was best that his brother go first. "Do you want us by you, bro?" Alexis asked.
Chazz nodded. "I'm ready to tell you guys everything... and I need you here... Karen said I had to be ready to tell you what I've told her," he stated in a pained voice. "And... you're gonna get mad when you hear it..."
"Chazz, little bro, there is no way we're going to get mad at you for anything," Atticus replied seriously.
"It's not at me... You'll be angry at what... they did... angrier than you've been already..." The entire group looked at each other worriedly. What could be worse than his brothers beating him for most of his life, as well as their horrible treatment of him?
Annie took a shaky breath, worried about what was coming. Had Chazz been abused in every way possible? 'They... were that low,' she thought, trembling slightly.
Syrus reached over to grip her hand, sending her a comforting look. "Chazz...whatever it is, we'll help you talk it out," he said.
The young man nodded and headed to the couch. His brother and sister took their places at either side of him holding his hands. "Okay..."
"Bro, we're all here," Jaden said softly.
"Yeah, soldier. We don't leave a man behind," Tyson added gently.
"Just say what you need to say, Chazz. We're here to support ya, bud," Jesse stated with a nod.
Adrian too, added, "It'll be okay."
And so Chazz began his own tale. "When I was a baby, both Mom and Dad died in a year of each other. Mom died when I was a month old and my dad committed suicide on my first birthday. And for a long time, my former brothers made me think it was all my fault. They never treated me like a brother that I can remember. Maybe they were nice once, but they got twisted somehow. They went to college and got their educations and made sure I got into the best schools. And one night, they decided I needed to know what real men did..."
"What real men did?" Alexis asked slowly. Of course she knew what he likely meant, she was just hoping she was wrong and it was something else.
Chazz nodded, closing his eyes. When he'd been with Karen in the summer, this was the hardest thing for him to talk about. "Y-yeah... One night, when I was about seven, I was watching TV and I heard noise coming from their bedroom suite in the house. So I walked up there to see what was going on, and... there were clothes all over the floor... Women's clothes as well as their suits..." He could see that scene in his mind all too well. It had been a cool fall evening, and that night a part of his innocence had disappeared forever.
Most of the group was watching Chazz, hoping he wouldn't say it but somehow knowing he would. Alexis and Atticus were looking sadly at their brother, trying to brace themselves for what was coming. Chazz had been right; it was going to make them angry, if it was what they suspected. Jaden's fists were rapidly clenching and unclenching. 'If they hurt him...' He didn't dare complete the thought, and his eyes were flashing.
Chazz could sense his friends and family's horror and anger, but he knew he had to continue. "So... I went into the room and they... were... with hookers..."
Alexis couldn't take it. "Chazz...please tell me that's as far as it went..."
"I wish it was, but it wasn't... S-Slade and J-Jagger must've heard me, because they looked up from what they... were doing... and told me to stay and watch..."
Annie's face went very pale. "Jesus, Mary, Joseph... why do these things happen?" she moaned softly.
Alexis and Atticus were both obviously trying to hold back their anger. Alexis had her face buried in her free hand and was visibly shaking. Atticus's free hand was clenched into a fist and he was silently gritting his teeth. "Those..."
Each of the teens had looks of rage and horror on their faces. But Chazz managed to quell their fears of how bad it had been. "They didn't make me do anything with the hookers that night. I was seven, so I was way too young anyway... But... they made me watch everything they did with those women... And they did a lot..." What Chazz told them left little to the group's collective imagination.
And in the next room where the teachers were monitoring the situation, Chancellor Shepherd groaned. "That poor boy... how did he stand it?" Fonda, meanwhile, was crying silently. Don had his arms around her, murmuring soothing words to her. He knew how much this was upsetting her; it was upsetting them all. In fact, Professor Viper took several deep breaths and then walked out of the dorm and out away from the students, needing to scream his own rage. It was a hard thing to think that someone could violate a child in such a way, and as a parent, it enraged him.
And back in the room, the other two Rhodes siblings stood at the same time. They looked at each other in slight surprise. "Lexi...you go ahead first. I can wait," Atticus said quietly, seeing the rage in his sister's eyes, mirroring his own inner turmoil.
Alexis nodded. "Chazz, bro...I just need to leave the room for a second...okay?"
Chazz nodded. "Okay, sis..."
Alexis let go of his hand as Atticus sat back down, leaving the sitting room and heading outside of the dorm. However, if the group was expecting shouting and curses, they would be surprised. Alexis wasn't one to blow up in that sort of fashion. She was as silent in her rage as in her crying, and with a low growl she threw her fist into the strong bark of a nearby tree. Alexis barely registered the pain that tore through her now bruised knuckles, punching the solid surface with her other hand. Tears burned at her eyes, half from pain and half from anger. What Chazz told her had upset her greatly, and each punch was aimed at one of the elder Princeton brothers. Not the tree. It was blood from their broken noses and busted teeth, not her hands.
Jaden, just thirty seconds after she'd left the room, said quickly, "I'll be right back!" And he headed outside to see her punching the tree. "Lex? LEX!" he called out to her.
Alexis punched the tree one last time, finally causing the bark to splinter and crumble. Her fist shakily loosened, palm sliding down the trunk as she dropped to her knees. Her head hung, shoulders shaking as fresh tears spilled to the grass. It mixed with the blood that had fallen from her scraped and bruised knuckles, which were still bleeding and tingling with tiny bursts of pain.
"Alexis," Jaden called, running up to her, "babe..." He pulled her into a hug, kneeling with her. "Shh... you hurt yourself..."
Alexis rested her forehead on his shoulder, letting the tears fall. Her aching hands shakily rested against his chest, her blood barely showing up against the red uniform blazer. "J-Jaden...what they did... I-I can't forgive them...it's too much... Th-They hurt him..."
He rocked her softly in his arms, and took a breath. "I know, I know... How he survived.... and I don't think he's done..."
"I just wish I could help him more... I wish I could make it all just go away for him," she murmured, sniffling a little.
"We all do," he answered, unable to hide his own tears. "I mean, as bad as I had it... I had a mom and dad who loved me and protected me. They would've KO'd somebody who tried to do what Slade and Jagger did..."
"I would too... If they were here right now... Jay, I don't know if I could hold myself back... They're lucky they're in prison..."
"That wouldn't keep 'em safe, though... I asked Dad what happens to people who hurt kids when they're in jail... They're lucky they aren't in the general population of a maximum security jail..." And in the dark, Jaden's eyes flashed golden. "They wouldn't last long..."
Alexis rubbed at her eyes, ridding them of the last few tears. So she didn't see the flash of gold, too busy trying now to wipe off the blood on her face. "Jaden..."
His eyes flashed back to the normal warm brown shade. "Babe... you're getting blood on your face... Let's get back in there, okay? And let's get you fixed up..."
"O-Okay," She muttered as they stood, fists slowly clenching and unclenching to ease the soreness in her knuckles.
"Chazz still needs you... we all do..." And he put his arm around her as they walked.
Miss Fontaine met them at the door, and it was evident she'd been crying. But she managed a smile. "C'mon, Alexis, let's fix you up... What did you hit?"
"Just my hands... Mainly my knuckles, I'm pretty sure," Alexis answered, holding up the battered appendages.
"I meant, what did you hit with your knuckles?"
"She hit that oak tree outside," Jaden explained as the nurse got out her medical kit.
"That would explain the splinters," the nurse sighed, smiling a little.
"I...just punched the first thing I saw," Alexis admitted, flushing a little and looking down.
"It's all right... Professor Viper was so angry, he actually headed out for a moment," Fonda soothed as she pulled splinters.
Alexis winced, grimacing a little. "Atticus wanted to leave too... But he might have calmed down by now..."
Fonda was quick with the splinters. "Yeah. His big brother instincts took over and he stayed there. Chazz hasn't said any more."
"Is he waiting for me...?" Alexis wondered aloud, glancing in the direction of the sitting room.
"I think he is... He needs his sister, too," the nurse answered as she put some disinfectant on the wounds.
The teen girl hissed slightly in pain, gritting her teeth together. "I'll head back as soon as you're done..."
"That's the plan," Fonda smiled. She got some healing medicine on the wounds and then bandaged them. "There we are, all fixed... Now go on in there, both of you."
"Thanks, Miss Fontaine," Alexis said as they stood and made their way back to where the group was still sitting and waiting for them.
Chazz looked up from the safety of his brother's arms. "Sis? You okay? Slacker, is that blood?!"
"It's all right... she's patched up," Jaden explained lamely.
"I...had a fight with a tree." Alexis stated quietly as she sat down beside her brothers, turning a little red.
Atticus sighed. "At least it wasn't a fight with the building..."
"You hit the tree... 'cause you want to hit them, right?" Chazz asked.
Alexis frowned, glancing away as she nodded slightly. "I lost my temper... And they'd deserve it, anyway."
The youngest Rhodes took a breath. "Lexi... that wasn't the end... and I wish it was... After that night, they took me places kids should never go. Because they had money, they could make it so I didn't seem to be in a place I shouldn't be. Green makes a great invisibility cloak... And the day I got accepted into Duel Academy, they told me I needed to celebrate like real men do..." Alexis had her face in her now bandaged hand again. She listened to him, keeping her anger in check. Atticus, too, was bracing himself for whatever Chazz was about to tell them. Even if he knew he'd get angry and end up leaving anyway. "They took me out that night and got a hooker and told her I was old enough for her. I'd just turned 15 and... I didn't want to. But they took me to a hotel and said, 'Have fun...' The gal... she was about my age... said she'd do whatever I wanted. They'd paid her to spend the night with me. I told her I didn't want to lose it, but my brothers expected me to... But she said we could just talk, so that's what we did... And then about midnight, Slade called to check on our... progress... And he told me he wanted to see some evidence... but not pictures..." He shuddered. "Pictures could come back to haunt them..."
"I think I'm gonna be sick," Annie moaned, feeling like she'd fallen into a sewer.
"What did you do?" Alexis managed to ask. Syrus gripped Annie's hand, squeezing a little.
"Well... at least they insisted on...safe practices so I was able to trick them into thinking I'd done something with her. I went into the bathroom and..." He went red at what he was about to admit to doing, especially in front of his girlfriend, his sister and his female friends who he thought of as sisters. "I manufactured some evidence."
Most of the group could guess what the black-haired Slifer had done, cheeks all turning red. "You don't need to get into details, little bro... Did they leave you alone after that?" Atticus asked hopefully.
"Yeah... and the hooker said I was...good. So I got out of it... And they didn't find out about that. But they expected me to have a girlfriend at school... Sis, I already liked you, but you weren't interested," he admitted. "But... they kept pressing..."
"They didn't do anything worse to you because I rejected you so much, did they?" Alexis asked, meeting his eyes and frowning.
"No... They told me to keep trying and figure a way to get you to go with me... And they got mad at me when I kept losing..."
Jaden looked at him. "I didn't help you at all..."
"Jaden... Slacker... they would've been mad at me no matter what," the other boy answered. "They didn't care..."
"He's right, Jaden. Even if he did meet their expectations, they'd only end up raising them until he'd be unable to do it. They just wanted to hurt him the whole time," Atticus realized, pulling his brother into a hug.
"And I left Duel Academy, not because of you or Bastion... I left because I knew what they were gonna do to me when they found out I kept getting beat by supposedly 'inferior' duelists. But Bastion and you were better than me... You still are..."
"Chazz..." Jaden stood and moved to hug his friend. "Man... how did you survive that?"
"I just did..."
Syrus looked at Annie; she had the psychology knowledge, after all. "Annie? Do you know something he might've done to survive it?"
She thought about it. "The thing is... Chazz... what kept you going?"
He thought about it. "I saw other kids without bruises they had to hide... I saw them with their moms and dads... They were happy... I knew things were different and I held onto that... But for a while, I dreamed of becoming more powerful than Slade and Jagger... Then I realized after I dueled Slade that last time... I was better than them. And I had people around me who actually cared what happened to me. I just trusted you guys a little, but it was enough."
Annie smiled. "That's it. Chazz, you held on because you were able to trust again... And you knew that what they were doing wasn't right." She kept the smile on her face. "Chazz knew what was going on wouldn't be forever... And that, combined with us, held him together..."
Chazz was silent for a moment. "You know... that's actually right, Annie," he said finally. "I held on because I hoped someday... it'd be better..."
"And it is now. And it's going to stay that way, bro," Alexis replied, smiling.
"I know... and... there's something I'd like to do if I can..."
"What's that, Chazz?" Atty asked curiously.
"I want to tell a different version of my life... and how it should've been," Chazz managed to smile through his puffy eyes.
The original Rhodes siblings exchanged glances of surprise. "Sure, Chazz. Go ahead..."
"This is how my life should've been... When I was a baby, my mom and dad died, and my brothers realized that they couldn't take care of me. And so they looked for a good family to adopt me. And in a nice house across town, they found the family. The parents' names were Jack and Jean Louise, better known to her friends as Scout..." And so the boy told of an alternate world where he grew up with the people he now called siblings. "And so we attended Duel Academy together and had a lot of friends around us. And this year, I'm going to watch my sister get married."
When he finished, Alexis and Atticus pulled their brother into a hug. "If only things had happened that way," Alexis muttered, a small smile on her face.
Atticus grinned. "Even if it didn't, we're together now and that's what really matters."
"Yeah... and now I can be here for you..."
They all knew what was coming next. And it wouldn't be pretty. "Uh... should we do Rock, Paper, Scissors?" Jaden wondered out loud.
"Well...who still has something they need to get off their chest? Raise your hand," Atticus stated, raising his own and looking around at the group.
Jaden raised his and Adrian raised his. Annie and Sy looked at each other in surprise. "I think... I'm okay," she said, blinking. "I'm really okay..."
Syrus nodded. "So am I... I already fixed what was wrong when we helped Zane."
"And I'm just fine," Jesse added truthfully.
"Then...guess it's just us three," Atticus said, looking from Jaden to Adrian. "I...I'll go next, guys."
As we all know, Atticus was once Nightshroud. And throughout the canon series, we saw that evil presence rear its head again and again, only to find it was the ultimate evil. But in this series, how will Atticus confront his dark side? Stay tuned next for "Piercing Darkness Part III." Until next time, please read and review! Thank you!
