Well… I don't really know what to say?

After that little incident with Eternity Angelo, I didn't really expect much to happen afterwards…

After all, it was only in the middle of the second semester, and we still have one semester left over to enjoy. And this time, I hope at least get a high school experience with a little touch of dueling.

Too bad not everyone feels the same…

'Sigh'

Will I ever get a normal high school life?

I figure as long as I'm here… nope, not going to happen.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Chapter 52

Enter Trimester Three

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The Atlantic Duel academy, now a calm and serene place after the events that had transpired over a week and a half ago, was back to its usual ritual. Students wake up, students go to class, and students duel and then do their homework…

Quite dull, if you think about it…

But as the after school masses were returning to their dorms, a certain room was filled with a loud buzz, and this room was none other than…

"Welcome back to the Admirer's Club, ladies!" Cleo announced with a large holographic heart popping behind her.

Asche lowered his head slightly as he held up his duel disk, 'Yeah… I'm still doing this… ya know…'

"So, greetings ladies," Cleo announced through the microphone in the room as the heart disappeared to reveal several posters of several resident guys from the island (all of them hand drawn since most of them looked much more handsome than the real deal). "Our first matter of business is to discuss the Rush for the Treasure Tournament… Does, anyone know who won?"

Murmurs echoed through the room, making Cleo and Asche sweatdrop. Unfortunately, it was true that several students couldn't recall the end of the tournament… or for that matter what had happened afterwards. And to top it off, the records were gone…

… Or as Alan so stated, 'Yeah, I kinda lost the files… so, sorry!'

"Miss Cleo, can we please let this go, ya know?" Asche muttered leaning over to Cleo. "I-I mean, is it so hard for you to accept…"

WHAM!

"URK! YA KNOW!" Ashton yelped before falling backwards thanks to Cleo's fist.

With a large blush slowly creeping on her face, Cleo turned to the side.

Unfortunately for her, the last thing Cleo could remember of the tournament was waking up in the cafeteria… with Asche's arms around her. The memory just kept repeating in Cleo's mind again and again, there had to have been someone out there who knew what had happened…

But for the time being, Cleo just had to keep the meeting going, "Alright… now, on to new matters. We have a new member with us today, a transfer student from the mainland academy… so, if you could please stand up and introduce yourself…"

From the way back, a shadowed figure of that a young petite girl stood up, her hand slowly raised up into the air, "U-Um… I'm right here."

"Yes, we can all see that," Cleo sighed with a slap to her forehead. "But, do you have a name?"

The mysterious girl just turned her head to the side slightly, her large thick rimmed glasses that covered her eyes glowed brightly, "…"

"Ah, a shy girl, aren't you?" Cleo chuckled twirling some of her hair in her fingers. "Well, that's fine… you'll have to talk to me later though about your membership card, so meet with me after the meeting, okay?"

"U-um, y-yes," The mystery girl stuttered.

"Good," Cleo stated with a snap of her fingers. However, when nothing happened, Cleo snapped her fingers again…

… Still nothing…

"Asche!" Cleo shouted turning to the side to see that Asche was knocked out thanks to Cleo's punch. "… Oh, that's just perfect, now I've got to do this myself."

Walking to the side, Cleo pulled down one of the many cords that were around her, allowing a large poster to unfurl with several pictures of academy male students, each with a number on them. At the number one spot was a shadowed figure with three other pictures under them. "Onto further matters, I have scheduled a meeting with Principal Wright for ideas for this year's Duel Academia Festival. Which, will include a Mr. and Miss Duel Academia Contest, where the students will get to vote for who is the best of the best among the male and female population. There's also the proposition that the two who win will have winner's dance and dinner…"

Whispers shot through the room, some talking about the ideas of them getting hooked up with the hottest boy in school… whomever that maybe. Clearing her throat, Cleo silenced all of the whispers, "Now, now, I know that is a big deal, but its not finalized. We still need to get several signatures for Mr. Wright to actually approve of the idea. At least we have Professor Maria's support on this matter…"

'Even though I had to promise a few things in order to get her to agree with it…' Cleo added in the back of her head. "So, after the meeting is over, and if he's awake, Asche will hand out the clipboards to everyone who is willing to gather signatures…"

"Ugh…" Asche groaned loudly while rubbing his poor red nose, having finally woken up. "… Ya didn't have to hit me, ya know…"

Cleo just ignored Asche, "But then that leaves a problem. The contests will be open to anyone who signs up, so that lowers the chances of me… er, I mean, anyone of us getting chosen as Miss Duel Academia…"

Every girl in the room sweatdropped at Cleo's mistake, while Asche slapped his face, '… Smooth… ya know…'

"However, as an added bonus, thanks to Professor Maria's proposal," Cleo stated with a large smile on her face. "Anyone who has his or her named signed up, cannot back down from the competition. And as representatives, we will select the top five hotties of this school and sign the boys up the day of the opening. With our combined knowledge and votes, we know that they cannot be denied the top six contestants."

With a snap of her fingers, Asche pulled another cord near Miss Cleo, allowing a large banner with ten male faces on it to fall behind her. Most notable of the faces was the fact that Leo Childsman, Ganryu Dashiben, Tony Havoc and Riko Kamika were listed among the ten. "These are the top ten that we have listed in the past, so, for your mission tonight is to decide on which two of these you would like. We will decide on which ones were number one and number two on your list and decide which five we will sign up as selected members of the Admirer's Club."

"Yes madam president!" Almost the entire club members announced into the air.

Asche poked his fingers together, tears slowly rolling down the side of his face, '… I can't help but notice I'm not up on there…'

While that was going on, the newest member's eyes were drawn on a single picture on the board, 'W-Wow… L-Lord R-Riko, he's become so handsome…'

0-0-0-0-0-0

"ACHOOO!"

"Brother? Are you alright?" Sen asked, turning back to Riko who was rubbing his nose slightly.

"Oh… you needn't worry about me, Sen," Riko sighed adjusting his sunglasses back over his eyes. "I'm perfectly fine."

Sen narrowed his eyes at his brother, ever since the Rush to the Treasure tournament, there was something odd with his brother. It was if something was taken from him again, in fact the only time Sen remembered when Riko acted like this was when…

'… When Riko lost his sight…' Sen shuddered remembering when his brother was caught up in all of that.

"Sen…"

Snapping out of his funk, Sen turned to his brother, "Yeah?"

Riko stood up from the couch, and slowly began to head to the door, his hands reaching for the doorknob. "… I'll be heading out for a while… I should be back before dark."

"Riko!" Sen shouted, only to have the door slammed in front of him. "… Riko…"

Stomping through the halls of the Obelisk Blue dorm, Riko continued his trek through the building, '… Why? Why did it go away?'

Unfortunately for Riko, he was one of the few students who did remember what had happened with the realm of twilight… after all, how could he forget? It was the last memory of sight that he could remember, and all he had in his mind was a ridiculous hair cut, and the image of his Chaotix Tai Gars.

And yet…

… He couldn't have been happier…

Stopping in the hall, Riko slammed his fist into the nearby wall, the slam echoing through the air, "Why!? Why did that have to be the last picture in my mind? I wanted to experience more… am I being too selfish?"

0-0-0-0-0-0

Meanwhile, on a less dramatic part of the island…

"So, I see you're up and about," Leo chuckled taking a seat next to the Rena on the bench near the school's main building.

"Heh, well, I always seem to be a fast healer," Rena giggled rubbing the back of her head with a slight blush. "Although, you didn't have to visit me and walk me back…"

"Well, maybe," Leo chuckled with that smile appearing back to his face. "But still, I am a friend…"

While the two friends were talking, a familiar orange haired young man watched the whole scene through a pair of binoculars, "Grr! Damn it! I don't like dis at all!"

"Heh, well, you're at fault here too ya know," Klein chuckled leaning up against one of the trees in the forest he, Tony and Koji were hiding in. "If you actually were straight-forward…"

"Um… Brother," Koji mumbled pushing up his thick glasses. "Why exactly are we here?"

"Cause we're being paid to spy on the girlie," Klein chuckled wagging a finger.

"… But isn't that an invasion of privacy?" Koji asked with a sweatdrop rolling down the side of his head.

"Actually, the two are in public," Tony answered, not taking his eyes away from the binoculars. "So, it's not really a violation of privacy… more like stalking really…"

"And you think that's any better?!" Koji shouted out with tears streaming down his face.

"Hey, at least this guy's paying us," Klein replied with a large smirk. "Besides, this beats cleaning tables at that café."

"W-Well you're right about that…" Koji slumped down slightly, his hair falling down in front of his glasses.

"Quiet you two!" Tony hushed holding up a small sound detector towards Rena and Leo. "I paid for this equipment, and I'll be damned if I can't use it since you two are being loudmouths!"

Back with Rena and Leo…

"I'm just so glad all that craziness is done with," Rena sighed with relief, her arms stretching over her head. "With all that Dias and Twilight stuff, it'll be good just to enjoy a quiet high school life. Well, at the very least, my dad and Kyo managed to get off the island."

"… Hmm… how curious," Leo muttered to himself as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Huh? What's curious?" Rena questioned with a few blinks.

"Were you adamant on a high school life?" Leo asked with a courteous smile on his face.

"Well, kinda," Rena chuckled with a blush appearing on her face. "I mean, with the friends, the events and well…" The blush on her face grew, "W-Well…"

"I see," Leo chuckled, making Rena's blush grow slightly. "Heh…"

"You don't have to laugh at me," Rena moaned with her head lowered.

"No, no, no," Leo replied sheepishly with his arms up slightly in a defensive stance. "I didn't mean it in that way, I meant it as a way to you really are just a normal girl…"

"… Yeah, that just makes it so much better," Rena muttered with a dull look on her face.

"N-Now wait a minute," Leo chuckled with a worried smile on his face with a large sweatdrop rolling down the side of his head. "W-What I meant to say was… was… was…"

"What was it then?" Rena asked raising an eyebrow.

"Uh… Riko?" Leo stated with a question mark appearing over her head.

"… Riko? I'm a Riko?" Rena muttered blinking in confusion.

"No, it's Riko," Leo replied pointing towards the side, revealing that indeed the second best duelist in the school was walking past the two on the sidewalk in front of them. However, he just walked past the two of them, his hands stuffed in his pockets and his sweater pulled up to mouth.

And then, Riko just walked past the two, not even acknowledging their existence.

"… something's wrong," Leo stated standing up from his seat.

"… You're just saying that to step out of my questions," Rena said bluntly getting a large sweatdrop to roll down the side of Leo's head. "But… You are right, something does seem wrong, I've never seen Riko look that serious before…"

"Hey! They're following Riko now!" Tony announced quickly flipping the binoculars over his shoulder, falling directly into Klein's head.

"ACK!" Klein shouted with a large bump appearing on his head where the binoculars landed.

"B-Brother! Are you okay?" Koji asked, running to his brother's side.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing?!" Klein roared running up to Tony, who seemed to be starring out to where the bench was. "Why the heck are you throwing a good pair of binoculars at me? And what the heck are you looking at… who the heck is that?"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The wind whipped around his body as Riko stood at the cliff, listening to the waves that crashed up against the cliff's rocky surface. And that's all he had to do… that's all Riko could do now, allow the salty air to flow through his locks of hair, have the waves grace his ears, and taste crisp air on his tongue…

… That's all…

How much did Riko long to see the sun over the vast sea?

'Would I even get that chance to see again?' Riko's mind replayed that thought in his head again and again.

Meanwhile, in the nearby bushes…

"Psst! Leo… Why is Riko just standing there?" Rena asked popping her head up from the bush.

Leo just watched Riko, a small bead of sweat rolling down his forehead, '… Could he actually be… No, no, that couldn't be, but, this looks all too familiar… Dang it, Leo, no, you've been watching too many movies…'

"Leo?" Rena whispered tilting her head to the side.

"Shush," Leo replied, lifting his finger up towards Rena.

'Yeesh…' Rena thought rolling her eyes.

Meanwhile, behind one of the nearby trees…

'Oh… Lord Riko…'

Back at the cliff…

"… Even now," Riko muttered to himself holding his sunglasses between his fingers. "Why do I regret this any more?"

The wind whipped to the other side, his hair and clothing blew slightly towards the cliff, "… That's right…" As he pulled his sunglasses off of his face, and opened his eyes, showing that his irises were no longer there. "… Its only human nature… when we get a taste of what we want, we want more."

"Desire… could this world become crueler?"

Turning away from the cliff, Riko raised his arms up slightly, "Although there is only one way to cease this cruelty…"

'N-No way… is he actually going to…' Leo's eyes shot wide open.

Rena already knew this scene, "Riko!"

"Lord Riko!"

"H-Huh?!" Riko shouted out before stumbling backwards slightly, his footing slowly slipping over the side of the cliff. "Wha!?!"

Time seemed to slow down as Riko's body began to fall from the cliff's edge, his sunglasses floating away from his hand's grasp. '… Huh… I didn't imagine this to be my end… I wanted to go down fighting…'

"RIKO!"

"LORD RIKO!"

Then, all of a sudden, Riko's plummet to the sea below stopped, if he could see Riko would've seen that Rena and another girl had grabbed his ankles, trying to pull him back up.

However, the two girls were slowly slipping from the cliff's top, "Uh… this isn't good!"

"Luckily, you have me here," Leo chuckled reaching over the cliff, and with his added strength, he along with the two girls managed to pull Riko back over the edge of the cliff.

'… well, I guess I'm safe for today,' Riko thought with a large sweatdrop rolling down the side of the field. 'Even though they were the cause of my fall…'

A few minutes later at the cliff edge, all four of the students were sitting a good deal away from the rocky edge.

"My, my, Riko," Leo mused standing up with the back of his hand to his chin. "I didn't think you up to such terrible acts…"

"…" Riko would've rolled his eyes if he didn't close his eyelids. "I was only standing there…"

"And your fall backwards?" Rena asked with a raised eyebrow.

"She's right Lord Riko!" The other girl stated surprising everyone around her.

Rena and Leo just blinked at the girl, noticing that she was wearing a Ra Yellow girl uniform with a longer skirt that reached her knees. The girl looked to be about Rena's age, but had longer dark hair that seemed to have a purple sheen to her hair, majority of it falling over her large glasses and onto her shoulders.

"Uh, excuse me for asking," Leo stated rubbing the back of his head. "But… Who are you?"

"Huh?" The glasses wearing girl questioned with her head tilted to the side.

"… Indeed, you really don't ring much of a bell," Riko admitted, making the girl well up in tears.

"OH! You're so hurtful, Lord Riko!" The girl cried with tears spilling from her eyes.

Rena couldn't help but sweatdrop, 'This girl reminds me of Cleo… for some reason or another…'

"I'm… I'm sorry," Riko gulped with a small bead of sweat rolling down his forehead. "Um… who exactly are you, if you don't mind…"

"N-No, Lord Riko!" The girl replied shaking her head wildly. "But um… c-can we talk about this somewhere else?"

0-0-0-0-0-0

Meanwhile, on another part of the island, more specifically, a Ra Yellow Dorm Room…

"Well… Here we all are again," Xander moaned slamming his head face down into the table, making all of the drinks on the table jump slightly into the air.

"Aw, you make this sound like a bad thing," The Artist Formally Known as Morty chuckled catching his drink in mid-air. "Only difference is… we're missing a member, and we've got a few more members with us time…"

"… You two have been through this before?" Bravo asked blinking a few times as he looked at his root beer. "This feels like crap…"

"Tell me about it…" Xander moaned before chugging down one of the many drinks. "Why do we always get caught up in this kind of crap?! WHY!?"

"… You're starting to sound like a pathetic drunk…"

"Huh?" All three of the young men turned towards the door, seeing a familiar dark haired man leaning up against the door.

"Well, well, well," Morty chuckled lifting up glass of milk towards the leaning man. "It's a pleasure to see you again Mr. Vanhemer… Would you care to join us?"

Indeed, it was the currently masked, former Dark Prince, his arms crossed over his chest. "Hmm… as temping as that is, I didn't come here to celebrate failure."

"Failure? Oh no, my friend," Morty chuckled before downing the milk in one shot.

"Yeah, we've managed to avoid getting caught," Bravo announced spilling some of his drink on the ground. "Sure there are others out there who managed to get away… but we're not only still here, but we've managed to trick everyone."

"… Everyone?" Vic cackled slowly walking into the room with his arms rose up slightly. "Oh, no, no, no, no… I managed to find all three of you… rather easily if I might add."

"So, what does that mean?" Xander grumbled with his face slamming into the table again. "I mean, we were comrades…"

BAM!

Vic slammed his hand into the table, making all three of the former Yokai soldiers jump up, "Don't compare me to you losers!"

Morty, Bravo and Xander looked at each other before they looked towards Vic, "Unlike you all, I have yet to lose ever since I came to this island. With the power of the Haunted Kaiser at my disposal, my ever-increasing strength, and with Beck and whoever was above him gone, I've got control of this island for the most part…"

"Control?" Bravo chuckled. "You're sounding like one of those bruisers in my deck fighting over territory."

Then, with a quick grasp, Vic snatched hold of Bravo's neck, and slowly began to lift the larger duelist from his seat, "Oh… I suppose you could say something like that… only, this is much more serious than some street rivalry. I've had a taste of power… and I deserve the full course meal of that power!"

"ACK! C-CAN'T BREATHE!" Bravo wheezed struggling to get free from Vic's grasp.

"… and you three," Vic snickered holding Bravo higher and higher into the air, as he turned his gaze over to a surprised Morty and Xander. "… oh, you're going to help me obtain that oh so tempting meal… Right?"

"P-Please! L-L-Let m-m-me go!" Bravo sputtered trying to pull Vic's hand away from his throat.

Xander and Morty looked to each other, beads of sweat rolling down the side of their heads. "T-This…"

"I'd answer me quickly," Vic cackled, his venomous eyes turning towards a blue faced Bravo. "Looks like he won't last too much longer…"

"And you're okay with spilling a man's blood?!" Xander shouted standing up from his seat.

"… Okay? Oh, I'm more than willing to step on the lives of anyone to get what I want," Vic snarled with his eyes glowing more venomous than beforehand. "… The question is… are you going to be okay with me killing someone?"

"Uh…" Morty and Xander lowered their heads at the same time and spoke at the same time as well, "… Fine… We'll join…"

"Good…" Vic cackled before releasing his surprisingly strong grip on Bravo's neck, the large duelist falling to the ground.

Bravo screeched out to catch his breath…

"… I'll assume that you won't have any objections joining me," Vic mused, his venomous eyes trailing towards Bravo. "… Right?"

"Um, y-yeah…" Bravo sputtered, grabbing his throat to rub the area where it was almost crushed by the surprising grip of Vic.

"Excellent, already my army has doubled in size," Vic chuckled rubbing his masked chin.

"… You got some other people to join you?" Morty asked with his eyebrow rose up slightly.

"Yes… well, I wouldn't think that it would come to using them," Vic sighed with a large sweatdrop rolling down the side of his head. "But, beggars cannot be choosers…"

"Then why the hell did you drag us here, sir?"

"Gee, we keep getting the best employers… at least last time we got paid. Now we're being threatened."

"What the?" Bravo questioned looking at the two young men who stood at the doorway. "It's… It's…"

0-0-0-0-0-0

At the Ra Yellow Cafeteria…

"Hmm… you know," Leo mused looking around the fancy yellow room, other Ra Yellow students turning their gaze away from the weird group of two blue students, a yellow student and a red student all seated together in the cafeteria. "Now that I think about it, we don't really know a lot of people from the Ra Yellow dormitory…"

"… Well, it's always a good idea to meet with your peers," Riko stated lifting up his carrot juice. "So… Now that we're here, would you mind telling me who you are young miss?"

"O-Oh! Y-Yes, Lord Riko!" The Ra Yellow girl stuttered with a large blush appearing behind her glasses. "I… I am Y-Yukino Armada… I – I'm a transfer student from the mainland academy, I came only recently though."

"Oh, well welcome to our crazy academy," Rena greeted with a sheepish smile on her face.

"Thanks," Yukino replied rather quickly to Rena with a glare gleaming off of her glasses to cover her eyes.

'… What was that?' Rena thought with a bead of sweat rolling down the back of her head.

"So, Miss Armada," Riko coughed out as he placed his glass on the table in front of Yukino. "I would assume that you know me somehow… So, if you would be so kind as to tell me how, I would appreciate it."

"Ah, y-yes Lord Riko," Yukino replied immediately with a large blush appearing on her face.

"And if you don't mind," Leo chuckled with a bright smile on his face. "Could you explain why you call him, 'Lord Riko'?"

"Oh! Y-Yes," Yukino replied sweetly this time. "Well… Well… You see, I don't know if you remember me Lord Riko, but last year, for the festival, you came to the Mainland Academy as a special guest."

"… I remember going there by boat," Riko admitted, after all, he couldn't forget the sea sickness that he got on the ship rides to and from the Midland Academy. "Although you'll have to forgive me that I don't really remember the festival then…"

"Ah, a Duel Academy festival," Leo mused with a large smile on his face.

"Do you know what happens at one of those, Leo?" Rena asked raising an eyebrow.

"… Not really," Leo replied with a calm smile on his face.

"Stop doing that!" Rena shouted making Leo rub his ear slightly.

"The Annual Duel Academy Festival," Riko explained with his arms crossed over his chest. "It is actually an annual tradition that's been around since the original academy was established. It was made to remind us of the roots of the academy, and as a little spice, the festival changes location every year, and last year was indeed the Midland Academy's turn."

"As a little added bonus, the top three students, one from each dorm are invited to partake, they are also allowed a guest with them. Last year, I was a guest with Luntina as well as my brother Sen."

"And it was because of that…" Hearts appeared around Yukino's body as she clasped her hands together. "That was when I met you Lord Riko, on the night of the fireworks!"

"… Fireworks…" Riko mumbled under his breath.

"But, you're roughly the same age as me," Rena pointed out, noticing that at the same time all of the hearts shattered in two. "How could you be at the academy last year?"

"I have an older sister who was in her last year at the academy," Yukino answered immediately and coldly to Rena. "And she invited me to the academy to see what it was like."

'… I get the feeling she doesn't like me for some reason,' Rena thought with a large bead of sweat rolling down the side of her head.

That's when Riko stood up from his seat, surprising the three duelists, "I apologize and I thank you for earlier…"

'Even if you were the cause of my fall…'

With a cough, Riko spun around and slowly began to walk away, "But I have a paper due in the following week, so I'll have to leave you all…"

"L-Lord Riko, um, c-can I see you again?" Yukino asked with a large blush crawling back on her face. "I-I-I mean if…"

Stopping in his tracks, Riko slowly turned his head back with a small smile, "… Feel free to look me up."

"Aah!" Yukino sighed before she smiled greatly at Riko walking out of the cafeteria.

"So, what happened last year with you and Riko?" Rena asked, she was a little curious about this sort of thing.

However, instead of getting a response, Rena blinked at the terrible glare that Yukino was firing at her. "… What's your connection with Lord Riko?"

"Wow, she certainly did a one-eighty flip," Leo chuckled lifting his teacup to his mouth.

"You're not helping here Leo," Rena hissed with her eyes turning to the noble duelist.

"Oh, I rarely do help out," Leo chuckled again.

"Answer the question," Yukino growled, her glasses glaring again. "… Or, do not want to answer?"

"Uh, l-look," Rena stuttered with her hands raised up in a defensive manner. "I, I barely know Riko… although, he is a good friend and a decent guy, I just…"

"You're lying," Yukino replied bluntly with her eyes narrowed behind her glasses.

'… Great, she's not even listening…' Rena thought before she rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm not going to be any clearer, that's all it is…"

"You're still lying," Yukino growled, fire appearing in her eyes.

"Leo… A little help would be…" Rena started…

… Only to realize that Leo was no longer in his seat! Heck, he wasn't even in the room any more! 'LEO!'

"Now you're just stalling," Yukino sighed, standing up from her seat with her arms crossed. "Tell me… and tell me now, what is your connection with Lord Riko?"

"Um… W-Well," Rena chuckled nervously as she slowly stepped back from the table, slowly inching her way to the doors.

"You're not going anywhere!" Yukino shouted before she gave chase after Rena.

"Why can't I have a normal high school life?!" Rena asked to herself as she ran from the cafeteria with Yukino chasing her.

When the two girls exited the Yellow Dorm's Cafeteria, they failed to see the three before… Tony, Klein and Koji. However, Koji seemed to be the only one concerned, "Um, shouldn't we stop them?"

"You idiot, you don't seem to understand what could happen!" Klein snickered with his arms crossed over his chest. "With this scene, we stand to actually witness one of the greatest events men of our caliber can view… the long awaited cat…"

WHAM!

With a powerful punch, Tony sent Klein flying into the air, spinning wildly about, "Don't ya dare try to pull that sort of thing with my lovely Rena!"

"I think you went a little overboard with that punch," Koji sighed before walking away. "Now if you excuse me, I'm going to go fish my brother out of whatever he falls into."

"Hard to believe that the younger brother would be more responsible," Tony mused looking up into the blue sky above. 'Then again… I wouldn't really know, Risely… Are you even alive out there?'

0-0-0-0-0-0

A good half hour later near the entrance of the school…

"Dang it! Where'd she go?" Yukino asked, turning left and right in front of the large statue that was in the middle of the concrete walkway. It was only a few minutes ago until Yukino had lost track of where Rena was.

Unknown to Yukino, Rena was on the other side of the statue, trying to desperately catch her breath after all of that running with the crazy girl chasing after her. 'I… I really need to exercise more…'

"I'll find you…" Yukino cackled with a dark look on her face. "And then I'll know what your connection to Lord Riko is…"

'J-Just be calm…' Rena thought to herself, making sure that she wasn't going to be seen easily. 'As long as I don't draw attention to myself…'

"Ah! There you are Rena," Leo stated standing in front Rena, appearing out of no where once more.

"WHAT THE?!" Rena screamed as she jumped slightly into the air.

"There you are!" Yukino shouted running around the statue to glare at Rena. "Now, you're going to…"

"Dang it, Leo!" Rena snarled at the noble duelist who had his arms behind his back.

"Ah, ladies," Leo coughed out, getting the two female students' attentions. "I don't know if I can really say anything in this, but if you two have affection for Riko…"

"I don't have affection to Riko!" Rena shouted throwing her arms to her waist.

But, Leo didn't seem to listen, "… So, may I per chance suggest that you settle this like duelists that you are…" That's when Leo produced two new duel disks, one with a red border and the other with a yellow border. "And settle this in a duel?"

"A duel?" Rena and Yukino both questioned at the same time.

"Why not?" Leo asked with a bright smile on his face. "A simple game can make things oh so much easier."

"… I'm game," Yukino stated pulling the yellow duel disk from Leo's hands. "And if I win, you'll have to answer truthfully about what's going on between you and Lord Riko!"

"And I keep telling you that there isn't anything going on between me and Riko!" Rena shouted snapping the red duel disk from Leo's hands.

"Actually the proper grammar is, 'Riko and I'," Leo stated as Rena and Yukino walked away from each other until they were thirty feet away from each other.

"… You're still not helping Leo!" Rena hissed slightly as she shuffled her deck furiously and then snapped it into her duel disk. (RLP: 8000)

"Enough of this!" Yukino replied holding up her already drawn five card hand. "I hope you're ready for what I can do!" (YLP: 8000)

"Duel!"

"… You're more than welcome to start," Yukino stated with her arms crossed.

'Well… at least this will be a normal duel,' Rena thought as she pulled her six card into her hand. 'As normal as this place gets normal.'

0-0-0-0-0-0

While the duel was just about to start up outside, inside the main building a meeting not just between Principal Wright and the teachers… But with several television screens that were set up on the other end of the table.

"So, Mr. Atlantic…"

"Aw, come on," Alan chuckled with a large sweatdrop rolling down the side of his head. "Do we really need to use our meeting names Daigo?"

"It's Mr. Pacific to you, Mr. Atlantic." Mr. Pacific growled from the television screen.

'This is why I hate meetings,' Kryancelo thought to himself, leaning up against the nearby wall.

"Fine," Alan sighed lowering his head down. "But still, we are all in agreement that this year that the school wide festival is going to held here… Right, Mr. Pacific, Mr. Arctic, Miss Southern, Ms. Edo, and Colonel Central?"

"Heh… you certainly know how to humor a guy," Colonel Central chuckled from the next screen. "And you can count on the Russian Academy to provide entertainment this year with the troupe… only if Mr. Pacific actually decides to participate this year."

A small laughter erupted from the TV that was labeled Southern, "Indeed, Mr. Pacific, you do tend to flake on us…"

"Hey, hey, hey, I didn't mean to offend anyone," Mr. Pacific muttered with his arms raised up in a defensive stance. "But don't worry… I won't be able to promise much, but I did manage to pull a few strings and get the first and second best duelists from my academy. We've had a few problems, so I had to do a few things in order for them go."

"… You seem to be in good spirits though," Ms. Edo commented making the older gentleman on the Pacific TV sweatdrop.

"Aw… now you're just teasing him," Miss Southern giggled. "But now onto other business… Mr. Atlantic, I do suppose that you at least have some entertainment for our students to enjoy, correct?'

"Well, actually, thanks to Professor Maria," Alan stated gesturing towards the blushing Red Professor. "We have a few events that'll be fun… in addition to the regular events that we usually have at these sort of things."

"Sweet… Too bad I can't attend," Colonel Central sighed. "But we know that my reps will fill me in on everything… so you'll better not screw this up, Mr. Atlantic."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Alan sighed slamming his head into the table with a loud boom. "But as for all of you, I hope that you already sent your duelists…"

"Of course," All of the other principals answered all at once making Alan jump up from his seat. "They should be there by the end of the week."

"… Great…" Alan moaned slamming his head into the table again. 'We haven't even gotten started on the preparations yet…'

0-0-0-0-0-0

"Alright, I'll start off by setting a monster in defense mode!" Rena announced as the face down monster appeared in front of her. "And I'll set a card face down as well… Turn end."

"… Is that all you've got?" Yukino asked pulling her next card up to her eyes.

"Huh?" Rena questioned blinking a few times. "It's only the first turn…"

"Heh, and you don't know how powerful love can be!" Yukino announced fitting one card into her duel disk. "And I'll start with the continuous spell card, Jet-Black Whirlwind!"

Yukino's spell card appeared, showing a large black whirlwind with countless feathers spilling out of it. "This card is very powerful, but it's effect won't be any worry of yours till later…"

Spinning another card from her hand, Yukino slapped it onto her duel disk, "But not for too long! Since you have a monster out and I don't, I can normal summon… Black Feather – Sirocco of Dawn!"

Hundreds upon hundreds of black feathers fell to the ground, allowing a sleek black feathered crow like man with thin arms and large wings on his back (2000/900).

"B-Black Feather?" Rena muttered as the Jet-Black Whirlwind glowed brightly.

"You'll see how these cards will work," Yukino stated as a card popped out from her duel disk. "Take for example my Jet-Black Whirlwind. When I successfully normal summon a Black Feather monster, I can add another Black Feather monster from my deck to my hand…"

"Well, too bad you can't summon it," Rena stated looking down at her duel disk. 'And since my face down monster is a classic, your monster won't be able to get to me this turn…'

"Oh… You think so?" Yukino stated holding up two of her cards from her remaining four card hand. "Well too bad… You see, since I have a face up Black Feather monster on my field, I can activate the effect of other monsters in my hand…"

'… What are you up to?' Leo thought with an arched eyebrow.

"First, I special summon Black Feather – Blast of Black Lance!" Yukino announced as another flurry of black feathers began to spin over the field.

The feathers scattered, revealing another crow like humanoid to float over the field, while most of its body was covered in dark feathers, its crest and head feathers a bright orange and yellow. In its clawed hands, the Black Feather monster clutched onto a large spiral black lance (1700/800). "And the coup de gra, is Black Feather – Gale of the Hurricane!"

As with the previous two Black Feather monsters, a twister of black feathers rolled over the field, until it shattered to form into a smaller crow-humanoid with green head feathers and a white crest (1300/400).

All three of the Black Feather monsters screeched loudly into the air, making everyone around cover his or her ears, including Yukino… but surprisingly not Leo. His eyes were glued to the duel and the three weird monsters.

"Ow…" Rena moaned rubbing her ears. 'This isn't good… now she can just plow right through my monster and to my life points… at least I have my face down card…'

"Now then… what should I do?" Yukino stated looking down at her two remaining cards. "Oh wait… I'll go on the attack! Blast of the Black Lance! Start us off!"

With a loud screech, the Black Feather monster flew forward, spinning the lance around in his clawed hands at the face down monster. The card flipped up, revealing a surprised Obnoxious Celtic Guard (1400/1200), lifting his sword up in a defensive manner, the warrior was surprised to see that spear just stabbed right through the elf's armor. And with a pain filled cry, the Celtic Guard shattered into millions of pixels. (RLP: 7500)

"W-What the?!" Rena shouted looking at her duel disk. "Why did my life points go down?"

"Heh… Blast has the ability of trample," Yukino explained holding her hand up making the Sirocco of Dawn screech loudly. "But now… You've got bigger things to deal with! Mainly Sirocco's direct attack!"

Sirocco charged forward, spinning around with its black feathers falling to ground as it came closer and closer to Rena.

"I activate my trap card, Elf Tears!" Rena announced as her face down card flipped up, revealing a young elf girl crying. "When an Elf or Celtic monster is destroyed in battle, I can special summon that monster back to the field with half of its original stats! So that means my Obnoxious Celtic Guard returns!"

The trap card shattered into millions of shards, allowing a battle damaged Obnoxious Celtic Guard to leap in front of Rena (700/600), taking the diving Sirocco to his chest. However, the guard just roared, sending the crow humanoid backwards, "And since his effect is still in effect, Sirocco is too powerful to take down my elf!"

As Sirocco skidded backwards, Yukino growled, "Maybe… But Hurricane is more than a match for him!"

Indeed, the smallest of the three Black Feathers crashed right through the Obnoxious Celtic Guard, shattering the young warrior into pixels again. "And to end my turn, I'll set one card face down."

"… Is it too late to say that nothing happened between me and Riko?" Rena chuckled nervously with a sweat drop rolling down her head.

"Don't try to lie to me," Yukino scoffed to the side with a glare at Rena.

'I'll take that as a yes,' Rena thought before she drew her next card. "This will work then! I summon Elf Swordsman!"

A bright light erupted onto the field, allowing the goofy looking elf swordsman to appear on the field, his face covered with a large grin on his face (1400/1600). "And when he's summoned, I can special summon one Sol Saber from my hand!"

And indeed the powerful sun sword did appear in front of the Elf Swordsman, allowing the young elf to draw the glowing blade into his hands (1400/1600 + 1000/1000). "And now… Attack Sirocco!"

Spinning the blade in his hands, the Elf Swordsman charged forward with the blade skidding on the ground behind him, sparks flying in the air before the elf warrior spun around to bring the glowing blade down on the Black Feather monster…

"I activate my trap card!" Yukino shouted as the face down card transformed into a large junky scarecrow, blocking the sword in mid-air. "Scrap-Iron Scarecrow negates one attack… and then sets itself again to block it later!"

'What the?! Does everyone play that card now-a-days?' Rena thought looking at the last three cards in her hand. "I'll set two cards face down… and that's what I've got…"

"Heh… This will just make it much more fun," Yukino announced pulling her next card into her hand. "You see, since I have face up Black Feather monster… well three in this case, I can normal summon Black Feather – Elfen of the Pitch-Black without tribute!"

Hundreds upon hundreds of black feathers rained down from the sky, allowing a large humanoid crow to dive bomb onto the field, looking more crow than humanoid with dark purple armor on its torso (2200/1200). And with this newest Black Feather monster on the field, all four of the crow monsters screeched loudly into the air.

"… Whoa…" Rena muttered at the large monster, as the Elf Swordsman held his Sol Saber towards the winged beasts and as another card popped out of Yukino's deck, thanks to the Jet-Black Whirlwind.

"Oh, you need not worry Rena," Leo mused with his arms raised. "None of her monsters hold the ability to defeat your swordsman… and besides, you still have a few other tricks, like your two face down cards."

"R-Right," Rena muttered looking at her duel disk.

"You think so?" Yukino stated holding up the second to last card in her hand. "Too bad I have this card, I activate the trap card, Delta Crow – Anti Reverse!"

Yukino's newest trap card emerged onto the field, showing the first three Black Feather monsters unleashing a powerful burst of energy that crashed into the ground.

"Wait a minute! You can't activate a trap card from your hand!" Rena shouted throwing her hand up. "That's one of the most…"

"Rules were meant to be broken," Yukino replied as she threw her nearly emptied hand towards her trap card's hologram. "You see, if I have three Black Feather monsters on my field, I can activate this trap card from my hand. And when I activate it, all face down spell and trap cards on your field are no more!"

"What?!" Rena shouted as a powerful windstorm swept up her two face down cards, instantly destroying the cards that she had set.

"And what that guy said about you not worrying about your monster being destroyed," Yukino stated with her arms crossed over her chest as she pushed up her glasses. "He's more than wrong… Cause I'm guessing he's never seen these Black Feather monsters before, uh…"

Leo only smiled, "… Leo Childsman, at your service."

"Right," Yukino coughed with a small blush creeping on her face. "A-Anyway, almost all of my Black Feather monsters have effects that can be used at any time… Take for example Gale of the Hurricane. Once per turn, this monster can halve the attack and defense of one monster on the field! And I think I'll choose your Elf Swordsman!"

"Huh?" Rena questioned, still reeling from the fact that both of her face down cards were destroyed. Now as the smallest Black Feather monster flapped its wings, a powerful burst of wind crashed into the surprised Elf Swordsman, making the warrior take a knee to the ground (2400/2600 – 1200/0 – 0/1300) with his arms bruised greatly. "N-No!"

"And to make things more interesting," Yukino stated throwing her hand towards Sirocco, causing the Black Feather monster screech out loudly. "I'll show you another effect! Sirocco has the ability to pool all attack points of Black Feather monsters into one Black Feather… so, I'll have the effect go to Blast!"

Screeching loudly into the air, all three of the other Black Feather monsters flew behind the Blast of Black Lance, culminating all of their strength (1700 + 1300 + 2000 + 2200 = 7200).

"W-Whoa…" Rena muttered with her eyes widening greatly.

"Do not worry Rena," Leo stated crossing his arms. "Even though the damage will be great, you will survive with fifteen hundred points…"

"Actually… It'll be less than that!" Yukino announced as all four of her Black Feather monsters flew towards the surprised Elf Swordsman. "You see, when my monster's battle, I can activate the effect of a monster card in my hand, Black Feather – Qal'at of the Moonlight, when a Black Feather monster battles! By discarding it, my monster gains fourteen hundred more attack points!"

"WHAT?!" Rena shouted before all four of the Black Feather monsters drilled through not only the Sol Saber, but through the Elf Swordsman and then directly through Rena's body. As the Black Feather monsters passed through her body, Rena fell to her knees, grabbing her abdomen. "URK!" (RLP: 100)

Leo on the other hand, his eyes widened at the four Black Feather monsters flying back to Yukino's field, and even though he had a smile on his face, a small bead of sweat rolled down the side of his head, 'Per-Perhaps I shouldn't have suggest this duel… Rena's deck wasn't designed for such a powerful rush strategy…'

"T-Thanks to…" Rena sputtered out reaching for her deck, thanks to the effect of Sol Saber, not only was she allowed to draw two new cards, but her Elf Swordsman survived the hit.

"Hmm? What in the world is going on here?!?"

Everyone froze, and slowly all three of the duelists turned their head towards the entrance to see a really annoyed Kryancelo standing with a powerful deadly aura around his body. "… I really, really didn't need to see this after that stupid meeting with those nicknames!"

"Crap!" A random yellow student shouted. "Professor Kryancelo's in a bad mood!"

"RUN!"

"Uh…" Rena chuckled as every student in the area ran off from the entrance way, even Leo managed to disappear when Rena wasn't looking. "D-Do you mind if we cut this duel short?"

Yukino growled, but then switched off her duel disk to make all four of the Black Feather monsters disappear in a flurry of feathers, "Fine! But mark my words… We'll finish what we started one day… My rival in love!"

"… Rival in love…" Rena sweatdropped before running off away from Kryancelo's rage induced rampage.

"DAMN IT!" Kryancelo shouted before kicking the edge of the statue from earlier. "I HATE THIS STUPID PLACE! AND THE STUPID PEOPLE WHO RUN IT!"

Meanwhile… In the Obelisk Blue Dorm…

"Oh, brother, back from your walk so soon?" Sen asked as Riko closed the door behind him.

"… I suppose so," Riko sighed as he walked towards the large blue couch in the room, immediately taking a seat when he reached it. "… Sen… you've been my eyes for a while correct?"

"Yeah, ever since you asked me to do so," Sen replied jumping onto one of the chairs in the room. "Why?"

"… Tell me," Riko stated with his brow narrowed. "I need… I need you to tell me, what happened last year at the mainland academy…"

0-0-0-0-0-0

In a darkened room, in front of a large darkened screen, a small chibi man walked out in front of the screen with a spotlight shining over him. His flashy gray spiked hair on his head shook up and down as his large white overcoat over his black shirt and velvet jeans. As he bowed down, the young man showed the purple guitar that was on his back. "Hello again everyone! If you've forgotten about me, allow me to introduce myself once again, I'm Ed Wright!"

Pointing his fingers together, Ed's face had a slight blush to his face as he turned his head to the side, his lips pouting slightly as he rubbed the back of his head. "It's been quite a while since I last appeared in any of Vyser Dragoon's work, in fact, the last time was in this story, chapter twenty six I believe…"

"Although, I really didn't want to do another song for this fiction, I don't really have much of a choice here…" Ed muttered to himself before taking a small piece of paper from his pocket, raising his eyebrows slightly. "I don't really have much of a choice here… it was either this or I go back to eating Cup O' Noodles for dinner… unless you all want me in this fiction as an all time character!"

Ed sulked down as he lowered his head as he pointed his fingers. "Y-yeah, I just added that last one in. Please! I'm begging for work here!"

"HEY ED! GET TO WORK! WE'RE NOT PAYING YA TO BEG TO THE VIEWERS! AND THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE!"

"Y-Yes sir!" Ed shouted pulling his guitar from his back and began to strum a few notes as the TV screen began to turn on. "You rock and you duel!"

The television immediately changed to show the sun starting to rise over the Atlantic Duel Academy's horizon as an upstart and fast musical beat erupted from Ed's guitar (Moments that seem like they change both me,) The light flows into a certain Slifer Red duelist's dorm room, making Rena wake up and yawn loudly (And even the world are always right next to me…)

Immediately dressed in her uniform and with her duel disk on her arm, Rena slams the door from her dorm room, seeing the blue sky above (Gazing at the irritation, I can't hide myself as I stand stock still!)

And running out of the room, time seems to slow down as Rena runs through the Red Huts around her, (Despite my hesitation,) seeing Klein and Koji running after her, both of them with duel disks armed (Despite my worries,). Then as they make a turn, Rukia with Kimatori on her shoulders give chase as well (Despite my regrets,).

Meanwhile, resting up against a nearby tree, Van notices the small group and immediately smiles as he jumps to his feet (I should decide!).

As the group runs through the island, they pass the Ra Yellow dorm, where an enraged Yukino spots Rena and begins to give chase after Rena (With one word you've given me, my bewilderment vanishes!) prompting Rena to run faster leaving the other red students to laugh at Rena getting chased by the love obsessed freak.

(Light shone in my once empty room…) A single duel disk falls through the forest's air, allowing Ganryu to catch the device in one hand, making him turn around to glare at who stood behind him in the forest…

(The sky I gazed up at is so blue and serene,) Seeing Vic standing tall with Bravo, the Artist Formally Known as Morty, Xander, with Orange and Maroon standing in the background, Ganryu's eyes narrow even more. However, as all six of the opposing duelists activate their duel disks, (I decided to open up a window that was shut) Rena runs through the group surprising all six, and having Yukino and the rest of the reds charge right through the makeshift group of students, crushing them in the process. (Moments that seem like they can change both me,)

Ganryu couldn't help but sweatdrop and casually walk to catch up with the running group of morons (And even the worlds are always right next to me…)

The scene then shifts to Leo and Tony playing a game of chess outside the Obelisk blue dorm, Leo surprisingly winning against the Chess Duelist (Searching for answers that must being the unfulfillable everyday!)

However, that's when the group of reds and yellow student run past, making Tony's eyes pop with hearts around him, (If I turn around towards the lonesome, gentle voice in the sunlight…). And with Tony now in the chase, Leo only smirked as he saw Ganryu slowly walking behind the group and slowly stood up (You unexpectedly smile in the midst of brilliant sunlight!)

The scene shifts once more, showing Luntina, Alan and Riko standing on the pier welcoming six different shadows that seemed to have a dark greasy haired man standing behind them (I'm about to open up a window that was shut!)

That's when Ed performed a long guitar solo with random clips of the group, showing them on the beach in their swimsuits with Klein taking pictures, to another showing mostly the female cast standing on a large stage, all of them dressed in fancy manners… only to have Klein, Van and De Masque's faces to roll in front of the screen to show that all the girls were blushing due to the fact they were now in swimsuits getting hoots from the men in the crowd.

With Klein getting punched by Luntina, Ed began to sing once more, (An existence that seems like it can change both me,) allowing the screen to show Rena, Yukino and Luntina standing together, their back to each other as they spun around to reveal their duel disks. (And even the world is right in front of my eyes)

That's when a dark haired handsome man and white haired short guy appear around the three girls scaring them, making Luntina punch the dark haired guy in the face while the word "Short" appeared over the white haired guy's head (The sky I gazed up at is so blue and serene).

And with a loud roar, the short white haired guy scared everyone from the screen as he torn down the word 'Short' (I decided to open up a window that was shut…).

As Rena finally stops to catch her breath, she turns around to see everyone who was chasing her, in addition to the sleek black haired man, the short white haired teen (who had daggers glaring from his eyes) and De Masque, was standing behind her with a smile on his or her face. (Right now, I sense here a moment that seems.)

A powerful blast of wind swept through the air, catching Rena's attention, making her turn forward with her eyes widening. (Like it can change me and even the world…)

Standing in front of her was none other than Ganryu, his duel disk armed and ready. And with a nod, Rena activates her duel disk… (Spread both your hands towards the light…) And as the music began to die down, a bright light emerged from the screen…

Strumming the last few notes, Ed narrowed his eyes towards the sky, "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!?"

With a clenched jaw, Ed began to pull his hair, "If who I thought I saw was in that clip, then this makes no sense! WHY IS HE GETTING WORK WHEN I'M CLEARLY THE BIGGER STAR! WHY!?! WHY!?!"

… Boot to the head!

"URK!" Ed yelped as a large black boot collided with his head, knocking him out instantly.

Author's Note: Since Ed's incapacitated, I'll say welcome to the new season everyone! I hope this last season will be the best I can give! That's right! More action! More drama! More of Leo surprising everyone! More fan-service! More everything!

So, I'd like more reviews if you don't mind! In addition, a Brownie point for who ever can guess the name of the song that Ed just made, in addition to which anime it was originally from!

And sorry, but there will be no review this time.