Hey, guys! Wow, you guys sure are supportive of Elize's changes and about the way Bastion was treated in the anime! Yeah, Elize's outburst is just one of her character developments in this story, and she'll continue to improve herself! Just wait and see!
Disclaimer: Mage of Hope doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh series, only the OCs!
Only a few days had passed ever since Bastion joined the Society of Light, and things hasn't worsen nor improved between the current relationship between Elize and her friends, Jaden, Syrus, and Hassleberry. It was a little bit tense inside the Slifer Red Dorm where they all had to live in because of what had happened before.
Elize had been preoccupied during the past few days. She avoided Jaden and the others as best as she could, still angry and upset over the whole Bastion situation. She had always been on a friendly relationship with them before and not once have they found themselves in a serious argument until just recently. It was more of Elize berating them for their behavior towards Bastion more than an argument, and as such, Elize refused to speak to them until she had her conflicted feelings towards them sorted out.
As for her alliance with Aster, all he told her was to avoid dueling the Society of Light members for a while, stating that it was just a big waste of time and energy since they're going to be recruited back forcibly anyways. He said for the time being, they had to wait and see if the Society of Light was planning anything big. If so, they would, instead of immediately springing into action, formulate a plan to take down that plan.
While Elize agreed with Aster's orders, she couldn't help but worry about Bastion. She hasn't heard anything from him ever since he joined the Society of Light and wondered how he was adjusting to the new life there. While she wanted him to return to his senses, she couldn't help but wonder if he truly was happy there, if he got the respect he was oh so denied from?
There was some good news at long last, though. It seems that Sheppard had returned from wherever it was he went and had reclaimed his role as Chancellor of the academy. When he left things in charge of Crowler and Bonaparte, things had turned for a worse, but now that Sheppard was back, perhaps he could help put an end to the Society of Light!
That would have to wait for after the assembly, though.
Making sure that her seat wasn't close to Jaden, Hassleberry, and Syrus, Elize sat down in the auditorium where the assembly was supposed to take place. She glanced around to check to see if Sheppard was in the room yet, but it didn't seem like he was in the auditorium yet. During her search, she accidentally locked eyes onto her...friends.
Though they were excited and pondering about the assembly as well as the return of Sheppard, once they saw each other, all their excitement that had been building up vanished in an instance. Their faces were guilt hidden when they saw her, remembering the last time they talked.
Elize's face contorted from surprise to guilt as well before she turned away. Before, she felt justified yelling at her friends, but even so, she knew that she had hurt their feelings badly. Even if they were in the wrong, she still felt awful for hurting them. The problem was, she was right, but it was so much harder to apologize to them, and if she went up and apologized to them, then they probably wouldn't have learned anything.
Her mind cleared of any clear as she focused her attention onto Sheppard, who entered along with a distressed Crowler and Bonaparte. Sheppard's appearance confirmed the return to his position, much to Elize and many others' happiness.
"First of all, it's good to be back!" announced Sheppard. "Judging by your clothes, we've got a popular new White dorm on our campus that I've been hearing so much about."
"S-Sorry," apologized Crowler and Bonaparte when they were being glared at by Sheppard. After all, they were the ones with top authority while the whole Society of Light business was going on, so naturally, they should know more and should be responsible for such a thing happening.
"Well, despite these changes, I'm still in charge!" Sheppard corrected, deciding that he'll have to talk with the two some other time. "And I have a special gift to offer all of you!"
Murmurs echoed throughout the auditorium as everyone was filled with curiosity and excitement over what it could be.
"A gift? Man, is it good to have Sheppard back, isn't it?" exclaimed Jaden, cheering up.
"Sure is, Jay! He's the best!" agreed Syrus.
"Well, anything's better than Crowler, right?" replied Hassleberry, relieved that a more responsible man was taking charge instead of Crowler and Bonaparte.
"QUIET! Let the poor man speak!" hollered Bonaparte just as Sheppard cleared his throat and was about to gain everyone's attention again.
"Why, thank you, little man! And now, I give you the GX Dueling Tournament!"
With a snap of his fingers, the large screen behind Sheppard lit up, revealing a symbol that represented the GX Dueling Tournament that Sheppard had just announced.
"A competition for the next generation of master duelists! It's like nothing you ever experienced before! And it starts right now! Duelists from around the globe will converge here! Students and professionals are all welcomed! And when the dust settles, and only one duelist remains, they'll be known as the world's greatest for this generation!"
Excited cheers coursed throughout the auditorium as students quickly realized this was their chance to not only challenge Pro Duelists, but to rise to the top in an instant if they were to win.
"Alright! I'll beat all the Pros!" declared Jaden.
Syrus crossed his arms, lost in deep thought. 'Pros? Like my brother?'
"The entire island is your field!" explained Sheppard, listing the rules as he presented a medallion to everyone. "To start, you'll each get a Genex Medallion! The rules are simple! You must accept the first due you're challenged to, and you must participate in at least one duel each day! If you win, you get all of your opponent's medals! The final winner will be easy to spot! They'll have all the medallions! During my travels, I've met with some of the world's most talented duelists! They've all been invited, because I truly believe you are as good as they are! Now, get out there and make your Chancellor proud, will ya?"
"Alright! What are we waiting for? I've got a tournament to win!" said Jaden, placing one leg on top of his table and gaining some attention to himself.
"Don't forget last year!" reminded Syrus. "The grand prize was a kiss!"
"Ugh! Think I'll pass!"
While the GX Tournament did excite Elize, she found she cared very little about it as she was more preoccupied with the Society of Light issue. As soon as the assembly ended, Elize hurried to the Chancellor's Office, knowing time was vital and that Sheppard needed to know the situation as soon as possible so that he could deal with it.
Knocking on the door, Elize waited and it didn't take her long to hear her approval to enter. Just as she expected, Sheppard was already sitting at his desk, and his face lit up when he saw her, one of his favorite students in Duel Academy.
"Ah! Elize! How are you? I hope you liked the announcement of the GX Tournament! It's going to be pretty busy for a while!" greeted Sheppard friendly.
If Elize wasn't in such a hurry to have Sheppard hear her out, she normally would have thanked him for the arrangement and announcement of the tournament he worked so hard to put together. Now, she appeared serious and too focused on her goal. "Ah, yes, well there's something really important I have to tell you. Actually, a lot of important things. It'll take a while for me to explain, so please excuse me, but this is REALLY important."
As though sensing her sudden serious demeanor, Sheppard nodded. "Of course. Go right ahead."
"Thank you, Chancellor. The main problem is...with the Society of Light. They're also what you call the white dorm, but the white dorm is made up of the Society of Light members."
"Might I ask just what is the Society of Light?" questioned Sheppard. "I've been meaning to talk to Crowler and his assistant, Bonaparte about it, but..."
"Don't. They'll probably give you some farfetched answer and avoid it altogether," said Elize, displeased. "Probably to hide behind their list of failures."
"Failures? I don't understand."
"Chancellor, what I don't understand is why you put Crowler in charge. Crowler, of all people! I mean, Miss Fontaine or Miss Dorothy or even Professor Satyr would have been better!"
"Well, originally, I would have Professor Banner be the temporary Chancellor, but...well, the poor man's deceased," sighed Sheppard. "Miss Fontaine would be too overwhelmed with too many job positions. She's already the head nurse, gym teacher, and the head of the female Obelisk Blue dormitories, so I didn't want to add more pressure to her jobs by making her the Chancellor."
Elize nodded. "I guess...that makes sense."
"Dorothy is also in the same situation as Miss Fontaine. She's already in charge with deliveries, cooking in the cafeteria, and she's the owner of the card shop, so I couldn't burden such a wonderful woman like her with an important job as Chancellor. I needed someone with years of teaching and experience to become the Chancellor for a while. Professor Sartyr was busy with two roles, being the art teacher and the head of the Ra Yellow dorms, and the least busy was Crowler, who only had one job, and his was being the head of the Obelisk Blue dorms. Besides Banner, Crowler's the only other oldest teacher in terms of experience and servitude in Duel Academy.
"...Crowler, though? And even the Vice-Chancellor?"
"Admittedly, that was not my doing," explained Sheppard. "I mean, I don't even have a Vice-Chancellor myself. I suspect that Crowler appointing the small man named Bonaparte was his own doing, as well as enlisting the role of Vice-Chancellor to him."
"With all due respect, Chancellor, I think your judgement was really poor this time," sighed Elize. "Do you have any idea how much trouble the two of them has caused while you were gone?"
"Did Crowler expel any Slifer Reds? I already gave him a stern lecture about color rank discrimination, you know."
"Oh, no. His actions were actually a lot worse than that," said Elize. "Actually, I was wondering why he didn't expel any of us to begin with, but I guess I found my answer now."
Sheppard nodded. "Yes, he seemed to understand better after I lectured him on that. But, what could have been worse than that?"
"He and Bonaparte were really close to destroying the Slifer Red dorms!"
"What?!" Sheppard stood up and slammed his palms onto his desk. "Is what you say true?"
Elize nodded, not a single faint hint of a lie in her face. "There were a couple of times they nearly succeeded, too! Well...It was more like Bonaparte wanted to destroy them rather than Crowler. I don't think Crowler had a hand in the plan of destroying the dorms."
"Oh? Why's that?"
"Because Crowler wouldn't have defended the Slifer Red dorms if he wanted to destroy them to begin with."
Calming down, Sheppard sat back down, taking a deep breath. "Go on."
"While you were gone, Bonaparte and Crowler tried to find ways to promote and make Duel Academy popular. They even tried to promote some students in the lower ranks up to Obelisk Blue just to empty out Slifer Red before they could destroy the dorms. I...was kinda one of those students, paired up against Alexis in the Miss Duel Academy contest a few months back. I mean, it's fine to arrange duels for promotion up the ranks, but some of the duels were forced."
Sheppard sighed, shaking his head. "Yet another thing I'll have to discuss with the two. Continue, please."
Elize nodded. "I don't know the full reasons why Bonaparte and Crowler wanted to take down the Slifer Red dorms, but I kinda heard it was because they thought the Slifer Reds were the weakest in Duel Academy, and since they wanted to uphold a strong image and reputation for Duel Academy, they probably thought taking down the Slifer Reds was for the best. I think they might have gone after Ra Yellow next, and it would have made the Obelisk Blue elites seem more stronger in the end."
"All things considered, your reasoning would be correct," said Sheppard. "Still, I'll talk about this to those two. I can't believe they would do such a thing while I was gone-!"
"Technically, Bonaparte wanted to do that. I don't think Crowler did, though," said Elize. "I was getting to that point, wasn't I? The reason why I thought that was because the last time the Slifer Red dorms were about to be torn down, was the final time. That was because Crowler actually defended the Slifer Red dorms, dueling Bonaparte just to protect them. He made a bargain with Bonaparte in their duel. If he won, then Bonaparte would give up trying to take down the dorms, but if Bonaparte won, then the dorms would be demolished. I'm glad that Crowler won, not just because our dorms were now safe, but because he cared."
Sheppard nodded. "I'm also glad that my faith in him wasn't misplaced...badly. Still, I'm still going to have to talk to him and Bonaparte about this. Now, what is with this Society of Light?"
"Right...well, they seem like a well-organized, but they're more like a brainwashing cult. Whenever one of their members defeats an individual in a duel, that individual is brainwashed into joining their cause."
"A cult?" Sheppard frowned, bothered by this new sort of information. "What's their goal?"
"This situation is big, and similar to what happened last year with the Shadow Riders. Only, I don't think they're after the three Sacred Beast cards. You see, the Society of Light is influenced by this great evil called the Light of Destruction, which wants the destruction of darkness, which is the Gentle Darkness. But, that's bad, because there's supposed to be a balance of power of sorts. If they do succeed, well, it's bad for the universe. I don't really understand much of their goals, but forcing others to join through brainwashing, kidnapping, and stuff like that is really bad."
"Kidnapping? What's this about a kidnapping?"
"Oh, that only happened once. We had a field trip to Domino City, and-well, I should tell you firsthand that the leader of the Society of Light is a man named Sartorius. He apparently can predict the future and owns a fortune-telling deck. He holds other powers like brainwashing to influence his followers to joining him through duels. He makes them think that some...light is good, and it's really confusing."
"Right, you were telling me about Domino City? A kidnapping?" reminded Sheppard.
"Well, yeah. Sartorius has a younger sister named Sarina, who arranged the kidnapping of Syrus and Hassleberry to lure out me, Jaden, and Aster Phoenix. Oh, right! Aster Phoenix, he's one of Duel Academy's students and we formed an alliance together to bring down the Society of Light."
"Ah, then we can definitely rely on him. I heard he's a remarkable, talented young dueling prodigy," said Sheppard, smiling. "Continue, please."
Elize nodded. "The reason why Sarina wanted the three of us was because she wanted us to save her brother. She said that he wasn't always evil, but that he was influenced by another greater evil after receiving a Hero card. She was also interested in the three of us because she believed Sartorius had plans for the three of us because we seem to defy destiny. Right after we dueled Sarina, she released all of us and decided to stay in cyberspace. Yeah, we kinda dueled her in some virtual reality program, and she actually self-destructed the program because she wanted to stay in cyberspace to watch over her brother. "
"How unfortunate," said Sheppard.
Elize couldn't agree more. "Yeah...Oh! I almost forgot. The Society of Light consists of all of the Obelisk Blue members and most of the Ra Yellow students as well. After turning every single Obelisk Blue member into a Society of Light member, they transformed the blue dorms into a white dorm. They...also have a strange obsession with the color white."
"That would explain the white dorm I've been hearing all about."
"Yes, and that's all I know up to this point. I'm sorry, but this is everything I know. Me and Aster, we're gathering as much information as we can about the Society of Light and their plans, but nothing's happened so far. Nothing big, anyways."
Sheppard shook his head. "No, everything you've told me is...quite a lot to take in, and very important. Thank you for informing me. I just have one question. I heard that Aster Phoenix's manager is...Sartorius, correct? Doesn't that mean Aster himself is a Society of Light member? Or is he working on the inside as a spy?"
Elize shook her head. "No. He's been his manager for years, yes, but Aster didn't even know the existence of the Society of Light until recently. And since he found out the existence, he also found out he was being used by Sartorius to fufill his goals, which is why Aster...uh...fired him from being his manager. But I can completely assure you that he's not a member."
"Well, that's a relief."
"Yes...But, Sheppard? Where did you all this time? I know now that it's to arrange this whole GX Tournament, but just...where?" asked Elize.
"Like I said before, I traveled around the world, hoping to find many Pro Duelists to partake in this tournament, and sure enough, I found many," said Sheppard.
"Does that mean duelists like Yugi Muto or Seto Kaiba will be participating?"
"No. They're on a completely different scale, and master duelists their level view the GX Tournament as a...baby tournament, like it's a pre-step to being a Pro Duelist, so they didn't even bother," said Sheppard. "I expected this though. After all, if Pro Duelists like them were to enter the tournament, this tournament would have been wiped out in half a day, and we both know who the clear winner would be."
"Yugi Muto, the King of Games?"
"Exactly. While I did extend an invitation to him, he also came to this predicament and politely declined. Mr. Kaiba's denial was more...well, impolite and rash than Yugi's."
"I...can see why."
There were many clear differences between Yugi Muto and Seto Kaiba, and why many fans valued Yugi more than Seto. Both men were stern and skilled duelists, but Yugi brought more inspiration and kindness than Seto Kaiba, who was made of more stern stuff and harshly strict. Basically, Seto Kaiba was like the current Zane, only less dark and more mature and less power hungry.
Before Elize could ask more questions, a knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. "Who is it?" called out Sheppard.
"It's Aster Phoenix. I need to speak with you, Sheppard. It's urgent."
Elize nodded to Sheppard, who nodded back in agreement. "Alright, you can come in."
If Aster was surprised to see Elize, he didn't show it as he approached the Chancellor's desk. "Chancellor Sheppard, it's good to see you again."
"Likewise, Aster," agreed Sheppard.
Aster turned to Elize. "Did you tell him everything of what's going on?"
"Yeah. I just finished."
"Good, that'll make things easier. Sheppard, it looks like you're up to speed, so I won't have to explain. Now, let me ask you, how do you plan to deal with the Society of Light?"
"Well, I need a moment to take this all in," said Sheppard, rubbing the temples in his forehead. "I didn't realize so much trouble had happened while I was gone."
"With the Chancellor here, the Society of Light problem won't be such an issue anymore," said Elize happily. "He can easily disband it and return the dorms back to normal."
"No, that won't work," said Aster, shaking his head. "And expelling Sartorius will be even worse. He'll just move his entire Society of Light into a different part of the world, and we'll be back where we started. Actually, expelling him will be the worst move. If he goes to a different part of the world, he'll just gather more forces there, and by the time we deal with him, it'll be too late. He'll be both powerful with overnumbered skilled duelists before we can even reach him."
"Wait...the tournament is already gathering duelists! That's bad!" said Elize, realizing this fact. "And the Society of Light consists of most of the students in the island! Add more Pro Duelists to that group, and it'll spell more bad news!"
"Yeah...Considering our situation, the GX Tournament is a bad idea," Aster sighed. "It only started today, but I know for sure that sooner or later, Pro Duelists will be coming here like a flock of pigeons out for bread."
"T-Then there's only one option! The tournament has to be cancelled!"
"Are you an idiot? No, there's so many flaws with that decision," Aster snapped.
"Look, if this is about Sheppard's hard work going to waste, then forget about that! The students are more important than some dumb tournament!" argued Elize.
"It's more than just that. The tournament being cancelled wouldn't change anything. All it'll do is just discredit Duel Academy's reputation more."
"So, we can't cancel the tournament, we can't expel Sartorius, then how are we supposed to deal with the Society of Light?" questioned Elize. "We don't know their weaknesses, and as time goes by, they're just gaining more and more members each day/"
"I actually have an idea for that," said Aster. "We can threaten Sartorius."
"Threaten?" wondered Sheppard.
"Yeah. We can't really expel him, but he did break a couple of rules. Like, remodeling the Obelisk Blue dorms and replacing them with the Society of Light, something that only the Chancellor has to the power to authorize."
"Uh...When Crowler was made temporary Chancellor, he did give that authority, so Sartorius didn't do anything wrong in that regard," reminded Elize.
"...Shit, you're right."
"Wait, he did that as well? Crowler and his Vice-Chancellor will have a lot to answer for," said Sheppard sternly.
"Fine, fine. How about this?" suggested Aster. "Sheppard, you can call him up and talk to him about his Society of Light. How you know all about his forced brainwashing and such. Technically speaking, he hasn't done anything wrong with the Society of Light...yet. All he's done is just gather forces, but that's it. It's like a typical club; it's not illegal for members to join."
"Okay, so the Chancellor calls up Sartorius and talks to him. How will he threaten Sartorius with that?" wondered Elize, curious.
"Sartorius needs to continue being a student because he needs to observe the fate of the world, thus observing both you, and me, and Jaden. But he can't do that if Sheppard threatens to expel him for brainwashing and forcing students. Thus, he can threaten him with that knowledge as well as threaten to pull him and his followers out of the tournament."
"Aster, you and I both know that threats won't bother Sartorius unless they're for a good cause."
"Yes, which is why Sheppard will make a deal with Sartorius. He'll allow the continuation of the Society of Light as well as their participation in the tournament under certain conditions," explained Aster. "We can't stop him and his followers from dueling and winning over more members, so here's the condition. If anyone else duels any of the Society of Light members, and should those members lose, Sartorius and the rest of his cult are absolutely forbidden from recruiting their lost member ever again."
Realization hit Elize. "Oh! I see! This way, Sartorius will have to agree so he doesn't get expelled, and we can reduce his numbers little by little!"
Aster nodded. "Exactly. Sartorius won't have a choice because he needs to keep an eye on you, me, and Jaden. What do you say, Chancellor? Do you agree with this?"
"Hmm...I don't see another option, so I suppose this'll work. It won't solve the Society of Light issue, but it'll at least reduce their power, even if a little," agreed Sheppard. "Alright, I'll make the arrangements in a little while."
Elize sighed in relief. Finally, some good news was coming their way at long last. Perhaps now, things can-
"CHANCELLOR!"
She probably shouldn't have had her hopes up so soon.
Bursting through the doors, both Crowler and Bonaparte hurriedly rushed inside, only to pale in horror when they saw both Aster and Elize. It didn't take a genius for them to realize that they were too late and that both students must have informed Sheppard everything.
As in, EVERYTHING.
"Great, Tweedledee and Tweedledum are here," muttered Aster, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms. "I'd like to see them get out of this one."
"Oh, please no. I'm already sick and tired of them messing things up, I don't want to deal with them again!" groaned Elize quietly, feeling a migraine approaching.
"Might be a bit late for that," Aster whispered, pointing to Crowler and Bonaparte, who were already making excuses and rapidly talking at the same time.
"Whatever these two have told you, it's not true! Well, not completely true!"
"Yes! Chancellor, you must listen to both sides of the party! That's how democracy works, right?"
"It was all Bonaparte's fault! He forced me!"
"What?! You're throwing me off to save your own skin, you rotten traitor?!"
"If I wasn't doing it, you would have!"
"Why you-!"
"Okay, stop! STOP!" yelled Elize, her voice growing louder and silencing Crowler and Bonaparte's excuses and protests. "Stop it! I can't deal with this!"
"What?" questioned Crowler. "Can't you see we're having an important conversation with the Chancellor? Run along and leave this to the teachers!"
"Teachers? You-You still think that you two deserve to be called teachers at this point? You're not. You-You guys have to be the worst excuses for teachers yet! You still think that after everything you two have done, you can just waltz in here, make up some make-believe story to save your careers, and expect to get off scot-free?!"
Sensing what was about to happen, Aster leaned back against the desk and crossed his arms. "Wish I could have bought some popcorn..."
"Er...Well, we were going to tell the Chancellor our side of the story!" said Crowler, shrinking back a little upon seeing Elize's furious look as her anger slowly but effectively started increasing.
Unfazed, Bonaparte shouted, "Yeah! So butt out already! We've got more important issues to discuss with the Chancellor! What's with you, anyways?! You're normally one of the most obedient and quiet students around here, so take that attitude and get out of here!"
That, unfortunately, seemed to be the wrong thing to say to a pissed-off and stressed Elize, as well as further triggering more of her pent-up anger.
Eyes flashing for forest green to red, Elize tried to calm herself, but was unable to contain her rage. "Okay, you two. Let me catch you up to speed of what the past few months have been like for me. I was trying to enjoy my school year with my friends, hanging out and dueling with each other, when a feminine-looking man and his midget-sized Vice Chancellor started forcing promotion duels all over. That's not so bad, but then they had to go and try and destroy our only home on campus, the Slifer Red dorms! They tried numerous times and failed, but some of the times were threats that seemed unfair to us, like forcing us to duel a Pro Duelist just to keep our dorm!"
Aster blinked in surprise. He did recall that he was asked by both Crowler and Bonaparte to duel one of the Slifer Red students for such a bargain. That duel ended up with him losing to Jaden, who had returned from his...strange trip.
"Then, the threats stopped, and our dorms were permanently safe. Everything's okay, right? But then a cult called the Society of Light snatches some of my friends, forces them to their side through brainwashing, and every time I try to convince them to return back to normal, they hurt me both mentally and physically, tearing my heart into pieces each time. And what do the two of you do? Instead of dealing with the situation, you became cowards and basically allowed them to redesign the Obelisk Blue dorms and force other unfortunate students to join them. You guys didn't do ANYTHING to stop this. You were just hiding behind the desk, twiddling your thumbs and just waiting for a miracle to happen! In the meantime, I did everything I could to stop the Society, like dueling many members to break free of their spell, only for them to return to being brainwashed the next day, over and over and over again! If that's not bad enough, then recently, my other friends, like Jaden, chose to ignore Bastion's feelings, whereas I tried to comfort and help him to the best of my ability! He was lonely and wanted recognition, and he would have had a chance of that if some incompetent IDIOTS took action and stopped the cult earlier! It was bad enough I lost another friend to that cult, but to learn that my other friends had many chances to help him but didn't because they were too lazy to was both shocking and horrific for me! So, PLEASE! If you could do your very best to convince me not to throttle you two this VERY second for your ignorance and arrogance, that'd really benefit THE BOTH OF US!"
Silence filled the entire office as everyone was left stunned after the rant finished, even Elize herself.
Embarrassed and somewhat shocked by her own rant from her own conflicted emotions, Elize's red eyes changed back to forest green as soon as she calmed down and assessed the situation. "Oh my-! I...I am so, so, sorry!"
Having said that, Elize quickly left the office in a hurry; the sound of the door shutting echoed throughout the silent office.
Aster whistled. "Damn."
That night...
'I'm such an idiot, I'm such an idiot, I'm such an idiot!' thought Elize, repeating the thought over and over as she sat down on a bench near the vending machine close to the Slifer Red dorms, tapping her leg repeatedly. 'What was I thinking, ranting out like that out of the blue?! I have to go apologize to Crowler and Bonaparte!'
During the next couple of hours, Elize had spent her time wandering around the island, distressed about her emotions and her recent actions in the Chancellor's Office. During that time, she barely remembered anything, but she must have won some duels on her own, as there were several Genex Medallions hanging from her neck. Well, she did remember glimpses of her duels as distractions from her thoughts and conflicted feelings, but now that she was thinking back about what happened earlier in the office, she chose not to divulge on the memories of her previous duels for the time being.
"...Elize?"
"Hmm?" Looking up, Elize saw Sheppard standing by her, holding two strawberry milk glasses in his hands, having gotten it from the vending machine. "Ah! Chancellor Sheppard! I...I didn't notice you."
"It's alright," chuckled Sheppard. "Mind if I sit down with you?"
"Not at all!" Making room for him, Elize found herself being handed one of the strawberry milks in her palm. "But I didn't-"
"Your friends told me that you like strawberry milk, which just so happens to be one of my favorite beverages as well," informed Sheppard, smiling. "It's all on me, no need to pay me back or anything."
"I see. Thank you," thanked Elize, nodding before taking a sip of her strawberry milk. "It's...been a while since I last tasted this. Last time was...around a year ago, when Chazz helped me get this when it was stuck in the vending machine."
Sheppard nodded. "Ah, yes. The old vending machine. I should replace that...along with many other changes I plan to do to make this school more safer."
"Chancellor...?"
Looking down at his drink, Sheppard sighed. "Elize, I owe you, and many others, a very, very, very deep apology. I left Crowler and his assistant, Bonaparte, in charge, because of experience and because I thought I could trust them to run things around while I was in charge. Clearly, that was a huge error in my part."
"I...I said some really, horrible things," said Elize, tightening her grip on her drink. "I should probably apologize to them the next time I see them and-"
"There's no need. Everything you said, deserved to be said," assured Sheppard, patting her on the shoulder. "After you left, I interrogated the two severely. No matter how many excuses they came up with, eventually, they spoke the truth and told me everything that happened thus far, confirming your words to be true. Now, I want to ask you a very important question that'll determine their fates."
"What...do you mean?"
"I'm giving you a choice, Elize. It's all up to you. You can choose to have the both of them fired and never have them work in Duel Academy ever again, or, you can refuse, and I can give them a very severe punishment for their actions."
"I..." Elize shook her head. "I don't want them fired. Yeah, they really did do bad things and their influence wasn't...good, but I didn't want them fired or anything. Okay, I may have said that they didn't deserve to be teachers, but that was just me speaking out of anger and I wasn't really thinking straight at the time. I don't want to ruin their lives. I mean, Crowler was mean last year, but he proved to me that he's not such a bad person, back when he dueled Camula and when he defended the Red dorms. I...I can't say the same for Bonaparte, but if someone like Crowler can change, maybe it's okay to give Bonaparte a chance, too."
Sheppard sighed. "It's good you still retain your kind, forgiving side even after all that's happened. Most people wouldn't be as forgiving as you. I still can't forgive Crowler and Bonaparte for what they've done."
"Uh...me and...Jaden, right?"
"Oh, yes. Jaden, too, I suppose. Elize, I'll be the first to admit that you've changed. Possibly for the better. I remember your first year here, that you used to be shy and quiet."
"I still kinda am," said Elize.
"Yes, but I've also noticed you're coming out from your shell. Further proof of that was your recent rant towards Bonaparte and Crowler along with some swearing and insults."
"I'm...sorry I swore and insulted in your office," apologized Elize.
"Considering the circumstances, it was understandable," said Sheppard, shaking his head. "Now you're becoming more independent, more brave and heroic, and now you're voicing your own opinions. That's a sign of improvement for you. And now, you're helping to stop this Society of Light, and I couldn't be more proud to be your Chancellor."
"...I never wanted this, you know," Elize admitted. "I thought the only danger I would have during my years here would be the whole Shadow Riders thing, and that it was finally over, but...now, another new danger's come, and it's possibly worse than the last one. I just wanted to spend this year in peace and without any sort of danger."
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry things didn't turn out the way you wanted," apologized Sheppard. "But, there are several pieces of good news I wanted to share with you. First, when this school year's over, I plan to remodel the Slifer Red dorm, make it as big as the Ra Yellows and Obelisk Blues, as well as enlist a new head of Slifer Red to replace Banner. I should have done this sooner, but with planning with the Genex Tournament and traveling around the world-"
"I think...that's a fine idea," said Elize, smiling a bit. "What's the other good news?"
"Well, I talked things through with Sartorius, and surprisingly, he agreed to my terms. He will no longer recruit those that have been defeated in duels, so I imagine your work will be a lot easier."
"Yes, it will! Thank you! Um...do you know where Aster went? I kinda left before him, so..."
"Ah, yes! Well, he told me he was going to investigate the Society of Light further, and he gave me a message to pass to you. He wanted you to focus on dueling the Society of Light members during the tournament, and that was it."
"Okay!"
"Don't worry!" said Sheppard. "You're not alone in this fight. I'm sure Jaden and the others will help you out!"
Elize's face fell. "Uh...Yeah, about that...I...kinda...We had a falling out a few days ago. They did something wrong, and I yelled at them for it, and now we're not talking much to each other...anymore. It's really awkward."
Sheppard nodded, understanding the situation. "Ah. A falling out. They're usually bad, but common in friendships. I'm sure everything will resolve itself if you all talk things out and apologize to one another."
"It...It was my fault that happened," admitted Elize. "I said some, really, really, really horrible things to Jaden, Syrus, and Hassleberry! I don't even know if they'll forgive me or even talk to me after the horrible stuff I said!"
"Well, what was the argument about?"
After Elize quickly explained everything to Sheppard, she said, "I know it was their fault to begin with, but I can't help but feel guilty nonetheless. I let my anger get the best of me, I insulted them, I blamed them, and-"
"Then it's all the more reason why you and your friends should sit together and talk," advised Sheppard. "The more you let this gone on, the more you drift away from each other. Trust me, if that happens, the result's never pretty. It's better to talk things out than just bottling it all away. Now, I have to return to the office now, but I wish you good luck!"
After Sheppard left, Elize was left all alone, drinking her strawberry milk by herself. Even though the flavor of her favorite drink was meant to be sweet, it felt sour and bittersweet to her tastes.
Finished! Whew! Sorry for the long wait yet again!
So, this isn't a dueling chapter, although next chapter will feature a duel for sure, since it's the Genex Tournament and all. Yeah, there was a bit of stuff not covered in the anime.
For example, how come Crowler and Bonaparte weren't punished for what they did? I suspect that after Sheppard returned, some of the other students might have tattled on the two. I'm actually surprised they didn't get fired for what they did, especially Bonaparte, and no, the episode with them dueling Pegasus doesn't really count. In reality, both of them would have been fired for sure!
Secondly, why didn't Sartorius just recruit members back to his organization after they've been defeated? And by that, I mean members like Chazz and Alexis, who are supposed to be amongst the strongest in the group. Granted, it can be argued that Sartorius had no more use for them, but wouldn't it benefit him if he had more strength in numbers, especially if said numbers were extremely skilled? So, when the anime didn't address that, I decided to add in a good reason why in this chapter
Well, that's said and done. Read and review!
