A good day to you all. So, Chapter 12, huh? When last we met, there was a huge cliffhanger, one that in my opinion, completely alters the shape of the Yugioh GX story-line. Maybe the good folks in Japan can learn a little from this story...

I promise that this chapter will have a satisfying conclusion to this cliffhanger. It will also shed some more light on this arc's main plot, and perhaps have a little fun in between. I had to re-write this chapter several times, so I hope this final version is appealing.

Just want to point out; some of my older readers have probably noticed that I've re-uploaded all of my previous chapters, from beginning to end. I did this, just so I could fix any punctuation or grammar mistakes that I had. In this way, I could clean up the chapters and make them easier to read, for both old and new readers. Sorry for the confusion. Moving on...

Regarding the delay, I sincerely apologize for that. As you might know, I was in my final semester, and just last month became a proud graduate. All my time was focused on my studies and my graduation. As a small apology, I plan to release chapters 12 through 16 back-to-back as quickly as I can. I'm also going to reveal my next story plans in my profile if you are interested. One last thing, since the chapters are back-to-back, my header and footer will not be present, except here and at the end of 16, so you can enjoy. So, here are the chapter titles:

13: Welcome (back) to duel academy

14: A rematch long overdue

15: The rampaging Cyber Dragon

16: The Plan in Motion

I do apologize, but I'm finally free for consistent updates. Wish me luck!

Last time on Beyond the Academy:

Jaden awakens from his slumber, and decides to transfer some of his powers to Alexis, in an attempt to heal her. In the process, Yubel sneaks a little peak at Alexis's memory, and gains some valuable insight. Alexis regains her health, only for the transfer to have an unexpected side-effect...

So what are you waiting for; GET YOUR GAME ON!

Chapter 12: Night of Beginnings

Part 1

"J-Jaden?"

He heard his name come from Alexis's lips. As he looked at her, he could see the fear resonating from her body and face. Confused by all this, he responded with a single word.

"Yeah?"

He couldn't understand her fear. A moment ago, the mood seemed so bright and cheerful, and yet in an instant, her face which had shone with the brightest of smiles, had suddenly become frightened beyond belief. His confusion grew into fear itself, though, as she pointed at a spot right above Jaden's head. Normally, that would not have been a problem, except that the spot she was pointing to was where a certain, trusted duel spirit of his stood, lying in wait. The next sentence confirmed that fact.

"I can see her,"

Jaden froze up on the spot. Slowly, he began to realize the situation he was in. The problem was that he didn't want to believe it. It was something that had never happened before, something that previously was unthinkable. "Maybe I'm just imagining things, or maybe I just misheard. Either way, I better play dumb, and hope that I was right," he thought nervously.

"I'm afraid it's too late for that, Jaden..." Yubel began responding using telepathy, but Jaden had already responded.

"Huh, see who?"

The seconds passed by like ages, as Jaden hoped that his hunch was right; that it was all a misunderstanding.

Unfortunately for him, one word crushed his final hopes.

"Yubel,"

Since he was a little kid, Jaden had a strong connection to the duel spirits, and although he didn't know this, the primary, and probably only, reason for this was due to his ancient past as the supreme king. It was thanks to this connection that Yubel managed to enter his possession as a kid, that even when the kids his age avoided him, he could still have beings to call his friends. He managed to see and befriend the Winged Kuriboh spirit, not to mention tame and soothe other wild duel spirits. But even throughout most of his time at duel academy, he still regretted one thing; that he couldn't find someone to talk to about duel spirits, someone who shared the same secret as him, and maybe someone who didn't actually think he was crazy. Chazz was someone, but he felt that Chazz was trying to avoid his secret more then embrace it. It was not until the start of his third year that he met Jesse, a guy who resembled him in almost every way, and even shared his secret.

Of course, Jesse was not the only person he met back in his third year. He also had a meeting with one of his first duel spirits, Yubel. Yubel had always been with him since the beginning, and had always been protecting him in her own way, even if her methods were extreme. As a result, he lost all the friends he had ever made, some out of fear, some out of rejection. Seeing that Yubel was hurting anyone who came near him, he decided to send her into space, thinking that it would soothe her. Unfortunately, it had an adverse effect, resulting in the events that occurred next.

Ever since he re-encountered Yubel back in the other dimension, his whole life had turned upside-down. After all, she had manipulated the then living Professor Viper into initiating the survival duels, which fed her with enough energy from duelists to resurrect her. After that, she transported the entire academy to the alternate dimension, taking control of the student Marcel, and nearly destroying the academy in the process. It was then that he found out about her plans for him, and some of the reasons behind her actions. That encounter, along with her possession and (un)intended kidnapping of Jesse, had changed life for him completely, and had driven him, and his outspoken and bright personality, right off the edge.

After heading into the dark world in search of Yubel and Jesse, he unwillingly resulted in the 'death' of his friends, and found out about his past life as the Supreme King. Under the influence of his awakened powers, his tyranny had resulted in the loss of a large number of lives, until he was restored to his former self by his remaining friends and colleagues. Seeing the horrors of his actions, he decided that he would face Yubel alone, knowing that he probably wouldn't survive the encounter, though in the process, he might be able to at least right some of the wrongs he had done.

Eventually, he managed to free Jesse, and defeat Yubel in the duel. After finding out about her history with him, he decided that the best course of action was to accept Yubel into his soul through fusion, thus fulfilling a promise from years ago. In return, Yubel restored his fallen comrades, and returned them to their dimension. Although Jaden was finally able to return, he had changed; his friends began to grow distant from him, and he himself rarely, if ever, came out from his room. He cared more about saving the world and controlling his powers, and less about the impact his actions might have on those closest to him, and his friends misreading the situation as 'Jaden deliberately avoiding them' hadn't helped.

After the issue with the duel spirit, Honest, was resolved, and after winning the tag-team duel championship with Alexis, he started to regain shades of his old self again. However, it wasn't until his duel with Yugi Muto, that he finally managed to regain his true self, and return to being the same Jaden as always. There were still a couple of things he had always feared, a fear that had held him back from visiting his friends on several occasions (along with other factors), and had also initially held him back from joining the dragoons.

"What if my powers end up harming them? What if they are scared of who I am, and what if they don't want anything to do with me ever again?"

That fear had just become real within a matter of seconds.

Jaden stood there, frozen in his spot. The shock for him had rattled his thoughts and greatly shook his spirit, making him unable to think straight.

"Jaden, what's going on here?" asked Alexis, still shocked.

"...," Jaden stood there, trying to open his mouth, trying to get the right words out, but he just couldn't. Fear had taken over his mind and body, and his feet were starting to wobble and give in.

"Why the hell is Yubel over there? More importantly, why can I see her? I mean, I don't have powers or spiritual senses like yours. Then why..." she asked, then stopped as a thought crossed her mind.

After a brief silence, he asked, "A-Alexis, you okay?" cautiously.

Alexis's expression turned blank, and she began to shake. Jaden could feel a strong wave of confusion and discomfort coming from her, as she raised her face and looked at Jaden coldly. "Unless, I've finally lost it," she said.

"W-What are you saying...," he began hesitantly, while Yubel thought, "I know where this is going. Luckily, I was already prepared."

"What I'm saying Jaden, is that I think the shock of what happened the other night has caused me to become delusional," she said. "Either that, or I'm still out cold, and am currently in the middle of a weird dream. I mean, how else can you explain all of this?"

"A dream? Is this really her dream? Well, I guess it could be, probably..." he thought, trying to keep them to himself. Those thoughts were a result of his desire to keep her from entering his world, to keep her safe. Thinking that way, his mind began coming up with the delusion that this whole situation wasn't real, therefore, this must be a dream.

However, Yubel snapped him out of his delusions. "Jaden, please don't step into your own world, because things aren't going your way. You know full well, that this is reality, and that no matter how much you try to reject or deny it, the girl named Alexis has awakened her spiritual awareness."

"Awakened! But, that's impossible! How in the world..." he began, then stopped as he realized something.

"Ah, I see that you have noticed it as well," said Yubel. "Yes, there is only one explanation for what happened: When I transferred some of your powers to her, you might have awakened an, shall we say, extra ability within her. I would call it an unexpected side effect of the transfer."

"You mean..." he said.

"Yes, her spiritual awareness has increased to the point where she's now able to see duel spirits, and as a result, well, she's in shock. Not that I blame her, mind you," explained Yubel.

Jaden widened his eyes as he heard this bit of news, then staggered a little, as he realized the magnitude of the situation. Alexis being able to see duel spirits meant that her life would never be the same, and not in the good sense. Remembering the times that people had called him 'crazy' or 'a mental case' or 'the guy who talks to himself', among others, he could already begin to see the problems Alexis would face down the road if people found out. Her friends, her peers, and probably even her own family would freak out if they discovered this. Jaden had been fortunate to be surrounded by the right crowd, Alexis included, as well as the abundance of supernatural happenings at duel academy, and his ancient origins, but at duel college, Alexis probably had almost none of that. To top it all off, Jaden was the one who did this to her. It would have been different if Alexis had awakened her spiritual awareness on her own; Jaden could have simply explained his circumstances and using that, and using that, help her get used to her own, but he was the one who gave her that ability. His mind began drowning in inexcusable guilt.

Noticing the changes and emotions welling up in Jaden's mind, Yubel decided to take action. "Listen Jaden, I can't bear to see you like this any longer, so I'm going to fix this by showing myself to her one more time," she declared.

Hearing her words, Jaden snapped out of his guilt-driven thoughts. "No, you can't! As long as she still thinks that it's a dream or hallucination, she can still get out of her situation. She can live a normal life, and she wouldn't have to get caught up in anything dangerous, and..." he went on rambling, but was stopped by Yubel.

"YOU FOOL! Your guilt has blinded you, to the point that you're not even thinking straight!" she shouted, reprimanding him. "Even if she believes that what she saw today was a hallucination, what about the next time she encounters a duel spirit, particularly one with a hostile attitude. Then what, Jaden?"

"..." Jaden remained silent, and Yubel continued.

"The only way to resolve this peacefully, is to reveal myself to her, have her confirm her suspicions, then have you swoop in, calm her down and explain the situation to her," she explained.

"...Will it work?" he asked.

"Well, most likely. This whole idea is actually a gamble," she revealed hesitantly.

"A gamble?" asked Jaden.

"You see, revealing myself is going to be like a double-edged blade; it might work, and she accepts the reality of situation, or it will cause her enough shock and stress to potentially put her in a coma," she explained.

"That's too risky! I'm not going to bet her life on a gamble like that!" he complained.

"Well then, what do you propose we do? Surely you have another plan?" she asked.

"I..." he began, but stopped.

"I'll take your silence as a no," she declared. "Alright, we follow my plan, but before that, let me ask you one question: Do you trust your Alexis? Because from what I can see, you seem to believe that she won't make it."

"Of course I do!" he declared. "I've known her for as long as I've known Chazz, Syrus and the others. I know who she is, her likes, her personality, and I trust her completely."

"Then, why are you hesitant? If you trust her, then you should believe that this gamble will pay off. Or am I wrong?" she asked.

Deep down, Jaden knew she was right. There was no other option, and taking the risk was better then anything else he might come with, if he could come up with another solution. Plus, he truly believed in her, and he knew that, despite his guilt, he had to help her and help set things straight. "Alright, I'll help you, so let's go with your idea," he said.

"Now you're talking. Okay, well better reveal myself," she said, then vanished from his thoughts.

During the time that Jaden and Yubel were conversing in Jaden's thoughts, Alexis was having her own internal conversation. "What did I just see? Was that Yubel? But that's impossible! I mean, I can't see spirits like Jaden. So why... no, I'm dreaming! This is definitely a dream. I mean, what else could it be...!" she stopped, as she got her answer.

Yubel appeared above Jaden's head again. Alexis stared silently at her, as Yubel opened her mouth, and asked, "Can you hear my voice, girl?"

Alexis nodded slowly. "Then, you truly can see and hear me?" asked Yubel, to which Alexis nodded again. Yubel confirmed this, then began to speak again. "Excellent, we're on the same page," she said. "Listen to me. Apparently, there was a little side effect during the process we used to heal you, resulting in the current situation. I know that you are in shock right now, but I need you to calm down and focus with us."

"B-by us, y-you mean..." asked Alexis, the words struggling to get out.

"Yes, both Jaden and myself, but since you're more used to Jaden, I'll leave the explanations to him," replied Yubel, then she disappeared.

Inside of Jaden's mind, Jaden was flustered. "Hey, Yubel! This wasn't part of the plan!" he exclaimed.

"Well, the original plan might have had some parts I didn't tell you about or... changed," she replied.

"Changed? You just literally threw me into the line of fire! And how come you didn't tell me about any of this?" he asked.

"Honestly Jaden, would you still have done it if I told you? Plus, in this way, it works out better for everyone; you get relieve some of your guilty conscience, and she will calm herself, at least a little. With this, everybody wins. So, with that in mind, go get her tiger," she explained, trying to motivate him.

"Go get her? You just left me with the hard part, then vanished. Not cool, Yubel..." he began, then noticed that everything he had previously said, he had said it out loud, and Alexis had heard every word, and was staring at him with a very confused and shocked face. Jaden looked back in embarrassment, but then shook his head, and cleared his throat. "Listen, lex. Like Yubel just explained, while I was trying to heal you, something unexpected happened, and we think we know why. So, I'm going to tell you everything I know, but I need you to do me one thing: I need you to trust me. After I tell you, you can shout at me, hate me, or even hit me, but if what you said earlier was true, then right now, I'm going to tell you everything, with no exceptions, but to do that, I need you trust me just this once. Can you do that?" he explained, then asked.

Alexis stared at him for a bit, still shocked and frightened, but after hearing his words, she swallowed her fear, and steeled her heart. "Alright Jaden, I'll hear what you have to say," she said as calmly as she could.

"Well, I guess that'll have to do," he thought, while nodding at her. "Alright Alexis, here's what happened," he said, then he began recounting the events leading up that point, ensuring that every detail was fully explained. While doing so, deep down, he had hoped that Alexis would understand, but most of him knew that it was probably better to start packing his bags.

Part 2

Jaden and Alexis sat down in silence for several minutes, both still reeling from the revelation. Jaden had explained everything that happened as calmly as he could to Alexis; that he had seen her in her unconscious state, that using Yubel as a link, he was able to transfer some of his powers to her, how that had worked, and her injuries had mostly healed. He then explained the critical point in their conversation; how she got her powers. He explained that, based on what he had heard (from Yubel), it was a side effect of the transfer, that he had made her more spiritually aware, and that, she could see duel spirits.

After a few more minutes of silence, Alexis finally spoke up. "I guess that I've joined the club now, huh?" she commented, then turned to Jaden. "Chazz and Jesse, I've always seen you talking about spirits with them. Can they see then too?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied, "though they handle it differently. Chazz mostly tries to ignore them, while Jesse more accepting of the fact, kinda like I am. I guess that's one of the reasons that we hit it off so well back at the academy."

"I see," she said. Jaden then looked at Alexis, his face full of remorse and guilt, but before he could speak up, Alexis said, "Jaden, please stop apologizing. I think I get what you're trying to say, but please don't say it like that." She paused, then suggested. "For now, why don't we review what happened? We can discuss our next move after that."

After getting a nod from Jaden, the two of them quickly went over what happened one more time. "So, long story short, Yubel possessed me and gave me some of your powers, which in turn, gave me the ability to see duel spirits?" she asked.

"That's the long and short of it," he replied.

Winged Kuriboh then appeared from behind Jaden's head, and flew over to Alexis. Alexis looked at Kuriboh for a second, then smiled and began cuddling and petting the spirit. Kuriboh closed it's eyes in happiness, while saying, "Kurri, Kurri!"

"Oh, you like this, do you?" she smiled, then focused on Jaden. "So Kuriboh is the spirit you talk to most of the time?"

"Pretty much, up until I reunited with Yubel," he answered.

"Is that so?" she asked with a smile.

"Lex, are you... cool with all of this?" he asked with concern, half expecting her to complain or rebuke him. Heck, he was even ready to get hit by her.

To his surprise, she simply smiled at him. "Actually Jaden, I'm quite happy right now!" she replied. Jaden simply looked stunned, as she continued. "True, I'm still in shock, but I feel like a barrier between the two of us has been lifted. You know, back at the academy, me and the rest of the gang used to look at you talking to yourself sometimes and honestly, well, we might have all thought that, you know, you might be a little crazy."

"So that's what they thought of me back then. Some friends you turned out to be," he thought while sighing.

"Well, no real shocker there. I mean, what did you expect? After all, to normal humans, we don't 'exist', and are treated as beings of the supernatural, so naturally to them, it would seem as if you were talking to yourself, or worse..." explained Yubel by telepathy.

Alexis noticed the hint of disappointment showing on Jaden's face. "Sorry Jay, but that's the truth. Or was anyways, until Jesse showed up, and started doing the same things. Then there was the incident with professor Viper and the survival duels, which resulted in us getting dragged into an alternate dimension by..." She stopped, and looked up at Yubel, who noticed her and waved.

"It's alright, lex. True, Yubel caused all of us a lot of pain, but that was back then, when her mind was fueled by revenge, but now, she's turned a new leaf, and she's very regretful about what happened," said Jaden. In response, Yubel gave a small, apologetic bow.

Alexis slowly nodded, then continued. "Well, after all that, Chancellor Sheppard told us about your story, about your connection to the spirits, about your history with Yubel, and how the neo-spacians were born. It was actually right at that moment, that I found out that you and I live in totally different worlds, not literally, and after all that time together at the academy, I never truly understood you. Then there was the dark world incident, where we just fell apart, and me and the others... disappeared, before you corrected your mistake and saved us, and of course, our last year at the academy. All these times, I felt like you were taking your distance from us, that you carried a bigger burden then any of us, and that we, your friends, couldn't do anything to help, and when you left us on graduation day, that was essentially the nail in the coffin, or so I thought," she concluded with a dark expression.

"Lex, I..." he began, before she cut him.

"But now, I feel like I understand you a little better then before. Right now, I'm able to see the exact same things you can, to feel them, to sense them, and that a part of you is inside me. I feel like a wall between us is gone, and I feel like you and I have a connection," she finished, then went ahead and began patting Kuriboh.

After a brief silence, Jaden stood up. "Well, better go call Atticus and Mac. I'm sure they'll be ecstatic to see you all better," he said.

"Sure thing, Jay. That's a great idea. I'm sure that they're really worried about me," she replied. Jaden got up and began to walk to the door. As he reached the door, she called out to him. "Listen Jaden, let's finish our little, 'secret' chat later, okay," she said, winking at him.

"Yeah, sure thing," he smiled, then left the room.

After a few minutes, a crying and screaming Atticus rushed into the room. "LEXIIIII!" he screamed, as he ran over and began furiously hugging his sister, while sobbing.

"Calm down, Atty! You'll squish me!" she said, trying to loosen her brother's embrace.

Mac then rushed into the room, with Jaden in tow, then ran over and hugged her as well. "Alexis, I'm so glad you're okay. We were worried sick about you," she said, throwing Atticus off of her.

"Yeah, thanks Mac, but as you can see, I'm fine now," she explained, returning the hug.

Jaden watched the scene unfolding in front of him, with a satisfied and slightly jealous look. "Man, Alexis is lucky to have such a great family. I wish I had siblings," he thought, then sighed.

"But damn, you really recovered fast! Yesterday, you looked horrible, like you could use a few days rest at least, but now you look as healthy as ever," commented Mac suspiciously.

"Yeah, I guess a good night's sleep really did the trick," she laughed, not mentioning what really happened. "It's not like they'd believe me anyways," she thought.

"Yeah, maybe," said Atticus. "Or maybe, the thought of you being with your beloved boyfriend, caused you to rise up like a phoenix and... AUGH!" he said, before he was jabbed in the stomach by Mac.

"Atty, she's not in the mood for your little jokes. Understand?" she asked in a threatening tone. His body answered with a slow nod, then he backed down. "Jokes aside, Jaden," she said to him, "I think it's time we filled Alexis in on what was happening while she was out."

Jaden nodded, then he and Mac began explaining what happened after the duel with Fira, about Alistair Crowley, and his supposed plans. Oh right! Mac, did you get some new information about him?" he asked.

"Well yeah, of course I did. I actually forc... I mean asked that acquaintance of mine to cough up as much information he could find. At first, it seemed like there was nothing that we didn't know, nothing new or substantial, but then, he happened upon an underground site, which contained images of the good professor purchasing some artifacts that apparently belonged to an ancient king known only as the supreme king, which as Atticus tells me, is you're alter ego, Jaden," she stated. Everyone in the room looked at Mac in apparent disbelief, as she continued. "Now unfortunately, I couldn't get any accurate images of all of the artifacts. It seems that even on hidden, underground sites, Crowley is being as sneaky as he possibly can. So, you'll have to pay him a little visit while you're there and find out yourself, but I did find something interesting; it seems that when Crowley was hired by the academy to teach duel philosophy, he brought several students along with him. Students that were accepted as 'special case' students, because of their excellent dueling skills. Among the names of the students he brought with him, was the name of that Fira girl that attacked you the other night."

Jaden lowered his eyes a little. "Apparently, the group of students were so good, that within a year, they were already top dogs at the academy. What was even more interesting was this; right now, Crowley commands sixty of the academy's finest students, each faction of ten led by one of six 'special case' students, dubbed the 'elemental knights', and each of those leaders has a name that resembles or symbolizes an attribute from the duel monsters game. For example, Fira's name is associated with the FIRE attribute, though you probably already knew that, and yes, she's definitely one of the six leaders," said Mac.

"Let me stop you for a second. Though I probably know the answer to this question, I need to ask anyways: Why hasn't Sheppard done anything about this? I mean, if this group were the best in the academy, and working in something resembling a suspicious cult, shouldn't Sheppard at least take some action?" asked Atticus.

"And what action would that be, Atty?" replied Mac. "You see, the good professor hasn't done anything suspicious just yet. Every public action he has taken has been through perfectly legal means, not to mention the fact that he enhanced the reputation of duel academy greatly. If I were Sheppard, even I were suspicious of Crowley, I would have to wait until I find definitive proof, which by the way Crowley is handling things, is very difficult, a 'wait-and-see' mode if you will. Also, there's another bit of information I managed to get. When Pegasus began handing out the rare, next-gen decks, a considerable portion of those decks went to duel academy, with Crowley staking his claim on seven of those decks. That might not sound like much, but for the amount that the academy got, it is. I think that it's obvious who the decks were given to."

"I see. Six decks for six knights, and the 'caretaker' gets the last one. It actually makes a lot of sense," mumbled Jaden.

"Yeah, and the best part is that those so called knights, have not only beaten virtually at the academy, but they also boast a perfect record against the pros! Those are some hardcore duelists right there," she said.

"I'm pretty sure that Blair and Hasselberry had a field fay with those duelists," said Atticus. "Speaking of which, Blair never told us about these duelists, even though they joined the academy while those two were there."

"Maybe she didn't see anything suspicious, or felt like it was worth mentioning or she didn't really care. You know how she gets sometimes. Plus, we can also ask her later," suggested Alexis. "For now, I think we should just take it easy and relax. The trip is in a couple of days, so when we get to duel academy, I'm sure we'll have our answers..." She stopped, and noticed that Atticus and Mac were looking at each other, concern in their eyes.

They turned back to face Alexis, then Atticus spoke up. "Listen sis," he said, "Mac and I were talking and well, we've discussed the idea that we probably shouldn't go to the reunion." Alexis widened her eyes, as he continued. "You were just in a life-and-death encounter, and your body needs to recover from all the damage and fatigue, so we have determined that it's for the best not to head out to duel academy. I'm sorry lex, but this is for your own good."

Alexis turned to Mac, who silently nodded. She then looked towards Jaden for support, asking him to say something. Jaden thought for a second, then took a deep breath and spoke. "Listen Atticus, I understand your position and I'm probably not in a position to say anything, but Alexis's condition has improved, and I'm sure that by tomorrow..."

"I appreciate the optimism Jaden, but with all due respect, this is a family decision, and although I respect your opinion, I've made my choice," declared Atticus, while facing Jaden.

They both stared at each other, before they heard Mac say, "Wait Alexis, please lie down! You need to rest!" They both turned around , to see Alexis slowly rising from her bed.

"Brother, look at me!" she stated. "I'm perfectly fine. Sure, I'm still a little dizzy, my hand still stings, and my legs feel like jelly from all that rest, but those should all disappear by tomorrow. We've been planning this trip for weeks, and our friends our waiting for us. It's true that I got hurt because of Fira and her so called professor/caretaker, and if we go, we'll probably be put in danger again, but..."

"But nothing," he replied cutting her off. "That's exactly the point. That Crowley guy, or whatever his name is, is clearly setting a trap for Jaden, and it probably involves putting us, his friends, in harms way!"

"And what exactly about any of this is new?" she asked. "Like we usually do, we should stick together with our friend and beat this guy together!" she shouted. The two continued to bicker, Atticus in his usual calm voice, Alexis having raised her voice, clearly upset. All the while, Jaden was surprised by the seriousness of the argument. In fact, them arguing was news to him, at least not like this.

Mac slowly crept up next to him. "From your face, I'd say that you have never seen them argue like this before," she said.

"Yeah, I mean Atticus has always smiled or laughed, even when Alexis is scolding him or shouting at him. I just can't imagine Atticus as, you know, the serious type," he stated.

"Well, it might sound surprising to you, but Atticus is an older brother, and even he can get angry and protective sometimes. Though he never really shows it, probably because he is too carefree. To be fair though, I've never actually seen him argue with Alexis like this since the two of them were kids," she explained.

"Do you think we should stop them?" he asked.

"Well, normally, we should leave the room, and let them handle it their way, but..." she said, then looked at them, "I think we need to step in for this one, considering the circumstances."

Jaden sat down thinking about a way to solve this problem. Once he got an idea, he got up and said, "Let me handle this, Mac. I've got an idea that might work... I hope."

Mac smiled. "I was waiting for you to say that," she said. "Now hurry up and do it."

Jaden nodded, then walked up to the siblings. "Can I say something here, guys?" he asked.

"WHAT?!" they both shouted at him in unison.

Jaden began backing down due to the pressure, but he regained his composure and stood firm. "Um, I know that it's not my problem, or place to say something about your argument, but both of you are my precious friends, and I hate to see you fighting," he said, them turned to Atticus. "Atticus, I know you're worried about your sister, and as a brother, you're doing what you think is right. I'm not really a smart guy, so I probably can't say something meaningful to change your mind, but I will say this; if what you told me earlier is true, I want you to prove it to me right now, by putting a little faith in me," he smiled, then turned to Alexis. "And you lex, I know that deep down, you're aware that your brother's just trying to watch out for his dear little sister, so I think you should calm down a little, and think of things from his point," he explained. "Man, I wish I had siblings. Seeing you two kinda made me jealous."

The two of them looked at Jaden, then at each other, then started to laugh. "Huh, what's so funny?" asked a confused Jaden.

"Your pep-talk," she replied. "You really don't hold back, do you? For a guy who claims to be an idiot when it comes to these things, you sure know what to say at the right moment."

"That's true, but you also made a good point, Jay. To be honest, I was stalling for time, hoping you'd say something like that," said Atticus.

"Huh, you did what?" asked Jaden.

"You heard me, Jay. I was waiting for you to make a move. Do you honestly think that I'd even attempt to win an argument against Alexis? I'm kinda disappointed, Jay; I thought you'd have learned by now," he explained while sighing.

"Figures," said Alexis.

After laughing for a while, Mac stepped in and clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright everyone, I think Alexis is at her limit, so lets all calm down and take the rest of the day off. Tomorrow, we'll assess the situation further, and maybe do some Christmas shopping, and if Alexis can get through a whole day without an incident, we'll go to the reunion. Sound good?" she asked.

"Yes," they all responded without hesitation.

"Then it's decided," she said. "Alright Atty and Jaden, lets give Alexis some room."

Atticus and Mac left the room, and as Jaden was about to do the same, Alexis called out to him. "Wait, Jay."

"Hm, is something wrong Lex?" he asked.

She started to say something, but stopped, shook her head and smiled. "It's nothing serious. We can talk about it later. Sorry to keep you," she said.

"Sure thing," he smiled. "Well, get some rest, and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you," she replied, then he left closing the door behind him.

Alexis lay down in her bed in silence. "What a weird week it's been," she thought. "Jaden shows up in my life again, and he's gotten better at dueling. He's gotten a little manlier too, though he's still as childish as ever in some areas. Then Bridge turns up, and she claims to like Jaden, though I think she's just trying to tick me off. And then, there's Fira." She frowned, as she remembered the girl with the fiery red hair, then looked at the bruise on her right hand. 'She poisoned me and messed me up pretty bad, and if Jaden hadn't shown up, she would have literally burned my face right off. She's a dangerous duelist, but with that new deck I got from Mr. Pegasus, I should be able to win. Speaking of which..."

She slowly moved her hand over to the right nightstand, and turned on the lamp on top, then opened the drawer on the top and pulled out a bright, golden deck box. "This deck is a result of my selfishness, and my desire to be with you, to stand by your side Jaden. I had to really pressure poor Chumley into designing all of the cards in this deck." She paused, then put the box back in, closed the drawer, and turned off the light. "I'm sorry Jaden. I promised to tell you everything, but you'll ahve to forgive me for hiding this. This deck is a secret that I must keep from you, at least until you and I..." she blushed, then shook the thought from her head, and closed her eyes.

Part 3

A few hours had passed since Alexis had woken up. It was currently early in the evening, and the night had come in rolling fast. Jaden had sat down with Atticus, and the two of them chatted for a while, the highlight of which was Atticus promising Jaden that during the ride to duel academy, should they go, he was going to make good on his promise to teach Jaden about romance and women. After dinner, Jaden decided to turn in early, and so there he was, lying down on his bed, with Yubel standing right next to him.

"Hey Yubel?" he asked.

"It's alright Jaden, I know what you want to ask," she said. "You want to confirm if I truly did not know about the side effects of the transfer, and if I actually did, you want to ask why I kept it from you. Also, you're still doubting that what you did, wasn't worth the risk involved. Is that right?" she asked to confirm.

"Well, that's most of it," he said.

"Well then, let me answer your questions. Did I know about the side effects? Well, yes and no. I'll be honest with you; there was never a case where the Supreme King transferred his powers, although its not like he never tried. As for the side effects, there were some projected ones when they were attempting to study the King's power, although none of them mentioned the ability to see spirits, so yes I knew and no I didn't. As for why I never told you about the side effects, like I said, they were just predicted ones, and not even they knew about any confirmed side effects," she explained.

"Well, I thought as much,"he commented.

"Now, as to your doubts, it's all up to you Jaden. In my opinion, the 'accident' was a blessing in disguise, though I won't explain why to you, until you can get over your dense personality," she said.

"Blessing? It seems more like a curse to me? What if she can't handle duel spirits, or gets attacked by wild spirits? What if she becomes a host of darkness, because of that? Even if she seems like she's accepted it, I'm sure that she's just holding in her pain and fear inside, for my sake. I... I..." he complained, clenching his fist.

"Oh, for god's sake! Jaden, you dense oaf. No matter how many discussed this today, you're still held back by fear. Honestly, it's getting tiring for me too. This is probably the tenth or so time I've called you 'dense' in the past few days, and it's getting really repetitive. You know what, why don't I let you figure thinks out for yourself. As for me, I'm out," she ranted, then sighed and disappeared, leaving Jaden to his thoughts.

Jaden just stared blankly for a while. "Man, that's pretty rare. This is only like the fourth time she's gotten pissed off at me since we fused together. She's right about one thing, though; I have to use my head to figure out what's going on, even if I'm not as smart as a lot of people I know," he thought. He lied down in his bed, and begun to gather his thoughts, but found that at times like these, he'd rather be under the stars, as to him, the vastness and beauty of space helped him think straight. So he asked Atticus to take him to the roof, saying that he wanted to enjoy the stars, and Atticus, although finding his friend's request bizarre, not to mention a death sentence due to the cold weather outside, happily obliged. After borrowing a futon and pillow from him, he made his way up.

Although it was almost the start of winter, the night was a little warmer then it usually was, though it was still cold enough to force Jaden into setting up his futon as quickly as he possibly could. As soon as he finished, he dug in head-first to escape the chills. Once he had finished settling in, he began staring deeply at the stars, the entirety of space sucking him into a world of his own.

"Alright, let me summarize what happened so far," he thought. "Since I got back to town, I met up with Atticus, who invited me to crash at his place. Then I met Alexis again, and she was mostly the same, yet at the same time, more mature. Still, there are some things I don't get. When I told her the story about my trip to the amazon, she got really pissed when I told her about that amazoness girl, and she was just as pissed when I asked her about her love life, if not more ticked off then before. After we reconciled at the arcade, she clung to my arm right after I'd won our little competition. Usually, only lovers do that, but we're not like that. So, why did she do that? She also seemed to give out a smile every time I said I was single. Then, Bridget came to visit, and from what I'd heard, the two of them parted ways on bad terms, after they got into an argument over a boy, and since it's definitely not Atticus, then... could it be me!"

He stopped, then shook his head. "No there's just no possible way that's true, right?" he thought in denial. I mean, after that I asked her out to that fancy restaurant, and she was pretty happy about it, not to mention that she even dressed-up heavily for the occasion. Then, on the bridge, before I opened that envelope, the last words she was trying to say sounded like 'love', but it was muffled. Finally, when she awakened her spiritual powers, she seemed.. happy with it, like she didn't mind, and in fact, she welcomed and embraced these powers."

He stopped, and began to put two and two together. "Does that mean that she... loves me?" he thought. "It's the only explanation; that she really cares for me... as a friend. I mean, there's a chance that it's the other type of love, and I really hope that it's that, but... ACHOO!"

A sneeze dragged him out his thoughts. "Man, I was so immersed in thinking, that I totally forgot that it was freezing outside! Better head back before I catch a cold. I'll just have to ask Alexis about it later in private. I just hope that it's what I think it is," he said to himself, then picked up the futon, and raced back to his room.

The following morning, after a hearty breakfast, and after making sure that Alexis could move around properly, they planned the day ahead of them. Everyone was astonished at the rate that she had healed. The bruises on her hands and chest were almost non-recognizable, and she was moving around as if nothing had happened. Jaden felt a little relived; he had held lots of doubts, but most of those doubts had cleared up.

At the mall, the friends bough a lot of Christmas presents for themselves and their families, Jaden pigged out at the food court, and both the guys and girls got to enjoy a 'guys day out' and 'girls day out' respectively. Atticus tried to teach Jaden about how to properly smooth talk the ladies, to no avail, seeing as Atticus was slapped three times. Mac and Alexis talked about duel academy, and Alexis agreed to give Mac the tour while there. After wrapping up Christmas shopping, the two groups gathered at the entrance, and got into the car.

They decided to head over to Jaden's house. Once they got there, Jaden dashed inside, grabbed his stuff, greeted his parents, took his invitation from them, as well as some other necessities, and rushed back. They then headed back to the Rhode's house, where each member secretly wrapped his/her presents, then went to bed.

On the morning of the journey, Jaden got up earlier then he expected. He was feeling two different emotions welling up inside of him, both of which had forced him to forgo a lot of sleep. One one hand, he was excited; after all, he was going to meet everyone he knew back then at the academy. Chazz, Syrus. Aster, Hasselberry, and even Blair, he was going to see them again. He was going to meet Chancellor Sheppard, and swap stories. He was going to get scolded comically by Prof. Crowler. He was going to meet with the next generation of duel academy,there, and have some epic battles.

On the other hand, and on a related note, he was anxious, and most of it was because of Crowley and his elemental knights. Like Mac had said, Fira was an elite duelist, and if all the knights were just as good as she was, how was he going to win? How would he beat them if they were better then her? If they decided to threaten the academy, how would he deal with them? Could he stop them?

Both emotions whirled around in his head, and he lay awake until just after dawn, where he heard a knock on the door from Alexis. "Jaden,, you up?" asked Alexis.

"Yeah," he simply replied.

"Alright, well get dressed. We're leaving for the harbor in an hour to catch the ferry," she stated, then left. Jaden could hear the sounds of her footsteps fading away as he lay. As he slowly got up, and headed to the bathroom, Yubel appeared above him, and as he finished his preparations, he noticed that Yubel was simply staring blankly, so before he left the room, he decided to break the silence.

"What's on your mind, Yubel?" he asked.

"Hm? Oh, nothing Jaden. I was thinking about what lies ahead. But you shouldn't concern yourself with me right now; you should join your friends and head to the harbor before they ditch you," she replied.

"Well, alright, if you say so," he said, then picked up his bags stepped out of the room.

As Yubel followed Jaden, she thought, "I have a bad feeling about this trip, but I'm sure Jaden will solve it. I mean, he always does."

At the Domino City harbor, a somewhat large ferry was boarded at the docks. What distinguished it from the rest, was the academy's logo engraved onto the sides of the ferry. Normally, a trip on this luxury cruiser would cost quite a bit, but because Jaden and the others had invitations from duel academy, the ferry trip was fully covered. As they reached the boardwalk, bags in hand, a sense of excitement engraved itself into the hearts of each and every one of them. For Jaden and Alexis though, something else occupied their thoughts entirely. For Jaden, it was the elemental knights and what they were planning for duel academy. For Alexis, it was her newfound powers, and what was going to happen from now on. She also thought about Fira, and how she would handle her, when the two crossed paths again.

Once they got to the gate, an attendant on standby checked their tickets, and welcomed them aboard. "Alright, one week of nothing but fun, fun, fun!" exclaimed Atticus. "Let's take a dip first!"

"Atty, it's the middle of December. Why on earth would you want to use the swimming pool?" asked Mac in the nicest way possible.

Atticus turned and faced her with a mischievous smile. "Why, who said anything about the swimming pool?" he asked. "I'm talking about the Jacuzzi, the sauna, the hot springs. You know, a hot water dip. Come on, I'm not that big of an idiot," he said.

"Fine, do whatever you want," said Mac while sighing. She then turned to face the others. "Well, you two should go find your rooms, and take it easy for a while. We won't arrive at duel academy till late in the afternoon, so until then, knock yourselves out." Then, she turned and left.

"Well Jaden, I'm going to unwind a bit, so I guess I'll see ya later," she said, then walked away.

Jaden then made his way to his room. When he stepped inside, he wasn't as surprised as he was when he saw his room at the Rhode's household. This room was just as big as the one in his house, only fancier or more luxurious, though he didn't care either way, as he was perfectly fine sleeping on a mattress in the middle of nowhere.

"Well, what now?" he asked himself.

"Maybe you should catch up on your sleep," suggested Yubel.

"Yeah, I guess a relaxing nap will do me good," he said while yawning. Then he took off his shoes, and dozed off, the gentle waves of the ocean helping to ease his tension, and to help rid him of his fatigue. It was finally time to head back to the place where it all began.

At the Chancellor's office, Chancellor Sheppard sat down at the office, his eyes closed and his fingers crossed. Professor Crowler stood next to him, staring nervously at the door. A couple of minutes later, a man with dark-red hair, being assisted by a jewel-encrusted cane, stepped into the office. The man was in his 60's, but looked to be in the prime of his life. He walked up to the desk, then asked, "Chancellor Sheppard, you wanted to see me today?"

"Yes Alistair. The reunion starts tomorrow, and I just wanted to make sure that you and your students are ready. Our guests all arrive by the early evening, and I'm really hoping that your students are ready to greet them," stated Sheppard.

"Why, yes dear chancellor. My students are very ready to go, and they look forward to what the best and brightest alumni of the academy have to offer. As for the program, I received it by email, and find no fault with the outline. However..." he said then paused purposefully.

Sheppard looked at him, and replied, "However?"

"Chancellor, if I may, there is one change I would like to have made, a suggestion if you will," said Crowley.

"And that would be..." said Sheppard.

"Oh, don't play coy with me, chancellor. We both know that this 'alumni duel showdown', if it's the right name, that you organized is going to be exciting and thrilling, however, I would rather have one of my own students participate. It would help boost morale, provide a test of strength for my students and is good, free publicity for them. After all, some of my students are already world-class, and helped raise the name of this already glorious academy. I have been pitching and voicing my opinion for over a month now, to no avail. In fact, I feel like you're refusing my suggestion on purpose, "said Crowley, with a small smile that masked his intentions.

"You! How dare you accuse the chancellor of..." began Crowler, but was stopped by the wave of a hand from Sheppard.

"I understand your point, Alistair. In fact, if this were any other situation, I would have agreed to your proposal. But this duel is special. Both duelists have a reason to take center stage. One is a fan-favorite here at the academy, the other, I owe a great debt to, and is an exceptional duelist in his own right. It's not that I don't believe in your students, it's just that this means more to the duelists involved then you think. Plus, to be honest, I think that you aren't completely being honest with me," explained Sheppard, also with a small smile.

The two stared at each other for almost a minute. Crowler could feel the overwhelming tension in the room. Crowley then sighed. "Well, this conversation is getting us nowhere. I apologize for my harsh words, dear chancellor. My students are ready, so don't you worry your bald head over it. If that is your final decision, then I won't argue with it," said Crowley.

"Of course Alistair. Thank you for your understanding, and I wish you a good day," said Chancellor.

"The same to you, chancellor," replied Crowley, then he left the room.

Crowler collapsed on the floor. "I thought the tension was going to kill me!" he shouted while panting heavily.

"Well, that was interesting..." said Sheppard, before looking at Crowler. "Listen professor, I need you to go tell the other professors and spies to keep a close eye on our dear star professor. I have a feeling he's about to do something. His type always is," he ordered.

"Y-Yes sir!" came the panicked reply from Crowler, then he raced out.

As Sheppard was thinking about what Crowley was planning, the said professor was walking back to the obelisk blue dorm, where he was staying. On the way, he said, "Noir, report."

From one of the nearby trees, a young teenage girl with short, jet-black hair emerged. Her body was concealed with a cloak. "Sir, your shipment has arrived, and is waiting for you at the base," she reported.

"Excellent! Everything is going according to plan! Now then, go get some rest, and tell the others to prepare themselves for tomorrow. It's going to be a big day, after all," he ordered excitedly.

"As you will," she replied, then disappeared.

"Well, my dear chancellor, I tried to do it the easy way. After all, I hate pointless violence, but you've forced my hand," he said to himself, then gave a big, evil smile. "The hard way it is then!"