Shadgirl2: Well, hope you enjoyed that little prologue we updated for this.
Midna: Now we get into the meat of the story!
Disclaimer: We don't own Yugioh GX. Natsuko belongs to Midna Azusa.
Fubuki's POV
Ah, to be rich and own your own island! It's amazing! And it's especially useful to me when I talk to the ladies! Usually I'd find a nice girl and invite her to my family's private villa on our island, where we have servants and a private beach. This time, however, I was bringing along a friend of mine! This August, as the summer came to an end, I decided it would be fun to take my new best friend, Natsuko Tokugawa, to the Isla de la Doncella for a vacation! Not that we would be spending much time on the private beach, most likely. After all, there were way too many ladies on the public ones!
I'm sorry, where are my manners? I'm the one and only Fubuki Tenjoin! I'm 26 years old, and, for all the ladies out there, I'm single! As for Natsuko, he's an unusually tan guy, considering his hair's bright orange. On the sides, his hair was cut short, but longer strands covered the top parts of his head, giving him a bit of a windblown look. His eyes are also rather exotic, a startling shade of violet. He has a straight nose and high cheekbones, too. Sorry, ladies, I can't say he's single. At the time of our story, he was, though.
Anyway, Natsuko and I arrived on the island at the start of August. This island belongs to my family, but it's big enough that there's a town on it. My dad lets people live there and visit there, and, in exchange, we get a portion of the profits from each business. We couldn't wait to get started on our vacation, especially Natsuko. He'd never been to a private villa before, and he was stoked to hang out with me on this lovely tourist destination! As is typical for a vacation location in the middle of summer, the place was packed and full of activity. Even from my family's private heliport on the edge of town, I could tell that there were a lot of people.
Natsuko must have been psyched because he jumped out the moment our helicopter landed.
"Well, here we are!" I told him. "What'cha think, pal? It's a great place for some guy time, ain't it?"
Natsuko scanned the island, then said, "Whoa, dude! Awesome! I love it already!"
I laughed. Natsuko's excitement was sure contagious! Meanwhile, a couple of members of my family's staff unloaded our luggage and stuck it in a car to take to the villa.
"Dude, I can't believe your family owns this place! I wanna get a look around!"
"Okay! Where to? The beach is real nice this time of the year," I said as the staff drove off.
"Dude, if we go there right now, we'll never leave. Let's start with the town!"
In his excitement, my carrot-top friend didn't even bother waiting for me to answer. He just ran off, too excited to wait around.
I laughed again. Oh, how energetic he was! Especially given that he was three years older than me! "Well, okay, then. You're the guest, after all." I ran off after him, ready for some fun in the sun!
The town was abuzz with excitement, as is typical for a tropical island in the peak of the tourist season. Tourists were shopping for souvenirs—T-shirts, mugs, even underwear! Others were eating at the various diners and restaurants around the town. Of course, my favorite part was all of the cute ladies. They seemed to enjoy mine and Natsuko's presence, too, because they kept giggling at us when we passed. I saluted them with a wink and a little click of my tongue, letting them know their attention was appreciated.
What can I say? The ladies love me!
"Man, this place is sweet!" Natsuko said after a bit. As we passed a souvenir shop, he added, "Hey, don't let me forget to pick up a souvenir for my little sis, okay?"
Ah, yes, his little sister! He had told me quite a bit about her. From what I could gather, her name was Kiki—cute little name—and she was an independent little lady who liked "exotic" animals. Whatever that was supposed to mean.
"Okay! What size shirt she wear?" I asked, turning to my friend. "We can get her one right now!"
"She's a small. I keep telling her she's tiny!"
A tiny little lady, huh? So a delicate little flower? Sounded like my kind of girl! I was just wishing he'd introduce us, already. I mean, he'd met my sister, so it was only fair.
I laughed and said, "Great! Then let's—"
"Ugh, you're so stubborn!" a frustrated woman's yell cut me off. Not that this was an unusual thing to have going on, but her next words were unusual: "Maybe I should make it so you can't even leave the beach!"
Then it got even weirder. The voice that answered her sounded familiar. "Go ahead!" answered a male voice I could have sworn I recognized. "I'm still not gonna share a room with you!"
"Huh?" I blinked and looked around, trying to find the source.
"Then so be it!" the woman answered.
The conversation ended there, so, based off how she'd sounded, I figured she'd stormed off in a huff. That was fine, considering it was her conversation partner who sounded familiar. With such a large crowd, though, I couldn't really see them, so I headed toward the direction where their voices had been coming. After all, that second voice sounded way too familiar, yet foreign at the same time. Like it was someone I knew well but hadn't seen in a long time. In other words, there was only one person it could be.
"Huh? Hey, what's up, bro?" Natsuko asked behind me.
"I thought I heard something," I said, mixing into the crowd as I searched for the voice I'd recognized. "Hmm."
Natsuko's POV
Dude, that brunette wasn't making a lot of sense. Of course he'd heard something! We were in a densely populated area!
Yo, gang! This is Natsuko Tokugawa here, ready to lead you through the story of a lifetime!
When Fubuki wandered off into the crowd during our vacation on his family's island, I cocked my head, wondering what he could possibly have heard that would be so interesting. What, some sort of ex-girlfriend?
Either way, I followed him in search of whoever it was.
Fubuki's POV
I combed the crowd, searching for whoever I'd heard. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anyone I knew besides Natsuko, so I figured I must have been imagining it. After all, what would that guy be doing here?
"Huh. That's funny. I could have sworn I heard him," I said, stopping in front of the library with my arms crossed.
If that had been who I was thinking, what would he be doing here? What, was he just attracted to islands? I mean, every time I saw him, that was where he was. Granted, our homeland of Japan was a bunch of islands, so I guess he'd spent his entire childhood on islands…
"Heard who?" Natsuko asked.
I shook my head, giving it up as a lost cause. "No. It's nothing." I decided to get back to our vacation. After all, that guy had disappeared from my life long ago—along with everyone else's lives. Why would he suddenly reappear now? "So? About your sister's Vida Loco tee. When do you wanna get one!?" I asked, excited once more.
Natsuko sweat, and I started wondering if I had the wrong idea about what kind of a girl Kiki was. "Uh, the day I wanna die, that's when. Kiki'd hate me for that."
Well, that was discouraging. I deflated, a bit stunned. "Okay? Then maybe she'd like a mug instead?"
Natsuko sighed and said, "A water bottle, maybe, but I can't see her using a mug. She travels a lot."
So did she have some sort of job that took her all around the world? Well, it seemed I didn't have a clue what to get for this girl!
"Okay, forget the souvenirs! Let's worry about solving that mystery later and go have some fun!"
Two very attractive young ladies walked by, and I flashed a couple of finger guns at them, clicking my tongue to get their attention.
"Hey, babe," Natsuko said to one, cool as a cucumber.
The girls laughed and kept right on walking.
"So!? What do ya say!?" I asked, eager to get back to having fun.
"Alright! Let's hit the beach!"
I pumped a fist in the air, glad to hear that. "Yeah! Look out, ladies!"
"'Cause the Love Train's coming through!" Natsuko finished, as if he had read my mind. Yeah, we did that a lot. Just like a certain brunette that I had once known and his teal-haired friend.
Without another thought about that guy who had broken my sister's heart, I ran off to the beach with Natsuko.
You know my favorite thing to do at the beach? Surf. Apparently, though, Natsuko's favorite is volleyball. So we had a fun day of surfing, flirting, and volleyball so that everybody won! When we finished with our volleyball game, the sun was setting, so we were going to head to the resort for a bit more…adult fun.
As I sat in the sand, putting on my shoes, I said to Natsuko, "Man, oh, man, can you ever serve. You are so gonna play on my team next time!"
He laughed and said, "You should see me and Kiki on the same team! She's got a killer spike, bro! We slaughter the competition!"
Now that was cute: a brother/sister volleyball team. I just wished my sister would be so eager to join me in something like that.
I laughed and answered, "I wouldn't doubt that. From what I've heard about her, she's one tough cookie. Think I'll ever get the chance to meet her?" I flirted teasingly, pretending I had a thing for her.
Natsuko laughed. "You know, a lot of people would say you'd be lucky if the answer's no! But I get the feeling you may have already met her. She went to Duel Academy around the same time as you, dude."
Well, that was the first hint he'd given me as to her age. So she was close in years to me, huh?
I stood up. "No kidding? Then I probably know her, alright! No hard feelings, then, if she happens to like me more than you," I said with a smile. After all, back in school, all the girls had loved me. They'd even started a fan club for me!
That voice from before kept me from hearing his response, if he gave one.
"Heck, I dunno. Hope it doesn't rain?" that male voice said. If it hadn't been fairly quiet just then, I probably wouldn't have heard, either—it was that far off.
That comment didn't sound good, so I put a hand to my ear, turning toward the voice to see if I could hear it any better.
Natsuko's POV
Oh, boy, this conversation was straying into somewhat dangerous waters. I didn't like talking bad about my little sis, but I really doubted that she was at all interested in Fubuki. If I told him that, though, he'd ask more questions, which might lead to me trash-talking my baby sister! But, if I didn't tell him, he might make the mistake of flirting with her if he ever met her!
Since it wasn't an easy thing to do, I looked off to the side and said, "Ah…yeah, I get the feeling she isn't into you…"
I was expecting him to say something about that, like "why not," or "what makes you think that." Instead what I got was a finger to his lips and a shush. "Do you hear that?" he asked.
Oh, great, again?
"Hear what?"
"Quiet. Listen."
Yeah, sure. Listen for what? Regardless, I listened, even if he was a bit annoying right then. Guess I should have been relieved that his ears had kept me from having to face that awkward conversation.
"Go ahead, but it's not gonna stop her," I heard somebody say some distance away. Not that I had any idea who it was or why I was listening to him. Man, Fubuki could be so weird sometimes.
Fubuki's POV
Okay, now I was positive I knew who that was!
"…Judai? Was that?" I asked myself.
Now the question was the same as the one before: What was he doing here? Determined to get an answer, I headed toward the rocky part of the beach, the part nobody ever wanted to visit because it was below the cliffs and covered in rocks itself.
"Ugh, here he goes again…" Natsuko said behind me. With that in mind, I figured he wasn't following. Not that it mattered. After all, he didn't know this guy. Besides, I'd be right back.
The resort hotel was to the left of the beach. The cliffs were to the right, just up a rather steep hill. The voice was coming from up there, behind some rocks on top.
As I took a peek around the rocks, I saw a two-tone brunette I hadn't seen in six year. He looked about the same, too, right down to what he was wearing. Man, was he insane? Wearing all black in this weather? He had to be roasting, especially with a jacket on, to boot.
Sitting on a cliff a bit lower down, Judai was still wearing his Duel Academy uniform. His hairstyle hadn't changed, still the same brown hair that was lighter on top and lifted up in the back. And he didn't look too happy.
"How's that gonna help!?" he demanded, even though it seemed like he was alone.
Now, I know what you're thinking. You're wondering if he's crazy, right? Well, I can't really say for sure, but he claims to see duel spirits. Since he's not the only one in our group who does, I figure it's either some sort of exclusive club or the truth. Regardless, he was probably talking to one of those spirits of his, seeing as there wasn't another living soul in sight. So it didn't bother me at all!
I jumped the rocks and climbed down to the cliff he was sitting on. "No way. Judai! It is you!"
He looked at me, clearly startled. And why shouldn't he be? After all, he probably thought he'd never see me again. "Fubuki!?"
I smiled, arms wide. Man, I'd missed this guy! Not as much as my sister had, but still. "Hey, man! Long time, no see! How ya been!?"
"It's complicated," he said in that mysterious way he's had ever since third year.
Speaking of third year, that's complicated. Long story short, it wasn't a fun year, and Judai changed about halfway through, going from his usual carefree and fun-loving self to a more serious and mysterious version that really didn't resemble our old friend at all.
Which reminded me…I had a bone to pick with him!
I put my hands on my hips and said, "Complicated? I doubt it's as complicated as trying to keep a group together after somebody abandons them. Especially my sister. Do you know that—"
He cut me off with, "Hey, we graduated, anyway! It's not like everyone else stayed there!"
Well, he did have a point. But, still… "No," I said a bit more sheepishly. "But they stayed in touch, at least."
He turned away as he said, "Yeah, yeah…"
"So what's so interesting about these rocks?" Natsuko asked.
I turned and saw him leaning on one of the rocks as though he were hiding behind it. "Natsuko."
He looked beside me and saw Judai sitting there, also looking at him. "Who's the kid? I take it you know him?"
"Sure do!" I said. Excitedly, I gestured to Judai, adding, "He's an old friend of mine, right, Judai!?"
"Wait, this is Judai!? The guy who ran off the night you guys graduated? And who fought dragons in Italy?"
Judai's POV
Okay, that was a random pair of things for this guy to know about me. Whoever he was.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"Name's Natsuko Tokugawa!" he answered. "Nice to meet you!"
Tokugawa… Why did that name sound familiar? I mean, other than the Tokugawa dynasty from Japanese history.
"He's my new friend!" Fubuki added. "I met him in Las Vegas, and we really hit it off! Right, pal!?" He smiled, putting an arm around Natsuko's shoulders.
Natsuko did the same, looking like Fubuki's twin. "You know it!"
Then they both started laughing, and I really felt like I was seeing double. Was this how people felt when they looked at Johan and me?
"Basically, he's to me what Johan is to you!" Fubuki said, smiling way too excitedly. That answered my question. "Isn't it wonderful!? We've both got twins now, right!?"
As weird as ever, Fubuki. "Uh, yeah. I guess. Does Asuka know about your twin?"
"Heck, yeah! She hates him! But that's okay, 'cause she hates everyone who tries to get her to go to town with them! Forget that she's my sister, she's clearly adopted!" He laughed at his own comment.
"I'll say! She reminded me a little too much of my own little sis!" Natsuko agreed before laughing.
…Okay, these two were weird. Really weird.
They finally stopped laughing and, hopefully, came back down to Earth.
Fubuki said, "Well, anyway, what brings you here, bro!? Looking to have some serious fun, too!?"
Right, Fubuki liked to surf. Guess it wasn't too bizarre that I'd run into him here. He probably visited every beach sooner or later. "Actually, I've been—"
He didn't even let me finish before he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. "Great! Then why don't you join us!? We were just heading to the resort for some tequilas! Let's go!" Without even asking me if I wanted to go, he dragged me off.
To the resort.
Where Ai was staying.
"Uh, I don't think—"
"This is going to be great! Come on, Natsuko!" he said, ignoring me as he climbed back up onto the hill before running down it and off to the resort.
"I'm coming, dude!" Natsuko called, chasing after us.
I really didn't want to go there. Not with Ai there.
"Fubuki!"
Unfortunately, it seemed I didn't have any choice. He wasn't listening to a word I said. Okay, so I'd just have to make sure I didn't let Ai find me there. Or drink anything.