Shadgirl2: Sorry for the wait. It's been crazy.

Midna: This chapter was ready awhile ago, but I forgot to get it to Shadgirl2 when I was done editing it.

Disclaimer: We don't own Yugioh GX.

Jim's POV

When we made it to the Isle of the Maiden, it was nearly sunrise. We made our way straight to the beach, knowing full well that Judai'd be there. After all, it wasn't like he had much of a choice these days. However, the sight that met our eyes was...a little dodgy, to say the least.

For whatever reason, there was something covered in a tarp. I didn't know what to make of it, but it seemed as if somebody was building or storing something on the public beach. I really wasn't sure I wanted to know what was going on now.

We stood and stared, discussing this unusual sight.

Judai's POV

I heard voices early in the morning, which is what woke me up. Hey, I'd become a light sleeper with recent events. The voices I heard...well, I only recognized two, but the two I knew both sounded like friends. The real question was who was the third.

"I don't know, y'all," asked the unfamiliar deep voice in a heavy Southern American accent. "Must be some sort of construction site. What it's doin' way out here of all places, I couldn't tell ya."

Seriously, who was that?

"What are those crazy Tenjoins up to?" a female voice asked. It sounded...a little like Rei, only older, which made sense seeing as it had been six years since I'd last seen her. She'd be around 20 by now, so...

I groaned, seeing as the chatter woke me up, and crawled out from under the tarp, getting to my feet. What I found there was Jim with a tall, attractive, vaguely familiar girl and...a cowboy? I mean, he was wearing cowboy boots and a 10-gallon hat over his dark brown hair. His faded jeans were a bit tattered, and he was wearing flannel. And people thought I wasn't dressed for the weather. Did anybody come to this beach dressed for the beach? Also, the cowboy had a gun holster with two guns, which seemed like one too many to me, and a lasso slung over his shoulder, as if he was expecting a loose cow or horse to turn up on this Mexican beach.

So who was the freckled cowboy? Why was he dressed like a cowboy? And who was the near-fashion model standing next to him? Could she really be...

The cowboy smiled warmly, tipping his hat. Well, his brown eyes were friendly, if nothing else. At least he didn't look like he was going to shoot me. "Mornin', partner! Didn't expect to find ya in a place like this. What's up?"

Did we know each other? He was acting like we did. But I thought I'd remember a gun-toting, lasso-wielding cowboy. And why was he with Jim and what I could only guess was Rei? What was this, the Twilight Zone?

I decided to focus on the one I knew first. At least, the one I was pretty sure I knew. Looking at the woman, I asked, "Rei?"

She was looking great, that was for sure. But I hadn't forgotten that she was also kind of a stalker. Granted, she wasn't as bad as Ai. All she'd done was sneak into the school, enroll in my dorm, and flirt with me relentlessly for a year. But still...

Why did Jim go to Utah to get her? And what did Jim do, trade Johan out for a cowboy? Where was Johan at now? What the hell was going on around here!?

I shook that off and turned my attention back to the woman in front of me. She'd only been about 14 the last time I'd seen her, and she'd aged well. She was maybe two inches shorter than me, her dark hair flowing down her back all the way to her hips. Word of advice to all the girls reading this: Red high heels aren't exactly a good choice on the beach. Yet, somehow, Rei made it work, along with a red sleeveless dress that went down to her knees and a matching purse. She was standing there looking like a model, making me wonder if she'd gone into that after graduation.

She smiled at me, looking a lot less excited than she usually did. She didn't even try to pounce me in a hug, which wasn't normal for her. Granted, it was a welcome change. She was a lot less unnerving when she wasn't lunging at me all the time. "Hi, Judai. How are you?" she asked.

Judai. Rei had just called me Judai. Not Judai-sama, like she always had before. Weird.

"Uh, I'm okay," I said, feeling a bit awkward at having just come crawling out of a construction site. I mean, who does that? Sleeping in a construction site isn't even safe! "What about you?"

This was embarrassing.

Rei's expression lit up, which told me that she was still in there somewhere. She sounded perky when she answered, "Pretty good, actually! Thanks for asking! So? Word on the street's that you've got yourself a stalker. Anything I can do to help?"

She didn't even try to touch me then. She knew about Ai but didn't sound angry or jealous, and she didn't flat-out tell me to be her boyfriend to get out of this mess. She wasn't even calling me by her usual title! Surely Jim wasn't the type of guy who'd bring her here without telling her what I "needed" a girl for. So she had come to help, but wasn't acting like she was interested in me. Was this really the same Rei? She was acting totally different!

Well, maybe she'd just grown up. Admittedly, if Rei had outgrown her own stalker tendencies, it could work out... Asuka was already taken, and I didn't exactly want to stay on that island forever.

Couldn't hurt to ask.

"Uh... That depends... Are you single?" I asked, feeling awkward.

This was, apparently, hilarious. Yubel burst out laughing. Admittedly, she had a couple of really good reasons. First, I'd just come damn close to asking Rei out, and she was another known stalker, having crept into the Kaiser's room disguised as a boy before she decided to switch over to me. Second, she did match Kenzan's description of a date to find in the morning perfectly. Tall, attractive, and a good duelist.

Come to think of it, had Kenzan figured that Rei would be here by then? Had he seen her recently? Either way, Yubel clearly thought I was desperate, going for my first stalker just to get away from my worse stalker. That, or she thought I was completely stupid.

Rei blinked, looking confused instead of excited. She seemed like she couldn't believe I'd asked that. Maybe she had grown up. "What?"

The cowboy stepped forward, getting between Rei and me, putting a hand to his chest as he demanded, "And what am I? Chopped liver? I didn't go through all this here trouble for nothin', ya know."

...Okay, why did he sound offended? Was I supposed to know him?

I just looked at him for a second, totally lost and wondering if I had a male stalker now, too, before I asked, "Who are you?"

Jim grinned a bit, as if he already knew. Was he in on the joke? Did Jim just run into an old friend of his and decide to bring him into this? Wasn't it bad enough that Natsuko had called his sister and best friend in to help with this mess? Or Asuka bringing her near-perfect boyfriend along? Was there a reason all my friends seemed to think it was a good idea to keep bringing total strangers into my problem? And would I ever run out of questions?

Well, that last one was easy to answer—probably not. I mean, look at the weird crap that was going on all around me.

"Well?" Jim asked, teasing his cowboy friend. "Who are you, mate?"

The cowboy still sounded offended when he answered, "Aw, come on! Ya seriously don't recognize me, partner?" He put a hand to his chin, sweating, as he added, "Well, I guess ya wouldn't, all things considered."

Yeah, no duh! I didn't know any cowboys with deep voices! He sweat, rubbing his head as he looked to the left, then the right. What was his deal? Was I seriously supposed to recognize somebody I'd never met? And what was he looking for, exactly?

Then he showed how nuts he was—he lunged at me, saying, "Come here!"

He grabbed my shoulders and dove back under the tarp with me. We landed with me lying on my back, a crazy cowboy on top of me.

Yep, I had a guy for a stalker now. Great.

Rei's POV

Well, that was confusing. What on Earth was Johan doing!? I knew they were close, but were they really that close? If so, what was I even doing here? If Judai already had a boyfriend, why did he need a girlfriend? Was that spell really so picky that it didn't acknowledge same-sex relationships? That wasn't exactly fair.

I turned a stunned look on Jim, hoping he could tell me just what was going on here. "What was that about?"

I heard nothing more than Judai finding out exactly who had pounced him before the two started whispering, too quiet for me to make out anything else. Jim, for his part, just looked amused, as if this were an interesting show.

Judai's POV

The first thing my newest stalker did after dragging me back in was get off me and kneel beside me instead. Okay, that was reassuring. Maybe he wasn't a new stalker. He just really wanted some privacy, for some reason.

The cowboy reached into a black deck box strapped around his waist, one I hadn't seen earlier because of the guns, and pulled out a deck. Silently, he handed it to me. I took the deck, totally lost, then looked through it. Crystal Beasts. But...those were a one-of-a-kind deck that only belonged to one duelist, and he wasn't a brown-eyed, freckled cowboy. Wait a minute, Johan had been dragging Jim and Rei around in Utah... Johan said he couldn't come back... This cowboy knew Jim...

Oh, geez, this cowboy wasn't a cowboy at all!

"...Johan!?"

He raised a finger to his lips in a hushing gesture, his expression serious. "Shh! Not so loud! You want me to get caught?"

I gave his outfit a once-over, thinking of it in comparison to Johan's usual style, then smirked. "Nice getup."

He closed his eyes and grinned, looking proud. Either he was humoring me, or he actually liked it. "Thanks. I thought it was. Keeps me safe from Ai so long as I'm wearing it. I got the idea from this girl I met, and, well..." He rubbed his head and blushed, looking off to the side.

...Was that look what I thought it was? Johan met a girl he liked thanks to this insanity? Well, that was great timing. Still, Johan deserved someone who'd make him happy. I just hoped it would work out with him and his mystery girl. Hopefully she'd like him, too. Hell, hopefully they'd swapped numbers.

I started counting as Johan just sat there, thinking of his girl. Fifteen seconds later, he shook his head and got back on track, clenching a fist in his face as he said, "Point is, I'm back and ready to help you with whatever you need! But I'm not Johan anymore, okay?" He winked, smiling at me.

So we were back to my original question. "Then who are you?"

He held out a hand, still smiling. "The name's Jesse! Nice to meet ya, partner!"

I grinned and shook his hand, saying, "Nice to meet you, 'Jesse!'"

"Jesse" let go then and looked at me, apparently concerned. "Great. Now that that's settled, I couldn't help but notice the barrier's moved again. Care to fill me in?"

Before I could answer, Rei's annoyed voice asked, "Uh, you two about done in there, Jesse? 'Cause, if your closet games are over, I'd like to get back to what we were doing please?"

Either Jesse didn't hear, or he decided not to answer. Couldn't blame him. I mean, come on, closet games? What was she trying to say? Anyway, Johan—er, Jesse—ignored her, so I figured I might as well answer him. Who cared what Rei thought?

"Okay, so Asuka talked to me about what I overheard because, apparently, Kyle talked to her about it, and she figured out why I ran off that day, so we worked that out, and she let me stay in her room, and that got Ai suspicious when Junko woke up screaming, so Ai moved the barrier."

Ever wonder how much you can say before you need to breathe?

Jesse's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, ya were where?" he asked, stunned.

"Hello?" Rei asked, sounding like she was wondering if we even heard her.

Aw, geez, he was getting the wrong idea! I had to correct that one. Couldn't have him thinking Asuka was cheating on her dumb boyfriend, especially since Johan probably loved the guy as much as everyone else I knew.

"Yeah, but don't tell anyone," I said quietly. "I'm not sure if the others know. Besides, nothing happened."

His eyes bugged out at those words. I reexamined what I had just said, and I felt like an idiot. That...didn't come out right.

"N-nothin'—Are ya sayin' y'all were in bed together!? Aw, man! What were ya thinkin', partner? You can't go around hookin' up with—"

Crap, Johan, could you be a little louder? I think there's a chance they didn't hear you at the villa!

Rei's POV

Well, with that in mind, you can imagine what I was thinking right about then. The two had gone under there for some privacy, but I was hearing every word now! And what Johan was saying sounded totally crazy! Judai had been in bed with someone else!? Then what was I even doing here!? And why was it so wrong for Judai to be doing that? Sure, it was out of character for him and completely unexpected, considering what was going on, but Johan was acting like it was a crime!

Very much confused, I turned to Jim again, now a bit disturbed. I mean, Judai in bed with anyone just wasn't normal.

"What are they talking about, Jim?" I asked.

Judai's response just made things worse.

"Hey, I was wondering what she was doing! But we were both dressed, and she said she was just keeping me warm because I caught a cold."

Yeah, okay, that sounded too much like a defense to be anything but. And that could only mean one thing. I was wasting my time again on a guy who just wasn't interested. Seriously, why was I here? And why'd he ask me if I was single if he already had someone? Oh, this was just rude and insulting! My Judai had never been that shallow! Or maybe he had, and I just hadn't noticed. Maybe he was just interested in hot girls and hadn't liked me back then because I was a little kid!

Ooh, that man! I needed to confront him about this one ASAP. After all, if the only reason he asked me that was because I was a beautiful woman now, there was absolutely no point in staying here. I like nice guys, after all.

I lifted the tarp, catching both of them by surprised. Jesse looked at me, his eyes wide in shock, probably from his discovery. Judai looked pretty shocked, too. Well, gee, wonder why? After all, a total player caught in the act was a bit surprising, don't you think?

Judai's POV

Oh, crap. Now I'd gotten too loud. Shit.

Rei glared at me and said, "Hey. What's all this about sleeping with another girl? And you're asking me out now? What's the deal?"

She seemed mad, maybe even insulted. Aw, shit! Thanks, Johan, I totally needed more problems. She seemed to think I was cheating on my girlfriend (which I could only wish was true).

"Like I said, she claimed she was keeping me warm!" I defended myself, wanting to avoid this misunderstanding.

Rei closed her eyes, looking disappointed. As she shook her head, I got the feeling she didn't believe me. "Judai, Judai, Judai. You've definitely got a lot to learn." She opened her eyes and looked at me, a lot calmer now. Okay, so maybe she just thought I was an idiot. That I could handle. It wouldn't be the first time somebody thought that. "See, when a girl says stuff like that after climbing into bed with you, it typically means she wants you but is either too shy to admit it or has another reason not to. So, in other words, you were this close to making love with her, and you didn't even know it." She held her hand up, her thumb and index finger just millimeters apart. Then she put her hands on her hips and gave me that stern look again as she asked, "So, who was it? This other girl, that is."

Whoa, wait, did Rei just say that Asuka was seconds away from banging me? But Asuka doesn't do that! She had a boyfriend, for one thing, and she wasn't the type to trick a guy, unlike Ai! Besides, she didn't even try anything. All she did was go to sleep, holding onto me. I mean, sure, she was holding me, but that didn't mean anything! Nothing at all happened except a whole lot of snoring!

"Asuka. Who has a boyfriend, so don't go getting my hopes up, Rei," I said, wanting to defend my friend from that unfair accusation.

Rei started, her eyes popping out of her head like Johan—er, Jesse. Even Jim looked startled. "Y-you didn't! Oh, Judai!" Another glare from Rei, along with a scolding finger in my face. "Shame on you! And you knew this, too!? That just makes it even worse! Why, if that had been me, I'd—"

Great, we were back to the "Judai's a dirty, rotten pervert with no morals" attitude. I shook my head, not happy at the accusation. It was almost as bad as having my friends say I'd betrayed them in Dark World. I mean, come on! That wouldn't have been fair to Asuka! Sure, I liked her, but she was happy with Kyle! I didn't have any right to go messing that up!

"Rei! That's not what was going on! Okay?" I cut her off.

I just wished everyone would stop misreading every move I made, especially considering I hadn't made that move! Well, at least Jesse would believe me.

He sweat, looking awkward. Sounding concerned and gentle, he started, "Uh, partner, not to be rude, but—"

Wait, did he agree with her? Okay, so what was I supposed to do? Jump out of the bed and insist that one of us sleep on the floor? Asuka had needed rest that night, too, so that wouldn't have helped either of us! She'd have kept fighting me over it!

"Ugh..." I put a hand to my head, sick of this misunderstanding. "Just cut it out, alright!?"

At least Jim wouldn't jump me, I hoped. He didn't look too happy with this conversation, and I was hoping it was because he understood what I was trying to say.

"They've got a point, mate," Jim said, solidifying this misunderstanding as a cause for problems between me and my friends. I mean, if the ones who hadn't turned on me after Dark World thought I'd messed up, how would the others react if they heard it? "I mean—"

I didn't want to hear it. I got out of that construction site and ran off. Clearly they didn't know Asuka or me if they were thinking that was some kind of perverted, cheating action. Asuka wasn't interested in me, anyway. That wasn't even fair! And I wasn't the one who told her to get in bed with me!

Rei yelled angrily after me, "Judai! Come back here! Hey!"

Yeah, like I was going to go back and get yelled at for something I hadn't had any say in that had been completely platonic.

Jim's POV

Alright, I suppose that puts it into perspective. Figures Judai'd think that. He always has been naive.

Either way, I'd just heard that Asuka had made Judai sleep in the same bed as her. Admittedly, he did look a little under the weather, as if he was getting over something. But was that really why Tomorrow-Girl had been sleeping with him? Given how she'd once felt about Judai, I doubted it. And Judai was really upset now because of it. At the time, I didn't know exactly why, so I didn't know what to do about it.

Rei stamped her foot, glaring after Judai. I thought it was pretty brave of her to stamp her high heels into the sand on this beach. "Man. That guy. Come on. We better go talk to Asuka. She's got some serious nerve, taking advantage of him like that." She gave a humph and started storming off toward the villa.

So many mounting problems, I wasn't sure which ones were worse. Judai was upset again; Rei was about to get up on Asuka for behaving that way; Asuka did do that, even though she claimed she was happy with Kyle; and then there was Johan's crazy plan.

That deserves some attention because that was a major concern of mine right about then. He wouldn't tell me exactly what he was planning, which made me worry that it wasn't exactly legal. From the little he had said about it, my worries only grew worse. He mentioned something about giving Ai a taste of her own medicine. She was a stalker and a rapist. Now you know why I was worried! There were enough problems on this island without Johan deciding to become a raping stalker, too!

Even worse, those were just the newest problems. There was also the stalker love triangle debacle with Manjoume, Haruko, and Fuyuko. There was Sho's hatred of Asuka. And, the last I'd heard, Asuka hated Judai and he had found out. With that in mind, what were the two of them doing sharing a bed? From what Johan had told me about that mess, it had sounded like Judai had been on the verge of suicide!

The more I thought about it, the more dodgy the whole thing felt. Even Judai sleeping in a construction site made no sense.

Jesse gave me a serious yet guilty look. I could imagine why. After all, he was here to help Judai, but his plan wouldn't let him do that in one of the usual ways. Jesse didn't know any of us, after all, so there was no reason for him to go near Judai. He planned on going it alone in dealing with the Ai issue directly, which left the rest of us to deal with Judai's issues. Needless to say, that meant I'd most likely be carrying all the weight, considering how the other blokes in our group felt. None of them even knew half of what was going on with Judai since Dark World, so they weren't likely to understand now without a rather lengthy explanation.

"Well, good luck with that, partner," Jesse said. "I'm gonna go put my plan into motion. See y'all around!" With that, he ran off toward the resort, waving back at me with a sad smile.

And now I was left with a problem. Judai was alone and upset, but I couldn't possibly begin to help without finding out what was going on in the first place. There wasn't anyone else who could try to help Judai right now, though, so that left me in a tight spot. It wasn't like I could just call someone up and ask them to go after Judai, after all. Why did I always get stuck in these situations?

Thinking about it logically, I figured Judai was never alone anymore since he'd fused his soul with Yubel. With that in mind, I decided to trust her to take care of him while I went to the villa to try and get some answers. After all, I couldn't help Judai without knowing what was going on. And so, I left Judai alone once again, hoping this wouldn't be a mistake, while I followed Rei and tried to get to the bottom of things.