"Come on, spill it!" Jaden could tell that something had been weighing on Syrus all day, he just couldn't tell what. But whatever it was, he figured it was related to the incidents of missing duel disks around campus.
"You know the west river, right? Over by the main bridge?"
"Yeah… what about it?"
"Well… there's this bully who hangs out over there- Ah! So I hear! And he forces you to duel him. Uh… so I'm told."
"Yeah… and?"
"And, if you lose, his gang takes your duel disk away!"
Jaden was still unconvinced. Something about Syrus' face told him there was more to the story. He could just see it. Having known him for over a year now, he was able to read his face pretty accurately.
"What else d'ya know? Come on."
"I'm just tellin' ya what I heard! He might not even exist. For all I know, this guy is just a myth. The big, ugly musclehead."
Jaden stopped for a moment to observe his friend. When he stopped paying attention to his face, he focused on the rest of his body for a clue. That's when he noticed something more alarming.
"Hey, where's your duel disk?"
Syrus gasped, and stood frozen in place.
"Ah! Well…"
...
"Hold it right there, civilian!"
Syrus was stopped by an intimidatingly large male standing in the center of the bridge. He paused, then cocked his head to the side.
"Um… hi? Can I help you?"
He finally opened his eyes to stare him down.
"DRAW YOUR DUEL DISK!"
"What?!"
"Ya heard me!" Five other students, all of them in Ra Yellow, came up behind him. Now that he had others to compare him to, this new student was also clearly in Ra Yellow, his uniform albeit ripped and off color. "If you wanna cross this bridge without bein' beat up, then ya gotta face me, first!"
"Oh yeah? Fine! I can take you!"
"Alright, pipsqueak." He opened his own duel disk on his broad arm. "Just one stipulation: if I win, I get to keep ya duel disk!"
"What?" Was this guy seriously threatening to steal his duel disk if he lost…? "That can't be allowed!"
"Pfft! Tell that to the thirteen other people who challenged me!"
He opened his duel disk.
"Get your game on!"
"State your name, civilian!"
"Syrus Truesdale! And who do I have the displeasure of speaking to?"
"Hassleberry! Codename: Tyranno!"
Later that night, Syrus came to his dorm room in bruises. Jaden was fast asleep, and Chazz didn't bother enough to notice. He groaned, rolling onto the bed.
"Bout' time you came back, slacker," Chazz yawned. His voice wasn't in a whisper, but it was quiet enough as to not wake Jaden. "Did ya hear that some kid's boxers got hung up on the flag pole today? Third one this week."
He groaned. He didn't just hear it. He knew all about it...
...
"Sy! Did you duel this guy and lose?"
Syrus frowned, and finally gave in to the humiliation.
"...yes! And he took my lunch money, too!"
"In that case… I say we take the long way home."
Of course. There was no way Jaden would ever turn down an enticing offer for a duel! Syrus was pretty scared for him. Although he never by any means doubted Jaden's capabilities as a duelist, this Hassleberry guy was big. And terrifying. Even if Jaden had won, what was stopping him and his gang from beating them up anyway? They were definitely larger than them.
Although Syrus was focused on the fight, there was another thing that was on his mind throughout the match. A deep part inside him was excitedly reveling in the revenge that Jaden was about to dish out on his behalf. And, as expected, he won! Hassleberry was defeated in less than a half hour, and they could finally put the incident behind them, forgetting about each other's existence.
Or so he thought…
...
It was now lunchtime the day after Hassleberry moved in. Syrus opened one of his eyes to glare at him when he came to sit down.
"Really," he questioned. "You just waltz into our room uninvited and now you're coming to sit with us, too?"
"Sure," he quickly replied. "Sarge is gonna be sittin' here, so I might as well, too! I'm gonna be his wingman, after all!"
"Sarge…? Are you talking about Jaden?" Hassleberry quickly nodded in response. "Well, I'll have you know, I'm his best friend, so don't get your hopes up too high."
"Heh! You won't be for long with your duelin' skills, soldier."
Syrus was immediately ready to shoot back a response when Jaden appeared just in the nick of time.
"Hey guys! Hassleberry! You sitting with us now?"
"Yup!"
Syrus opened his mouth to object, but was interrupted by Jaden in an instant.
"Cool!"
He grumbled a little. Did Jaden seriously forget the previous day so quickly? Or did he just not care? He nudged him a little and leaned into his ear.
"Jaden," he mumbled, "are you sure this is a good idea…?"
He smiled.
"Of course, Sy. Why wouldn't it?"
His mind immediately went to thoughts of pointing out he literally beat him up, among other things! But, unwilling to cause a scene, he sighed. Amidst their conversation, Hassleberry had already introduced himself to both Bastion and Alexis. It looked like he was already acclimated into their group of friends.
This was going to be a long year...