I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or anything created by Kazuki Takahashi. This work of fiction is just for fun.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Mental talk with Duel Spirits"

"Announcements/ messages"

. . . - flashbacks/ what if's?

Authors Note: Hey guys! Sorry for the slight delay in uploading, my co-worker got sick so I had to take over all of her work and I've had barely any time so write.

Now, let's get a few things straight because this is getting ridiculous:

1. First off, guys, I appreciate you supporting me, but please don't antagonize the people who are for some reason really ticked off about fanfiction. If they don't have anything worthwhile to say, be it good or bad, they'll be ignored by me. And contrary to what you may think when you read that, I do take criticism, it just has to be actual criticism and not just insults.

I really really didn't want to do this, but I'll be moderating the guest reviews because well you saw why and I've also deleted the argument from the reviews... BUT I still encourage you guys to review, it will show up on the review section! This is solely because I don't want anything like this to happen again. If you guys wanna talk smack to each other, there are PM's for that and not turning my review section into a salty YouTube comment section.

2. It's written right there at the top of every chapter. "This work of fiction is just for fun", and that's what we're having here, so it shouldn't be taken seriously. Honestly, it's been a blast writing this and apparently you guys are enjoying it as well (most of you at least).

I'm gonna say it if it wasn't obvious. This is actually the first time I've written something like this and the only way I'll get better is through trial and error, so I won't be deleting or abandoning my story.

I started this on a whim because it seemed like fun and I wanted to express my love for this series. Which in my eyes is what fanfiction is. A way for the fans to show their love for the franchise they adore. Also, this is fanfiction, anything goes as long as the author can imagine it. From Jaden suddenly becoming a woman because of Yubel (which is one of my favorites) to Kaiba having the hots for Joey.

And honestly, if you don't like it, why are you still reading? When I don't like a fic, I just stop reading it and move on. Why should I start bullying them because it isn't appealing to me when it clearly is to a whole bunch of other people?

3. And lastly, this is more of a promise than anything else. A guest review mentioned that there are a lot of unfinished fics here, which I never really realized. So, I'm promising it here that I'll go through with this to the end. Yes, I'll try to make all 4 seasons! I have some ideas for season 3 and 4, so we'll see how it goes.

And that's it with my rant. Thank you all for the support and I'll see y'all at the bottom. Enjoy!

It was early in the morning, so early in fact that the sun wasn't even up yet. But there was one person who was, Alexis Rhodes. Last night's events gave her a lot to think about. Now that she knew where and how her brother disappeared, she wanted even more answers. But, she also knew that it was out of her control. She just has to keep looking.

She sighed as she wandered across the docks. 'Maybe more sleep would have helped more rather than an early stroll?'

As she approached the lighthouse, she could make out a lone figure standing there. She squinted her eyes to try and see who could be up this early only to realize it was none other than Zane Truesdale.

"Zane?" She asked in surprise as she approached and stood next to him. "What are you doing here?"

Zane glanced at her before looking back over the ocean. "Nothing, I just wanted to be alone."

"You know, with your little brother here, I thought you'd be less of a loner, not more."

"That's because my brother doesn't belong here." Zane stated bluntly and began to leave, leaving a very shocked Alexis staring at his back.

It was later in the morning when a truck filled with security guards pulled up to the Slifer Dorm. Which caused Professor Banner to exit his room due to all the noise.

"What's going on?" He asked lazily as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Why are you kids making all this noise this early?" He looked up and saw the guards run up the stairs. "The Disciplinary Action Squad? They only show up when a student is in serious trouble, and they're heading straight for Jaden's room!" He realized as he saw them go straight to the last room on the second floor.

Jaden was peacefully sleeping in his new room. It was surprising how much space there was once you removed the extra beds and desks. The room only had one desk, a dresser, a double sized bed and it still had the kitchenette in it. Honestly it was quite homely and spacious.

Jaden was jolted awake by a loud and hard knock on the door.

"Open up this instant or we will knock this door down!"

Jaden got up and groaned. "For fucks sake! You and what army exactly?" He asked as he walked towards the door.

"The Disciplinary Action Squad's army!"

He opened the door only to see a group of people in dark uniforms. The woman at the front, who Jaden presumed was their superior, fixed him a hard glare. "Jaden Yuki, you are under campus arrest!"

"Campus arrest?" He raised an eyebrow. "Why? What have I done?"

"You will find out during the interrogation. Now get dressed!"

Jaden was currently sitting in a dark room with giant TV screens in front of him. On the screens were each of the Dorm headmasters, a few of the other teachers, the Chancellor and the leader of the DAS.

"Expulsion?!" He asked with a shocked look.

"That's what I suggest." The DAS woman replied. "You trespassed into the Abandoned Dorm which is strictly forbidden for all students. An anonymous letter from one of our faculty members confirmed it, and you must be punished to set an example for the rest of the students!"

At that moment from another monitor Crowler began speaking all too cheerily. "I agree! He should be expelled! There's no room for troublemakers here."

Jaden frowned and stood up. "Wait, so I don't get to say anything? What type of screwed up system is this?"

"I believe that behind every action there's a reason." Miss Fontaine spoke up. "I'd like to know why he went there before we decide what happens next."

"Yes, I agree with Fonda." Banner nodded his head. "Jaden wouldn't do something like this without a reason."

Jaden smiled appreciatively at his teachers. He knew Professor Banner would defend him no matter what, but he was shocked to see that Miss Fontaine seemed to be on his side as well.

Jaden sat back down. "There was a very good reason as to why I was there. A female student and a good friend of mine was kidnapped by a guy named Titan in order to lure me there to duel him."

"Titan?" Sheppard gasped. "He's a mercenary sought after by the police, how did he get here?" Everyone looked shocked as well, a well-known criminal here on the island?

"I went there to save her, but in the end he managed to escape." Jaden finished. He had to lie at the end. They'd think he was crazy if he said he got trapped in the Shadow Realm.

"I'll investigate how Titan managed to get on the island without anyone knowing." Sheppard informed him. "But, while you did it for a noble deed, you still entered forbidden territory."

There was a lull in the conversation as everyone was wondering how to proceed with this. That is until they heard a commotion outside the room Jaden was in.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?"

"Out of my damn way or I'll bust the door down with you acting as a battering ram!" The door suddenly swung open and Erina entered the room, angry and out of breath.

Jaden stared at her in shock. "Rina? What are you doing here?"

"Syrus… overheard and called… about you… in trouble…' She said as she tried to catch her breath.

As she caught her breath, Erina looked at the shocked teachers. "What the hell is going on? Why is he here?"

After a calm explanation by Chancellor Sheppard as to why Jaden was here, she scowled. "This is ridiculous, he's being punished for doing a good thing!" She shot them a glare and crossed her arms. "Well, I was with him as well, so whatever happens to him, happens to me!"

The teachers were caught by surprise with this information. The anonymous letter didn't mention anyone else besides Jaden.

"Now, Miss Kaiba, there's no-" Crowler tried to speak, but Erina cut him off instantly.

"Can it, slimeball! I don't wanna hear anything you have to say." She then looked at Sheppard. "So, what's the verdict?"

The teachers began discussing among themselves what they should do. Most of them thought this would be a cut and dry case, but with all this additional information, it made things difficult.

Sheppard was stroking his beard when an idea came to him. "How about we do this the old fashioned way? A Tag Duel. You win and get to stay, you lose and both of you are expelled."

Both students smirked. "A Tag Duel…? You got yourself a deal!" Jaden said.

"Of course." Yubel sighed as she appeared next to them. "Why am I not surprised that's how this will be decided? You two seem to have the oddest luck."

"Wonderful!" Sheppard clapped his hands together. "I will arrange for your opponents."

Crowler quickly interjected. "Oh no no, Chancellor, don't worry about that. I will take care of everything for the event."

Sheppard nodded. "Very well." He then looked at the teens. "You have one week to prepare."

Later on, after classes were over, Chumley and Syrus were at the Chancellor's office after hearing about the expulsion duel.

Sheppard leaned back in his chair. "You wanted to see me, boys?"

Chumley nodded. "Yes, sir, well, we just wanted to say that we were at the Abandoned Dorm too." Sheppard's eyes widened upon hearing this.

"Jaden had to save Alexis from that dueling mercenary." Syrus added. "They shouldn't be punished for something like this."

"It's just as they say, sir…" Alexis said as she entered the office. She heard about her friends' predicament from Crowler when he happily entered the classroom and explained why he was in a good mood.

"All they wanted to do is help me find my brother." Alexis explained. "And then Jaden had to save me because of my carelessness. I'm just as, if not more at fault as they are."

"Please, sir, can't you just let it go just this once." Syrus begged.

Sheppard felt even worse now. He was punishing them for two good deeds apparently. If it were up to him, he'd let it slide, but it was already finalized, plus… "I'm sorry, but the decision is final." He sighed as he saw his three students get sad looks on their faces. "In addition to that, Erina and Jaden called me after the meeting to tell me that, under no circumstances, am I allowed to cancel the duel."

"What?" The three of them asked in confusion.

Sheppard chuckled slightly. "Oh, don't worry yourselves over this, kids. Believe me when I say, those two are going to be just fine."

The teens nodded and left, still looking sad over the fact they couldn't help their friends.

Jaden and Erina were currently inside Jaden's room in the Red Dorm. Both of them were sitting on the floor and going through their own boxes filled with cards. They were wondering how they should approach the Tag Duel.

"Hmm… Should we use different decks?" Erina asked.

"Maybe… How about I use an Ancient Gear deck?" Jaden said with a chuckle.

Erina snorted in amusement. "I don't think that'll be a good idea… mainly because Crowler will lose his mind when he sees you play it better than he does."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Jaden laughed. "I don't need him to hate me more than he does now."

It's safe to say that both of them were treating this as just another casual duel and not an expulsion duel.

While Erina was swapping a few cards in her deck, Jaden noticed a card left to the side. It looked familiar so he picked it up. He gasped. "Chaos Form? Wait, that means…" He looked at Erina, who held up the cards in question.

"Chaos MAX…" She confirmed. "Dad gave it to me before we sailed off…"

Jaden noticed the sad tone in her voice. "Everything alright?"

She sighed as she flipped the card between her fingers. "How much do you think I resemble my dad?"

Jaden stared at her for a moment due to the strange question. "That's a weird question… Why do you ask?"

"Just answer… please."

He sighed and leaned back against the dresser. "Well… your dueling styles are pretty much the same as well as your decks. Both of you try to overwhelm your opponents with powerful dragons and other equally strong monsters." Jaden went silent for a moment, trying to formulate his true answer to her question.

"You both have the same look in your eyes." He finally said. "A cold look that says 'I don't care for your opinion or feelings', but yours is a bit different as well." Erina looked up from her card and stared at him. "You also hold compassion and care, like your mom's. You're thorough and calculated with most of what you do, just like your dad, but also let your emotions get the better of you sometimes. You are alike in some aspects, but you are different as well." He then grinned playfully. "And you can also be a stubborn idiot at times."

"Did the pot just call the kettle black?" Erina said with a chuckle.

"Maybe." Jaden shrugged with a grin on his face. "Now… Why did you ask?" He could kind of guess what all this was about as this wasn't the first she's asked something like this.

She put the card down and looked at him. "You know that a lot of people have been comparing me to him?" He nodded. "Everyone has high expectations of me. Be it my dueling career or when I'll be involved with KaibaCorp… and they also expect me to be like him."

"And that bothers you." Jaden stated since he knew her opinion on this.

Erina nodded. "Yeah… I love my dad, I really do, but I feel stuck in his shadow. To everyone I'm Seto Kaiba's daughter and not, you know… me."

"So that's why you decided to come with me to Duel Academy?" Jaden realized. "You wanted to get away."

"In a way, yeah." She admitted. "I wanted to get away from everything to figure myself out. Plus, we get a quick way into the Pro League when we graduate here."

Jaden smiled at that. As he said, thorough and calculated. "If you want to take it a step further, we could always join the Pros as a tag team."

The bluenette grinned. "Can you imagine the headlines? 'The children of Duel Monsters' greatest rivals enter the Pro League as a tag team duo!', now if that doesn't make my dad burst a blood vessel, I don't know what will!" Both teens burst into laughter. The image of a completely mortified Seto Kaiba, staring at a TV was just too funny for them.

Jaden wiped a tear that formed from all the laughter. "Priceless." He said before he got a serious look. "Alright, I have two last questions. Did you tell your parents this? And what does this card have to do with any of this?"

"Well you know I run everything by you first." Erina simply said which caused Jaden to nod his head. It was true, he is the first to know before anyone else. "As for your other question… Well, it's another thing that makes me similar to him and it just… makes me feel even more stuck in his shadow."

Jaden got a sympathetic look on his face as he heard that. She had a lot to live up to… and so did he, but not nearly as much. "I think I get how you feel." He said. "You have big shoes to fill and the pressure from everyone else to follow in your dad's footsteps is too crushing, so you ran away in hopes of finding what you really want to do." Erina's eyes widened as she stared dumbfounded at him. "I'm sure your parents don't want you doing something that won't make you happy, so you should tell them… Also, why think of the card as a chain that keeps you in his shadow?" He pulled out his Winged Kuriboh and showed it to her. "Think of it like my Winged Kuriboh. A bridge that connects me to my parents, and knowing that no matter where I am or what I'm doing, they are there to support me."

Erina snapped out of her stunned state. "Well look at you giving sagely wisdom." She playfully said as she lightly kicked his foot that was outstretched. "But, you're actually right." She picked up the card and smiled at it. Her dad did always show his love for her in odd ways. Maybe this was one of those times? "It doesn't have to be my chain, but my wings." She then looked up at Jaden. "Since when did you become so good with internal conflicts?" She asked with a chuckle.

"What can I say…" He casually shrugged. "I had a great therapist… plus, Yubel is always there to knock some sense into me." He said with a chuckle.

Erina just shook her head and went back to work on her deck. She felt much better now that she got that off her chest. Still, she knew she had a long road ahead of her and the first step is to talk to her father about this.

After a while, the door opened revealing Syrus, Alexis and Chumley. "Jaden!" Syrus exclaimed as they entered the room. "We're sorry, we couldn't convince Sheppard to call off the duel."

Erina and Jaden stared at them in confusion, wondering why they would do something like that. "Why would you do that?" Jaden asked in genuine confusion.

"Yeah, I mean, we appreciate the concern, but there was no need for you to do that." Erina said.

Syrus looked at them as if they were insane. "Are you guys nuts?! You're being threatened with expulsion for doing good!"

"Aren't you guys upset about it?" Chumley asked.

Both of them shrugged. "Not really." Erina said. "We did technically trespass even if we did do good in the end… plus we told Sheppard that we want the duel."

"Yeah and besides…" Jaden grinned. "This will be a fun challenge for us! We haven't Tag Teamed in ages."

Alexis sighed. "It's scary how calm you both are… you do realize that whoever Crowler gets for this duel will be top ranked?"

"Eh…" Erina shrugged. "Jaden and I have dueled all kinds of Pros, so whoever Crowler brings won't be a big deal."

Syrus sighed in defeat. "Well I guess if you guys are so confident you'd win." He smiled widely. "We just have to believe in you as well."

"Totally!" Chumley nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, I have seen how both of you duel." Alexis said with a smile. "So I'll believe in you as well!"

"There you go, that's the spirit!" Erina cheered. While worry was still present in their minds, it was overwhelmed by the confidence they had in Erina and Jaden to win no matter who their opponents were.

"Let's see if I got anything good." Syrus said to himself as he sat alone on one of the many tables in the card shop. It had been a few agonizing days for him. Even though he believed that Jaden and Erina would win their upcoming duel, that didn't stop him from worrying about it. What if they misplayed? Or their opponents pulled out a surprise combo and got the upper hand? He couldn't bear it if his friends were expelled from school! So, he figured why not open a few card packs to get his mind off all the worrying? Maybe he could pull that card he wanted?

"No way!" He gasped and stood up. "I got it! I actually got it!" He giddily exclaimed as he held up the card. "I gotta tell Jaden!" He said and began to run out of the shop.

As he rounded the corner in the hall, he unexpectedly bumped into someone. Syrus fell on his rear and was about to apologize to the person he slammed into, but he just stared wide eyed when he saw who it was.

It was his brother Zane.

"Zane?" He squeaked out in a small voice. He looked away due to his brother's intense stare. He could never hold eye contact with Zane, every time he tried, he always faltered under his judgmental eyes.

"Syrus…" Zane replied in his usual monotone voice. The silence that followed was crushing for Syrus. It was so uncomfortable for him that he wished to disappear right on the spot.

"Why are you still here?" His brother's sudden question caused Syrus to snap his head in his direction and stare at him in shock. "I know mom and dad don't understand, but I thought you knew better."

"W-what are you talking about?" Syrus stammered out.

"You don't belong here." He said instantly. "You know that as well, so why are you wasting your time by being here?" Zane then walked around him, but stopped to say one final piece of advice for his little brother.

"Just leave."

Syrus just sat there on the ground, unshed tears burning his eyes. He wanted to ignore his brother's insults, but he was right. He didn't deserve to be here. He wasn't smart and his dueling skills were pathetic. He was small and scared from almost everything. His friends will probably replace him when they find out they can do better than him.

He picked himself up from the ground, not bothering to clean off the dirt from his clothes. He ran, he wanted to get as far away as possible, but… he bumped into someone else. Fearing that it was Zane again, he kept looking down at his boots.

"Whoa there, Sy." He heard Jaden's voice as he grabbed him by the shoulders so he didn't fall. He looked up and saw that alongside Jaden were of course Erina and Alexis, who both looked very concerned.

"Hey, what happened, Sy?" Jaden urged him.

"Nothing!" He suddenly shouted as his tears finally fell. "Just… My brother and I had a disagreement." He said as he tried to wiggle his way out of Jaden's grip, but to no avail.

"Come on, Sy, you can talk to us-"

"You don't understand!" He yelled. "None of you have a brother who doesn't care about you! You don't feel like a failure and a waste of space! You- you just don't get it!" He wrestled out of Jaden's grip and ran in the opposite direction.

The three of them just stared at Syrus' retreating form in disbelief. "I don't get it." Jaden said. "Syrus is so much better than he thinks he is. But I guess getting treated as if you were nothing by your big brother would kill all of your confidence and self esteem."

Erin nodded as she wholeheartedly agreed with him, the way Syrus has been treated by his brother was unforgivable.

"Uhm, Jaden…" Alexis said, getting his attention. "You know his brother actually goes to this school, right? You've probably heard of him."

"Nope." He shook his head. "You?" He asked Erina.

She too shook her head. "Me neither… who is he?"

"Are you both kidding?" Alexis exclaimed in shock. "Third year Obelisk and the best duelist here? He's known as the Kaiser of Duel Academy? Zane Truesdale?"

"Oh!" Erina nodded. "Yeah, I've heard of him. He's Syrus' big brother? They're so different…" She muttered.

"Yeah… and it's all thanks to Zane." Jaden said. "That's not how you should treat your younger sibling. You're supposed to be there for them to give them your support and even if they fail, you pick them up, lift their head high and tell them they still did a good job."

"Yeah, but…" Alexis sighed. "Jaden, don't get involved. This is their problem."

"But he's right, you know?" Erina said. "Even a guy like my dad, who's been called cold, cruel and emotionless, hasn't treated his little brother badly, ever." She then sighed. "And besides, guess what this idiot is about to do."

"I wanna duel him!" He said as he punched his open palm. "You always learn what you need from a duel."

Alexis sighed. She's known Jaden long enough to recognize the look of absolute determination he gets and that there is nothing you can say to stop him. "Well, if you're so adamant about it, I could ask him for you? He's one of Atti's friends so we talk from time to time."

Jaden grinned upon hearing this. "You're the best, Lex!"

"I'm not promising anything though." She added. "Zane is kind of a difficult person, so there's no guarantee he'll agree."

He nodded. "Giving it a try is more than enough."

Alexis walked across the docks, heading to the usual place Zane hung out at. The lighthouse. And loe and behold, there he was, staring at the ocean. Zane heard footsteps and glanced to the side before looking back at the setting sun. "Any leads on him yet?" He asked quietly.

She shook her head. "No… nothing big, except for a photo of him from the Abandoned Dorm."

Zane raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "How'd you get your hands on a photo from there?"

"Jaden Yuki found it for me." She said. "He's worried about Atti as well and promised to help me find him."

"Jaden Yuki, huh? Isn't that the kid your brother wouldn't stop talking about?" He asked as he looked back at the ocean.

Alexis smiled slightly. "That's the one. And speaking of Jaden… he's out to get you."

"Oh, what for?"

She turned to look at him. "We saw your brother earlier and he was pretty upset from whatever you two talked about. Jaden is mad about how you've been treating Syrus unlike how a big brother should."

"So what, he wants to teach me a lesson on how to be a big brother?" Zane asked as he crossed his arms.

'Well, you'd certainly benefit from one.' Alexis thought to herself. "Actually, he wants to duel you." She answered.

Zane might not have looked it, but he got very interested upon hearing that. Ever since Atticus had mentioned that Jaden is an even better duelist than he was, Zane's been waiting to get a shot at him. With the amount of ease he beat both Crowler and Chazz, he thought that Jaden might really be on his level.

He turned to Alexis. "The beach…" She blinked in confusion a few times. "If he wants to duel me so badly, tell Jaden to meet me at the beach in an hour." And with that he walked away, going to the designated spot and to mentally prepare for his duel against Jaden.

"You did what?!" Syrus shrieked in shock after hearing what Jaden had done. He'd been skulking in his room all day and had no idea what his friends had been up to. That is until Jaden barged into the room alongside Erina and said that he challenged Zane to a duel.

"I said I challenged your brother to a duel." Jaden casually repeated.

"Jaden, my brother is undefeated! He hasn't lost a duel in his life! Why would you challenge him?"

"Syrus, he treats you horribly." Jaden said. "That's not how a big brother should act. I just wanted to help you out, I want to show you that you shouldn't be afraid to stand up to him."

"It isn't worth it, Jay." Syrus shook his head. "I appreciate it, but there's no way my brother will lose and I don't want you to get humiliated!"

"Geez, calm down, Syrus." Erina finally said, getting tired of him spazzing around. "It's just a duel… it's not like his life's on the line."

Before Syrus could argue more, they all heard a knock on the door. Erina opened the door and saw Alexis on the other side.

"Jaden." She caught his attention. "I got you your duel with Zane." She said and giggled as she saw the massive grin Jaden got. While Jaden was grinning like a kid on Christmas morning, Syrus had a look of horror on his face.

"Thanks a bunch, Lex!" Jaden exclaimed happily before grabbing Alexis in a hug and spinning her around once. He put her back on the ground and sprinted out of the door… before coming back in as he realized he didn't know where he's going. "Uhm… where is he?"

Alexis was blushing up a storm from the sudden hug Jaden gave her. "Th-The beach…" She answered.

"Thanks!" He took off again, now with Chumley and Syrus following after him, while Erina approached the frozen stiff Alexis.

She leaned closer to Alexis' face and waved her hand in front of it. "Damn, a hug got you that bad?" She giggled.

Alexis jumped a bit, finding she had control of her muscles once again. "W-we should get going as well." She quickly said and began to leave.

Erina shrugged. "If you say so." She said with a smile and followed after her towards the beach.

A few minutes later, Jaden was standing on the beach with Zane across from him and the others spectating from the side.

"Before we start, I have one thing to say to you." Jaden spoke over the silence. "Zane, you absolutely disgust me with the way you've treated your little brother."

Zane just shrugged indifferently. "Whatever… Just make sure to give me a challenge." He said as they both drew their opening hands.

"Let's duel!"

Jaden: 4000

Zane: 4000

"Alright Zane, here I come." Jaden said and drew his sixth card. "I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart in attack mode!"

A tanned tribal man appeared on the field with a big sword in his hand. (ATK: 1500/ DEF: 1600)

"I place two cards face down and end my turn." Jaden said as he slipped two cards in his Disk.

"That's it?" Zane drew his card. "Alright then, I summon Cyber Dragon in attack mode!" A giant cybernetic wyrm appeared on the field next to Zane. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 1600)

"Cyber Dragons?" Jaden stared in shock.

Zane grabbed another card from his hand. "That's right, and when you have a monster on your field and I don't, I can special summon it! Now I use Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy the face down on the right!"

Jaden shielded himself as a small tornado destroyed his facedown card. "That was fast…" He muttered.

"Now I attack your Wildheart with Strident Blast!" Zane commanded. Cyber Dragon opened its mouth and shot a blue blast, destroying Wildheart.

Jaden's LP: 3400

Syrus watched silently as his friend was already on the losing side of this duel. 'I tried to tell you that Zane was good…'

Jaden pressed a button on his Duel Disk. "I activate the trap, Hero Signal!" A light shone at the sky, displaying the letter H. "Now I can summon a level 4 or lower monster from my deck and I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman in attack mode!"

The bubble hero appeared on the field. (ATK: 800/ DEF: 1200)

"And when he's alone on my field, I can draw two cards thanks to his effect." Jaden drew his cards and added them to his hand.

"Next…" Zane took another card from his hand. "I play the spell card Different Dimensional Capsule!" A strange sarcophagus appeared next to him. "This card allows me to choose any card from my deck and remove it from play. Then during my second standby phase, I can add it to my hand." Zane took out his deck and looked through it, picking the card he wanted and putting it in his pocket. Then a hologram of the card appeared and sank into the sarcophagus before it went into the ground.

"That has to be the best card in his deck." Jaden guessed. "Heh, I'm kinda excited to see what comes outta there."

'I'm not…' Syrus thought glumly. 'Because I know what's in there, and it's not gonna be pretty…'

"And with that I end my turn." Zane said. "Now, show me what you got, Jaden!"

'I better make this count.' Jaden thought as he stared at the metal dragon. 'Because Zane's good… his duel aura is massive, so he's just as good as everyone says he is… maybe even better.'

"Alright, I draw!" Jaden drew his card and added it to his hand. He then slipped a card in his Disk. "I'll start off by equipping Bubbleman with the equip spell, Bubble Blaster!" A giant water bazooka appeared on the water hero's shoulder as he gripped its handles. "This spell gives him an extra 800 attack points!" Jaden explained as his hero's attack rose. (ATK: 800-1600)

Jaden then placed a card on his Disk. "And I'll continue with summoning my Elemental HERO Heat!" A male hero in a yellow jumpsuit with red and white armor that fire accents appeared on the field. (ATK: 1600/ DEF: 1200)

"He gains 200 attack points for every Elemental HERO on my field." Jaden explained as his hero powered up. (ATK: 1600-2000) He then held up a card. "But, he won't be staying, because I activate Mask Change!"

A red helmet appeared in Heat's hands and he placed it over his head. A red light enveloped him and when it died down, it revealed Masked HERO Goka. (ATK: 2200/ DEF: 1800)

"Goka gains 100 attack points for each HERO in my Graveyard and with two of them there, he gains 200 points!" Jaden said as a flame aura enveloped the masked hero. (ATK: 2200-2400)

"But it's not his attack that you should be worried about." Jaden said as a grin spread across his lips. "It's his other effect! Goka, melt that dragon's plates!" Goka created a spear made out of fire and threw it at Zane's dragon. "Once per turn, I can destroy one of your monsters and you take half of its original attack as damage!" Jaden explained as the spear struck the dragon and caused a massive explosion.

Zane: 2950

"You could at least flinch a little…" Jaden muttered as he saw how unphased Zane was by the hit he took. "Maybe you need to cool off a bit? Bubbleman! You're up!" Jaden said as his water hero unleashed a stream of water from his giant water cannon, hitting Zane directly.

Zane: 1350

And just like last time… Zane didn't even twitch. "Huh… guess I was wrong." Jaden said. "I end my turn."

"What… what just happened?" Syrus asked as he was staring at shock over what transpired. "Did Jaden just take the lead?" He asked, which caused Erina to smirk a bit when she saw that Syrus looked a bit happier.

Chumley grinned happily. "Totally licious! Jaden not only took the lead, but he took most of Zane's life points!"

Zane smirked slightly. He thought that Atticus had lied about Jaden given how weak of a start he had, but it turned out he might have just been feeling him out before going all in. "Nice moves, Jaden." Zane drew his card. "With my field empty once again, I can summon another Cyber Dragon!"

An identical metallic dragon appeared next to Zane. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 1600)

"But, you know what's better than one?" Zane asked as he grabbed a card from his hand. "Two! I use the spell card, Monster Reborn and bring back the one you just destroyed!" He said as his first dragon appeared on his other side, growling at Jaden. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 1600)

"I play Pot of Greed to draw two cards." Zane drew his cards. "And just like your hero, they won't be staying for long!" He held up a card. "With Polymerization, I will unite my dragons!" His two dragons swirled away into the vortex. "Emerge, Cyber Twin Dragon!"

From the vortex emerged a twin headed dragon with massive wings and two different colored heads. One yellow and the other blue. (ATK: 2800/ DEF: 2100)

Erina was genuinely impressed by Zane. She could see that he had a plan and methods to recover if his game strategy was ruined by his opponent. 'Looks like Jaden found someone who can match up with him… and I can't wait for my turn'

"And here's the thing about my Twin Dragon, Jaden. He can attack twice!" Zane pointed at Jaden's monsters. "Which means trouble for you! Cyber Twin Dragon, attack with Double Strident Blaze!" He commanded. The twin dragon roared as it unleashed a stream of blue fire from both its mouths. The flames connected with both of Jaden's monsters, destroying Goka… but not Bubbleman.

Jaden: 3600

"What happened? Why's Jaden's monster still standing?" Chumley asked.

"Because of this…" Jaden held up his Bubble Blaster. "If Bubbleman would be destroyed by battle when he has Bubble Blaster equipped, it gets destroyed instead and I take zero damage from that battle." He explained as the water cannon exploded to pixels, lowering Bubbleman's power. (ATK: 1600-800)

"Not bad." Zane said as he slipped his cards into his Disk. "I place my last cards facedown and end my turn."

"He saved himself from taking quite a bit of damage." Alexis noted with a smile. "He always seems prepared for anything…"

"My turn!" Jaden drew and held up the card. "I activate the spell card, Spell Books from the Pot! Now we both draw three cards!" They both drew their cards and while Zane looked indifferent, Jaden smiled slightly.

"Wonder what he just drew." Erina said as Jaden grabbed two cards from his hand.

"I play Polymerization! Fusing Bubbleman with Ocean from my hand to summon a hero who is sure to make things a bit chilly." The two heroes jumped into the vortex. "Make your icy entrance, Elemental HERO Absolute Zero!"

On the field appeared a male hero clad in snow white armor, a white cape and a white helmet with what looked like a crown made of ice on it. (ATK: 2500/ DEF: 2000)

"Alright, Zero, attack his Twin Dragon!" Jaden said which confused everyone except Erina, who knew all too well what he was doing. He has done this move countless times to turn the tides when they dueled.

Zane looked perplexed over the move until he realized what Jaden's monster did. "I won't let you!" His facedown flipped over. "I stop your monster with Negate Attack!" He said as a barrier formed between the two monsters, blocking a barrage of icicles that were flying towards his Twin Dragon.

"Why'd he do that?" Syrus wondered. "Jaden's monster was weaker, so why did my brother block the attack?"

"Because of Absolute Zero's effect, Sy." Erina said. "When he leaves the field, be it by battle, card effect or anything else, he destroys all monsters on the opponent's field." She explained.

"So if that attack went through, Zane possibly wouldn't have been able to recover…" Alexis guessed

"Damn…" Jaden muttered. "I throw down two facedowns and call it a turn." He said as two reversed cards appeared in front of his feet. "Alright, Zane, gimme your best shot!"

"My best? Alright, you got it…" Zane drew his card and the capsule rose from the dirt.

"Oh no…" Syrus knew what was about to happen.

"It's been two turns since I activated my Different Dimension Capsule, and now I add the card I removed from earlier to my hand." Zane pulled the card out of his pocket and placed it in his hand. He looked straight at Jaden. "You played well, but not well enough."

"Just give me everything you got, Zane! I'm ready for it!"

"Of course you are, Jaden." A small smile spread across his lips. "You gave me a very good and fun duel. You know the difference between using a card and playing it." He glanced briefly at Syrus, then back at Jaden. "That's what makes you a good duelist, Jaden."

Jaden caught on to what Zane was doing, but still… "Just because you give me a complement, doesn't mean my opinion of you will change."

Zane shrugged as he placed a card in his Disk. "I place a card facedown." And then held up another. "And then use Double Cyclone! Removing the card I just set and one of yours!" Zane explained as two tornadoes destroyed their facedowns.

'Alright, I still have my backup…' Jaden nervously thought. It seemed like Zane might have gotten the upper hand.

"Then I play De-Fusion and split up my Twin Dragon back to the original two." Zane paused as his monster split into two. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 1600) x 2 "Next, I'll show you my strongest card! Power Bond!"

He inserted it in the Disk. "With this, I'm allowed to Fusion Summon a Machine-Type monster… and with the third Cyber Dragon that's in my hand, I summon my ultimate creature… the Cyber End Dragon!"

Everyone else watched in amazement as a giant pillar of blue light appeared behind Zane. Two massive metal wings as the light died down, revealing the rest of the dragon, three different heads attached to the same body. (ATK: 4000/ DEF: 2800)

"So that's Zane's ace monster, huh?" Erina asked no one in particular.

Zane continued his turn. "And thanks to Power Bond's magic, my dragon's attack points get doubled!" (ATK: 4000-8000)

"8000 attack points?!" Chumley gasped. "No way!"

"If this goes through, Jaden is done for…" Alexis said.

"This isn't good…" Jaden frowned.

"Hang in there, Jay!" Erina yelled. "If you survive this turn, Power Bond's downside will kick in and backfire on Zane!"

"That's right." Alexis nodded. "At the end of the turn Power Bond is used, the one who played it takes damage equal to the summoned monster's original attack!"

'Yeah, but that won't matter if you play it right.' Syrus thought. 'And Zane never misplays!'

"Prepare yourself, Jaden." Zane shouted. "Because this is the end! Cyber End Dragon, attack Absolute Zero with Super Strident Blaze!"

Jaden watched as the three headed dragon unleashed streams of blue fire from each of its heads. He smirked as he flipped his facedown over. "I activate my trap card, Hero Barrier! This stops your dragon's attack!" Jaden smirked. "Looks like it's my win since you'll take the 4000 points of damage from Power Bond's effect."

"Clever move…" Zane smirked. "If it wasn't for this that is…" Zane pointed to his facedown card. Jaden's eyes widened as it flipped over.

Seven Tools of the Bandits…

"I pay 1000 life points to negate your trap card, Jaden!"

Zane: 350

Jaden watched as his trap was negated and destroyed. The blue flames connected with his hero, obliterating him and engulfing him as well. Jaden stood tall with his head held high as his life points dwindled away.

Jaden: 0

"Jaden!" Syrus and Chumley yelled.

"I can't believe it… he lost…" Alexis said in surprise.

But Erina was the most shocked out of all of them. The only people who have won against Jaden in the past few years were her father, Yugi and herself. She never expected to see someone else come and achieve what very few have.

"I might've lost the duel, Zane, but you are the true loser here." Jaden wasn't phased by the fact that he lost. He knew his streak would end sooner or later. He proved his point. And even if Zane realized it halfway throughout the duel, it wouldn't even matter if he didn't apologize to his brother and change his ways.

Zane said nothing as he turned away, turning his head and meeting his brother's eyes. He smiled slightly before turning away and walking off, with Alexis following after him.

"So… what do you think?" Alexis asked as she walked alongside him.

"He's good." Zane smiled slightly. "Even better than what Atticus said… And it seems Syrus has found some good friends…" He added quietly, happy for his little brother. Alexis noticed this and smiled as well.

Jaden watched them leave, before turning to Syrus, who was still staring with wide eyes. "See, Sy? It isn't scary to stand up to him. And if you ever need someone to talk to, we're all here." Chumley and Erina nodded in agreement.

"Yeah." Syrus nodded quickly. "And you two better not get yourselves expelled!"

"Don't worry about that, Syrus." Erina wrapped an arm around Jaden. "Me and Lover Boy over here already got a plan for that."

Jaden's face turned as red as his jacket. "L-Lover Boy? What are you talking about?" He asked as he tried to wiggle his way out of her grip.

"Oh, don't you dare lie to me!" She poked him in the chest. "I recognize that look you gave Alexis."

"Look? What look!? It's all in your head!" He squirmed.

"Plus, you never give me those types of hugs." She continued with her teasing. "And I'm pretty sure you wanted to kiss her too…" She innocently added.

"I-I-I… I gotta go!" He shouted as he finally freed himself and began to run.

"Oh no, you're not getting away from me that easily!" Erina yelled and ran after them, leaving a very amused Syrus and Chumley behind who decided to go after them.

Jaden was currently at the Slifer Cliff, dangling his feet over the edge as he watched the starry sky and blasted some music on a pair of headphones. He leaned back on his hands and let out a sigh. Today had been really exhausting… mainly due to the relentless onslaught of teasing he got from Erina. She kept teasing him about Alexis, but he didn't like her! Or did he…? He was never good at these kinds of things.

'Whatever…' Jaden thought to himself as he decided to ignore these feelings and just let his mind relax. He smiled as he stared at the sky. There were a lot more stars visible here on the island than in Domino City. He liked to stargaze during warm nights like these. He and Mana would just lie down in the backyard and just point out which stars shone the brightest. But, even in the suburbs there weren't this many. He could clearly see the galaxy here! He closed his eyes. 'Mana would be so jealous.' Jaden thought with a smile.

He was snapped out of his musings as when felt someone tap his shoulder.

He opened his eyes only to see Alexis staring at him from above. "Hey, Lex." He smiled as he took his headphones off. "What are you doing here so late?"

"I wanted to see how you were doing." She revealed as she rubbed her upper arm. "You seemed pretty intense today."

Jaden smiled sheepishly. "Yeah… sorry about that, I'm pretty relaxed now. Wanna join me?" He asked as he patted the spot next to him.

Alexis smiled and sat down next to him, both staring silently at the sky. "You can see so many stars here on the island." Alexis said after a while.

"Yeah." Jaden said. "You like stargazing?" He asked, though he probably already knew the answer given she liked nature.

"Yeah actually, me and my grandmother used to stargaze a lot when I was younger." She recalled, smiling fondly at the memory.

"Alright, what else do you like to do?" Jaden asked as he sat up so he could look at her better.

"I don't really do much in my free time…" She smiled sheepishly. "I like to read, I guess. I'm not really that interesting… sorry."

"What are you talking about? You're plenty interesting!" Jaden reassured. "It's always fun when I hang out with you. Like right now."

"What's so fun right now?" Alexis asked in confusion.

"Well, I'm doing one of my favorite pastimes with really amazing company and we're playing a version of twenty questions." He said which made Alexis blush a bit.

"You're so strange…" She laughed. "But, I'll play along. Your favorite thing to do?"

"Outside of dueling?" He asked and received an eye roll like it was even a question worth asking. "Fishing!"

"Fishing?" Alexis laughed. Fishing was something that required silence and for you to sit in the same spot for a long time. She couldn't imagine the hyperactive Jaden fishing.

"Yeah! Most people find it boring, but it's pretty fun for me. It's also something I do to think and sort out my thoughts." Alexis noticed the brief moment of sadness that crossed his eyes, but refrained herself from asking out the fear of overstepping her boundaries.

"Favorite color?" He asked.

"Yellow." She replied. "You?"

"Red!" Jaden said with a grin.

"Of course." She giggled. "Favorite food?"

"Fried shrimp, easily!" Jaden instantly replied. "You?"

"...Mangoes." She shyly revealed.

"Mangoes?" Jaden chuckled. "Of all the foods in the world, you like a fruit the most?"

"Hey!" She elbowled him. "No judging." She said in a voice that wasn't angry, but amusing.

He grinned while rubbing his arm. "Oh, but it's alright to judge my love for fishing?"

"Well, you're weird, so yes!" Alexis teased with a grin.

"Great, now I'm getting insulted…" Jaden feigned hurt, which only caused Alexis to laugh.

The sound of her soft giggling made Jaden smile, and against his better judgment he let his mind wonder. He shouldn't lie to himself. Erina teasing him about it was one thing, but Yubel was connected to him and knew what he felt. The warm feeling that spread across his body and the fact his heart always began to beat like a drum whenever she was around confirmed it for him. He liked her. The first girl he's ever liked romantically. He wanted to laugh at that and the fact that Atticus had been right, he'd fall for her in no time, but he couldn't help but feel a bit sad.

Who would like a guy like him?

Sure, on the surface he was funny, energetic and didn't let things bother him, but look underneath that and you'll see so many issues. Scarring past trauma that still lingered to this day, restless nights and the times he did rest, he woke up sweating and screaming from nightmares. And if that wouldn't turn them away, the living cosmic force that was harbored inside him would make any person think he was a freak and run away. That's the last thing he wanted... Alexis to be scared or repulsed by him.

People always told him that he's allowed to be selfish from time to time, but this wouldn't be one of those times. He promised himself that he won't let these feelings get the better of him and ruin what they had right now. He was content with just being friends with her…

Even if it did hurt his heart...

Boy did I take a risk with the end bit.

Now, about Erina's little moment... an identity crisis combined with high expectations came to me the moment I decided she's Kaiba's kid. It honestly made a lot of sense to me; the kid of the most powerful and influential man in the world would feel stuck in the shadow of her dad's greatness. I think I did a well enough job with it? I don't know, it's the most I could make with my current abilities. You guys can let me know.

It also made sense for Jaden to be on Zane's case about being a bad brother.

And a heads up! I don't know when the next chapter will come since I'll be going on vacation in about a week, but I'll still try to write a bit if I have free time.

As always thanks for the support, please review and I'll see y'all next time!