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?
Author's Note: Sup y'all, we back at it again! And oh boy was this one hard for me. Don't know why to be honest. But anyway, let's get some reviews out the way:
thedarkpirateking: Don't worry, I won't get them together without getting some more fluff in. After all this chapter is entirely made for that reason. Plus I've decided to do their relationship a bit differently from what most people have done.
Lord Destroyer: Glad you liked it and good question. I'm still trying to figure things out for the copycat duel. I have one idea that is simple and believable, but I'll see if I can figure something else. As for Jaden's adoption and how it happened... well you'll have to wait. Given what happened and how they found him, a few more things have to happen before that gets revealed.
Wait... do some of you have expectations for me to pair Syrus up with someone? Awkward... I'm not sure I'll be doing that. But, I agree with your opinion about the whole Syrus/ Dark Magician Girl ship. I personally always found it weird how people created a whole romance from on episode where Syrus was just a big simp and kept reminding us that she's his waifu. Plus it goes against one of my favorite ships, Atem and Mana, because DMG is an extension to her. And speaking of ships, another one I like is revealed in this chapter.
Erina is off limits, lol. I'm saying it now, I've decided who'll be her significant other,so you'll see him in a future season, that's all I'm saying. But for Syrus, I'll see what I can think of. He's not exactly a likable character for me, but if y'all like him I'll try to give him something.
Nihilistic Biker Gabe: Sorry you don't like it. I know retellings aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I quite enjoy them. They show what other people would have liked to see in the series or just an idea of what it could have been and I find that interesting and entertaining to read.
I hope you enjoy this read and I'll see y'all at the bottom!
A few days had gone by since the Jinzo encounter and today was Christmas Eve. The main Academy building was abuzz with workers trying to set up everything for the festival that would open up at noon. The freshman and senior students were all looking forward to it, some out of curiosity and some because they loved it the past years.
There was also one person who was ecstatic about it, it was his favorite holiday after all. This person was none other than Jaden Yuki, who was currently in his dorm room, having a video call with his mother.
"For the last time, mom, I'm fine." Jaden tried to reassure her again. "I haven't had any nightmares recently, so don't worry, okay?"
Tea sighed in defeat. "Okay, sorry, it's just… you know I worry about you, right? First I had to accept the fact you'd be away from us when you went to Duel Academy, then your nightmares returned right before you left and I just can't help but worry about you…"
Jaden gave her a warm and apologetic smile. "I know, mom, sorry… But don't worry, if anything happens I got Yubel and Erina with me."
"Alright." She nodded. "Now, why don't we talk about something more fun, huh? How's life on the island? I'd guess it's pretty fun given that you rarely call us." She said with a bit of anger at the end.
Jaden chuckled sheepishly. "Yeah… sorry about that. It's just that I've been having a lot of fun here."
"You and Erina aren't causing too much trouble, right?"
"Well…" Jaden avoided the hard gaze of his mother. "It's not that we are actively searching for it! It just happens that we're magnets for it and it always finds us!"
"U-huh…" She didn't believe him even a little. "So, what did you two do?"
"Well… we trespassed into forbidden territory to save a friend of ours, we then got threatened with expulsion and had to duel our way out of it, and the other day we had to save some guys from an evil Duel Spirit." Jaden listed nonchalantly, while his mother gawked at him.
A bead of nervous sweat rolled down Jaden's face as his mother kept staring at him. "Oh, brother…" She sighed before laughing. "Well, I can't say you're bored there."
"Y-Yeah…" Jaden laughed awkwardly, wondering why she let him off the hook. "By the way, where are dad and Mana?"
"They're doing some last minute gift shopping. Pegasus invited everyone over to his island, so they're getting a few extra gifts." She explained.
"Really?" Jaden blinked. "Are the Kaibas going too? I know inviting the Grinch is counterintuitive, but I guess aunt Serenity will keep him from souring the mood." He joked with a grin, causing his mother to laugh.
"Be nice, Jaden." She scolded him but was still laughing. "And yes, they are going… after Serenity had to practically twist Seto's arm…"
Jaden chuckled and leaned back into his chair. "It sucks that I'll miss the usual show of uncle Seto and Joey insulting each other."
"Good. You and Erina usually add fuel to the fire." Tea remarked, once again giving her son a hard look. "Honestly, what possessed you two last time to say that Joey was only mad because his sister married Kaiba is beyond me."
"Because it's too much fun messing with them!" He argued weakly. "Alright, mom, I gotta go and get ready for this Christmas Festival."
"Oh, a Christmas Festival?" Tea smirked. "Are you taking a girl out on a date by any chance?" Tea teased sweetly.
"N-no!" Jaden stammered out and blushed a bit. "It's gonna be me, Erina and Alexis, so it's not a date, it's just three friends hanging out together!"
His mother eyed him for a few seconds before humming knowingly. Her son isn't the best liar after all. "Do you remember when I told you how your father and I got together?" She suddenly asked.
Jaden blinked in confusion. "Yeah, I think I remember it."
Tea's features softened as she recalled the memory. "It started a few months before we graduated and I flew to America for college. Him and I unknowingly started spending more time together just the two of us. And it was hard. Every time we brushed hands and every time we looked each other in the eyes, it became more and more obvious for the both of us. I wanted to never leave and he wanted to never let me go… but, we tried to ignore that feeling as much as we could." She smiled a bit. "Until we couldn't stand it anymore and didn't want to live with any regrets, so about a month before we graduated, we confessed to each other and got together, even if after a month we'd have to say goodbye. But for some reason or another, fate was on our side and we somehow managed to continue things from a distance. We talked almost daily and your father visited me every chance he got. "
Jaden nodded, a small grin spreading over his features. "Yeah, it's a very sweet story. But… what brought this up?" He asked.
His mother smiled at him. "Because there's a lesson here for you. Don't wait too long with something like this and then go on regretting it for the rest of your life because you missed your chance. We almost did. And I know it might seem scary, you take the risk of getting hurt after all, but the only way to know what will happen is to take that risk, right?"
"R-Right…" Jaden nodded. "Alright, mom, I gotta go. Love you!"
"Love you too, sweetie! And call us more often!" Tea said before ending the call.
Jaden sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "She knew. How did she know that by just looking at me?" He asked aloud.
"A mother's intuition is a powerful thing when it comes to her children, Jaden." Yubel answered as she appeared sitting on his desk.
"Well it's scary if you ask me." He answered as a shiver ran through him. He stood up and went over to his closet. "Now, what to wear…?" He asked himself as he opened it. Even if they were still on the island, Jaden wanted to wear something different, it was a holiday after all. "No… No… No…" He tossed different articles of clothing around. "Why do I even have this?" He asked himself as he stared at an ugly sweater with the Academy logo on it.
Yubel got curious and floated over to him. "Since when do you care about how you dress?" She asked as Jaden tossed a pair of black jeans on his bed.
"I've always cared… just not as much as most other people. " Jaden replied as he found his winter boots. "It's just that I've only been wearing my uniform, so I wanted to put something else on." Winged Kuriboh appeared next to Yubel and cooed. "W-What?!" Jaden gasped.
Yubel laughed. "I never thought of that. Jaden, are you doing this so you'd look good for Alexis?" She asked in amusement even though she knew the answer.
"N-No! Can't I just be doing it for myself?" Jaden asked, but faltered under their stare. "You two are the worst…" He grumbled as he pulled out a red long-sleeved shirt. "Yes…"
"See?" Yubel smiled. "Isn't it better to be honest with yourself?" Jaden just ignored her as he started to get dressed.
"Really, Jaden? You're just going to reverse the colors you usually wear?" Yubel sweatdropped as she noticed a black winter jacket hanging by the door.
"Yeah!" He grinned. "You know I gotta have red on me." Jaden got dressed and cleaned the mess he made. "And the cherry on top..." He put on a red Santa hat and flicked the little fur ball on it, making it bounce around. "Perfect!"
"You look like an idiot." Yubel commented which made Jaden laugh.
"Then it's working as intended." He replied with a grin as he went over to his jacket and put something inside the pocket. Jaden was about to call Erina to see if she and Alexis were ready when he heard a knock on the door. He went and opened the door only to see Alexis on the other side.
"Alexis?" Jaden asked in surprise.
"Hey, Jaden… and Merry Christmas." She giggled slightly when she saw the Santa hat on his head. Jaden blushed a bit when he saw how she looked. Just like Jaden, she had decided to wear something different than her uniform. She wore black boots, black jeans, a navy blue winter coat that reached just above her knees, a white sweater underneath it, a white scarf and a hat of the same color with a fuzzy ball on top.
"Merry Christmas!" Jaden said with a giddy grin as he stepped to the side. "Come in, don't stay out in the cold…" Alexis nodded and entered the room. Jaden was really glad he managed to clean up before she came. "You look really pretty by the way…" He said as he closed the door.
Alexis froze on the spot and blushed up a storm. Thankfully for her, the cold had already reddened her cheeks so it wasn't as visible. "T-Thanks… you look really good yourself." She then smirked a bit. "I never thought I'd see the day where you aren't wearing your uniform." She teased in an attempt to cool off her embarrassment.
"What can I say?" Jaden grinned cheekily and scratched his cheek. "I like my Slifer threads!" Alexis rolled her eyes. "Anyway, where's Erina? I thought that both of you would come together?"
"Err… well…" Alexis stammered. She hadn't contacted Erina at all, she pretty much got out of bed, got ready and came straight here. She couldn't really tell Jaden that she wanted to spend time with just him, could she? "I-I thought she was with you, so I came straight here."
Jaden blinked in confusion. "But… her room is right above yours? It makes more sense to check there first."
Alexis panicked inwardly. She needed a better excuse. Now! "The two of you are always together, so you can't blame me for prosuming she was already here." She argued.
"Well… I guess you have a point, sorry." Jaden rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, while Yubel and Winged Kuriboh were staring at his back with dumbfounded expressions. Both of them were wondering the same thing. Jaden couldn't be this dense, right?
A ping sound came from Jaden's PDA, so he took it out to see who messaged him.
"Hey, I won't be able to make it… mom called so I'll probably be busy for a few hours… You two go to the festival without me."
Jaden got a disappointed look on his face as he read it.
"What's wrong?" Alexis asked him as she got closer. Jaden just sighed and showed her the message. "That sucks…" She mirrored Jaden's disappointment. "So it's just going to be the two of us?"
Jaden nodded. "Yeah… if you wanna that is? It'll still be fun. Promise." He reassured her with a small grin.
"Of course I want to go." She instantly replied.
"Yes!" He cheered and went to put his jacket on… but something bugged him. Erina was really excited about going to this festival and now suddenly she can't go? Something was definitely off about that. He got another notification on his PDA.
"Now that you've shown that to Alexis… have fun and enjoy your date! ;)"
Jaden stared at the text with his mouth agape. He couldn't believe she'd do something like this. "Just as I said… a little she-devil." Yubel said with a bit of pride. "I'll be leaving you as well. So enjoy yourselves." She gave him a wink before disappearing. Jaden was shaken out of his shocked state by another message, one that made him go beet red and almost drop his phone.
"Oh, I almost forgot! If you start having too much fun, remember to use protection!"
Jaden immediately deleted the message and stuffed the PDA inside his pocket and did his best to forget it. 'I swear I'll kill her when I see her tomorrow.'
"S-so… shall we go?" He asked Alexis and she nodded with a smile as they both left the dorm.
"So I missed an adventure, huh?" Alexis sighed in disappointment. The two of them were currently walking on the snowy path towards the Academy while Jaden was telling her about Jinzo. Of course he omitted a few details to keep his secret safe. "I swear the fun things always happen when I'm not around!" She said in exasperation to which Jaden chuckled.
"Alright, when the next one happens you'll come with us, okay?" He asked to which she nodded excitedly. "Great! Just remember that Erina has dibs on resolving it."
They continued their walk, enjoying the snowy scenery and each other's company. "So how about you tell me something fun from your life, Lex? With a brother like yours there has to have been at least one ridiculous story… Although knowing him it was probably something stupid that irritated you to no end." He chuckled when he saw her peeved expression.
"You're right about that…" Alexis said as she brushed some snow off her hat. "He always got a beating when he'd suddenly barge into my room and say he set me up on a date with someone I don't even know!" She groaned. "And he never seemed to learn his lesson no matter how much I beat him up! He just kept playing matchmaker."
Jaden laughed. "Somehow I'm not surprised. He probably did it because it's fun to get you worked up." The response he got wasn't verbal, but a forceful shove which caused him to fall in the snow.
"Is it fun now?" Alexis asked with a mean smirk as she stared down at him. She smiled when Jaden just laughed.
"Yup!" He got up and brushed the snow off of him. "See? I told you you were fun." He grinned mischievously as he chucked a fistful of snow he hid in his hand at her face.
He then began to laugh uncontrollably at the absolutely appalled expression Alexis had on her now snow covered face. 'Oh you're asking for it now!' She smirked as she tried to shove Jaden in the snow again. She succeeded, but Jaden managed to grab her hand and she went down with him, landing face first in the snow next to him.
"That backfired on me…" Alexis mumbled as she lifted her head off the snow.
Jaden laughed. "That's what you get for biting off more than you can chew."
Alexis smirked as she watched him laugh. "Well chew on this then!" She said as she shoved a fistful of snow in his face, with some of it getting in his mouth.
"Well that's just mean." Jaden complained as he coughed out some snow.
Alexis got up and smiled at him innocently as she brushed off the snow from her clothes. "That's what you get for biting off more than you can chew!" She repeated to which Jaden just rolled his eyes in amusement. "Come on." Alexis offered him her hand. "Are we gonna roll in the snow all day or are we going to that festival?" She shot him a small glare when she saw the mischievous glint in his eye. "And don't even think about it!" Jaden smirked as he grabbed her hand and as tempting as it was to just yank her back into the snow, he didn't do it and got up.
They resumed their walk. "I've been meaning to ask you something." Alexis turned her head to look at him. "Has your brother ever mentioned anything… interesting about me?"
Alexis just stared at him in confusion. "That's… a weird question to ask…. I don't know what you mean by 'interesting'?" She blushed a bit and looked forward. "To be honest, you as a whole have been quite interesting and fun to be around."
"T-thanks…" Jaden blushed as well. 'So he hasn't told her, huh?' Jaden took a deep breath… 'Here goes.' "What I mean is, has Atticus mentioned anything about my family?"
"Your family?" She repeated before shaking her head. "No, he hasn't said anything about that… I've actually been meaning to ask you more about it. Besides that you are adopted and that you have a little sister, you haven't said much else."
"Well, first off, you have to promise me to not tell anyone else." Jaden said with an intense look in his eyes.
"S-Sure." Alexis promised. She wasn't exactly sure what she's going to keep a secret, but agreed nonetheless.
"It's not anything bad!" Jaden assured when he saw the look of worry on her face. "It's just that… I hate the attention that comes with it. Of course people will find out sooner or later…"
"Jaden."
"It's a miracle that anyone else hasn't figured it out yet, it's not like it's hidden or anything…"
"Jaden!"
"And I can't imagine the amount of people that will be bugging me about it…"
"JADEN!"
Jaden stopped in his tracks and realized he was rambling. He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry…"
"It's alright." Alexis giggled. "I swear I have never seen you get flustered like this." She grabbed his hand with both of her's. "I have no idea why you got so worked up about this, but you can trust me to keep your secret… any secret in fact."
Jaden had no clue why he got so nervous about this. Maybe he was worried she'd change her outlook on him? Anyways… He flashed her a smile. "Thanks, Lex. So, the reason I'm spazzing around like an idiot is, well…" He took out his PDA with his free hand and began to search for a certain photo. It was a selfie photo of the whole family together on a hike, Jaden and Mana messing around with Yugi while Tea gave the camera a wink. He smiled fondly at it. "This is my family." He held up the PDA for her to see.
"Huh?" Alexis stared at it for a few seconds in confusion until the shocking realization hit her like a truck. "You're a-! That means-" She gasped, both hands covering her mouth. "You're that boy they took in..."
Jaden nodded with a smile. "Yeah. My full name is Jaden Yuki Muto." He gave a playful bow. "Uhm… Lex?" He said nervously because Alexis was just staring at him.
Alexis snapped out of it when she heard his voice. "S-Sorry, it was just a little shocking to take in. There's just not many pictures of you available to the public and the ones that are, you're a little kid…" She scratched her cheek sheepishly. "I kind of feel foolish for not realizing it. The clues were there, I just couldn't see them."
"Now who's rambling?" Jaden chuckled, making her blush a bit. "I just like my privacy and I like honest people, so you can guess why I keep it a secret, right?"
She slowly nodded. "I get it. If people knew, they'd change their opinion about you immediately and try to befriend you or get on your good side just because you're the son of the Kind of Games."
Jaden nodded along. "Exactly." He then suddenly got nervous. "So… what do you think of me now that you know?"
Alexis didn't have to think about it at all. She grabbed Jaden's hand and gave him a bright smile. "You're Jaden Yuki, the same fun-loving guy I met on day one here, nothing's changed."
Jaden grinned like an idiot, trying to ignore the fact that his heart was about to jump out of his chest. "Thanks, Lex… Now come on! We've wasted enough time!" He suddenly broke into a run, pulling Alexis along with him.
"Slow down!" Alexis giggled as she ran with him towards the Academy.
"It's amazing!" Both teens exclaimed in astonishment as they entered the Academy's Gym room. It was buzzing with excitement from the people who had decided to stay on the island for the holidays. The place was covered in beautiful decorations such as; Christmas trees, fake snowflakes and colorful lights hanging from the ceiling, and different types of ornaments hung on the walls. The workers were dressed as elves, or had reindeer antlers accompanied by a red nose and some as Santa Claus, even some of the faculty members were dressed up as well. All of this was accompanied by nice Christmas music playing in the background.
There were also a lot of different activities and attractions set up such as; making cookies and gingerbread houses, creating ornaments, cards and other small trinkets, and food stalls offering different kinds of food. There were even some carnival type games where you can win prizes, of course there was also a dueling corner, this is Duel Academy after all. And lastly, right smack in the center of it all was a big ice skating rink.
"It looks magical." Jaden commented as he excitedly looked around.
"Yeah, I agree…" Alexis nodded in agreement as she took off her coat and hat, handing it to the coat check lady that was by the entrance. Jaden did the same… but kept his hat on obviously. It stays on during Christmas!
"So?" Alexis turned to him. "Where should we start?" She asked to which Jaden got a giddy grin on his face and grabbed her hand.
"We start with whatever catches our eye first!" He exclaimed as he pulled her along with him. Alexis giggled as she was dragged along, finding Jaden's childish side oddly charming.
The two teens began with a small trinket stall. It offered all kinds of pins, bracelets and a variety of cute jewelry. Alexis was looking for something to get as a present for Erina. As she was browsing through the bracelets, she felt Jaden place something in her hair.
"What are you doing?" She asked him curiously.
She blushed slightly as Jaden stared at her intently. He nodded in satisfaction. "I was right, it does look cute on you."
Alexis turned to the mirror that was set up and looked at herself. A little above her left ear Jaden had placed a Happy Lover hairpin. Alexis smiled, it did look cute on her.
"Yeah, I'll take that one, please." She heard Jaden suddenly say to the shopkeeper, making Alexis blush more.
"Wait a second, you don't have to buy this for me!" She argued.
"You're right, I don't have to, but I want to." He said as he handed the money to the girl. "And it's too late now." He grinned cheekily. Alexis pouted a bit, but smiled after. She'd get something for him to make it even. After Alexis picked a few matching pieces and got them wrapped, the pair continued with their exploration.
"Okay, I gotta ask." Jaden turned to look at Alexis as they were walking around. "Don't you have questions about… you know?"
"Of course I do." She smiled at him. "But I can't really ask them with the risk of someone overhearing us."
"You're right about that…" Jaden rubbed the back of his neck. "I have been feeling quite a few glares aimed at me." He chuckled as he scanned around with his eyes. There were quite a few people staring at them and Jaden had a pretty good idea what they were thinking. The Queen of Obelisk Blue hanging out with a Slifer Red? Though they were probably split between two thoughts; those who were really gung ho about the dorm ranks and guys who were just jealous that a Slifer "reject" was with Alexis.
"Well ignore them." Alexis said, annoyed at how simpleminded these people can be. She flashed him a reassuring smile. "You're much better company than those guys will ever be."
"Oh yeah?" Jaden smirked. "You sound like you know the type of guys they are."
"Of course." She nodded, a bitter expression on her face. "The guys that are glaring at you are the type that always seems to approach me; jerks that say I'm 'hot' and only want to get in my pants."
"That sucks…" Jaden answered honestly. "Well, I think they're complete morons for not seeing you for you. Which is what really matters in a person." He then grinned. "And I like who Alexis Rhodes is."
Alexis looked to the side to try and hide the blush that crept up on her cheeks. "Smooth talker…" She mumbled.
"I try." He chuckled. "Wanna grab something to eat? I'm a bit hungry myself." Alexis nodded and they went to one of the many food stalls. Alexis got herself a chicken sandwich while Jaden got… well what he always got when it's on the menu. Fried shrimp.
"I still don't get your obsession with fried shrimp." Alexis said as she watched Jaden clean his plate.
Jaden popped the last shrimp in his mouth. "I'd more than love to get into the intricacies of fried shrimp, but I'd prefer not to bore you to death."
"Why thank you." She smiled. "Also, about your parents, you don't mind me asking about them at some point, right? I'm curious what they're like as people and not celebrities."
Jaden smiled slightly. "Of course, I'll answer whatever questions you have."
Alexis bit her lower lip. "Even… Even about what happened?" Jaden's gaze instantly fell, causing Alexis to curse herself mentally. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me-"
"No, it's okay." Jaden lifted his gaze and smiled at her, telling her that she did nothing wrong. "It's natural to be curious, but… I don't feel comfortable talking about it. Maybe after some time passes, I'll tell you?" Alexis only nodded, fearing that she might say something else she shouldn't. "Now if you'll excuse me…" Jaden got up. "I'm gonna go get me another helping of shrimp."
"That's your third one! I swear you have a black hole for a stomach!" She shouted after him, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
"You know, my mom says the same thing!"
Alexis shook her head in amusement as she continued to eat her food. Minus her little screw up just now, she was having a great time today with Jaden. Watching him jump around with childish glee was undeniably adorable to her. 'I still need to find something for him… and I can't wait until we get to the skating rink.' She was a bit nervous though, she wasn't exactly good at skating, but she really wanted to learn. She just hoped she wouldn't make a fool out of herself in front of Jaden.
Alexis' mind also wandered somewhere else, hanging out with Jaden during what was considered a romantic holiday made certain feelings go to the forefront of her mind. Every smile and compliment he gave her made her heart flutter, and each time they held hands caused her stomach to do back-flips. It was honestly driving her crazy! She never knew that she could feel this way about someone. It honestly made her think about finally bearing out her feelings to him, but… it frightened her to no end. The possibility of rejection and for their friendship to just crumble away scared her. She didn't want to lose Jaden as a friend, he had become the shining light in her life, making her finally smile and laugh after she lost her brother. 'Why does love have to be so complicated?' She asked herself in frustration.
Alexis was snapped out of her inner turmoil by someone placing their hand on the table. She looked up and saw some Obelisk boy. He had jet black hair tied up in a bun of all things and sporting the Obelisk Blue uniform. "Uhm… can I help you?" She asked in confusion.
The guy gave her a lustful smirk, one which disgusted her. "Hi, I'm Shun. You can help by ditching that loser you're with and coming to hang out with me." He said in that snobby elitist tone almost every Obelisk seemed to have.
"Excuse me?" Alexis' eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "You are not allowed to insult my friend! Got it?!" She quickly got up from her chair in an angry motion, causing the guy to take a step back in shock.
"Come on… a Slifer reject will only drag you down-"
"This Slifer…" Alexis glared at him. "Is one of the best duelists in the school. You probably won't count as a warmup for him." She smirked when he saw that he got insulted. She also spotted Jaden coming over in the distance. "Also, it's rather cowardly to approach a girl in an attempt to take her away when the boy she's with isn't around."
Shun was getting frustrated, Alexis had called him out.
"What's going on?" Jaden asked as he came up to the table. He saw the confrontation from a distance,so he hurried over and now that he was here, he felt the atmosphere seemed a bit hostile.
"Oh, nothing." Alexis gave him a smile. "I'm just dealing with the same type of guy I told you about. He was trying to get me to go with him while you were gone." She explained.
Jaden scowled when he heard that. He placed his food on the table and walked up to stand next to Alexis. "You know…" The boy took a step back as an intimidating aura oozed out of Jaden as he glared at him. "I knew you Obelisk rich kids were a bunch of brats, but I think you've reached a new low. We were having fun before you showed up, so how about you leave us be?"
Alexis nodded. "Jaden's right, you're causing a scene and you're disturbing us."
Shun grit his teeth in frustration, all he wanted was to get the hottest girl in school to go out with him. He looked around and saw a bunch of bystanders watching the confrontation. He had to do something to protect his image or he'd be made fun of forever for taking crap from a Slifer. "Oh yeah? And what if I don't leave?" He glared at Jaden.
Jaden took a single step forward, making Shun take one backwards. He smirked. "I wouldn't be so eager to find out if I were you." He warned in a calm voice.
"Then how about this?" Alexis jumped in. She pointed to the duel fields at the corner. "You and I duel and if you win, I'll go with you."
"It's a deal!" Shun grinned and went over to the fields.
Alexis turned to Jaden and gave him a smile. "This won't take too long." She winked at him.
Jaden grinned. "I know. So, how fast do you think you'll win?"
"Hmm…" Alexis tapped her chin. "I'll tell you when I draw my starting hand, 'kay?" She promised as they got to the duel corner. Both players strapped a Duel Disk on and took their positions. A lot of spectators gathered, wanting to see the Queen of Obelisk Blue duel.
"I'll make sure to give you a good time when I win." Shun smirked smugly, causing Alexis to roll her eyes.
"Whatever you say." She slipped her deck into the Disk and it came to life.
"Duel!"
Alexis: 4000
Shun: 4000
"Ladies first!" Shun offered.
"No, it's okay, you can go first." Alexis politely declined, shocking some of the spectators that were there. She turned to Jaden. "One turn."
Jaden's eyes widened in surprise. 'An OTK?'
Shun grinned. "Why thank you!" He drew his card. "I summon Dark Blade in attack mode!" A knight in spiky black armor appeared on the field, wielding two wicked looking blades. (ATK: 1800/ DEF: 1500) "I then equip him with Lightning Blade, raising his attack by 800 points!" A wide sword that surged with lightning appeared in the knight's hands. (ATK: 1900-2700) "And I'll call it a turn."
Alexis sighed as she drew her card. "Looks like I won… I summon Blade Skater to the field!" The female skater appeared on the field. (ATK: 1400/ DEF: 1500) She then slipped a card into her Disk. "Then I play Allegro Toile! This allows me to destroy a spell or trap card on your field when I Normal Summon a monster!" Blade Skater spun around and threw a winged knife at Lightning Blade, destroying it. "And now Dark Blade's attack goes back down!" Alexis smirked. (ATK: 2700-1900)
She then plucked two cards from her hand. "Then I'll play Polymerization to fuse my Blade Skater and Etoile Cyber together to form Cyber Blader!" The two monster's fused together, creating Alexis' ace monster. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 800) "And with Fusion Weapon, my Cyber Blade's attack and defense points go up by 1500!" The female Cyber's right hand morphed into a cybernetic weapon. (ATK: 2100-3600/ DEF: 2300)
Alexis smirked. "Cyber Blader, attack!" She commanded as Cyber Blader shot out a yellow ball of energy from the weapon and destroyed Dark Blade.
Shun: 2300
"I'm still in this!" Shun smirked… but gasped as he saw the card Alexis held up.
De-Fusion.
"I'd beg to differ." She smirked. "Now I split Cyber Blader back into the two monsters used to make her!" Blade Skater and Etoile Cyber appeared on the field. (ATK: 1400/ DEF: 1500) (ATK: 1200/ DEF: 1600)
"Oh, girls, finish him off!" Both monsters charged forward, each delivering a solid kick on Shun's chest, knocking him to the ground.
Shun: 0
Alexis smiled. "Now don't bother me or my friend again." She walked up to Jaden and grabbed his hand, leading him away from the stunned crowd. "Let's go have some fun." Jaden nodded and they both decided that it's time to tackle the skate rink.
They arrived there and saw that there were a lot of people skating. The pair rented a pair of skate shoes and went to put them on.
"You have skated before, right?" Jaden asked sceptically as he watched Alexis wobble slightly in her skate shoes. He already had his own on and was standing by the gate.
"Y-Yeah…" Alexis blushed a bit. "I'm just not that good at it…"
Jaden shook his head and smiled. "Alright, come here." He stepped on the ice confidently and extended his hand for her. Alexis stared at it, a bit uncertain. "Come on! I'll help you and make sure you don't fall flat on your butt." He assured her. Alexis took a deep breath and grabbed his hand. Jaden carefully helped her down on the ice, but she slipped and fell forward. Thankfully Jaden managed to catch her in his arms before she fell.
"I got you." He told her gently. Alexis' cheeks flushed from being wrapped in Jaden's arms, it made her feel warm and safe. She took another deep breath as she reluctantly untangled herself from his arms and slowly began to move forward. Jaden was right next to her, holding her hand to make sure she didn't fall.
They slowly began to run circles in the rink so Alexis could get used to skating and after a while, she seemed more confident with her movements. "See? It's not that scary." Jaden chuckled as he skated along next to her, still holding her hand.
"Yeah!" Alexis nodded excitedly. "I think I finally got the hang of it!"
"Good... Now that you got comfortable, time to speed us up!" Jaden suddenly stepped in front of her and grabbed her other hand. He was pulling her along while he skated backwards, slowly but steadily increasing their speed.
"Wait! We're gonna fall if you do that!" Alexis protested, she was a bit scared even if Jaden looked confident doing it.
Jaden laughed. "Don't worry! If we fall I'll make sure to catch you!" He promised and went a bit faster.
Alexis squeaked as Jaden spun her around once before resuming to speed up. He laughed more when he saw the pout and glare she was giving him. He moved back next to her and both of them continued to run circles around the rink, enjoying themselves. While they were having fun, Jaden was questioning a certain decision he made a while back.
'What am I afraid of?' He asked himself. One thing was made certain to him since exiting the dorm today and going on this "date" as Erina had put it, is that his feelings for Alexis were definitely still there and were even stronger than before. Jaden glanced at her, she had that beautiful smile that made his heart race as she was concentrating on not falling. She was breathtaking in every aspect to him. She was fun, kind, smart, her dueling skills were amazing and to top it all off she was absolutely gorgeous. There wasn't one thing wrong with her, so what was stopping him from doing what his heart wanted him to do?
He thought about it and couldn't find why. It wasn't IT he was sure about that at least. His mission, the sole reason why he could do what he could will come someday, but he wouldn't live his life in fear until it did. He thought a bit harder on what it could be… until it hit him. 'The nightmares.' He shook his head slightly. Of course they had brought his childhood fear back with them. The fear of being alone, abandoned and not loved by anyone. It took him a long time to overcome it when he was little, he feared that he'd wake up one day and everything that happened after that fateful night would have been a dream. But now, he had family and friends that loved him and would never leave him, so maybe he shouldn't be so afraid to take the risk?
Alexis was also in deep thought… though she was also concentrating on not falling. She was a bit nervous from her unexperience when they came here, but Jaden managed to calm her nerves by promising to keep her safe. She felt like nothing could hurt her when he was around. But nonetheless she was happy that the unpleasant encounter with that Obelisk guy didn't sour their moods. She was quite flattered that Jaden had instantly gotten protective of her… Jaden was definitely the kind of person who'd protect his friends no matter what.
Another thought crossed her mind. Just the two of them together during a romantic holiday? It kind of felt like a… It hit her like a lightning bolt. 'W-Wait! I-Is t-th-this a d-date?!' She screamed mentally.
Alexis panicked and lost balance. Jaden tried to pull her up so she wouldn't fall on her rear. He succeeded… only for Alexis to fly forward and tackle him, causing both of them to fall on the ground with Jaden taking the brunt of the fall.
Jaden hissed from the pain he felt at the back of his head. "Ow!"
Alexis propped herself up on her arms and looked at Jaden in worry. "I-I'm so sorry!" She apologized. "I-I don't know what happened? I lost balance and you tried to catch me, but I fell on you! I'm sorry! You aren't hurt are you?" Her look of concern turned to shock and confusion as Jaden began to laugh wholeheartedly.
Jaden's laughter died down to a few giggles as he looked at her wide-eyed expression. "S-Sorry." He apologized as he wiped a tear away with his finger. "It's just that you're always so cool and collected that you caught me off guard with how flustered and embarrassed you just got." He began to laugh again. "The face you were making was hilarious!"
Alexis turned red and her eyebrow twitched in agitation. "You idiot!" She punched him in the chest and looked off to the side. "I'm never worrying about you again…"
Jaden just laughed it off and tried to sit up… only to realize he couldn't. He glanced down and blushed. "Uhm… Lex? You kinda have me at a disadvantage here..." He laughed awkwardly.
"Huh?" Alexis blinked in confusion and looked at Jaden. She turned beet red from embarrassment as she realized the position they were in. Alexis had both hands firmly pressed against Jaden's chest and one leg on each side, straddling him. "S-Sorry!" She stammered and got off him.
Both of them stood up and avoided looking at each other. It suddenly got very awkward. "It's alright…" Jaden said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Wanna go see the rest of the festival?" Jaden asked and smiled in relief when Alexis nodded and smiled back at him.
They left and the next few hours were filled with Jaden and Alexis taking part in many other activities. These included both of them decorating a gingerbread house, with Alexis questioning Jaden's design tastes when he made a Hero Signal on the roof of the house, a ring toss game where you had to get the rings on Santa's head and a Duel Quiz game where you had to win in one turn with a premade board and hand.
The pair were currently walking around aimlessly and sipping on a cup of hot chocolate. The awkward atmosphere was long gone and they were just enjoying each other's company.
Jaden was admiring the Winged Kuriboh scarf that Alexis had gotten for him, despite his protests, when he heard someone address him. "Oi, tough guy!" Jaden stopped and turned to the side. There was this massive bald man with a thin mustache grinning at him. "How 'bout you test your strength and win your girl a prize?" Jaden thought about it for a few seconds before grinning. He loved these types of games, mainly because he took everyone by surprise with the result he usually got.
"Alright, what are the rules?" Jaden asked as he and Alexis went over to the 'Tower of Power'.
"Simply hit the Ojama head with this mallet as hard as you can and you pick a prize according to how well you do." The man explained. Jaden nodded and picked up the mallet in his hand, giving it a twirl. The worker noticed that Jaden was preparing to swing with just one arm. "Hey, kid, you usually swing with-" Jaden ignored him and swung the mallet with all he had. The lights began to light up and surprisingly reached the top, making a victory chime and spewing confetti. "Well I'll be!" The man laughed loudly. You got more muscle in you than I thought, kid! Well, take your pick, you earned it!" He motioned to the prize racks.
Jaden instantly pointed at what he wanted. "I'll take that one." It was a big Kuriboh plushie. The man handed it to him and Jaden handed it to Alexis, who smiled and squeezed it tightly.
"You really like Kuribohs, huh?" Alexis asked in an amused tone as they left.
"It's a Muto thing." Jaden shrugged with a smirk. They spent a little more time at the festival before they decided to call it a day.
By the time they had left it had already gotten dark outside, so Jaden was walking Alexis back to her dorm. Jaden noticed that she was holding onto the stuffed Kuriboh with a firm grip, as if she was afraid she'd lose it. He smiled at that, happy that she liked it so much.
They reached the Girls' Dorm's gates and Alexis stopped and turned to him. "It's probably better if you don't get too close to our dorm, you might get in trouble. You know, no boys and such." She smiled at him. "I had a lot of fun today, Jay. Thank you for bringing me along."
"I had a great time too." Jaden grinned. "And I'm happy I got to spend Christmas with you... Oh, right!" He suddenly remembered something important. He dug into his pocket and pulled a small red rectangular box with a white ribbon on top. "I almost forgot due to all the fun we had. Merry Christmas, Lex." He grinned and handed it to her.
"Eh?" She took it and looked at it then back at Jaden. "You had a gift for me on top of all this?" She emphasized the plush and pin. "I should have gotten you something more than just the scarf." She said, a bit disappointed in herself.
"No need." Jaden shook his head and flashed her his trademark grin. "Spending the day with you was more than enough for me!" Alexis smiled and was glad that the cold had already reddened her cheeks enough to conceal her blush. She spread her arms and wrapped Jaden in a hug. He was caught off guard for a moment before he hugged her back, enjoying the warmth she gave off despite the cold.
After a few moments, they broke off the hug, albeit reluctantly. "Well, I better get going before my nose freezes off." He chuckled and turned around.
"Wait!"
He turned around and looked at her. "What is it?"
Alexis was nervous. Very nervous. "Jaden… I…" She tried summoning the courage to say it, but something was stopping her. She shook her head. "Thanks for the gift, Jaden."
"No problem." Jaden smiled at her before resuming his walk.
Alexis stared at his retreating form, a bit disappointed in herself for being so scared of revealing her feelings to him. She looked at the red box in her hand and examined it. It was just the right size for it to be Duel Monsters cards. Her curiosity got the better of her so she decided to open it right now. She untied the bow, letting it fall to the ground, and removed the lid to reveal its contents. She was right. Inside was a small bundle of Duel Monsters cards. She picked them up and looked through them, realizing two things. One, they were quite powerful cards and two, they somehow synergised perfectly with her deck.
"How did he know?" She asked herself, but then a giggle escaped her lips and she shook her head. This was Jaden Yuki after all. Nothing is impossible when it comes to him and she should get used to that. Putting the cards back inside the box she couldn't help but let this wave of happiness wash over her. She got a personal gift from Jaden. She took off in a run towards her dorm… but went back to pick up the ribbon off the ground. She wasn't about to litter.
She ran towards the dorm with a spring in her step, getting ready for the inevitable interrogation that awaited her from a certain bluenette.
Back with Jaden, he was slowly walking along the path that led to his dorm. He smiled as he admired the scarf around his neck. Yeah, he really liked Kuribohs. As he walked, there were two sentences that repeated over and over in his head.
'Don't wait too long with something like this and then go on regretting it for the rest of your life because you missed your chance.'
'A life without risks is a boring one.'
Finally making up his mind and ready to face his fear, Jaden looked up at the starry night sky. "Is that right?" He smiled. "Well… I guess it's time to take some risks then."
To be honest I don't know what made me write this as a date while it not being a date (in the characters eyes). I guess I can't make things simple for me.
Sooo, how many of you expected Serenity to be Erina's mom? :D
Y'all know what's up next and I'll try to make it as good as I can.
As always, let me know your thoughts. Was it bad? Was it good? Stay safe and until next time!