I am really enjoying this project! I want to thank everyone who has been reviewing this story and are continuing to support it! And I want to thank Autobot again for helping me on this story:)

Enjoy:)

It felt like an eternity when it was actually four hours since Joey started following Red Eyes from the fake Domino city and was now in a forest. And while Joey was grateful to be saved, his feet were starting to kill him and he felt like he was on the verge of collapse from exhaustion as he followed the large shadow the most powerful monster in his deck.

Of course this is something he has become used to, when he and Yugi become friends the supernatural just came along with it since the Pharaoh was with them at the time. Of course, while he won't admit it, he loved the excitement on his adventures with monsters and saving the world.

However, this wasn't about saving the world this time and Atem is not with them anymore, this is about him saving himself by himself. He has no memory of how he ended up here, and he didn't know who that woman was who tried to kill him, but he needed to find a way out and fast before she does come back.

Joey looked around and saw nothing but tall tree's, but he was able to see Red Eyes in the sky through the clear path at the top. The wind blew a cool breeze through his hair and skin, despite the long walk, Joey was enjoying nature.

Until his leg cramped again and he groaned, "Ugh! This is taking too long! Why are there so many trees! I feel like I've seen them before an hour ago! And I'm getting hungry!" Joey's stomach began growling angrily.

Joey stopped when he realized he passed through the last tree and was no longer in the forest. Before him was clear land, except for the tall mountains that were before him.

Joey blinked in confusion, "Okay, that's a nice view, but I still don't get it."

Joey hears the sound of Red-Eyes roaring and looks up to see him flying overhead. The dragon stopped flying and he lands in front of Joey, getting down on all fours. Suddenly, Red-Eyes stretches his neck out beside Joey, suggesting for him to climb on.

Joey realized what Red Eyes body language meant,"What? You want me to ride you? I got a bad feeling about this, that or because I haven't eaten anything all day, but I trust you.

And so Joey climbs onto the beast's back, and Red-Eyes spreads his wings and begins flying off toward the mountains. Of course poor Joey was panicking and let out yell since it's been a while since he rode on a dragon since his trip to India when he and gang were fighting Alexander the Great. That and he was also possessed by Red Eye's black dragon's angry spirit as well but that was another story.

Joey squealed more until he got his grip on Red Eye's horns, he starts to relax and looked on ahead, "Okay! Getting used to it now!"

Red Eyes continued to fly up a few more feet. Passing the clouds and branches as the wind blew, after three more cloud passing Red Eyes landed on the mountain with grass and rubble. Joey tumbled off the large dragon and looked around.

He blinked as he looked up in confusion,"Uuhh, this is new. So why are we here?" Joey asked.

Red-Eyes growled, and nudges against Joey's back. Indicating the dragon wants him to continue to walk, Joey groaned, "What? More walking?" Joey sighed and slouched his shoulders, "Alright, I'm going. But there better be food where we're going."

Red Eyes and Joey walked on the trail on the mountain. Of course Joey was nervous as it was a ledge and he was being careful not to fall, sweat racing down his forehead and his mouth twitching as he looked down to see the steep side beside him.

"Eeehh, steady now, don't look down." Joey told himself.

Soon he and Red Eyes made it off and were now on flat surface again, Joey sighed in relief as he wiped his forehead to get rid of the cold sweat dripping down his forehead.

"That was close, being that high is enough to make me...GHAAAAAAAH!"

Joey screamed as other dragons started coming out of the tree's, mountain rock and caves that surrounded Joey and Red Eyes. Some were larger than the others, Joey immediately recognized some of them, one was Harpy's pet Dragon coming from a cave, the other dragon was Exploder dragon flying from the tree's, than came along Blizzard dragon, Vice dragon, Berserk dragon, Doom Virus dragon and many other dragons from all around the mountain hill.

Joey gulped as he saw the large creatures surround him, staring at the blonde man. Joey was nervous that they might be looking at him as dinner, "Uh...h-hi," he said nervously, ''Please don't eat me...Red Eyes help me!''

A small dragon started to come near him, Joey looked down as the dragon started to lick his hand. It startled Joey and he quickly took his hand away, he looked to see what licked him and was shocked at what he saw. The creature was up to torso, orange with a light beige under belly and had horns on its head with bright green eyes.

The baby dragon gave a delightful chirp seeing his master. Joey immediately recognized the little dragon and grinned widely.

"Hey little guy!" Joey exclaimed in joy and starts petting the baby dragon's head, "How have you been? It's been a while since I saw ya! Have you been a good baby dragon?"

Baby Dragon chirped happily, enjoying Joey's touch. The other dragons look at Joey in curiosity as the young dragon went to him in adoration, Red Eyes looks at the other dragons and gave a short roar to them, as if it was telling them what was going on and why this human was here.

Joey looked at the other dragons and started to ask, "So do any of you know why I'm here? Because I have no idea why I'm here. All I remember was..."

Joey began to remember going for a walk, taking a turn near the street light, than him accidentally meeting his father and getting into a fight...his father. Joey started to feel his blood boil and began to clench his fists and teeth remembering the scent of alcohol and the curses that came from him.

Then Joey started remembering fists, the kicks, the pain, and feeling cold and limp afterwards. Then he remembered everything turning black, and here he was.

Joey started to feel his blood run cold, "...Wait...if I was beaten up...does that mean...I'm now dead?"

Joey held his head, "No wait! I haven't seen Angels yet, only dragons. So there is a good chance I'm still alive and just in a near death experience, that's all...but now I want to go back to the land of the living."

Baby Dragon chirped, tugging on Joey's shirt and started pulling him. Joey looked down and blinked, "Huh? What is it Baby Dragon?"

Baby Dragon let's go and heads behind Joey to push him forward. Joey was surprised by the baby's actions as he wanted him to go inside a cave next to the dragons, Joey wasn't sure about it, but if it's a way to get back home, than so be it.

"Okay okay, I'll follow your lead. Hold your horses. Kids, they get excited about everything."

As Joey went in with Baby dragon, Red Eyes Black dragon looked on to Joey with content along with the others dragons as they joined in.

The cave was dark and clammy, the walls were wet as the water dripped from the cracks. As they went further down, it surprisingly started to get warmer and warmer for Joey, and the walls got drier and drier.

"This is weird, a few moments ago the cave was wet and cold. But now it's getting warm, like a house, what's down here?" Joey asked.

Baby Dragon lets out another chirp, suddenly a red light was seen in the distance. Joey and Baby Dragon started to get closer and closer, when they reached the source of the red light, Joey was speechless.

It was a gigantic room with lite torches on the walls like an old medieval castle. It had tapestries of ancient warriors and dragons and it had a long red carpet on the floor, Joey couldn't believe it.

"Whoa! This is unbelievable! I've seen some amazing things in my time, but this takes the cake! What is this place!?"

Joey started to explore the room, and decided to check out the tapestries. Joey was not one to be taken in by art, but the dragons and the Knights in the tapestries astounded him, from the design of each dragon to the story behind the tapestries. But what caught Joey's attention wasn't just the art itself, it was that the Knights and dragons weren't fighting each other, but together.

"Wait a second...Knights used to RIDE dragons? Geez the Fairytale's won't be the same, what's next a princess and an Ogre fall in love and get married?" Joey turns in a different direction, but stopped immediately from what he saw, "Huh?"

What Joey saw was a giant statue of two dragons. It was unusual because the dragons looked exactly like his Red Eyes Black dragon, except the dragon Red Eyes was fighting was bigger than it was and looked more vicious and sinister with multiple wings and extra spikes, and unlike Red Eyes this dragon had markings on its body. Another difference was that there was a warrior riding on the back of the vicious Red Eyes Black dragon while his Red Eyes Black dragon didn't, this warriors armor replicated its dragon in the sharp spikes and markings as he lifted his sword, ready to strike at the other creature.

Joey got a chill as he touched the statue on Red Eyes side as he looked at the other dragon, "Geez, I never seen that kind of dragon before. I wonder what the story behind this statue is about? That warrior on that dragon's back doesn't look like the hero type to me."

"..I'm not surprised."

Joey was startled by a female voice. He immediately turned around in alarm and looked back and forth to find where the voice came from, "Huh?! Who said that?! Who's there!?"

"No one else has seen that dragon for centuries. However, I fear that now that she has come back, that dragon will be unleashed upon the world once more." the female voice said again.

Joey turned around. Along the red carpet was eight steps of stairs that led to a giant throne that resembled a dragons mouth, and someone was sitting on it. It was a large figure with a brown cloak, Joey became alarmed.

Baby Dragon got excited and started to run towards the figure and chirped more happily. When he got to the figure his tail was wagging as he looked up in awe at the person on the throne.

"Hello to you to, sweet flame." The woman said in a sweet tone.

She bent down to pet Baby dragon, as she did Joey froze again when he saw that what came out of the cloak's sleeve was a giant, Royal blue colored claw hand.

Joey felt the side of his mouth twitch and started making nervous sounds, "W-who are you?" he asked nervously.

The cloaked the figure stopped petting Baby dragon and looked at Joey, grey slatted eyes piercing through the darkness of her cloak.

Lynn giggled as she drank her wine, while being cradled by the arm of the man next to her. The man was about Lynn's age, with brown hair that was starting to grey and had a few fine lines on his face. He was average height and wore a green sweater and a pair of beige pants.

They continued to cuddle on the couch, enjoying each other's company, "Afternoon's like these are just divine, don't you think?" he asked the woman.

Lynn smiled and nodded, "They certainly are Thomas, they are just grand. Just being with each other like this with this after a long day."

"It'll be like this more often after we get married." Thomas winks.

Lynn giggled, the man was Thomas Jibes, Lynn's long time boyfriend and now fiance. They met three years after Lynn divorced her ex-husband, Lynn was working night-shift as a nurse and Thomas came in from an accident as he left a press conference from his job at the news station and needed medical attention. When they met, Thomas was instantly smitten and Lynn found him charming.

After three weeks when he recovered he asked her on a date, and she agreed. Their relationship grew from there as they told each other their lives and Lynn's divorce from her abusive drunk ex husband, Jordan. Now after five years of dating, about two weeks ago Thomas asked for Lynn's hand in marriage. And she happily accepted.

After Serenity left for school, Thomas came over with a bouquet of flowers for Lynn and a bottle of wine for them to sit and relax. They mostly talked about their future together and where they go for their Honeymoon, as well as their plans for their wedding.

Thomas set his wine down and looked at Lynn, "So who do you think we should invite to the wedding?" he asked her.

Lynn smiled, "Well, Serenity of course, and than there's your parents. I'm sure they would want a front row seat to see their youngest son finally teing the knot."

"And I must invite my sister Veronica, she is dying to be the maid of honor," than Thomas started to remember another person, "And what about your son Joseph? Maybe he could come, I've never had a chance to meet him yet."

Lynn was surprised from what she heard Thomas say. She looked at him as he continued talking, "He is the second finalist of Duelist kingdom, and after knowing he got the three million dollars for Serenity's eye operation, I'm officially a big fan of his, I desperately wish to meet him. He sounds like a great boy."

Lynn was silent for a moment, but just as she was about to say something to him, the door slammed open. They were surprised and turned their heads to see a sweaty Serenity with red eyes, they stood up in alarm as they saw the girl in the state she was in.

"Serenity?" Thomas says in surprise.

Lynn frowned, "What's wrong? Why are home from school this early?"

Serenity was breathing heavily, than tears started to fall from her olive eyes as she looked at the adults, "Mom...Thomas...something bad happened."

Thomas became more worried for his future step daughter and he went to her and placed his hands on her shoulder and wiped her tears with one of them, "Serenity, what's wrong? What happend? Did something bad happen at school?"

Serenity wiped her eyes and looked at Thomas, " I...I was at school waiting for the home bell to ring after I finished my exams. Then the principal called me to his office, saying I got a call from Tristan."

Lynn's eyes widened, "Tristan?! Joseph's friend from school? Why?"

Serenity looked at her mother in heartbreak, "When I asked him why he called me, he said that Joey was in the hospital in a coma and was in bad shape,"Serenity became more upset, "And he said dad put him there!"

Thomas and Lynn were shocked at this news, Thomas was even more shookened up while slid down on the couch speechless, "Good lord..." Thomas uttered.

Serenity wiped her eyes again, "Tristan told me it happened last night near the bar dad usually goes to, Joey was taking a walk and bumped into him by mistake and got into a fight. Two men found Joey beaten with a broken arm, leg and was unresponsive. He's on life support and the police have dad in custody, he'll be on trial soon but the doctors don't know if Joey will make it!"

Thomas was horrified by what he heard, then he became angry, "Why that bastard! How could he do that to his own son!?" he hissed, "Now that poor boys life hangs in the balance and his future could be ripped away all because of a drunken rage!"

Meanwhile, Lynn was still shocked and held her head, "...My god..."

"I was afraid this would happen!" Serenity exclaimed, "Ever since I can remember, dad always had a bad temper when he got drunk, and Joey was the one who usually got the brunt of it! I was hoping he would stop after I was gone, but instead he put my big brother in the hospital!"

Lynn and Thomas were still shocked, then Thomas remembered one of his co workers telling him something at work before he came over, "Wait...that must have been the story Ben told me about at the station, about a famous Duelist fighting for his life. He said it was all over the news!"

Serenity nods, "Yes, that's what Tristan told me to. They are still investigating what happened. They'll be questioning dad soon to."

Serenity started to calm herself down as Thomas touched her shoulder, "It will alright Serenity. If your brother is as strong as you said he was, he'll pull through."

Serenity was silent for a moment, until she started to clench her fists. Her sad face started to harden and she looks at her mother in determination.

"Mom, I have to go to Domino to see Joey." She announced.

Lynn's eyes widened, "What!?"

Serenity continued, "Not only that, dad's trial will be in a month. And I want to testify against him to finally put him away."

Lynn stood up and gave Serenity a stern look, "No Serenity, I forbid it!"

Serenity was stunned, "What?! But my brother is fighting for his life! And dad need's to pay for what he did!"

"It's too dangerous!" Lynn says in desperation, "Serenity, your father is a violent ill-tempered man. I know first hand what he is capable of! And he hated you because of your illness and you were his intended target for his violent outbursts, that's why I had to take custody of you so you would be safe from his abuse. If you go to testify against him, he'll resent you even more and might try to attack you!"

Serenity looked at her mom in disbelief, "Mom! He hurt Joey, and he might die from this!"

"And you could be next! Serenity, Jordan is dangerous. He also has friends from the outside, so even if he can't get out of jail, if he caught wind you're back in town, to testify against him none the less, you might suffer the same fate as Joseph! Or worse! I can't allow that to happen to you!"

Serenity was no stranger to her mother's resentment against her ex husband. Serenity remembered all the fights her parents had up until she divorced him and took Serenity away, their fights usually involved Serenity and her once bad eyesight and how she was a "financial burden" on the family. The fights often ended with holes in the walls, broken dishes, yelling and Lynn leaving for hours while Jordan fells asleep on the couch. Joey often took Serenity out of the house as often as possible when those fights occurred, needless to say Serenity's childhood was not very happy and she didn't blame her mother for ending their marriage.

But this wasn't the time to remember the past, Serenity had to go see her brother and help him.

"Hold on, Lynn." Thomas stepped in.

Serenity and Lynn looked at the older man, "Huh? Dear?" Lynn said in question.

Thomas looks at his fiance, "Lynn, I know how you feel about your ex husband and why you wouldn't want Serenity near him, but he put your son in the hospital, and in critical condition none the less. This is a very dark time for your family, and Serenity has the right to be with her brother to help him get through this if he is to recover. And Joseph will need you to, Lynn, his mother and sister will need to give him all the support he needs when Jordan gets prosecuted for what he's done."

Lynn blinked, while Serenity's eyes lite up from Thomas's words. He continues, "Come on Lynn, I know you must be worried sick for Joey, especially since you had to leave him with your ex husband and haven't seen him in years. And Serenity hasn't seen him in six months since she went to the airport to visit him. And Jordan is in jail now and will finally be punished for what he did, there's now proof he's an abuser and he won't be able to get out and go after your children. So please Lynn, let Serenity go to Domino and help her brother, please?" Thomas asked with a bit of pleading in his voice.

Lynn didn't know what to say. She was still against Serenity going to Domino with Jordan still in the city. But she couldn't refuse Thomas's request, who asked her with such sincerity.

Lynn lets out a sigh, "Alright Thomas," then she looks at Serenity, "very well Serenity, you can go."

Serenity's eyes lite up, "Really! Thank you mom! Thank you Thomas!"

Thomas smiles at the girl, "Pack what you need for the trip, Serenity, we'll drop you off at the airport tomorrow morning."

Serenity hugged the both of them tightly, "Thank you so much! Both of you!"

Serenity immediately ran upstairs to start packing her things, meanwhile Lynn looked at Thomas with uncertainty, "Are you sure that was a good idea, dear?" she asked worryingly.

Thomas nods and puts an arm over her shoulder, "Absolutely. You said he was a terrible father, Serenity deserves to face him and get closure, and help her brother out as much as she can."

Lynn lowered her eyes, no longer facing her fiance, "I suppose..." she said in an uncertain voice.

Thomas frowns, "It's a shame I haven't met him yet either. Hopefully he'll make it, that way he can attend our wedding, we have so much to talk about, and maybe you two can start talking to each other more. It's been nearly three years since you two spoken, hasn't it? "

Lynn remained silent from Thomas's words. She continued to look away and held her hands together.

"How dare you! You had no right to disown Tristan!"

"He disobeyed me and failed me as a Taylor when he quit! I gave him a job and this is how he repays me!?"

The couple fighting was Troy and his wife Judith Taylor, Tristan's mother. Judith has short brown hair that starting to grey, dark brown eyes and had a bit of fine lines from age and was tall and slender. She wore an orange T-shirt with a light brown skirt with a pair of flats.

After Tristan graduated high school and started working at the Factory by his father's orders, things started to go bad. Whenever Tristan made a mistake on what he was making or misunderstood an order, his dad would bark at him and call him every name under the sun. When Tristan had enough and quit his job, he and his dad got in an argument and Troy disowned Tristan in front of the workers at the factory.

Of course his mother Judith didn't know about Tristan quitting or his father disowning him until she went grocery shopping and met up with her friends. And that's when they told her that they saw Troy and Tristan fighting on the sidewalk and heard Tristan quit the factory and that Troy disowned him and was degrading him.

When Troy got home, Judith unleashed Hell upon her husband in their house and have fought for an hour.

Judith was taken back in disgust, "Failed you?! He didn't want to waste his life in that God forsaken factory! He told you constantly he wanted to be a Mechanic, but he only worked at the Factory out of respect for you! He quit because he wasn't happy there and you were verbally abusive to him and degraded him in front of your co workers!"

Troy seethed, "I always knew he'd be a failure! Just like his brother and sister did! All my children broke away from something that kept families together for generations!"

"They never wanted to work at the factory like you!" Judith exclaimed angrily, "They wanted to live their own lives, not the ones you had planned for them!"

"I'm the man of the house!" Troy exclaimed back,"It's my responsibility to be the breadwinner of the family! Kevin broke the traditional male role when he left the factory for his fruity acting career! And Rachel broke her traditional womanly role when she decided to work after she got married and had her son instead of being a housewife like you! And now Tristan's making the same mistake!"

Judith became even more disgusted, "Is that how you've always viewed us?! As pawns for your dream of a family in the fifties?!"

Troy glared at Judith, "This isn't just common for our family, it was something every family followed for years. My grandfather worked in the factory like I did during the war to provide for the family while my grandmother did the housework and took care of my father and his brothers and sisters. Then my father worked in the factory and provided for my mother and me and my brother and mom cooked and cleaned!"

"Don't you see, Judith!? That was when men were men and women were women and families stayed together! There were no divorces, families were intact and granddad, dad and I had a great job that put roof's over my grandma's, mother's and your head! But now in this day and age, divorces are rampant, jobs are scarce and neither parent is there to rear the kids and that's why this generation is out of control! I was giving Kevin and Tristan a job that will last a lifetime so when they have families of their own, they can provide for them! I was doing them a favor!"

Judith couldn't believe what she was hearing. She felt like she was going explode, "Are you serious!?" She shouted, "Troy! Back then your grandfather worked in the factory during the war because of the Depression, there were no other jobs available and your dad followed suit because the economy was still recovering! You didn't have to follow in their footsteps and work there, you could have been whatever you wanted to be! But instead you got it in your head that this is how it should be and tried to force our children into your way of thinking!"

"Because it IS the right way, Judith! Look how screwed up this world is now that those values are gone!" Troy said angrily, "If my granddad and old man saw what the world has become and what happened to our kids, they would be devastated!"

"I think they would be more devastated at the man who their grandson and son has become! And may I remind you that not even back in the day some people held those values, like how your mother left you and your father-"

Troy slammed his fist at the wall and seethed at Judith, "Don't you DARE remind me of that! My mother was an ungrateful bitch who threw away a good man and family for her own selfish reasons!"

It was a touchy subject for Troy. When he was a little boy his mother left him and his brother while their father was at work, his mother no longer wanted to take care of him or be a wife to his father. When his father returned from work and saw that his wife was gone, his father was devastated and he and his brother had to fend for themselves for then on while their father was at work.

"She betrayed my father," Troy hissed, "And I'll hate her forever for that. When she left she destroyed our family and took most of dad's money with her! She ruined everything!"

Judith stared at her husband."...Now it makes sense, this wasn't about wanting the kids to follow in your old ways...it was because you hated your mother, and you tried to keep our kids close thinking if you imposed those values on them, they wouldn't leave you out of fear. And if they tried, you would abandon them before they abandoned you...just like your mother did."

Troy glared at Judith, until Judith went upstairs, Troy followed her into their room and saw her pack up her suit case, "What are you doing?" he asked.

Judith put the last of her things in her bag and glared at Troy, "Everything you did, it was all about your abandonment issues with your mother! And you took it out on all of us by forcing me to quit my old job to be a housewife, and have our sons work at the factory and make Rachel a stay at home mom so they would be near you and depend on you. You never believed we loved you enough to stay by you so you wanted us to be near you as much as possible, like you were a scared child! Well I've had enough!"

"What are you saying, Judith!" Troy demanded.

"This! I'm done with you, and this marriage! I'm divorcing you Troy!"

Troy's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets and his blood ran cold, "What!?"

"You heard me," Judith continued, "It was your controlling nature and your insecurity that caused this! You're responsible for Kevin's depression when he was younger and Rachel running off so much! And Tristan! You were responsible for his delinquency before he went into high school for how you treated all of them, Troy! You nearly destroyed this family so many times that it's insane! And all of this was because you have issues about your mother and used the old days as an excuse to cover that up! And I used to have a job before I met you, and you ruined everything I worked for! Well not anymore, because I'm going out there to have a life again and this time you're not ruining it!"

As Judith headed towards the door, Troy blocked it, "No! You're not leaving and we're not getting a divorce! I didn't come this far just so you can ruin everything I built!"

Judith shoved him out of her way, "You did that yourself! And not only are you not going to stop me from leaving, you're not going to keep me from our children because you want nothing to do with them! You forced us to be something we weren't Troy, and times have changed, we all have a choice to do what we want now, which is what I'm finally doing. I'm calling a lawyer in the morning for the divorce papers. I don't want you anywhere near me."

As Judith left the house and went into her car, Troy marched out and yelled at her, "Fine! Go ahead and leave! The kids won't take you in! You won't survive out there without me!"

Judith glares at the man, "Watch me. Blankey! Come girl!"

A German Shepard races out of the house passed Troy and jumps into the car with Judith. As she gets into the car, she starts the engine and rolls out of the driveway and drives off.

Troy, enraged, slams the door as he went back inside the house.

It was early in the morning at Domino city as the cars roamed through the city and the people were heading to work, with coffee in one hand, a brief case in another. At the Domino train station, Tristan, Duke, and Ryou were seeing Yugi off at the train station as he awaits his train to the outskirts of Domino to the Tech college. Yugi already said his goodbyes to his grandfather who couldn't be at the station since he had to open the shop.

Ryou was wearing his usual blue shirt and jeans with his long white hair down, while Duke was still wearing his black shirt and pants with the red vest and his long black hair in a ponytail. Tristan wore his black long-sleeved shirt and grey T-shirt underneath with a pair of jeans, and Yugi wore his dark purple shirt with black pants.

Yugi set his suit case down as he looks at the three young men, "So, finally going off to college, eh Yugi?" Duke said.

Yugi nodded but frowned, "Yeah. I just wish it were under better circumstances. I'm just worried about leaving while Joey is in the hospital in the state he's in, I won't be able to say goodbye to him. I'm also still worried about him."

"Don't worry, Yugi, I'm sure Joey will be fine," Ryou says reassuringly, "He's been through too much to give up now. I know he'll make it."

Yugi nods again, "I hope so, "Yugi turns his direction to Tristan, "Will you keep me posted on Joey's condition, Tristan?"

Tristan nods, "You bet Yugi. Of course I might be busy for a while before I can respond."

Yugi blinks, "Huh? What do you mean, Tristan?"

"Mom came to the apartment last night, she told me that she and dad are getting divorced and she and Blankey need a place to stay for a while until the divorce is finale and she gets a job to support herself." Tristan explained.

Yugi was surprised, "Your parents are getting divorced, oh I'm sorry to hear that."

Tristan shook his head, "Don't be, dad brought that upon himself, Beside's I'll be fine. Duke gave me a job at his game shop so I can keep staying in the apartment until I find a mechanic job, so I can still support mom when she gets her divorce papers."

Duke steps in,"There's a job there for Joey too, if he wakes up. The dog suit is still available for him to be the mascot."

Tristan gave Duke a small glare, "WHEN he wakes up. And you better not give him that dog suit if you know what's good for you Duke."

Duke backed away, "Okay okay I was joking, sheesh!"

Yugi looks at his friends, "Tristan's right. We can't give up on Joey now. He needs our support and make sure he makes a full recovery."

Ryou started to remember something, "Speaking of support, have you heard anything from his sister Serenity yet?

"Not since I called her at school," Tristan explained, "She must be done exams by now, I hope she's doing okay and be able to come to the city for Joey."

Duke smirks, "Great, then I can take her on another date while Joey gets better."

That comment led to Tristan giving Duke a headlock and he had an angry look on his face, "Not a chance, Devlin! Serenity's coming here to help Joey, not a date, and with you of all people!"

Ryou and Yugi gave out a nervous laugh as they watched Tristan and Duke fight. Then they heard the speaker be turned on the and the Intercom echoed in the station.

"All passengers please board now."

Yugi picks up his suitcase, "That's my cue."

Before Yugi knew it, Tristan, Duke and Ryou all gave him a bear hug. Yugi was surprised, but he hugged all three of them back. He was going to miss all of them, but the one he will miss the most is Joey, it was actually killing Yugi knowing Joey was not there to see him off to college and was still worried if he will make it from his injuries.

They all let go of Yugi and smiled at him, "Take care of yourself, man." Tristan says to him.

Yugi smiled up at Tristan, "You too. And take care of Joey, let me know if he gets better."

"I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't." Tristan says jokingly.

Yugi boards the train. He ended up in a seat near the window where he saw Tristan, Ryou and Duke wave at him, he waved back as the train started to move. As the train left the station, many things raced through his mind as he sat alone. Joey was his first true best friend despite starting off as his school bully, only for Joey and Yugi to become friends who stood by each other's side.

Yugi was still uncertain about who put him in the hospital though, while many accuse his father, something else was telling Yugi otherwise. But regardless, he was only concerned that his best friend makes it out of this alive. He had already lost one friend to the afterlife this year, he doesn't want to lose another to it.

Yugi started to tear up and uttered a prayer, "Please pull through, Joey," then he started to pray to another, "Please, if Joey is lost somewhere, help him come back to us...Atem..."

Tristan was making himself and his mother tea when he came back from the station. Ryou went back to his apartment as well while Duke went to help his dad at the shop again, Tristan starts his shift tomorrow morning and his mother helped him clean up the apartment.

Luckily for them, their apartment allowed animals to stay so Blankey was allowed to live with them. The old German Shepard was sleeping in the living room while Tristan and his mother were in the kitchen. A Lawyer had left minutes before Tristan got home and Judith had just signed her divorce papers that will be handed to the judge.

The tea was finished and he served himself and his mother a cup each, "Here you go, mom."

Judith smiled, "Thank you, sweetheart."

Tristan sits down next to her at the table as Judith sipped her tea.

"So it's done?" Tristan asked her.

Judith nods after she drank her tea, "It is. The judge will make it official when he gets it, I filed for a fault divorce against your father. Luckily for me I have evidence to support that claim with witnesses I can tell my lawyer if Troy takes me to court, from his co workers to the girls who saw your fight with Troy. And in thirty days I will be free of him forever."

"That's great. I still can't believe you and dad are finally divorced now." Tristan said.

Judith raises an eyebrow, "You're surprised?"

Tristan scratches his cheek and was sheepish, "Not really. If anything, I'm surprised that you didn't leave him sooner. So him forcing me to work at the factory and everything he told us about his tradition was because his mom left him as a kid?"

Judith nodded, "Yes, apparently that hurt him deeply and he thought by imposing those values on us would keep us close to him so he won't be abandoned again. But he ended up ruining himself in the end because in his quest to keep his family, he destroyed it. But let's not speak of this now, not with what's going on with Joey."

Tristan frowned, "Yeah...you're right."

Judith had a concerned look on her face, "How's he doing?"

"They say he's starting to heal some, but he still hasn't woken up yet. But I saw him yesterday and he was looking good. But only time will tell." Tristan explained.

Judith comforted Tristan by touching his face as her son let his head fall, he looks at her as she smiled, "It'll be alright, Tristan."

Tristan smiled as he held his mom's hand to his face, it's amazing what the gentle touch of a mother could do for someone, even though he was practically an adult now.

Then he lifts his head and holds her hand and looks at her in a serious way, "I know what I need to do next, mom. While Joey is recovering, I need to confront Joey's dad about what happened to Joey that night."

Judith eyes were wide, "What? Why do you say that, Tristan?"

"It's probably the only way I'll get any answers," Tristan explains, "Yugi told me before he left that maybe his dad might not have hurt Joey. But I still believe he did it, I need to hear from about what happened from his side of the story."

Judith became worried, "Tristan, you don't know what you could be getting yourself into, It could be dangerous. And if he did it, he'll face prison time won't he?"

Tristan stands up and looks at her, "I know mom, but my best friend is in the hospital on life support, and I need to know if the man who put him there is really his father! I can't just sit here and do nothing! Jordan had beaten Joey since he was a kid and often wiggled out of going to jail either from his friends, or Joey bailing him out since he doesn't want to see his old man behind bars. And I don't want him to have the opportunity to lie so he can get out scot-free, I need to get all the answers I can so if he did do it, I can use it against him and have him locked away for life."

"...I understand," Judith answers, "but if you rush into things, you might be putting yourself in the middle of something we don't understand yet. Whether we like it or not, Jordan Wheeler still has the right to prove himself innocent in the eyes of the court."

Tristan hissed, he knew his mom was right. In the eyes of law, he will be guilty until he proves himself innocent. As much as he hates Jordan, Jordan still has the right to prove his innocence, even if he tries to lie in court, Tristan often wondered how Joey had so much patience with that man before he left for good.

Tristan slumps back down in his seat with a sigh, "So what should I do?" he asked.

Judith drinks her tea again, "I think the best thing is to wait until Joey wakes up. If Jordan is guilty of assaulting him that night, he would remember and would testify against him, if not then he can tell us what happened that night. Rushing things can lead to a bad outcome if we let our anger control our decisions."

Tristan thought about what his mother said, then he sighs in defeat knowing his mother was right, "I guess you're right, mom. The last thing I want to do is jump to conclusions before the trial and before Joey wakes up."

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door and both Judith and Tristan looked up, while Blankey woke up from her nap and went to the door and barked at what was behind the door.

Judith blinked, "Now who could that be? Where you expecting company, Tristan?"

Tristan shook his head and got up to go to the door, "I don't know. I'll go check it out.

When Tristan got to the door, he looks through the peephole. He was afraid it could his father demanding his mother to come back to him, however when he saw through the hole, it wasn't Troy. But while he's thankful that it isn't his father, he was shocked to see who it really was.

Tristan stepped back and quickly unlocked the door, "Oh my God!"

Judith stood up, "What is it? Who's at the door!?" she asked in worry.

Tristan opened the door and saw a young Auburn haired girl. She was wearing a pink T-Shirt and yellow skirt with a suitcase at her side, tears were threatening to come out of her olive hazel eyes.

"Serenity!?" Tristan exclaimed in shock.

Before he could react, Serenity threw her arms around Tristan and sobbed in his chest, "Tristan!"

After the initial shock, Tristan closed his eyes and slowly began to wrap his arms around Serenity, holding her close as she sobs on his chest. He was taken in by the scent of strawberries from her hair and how slender and light she was to him, after all this time, she was back. Even if the circumstances were unfavorable.

All he cared about was comforting the most important person in Joey's life, "Shhh, it's okay, Serenity."

Serenity continued to sob.

Meanwhile, Judith and Blankey looked at them in confusion, "Uhhh, Tristan? Aren't you going to introduce us?"

End of Chapter 4.