A Feud Between Friends and Brothers (PART 1)

3rd POV

The summer was close. Everyone was excited. Just a few days and school was over.

Unfortunately, when a weird masked guy appears and sends everyone's bakugans to the Doom Dimension, some people are only able to think about defeating him.

One of them is Dan. Since Masquerade defeated him the other day, even if he won't admit it.

Dan decided to start training again. He needed to get stronger if he wanted to get everyone's bakugans back and stop Masquerade.

"If you wanna win at Bakugan, you gotta keep yourself in shape" were his words.

He still had to babysit his brother, so he bought Mark an ice cream cup. While Dan 'kept himself in shape', Mark eat the ice cream and kept an eye on Drago.

Ever since the last battle, Drago became a bit more...vocal to say. Mostly sarcastic or annoyed remarks.

While Mark wanted to talk with him about this whole 'Vestroia' and what the heck happened in the last battle with the power boost that made his bakupod go to static...he didn't. First, because he decided it would be better to do it when they were alone. Second, because-

"Is he serious?" Drago muttered, watching Dan doing his weird exercises which were not a sight for sore eyes "Don't interrupt him or he's gonna start all over again" Mark hissed. "You kidding" Drago turned to Mark, and by the look on his face, he realized Mark wasn't kidding at all.

This was the reason Mark didn't want to talk with Drago. It would interrupt Dan and that would lead to them having to spend the whole day there to finish his weird training.

Now, don't get him wrong. He loved his brother, and believed he was pretty cool...but then again he was his brother (and we all know what we think about our brothers)

By the time Dan was practicing his throwing-aiming-brawling-or-whatever-it-is-called, Mark finished the ice cream. He was just trying to get all the small bits of ice cream that were left on the cup with the spoon, making an annoying noise unheard by Dan, but by Drago. Come on! Everyone does that! Ice cream is just too good to let just the slightest in the cup.

"I'm the man!" Dan said, proud of himself "Ha. You're a boy" Drago said, not really sounding sarcastic, nor annoyed. Maybe tired?

Anyway, that remark made Dan lose his balance. Mark glanced at Drago "Actually, I'm the boy" he said still trying to get what was left of the ice cre-

"IT'S EMPTY!" Drago said, turning to Mark. Mark flinched and raised his hands in surrender. He threw the cup in the nearest trash bin and crossed his arms like a child...Wait, he is a child...hmmm...

"Hey, it's great that you can talk, but be nice! I gotta be ready to beat Masquerade! That means I have to CONCENTRATE!" Dan said, bending down a bit so it was like he yelled in his face "So cool it on the wise cracks!"

"Are all humans as you? If so I think you should leave this battle to me!" Drago said.

Dan looked away annoyed, so Drago decided to be rational "Look, I know you want to defeat your opponent, but there's more at stake than you realize" he said. Dan raised an eyebrow stupidly "What's more important than winning?" he asked.

"Humans" Drago scoffed "I'm offended...but still have to agree with you" Mark said and shrugged "When it comes to Bakugan, I've got mad skills and I know I can easily be number one! I'll prove it the next time I cross paths with that clown Masquerade! He thinks he's a champ but I'll prove he's a chump!" Dan said.

"You are blinded by your anger!" Drago said "Am not!" Dan said like a child "Listen to yourself!" Drago said annoyed. Mark wasn't sure if he was enjoying the fight or not. He had mixed feelings about it, but he knew one thing. This argument somehow made him want popcorn. And also feel bad that Drago and Dan argue that much, but that was obvious.

And also feel bad that Drago and Dan argue so much, but that was obvious.

"Okay! That does it!" Dan said and grabbed Drago "Put me down!" Drago's words were muffled by Dan's hand "Not until you promise to stop dissing me! And from now on… do as I say!" Dan said.

Mark sighed. Even tho he was just a kid, he was more rational than Dan. He decided to try to help them become friends. It was for everyone's good because he realized how the argument made him feel actually. Annoyed.

(LATER)

Mark's POV

"So, you started training again? That's great, Dan!" Runno said. We were back home, and as usual, Dan was talking with the others and I was sitting on his bed, occasionally joining in the conversation.

"Yeah sure...But Drago kept messing with my head so it was hard to focus on what I was doing" Dan said annoyed "You two shouldn't fight! Real friends help each other out when they need it" Jullie said.

"So do brothers" I said and walked next to Dan "Yeah I know that's why I'm scrubbin' Drago down. He was looking kinda grungy" Dan said while doing said thing-

...

"Is that my toothbrush?" I asked horrified. His eyes widened, but he didn't look at me "Yeah...right there..." Drago moaned. I blinked twice. Great now I have mixed emotions again!

"You're so lucky Dan! I've searched the entire web and you're the only person with a talking bakugan" Runno said "It was not luck. It was meant to be! It was destiny that brought the two of us together" Dan said, somehow reminding me of Shakespeare.

"If I could make just one wish it would be that I could find a Bakugan ball just like Drago. Then I would face off against Masquerade and find out who the creep is behind the mask!" Runno said.

The mood became serious all of sudden "Any news about him?" I asked "No. Nothing. After he battled Dan, no one has seen or heard a thing from him again" Jullie said.

Dan spun on his chair and kicked his feet up "Ah, that figures. My crazy skills with the Bakugan cards must have spooked him so he went into hiding" Dan said.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that. After all, he did beat you, so why would he have to hide" Runno said. I guess she just likes to burst his bubbles.

He was sure annoyed by that "Runno, he didn't beat me! The battlefield disappeared, and the battle was over. It means it was a draw so nobody won!" he said.

"Yes, it was a draw" Marucho suddenly joined the conversation "Right away Marucho!" Dan said.

"From what I observed, the cards used during the battle had no effect on the final total of the Halo Sector points of either player. And from what Mark told me, Drago was going to use an attack stronger than the ability card, am I right?" Marocho asked, looking at me.

"Yes. Around 2000G my bakupod went to static, but I don't think the numbers were gonna stop anytime soon" I said. Marucho nod "In that case, the overwhelming power emanating from Drago made the battlefield unstable, causing it to vanish. So, with the battlefield gone, the battle could most likely be called a draw" he said

"It self-destructed?" Alice asked shocked "Um, did I miss something here?" Jullie asked. Runno looked shocked-mad "That's impossible to use an attack that's stronger than your ability card!" she said.

"Hold on! You mean Drago has power over the ability cards I have?" Dan asked shocked "So cool..." I said.

"Maybe we should leave you for a while. It seems like you have a lot to talk about. But don't worry, while you're busy gabbing with each other, I'll settle the score with Masquerade" Runno said determinedly.

"Hey, you better step off, Runno! I'm the one who is fighting Masquerade next!" Dan said angry. I knew an argument was coming, so I decided to go to my room "Night guys!" I said.

(3 AM!)

The worst time to wake up. And what was even worse? I was hungry. I groaned and left to the kitchen to eat something. As I passed Dan's room, I saw the door of his room cracked open.

Since I was already there, I looked inside. I saw Drago looking outside the window. He was opened, which also meant he was awake.

Do bakugans even sleep...?

After 2 minutes of intense thinking and debating with myself (not only about the 'do bakugans sleep' topic), I decided to make a move.

"Psst! Drago!" I whispered. He turned to me. I signaled to him to come over, which thinking about it now, I realize it was a horrible idea.

Drago considered it. After ten seconds (you have no idea how long those ten freaking seconds felt) I started to think he didn't want to talk to me (understandable).

I wanted to leave, but to my surprise, he decided to come to me. He hardly managed to roll towards me, but the worst part was that he didn't notice he was rolling towards the edge until he fell off the drawer.

I winced whenever he bounced towards me since I know that wasn't his plan. I eventually caught him when he was close enough and walked to the kitchen.

"This was a bad idea" Drago groaned embarrassed "I won't tell anyone about this incident, don't worry" I said. We walked in the kitchen and I placed Drago on the table.

"We need to talk" we both said in sync. We sat in silence for a bit, waiting for the other to say what he had to say "I want to say I'm sorry"/"I wanted to apologize" we both said in sync again.

Silence again "I'm sorry for what Dan said about bakugans, and for his attitude. I guaranteed for him and you saw what happened..." I said sheepishly.

"I wanted to apologize as well for my attitude towards him and you. I need his help, but I wasn't doing a good job at getting it" he said.

Since he didn't really have a face to look at, I decided to do what I wanted to do in the first place.

To eat.

I opened the fridge and grabbed the pudding "Have you tried...you know..." I closed the fridge and turned to him.

"Being nice?" I suggested. I sat at the table and began to eat "Nice?" he asked confused.

"Yeah. Look..." I said serious "Dan isn't a bad guy- heck, he has a heart of gold, but..." I paused.

"How to put it...he's very stubborn - his heart might be in the right place, but his ego, unfortunately, isn't in either the right place AND the right size-"

"He's a hothead" he interrupted me "That's a way to put it... And I'm gonna be honest with you now..." I said and took a deep breath:

"You are indeed a bit annoying, but in his case, it's a worse because he doesn't realize that he's wrong and you're right. Try being nicer to him. It's easier to communicate with someone if they're your friend...And you DO need to communicate. It's getting old seeing your arguments" I said the last part with a bored face.

"You may be right...but he is just too..." Drago couldn't finish "I know. It might be a bit hard at first...but it's worth for Vestroia" I said.

"How do you know about Vestroia?" he asked surprised.

I face-palmed "Oh, right! Yesterday while battling Reaper, you mentioned it. I assumed it was important, and now I know that it's important...I dunno what it is, tho..." I said, hoping he would clear things up.

He didn't say anything.

"Drago?" I asked a bit worried.

"I'm sorry Marcus, but I would rather talk about it at the right time, and now it's not" he said "Oh, man..." I sighed/groaned and crossed my arms.

Realization hit me "Wait, did you just call me by my name?" I asked shocked.

"I thought this would be a nice thing to do" he said, and I could tell that if he could, he would smile.

I smiled "Now...how do I get you back there..." I said...

(MORNING)

It was so freaking hard to get Drago back in, but we managed to do it without waking Dan up.

"Morning! I'm starving!" Dan yelled, coming to the kitchen. He opened the fridge "Where's my pudding?!" he asked confused. I tried hard not to smirk.

Anyway, I was already finished and ready to go, but Dan (being Dan) decided to make his back bag this morning. I was sitting on his bed, watching him throw a book out of his bag and grabbing another one "Oh, man! I'd better not miss my first class again" Dan sighed.

"If you prepared from yesterday like me, you would've been ready by now" I said a bit annoyed, and also proud of myself. He rolled his eyes.

"Hey..." Drago said, from the drawer (that's the place I left him last night). We turned to him "Is something troubling you? You had a restless sleep last night" he asked, his voice full of concern rather than that usual annoyance.

I felt a bit sad for not noticing that Dan had a nightmare, but that thought was soon replaced by realization.

Was Drago really...following my advice...?

Dan rolled his eyes again and prepared to leave the room. Well, Drago tried. I got up and looked at Drago for a second, before preparing to leave the room as well "You're not taking me with you today?" he asked confused rather than glad.

Dan stopped, but didn't turn to him "Um, I don't want me or Mark to be late for school" he said "Dan..."

"Hey, I heard you the first time, we gotta get going-!" Dan said and realized something "Hey, you called me by my name" he said. I know the feeling, bro.

"You don't mind it, do you? I can call you something else if you want" Drago said, again not offensive in any way (but I still feel like 'something else' is more likely an insult).

"No. Dan's good. They call me worse things at school" he said, looking away for a second. Drago realized he might have brought up a sensitive topic, so he got straight to the point.

He opened up "I was thinking it will be better for the both of us if we work together. As a team" he said. Dan's face lit up after those words "Drago! Yeah! Come here, partner!" he said and picked Drago up "You and I will make the best team ever!" his voice began to rise up.

I covered his mouth fast, unless he wanted to explain to mom and dad that he was talking to a toy,

"We're not alone, remember?" I said. He realized what I meant and just did a small happy dance now that Drago was actually his partner.

When he wasn't looking, I gave Drago a thumb up as in 'thank you'.

(A FEW DAYS LATER)

A few days passed and I must say, Dan and Drago actually became a good team.

No, that's not it.

I think they sort of became friends. He won a few battles with Drago (one of them being against Shuji again) and even took Drago with him in the bath (oh and yes, I have a new toothbrush now).

Even tho they were sort of friends, Drago sometimes prefers to talk with me. Dan and I might be brothers, but like brothers, we have different opinions sometimes.

Plus the fact that Dan leaves Drago with me from time to time when he really needs to.

We were online with the others, y'know, the usual. Him on the chair, and me on the bed.

"Oh, so you're friends again! That's really great!" Jullie said "Yeah, everything is alright since Drago started seeing things MY way" Dan said. I rolled my eyes.

"Although, I don't know what made him change...something I said maybe...?" Dan asked confused, no one in particular. "Or maybe something I said..." I muttered, unheard by anyone.

"Well, you do have a way with words, you know?" Jullie flirted (as usual). "Good for you, Dan" Alice said. Marucho wanted to say something, but Runno joined the video call, scaring both him and me.

"LISTEN UP EVERYBODY! I GOT BIG NEWS! Big news!" she yelled. I fell off the bed with a yelp "What so important Runno? Tell us" Marucho said after he recovered from the shock as well as me.

"Ta-da! Look! I got myself a talking Bakugan! My wish came true!" she said cheerful, singing the last part. We all gasped, happy for her and at the same time a bit envious.

I got up to take a look at her Bakugan, which she held very close to the camera so we can see it.

Marucho adjusted his glasses "Oh! O-oh yeah! That appears to be a-" "Tigrera!" Runno interrupted him, sounding as cheerful as ever.

"It's attribute is Light. It's a Haios Tigrera" Alice pointed out.

"Oh, I'm so excited! This is the best thing that ever happened to me!" Runno said like that was the best day of her life.

"Let's chill for a sec! Let's hear how it sounds like" Dan said "Hey, I'm Mark. Hi" I said before Dan could. He narrowed his eyes at me for a second but turned his attention back to Tigrera to see if Runno was actually telling the truth.

"Greeting, human" Tigrera said, the tone of its voice showing that it was a female.

We all looked at her in awe, as Runno brought it close and rubbed her face against her affectionally.

Dan laughed and put his arm around my shoulder bringing me in a side hug "Now you know how we feel! Looks like our little team of Bakugan battle brawlers is getting stronger every day!" he said "You know it!" Runno said, still showing her affection to Tigrera.

"Well guys, you DO seem like a force to be feared" I said, giving them thumbs-up.

"Yeah! And we all know what the first of the order of business is gonna be, don't we?" Dan asked getting up AND dragging me along.

"It's time someone takes Masquerade and his tacky costume to the cleaners!" he said determined.

Unfortunately for me, his grip tightened "And that someone is gonna be me!" he said.

"Or me, depending on who gets to him first!" Runno said, her excessive display of affection towards Tigrera coming to an end.

Well, for me, I was still trying to break free from the grip of death my brother put on me.

3rd POV

Drago watched Dan, Mark and their friends, feeling something he's never felt in a 'These humans do not seem to lack confidence...' he thought 'I only hope they can be trusted when the time comes. The fate of Vestroia could be in their hands...'

He realized what he felt. Not too much, but he felt...relief...

That is something he can get used to.

AN: Wow, was that a long chapter! I realized this episode could be split into two parts. First, because of plot reasons. Second, because only ten minutes of the episode took 3000+ words to write. I feel like this is a good ending for the chapter, adding to the fact that I haven't uploaded for a while so there it is. I'm gonna start writing part 2 right away!