Bryon groaned as he felt the back of his head throb. He cracked open his eyes to find himself lying face down on a sandy beach, though Bryon could tell that it was not Duel Academy Island. Bryon muttered several curses under his breath before shakily standing up.
"Well this is just perfect," he muttered aloud. "Arlene DOESN'T beat me in a duel and I can't even put myself out of my own misery!" He looked out at the sea, and for a while was content to just watch the waves wash slowly onto the shore. He was soon brought to his senses by the feel of someone tapping on his shoulder. Bryon glanced behind him and his jaw dropped.
"Hello, Bryon." Arlene said coldly. She swiftly punched him causing him to pass out.
"Get up, Bryon. I'm not going to babysit you." Bryon clutched his head in pain as he sat up. He gingerly looked to where Arlene was sitting, where she was avoiding his gaze.
"How did you..." Bryon started before lapsing into silence. When Arlene didn't say anything Bryon tried again. "How did you know where I was?" Arlene snorted.
"You stepped off a cliff. It didn't take a genius to work out that you'd probably be in the water."
"What, so you jumped in after me?"
"Obviously." Bryon was puzzled.
"But WHY? After all, I burned down the Slifer Red Dorm twice, betrayed you, lied to you..."
"Don't remind me."
"So why did you do it?" Arlene shrugged.
"I...didn't really have a reason." There was silence. Arlene struggled to think of something. "Probably so that I could find out more about your organisation." Bryon stood up.
"Forget about it. By even telling you that much I should be dead. I guess I was wrong to count too much on your dueling skills." Arlene scowled. "DON'T give me that look, Arlene! You know as well as I do that you're an amateur! The only student that didn't win in their entry exam..."
"That's all people seem to want to tell me," Arlene growled. "It wears thin after you hear it about a hundred times." Bryon opened his mouth to retort, but then closed it when he saw the look on Arlene's face.
"Well, ARLENE, arguing won't get you back to the island and me somewhere safe. We'll need to build us a boat and get supplies and whatnot." Arlene looked as though she would rather bash her head against a brick wall for a day, but Bryon had started to get very good at ignoring Arlene's protestings. "It's settled then! Just like old times!"
"Other than the fact that I now know you're a traitor."
"Well yes, there's that."
This is unbelievable! Arlene was scowling as she searched for some food. The island they were on didn't have very many trees or greenery, so she was finding her task difficult. Why DID I even jump in after Bryon? She thought about this for a minute or so. I guess...ah, who am I kidding? I have absolutely no idea! Maybe I just was so mad after Bryon called me an amateur...mind you, it is kind of true... Arlene withdrew from her thoughts and continued her search for food.
Ethan stretched and rolled out of bed, landing on the floor with a thud. He didn't seem to mind, simply picking himself up off the floor and stretching. He looked out of his window for a few seconds, before finding his uniform. Ethan hunched over and started groping around the room, his eyes half closed from tiredness. He finally found them underneath his bed and shoved them on. His uniform seemed to instill him with energy, for a few seconds later his eyes were wide open and he was racing out of his room to Fay's. Fay groaned as someone pounded on her door. She sat up on her bed and and quickly put her uniform on, putting on an angry frown as she opened the door. Ethan beamed at her.
"Hey, Fay! You ready for school?" Fay continued to scowl at him. "I'll take that as a yes!"
Ethan... Arlene stared out at the waves as Bryon devoured some of the food she had found.
"ARLENE! I WOULDN'T trust me to save some food for you!" Arlene breathed deeply to try and vent out some of her anger, but found it difficult as Bryon kept talking. "Oh WELL! I'll just eat ALL of this! MMMMM!"
"Bryon. Shut up."
"Oh, I'm SORRY Arlene!" Bryon was being sincere, but Arlene didn't take it that way and punched him again. She grabbed some of the food and stared out at the ocean again, slowly eating. Bryon grumbled and started to mutter complaints.
"You deserved that. And don't think you didn't." Bryon rubbed his neck.
"Violence is never the answer, ARLENE!" Arlene turned round to face him, a cold look in her eyes.
"No, but it makes me feel a whole lot better." Arlene tried to move the conversation on to something else. "How's our raft coming along?" Bryon shrugged.
"You know, I'm not as good at making rafts as I thought I was!" Arlene slanted an eyebrow.
"What does that mean exactly?" Arlene's voice had become dangerous. Bryon shrugged again.
"I guess we can't use a raft to get off the island! Oh WELL!" Arlene glared at him for a few moments before punching him again and walking away. Bryon was dazed for a few seconds, before he picked up Arlene's discarded food and started eating it.
"Well, that lesson wasn't so bad, eh Fay?" Fay didn't say anything. Ethan waved a hand in front of her, but Fay slapped it away. "What's wrong?"
"You're what's wrong, Ethan." Fay sighed. "Do you not have any other friends?" Ethan looked puzzled.
"Well, yeah! I'm not a loner, Fay!"
"Then how come I don't see you with any of them? It always seems like you're hanging around with me."
"Is that a problem, Fay?" Fay nodded, her eyes shut. "Oh. Sorry. Guess I'll...go somewhere else then." Ethan walked off. Fay sighed and slapped her forehead.
Just great, Fay! Just great! She looked down at the ground. But he has been hanging around with me a lot. I wonder if he was telling the truth... She frowned. Why should I care? Ugh! Ever since I met Arlene I've changed! Maybe I'll go and brush my hair again...or talk to my normal friends or SOMETHING! Fay quickly walked off.
"Umm, Arlene?" Arlene said nothing. Bryon cleared his throat. "ARRRRRLLLLEEEE..."
"I HEARD YOU!" Arlene snapped. Bryon paused.
"I'm sorry, y'know, for making you upset." Arlene sighed.
"Bryon?" Arlene asked. Bryon became more alert.
"Yes, ARLENE?"
"What made you want to join an organisation that burns down islands?" Bryon thought for a second, before deciding to answer.
"Well, that was a one off thing. Begia isn't so bad, once you get to know the people..."
"The organisation's called Begia?" Bryon held a hand up to his mouth in shock.
"Aww NOO! They're going to kill me for telling you that!"
"I thought you said they weren't so bad?" Bryon stopped talking. "Besides, you seem to think that I'm going to tell everyone I meet." Bryon was embarrassed.
"N...no, it's just policy, you know? Anyways, the real reason I came here was that the raft's finished." Arlene was confused.
"I thought you said you couldn't make one." Bryon beamed.
"Turns out I did! So, you can make your way back to the island! It's west of here."
"Are you not coming?" Bryon shook his head.
"I'm going to lay low for a while." Arlene understood. As she walked towards the beach, she looked over her shoulder and saw Bryon gazing sadly at her. She stopped.
"Hey, Bryon." He looked at her intently. "I can't forgive you just like that. But I don't hate you anymore. It's just a dislike now." She continued walking back to the beach, smiling slightly. She didn't know that Bryon was smiling as well.