A/N: Here's the next chapter! Enjoy! We don't own Yugioh GX or Yugioh 5D's.

"So, you know him, Yusei?" Aki asked.

"Yeah," Yusei answered. "We saved the past together."

He looked at Judai questioningly. The others stared, confused and stunned. Without a word, Judai looked away.

Yusei smiled. "It's been a long time, old friend."

There was a pause. After a moment, Judai said, "Yeah, you can say that again..."

"So, wait, if he's one of the guys you fought with back in the past, then why's he here?" Aki asked. "Wasn't that battle based around the year 2004?"

"Yeah, it was," Yusei answered. He looked at Judai questioningly again, his eyes asking the unspoken question of "why are you even here?"

Judai just kept staring at the ground.

"Judai?" Yusei said.

After a moment's hesitation, Judai said, "Long story."

Yusei looked at him for a moment before asking, "You okay, pal?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Judai answered, his eyes still trained on the ground.

"Are you sure?" Aki asked. "Because you don't look fine."

Carly leaned over, handcuffs or no handcuffs, and looked at his face. "Yeah! Your eyes are all puffy, too! Have you been crying?"

"They're right, young man," Mikage said. "What's going on? Is something happening in the past again?"

"The past's fine!" Judai snapped, tensing up all of a sudden. He still didn't lift his gaze.

"Then why have you come here?" Yusei asked.

Muttering, Judai said, "By no choice of mine, you can be sure of that..."

Yusei looked at him for a moment. He wasn't sure what to make of this. Judai was here in Neo Domino City, roughly 2000 years after his time, and he seemed totally depressed. He wasn't acting anything like the cheerful, hyperactive teen Yusei remembered. What could have happened to cause this?

"Come with me," he said. "Let's discuss this in private."

"Yusei...," Aki said.

Judai looked up slightly. "I'd rather not...," he said. And get the heck outta here...

Yusei just stared and held his hand out gently. Judai stared at that hand for a moment before taking it.

"Mikage," Yusei said. "Take care of the stone. Tell Akutsu to run a full scan of the stone's energy supply and get back to me."

"Right away, Dr. Fudo," Mikage said with a bow.

Yusei nodded and led Judai off, taking him back to his place.

Once those two were gone, Carly asked, "So, anybody mind telling me what just happened here?"

"I'm not sure," Aki admitted. "I'll ask him tomorrow. It's been kind of a long day."

"I understand," Mikage assured her. "Good night, Miss Izayoi. I hope tomorrow's a better day for you."

"Yeah! For me, too," Carly said. "I can tell this is gonna be a long night..." She sweat.

Mikage grinned evilly. "Oh, you have no idea. When Security's done with you, you're bound to be put away for life."

"Ha! The only way that would ever happen would be if you were in charge!"

"I am in charge, you little—"

Aki walked off as they continued, calling back, "Well, goodnight, girls! See you around!"

Granted, the two probably wouldn't hear her, but she figured she'd make it clear that she was leaving, anyway, on the off chance one of them did actually hear her.

It was around eight o'clock when Yusei got home with Judai. Jack wasn't there, but Crow was back.

"Aw, Yus!" he said. "Don't tell me your date got ruined again. Why's that guy here?" He looked at Judai and added, "Who is he?"

"This is Judai," Yusei answered. "The one I told you about?"

"Say wha!?" Crow said, stunned. "B-but what's he doing here!? What's going on now!?"

"That's...what I aim to find out." He turned to Judai, silently asking the same question.

Judai just looked away again.

"Judai. Tell me why you're here," Yusei said, his tone gentle but firm. "And why you're so upset. What happened?"

Judai stared at the floor in silence for another moment before saying, "They..."

Yusei raised an eyebrow. "They?"

"They what?" Crow asked. "Who's they? Some aliens from outer space? Speak up."

Another silence from Judai.

"Now, come on!" Crow said. "What's your problem? Did the cat steal your tongue or something?"

Yusei just looked at Judai, waiting.

It took another moment for Judai to stumble through a few more words. "Everyone's... They're all..."

He was trembling. Yusei just kept waiting, looking at him with concern.

"Yeah? And what happened to everyone? Don't be shy! Tell us!" Crow said.

"Dead... They're all..."

"Wait, what do you mean, they're all dead?" Yusei asked. "What happened?"

"Time, that's what..."

Yusei looked at him questioningly, wondering what exactly that meant.

Crow stared for a moment before asking, "Time?"

Judai's head snapped up, and there was a mix of pain and anger in his eyes as he exclaimed, "Yes, time! What else steals everything from a person!?"

"Judai. Calm down," Yusei said. "You're barely making any sense."

Crow just gaped—he hadn't expected that at all. Judai lowered his head, fighting back tears. Yusei just watched him for a moment, concerned.

"Hey, come on, pal," Crow said. "It's okay."

Yusei started toward the brunette, unnoticed.

"Judai...," Yubel whispered.

"Don't call me 'pal!'" Judai snapped, looking at Crow with that same mixture of hurt and anger. "I don't need anymore friends!"

Yusei put a hand on Judai's shoulder. "There's something you're not telling us, isn't there?" he asked. "Does this have anything to do with that duel spirit you were with?"

Judai looked at Yusei, then lowered his gaze. "Yes..."

Yusei looked at him, signaling him to go on. Judai took a deep breath.

"I...I've been... I'm not aging... I can't die..."

Yusei's eyes widened. "What!?"

"So, what are you, then? Some kind of vampire or something?"

Another pause. Then, "I don't know..."

"It's alright," Yusei soothed. "Can you tell me how this happened?"

"...I fused with Yubel..."

"Yubel? What's that?" Crow asked.

"The duel spirit in my head..."

"I thought so," Yusei said.

"So, wait, you knew all this, Yus!? Just who is this guy!?"

Yusei shrugged. "Don't know. I found out about the spirit when we first met. She was standing on the roof we were sitting on. But, unlike the bond Kuribon shares with Ruka, she seemed to be attached to Judai. Almost like they were one solid being or something." He turned back to Judai and asked, "So, you fused with that duel spirit and stopped aging?"

Judai nodded.

"Is that all it did?"

"I got some new powers..."

"What about your health? Have you gotten sick since then?"

"Yes... Though it doesn't do much..."

"So, are you saying you don't get stuff like pneumonia or malaria? Or can your body simply fight them off?"

"I had cancer once... It killed me... Though, clearly, that didn't last..."

Yusei raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying you're dead?" he asked.

Crow cringed away, saying, "B-but...that would make you a zombie, wouldn't it!?"

"I don't know what it would make me... I keep coming back," Judai admitted.

Hmm. Like a duel monster... His hand still on the boy's shoulder, Yusei looked at him and said, "I'm sorry."

Crow just kept staring, stunned. This was way more than he was expecting. An ancient teenager in their home, alive, having been around for 2000 years.

A white D-Wheel pulled in—Jack was back.

"Hey. What's up?" he said by way of greeting.

"Oh, hi, Jack!" Crow rounded on him. "Thanks for breaking the refrigerator earlier! Now I have to replace most of our food! Can't you ever leave stuff alone!?"

"Hey, it's not my fault if the damn thing spit ice at me," Jack countered.

"So that means you make it worse!? Yusei's got better things to do than fix our stuff all day!"

"Speaking of which," Jack said, purple eyes honing in on the visitor, "who's that guy?"

"That's Judai," Yusei answered. "I brought him here to live with us. Assuming he agrees." He looked to Judai for an answer.

"Say wha!?" Crow asked. "You never said anything about that!"

Yusei was still looking at Judai, waiting for an answer. Judai stared at him for a moment.

"What...?" he finally asked.

"Hey, wait a minute! Why are we always taking in a bunch of strangers!? We barely have enough room for ourselves, let alone another house guest!" Jack countered. "Remember what happened to the last one?"

"Calm down, Jack. Judai's not an android like Bruno was."

Judai stared at his friend for a moment, wondering what exactly that meant. "Do I even want to know?"

"Besides," Yusei went on, "he's got no place else to go, and he needs me."

"Well, I see no harm in having him stay here," Crow said. "I kinda missed having three dudes to talk to."

Jack crossed his arms, still not happy about this idea. Then again, he was planning on leaving soon, so why the hell not? He humphed.

"I guess it couldn't hurt. Just stay away from my things, you got that!?" he snapped at Judai.

"Well, Judai?" Yusei asked.

Judai hesitated for a moment. "Okay," he said at last. I just know I'm gonna regret that later... Well, I'll just leave before it gets to that point! And I won't let myself get too close to Jack or Crow. Shouldn't be too hard to avoid them...I hope.

A little while later, Jack got a call from Carly, asking him to come and bail her out. Extremely annoyed, Jack went down to the Facility to bail her out and grill her about what exactly she had done to get herself arrested in the first place. That idiot girl was just a pain in the neck. Could somebody remind him of why, exactly, he put up with her again?