Chapter XLVIII: Causation and Correlation
Hello again, dear readers and we welcome you back again to Darkness Falls. We're glad to see you back with us and so many of you still reading! So rather than give a lengthy recap, we'll go straight to the story!
As usual, we don't own the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise, any other anime or anything else but our version of things, our OCs, and anything that hasn't been established. Thanks!
Medical note: Staph bacteria, also known as Staphylococcus can cause pneumonia. This bacteria comes in a few different forms, some more harmful than others.
About four hours later as the dawn broke over Domino and the Pacific Ocean, a Duel Academy transport helicopter flew toward Academy Island. On board were several worried adults. "Hiro... we should be coming out here for the kids' wedding," Katai Misawa moaned softly in her husband's arms. "Not for Bastion being sick again... Is this going to end?!"
Hiro held his wife close, feeling much the same way. He gently rubbed her back in a soothing gesture as he spoke. "I know, Katai... All we can do is hope it will and be there for our son when he needs us."
"And we're here to fight it at your side," Scout Rhodes added, gesturing to a young-looking Asian man with ebony hair and kind brown eyes.
"I'm glad Nurse Fontaine called out for us at the first," Alex Nakamura stated. "We may be able to get a handle on this quicker, and if it's bad, we may be able to fight it harder..." Nakamura was a pulmonologist that worked at both Domino Children's Hospital and Domino General Hospital. "Depending on what the tests reveal, we may be in for a bit of a fight..."
Hiro sighed. "Thank you, both of you. I'm afraid I can't do much... the eyes are my field, not the lungs."
"But you are a doctor. And you can help Bastion and the other kids. How much of our business is bedside manner?" Scout countered seriously. "We'll keep their spirits up and bolster their bodies..."
Katai sighed. "I can only imagine what this is doing to Violet... She must be so scared..."
Hiro nodded. "You're right, Scout... And we'll help both of them through this, darling," he soothed, taking Katai's hand.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
Meanwhile, at Duel Academy, Fonda Fontaine felt her heart skip a beat as she looked at the test results of Bastion's sputum sample. "Oh, how did he contract this?!" she yelped in horror.
The gang, who was still sitting outside in the infirmary, jumped at the yell. They ran to the lab, worried something had happened. "Miss Fontaine?"
Miss Fontaine looked up to see the worried and sleepy faces of Jaden, Alexis, Tyson, Rosa, Syrus and Annie looking at her. "I'm sorry. I just can't figure out how he contracted this strain..."
Annie understood with the instinct she had been given. She could see the fear in the nurse's face as well. "It's a bad one, isn't it?" she asked.
"It is," the nurse confirmed, clearly concerned.
The group paled. "How bad?" Syrus asked nervously.
"It's a staph-based pneumonia," Miss Fontaine began, guessing she'd have to explain it. However, she didn't have to.
Jaden's eyes bugged, knowing exactly what they might be dealing with. "How did he get that?! He hasn't been in a hospital and he wouldn't have gotten it here... And nobody's had staph infections in the dorm..."
"You guys are forgetting the obvious place," Mary stated, appearing and leaning against the wall. She was surprised they didn't guess it immediately; were they that blind?
"What about the World of Darkness, guys?" Tyson wondered. Everyone exchanged glances at that.
"Bingo. That Dark Ocean had a lot of people floating on it, let me tell you. And lots of things can survive in water," Mary explained. She, unlike Violet, had been conscious during the ordeal.
The teens looked at Violet's spirit counterpart in surprise. "What was it like in there?" Annie asked the spirit girl.
"Hm?" Mary looked at the group in equal surprise, not expecting to be asked that. She straightened, rubbing the back of her neck as she frowned slightly. "Well, there's not much to describe, really. A black sky and an ocean such a dark blue it was nearly black too. People of all kinds floating on it as far as I could see; I couldn't leave Violet's side to move around or anything. But man, was it DEEP. I couldn't even begin to imagine the bottom of that ocean. But no one sank... well, except those who gave up like Violet did."
"Could people cough in there?" Annie asked curiously, trying to figure out how the pathogens could have been spread.
Mary thought back to the time she'd spent in that world. "I... think so..."
Miss Fontaine, in teacher mode, looked at the teen girl in her pajamas. "Okay, Annie, how is staph spread?"
"Skin-to-skin contact and contaminated objects like towels and clothes. Warm, humid environments also contribute as people sweat and touch... Was it warm there?" the girl asked her friend's spirit counterpart, her eyebrow raised.
"Beats me. I can only feel when I'm in control of Violet's body," Mary answered with a shrug. "You'd have to ask someone who was there."
Annie looked at Rosa, the only person in the room that had been there. "Rosa? Was it warm there?"
Rosa blinked, frowning as she thought back. "I... can't remember much outside of what I saw... But it definitely wasn't cold."
The nurse and would-be med student and children of doctors looked at each other. "It was a perfect breeding ground," Jaden realized. "If somebody near Bastion had it, then... the incubation period... somehow it got right in his lungs where he was and it's only now hitting..."
"Jaden?" Annie asked, stunned that he actually would know. But then again, she reflected, he's an oncologist's son.
He sighed. "I learned about staph and MRSA infections when I was little. Mom told me to wear socks when I was in the hospital so I wouldn't get an infection. No matter how clean hospitals are kept, there's still a danger of staph infections there..."
"Then... is Bastion going to be able to get better?" Syrus asked worriedly.
Miss Fontaine nodded. "I think so... I'm not sure if this is an antibiotic-resistant strain he's contracted and even if it's not, his system is weak and the disease has hit him very hard, very fast... A pulmonologist is on the way to help..."
"Uh, a what?" Rosa asked.
"It's a doctor that's specifically trained to work with diseases affecting the heart and lungs," Miss Fontaine explained. "He may have to help in case Bastion goes into respiratory distress... That means he may not be able to breathe right..."
"And that means a respirator," Annie groaned softly, the potential scenarios going through her mind in a split second.
"A respirator?!" Alexis gasped.
Tyson breathed, "Sam Hill... that bad?"
Annie nodded. "If he can't breathe deep enough, he won't get enough oxygen. And that could be fatal... So they need to use a respirator..."
"If that's the case, I suggest breaking it to Violet slowly. Or you're going to have a hysterical teenager on your hands," Mary stated seriously.
The teens looked at each other and then at Violet's alternate personality. "How the heck did Yugi handle stuff like this?" Jaden wondered aloud.
"Barely, I'm guessing," Mary answered, sighing.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
It was another hour before the helicopter arrived at Duel Academy with its passengers. Chancellor Shepherd raced down to the platform to greet the doctors and worried mother. "Hello, everyone... I'm sorry it's under yet again unpleasant circumstances," he apologized.
"It's all right, Andrew. How is our son doing?" Hiro asked worriedly, still holding his wife close.
"Miss Fontaine made the determination an hour ago... he has a nasty strain of pneumonia. He seems stable right now and is sleeping. She'll fill you in..."
Katai visibly tensed at this, reading Andrew Shepherd's face. 'Bastion,' she thought, brown eyes pained.
Hiro kept his arm around her, sighing and running his free hand through his hair, identical to Bastion's in shape and color aside from some gray streaks. "I see... at least he's stable for now and resting."
"Let's get up there," Dr. Nakamura said clearly.
"Yeah, we can assess this properly," Scout added briskly.
As the adults headed up the walkway, the rest of the close-knit gang arrived in the infirmary. "You guys should've called us!" Chazz stated, frustrated, which was his version of worried.
"Chazz is right! We would have come no matter what time it was!" Atticus added, just as worried.
Alexis sighed. "You guys were asleep; we didn't want to wake you. Besides... not much has changed since we brought them here. You need the rest, especially you two."
Chazz was about to argue with his sister when... "She's right, you two... You still need rest," Scout said in her calm and gentle way.
"MOM!" Chazz shouted, running to her eagerly, wincing slightly when his chest touched her.
"Hi, sweetie," she smiled, eyes widening when she saw her eldest. "Atticus, my goodness... how are you feeling?"
Atticus grinned, carefully hugging his mother. "A lot better, Mom... What are you doing here?"
"Yeah, Mom. I didn't know you were coming," Alexis added, also hugging her.
"Dr. Nakamura needs assistance with Bastion, and since we have a couple of other pediatric surgeons at Domino Children's who don't have kids at Duel Academy, they could spare me," she answered. "If Bastion needs as much help as he might, Dr. Nakamura's going to need me."
Chazz nodded. "Okay, Mom... just help him okay?"
"I'll do my best," the pediatric surgeon and mother promised.
"Hi, Hiro, hi, Katai," Annie greeted, coming out of a cubicle and up to the parents with a clipboard. She was clad in Academy-issue blue medical scrubs, a cap to keep her hair out of her face, a pair of exam gloves and a surgical mask which was now down around her neck.
Hiro adjusted his glasses. "Hello, Annie. Are you helping Miss Fontaine?"
Annie nodded. "Yeah, and this is his chart... She's staying in there right now, and I'm supposed to tell you that you need to get scrubs, gloves and masks on right now since you'll want to see Bastion. He's got staph-based pneumonia and Miss Fontaine's testing further to see if it's an antibiotic-resistant strain..."
"All right, then. A normal precaution," the ophthalmologist stated, falling into his doctor's mode.
"Yeah, and Violet's been moved from the room. She's still really groggy from her meds. Miss Fontaine is going to check her for staph infection since she's been in the closest proximity to Bastion," the teenage girl explained.
"Does she know?" Katai asked. Annie shook her head.
Hiro frowned. "Hopefully she didn't contract it... But she'll take the news hard either way..."
Katai sighed. "I should be in the room when she's told. She'll be upset when she wakes up and realizes he's not with her..."
"I'll stay with Bastion. She'll just need a mother figure, darling," Hiro assured, smiling a little.
"Okay..."
As Hiro and the other doctors went to get their scrubs on to see Bastion, Annie led Katai down to Violet's cubicle. "Violet, are you awake?" Annie asked, poking her head into the area.
Violet groaned in reply. "Annie...? Where's Bastion?" she mumbled groggily. She had only woken up a minute or so ago.
"Hey, Violet," Annie answered. "Bastion is still in the other room. We had to move you out of there... Oh, Katai is here..."
"Hi, sweetie," the female Misawa smiled gently, sitting next to her future daughter-in-law. "How are you feeling?"
Violet blinked, confused and just a bit disoriented. "Uh... b-better... But, why did you have to move me?" she asked with a deep frown.
Katai put her arms around Violet, knowing this would be hard for her to hear. "Violet... Bastion has a very nasty strain of pneumonia... You know what staph infections are, right?" Annie asked.
"Um... no..." Violet was getting a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"It's a type of bacteria," Annie patiently explained, "and it's a bad one if it's the type that makes you sick. It usually causes skin infections, but it can cause pneumonia if it gets in your lungs. It also can be tricky to treat because some strains are resistant to antibiotics. Miss Fontaine is observing you to be sure you don't have staph. And we have to be sure what kind he has. Once we know, we should be able to let you back in with him. But you can't sleep in the same bed with him right now..."
"W-Wait, so... he's going to be okay, right?" Violet asked, that of course being her main worry. She had such a bad feeling that she almost felt sick.
Katai kept Violet close. "Annie... let me tell her..." Annie nodded and kept quiet. "Violet, Bastion's really sick," the worried mother began. And she told Violet how serious it was. "...So Bastion should pull through this, but it's going to be very dangerous... especially if something goes wrong with his breathing..."
Violet started shaking, hands clenching as her recovering mind processed this information. Water gathered beneath her eyes, tears threatening to fall. "He could... h-he could... No..." she moaned. Tightly closing her eyes, the tears were freed, and streamed down her face to steadily drip onto her hands and the blanket.
Katai cuddled Violet like she would Bastion when he was scared. "It is possible... but we have the best heart and lung doctor in the region here to help and that helps his survival chances..."
"She's right, Violet," Annie added, also hugging her friend. "And even an antibiotic resistant strain isn't invincible."
Violet clung to the two women, needing their support as she cried. "I-I can't lose him... not now... N-Not after all we've… we've been through together... I can't..."
"We'll fight it hard, Violet, with everything we have," Annie stated, eyes burning. "I am not going to let him die..."
Katai nodded too. "Bastion's a fighter," she added, "And so are you..."
Violet blinked at Katai through her tears, sniffling a bit. "I-I... I am?"
"You are, sweetie... I've known that since the day I met you," Katai answered, her gentle eyes shining with motherly love.
Violet wiped at her tears with the back of her arm, managing a small smile. "O-okay... b-but I want to help..."
"We'll let you in the room with him as soon as we can," Annie promised. "You have to be in scrubs and a mask and gloves."
"Violet, will you be okay while I go and see him?" Katai asked.
Violet sniffled a bit more, but had calmed down quite a bit. "Y-Yeah..." She didn't want to keep her fiancé's own mother from seeing him.
"I'll be right back, honey... I promise..." And Katai stepped out.
"I'll stay with you, Violet. They have enough real doctors," Annie stated sheepishly.
"Th-Thanks, Annie... And, you may not be a real doctor yet, but… you're almost as good as a real one," Violet replied encouragingly.
"Thanks, Violet," Annie blushed.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
In the meantime, Katai got her scrubs, gloves and mask on and came to her son's room. She couldn't suppress a gasp at the sight of her boy. "We're giving him oxygen, Katai," Scout explained gently as the worried mom entered the room.
Bastion lay in the hospital bed, sound asleep, it seemed. His eyes were closed, and his skin was very pale. It served to accentuate how thin and weak the time in the World of Darkness had made him. And now, he was hooked up to an IV and Dr. Nakamura was placing oxygen tubes in the boy's nose. "This'll help him breathe a little more," the pulmonologist was saying.
Hiro quickly went to his wife, placing a strong arm around her. He had reacted much the same way when he had first walked in and seen the state of his only child. "It'll be all right, Katai... I believe he can sense that we're here with him..."
"I know," Katai murmured, "but it's so hard, Hiro... He looks so thin..."
Hiro sighed. "It's hard to see... But he'll gain the weight back..."
It was at this moment that Bastion moaned softly and struggled to open his eyes. "Mmmm... Mummy? Daddy?" he called weakly. He had heard them as he slowly swam back to consciousness.
The parents were by their son's side in a heartbeat. "Bastion? We're here, son. Try to open your eyes," Hiro answered gently.
"Bastion... sweetheart... come on... it's going to be all right," Katai added, taking her only child's hand.
The boy managed it finally and when he did, the gray eyes were fever-bright. "Where am I?" he asked in puzzlement. "Where's... where's Violet?"
Hiro placed a strong hand on Bastion's shoulder, signaling for him to stay down and not to try sitting up. "You're in the infirmary, my boy. Violet is in another room resting... You… you're very sick, son," he explained slowly, his voice betraying the slightest tremor. It wasn't until his only child spoke weakly and confusedly that Hiro's control broke.
"Infirmary? I was in our room... we... we just got back..." Evidently, he hadn't been aware of what had occurred in the past few hours.
"Bastion? That was yesterday, sweetie," Katai explained softly, brushing his bangs with one of her gloved hands.
"I just remember... getting back and getting a shower... Is... is Violet all right?" he asked, coughing again.
"Yes, she's just fine, Bastion. It's you we're worried about... You can see Violet in a little while, all right?" Hiro explained.
"All ri..." And the boy started coughing violently and Scout and Dr. Nakamura sat him up.
"It's okay, Bastion... it's gonna be all right," Scout soothed, holding a kidney-shaped emesis tray to him. Dr. Nakamura took the opportunity to listen to Bastion's lungs and breathing as he coughed, frowning slightly.
And Bastion coughed up more blood-tinged gunk. When he was done, the surgeon and pulmonologist laid him back in the bed again. "Ooh," Bastion groaned softly.
"It's going to be okay, baby," Katai soothed him as he breathed in tired, short pants.
"If you're tired, son, then sleep. You need the rest to get better," Hiro added softly, squeezing his son's shoulder comfortingly.
"It hurts, Dad," Bastion managed to say, his eyes closed, grimacing in pain.
"I know it does... Alex, is there anything you can do for the pain?" Hiro asked his colleague, wanting to help his son.
Alex sighed. "I've already given him some acetaminophen through the IV... it just needs to kick in... Anything much stronger would be hazardous..."
Hiro nodded. "The pain should be receding soon, Bastion. Give it some time..."
Bastion, too tired, drifted off. Katai couldn't suppress a sob. "Katai... We'll beat this," Scout tried.
Hiro pulled her into a close hug, rubbing her back. "Shh... it's all right, darling... He's going to get through this..." Katai just couldn't take it and cried her heart out. Her baby was so sick and there was absolutely nothing she could do to make it better. So Hiro simply held her, continuing to rub her back and murmur soothing words. He, too, ached to help his child, knowing that there was nothing he could do.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
News of how sick Bastion spread through the campus like wildfire in the next few hours. And soon, there was a line of students wanting to see the young man. "Oh, my," Annie breathed, seeing how long the line was. "That's every Ra student and most of the campus..."
Syrus smiled a little. "A lot of the students respect him... and he's always been friendly with everyone, so I'm not surprised..."
"It's just impressive, and he's thought so often that no one really noticed him," she said sadly. "And now he's too sick to enjoy it..." She took a deep breath. "We don't realize how we're appreciated sometimes..." The Ra Yellow boys had been the first in line to see Bastion if they could.
"You're right... I didn't," Syrus added softly, frowning.
Annie nodded, remembering how her fiancé had often felt unnoticed or only noticed in the capacity of being Jaden's friend or Zane's little brother. "You didn't realize you were noticed. But then you did... And I noticed you too," she sighed, smiling. "You showed you were great, not just in dueling, but in other things too..."
He blushed a little. "I… I guess I did. I'm glad you noticed me, Annie..."
"And so did Jay, Bastion, Chumley, Alexis... everybody did, even Zane did..." She kept the smile on her face. "Now no one underestimates you or ignores you..."
He returned the smile. "Not anymore..."
"Nope... oh goodness! I just realized something!!" she yelped, something suddenly hitting her mind like a gushing attack from Water Dragon.
He blinked. "What??"
"We have to figure out so Bastion can be at the graduation!"
"You're right! There has to be a way..."
Most of their group had heard Annie's yelp and raced to where they were sitting. "Guys, what's going on?!" Jaden demanded to know.
"Yeah, did something happen?" Aster Phoenix added.
Syrus sweat-dropped, thinking that perhaps Annie had yelped a little bit too loudly. "We just realized that we have to think of a way for Bastion to be at the graduation...."
"Oh, no!" Jaden groaned.
"Oh, no," Alexis muttered.
"Oh, no!" Mindy added. And on the TV monitor in the room, "OH YEAH!" shouted the Kool-Aid Man on a commercial.
Everyone looked up at the TV, and their jaws dropped. "Okay... what are the odds of that actually happening?" Jasmine wondered.
"No clue. But it happened, and it was freaky," Atticus answered, sweat-dropping.
"Yeah... that was weird... but sorta funny," Annie said. "Okay... so we have to figure out how to keep Bastion part of the graduation. He's too sick to get out of bed and read his speech..."
"Is there a way he could be in two places at once??" Syrus wondered aloud.
"Couldn't we do something with a TV and a camera?" Jaden suggested.
"You know what? I bet we could. What do you think, Annie? Is it possible?" Alexis asked, looking at the technologically-inclined girl.
Annie thought quickly. "We could have a live feed into the graduation so Bastion could see what was going on, and then a live feed into his room when we walk the line... Atticus, do not sing Johnny Cash!" When she was sure he wouldn't, she continued, "We could arrange it so he's here receiving his diploma and everyone sees it! Guys, this can work! We just have to clear it with Miss Fontaine, Hiro and Katai!" she grinned triumphantly.
"They're still with Bastion, right?" Atty asked.
"Yeah. They haven't wanted to leave his side if they can avoid it," Annie explained.
"Should we wait until the line lets up?" Jaden asked.
"That might be a good idea. And there isn't really a rush for it... right?" Syrus asked, looking at Annie.
"Right. We've got until Tuesday," she explained.
"And the academy is well-wired," Adrian grinned, "and we can do this in 10 hours, tops. And we have time."
"Time for what?" Violet asked as she walked over to them. Thanks to the antibiotics and other medication, she was feeling better. However, she was still staying in the infirmary so that she could be with Bastion and so that Miss Fontaine could keep an eye on her. The nurse had told her to get rest, but also to walk around a bit and get exercise.
"Hey, Violet! Annie figured a way for Bastion to come to graduation!" Jaden grinned. "And we called the Kool-Aid Man!"
Violet blinked a few times. "Okay... now wait a sec. First off, what do you mean you called the Kool-Aid Man??"
"It was so weird!" And he explained exactly what had happened. "...And then Mindy said 'Oh no,' and on the TV, the Kool-Aid Man burst through the wall and said, 'Oh YEAH!' It was so freaky!" The Slifer boy was clearly delighted at this.
Violet stared at him in disbelief, then turned to Annie. "Is that true?"
Annie nodded, looking stunned. "I doubt we'd ever do that again..."
Violet pouted. "I can't believe I missed that! Man... well, what's this about Bastion and graduation?"
Annie took a deep breath and explained their plans. "... It's not right that he's worked so hard and is too sick to even walk the line... So we're going to make him part of the ceremony by doing the live monitors and camera feeds," she finished.
Violet grinned. "How did you guys come up with that? It's genius! The perfect way for him to be there but stay in bed..."
"Well, the Sarge thought of the camera and TV and Private Annie figured a way to make it happen!" Tyson grinned.
"Thanks, guys. This'll make him so happy when we tell him about it. Hiro and Katai will be glad too, I know they were just as upset over it," Violet explained happily.
"Yeah... He is the valedictorian, after all," Axel reminded them. "And that's a huge deal..."
"He worked really hard for that... and he deserves it... He deserved to walk the line, but... this is almost as good," Violet agreed, excited to tell her fiancé the news.
"We just have to clear it with Miss Fontaine, Hiro and Katai," Annie smiled, hugging her surrogate sister. "But I don't think they'd say no now..."
"Yeah, as long as Bastion's okay enough, he should be fine to watch everything," Jasmine smiled.
"He will be... He's getting better," Violet asserted. But everyone could catch the slightest hint of desperation for that statement to be true in her voice.
Annie kept her arms around Violet, nodding. "He's going to get better, Violet... And this time Tuesday... he'll be graduating with us..."
GXGXGXGXGXGX
When the last students had visited Bastion, his closest friends and fiancée entered the intensive care room. "Hey, everyone," Bastion greeted tiredly.
"Hey, Bastion," Jaden smiled back, managing to conceal how worried he really was for his friend.
"Hi, Bastion-baby... How are you feeling?" Violet asked, carefully hugging the man she'd fallen in love with two years ago.
Bastion weakly hugged back. "Better since you came in the room," he murmured tiredly. One by one his friends were allowed to get close and squeeze his hand or hug him now that they were all suited up. "So...what brings everyone in here? You look as if... you're planning something..."
Violet grinned. "I didn't, but they did..."
"We had an idea for you to be in the graduation, Bastion," Syrus began.
"What?" the teen genius asked in surprise.
"Are you serious?" Katai asked, stunned. "Bastion can take part?"
Annie stepped forward and again explained their plan to Bastion, his parents and Miss Fontaine. "... So that's how we can do it... but it has to be approved."
Hiro looked from his wife to the school nurse, positively joyful at the prospect. "Well, I believe it's a wonderful idea. Bastion can rest and still be at the ceremony, in a sense. What do you think, darling? Miss Fontaine?"
Katai looked positively angelic and Miss Fontaine nodded. "I think that's acceptable. If Dr. Nakamura is okay with it, we'll go ahead..."
"And I most definitely approve," Dr. Nakamura smiled, coming in from the bathroom. "You kids are doing a great thing for Bastion's morale."
"Isn't it great, Bastion?! You can be at the ceremony!" Violet exclaimed, grinning from behind her mask and taking his hand.
"Yeah... you'll need help with the wiring..."
"Bastion," Annie began sternly, "You're in bed with pneumonia..."
"But I..."
Violet placed her hands on her hips. "Bastion, as your future wife, I'm telling you to stay in this bed and rest. You'll thank me when you're feeling better and we can have the wedding and honeymoon." Even with her mask, one could practically see the smirk on her face.
"All right," he groaned softly and sleepily. "Thanks, guys..."
"Hey you deserve it," Chazz pointed out softly. "Bastion, you worked hard... and you're our friend..."
"Yeah... and some of us owe you," Jaden added, blushing slightly. Bastion had helped him, Jaden, with his homework and also saved Jaden's father from a pummeling at the hand of Jagger Princeton last summer.
"Chazz and Jaden are right, Bastion. You deserve the rest... we'll handle this," Alexis stated seriously.
But Bastion, already tired, had fallen asleep. Katai brushed at her son's forehead. "Thank you, kids... all of you..."
Hiro nodded. "Yes, you all are such a big help for his recovery..."
"He'd do the same for us," Jaden answered for all of them. "He helps us a lot more than he knows..."
"Okay... so we need to get this set up," Annie stated quietly.
"It would probably be best to leave it to the ones who know how to do it best, right?" Syrus asked, sweat-dropping.
"Yeah," Adrian agreed, "but we will need people who can carry stuff. And sound checkers..." And so the planning began.
GXGXGXGXGXGXGX
A day and a half later, just before bedtime, the group made the final checks to the Duel Academy graduation sound system. "Okay, Atticus, go ahead," Jaden said into the microphone attached to his scrub collar in the infirmary room. "I can see you."
Atticus grinned excitedly. After Annie had explained to him about the specifics of singing, he had started practicing. And now was the first time he was going to try singing with this new information in mind. So, Atticus cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and began singing "Come Fly with Me" by Frank Sinatra.
Annie, sitting in the auditorium, gave Atticus a big thumbs-up. Jasmine was more enthusiastic as she came onto the stage. "That was great!"
The Obelisk 20-year-old grinned sheepishly, blushing just slightly. It was the first time he'd received praise for his singing. "Really? It wasn't bad?"
"Yeah! You really improved!" she answered, hugging him.
And Annie, at the control area, grinned and added, "You were on pitch, Atticus and you did pretty well."
Atticus hugged his girlfriend back, giving the peace sign up towards the control area. "AWESOME! Your teaching worked, Annie! Thanks!!"
"No problem, Atty. You need to keep working, but you have improved by leaps and bounds," she answered.
Back in the hospital room. Jaden and Bastion looked at each other. "Wow," the Slifer said, his jaw figuratively somewhere on the floor.
"That was bloody brilliant," the sick young man added, his gray eyes wide.
"Were you guys listening to the radio? I thought you were doing a sound test," Violet said, walking in.
"Sound and visual, darling," Bastion answered.
"And... that was Atticus," Jaden stated. "Atticus... wow! Violet thought you were the radio!"
"That was Atticus?!" Violet yelped in shock.
Atticus practically fell over from the same emotion. "You're kidding!!"
"Not kidding, bro! That was great!" Jaden enthused.
"Wow... You guys actually liked my singing," Atty muttered, stunned. It was certainly a new situation for the Obelisk.
"Atticus, you sound good singing Sinatra," Annie commented. "Let's try you on some crooner stuff... I think we've got the kinks worked out... Guys, we can shut down... Adrian, anything?"
Adrian, positioned in the hall, shook his head. "Everything works. We're good to go!"
"Hey, Annie! What did you mean by 'crooner stuff'?" Atticus asked, coming off the stage to his teacher.
"Music by people like Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Darren, Harry Connick Jr., Michael Buble," she answered.
The 20-year-old sweat-dropped. "Uh... I only know Frank Sinatra out of those..."
"Don't worry, you'll learn, Atticus," she answered. The group shut the system down and headed out to their dorms.
Bastion, in his bed in the infirmary was already very tired but smiled. "It's graduation..."
Violet grinned behind her mask, holding his hand. "Yeah... we made it, Bastion-baby. We survived high school... even with all of the crazy stuff that happened."
"You'll... look so beautiful, love," he murmured sleepily.
She squeezed his hand. "And you'll still look handsome in your cap, Bastion..."
"I..." He was so worn out, he was already drifting off.
"He's too tired," Katai sighed softly, having come back in to check on the young couple.
Violet's head dropped a little and Hiro placed a hand on her shoulder. "He'll regain his strength, Violet. The rest will help..."
Katai put an arm around Violet as well. "It's going to take time, honey... And we'll watch for little things..."
Violet closed her eyes. "I know... I just hate seeing him so worn out and tired all the time... it isn't like him..."
"I know, sweetheart... Let's get you to bed too... Alan and Barbara will be here in the morning..."
The teenager yawned. "All right... Miss Fontaine did say I still needed rest..."
"Yes, you're still a bit under the weather as well," Hiro said, nodding.
Katai helped her daughter-in-law to the bed next to Bastion's. "Just relax, angel," she murmured as the girl lay down. "Shhh..."
Violet, still recovering, was asleep in minutes like her fiancé. Hiro sighed. "It's a good thing that Bastion is recovering... Slowly, yes, but if he would be getting worse..."
Katai covered Violet with the warm blanket on her bed and whispered, "Yeah... what would it do to her?"
"Nothing good... her condition might actually worsen as well... Let's just be grateful that he's not getting worse, and that he is getting better and regaining his strength," Hiro replied.
Alex Nakamura tiptoed into the room to check both teenagers. "Hiro... it's going to get worse before it gets better... He's going to weaken again... it's not a matter of if with this now; it's a matter of when..."
Hiro frowned. "Alex... Are you sure?" He knew the man was an expert, but the thought of this severely worried him. And he acted as any concerned parent would, with apprehension.
"I'm sure," Alex answered, his dark eyes meeting his colleague's. "Bastion's going according to form right now. He's seeming a little stronger, which is good, but in the next few days, he's going to feel bad again and then his lungs may not work well enough for him to breathe on his own..."
Hiro pulled off his glasses, rubbing wearily at his eyes. "Oh, no... this will be difficult... in more ways than one..."
Katai took several breaths behind her mask. "This... Alex, isn't there anything..?"
"The disease has to take its course... His body is fighting it... He'll be weak, and he's not out of danger yet, but I think he's going to pull through this," Alex answered, still examining Bastion and the boy's charts.
"And there's no way to avoid this... We should prepare everyone for it, shouldn't we?" Hiro asked, placing his glasses back on and looking at the pulmonologist.
"We should," Alex agreed. "But let's wait until tomorrow evening when the kids have had their celebration..."
"Yeah... let them have their day," Katai agreed, a tear coming down her cheek.
Hiro pulled her into a hug, sighing deeply. "We'll do that... And then we'll all be here for him when it comes to this... both him and Violet will need all of the support we can give them..."
"They all will," Alex stated.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
Back at Obelisk Blue, as nearly every senior-level student was going to bed, one girl was reading carefully through her notes at her desk in the bedroom she shared with her fiancé. "Students, teachers, administrators, honored guests... Okay, I've got that," Annie muttered softly. Syrus yawned, in his pajamas but having decided to stay up with his fiancée. He was sitting on the bed, trying to stay awake so that he could help her if necessary. Annie looked back. "Honey, are you tired?" she asked in concern.
Syrus blinked. "A little... but I want to stay up and help you, Annie..." he answered.
"I think I've got it," she said, glancing over it one more time. "I just wanted to be sure I wasn't too nervous about this..."
He stood and went to her, wrapping his arms around her in a loose hug. "You don't need to be nervous... you'll do fine..."
She turned around, getting up from the chair and hugging him back. "I'm over-thinking again, hon... Thanks for reminding me... Maybe... we should get to bed..."
He nodded. "It's late... And we don't want to fall asleep during the ceremony," he joked, grinning.
"Definitely not..." She was glad they were both already in their nightclothes as they got back to the big bed. "We may have long days ahead too..."
"Yeah... Bastion's still really sick, and Violet isn't completely better yet, either," he agreed, wrapping an arm around her.
"And he will get worse before he gets better," she sighed sadly. She cuddled close to him again, shivering at what she'd learned.
He frowned. "That's going to be bad..."
"Yeah... I'm just glad Scout and Dr. Nakamura are here," she sighed. "They have the training for this sort of thing. From what I've read, putting in a breathing tube is tricky..."
"Annie... will he really stop breathing?" he asked quietly.
"Well, what will happen is that he won't be able to breathe well enough on his own because his lungs are full of stuff and the sacs are inflamed. And since he can't breathe well enough on his own, he needs the help," she answered, the reality of the situation really beginning to hit her.
"So... he'll still be breathing, right? He won't just... stop?"
Annie took a deep breath, steadying herself mentally. "Sy...his breathing will get so weak, it'll be almost like he isn't breathing... With this sort of pneumonia and how hard it's hit him... he'll go into respiratory distress and they'll have to act fast. Dr. Nakamura was already monitoring his oxygen levels..."
Syrus frowned. "How long will it be like that?"
"It may be a couple of days, a week... and... if it's really bad... a few months. But Bastion's been pretty strong, so hopefully, it's a few days at most..."
"Good... Annie, when it happens... how do you think Violet's going to take it?"
Annie laid her head against her fiancé's shoulder as she thought about it. "She's going to be scared out of her mind... And if he goes into cyanosis as he just might, that'll really freak her out..."
Syrus gently rubbed her back as he sighed. "There isn't much we can do to stop that from happening.... is there?" he murmured.
"No... All we can do now is take it day to day... And we can help her as best we can," she concluded tiredly. "And the odds of surviving that are at least 50-50..."
He visibly tensed at that, closing his eyes. "He'll survive... he has to..." Annie nodded into his chest, beginning to cry. Knowing what could happen was a double-edged sword in that she knew both the best case and worst-case scenarios. The gift was that she knew her surrogate brother could survive and make a full recovery. The curse was that she knew his system could suffer total collapse and he could die. Syrus rubbed her back, keeping her close. He wiped away the few tears that slipped loose from his own eyes with his free hand.
"We'll pull him through... and when it happens... I'll need to stay down at the infirmary," she stated when she was under control.
"You will?" he asked in surprise.
She nodded again, raising her head to look in his eyes. "Violet will need me, and Scout, Miss Fontaine and Dr. Nakamura will need help too. I may not be a doctor yet, but I can help..."
He frowned. "Then I want to stay with you. I can help, and I can make sure you don't overwork yourself..."
She nodded. "Okay, hon... And I'll definitely owe you at least a backrub for that..."
He smiled at that thought. "That sounds nice..."
"Yeah," Annie yawned. "We'd better get to sleep... I wonder what Jaden's doing... He's got a speech to give too..."
"Something tells me he's either already sleeping... or still working on it..." Syrus yawned back.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
At the Slifer dorm... "Walk onstage... give speech... walk back to seat," Jaden muttered, pacing. He'd been pacing for the past 20 minutes, walking himself through what he'd be doing in a few hours.
Alexis yawned, already in a sky blue nightgown and sitting on the bed. "Jaden... come on... You'll sleep through the ceremony if you don't go to bed soon."
"I just want to be sure I get this right, babe. You don't get do-overs for this," he groaned, running a hand through his unruly brown and red-toned hair.
"No... But Jay, really, you'll do fine." Alexis soothed as she stood and went to him, wrapping her arms around him.
He turned into her embrace, smiling a little. "Yeah... I guess I'm over-thinking... It's like when I dueled Zane before..."
She smiled back, giving him a quick kiss. "Exactly. If you just relax, it'll come to you like it always does."
He grinned at that. "Yeah... we probably should get some sleep... And we still have a huge party after the ceremony..."
"I'll be keeping an eye on your sugar intake, Jay," she replied seriously.
"Why?" he asked as they climbed into bed, cuddling close.
She gave him a look. "Don't you remember the last time you had too much sugar?" Jaden's only response was to sweat-drop and chuckle.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
Down a few doors in Chazz's palatial dorm room, the Slifer boy, Aster Phoenix and Atticus were laying out their uniforms and graduation caps and gowns. "Chazz, I have no idea how you're going to get that hat on your head tomorrow morning," Aster teased.
"I can do it," Chazz countered, checking the robe to make sure it fell evenly to his lower calf.
"Let's try it now!" Atticus exclaimed with a grin, grabbing the cap. He promptly shoved it down onto his little brother's head, only for it to pop off seconds later. It was a mark of just how much Chazz had improved over the past year that he laughed.
"I knew it!" Aster, too, was laughing. "My hair doesn't have that problem... Anyone wonder how Yugi wore his graduation cap?"
Atty blinked. "That's a good question. I wonder how he got it to fit..." The three guys laughed out loud and then headed to bed.
GXGXGXGXGXGX
And up at Obelisk, Tyson checked over his things. "Darlin', what are you wearin' tomorrow under the robe?" he asked.
"I don't know... what do you usually wear?" Rosa was just as unfamiliar with the American graduation as she had been with Thanksgiving. Back in Calientara, graduation simply consisted of a document that stated you had received full education and could attend college.
Tyson looked thoughtful. "You just need to have something on that goes under the robe. Some of the girls are just wearin' their uniforms..."
"But you don't have to wear your uniform?" she asked, curiosity piqued. If she didn't, then she knew what she would wear.
"No you don't," he explained. "Some guys wear suits, but choose their uniforms, and some gals pick dresses or pantsuits..." He looked at her curiously, knowing by now that she was planning something. "Do you have somethin' in mind?"
She nodded, smiling. "Since I don't have to wear my uniform anymore, I'll wear one of my other dresses."
Tyson's eyebrows raised as he smiled. "Which one?" he asked.
Rosa shook her head. "You'll see tomorrow. It's a surprise; one you haven't seen before."
Tyson grinned at that. "You can still surprise me, Spanish Rose... I'm glad," he stated as they climbed into bed.
Rosa pulled close to him, as she had been every night since she'd been released from the infirmary. "You like surprises, Ty-Ty?" she asked.
"This kinda surprise, definitely," he answered, hugging her safely to him. "I don't like surprise attacks, but I like fun surprises."
She closed her eyes. "Same here. I think we'll have lots of good surprises in the future."
"Yeah," he murmured, eyes closing. "Love you, darlin'..."
"I love you, Ty-Ty," she muttered back.
Well, no one's dead in this chapter! Yay! And the gang is graduating on the morrow! So next time, join the gang for a joyous celebration! And please join us for "Graduation Part I!" See you next time and thank you!