Shadgirl2: As promised a long time ago, the sequel to "Misadventures in Kalmar" is here.

Midna Azusa: And I'm still here, too! Everybody ready for a wild ride? If you haven't read the previous story, you might want to check it out first or a lot of things in here won't make much sense.

Shadgirl2: That being said, since the original was told in mostly Judai's perspective, this one will also be in first-person POV. Mostly, we'll be looking at things through Judai's and Johan's eyes.

Midna Azusa: Any time the perspective shifts, there will be a note at the top of the section that tells you who's narrating.

WARNING: OCs

Disclaimer: We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX. All towns present in this story, as well as the kingdom of Kalmar, are named for real places in the world. King Reginald and Asuka's mother belong to me, Shadgirl2. King Kenta belongs to Midna Azusa.

Judai's POV

Bringing a commoner home to live with me was kind of a weird thing to do, crown prince or not. Sho was welcomed by my parents with open arms, despite the fact that he came from the kingdom they hated so much. Apparently, their hatred only extended to the royal family, which was both good and bad for me. Good because that meant my love life wasn't completely shot. Bad because one of my best friends was the heir to the enemy throne.

Anyway, Sho joined my parents and me for dinner as an honored guest and was given his own room, too. It wasn't a servants' room or anything—it had its own private bathroom, like all the rooms occupied by the royal family, along with a walk-in closet and the same elegant décor.

"I still can't believe it..." he said to me, looking unbelievably uncomfortable. He was sitting on the floor and messing with an old toy I had lying around. It was around midnight by this point, so we both really should have been asleep, but I figured Sho probably wasn't feeling like he belonged here and could use the attention. "You sure this isn't all just some sort of a joke? I mean, no one's this nice to me for no reason."

Perched on the edge of my bed with one leg raised and an arm resting on it, I answered, "I'm sure, Sho. My dad's not like that. He doesn't pull jokes like that."

Sho was quiet for a second, just staring at the toy he'd found. Then he said, "Aniki? Why'd he keep..."

He trailed off, but I knew what Sho was going to ask. My dad had been joking around with Sho and treating him nicely. He'd given Sho the option to sit with our family at dinner instead of eating with the servants or somewhere else removed from us. Then he'd given Sho a fancy room that even had the same features in the bath—Jacuzzi, additives, the whole nine yards. It was almost like he was family, with all of that in mind.

"Hey, how should I know?" I asked. "It's not like I've ever brought somebody home with me before."

Given that I'd made it clear Sho's own family didn't even care about him, it wouldn't be out of the question for my parents to be trying to show him some love. After all, Sho needed it, and he was my friend.

Sho was quiet for another moment before asking, "Aniki? I'm not your new pet, am I?"

Ugh, that again. My dad had already pointed out that I sounded like I was asking to keep my stray earlier. Why did Sho have to bring that up again?

"Huh? No! Why would you think that?"

Like I'd ever own somebody as a pet.

"Uh..."

I thought about it for a bit and realized it wasn't a completely outrageous question. Yes, I knew my dad had been teasing me earlier, but Sho didn't know him that well. This did look a lot like what might happen if I brought home a dog or cat I'd found on the street, and we had had the bringing-home-a-stray conversation earlier that day when I asked if Sho could stay with us.

"No, you're not my pet," I answered.

"If you say so... But what is going on, then? If that's not what all this special treatment's for, then—"

The door opened then, and one of the guards came into the room. "Prince Judai? Sho? A message from the king," he said, holding out a piece of paper.

...What in the world would that be about at this hour?

I took it and unfolded it, and the guard left, shutting my door behind him. It was a very short note that simply read, "Boys! Go to bed! It's late!"

Since my parents' rooms were way down the hall and up another floor, I didn't see how he knew we weren't in bed. It wasn't like I made a habit of being up all the time.

"W-what's it s-say, Aniki?" Sho asked nervously.

"...It says my dad's got some new ways of knowing what I'm doing..." I said.

"Huh?" Sho got up and looked at the note over my shoulder. "...H-how—" He cut himself off, stunned at my dad's knowledge.

"Well, guess we'd better go to bed, then," I said. "Someone somewhere is spying on us."

Sho panicked. "Sp-spying!?" He looked around frantically, trying to figure out who or how, I suppose.

"Yeah. That's half of Yubel's job," I answered casually.

Of course, this wouldn't be her. She would already be asleep, so my dad must have found himself a new spy somewhere that I didn't know. That, or he just knew me way too well and figured I'd still be up. Would have been really awkward for him if he'd sent that message and the guard walked in to find me sleeping, though.

Sho just stared at me, eyes wide. Admittedly, it was probably weird to learn that a prince's dad hired someone to spy on his own son to make sure he was behaving properly, but it wasn't my fault if that was all Yubel was good for.

"Alright, you should get back to your room," I said, trying to change the subject.

Sho was quiet for another moment before, in a tiny voice, he said, "Okay..."

Asuka's POV

I just sat there, staring out the window. It was afternoon in Tiller, the day after the battle with the Light of Destruction. I'd only gotten home an hour ago, given how long the trip from Misgarth's capital to Tiller had been. Chin resting in my hands, I sighed.

I'd managed to give myself some pretty serious regrets, letting Judai leave like that. It was weird, given how I'd felt about him at first, that I suddenly missed him living next door with Elise. I'd seen him practically every day while he'd been here, but now...he was just gone. That was going to take some getting used to.

He was immature and irresponsible. There was no denying that. But he wasn't selfish, and he wasn't completely irresponsible. He was kind and compassionate, he didn't just see a pretty face when he looked at me, and he was obviously more forgiving and trusting than some people. His naivete was adorable, and he was a strong duelist. Overall, Judai was a great person, one I should have gotten to know better. He'd gone to the Light of Destruction's base to save me, from what I understood, even after the terrible way I'd treated him.

Why had I judged him so harshly? If I hadn't, I might have had more time to get to know him. Or if I'd gone with him... But, of course, I had my family in Kalmar, and he needed to go home to Neospace. Now we were literally a world apart—it was probably the middle of the night in Neospace right about now, and he was likely asleep. And here I was, unable to get him off my mind.

I wasn't going to stop regretting my decisions involving the crown prince of Neospace any time soon, I could tell.

Fubuki's POV

The battle with the Light of Destruction had come on suddenly—one minute, everything was fine, and the next, a Light warrior was knocking on my door, apparently aiming to attack my family and me. When I'd been defeated by a warrior for the Darkness of Creation, I'd joined the fight, of course. What else was I going to do when my town was under siege?

Of course, I had no idea where my sister was during that whole thing. She'd gone missing some time before, and I hadn't been able to find her. After the battle, though, I figured she had probably gotten mixed up in it as well and would be home soon. She'd taken a lot longer to get back than I'd expected, and she hadn't wanted to talk about where she'd been. At the time, I didn't push it.

But, when I walked into the living room and saw her still sitting by the window an hour later, I looked at her with concern. She didn't seem traumatized or anything—she seemed depressed. Had I been wrong to assume it was related to the Light?

"Asuka? Are you okay?" I asked.

"Huh?" She turned to look at me, then turned back to the window as she said, "Oh. Yeah, I'm fine."

She certainly didn't sound fine. Her tone was pretty dull and lifeless, and it was just making me worry more.

"...Care to talk about it?" I asked as I came and sat beside her.

She sighed. "It's nothing, really. I'm just...thinking...about something, that's all..."

From the look on her face, I couldn't help but think she was imagining something. In fact, I had a guess what, and I couldn't help but think it was about time! That eased my worries quickly, leaving me more excited than anything else. Of course, I still had to ask about it before jumping too far to conclusions.

Asuka's POV

As I answered my brother's concerned question, an image of Judai, grinning in his goofy way and flashing a peace sign, ran through my mind. I really couldn't get my mind off him, could I?

"Hmm... This 'something' wouldn't happen to be a boy, would it?" Fubuki asked knowingly, looking rather excited at the idea.

I gave a start. Why, of all times, did this have to be the time he was right!? "W-what!? No! O-of course not!" I was sweating. Even I wouldn't have believed me.

Fubuki smiled, now definitely too excited for his own good, and said, "I knew it! Having trouble with your love life?"

"N-no, I'm not..." I protested, but I was blushing, and my pupils had probably contracted, given how I was feeling.

"No need to be shy!" Fubuki said enthusiastically. "So, who's the lucky man?"

If he didn't calm down soon, I thought he'd burst from the excitement of his ridiculous guess. Even worse, he wasn't wrong, so I couldn't stop him as easily as normal.

I turned away, speaking quickly as I said, "Th-there isn't one. I-I mean, he—" I cut myself off, thinking of the obvious problems. Most specifically, I was thinking of a certain girl he'd been with.

Fubuki looked at me curiously and asked, "He what?"

"Look. Just forget it, okay? It would never work out, anyway," I said, my tone showing how upset I was. "Besides, he..."

Purple hair and green eyes, always at his side or close enough to help when he needed her.

Fubuki stared at me for a moment, concerned. Finally, he asked, "Where have you been, Asuka? What happened?"

I sighed and told him about my induction into the Society of Light. I didn't get far into the story, though—the moment I said I'd become a Light Drone, Fubuki's eyes widened in shock.

"W-what!?"

"Yeah, I know," I said. "Though I can't quite remember it all. I know they made me face Prince Judai, though..."

"Prince Judai, huh?"

I blushed, looking down. "W-we had a duel with th-the stakes being that, if he lost, he'd be brainwashed by their newest device, the light laser. W-well, he won and saved me, but...I always thought he was kinda crazy...b-but the d-determination he showed while trying to save me was—" I cut myself off, looking for the right words. "I didn't know he cared so much...considering how I treated him and all..." Now I was looking down with guilt.

Fubuki put a hand to his chin. "Hmm... I see. So what's what this is about."

"H-he saved me. Even though I gave him no reason to..."

"Are you sure? Was there anything you did that might have made him care about you?"

I thought about it for a second. I'd ridiculed him for not knowing how to file a police report. I'd treated him like a suspicious character. I'd been indifferent to his struggles with the Light Brigade. I'd dragged Manjoume and Misawa over to test his skills. "No. Not that I know of. All I did was help him remember who he was. And dueled some bad guys for him," I added as an afterthought—Manjoume and Misawa had attacked him once with me around. "B-but th-that's because they worked for the Light, and—"

I hadn't done that just to be nice. I'd done it because he was the chosen prince and those two had been dressed all in white. Clearly, they were working for the Light of Destruction, so what person wouldn't have helped the chosen prince in that situation? It wasn't a big deal.

"That must be it!" Fubuki said anyway as his previous excitement returned, as though that were some kind of wonderful action. He threw his arms out to his sides. "Asuka, you came to his rescue, so he felt he had to go to yours! Maybe he's even developed feelings for you."

That last part was a tease, I could tell. My brother was a hopeless romantic, seeing love everywhere, even when there was no chance it was real.

"Yeah. I doubt that," I told him.

"And why is that? What, don't think you're attractive enough for a prince to fall for you?" he asked, winking teasingly.

Oh, of all the stupid things to say!

"Fubuki! That's not it at all!" I snapped, glaring at him and feeling insulted.

"Then what is it?" he asked.

"H-he..." I trailed off, thinking of Yubel again. The green-eyed girl that was always by his side. The two had teased each other relentlessly, but didn't some people tease the ones they loved? They had seemed to get along well enough, anyway. She knew a lot about him, including some pretty embarrassing stories and all the ways to annoy him. He knew a lot about her, including any supplies she might have on her. Clearly, they'd spent a lot of time together.

Fubuki read the look on my face too well. "He what? You think there's another girl?"

"Well...maybe? I-I mean, he..."

She did call him an idiot, and they didn't really act like they were all that close. Was it normal to tease the one you loved that much? I thought it was possible, but I wasn't certain.

Fubuki looked at me for a moment. "...Does he love this other girl?"

"I...I don't know..."

"So you're going to say nothing just because you don't know how he feels about you?" Fubuki asked, incredulous, as his eyes bugged out of his head. "You're going to spend the rest of your life wondering?"

"Fubuki, you seem to be forgetting a few things here," I said, looking at my brother with irritation. "For one, he's the chosen prince. That means he's from Neospace, which, in case you forgot, doesn't mix well with our people, so there's no way they'd accept that. For another, he's a prince, and I'm a commoner, and the rules over there are different from the ones over here, so I highly doubt they'd want me as queen, anyway. Then there's the fact that he's probably already engaged. You know how Neospace is, after all..."

While the stories I'd heard about the royal family might have been wrong, it didn't change the fact that Neospace was more old-fashioned. An arranged marriage seemed entirely possible, given that fact. They also stuck by old traditions, so Judai had probably been engaged since he was a child, really.

"That's all true, but we don't know how things work over there," Fubuki countered. "You might be jumping the gun by worrying about all of that. Maybe he's not engaged. Maybe they don't care about blood. Maybe it wouldn't matter where you're from as long as you're not one of the royal family here. There's too much we don't know about them. How do you know if you don't even try?"

There was that hopeless romantic side again. Judai had been acting like he'd need luck to get Sho accepted by his parents. Granted, he still thought he could, so maybe there was something to what my brother was saying.

"W-well..."

"Exactly!" Fubuki said, waving a finger through the air. "You don't! If you don't take a chance, you'll never know. Then you'll spend the rest of your life wondering."

I looked down. He wasn't wrong—I already couldn't get Judai off my mind, and I really didn't know the situation. I could have been jumping to conclusions again, like I'd done when I first met Judai, and that had been a bad move. Everything I'd concluded had been wrong then.

I thought about it for a moment before I said, "B-but, Fubuki. Even if I did go back there, what makes you think they'd let me in? There's nothing special about me, after all. And, unless Judai were there to prove who I am—"

Fubuki seemed to get an idea right then, a hand to his chin again. "Hmm... Maybe Prince Johan could help you out with that?"

"W-what?" I asked, staring at him like he was insane.

Johan had dropped me off, and he'd snapped a picture before he left, saying he wanted to make sure his new friends could get into the castle. Apparently, I was now friends with the prince of my kingdom, and my brother had seen that happen, so he knew this. But did he really think that the crown prince of Kalmar would be allowed anywhere near the castle in Neospace? Judai had sounded like he doubted he could get his parents to accept his friendship with Johan, so that would definitely not go over well!

"Let's say Johan took a diplomatic trip to Neospace to discuss peace and possibly form an alliance. You could go along."

So that was why he wasn't worried—he wanted to stage a peace treaty.

I looked at my brother like he was an absolute idiot—which, for the record, he was. "Uh-huh. And what makes you think King Reginald is gonna go with that? I highly doubt he—"

Somebody knocked on the door then, and I cut myself off. I heard our mom walking through the house, heading for the door, and she said, "I'll get it!" Then I heard the door open, followed by a gasp. "Y-you're—"

Whoever was at the door, it was clearly a surprise for my mother. Whatever, that wasn't my business. I had bigger problems at the moment.

Johan's POV

"Tell me Asuka's home," I said desperately to the woman who'd opened the door—presumably her mother.

I'd shown up without any guards, which wasn't normal for me. Judai might have run around his hometown without any guards, but I wasn't in the habit of leaving home unprotected, and Tiller wasn't even the capital of Kalmar. There were very few reasons why I should have been there alone, but I'd found a great one, myself.

"W-why, of course, she is, your highness!" Mrs. Tenjoin said, her eyes still wide from the shock of having her prince knocking on her door. She turned and called, "Asuka! You have a very special visitor here to see you! Get over here right now!"

Asuka came running down the hall, followed by an older teen with brown hair that I'd seen earlier—her brother, I figured. "What is it?" she asked. She stopped and stared at me, shocked to see me again so soon, I figured. "J-Johan..."

"Can we talk?" I asked. "In private? Please?"

"Uh, sure, I-I guess..." she answered, walking out the door to meet me.

"Hold on, your highness," her brother said, stepping forward. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about as well. Do you mind if I tag along?"

I looked at him curiously, unsure what he could possibly want with me. I'd heard of him, sure—he was supposedly the best-looking guy in all of Kalmar, and he drove all the girls crazy. That didn't mean I'd ever met Fubuki Tenjoin. "...Uh, sure, I guess."

Asuka put a hand to her head and muttered, "Nii-san..."

Fubuki smiled wide and bowed. "Thank you, your highness!"

"Yeah," I said. "Whatever. Come on, already! The others are already waiting!"

Asuka gave a start and asked, "Others? What others? You don't mean—"

"I'm calling an emergency meeting! This thing between us and Neospace has got to stop!"

Asuka just stared, stunned.

Fubuki looked strangely pleased. As he followed us out, he quietly said to his sister, "Well, looks like my idea wasn't so crazy..."

She didn't answer, but I couldn't help but wonder what the two of them had been talking about before I stopped by. Oh, well. I'd probably figure it out soon enough if it had anything to do with whatever Fubuki wanted to say to me.

I took the Tenjoins with me to a nearby park, where Manjoume and Misawa were already waiting for us at a picnic table at the pavilion.

Manjoume, arms crossed, asked, "So? Where's the fire, my prince? You sounded real urgent on the phone."

"Well, I talked to my dad about Judai," I said, sitting down, along with the two Tenjoins. I rolled my eyes, saying, "Turns out, he can only be that kind to our people if he's fighting the Light of Destruction. Or so my dad chooses to believe, anyway."

"So he doesn't believe you when you say the two of you are friends?" Misawa asked.

I shook my head. "No. And, when I tried talking sense into him, he threatened to have me banished if I didn't shut up."

My dad had way too hot of a temper. I was glad I'd inherited my mother's more tranquil nature—I didn't think I'd be jumping the gun like that. I knew all the stories we told about Neospace—how wicked and corrupt their royal family was supposed to be. Taking the side of the Neospacian royal family was akin to treason since that would mean siding with a family that was supposedly so vile. But my dad really needed to try having a more open mind. It wasn't like he or I had ever met any of the Yukis until I'd met Judai recently, and he and I had too much in common for me to think he was evil without jumping to the conclusion that I was, too.

Of course, that didn't stop my dad from fearing that I was a traitor because I said I was friends with the "evil" prince of Neospace.

"Man," I continued, a hand on my head. "What are we gonna do about this?"

Asuka looked down, blushing, which drew Manjoume's attention to her.

"What's up, Tenjoin-kun?" he asked. "You got any ideas?"

"Uh, well..."

Fubuki smiled, looking ecstatic, and said, "She and I were actually talking about Prince Judai when Prince Johan came knocking!"

"Really, Fubuki?" Misawa asked. "What about him?"

"Nii-san..." Asuka said quietly, her embarrassed gaze still on the ground.

He threw his arms out to the side, closing his eyes, and answered, "Their mutual attraction!"

Manjoume's eyes bugged out. "W-what!? What mutual attraction!? Well, Tenjoin!?" he demanded, getting up in Fubuki's face.

"It's nothing, really," Asuka said.

But her brother just wagged a finger in Manjoume's face, eyes closed, and said, "Sorry, Manjoume! But my sister has eyes for the prince of Neospace! And, from what she's told me, I'd say he feels the same way!"

Misawa looked a bit surprised. "Really? But I thought they—"

"Fubuki doesn't know what he's talking about," Asuka tried again. "Please ignore him."

"Of course, I do!" he countered, turning his knowing smile on her. "You admitted it back home, so don't deny it now, sis! You're in love with the prince of Neospace!"

She glared at her brother, but she was still blushing. "That's ridiculous! Besides, I know my place. He's royalty, and I'm not. So, even if that were true, it would never work out anyway, right?"

I hated to disappoint her, but, then again, if she really did like Judai, she'd probably be glad to hear what I had to say. Besides, this could work to my advantage.

"Hmm. Not necessarily."

She turned wide eyes on me, asking, "W-what!?"

"I can't speak for other countries, but I know around here, at least, a prince can choose anyone he wants to marry. That old-fashioned belief of royals and nobles or royals and royals died out centuries ago. So, if the same thing goes in Neospace..." I let that trail off.

If I could convince Asuka to go along with this idea of Fubuki's, then I might be able to earn some points with the Neospacian king. Asuka would make a good queen, I was sure, and I figured Judai'd be happy to see her. Since Misgarth and Kalmar had both given up that idea that noble blood was all that was worthy of a prince, it was safe to assume Neospace didn't hold to that, either. Besides that, offering a bride for King Kenta's son would help to unite our kingdoms, even if she wasn't related to me or nobility. Even if that failed, at least it would give me an excuse to visit Neospace, where it would be easier to reach out and contact Judai. Somehow, I didn't think any letters I sent through the mail would reach him.

"Okay. And what about arranged marriages? Surely such a traditional culture would—"

"Nope!" I cut her off, grinning.

"What!?"

"He's not engaged. At least, right now, he's not."

I'd been a bit surprised to learn that myself, really, but even Neospace allowed their heir some choice romantically. It was part of why I figured a commoner wouldn't be out of the question.

"Well, what about Yubel?" Asuka asked, and I almost laughed out loud. The thought of those two as a couple was hilarious and terrifying. "Aren't those two—"

"Excuse me, but do I really have to be here?" Manjoume interrupted, covering his ears. "Right now, of all times?"

Ouch. Right, Manjoume had a crush on Asuka himself. This couldn't have been an easy conversation for him, all things considered. Still, if she didn't feel the same, there wasn't anything I could do about it. He'd be okay. Right now, I had to focus on convincing Asuka to agree to this so we could resolve this dispute between our kingdoms.

With that in mind, I answered Asuka, containing my horrified laughter. "I...don't think you need to worry about that, Asuka," I said, sweating. "Trust me."

They'd kill each other before they could even consummate their marriage. Yubel and Judai couldn't go two minutes without fighting, so marriage would be a living nightmare.

"Yeah, but—"

It was starting to sound like she was just looking for excuses to avoid a confession.

"Asuka, why are you fighting it?" Fubuki cut her off. "Clearly there's nothing holding you back except your own nerves!"

She blushed, though I couldn't help but agree with her brother. It was obvious she liked Judai. Why else would she be acting nervous about this instead of angry? The conversation was clearly heading toward a suggestion that she'd hate if she didn't like him. "I-I..."

Well, that was answer enough for me. I stood up, declaring, "Then it's decided, then! We're going to go see Judai!"

Asuka looked startled. "W-we are!?"

I took her hand and helped her up, and Manjoume got to his feet at the same time. "Well, that's it," he said. "I'm out. See ya around, Tenjoin-kun. Let me know if you ever get a brain." He walked off, looking upset. Clearly, he'd have a rough time getting over his own crush.

If I didn't have bigger problems to deal with, I'd have probably tried to ease his pain. As it was, I'd have to check in on him later. Hey, sometimes sacrifices have to be made to resolve political disputes. Besides, like I said, she wasn't interested.

Asuka was blushing fiercely and sweating buckets. "I, uh..."

"So? Who wants to help sneak me over there?" I asked, looking around at the other two. "Huh?"

Misawa looked unsure. "Uh, sir, I—"

Fubuki smiled, eyes closed. "You can count me in!" he said, pointing at himself.

Asuka's eyes widened as she looked at her brother, still very red in the face. "Nii-san!"

"Great!" I said. "Then let's get a move-on! Before the guards catch on. I...kinda snuck out without my dad knowing." I rubbed my head, grinning sheepishly.

"You did what? Why, your highness!" Misawa chastised.

How else was I going to figure out a way to resolve the tension between Kalmar and Neospace? Any conversation about that would be reported to my dad if the guards heard it.

"Come on! Let's go!" I said, dragging Asuka off with me.

"Hey! W-wait!" she protested.

Misawa said nothing, and I figured he was still trying to absorb everything going on. He hadn't suspected Asuka had a crush on Judai, and I wasn't supposed to be the one who left home unprotected, so everything he knew was turning up false.

"Wait for me!" Fubuki called, running after us.

So, just like that, I found myself sneaking out of my own kingdom to try to negotiate peace with the king of Neospace without my dad's permission by offering a new friend of mine to his son as a bride. Of course, I knew both Judai and Asuka would be thrilled about it, given that I already suspected Judai did feel the same.

The only question was how well this would work.