Yu-Gi-Oh GX: Searching For A Hero (Muse & East)

ImaginaryMuse

ImaginaryMuse

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It had been five long years since Asuka graduated the Dueling Academy on the island. She managed to achieve her dream of becoming a teacher. A successful one, at that rate. All was well enough ... and yet, the years that had passed still felt odd. Namely because of all the things that had ended up happening, Judai left everyone. All to live in the Spirit World. It was something that to this day, Asuka didn't completely understand. He'd felt so certain and justified that it was what he needed to do .... even though everyone else insisted otherwise.

A soft sigh elicited from her lips as she closed a photo album which held a small handful of images. Most had her with Judai, but there were also a considerable amount where Ryo, Fubuki, a small handful had Manjoume, and even Sho were all included in some form or fashion.

Then again, considering everything she'd done with them during her stay on the island, it was only fitting. They had been a team, more or less, and did just about everything together. In a sense, she missed those days. But it wasn't like she regretted her new life, either. Her head shook as she realized Asuka had zoned out. Thankfully, it was still summer, late July to be exact, which meant she hadn't lost her focus in the middle of class. Even still, she also needed to finish preparations for the next term, and she certainly couldn't do that if she kept thinking back to the past.

Besides, he'd want you to move on and keep being happy ...

Nodding to herself, Asuka briefly closed her eyes before taking a slight breath and standing up. She stretched slightly and, after hearing her stomach growl, decided that would be the best way to help think quicker. Slowly, Asuka made her way to the kitchen of her house. She was dressed in a long t-shirt and shorts. She didn't really need to rush out or anything, nor need to get dolled up, so she was sticking to a simpler look. Her hair lightly bounced against her back with each step, only stopping as she entered the kitchen. Her hand was about to reach the refrigerator door ....

But suddenly, she stopped. Courtesy of a loud scream that could be heard outside her window. She rose an eyebrow, originally thinking it wouldn't be a big deal. But a quick peek outside suggested that not only was this something to worry about, but take very seriously.

"W-What the ... ??"

Her mouth fell agape. Was this even real? Some part of her knew it probably was, but it was easy to understand why she was having doubts flooding her hand. Outside were numerous forms. Among the sea of humans running around were monsters. Specifically, card spirits. One of the first forms that she recognized were Skull Servants which, by itself was easy to deal with. But that wasn't what was outside. No, Asuka found at least two to three dozen Skull Servants, and that wasn't all. From Vampire Familiar to Wightbaking to Fire Reaper and even The King Of Skull Servants, the streets of Domino City were flooded.

"What in the actual Hell ... ??"

She didn't normally curse, but this was one of the few times she figured would be a more than fair enough exception. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest as she tried to think what to do. Her mind first went to Judai ... but then a grimace appeared on her face.

"Damnit, Judai! Of all the times for you to be gone!"

Her fists clenched. This hadn't necessarily been the exact reason everyone begged for him to stay, but maybe it had been as a subconscious reason. Maybe in the back of their heads, they worried something like this happened?

Asuka shook her head again. The what-ifs didn't matter. Just the scene playing out before her, and right now ... this was really bad, and would only get worse if she didn't do something soon.

But ... who ... ??

Her thoughts were distracted by banging at her door. Asuka's hands began to tremble. Before she even really questioned what her body was doing, it seemed to activate an auto-pilot mode of sorts. She pivoted on her heels and ran, grabbing her cell phone in the process. Asuka swiftly locked herself in her own room and, after quickly going through her contacts, hit the dial button after finding Sho's name.

He was easily one of the closest people to Judai, and so she trusted him. After all, if she was going to suggest somehow finding Judai for help, she needed to sound a bit sane. And Sho would know she wasn't just spouting random nonsense.

A surprised gasp would be the first thing Sho would hear when he picked up, followed by an unorthodox - but very freaked out - tone coming from Asuka. "Sho ... please confirm something for me. I'm not dreaming, right? Everything outside ... that's really happening?"

Each question that left her lips caused her body to tremble harder. She didn't want to think of this all being real. But knowing it very likely was caused her fear to increase ... that plus the sounds of her door continuing to get beat against getting louder.

"I'm ... I'm kinda in a bind. I'm trying not to panic, but umm ... it's becoming a bit easier said than done. What .... what do we even do?!"
 
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In the last five years Sho had made it to the Pro Tour, he had gone on to win several big tournaments and even beat out his older brother Ryo in the rankings. He had gone as high up in the world as he thought he could literally he had a penthouse suite. The kind of rich building that the younger version of him would have felt was overcompensating, but he always felt like he was an imposter. He could sit near the top of the rankings, but only because Judai had never gone to the pro tour at least not in any circuit or tournament that he had seen. Yugi had retired from his seat as King of games years before Sho would have had a chance to play against him.

It felt like a holo victory, knowing that his record couldn't stand the test of time against those legends or that he wouldn't know if he could defeat his first real friend in a proper duel. Even so, while his title might not have as much meaning as he would want, it still gave him a seat at the top of the world. The day had started out pretty average, and he was on the deck of home relaxing when the screams reached his ears.

He got up from his seat and walked with some hesitation to the edge of the penthouse. He blinked seeing smoke starting to rise up. slowly the streets of Domino city seemed to be driven into chaos. He couldn't really see what was going on from up here. The people in the streets were all ants from the 49th floor of a high-rise building. But he could see the things flying around. He had to take off his glasses for a moment clean them and double-check that they weren't playing a trick on him. "Is that a Feral Imp?"

His cellphone rang as he looked away from the chaos to check his caller ID. Asuka, under any other situation he would have been absolutely delighted to hear from Asuka. He still remembered the time way back when he had tried to sneak into the girl's dormitory because he thought she had sent him a love letter. It had been much simpler times back on that island. But now there was little question as to why she would call him. Answering the phone he could assume that wherever she was living in this city it was much closer to this chaos than he was.

"Duel Spirits attacking the city? Yeah, that's real... I think..." His voice was concerned, and when she said she was in a bind his first instinct was to go out and find her, but exactly how and where would they meet up? Her question of what they did next was difficult to answer. When Duel academy had gone to the spirit world it hadn't been so violent and given the group time to try and find a way out. Now they were being invaded, and it was far, far more destructive this time around.

Asuka asked the million-dollar question and Sho wasn't really sure. "I'm not exactly sure, Duel spirits aren't my expertise, but if this is anything like what happened all those years ago then there is probably a monster out there controlling the lesser spirits. I don't think a Feral Imp is giving orders... We probably need to find the general and defeat it." He ran back to the penthouse. "Where do you live. I'm gonna get my car and drive to you."

Once he had a rough idea of her address it was really just a matter of getting to the parkade, he was practically running at this point to hop into his car. Putting the phone onto speaker as he started to drive. "This is so much worse on ground level." He was more than a little reckless as this was an emergency, and it wasn't like anyone else was paying attention to the traffic lights as they were trying to flee from the city. Sho's was the only car going towards the invading monsters.
 

Thankfully, she didn't need to wait long for Sho to pick up. She originally covered her ear the phone wasn't against ... but decided that wouldn't do. So instead she focused on Sho's voice and blocked out the repeated pounding at the door of her simple house. "It ... really is real, huh?" she repeated, her head lightly slumping against the wall as she felt despair start to overwhelm her. Her heart began to pound rapidly within her chest and Sho could hear her voice was shaking as much as her body was about now.

"Where do I ... umm ... right."

Asuka took a few deep breaths to help calm herself.

You're not going to get anywhere like this. Stop. Breathe ... you were one of the best in Obelisk Blue for a reason. Find that version and drag her back. Now.

Nodding to herself, her eyes re-opened, narrowing as another loud Slam! resounded against her door. She briefly latched onto her lower lip to avoid cusing and ensuring her attention remained on Sho and not much else. Only when she felt fine and more stable did she speak up. Her voice was still trembling a bit, but not to the point he couldn't hear or understand her.

"About a block from Domino City Hospital. It's a light blue one story house. You can't miss it unless you're blind ...."

THUD!

"Actually, even if you were ... you'd probably hear ... whatever the hell is outside my place and breaking in. I ... don't know and .... "

A soft click would barely be heard before Asuka revealed what'd happened. "Quite frankly, I have zero intentions of wanting to find that out. I've locked myself in my room for now."

And now that she knew he was heading over, she at least had enough time to get herself more properly presentable. She put Sho on speakerphone and quickly began peeling her clothes off. "That's umm .... that's the thing. I'm not sure if this is even like last time or not. In fact, unlike the past, we don't know what this is even. At least before, we went in with the knowledge of a much better idea of what to expect. This .. well ... they literally came to us, it seems."

As she started replacing the shorts and long t-shirt with jeans and a tank top, she took another breath. She didn't worry that Sho would think she was crazy, nor even would disagree with this idea. But for some reason, the mere idea caused an invisible weight to fall - almost literally - upon her shoulders. Her breath hitched ... before finally Asuka managed to find and speak her voice once again.

"Judai .... we need him. This is literally his domain, his specialty ... and maybe he'll understand why this is happening to start with. But umm .... we need to go back there. To the Spirit World. And find him once again."

There was definitely a bitterness included in her tone as she uttered the word 'again'. "Sorry," she quickly added, "That's not directed at you. Anyway ... it probably is gonna require more than just us, though. We'll likely have to get some others to help us out ..."

Asuka just barely finished sliding her duel disk onto her arm, when ....

CRASH!

"Well ... I guess I got company, whether I want it or not."

With Sho being on speaker phone, he would definitely hear as much, as well as the fear returning to Asuka's voice. "I know you're heading over, and I did hear that it's horrible on the ground level, but ummm .... please hurry. I legitimately don't know if I can just set a card down on my duel disk and they'd be able to fight these off or what."

The fact she hadn't seen or really heard what monsters had entered didn't make it easier. Some part of her hoped it was a large group of the Skull Servants, just because even her weakest monsters could handle those no problem. But something like a Giant Orc or Goblin Attack Force? She had things that could combat them, yes; but not four stars. They required additional cards, tributes, or both to help get those out ... and assuming this all followed traditional dueling rules, she couldn't just slap Cyber Angel Vrash and be done with them.

Either way, she had no idea where to start ... which meant she could only do one thing. Keep hanging on until Sho arrived.
 
Similiar thoughts and questions were bouncing around inside of Sho's head. He was also unsure of what the two of them should be doing. When she mentioned Judai he grits his teeth for a moment, before letting it pass. He knew she was right, Judai went off to adventure in the spirit world, he knew more about that place than any other person alive. He just hated the idea of having to find a man who turned their back on all of his friends. "I agree, we need him."

Asuka asked him what they were supposed to do against these creatures, and as he was driving through a battlefield he felt just as many uncertainties about the situation as she probably did. The idea of setting a card down in attack mode on a duel disk was probably a good idea, but he also had a car. As he turned down one road to get closer to her house he decided to test something. "I don't know what we are supposed to do, but I'm gonna try... a thing." He put the pedal down to the floor as he approached one of the skull servants veering into it, and felt the distinct smash of something hitting the car's hood.

He watched as the skeleton was smashed on impact and pulled under the hood. Its pieces were broken by several tons of metal as he drove over it like a speedbump. Sho felt his heart beating in his ears from the shot of adrenaline even if he knew it was just a card spirit he still ran something over with his car. Watching the rearview mirror his celebrations were cut short as the creature began to move, and reform, it was clearly damaged, but it also started to pull it's self back together.

"good news is we can hurt it, the bad news is they don't seem to stay down. Maybe they are like actual Zombies, you have to take out the head or destroy the brain?... if they even have one." He would much rather it have been simple like tossing down a couple of monsters and ordering them to attack... or. As he found her place he stopped his car for a moment, the front door was pretty smashed in.

"I'm outside your place, going in now." Sho pulled out his own duel disk, slapping it onto his arm, feeling the heavyweight of it, if nothing else he could at least use it as a hunk of metal to smash in something's head. Still, he actually did have his deck, and if they were fighting duel spirits, he may as well take a shot at trying something. "I set one card face down in the magic zone... end my turn. Please let this work." Walking to the door that was caved in, something was indeed starting to bash its way against the bedroom door. The creature that was attacking the door actually made Sho stop, his heart beating in his chest. Giant, ugly decaying clown zombie. Sho for a moment felt a lot of his childhood fears coming back to him.

The clown Zombie turned towards him. Sho held up his duel disk at this point. "Your move?" The clown charged him, and Syrus pressed the button to flip the trap card. "Magic cylinder, I negate your attack, and send it back at you?"

The clown zombie took its swing and then exploded, even as Sho ducked away from the attack using his duel disk to block, but the actual attack didn't land. When his eyes slowly opened again he looked around. "Asuka... I think traps and spells might be our best bet here."
 

Asuka cringed and grimaced as she heard Sho actually driving both into and over some of the monsters from outside. Normally, she'd scold him or ask if he'd lost his mind. However, given the circumstances of things ... nah. She couldn't find it in her to do that. If anything ... she found herself asking another question that was equally as valid.

"You're fine, right?"

Given he was still driving and talking afterwards, Asuka took that as her cue to assume yes. A shaky breath elicited, followed by a shocked gasp as something was now slamming against her own bedroom door. She glanced down towards her duel disk ... and began pondering her own idea. She knew what she'd uttered, but that was a very spur of the moment thing. Also, it had worked while they had been inside the Spirit World. Would it even work now? Could it? Was that too farfetched of a thought, or ... ??

"Kuri!!"

"Gah, shit!! Careful, please!"

The Winged Kuriboh had appeared so suddenly that it made her jump a bit, damn well nearly hitting her head against the wall in the process. As the form lowered its head, Asuka grinned and shook her head. "No, no. It's not you. But umm ... given how things are going, I wasn't ... well, I don't know why I wasn't expecting you. Just ... no need to blame yourself, okay?"

God, is this how Judai felt? Worried he may come off as a bit crazy talking to things like Duel Spirits?

She hadn't known exactly what compelled her to add a Winged Kuriboh in her deck. She figured it was simply to make up for Judai's absence, as the change had been made a few months after he left. But maybe there was more to it. Maybe somewhere, deep down, she knew she'd need it. Just like they all needed to find Judai. It was an odd string of fate in its own rights ... but right now, it seemed to be a positive thing, so she was going to stick with this.

"Anyway, if you're here .... then .... "

Asuka swiftly scanned through her deck and placed a Cyber Skater onto her disk. Sure enough, it manifested. She couldn't help but find herself staring at the card. She'd seen it so many times, and yet ... there was something ... new about this moment. Because it was literally in front of her? Because she could actually see it curtseying to her? Whatever the case, Asuka almost got lost at the sight ... before her door buckled, indicating something was damn close to breaking and accessing her bedroom.

" ... Not monsters?! Only spells and traps?! But I ...."

Thankfully, she did have something. And it came to her right as the door was forced open. Just in time, too. "I set one trap. Come try me." And as it did, she pushed down on her duel disk. It had been another Clown Zombie and while Cyber Skater could defeat it on its own ... she'd simply grabbed the card out of instinct. She hadn't known what had found and invaded her home, after all, so this was a precaution in case it was something stronger than 1350.

Thankfully, it hadn't been that bad, and now she merely had something to further ensure she would defeat it.

"Trap card open! Wall Of Disruption!"

The undead clown groaned as it lost 800 life points in the span of seconds. It could have been more ... but honestly, this was perfectly fine as it was. No need for overkill just yet. "Cyber Skater, attack and vanquish it!" As this zombie exploded, she grabbed and set another card. Sho was close enough that she could now see him. Now to close the gap before too many things surrounded them and made this worse. "Cyber Skater! Get rid of that one too!"

As the zombie that had been attacking Sho was cut into pieces, Asuka panted, staring at the sight and display. She even pinched herself ... just in case. Just to see about eliminating any lingering doubts on whether this was real or fake. And when she found herself standing there, gawking between Sho and her Cyber Skater, she gulped nervously.

"Gods, this is real," she muttered, slumping against the wall for a few moments. "Okay .... okay, so ...." Asuka nodded, taking a few moments to calm herself before glancing over to Sho. "So ... now where? Your car, probably, but ... well, let's just get there and figure the rest out, huh?"

A sheepish grin appeared on her face as she darted out of her home and ran for Sho's vehicle. "Don't get me wrong. I'm glad to see you. I just hate that it was under less than pleasant circumstances."
 
"My car is good." He got up and dusted himself off as he ran with Asuka to his car. Getting back into the drivers seat he pulled out of her drive way and started to get them moving back the way the two of them had come. "For now I think we go back to my place, it's far enough away that I didn't really see any monsters near it, It's also big enough that we have room to set up a base of operations." He barely knew what he was talking about, a base of operations what were they going to set up a resistance against the card spirits, form an army?

He had to refocus his breathing, he had come a long way from the nervous wreck that stood on Academy Island. Whatever they did they needed to be confident about what was coming next. There was a few things he knew for sure, they needed help. Beyond tracking down Judai they would need other peoples help getting to the spirit world, they needed someone who knew that world better than they did and had some knowledge of how to get their. "I'm kind of surprised, and flattered that you would call me first Asuka, but I really wish this hadn't been the way we had met up after all these years."

His eyes focused on the road, but it was chaos pretty much everywhere around them, pillars of smoke and fire were going about the city. The property damage was severe, and the roads would likely need replacing. It seemed that the population of monsters had spread out, but they could still see some passing Zombie's and Fiend monsters. The attack was pretty random at this point, and others were starting to figure out that if they summoned their own monsters they could fight back. Which just meant that the two of them were driving through the remnants of the battlefield. "The highest level creature I counted was four, and I didn't see many effect monsters, really just normal ones." He ha da few theories as to why more promenant creatures handn't come through the gate.

By the time they got to the underground park of his home, and took the elevator back to the penthouse where Sho lived the sun was starting to lower over the hills, and the damage that had been inflicted to the city lit it up, there was a sureal beauty to it like a painting of flickering lights, till he remembered that those lights were fires and that so many people had died today. There was a lot to think about and greave for. "I'm gonna call Ryo." He said softly pulling out his phone to call his brother and stepping away. "You should tell Fubuki to come here as well.. I have plenty of room."

This place had been way too big for one person, it actually had a second floor and all the amenities that one would expect of a super rich life style. But most of the rooms were empty with just guest beds that had never been used. The kitchen was fully stocked and they had power, and cell service, which meant they wouldn't hurt for supplies while they made a plan, but in the chaos of it he felt like he was too overstimulated like he couldn't process what was going on.
 

For a few moments, Asuka honestly contemplated forgoing her seat belt. Her head shook as she decided better safe than sorry. She trusted Sho as far as driving went; it would literally be anyone else that she wasn't sure could have much faith put in. Granted, it was a bit understandable given what was going on, but ... that still didn't mean she wanted to get into a crash. Nodding at her decision, she swiftly buckled herself in and kept her disk nearby her fingers ... just in case she needed to activate her set card.

"Well .... I knew you wouldn't think I was crazy with my idea to get the help of someone who, technically, isn't around. And ... I kinda needed to know someone would be on board with me ASAP. I couldn't have second guesses or whatnot, so you were the best choice in that regard. But ... " she gave a firm nod in agreement as she added, "Now that we're together, I can feel fine about contacting others and properly relaying my idea. Without the added pressure of having wherever I'm staying at getting broken into, either."

Asuka then went silent for the drive, though her eyes took note of how the streets looked. She hadn't necessarily doubted Sho when he said it was horrible; she just hadn't thought it was these degrees of bad. No ... bad was too generous. What was happening was downright terrifying, and just as appalling. A slight grimace appeared on her face. Some people cried out for help, and even extended their hands out as they drove by.

Sadly, though, they couldn't just stop and even if they wanted to ... room would eventually become an issue.

"Hmm .... "

Asuka's attention shifted as Sho brought up that, for the most part, weaker monsters had been invading thus far. That actually was an intriguing point ... it would have been easy for any huge Duel Spirits to arrive here. Like really strong cards ... which made her shudder slightly as she dreaded the idea of running into the Dark World spirits. That had been ... a very unfortunate event as it was. Doing so now that Judai was not only gone, but his normal self? That'd be even worse ... and more so if the Spirits actually remembered them.

"Yeah, umm ... another reason we need to find him. He probably knows all these answers. However, it's definitely worth noting. If there's a reason for the order you mentioned ... then it means we at least have one thing. Time and hopefully enough of it to get everyone else informed and agreeing to join us."

After an easy elevator trip up, they arrived ... and Asuka couldn't help but whistle. She'd known Sho went to the professional world, but ... she'd never seen what he earned. Her head nodded as she gave him a soft smile, "It's good to see you've done well for yourself. Yeah ... yeah, I'll get a hold of Fubuki. One of us should see about maybe trying to get a hold of Manjoume, too. But agreed ... Fubuki first."

She took a seat on the couch and pulled her own phone out. Asuka briefly pondered how to go about the call ... before deciding there was no reason to sugarcoat anything. Hell, he was probably seeing everything play out, so ... a blunt and straight to the point approach was probably for the best. Asuka nodded at the thought, albeit with a grimace on her face, before pushing down on the send button after getting her brother's number pulled up.

"Hey, onii-san. Umm ... mhm, yep. It is indeed about what's going on. Yes, I am safe. I'm with Sho, actually and .... we agreed on something. We need to try to find Judai. He's one of our best bets to understand why this is even happening and maybe just fix it altogether."

Her teeth latched onto her lower lip as she waited. The first reaction she heard was an understandable sigh. But then her own elicited from her lips as she heard him voice his own agreement.

"Glad to hear you agree. We did figure a few things out, mind you, but ... yeah. In the long run, we are gonna need him. Sho has invited you to come to his place, and frankly, you should take that offer up. My own place got broken into, so ... that isn't really an option anymore. I'll fill you in when you arrive, but know you're not the only person we're contacting. There will probably be others here when you arrive. Oh, right the address .... umm .... "

Thankfully, there was a magazine on the table in front of her. Asuka quickly read it off and then hung up, giving Sho a nod. And just in case he wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean, she mouthed the response to him. 'He's coming over' were the words he could see her silently relaying.
 
After a quick talk with his brother, and telling him to meet up with him here. Sho sighed and put his phone down. The suggestion of adding Manjoume to their ranks was probably a good one, but when he called the number it dialed a few times before going to voice mail, at which point Sho tried to explain why they all needed to meet up, and that they were going to try and find Judai. He put the phone down on the table and took a seat in his living room. "It will probably take them a bit to get here, the roads aren't exactly in great condition, and as far as I can tell the city is still under attack." He didn't open the windows, he didn't want to chance hearing screams or more panic outside.

"I don't even know how we would start to get to the spirit world." The only times they had ever gotten close to that world all involved Duel Academy Island, and every trip into that world had involved him nearly dying. It wasn't exactly a place he liked to think about. Now that dangerous world was coming here. Looking out the window he had to wonder just how bad this would be.

Course they had a plan of action, find Judai and get his help in stopping this... invasion, but where exactly was he. It wasn't like the idiot even had a phone back then he just walked off into the spirit world and vanished forever. He walked to his kitchen for a moment opening up the fridge and decided that for now at least he should just play the role of the kind host. "Do you want anything to drink? Until the others get here there isn't a lot we can do at the moment but sit down and wait."

It didn't feel right of course, the last thing he wanted to do was to just sit and wait as the city around them burned, but there was very little either of them could do on their own. It wasn't like he could summon enough creatures to clean the streets out or create a safe zone. Maybe if he built a deck for it he could survive some kind of swarm mode, but as it was this thing was just too massive a problem for either of them to fix on their own. Which meant sitting, waiting for the others to get here, and then forming a plan. The nervous part of him said that a bit of alcohol would help the time flow easier.

He pulled out two relatively expensive-looking drinks. Sho wasn't trying to flaunt his wealth, but he also didn't really do his own shopping anymore so it wasn't like he had a lot of options to not seem wealthy. He put one of the two bottles in front of Asuka cracking the lids off them before sitting down across from her. "Most duel spirits we met were friendly, but everything out there was either fiend or zombie type so I guess that means only evil spirits crossed over to attack?" He shook his head still trying to make sense of it all.

Till he finally had to concede that none of it really made sense. Instead, he moved on to what felt a little more natural. Looking at Asuka he had to ask the question. "So what have you been up to for the last five years? Despite the circumstances, this is really the first time we have had a chance to talk since... well ever really." This was actually the first time he could remember being alone with Asuka since that time he had snuck into the girl's dormitory because of a love letter that had been placed in his locker. Of course, it was a fake letter, but back then he had no idea what was going on.

After that, he had more or less thought that Asuka was just out of his league and had buried his crush like he had buried his old shrine to Dark Magician Girl.
 

Asuka merely nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Fubuki said he'll be here as quickly as possible, but ... " A sigh elicited from Asuka. It wasn't easy to do certain things to her; depress her, make her feel hopeless in any capacity, or just outright scare her. And all three of those were happening ... all from something that never should have been able to occur. Definitely not without a logical reason. What even had happened, exactly? Her mind tried to conjure something, any type of logical explanation.

All she could do after several minutes of trying to throw darts at an invisible, proverbial dart board was rub her forehead and rest her head against the couch. Then when Sho himself admitted being unsure how they would get in ... a slight grimace appeared on her face. "It's not as easy as uttering 'open sesame' or anything like that, that's for sure. We .... god, what even did we do back then? Because whatever it was .... we may have to repeat that somehow. It's one of the very few things that seems like it may even work."

Her head turned as she watched Sho walk away. Before she could inquire where he'd gone, her answer came as he hinted he'd gone to the kitchen. An eyebrow rose slightly ... he'd said drinks, sure, but did he mean alcoholic? Or ...not?

But honestly, after mulling over what he might or might not mean ... Asuka ended up waving her hand through the air.

"You know what? Even if you do mean sake ... sure. I'd say this is one of the few times where that type of drink is more than appropriate enough. So ... yeah. Come at me with the drinks."

As Sho returned, Asuka sat up straight. She carefully grasped her drink, rose it, and lightly clinked it against Sho's. "Kanpai, I suppose," she replied softly before gulping the liquid down. It was ... strong, yes, but not overwhelming. Then again, with this being the first time she even indulged in liquor, it wasn't amazing that it was a rather potent drink. Still, despite the kick it had to it, it wasn't horrible, either.

"Not half bad," she mused, grinning as she let out a small sigh of relief and set it down. "Thank you. That ... is actually helping. Me though? I ... went down the path I was going for. I am teaching at the Academy now. Well, not right at this moment with it being summer, but when the terms are ongoing and such. I'm actually kinda specializing in Ritual Summons, specifically, since not many people use them. Kinda weird in my opinion ..."

Asuka shrugged her shoulders after deciding it didn't matter why rituals were rarely used. She was a rare teacher in her own rights, and goddamnit, that definitely made her unique.

Oh shit, that's the liquor attempting to talk, isn't it? Oh well~

"Aside from teaching? I'm not really doing much else. I'm not seeing anyone if that's something you were wondering... something that Fubuki constantly tries to tease me about. What about you, though? Are you an item with anyone?"
 
Sho listened and drank as she spoke. The alcohol definitely helped him relax as the inhibitions floated away for a moment. The mention of the academy brought a certain warm fuzziness to Sho's thoughts. The days he had spent there had been a lot simpler, and a lot more fun than the days he had now. "You work at the academy? I'm kind of jealous, do you over see any of the dorms? Did they ever clean up the roach problem in the slyfer red dormitory?"

By the time he had left academy Island he had been wearing blue same as her, and honestly he kind of missed having roommates. Sure Judai, and Hayato snored a lot, but it was more fun having them around. When she said she wasn't seeing anyone Sho gave a bit of a laugh he had been interested if she was of course but Asuka was out of his league even with everything he was now he didn't think she would go for him.

"I mean I was mildly curious, but as for me, no I don't really get to have that." Sho looked wistful for a moment and some of his smile faded away. "You ever hear the saying it's lonely at the top?"

"I'm the king of games, by default, I know I'm not the best in the world, but Judai never competed and Yugi dropped out of duel monsters years ago. I never got to duel them seriously on the pro league, but some how my name is the new household pro tournament player. That means I have to stay busy with tournament appearances, and if I do leave my house I get mobbed by fans." It sounded great but it really wasn't. Being the top duelest in the proleague meant that he basically just had to defend his tittle constantly.

"So I don't get to have a social life, I'm pretty much trapped inside this penthouse when I'm not dueling so I tried to make sure it had everything I'd need."

"And of course I have to be careful with stuff like dating, a woman who wants the Sho the public sees isn't going to want the real Sho, they want the famous card board cut out. The one who just quotes Judai's old lines, and strikes poses for the camera." He shrugged. "I suppose part of me knew that would happen, that there were downsides to being famous, but I've never even gotten to have a kiss."

oh wow I am a light weight anything more that you wanna confess Sho.

"The closest I ever got to having a romantic encounter was that fake love letter back in our first year, never did figure out who sent that my way. Looking back on it I wasn't even in your league back then just hopelessly optimistic I guess."
 

Asuka tilted her hand as she heard Sho's questions about the dorms. "I do go in them every now and again, yes. But it's not really to overlook them. It's if I need to speak with any of the students. People who are in the maintenance department, for example, are there more so than me. That being said, I have taken note that they definitely have been fixed up and very much improved since we were last there. Especially the Slyfer Red dorms."

An eyebrow rose as Sho went on to reveal he was still single. That .... seemed a bit odd, in her honest opinion. She gave a nod as he asked about the proverb regarding being lonely at the top and took another sip from her drink as Sho began to better explain what that entailed. She couldn't help but feel a bit sad for him. It made more sense and helped explain a lot more aside from just his status as being single.

So this all came at that price, huh? she mused, taking a moment to glance around the penthouse before looking back over to Sho.

Her mouth opened ... and at first, she wanted to apologize. But for one, she had no reason to. Just as importantly, though, he wouldn't want it. Hell, seeming as if she were giving him pity would probably come off as insulting and she wasn't going to ruin their friendship just because of a poor reply that slipped out of her mouth. Sure, she was a bit tipsy, but that wasn't a proper excuse. She could still be a better person and friend than what she originally wanted to say.

"I ... honestly have no idea what I even should say. Sorry keeps coming to my mind as the first thing, but ..."

Her head shook as she resumed, "I know that's not right. Cliché as it may sound, keep hanging in there. Particularly now that ... well .... " she nodded towards the window to help indicate what she was referring to, "That has decided to become a thing. We're gonna need all the help and sanity we can keep. That's what my instincts are telling me, anyways."

... It probably wasn't the best reply, and maybe not what Sho would want to hear. But Asuka definitely felt better about saying that over apologizing unnecessarily, so that was a foot in the direction ... or so she felt confident enough about that.

"So that's why you came over? I did wonder. You usually complied with the rules and shit, so that felt really ... odd to see you trying to sneak in and all."

Well ... that was one mystery down. Only about a million more to go. Asuka fought the urge to roll her eyes at her internal quip as she now couldn't help but feel a bit awkward. Like a very unwanted spotlight had suddenly come down on top of her.

For all the feelings she had for Judai, there were an equal amount for someone else. Someone Sho knew very well. In fact, they were heading over here. It was his brother, Ryo.

It was nothing personal against Sho. But especially when they were at the island, he hadn't really seemed like someone who was fretting too much over something like relationships. But now that she was hearing the reason behind his sneaking in ... she couldn't help but feel like the biggest idiot. And now, if none of that was bad enough, a bit of a picky bitch.

He certainly had grown up. That couldn't be denied. But as far as feeling anything for him?

She wasn't certain. It didn't feel like that was the case right now, and not just because the world was literally falling apart. She felt confident enough that had they been meeting up during more pleasant circumstances, she still may not have many, if any, intimate feelings for him. He was a damn good friend .... but not much more.

And now that he'd revealed quite a bit, it was common sense that her speaking up would definitely make things way worse before better.

You can't just stay silent forever! Ignoring him won't be much better ....

"I feel stupid," she finally muttered out loud, chuckling at herself as she shook her head. "The signs were all there in front of my face and yet, I didn't see them. That ... is completely on me. With all the guys that were constantly and actively trying to get with me, I should have figured. I ... have no excuse why I didn't notice and, like I said, that's on me."

The last of her drink was quickly finished off. Some part of Asuka really, really wanted to just up and vanish ... if only to avoid saying anything too stupid. But a combination of the ongoing circumstances outside plus her own moral compass ensured she stayed put and remained on the couch.

"They also say there's someone for everyone. Maybe when things calm down, something will happen. Right now, though, it seems like focusing on surviving is the smarter thing to do, anyway."

.... That hadn't been too smug or bitchy, had it? She didn't think so, but ... well. Too late. The words had already left her mouth. She was preparing to hear him agree with her, lash out, maybe do a bit of both. Either way, it'd be a deserved and justified reaction.
 
"oh." It all sort of escaped his lips for a moment. It was a hard pivot directly into a wall. It was like Asuka had just slammed on the breaks and Sho's head slapped the metaphorical car. He should have anticipated it. He should have been a lot more guarded, his heart should have been far more protected.

This was Asuka after all, Judai had told him several times that she had been out of his league, but he had gotten ahead of himself. When she had been in danger she had called him, and he had let that go to his head for a moment. It wasn't because she trusted him to make her feel safe, it was because she needed help finding Judai. He had forgotten that the years since Academy Island, his tittle, none of those things really mattered. He was just back to being Judai's friend, and Ryo's little brother.

Like he hadn't spent three years struggling to be noticed under their shadow. He sighed and let the pain of the moment ice over. He needed to be more careful with his heart, he had expected things to go a bit differently, but that slapped him back to reality.

"It's not important anyway." He lied, but lying about his feelings came naturally his smile was indistinguishable from the genuine article. "You would have to be pretty self-centered if you were thinking about romance during the end of the world."

There was an awkward passing moment long enough for Sho to finish his drink, go to the kitchen and fetch a second. The power was still on, but because some monsters could fly he was keeping the lights in the penthouse turned off.

"Maybe we should check the news?" It would give him something else to think about. Seeing how the rest of the world reacted to the appearance of Duel Spirits.

Since he didn't want to turn on the TV he settled on just checking his phone for global news updates. But even that wasn't the best idea. The use of the smaller screen meant that he had to sit closer to Asuka to share it. Close enough that he could practically touch her, or smell her shampoo. All of which only made the sudden gap between them a touch more awkward.

"I have been thinking, If our goal is to go to the spirit world we probably have to go back to the island. That place had like a dozen or so entrances to the spirit realm, they can't all be closed."

There was even one in the swimming pool that he, Judai and Hayata had used once upon a time.
 

The lie would have been more convincing ... had Sho not let out that disappointed sigh. As things were, Asuka knew damn well he was being anything but honest. It took everything in Asuka to avoid shooting an irked glare. Seriously, what was he expecting? To just up and change her feelings to ensure his didn't get hurt? That wasn't how infatuation, or anything further, went. The heart wants what the heart wants ... or so the proverb goes, and right now, Asuka was only wanting a few things right now. Some more of the alcohol, which got fixed as she refilled her glass, to survive this clusterfuck that had just happened, and to find a way to end it ... which, unfortunately, involved getting a man who had turned his back on everyone.

The simple fact was there had been very few people that Asuka even felt somewhat attached to in any intimate fashion. And even if her feelings for Judai remained, they may very well not be the same. And Ryo? He was a wildcard. They'd been relatively close during their Academy days, but that was five years ago. She was ready to accept the possibility he may see her in the same light that Asuka did with Sho; as a friend.

And I really am fine with that, she convinced herself, nodding both at the thought and Sho's words.

"I wouldn't use the words self-centered, per se," Asuka stated, keeping her tone calm despite it now wanting to come off as a bit irritated. He probably hadn't intended to, but there was a very faint 'woe is me' undertone included in his response, and it didn't sit well with her. Just because that wasn't the Sho she'd known. Mentally shoving those thoughts away for the moment, she went on and elaborated her thoughts, "But ... we know next to nothing about this exact situation. How the attacks are happening. A portal is an easy guess, but then where are those located? We saw a glimpse of what kind of monsters are coming here, but that's not likely going to be the final result. We were honestly lucky that nothing huge like ... any of the Monarchs or, Heaven forbid, the Egyptian Gods were around. There's just a lot of unknown factors working against us right now."

She almost included a line hinting that a combination of priorities plus common sense should make it clear why romance wasn't exactly at the top of her list, but hopefully he understood by now. Or at least would be able to get it soon enough.

A slight grimace appeared on her face as Sho suggested watching the news. "Hmmm ... unfortunately, it probably is something we should do."

She wasn't just saying that, either. The reason it got that type of reaction from Asuka was because it was a depressing suggestion. But, alas, it was necessary. If they really wanted to start making any sense about what was going on, one of the best ways to do so would be to keep tabs on how things were going down. Taking a slight breath to prepare herself, Asuka glanced down, watching the news with Sho.

Annnnd it was exactly as she expected. The reports were grim and equally devastating. Most of the people who had died were those that panicked too quickly to react properly, people who didn't know how to duel, or just individuals who were unfortunate enough to get caught off guard by these monsters and killed in the midst of all the chaos.

It definitely made her at least feel relieved she'd gotten in touch with Fubuki, and Sho had likewise done so with Ryo. It made her feel less alone and not immediately giving into despair like someone might have done were they in her spot.

" ... Probably, yeah. There could be some portals or access spots here, but even then ..."

Asuka shook her head.

"It actually may be smarter to head to the island. It'll be, hopefully, not as occupied. But with that said ... do we even know exactly where all of them are? Just in case we need to use another place to enter the Spirit World?"

But before Sho could answer that question, the door opened. Asuka glanced up ... and couldn't help but smile slightly as a familiar face appeared. "Ryo. It's been a while."
 
Sho was about to chime in with the answer to her question, but his home was quickly invaded by both Ryo and another guest. Sho's face showed that he had been drinking with a slight blush but he still called out to his brother. "Hey bro, how's it going." Sho waved at Ryo, who was slightly confused about why Sho could be so cheerful, till he saw the distinct tinge of pink on his little brother's face and understood that the younger brother had been drinking, and was a bit flushed already.

"Sho, Asuka it's good to see you. I also found this one running for his life and screaming for help." He practically dragged Jun Manjoume into the room.

"I wasn't screaming for help, or running for my life, A Manjoume doesn't act like that! I just didn't have any good attackers in my deck so I was tactically withdrawing." He huffed like he was annoyed to be in the same room as everyone else, but after being pulled in, he saw Asuka and his eyes lit up for a moment like a puppy that was being reunited with its family. He pulled away from Ryo and took his seat.

"I believe you, Boss! You just needed to get to the higher ground!" The yellow Ojama that followed Jun everywhere was now visible to Asuka though not to everyone else as he tried to swat the thing away from himself.

"Anyway, Ryo told me that you were going to find the slacker that abandoned us five years ago. In any other situation, I'd say that's a terrible idea because you all have me, but given what's going on right now I'm willing to admit that... Judai would be kind of helpful." Jun's eyes went to Asuka looking at her like she was being nominated as a leader. Or maybe he just really missed her after the time away from her. "I'm sorry we never really got to hang out in the last few years."

Sho got up and started getting glasses for all of his new guests. He pulled out the rest of the alcohol he had in the fridge as well as some of the food for his guests. "Sorry I don't have a lot I don't normally get any guests. We were just talking about how we should get to the spirit world to find Judai?"

Ryo looked around confused for a moment. "Spirit world?" Ryo hadn't actually been around for any of the spirit world shenanigans having graduated during their first year. He didn't get an explanation from anyone else in the room at the moment.

"We know a way to the spirit world! I know boss let me tell them!" Ojama yellow was raising its hand for the group, but no one other than Asuka and Jun could see him doing so.

"There should be a portal in the swimming pool back on academy island." It was actually Sho who started to explain it. "We used it back in our first year to enter the spirit world."

"We can't use that one," Jun said adamantly. There was actually a bit of fear in his voice as he spoke. "That portal doesn't allow our clothing to pass through to the other side, you want to end up dueling in a towel again?"
 

Asuka's face was also a bit flushed ... and she was glad she could blame the alcohol on it. Not just because it truly was a good part of the reason her face was more crimson than usual, but to help make it less obvious why she was turning red. Between the Marufuji brothers, Ryo had easily been the person she'd felt any type of intimate emotions towards. But at least this way ... she could make it look as if the alcohol were doing the same to her as it was to Sho ... which it was, to be fair. He just didn't need to know the other reason, especially after it felt like they were close to getting into an argument prior to Ryo coming in.

And, apparently, he wasn't alone.

"Manjoume!" Asuka couldn't help herself and giggled a bit - both from the liquor and seeing him dragged inside. "Sorry, sorry. This is a bit too good, I guess. Well, I did toss your name in as someone who should get in on this plan, but this wasn't how I expected to see you arrive."

Man, everyone's growing up really well ...

Granted, he hadn't completely changed ... and Asuka was fine with that. There were easily traces of the same personality that Jun had from when they were both in the Obelisk Blue dorms, but there was ... more to him than what she remembered. She couldn't quite pinpoint it, another thing that she'd blame on the sake, but she knew what she was sensing. And then when she caught him looking right at her .... Asuka recalled that he had been very much like Sho. Another of the many guys who had tried to win her over.

Suddenly, she felt like a bit of a bitch. She snuck a sideways glance, realizing that in the span of mere moments, she was around two men who had feelings for her, but not necessarily vice versa ... and the last person was in the opposite spot. She had feelings for them ... but to her knowledge, they weren't returned. Or rather, she hadn't gotten that chance to figure out if Ryo felt anything close to that way.

Suffice to say, everyone got bombarded with a lot of chaotic events during their four years at the Duel Academy. And with Ryo ... Asuka gripped her lower lip briefly as she remembered his brief demise, only to be revived ... something she was finding herself more and more grateful for.

Fortunately, something helped Asuka snap out of her trip down memory lane. It was hearing Ryo sounding confused about the Spirit World. "Ah, yes. So ... you saw the monsters already, no doubt, yes? Well ... there's a world, a realm where they exist. They're alive. We've all been there at least once. It's where Judai went to after he finished his school years at the Academy. Why?"

Asuka sighed, shaking her head. "Something something he felt obligated, some nonsense like that. So ... we need to go back, once again, to find him and see if he knows what's going on and how to put an end to this, preferably before anything insane in attack power emerges."

Asuka had to blink once ... twice. Was ... she imagining things. Suddenly, her gaze had gone from Ryo to Jun's shoulder, glancing straight at the Yellow Ojama. " .... You do?"

Unfortunately, the words had left her lips without being thought much on. And so when eyes were upon her and there was a silent 'huh?' type of reaction from most of the others, she pointed towards the Yellow Ojama. "You .... really don't see it? I'm the only one, aside from possibly Manjoume himself? Geez, how did Judai not go crazy when he had this ability?"

Before Manjoume could wonder how she even knew about his tag-along card spirit, the Winged Kuriboh appeared beside Asuka, looking a bit concerned at her tipsy state. She chuckled, waving her hand calmly. "I'll be fine. I kinda needed the drinks, but it's only for today. I won't overdo it, promise. Thanks though."

When only Manjoume hinted he could see it, her face burned a bit more. "God, I must look and sound crazy, huh?" she muttered, tucking a few blonde strands behind her hair. "Anyway ... ummm ... yes. An entrance ... we do need to find one. And ... we'll probably need to get there the same way we did when we all went there for classes; by some sort of boat ride. Or, if anyone knows a person that would let us use one, a helicopter. But first ... Fubuki-aniki should be here soon enough. And nooooooooooo way am I going like this, nu-uh. Me and Sho both need to sleep this off, so we got time before needing to hurry off which ... is probably for the best."

It'd sounded like a bit of a rant. Hopefully, though, some of her words made some sense to any of the guys. She didn't want to come off as too insane, not when they needed to conjure a plan sooner than later.
 


At the appearance of Winged Kuribo Jun practically jumped out of his chair completely confirming that he could see the other spirit that was now tagging along with Asuka. "Wait why do you have that thing following you around?" He had to take a moment to calm down. That particular spirit was the one who was always following Judai around so it startled him. The Ojama that Jun had to deal with on a day-to-day basis looked like he was scared of the fluffball. "I thought we'd never see it again, Kuriboh's are so creepy, why is it following her boss?"

"The hell should I know?"

Zane for his part was taking in the information slowly. "It did seem like Judai was often talking to himself when he was dueling... wait wouldn't the presence of a duel spirit count as outside interference?"

At that point, everyone in the room was looking between Asuka, and Manjoume like they had both gone mad, but then with the events of the day, this wasn't that surprising. Jun had to confirm that yes in fact he could see duel spirits. "As if these guys never have anything helpful to say, despite being duel spirits, I think they are all too weak to actually know how to play the game. Like the spirits out there none of them seem to really know what they are doing."

"They probably don't." The voice was yet another newcomer at the door. As Fubuki made his entrance into the room. He looked like he had been hit a few times, was bruised a few places, but otherwise healthy. "Weaker duel spirits don't usually have the power to command others to do their bidding, and it's a good bet that the ones outside were summoned since they are corporeal. In that state, they are more or less mindless slaves doing their master's bidding."

Fubuki walked up and placed a small golden box on the table. "You said you needed a gateway right sissy? Well, it's a good thing you have me."

"Wow, I was not expecting this place to get so populated." Sho looked around the entire squad that had assembled in his living room. He felt kind of dizzy, probably because he had already finished his second drink at this point. He reached out and opened up the box. "Wait these are..."

He picked up a familiar-looking necklace, a golden eye with a ruby set in the middle, that Judai had won half of a long time ago. There was also a chocker with the Egyptian eye on it, and a hand full of other stuff like a glove and even a ring and a book. Fubuki confirmed the items that had been in his stewardship. "The shadow charms, The riders used these to command a small piece of the spirit world, with them we could cast our spells."

"Like dangle us over hot lava?" Sho said with a twitch of anger in his voice. "How did you get these, I thought Judai had them?"

"Yeah he did after he beat the seven of us, but after Asu won my memories back I asked to hold onto them. I've also spent the last five years teaching at the academy and going over Banner's notes. I can open the gates to the spirit world, but finding Judai in the spirit realm isn't so easy, and like my sister said it has to wait for morning. I can't do anything here we will need to go to academy island."

"Then I'll try and arrange a boat for us. My manager should be able to handle that." Zane said calm and collected now that he was starting to understand the full scope of the situation. "Till then we should all get some rest. Two of us are going to have a bad time tomorrow, remember to drink water it will help with the hangover."

Sho got up and stumbled a bit. "I have plenty of guest rooms. Please take any that you feel like."
 

"I umm .... " Asuka paused, trying to figure out how to word the response. She knew the answer, that wasn't the issue. It was more like even as it repeated in her head ... man did it sound really dumb. But ... there wasn't really any other way to properly respond. So ... even if it would make her sound just a bit crazier than she already did ... Asuka briefly closed her eyes, took another sip, and then looked straight at Jun as she spoke.

"I just ... felt obligated to add it in my deck one day. It was like I was drawn to it the card or something."

She shrugged, managing to flash a small smile.

"It just ... felt like the right move to make and well ... I do stand by that decision. Maybe .... since he did used to be with Judai, he can be a bit of a guide when we get back?" She snuck a sideways glance to the Winged Kuriboh, who gave a gleeful cry. It at least seemed eager to try helping out. Whether it would actually be able to do so or not ... that would be another story.

"Well, that's a step in the right direction. Nah, Ryo. I don't really feel it's cheating. The Winged Kuriboh isn't speaking in our native tongue or anything. Just ... uttering noises of its name. Like 'Kuri' and such. I can't translate duel plans and even if I could? I, personally, would just do whatever felt right for me .... " Her voice lowered as she added, "And I do think that was what Judai did in every single duel. So no. I wouldn't count this as cheating, personally."

Her head lifted up as a new voice entered, and a sigh of relief elicited from her lips. Despite the numerous ways her brother could irritate her, she truly did care about him. He was her only sibling too; unlike Jun who had more than one brother. Granted, they weren't on the best of numbers, but he still had more than one sibling.

"Onii-san! Good to see you found the place alright!"

Annnnnnnnnnnd just like that, her brows furrowed as his 'annoying' side came out. "Sissy? Come on. I'm not a kid, let alone a teenager, anymore. Asuka, onegai."

Thankfully for him, she was able to forget about it as he revealed the contents of the box, letting out a low whistle. "Very nice. Awesome work, Fubuki! That definitely should help cut our work load way down. So now ... one of the main things we need to do is just get to the island."

Asuka giggled, nodding in agreement as Ryo warned about having a less than pleasant wake up call. "That's probably true enough. I don't typically drink, and certainly not this much, soooooooooo .... yep. Probably right about that much. I think I'll grab some water first then lie down."

Sure enough, Asuka managed to stand up. A bit shakily, but it was good enough that she kept her balance. She offered a wave to all of the guys before pivoting on her feet and walking away. The first destination, true to her word, was the kitchen. Grabbing a clean cup, she filled it up with water then allowed her feet to guide her. Even though she had never been here before, her feet seemed to know where to go, and soon enough, she found herself in what she assumed to be one of the empty bedrooms Sho had spoken about.

Asuka first took a sip from the glass before carefully setting it down on a nearby nightstand. After pausing and thinking for a few moments ... she nodded ... and peeled her shirt off. It was likely partly due to it being summer, and also the exact location of the penthouse. The alcohol definitely wasn't doing her any favors, either. Whatever the case, all Asuka knew was she was feeling very warm at that moment. Not quite to the degrees of having a fever, but damn close.

Besides, you have a sports bra. It's not like you're completely topless ....

A soft sigh mingled in with a moan as she plopped onto the bed. "Mmmm, soft," she muttered under her breath, not bothering to get under the covers. Her eyes closed as she began taking calming breaths. Today had definitely not been the best day. Far from it. But if she could take anything away from it? She'd found people, come up with a plan and - just as importantly - survived the invasion. That was certainly something .... far better than anything else that could have happened to her.

Her body and muscles all relaxed as Asuka stayed on top of the bed. Eventually, slumber did its job and lulled Asuka to a deep, peaceful sleep.
 
Fubuki gave a laugh when his little sister corrected him not to call her that anymore, he never really listened to her when it came to pet names, she had been asking him to stop for years yet he never could let it go. "Cya in the morning Asuka-chan."

Sho went to get a glass of water of his own, and slowly everyone in the group started to taper off and find a place to sleep. Come morning Sho was nursing a bit of a headache, but nothing he couldn't handle with some more water and an asprin. Deciding to leave the pill bottle on the counter encase Asuka was also feeling hung over. He got to work cooking breakfast for his house full of people. It had never been this lively before, and part of him kind of hoped that it would happen again under less dire circumstances.

The next person to awaken was Ryo who walked out to see his little brother cooking food. "You know I never actually expected you to call me." In the five years they had been on the pro duelest track together the only times the two brothers interacted was when they had a duel against one another.

"It wasn't my idea, Asuka suggested we bring you onto the team. She still thinks of you as a friend. I didn't have the time or mental state to tell her any different." Sho didn't look up from the food he was preparing. "I'll let her come to her own conclusions on if you can be trusted or not."

"and what about your conclusions little brother?" Ryo picked up the plate that was offered to him of freshly made french toast. "Do you think I can be trusted."

"I think that I am not afraid of you. I know you have been different since you came back. You're not the hell kraiser anymore but you never went back to the older gentler brother I remember. Dealing with you since then has been like dealing with a stranger. I buried the Ryo I grew up with, the one that came back is a man I barely know. I guess time will tell if we can trust each other as well." Sho plated another set of french toast and continued his work but stared at Ryo.

Ryo nodded. "I got us a water plane for academy island. It seems that the monster invasion ended last night as well. The major roads are out and the city is still dealing with the fallout, but we should be able to get to the docks."
 

Sure enough, it would be the sensation of her head throbbing that woke Asuka up first. A low groan passed her lips as she lifted her head and found the painkillers already set down nearby. An eyebrow raised as she tried to recall if she'd wandered around in her sleep or not. When she decided it ultimately didn't matter, Asuka grabbed and took two of the pills, swallowing them down with a glass of water.

Where are my ... ?? Oh ... right ... I'm not home ....

Her ears picking up on both Sho and Marufuji's voices would help her remember why she'd woken up with a bit of a hangover, and why her bed had suddenly seemed unfamiliar. She briefly tried to listen in ... but between the pounding coming from her head and her etiquette kicking in and saying she was being a bit too bitchy, she decided to leave them be.

It's probably just catching up on lost time, anyway, she decided, figuring that was a fair enough assumption.

Part of her considered getting up and joining them, but ... not yet. There was something she felt obligated to do just before that.

After grabbing any clothes she'd discarded prior to falling asleep last night - namely her tank top - she wandered briefly around before finding the bathroom. Asuka proceeded to strip and help sober herself up more with a lukewarm shower. She knew it was cold that was supposed to help really get rid of any lingering alcohol, but nu-uh. She wasn't doing that first thing in the morning, thank you very much.

So she compromised and made the water half and half of each temperature. The shower lasted a bit over ten minutes, and that was mainly because she was still feeling a bit groggy. Otherwise, she would have been done sooner. Another ten minutes would be taken to dry herself off and brush her hair out before finally walking out and joining Sho and Ryo in the kitchen.

"Morning. If either of you put the pain killers in my room, thank you. That was a life saver. I otherwise would have probably stumbled around like an idiot not knowing where they were. Mmm, that smells really good, actually."

It hadn't dawned on her until she smelled and saw the food that yesterday had only been devoted to drinking. The reunion of everyone had happened, sure, but no dinner or meal had really accompanied it. Likely due to the invasion from the duel monsters .... that had still happened, right?

Her feet subconsciously guided her to the nearest window ... and sure enough, a quick peek revealed yesterday hadn't been some fever dream or anything of the like.

"Well, shit," she muttered, eliciting a disheartened sigh before moving back to the kitchen and taking one of the already served up plates. Mainly because Ryo was already eating, so that was more than enough of a hint that she didn't have to wait for Manjoume or Fubuki to wake up, something she was secretly relieved about. Primarily with her brother, as he could take forever to wake his ass up.

"So we're heading over to the island sometime today I'm guessing, right?"

Definitely not her preferred way of talking with old friends, but it was an essential topic that needed to be brought up. And since all of the signs she'd seen thus far indicated yesterday had truly happened, there was no sense in pretending as if that wasn't the case.
 
"That was me." Sho's eyes were slightly darkened by his own hangover. He clearly knew some of what Asuka was feeling at the moment so he had done his best to help her through it. For him, this wasn't even the first time he had gotten drunk before going to sleep and waking up with such a thing. So he was more readily able to shake it off, he gave Asuka a large plate of food knowing a full stomach would help her ease out of it as much as the shower she had already taken as well.

Sho for his part seemed more collected in the morning than he had been yesterday. When she checked the window his eyes followed her and confirmed that everything that had happened yesterday was in fact real life, and not as he had hoped some vivid night terror. She asked if they would be going to the Island and it was Ryo who nodded and spoke next.

"I managed to get us a water plane, all of the regular airplanes are grounded at the moment after the attack so that's the best we could do on short notice. We will head to the docks once everyone is up and has eaten." It was also the fastest mode of transportation to the island where a ship would have taken half a day a plane even an antiquated one could make the trip in a few hours.

With breakfast finished and now waiting for the last two sleepers, Sho took his meal and sat down next to Asuka as he ate. For a moment there was a bit of quiet and piece which didn't last long as Jun walked into the room. Manjoume was awake enough to smell food. "So you finally learned how to cook a quality meal. Little Marufuji is all grown up." His tone had a slightly teasing edge to it. Honestly, it had been a few years since he had eaten particularly good food.

"Honestly I learned how to cook because of the time we spent in Slypher Red, considering that place barely gave you a passing meal I wanted to make sure I knew always knew how to make something worth eating," Sho brimmed with pride and confidence. Even if it was just some french toast, bacon, and a few other sides he was still proud of the work he had put into it.

"Considering we will be diving into the spirit world today we are all going to need our strength."
 

Asuka gave Sho an appreciative nod as he confirmed it had been him who set the aspirin down. Her head lifted every now and again while in the midst of eating her breakfast. A second nod was given, this one to Ryo, as he relayed how they would get to the island. "It feels weird going back while the school is supposed to be closed still."

It was definitely more odd knowing the exact spot they would be heading to. More than the Academy, it was the thought about going into the Spirit World. But this time, it'd be on a more willing note .... which made her a bit anxious. Sure, they had done this before, but this time held a stronger sense of urgency. It didn't seem possible, particularly when one stopped and recalled the reasons they'd ever ventured into the Spirit World to start with, but it was true. Even with the dangers of facing monsters like the Dark World ones, there was at least no risk of them coming over to their world.

Now though ... that actually was a legitimate possibility. In fact, it made Asuka feel a bit guilty for even going there to start with. Would there be anyone else staying behind that would know how to fight them off? Would this place become a ghost town by the time they returned?

That last question sent a slight shiver down Asuka's spine, causing her to swiftly dismiss it. Thankfully, though, she soon got a distraction to assist. And it arrived as Jun came out first, she couldn't help but shake her head and smirk. "Sorry. It's nothing you did. It's just a small bit sad but equally hilarious that of course my brother would be the last one to get his ass awake."

It was simple but significant moments like this that often caused people to get confused on who was really the older sibling. Fubuki was biologically elder, but Asuka easily surpassed him as far as maturity went. But many people often said it seemed as if it were the reverse and .... Asuka couldn't blame them.

When Asuka finished her breakfast but there was still no sign of Fubuki, she clicked her tongue. "Indeed. Thank you for the meal, Sho. I guess I'll ...."

But then she paused and listened to the words she had almost allowed to leave her lips echo in her head. And then ... she shook her head quickly, frowning just a small bit ... but enough that if any of the other guys took notice, they'd see the gesture.

"Nope, never mind that. He needs to do some things on his own. I'm not his keeper, so .... he can get himself up."

Luckily for him, we're not on too much of a time limit to hurry up ...

She really did care for him, despite her thoughts and words. This was just tough love, something that Fubuki repeatedly displayed he needed quite a bit of, even after five years had passed. So ... she was trying to be her usual self; the more mature and responsible sister. That therefore meant helping him in a more indirect manner and in this case ... not going and shaking him by the shoulders. Even though she very, very much wished to do just that.

Instead, she stretched and carefully stood up, giving herself some seconds. Even if the idea of their plan was nerve-wracking, Ryo was not at all wrong. Everyone would need to be at full strength. Maybe even 150% or 200%. Either way, it'd be very detrimental to go in at anything less. Nodding at the thought, Asuka sat back with the other guys and began eating her second plate.
 
Ryo and Jun passed a look between each other as Asuka said she wouldn't go to wake her older brother. It was a confused and slightly concerned look. Jun himself seemed to really struggle with it as getting between the two siblings was always rather difficult for him. If he was completely honest his feelings on the matter were very muddled as he considered Fubuki to be one of his best friends, and Asuka was of course the one woman he had ever really had a crush on so for him whenever the two siblings had a disagreement it seemed to pull him apart.

"um." Jun let out a noise that showed he was really thinking about how to phrase this. "You and Sho both went to sleep kind of early, but me Ryo and Fubuki all stayed up a little while after that, and it seemed like... He had a lot on his mind."

Ryo nodded a bit. "My room was next to his, and I heard him whimpering in his sleep. I don't know if that is normal for him, but I think he would actually appreciate you waking him up." Not that it was Ryo or Jun's place to step into it, but this was something both men had some expertise in. Especially Ryo who had his own mentally taxing and depressive episode for several years. "I don't think Fubuki is at peace with what we are doing."

Sho made a few connections but didn't really think it was his place to talk, it wasn't like he knew Fubuki as well as both Ryo and Jun did. "He was lost in the spirit world for a year and a half, and today we have to go back to fetch Judai. We are all depending on him to open the gate. It's probably putting a lot of pressure on him. If it was me I doubt I would have gotten any sleep at all."

All three men at this point were looking at Asuka. They didn't judge her for thinking that her brother was careless all three knew the man, they knew he could be eccentric, and flaunt a carefree attitude, but that attitude could often cover up the intense trauma the other man had lived through. It was Jun who leaned in to give her a bit more private advice, he spent a lot of time with Fubuki. "It would mean a lot to him if you were the one to check on him. I know Fubuki can be annoying, but we all know you mean the world to him."

Ryo shrugged. "It's not our place to get involved in your battles, just consider it friendly advice. We are about to go into a battlefield this might be the last moment of peace you get to have with him." If there was anything that they needed to speak about it would probably be the last chance they would get for a little while before the team had to go into the chaotic other world and who knew what would happen at that point.
 

" .... Oh come on now. Don't give me that look like I'm some sorta villain. You both have given your own siblings a difficult time at least once." The most obvious link within this group was it consisted of individuals who all had at least one sibling. There were no people who fell under the 'only child' status here. "Besides," Asuka added, "it wasn't out of spite. You ... do know that one, right?"

It hurt to even think the answer might be no. But ... no matter how brutal the truth would be, Asuka would wanna hear it. "Just ... seriously. I'm awake despite a bit of a hang up. That's literally all it's about ... the fact he can wake himself up. Nothing more than that." Certainly nothing less either, but that wasn't the point at the moment.

In fact, when they finally began elaborating more thoroughly ... Asuka didn't immediately get it, either. Whimpering was definitely not normal, no. However, after being reminded that he had, indeed, been away in the Spirit World for so long, she couldn't help but feel stupid and simultaneously like a grade S bitch. She'd actively agreed to call him largely because it was her brother and because she did recall him helping out against Mad King Brron .... and honestly, that in itself should have been her huge ass red flag.

Fucking idiot, of course he probably has PTSD.

Honestly, she and the rest of the group might have a decent dose themselves. It just hadn't registered to any of them yet, but that could very, very easily change in the time it took anyone to snap their fingers. Or, perhaps more appropriately, draw a card when it was their turn to duel.

"I get it, I get it. You guys don't need to drill it in my head, okay? I guess .... there are just some things I wanted to forget."

Did it sound a bit stupid and selfish? Well, yeah. But the human mind really was that complicated, and even if the others may not like the seemingly half-assed excuse, it made sense why such a major observation slipped by her until it was too late.

"I'll get him," she muttered, standing up quickly. She hadn't even finished the rest of her second plate. Maybe half at most. They likely hadn't intended to, but that came off as her being ganged up on, and definitely not in the fun way.

Seriously though, I don't tell any of you how to be a good sibling ...

Her eyes rolled at the thought before she dismissed the thought and peeked in between each room she walked by, turning when she found her brother's body still very much on the bed. A closer look did at least reveal he looked a bit paler than usual. Even though Asuka was indeed still miffed a bit, her eyes softened as she sat beside Fubuki's bed. She first waited, silently counting down from ten in her head.

Then ... she gently put her arms on his shoulders and lightly began to shake him.

"Fubuki? Come on. Time to wake up."

Whenever he did open his eyes, Asuka would be wearing a small but still genuine grin on her face. "You .... feeling any better? The guys kinda hinted you might not be as of last night, so .... I wanted to see if you're doing somewhat better or just how you are in general. Because ... I do get it. This may have been my idea, but it's not like I haven't been anxious about it, either. Unfortunately .... we do need to do this, plain and simple, okay? And ...."

Asuka took a few moments to steel herself before nodding and finishing her incomplete sentence, "I need you. We all will, okay? Now that we better know what to expect, we can all ensure to avoid anything from before repeating."

... Maybe she should have just stopped after saying they would all need her? Ah well. It hadn't really been much of a secret what was making Fubuki on edge, so why sugarcoat it? At least this time around, she made sure to better word this so it at least was meant to be more calming ... or at least reassuring if absolutely nothing else. Words could, admittedly, be something that Asuka wasn't always the best with.

But at least, if all else failed, she could give Fubuki enough confidence to get ready to help guide them instead of lying back down and allowing despair or any other negative emotions to overcome him.
 

Two out of the three men gave a slightly guilty look at the accusation that they were terrible siblings themselves. The only one who seemed entirely justified in his stance was Jun. While Ryo and Sho had to admit that they weren't the best brothers, Jun hadn't started his war with the other Manjoume family members, they had chosen to attack and disown him not the other way around, and he had beaten his brothers every single time they had stepped up to him. Asuka and Fubuki had been closer to him than either of his own brothers at this point.

Sho shrugged a little guilty at the moment when Asuka seemed to take their advice a little more personally. They all had suffered a lot when they had gone to the other world, or any of the strange things that had happened to them over the years they were in duel academy, it probably wasn't just Fubuki who had some kind of PTSD. He felt a little bad that he couldn't extend the same kind of benefit of the doubt to Ryo, when looking at his older brother just felt like he was looking at a stranger.

As for Ryo he had to admit he was probably the hardest by the accusation. While he tried to put up a front that it was all behind him, he had to admit he had been excessively cruel to Sho over the years. From before when he had told his brother that he hadn't belonged on duel academy, to the years spent as the Hell Kaiser when he had caused problems for everyone. Familial and brotherly love had been pretty far from his mind.

Fubuki's room was kind of messy, Asuka would notice that his clothes had been scattered, his bed had been tossed and turned in all night, and as he was touched Asuka would feel his skin was rather clammy and cold with sweat. He woke more to the sound of Asuka's voice than to the contact of being shaken. A hand moving up to take one of Asuka's in the moment. "Hey." he was rather groggy as he spoke his voice having that early morning tone as he got up slowly. Revealing a bare chest down to his abdomen that thankfully revealed he had chosen to keep his boxers on in his sleep.

He smiled at seeing Asuka over him. As he pulled himself to sit up at the side of the bed and looked at his little sister. It took a lot to get himself up in the morning he seemed kind of winded in the moment. "It's okay, I know I'm good with the plan." He said softly. "We'll find your old crush." Even in his weakened state he couldn't help but tease her a little. "I just... don't sleep very well these days, and pulling out those charms, brought back some of the memories." Of course, it would be those memories that would be the exact reason that they needed him. Fubuki had the most experience when it came to traversing the other side.

He got up though he was a bit shaky on his feet, he managed to pull Asuka into a hug for a moment. "I'll be fine Asuka. As long as you're with me I can do this. Just need some coffee... and a quick shower."
 

Indeed, Asuka was relieved that Fubuki had chosen to keep his boxers on. Granted, this would be maybe one of the few times she could at least understand him going commando, but that didn't necessarily mean she'd like finding him that way. Being close with a sibling was one thing. Being intimate? That was a whole different story, and not one that Asuka participated in. She did love her brother. Even for all the trouble and horrible jests she gave him, she did care for him. Just ... not in the way she would for an actual lover.

Asuka started trying to dismiss the thoughts aside, but then Fubuki said it. The lamest line ... and yet it was a simultaneously reassuring one. She playfully rolled her eyes, shaking her head slowly.

"He may be nothing but a friend by the time we find him. But at any rate ... right now what matters is he's one of the few ways we can fix and even end these invasions."

It was going to be a bittersweet reunion as it was. Common sense revealed as much. The other guys ... well ... it was no secret that Sho, for sure, was still miffed at Judai just up and leaving. Manjoume probably was a bit ... even if it wasn't as obvious as Sho's feelings on the matter. Ryo? Admittedly, he would be the hardest to read, but with him having known Judai at all, he couldn't be happy at the rather abrupt decision to leave everyone else. Judai would be very fortunate to only get Asuka's slap, but she wouldn't be amazed if at least Sho joined her.

"Yeah, a shower is probably for the best. Breakfast will be ready when you get out. The bathroom is two doors down on the right. I used it before going and eating breakfast myself. I'll see you soon."

And just because she could ... she ruffled Fubuki's hair quickly, then pivoted around and left the room, wearing a coy smirk. There. Now no one could say she had been a shitty sister. Who else even tried those types of gestures and, better yet, who could get away with them easily? Not many of the group, that much was for sure.


The boat ride had been mostly quiet. Everyone was very likely thinking about the exact same thing; going back to The Spirit World. Unfortunately, none of them had any overly amazing or positive experiences. So ... it was exactly as Asuka figured. They all had some form of PTSD. It was just a matter of how extreme it was. For now, her own was mild and calm enough ... mainly because her brain had shoved away a good chunk of the bad memories from her own personal end. She knew and understood, particularly as the boat landed beside the pier, that was very likely going to change.

And ... that absolutely made her nervous.

But ... she'd tried to think the whole way here if there was another way to deal with this new apocalypse of sorts. Sadly, the answer was not really. They could have remained behind and attempted to force any Spirits that entered into Domino City away, sure. But there were a lot of problems as well as risks that came with that idea. Namely the fear of running into any overly huge monsters. Gods forbid the Dark World would arrive anytime soon ... but it was definitely something that Asuka knew could - and likely would - eventually happen.

And Brron ... she knew for certain that was one monster she wasn't immediately ready to face. That had been some of the few parts of her memories she'd been unable to erase, and for damn good reasons.

One by one, everyone started getting off. She followed behind Fubuki, hoping her being close by would reassure him with the task he'd need to do. It was quite the huge feat, and she couldn't deny there had been a lot of courage in him bringing those items back. The amount of bravery only increased when he volunteered to use them ... and it was something that Asuka was grateful for ... even if she hadn't said it yet.

Maybe when they were alone. Right now was the time to start focusing, start preparing to go back into The Spirit World.

"Okay, onii-san. Whenever you're ready. If you need to gather your wits first, it's okay. We'll understand."
 
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