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Yu-Gi-Oh GX - Crossroads (4/11)
Story Title: Crossroads
Chapter Title: Beyond the Sorrow
Author: Heleentje
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh GX
Rating: K+
Characters: Johan, Yubel, Judai, Gem Beasts
Word Count:
Warnings/spoilers: spiritshipping-if-you-squint, psycheshipping-if-you-look-sideways-and-s
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of its characters
Johan succeeded in getting out of bed without falling over, although he was still shaking and had to pay close attention to every step he took. This new revelation had caused a strange sort of numbness. On one hand, he wasn’t worrying about the strange dreams anymore, but on the other hand, it was a new mystery he had to deal with.
He could name at least three people who were much better suited to deal with this than him. And there really wasn’t any reason for him to be able to remember. Judai was Judai, of course. He probably dealt with this sort of stuff on a near-daily basis. Fujiwara had been caught up in the middle of the Darkness situation, so of course he would remember. And there was Fubuki, who had forgotten, but somehow remembered everyone afterwards. From what he had gathered, Fubuki had some sort of connection with Darkness too, though.
But he had never even forgotten in the first place.
The bathroom was next to his room, meaning that he didn’t have to go far to reach it. That was probably for the better. He rested his head against the tiles for a while, knowing that the cold was a very efficient way to clear his head, then turned on the cold water tap and splashed some water in his face.
He felt refreshed now. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop the thoughts from coming. If anything, they were even clearer.
Ruby floated over to him and settled down on his shoulder, rubbing her head against his cheek in a silent reassurance. He smiled gratefully, even though he couldn’t actually feel her.
“Johan, what did you mean?”
Johan turned around to face Sapphire Pegasus, who had appeared in the doorway.
“You know when we arrived in Domino?” He asked, and Sapphire Pegasus nodded. The other Gem Beasts moved closer.
“O’Brien called me, but he had already been defeated by the time I got to Domino. I should’ve forgotten him. Yet I didn’t.” He was surprised by the sudden calmness that had come over him.
The Gem Beasts looked at him, as if waiting for him to continue. Ruby made a quiet chirping noise.
“I didn’t forget anyone afterwards either. I always remembered.” Johan switched off the tap and headed back for his bedroom. His bed was in complete disarray. He smoothed out the blankets and sat down at the edge.
“Do you know why?”
Johan looked up at the normally taciturn Amber Mammoth and shook his head: “No idea. Unless...” There was an explanation, but did it fit?
“What?” There was a note of impatience in Amethyst Cat’s voice.
“Maybe...” Johan hesitated, “maybe it’s because of you guys.”
“We have no connection to Darkness at all!” Topaz Tiger bristled.
“No, no, not like that!” Johan was quick to reassure, “I just meant with me being able to see you guys, maybe it’s just a side-effect!”
“That would mean that being able to see monster spirits makes you immune to Darkness’ effects...” Sapphire Pegasus spoke slowly.
Johan nodded in agreement: “Judai can... And Fujiwara too.”
“Fubuki can’t, though. I’m sure he can’t.” Cobalt Eagle spoke up.
“No... no. Maybe he didn’t need to? Maybe his ties with Darkness helped him?”
Immediately, Johan noticed a flaw in his theory. He didn’t bring it up, though. He didn’t need to, because Sapphire Pegasus had spotted the same flaw.
“Johan, how do you know this is right? Judai draws his powers from darkness and Fujiwara and Fubuki were both influenced by Darkness. How do you know your theory is correct?”
“I’m the odd one out,” Johan realised, “or Fubuki is.”
“It’s either you or Fubuki,” Sapphire Pegasus agreed, “but how are you going to find out?”
“There are more people... I know!” Topaz Tiger spoke up suddenly.
Everyone looked at him, waiting.
“If you’re right, then every person who’s able to see monster spirits should be immune. So, why don’t you just ask them?”
Johan grinned, catching on: “Of course, Manjoume!”
“Can you two please explain what’s going on here? I am not following you.” Amethyst Cat snapped, looking from Topaz Tiger to Johan and back again.
“It’s simple,” Topaz Tiger began, “If Johan’s right, then none of the people who can see us were affected.”
“Judai and Fujiwara are both out of the question, of course,” Johan continued, “They’ve got their darkness powers. But Manjoume is like me.”
“If he didn’t forget, then Johan was right.” Sapphire Pegasus finished. He nodded, more to himself than to anyone else.
Amethyst Cat didn’t look convinced: “What are you going to do if you’re wrong?”
“No idea,” Johan’s grin vanished. He stared out of the window, contemplating the situation.
“He might be right, though. If he is, then the problem’s solved.” Cobalt Eagle defended.
“Solved?” Amethyst Cat interrupted, “And what if it does get solved, what are you going to do then?” She turned around to face the other Gem Beasts. “You’re all forgetting one thing. Johan’s still having nightmares and to me, that is a lot more important than some memory problems.”
Silence settled over the group. Ruby nervously flitted around, and Topaz Tiger looked at the ground, slightly ashamed. Amber Mammoth nervously tried to back away, but his enormous girth made it hard for him to move without bumping into any of the ohers or going through walls.
“You make it sound like I’m an amnesiac,” Johan tried to alleviate the mood. Amethyst Cat growled lowly, and he quickly shut up.
“Maybe we should give it a rest? We’re all tired and it’s still early.” Emerald Turtle, ever the peacemaker, tried to calm her down. Sapphire Pegasus nodded in agreement, but Amethyst Cat looked torn.
“I don’t like it,” she hissed, “not one bit. And we’re not finished with this.” With that last statement, she disappeared abruptly. The other Gem Beasts and Johan exchanged looks, before Cobalt Eagle muttered something like: “... make sure she’s alright” and disappeared as well.
Johan crawled back under the covers, and watched while his family disappeared one by one. Light filtered through the curtains, but it was still early morning, and he should probably try to sleep some more. He folded the pillow in half, trying to get more comfortable, and smiled slightly when Ruby reappeared and curled up next to him. Maybe he’d be able to sleep without nightmares.
--
It was already past noon when he woke up again ,and Johan decided that he really needed to get up earlier. But at least he’d been able to sleep soundly, without nightmares. Ruby was still curled up on his bed and didn’t wake up when he got out.
A quick search through the fridge taught him that he still didn’t have any food, except for two more eggs and the carton of milk he’d opened yesterday (it was the last one he had). He didn’t really feel like heading downtown, but it was either shopping or starving, so half an hour later, Johan left his apartment and walked to the nearest supermarket.
It was exceptionally warm for the time of the year. A sign placed outside a shopping mall indicated a temperature of 20°C (in an attempt to appear foreign customer-friendly, the sign also read ‘68°F’ in smaller lettering).
Johan didn’t really mind though. He was still dressed in his school uniform, and that outfit was perfect for the climate in Japan, but in Norway, he normally took a coat with him. He had forgotten to put one on when he left his home, but had quickly found out that it hadn’t been necessary.
After a fifteen-minute walk, he arrived at the supermarket, and he was pleased to notice that only a small number of shoppers were present. He quickly found bread and milk, and walked over to the vegetable section. He was trying to decide whether he should buy bell peppers or not when Topaz Tiger appeared.
“Did you get to the meat yet?”
“Not yet. Why?” Johan decided he was going to buy some of the bell peppers, and tried to pick a color.
“I like meat. It looks good.”
Johan briefly contemplated the statement, and decided that it was less logical than it looked, as Topaz Tiger could not eat meat and could therefore have no appreciation for the taste of it. He wondered if Topaz Tiger somehow saw aesthetic value in everyday food. Maybe he should try to see it as well.
He focused on the bell peppers again. They really looked quite nice.
“Which color?”
“Yellow, I like it.” Topaz Tiger answered promptly.
“You would.” Johan said vaguely. He picked up one of the yellow bell peppers, and then took a red one too. He moved over to the cucumbers.
“Kitty!”
Johan abandoned the cucumbers and turned around. A little girl, maybe three or four years old, ran over to him and halted in front of Topaz Tiger. It was very clear she could see the spirit, and despite the fact that Topaz Tiger was much bigger than her, she didn’t seem intimidated.
Topaz Tiger slightly tilted his head, confused, but Johan smiled. He enjoyed meeting children, and this one seemed to be very nice.
The girl reached out to Topaz Tiger, trying to touch him, and blinked in confusion when her hand went straight through. She turned around, facing Johan.
“Why can’t I touch the kitty?”
Johan knelt down in front of her. “He’s not really here. You can talk to him, though.”
“Oh...” She seemed disappointed, “Mommy says that the things I see aren’t real.”
He felt a stab of annoyance, directed towards the child’s mother. “Don’t worry. It’s all real.”
That seemed to cheer her up, for she went back to Topaz Tiger.
“Hello!”
Topaz Tiger responded in kind, and she looked delighted.
“You’re very big!”
“I’m a tiger,” the spirit said kindly.
“What’s a tiger?”
“It’s a big cat.” Johan answered her.
“Oh, there you are!”
Johan and Topaz Tiger looked up to see a woman walking towards them. She was obviously the girl’s mother.
“I told you not to wander off!” She scolded the child. She turned to Johan.
“Did she cause any trouble?”
Johan quickly shook his head: “No, no, not at all! She’s a very sweet girl!”
“Look, mommy, ti-ger!” The girl exclaimed, tugging her mother’s sleeve and pointing at Topaz Tiger
Her mother didn’t even look, and Johan felt the same stab of annoyance, only now stronger.
“How many times have I told you, there’s nothing there!” she scolded again, and added, to Johan: “I don’t know where she gets it from, she’s always making up things.”
“Oh, she’s very perceptive.” Johan said. The woman looked at him strangely, but he didn’t pay her any attention anymore. Instead, he knelt in front of the girl again.
“Now, remember what I told you, okay? A lot of things are real.”
The girl nodded enthusiastically. Her mother frowned.
“Well, thank you for taking care of her.”
“It was my pleasure.” Johan smiled disarmingly and watched the girl and her mother leave. The child waved, and Johan waved in return, while Topaz Tiger lifted a paw in a sort of improvised farewell.
“It makes me sad.” Johan mused.
Topaz Tiger nodded in agreement, watching the girl disappear between the aisles.
“She’s a good kid, she’ll go far.” The spirit said consolingly. Johan continued to stare at the place where the girl had disappeared.
“I hope so. Still, she’s so young, who knows what’ll happen. So many people who can see you have been ridiculed and traumatized. Terrible things can happen.”
They both knew who Johan was talking about. Giese was someone who wouldn’t be forgotten anytime soon.
He took his deck out of its holster (he always took it with him, not wanting to be separated from his family), and rifled through the cards, stopping every time he encountered a Gem Beast.
“They’re asleep.” Topaz Tiger said.
“I thought as much. They deserve it.”
“You’re okay now, aren’t you? Did you sleep enough?”
“Yes, I’m fine. I feel much better now.”
“Good,” Topaz Tiger nodded firmly, “Anything else you need here?”
“Yeah, the meat. Did you forget already?” Johan said lightly. He proceeded through the aisles, only stopping briefly to grab a can of yogurt. A man pushing a shopping cart went past him, walking straight through Topaz Tiger.
“I hate it when they do that.” the spirit said conversationally.
“Can you feel it?”
“Not really, it just looks weird.”
“I can imagine.” They arrived at the meat section, and Johan quickly found what he needed. He turned back to Topaz Tiger, who was looking around idly.
“Come on, let’s go home.”