No Really He's Fine-

[luckydragonsfoot]

Who: Jonouchi and You!
What: Jonouchi makes his appearance!
When: During the Galar trip!
Where: Stow-On-Side
Warnings: Nah

Jonouchi Katsuya had been here for about a week.

The last thing he remembered, was that chaos had all but broken out above the map-like trap of a massive temple in the middle of India, not long after a plane crash. Someone had maybe pushed someone?? Maybe he got pushed.

Well something happened, and that was the important part. Something happened, and then he was...here. He fell, passed out, and woke up with a rainbow pony licking his face.

"...nice t' meet y' too..." he had muttered at the time, not really sure what to do about it all. About five minutes after that the panic had set in, and he'd begun running around trying to find Yugi. Shizuka. Ryuzaki...

Hell Haga and his nervous as heck sister even, where was everyone?

And then it turned out he wasn't even in his own world. No one even knew about 'his' world, for that matter.

They just knew about theirs.

Suffice to say it was a rough week. No one he knew was here, no one who knew about Duel Monsters was here, and actually, the cards were pretty freaked until he poked at 'm.

Something about not even having access to more than their pocket of reality, which...alright that was bad. (And how did one of the God cards get in there!?)

The pony- er, Ponyta- stuck around at least, and that was pretty handy considering the fact that it was plenty obvious all the weird animals around were less the equivalent of duel monsters no one could see and...er. The local wildlife.

He knew he'd pulled someone out of his cards once or twice before, but he was pretty sure they wouldn't like being called out to deal with. The local pets. Especially in this mood (though Wingguard would probably come out to pet a yamper, knowing them).

So, Ponyta. And she wasn't too bad, kind of a sweety even! When it became clear she wasn't going away, he even got a cool idea. One that he'd get his ass kicked over, probably. "Heheheee...bet Seto-chan'd hate it if I showed up an' said yer name was Kaseri..~"

Unfortunately, registration didn't really hear him right.

"Ka...Kassuu...Kassureee..." Katherine.

Well, whatever. She could be Kaseri in his heart, that was plenty enough. Even if she was answering more to 'kasureene' than 'kaseri'.

But a week is a week, and he sure as hell wasn't going to stay here forever. He might not have been in tip-top shape after falling from another dimension, but he was recovered enough now and that meant taking a few stretches and belting off into the wodods with a whoop. "Heh! Alrigh'! Let's head on out an' get home already! We gotta find Yug' an' the others before that French guy does..!"

"Tyaaaaa~!" What she said.

...

Man though, he really hoped time was going slower in his own world or something like that, because it was going to suck if he wasted his spring break on this...

He's out of the woods pretty quick though at least! Out of the woods and...

"Huh. Guess th's place 's 'Stow-on-Side'..."

Hey Katsuya, get out of the middle of the road.

Comments

[blue_ice]

Kaiba must have woken up on the wrong side of the roadside sleeping bag this morning, because he's felt a strange sense of foreboding all day. He's taking his team for a walk in the small town, and they're walking on the side of the road like the good visitors they are.

Traffic is flowing nicely, all is quiet...until he hears a distressingly familiar voice. Yup. That sure is Jonouchi, sitting astride a pony in the middle of the road. Seems about right.

"...you're still not sure if you're coming or going, are you," Kaiba shook his head.

[bestfriendroute]

In a strange new place, exploring is the only thing that keeps Sayori going - and there's no shortage of interesting cities and routes to explore! But she often gets... rather distracted by things, and this becomes a problem for other people (and herself.)

Take today, for instance, where she made her way towards Stow-on-Side, and, while admiring the sights and sounds, suddenly finds herself running smack-dab into a Ponyta, and falling onto her butt.

"Oww! Uuu... that hurt..." She rubbed her forehead, making sure there wasn't a mark there. She didn't even notice that there was a person alongside said horse!

[luckydragonsfoot]

Katsuya for his part is half leaning against the pony and half sitting. Little gal is pretty strong all things considered- it's like being on a donkey, and he's just going to ignore the fact that he knows what being on a donkey would feel like despite never even seeing one.

Instead he sits up and groans. "Mannnn S- Kaiba," he corrects, rubbing the back of his head as he turns. If it's the guy voice and it's a public space after all, best not to slip up- for reasons other than ticking someone off. "Ain't my fault I've been stuck 'n th' middle 'f th' woods f'r a w..."

Wait.

He chokes, sputtering. "W- SE- KAIBA!?" Wait wait wait-

"When th' hell did you get here! You were in th' states, w' Mokuba!!"

....

"O-OI, Where's Mokuba then!!" Also how did you get here you weren't on that plane!!

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Mnh-" Aw shit, that ain't good.

Katsuya turns, hands otherwise still in his pockets as he blinks down. "Oi, you alright?" Look maybe she didn't crash too hard into the pony alright? Kaseri sure seems fine at least!

[blue_ice]

Did...did he just try to call him Seto? He bristles, but brushes it aside when it becomes clear that Jonouchi is either drunk or half asleep. Typical.

"Maybe in your timeline, but I've been in this world for several months. Mokuba is back in Domino. I've visited him, but we've agreed he's staying there until I'm finished my business here."

Hence the change in appearance. He's switched back to his iconic dueling outfit (for now, because Galar is colder than Alola) but there's a small goo dragon and a small blue frog at his feet, and a yellow cutesy mouse-type creature on his shoulder. He strolls a little closer to Jou and the small horse, the tiny frog jumping up into Kaiba's arms so he can go greet the blond stranger.

"Did they at least tell you where 'here' is?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

If Kaiba thought he was half asleep, then Katsuya is about to 'wake up' with alarming speed. Abruptly, he jolts, stepping off the ponyta with a severe sort of expression that far betrays his 'usual' attitude.

"...Th' hell you mean, another timeline? You-"

And then he pauses. There is something, something small, a needling little feeling that something isn't right. The outfit is definitely not familiar- elements of it certainly are but it's different. It's...

"...Yeah, I got 'here'- Galar, Ballonlea, Stow-on-Side, whatever. No one knew how th' hell I got here though, an' I sure 's shit didn' see you in India!" He adds with a low growl. "So if you know what's goin' on, go ahead an' spill, cause if you've got a way back I got people t' go back an' warn!"

[blue_ice]

The small blue frog starts to whimper at the man's outburst, and Kaiba immediately shifts into protective mode. He tucks the creature into his coat and gently shushes him, rubbing the soft blue head and humming to it. After a moment he remembers to look up.

"Keep it down. If you make Goliath cry, I assure you we'll both regret it."

He takes a deep breath. "As far as what's happening, interdimensional holes have been opening around the islands of Alola for a while. You fell through, same as the rest of us. Once we get back to the Aether labs on Alola, they can call up your portal and send you back. But you'll just have to wait."

[luckydragonsfoot]

"An' that's it huh? Easy as that, nothin' changes back there till then?" He asks, voice low despite his mood.

And he keeps narrowing his eyes- not only as if suspicious of Kaiba's words, but also of Kaiba himself. He eyes the other with far less familiarity than he started with now, instead looking him over as he would an imposter.

Perhaps because he's wondering if they Are one. "...That easy huh?" He repeats, fingers twitching in his pockets. Behind him, the ponyta cautiously stares. Waits.

"....An' what abou' that 'timeline' thing then, huh?"

He'll be weighing the answer with care.

[blue_ice]

"Some amount of time may have passed. It's annoyingly imprecise, but setting it to go back to the time you came from would theoretically be possible...but every hole is different, there's no one size fits all formula"

Kaiba soothes the little frog until he's sure he won't cry, then refocuses on Jonouchi.

"There are others who have come from our world and also play Duel Monsters, but they're from the future. The far future, in some cases. I've met a descendant of my family line from a hundred years in the future---Mokuba's descendant, not mine."

Because Seto? Having children? Probably not happening.

"Not all of our stories add up when you lay them on a singular timeline, so we must have come from multiple similar branching dimensions."

[luckydragonsfoot]

Frankly, Katsuya wants to be more confrontational. He's itching to be more 'confrontational'. To have a good fight, blow off the steam of wasting a week (and quietly it hits him again that if it Has been a week his sister and his best friend may well be good as dead, along with anyone with them, and-).

And then there's a flash. For Katsuya, anyway. For Kaiba there's an instant- an instant of the blond's eyes losing focus, gone and then back just as quick and as he sucks in a breath he turns and after a frustrated scratch of the head gives out a loud but elbow muffled FUCK!

He saw a flash, that was it. Of numbers, portals, computers...

He already Knows his won't work.

So great! Just 'chill' until then huh? No better no worse than before but even so!

He calms. Takes a breath. Rubs his face, groans again and turns back to the no doubt irritated Seto Kaiba. "Aaaaughhg...Figures he'd have d'scendants before you I guess...hope th's kid takes after him at least..." Hahaaa. Well.

Alternate...dimensions...

"What, so like 'world where you ain't adopted' or somethin, you sayin' that could be real then?" Weird choice of words for some, maybe, but even after almost a year, Ra's nightmare test is still pretty fresh in his mind.

[blue_ice]

"She does...but there's some of me in there. Unfortunately for you."

Kaiba's just going to leave that hanging with a little smirk before he continues.

"...well, yes, it's possible. Without those bloodstained connections, my other self would be a nobody...but a mediocre, normal, and dare I say it...happy self."

He really doesn't like Gozaburo talk. Please don't do it again. The reminder flickers across his face for a moment before he goes on. "So you get it. Any other questions?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Whaaaat," he jokes immediately, still at least somewhat oblivious to a key difference between their worlds. "Think I can't handle a 'Kaiba-chaaaan'~?" He snorts, only to sober up with unnerving speed. More precisely he winces- a flinch he can't control given his own experiences with an 'alt reality', and for whatever reason his tone is far more uneasy than it is mocking or even disgusted. "...Righ'. ...'Happy'..."

God that fake world was the pits.

Well. He looks back, studying Seto's clothes again. Something just feels...so Off somehow, he can't place it...

"Hey... ...how old are y' anyway S- Kaiba?"

[blue_ice]

There it was again. That slip. Kaiba squinted at him suspiciously.

"Eighteen. We've graduated from high school...yes, even you scraped by."

He reaches down to give Goomy a berry---she gets hungry so easily. And then he looks back up.

"Given that you thought I should've been in America, I'm guessing you're younger?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

Right, excuse him while he chokes. "Eighte- Seriously, an' you're still-" Whatever 'still' is isn't clear, as he hurriedly switches gears. "Sheesh, tha's almost two years ahead w' your birthday..." October is a ways away from January after all, and he's only been 17 for a little while. The third year hadn't even started after all!

"Nyyyy, 'm not even doing that bad in school..." He grumbles as an addition, huffing. No thanks to his mom having access to the marks anyway...

"Y' headed there w' Mokuba t' pick up where y' left off w' Kaibaland after shit got interrupted by th' Tenma's though. Weren't s'pposed t' be back until the school year started again, since Mokuba w's still gonna attend 'm on campus..." Unlike the elder, who decided it was a waste of time anyway.

....

"Jeeze th's really buggin me though, what th' hell..." No clarification on What 'this' is, of course. Just more peering around Seto with a frown, dog tags jangling on the chain as he moves.

[blue_ice]

"Still taller and better looking than you, yes."

Now he's just babbling nonsense.

"I don't remember any of that. There must be more differences, but you're as baffling as ever."

He shakes his head, his eye catching the dog tags and his mouth quirking up a little.

"Found yourself a new owner, then?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

To that, he just rolls his eyes. Wow, lay it on where he can't say what he was Gonna say huh? And-

"...Th...y' never met th' Tenmas..? ...The guys who took over after Pegasus died, seriously?"

Wait for that matter-

He grabs at the tags, holding them tightly as he looks to Kaiba with renewed suspicion. "...They came from you," he starts in disbelief, shaking his head. "You gave- Right that's it!"

And that's about where he starts looking more ready for a fight again. Tense. Expectant. Not going for it...

Yet.

Which is more than could be said for his own counterpart. "Weird altern't realities or no, who th' hell are you, huh? 'Cause I'm about ready to figure out who's stealin faces again!"

[blue_ice]

"Pegasus is alive," Kaiba answered immediately. "And still making negotiations a living hell every time our contract is up for renewal."

He was starting to feel unsettled. This Jonouchi...looked like the idiot he knew, and sounded like him, but there was clearly something different.

"So I finally decided to claim my mutt? Heh. Sounds right...or it would, if I cared."

Does he? Maybe? Whatever. He folds his arms and forrows his brow in thought.

"I'm exactly who I've always been. Seto Kaiba. Clearly not the one from your timeline---if I was, I'd know what the hell you're keeping from me."

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Pegasus lived." Hah. Hhhahaaaaa. "Hah! Yeah, next you'll be tellin me Mokuba's only got brothers!" He snorts, flinching briefly but only briefly. After all, well! Who here would even know who the Kaiba's were or weren't! There was no one to question the actual meaning of his slip.

So. "...Yeah somethin' like that. I figure you just couldn't figure out what t' do about Christmas when Mokuba wasn' lettin y' kick me t' the curb," he half growls, studying the other for his reactions. "I ain't keepin' shit from y'. Nothin' y' shouldn' already know, anyway..."

[blue_ice]

"...right. Mokuba's never had a sister." Kaiba deadpans, looking at Jou like he has two heads.

"Would that have anything to do with why you keep trying to call me Seto?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

Right. Okay. Nope.

Now he's mirroring the look.

"...Yeah he does." And boy, the eyebrows are going wayyyy wayyy up and-

"..." There's no way it can actually be Kaiba, part of his mind wants to say. Because if there is one thing that felt constant, it was who Kaiba was. Even in that nightmare Ra put together, they were still, even with differences, 'themself'. But this?

This is- "...You've gotta be kiddin'," he finally hisses, "That's actually yer original name then ain't it!"

There are a great number of dots here that are unconnected. Admittedly it's because force of habit keeps him from spilling All the beans when they're in the middle of the road.

[blue_ice]

"...wait..."

Kaiba frowns and starts to put the pieces together. The long stares. The emphasis on 'original name'. The strange familiarity.

"If there's an alternate universe where I wasn't adopted...there could just as easily be one where I was born a different sex."

He's not entirely sure, but he'll throw that out there just to check.

[luckydragonsfoot]

Blinking. More blinking.

...Alright fine so that explains what felt off you're not hot anymore but still!!

"An apparently alive d'spite that?" He blurts out, focusing on the nearest thought that isn't outright denial. It feels wrong. It just feels...wrong!

Anyway this is easier! "How th' hell did y' manage that, half the shit we ran into was only thrown off by that!"

[blue_ice]

"...so your Kaiba is a woman." Kaiba muses aloud. It was a strange thought...but she was undoubtedly competent and capable, and he already had a hint that she shared his sense of humor.

"...through my own competence and skill." And the occasional intervention from the dweeb squad. "But our timelines clearly diverged in multiple ways. It's not worth giving yourself a headache over it."

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a handful of chesto berries, offering them to Jonouchi as...something of a peace offering.

"I think your pony will like these. They're grease repellent and have a sharp flavor. I've...unwillingly become a student of Pokémon nutrition."

[luckydragonsfoot]

A shrug- and no remark about headaches. Frankly he'll have enough of one getting This straight. "Yeah, not tha' most 'f th' world knows. An' I got tha' from th' bit w' Pegasus..." He remarks dryly. "Yeesh, yer timeline or whatever must've been a cakewalk w'out all that computer world shit..." Little Does He Know-

Ah. The berries though. "Mn...righ', few months here huh. Guess y' had th' time..." The ponyta slowly approaches- first pausing at Katsuya, then looking to Kaiba, and back. The blond shrugs. "Heh. Yeah, 'es safe," he says with a grin, coming over to take the berries. They're then passed toward the pokemon. "Go on, Kaseri~"

[blue_ice]

"...Noa and Gozaburo still made my life a living hell," he sighed. "And I really don't want to talk about it."

He watches the Ponyta with the faint glimmer of approval in his eye. Jonouchi will probably luck his way into a lot of wins as a trainer...Kaiba will really have to get himself in gear if he wants to stay ahead.

"When we get back to Alola you'll be assigned a guardian of sorts. I assist an elderly woman with her fruit business," he adds to explain.