The DuelPad chimed softly again. And this time, when Syrus moved forward, he didn't look like someone bracing for failure, just someone willing to see what would happen next.
As the duo moved off again, Julian felt the shift in the clearing.
"That was… intense." Jaden pointed quietly beside him.
Julian glanced over. Jaden wasn't smiling now. He was just thoughtful, hands in his pockets, gaze following Syrus with something like concern mixed with respect.
Alexis stepped closer as well, arms folded loosely, eyes still on the blue-haired boy.
"Tough love." she said softly. Not accusing. Just naming it.
Julian nodded once. "Yeah."
Jaden tilted his head. "You sure that was the right call?"
Julian didn't answer immediately.
He watched Syrus pause, doubt clearly resurfacing for a split second, then pushing through it anyway, taking another step forward before his courage could evaporate.
"That's exactly why it had to be." Julian said at last, pointing to the boy's situation. He exhaled slowly.
"Syrus isn't bad at this. Not only spirituality, but all of it. He's actually pretty good." A faint, almost rueful smile tugged at his mouth. "That's the problem. He keeps proving to himself that he can do it… and then immediately convincing himself it didn't count."
Alexis's brow furrowed. "…So every success just resets him back to zero."
"Worse." Julian said. "It convinces him the next one will hurt more if he fails."
Jaden winced. "Ouch."
Julian nodded. "If Jaden or I keep rescuing him every time he hits that wall, it just teaches him that he needs someone else there to move forward."
Alexis was quiet for a moment, then said, "And one day… you won't be."
Julian met her eyes. "Exactly."
Jaden scratched his cheek, thoughtful. "So you're not trying to make him confident."
"In a perfect world that would also happen." Julian said. "But I'm trying to make him functional when confidence isn't there. Once he goes through that and actually see what he can do, I hope that some degree of confidence will follow."
He watched Syrus again. Still shaky, still unsure, but moving.
"He needs to learn how to recognize that moment." Julian continued, voice low, almost more to himself now. "That exact second where his head tells him he's already lost. And then choose to keep going anyway. Even if it's ugly. Even if it's slow."
Alexis nodded slowly. She understood that kind of pressure. That kind of fight.
"You didn't let him hide." she said.
Julian shook his head. "No. I just stopped letting him pretend the doubt was protecting him. For every five corrections I made for him at anything, four were about that damn confidence issue."
Jaden glanced between them, then grinned faintly. "Man. You're scary when you care about someone."
Julian glanced at the blonde girl for a split-second before snorting an ironic answer. "Like you're one to talk."
"Hey!" Jaden protested softly. "I hug people. You emotionally bench-press them."
Despite herself, Alexis smiled. Julian let his gaze drift back to Syrus once again.
"I'll be there for him." he said. "So will you. But I don't want him thinking that's the only way he ever moves forward."
He squared his shoulders, the decision firm.
"He has to learn how to step through that wall on his own. One day, that moment's going to hit him when none of us are around and he will be grateful for that tough love."
Alexis's voice was gentle when she replied.
"So, you didn't did that to be cruel."
Julian shook his head. "A little bit."
He watched Syrus take another step.
"I'll not say that I like it, going all out like that on a friend. But it was necessary, and for his own good."
Syrus walked toward the tall grass near the cliff edge: no theory, no plan. Just movement.
Halfway there, something tugged at his attention.
Not a sound, not a sight. Just… wrongness.
He stopped.
"I…" His voice caught. "There."
Bastion turned sharply. "Why?"
"I don't know." Syrus admitted. "It just… feels loud."
Julian straightened.
"Come on, you can do it." Julian mumbled. "Believe…"
Syrus took three more steps. Skull Servant exploded upward in a clatter of bones, shrieking in delight.
"I FOUND ONE!" Syrus yelped, nearly falling backward.
Bastion stared. Then slowly, very slowly, a smile spread across his face.
"You didn't analyze." Bastion said in awe. "You reacted."
Syrus was breathing hard now, half laughing, half stunned. "I… I guess?"
The DuelPad chimed. Time. They hadn't found many, but Syrus hadn't folded in on himself either.
"That's time." Julian said.
Syrus and Bastion regrouped near the center of the clearing, both breathing a little harder than when they'd started. Syrus looked flushed: not embarrassed, not panicked, just… worked.
Julian glanced past them, then nodded. "You found Skull Servant."
Syrus blinked. "I… yeah. I mean, I didn't mean to, but…"
"That's fine." Julian cut in, tone steady. "You didn't freeze. You didn't quit. That was the goal. And you meant it, it was the purpose of the exercise. You didn't stumbled on him, you felt it and followed your guts. Next time, try to just agree. You did well, learn to recognize it and give yourself some damn credit."
Mindy smiled immediately. Jasmine let out a quiet, approving hum.
"Once Syrus stopped self-correcting every impulse, the detection window became… usable." Bastion pointed out.
Syrus stared at him. "…I think that was a compliment?"
"It was. You were clearly better than me there." Bastion confirmed.
Jaden grinned and clapped once. "See? Progress! And nobody exploded. Ten outta ten."
Syrus huffed a laugh, some of the tightness finally leaving his shoulders.
Julian turned then, already shifting gears. "Alright. Next up."
Mindy straightened. "Me?"
"And me," Julian said. "Same rules. Five minutes."
"And you're not using Nightmare-Eyes?" Bastion pressed.
Julian glanced back.
The massive Illusion loomed behind him, silent and watchful.
"No." Julian said. "This is about me, not him."
Nightmare-Eyes made no protest.
Mindy tilted her head slightly, studying Julian. Not suspicious, just curious.
"I won't slow you down, will I?" she asked gently.
Julian smiled faintly. "I doubt that."
The spirits scattered once more.
Jaden stepped forward, already pulling up the timer on his DuelPad. "Ooooh, I get to be official now. I feel powerful."
"No flaring, mate." Julian warned without looking at him.
Jaden pouted. "You're no fun."
This time, there was no chaotic rush. No wild scrambling. They'd learned Julian's habits too well for that. Dark Mimic LV1 slipped into the shadow cast by the leaning tree. Petit Angel floated higher than before, careful to stay downwind. Haniwa once again didn't even bother moving far, just turned slightly, face blank, daring fate to miss it again.
Mindy took a breath, rolling her shoulders.
Julian leaned slightly toward her. "No pressure. Just move. Look. Let yourself notice things."
She nodded, nervous but determined.
"Hide and seek." he said, almost amused. "You look where they'd mess with you from."
He veered left, toward a cluster of stones near the cliff edge.
Happy Lover squeaked, panic-fluttering, and darted straight into view.
Mindy blinked. "Wait, what?"
Julian crouched and gently scooped the spirit up before it could flee again. "One."
"That doesn't count." Jaden protested instantly. "You didn't even try."
Julian glanced over his shoulder. "You mean I didn't hesitate."
Mindy stared at the little winged monkey in his hands, then at the grass where it had been hiding. "I didn't feel anything."
"You will." Julian said. "But not if you're waiting for it to announce itself. Baby Dragon, I saw you there from the beginning, buddy. Doing the same thing over and over will not work with me."
The small dragon pouted and jumped from the ground, joining Happy Lover in the found area. The duo moved again.
Julian didn't search randomly. He followed patterns. Places the spirits had used before, angles that offered good sightlines for pranks, spots just inconvenient enough to be funny. He knew their patterns, their way of thinking. A few second later, he stopped abruptly, reached out, and tapped the side of a rock.
"Hello, lovely."
Winged Egg of New Life wobbled into view, making a soft, startled chirp.
"Three already?!" Mindy exclaimed. "Okay, now that's suspicious."
Alexis folded her arms. "You're cheating."
Julian stood, brushing dirt from his hands. "I live with them."
"That's not an answer." Jasmine said.
"That's exactly the answer," Julian replied calmly. "If I'm not paying attention, one of them is tugging my sleeve, hiding my stuff, or trying to scare me. This isn't talent. It's survival."
As if on cue, Fiend's Hand lunged from behind a bush and tried to grab Julian's ankle.
Julian stepped aside without looking. The hand flopped harmlessly onto the grass.
"…Okay, that was rude. At least one more found." Mindy muttered.
They continued.
Mindy began to notice things now. Not clear signals, but almosts. A flicker of excitement. A wrong-feeling patch of air. She pointed uncertainly toward the tall grass.
"I think… there?"
Julian paused, considering. Then nodded. "Go ahead."
She parted the grass carefully.
Skull Servant burst out, throwing its arms into the air in dramatic surrender.
"YEAH! Come here!" Mindy yelped, half laughing.
Julian smiled, genuine this time. "See? You're not bad at this."
They found two more quickly.
Then missed one entirely when Dark Mimic slipped past them while Julian's attention was elsewhere.
Mindy noticed his pause.
"You live with them all the time." she said. "How do you keep up?"
Julian snorted quietly. "I don't. That's the point."
He crouched, brushing his fingers over the grass. "They're always planning something. If I drop my guard, I lose. Everything is a game for them."
"So sensing is… defense." Jasmine murmured.
"Exactly." Julian said. "Not power. Not dominance. Awareness. Otherwise you're just reacting after it's too late. In this case, to a properly placed prank."
The DuelPad chimed.
"Time." Jaden said, sounding increasingly put upon. "And for the record, this is super unfair."
Mindy counted quickly. "We found… six?"
"Seven." Julian corrected, nodding toward Haniwa, who stood three steps away, unmoving, having never bothered to hide properly.
Mindy stared. "…That thing was just standing there the whole time?"
"Yes." Julian said. "That's its whole personality."
Jaden groaned loudly, flopping backward onto the grass. "This looks fun! Why do you guys get all the cool group training? When I was learning this stuff I had, like, meditation."
"You said yourself that you'd find all of them in under half a minute." Alexis said dryly.
"That's not the point." Jaden protested. "I want to play too!"
The spirits giggled, drifting back toward the center of the clearing.
Julian glanced at Mindy. "Better?"
She nodded, a little breathless, eyes bright. "…Yeah. Actually… yeah."
"Same teams, turning to the others." Julian said. "Second round. Alexis and Jasmine first."
The girls exchanged a glance before stepping forward together. The spirits scattered once more, faster now, more clever. They were learning too. This wasn't just a game anymore, it was a conversation.
Alexis didn't rush this time. She inhaled, steady, grounding herself before moving. Her posture was different from the day before. Less rigid, less desperate. Jasmine noticed immediately and adjusted her pace to match, staying close enough to cover blind spots without crowding her.
They moved like a practiced pair, even if they weren't one at that yet.
Jasmine handled the periphery: watching air currents, light distortions, the way Petit Angel's wings left the faintest shimmer before vanishing. Alexis focused inward, eyes half-lidded, tracking emotional pressure instead of location.
They didn't find everything at first. They missed Dark Mimic entirely, and Fiend's Hand got away with a triumphant yank at Jasmine's sleeve before disappearing again.
But eventually they found more than before. Alexis stopped once, suddenly, hand lifting.
"There." she said, certain.
Behind a low rise, Mokey Mokey lay sprawled in the open, apparently convinced it was invisible.
Jasmine snorted softly. "Bold."
Alexis laughed under her breath as she crouched, gently coaxing the spirit into her arms.
Julian watched from a distance, noticing the change.
When the timer chimed, Alexis exhaled, not frustrated or exhilarated. Just satisfied with a job well done.
"That felt better. Less like luck." she admitted quietly as they rejoined the group.
Julian nodded. "Yeah, it was. Bastion, Syrus! Get your ass out there!"
The boys went ahead and the entire thing happened once again.
Syrus hesitated at the edge of the clearing in the middle of the dynamic. Then he stepped forward anyway.
Bastion moved beside him, visibly restraining the urge to narrate his own thoughts this time. Instead of theorizing, he watched Syrus, letting him lead.
They didn't fan out as much. Syrus kept closer to the center, breathing slow, eyes unfocused. Not searching for anything so much as allowing himself to notice when something didn't belong.
A ripple passed through him with expectation. He turned.
Haniwa stood behind him, exactly where it had been before, expression unchanged. Syrus stared.
"…You again." he muttered, then smiled. Small, incredulous.
Bastion blinked. "You didn't hesitate."
Syrus shrugged, a little shaky but upright. "I don't even know if he…" the boy was once again diminishing his realization (even if it really was small, after all, Haniwa was almost a given at this moment), but corrected himself. "Yeah… I almost did."
They found Skull Servant soon after, and then, unexpectedly, Dark Plant, whose folded leaves twitched in nervous anticipation before giving itself away.
Julian caught the moment Syrus froze again. The doubt flickered once more when he didn't got any more leads for a couple minutes, sharp and familiar. This time, it didn't win.
Syrus breathed, stepped forward, and reached out, eventually finding Dark Mimic just as it tried to slip past him.
When the timer chimed, Syrus looked stunned as Bastion returned with Watapon at his lap.
"I didn't…" He stopped, then corrected himself. "I mean. I did mess up. But I didn't stop."
Julian met his gaze from across the clearing.
"That's the part that matters."
Syrus nodded slowly, as if committing that idea to memory.
The dynamic ebbed itself naturally, more like fun than anything else for the moment.
Julian gestured toward the grass near the leaning tree. "Alright. Sit for a bit. Breathe."
They obeyed without protest. Spreading out, dropping onto the ground, backs against rocks, legs stretched out. The spirits drifted closer again, curiosity replacing competition. Watapon perched near Julian's shoulder. Petit Dragon looped lazily overhead.
Jaden flopped down dramatically. "Okay, yeah. I admit it. That was fun."
Julian smirked. "You're still not allowed to play."
"That's cruel."
"It's educational. Maybe when they learn how to hide you can look for them."
The boy's wide smiled whispered promise, one that he would not relinquish now.
"I'll hold you to that."
Alexis wiped sweat from her brow, breathing evenly now. "So… what's next?"
Julian glanced around the group, making sure they were settled. He nodded once.
"Next…" he said. "We talk about emotional flaring. If you are going to train with shielding, you need to know the first thing you'll be protecting yourself against."
The breeze rolled in from the sea again, cool and steady. Julian waited for a couple more minutes until everyone's breathing had evened out again before he spoke.
"Alright…" he said calmly. "What you've been doing so far and the things we talked about, like sensing and the beginnings of shielding… that's all reactive. You're listening. Bracing. Responding to what already exists."
He glanced around the group, making sure they were following.
"Emotional flaring is different. This is expressive."
Mindy tilted her head. "You mean… projecting?"
"Projecting is part of it." Julian replied. "But that word makes it sound deliberate and clean. Flares are messier than that. They're what happens when your Ba leaks or surges through emotion."
Bastion leaned forward slightly. "So it's not a technique so much as a phenomenon?"
Julian considered that, then nodded. "That's actually a good way to put it. Everyone flares, all the time. You don't notice because most people's Ba is weak, unfocused, or suppressed. But duelists? Especially strong ones?"
He gestured vaguely toward Jaden. "They do it constantly."
Jaden blinked. "I do?"
"Yes." The rest of the room said in unison.
Jaden grinned. "Huh. Neat."
Julian sighed and continued. "A flare is the outward expression of emotional intent. Joy. Hope. Resolve. Fear. Rage. Despair. You're not thinking those emotions, you're broadcasting them."
Jasmine frowned. "Is that why some duelists feel… overwhelming? Even before they make a move?"
"Exactly. And often even without former training." Julian said. "That 'pressure' people talk about in legendary duels? That's not just reputation. It's Ba responding to intent. Two strong wills colliding."
Syrus swallowed. "…So when you say someone has a 'killing intent'..."
"That's a flare." Julian finished. "A hostile one."
There was a brief, uneasy silence.
Bastion broke it, thoughtful. "Then shielding is essentially about filtering incoming flares?"
"Yes." Julian said. "And stabilizing your own so you don't get dragged along by them."
He hesitated, then glanced at Jaden. "There's… more to it, though. Advanced stuff. Like… shaping flares deliberately. Using them to anchor others. Or…"
"Or to shape something you want them to feel, even if you're not necessarily feeling it." Jaden supplied cheerfully.
Julian paused. "…That too?"
"Yep! You can fake confidence really well if you believe it hard enough." Jaden shrugged. "Someone scary can broadcast a feeling of fear even when they are not afraid. Doesn't mean it'll hold forever, though."
Julian rubbed his temple. "Right. See? This is why translating Jaden is a full-time job."
Mindy snorted.
Julian refocused. "Point is: projecting and receiving flares is dangerous because they bypass logic. Your Ba doesn't argue, it reacts. If you're not grounded, you'll either get swept away… or provoke responses you can't control."
Alexis crossed her arms, brow furrowed. "So when we train shielding… we're going to be defending against this."
"Yes," Julian said evenly. "But before that, you need to understand what you're defending from."
He rose to his feet.
"I'm going to show you."
That got everyone's attention.
"Controlled." he added quickly, looking pointedly at Jaden. "No surprises. If anything feels like too much, say so."
Julian closed his eyes briefly, centering himself. Nightmare-Eyes stirred behind him, presence broad and watchful, ready to intervene if needed.
"First…" Julian said, voice steady. "Something positive."
He let the memory surface: not words, not images. Just feeling. Connection. Trust. The quiet certainty of not being alone. The change was immediate.
Warmth rolled outward, gentle but unmistakable. Not heat, comfort. Like sitting near a fire on a cold night, or hearing a familiar laugh after a long absence.
Mindy's shoulders relaxed without her realizing it. Jasmine's breath eased. Bastion blinked, surprised, pen halfway out of reflex before he stopped himself.
Alexis felt it most keenly. For a heartbeat, the knot in her chest loosened. Not gone, but lighter. Like a reminder that the path forward existed, even if it was long.
"…That's hope." She murmured.
Julian nodded. "Hope, friendship, belonging. An amalgam more than a single thing. The kind of support Jaden shouts by accident when cheering for you in a duel."
"Hey!" Jaden protested, then paused. "…Okay, fair. And kinda cool, honestly."
Julian let the flare fade.
"Second." he continued. "Something neutral."
The warmth withdrew, replaced by something sharper. Focus. Presence. The sensation of standing across from an opponent when the world narrows to a single point.
The air seemed to tighten. No fear. No comfort. Just attention.
Bastion straightened unconsciously, posture precise. Jasmine's eyes sharpened. Syrus felt his heart rate pick up. Not panic, but readiness.
"It feels like…" Bastion searched for words. "The moment before declaring an attack."
"Or before drawing." Jaden added. "When you know the duel's about to turn."
Julian opened his eyes. "Exactly. This is the kind of flare you see in high-level competitive duels. Yugi. Kaiba. Zane. No emotion spilling over, just intent."
He let it dissipate.
The silence afterward felt heavier than before.
"And now, finally." Julian said quietly. "Negative, brace up."
He hesitated longer this time. Fear wasn't hard to find.
He didn't push it far, just enough to let the edge show. Loss. Vulnerability. The instinct to recoil or strike back before being hurt again.
The clearing seemed to dim.
Syrus stiffened instantly, jaw clenched, hands curling into fists as his instincts screamed at him to retreat. He stayed put, breathing hard, but present.
Alexis reacted differently. Her breath hitched.
For a split second, the fear twisted. Not inward, but outward. A sharp, reflexive flare burst from her, raw and defensive, like a cornered animal lashing out.
Julian and Jaden were moving before she even realized what she'd done.
Nightmare-Eyes surged, intercepting the spike of emotion, absorbing the worst of it before it got to the rest of them. Julian stepped into Alexis's space, not crowding, but close enough to anchor. Jaden was one step back, extending his own guardian calm to the others so even if her uncontrolled exertion got to them, it would be diminished into nothing against his monstrous influence.
"It's okay." Julian said firmly, letting warmth bleed back into his aura and merging with the colossus emitted by Jaden. Steady. Reassuring. "You're not under attack."
Mindy was at Alexis's side almost immediately.
She didn't touch her at first, just stepped close enough that Alexis could feel her presence, solid and familiar. "Hey," Mindy said softly, voice light on purpose. "You're okay. You didn't break anything. Not even Julian's spooky vibe."
Jasmine followed a second later, more measured but no less attentive. She placed a gentle hand on Alexis's forearm, grounding rather than restraining. "Breathe with us, Lex." she said quietly. "In through the nose. Out slow."
Alexis nodded, mortified but compliant, mirroring Jasmine's rhythm. Her aura was already subdued, Julian, Jaden and Nightmare-Eyes had seen to that, but it was still uneven, flickering at the edges like a storm cloud refusing to fully disperse.
"I'm sorry…" Alexis said, voice tight. "I didn't mean to…"
"We know," Mindy cut in immediately. "And you stopped. That's what matters."
Jasmine gave a small, reassuring smile. "If anything, it just means you're reacting honestly. That's… not a bad thing. It just needs practice, right?"
Alexis let out a shaky breath, shoulders finally dropping. The tension bled out of her posture, little by little, until she looked like herself again: focused, determined, and no longer coiled to strike.
"Thanks." she murmured, eyes downcast.
"Anytime." Mindy said, bumping her shoulder lightly. "That's kind of the point of all this, right? Not doing it alone."
Julian watched the exchange in silence, quietly relieved. It was one thing to teach technique, it was another to see the group instinctively closing ranks, reinforcing each other without prompting.
When Alexis straightened again, her aura had settled. Still intense, still driven, but no longer flaring out of control. She met Julian's gaze briefly and gave a small nod. Ready.
"Your lovely friends are right, of course." Julian said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "That was instinct. Not failure."
Julian exhaled.
"And that…" he said, turning back to the group. "Is why emotional flaring is dangerous without control. You don't decide how your Ba reacts at first. It mirrors your wounds."
He met Alexis's eyes briefly with understanding in his gaze.
"And that's also why we train shielding before practicing this."
Syrus swallowed. "Geez… I thought I was going to bolt."
"But you didn't." Julian said. "You felt it. You stayed. And without anyone to ground you up."
Jaden smiled softly. "That's already progress."
Julian nodded once. "We will learn how to stand your ground against flares like that. On how to begin building your passive shield. Right now, everything is felt tenfold because you have no protection at all. Like we talked yesterday, the passive shield is not able to truly guard against a aggressive flare, but can buy you the time to gather a proper response."
He looked around the group.
"You can't defend against what you don't understand. And now you do, at least a little."
The spirits hovered close again, subdued but curious.
Julian sat back down among them.
"Take a minute, then we'll move on. Let's start with the meditation trance like yesterday, so you get more comfortable in emitting your Ba. Then, I'll start with the neutral flares so we don't have that kind of problem."
Jaden shifted his weight, rubbing the back of his neck as the group's attention subtly turned toward him.
"So, uh…" he said, glancing between Julian and the others. "About yesterday. You want me to… y'know… Do that again?"
Mindy tilted her head. "That… thing where you accidentally spiritually drop-kicked us into our own heads?"
"I did not!" Jaden protested, then winced. "Yeah, I kinda did. Okay, then. Yeah, that."
Bastion looked thoughtful rather than alarmed this time. "If it can be reproduced deliberately, it could be an extremely efficient induction method. A controlled external flare overwhelming conscious resistance and forcing inward focus."
Jaden blinked. "Wow. That sounded way cooler than you probably felt."
Julian considered him for a moment, then nodded. "Bastion took the words from my mouth. We're all teenagers, get into the proper state of spirit for true meditation is awfully boring."
"I'll vouch for that. I sometimes needed more than two hours for that with Koyo-sensei."
"With all due respect, you were a kid. And a hyperactive one, if I know you. Still, it's a trump card, and a valuable one at that. I think we should use it, carefully."
Alexis looked up at that, searching his face. Not anxious this time, just attentive.
"It helped." Julian continued. "Yesterday wasn't ideal, but the result was. You didn't have to fight distractions. You didn't have to guess where to start. You were already inside when you realized what was happening."
Jaden hesitated. "I didn't mean to…"
"I know, man." Julian said gently. "But intent matters less than effect here. If you can recreate that state on purpose, even at a lower intensity, it'll give them a reference point. Something to recognize instead of stumble into."
Syrus swallowed. "So… you're saying we won't get thrown in this time?"
Jaden brightened a little. "More like… guided?"
Julian gave a small smile. "Exactly. We can start small, and Nightmare-Eyes and I help Jaden with the amount of power used."
They repositioned themselves naturally, forming a loose circle in the grass. The ocean breeze was steady, the air warm without being heavy. The spirits of the Well drifted closer again, curious but subdued, as if they'd learned when to give space.
"Same goal as yesterday, you remember it." Julian said. "All of you probably already know your specific triggers. Be it contact, force, negotiation or whatever… Contact your innermost selves and allow that expression into the outer world."
Jaden took a breath, visibly centering himself. "Okay. Um. If this gets weird, tell me."
"That applies to everything you do." Mindy muttered fondly.
Jaden closed his eyes.
Julian became aware of it before anyone else did. Even restrained, even careful, Jaden's presence refused to be small.
The flare he held wasn't a command anymore, not the unconscious tidal wave from the day before, but it was still vast. Asking Jaden to "tone it down" was like asking the ocean to pretend it was a glass of water. Julian felt it the way one felt pressure changes before a storm. A constant, radiant undertow threading through the air, saturating everything it touched. Warm. Inviting. Relentless.
It was like asking someone to fill the same glass of water using an entire Olympic swimming pool as a bucket. No matter how steady the hands, how controlled the pour, some of it would always spill.
For the others, that spill came as a persistent background warmth. An emotional gravity that made focus easier, thoughts quieter, resolve steadier. It wasn't invasive. If anything, it felt encouraging. Reassuring. Like the quiet certainty that someone far stronger than you was standing just behind your shoulder.
But Julian knew better.
He could feel the scale of it, the absurd reserve Jaden carried without even trying. This was him holding back. This was Jaden being polite. And still, the air bent around him.
Julian adjusted instinctively, extending his own aura just enough to diffuse the excess, not blocking it but smoothing its edges. Even so, he felt faintly ridiculous doing it. Like holding up an umbrella in a gentle rain knowing full well it wouldn't matter if the clouds actually decided to pour down.
He glanced at Jaden. The other boy's brow was furrowed in concentration, posture stiff with effort, as if he were carefully balancing something fragile in his hands. He wasn't showing off. He wasn't careless. He was genuinely trying.
Julian exhaled slowly.
'Yeah.' He thought. 'Koyo was right to be careful.'
This wasn't just talent. This was magnitude.
And for all his jokes and easy smiles, Jaden Yuki carried a spiritual presence that had never learned how to be anything but immense.
Some things could be shaped. Others could only be guided: carefully, patiently, until the world around them learned how not to drown.
One by one, the group stilled. The world thinned.
For Alexis, the difference was immediate, and striking.
Yesterday, her inner landscape had been a storm of competing impulses: urgency, grief, frustration, fear of failing again. Now, there was space between those feelings. Not absence, but distance. Enough room to breathe.
Her Ba responded differently this time. Not recoiling. Not lashing out. It answered.
She didn't grab at it. Didn't demand anything of it. She simply followed the sensation. Warmth in her chest, a steady pressure like hands bracing her spine from within. It felt… aligned.
For the first time since Atticus's name had become a wound instead of a memory, bringing out that pain didn't drown out everything else.
Syrus struggled at first, the familiar spiral of doubt tugging at him the moment the outside world faded. You don't belong here. You're wasting their time. But Julian's earlier words echoed, unbidden: Don't quit before we test your limits.
So Syrus stayed. Just that. Stayed. And something flickered in response: not strength, not confidence, but persistence. A quiet, stubborn presence that refused to vanish just because he expected it to.
Bastion's experience was… messy. His mind immediately tried to categorize everything once again. Even his attempt to try and void his mind like in the day before was made as a series of logical steps and procedures. Sensation vectors, emotional gradients, hypothetical frameworks. He nearly lost the thread entirely until he consciously stopped once more to try and define the experience and let it exist unlabelled, even if just for a second.
Only then did his Ba make itself known. Not as data, but as balance. A stabilizing axis, steady and unyielding, like a structure waiting to be built around it.
Mindy drifted somewhere between curiosity and instinct, following impressions rather than thoughts. She couldn't have explained what she was doing even if she wanted to. but when a soft warmth curled near her ribs, responding to her attention like a cat acknowledging a familiar voice, she smiled without realizing it.
Jasmine's awareness unfolded more subtly. She didn't push inward so much as listen outward, feeling the edges of herself first, then tracing them back to the center. Her Ba was quiet, but responsive. Protective in nature, she realized, forming naturally around points of perceived vulnerability.
Julian observed it all through layers of perception.
His own meditation came easily now. The void and flame, noise stripped away until only meaning remained. Nightmare-Eyes lingered at the edge of his awareness, feeding him impressions not as words but as textures: tension easing, focus sharpening, emotions stabilizing.
He didn't interfere. Not even nudges were deemed necessary. No soft adjustments through his own flare this time. Just letting the nature follow its course.
Time slipped. What felt like minutes stretched into something deeper, looser. When Jaden finally eased the flare back, the return to the physical world came gently, like surf receding from shore.
Alexis opened her eyes first, blinking at the sun's position.
"…We skipped lunch." she said slowly.
Julian checked the DuelPad timer. "By an hour and a half."
Syrus groaned. "I knew it. Spiritual training makes you hungry."
Jaden grinned. "Told you it was efficient."
Despite the jokes, there was a quiet shift among them now. Less frantic, more grounded. Whatever they'd touched in that shared space hadn't vanished with the flare.
Julian glanced at his DuelPad, then back at the group. "Alright. That's enough for today's internal work. One more block, then we hit the plaza for a Blue-Eyes Burger or something equally irresponsible."
Jasmine froze. "Blue-Eyes Burger?" She stared at him like he'd suggested ritual sacrifice. "I'm on a diet."
Bastion didn't miss a beat. "The lunch hour has already passed. Which is only a real problem for us in Slifer and Ra who don't have an entire army of private chefs on standby twenty-four seven." He gestured vaguely north. "Some of us don't enjoy Obelisk privileges."
Jasmine arched a brow, unbothered. "That's not my fault."
Julian laughed. "That's on us, buddy." he said to Bastion lightly. "Just pass the exams."
Mindy snorted. Syrus looked between them, amused but wisely silent.
Bastion huffed, pushing back with a thin smile. "Easy to say from someone about to join the dorm with silver cutlery."
Jasmine tilted her head, lips curving. "Careful. Envy is bad for posture."
"And nutrition is bad for your diet apparently." Bastion shot back.
She scoffed, crossing her arms. There was a spark of humor there, not irritation. "Alright, alright… One burger won't kill me. I'll just pretend it's my cheat day."
Julian clapped his hands once. "See? Compromise achieved. Now breathe for a minute, then we're back at it. Shields first, food later. Now we see how well you can hold yourself."
He stepped back a few paces, letting his aura settle into something calm and focused. A neutral feeling, but a determined and dynamic one.
"No negative flares." he added. "We're starting with the basics."
Bastion nodded. "Passive defense."
"Exactly." Julian said. "Let's see how well you can stand your ground. First, even that passive defense will have to be built from the ground up. Your bodies and spirits need to know the difference, to understand how to emit that protection. Repeat it for long enough, it will be like breathing when swimming, your own reflexes and trained techniques make you move in a certain way to grasp for air in a quick and efficient manner."
Julian let the silence stretch for a second, long enough for everyone to actually try before their brains rushed in to interfere.
At first, nothing happened. Alexis stood with her shoulders squared, jaw set, clearly doing something internally, but whatever she was pushing at refused to take shape.
Jasmine closed her eyes, brow furrowed in concentration, then cracked one eye open again as if checking whether she was "doing it right."
Mindy lifted her hands experimentally, palms out, then frowned when the air stubbornly remained… air.
Syrus shifted his weight from foot to foot, already looking uncomfortable with the idea that this was something he could fail at without any visible feedback.
Julian felt it all through Nightmare-Eyes like overlapping radio signals: effort without structure, intention without direction, frustration blooming where patience should have been.
"Don't push." Julian said, voice steady. "That's the fastest way to scare your Ba again. This type of shielding isn't a wall you throw up. It's a stance you settle into."
Jaden nodded along, hands shoved into his pockets. "Yeah. Think less 'force field' and more… 'this is my space.' Like when you're in a duel and you just know you're not backing down this turn."
"That's still abstract, you know?" Bastion muttered, though not dismissively. His eyes were sharp, tracking every reaction in the group. "Is the defense projected outward, or is it more akin to reinforcing the boundary of the self?"
Julian glanced at him and raised his shoulders. "Both. And neither. Depends on the person."
Bastion grimaced. "Of course it does."
Jaden grinned. "Welcome to spiritual training."
Julian took another step back, letting his own aura expand just a little more. Aggressive, but not in the sense of wishing harm, just standing above all of them as an oppressive tyrannical gaze laser focused. The kind of pressure a seasoned duelist both emitted and felt passively when battling names like Yugi or Kaiba.
Almost immediately, there was a reaction.
Mindy inhaled sharply. "Okay… okay, I feel that. That's… weird."
"That's the point." Julian said. "Don't block it. Let your Ba notice it. Then decide how close you're comfortable letting it get."
Alexis' eyes narrowed in focus. This time, she didn't lunge inward or clamp down. She breathed. Slower. Her aura shifted. Subtle, but unmistakable. Less jagged than before. More… coherent.
Julian felt it click into place and allowed himself a small nod.
"That's it, Alexis." he said quietly. "You're not stopping the full might of the wave. You're teaching yourself how to stay upright when it hits, redirecting the force until below a degree comfortable for you. What is too much or too little is up to you. Overdo it and you spend yourself, underdo it and you'll still be shaken by it. Just enough in your comfort zone so you can live with it and be yourself."
Syrus swallowed. "I don't feel anything, man."
Jaden opened his mouth. Julian beat him to it.
"Yes, you do." Julian said calmly. "You're just dismissing it because it doesn't feel dramatic enough to count. Remember our conversation."
Syrus flushed. "I…"
"Stop." Julian said, sharp. "That hesitation? That's what you're feeling. Your Ba flinching because you've already decided you're bad at this. Cut it out, let yourself be plenty."
The words landed heavier than Julian's aura ever could.
Syrus' shoulders tensed… then, slowly, dropped.
"…Oh," he murmured. "That's… annoying."
"Congratulations." Jaden said brightly. "You found it."
They worked like that for several minutes. Julian adjusting his pressure by degrees, Jaden chiming in with instinctive, sometimes baffling metaphors ("It's like telling your soul 'hey, chill, I got this'"), Bastion quietly testing hypotheses and discarding half of them when reality refused to cooperate.
And slowly, in a torturous pace, something began to take shape. Not walls or barriers, but boundaries.
Jasmine was the first to voice it. "It's like… deciding where I end." she said thoughtfully. "And not apologizing for it."
Bastion's eyes lit. "A self-defined perimeter. Adaptive, not rigid."
Mindy blinked. "Wow. You two sound like you planned that. But yeah, it's like imposing limits."
Syrus glanced between Julian and Jaden, watching the way they moved through the group. Jaden buoyant, encouraging, radiating confidence like sunlight. Julian precise, intervening only when something threatened to grow crooked.
Syrus hesitated, then spoke, as if afraid the thought might break if mentioned in a voice too loud.
"…You know…" he said, eyes moving between the two older boys, "When you were talking yesterday. About Atticus and my brother."
Julian didn't turn. Jaden did.
Syrus swallowed. "I think I get it now."
Alexis glanced at him. "Get what?"
"The difference they said." Syrus said. "Between the two of them. And between you two."
Jaden blinked. "Us?"
Syrus nodded. "Atticus wasn't just strong, right? You said that yourself. Lots of people are strong. What made him special was that… people wanted to follow him. He made you feel like you belonged just by standing near you."
Jaden scratched his cheek, uncertain. "Uh…"
"And Zane…" Syrus continued, forcing himself not to retreat. "My brother is not cold. Not really. He's just… precise. He doesn't let mistakes slide. If you were doing something wrong, he'd stop you, even if it hurt your pride."
Julian finally turned.
Syrus met his gaze, heart pounding. "That's kind of how this feels. Jaden makes you want to try. Like… like it'd be a waste not to. And you…" He gestured awkwardly. "You make sure we're not lying to ourselves about how we're doing it."
The clearing went still.
Then Mindy exhaled softly. "Oh. Wow. Yeah. That makes sense."
Jasmine nodded, thoughtful rather than surprised. "I knew about Alexis' and your brother, but never made the connection, but sure. You can see it in how they teach."
Bastion folded his arms, eyes sharp with interest. "Indeed. Their methods reflect fundamentally different approaches to growth. Complementary, sure, but diametrically different."
Jaden tilted his head. "Uh… English?"
Bastion allowed himself a small smile. "You speed development by encouragement and emotional resonance. Creating an environment where improvement feels natural, almost inevitable."
"And Julian?" Jaden questions.
Bastion's gaze shifted. "Julian identifies instability. Inefficiency. False assumptions. He removes them before they can take root. His method is corrective, not permissive."
Mindy snapped her fingers again, grinning. "One of you feeds the plant. The other trims it."
Jaden laughed. "I like that!"
"I would put him more as a scalpel than a garden trimmer. It's not just cuts, but the precision and the choice to do it only in the proper areas." Bastion added, unable to resist. "A fertilizer and a scalpel."
That got a reaction.
Jaden immediately pouted. "Wow. Seriously? So he gets to be the scary one?"
Julian raised an eyebrow. "Only if you're attached to bad habits." Julian raised an eyebrow. "You're welcome to trade, you know."
Alexis hid a small smile behind her hand.
"No, I mean…" Jaden waved his hands. "You're out here sounding like some kind of edgy assassin. 'The scalpel', that's ninja stuff! And I'm just… dirt."
"That's not fair!" Mindy said. "You're supportive dirt."
"That's worse!" Jaden protested. "Why does Julian get the badass nickname?"
Bastion considered this with mock seriousness. "If it helps, we could refine the metaphor. Julian may be less of a scalpel and more of a bonsai shear."
Jaden's pout broke instantly into laughter. "Oh my god, yes! That's perfect. Julian the shear for tiny-trees." He turned, grinning widely. "Careful, Julian. You're one trim away from dramatic plant murder."
Julian didn't even blink. "A bonsai shear is still terrifyingly sharp, you know?" he said calmly. "And far more precise than fertilizer."
He paused, then added, deadpan. "Also, fertilizer can literally be made of manure."
The clearing went silent for half a second.
Then Jasmine snorted. Mindy doubled over laughing. Even Bastion and Alexis had to look away to hide a smile.
Jaden stared at him, wounded. "You did not just win the nickname war like that."
Julian allowed himself the faintest smirk. "Mess with the shears and you get cut."
Alexis shook her head, amusement softening her features. "You two are impossible."
Julian nodded once as Jaden just smiled.
Syrus looked between them again, more carefully this time. "So… Atticus was like Jaden. Zane was like Julian."
"In broad strokes, yes." Julian agreed.
"And neither was wrong." Alexis said quietly.
Julian nodded once. "Exactly. That's no absolute right or wrong when it comes to these things. Sometimes one option is better, but neither can be used for everything and everyone."
Jaden shifted his weight, suddenly more serious. "You know… Koyo used to say something like that too. That power without direction just burns out. And direction without warmth just… breaks people."
Julian glanced at him, surprised. Jaden shrugged. "Guess I didn't realize we were doing the same thing."
Silence settled. Not awkward, but heavy with recognition. Finally, Julian spoke again.
"Atticus vanished before he could become King. Zane refused the crown because he knew it wasn't his to take. One inspired, the other refined. And the academy lost both at once."
Syrus hesitated, then frowned slightly.
"But… Zane wasn't lost," he said. "He stayed. He became Kaiser. He's still the strongest duelist in the academy."
Julian didn't answer immediately. He watched the way Syrus's shield flickered. Too thin at the edges, instinctively overcompensating in the center. Then he spoke.
"Zane stayed, yes." Julian agreed. "But without Atticus, he grew alone."
That made Syrus pause.
"Without the fertilizer, the bonsais never grew tall enough to need pruning." Julian continued calmly.
Bastion's breath caught softly, understanding dawning.
Julian gestured vaguely with one hand, his flare's emission steady, almost effortless now. "Remember our words yesterday. Atticus made people want to rise. He pulled everyone upward: friends, rivals, underclassmen. Zane refined what already existed. He honed, optimized, perfected. But refinement only matters when there's growth to refine."
Syrus swallowed. Julian glanced at him again, voice gentler now, but no less firm.
"Remember what Zane told you, Sy? That you had to grow first. That you had to make your own mistakes. That finding your own answer mattered just as much as reaching the point where someone else could help you?"
Syrus's shoulders tensed slightly. He nodded.
"That's it." Julian continued. "Even as his brother, even if he wanted to step in… Zane knew you needed to stand tall on your own first. He couldn't trim even a snippet of a plant he still considered too small to survive the cut."
The words lingered. Not as judgment, but expectation. Syrus swallowed, then straightened, just a little.
"When Atticus vanished," Julian said, "the academy didn't just lose a future King. It lost the force that made others reach high enough to be shaped. Zane became Kaiser not to prepare and help other students, but to stand alone at the top as the sole emperor. Because he was the only one strong enough to stand alone there."
Jaden shifted beside them, quieter than usual. Not disagreeing.
"And that…" Julian finished, "Is why the title stayed empty."
Silence followed. The kind that meant something had landed.
Jasmine was the first to exhale. "So… Atticus wasn't just a rival to Zane."
"It was that and much more." Julian said. "He was the reason Zane mattered to everyone else on an institutional level."
Syrus stared at the ground for a moment, then lifted his head again. His shield steadied, still imperfect, but not collapsing inward.
"…That sucks..." he muttered. "For everyone."
"Yeah." Julian said softly. "It does."
He let the silence sit a moment longer, then clapped his hands once, sharp and grounding.
"Alright. Back to the present."
The group refocused instinctively.
"Hold your shields a bit longer." Julian instructed. "Not thicker. Not harder. Just… present. Let them exist. I'll tone up the pressure a bit more."
A few seconds passed with his emission strong enough to almost produce the phantom of a hum in the air on its own. Jasmine adjusted, her barrier smoothing out. Mindy's stopped pulsing erratically and settled into something lighter, more permeable but stable. Bastion's became cleaner, achieving a healthy mix between engineering and listening. Syrus' wavered once, but ultimately held.
Julian nodded, satisfied.
"That's enough for today."
Alexis opened her mouth immediately. Julian didn't even look at her.
"Doctor's orders." he added dryly.
She closed it again, then sighed. Defeated, but not resentful. "Fine."
Jaden grinned. "Wow. You should say that more often. Very authoritative."
"I will abuse it responsibly." Julian replied, smiling.
He glanced around at them, tone easing. "We started earlier today than yesterday. You made progress. Real progress. Now you rest."
He pointed toward the path back to campus. "Go enjoy your weekend. Let's eat something irresponsible. Touch grass that isn't spiritually charged."
Bastion blinked. "Is the last part optional?"
"No." the rest of them said in a chorus.
They laughed. Loudly, full-heartedly. The most genuinely they ever held as a group.
As they began to gather their things, the spirits drifted closer again, curiosity replacing the earlier tension. Watapon bobbed lazily. Happy Lover fluttered near Jasmine. Petit Dragon did a victory loop.
Julian watched them for a moment, then turned back to the group.
"Tomorrow I'll take a break." he said. That earned a few looks. "My Obelisk exam starts Tuesday. Three days, Tuesday through Thursday." He shrugged lightly. "I'll need to focus on that. Which means I'll step out of the training sessions until it's done."
Alexis's brow knit almost immediately, but Julian lifted a hand before she could say anything.
"That doesn't mean everything stops." he added calmly. "Jaden will still be here. And honestly?" He glanced sideways at the Slifer student. "For some of this, he's the better guide anyway."
Jaden straightened, blinking. "Wait, really?"
"Yes, really. Try not to emotionally bulldoze them into enlightenment while I'm gone. They don't need a cannon of flare at their faces." Julian said dryly. "Go easy with the good-vibes on them, hippie-boy."
"We'll all be singing Kumbaya when you return. Get your snip-snippers ready, I'll build you those trees.".
Julian turned toward the path leading back toward campus, then paused, glancing over his shoulder with a faint, knowing smile.
"And when I get back…" he added, voice light but edged with challenge. "Let's see if you can surprise me."
His gaze flicked briefly to each of them, measured, encouraging.
"Because I'll be coming back with a blue jacket."
A beat. Then he started walking. Blue-Eyes Burger awaited.