Thanks to ClampLover for beta-ing this story for me.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

Letting Go

Yuuki Juudai clutched the picture in his hands to his chest. It was his pride and joy, something that he had been working on for the past week, and finally, it was done. It was his entry for the Kaiba Corporation 'Design a Duel Monster Card Contest.' It had taken him a week to get Neos just right, but now it was finished and perfect.

Juudai threw a glance at his closet, before hurrying out of his room. He had stuffed Yubel in a shoebox in the bottom of his closet a week earlier after she had hurt Osamu. He could feel Yubel's anger and hurt from the closet and shuddered before shutting the door to his room.

He walked to the table and found the white envelope his mother had set out for him before she left for work. It had already been addressed, and Juudai simply slipped the picture inside before he licked the envelope and sealed it. Envelope grasped tightly in his hand, Juudai made his way to the front door. He slipped his red sneakers on before slipping out the door and calling a soft good-bye to Yubel. Yubel may have been hurting him and his friends for the past month, but ignoring her was hurting him too. The least he could do was say goodbye, even if she couldn't hear him.

Juudai made his way to the post box on the corner of his street. He slipped the envelope into the metal slot and silently hoped his entry would win. He didn't want to win because he got to create a duel monsters card, although he was pretty excited for that. No, he wanted to win so he could help Yubel. Yubel had been acting differently for the past month. She had seemed…overprotective, he guessed that was the word for it. She had hurt his friends because she said they had hurt him. They hadn't. He might have sniffled a little and his eyes might have teared up, but he wasn't hurt. Yubel didn't seem to understand. She used to understand...at least he thought she did. After all, the tree outback was still standing after he tried to fly out of it, and ended up crying after he broke his leg.

He wanted to win so he could ask Kaiba-san to send Yubel up into space along with Neos. Yubel had mentioned the Gentle Darkness before, and he had heard the people from Kaiba Corp. mention that the card sent into space would be infused with space energy. He was really hoping they were the same thingand that, if Yubel fused with it, she would become her normal self.

When Juudai returned to his house, he kicked off his sneakers at the front door and sat down on the couch. He didn't want to be home. It was lonely there, and Yubel would keep filling the house with angry vibes. She couldn't actually materialize, since Juudai had buried her card in his closet, but that wasn't stopping her from sending nasty vibes.

He wanted to play with someone, but he didn't have any friends now. Everyone was scared of him after Yubel had hurt those people. He couldn't go over to Osamu's house, like he usually did when something was bothering him, or when he wanted someone to play with. Osamu was still in the hospital thanks to a certain Duel Monster's card. He couldn't visit Osamu in the hospital either for that matter. He had been banned after Osamu's condition had gotten worse when he had entered the room on more than one occasion.

He wanted to beg one of his parents to stay home with him, but he knew if he did he would be forced to go to school. He had been skipping school for awhile now. Everyone hated him, and he couldn't stand the loneliness and isolation from his peers. Juudai honestly didn't know if his parents were clueless to him skipping school like everything else, or if they simply didn't care. It didn't matter either way really. Whether he was at home or school, Juudai was alone and he hated it.

It was a week later when the contest winner was announced, and Juudai was ecstatic to know that he had won. Now he could help Yubel, and hopefully he could get his friends back so he wouldn't be lonely anymore. He was also excited that Kaiba Seto was going to congratulate him in person. Not every nine-year-old could say they actually meet Kaiba Seto in person.

The next day was the day that Juudai was going to go to Kaiba Corp and would meet Kaiba Seto. As excited as Juudai was about this and getting to help Yubel, he was still nervous about one thing. At the moment, his hand was currently poised over the closet door knob, and Yubel's anger was hitting him full force. He had to take Yubel with him if he wanted to help her, but he wasn't looking forward to the conversation between the two that would follow.

Juudai mustered up his courage and opened the closet door. He began to unstack the boxes and other things that he had piled atop that one shoe box. When he reached the shoe box, he pulled it out the closet. He lifted the lid and quickly shoved Yubel's card into his back pocket hoping she wouldn't appear, hoping she wouldn't say or do anything. He had no such luck because Yubel materialized behind him and grabbed his wrist before he could run out the door. Yubel turned him around to face her and kept a firm grip on his shoulders so he couldn't runaway.

"Why have you been treating me like this? Why did you bury me in your closet for two weeks?"

Juudai kept his head bowed, refusing to make eye contact and squirmed under the intense gaze that Yubel had focused on him. He hoped that maybe she would go back into her card if he didn't answer, but he had no such luck. Yubel took Juudai's chin in her hand and tilted his head up until he was forced to look at her. He tried to look anywhere but at her, however, Yubel would have none of that.

"Look at me when I speak to you, Juudai," Yubel commanded as she brought her face closer to Juudai's.

Juudai didn't like the intense gaze that he was forced to look into. He started to squirm in discomfort and began to break out in a sweat. Yubel's sharp grasp was starting to hurt too. Her fingernails were like claws, and they were digging into his skin.

"Stop, Yubel. You're hurting me." His voice came out in a whine, and he tried to look away from her.

"You hurt me too, Juudai, but you didn't stop when I asked you to, so why should I?"

"I'm sorry, Yubel," Juudai said as tears began to well up in his eyes from the pain and the discomfort.

"It's alright, Juudai. There's no need to cry," Yubel told him gently as she reached up with her other hand to wipe the tears away, and run her hand lovingly on his face.

"Will you let go now?" he asked softly

"After you tell me why you locked me in the closet."

Juudai didn't want to tell her why. She would get mad, madder then she had been moments ago. She would be furious if Juudai told she was in the wrong, but he had no choice.

"It's because you had been hurting everyone, especially Osamu."

Yubel wasn't happy with this answer and it showed. Her gaze switched from one of tender and loving to cold and hard. Juudai gulped in response

"They were making you cry, Juudai. They. Were. Hurting. You," Yubel hissed, enunciating every syllable clearly and brought their faces inches apart.

"No they weren't," he replied trying to move backwards, trying to put space in between them. However, Yubel just pulled him closer.

"I'm your protector, and I did what I must."

"You weren't protecting meyou were hurting me. Besides you aren't my protector!" he shouted angrily as he finally pulled himself out of Yubel's tight grasp. Her nails, however, left thin red scratches on his cheeks

Yubel gasped and was taken aback by what he said; it stung. She had given up her humanity, her beauty, just to protect him, and what was her thanks? To be told she wasn't his protector. She wanted to slap him, to yell at him, but she didn't. She had to remind herself that he didn't remember their past life together. He didn't remember the sacrifice she had made.

Juudai turned and ran out of the room. He ran to the front door and jammed his feet into his sneakers before taking off again. He started to run to Kaiba Corp while the tears streamed down his face. He didn't like the new Yubel; he wanted the old one back. The old one wouldn't have hurt his fiends. The old one would have stopped when he said she was hurting him. She would have comforted him instead of causing pain. He didn't want to hate Yubel, but he couldn't love the new Yubel.

He began to calm down, unable to run anymore, and dried his face on his sleeve. He knew Yubel would return soon. She couldn't be separated from her card after a certain distance. He just hoped she would stay in the card this time. He didn't think he would be able to handle talking to her anymore.

He felt her presence in his back pocket and was happy when she stayed there. Maybe Yubel was starting to go back to normal, but when he though about it more, that was unlikely. If Yubel had returned to normal then she would be comforting him right now. The process of going back to normal could be starting though. That would explain why Yubel wasn't comforting him or tormenting him. Still, either way, he was still going to ask to send her up into space.

When the glass doors of Kaiba Corp. came into view, Juudai began to push the argument with Yubel to the back of his mind. He began to put on the front of a happy nine-year-old who had just won a contest. He couldn't let the argument with Yubel affect him in case it would make them not want to send her up into space.

He walked inside and was greeted by a lady sitting behind a desk.

"Hello, what can we do for you?"

Juudai walked over to the desk before responding, "I'm Yuuki Juudai, the boy who one the Duel Monster contest."

"Kaiba- sama has been expecting you Juudai-kun. I'll take you up to see him."

The lady got up and led Juudai to the elevator. Inside the elevator Juudai was amazed at the number of buttons inside. The lady hit the top one, and the elevator began to rise. As it did, Juudai became nervous. He was becoming afraid that Kaiba wouldn't send Yubel up into space. Juudai didn't know what he would do if it didn't happen.

When the elevator reached the top, it gave a ding before opening. Juudai was led down a long hallway to a door. The lady stopped at the door and knocked on it before calling, "Yuuki Juudai, the winner of the contest, is here."

"Send him in," was the response Juudai heard through the door.

The lady opened the door before ushering Juudai in and closing the door behind him. The room was bigger than Juudai expectedand was furnished with a desk at the other end. A man sat in a chair with his back to Juudai. The man began to turn as he heard Juudai's feet shuffling in the carpet as he made his way toward the desk hesitantly.

"Congratulation," the man, Kaiba Seto he assumed, said in a flat tone.

Juudai wasn't expecting the man to be so uncaring. It made him even more nervous to go up to the desk and ask for a favor.

"Um, I was wondering…if you could…maybe…" Juudai muttered as he stood in front of the desk wringing his hands and looking down at his feet.

"What is it?" Kaiba asked in the same voice that he had congratulated Juudai in.

"If you could send another card up into space too," Juudai blurted out as he brought his head up to look at Kaiba.

"It possible," Kaiba replied reclining in his chair. "Do you have this card with you?"

"Yes." Juudai pulled Yubel's card out of his pocket and slid it across the desk to Kaiba.

Kaiba picked it up and contemplated it.

"Yubel, huh. This is a pretty rare card, kid. You sure you want to send it up to space?"

"Yes," Juudai replied looking back down at his toes ashamed, of what he was about to do.

"You do know that we don't know when the cards will come back from space. You might never see this card again. Do you still want to send it up?"

"Yes."

"Okay then. I'll hold on to it and send it up in a separate capsule when we send Neos up."

"Thanks," Juudai replied bowing, and then began to leave. Tears began to form in his eyes, and he heard Yubel yelling things at him in his head.

Outside the lady was waiting for him, and Juudai rubbed his sleeve across his face drying his tears before they could fall. She made sure he got back to the first floor so he could leave. Once Juudai was out of the building, he began running for home crying. He hated doing this, but Yubel needed him too. He just hoped his friends would return, otherwise the loneliness of Yubel being gone would be unbearable.

Authors note: I'm not really happy with the ending. It been giving me trouble for two months. ClampLover had suggestions for me when she beta-ed it but they didn't work. The ending was longer but the scenes were sketchy and lacked detail. I would have revised them but I really didn't know where I was going with it. Not to mention that the other ending keep going, write about season three. I'm not a multi-chapter fic person (which is what it was begging to be). Every time I try it usually fails after a couple of chapter.

So yeah, sorry if the ending left much to be desired.