Paladin: Aww, look at the cute chibi Ari!

Rai: Aww, you were so cute! (pinches Ari's cheek)

Ari: (slaps hand away) Paladin, you are so dead!

Yam: Don't get your trousers in a bunch. He's just having some fun.

Paladin: Ooh! And here's Yam when he was a baby!

Yam: You are so dead!

Ari: Relax, he's just having some fun.

Sol: He doesn't have pictures of us when we were kids.

Paladin: Or do I?

Shadow: I thought we burned them all!

Paladin: Nope, you didn't!

Rai: Get him!

Paladin: No, the pictures are mine! I shall use them for blackmail! Mwahahahaha!

Shadow: Paladin doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but he will own his right to death.

Orphaned Ch.2

Yam POV

We soon started the party "games," and everybody rushed to face other people, not to our surprise. But since there were eleven other people at the party, not counting our "mother," one other person had to face one of us, which obviously ended in defeat. For them, not for us, otherwise we wouldn't be the kings of duel monsters. Or any game as a matter of fact. I mean, we don't each have the title "Yu-Gi-Oh" for no reason. But there must be a reason for our awesome gaming skills.

Unlucky Mokie was the one who had to face me, my two siblings facing each other unnecessarily, and within moments I'd won. [Don't ask me for the major details of the duel, because I'm having one big splurge for the last duel. Or Yami/Yugi's duels against my characters.] Which then brought us to the second round, with Ari, Rai, me, Yami, Seto, Joey, Yugi, and Bakura all advancing.

And guess who I had to face? Mr. "King of Games," as he likes to call himself even though he has never beaten me, nor my brothers, once!

"Let's duel!" We said in unison. It went all downhill from there for him.

Yami:4000
Yam:4000

"Birthday privileges Yami, you go first." I mocked.

"Oh, sooo generous." Yami stuck out his tongue at me like an immature person would do, and let's face it, he might be 18, but everyone, no matter the age, loves to just let loose and act immature every once in awhile. "I draw!" He obviously drew a card, simply glanced at it, and I could practically see the gears in his head spinning as he tried formulating a plan to allow him not to lose so horribly. "I set one monster in defense mode, and I set three cards. I then proceed to activate swords of revealing light, preventing you from attacking me for your next three turns."

"Big deal you know that I rarely attack. I mainly deal effect damage, so that was just a waste of card space." I was nearly laughing at his weak attempt to save himself. Yet, he's smarter than that. What is he hiding? [I forgot to add that italics are thoughts, my bad!] For now, all I can do is bide my time and see what his master plan is. "I draw!" I drew my card, and I drew Hinotama, a spell card that deals 500 damage to my opponent. In my hand I had Mystical Beast Cerberus, a monster with 1400 atk/1400 def, and he gains 500 atk every time a spell card is activated; Ookazi, a spell card that dishes out 500 damage; Summoned Skull (2500/1000) [sorry if the stats are wrong. But I will keep them constant so it won't be 2500/1000 one time, then 3000/500 the next, unless it has a bonus on it or something.]; pot of greed; horn of the unicorn, an equip spell-card that gives the monster it's equipped to, hence the name "equip spell-card," a 700 atk point boost.

Okay. If I summon Cerberus, then I could hit him hard with hinotama and ookazi to hit him hard and equip cerberus with my horn, then use my pot to draw two cards. Cerberus will be at... 4100 atk points then, practically unstoppable.

"Okay, I summon my Mystical Beast Cerberus-"

"Not so fast. I activate trap hole, so your Cerberus gets destroyed." Grr, I knew I should've been more cautious. But oh well. I haven't lost yet, and I'm not planning on it now.

"Fine. I activate pot of greed to draw two more cards." I drew Kuriboh and my sparks. "I activate my sparks to deal 200 damage to you-"

"Which I counter with Waboku, meaning I take no damage this turn, no matter what. Beat that." I could've sworn I was facing Yami, but he gave me one of the smirks Seto would've. It was sort of unnerving as much as it was a little creepy.

"Grr. I end my turn." This was not going good.

'Want me to help you?'

(No thanks Ari, I got this. Just focus on your duel.)

'What duel?'

(Nevermind.) I was a little bit pissed that I was in second place behind Ari when it came to lady luck. But my strategy was infallible, no matter how long it takes.

"I draw, and I activate card destruction, meaning that we each discard all of our cards and draw the same amount." Good-bye Kuriboh.

I got rid of my five cards to draw five new ones (Monster Reborn; Inferno Tempest, which is a quick-play spell-card that activates when I take 3000 or more damage in a single attack, and my opponent loses 2000 LP; Self-destruct Button [which I plan on changing its effect from "whenever your life points are 7000 lower than your opponent's, the duel is a tie" to "blah-blah-blah 3000 lower yada-yada-yada" for my own purposes] ; Wall of Revealing Light; and my Mystical Space Typhoon), while Yami drew his one. Yet with that one he could change the tide of the battle.

"Next, I sacrifice my Big Shield Gardna to summon my Curse of Dragon."

Curse of Dragon: 2000/1000

"Now, my dragon, attack!"

Yami: 4000 LP
Yam: 2000 LP

"I'll see what you do this turn. Your move."

'There's no way you can win.'

(But there is a way for me to tie.)

I drew my card, which was Diskblade Rider, a Fiend-type monster that gained 500 atk every time I removed-from-play a normal spell-card by his effect, and summoned him, getting rid of sparks to make him 1900/500 now. I then set two traps, which were Wall of Revealing Light and Self-Destruct Button, and ended my turn, feeling quite confident that there was no way for me to lose.

"My move. I draw, and I activate my Giant Trunade-" It's now or never.

"Not so fast! First I activate my Wall of Revealing Light, giving up 1000 of my life points to keep any of your monsters weaker than that from attacking, then I activate my Self-Destruct Button to tie the duel."

Yami: 3000 LP
Yam: 1000 LP

"Why isn't it changing?!" I was getting a little hysterical.

"Because I activated Seven-Tools of the Bandit to negate your Self-Destruct Button. Which means you did that all for naught. Now, my dragon, attack his Rider!"

Yami: 3000 LP
Yam: 900 LP

No, I can't lose! I mustn't lose! I shan't lose! I will win!

I got enveloped in this dark aura that filled me with unimaginable power.

No more gods, no more graves
Are you friend or fiend?

"My move!" I drew my best card that I swore I'd never use again, but Yami forced my hand.

No more life, no more death
Somewhere in between

"This is it!"

'Yam, don't! There has to be another way!'

(There is not another way! I must win!)

'Who are you?'

Well, we're almost dead
Almost dead
Almost dead to the world
Almost dead, almost dead
Almost dead to the world

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos field spell card." I cackled maniacally as the symbol drew itself on the floor, blowing away the floating swords on my side of the field. [bear with me, I know that isn't one of its effects, but the good thing about being a fanfic author is that I can distort reality]

"No!" Ari tried rushing to me, but he started too late, because by the time he reached me, the seal was complete.

Heaven can't save us
Hell is a joke

"Now, I activate Monster Reborn to bring back my Mystical Beast Cerberus, who now is at 1900 atk thanks to my little seal, and I equip him with Horn of the Unicorn."

Cerberus: 3100 atk

"Now, I attack your Curse of Dragon!"

Yami: 1900
Yam: 900

"Yam, stop this! You're going to kill him!" Ari was screaming at me with tears in his eyes.

"I'm sorry brother, but I must do whatever it takes to win, to uphold out title and our honor-"

"What does a stupid title matter when it'll cost losing my brother?!"

No place left to go
What you see you can not believe
But when we rise you'll know

"I need to win!" I said, my voice being distorted by the countless demons residing in my soul.

"You need to tie! Please, Yam! For me." Ari ran to our "mother" crying, our "mom" whispering in hushed tones how everything was going to be all right.

Well, we're almost dead
Almost dead
Almost dead to the world
Almost dead, almost dead
Almost dead to the world

"Your move Yami, unless you want to give up now."

"I don't know the meaning of give up. My move. I set one monster in defense mode, set one card, and end my turn."

"My move. I summon my Blast Magician in attack mode and attack your face down with it."

Blast Magician: 2100 atk
Big Shield Gardna: 2600 def
Yam: 400 LP

"Fine. Now that your Gardna is in attack due to its ability, I attack it with my Cerberus for the kill."

"Not so fast. I activate negate attack, keeping my Gardna safe and ending the battle phase."

"Grr. I HATE losing!"

Well, we're almost dead
Almost dead
Almost dead to the world
Almost dead, almost dead
Almost dead to the world

Yami drew a card, a card that might change everything, which it did, since it's him I'm facing. "I activate the spell card Dark Hole, which destroys every monster on the field." Leaving him wide open as well as me, but knowing him, he has a trick up his sleeve.

Well, we're almost dead

"I draw, and I activate my blue medicine, giving me back 400 LP

Yam: 800 LP

'Yam, stop this madness!'

(What do you think I'm trying to do, and who do you think you are telling me what to do?)

'You're lost Yam. I don't know who you are anymore.'

With both Ari's pleas of help and the darkness that was enveloping me, it was too much for me to take, so I fainted.

[Almost Dead- Crush 40]