Just a disclaimer to say, that Yu-Gi-Oh doesn't belong to me. All characters are owned by others. I'm merely using them in this fanfic for fun.
A Maiden's Quest – Heart Four
Blair made the familiar walk up the stairs to Room 204 again. She intended to have Konami help her take some more pictures of graduating students. She approached to see the already open door to see her partner at his desk again, frantically searching through all his cards. His room was a mess with pieces of paper scattered everywhere.
"Um…. Konami?" She asked trying to get his attention. The boy turned his face to her and smiled despite looking extremely worried. "What's the matter?"
"Deck building." He answered. "Now where did I put that extra Call of the Haunted?"
"Why are you so worried about your deck?" Blair asked as she picked up a piece of paper to find it had a deck recipe on it. "Isn't your current one good enough?"
Konami held out a letter. "Got this a few hours ago."
Blair took the letter and started to read. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. It was from Seto Kaiba himself. Blair continued reading the letter, to realise it was a compliant over his use of the Blue Eyes White Dragon. Kaiba also claimed Pegasus most have printed it with his knowledge to mess with him. Further use of it, Kaiba warned, would see him barred from any tournaments sponsored by Kaiba Corp.
"Huh." Blair said once she finished reading it. "Is he allowed do this? Isn't this against the rules or something?"
Konami responded with a simple raise of an eyebrow. Blair nodded, realising the probable answer to this question. "At least it's not all bad news." Konami said. "I've got Kaiba's autograph now!"
Blair just laughed at her friends up beat response. "You're such a fanboy!"
"Still it is worrying that I have to build a new deck. This could take a while."
"Well, how long have you been at it so far?"
Konami thought about that for a few seconds. "Since about 4AM."
"OK, that's it Konami." She said walking over to him and grabbing him by the back of his shirt. "It's time for you to take a break from this. And you're in luck, we have something to do. I've been helping Hassleberry with the yearbook. There are some people I need to take pictures of, so we can go do this now."
"Come on, Blair!" the Slifer whined. "This is super important! I have to build an awesome deck!"
"And how good do you think a deck will be if you make it half asleep?" Blair asked, not letting go of her partner. "Besides, isn't it the job of a Knight to help out his Maiden?"
Konami blushed slightly at that. "Don't phrase it like that. It makes it sound like we're…"
Blair's face heated up when she realised what he meant. She pulled her partner out of the room despite his protests of needing to complete his deck. The Obelisk was determined to spend their last few weeks as partners doing something together and, knowing how Konami could be when it came to deck building, she wasn't going to let him spend all his time shut in his room battle testing his deck.
As they made their way down the stairs, Blair saw someone whose photo she had yet to take. "Chazz!" she called out.
The black haired boy turned to face her, barely hiding a sneer. "…..? Oh, it's you. It's been one busy day after another for me since I turned Pro, but….." He gave the team a quick look up and down. "You guys seem to be doing nothing at all!"
Blair took a step back offended. "W-we're busy too! I'm taking pictures for the yearbook."
"You're not going to try and take MY picture are you?" Chazz asked, not trying to hide his sneer or the disdain in his voice now.
"I – I thought I might!" Blair said looking surprised at Chazz's reaction. "It is your yearbook after all. Don't you want to be in it!?"
"Of course I do!" Chazz said. "And all my fans demand I be in it too! But a picture of a Pro duelist is as valuable as money itself! I can't let you just take my picture for free!"
Konami knew these two never saw eye to eye but Chazz was being unbelievably petty here. He could see that Blair started to shake from the rage over Chazz's attitude. He quickly went to calm her down before the situation got out of hand.
"You're the worst! You never change!" Blair yelled, letting out all her frustrations at the rich boy. "And I was trying to be nice and not get mad at you, too! Who cares if you're a Pro now!? Stop showing off! Chazz!"
Chazz looked taken aback before settling on a snarl. "Why you …! It's "The Chazz" to you!"
'Well,' Konami thought to himself, 'there goes any chance of solving this peacefully.'
"Duel me!" Blair yelled. "If I win, you have to let me take your picture!"
Chazz laughed. "You're actually challenging a Pro duelist? …Very well! But if you lose ….. You have to do the chores for my fan club!"
Blair flinched at the thought of having to do that deeming work. "Ugh….. Oh, all right! But it's going to be a tag duel!"
"Sounds good. Hey Konami! If you lose, you'll have to do chores for my fan club too!"
Konami suddenly went pale. "Wait, Chazz! Isn't Wisteria a part of your fan club now!?"
"She sure is! She recognised the greatness that is the Chazz! Why?"
Konami quickly turned to face Blair. "We can't lose. I can't deal with Wisteria."
Her partner's strange antics momentarily brought Blair's attention away from Chazz. "Why?"
"She's still mad at me." Konami explained, his eyes wide with fear.
"C'mon, Konami." Blair said not understanding her friends concern. "Surely it can't be that bad."
"No! Next time she sees me, she said she'll cut my….cut my… cut my hat into tiny pieces." Konami said, nearly started crying at the thought of being separated from his precious hat.
Blair sighed at her friend's antics before quickly turning her attention back to Chazz. "Who's your partner?"
"Humph! I'm a Pro! Anyone is fine! … Him!" Chazz pointed at Bastion, who had just been standing there waiting for someone to acknowledge him.
"Bastion!?" Konami said extremely confused. "When did you get here!?"
"I've been here the entire time!" The Ra shouted.
"….I thought you were in the other dimension with-"
"That's enough stalling, slacker!" Chazz yelled. "Time to show you what a Pro can do!"
"All right then! Come on, Chazz! This will be our last duel ever!" Blair shouted.
Chazz let out a frustrated roar. "It's "The Chazz" to you!"
"It's time to duel!" Konami yelled as his eyes flashed red.
TURN 1 – BLAIR&KONAMI 8000LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 8000LP
"I'll start. Draw!" Blair yelled. "I'll Summon Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress in Attack Mode." (ATK: 1700).
A raven haired woman dressed in white robes appeared on the field. She was the epitome of elegance and grace as she softly landed on the ground.
"I'll play one card face down and end my turn. Due to Lyla's effect I send the top two cards of my deck to grave." Blair sent Garoth and Card Destruction to the Graveyard.
TURN 2 – CHAZZ&BASTION 8000LP VS BLAIR&KONAMI 8000LP
"Ha! Not a bad move … for a slacker!" Chazz shouted, with a sneer on his face. "I'll show you how it's done!" Chazz grimaced when he realised his hand didn't back up his trash talk. "I'll set one Monster face down and set a card. I'll end my turn."
TURN 3 – BLAIR&KONAMI 8000LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 8000LP
"So much for showing us how it's done." Konami said, drawing his card. "I'll Summon Luster Dragon in Attack Mode." (ATK: 1900).
A blue Dragon appeared on Konami's side of the field beside Lyla. It roared as it saw the face down Monster.
"Looks like my Dragon can't wait to Attack. And I won't hold it back. Go, Luster Dragon, Attack his face down!" The blue Dragon rushed forward and slashed the Monster, revealing it to be Masked Dragon.
Chazz smirked as he explained his strategy. "I'll activate my Monster's effect and special Armed Dragon LV3 in Attack Mode!" (ATK: 1200).
An orange Dragon rose from the shattered remains of the Masked Dragon, roaring once it appeared on the field.
"I t won't be there for long." Konami said. "I'll Attack it with Lyla. Go, wipe out his Monster." Lyla shot a ball of light at the Dragon causing it to explode. Chazz raised his arms to protect himself. "I'll end my turn with one face down. Lyla sends the top two cards of my deck to the Graveyard." A second Luster Dragon and an Exploder Dragon where placed in Konami's Graveyard.
TURN 4 – CHAZZ&BASTION 7500LP VS BLAIR&KONAMI 8000LP
"My move. Draw!" Bastion shouted. "I'll activate Foolish Burial to send a Batteryman AA to the Graveyard. Next, I'll activate Premature Burial by paying 800LP and revive that Batteryman in Attack Mode. Next, I'll Summon another Batteryman AA, also in Attack Mode." (ATK: 0).
Two short orange men with batteries for torsos appeared on the field. They both suddenly doubled in size.
"What?" Konami asked confused. "Was there a glitch in the hologram system?"
"No, no, no, Konami, old pal." Bastion explained. "When all the Batterymen AA on my side of the field are in Attack Mode, they gain 1000 Attack Points. As there are two of them they both go up to 2000 Attack Points."
"Ah. Not good." Blair said.
"Not good indeed." Bastion said. "I'll have my Batterymen Attack both your Luster Dragon and Lyla." The two orange men ran at their opponents before electrocuting them. The two Monsters smashed into pixels. "With that I'll end my turn."
TURN 5 – BLAIR&KONAMI 7600LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 6700LP
"Heh. That was a good move." Blair conceded. "But I'll just have to up my game. First, from my hand I'll activate Mystical Space Typhoon on your Premature Burial, destroying one of your Batterymen."
"Ah. No!" Bastion exclaimed as one of his orange men were blown away. His remaining Batteryman saw its Attack Points drop to 1000.
"Next, I'll Summon Jain, Lightsworn Paladin in Attack Mode!" (ATK: 1800).
A white haired knight rose from the light to stand confidently on the field. Batteryman looked back at Bation visibly worried about what would happen next.
"Now, my Jain will Attack your Batteryman AA. When she does she'll gain 300 Attack Points, raising her Attack to 2100." The paladin's sword cut through the small orange man. Bastion raised his duel disk to block the shattered Monster's pixels. "I'll end my turn by sending the top two cards of my deck to the Graveyard due to Jain's effect." Monster Reincarnation and Lumina were sent to the Graveyard.
TURN 6 – CHAZZ&BASTION 5600LP VS BLAIR&KONAMI 7600LP
"Gggrrrrrrrr!" Chazz growled. How could a Pro like him been shown up so far like this? "Draw. Oh, great! You!"
Konami stood there as he saw a small, strange bikini bottom wearing figure appear over Chazz's shoulder. "Come on, boss. I'll get ya out of this mess! Let me at 'em!"
"Fine." Chazz barked. "I'll activate Polymerization and fuse my Ojama Yellow with my King of the Swamp to Summon Ojama Knight in Defence Mode!" (DEF: 2500).
A small knight in clunky looking armour appeared on the field, with its yellow antenna like eye sockets poking out of the eye holes.
"Not only will he act like a defensive wall for me," Chazz said, his smug smirk firmly back on his face, "he'll also stop you Summoning in two of your Monster Zones. With that I'll end my turn, with a face down."
TURN 7 – BLAIR&KONAMI 7600LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 5600LP
'Huh. I'll need to think of something to stop that Ojama from locking us down completely.' Konami thought as he drew his card. 'I've nothing that can take him out this turn. But Dandylion could be helpful later on and Double or Nothing could be handy to have around.'
"I'll Summon Masked Dragon in Attack Mode and I'll end my turn." (ATK: 1400).
"Not so fast!" Chazz yelled. "I'll activate my Ring of Destruction on your Jain, Lightsworn Paladin destroying that and inflicting its Attack Points to both of us as damage."
"However, I'll activate my Ring of Defence, stopping us from taking any damage!" Bastion yelled.
"Oh, great!" Konami yelled as the ring locked itself around Jain's neck before detonating.
'For two guys who don't like each other, they sure just pulled off a good combo there.' Konami thought.
TURN 8 – CHAZZ&BASTION 5600LP VS BLAIR&KONAMI 5800LP
"My turn. Draw!" Bation yelled. "I'll activate Monster Reborn to bring back my Batteryman AA. Next, I'll use him to Tribute Summon Zaborg the Thunder Monarch in Attack Mode!" (ATK: 2400).
Suddenly the sky above turned dark grey as thunder rumbled in the sky overhead. A lightning bolt hit the revealing a gigantic armour clad Monster with green hair.
"When my Zaborg is Tribute Summoned, I can select one Monster on the field and destroy it. As you only have one I'll destroy your Masked Dragon." The monarch swung its titanic fist as it smashed the Dragon into the ground.
'Oh, Ra!' Konami thought to himself. 'We're wide open.'
"Go, Zaborg! Attack Konami directly!" The titanic Monster swung its fist once again as Konami dove out of the way to avoid the brunt of its impact. He still was left shaken by the blow.
"With that I'll end my turn with two face downs."
TURN 9 – BLAIR&KONAMI 3400LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 5600LP
"We're in a tough spot here, Blair." Konami said looking over at his partner.
Blair smiled as she responded with, "How many times have you said that over the years?"
Chazz started laughing as he reminded them what was at stake. "Remember if you lose, you have to do the chores for my fan club."
Konami shuddered as Blair drew her card. 'Nothing to make a comeback with, but it'll see us to next turn.' "I'll set one card face down and set one reverse card as well. I end my turn."
"I'll activate the Call of the Haunted that Bastion set to bring back my Armed Dragon LV3." Chazz declared, seeing his small orange Dragon reappear on the field.
TURN 10 – CHAZZ&BASTION 5600LP VS BLAIR&KONAMI 5800LP
"Ha! Now that we've entered my Standby Phase, I'll level up my Armed Dragon LV3 to LV5!" The small orange Dragon faded into the light as it grew and gave rise to a much larger red Dragon. "Now I'll activate Level Up to turn LV5 into LV7!" The red dragon quickly disappeared back into the light as another even larger Dragon again took its place. (ATK: 2800).
"Uh oh….." Konami exclaimed.
"Bit of understatement there, slacker!" Chazz yelled. "Now, Armed Dragon Attack their face down! Armed Punisher!"
Konami looked over at Blair, hoping that she had a plan. She gave him a reassuring smile as the Armed Dragon hit her Marshmallon.
"Now, not only is my Marshmallon not destroyed, you also take 1000 points of Damage." Blair said.
"Heh. Big whoop." Chazz shouted back. "Not like that small fry will be around for too much longer. I'll activate Armed Dragon's effect. I'll discard Armed Dragon LV3 to destroy your Marshmallon." The Dragon swung its claw once more as it finally cut through the small creature. "With that I'll end my turn.
TURN 11 – BLAIR&KONAMI 3400LP VS CHAZZ&BASTION 4600LP
"Snip, snip, snip, Konami. I can hear the sound of Wisteria's scissors approaching." Chazz taunted as Red Hat drew his card.
Konami looked at the Blue Eyes he drew with a determination on his face. "You know, Chazz, you can joke about a lot of things but when you joke about my hat being destroyed, you've crossed a line! I'll activate the Jar of Greed that Blair set last turn to draw a card."
Konami looked at the Pot of Greed he drew. He quickly activated it. 'I need to draw a card from this that helps me Summon Blue Eyes. Otherwise, we're toast. Time for a Destiny Draw!'
Konami drew his two cards with his eyes closed. He opened them to see what he had drawn and couldn't hold back his grin.
"Alright, here we go!" He yelled. "First of all, I'll activate Lighting Vortex. By discarding my Dandylion from hand I can destroy all the face up Monsters on your side of the field."
"What!? No!" Chazz and Bastion yelled in unison, as all they're Monsters were destroyed.
"Now because my Dandylion was sent to the Graveyard I can Summon Two Fluff Tokens." Two small baby Dandylions appeared in front of Konami. "But they won't be hanging around for long, because I'm using them as tribute to Summon my ace Monster, the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon!"
Once again, clouds suddenly formed over head. A blue light cut through the clouds, tearing them asunder. A white Dragon slowly lowered down emerging from the hole in the clouds, letting out a vicious roar as it did so.
"Now, Attack Blue Eyes! White Lightning!" Konami yelled.
"Not so fast slacker!" Chazz interrupted. "I'll activate the Negate Attack that Bastion set last turn to stop your Attack. You're going to have to do better than that against a Pro like me!"
Konami's grin grew wider. "Don't worry, Chazz. I got more than just that in me. I'll activate the Double or Nothing card in my hand. When a Monster of mine has its Attack negated, I can have that Monster Attack again with its Attack Points doubled."
"What!?" Chazz said, going a shade paler than normal.
"Go, Blue Eyes! End this with a double powered White Lighting!" Konami roared once more.
The vicious Dragon let out a blast of white energy that blew Chazz away, causing a massive explosion on the Duel Field.
"That's game!" Konami said.
BLAIR&KONAMI 3400LP (WIN) VS CHAZZ&BASTION 0000LP (LOSE)
"Grrr ….. I can't believe it!"Chazz was spitting with fury.
"Not bad, huh?" Blair said, sounding smug.
"W-Well of course I lost! It was two against one! But I'm a man of my word! I may have had a terrible handicap but a loss is a loss! Go ahead and take your picture!" Chazz looked back at the door to his room before continuing on. "By the way … You can have my room if you want!"
"Hm…..?" That was all Blair could murmur in response. Konami was also shocked beyond words. This was undoubtedly the nicest Chazz had ever been to Blair since she first came to the school.
"I was going to tear it down before I left, but ….. It looks like you're still using it, so ….. I changed my mind!" Chazz sounded hesitant at first but seemed genuine in his desire to give Blair his room.
Blair looked down at her feet and started scuffing her feet again. "Chazz …. Um ….. Ever since I first met you, I … Well, I've been kind of harsh on you …. I'm sorry ….. Take today, for example, I knew I had to take a picture for the yearbook, so I was gonna try and make you smile … I didn't want to make you angry …. I …. I'm sorry about before ….. About saying that this would be our last duel …. I would love to duel you again someday!"
Chazz looked like he was completely caught off guard by the sincerity of Blair's apology. He turned to face Konami. "Hey! Since I've been here I've improved a lot as a duelist. My connection to my cards has improved. I appreciate them and respect that it's not just absolute power that can win you the duel. If it wasn't for you and Jaden pushing me to realise this and being worthy rivals for me to keep me striving to improve, I mightn't have come as far as I have! But don't think this is the end for me! Because "The Chazz" is only going to keep improving! And I'm going to face you again on the Pro Circuit! Next time, I'll win!"
"U-Uhh? Chazz?" Konami started before the Pro duelist turned back to the Obelisk girl.
"*ahem*! Hey! What're you standing around for!?" He shouted before breaking into an unusual soft smile. "I thought you came to take my picture! I'll make an exception for today only! Take as many shots of the future King of Games as you like! Just make sure I look good! Got it?"
"S-Sure! Thanks!" Blair said as she readied her camera. "I'll do my best to make you look great! Hey you! Bastion! Get in the picture too!"
As Bastion walked over, Konami held out his hand. "Hey, Bastion. I realised I never properly said thanks for all your help back when we were in first year. I definitely wouldn't have made it through all those classes without your help. I'm sorry I didn't pay you the attention you deserved or respected you as much as I should have. Sorry that that I let us drift apart after first year. I regret that."
Bastion had tears welling in his eyes as he pulled Konami in for a hug. The Slifer could hear the click of the camera as Blair took photos, while even Chazz gave Bastion an affectionate slap on the back. Konami threw his arms around both the other two duelists as Blair took a photo of the three of them. Their futures after Duel Academy were still uncertain, yet Red Hat knew one thing for certain. Everyone here has grown so much over the three years and he couldn't wait to see how much everyone would improve in the years to come.
Blair continued to take pictures of the three of them until the batteries started to go flat. The three boys left to go to the store to compete in a competition to see who had the best drawing power when it came to the sandwiches. Blair stayed behind to find some spare batteries in Konami's room, knowing that he always kept spare supplies there.
"Go!" Chazz yelled as the students dived at the pile of sandwiches to select their pick. "Ha! Lobster sandwich! Clearly I win!"
"Oh, I think not!" Bastion shouted, holding his Top Grade Salad sandwich high in the air. "It is obvious I am the victor here!"
Konami merely laughed at their antics, drawing the ire of them both.
"Hey! Slacker! What's so funny!?"
"Yes! Konami! Explain yourself!"
"Sorry boys." Konami said holding up his sandwich. "But read 'em and weep!"
Chazz and Bastion both took a step back before yelling in unison, "Ah! The Golden Egg Sandwich! That's not possible!"
Dorothy and Saddie watched the boys break out into a scuffle to get the sandwich. The two of them yelled frantically trying to stop them before they knocked any of the products over. Konami couldn't help but enjoy himself, despite the frantic battle. While he may be looking forward to the new duels and opponents that awaited him after school, he was terrified at the thought of leaving Duel Academy. He had grown so used to this place. What if the world outside wasn't as good as he hoped? What if he never meets any of his goals or fulfils any dreams out there? What if everyone just drifted apart once they left?
The thought of being away from all his friends hurt him more than he would openly admit. As much as he was dueling to create memories for Blair, it was also to have memories for himself. He worried about how Blair would do next year. Would she simply move on and find a new tag partner? Would she just forget about him? If he is successful in creating memories that last a lifetime in these next few weeks, than surely she'll remember him.
Until then, he was going to treasure the moments he could goof off and just be ridiculous like this. Who knew when he'd next get the chance to mess around like this again?
While all this was going on, Blair was searching through Konami's room. He had completely turned the place upside down with his deck building earlier. The spare batteries weren't in their normal shelf. Blair had searched everywhere she could think of without moving his cards and recipes. Eventually she moved things around as she rearranged and cleaned everything up. She picked up the sheet of paper containing a recipe for a Black Luster Soldier deck, when suddenly she knocked a framed photo off the desk.
Thankfully, Konami had thrown his clothes everywhere as well, meaning it had a soft landing. Blair picked up to check that nothing was broken when she realised what the photo was of. It was her and Konami holding hands the day they beat Jaden and Jesse. The sun was setting in the background and the photo was artistically taken. No doubt Atticus' work. Blair blushed as she looked at the photo. If she didn't know any better she would think she was looking at a picture of a couple.
And for some reason that she couldn't quite explain that idea didn't bother her. In fact it left a warm feeling in her heart. One that was stronger than what she felt for Zane or Jaden. A feeling that told her being with Konami was right. It was felt so natural. Blair hands started to shake and tears welled up in her eyes as she thought of losing Konami in a few weeks. It hurt so much. It felt like losing part of her. Why did the thought of losing him hurt so much more compared to everyone else? They were also her friends, so why didn't their departures hurt as much?
Suddenly, Alexis' words rung in ears as clear as the day she spoke them:
"Being able to come right out and say you like something or someone ….. I think it's really great. And I hope you never lose that ability…Really, for Konami's sake, I hope you never lose that ability."
That's when it finally hit Blair. She wasn't sure when it happened or how long she had already known deep down. Everything from those weird awkward moments she had when she grabbed Konami's hands to the meaning of Alexis' words was completely clear now. Blair finally understood. She looked back down at the photo as she finally admitted it to herself.
'I love Konami.'
{A/N}
Just to say thanks to everyone who favourited, followed, reviewed or read the story. Much appreciated. The next chapter might be a short enough one that'll come out fairly soon. Thanks so much again and I hope you enjoyed.