Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! or any of its characters. I just want to borrow some of them for a little while. I promise to take good care of them, so please don't sue me!
Chapter 12: THERE'S A FIRST!
When Tea and her friends entered her house, her father rushed up and hugged her. He asked her what had happened, and was very relieved to hear that she her injuries weren't serious. Tea told her father she was going to lie down, but she wanted her friends to keep her company for awhile.
As Tea got settled on her bed, everyone else found a place to sit down. Yami explained to Tea that Vicki was really a duel monster that Joey had summoned from the Shadow Realm.
"Is that really possible? Have you ever heard of anyone else summoning a duel monster from the Shadow Realm like that?" Tea asked Yami.
Tristan suddenly jumped up, and whacked his forehead with his palm. "How could I forget something like that! I saw Bakura summon the 'Man-Eater Bug' and it attacked Kemo and the rest of Pegasus' goons!"
"What?"
"When was that, Tristan?" Yami asked.
"While you and Yugi were battling Pegasus in the Shadow Realm. I had Mokuba's body. Kemo and company were just about to capture me when Bakura showed up. He used the 'Man-Eater Bug' to rescue me. Then he said he wanted Mokuba as his new host body. So I grabbed the Millennium Ring and threw it into the woods below the castle."
"You said you remembered something about 'The Elegant Vixen,' Yami?" Mai asked.
"Yes. 'The Elegant Vixen' was one the most powerful duel monsters, and she was her keeper's favorite until he found an even stronger duel monster. Her keeper was dueling his strongest rival, and he summoned 'The Elegant Vixen' to the field. She ignored one of her keeper's commands, and it cost him the duel. He swore that he would never summon her again. In essence, he banished her to the Shadow Realm, forever." Yami stood up. "We must get to Kaiba's house, he is in great danger."
"Kaiba! Why is that Yami?" Tristan asked.
"Because the High-Priest was keeper of 'The Elegant Vixen,' and he chose the 'Blue Eyes White Dragon' over her. Who else do we know that fits that description?"
"That's why Vicki's been tryin' to pulverize Kaiba ever since she laid eyes on him!" Joey deduced. "I knew there was a reason I liked that girl!"
"She asked a lot of questions about the Blue Eyes yesterday, remember?" Tristan added.
"C'mon everyone, lets go pay Kaiba a visit."
Mai stopped her car in front of the huge gate at the entrance to the Kaiba mansion. She rolled down her car window and said to the guard in the security shack, "This is Mai Valentine, Yugi Mouto and our friends to see Mr. Kaiba."
The guard spoke into the microphone / headphones he was wearing and waited for a reply. The guard replied, "Mr. Kaiba wishes to know if there's a mutt named Wheeler with you?"
"Hey! Watch it!" Joey growled.
"Yes, Joey is here." Mai replied.
"Then proceed. Mr. Kaiba is very eager to see the mutt, Wheeler." The heavy security gates rolled open.
The guard's statement surprised everyone. "Eager to see Joey! There's a first time for everything, I always say." Tristan chuckled.
Mai drove through the gates, up the long driveway, and stopped her car in the mansion's courtyard. Everyone got out and walked up the steps. Joey grabbed the brass knocker and rapped the door with it. The butler opened the door, but before he could say anything, Kaiba called out, "Wheeler! Just the Chihuahua I've been looking for! I have something here that I'd like for you to explain to me. Let them in, Parker." The butler stood aside and everyone entered the foyer. "Come with me." Kaiba turned on his heel and strode into the room behind him. Like Joey, Kaiba was wearing very dark glasses.
Everyone greeted Mokuba as they followed Kaiba into the room, then Mokuba closed the door. The room held a large conference table. Mokuba asked everyone to take a seat. Kaiba strode over to his laptop. "Tell me what you think of this," he commanded as his fingers tapped at the keyboard. The segment of the security video containing Vicki's teleport appeared on a large, overhead screen. Everyone watched silently. "Now, I'll play that again, frame-by-frame." Kaiba used his laptop to rewind the disc and display the stilled images, spacing them to accentuate Vicki's escape from Kaiba's hold and her almost instantaneous appearance several feet behind him. Kaiba stood directly in front of Joey, towering over him. "Alright, Wheeler! Is there something that you forgot to tell me about your little friend?"
"Well, yeah. There is one tiny, liddle thing I forgot to mention...Vicki's really a duel monster from the Shadow Realm. And-"
"Wheeler, if you are toying with me-" Kaiba gritted out as he pulled off his sun glasses to give Joey the full effect of his death glare. Tristan and Tea gasped in surprise when they saw Kaiba's face.
"He isn't, Kaiba." Yami defended Joey. "Vicki IS an ancient duel monster called 'The Elegant Vixen' that Joey somehow managed to summon. We don't know why, but she attacked Tea earlier today. She's after revenge, and we think you are her #1 target." Yami gave the Kaiba brothers a quick run-down of all the information they had assembled about 'The Elegant Vixen.'
After Yami finished, Kaiba folded his arms across his chest and silently gazed at a large oil-painting of the 'Blue Eyes White Dragon' hanging on the wall, his brain quickly checking all the implications, and running possible scenarios based upon the information he'd received. *I was attracted to Vicki because she was my favorite duel monster in another life. She's after me now because I slighted her then. I begin to see some serious drawbacks to selecting and using only the most powerful duel monsters. First Yami, now Vicki. How many of my other enemies from the past are going to show up in my future?*
Everyone in the room watched Kaiba. Everyone, except Tristan, that is. Tristan silently moved to Kaiba's laptop and cautiously pressed some keys. The security video on the screen began to quickly rewind. Tristan used the keyboard to put it in play mode. As it played, all eyes in the room shifted away from Kaiba.
"Mai, what did you say to Kaiba?" Tea asked.
Mai chuckled softly, then shook her head. "I'm not sure I should answer that."
"Aw, c'mon Mai, spill it." Tristan pleaded, adding with a straight face. "It could be vital information that'll save Kaiba."
Mai chuckled harder. "I told Kaiba that Vicki bit his tongue because she'd never been frenched before." Everyone in the room except Mokuba tried to suppress their giggles, but failed. Mokuba just watched his brother with worried eyes.
Kaiba heard what they were discussing behind them, but his mind was still analyzing the dangers Vicki created. Without thinking, he said, "It was a new thing for me, too." Roaring laughter from behind him jerked Kaiba's attention to what he'd just revealed. Kaiba let his arms fall to his sides, his fists clenched. He raised his chin higher, his pride weathering the onslaught of their uncontrolled laughter. *I can see that Mokuba and I will need to have a long talk about all this later...as if I'm some kind of expert.*
Joey said, "Lay off, guys...everyone's gotta start somewhere." Joey's appeal surprised everyone, especially himself. "Well, it's true." Joey shrugged.
Mai reached over and put her hand over Joey's. "I'm sorry I punched you last night. I..."
Joey looked at Mai. "I know ya didn't mean t' slug me, Mai. But after I saw Kaiba's face, I knew I couldn't let ya touch Vicki. I was afraid she'd really hurt ya, and I didn't want that." Joey thought for a moment, then sighed. "I'm sorry, guys. Looks like I put everyone in danger when I summoned her. I just wish I knew how ta send her back, pronto!"
"Yes, Joey, that is the real question, isn't? How do we send her back?" Yami affirmed.
[end chapter 12
Author's note: I hope this explains the double date a little more. I realized that Tristan using Kaiba's computer is doubtful, but he was the one obsessed with finding out about the date.
I'm the first to admit that Kaiba isn't as caustic as he should be. Kaiba is the character that gives me the most trouble !
Thanks to everyone for their reviews. I went back and read the ratings descriptions, and I'm going to bump this to R just to be cautious.]
