Chapter 24: Playing Tricks

Yori didn't mean to miss the call from Anzu. She'd seen a Ghoul running through a crowd and taken off after him, so when her phone rang, she was too preoccupied to answer. But eventually, the Ghoul turned enough corners that she lost him. She cursed to herself, but there was nothing to be done about it, so she checked her phone and returned the call.

To her surprise, it was Yami's voice that answered.

"Are you safe?" he said in lieu of a greeting.

"I'm fine." She frowned. "What's wrong?"

And the more he told her, the deeper her frown got.

"Is she okay now?" she asked.

"Yuugi got her a ride to the hospital, and Tristan went to check on her."

"Where are you right now?"

"On my way to an appointment."

Yori knew she couldn't blame him; if Marik had issued his challenge to her with the same conditions, she would have taken it on as well. What other choice was there?

But even still.

"Promise me you'll be okay."

For a moment, only silence answered her, then, "You trust me, right?"

Despite herself, she almost smiled. Her own words against her.

"Yes," she said.

"Then I'll be fine."

After he hung up, she stared at her empty phone screen.

Yami was forced to take Marik's challenge head-on to protect Anzu and the rest of them. Yori was under no such constraints. If she could find Marik first, there was a chance she could put a stop to everything. She'd tried to find him once with no luck; there was no guarantee this time would turn out any better.

But she had to try.

She'd already been searching for Ghouls, but maybe if she could get a better angle, she'd have more success. She shaded her eyes, scanning the rooftops around her. A building on a corner would give her the best vantage point, so she could at least start there.

After jamming her phone back in her pocket, she took off running for the end of the street. Just as she did, a bolt of blue lightning struck the horizon to her right, partially obscured by a building.

She skidded to a stop, eyes wide as a monstrous blue head rose above the building, glowing red eyes fixed on the pavement below it.

Even though she'd only seen it carved in rough lines, Yori recognized the god monster from Ishizu's tablet. Her mouth went dry. A few nearby people shrieked. One lady ran.

Yori started running again, too—toward the monster. She skirted the closest building and crept along an alley edge until she could get a clear view of the next street over, where the fight was happening.

To her shock, the trench-coated brunette she saw was none other than the tournament organizer himself. He ordered his god to attack, and when it brought its fist down on his opponent, the force of the attack sent wind howling down the street. Yori turned away as it stung her eyes. Even after the holograms disappeared, blue electricity sizzled in the air, making her hair stand on end.

Someone cheered, and when Yori peeked around the corner again, she saw a black-haired kid, maybe twelve or thirteen years old, running up to Seto Kaiba.

"That was awesome, Seto!" he shouted.

"I know," Seto said, which made Yori snort.

The brunette stepped forward to claim a locator card from his unconscious opponent—a Ghoul. Yori would have preferred a live one, but maybe she'd found the next best thing.

As Seto and the kid approached, Yori stepped from the alley into their path.

"Hey," she said, smiling briefly. She pointed at the downed Ghoul. "Know where I can find one of those?"

Seto blinked. The kid blinked.

"Pre-defeat," she clarified.

"Who are you?" the kid asked, head cocked to the side like a curious puppy.

"I'm a duelist," she said, shrugging the arm that carried her far-from-subtle Duel Disk.

"You're a moron," Seto drawled. "I'd suggest you look for opponents more your speed. There's a preschool nearby. That should do."

He towered over her with a cold gaze that may have cowed someone else. But Yori eyed him calmly from head to toe. From his sleek, tailored coat to the intensity in his eyes, Seto Kaiba had shaped his appearance to be as intimidating as possible—everything about him said rich, powerful, and superior.

But standing there in her pink shirt, Yori recognized the mask. And although Seto had fallen for the image she was putting forward, she wouldn't make the same mistake with his.

"I can't take on a preschool," she said. "They swarm. I'd have, like, four on each leg, and they'd topple me like lions bringing down a giraffe."

The kid snorted, stifling a laugh.

Seto merely frowned, folding his arms across his chest.

Since no one else was speaking, Yori pressed on, "I'm glad I ran into you, actually. I've been wanting to say something since Battle City started."

"If you're about to issue a challenge"—his eyes glinted—"you'd be better off against the Ghouls."

So he knew who the Ghouls were. Good.

"It's not a challenge," she said. "It's a compliment."

He and the kid exchanged a glance.

Yori stepped forward and tapped the back of her knuckle against the wing of his Duel Disk. "These are incredible, and I'll remember my first Battle City duel forever. Thanks for sharing your tech genius with the rest of us."

Seto's expression turned blank, and he made no move to respond. But she noticed the palest hint of color in his face. She wondered if he got compliments often or if people just expected a genius to turn out genius and therefore never batted an eye when he did.

Of course, going around calling people morons likely didn't get him many compliments either.

Just then, the kid dissolved into warm, bubbling giggles.

"They are incredible, aren't they?" he said, eyes shining. "This is actually the second version. I really liked the first one because you had to throw it, and it spun to create the hologram, which was just a super cool effect. But the new Duel Disk has more features, and it allows the players themselves to interact more easily, so this one really is the best."

Yori gave a short laugh. "Throwing a Duel Disk sounds exciting. Did it come back like a boomerang?"

Seto pursed his lips. The color in his face seemed to have darkened just a bit.

"Don't be ridiculous," he said. Though his expression remained the same, his voice had lost its hard edge. "The first model was completely unique from the current design—it was a round disk attached to a cord, not the wing design that straps to your arm."

"Much more reasonable for throwing," she agreed.

The kid grinned. "I'm Mokuba Kaiba, Seto's brother. What's your name?"

And before she could stop herself, Yori said, "Yori."

If there had been any doubt before that she'd put down roots in Domino, it was gone now. She was only careless when she was comfortable. Funny that a city—

Something tickled Yori's senses, and she whirled around, throwing knife already in hand.

Just in time to meet the Ghoul who dropped into the street before her.

Seto didn't notice the cloaked man on a ledge above them until he leaped. While Seto was quick to place himself between the Ghoul and Mokuba, Yori's speed had him beat, and somewhere in the millisecond it had taken her to turn around, she'd produced a knife from thin air. Seto was suddenly glad she had only sought him out to compliment him on the Duel Disk. The last thing he needed in his existence was a crazy woman with a knife.

The Ghoul threw back the hood of his cloak to smirk at them. His night-black hair swallowed up the sunlight, but it glinted from the massive silver gauge dragging down his right earlobe. He sucked in a deep breath through his nose, as if he'd entered a buffet.

"New prey," he said, eying the three of them. "I love new prey."

"Looks like I should have found you sooner." Yori glanced over her shoulder. "I can't get them to come to me."

Seto raised an eyebrow. "My deck is every card thief's dream. They fight each other just for the chance to fight me."

"Sounds like you get all the wild parties."

"There was this one guy from Spain—" Mokuba started.

The Ghoul snapped his fingers twice. "Hey, guys, back on me? Okay. I think you know what I'm looking for, right? My master has a little pet god card that seems to have wandered away. And me, well, I love to play fetch."

Seto turned his raised eyebrow on the Ghoul and added his best condescending glare. But a thrill raced up his spine. The Ghouls had come for his god card; he was going to win theirs instead.

Before he could speak, Yori said, "Hey, you know what you could fetch me? Your master. Marik."

Seto's eyes widened.

The Ghoul gave a flat, wide grin. "No can do."

"You know the leader of the Ghouls?" Seto demanded.

"I know of him." Yori turned slightly so she could speak to him without losing sight of the Ghoul. "I know he's a coward who sends his little rats out to fight for him."

"I know you're hoping I'll be insulted"—the Ghoul spread his hands and shrugged—"but I'm not. Now, back to the little issue of the missing Obelisk. I saw it summoned here earlier, so who did the Egyptian pest give it to? Hmm? The tournament organizer or the Millennium Item holder?"

The third-rate imposter hadn't even sought Seto out for his god card; he was playing a guessing game. Seto could only hope the man's dueling skills were at a higher level than his skills for "fetch."

Yori rested a hand on her hip, displaying her bracelet. Seto hadn't missed the eye among the twisted gold strands—the same eye on Yuugi's puzzle and Ishizu's necklace—he'd simply chosen not to care.

"As if Ishizu would give the god card to anyone other than a Millennium Item holder," Yori said.

And Seto suddenly felt like he'd missed something.

Which was not a feeling he got often.

And not one he liked.

The Ghoul unfastened his cloak. It tumbled to the ground, revealing a Duel Disk on his arm, his deck already in place.

"Hope you didn't get too attached," he said.

"Hold on," Seto said.

Yori laughed. "Why would I duel you? I have your precious god card, but the only thing I want is the location of Marik. And what did you say about that? 'No can do.' So this duel? Sorry, Ghoul. No can do."

"Hold on," Seto snarled. "Obelisk belongs to me."

Now it was the Ghoul's turn to say, "Hold on."

"Wishful thinking, Seto," Yori said.

Seto bristled at the informal address along with her gall.

"What's happening here?" the Ghoul demanded.

"True to his nature," Yori said, shaking her head at the Ghoul, "Mr. Kaiba would do anything to get his hands on the next rare card. He'd make a really good Ghoul, you know."

Oh no, she didn't.

"Before you blundered in here, he wanted to duel me for Obelisk as well, and he's counting his chickens before they hatch. Although, unlike you, he actually has something I want. So I think I'll be dueling him. Unless you have a better offer?"

"I . . ." The Ghoul floundered. He touched the tattoo on his forehead, that same stupid eye.

"No one is dueling until we get something straight!" Seto shouted. "I'm the owner of a god card here."

Yori scoffed. "Prove it, then."

Seto was positive if his emotions could vent in the form of smoke, he would be whistling like a steam engine. He didn't know what she hoped to gain from her stupid game, but if she wanted proof, he'd shove the proof in her face.

He reached for the pocket of his coat where he kept his most prized cards—Obelisk and his three Blue-Eyes White Dragons.

Yori suddenly whirled aside, the way she'd done when the Ghoul first appeared. In the same instant, there was a loud ringing of metal on cement.

Seto turned as well, ready for another threat, every sense on alert. His eyes searched the street, but it was still deserted; everyone had cleared out after he'd summoned Obelisk earlier. He couldn't pinpoint where the sound had come from.

Then he noticed a faint gleam of light from a small object on the sidewalk. It looked like—

His eyes shot wide open, and he whipped back to find Yori standing much closer than she'd been before.

She looked him straight in the eyes. Her expression betrayed nothing. Her hands were empty.

No knife.

Of course not—her knife was the item sitting up the street. A throwing knife. Which she'd thrown at nothing. For seemingly no reason.

Seto had a terrible feeling about what had just happened.

"So, Ghoul," Yori said, turning to face the man once more. "How about it? You lose this duel, you give me Marik's location. You win, you get every god card in my deck. If you're confident you can win, there's no risk in it for you. So. Are you confident?"

She raised her deck, staring the Ghoul down with a look that could have frozen vapor.

Seto touched his prized-card pocket.

It was empty.

His heart thudded into his shoes, and fire roared to life in its absence.

Yori lifted the top card of her deck, displaying Obelisk to the world. "Don't you want it, Ghoul? Didn't you come here to win?"

Seto's god card.

Seto's god card.

Seto tried to scream the accusation of thief! but he couldn't form words. His throat wouldn't even let him breathe. Mokuba let out a loud gasp, but the Ghoul merely gave a satisfied smirk.

"Alright, fine," the man said. "We duel. Your conditions. Everybody's happy."

Yori nodded and cut Seto's god card into her deck.

Seto could have ripped her spine out with his bare hands. She was going to lose his god to the Ghouls. Not only that, but she had his Blue-Eyes cards as well.

"You—" he finally managed to hiss, though he couldn't articulate more than that.

Then the fog in his mind cleared just enough to present the easiest answer; he was tournament officiator. She had cheated by stealing his cards, and he would have her promptly removed from his tournament while she could do nothing about it.

He unclenched his fists, letting out a low, un-amused chuckle. At least she'd given him the name of the Ghouls' leader, and he could duel the Ghoul under the same conditions she'd established, which would bring him one step closer to claiming the remaining two god cards. If she wouldn't have made an enemy out of him, maybe she could have benefitted from the situation, too.

Her loss.

"Glad to see you can take this kind of situation with a healthy dose of laughter," Yori said. She snapped her deck into place in her Duel Disk. "I still owe you a duel. You say the word, and you've got it. Any time, any place."

She extended her hand, meeting his eyes evenly. Seto's lip curled in disgust.

"You won't be dueling anyone after this," he spat.

He intended to announce her removal from the tournament, but as her eyes dropped to her extended hand, his followed.

And he realized what she was trying to do.

The back of her hand faced the Ghoul, and she had curled a Duel Monsters card into her palm, hiding it from sight.

"I meant what I said." Her lips twitched. "If I lose this duel, I really will give the Ghoul every god card in my deck. Can you live with that?"

Seto's anger slowly drained, and he stared at her in shock.

"I don't have all day," the Ghoul called, rolling his neck to the side as he cracked it. "I came here for the god card, not to listen to you yak."

She went to all that trouble to convince the Ghoul she held the god card—went as far as pickpocketing—with no intention to keep it? She didn't even try to keep it for the duel and give it back afterward, even though it would have guaranteed her win had she managed to summon it.

Seto reached out and took her hand.

She pressed Obelisk into his palm, then turned and strode forward to face her opponent.

"Let's duel," she said.

"Finally!" The Ghoul extended his arm, releasing the holo-imagers. Yori mirrored the action. Both of their lifepoints scrolled up to 4000 as they drew their first hands.

Seto stared down at the god card in his palm. Shifting his fingers slightly revealed his three Blue-Eyes cards behind Obelisk.

She had tricked the Ghoul into believing her story, tricked Seto into giving away the location of his god card, taken it from him without his knowledge, and returned it without the Ghoul any the wiser. She was clever, and intelligence was not something Seto complimented lightly.

"Seto," Mokuba whispered, moving to his side and peering at the cards, "what just happened?"

Seto tucked the cards back into his coat before the Ghoul could notice anything suspicious. He gave no answer but rather seated himself on a nearby bench and leaned forward, bracing his arms against his knees and fixing his intense blue eyes on Yori.

Show me what kind of duelist lives inside that mind, he thought.

If Joey was honest with himself, he wasn't sure he was the kind of duelist who could win Battle City. On his first turn with Esper Roba, he'd been so focused on his opponent, he hadn't paid attention to what he was doing, and he'd tried to summon a five-star monster without a tribute. The summon had failed, obviously, and it had also forfeited his turn, putting him behind from the start.

Esper Roba found it hilarious, as did the crowd. Ryuzaki had stayed to watch, and he shouted out that Joey was even more of a moron than he'd been in Duelist Kingdom. He also demanded the return of his Red-Eyes, which was kind of fair, all things considered.

The pharaoh never would have made a mistake like that. Neither would Yuugi. But that was exactly why Joey had taken Esper Roba's challenge. He had a long way to go, but he was ready to climb.

"I was just givin' you a head start," he said. "Goin' easy on you."

"You're just a useless duelist who thinks boasting wins matches," Roba shot back. The audience snickered. "You probably heard this tournament had a big cash prize, and you blundered in with no experience hoping to win big. Someone should have told you your odds are better with a real lottery—one that requires no skill to win."

Joey's face burned as someone in the crowd jeered. "Okay, make your move, smarty-pants."

Roba summoned Cyber Raider [1400/1000]. Since Joey had no monsters on the field, he was able to do a direct attack and cut Joey's lifepoints from 4000 down to 2600. Joey gasped in pain as Cyber Raider's fist connected with his chest. The pain that came with the new Duel Disk was no joke, and it left his hands shaking, but it also helped him ground himself.

"A little advice?" Roba said. "You may want to summon the card on your very left—your Swordsman of Landstar. Of course, it can't beat my Cyber Raider, but at least it'll appear on the field."

The crowd burst into murmurs about Roba's psychic powers. Joey glanced down at his hand. Swordsman of Landstar was indeed right where Roba had called it. But while everyone else trembled in awe, Joey shrugged.

"Tough break, pal," he said. "My best friend faced down a guy with real psychic powers in Duelist Kingdom. Even if you do know my cards, I ain't scared of you."

Roba's eyebrows drew down as he scoffed.

Joey drew a card to start his turn, pausing when Roba raised a hand in his direction. The self-proclaimed psychic closed his eyes and hummed to himself. Joey blinked, unsure if Roba was about to say something or not.

A slow smile broke on his opponent's face, and his eyes slid open.

"You just drew a second Graceful Dice," he said. "You say you're not scared of my power, but how will you fight when I know your every move?"

Joey gripped the Graceful Dice card he'd just drawn. He glanced down at his hand again.

Then he smirked.

"I'll take my chances," he said.

He played two cards facedown before summoning Swordsman of Landstar [500/1200] in attack mode.

On his turn, Roba sacrificed his monster to summon Fiend Megacyber [2200/1200]. The yellow-armored warrior let out a battle cry and charged at Joey's monster.

Joey activated Graceful Dice, and a little fairy send a giant turquoise die spinning across the field. When it landed on a three, his swordsman's attack points multiplied by the same number, rising to 1500.

"Not enough." Roba grinned. "And you can't activate two Graceful Dice in a single turn."

"Sure can't," Joey agreed. He pressed a button on his Duel Disk. "But I can activate a Skull Dice!"

A little demon rolled a giant red die onto the field. When it landed on a five, Fiend Megacyber's attack points dropped to 440, allowing Joey's pudgy swordsman to slash right through it.

The crowd broke into whispers again, and it was Joey's turn to grin.

"You ain't got any ESP," Joey said. "All you got's a friend with binoculars somewhere looking at my hand. Because of the way my cards were stacked, your friend couldn't tell my cards weren't both Graceful Dice."

The horror that crossed Roba's face confirmed Joey's words.

Joey raised his eyebrows. "Now how about we duel fair and square, Roba? After all, this lottery's about skill, ain't it?"

And if Joey was honest with himself, he wasn't sure he wasn't the kind of duelist who could win Battle City.