Kasumi

She darted through the halls of the Garden King Towers, which were, needless to say, a very expensive place to live. One hundred floors of luxury smackdab in the middle of the Dragon Garden's District. With gold decorating the walls and rivers flowing down the edge of the paths in the hallway, Kasumi guessed it would have cost her more than her father gave her an allowance. Chandeliers of crystal and gold sparkled from the ceiling in rows down the hallway and boring piano music played on the intercom. It did little to calm her. She finally found the penthouse where Nixie lived with the museum curator. She knocked on the door and rang the bell repeatedly, hoping to wake someone.

After a few tense minutes, she heard footsteps on the other side of the door, then a song of locks and bolts unfastening. The door opened.

"Can I help you, miss?" asked a very sleepy old man. It was Dr. Patford, the museum curator. His hair was ragged and messy, and his eyes were red with exhaustion.

"I'm a friend of Nixie's from school," Kasumi said. "Is she home? Please, this is really urgent."

"But it's so late. Don't you ladies have finals this week?"

"We do, but this is bigger than finals, sir."

"Who is it?" some called from behind.

Dr. Patford turned to look at the girl coming down the marble staircase, lit with two iron lamp posts on either side of it at the bottom.

"Oh, Nixie. Uh, there's a friend of yours from school who wants to see you. I'll leave you to your business, but don't stay up too late. You both need your rest for your exams."

"Don't worry, papa, I've got this," Nixie said. She yawned and rubbed her left eye. All she wore was a very long t-shirt that read:

I Don't Need Sex. Nibiru the Primal Being Fucks Me Every Day

Kasumi couldn't help but laugh at what it said, for it spoke truth. Once Dr. Patford left, Nixie scratched the back of her leg and leaned against the doorway. "So, what's up? It's almost two in the morning."

"Have you heard at all from M?"

Nixie yawned again. "Nope. He usually passes out at ten. Why?"

"I got a text from him. He was asking for help with his homework. After that... he's just been unresponsive."

"Oh, no! That's not good at all. Come on in." Nixie opened the door, allowing Kasumi to step inside.

As soon as the young princess did, she almost screamed. Standing there in the foyer under a rotunda of stained glass was a complete skeleton of an Ultimate Tyranno standing on a black marble pedestal that doubled as a fountain and was lit with floor lamps and festooned with gardens of palm trees and thick ferns.

"It scared me," gasped Kasumi. "Oh, man. I'm sure glad it's dead."

"It's still just a juvenile," said Nixie, going to the kitchen. "A full-grown adult can grow up to fifty feet tall."

She went to the dinner table, buried under papers, binders, and a leaning tower of textbooks with pink, blue, and yellow sticky notes sticking out from the pages to mark the important notes she needed for the finals. There was a coffee mug half-filled with her beverage, now cold and sitting next to a plate of buttered crackers. She found her phone under her notecards and picked it up.

"Oh, no!" she gasped. "He sent me a dozen texts, too."

"You didn't hear it?"

"No," said Nixie. "I left my phone here. I didn't give a damn about it. It was late. I got sleepy and went upstairs to take a shower. But as soon as I sat down in bed, I passed out."

She looked through all the messages. So far it was nothing but 'text me later' and 'Can you answer the phone? I need to tell you something'. "What could be so important?" she asked.

"Well, that's not all I wanted to tell you," said Kasumi. "Madame Angelmen did it."

"Did what?"

"She completely scrapped the entire program from the museum."

Nixie's lips trembled and her eyes began to bubble with tears. "Oh no," she said.

"It's okay. Look, if you would like me to help you out in any way, you just let me know. Okay? My family are astute lovers of history and the natural world. You have a bright future that could open many doors, especially to the past."

"I can't let you do that," Nixie said, twirling a lock of her flaxen hair around her finger.

Kasumi noticed she got black highlights and commented on them. "You look nice," she said, holding up some of her hair. "Oh?" she noticed something on her neck. A tattoo. "What's that?"

"Oh, this? Yeah, just a secret sweet sixteen present. It's the skull of an Ultimate Tyranno with the motto of House Delgado ringing around it. My ancestors, on my mother's side, once served the House back in its prime. From the time before Prince Hector. I cannot believe how far they've fallen in terms of honor. Huh. Even their treasured card, Black Tyranno, got up and left them. Who knows where he is now."

"Secret, huh?" laughed Kasumi. "I take it Dr. Patford doesn't know about it yet."

"Nope," she was trying to message M again. But there was no answer from him. "So long as I'm under this roof, he'll never know." She leaned forward, cupping her hand over her mouth. "Just between us," she whispered. "The skull isn't the only tattoo I got."

"No?"

"Uh-huh. I don't wanna boast or anything, but I've got a fossilized Uraby skeleton tattoed over my pubic mound."

"Girl, you went all out that night, huh."

"Absinthe is one hell of a drink," Nixie chuckled. "I swear I saw a green Obelisk smashing the city that night and a dancing Slifer trashing downtown. The Winged Dragon of Ra was talking about how much Mondays were bullshit."

"I can't handle the stuff," Kasumi said, leaning against the counter and crossing her arms. "Pardon me for being nosy but..." She bit her lip and sniggered. "Can I see it?"

Nixie looked up at her from the phone. "What?" she asked with an awkward grin growing from the side of her mouth.

"The fossil tattoo down there. I didn't think anyone would be crazy enough to get marked in such a sensitive spot. Was it painful?"

"I dunno, I was drunk. But to answer your question, no. I am not going to show you my tattoo."

"Come on, just a quick peek."

Nixie lifted her shirt but that was it. She pointed at the fossilized tail coming out from behind the waistband of her underwear. "That's all you're gonna see, babe."

"I challenge you to a Duel tomorrow," Kasumi said with an arrogant look on her face. "If you lose, you've got to show me the whole thing."

"Fine, fine," said Nixie, lowering her shirt. "If you want to see it THAT bad, I guess I'll Duel you." She went to the fridge and took out two beers. "But I ain't no pushover like Cora." She offered one to Kasumi, who accepted. She ripped the cap off with her fingers and gave it to the princess.

"If it was going to be that easy, I would have never issued the challenge. Truth be told, Nixie, I could care less if I saw your tattoo or not. I just want to finally get a chance to see your skills for myself. Had it not been for Cora rushing through the ranks and my urge for her to get the Blue-Eyes, I would have set my eyes on challenging you for the title of number one Duelist at school."

"Well, I'll be more than happy to take you on, Kass." She checked her phone. "He's still not answering. Just what the hell is that guy up to?"

Kasumi tapped her lip. "I do recall him saying something about a surprise. Perhaps he's hiding until it's the right time to show you."

"Maybe," Nixie said, taking a sip of her beer. "I just hope he's okay."

Mai

"Have you seen Yumi, Miss Mai?" Cora asked. She sat with Mai and Miss Goldwine for a hot chocolate in the King's District early that morning to talk about the ordeal that went on at school.

"I haven't, hon," Mai answered before biting into a cookie. "Hmm, now that I think about it, she hasn't been herself lately. Must be something to do with those Banner Duelists that have been hunting you gals."

"No, it has to do more than that," Cora said.

"Like?" Ms. Goldwine asked.

"Nothing," Cora said at once. "If you see her, can you tell her to come to my place as soon as possible. She's really important to me, and I don't want her out there all alone. DESMAGI are running around like crazy and, yes, those Banner Duelists are hunting us." She looked down at her lap and twiddled her thumbs. "And it's all my fault."

"No, it's not," Mai scored her. "You didn't ask to be chased around by freaks who are hellbent on taking your soul away. For what reason, I don't know. But you can't sit there and blame yourself for what's going on. You're in a tough situation, so you and your friends need to find a way to get out of it. And you can. I know you can. Those girls in your group, they're no pushovers or pretty faces. They can handle themselves. And those new girls you added to the team look like they got game as well."

Cora took a long gulp of warm milk. "Of course they do, otherwise, I wouldn't have allowed them to join us. Of course, two of my friends, M and Brandy, I still need to see what they've got. They wouldn't take no for an answer."

"Of course they do, dear," Ms. Goldwine said, leaning forward and wiping Cora's upper lip of milk. She sat back down on her chair. "They are your friends. They love you. Ah, speaking of school, what on earth gave you the bright idea to just skip it today. You know your lessons are important."

"I had to, Ms. Goldwine! You don't know what those creeps did to me. And that bitch — "

"—Language!" Ms. Goldwine interrupted.

"Ahem. Madame Angelmen took over and treated the place like it's her own personal kingdom. She's cutting down scholarships, downsizing staff, and taking money for her new arena. I don't know why the hell Rosenkruz needs a new arena, we have like ten already."

"Arenas are a good way to attract those with money," said Mai. "The fancier the battlefield, the more people with connections will come. And those connections are advertisers, backers, investors, you name it. She could be rolling in Star Chips with an arena of her own."

"It's still messed up! I went to her office and confronted her about it and she paddled me."

Mai giggled behind her hand. Ms. Goldwine looked at her sternly. "What?"

"So she had you punished for breaking her rules?" Ms. Goldwine asked.

"Yeah, and to make matters worse, Prince Clovis was in the office as it was happening. He filmed the whole thing and sold it to the other students all over school. Everyone was laughing at me."

"It happens," said Mai. "Every now and then, you'll find yourself under the rule of someone you don't like. A boss, a headmaster" — she rolled her hand towards Cora — "A father even. Do you want to know what happened to me when I was in school, hon? Oof, my tales are legendary. When I was a girl, my grandmother sent me to an all-girls Dueling Academy in the Wyvernback Mountains. One day on my way to class, I was walking down a path towards the Dueling Grounds. Some boys from another academy in the valley came up to challenge us in a friendly competition. Cora, you're not gonna believe this. As I made it towards the grounds, I missed a twig sticking out of nearby hedge that caught my skirt and ripped it right off my waist. All eyes were on me, and I was the talk of the school for weeks."

"Oof, really?" Cora said, trying to contain her laughter.

"Yeah, some say that's what began the War of the Summer Flowers." She winked.

"Pish posh," said Ms. Goldwine. "That's nothing. Listen here, Cora. Before the war, my parents had me sent to a convent dedicated to Dwenya, Goddess of Law and Justice; for I was going to be a lawyer after I graduated. One day I fell asleep in a class run by a very short-tempered Halfling. There's something you need to understand. Punishments in that institution were severe and public. Cora, my darling, not only was I caned in front of the whole class, but I also had to strip down to nothing."

"Oh my goodness," laughed Cora.

"Oh, yes. Every time I walked down the halls, people pointed and stared as they laughed at me. I found crude drawings taped to my locker and I was bullied by the other girls for weeks."

"You two had it worse than me."

"We sure did," Mai said over Ms. Goldwine's laughter. "Much, much worse. However, as embarrassing as it was, I had to keep on pushing forward and continue my work to be the best Duelist I could be. Ms. Goldwine, I'm sure, also had to keep going after what she went through."

"Indeed. Now many of the ingrates who made fun of me serve me coffee and answer to me. Being Seto Kaiba's head secretary makes me a queen to some degree."

"That's right," Mai said with a nod. "The point is you must learn that people get embarrassed all the time. It's a part of life. You can't just give up on your studies because some crazy bitch —"

Ms. Goldwine held up her finger. "Language —"

" — Some crazy BITCH decided to have a personal beef with you. You'll kill your dreams running and hiding from your problems. Honey, I know it's tough and you're feeling embarrassed, but you have to go back to school."

Cora squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "No! What's the point anyway? My father can't pay for my classes anymore. He's sick."

Mai patted Cora's hand. "I'll pay for your classes. I can afford to do so for you and Yumi. It's no problem."

"No, Miss Mai, I can't! Not with her around. That crazy lady and her nephew ruined my life."

Mai shook her head. "You know the Chief of Madame Angelmen's House is the head of Departments and Techniques and the head professor of the Obelisk Blue Dorm, right?"

"What?"

"Dr. Vellian Crowler," said Mai. "And he's a lot worse than Madame Angelmen. Believe me. He'll flunk you just for sneezing in class or for wearing your uniform the wrong way. Oh, look at that face. I believe she doesn't want to continue anymore. Barbra, perhaps you should tear up her enrollment papers for Duelist Academy. I don't think she's ready for it yet."

"I can do so right now," Ms. Goldwine started fishing through her purse for her tablet.

"No, no, no! I understand. I just wish I could be as strong as you two. I feel like I'm two people sometimes if that makes sense. On the Dueling Field, I'm a Kaiba. Strong, powerful, and brave. Outside of it, I'm just Cora."

Ms. Goldwine patted Cora's hand. "Cora, my sweet, you'll be a great Kaiba one day. Your father started to see it, too. Not only does he respect you, but he loves you. He told me himself."

"I don't deserve his love. I've made so many mistakes," Cora sighed, blinking to fight back the tears forming in her blue eyes.

"Of course you did," Mai said sympathetically. "It's okay. You're still so young and there's still much you have to learn. Mistakes are always going to happen. I make mistakes. Even Yugi Muto makes mistakes. Big, big, mistakes. Your father as well. I've seen him screw up countless times over the years. Don't think because your last name is Kaiba that it excuses you from making mistakes. Use your mistakes to get better. Learn from them."

"She's right," Ms. Goldwine agreed, handing Cora a handkerchief. "There, there, dry those tears. Your father would not want to see you in such a state. He would be furious. And being sad will only give Madame Angelmen a sense of power over you. Do not let her have that. She doesn't deserve it." Her watch beeped. "Ah, Mai, I believe the movie is about to start."

"You two going out tonight?" Cora asked.

"Yeah," Mai said, eating the last of her cookies. "Then we're going to take care of a few things and head home. Don't none of you stay up too late. It's dangerous out there."

"What about Yumi?"

Mai looked at her phone. "I'll give her a call and tell her to head to your place as soon as possible. If she doesn't, can I trouble you to go out looking for her? There's going to be another DESMAGI rally tonight and I don't want my baby out in the streets when that happens."

"I'll keep an eye out for her," said Cora.

Mai got up and kissed Cora's forehead before she left with Ms. Goldwine.

Rosenkruz Academy

Though she was hesitant on going back, Cora heeded Mai and Barbara's advice and went back to school. Ever since she was harassed by Clovis and his friends, Cora walked the halls accompanied by Jericho, who deemed herself Cora Kaiba's official bodyguard. With her constantly by her side, no one dared cross paths with Cora. Jericho not only made a name for herself in Duel Monsters but in the mixed martial arts world as well. She trained in boxing and dabbled in the art of Tenyi, much to Kasumi's surprise. And after what M did to the red-haired boy in Clovis's group, no one thought to challenge him either. Cora was now a very well guarded young lady. And for good reason these days. Now with her father sick from the mysterious Rosencruz Syndrome, she was being approached by young men looking to take her hand in marriage.

Cora was a great prize. The daughter of Seto Kaiba, a girl of divine beauty, an elite Duelist with control of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and heir to a great fortune, thanks to the will Kaiba left behind in case he did not wake from his coma. She found her desk littered with candies, flowers, rings, balloons, and booster boxes. Those she took without care, but the rest of the items were thrown away, save for the candies. Jericho helped herself to those.

"How is he?" Jericho asked. She was snacking on a box of chocolates an admirer left on Cora's desk.

"His condition hasn't improved," Cora answered. "Please, I don't want to talk about it anymore."

They sat together with Madeline and Amy in the underwater arena watching Duelists play round after round of Duel Monsters. Kasumi and Nixie were having a game by the waterfall. Berserker of Tenyi jumped up and punched Nixie's Two-Headed Kaiser Rex in the face, knocking out his teeth and dealing great damage to her Life Points. But Cora paid no mind to their match. Instead, she watched a girl down below having a Duel with a rather pompous member from Prince Clovis's group. It was Andrew (Duel Links) the smart alec who Nixie faced back in Costa del Sol.

The girl who caught Cora's gaze was a very timid-looking girl with long blonde hair flowing down to her back in cute curls and highlighted with pink accents. She had a huge baby blue bow on the back of her head and carried a teddy bear over her right arm as though she was a little girl. Her uniform was heavily customized, especially the skirt, which was short, exposing her ruffled undergarments.

"Aww, she's so cute," Cora said at last. "Let's see what's she's got."

Jericho scoffed. "Her name is Candy. Stay away from her, she's nothing but a pathetic little crybaby. She whines in class, she hates Dueling, I've never seen someone so frail. It makes me sick to my stomach. I've got to say, this is the first time I've seen her Duel before. Honestly, I'm not expecting much."

Cora sniggered. "This is the part when she surprises you."

Jericho rolled her eyes. "You know, I highly doubt that. Didn't you face a girl with a teddy bear the other day?"

"Rebecca Hawkins," Cora groaned, conking the back of her head against her seat. "Man, she was annoying. But not her. I like her. Candy. What a sweet name for such a sweet girl. Aww, she looks like one of those lolitas or something. She's just so adorable. Oh, I just wanna eat her up."

Madeline clicked her tongue. "Cora, don't be like that now. Krissa won't like it."

Amy agreed. "I don't think Cora will stop until every beautiful girl in this school is wrapped around her finger."

Meanwhile, down below, Andrew scanned his opponent as though he were some sort of robot. "Hmph," he said. "I'll take you down and become a legendary Duelist myself."

Candy just hugged her teddy bear and whimpered like a frightened puppy. The sight disgusted Andrew. He shook his head in disbelief, wondering how someone who was nineteen could act like such a baby. His friends behind him laughed at her, too, thinking she was going to be an easy win for Andrew. Then again, Andrew was one of the school's honor students. He already made a name for himself as an elite player. Why he chose to take one someone like Candy, Cora did not know. Perhaps he wanted to act like a tough guy, Goddesses know many players enjoy bullying newer ones with their shiny cards and big monsters.

"Legendary Duelist?" Cora scoffed. "Is this guy for real?"

"That he is," said Jericho. "He thinks he has what it takes to beat Yugi Muto, Seto Kaiba, Joey Wheeler, you name it. I overheard him bragging that once he goes to Duelist Academy, he's taking Yuri down first to cement his legacy as the best Duelist in the school."

Amy slapped her forehead. "Right, and I suppose players like Zane Truesdale, Akiza Izinski, Aster Phoenix, Kite Tenjo, and Alexis Rhodes are just going to let him do that? Geeze, these guys are just the absolute worst. It should be against the law to have your ego so big."

"If that were real, my dad would have gotten a hundred life sentences," Cora joked. "I hope he'll be okay."

"Have faith," said Jericho. "Seto Kaiba is a man of many talents. It wouldn't surprise me if beating a disease was one of them."

The Duel finally began. Candy put on an eyepiece that she removed from a slot on her Duel Disk, which was a Generation 6 Duel Disk. It was colored white and had a pink and green holographic blade. Instead of physical cards, she used holographic ones from Kaiba's Crystal Cloud Network.

"I'll start first," Candy said to herself. She placed her ear next to her teddy's mouth. "If you say so."

Jericho sighed. "What?"

Cora scratched her chin. "Uh, awkward."

"Okay," Candy said. She drew. Every time she drew a card a nice little effect in the Duel Disk activated. When she picked up a card from her deck, little hearts would pop out. Fancy decorations like that were now becoming all the rage.

"I summon Berry Magician girl in attack mode!" Candy called out. She summoned a little pink pixie with a green pacifier in her mouth. It hovered over the ground with thin little wings. She allowed Candy to add a Magician Girl card to her hand. The sight of her little monster caused many to laugh and aww. Berry Magician Girl's attack points displayed a meager 400 ATK and 400 DEF.

To the surprise of no one, Andrew was not impressed.

"Is that the best you got?" he said. "It's my turn. I draw! I summon Gene-Warped Warwolf in attack mode!"

The Duel Disk hummed and projected a bipedal mutant resembling a white wolf with four arms and an armored brown surcoat around its waist. He stood nine-feet-tall and growled ferociously as he flexed his arms. Andrew's friends cheered behind him while Clovis looked on from the railing on the second floor, still polishing his championship belt.

"I want to take that from him," Cora snarled.

Andrew resumed his turn. "Next, I play Ancient Rules, which allows me to Special Summon a high-level Normal monster without tribute. Behold, Metaphys Armed Dragon!"

Candy clutched her teddy bear tightly, watchings a translucent bipedal dragon armored in steel, spikes, and sawblades loomed over the field. At 2800 ATK, it was the strongest monster on the field. Wasting no time, he attacked Berry Magician Girl first with his Metaphys Armed Dragon for no reason other than to dominate her. Just as the dragon was about to slash the little monster to shreds, Candy put her ear next to the teddy bear's mouth.

"I activate my Berry Magician Girl's effect. When she's attacked, I can switch her to defense mode and summoned a Magician Girl from my deck. I call upon Lemon Magician Girl!"

Another fairy-like spellcaster appeared out of a puff of pink smoke with glitter and stars showering Candy and making her laugh. Lemon Magician Girl wore a yellow outfit trimmed with red and flew in the air with decorative white wings. Another scoff from Andrew. Clearly he thought that Lemon Magician Girl was going to be her only means of reinforcements. Metaphys Armed Dragon continued his attack and slashed the poor Berry Magician Girl to pieces. She squeaked pitifully and shattered to pieces.

"Oh no!" cried Candy.

"They said you were some kind of prodigy," said Andrew. "A so-called student of Yugi Muto. It seems to me like he's either wasting his time or those rumors surrounding you was nothing more than lies to make you look good. Your monsters have thus far been nothing short of pathetic. If that Lemon Magician Girl is all you can muster, then you've wasted my time. I should have listened to the data when I did my research on you. Seriously, only one win and you're in the prestigious Rosenkruz Academy? Such a waste! A tragic waste! I'll show you what happens when scrubs like you think they can play in the big leagues. Gene-Warped Warwolf! Attack her Lemon Magician Girl now!"

The wolf howled and sprinted towards the magician. She merely winked at him and a heart seemed to bounce out of her cheek.

Candy suddenly felt confident with herself. "When you attack my Lemon Magician Girl, she allows me to Special Summon a Magician Girl from my hand. Here comes Dark Magician Girl!"

No doubt there was a great cheer erupting from the arena when the most beautiful card in the game of Duel Monsters appeared from a pink arcane circle. She spun elegantly and came to a stop in front of Lemon Magician Girl.

Candy hugged her teddy bear even tighter and said: "That's not all! Your Warwolf's attack gets shifted to the Dark Magician Girl and your monster's attack gets cut in half!"

Andrew clenched his teeth. He sure walked into that one. Dark Magician Girl wrinkled her nose and jumped into the air with a mighty bound. She pointed her rod at the Gene-Warped Warwolf and zapped it. The wolf howled then exploded. Andrew's Life Points fell to 3000.

"That was within acceptable parameters," he said calmly.

"The fuck did he just say?" Cora asked. "Somebody go down there and check to see if he's human or something."

"My turn! I draw!" Candy said. The little hearts appeared all around her, ringing sweetly then popping. "Now, I summon Chocolate Magician Girl!"

She summoned a tall magician in a dark blue uniform accented with pink trim. She spun around and blue and red stars shimmered out of nowhere. She blew a kiss and winked before standing in one final pose next to Candy.

"I'll use her effect," Candy called out. "I discard a spellcaster and add draw a card. Next, I set a card face down. I end my turn." She put the teddy's mouth near her ear again. "Oh, sorry. I'll do better I promise!"

Cora raised an eyebrow and shook her head. "She's cute, but man is she fucking weird."

Andrew's turn. He drew and examined his options. "I activate Card of Sanctity and draw three cards and discard two. Next, I play Monster Reborn to bring back the mighty Zoa to the field."

"Lots of Normal beat sticks," Jericho said with a shake of her head. "This guy talks a big game, but he's just a noob."

"I'll say," Amy agreed. "I stopped Dueling like that when I was in the grade-school years of Duelist Academy. I have a feeling Candy's got more tricks up her sleeves."

And she did. She discarded Kiwi Magician Girl from her hand, which added 300 attack points for every Magician Girl on the field and in the Graveyard. Dark Magician Girl had enough power to fight back against the Zoa Andrew sicked on her. She blasted the fiend with her staff and dealt great damage to Andrew's Life Points.

"Is there a mistake in my formula!?" he shouted. "Metaphys Armed Dragon! Attack the Lemon Magician Girl!"

Hopefully, he thought, all she had left in her hand were just weak little magician girls. But he was wrong. From her hand, she special summoned Apprentice Illusion Magician. The armed dragon's attack was reduced to 1400, and he was destroyed by the Apprentice Magician's counter-attack. Now it was her turn. She activated Card of Sanctity and drew until she had six cards. And then, she Overlayed her Dark Magician Girl and Apprentice Illusion Magician to Xyz Summon Magi Magi Magician Gal. Then, she tributed her Lemon Magician Girl to summon Silent Magician, who gained 500 attack points for each card in Candy's hand, increasing her attack to 3500.

BOOM!

Andrew's Life Points were reduced to 0.

"But...how can my calculations be off?"

The audience in the arena clapped their hands, each one awfully surprised to see Candy's little magicians take down a horde of powerful monsters and deal with them so easily. That was the thing about Duel Monsters. Never trust appearances. Candy jumped down the arena and hurried to the locker room to freshen up. Cora was about to go follow her until she saw Nixie and Kasumi came running back up the stairs. Both of them had worried looks on their faces. Nixie approached Cora and asked if she had seen M at all today.

"I was about to ask you where he was," said Jericho. "What happened? Is something wrong?"

"I'm beginning to suspect something is wrong," said Nixie. "Nobody has seen him all day. He tried contacting me and Kass the other night, but when we responded, it's been nothing but silence. You don't think it was the Banner Duelists, do you?"

"After what me and Yumi did to them last time, I doubt it," Cora replied arrogantly.

"You think warding them off with one win is going to be that easy?" Jericho asked. "Come on, Cora, these guys have some kind of an agenda in mind. They went through a lot of trouble to get you to Duel them. Look what they did to Mai and Kasumi."

Kasumi winced when she remembered what had happened that night. She let her guard down just once on her way home and found herself being held, hostage. She promised herself that would never happen again.

Nixie placed both hands over her mouth. "Fuck! I got so many messages from him last night. How could I have been so oblivious?"

Kasumi placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's not your fault. You had to do your things. Nobody is blaming you for this. Well, the last thing I heard from M is that he's at the Dragon Garden's District. If we're lucky, he's still there. Come on, let's go."

"I can't," Nixie said, stopping Kasumi in her tracks.

"Why not?"

"Come on, Nixie," Cora said. "You can't be getting cold feet now."

"It's not that. If you haven't noticed, it's almost dark. Dr. Patford won't let me go anywhere after what happened last time. Not after I got this." She turned and lifted her shirt to remind Kasumi of the brand on her buttock. "I don't blame him at all for worrying about me, Kass. He's my papa. And I don't want to disobey him."

"But what about M?"

Nixie shook her head. "I wouldn't be of any help anyway. With this brand, I'm cursed to never use magic again. If I did go, I'd only hold you back."

"Nixie…"

"Please, girls. I'd only be the death of you out there."

"You have to come!" Kasumi pleaded. "As Princess of Gō-Aki I command you to come with us."

Nixie grinned and tapped her finger against her bottom lip. "Well, when you put it that way. How can I say no?"

"So it's off to the Dragon Garden's District," said Jericho. "All right, let's go."

Candy

"Well, they're leaving in a hurry," she whispered, watching them leave from one of the arena's exits. "I hope I got their attention."

To the locker room! Now!

Candy winced, clutching her teddy bear tightly and walked into the locker room. When she was all alone, her teddy bear came to life. He jumped out of her arms and stood on the wooden bench between the lockers. He placed both paws on his hips and tapped his foot on the ground.

Candy went down on her knees and clasped her hands together. "Please, don't be angry."

"Shut up!" the teddy bear shouted. "Goddesses, girl, you are just truly pathetic. That's twice that you've asked me for help in that Duel. Come on, that guy was a pushover. You could have taken him without me."

"I can't," Candy whimpered. "There were just so many people out there. And Cora Kaiba and her friends were in the stands, too. They're like superstars or something. I was nervous."

"I was nervous," the teddy bear mocked her. "You were trained by Yugi Muto, child! How the hell did you let his lessons fly over your head like that? Did you learn anything?"

"No, I..."

"You've got nothing in the empty head of yours. You brainless dolt. You stupid girl! Say it! Go on, say it."

"I'm not stupid," Candy sobbed. "Don't call me stupid, please, Gael."

"That's Mr. Gael to you, ya dumbass! Now say it!" He pulled her hair, yanking her towards his face. "Say it!"

"I'm a stupid girl! I'm a stupid girl!"

"But we can fix that," the bear said, letting her go. "We are going to make you part of that group."

"But why? If Cora doesn't want to be my friend, then I won't force her."

"You need her!" Gael said. "She is a Kaiba. Just hanging around someone with that name can make you very famous. You have to be part of her group. She looked impressed, but your childish behavior seemed to turn her off."

"I get stage fright."

"Well, do something about it! Your folks paid you a lot of money to get into this school and this is how you're going to repay them."

"But I don't want to be a Duelist. I want to make toys and sell flowers in my own shop. Please, Mr. Gael, can we move on from this? Please?"

"You're not going to get far in this city making dolls and bears," said Gael. "If you want to wind up in the streets, that's your problem. But expect me no more."

"I don't want to lose you, Mr. Gael."

"Then you're going to have to trust me. We made it this far, didn't we? You have to face your fears and start acting like a big girl, Candy. Yugi worked really hard to train you."

"My lessons with him didn't last long."

"Because you ran away from home during the second week of your training. What Yugi saw in you, I will never know. Heart of the Cards, my ass."

"I want to believe in my potential as a Duelist, but it's not a profession I want to follow. I want to be a toymaker and a florist. But if that's a dream that will never come true, then I suppose I'll have to follow." She stroked the bear's face. "I also don't want you to leave me. You're my best friend in the whole world."

"Then you have to trust me and stop your whimpering. You're not a baby. Cora will never grow to like you if you keep acting like this. You have the tools to make it to the pro leagues. And Cora needs one more member for her team. I want you to be that member, Candy. So come on. Will you be a big girl and try harder."

Candy nodded. "Yes. I promise."

There was a pause. It felt like an eternity before Gael sighed and said: "Take a shower. Clean yourself up and get your ass back home so we can finish your project."

"Yes, sir."

Nixie

Once Cora and her friends made it to the Dragon Gardens District, they split up. Kasumi followed Cora to the main plaza. Wasting no time, they sprinted down the dark streets of Domino. Nixie's pink flannel scarf flapped behind her. Her coat whipped around in the wind. They proceeded to the fountain where M sent his last text. String lights hung over them attached from building to building. Winter Wonderland was playing on the intercom. Though a very jolly setting, both girls felt horribly uneasy. It was late, and there was not a soul around.

"Kasumi! Look!" Nixie cried out. There was a card on the edge of the fountain, it's holographic foil glimmered in the merry glow of the large Christmas tree in the center of the fountain. It was Michael, the Arch-Lightsworn, M's Ace Monster. There was no way he would ever let that card just sit out in the open. Especially since it was his greatest treasure. Nixie gave it to M when they were very little kids. It was a symbol of their friendship. "M, would never part with this," Nixie said, holding the card close to her heart. "Something bad happened."

"Damn right something bad happened!" shouted the scratchy, obnoxious, voice of a very, very, young player. He jumped out from behind bushes for dramatic effect. He was short, probably standing up to Kasumi's thighs if they stood side by side. He wore a yellow sweater over green overalls. A green cap was nestled on his curly brown hair. His nose was round and his skin was tan.

Nixie blinked in confusion. "What the hell? We have to fight Luigi?"

"Hey!" snapped the kid. "My name's Tomba! And I'm one of the sacred Banner Duelists! So show me some respect!"

"Whatever, junior," Nixie said, shaking her head. "You need to get lost and head home. It's past your bedtime."

"Sure, whatever you say," teased Tomba. "I guess I did my deed and took a soul this night."

Nixie's sassiness faded at once."What?"

"Oh, no," Kasumi whispered, feeling fear chilling her body far more than the weather did.

Tomba laughed at their reactions."Yeah, that's right. I took him down without a sweat. Hopefully, you girls will prove more of a match against me than he was."

"You little bastard! Where is he!" Nixie shouted.

"He's in the Belly of Yeyu, where he'll suffer for all eternity!" sneered another young boy, coming out from behind the Christmas tree. He wore a baseball uniform from the team he played, The Domino City High Kings. His little face was washed with freckles and he had raggy, blonde hair. "Nixie," the boy said, turning his baseball hat backward. "Long time no see."

Nixie backed away. "No...Mickey! What the hell are you doing? You fight for the Covenant?"

"Nixie. You know this boy?" Kasumi asked.

"I played with him at the digs when he was just a teeny, little kid. His dad was one of my father's best diggers."

"And my dad is dead, thanks to him!" Mickey shouted. "My father told yours that digging in the Tellvari Badlands was not safe. But he just wouldn't listen. He just had to find that Daedalus skeleton no matter what. And now look where it got him."

"I'm sorry for what happened," said Nixie. "I truly am."

"Oh, shut it!" shouted Mickey. "After my dad was killed in that landslide, my mom took her life because she was so overcome with grief. I was left with nothing, Nixie. While you were taken by that pompous Dr. Patford and lived the good life. Meanwhile, I was sent into that slimy orphanage in Satellite."

"It's not my fault you got sent to Satellite!" shouted Nixie. "You shouldn't have resorted to being a thief! You should have stayed in school."

"You think it was easy for me to focus on school after I lost my family. Because of your father, my life was forever ruined. Thanks to the Covenant, I was able to escape that orphanage and become a Banner Duelist. We are defenders of justice! We fight for peace! All in the name of Mighty Yeyu!"

"You're a fool if you think the Covenant is going to help you in anything, boy," said Kasumi. "They will only bring you more pain and suffering."

"Shut it, Princess!" shouted Tomba. "Don't think you can fool us by calling Yeyu the bad guy. Our lives have been bettered because of his will. We're more powerful than you lame Duel Monsters players. We can call monsters from their realms and fight for us in real combat."

"Hold on," said Nixie. "I thought Yeyu hated monsters and magic."

Mickey scoffed, shaking his head. "He does. But we don't summon monsters with magic. We call upon them with the mighty will of Yeyu. He pulls those demons from their realms and forces them to fight for us. Such is his power, which you are about to see for yourselves!" He pulled out the Banner of Yeyu card and activated it.

"Mickey, don't!" shouted Nixie.

Too late. The Banner hissed underneath his sneakers. An eerie hymn echoed from the sky as it spun underneath him and expanded.

"Yeah! Now it's time to fight!" cheered Tomba as the Banner of Yeyu stretched until it encircled them all.

"I guess there's only one thing left to do," sighed Nixie.

"Yeah. We have to beat these kids. You know what happens to a player who loses in this kind of Duel, right?"

"Yeah, Cora told me. They get sent to hell or something. Well, if Mickey and Luigi over there think they can take us down easily, they've got another thing coming."

"I'm going first!" Tomba shouted impatiently. "Stand my monster! I summon Transcode Talker!" He looked up at his cybernetic warrior and grinned, feeling proud that he could summon such a thing. "This is going to be awesome. I'll take you down just like I took down that loser M."

Mickey laughed when he saw Tomba's Transcode Talker. "Nice monster, Tomba. Now it's my go!" He drew his first card. He held up two monsters. "Fusion summon!" he shouted. "Yeyu, combine the energies of my two weaker servants and form an even more powerful beast! Go, Roaring Ocean Snake!"

The Banner of Yeyu rippled underneath his feat as if it were made of water. From the surface, emerged his monster. Roaring Ocean Snake was true to its word, letting out a loud and dominant roar, causing Nixie and Kasumi to cover their ears.

"Just surrender now and save yourself the embarrassment," sneered Tomba. "You two have no chance against the might of Yeyu!"

"I beg to differ," said Kasumi. "I summon, Tenyi Spirit Vishuda. Now, I tribute my beast to Link Summon, Monk of the Tenyi! Next, I Special Summon Tenyi Spirit Mapura, tribute it and summon a second Monk of Tenyi. Your move, Nixie."

"Here we go," Nixie said. "I summon...acck!" She felt as if someone lit her body on fire. "No!" she croaked. "No!"

"What's wrong, Nixie!"

Tomba started laughing and slapping his knees. "Hey, Mickey, you heard what those DESMAGI guys did to your friend right?"

Mickey nodded. "I sure did. She deserved it."

Again, Tomba let out a horrible, obnoxious laugh. Ironically, his name meant 'Annoying Monkey' in the tongues of the Island Kingdoms. His parents must really have hated him to give him such a name. He rolled on the ground laughing and then sat up. "Yeah, branded her right in the butt like the cow that she is."

"It's not funny!" shouted Kasumi. "Nixie, come on. Fight it! Don't let Yeyu hold you back."

"I can't fight back," Nixie groaned. "The curse...it's too strong."

"It's not a curse," said Mickey. "You've been purified. It's a gift. Accept it and become one with Yeyu."

"You little shit," growled Nixie. "You'll pay for this."

After many minutes of dodging attacks, Kasumi felt her monks were ready to be tributed for her ace. It was a long and difficult process with all the chaos around her, but with a cool mind, Kasumi was able to survive the onslaught of their monsters. She Link Summoned Berserker of the Tenyi.

"Yes!" cheered Nixie, who still had yet to summon a monster. "You did it!"

"No matter," Tomba sniggered. "We can still take her out. After all, her poor excuse of a partner can't even summon anything cuz of that mark on her butt."

"You don't have to keep bringing that up!" Nixie snarled. Her mouth was foaming and her face was turning beet red. Kasumi thought she was seeing something, but she could have sworn something odd happened to her pupils.

"Aww, did I strike a nerve," Tomba teased. "The little cow thinks she can fight."

"Leave her alone!" shouted Kasumi. "Berserker of Tenyi, take him out!"

Her monster sprinted towards Transcode Talker. Suddenly, Roaring Ocean snake flew out of the banner and intercepted the attack. Tenyi punched Roaring Ocean Snake's head off with one destructive punch. Mickey felt weakened by the attack, but it meant he was ready to summon again. He felt he had enough Mana in his pool to summon just the right monster to take it out.

"I summon, Spiked Seadra!" he shouted. "And the mighty Kairyu-Shin!"

The Banner beneath his feet rippled and two massive sea serpents came out and grabbed Berkser of Tenyi by the arms. He tried to fight them off, but Kairyu-Shin and Spiked Seadra pulled and pulled until they tore him in half.

"NO!" cried Kasumi.

Tomba and Mickey laughed. They fell to the ground on their knees and clutching their stomachs.

"There's nothing you can do to stop us!" shouted Mickey. "Nixie! You're weak! Just like your dad was! That's why he needed my father's genius to make the discoveries he made. He took all the risks while yours sat around and played around."

"My father was a hard-working man!" yelled Nixie. She was sweating profusely despite the cold. "He was a leader. Your dad and mine were friends. I don't know what kind of crap the Church of Yeyu poisoned your mind with, but it's just not true You were my friend. We wanted to look after you. You didn't want to be looked after. All you did was lie, cheat, and steal."

"Whatever, Nixie! It doesn't matter what you say. Our battle is almost over. Kasumi is weak and you are just pathetic. Thanks to the cleansing you received from mighty Yeyu, you can never summon any monster."

"Branded like a cow!" laughed Tomba. "Boy, I sure wish I was there to see it. They say you screamed like a little bitch when they took your clothes off and branded you. You cried just like the big baby that you are. Just like M did when the Banner of Yeyu took his soul. Pathetic."

Nixie could take it no more. She startled snarling. She was going primal. Kasumi backed away from her. She could feel something was going horribly wrong with Nixie.

"Don't worry, cow!" Tomba teased again. "You're gonna join him soon."

Nixie let out an ear-piercing scream. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head. She shut them, still screaming with all her might. Her body was radiating a fiery aura.

"What the hell is this?" Tomba said backing away. "What is she doing? You said she can't use magic! She was cleansed."

"I don't know either, dude!" Mickey babbled. "What...Nixie! Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Nixie responded with another scream. Her hands ignited into purple flames. She stood up, growling like a rabid beast. Her eyes opened. The cute brown eyes she had were replaced with savage reptilian orbs with a black slit. Drool oozed down the side of her mouth and she sniffed the air as though she were a predator on the hunt.

"What's happening?" Kasumi said, backing away until she bumped against the barrier the Banner created to keep them locked in.

Nixie let out a thunderous roar that sounded like a Black Tyranno. It was like she was not human anymore. She smashed her hands on the ground. The Banner started flickering. The ground cracked. Bright purple light glowed from the cracks in the earth. Two dominant shouts echoed from the cracks. Then, with a loud smash, the prehistoric beasts emerged from the ground.

Three of them.

Two Ultimate Conductor Tyrannos and a Super Conductor Tyranno standing behind them.

"We're screwed dude!" shouted Tomba.

Mickey would not tolerate this. He was close to beating Nixie. "No, we're not! Go my monsters! Attack! Drown them."

A foolish move. They were underwater and the three dinosaurs Nixie summoned were users of thunder magic. The two Ultimate Conductor Tyrannos launched a barrage of lightning bolts that zapped the two monsters. The attack then flew towards Mickey. It struck him. He screamed in agony. His body flashed so brightly he skeleton could be seen through the flashes.

"MICKEY!" shouted Tomba. Super Conductor Tyranno then attacked Transcode Talker, smashing him with his tail. Tomba looked at Nixie, babbling in fear. "She...she's a monster!"

"Indeed she is," Ralsh said coming out of the darkness. "That's enough for tonight. We've seen what we wanted to see. You two dorks need a little more training before you can use the Banner of Yeyu."

He used his fist to smash the Banner of Yeyu, breaking the barrier and ending the Duel. "Let's go home, guys. Tomba, help Mickey back on his feet. That savage over there fried him up good."

Tomba did as he was told. Nixie was snarling and gnashing as though she were some sort of animal.

Ralsh sniggered at the sight of her. "Another one, huh?" He snapped his fingers, opening a portal. "I guess I owe you something for this victory. It's not every day someone surprises me." He snapped his fingers. There was a flash behind the bushes, and then, he, Tomba, and Mickey vanished into the portal.

They were all gone. But Nixie was still snarling like an animal. Kasumi did not dare approach her. She had gone completely savage. The bushes rustled and to Kasumi's surprise….it was M. He was back. He was shivering in fear, for he had spent the past half hour in hell. But he was okay.

"Nixie?" he whimpered.

"M?" Kasumi cried. "I don't know what's wrong with her."

"It's her Dino DNA," M shouted, running towards her. "It must have triggered. What happened?"

"We were in a Banner Duel and she couldn't summon anything because of the mark. But when she thought about losing you, she just went completely animalistic. She summoned three powerful monsters, M! Three!"

"She can cast magic?" M said in delight. "I just knew they would come through for her."

"What?"

M wasted no time. He grabbed Nixie by the shoulders, pleading with her to calm down. She writhed around like a madwoman and foamed at the mouth. "Nixie!" M pleaded with her. "Nixie come on. It's me. It's M! I'm okay! Come on, girl, snap out of it. Wake up! Wake up!"

Nixie hissed and snapped at him with her teeth.

M struggled to keep her still. "Nixie, don't lose yourself to the dinosaur's spirit. You're in control. Remember? It's your body. Not his. You are in control. Wake up! Come on, don't leave me."

Nixie roared in his face. She curved her fingers into talons and jabbed them into M's shoulders. He winced in pain but fought through it for her sake. "Nixie, don't do this. Come on! Wake up! Nixie...Nixie I love you."

Nixie snarled and thrashed her head from side to side. Her eyes were glowing purple. He was losing her. M knew it would probably mean getting his face chewed on, but he risked it. He leaned forward and kissed her. At once, Nixie's body seemed to steady and grow calm. Then, a miracle happened. She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back.

"Nixie?" Kasumi whispered.

Nixie and M's lips parted. Nixie opened her eyes. When she saw M, her lips trembled and she started crying.

"It's okay," M said, rubbing her back. "It's gonna be okay. I'm here now."

"I let it take over me," she sobbed. "I lost myself. Why did you do that? I could have killed you."

M chuckled. "I like it rough. But not that rough, girl."

"You asshole," Nixie said, trying to laugh. "Don't ever leave me again."

M kissed her forehead and hugged her. "I won't if you won't. I love you."

"I love you, too," Nixie sobbed.

"Did we miss something?" Cora said, entering the plaza with the others.

"Looks like we kicked their asses again, huh?" said Cora.

"Damn right," M said, standing up. "Those holy bastards ain't got a chance with us around." Nixie stood up from the ground as well. M put his arm over her shoulder.

"So are you two a thing now?" Kasumi asked.

M and Nixie looked at each other smiling. "Well," M said, nuzzling her nose with his. "I guess I can get used to her."

"Aww, how cute," Cora jeered. "But M. You lost the last Duel, huh? You need to step up your game."

Nixie laughed. "Yeah, she's right. You do, babe. You lost to a couple of kids, babe? What's up with that?"

"Uh...I wasn't ready," M said, awkwardly.

"Damn right," Nixie teased.

M smacked her derriere to shut her up. "Girl, that's enough."

Again, a round of warm laughter erupted in the night.