A/N: A few people wondered if I'd follow up on the Reij duel. I do plan on following up on the plot and showing the duel. Right now though, I'm waiting for VRAINS to air before I continue that plot point. I want to get a better feel of Aoi's character before proceeding any further, because her story here is far from over.

Fun Fact: Yuto and Yoko sometimes cook together.

Chapter Summary: As the duel reaches its end, Yuri wants to make sure it ends with a bang.

"Your monster is so cool!" Yuri said excitedly. "If I wanna beat that, I gotta do my best! My turn!"

Yuri pulled out the top card from his deck. His hand now had two cards. His field consisted of Hi-Speedroid Kendama, Lunalight Leo Dancer, Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon, and his two Pendulum Scales.

"Dark Rebellion, under my control again," Yuri mused. "Did you miss me?"

Dark Rebellion let out a deep, unnerving growl as a reply. And it was at this time that Yuto stood up to Yuya. His Life Points were at 1200.

We can't let Yuri duel, Yuto told him. We can't trust him; he'll use this as an opportunity to hurt people.

Yuto hesitated to answer. His eyes drifted away from Yuto and Yuri.

He's just dueling to play around with them, Yuto insisted. If anything, he'll probably make Serena worse off than she already was.

Yuri looked to the three boys. Yuto was locked onto Yuya. Yuya didn't look at any of them. And Fusion was looking to Yuri.

Don't screw this up, Yugo told him.

Yuri turned to face Yuzu. "I Summon my own monster, Predaplant Ophrys Scorpio!"

Yuri delicately placed his card onto the blade. The ground before him sparkled, and his nefarious monster rose to the stage. (ATK 1200)

"When this card is Summoned, I can send one monster from my hand to the Graveyard. Then, I can Special Summon one Predaplant monster from my Deck."

A card was ejected from Yuri's Deck. He picked it up with two fingers, then placed it onto his blade.

The field glowed once more. This time, the glow heralded the arrival of a small, twin-headed serpent. Predaplant Darlingtonia Cobra slithered out of the ground and took its place between Ophrys Scorpio and Dark Rebellion. (DEF 1500)

"When my beautiful plant is Special Summoned by the effect of a Predaplant monster, I can add 1 "Polymerization" or "Fusion" Spell Card from to my hand!"

Another card was ejected from the deck, this time from the bottom. Yuri quickly snatched the card up and held it up to his opponent. It was Polymerization.

"I use Polymerization to fuse two of my monsters together," Yuri announced. "I fuse Predaplant Darlington Cobra, and Lunalight Leo Dancer!"

Nearly everyone let out a gasp. Yuzu took a cautionary step back, but kept her eyes dead-set on her enemy.

Wh-why are you doing that? Serena cried out.

"Celery!" Yuri called out. "Your cry for victory hasn't gone unheard! Let us join together and create a miracle to win this match!"

A familiar swirling vortex appeared on the field. Leo Dancer and Darlington Cobra were lifted before it. Their bodies contorted and merged within the vortex, becoming a dark, inky purple form.

"Beautiful flower with an alluring fragrance! King of all the beasts! Become one, and create the all-devouring plant from Hell! Fusion Summon! Level 1! Predaplant Chimerafflesia!"

The purple form took the shape of a very large, vine-covered mass. Its large body cast a shadow across the field. The purple started to fall away, revealing a terrifying plant with two gaping maws. (ATK 2500)

A stunned pause from the audience. A few of them murmured amongst themselves, wondering about this new monster. Grace and Gloria watched on, silent and increasingly curious.

He brought out something disgusting, Yuto growled. Yuya, we need to stop him before-

Wait, Yuya responded. Yuri, we're watching. Show us that we can trust you.

... I don't need your trust, Yuri said to him.

"I use Chimerafflesia's effect!" Yuri declared. "Once per turn, I can target a monster my opponent controls, with a level equal to, or less than my plant's. That monster is banished from the field!"

"I won't let that happen!" Yuzu shouted.

With that, Yuzu took her monster's hand. Together, the duo took off into the air, away from the field.

They were followed by the other monster's vines. They quickly slithered on the ground in pursuit of the duo. Yuri himself surfed on top of one of the vines, looking menacing as he closed in on Yuzu.

The tips of some vines darted through the air, attempting to grab hold of Yuzu and Bloom Diva. They were able to sidestep the vines, duck from one of the plant's hungry mouths, and make their way to a floating platform.

They stopped and hovered a foot away from the platform, and a couple of feet above. As Yuzu leaned forward for a better look, she could see an Action Card right at the right, corner edge. And a shadow was cast over them.

"You can't escape!" Yuri cackled.

Yuzu turned around to see the monster, looming over them. Vines flew at Bloom Diva and entrapped her. She let out a small cry of pain as she plant squeezed her.

Yuzu however, was safe. She let go of her monster's hand and dove towards the card. She stretched out her right hand and attempted to nab it.

Unfortunately for her, Yuri jumped from a vine and onto the platform. He knelt down and picked up the Action Card.

Yuzu gasped. Her hand desperately grabbed at the edge of the platform to keep herself from falling. She dangled over the edge, several feet in the air.

"Yuya!" Yuzu screamed.

Yuzu! Yuya called out. Yuri, save her!

Yuri was quick on the draw. With his free hand, Yuri grabbed Yuzu by the wrist and pulled. "I got you, Yuzu."

Yuzu shuddered. His hand felt so clammy and cold. It was nothing like the warm comfort of Yuya's, despite it being the same hand.

"Ugh..." she grunted. "Thanks... Yuri."

Yuri egao'd. He pulled Yuzu up, helping her to get into the platform. And then with that done, he jumped onto a vine and left her stranded.

Yuzu looked back to her monster. Bloom Diva let out a final cry before she was shattered by the vines. Yuzu was too late to save it.

Yuri's vine lowered him to the ground. Once it landed, the boy casually jumped off and turned his focus back to his opponent.

"Wow, your monster was so strong! But I was able to get rid of it without a sweat! I guess that means I'm really amazing, huh?"

Yuzu looked down at him. Her face was a mix or worry and anger. But her heart pounded in excitement and anxiousness.

"That was a close one!" she called out.

Coming up to the scene were Yuri's other monsters. Dark Rebellion, Hi-Speedroid Kendama and Ophrys Scorpio all gathered behind their controller.

"Time for the real fun to begin," Yuri said calmly. "Battle! Predaplant Ophrys Scorpio attacks Yuzu directly!"

Ophrys Scorpio leaned its body back. From its stinger tail, three purple darts were shot into the air. Yuzu held her arms in front of her body to shield herself from the attack. (Yuzu: 1600 → 400)

Yuzu looked around. There were a few platforms a distance away, but none of them were within reach. The drop down would have been too risky, and even if she did jump, there didn't seem to be Action Cards in sight.

Crap, she thought, sighing internally. We're boned.

"I end my turn," was Yuri's response.

"What?" Yuzu asked.

"You heard me," Yuri replied. "I ended my turn. Now go and draw a card."

"But why?"

Yuri walked around his Fusion monster. He looked at the crowd, giving them a devious little smirk.

And then, back to looking at Yuzu. "We're putting on a show, right? I want to give the heroine one last chance at defeating the demon."

Yuya! Yuto barked. See? We can't trust him!

Yuto, what the hell? Yugo groaned. Calm your shit, you cuck. Now Rin gets a chance to duel!

That's right, Fusion, Yuri chuckled. I want to see if she can back up her words!

My name's not Fusion! It's Yugo!

Yuzu closed her eyes and rested a card on her Deck. She opened her now-orange eyes and drew her next card.

"Yuri, I appreciate the chance to play," Rin said to him. "But I'm not going easy on you. The duel's going to end on this turn!"

Rin drew a card from her hand and placed it onto her Duel Disk's blade. "If I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Windwitch - Ice Bell from my hand!"

A cold blast of air blew from below Rin, lifting up the feathers and flowers from the previous fights. Materializing next to the platform was a female monster, flying on a broomstick. She waved her delicate wand upward, and a stream of blue wind circled around her. (ATK 1000)

"Then, I can Special Summon a Windwitch from my Deck. And when Ice Bell is first Summoned, I can also inflict 500 points of damage to my opponent!" (Yuri: 1200 → 700)

Ice Bell waved her wand to herright side. The blue wind around her blew over to the spot. it took the form of Windwitch - Glass Bell. (ATK 1500) The monster floated on her broomstick, sitting right beside Ice Bell.

A card was ejected from Rin's deck. Naturally, she was quick to grab i. She presented the card, Windwitch - Snow Bell, to the enemy, before placing it in her hand.

"When Windwitch - Glass Bell is Summoned, I can add another Windwitch to my hand."

"You remind me of Fusion when he duels!" Yuri gasped. You already created a strong field! And without using your Normal Summon, too!"

"Don't get wowed just yet," Rin replied, egao-ing. "I tune my Level-"

"Not so fast!" Yuri screamed. "Action Card - Haunted Missile, activate!"

Yuri pressed a card to his Duel Disk. The air rippled around him. From those ripples came three large, navy blue missiles with ghostly faces at the tips. All three shot upward at Rin and her monsters. (Rin 400 → 0)

"You didn't think I'd actually let you win, right?" Yuri howled. "I offered you hope, not a win!"

See! See? Yuto barked. I knew he was just playing us! He just wanted to crush their hope!

Just be safe, Rin, Yugo thought.

Rin jumped down from the platform just as the missiles hit. She descended downwards, along with pieces of the now-demolished platform above. Her monsters faded from the field, leaving behind traces of sparkles to rain down on her.

To Rin's surprise, it was Dark Rebellion who came to her rescue. Without any prompting from Yuri, the dragon took to the air and caught her in its arms.

The duel had ended, and the boys had won. The audience burst into applause for the duelists. And by now, the crowd had seemingly tripled in size.

Yuri casually gathered up his deck and started to shuffle, humming a small tune as he placed the cards back in his Duel Disk.

"La la la la, something-something," he hummed. "Something something broken dreams~"

The other three boys appeared around him. Yuto, naturally, showed visible displeasure.

What a fun duel! I think we all learned something today! Yuya said confidently.

That solidarity with your brothers or sisters means nothing, because at the end of the day, we'll act solely for ourselves? Yuri thought to himself.

That we're the best duelists in the world? Yugo asked.

That our deck will almost always give us the best draws, even when we just mash all our cards together? Yuto asked.

Yuya frowned. Let's go back home and finish our homework.

We need to talk about something first, Yuto said aggressively. Yuri was just messing with Rin the whole time.

Yuri did nothing wrong, Yuya replied. He could have ended the duel without giving Rin a turn. At least he gave Rin a chance totry and fight.

You need to stop defending him! Remember what he said about our father? Are you going to forget about that?

Yuri frowned. Listen, Yuto. Yuri said some bad things, but we can't stay mad at him forever.

He didn't even apologize!

Yuri, do you-

Yuri stopped humming. Without responding to his counterparts, he started walking towards Rin.

Rin was tired, splashed with dirt and soot, and a little bit frustrated in her loss.

She clenched her fists. She didn't get to wow them like the others. She failed. All the others got to shine bright, and she couldn't even do anything.

But the other girls were there for her. Yuzu and Ruri took her hands, and Serena gave her a small nod of approval.

I'm sorry you didn't get to do what you wanted, Ruri said softly.

You could have won, if I didn't mess up against Yuri, Yuzu said meekly.

Rin shook her head. Yuzu, don't worry about it. You did great, okay? You just got some bad luck, going up against that jerk.

Like you, Serena responded. You could have kicked his ass if the order was different.

Rin blinked. Her fists opened up, letting go of some of the anger she was holding. And with that anger gone, she could hear the applause of the audience. She could see the smiles of her counterparts. She could hear the rush of excitement from her beating heart, from being right there in the action.

I think we did good, guys, Rin said to her girls. Group hug?

Not a chance in Hell! Serena hissed.

Rin outstretched her arms. Both Yuzu and Ruri joined in on the hug. An after a bit of hesitation, Serena sighed, dragged herself over and threw an arm into the pile.

"What are you doing?" Yuri asked.

Rin blinked. She immediate brought her arms down and looked at Yuri, blushing.

"I-I wasn-wasn't just-just-just hugging the air!" Rin stammered. "We were hugging!"

"I see. Would you like me to join you girls?"

"Not a chance, Yuri."

"Did you at least enjoy my debut performance?"

"You raised my hopes, just to dash them away," Rin groaned.

"I'm very good at that, yes."

"And yet, you gave me a chance to fight... That one chance, even if it was small, was kinda fun."

"Ohhh?"

Rin scoffed. "Don't think too much of it. I just liked the adrenaline. You just got lucky that I had fun."

Yuri brushed some of his hair back, flashing the young lady a seductive egao. And then, his eyes shifted to a bright red.

"Rin, are you guys okay?" Yuya asked. "How is Serena feeling?"

Now Serena took over Yuzu's body. "Yuya, I... I had a lot of fun."

Serena's eyes fell to the ground. She really did have fun. It was a heart-pumping duel. She was thrown into a strange situation, but she got to see how well she shined. The duel was unexpected, and everyone worked together to turn the chaos into something amazing. And most of all, it made people happy.

Serena blushed. That was just like Yuya, wasn't it? It wasn't just about being a strong duelist with him. It was about how he worked hard to make people happy.

Like her.

Crap. She was crushing even harder now.

"Serena," Yuya said to her. "I'm really happy we got to do this."

Serena's head rose up. Her first instinct was to go on the offensive, push away whatever made her feel so bad. Without even thinking, she pulled her fist back and took a swing at Yuya.

This was right at the time Yugo took over Yuya's body. He wanted a chance to talk to the others, which lead him to try and take control of the body.

"Riiin-"

Yugo was punched square in the mouth. He stumbled backwards and threw his entire head back.

"Th-that's not Rin's punch..." Yugo groaned.

Yuzu forcibly took the body over. He immediately ran over to Yugo and started apologizing profusely. Meanwhile, the other three girls stood behind her and watched on.

A furious Rin stepped before Serena. Her arms rested on her hips, and she leaned forward to give the girl her best "angry mom" face.

Hey, what's the big deal?! she barked. Why'd you hit him?

It- it was an accident! Serena said defensively. I thought it was Yuya!

That doesn't make it better!

Guys, I can't hear that Yugo's saying, Yuzu interrupted. Could you take this somewhere else?

Come on, guys! We need to calm down! Ruri pleaded.

Serena, what the hell? Rin snapped. Really, what in the actual HELL?

Stop being an asshole! Serena hissed. It was an accident! Besides , you hit Yugo all the time!

Quiet, guys! Yuzu cried.

That's different! Rin said.

How? was Serena's response.

"SHUT UP AND LEAVE ME ALONE!" Yuzu screamed.

The girls went silent. The audience just stared at Yuzu. Yugo, no, Yuya looked at her in shock and sadness.

Realizing their situation, the trio of girls vanished from sight, retreating into the mindscape. Finally, Yuya and Yuzu were left to their own devices.

"I'm sorry, Yuya," Yuzu sighed. "I wasn't talking to you."

"Sorry," Yuya said. "But does this mean that we didn't help Serena?"

"I wish we couldn't talk about her," Yuzu admitted. "I hate that things have to be so complicated. Why can't we just have fun and not think about things, like when we dueled?"

Yuya gave Yuzu a somber nod. "If only we could just duel all the time, and not deal with heartbreak, or in-fighting."

Yuzu turned her back to Yuya. After a small moment of silence, she let out a sigh.

By now, the crowd started to disperse. There were no more applause. Many of them could see the tension in the air by the time Yugo was punched, and had decided to back out and give the kids their privacy. Only Grace, Gloria, Sayaka and Allen remained, waiting to see if they would need to intervene.

"I thought this duel would help, but I think we're back where he started," Yuzu admitted. "Serena's still upset, and Rin and her are fighting. I just know they're going to be at each other's throats for a while now."

"That's the thing with you, Yuzu," Yuya continued. "You're thinking about how Serena feels. You're thinking about how giving Rin and Ruri time with Yugo and Yuto. You're thinking about making everyone else egao."

Yuzu egao'd sadly. "That's what an Entertainment Duelist does; they make people happy."

"You can't always be selfless, Yuzu. It's not healthy to put everyone's wants before yours, all the time."

Yuya tapped Yuzu on the shoulder. "For me? And Yugo, and Yuto."

"I can't," Yuzu said bitterly. "I can't do that. If I try to be selfish, I'll hurt Serena. I'll be hurting Ruri and Rin too."

Yuzu took a step forward, giving her more space away from Yuya. She let out a long, tired sigh and folded her arms.

"...But if I could be selfish, just this one time..."

Yuzu turned around and took hold of Yuya's hands. She pulled the young man in and pressed her lips against his.

Yuya was completely caught off-guard. For a moment, his body froze up. But as his own feelings welled up inside him, he could feel his body relax. He wrapped his arms around Yuzu's waist and returned the kiss.

After what felt like hours, the two broke free from their embrace. They stared at each other, blushing profusely and sweating bullets.

"That was..." Yuzu muttered.

"I mean..." Yuya said nervously.

"... Good."

"Yeah... We should do it again sometime."

"If only we could, Yuya."

"Yeah. If only."

The two egao'd sadly. They held each other's hands and looked deeply in each other's eyes. Now, their counterparts weren't there. The crowd wasn't there. It was just the two of them, alone together.

"Maybe one day," Yuzu said to him. "One day, we'll figure out how to make it all work."

"I'll be dreaming of that day," Yuya responded. "And if - when that day comes, I'll write your name in the stars, I swear it."

A/N: The original ending for this chapter was longer. Originally, Yuzu would have talked to Serena. They would have come to the arrangement that Yuzu and Yuya couldn't date, but they could kiss and make-out if Serena was allowed to watch. I cut this ending because it felt too OOC for Serena, and it would take away from the sappy moment.

Another ending, cut for similar reasons, had Yuya pretend that he was possessed by Yuri at the time of the kiss, just to joke around with Yuzu. This would have earned him such a hard whack from Yuzu's fan, accidentally putting him in a two-day coma.

Next time: Two little words. That's all it takes to ignite a war between Dennis and Yuto. Throw in Sawatari, and you have the Kings of Disaster.