Harriet Hartfield was having a good morning. She'd gotten to try out the dining hall, which had been lavish to the point of ridiculousness. Pikeru had woken her up early enough to get a lengthy shower. She'd even had time to practice a new opening with her deck. It was going to be a good day.

Classes were a blur. With how they were divided up, she only saw her brother sporadically. They were on their way out of Crowler's class when she managed to catch up with him. "Hey! How're your dorms?"

Adam gave her a tight smile. "They're good. A little packed, but good."

"Something wrong?" she asked as they headed down the hallway together.

"It's nothing," Adam said a little too quickly. He gave her what he thought was a reassuring smile. "I'm fine."

"I don't believe you, but okay," Harriet said. "Where you off to? Lunch?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Also lunch. And then Intro to Pro-Dueling."

"Oh, same. That's the one Professor Oda teaches, right?"

"Yeah! From what I've gleaned from upper classmen, she's pretty cool," Harriet said.

"I look forward to meeting her then," Adam said as the entered the school cafeteria. Adam tracked them down an empty table in the corner. He sat down while she went to get her food. On her way back, she saw a boy she didn't recognize sitting with Adam, chatting amicably.

"…don't get what Crowler's whole deal is. Like, how would we have gotten into Duel Academy if we didn't know what kinds of cards there are?" the boy was saying. Adam looked up at her and waved.

"Harry, this is Calvin. He's in my dorm," Adam said. Calvin blinked at having his train of thought interrupted but turned around, spotting Harriet for the first time.

"Oh, cool! Nice to meet you," Harriet said, setting her food down next to Adam's seat so she could shake Calvin's hand.

"Wow, you guys look nothing alike," Calvin blurted out. Harriet blinked a few times. Calvin did as well. "By which I mean hello, my name's Calvin, nice to meet you?"

"Nice to meet you too?" Harriet said. "Adam, go get food, I got the table."

Adam nodded and got up, heading to the lunch line, leaving Harriet and Calvin alone with each other. Both of them focused on their food not saying anything. Both of them startled when someone pulled out a chair and sat down with them.

"Oh! Hey Kendra," Harriet said.

"Hey." The other girl looked towards Calvin then at Harriet. "Who's he?"

"You could ask me. I'm right here," Calvin said.

"Okay. Who're you?" Kendra asked.

"I'm Calvin. Nice to meet you," Calvin said, beaming at her. "I like your haircut."

"Thanks," Kendra said, turning away. All three of them startled when Adam sat down beside Harriet. He looked at Kendra and just raised an eyebrow. Kendra shrugged.

"Hey."

"Hello," Adam said, drawing out the 'o' sound.

"Oh! Right. Adam, this is Kendra. I met her at the social thing, we almost dueled and we may have picked a fight with a mean girl," Harriet said.

"I leave you alone for a day and already you're challenging social hierarchies? Really?" Adam asked, a small smile on his face.

"Hey, she had it coming. And we didn't actually fight yet. We're getting there," Harriet said.

"Oh, so long as she had it coming. That makes it fine," Adam said, smile steadily growing.

"You have no idea! She's from a prep school and everything. I can't wait to wipe that smug look off her face. It's gonna be fantastic," Harriet said, beaming at her brother. He simply laughed.

"If you say so. How've you two found classes?" he asked, turning towards Kendra and Calvin.

"Crowler's a bore. I don't get why he's a teacher," Calvin said. "All he does is drone on and on and we didn't really learn anything anyway. Like, what're we going to be doing in that class? Nothing but Duel Puzzles? How do you even teach dueling technique?" Calvin said. They spent a good portion of the lunch period talking about Crowler's 'lesson' and debating whether or not he even had teaching credentials. They were interrupted by a loud clearing of the throat. All four of them looked over to see Professor Momoko Oda looking down at them with a raised eyebrow.

"As much as I love hearing students rag on one of my colleagues, I need to talk to Adam," the Professor said.

"Oh. Sure," Adam said, setting his empty tray on top of Harriet's.

"Great. Could you follow me please?" she said. She led Adam away, talking quietly with him.

"Did he do something wrong last night?" Harriet asked, her head snapping over to Calvin.

"Erm. No? Not that I saw? I heard some of the guys saying nasty things about him at breakfast, but…"

"What kinds of things?" Harriet asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Uh. T-They called him a…" Calvin mumbled something incoherent but Harriet understood. Her hands clenched into fists.

"Hey. No punching on day one," Kendra said, putting a hand on Harriet's shoulder to stop her from standing.

"I need their names and their faces. I need to know who I need to clobber," Harriet said.

"You're serious, aren't you? You'd actually punch them," Calvin said, staring at Harriet in open admiration. "I'll send them to you after class. We gotta go for now."

The trio headed to Professor Oda's class together. They found a crowd of students outside the door, staring at it in confusion. "But this is where it's scheduled to be," someone said, obviously baffled.

"Clearly there's been a typo," Jessica said loudly, over the crowd. "I can't believe this."

"Or you can read the note on the door that says class is in the West Arena," Harriet said flatly, pointing at the note over someone's shoulder.

"Oh," Jessica said, going red. "Well, what if that note's not for us, huh? What then?"

"It literally has our class's name and time on it," Harriet said.

Jessica leaned closer to the note. "I see. Very well then. I guess we're in the West Arena," Jessica said. She turned on her heel and headed in the right direction, the crowd parting for her.

"That her?" Calvin asked.

"That her," Kendra said with a nod.

"Wow. No wonder you don't like her," Calvin said, patting Harriet's shoulder. Harriet shook her head and followed the crowd to the arena.

Inside, they found Professor Oda standing in near total darkness, a spotlight illuminating her. "Everyone take a seat," she said, waiting as her students did so, filling up the bleachers. Once everyone was seated, she said "So you all know, we'll only use that classroom twice a week. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we're going to be in here. Got it?"

There were a few murmurs from the class.

"If you don't got it, then write it down. Now. Intro to Pro-Dueling. I emailed all of you the syllabus. What're we doing here?"

Harriet's hand shot up. Professor Oda pointed to her. "This is a practical course that talks about the ins and outs of professional dueling. The introductory class will cover how Pro-Dueling works and get students used to what being in a Pro-Dueling situation feels like," she said.

"…did you memorize my syllabus?" Oda asked, folding her arms and staring up at Harriet.

"No?" Harriet said weakly.

"I may need you to, it'll help me remember what's on it," Oda said. "But yes! This class is about you guys learning how to duel in front of a crowd and what that entails! Now I believe in practical demonstrations, so I'm going to show you what most of this class entails. Lights up!" she ordered. All the lights in the arena snapped on, causing several people to shout and cover their eyes.

"To help me in this, I've enlisted one of your classmates. He's got a history in acting and he was nice enough to agree to help me," Professor Oda said, gesturing towards the other end of the arena. For the first time, most of the crowd seemed to notice Adam. The Ra Yellow had his arms folded, black lips curled up in a smile. Even from a distance, Harriet could see eyeliner on him. Eyeliner he hadn't been wearing before he left lunch.

"So! Ready to get started?" Professor Oda asked as she took her place on the opposite side of the arena. Adam activated his Duel Disk.

"Are you? Are you ready to face the foul magic of necromancy, Professor?" Adam said.

"I think I can teach you a thing or two," she said, activating her own Duel Disk. It was a different model from the one she'd used in the entrance exams. This one was more angular, with a black metal lined with neon purple.

"Let's duel!" they both shouted as they drew their hands. (Adam: 4000/Oda: 4000)

"As is tradition, the student takes the first turn! And I begin my undead assault with this! The monster Pyramid Turtle in Defense Position!" A burst of light heralded the arrival of the stone turtle. It's surveyed the arena, it's cold gaze falling on Professor Oda. "Next shall be one card face-down. And that will end my turn," Adam said as he laid down the cards.

"As intimidating as your undead creature is, I'll just have to cut through it!" Professor Oda said as she drew a card. "Come to my side! Six Samurai Zanji (1800/1300)"

A human in glowing orange armor rose from the ground next to Professor Oda. It swiped it's sword through the air twice, more orange light trailing from the blade as it did.

"My valiant samurai will slice through anything your undead minions can throw at him! Now, Zanji! Attack Pyramid Turtle! Cross-Slash!" Professor Oda ordered. Her samurai blinked across the field and slashed through the turtle, which shattered.

"By destroying my turtle, you've unleashed the great beast hidden inside!" Adam said as he put his monster in the Graveyard. "For you see, when it's destroyed, I may special summon a Zombie-type monster with less than 2000 Defense points! It is time this creature claims it's rightful place as the ruler of the dead! Come forth! Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon! (2400/2000)"

From the broken and shattered remains of the Pyramid Turtle a black form launched into the air. Huge, decayed wings spread wide from it's back. Part of it's jaw hung open, it's milky red eyes staring at Professor Oda. The zombie dragon let out a deafening screech.

"Hey! Hey, it's Red-Eyes!" Pikeru said, appearing from Harriet's pocket. "Red-Eyes! Hey! Up here!"

"He's in the middle of a duel, idiot," Curran said, appearing next to Pikeru. "He'll look at us when he's ready."

"Feh. I fell right for it," Oda said. "I'll set three dcards face-down and end my turn."

"Which means it's time to activate my face-down. DNA Surgery!" Adam said. He gestured as the trap card rose up.

"Hey! I have that card too!" Calvin said, beaming at the field. "It's a cool one!"

"Yeah. Especially when it's paired with Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon," Harriet said.

"This trap card transforms all face-up monsters on the field into a type of my choosing! So they will all join my undead horde as Zombie-type!" Adam said. Immediately Zanji changed. His posture became slumped, his skin ashen and rotting.

"Now to formally start my turn," Adam said as he drew a card. "Hm. Yes, this will do nicely. I summon my trusty Goblin Zombie (1100/1050). Now, my mighty Red-Eyes! Attack and destroy her Six Samurai Zanji! Necro Blast Attack!"

The Zombie Dragon reared it's head back and breathed out a blast of crackling black energy. The zombie samurai vanished into it as Oda let out a shout of alarm. (Oda: 4000 - 3400)

"You just triggered my Trap Card! Shien's Scheme!" Oda shouted. "When a Six Samurai monster on my side of the field is destroyed in battle, I get to Special Summon up to two Six Samurai monsters from my hand. I choose my Grandmaster of the Six Samurai (2100/800)! Come to me, in Attack Mode!"

Another samurai appeared on the field. His face was stern, his hair a deep grey. An eyepatch covered one of his eyes and he stood with his blade pointed down at the floor. As soon as he finished appearing, he changed. His jaw dropped open and his skin turned vaguely green. The hair became thinner and matted. He slumped forward.

"Of course, your DNA Surgery turns him into a Zombie," Oda said through gritted teeth.

"Just as it turned your Zanji into a Zombie! And because it was destroyed by my Red-Eyes Black Zombie Dragon, I can Special Summon it to my side of the field in Attack mode!" Adam said. Zanji reappeared, this time next to the zombie dragon that had destroyed him. "But I've not finished my turn yet. I activate my Continuous Spell Card Ectoplasmer!"

"Oh shit, it's the Ecto-Gobo-Wombo-Combo," Harriet said, beating the seat in front of her in excitement. "He started it and his Red-Eyes Monster Theft Chain! She's in so much trouble!"

Kendra gave Harriet a single raised eyebrow. "He hasn't won yet."

"At the end of my turn, Ectoplasmer activates! I tribute my Goblin Zombie to inflict damage to your life points equal to half of it's attack points! Souls themselves are my weapon. With them, I will chip away at you piece by piece until nothing's left!" Adam said as his little zombie turned to smoke. It blasted out, slamming into Professor Oda. (Oda: 3400 - 2850)

"Which makes this the perfect time to activate my second trap! Swiftstrike Armor!" Oda said, gesturing as the second card she'd laid down flipped up. "But let's worry about that on my turn, shall we?"

"Allow me to use my Goblin Zombie's effect first. I will claim a Zombie from my deck with less than 1500 Defense points. I choose Zombie Master, who I shall add to my hand," Adam said as he put the card in his hand. "It is your turn, Professor."

"And it's game over, Adam!" The Professor said as she drew a card. "My Swiftstrike Armor activates! If the card I draw in my Draw Phase is a Six Samurai monster, I get to Special Summon it! Come forth, Six Samurai Nisashi (1400/700)!"

Another samurai appeared, this one clad in green armor. It carried two swords, both bathed in a glowing green light. Adam raised an eyebrow at it. "How does this herald the end of the game?" he asked.

"Like this. I summon Spirit of the Six Samurai (500/500) in Attack Mode!" A suit of samurai armor appeared, only without a body in it. Instead, a swirling mass of blue flames held the plates aloft. "Because it is a Union monster, I may equip it to any Six Samurai monsters under my control. I choose Six Samurai Nisashi!" The armor flew out, settling atop Nisashi's green armor. Spectral flames spread over Nisashi before sinking into the Duel Monster's skin, tinging it blue. "This raises Nisashi's Attack points by 500!" (Nisashi: 1400 - 1900)

"I don't get it. If she equipped that Spirit thing to the Grandmaster, she'd've been able to take down Red-Eyes," Calvin muttered. "Did she make a mistake?"

"No. This is all calculated," Kendra said.

"Now, for my last face-down card. Breakthrough!" The last card in the line flipped up. "With this, I choose a Six Samurai monster I control. If it successfully destroys a monster, all Six Samurai monsters I control can attack my opponent directly! Nisashi! Attack and destroy Zanji! Put your brother out of his misery!"

The green samurai leaped forward, slashing down at Zanji. The other creature was split from head to groin and shattered into pieces. (Adam: 4000 - 3900)

"Not bad Professor. But hardly enough to end the game," Adam said, grinning at her. "My Red-Eyes will feast on you yet."

"Guess again, kiddo. See, when Nisashi's on the field and I have another Six Samurai monster, he can attack twice each turn. And thanks to Breakthrough!, he gets to attack you directly!" Professor Oda said, pointing towards Adam. Her green samurai darted forward and slashed his second blade up Adam. Adam recoiled, shouting in surprise. (Adam: 3900 - 2000)

"And now my Grandmaster of the Six Samurai gets his own direct attack! Finish him off with Grand Technique!" Oda ordered. The grey-haired samurai darted forward, bypassing the zombie dragon to slash up Adam with his silvery blade. (Adam: 2000 - 0)

Harriet stared; her jaw having dropped open. Adam took several steps back in surprise.

"Full health to zero in just one turn," Calvin whispered. "That's…that's impressive."

Professor Oda immediately crossed the arena towards Adam and offered a hand. "Good duel. That Red-Eyes of yours is something," she said. Adam shook her hand, still pale.

"Thanks," he muttered. Oda turned on her heel to face the class.

"So! Question for you guys! Did Adam do anything wrong?" she asked loudly. Jessica's hand shot up. "Yes, you!"

"He agreed to duel an opponent he wasn't ready for," Jessica said.

"Say more," Oda said with a nod.

"He's a Ra Yellow. He should've known a professor was outside of his league," Jessica said primly. Oda snorted and shook her head.

"Okay, so you were right he wasn't ready to duel me, but not because of his dorm. That's just some made up ranking system Mr. Kaiba wanted to use. Why was she right that he wasn't ready?"

Kendra raised her hand. "He went in blind. You were able to surprise him."

"Bingo. This's your first lesson in Pro-Dueling: do your homework. Learn what kinds of decks your opponents have and you'll have the advantage. If you can't, then you can't. That happens sometimes too. But if you can, do the work to figure it out. I can guarantee they'll do the work for you," Professor Oda said. "Did he do anything else wrong?"

"He lost," someone muttered, causing the person next to him to giggle.

Oda's finger snapped over to point at the boy who had spoken, a Ra Yellow with deep green eyes and long silvery hair. "Care to repeat that?"

"I said he lost," the boy repeated. "That's a mistake isn't it?"

Oda smirked up at the boy. "Second lesson for all of you: you're going to lose. At some point, every single one of you in this room will lose. It's how you learn from those losses that changes things for you. And to hammer that home, here's something you should know: everyone in this class will end up dueling each other. Especially the ones that need it." Oda turned to look at the Slifer Red section of the room. "You guys'll be dueling more than the others. Be ready for that." She looked out at the rest of the class. "Your homework for tonight! Find someone in this class that you'd like to duel first. Both of you have to agree and let me know. Your assignment begins…now."

And with that, she let the room descend into anarchic chatter as the students began searching for their opponents. Harriet watched Oda approach her brother before letting Calvin draw her into a discussion about who should duel who. Clearly both of them had a lot to learn.