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Well, let the fun begin!

I only own my OC's!

The moment Ben was out of my sight, I immediately took my deck out of the box. I started looking through all of my cards to make sure they were there.

"What are you doing?" Jaden spoke up. "Checking to see whether all the cards are here." I responded, still going through them. "Just chill out, they are." "I still have to…"

I was suddenly grabbed by my shoulders gently. "If you keep acting so frantically, then your panic will increase." My eyes moved away from the cards. I looked up to meet Jaden's chocolate brown eyes. "How am I supposed to be sure without looking at them?" A frown appeared on my face.

While I did accept the duel proposition, that didn't mean I wasn't nervous…

"I think you'll do just fine. All you have to do is trust your deck." He smiled. "Are you sure about that?" I questioned. "100 percent." He nodded, still smiling. I kept staring at him for few moments.

Even though I still had this urge to keep looking through the cards, I decided not to. Jaden believed I would do good. I knew he couldn't predict the future, or something like that. Still, he believed in me. That fact made me feel at ease. And it had nothing to do with his dueling. I couldn't care less how he dueled. He was my friend, and he had just shown support for me.

"Fine." I finally nodded, putting the deck back in its box. "But the question is, where did the soldier go?" Hassleberry raised an eyebrow. "Most probably to the White Dorm." Aster responded, closing his eyes for a few moments. "He was heading in that direction…" Jaden trailed off.

"Most probably gone to tell Sartorius I decided to duel." I muttered before looking at Aster. "Whatever happens, please, don't give that stick to Ben. Don't even mention you have it." I pleaded. "I certainly wasn't planning on it." The professional duelist nodded with his arms folded.

He then looked at me. "Although I'm quite sure that's not a 'stick', as you refer to it." "I know it isn't, but I don't know what it is either." I reminded with a frown. "The important thing is not to let Ben know you have it." Bastion reminded, stopping our discussion. Aster simply nodded.

I sat on the grass, not knowing what else to do. "Why in an hour? Why not now?" I questioned in a bit of annoyance.

It would have been even better if I had just dealt with Ben earlier than waited… "Maybe to give him time to get some cards from Sartorius." Hassleberry guessed, walking up to me. I pursed my lips for a few moments. "Probably." I said simply, trying not to think about that possibility.

"What are you going to do about your duel with Chazz?" I then looked up at Jaden curiously. "I was thinking about looking for his Ojamas until Ben challenged you." He explained. "I'll probably go looking for them, but after your duel." "What are those 'Ojan' things?" I spoke up in confusion.

That question made him start laughing. I slightly tilted my head to left, still feeling perplexed. "Sorry, but it's Ojama, not Ojan." He explained sheepishly. "That name sounds similar to the Prince's name, so I can't really tell them apart." I admitted with a shrug. "You mentioned those monsters had bikini briefs?" I then reminded in confusion.

"Yeah," Jaden nodded. "And they are Chazz's favorite monsters." I simply nodded.


Half an hour passed. It went incredibly slow… At one point, I walked back to my room to take one of painkillers. It would be bad if I started feeling pain right in the middle of the duel… I wanted to make sure that didn't happen. Without those painkillers, I was completely useless!

That was when I could see Ben marching up to where we were.

"I thought you said in an hour?" I asked in confusion once I got to my feet. He finally stopped in front of us. "Change of plans. We'll duel now." He glared. "Fine." I frowned, grabbing the deck out of my box and putting it in my Duel Disk.

"Show him, Serena." Jaden grinned. "Good luck, soldier." Hassleberry nodded, with Bastion nodding as well. Aster looked at them and then at me for a few moments. "Thanks. I have no intention of losing." I simply nodded. "Well, stop giving yourself false hope. Master Sartorius has already predicted your loss." Ben growled, activating his Duel Disk.

I activated mine as well before looking up. In all honesty, I wasn't surprised by that statement at all. I had already thought he had most probably predicted my doom, and Ben was already acting as if victory was his… But, right now, I didn't care. He and Sartorius could go claiming whatever the hell they wanted. I knew the latter's predictions were never wrong, but I was too angry to care about it right now…

I just wanted to try to bring my cousin back to his senses. I wasn't even sure this would help him. Just because people became brainwashed by losing against Society, that didn't mean they would be free by losing against normal people… That was my best guess at the moment though, and it was worth a try.

"I don't give a damn about what Sartorius had predicted," I looked up with a frown. "Just take out your cards and let's duel!" I shouted, drawing five cards from my deck. The response I got from him was a growl while he was drawing his five cards as well.

Ben: 4000 LP

Me: 4000 LP

"I'll start!" I declared, drawing my sixth card. I looked at all of them for a few moments before nodding. I knew where to start. "I'll summon Desert Fox in Defense Mode." The fox appeared on the field (ATK/DEF:1800/1600). "I'll set two facedowns and end my turn." I finished.

Ben drew his sixth card. "I summon White Kangaroo in Attack Mode." A white kangaroo appeared on the field (ATK/DEF:1000/900). My eyebrows furrowed.

This looked nothing like Ben's old deck… Which meant that Sartorius had given those cards to him. The 'white' part in the card's name only proved it! Where the hell he got those cards from, I had no idea…

"When this monster's on the field, you're not allowed to use any facedown cards you set. They're utterly useless." Ben smiled smugly at me. "What?!" My eyes widened in surprise. "YOU HEARD IT!" He shouted with his right fist lifted up.

Suddenly, wind started blowing. It went towards my two facedowns, before they disappeared. I looked up at him in astonishment.

I had been in bad situations before when it came to dueling. However, the only thing similar to this one was when Sartorius' card didn't allow me to summon monsters. Now what could I do without my trap cards?! 'Flowing Back' and 'Defensive Mimicry' definitely could have helped me, if he hadn't summoned that monster…

"I'll finish the turn with two facedowns." Ben spoke up with that smug smile still on his face. "Fine, then," I spoke up and drew one card. "You asked for war, and you got it, cugino." I growled. "I activate 'Pot Of Greed', which allows me to draw two cards." I activated the card before drawing two more.

"Then I'll use 'Mystical Space Typhoon' to destroy one of your…" "Not happening, because I activate my facedown 'Whiteout', to negate the effect of your Spell Card!" One of Ben's facedowns suddenly revealed itself. "What?!" I stared at it in shock before the card in my hand vanished. "I told you victory was mine…" A sinister grin appeared on his face.

Never have I seen such look from my own cousin… It frightened me a bit. However, it also made me want to wipe the grin off his face.

I looked at my remaining four cards for a moment. "I'll summon Forest Fungus in Attack Mode." I put the card in its slot. The monster appeared (ATK/DEF:500/800). "Then I'll activate my Field Spell, 'Earth'!" The slot on the Duel Disk meant for Field Spells opened itself. I put the card there and it closed.

Scenery around us changed, showing different habitats around the world.

"When it's activated, all monsters on your side of field lose 600 Attack Points, and mine gain the same amount." I spoke up. "And my Fungus has another Special Effect, which is to absorb your monster's Attack Points."

The fungus flew to the kangaroo and tied its hands around it. Both of them started glowing in green color, with the fungus' Attack Points increasing instantly (ATK/DEF:2100/800). The monster flew back to me. "I end my turn." I finished, knowing there was nothing more I could do.

"My turn." Ben smiled smugly and drew another card. "I summon White Tiger in Attack Mode." A white tiger appeared on the field, baring its teeth (ATK/DEF:1500/700). "While this monster is on the field, you can't use any of your monster's Special Effects. They're disabled…" He trailed off with satisfaction in his voice present.

I gasped, just as the fungus' points fell to 1100. This time, I could hear the others commenting on my terrible predicament.

"Oh, no…" That sounded like Hassleberry. "Without her monster's Special Effects, she doesn't stand a chance." Bastion stated. "Harsh, soldier?" Again, Hassleberry. "Serena's deck is mostly of monsters with Special Effects or normal ones. Now she can't use their effects, nor Trap Cards." Jaden pointed out. "Sartorius found out how her deck worked when they had that duel. That's why he gave Ben those cards to counter it." Aster commented. At hearing his words, I briefly glanced at the guys out of a corner of my eye. They seemed to be rather surprised by this development.

I wasn't going to lie… Bastion, Aster and Jaden all had a point! Sartorius must have given that deck to Ben on purpose. He knew what my deck was like, due to that duel from before. Then, Jaden was also right about my deck mostly having monsters depending on their Special Effects. Finally, Bastion also had a point that I stood no chance without being able to use them, plus I couldn't use my Trap Cards…

Where could have Sartorius got those cards from, I didn't know. But he did a freaking good job to try to sabotage me… He was damn serious about wanting that stick back.

"Then I'll activate 'Mystical Space Typhoon', to destroy your Field Spell," Ben's voice broke my train of thoughts. I looked up in panic, my heart rate increasing at insane speed. "So say goodbye to your precious Earth!" He let out an evil laugh, lifting up the card in his right hand.

Before I knew it, scenery around us disappeared completely. I took the card out of its slot and discarded it with a frown. "Then I'll activate my other facedown, 'Lockdown'." Ben's second facedown revealed itself, making me even more nervous.

"Thanks to this, I can select one of your monsters in Defense Mode and force it into Attack. And, I pick your fox!" My eyes looked from the fox to his monsters. "That changes nothing. My fox's still stronger than both of your monsters." I pointed out icily. "Oh, but there's one detail I forgot to mention." My cousin responded with an insane grin all over his face.

"Not only does it force a monster in Attack Mode, it also lowers its Attack Points by 1000!" "What?!" My eyes widened yet again. "How is it possible? Whatever she does, it's useless against him!" I could hear Hassleberry pointing out. "Sartorius planned it out like that." Aster responded by saying the most obvious thing.

How… How was I supposed to fight Ben like this?! He had perfect strategy to take out all of my cards! All he had to do was prevent me from summoning monsters and using Spell Cards, and the duel would be over! It was insane how those 'white animals' cards managed to bring me to my knees…

"White Kangaroo, attack her Desert Fox! White Tiger, attack her Forest Fungus!" He pointed at both of my monsters. Both white monsters flew to my own ones and attacked them. As soon as they destroyed them, smoke appeared. I quickly covered my eyes. That destruction definitely cost me Life Points.

I quickly looked at my Duel Disk to see how many Life Points I had left. Now I had 2800…

Ben: 4000 LP

Me: 2800 LP

"I end my turn." My cousin commented.

I drew another card and added it to remaining two ones in my left hand. I looked at all of them.

I had only two options left. It was to try to somehow fight back with Spell Cards, or with monsters without Special Effects. That fact made me feel a bit like a disabled person… It was like I didn't have one leg or one arm to lean on! Preventing me from using things that helped me was a dirty trick. I never did that to any of my opponents!

But that was that thing we were talking about. It didn't give a damn about harming people or playing nice. Its only wish was to please that stupid Light…

"I'll activate 'Card Of Sanctity', which makes both of us draw cards until we have 6." Both of us drew four cards.

I knew I was giving him more chances of kicking my butt, but I was in desperate need of some good Spell Cards or monsters without Special Effects.

"I summon Island Lava Cactus in Defense Mode." I put the card in its intended slot. The monster appeared on the field (ATK/DEF:700/2000). Maybe I wasn't able to use its Special Effect, but it was still some sort of defense…

"Then I'll activate 'Fair In War'," I took another card out of my left hand and lifted it up. "Which means both of us lose amount of Life Points equal to the lowest amount of Attack Points of a monster on my side of field." I explained. "Since I only have Lava Cactus, I think you know how many…" I then trailed off, just as I could hear an explosion.

I covered my eyes from the blowing wind and smoke, as both of our Life Points dropped.

Ben: 3300 LP

Me: 2100 LP

I knew wasting my Life Points wasn't exactly the smartest idea. But what else could I do, since my hand was filled with Trap Cards and monsters I couldn't use right now? I was literally praying for a good draw, if I survived Ben's next turn…

"I end my turn." I said, knowing there was nothing else that could help me right now.

Ben drew another card. "I activate 'Power-up'," He lifted it up in his right hand. "Now one of my monsters can receive 1000 more Attack Points for one turn." A frown briefly appeared on his face. "But in order to do that, I have to pay 600 Life Points."

Ben: 2700 LP

Me: 2100 LP

"And I pick White Kangaroo!" At that moment, the monster started glowing with white light as its Attack Points grew. "Then I activate 'Block out'." He lifted up another card in his hand. "Thanks to this card, you're not allowed to Normal Summon any monster as long as the card is on the field. I can't summon any monster on this turn because of its activation." Another smug smile appeared on my cousin's face.

By now, I felt like I couldn't breathe. It was like I was a person in a wheelchair… I couldn't use Trap Cards, I couldn't use Special Effects, and now I couldn't even Normal Summon?! My Spell Cards couldn't do much all by themselves, apart from the one I had already used… But I lost some of my Life Points just to damage his!

This felt quite familiar to my duel with Sartorius, except that this one was even worse. Sartorius prevented me from summoning monsters, while Ben prevented me from doing pretty much everything!

"As far as I'm concerned, we can stop this duel right now so you don't embarrass yourself any further…" Ben trailed off smugly. "Just give me what Master Sartorius wants."

I found myself trembling. I could clearly see my hands shaking. It didn't help Ben now had an evil grin all over his face… He knew he had me right in a corner. "Oh, what's the matter? The wretch is scared?" He asked mockingly.

I really wanted to try to win this duel. I really wanted to try to get Ben back to his senses. However, right now, I felt like the outcome of the duel was set in stone. I felt like I couldn't do anything. I had told myself earlier that even if I lost, that it would mean I at least tried. Unfortunately, those words didn't help me at all right now…

"Serena!" Jaden's voice made my head spin in his direction. I started blinking rapidly to get rid of brimming tears in my eyes.

"The duel is not over until the last card is played, remember? You can still turn things around." He spoke up with a knowing look. I kept staring at him for a few moments.

Those words sounded quite familiar… And now I knew why. When Jaden first introduced me to dueling, I usually lost every duel. At one point, I even tried to give up, since I knew I'd lose anyway. But he always told me that the duel wasn't over until the last card was played. I kept those words in mind, even though I lost a lot of times after that.

But then I figured out Jaden used the same strategy over and over… It was a blur to me, but he used to summon some monsters over and over again. I then beat him a few times, until Aunt Maria told him he couldn't use the same strategy all the time.

However, that wasn't important right now. What mattered were Jaden's words. I wouldn't surrender until Ben officially took out the last of my Life Points.

"You're right." I nodded to him with a thankful look. I then turned my attention back to Ben. "Well? Will you surrender or not?!" He demanded impatiently. "NO!" I shouted with a glare. "Your decision…" My cousin let out a growl.

"WHITE KANGAROO, ATTACK HER LAVA CACTUS!" He roared, clenching his right fist. The white monster flew to mine, and attacked it with its tail. I covered my eyes as more smoke appeared, and my monster was destroyed.

Then, I could hear Ben shouting again. "WHITE TIGER, ATTACK HER DIRECTLY!" I quickly looked up, just as the tiger slashed at me with its claws. I yelped in pain. More of my Life Points disappeared.

Ben: 2700 LP

Me: 600 LP

"I'll end my turn with a facedown." Ben set a facedown.

I drew another card, before looking at all of them. Finally, I looked up, praying some of these would actually help me not lose.

"I activate 'Graceful Charity'," I took the card from my left hand and lifted it up. "Which means I can draw three cards but I have to discard two of them." I quickly drew three cards and then discarded two from my hand I had just drawn.

I could feel relief washing over me as I looked at all of my cards. Finally, there was something I could actually do with them…

"I'll start by activating 'Nature Healing'," I lifted up the card in my right hand. "For every card that's in my hand, I gain 300 Life Points." I smirked for a moment. "Since I have four right now, I don't think I need to spell it out to you how many Life Points that is."

Ben: 2700 LP

Me: 1800 LP

"You've just delayed your defeat." Ben scoffed. I ignored his words and looked through my cards again.

"Then I'll activate 'Mother Nature', which lets me Special Summon a monster from my hand. And I pick Wetland Dingo!" I cried. The monster appeared on the field in Attack Mode (ATK/DEF:2400/1800).

I eyed both of Ben's monsters for a moment, wondering which one to go for. If I got rid of one, I would be able to use my Trap Cards again, and if I got rid of the other one, I could use Special Effects… I still had to figure out how to get rid of his stupid Spell Card.

"Wetland Dingo, attack his White Kangaroo!" I finally shouted. The dingo let out a howl and ran towards the monster before slashing at it. It was destroyed, and smoke appeared. Ben's Life Points dropped as well.

Ben: 1300 LP

Me: 1800 LP

I quickly looked at my gear and saw we now had similar amount of Life Points. Thank goodness…

"Due to destroying my monster, you activated my Trap Card 'Aid'." Ben glared, revealing his facedown. "Once one of my monsters is destroyed, the other one gains its Attack Points for one turn."

That didn't sound good at all. That meant his White Tiger would have 2500 Attack Points now… But at least I could use my Trap Cards again!

"I'll set two facedowns and end my turn." I spoke up and set the remaining two cards from my left hand. Now I had none of them until my next draw…

Ben drew another card. "I'll summon White Alligator in Attack Mode." The monster appeared, growling (ATK/DEF:1800/1000).

"But isn't that the same thing as a crocodile?" I could hear Jaden wondering aloud from my right. "No, it's not." I briefly looked in his direction before my eyes turned back to the monster.

I had to focus on the duel. I would explain to him the differences between alligators and crocodiles under better circumstances.

"With this card on the field, I gain the amount of Life Points equal to half of your monster's Attack Points." "What?!" I shouted in surprise, making a smug smile appear on my cousin's face yet again. "I guess you know how to count…" He trailed off. The crocodile and my dingo started glowing with white light, and Ben started glowing to. His Life Points rose to 2500.

Ben: 2500 LP

Me: 1800 LP

He was nearly back to square one when it came to his Life Points… All that work for nothing!

"Then I'll activate 'Reshuffle'!" He lifted up another card in his hand. My eyebrows furrowed in both confusion and curiosity. I could only guess what he wanted to do with that card…

"With this card, both of us put cards from our hands in the deck, and shuffle it once. We then draw six cards each." Ben explained, already taking his deck out of the Duel Disk. "If you say so." I shrugged with a frown and took out my deck as well. I shuffled it and put it back in my Duel Disk. After that, I pulled out six cards. Ben did so as well.

My guess was he wasn't happy with cards he had had before, which was why he decided to try to get something better… But how couldn't he be happy?! He had all the cards he needed to prevent me from dueling!

I looked at all of my cards. At that moment, I felt excited. I had a chance to turn things around once again!

"I'll end my turn." As soon as I heard those words, I drew another card. "Wetland Dingo, attack his White Tiger!" I then lifted up my right hand.

The dingo ran towards the white animal and slashed at it. As soon as the tiger was destroyed, smoke appeared. Ben briefly covered his eyes, but then looked me in the eyes with this… Smug look. It was like he wasn't fazed at all with losing his monster.

Ben: 1600 LP

Me: 1800 LP

"Now that your White Tiger is gone, I discard River Otter." I quickly discarded the card from my left hand. "What good will it bring to you?" Ben started laughing mockingly. "Once River Otter is banished to graveyard, I'm allowed to destroy one Spell Card on the field…" I trailed off with a smirk. "And you have only one." I then reminded.

The card was destroyed instantly. However, to my surprise, Ben didn't seem to be upset at all. In fact, it looked like he was rather amused.

Why would he be? I had just managed to get back Normal Summoning and using Special Effects…

"If you think that will help you, then you're even more pathetic than I thought." He let out another mocking laugh. I stared at him for a few moments, not knowing what to think about his behavior. "I end my turn."

At that moment, I felt tiredness. Mrs. Fontaine told me not to over exhaust myself. I had no intention of doing that, and I never expected the duel to last this long… This was the longest duel I've had so far! I just hoped it would come to close soon, no matter what its results were…

"The White Alligator's effect activates again." Ben drew another card with a smug smile. Yet again, the alligator, my dingo, and him started glowing with white light. My cousin's Life Points rose to 2800.

Ben: 2800 LP

Me: 1800 LP

"Then I'll summon White Koala in Attack Mode." The white monster appeared on the field (ATK/DEF:1000/1000). "For each card in your hand, it gains 300 Attack Points." My eyes widened as I counted how many cards I had left. Six… That meant it would gain 1800 points!

"Now, attack her Wetland Dingo!" I quickly covered my eyes, bracing myself for upcoming smoke as the dingo was destroyed. My Life Points dropped to 1400.

Ben: 2800 LP

Me: 1400 LP

"Because you've destroyed my monster," I quickly looked up. "I can now activate my Trap Card, 'Perfect Harmony'!" I cried, as the facedown revealed itself. "Thanks to this, I can choose one Level 3 or lower monster from my graveyard and summon it! And I choose Desert Rose!"

The monster appeared on my side of the field in Attack Mode (ATK/DEF:1000/500). "YOU'RE CHEATING! THAT MONSTER WAS NEVER ON YOUR GRAVEYARD!" Ben roared angrily. "I'm not." I shook my head with a frown.

"In case you forgot, I had to discard two cards because of 'Graceful Charity' being in play. One of those was Desert Rose." I smirked. "Fine, it still won't help you." He growled. "Then why did you get so upset over my 'cheating'? You didn't see that coming?" I raised an eyebrow at him expectantly. "SHUT IT!" He then roared yet again.

I stared at him for a few moments without saying anything. "I end my turn." He finally said, still angry.

After drawing another card, I wanted to scream mentally. None of the cards I had were strong enough to do bigger damage to him, or his monsters… I could just leave a few facedowns, maybe use my Mountain Wolf, and that was it!

"I summon Mountain Wolf in Attack Mode." I put the card in its slot. The wolf appeared on the field, howling (ATK/DEF:800/1500). "Thanks to its Special Effect, it can attack you directly." I looked up. "Go, attack him!" I then shouted.

The wolf raced towards Ben before slashing at him with its claws. His Life Points dropped to 2000 in process.

Ben: 2000 LP

Me: 1400 LP

"I'll set three facedowns and end my turn." I set them with a frown.

Ben drew once again. "Finally, we can say this duel is over…" He gave me a sinister grin.

That definitely wasn't a good sign… Whatever he had in plan; it was bad.

"I summon White Lion in Attack Mode." The monster appeared on the field (ATK/DEF:1800/1800). "But it won't stick around, because I sacrifice the White Koala and the White Lion to summon… WHITE PEACOCK!" He roared the last part, clenching his right fist. Two monsters disappeared.

Suddenly, wind started blowing violently. I covered my eyes with arms, just as light appeared as well. After the wind stopped and the light disappeared, I finally looked up. A huge, elegant-looking, white peacock was on the field (ATK/DEF:2500/2300). It spread out its white feathers. I had to admit, it looked quite majestic…

My eyes widened in astonishment. Then, I started trembling a bit.

That thing had a lot of Life Points… And if it attacked me, then I would lose… But then, I remembered. I still had the monster in my hand. Only it could save me, if Ben somehow didn't find a way to disable it…

"And now, its effect activates…" Ben grinned sinisterly yet again. "White Peacock gains 500 more Attack Points from both of the tributes I used to summon it!" The monster's points rose to 3500. "But I'm not done," My cousin then said exactly what I was afraid of hearing.

He lifted up another card in his right hand. "I equip my White Peacock with 'White Veil'!" Light blue light started glowing around the peacock.

So that was the famous 'White Veil' I'd heard so much about…

"What does 'White Veil' do?" I asked Bastion and Hassleberry curiously while we were waiting for Ben to arrive. "We've only seen it once. Chazz used it to equip his dragon in that duel against Alexis." The latter explained.

"When a monster equipped with 'White Veil' attacks, all of Trap and Spell Cards on the opponent's side of the field are destroyed. Their effects are negated as well." Bastion told me with a frown.

That meant my Trap Cards were useless… However, thankfully, I didn't need them at the moment! I knew exactly how to survive the crazy monster's attack… And it filled me with this sudden excitement. Ben had absolutely no idea what was coming!

I could hear the guys saying something, but I wasn't paying attention to it. My eyes didn't leave Ben, nor his monster.

"I told you victory would be mine…" He trailed off smugly. "Because when White Peacock attacks you, all of your Spell and Trap Cards will be destroyed thanks to the 'White Veil'!" "From what I heard; Sartorius had given you that card." I stated, looking right in my cousin's empty, green eyes. "He did, and it will be your undoing!" He glared.

I stayed quiet, eyeing the glowing monster. "It's over…" I could hear Hassleberry trailing off. "No, she must have something up her sleeves!" Jaden argued. "But what? Spell and Trap Cards are useless." Bastion pointed out.

"White Peacock, attack her Desert Rose!" The monster let out a cry and started flying towards my monster. At that moment, all of my facedowns were destroyed.

Knowing it was the only chance I had, I quickly sent one of my cards to the graveyard. Then, White Peacock attacked it. A lot of smoke appeared, and an explosion could be heard.

My guess was he went after the rose instead of the wolf because he didn't count on my plan. As far as he knew, the duel would be over anyway. Or maybe he wanted me to feel more pain, since Desert Rose had more Attack Points…

When smoke cleared, Desert Rose was gone. White Peacock flew back to Ben's side of the field.

I looked up at Ben with a smirk. "Nice try, cugino." "But how?! You were supposed to lose!" He shouted angrily. "By discarding Mystical Perython, I take no Battle Damage. I do have to pay 1000 Life Points though." I explained calmly.

Ben: 2000 LP

Me: 400 LP

"Luck." Ben scoffed. "However, you destroyed my monster, and now Desert Rose's Special Effect activates." I then spoke up. "I can destroy one card on your side of field… And I choose 'White Veil'!" I pointed at the mentioned card.

"WHAT?!" He shouted with his eyes wide. "You heard me. Say 'goodbye' to your precious card!" I smirked yet again. At that moment, the light blue light around the peacock disappeared. The 'White Veil' disappeared from the field.

Ben's eyes watched as it was sent to the graveyard. Then, he looked up at me. "HOW DARE YOU?!" He shouted angrily, making me flinch in utter shock. I could have sworn I heard yelps coming from the guys on my right side.

I definitely didn't expect such strong reaction from him… It frightened me. But it also made me feel pleased. Getting rid of Sartorius' card definitely upset my cousin. His attack didn't go as he had planned…

At that moment, it hit me. Ben said Sartorius had predicted my loss? Well, I managed to survive up until now… So much for losing!

"I end my turn." He let out a growl. "About time." I drew a card and felt relief wash over me once again.

"First, I'll activate 'Monster Reborn', to Special Summon Sacred Phoenix from my graveyard." I declared, lifting up the card in my right hand. "You never used that card." Ben growled. "I discarded it during the effect of 'Graceful Charity'." I reminded.

I then clenched my right fist. "So, say 'hello' to Sacred Phoenix!" I cried.

Wind started blowing violently. Then in a burst of fire, and red, gold and orange light, Sacred Phoenix appeared with a roar (ATK/DEF:2800/2500). "When it's summoned, I'm allowed to draw three cards from my deck." I then spoke up, drawing them.

"I activate 'Double Boost', which will double the Phoenix's Attack Points for one turn." I then added and lifted up the card. The monster's points rose to 5600.

I could hear Ben's eyes widening for a moment.

He was scared. This duel didn't go as he thought it would. I had everything I needed to win…

"Mountain Wolf, attack him directly!" I then ordered. The wolf let out a howl and ran towards my cousin. It slashed at him with its claws, costing him more Life Points.

Ben: 1200 LP

Me: 400 LP

"Sacred Phoenix, attack his White Peacock!" I cried and lifted up my right hand. With another mighty roar, the phoenix flew to the monster. It spat fire at it, destroying it in process. Smoke appeared.

Ben let out a loud shout, before falling to the ground. All of his Life Points dropped to zero.

Ben: 0 LP

Me: 400 LP

I let out a sigh of relief and turned off my Duel Disk. At that moment, all of the monsters disappeared, along with the smoke.

Suddenly, I felt even more tired. Thank goodness this duel ended before I got completely exhausted… Mrs. Fontaine wouldn't have allowed me to duel ever again during the tournament. I wasn't even sure I would have lasted that long if I hadn't taken painkillers right before the duel!

That was when someone pulled me into a hug. "Serena, you did it! You won!" Jaden cried happily. "I did." I grinned and hugged him back. "But thanks to you." I then reminded with a frown once we pulled away. "I didn't do anything." He shook his head. "You reminded me it wasn't over yet." "Yeah, but you beat Ben yourself. It was an awesome duel." A grin appeared on his face.

Joy and excitement washed over me. I actually beat someone from the Society Of Light… I won! Before this duel, I had thought it was an impossible feat….

"Good job, soldier!" Hassleberry's voice made us turn around. He, Bastion and Aster walked up to us. "Thanks." I smiled. "Impressive win." The British guy nodded. "Thanks." I said yet again. Aster's dark blue eyes looked at the guys before landing on me. "Good duel." He spoke up coldly with a nod.

To be honest, I was surprised he even said that to me… But I smiled. "Thank you."

At that moment, my thoughts raced back to my cousin. He was still lying on the ground… I had to see whether he was fine!

"Ben!" I cried and quickly walked towards him. If it weren't for my stupid ribs, I would have run instead…

I quickly kneeled next to his form. Then, I grabbed him by his shoulders. I started shaking him vigorously. "Please, say something…" I trailed off frantically with my heart racing like crazy out of nervousness.

Quite frankly, I didn't know what to expect. He could just push me away violently like before. He could just stay unconscious. Or he could… He could… He could do something else! Still, I had to make sure he was alright…

Suddenly, I could hear groaning. "What… What happened?" My eyes widened as I quickly looked at my cousin's unmoving form. That was when he moved his hands. I quickly took hands off his shoulders and backed away a bit, not knowing what else to expect.

Slowly, he sat up. Then, his head turned in my direction. He looked up at me. To my huge relief, his eyes didn't look so empty anymore. They looked normal once again. However, I stayed on my guard.

"Cuzo… Why are you looking at me like that?" Ben gave me a perplexed look.

At that moment, I felt like my heart was about to burst with happiness and joy. I was overwhelmed. He called me 'cuzo', not 'wretch'… He was back… He was himself again!

"BEN!" I cried and threw myself at him. With a loud yelp, Ben found himself on his butt with me still hugging him. By now, I couldn't restrain myself from crying. Tears of joy were streaming down my cheeks freely.

"Serena, your ribs." I could hear Bastion reminding me. Throwing myself at Ben like that wasn't smart with my broken ribs… But, right now, I didn't give a damn. Nothing else mattered to me right now. "Forget about my ribs, Ben is back to normal!" I retorted while still hugging my cousin.

But then, I felt him pulling away. "Listen, Serena, I'm happy to see you too… But why are you acting so weird?" Ben looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I stared at him in astonishment.

Did he just forget about the whole duel we had, and how he had treated me earlier?

"You don't remember?" Jaden spoke up in surprise. "I don't remember what?" Ben frowned. "Why are all of you looking at me like that?" He then demanded perplexed. I quickly looked at others who were staring at my cousin. They were as confused as I was…

"You don't remember that you were a part of the Society Of Light? You don't remember Sartorius sending you here to get back what I had got from his room?" I spoke up. "'Society Of Light'? Isn't that what Chazz mentioned? And why are you bringing Sartorius into this? Isn't he miss…" It appeared that the more I stared at him, the more uncomfortable he felt. That's why he stopped talking at that moment. "Why are you all staring at me like that?" He then spoke up.

It looked like he really didn't remember anything… How was that possible?!

"I believe we owe him some explanations." Bastion let out a sigh. "Definitely." I nodded with a sigh and stood up. Then, I offered a hand to Ben, who took it with a small smile.

Well, Ben's back, people! About time that happened! Well, anyway, writing this duel took me quite a while, so I hope you liked their rematch! But now comes the more complicated part… Explaining everything to Ben. Good luck to Serena with that, especially with recent discoveries Ben's not aware of yet…

Anyway, since it's been a year since I've posted this story, I want to thank everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed so far! :)

The next chapter still takes place during 'Blinded By The Light', just to make that clear.

I hope you liked it and until next time! ;)