"So and he actually knelt down and proposed to me!" Mai Valentine's laugh echoed through the whole coffee shop.
"Are you serious?" Serenity gasped.
"So then what did you do?" Téa leaned forward eagerly. The other girls also leaned forward in enthusiasm. Mai fanned herself with her napkin. The older blonde was enjoying having this get-together with her friends. Serenity just got out of the surgery and Daphne was new. It was delightful to fill them in with her stories.
"Well, of course," Mai winked playfully. "I told him if he could beat me in a duel, I'd marry him."
"Mai!" Daphne looked stunned. "You didn't!"
"I wasn't serious, of course." Mai waved her off. "But Magnum insisted he could beat me. But before we had a chance to duel, he had to hurry back to the premiere of his new movie."
Téa sighed. "A movie star." She had a dreamy look in her eyes.
"A gorgeous one at that." Serenity added. Daphne didn't say anything as she took a sip of her caramel frappachino. While the girls picked an afternoon to get together and chat about the latest news, the boys got together as well. Not to talk, but to keep an close eye on their attractive and eye-catching female comrades. Already, the protective boys had noticed the way guys eyed the table filled with gorgeous females. Even the cashier working behind the counter seemed to be suspiciously interested toward the sunlight and laughter filled table.
On the booth adjacent to the girls, Tristan was stirring his milkshake and shaking his head. He looked back behind him and Joey's seat at Kaiba and noticed even though he had refused to be seen with their group and typing on his computer, his keen eyes were continuously reverted to the table beside them, keeping a sharp eye on his cousin.
"Them girls," Tristan sighed from disgust. "They can just yap all afternoon." He looked over at Joey, who had a dazed look in his eyes. He waved an arm in front of his best friend's almost black eyes. "Joey?"
"Huh?" Joey snapped out of his trance as Tristan sighed again, this time from irritation.
"Here," he threw a napkin at the sandy blonde. "Wipe your mouth, I do believe you're beginning to drool."
"Wha––oh, thanks." He leaned forward and whispered. "I think Daphne's really cute. It's not just cute. She seems so…different. Sweet and courteous. I really…well ya know, like her." Joey blushed slightly at his own confession.
"I don't think you should let my yami hear that," Yugi whispered back nervously. "He seems to be unusually––"
"Joey Wheeler!" A baritone voice bellowed from behind Yugi, who ducked at the austere tone. Joey gave Yami a nervous smile and waved, scooting slightly closer to Tristan beside him. Yami had many good qualities, but when it comes to his Daphne, he has the habit to harass any guy that seems interested. Yugi was just happy that Joey was his best friend, since Yami had already threatened endlessly about killing all the other guys at school who have noticed Daphne ethereal beauty.
"You say that one more time and I'll call you out on a duel." The pharaoh threatened, turning to look the Brooklyn boy into the eye. "The ancient Egyptian way. Where the losers suffer an eternal death." Joey cringed.
"Alright, alright," he replied quickly. "I'll behave. I won't say she's cute anymore."
"Yes, you will." Yami contradicted. "Daphnia is beautiful and she's sweet and she's everything! You let me catch you saying she's not cute and I'll––"
"She's cute, Yami." Joey interrupted, uncomfortably fidgety by now. "And I like her, but I won't say anything anymore, how 'bout that?"
"That's better." Yami turned back to his book on Ancient Egypt. He had no reasons not to believe Joey. It had become apparent to him that his buddies were falling for Daphne like autumn leaves on a windy day. She was soft-spoken, sweet-natured, and obviously filled with wisdom and a enticing uniqueness. The naiveté and gentleness in her also encouraged them.
"Whew," Joey slowly let out his breath shakily. "Who'd have known yer yami had a temper like that? No offence, Yug, this thing about Yami being a father is still pretty shaky for me. All I said was that I like her…and I still do." He lowered his voice and added, more to himself.
"I like her, too." Joey had just taken a huge swig of his soda and had just swallowed when he heard a mumble next to him, where Tristan was staring at his drink longingly.
"Tristan!" He exclaimed, jumping up from his seat. "Wadaya mean ya like her, too!?" Tristan's head snapped up, proving that he hadn't known anyone had heard him. Yugi sighed as the two partners in crime battled a silent battle of throwing reasons back and forth at why Daphne would like him better.
"Dogfight." He muttered. Yugi looked over at Ryou beside him. Might as well have a good quality conversation with Ryou about his schooling in Europe.
"Hey, Ryou? Wh––" He began before noticing Ryou hadn't been paying any attention to any part of the conversation at all. Yugi probed him with his elbow. Ryou didn't response, but gave a small sigh. Yugi finally followed his cultivated friend's gaze. The dark sorrowful gaze led to the girls' table straight at…Daphne. Yugi blinked and made sure he wasn't wrong. He wasn't, from the way Ryou's eyes followed Daphne's every move and every laugh. Yugi slumped low into the booth. Great, more friends to set his yami off, as if Joey alone hadn't been enough.
A laughter from the girls' table sent all the eyes from the guys over, even Yami and Kaiba, who sat as far from each other as possible. Ryou jumped this time when Yugi sank his elbow into his ribs. No use leaving Yami and Kaiba to catch Ryou's lingering eyes on their precious treasure. Ryou turned and gave Yugi a weak smile. Yugi sighed. Oh yes, Ryou's in love. Deeply in love.
//Yugi, stop sighing, I can't concentrate.// Yami's slightly irritated voice told Yugi telepathically.
/Gee, Yami. In a bad mood today?/ Yugi asked sarcastically.
//Well, thanks to all of your friends.// Yami replied sulkily. //You better warn them to stay away from Daphnia, or else I'll take care of it myself…in my own way.// Yugi was startled.
/Uh…how many of my friends does like Daphne?/ He asked cautiously. Surely he doesn't know about Ryou…
//Joey, Tristan, you––more or less––and Ryou.//
/How did you––/
//Please, aibou, it's written all over his face. I didn't even have to tap into his mind like I did with Joey and Tristan.//
/Yami!/ Yugi admonished, shocked.
//Yugi, this is about Daphnia. My one and only daughter, Daphnia.// Yami scolded back. //And when it's about Daphnia, the rules change.//
/Alright, Yami, alright. My, you're difficult today./ Yugi said exasperatedly.
"Hey, you guys." Serenity's voice brought Yugi and Yami out of their conversation. "What are you guys doing?"
"Hey, Sis." Joey slouched down sullenly. Yugi guess he hadn't won the argument of whom Daphne would like best.
"Nothing." Tristan answered just as moodily, taking a big sip of his milkshake.
"It's hard to believe you boys actually lasted a whole afternoon." Mai flipped back her luscious thick mane of blonde hair. "What were you guys talking about?"
"Random things." Yugi quickly filled in. He sure couldn't mention Joey and Tristan's argument, much less Ryou's intendance at the conversations and what he did with his time.
"Yami," he could hear Daphne ask behind him, where Yami was deep into his reading. Daphne was wearing two silk chitons today, one draped over the other to show layers of blue and emerald, an elegant look. She wore gold bracelets on each bare arm.
Her eyes were very lightly shadowed with violet and black liner and her earrings were pearl. Two braids had been formed on each side of her temples with her shiny ebony black hair, in the style of a high noble princess. Sunlight reflected off the assorted gems that had been woven into her two slender strands, some were rubies, others were diamonds.
Daphne's usual goddess outfit was authentic Egyptian style. They've all decided that this was her best look, no matter what. Though the guys secretly agreed that she looks enchanting in everything she wore.
"Yes, Daphnia?" Yugi was amused to hear that Yami's irked tone of voice immediately transformed to a manner of adoration and fondness. Of course, he judged, nobody could ever stay mad when Daphne had such a silver expression on her face.
"We're going to Mai's house to play Duel Monsters, would you and the boys like to come?" She gave a slight giggle. "I'm still not quite sure what that is, but the girls are willing to teach me." Her cheeks flushed pink with pleasure.
"I'm in!" Joey jumped up and volunteered before anyone even asked him. "After all," he added hastily. "Yer gonna need some real expert to teach ya Duel Monsters…like me."
"I'm going, too!" Tristan put in, standing up and casting a dark gaze at his best friend. Joey glowered back.
"My, you boys are wild today." Mai observed. "I hadn't even had time to pass out my invitations yet."
But before Yami could release his permission, the two groups were interrupted by a loud, obnoxious tone, apparently talking to Daphne.
"Hey, you." He pointed to the innocent Egyptian girl.
"Pardon me?" She cocked her head. "Are you talking to me?"
"Yeah you. You want a date with this hot, lucky bachelor?" He gave her a grin, evidently thinking he was something. "I happen to be free right now."
Daphne's eyes widened and she took a step back. The guys stood up protectively, ready to tear him apart with their bare hands. Even Kaiba had slammed his laptop shut and had his fists clutched tightly by his side. Too bad the guys never got the glory they wished to gain by protecting their delicate companions. High-pitched female threats rang out as soon as the guy's proposal left his mouth.
"You back off!"
"Stay away from her, you big moron!"
"And who gave you the right to even set your eyes on her?! Oh please, spare me that look, you don't even stand a chance with her."
The guys watched impressively as the guy quickly backed off from the what he had thought were not-so-vicious females. But they quickly made the decision for him. With their high-heels, shoulder bags, and long manicured nails clutched into fists, they were obviously not to be messed with. After the guy had high-tailed out of the café, everyone's muscles relaxed.
"Who does he think he is?" Mai blew a strand of her hair from her face and searched in her shoulder bag for her compact. "And declaring himself a hot, lucky bachelor, that guy had the nerve!"
"Gee, Daphne, you should really learn to deal with guys like that. You've already had tons of them from what Joey and Téa had told me." Serenity took a long sip of what was left from Joey's soda.
Téa just stood in her position, glaring at where the guy had been standing with a disgusted look on her face.
"Impressive." A low, throaty voice said from the back of the group, followed by a deliberate applaud. They turned to see Kaiba's usual natural smirk on his face. "I declare, maybe I was wrong after all, thinking that all females are weaklings." The girls nodded courteously, realizing that that's the closest thing to a compliment that would ever leave Seto Kaiba's lips.
"Daphne," Kaiba turned to his cousin and said, almost sternly. "With your fine beauty, you can't afford to be naïve. It's dangerous and stupid."
"But, Seto!" She protested, looking up at the tall teen. "I'm not that beautiful. In fact, I don't still have no idea what all the boys are gawking about."
"Trust me," Tristan leaned forward. "For a guy who's observed thousands of girls…you're the fairest of them all." Seto scowled and took a step toward Tristan threateningly. Tristan turned around to search from all of his friends, but was only met with glares. He quickly learned from what he had said was wrong…at least wrong with this crowd. The boys are angry because he's been checking out all of the girls and the girls were annoyed because of his neglecting to their beauty. Kaiba and Yami were mad because he's been checking out their Daphne.
"But I haven't had the kind of pampered life you guys have had." Daphne shook her head sadly. "How can I be beautiful? The years dragged on in the past and no one even knew I existed. Much less guided me."
"Wild roses are the fairest, and nature a better gardener than art." She blushed at Ryou's saying.
"I've…never gotten a compliment before." She said shyly. "But I think I like it, though I'm not sure I deserve it." She said so naively that Kaiba's satirical mouth softened with a smile of genuine amusement.
"Geez," Téa asked sympathetically. "Have you ever even had one friend?"
"I had one once." Daphne answered somewhat doubtfully. "I have never had but one friend, yet I loved him faithfully and have not filled his place though I lost his years ago." Yami's jaws dropped open and his eyes narrowed.
"You've had a boyfriend, Daphnia?" He demanded. "You're too young to have such a constant lover. Tell me who that man is and I'll go and take him down." As if to prove that he would indeed carry out his threat, he rolled up his sleeves and cracked his knuckles. Yugi groaned inside.
"He was not a person, but a dog." The tone of tender regret made the fact that her only friend had been a dog was touching instead of ludicrous. Nobody knew what to say.
"Back to our subject…" Kaiba interrupted, crossing his arms. "Protection."
"Well," Daphne looked troubled. "Are most of the teens in Domino City this bold?"
"Oh, yes." Nine voices chimed in.
"How do I get rid of them all?" She asked, anxious. Mai slipped her compact back into her bag and draped an arm across her shoulders.
"That's why you stick with us, hon, and nothing will happen to you." Daphne followed Mai to her car and the girls piled in.
"Hey, wait a second!" Tristan protested. "What about us?" Mai poked her head out of her window.
"If you boys want to come, better get yourselves a ride." With that, her little sporty car zoomed out of the parking lot and out of their sight.
"Now what are we going to do?" Joey groaned. "We walked to the coffee shop." They heard a small snicker from behind them and turned around. Seto Kaiba turned back from where he's walking toward…a limo. He turned back and Yugi could all but detect a slight gesture from his jaw, motioning for them to follow.
"Well," his silky voice sounded bored. "If you guys want to walk there…it's fine with me. But I do have several empty seats…" He shrugged and continued walking toward his personal transportation. It struck them that Kaiba was offering them a ride, and looking from their situation, they didn't have any choice. Kaiba looked back and raised an eyebrow.
"I hardly ever offer anything the first time, seldom a second, never a third." He pointed out. That was enough to get the rest of the gang moving on their feet. Joey and Tristan practically dived for the door at the same time. Kaiba snickered again.
They stopped in front of Mai's house about half an hour after the girls' departure. They trouped in just in time to hear Daphne's voice say, "But neither of you told me Duel Monsters were Shadow Game!"
"Shadow Game?" Serenity's confused voice was heard. "What Shadow Games?"
"Yo, Yug, what's she talking about?" Joey sounded confused as they headed for where the voices are coming from.
"I don't know, Joey, but I'm sure Yami knows." Everyone turned to Yami expectantly. He kept his eyes trained straight ahead of him as he answered.
"Shadow Games were played in ancient Egypt. The only difference is that now, we play with cards and holograms. Before, we used real monsters and real power with real magic."
Kaiba felt like a jolt of shock was surging through him and he doesn't know why. He looked around to see if anyone had felt the same thing. Ryou, Yugi, and the rest were already disappearing into a room. He shrugged to himself and followed them. Funny, ever since Yami showed up on his doorstep and Daphne came into his life, he's felt…different. Like his life wasn't just like this, owning KaibaCorp and taking care of Mokuba. He felt like his life had much more, but he didn't remember them. He shook his head and entered the sunlit room, where the girls in deep in a conversation. He saw the guys watching them, standing by the side and walked over to join them.
"Shadow Games were played 5,000 years ago." They heard Daphne explain to the girls. "In fact, that's what I've been studying all these years in Cairo. The ancient secrets of Duel Monsters. Even I've played it years ago." She gave a playful wink. "Anyone want to try and defeat the queen of Shadow Games?"
"So you have a deck, then?" Téa asked. Daphne nodded. "Then I don't suppose you want to use my deck."
"I'll take a whack at taking you down." Mai volunteered with a smirk. "But, hon, don't expect me to take it easy on you just because you're new."
"Don't worry, Mai." The Egyptian girl assured as they settled in the chairs. "I didn't ask for your easiness on me."
The others watched with amazement. True to her words, Daphne was the queen of the game. Unlike her usual naïve and shy self, she was confident and calm on the field. More than once did Yami receive the compliments of how much she dueled like him.
"Of course," he finally whispered back to Ryou. "Who did you think taught Daphnia how to duel? Cleopatra?"
"No." They stopped their conversation just in time to hear Daphne order, "Cosmo Queen, attack Harpie Lady Sisters!"
"But how can this be!" Mai protested as her ladies were wiped off the field. "No one's ever beaten me before, besides Joey and Yugi!"
"I think it makes sense, Mai." Téa said sympathetically. "Guess who taught Daphne how to play in the beginning?"
"I'm beginning to see a tie between these two," Serenity remarked. "You both battle only with female monsters. Mai, you and your Harpie Ladies. Daphne, you and all of your Cosmo Queen, Empress Judge, Kanan the Swordsmistress, Queen of Autumn Leaves, Maiden of the Moon, and Dark Magician girl."
"There's a lot more female monsters in here, would you like to take a look?" Daphne held out her deck. Serenity eagerly accepted it and flipped through them with Téa reading off her shoulders.
"Well, of course, with Yami as her father and Kaiba as her cousin, there's no way she could loose." Mai grumbled.
"Wow," Serenity murmured. "Gemini Elf, Leopard Girl, Ice Water, Beautiful Beast Trainer, Rainbow Marine Mermaid, Fairy of the Fountain, Gyakutenno Megami…these are all really good, Daphne!"
"Pretty, too." Joey said under his tone as he looked over Serenity's other shoulder. He turned toward Daphne just in time to hear Yami and Kaiba quietly conversating.
"I'm only doing this for Daphne." Kaiba said darkly.
"We're both doing this for Daphne. You know she would want it this way." Yami replied lowly. "So, when would you like all of us to arrive?"
"As late as you possibly can without actually being late." Kaiba's voice was sulky.
"It's a date then." And through Joey's widened eyes, the two most powerful yet rivalries shook hands solemnly. And with their power combined and their goal accomplished, there was nothing that can beat them.
Nothing.