The Case of the Manila Envelope--Chapter 12
by HA
Everyone watched as the shadow vanished from the Field, but Shirley remained unconscious on the floor. From the balcony, Rika studied her. "She's still breathing, if you're wondering," she told Bo.
Bo said nothing, and he began climbing onto the edge of the balcony. "What are you doing?" Sara asked, panicking.
"I'm going down there!" Bo replied with one foot on the edge with the other soon to follow. Thoughts of helping his best friend overrode his own safety, considering the great distance between the balcony and the arena floor. "I've gotta...!"
"Look out!" Rika yelled, grabbing him by the shoulder.
The move turned out to be timely, for three spiral shuriken flew past Bo's nose as he was yanked away. Rika caught him in her arms just before his butt met the floor. "Let go of me!" he yelled, struggling to get loose.
"Interference will not be tolerated, remember?"
Tomie's cold remark made Bo glare at her. "The hell with that!" Bo yelled.
"If you interfere, she'll lose automatically," the Gamer of the Dark said, "and you know what will happen if she loses."
Bo almost threw Rika off him. "Yeah, yeah," he said, still glaring at Tomie as he straightened himself up. "What did you do to her?"
Tomie smiled that familiar cold smile. "Actually, she did it to herself when she attacked my Fiend Leecher."
Fiend Leecher
Level: 3
Element: Dark
Type: Demon
ATK: 1000
DEF: 1000
FLIP: Drain 1000 LP from your opponent and add it to your own.
Sara noted the scores and saw that Tomie had 8500 Life Points while Shirley had 6700. "Not good."
"Not quite," Rika said. "Shirley can attack again."
"If she can wake up," Sara said, looking at the unconscious Shirley, who was still not showing any signs of life.
"If she doesn't, she'll lose the Battle automatically," Tomie informed everyone.
Bo clenched his fists and was about to run down there when he realized there was no staircase leading to the arena floor. "Great," he muttered as he punched the edge of the balcony as hard as he could.
Tomie folded her arms over her chest and looked towards the opposite side. "Now, let's see if she's strong enough to wake up."
* * * * *
"So, what do you ultimately want?"
Molly paused, her fork hovering over her half-eaten cheesecake with a good chunk of it hanging from it. "Come again?" she asked, staring at Blake.
"Well, what do you want that you feel you really want?" Blake elaborated, poking at a stray strawberry on his plate and occasionally dragging it through the pool of strawberry sauce. "Your greatest desire, I suppose."
"You first," Molly said.
Blake touched his chin lightly with the end of his fork. "Well, I'd like a world where it's safe for people to live out their lives." He bowed his head. "You know, make sure no one ever gets blown up in a car bomb or something like that."
"Hmmmmmmm..." Molly scratched her chin. "I'd say total control."
"Really," Blake said, propping his head on his hand.
"Oh, I'm not saying 'world domination' or something silly sounding like that," Molly said. "I mean I want total control of the world around me. I want to be able to control the destinies of important people in every field."
"I assume that includes being in control of your own life," Blake said.
"Of course," Molly said.
Blake took a bite out his cheesecake and chewed it quickly. "Naturally, love doesn't factor into your plans."
"Naturally," Molly said. "I don't need it." She stabbed her cheesecake hard and pulled out a piece. "I don't need it at all," she said right before popping it into her mouth, and as soon as she chewed and swallowed it, she spoke again. "After all, it's not going to solve all your problems."
"True," Blake said, "but it helps."
Molly glared at him and focused on her dessert. Both of them continued to eat in silence with the exception of their chewing and savoring of their dishes.
"What exactly do you mean by that?" Molly finally said.
"Hmm?" Blake said, holding a piece of crust to his mouth.
"Love being able to help you through your problems," Molly clarified.
"Well..." The crust fell from Blake's fork and landed on top of the remainder of his cake. "When something's really got you down, it's nice to have a loved one with you."
"Why?"
"Why, to be there with you in times of need," Blake answered. "Someone to talk to and support you as best as they can."
Molly shot him a puzzled look. "And why would you want that?"
Blake ate another piece of cake before continuing the conversation. "Because you can't go through life alone. Oh, sure, you can live on your own and not have a significant other, but you still need some sort of contact with humans, and not in a situation where you're assumning the role of the superior while everyone else is inferior."
"Why is that?"
Blake gave Molly a funny look. "You really have a lot of questions, don't you?"
"I'm just curious, that's all," Molly said quickly.
"If you say so," Blake said, letting out a small laugh. "Anyway, it isn't really love when one person is lording it over the other. True love is a partnership where both people trust each other."
Molly frowned. "Like I said before, how pathetic. Putting your trust in someone who might stab you in the back later when given the chance...please. Only idiots and fools would risk their fragile little psyches for love."
Blake shrugged. "If you say so." He was about to finish his cake when a thought crossed his mind that urged him to put it in words. "You know, you remind me of someone who I knew back in California."
"Oh really?" Molly said, raising a suspicious eyebrow.
"Yeah," Blake said, tapping the edge of his plate with his fork. "Paige Michaels, the most popular girl in school. Blond hair, good looks, always in shape, dad was an important guy in the business world...she was always wearing the latest fashions and rubbing her status in. Oh, and she tended to use her influence to get anything she wanted. Anyone who got in her way got crushed. Sound familiar?"
"Maybe," Molly said, tightening her grip on her fork.
"All the girls wanted to be like her, and all the guys wanted her," Blake continued. "However, she always rejected their advances thanks to her "better-than-you" attitude. Kept saying she was above us losers, she did." He rubbed his chin. "I hope she's doing all right."
"What do you mean by that?" Molly asked.
"When I was about to leave, she was admitted to a fancy clinic by her parents," Blake recalled. "Apparently, she overdosed on some of her mom's sleeping pills while she was taking a bath. Good thing she got immediate medical attention, or she'd be dead. Last time I checked, she was on suicide watch there and was seeing a psychiatrist. Some of the kids thought she did it in order to get attention from her parents. Others thought she was serious about killing herself as a way to escape everything." He sighed. "I think it was both. I guess being the golden girl isn't all that it's cracked up to be."
Molly's fork fell from her hand and clanged onto her plate. "I won't end up like that," she said in a low voice after a moment of uneasy silence.
"Hmm?" Blake said.
Molly raised her voice loud enough so only Blake could hear her. "I'll never end up like that, you hear me?"
"I never said that," Blake said innocently. "Now, let's finish our delicious dessert, shall we?"
Once again, silence dominated the dining with the exception of some enthusiastic chewing and swallowing.
* * * * *
"Come on, come on..." Sara muttered nervously as her stomach did flip-flops, her eyes fully focused on the unconscious Shirley on the floor.
Tomie whistled a tune Bo couldn't recognize. Gradually, it increased in volume and became the only sound in the arena as it echoed around the walls.
Bo punched the edge of the balcony again. "Stop that!" he yelled, ignoring the throbbing in his hand.
The whistling stopped abruptly. "My, aren't we touchy. Not a big fan of 'Shuffle, huh?" Tomie said, glancing at the two cards in her hand. "Perhaps someone should forfeit the game on her behalf."
"I doubt anyone here will do that," Rika stated, glaring at Tomie.
"It's been five minutes, I believe," Tomie stated, returning the glare.
The glaring between the two girls didn't escape Bo's notice. "Hey, what exactly is the connection between these two?" he whispered to Sara.
"Look!" Sara suddenly exclaimed, pointing at the arena floor.
All eyes were on Shirley, who was beginning to stir. A low moan escaped her lips, and her fingers slowly began to move. Soon, her legs began to move along with her arms, and her eyes flickered open.
"Shirley!" Bo shouted with relief.
"Well, look who's up," Tomie commented as Shirley picked herself up. "Still want to continue?"
Shirley bent down and picked her four cards up. Standing up again, she studied the current Field, and then she locked her eyes onto her opponent. "Let's."
END OF CHAPTER 12
by HA
Everyone watched as the shadow vanished from the Field, but Shirley remained unconscious on the floor. From the balcony, Rika studied her. "She's still breathing, if you're wondering," she told Bo.
Bo said nothing, and he began climbing onto the edge of the balcony. "What are you doing?" Sara asked, panicking.
"I'm going down there!" Bo replied with one foot on the edge with the other soon to follow. Thoughts of helping his best friend overrode his own safety, considering the great distance between the balcony and the arena floor. "I've gotta...!"
"Look out!" Rika yelled, grabbing him by the shoulder.
The move turned out to be timely, for three spiral shuriken flew past Bo's nose as he was yanked away. Rika caught him in her arms just before his butt met the floor. "Let go of me!" he yelled, struggling to get loose.
"Interference will not be tolerated, remember?"
Tomie's cold remark made Bo glare at her. "The hell with that!" Bo yelled.
"If you interfere, she'll lose automatically," the Gamer of the Dark said, "and you know what will happen if she loses."
Bo almost threw Rika off him. "Yeah, yeah," he said, still glaring at Tomie as he straightened himself up. "What did you do to her?"
Tomie smiled that familiar cold smile. "Actually, she did it to herself when she attacked my Fiend Leecher."
Fiend Leecher
Level: 3
Element: Dark
Type: Demon
ATK: 1000
DEF: 1000
FLIP: Drain 1000 LP from your opponent and add it to your own.
Sara noted the scores and saw that Tomie had 8500 Life Points while Shirley had 6700. "Not good."
"Not quite," Rika said. "Shirley can attack again."
"If she can wake up," Sara said, looking at the unconscious Shirley, who was still not showing any signs of life.
"If she doesn't, she'll lose the Battle automatically," Tomie informed everyone.
Bo clenched his fists and was about to run down there when he realized there was no staircase leading to the arena floor. "Great," he muttered as he punched the edge of the balcony as hard as he could.
Tomie folded her arms over her chest and looked towards the opposite side. "Now, let's see if she's strong enough to wake up."
* * * * *
"So, what do you ultimately want?"
Molly paused, her fork hovering over her half-eaten cheesecake with a good chunk of it hanging from it. "Come again?" she asked, staring at Blake.
"Well, what do you want that you feel you really want?" Blake elaborated, poking at a stray strawberry on his plate and occasionally dragging it through the pool of strawberry sauce. "Your greatest desire, I suppose."
"You first," Molly said.
Blake touched his chin lightly with the end of his fork. "Well, I'd like a world where it's safe for people to live out their lives." He bowed his head. "You know, make sure no one ever gets blown up in a car bomb or something like that."
"Hmmmmmmm..." Molly scratched her chin. "I'd say total control."
"Really," Blake said, propping his head on his hand.
"Oh, I'm not saying 'world domination' or something silly sounding like that," Molly said. "I mean I want total control of the world around me. I want to be able to control the destinies of important people in every field."
"I assume that includes being in control of your own life," Blake said.
"Of course," Molly said.
Blake took a bite out his cheesecake and chewed it quickly. "Naturally, love doesn't factor into your plans."
"Naturally," Molly said. "I don't need it." She stabbed her cheesecake hard and pulled out a piece. "I don't need it at all," she said right before popping it into her mouth, and as soon as she chewed and swallowed it, she spoke again. "After all, it's not going to solve all your problems."
"True," Blake said, "but it helps."
Molly glared at him and focused on her dessert. Both of them continued to eat in silence with the exception of their chewing and savoring of their dishes.
"What exactly do you mean by that?" Molly finally said.
"Hmm?" Blake said, holding a piece of crust to his mouth.
"Love being able to help you through your problems," Molly clarified.
"Well..." The crust fell from Blake's fork and landed on top of the remainder of his cake. "When something's really got you down, it's nice to have a loved one with you."
"Why?"
"Why, to be there with you in times of need," Blake answered. "Someone to talk to and support you as best as they can."
Molly shot him a puzzled look. "And why would you want that?"
Blake ate another piece of cake before continuing the conversation. "Because you can't go through life alone. Oh, sure, you can live on your own and not have a significant other, but you still need some sort of contact with humans, and not in a situation where you're assumning the role of the superior while everyone else is inferior."
"Why is that?"
Blake gave Molly a funny look. "You really have a lot of questions, don't you?"
"I'm just curious, that's all," Molly said quickly.
"If you say so," Blake said, letting out a small laugh. "Anyway, it isn't really love when one person is lording it over the other. True love is a partnership where both people trust each other."
Molly frowned. "Like I said before, how pathetic. Putting your trust in someone who might stab you in the back later when given the chance...please. Only idiots and fools would risk their fragile little psyches for love."
Blake shrugged. "If you say so." He was about to finish his cake when a thought crossed his mind that urged him to put it in words. "You know, you remind me of someone who I knew back in California."
"Oh really?" Molly said, raising a suspicious eyebrow.
"Yeah," Blake said, tapping the edge of his plate with his fork. "Paige Michaels, the most popular girl in school. Blond hair, good looks, always in shape, dad was an important guy in the business world...she was always wearing the latest fashions and rubbing her status in. Oh, and she tended to use her influence to get anything she wanted. Anyone who got in her way got crushed. Sound familiar?"
"Maybe," Molly said, tightening her grip on her fork.
"All the girls wanted to be like her, and all the guys wanted her," Blake continued. "However, she always rejected their advances thanks to her "better-than-you" attitude. Kept saying she was above us losers, she did." He rubbed his chin. "I hope she's doing all right."
"What do you mean by that?" Molly asked.
"When I was about to leave, she was admitted to a fancy clinic by her parents," Blake recalled. "Apparently, she overdosed on some of her mom's sleeping pills while she was taking a bath. Good thing she got immediate medical attention, or she'd be dead. Last time I checked, she was on suicide watch there and was seeing a psychiatrist. Some of the kids thought she did it in order to get attention from her parents. Others thought she was serious about killing herself as a way to escape everything." He sighed. "I think it was both. I guess being the golden girl isn't all that it's cracked up to be."
Molly's fork fell from her hand and clanged onto her plate. "I won't end up like that," she said in a low voice after a moment of uneasy silence.
"Hmm?" Blake said.
Molly raised her voice loud enough so only Blake could hear her. "I'll never end up like that, you hear me?"
"I never said that," Blake said innocently. "Now, let's finish our delicious dessert, shall we?"
Once again, silence dominated the dining with the exception of some enthusiastic chewing and swallowing.
* * * * *
"Come on, come on..." Sara muttered nervously as her stomach did flip-flops, her eyes fully focused on the unconscious Shirley on the floor.
Tomie whistled a tune Bo couldn't recognize. Gradually, it increased in volume and became the only sound in the arena as it echoed around the walls.
Bo punched the edge of the balcony again. "Stop that!" he yelled, ignoring the throbbing in his hand.
The whistling stopped abruptly. "My, aren't we touchy. Not a big fan of 'Shuffle, huh?" Tomie said, glancing at the two cards in her hand. "Perhaps someone should forfeit the game on her behalf."
"I doubt anyone here will do that," Rika stated, glaring at Tomie.
"It's been five minutes, I believe," Tomie stated, returning the glare.
The glaring between the two girls didn't escape Bo's notice. "Hey, what exactly is the connection between these two?" he whispered to Sara.
"Look!" Sara suddenly exclaimed, pointing at the arena floor.
All eyes were on Shirley, who was beginning to stir. A low moan escaped her lips, and her fingers slowly began to move. Soon, her legs began to move along with her arms, and her eyes flickered open.
"Shirley!" Bo shouted with relief.
"Well, look who's up," Tomie commented as Shirley picked herself up. "Still want to continue?"
Shirley bent down and picked her four cards up. Standing up again, she studied the current Field, and then she locked her eyes onto her opponent. "Let's."
END OF CHAPTER 12