****Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh (damn!)****
Chapter Twenty-One
Men in the Shadows
On the six o'clock news that evening, a woman reporter wearing a red suit with a black bob was holding the microphone and standing in among the crowd at the town square during the practice duels. The reporter grinned widely and gave a friendly wave to the camera as she spoke. "Well it looks like duel monsters has settled it's craze on Domino City as literally hundreds of duelists have gathered here before me in the square of Domino, trading cards and practicing for the Battle City Tournament being held by Kaiba Corp, which begins Thursday of next week." She tapped the microphone piece lodged inside her ear. "Over to you Kent!"
The picture switched over to a man with a blonde crewcut wearing a blue tee shirt and sunglasses. He held his microphone and punched the air with his fist. "Woo, I'll tell you Judy, it's sure cooking up over here by the practice duelers as duelists of all ages are stepping up to the platform to practice their skills against one another. It sure is hot out here." he paused for a minute and laughed. "And it's about to get hotter! Mmm, mmm! Look at who just stepped up to the platform, yow!"
The picture switched over to the practice duel, where Roux was standing, in her practice duel against Weevil. She held out her cards and smiled, not looking at the camera. The male reporter laughed. "Yowza, even the most beautiful girls are out and participating in the tournament!"
The screen split vertically and now both reporters could be seen. "Kent, if I'm not mistaken that young woman on the platform is the world famous Roux Matuko, a very formidable fashion model who is pictured in the many fashion magazines of Japan and of the world." The female reporter added. Then she looked rather confused. "Wow, I read those magazines all the time, I didn't think Roux Matuko would ever be interested in duel monsters."
"Well as you can see Judy," said the male reporter. "She's obviously quite talented and skilled. Mmm just look at the way she's holding her cards, I'd like to be that card right about now, hehe. Man oh man, do I love my job!"
"And it looks like she's got some fans rooting for her too, eh Kent?" There was Yugi and his friends cheering wildly for Roux on the sidelines.
"Oh definitely. And I'm sure she'll have a lot more very soon just as soon as the tournament begins. If I'm lucky I may just be able to get an interview with this lovely duelist." He laughed heartily. "Back to you Judy."
Seto Kaiba watched the television set intensely, his fingers wrapped in each other tightly. He hadn't taken his eyes away from the television screen since the news report had started. He wanted to see the public broadcast about what the people thought about this upcoming tournament.
He hadn't expected Roux to get shown off all over the news. He wasn't very surprised however, there weren't as many women as men duelists, not in this tournament anyway, and only the most beautiful ones would catch the eyes of the sexist male reporter. That disgusted Kaiba beyond his mortal imagination, but he assumed it happened with every tournament.
What was interesting about Roux's practice duel that day, however, was that Mokuba had come home late in the afternoon and squealed to Kaiba all about how he watched Roux duel against Weevil Underwood, the kid who specialized in insect cards, who obviously this year had changed his game plan.
Nevertheless he was a skilled duelist. How could someone so inexperienced as Roux win so easily against him? Kaiba's eyebrows burred in suspicion. She must have been hiding something, hiding something to help her win. It couldn't be beginners luck.
"You're so naïve!" Mokuba had told him when Kaiba frowned upon the news that Roux had won the practice duel. "Of course she didn't cheat, I was watching the whole thing. She won it fair and square."
Kaiba sat back angrily. "Perhaps, but don't you think it's odd how someone who hasn't dueled since she was twelve was able to beat a kid who's won several tournaments?" Kaiba challenged his little brother.
Mokuba didn't have too much to say, only that he thought his brother was naïve.
Kaiba was alone now however, Mokuba was back at home. Now that he was allowed to think his own thoughts, Kaiba was certain that there was something Roux was doing to help her win the practice duel. Unless she was unexplainably skilled, but in Kaiba's eyes, that wasn't likely.
Kaiba would find out what she was doing. One way or another.
Curiously he looked over at the clock. It was almost seven o'clock, and Kaiba wasn't too interested in staying very late tonight. He had a busy afternoon of meetings and appointments, and until tomorrow he wouldn't do another bit of work. He was going to go home.
It was still light out when he was packing up his things and switching off the lights in his office. He decided he wouldn't call around the car, it was warm enough and nice enough out to walk to the Kaiba mansion, even if it took him a few hours. He needed some time to think.
~*~
"And it looks like she's got some fans rooting for her too, eh Kent?" There was Yugi and his friends cheering wildly for Roux on the sidelines.
"Oh definitely. And I'm sure she'll have a lot more very soon just as soon as the tournament begins. If I'm lucky I may just be able to get an interview with this lovely duelist." He laughed heartily. "Back to you Judy."
An eruption of cheers went up through the Wheeler living room. Everyone had gathered in the living room for dinner that evening when they got back from the practice duels. The word of Roux's victory against Weevil had spread like the plague.
"Ya! Aw right for Roux!" Everyone cheered happily, hugging Roux in turns.
"Wow, you won your first duel already!" Bakura said happily, grinning sweetly. "And against Weevil, and I hear he's really difficult to beat."
"Yeah, the kid shoulda stuck to the bugs." Joey said, and everybody laughed. "But we're still so proud of you Roux!" he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder as they sat on the couch.
Duke grinned and took Roux's hand, as he sat next to her on the other side of the couch. "Yeah, that kid probably back at home crying because the sexiest girl in the world beat in him in the blink of an eye." He kissed Roux's hand.
Joey saw the whole thing and went hot with jealousy. He scowled at Duke. "Hey! Hands off, Duke!" he commanded. "She ain't yours for charming."
"Oh and I suppose she's yours for charming, hmm?" Duke raised a questionable eyebrow.
Roux scowled and sighed angrily. "Guys, cut it out, I'm sick of this! I'm not anybody's for charming! Okay?" she stood from the couch in a hurry and left the room without another word, and without looking back.
Everyone's eyes followed Roux as she left the living room in confusion. They wondered what was wrong. She had been pretty quiet ever since her victory against Weevil. She hadn't said anything about the match and she sure didn't want to talk about it. None of them had seen Roux angry like this. They wondered what was up.
"Look what ya did, ya nimrod!" Joey smacked Duke upside the head and rose to get up from the couch to follow Roux. "Hey Roux! Wait up!"
"She probably left cause you turned on your 'stupendous' charm." Duke commented sarcastically, folding his arms over his chest. "Probably scared her off too, you goon." Duke insisted, waving a hand absent mindedly at Joey.
Joey growled and his fist clenched white. "Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!" Duke insisted, standing from the couch, raising his fist to Joey. "So much for your hope at ever finding a girl, especially when the most beautiful one stomps away from you!"
Joey was seething with anger. He knew that Roux was probably upset with him, but he didn't like it being pointed out to him, especially by Duke. "Well you're quite the ladies man, aren't you Devlin? I don't see you in her pants yet, how's that for skill?" Joey snarled, and realized he hated himself for making that comment. Had Duke said it and Joey would have killed him.
"You guys, shh!" Serenity hissed. "She's going to hear you!" she looked over with a concerned eye at the closed kitchen door.
"You wanna take this outside?" Duke asked, raising his voice and ignoring Serenity.
"I'd be delighted!" Joey snarled.
But Tristan and Tea stood up suddenly from the floor before Duke or Joey could lay a finger on each other. Tristan grabbed Duke and Tea grabbed Joey. They both held the boys back as they struggled to get at each other.
"Whoa you guys, this is ridiculous!" Tristan advised, finding no difficulty in holding back Duke.
"Yeah you guys, fighting is not the answer." Tea told them, who was having a more difficult time holding back Joey. "And I'm sure Roux doesn't appreciate it either! Your actions or your comments!"
"Yeah, that's probably why she walked off," Mai pointed out, pointing to the kitchen door. "She's probably sick of you two fighting over her, although I don't know what girl in her right mind would." Mai sat back in her chair.
Yami Yugi thought about it for a moment. He had been quiet most of the evening, like Roux, and hadn't said very much since the practice duel. The red-eyes black dragon appearing so suddenly in Roux's deck that day was concerning to him. But as Mai had made that comment he remembered something about Roux.
"Guys, get a grip!" he demanded angrily, raising his voice, making everyone in the room shiver fearfully. "Remember Roux's feelings. She just recently lost her ex-husband!"
That had shut them all up and they looked over in wonder. Joey and Duke cooled off and tried to decide over Yugi's words. They dropped their fists and sighed. Tristan and Tea let them both go.
"Gee I never even thought about that." Joey admitted, scratching the back of his head and looking rather ashamed of himself.
They were all quiet. No one would say a thing. Duke and Joey never thought about Roux's loss. Even if she hadn't loved Kale Tori anymore as a husband, she loved him still as a friend.
Serenity got up within a moment or two of pure silence. "I'm going to talk to Roux." She said softly, and headed in the direction of the kitchen, but Joey stopped her.
"No Serenity, let me talk to her." He told her calmly. "I owe her an apology."
Serenity looked up at her big brother wide-eyed, and then she gave a little smile and nodded, knowing that he brother always did the right thing. She stepped aside, and Joey walked past her and into the kitchen.
Everyone left in the living room sighed heavily. "Well that sure killed this party." Tristan said suddenly, and then he noticed everyone's glares, and he shrugged. "Wha?"
When Joey came into the kitchen, closing the door behind him, he scanned the room and saw Roux sitting with her back to him at the kitchen table, looking out the window up at the moon and the stars, which had broken out in less than a half-hour ago. She didn't turn around to see who had come in. She probably already knew.
Joey took a few steps forward. He could already sense the silent vibes in the room. It scared him almost to death. He cleared his throat. "Roux?" he whispered very carefully.
She didn't move.
Joey bit down on his lip and came further into the room. "Listen, I'm sorry about all that in the other room." He apologized, sticking his fists in his pockets and looking at the floor shamefully. "I acted like a jealous jerk, and you had every right to rib on me a bit. I guess I'm just selfish, you're my friend and I want you all to myself."
Joey looked up. Roux's head had bowed a little.
"I mean, I know you're not some prize to be won, and I know I gotta think about that myself. I didn't respect your feelings and I'm sorry." Joey apologized again, and this time watched to see what Roux would do.
She sat motionless with her back to him for a moment, and then he heard her sigh heavily, but she tried almost to hide it. Joey took another step forward. "Are you okay?"
Joey stood and watched her for a moment, and then he heard her speak. "Joey," she said softly, not raising her head. "Why did you put your Red- Eyes Black Dragon into my deck?"
Joey stood there and blinked for a moment, taken aback by her question. He thought she would have commented on his apology and about what had happened in the living room earlier. But here she was asking about the duel?
So that was what had been bothering her. The duel. She didn't feel right about it. And she had every right to. Yes, Joey had put his Red-Eyes Black Dragon into her deck. He had been caught.
He sighed and kicked at the floor a little bit with the tip of his toe, like a child would do. "I dunno." He said. "Just for luck."
Roux looked at him over her shoulder. He looked into her eyes. They were cold and filled with a chilly disposition. If Joey had been any closer, he would have sworn he was looking right into the eyes of Seto Kaiba.
"Don't lie to me, Joey." She said sternly, and her eyes filled with hurt.
"I'm not lying." Joey said.
"Yes you are." She said softly, and swallowed. "You put your Red-Eyes into my deck earlier before I dueled. Why? Why did you do it?"
Joey swallowed very tightly. He was going to have to tell her the truth, whether or not he wanted to or not. It went against his principles to tell her why he had done it, but she would have beaten it out of him anyway.
"I-I did it so you would beat Weevil." Joey confessed shamefully, then shook his head and looked down at the floor. He looked like he would cry.
Roux blinked a few times as her face lit up in not quite shock, but more hurt. She looked like she was on the verge of tears. "So I would beat Weevil." She repeated to herself rather quietly, and then she shook her head. "You didn't think I could beat him."
Joey shrugged, but he couldn't find the words to defend himself. Which was a grave error.
"You didn't think I would win, did you?" Roux asked, shaking her head softly and looking at Joey. "You put your Red-Eyes into my deck so I would draw it and beat Weevil. You don't think I can do this."
"Of course I can," Joey said suddenly. "I know you can duel, I've seen you. You can duel good."
"Duel well!" she corrected him angrily, but tingled with hurt. "And I only did because of your Red-Eyes, that's how you see it!"
Joey bit down on his lip again. "Listen, I didn't want ya to get embarrassed. When that Weevil kid wins he can be death to his opponent. I just wanted ya to win so everyone would see how great a duelist you were."
A tear rolled out of the corner of her eyes. "So you don't think I can do this. You don't think I can win a duel, a practice duel even!"
Joey didn't say anything.
Roux stood from her chair and stared at him intensely. Her glare would have put him to death if she only wanted it to. "For your information Joey, I think it's best to learn from your mistakes. If I lost that duel today I would have been much happier, and I hate getting all this attention, I already get enough of it at home!" her voice broke with the oncoming tears. "I'm not doing this to get attention, I'm not in this tournament to make Japan bow at my feet because I'm on some stupid magazine!"
"How would you be happier losing the duel?" Joey asked. "You lose that practice duel how you gonna win a real duel?"
"With skill," she said calmly. "And as Yugi said, with trust in my cards. My own cards!" she added shrilly. "You put your card into my deck because you don't think I can win a duel, that I'm just a blonde bimbo who belongs behind a camera and not on the platform!"
Once again Joey didn't say anything, and this concluded his stupidness.
Roux sighed heavily and shook her head. "I'm going back to my hotel." She said solemnly, and she stepped away from the table. "I was wrong to stay so long." And she walked past him and out the kitchen door. Joey didn't say anything.
Everyone watched in silence as Roux walked down the hallway towards the spare bedroom where she was going to gather her things. They were all stunned with silence until Joey came sulking into the room. He wouldn't look at anyone, he was really sad.
Roux emerged again with her bag flung over her shoulder, and she took her coat from the hook and turned to everyone in the room. They could all see from the visible light that she had been crying. She smiled softly at them. "Bye guys, I'll see you at the tournament."
Nobody really knew what to do. As though they were in a trance they raised their hands and waved softly, but no one said a word.
Roux sighed and looked back at Joey a last time. His eyes were full of tears, he was truly sorry for what he had done. But Roux was already out the door and gone from view.
Joey took a few steps towards the door and looked out, but the darkness had swallowed everything. Roux was no where to be seen, and in his mind, she was practically gone. He closed the door sadly.
"Joey, what happened?" Tea broke the silence.
Joey shrugged. He wouldn't say anything.
"Where's Roux going?" Mai asked concerned. "I didn't even have a chance to ask her to autograph my jacket." She pouted sadly.
Yami Yugi stood up and narrowed his eyes to Joey. "Joey, what happened?"
Joey swallowed and shrugged again. "She's going back to her hotel." He said almost in a whisper. "I put the Red-Eyes in her deck so she would win." He sighed and ignored everyone's shocked looks and gasps, although Yugi didn't move, as he had suspected it all along.
"I'm going to my room." Joey mumbled, and stalked off down the hall towards his bedroom.
Serenity stood up. "Joey, wait!" she called.
The slam of a door silenced her.
Everyone in the living room was stunned with silence. No one would say anything. Yugi sat down again, and shook his head softly. He knew Joey had to have been behind that Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Roux had left because he told her he had done it. She thought he didn't have faith in her ability.
"Will she be safe back at her hotel?" Tristan suddenly asked, breaking the silence, and everyone looked at him curiously.
"That's a good point," Tea said. "With what Pegasus said and everything, shouldn't she stay with Joey just for safety reasons?"
But nobody knew what to do, and nobody knew what to say to Joey. They didn't see him for the rest of the night following what had happened.
~*~
Roux walked briskly against the chilly wind, walking with a fast pace, not looking back, not even for an instant. Even as the entire city seemed swallowed in eternal darkness, while shadows danced in amongst the corners, the moon lit up the streets, and the street lamps guided her down the road.
The tears streamed down her cheeks in waterfalls, and she was unable to stop them. The wind biting at her face made her cold but she couldn't pay much attention to it. She was far too upset to realize anything outside her own thoughts.
She was so angry with Joey, angry that he had put his Red-Eyes into her deck before she dueled Weevil. Angry that he didn't believe in her. Above all people she would have thought he would have been the strongest to believe in her. But he wasn't, he didn't believe in her at all.
Perhaps he did just think she was a blonde bimbo who couldn't duel. That she was there to be seen and not heard. It made her very upset. And all the people in Osaka who were rooting for her in the tournament-how did they feel? The same as Joey? Were they just rooting for her because they believed she looked good in pictures or on the television?
Roux looked up and could see the city lights in the distance. It was such a long ways away it seemed, and she was tired and upset, and the darkness was forbidding. Would she even make it to her hotel, which lay right in the heart of the city? It was so far away.
Roux came to a park, and she sat down on a nearby bench under a streetlight. She dropped her bag and buried her face in her hands, crying aloud. She couldn't stop the flow of the tears, she felt angry and sad and terrified all at the same time. Nothing seemed to comfort her.
She longed for Kale, the one who could comfort her in such times. When she was depressed or overwhelmed from the menacing ways of the magazine world, she used to call Kale and talk to him about it, and he would never be too busy to talk to her. They loved each other so much, they were more like brother and sister other than lover and lover.
Kale was gone. Roux felt more tears come to her eyes. Knowing that she couldn't ever talk to Kale like that again, or see him. All these thoughts came back to her and she couldn't stop thinking about them. She cried and sobbed there in the darkness, and no one was there to comfort her.
Then there was Pegasus. She sighed heavily through her sobs. He was gone, and he never did declare when it was he would be coming back. She hoped he would come back before the tournament began. Perhaps she could practice duel against him, get in some real practice, with her own cards.
She sat up and wiped away most of her tears. She sighed and shrugged. "Well at least things can't get any worse." She said to herself.
That was when she heard the blood-chilling voice behind her that startled her out of her mind.
"I beg to differ, sweetheart."
Roux gasped softly, and very slowly she turned around and examined the darkness. She saw them right away. There were several tall, shadowy men in suits standing in the park right behind her. They were all-faceless, and seemed unreal. Roux's breath went chilly.
"Our master, Mister Marik, would like to have a few words with you." One of them said, and they all laughed and began to come towards her.
Before Roux could think twice, she forced herself up from the bench and ran down the street just the fastest she could go, not daring to look behind her, and she screamed out to the darkness for help!
~*~
****Okay here we go, we're finally getting into the major plotline here, and yeesh it took awhile! But these upcoming chapters, I promise, are going to be a lot more exciting, suspenseful, and of course romantic ^_^ ****
Chapter Twenty-One
Men in the Shadows
On the six o'clock news that evening, a woman reporter wearing a red suit with a black bob was holding the microphone and standing in among the crowd at the town square during the practice duels. The reporter grinned widely and gave a friendly wave to the camera as she spoke. "Well it looks like duel monsters has settled it's craze on Domino City as literally hundreds of duelists have gathered here before me in the square of Domino, trading cards and practicing for the Battle City Tournament being held by Kaiba Corp, which begins Thursday of next week." She tapped the microphone piece lodged inside her ear. "Over to you Kent!"
The picture switched over to a man with a blonde crewcut wearing a blue tee shirt and sunglasses. He held his microphone and punched the air with his fist. "Woo, I'll tell you Judy, it's sure cooking up over here by the practice duelers as duelists of all ages are stepping up to the platform to practice their skills against one another. It sure is hot out here." he paused for a minute and laughed. "And it's about to get hotter! Mmm, mmm! Look at who just stepped up to the platform, yow!"
The picture switched over to the practice duel, where Roux was standing, in her practice duel against Weevil. She held out her cards and smiled, not looking at the camera. The male reporter laughed. "Yowza, even the most beautiful girls are out and participating in the tournament!"
The screen split vertically and now both reporters could be seen. "Kent, if I'm not mistaken that young woman on the platform is the world famous Roux Matuko, a very formidable fashion model who is pictured in the many fashion magazines of Japan and of the world." The female reporter added. Then she looked rather confused. "Wow, I read those magazines all the time, I didn't think Roux Matuko would ever be interested in duel monsters."
"Well as you can see Judy," said the male reporter. "She's obviously quite talented and skilled. Mmm just look at the way she's holding her cards, I'd like to be that card right about now, hehe. Man oh man, do I love my job!"
"And it looks like she's got some fans rooting for her too, eh Kent?" There was Yugi and his friends cheering wildly for Roux on the sidelines.
"Oh definitely. And I'm sure she'll have a lot more very soon just as soon as the tournament begins. If I'm lucky I may just be able to get an interview with this lovely duelist." He laughed heartily. "Back to you Judy."
Seto Kaiba watched the television set intensely, his fingers wrapped in each other tightly. He hadn't taken his eyes away from the television screen since the news report had started. He wanted to see the public broadcast about what the people thought about this upcoming tournament.
He hadn't expected Roux to get shown off all over the news. He wasn't very surprised however, there weren't as many women as men duelists, not in this tournament anyway, and only the most beautiful ones would catch the eyes of the sexist male reporter. That disgusted Kaiba beyond his mortal imagination, but he assumed it happened with every tournament.
What was interesting about Roux's practice duel that day, however, was that Mokuba had come home late in the afternoon and squealed to Kaiba all about how he watched Roux duel against Weevil Underwood, the kid who specialized in insect cards, who obviously this year had changed his game plan.
Nevertheless he was a skilled duelist. How could someone so inexperienced as Roux win so easily against him? Kaiba's eyebrows burred in suspicion. She must have been hiding something, hiding something to help her win. It couldn't be beginners luck.
"You're so naïve!" Mokuba had told him when Kaiba frowned upon the news that Roux had won the practice duel. "Of course she didn't cheat, I was watching the whole thing. She won it fair and square."
Kaiba sat back angrily. "Perhaps, but don't you think it's odd how someone who hasn't dueled since she was twelve was able to beat a kid who's won several tournaments?" Kaiba challenged his little brother.
Mokuba didn't have too much to say, only that he thought his brother was naïve.
Kaiba was alone now however, Mokuba was back at home. Now that he was allowed to think his own thoughts, Kaiba was certain that there was something Roux was doing to help her win the practice duel. Unless she was unexplainably skilled, but in Kaiba's eyes, that wasn't likely.
Kaiba would find out what she was doing. One way or another.
Curiously he looked over at the clock. It was almost seven o'clock, and Kaiba wasn't too interested in staying very late tonight. He had a busy afternoon of meetings and appointments, and until tomorrow he wouldn't do another bit of work. He was going to go home.
It was still light out when he was packing up his things and switching off the lights in his office. He decided he wouldn't call around the car, it was warm enough and nice enough out to walk to the Kaiba mansion, even if it took him a few hours. He needed some time to think.
~*~
"And it looks like she's got some fans rooting for her too, eh Kent?" There was Yugi and his friends cheering wildly for Roux on the sidelines.
"Oh definitely. And I'm sure she'll have a lot more very soon just as soon as the tournament begins. If I'm lucky I may just be able to get an interview with this lovely duelist." He laughed heartily. "Back to you Judy."
An eruption of cheers went up through the Wheeler living room. Everyone had gathered in the living room for dinner that evening when they got back from the practice duels. The word of Roux's victory against Weevil had spread like the plague.
"Ya! Aw right for Roux!" Everyone cheered happily, hugging Roux in turns.
"Wow, you won your first duel already!" Bakura said happily, grinning sweetly. "And against Weevil, and I hear he's really difficult to beat."
"Yeah, the kid shoulda stuck to the bugs." Joey said, and everybody laughed. "But we're still so proud of you Roux!" he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder as they sat on the couch.
Duke grinned and took Roux's hand, as he sat next to her on the other side of the couch. "Yeah, that kid probably back at home crying because the sexiest girl in the world beat in him in the blink of an eye." He kissed Roux's hand.
Joey saw the whole thing and went hot with jealousy. He scowled at Duke. "Hey! Hands off, Duke!" he commanded. "She ain't yours for charming."
"Oh and I suppose she's yours for charming, hmm?" Duke raised a questionable eyebrow.
Roux scowled and sighed angrily. "Guys, cut it out, I'm sick of this! I'm not anybody's for charming! Okay?" she stood from the couch in a hurry and left the room without another word, and without looking back.
Everyone's eyes followed Roux as she left the living room in confusion. They wondered what was wrong. She had been pretty quiet ever since her victory against Weevil. She hadn't said anything about the match and she sure didn't want to talk about it. None of them had seen Roux angry like this. They wondered what was up.
"Look what ya did, ya nimrod!" Joey smacked Duke upside the head and rose to get up from the couch to follow Roux. "Hey Roux! Wait up!"
"She probably left cause you turned on your 'stupendous' charm." Duke commented sarcastically, folding his arms over his chest. "Probably scared her off too, you goon." Duke insisted, waving a hand absent mindedly at Joey.
Joey growled and his fist clenched white. "Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!" Duke insisted, standing from the couch, raising his fist to Joey. "So much for your hope at ever finding a girl, especially when the most beautiful one stomps away from you!"
Joey was seething with anger. He knew that Roux was probably upset with him, but he didn't like it being pointed out to him, especially by Duke. "Well you're quite the ladies man, aren't you Devlin? I don't see you in her pants yet, how's that for skill?" Joey snarled, and realized he hated himself for making that comment. Had Duke said it and Joey would have killed him.
"You guys, shh!" Serenity hissed. "She's going to hear you!" she looked over with a concerned eye at the closed kitchen door.
"You wanna take this outside?" Duke asked, raising his voice and ignoring Serenity.
"I'd be delighted!" Joey snarled.
But Tristan and Tea stood up suddenly from the floor before Duke or Joey could lay a finger on each other. Tristan grabbed Duke and Tea grabbed Joey. They both held the boys back as they struggled to get at each other.
"Whoa you guys, this is ridiculous!" Tristan advised, finding no difficulty in holding back Duke.
"Yeah you guys, fighting is not the answer." Tea told them, who was having a more difficult time holding back Joey. "And I'm sure Roux doesn't appreciate it either! Your actions or your comments!"
"Yeah, that's probably why she walked off," Mai pointed out, pointing to the kitchen door. "She's probably sick of you two fighting over her, although I don't know what girl in her right mind would." Mai sat back in her chair.
Yami Yugi thought about it for a moment. He had been quiet most of the evening, like Roux, and hadn't said very much since the practice duel. The red-eyes black dragon appearing so suddenly in Roux's deck that day was concerning to him. But as Mai had made that comment he remembered something about Roux.
"Guys, get a grip!" he demanded angrily, raising his voice, making everyone in the room shiver fearfully. "Remember Roux's feelings. She just recently lost her ex-husband!"
That had shut them all up and they looked over in wonder. Joey and Duke cooled off and tried to decide over Yugi's words. They dropped their fists and sighed. Tristan and Tea let them both go.
"Gee I never even thought about that." Joey admitted, scratching the back of his head and looking rather ashamed of himself.
They were all quiet. No one would say a thing. Duke and Joey never thought about Roux's loss. Even if she hadn't loved Kale Tori anymore as a husband, she loved him still as a friend.
Serenity got up within a moment or two of pure silence. "I'm going to talk to Roux." She said softly, and headed in the direction of the kitchen, but Joey stopped her.
"No Serenity, let me talk to her." He told her calmly. "I owe her an apology."
Serenity looked up at her big brother wide-eyed, and then she gave a little smile and nodded, knowing that he brother always did the right thing. She stepped aside, and Joey walked past her and into the kitchen.
Everyone left in the living room sighed heavily. "Well that sure killed this party." Tristan said suddenly, and then he noticed everyone's glares, and he shrugged. "Wha?"
When Joey came into the kitchen, closing the door behind him, he scanned the room and saw Roux sitting with her back to him at the kitchen table, looking out the window up at the moon and the stars, which had broken out in less than a half-hour ago. She didn't turn around to see who had come in. She probably already knew.
Joey took a few steps forward. He could already sense the silent vibes in the room. It scared him almost to death. He cleared his throat. "Roux?" he whispered very carefully.
She didn't move.
Joey bit down on his lip and came further into the room. "Listen, I'm sorry about all that in the other room." He apologized, sticking his fists in his pockets and looking at the floor shamefully. "I acted like a jealous jerk, and you had every right to rib on me a bit. I guess I'm just selfish, you're my friend and I want you all to myself."
Joey looked up. Roux's head had bowed a little.
"I mean, I know you're not some prize to be won, and I know I gotta think about that myself. I didn't respect your feelings and I'm sorry." Joey apologized again, and this time watched to see what Roux would do.
She sat motionless with her back to him for a moment, and then he heard her sigh heavily, but she tried almost to hide it. Joey took another step forward. "Are you okay?"
Joey stood and watched her for a moment, and then he heard her speak. "Joey," she said softly, not raising her head. "Why did you put your Red- Eyes Black Dragon into my deck?"
Joey stood there and blinked for a moment, taken aback by her question. He thought she would have commented on his apology and about what had happened in the living room earlier. But here she was asking about the duel?
So that was what had been bothering her. The duel. She didn't feel right about it. And she had every right to. Yes, Joey had put his Red-Eyes Black Dragon into her deck. He had been caught.
He sighed and kicked at the floor a little bit with the tip of his toe, like a child would do. "I dunno." He said. "Just for luck."
Roux looked at him over her shoulder. He looked into her eyes. They were cold and filled with a chilly disposition. If Joey had been any closer, he would have sworn he was looking right into the eyes of Seto Kaiba.
"Don't lie to me, Joey." She said sternly, and her eyes filled with hurt.
"I'm not lying." Joey said.
"Yes you are." She said softly, and swallowed. "You put your Red-Eyes into my deck earlier before I dueled. Why? Why did you do it?"
Joey swallowed very tightly. He was going to have to tell her the truth, whether or not he wanted to or not. It went against his principles to tell her why he had done it, but she would have beaten it out of him anyway.
"I-I did it so you would beat Weevil." Joey confessed shamefully, then shook his head and looked down at the floor. He looked like he would cry.
Roux blinked a few times as her face lit up in not quite shock, but more hurt. She looked like she was on the verge of tears. "So I would beat Weevil." She repeated to herself rather quietly, and then she shook her head. "You didn't think I could beat him."
Joey shrugged, but he couldn't find the words to defend himself. Which was a grave error.
"You didn't think I would win, did you?" Roux asked, shaking her head softly and looking at Joey. "You put your Red-Eyes into my deck so I would draw it and beat Weevil. You don't think I can do this."
"Of course I can," Joey said suddenly. "I know you can duel, I've seen you. You can duel good."
"Duel well!" she corrected him angrily, but tingled with hurt. "And I only did because of your Red-Eyes, that's how you see it!"
Joey bit down on his lip again. "Listen, I didn't want ya to get embarrassed. When that Weevil kid wins he can be death to his opponent. I just wanted ya to win so everyone would see how great a duelist you were."
A tear rolled out of the corner of her eyes. "So you don't think I can do this. You don't think I can win a duel, a practice duel even!"
Joey didn't say anything.
Roux stood from her chair and stared at him intensely. Her glare would have put him to death if she only wanted it to. "For your information Joey, I think it's best to learn from your mistakes. If I lost that duel today I would have been much happier, and I hate getting all this attention, I already get enough of it at home!" her voice broke with the oncoming tears. "I'm not doing this to get attention, I'm not in this tournament to make Japan bow at my feet because I'm on some stupid magazine!"
"How would you be happier losing the duel?" Joey asked. "You lose that practice duel how you gonna win a real duel?"
"With skill," she said calmly. "And as Yugi said, with trust in my cards. My own cards!" she added shrilly. "You put your card into my deck because you don't think I can win a duel, that I'm just a blonde bimbo who belongs behind a camera and not on the platform!"
Once again Joey didn't say anything, and this concluded his stupidness.
Roux sighed heavily and shook her head. "I'm going back to my hotel." She said solemnly, and she stepped away from the table. "I was wrong to stay so long." And she walked past him and out the kitchen door. Joey didn't say anything.
Everyone watched in silence as Roux walked down the hallway towards the spare bedroom where she was going to gather her things. They were all stunned with silence until Joey came sulking into the room. He wouldn't look at anyone, he was really sad.
Roux emerged again with her bag flung over her shoulder, and she took her coat from the hook and turned to everyone in the room. They could all see from the visible light that she had been crying. She smiled softly at them. "Bye guys, I'll see you at the tournament."
Nobody really knew what to do. As though they were in a trance they raised their hands and waved softly, but no one said a word.
Roux sighed and looked back at Joey a last time. His eyes were full of tears, he was truly sorry for what he had done. But Roux was already out the door and gone from view.
Joey took a few steps towards the door and looked out, but the darkness had swallowed everything. Roux was no where to be seen, and in his mind, she was practically gone. He closed the door sadly.
"Joey, what happened?" Tea broke the silence.
Joey shrugged. He wouldn't say anything.
"Where's Roux going?" Mai asked concerned. "I didn't even have a chance to ask her to autograph my jacket." She pouted sadly.
Yami Yugi stood up and narrowed his eyes to Joey. "Joey, what happened?"
Joey swallowed and shrugged again. "She's going back to her hotel." He said almost in a whisper. "I put the Red-Eyes in her deck so she would win." He sighed and ignored everyone's shocked looks and gasps, although Yugi didn't move, as he had suspected it all along.
"I'm going to my room." Joey mumbled, and stalked off down the hall towards his bedroom.
Serenity stood up. "Joey, wait!" she called.
The slam of a door silenced her.
Everyone in the living room was stunned with silence. No one would say anything. Yugi sat down again, and shook his head softly. He knew Joey had to have been behind that Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Roux had left because he told her he had done it. She thought he didn't have faith in her ability.
"Will she be safe back at her hotel?" Tristan suddenly asked, breaking the silence, and everyone looked at him curiously.
"That's a good point," Tea said. "With what Pegasus said and everything, shouldn't she stay with Joey just for safety reasons?"
But nobody knew what to do, and nobody knew what to say to Joey. They didn't see him for the rest of the night following what had happened.
~*~
Roux walked briskly against the chilly wind, walking with a fast pace, not looking back, not even for an instant. Even as the entire city seemed swallowed in eternal darkness, while shadows danced in amongst the corners, the moon lit up the streets, and the street lamps guided her down the road.
The tears streamed down her cheeks in waterfalls, and she was unable to stop them. The wind biting at her face made her cold but she couldn't pay much attention to it. She was far too upset to realize anything outside her own thoughts.
She was so angry with Joey, angry that he had put his Red-Eyes into her deck before she dueled Weevil. Angry that he didn't believe in her. Above all people she would have thought he would have been the strongest to believe in her. But he wasn't, he didn't believe in her at all.
Perhaps he did just think she was a blonde bimbo who couldn't duel. That she was there to be seen and not heard. It made her very upset. And all the people in Osaka who were rooting for her in the tournament-how did they feel? The same as Joey? Were they just rooting for her because they believed she looked good in pictures or on the television?
Roux looked up and could see the city lights in the distance. It was such a long ways away it seemed, and she was tired and upset, and the darkness was forbidding. Would she even make it to her hotel, which lay right in the heart of the city? It was so far away.
Roux came to a park, and she sat down on a nearby bench under a streetlight. She dropped her bag and buried her face in her hands, crying aloud. She couldn't stop the flow of the tears, she felt angry and sad and terrified all at the same time. Nothing seemed to comfort her.
She longed for Kale, the one who could comfort her in such times. When she was depressed or overwhelmed from the menacing ways of the magazine world, she used to call Kale and talk to him about it, and he would never be too busy to talk to her. They loved each other so much, they were more like brother and sister other than lover and lover.
Kale was gone. Roux felt more tears come to her eyes. Knowing that she couldn't ever talk to Kale like that again, or see him. All these thoughts came back to her and she couldn't stop thinking about them. She cried and sobbed there in the darkness, and no one was there to comfort her.
Then there was Pegasus. She sighed heavily through her sobs. He was gone, and he never did declare when it was he would be coming back. She hoped he would come back before the tournament began. Perhaps she could practice duel against him, get in some real practice, with her own cards.
She sat up and wiped away most of her tears. She sighed and shrugged. "Well at least things can't get any worse." She said to herself.
That was when she heard the blood-chilling voice behind her that startled her out of her mind.
"I beg to differ, sweetheart."
Roux gasped softly, and very slowly she turned around and examined the darkness. She saw them right away. There were several tall, shadowy men in suits standing in the park right behind her. They were all-faceless, and seemed unreal. Roux's breath went chilly.
"Our master, Mister Marik, would like to have a few words with you." One of them said, and they all laughed and began to come towards her.
Before Roux could think twice, she forced herself up from the bench and ran down the street just the fastest she could go, not daring to look behind her, and she screamed out to the darkness for help!
~*~
****Okay here we go, we're finally getting into the major plotline here, and yeesh it took awhile! But these upcoming chapters, I promise, are going to be a lot more exciting, suspenseful, and of course romantic ^_^ ****