Wow, this was a really short fic, wasn't it? Unfortunately, this is the shortest of all the chapters! I know it's short, but there wasn't really much else to be said. Remember, this was my first EVER fic, so I wasn't very good at prolonging a story. Anyway, I hope you like it! Please R&R, and thank you for reading!
PART V
As the light from the attack dimmed, the room was coated with a stunned silence.
"A draw?" Joey whispered in amazement.
"So...what happens now?" Téa asked.
Joey shook his head. "I don't know."
Now what do we do? Raia wondered.
There's never been a tie in a tournament before, Yugi thought.
Pegasus spoke. "Since the rules of this tournament do not address the issue we have at hand, I propose this tie-breaker..."
Oh, no. PLEASE don't make me duel him again, Raia silently pleaded. I don't think I could do this a second time.
Not another duel, Yugi thought. I barely managed to squeak by this time.
"I propose that both of you shuffle your decks and draw one card. The strongest card wins," Pegasus finished.
"What kind of tie-breaker is THAT?!" Téa called.
"The fairest one I could think of," Pegasus responded. "Since they proved themselves even in a test of skill, they now must rely on luck."
"Doesn't sound very fair to me," Tristan muttered.
I've got a lot more than just luck on my side... Raia thought as she shuffled and drew her card.
...I've got the Heart of the Cards to help me. Yugi shuffled and drew.
"Duelists, reveal your cards!"
Raia turned her card over, showing her Water Omotics. Yugi in return revealed his Celtic Guardian.
"ANOTHER tie?! How is that possible?" Téa exclaimed.
"What is goin' ON here?" Joey cried in frustration.
"This is just plain freaky," Tristan observed.
Pegasus grumbled, clearly irritated.
Raia looked down, lost in thought for a moment. Then she picked up her deck and looked at the bottom card: the Heart of the Cards. Her Millennium Heart glowed softly as the spirit retreated back into its haven. She looked across the field at Yugi and let out a deep sigh. Then she replaced her deck, but left her hand on top of it.
"Go for it, Yugi," she said.
"What?" he asked softly.
"I concede. It's clear to me that I'm not the person for this job."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean it's going to take someone who is willing to risk anything to defeat Pegasus, like you did. You gave up a victory to keep me from it."
"This wasn't about preventing your victory," Yugi said. "This was about acknowledging an equal."
Raia smiled. "Promise me you'll bring them back," she said.
"I promise. You will see Kaiba and Mokuba again," Yugi answered.
Raia nodded, and then turned to leave the arena.
"Raia," Yugi called. She stopped and half-turned to face him.
"I have to ask you something..." he thought a moment, trying to properly phrase the question. "When you played the Heart of the Cards... I mean... Why is Kaiba at the heart of your cards?"
Raia grinned. "Gee, Yugi, didn't I tell you?" She waited a beat. "He's my brother." With that she turned and left a silent, stunned Yugi staring after her.
The realization of it hit him like a ton of bricks. The height (she had to be at least 5'7"); her long brown hair, complete with the single lock that hung between her deep blue eyes; the way she dueled; the way she'd taunted him; heck, even the way she made fun of Joey. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed it before. Perhaps it was the feminity of her features, or maybe it had just been his own thick-headedness that prevented him from seeing the truth before: this wasn't just Kaiba's sister, she was his twin.
"I knew it," Joey whispered to himself. From that first icy glare when she'd barged into the hall, Joey had known it, somewhere in the back of his brain.
Yugi stood still. He hadn't moved yet. He couldn't quite get past the shock. Then, he could suddenly sense her voice, like an echo in his head: "I know you'll beat Pegasus. I'll be cheering for you."