Dimensional Warrior Girl: The Winter Tournament
Author: Chaos Valkyrie
First Conceptualized: October, 2003
Posted Chapter 04: February 6, 2004
Updated: December 22, 2005

Disclaimer: Yup, still a chick. Can't be Takahashi. Darn.

Author Notes: Awww, new days, new friends! Dueling here is like it is in the show, not in the actual TCG. Basically, any creative combo can probably work. After all, I have yet to get a Polymerization card to fuse a Mammoth Graveyard with a Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Hmm, that's never gonna happen in the TCG, but it does in the show. Go figure.

Chapter Four: Of Dogs and Duels

'Well, that wasn't too bad,' Jenni sighed inwardly. Of course, the kid she had just battled looked like he was about twelve or so, but at least she didn't have to undergo the humiliation of being ousted by a kid almost half her age. Still, for being seven years younger, he had put up a good fight.

She walked away into the snow with the new card still in her hand. 'I thought I was toast when he pulled that Paralyzing Potion on my Red-Eyes,' she thought. Luckily, she had drawn Metalmorph, and her Black Metal Dragon crushed the rest of his life points. She paused, and slipped the new cube and "Buster Blader" into her belt pouch. She hated taking his rarest card, but it was tournament policy, everyone knew that.

Well, at least she won her first duel, and her snow-bunny outfit passed the test as being cute, not granny-ish. The vest was light blue, and she wrapped her grey scarf tighter around her neck as the winds picked up. The weather had been rather calm during her duel, but now it was really beginning to cool down. She hoped the tournament would remain moderately clear sailing. She left the park and headed into the streets, smiling. 'Time to shop some more!' she inwardly cheered, until she heard a noise that made her stop in her tracks.

"Mister Kaiba," a voice came from the two way radio embedded in his collar.

Seto Kaiba was wandering the streets. He had already crushed an amateur duelist, hoping to knock down the former world champ. Mokuba, too, was out in the streets, having won his first duel of the tournament as well as keeping an eye open for that girl. Kaiba paused as the voice continued.

"Mister Kaiba, the girl is dueling in the Domino Park. Do you need us to send a helicopter to transport you to her location?"

Before he could reply, Mokuba cut in.

"Hey Seto, I'm near the park now. I'll head that way and meet up with you," he said.

"Agreed. I'll be there shortly," Kaiba replied.

Jenni paused outside the alleyway, trying to see inside. The snow was swirling down around her, the whistling breeze making it difficult to hear anything. She took off her earmuffs, then listened again. Then there was a noise, a rasping, panting noise coming from the shadows. Hoping it was just an animal, she edged into the alley. The panting changed to a soft growl as she neared the dumpster at the end of the enclosure.

She looked around the dumpster, and came face to face with a once-white, furry dog with startling dark blue eyes. 'A husky, maybe,' she said to herself, and then noticed that the dog was favoring it paw. She knelt down, averting her eyes so the dog would not think her a threat. It continued to growl, but more hesitantly.

Jenni moved slightly forward, whispering sweet nothings to the dog. It blinked, then came slowly to her. She ran a hand through its matted fur, and the dog licked her face. She smiled at it, and petted it some more before she reached for its paw. The dog jerked away, but didn't make any threatening gestures. She softly felt the paw and its ankle. It seemed slightly swollen, but not too bad. Jenni sighed, and spoke to the dog directly.

"Well, do you think you can walk on that, or do I get to carry you?" The dog looked up at her. He was dirty and a little smelly. She looked down at her snow bunny outfit and sighed. She hoped the apartment building had a laundry room. She made sure her disk was secure in the holster before she gingerly picked up the dog. He resisted a little at first, but then snuggled down into her warm arms. She smiled, then left the alleyway, almost colliding with a kid running by.

"Oh, I'm sor-," he started, then looked up at her with shock. He looked about forteen or so, and his eyes widened as he looked up at her, then at the dog. She smiled at him, and he blushed.

"That's okay. I just found this dog, and he seems to be hurt. You wouldn't know any good vets, would you? I'm new here," she explained. The boy shook his head, and she sighed. "Oh well, I'll just have to look at it on my own then. Thanks."

The boy cleared his throat. "Do you need some help with that?"

She looked him over. "Well, he is slightly heavy, but I don't think you could manage him any better than I could." The dog in question was starting to get heavy. The boy smiled – almost slyly, she thought, and spoke again.

"Bring the car around to –" he looked at the street signs – "Sycamore Lane. Pronto."

"Who are you talking to?" Jenni asked, looking slightly confused.

He laughed. "I've got a radio on my collar." She looked, and noticed a small sparkling KC pin there.

'Hmm. High tech kid.'

Jenni knelt down on a clean patch of sidewalk with the dog, resting his weight on one leg. The boy just stood there with a strange smile, watching her as she petted the dog. She looked up at him, one eyebrow cocked. "My name is Jenni. And yourself?" she asked, smiling.

"Mokuba," he said. He reached down to pet the dog as well, and smiled as it licked his hand. "So you're new here?" he asked.

"Yup. Just moved here," she lied, focusing her attention on the dog.

"I see you've got a disk. Are you in the tournament?" he asked innocently.

She looked up at him. "Yeah, I am." She noticed that he had a Duel Disk as well, and hoped that he wasn't planning to challenge her to a duel now. She really didn't know what else to say, so she looked back down at the dog, which promptly licked her face. Mokuba laughed as she grimaced. "The first thing we're doing after your bath is getting you some doggie breath mints," she told it.

"Where did the dog come from?" Mokuba asked, still laughing.

"The alley. I heard him when I walked by."

"What are you going to do with him?" the kid asked.

"Keep him, of course! He needs some feeding, and definitely some bathing, but he seems like a sweetie," she told him. The dog barked agreement. They both laughed.

"Well, what'll you name him?" Mokuba asked.

"You've got a lot of questions." Jenni shrugged. "I'm not sure yet, any ideas?"

"How about 'Joey'?" a deep voice suggested. Mokuba rolled his eyes, but started laughing.

Jenni turned, coming face to face with – 'Oooo, Kaiba-cutie!' She blushed, but fortunately it wasn't noticeable on her already cold-flushed cheeks.

Mokuba giggled. "She wouldn't get that joke, Big Brother."

She looked up at Seto. He was smiling, slightly, at his brother's antics, but his eyes still seemed somewhat cold. Calculating, even. "Do you always pick up stray mutts?" he asked her.

Jenni stood up, meeting his blue eyes with her now-stern hazel ones. "Always," she stated. She didn't like his tone.

Mokuba coughed, noticing the non-weather related chill in the atmosphere. Luckily, a long black car rounded the corner. Kaiba raised one eyebrow, looking down at his little brother.

"You're not intending to put that thing in the car, are you?" he asked with a sigh, already knowing the answer.

Jenni started to open her mouth when Mokuba interrupted.

"Yup," he said, meeting his brother's eyes. "It's my car too!"

"Whatever," Kaiba said, turning away. "Just make sure the driver sterilizes it afterwards," he said over his shoulder.

Jenni glared at him, then smirked as she lifted the dog into the car. "Hey Kaiba," she said sweetly before following Mokuba in, "You might want to go to the doctor and get that little problem of yours check out." She ducked into the car and settled the dog before sticking her head back out the window. "It can't be healthy to continually have something stuck up your ass."

She laughed in spite of herself at his facial expression. He just glared at her through the window as the car pulled away from the curb. The driver, surprised to hear anyone talk back to his employer like that, hid a smile.

Jenni smirked as she gave the driver her address. 'Well, maybe he's not such the cutie after all,' she thought to herself.

Jenni gave the dog some milk and torn up bread pieces before she left the apartment again. She shut him in the art room with the old sheets to lay on. Mokuba had helped her open the doors, and then left when she thanked him.

'Add dog-shampoo to the list,' she thought. She had left her disk in the apartment, along with her deck. She had her empty back-pack on her shoulders, prepared to carry all the junk she'd need. Armed with her bank card, she headed out.

"She seemed nice, to me anyway," Mokuba told his brother as he got in the car later. Seto sniffed.

"Whatever. I still want to know what she's doing in this tournament," he stated.

Mokuba rolled his eyes at his big brother, then looked out the window. Then he smiled. "Driver, pull over," he asked politely. As the car slowed, he got out.

Seto looked out the window at whatever it was his brother had seen. He stiffened as he recognized Jenni Moran's laden down form through the swirling snow.

Jenni's backpack was stuffed, and she had some huge bags hanging from her arms as well as two different plants. She seemed extremely proud of herself. She laughed as she talked to Mokuba, and nodded as she handed him one of the plants and a couple of the bags. She followed his little brother back to the car, and Seto's eyes narrowed.

"Hey Big Brother, I offered Jenni a ride since she's so laden down," Mokuba gave his brother a warning look as Jenni piled in behind him. Seto rolled his eyes and started reading his paper.

"Hey, thanks for the ride. I had to get more stuff than I thought," Jenni smiled as she sat next to Kaiba. The smile didn't last long. "Hmm, on second thought, maybe I should sit next to Mokuba, I might get frostbite over here," she smirked, raising her eyebrow as Mokuba. He laughed merrily, and his brother gave him a sour look.

"Where's your duel disk?" the elder Kaiba asked her.

Jenni frowned, pretending to look confused. "Duel disk? Hmm, oh! You mean that thing that looks like a toy airplane wing? I left it at home," she gave him a sugary smile. She knew her comment would irk him – and it did.

Seto frowned at her. "The tournament's not for casual duelists. If you're not going to compete, you should get out. Of course," it was his turn to smirk, "with your attitude you probably won't be around much longer anyway." Jenni glared at him.

Mokuba sat back, staring back and forth between the two. He knew first hand how stinging his brother could be, but Jenni was returning blow for blow. He watched in silence as they continued to fence words.

"Hmph! With your attitude, it's a wonder that anyone would want to duel against you!" She wanted to tell him to take the ice cubes out of his ass, but she was still trying to be nice – well, nice in a smart-ass way. "Are you always such a right little ray of sunshine?"

Seto glared at her. "Are you always such a right little pain in the a-"

"We're here!" Mokuba interrupted. The car had stopped in front of her building. Jenni smirked at Seto as Mokuba opened the door. She got out, then stuck her head back in.

"Touché, for now," she said, smiling with an evil glint in her eyes, and she and Mokuba walked up the steps. She unlocked the door and they both went inside. Mokuba reappeared a few minutes later.

"I like her," he announced as he got back in the car. Seto snorted then glared down at his newspaper. Mokuba smiled as he told the driver to take them home. She may or may not be much of a duelist, but she certainly was a match for his brother's personality, at any rate.

A pair of green eyes watched the car pull away from the curb. The girl raised her dark glasses back over eyes as she walked away. Everything was going according to plan.

End Notes: Mwahaha… enter the villain! Briefly.