Yuuna sniffles as she sits on the river bank, rubbing her eyes.
"Little Princess, what's wrong?" Yubel appears at her side, kneeling next to her.
She's covered in bruises and dirt, along with a few scratches and cuts.
Yuuna continues to sob, lifting her head. "Y.. Yubel, why is everyone so mean to me?"
Her classmates call her 'ghost boy' and think she's scary, so they don't play with her.
Her parents hate her too, they think she's bad and beat her up and, and….
Yubel sits next to her and hugs her as best as they can, wrapping one of their wings around her. "I don't know, Little Princess."
Yuuna looks at her feet, curling up. "Did the Supreme King do something bad in the past? Is that why everyone is so mean to me now?"
Yubel stiffens and looks to the side. Then they sigh and hold Yuuna closer.
"Haou sometimes did bad things, Little Princess. But what he did isn't the reason why you're being treated so badly." Yubel kisses her forehead. "Sometimes, people are just mean. And some day, you'll find people who are nice."
Yuuna sniffles and hopes with all her heart she will.
She doesn't like being bullied.
Blair hums as she walks around campus. She loves hanging out with Yuuna and the others, but sometimes it's nice to have some alone time. Just her, the wind, the afternoon sunshine and the distant chatter of other students.
"Oh no, fellas, the widdle baby's going to cwy!"
Blair stops, turning around. She'd recognise that sound anyway.
The obnoxious laugh of a gang of Obelisk Blues bullying someone weaker than them. From what she can tell, it's happening in the courtyard, in front of the school and while she's on her way there, she could easily go somewhere else. She really shouldn't get involved, she'll be causing herself unnecessary trouble.
Blair runs straight for the courtyard. She's not good at not getting involved.
She turns the corner and scowls at what she sees.
A short Ra Yellow student is on the ground, scrambling to pick up his cards while 4 Obelisk Blues twice his height laugh at him.
"HEY!" Blair screams.
The chaos stops for a moment, everyone turning to stare at her.
And Blair quickly realises she doesn't have a plan.
"Who the Hell are you, pipsqueak?" One of the Obelisks snaps.
Blair straightens. It doesn't matter that she doesn't have a plan, she has to help that Ra Yellow student.
She marches on and starts picking up cards, much to the shock of all the boys gathered. She picks up every card she sees, looks around in case she missed any.
None left.
Blair nods and grabs the Ra Yellow's hand. "Come on, let's go."
Then she starts running, dragging the boy into the school, as fast as their short legs can get them from the Obelisk Blues. They hear the boys shouting and chasing them, so Blair runs faster, pulling the boy with her as fast as she can, trying to find an escape-
There!
Blair pulls him into a closet and closes it quietly. She stays perfectly still, the Ra Yellow student holding his breath as he hides as well.
The four Obelisk Blues run right past them.
Once their footsteps disappear, Blair opens the door, grabs the Ra Yellow's hand and drags him the way they came until they're in front of the school again.
"You okay?" Blair stops running once they're outside, turning around and letting go of his hand.
The boy nods. "I, I think so."
Now that they aren't running anymore, Blair takes a moment to look over the Ra Yellow she helped. He's maybe a hair shorter than her, wearing the usual Ra Yellow jacket, shoes and grey jeans. He has light skin, dark green hair cupping his face like leaves and dark green eyes only a shade lighter than his hair.
"I'm Blair Flannigan." Blair turns around, smiling.
The boy blinks and sweats, flushing. "Oh, I, I'm Brier Kohara."
Blair offers the cards she picked up. "Well it's nice to meet you, Brier. I should probably give these back to you."
"Oh, th-thank you for that." Brier takes the cards, holding them to his chest. "No one's… ever really stepped in like that before. You're really brave."
Blair shrugs, smiling. "No problem."
The two stare at each other for a moment, trying to think of what to say.
"Brier? There you are."
The two turn towards the voice and see a giant Ra Yellow student coming their way. Seriously, he's even bigger than Chumley and taller. He has short black hair from what she can see and gentle dark brown eyes. He's wearing the Ra Yellow uniform with white baggy trousers.
"Oh, Beauregard!" Brier smiles. "Sorry I'm late."
The heavyset Ra Yellow walks over to them smiling. "That's okay. I'm just glad you're here now."
Blair smiles. She's glad Brier's got a friend.
Beauregard blinks and turns to her. "I know you. You're Blair Flannigan, right? You Duelled with Yuuna Yuki against the Paradox brothers."
Blair waves. "Yeah, that's me. I didn't realise I had a reputation on campus."
That sure is a weird thought.
Brier nods, smiling nervously. "Yeah, you did amazing in that Duel. It was insane."
"I don't know anything about Duelling, but even I knew it was really tough out there." Beauregard crouches slightly, offering a first bump.
Blair smiles, fist bumping him. "Well, I had a great partner helping me out, but thanks."
"Hey, we were going to go to the library. If you wanna come along." Brier rubs the back of his neck.
Blair's eyes widen.
"We'd like to hang out, if you want to." Beauregard nods to her.
Blair nods. "Okay then, let's go! I haven't been yet, I kept meaning to visit the library but I haven't found time. This'll be great."
Brier and Beauregard smile at her, both a little shy.
With that, the three of them head for the campus library, a friendship forming.
Yuuna takes a deep breath and opens her eyes, which are molten golden. "Ready."
It's the middle of the night, the waves crashing on the rocks behind the Slifer Red Dorm. Yuuna has her Duel Disk deactivated for once, instead her eyes are just gold. Yubel is standing off to the side, their arms crossed as they watch her.
"Remember." Yubel ducks their head. "It's too early for you to try walking through your own portal, but you should practice sending objects through them."
"Good idea, but, shouldn't I be opening them first?" Yuuna turns to them. "Which I still don't know how I did."
It's been a few weeks since the Duel with Jinzo and though Yuuna's tried her best, she hasn't been able to open portals since then, except by accident. So instead she's focused on her original goal, which was to be able to manifest five Duel Monsters at once. She managed to do that just a week ago and practiced until she could even bring Grapha and Yubel out at the same time, to make sure it wasn't a fluke.
But now Yubel has a lesson plan and Yuuna needs to learn how to open her portals.
"Think back to that night, Little Princess, when you Duelled Jinzo and opened those portals. What were you thinking?" Yubel flies a little closer.
Yuuna nods and closes her eyes, bringing back the memories of that night.
Jinzo was laughing, the lightning was striking and all Yuuna could hear was the fearful screams of her friends.
"I…" Yuuna murmurs.
What had she been thinking? What had she been feeling?
Fear. Protectiveness. Desperation.
"I just wanted to protect them. That was all I could think about. Nothing else mattered, so long as they were safe." Yuuna opens her eyes, turning to Yubel.
Who nods, smiling. "Your powers come from your emotions, Yuuna. When you feel desperate and like your life is in danger, they can react to save you in a pinch. But they're more reliable when your emotions are stable. If you feel in control, then you will be in control. If you feel out of control, then you won't be in control. Do you understand?"
Yuuna nods.
She just has to be stable. Calm.
Yuuna sucks in a deep breath.
"Now focus. Imagine what you want your powers to do." Yubel instructs.
Yuuna lets that breath out slowly.
She wants to open a portal. From just in front of her, to a few feet away, where Yubel is standing. She wants to throw a rock through it.
Yuuna opens her eyes and throws her hand out.
Her power is like water, flowing through her and it appears where she wants it to. She will make these portals open, if it takes all night.
Then she sees it.
A small glimmer of a shadow.
It's small and pulsing like a heartbeat, but it's there, between her fingers. And there's one just like it next to Yubel's shoulder.
"Keep going, Little Princess." Yubel encourages. "You've almost got it."
Yuuna grits her teeth, her arm starting to shake, so she grabs it, growling.
She will open these portals, she will open these portals, she will open these portals-
The portals pop and disappear in a blast, knocking Yuuna to her ass.
"FUCK!" Yuuna curses.
She groans and lays on her back.
"Okay then, let's take a break." Yubel says.
Then they fly over and sit next to Yuuna, who's staring at the stars, the two of them silent for a while.
"Why is this so hard? I can summon my monsters easily now." Yuuna groans.
Yubel chuckles. "I think I might know."
Yuuna tilts her head.
They rest their head in their hand, smiling down at them. "Remember when you Duelled Bastion and unlocked your luck because you were having fun?"
Yuuna nods, then her eyes widen. "Oh."
She's not having fun. She's scared and nervous and just wants it so bad.
"We just have to find a way to make it fun." Yubel reaches over and runs their claws through Yuuna's hair. "You'll get it in time, Little Princess."
Yuuna nods and smiles, looking at the stars. "Yeah."
She'll get it. She just has to remember to slow down and breathe. She has time.
Jasmine can't hold back a giggle as she holds Mindy's waist, helping her make the jump.
"I can't believe we're sneaking out like this." Jasmine giggles. "I've never had to sneak out in my life."
Mindy shakes her head. "Me neither, but how else were we going to get our midnight stroll Jaz?"
Jasmine's heart is racing and they haven't even started running yet. She can't believe they're doing this.
It's the middle of the night and Miss Fontaine has done her rounds to make sure all good little Obelisk Blue Girls are sleeping in their beds. But Jasmine and Mindy have been wanting this midnight date for weeks now and it's awkward to do anything too intimate with Alexis in the room, even if she's a door away. So they decided to sneak out and now they're here, holding each other as they prepare to run off.
"Come on." Mindy whispers.
Jasmine nods. She grabs Mindy's hand.
The two of them take off, running through the forest, giggling as they go. Jasmine should be concentrating on where her feet are going since she doesn't want to trip, but she can't stop looking back at Mindy. They usually wear their school uniforms, but tonight they're in more casual clothing and under the moonlight, Mindy looks gorgeous.
She's in a pair of black leggings shorts and a short blue dress, with ruffles from the bust down and no sleeves, just straps. Her hair is out of it's usual ponytail, loose around her neck and falling past her shoulders.
"What?" Mindy says as they slow to a stop, brushing some of her hair behind her ear. "Is there something on my face?"
Jasmine shakes her head. "No. You're just beautiful."
Mindy blushes and puts a hand on her hip. "You should speak for yourself."
Jasmine blushes and rubs the back of her neck. She knows she picked her black jeans that hug her legs well and a purple tube top, but she didn't realise Mindy would like them so much.
"It's actually a little unfair that you look that pretty." Mindy tugs her forward with their linked hands.
Jasmine goes with the pull, smirking. "Oh? What are you gonna do about it, Mindy?"
Mindy smirks, lifting her arms to rest them on Jasmine's shoulders. "This."
Then she leans in, stealing a kiss. Jasmine closes her eyes and tilts her head, returning the kiss, gently sucking on Mindy's bottom lip. There's nothing better in the world than kissing Mindy. Nothing. Jasmine could stand here for the rest of time, holding Mindy, feeling her smiling against her lips and she'd be perfectly content.
This is it.
This is all she wants.
"Jaz…" Mindy moans.
Suddenly Jasmine wants more. She presses Mindy against a tree, who gasps into her mouth, returning the kiss more fiercely, tangling her fingers in Jasmine's hair.
Then someone screams.
The two pull back from their kiss, gasping.
"What was that?" Mindy looks around wildly.
"I don't know, let's check it out." Jasmine says.
She grabs Mindy's hand and the two take off running towards the noise.
Eventually, they burst into a clearing, where they find an Obelisk Blue Boy on the ground, shaking, his cards all around him.
"Whoa, what happened?!" Mindy shouts.
Jasmine rushes to his side. "Hey are you alright?"
The Obelisk Blue trembles as he whispers. "I-it was the Duel Giant."
Mindy and Jasmine gasp, turning to each other.
Duel Giant?
Syrus hums as he wanders the halls. He likes Duel Academy on Saturdays. No classes, plenty of chances to Duel and it gives him a chance to just relax, mostly.
"Hey Sy, what's up?"
Syrus jumps and turns around to see- "Oh."
It's just Yuuna and Chumley.
Angry golden eyes, lightning striking all around them and behind her, Jinzo's laughter.
Syrus groans and shakes himself off. No. H-he's still imagining things.
"Sy, are you okay?"
Syrus yelps and stands at attention. "Yep! Perfectly fine, thanks!"
Yuuna blinks at him, having kneeled in front of him. "You sure? You've been looking pale lately and you're jumpier than usual. Have you been sleeping enough?"
Syrus laughs nervously, hiding his fear, trying to drown out the nightmares. "I'm great Yuuna! Really."
Yuuna stares at him for a bit, her brown eyes getting a little intense. Like her golden eyes.
Syrus starts to sweat.
"Okay then." Yuuna stands up, smiling at him. "You know you can always talk to me about anything, right?"
She'd probably say he was crazy if he said he was having nightmares.
"Right." Syrus nods.
Chumley yawns. "Great, can we get to the vending machines now, please?"
That's actually a good idea, he could use a snack.
Then he realises something.
"Hey, where's Blair?" Syrus looks around.
It's really rare to see Yuuna without Blair and vice versa.
"Oh!" Yuuna smiles. "She made some friends in Ra Yellow and wanted us to come see them in a match."
Syrus nods, makes sense. Blair is the smartest Slifer Red so it makes sense she'd be friends with the Ras, it's a wonder she isn't in Ra Yellow honestly. She's pretty awesome.
"Let's go find the vending machines and find her after then." Chumley suggests.
Syrus smiles. "Yeah, let's. We can bring her some lemonade."
Yuuna cheers. "Great idea, let's go boys!"
She starts running and Chumley chases after her complaining about them always running. Syrus watches them go, his heart in his throat.
Cruel molten gold eyes, a wicked cackle, an evil smile-
Syrus groans, shakes his head and starts running. "Wait up!"
Once they arrive at the vending machines, Syrus notices three Obelisk Blues talking about something amongst themselves, sipping cans.
"I heard he picked off another one last night."
"Me too. They say he's huge and he can't be beat!"
"I heard that-"
"Hey, what's up?" Yuuna calls.
The three Obelisk Blues turn to them, scowl and then march off.
"Gee, is my breath really that bad?" Yuuna calls.
"I don't think so, Yuuna, they're just assholes."
The three Slifers turn around to see Mindy and Jasmine walking behind them, Mindy with her arms around one of Jasmine's.
"Oh, hey you two." Yuuna smiles. "How's the happy couple doing today?"
"We're good." Mindy giggles.
Jasmine smiles at her. "Yeah. So, what are you guys up to?"
"Just getting some food before joining Blair in the Ra Yellow Arena." Syrus hums, turning to the machine to look at the snacks. "Though I wonder what those lousy Obelisks were talking about."
He hates it when they whisper behind their backs and just strut off.
Now, what candy bar should he get?
"Duh Sy, they were talking about the Duel Giant." Chumley presses a button on the drink's machine.
Yuuna blinks, arms folded, leaning on the drinks machine. "Duel Giant?"
"Yeah, some giant has been challenging all the Obelisk Blues to Duels and winning. But the scary thing is, he only comes out at night." Chumley bends down to grab his drink.
"Wait, I have heard of this!" Syrus realises as he picks his snack. "He takes their cards too."
Mindy and Jasmine gasp. "We saw it last night!"
Yuuna turns to them. "What do you mean?"
"We were in the woods last night when we heard someone scream." Mindy hugs Jasmine's arm closer.
Jasmine nods. "When we got there, we found an Obelisk Blue on the ground, pretty upset because he was forced to Duel with an Ante and lost."
Syrus blinks as he grabs his snack. "Wait, isn't it illegal to Duel with an Ante?"
Yunna's eyes widen. "It is?"
"Yeah, that's why he Duels in disguise." Chumley walks over to the snacks machine and Syrus goes to the drinks. "He wears the blazers of all the Obelisk Blues he's beaten."
"It's creepy." Jasmine shudders.
Mindy nods. "I hope someone catches him soon."
"I agree." Syrus picks his drink and a lemonade. "I wouldn't want the Duel Giant to get me or my Roids."
That would be the worst. He can't see or hear his cards like Yuuna and Chumley can, but he still cares about them.
"Singora Yuki~"
The five of them turn around to see a most disturbing sight: Dr. Crowler running towards them with a happy grin.
It can only mean one thing.
"He's being nice, something's wrong." Syrus whimpers.
Yuuna ignores him. "Oh, hey Crowler, what's up?"
Dr. Crowler's eye twitches as he comes to a stop right in front of their little group. "It's Doctor, Signora Yuki. Anyway!" He waves his hands and smiles, clasping them together. "How would you like to have no homework for the rest of the year? Huh?"
Chumley and Syrus gape at him.
No homework?! It's a trap!
"You're joking, right?" Yuuna raises an eyebrow at him.
"Not at all! You, Syrus and Blair won't have any homework for the rest of the year. That is, if you help me of course." Dr. Crowler holds up a finger. "So what do you say?"
Yuuna grins. "I'll d-"
Jasmine puts her hand over Yuuna's mouth. "What do you want her to do, Dr. Crowler?"
"Yeah, is it something we can help with?" Mindy smiles, fluttering her eyelashes.
"Nothing really, girls." Dr. Crowler giggles maliciously. "You see, I just need Signora Yuki to go on a little field trip."
Yuuna's eyes widen and she pushes Jasmine's hand down. "A field trip? Where to?"
"All around campus!" Dr. Crowler bends down so he's in Yuuna's face. "You see, I need you to Duel and I.D the fellow who's been having these illegal matches. Ya know, the one they call the Duel Giant, I believe."
Yuuna hums, leaning up to match Dr. Crowler's level. "Oh, you mean the guy who's kicking your dorm's butt?"
Dr. Crowler reels back. "I-" He starts coughing into his hand. "I don't keep track of such things." He huffs and walks away. "Good luck, Signora Yuki!"
There's a beat of silence.
"You know it's a trap, right Yuuna?" Jasmine turns to her.
Yuuna laughs. "Of course I do, I'm not that stupid. But how can I turn down no homework, a field trip and a Duel?!"
Mindy raises an eyebrow at her. "Uhh, by saying 'no'."
"Do you know how to say no?" Jasmine raises an eyebrow at her.
"Yes!" Yuuna winks.
Syrus sighs. "Now you know my pain, girls."
This is going to be a mess.
"Let's get our snacks, meet Blair in the Ra Yellow Arena and then hunt for the Duel Giant!" Yuuna cheers, pumping a fist.
The rest of them sigh and shake their heads fondly. That's their Yuuna.
Blair beams. "You made it! I was getting worried."
She's sitting in the stands in the Ra Yellow Arena next to Bastion, with Yuuna, Syrus, Chumley, Jasmine and Mindy coming down the steps. Brier is on the stage, Duelling one of the bullies and doing his best to stand up for himself and Blair couldn't be more proud of him.
"You think I'd ever miss a Duel?" Yuuna scoffs, taking the seat next to her. "Who do you think I am?"
"This is Yuuna we're talking about here." Mindy giggles. "You're Duel crazy, even for Duel Academy."
"Oh haha." Yuuna rolls her eyes, peeling open a candy bar.
"So who's Duelling?" Syrus takes the seat above Blair. "Oh and I got you some lemonade."
"Thanks Sy." Blair accepts the drink. "The Ra Yellow Duelist is my friend Brier! He's a first year like us and he's super great at Duelling." Blair grins, sets her drink down and turns to the stage, cupping her hands. "You can do this Brier, kick his sorry butt!"
Brier jumps, but nods. "R-right!"
Bastion nods. "It's been an interesting match. It's hard to tell who's going to win, they've been evenly matched all Duel."
Chumley blinks. "Whoa, for real? He must be really awesome then."
"I can't wait to see him win!" Yuuna cheers.
Blair smiles.
But Brier loses.
"Oh man." Syrus sighs.
"And he was so close, too." Yuuna slumps.
Bastion shakes his head. "A classic case of stage fright. He has tremendous skill, but he can't handle the pressure of Duelling in public."
Blair frowns and nods. "It's true. Whenever we Duel just the two of us and the mats, he's great. But he always stumbles on the Arena."
She wishes she could help him get over that. It makes her feel sick watching her friend kneel there on the ground.
"I didn't think it was possible-" The Obelisk Blue shouts. "But on his knees, he's even smaller than he was before!"
Blair growls as the Obelisk Blues start laughing and calling insults.
She's going to beat their asses.
Blair stands up, going to jump over the seats-
"If you fight them, you'll get in trouble." Yuuna says, holding her arm. "You can Duel them later."
Blair groans. "But it's so frustrating watching them do this!"
She can't stand it!
"Dra-dra!"
Huh?
Blair looks around and then blinks.
She blinks again.
Blue eyes blink right back at her.
"What the Hell?!" Blair gasps and falls back into her seat, staring up at the open air.
"Blair, what's wrong?" Yuuna rushes into her line of sight.
Blair shakes herself off and stands up. "I, I'm fine, I just thought I saw something."
She looks, but what she saw isn't there anymore. But…
Blair narrows her eyes, rubbing them.
Did she see Baby Dragon?
Blair shakes her head.
God, her imagination has been crazy ever since the Abandoned Dorm, she sees monsters everywhere. Well, this is the first time she's seen Baby Dragon but it's not the first time she's been hearing things. Ugh, maybe she should speak to Miss Fontaine.
"So long as you're okay." Yuuna smiles, then stands up straight.
Blair stands up and shakes herself off. "Yeah."
"So other than checking in on Duels, what's the crew up to these days?" Bastion hums, turning to them.
"Oh, funny story actually." Mindy giggles.
"We're looking for a giant!" Syrus exclaims.
Bastion turns to him, blinking. "A giant?"
Jasmine nods. "Crowler asked Yuuna to find out who the Duel Giant is."
Blair blinks, tilting her head. "Wait, the Duel Giant? The one who's been using the Ante rule?"
"I've heard about this titan." Bastion frowns, looking towards them.
Yuuna's eyes widen with joy. "The one? Is there more than one?"
Syrus whimpers. "Please say no."
Chumley groans.
Blair giggles. God she loves her friends.
"Speaking of giants, check that out." Yuuna points.
Jasmine, Mindy, Chumley, Syrus, Blair and Bastion all look in the direction she's pointing and they see Brier walking over to Beauregard.
"Seriously?" Chumley murmurs.
"Look at the size of that guy." Syrus gasps.
"Who, Beauregard?" Blair tilts her head.
Yuuna can't actually be serious, can she?
"Please, he's no Duel Giant." Bastion snorts, rolling his eyes.
Jasmine tilts her head. "What are you talking about, he's so tall!"
"And wide." Mindy nods. "If anyone's the Duel Giant, I'd bet it's him."
Bastion laughs, which Blair thinks is a little mean, but a fair response.
"What's so funny?" Yuuna looks between Bastion and Blair.
Blair sighs. "Beauregard can't Duel to save his life, even though I've tried to teach him"
"He's at the academy to design games, not play them." Bastion smiles. "He can hardly Duel."
Syrus slumps. "Game design, huh? Oh well."
Yuuna still looks suspicious though, which is making Blair feel suspicious.
"Since when did you do things for Crowler anyway?" Blair stands up, drink still in hand.
Yuuna giggles. "When he promised not to give us any homework while we're hunting the Duel Giant down. Us being you, me and Syrus."
Blair blinks.
Huh.
It's definitely a trap and Yuuna couldn't care less.
"Now come on!" Yuuna stands up, grinning. "I wanna Duel someone, that match got me so pumped up!"
Blair chuckles and looks away. Some things never change.
Bastion chuckles as the small group exits the arena. Jasmine is hanging off of Mindy's arm this time, smiling at her for her win while Yuuna is laughing off her loss. Syrus and Blair are running play by plays of it back and forth to each other, while Chumley complains about being hungry so they all start heading towards the Slifer Red Drom.
When Bastion made his application to Duel Academy, he never imagined this. He imagined he'd make a few decent male friends through being a tutor to his other classmates in his dorm, excel at his studies and win most of his Duels, taking his few losses gracefully.
Instead, he has a true friend in Slifer Red, is good friends with three more Slifer Reds and two Obelisk Blue Girls.
"Oh man, I can't wait to eat some of Banner's fried shrimp!" Yuuna moans, rubbing her stomach.
Bastion smiles, remembering how she scarfed down the lobster in his dorm.
But he narrows his eyes, remembering the place on his wall dedicated to the "war" between Alexis Rhodes and Yuuna Yuki. He tried doing background checks on them both, a simple googling, which hadn't told him much.
Yuuna didn't have any kind of social media under her name and he'd never heard or seen her using anything other than her PDA. Alexis was also suspiciously void of a presence on social media, but he wasn't close enough to her to know if she had any under a fake name. He couldn't find either of their parents' names from his searching, either and he'd rather not investigate their student profiles because he already feels bad about doing that to Alexis.
The only thing to do now is ask.
Bastion hums.
He's at the advantage of being good friends with Jasmine and Mindy, who are friends with both Alexis and Yuuna. They're likely to know the most about the situation between them, besides the two girls themselves. Then again, they were both quite shocked when Yuuna declared in front of them that Alexis hated her, so he wouldn't bet on finding good information about the situation from the two of them.
He will ask them, but later.
Everyone has walked into the Slifer Red Dorm, with Yuuna bringing up the rear.
"Yuuna." Bastion calls, putting a hand on her shoulder.
Yuuna turns to him, blinking. "Bastion?"
"Mind if we could have a private word?" Bastion glances around the dorm building.
"Oh!" Yuuna nods, smiling. "Yeah sure!" She ducks her head into the cafeteria. "Save me some fried shrimp, Bastion wants to talk to me!"
"Will do, Yuuna!" Blair calls.
With that, the two of them walk around the other side of the building. There's no windows or doors in sight, so they're unlikely to be eavesdropped or spotted unless someone hides around the other side of the building. Perfect.
"So, what did you want to talk about, Bastion?" Yuuna leans against the wall, resting her shoulder on it with her arms folded.
Bastion nods and decides it's best to bite the bullet, neither of them can do subtlety. "If it's alright, I was hoping I could ask you some questions about your relationship with Alexis Rhodes."
Immediately he sees Yuuna's friendliness shut down.
She stiffens up, bunching up her shoulders, the smile slipping away to shock, straightening up. It appears she never expected Bastion to ask something like that. This also supports his hypothesis that Yuuna doesn't have positive feelings towards Alexis Rhodes at all.
"Why do you wanna know?" Yuuna gulps and puts her hands behind her back.
She's nervous and Bastion doesn't have a good excuse. He's already put her on high alert though, so no point in attempting to lie here either.
"I was wondering if there was a reason for her to act so unkindly towards you, when I've seen the both of you together getting along just fine." Bastion keeps his posture relaxed, he doesn't want to put Yuuna on edge anymore.
He won't tell her about Alexis' comment about 'war' unless Yuuna brings it up.
"Oh, that girl day at the mall." Yuuna looks at her feet, quiet for a while.
Bastion narrows his eyes. Had that been the start of their troubles? Did their animosity arise from something that happened that day? He'll need to ask Jasmine and Mindy about this, he knows he saw them with Alexis and Yuuna at the mall for a while during their first week at school. That is most likely the girl day Yuuna is referring to.
"So, may I ask my questions?" Bastion takes a small step towards her.
Yuuna looks at her feet then lifts her head. "Sure. But I'm not sure how honest I can be with some of my answers. It's sorta personal."
Personal. That already tells him a lot. Yuuna is the kind of person to wear her heart on her sleeve, so if she's not sure if she can be completely honest with him about this, then it's hurting her deeply.
"Of course." Bastion nods. "I'd rather have no answers than dishonest ones though, so just tell me if you don't want to or can't explain it."
Yuuna smiles sadly. "Thanks."
She takes a deep breath, as if readying herself for something difficult. So now it's up to Bastion to ask.
"How long have the two of you known each other?" Bastion prompts.
If he can get a timeline of their relationship, he can have an idea of when it went wrong.
"Well…" Yuuna rubs her arm and looks at her feet, then at him. "I only met her on our first day on the island. Chazz was being Chazz, Mindy lost a card to him and I gave it back to her. Alexis showed up before I could Duel Chazz, said the welcome dinners were happening soon and that she wanted to Duel me at some point. She wasn't friendly."
Bastion narrows his eyes.
Her reactions tell him she's likely hiding part of it. He'll need to collaborate with several different sources to make sure what Yuuna has told him is true. He believes her when she says that they first met at Duel Academy, but her reaction suggests there's more history there than she's admitting.
"And when did you start getting the feeling Alexis hated you?" Bastion tilts his head.
Yuuna stiffens and puts her hands behind her back again. "Uhh… maybe after the Abandoned Dorm?"
That's come up again. They were both at the Abandoned Dorm the night before Yuuna and Blair were under campus arrest by the D.A.S. Perhaps he will have to investigate the location himself. Carefully of course.
"What happened there?" Bastion needs to know.
Yuuna shakes her head. "I'm sorry, but I think that's a little too personal. I mean, me, Blair, Sy and Chumley were just going there to be stupid, but I don't think Alexis would want me to say why she was there."
So the Abandoned Dorm is personal to Alexis, not to Yuuna. Or at least, the reason why Alexis was there is.
"That's fine Yuuna. I said you could tell me what you were comfortable sharing." Bastion waves his hand.
She's probably telling him more than she means to by saying what things she can't talk about. There's also always the chance he can ask the others, who might not be as reserved about sharing what happened as Yuuna is. He's collecting his next questions and potential witnesses quickly.
Yuuna smiles in relief. "Thanks Bastion."
Bastion smiles back.
"In that case, I have only one question left." Bastion lifts his head a little. "Do you think it's possible to mend what made her hate you in the first place?"
Yuuna stares at him, but Bastion stands tall under the scrutiny.
He can understand if people can't reconcile after they've hurt each other, or even if only one person has hurt someone else. But from what he knows of Yuuna Yuki, as a person, she hasn't shown him one trait worthy of the kind of coldness she's received from Alexis Rhodes to the point of suggesting that they're going to go to war.
If he had to fight for Yuuna he would, but he can tell that she wouldn't want to fight anyone at all. So if he can stop the war before it happens, he will.
"I don't know." Yuuna stares at her feet. "The wounds run deep and I don't know how she's going to feel about me even if I could fix everything wrong in her life and between us."
So there's likely another source of conflict between Yuuna and Alexis than a simple argument or personal problem. It may lie with Alexis' life or past. But he can tell that Yuuna wants to mend things, because she wouldn't discuss 'fixing' something if she wasn't willing to.
"I see." Bastion nods. "Thank you, Yuuna, that's everything I wanted to ask."
There's actually much more he wants to ask, but he has the feeling Yuuna is at her limit with his questions and he has other witnesses to gather evidence from.
Yuuna smiles and then her stomach grumbles.
She flushes and giggles nervously. "Do you want to get something to eat now?"
Bastion smiles and gently pats her shoulder. "I'd be delighted to, let's go."
With that, the two of them walk back into the Slifer Red Drom, where the rest of their friends are eating around the same table.
Bastion hopes his investigation into the problems between Alexis Rhodes and Yuuna Yuki won't hurt her. He doesn't want to lose one of the few friends he's ever made that didn't just hang out with him because he was smart. Yuuna seems to care about him as a person and a Duelist before the fact that he could help her academically or even socially advance.
Yuuna Yuki is a rare soul and Bastion would be damned if he didn't help her.
Jasmine shivers a little from the cold. She wishes the female uniforms had jackets or at least sleeves.
It's almost midnight by the Duel Academy front entrance. She and Mindy are huddling behind one of the statues, while Yuuna, Syrus and Blair huddle under another. The five of them are waiting for the Duel Giant to show up, but nothing's happened yet.
"Do you really think the giant will show up?" Syrus stage whispers.
Yuuna is peaking over the statue, not bothering to whisper. "Not if we keep blabbing."
Mindy giggles and rolls her eyes, leaning against Jasmine.
Jasmine's heart starts pounding and she doesn't feel cold anymore.
"This is fun, even with the crowd." Mindy murmurs in her ears.
Jasmine nods. It feels like such a peaceful night. It's hard to imagine the Duel Giant could strike at any m-
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The five of them gasp, springing to their feet.
"It's the giant!" Yuuna charges towards the forest.
"Wait up Yuuna!" Blair calls, chasing right after her.
With that, the rest of them charge after the two Slifer Red Girls, running as fast as they can through the dark woods.
It doesn't take them long to find the Duel Giant's victim, an Obelisk Blue on his knees. Yuuna takes only a second talking to him before sprinting off in the direction the boy pointed, so that leaves the rest of them chasing after her.
"Hey!" Mindy calls, glancing over her shoulder. "Isn't that one of the bullies from that Duel in the Ra Yellow Arena?"
Jasmine glances at the boy's face and realises her girlfriend is right. But how is it connected-
"Hold it!"
The five of them all come to a stop, as Yuuna stands tall, calling out to the man.
"Caught ya, big guy!" Yuuna shouts, pointing at him. "Not so quick on your feet, huh?"
Jasmine narrows her eyes and steps forward, putting an arm protectively in front of Mindy. "I don't think he needs to be Yuuna."
The Duel Giant is huge. He's a tall, wide figure, with shoes at least twice her size, big baggy trousers and at least 10 Obelisk Blue vests on, the arms poking in every single direction and the collars wrapped tightly around his face, perfectly hiding any potential identifying features. He turns around, revealing dark ski mask goggles.
Syrus whimpers. "Yeah, I'm with Jasmine, who in their right mind chases a giant?"
Yuuna grins, taking a step forward. "The same person who's going to Duel hi-"
"Actually." Jasmine walks up first, stepping in front of Yuuna. "I'm going to be your opponent, Duel Giant!"
The Duel Giant grumbles.
Mindy gasps. "Jasmine, why?"
"Yeah, I mean, Crowler asked me to handle the Duel Giant." Yuuna tilts her head.
Jasmine glances over her shoulder at the two of them.
Then she turns to her opponent. "Because you're my friend Yuuna and I'm pretty sure Dr. Crowler only asked you to do this because he wanted to expel you for Duelling with the Ante rule. He's much less likely to expel one of his precious Obelisks than you."
"Well, that is true." Blair shrugs.
"Besides." Jasmine continues and points at the Duel Giant. "If you have a problem with Obelisks, you have a problem with me and my girlfriend and there is no way in sweet Hell I'm letting anything happen to Mindy, you got it!" She puts her hand over her heart. "I'll protect her with everything it takes!"
Mindy lets out a gentle swoon. "Jasmine…"
"Whoa, easy there!" Yuuna calls, catching her.
Jasmine flushes, then shakes herself off, grabbing her Deck. "And because I know you only Duel with the Ante rule, here's the card I'm putting up!"
Masked HERO Koga.
"So be it, Duelist." The Duel Giant grumbles.
"DUEL!"
DUEL GIANT: 4000
JASMINE MAKURADA: 4000
"I draw!" The Duel Giant shouts. "I play a facedown card and next, I summon Giant Orc in ATK mode!"
An ugly orc with pale green skin and a giant bone for a club appears on the field with 2200 ATK to it's name.
Syrus gulps. "Oh jeez, that's a lot of power for a Level 4 monster."
"Yeah, but if the Duel Giant attacks with it, he'll be forced to switch Giant Orc to DEF mode and he won't be able to switch back until the Duel Giant's next turn after Giant Orc attacked." Blair explains, smirking. "And with 0 DEF points, it'll be lucky if it survives that long."
Yuuna laughs and pets her head. "Being a smarty pants, as always, spitfire."
"I think it's cute." Mindy giggles, then shouts. "Go get him, Jasmine!"
"With pleasure!" Jasmine draws.
She looks over her hand and grins. This'll be over in a flash!
"I summon Elemental HERO Voltic in ATK mode!" Jasmine calls.
Voltic takes to the field in a shower of sparks, his purple and gold armour glinting with his 1000 ATK points.
"And now I'll play Mask Change to trade in my Voltic-" Jasmine holds the spell up high and pulls her monster from her Extra Deck. "For Masked HERO Koga!"
Koga takes to the field in a shower of golden light, his bright golden armour sparkling in the night, showing off his 2500 ATK points.
Mindy gasps. "That's the best card in Jasmine's Deck!"
Jasmine feels her chest buff up with pride and she smirks. "Koga has a special ability you're going to find tricky, Mr. Duel Giant. For every monster on your side of the field, Koga gains 500 ATK points."
Koga gives a shout as he starts to glow even more, his ATK points rising to 3000.
"Koga, why don't you put those points to good use?" Jasmine punches the air in front of her. "Destroy that Giant Orc!"
Koga dashes across the field, wielding his bladed gauntlets over his chest and then slashing at Giant Orc in an 'X' shape, destroying the monster on impact.
DUEL GIANT: 3200
JASMINE MAKURADA: 4000
Koga takes his place at Jasmine's side, his points dropping back to 2500.
Jasmine grins and puts her hand on her hip. "I think that's enough punishment for now. Your move, big guy."
Yuuna whistles. "Damn, Jasmine is not wasting any time on this match."
Mindy hums. "You can say that again. Oh God, my heart is pounding."
Jasmine grins and looks over her shoulder to wink at her girlfriend.
Mindy shudders and falls towards Yuuna, who scrambles to catch her before she hits the ground, scowling at her. "Jasmine, can you stop giving your girlfriend heart attacks?! I won't always catch her, ya know!"
Syrus sighs. "Man, I wish I could have a girl faint in my arms."
Blair makes a gagging noise.
Jasmine laughs and turns back to the Duel. She refuses to stop teasing her girlfriend, it's way too fun.
"I'll make sure my turn is one to remember, Obelisk!" The Duel Giant draws. "I summon Goblin Calligrapher!"
A tiny purple goblin with a horn and pen appears on the field, scowling with his 400 ATK points.
Koga tilts his head at it, points rising to 3000.
"Why bring out something like that?" Jasmine tilts her head.
She's seen pathetic monsters, but that's just sad.
"Next, I equip Goblin Calligrapher with Moon Mirror Shield!" The Duel Giant shouts.
A mirror appears in Goblin Calligrapher's hand, big and shiny and yellow.
Blair gasps. "No way."
"Okay, what's it do?" Syrus whimpers.
Mindy gasps. "It raises the ATK points of the monster it's equipped to until they're 100 points stronger than the strongest monster on the field!"
Goblin Calligrapher screams as he grows in size, the shield growing with him until he's about the same height as Koga with 3100 ATK points.
"And I activate my facedown card!" The Duel Giant's cards pop up. "Robbin' Goblin! When I do damage, you gotta discard a random card from your hand!"
Jasmine winces, looking at her hand of only four cards. He's planning on depleting her resources.
"Goblin Calligrapher, attack Koga!" The Duel Giant punches the air in front of him.
Goblin Calligrapher laughs and throws the Moon Mirror Shield like it's a frisbee, slamming into Koga who disintegrates on contact.
DUEL GIANT: 3200
JASMINE MAKURADA: 3900
"Jasmine!" Mindy calls.
Jasmine looks over her shoulder. "I'll be fine, Minnie, trust me!"
Mindy pouts but nods.
Jasmine turns back to the Duel Giant, scowling.
"Now you gotta discard." The Duel Giant reminds her.
"I heard ya, big guy." Jasmine looks at her hand and makes her pick. "And because I'm sending Elemental HERO Shadow Mist to the Graveyard, I can take out my Deck and add any HERO Monster in it to my hand."
She takes out her Deck and makes her pick.
"I end my turn." The Duel Giant grumbles.
Goblin Calligrapher returns to his 400 ATK points and previous size.
"I draw then!" Jasmine does just that.
She looks over her hand, nods, then looks at the field. She's not going to let that Moon Mirror Shield get in her way.
"I summon Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier!" Jasmine calls out.
Her soldier in a dark blue body suit with light blue armor and a visor takes to the field with his 1400 ATK points.
"And whenever I normal summon him, I get to look in my Graveyard and bring a Level 4 Elemental HERO back to the field!" Jasmine pulls out her Graveyard slot. "So get back in there, Shadow Mist!"
Shadow Mist rises to the field, flipping her dark blue hair, black armour blending in with the night and her 1500 ATK points more than ready to rock.
"And because I special summoned Shadow Mist, I get to add a Change spell card to my hand from my Deck." Jasmine pulls out her Deck again, smirking. "Like my second Mask Change spell card, that I'll use on Liquid Soldier to summon-"
Liquid Solider glows and grows, until he's replaced by a scuba diver with dark red chest plate armor, a water gun, mostly dark blue armour and 2600 ATK points.
"Masked HERO Acid!" Jasmine smirks. "By the way, when he's summoned, he destroys all Spell and Trap cards you have and your monsters lose 300 ATK points for each one!"
The Duel Giant reels back. "What?!"
Yuuna grins. "Sweetness, now she doesn't have to worry about Robbin' Goblin and that Moon Mirror Shield!"
"Show her exactly how it works, Acid!" Jasmine orders.
Acid raises his gun and fires quickly at the field, destroying the cards and leaving Goblin Calligrapher screaming and running around the field with spare acid on it, it's ATK points dropping to 0.
"Now attack!" Jasmine orders. "Take out that Goblin Calligrapher!"
Acid fires off his gun again and this time when his acid hits Goblin Calligrapher, he's destroyed, the resulting explosion kicking up a massive dust cloud and wind.
DUEL GIANT: 600
JASMINE MAKURADA: 3900
"And that's my turn." Jasmine folds her arms.
The wind is enough to dislodge the jackets on the Duel Giant, finally revealing his identity.
Blair gasps. "Beauregard?!"
"No way!" Syrus gasps.
Yuuna smirks. "Knew it."
"How?!" Jasmine gasps.
Mindy shakes her head. "Didn't Bastion say he couldn't Duel?"
"He can't. But someone else can and I know only one person who has Moon Mirror Shield in his Deck." Blair's voice is steady but upset, like she's delivering bad news.
Jasmine turns to her. What?
Beauregard whimpers and tilts his head, muttering and… is he wearing a headset? "What should I do?"
"You can stop hiding for one thing." Yuuna taunts. "How about the real Duel Giant come out here?"
Syrus, Mindy and Jasmine turn to her. "Real Duel Giant?"
Beauregard looks over his shoulder, at a rock formation. And over it jumps Brier, wearing a headset as well.
"So it was him?" Mindy tilts her head.
Syrus lowers his hands. "But why?"
"I'd like to know that too." Jasmine puts her hand on her hip.
Brier ignores the three of them, instead looking at Yuuna and Blair. "How'd you know?"
Blair smiles sadly. "The first Duel we had where you beat me, you used Moon Mirror Shield to do it. It's hard to forget a card like that."
"And at the Ra Yellow Arena, Bastion and Blair told me that you were an amazing Duelist, but you had stage fright issues." Yuuna smiles. "Two misfit kids with understandable grudges against the Blue Bullies, a Giant who Duels in disguise and at a time when no one can see him. It was easy to put together after that."
Jasmine, Mindy and Syrus all stare at Yuuna.
Blair shakes her head. "Honestly, I should have worked it out sooner. I'm supposed to be the smart one."
"Relax spitfire, we all have our moments." Yuuna pets her head, gently ruffling her hair.
Jasmine looks at the two Ra Yellows, who look ready to run and would do anything to protect each other.
"Alright." Syrus holds his hands up like a peace keeper. "Well it's over now. Just give back the cards an-"
"What do you mean over?!" Brier screams. "Nothing's over!"
Everyone takes an involuntary stepback, except Blair and Beauregard.
Brier scowls, rubbing his wrist. "I won't just go home and be Little Brier again. All those stupid Obelisks make fun of me, calling me every version of the world 'small' in existence. I'm tired of always being laughed at, Blair you get it, don't you?"
Jasmine turns to look at Blair.
Who nods, stepping forward. "I do, Brier. I know what it's like to be bullied and hit when you're already down." She raises her head. "Believe me, if I knew you were trashing Obelisks at night, I probably would have joined in."
Syrus whimpers. "Uhh, Blair?"
"Right. Before we knew you, Beauregard and I made a promise." Brier puts his hand on Beauregard's shoulder. "We'd get back at all the people who hurt us, hitting them where it hurts the most!"
"By taking away their cards, right?" Blair nods.
"Yeah." Brier nods. "That's why we used to use a costume, so we couldn't be expelled for using the Ante Rule."
"That's smart." Blair nods, closing her eyes. "You're amazing in a Duel and in school."
The tension is so thick in the forest, you could cut it like a knife.
"But." Blair opens her eyes, glaring at them. "Cards are family to a lot of Duelists, Brier, whether you're a Slifer Red, a Ra Yellow or an Obelisk Blue. So I can't condone what you've done."
Jasmine winces. Ouch.
Brier scowls and scoffs, smirking darkly. "I figured you'd say something like that. You always were more positive than me or Beauregard. I admire that about you Blair."
Blair narrows her eyes, standing her ground.
"But I refuse to go back to how I was before!" Brier holds up a fist. "I won't be a little pipsqueak they can pick on anymore and if I have to take their cards to do it, then fine!"
"Yeah, but how much longer can you keep this up?" Yuuna calls. "Your secret's out and soon enough, everyone will know who you both are, including Dr. Crowler."
Brier scowls. "Is that a threat?"
Beauregard also scowls and moves in front of Brier.
"How could I blackmail you when we aren't even Duelling?" Yuuna shrugs, then winks at Jasmine. "I mean, you're Duelling Jasmine out in the open, man, not me."
Jasmine's eyes widen. Out in the open? Brier has stage fright…
Of course!
"I could be persuaded to keep my mouth shut about who you two are if you can beat me." Jasmine smirks, holding her Duel Disk up.
Brier glares at her. "Well I guess we don't have any choice."
Blair blinks, then smiles.
"Let's do this Beauregard!" Brier turns to him.
Beauregard nods. "Yeah!"
Jasmine raises her Duel Disk.
"Be careful Jaz!" Mindy calls.
Syrus nods.
"Draw, Beauregard!" Brier orders.
Beauregard does just that and Brier leans over him, looking at his hand.
"I summon Goblin King in ATK mode!" Brier shouts.
Beauregard plays the card on the empty field and a tiny green goblin appears in a long red robe and 0 ATK points.
"Why summon something with 0 ATK points?" Mindy calls.
Yuuna groans. "Has no one learned nothing from watching me Duel with Yubel?!"
"Next I'll activate the Special Abilities of the Half Goblins in my hand!" Brier continues. "By sending a Warrior type Monster to the Graveyard for both of them, I get to special summon them in DEF mode!"
Two short Goblin Warriors take to the field with only 500 DEF to their name.
"Finally, I'll play Monster Reborn to bring back my Giant Orc in ATK mode!" Brier shouts.
Giant Orc returns to the field with all his menacing 2200 ATK points.
Blair gasps, then smiles. "I know what he's doing!"
"Now I can activate my Goblin King's special ability!" Brier swings his arm back, Beauregard copying him. "He gains 1000 ATK and DEF points for every Fiend monster on the field besides himself!"
Jasmine gasps. "No way!"
The little Goblin King triples in size, along with his ATK points, rising to 3000 high.
"So not good." Syrus whimpers.
"Jasmine!" Mindy shouts.
"Goblin King, attack Masked HERO Acid!" Brier holds his hand up and then points it at her monster. "Go!"
The enormous Goblin King charges the field and punches Acid hard, destroying him easily.
DUEL GIANT: 600
JASMINE MAKURADA: 3500
"Giant Orc, attack Shadow Mist!" Brier punches the air in front of him.
The Giant Orc does just that, swinging his bone down hard on her female HERO, creating another explosion.
DUEL GIANT: 600
JASMINE MAKURADA: 2300
"Remember, when Shadow Mist goes to the Graveyard, I can add a HERO monster from my Deck to my hand!" Jasmine pulls out her Deck, looking for what she can get. "And your Giant Orc goes into DEF mode after his attack!"
"Not today!" Brier smirks. "Because I'm going to use my Second Goblin!"
Beauregard plays the monster as a spell card and a short purple goblin appears.
"Wait, how is that possible?" Syrus gasps.
Blair grins. "It's because Second Goblin is a Union monster. He can be treated as an Equip Spell for Giant Orc and once per turn, he can change the battle mode of one monster. So when Giant Orc goes into DEF..."
Giant Orc takes a knee.
"Second Goblin switches him back to ATK mode." Blair finishes.
Second Goblin hits Giant Orc with a towel and he returns to his 2200 ATK points.
"That's the end of my turn, but in the next one I'll end you!" Brier shouts. "Soon that Koga of yours is going to be all mine!"
Jasmine scowls. "I don't think so, kiddo! I'm not going to hold back, just because you're short!"
She's not losing Koga to this guy!
Brier scowls at her.
"My draw!" Jasmine does just that.
She looks at her hand and with that, it's game over.
"I'm gonna summon my Elemental HERO Lady Heat, in ATK Mode!" Jasmine calls out.
Her female HERO takes to the field in her red and white outfit, her fiery orange hair lit with her 1300 ATK points.
"And now I'm going to play Mask Change II!" Jasmine holds up her spell, smirking. "Here's how it works! I discard a card-"
She puts her Elemental HERO Heat in the Graveyard.
"Then I get to trade in my Lady Heat for a Masked HERO with a higher level!" Jasmine punches the air. "Lady Heat, time to tag in-"
Lady Heat begins to glow brightly, spinning around.
"Masked HERO Goka!" Jasmine calls out.
Her new Masked HERO takes to the field, dressed in his black, orange and red jumpsuit, with the large red shoulder plates and a Power Rangers mask, his 2200 ATK points more than ready.
Brier narrows his eyes. "That's your big move? A monster as strong as my Giant Orc?"
"Not for long." Jasmine smirks. "Now I'll play Goka's special ability!"
He starts to glow, his points rising.
"For every HERO monster in my Graveyard, he gains 100 ATK points!" Jasmine grins.
"How many monsters does she have in her Graveyard?" Yuuna calls.
Blair starts counting on her fingers. "Voltic and Koga are in there."
"Shadow Mist, Liquid Soldier and Acid too!" Syrus calls.
"And with Lady Heat down there too…" Mindy gasps. "That's 600 more ATK points!"
Goka shouts as his points settle on 2800.
Brier screams. "NO!"
"Goka, attack that Giant Orc and win this thing!" Jasmine orders, throwing her arm out.
Goka does as he's commanded, his fists lighting on fire and then he punches the Giant Orc and Second Goblin in, destroying them on contact.
DUEL GIANT: 0
JASMINE MAKURADA: 2300
WINNER: JASMINE MAKURADA
Beauregard and Brier hit the ground hard in the lightning and smoke.
"She won!" Yuuna laughs, jumping.
"Now Jasmine's the Giant Slayer!" Syrus cheers.
"You did it Jaz!" Mindy calls, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend's shoulders.
Jasmine laughs and turns around, hugging Mindy around her waist. "Hey, it's all in a day's work."
The two smile and press their foreheads together.
"Brier! Beauregard!" Blair rushes across the field.
Mindy and Jasmine pause in their cuddling, turning to face her.
"Are you two okay?" Blair calls to her knees next to them.
Brier gets onto his hands and knees and avoids her eyes. "Blair… I'm sorry. We're through."
"Not we." Beauregard gets up, then turns towards the others. "Please, just turn me in and forget Brier."
Blair blinks at him.
"Beauregard?" Brier turns to him.
"I've always been alone and I'm not going to let them expel you for showing me what it means to have a friend." Beauregard turns to Brier and Blair. "After all, we promised we'd always stand up for each other. You're the best Duelist I've ever seen Brier and I won't let you get kicked out after making your second friend."
Blair blinks, smiling softly. "Oh Beauregard."
Brier's eyes widen. "But what about your dream of being a game designer?"
Beauregard smiles sadly. "Not all dreams come true."
Brier starts to cry. "Beauregard…"
Blair smiles and gently rubs his back.
Jasmine's heart bursts and she walks over to them, Mindy holding her hand. "Hold everything."
The three of them turn to look at her, Yuuna and Syrus having followed them over.
"Who said anything about turning you guys in?" Jasmine smiles, shrugging. "I mean I hate to break up such a sweet friendship over a few lost cards."
"None of us are going to turn you in either." Yuuna falls to a knee, so she's level with both Beauregard and Brier. "We know what it's like to get bullied, I mean, we're Slifer Red. I can't count how many times I've been called a Slifer Slacker or Slifer Slime."
"We can keep a secret!" Syrus smiles, nodding along.
Mindy holds up a finger. "Buuuut, if those Ante cards don't get back to their Duelists, Dr. Crowler might send someone after the Duel Giant again."
Brier blinks, then nods. "Yeah, okay. We'll return them tonight."
Blair smiles and hugs him from behind, making Brier yelp and blush. "I'm so proud of you!" Blair pulls back, turning Brier around to look at her. "You Duelled out in the open after all and you weren't scared!"
Brier blinks at her. "Huh?"
"Your stage fright." Yuuna laughs. "You Duelled as yourself in front of us 5."
Brier's eyes widen. "And I wasn't afraid."
"Yep." Jasmine smiles. "It was a close Duel. If I didn't draw my Mask Change II, I don't think I would have lasted much longer, if at all."
Brier gets to his feet. "You're right. I can't believe it, haha."
He smiles and it's a lot softer and happier than before.
Beauregard and Blair smile as well, getting to their feet.
"Now you two need to scram, before Crowler catches you!" Mindy calls. "Go, go!"
And with that, the two Ra Yellows take off.
"Thanks you guys!" Brier calls over his shoulder. "We'll make good!"
Beauregard follows him. "Blair, let's study again sometime!"
"I can't wait!" Blair calls, cupping her hands.
With that, the two Ra Yellows disappear into the night.
"A job well done, gang." Yuuna smiles, a hand on her hip.
"I agree." Jasmine smiles, then grabs Mindy's hand. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to take my girlfriend on a romantic midnight stroll alone and you three will need to catch up on the homework you missed while giant hunting."
Yuuna, Blair and Syrus gape at them.
Mindy giggles and starts running. "Later!"
Jasmine laughs and runs with her.
This is gonna be a good night.