A Duel of Love

by WolveHulk

What if Mai started to have feelings for Tea during the Dualist Kingdom? See how much their relationship makes them not only stronger, but also better in dual monsters.

5. Aftermath and the Wrath of Rebecca

Aftermath, the Wrath of Rebecca, the Ties of Friendship and lovers' 1st time

As the gang, along with their new additional member ran to find Pegasus, Joey assured his best friend. "Don't worry, Yuge, he couldn't have gotten far."

"We've gotta find him. Pegasus is the only 1 who can restore my grandpa's soul." Yugi said with concern for his grandfather.

But suddenly, Tea and Mai stopped when they saw a tower not far from them, as if it was familiar to both of them. "That tower. I think... I've been there before... with Mai, Tristan and Bakura."

Mai also began to remember, as it was the night she tried to protect Tea from Pegasus. "Me too. I remember there being a secret room that Pegasus uses as some kind of private sanctuary. But we thought it was only some kind of dream."

"Not unless we were all dreaming, because I'm starting to remember it, too." Tristan said as he stood beside the blond and the brunette. "Pegasus fought with Bakura and the evil spirit of the Millennium Ring took over. But how did we forget that?"

"Evil spirit?" Yugi asked.

"Yeah. I bet he cast a spell on you." Joey said with a bit of anger, thinking that that was most likely the reason they forgot all about being in that tower.

"Well we remember now, let's go." Tea said before they all began to run to the tower.

Meanwhile, inside of the tower

Pegasus, who was still exhausted from the Shadow Game he played with Yugi and the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle, stood inside of his tower, regretful that he could not win in order to further his goal of finding a way to bring back his dead wife. He then placed the Soul cards of Kaiba, Mokuba and Yugi's grandfather on his table and looked at them. "It's all over. Everything I've struggled to obtain is now beyond my grasp. Keeping their souls will not serve me now, besides I'm a man of my word. And because of the defeat I suffered at the hands of Yugi and the mysterious Spirit inside his Millennium Puzzle, I am duty bound to fulfill my pledge." He said as his Millennium Eye glowed and the 3 soul cards went blank. "And so, I release these 3 souls." He then looked at the Patriot of his beloved and walked up to it. "Cecelia, I'm sorry but I have failed you. My attempt to take over KaibaCorp, my efforts to get all of the Millennium items was all done for you, in the hopes that I could restore you, body and soul."

That was when a familiar evil voice spoke out. "How sweet."

Pegasus turned around and saw someone else in the room at his table. "Who's there?" He asked before seeing who it was. "Bakura. I remember now, you're the 1 who possesses the Millennium Ring."

"Yes. And I intend to have all the items. Care to wager yours on a Shadow game? I'll give you a 2nd chance at a Millennium item. What you couldn't win from Yugi, perhaps you can win from me." The evil Spirit said with a chuckle as he held up Pegasus' deck and began to shuffle it. "Who knows, if you defeat me, your deepest desire may not be out of your grasp after all." He said before placing 5 cards face down on the table. "Your Millennium Eye allows you to read people's minds, Pegasus. But mine allows me to see into their souls. I only have to look into your deck and it will reveal your true nature." He said before flipping over a card. "Ah, the Happy Lover card. It shows me that you have experienced the joys of love, but this card is face down, which means your romance ended in tragedy. What a pity. Perhaps your next card should show me more about your present than your past." He said before flipping over the middle card. "Ah, the Mask of Darkness, eh? So your recent actions were just an attempt to mask your true objectives. Objectives that came from deep within your heart. Who would have thought you even had a heart? Let alone 1 so easily broken."

"Quiet! Let's just play the game!" Pegasus said, beginning to get annoyed at this.

"Hahaha. As you wish. But there's 1 more card to be revealed." The evil Spirit said as he flipped the 3rd card over. "Doma, the Angel of Silence. It's an appropriate card for your future... since I will now silence you forever! Prepare yourself, mortal, for a Shadow game the likes of which you've never played." He said as his Millennium Ring glowed blue and the arrows pointed towards Pegasus' Millennium Eye, which glowed red before the ancient items got into a sort of bean struggle. "This match will be played on the landscape of our minds." The evil Spirit said before he began to get the upper hand. "What's the matter, Pegasus? Is that all you can muster? Ah, but you're still exhausted from your Shadow game with Yugi. Your mind is exhausted while mine is not." He said before Pegasus was knocked into the wall, making him the loser of the game, having still been exhausted from being in the Shadow Realm for too long. "You are defeated, a rank amateur to 1 who has played for centuries."

As Pegasus sat up, he was shocked at hearing that. "You've lived for centuries?! What kind of creature are you?"

"I am the 1 who will possess all the Millennium items, and I shall use their power to conquer the entire earth! You've lost the game, which allows me to take your Millennium item, the way you meant to take Yugi's." The evil Spirit answered with evil delight before he began to take Pegasus' Millennium Eye!

"No! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Pegasus yelled out.

Outside of the tower

As Yugi and his friends got to the tower entrance, they saw Croquet and a few of Pegasus' henchmen carrying him away, having taken Ill from having his Millennium Eye being ripped out of him.

"Did you hear that scream?" Tristan asked.

"Yeah. It sounded like Pegasus." Joey said before they saw the unconscious and ill duelist.

"Croquet, what happened to Pegasus?" Yugi asked, wanting to know what happened to the 1 he'd just defeated with his friends and the Spirit's help.

"It's none of your concern. Mr. Pegasus has suddenly taken Ill."

"But what about my grandfather and the others. Pegasus promised he'd free their souls, he promised!"

"Not my department." Croquet said while walking away with the others carrying Pegasus.

"Did you get a good look at Pegasus?" Joey asked.

"Who or what could have done that to him?" Tristan added after his friend.

"Maybe the answer to that is in that tower. Let's check it out." Mai said before they all went into the tower and saw pictures of a beautiful blond woman.

"So this is where Pegasus hangs out? Whoever that woman is, she sure is pretty." Joey said, complimenting the pretty woman in the picture.

"Yeah." Tristan added after his friend, agreeing with him about the pretty lady.

Tea saw a journal on the table and picked it up. "Hey, look at this. It looks like a journal. Maybe we'll find something in here." She saw as she flipped through the pages, making a card fall out before Mai picked it up and saw that it was a card of that pretty lady in the picture. "It's all about Pegasus. He's written about that lady."

"Whoever she is, she must be very important to him if her image is everywhere in the room." Mai said as she looked at the card.

Tea began to read the journal and discovered that it was about Pegasus' past. "My darling Cecelia, at last I've finally found a way to restore you to this world. It's an elaborate plan, but not 1 beyond my genius. It involves the Kaiba Corporation and the ancient magic I plan to harness when I have more of the Millennium items."

"So, the woman in the picture and on this card could be the reason for Pegasus starting this whole thing, the tournament, the takeover of Kaiba Corporation, everything." Mai said, beginning to gain a little sympathy for Pegasus.

"Yeah. It's pretty obvious that he's hung up on her to do everything he did." Joey said, thinking that was more than likely the case.

Tea read the journal further and they all discovered the rest of Pegasus' story. "Oh my darling Cecelia, you know how I've loved you since the moment we met those many years ago. It was at a party at my father's estate. Everyone who was everyone was there. But of course, the 1 who drew my eyes...was you. Even though we were only children at the time, I knew that I was in love. And from that moment on, we were inseparable, you and I. You enflamed my passions and inspired me to become a painter, and you were my favorite subject. I was so in love. And just when I thought things couldn't get any better, you agreed to take my hand once again, this time, in marriage. That was the happiest day of my life. But it was cut short, for it seemed just as we said our vows, you were struck by a terminal illness and taken from me and this world. It was as if a blow had struck me from the heavens. I was filled with sorrow. From that moment on, I could no longer paint. My heart grew bitter and cold. Unable to accept that our life together was forever lost, I began to travel the earth, seeking a way to find a way to reach you beyond this mortal world. My journey eventually brought me to the land of ancient Egypt, that mysterious place whos people believed in a life beyond the here and now, a belief that I wanted to embrace. I had just gotten to that ancient city when fate intervened. I met an ancient Egyptian local, who somehow knew what I had come for. He told me to go home, but I couldn't. For I realized that if he somehow knew of my pain, perhaps he could heal it. I followed him against his wishes, or so I thought. Even though the passage he went through seemed to lead to the bowels of the earth, I still followed and was led to an ancient crypt, apparently buried under centuries of civilization. The ancient stranger then told me that if I was to leave the chamber, I had to be tested by 1 of the Millennium items. And the chosen item for me...was the Millennium Eye. He told me that if it was my destiny to wield the Eye and I passed its test, I would be empowered to see more than I ever had before, but if I failed… death would be all that awaited me. And fortunately for me, fate was on my side and I passed the Eye's test and I was granted its powers. And I finally saw you again...but I could not touch you, as the Millennium Eye did not have that power. I should have been engulfed by despair once again. But seeing you once again for a brief moment gave me more hope than I ever thought possible. Even though you were gone from my world, I knew there was still a way to reach your spirit and I wouldn't rest until I found a way to bring you back and once again, touch the flower that is your face and gaze into your eyes once more." Tea said, finishing Pegasus' tragic tale.

Mai took the journal gently and finished for her secret girlfriend. "It goes on to say that Pegasus later got an inspiration. He found a way to combine Kaiba's technology with these Millennium items to restore his dead wife. But it doesn't say anything about your grandfather or the Kaiba brothers." She said as she put the journal down.

Yugi looked on the table and saw the cards. "Hey, look, 3 soul cards, and they're all blank."

"Pegasus must've freed them." Joey said, thinking that Pegasus kept his promises after all.

"Let's find out." Tea said before everyone but Yugi started to run back to where Mokuba was.

"I hope they're okay." Yugi said with hope.

"Come on, Yuge." Joey called to his best friend.

"Hey, wait for me." Yugi said as he began to follow his friends but stopped at the stairs when a mysterious man appeared through some kind of portal.

"The disturbance in the mystic alignment brings me here." The man thought mentally.

"Who are you?" Yugi asked.

That was when the stranger noticed the Millennium Puzzle, thinking to himself while walking up to Yugi. "I know not who has stolen Pegasus' Millennium Eye, but I feel I must begin my search here. Over the centuries, many men who have done to possess 1 of the Millennium items have desired to have them all."

"Stay back!" Yugi told the stranger.

But the stranger did not listen and held up his Millennium Key while still speaking mentally to himself. "I sense that the thief hides somewhere within the castle walls. Install begin my investigation with this boy."

"What are you doing?"

"My Millennium Key will open his mind and reveal the truth to me." The stranger thought as he held the Millennium Key to Yugi's forehead and unlocked his mind.

Inside of Yugi's mind

The stranger walked inside the boy's head and saw 2 chambers, 1 filled with toys and other innocent objects while the other 1 was mysterious. "Huh? What's this? This boy's mind contains 2 chambers. Never before have I seen something like this. 1 is a chamber filled with innocence and devoid of anything evil. The innocent soul that resides here could not possibly be the criminal that stole the Eye. But I detect another presence behind the door, and this 1 is more mysterious." He thought as he opened the other door and saw the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle.

"It's all right. You may enter my chamber if that is what you desire. However, I warn you, tread cautiously. I will allow no harm to come to the boy whose vessel I share. Your presence here intrigues me." The spirit said politely, intrigued by this stranger.

The man named Shari walked into the chamber while thinking to himself. "In the past, I have ventured into the minds of many people, yet I have never encountered a chamber so mysterious. I feel as though I'm in the tomb of an ancient Egyptian Pharaoh."

"I don't know how you entered my mind. Explain yourself before you tresspass further. I demand an explanation for your intrusion." The Spirit demanded, wanting to know who this stranger was and what he was doing here.

"I seek a criminal who has stolen the power of a Millennium Item. It has been five long millennia since those ancient items were created. Their magical energies were trapped in them by a brave Pharaoh; combined, these seven Millennium Items possess power enough to conquer the world. Hence, many evil men have ventured to gather these items for themselves. It is my heiritage to guard the Millennium Items, and my charge to punish the thief who stole Pegasus' Millennium Eye." Shadi answered while explaining who he was and his business here.

"And you accuse me of being that criminal?"

"You have already taken refuge in the vessel of another. That does not bode well. But if you're not the criminal, then you have nothing to fear from my search."

'Guilty until proven innocent,' an ancient concept for this modern age. However, I have nothing to hide. I'm not your criminal." The Spirit said while saying a modern phrase that he'd heard of.

"Then grant me passage to your unconscious mind."

"Fine. I'll open the doors for you." The Spirit said before he snapped his fingers, making a blinding flash of light appeared before showing a labyrinth of sorts. "You may search them to your heart's content."

Shadi looked around and was amazed at seeing this. "Never have I seen such complexity as in this one's mind. Truly he is an extraordinary individual."

"And now I will leave you to your investigation." The spirit said before he vanished.

"There are mysterious within mysterious here. Levels beyond levels. So I must probe each chamber for the truth." Shadi thought as he entered a chamber, but was nearly killed by a trap. The same thing happened again and again as he searched chamber after chamber. "Despite his cooperation, something in his mind conspires to keep me from the truth. So many doors, so many false entries, all designed to keep me from the true path. But no matter how many times they try to confuse me, my Millennium Key will show me the true way." He thought before coming to a final door, carefully opening it but finding no trap. "Hmm...it appears safe enough. Still, I shall proceed with extreme carefulness." Shadithought before proceeding inside... and nearly falling into a dark pit and trying to hold on. "Another trap! Never have I seen mental defenses so strong! This could be the end of me! If I fall into that darkness, I will be forever trapped within his cryptic mind!"

But suddenly, the voice of Yugi said while grabbing Shadi's arm to help him. "I don't know why the spirit of my puzzle's doing this to you, but I can't let him hurt you."

Shadi looked up and saw Yugi, seeing that he was the innocent side. "It's the innocent one."

"Let me help you up." Yugi said before doing just that.

After being helped up, Shadi explained why he was here. "I only seek the truth. But it's strange. My way is blocked."

Yugi had a feeling as to why that was. "Hmm...I don't think the spirit of the puzzle is doing this on purpose. I get the feeling that there are some memories hidden, even from him. I wish I knew what they were."

Suddenly, another door appeared and began to open. "The door. It opens for you, as if wanting to answer your curiosity." Shadi said as the door fully opened.

They walked inside of the chamber and saw some kind of stone tablets that had the images of the monsters on the Duel Monsters cards. "What is all this? What are these stone tablets?" Yugi asked, wondering what these stone tablets were.

"5,000 years ago, ancient Egyptian kings played a game of dark and terrible power. These Shadow games were playing with real magic and real monsters. But those games erupted into a war that nearly destroyed the entire world... until a brave Pharaoh locked the magic away, sealing these monsters in stone tablets." Shadi explained, revealing the history of how the Shadow games were played in ancient Egyptian times as they passed a stone tablet that had the image of the Dark Magician, who's eyes began to glow red. "But how could your other personality have knowledge of this ancient history? And why do I sense here, in his mind, magic that the world has not seen for 5,000 years?"

"They look like the monsters on the cards we use to play with today." Yugi said, noticing that the monsters on the stone tablets look like the same ones on the Duel Monsters cards.

Suddenly, a light began to flash before the Dark Magician came to life, preparing to attack them both. "The Dark Magician!" Yugi said with surprise.

"He prepares to strike! He's another mental defense against any intruders! The Magician intends to destroy us both!" Shadi said, knowing what the Magician intended to do.

"No way!"

"Unless we stop him, we will never leave this chamber!" Shadi said before seeing something below him, which was an image of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. "This surface on which I stand could be the means of our salvation! If that image spawned the essence of the Dark Magician, then this image should contain the energy of his rival: the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. If I can use my Millennium Key to summon the beast, it could destroy the Magician!" He said before beginning to draw on the power of his key to summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon to destroy the Dark Magician.

"No stop!"

"Why should I?"

"Because... he'd never hurt me." Yugi said as he ran up to the Dark Magician and pleaded with him. "Dark Magician, we are not intruders. Don't you recognize me? Stand aside and let us leave in peace! We will not reveal the hidden secrets. You know me. You trust me." He said, making the Dark Magician stand down.

Shadi was very surprised at seeing this as he stopped and thought to himself. "What's this? The Dark Magician, who in ancient times, obeyed only the Pharaoh, gives heed to this youth? Impossible! Unless... This boy is the chosen one! The prophecy comes to pass!"

The Dark Magician then disappeared in another flash of light before Shadi and Yugi were back in the real world. "My apologies for my rude intrusion into your mind. I did not realize that you were the chosen one and that the ancient predictions have finally been fulfilled at last. Instead of a thief, I found the most worthy. One who is fated to unlock all the magic. The thief of Pegasus' Millennium Eye was but the first sign that evil once again walks the earth bringing madness in its wake. As in ancient times, chaos has threatened to come to an unsuspecting world. And only he who solved the Millennium Puzzle can save it." He said before beginning to walk away.

"What do you mean! Is there anything else you can tell me about this?"

But Shadi only said to Yugi. "Take great care and be on your guard. For whoever the thief who stole Pegasus' Millennium item, will also come seeking yours." Before walking away and going through the light he appeared in.

"Wait! Who are you?"

"My name is Shadi, and I am certain we will meet again another day. But until then, stay true to your destiny. Remember that the date of the world rests on your shoulders." The ancient seeker answered before disappearing as mysteriously as he had appeared.

When Yugi caught up with the others, they all got back to where Bakura and Mokuba was, just as the little Kaiba woke up. "Bakura, is Mokuba okay?" Yugi asked.

"Yes, Mokuba's fine."

"So his soul's back in his body, huh? That's a relief." Joey said with happiness for Mokuba.

"Who'd have thought Pegasus would keep his word?" Tristan asked with amazement that Pegasus had actually kept his promise.

"Hmm... from the way I've seen him and how cold he was, I didn't think he'd actually do it. But then again, maybe he did it because his wife would have wanted him to do." Mai said while remembering that Pegasus was extremely devoted to his dead wife.

Yugi then looked at Mokuba. "So, how are you doing, Mokuba? You ready to get off this island?"

"Not without Seto. Where's my big brother?" Mokuba asked with concern for his big brother.

"He's somewhere in this castle. Don't worry, we'll find him. I bet he already knows you're safe." Yugi assured Mokuba. But unknown to Yugi, Kaiba had woken up, his soul having returned to his body.

That was when Croquet came up to them. "Yugi. Joey." He said in his usual time.

"Croquet." Yugi said with the same tone.

"She to his illness, Mr. Pegasus will be unable to attend." Croquet said, making Yugi gasp. "However, all prizes are still to be awarded. Yugi has already been awarded his prize of 3 freed souls. But, in addition, there's this." He said while walking up to Yugi and giving him a special card. "It's the Ties of Friendship, the only one of its kind, hand painted by Pegasus himself. I was instructed to deliver it personally to Yugi Moto." He revealed as Yugi took the card. "You are now officially the King of Games." He said before taking out an envelope from his coat. "This contains a check for the prize money, won by Yugi in his duel with Joey Wheeler."

Yugi smiled at his best friend. "It's all yours, Joey. Just like I promised."

Joey took the check with a smile on his face. "You're the best, Yugi."

"300 million dollars, Joey." Tea said happily.

For your sister's operation." Tristan added with a smile.

Mai was thinking about something else, though as she looked at Tea. "Well, I may not have gotten the money or the title, but I managed to win something far better: this beautiful and lovely woman right beside me."

"Now, we'd like you all to leave." Croquet said before walking away.

But Tea realized something. "Yugi, I just realized that if Mokuba's soul is free, then your grandfather's must be free, too."

"Yeah. I can't wait to get him out of that hospital." Yugi said with a happy smile.

A little later

"SETO!" Mokuba called out, having been looking for his big brother with Yugi and his friends and had gotten to the courtyard. "Where are you, big brother? It's me, Mokuba! Where are you?"

"The castle's huge. Kaiba could be anywhere." Yugi said, knowing that Pegasus could have put Kaiba anywhere in the castle where it would take weeks, maybe months to find him.

But that was when the doors on the other side of the courtyard opened up to reveal the prideful duelist himself, making Mokuba cry as he ran up to his big brother, who was walking up to him with a smile. "Big brother, you're here. You're really here." Mokuba cried happily as his brother knelt down. "SETO, I didn't know what happened to you, but I never stopped thinking about you, big brother." He said while showing his big brother his card pendant.

Kaiba smiled gently as he showed his own card pendant that had Mokuba's picture inside it, holding it beside his. "I know. I would have risked anything to save you, little brother."

"Yugi told me that you risked a lot. And now we're together again, Seto." Mokuba said with joy at finally being reunited with his big brother.

"So, are you ready for me to take you back home where we both belong?" Kaiba asked.

"You bet." Mokuba answered with a smile.

Kaiba then stood up and faced Yugi and his friends. "Thank you, Yugi. Thank you for saving Mokuba's soul. He means everything to me. I am grateful, but because of our circumstances, our last duel wasn't really conclusive. One day we will duel in the arena again, and only one of us will walk away with pride." He vowed before walking away with Mokuba to his helicopter.

"Well, Kaiba may be an ego filled creep, but he's not a complete monster, gotta give him that." Mai said with a smirk, glad that Kaiba was not a complete monster.

That was when the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle spoke to Yugi in his mind. "You did it, Yugi. You saved everyone."

"We both did. And I don't even know your name." Yugi said, knowing that they'd both saved everyone.

"I've been called many names throughout the ages: Pharaoh, Yu-Gi-Oh, I've been called Yami." The Spirit revealed, having been called many things through the ages.

Yugi seemed to like that. "Well, Yami, I'm proud to call you my friend."

"And I'm glad to be one." The Spirit known as Yami said with a smile.

That was when Joey thought of something. "Hey, I just thought of something: all the boats have left. How are we supposed to get home?"

That was when they heard Kaiba's helicopter starting, making everyone rush to it to get off the island. But Bakura, holding the Millennium Eye, smiled evilly, as the Spirit of his Millennium Ring was secretly in control. "Yugi has the championship. Joey has the money, but I hold the real prize: the Millennium Eye. And soon, I'll have Yugi's Millennium Puzzle as well."

Sometime later in Domino

Yugi and his friends had just gotten to the hospital where Solomon Muto was being cared for and quickly found the wise old duelist, awake and well. "What's the matter, Yugi? You're not surprised to see me up and about, are you?" He asked with a smile.

"Grandpa." Yugi said happily as he ran and embraced his grandfather with joy, making his friends smile, including Mai. "So, grandpa, ready to go home?"

"Of course, my boy." Solomon said with a smile before looking at Mai. "And who are you, my dear?"

"Mai Valentine, sir. I'm...a new member of Yugi's little group. And a great duelist, at that." Mai introduced while shaking the old man's hand, making everyone smile.

Later

While they all left the hospital, Yugi and his friends explained what all had happened while Solomon's soul was taken and the old man was impressed at hearing this tale. "So you saved me and became champion of the Duelist Kingdom, Yugi?" Solomon asked his grandson.

Yugi nodded, but stated. "I didn't do it alone, grandpa, everyone helped and even Mai."

"That's right, everybody pitched in." Joey said while telling proudly. "But Yugi couldn't have done it without me! Hahahahahaha!"

Solomon was proud to hear how Joey performed in the tournament. "Well, then you've obviously improved since I last saw you duel."

Mai however rolled her eyes as she said sarcastically. "Sure, you did a hell of a job back there, Joey Wheeler. Bravo. You deserve an Olympic medal."

That made everyone laugh, while Tea giggled, making Joey annoyed. "Hey!"

Yugi then told his grandpa while they stopped. "Grandpa, maybe you should go home and rest. You did just get out of the hospital, you know."

Solomon just smiled while he chuckled. "Don't be silly. I feel great!" Before he then did some exercises, causing his back to crack accidentally, shocking everyone, but luckily, Solomon was all right.

Tea then thought that now would be the good time to tell her friends what her plans were. "Guys, there is something I want to tell you... well, 2 things actually." Tea then glanced at Mai, who smiled and gave her a nod that they all deserved to know that both were now a couple.

Yugi was feeling what Tea wanted to tell them, but was curious at the other thing she wanted to say. "What is it that you want us to tell, Tea?" He asked.

Tea then stated. "Well... after what we all went through during the Duelist Kingdom, I... I have decided that I too want to become a fulltime dualist!"

This news came as a surprise to everyone, except Mai. Joey then asked. "Really? You want to be a dualist too? But I thought you wanted to become a... dancer, of some sorts?"

Tea admitted that that was her first dream, but as she was about to explain, Mai spoke for her girlfriend. "It was I that brought that idea to her." That made everyone curious to know why. "While I dueled Tea, so Yugi could get the Star Chips to enter the Finals, I saw something in her. I saw that she had the passion and strength to become a great dualist. So, the night before the Finals, me and Tea had talked over it, and she agreed to it, in exchange that I help her to become even better."

Tea nodded, as that was what she wanted to say. Then she glanced at Yugi and Solomon, asking. "And also... I hoped that you would help me as well?"

This offer made a smile grow on Solomon and he nodded. "Well, Tea, I would be honored to learn you a trick or 2 to become a better duelist."

Yugi nodded too. "Me too, Tea. And I think Mai is right. You could become a great dualist indeed, with the right teachings."

Tea was glad to hear that Yugi and Solomon were eager to help Tea. Then Joey stepped in, saying. "Well, I could learn you a couple of tricks too, if you want?"

Mai just scoffed and said again sarcastically to Joey. "Oh, yes, Tea would be a GREAT dualist when you're the one teaching her, Joey, maybe in 30 years or so."

This annoyed Joey even more. "Is that sarcasm really necessary!?"

Mai just smirked. "If you keep acting like a dork, then yes."

While Joey just groaned at her insults, feeling that she had a point, Tristan stated to Tea. "I think it's a great choice you're making, Tea." But he then asked. "But what was that other thing you wanted to tell us?"

Tea glanced at Mai, who looked at her too. Both nodded as they held hands, confusing everyone, except for Yugi. Tea then said, as she started to blush. "Well... me and Mai are-"

"HEY!" A voice suddenly called to the group, making them all look at who called to them, seeing a little girl with a teddy bear in her arm and a carriage full of bags. "I've got something to say to you! That is if you're who I think you are!" the little girl called out to Solomon.

"What in the world?" Yugi asked himself, confused.

"Who is that? You guys know her?" Joey asked.

Mai however frowned, as she recognized that little girl all too well. "You have got to be kidding me."

Tea looked at her girlfriend, worried by her angered look. "You know her, Mai?"

"More than you know, Tea."

The little girl walked over to them with her carriage of bags, asking while pointing her finger to Solomon. "Tell me, is your name Solomon Moto?"

The old man nodded. "That's right. And who might you be?"

The little girl gave a sweet smile, as she introduced herself. "Who might I be? I might be Rebecca. And I might have just arrived here in town." Then she frowned "And I might've been waiting for you to show up! It's not nice to keep a lady waiting, you know."

Mai groaned at Rebecca. "Pff! With that same attitude, you're far away from being a 'real lady', you little brat."

Rebecca instantly glanced angry at Mai, but then smirked as she started reminding her "Oh, still feeling bad for being beaten in our last duel, Mai Valentine? Figures. You still can't handle being beaten by an 8 year old girl. Isn't that right, Teddy?" Rebecca asked her teddy bear, making Mai incredibly annoyed as she groaned out loud.

This confused everyone else even more, making Tea to ask what Rebecca was talking about. "Mai, what's going on? What does she mean that she beat you in a duel?"

Feeling still angry, Mai did her best to state in a calm way. "I'll tell you what she's talking about. That little brat is the reason I lost the quarter Finals last year!"

Joey then started to laugh. "Bwahahahaha! You got beaten by a little girl?! Some duelist you are! Hahahahaha!" But then he instantly stopped laughing after seeing both Tea and Mai giving a death glare at him, making him nervous.

Solomon tried to ease the situation and asked Rebecca. "Rebecca, wait. What exactly is it you want from me?"

"My card back!" Rebecca answered.

Solomon was confused after hearing that. "Beg your pardon?"

Rebecca then pulled out her hand, demanding. "You've got my Blue Eyes White Dragon, now give it back to me!"

Everyone stared at Rebecca in total confusion, making Rebecca demand once again. "Listen, you heard what I said. I want my Blue Eyes back right now!"

"There's a slight problem." Tea said, as it was Kaiba who tore Solomon's Blue Eyes White Dragon card after he won it from him in a duel.

Mai remembered after her girlfriend had told her about this, making her disgusted about Kaiba for being so cruel. "How typical of that bastard. When his brother's in danger, he does anything he can to protect him. But when it's someone else, he's a prideful, cold-hearted asshole."

Seeing that none of the group were willing to answer, Rebecca signed deep as she explained. "The Blue Eyes White Dragon is an ultra-rare and powerful card that only belongs in the deck of a true champion. I, Rebecca, am a true champion. Number one duelist in America. I've traveled the world and beaten many top duelists, including this amateur duelist named Mai Valentine. Isn't that right, Teddy?" Rebecca giggled while asking her teddy bear again.

Mai became nearly furious at that little brat of calling her an amateur. "WHAT!? ME, AN AMATEUR?! I'LL SHOW YOU-!" Before she nearly wanted to teach some manners to the little girl, but was stopped by Tea, Joey and Tristan. Although, Tea too was angry at this little girl for insulting her girlfriend and glared at Rebecca.

Yugi then said, as he remembered something. "Wait! I remember reading something about Rebecca. An article, just before we left for the Dualist Kingdom about a Duel Monsters prodigy. She was causing a major sensation."

Rebecca nodded proudly as that was all true. Joey however asked Mai, after she had calmed down a bit. "You're not telling us that this little girl is America's national champion, are you?"

Mai glanced at Joey, nodding. "She is. She might be young, but she's far better in dueling than you think."

Again, Rebecca nodded proudly as Solomon asked. "But, Rebecca, I'm confused. Why do you think your championship entitles you to my Blue Eyes White Dragon?"

Rebecca shook her head as she told the old man. "No, I don't think that. The Blue Eyes White Dragon Card should be mine because you stole it from me."

Yugi didn't believe that and protested. "No way! My grandfather?! He'd never steal."

"Well, there are only 4 Blue Eyes White Dragon Cards in the world. Kaiba's got 3, and my card is missing!" Rebecca answered why she wanted 'her' Blue Eyes card back, surprising everyone as it didn't make any sense.

"What's with you kid? You're not makin' any sense here." Joey said.

Rebecca had enough of this and demanded a third time. "That Blue Eyes White Dragon is mine, and if you won't give it back to me, then I demand the right to duel for it!"

Yugi was against this and tried to tell her. "Rebecca, you don't understand."

"Oh yes, I do. Your gramps is scared. He's just afraid to duel with me." Rebecca scoffed, thinking that Solomon is making an excuse not to duel with her.

Yugi tried to explain what the real reason was. "No, no. He's not afraid to duel, you Rebecca. It's just that that card, it's... uh-" but he was at a loss for words as he found it difficult to explain that the card that Rebecca meant was torn apart by Kaiba.

But he was suddenly interrupted by Rebecca. "I've heard enough of your excuses! Duel me, old man. Now!"

But then Mai stepped in, telling with a serious look on her face. "Now you listen, kid! Solomon has just been released from the hospital this morning! He's in no condition to duel! Geez, have some respect for the elderly, young lady."

Though Solomon was flattered by Mai's kind words, he ensured her. "It's okay, Mai." Then he glanced at Rebecca "alright, Rebecca. I'll duel with you."

Rebecca started to smile, but then Yugi stepped in, saying to his grandfather. "No grandpa, you're in no condition to duel. I'll do it."

Although Solomon wanted to ensure his grandson that it was alright, he agreed to it with a nod.

Yugi then faced the little girl. "Rebeca, I'll duel you on behalf of my grandfather."

Rebecca nodded, agreeing to the terms. "Fine. But if I win this duel, you give that Blue Eyes White Dragon back to me. To the arena!" She said, while mimicking her teddy bear. "I will eat you alive! Grrr."

Yugi sighed, not knowing how to explain all of this to this little dualist.

Later at the local Kaiba Land

As Yugi, his grandfather and friends were walking through Kaiba Land, where everyone was having fun, they found Mokuba and asked the youngest Kaiba brother for a favor, which was a dueling arena. "So, can you help us, Mokuba?'

"I don't know, Yugi. You're asking a lot. You know, Kaiba Land's dueling arenas are booked solid for the next three months." Before he smiled. "But we do owe you big time."

"Great! Thanks, Mokuba." Yugi said with a smile.

That was when Rebecca shoved her way in front of them and said. "Well? So, what are we waiting for? Let's get this duel on the road!" She said, making Mokuba surprised.

When everyone entered the arena, Rebecca said. "Nice dueling arena. A little small, though." Then she glanced at Yugi with a sweet smile. "This will be like a clash of Titans. Me, Rebecca, the national champion vs Yugi Moto, winner of the Duelist Kingdom. Of course, It's still ordinary him against genius me, so he doesn't stand a chance of winning, does he, teddy?" She asked her teddy bear, mimicking his voice again. "Not a chance! Grrr!"

Joey was starting to get annoyed by this little girl. "Oh, I can't tell if she's just stuck on herself or totally nuts."

Yugi shrugged before glancing back at his friends. "Maybe both. You guys watch from here."

All nodded, while Mai gave some final advice to him. "Be careful, Yugi. She might be strange, but she's damn smart. Trust me, I had to learn it the hard way."

Yugi nodded as he wouldn't underestimate Rebecca. After getting into the dueling platforms and prepared their decks, they said at the same time. "Let's duel!"

"Oh Yugi, sure you wanna go through with this?" Rebecca asked.

"I'm sure." Yugi answered.

"Ok. But it would be a lot easier just to give me the Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Rebecca said, thinking that it would be a lot easier for Yugi to just give her the powerful dragon card before she talked to her head again. "Isn't it, teddy?" Before mimicking her teddy bear again. "Yep. Yep. You're a genius, Rebecca."

'Who on earth is this young lady? And why does she think I stole her Blue-Eyes White Dragon?' Solomon thought to himself.

"It's your turn." Yugi told Rebecca.

Rebecca nodded before she played her 1st monster card: The Witch of the Black Forest, which had an attack power of 1100 and a defense power of 1200. "For my 1st move, I play Witch of the Black Forest in attack mode!"

That seemed to get a reaction from Solomon, as he suddenly remembered something. "An unusual opening gambit."

But Yugi was thinking differently. 'What's she up to? Witch of the Black Forest isn't that much of a powerful card at all. Why would she play that?"

"He thinks very slowly, Teddy. Do you think he'll ever play a card?" Rebecca asked her bear.

Yugi then decided to play the Celtic Guardian in attack mode. "All right, Rebecca. I play the Celtic Guardian in attack mode." He said before the monster came to life. "Now, Celtic Guardian, attack the Witch!" He told his monster before it did just that, destroying the Witch and dropping Rebecca's life points down to 1700!

"Whhhhhh! That meen old Yugi sent my worthless witch to the Graveyard. What am I to do?" Rebecca asked while whining like a baby sarcastically before talking to her teddy bear again. "Oh, what did you say? Why thank you, Teddy. If the Witch of the Black Forest is sent to the Graveyard, I get to pick another card from my deck, a monster with over 1500 defense points and shuffle my deck again! Whee! Thank you, Teddy!"

After Rebecca shuffled her deck again, Yugi spoke with annoyance. "Well, I'm waiting. You gonna play or what?"

"Don't interrupt me when I'm thinking!" Rebecca told Yugi before she looked at her deck and thought of what to do. "What next? Decisions, decisions, decisions."

Tea then said what she thought about Rebecca's behavior. "That kid could drive you crazy really easily."

Mai softly held her girlfriend's hand while saying in an annoyed way. "You have no idea. I remember all too well her being like that when I dueled her last year. And I kept losing my concentration because of it."

Rebecca then looked at a monster card named Sangan, which had an attack power of 1000 and a defense power of 600, and said. "I guess I'm stuck with this 1." Before playing it. "I play Sangan in attack mode." She said before the monster came to life and opened its 3 eyes. "Aww, he's so cute, isn't he?"

"Not for long. You can kiss Sangan goodbye. Celtic Guardian, attack!" Yugi said before the guardian did just that, destroying Sangan and dropping Rebecca's life points down to 1300.

"That Celtic Guardian sent my poor Sangan to the Graveyard, too! You're so mean!" Rebecca said while whining about it.

"Gimme a break." Yugi said with annoyance. "I'm not being mean, I'm just playing the game!"

"Did you hear that, Teddy? Nesty old Yugi's yelling at me." Rebecca said, talking to her stuffed animal again. "Huh? What did you say? When Sangan goes to the graveyard, I can summon a new monster? Oh I understand that."

Tristan could somehow understand how Rebecca is being like this. "I think I get the way she is. Geniuses are supposed to be eccentric, you know."

But Joey disagreed with Rebecca being a genius. "Come on you guys. You gotta be kiddin'. That little twerp's no genius. She's just a nut case."

Solomon however noticed that Rebecca's strategy looked very familiar. 'Strange. This strategy is very familiar to me.'

But when Rebecca talked again, it was a bit more serious this time. "Ok, let's get down to business. Kid gloves are off. You've met your match, Yugi."

That got a reaction out of Yugi. "Huh? Suddenly she's a lot more serious."

Rebecca then played the magic card: Tribute to the Doomed while explaining its power. "I play the magic card, Tribute to the Doomed. It lets me discard 1 card from my own hand and in exchange, I get to wipe out 1 of my opponent's monsters from the field." She said before doing just that before the Celtic Guardian was dragged to the graveyard, much to Yugi's surprise. "And to finish my turn, I play 1 more card in defense mode." She said before doing just that and smiling seriously. "Here's where things get interesting, Yugi. Mark my words, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon will be mine again."

"Am I having hallucinations, or did she just put on a totally different personality?" Tristan asked, seeing Rebecca acting totally different suddenly.

Mai however warned the others while she shook her head. "Uh-uh. She's a lot smarter than she's letting us believe."

Tea agreed and called out to Yugi. "I agree, I think this is all part of her strategy too. Watch out for her Yugi!"

Yugi had heard Mai's words and mentally thought. 'Mai's right. That little kid stuff was just an act. Rebecca's a serious duelist.' Now Yugi became more serious. "All right, Rebecca." He said before he and then played Summoned Skull. "I attack with Summoned Skull!"

"Big mistake, Yugi." Rebecca said before she activated her face down card: the Millennium Shield, having anticipated this. "The card I played was the Millennium Shield, which has 3000 attack points and your Skull only has 2500 attack points." She explained as Summoned Skull attacked with Lightning Strike, only for the attack to fail when it hit the Millennium Shield, as its attack points were weaker than the shield's defense points. "So you lose 500 life points! Hahahaha!" She said as Yugi's life points dropped down to 1500, much to Yugi's surprise!

Yugi's friends were surprised also, but not Mai, as she had went through the same thing when she dueled Rebecca last year. "Hey, that little squirt can actually duel." Joey said.

"Someone's trained her very well." Tristan added, knowing that someone must have trained Rebecca very well for her to be this good at dueling, even at her age.

But Solomon then suddenly remembered something when he saw the Millennium Shield, having seen it before. 'Wait. I've seen that card before with its overwhelming defensive power. I remember now! It was at an archaeological dig in Egypt, so many years ago that I'd nearly forgotten. But almost card for card, my friend, professor Hawkins and I played this same duel.'

"Why are you so surprised that I won that last exchange?" Rebecca asked, wondering why Yugi was so surprised. "I told you I was a child prodigy. This duel has been easy so far." She said before mimicking her teddy bear again. "Grrrrr. Rough him up, Rebecca." Before talking normal. "Right, Teddy." Before she played a magic card called the Ring of Magnetism. "I play the magic card Ring of Magnetism." She said before 4 metal squires formed around the Millennium Shield as a blue lightning formed after, dropping the Shield's defense power to 2500!

Yugi was confused by this move. "Now why would she play that? Combining the Ring of Magnetism with the Millennium Shield actually weakens its defensive power."

"Poor Yugi. He's confused, Teddy. What's he gonna do?"

"Nothing. I'm going to pass this turn." Yugi answered.

Rebecca knew what that meant. "Uh-huh. He's taking a wait and see attitude. Well if you can't think of a move, I can." Before she then played a new monster card. "Cannon Soldier, attack mode!"

Mai frowned after seeing Rebecca play that card, while Solomon warned his grandson. "Be very careful, Yugi!" All of them looked at Solomon with confusion, making him explain. "If she sacrifices a monster next, she can turn Canon Soldier's assault directly on Yugi's life points."

Joey just smirked, thinking that that would never happen. "Yeah, but she's never gonna get the chance, 'cause Yugi's Summoned Skull is gonna blow Cannon Soldier away."

Mai shook her head as she remembered this move from her all too well. "Don't be so sure, Joey. This is the same kind of trick that cost me my way to the semi finals last year."

Flashback, a year ago during the quarter finals of the North American Duel Monsters championship and wasn't fouled by Mai's fake psychic power

While Mai was getting very annoyed with Rebecca acting like a 4 year old, she noticed very slowly that her dueling strategy was failing her and that she wasn't fouled by Mai's fake psychic power, which surprised her. And thanks to that Millennium Shield, which was combined with the Ring of Magnetism, her life points were down to 400. "Kid, all admit that your strategy is a good 1, but your manners are the exact opposite." She said as her last monster, Harpie's pet Dragon was still on the field.

"Now that was rude, Ms. Valentine. But I know how to get some payback." She said before playing her Cannon Soldier monster and sacrificing her Witch of the Black Forest, giving the Cannon Soldier its attack power. "Cannon soldier, you've got the attack power. Now blow that mean woman away!" She said before her Cannon Soldier directly at Mai, dropping her life points all the way down to zero, much to Mai's great shock and Rebecca's satisfaction.

Flashback end

Now that Mai had time to think and that she had Tea, she now regreted her fake psychic power strategy. 'Maybe I can start to learn to duel without that fake psychic power crap now. If I'm going to be teaching Tea, I'll need to do it with complete honesty." She thought as she looked lovingly at her girlfriend.

Tea then rubbed her girlfriend's blonde hair gently while stroking her right cheek, comforting her. But unknown to them, Tristan noticed that they 2 girls were being so affectionate to each other as he raised an eyebrow.

But Yugi attacked anyway, not knowing what was coming next. "Summoned Skull, attack Cannon Soldier with Lightning Strike!" Before it did just that...only for the lightning to hit the Millennium Shield instead, thanks to the Ring of Magnetism around it, much to Yugi's surprise.

"See? The Ring of Magnetism draws all your attacks to my Millennium Shield. Get it? While the Ring of Magnetism is in play, my monsters are safe, cause all you can attack is my Millennium Shield, cause it's got a defensive power of 2500. Hehehehe!" Rebecca explained with a childish laugh.

Yugi knew what that meant as he thought to himself. 'It's a standoff. Summoned Skull's attack power is exactly equal to the Millennium Shield's defensive power. I have to break through that Shield somehow in order to win."

Rebecca then talked to her teddy bear again. "So are you having a good time, teddy? Good. Cause this duel's gonna get even better now." She said before drawing another card, liking what it was. 'Oh cool, it's the Shadow Ghoul. This card will come in handy a little later.' She thought before saying out loud. "But for now, let's summon another whimpy Witch of the Black Forest in attack mode." She said before doing just that. "So long, Witch. You get used as a sacrifice for my Cannon Soldier, so he can turn all his attack power directly on Yugi's life points!" She said before the Witch of the Black Forest was sacrificed and sent to the graveyard, allowing Cannon Soldier to absorb her energy. "Cannon Soldier, you got her energy, so blow Yugi away!" Rebecca told her powered up monster, before it fired a blast directly at Yugi and hit him, dropping his life points down to 1100! "Hehehehe! That took you down a peg. 400 pegs to be exact, and now I get to draw another card. Hahahahahaha!"

Yugi's friends, except for Mai, were very impressed with how well Rebecca was dueling. "Man, she's really good. She must have learned dueling from someone as good as you, Gramps." Joey said, thinking that someone just as experienced and great at dueling as he was could have taught Rebecca how to duel like this.

"Joey, you may be right. "Solomon said, agreeing with the blonde haired duelist.

Rebecca then drew another card as she spoke. "I was taught by someone who's more talented than a Muto could ever be. My grandfather was the best duelist ever."

"Your grandfather?" Yugi asked with surprise.

But Solomon was also surprised, as he was beginning to wonder what he suspected was true. "Is what I suspect true?" He asked before asking Rebecca. "Rebecca, what's your last name?"

Rebecca knew this was coming and answered. "Took you long enough to ask. My name is Rebecca Hawkins. And my grandfather is professor Arthur Hawkins, my man who's Blue-Eyes White Dragon you stole and who's friendship you betrayed."

"That's crazy." Tristan said.

"Absolutely nuts!" Joey added.

"My grandfather would never betray a friend." Yugi said in defense of his grandfather, knowing that he'd never betray a good friend.

"But Rebecca didn't believe that. "That's what you think. But your grandfather's a thief, Yugi. He stole my grandfather's Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and you're the 1 who's gonna pay for that!" She vowed.

"Now listen to me, Rebecca. I'm only going to say this 1 more time: my grandfather didn't steal your Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Yugi said.

But Rebecca wouldn't listen. "He did! He did! He did steal it. It was my grandpa's favorite, and your grandfather took it from him. You won't get away with this, you thieves!"

That was when Solomon spoke gently to the young dueling prodigy. "Rebecca, there's a story that you need to hear. It's the story of how I met your grandfather, professor Arthur Hawkins, and of the dangers we faced together."

"In other words, more of your lies! Forget it!"

"No, it's true. And be assured, it was 1 of the most frightening experiences of my entire life. It happened years ago, but it was an adventure I'll never forget." Solomon said before beginning his story. "I had traveled to ancient egypt to participate in an archaeological dig. A brand new discovery had been made not far from the Great Pyramids. We all wondered what ancient egyptian secrets would soon be unearthed. The dessert was drier and hotter than I had expected, so it was fortunate enough that I had made a friend who offered me to share his water. I drinked it a little too fast, but my new friend, professor Arthur Hawkins was amused by my enthusiasm. He was a kind and brilliant man, but in his field of archeology, he was viewed as a very extremely radical thinker."

"How come?" Tea asked.

"His theories. He believed that duel monsters may have played a mysterious part in ancient egyptian history." Solomon answered, making everyone surprised.

"I don't understand, grandpa." Yugi told his grandpa, not understanding what he was talking about.

"His studies of hieroglyphics, the ancient egyptian's writing kept turning up 1 particular word over and over again. And that 1 word was...duel." Solomon told everyone, surprising them all.

"Duel?" Mai asked with interest.

"But why?" Yugi asked curiously.

Solomon began explaining further. "It was a mystery. Using duel as a keyword, he worked torward a new interpretation of ancient egyptian history, and he came to an astonishing conclusion: that the game of duel monsters was played by the ancient egyptians similar to how we play the game today, using the images in the hieroglyphics and the images on his own duel monsters cards as proof. Upon discovering this, I knew that when your grandfather presented it to his fellow scholars, he would revolutionize the field of egyptology forever. But his colleagues ridiculed his theories and dismissed them as wild fantasies. But even in the face of such disbelief, he bravely stood his ground and continued his research into the ancient game of duel monsters. He even invited me to aid him in his work and I helped as best I could. And in time, he discovered a link between the game and the Millennium Items."

"What kind of link?" Yugi asked, really interested now.

"It's still very mysterious, Yugi. But Arthur and I discovered that the ancient egyptian's played the game in a place called the Shadow Realm, where powerful monsters and warriors dwelled. And in that Shadow Realm, players played duel monsters, not just for money or fun, but rather for the power to rule the world, using those terrible monsters and powerful warriors."

Now Yugi understood. "So the stories I heard are all true." He said while looking at his deck.

"And your friend, professor Arthur Hawkins is the 1 who gave the Blue-Eyes White Dragon card to you?" Tea asked, thinking that was where the wise old duelist got the Blue-Eyes White Dragon card from.

"That's right, Tea."

But Rebecca didn't believe that. "Lair! You were never his friend! My grandfather would never have given away his Blue-Eyes White Dragon! You stole it, I know you did!"

"No, Rebecca, I couldn't have. Because at that moment, the tomb your grandfather and I were in around us." Solomon revealed, surprising everyone, including Rebecca.

"The tomb caved in?"

"Yes. And we thought we were lost. And as time passed, we feared that the Pharaoh's tomb would become ours as well. We comsumed what little food we had and soon nothing was left but a canteen of water, enough for only 1 person. Then, your grandfather proposed we duel in order to keep our spirits up, and I agreed. And as we prepared to duel, I proposed that the last of the water should go to the winner of the duel, and sadly he agreed. And so, our grim duel began. And in his 1st move, Arthur played the Witch of the Black Forest. Sound familiar, Rebecca?" He asked, making Rebecca surprised.

"That was the same card she played."

"That's right, Yugi." Solomon said before looking at Rebecca again. "It was your grandfather who taught you to duel, wasn't it?"

"Never mind her, go on with the story." Tea said, interested in hearing more.

"No more lies! Why should I believe you? You could be making this whole story up!" Rebecca yelled out, thinking that the old man was lying.

"Mr. Muto doesn't lie." Tea told Rebecca.

"Oh yeah? Well I think we should finish this duel." Rebecca said as she began going through the cards in her hand.

"Well some of us would like to hear the rest of the story." Joey told the child prodigy.

I'm quite interested myself." Mai said as she held Tea's hand.

But Solomon stopped them by putting his arm out. "No. Let the duel continue." He said, surprising them while looking at his grandson before they shared a nod. "I believe it's Yugi's turn."

"We know that. Why don't you butt out, old man so we can settle this thing?" Rebecca asked.

"As you wish." Solomon said. "Well 1 thing's for certain."

"What's that?" Tea asked.

"Rebecca may have learned dueling from Arthur, but she never learned manners from him."

"Got that right." Mai said with annoyance at the ill-mannered girl.

Yugi then drew another card, which was the Catapult Turtle and played it as he said. "Maybe this will teach her some. I play Catapult Turtle in attack mode!"

"What a joke. That won't help." Rebecca said with a smirk.

"It will when I combine it with my Brain Control!" Yugi said before playing said card before it took its effect, brainwashing the Millennium Shield before it was put on the Catapult Turtle. "And now I use the Catapult Turtle to sacrifice your Millennium Shield." He said before the Catapult Turtle launched the Millennium Shield into the air, destroying it!

"Oh no!" Rebecca yelled out.

"And my turn isn't over yet, Rebecca!" Yugi said before telling the Summoned Skull to attack the Cannon Soldier, which it did with the Lightning Strike Attack, destroying it and bringing Rebecca's life points down to 200!

"No! It's not fair! It's not fair!" Rebecca whined, not believing that she was on the verge of losing the duel. "I'm still gonna get you, Yugi! I'm gonna get you and your thieving grandfather!" She said before thinking to herself. 'Hugh, guess Yugi's a better duelist than I thought. I can see how he won the Duelist Kingdom tournament. But he's never been up against a genius before. And everything is going according to plan.' Before looking at the cards in her hand, which were Electric Snake, another Sangan, another Witch of the Black Forest, Skelengel, another Sangan and the Shadow Ghoul before looking at the cards in her graveyard. 'Let's see. Right now I have 6 monsters in my graveyard. Not quite enough.' She thought before drawing another card, liking what it was. "Yay! Look what card we drew, teddy." Before mimicking her Teddy bear again, to everyone's annoyance. "Bravo. Bravo, Rebecca."

"What's she up to?" Joey asked.

"V for victory!" Rebecca said while holding up her right index and middle fingers like a v before playing her drawn card. "I play this magic card: Judgement Blaster! With it, I can discard every card from my hand and in exchange…" She explained... before purple energy destroyed the Summoned Skull. "... I get to obliterate every monster you've got on the field. And now, I get to summon my favorite monster." She finished as she played the Shadow Ghoul, which had an attack power of 1600 and a defense power of 1300! "The creepy and lovable Shadow Ghoul in attack mode! And for every monster I've got in my graveyard, he gets an additional 100 attack points!" She explained, surprising everyone.

"For each monster?" Tea asked.

"Count all the monsters she just put in her graveyard and that makes 1100." Mai told them.

"Uh huh. Shadow Ghoul now has an attack power of 2700." Said Rebecca as the monster's attack power went up to that exact number.

Yugi was shocked at this. "What? You mean you sacrificed 11 monsters to the graveyard just so you could use their energy to power up your Shadow Ghoul?"

"You're just now catching on to my strategy, Yugi? You'll have to think faster than that." Rebecca said smugly.

"Rebecca, Duel Monsters isn't about tossing aside all your best creatures. Each monster has their own abilities and demands its own kind of respect." Yugi tried to say but Rebecca interrupted him.

"Are you out of your mind? Dueling has nothing to do with respecting your monsters. Everyone knows that the only thing that matters is winning." Rebecca said, thinking that the Duel Monsters game was all about winning. "Besides, what would a family of thieves know about a duelist's real power? I learned my dueling strategies from a master: my grandfather. But anyway, duel monsters aren't real, they're just ink on cards. What's to respect?"

"That's not what Arthur thought." Solomon told the young girl.

'Rebecca understands the strategies and tactics of Duel Monsters, but she's never found the Heart of the Cards.' Yugi thought.

'If anyone can teach Rebecca the lesson she needs to learn, it's my grandson.' Solomon thought, knowing that Yugi was the only one who could teach Rebecca what she needed to learn.

By this point, Rebecca got tired of waiting. "You've kept me waiting long enough, Yugi! I didn't come here to take a nap, I came to duel."

Yugi drew another card and set it in defense mode. "Ok. I throw in a monster in defense mode."

Rebecca also drew a card and smiled at what it was. "Well, what you think I lack in respect, I make up for in talent." She said before showing her drawn card: Stop Defense and played it, revealing the Dark Magician!

"She's forced the Dark Magician into attack mode." Tristan said, surprised along with everyone else.

"And now, Shadow Ghoul, attack!" Rebecca told her monster before it destroyed the Dark Magician! "Bye bye, Dark Magician." She said in a sing-song voice as Yugi's life points dropped down to 800!

Mai became worried as Rebecca's 'Shadow Ghoul' destroyed Yugi's Dark Magician. "Mr. Muto, Yugi's is getting pulverized. Don't tell me that your duel with Professor Hawkins went the same way like this?"

Solomon however stated. "Actually, Mai, it went exactly like this. But the outcome of this duel may yet surprise you."

Yugi then played his Swords of Revealing Light before they surrounded the Shadow Ghoul, preventing him from attacking for 3 turns. "I play the Swords of Revealing Light. This will prevent the Shadow Ghoul from attacking for 3 whole turns."

"Well, if that's the case, I pass this turn." Rebecca said unimpressed.

"I can use this card: Monster Reborn to bring back my Dark Magician." Yugi said before he played the card, bringing his favorite monster back.

Rebecca then talked to her stuffed animal again. "He's trying to reassemble his forces while I'm prevented from attacking, teddy. But that won't save him. I'll play my next card in defense mode, and I'll tell him what it is because there's no way he can beat my genius brain." She said before playing another Cannon Soldier in defense mode. "Another Cannon Soldier in defense mode."

'Smart move. She wants me to attack. But I can't let that Cannon Soldier get off a shot." Yugi thought before telling his Dark Magician to attack, which it did and destroyed the Cannon Soldier!

But Rebecca anticipated this and smirked as she put her other Cannon Soldier with her other graveyard cards. "Thank you! You've just raised Shadow Ghoul's attack power by another hundred points!" Rebecca said as her monster's power went up to 2800!

Tristan knew Yugi was in trouble now. "No matter what card Yugi draws, that ghoul's more powerful than ever. Rebecca's strategy seems to be working. Maybe she is a genius."

"Don't count Yugi out yet. He learned from the master." Joey said with a smirk.

But Rebecca understood the strategy Yugi was planning. "Oh I understand now: you're using the Swords of Revealing Light to buy some time, hoping for some special card to come up. But that isn't going to happen, eh, teddy? Not when Shadow Ghoul can attack again. I'll pass this turn, too. But when my Ghoul's free to attack, I'll wipe you out!"

But Solomon thought differently as he remembered the outcome of his duel with his friend, professor Hawkins as Yugi drew his next card. But surprisingly, he put it back and put his hand on his deck, surrendering the win to Rebecca, much to everyone but Solomon's shock!

"I surrender, Rebecca. You win." Yugi said with a smile.

"Really? I win?" Rebecca asked with a bit of surprise.

"Yes. You win, Rebecca. The game's over."

Rebecca cheered for her victory as she got off her platform and ran up to Solomon and held out her free hand. "I win. Now give me the Blue-Eyes."

Solomon sighed before reaching into his pocket and revealing the Blue-Eyes White Dragon card that Kaiba had torn, now taped back together, much to Rebecca's shock.

"You for it! You destroyed my grandfather's favorite card!" Rebecca said with shock.

"It wasn't him that tore it, you annoying brat, it was-" Mai tried to say in defense of Solomon but Rebecca cut her off.

"1st you steal it, then you lie, then you ruin it! You horrible mean man!"

"I treasured that card, Rebecca, I would never have destroyed it." Solomon said in a bit of sadness.

But Rebecca didn't listen. "I've had just about enough of your lies!"

But that was when another voice said to Rebecca. "Rebecca, behave yourself." Getting everyone's attention before professor Arthur himself appeared from behind the corner, to everyone's surprise. "It's been too long, Solomon." Be said with a kind smile.

"Far too long, my dear old friend." Solomon said with the same smile.

"I do hope my granddaughter hasn't caused you too much trouble." Arthur said before he walked up to Yugi's dueling platform. "Rebecca, did you know that Yugi was actually the winner of your duel?"

"No! Grandpa, I won!" Rebecca said while running up to her grandfather.

Arthur then spoke kindly to Yugi. "Yugi, you're just like your grandfather. You're a generous person and a very fine duelist." He said before picking up the card Yugi would have used, smiling knowingly at what it was. "I knew it." Before showing it to Rebecca. "Rebecca, take a look at this card." When Rebecca looked at the card, she was surprised before her grandfather explained. "It's called Soul Release. If Yugi had played this card in the final turn, you would have been defeated for sure. With Soul Release, Yugi could have freed up to five cards from his graveyard or yours. Do you know what that means? Your Shadow Ghoul's attack power would have instantly dropped down from 2800 to 2300. Yugi's Dark Magician has an attack power of 2500 and therefore-"

"You mean Yugi never had to surrender?" Rebecca realized before she looked at Yugi. "But why?"

"Don't you understand? Yugi wanted to show you that there's more to dueling than just winning and losing. He wanted you to see that the weight of the Heart of the Cards is through your own heart. After that tomb caved in and we bet our last drop of water on the duel, Solomon also sacrificed a victory to save my life." Arthur revealed, surprising everyone, even Rebecca and Mai. "I felt weak, overcome by the heat of our lamb. Solomon said that he couldn't let me lose the duel and that I needed the water, so he gave it to me and I took it. And at that moment, we were saved by the others and we got out of the tomb safely. Solomon saved my life, Rebecca. But there's more: in my duel with him, it's true that I sent some of my monsters to the graveyard to increase the Shadow Ghoul's attack power. But I never failed to honor their sacrifice. In their own way, they were just as important to me as the Shadow Ghoul card itself. But even more so than the monsters, a duelist must also respect his opponent. In Solomon's case, I felt such respect and gratitude, that I gave him my Blue-Eyes White Dragon card."

"Yeah. And he showed his respect by ripping it up." Rebecca said.

"It was damaged, Arthur. Forgive me." Solomon said to his old friend.

But Arthur wasn't mad as he got up and smiled. "That doesn't matter, Solomon. What matters is that you kept it as a token of our friendship. You valued the card not for its rarity, but for what it represents: the bond between us." He said, making Solomon smile before he looked at his granddaughter. "Do you understand now, Rebecca? Great duels can form the basis of even greater and lasting friendships, because the cards are about heart."

"My heart?"

"The heart of every duelist, and in the Heart of the Cards. That's what Yugi was trying to show you."

Rebecca then looked at Yugi with remorseful eyes. "Oh Yugi, I'm sorry."

But Yugi smiled. "It's ok, Rebecca."

"You mean you forgive me?" Rebecca said with a smile.

"Of course." Yugi answered before holding out the Ties of Friendship card to Rebecca. "Here, take this. It's called the Ties of Friendship. I'd like you to have it."

"Thank you, Yugi." Rebecca said as she took the card.

Mai walked up to Rebecca and knelt down to her level. "Maybe I was wrong about you, Rebecca. You're still a bit of a brat, but you keep this up, I might begin to like you." She said before she hugged the little duelist prodigy.

"Thank you, Ms Valentine." Rebecca said with a smile before hugging her back.

After Solomon and Arthur had a duel with each other to catch up, they began walking back to the dueling shop when Tristan asked. "Say, Tea, I saw you and Mai close to each other during Yugi's duel with Rebecca. And there was also that other thing you wanted to tell us before all that started, so now that it's over, what was it?"

It was then that Tea and Mai held each other's hands and told everyone that they were a couple, surprising them all, with Joey being completely surprised by the news, except for Yugi, who had already figured it out.

Mai then grabbed Joey by the shirt, asking in a threatening way if both her and Tea were lesbians was a problem for him. "Is Tea and me being in love a problem, Joey Wheeler?"

Joey sweated a bit before he explained that it was no problem at all, only that he never expected this to happen. "No-no-no-no-no-no-no! I...just...never expected this is all. But...if you guys are happy together, it... doesn't bother me." He said with a nervous smile before Mai let him go.

Then Yugi told them that he already had figured out that she and Tea are a couple, along with the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. Surprisingly, Mai and Tea took it well because they knew that Yugi would figure it out sooner than the others. Even Solomon was okay with them being a couple and was still willing to teach Tea to duel to become a better duelist, which Mai and Tea was glad to hear.

2 months later

After Yugi's duel against Rebecca, Tea had invited Mai to spend the night at her house, as she didn't have a place of her own in Domino City due to being a traveler. But Tea did wish that they could be at her apartment, which was still in the next town close to Domino. Mai had even talked with her girlfriend about moving to a penthouse apartment, which she was delighted to hear, but would save that for another time.

"You have a nice home, Tea. It's... quite lovely." Mai said as she played with Tea's hair.

"It is. But now that we're dating, it's a lot better with you here." Tea said with a sweet smile.

"Thanks. Say, would you like to practice dueling with me? We could have a few matches and then we could watch a movie together to cap off the night." Mai asked sweetly, hoping Tea would accept the offer.

"Of course. I've got a couple of great movies that I think you'll like." Tea answered with a smile.

The blonde haired duelist and her younger girlfriend/student then spent the night practice dueling the old way by dueling on a table with their cards. To Mai's surprise, Tea's dueling skills had actually improved a bit, getting her blonde girlfriend's life points down to 1000, which was showing how far she was improving as a duelist. Mai had defeated Tea for the most part but to the blonde's surprise, Tea had actually defeated her at least once when it was already 11:00pm.

"Very impressive, Tea. You're improving greatly since our duel at Duelist Kingdom. And your deck has certainly been upgraded as well." Mai said with an impressed voice, seeing the stronger monsters in Tea's deck.

Their last duel had been going well, with Tea using her new more powerful monster, magic and trap cards. Since she decided to become a full time duelist, she'd been presented to a large collection of more powerful cards than the ones she used in her 1st duel with Mai at Duelist Kingdom. And thanks to Mai, Yugi, his grandfather and even the Spirit of the puzzle teaching her, she'd started to get far more better at dueling and was defeating Mai more easily now, using the strategies that she'd been taught and with her new Dark Magician Girl card, which surprised Mai, as she didn't know that Tea even had a powerful card like that in her new deck.

Mai was impressed at how surprisingly Tea was defeating her a bit more easily now, using her 'Dark Magician Girl' after using the magic card: 'Monster reborn' to bring her Magician monster back from the graveyard to deliver the final blow. "Wow, nicely done, Tea. And I thought I had you there for a second."

Tea giggled. "I just have a great teacher."

Mai was flattered by that. "Well, by the looks of it, you had not only been taught a lot from myself, but by Yugi and his grandpa. Say, where did you get that Dark Magician Girl card anyway?" She asked, wondering where her girlfriend had gotten such a rare Magician card.

Tea then explained. "I got the card from Yugi's grandfather. He had another one for safekeeping and thought that because I've improved so much in duel monsters, I should be the 1 to have the Dark Magician Girl card. And he also told me that if I manage to beat him 3 times, he'll give me a special dragon card that he says is 1 of the most powerful dragons in Duel Monsters."

"That's really kind of Yugi's grandfather to give you that 1. And I really can't wait to see what kind of powerful dragon card he'll give you. Who knows, your dragon might be able to face my Harpie's pet Dragon next time we duel. But I guess that the strategy that you used to defeat me... came from Yugi, right?" She asked, getting a nod from Tea.

The brunette then smiled and took her girlfriend's hands, sitting on the couch with Mai as they locked eyes with each other lovingly, forgetting about the movies and only getting lost in each other's eyes... before they leaned in and passionately kissed for a few minutes.

After they pulled away from the kiss, the two girlfriends locked lips in another kiss before it soon turned into a heated make out session as Tea had gently led Mai to her bedroom.

Mai then pushed Tea on top of her bed while laying on top of her with her right hand cradling the younger girl's head. As they continued to kiss, Mai had gently snaked her hand underneath Tea's shirt and cupped her breast, which earned a soft moan from the brunette.

"Mai..." Tea stated softly, as she and the older blonde smiled at each other lovingly with tender smiles on their faces.

Mai stated softly while caressing Tea's beautiful and innocent face with her free hand and smile as she closed her eyes from her actions. "Just...Just say the word and we can..." But she was cut off, as Tea had pressed her lips against Mai's in another heated loving kiss, which the blonde naturally returned and took as her girlfriend's way of giving her consent and saying she was indeed ready.

After they pulled away to breathe, Mai had allowed Tea to sit up and she began to undress the younger brunette: leaving her in her cute bra and underwear and allowing her girlfriend to undress her as well. As they admired how sexy and appealing they both looked in their underwear, they locked lips in another heated make out session, tongues battling for dominance as they moaned lustfully in each other's mouths.

As they kissed, Mai had undid Tea's bra and tossing it on the floor with the rest of their clothes and Tea had undid Mai's in return and they both blushed at the sight of each other's breasts: Tea more brightly, as her breasts were B cup and Mai's were C cup.

Knowing that this was their first time and how new Tea was at being sexually intimate with another girl, Mai had walked her inexperienced girlfriend/lover on what to do while pleasuring her, stimulating her breasts and vagina/clit while performing cunnilingus on the brunette.

After Tea had climaxed for the first time, Mai stated after planting her lips over Tea's and the brunette would moan after tasting her juices on her lover's lips. "You came very quickly, baby."

Tea smiled at the new pet name her older girlfriend/lover had just given her and stated with a small apologetic smile for releasing her built up fluids so quickly. "Sorry."

The blonde stated with a loving grin on her face. "Don't be...you tasted very sweet." They would lock lips in another heated kiss and Mai said seductively. "Your turn, babe."

After hearing that it was now her turn to please her mentor/girlfriend and lover, Tea would give Mai the exact same treatment she had given her before trailing down to her waist and inserting her tongue between her soaking wet legs. As Tea continued to lick her lover's clit while pumping her middle and pointer fingers back and forth at a steady pace, Mai moaned while playfully tangling her fingers in her silky brown hair. "Oh Tea, oh god...that feels so incredible. I'm almost there, keep going baby...keep going."

After hearing her lover state how close she was, Tea had decided to grant Mai her wish and continued her actions until she finally reached her climax. Tea stood up and walked to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Although Mai felt this urge to... want to see what Tea was doing.

As Mai walked to the bathroom, she saw that the door wasn't even closed, making her peek inside, seeing Tea slowly dancing in the bathroom. Mai felt herself becoming warm inside, seeing her girlfriend in her cute bra and underwear. Seeing that Tea hadn't noticed Mai watching her, Mai slowly walked inside and hugged Tea from behind, making her gasp, but seeing it was Mai who held her made her sigh in relief.

Mai started kissing her neck, while she gently cupped her breast with her left hand, which earned a soft moan from Tea. "Aaaah... Mai..." Slowly, while still kissing her neck, Mai moved her other hand to Tea's other breast, softly rubbing them. "Yes... Oh, Mai... I want you... Hmmm..."

Tea then softly kissed Mai, what the blonde gladly returned. As Mai moved her hand to Tea's pussy. While fingering Tea, Mai softly twisted her nipples. The sensation felt so great that Tea turned herself and pushed Mai to a wall, surprising her, but that quickly faded as Tea passionately kissed her while rubbing Mai's breasts the same way as she did to her.

Mai then softly stated while caressing Tea's beautiful and innocent face with her hands. "You're so... beautiful, baby."

Tea gave a sweet smile back to her girlfriend, but then pulled Mai into another heating kiss, which she gladly returned in equal passion.

As both tongues danced like a tango in their mouths, Mai started to rub her naked body against Tea's. Both touched each other everywhere, as Mai pulled Tea into the shower, turning it on while both touched each other's butts. The hot water flowing over their bodies made this moment even more romantic for the two lovers, as both kept touching each other's pussies and breasts, without stopping their tongue kissing.

Tea then took a moment to catch her breath, while still looking into Mai's eyes with nothing but lust. She went on her knees and started licking and sucking Mai's pussy. making her moan even more. "Aaahh! Yes! That's it! Yes, right there! Aaaah!"

Mai held Tea's head, wanting more. Tea performed this for some minutes, till Mai climaxed in her mouth, making her drink every drop of her juices.

The climax made Mai's legs shake and she nearly fell on the floor, but Tea held her in time. "You okay?" Tea asked Mai, who nodded.

"I am... Oh, Tea... I want to return you the same thing!" Before she then pulled Tea back into another passionate tongue kiss while her hand went down to Tea's pussy, starting to finger her.

Tea moaned very loudly as she was feeling the same pleasure as before, but on a different level. "Oh Mai! Oh yeah! Fuck! Oh yes! Oh fuck yeah!"

All of Tea's moaning caused Mai to finger her girlfriend's pussy faster while rubbing her ass. It went on for the next few minutes until Tea finally climaxed on Mai's fingers, making her legs wobbly but Mai held on to her while licking her fingers, tasting Tea's juices in her mouth with a moan. "Oh yeah, baby, your juices taste so delicious."

"Mmm...glad you like them, baby. But, how about we shower and get some sleep. I'm a bit tired after all we just did together." Tea said with a loving smile.

Mai chuckled at this but nodded before they began washing each other's bodies, enjoying the feeling of the warm water and their touching before they got out of the shower and dried off before going back into the bedroom. They didn't bother to put any clothes on and got into bed completely naked before embracing their arms and legs around each other, kissing softly and passionately until they both fell asleep.

There you go, my dear friends. The chapter is finally complete. Next will be where Yugi and his friends help Mokuba rescue Kaiba from the Big Five in his corrupt VR dueling game, with Tea joining in the game and I'll reveal what her dragon card will be. And trust me, it's gonna be an awesome dragon monster. Rate and review and I'll see you all next time, my dear friends.