Hassleberry's eyes pulled open as soon as the alarm in his Duel Academy PDA started buzzing, rocking the table around and knocking down empty bottles of water or energy drinks. Another day, he thought. Another day in good ol' Duel Academy. He grabbed his PDA and turned the alarm off before the beast inside of him went crazy and smashed it. He couldn't afford to destroy another PDA. If he did, it would be the third one this month and the staff was getting rather peeved with him. You couldn't really blame the poor guy for being so stressed. Midterms were coming, meaning he had to make an effort to stay up late and review his notes on the advantages of a Spellcaster deck or the Wheeler Theory.
He wasn't the academic type but he still tried to keep his grades at a comfortable level, although with his lack of sleep and almost forgetful memory, that was getting harder and harder. And he was stressed with how low he was in the overall school rankings. He strived to stay in the top 20 at least alongside Chazz, Syrus, Alexis, and his brother-figure, Jaden Yuki (whom he called Sarge).
The kid made a name for himself in his freshman year. He beat Dr. Crowler in the entrance exams, defeated two mercenary duelists who were once hired by Maximillion Pegasus, and was chosen to represent the academy in the annual School Duel. And he even went toe-to-toe with Zane Truesdale in the most exciting match of the school year.
Try as he might, he was no Jaden Yuki. And his continuous losses pushed him down to rank 50, meaning he was close to being at the bottom of the barrel. And for him, that was just unacceptable. If he were to sink any lower in the rankings and not score at least a B+ in the next exam, he was going to be demoted to Slifer Red before Christmas. Damn. He may have been living in the Slifer Dorms to stay alongside Jaden, but he still had pride in being in the second-ranked dorm on the island.
He scratched his head with his long and strong fingers then let out a frustrated roar before slamming his head back on his pillow and staring at the ceiling.
"Nothin's ever simple is it?" he grumbled to himself. "I can't let myself flunk the next exam. What will the Sarge think of me? And I'm never gonna hear the end of it from Syrus. Rotten little pipsqueak! I can't believe he and Zane are brothers."
He began to hear the other students outside the door to his room chatting and running down the halls. Yup, he thought, time to get movin'. He got out of bed and then fell to the floor to do push-ups. When he was done with his exercise he went to the outhouse outside to wash and then dressed into his custom academy uniform before coming back into the dorm to make some breakfast. Jaden slowly began to stir in his bed and Syrus got up, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Morning," the blue-haired boy said. He felt around the surface of the side table to look for his small glasses. He saw Hassleberry marching to the kitchen to fry himself an egg. "Wow, you're up before me this time," Syrus said with a mocking tone. "You must be really desperate to be Jaden's best friend if you're getting up this early."
"Lay off the trash talk today, Private!" Hassleberry snarled at him. "I'm not in the mood. I've got a lot on my mind and I don't need yer yappin' to frustrate me any more than I already am. Got it!"
Syrus kept his mouth shut. Even though he was in somewhat of a friendly rivalry against Hassleberry for the honor of being Jaden's best friend, Syrus knew better than to push the guy too far. One wrong move and Hassleberry could rip his spine and skull out like the Yautja from the movie Predator. He scratched his chin and realized that something was wrong. Very wrong.
"Hey, is everything all right, Hassleberry?"
"No, Private. Things are far from all right. Don't ask me what because I'm not in the mood to talk. Just leave me be."
He cracked an egg open on the side of the frying pan and let the yolk drip down. It sizzled making contact with the hot surface. Wanting to respect his wishes, Syrus got out of bed and grabbed his towel and toothbrush so he could go to the outhouse to wash. As Syrus went out the door, Jaden woke up. He let out a big yawn and stretched.
"Morning, Hassleberry."
Hassleberry saluted in response. "Mornin', Sarge. I made breakfast for ya."
"Really? That's great. I could use some of those scrambled eggs of yours. Those really hit the spot."
"You like my cookin' boss?"
"Yeah, you make a mean breakfast, Hassleberry." Jaden stopped smiling all of a sudden. "Aww, no. I forgot our midterms are only two weeks away. I have a study session with Alexis today."
"Study session? That don't sound like ya, Sarge."
"I gotta make the grade somehow," Jaden pouted as he slouched. "If I don't pass this exam, I'm gonna repeat the year. Alexis went on and on about how embarrassing it would be for me to be the top player in school and fail especially. And you know her. When she's determined, there's no stopping her. And I'm not gonna lie, repeating the year is uncool. Even for me. If I have to hit the books, then that's what I gotta do."
"It only makes sense that you do. Syrus says Zane passed the torch to you after he graduated from the academy. So it's your responsibility to pull through and succeed. You're the commander and chief around here, boss. So act like it."
"Right-o," Jaden replied wearily. Although Hassleberry felt like Jaden didn't really mean to get his act together.
After a short hike from their dorm, they entered the academy for their first class of the day. With Dr. Crowler of all people. His voice was so monotonous and he was such a suck-up to the promising Obelisk Blue students it made everyone sick. Hassleberry took his seat in the row above Jaden's. Usually, he would race with Syrus across the halls to see who got the honor of sitting next to him in class but he was so stressed and worn out from the study sessions that he was not in the mood to deal with Syrus or his high-pitched whining.
The final bell rang and all the students were in their seats. Crowler stepped inside from the sliding metal doorway behind the stage where he would be teaching the class. A large collection of books were underneath his scrawny arm. As he passed by Jaden and a row of Slifers, his face scrunched up with disgust. He really didn't like the low-ranking dorms. Despite the promise of most of the students in Slifer Red, he believed teaching them was a waste of time and they had no place in the academy. He set his books down with a slam to wake up anyone who felt like they were nodding off. The last thing anyone wanted was detention under his terms. You'd be up to ten in the evening finishing huge piles of packets as well as completing your homework. All you had to eat were salty mashed potatoes and a chicken leg with a bottle of water to wash it down. And you had to pray you didn't eat it fast because it was the only meal you were going to get until the punishment was served. Meanwhile, Crowler would be sitting in front of you behind his desk helping himself to roast chicken, seared swordfish, scalloped potatoes, mashed potatoes swimming in gravy, and a glass of fine wine to torture you into getting hungrier and hungrier.
"Class. I hope you all have read the chapter I assigned last night. Today, we will be going over everything you've learned and I will call on every single one of you to answer a question regarding the material you've read. But before we begin, I have an important announcement to make. We have a new student. She has transferred in from an elite dueling institute in Johannesburg, South Africa so do me all a favor in welcoming miss Cameron Owens."
A blonde-haired girl stepped up from her seat and waved. "Hello," she said with a heavy South African accent.
The moment Hassleberry saw her, fireworks began to erupt. As the other students greeted her, he gazed at her dreamily, his eyes wide like saucers and his mouth hanging open. He couldn't stop staring at her even if it was for a second.
Her hair was so long it went down to her back and it was messy. Her eyes, lighting up with joy and confidence, were green like chrysolite fading into blue around the iris. She was obviously placed in Obelisk Blue for lack of female accommodations in the other dorms. Her uniform had a few modifications to it. Her jacket was cut short to show off her midriff and there were two heavy belts tied over her slender waist, each holding deck cases. One on her hip had an ornament looking like the upper half of a tyrannosaurus skull with a rainbow opal inlaid on the center and red rubies inserted into the orbit of the skull. The other case, fastened close to her lower back, was locked with a gold lock and was also inlaid with a rainbow opal. Both her wrists were embellished with leather charm bracelets.
"Welcome," said Dr. Crowler. "Miss Owens was in the top 20 of her class and winner of the district tournament in her hometown. I see you are a student with a very promising future in Duel Monsters, young lady. Would you care to share anything about yourself? Judging by the tooth hanging around your neck and those ornaments on your deck case, you have a liking for the past?"
"Oh yes. I'm a dinosaur lover through and through. Obviously, the dinosaur-type is where I excel at."
Syrus was snickering at the fact and the look on Hassleberry's face behind him. "Oh, great," he muttered to Jaden. "Another bonehead in the class."
"I'm also the leader of the Dinosaur Appreciation Society here at the academy."
"I haven't heard of such a society," Crowler said tapping his foot.
"Oh. It's because I just started it this morning."
"I see," said Crowler. "And how many members have you accumulated so far?"
"Well...it's just me for now. But I'm always open to new members to help me excavate the abundance of prehistoric life uncovered here."
"Here?" said Crowler. "On Duel Island? I didn't know fossils were found here."
"Oh, yes. In fact, those bones are one of the reasons I'm here. My father landed a job at the Domino City Museum of Natural History. And the island we're on is home to many interesting specimens that have been uncovered when the academy was first being built. In fact, my dad is here on an excavation in the jungle. When construction crews were laying the foundation for the new arena, they uncovered the bones of a very large super predator, bigger than even Tyrannosaurus Rex. I could have stayed in South Africa with my grandparents while he was away but there's no way I was going to pass up a chance to dig up a new apex predator. So, I requested a transfer and here I am. Although it wasn't easy. Your standards I must say are...quite strict."
"Indeed they are, Miss Owens. Welcome to the big leagues. I do hope you have what it takes to be in this institution. You may take your seat."
Cameron bowed her head and sat down. She picked up a leather messenger bag and opened the bronze clasps to get her things out. As she pulled out a custom leather notebook to take her notes, she turned her head. She spotted Hassleberry gawking at her from down below. Hassleberry noticed this and looked left and right hesitantly before turning around and looking forward. Cameron thought he was weird at first but she couldn't help but smile at him.
After class ended Hassleberry went about the whole day acting as though he was sick. He didn't even care that Jaden and Syrus were spending more time together. He just wanted to be alone because now he had four things weighing him down like a ton of bricks. His stress about the exams, his desire to climb the ranks in school, proving his loyalty to Jaden, and now...the new girl. Cameron Owens. A girl with great beauty and a dinosaur lover like him! He felt his stomach bubbling with each step like he drank three cans of soda nonstop. He thought about her all day, running laps around the track during gym class. Her crystal-green eyes, her golden hair flowing down her back like a blanket of silk, and her sun-kissed skin. That meant she must have gone on plenty of digs in her lifetime. And he noticed the tan lines on her hip coming out of the edges of her skirt as she was leaving class.
"Awww, man!" he groaned. He marched back and forth in front of a window with a view of the beach below. "What am I gonna do? I haven't felt this way about anyone. Not now! Not ever! Come on, soldier, get your bearings! Ya can't let this girl distract you from the primary objective. Proving yerself to the Sarge. But man...oh man...a girl like this doesn't come very often. What if someone makes a move on her before I do? What if she's already got a boyfriend? Come on, think, think think!"
"What's gotten into you?" someone asked.
"Huh!" Hassleberry stopped marching and stood at attention. He recognized that voice. Alexis Rhodes, someone he respected as much as Jaden. She was standing directly behind him. He was so dumbstruck by thoughts of Cameron that he failed to notice Alexis and her friends Jasmine and Mindy standing on either side of her as usual. "Ma'am!" he said. "I...uh...didn't see ya there."
"No, I didn't think you could. You're so bamboozled and stressed you've grown to be oblivious to almost everything."
"Yeah, like yesterday," said Mindy. "His head up in the clouds. So much so that he didn't see the sign telling him he was entering the girl's locker room."
"Yer not gonna bring that up are ya?" Hassleberry asked. "Damn, I said I was sorry."
Alexis's lips slowly formed into a smile that gave Hassleberry comfort. "It's fine, Hassleberry. What's gotten into you lately? You haven't been yourself. You're usually so in control and attentive."
"Midterms," Hassleberry answered, to which Alexis, Jasmine, and Mindy looked at one another, bobbing their heads in agreement. "And there's something else."
Jasmine narrowed her eyes and smiled mischievously. "I know all about it. You've got the hots for that new girl. Cameron, right?"
"What! No, I don't!"
"Ah-ha!" Mindy said, pointing at him and laughing. "Look at that reaction. And look at all the sweat coming down his forehead. Yeah, you've been bitten by the lovebug, Tyranno Hassleberry. I know it when I see it."
"Of course, you would," said Alexis. "You get bitten by it every time a boy you find cute passes by. And no offense, Hassleberry, but I've seen the way you were gawking at her today. If you really feel something for her, why not talk to her."
Hassleberry huffed and folded his muscular arms. "Oh, yeah, that's rich. Hey, you like dinosaurs, I like dinosaurs. Let's get hitched. It doesn't work that way, Alexis."
"I didn't say date her yet," said Alexis. "That's the last thing that should be on your mind. You'll creep her out before you can even get to know her. I don't think you're in a position to even consider letting you know how you feel about her. You gotta get to know a girl first. Hang out with her. Talk to her. Make her comfortable around you, that's the important part. She has to develop trust in you."
"Trust?"
"Well, duh!" said Mindy. "All girls look for a guy they can trust. If she develops trust in you, she can tell you her deepest, most personal secrets. Heck, you advance a little more and she might even tell you her dirty ones, too."
Hassleberry's eyes popped and he took a loud gulp.
"Hardly," said Alexis. "Start by getting to know her first, Hassleberry. If you want to get a head start on that, she's in the jungle at the dig site looking for that dinosaur she mentioned in class today. I'm sure being the first honorary member of her appreciation society will mean a great deal to her."
"You think so? Yeah, yeah, I'll get started on that at once. Thanks, Alexis." Before he ran he stopped. "Uh...why are you helping me out?"
"So you can finally get your head on straight and avoid any more mishaps like the one yesterday. Get a move on it, soldier!"
"Yes, ma'am! I'm on it!" He saluted and headed out of the academy.
He wandered around for a while, asking anyone for information about the dig's location. After an hour, he learned that the dig site was near the beach a mile from the Obelisk Blue dorms. So he sped down there as fast as he could, rushing past the dirt trails through the jungle. He heard trucks ahead. Then the satisfying ring of picks and shovels crushing the earth. He burst through the trees and stumbled onto the dig site. Cameron wasn't kidding about the find. The skull of the prehistoric predator was almost fully unearthed. A team of fifteen people was trying to excavate the ribs and the spine. But that skull! It was bigger than a luxury sedan, the teeth almost as long as a sword and it was crowned with two horns on its head. Then he spotted her.
Cameron was laying next to the skull, using a brush to carefully clean the dirt from it. She was out of her academy uniform. This time, she was in denim cutoffs and a white crop top. And she wore a dark brown felt hat with black decorative leather etchings underneath the brim. The sunlight caused the silver raptor skulls on the second charm around her wrist to flash like fire.
"Oh...man!" Hassleberry wanted to run away. He felt himself undeserving of her. He was about to walk away when...
"Hey, you!"
Hassleberry froze stiff.
"I saw you in class, yeah? Huckleberry was your name?"
Cameron was talking to him. Hassleberry took a deep breath and turned around. "It's Hassleberry. Codename: Tyranno."
"Tyranno Hassleberry then. You were staring at me an awfully long time in class this morning."
"Yeah, sorry about that. I heard you had a thing for dinosaurs. Well, uh, I do as well."
Cameron giggled. "Gee, really? By that dinosaur bandana and that skull around your neck, I couldn't tell."
"Uh, yeah. So, this is the behemoth you were talking about in class, huh? Damn, he's huge!"
"That he is. Utimasaurus Maximus is what my father decided to call him. I've never seen anything like it before. It makes me wonder what else is lying around this island."
"I don't understand how an animal this big could even live here," said Hassleberry. "It's so big. It would have eaten every animal on the island and then starved to death."
"Well, this island probably was a part of something much bigger during the cretaceous period. The animal's whole kingdom could have sunk to the bottom of the sea millions of years ago. So, I take it you want to help me dig up this monster? If you are, you have to become a member of the Duel Academy Dinosaur Appreciation Society."
"Of course, I'd love to help you out. Count me in!"
"Hold it right there, friend. Before I can even consider you as a member of my little club, you're gonna have to prove yourself."
She stood up and brushed dirt and rocks off her hands. "Follow me," she said. She walked to her personal tent where she had a workstation littered with excavation tools, tiny bone fragments, a magnifying glass, and her laptop displaying the skeleton of the Ultimasaurus they were excavating. She opened a leather backpack and pulled out her academy duel disk.
"I see where yer getting at," said Hassleberry. "Good thing I'm always packin'!" He held up his arm to display his.
"Good to know," said Cameron. "Beat me in a duel, and you're in the society. Deal."
"Roger that. Let's get this party started."
Cameron led Hassleberry into the jungle where a river was passing. She hopped across it and told Hassleberry to stay on the other side. They backed up just enough to give their holograms the room they needed to properly project and then powered on their duel disks.
Hassleberry vs Cameron
Life Points 4000
"Let's flip a coin," said Cameron. She pulled out a pretty big silver coin from her back pocket with a tyrannosaurus skull on one side and two crossed bones on the other. "I call heads."
"Tails, then," said Hassleberry.
Cameron flipped. She caught the coin and then slapped it on the top of her wrist. "Tails. You go first."
"Well, all right. Let's get this dino demolition started!"
Hassleberry - Turn 1
"All right, Cameron. I summon Sabersaurus in attack mode!" After placing the card on his duel disk, a four-legged horned dinosaur resembling a triceratops formed in front of him. It was the size of a bus and colored crimson red.
Sabersaurus - Dinosaur/Normal Level 4 ATK/1800 DEF/500
"She's a beauty," said Cameron.
"Why thank you. But I don't think yer gonna like her for long. She's got the looks, but she packs a wallop when she's ready for battle. All right, I set a card face-down and end my turn."
Turn 2 - Cameron
"Let's see what I've got that can match that specimen," said Cameron.
Hassleberry couldn't help but blush, as cliche as that sounds. Her South African accent was just music to his ears, and her voice was soft and sweet. "First, I'm going to activate Pot of Extravagance. I can draw a card for every three cards I banish from my Extra Deck. I will banish six cards and draw two cards. Now, I set two cards face down and special summon Gilasaurus from my hand."
She called on a brown-colored raptor with burning green eyes. The dinosaur snarled, showing Hassleberry its sharp teeth and it swiped its claws across the air.
Gilasaurus - Dinosaur/Effect Level 3 ATK/1400 DEF/400
Effect: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand). If Summoned this way: Activate this effect; your opponent can Special Summon 1 monster from their Graveyard.
"And then I'm going to conduct another special summon with this card. Ancient Rules. This card lets me call on a level five or higher normal monster from my hand. And I call on Megazowler in attack mode!"
Cameron's monster was a very old dinosaur card from the Duelist Kingdom era, but it was still as fearsome as ever. It was a monster based on triceratops like Sabersaurus but it was bigger and stronger in terms of defense.
Megazowler - Dinosaur/Normal Level 6 ATK/1800 DEF/2000
"And now I'll conduct my normal summon. I summon "Kaitoptera!" This time she summoned a pterosaur colored brown with a big white crest coming out of the back of its head.
Kaitoptera - Dinosaur/Effect Level 4 ATK/1400 DEF/1000
Effect: If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate the effects of Effect Monsters until the end of the Damage Step.
"Another dino!" Hassleberry cried out. "Damn, girl! You're bringing out more dinosaurs than Jurassic Park!"
Cameron screeched. She held her hands together over her chest and started kicking her legs up and down. "I love that movie! I've seen it a hundred times!"
"Not bad. I've seen it two hundred times. Counted each time by the way. Saw it ten times when it came out in theatres. And I've collected each toy, still have 'em in my room."
"That's nice and all, but that won't stop me from walloping you, Hassleberry. I've got three dinosaurs against your one Sabersaurus. Try and survive this round if you can."
"Bring it on, Cameron!"
"Very well, Hassleberry. All right, first, I'm activating the quick-play spell, Rush Recklessly. This will boost my Megazowler's attack points by seven hundred (ATK 2500). Your Sabersaurus won't stand a chance against him now. Go, Megazowler! Horn Ramming Charge!"
Megazowler pawed the ground twice with his massive foot then blew steam out of his nostrils. He reared up on his hind legs as he let out a loud roar, then charged across the river.
"Nice try, Cameron but not good enough."
"Huh?"
"I activate my trap card, Wall of Disruption! Now, your monsters will lose 800 attack points for each monster you control. Your other monsters' attack goes down to zilch and your Megazowler's only got a measly 100 attack points. Sabersaurus! Counterattack!"
Sabersaurs shook her head and charged, intercepting Megazowler's attack and knocking him back to Cameron's side of the field. He landed next to her with an earth-shattering thud and burst into a thousand pieces.
"Oh, that was uncool!" she pouted. "I set two cards face-down and end my turn."
Hassleberry 4000 Life Points - Cameron 2300 Life Points
Hassleberry - Turn 3
"The numbers don't mean nothin' now, eh!" Hassleberry teased her. "With your monsters at zero attack points, it'll be like I'm attacking your Life Points directly. All right, I set a card face-down and summon Black Stego in attack mode!"
A green stegosaurus duel monster with red plates stampeded out of the jungle, knocking down trees and sending birds flying in all directions, desperate to get away from its path.
Black Stego - Dinosaur/Effect Level 4 ATK/1200 DEF/2000
Effect: If this face-up Attack Position card is targeted for an attack: Change this card to Defense Position.
"This is gonna hurt, Cameron! Black Stego, attack her Kaitoptera!"
Cameron quickly activated her trap card. "I activate the trap card, Dance of the Guardian! Here's how it works. First, I choose a card in your hand. If it's a monster card, the attack is negated and the card I picked gets sent to the graveyard. I choose the last one in the center."
"Aw, crap!" Hassleberry flipped the card to reveal the card, which was a monster. "I sure walked right into that one!"
Kaitoptera took flight and Black Stego missed.
"Man, that was brutal!" said Hassleberry. He inserted the discarded monster into the graveyard slot of his duel disk. "But you still have to contend with my Sabersarus. Go! Finish Kaitoptera!"
Cameron giggled at his eagerness to get to her life points. "Not too bright there, Huckleberry. I've still got one face-down card left for you. Floral Shield. This will stop your monster's attack and I get to draw another card."
"Aw, shoot! You really know how to defend herself! And ya managed to get two extra cards as well."
"That's what you get for underestimating me, Huckleberry." She wagged her finger. "Not a very smart thing to do, sorry to say. It's going to cost you dearly. It's my turn, yeah?"
Hassleberry could only snort like an angry dinosaur. "Sure, whatever. Yer move. And it's Hassleberry!"
Turn 4 - Cameron
"You don't sound so gleeful as you were before, Hassleberry. I'm about to get one more card thanks to this little one. I summon Ipiria." After a shower of lights a blue lizard with a white mane formed in front of her. "When Ipiria gets summoned, I'm allowed to draw a card. More resources for me. And now it's time for one of my heavy hitters to come forth and take the stage. I activate the spell, Ultra Evolution Pill."
"I know what that does!" Hassleberry cried out. "Now you can tribute yer little lizard friend and summon a dino from yer hand."
"Correct. And I call on the mighty BLACK TYRANNO!"
Ipiria started to glow until nothing but his silhouette remained. The silhouette grew bigger and bigger and then the light faded away to reveal Cameron's black-armored beast. It was a black tyrannosaurus with a long tongue and yellow eyes.
Black Tyranno - Dinosaur/Effect Level 7 ATK/2600 DEF/1800
Effect: If the only cards your opponent controls are Defense Position monsters, this card can attack your opponent directly.
"Hold it right there, Cameron!" Hassleberry held out his hand and his face-down card lifted up. "I activate the trap, Hunting Instinct. Because you special summoned a monster, I can special summon a dinosaur from my hand. And he's one of my favorite heavy hitters! Dark Tyranno! Front and center!"
Another tyrannosaur stomped out of the jungle. This time it was standing upright like the old depictions of a tyrannosaurus rex. Its body was colored dark brown with tan stripes on its back, legs, and tail.
Dark Tyranno - Dinosaur/Effect Level 7 ATK/2600 DEF/1800
Effect: If the only cards your opponent controls are Defense Position monsters, this card can attack your opponent directly.
Cameron clapped her hands. "So, it looks like we've both got a strong tyranno monster on the field. I've got to say, this is getting rather interesting."
"I can say the same. If ya wanna get to my life points, Cameron, you've gotta get through me."
"Oh, that won't be much of a problem with this next prehistoric monster I'm about to unleash. I activate Polymerization. Now I fuse together Gilasaurus and Kaitoptera to create Horned Saurus!"
Cameron's two dinosaur monsters got sucked into a vortex and out came a giant winged dinosaur. It was jet black with the body of a two-legged carnivorous dinosaur and the wings and head of a pterosaur.
Horned Saurus - Dinosaur/Effect Level 6 ATK/2000 DEF/1800
Effect: During the turn this card was Fusion Summoned, it can attack your opponent directly.
"My Horned Saurus is going to go through your Black Tyranno and more, Hassleberry. When it's fusion summoned, it can attack your life points directly! Go, Horned Saurus! Strike him down!"
Horned Saurus flew over the jungle canopy, then swooped down and hit Hassleberry in the gut. He got tumbled backward and rolled before coming to a stop in front of a tree. Then, Cameron attacked Hasselberry's Sabersaurus with Black Tyranno.
"Damn, you sure got me good!"
"That's enough damage for one turn. I set the last card in my hand face-down and call it a turn."
Hassleberry 1200 Life Points - Cameron 2300 Life Points
Hassleberry - Turn 5
"All right, looks like it's my turn. I activate the spell, Card of Variation. This here spell allows me to draw two cards. However, if I don't discard a card at the end of my turn, I take 3000 damage."
"Kinda puts a damper on your strategies, yeah?" Cameron said. "Careful not to use up your hold hand or you're points are gonna take a shaving."
"I know, I know. But just in case you got any ideas about hitting my life points, I'm activating this. It's called Cross Draw of Destiny. Now here's what it does. We both draw a card. If it's a monster card, we can special summon it to the field in face-up defense mode. And we gain life points equal to its attack points. Now draw."
"And I will. Oh, shoot. It's not a monster." She smiled. But it will come in handy I'm sure.
Hassleberry couldn't help but cackle through his teeth. "And I drew this! Giant Rex, yer up buddy!"
"Oh no! Now you gain two thousand Life Points!"
Hassleberry 3200 Life Points - Cameron 2300 Life Points
"And that puts me back in the lead," Hassleberry chuckled as he summoned an orange-colored predator with a green sail on its back. "And now it's time for our Tyrannos to go head to head. But first, I'm gonna boost my Dark Tyranno's power with this spell card, Raise Body Heat! This increases the attack and defense of dinosaur monsters by 300 points, now my Dark Tyranno can take on your Black Tyranno. And after he's through with him, Black Stego's gonna got a chomp of your life points. You'll barely have any left after this onslaught. Go, Dark Tyranno, take out her Black Tyranno and prove you're the best!"
Dark Tyranno roared. He charged across the river when suddenly he, Giant Rex, and Black Stego vanished.
"What happened!"
Cameron started laughing and she pointed at him mockingly. "Have you forgotten about my face-down card? I guess you did. I activated Quaking Mirror Force. When you declare an attack, this card switches all your monsters into face-down defense position and they remain that way for the rest of the duel."
"Damn! And your Black Tyranno has the same effect as my Dark Tyranno! Well, you ain't getttin' at my life points. I set a card face-down and discard a card per the effect of my Card of Variation. Now, I end my turn."
Turn 6 - Cameron
"I should thank you for activating that Cross Draw of Destiny card, Huckleberry."
"Hassleberry!"
"Whatever. You allowed me to draw the card that will lead me to victory. First, I'm activating this card. Raigeki."
"Sam hill! My monsters!"
Lightning fell from the sky and zapped all of his dinosaurs to dust, leaving him wide open.
"And just to make sure you don't think about using that trap card of yours, I will activate the quick-play spell card, Dino Stomp. Now I choose a dinosaur monster on my field and when it attacks, I can destroy your face-down card. Black Tyranno attack him directly!"
Black Tyranno stomped his foot on the ground roaring viciously and saliva shot out of his mouth, raining everywhere. As he took the first step, Hasselberry's Draining Shield card was shattered to pieces.
"I don't think so!" Hassleberry said. I've still got one more trick up my sleeve. I pay 1000 of my life points and special summon Stegocyber!"
A giant mechanical stegosaurus the size of a mountain materialized behind Hassleberry, snarling and breathing huge columns of mist from its nose. Despite its size, Black Tyranno was still stronger. He smashed his head against the giant Stegocyber's lower jaw and it blasted away.
"If my Stegocyber is special summoned this way, I take no battle damage."
"No, but you've still got my Horned Saurus to concern yourself with!"
Horned Saurus flew through the thick cloud of smoke Steocyber left behind and rammed itself against Hasslberry to deal direct damage. Hassleberry yelled and flew to the dirt.
"I end my turn," Cameron said displeased. "Things don't look so good for you Huckleberry. But I must say, this was quite fun. Are you impressed?"
Hassleberry struggled to get up. He looked at her and smiled. "Impressed? I think I'm in love."
Cameron rolled her eyes, not buying into his comment at all. "Well, aren't you sweet? Get back up and end your turn so I can finish you. I really want to get back to my dig."
Hassleberry 200 Life Points - Cameron 2300 Life Points
Hassleberry - Turn 7
"We're gonna get back to it together, Cameron. With me as an honorary member of your Dinosaur Appreciation Society."
"How do you figure that?"
"Oh, I don't know. This." He held up a spell. Earthquake. It forced Cameron's monsters to switch into defense mode. "And this!" He showed her another spell. Monster Reborn.
"No! It can't be!"
"Oh, it be, Cameron. I'm reviving my buddy Dark Tyranno! Rise and shine buddy! Front and center!" A rain of sparkling light shone down in front of Hassleberry and his dinosaurs reappeared. "And since all you got on your field are defense position monsters, Dark Tyranno can attack you directly! Sic her, boy!"
Dark Tyranno roared one last time and once again charged across the river. He smashed passed Horned Saurus and Black Tyranno and headbutted Cameron so hard she flew five feet across the jungle and landed hard on the ground where she rolled around until she stopped.
Winner: Hassleberry
"Take that!" Hassleberry cheered. His Dark Tyranno roared next to him victoriously before he disappeared. Hassleberry powered down his duel disk. He walked toward Cameron, who was rubbing her butt.
"Ouch," she said. "I'm gonna feel that in the morning."
"Heh, heh. Sorry about that," said Hassleberry. "I'll make it up to ya. How about we get some lunch tomorrow after school?" He held out his hand.
Cameron sighed as she smiled and accepted it. He pulled her back up to her feet. "Well done, Huckleberry. That was...quite impressive."
"It's Hassleberry. And so were you. Man, you really made me work up a sweat."
"So did you. Well, I'm Huckle..er...Tyranno. You've proven your worth. I hereby name you an honorary member of the Duel Academy Dinosaur Appreciation Society. I would give you a badge but they're still being printed."
"No problem. I think this is a great idea. You know, I used to excavate dinosaur bones myself. So I'm more than qualified to be a part of this group."
"Is that so? Where did you dig?"
"Hell's Creek."
"Oh, you're so lucky. I've always wanted to visit Hell's Creek. All the most famous dinosaurs were discovered there."
"And interesting finds in South Africa?" Hasslebery asked as he followed her back to the campsite.
"A few. I've mostly been involved with digs that excavate Triassic wildlife. Nothing like what you've uncovered I'm sure. What specimens have you..."
As they walked back to camp, the sun began to set. Hassleberry felt lighter and calmer for the first time in weeks. Cameron seemed to be the remedy to his problems. Everything about her he found so endearing. Her love of dinosaurs most of all. Now that he was a member of her little club, he felt reassured, knowing that he was going to spend more and more time with her. Could she help him get his nerves under control before the midterms rolled in? Could she help him get the so-called 'mojo' he needed to get back on track with his dueling? He sure felt that way, especially after their match. And now another question came to his mind.
Could he be lucky enough to be the one for her?
Only time would tell.