Unneeded Baggage
Cracked ribs were something that admittedly, weren't new for Katsuya. He'd gotten them falling from his old apartment railing, from one or too really vicious beatings... Hell, it was probably more than two, he never really bothered counting. As it was, they hurt like hell when touched, even when breathing, but seeing how he'd been stupid enough to avoid hospitalization after cracking ribs before, he'd told himself he'd be alright to just head for the finals despite Seto's words.
Even if Shizuka's hug was pushing really, really hard on that rib and... And... It... Really... Hurt damn it... "Shizuka," he finally wheezed, grip loosening as he bit his lip. "I think yer crackin' th' ribs more..."
The girl jumped, pulling back with wide eyes as she looked the blond over. "A-Ahh! You cracked your ribs," she shouted, appearing caught between worry and incredulity. The others came over as Shizuka stood, helping her brother up as the blond nodded weakly. "But how... I mean..."
"Well, with the force Kaiba appeared to be using through CPR I wouldn't be surprised," Otogi muttered, crossing his arms. "From what I've been told," he continued, "It's fairly common for CPR to result in at least a small crack, if not a complete break."
"Well yea," Honda muttered from the side with a frown, "But why was Kaiba giving him..." The teen was quickly cut off as Anzu's cough caught their attention, the woman's eyebrows raised in apparent annoyance as she turned to them. "E-Ehhhhh..."
"Honda," Anzu 'shouted' with a 'grin', moving over to cross her arms. "Thanks so much for leaving me to deal with this guy while you were in Osaka," the expression becoming more and more forced as she went, "I was just wondering how I would be able to pass on his message..."
Hey! 'This guy'! Since when was he 'this- Katsuya blinked as he caught the end of the sentence, gritting his teeth and turning to the guilty pair with narrowed eyes. "Oh yea... Since when did you two get my sister's address," he growled, watching as Otogi and Honda both swallowed nervously. "Don' hold back on th' details now..."
Otogi swallowed, turning to Honda on that. "AHHHHH..."
"W-Well," the taller of the two began, "About that... You see... Er... We..."
"Hey, Jonouchi," a third voice cut in, saving the two from certain death, "This is your duel disk right?" Ah-
The others turned, a few of them double taking as Ryuzaki handed over the disk in question. It was... A little weird... Seeing the guy without his jacket and hat...
Really, really weird, he didn't even have a duel disk o- Wait, why the hell was he here! The blond swallowed, taking the disk with a slow nod nonetheless. "Er... Y-Yea... I..."
"D-Dinosaur Ryuzaki," Anzu said with slightly wide eyes, Yugi as well gaping as the boy growled. "What on earth are you doing here?
"Errrrggggh..." The boy merely pulled at his head, scowling. "Why the hell is everyone so shocked that I have a 'life' damn it!"
Shizuka laughed, shaking her head as she 'patted' her friend's shoulder. "I did tell you that if you play cards all day, it would take over it..."
"You shouldn't be right about it though," he groaned, turning on the girl with narrowed eyes.
She merely shrugged, laughing quietly. "Well... Apparently I am," she responded, the boy growling.
"Gh... What's that supposed to mean!"
The girl merely stared, a somewhat broken smile on her face as the boy's scowl quickly faded. "...I..." She bowed her head, wiping what remained of earlier tears before looking back up at the boy. "I really missed being able to see you, Keichi..." E-Ehh! Ke- No 'kun'!
There was no..!
...Remind him to talk to Ryuzaki later on...
Alone.
"Oh," Shizuka jumped somewhat, as though just realizing that they had an audience. "That reminds me..." The girl turned to the others bowing politely before lightly pushing her friend's head down in a motion to do the same. "I don't know if Katsuya-nihan told you about me," she began, moving her hand as the boy beside her 'straightened' out his hair and scowled, "But I'm his sister, Kawai, Shizuka..." The girl straightened, still smiling as she brushed the hair from her eyes. "Also... Nihan," she said calmly, gesturing to Ryuzaki as the boy looked over the others, "I wan't you to meet-"
"Ryuzaki Keiichi," Katsuya said with a sigh, shaking his head as he met the boy's eyes. All in all he was probably... Just about as tall as Yugi, give or take an inch. Even so. "I kinda guessed from th' phone calls an' conversations," he continued dryly, the others trading glances as the boy scowled.
"If either of you all me 'Keichi'," he warned, "I swear to god..."
"Trust us," Honda said with a slight laugh, before dropping to a flat frown. "We won't..."
The unanimous decision hung through the air at that, before another voice cut through. "Well, in any case," Anzu decided with a frown, "If your ribs are really cracked Jonouchi, you should probably get some help..." The others briefly turned to Anzu with the statement, Mai momentarily looking back to check the blond over from her position as the others attentions were drawn back.
Ehhh... Ahahaha... Compared to the broken rib, everything about the duel was probably hospital worthy really... "It... It ain't that bad," he muttered, wincing as he gave an attempt at a casual shrug. "In all honesty," the blond continued somewhat bitterly, "I've had worse... And really," he muttered with a swallow, "I d'serve worse." Katsuya shifted his gaze to the ground momentarily, bowing his head as he turned to Yugi. "Yugi," he began, not meeting the boys eyes. "All those things I did an' said b'fore... I know that you an' S... An' Kaiba, an' Mokuba were th' only ones here but... It still feels like ev'ryone saw that hell, y' know," he continued, the others frowning confusedly as the blond went on. "An' ev'n though I know it wasn' really me," Katsuya said quietly, sounding uncharacteristically morose compared to his usual self, "I still can't f'rget what I saw..! An' what could've happened... I can't b'gin to apologise for that," he choked, shaking his head, "I..."
The blond froze as a hand pulled him up, the motion slight enough to pass off as his own. "Really," the other Yugi said plainly, appearing between his other half and the blond, "Jonouchi... None of this was your fault." As Katsuya looked at the expression on the spirit's face Yugi's lighter half nodded, his own frown mirroring that of the darker.
"The other me is right," he said clearly, the others blinking off the evident confusion at the statement. "He told me... You were fighting the entire time to stop," he protested, "It's not your fault!"
"Ah... I... What's not his fault," Ryuzaki muttered with narrowed eyes, Mai shaking her head as she looked down at the boy.
"Do yourself a favor hun, don't ask- you'll probably live a much more peaceful life," she added with a smirk, gaining an even more confused glare in response.
"...What..?"
"Heyyyy... Jonouchi," Honda muttered, walking over from the edge of the dock where he'd held a slight distance. The teen now had a very clear look at the condition his friend was in, from the somewhat bloodied arm and brow all the way to his now tattered jacket. "What the hell happened to you anyways?" Uhhhh...
"A good question..." Yes! Very good! Now let him think of an answer! "Your jacket is covered in ash," Mai continued with a shocked whisper, Ryuzaki as well appearing to look at the coat with narrowed eyes. Katsuya merely moved to re-place the duel-disk on his wrist, nervously attempting to piece something together as he paled. UHHHH...
...Please buy his excuse... "H-Hah... Ah... Must've been somethin' th' Rod did, eh Yugi?" The blond looked to his friend at that, Yugi merely staring momentarily before nodding.
"Y-Yea... Malik must have done something..."
There was a fairly obvious look on Ryuzaki's face that said 'that doesn't answer anything', but thankfully he held silent as the others nodded in response. "Sooooo..." A semi-awkward silence settled over the air as the last light the vanished sun left behind began to darken, the waning moon already visible in the sky. For the most part, they'd really been trying to start conversation but... Ironically, it would be the most out of place member of the group to succeed it looked like. "You all made the finals huh," Ryuzaki asked, stowing his hands in his pockets as the group turned.
Shizuka brightened at that, looking to her brother with wide eyes as Katsuya in question stared. "Ah- That's right," she said with a laugh, "Keichi said you were 'doing well' in the tournament, does that mean..."
Oh..! That was right, before he'd been kidnapped he'd been all set for the finals! The blond coughed, hurriedly digging into his pockets as the others stared. It would if he still had... "Ah- Hahaha! YEA!" He pulled out the six cards grinning as he held them out for the others to see in the dying light. "They didn' take 'm! I'm still in!"
"Ah..! Then, if Yugi has all of his cards," Mai added in a 'hinting' tone, the boy in question pulling them from his safely returned belt pocket to show the others.
"Right here," he said with a nod, before carefully stowing them back in the deck holder. "Kaiba-san also has six cards," the boy added plainly, "So counting all of us..." He trailed off, looking toward Ryuzaki's arm as the boy shook his head.
"Lost to Roba an hour in," he grumbled, crossing his arms. "I just came to help Shizka."
"But you can still come can't y'," Katsuya asked, the boy in question raising his eyebrows at the remark. "I mean, heck... I know I want you there Shizuka! I want you t' see what kind 'f a duelist I am," he added with a grin, laughing as the others stared in blank confusion. "Got it?"
The girl seemed to study her brother for a moment, before nodding. "Of course! It should be fun, right," she continued, Ryuzaki giving a neutral shrug.
"Just remember that anything can happen," Mai added with a wink, turning away to her car as the others followed. The woman pulled out her keys, smirking somewhat as she looked back at them. "Try not to feel bad when I beat your brother ah? My power has changed since the Duelist Kingdom," she warned, slipping into her car as the others attempted to follow behind her. "This tournament won't be like last time, understand? Yugi, Jonouchi?"
"Heh!" The boys both nodded in response, Katsuya hopping into the car with a laugh and a wince. "That's jus' what we're expectin'," the blond said with a grin. "An' I ain't gonna lose either; so you watch yerself too!"
"That's right," Yugi said with a nod, following behind his friends as they attempted to cram into the car. "We've changed to... We'll be trying our best," he added, Honda and Otogi both climbing in after the others as Shizuka buckled herself in at the front.
"H-HEY, HEY," Ryuzaki wheezed, finding himself crammed on the shoulder-rest between the front seats. The boy shook himself, pulling his bag up and passing it to Shizuka where it was relatively safe. "How the hell are we going to drive like this without getting ourselves killed!"
"Wh-" The driver in question looked at the rearview mirror, gawking as she watched the others attempt to arrange themselves. "You're all getting on," Mai asked incredulously, Shizuka as well turning from her seat as the remaining five forced their way into the car. Otogi and Honda sitting at either side on the car doors, gripping the sides as they gave up on trying to sit inside the vehicle... And while Ryuzaki was stuck somewhere in the middle, the other three crammed tightly in the middle, Yugi and Anzu both doing their best not to crush their friend's ribs further. The woman shook her head as she stared, dropping her keys. "I can't drive like this!"
"Awww, it'll be fine," Otogi said with a wave, shaking his head as he gripped the back of Shizuka's seat. "Not a problem! Just... Don't go over forty," he added with a nervous laugh, the others narrowing their eyes. Don't go over twenty more like! And GOD this wasn't helping his ribs...
"H-Hey, do we even know where we're going," Anzu asked with a cough, Katsuya finally forgoing elbow room to sit on the back of the car while Ryuzaki moved to his former spot. The blond attempted to gain a grip on the backs of the seats, eventually finding a safe-spot while the others buckled themselves in. "I mean... We have the locator cards but how do we use them?"
"Ahh..." Yugi swallowed, crossing his arms as the engine to the car turned on. "Well, Kaiba-san mentioned a stadium when he activated his own set, but..." The sound of a chopper hit the air above them, the group looking up as the helicopter passed over. "Ah- His helicopter..!"
"And I'm willing to bet I know where he's going," Mai muttered, easing the car toward the road as she turned to check behind her. "Well, there's one way to find it," she shouted as she turned back, "But you boys better hold on tight back there; if I'm going to follow this guy I'll have to break a few laws..!"
"A few," Ryuzaki asked incredulously before the car abruptly spun around to drive off. The boy was quickly forced to the side of the vehicle, gasping for breath as Anzu and Yugi's combined weight crashed into him. "Ghk! Easy on the corners," he rasped, the others around him gripping their friend's legs as they fell to one side. "Easy..!"
"Well, put it this way," the woman responded somewhat dryly, "If I get any tickets, you kids can pay in full; Yugi and Jonouchi aside," she added, the others looking at the two in question before turning back with scowls.
"W-What," Honda shouted, ducking forward as they passed a sign, Otogi as well turning to Mai with wide eyes.
"How come they don't have to pay!"
"Because they look like drowned rats," she shouted over the wind, Katsuya in question laughing nervously as the 'other Yugi' joined him atop the back seat.
"O-Oi, oi," he muttered, resisting the urge to scratch his head, "It ain't that bad..."
"Yes," the spirit beside him responded with a frown. "Yes it is." Thaaaanks... Thanks soooo much...
Shizuka abruptly pointed in the air as the car swerved around another corner, backroads thankfully more or less empty for the moment while the others screamed. "Ah- I can see the helicopter again," she shouted, the vehicle in question appearing to briefly hover over them as those within it looked down. "He's heading north!"
"Got it," Mai shouted, Katsuya as well looking up to the air. It was still hovering there, slowly heading in that direction but...
Hahaha... The blond had to grin as an image of the woman who owned the copter in question came to mind, clearly imagining her looking down with a snort as another 'flash' hit him. 'Hn,' she was muttering, shaking her heads as Mokuba followed her gaze. 'We're being followed by a pack of dogs... Well then,' the woman 'decided', 'If you have what it takes, then follow after me! Full speed ahead,' she shouted to the pilot, the helicopter charging forward just moments later as he grinned. Hahaha...
He gave a slight saluting wave as he tightened his grip, the others on the car's sides briefly looking at him with raised eyebrows. "You're waving at him," Honda asked, bracing himself as they swerved into another corner. "Gh-!" He shook it off, turning back with raised eyebrows. "...Really?"
"O-Oi... S- ...He saved my ass alrigh'," the blond grumbled, scowling as the other Yugi smirked from beside him. Yea, yea, take advantage of being 'invisible' why not...
"I don't even want to know how you got in that situation," Otogi said with a sigh, ignoring the scowl from his friend. "Mai's description of 'drowned rat' fits all to well right now..."
"Gh-" Katsuya growled, teeth grinding as he turned on the teen. "It's not that big a deal damn it! An'-"
-screeeeeee!-
"FU-"
"Ack!"
"OW, FUCK!"
The others tumbled forward on top of each other, groaning as Mai turned back to look at the 'wreckage'. Katsuya was on top of Anzu and Yugi both, Ryuzaki stuck in a corner under Honda and Anzu... Otogi escaped by just hitting the seat, not that he was too pleased about that one. "Sorry about that boys... and Anzu," she added with a nod, the woman in question giving a slightly pained smile as she waved from the near bottom of the pile. "But we are now in the middle of a construction zone," she muttered, clicking the car door open and hopping out, "Which means we're going to be walking from here..." Though thankfully the helicopter appeared to be landing in the distance, sinking toward a series of lights rather than disappearing elsewhere.
The others merely groaned, slowly pulling themselves off of each other as Shizuka simply unbuckled herself and hopped out. "Hnng... Construction," Katsuya asked incredulously, hopping off the back of the car as the others slowly filed out themselves. He looked toward the building and road they'd parked outside of, before blinking. "What th'..."
Across the roped off parking lot what looked to be an immense coliseum stood, a few towers of scaffolding and machinery sitting around in the now dark night sky. A small street ran between it and other roads, the street itself blocked off completely and thus preventing those approaching from doing anything but walking in. "Well," Honda said with a cough, staring at the light that was being released from the building in question. "If there's one thing the jerk is known for it's 'going big'," he said with a shrug, Yugi laughing somewhat nervously.
"Actually," he admitted, "Kaiba-san didn't know about the location himself... In fact, he seemed a little put off when he found out about where it was..." So she didn't know then eh...
The others turned at that, Ryuzaki snatching his bag from the car as they began heading toward the blocked street. "Hn... Did Mokuba come up with it then," Otogi asked, Yugi again shaking his head as they slowly began walking along the half-built walls and buildings in search of an entrance.
"Nope- while we were in the helicopter, Kaiba-san mentioned it to him... He seemed surprised," he continued, Otogi staring momentarily in surprise.
"So he didn't..."
"What the hell are you all talking about..!" The others turned as Ryuzaki held his head in the annoyance of being the 'odd one out', only to wince as it was lightly smacked by an annoyed looking Shizuka.
"There are other ways to ask," she muttered darkly, the boy merely looking at her with a light frown while his friend crossed her arms.
"Well there are other ways to get me to ask," he grumbled, Shizuka merely looking at her friend with a frown.
"You don't listen though! At all!"
"Ah- And when was the last time you tried something else anyways," he bit back, pointing somewhat accusingly as Shizuka blinked.
"The last- What's that supposed to mean," she 'growled', the others briefly looking back as the 'quiet' girl they'd met continued arguing with her friend.
Honda and Otogi traded glances as the banter continued on behind them looks of confusion evident on their faces. "This... Do you think this is why he hasn't tried to slaughter Ryuzaki yet," Otogi whispered, Honda shrugging in response.
"I don't know," the teen said with a cough, "I..."
"It's got nothin' t' do with that," Katsuya growled from in front of the two, the both growing rather pale as they realized he'd heard every word. They both watched as their friend looked back, the ever present 'don't touch my sister' glare in place as they swallowed.
"Ehhh..."
"Ahahaha..."
Yea. That was what he thought. The blond merely shook his head, looking around as they moved toward the coliseum. In all honesty, he'd deal with Ryuzaki later... He just didn't trust people he used to partner with for 'date hunting'... Not to mention the fact that it was his SISTER damn it!
"So," a voice muttered from the side, pulling his attention from those thoughts. "Jonouchi..." Katsuya turned somewhat as the other Yugi appeared beside him, watching the spirit continue on with a slight frown. "You said you would explain about the fight," he asked, nodding somewhat. "Back at the pier..?"
Katsuya swallowed, briefly freezing as the others continued to walk past him. Ah... Right...
That was right, he'd said that hadn't he. This... The blond bit his lip, looking back at the ground a moment. He didn't want to lie about this, not to his best friend, but with all that was going on... He looked back at the ones ahead of him as he stood in the darkness, staring at his friends and the small spirits following them around as well. Ryuzaki's raptor... Mai's own monster being some sort of giant, golden bird with a set of four wings... And behind Yugi there was Kuriboh, the brown fuzz-ball serving as some sort of 'nest' for the miniaturized Red-Eyes at the moment, the dragon's wings and limbs thankfully repaired. These things... He could see them, when no one else could, but...
How the hell did he explain that? That when he dueled, he was seeing something different? That all he could see were tablets in the place of cards, living monsters instead of holograms cleverly programmed to emulate those beasts. That just like how the monsters wounds were real, each attack on him dealt real damage as well, and that if Yugi wasn't careful he would end up dead when they battled? That when they finally faced each other in this tournament...
Katsuya swallowed, the other Yugi still silently waiting for his response. He... He didn't want their fight to be like that... He didn't... "It's... It's like I said b'fore," he said with a weak smile, mentally beating himself as he made his decision. "Th' rod... When it took over," he continued rather nervously, "All I could see was that flamin' thing an' th' monsters..." And... He wasn't technically saying that was the reason right? He was just saying he could still see them so... So... "...You're sayin' y' don' see that kinda thing most 'f the time," the blond asked somewhat nervously, further attempting to link it to items as he asked the question that had been nagging at the back of his mind for months.
The spirit paused as he took in the answer, before shaking his head. "No... I can sense the spirits of my monsters as they fight," he said with a light frown, "But besides that moment when I was tied to your body..." He trailed off, shaking his head as a somewhat distant look came to his eyes. "It was incredible," the boy muttered, hovering in place to meet his friend's height. "As though a rush of power had filled my entire being at that moment, almost like I was alive not through someone else's body, but instead..." He drifted off, gaining a somewhat misty look as he left the end hanging in the air. Not someone else's body but... In... Instead..?
E-Ehhh..! Was he saying that he'd been 'alive' again! How... That didn't make any... "Hey!" The pair turned abruptly, looking at the others as Ryuzaki turned back to them from the back of the group. "Are you done talking to yourself," he shouted, gaining a pointed look from Shizuka as the blond paled.
Oh... Oh right! They couldn't see... (Hell, he probably should have waited until they were in some other room or... )The other Yugi smirked, shrugging as he moved to float after his partner. "I suppose we can find out how it worked later," he admitted, unaware of the relieved sigh his friend gave in response as he turned back around. Just so long as he forgot later... And he didn't have to explain. The group passed through another 'hall' of scaffolding, turning up the parking-lot road as pale moonlight illuminated their path. All around them were scattered papers, hanging sheets, shadows playing in the light...
"Hihhh..." An involuntary shudder passed through his body as he looked around, swallowing as a chilled breeze passed them by. "Thi' 's like walkin' in a ghost town," he muttered, absently rubbing his arm as Mai chuckled from in front of him.
"Really," the woman said with a smirk, looking back at the teen. "Such a cowardly thing to say, aren't you a finalist? Just what are you going to do when you have to duel?"
"Gh- It... That doesn' have anythin' t' do with it," the blond growled defensively, Shizuka giving a somewhat sympathetic smile as Mai and Ryuzaki both caught the look on his sister's face.
"Oh... You're... Actually serious," Mai muttered, blinking somewhat awkwardly as she coughed. "Really! My comment stands even more now! What kind of 'man' are you?" The kind that didn't like the undead, so drop it!
Ryuzaki nodded, shaking his head as he smirked. "Sheesh! If this scares you, I'd hate to see you against Kotsuzuka," he chuckled somewhat darkly, arms crossed as the blond coughed awkwardly. Yeaaaaaa... About that... Ryuzaki's smirk fell, blinking as he looked back to the blond. "Wait... You... You actually fought with..." The boy paused momentarily, soon walking at the teen's side and staring at him in incredulity. "How the hell did you get through that then," he asked, Katsuya tensing further and further with each word. "I mean... Kotsuzuka's entire being screams-"
"Gh- I don' wanna talk about it," he growled, grabbing his head as the memory of the 'zombie' duel came to mind, "So jus' drop it, alrigh?"
The boy shrugged, shaking himself as they walked on. "Alright, alright..." Sheesh..!
Now he had dead things in his head. Hihhhhh... Katsuya sighed as they approached the coliseum entrance, before pausing as a poster caught his eye. Eh... He turned to look at the paper, blinking as the words gradually cleared in the dim light. Ah... A new Magnum movie!
"Oh sweet," Ryuzaki muttered from the side, grinning as he stopped to look at the poster himself. "He's against ninjas in this one!" Masked ninjas. One was a demon, one was a... ...Blank... He supposed...
The others as well paused at the mention of 'Magnum', the first two boys quickly joined by Honda and Otogi as they looked over the poster in evident curiosity. "Wait," Katsuya muttered, shaking himself and turning to the shorter of the group. "You watch Magnum movies," he asked, the boy in question grinning as he adjusted his bag.
"Hah! Who the hell doesn't," he shouted, a quick 'hear hear!' coming from the two behind them.
"So it's ninja's this time," Honda was muttering, Otogi looking over the poster with a grin.
"YES..." Well, obviously ninja's were this guy's weak point...
Faded and somewhat sarcastic laughter came from behind the boys as Yugi stared, Anzu merely shaking her head while Shizuka moved to join the group. The girl lightly moved past Honda to look around her friend's shoulder, staring at the image curiously. "Ah..? It's not going to be like the cowboy one is it," she asked with a quiet frown, her friend pulling a face.
"As far as I'm concerned, that one doesn't exist." he muttered the other boys nodding 'knowingly' in response.
"Agreed," Otogi muttered, arms crossed as he shook his head.
Honda as well crossed his arms, a similar expression on his face before he turned to the 'new guy' in the group. "Hnn... Maybe you aren't so bad Ryuzaki..."
The boy snorted, a smirk briefly coming over his face. "Of course not, I- WAIIIIIIIT... What was that," he growled, turning on the two with a scowl as the others sighed.
The sound of screeching tires hit the air to cut his words short, the group looking behind them as what looked to be a stretch limo pulled to a stop on the parking-lot beside them. "Wh- I thought th' streets in here were closed," Katsuya muttered, Mai visibly tensing at the limo's appearance as a flag on the window flapped in the breeze.
"It IS," she bit out with a grated tone, momentarily sounding similar to Seto as she clenched her fists. He-Hey, what was this, she have something against limos or something? The door to the vehicle popped open with that thought, a young man in a white suit and sandy brown hair stepping out as Mai continued to growl. The man had on him a disk on one arm and a bouquet of roses in the other as he removed his sunglasses, slipping them into his pocket to face the group.
"Mai," he said with a smile, his target not even bothering to cover the look of distaste she had.
"Hello, Jean..."
This... This face... "J-Jean- Jean-Claude Magnum," Ryuzaki hissed, the group turning on Mai with wide eyes as they quickly compared the suit wearing man to the image on the poster. "You... You know Jean-Claude Magnum," he shouted, receiving no answer as the others swallowed.
"Ohhhhh hell," Katsuya muttered, looking over himself with a wince. "I don' have anythin' f'r him t' sign... That would've made Mokuba's day damn it..." Though if Mokuba wanted he could probably just ask and have it in an instant...
Sometimes, he had to respect that kid's ability in self-control. Mai continued to glare from beside the group as muttered questions hie the air, Jean walking toward her with a somewhat suave look on his face while she growled. "Since when did my restraining order lose effect within Japan," the woman 'asked' dangerously, a few of the boys tilting their heads in shock. "I distinctly recall it stating that you were supposed to stay at least fifty meters away from me at all times..."
W-w-wait... The restraining order... The order Mai got on the guy she dumped around Valentines..! "Wai- THAT'S the guy," Honda shouted, turning back to look at Jean as he paled. "That... You gave us chocolate that MAGNUM was supposed to eat," he continued, the woman merely shrugging as her ex looked at the boys in slight surprise.
"...We ATE chocolate Magnum was supposed to eat," Katsuya muttered, eyes wide as he stared.
Ryuzaki merely continued to stare, shaking himself as he looked at the sour expression across Mai's face. "...Why the hell did she get a restraining order on Magnum..?"
These questions and many others were largely ignored as Jean held out the flowers to his apparent ex, bowing his head in polite 'apology' with a cough. "My dear Mai..." With those words alone he was digging a hole Katsuya noted nervously, Mai's face growing extremely red as a look akin to Seto's more 'frightening' ones came into place. The fact that anyone other than Seto could even emulate that expression was a shock compared to the fact that it was still souring. "I know that we got off on the wrong foot," Jean said with accented Japanese, "But-"
"But nothing," the woman said flatly, cutting the man off "The only reason I haven't pulled out my phone and called you in is because I'll be late for the finals if I do!" Oh yea, that was in what... Half an hour? No way she'd get the police here on something like that in that amount of time.
Jean merely turned his head away momentarily, before looking back with a cough. "Yes well... If you could please, please give me another chance," he 'begged', the flowers rather violently ripped from his hands and tossed to the boys at the side. "Ah-!"
For a moment, there was a bit of a scramble, the four near the poster attempting to snatch at whatever it was that had been ripped out of the movie star's hands. "Here boys! A souvenir from your idol; don't fight over them now," she added dryly, the flowers hurriedly dropped as Otogi realized what had been tossed his way.
"Aaaaaagghh..." The teen shook himself, kicking the bouquet away with an odd gagging noise while the others silently went through their own motions of light horror.
"That- That was worse than my cousin's wedding," Honda choked, wiping his hands on his shirt as a look of disgust came over him.
"Hell, I'm not that desperate for something he touched," Ryuzaki muttered in 'agreement', turning back to the arguing 'couple' as Jean sighed.
"Please... It was one time," the man protested through his accented whine, "And I-"
"I don't want to hear it," Mai growled, shaking her head as she attempted to storm past the man. "Now if you'll excuse me," she continued with a snarl, "I have a tournament to get to!" For a moment as Mai moved to go into the entrance, Jean stood there, staring off at her back. Abruptly however he appeared to steel himself, dropping the somewhat put-off look he had and swallow.
"...Duel me!"
Ah what. Katsuya blinked, raising an eyebrow as the others looked from Jean to Mai. This was starting to sound like a corny romance...
Except with a restraining order involved... Which probably wasn't the best thing to throw into the mix he thought with a mental cough, watching as Mai turned to face her 'stalker'. The woman stared as Jean pulled a ring box from his pocket, a slightly desperate gleam in his eyes as he unveiled a glimmering, flawless diamond. "From the moment I met you on that ship," Jean 'begged', "I knew you were 'different'... Duel me, and let me prove myself again!" Uhhhh... W-Wait...
What. "Is he proposing," Otogi hissed, the others gaping.
If... If that happened... "D- Holy shit," Honda muttered, a grin coming over his face, "We're gonna be friends with a movie star!"
"Ahh..." There was a slightly nervous cough from the side, the others turning as Shizuka pointed toward Mai and swallowed. "I don't think that's going to quite work like that," she muttered nervously, the others catching Mai's extremely rage-filled expression before the woman 'exploded'.
"You... I get a restraining order, I get new locks, and I even get a DOG," she raged with clenched fists, "And you think you can offer me a ring and get a YES!" Yea, now that he thought about it, Magnum wasn't sounding so cool after all of that...
At the same time... "Given that Magnum does his own stunts in his films," Otogi muttered with a swallow, Jean in question standing through the rant with a neutral expression in place, "I'm going to say that's exactly what he thinks..."
"Yea but... Magnum wouldn't start throwing punches over this right," Ryuzaki hissed, the others trading nervous looks as the boy frowned. "...Right?" ...Hopefully?
Jean continued to hold the ring for a moment, before pulling it back with a calm smile and chuckling. "You told me yourself, that the day I beat you would be the day you married me," he responded rather plainly, Mai's face momentarily falling to the similar 'Kaiba-Calm-Before-Storm' phase. "I might not be in this tournament," the oblivious man continued with a smile, "But I'm fairly certain that you'll keep your word..."
For a moment, the air was left silent, with Mai's eyes largely hidden by her hair as she shook. However a fair number of them, whether from experience with friends or siblings, had a fairly good idea on what was going to happen next. Because really, now that he thought about it...
Magnum was probably dead already. "A-Ah... M-Mai," Yugi said nervously, looking up at the woman as he coughed. "Are you al-"
"Alright Jean," the woman growled with a start, disk clicking into place with a resounding snap as the man in question stepped back. "We'll duel- and after I beat you, you can forget about any agreements and leave me ALONE," she roared as they took positions, Jean merely giving a bow of sorts as he set his own disk into place. The disk clacked smoothly into place, a fierce wind buffeting the man somewhat as Mai leered at the man. Oooooh boy... This would either be really amusing or really painful to watch... "This'll only take a moment alright," she added with a somewhat calmer tone, glancing back at the others. "We'll make it to the tournament easily."
"Indeed they will," the man shouted from across the field, drawing his hand of cards as the duel started off. "And soon enough, while you enjoy your last tournament," the man continued with a smile, "I will be planning the perfect wedding..." Jean continued to beam at that, Mai's fist clenching tightly as she drew her own hand. Either he was really oblivious to what was going on or he had one huge death wish... "California has a number of places, but you would probably prefer something Japanese, am I right..?" Ehhhh... He should probably stop talking, right now..! Jean merely chuckled as his ex continued to shake across from him in rage, taking a card from his hand with a smirk. "I'll go first," he decided, setting the card on the field as a somewhat black tablet arose in response. "Summoning Ninja Commander Ikusa!" Black smoke swirled about the stone as a samurai-esque figure stepped forward, drawing a blade with a curt and silent nod. "Next, using his special effect," the man went on, green armored ninja leaping from in front of the tablet to slam his hands upon the top of the structure, "I summon Ninja Soldier 'Katana'! Both in attack mode," he shouted, the second ninja arriving to the field from a burst smoke. Eh...
It didn't have a tablet..? The second ninja, appearing quite stereotypical in terms of skin-tight black garb, drew his two blades, spinning them across his hands. More importantly though, looking back at the movie poster... "Wow," Ryuzaki said with a cough, shaking his head as Mai quite calmly summoned 'Amazon Swordswoman' to destroy the weak monster in a cloud of smoke, "Not only was that really predictable but..."
"I don't even duel and I can tell he's an amateur," Honda groaned, most of the others shaking their heads. The Amazoness appeared to agree quite completely, leaning on her blade with a yawn.
"Hahhh... And here I thought my new job would be hell..." Wait for it... Wait for it... "I can't believe I quit for this..." Exactly! ...Wait. Wh-...
Wait what? Duel monsters had jobs, what?
Katsuya shook himself as it again came to Jean's turn, a second tablet appearing to the man's side as he made his move. "Hnnn... A sharp blow," he commented, a second 'samurai' stepping forth from the smoking stone before smacking the rock to activate his effect, "I'll be summoning another Ninja Commander and Soldier," he announced, the second ninja leaping to the field as a trail of dust and smoke rose through the air. "And I'll again end my turn!"
S... Seriously? Just... Attack mode ninjas? The guy was already eleven hundred points down, how the hell... "Wow," Shizuka said with a somewhat incredulous stare, the expression mirrored by the Amazoness as her summoner ordered her attack. "When Mai-san said 'this will be quick'..." There was a wave of dust as another tablet was cut in two by the Amazoness' massive sword, the girl shaking her head as Jean was left with a 'Katana' and a 'Commander' on the field. "She really wasn't ki-"
"Hnhnhn..." The opponent's laughter cut her short, Katsuya watching as Jean drew his card and made his next move. "My turn again," the man announced, the others frowning as his grin persisted. Either he was way more oblivious than he figured or...
Another tablet arose from the field, the Ninja soldier vanishing into a cloud of dust as the somewhat larger structure began to form. Yep. It was all 'as planned'... Damn it. "Now that I have two ninja's in the graveyard, I can put my strategy into motion," Jean said with a grin, switching a few cards on the disk before grabbing more. "First, I sacrifice the Ninja soldier to summon 'Ninja Master Shogun'," he shouted, the monster in question arising from the stone with a mask near identical to that of the one in the poster behind them. "And using his effect," the man continued, words accompanied by numerous hand-seals on the part of his summoned monster, "I special summon two more ninjas from my deck... Moreover," he shouted, the cards ejected and set into place as tablets swarmed the field and arose in a domino formation, "One of those ninja's allows me to special summon another ninja!" Another- The 'audience' gaped as the remaining ninja piled onto the field, another solider appearing before he was followed by a white masked woman and man. "So then... First, the Shogun attacks your swordswoman," Jean ordered, the demonic-masked monster running the woman through with his spear as the Amazoness choked and collapsed, "And then... Kabuki, Katana, and the Kunoichi Ayame attack directly," he called out, the trio charging forward with a wide array of weapons as Mai doubled over from the force of what Katsuya couldn't see.
"Ghnn..!" Mai gripped her stomach briefly, her Amazoness in the meantime fading into dust with her tablet as she held her own bleeding wound. "You prick..."
"Ghk- Probably should have expected that..." Yea... They should have to, so it wasn't her fault really...
Jean merely shook his head, crossing his arms and sighing as the woman leered at him from across the field. "I didn't want it to be like this," he said in excuse, biting his lip. "I don't want to hurt you after all, but love is a violent game at heart..."
...What the hell did that even mean... "Ugh..." His opponent shook her head, teeth grinding as she straightened herself out and continued to glare. "Save it for your next film," Mai spat, rubbing her stomach with a swallow. Sheesh... He knew Mai would probably turn this around easily but...
Man, if this guy landed another hit like that she'd be stuck in engagement! ...And they'd be stuck hearing about it! "Hnn... Well," the man decided with a shrug, "Before I end my turn, I'll set a card face down..." As the blank tablet appeared to his side he continued to smirk, eyes shining darkly in the dull moonlight. "With luck," he said with a 'sigh', "It'll only hurt a little more..."
A fair number of the audience had to roll their eyes at that, particularly as the woman in question summoned her next monster. The tablet arose tall and strong at her side, a sleek, mature-looking version of her signature monster carving itself into place on the cover. "Tch- I summon the Harpie Queen in attack mode," she shouted, pointing the white-winged woman forward as the 'queen' burst forth from the stone. The monster spun high into the air, long hair trailing with a beauty that far surpassed its 'younger' brethren. "Attack the Ninja Master," Mai ordered, an ear-splitting screech piercing the air as the Queen did as ordered.
Another shout however cut the attack short, Jean's voice faded somewhat in the momentary 'deafness' the Queen's shriek had left the blond. 'Activate trap,' he dimly heard the man roar, blank tablet grinding into dust and filling the field as his ninja tossed a bomb of sorts to the ground. 'Ninja smoke ball!' The monster ducked as the Queen attempted to tear at his throat, smoke filling the air and clogging the harpie's lungs before it was forced to retreat with a snarl.
"Gh! My feathers," the monster growled, perching on her tablet and looking at her now ashen wings. "How DISGUSTING! What is the MEANING of this!"
Geeze, the bird was as much a drama queen as the others... "Tch..." Mai narrowed her eyes as her Harpie continued to grumble, nonetheless steeling herself as she took a card from her hand. "I'll play a card face down and end my turn," she muttered, crossing her arms somewhat bitterly. Hnnn...
Jean's grin was still 'shining' from across the field, the man drawing his card only to immediately set it on the disk with a chuckle. "My turn then," he announced as the tablet appeared on the field, only to crumble into dust behind his most powerful monster. "First, the spell card 'Great Kite of Ninja'," Jean called out, the Ninja Master pulling yet another device from its armor before taking to the skies on the great and clearly visible kite. "And now, while he's out of reach and safe from all attacks..." Oh so that was what it did... All he'd figured was that it pulled him up in the air, that was... "I'll make use of his other effect! By sacrificing a monster," Jean explained as the crowd stiffened, "The Ninja Master can attack directly... It'll all be over soon," he continued with a 'soothing' sigh, tapping the disk as his Ninja Soldier erupted into smoke from the field. "Ninja Master attacks directly!"
"G- Hn!" The ninja tore forward, Mai flinching as the blade passed through her before the monster and kite both returned to the skies. The Harpie Queen looked back at her summoner briefly before scowling, both women snarling at the ninja and its summoner as they grew red. "Rgggh..."
"Of all the underhanded, cowardly stunts..!"
Hey... They were ninjas, what did she expect? Either way, this was a pain, he told himself frowning as the others stared at the kite above. "Is it possible to turn this around soon enough," Anzu muttered from the side, shaking her head as Yugi frowned.
"Well," he began as he crossed his arms in thought, "If she had 'Harpies Feather Duster' in her hand..."
Hey, that sounded good! "Oi Mai," Katsuya shouted from the side, "You got a 'Feather Duster'?"
"If I DID, I would have PLAYED IT," she roared, the crowd tensing slightly as the woman growled. H-Hey hey, honest question! Not his fault he didn't get flashes when he wanted! "Besides... I don't need that card to win," the woman continued, narrowing her eyes as she turned her anger to the field. "I already have an idea... First, the spell Kaleidoscope," Mai announced, an eerie light shining beneath her Harpie to fan out into two extra duplicates of the bird-like beast. The Queen's duplicates stared at their original, blinking a few times before the first snorted. 'Please,' she muttered under her breath, 'We all know who the 'real' Queen is...' Not that they looked pleased about that comment as their summoned pulled their attention. "Now," Mai ordered, "Attack all three of the ninjas!"
The Queens quickly nodded in response, taking to the sky as the first pointed her claws forward. "Eagle's formation," she ordered swiftly, razor sharp teeth bared as the other Harpies flanked her side. "GO!"
"KEEEEEERRR!"
In a flash of steel claws the birds each struck, throats slashed as blood spurted to the field and over the Harpies' talons and faces. The ninjas stood little chance as they were deafened by the monster's cries, weapons clattering to the ground before they dissolved into dust with their tablets. Briefly Katsuya tensed, a droplet of blood splashing across his face as the birds flew back, the urge to wipe it off only barely suppressed by the fact that the other Yugi currently stood beside him. The blond quickly opted with pushing the slight unease back with a cheer in the end, cupping his hands as the Harpies returned to their single tablet. "HAH! Alrigh'! Let's wrap this up Mai!"
The woman smirked, a thumbs up coming from her side of the field as Jean grit his teeth. "Hn! The audience should know to keep quiet," he said with a frown, the 'audience' in question rolling their eyes. "Particularly in the matters of adults..."
Katsuya merely snorted, crossing his arms. Really, it was what, the second comment..? "Heh! Like we care what you think," he shouted, most of the others nodding in agreement as they sent their own muttered insults forward.
"That's right," Ryuzaki muttered with a smirk, "You can go to hell for all I care!"
Shizuka frowned at this, turning to the boy with raised eyebrows as her friend turned back. "Didn't you just say how much of a fan you were five minutes ago," she asked, the boy merely shrugging the question off.
"That was five minutes ago," he 'argued', Honda as well nodding.
"Yea," the teen added 'knowingly', "Things can change in five minutes."
"Like what, the wind," Otogi muttered in response to that, the conversation cutting short as Mai ended her turn from across them.
While they'd been arguing and talking a face down card had apparently been set, a blank tablet sitting at the woman's side where the Harpies were perched in wait. This would be the last turn, Katsuya thought in the back of his mind, finding himself more than used to 'just knowing' things by this point. The wind appeared to pick up somewhat in response to that un-spoken knowledge, Jean taking his next turn as he drew a card. The last move... "I play Kunoichi Ayumi the Ninja Girl in attack mode," the man announced, a single tablet arising beside his 'missing' monster's own. The familiar white masked woman stepped out from the stone, arms crossed as she awaited the inevitable in silence. "I then sacrific-"
"Activate trap," Mai shouted, cutting the man off as Ayumi jumped. Jean tensed as his opponent tapped her duel disk, the blank tablet to her side abruptly melting into the ground for the dust to travel across the field. "Grave arm!" An arm tore free from the earth at 'Ayumi's feet, the masked woman jumping and struggling as it pulled her beneath the ground. Soil and brick were tossed and pushed to the side as the ninja's mask hid her fear, blocking her screams as her hands clawed at the ground before vanishing. The woman's tablet fell to a pile of dust, filling the hole in as Katsuya swallowed from the side and attempted to hide his own nausea at the sight. Mai's actions were far from done with that spell however, Jean's turn automatically forfeit with the absence of spells or traps to play from his hand. "And now that it's my turn again... Well. Seeing how your field is now clear, and you were ready for attack," the woman 'drawled' in clear annoyance, "How about I do the same..." Jean paled at those words, the Queens rising to the air with the mention of a fight. "Harpie Queens," she shouted, the monsters leering at their opponent as they awaited the command. "Attack directly!"
"SCREEEEEEE!" "AMPHIPTERE FORMATION," the first Queen roared, the first to charge forward in the resounding screech. In a swift and elegant line the birds struck, diving forward and through the man as they wiped out his life points. One, two, three they tore through, and with each one's exit they 'disappeared' into a fine dust, the tablets already cleared from the field as the end of the duel came around. But wait...
Why was that kite still..?
"Hn..! So I've lost," Jean said with a sigh, his duel disk folding back up as Katsuya looked back down at the 'field'. "Well... The game hasn't ended yet my dear..." Mai frowned at that, the car door to the side opening as her ex returned to the limo. "I'll see you soon," he added with a smirk, glancing at the sky as he tapped his collar. "Very soon, I'm sure..." Hang on...
That-! The car tore off in the night with a loud and ear-splitting screech, Katsuya hurriedly looking to the sky again as the kite shimmered in the moonlight. Different... It was a different kite, a different colour and above it..! "Mai," he shouted, the woman turning and jumping with a start as the blond shouted out to her. "Look out!"
"Heh-!" A net was tossed from the side of the kite, the sound of a helicopter meeting the air as Mai was quickly entangled pulled away. "What the he- JEAAAAAAN," she roared, pulling at the net as she looked to where the car vanished.
The others swallowed as the net rose further into the air, frozen briefly as the captured woman raged at her fairly obsessed ex. "This guy really wants to get laid," Ryuzaki muttered dryly, ducking a swipe from Shizuka as they ran after the net. "Gh- It's true!" The comment was left unanswered as Katsuya ran forward, cupping his hands as he kept the net in sight.
"Mai! We're comin' alrigh'," he shouted, the woman glancing down from where she was fiddling with the strings.
For someone who was stuck in a net, she was oddly... "Take your time kids! I'm not going anywhere!" Hahaha, that was so... So funny, really... And hang on-! The group skidded to a halt as Mai began filing through the thin netting with the edge of her duel disk, Katsuya blinking as the action began to work in the woman's favor. One thread snapped... Two... Three- "Hyaaah!" A panicked shout hit the air as the woman dropped to the scaffolding below, only to slip and fall to a nearby street lamp as the others moved to stand by it. E-Ehh? That actually worked! Mai groaned as she gripped the lamp pole, legs swinging somewhat as she shook her head. "Ooooh... That could have gone much, much better," she said through a wince, the others looking up with swallows.
"Ahhh... Shit," Katsuya muttered, staring up at the woman and scratching his head. "How the hell are we..."
Honda quickly pulled Otogi over near the post, holding his hands out. "Chair," he said with a steady look. "Make a chair, we'll catch her."
"A chair," the teen hissed, looking back up as Mai pulled herself up to sit on the pole. He appeared to go over his options in his mind as he stared at the woman above, before nodding. "Right! Right... Hey..! Mai," he shouted, linking hands with his friend to form a square-ish 'chair' of sorts as they stood beneath the lamp light. "Jump! We'll catch you alright?"
The woman looked down, blinking somewhat blankly as the others stared. "You sure," she asked, raising an eyebrow as she looked at the pole. "I could just slide down..."
"Slide-" The two looked at each other, before staring back at the short skirt with somewhat spaced out expressions in place as they went red. "Slide down... Ahh..."
Evidently they weren't very good at hiding the looks on their faces with that thought either, as the next thing they knew Mai had jumped, with the two teens collapsing to their knees as the woman landed squarely on their arms and walked away. "I decided it was faster to jump," she said somewhat dryly, looking back as the two began rubbing their arms. The boys both groaned from where they'd fallen, the woman walking back toward them with a smile. "Need a hand," she continued with a softer tone, moving to help the two up.
"S-Sure," Otogi muttered, rubbing his shoulder as he was pulled up. The teen stumbled to his feet, rotating the limb with a wince as he moved. "Sfff... I think I pulled my shoulder..."
"Your shoulder," Honda muttered in response, shaking himself as he was helped up as well. "My entire arm is stinging!"
"And what's that supposed to mean," Mai growled, those watching coughing somewhat awkwardly as the other two turned to answer.
"Ahhh... That it... Hurt," Otogi attempted in defense, only to be elbowed by his friend. "Gh- What the hell," he hissed, gaining a 'look' from the teen in response.
"...Nhn... 'And'," the woman before them continued, eyebrows raised.
A small bit of silence filled the air at that, before Honda hurriedly began spouting his own excuse. "...It has nothing to do with-" The taller of the teens were elbowed this time, Otogi hissing under his breath as his friend winced.
"Moron! If you say anything regarding that kind of thing we'll all die!"
Honda went quite pale at that, coughing before hurriedly running back toward the coliseum entrance. "Aaaaand hey," he said with a laugh, Mai rolling her eyes in slight annoyance, "We should get moving so you're not late for the finals! Ahahaha... Ahhh..."
Well, he had a point with that one... "Heh... Good plan," Katsuya shouted, moving toward the entrance himself as the others followed behind with nods.
"Right," Yugi was saying with a grin. "Lets go!"
"Wait... How is there going to be room for all of us if it's 'finalists only'," Ryuzaki asked with a frown, pulling a face at the thought. "I mean, what, are we going to end up sharing or..."
"Hah! What... Dipping out already," Otogi asked with a smirk, the boy sputtering in response before gaining an aggravated scowl.
"Tch- Hell no! I wouldn't miss this for anything," he shouted, a few of the others shaking their heads in amusement.
Shizuka as well was laughing at the response, shaking her head as she looked to her friend. "That's the spirit," she said with a smile, "We'll be fine... I'm sure they'll think of something," she continued, turning as Katsuya nodded.
"'F course!" Even if the fact was that they would probably all be sharing rooms like Ryuzaki had said.
"I just hope it looks better than this place," Ryuzaki muttered dryly, looking around at the unfinished coliseum stands around them. "This is a wreck..."
"Hah! It's called being 'unfashionably early," Mai said with a chuckle, the boy's expression simply slipping further into a deadpan in response. "Now... Let's see what 'hidden location' Kaiba could be hiding from us here," she decided with a wink, moving through the hall as she adjusted the disk on her wrist.
There were nods all around in response to that, nearly blinding lights coming from the inside of the stadium. From what they could tell as they got in, it was just a stadium under construction, as expected but... "Jonouchi!"
The blond turned, jumping as Isono appeared to the side of the arena with a short wave. "Ah- I-Isono..!"
"You know this guy," Honda asked, the blond nodding as Isono walked toward them in greeting.
"Yea, he works f'r S- F'r Kaiba," he corrected, the man in question holding a largely professional appearance as he stood before the crowd.
Isono bowed somewhat, a smile on his face as he looked over the group. "I see your friends have come to see you off," the man began calmly, bowing his head to the others before him, "Assuming you are indeed here for the finals," he added, watching as the blond as well as Yugi and Mai pulled out their six cards to hold out in response. "Ahhh..." Isono reached forward, taking the cards and stowing them in his suit jacket. "Congratulations to all of you then! Here," he continued, pulling out three 'key cards' while he was at it. "This one here is yours Jonouchi," the man stated, Katsuya blinking as he looked over the '2' on his card. "And this is yours," he went on, handing the next, '7' to Yugi before handing the last one to Mai. Number '5', the blond noted idly.
But wait... "We get sp'cific cards," he asked with raised eyebrows, Isono smirking as Yugi also stared at the man.
"Well..."
"I had a feeling you wouldn't take my advice and 'stay put'," Seto growled, the group jumping as the woman walked over. Though her clothes were still rather wet she'd quite clearly gotten over the shock earlier on; her disk had been replaced firmly on her arm, with Mokuba running behind the semi-dry woman with a grin. "So I took 'precautions'..." Precautions..? What the hell did that have to do with his and Yugi's rooms being picked out?
...Moreover, why was she admitting that outloud, normally there'd be an insult, or... The others blinked as the siblings continued to approach, Mokuba looking over Katsuya and Yugi with slight worry as he moved toward them. "Hey, you two are alright... Right," he asked, the boys both nodding and smiling.
"Of course," Katsuya said with a grin, ignoring the numb pain his cracked rib was still giving him. "Better than ever!"
"We're fine," Yugi continued. He looked around the stadium with a frown however, turning back to Mokuba in confusion. "But where exactly is the tournament taking place..?"
A shadow passed over the ground with those words, the group hurriedly looking up and gaping as the source was slowly made visible in the light of the stadium. Barely able to fit within the already enormous structure an airship began lowering to the ground, the plane-like machine at the bottom lowering to the ground as the ship 'docked'. "Hn!" Seto smirked, arms crossed as the group continued to stare almost incredulously at the device. "Does that answer your question," she 'asked', the airship's turbines lowering their wheezing roar to a whisper as still more spotlights turned on around them.
"A... A blimp," Katsuya muttered under his breath, swallowing as the enormous device appeared to 'glow' from the inside, shadows moving about inside. H-Holy shit...
Isono chuckled at the reactions, before taking a more professional guise and stepping back beside the door. "Technically an airship," he muttered with a smirk, "But nonetheless correct! This is the 'Battle Ship'," the man said clearly, raising his voice to reach the crowd around him, "And it is here the semi-final rounds will be taking place!" ...In a bli- An airship? ...SWEET. "Competitors will battle atop an arena over a thousand meters from the ground," Isono continued to announce, a majority of those listening already looking quite eager to follow on, "And at exactly eight o'clock'," he continued, a few of the teens pulling out their phones for the time, "Competitors will be allowed to board the ship... Five minutes afterward," the man continued, "The ship will lift off for the skies, with further briefing in the dining hall. Now then..." The man trailed off, looking toward the entrance and adjusting his sunglasses. "We have four finalists so far," he stated plainly, "So..."
"Only four," Mokuba asked with raised eyebrows, looking back at Isono with a frown. "But it's only five minutes before eight! Who would have to wait until now to get here?" Ignoring the fact that they'd only just arrived of course... That was a good question.
One that he somehow knew was about to be answered. Sudden chuckling came from the side with that very thought in fact, the group turning as a 'shadow' moved forward from the coliseum's covered entrance. "Hnhnhnhn... Well, I suppose I would," a somewhat drawling voice stated, Katsuya's blood draining from his face as he recognized the tone. White hair, white skin...
And why did the politeness have to be dropped? "B-Bakura..!" The albino's arm was still bandaged tightly, blood no longer seeping from the wound much to their relief. However as the blond stared, he also had to frown; there was no sign of the ring beneath the teen's shirt, and if the cord was any sign it was actually in his hands at the moment.
Of course, given that only himself and Anzu knew about the 'incident' involving the injury, that wasn't what everyone else was looking at. Yugi for one was staring in silent shock, eyes wide as his friends gaped. "Bakura-kun..!" The boy's eyes honed in on the duel-disk he had, the white bandage momentarily unnoticed thanks to the matching shade of Bakura's skin and shirt. "I... I didn't even know you dueled," he continued, watching as the albino calmly switched his six locator cards for a key pass from Isono. (Number 3 it looked like...) There was no answer, Yugi continuing on with still wide eyes. "Moreover... When did you even participate in the preliminaries," he asked, "You told me you were going to be busy today..."
"Not to mention," Anzu muttered with a slight frown, "Wasn't that duel disk stolen?" Katsuya held his tongue in regards to that comment, Bakura merely 'smiling' somewhat as he held the disk up.
"Well... Actually, this one's mine," he said with a small laugh, pocketing the key card as he turned to the others. "I was released from the hospital shortly after they patched my arm up... And I'm technically eligible for the tournament due to a previous one I participated in online," the teen admitted with a slight nervous shrug, "So since my disk came with a card, I decided to join in..."
He... He didn't know whether to believe that or not damn it..! Hell... The ring wasn't visible he told himself, shaking his head, but who knew what happened in the ambulance... "Th' that's... Tha's great," he said nervously, attempting to laugh off the bad feeling before coughing. The bandages were... Er..."Isn' yer arm is still..."
"It's perfectly fine," Bakura insisted, bringing his arm back down before a slightly 'darker' look of amusement came in his eyes. "Go ahead, touch it, see?" He continued to smile as the blond hurriedly shook his head in response, an even odder look coming to his eyes. "Besides... As a duelist," the albino added in a slightly darker than normal tone, "I really want to fight you Jonouchi-kun..."
Ryuzaki merely tilted his head from the side as the others stared, shaking his head. "How the hell did he get the cards that fast if he was in the hospital," he muttered under his breath, voice scarecely audible to those around
His friend shrugged, shaking her head as she turned to whisper an answer. "I don't know," Shizuka admitted, biting her lip. "Nihan's friends are a little weird really, so..." Hey hey, they weren't weird..! ...Much. He supposed.
Yugi's hair kinda killed their cover no offense to the guy...
Footsteps came over the air as the mutterings over Bakura's wellbeing came to a halt, the others hurriedly turning to follow Seto's stare as a figure came through the darkness. The teen walking forward carried with him a small bag, wearing nearly black cargo pants and bringing with him a tiny flaming spirit on his shoulder, the tiny sprite staring forward with a single golden eye... This... "N-Namu," Anzu shouted with apparent surprise, Katsuya narrowing his eyes as a sudden burst of heat appeared to come over the area.
The foreigner walked forward, a small smile on his face as he bowed to the group. "We meet again," he said in slightly broken Japanese, "Mazaki-san, Jonouchi-san..." That just sounded wrong with his name damn it...
"Oh... Anzu is fine," the woman said with a slight laugh, shaking her head as the others responded to the appearance in silence. "And there's really no need for honorifics," she continued kindly, Yugi and the 'other' Yugi both turning to Katsuya as the blond continued to frown.
"Jonouchi-kun," the lighter one asked, "Do you know this guy..?"
He nodded somewhat stiffly, eyes narrowing further as the sprite appeared to eye Anzu with an almost mesmerizing stare. "Yea," he muttered under his breath, listening as the others began speaking to 'Namu' about the tournament. Seto of course stayed far at the sides... And for the moment, Ryuzaki was holding back on the interaction himself, talking to Shizuka about something but... Hnn... "This guy," the blond continued to whisper, eyes narrowing further. "He's..."
Not someone they should be talking to. "Ah! Yugi... Let me introduce you to the boy we met earlier," Anzu was saying, pulling Yugi off to talk as her friend sputtered somewhat. His other frowned, narrowing his eyes as he picked up on the unease of both his friend and partner, Anzu's words carrying with them a subtle and almost invisible tone of fallacy with them. "This is Namu," she stated with a smile, 'Namu' bowing somewhat as she continued. "He's our friend... Right, Jonouchi?" The woman turned to the blond at that, Katsuya merely nodding hesitantly to get the topic over with as the other Yugi continued to frown.
"Something seems off," the spirit growled, arms crossed. "He seems fine but... There's something else there..."
"Yea, tell me about it," Katsuya muttered under his breath, watching as Namu held out a hand to shake Yugi's own. "Thinkin' back," the blond continued stiffly, "When Anzu an' I were taken..." Just what did happen there? He hadn't seen anything... Sure, Namu had nothing to do with Yugi and had quite liekly been left for that reason but... How... "...Oiii... Namu," he asked, watching as the spirit on his shoulder abruptly shied away with a high-pitched 'kriii!'. ...Weird, he'd never scared a spirit before... The blond quickly shook himself from the thoughts on that matter, instead focusing on the spirit's 'owner'. "Back in th' alley," he said with narrowed eyes, "How did..?"
The teen blinked, frowning somewhat as he studied his 'friend's face. "Ah, that... Well," the blond foreigner muttered somewhat plainly, "Truth be told, I'm not actually sure... I remember calling the police after watching those cloaked men pull you away, but I guess they left me alone when they saw I was outside the alley already..." That...
That was a piss-poor excuse but he nodded anyways, tensing as an odd 'wind' hit the air. It wasn't the usual 'gale' that he felt though... The wind that came about when an Item was doing something, like when the two Yugi's switched out, or even rarer, Bakura. More like a 'fan' had been turned on, forcing the wind their way... "Yugi," Bakura abruptly shouted, the others turning as he held out the Millennium Ring. Okay... So it wasn't around his neck, and he really had seen it in his hands but... "Yugi, look," he continued, the boy in question looking over the ring curiously. "It's responding to something..." No... No it wasn't, the pointer was up, but the glow wasn't...
"Uh... How is it doing that," Ryuzaki asked from the side, shaking his head as Mokuba laughed somewhat.
"Ehhh... It... It's just a trick," he laughed, the others closing their mouths rather than digging the younger of the Kaiba's into a hole. "Don't worry about it... It's nothing..." Ryuzaki frowned at that, looking decidedly confused as Shizuka as well stared. For a moment, he appeared to be about to say something... But in the end he was nonetheless holding his tongue as more footsteps sounded through the area, pounding the ground as the forced gale further stormed through the coliseum. The needle of the ring... It was pointing at...
"That guy..." Heavily robed the 'source' appeared, Bakura's ring abruptly dropping its pointers as he moved past the group. "Could it be 'Malik'," the other Yugi muttered, Katsuya still frowning as the cloaked and imposing man walked forward.
Without batting an eye at those around him he walked up to Isono, holding out six cards. "Here," he said with a plain, grave tone, voice thick and hoarse. "Six locator cards, as required for admission into the finals."
From the side, the others were staring, Seto holding a steady and suspicious glare as she looked at the man. It was very strange, to see someone who was taller than the woman to say the least, even if only by a few inches. Despite this however, the level of tense and steady strength was still undeterminable between the two, even without the constant 'glare'. "Are you 'Malik'," Seto 'asked' him, the man turning as he received his key card.
Briefly, the man narrowed his eyes, hieroglyphs clearly visible across the side of his face. "...Seto Kaiba," he 'answered', looking over the woman and turning back to the air ship as the door opened behind them to mark the eighth hour of the evening. "And Yugi Mutou," he added, the boy in question tensing under the imposing man's stare. "You who own the 'God Cards' Osiris and Obelisk- realize that they will soon be within my grasp," he said plainly, Isono narrowing his eyes in response before gesturing to the door.
"...It is now Eight o'clock," he said plainly, stiffened expression hidden beneath his sunglasses. "Though we will not leave for another fifteen minutes without the eighth finalist," he continued on with a slight cough, "The competitors may now enter the airship so as to settle themselves in their rooms; each room is numbered, a label that will match with the key card you have been given. Now..." He stepped back, watching as the tall cloaked man, 'Malik' according to their 'answers, briskly walked into the ship without another word. Briefly, Isono appeared put off by the action. However there had been a reason he was hired as Seto's assistant, and he quickly got over himself before continuing. "...Right... Well... If the competitors could please step inside," he requested politely, the others more or less smiling as they moved forward.
"Ahhhh... A battle in the sky," Mai cheered, running forward as 'Namu' and Bakura followed close behind. The woman looked back just briefly as the tanned and albino boys disappeared inside, a wide grin on her face. "This will be wonderful! Just the thing for a championship... You know how to plan a tournament," she added with a wink, Seto showing no clear reaction to the comment as Mai vanished inside.
"It does sound pretty exciting," Yugi said in agreement, running up the steps himself as his other stared at the enormous ship. "What do you think, other me?"
The other appeared to not be listening at the moment, instead continuing to stare at the airship with a distant expression. "I wonder," he muttered with a swallow, Yugi briefly turning to pull him in by the arm as he sighed, "If I could float around this thing while we were in the air..."
"Please don't try it," Katsuya heard Yugi mutter in response, grinning as he turned to Isono from the stairs.
"Oii... Isono," he asked, Mokuba running up the steps behind him in the meantime, "We allowed to bring everyone else on?"
The man blinked. "Everyone else," he questioned, looking back at the 'else' as they stared.
"Yea," the blond said, "Anzu, Honda, Otogi, Shizuka-" Everyone else!
Isono coughed, going somewhat pale as he stared at the group. "You- That's almost double the number of the competitors, I can't-"
"Just pretend you didn't see anything," Seto muttered as she walked past, "And they'll share rooms."
"Ahh..." Isono stared briefly as Seto vanished inside, watching as Katsuya grinned and waved for the others to follow before running in. "W-Wait, is this really..."
"Thank-you for your kindness," Shizuka hurriedly said as she followed the group in, bowing politely before rushing into the ship.
"We can't thank you enough," Anzu added, herself and the rest of the boys rushing up the stairs as the man continued to choke.
"A-Ahhh..." How would they all share rooms! Isono sighed, shaking his head as he turned away from the ship. Oh well... No sense in arguing with Seto he supposed. "Alright then..." The man turned back to the darkened stadium, checking his watch with a frown as the time ticked away. He'd momentarily been distracted by 'Malik's appearance; the door had opened a few minutes late. "Hn... Lift off in one minute," he muttered, turning toward the stairs with a sigh. "And in the end," the man continued, "The eighth finalist still isn't here..." Seto wouldn't be too-
-tpf. tpf. tpf...-
"Hn..?" The man turned, squinting through his sunglasses as a woman in white walked out from the entrance. She was completely silent, a thick shawl of sorts with gold decoration covering her head, a veil across the bottom half of her face. All he could see was her eyes, calm and almost aged in appearance, along with the duel disk on her bare arm... And the six cards she was holding toward him. She was silent as she did this, merely watching as the man stared at her before hurriedly taking the cards. "I see..." So the eighth competitor had made it after all! Well, that was pushing it close... He pulled the last of the key cards from his pocket, handing it forward with a curt nod. "This is your bedroom key... You will be in room number eight, understand," he explained, the woman nodding as she took the card walked into the ship. Within seconds the woman had vanished for the room's hallway, a slight 'beep' coming from Isono's watch as the time ran out. The man tapped the radio in his ear, stepping into the ship himself as he spoke. "The competitors are all accounted for," he said briskly, pulling the door in as it folded and locked tightly behind him. "Begin take off!"
And with the roaring of a series of turbines and engines, the 'Battle Ship' did just that.
AN:Also, you'll notice I came back and edited something; normally by the time its caught, its too late to edit, as the document's been removed from the site (FF has a limit!)... In this case however, I realized very quickly that I'd accidentally duplicated the numbers between Bakura and Mai's card. Bakura is supposed to have card number three.
Filler episodes Usagi? Really? Well, I said I'd include everything... Besides the movie of course. (Yeaaaaaa...) And besides that, there aren't actually that many filler episodes as opposed to filler 'arcs'... And this actually made it a little easier to divide the next bit into chapters. After all...
Besides another 'breather' next chapter (the duels aren't starting right off after all!) there's only four duels before the Virtual World arc; I had to make sure that everything flowed smoothly during and between them. In the end, this filler made it so that I could have a full-fledged chapter here, and one that would end nicely rather than getting stuck with a conclusion half way through... And speaking of the Virtual World arc...
Expect coloured things concerning that... And I mean before it starts, hehehehe. There's actually a few designs down in the art section already!
More importantly, 'AHHH Jou why'd you lie!' Besides the reasoning above, I may or may not touch more on this later. Depends on how suspicious I decide the other Yugi should be... As it is, he will be found out! Just not now.
And in other news...
Anonymous Review Responses
Hey there RandomProjects, glad you caught up! As for intensity, I like to think that's my good point… Making card games a little more serious-business than they should ever be.
And oh LORD yes! It's horrific! It makes me wonder why it came to mind while job-hunting…
Then I remember I live in eastern Canada in the middle of the 'Snowpocalypse'. Boy did I pick the best time to move out of BC eh? And no no, in canon, the card was impaled in his hand. Though thinking back, that's even less likely than the eye, as the hand has bones in it, while the eye is effectively a ball of fragile mush.
And ah-! That part with the 'oh my God' did have emphasis on the last word, it's just that it wasn't said loudly… So typo on my part really, not subconscious emphasis. Although, that could very well have happened, so you could be right.
And what an ending indeed Iona! I'm glad you enjoyed the differences, and you're quite right; unless there's training involved, such as for free-diving, two minutes tends to be the maximum, particularly under stress, and especially in a situation that knocks the wind out of you.
Pshh! Kaiba owned him long ago! Just don't tell him that, hehehehe.
Oh! No spoilers with this part; it's more just the gang-related issues, which were brought up with Hirutani. Jonouchi actually was part of that gang for a while before he met Yugi… Honda mentions it in the first chapter concerning Hirutani, and is very much worried about what will happen with that gang at the time.
Awww… Th-Thank you CynicalGamer!
Now I have to think of how to top this… And yes, future duels would most certainly have been an issue if it wasn't the Rod's fault. Of course, this does nothing for Jou's side, so hence the lie above… Which he'll be caught on very quickly in one of his later duels.
And yep! Granted, Yami Yugi's likely just as if not more confused about it… Though believe me when I say that as frightening as it is to see that kind of thing, Jou's a big exception for the possession deal; ordinarily, the person is either blissfully unaware that their actions are out of the norm, or they've passed out.
In any case, I have to say, I'm quite happy I've pulled off this sort of feel and surprise despite it being canon and 'expected' in terms of how events would play out. And..
HAH! Exactly! She's going to be questioning herself in the next chapter hilariously (Is it really that funny?) enough. And yes, a few hints…
I'm actually hoping someone realizes that Lower and Upper Egypt were referred to as the Red and Black lands soon enough… With black referring to the fertile soils of the area.
Curse me indeed! As you can see, Jou has his own noble-ish reasons for the lie, but don't worry; the lie won't last more than a few hours his time. (Unfortunately, that is a number of chapters away...)
And thank you, thank you~ However, Jonouchi really was 'brainwashed' in canon so-to-speak… Frightening but true, but the possession was only a partial deal there!
I really really hope I can top this now, though it feels like it's beyond impossible, hahaha… Perhaps with one of the next duels, I'll have to see... Well, until then, enjoy the 'breather' above!
I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter, and continue to enjoy what follows!
Usagi's Manga & Japan Guide/Corner
The section that's flying! FLYING!
The chapter title here references a number of things. First off, when a balloon can't fly, the first thing you do is dump the unneeded things. Baggage however can also refer to certain ties that are being severed very quickly in this chapter.
And it can also refer to the fact that I could have easily gotten away with not writing in 'Jean-Claude Magnum', but it was too amusing for me to pass up.
Bit of a disclaimer! As mentioned, I'm having trouble finding any episodes in the subbed Japanese that take place before the Noa arc. Actually, I'm really, really praying that I don't get this problem in the Noa arc, because compared to what few bits I need from the anime here (This chapter is the only one completely anime-based until that arc), there are lots of line differences from sub-to-dub in there.
A lot. (As it is, there are a fair number in this 'episode' as well.)
In any case, this is where I love Yu-Jyo's episode guide, despite the fact that I pretty much have to ad-lib the entire chapter between when they drive for the stadium and when they enter the stadium itself. It's really helpful!
Now then, there's a lot of dialogue changes from the manga as well. Originally, Honda explains that he and Otogi went to get Shizuka to cheer Jonouchi up (she's still blind here, bandages haven't come off), with the others agreeing or supporting that (And Anzu saying the equivalent of 'so THAT'S what you were doing!')… Followed by Jonouchi telling them off for bringing them at his 'lowest point'.
He didn't apparently realize that they came in after the duel was over and after everyone was out of the water… Though Jonouchi was sore about both the duel and being saved by Kaiba at this point sooooo…
In any case, besides the fact that fanfic-Anzu did not enjoy dealing with Jonouchi's earlier rage concerning the Osaka trip, Jonouchi knows damn well that 'he' wasn't doing anything in this duel (unlike in the manga and anime, where it WAS him), and considers squashing the eye retribution enough for it; so he's not about to cry about how horrible a person he is.
Also Ryuzaki simply being there changes things for obvious reasons.
Speaking of Ryuzaki... What with this being Japan, first name basis is 'serious-business'. If you're not using honorifics, your either rude, or really close. If you jump into no honorifics right off the bat, it's assumed your rude.
But as can be seen with Yugi and Anzu, the first name deal highlights them as close friends; and in the case of Jonouchi and Honda, since they don't use honorifics most of the time anyways, the reason they call Anzu 'Anzu' is quite clear; they just stopped calling her 'Mazaki', which they used due to her 'boy-ish' attitude.
With Ryuzaki however, the fact that both he and Shizuka were calling each other by first name with the 'chan' and 'kun' honorifics shows that they use the honorifics properly, or in Ryuzaki's case, with people they actually like. So now that they're dropped, this implies a much closer relationship.
Much. Closer. (Hence Jonouchi's worry and rage, which is simultaneously being blocked by the fact that Shizuka is quite obviously moving at the same pace her friend is, and would not enjoy her brother's interference.)
A large bunch of dialogue was cut concerning the 'bandage' scene since we obviously had that in the last chapter, but Kaiba's line is gone as well… Because Kaiba scooted out of there as fast as possible. Originally, Kaiba told Yugi he had his 'answer', referring to the question he'd asked earlier on concerning what would happen if he was forced to fight his friends.
But that was largely because the question itself was brought up in dark-humored pondering, rather than legitimate worry as the Fanfic version did. So rather than say that she had her 'answer', she instead told Yugi to never, ever do it again.
For obvious reasons.
Since it's the twentieth of July, the moon is beginning to wane, or 'disappear' so to speak, slowly turning back into the 'new moon'. Hooray...
Hey, more on Mai's car! It's an import; in the manga, she's sitting on the right side, which seems normal… But like England, Australia, and a small number of other countries, Japan drives on the left side of the road; the steering wheel is thusly on that side as well!
And yes, they were really that stupid about car safety in getting there. Even worse, Mai's driving isn't the best either...
Originally in the manga and anime both, Bakura was taken to the hospital in a taxi, by Sugoroku. Later, in the manga, Anzu would receive a call from Sugoroku saying that Bakura left the hospital before getting past the waiting room. In the anime, they didn't find out he'd left until he arrived at the stadium however... Which happened here as well, since Bakura was obviously taken in on his own.
The stadium by the way, is obviously still being built, but I had a bit of a brilliance moment while looking at it; while it's just a normal stadium in the manga, it's owned by Kaiba in the anime… And later on in 5Ds, where should the first 'arc' take place but in a tournament held at the 'Kaiba-Dome', a stadium arena
.
You can guess where I'm going with this from there, because as ridiculous as auto-pilot and normal-pilot card games on motorcycles sounds, the fact is, they put enough safety points in there for me to honestly say that if it existed I WOULD SO DO THAT.
And I'm betting you would to, because that is like… The BEST extreme sport EVER.
Hey look, 'Duel Spirits'! As mentioned before, Ryuzaki's is a normal monster called 'Uraby', or 'Wild Raptor', and it tends to follow him around in a 'chibified' state similar to Red-Eyes.
The one following Mai has been 'shrunken' in a similar vein, lest it squash everything in sight; it's Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry, and though she never has a Simorgh of any kind in her deck, it would certainly mesh well with it. Not to mention, the 'spirits' aren't necessarily active parts of the monster's deck.
Originally (and we're in Anime-only territory now!), after the ghost town comment, Mai tells Jou off for saying something so cowardly, with Jou apologizing about it. This leads into him recalling the card she gave him at the Duelist Kingdom, asking 'why'… And then getting distracted by the Magnum poster.
So yes, Ryuzaki just hijacked all but one of those lines.
Originally, Magnum doesn't have his disk out, was obviously not in a previous relationship with Mai (He was rejected flat out after she beat him), and was also somehow a part of the tournament… With five cards.
Even though that's impossible. So needless to say, not in the tournament... And as a bonus, now you can look WAY back at the Valentines chapter and say 'IT WAS HIM!'. YEP. I was planning that far ahead. I've actually planned even further, but you have to wait for those things.
You know those moments where you act without thinking, and then realize with horror what you've done? That would be 'the boys' (In this case, Ryuzaki, Jonouchi, Honda, and Otogi, the others watching from the side) in that flower scene. Picture the bouquet toss at a wedding...
And you actually come close to what happened before they realized just what it was of Jean-Claude Magnum's that had been tossed their way.
Duel monsters have jobs? What, what?
...Well, what do you think they do in the monster's realm while they sit around your deck/booster-pack/storage-bin and what-have-you?
Originally, Shizuka told Jou that she thought Mai looked 'beautiful', before asking if she (Mai) had a boyfriend. This prompted a flustered Jonouchi to say 'of course not, she's only interested in duelling!' Instead, she's marvelling at how bad the duel appeared to start, leaving all the romance-y stuff out. A lot of the banter between the duelists was cut as well; Mai's too pissed to bother.
Lots of other dialogue was cut too; Jou trying to give advice that Mai clearly knew, along with most of the 'love-interest' dialogue… Mostly because Mai and Jou just… Aren't interested in that. As you know.
In the anime, Mai summons 'Cyber Harpie', and she doesn't actually have 'Harpie Queen' in her deck during the series either. However, it's only 100 points more powerful, and the fact is that 'Cyber Harpie' is a Harpie Lady with the armor equipped... Even its attack points mirror this!
In other words, Cyber Harpie, as a card in the fanfic, would have made the Harpie Lady strategy fairly silly given that the armor wouldn't be needed, and part of the point in making cards is to sell them. (It would be a number of cards no longer needed!)
Also, Harpie Queen deserves a cameo, she's awesome. (Her effect is that her name is only treated as 'Harpie Lady' while on the field and in the graveyard... So Mai can still have three other harpies in her deck, along with two queens. Oooooh~)
The Harpies' 'formations' are based on two spell cards that Mai uses during the 'Doma Arc', namely 'Phoenix' and 'Sparrow' formation. I figured there would be 'others' that the harpies use in battle on their own...
Eagles referring to, of course, the bird that is ever so often linked to courage and battle, whereas the 'Amphiptere' is a snake-like dragon with wings, occasionally depicted feathered, hence the 'line' that the Harpies formed with that one.
Ryuzaki's line to Magnum is based on one Jonouchi had, which was cut and mis-translated from the anime when it was dubbed. After sending a string of insults to him, Shizuka turns and says 'Didn't you just say you were a big fan?' …Cue the 'five minutes ago' excuse.
Magnum was also still there when Mai fell from the net, but I had a feeling he would want to pull Mai off to somewhere else… Especially with the crowd that was there, and the restraining order hanging over his head.
Why does Mai call them all kids? Because at the 'oldest', Honda's still about seven years younger than Mai. And given that the only other seventeen year old there is Yugi, who is just inches taller than Mokuba, it's easy to see why she would stick with that.
Where's Kaiba and Mokuba? After landing, Kaiba vanishes off to do something with his deck in the manga, and doesn't re-appear until after Bakura shows up…
In the fanfic's case however, the water and swimming loosened her binding; it's actually come undone by the time she gets to the stadium, so she's scurried off to fix it before the other competitors arrive. (This, along with her dislike for talking, is partially why she left the docks so quickly as well, along with why Mokuba didn't say anything concerning that. Had everything been 'fine', he'd have likely insisted on waiting for some help for Jonouchi.)
Jonouchi-san? Malik's using 'foreigner's Japanese' right now. Somewhat broken, REALLY accented, and the safe use of the honorific 'san', as part of his cover.
This will drop really fast, really soon, for obvious reasons concerning 'Jou VS Rishid'.
In the manga, Mokuba is the one who lets everyone on the ship, mostly by distracting the guy deciding who goes on or not. (It wasn't Isono in canon) In the anime, rather, in the Japanese, Kaiba says 'pretend you didn't see it'. Which is far nicer than in the dub, where he says 'just let the dweebs go'.
I like Japanese Kaiba with his character development much much better myself.
FanArt and My Art
Small chunk of spoilers for the Virtual World arc here to cheer you up! There's also things that I put there just because. As if you weren't having trouble guessing what would happen next already! Ahaha! In any case, remember to remove the spaces for what you want!
And heeeeey! Yugi looks like... A teen. Well, he IS about five feet tall by this point, not to mention scrawny and 17...
In any case, enjoy the fanservice!
SPOILERS-Concept: DeckMasters (Yugi) – http : / / i5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ YGO% 20Fanfic% 20-% 20Skin/ YugiDeckmaster. jpg - Simply by looking at this you can guess really quickly how I'm going to be running the Virtual World arc, so if you don't want spoilers don't come here until the arc begins!
SPOILERS-Concept: DeckMasters (Seto) – http : / / i5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ YGO% 20Fanfic% 20-% 20Skin/ SetoDeckmasters. Jpg – In which, in addition to the deckmasters, I draw Seto in fanservice-y WoW-styled armor. Will this actually appear? That's for you to find out!
And until then, I'll be working on the next chapter! So I'll see you soon!