Disclaimer: I do not own YGO 5Ds

A/N: The Fortune Cup arc would not have a focus on duels, because why would it, right? Just because it's a tournament based around people playing a children's card game.

MC's words are in italics, switches between the duel arena and audience is separated by X (most of the time).

Lazar stepped into the surveillance room of the Momentum Research Facilities, escorted by Sector Security.

"We've doubled the security here as you requested, Vice Director Lazar," The officer said respectfully.

Lazar nodded as authoritatively as he could managed. Instinct had been screaming at him something would go wrong during the tournament, and it would be here. The satellite girl literally said she wanted the Momentum, and he didn't think her visit here was just to pass the time.

Then again, he can't think what could possibly happen to the most powerful weapon in the world.

The Momentum isn't just a gun or a car lying around that people could steal, it's the energy source of the entire Domino City. Trying to steal it would be like cutting a wire while there's high-voltage electric current passing through it, or more precisely, it would be like trying to steal a live nuclear reactor.

The idea is ridiculous and the act should be suicide.

"I don't think I've seen you before," He noted at one of his entourage.

"My name is Chase sir," The orange-haired teenager smiled, "I came from Tokyo."

"Criminal record?" Lazar noted the golden tattoo on his face with some distaste.

"Turbo dueling while under the influence," Crow recited the charge Blister made up for him, "but that's all in the past now."

The extra security he requested for the Fortune Cup tournament, Lazar realized, they're really taking anybody who has a deck of cards now. He dismissed the guard from his mind.

Even if the satellites had managed to steal something else worthwhile from Neo Domino, he had made sure that they can't move it to the Satellite.

Lazar knew there were smuggled goods from Domino City to the Satellite, but that is usually only done with the implicit consent of the patrol officers after the right amount of money had greased the right palms. Now he gave explicit orders to forbid anything suspicious from leaving Neo Domino, even if Tono somehow got hold of something valuable, there is no way she can get it out of the city.

"Congratulations," Rex Goodwin handed me a glass of champagne as I entered the top-floor penthouse overlooking the duel arena. Leo (as Luna), Yusei and Jack were already inside, an attempt of Goodwin's to connect with the Signers I suspect.

"Thanks, you'd make the ultimate butler." I sat down on the sofa directly in front of the tv, propping my feet on the coffee table, "Could you get me a bowl of popcorn too? Butter, not caramel."

I'm the decoy for this tournament, the magician's assistant who distracts the audience as the trick is being done. So I might as well play the part.

Yusei nodded with a smile, Jack grunted a greeting.

Goodwin looked at me darkly. I shrugged, laughing.

"What? You already service Jack!" My mind wandered very briefly to Goodwin servicing Jack.

"So you're Yuki," Leo (dressed as Luna, hereafter referred to simply as Leo) piped up, "I heard you're one of the best duelists in the Satellite, can you beat Yusei?"

"We couldn't exactly finish our last duel," I spoke quickly before Yusei had a chance. Goodwin still thinks I dueled Yusei while in the Satellite.

"Let's play now," Leo offered hopefully, his eyes bright, looking no different than any other ten-year-old in my dimension (aside from the green hair I mean).

"Some other time," I dismissed right as somebody burst into the front door, almost bumping into Rex Goodwin as she did so.

"Yuki Tono?" The teenager exclaimed excitedly. She had dark green hair, glasses that hid her eyes, and wore a blue and white striped shirt.

"Carly Carmine," I greeted, "nice to meet you."

Jack looked at me suspiciously, clearly wondering how I recognized Carly. Good, that's the kind of attention I want.

"Oh my god, are you actually Yuki Tono?" Carly barely heard me, "I thought you were an urban legend."

"Um…" I scratched my nose, not sure what to say, "I'm pretty sure I'm real."

"How did she get here Jack?" Rex Goodwin interjected impatiently.

"I gave her the exclusive for this tournament," Jack, not thinking there's anything to hide, explained simply.

"Oh yeah, Jack was really nice about it too," Carly replied, "I owe him big time! This is gonna be so good for my career, I can't believe I'm actually in here, with the best duelists in the world! And Director Goodwin! Can I have your autograph?"

Goodwin stared at the notepad in front of him as though trying to will it out of existence. Sadly, he had not received either marks of Darkness or Light and had no such magical powers. The notepad stared back at him unyieldingly.

"Of course," He resigned, signing his name in a flourish, "To Carly, right?"

"Oh you don't have to make it out to anybody," Carly was smiling ear to ear as she flipped the page and motioned for him to sign again. I have no doubt the signature is going to be put on sale as soon as she gets out of here. I would say that she'd put it on EBay, except that there's no EBay in this world: war and famine isn't great for internet access or shipment delivery.

"So you do exist!" Carly turned back to me, satisfied with the number of signatures she got from Rex Goodwin. "Can I take a picture, can I get an exclusive? Did you really take over the Satellite? I heard you dueled Sector Security for ten days straight to get them out of the Satellite!" Carly said excitedly, she didn't notice Rex Goodwin's face growing darker with every word. I did and couldn't help grinning.

"I'm afraid that's all just rumors. The Satellite has always been under Domino control, however limited control they bother with. I run a small business on the east side, that's all." I said.

"That's it?" Carly's face fell, "That's not a scoop! I was hoping you're have some really cool stories I could write about!"

"I'm afraid I don't have much of a story, if you're like I can have somebody put together a press release for you." I answered, nothing interesting that I would put into print at least.

"Press release?" Carly made a face, "That's like the opposite of what I want to write about. Could you guys tell me anything about Akiza, is she actually the Black Rose Witch? Is the Black Rose Witch real too?"

"The duel's about to start," Yusei noted, his eyes never having left the giant screen.

"Oh yeah," Leo nodded energetically, "Do you think she's gonna win?"

"I'm sure she will," Yusei answered softly, a smile playing at his lips.

Akiza's duel just started as we turned our attention back to the screen.

Turn 1: Akiza

Please give it up for, the dueling Detective Koda!

And the enigmatic witch Black Rose!

The camera swept over the audience, catching snippets of conversation that broke out at the confirmed appearance of the Black Rose Witch. Most ranged from 'why did Goodwin allow her into the tournament' to 'burn the witch'.

And yet nobody even considered the practical implications of a human with superpowers! No wonder this world is so messed up despite its technological prowess.

"So we meet again, Akiza," Koda spoke ominously, "I've been waiting for this day since we dueled last time."

"I'm sorry, have we met?" Akiza asked sarcastically with feigned innocence, "I don't keep track of all the people I've beaten, it's too long a list."

"You may not remember the people you hurt Akiza, but we remember you. Today, on behalf of all of them, I will deal out justice like you deserve!"

"So you are here to duel. Then stop blabbering." Akiza barely waited for the duel to start, "I'll start. I activate Black Garden."

That's the Black Witch's signature card, this field spell would cut in half the attack of all monsters on the field, and summon one Rose Token (lv2, 800/800) onto the opponent's side of the field every time somebody summons a monster.

Next, I summon, Twilight Rose Knight (lv3, tuner 1000/1000) in attack mode. Her special ability allows me to special summon Lonefire Blossom (lv2, 500/800). I tribute Lonefire Blossom to summon Evil Thorn (lv1, 100/300) from my deck. Using Evil Thorn's special ability, I tribute it to summon two more Evil Thorns from my deck. Finally, I'll turn my level 3 Twilight Knight with my two level 1 Evil Thorns to synchro summon Ally of Justice Catastor (lv5 2200/1200). Your move. "

The entire field was enshrouded in real vines, blocking the views of the cameras and the audience. A giant diamond-studded insect on Akiza's field was just visible through the foliage.

The crowd booed loudly, now seeing the powers of The Black Rose for the first time and fearing, possibly justifiably so, for their lives.

X

"Ally of Justice?" I turned to Yusei and questioned.

"Akiza was open to some changes and I thought it would help her deck's lack of high attack monsters. We had a couple one hand." Yusei looked defiantly at Rex Goodwin. Right, Ally of Justice cards were Sector Security standard issue.

"So that's the Black Witch!" Carly raced to the window to a couple of pictures, "I can't believe she's real too! And I'll get to meet her! I can't wait for my year-end bonus!"

X

"You hide your true self from the world at every turn, Akiza, but I know who you really are. You're a monster, a freak! I saw it, and now the world will see it too!" Koda promised ominously.

"A rose by any other name," Akiza brushed off his remarks. "Not too long ago, those words would have hurt me Koda, like you're no doubt trying to do. But I know who I am now, I have made peace with myself if not with the world around me. So there's nothing you can say or do that'll delay your demise today."

She cast a look over the stadium, silencing thousands of people with a single disparaging glance. The only power they had had over her were their words, now that's lost its power. She knew it, and now they know it too.

I hope he knows what he's doing, it's usually best to stay on the good side of a witch.

I frowned at the MC's choice of words, Goodwin smiled a little apologetically.

"She's not a witch," Koda corrected, "She's a telekinetic, that's somebody who can move things with their mind."

"What has education in Domino become that he thinks he has to explain the word 'telekinetic'?" I wondered out loud.

"Well I don't know what it meant!" Leo replied immediately.

Jack laughed, Yusei looked thoughtful.

"How old are you again Yuki, thirteen?" Goodwin asked meaningfully. I ignored him.

Turn 2: Detective Koda

"My turn." Koda drew.

"I activate my trap Just Desserts," Akiza flipped over her face-down card, "For every monster you have on the field, you receive 500 damage."

Koda has five Rose Tokens on the field, that means 2500 damage in one move. Can you say burn? Just so you know folks, while the Spell Black Rose Garden is on the field, these Rose Tokens do not take any damage, and they are not destroyed in battle, which means the Commander has no way to get rid of them. Let's see what he does.

"I have studied every single one of your duels Akiza, and I know your every move. I knew you would play Black Garden and summon Rose Tokens onto my field. So now I tribute three Rose Token to summon, Mad Profiler (lv6, 2600/2400)" Koda said.

Woah, another level six monster! Good for him. But Koda better keep this up if he wants to get out of this duel alive, rumor has it the Black Rose can deal real damage in duels!

"It's not a rumor, it's true. I experienced it firsthand." Koda said seriously. "You don't remember the people you hurt Akiza, but I could never forget that day. I was an upper year Obelisk Blue ready to go pro, then I was challenged by a Slifer Red. You destroyed me and my deck, and I swore on that day I would get my revenge."

"If you swore revenge on everybody who defeats you, you must have a really busy schedule." Akiza replied sarcastically. Now where did she learn that from?

X

I looked at Yusei, I don't remember Akiza being like this.

"It's your doing," Yusei explained. Was that reluctance I heard in his voice? "Akiza said she wanted to be tougher, like you."

"Oh god," I imagined myself with superpowers and feared for the world, "I hope not."

X

"You'll never hurt anyone again Akiza, I won't let you! I activate my Mad Profiler's special ability, when he's summoned to the field, I can discard one card from my hand to destroy a card of the same type on the field. So I will discard three cards, to banish everything on your field! "

The crowd erupted in cheers as the vines disappeared, releasing all the monsters on the field from their clutches. Considering it was really just a mediocre move, I assume it was done more out of fear for the Black Rose Witch than in support of Koda.

"Don't celebrate too soon," Akiza flipped over her last trap card, "When my Black Garden is destroyed, your Mad Profiler's attack is restored, from 1300 to 2600. My trap card Rose Curse would hit your life points for every single one of the attack points you gained."

Commander Koda's life points dropped from 1500 to a measly 200 as a storm of rose petals surrounded him, Koda braced himself, shielding his face with his arm. Koda was surprised to find himself emerging unharmed, he lowered his arm at the end of the spell, finding the petals had dug a very neat circle around him, more than a foot deep into the granite stadium floors.

"I've been working on controlling my powers," Akiza licked her canines, smiling menacingly, "What do you think?"

"Now, Mad Profiler, attack directly!" Koda commanded, trying not to think about what those petals could have done to him.

Akiza's life points dropped by 2600 to 1400.

What an incredible move! Detective Koda destroyed almost half of Black Rose Witch's life points in one move! What would she do next! This announcer for one hopes she won't try to kill us all.

"I know everything about your past Akiza, everything from your parents sending you away to your recent involvement with a satellite. I can predict your every move! And that will help me when I play this, Mind Monster! This card lets me guess one card in your deck, and if I guess correctly, you take half of its attack points as damage. I'm guessing you have Black Rose Dragon in your deck."

Akiza gritted her teeth at the pain as Black Rose Dragon (lv7, 2400/1800) is revealed from her deck, and she took 1200 damage, dropping her life points to 200.

"How did you ever guess?" She asked sarcastically.

"Say what you want, but this duel is about over! Before I end my turn, I will protect my Mad Profiler with Destruction Insurance and Lightlow Protection."

Destruction Insurance takes half of the attack points of the equipped monster from your opponent's life points when your monster is destroyed. Lightlow Protection prevents anything from changing your monster's attack and destroys it. Detective Koda's done his fieldwork! The MC explained.

"Just because you know everything about a tank doesn't mean you won't be crushed when it comes your way." Akiza tilted her head slightly, visibly annoyed at her own analogy and regretting comparing herself to a tank.

Turn 3: Akiza

"So I see you're not even trying to play the victim, you've fully embraced being the Black Rose. Good, that just makes putting you away easier." Koda replied.

"I am Akiza Izinski, I am the Black Rose. You try to deny one to justify the other, but both are me." Akiza replied seriously.

"Then you'll have each other's company when I put you away for a very long time." Koda dismissed. "You only have 200 life points left, next turn, you're going away for good."

Commander Koda's right about one thing, this duel's hanging by a hair! Akiza's field is completely empty. If she doesn't finish the duel this turn, next turn, the Commander will finish her.

"I summon," Akiza drew and smiled down at her hand, "Black Rose Witch (lv4, tuner, 1700/1200) to the field, in attack mode!"

"How appropriate," Koda commented, "A half-decent monster blown way out of proportion, but when you look at it, it's not that strong after all. Sounds familiar?"

"Not by herself, no." Akiza actually smiled. She looked up at the tower. I don't know how I know, but I know she was looking at Yusei, who smiled back. "But even the Black Witch had friends. Her special ability lets me draw another card when she's normal summoned to the field, and I drew Rose Fairy (lv3, 600/1200). Her special ability lets me special summon her to the field, so come on out!"

"I think you know what comes next. I tune my level 4 Black Rose Witch with my level 3 Rose Fairy. By your powers united, I synchro summon, Black Rose Dragon (lv7, 2400/1800). Behold the powers of the Black Witch!" Akiza laughed, a little maniacally I guess, which is probably concerning. I snuck a glance at Yusei, nah, I think we're probably good.

"Next, I equip my dragon with Thorn of Malice, this spell increases my dragon's attack by 600 points, but any monster that battles with it is not destroyed. So Black Rose Dragon, destroy Mad Profiler!"

Black Rose Dragon's next attack brought Koda's life points to zero, its tail bumped casually against Koda's arm, slicing the titanium-enforced duel disk cleanly in two. Koda paled.

X

"Oooh! I have to interview her, this is gonna be tomorrow's headline, I just know it!" Carly cut through the silence in the room as she jumped up, grabbing her camera and notepad. "I wonder how much people would pay for Black Witch's signature?"

A/N:

Okay, I lied, I didn't finish my rant on Akiza, not the Black Rose part anyways.

I was surprised how much Akiza sucked after Black Rose is gone, both in terms of dueling and her actual power.

In the anime, after her duel with Yusei and turning back to 'normal', the next time Akiza dueled was with Team Unicorn like an entire season later, and she did absolutely nothing that duel. Nothing. Then she couldn't even fight kidnappers when she used to be able to summon dragons!

And there's no exact reason why the Black Rose part of Akiza had to be destroyed. It's angry certainly, but anger is a normal human emotion and it's not evil. Not more than Jack at least. (Yes, I'm still baffled by people's generally cavalier attitude towards Jack's attempted murder of Rally)

The 5Ds world judges people by their dueling abilities, so what does that mean when, in order for Akiza becomes likeable, accepted and 'good', she must also be weak? I suspected the resultant Akiza Izinski was designed to better fit the Japanese expectations of a girl her age.

I mean, Japan is ranked 111th on the gender equality ranking (2016) and it really shows up everywhere.

This is the end of my Black Rose rant, I don't think there'll be anymore.

A/N 2: I don't know what to do with my Charizard-Yuki extra. I don't have a plot (which obviously has to be different when they're all duel monsters) but the idea is just so adorable. I may end up just posting clips at the end of the chapters as I think of them.