Once again, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! If I did, One-Turn-Kills would be much more difficult in the real game than they are now.
Chapter Seven: The Princess of Games
Mana squealed in delight as she received her letter from home. Paper letters were the only contact they had with the outside world. Aside from the phone in Chancellor Sheppard's office, but students couldn't use that without special permission. Mana ran back to her room with her letter and tore it open.
Dear Mana,
I'm glad to hear you and Atem are doing well. I'm also glad to see your friend is making good use of the card I gave him. I guess it just shows Destiny works in mysterious ways. You seem to have made great friends, and I am proud of you. Don't let others get you down; even though you're in Slifer Red, you are making your own path. Remember that as long as you have your friends at your side, you can do anything.
I don't know if you'll have heard by the time you get this letter, but they convinced me to let the deck Atem and I built during our time together go on tour as a traveling museum exhibit. I was against it at first, but it's not like I use it anymore, and I know Atem and I inspired a lot of people to become duelists, like your friend Jaden you write home about. If this exhibit helps inspire others, then I'm okay with it, and I'm sure Atem would be too. Anyway, the first stop is going to be Duel Academy. So you'll get to be one of the first to see the display. Let me know if they do it justice. I reserved tickets for you and Atem to see it; just go the owner of the card shop. And before you panic, your mom's name is the one who reserved the ticket for you.
Speaking of which, your mom's ballet show went well; it was a sold-out show. I know you guys wanted to come home during break, and we missed seeing you too. I know for sure they filmed the show, so when they send us the tape I'll make sure to send it right along to you. You always enjoy watching Mom perform, so I hope this will make up for you missing it in person.
I hope to continue to do well, and I'm rooting for you to be able to help that other friend you mentioned in your last letter. Based on what you said, he sounds a lot like how Kaiba was when we first met. If he is, just showing him you're there for him and treating as a friend will go a long way, even if it's not obvious at first. It was years before people were really convinced Kaiba and I were friends. It was years before Kaiba admitted we were friends. Granted, Joey and Kaiba bickering with each other did not help. Those two have always pushed each other's buttons.
Anyway, keep being you. No matter what happens, you'll do great, and you will always be my Dark Magician Girl.
Love,
Dad
Mana hugged the letter. Yugi always knew exactly how to encourage her. She'd noticed some of his advice creeping into her conversations with her friends. He'd been so understanding when she enrolled under Tea's name, and Mana again thought that she couldn't have asked for a better dad. She wondered how long she could go until she had to tell her friends at least about him. Though she was surprised she had made it this long without blurting anything out.
It would be hard to not blurt anything out during the exhibit. Granted she didn't see anything interesting to cards being behind a display case—she always preferred to hold a card and understand its secrets that way. When Yugi first took Mana to meet Maximillion Pegasus, she amused him by asking about all the stories behind each card. Pegasus was delighted to meet someone so fascinated by the lore and magic of Duel Monsters. He began compiling stories of every card and legend he had found and sent them to Mana. Pegasus's stories were so detailed, Mana sometimes studied from them instead of her textbook, although that was another secret she had to keep from her friends.
Mana put her father's letter away and took out the spellbook she had received from the Dark Magicians. As she opened it, the two spellcasters appeared in her room. "So what are we working on today, Mahad?" she asked the master. She had begun calling him by his human name shortly after her lessons with him began.
"Well, I would like to teach you potions in addition to spellcasting," the Dark Magician began in his very—in Mana's opinion—uptight way, "but since we don't have the materials, we shall go over. . ." Mana braced herself for a very long and very boring lesson.
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First thing the next morning Mana went to the card shack to see about the exhibit. The shop was open, but it was still early. It wouldn't last as soon as people saw the posters of Yugi advertising the upcoming exhibit open the next day. Mana noticed some of the flyers featured Yugi's picture from his Battle City days, and the others looked like the Pharaoh when he was there. "Hey, Dorothy," she called to the owner.
"Oh, Mana, it's good to see you," Dorothy came out and greeted her. "What can I do for you?"
"I was told my mom reserved a ticket to the Yugi exhibit for me," Mana explained. "I was hoping to pick it up before the rush comes."
"Oh, yes, let me see," Dorothy looked through her files. "Yep, here it is. Tea Gardner reserved one ticket for Mana Gardner. Funny, I feel like I should know that name. Tea Gardner." Dorothy put a finger to her chin as she thought about it.
"She gets that a lot; it's one of those names," Mana fibbed as she took the ticket. Not only was Tea known for being a ballerina, but her name had stuck out when word got out Yugi was getting married. Some people had been disappointed—some because they couldn't understand why the King of Games would marry a ballet dancer and others because that meant they couldn't marry Yugi themselves. Mana always rolled her eyes at those kinds of fangirls. Tea had never let it get to her, and some people just couldn't understand that kind of love if it punched them in the face. In a way they were almost a celebrity couple. But judging from what Dorothy actually knew about dueling, she probably wouldn't put the pieces together.
Mana went through the day like any other. She heard students gossip as buzz for the exhibit spread. She resisted the urge to join in; she didn't trust herself to not blurt out anything she would regret later. As Jaden slept through classes yet again, though Mana had to applaud his creativity in painting his eyelids before he crashed, Syrus convinced Mana to go with him to get tickets to the exhibit over their lunch hour. She'd had to admit she already got her ticket, but she knew the line would be long and Syrus could use the company while waiting.
Syrus managed to get himself a ticket no problem, but he also wanted to get one for Jaden since Jaden probably wouldn't know about the exhibit until it was too late. Syrus's second ticket was the last one, and another student wanted the ticket also. He was a Ra Yellow student with dark brown hair that stood almost straight up. His said his name was Dimitri. They decided the only way to settle who got the ticket was with a duel.
When the duel started, Mana realized Dimitri was using a deck almost exactly like Dr. Crowler's. He wasted no time in summoning Ancient Gear Golem like how Crowler did in his duel against Jaden. Said duelist walked in at that point, and Syrus explained what the stakes were. Jaden immediately went into fanboy mode and reminisced the adventures the deck went on. "But the deck's not going on tour with the Egyptian Gods," Syrus explained.
"Of course they're not going; the God cards were destroyed years ago," Mana said. "Besides, even if the cards were still around, they're too dangerous. Only certain duelists can use them."
"Even so, we're still going to see Yugi's legendary deck," Jaden had stars in his eyes.
"But it's not like it's the deck Yugi uses nowadays," Mana scoffed.
"But it's still amazing to see. I mean it has his famous monsters like Dark Magician in it," Jaden insisted.
"I have Dark Magician in my deck," Mana pointed out.
As Mana and Jaden debated, Syrus continued his duel against Dimitri. Mana noticed that not only did Dimitri use the same deck as Crowler, he talked like Crowler too. He sent the Golem into an attack on Syrus's Jetroid, but Syrus countered with Jetroid's ability, letting him activate Magic Cylinder from his hand and reflect the Golem's attack back to Dimitri and took out his LifePoints.
Jaden congratulated Syrus, and Syrus admitted he know what to do based on what Jaden did against Crowler. As they went back to class, Mana heard Obelisks and Ras making fun of Dimitri for losing to Syrus and for copying Crowler's deck. You'd think a guy smart enough to be in Ra Yellow would know to make his own deck. Copying someone's deck keeps him from putting his own heart in it. He'll never win if he keeps this up.
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That night Mana sat in the guys' room staring at her cards. Jaden sat at his desk staring at Winged Kuriboh, and Syrus was telling Chumley about his victory over Dimitri. When Syrus finished, he noticed Jaden and Mana weren't listening, he asked what was up.
"Yugi's deck," Jaden answered. "I just can't get it out of my head."
"Why?" Chumley asked.
"Why? Why do you like grilled cheese?" Jaden countered.
"Yugi's amazing," Mana said. "I can honestly say he inspired me to become a duelist." It felt weird to not acknowledge him as her dad. Back home in Domino she'd puff her chest out in pride whenever Yugi's name came up. She suddenly felt homesick.
"You didn't seem as interested in the store," Syrus pointed out.
"I don't get a thrill looking at cards behind a sheet of glass," Mana explained. "I need to hold it in my hand, which there's no way they'd let us do that. Also half the cards in that deck are in mine. I have the Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, Mirror Force, Magic Cylinder," she counted off a finger with every card she listed. "I'd feel different if Yugi were here himself, or a copy of the deck he currently uses. Though I have to wonder how Atem's feeling about this. It's his dad's deck on display."
"He's probably the most popular guy right now," Jaden grinned.
"I just really want to see Dark Magician Girl," hearts appeared in Syrus's eyes as he spoke.
"Dude, Dark Magician Girl is in my deck," Mana pointed out. "And as I've said before, you don't have a chance with her."
"What makes you say that?" Syrus turned indignant. "You think I'm not good enough?"
"Well to start, she's a card spirit, and unless you can see and hear her, you can't communicate, so there's that." Mana said. "And then there's the whole she was engaged to the Pharaoh that saved the world from the Shadow Games. I don't you think you can compete with a Pharaoh."
"What?" Syrus's eyes bugged out. "How do you know that?"
"It's part of the whole Nameless Pharaoh legend," Mana answered, "and I was named after the girl whose Ka was Dark Magician Girl. She was the Pharaoh's childhood friend, and they fell in love. They would have been married if Zorc hadn't shown up. Now the Ka of that Mana lives in the Spirit World as Dark Magician Girl, waiting to help her Pharaoh should he need it, and the human part waits in the Afterlife for his spirit to rest, and they will be together again."
Syrus flopped on his back in disbelief. Mana struggled not to laugh at his disappointed expression. "You sure know a lot about this legend," Chumley said.
"Yeah, well I was named after that girl," Mana explained. "I like to know about her."
"Well we keep talking about cards and legends, and now I can't wait another second to check out those legendary cards. So who's up for going to the exhibit with me right now?"
"While they're setting up?" Chumley thought about it. "Hey, that's an idea. I mean, then we'll avoid the rush."
"Wait so I dueled to get that ticket for you, and you aren't even going to use it?" Syrus asked as he sat up.
"We'll be the first in line tomorrow too!" Jaden exclaimed.
"Jaden, I don't think it's a good idea," Mana said. "If we get caught, we could be banned from the exhibit. Or worse." She really didn't want to explain to Yugi why she got banned from his exhibit.
"Come on," Jaden pushed them, forcing Mana and Syrus to relent.
The four of them crept past guards on their way to the display. Mana couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss as the moved closer to the exhibit. She jumped when they almost ran into Bastion and clamped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from screaming. As she calmed herself down, Bastion explained he was there for the same reason they were—to take a sneak peek of the deck.
A woman's scream came from inside the exhibit hall. The five students rushed in to find Dr. Crowler in front of the broken display case. The empty broken display case. The guys began accusing Crowler of stealing the deck. "Hold on, guys," Mana interrupted them. "If he stole the deck, he wouldn't be here screaming about it being gone. Besides, I'm sure he has a key."
"Thank you, Miss Gardner," Crowler hugged her in appreciation.
Mana pushed him away. "I may not like you that much," she said, "but you have no reason to steal Yugi's deck." Stay calm, Mana. Use your head to find Dad's deck. Just don't panic. She struggled to keep her anxiety down about the theft of her dad's deck. Even though he didn't use it anymore, it still symbolized the bond he shared with Pharaoh Atem. Especially since Yugi didn't have the Puzzle anymore. He would be devastated if they couldn't recover the deck. "Let's go find the real thief," Mana led the charge to catch the culprit.
They split up to find the culprit. I have to find Dad's deck. Mana ran frantically around looking for the thief. Think! If I had just stolen a legendary deck, where would I go?
Mana arrived at the harbor just as Syrus lost a duel. Mana looked to the victor and saw Dimitri. Her stress level rose when she saw he was mimicking Yugi's stance and wearing his jacket flared out just like him and Atem. "Dimitri!" she yelled. "Did you steal Yugi's deck?"
Dimitri just laughed as he reveled in his victory. "It's good to be the King of Games!"
"Knock it off, Dimitri!" Mana struggled to rein in her temper. He definitely had the deck. "Hand over the deck!"
"Dimitri?" the fraud smirked. "I'm afraid you're mistaken. I'm Yugi."
"No, you're not! The real Yugi isn't arrogant like this! He never flaunts his King of Games title!"
"Look, young lady, I think you need to calm down." Dimitri didn't even flinch at Mana's outburst. Mana realized he may have studied Yugi's dueling techniques, but he didn't know the first thing about Yugi's family.
"Just stop it, Dimitri!" Mana screamed. "You're not Yugi! You're not my dad!"
The words were out of her mouth before she realized it. She pressed her hands to her mouth. Everyone else looked at her in shock. "Mana?" Jaden asked.
Dimitri regained his composure. "I don't have a daughter. And if you really want to prove this deck isn't mine, you'll have to beat me!"
"Bring it on, Dimitri!" Mana accepted the challenge. "If it's the only way to get his deck back, I'll gladly take you on!"
Syrus tossed her the duel disk he just used. "You'd better explain when this is over," he said.
"I promise I will," Mana said as she activated the duel disk and loaded her deck. "It's time to duel!" she called to Dimitri.
"That's my line," Dimitri said as he activated his.
"I'll go first," Mana drew. "I'll start with the Apprentice Magician (400/800) in defense mode and play one card face-down. Your move!"
Dimitri smirked. "I fuse Berfomet and Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts, to create Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast (2100/1800). Now attack! Pulverizing Pounce!" Chimera's attack destroyed the Apprentice Magician.
"When Apprentice Magician is destroyed by battle, I can summon a level-two or lower Spellcaster from my deck in face-down defense mode. I choose Old Vindictive Magician (450/600)!" Mana played her monster.
"At least she seems to be holding her own," Chumley commented.
"Well, yeah, she said Yugi is her dad," Syrus added. "Though nothing I tried to beat Dimitri worked."
"So are you saying Mana doesn't have much of a chance?" Chumley asked.
"It's a possibility."
"It's more than that," Bastion chimed in. "Dimitri's a copycat duelist, so in order to defeat him, you must exploit the failings of whomever he's copying, as you did when you first dueled him, Syrus. You knew he was copying Crowler's deck, and you knew what its weaknesses were. That's how you won. But the problem is now he's copying Yugi—a duelist whose weaknesses are not so well known—that is, if he has any at all."
"But if anyone knows what Yugi's weaknesses are, it has to be Mana!" Jaden insisted.
I really let the cat out of the bag. "Now it's my turn! I draw!" Mana pulled a monster that would help. "I flip summon my Old Vindictive Magician. Being flipped up activates her effect to destroy a monster on your field. So say good-bye to Chimera!" The elderly magician raised her hand and fired her magic at the two-headed beast.
"When Chimera is destroyed, I'm allowed to summon back Berfomet from the graveyard!"
"Well don't get used to his company," Mana smirked. "I sacrifice my Old Vindictive Magician to summon my Dark Red Enchanter (2300/2200)!" The red-robed spellcaster appeared on her field. "Go! Destroy Berfomet!" The magical energy disintegrated the horned beast. "I play one card face-down and end my turn." He definitely knows how to use Dad's strategies. If only he knew why Dad stopped using that deck.
"All right," Dimitri drew his card. "For my turn, I play one card face-down and play this—Monster Reincarnation. Now by discarding one card, I get back one monster from my graveyard. Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts, return!" he summoned the monster he reclaimed from the graveyard. "And now I activate the magic of Swords of Revealing Light! For three turns your monsters are useless."
"You're mimicking old-school Yugi," Mana pushed the fraud's buttons as she drew. "He doesn't use the word magic when he duels anymore. Also, you activated Dark Red Enchanter's special ability. He gains a spell counter every time a spell is activated, and he gains 300 attack points per counter. You just gave him two counters, so now he's at 2900."
She weighed her options. I don't have anything to get rid of the Swords. Honestly, they're not my biggest problem. I definitely don't trust that face-down. My first instinct is Mirror Force, but I can't assume that. Besides, it'd be overkill since he already has Swords. Dust Tornado, maybe? Mana took a chance. "I summon Magician's Valkyria (1600/1800) in defense mode."
"You're Valkyria won't be around long enough to do anything," Dimitri smirked. "I activate Dark Renewal! It activates when you make a summoning. Now by sacrificing one of your monsters as well as one of my own, I can bring back a spellcaster monster from the graveyard."
"I had a feeling you discarded Mahad for Monster Reincarnation," Mana said.
"I don't know what you mean by Mahad, but I can now resurrect the spellcaster I discarded. Gazelle, Valkyria, make some room for the one, the only, my friend, Dark Magician (2500/2100)!" The purple-robed spellcaster rose from the Dark Renewal tomb on Dimitri's field.
"Oh, please, he's not your friend!" Mana challenged him. "If he was, you'd know what I meant by Mahad! And don't expect me to be impressed with Dark Magician! He's in my deck too! Also my Enchanter is still stronger than your Dark Magician! So make your move, Dimitri!"
"You mean Yugi," the fraud never let Mana's accusations get to him, even though she was making it more and more apparent he wasn't the real Yugi. You'd think what I let slip would have fazed him more. It was taking everything Mana had to keep her temper reined in. "I choose to play the magic of Thousand Knives," Dimitri played his card and destroyed Dark Red Enchanter with the spell. "Still think he's not my friend? Well prepare to witness his loyalty! Dark Magician! Dark Magic Attack!" Mana's LifePoints dropped to 1500.
"Mana!" her friends yelled in concern.
It's just a hologram; it's not really Mahad. Just like it's not really Dad. Mana refused to show Dimitri how much his attack hurt her. She had to stay strong. "It'll take more than that to take me down!" she called out.
"That's the spirit," Dimitri mimicked Yugi's encouraging attitude, which infuriated Mana even more. "Never give up. Always believe in the Heart of the Cards. That's what I say."
"Don't you talk about the Heart of the Cards!" Mana's temper flared out. "You stole that deck! Your heart is not bonded to those cards! And you'll never win because of it! My turn!" Mana drew her card. Alright! Mirror Force! That should cut Dimitri down to size! I summon another Magician's Valkyria in defense mode, and I play one card face-down. Make your move!"
"Don't forget, because of Sword of Revealing Light out, you still can't attack," Dimitri smirked. "But I can. Dark Magician, Dark Magic Attack!"
"I don't think so! I activate my face-down card! Mirror Force! And you should know what that means! Say good-bye to Dark Magician!"
"Alright! Mana finally got rid of the Dark Magician!" Syrus called.
"And with no Egyptian God Cards, that Dark Magician is the strongest card in Yugi's deck," Bastion added.
"No, it's not!" Mana called to her friends. "Dark Magician isn't the strongest card in that deck! Trust me, I know!"
"You're absolutely right!" Dimitri said. "And your Mirror Force won't work as well as you hoped! I activate the spell Dedication Through Light and Darkness! It takes Dark Magician and lets me turn him into something more powerful! The Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!" Ah, great, he had that spell. Dimitri summoned his chaos mage in defense mode, which protected him from Mirror Force. "And just by successfully summoning him, I'm allowed to bring back a spell from my graveyard to my hand. Just face it. This deck and I work perfectly together. Always have, always will."
"Just shut up!" Mana said as she reached for her next card. I can't let him take Dad's Deck. Her hands shook as she stared at her deck. I wish Atem were here. He should be the one dueling, not me. If he were here, he'd beat Dimitri no problem. I don't know if I can really do this.
"Mana, do not lose hope," Dark Magician Girl's voice rang in her head. "You are powerful, and you can defeat him. You are not alone. You have me, Mahad, and all your friends supporting you. Believe in yourself."
Thanks, Dark Magician Girl. Mana pulled herself together and drew her card. I can't lose sight of my goal. She's right. I can do this! "It's my turn!" She flipped over her spirit partner. I sacrifice my Magician's Valkyria to summon Dark Magician Girl!" The blue-and-pink clad spellcaster appeared in her swarm of bubbles and winked at Dimitri. "And since you sacrificed Dark Magician, she gets an extra 300 attack points. Now I'll boost her strength by another 700 with Magic Formula." The spellbook appeared in the blonde spellcaster's hand. Mana noticed it looked a lot like the book she had been studying her magic from. "This is the last turn for Swords of Revealing Light, so I'll end my turn."
"Then it's my move!" Dimitri drew. "I summon Kuriboh in attack mode. Then I'll equip the Dark Magician of Chaos with the Book of Secret Arts, giving him another 300 attack points. Now he's once again the strongest monster on the field. Go, Mystic Strike!" The chaos mage went in for the kill.
"Not so fast!" Mana revealed on of her face-down card. "I activate the spell card Enemy Controller! It lets me switch your chaos mage into defense mode." She sighed as she survived another attack. Dimitri ended his turn with a face-down.
"All right, Mana!" Syrus cheered. "You and Dark Magician Girl can do this!"
"Yes we can! It's my turn!" Mana drew. "I activate Pot of Greed which lets me draw two cards!" She looked over her possibilities before playing. "I set one card face-down, and I summon White Magician Pikeru (1200/0). Pikeru, attack Kuriboh with your white magic!"
"I activate the spell card Multiply! By sacrificing one Kuriboh, I can summon Kuriboh Tokens on every open spaces in my monster card zone. You're attack still happens, but it's significance has been diminished." The white magic hit one of the Kuribohs.
"It's a good thing I still have Dark Magician Girl's attack!" Mana moved to deal with the chaos mage. "Go, Dark Burning Attack!" The female spellcaster finally eliminated her foe.
"It won't matter," Dimitri started his turn. "I play the magical Card of Sanctity. Now we each draw until we have six cards in our hands." Mana sighed in relief as her hand was refreshed. "Excellent. I drew the monster Watapon. You see, if Watapon is drawn to my hand by way of magic, trap, or monster effect, I can summon him to the field. But he won't be out for long. Because I'm going to sacrifice him and bring out my own Dark Magician Girl!"
Don't panic. My Dark Magician Girl is still stronger because of Magic Formula. Mana had never faced another duelist with Dark Magician Girl. She knew other people did, but Yugi was the only one she'd met, and he'd switched to his Silent and Toy cards.
"Next I activate the magic of Mystical Space Typhoon! With it, I can destroy your Magic Formula!" Dimitri evened the field with his spell. "And now, I'll play my own Magic Formula. You called me a copycat, but you're the one duplicating the cards in my deck."
"Don't mock my deck!" Mana shouted. "At least I made it myself, and my dad gave me a lot of these cards! Also since you destroyed Magic Formula, I gain 1000 LifePoints."
"Well they won't help you now as my Dark Magician Girl destroys yours. Go, Dark Burning Attack!" Mana cried in pain as her spirit partner was destroyed. Why does it always hurt when she's gone? "The Heart of the Cards are indeed powerful, aren't they, Mana?"
"I told you to shut up about the Heart of the Cards!" she gasped. She only had 1800 LifePoints left while Dimitri had yet to lose any. "You don't know anything! About me, or about Yugi! I draw!" She flipped over Chaos Sorcerer and remembered when Yugi had given it to her years ago.
"Whoa! This monster's really powerful! And I don't need to sacrifice a monster to summon him!"
"This other version of Black Luster Soldier is the same way!" Atem grinned. "He's even more powerful than the normal Black Luster Soldier!"
"Yes, these cards are powerful, and I believe they'll help your decks a lot," Yugi chuckled at his children's enthusiasm. "But you must not rely on them too much. There is another card like these that has been declared too powerful for official tournaments. Kaiba has a copy of it. It's called Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End."
"That's like mine!" Atem shouted. "Mine says Envoy of the Beginning."
"Yes. These ones have not been banned from tournaments, but that's partly because most people have never seen copies of these. I have a copy of the Black Luster Soldier in the deck I built with Pharaoh Atem. I don't know if these will ever be banned, but it is a possibility. So while I want you to use them, I also want you to be ready for the day people say they are unfairly powerful.
"I promise to take good care of it," both siblings said at the same time. They grinned at each other.
Mana smiled at the memory. Dimitri had nothing on her bond with her dad and brother. "I remove Magician's Valkyria and Apprentice Magician, one light monster and one dark monster, from my graveyard to special summon my Chaos Sorcerer (2300/2000)!" She heard her friends' shock as her Sorcerer appeared on the field.
"You're Sorcerer isn't strong enough to beat my Dark Magician Girl."
She smirked at her opponent. "Who said I was going to attack her?" Dimitri's slightly shocked face was worth it. "I use Chaos Sorcerer's ability to remove your Dark Magician Girl from the game!" The hologram of the blonde spellcaster vanished. Dimitri gained 1000 LifePoints because his Magic Formula was destroyed. "Since Chaos Sorcerer can't attack on the turn he used his effect, I end my turn."
"Keep it up, Mana! Win back that deck!" Jaden cheered for her, followed by the others.
"Well two can play at that game," Dimitri said as he drew. "The Heart of the Cards has served me again. I remove Kuriboh and Watapon, one dark monster and one light monster, from my graveyard to summon Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)." He's using Atem's monster! "I'll have him attack your Chaos Sorcerer. Luster Strike!"
"I play Negate Attack!" Mana revealed her face-down card. "As its name suggests, it stops your attack and ends the Battle Phase. And since you technically declared an attack with Black Luster Soldier, you can't use his other effect to remove Chaos Sorcerer from play."
"Clever girl," Dimitri relented. "No matter; I'll finish you next turn. The Heart of the Cards will see to that."
"Would you shut it? You know nothing about the Heart of the Cards!" Mana closed her eyes. This is it. I won't get another draw. Heart of the Cards, please guide me! She drew. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Monster Reborn. Yes! "I activate the spell card Monster Reborn to resurrect Dark Magician Girl!" Mana's spirit partner returned to the field in attack position. "Next I activate the spell card Sage's Stone. Since I have Dark Magician Girl on my field, I can summon Dark Magician from my deck. So say hello to my friend Mahad!" The purple-robed spellcaster appeared next to his student. "Now I use Chaos Sorcerer's effect to remove your Black Luster Soldier from the game." Chaos Sorcerer's magic hit the Black Luster Soldier, pulling him from the field. "Finally, I equip Dark Magician Girl with Black Pendant, which increases her attack points by 500." Okay, he has 5000 LifePoints. Mahad is at 2500, and Dark Magician Girl is at 2800. I got this. "You're through, Dimitri! My magicians will see to that. Go, attack him directly! Double Dark Magic Attack!"
The spellcasters swooped in and crossed their staffs, combining their magic into one powerful blast. Their magic took all of Dimitri's LifePoints, and Mana struck her victory pose—left eye closed while her right hand held a horizontal V in front of her open right eye. "And that's why you don't mess with the Heart of the Cards!"
Dimitri sank to his knees in defeat. "I've been beaten. Even with my—with Yugi's legendary cards. What's wrong with me? Why can't I ever win?"
"The answer to that is obvious," Zane's voice rang out.
Mana turned to see Zane, Atem, and Alexis walking down the cliff to where Mana and Dimitri had dueled. "Hey, you're Zane. And Atem Muto!" Dimitri identified the two Obelisk seniors.
"It was bold of you to steal my dad's deck," Atem said.
"Why are you guys here?" Mana asked. Did they see the whole duel?
"Why else?" Zane answered. "To see the deck."
"Zane convinced me to go see it early," Atem explained. "Though it's not like I haven't already seen it. Anyway when we snuck into the event hall, we saw the display case broken and the deck gone. So we went to look for it; I couldn't just let someone get away with stealing Dad's deck."
"We figured the thief couldn't have gotten far, and we found you here dueling," Alexis added.
"We've been here a while," Zane finished, "as have others. The duel attracted quite a bit of attention." Other students slowly made themselves visible; it looked like the entire student body was there.
"We got here just as the duel started," Atem said. "We also heard Mana's slip of the tongue."
Mana's face flushed red as everyone looked at her. "Oh, that's right; you said Yugi was your dad," Jaden remembered. "Is that true?"
Mana looked around nervously, avoiding all eye contact. "It's true," Atem answered for her. "She's my little sister."
"But her last name's Gardner," Syrus pointed out.
"It's our mom's maiden name," Mana admitted, "and she still uses it for her stage name. She's a ballerina; I told you about her over break. I just didn't want to be compared to my dad and Atem all the time, so I enrolled under a different name. I wanted to be like any other student, and prove myself as a duelist in my own right. Not as Yugi's daughter or Atem's sister."
"And you did," Atem said as he hugged his sister. "You defeated Dad's legendary deck. He would be proud of you."
Everyone applauded Mana's victory. She heard various comments about her being a Muto, a powerful duelist, and one person asking if she would tutor him in spellcasters—he was failing. I guess the cat really is out of the bag.
"So what now?" Dimitri asked.
"Well, kid," Zane started, "the punishment for stealing as always been straight up expulsion. But what do you say, Atem and Mana? The deck belongs to your family."
"I think pretty much everyone enjoyed seeing Dad's deck in a duel instead of in a display case; even we've rarely seen it used in person. And he did push Mana into coming out of her shell. So I'm okay with letting him go."
All the students were quickly agreeing to not turn Dimitri in. Soon the only person who hadn't said anything was the victor herself. "Mana?" her brother looked at her questioningly.
Mana took the deck from Dimitri and looked through the cards. She could almost see Pharaoh Atem and her dad dueling with them through Battle City and their other adventures.
"I'm okay with not ratting him out on one condition," Mana answered. "He needs to stop copying other people's decks." The Ra copycat looked at her in shock. "Throughout that duel, while you were pretending to be my dad, you kept saying the Heart of the Cards was on your side. But that wasn't true. The Heart of the Cards will never be on your side until you make your own deck and put your own heart in it. Other people's decks will never resonate with your heart for the sole reason that they are not your deck. You're not even putting yourself out there when you copy someone's deck."
"She's right, Dimitri," Zane added. "You'll never truly win or lose until you put yourself out there, and that means creating your own deck and your own strategies. Not piggy-backing off of someone else's. After all, there is no amount of studying that you can do to be able to use someone else's deck as well as they can."
"And that's how the Heart of Cards works," Atem finished. "By believing in your own cards and strategies."
"Okay," Dimitri agreed.
The Mutos and their entourage returned the deck to the display case and a very grateful Dr. Crowler.
The next day, Mana, Jaden, and Chumley reveled in the normalcy of the morning. At least in what the standard of normal seemed to be. Jaden also showed off a poster signed by Yugi he'd gotten. "Jaden, I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but that's not Yugi's signature. Or even his handwriting," Mana shot down his good mood.
"What? No way!" Jaden looked at her in disbelief.
"Yes way," Mana insisted. "I know his handwriting, and that's not it. I have a collection of letters he sent me; you can look at them if you don't believe me."
Chumley also commented that he saw Dimitri in the merchandise with a pen after they'd returned the deck, and Dimitri had been talking in his Yugi voice at the time too.
"Mana!" Syrus called her as he ran into the room. "Mana, come quick!"
"Syrus, what is it?" Mana asked her panicking friend. "And why do you need me?"
"It's Dimitri!" her friend panted. "He's at it again!"
Oh no he isn't! Mana fought the urge to thrash the Ra. Their agreement was that Dimitri stop with the copying.
Syrus led them to the woods where Dimitri was practicing his latest impersonation: Mana. The copycat wore a long brown wig, a sleeveless Slifer Red Blazer, and white pants with red boots. "I've been waiting for you," Dimitri said in a slightly high-pitched voice to mimic Mana.
At least he's not wearing a skirt. I don't know where he'd find one, and I really don't think he could pull off that look. "What are you doing, Dimitri?" Mana demanded. "We agreed you would stop with the copying!"
"Who's Dimitri?" the copycat innocently asked. "I'm Mana Gardner, a Slifer Red. The King of Games is my dad." He made a poor attempt at Mana's victory pose.
Mana's temper flared. She stormed up to him and grabbed him by his collar with both hands. "Now you listen to me very closely, because I'm not going to repeat myself." Dimitri gulped nervously. "I don't want you copying me and saying stuff about my dad or brother. I don't want to flaunt my family legacy here, but I will make an exception if you harass me or my friends. If I catch you impersonating anyone, I will hunt you down and make you regret everything, starting with the fact you did steal the deck from the display. Now go make your own deck and be yourself, not someone's imitation." Mana shoved him away and walked back to her friends. "Oh, and just so you know, I did report the falsely signed merchandise to Dorothy. You better hope she doesn't figure out it was you." Dimitri scurried off.
"Mana, that was kind of terrifying," Syrus gulped.
"Should you have really threatened him like that?" Chumley asked nervously.
"No, I probably shouldn't have," Mana ran a hand through her hair. "I've spent a lot of time with my uncles Joey, Tristan, and Seto, and I guess they've rubbed off on me more than I thought. I'll admit I have a temper, but no one has ever ticked me off like Dimitri has in the last two days. That was a lot like how Uncle Joey or Uncle Seto would have handled it. If Dad were here I'd get such a scolding."
"Wait, are the uncles you're referring to Joey Wheeler and Seto Kaiba?" Jaden recognized the names.
"Yeah, they're not really related to me, but they're Dad's close friends and they've always looked after us," Mana explained. "That card pendant Atem wears was a gift from Uncle Seto."
"Can you actually follow through on any of those threats you gave Dimitri," Syrus asked.
"Actually, I probably could," Mana admitted. "We did agree that in exchange for not turning him in, he would stop copying people's decks—I figured impersonating them was implied. If he continues with the copying, then he's going against our agreement. As for the rest, Uncle Joey and Uncle Tristan made sure Atem and I knew how to protect ourselves outside of a duel—they got into a lot of fights when they were younger. Dad frowned on them teaching us, but they figured it was better than being caught by some thug. And Uncle Seto owns Duel Academy. He's Chancellor Sheppard's boss."
"So you and Atem could really take over if you wanted to," Chumley said, impressed.
"Not in the way you're thinking," Mana said as they started walking back to the Slifer Dorm. "Uncle Seto may push things for himself, but that's because he feels he's earned it, and he has, given his record. It has to be really serious for him to intervene on Atem's or my behalf. Also Atem and I already know we have to live up to Dad's legacy, and we both want to prove ourselves, not just have things handed to us because we're Yugi's kids. Atem's almost the spitting image of Dad. I'm sure you've heard people talk about whether or not he lives up to Yugi's legacy. And that's why I entered under Mom's name—I didn't want to be compared to them. Especially since my grades are nowhere near as good as Atem's."
"Okay, so most of this makes sense," Jaden thought everything over. "I just have one more question. Who's Mahad? You kept bringing him during your duel."
"Remember that story I told you the night before we went to the Abandoned Dorm?"
"Kind of?" they admitted.
"Mahad was the guy who became the Dark Magician," Mana said as they finally got to the dorm. "Here, I'll finish explaining everything inside."
They settled themselves in Mana's room and turned their attention to her. "I didn't tell you the complete ending of that story—you know where someone solves the Millennium Puzzle and the Shadow Games return?"
"So they're really going to come back?" Chumley crept away from the group.
"They already did," Mana said. "What I didn't tell you was that my dad already solved the Millennium Puzzle and released the spirit of the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh shared a body with him for the few years he was here, which was during Duelist Kingdom, Battle City, and the Grand Championship. We don't tell a lot of people because some might see Dad as being a fraud because of it—having another spirit fighting alongside him. So you can't tell anyone about him."
"We promise to keep quiet about it," Jaden said. "So what happened to the Pharaoh?"
"A few months after the Grand Championship, Dad went to Egypt with my mom and uncles. They visited the Tablet of Forgotten Memories, and the Pharaoh relived part of his life—mainly his coronation to his defeat of Zorc. And Zorc did rise. He almost crossed from the Pharaoh's Memory World into ours, but Dad and the Pharaoh together stopped him, and they finally found out the Pharaoh's name: Atem."
"Hey, that's your brother's name!" Syrus exclaimed.
"Whom did you he was named after?" Mana joked. "Anyway, after Zorc was defeated, Pharaoh Atem had a final test before he could cross into the Afterlife. He had to duel someone worthy and lose, or his soul would be trapped in the Puzzle for another 5000 years. Dad faced him, and though it was the hardest duel for both of them, Dad won, and the Pharaoh crossed into the Afterlife. The tomb they dueled in collapsed shortly after, and all the Millennium Items were sealed underground."
"So you never met the Pharaoh?" Chumley asked.
"Nope, he was gone before my parents even graduated high school, though he did share all of his past with Dad," Mana answered. "And that's also why Dad stopped using that deck. It was the one he and the Pharaoh built together. Without Atem, he didn't feel right using it, and the duel had proved Dad was ready to stand on his own without Atem guiding him. So he made his own deck to keep fighting with. Believe me; you don't want to mess with the Silent Swordsman or Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction."
"No wonder you know so much about that legend," Syrus said.
"I told you the first time shared this story that I was named after the Dark Magician Girl," Mana said, "though I've always been interested in the stories behind the cards." She went to her desk and pulled out a thick binder filled with papers. "If you guys want to know about any card lore, check this out. It's a collection of stories that inspired the different cards."
"That's a lot of stories," Jaden stared at the binder. "Where'd you get them?"
"Maximillion Pegasus," she answered. "He's the one famous person who actually does dote on me. He likes having someone to share these stories with, so he started putting them together and sending them to me."
"You've really been holding out on us," Syrus said.
"Guys, please don't let my family change what you think of me," Mana pleaded. "I'm still the same Mana, just with the truth being told."
"Don't worry about it, Mana," Jaden assured her. "You're still our friend.
"You guys are the best."
The guys began looking through the binder and Mana began writing a letter. When she got to the last paragraph, she said, "Hey, guys, I'm writing a letter home. Anything you want to say to my dad?"
Mana put their wishes and greeting in as she finished the letter. Before she sealed in the envelope, she read it over one last time.
Dear Dad,
Well the cat's out of the bag. It happened the night before your deck's exhibit. Which, by the way, was done very well. It was a great display, though I can't tell how people didn't notice the difference between you and the Pharaoh.
Anyway, the night before the deck was stolen by a copycat duelist. My friends and I chased him down, but the only way to get it back was to beat him in a duel—with your deck. He even tried impersonating you. I got so frustrated with him, and I let slip the truth. He was good; he knew all the strategies of your deck, and he didn't even let who I was faze him.
It was a hard duel. There were a couple of times I thought I might not win, but I stuck with it. The Heart of the Cards was on my side, and I pulled through and won the duel. I recovered the deck, but the thief wasn't caught. Afterward I found out the entire student body had witnessed the duel. Everyone in the school heard my confession. Everyone now knows I'm a Muto.
I couldn't have won the duel without your teachings and the Chaos Sorcerer you gave me. You're always there for me, and you're the best dad I could hope for. I love you.
I told Jaden, Syrus, and Chumley about everything, including Pharaoh Atem. I had told them the legend before now and left out your involvement, but now they know everything. They're actually here reading the collection of stories Pegasus gave me as I write this. Jaden says he looks forward to meeting you again, and thanks you for Winged Kuriboh. He promises to duel you someday, and he doesn't want you to hold back on his account. Syrus, after getting over the shock of getting to say something to the famous King of Games, says hello and wants to know where he can get a Dark Magician Girl card—he absolutely adores her. He calls it a card crush. I've told him multiple times it won't work out—she's in love with the Pharaoh, and he can't go to the Spirit World to see her. Chumley's first response when I asked if he wanted to say anything was "Does he like grilled cheese?" Then he asked for an autograph. Part of me wants to invite them over for break sometime. The other part worries about what trouble we might find if I do.
I can't wait to see you over our next break. Give everyone my wishes.
Love,
Mana
Thank you for reading! The next chapters may take me a while as I write out the School Duel. I'll have to write two duels completely from scratch. I promise I will try not to make you wait too long. Anyway, tell me what you think! I'll take any advice about how to make this story better!