~Rise and Fall~
4
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"ACHOO!" Mia sneezed quite harshly followed by some distracting sniffling and disgruntled moans.
She had a cold.
Screw you Zane...
She whimpered into her thoughts.
This is all your fault...
You jinxed me...
"Hey- you know, if you're sick- you should just stay home." Chazz grumbled as he shifted his papers around, gathering up his materials.
"Screw you too, Princeton." she muttered.
"What did you say!?" he growled.
"HA! That's telling him~" Jaden spoke between sleepy chuckles as he came to a waking state.
It had been a grueling few days of class.
Jaden and Syrus snored their way through yet another lesson...In this case though, it was an exam.
Mia had no problem getting through it...but their noise added to the headache that was throbbing within her face and she sighed.
"Hey...where'd everyone go?" asked Jaden as he and Syrus shifted their eyes around an empty class room.
"They're off to the card shop." said Bastion Misawa, a taller Ra Yellow male student, " With the new card shipment, everyone is in a rush to upgrade their decks for the upcoming field exam-"
Mia's ears perked up.
"Field Exam!?" she blinked and sat up right.
"Well...yes." said Bastion, "It's the dueling exam we take after the written exam." he stated, " They pit us against fellow students of our respected dorms and judge us accordingly." he states, "If you're of a lower rank and duel well...you can move up. But if you're already in a high class and don't do too well- you can get demoted too."
Mia blinked as she looked down at her blue uniform...
I see...
So even if you're already in the highest dorm...
You still have to fight to keep it?
"That seems...kind of harsh." Mia said softly, "So...if you lose- you drop a rank?"
"Not exactly." Bastion chuckled, "They grade you on how well you do- not on weather you win or lose-" he states, "They have to make sure you're sharp enough for you're rank you know? Wouldn't do you much good to be fitted in Obelisk if you can't so much as counter a trap card or understand the basics of strategy."
"What's got YOU so concerned about it anyway, Hastings~" Chazz smirked, "Afraid you don't have the chops to hold your title?"
"Oh shut up- that's not what I meant at all-AHCHOO!" she sniffed.
Chazz twitched a bit as he eyed the brunette sniffling into a tissue.
"Hey... listen..." he stated, "Not to be a downer on your lack of skill- but with a cold like that...it might do you better to just skip it today and take a sick day..." he states, "There's no way you'll be able to focus properly on your cards if you're sneezing all over them."
"I'm afraid that's a bad idea." said Bastion, "After all skipping the Exam is an automatic grade drop." he states, "If you do that...you might risk surrendering your color..."
"Hmph...now THAT'S what's harsh." Chazz grumbled.
"Well I obviously can't do tha-AHCHOO!"
That one gave her whiplash...
"Hmmmh...I don't know Mia...maybe Chazz is actually right for once." said Syrus.
"Yeah, I mean- your health is more important than a duel exam-" said Jaden.
"See- even the slackers agree, that you should probably risk demotion-" Chazz smirked, "You can always get your rank back up on the next exam...next month~ HAHAHA"
"Don't listen to him!" said Jaden, "I'm sure if you talk to them they'll let you do a re-take maybe-"
"I Refuse!" Mia huffed, "A Cold is not going to beat me!"
"Hmph...whatever you say loser~" Chazz scoffs as he walks out, "It's your funeral."
xxx
Mia's sharp blue eyes narrowed and twitched as she tried to focus beyond the congestion in her face and sift through her cards as she awaited the response to her request-
"A first year dueling a third year? How obsurd!" said Doctor Crowler.
"I-I'm sorry Ms. Hastings..." said Chancellor Shepperd, "But never in the history of our school has a first year ever dueled a third year during one of these exams." he stated.
"Why not?" Mia asked, "Zane and I are both in Obelisk blue- isn't that how these exams work? You duel with your dorm, right?"
"Zane Truesdale!?" Crowler snorted, "The Zane Truesdale!? You must be joking!"
"No...I'm not." she stated as she narrowed her blue eyes stubbornly, "Why? What's wrong with that!?" she huffed, "I have you know, this wouldn't be my first time Dueling Zane Truesdale- I can stand toe to toe with him just fine!"
"These exams are built to not only be against fellow students of your dorm...but with fellow students of your dorm who are also part of your same year..." said Shepperd, "The only exception would be during the Graduation duel of the Selected Graduate representative... and even then it would be up to the graduate on who they duel- first year or third year-" Shepperd said, "If you wish to duel a third year outside of examinations on personal time however, there's no rules against that-"
"NO!" she huffed.
"No!?" The Chancellor blinked, both shocked and yet amused.
"I want to prove that I belong in Blue!" she declared," As such- I should face the BEST Obelisk Blue student!" she demanded, "And that's Zane!"
" While it is true that Zane is top of our school- I'm sorry, Ms. Hastings...but things just don't work that way in these exams..." he says, "But what you could do...is send out a request form for Zane...again...on your personal time." he stated, "And besides...the the third years have already taken their exams...As did the second years...now we are preparing for the first years." he stated, "All ranks aside, I'm afraid I can only face you off against another student of your year..."
She sighed.
"Pffff haha... So...Little Ms. Hastings wants to Duel with the big boys does she?" a snide remark sounded from the smug Chazz Princeton, followed by the snickering laughter of his two lackeys. "Waste of time if you ask me."
Mia twitched as she shot a blue-eyed glare at him.
"I'm sorry? What was that?" she asked, cupping her hand over her ear, "I didn't quite catch it-I'm afraid I don't speak Third Place~"
"Hmph..." Chazz twitched, "Better Third Place than Third Rate~" he smirked, "You know~ if she's that desperate...I'll take her on!" he smirked, " I am, after all, the best of the First year obelisks~" He grinned, "I may not be Zane Truesdale, but as far as first years are concerned, in the Obelisk Dorm? I'm pretty much Zane equivilant!"
"Really, Princeton? You do remember that I beat you-"
"That was then- and this is today." he stated, "I got time, and besides..." he said narrowing his eyes at her, "I've been meaning to put you in your place for a while now anyway-"
"You hear that! He consented!" said Mia.
"HEY! LET ME FINISH TALKING YOU LOSER!"
"No time for talk!" said Mia as she slid on her Duel Disk, "Let's go!" she said before charging off to the Duel field and taking her place on one side of it, "Come on!" she coughed.
"All RIGHT!" Chazz huffed as he turned on his heel to take his place on the other side, neither duelist waiting for the consent of the teachers, "I'm coming, I'm coming..." he grumbled, " Just make sure that when I beat you- you take some needed bed rest, got that!?" he huffed, "You're gonna infect everyone hacking all over the place..."
"Well!" Dr. Crowler said in a huff, "This certainly took a turn, didn't it?" he stated, "Normally we would have to put Mia against someone from the Girl's Dorm...like Alexis."
"Oh, Come now, Vellian." Chancellor Shepperd chuckled, "If they want to duel so bad who are we to stop them? Ater all what else is this school for?" he chuckled, "This should make for an interesting match to say the least!"
"DUEL!"
To Be Continued...