Dueling Critters - A Smiling Critters X Yu-Gi-Oh AU

by TrevBev45

We all know The Smiling Critters. But what if there exists a world full of them exist they play a card game? What if there exists a world where a friend group of the critters we know of went through a sacrifice one of their friends have made and 2 of them must fix it through that card game? Mysteries along the way? Yes, that too.

50. Chapter 49

Chapter 49: Hoppy Hopscotch Vs Dark CatNap; Broken Dreams

The seven pillars of pink light then dashed away to different places around Crittopia while the device up ahead was still charging the sky to be red. The closest was a few miles away as two of the pink light scattered there while 3 more scattered near a park that was also a few miles away.

"They've split into different pairs?!" Bobby said,

"What do they all have in store?" PickyPiggy wondered,

"...Ok, I have an idea." Bubba said, "Me, Bobby and Picky will go to the three pink lights in the park. Hoppy, Kickin, you two will go to the ones that's a few miles away from here to your left."

"Gotcha!" Hoppy said as she went on KickinChicken's motorcycle, "Come on, Kickin!"

Kickin then joined Hoppy on his motorcycle.

"Good luck to you three." Hoppy said to Bubba, Bobby and PickyPiggy,

"Godspeed to you two." Bubba said as he took a deep breath, "Because you also need it."

"Alright, let's go and see what's going on!" PickyPiggy shouted,

"I'm a little nervous, but I'm sure we'll get it all done together!" Bobby said,

Bubba, Bobby and PickyPiggy then went off to their right. Hoppy and KickinChicken then looked at each other.

"You good?" Hoppy asked him,

"...I guess…" KickinChicken replied,

"Hey, don't worry. All of what has happened between you and me? Water under the bridge."

"Yeah, but–"

"--No buts. The two of us are gonna help each other and our friends on what these pillars of lights are all about. Ok?"

"...Ok."

"Alright, let's roll!"

Hoppy then started the engine of KickinChicken's motorcycle and rode off. Other critters that they pass by were either confused or got scared from the sound of lightning bolts striking. KickinChicken looked up to see pink lightning bolts appearing.

"This feels like an apocalypse." He said,

"Yeah!" Hoppy said, "Hour Of Joy my ass! This isn't joy, this is fear!"

Hoppy then followed one of the closer pink pillars of light.

"Where does this light lead us to, we will know and find out what the hell is going on." She said,

Then, Hoppy and KickinChicken stopped near an abandoned orphanage called, "Home Sweet Home" as a pink pillar of light was shining down on it.

"Isn't this Home Sweet Home?" KickinChicken said,

"Yeah… This is the orphanage CatNap grew up in for most of his life…" Hoppy replied, "He didn't have any parents and he grew up as an oddball… At the time, no one really talked or communicated with him except for us."

"CatNap…"

Hoppy and KickinChicken then got off of KickinChicken's motorcycle.

"We should see what's going on." Hoppy said, "In there. Something about this pink pillar of light being able to send some sort of signal in Home Sweet Home is unnerving…"

Then, the sound of lightning struck near them.

"What the hell was that?!" KickinChicken shouted,

KickinChicken and Hoppy turned to see masked critters in black and masked critters in red and black appearing from the lightning bolt.

"How the hell is that possible?!" KickinChicken shouted,

"Nevermind how, look!" Hoppy shouted,

They saw the masked critters going after anyone that feared from what was going on with The Hour Of Joy.

"That's their way of joy?!" KickinChicken shouted, "Rallying up anyone that tried to oppose them?! I'm not gonna let them have it!"

"W-Wait, but your eye…" Hoppy said,

"Who gives a shit about my eye… Right now, it's a do or die situation. Someone's gotta help those people, and that someone is me! Go deal with what's going on in Home Sweet Home for me, Hoppy."

"Ok, I gotcha."

The two gave each other a fist bump as KickinChicken got back on his motorcycle and rode off to try and fend off the masked critters. Hoppy sighed heavily as she looked at her Duel Disk she had on.

"Well, it looks like it's just me, and my deck." She said as she went to the front door of Home Sweet Home, took a deep breath and opened the door to go inside the orphanage,

Inside Home Sweet Home, Hoppy noticed that everything was normal. Young kid Critters were playing games with one another while some were doing certain activities like coloring and reading.

"Huh, everything seems normal." Hoppy said as she walked inside and noticed that one young Critter went through her as if nothing had happened, surprised her, "What the?"

No one in the orphanage noticed Hoppy's presence.

"Wh-What is this?" She said, confused, "No one noticed me? What's going on?"

Hoppy then noticed something was off. Visions of the kids started to grow blurry.

"What the?" She said, "Wh-What now? This is getting freaky…"

Red smoke started to form near Hoppy. Hoppy then noticed the smoke and got scared.

"Is this… red smoke?" She said, "Is this the one that puts people to sleep or is this the one used as a drug?"

Hoppy then left Home Sweet Home as the red smoke formed around the place inside. No one noticed it as the visions of the kids started to fade away, alongside the smoke that just formed. But the smoke quickly turned into a whirlwind as it then faded away. As Hoppy went back inside, she noticed that Home Sweet Home was abandoned. Furniture grew old and left in dust, the floor, walls and ceiling were cracked and shattered of broken glass were on the floor.

"Oh my God…" Hoppy said, a little emotional, "What happened to this place?"

"Abandoned." A voice replied in a different yet glitchy tone, "By us."

A figure then appeared in front of Hoppy. Hoppy gasped as she ran back out. As she went into the streets, a wall of pink flames blocked her path.

"What the hell?!" She shouted, "What the hell is going on here?!"

The flames then formed a giant simple, which represents the mark of the killer whale. It surrounded Hoppy, Home Sweet Home and the figure in the abandoned orphanage.

The figure then walked out and revealed itself outside. It was a masculine cat-like critter wearing a mask in red and black, wearing red and black all around and a black cape and boots. He brought out his Duel Disk to request to duel Hoppy.

"A-A duel?" Hoppy said, "Why? Who are you? What did you do to Home Sweet Home?"

The masked critter then slowly deactivated his mask. After turning it off, he took it off of his head to reveal himself. It was none other than CatNap. Hoppy gasped.

"C-CATNAP?!?!" She shouted,

CatNap had a serious look on his face as he put his mask aside.

"Wh-Why?!" Hoppy shouted, "Why did you do this?! Or better yet, how did you even get here?!"

"Do you really want to know?" CatNap said, calmly, "It was my rage that brought me to the dark side."

"C-CatNap…"

"Home Sweet Home… There was nothing sweet about it. They put me on medications. They tried to give me therapy. I was a freak to them when I was watching the other parentless kids sleep. I never really went to sleep on my own as I was an insomniac."

"They just wanted to make you feel better! To feel normal! To feel like you were part of a family! Why burn it all away?!"

"It was my rage! Do you ever escape your past with Kickin? Do you even escape your past when you pick on me? Or how about when CraftyCorn left us?"

Hoppy was confused yet very concerned.

"CatNap, I…" She said,

"CatNap, that name is no more." CatNap said, "Theodore is my new name. I must escape my past and move on to a better future with my new family. And it starts with The Hour Of Joy."

"No! I'm not gonna let them take control of you! And you wanna duel, huh?"

Hoppy activated her Duel Disk.

"Then you got one!" She shouted,

CatNap smiled as he activated his Duel Disk.

"Good choice." He said, "But it will be your last."

"I don't know where this is going, but I gotta free him out of what caused him to be this way!" Hoppy said,

The duel then started as CatNap and Hoppy both shouted, "Duel!"

Turn 1.

Hoppy Hopscotch: 4000

CatNap (Theodore): 4000

CatNap went first as he took a deep breath.

"I'll win this duel by leaving a trace here." He said, "And that's the remains of not only this orphanage, but also of yourself. So, come along, down with me, Hoppy, because it's time for you to know about my broken dreams!"

"Bring it!" Hoppy shouted,

CatNap then played a Continuous Spell.

"I'll start this duel by activating the Continuous Spell, Dream Mirror Phantasms!" He shouted, "Upon activated, I can add a Dream Mirror monster from my Deck to my Hand."

While CatNap added a Dream Mirror monster from his Deck to his Hand, Hoppy was thinking to herself.

"Dream Mirrors…" She said, "Does it represent CatNap's horrible dreams he's been having? Does he want to control them so that he doesn't want them to be broken anymore? I don't know…"

CatNap then played another card from his hand, being a monster to Normal Summon.

"Now, I summon Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Friend in Attack Position!" He said,

Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Friend was Normal Summoned in Attack Position with 900 ATK Points.

"Such a lovable friend he is, isn't he?" CatNap said, "I thought I had friends like you, Hoppy, but I was wrong."

Hoppy was worried.

"I… I don't know where this is going." She said,

"Good, don't know." CatNap said, "Focus on the broken dreams I'm guiding you through."

CatNap then sets two cards in his Spell/Trap Zones.

"I set two before ending my turn." He said, "It's your turn, Hoppy."

"Ok, I draw!" Hoppy said as she draws to start Turn 2,

Hoppy then started to look at the two cards CatNap sets.

"Where is this even going?" She said to herself, "CatNap, did you lose the plot, or did you really lose control of yourself? Considering that you failed to rescue him, your friend, DogDay… I gotta save you from all of this! And hopefully DogDay as well…"

Hoppy then Normal Summoned a monster.

"I Normal Summon, Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon in Attack Position!" She shouted,

Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon was Normal Summoned in Attack Position with 1900 ATK Points.

"It's big enough to take down my Dream Mirror Friend…" CatNap said,

"Oh yes, it is!" Hoppy said, "Sorry to break it to you, CatNap, but you're gonna witness one of your friends saving you from this nightmare you put yourself in!"

"This isn't a nightmare I put myself in! I'll prove to you that I'm free from my past, and I'll start activating one of my face-down cards!"

"Uh-oh."

"Now, I reveal this face-down card to my right, the Trap Card, Dream Mirror Hypnagogia!"

The Trap Card, Dream Mirror Hypnagogia was activated.

"What is this all of a sudden?" Hoppy said,

"Simple. When I activate Dream Mirror Hypnagogia, I get to choose two specific Field Spells from my Hand or Deck and place them in our Field Zones." CatNap replied,

"My Field Zone gets to have one of your two specific Field Spells?"

"That's right. I told you I would guide you through my broken dreams."

CatNap then shoots a Field Spell into Hoppy's Field Zone while placing another into his Field Zone. The Field Spells then turned both duelists' sides of the fields into two different sides of a mirror. Hoppy was in a happy-like place in the day while CatNap was in a terrifying-like place in the night. Hoppy was shocked with her surroundings.

"Your Field Zone contains Dream Mirror Of Joy." CatNap said, "While my Field Zone contains Dream Mirror Of Terror. They both represent where we're at right now."

"Ok, how will this help?" Hoppy wondered,

"Simple. It will help me with this duel. And through the effects of my Dream Mirror Phantasms."

"What are you talking about?"

"When Dream Mirror Of Joy is on a Field Zone, all monsters I control gain 500 ATK and DEF Points. And when Dream Mirror Of Terror is on a Field Zone, all monsters you control loses 500 ATK and DEF Points."

"Wait, what?"

Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Friend's ATK Points went up to 1400 from Dream Mirror Of Joy through the effect Dream Mirror Phantasms. Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon's ATK Points however went down to 1400 from Dream Mirror Of Terror, also through the effect of Dream Mirror Phantasms.

"Looks like our monsters are now equal in strength." CatNap said, "Any plans of your monster attacking mine should be gone by now."

"Don't worry, I'll find a way! Watch!" Hoppy said as she set two cards in her Spell/Trap Zone, "I'll set two and pass the turn to you."

"Very well, my turn!"

CatNap draws to start Turn 3.

CatNap looked at the card he drew and smiled. He puts the drawn card in his hand.

"Before I activate what I got, allow me to Normal Summon the polar opposite of my Dream Mirror Friend." He said as he Normal Summoned another monster, "Being Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe!"

Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe was Normal Summoned in Attack Position with 1900 ATK Points, but was raised to 2400 under Dream Mirror Phantasms' effect since Dream Mirror Of Joy is in a Field Zone.

"So that's his other half, huh?" Hoppy wondered, "What are you gonna do now?"

"Simple, now that I have two monsters on the field, it's time for me to activate a Spell Card." He said as he played it, "And it's the one I just drew to start this turn, the Spell Card, Fusion Substitute!"

The Spell Card, Fusion Substitute was activated.

"This card name becomes Polymerization." CatNap said, "And for this card, I can Fusion Summon a monster using only monsters I control as Fusion Materials!"

"Oh boy." Hoppy said,

"Now, I fuse my two Phantasos together to form a protector of my Dream Mirrors!"

Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Friend and Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe were used as Fusion Materials for a Fusion Summon.

"Shine through the mirrors of joy and shatter the nightmares behind me!" CatNap chanted, "Fusion Summon!"

Someone came out of the Dream Mirror Of Joy as it shined through to join CatNap's field. Hoppy was surprised.

"Light up the sleeping hour, Level 10, Oneiros, The Dream Mirror Erlking!" CatNap shouted,

Oneiros, The Dream Mirror Erlking was Fusion Summoned in Attack Position with 3000 ATK Points, but through Dream Mirror Phantasms' effect, his ATK Points went up to 3500.

"Well shit." Hoppy said,

"Surprised by the shining joy that my Oneiros has?" CatNap said, "Good, because I'm going into the Battle Phase that you were supposed to earlier!"

"Oh crap."

The Battle Phase started.

"Oneiros, attack Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon!" CatNap shouted, "Joyous Phantasm!"

Oneiros then attacked Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon with a devastating blast of his dust of magic at the monster. Hoppy was dealt 2100 points of damage from the attack as she was launched back, draining her Life Points to 1900.

"Hrgh…" Hoppy groaned, "Cat…Nap…"

CatNap smirked.

"Looks like everything is going smoothly." He said, "Alright, I'll end my turn. Try and come back in this situation you're in, Hoppy."

Hoppy was on one knee as she was taking deep breaths for air.

"I'm… still… alive." She said to herself, "I gotta win this duel. Wherever Kickin is, he's gonna know that I'm in a sticky situation."

Turn 4.

Hoppy Hopscotch: 1900

CatNap (Theodore): 4000

Hoppy then draws to start Turn 4. She looked at the card she drew and clenched her teeth.

"Alright, time to roll." She said as she got up and puts the card she drew in her hand to activate a Spell Card from her hand, "I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Armed Dragon Flash!"

Armed Dragon Flash was activated.

"What?!" CatNap said,

"Remember this card, buddy?" Hoppy said, "I hope you do, because this lets me Special Summon a Level 3 Armed Dragon monster from my Deck, so I'm Special Summoning Armed Dragon Thunder LV3 from my Deck!"

Armed Dragon Thunder LV3 was Special Summoned from Hoppy's deck in Attack Position with 1200 ATK Points, but was drained to 700 from Dream Mirror Phantasms' effect while Dream Mirror Of Terror is on the field. CatNap smiled.

"Fool." He said, "You just triggered Dream Mirror Of Terror's effect!"

"Huh?!"

Dark lightning bolts came out and struck Hoppy, dealing 300 points of damage to her, leaving her with 1600 Life Points left.

Hoppy was on one knee again.

"Wh-What was that?" She said, "Why did I… take damage?"

"Every time you Special Summon a monster, Dream Mirror Of Terror triggers for you to take 300 points of damage. And it only applies while I control a DARK Dream Mirror monster."

"But your Oneiros is a LIGHT Attribute monster!"

"True, but while my Oneiros, The Dream Mirror Erlking is face-up on the field, he is also a DARK attribute monster."

"No way…"

"Unfortunately, that's how the power of my Dream Mirrors work. Between dreams and nightmares, I control them both!"

"Hrgh… What happened, CatNap? You used to play Lunalights, then you switched to Chaos and now this deck? I know this switch-up wasn't forced, I just know it…"

CatNap clenched his teeth.

"You do know that the old me is no more?" He said, "The new me is here to stay! CatNap is the past while Theodore is the future! Get used to it!"

"No, I will not!" Hoppy said, "And I'll make sure you won't relive this new person of your's as I start by sacrificing my Armed Dragon Thunder Lv3!"

"Wait, a Tribute Summon?!"

"That's right! Tribute Summoning doesn't count as Special Summoning!"

Armed Dragon Thunder LV3 was tributed as Armed Dragon Thunder LV5 was Tribute Summoned in Attack Position with 2400 ATK Points, but lost 1900 ATK Points from Dream Mirror Phantasms.

"So here's Armed Dragon Thunder LV5!" Hoppy shouted,

"Is that all?" CatNap wondered,

"Not yet! I'm gonna make sure none of my monsters are weak! I reveal one of my face-down cards, the Quick-Play Spell, Mystical Space Typhoon!"

Mystical Space Typhoon was activated.

"No!" CatNap shouted,

"Yes!" Hoppy shouted, "This card destroys a Spell or Trap on the field, so say goodbye to your Dream Mirror Phantasms!"

Dream Mirror Phantasms was destroyed as Armed Dragon Thunder LV5 and Oneiros, The Dream Mirror Erlking's ATK Points were returned to normal.

"So you managed to take an unknown route." CatNap said, "Very well, I'll see how that plays."

"It will play out in my favor!" Hoppy said as she got out the card she drew at the start of her turn, "And I haven't gotten a chance to play this card yet, so I'm about to right now!"

"What card could that be?"

"Do you remember an individual named DandyDragon? Well, she was your first opponent in an 8-Critter Duel Monsters Tournament that you won!"

"Winning a dumb tournament was never in my favor."

"Well, she gave me this card to help me win this duel!"

Hoppy then revealed the card.

"Behold, Dragunity Arma Gram!" She shouted,

CatNap was surprised.

"No way…" He said as he smirked, "Ok, bring it on!"

"Gladly!" Hoppy shouted, "In order to Special Summon Arma Gram, I gotta banish 2 Dragons and or Winged-Beast monsters from my Graveyard to bring him out from my hand or Graveyard! So here goes me banishing Armed Dragon Thunder LV3 and Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon!"

Armed Dragon Thunder LV3 and Armed Dragon, The Armored Dragon were banished from Hoppy's Graveyard.

"And here I go!" Hoppy shouted, "Come on out, Dragunity Arma Gram!"

Hoppy then Special Summon Dragunity Arma Gram in Attack Position with 2900 ATK Points. CatNap laughed a bit.

"Wh-What's going on?" Hoppy wondered, "Why are you laughing like a maniac, CatNap?"

CatNap stopped laughing as he sighed heavily and clenched his teeth while smiling menacingly.

"You made this so easily!" He said, "I know what that card does from the beginning! You showed me that card a while ago, didn't you?"

"Well, yeah…" Hoppy replied, worried, "Why?"

"Because I reveal the face-down card to my left, the Counter Trap, Dream Mirror Oneiromancy!"

The Counter Trap, Dream Mirror Oneiromancy, was activated.

"Wh-What is this now?!" Hoppy said,

"When you Special Summon a monster while Dream Mirror Of Terror is in a Field Zone, I can negate the Special Summon and destroy the monster!" CatNap replied,

"Shit! I forgot about the Field Spells!"

"Indeed you did!

Dragunity Arma Gram was negated after being Special Summoned and was destroyed and sent to Hoppy's Graveyard.

"Damn it…" Hoppy said, defeated, "What the hell do I do now?"

Hoppy then sighed heavily as she set another card in her Spell/Trap Zone.

"This should be the way." She said, "I set a card face-down and end my turn."

"Alright, my turn!" CatNap said as he draws to start Turn 5, but then felt something burning on his arm after drawing a card,

"C-CatNap?"

Turn 5.

Hoppy Hopscotch: 1600

CatNap (Theodore): 4000

CatNap then showed his mark to Hoppy, a glowing pink representing a killer whale.

"My mark… It burns!" He said, "It's telling me something!"

"Oh God…" Hoppy said, "This is bad."

"For you! Because the card I drew… I must play it!"

"Play what?!"

"You'll find out right now! But first!"

CatNap then played an Equip Spell from his hand.

"I activate the Equip Spell, Premature Burial!" He said as he paid 800 of his Life Points, draining his Life Points to 3200, "By giving up 800 of my Life Points, I'll be able to Special Summon a monster from my Graveyard!"

CatNap then Special Summoned back Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe through Premature Burial's effect.

"And that will be Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe!" CatNap shouted,

"Oh no…" Hoppy said,

"Now, for the fun part! I sacrificed both my Phantasos, The Dream Mirror Foe and my Oneiros, The Dream Mirror Erlking!"

"You're giving up one of your powerful monsters for a Tribute Summon?!"

"You don't understand… My Oneiros isn't the most powerful monster in my Deck. It's this next card!"

Phantasos and Oneiros were then used as Tributes for a Tribute Summon. Above, Hoppy then saw a rock of some sort with pink glowing lines in the middle and a deck of cards on top of some device. Some pink spirits made their way to the rock as sacrifices to awaken it.

"Can you feel it now, Hoppy?" CatNap said as he started a chant, "This is the power of being a Dark Critter! New blooms when The Hour Of Joy sprouts! This monster will bury you and your pathetic life to Hell and back!"

KickinChicken meanwhile was helping out with any of the folks he saved from the masked critters. He and the others saw the same rock glowing that CatNap had spawned.

"What the hell am I looking at?" He said,

Back to the duel CatNap was seen with his supposed trump card up in the air. Hoppy was shocked with what's going on.

"Now come forth, Earthbound Immortal Chacu Chahulla!" CatNap shouted as he played the card he was holding to his Duel Disk,

The rock then exploded as everyone outside the duel braced for impact.

"Holy shit!" KickinChicken shouted,

Revealing in the air, was a giant black-colored killer whale with pink lines all around its bodies. It screeched as it was Tribute Summoned in Attack Position with 2900 ATK Points. That was Earthbound Immortal Chacu Chahulla.

"Oh… my… God." Hoppy said, shocked,

KickinChicken and the others were shocked as well, outside of the duel.

"Oh my God!" KickinChicken shouted, "I gotta go in there and save Hoppy before she gets hurt!"

CatNap chuckled a bit.

"Now that you've witnessed what it's like being a Dark Critter, I think it's time for you to get a taste of your defeat from this beast of mine!" He shouted, "And by the way, my Earthbound Immortal can attack directly."

Hoppy then looked at her face-down cards.

"Crap, my face-down cards are useless for this one!" She shouted, "And that thing can attack directly?! Damn it, I'm screwed!"

CatNap laughed like a maniac.

"Battle!" He shouted, "I'm gonna enjoy taking you to Hell!"

Hoppy then started to shiver in fright.

"Shit, shit, shit!" She shouted,

"Go, Chacu Chahulla, DIVE HOPPY DOWN TO HELL!" CatNap shouted,

Chacu Chahulla then started to dive down to Hoppy. Hoppy had no idea what to do. That is, until she and CatNap heard a motorcycle running. Destroying a part of the Dream Mirror Of Joy Field Spell was KickinChicken on his motorcycle.

"Kickin!" Hoppy said,

"Get on!" KickinChicken shouted,

KickinChicken then lent a hand for Hoppy to get on the motorcycle and rode off. Before leaving the duel in a draw, CatNap and KickinChicken made eye contact together, which triggered KickinChicken to realize what had happened between their last encounter together. KickinChicken gasped in realization while CatNap had a serious look on his face. Then, as soon as Hoppy and KickinChicken escaped the duel, Chacu Chahulla disappeared before it even made an attack. The Dream Mirrors would fade away as CatNap put his mask back on in frustration.