Pride and Soul
- Chapter3
Lust and Duels
Disclaimer-
I do not own Yu-Gi-Ou! in any way, shape, or form. Please do not sue unless you want my debt.
Anzu sighed as she walked with the guys after school, feeling, yet again, that they were leaving her out. She hadn�t realized how much she hungered for female companionship until Shizuka had come along, but now that she was gone, Anzu was lonely again. Her longing was one of the reasons why she�d approached Kira. Plus, the girl had seemed so lonely, sitting all by herself like that. As they advanced to the lockers, she saw a familiar blonde head, �Kira-chan?� Suddenly, the guys were spilling over each other into a corner. Anzu followed in confusion, wondering what was going on. From their perch, they got a perfect view of the blonde without the fear of being seen. Indeed, the girl was Kira. She was quietly tugging on her shoes, ignorant to the other students as they pooled out of the school. She growled as she realized what the guys� were doing. Their position gave them an excellent close-up of Kira�s skirt. �We are so lucky to have her in our class,� Yuugi whispered dreamingly. �Damn, she�s hot,� Otogi drooled. �I wonder if she�ll join my fan club?� �I love her adorable blush,� Honda sighed. �Well, I love her creamy skin,� Otogi countered. �But I love her long legs!� �Knock it off, you two!� Anzu ordered. �Anzu�s right,� Jounouchi�s eyes were filled with mischief. �Do you want me to tell my little sister you two were checking out another girl?� �NO!� cried Honda. �You can�t tell Shizuka-chan!� Otogi fell on his knees simultaneously with Honda as they begged him not to tattle. �I thought so,� Jounouchi grinned evilly as he rolled up his sleeves. Anzu began to worry as he tried to groom his golden hair. Since when did he care so much about his appearance? �Jounouchi, what are you doing?� �Now that these two dumbasses are outta the way, I�m going to Kira.� He winked, �she�ll fall easily to good �ol Jounouchi charm.� �Nothing �good� about it,� Anzu sighed. Kira did seem awfully vulnerable. Certainly she wasn�t na�ve enough to fall for Jounouchi � was she? �Hey, Kira-chan,� Jounouchi strutted to her locker, arms swinging like he was some kind of stud. No. There was absolutely no way she could be that naive. �Hello, Jounouchi-kun,� she smiled sweetly. Kira�s hands clutched her attach� case before her in a typical �good girl� pose. She was blushing slightly. Anzu sighed. �Let�s go get our shoes and come back,� Yuugi suggested. �Then we can all hang out together. �You sure they�ll still be here?� Otogi couldn�t take his off them. Jounouchi placed his arm against the lockers, attempting to lean on them when he missed his footing. He didn�t quite fall down, but he scratched his head in embarrassment. They could almost hear him say, �I meant to do that.� A sweat drop slid down the backs of their heads �I think that if any of them go anywhere, it�ll be Kira trying to run away,� Yuugi commented dryly. A few minutes later, the group cornered Jounouchi trying to wheedle a date out of an oblivious Kira. Anzu recalled the withdrawn way Kira handled the classroom, as if large groups of people made her nervous. Kira, she realized, was the epitome of an outcast. The blonde said she had dueled other people informally. Was that the extent of her social life? �Hey! I have an idea!� Yuugi cried out suddenly. �Kira, do you have a Duel Disk?� Kira shook her head. �I didn�t think so. Why don�t we head to KaibaLand? They have Duel Rings there open to the public.� �KaibaLand?� �It�s Kaiba�s theme park,� Jounouchi explained. �Seto has his own theme park?� she paused in wonderment, then added, �wait. Yuugi, I don�t have my deck with me.� �Don�t worry about it,� Yuugi began to lead them towards KaibaLand. �The Rings are so popular you have to wait at least three weeks for a shot at them, so we might as well sign up now.� �If we�re going to do that then why don�t we wait until tomorrow and use the arena underneath Otogi�s game shop?� Honda was confused. �We can�t,� Otogi told him. �I get a lot of business from using it as a DDM Ring. Our waiting list is longer than the one in KaibaLand.� �You own a game shop, Otogi-kun?� Kira asked excitedly. �Well, yes, as a matter of fact�� �I think you have a great idea, Yuugi,� interrupted a jealous Jounouchi. �Kira-chan, are you game?� �Yeah!� Otogi growled. He knew what Jounouchi was up to, but remembered his threat to blackmail him if he hit on Kira. �So you�re going to wait until you can duel like its a real thing? It sounds exciting!� exclaimed Anzu. �Uh-huh. I can hardly wait,� Yuugi grinned as he clenched his fist. �I'm looking forward to it,� Kira smiled. Suddenly, a song began to buzz from her attach�, and she whipped out her cell phone. �I�m sorry. It�s my parents. Will you please excuse me?� She walked out of the stream of pedestrians to a nearby building. �Hey, Yuugi. Why do you want to duel Kira so badly?� Anzu asked as soon as the girl was out of hearing distance. �Umm�saa�its just that my other self was saying something about recognizing her or maybe it was�� Then he turned to his side, as if he was talking to an imaginary friend. �Well then, you explain it!� Just then, the Sennen Puzzle flashed with golden light. Amazingly, Yuugi�s clothes did not look any tighter as he grew about half a foot. �I feel as though I�ve seen her somewhere before,� Yami Yuugi turned to Kira, who was still chatting to her folks. �Don�t you guys think so, too? There�s something familiar about her.� �Well, yes there is. Now that I think about it�� Anzu trailed off. Honda and Otogi nodded vigorously. �It must be fate!� Jounouchi whooped. �Kira you and I are destined to be together!� �Did he already forget that we all have that feeling?� Anzu groaned. �So you want to duel with her so,� Otogi struggled to find the right words, �you can figure out why we have this feeling?� �Playing Duel Monsters with someone reveals a lot of their personality,� Mou Hitori no Yuugi explained. �It has to do with the Heart of the Cards.� �That's deep,� Honda commented. �Ah. Aibou didn't lie, either. We both enjoy dueling new friends, but I will be the one to duel Kira first.� �One more question.� �Honda-kun?� �Why do you gotta duel her on a Duel Ring?� Yami Yuugi shrugged, �it's not my style to do it any other way. Playing regular old games on a mat just isn't cool any more.� �I'm just going with some kids from class to schedule some time at a virtual Duel Monsters Ring,� Kira explained to her mother for perhaps the third time. Kaede could barely contain her excitement, �I'm glad you're making new friends, sweetie. Your father and I are very proud.� �Mom!� Kira blushed when her classmates turned to her outburst. �I don't really know if we're friends ...I mean, I want to be friends, and this one guys called me his friend, but,� she whispered. Her mother couldn't have paid less attention to her babble, �You have fun now.� �Will you walk Shiro for me?� Kira realized that she would never get through to her. �Of course, dear,� Kaede gushed. �Bye bye, now. I don't want to keep you from your friends.� �Bye,� Kira slid her cell phone back into her attach� and stalked over to where the others were waiting. �I'm so sorry about that.� �Don't worry about it,� was it just her or did Yuugi's voice get deeper? Maybe he was going through voice changes? �Yeah. We've all been there,� Honda agreed. �Hey, but we better get going before all of our parents call to check up on us,� urged Otogi. Kira followed as they began to talk about some Mono-stricken boy named Bakura. She was puzzled as to why Yuugi had seem to grow so much taller. There was no way she had miscalculated his height earlier, was there? �Kira-chan, can I ask you something?� Jounouchi looked to her suddenly. �Yes?� �You told Anzu that you've been dueling almost all of your life, right?� Kira nodded, wondering where he was getting at. �So why haven't you heard of the great Jounouchi Katsuya? Or Yuugi for that matter? He's the world champion. He beat Kaiba for crying out loud!� �Seto duels?� Kira asked excitedly. Everyone stared at her as if she had turned green or something. She could feel her face turning all shades of crimson. �I don't have an answer to that one. I spend so much time dueling computers and video games that I don't pay much attention to what's going on in the real world.� Anzu pitied Kira as her sad voice trembled. The poor thing really hadn't spent much time around others at all. �But you have dueled real people, right?� Yami Yuugi didn't realized he sounded rude until Anzu glared at him. �Yeah,� Kira replied quietly. �People challenge me occasionally when they hear I play.� �Don't you have any friends in Tokyo?� Honda remembered her telling them about her hometown over lunch. �I have Shiro, my dog.� her sad smile could move millions. As long as those millions weren't as emotionally ignorant as Jounouchi, Yami Yuugi, or Honda. Kira's sapphire gaze shifted excitedly from one Blue Eyes White Dragon structure to the next, her attraction to Kaiba Seto growing by the second. Blue Eyes was by far her favorite card, though she had never seen a real one. You could always receive a Blue Eyes in the various Duel Monsters games out there. Kira had spent many an agonizing hour in her quest to attain them in every computer and video game she owned. KaibaLand had Blue Eyes shaped water fountains for crying out loud, no wonder she'd been so attracted to him! �I wonder who owns the real Blue Eyes?� Kira hadn't even realized she'd asked it out loud. Everyone, including some passing strangers, halted their conversations and stopped to stare at her. Their eyes were wide in confusion, and she could hear raised whispers over a stupid girl who didn't know who the 'Master of the Blue Eyes White Dragon' was. �Isn't it obvious?� Otogi asked bluntly. Kira's face was so swelled by her blush she couldn't speak. There had been times in her life when she wished to disappear. This was yet another. Anzu took the petrified girl by the hand, �come on everyone. Let's go find Kira a rock to crawl under.� The six bolted to the building that housed the Duel Rings. Just when Kira thought her face couldn't get any redder, Jounouchi told her it was Kaiba who owned all three remaining Blue Eyes in the world. �Don't worry about it, Kira-chan,� Anzu smiled. �Everyone is ignorant about something.� �Being ignorant about your own hobby is different,� Honda retorted. He spoke softly, as if he hadn't meant for Kira to hear him. His efforts were in vain, Kira lowered her head in shame. �I'm sorry.� �No wonder I can't make friends,� she thought glumly.�There's only so much stupidity people can take.� �Hey, cheer up,� Jounouchi smiled. �We'll fill you in on all the stuff ya need to know.� They all nodded in agreement. Kira's frown vanished when she saw the light in their eyes. They weren't shunning her as others would. �We should sign up for a Duel Ring first, though,� Kira was sure she wasn't hearing things. Yuugi's voice was definitely deeper. �There's a lot to tell and KaibaLand does close eventually.� �While you guys do that, I have to go to the bathroom,� Anzu started walking off. Kira sprinted to catch up with her, �I'll go with you.� �And the age old question surfaces,� Mou Hitori no Yuugi observed. �Why the heck do girls go to the bathroom in groups?� Jounouchi wondered out loud. �Maybe they get the urge to pee together? Kinda like with their rag?� Honda suggested. �You three don't get women at all, do you?� Otogi sighed. The other three followed him to the registration desk with keen interest, all curious to the answer of this mysterious phenomena. �It all comes down to this,� he explained. �Women have no idea what they want. They are so confused with all their crazy hormones and shit that they have no idea why they do things.� �So you're saying, that they don't even know why they go to piss together?� Jounouchi looked puzzled. �Don't think too much. You'll hurt yourself,� Honda warned. �Honda! Asshole!� Jounouchi punched him, �'hurt myself?' I'd rather hurt you!� Yami Yuugi rolled his eyes, �in any case, Otogi-kun, your reasoning doesn't make sense.� �Oh it makes sense, all right,� Otogi smirked. �Just ask a girl why she couldn't go to the bathroom by herself. I guarantee you her answer will be: 'I don't know.'� �Umm... Anzu-chan?� Kira tested the brunette's reaction to an endearing term. �Yes?� Anzu turned from her compact to smile. Kira grinned as she wrung her hands dry. 'Anzu-chan' didn't bother her at all. �Earlier, Jounouchi-kun said Seto owned the three remaining Blue Eyes White Dragons. What did he mean by that?� �Why does she keep calling Kaiba-kun, Seto?� Anzu wondered to herself, then replied. �A long time ago Yuugi's grandfather owned a Blue Eyes, one of four in the world back then. But Kaiba-kun challenged Sogoroku to a duel, and when he won the Blue Eyes from him he tore it in half, so no one could ever use it against him.� �That...� Kira's widened sapphire eyes turned to the ground, �that's terrible. Why did Seto do such a thing?� Anzu was about to explain it was because not more than three of one monster was allowed in a deck, but Kira would've known that. Of course, the real reason behind it all was the darkness pervading in Kaiba-kun's mind. She couldn't tell Kira that! �Anno... saa, I guess you'll have to ask Kaiba-kun that one,� she gestured to the door. �We'd better get going, though. The guys' are more likely to give up chasing women than to wait for them.� �Did you two fall in or something?� Jounouchi barked upon sight of them. �Nice greeting,� Anzu commented dryly. �Sorry,� apologized a blushing Kira. "Anyway...� Yami Yuugi halted his sentence as he turned on his heel, fixating his cold stare on the two males approaching them. One Kira instantly identified as Seto. He had ditched his school uniform for a white trench coat that swirled about him, making his appearance all the more dramatic. Black leather hugged his body. Every inch of that teasing material made it harder and harder for her not to stare. Kira could feel her body heat upon seeing him. She grasped her neck nervously, biting her lip as she looked him over. A pre-pubescent boy trudged behind him, the iron briefcase he bore nearly touching the ground. His untamed ebony hair fell into his wide violet eyes and down to the small of his back. Kira recalled the rumor about Seto's younger brother, was this him? �Look! Onisama! It's Yuugi and the others!� the younger cried excitedly. �Hmph. Sou da na,� Seto crossed his arms as he loomed over them. �Yuugi, I find it hard to believe that a duelist of your caliber still congregates with such low-lives.� �Watch yourself, Kaiba,� he spoke his name as if it was poison. �These are all my friends.� �What are you guys doing here?� The boy inquired friendly as if the entire exchange between his brother and Yuugi hadn't happened. �We just signed Yuugi and Kira-chan up for a Duel Ring,� Honda glanced at him before returning her glare to Seto. �Kira-chan?� he looked confused, then his purple eyes picked Kira out from behind Otogi and Honda. He set the briefcase down before darting towards her. �Hi! I'm Kaiba Mokuba!� �Nice to meet you, Mokuba,� Kira gave him a warm-hearted smile. �I'm Ryuushou Kira.� �Hmm?� Seto settled his azure eyes on her. �You and Yuugi are going to duel? Interesting. Yuugi might find a challenge, when all he's had to test his skills against lately is that retarded puppy.� Kira's face was drowned in scarlet, and she shyly met his sapphire gaze with her own. Meanwhile, the others had formed a protective circle about her from the instant Seto spoke to her. �KAIBA! YOU ASSHOLE!� Jounouchi was flushed from anger rather than embarrassment. �That sounded like a challenge, Kaiba,� Yuugi spat. �You're just jealous because Yuugi beat you, again,� Anzu snapped. Seto smiled cruelly but otherwise ignored them, �Show me your skills as a duelist, Ryuushou Kira.� Then he turned his back, �we're going, Mokuba.� Mokuba smiled and waved before heaving up the briefcase and trotting after his brother. After bitching about Kaiba, Jounouchi took it upon himself to tell Kira about every tournament or otherwise important every duel that any member of their circle had ever participated in. His story was often hushed by the others, when he was accidentally about to reveal the secrets of the Sennen Puzzle. They also filled in the blank spots (where Jounouchi conveniently forgot his more embarrassing moments). Thus, the trip home was very enjoyable for Kira. She wasn't sure why everyone kept shutting Jounouchi up all the time, but she liked listening to tales of their adventures. �Did you have fun today, Kira-chan?�Anzu opted to walk Kira all the way to her house, rather than hang out with the guys at Turtle Game Shop. �Mm. I'm happy I met all of you,� she replied with brutal honesty. �I'm glad.� Practically jumping, she then added, �why don't you spend the night at my apartment this Friday? We can talk about all that stuff the guys can't hope to understand.� �Sure!� Kira agreed a bit too quickly. �It's settled then,� Anzu beamed. �I'm happy I met you, too, Ryuushou Kira.� Kira leaned back in her chair to stretch, her hand sore from the homework she'd been in a frenzy to finish. It was approaching ten 'o ' clock, and she stared at her bed longingly. Her Blue Eyes clock reminded her of Seto, as it had every time she glanced at it. Once again, her mind wandered far from her assignments, and into a world where leather outfits and icy blue eyes taunted her vision. She shook her head angrily. Not only was he distracting her from her usual 4.0, but he had been a total ass to her friends. How could she lust after a guy like that? How? Because he was a sexy bitch. That's how. She rode her wheeled chair to her Duel Monsters calendar, hoping to push Seto out of her thoughts. Wielding a thick red marker, she circled the dates of her duel and slumber party. Amazingly, the latter drew the bulk of her anxiety. Yuugi may be the King of Duelists, but it was still a duel. Duel Monsters was something she understood. There were rules, sturdiness, and a clear loser and winner. Social contact (as she would be receiving at Anzu's sleep-over) however, was not something Kira understood at all. There was no play-book, and people were as solid as puffy white clouds. No one was a definite winner or loser when it came to society. Shiro apprehensively approached her, and she scratched him beneath his sky blue collar. He always seemed to know when she needed some cheering up. Moments like these reminded her just who her best friend was. Mediums Destroyed: 2 To Be Continued
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