Yu-Gi-Oh! Codex of Shadows [IC / PG-13 / AC /Co-Host: Zaiduck]

[◇ Void ◇]

Hosted by: ◇ Void ◇

Co-hosted by: Zaiduck

OOC Thread: Click Here

Chapter 1: Let the Party Begin

OP 1: SHUFFLE Remix (Corinne Sudberg / Megami33)

END 1: Bakusou Yume by D

Tomoya opened the door to exit his bedroom and took a few steps to the mirror, just so he could make the final adjustments to his tuxedo. The deep blue dinner jacket had its buttons adjusted, while flattening down the white shirt beneath it. His hand reached out to flip the lid off a box held together by obviously fake leather straps. Out came the Kaiba Corporation lapel pin that had to be worn at these official events. It was twiddled around until perfectly attached onto his lapel. Sitting onto the edge of his leather chair, he slipped on the black oxford shoes one at a time, which had been pre-tied so they would not become loose during the event. “Alright…” The chair span around to face the desk, to pinch his keys, mobile phone, wallet and identification card. Tomoya stretched him to reach the shelf above the monitors, extracting the plain plastic deck box in the corner. The lid was tipped open, where a deck of Duel Monster cards slip out into his hand. A fine layer of dust was caked across them to make clear that they had not been played in ages. His gaze at the artwork of Barrel Dragon turned hollow for but a second, his mind drifting back in time to when the ocean wind blew across his face.

“Attention Guests! The Lake Pegasus centre closes in 30 minutes. Please begin to make your way to the exits.”

The tannoy announced outside his window and broke his spell, shaking his head a little. Squaeing his hand moulding them back into the usual deck, then slotted into a side pocket inside the jacket. In his mind the final checks were made;

“Keys: Yes. Phone: Yes. Wallet: Yes. ID…” Both his hands went to his chest and found that dammed card absent. Again. “Oh, wait.” The lanyard had just twisted itself around the back of his neck. One tug was all it took to have it atop his chest again.

Everything was there, so no point waisting any more time. Through the door and turned to slam it shut. Tugging the handle upward it bolted itself shut.

Tomoya quickly shuffled down the stairwell to a small and dimly lit lobb of yellow plaster walls and dull lime floor tiles. He thought it was strange that the condominiums had an office-like reception lobby, but knew a corridor next to the stairwell he just came down connect to a few offices. A secretary was sat at the main desk, tapping away on a desktop computer. Didn’t even blink an eye.

He continued through the door to a poky, brick-sided alleyway. A few more steps and he stood before an iron wrought gate, opened by sliding his identification card into a scanner. The lock buzzed and slid open in a star trek fashion, revealing the enormous public courtyard for entrance gates. The last pockets of guests where flooding themselves to the exit, so Tomoya’s held himself onto the empty sidewalks, then weave himself though any unavoidable pockets of worn-out parents and their moaning children. Up a small flight of steel steps was the main monorail station, where the traditionally-dressed station guard was putting the velvet rope across the entrance. “I’m sorry sir, the Monorail is closing for the…” With a flash of Tomoyas ID he swallowed any further words and drew the rope back. “Thanks.”

“Nonaka.” Tomoya called across the platform to a monorail captain that leaned against an impressive blue-eyes locomotive, smoking. Nonaka jumped to drophis cigarette and stamping the butt out. “Tomoya, lookin’ good man. Off to tonight’s party?” Nonaka quipped. “Yes, I am. Mind dropping me off at Château Square before you go to engineering?” Tomoya rhetorically asked ,reaching out to tap the entry button.

“Sure. Get in.” Nonaka turned and entered his cabin via the door, whereas Tomoya took the first available seat on the eerily empty cabin. A light thud emanated though the cabin as the monorail stirred into the life, as the backdrop of both the Lake Pegasus Center and the Kaiba Land World Resort slid to the right.

Cars rolled along from the park’s VIP entrance and pulled outside the Art Deco, automatic gates to Chateau Maximillian. Stepping out, a few select members of the local press where flashing their cameras.

An airport-style checkpoint had been set up mid-way between them and the entrance, where guests were being required to present their invitations and go through a metal detector, while the x-ray machine examined the contents of surrendered purses and pocket content. One disgruntled, slick-haired youth was berating an armoured security officer, who had removed the duel disk from the guest.

The event was too formal for the cumbersome and bold icon of KaibaCorp. Instead, miniaturise Holoboxes from the olden days of Duel Monsters where inside, so people could still pass the time with the iconic game.

[~Faytl~]

A motorcycle was among the first to draw up to the gates, an unusual sight mid all the limousines. A small figure sat atop it, reaching up to remove a helmet and let loose the untidy shock of purple hair beneath it. Jin's glasses reflected the light of the many cameras, though only a few were snapping photographs of the lone boy as he strode up to one of the security guards, presenting his wallet and a very full ring of keys for examiniation. They were both returned to him in short order, nothing out of the ordinary in them. Jin had known their wouldn't be. The identification wthin DID match the false name his invitation bore.

 

"Welcome, Mr. Hirota," the guard at the door said by way of greeting. "You're good to head on inside, our valet will make sure your bike is taken care of-"

 

"I'd actually like to accompany him," Jin interrupted simply, looking back at his motorcycle with a critical eye, hands in his pockets. "My bike is... very important to me. It was a gift from someone very important to me." The lie flowed smoothly off his tongue.

 

"I understand, Mr Hirota. We assure you it will be well attended to."

 

"I'd like to make sure."

 

"Of course, Mr. Hirota. Feel free to accompany the valet."

 

"Thank you. So tell me, sir," Jin said, walking alongside the valet as he led his bike towards a parking structure through the gates. "Where would the emergency exit on this structure up here be... Just in case there's an emergency." 

 

- - - - - - -

 

Sachi looked small in the backseat of the limo that had collected her from her house. The empty seat next to her was like a void, and every time she looked at it she saw the confused, not-quite-there gaze her father had given her as she had left, assuring him repeatedly she would be back soon. She still wasn't sure he had comprehended.

 

She clutched her bag anxiously, shrinking a little bit in her seat. She could see the Chataeu from the window, and it loomed in her view. She gulped, clutching her bag for reassurance. Seto Kaiba could be in there. She had to find him, if not him then Mokuba Kaiba, if not him she didn't know who. She had to fid one of them... Though the thought of speaking to Seto Kaiba, who had always intimidated her just by seeing his face on television screens whenever he hijacked the local broadcasts for his announcements about Duel Disks or whatever, terrified her.

 

She stepped from the limousine, the cameras by large ignoring the brunette girl in the simple violet dress as she strode up towards the gates. She couldn't help smiling a little bit at all the excitement. After she was admitted through the metal detectors, she walked into the venue, eyes attracted against her will to the Holoboxes, eyes wide as she looked over them. She had only dueled in these a few times, having begun dueling soon before the Duel Disk she was so used to using now was introduced. 

 

She tore herself away with difficulty, moving to the center of the room and looking around, speaking just loud enough for most of the people around to hear her:

 

"Excuse... Excuse me? Is Mr Kaiba here yet? I... I really want to talk with him, please!"

[👀 REP 👀]

 

 

Hotaru was nearly jumping out of her seat in the back of the limousine. It was the first time she had gotten to ride one, which only compounded the excitement she felt. She would constantly look out the window, checking to see if they were there yet, almost like an impatient child. 

 

"Yes!" She exclaimed as she saw her stop. The limo stopped in front of the Chateau Maximillian and, as it did, Hotaru bounced from her seat, rushing out of the limo as soon as possible. The first thing she saw when she got out of the vehicle was a torrent of flashing lights and cameras.She wasn't sure if any of them were pointed towards her, nor did she care. With a dumb wide grin on her face, she marched onward towards the gates. As she made her way towards the gate, she pulled out her wallet in anticipation, prepared to show her ID. 

 

The guard seemed surprised at her get up at first, as she wasn't wearing a traditionally fancy dress like most of the other girls at the event. She paid no mind to his reaction as she showed her identification and made her way pass the metal detectors, passing her bag through the X-Ray machine. After getting through security without any hiccups, she made her way into the main building.

 

She was nearly bouncing, barely able to contain her excitement as she looked around the place. It was a lot fancier than she was used to, it was almost overwhelming. The KaibaCorp icon stood out almost as much as she did among the crowd. As she looked around, her gaze met with the holoboxes, which caused her to let out a gasp of glee. She hadn't really battled with these much, maybe once, and never with her favorite deck. She could only imagine the torrent of flames that her ace card Garunix would summon as its effect triggered. Excitedly, she looked around for any potential opponents to face against.

[Yui]

---

I wonder what sort of catering they have for this? It's a big fancy corporate thing, so probably not your run-of-the-mill hamburgers or pizza. It must be those upper-crust delicacies! I've never had caviar before. I bet it tastes good; most things do.

 

Cadence hummed lightly to herself as the limo continued onward, toward the big special event she'd been invited to. Cadence was still pretty sure this was all a giant fluke, but she wasn't about to question it. Accidents happened in life, and was it really her place to correct them? Not really; not like she was the one who made the mistake after all, assuming there was one to begin with. She paid little mind to the building itself as the limo pulled up, or the barrage of lights and camera sounds. Was this what celebrities dealt with every day? As much as Cadence enjoyed attention, this was a little excessive. She couldn't imagine herself getting used to this kind of thing. Good thing it would be a one-time thing.

 

Entering the building was barely a problem at all, although she did spend a bit of time trying to convince the guard at the door to let her bring her Duel Disk in. She ultimately wasn't allowed to, and relented once he provided the solid argument that this event was far too formal for those clunky things to be worn over everyone's arms. Once inside though, her worries were taken away. Holoboxes! She'd never actually used one before, and it looked as though today would be her chance. Cadence's eyes flitted to and fro, on the search for anyone she could duel. Even if it was just one time, she wanted to try those things out before leaving. She could have sworn in the crowd of voices gathered at this prestigious party, she heard a familiar one. She briefly glanced around in search of the source, but to no avail.

 

I can find a dueling opponent later. Let's prioritize first. Where's the food at?

 

And thus began Cadence Lecter's search for whatever delicacies this gala may have had in store for her.

[BANZAI!!!!]

 

"Oh! Yuuji, you look so handsome!" Aya Sakata exclaimed as her son exited his room, hair neatly combed and clad in the tuxedo he had rented for the occasion.

 

"Mommmm...." Yuuji groaned as he struggled in vain against the bowtie around his neck. His cheeks got a little rosy as his mother made her way over to him and began to pat him down; taking extra care to make sure that everything about the outfit was in order. "Do we really have time for this? The limo's gonna be here in like, ten minutes."

 

"You wouldn't want to look messy in front of a potential sponsor, now would you? Or if you happened to meet some cute girl?" Yuuji's face got a little more red at the thought. "Besides, I never get to see my son all dressed u-" She stopped abruptly and turned away, letting out a series of loud, hacking coughs a second later. Yuuji motioned to put his hand on her shoulder, but she waved him off, catching her breath.

 

"Kazuya's working late tonight. You sure you're gonna be alright by yourself? You know I don't need to go to this thing. They'll und-"

 

"Yuuji Sakata, I will be fine. Don't you worry about me." Aya smiled, giving him one last pat on the chest now that she had regained her composure. "What I want you to do, is have fun. It's going to be a great experience, trust me."

 

"If you say so..." Yuuji knew she was hiding how tired she was, but he also knew there was no reasoning with her, either. She was too nice for her own good sometimes. "I've gotta get downstairs before they get here. Wouldn't wanna get stranded."

 

"I'll try and wait up for you, but I'll probably be asleep by the time you get back. Try not to get into too much trouble, ok?"

 

"So I'm allowed to get into a little trouble tonight?" They both let out a small laugh.

 

"Just this once. And I wanna hear all about it, understand?"

 

"Yes mother." He sarcastically faked sounding obedient. Then gave her a hug and started toward the door of the apartment.

 

"I love you! Have fun!" she called

 

"Love you too."

 

---

 

"Ritzy..." Yuuji wondered aloud as the black Cadillac slowly rolled up to the imposing, gothic structure that was Chateau Maximillion. "That Pegasus guy really must've been loaded."

 

"You should've seen the one Mr. Pegasus had built on his private island. Was a literal castle. Battlements and everything." The driver punctuated his statement by braking the car, having now arrived at their destination.

 

"Must've been a fun place. Hey, thanks again for the ride, Mr. Croquet. I appreciate it. Sorry your guy put you on the spot like that."

 

"Don't mention it. Its below my pay grade nowadays, but I've done this sort of thing before. Have a good night, Mr. Sakata."

 

"You too." With that, Yuuji shut the car door and began the walk toward the entrance. All this formality felt weird and unnatural to him. How was anyone supposed to enjoy themselves at a place like this? He flashed his ID to the guard and made it through teh metal detector with no difficulties, though Yuuji did take an extra second to pat himself down and make sure he still had his deck box with him. He couldn't afford to lose his cards, after all.

 

Despite the air of gloom and doom the exterior of the structure seemed to give off, the inside of Chateau Maximillian was anything but. Lavishly decorated and brightly lit, the interior was much more Greco-Roman in design. The walls were white marble, and ornate columns were strategically located around the grand foyer. There were a few sculptures too, most notably of several Duel Monsters cards that fit with the theme of the room. Between two parallel staircases that led up to a balcony was a massive wooden door, through which was the main area. Yuuji took a moment to take in the sight before he made his way through it to the more homey, carpeted room on the other side.

 

Many of the guests had already arrived, and were now mingling and talking with one another. Yuuji could hear talk of business deals and other corporate jargon in passing as he walked by, though thankfully there were many he recognized as duelists in the crowd as well. No one he'd met personally, but it was nice to know there were at least people who he could have a conversation with present. Of particular note were the holoboxes scattered throughout the room. He'd never seen one before, but Yuuji remembered Solomon Muto describing them to him once. He was pretty spot-on, too: red on one end, blue on the other, with playmats on either side and dedicated zones where the holograms would remain throughout the game unless attacked or removed. Not very lifelike. These models were notably smaller than the ones he'd been told about, though. It was probably hard to fit something that large in here anyway.

 

"Excuse... Excuse me? Is Mr Kaiba here yet? I... I really want to talk with him, please!"

 

A voice interrupted his train of thought. He glanced around to see its owner, a girl in a purple dress who seemed to be just as out of place as he felt. Why on Earth anyone would want to speak with Seto Kaiba was beyond him though. She didn't seem like some rich girl, not that any woman in the world would be able to pry that man away from his dragons in the first place. Still, with a figure as fantastic as hers, she might at least have a shot at it. For a brief moment, Yuuji considered walking over and introducing himself, but decided against it. Best to let her do what she came here to do and enjoy the view instead.

 

 

 

 

[◇ Void ◇]

 

The Monorail carriage jolted again as it began to glide into the northern most station of the Lake Pegasus Centre. With a light thud the momentum halted and the doors hissed open. Tomoya arose from the seat and stepped off onto platform, giving a light smile and thumbs up to Nonaka while he drove away. Tomoya slipped past another velvet rope and jogged down the stairs to the plaza, now buzzing with activity. All the limos and security where there, with VIPs attracting the flashing lights the press had deployed tonight. Thankfully in his mind he didn’t have to go through that. Tomoya looped around to the back of the chateau, where everyone from waiters to security where bustling back and forth.

One chiselled faced guard, with a single point of brown hair and pitch-black sunglasses, towered above them all besides the door.

“Saruwatari.” Tomoya flashed his ID. All he got back was a single nod of the head as approval.

The innards of the chateau where all secretly connected by a maze of corridors, designed so Pegasus’ staff could get around without going through the rooms themselves. Said staff now worked for the park, whom tonight served the food from the kitchens and drink from the cellars. Tomoya just slid past all of them, approaching the end staircase and spiralled up to the first floor.

Upstairs, Pegasus had intended to have his bedrooms and the bathrooms, looking over the main hall. Tragic then that he never got the chance to see it with either of his eyes. Now they serve the park as offices and security rooms, of which Tomoya entered into the one at the end of the polished corridor. Six technicians tapped away at the three monitors at each desk, all overseen by a familiar face: Long, silver-green hair and matching eyes; It was Gekko Tenma, adorning a heavy-looking heavy maroon coat and matching suit underneath. Gekko technically was Tomoya’s boss, though he treated him as an equal.

Gekko raised an eyebrow as his colleague entered late “I’d wondered where you were. We started twenty minutes ago.”

Tomyoa could do nothing but give an awkward smirk, conjuring up an excuse in that head of his; “Legal kept me tied up with the Banias case.”

“Right…” Gekko immediately knew he was lying. Tomoya could never hide that smile when lying, though the awkward pause between it popping up and the words made it clear enough. “Everything has gone fine, so far. Mr. Kaiba is on his way and should arrive in twenty minutes.”

“Did you see the news?” Tomoya turned around to the front wall.

“I already knew.” Gekko’s hair swerved as his head turned to a sizable television that encompassed the front wall. Squares of the CCTV cameras flashed on and off around the perimeter of the main camera display, focused on the empty exhibition hall.

“Then we’ll just wait for something to happen. Seems to always happen in Domino.”

[BatMed]

1 hour before the Gala

"How do I look?" Bunder strutting around sarcastically in front of his laptop, showing off his Gala's dress to his parents via Skype. "You look great son" said his father with thumbs-up "Great yeah, but ... sweetheart, you have better stuffs in your closet, why don't you wear that beige..." "Mama please", Bunder cut off his mother, in a childish tone "But you must leave a good impression!" she said worriedly while his father was giggling. "I'm really not in the mood to wear something... that fancy... I mean besides, the only reason why I'm going is to have a day off from work's stress" "Oh yes about that, how is it going?" his father asked him, "Well, not that good..."

He looked at the time "Oh ... I gotta leave you know, bye" he kissed his laptop screen "bye sweetheart!" waved both his parents. He turned off his laptop, sat down and laid his head down on the desk. "This is ... insAAAAAaAne..." he murmured. He lazily turned his head to face the pile of papers he had on his desk. He got up, scrubbing his hair furiously, and took the top 5 papers: The latest reports of the VR department concerning the latest VR atypical bugs. "This is way out of our reaches, we really must contact Mr. Kai.." He halted, and took a deep breath "Mokuba ... pfft..." he throw the papers on his desk "Forget it".

20 minutes before the Gala

Bunder was fixing his hair, applying gel to his wet hair. He wore his black trench coat, fixed his tie again, took his car keys and the ID. "Let's party!" he said giggling as he exited the villa and went to the garage. He ignited the engine, turned on his current favorite song ['John Wayne'], and made his way down the road.

"Why look at all these limos" Bunder whistled. He stepped out from his car, fixed his pants and took a look at all the Gala guests and their fancy clothes "sheesh, now if only I wore that beige suit" he sarcastically said as he was making his way through the entrance.
"Mr. Breckenridge, Welco-" "HooOOoly smokes!!!" Bunder cut off the Guard, in amazement "you actually managed to pronounce it without stuttering" he reached his coat's pocket "take this!" he gave the guard his car keys "You deserved it pal" he winked. The guard, trying his best not to laugh "T-Thank you sir, the valet will sure be pleased".

Bunder entered the Chateaux. The aristocratic ambiance, the classy music, the food, oh et les bourgeois. Everything was exaggerating and truly an eye-candy, as expected. "OHH MA THE FANCEH LIFE" he said loudly, laughing his way out to the Buffet. He took a Martini glass form a valet and treated himself in the buffet where he met one of his team members. "Oi, MARTY!" Bunder rushed to him, he was getting bored with all this over posing ambiance around him.


"Excuse... Excuse me? Is Mr Kaiba here yet? I... I really want to talk with him, please!" a thin voice, cracked Bunder's temper- "K - Kaiba ... you wish..." he ferociously tighten his hand till it cracked the fragile martini glass he was holding "Oh shoot! Too much ..." A valet came and wiped Bunder's hand and clothes, "It's all ok sir, the glass didn't wound your hand" said the valet, "Thank yo-" Bunder thanked the valet, and then halted "the girl...". He started looking for her, and found her right away, nearby, what appeared to look like, a teen, with green hair. "Hello there" he saluted the girl "I'm Bunder Breckenridge, and I work at KC, what's your name?" he halted, and bend over a bit to suppress the slight height difference between them "and ... why would you want to see Mr. Seto Kaiba?" he asked her, smiling.

[VCR_CAT]

Yoko

 

"You told me we weren't going to be late," A young woman chided her chauffeur from the back of a luxurious limo. "You know I hate being late."

 

"My apologies, Miss Amari," The driver responded calmly. "We will arrive at Chateau Maximillion shortly."

 

"I hope so. You know I have an image to keep up." The young woman who spoke was Chiyoko Amari, a young yet renown proffessional duelist. The limousine had a particularly mint interior, and entirely custom. The seats were covered in a real leather upholstery, with additional dyes applied to make them blacker than the blackest night. The walls, ceiling and floor were all coloured a similar black, yet matte and dim in appearance. The only light on the inside came from neon strips that ran along the seams of the seats, walls, floor and ceiling, each casting the same dim, pale turquoise. "Who did you say was going to be at this event? How bored should I expect to be?"

 

"The usual guests for such a gala will be there; various VIPs, investors, some government officials, people of importance."

 

"Any duelists? Or am I only one of the few?"

 

"Not many of your caliber, ma'am. You may recognize a few faces."

 

"That's not what I want to hear, Takahashi."

 

"There will be some up-and-comers as well. Some duelists that Kaiba Corp. has recognized some potential in."

 

"Oh? Anyone I may be interested in?"

 

"We messaged you a list earlier today, I'm surprised you have not checked yet." Yoko pulled out her phone, the pale blue light illuminating her face as she scrolled through a list of names. "I believe you will find some of these guests of interest."

 

Yoko smiled. "Tonight may not be so boring after all."

 

----------

BGM:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4cMacmwMhI

 

Outside the next limo in line for the red carpet, loud bass pounded through the air. The vehicle pulled up, and the back door was opened, the loud electronic music now blaring out into the group of photographers and reporters. Stepping out of the vehicle was Chiyoko Amari, dressed to the nines; she strutted down the red carpet with silver designer shoes, black knee-socks, a matte-black short-skirt and designer shirt, each with the same pale turquois lines running along her clothing. On her upper body, she wore a neon-blue jacket with black fur lining the collar and a pair of silver shutter-shades. The carpet was bathed with bright flashes of light as the press got to work acquiring their coverage.

 

At the end of the red carpet were a group of people shoving their way to the front, loudly booing and jeering in Yoko's direction, demanding she drop out of the professional scene. Entering into Chateau Maximillion, Yoko raised both arms with the middle fingers extended, prompting a mix of laughter and yet louder jeers.

 

Inside of the chateau, there was a mix of guests already mingling about. Yoko pulled out her phone and gently scrolled through the list of names, glancing through the crowd as she strolled to see if she recognized anyone. It wasn't until she saw the green mop of a certain guest, wearing what Yoko could only describe as a cheap rentle tuxedo and his green hair combed in a way that seemed to make even himself uncomfortable. Yoko scrolled through the list and found a name to fit the picture: Yuuji Sakata.

 

Yoko strutted up to Yuuji and stood at the opposite end of the old prototype hologram arena.

 

"I don't think I've seen you at any events like these before," She said with a false friendliness. "I can't imagine what you had to do to be recognized as one with the elites here."

[~Faytl~]

Sachi gulped as more and more people began filing in to the gala. She was feeling more and more out of place among all these rich and wealthy people among the gala. What was worse, she still hadn't managed to pick out the tall figure of Seto Kaiba among the attendees. Was he not here?

 

"Hello there,"

 

She turned, looking up at the large man before her, eyes a little wide, very clearly worried-looking as she clutched her bag nervously. But when the man said he worked for KaibaCorp, her interest was piqued. "Can you take me to him? To Seto Kaiba?" she asked hurriedly, her face lighting up eagerly. "I really need to speak with him... I'm Soromiya Sachi. My... my dad is Soromiya Soichiro!" She looked up at him with a determined expression. "I need to talk to Seto Kaiba about my father, he works for him... He needs his help! I need his help!" 

 

Her voice had begun to raise, and her name, as well as the name of her father, drifted over the crowd around them, within earshot of Cadence.

 

- - - - - - -

 

Jin breezed into the gala proper, straightening his glasses as he looked around the venue. The valet had very kindly pointed out the emergency exits in the parking structure behind the venue. It had been fairly easy for Jin to sneak out there and jimmy open the lock. Now the gate behind the Chateau stood closed, looking safe but the latch left dangling, waiting for someone to push it in.

 

Jin chuckled to himself. It had been almost too easy. He stalked through the gala, eyes peeled. It looked as if the display items weren't in here just yet. But what was here were a few of the old Battle Boxes. Jin weaved his way through the crowd, finding himself standing by several people: Yuuji, Hotaro, and Yoko. He caught sight of Hotaro's excitement at seeing them, and couldn't help shaking his head.

 

"I guess Kaibacorp wanted their tech here tonight to be as outdated as the relics," he mused, loud enough for all three to hear them. He reached out and tapped the Box, a look of slight disdain on his face. "I don't know why they didn't just allow Duel Disks in... Especially with the current model only being three months old." This last one was said with a touch of annoyance. Jin had not yet been able to procure the newest Kaiabcorp Duel Disk model; His was the old Battle City model still. The damn things were expensive. 

[👀 REP 👀]

 

 

"I guess Kaibacorp wanted their tech here tonight to be as outdated as the relics," Hotaru's attention was directed towards the blue haired boy that had spoken. He reached out and tapped the Box, a look of slight disdain on his face. "I don't know why they didn't just allow Duel Disks in... Especially with the current model only being three months old." The last sentence he spoke had a hint of annoyance to it. She wasn't sure what exactly annoyed him, although she agreed that it was a bit silly that they couldn't bring their own disks. She was excited to show off hers; she had spent about a week decorating and personalizing hers recently. While not old, her model was a few iterations behind the newest one.

 

"It might not be the newest, but it's still cool!" She spoke up to Jin, a slight hint of annoyance in her voice. "Some of us haven't gotten to play with it much, you know!" She puffed her cheeks. Was was this guys deal, anyways? Maybe he was used to playing around with the holographic cubes, but that's no reason to rain on her parade! If only there was a way to show him how cool these things could be...

 

"Oooh, I know!" She suddenly spoke up, having just thought of something. She reached into her bag, pulling out a fiery red deckbox. "You've got to duel me! I'll show you just how cool these things really are!" She said with a bit too much excitement, pumping her fist. She was very clearly excited about the whole thing, her eyes almost literally flaring up. She would show him how neat these hologram things are, plus she'd finally get to see the glorious hellstorm of fire her cards could summon.

[◇ Void ◇]

There was a small pop as the seal of the mini fridge open. Tomoya knelt down and reached in for a can of Cola, while his head turned to Gekko. “You want one?”
 
“Sure.” Almost instantaneously in Gekko’s peripheral vision the impending the can approached him, startling his senses. Somehow his reflexes managed to juggle it, so to cradle it between his arms and chest. A stern stare was returned back as Tomoya arose and kicked the door shut.

“Next time, just give me the dammed drink.”

“I thought you were looking.”

Their argument would be interrupted by the sound of static: The top left monitor of the control centre had just gone dark. One of the technicians swivelled around with her futurist office chair. “Sir, Camera Two for has just gone down.”
 
Tomoya couldn’t help but boast, drawing a slight smirk onto his face. “I told you. I so told you.” It was as quickly wiped away by Gekko's retort. “Okay. Then you go check it then.”

“Hmph” Clearly Gekko wasn’t in the best mood tonight. Tomoya placed his unopen can on the nearby table and stepped outside, following the wall until he reached a balcony looking over the lavish hall, where everyone had gathered for the drinks, nibbles and the occasional duel on those old-fashioned Duel Arenas and Battle Boxes. From across to the other wall was the problem: One of the more intoxicated guests had entangled her feather boa into a cable. It happened to be the very cable that connected to Camera Two, which was now tilted at an angle and darkened LED. Tomoya turned his head to his little KaibaCorp lapel and tapped it with two fingers;

“Security, Tomoya here. Please can you relocate two units to position two? Yes, as soon as possible. Oh, also keep an eye on a woman with a green feathered boa and lime dress. At the rate she’s chugging down, you have my leave to eject if she starts kickin’ off.”

Tomoya then tapped the lapel another three times.

“Maintenance? Tomoya here. Can you please send up a technician to the Chateau in, say, 15 minutes? I have a CCTV that needs rewiring. Okay, thanks.”

With another tap it fell silent, where he could take a moment to look down at all the socialites he had to manage tonight, not sure if they were worse than managing a park full of children.

Back in the control room, Gekko’s Smartphone buzzed away in a jacket pocket. It was quickly extracted, tapped with a single digit and put to his right ear.

“Gekko here. He’s on his way then? Very well. Yes, yes, we’re all set here. Very well, thank you Sir.”

[BatMed]

"Can you take me to him? To Seto Kaiba?" she asked hurriedly, her face lighting up eagerly. She looked up at him with a determined expression. Bunder, surprised by her sudden eager reaction, smiled and made gestures to convince her to contain her 'excitement', but he failed. "I really need to speak with him... I'm Soromiya Sachi. My... my dad is Soromiya Soichiro!" Bunder frozen for a moment, that name was familiar to him, he was pretty sure that he heard it or read it somewhere, he tried to talk but she didn't give him a chance to. "I need to talk to Seto Kaiba about my father, he works for him... He needs his help! I need his help!" Her voice had begun to raise, and her name, as well as the name of her father, drifted over the crowd around them, within earshot of Cadence.

 

"Ok now calm down" Bunder sensed the crowd's attention and gently dragged her to get away from their gazing eyes. The puzzle was completed, and his vision was all clear: "Soromiya Soichiro ... em" he tried to hide his disquiet and faked a smile "He went to the last infamous excavation, didn't he?". But it was obvious, why would a simple girl want to eagerly meat the Al-mighty Seto? A courageous act indeed. Bunder sensed her determination to save her father and how she was ready to fight the entire world to save him and have him back. She reminded him of the days when he was struggling to fix his mistake, to make his parents proud again.

 

They stopped, meters away from the crowd. His fake smile fade away "I can't promise you anything about Seto" he turned around, facing the gala's guests. They were laughing and drinking, some were dueling. "These people ..." he halted, and looked straight into her eyes "They don't even acknowledge our existence, all what they care about is money and their own well being. Do you really think they'll care about our problems?". He reached his coat's pocket to get out a pen, and piece of paper, where he was writing some of his work's notes. He proceed talking while he was writing something on the clear side of that paper "Seto is not an exception, as a matter of fact, he's the worst of them all. He left everything, his company, his brother, his life, to pursue his revenge from a dead man" he put the pen back in his pocket and gave her that piece of paper. "That's my phone number" he smiled, trying to comfort her "Unlike these people, I know what you're going through, and I will do my best to help you and your father".

 

The atmosphere was gloomy, too gloomy, way too gloomy for Bunder. "So... Sashi, right?" he reached his coat's inner pocket to check out his deck "What about a Duel?" he asked her, with his eyes wide-open. "I know you might not be in the mood, but trust me ... ugh" he halted to fix that damned tie "A Duel It will be entertaining! and you really need that!"

[Yui]

---

"...he needs his help! I need his help!"

 

Like a paper clip to a magnet, Cadence's attention and gaze snapped in the direction that voice had come from. Guess I wasn't just imagining things after all. Cadence recognized that voice as belonging to classmate Sachi Soromiya. Sachi knew so much about ancient civilizations, and her father was an anthropologist! That was exactly what Cadence wanted to be! Sachi was a good person to be with, and Cadence was happy to call her a friend. Come to think of it, she hadn't visited the Soromiyas in a while, and Sachi had been awfully quiet about her father lately. Something was fishy, and it wasn't the delicious caviar Cadence had finally located. It was served in tiny bowls with tiny spoons. The servings were way too small for Cadence's liking. Naturally, she took three. And an extra one for Sachi.

 

Walking toward the source of the voice with a little bowl of fish eggs in her hand, and three more delicately balanced in her arms, Cadence took care not to bump into anyone and drop some of this rare and highly perishable delicacy. It tasted even better than she imagined, though Cadence did briefly wonder if Sachi would appreciate it in the same way she did. When she found the girl, she was with some guy Cadence didn't recognize. A potential suitor? ...something about that didn't seem right.

 

"I know you might not be in the mood, but trust me ... ugh. A Duel It will be entertaining! And you really need that!"

 

"Hello there," Cadence interjected. "I heard you say something about needing 'his' help, Sachi, and..." Cadence paused for another tiny spoonful of caviar. She likely wouldn't be eating any of this for a while after the gala was over. Better make this count, right? "Who's your friend over here?" To make it clearer just who she was talking about, Cadence pointed her tiny spoon at the big guy she'd never seen before. I only brought enough caviar for one other person...

 

"Hello, Sachi's friend I've never met," Cadence jovially started her introduction with. "I'm Cadence Lecter. Caviar?" Cadence nudged the arm carrying three more servings of caviar slightly in the man's direction. "I only thought I'd have to bring enough for Sachi too; I didn't even expect her to be here in the first place! But we should all get along, so if it's for Sachi's friend, I'll sacrifice one of my servings."

---

[BatMed]

 

"Hello there," interjected a small girl. A cutie, with a dark short hair, wearing a dress and black heels. But even with heels she was still looking short. "How old are you ..." Bunder murmured.

"I heard you say something about needing 'his' help, Sachi, and..." Cadence paused for another tiny spoonful of caviar. "Who's your friend over here?" To make it clearer just who she was talking about, Cadence pointed her tiny spoon at Bunder.

 
"Hello, Sachi's friend I've never met, I'm Cadence Lecter. Caviar?" Cadence nudged the arm carrying three more servings of caviar slightly in Bunder's direction. "I only thought I'd have to bring enough for Sachi too; I didn't even expect her to be here in the first place! But we should all get along, so if it's for Sachi's friend, I'll sacrifice one of my servings."

 

"Well we aren't friends yet. haha- ..." Bunder halted "Ma God" Bunder gasped in amazement, then he bowed, giggling "Free food, my only weakness!" He took one of the caviar servings Cadence offered him "That's so generous of you!". Not like there is an entire huge fancy buffet right in front of us. Ra Forbid! 

"It'sh Bundjer btwh, Bundjerh Breckenjridgjesh" He said while he was savoring and chewing the caviar he had "Shorry" *gulp* He poked his tummy and made a funny face to express his satisfaction. "That was delicious, anyways" he straighten his back and tried make a serious appearance, tried ... "I'm working at KC in the Virtual Reality Department an-...... UGH!!" He fixed his tie, again. "and... eeeh" He scratched his head "Yeah! There is nothing else I can say. I'm just another regular guy. Nothing special."

[~Faytl~]

Jin curled his lip in distaste as Hotaru approached him, visibly wincing away from her enthusiasm. "I'd rather not," he said simply, looking over the boxes with distaste. "These are so just needlessly clunky; Beats me why they want to remember them; Kaiba's usually so much about the next big thing..."

 

Unless Kaiba isn't the one calling the shots with these clunkers... he thought, the image of Mokuba Kaiba spiraling into view inside his thoughts. 

 

"You'll have to find somebody else to have your fun with in these claustrophobic boxes," he sighed, reaching out and assisting the intoxicated woman with the entangled feather boa, taking care to pull it free hard enough to snap the cable it was attached to completely in two. "There we go, ma'am, that should be... Oh my, that isn't good," he observed dryly, taking in the snapped cables. So that's what they look like, huh?

 

"I'll go find somebody to fix this," he assured the lady, speaking loudly and slowly to be sure she understood him. Her and all the people around him. Jin whipped away into the crowd, walking forward with purpose until he saw Tomoya moving back into the security room. He narrowed his eyes. Is that it?

 

He knocked on the door Tomoya had entered unevenly, calling through it: "Excuse me? There's something busted out here, thought you guys ought to know." 

 

- - - - - - -

 

Sachi listened to Bunder with wide eyes, taking in every word he said. She had not been expecting someone from Kaibacorp to be so willing to dismiss their CEO. And it only got worse.

 

"Seto has to help my dad! It's because of his stupid book he's like this!" Sachi was trying to shout these words, but they came out as piteous gasps moreso than yells. She buried her face in her hands, trying not to cry. "He HAS to," she squeaked out. 

 

She accepted the card with a blank, defeated face, barely listening to Bunder. her thoughts were on the man sitting in the middle of his own home like he was lost in it, his brain always slipping away from the edges of rational thought. She bit her lip, shivering slightly. 

 

And then she heard a familiar voice. Sachi jumped hard, whipping around to see her friend. "Cadence?!" she barked in surprise, voice soaring in volume, attracting several affronted glares from the people around them. "What are... What are you doing here?" Sachi fanned her face with her bag. She was so flustered that she was turning red from the strain of everything happening around her. "I... I didn't know you were coming to this," she forced out lamely, shocked out of her despair momentarily.

[◇ Void ◇]

 
All the guests so far have been enjoying the vintages and nibbles so far. The flow of guests had trickled down as the chill of night breezed over the chateau, which security had to endure. Many of them had taken to light up either the traditional and popular ‘Morinphen’ brand, or those fancy E-cigarettes that produced clouds of vapor that could be used for smoke signals. Abruptly, a slick silver Mercedes drove across the driveway to the drop-off.

A weary bunch of photographers and journalists had persevered their colleges’ exodus, now rewarded by an unexpected guest.

A slim figure emerged from the rear gullwing door, wearing a darkened and heavy wool-felt coat over his cream suit, matched with a waistcoat and lilac tie. Each flash of the paparazzi cameras turned his golden hair a little light-grey, then contrasted by his dark skin and purple eyes. The pace of the flashes increased once the photographers realised their shots were being ruined by the glare that came from the gold choker around his neck.

“Apologies for being late.” Marik Ishtar confidently spoke, drawing out an invitation from his inner jacket pocket.
 

Tomoya perked at Jin's words, turning around and raise an eyebrow at him, unfamiliar at the figure that had just snuck behind him. “And who may you be?” The question was followed by the folding of arms, leaning his mass onto the doorframe to block it off.

Gekko leaned his side to the left and eyed Jin past Tomoya, right at the back of the security room at the window which overviewed the gardens. “More to the point, how did you get in here? This floor is off limits to guests.”

[BANZAI!!!!]

 

 

"I don't think I've seen you at any events like these before. I can't imagine what you had to do to be recognized as one with the elites here."

 

A voice Yuuji thought he'd heard before diverted his attention. He turned around to see its owner standing in the red player's zone of the duel arena he was leaning against. It was another girl, dressed rather flashy in designer clothes that quite obviously must have cost enough money to pay for at least two months worth of his mother's medication. Making that comparison in his head probably would have unfairly colored Yuuji's impression of her, but then he recognized who was speaking to him, and that little bit of distaste became moot. This was Yoko Amari, a pro duelist only a couple years older than he was, known both for her bad girl persona and for her use of some rather unsavory tactics, both in and out of the arena. Yuuji was pretty sure they'd gone to high school together too, but he wasn't sure of it off the top of his head.

 

Not that it really mattered. Even if Yuuji couldn't see right through her, he knew enough about this girl to know that she wasn't known for being nice to strangers, and she specifically targeted new players like himself. Talking to him from the opposite side of the arena didn't help her case either. What kind of person introduced themselves from five meters away, anyhow? Whatever her reasons were though, clearly she had no idea who she was trying to mess with.

 

He gave her a small grin, then puffed his chest out a little and sauntered over in her direction. When Yuuji got to the dividing line between the arena's two colors, he hopped up onto its side and rather skillfully slid himself down toward her while sitting on the lip, making sure to keep both of his hands in the air and in her line of sight, just to show that he could do it without any support. His momentum carried him almost all the way to the corner, stopping just short of his outstretched arm coming in contact with her neck. He leaned back as he slid to a stop, resting both of his hands behind him in a spell/trap zone to keep himself stable, and making sure not to break eye contact with her as he did so. The end result of this process (other than some dust on the tails of Yuuji's tuxedo jacket) was that the two of them were more or less face-to-face, with Yuji looking just a bit upwards at her. There was just a bit over six inches between the tips of their noses; perfect distance for making her a little uncomfortable.

 

"Ohh you know, a couple games here, a few handshakes there. Entertain enough people and sooner or later they just pick up on it. I'm sure you know how it is. So, to what do I owe the pleasure, Miss Chiyoko Amari?" Yuuji's tone of voice was a little more overtly sarcastic, though not so much that someone who wasn't listening carefully could tell that he was being anything but friendly. He was flirting with her a little, too, moreso to throw her off her game than anything else (though admittedly she was pretty cute). In any case, his message was pretty obvious: Yuuji Sakata wasn't someone who played along. She'd have to try a little harder to get whatever she wanted out of him.

[Yui]

---

"Well we aren't friends yet. haha- .. Ma God. Free food, my only weakness!"

 

This guy has good taste. Cadence listened in as the guy went on about his connection to KaibaCorp, his name, and him just being an average guy, nothing too special. And Sachi - as one may have expected - seemed pretty surprised Cadence had arrived to this event. Honestly, Cadence was pretty surprised Sachi was here. She didn't expect to find a classmate at such a fancy party. However, she sounded clearly distressed. Something must have been up with her father, like Cadence suspected. As much as she wanted to figure out what, was it really her place to pry into someone's personal life like that?

 

"I... I didn't know you were coming to this."

 

"I'm pretty sure it's a fluke. I didn't think you'd be here either honestly." For now, Cadence's goal was on getting Sachi's mind briefly off... whatever it was on. Life was to be savored, and Sachi was very clearly not savoring it while whatever was bothering her was bothering her. As such, Cadence reached into a small pocket in her dress, and pulled out a weathered pile of cards. "Since we're both here, I think we have an old score to settle. And whoever wins can duel Bundy over here. Or whoever loses." Turning her eyes over to Bunder, she quickly asked "Which one do you want, big guy?"

---

[VCR_CAT]

Yoko

BGM:https://youtu.be/67B0zdd4zmc?t=93

 

In response to Yoko's greeting, Yuuji had walked over, jumped onto the arena's edge, slid down to her side, and looked up at her, his face mere inches from her own.

 

"Ohh you know, a couple games here, a few handshakes there. Entertain enough people and sooner or later they just pick up on it. I'm sure you know how it is. So, to what do I owe the pleasure, Miss Chiyoko Amari?" Yuuji responded in kind, his voice dripping with sarcasm, but a slight hint of playfulness in his eyes. Whoever Yuuji was, he hadn't bought into Yoko's facade and probably has heard of her. Yoko was taken aback slightly, and only showed a split-second's hesitation at someone standing up to her. However, he wasn't the first, and he wouldn't be the last. Yoko removed her shutter-shades and stared Yuuji back with an intense gaze while baring her fangs with a wide, toothy grin.

 

"To congratulate you, of course, Sakata," Yoko returned, not skipping a beat. "You've made it to the big leagues, so now it's only a matter of time to see if you can stand up to the big kids." Yoko reached into her pocket and rifled around her things for a minute. "Of course," she continued, taking out a sleek, black business card with a simple name and number written in bright, neon green and offered it to Yuuji. "If you think you have what it takes, I'm more than happy to put you through the ringer and make things a little... interesting."

[👀 REP 👀]

 

 

"You'll have to find somebody else to have your fun with in these claustrophobic boxes," He reached out to help an intoxicated women, completely ignoring Hotaru. 

 

"H-Hey!" She puffed her cheeks out again as the rude boy made his way towards the crowd. "Next time I see you we're dueling though!" She let out a sigh of disappointment, turning back to the dueling boxes. It would seem like battling in there would have to wait, at least for now. She put her deck back into her bag, before turning away from the duel box. She could overheard two people talking at the dueling arena near her. She considered walking up to them to talk, but decided against it; they seemed rather invested with each other at the moment, not to mention Yugioh wasn't a three player game. Her gaze moved towards where the large crowd of people were - it would probably be better if she got to know some of the other duelist that were here. Maybe she'd even be able to convince one of them to duel! With a new sense of confidence, she marched onward towards the large crowd.

[~Faytl~]

Jin blinked, looking innocently around the doorway he stood before. "It is? Could have fooled me. Nobody stopped me from getting up here." This was of course a lie; Jin had slipped past several guards, taking advantage of casual tripping of some of the guests on his way there. He shrugged. "Bunch of them were dealing with some people who tripped, I guess."

 

Through the gap in the door, Jin could see some of the screens. He saw a car pulling up outside the chateau, a golden-haired man stepping from within. He craned his neck, feigning interest. He didn't know just how significant that man was.

 

"Wow, who is THAT?" he asked loudly, hoping to draw the attention of everyone in the room. He reached into his pocket, feeling his hand close around something small and round.

 

- - - - - - -

 

Sachi took a deep breath as Cadence challenged her to a duel. She looked down at her bag worriedly, knowing her deck was inside. She barely felt at all like dueling. But she didn't want Cadence returning to her original question. Sachi didn't know why, but she felt embarrassed at the idea of Cadence knowing about her father's problems. Was it because Cadence respected him so much? Or was it because Sachi's father was embarrassing to his own daughter?

 

"Sure!" she said suddenly, cutting off that thought as she opened her bag. She looked over to Bunder, giving an apologetic, strained smile. "I'm sorry, sir, but she's my friend, I have to give her preferential treatment," she joked, giggling, the noise somewhat hollow. She looked to Caden'ce hand, sighing as she took it gently in her grasp, looking down at her deck with a morose expression. "Cadence, why do you make your poor deck suffer so much?" she asked. 

 

She turned towards the Duel Boxes, tugging Cadence along with her. "You'll just have to hope I win," she called back to Bunder. She surreptitiously slipped Bunder's card into her bag as her deck came out. She looked over her shoulder to give Bunder one last grateful glance.

[◇ Void ◇]

The naïve Tomoya fell for Jin’s simple distraction and turned his attention to the said man. Leaning down from the balcony, he could not pick out anyone of interest. To Tomoya it was nothing more than a sea of the entitled and privileged, gorging on canopies. It was a bit hypocritical as he was co-managing Lake Pegasus, with Gekko’s endorsement, and a mini-fridge full of normal Coke and fudge under both their desks. The only observation he took note was that the doors to the main dining hall was still locked tight. “I thought we would be ready by now.”

“Regardless.”

Gekko himself took Tomoya’s position in the doorway with a stern face, blocking Jin, while two fingers hovered just above his own KC lapel radio, ready to pounce onto the security frequency. “Now I insist, return downstairs or I will have security eject you, whoever you are. I really don’t have much patience for distractions like you tonight.”

[BANZAI!!!!]

 

"To congratulate you, of course, Sakata. You've made it to the big leagues, so now it's only a matter of time to see if you can stand up to the big kids." Yoko reached into her pocket and rifled around her things for a minute. "Of course," she continued, taking out a sleek, black business card with a simple name and number written in bright, neon green and offered it to Yuuji. "If you think you have what it takes, I'm more than happy to put you through the ringer and make things a little... interesting."

 

"That your way of asking me out?" he shot back, snatching the business card out of her hand. He took only a moment to glance at it, then stuck it in his pocket. "I would have expected a girl like you to be more forward." He was joking, of course, but Yuui was confident enough to broach the subject anyway. Besides, with any luck it would irritate her and throw her off of the game she was playing. He knew they were both aware that she wasn't fooling anybody pretending to be nice, and remaining pleasant was starting to get annoying.  "You know, we're literally sitting on a dueling arena. Why not just cut to the chase?" He got up off the lip of the arena and took his deck box off his belt. "I'll beat you here and now, and we can both get a little entertainment out of this lame-ass gala. Whaddya say?"

 

 

[VCR_CAT]

Yoko

 

"That your way of asking me out?" Yuuji shot back, snatching the business card out of her hand. "I would have expected a girl like you to be more forward."

 

"Don't underestimate me, Sakata. I might be a little more nuanced than that," Yoko returned fire with a splash of venom in her tone. The shared knowledge of who Yoko was and what she was doing was very obvious, and neither party was holding any punches back at this point.

 

"You know, we're literally sitting on a dueling arena. Why not just cut to the chase?" Yuuji got off the arena and took his deckbox out. Yoko grinned. "I'll beat you here and now, and we can both get a little entertainment out of this lame-ass gala. Whaddya say?"

 

Yoko laughed. "Beat me? And here I thought you knew who you were dealing with." She followed suit and took out her own deck box. It was a public space, she couldn't muscle him into an ante duel right now, but with how boring the gala was she couldn't resist the prospect at making her strength known. "But I'll take you on, Sakata. Making a statement out of you sounds like the perfect distraction."

 

 

Kentaro Fujiyama

 

"So then I said 'You put up a good fight, but I'm about to make this a slam dunk!' and attacked him directly!" Coach Fuji said with a hearty and full laughter in front of a group of other dueling veterans. It wasn't often that he had the opportunity to go to these events, so as such his surprise to receive such an invitation in the mail was quite dramatic. Truth be told, he wasn't here because of any of his own merits, but because of a duelist he had been helping break into the professional scene. Of course, he wasn't especially prepared for something so fancy, and had arrived in an old, maroon-colored suit that he had only really worn on the rare special occasion. Unfortunately, his outdated style stood out among the more modern guests, but in many ways he preferred it this way.

 

But, luck be the way that it is, he just happened to overhear a conversation some distance away. "...But I'll take you on, Sakata. Making a statement out of you sounds like the perfect distraction." Coach Fuji looked over to see what was going on and his stomach dropped as he saw Yuuji Sakamoto speaking to a certain professional duelist who was known for singling rookies out and hazing them. Of all nights for her to make Yuuji her target.

 

"Excuse me fellas, but something just came up," Coach Fuji said, handing his drink to a waiter. He weaved his way through the crowd and approached Yuuji, placing his hand on his shoulder. "Hey, Yuuji my boy, glad you could make it, you look great by the way!" He turned and faced Yoko with an overly polite smile. "Sorry miss, if you'll excuse us for a minute." Yoko shrugged and Fuji turned himself and Yuuji around. "Hey, mind telling me why you're starting a match with heckin' YOKO AMARI of all people?! This isn't exactly the kind of night where you want to be gettin' yourself in trouble!"

[Yui]

---

"Sure!"

 

That's a step in the right direction. Operation Make Sachi Feel Better, begin!

 

"Cadence, why do you make your poor deck suffer so much?"

 

"I treat it fine; the cards are just old is all," Cadence responded, as if it were more an off-hand story from the newspaper than a fact worth any sort of remarkable attention, while Sachi tugged her along to the duel boxes. "Besides, it gives the deck character." She understood a lot of people were always concerned about the conditions of their cards. But as long as the text could be made out and the cards were still usable, did it really matter how they looked? People who aspired to be duelists and stuff were weird, or people who dueled as a hobby. Sachi was definitely among the latter.

 

Once the two had arrived at the duel box, Cadence set her deck down in the appropriate spot after giving it a good shuffle. "May the best girl win."

---