Downtime

[madimpossibledreamer]

Main Points:
Yugioh Legacy!verse, leads to the Phantom Tournament
Chapter Summary: They explore the dueling 'stage'.
Word Count: 870
Rating: teen

 

            They explore a little, but even Kaiba seems disinclined to search the creepy castle.  Or maybe it’s just his general disdain for all things group activity.  Yugi seems frustrated, like he wants to know what they’re dealing with, but doesn’t insist.  They do seem the first to have arrived, since they have the place, so far, practically to themselves.
            They leave Joey and Tristan in the kitchen, after a Yami-ish warning from Yugi about not eating all their food, since they don’t know how often the place is resupplied.  Joey tries to argue that, “Since we’re star duelists, dey’d pay fer more,” but even he quails a little at Muto’s stern gaze, which Téa giggles a little at.  The old Yugi wouldn’t have dared.
            Still, though, she doesn’t want to stay to supervise.  The thought of eating yet more is making her feel a little sick.  She and Yugi and Mai go off to one of the giant rooms with the two-story high windows, and Mai begins spreading out her deck to get ready.  And, she assumes, set Yugi at ease, and maybe make him give away a few things about his new deck.  No one said that she wasn’t sneaky.
            Apparently, Yugi realizes this too.  “This is a side deck,” he confides, a small smile on his face, and Mai sighs.
            “Saw right through me, did you?”  She shakes her head.  “I should know better than to try to pull something over the King of Games.”
            He laughs.  It’s a nice sound, one that she realizes belatedly that she misses.  “It’s a psychology game, one that has its place in Duel Monsters.  It just so happens that I prepared a counter-move.”
            “I was thinking of making a deck.  Could you help me?” Téa asks, and Yugi pouts at her.  It takes her a moment before she realizes why.  “I was asking both of you, you goof,” she continues, a little dryly, and he laughs sheepishly.
            “S-sorry.  Of course I’d love to help,” he answers, and Mai nods.
            “Now that’s sweet,” she remarks, and watches delighted as they both blush.  “Why wouldn’t I stay?  I’d miss the show.”  She shakes her head and gives them both a break.  “Now, what kind of deck were you thinking?  I’m pretty sure that you aren’t a harpy type, which is good, because I don’t have many I want to part with.”
            Téa pauses.  Besides maybe letting her have a few casual duels in the city and being an excuse to spend more time with Yugi, she hadn’t really thought about it.  It’d just been a whim, really, not a thought she’d had a lot of time to sort through.
            Yugi laughs and takes pity on her.  “There’s a lot of places to start when setting up a deck.  A lot of it just depends on what you’re going for.  I’ll ask you a bunch of questions to give you some ideas, and then we can go from there, okay?”  He takes a deep breath and squeezes her hand.  “Do you want to just put in all your favorite monsters and cards?  That’s kind of what Joey and I do, most of the time.  Do you want to go with a theme, like Spellcasters or Beasts?  Do you want to be even more specific, like Mai with her Harpies?”  Mai smiles and waves.  “Or you could think about it another way—what kind of deck do you want to play?  A straightforward one, where you’re just trying to get higher attack points than the opponent’s Monsters?  Do you want one that relies on luck, like Joey’s?  Do you want to have it be pretty technical, requiring specific card combinations?”  He pauses.
            “She’s looking a little overwhelmed,” Mai comments, crossing her legs.  “Well, let’s narrow it down a little, shall we?  I can’t see you playing Zombies, Fiends, or anything super aggressive.  You’re no pushover, but you’re not cruel, which is what a lot of those decks seem to work on—trust me, I’ve met a few.”
            “No bugs,” Téa requests, and Yugi nods. 
            And then he bites his lip.  “I am an idiot,” he confides, letting go of her hand reluctantly and jogging over to a backpack he’d brought.  It’s his old school one, which brings back memories, but there’s no time to reminisce.  He returns with a tablet.  “I was thinking that it’s too bad she didn’t bring this up when we were at the shop,” he continues, turning it on and quickly signing in.  “Then she could stare at all the cards and find a few she likes.  I’ve always found that it’s easier to do this when looking at cards, rather than just thinking about it.  And, well, it’s not quite the same, but Pegasus started putting up a card database.  I completely doubt that it’s a full list—he does like his little surprises—but it should be enough to start giving her an idea.  Maybe?”  He looks back up at her with a hopeful grin, and she laughs and reaches over to ruffle his hair.  He giggles and tries to pull away, and Mai grins at the pair of them and stands up to join them on the carpet.