Past Repeating - Book 1

Clash of Warriors

Star Chips: Yugi: 3/Joey: 2/Sarah: 2

Joey proved himself in his duel against Mai. Not only did he duel strategically, but he also outsmarted Mai and exposed her tricks. We were impressed with his match - Téa and Tristan more so. Yugi and I found ourselves more proud than impressed that Joey made it out alright. He had struggled quite a bit during the first half of his duel, even after confidently saying that he was ready for it. Now he knew his opponents could try anything in an attempt to throw him off his game, but no matter what they might try, he knew that he had to stay calm and remain focused in order to overcome those obstacles and win.

"Joey, that was a wonderful duel," I said with a smile as we began walking away from the duel arena. Mai had left in the other direction after giving Joey the Star Chip he had won. Now he had two in his collection. It may not have been a step forward for many duelists, but to us, it felt more like an increase in stability. Joey didn't have to gamble one Star Chip anymore and face the threat of being kicked out of the tournament. With two Star Chips, he could gamble one during a duel, and if he happened to lose it, he would still have one last chance to duel and win another one.

The blond grinned. He was super excited to have won his first official duel of the tournament. "Thanks!" he said. "You know, I was glad I figured out Mai's trick when I did. Otherwise, who knows what could have happened?"

"You could have lost," said Téa flatly. Joey cringed at the idea. Then he smiled sheepishly with a sweat drop on the side of his head. He knew he couldn't have done it without Yugi and the Pharaoh supporting him. If the Pharaoh hadn't provided that riddle, to which Joey would have known held meaning, he couldn't possibly have won by continuing the broken strategy he was using. Speaking of the Pharaoh, shortly after Joey had won, he returned to his Millennium Puzzle.

I wondered how he did that...

"But I didn't," said Joey with a blink.

"Yeah... yeah, you didn't..." admitted Téa.

"It was just a matter of time until Mai's tricks were known," said Tristan. "One person needed to figure it out. The man for the job was Joey."

Joey got teary-eyed from his friend's compliment. "Awww, thanks man..." He tried to go in for a hug but Tristan suddenly caught his shoulders and tried to push him away.

"Hey, man! I get it, okay? This is just creepy!" I suppose despite them being close, they didn't want to be too close.

Téa, Yugi, and I laughed at the scene before us.

"So both Yugi and Joey have dueled now," said Téa. Then she turned towards me and I blinked. "Looks like it's your turn, Sarah."

I gazed back at all the eyes that were suddenly all staring at me expectantly. I shook my head, suddenly feeling very nervous. "I don't know about this..." I said. Usually I wouldn't have gotten nervous, but not being one hundred percent sure about something didn't put me at ease. I wanted to be completely confident with dueling. Sure, I have had practice, but there was still that little bit of hesitance...

Yugi offered me a gentle smile. "You've gotta face your fears," he said. "Or you'll never know."

"Well..." He was right. If I kept going without confidence in myself, I would never win a duel no matter how sure I was.

"... You're right... I will find a duel next."

Tristan and Joey punched the air in excitement. I didn't understand why they were so excited while I was left to be anxious.

"Alright!" said the blond. "Finally! We get to see your duel!"

"To think, she's a top duelist," said Tristan. "Even so, people aren't lining up to duel her."