//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Letting Off Some Steam // Story: Hunter of Numbers // by Golden Flare //------------------------------// After your first run-in with a "Number Keeper" as you now called those who wield Number cards, you tutored Rainbow for the next few days to help her understand the material, and as promised, she taught you some combinations you could use in the future. You honestly thought you might need them, since there may be more Number Keepers out there, your theory of the cards possessing the people who hold them still fresh in your mind. You decided that this was too much on you and that you need to use the weekend to decompress yourself and unwind for a bit. During one of your tutoring sessions with Rainbow, Silver Spoon came and apologized for her behavior, as a token of her apology and friendship, she gave you one of her many copies of her Ice Hand monster card. You thank her and ask if she could join you two, she agreed, of course, Rainbow was hesitant after what happened, but eventually let her guard down when she saw that Silver was back to her old self. After her parents picked her up, you began to have a chat with Rainbow about the Numbers you've collected. "...I can't read that." Rainbow said, looking at Volcasaurus in your hand. "I know, but I can. It's weird, right?" you ask. "Very weird, I mean, nobody's even heard of these cards, and yet, here they are. Also, why make cards that only certain people can read? It doesn't make sense!" "Yeah..." you know Rainbow has a point, you're even starting to believe that they aren't from this world. Rainbow noticed you deep in thought and roused you out of it, "Hey, maybe we should take a break for today," she stood up, stretching, "besides, I'm meeting my friends at the mall today, you wanna come with?" "Well...Snips and Snails are busy today...okay, I'll come." "Great! I'll get my things together and we'll get going!" After helping Rainbow pack up her studying supplies, you two made a quick stop at her home to drop off her things, then head to the mall, where her friends are waiting. Not long after arriving, the girls immediately went to shopping; Rarity and Sunset into a fashionable clothing store, Fluttershy and Applejack to a pet store, Rainbow a sports store, and Pinkie to a party store. You? You went to a shop that sold Duel Monster cards so you could amp up your Deck with ice cards along with the Ice Hand Silver Spoon gave you. You prefer the FIRE attribute, but if you're going to use Freezadon in future Duels, you're going to have to adapt to other attributes. You bought a couple booster packs from the shopkeeper and opened them to see what you got; in the first pack, you got Penguin Soldier, Cold Enchanter, Snowdust Dragon, Snowdust Giant, and Caravan of the Ice Barrier, next was the second pack, inside was Fortune Lady Fire, Fortune Lady Water, Future Visions, Terraforming, and Slip of Fortune. After you collected your new cards, you exited the shop only to see that the girls weren't done yet. You decide to chill at the food court and order your favorite food. Once you paid the cashier, you sat down at a nearby table to wait for your food, soon enough, the girls finally finished their shopping and joined you at your table after ordering their own meals. Rainbow spoke to you first, "So, didja find anything ya like?" "Yeah." you answered as you showed her your new cards. Rainbow whistled, "Nice selection, but I thought you liked FIRE attributed monsters." "I do, but I think it's time I adapted a little bit." "Sounds like a good idea, since the Friendship Games are coming up," Sunset added, "I even heard there's going to be a section for Duel Monsters this year." "Really?" you asked, interested. "Eeyup," Applejack mimicked her brother, "We all plan ta tryout fer the Games, you in?" "Well..." "An' don't even try ta be coy about Duelin', y'all have shown us that yer better than yer lettin' on." You hum in thought, then sigh, "...Okay." The girls cheered in victory as Pinkie spoke up, "Oh! And you might wanna not use those creepy Number thingies! If they've never been heard of, then people will think you're cheating!" "No problem, I'll hold off on them." you thought of something before adding, "But if the students of Crystal Prep has any of those Number cards, all bets are off." "Fair enough," Sunset agreed, "Maybe we should look over our Decks before trying out when the weekend's over." "Uh-huh!" the girls chimed in. We all decided to look our Duel Monster Decks over until our food was delivered to us, then we stopped and ate before we figured we'd been here long enough and went our separate ways for the day. "Hey, (Y/N)!" Rainbow called as you walked away, "Same time tomorrow?" "Yeah! See you then!" you call back. With that, you continued on your way back home, once there you washed up and got ready for dinner, afterwards you retired to your room and added your new cards to your Deck, especially the Ice Hand card Silver gave you. Meanwhile... In the darkness of the night, a hooded person that appeared to be a male was running through the streets, desperate to get to his destination. Once he did, he looked up at it in anticipation; a rundown old warehouse just near the pier of Canterlot. With a sneer, he entered and went through the area as if he knew the layout, and finally reached the room he was looking for, which was filled with computers, maps marked with numbers, and pictures of people on corkboards. He walked up to the large chair facing away from him and kneeled, "Master..." "Did you get it?" a soothing voice spoke. "The child was trouble, but I got it." he pulled out a Duel Monsters card, more specifically, an Xyz Monster card, and handed it to the being known as "Master". "Hmm..." the being stroked their chin and pocketed the card, "...Well done. You may take the night off." He stood up and bowed, "Thank you, Master, I shall take my leave." "Wait." He stopped before he could exit. "Before you go, I want to make a point: when the other Number Hunters aren't here, I don't want you to refer to me as 'Master', too formal for a loyal person like you, Cosine." "Then...what shall I refer you as?" The being spun around to look at Cosine with a piercing cat-like eye, "Just Gazing. Gazing Eye."