Tales of the Canterlot High Duelists

by Brony-wan-kenobi

Test by Arrogant Flames Part 1

“Now, El Shaddoll Construct, finish this!” shouted Hunter from his spot underneath the same shady tree he liked to stand under as he pointed a finger at Applejack. The blonde cowgirl only had time to look upwards to see the largest of Star Hunter’s monsters lumbering over her before dozens of purple energy threads rained down upon her. They stuck the ground around the blonde cowgirl causing rocks and dirt to be shot into the air while other threads pierced her very body.

Applejack dropped to one knee as her life points hit zero, the holograms quickly beginning to fade. Still, she kept her eyes on the giant figure that dominated the duel; El Shaddoll Construct (2800/2500). It was a monster that looked so much like Flash’s Gem Knight Lapis, but bigger and more purple. Coming out from its back were thousands upon thousands of purple threads that almost covered the field. It dominated the field as soon as it appeared as well as setting up more monsters in the graveyard for Hunter to use. But it hadn’t just been that card alone that caused Applejack so much trouble. As soon as he had summoned her to the field, he also brought out Invoked Mechaba (2500/2100). That twisted machine like knight negated and destroyed everything Applejack nearly everything Applejack had tried leaving her mostly at its mercy.

It was then a figure moved in front of the sunlight and held out a hand towards her. “Good match,” said Hunter in an honest tone. The farmer girl looked at him in disbelief, but smiled herself as she took his hand.

“Not much of a match,” she replied as she got to her feet. As she did, Applejack noticed that there had been several passerby’s who had stopped to watch their match. Not surprising since they were still practicing in the park behind Hunter’s old house. Plenty of others were outside on this sunny day (Hunter dueling under the shade of his favorite tree like always) so there were bound to be a few who would stop to watch. Including Apple Bloom and her friends who had been sitting on a nearby park bench. Then there was Moondancer who would occasionally look up from one of her advanced book to see how things were progressing.

As for Hunter, he merely shrugged in response. “You told me not to go easy,” he said with a faint smile. “And I have been itching to use El Shaddoll Construct ever since she got off the ban list. So I figured why not.”

“Can see why,” said Applejack as she stretched. A couple of people in the crowd leered at her as her large breasts kissed the sky above, something that AJ paid little to no mind about. “That thing is harder to take down than a bucking bull at the rodeo. Well, at least it gives me an idea about what sort of things that Crystal Prep might be throwing at us. Sure as sugar they ain’t gonna be pulling any punches.” She paused for a moment as she straightened up. “Still might help to go up against a couple of your other decks. Just ta get a feel for the other types of summoning.”

Hunter didn’t say anything right away, just scratching his chin. “Well I do have a couple of good synchro and xyz decks that I haven’t used in a while,” he admitted slowly. “Even a couple that use multiple summoning methods. Might help you get ready for the Friendship Cup.”

Applejack found herself smiling nervously at that, not know what to say. She was, of course, very grateful to Hunter for all he was doing for her. Not only had he given her the cards for her new deck, the one she planned on using against the Prep when the time came, but he was also helping her with these practice duels to help her work out the kinks in her deck. Something that was very helpful since after every duel she had gone home to make whatever tweak she thought was needed. Dropping cards that had just been dead in her hand just didn’t do enough, or if she thought of something she could have done during one of the duels but she just didn’t have all the cards to make the right combos. Now her deck was stronger than it had been during her first duel with him. Still, Hunter was a very skilled duelist in his own right. She had hoped on tackling a deck that used one form of special summoning before tangling with one that used two.

On the other hand, Hunter had a point. She needed to get ready for the big match against Crystal Prep. The more she trained against all these different types of summoning would only benefit her even if she did get her ass handed to her. She just sort of wished that it didn’t happen every single time.

“Maybe I should duel her sometime,” called Moondancer as she got up. Pausing for a moment, she dusted herself off before approaching the two with a book carried under her arm. “It’ll also be good for her to duel decks that people don’t normally run.”

“Sounds like fun,” said AJ with a grin. “Heard ya gave old Rares a run for her money. Like ta see how Ah match up.”

“Guess we can do it next week,” said Moondancer with a nod before suddenly elbowing Hunter playfully in the side. “Besides, this guy here is going to be busy next weekend. His aunt is taking him out to celebrate.”

While Hunter gave a sheepish grin AJ’s smile widened as she looked over at him. Hunter’s situation was not all that well known within the school. The only reason Applejack knew about it was because she had visited his place, shocked at seeing how poorly his parents neglected everything. From what she knew, they spent all day and night watching old videos of their younger son Star Chaser while the house became almost a literal dumping ground. The lawn was a wreck, trash piling up everywhere inside, and the smell was worse than anything she had ever smelt in the pig pen. There was also the fact that they blamed Hunter for Chaser’s fall from grace as well as his later arrest. Needless to say, that it was not a place she’d want anybody in her school to live in. She was thankful that something was being done by Hunter’s aunt who wanted to take custody of her nephew.

“Well shucks, Hunter,” she said, patting him on the back…so hard that he was almost launched forward. Thankfully Moondancer caught him before his face was planted on the ground. “Uhh, sorry ‘bout that. Still, glad ta hear you’re moving out of that place.”

“Already did,” replied Hunter as tried to rub the spot where AJ had patted him. “Last week Child Services sent someone down to the house. Seeing how mom and dad went into a flying rage when she turned off the TV in order to get their attention, the agent decided that my aunts place would be better for me. Moved out the next day.”

Moondancer was smiling as well. “Yeah, now I can actually visit him at his place. Not that my parents mind having him around, it just helps avoid those awkward conversations my dad’s always trying to start with him. Not to mention the timing is perfect.”

At that, Applejack blinked at that. “The timing?”

-

As students moved towards the school the next morning, a lone figure trailed behind them. It was a teenage boy who had light brownish skin, darker brown hair that was slicked back, and yellow eyes that almost seemed predatory. He wore a light grey trench coat that billowed in the breeze and under it was a white shirt with blue stripes as well as high end jeans. The boy walked in his heavy looking black boots with utter confidence on his face while his eyes were glued to the rears of the girls in front of him.

Star Chaser stared at them the same way a man who had gone days without water looked at an iced glass of the life-giving liquid. For far too long he had been kept within the walls of steel and stone, his only company being the whiny cries of teenage boys he cared nothing about. Now, before him, were the rumps of one of the things he missed dearly during his rather unpleasant stay away from home. Soon he would get back everything that had been wrongfully taken away from him by his own retarded brother. He would get back his fame as a star athlete, playboy, and most important of all; as duelist!

Licking his lips, he could almost see it now. All of the girls in this shithole of a school would be lining up just for the chance to spend one night with him, perhaps two or three if they were lucky. Maybe even the teachers if any of them managed to meet his standards. He would be the star of every sports team, the envy of all those who tried and failed to match his great performance on the field. He would dominate everyone in Duel Monsters, destroying their life points as well as whatever little pride they had. And that would only be the beginning.

Of course, it would be better if he were going to the school he had deserved to enter! For a brief moment, his smile vanished as he thought about Crystal Prep. Full of fine pretty things for him to play within those wonderful uniforms just waiting to be ruined. The perfect platform for his rise into true stardom and possibly other things. Maybe a career in politics or something like that once he was done trashing pathetic losers for a living. He would make a great senator or even President! But no, his retarded brother had to go and ruin everything by not losing like he should have!

As the girls turned, Chaser moved to look at the building they as well as many other fine-looking female bodies were heading to. Slowly his smile returned. It might not be the best, but then again people love an underdog story. This place was full of losers so it shouldn’t be that hard to work his way back up to the top. It might take a little time but he should be able to become Captain of every team in this school, number one duelist, and have the entire female student body at his beckon call. All because of Hunter!

Quickly Chaser’s hands clenched into fists as he thought of his brother, feeling his blood beginning to boil in the process. One of the things he had been looking forward to when he got home was beating the ever-living daylights out of that loser. Heck, his parents would probably hold the turd in place for him if he asked. But no, when he arrived at that junkyard that now served as ‘home’ he found out that the coward had ran to their Aunt Star Chart. Never liked her anyways. He was just upset that he couldn’t give Hunter the pounding he deserved.

Chaser’s eyes fell on a pair of girls walking nearby, calming down considerably seeing that they were both hotties. One of them was not his type. Sure, the long purple hair and pale white skin were nice together, but he could tell by the way she dressed that she was too high maintenance for his taste. Probably demand that he ‘take care’ of her and had high expectations on where they went. But the one next to her, now that was a fine piece! A no doubt dumb blonde with orange skin along with ratty clothing that made her look like a country bumpkin. While she might be trailer trash, her body was very fine that was filled out in all the right areas.

Calmly he began to approach them while listening to their conversation. “For the last time, Rares,” said the dumb blonde in an accent that made her sound even dumber. Seriously, who talked in that sort of farmer slang anymore? Not that it mattered to him really since it fit her very well. “Ah know ya want to do something all special like for the Friendship Cup, but matching uniforms? They’re going ta be all frou-frou like.”

“Oh but darling,” said the other girls ‘Rares’ in a fake high society like voice that made Chaser hold back a groan. Yeah, he wasn’t even consider tapping that. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us. It is our duty to look as stylish and fashionable as we can be.”

“It’s our duty ta be bringing on our A-game,” snapped the blonde.

“I think you’re doing just fine,” commented Chaser. It took a moment, most likely both girls surprised by the manliness of his voice, for both girls to turn and look at him. Chaser gave them his best smile, the one that had always worked in the past to win over whoever he desired. He saw that the blonde looked surprised, no doubt her tiny brain taking a bit longer for something to process. Perhaps another compliment was in order. “With bodies like those, I bet you’ve both aces on the cheer team.”

As the blonde frowned, eyes narrowing at him for some reason, Rares spoke up. “The cheer team? No, no, no my dear. While I have nothing against them, the mere idea of getting all sweaty.” She paused for a moment to shiver, scrunching her face as she did so. “Not exactly my sort of thing. We were just talking about the big duel between Canterlot High and Crystal Prep. But thank you for the compliment.”

Chaser raised an eyebrow at that while the blonde crossed her arms under that lovely chest. While he would have loved to give it the attention it deserved, there was something far more pressing on his mind. A duel between this dump and Crystal Prep?! Oh, what luck! Screw beating all these chumps and making a slow return back to the top. All he had to do is join this tournament, defeat whatever moron they sent, and get the Prep to realize the mistake they made. Then it would only be a matter of time before they begged him to transfer.

“Ya listening?” came the voice of the dumb blonde. Chaser blinked, suddenly realizing that while he was thinking of important things this girl had been talking.

“Oh, sorry I was thinking about something else for a moment,” mumbled Chaser. As both the girls looked at each other, Chaser took a step closer to the blonde. “But I do mean what I said. With bodies like yours you’d be killers on any cheerleader team. Perhaps we could talk it over later tonight, just the two of us.” As Chaser said this, he eyed the blonde over once again, unable to help himself. Who could blame him? It had been so long since he had seen such an appealing treat. One that he hoped to taste later tonight.

For some reason, the dumb blonde rolled her eyes before turning around. “Let’s go, Rares. Ah got the feeling I’d only be wasting mah breath.”

“Yes,” said Rares slowly, giving Chaser a look he really didn’t like before turning around. As he watched both girls walk away, with Rares hips moving in a way he normally would have found appealing, something felt off inside of him. They were…rejecting him?!? For a moment Chaser’s eyes narrowed and his perfect features twisted in his anger. How dare they?!? Didn’t they know how lucky they were just to have him talk to them?

As quickly as his anger appeared, it faded. No, Chaser realized. They didn’t know. After all, how could they when he had been imprisoned for so long. They didn’t know how perfect he was. So he needed to prove it to them. While it was true that he hadn’t needed to do that in some time, right now it was a must. This was going to be his first impression at this school so he was going to have to make sure that both of these dumb girls were eating out of the palm of his hand before the first bell rung.

“Please don’t be like that,” said Chaser in the smoothest voice he had, approaching the dumb blonde. Before she could think of anything to say or turn around, Chaser placed a hand on that nice rear of hers. The girls back home loved it when he did that. “I think we just got off to a bad-” The next thing that came out of Chaser’s mouth was a cry of pain. The blonde had turned around and grabbed his wrist with the strength of a bear before pulling it off. Seriously, she could break a person’s bones with a grip like that!

“Never do that again,” she breathed through clenched teeth as Chaser fell to his knees, letting go of him at the same time. Then, without another word, Chaser watched as the two walked away.

-

“Can you believe the nerve of that ruffian this morning?!?” demanded Rarity as she sat down next to Applejack, slamming her lunch tray on the table as she did so. Everyone at the table turned to look at her as well, mostly looking on with mild confusion. The only one who didn’t was Rainbow who just seemed to keep looking at her tray which looked completely untouched.

“
“Uh, ruffian?” asked Sunset as she looked between the two for clarification.

“The new guy,” said Applejack simply before taking a bite out of an apple. Instantly, understanding filled their expressions. Fluttershy frowned deeply, playing with strands of her pink hair and looking away from them. Pinkie Pie looked like someone had switched all the candy from a piñata and replaced it with cans of moldy sardines. Sunset closed her eyes before rubbing her forehead. Rainbow was looking a little bluish green now that she looked a tad closer. Now that Applejack thought about it, she had been looking slightly worse and worse as the day went by.

“I swear, I haven’t been able to get his uncouth behavior out of my head all day,” continued Rarity as she stabbed the slice of meatloaf that was her lunch, destroying the spork in the process. “Undressing us with his eyes like that, right in front of us no less! Then grabbing Applejack’s butt! I’m surprised you didn’t go straight to Principle Celestia on this one.”

“Doesn’t surprise me,” mumbled Pinkie. “When I sensed that there was somebody new in school, I ran right up to him, saw he was looking down, and offered to throw him the biggest party ever. Naturally he loved the idea until I asked him what kind of streamers he liked and if there were any soda’s he preferred. Said that stuff was for kids and started making all these demands!” Pinkie Pie suddenly narrowed her eyes and gripped the table as hard as she could. “He said the only decorations we needed were plenty of skimpy dressed girls and plenty of beer! I! Do! Not! Party! With! Alcohol! When you leave a Pinkie Pie party you are going to be in control and nobody vomits unless they ate too many sweets!”

“Did ya tell him that?” asked Applejack.

“I did!” cried Pinkie as she threw out her arms. “And then he said several things to me about my mental state and that I need to grow up.” The pink girl then brought her arms down before slumping down in her chair looking very cross.

“At least it sounds like you all had brief conversations with that jerk,” whispered Fluttershy in a harsh tone. “He sat next to me during second period and, well, I had a hard time concentrating with all his whispering. Something about going out with him and…other stuff.”

“Oh darling!” cried Rarity as she got up from her seat, moved around the table, and placed comforting hands on Fluttershy’s shoulders. “I hope he didn’t get you into too much trouble. Or embarrass you too much.”

“Well, we weren’t caught,” sighed Fluttershy which was followed up by a groan from Rainbow. “But the only thing I could hear was him whispering about how great he was, all of his awards, how good of a time the other girls he’s been with had. Now I’m going to have to ask for notes on that class.”

“Me and Rainbow had him in first period gym,” complained Sunset as Rainbow lowered her head closer to her tray. Seeing this, Sunset began to pat her multi colored haired friend on the back as she continued her story. “Asked us who the number one athlete in the school was and looked unhappy when Rainbow said it was her. Then he was all like, ‘Hope you like being the second best because soon I’ll be standing at the top A-cup’. Then he started doing that whole undressing me with his eyes thing and I guess he liked what he saw. Caught him several times leering at me before he bailed the second half of the class.” At that, Rainbow raised a hand to say something but paused before suddenly covering her mouth.

“Rainbow, if ya ain’t feeling well maybe-” Applejack never got a chance to finish her sentence as her friend fell out of her seat. Quickly all of the girls rose to their feet just in time to see her throwing up.

-

Principal Celestia looked out the window from her office as the ambulance drove away in a hurry, its sirens blaring loudly. Nurse Red Heart had looked her over after the girl’s friends rushed her to the nurse’s office. Seeing how they were only prepared for small cuts, bruises, and handing out students’ medications, it was quickly decided that, given her state, it would be best to send the poor girl to the local hospital. Luna had helped by informing the parents of this incident.

As for Celestia, she was more than a bit worried. A part of her reasoned that people can fall sick quickly. But to get that sick over the course of a few hours? According to Rainbow’s friends she hadn’t eaten any of the school’s lunch and nobody else who had eaten it was getting sick so they could rule out food poisoning. Could there have-

A knock on the door interrupted the Principal’s thoughts. She was about to answer when the door opened to reveal the new transfer student Star Chaser. The woman kept a neutral expression as he entered, walking in as if he were the king of the world.

“Mr. Chaser,” she said as she moved to take her seat. “So nice to see you. I hope your first day is going well.”

Chaser grinned almost smugly as he sat in the chair directly across from her. “Had a bit of a rough start. One of the student’s here attacked me for no reason. But now, I’d say things are looking better.”

“Well, if you wish to register a complaint then you should talk to Vice-Principal Luna,” said Celestia as she folded her hands. “Just be sure to wait for permission before entering her office. It’s simply good etiquette.” As she said this, she saw Chaser looked annoyed for a moment. It was hard for her not to read something like that since she dealt with teens all day. A person in a position like hers tended to pick up on things like that.

“Right,” he said in a dismissive tone as he leaned a bit closer to the desk. “I actually stopped by to ask about the sports teams. When they are meeting and if there would be any issues of me joining. That sort of thing.”

Celestia gave him a little nod. “Well, you’d have to talk to the coaches themselves,” she said as she opened up her desk. As she pulled out a pen from her pen mug, the older woman quickly consulted her memory before writing down several names and classroom followed by handing it to Chaser. “You may have some trouble convincing them to let you join so late in the season, so just be warned. If you can’t then you’ll just have to wait for the winter sports teams to start up if you want.”

Wordless, Chaser took the paper with a hungered look on his face. He read it over, not bothering to thank Celestia or anything like that, before pocketing it. “Once they see what I can do, I’m sure it won’t be any problem. Plus, from what I just heard; they might be a player down for a while.” At that Celestia’s neutral expression shattered. A very disapproving frown appeared on her face, one that Chaser took note of instantly. “Well, I guess I should get going now. Just tell me where I go to sign up for this Friendship Cup thing I’ve heard about and I’ll be out of your hair.”

Celestia shook her head, much to the surprise of Chaser. “I’m sorry but that will be impossible for you. When you transferred, I read your file and it stated very clearly that you have a lifelong ban from participating in any official tournaments.”

Instantly, Chaser stood up with a flushed expression on his face. From where she sat, Celestia could see his hands had balled into fists. Veins had appeared on his forehead looking like he was trying very hard to contain a sudden rush of anger. As he began to lean forward, Celestia got the impression that he might try to strike her yet she refused to show any sign of weakness. She stood, or rather sat, her ground unflinchingly as he instead placed his fists on her desk.

“I was one of the best duelists anyone had ever seen before,” he stated in a dark tone. “From what I’ve heard, this school needs people with real skill for a chance to not be beaten like some pathetic animal again. With me, you can bet that you will at least win one match!”

“If I were to consider allowing you to represent this school, I would need to get Principal Sombra on board to give you this chance. Seeing as he runs the very school whose entrance exam you were caught cheating in makes me doubtful that he would agree.” As she said this, Chaser flinched but didn’t back away from where he stood. As for Celestia she stood up to her full height. “But none of that will ever happen seeing that this little temper tantrum of yours has not convinced me to stick my neck out for you. So, I will abide by the ban. You shall not be allowed to submit your name on the voting ballot. Now, if there is nothing else, I suggest that you head off to your next class.”

-

“That stupid, old…” growled Chaser under his breath as he slammed the crappy locker he had been assigned. Thankfully nobody around him seemed to notice as the last bell had rung. Now, all of these pathetic losers were walking home to do…whatever. He was too angry with the idiotic old woman who ran this place.

Placing a fist on his locker, Chaser couldn’t help but remember how things used to be. Back when he just needed to ask and the people in charge of his old schools wouldn’t hesitate to get him what he wanted. As long as he brought those tiny, pointless places some attention they didn’t care. Even if they did have to break some pointless rules made to make things ‘fair’ for whatever reason. Who cared?! They knew how amazing and great he was and were willing to do whatever it took.

But now all that was gone. All thanks to that retarded brother of his! If he had never applied to Crystal Prep then this never would have happened. If he had just forfeited the match instead of wasting Chaser’s time by trying to win, then no-one would have ever caught him cheating. It was all Hunter’s fault! Along with that old maid of a Principal who was clearly not as smart as she probably made herself out to be! If she had even half a brain then she should be fighting tooth and nail just for him to bring home the only chance for a win they would ever get. Why did these people have to be so stupid?

The only good things to come out of this, and he used the term loosely, was that he knew where to go for the sports teams as well as who had put their names down for the Cup. It was back to doing things the hard way, proving to everyone here that he was the best. He’d talk to all the coaches right now and convince them that he would make a great addition to the team. Hopefully they weren’t as slow-witted as the Principal. From there, he had time to take on whatever passed as the best duelists around here. He would make sure to defeat them so thoroughly that the masses at this dump would demand that Principal What’s-Her-Face let him duel.

As Chaser turned, he saw something that caused his eyes to narrow. Down the hallway was Hunter! He was standing there with some ugly looking nerd, talking to that dumb blond that hurt his arm this morning! Oh, if only he knew her name so he could have reported her to Vice-Principal Whoever! Still, the fact that they knew each other…

Chaser’s legs seemed to move on their own as he made his way towards Hunter, eyes focused on the lesser, yet older of the two. Hunter still had that messy hair as well as those cheap looking clothes. It fit him so well, nothing but a lesser model compared to somebody like himself. Still, it irritated Chaser to think that they had similar faces. Sickening really!

As Chaser approached, the dumb blonde was the first to notice his approach. She tapped Hunter on the shoulder before gesturing behind him. Slowly Hunter turned to look at Chaser with an expression of mild surprise. The ugly nerd also turned to look and, for some reason, didn’t look like she was starting to fawn over him. Maybe there was something wrong with her eyesight or something.

“Heard a lot about you today,” said Hunter once Chaser was close enough, adjusting his backpack as he spoke. “It seems prison wasn’t enough to humble you.”

“There was never anything wrong with me, unlike you,” shot back Chaser as he moved in close. So close that their noses were almost touching, feeling their breathes on the other’s lips. “I am going to make you pay for what you did to me. I don’t know when, but I’ll find a way, and when I do you won’t know what hit you.”

“Yeah, well,” began Hunter, taking a step back. There was a tremble in his voice, failing to keep in conciliate. “Thanks for the warning. I’ll be sure to keep my guard up.”

“Knock it off, ya pig-headed fool,” said the dumb blonde as she looked at Chaser. “Figured ya was his kin the moment I laid eyes on ya. What Ah heard don’t do a lick of justice ta how stuck up ya are.”

“Hey, trailer trash, why don’t you keep your mouth shut for a moment and let the men talk,” snapped Chaser before turning back to look at Hunter. “Or should I say, the man and the pathetic little boy.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the dumb blonde getting flushed. Her orange cheeks were turning red while her eyes narrowed dangerously. She dropped her backpack which made a loud thud as she did before cracking her knuckles. It was in that moment that Chaser remembered what she had done to him by simply squeezing his arm. If she had the gorilla like strength to do that, what would happen if she punched him? It might ruin his perfect face!

“Applejack, don’t,” said Hunter quickly. “If you start a fight here then you might get in trouble. Trust me, he’s not worth getting suspended or expelled for.”

“Yeah,” said the ugly nerd as she took a step over to the dumb blonde. “Let’s just go.” She said more stuff, but Chaser wasn’t really listening anymore. As he stared at the dummy named Applejack, something clicked in his head. From what he had found out, Applejack was supposed to be one of the top duelists at this dump. Not only that but also one of the duelists on the ballot to represent this place against Crystal Prep! Funny, he had thought it would have been a guy and not some blonde trailer trash hick.

A smile crossed his lips. Oh, there had to be a god up there right now smiling down upon him. Here it was, the prefect chance for everything. To get back at this dummy for hurting him and putting her in her place. To climbing back up to his former standing. Yes!

“You sure you want to just walk away Applejugs,” sneered Chaser as the nerd and the blonde began to walk away, his words causing them to slow down. “I’d be more than happy to settle this right here and now. Or you could just walk away. Better than pretending to be sick like that A-cupped loser.” While Chaser had no idea why he brought up the loud mouthed, arrogant girl who thought she was better than him in any way, the effect was instant. Apple-whatever turned around with a look of murder in her eyes.

“Oh, Ah’m gonna enjoy this,” she snarled before storming over to him. But before she could take more than a couple of steps, Chaser had reached into his bag and pulled out his duel disk.

“Figured a dumb hick like you would think that I meant violence,” he said before strapping on the device. “I was thinking something more civilized for this. Heck, I’m even willing to be generous enough to make a wager. I’ll give you whatever you want if, by some great cosmic miracle, you win. But if I win, you drop out of the running’s for the Cup and help convince the Principal that I should take your place. Sounds fair, right?” He watched as her eyes fell onto the duel disk for a moment before slowly looking at him in the eyes.

“Think Ah’d duel a cheating snake like ya?” Chaser’s smile faded slightly as she said that. “That’s right, ah know all about what happened. Doubt ya even know how ta play fair. An ain’t no way Ah’m gonna go an’ say ya should represent this here school.”

Chaser stood there feeling anger creeping along his spine as he listened to her. Then he took a breath and let it all wash out of him. “Fine, I get it,” he said with a shrug. “You’re scared. Not that I blame you for being so. After all, I have more awards than your family has dollars. The only thing you could beat me in is inbred relatives.”

With great pride he watched as her face began to turn bright her, her stupid looking hat looking like it was about to burst. Right now, either way, he knew the outcome would be worth it. If she dueled him there was not a chance he would lose. If she tried to go back on this little wager, well he’d make sure everyone heard about it. Not to mention that he’d have a record of their duel proving he’d won. If she hit him, he had both her name and the proof that she had done so. Regardless of the reason, attacking another student was something that people got expelled for. Once he told the idiots who ran this school, she’d be out of the running for good. Then all he had to do was try this with the other morons on that list. Sooner or later, he would get what he wanted. It was just the way life worked.

“Fine,” said Apple-whatever as she dropped her own bag. She reached a hand inside and quickly pulled out her duel disk. With a flash she strapped it on before pointing at him. “Let’s take this ta the roof.”