Tea, dressed as the Dark Witch, duels Atem, the Pharaoh

When the invites had gone out for the next big Duel Monsters tournament, Tea had felt her chest swell with pride. It wasn't every day that she got an invitation to compete with the likes of Yugi, Joey, Kaiba, and the rest. She'd been waiting for a long time to show them all the level ups she'd made to her deck, following meticulous study of all of their duels. Aboard the plane, eyes slowly drifting shut, she felt confident her dreams would be full of exciting duels to get her pumped for the upcoming challenge...

... Only, when her eyes opened, she was in a completely empty stadium. Calling it a "stadium" was a bit of a stretch... it felt like a gymnasium with the lights turned off. That wasn't quite true: there were torches, but not nearly enough of them. In fact, the one other occupant of the room seemed completely shrouded in shadows. "Okay... Whoever you are, this is a little creepy. Come out where I can see you!" Tea demanded. If she'd been **** and taken somewhere, she would just have to run away as fast as she could. However, the hairs standing on the back of her neck told her everything she needed to know: this was the shadow realm that Yugi and the others had visited so many times before, or else, something like it.

Her eyes shined and her knees trembled as she recognized the one she thought was her abductor: it was the Pharaoh who'd left so long ago, returning to his own time and leaving Yugi alone in their world. She'd made peace with his disappearance, but to see him again, looking just as he had when he'd left, was shocking. Everything from his purple and gold hair to his uniform looked just like Yugi's, but his height was different, and the intensity of his face, as always, was peerless. Just looking at him, she knew she was in the presence of Atem, not Yugi.

"You... you're back!" Tea exclaimed, wanting to run over and embrace her old friend. "Come to finish that date, huh?" she questioned, rubbing tears from her eyes with one finger and hoping he was still too far away to notice her reaction. She didn't want him to think she was still sad he'd gotten to leave their world, after all.

Somewhere, on another plane, Heishin snorted and rubbed his chin, grinning at the irony that Tea would react so joyfully to the beginning of her upcoming torment. "Ha ha ha... Consider this one small favor before you lot repay me," he chuckled to himself, enjoying feeling like a triumphant master sorcerer and not a feckless masturbation junkie.

"Tea," the Pharaoh spoke with a smile, recognizing his long-time friend. "It's been too long. I'm pleased that we've been summoned together here."

"Oh yeah... Summoned. Just where exactly are we?" Tea finally questioned, looking around at the eerie arena. "I've got major heebie jeebies..."

Here, the Pharaoh's eyebrows raised; he didn't seem to understand the question. "This is the tournament that Yugi and his friends were invited to, is it not? I do not know if there are stakes that demand my presence, but I am honored to have the opportunity to duel once again."

"Ha ha... So you're just as confused as I am," Tea laughed, though his words weren't terribly reassuring. At least it sounded like they were in the same boat, she reasoned. "Hopefully, the others show up soon... I keep expecting them to pop out from behind some pillar. Joey still hasn't grown out of that sort of thing."

Atem nodded with a warm smile, comforting her. "Yes, that does sound like my old friend. However, now isn't the time to be thinking about others. Tea: you're my first opponent. We both have to duel to our fullest capabilities, to honor each other's resolve. I can count on you for that?" he questioned, now raising one eyebrow. "This does not tarnish our friendship. True duelists can compete without discarding honor or their bonds."

"Oh... Yeah, sure... But there's nobody even watching right now," Tea pointed out, gesturing around herself. For the first time, as she raised her arms, she noticed: at some point, her clothes had been swapped for those of the duel monster, Dark Witch. The tight tube top and skirt were pretty form-fitting, but the most embarrassing part was the fake wings strapped around her back by a black bra-strap, which would probably be visible if she turned around. It wasn't much more revealing than some of the other clothes she wore, but it felt downright awkward to be dressed as a monster.

"There is no need to lack confidence. I'm certain the whole world is watching this first matchup," Atem reassured her, readopting some of his cool, no-nonsense tone and frown. "All the more reason for us to duel to our fullest."

"Ah, ha ha, but I want you to know, I don't still use Dark Angel! Just cause I'm dressed like this doesn't mean I'm still using weak cards in my deck!" she defended, amusingly focused on the impression she'd make with her friend, who tended to be an expert on all things duel related and had been known to savagely tweak a deck or two.

"I understand, of course. You and the others must be significantly stronger since last we met, but I still have faith in my monsters. Why don't I start? We'll see how you react to another old friend," he smirked, opening up his hand of six cards. After setting a few face-downs, Yugi started off classic with a Celtic Guardian in an attack mode. "This is no ordinary Celtic Guardian. I want you to observe it closely..."

"Yeah, Pharaoh, I know it has an effect! Don't treat me like I don't read effect text," Tea cackled, eager to prove herself. That said, she did look closer, as the figure of the Celtic Guardian sprung up in front of Yami Yugi... This wasn't just one of the holograms Kaiba used. It actually seemed like a real person standing across from her. It had the sort of presence that seems as though it's acknowledging a foe. Furthermore, the Celtic Guardian had always been pretty handsome... she felt her heartbeat quicken a bit, meeting him in person like this, but she recognized that some of it was fear. How could such a realistic looking monster appear? Was it connected to the dream-like quality of the whole place. "This is the one that you can't destroy, right?"

"Hmph... There are ways to destroy it, Tea. I'm confident that you can come up with them," Yami Yugi taunted her, closing his eyes thoughtfully. "It's your move."

"Alright... Yeah, I can still have fun with this. Whether it's real monsters or it's some creepy arena, this is the real pharaoh! I'm going to make the most of this opportunity! And I'm going to show you how I've leveled up!" she reassured Atem, drawing her own hand of six cards. Confidently, she placed a face-up, attack position monster. It was Dunames Dark Witch! The pink-haired, red-armored angel appeared gracefully, flapping her wings so close that Tea could feel the gusts. With 1800 ATK, this card was perfect for defeating Obnoxious Celtic Warrior. "It's my battle phase! I attack with Dunames Dark Witch!"

"Not so fast, Tea," Atem smirked, wagging one finger. "You've triggered my trap card."

"Why did I feel like you were going to say that...?" Tea moaned, remembering that as much as she'd missed watching the Pharaoh duel, she'd never wanted to be on the other side of it.