A Part of Their World (#87)
Challenge Name and Number: #87 - Isolation
Drabble Title: A Part of Their World
Word Count: 794 (yes, it happened again. I can't seem to get everything said in 600....)
Warnings (if applicable): Another attempt to merge the darker, manga Duke into the anime verse. A more manga-inspired intro for Duke in the anime, re-envisioned by me, and also his attitude in Duelist #12 are touched upon. And Duke's store manager from his first anime episode appears.
Pairings (if applicable): ... A smidgen of Duke/Serenity?
Summary: Duke ponders his world of isolation, both before and after his father's attempt at revenge.
By Lucky_Ladybug
Duke shuffled the deck of cards and began to deal them out on the table. It was a very random, very pointless act, really; he was alone in the room and not even particularly in the mood for playing any card games. After a moment he gathered the dealt cards up again and shuffled them back into the stack.
He wondered, sometimes, about friendship. Even now that his father was no longer physically there to tell Duke how worthless friendship was, his teachings lingered.
Duke had been jealous of Yugi and Joey, when he had seen them at school and realized how close of a bond they had with each other. That, more than his father’s hatred for the Muto family, had fueled what he had done in humiliating Joey by making him kneel and bark after losing a game. He had wanted what they had, what his father had never allowed him to have himself. At the same time, he had not wanted to give himself over to a possible friendship and leave himself open for the hurt and pain that his father had promised would come with such a thing.
When it had actually come to playing Dungeon Dice Monsters with Yugi to try to win the Millennium Puzzle from him and fulfill his father’s-and his own-dreams, he had not been able to hate Yugi. He had been schooled from his father’s knee on how the Mutos were all to be hated, yet he had not been able to do it. And his father had hated him for that.
Yugi had saved him that day, when the Devil’s Boardgame had malfunctioned and aged the entire apartment complex, resulting in its immediate collapse. His father, drowning in his damaging hatred, had not been able to be saved, even when both Duke and Yugi had tried to get him to take their hands and be pulled up. He had refused to be rescued by a Muto and by the son who had decided to befriend a Muto. As Duke had reflected many times since, the man had really been dead years ago.
He had wanted to repay Yugi for saving his life. That was why he had initially become involved during Battle City, rescuing Tristan and Serenity from the Rare Hunters. Of course, then he had found himself attracted to Serenity, something that had continued to this day and still created an intense rivalry between him and Tristan.
Even though Duke still kept himself aloof for the most part, he knew that deep down, part of him wished to be accepted into Yugi’s group of friends. He felt more like an outsider, as he sensed Ryou Bakura also did. And no matter how he and Tristan could joke or tease, he knew that Tristan, at least, didn’t really trust him.
That had been made perfectly clear during their and Serenity’s duel against one of Seto Kaiba’s former board members. They had not been allowed to discuss their strategies, but Tristan had chosen to believe that Duke was only trying to save himself and not all three of them. It had been largely because of Tristan’s refusal to trust Duke that he had eventually lost and their opponent’s misplaced spirit had taken over Tristan’s body.
As for the others, well, Duke wasn’t sure of their feelings. Yugi and Téa trusted him, he thought. Joey, knowing of his interest in Serenity, was suspicious.
“Are you up for a game?”
He looked up with a start at the sudden voice. David, his store manager, had wandered over to him.
“Aren’t there customers to take care of?” Duke returned.
David shrugged. “It’s a slow night.”
Duke considered the offer and finally nodded. “Okay then.”
He began anew to shuffle and deal the cards, a slow smile coming over his features. He didn’t really have to be part of Yugi’s group. David had always been around, even when their parents had forbidden it. A listening ear, a gamer, a manager . . . David was whatever Duke needed him to be.
“What are you thinking about, Dukey-boy?” David wondered. “Do you know something funny?”
Duke looked up, smirking now. “I was just thinking how I’m going to beat you at this game.”
“Hmm. Well, if you’re so sure, we’d better not play for money. I can’t afford to lose any.”
“Greedy as always. But that’s fine. We can play for invisible money.”
David gave a mock sigh. “And if I win, I’ll wish it were real.”
“If you lose, you’ll be glad it wasn’t,” Duke replied.
Perhaps, he thought to himself, he had always known what friendship was. And he had always had it.
No matter what his father had tried to do, that had never changed.
Drabble Title: A Part of Their World
Word Count: 794 (yes, it happened again. I can't seem to get everything said in 600....)
Warnings (if applicable): Another attempt to merge the darker, manga Duke into the anime verse. A more manga-inspired intro for Duke in the anime, re-envisioned by me, and also his attitude in Duelist #12 are touched upon. And Duke's store manager from his first anime episode appears.
Pairings (if applicable): ... A smidgen of Duke/Serenity?
Summary: Duke ponders his world of isolation, both before and after his father's attempt at revenge.
By Lucky_Ladybug
Duke shuffled the deck of cards and began to deal them out on the table. It was a very random, very pointless act, really; he was alone in the room and not even particularly in the mood for playing any card games. After a moment he gathered the dealt cards up again and shuffled them back into the stack.
He wondered, sometimes, about friendship. Even now that his father was no longer physically there to tell Duke how worthless friendship was, his teachings lingered.
Duke had been jealous of Yugi and Joey, when he had seen them at school and realized how close of a bond they had with each other. That, more than his father’s hatred for the Muto family, had fueled what he had done in humiliating Joey by making him kneel and bark after losing a game. He had wanted what they had, what his father had never allowed him to have himself. At the same time, he had not wanted to give himself over to a possible friendship and leave himself open for the hurt and pain that his father had promised would come with such a thing.
When it had actually come to playing Dungeon Dice Monsters with Yugi to try to win the Millennium Puzzle from him and fulfill his father’s-and his own-dreams, he had not been able to hate Yugi. He had been schooled from his father’s knee on how the Mutos were all to be hated, yet he had not been able to do it. And his father had hated him for that.
Yugi had saved him that day, when the Devil’s Boardgame had malfunctioned and aged the entire apartment complex, resulting in its immediate collapse. His father, drowning in his damaging hatred, had not been able to be saved, even when both Duke and Yugi had tried to get him to take their hands and be pulled up. He had refused to be rescued by a Muto and by the son who had decided to befriend a Muto. As Duke had reflected many times since, the man had really been dead years ago.
He had wanted to repay Yugi for saving his life. That was why he had initially become involved during Battle City, rescuing Tristan and Serenity from the Rare Hunters. Of course, then he had found himself attracted to Serenity, something that had continued to this day and still created an intense rivalry between him and Tristan.
Even though Duke still kept himself aloof for the most part, he knew that deep down, part of him wished to be accepted into Yugi’s group of friends. He felt more like an outsider, as he sensed Ryou Bakura also did. And no matter how he and Tristan could joke or tease, he knew that Tristan, at least, didn’t really trust him.
That had been made perfectly clear during their and Serenity’s duel against one of Seto Kaiba’s former board members. They had not been allowed to discuss their strategies, but Tristan had chosen to believe that Duke was only trying to save himself and not all three of them. It had been largely because of Tristan’s refusal to trust Duke that he had eventually lost and their opponent’s misplaced spirit had taken over Tristan’s body.
As for the others, well, Duke wasn’t sure of their feelings. Yugi and Téa trusted him, he thought. Joey, knowing of his interest in Serenity, was suspicious.
“Are you up for a game?”
He looked up with a start at the sudden voice. David, his store manager, had wandered over to him.
“Aren’t there customers to take care of?” Duke returned.
David shrugged. “It’s a slow night.”
Duke considered the offer and finally nodded. “Okay then.”
He began anew to shuffle and deal the cards, a slow smile coming over his features. He didn’t really have to be part of Yugi’s group. David had always been around, even when their parents had forbidden it. A listening ear, a gamer, a manager . . . David was whatever Duke needed him to be.
“What are you thinking about, Dukey-boy?” David wondered. “Do you know something funny?”
Duke looked up, smirking now. “I was just thinking how I’m going to beat you at this game.”
“Hmm. Well, if you’re so sure, we’d better not play for money. I can’t afford to lose any.”
“Greedy as always. But that’s fine. We can play for invisible money.”
David gave a mock sigh. “And if I win, I’ll wish it were real.”
“If you lose, you’ll be glad it wasn’t,” Duke replied.
Perhaps, he thought to himself, he had always known what friendship was. And he had always had it.
No matter what his father had tried to do, that had never changed.