Adjusting the plan

Dwain sat lazily on his living room couch as he watched anime on his iPad Air.

Following the tournament, Norvel managed to flag Dwain down and eagerly ask for his contact information to stay in touch.

Dwain considered the idea. He was not very interested in making any friends not related to the main plot and was not the social type to begin with. Furthermore, he did not get along well with people like Norvel. However, it would not kill him to be more sociable in his new life and try to make friends with absolutely no strings attached. Warning Norvel he was not the type to keep in contact, he agreed to trade information.

Carry and Liaf then came to congratulate him on winning. Their arrival prompted Dwain to sarcastically remark if the other semifinalist was going to make an appearance. However, Liaf said the guy stormed out of the arena after he lost.

Having heard Dwain and Norvel's conversation, Carry asked if she could trade numbers with them too. Norvel readily agreed and Dwain figured if he agreed once, then why not another. He then turned to flatly ask if Liaf wanted to join in as well. The other boy's response was - as Dwain put it - the most cliche, tsundere, 'I'll never be friends with you, but from now on we're rivals' response ever. The four then traded numbers and went their separate ways.

A day had passed and Dwain was wondering how long it would take for Kaiba to show up. "In the anime, he came bursting in the same day he heard the news. He went home, got some rare cards to trade with, then went strait to Yugi's grandpa's place. You'd think he'd have been here by now."

Dwain paused the video as he thought nervously, "Maybe this Kaiba is different from the anime? It could be an AU. Or maybe my plan is just not working like how I thought it would. I might be in trouble. My whole plan hinges on using my Blue-Eyes to lure Kaiba into a Duel. If I win, then I'll get the same recognition for it as Yugi did. Then when Pegasus starts dealing with the Big Five, he'll invite me to Duelist Kingdom. It might leave Yugi up the river without a paddle, but he's got Atem and 'destiny' on his side."

It was as Dwain was contemplating the failure of his plan that his doorbell rang.

Dwain quickly got up while leaving his iPad on the couch. Wearing a classic Marvel characters tee-shirt, a pair of jeans, white socks, and slippers, he went to open the door with some anticipation.

To his relief, upon opening the door, Dwain came face-to-face - or face to chin - with none other than Seto Kaiba. He was tall and handsome with styled and combed brown hair and a lean physique. His blue eyes were piercing and condescending as though he was above everything around him - not putting himself up so much as putting everything else down. He wore a dark blue school uniform and was carrying a silver briefcase.

Seeing Seto's uniform, a thought occurred to Dwain, "Right, it's Monday. Kids our age are normally have to go to school…I still think Kaiba would have come this morning at the latest. I mean, we never see him in school again after episode one."

"Are you Dwain Snyder," Seto asked.

Broken from his musing, Dwain answered, "That's me and you're the illustrious Seto Kaiba. To what do I own this little visit?"

Briefly smirking at Dwain's praise, Seto did not mince words. "I'll cut to the chase, it has come to my attention that you are in possession of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon Duel Monsters card. I've come with a proposition for you."

Pretending to be surprised, Dwain stepped aside and politely invited Seto in, "Well, by all means, come in. We can discuss this proposition in my dining room."

Seto then stepped forward and entered the house. Casting a brief glance at the interior, he was uninterested and followed Dwain's directions to the dining room to his right.

Dwain took a seat opposite Seto and asked, "So, what did you want to talk about?"

Seto did not sit down, and instead of replying pulled out the briefcase he was carrying and put it on the table. "I'll keep this short. Give me your Blue-Eyes White Dragon. If you do, I'm willing to give you all of these." He then proceeded to open the briefcase and spin it around for Dwain to see.

Contained inside was numerous Duel Monster cards.

Dwain barely glanced at the cards. While part of him was slightly interested, he was ultimately uncaring. He may have been a mediocre Duelist in his world, but he still knew a thing or two about concepts like Deck building and balance. For a normal player like him without magic or reincarnation-of-an-ancient-Egyptian-priest superpowers, a Deck of rare but random cards meant nothing to him. Also, accepting Seto's deal would not further his goal of getting into Duelist Kingdom.

Looking up at Seto's confident - almost smug - expression, Dwain calmly said, "I'm sorry Mr. Kaiba, but I'm not interested."

"What," Seto near growled.

"I'm not interested in parting with my Blue-Eyes. Besides, even if I were, would you claim that any of the cards in this case have the same individual value as the Blue-Eyes."

Seto's expression twisted but he could not argue. After all, these may have been powerful and rare cards but compared to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, they were trash. A collection of trash is still trash. Almost desperately, he insisted, "If you won't trade the card, maybe you'll sell it. Name your price, I can pay anything you ask."

Dwain maintained his expression but internally he commented, "Just like the anime. Word for word."

"I'm sorry but no deal." Hoping to guide the conversation in the direction he wanted, Dwain hastily tried to spin his words. "The Blue-Eyes White Dragon is my most powerful card. As a professional Duelist, it isn't something I can part with so easily."

Dwain slightly cringed at his own words. Not only did he wish he came up with something better but he was aware of how suspicious he was acting. Anyone who knew about his plan would definitely see through his pathetic attempt at manipulation.

However, Seto was too focused on obtaining Dwain's Blue-Eyes to notice his odd behavior and at mention of being a Duelist, he smirked. "I understand. Then what about this, what if we play for it. A game of Duel Monsters between you and me - winner gets the card."

Resisting the urge to gawk at his manipulation working, Dwain silently thanked Seto for being such a Duel Monsters fanatic that such a poor attempt to trick him still got the desired result. He then feigned contemplating this and began to say, "While an interesting idea, there doesn't really seem to be anything in it for me-"

Dwain was going to continue to say that he accepted Seto's challenge anyway but stopped himself as a sudden idea came to his mind. "T-There's no way that would work…Is there? I mean…what if…"

Interpreting Dwain's pause as the end of his sentence, Seto simply smirked. "That's fair, I suppose. But consider this, I am the number one ranked Duelist in the country and the favorite to win the Duel Monsters Championship. To have someone of my caliber challenge you, that speaks a great deal of your skill and ability."

Not letting Seto continue, Dwain cautiously interjected - testing his new idea -, "But if word gets out about me losing Blue-Eyes, I'll just be seen as an overconfident chump who thought I could challenge you. Plus, you have a clear ulterior motive for challenging me - my Blue-Eyes - so no one will really see it as having to do with my ability."

Seto was clearly growing upset but - seeing that Dwain was not refusing - pressed on. "Then name what it is you want. As CEO of KaibaCorp, I doubt there's anything you could ask for that I couldn't get you."

Dwain narrowed his eyes. "Okay, that's it, change of plans. I'm doing this. If this were a fanfic, this would be a moment that makes the story or ruins it. Hell, Kaiba might just snap and kill me. But I don't care, the look on his face will be worth it."

Smiling innocently, Dwain failed to hide the mischievousness in his voice as he put his new plan into action. "Oh, I'm sure you can. And, now that I think about it, there is something you can wager that I'll whole-heartedly agree to. Something very simple that will cost you nothing."

Dwain paused for dramatic affect as he rose to his feet.

Seto took this moment to latch onto Dwain's words as a chance to get his Blue-Eyes and almost eagerly asked, "And what would that be?"

Walking around the table, Dwain stood in front of Seto and looked him in the eyes. "One of your Blue-Eyes White Dragons."

For a long moment, nothing happened. But slowly the words seemed to register in Seto's mind and his expression shifted. "What," the company president said lowly.

A smirk spread on Dwain's face. However, this was not meant to be mocking but merely the limit of his ability to contain his mirth. Internally, he raged, "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!! Look at his face!! He might actually kill me, but his face right now makes it worth it!!!"

Struggling to contain himself, Dwain unevenly said, "You heard me, Kaiba. I happen to know how few Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards there are and that you have three of them. However, in Duel Monsters, you are only allowed three copies of a card in your Deck. Even if I know how fanatic you are about the game, it does make me question why you would go out of your way to try and get a card you can't even use. Of course, I wouldn't presume to understand the mind of a genius like you. Still, this is a very rare card I'm putting at risk. It's only reasonable that you put something of equal value as a reward in the event that I win. And, what could be more equal than another Blue-Eyes."

"You want my dragon," Seto groused.

"Just one. You'd still have two more. But I'll understand if you want to back down. If I had a complete set of Blue-Eyes White Dragons, I'd be scared of losing them too."

This time, Dwain's words were far more calculated. He tactfully neglected to mention how many Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards there were as his was a fifth copy rather than the understood four of this world. He then subtly suggested he may know Seto's intention for the card - to destroy it so it could not be used against him. Then, while praising Seto as a genius, he also provoked his pride by suggesting he was scared.

Dwain did not consider himself a wordsmith, but he still got his desired result as Seto angrily slammed his briefcase closed and yelled, "Very well then! Come with me to my company. I have a special Duel Arena for the ultimate Duel. The winner will receive a Blue Eyes White Dragon from the loser."

Lazily, Dwain replied, "Sounds fair. Just let me go get the card, my shoes, and my Deck."

"You best be ready - Dwain Snyder," Seto said threateningly. "Because I assure you, this is one Duel you don't want to lose. Play like your life depends on it." He then began to leave, "I'll be in my car. You have five minutes."

Dwain maintained his smirk as he watched Seto walk away. However, internally, he sweated. "He…He's actually going to kill me, isn't he? If I remember right, - at least in the manga - he was taught that loss is supposed to mean death. Is he…Is he saying that he's going to kill me if I lose…"