Princess of the Duelist Kingdom
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-1-
I only took it easy on you because you're a Girl!
I took a deep breath as I reached down and drew one card from the top of my deck. A quick glance at the card told me all I needed to know. From the start of the duel my opponent had been holding me to the ropes. It had been a savage duel thus far, with neither of us gaining an inch on the other. Count-spell cards had been activated to counter spells, traps had been sprung, powerful monsters had been summoned and vanished to the graveyard. For every life point my opponent had drained from me, I'd taken the same amount from him.
“Come on.” My opponent said, taking a deep breath. “Make your move so I can wipe you out.” He said, folding her arms across his chest as he gave me a cock-eyed look.
I smiled a little and placed the card I just drew face down in the monster zone in defense mode and smiled a little. It was time to start my counter attack. And it all started with this card. A powerful 'Elf of Light' sure only had five hundred attack points. But it had a total of two thousand defense points.
“I end my turn.” I said smiling.
“Finally,” He said drawing his own card. “I use the spell card 'Monster Reborn'! To summon my 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' from the graveyard!” He said showing me the 'Monster Reborn' card he just used from his hand' a second latter 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' returned from the graveyard to his side of the field.
“That's not all!” He said, smirking. “I play the field card 'Battlefield' that card increases the attack and defense of all my warrior type monsters by two hundred points!”
I took a deep breath and nodded my head.
“Now, to end my turn and to clear the way for the move that will finish you, I order my Celtic warrior to atack your face down card!” He said pointing toward me.
“I was hoping you would do that, even though 'Battlefield' has increased your 'Celtic Warrior' attack from fourteen hundred to sixteen hundred. It's still four hundred points away from overcoming the defense of my 'Elf of Light' meaning you take four hundred points of damage.” I said, smirking.
“Cheap shot.” He muttered. “Fine I end my turn. But next turn I will send your elf to the graveyard with my 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' and attack your life points directly with my 'Celtic Warrior' and there is nothing you can do to stop me.”
I just shook my head as I reached down and picked another card from the top of my deck.
“I'm afraid.” I said “I'm about to throw a wrench into your plan.” I said playing the powerful spell card 'Change of Hearts' this card allowed you to assume control over one enemy monster for one turn. And the one monster I wanted to control the most was his 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' a powerful card with twenty six hundred attack power and a twelve hundred defense power. Sure it could have smashed my elf the first turn it was played..but all monsters had to wait a turn after they were summoned to attack.
“I'm going to borrow your 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' for one turn. And now your 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' is going to attack your monster card 'Celtic Warrior'.” I said, smiling sweetly.
“You little..” My opponent clutched his cards tight in his hand.
“And since the difference between the two attacks is a thousand points that means you take a thousand points of damage.” I said, smirking a little.
“You little..” My opponent muttered.
“Fine, my next turn my 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' will be mine again, and he will still have more than enough power to attack your elf and send her to the graveyard! And then I can do an all out attack directly on your life points.” My opponent muttered under his breath.
“You won't get that chance.” I said smirking. “Because now I play the card 'Reset' that allows me to remove any and all field cards in play. Say good-bye to your 'Battlefield' card. And with that gone your 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' loses it bonus of two hundred attack points.”
“CHEAP SHOT!” He yelled at the top of his lungs.
“I then play the card 'Mystic Training ground' that increases the attack power of all spellcaster monsters by two hundred points but increase there defense by three hundred points.” I said smirking.
“Still not enough.” He muttered.
“I then play one card face down.” I said setting a card in the trap/magic zone. “And I end my turn.”
“Finally.” He said as he drew his card. “Enough dancing around. I'm ready to end this.” He said with a snear. “I summoned 'Celtic Swordsmen'” He muttered. “And I then I play equip magic card 'Sword and chainmail' this raises his attack and defense from fourteen hundred to nineteen hundred! Once 'Gaia the Mounted Knight' vanishes your elf. My 'Celtic Swordsmen' will cut you deep.”
“Go ahead.” I said, smirking.
“Fine.” He said, clutching his cards tightly. “I attack you elf with 'Gaia the Mounted Knight'.” He shouted.
“I'm afraid your attack just activated my trap card.” I said reaching down and quickly flipping the card I'd just place face down in the trap/magic zone. “This call is called 'Castle Walls' and it increases for just this one turn my elf a bonus five hundred a bonus of five hundred defense points.
“So!” He was almost shouting at this point.
“That gives myself just enough power to live to defend my life points for another turn. And plus you take another one hundred points of damage!" I said, smirking.
“It's just a hundred points,” He said, leering at me across the board. “All the shots you've gotten in are cheap shots that all! You're not a real duelist! You're just a rookie!”
“Those cheap shots are draining your life points.” I said smiling.
“I end my turn.” He muttered.
I smiled and then drew another card.
“I play the magical card 'Pot of Greed'” I paused. “This magical card allows me to draw two more cards from my deck.” I said drawing two more cards. My smirk grew wider.
“I then play the magical card 'Card Exchange' by discarding one card from one hand, I can bring one card back from my graveyard and place it in my hand. And the card I'm bringing back is my all time favorite. 'Change of Heart'.”
“...”
“And once more I'm going to take control of your knight.” I said, smirking. “But I'm not finished yet. Before I attack I'm going to summon 'Skilled Dark Magican'.” I said setting the card down.
“Summon all the monsters you want! I'm going to break you next turn with my knight!” His voice seemed to be rising to a fever pitch.
“Well see about that.” I said placing another card down in my Magic/Trap zone. “Now, before I attack, I'm going to use the magical card 'Despell' to remove that pesky 'Sword and Chainmail' card from your 'Celtic Warrior'.” I said, smiling sweetly.
“...”
“Now, I will attack your 'Celtic Warrior with your knight.”
“...” He dropped his cards and placed his hands on his head/
“Twelve hundred points of damage...” I said smirking even wider. “And if my math is correct, that means your life points are now in the negative.. and if I'm wrong, I'm going to play one more card 'Fire Bomb' it's a powerful magic card that directly inflicts five hundred points of damange to your life points.”
“You..”
“Hey, trash talk aside, it was a good duel. I enjoyed it.” I said offering him my hand across the board. It was kind of a tradition that before and after each duel you shook hands with your opponent. You know, it's a sign of good sportsmanship.
But instead of taking my hand he slapped it away.
“I only took it easy on you! Because you're a freaking girl! You're a freaking girl!” He shouted.
I sat stunned. Because while I was not a girl, I was a guy.. Sure I'd been often mistaken as a girl because of my oval-shaped face that was framed with long brown hair. And I have a slender frame, my pale porcelain skin, and sparkling blue eyes that my grandmother often said had no business belonging to a boy.
“I..”
“Shut it!” He said leering at me, he then raised his hand and pointed his finger at me, “There nothing more embrassing that getting beaten in a duel, double embrassing getting beaten by a freaking girl, who looks like she should hanging around the mall instead of being here”
“Dude! What are your trouble?!” I said blinking. Then it dawned on me, what thirteen year old boy would wear a tropical flower print teeshirt so long that it almost covered his shorts? And sandals on top of that? One look around and I'll notice that I was surrounded by boys who almost always wore faded jeans, graphic teeshirts, were a little on the biggish side, and smelled like a dirty Pizza-Hut, that to say greasy sliced meat, old cheese and stale bread.
“My trouble is that you cheated!” He said pointing his finger at me.
“Okay! That's enough you two!”
At that moment a girl who looked like she might have either been sixteen or seventeen entered onto the scene, she was holding two medals in her hand. It was then I'd noticed a small crowd had formed around us. I found myself whimpering under my breath. I hated being the center of attention. At that moment a fissure in the earth opened up and swallowed me whole. I would have counted it as a blessing from that big dude in the sky that Pastor Keith was always referring to as God during Wednesday night Youth Group.
“Welll!”
To be Continued.
Princess of the Duelist Kingdom
by
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-2-
Shake her Hand
“That is more than enough.” The voice called out. The voice belonged to a young woman, who judging by her height, and her fashion choice was at least four years older than me. She was dressed in a cream colored top, and a black, pleated leather skirt, leather boots completed the outfit. Her violet colored hair reached down to her shoulders.
“Shake her hand, you both fought a good duel.” She commanded.
The boy blushed and reached up and shook my hand. I wanted to correct her saying I was not a 'She' but instead I was a 'He' but I wanted to live to duel another day. But instead of a gentle handshake, he seemed intent on crushing every bone in my hand. Once that was over he slunk away, but not before looking over his shoulder and giving me a leer that made me shiver.
“Better watch out. Dad says people like you are going to Hell. Next time we duel, I'm not going to hold back. I'm going to crush your little spellcasters with my warriors.” And with that he retreated, I mean he retreated the way he shuffled away reminded me of a scolded dog, one who firmly had his tail tucked between both butt cheeks.
“So,” the woman said, turning toward me. “This belongs to you.” She said, smiling softly as she handed me a clear plastic backage, the package held a golden medallion that was suspended from a golden chain. “And also this,” She then reached into her pocket and pulled out seven booster packs from the newest release series, 'Magician's Keeper'.
“Oh..” I said blushing.
“And if you will pardon me for a moment I gotta hand the other medal off to.. that guy.” She said pointing toward the boy who was sitting on a nearby bench, his arms crossed across his chest, he seemed to be sulking, no, brooding was a better word. Yes he was brooding. Maybe he was replaying each move he made in his head.
I nodded my head and unwrapped the package, the golden medallion was not really gold, but it was kind of nice, it kind of reminded me of the medals you get at sporting events. It was a nice touch, but what I really wanted was the seven booster packs.
“Sorry about that.” The girl said returning sooner than I expected. “I was surprised he accepted the silver medal.. anyway, my name is Tabitha.” She said, holding out her hand.
“Sunflower.” I said blushing as I reached out and took hold of her hand. My name was really Caspian, Caspian Taylor Prince was my full name. My mom, a teacher I figured thought herself being really clever when she named me Caspian, I figured one day if I ever got lost in her massive walk in closet, and stumbled into a fairly-land of talking lions, talking birds, a land where Father Christmas commanded an army of several million orcs. I could at least claim to be from royal descent.
“Oh! Cute name!” Taylor said. “Though with a name like that, I figured you would use a deck that was built around nothing but plant-like monsters. Instead of you know spellcasters.”
“I like Spellcasters,” I said, smiling a little.
“Oh! Cool! I mean yes, they can be good, you just gotta know how to use them you know. Like you gotta use them with the proper magic or trap card. It requires a lot of thinking, since they don't have the raw strength of machine and warrior types.” Taylor said.
“What type of monsters do you use?”I said blushing a little. I was shocked, I was having a honest to goodness coversation with a girl, a much older girl at that, way cooler than me too.
“Oh I play a Harpie theme deck.” She said smirking a little. “Not to brag or anything. But I'm glad I was just a judge of this little tourment. Otherwise it won't have been much of a tourment. It would have been like shooting fish in a barrel. No, scratch that, it would have been like stealing candy from a baby.”
I blinked.
“Plus, cutie.” She said turning toward me. “I would have hated to duel you. You look like the kind of girl who cried every time one of her Pokemon fainted. And I would have hated to see all that hard work you did on your make-up this morning ruined because trust me, runny mascara is not a pretty sight. It also stains your cards.”
I felt my cheeks start to glow. No wonder everybody thought I was a 'she' today. I'd totally forgotten about the fact that I'd tried on some of my mom's make-up this morning. Nothing too much, a little blush, a little mascara, a bit of lip gloss, a tiny spray of perfume, a clear coating of fingernail polish on my fingernails and toenails. Something to give them a nice, glossy sheen. Nothing really over the top. I totally expected to get clocked by mom. Instead he just ushered me out of the front door of our house this morning after I’d had my morning bowl of Captain Krunch. She then ushered me to her car, she all but tossed me and fifteen minutes later she all but tossed me out. With a quick kiss to the cheeks of course and her saying a quick, “I love you, sweetie.” followed by “Good luck, play nice with the other kids, and have fun.” You know the standard type of stuff moms tell their children when dropping them off to these kinds of events. Totally embarrassing though considering I was not a little kid! I was twelve going on thirteen for crying out loud!
Like I said mom as a teacher, and today she had volunteered to cover the 'Saturday Detention' shift at the school she worked at. I know she'll never come out and say it, but we needed the money and she'd been picking up a lot of those 'SaturdayDetention' shifts since she divorced dad last year. I guess she kind of felt better about dropping me off at the local card shops to play Yu-Gi-Oh instead of leaving me at home to chase my own vices. Like watching Saturday Morning Anime on Fox, or catching reruns of Sailor Moon or Dragon Ball Z on early morning Cartoon Network.
“We can always see.” I said blushing.
“Cutie.” Taylor said, smiling before shaking her head. “Listen, I would normally love to duel you. But right now, I gotta go get ready for a date okay? But, listen, you know the card shop on Highway 18? The one that right beside 'Gun, Pawn & Gold' like it kind of sits in the middle, 'Gun, Pawn & Gold on the right' and the 'Highway 18 Grill & Cafe' is on the left.”
“You mean 'Van's Comics'?”
“That one!”
“What about it?”
Taylor turned and smiled.
“Two weeks from today they're going to hold a tournament. Only the best of the best are allowed.We’re Collecting duelists from all over Mississippi. Vicksburg, Greenville, Greenwood, Yazoo City, Ridgeland, Madison, Flowood, Natchez, and Hattiesburg. It's going to be massive, were calling it 'Duelist Kingdom'.” Taylor said smiling.
“Just like in the anime?!” I said my jaw dropped.
“Just like in the anime cutie.” Taylor said winking. “The tournament is going to kick off on Friday afternoon, I think around four in the afternoon and is going to last till closing, which is around ten. And is going to resume first thing Saturday morning around ten when the shop opens again. And this time it going to last till only four remain duelist remain. Now, I'm going to be there, gotta defend my title after all.”
“What is your title?”
“Queen of the Duelist Kingdom.” She said, smirking.
“,,,” I went silent.
“Think you got what it takes to dethrone me and become 'Princess of Duelst Kingdom'?” She was still smirking.
“... Yes..” I said blushing.
At that Taylor tossed back her head and laughed.
“Oh girl you got spunk! And I love that,” She then turned around and offered me her hand.
Without thinking I reached down and shook her hand.
“Promise me one thing, cutie?” She said as she wrapped her fingers around mine.
“Yes?” I said, taking a deep breath.
“Bring your 'A' game to each match. I don't want to see you get eliminated in the opening round. And when we finally meet each other, we gaze at each other. You on one side of the table, met on the other. I want you to promise me you'll hold nothing back. Because I could tell you were holding back out there. You better give me everything you got okay? Because I promise you, I'm not going to be holding back. If you don't bring your 'A' game, then I'm going to smash you like an egg and fry you up with some bacon and serve you with some toast.”
I smiled.
“I promise.”
“I'll hold you to that promise.”
To be continued.
Princess of the Duelist Kingdom
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-3-
Dairy Queen and Chicken Strips
Mom and I had this little tradition going on. Every Saturday afternoon after mom picked me up from whatever location across town that was hosting a Yu-Gi-Oh tournament that given Saturday, yes after the tournament was over she and I would normally hit up Dairy Queen for lunch before either hitting up the mall for an hour or three or returning home. Mom looked tired this afternoon, so I guess after lunch we'll be heading home so she could rest. I know she tried to hide it, but I could tell working all those extra Saturdays were really starting to wear her down.
“Mom, are you okay?” I said as we pulled into the parking lot.
“I'm fine sweetie, Just a little tired.” She said giving me a small, sad smile, the twinkle in her eye had started to slowly vanish one season melted into another. “I've been working a lot of over-time lately, as you can tell. As you can tell, the good news is, I've managed to save a lot of money.” She paused. “And I’m getting a lot of Extra PTO to boot!”
I nodded my head.
“But how were you.. Yu-Gi-Oh tournament? Did you meet any cute boys? Get any numbers? Give your number out to any of them?” Mom giggled a girlish giggle.
I felt my mouth drop open.
“Oh sweetie.” Mom said leaning over the steering wheel. “Did you think I wouldn't notice the fact that you were wearing lipgloss this morning? I will say this though, I'm glad you kept everything tasteful.” She placed her head down upon the plastic steering wheel and sighed.
“Mom?” I said my eyes went wide as saucers.
“Yes, I knew, plus no boy in his right mind would be wearing shorts that short or a rainbow faded shirt that long. I mean it kind of looks like a dress on you. Plus I'm sure if I had some wedge sandals in my closet you would have tried those on too.” She said, yawning a little. Then as if this was a totally normal conversation to have she tossed out the following remark.
“I think after we eat, we'll just go home. I could use a bath and a nap. Tonight we can do something, like go to Blockbuster's and rent a movie or something. Unless you're going to stay up all night again and watch anime on Adult Swim. If that the case I'll turn in early”
I just sat there in stunned silence.
“Mom.. how?”
“Honey, you're my child, I'm your mother, I'm expected to know these things.” Mom paused. “Plus, you forgot to delete your browsing history from AOL.” Mom said, giving me a sleepy eyed look. “Gotta remember to always delete your browsing history, daughter. Otherwise your mom might stumble upon something you don't want her to know.”
I swallowed hard.
“I found out you've been researching words like 'Crossplay' and 'Cosplay' and so I did a little digging myself and I found out that 'Cosplaying' is when somebody dresses up like a character, be it from an anime, movie, or a television show. And I dug a little deeper and found out that 'Crossplay' is when a guy or a gal cosplay as a character that is of a different gender than them. Say if a girl wanted to cosplay as a Ash from.. Pokemon that would be a girl crossplaying. Same side of the coin, if a guy wanted to cosplay as Misty from Pokemon that would be a guy crossplaying as Misty.” Mom muttered half asleep.
I felt like somebody had taken a frying pan and smashed it right into my face. I just sat their in stunned silence as I peered toward mom. Wait, did she just call me 'Daughter'?!
“Wow mom, you really did your homework!” I said blushing a little.
“Pastel colors would have gone really good with that outfit too, maybe a nice pastel blue to go with your brunette hair. Now If you got your fathers blonde hair, I would have gone with pink, There is a kind of an unspoken rule in the female community well there really dozens of them. But one of them, like one that is right up there with the 'Ten Commandments' is that only blondes can wear pink..”
“What?” I said, tilting my head to the side.
“I was telling you what kind of nail polish would have gone well with your outfit. The color you paint your nails depends on the outfit you're wearing, There is a whole system to it. I don't know half of it. But I'm sure your aunt can give you lessons.” Mom said, smiling.
“So, are we going to go in or are we going to just sit here and jabber. Because if I'm honest, that one donut and one small coffee from McDonalds has left me.” Mom added quickly.
Sure. I said blushing a little as I stepped out of the car, mom followed. And like always I held the door open for her, she smiled and gave me a nod of approval. When we entered the lobby there was a huge line, and the two girls taking orders seemed swamped and the poor manager on duty seemed to be at the end of his rope. He was running around like a chicken in a barnyard, who just a few seconds ago had it's head removed by the business end of the farmer's axe.
But finally we got to the front.
“Hi,” The tired cashier said, her eyes seemed dead and void of all life and her greeting sounded like a pre-recorded greeting you often hear when you call one of those one eight hundred numbers.
“Hi.” I said blushing a little. “I would like to order one, six piece chicken tender basket with large fries and a large drink please ma'am.” The cashier nodded her head and pressed some numbers. I then stepped aside to let my order. Mom ordered the same. Both of us seemed famished.
The cashier gave mom the total and she paid using her bank card. Once that was done the cashier handed us two plastic drink cups.
“What would you like to drink mom?” I said, making my way toward the fountain drink machine.
“Diet Cola for me sweetie.” Mom called out.
I filled mom's glass with ice, the ice was clear, cubed and looked freshly made. Not like the ice at the local McDonalds whose ice seemed cloudy and misshapen. Once her glass was halfway filled with ice I filled it with diet cola, that brown sugar colored soda seemed to sparkle with a thousand tiny little bubbles. I then fixed my own, for me. Well I had to have my all time favorite, Barq's Root Beer, which according to the green, and white “Mississippi Historical Marker” that I'd seen in Biloxi this summer, the famous rootbeer was bottled here. You know when mom and I made our annual retreat down toward the Gulf Coast for a long weekend of soaking up Southern Sunshine, feasting on boiled shrimp, fried shrimp, boiled crab, and visiting all manner of old fords that had been built back when the Spanish and French controlled the coast. All rumored to be haunted by ghosts of course. I mean what old fort was not supposed to be haunted by a ghost? Like I think if you're in an old fort, you're supposed to have at least a dozen or so ghost knocking around inside you.
“Sunny.” Mom called out. “Come eat!”
I turned my head and noticed mom had already selected our table. Not only that but she was holding two plastic baskets that seemed to be almost overflowing with chicken tenders and thick cut, crinkle style french fries. Both the chicken and the fries had been fried a golden brown and I noticed on the french fries there were large flakes of salt, that what made our Local Dairy Queen stand out above the rest of the fast food places was the way they seasoned their french fries.
I mean any time you could see flakes of salt on your fries, you knew you were in for a treat. McDonalds they just sprinkled a little salt on and called it good. Burger King, I don't think they even knew what salt was, and didn't get me started on Wendy's. The only good thing Wendy’s had going for it were those square little hamburger patties.
“Coming mom!”
To be Continued.
Princess of the Duelist Kingdom
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-4-
A Penny for your Thoughts?
Mom and I both settled into our seats and soon we were stuffing our mouths with crispy, fried chicken tenders, and golden, crinkle cut french fries that were golden on the outside and nice, and fluffy on the inside. Halfway through our meal, mom decided to break the silence.
“A Penny for your thoughts?” Mom said as she stuffed three french fries into her mouth.
“I just kind of enjoyed 'crossplaying' today.” I said blushing a little. I then braced myself for the verbal assault that was bound to follow such a remark.
“I figured you did, you looked happy when I picked you up.” Mom said stuffing three more french fries into her mouth followed by a thirty second sip of diet cola. “I wanted to say something this morning, but well we were rushed. I think we both overslept.”
I nodded my head and bit off half of a chicken tender.
“And you're not upset?” I said after I swallowed the chicken tender and washed it down with a swallow of bubbly, rootbeer.
“I'm more upset about you going through my closet, and my make-up kit without asking me first. But then again I can understand your point of view. I'm not going to lie to you, I knew you had been using my shampoo, and my make-up. Most guys use unscented shampoo. And this morning, I smelled coconut and tea leaf when you passed by me. Also your hair has been looking a lot nicer lately.” Mom said as she shrugged her shoulders.
I felt like somebody had taken a hammer and smashed my nose in.
“Listen,” Mom took a deep breath and reached across the table and took my hand into mine. “You're my child, I spent ten, hellish hours giving birth to you. I love you, nothing is going to change that. But I want us to talk to each other. I'm sure if this is a 'stage' you're going through or if something more is kicking around in your brain.” Mom paused, I could tell she was trying to collect her thoughts. Like she was trying to be careful with her words.
I nodded my head.
“But I know one thing, you were the happiest I've seen you in a long time this morning.” Mom paused. “And yes, I've been worried about you. You've been brooding and moody, but you're a teenager or almost a teenager so I expected that. But not only have you been moody, and brooding but you seemed to sulking and lurking around the house But today you seemed to almost walking on the clouds,”
I nodded my head right now my mind was one my food. But soon I felt the nagging pull of a question that had been lurking at the back of my mind for a while now.
“Mom, can I ask a question?” I said taking a bite of chicken.
“You just did.” Mom said, giving a loop sided grin. And in that moment my mom briefly reminded me of the 'Mad Hatter' from 'Alice and Wonderland'.
“Mom,” I said, taking a deep breath.
“Sure, go ahead, I'll do my best to answer. But I can't promise a profound answer.” Mom said as she tore a piece of chicken with her teeth in a way that reminded me of Cujo, the dog from Steven King's Classic masterpiece of the same name tearing away at the unlucky postman's leg. Maybe mom in her tired state was going a bit feral.
“If I'd been born a girl.” I paused. “What would have named me?”
Mom without skipping a beat smiled and finished devouring her chicken strip, in a manner that reminded me much of a hungry wolf.
“I would have named you 'Susan' after my favorite Narnia character 'Susan Pevensie'.”
I blinked and blinked again.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because Susan was an eight year old me, a girl who I could look up to. When I was your age, I loved the Narnia books. I was a huge bookworm,” Mom paused. “But yes, Susan Pevensie was a girl I really looked up to. She was strong willed, she was a warrior, she fought with a bow. She was the kind of queen who would ride out with her armies if her realm was threatened. She was right in the thick of things when that big battle broke out.”
I blushed a little.
“I mean sure, I think C.S Lewis was a bit of a jerk for the way he treated her, but I guess, he got stuck writing her and wanted to write her out of the books. I was ten when I read 'The Last Battle' and was heartbroken that Susan was excluded from Narnia because she seemingly just grew up.”
“So 'Susan' would have been my first name and 'Prince' would have been my last name. What would have been my middle name?”
“Oh! I would have given you the last name 'Sarah' because Sarah in the Bible was a woman who was renowned for her hospitality and beauty. It was also my great-grandmother's name. She was the one who introduced me to the 'Narnia' stories when I was just starting to learn to read.” Mom said, smiling a little.
“Oh?” I said, smiling a little.
“You see sweetie, back when I was your age, I spent a lot of my time living with my grandmother, my mom's mom. Dad traveled a lot for work and stuff. And mom also traveled. So to kind of give me a stable life they packed me off to my mom's hometown, a kind of rustic little village called Benton.” Mom paused and took a sip from her cup.
“Benton?” I said picking up another chicken tender.
“Yep, nothing special about it. It was kind of small, but it was kind of charming in its own way.” Mom said as she rattled some ice around her cup.
“Oh?” Mom rarely told me about her girlhood, but when she did I always kind of listened. Kind of gave me a chance to learn more about the woman who well gave birth to me.
“Yep, The older sections of town, that to say the sections of town closest to the river front were all paved in brick, like you know the older sections of Vicksburg or Natchez are. A trolley ran from the bottom of mainstreet to end of Croft Street, it then looped around at the end of Croft Street and looped back to Main. It ran past the old High School which had been demoted to being a Junior High.”
“Sounds magical.” I said, smiling a little.
“It was a nice little town filled with character and old buildings. But it was a town that was filled with ghosts. When I was little, I thought it was the most magical place on earth, because it was the kind of town where people still slept with their windows open on warm summer nights, where people still sat on the front porch and drank ice tea from big pitches and waved to passerbys. A place where a kid could set out a lemonade stand or in my case an ice tea stand and in the span of one afternoon would make more than enough money to go see a movie that evening or buy a dozen old Archie comics from the local Methodist Charity Market.” Mom paused.
“Go on,”
“As a teenager though I thought it was the most boring place on earth. The closet city was, Yazoo City and that was twenty miles away. And even Yazoo City was nothing more than a overgrown village. Sure they at the time had a K-Mart, something Benton did not, But that was it. If you really wanted to do some real shopping you had to drive into either Jackson and shop at the MetroCenter or go to the newly open Northpark Mall in Ridgeland.”
I nodded my head.
“Say what with all the questions?” Mom finally asked as she finished off her chicken tenders and shoved the last few french fries into her mouth. She then drained the last few drops of cola that had gathered in the bottom of her plastic cup.
“I just wanted to know more about you.”
Mom paused and then smiled.
“Okay, finish up your meal okay? I'm tired as sin and I really need a nap. We can talk later, I would kind of like to know more about my new daughter, Susan Sarah Prince.” She said winking.
And so that is how my Saturday ended. With me learning the female my mom would given me, along with being invited to what would have been the biggest Yu-Gi-Oh tournament this area had ever seen.
To be continued.
Princess of the Duelist Kingdom
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-5-
Cracker Barrel
Mom and I always seemed to be going out to eat. Which I'm sure had to do with the long hours mom worked, she worked long, hard hours and even though she was off on Saturday and Sunday she was often too tired to really do much. Meaning I got stuck doing most of the household chores. Now, I don't mind doing a lot of the household chores, because mother always sees that I'm well rewarded for all my effort I pour into keeping our tiny cottage neat and tidy. While most of my classmates were given only a handful dollars in pocket money each week, mom seemed more than happy to hand me forty dollars each week as long as the house was spotless come Friday afternoon.
And by spotless I mean just clean enough where she could walk from one side to the other without having to step over anything. Anyway, I'm sure she could clean the house and keep it neat if her job allowed it. But one thing she could not do, she could not cook to save her life. So at least twice a week, we often found ourselves going for take out. It was fun though, because mom and I never visited the same place twice in a row!
Today, mom had decided she wanted to try “Cracker Barrel” a kind of restaurant that thrived on a kind of “Country Store" feel. It was one half gift shop and one half sit down restaurant. The gift shop so everything under the sun. Things like dresses, plaid shirts, preseasoned iron skillets, premeasure cooking and baking mixes, audio books, even toys! And up front you could find packs of Yu-Gi-Oh cards too! Well not booster packs, these were just bundles of twenty cards, twenty random cards. The difference between boosters? Well booster packs always contained at least one rare card. These bundles contained mostly common cards but sometimes you could get a really rare and powerful cards. They were cheaper than normal booster packs, a normal booster pack cost around three dollars and ninety nine cents. You could buy these bundles for like two dollars a piece.
“So.” Mom said as she gazed at me from across the small, square table. “I've been thinking a lot, and I want you to answer me as honestly as possible.”
I lifted my gaze from the small plate I was peering at and nodded my head.
“So, who is going to attending this thing? This so called 'Duelist Kingdom'? Is it going to be your new alter-ego 'Susan Sarah Prince' or it going to 'Caspian'?” Mom asked in a very matter of fact tone of voice as she reached over and wrapped her slender fingers her clear, plastic glass that held her drink of voice, iced tea, slowly she raised the edge of the glass to her lips as she took a sip of the amber colored liquid. Mom, unlike most southerners, she took her iced tea unsweetened. But she enjoyed it ice cold, and judging by the sour expression on mom's face, her drink was still barely cold.
“I don't know yet,” I said, reaching over and picking up one of the packs of cards. Slowly I started to open the plastic seal. I felt my heart jump into my throat.
“Well if 'Caspian' is going to attend, then that's all fine and good.” Mom said, taking another sip of her iced tea. “But if 'Susan' is going to attend. I'm afraid she and I need to have a mother and daughter talk. I need to take her under my wing and start giving her lessons on being a girl. I also need to point out some of the finer points of being a girl. As well as give her a crash course on girlhood. Also Susan and I need to do some shopping, because I need to buy Susan some shampoo of her own, a hairbrush of her own, because I'm getting a little tired of Susan using my shampoo, my lotion, hairbrush and dabbling in my make-up. She should have her own shampoo, lotion, hairbrush, hairspray, and make-up. And maybe I should give her a lesson on make-up. You know to keep her from looking like an extra in a Steven King Novella. I might end up taking her to the Sephoras in the mall. So she can get a few lessons in the finer points of applying make-up.” As soon as mom finished her little speech, she reached down and took another long sip from her glass of iced tea. I'm sure her throat was quite dry after such a speech.
I felt a small blush starting to bloom and slowly it started to spread from one cheek to the other. Slowly I started to go through my newly acquired cards.
“I mean 'Susan' is a bit too old to use her mothers shampoo, her lotion, which is meant for mommy play time. Her mommy is also tired of her using her hairbrush and leaving it looking like a bird's nest. And she is a bit too old to play with mothers make-up. It's high time she has her own. She is also way too young to be using my 'Midnight Rose' perfume.” Mom blushed. “That for when mommy has a date with a cute guy and she is feeling frisky and is searching to get some special kind of attention after her date.”
I paused, and briefly looked up from the cards I was holding in my hand and then I shivered. Oh my God that mental image those words conjured up!
“If I was going to say that yes 'Susan' is going to be attending the tournament. What would you say to that?” I said returning to flipping through my newly acquired cards.
“Nothing, Beside me giving her a crash course in girldom.” At this point I guess mom noticed I was paying more attention to the cards I was holding in my hands than her so she just took another sip of her ice tea and waited for me to return to earth if you will. But then she added. “You must have gotten some really good cards?”
“A lot of basic monster cards. Some decent effect monster cards.” I said taking a deep breath as I started on the second pack. “I've pulled a few decent spell cards, a few good trap cards. And some pretty rare cards too. So mommy can I ask a question?” I said as I ripped open the plastic.
“I guess, though it seems your more entralled with those new cards.” Mom said as she sipped her tea.
“If susan wanted to swear something, cute, and say flirty, like a dress or say a layered skirt, and something beside trainers. You know, she wanted to look cute and demure. What would you say to that?” I said as I flipped through the remaining cards.
“To that I would say that Susan and I need to go shopping at the local mall this coming Saturday. After I pick her up from her little card thing. That would be her first lesson in being a girl, learning how to shop and learning the boundries her mother will set.”
“Sure! Thank you mommy!” I said smiling. My smile reached from one ear to the other.
“..” Mom sighed and lifted her head toward the heavens. I believe she wanted to say something, but jast as she was about to speak, I made a suddn noise that made her head snap toward me. It was a weird kind of noise and a cross between a gasp and a yell.
“Honey! What wrong?!” Mom said as she pushed her chairback with such a force that it caused everybody in the place to stop what they were doing and turn their complete attention toward her and I.
“Mom!” I stuttered. “I can't believe my luck! I pulled it! I pulled it!” I said taking a deep breath. “I pulled the serect rare Tri-Horned Dragon!” I said taking a deep breath. “Mom you don't understand that like one of the rarest cards in the game! And mom look at this! A double blessing! I pulled a Black Eyes Red Dragon! Mom! I gotta wear a skirt or dress now! Because I'm going to build a deck that focus on just dragon monsters! I'm going to become known as Susan, the Princess of Dragons!”
At that very moment mom just placed her head on the surface of the table and took a deep breath.
“I don't understand kids these days!”
Before I could say anything else, our waitress arrived. Mom had order their classic chicken and dumbling a staple of southern comfort food, I on the other hand had orered the roast beef dinner. Mom had selected for her two sides nibblet corn that was drenched in butter sauce and fried okra. For my two sides I'd selected to have a double order french fries. Mom's bread of choice had been corn bread, again a staple on any southern table. My bread choice had been a yeast dinner roll.
“Okay honey, put your cards away.” Mom said as she slowly lifted her head from the table. Mom then decided to add. “And when you eat, remember to take small bites and to chew at least one hundred times, girls take their time to eat. I've noticed you have gotten into the really bad habit of wolfing your food down like you're a starving animal. Girls don't do that, they take their time and take small bites. Also be sure you sit straight up, put your napkin in your lap and don't put your elbows on the table.”
I paused.
“A young woman always wanted to appear as demure as possible. Being demure is something a girl learns from watching her mother and the other women around her. Young girls often mimic the manners of their mother, their aunts and older sisters. Since you don't have an older sister and your aunt is sixty miles away in Vicksburg. And so it falls upon my shoulders to teach you.
:Yes ma'am” I said
I paused.
“I guess there's going to be a lot more to this girl thing than learning how to look cute, learning how to flirt with boys, and ransacking the mall right?” I said as a small attempt to inject my own sense of humor into our current conversation.
“And I'm going to pretend for your sake that I did not hear that.” Mom said in a dead pan tone of voice. And then she looked down at my plate and then for some reason she rolled her eyes.
“Oh Jesus, pot roast, french fries, and a yeast roll and to wash it all down a coke-cola.”
“...” I raised an eyebrow.
“That is the oddest meal I've ever seen.” Mom said.
“I like dipping my french fries in the gravy.” I added.
“That is the most British thing I've ever heard.” Mom added.
“I mean..” I paused. “You did make me read the U.K edition of the 'Hobbit' and that weird boy who lives in a closet who is a wizard,his aunt and uncle are also pieces of trash.” I said dipping one of the crispy fries into the pool of gravy that had formed at the edge of my plate.
To Be Continued.