Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction / Hamtaro Fan Fiction ❯ Return of the Duel Hams ❯ restitution ( Chapter 24 )

"Boss.... Jam.... Panda.... wake up you three.... Hey, can you guys hear me? Wake up if you can....." A pair of eyes open up to see a fellow hamster. But this was no ordinary hamster, no, this hamster was the ham himself. "Well, it's nice to see that you're up first." he replied again.

"Wait, is this.... no it has to be real." Jam said as he was still a bit asleep. "I could never dream up talking to Pegasus J. Crawford."

"Do you remember what has happened to you?" asked Pegasus.

"Yeah...." Jam turned to his left. "Boss, yo Boss, wake up."

Boss shuffled, but soon opened his eyes. "Jam, what's going on? Where are we?" he too was still asleep.

"Look alive, man, Pegasus is in front of us."

"You mean THE Pegasus?"

"Yes." Jam turned to his right. "Up and at 'em, Panda."

Panda stirred, but opened his eyes. "Huh... Mr. Crawford, is that really you?"

"Nice to see you three boys are up, you slept through an entire day." said Pegasus.

"We what?!" the three hams shouted.

"Now, now, no need to get bent out of shape. Your friends helped you all up into the choppers."

"Choppers?"

"Relax you three. I really shouldn't do that to them.... You are at my private estate. Come now, your friends are waiting."

"Hey, where is my duel disk?!" Panda was stunned.

"Relax, all of your things are secure." Pegasus reassured them. "Though I have looked through your decks, and I am far from disdainful. You three are quite amazing with your cards."

"You went through our decks?" questioned Boss.

"I saw all of their cards, yes. What does it matter anyway, or did you forget that I created them?"

"That's not it, I just.... What do you think?"

"All in due time, Boss. All in due time...."

 

Pegasus showed Jam, Boss and Panda around the place. The three were quite amazed how big it was, but then again, this is Pegasus we're talking about here. Of course it's huge. Once Pegasus and crew stepped into the dining hall, the other hams gave them their much needed applause that was past due. "Man, is it good to see everyone again." said Boss.

"We're glad to see you awake." said Sandy.

"It's good to be awake." said Panda.

"So I take it things are done at the clubhouse...." Jam said.

"You betcha." Pashmina answered.

"Master Pegasus, sir..." Croquet walked in holding something in his arms.

"Ah, thank-q, Croquet." said Pegasus as he took the object.

"Gentlemen, I believe these duel disks and decks belong to you."

"Good looking out, Croquet." said Jam as he took what was his.

"Wait, which one is mine?" asked Panda.

Boss looked at the top card of one of the decks. "X-Head Cannon, this one's yours, Panda." said Boss.

The two switched places and reclaimed what was theirs. "Jam, could I ask you what type of flower this is?" questioned Maxwell. "I can't find it in my book of plants."

Jam took the flower. "It's a Sorro." Jam answered. "This flower serves two purposes; to relax and to protect."

"Hey Jam, here's your pack." said Cappy.

Jam took his pack, then took his seat. "Tinky, Capster."

Boss and Panda took their seats. "Well, now that you all are here, I might as well fill you in." said Pegasus. "Jam, Boss, Panda boy, your merits are quite superb. Hamtaro even told me how you three pretty much took it upon yourselves to restore your precious clubhouse. Such deeds are greatly appreciated. Especially that deal with how you explained how you wanted the clubhouse to be promised to your friends, bourght tears to my eyes it did."

"Well, it's true." said Jam.

 

"Now before I decide on taking what's left in this tray, I have a few things to say to all of you. As much as you duelists know, the cards that were taken from you may never be replaced, but all of you have endured so much and also learned that cards aren't as important as the lives and well beings of your friends. Watching all of you work as a whole to restore that clubhouse of yours was so imspiring...."

"You mean that you were watching us work the whole time?" asked Boss.

"Of course, but some of you, I've been watching for quite some time. Each of you duelists have someway, somehow, piped my interest. Even as I went through and viewed all the cards of your decks, I've leanred many things about all of you. I'm also informed that some of you have 'Deckmasters' in them. At this time, I shall take this moment to give you my verdict on you and your cards."

"And here we go." said Oxnard.

Pegasus cleared his throat. "Hamtaro, your deck resembles your fighting spirit. choosing a deck of Warriors and making it your own is unique. You've mixed power, skill and rarity in your cards. But you flaw is that you rely on high means of force against your opponents over anything else, your deck needs a bit more creative strategy for it to be truly formidable."

"I think it's just fine though..." said Hamtaro.

"Perhaps you do, but just take what I've said into consideration."

"Will do."

"Maxwell, your love and thirst for knowledge is highly apparent in your cards. However, too much wisdom will backfire on you without proper support. Your monster need a bit more imaginative thinking, something that you obviously have no problems in fixing."

"I'll make sure to remember that." said Maxwell.

"Dexter... no... Mr. Gata, your deck, despite what you've told me involving an earlier dueling incident is probably the most strategic of your friends. Practical, diverse, powerful, defensive, there isn't much wrong with your 'Undead Deck' by glance..."

"Of course not." said Dexter.

"However, your flaw is the fact of having very few options in this deck. Eventually, after playing you many times, all of your combinations and strategies that you've stored into your cards will become predictable to your opponent. More options are always needed for a strong deck..."

"I see...."

"Sparkle, the fact that you are a graduate of a dueling academy means your expectations need to at an exception level, basing your deck on Harpie Lady and her kin is fine, however, your real talents seems to be shrouded in your cards. Working with just the element of Wind based Winged Beasts will eventually to more harm than help. But at least you are learning the shortcuts to your powerful monsters, and that is where your deck makes up for things. I shouldn't have to tell you how to improve this deck, so best of luck to you, just don't try to seem like you need to win every duel you face, or you'll have wasted all your knowledge you've learned."

"You got it, Pegasus." said Sparkle.

"Hitomi, your deck shames me. You have too many high leveled monsters and not enough low leveled ones, this is dangerous for duelists because if you run out of monsters needed, you'll face that one regrettable direct shot.

 

"The fact that you have found shortcuts in summoning your high leveled monsters is somewhat of a help, but what will you do when your hand is full of monsters you can't summon? You need more faith in your monster, spell and trap cards."

"I'm sorry..." was all Hitomi said.

"Remember, every good deck needs balance, yours is no exception. Barrette, your deck also needs work, as you seem to share the same problem with balance as Hitomi. For a duelist of Water, you need to have more of a level, spell and trap variety in your cards."

"I'll work on it, Pegasus." said Barrette.

"See to it that you do. Little Penelope, your story has intrigued me the most of all of you duelists. Once the timidly little ham girl, has now become the brave and seemingly fearless hero. Your deck of heroes is also quite astounding. I've had my eye on your dueling skills for quite some time, as my Elemental and Destiny Hero cards require a skilled duelist to weild them in harmony in a deck. The one thing I want you to be aware of, is that there will come a time, where heroism will reach its limit. Knowing that you're still a beginning duelist, it tells and shows me that your time as a powerful duelist will come."

"I won't disappoint you." Penelope said and gave a bow.

"Stan, Dragon monsters are a very common type used by many duelists, however, your deck needs a little more cunning to it. My only advisory of improvement for you is to be prepared for when the duel turns sour. And based on the expression on your face, you know what it feels like when a duel turns sour against you."

"Actually, I had a duel where I got schooled big time." Stan said as he hung his head down. "It showed me that despite my past duels, I still need work in improving the cards of my deck. I'm grateful for your tellling me of my flaws."

"Pepper, it shows that you're not as great a duelist that you appear to be, as it seemed like you would rather prefer monsters that some consider, 'Not strong enough' to help you win duels, and you make up for it by simply having effective spells and traps. It's good to have effective spells and traps, but also consider more effective monsters. But I'm sure you'll do fine otherwise."

"Well, maybe you don't understand my deck strategy as you gave your verdict." said Pepper. "But you're entitled to your opinion and I'm glad I heard it. But even you know that each duelist duels their own way."

"And you've seemed to have lost your way, haven't you?"

"......Yes, yes I have...."

"WRONG! You never lost your way, Pepper. Your way has however, been cloaked from your sight. In time, you'll regain your sight and you'll duel brightly again."

 

"What about my deck, Mr. Pegasus?" asked Hermana.

"Learn how to use it... and try not to make the mistake that Hitomi makes with her deck. You know how to play, despite your young age. And make a point of putting in more traps, because the three traps you have in there isn't enough for you to survive serious duels from even more serious duelists."

"Noted."

"Seamore... You remind me of an oceanic duelist that I know very well. I like your deck, it has not only a variety of strategies, but also a great amount of versatility. There's nothing more I can say about your deck, you've done well."

"Yeah... all up in your face, Stan." Seamore was happy. "You heard it from Pegasus, nothing's wrong with my deck. Booyah!"

"Panda boy, your deck is full of mechanical menaces, some of which you must rid of to become effective. However, there are two cards that your deck isn't prepared for, one of which you've probably run into."

"Yeah, System Down is a real mother...." Panda trailed off.

"Good, you may have inorganic monsters, aside from your Red-Eyes Dragon, but you need to be more prepared in case you deck crashes."

"Don't worry, I've got my deck covered."

"Cappy my boy... It has been brought to my attention that you were forced into your very first duel. Even though you never had any experience in dueling, you proved that you may be a beginner, but you are no pushover. You already know that your deck needs work, as I can tell you're still finnicky about what to put into it. But the one thing I like about your rookie deck is that it has a few of those impaccable strategies that an expert dueliest musters from his or her cards. Now as for that Sengenjin, how did you come across a card that rare?"

"How rare is that card anyway?" asked Maxwell.

"It's incredibly rare." Cappy answered. "I saw it in the grass as I walked home one day. It's my deckmaster, and is my most prized card, as it comes from the world championships. Cards this rare don't just get lost, so it's obvious that the person who got this card didn't want it. And since no one claimed it, I figure that I'd keep it in my deck and put it to great use."

 

"That's a nice story behind that card, Cappy." said Sandy.

"Yes it is." agreed Pegasus, "I'm glad to know you truly know the value of a card." he turned to Jam. "Now for the other Dragon duelist. You already know that your deck is championship material, it's been there more than once. But I'm impressed how well you've tapped into the power of Dragon cards so well. However, you must remember that Dragon monsters are among the most common and most powerful in the game. I want both of you dragon duelists to promise me that you will be able to control the powerful destinies that lie in your decks."

"You have my word, Pegasus." said Stan.

"Of course he has your word." said Jam.

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"That you'll improve your deck so you don't get schooled as much."

"Yeah, I'll have to work on that."

"And don't worry, controling the destiny of my deck won't be too hard, since I even have low leveled guys to help balance me prerfectly." Jam gave a smile.

"Pegasus, what say you to card collectors like me?" asked Oxnard.

"Oxnard, you have some terribly rare and delicious cards." Pegasus answered. "Cards that others would do anything to have. And though your friends have told me, especially your girlfriend over there, that you don't duel, that you keep great care of your rare cards. Protect them well, like I do, but also be prepared to secure their safety."

"Will do."

"Howdy boy, your deck intrigues me."

"How so?" asked Howdy.

"You refer to your cards as the 'Full Charged Assault' for starters. Fully charged your deck is, but it's far from an assault. This is because you play favorites with your monsters. Not that playing with our favorite cards is bad, but don't be afraid to play with every card in your possession."

"I'll make sure to do that."

"Sandy, you sem to be the duelist without a nickname for yourself." Pegasus continued.

"That's okay, I'm happy with being me." said Sandy.

"Yes, but I must say that your deck is fairly decent. It's full of monsters of many sorts, but you seem to be the 'Duelist of the Monarch' as from what I'm told. Those four cards you weild wothout fear or fail, but you too, need more strategy in your cards. You seem to rely on luck, and in doing so, you aren't so lucky."

"That's for darn sure."

"Well then, stop relying on luck and focus on relying on a solid strategy. Once you have that, you'll do just fine. Re-evaluate your cards with what you've been told in mind and you'll do fine in the coming tournament."

"Believe me, I will."

"Boss, your deck of wizzardry is most impressive. The variety of your deck's strength is to be greatly commended, not to mention respected."

"You got that right." said Boss.

"However, you've built your deck more on power than anything else. Power isn't everything, Boss, and you've been told this time and time again. However, the way you've been able to demolish cards with this deck is what makes you so much of a challenging duelist. If you would only match the strenght of your monsters and your spell and traps, your deck will even be more devistating than what you think it's at now."

"Don't worry, Pegasus. I'll still be able to systematically work an opposing deck to its limits, you can guarantee that from me."

 

"Pashmina, you are still building your deck, but from what I've seen, your deck is coming along to be quite the cunning one. You haven't had much courage as a duelist and it shows, but a cunning duelist has more courage than even the most advanced decks in the game. Don't alter your state and keep up with the good work."

"It's a deal, Pegasus." said Pashmina.

"When you complete your deck, I want to look through it and give my full verdict on it, so don't your forget about me..."

"Trust me, forgetting about you will be way too hard to do."

"Snoozer my boy, you have my deepest and most sincere apologies in what happened to you and your deck."

"Don't worry about it, Pegasus." said Snoozer. "I'm just glad I still have my life, so my cards will wait."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. I think I'll sit this duel tournament out. I don't think I'm ready to compete after what I've been through. But I will keep dueling, rest assured on that notion."

"You truly are a wise ham, for a heavy sleeper...." Pegasus turned to Bijou. "And finally it time for our pretty champion. Your deck is by far the most difficult to pull off, probably because there aren't many Fairy monsters in the game today that are worth considered to be places into a deck."

"Which saddens me." Bijou added.

"You shouldn't be so sad, because your hard work is evident. Your deck, in a way, is like that of Jam's deck. It has balance in high and low level monsters, spells and traps, but the things I've seen in your deck and side deck are combinations I thought a duelist wouldn't dare try to execute. Perhaps that is why you are the Champion you are today because you dare to try the impossible... In any notion, continue to be the standout of the world's duelists. For it is those who stand out from the crowd that end up leading the way."

"Merci, merci, Monsieur Pegasus."

"With that said, let us enjoy the meal and have a lovely time."

*

 

After the hams had their meal, Pegasus called the attention to all of the hams again. "Now duelists, I'm glad you all have had quite the time here." he began. "And as much as you enjoy being here, it's time for you all to leave, especially since lots of you have owners that will worry if you're missing for too long."

"He's right, we do have to leave eventually." said Oxnard.

"But before you leave, I have these boxes to give to you all." Pegasus handed out boxes to each of the hamster. "I may not be able to replace the cards that you lost, but what I can do is give you new cards in hope of using them. Inside these boxes are cards that I hope that you'll all use well. And not just any ordinary cards, Tournament Booster packs fro all eight seasons. Your boxes have three tournaent boosters from each season, which I believe is enough for you to fare well with."

"Sweet, we all get tournament booster packs." said Cappy.

"That's right my boy. Your boxes have three booster packs from each of the eight seasons of the tournaments, I hope you enjoy them."

"Three boosters from all eight seasons," said Stan. "That's a total of seventy-two cards."

"Seventy-two cards?" asked Howdy. "That's a bit short..."

"Mr. Crawford, please forgive my friend's ignorance." said Dexter.

"It's quite all right." said Pegasus.

"Who you calling ignorant?" questioned Howdy.

"I'll explain." said Stan. "Howdy, tournament boosters are different from regular boosters. Unlike the boosters from the sets, tournament boosters only have three cards in them."

"What do you mean only three cards?" asked Sparkle.

"That's how they've always been, right Jam?"

"That's right, Stan." Jam answered.

"So truthfully, you really aren't getting ripped off, Howdy. You are getting the nine cards that are in the actual packs in three waves of three." Stan continued.

"...Um...." Howdy still didn't get it.

"Allow me," Dexter cut in, "Howdy, you're still getting your nine cards that you would normally get, but instead of getting eight commons and one rare from each season, you're getting six commons and three rares."

"Well, now that you put it that way, I guess it makes sense. As twenty-four of the seventy-two cards we're gonna get are rare cards... it actually balances out."

"Well, I don't understand how it works, but getting more rares than commons is always a sweet ratio." said Sparkle.

"I'm still confused, are you sure this is right?" asked Penelope.

Pepper pats Penelope on the back. "Well, let's look at it this way," Pepper began to clarify, "a normal booster pack of nine cards gives you eight commons and one rare. Meaning that of your seventy-two cards, only eight of them are going to be rare, which means one-ninth of your card ratio is rare. Now a tournament pack has three cards, two commons and one rare. and since we're getting nine cards per each of the eight seasons, it means that you will get six commons and three rares... And of that seventy-two cards, only twenty-four of them are rare cards, and since 3X24=72, it means that one third of your cards will be rare cards. So where you would normally get sixty-four commons and eight rare normally, you'll be getting forty-eight commons and twenty-four rare instead."

"Sumed up, you're getting more cards this way." said Maxwell.

"I understand now, thank-q Pegasus." said Penelope.

"MY pleasure." said Pegasus.

"This is sweet. We can literally make a deck out of tournament edition cards." said Hamtaro.

"And a side deck." said Pashmina.

"With cards to spare." said Howdy. "This is a great deal."

"Well, let's get going home everyone. You hamsters also have owners to get to." said Boss.

 

The ham-hams all began to leave the room, but before Jam could leave, Pegasus stopped him. "Something the matter?" Jam asked.

Pegasus pulled out a cloth. "I want you to take this card." he told Jam. "I know that even though you have faith in your deck, this one card is something that I am entrusting only to you. If you truly are what you say you are, then you will be able to skillfully weild this monster. Use it, for it shall be of great value to you."

Jam placed the card in the field card zone of his duel disk. "Don't worry, if this card is as powerful as you've made it appear, then giving it to me is a wise choice."

"Hurry to the chopper, don't get left behind."

 

"All right you hamsters, hold on tight, we're lifting off." said Croquet.

"Hold on Croquet, Jam isn't aboard the chopper yet." said Boss.

"There's no time, I'll come back and get him, we're already leaving the ground."

Jam made a sprint to the rooftop. Pegasus.... this card better be worth being left behind for. he thought. As the chopper was leaving the ground, Jam made it to the launchpad. Shit, it's already leaving.

"Hey, there's Jam, lower the chopper!" Pashmina yelled.

"No can do, we're not going to get you home on time if we don't leave now." said Croquet and off he started to fly.

Jam ran after the chopper only to find that the clothed card was stillin the slot, which wasn't closed. He felt the card, it was still in tote, then closed the field spell slot. "You aren't leaving me." he said to himself. With all his hope and faith, Jam jumped for the chopper, and he managed to grab the bar. "Hey! Somebody let me in!"

The door opened up and Boss was right there, extending a paw to him. "Grab hold and be quick, the winds are getting rough!" Boss yelled to him.

"Right!"

 

Jam reached for Boss' paw, but he was just short, his grip was also slipping. With a last attempt, Jam reached for that helping paw, only to lose his grab and began to fall.... But Boss was there to grab him, as Stan grabbed Boss, as Maxwell grabbed Stan. The hams used teamwork and everyone made it safely into the chopper. Pegasus watched the whole ordeal unfold and was pleased to see Jam closing the chopper door behind him. And with this, I bid thee adieu... he mentally concluded. But soon, we shall all meet again.

"I knew you'd make it, Jam. You're as resilient as your friends have told me." said Croquet.

"Of course, I'm nothing without my friends." said Jam.

"We feel the same way about you too." said Bijou, then she gave Jam a peck on the cheek.

"Okay you hams, listen up and listen good." Boss stated. "Whatever cards you get from these boxes are not to be trade off, not even amongst ourselves. They are gifts from Pegasus J. Crawford himself, and you don't give away gifts."

"And no one opens these boxes until we get to the clubhouse." Jam added.

"Right." the others agreed.

"I... also want to thank all of you for being there for me. Even though I probably don't have to give my thanks to all of you, I'm doing it anyway."

"Jam, you really are a considerate ham." said Hitomi.

"That's why he's Jam." said Cappy.

"What took you so long anyway?" asked Boss.

"I had to check my pack and hit the throne. I'm glad I went before we left." Jam answered.

"I wish we could've gotten that remark." said Panda.

"There's a latrine in the back of the plane, Panda. Use that one." said Barrette.

"Score." and off Panda went.

"Well everyone, let's enjoy the ride home." said Jam. "We've earned it today..."