Hi everyone! Welcome to my new story! The setting will take place during the 14th-15th century in England. I have never played the 'Duelists of the Roses' before, but I have seen the walkthroughs. I will make sure to incorporate past history in the story, so please go easy on me. It'll be my first time writing it. Enjoy the story!

"Go Dark Magician! Dark Magic Attack!"

"Impossible… NNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

As the final enemy monster had been destroyed, Manawyddan fab Llyr vanished into thin air, causing the summoning to be undone. C. Seto Rosenkreuz disappeared under unknown circumstances, leaving behind his armor, white rose pendant, and a journal. In it is a message still yet to be solved: I leave this message for those who follow in my path… The Guardian who falleth at the hands of man was naught but a mere mortal. Journey forth and seek the true Guardian. For he shall be the one to guide thee to glory. Signed by Seto, High Mage of Amenhotep.

2 months later, King Henry Yami Tudor was officially crowned king at Westminster Cathedral on October 30th. Seto and his Rose Crusaders were never captured. However, they were never to be seen again. King Henry VII, known as Yami, was credited for ending the threat of the Crusaders, and was dubbed Yu-Gi-Oh by his supporters.

The War of the Roses remained a lost chapter in the annals of history… No one knows who the Rose Guardian could be, but his or her identity will forever remain unknown….

Two pairs of eyes gazed at the storyteller in awe: one with amethyst colored eyes and the other with soft brown eyes. They were both sitting on the rug cross-legged, and looked to be 6 years old. Dressed in long, white nightgowns, they were still in awe at hearing the story.

"What happens next, Merle?" the amethyst-eyed child with tricolored spiky hair shaped like a starfish asked.

Merle, dressed in a purple sweater, black trousers, and black shoes, chuckled as he sat on the chair, with a book resting on his lap. "That is the end of the story, little Yugi."

The purple eyed child known as Yugi pouted. "Really? But what about the Rose Guardian?"

"No one knows whom the Rose Guardian could be. It can be anyone."

The brown-eyed boy with short white hair tilted his head. "What about the Guardian? Has anyone figured out whom it might be?"

"Sadly, no one can ever find the true Guardian. It is still a mystery, even for today."

The white haired boy stood up and ran over to the person, hugging her legs. "Miss Nenet!"

Nenet, who has long golden hair, brown eyes, and wearing a blue dress, smiled and patted his head. "It is time for bed, Ryou. You too, Yugi."

Merle closed the book and stood up, revealing his long black hair tied in a ponytail and cherry colored eyes. "She is correct. It is close to your bedtime."

Yugi stood up. "Can we hear the story again tomorrow?"

Merle gave him a gentle smile, and ruffled his hair. "Of course, my child. At our usual time before bed."

Both Yugi & Ryou cheered, causing their guardians to chuckle as they picked them up and led them out of the library. Walking down the long hallway, they arrived inside a bedroom, revealing a huge canopy bed, a desk, chair, trunk, closet, and side balcony. Heading over to the bed, they placed the two 6 year olds on the bed and tucked them in, as they already fell asleep from being carried.

As Merle ruffled their heads while Nenet kissed their foreheads, they quietly left the room and closed the door behind them. They walked a little further, and Merle covered his mouth as a cough escaped his lips.

Nenet frowned, and gently patted his back. "Do you need some medicine? It can help you sleep better."

Merle shook his head, wiping his hand with a cloth. "I am fine. Its only a small cough."

"My dear friend, your illness is already spreading. I'm doing everything I can to find something to stop it."

"Nenet, please don't. This illness is incurable, and I know I won't survive much longer."

"Please do not say that. You will live a longer life. Death will not take you away."

"We cannot stop Death. He has the power to take away the living soul after they reach their expiration date."

Nenet bit her bottom lip in anguish. "It still isn't fair you have gotten the illness. You were always healthy, and rarely get sick. There must be a way to cure you."

Merle gave her a sad smile, and gently patted her head. "Nenet, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for thinking about my wellbeing. All I ask in return is that you be there for Yugi and Ryou."

"My brother, please do not say that. You will live a long life, and see them grow up to become men. They too need you, and Yugi adores you so much."

"I know," Merle sadly sighs. "It felt like yesterday when I found him as a baby in the rose garden, wrapped in a blanket with the most adorable face I have ever seen."

"And I have found Ryou in the garden of lilies," Nenet added.

"They are God's children, and we will always love and protect them no matter what."

"For all eternity," she held his hand. "Merle, I know you will survive this illness. I won't let my brother die. I cannot lose another family member."

Merle saw tears streaming down her cheeks, and pulled her into a hug as she wept on his chest. Stroking his little sister's hair, he gazed at the colorful mosaic scales hung on the top center, revealing an image of the castle surrounded by roses of various colors.

10 years later

Lunge… Defend... Riposte... Slash!

A bead of sweat ran down the side of his cheek as he blocked another incoming attack. Jumping back, he avoided another strike and did a counterattack, causing his opponent to fall on the ground with a sword pointing inches away from his neck. A loud clap signaled the match is over, and Yugi helped his opponent up.

"Excellent match, both of you," an elderly man with long white hair, beard, turquoise eyes, and wearing black armor strolled over to them. "Yugi, you have improved well on your skills. Keep at it, and you'll be able to reach your highest rank in no time."

Yugi placed one arm over his body and bowed. "Thank you, teacher. I will make you and everyone else proud."

The elderly man smiled and nodded his head, then turned his attention to his opponent. "Duke, you were able to increase your speed. You demonstrated your swift agility, and that is a good thing. I recommend you practice more on your defense. It is best to avoid injury, especially if the weapon is poisonous or not."

Duke, who had long black hair in a high ponytail with bangs framing his face, green eyes, and wearing a red and black training uniform, bowed. "Thank you for the comments, teacher. I shall train harder, and improve myself so I won't get killed by an enemy."

Nodding at his statement, the elderly man clapped his hands loudly. "Excellent! You may both take a 30-minute break. After that, we will continue our training."

"Thank you, sir!" they both bowed to him.

As the elderly man patted their shoulders and went to the next group to observe their fight, Yugi felt his opponent pat his back a little roughly. Wearing a purple and black training uniform, he looked over at Duke. "You were very strong, Duke. I almost got nicked by your sword."

Duke smirked, and flipped his hair back. "I increased my speed to match up with yours. You single-handedly defeated all of us. Pretty soon, you'll be a high-ranked knight."

"Not yet though. I still have a long way to go."

"You'll obviously be a knight soon, Yugi. We have the best teacher training you, and the other knights are fighting over to have you work under them so they can help you reach a very good rank."

"I am thankful of Sir Galahad for becoming our teacher. Being taught by the Fierce Knight is still amazing."

"Agreed. Plus, the best thing about being a knight is attracting the attention of many beautiful maidens and princesses."

Yugi sighed, but gave his friend a small smile. "Remember, our duty is to protect our queen and our kingdom from danger. Most knights do not have time to have a relationship."

"And when they do court and take a wife, they must have an heir so they can leave behind a legacy in case the knight dies," Duke waved it off. "I already heard it. My father always keeps telling me that I need to focus on becoming a knight first, not slack off."

"You just need to take it easy. One step at a time," Yugi said. "I won't give up until I become a knight, and make Merle proud."

"The Knight of Chaos. One of the bravest, and very loyal to the Celestial Kingdom," Duke stated. "I'm a little jealous that the two of you have a strong bond together. He rarely talks to anyone, except for his little sister of course."

"Merle had been a father figure to me ever since he raised me. I thank the gods everyday for giving me a father like him," Yugi gazed at the ceiling. "I do miss him everyday. I told myself I will not give up until I achieve his dream."

Duke blinked, and his expression soon turned into slight admiration. After knowing both Yugi and Ryou for a very long time ever since he first arrived at the kingdom, he can tell they truly admired their guardians, and wish to follow their dreams. This caused him to respect them a lot, since they have the perseverance needed to achieve their goals.

He then chuckled while patting his back. "You got my support then. However, I will beat you in getting the highest rank first!"

Yugi gave him a firm nod. "May the best knight achieve it."

The only sounds heard in the room is a young man flipping through the pages of the book, and writing down what he found in his journal with a quill. Resembling a study room, filled with many books and other items for a comfortable setting, the individual isn't alone.

On the chair is a small, white cat with hazel eyes licking its paw, and resting on the desk near the young man is a white rabbit with red eyes. The young man, known as Ryou, wore a navy blue overcoat, gray trousers, and brown boots. The book he is reading revealed pictures of many different types of herbs: wild garlic, fennel, borage, corn mint, and many others. Each have a unique way used to make medicine, or as an ingredient for food.

Right now, he is searching for the right type of herbs used to make a medicine for one of the chefs. The chef complained of chest pain, and it prevented him from cooking the meals. The Celestial Kingdom's queen, who is known as Cecelia, got word of it and asked Ryou to create a medicine to help ease the chef's pain.

To Ryou, it's a huge honor to be given this task by the queen, and obeyed her commands. Once he gets the right herbs, he'll create the medicine and have the chef take it. Turning the next page, he read through something and wrote it down in his notes. Soon, he was able to find all the right ingredients needed to create the herb, and closed the book.

Leaning back against the chair he sat on, he stretched his arms upwards while letting out a huge sigh of relief. Luckily, its still daylight outside, so he'll have plenty of time to go back to the ward and get those herbs. Bless his guardian Nenet for keeping so many herbs in there.

An image of her appeared in his mind, causing him to let out a sad sigh. He missed her so much, and it's been 1 year ever since she died. It was really hard when Merle went to heaven when he was 8, but Nenet joining her brother still caused his heart to clench in pain.

He is thankful to Nenet for being a mother figure to him, and also glad that she is a Wiccan like him. From what he remembered, Wiccans are people who believe in the forces of nature and karma. They have a good relationship with Mother Nature, and use those ingredients nature created to help heal the sick. People confuse them as healers or doctors, since they have advanced knowledge for both medicine and how the human body functions.

Nenet told him her grandmother was once a Wiccan, and she discovered her Wiccan blood when she somehow caused a dying flower to be revived back. As for Ryou, his Wiccan blood existed at age 6 when he communicated with a bird, who gave him some nuts and berries as a thank you present for being so kind to it.

Thanks to Nenet's teachings, he kept his identity as a Wiccan a secret, since there are now very few Wiccans left in this century. Due to people believing magic is evil, they would hunt down people whom they believe are witches, and eliminate them. They would even confuse Wiccans as witches and hurt them, causing the remaining Wiccans to scatter around and stay hidden in view. For them, it is best to keep their identities a secret and not get hunted.

Ryou is lucky he is safe within the castle walls, but knew the secret won't last forever. Besides Nenet, Merle, Yugi, the queen, and their new friend Duke knowing his identity as a Wiccan, he knows they won't tell a soul, especially since Queen Cecelia sees him as a medicine man, and knows he is good at heart. He will prove to everyone that Wiccans are not bad people, but good people who are in tune with nature. He'll become a great healer, and make Nenet proud.

Feeling something tickling his fingers, he looked over and realized it was his bunny Thumper. "I'm finished with my research, Thumper. You, me, and Snowflake can now head back to the ward. Once I finish making the medicine and giving it to my patient, we'll eat lunch together."

Wiggling his nose, Thumper twitched his ears while Snowflake mewed. Gathering his supplies, Ryou left the room as Snowflake and Thumper followed him. They arrived at the ward, where Ryou placed his supplies on the table and went to the cabinets to search for the ingredients. Snowflake and Thumper sat on the floor, watching him gathering the ingredients and placing them on the table.

As Ryou prepared the medicine, he heard a knock on the door. "Come in!"

The door opened, revealing Yugi as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. "Hello Ryou. I hope I'm not interrupting you."

Ryou shook his head. "You're not. I'm only preparing some medicine for one of my patients."

"The one with chest pain?"

"Correct."

"I see," Yugi crouched down and stroked Snowflake. "Hey there, girl. Did you miss me?"

Snowflake purred, while letting out a soft meow. Yugi smiled, and also petted Thumper. "I hope you two have been on your best behavior."

Thumper wiggled his ears, while Snowflake wagged her tail. Their own pride and joy, whom they raised when they first met them a couple years ago. Yugi adopted Snowflake, while Ryou adopted Thumper. They became part of the family, and everyone didn't mind them being here as long as Yugi and Ryou take good care of them, feed them, clean up after them, and make sure they don't get into any trouble.

Yugi stood up as he held Snowflake in his arms. "I'm planning on getting some food soon. You'll join me right after you're done?"

Ryou nodded, as he stirred the herbs in a pot. "I will. I need to make sure I have the right measurements for my ingredients, give them to the patient, check and make sure its helping him, and then eat."

"Remember not to forget. Last time, you almost forgot to eat and I had to bring your food here so you wouldn't faint."

"I'll make sure it won't happen again."

"Good."

"Meow."

"Squeak!"

"Hey Ryou?"

"Hmm?"

"Remember the story about the War of the Roses?"

"The one Merle would always tell us when we're small?"

"The same one."

"I still can't believe it's actually a real story."

"Me too. The characters who took part to stop the war are amazing."

"I agree. You also have a fascination with the character Henry Yami Tudor, I presume?"

Yugi felt his cheeks heating up, causing him to look away. "I-I like how brave, kind, and confident he is in protecting his people from danger. Not only is he part of the House of Lancaster, but is also known as the 'Red Rose Duelist' of his kingdom."

"His partner is a powerful monster called Dark Magician. I still remembered the times we pretended to be strong monsters protecting the kingdom from danger."

"When we were little, we did. But now, we've grown up and working to achieve our dreams."

They continued to lie down on the grass, resting under the shade near a huge oak tree. Thumper and Snowflake slept near them, as they gazed at the white, fluffy clouds. Located in the enchanted rose garden created for Queen Cecelia, they had permission to be here since this is the same garden where they found as babies.

Yugi blew a strand of hair away from his face. "Besides King Henry, the other characters also fascinated me: Jasper Dice Tudor, Margaret Mai Beaufort, Simon McMooran, Ishtar, Joey Urswick, T. Tristan Grey-

"I think I get it now. You like all of them from the story," Ryou chuckled.

"I remembered you were interested in learning more about Bakura J. Mortimer, King Henry's knight."

"Even though he is a member of the Red Roses, I am surprised how strong his monster is."

"Because it relates to the supernatural?"

"Precisely."

Yugi continued to gaze at the sky. "It would be amazing to meet them in real life."

"Me too. But sadly, they are no longer in the world of living. They are in the afterlife, just like Nenet and Merle."

"May their souls rest in peace."

Silence lingered in the air, as they continued to stare at the clouds. The only thing they could hear is their animals snoring, and nature providing them a peaceful environment. Right now, their future is to follow their dreams in order to provide well for the kingdom, people, and the queen. The Celestial Kingdom may be at peace, but they must prepare in case a war comes.

Yugi and Ryou know they won't stay together forever, since there might be a chance one of them will be relocated because of their duties. Yugi will keep his friend safe from danger, since Ryou is one of the few remaining Wiccans in this world. He knew Ryou will also keep him safe, by making sure he's healed and doesn't die from any injuries or illness.

They closed their eyes, as they let their minds ponder on what the future holds for them.

What do you guys think? Please let me know if it's a good beginning to this story.