"What the hell? This can't be right."

Kaiba stood outside of Jim's Arcade… or what's left of it, which was ultimately nothing. Rather than standing before a building, there was just a vacant lot overrun with dirt, grass and forgotten debris. Maybe Mrs. Wheeler gave him the wrong information. But she couldn't have because this was definitely the correct address. Perplexed, Kaiba simply stared at the dismal area, lost in thought as to what his next move should be now that his one and only lead had officially turned to crap.

"Are you alright, child? You've been gazing at that empty space for a while now."

Thought process interrupted, Kaiba turned to whoever addressed him—an elderly African-American woman with a kind smile and a watermelon Jolly Rancher extended towards him as an offering. He froze for a second, unsure of how to react to this unexpected form of conduct. Did strange elderly women usually give out candy to strangers? Kaiba waved the sweet gift away.

"No thanks," he said.

The old woman's smile faltered a bit. She shrugged slightly as she dropped the piece of candy into a handbag she had extracted it from. The beige leather material appeared as weathered and old as she was. This woman wore a long, navy blue dress with white flowers imprinted on all sides. Socks with open-toe sandals kept her feet warm on this breezy day, even though it was a terrible combination. Freshly permed black hair had been tied up in a nice style. Of course he couldn't say the same for her horrid taste in fashion. His grandmother could have picked out better attire blindfolded… if he ever had a grandmother.

"So why are you here?" she enquired.

"I'm looking for Jim's Arcade. I'm sure this is the correct address… What's wrong?"

The woman had been shooting him an odd look ever since he mentioned the arcade, and it was starting to grate his nerves.

"You got the correct address alright… but Jim's Arcade has been gone for a long time now."

"What do you mean it's gone? What are you talking about?"

Again, another irritating look.

"Jim's Arcade was burnt to the ground two years ago, that's what I mean… Where you been, child? Living under a boulder?" The woman chuckled then, amused at the idea of someone actually choosing to reside underneath a giant rock.

"No, I…" he began, but trailed off.

Now that she mentioned it, Kaiba vaguely recalled hearing something about an arcade burning down. Truth is Kaiba didn't catch up on the news much unless it had something to do with his corporation or businesses associated with KaibaCorp—it just was never on his agenda. He hadn't watched cartoons since he was a kid in elementary school. On rare occasion he would view a movie with Mokuba, all thanks to his ten year old brother's persistence. Other than that it was only his little brother who made the most out of the six inch plasma HD TV, a fact that pleased Kaiba since he hated purchasing items to be utilized as mere decorations. It was also a great distraction at times.

"How did it burn down?" he asked the old woman, returning to the important matter at hand.

"Gasoline spill. That's what those news people said anyway. By the time the police and firefighters arrived there was hardly anything left to extinguish. All that was left behind were rubble and ashes. Heard it was quite a scene too; those searing flames got so high… it was like Satan the Devil himself was reaching out from the fiery abyss of Hell. Of course, even to this day, people still don't know whether the fire was an accident or an act of arson."

"But you do?"

Kaiba witnessed the woman's soft, wrinkled facial features alter into something easily recognized as smugness. He should know—it was the same expression he displayed whenever things went according to plan or turned in his favor.

"Perhaps I do," she replied mysteriously. "If you want my opinion… it was Mr. Jim who lit the place up."

"Jim… Jim Henderson?" He wasn't entirely sure how he knew the owner's last name. "But why would the owner destroy his own arcade? It doesn't make sense."

"Doesn't it? Everybody knew his beloved wife died from cancer not long before the incident. It was a tragic loss. She was as generous as she was beautiful, and so full of life. All the children loved her, even the bullies, and she adored them back. Especially that one blonde headed boy… oh, what's his name again? ... Joey! Yes, the lad's name was Joey. Poor Lana, she loved him the most—I don't care what anybody says."

Kaiba sighed, shifting his stance, arms crossed somewhat impatiently. "That still doesn't expl—"

"Give me a minute, will you?" The woman curtly cut him off, shaking a bony digit toward his face. Someone didn't like being interrupted. He understood the feeling. "I'm getting to the good part, just hold your horses." Evidently she enjoyed telling this story, as much as she enjoyed having an eager audience to tell it to. "Anyway," she continued, "what folks didn't know about Mrs. Lana was how her love for children went way beyond."

"You don't mean… Did she…?" Realization of what Mrs. Henderson had been while alive had finally registered, and a nauseating feeling nearly overpowered him.

"There's a smart lad. You catch on quick," the old woman stated approvingly. "Yep, our dear Lana had romantic relationships with some of these boys, never mind the fact she was in her late thirties and those boys were still in their teen years. Though, I say the word "romantic" loosely. I'm sure Mr. Jim was fully aware of his wife's… preferences. Perhaps there was a part of him that hated her because of it, but he simply refused to live without her. Those two were attached at the hip—wherever Mr. Jim went, you were certain to find Lana standing beside him.

I think the guilt of knowing what Lana had been and failing to protect those children by never speaking a word against her had grown to be too much for Mr. Jim to carry. One night, soon after his wife had passed away, Mr. Jim "accidentally" spilled a can of gasoline and lit the place up like the fourth of July. Everything had been consumed by the fire, including Mr. Jim—they found his charred body in the basement underneath all the rubble, you see," the old lady said forlornly. She shook her head gravely, though Seto could not determine whether it was because of old age or the wretchedness of such news or both. "Such a shame," she continued. "That man had achieved his lifelong dream of providing a happy place for kids… and instead it turned out to be a nest of sin. Tragic indeed. Just tragic."

"I don't get it…" said Kaiba. "Why didn't any of them report Lana?" In a sense he already knew the answer—it's sort of obvious. But something in his brain had trouble wrapping it up, probably because it was too unnerving to fully comprehend.

"Do I really have to tell you that? Many of those young boys wanted it. They felt a strong desire for Lana, as did men around her age. I suppose there's a certain thrill for a boy whose hormones are already out of control to have intercourse with a much older woman. Inappropriate? You betcha. Shocking? Not really. Sadly, it is quite common nowadays… Now honey, don't tell me you've never felt lust for an older woman?"

Looking back, Seto never had much interest in the opposite sex, let alone fuckin' them crazy like a lion in heat. He assumed it was because he did not have time for them since he was too occupied in being Mokuba's guardian, always protecting him from those who wanted to cause him harm, even if that meant protecting his little brother from hurting himself.

Or could it be…?

No, that's ridiculous. Absolutely absurd.

"No," he retorted matter-of-factly. "I haven't."

"Never? Never, never?" the elderly woman said incredulously, veiny dark eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"No," he repeated.

"Huh… Well, I'll be damned. You, my child, are a rare case then. Any other boy would have said yes."

"I'm not 'any other boy.'"

The lady gave the tall CEO a once-over, like a mother inspecting her kid's outfit for the day.

"Mmm… no, I suppose you aren't like other boys… are you, Seto Kaiba?"

"Clearly you know who I am."

She cackled good-naturedly.

"What's not to know? You are the CEO of KaibaCorp. Maybe not the King of Games, but still a champion in your own right within the dueling world. That baby brother of yours is adorable too," she said, showing her best squee face. She almost looked cute. "What's his name again?"

"… Mokuba."

"Ah, yes… Mokuba. Too cute. Whelp, I best be on my way honey! It's truly an honor to meet the famous Mr. Kaiba."

"No, the honor is mine, Miss…?"

"That's right… I never told you my name did I? How rude of me. My friends call me Teach, on account of me being so knowledgeable. But you can call me whatever you desire, honey."

Seto grinned a little in spite of himself. What a unique and silly name for an elderly woman.

"Think I'll stick to Teach then. Thanks for all of your assistance."

"That's why I'm here, honey. Any time you need information come to this address." Teach handed him a piece of rolled up paper. "Of course, I would be just as happy if the reason you come is just to see my beautiful, wrinkled fish-face," she laughed while walking away.

"Farewell for now child."

Seto made a face and chuckled inside. Talk about a weird person. Even weirder was the hard sensation beneath the rolled paper. When he stretched the white material out to its full length he discovered the watermelon Jolly Rancher settled on top. Funny. How did that get in there? Ah well, it's not important.

Nothing left to do here. Kaiba continued on down the sidewalk. He pocketed the address and candy and extracted his cellphone from the same pocket. It was his intention to call for Samuel to pick him up, but all of a sudden Seto heard a loud sound coming from a dark alleyway not too far from where he was standing. Based on the harsh smacking noises combined with unruly cries of "Yeah, get him, Rick!" and "Kick the stupid bastard's face in!" Seto figured he was about to walk in on the brutal thrashing of some unlucky soul.

God… on rare occasion he hated being right. This is one of those rare occasions.

Must have been a group of four or five guys. They all stood in a semi-circle, watching as one of them—their leader most likely—hovered over a motionless figure with bloodlust raging in his eyes. It was sort of difficult to tell in this gloominess, but the lying form appeared to be covered head to toe in a bright red substance.

Blood. A lot of blood.

"Joey!" somebody shrieked.

Joey?

Kaiba failed to take note before, but one of the guys (the one closest to him actually) was clutching a young girl with long, dark brown hair around the waist.

That's the brat's sister. Serenity.

She could have easily escaped from that fool's weak embrace, but the serrated blade that massaged the tender, pulsing flesh of her neck strongly discouraged the girl from taking any action. Meanwhile, her brother Joey had been neutralized, though Kaiba sincerely hoped not permanently.

Because if it was permanent… he'd have to kill them all.