One week had passed since Ivy had started living at Duel Academy. She had learned her way around campus well enough to avoid being late for classes. And the classes themselves were easy enough as long as she gave herself enough time to study a little in the library every night. Ivy was still wary of spending too much time outside after dark unless it was to back and forth between her dorm and the library. As curious as she was about him, Ivy didn't want to risk another run-in with Zane, or as she liked to call him: Weird Lighthouse Guy. Instead of worrying about him, Ivy spent a lot of time after class with Alexis instead. Overall, everything seemed to be working out pretty well in Ivy's life. The only thing that she was struggling with was the assignment duels against other students. Ivy had initially thought that she wouldn't get nervous about losing once she had passed the test to get into Duel Academy, but the same problem was starting to happen again. Whenever she was in a position where it looked like her opponent could make a big comeback against her (particularly, by their facedown cards), Ivy found herself freezing up and passing her turn instead of attacking, usually costing her a match. And now the same situation was playing out again…

"Are you gonna make your move or what, little girl!? Because believe me, there are a LOT of people that I still want to beat today and I have no time for chumps like you who would rather just sit here and stare at their cards all day! Hurry up already!" The bratty boy with unruly spiky black hair complained to Ivy.

"You got her on the ropes now, Chazz!" One of the boy's sidekicks jeered.

"Yeah! I bet she doesn't even remember that this is a duel!" Sidekick #2 joked.

Ivy was about ready to bang her head against the dueling platform in frustration. The whole duel had been like this. Chazz had basically insulted her the whole time and his stupid cronies were almost just as annoying. Ivy hated to admit it, but at this point, she would actually find dueling Weird Lighthouse Guy more bearable than this jerk.

For what seemed like the millionth time, Ivy looked at Chazz's side of the dueling field. He had no monsters, but the three facedown cards in his spell/trap zone worried her. All sorts of horrible possibilities came to her mind about what they could be and she didn't have a lot of lifepoints left. If she took a chance and attacked now, she could win the game. But she was just too afraid.

I should wait at least one more turn to see if I can draw something that will help me deal with all of this. I already have three monsters, so it's not like he can win anytime soon when he doesn't even have one! Ivy mentally reassured herself.

"Well!?" Chazz snapped impatiently.

"I…end my turn." Ivy said.

"Heh, I knew it! You'll regret that move, if you can even call it that! It's my turn! I draw! Now, I summon Cithonian Soldier in attack position! Next, I activate my spell card, Lightning Vortex! By discarding one card from my hand, it allows me to destroy all of your face-up monsters!" Chazz said.

Ivy silently cursed to herself as she watched her monsters disappear from the field. The very worst possible scenario was playing out before her eyes.

"And now, I attack with Cithonian Soldier!" Chazz said triumphantly.

Ivy- 0 Chazz- 1500

"I win! You call yourself Obelisk Blue!? Maybe you should be in Slifer Red with all of the other amateurs, because anyone should be able to avoid rookie mistakes like that. Here's a piece of advice: If you had attacked me, you might have been able to win. But it really doesn't matter. Either way, you had no chance against the Chazz!" Chazz said nastily.

"Chazz it up! Chazz it up!" Chazz's two cronies chanted.

Ivy angrily shoved her deck back into her pocket and stalked away from the dueling platform in silence, her face burning in humiliation.

Xxx

"It is always the same thing and I'm worried that I'm going to get kicked out of here if I don't start winning more!" Ivy said in frustration to Alexis. It was a day later now and Ivy had just finished recalling her disastrous duel with Chazz to Alexis as they had lunch in the school cafeteria.

Alexis looked thoughtful. "From what you've told me about all of your duels so far, it's clear that the problem isn't your dueling skills. You just end up getting too nervous whenever it looks like your opponent could make a comeback and forget key points about what you should or shouldn't do. And you have to keep in mind that you were facing someone who is pretty skilled." She explained carefully.

"I need to know more about what to do during the duels! The classes are easy, but I feel like they don't help at all when it comes to making decisions! What I need is someone who can sit down with me and really explain all of this to me. No. Not just somebody. I need, like, the best duelist here! Well, as long as they are not a jerk." Ivy explained, adding the last part of her request in quickly because she was terrified that it would be Chazz or someone else equally awful. For a moment, she was hopeful. Maybe the best non-jerky duelist at the academy was Alexis herself and she would take the time to help her.

"The best we have? Well… I do happen to know that duelist, so I will ask him if he is interested in tutoring a student." Alexis said.

"And you're sure he's not a jerk?" Ivy asked cautiously.

"Not a jerk, I promise. Just keep in mind that he takes all of this extremely serious, so make sure that you don't ever let your mind wander in front of him if you can help it." Alexis said.

"Don't worry, I won't. Believe me; I'm going to take all the help I can get! Thanks, Alexis! I owe you one!" Ivy said gratefully.

"Sure. I'll let you know once everything is set up." Alexis said.

Xxx

"Would you consider tutoring a friend of mine about dueling if you have the time, Zane?" Alexis asked. She knew that it was better to get straight to the point when it came to asking Zane about anything.

Zane looked cautious. "It depends. Is this friend of yours male or female?" He asked.

"She's a girl." Alexis admitted reluctantly, knowing where this was going.

"Then no." Zane said firmly.

Over the two years that he had been at Duel Academy, Zane had had more than enough bad experiences with girls who had claimed that they needed his help with dueling advice or classwork. It was always the same thing. They would spend the whole time just staring at him in a daze and not listening to a word he said. Eventually, he would have to quit the sessions completely, always ending with, "I'm sorry, but since you are not serious about this, I can't help you anymore." But they never seemed to mind. It was as if they were happy just to have had a chance to spend any time alone with him at all. Classes were already ridiculous enough. Zane was unable to go anywhere in the school building without being seen by groups of girls who would stop to point at him while whispering and giggling to each other excitedly. Zane had eventually come to believe that the only sane female student at this school was Alexis herself.

"She's not like that, I promise. Heck, I don't think that she even knows who you are. She can be a good duelist with the right kind of help, so please?" Alexis practically begged, not wanting to let Ivy down.

"Alright, fine. I'll see what I can do. You can introduce me to her tomorrow night if that is good for her. I'll be in the library around eight." Zane said, praying that he wouldn't regret his decision.

"Thanks! I'm sure you guys will get along just fine!" Alexis said with a knowing smile.

Xxx

"Isn't this a little…late for tutoring?" Ivy asked Alexis somewhat nervously as she followed her to the school library. It wasn't that she was afraid of guys, but at the same time, she hadn't even thought about what it would feel like to spend time alone in a dimly-lit library with one after dark.

"Late? It's only eight 'o clock! And you were the one who said that this time was okay for you. If you're worried that he's a weirdo, then trust me when I say that that couldn't be further from the truth." Alexis reassured Ivy.

"Okay. I guess I'm just nervous." Ivy said.

After entering the library, Alexis quickly found Zane sitting at one of the tables next to the windows.

"Okay, I've brought Ivy. Try to go easy on her, alright Zane?" Alexis said in greeting.

Ivy was horrified. Out of everything that she had worried about tonight, it had never once occurred to her that she would be seeing HIM again.

"Oh, no! Not that Weird Lighthouse Guy again!" Ivy blurted out before realizing just how rude she sounded.

Zane turned to Alexis. "Is this your idea of a joke?" He asked her.

"Only if you think it's funny!" Alexis joked weakly.

"Whatever." Zane said dismissively before turning back to Ivy.

"First of all, my name is Zane, Zane Truesdale, not "Weird Lighthouse Guy", so I would appreciate it if you did not refer to me as the latter or anything else. And second of all, if you have a problem with me being the one to try to help you, please say so now so that we can stop wasting each other's time" Zane said coolly.

"Um…yeah. Sorry about that. I swear, I didn't mean to say that! I was just surprised that it was you. But I really do want your help, so can we just sort of forget that ever happened?" Ivy asked awkwardly.

"Fair enough. Now, please have a seat so that we can get started." Zane said.

"I think I'll leave you guys alone so that you can get to work! I'll see you later, Ivy!" Alexis said cheerfully as she walked away.

No, wait! Please don't go… Ivy thought to herself miserably, realizing that Alexis must have had this planned from the beginning.

Once Alexis had left, Zane immediately became all business. "Alexis has already explained your situation to me. From what I've surmised, your biggest problem is your fear of your opponent's facedown cards around the end of a duel. While it can pay to be cautious and not let yourself walk into a wall of traps, there will also be times when you will need to take a risk in order to proceed. I can teach you about just when those times are and how you can tell what your opponent might be planning. But ultimately, there is a lot more ground that we will need to cover in order for you to be ready for anything. That's why I took the liberty of making this before I came here tonight." Zane explained. He then took out an incredibly thick stack of printed paper and set it down on the table in front of them. It looked hundreds of pages long.

"Um, okay." Ivy said apprehensively. Homework was one thing, but this looked like an absolute nightmare. Clearly, Alexis hadn't been kidding when she said that Zane took this seriously.

"Good. I'll read everything to you and then go over it in detail after each part. Feel free to ask me any questions if you're having trouble understanding anything." Zane said.

Xxx

Over two hours later, Ivy found herself beginning to question whether Zane was actually human. He had been continuously reading aloud from the huge pack of papers, barely pausing for a breath in between his sentences. At first, it had actually been somewhat helpful, but now, Ivy was struggling just to keep her eyes open as Zane droned on in the same dry, monotonous tone that he had been using almost the entire time since they had met here tonight.

"Chapter 114, part 292…" Zane started to say before Ivy finally decided that she could not take another second of this torture tonight.

"Please, can we take a break?" Ivy practically begged.

For a moment, Zane looked surprised. Then, he took a quick glance at the clock on the wall before replying. "Oh. I didn't even realize how much time had passed. I apologize for that. I'm not really used to teaching, and I think that I forgot how difficult this format might be for some people if they are not used to it. I made all of this based on how I study by myself without really considering that it might not be the right method for other students. You can take a break if you need to, just let me know if you're ready to continue or are ready to head back." He said.

"Okay, thanks." Ivy said appreciatively.

Without another word, Zane opened a book and started to read, completely ignoring Ivy's presence.

"Um, wait. Can I ask you something?" Ivy asked awkwardly, hoping that Zane would take the time to answer the one question that had been bothering her since the first time they had met each other last week.

"Okay." Zane answered in a slightly suspicious tone since he had a feeling that this had nothing to do with dueling instruction.

"When we first met, you said that it was dangerous to be outside at night, but you never explained why. Just what is really going on here at night? You made it sound like it's not just boogeymen lurking the corners. Please, I have a right to know about what's going on since I kind of live here." Ivy insisted.

Zane sighed in annoyance. Out of everything she could ask, of course it has to be about THAT. He thought to himself.

"Okay. Since you are probably more likely than anyone else to ignore my warnings and wander around at night anyway, I'll tell you." Zane said reluctantly.

"Okay, good. So just what is the deal with nighttime here!?" Ivy pressed.

"What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room and I'm not trying to scare you, but we have several students who have gone missing on this island. And it always happens at night." Zane explained seriously.

Ivy couldn't help feeling a little shocked at Zane's response. "But if that's true, then how is this school even still open!? I mean, hasn't there been any kind of investigation from outside in order to find out what's been going on?" She asked, totally perplexed.

"Strangely enough, no. At least none that I have heard about." Zane admitted.

"But that's…awful. They are just pretending that everything is fine when it isn't!" Ivy said.

"Exactly. But since it only seems to happen at night, the least they can do is warn everyone." Zane said.

"But then what about you? If you know it's so dangerous, then what makes you think that you are safe from whatever is happening?" Ivy asked curiously.

"One of the students who disappeared is a good friend of mine. I've been trying to find out what I can in order to try to help him and everyone else who disappeared. Because if I don't, it doesn't look like anyone else will try. I owe it to him to do what I can to help." Zane explained.

"Heh, and here I thought that you were just trying to look cool… I'm really sorry about your friend. It's really brave of you to try to help like that. I would be doing the same thing if it were me." Ivy said.

To Ivy's surprise, Zane actually smiled. "I don't know if I would call it "brave". I'm just doing what I can to try to help. But thank you for saying that. Just remember not to tell anyone else about this. Alexis already knows about it, but that is it." He said.

Ivy thought back to her first night at school, remembering how reluctant Alexis had been when she had told her that she was going for a walk at night around the island, and how worried she was when it had taken Ivy a few hours to get back. She had known about this all along. But Ivy also had a feeling that there was something else that she was missing here.

"Thanks for explaining everything to me. I won't say anything to anyone about it, I promise." Ivy said.

"Good. I think we've been here enough tonight, though. Let's call it quits. It's late, so I'll walk you back from here." Zane said.

"You don't need to do that. I can get back fine on my own." Ivy insisted politely.

"Yes, I do. Now let's go." Zane said firmly.

Realizing that there would be no arguing with Zane, Ivy rolled her eyes and followed him out of the library.

Xxx

There had been no conversation between Zane and Ivy during the walk from the school building to the Obelisk Blue girls' dorm. But once they reached the front door, Ivy decided to say something.

"Thanks for all of your help tonight. I know that it looked like I wasn't paying attention for a long time, but believe me when I say that a lot of the things you said actually did make sense. Well, before the chapters hit the 30-something mark, that is." Ivy said.

"Don't worry about it. You're the first person who has actually listened to any of that. You can keep the papers we went over today and I'll make something a bit easier for tomorrow." Zane said.

"Tomorrow?" Ivy asked in surprise.

"Yes. We still have a long way to go. If that's alright with you." Zane said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Same time tomorrow night then?" Ivy asked.

"Sure, I'll be there." Zane answered.

"Okay. Well, goodnight then. I'll see you tomorrow night." Ivy said.

Zane simply turned around and started walking away in the opposite direction, his hand raised in a quick wave goodbye.

Once Ivy had made her way back inside, she stood in front of the inside entrance for a moment, thinking to herself.

Alexis was right. He really isn't a jerk. Just a bit…different. Ivy thought to herself with a smile.