Hmm…I am so sorry if this was in any way unclear, but: CHAPTER NINE WAS NOT THE LAST CHAPTER. A few of my reviewers were coming back with questions about that, so, no it was not. Sorry about that! Let me make it clear for the future: When the story ends, I will tell you in exact English. Chapter 10 is not the last chapter, either. I'm thinking of having a few more—maybe two or three. It all depends! Don't say your good-byes too soon, everyone! I'd miss you already (cries)!

Thanks for returning for the follow-up to this sad story…it is coming along a little better now, (not my schedule, as you may have noticed, lol, but the story).I am SO happy that a lot of you returned to review the last one. I have loyalties…thanks so much! Enjoy this one; it's kind of shorter than the past few, but within reason. The next chapter is the absolute climax, everyone. Enjoy!

Warning: Explicit yaoi, rape, abuse…violence…oh, strong language…yeah. All that.

Disclaimer: I don't own YGO.

Chapter Ten: Answers

For a perfect night, the streets were mostly empty. It is a rarity amongst popular cities to find a peaceful evening like that. The wind blew around me in chilly, teasing gust, not exactly cold but certainly not warm and comforting. Unconsciously, I wrapped my coat around myself more tightly and kept it there with hands buried deep within my front pockets.

After a few minutes of walking, I had forgotten my tiredness. Breathing had sedated me into a lull of deep thought. Walking had become systematic. I stayed on the sidewalks to remain in the light of the streetlamps. The light became mechanic; darkness in the island between lampposts, footsteps on the pavement, blinding and dirty yellow light pouring down on me for an instant, then darkness, footsteps…The cycle dulled my senses.

I suppose that a myriad of thought passed through my mind at the time. Most of them were about Mokuba. I really should have called him while I was with Jou—a simple check-in if nothing else. How rude of me, how irresponsible, how un-brotherly to just leave him alone with everything for days. It had done nothing to improve his liking of me, I was sure.

And Yugi? Suicidal and in need of constant care? I had abandoned him. The vicious image of his grandfather's cadaver flickered into my mind's eye, accompanying the guilt to rub salt on the wound. How could I leave him with that same picture? Surely not a moment passed when he did not think of it…anyone could have been driven to…well…Yugi was a topic best left to the future.

Ichigata-san? My Vice President. So alone. He had all the books on corporate living, yet none of them held the answers to our plight. I had left him alone with the depressing figures of Kaiba Corp. without any hope of return.

I inhaled deeply. What would the company be like when I returned? Jou still believed in miracles. His voice echoed into the silent night air, "Maybe…something special will happen if I'm there." Maybe something special had happened to my company while I was not there.

A smirk played with my lips. I doubted it.

I looked up from my silent reverie. Downtown had passed without a single good-bye. From my point of view, Downtown represented everything about Jou. It was basically his domain. I had passed that now. I had passed Jou.

When would I see him again? That was impossible to answer. However, my heart would just not leave me alone. It asked persistently, over and over, again and again, until I acknowledged it with a sharp command.

"Shut up," I whispered under my breath. I did not want to hear another word come from the direction of…my feelings for that boy. There was to be no more discussion on the matter. We had left each other.

For good? Still that damn, hopeful voice…

"Shut up," I growled. Forcing myself to think about something else, I looked up again from the pavement.

The buildings around me were dark and silent. The tall corporate buildings reflected the moon's glow depressingly. The polished, expensive glass from the corporate buildings always reflected the light. Did they ever absorb any of it? I practically lived in a corporate building. The answer was no. Offices were dark places were laws, moral ethics, and lives were destroyed. Light reflected off of them conversely, unable to enter such bleak places. Even the moon's ethereal glow could not bear to enter.

Oh, how sad…That same old voice from my early days of self-hatred. I had lost my confidence in the voice. It's transgression a few hours ago, (when it proclaimed love and calmness), had made me skeptical of it. Maybe without the voice I could start feeling better about myself.

It's doubtful, Seto. It was.

My vision seemed pulled by gravity towards the floor. Iie. I would not keep my head down. My head would remain upright and defiant throughout. Now was not the time for "head down" philosophies.

I stared into the empty night in front of me. There seemed to be some commotion up ahead. Fender bender of some kind. I saw the broken taillights and the heard the screaming people, probably tired and unable to think clearly. Like animals, they yelled at each other. My feet drew my closer to them. I was not going to change paths. They were inconsequential, really.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" a man with short black hair, thick glasses, and a middle-aged gut bellowed. "You just fucking pulverized my car!"

The other, a heavy woman with infuriated eyes and unbelievably curly hair that ricocheted off her body uncontrollably, had nothing better to say. "I pulverized your car? What the fuck are you talking about? I was in front of you! You rear-ended me from behind! Get thicker glasses so you can fucking see!"

"What the hell? You backed into me, you bitch!"

I walked by, nothing but a skinny, waif-like passerby. The cars were quite mangled. Hopefully they had insurance or something. Unaffected by their hardship, I stared back at them as I walked. They continued to scream profanities and insults, talking over each other so their vehement words became inaudible in the end.

People. When they became angry, they yelled and carried on like animals. I decided then and there that screaming was a waste of time. No one ever remembers exactly what words were screamed at them. All they remember is the scream. That was not enough for me. I moved away from the rage.

Gray. Cities are gray places at night. The innumerable restaurants, clothing stores, shoe shops, food stands, supermarkets, jewelry dealers, banks, and landmarks. Everything was exactly the same, really. What were all these damn things for? Life. People need food to live. They need clothing to live. They need the new pair of Armani sunglasses to live. They need it.

What a sick joke. I was disgusted with city life all of a sudden. Every since I was born, I had lived in many cities. All of them were exactly the same. Aimless people with empty needs trying to justify their own existence through meaninglessly tangible things. That was what made up a city. Humans need intangible thought; philosophies, emotion, love, hate are all things that a decent bodies needs to survive. I had once thought that feelings and values were secondary in the face of the tangible. I revise that statement here. Humans need an equal balance of both to survive. I needed my company, that's true. But I needed the feelings I held for Jou. And Mokuba. And Yugi. I needed those feelings to keep me strong and ready to fight. Without them, I would be nothing.

Enough said. I refuse to bore you with my neurotic philosophies. There is only one thing you need to take away from all these random thoughts of a traumatized 19-year-old: Humans need feelings. Enough said.

With these recent discoveries in mind, I trekked onward towards the nearing Kaiba Corp. monument. Should I attempt to call my family with my cell phone? I decided not to. The actual image of me would be more comforting—and why rush the abusive process of returning to that which I had so desperately run from?

I felt a gust of wind burst forth from the subways as I passed a set of stairs leading to subterranean. The harsh sound of wheels on a track accompanied the wind fiercely and then left after an instant. People. They had places to go, things to do; spending their time in the mechanical world of fast-paced mobility, they forgot to notice that standing still could get you places just as quickly. That's was I was doing as I peered cautiously into the stairwell. I stood stock still and wondered whether or not I should take the subway to a street closer to home than this…Iie. I would never willingly descend into that hell-pit of stagnant air and lost, irritable people. Resolutely, I moved on.

No subways. No buses. No trains. No cars. No airplanes or jets. All I had were my legs, dying from exhaustion I forgot to feel. I suppose someone could find this prospect very romantic. Someone other than myself. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than modern transportation, but I would not allow myself to succumb. Don't ask me why, for God's sake. It was probably very stupid considering that I was extremely tired, had not eaten properly in over three days, and was in a state of emotional failure. The intelligent thing to do would have been to get off my feet.

Intelligence. How amusing. That night, I was everything but intelligent. My mind seemed to have been misplaced.

Finally, with my legs forced to walk the distance unwillingly, I reached the Kaiba Corp. building. Its familiar sight helped me regain some of my senses. This building was my second home. I needed to decide whether to check my office life before my home life or vice versa. Regardless of what I would have chosen if left to my own devices, my legs seemed to walk off the premises without waiting for an answer. Mokuba needed me. My family had been abandoned.

The walk from Kaiba Corp. to my mansion was far, but I had walked it dozens of times prior. I rarely drove to Kaiba Corp. as I've mentioned. This time, I found the walk to be almost refreshing. Watching the metallic buildings and advertisements disappear as open air property filled my senses was enjoyable to me for some reason.

Maybe I just needed to get away from it all. Hell, if only that was possible.

The sight of my home in the distance was enough to send me into a state of complete awareness. Suddenly, I found myself wondering why everything has been so complicated not a moment ago. Right now, there was my home, my mission to end misery, Yugi and Mokuba, and my company. That was all.

Damn it all, I thought, holding a hand to my head. I was seriously just thinking about the philosophy of city life. What had brought that on? I shook my head, as if to rid myself of the craziness. Just move on, Seto. Move on.

I approached my house with artificial fervor. Move those damn legs, Seto. I repeated this to myself despite the fact that my legs were crying out in pain (aha, there was the ache I had forgotten). Get to your brother.

It took years for the front door to appear before me. Still, I had no time to ponder about pain and time and whatnot. There were people inside this home in need of comfort.

I checked the doorknob. Open. My heart skipped six beats. They had left it open—for anyone to walk in? What if someone already had…

Toshokama. Katsumoto. Wolves eating children…

Mindless, rabid with panic, I yanked the door open. Old remembrances of my home rushed into my retinas with habitual emotional responses to greet them but no recognition. Scenery was nonexistent.

"Mokuba!" I cried out and ran up the stairs.

To my utter surprise, a call responded. "Seto?"

"Mokuba!" I yelled, not noticing the way my feet tripped over the stairs as I ran to the bedrooms (the only place Toshokama or Katsumoto would think to go).

"Seto!" At first, only a small round shadow appeared on the walls, then a small figure and—Mokuba. At last.

We ran to each other and engulfed each other in a hug most unlike either of us. He was crying, but I could not decipher why. Holding him well within my grasp yet far enough so that I could examine him, my eyes searched for some horrible violation on the boy. Nothing. Not a…

"Mokuba, did he hurt you?" I asked, physically shaking him out of tears momentarily.

Watery eyes and a tearstained face stared back at me. "Did who hurt me, Seto?"

"The men! Where are they? Mokuba, please tell me—.."

"Seto, what are you talking about?" Mokuba broke free of my grasp and stood at a fair distance away from his frantic brother. Fear showed in his features. As if he didn't look pathetic enough.

Wait. My mind slowly began to work. Mokuba was alright. He had not been violated. He did not even know what I was talking about! There were no men here. The door had been open because…well, it was just open. People forgot to lock their doors sometimes, right? Toshokama had not invaded. Katsumoto was still far away.

I exhaled and broke down onto the floor, panting. This was an unbecoming way to reintroduce myself after days of inexplicable absence, I'll admit, but I had no intention of doing what I had done. My body and its worst fears had gained control.

"Gomen nasai, Otōto. I…thought something had happened." My exhausted body was propped up like a rag doll against the wall while Mokuba's body had shrunk away from me like I was infected. Fitting.

"Seto…" Mokuba began, creeping towards me slightly. "What…where were you?"

The compulsory question. How could I answer that? How could I tell my brother everything that I had been through, (drunkenness, love, hate, deep passion, and then departure), without scarring him beyond repair?

Swallowing loudly, I opened my eyes and stared at my poor brother. Immediately I knew that he was not a child anymore. Everything about him had changed. First, he was at least five pounds thinner. His face looked gaunt with worry etched deeply into his features. The small, childish hands that used to give me such innocent hugs were now bony and worn. Visible marks made their way across his skinny arms from arguments or accidents I had missed. His once cute and inviting form now had clothing hanging off of it in clumps, promising a malnourished body underneath. With a gasp I realized that the clothes were different than I remembered; the childish Duel Monsters figures conspicuously absent. Were those a teenager's clothes he wore? American grunge, almost.

My brother. I had left him without a means of saving himself from the grief of this house and this life. I had…done this to him.

Sitting up, I opened my arms, inviting a hug from the boy. My mind did not even cast a thought to the act, as it once might have. My brother needed a hug. He needed care. He needed a parent, which again I had failed to provide.

Without words, he stood straight up and moved slowly—cautiously, almost—into my embrace. I wrapped my arms around his slight figure and rubbed circles into his back, wincing at the palpable ribs. Gradually, as if with actual thought to the matter, Mokuba began to sob softly.

"Shhh," I coaxed. "It's alright now, Mokuba. I'm not going to leave again."

"Seto…Gomen! I am so sorry! You left because of me, right? Gomen, gomen! I didn't mean to drive you away! I was so stupid. I'm sorry! Please forgive me, Seto! I'm sorry!"

Oh, the irony. I was about to say the same exact thing. But my poor brother had been confused into thinking that he was the cause of my absence! This would not continue. I hated myself for the very idea.

"Iie, iie. No, Mokuba it is not your fault. I left because…I felt…" How to explain this? "Broken. And it had nothing to do with you."

Mokuba lifted his head. "Broken?"

I nodded. "Hai. There have been things going on in my life, Mokuba, that are…less than dignified. You don't need to know more than that."

"Less than dignified?" he asked.

Another nod. "I left without the intention of staying gone, Mokuba." Why was I speaking to him as I would a child? Maybe it was the way he cried that made me talk down to him. Maybe it was the way he acted so young by repeating the words that confused him. Maybe it was because he knew so little of the situation at hand. I hated myself for speaking to him in such a way.

"Really?"

"Of course. I would never leave you, Mokuba."

For a few seconds, he continued to sob against me. I let him and continued to massage his back for comfort. Then he asked, "Then why were you gone so long?"

"I was sick," I responded. Again, the lies. But what could I say? I was drunk off my fucking head, Mokuba. That's the truth. "And somebody found me. They took care of me for a while, until I left because…there are things that need to be taken care of."

Mokuba was silent after I told him all this. He stopped crying after only a few moments, but he stayed within our hug for a while.

Suddenly, he wriggled out of the embrace and moved to sit in front of me so our faces were almost level. "Seto," he began, wiping his face against the baggy sleeves. "I did some research while you were gone."

I raised an eyebrow. Research? Well, he was a Kaiba.

He continued. "I found out about Toshokama." The name, uttered from his lips, made me convulse internally. How dare that wretched name stain his lips? I hated it. But Mokuba showed no sign of stopping. He had information.

"I found out that you were going to his house in Nagasaki all those times you said you were on business trips. I also found out that every time you came back the company's figures dropped even more. What were you doing with him, Seto? The guy is evil! I researched his history and he's been involved in all kinds of illegal stuff and, like, stuff that normal people would have been locked away for but he wasn't because he has money. They guy is insane, Seto! In Nagasaki, it's almost a public secret that he beats his wife and daughter but no one does anything about it! What were you possibly doing with him, Seto?"

How could I answer a question like that? "Mokuba, it was business. You understand that." I added slight inflection to the last three words. Though the words pained me, I had no other explanation.

Mokuba stared at me in disbelief for a moment. He had changed into the cynic I was. A smirk played on my lips briefly. At least now we had more in common…(what a horrible thing to say). He continued his story. "Well, whatever you were doing, please stop! Seto, I have to tell you something. There are rumors that the only reason his company is so successful is because he steals money from other companies illegally. They say he has more power over the money of corporations than anyone else in Japan! They say he can direct money flow in whatever way he wants because his family is so rich and he has descended from, like, a million generations of wealth all the way back to the 1800s! Seto, I don't like him at all and I think that it's dangerous to be around him doing 'business' or whatever—.."

It was time for me to add something to this conversation. "Mokuba, stop. All of your information sounds credible, but I have to ask you one question: What are your sources? The internet? Books? Rumors? People lie, Mokuba, people exaggerate. Please, don't nourish your prognosis off idiotic conspiracy theories like half the—.."

"I didn't get my info from the net, Seto."

Confusion settled within my mind. I had already prepared a retort to his accusations. "Nani? Then where did you get all of this, Mokuba?"

Relaxed, as if this were the basis of his everyday life, Mokuba sat on his knees and dictated things I would not have thought possible a few months ago. "Toshokama's wife. I invited her over for dinner a few nights ago, Seto, the day you went missing. I didn't know where you went and neither did the police. So I decided to check your business partners first. I found the airplane registration forms that you always keep lying around your office and found out exactly where you were headed in Nagasaki. From there, the pieces of the puzzle began to fit together and I realized that some guy named Toshokama Mataki was the object of these meetings. After that, I took your own advice."

He paused to restore a lock of stray hair, continuing the story readily. "The internet and public rumors are just dumb things to use, Seto. So, I talked with Ichigata-san, your VP, and decided to find out exactly who Toshokama Mataki was. We did some research together on the family and decided to meet with a member personally."

Speechless though I was, I realized that this was starting to make some sense. I followed along with the next step I myself would have taken had I thought enough to do this kind of research.

"So you decided to meet with the wife on the grounds that she was the lesser of two evils and might be easier to pry information out of. You told her it was some routine business deal that men usually invite their wives to dine with the families of their business partners." It was my guess.

"Exactly, Seto. We used a similar excuse, something more benign." Benign? Mokuba knew what that word meant? Insane. "So Ichigata and I invited her over here for some dinner the on…I think it was the night before last. Yeah, it was." I watched as his young mind thought back to that day wishing that I had been there to partake in the discoveries. "She looked creepy, Seto. Scared as hell to be out of the house, I think. Whenever one of us got too close to her, she would nearly jump out of her chair—even if it was to offer her more tea!"

That did not surprise me in the least. I had met with the daughter on one occasion. Impossible to forget the young girl with bruises on her entire body like smudges of blue from an unnamable experience…I stared absently at the floor, remembering her silent plea. Why should the mother be any different? However, I was beginning to dislike Mokuba's association with the event. How much did Toshokama know of him? Already, my mind was black and skeptical.

Trudging onward, I asked, "What was the outcome of your meeting, Mokuba?"

"Well, after a few cups of sake we got her to admit some of the things I just told you. She said that she had seen you around the house a few times before; although it seemed liked Toshokama was trying to hide it. She ended up sleeping over into the next day, actually. Seto, I felt so bad when she had to leave. I told her not go home—for anything. I told her that no matter what valuable things she thought she had in that house, it was not worth it. Toshokama can't know about the meeting, duh. We had done everything secretly before that to keep his suspicions low. Keiko looked so depressed and so frightened, though…Seto…I couldn't help what I did next."

"What did you do, Mokuba?" I was almost afraid to hear it.

"Seto, I gave her some of our money so she could escape that house. I couldn't give her anything else. I'm sorry, Seto! Please don't be angry with me!"

"Why would I be angry? I would have done the same." My encounter with Jou had taught me no less.

"Really?" He looked surprised.

"Hai. So what did you do with all your information, Mokuba?"

"That's where we were stumped. Ichigata and I could not figure out how to move forward. The police would not touch Toshokama because of the money and the taboo, as I said. We needed…a plan. I'm so glad you're back, Nii-san!"

My mind was officially boggled. While I was off getting drunk and having sex with my mind's obsession, Mokuba and Ichigata were proving themselves useful in the situation. I was proud of my brother and my Vice President. Something else stuck in my mind, something that Jou said.

A miracle had happened while I was away.

Alright, let's not get too carried away. There is still a lot of business to attend to. Exactly. Forget the idealistic bullshit. Mokuba may have started me off on my quest for freedom; however…an idea had crossed my mind bleakly. Mokuba had done all this. And thus endangered himself. Toshokama had the means to find out about this meeting with the female Toshokama-san no matter how "secret" the Ichigata and Mokuba had been. Honestly, what was stopping him from such a discovery? Had the two of them been so useful to me as to put themselves in harm's way? My breath hitched, but I refused to let Mokuba see my emotions. Let him believe he had done well.

Alright…think, Kaiba. It's possible that Toshokama is still unaware of the meeting. His wife would not have returned to the house and risked her very life. Would she? Would she return for little Miyuki? Would she do such a thing?

I would have. I would risk death for a beloved family member.

But she was not me. Maybe she had been heartless enough not to care abut the long-lost daughter of hers. Maybe, I hoped it was so…

So now your future depends on the woman's heartlessness, Seto?

A tiny voice full of disproportionate understanding cut through my thoughts. "By the way, Seto. Yugi's in his room. Sleeping, I think." My head snapped to meet his. Hide everything, Seto. "He really helped us out a lot when Keiko—that's Toshokama's wife—was here. He acted really sweet to her and everything…I think it was the wine and him that won her over, actually."

No suicide? Good news. Perhaps Yugi had gotten over some of his depression the day we left his grandfather's tombstone behind. It was more than I could hope for the young one.

Still, my mind was on other things. The cloud of dark premonition was lodged within the back of my mind, foretelling of an endangered Mokuba.

I refuted the cloud. Keep focused on your brother, first and foremost. "Excellent," I said. "There is still a lot of work left, Mokuba."

"I know," he looked down in shame.

"But I can do that." I needed to tell him what I said next, clouds aside, though it may have seemed slightly unnatural for me, considering the way we usually conversed. "I want you to know that I am very proud of you. I could not have asked more from anyone—including you." If only you had not endangered yourself. I closed my eyes and breathed the next words with lingering sorrow, "Dōmō, Otōto."

Unaffected by my struggle, Mokuba continued onward by saying, "I had to do it, Seto. You were in trouble." The response came so naturally to him. He really believed that he had helped me. Good. For now, we were safe. I would worry about how much Toshokama knew of this help when that problem arose. First, my brother needed to be taken care of as only I could do.

"Mokuba," I began, standing us up and steering our bodies to walk towards the kitchen. "When was the last time you ate?"

He looked at the floor, truly bewildered at the question. His lack of an answer proved to me that not even he knew. "I don't know…I…could it have been when Keiko was over?"

I closed my eyes. "That's not acceptable, Mokuba. When have you slept?"

This he knew more readily. "I haven't Seto, not really…it's so hard to sleep when you're not around…"

My eyes opened. "I know, Mokuba. But you need to take care of yourself despite what may be happening to me. Do you understand that?" That was more for the future tense, I guess. I had already begun to think about what would happen if I were permanently…removed from my young brother's life. What then? Starvation? Insomnia? I figured it was best to ward that off now.

"I understand." He looked at me from his hollowed out face and looked—for a moment—almost content. When was the last time I had seen that look on his face? Too long. Oh well. At least he had found some peace in his work. Now if only that were a contagious condition…

"I'll make you something to eat Mokuba, but then it's straight to bed."

"What about school?" a small hint of hope in that young voice. School? What was that, again? Oh, yes, of course. School. Did not that only take place on weekdays?

"Naze, what day is it?"

"Tuesday."

Ah. "Well, I have no doubt that you will be able to make up the lessons from only a few days' absence. As it seems, you are capable of more than efficient research."

From underneath a mop of black hair, greasy and unwashed, Mokuba shined. I had lost all care for schoolwork. If this ever ended, I might never return to that place. There would be no reason to without Jou there to brighten the day.

I fixed my brother a simple meal of tempura vegetables with some shrimp, (it was one of his favorite dish), and made some extra for Yugi. Although Mokuba made it distinctly clear that I myself should eat some of it, I declined. Lack of time. No sooner had I plopped the dish in front of him than my cell phone rang.

The annoying jingle sliced through the smell of baked food and cooked vegetables with a decisive knife. "Eat," I commanded the malnourished youth. He obeyed without question. Checking the caller ID, it became apparent that life had not brightened at all for me.

Toshokama had reached my private cell phone.

I exited the room, not wishing my brother to hear the possibly disgusting conversation that was promised. My heart felt as if it were drenched in ice water while the rest of my body lost heat rapidly. Fingers shaking, I flipped open the phone.

What could he want from me? Remind me of the gathering? Reprimand me for staying out of touch? What? I despised how much control the man had over me. With one phone call he had shaken my supposedly rooted nerves.

I placed the small, atrocious piece of plastic up to my ear tentatively. "How did you get this number?"

"No formal greeting, Kaiba-san? No manners when speaking to one of your esteemed business colleagues?" His voice added ammonia to the water encompassing my heart. Now my body burned with acid. The mere sensation of hearing his speech triggered these responses automatically. Damn it all.

"What do you want?" Forget the how. Spend as little time as possible with this man.

The phone crackled as if he were breathing on it. I imagined him smoking the usual fat cigar. Sickening. "What do I want? Don't you know what I want, Kaiba-san? What I have always wanted but failed to receive adequately from you?"

I clenched my eyes shut at the stressed word: "adequately." Of course that was something he would say. Well, at least he had forgotten his desire to call me strictly "Seto" from now on. I might not have been able to keep hold of the phone had he remembered. "Why the fuck did you call me?"

"There's no need for foul language, I believe, Kaiba-san. Really, what habits are you teaching your younger brother?" I remained silent as my mind subconsciously reached toward Mokuba. Were my suspicions correct? Did Toshokama know about him?

The man continued unaware of my silent questions. "What kind of examples indeed…do not think, Kaiba-san, for a second, that I did not know about my wife's meeting with your young heir. I assume that you orchestrated that meeting, did you not?"

It was not true. But, yes, it was because Mokuba could not be involved. This was not a blame game or anything of the sort. Mokuba had never arranged a meeting. "Of course."

A snort reverberated across the line. I blinked against the ugly sound. "As I suspected. Really, Kaiba…using your own vulnerable little brother in our dealings? Would you like him to know of what goes on between the two of us?"

"Are you making some sort of—.."

"Would you like him to know of what goes on between us?"

I closed my eyes. Just move on and get around it. "Iie. I would not."

"No, certainly not. Then why involve him, Kaiba-san?"

I did not need to defend actions I had never committed. Toshokama would persecute me nonetheless. I did not care about that, though. Mokuba was my main concern. "It was a guise, Toshokama. Nothing more, nothing less. My brother doesn't even know your name."

"That's interesting, Seto, that's very interesting. Especially when one considers the fact that my wife distinctly remembers conversing with him on her little escapade." My eyes grew fierce and alert. The cloud was correct. She had returned to him—after everything that he had done to her? It had to be for her daughter. The woman's heartlessness failed me. Then it was obvious what her husband did to her for information (and revenge, probably). He had forced her into confession. Now we had a predicament on our hands. Or, I did. Mokuba was uninvolved.

Who to blame? The wife as a lying bitch? She would be in more trouble, more beatings. Or my brother and risk his involvement—harm? Which one? God damn it all to hell. I didn't need this added risk. Mokuba…why did you insist on helping me?

"What do you say to that, Kaiba-san? Were you, erm, disguised as your little brother? Was that a guise, as well?" He found it quite hilarious.

"How do you know that the boy your wife conversed with was my brother? The only thing your wife knows is that she talked with a kid who claimed to be Kaiba Mokuba. Subsequently, that's what you know, as well."

"So, you called on some street kid to have tea and sake with my wife? Desperate, Kaiba-san, desperate. Oh, and by the way, never tell a street kid to give out charity. The $400 he gave her? Was that supposed to be a lot?" He bellowed on the other line. Mokuba should have given more. Plane tickets were at least $300, as I knew from Jou.

"Was there a point to this phone call?" I needed to stay on the business topic. Focus my mind.

"Naturally, Kaiba-san. I do not have time to whittle away with pointless conversations. I'm afraid I have to remind you that some of us have successful businesses to run." Anger boiled then stopped. Why wasn't I used to this by now?

"Anyway, the person my wife got drunk with is inconsequential. The point is that she met with anyone at all—orchestrated by you, as we've established. Now, what makes you think that you have the right to go prying into my private life, Seto? My past? Do you think that you are entitled to it because we've had a few nights of fun? Is that it?"

I decided to cast obedience aside. Let me play this game that I knew so well. There was no reason to continue following his rules. A deal was a deal and we both had that, even though I did not care anymore. I just wanted out of this and I would do it by destroying Toshokama and everything he stood for. Any way I could.

The voice appeared readily. Lingering fear of him needs to be forgotten now. Use the acidic ice in your heart to strengthen yourself.

"I would think that lovers are entitled to each other's histories. As well as meetings with their lovers' wives. Have you forgotten that since the last time you've had a willing lover?"

The disgruntled old man on the other end was audible. "Kaiba-san, you try my patience."

"Why do you wish to hide your private life, Toshokama? Is there something…dark that you would prefer me not to know?"

"Could I not say the same for you, Kaiba-san? A nonexistent past prior to your twelfth birthday leading to evidence of adoption. Your stepfather's unexplained suicide. Oh, and might I add prostitution?"

"So then we know each other. Good. As two lovers should. I'm going to hang-up now, Toshokama. There is much preparing needed for a certain gathering I am to be attending a week from now—.."

"Kaiba-san!" He had practically screamed it. So, my knowledge of his past had frightened him badly enough for that out of character showing? Interesting. The man seemed tired all of a sudden. He sighed. "What do you hope to gain by having background information on me?"

I feigned a pained voice. "Your distrust hurts me, Toshokama. Why do you think I wanted to gain anything more than some simple facts about the one I've come to know so…intimately…in the past few months?"

I could hear the anger in his voice despite how he tried to maintain a façade of original calmness. "What is your feeble mind planning, Kaiba? Are you hoping that knowledge of me will give you some type of an edge when we meet next?"

"An edge, you say? But why, Toshokama, would I want an edge?"

He grumbled. No more façade. "I'm warning you, keep talking like that. See where it gets you." That line, I have to admit, made me laugh. It reminded me of something Jonouchi Sr. would say. I thought of that man's face, bloodied and dazed. It brought some amusement.

"Is there still a point to this conversation? I would not want to disturb your important business meetings with trivialities."

"Give me answers, Kaiba-san. Now. Never forget that whenever we converse I hold the upper hand."

Indeed. But like I said, a deal is a deal regardless of who holds the upper hand. Alright. "Of course I'm aware of that, Toshokama-san. But the answers you require are well beyond my reach." I had to move forward from this point of argument. "However, if it's a deal you want to cut regarding this situation, then perhaps this conversation could be more successful."

"A deal, Kaiba-san?" Here, a laugh poured out of the other end of the phone in dripping, phlegm-ridden tones. I shut my eyes against the noise, but still this was not a bad sign. The only reason for him to be laughing at this point would be because he was nervous. I could work with this.

The laughs died down slightly and Toshokama continued in a raspy voice, almost as if he had damaged himself with the last bout of laughter. "What kind of deal do you propose, Kaiba-san? I do not see how anything would be advantageous to this situation, do you?"

"I do as a matter of fact. You see, in the position that you and I are in right now, we both hold over each other the means to severely ruin the other's life. Can we agree on that statement?"

There was a pause. I guess he was considering the facts of the situation. "Actually," he said. "I think that the information you hold over me would not be enough to do anything other than scribble in your little journal one day, Seto. Even if you wanted to blackmail me with it, I doubt there would be anyone willing to accept that information. I have constructed a system of air-tight loyalty from the general people, Seto. You see, even if the people do not know of their loyalty to me, they still exhibit traits of severe faithfulness to their master—that is to say: Me."

Shuddering slightly at the last comment, I continued. "The same could be said for me, Toshokama. However, I'm sure that we both agree that there are parties on both sides willing to see us destroyed in any way they possibly can. Am I correct in that possibility?"

Another pause. "The media."

I nodded even though he could not see it. "Always a popular killer. Pretty much neutral, but out for blood nonetheless."

"I see your point." He did not sound at all happy in this confession.

Goddamn finally. He got over his megalomania for a brief minute. Miraculous. I continued my prospects, "So, would it be reasonable to construct some type of deal between the two of us regarding this omnipotent fact? Say, something like: If you drop all affiliation with me on the grounds that nothing gets leaked to any source that would be interested to have such information and I keep your sordid life under wraps. Ne?"

"What makes you think that I'm willing to pull a deal over this matter, Kaiba-chan? It sounds to me that you're trying to worm your way out of our arrangement on the Fifth."

"I assure you, Toshokama—.."

"Because you see, when it comes to dealing with you, I can just as easily say, 'Get beneath me, whore, and forget you ever learned anything about me,' as I could say, 'I decide to stop offering my money to assist in haltering your company's deficit.' Does that sound in any way incorrect?"

Damn. It was too true what he said. I needed to think of some other way around this. "It sounds correct to me, Toshokama. But I think there's one fact that you overlooked."

"What's that, Kaiba-chan?"

I smirked on my end. "I have enough scruples to attend our arrangement for the Fifth, but that does not mean that I would readily be of any use to you." A plan had hatched in my mind and this was the living embodiment of it. Suddenly I felt time being wasted by this phone conversation. My body was pulling me away from here by some magnetic repulsion. I needed to finish this—now.

"Explain yourself, Kaiba." There was no "chan" at the end of this sentence. It had gotten serious again.

"Well, I suppose that my explanation will be clear enough in due time, Toshokama. After all, it's only two weeks until the Fifth."

I hung up without waiting for a response.

Baka. Baka-sama ōkii! Stupid. How could I have been so stupid? The answer was staring me in the face this entire time and my stupidity had blinded me from it consistently. Throwing my cell phone to the floor (literally because I had had enough of it), I began walking towards my office with only one single thought on my mind. Stupid, stupid, stupid…this is the resolution.

That's why I barely ran over little Yugi on my blind charge through my home.

"Fucking…!" I said, nearly collapsing onto the floor after running over poor Yugi and subsequently tripping over him in one fluid movement. The boy was cowering in a crumpled up mound of quivering flesh beneath me, bracing himself for my fall.

Luckily, I caught myself at the last moment. "Yugi," I began, stretching my hand down to his level and placing it gently on his shoulder. He flinched and then looked up when he did not feel another body on top of his.

"Kaiba?" The boy asked through large purple eyes. I nearly fell backward after seeing those eyes. Those eyes…they were innocent yet haggard, as if worn from the burden of living, something an innocent person should never have to consider. However, Yugi looked different from the last time I saw him. Somehow now he was more…alive.

I moved my hand into the space before him, offering it as support to pull himself up. "Yes, it's me."

Readily, he took the hand and practically swung his small body up in front of me. Too much energy for one previously so death-ridden. Then he asked me, almost brightly, "When did you get back?"

"Only a little while ago. How have you been?" The question came out awkwardly despite my best attempts to make it flow naturally, (perhaps it was the forced fluidity itself that ruined it).

Unperturbed, Yugi responded quickly, "Alright. I've been reading a lot. I didn't know you had a library in here, Kaiba!" He added the last part with a small smile.

By this time I was completely shocked. Was he…truly alright? Reading? In my library? Was that…therapeutic for him? Was it just the time spent away from life that helped him? Was he even really recovered? Was his young mind repressing the trauma?

Tempted to ask, "You do remember that your grandfather was brutally and unjustifiably murdered, correct?" I continued by saying, "Hai, I have a library. Was it to your liking?"

"Mmmhmm" was sort of his response. He did not really offer a word because I think that he was eager to move on to the subject of me. "Where were you all this time, Kaiba? Mokuba and I were worried sick!"

"I was…sick, as well, Yugi. I needed to handle some things." Quite. Liquor-related things. "But never mind that. I have to continue on all the work you and my brother did in my absence."

Yugi reddened. "Oh, Mokuba told you about that, did he? Well, it was his idea, sort of, and we knew you were going to be angry, but we only wanted to help! We know that you've been under a lot of stress and everything, so…" I blacked out as the young boy continued spewing excuses at me. At least they had enough sense to know that their actions would upset me, but anger was not one of my emotions. I was more worried for them and their safety. But Yugi did not need to know that. This was a more personal matter between Mokuba and me.

Still, my questions regarding Yugi remained. Had someone prescribed some antidepressant in my absence? What was the deal here? "Yugi," I said, startling him out of the rambling excuses. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Actually I am, Kaiba. I took your advice to heart. To give up is to accept ultimate failure. I couldn't give up even though I had nothing to live for…Grandpa wouldn't have wanted me to give up. He would have wanted me to succeed in everything I tried, even letting him go."

My mind tried to wrap itself around this information. There was too big of a change here to warrant something as simplistic as, well, my advice. Since when was the advice of a traveling prostitute something worthwhile—something to help a person overcome the worst tribulation of his life?

It doesn't matter, the voice said. He's feeling better and that's all that counts. Let him be happy for God's sake. He deserves happiness more than reason, don't you think? Besides, you need to get to work!

Right. I had almost forgotten about Toshokama's demise (something so near, I was sure of it). "Well, as long as you feel better, Yugi." Of course that did not sound completely forced and fake and like I did not care about him in the least. Sure. "Now, I made some vegetable tempura for Mokuba in the kitchen. Go eat. I need to get to work."

The young boy nodded silently. Something in his expression told me that he was not quite happy with allowing me to pass, but still had no choice in the matter. Maybe there was another thing he wished to say to me. At that moment, I did not care. Work was the only thing my mind wanted.

I brushed past the boy after small pat on the shoulders and continued to charge towards my office, picking up speed with each step. My mind was already whirling with possible titles and search labels, notes cards and record dates coupled with forgotten data bases. Only the CEO of Kaiba Corp. had access to this much information. Time to use it wisely.

After what seemed like forever, the door to my office appeared in plain sight. I opened it, and walked in to my usual luxuriously uncomfortable chair. My laptop was still positioned readily in its natural spot on desk's surface, waiting to be of some use again.

I sat down quickly and turned on the computer. I did not know how long I would be in here researching all I needed to in order to prepare of the Fifth, but I did know that no matter what happened I could not turn away without answers. The time for obedience was done, as my mind had decided for me when it began arguing with my captor. I needed to use the tools I had to end this entire fucking catastrophe and ruin this evil man and all his coworkers that destroyed the lives of others. I would not accept failure.

An old feeling of stubbornness rose up from a long forgotten place inside of me. The barren wasteland of my emotionless interior has sprouted the oldest emotion I knew: Steadfast drive. I was driven now. Nothing would get in my way.

I still do not know how long it took me to piece together the bits of information in front of me and form a cohesive product with them, but as soon as I did, it was like the world had opened up transformed into something new entirely. This thing before me...was it really true? Was this the answer? Was this the cause of all the trouble I had endured with so much pain in the recent months? Was this truly…it?

Without warning, unspeakable rage burst out of me. I snarled a deep-throated growl in anger, stood up and pushed my chair to the ground beneath me.

How dare he…how dare he…how dare he do such a thing…

He will pay. He will pay. He must pay for such a deed…

I was not even capable of forming a cohesive plan, the anger had taken so much control over me. The only thing on my mind was blood, in fact. Bloody revenge. I would find this man. I would rip out his throat with my bare teeth and claw out his eyes with my finger nails. The skin left unmarred by my clawing hands would be stripped off his bones and hung delicately over my office door as a trophy for my successful retribution. The rest of him? Oh, there were plenty of people to whom I would send the leftovers. Prioritized mail to a certain rogue businessman in Austria, another in Kyoto, one in Tokyo, another in California, two in Hamburg, one in Rome…the list went on. Oh, so many people to thank with the skinless limbs of their once-prestigious sheep-herder.

Without conscious thought, I had torn a picture off my wall and scraped the loose wallpaper off with my own hands. Now my arms were shaking from effort and leftover emotions as I breathed heavily into the arm, releasing the remnants of anger still clinging to my soul.

Revenge would be mine.

After what seemed like years but in reality could not have been more than two weeks at most (probably less considering the days I spent in my office), the first Friday of the new month arrived. I even got an e-mail and two anonymous calls from the office of Toshokama reminding me of my commitment. The evil side of me wondered pointedly whether the man had gotten any sleep at all from the last time we spoke. He probably had. Men like him considered only themselves the most successful when it came to an actual confrontation.

Was that what this was, then? A confrontation? Something of a face-off between Toshokama and cohorts against me? Could it really become that simplistic and childishly black and white after the hell preceding this rendezvous?

Of course it could. A person could never be certain of the outcome of dealing with less than sane men like these.

I stood in my bedroom, dressing myself in a suit for the occasion. I decided to leave my beloved trench coat behind on this night to put up the semblance of formality with which I was sure the other men would be fashioning. Why not raise myself to their level? It might surprise them to see their prostitute dressing and acting like they were. That's what I wanted: To catch them off guard.

I stared at myself in the mirror. Black suit jacket, black silk dress shirt underneath, black suit pants, and formal shoes. With the silver Rolex on my wrist, I actually looked like a billionaire. Amazing, considering my bank account was comically less than that. Not after tonight. Certainly not.

My next act made me unsure. I had a tie in my hands the color of a red rose stained in blood. It was a shockingly deep crimson article that my stepfather had worn quite frequently to business meetings and such. Should I wear this tie on the night I confronted my oppressors? Toshokama and some of the others would remember it as the tie that Gozaburo wore, (it had his monogrammed initials engraved in the back and no one else owned such a hideous thing), and it might send them off guard, besides. It could seriously work towards my advantage. The only question was: Could I wear this tie that I had loathed so much after seeing it repeatedly on the man I hated with such a passion? This piece of red silk had become something of a channel for my hatred. It was one of the things that symbolized him in my childhood. Now I need to wrap it around my neck like a noose and wear it to the deciding moment of my future as Seto Kaiba. Could I?

Yes of course I could.

The tie looked striking and noticeable against the black backdrop of the rest of me. They would not miss it if they stared at me even for a short glance.

Satisfied, I picked up my briefcase with the usual items, (only having added a small knife to the contents—just in case of whatever, though I doubted I would be needing it), and headed out the door.

Mokuba and Yugi were sitting together on the couch in the living room, waiting to send me off. They knew about tonight. I had told them that this was the last time I would be meeting with Toshokama though I did not tell them what I planned to do. Too dangerous. If anything had happened between then and now and the information leaked, I would have been trapped forever in this hellhole of Toshokama's. So Yugi and Mokuba remained in the dark on one issue. All of us were willing to deal with that.

The two boys eyed me and my clothes as I said, "I'm leaving now. There is no way to be certain when I'm coming back, but the important thing is that you two remain healthy. Mokuba, don't forget to eat and sleep. Yugi, look after Mokuba and spend as much time in the library as you need. Understood?" They nodded in near unison. I had already given Ichigata-san the rundown on my situation. This was the final step before I left partial safety.

"Please. Be careful Seto," Mokuba said. He did not look sad or upset as I would have imagined a few months ago. He looked determined. This entire thing had changed him. I sighed internally while nodding my assent. If only he could have stayed young forever. So much easier on me.

Whatever. I would see him again, probably. Then we would have time to discuss everything that had happened between him and me and everything that went on and…yes, all that. My mind was incapable of staying that topic for too long. I was concentrating on the path ahead of me.

"Sayonara," I said. Then I was gone.

My plane took off at about 9:00 p.m. on Friday, November Fifth. My appearance warranted a few stray glances from the other passengers, but I took no notice of it. I simply did not care what they thought. My wish was to survive this night and exact my revenge on the people responsible. Simple enough, I hoped. Maybe not.

Sinking down in the airline seat, I tried to clear my mind of thought. Empty the soul. Incredibly, as I did, a familiar face appeared fresh in my mind.

Katsuya…

I wanted the boy. I missed him. His touch, his kiss, his body, his face, his appearance, his words, his attitude, his everything…I wanted it. My body ached to feel his on top of me or beneath me. Struggling to regain control of myself and my rampant emotions, I took in a breath of stale air and tried to think about something else.

Where was Jou right now? Was he in America? Was he on his way to America in a plane very similar to my own? Had his father/occasional housing companion ever returned? Was the boy bruised? Was he lying in his bedroom, beaten and defeated, longing for someone to help him? That thought wrenched my heart. I wished to suddenly get off the plane and run as quickly as I could to Jou's house, but I knew that was impossible. Still, it took a great deal of strength to remain fixed to the seat.

Did Jou hate me for leaving him? Did he understand that it was for his own good? Did he search for me when I left? Probably not.

What of his family? His dying mother, his sister? Was he with them right now? Had his mother died? Was he considering staying in America for the rest of his life?

Was he thinking about me?

The plane took off. For the entire flight, my mind was obsessed with thoughts of Jou. Our lives had separated us entirely. We were so close to each other yet so far apart in incentive. I sought for revenge while Jou sought to save a dearly loved life. So very far apart. But still I needed him. My body and my mind would never stop needing him. I accepted this fact as a given. The boy was necessary for survival. By the time the plane landed, I had made a silent vow to see Katsuya again before I died. At least once. At the very least.

In a trance, my body traveled by various means to the manor of Toshokama. The mansion loomed before me, alight in many different rooms. Was this a sign of the celebrations? Probably. I smirked, half expecting to see balloons tied to his mailbox. But of course, no such thing appeared.

I buzzed myself in with the familiar voice of the butler and headed up to the front door. This was it. The final time I would ever see this door again upon entering. The night's events played in my mind as if in fast forward. I wanted everything to go as I had planned, but what if it did not? What if…

No. No time for thoughts like that. It would go as planned.

Jou…

One more time my body ached for his, just as my hand was on the doorknob. I needed the strength to go through with this. Jou, I need strength. Summoning a final image of Jonouchi's smiling face, I exhaled all my clinging fears. Now or never. Legs, move.

Emotionless and ready, I opened the door.

A/N: Oooh, cliffhanger. To say the least. Ah…painful. I'm sorry, you guys! Ok, well I'm sorry for a great deal of things. I realize that it is over two months after my last update, do any of you forgive me? It's not as long as last time, though, right? I got a few reviews prompting me to update, to which I can only offer my apologies and ask them to please be patient with me in the future. If I do not update for a while, it doesn't mean that I don't care, it means that there are things going on in my life at the moment and I am not physically able to be at my computer. That's all. (And certainly, there have been A LOT of things going on my life right now. Personal issues.)

So, yes. The next chapter will be the climax. Only a few more after that! GAAH! It's actually ending. Although, it took me more than an entire school year to finish. How unbelievably sad is that? (cries)

Wow. Today is actually my birthday. (gasp) I forgot. Heh. Well, please review! I love hearing from you all! Lots of love!