Her stomach hurts, and her skin feels ice-cold as she sits outside of Seto Kaiba's desk, clutching her tablet close to her chest. For the thousandth time, she glances down at her phone, which displays an alert: Meeting with Seto Kaiba, 11 am. Two more minutes.

She shudders and looks up, her eyes meeting briefly with the dark-haired secretary, who nods encouragingly at her. "I'll let you know when Mr. Kaiba is ready for you," the woman says brightly, offering Kisara a bright smile.

Kisara fidgets, running her fingers along a strand of silver-white hair. "Do you know what the meeting is regarding? I just got a call from my boss this morning, saying that Mr. Kaiba requested to meet with me specifically." Her voice comes out dry and shaky, and she coughs slightly. "I'm on the security team for the Children's Foundation, but I'm not the lead. Is this about Young Paladins?" She winces as she forces the last question out, tense with fear that the Kaiba Corp CEO has discovered what she knows about him-or, at least, his activities in regards to the Young Paladins.

The secretary shakes her head, pressing ruby-lacquered lips together apologetically. "I'm sorry, Miss Endo," she says. A soft ringtone interrupts their exchange, and the secretary picks up a corded phone.

"Mmm-hmm. All right," Mr. Kaiba's secretary says, then flicks her glance over towards Kisara. "He's ready for you now."

X

Seto Kaiba's office is spacious and airy, with sunlight streaming in from giant windows that overlook the bustling Domino cityscape. A tall and broad-shouldered figure poised behind an enormous mahogany desk is silhouetted in the window, his face cast into dim shadows.

"M...Mr. Kaiba, sir." Kisara's knees feel weak underneath her as she crosses the room towards the open seat in front of Mr. Seto Kaiba himself. The distance stretches out in front of her, and the maroon carpet expands into an expansive sea separating her from the Kaiba Corp CEO. Gasping softly with relief, she sinks into the leather chair in front of him, placing her tablet in her lap and folding her hands anxiously on top of them.

Seto is younger than he looks in press releases, forcing Kisara to remember that the man is only a year older than herself. His face is angular and severe, but still a little soft around the cheekbones, and he has startlingly wide, bright blue eyes that remind her of a Siberian husky. He has dark bags under his eyes, and his lips are drawn tight as he stares at Kisara with a disarmingly desperate look in his eyes. Kisara tilts her head slightly, waiting for him to speak, and the silence continues to stretch on. The air is cool and dry and crisp and smells good, like cinnamon and musk.

"R...right." Seto's voice is authoritative and practiced, but breaks slightly as he lifts his chin to stare down at Kisara. "Miss...Miss Endo. I…" his gaze wavers, and he stands up, resting his palms on his desk and leaning towards her. "Miss Endo. I need to discuss something with you."

Kisara's blood turns to ice. "Related to my work as a security consultant?" she asks. The office fades away, leaving her and Seto's blue, blue eyes in a cold, swirling darkness.

Seto shakes his head. "I'll cut to the chase, Miss Endo. You spoke to a...Wheeler….about something you've uncovered in the Children's Sanctuary system."

"R...right." Kisara's words freeze in her throat, and her tongue turns to cotton in her mouth.

Seto sits back down, agitatedly running his hands through his hair. "I can't," he says unsteadily, his voice warbling off into an uneasy silence. "Miss Endo….are you the only one who knows?"

"As far as I know. If what I found proved….reliable, then it would blow up into a major scandal."

"But you spoke to Wheeler."

Kisara fidgets. "Mr. Wheeler was a big name in Duel Monsters, back in the time of, you know, Battle City," she squeaks meekly. "When I saw that he was working for the Children's Sanctuary, I just…"

Seto shakes his head quickly, and Kisara sees a flash of the confident authoritarian reemerge in him. "No matter," he says briskly.

They sit in poised, uncomfortable silence for a moment.

"I think you're being framed," Kisara blurts out. "Especially after talking to Mr. Wheeler. There's something big going on out there. Someone wants to see you go down. But I think you're…" the word innocent is poised on the tip of her tongue, but she hesitates. "...not responsible for all of these disappearances from the Children's Sanctuary."

Seto's shoulders relax slightly. For a moment, his blue eyes appear watery and Kisara fears that the man is liable to crumble into tears. "Well, then," he says softly.

"It's damning, the evidence on you, right now," Kisara continues, tugging anxiously on a stray strand of white hair. "But if I turn the evidence over, they're not going to look any further. It looks pretty…conclusive."

"How much do you know, exactly?"

Kisara's shoulders shoot upwards towards her cheeks, and she fidgets with the hem of her skirt. "You...or someone hacked into your account….has been deleting the records of children that go missing from the Domino City Children's Sanctuary." Her lower lip juts out a little, and her eyes go wide. "And also, at the same time, there's money going into an account that has your name on it."

Seto tilts his head, staring intensely at her. His bright blue eyes bore holes in her skull. "There's more."

Kisara clicks her tongue against her teeth. "Um," she says. "That's not great."

"Someone else knows, too. I'm being blackmailed."

"I mean, that's pretty bad."

Eyes nervously darting back and forth, Seto says nothing, the corners of his mouth trembling. "I won't stand for my name being sullied," he says, "but what's happening to these kids...what might be…" his voice trails off, and he grabs a handful of fabric from his suit sleeve, scrunching it the palm of his hand.

If she hadn't fully understood the magnitude of the situation, she does in that moment, and it hits her like a sack of bricks, making her head spin. Kids are being hurt, she thinks, shuddering violently at the image of terrified children being whisked off by shadowy, faceless forces.

"Of course, I'm quite skilled in understanding computer security, as well." Kisara is thankful for Seto's brusque, deep voice cutting through the nightmarish images in her head. "But I have a company to run, and for the sake of appearances, I can't afford to divert all of my attention to this."

Kisara nods, tilting her head slightly. "I understand."

Another long, tense pause stretches between them, finally broken by Seto clearing his throat with a slight cough. "I'm asking for your assistance in tracking down whoever is responsible for all of this."

She half-expected this, but her pulse still quickens at the prospect of working directly with one of the richest and most accomplished men in the world. "I understand," she repeats, busying herself with polishing the screen of her tablet with her sleeve to hide the warm flush of excitement that climbs steadily up her cheeks.

Apparently satisfied with this reaction, Seto's lips tighten into a slight smile, and he nods briskly. "Obviously, your discretion is of the utmost importance in a role like this," he says. "And I am willing to pay for that"-

"Oh!" Kisara yelps, momentarily caught off guard. She wasn't quite expecting him to yield for her exclamation, and she fidgets anxiously. "Right, Mr. Kaiba."

"Call me Seto."

"Mr….Mr. Seto."

For a split second, Seto Kaiba looks the slightest bit amused. "Just Seto, Miss Endo."

Kisara rubs awkwardly at the back of her neck with one hand. "Just Kisara, then."

"All right, Kisara."

Recollecting herself, Kisara folds her hands politely in her lap. "I can promise to do the utmost to maintain your confidentiality, Seto," Kisara affirms. An unexpected swell of confidence makes her sit a little straighter, and she meets Seto's remarkably bright blue gaze head-on.

Seto nods. "I expected no less," he remarks smoothly. There is no denying that he looks a great deal more relaxed, and Kisara can see the soft curve of his eyebrows under his bangs. Although his eyes have deep bags under them, their color is remarkable to Kisara, and her gaze lingers on him for a moment before she finally looks away, painfully aware of the steady hum of blood rushing through her cheeks.

"I have another office, which can offer us more privacy," Seto suggests. "Can you be back here tonight at seven?"

"Earlier, if you need me."

Seto sighs, and his shoulders sag visibly. Kisara is surprised to feel empathy swell up as a lump in her throat as she watches him deflate in front of her; he looks less like an intimidating billionaire CEO and more like another one of Kisara's overworked and exhausted colleagues. "Unfortunately, until then, I'm going to be occupied with damage control at the Children's Sanctuary."

Kisara dips her head quickly. "Understood. I can meet you back here."

Seto nods at her, and she pivots on her heel to leave. The heavy double doors slam loudly as she exits.


The Domino City Children's Sanctuary, with its stained red-brick exterior and scraggly crabgrass lawns and iron bars on the windows, is not a pleasant place in general, but Seto's least favorite part of visiting the Children's Sanctuary are the bright, watchful pairs of eyes that follow his every move. Like skittish mice, children disappear from the hallways as he approaches, but he can see little faces peering out at him from behind every door. His every footstep echoes into an eerie and unnatural silence. He swallows hard, biting the inside of his lip and keeping his gaze locked straight ahead. It takes his every ounce of self-control not to bolt for the door.

Gozaburo preached complete rejection of compassion as a fundamental tenet of humanity. Gozaburo worshiped at the shrine of power and pushed Seto into the same direction, mercilessly attempting to beat out every ounce of his humanity. Seto himself used to consider himself too far gone to be considered human. It was comforting, almost-if he was nothing but a monster, a subhuman creature that no longer required compassion and love and acceptance and humanity, then at least he wouldn't have to admit that he ached for those things, and was constantly plagued with the fear that he would never deserve them. But the pain that radiates viscerally in his chest is a miserable reminder that his transformation from human to monster, crafted in Gozaburo's own image, had never been quite complete. He is torn between wanting to save all of the children that stare at him, watching with a fascination that borders on reverence, and knowing that despite all of his means, he wouldn't know how to really save them, anyways. So he pretends he doesn't notice, and he keeps walking, snorting softly and shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his suit coat.

He is so focused on keeping his eyes locked ahead that he almost misses the office tucked at the end of a hallway, between the cafeteria that smells like boiled vegetables and a bathroom that smells strongly of ammonia. Inside, a man with thinning light brown hair combed neatly behind his ears sits behind a desk adorned with a nameplate that reads Gavin Steinborn, Director of Operations, DCCS.

"Mr. Kaiba," the man says, standing up and hustling to greet Seto at the doorway with a handshake. His eyes are the dark green of a freshly-mowed lawn, and his skin is a soft and sun-kissed golden color.

Seto nods, briskly grasping the man's hand in a well-practiced series of motions-grab, make eye contact, up-down, release. "Thank you for agreeing to meet with me."

Gavin gestures to the overstuffed chairs that line the corners of his office before settling into a red armchair. "Mr. Kaiba, of course. This situation is, to say the least, extremely urgent." He presses his fingers together, raising his hands to eye level. "We intend to give the police investigation as much aid as they possibly can."

Seto's heart stops for a moment. The police. He almost forgot about the police. "I appreciate that. Young Paladins intends to cooperate as well." Narrowing his eyes, he adds, "What is the current state of the investigation?"

"Reeling. They're starting with interviewing kids, looking for leads on where the children disappeared to. Obviously, the safety of the children is being made the priority."

"I'm glad to hear that."

"I am, as well." Gavin sighs, leaning back a little in his chair. "Can I level with you for a moment, Seto? I'm not optimistic about the police. Of course, it's sad that kids are disappearing, but they're orphans." He shakes his head, and a few strands of brown hair slip out of place and fall in front of his eyes. "People like to act like they care, but if they really cared about these kids, then this place wouldn't look like this. You know, don't you?"

Seto grimaces, lost in a deluge of unpleasant memories. "Too well."

"You and I both. I came up in here, you know. I was lucky that I ended up where I am now, instead of in prison or out on the streets. I'm always glad to see that other kids were able to do the same. You took your little brother with you on your ride to the top, didn't you?"

"Mokuba…that's right." Seto unconsciously grabs for the card-shaped locket he still wears around his neck. "He's going to college now. Electrical engineering."

Gavin smiles, and the skin around his green eyes crinkles a little. "That's great. I had a big brother, you know. We aged out of the system before we found a family." The man heaves a huge sigh that almost appears to cave in his chest. "He stuck around until I aged out, too, but he disappeared a long time ago. That's part of what I want to do here, right? Stability, continuity, give these kids the tools they'll need to have functional lives on the other end of all this."

"That's all well and good," Seto says, choking back his emotions. "The mission of the Domino City Children's Sanctuary is part of the reason that I wanted to make this place one of the focuses of my foundation."

"We appreciate that very much, Mr. Kaiba." Gavin leans towards Seto, resting his elbows on his knees and folding his hands in a prayer-like position in front of him. "I saw the news, I saw that they're trying to cast suspicion on the Young Paladins. We're having a press conference of our own here, and I intend to say that I don't believe it one bit." He shakes his head vehemently. "There's a lot of people who are going to try and take advantage of vulnerable kids who don't have anyone looking out for them. I'm hoping they'll catch the real douchebag, we'll find the kids, and we can work on moving forwards out of this mess." The smile he flashes at Seto is tired but hopeful. "That'd be best for us all, you know?"


"It's like a panic room," Kisara remarks, staring around her at the giant terminal screens on the walls, the red velvet swivel chairs, the stainless steel refrigerator tucked inconspicuously into a corner.

Without further ado, Seto plunks himself in front of a large keyboard in the middle of the room, and a boot menu appears on one of the giant screens. "Of sorts," he says nonchalantly, his fingers already beginning to fly over the keys. "You can use the other terminal, over there. Help yourself."

Kisara had been waiting for him outside of his office when he arrived at six fifty-three. She had changed from her work clothes into a pair of dark jeans and a royal blue sweatshirt that proudly announced her affiliation with Domino City University. She had impressed him by coming prepared with her own laptop, ethernet cords, and a black notebook with a soft leather cover.

He led her from the lobby and down the elevator and out of the building, crossing the street into a small park. Behind a duck pond was a small trapdoor, operable by his cell phone, which opened into a narrow staircase that smelled faintly of the earth.

If Kisara had been hesitant to follow him down a staircase that had appeared out of nowhere from behind a pond, she gave no indication; the only way he knew she was still following him was by the echoing sound of her sneakers on the stairs. Motion-activated lights continue to guide them into the darkness, and finally into a room with chairs and computer screens and little else. Here, Seto hacked into the Industrial Illusions mainframe to save himself once before. He rarely visits here, but he feels stronger. This is his home turf.

Despite the circumstances, he smiles grimly to himself, cracking his knuckles before diving into work.

The steady flow of keyboard-clacking noises coming from Kisara's direction falters, and Seto glances sideways, making a concerted effort not to turn his head to look at her. Her lips are pursed, and her hands are laced together and pressed against her mouth. He smiles, realizing that they have assumed almost identical positions.

"Seto?"

"Yes."

"Do you think someone at the Children's Sanctuary is out to get you?" If Kisara's voice were an animal, it would be a cat, balancing carefully along a ledge far too thin to lose its' balance.

Seto stops working and swivels his chair around to look at her. "What do you mean?" he asks.

"I just…." Kisara chews on her lip, eyes directed upwards towards the dim lights that illuminate the cave-like space. "Since everything was done, you know, in your account name, it would be hard to sniff down the right person, without leads. I did some preliminary work during lunch, but I just realized, I'm focusing mostly on people connected to the Young Paladins." The rubber sole of her white sneaker taps nervously against the ground, echoing dully in the darkness. "Looking through records from the Children's Sanctuary would be harder. Doing a brute-force kind of thing, I think this would catch up with you before we could find out anything useful."

Seto grits his teeth and Kisara flinches backward into her seat. "I don't know," he says finally.

Kisara puffs out her cheeks. "I mean….Kaiba Corp, one of the most powerful companies on the planet. You must have enemies, right?"

"I don't actively try to accumulate them, anymore."

Kisara's wide blue eyes open and close thoughtfully. For a moment, Seto is hypnotized by the unexpected beauty in bluish glow of the terminal screen on the soft angles of her face, and he shakes his head to make the thoughts stop.

"You made a lot of enemies back in the Battle City days," Kisara suggests finally. Already prepared to defend herself, she narrows her eyes, adding, "everyone knows that."

"Wheeler?"

"I mean…."

Seto shakes his head, allowing himself a one-note laugh. "I spoke to that idiot last night," he tells her. "He warned me to watch my back. Believe me, that idiot doesn't have enough brain power to double-cross me."

"Oh." Kisara's face falls, and it is hard to tell in the dim blue light if her cheeks are really flushing, or if it is just in Seto's imagination. "I didn't know. Sorry."

The silence is adulterated only by the distant mechanical hum of the refrigerator.

"Anybody else, then?" Kisara asks, swiveling her chair away from Seto to face her computer terminal once again.

"Sorry."