I know, it's late. In a few hours, it won't be Thursday anymore. I was working out a couple kinks.

One of the things I've enjoyed most about "Paved with Good Intentions" is that it's given me a chance to explore Domino City's population outside of dueling. A character that I've had a lot of fun with, in spite of the fact that she's only shown up a couple of times, is Joanna Lorwell.

She's Mokuba's English teacher, and that probably has a lot to do with why I enjoy writing her. After all, she's living my dream. Another character connected to Joanna is her sister, Jennifer, who works for Domino's orphanage. In the first chapter of the original work, they were together for one scene, and that was it. I decided to try again, and see what things were like for Jo around her family.

I added another spice into the mix, for the fun of it.


Joanna Lorwell exuded a certain aura of quiet authority that made Mokuba feel nervous about entering her room after school let out, in spite of the fact that he was pulling an A in her class.

But if Mokuba was nervous, Connor was petrified.

He looked like the door to Miss Lorwell's room was the gate leading into a prison block, and Mokuba nudged him as he opened it. "You might wanna try looking less guilty. You're not asking for her firstborn."

"I…I know, but…"

They entered.

Miss Lorwell was leaning on the front of her desk, arms crossed. She was laughing. Standing near her was a tall, muscular man with a shaved head and a blocky, severe face that was now—jarringly—looking rather pouty. "I still think they could've been something, if the gingersnap hadn't come back into the picture." At this, Joanna snickered.

The man's arms, thick and corded with muscle, were bare; Mokuba was slightly surprised that they weren't covered with tattoos.

Behind Miss Lorwell and her…bodyguard? Perched atop the filing cabinet with a music player in her hands and headphones covering her ears was a young woman Mokuba recognized. Her green-streaked, spiky black hair was a dead giveaway.

It struck the young Kaiba that this man was sporting the sort of fashion that Matt Kerns tried to pull off—though effortlessly rather than entirely forced—and the girl on the cabinet had the hair.

It was Jennie, one of the employees Seto had recruited to the Domino Children's Home.

The man turned and saw the two boys. Connor squeaked and took an instinctive step behind Mokuba, who only looked mildly curious. He waved. "Hi," he said easily, unconcerned and confident.

The man saluted. "Yo."

Joanna shook her head, scoffing. "You're out of your mind," she said. "They kissed once, and besides…the whole thing was superficial at best."

"Oh, right," said the big man, "like the whole thing with Ginny wasn't forced."

Suddenly Mokuba understood what was going on. His grin widened. Connor just looked confused. Joanna's eyes slid over to Mokuba and Connor, and her grin widened as well. "There you are. Mokuba, Connor, this is Charlie," she gestured to the man, "and the antisocial rebel without a point," she jerked a thumb behind her, "is Jennie."

Mokuba nodded. "I remember Jennie. Niisama hired her to work for Big Kristine."

Jennie glanced over. Seeing Mokuba, her eyes widened. She flashed a grin and waved entirely too enthusiastically. Pulling the headset down around her neck, she said, "Hi, there! I know you!"

"Hi," Mokuba waved back. "So…how do you know Charlie? Or…how does he know you?" The young Kaiba wasn't sure if he should be asking this, but he liked Miss Lorwell, and he was curious. No one could claim that Mokuba did not ask a question when he wanted an answer. He wondered if the man was her boyfriend, or her husband, or her lawyer. For all he knew, the man was a clinical anthropologist.

"Oh!" Joanna grinned. "Charlie's my big brother."

Charlie winked. "Two years."

"Our big brother," Jennie huffed with false exasperation. "Gawd!"

"And this, Charlie, is Connor Brinkley and…" Joanna slipped into a fake, stern British accent, "…Mister Kaiba. Our new…celebrity."

Charlie raised an eyebrow. He replied in an equally fake accent of his own: "Is it true, then? Is it true 'e 'as a scar on 'is fore'ead?"

Mokuba laughed.

Connor still looked confused.

Joanna was chuckling. "What can I do for you, boys?"

"Ron wanted to ask a question about the homework, Professor," Mokuba offered.

Charlie laughed now.

"Huh?" Connor asked, thoroughly flustered. "Wha—oh. Me. Sorry. I…I don't…"

"…Maybe he's Neville," Mokuba murmured under his breath. "Do you like plants, Connor?"

"What? Uh…I…guess?"

"I…Never mind. Ignore me."

Connor just shook his head and looked back at their teacher. "Um…Miss Lorwell? I was wondering, for…for the Shakespeare presentation…instead of poster-board, could I use a PowerPoint? Like, put all the pictures and stuff onto slides and put it on a flash drive?"

Joanna mulled this over. "…I don't see a problem with that. Just give credit if you find your pictures on the internet, on the last slide. Okay?"

Connor brightened considerably. A smile lit his face. "Okay!" he declared. "I will!"

"Good. Go ahead, then."

"Thanks, Miss Lorwell!"

Charlie was frowning now, rubbing his square jaw. "You do look familiar, Potter," he said, looking at Mokuba; continuing the metaphor as though it were stone truth. "I've seen you on the news."

"Ch'yeah," Jennie said, snorting. "Duh."

"What did you see?" Joanna wondered.

Charlie crossed his arms. "That Sirius blew Voldemort's face off with a semi-automatic," he said, and he looked like he wasn't sure if this joke was appropriate or not. Judging by his sisters' faces, it wasn't.

"Charlie!" Jennie hissed. Joanna's jaw was set.

"Too soon?" Charlie asked, and he looked over at Mokuba. "Sorry, man. I don't really think before I…" He trailed off.

Mokuba looked the exact opposite of offended. He looked like a rather obsessively devout churchgoer on Easter Sunday. His eyes were wide as soup plates, and his mouth parted the slightest bit. Connor frowned at him. "I don't get it. What are you even…?"

An awestruck little smile spread on the black-haired boy's face. "Sirius…" he whispered, like it was the sweetest word ever uttered by a human mouth. "S-Sirius! Yes!" He looked like his birthday had come early. "Why didn't I see that?"

The tension in the room evaporated.

"Story of my life," Charlie said, smiling again. "Off-color jokes, should land me in a courtroom, end up impressing the right person." He looked at his sisters. "Remember when I told that walrus story around Dad's boss? Got me a foot in at a law office."

"Are you a lawyer?" Mokuba asked suddenly, still looking manically euphoric.

"Thought about it," the big man said. "Then I realized it meant I'd have to work for a living. So, decided to be a rock star instead. Live up to my mother's worst expectations of me." He winked. "I gyrate around and screech stupid words into a microphone for Backyard Bombshell. Heard of us?" He asked this like he was sure none of them had. "We're playing Kaiba-Con this year. Your brother just started that gig a year ago, right?"

Mokuba nodded.

"Cool. We're like pioneers. Except…not."

As if summoned by their thoughts of and conversation about him, in strode Seto Sasaki-Yagami Kaiba, dressed in a pitch-black suit—all except an indigo tie—looking supremely uninterested in the behemoth that was Charlie, who was several inches taller than he was and considerably larger.

"Finished, boys?" he asked quietly.

Mokuba whirled, and threw his arms around his big brother like he hadn't seen him in months. "Snuffles!" he all but shrieked, a wide grin on his face. For one solitary moment, silence made time itself do a double take, and they all heard a record scratch the air.

Then they all, including Connor, exploded into a fit of laughter that rang, echoed, and danced through the room.

If there were, in fact, words to describe the expression on Seto's face at that moment, they weren't in a language any of them knew.


Yes. Joanna, Jennifer, and Charlie are all nerds. What? Wanna fight about it?

I mentioned in the first chapter that my hatred for J. K. Rowling's magnum opus has not only abated, but reversed itself. I have a lot of respect for what she's managed to do with the Harry Potter universe, and I can only imagine how it feels to have a body of work so widespread and universally loved.

And so, a chapter laced with HP references, just because I'm reading the series over again, and I find it entertaining. I hope that you do, as well. If not, I apologize. I probably would have been right there with you a couple years ago. But remember; the wait's only 'til Saturday.

For the uninitiated, here's my rationale for the references. Mokuba, like the titular Harry Potter, is an orphan. Like Harry, Mokuba grew up with no memory of his parents, is famous for something largely out of his control, has been the target of any number of magical incidents, his only real parental figure is a surrogate, and he has entirely untamable black hair.

As to Seto, the connection is with Sirius Black. Bitter, sarcastic, angry at the world. Comes from a rich family but doesn't take much pride or solace in the fact, takes care of a child who isn't biologically his own, isn't afraid to kill if he feels it's necessary, and absolutely loathes staying idle, preferring instead to act regardless of potential consequences.

"Snuffles" is a reference to a codename Sirius insists that the main characters use when writing to him, as he's an escaped convict.

The "Sirius blew Voldemort's face off" bit is a reference to the current storyline of the original GI, which is close to completion, called "Shot in the Dark."

Oh, and this chapter's title comes from the chorus of Tim McGraw's "Southern Voice," from the 2009 album of the same name, for those who might be interested.

That pretty much sums it up. Hope you guys had fun. I did.

See you this weekend.