Beyblade Fan Fiction ❯ Running Scared ❯ Time ( Chapter 3 )

Authoress' Notes: Ah…I don't have much to say. Just that this one's a little long and that I'm turning Hilary into Tyson's cousin. Oh, and the last little bit will be in 3rd person POV because Kai's not actually going along for the ride…well, you'll see. That's it for now…I think. O.o

Warnings: Same as Chapter 1. See chapter 1 if you're that concerned about it.

Disclaimers: Nope. Still don't own anything. Don't own either of the songs Time - either. They belong to Sarah McLauchlan, and Chantel Kreviazuk.

Reviews: A huge thank you to all of you who reviewed! @ FF.Net: Joce, Dragi, Genna, Bloody Mary, & Flamable_Devil (aka Jen ^-^)! @ AFF.Net: XZanayu, Yami no Ite, & L! And @ the groups: Weeping Angel & kirei_16. Thanks everyone! *huggles all*

Chapter 3: Time

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They say your past will come back to haunt you.

They, whoever 'they' are, have no idea how prophetic that old cliché can be.

I knew I was still ghostly white and appeared to be in shock when I followed Mr. Dickenson back into the conference room. There wasn't much I could do about that but slip into work mode, shutting down as much as I could emotionally and focus on the briefing at that moment.

There would be time later to have a breakdown.

Dranzer was in my head emoting concern and love. I gave her a mental headshake and said, {Don't. Please. I can't take it now, Dranzer. I need some time.}

{I'll be with you when you're ready, chibi.} I couldn't smile at the childhood nickname, though I wanted to.

Rei must have noticed I looked like death-warmed-over because any humour in his expression faded away. His eyes widened and he made a questioning noise when I found I couldn't meet his gaze anymore and stared at my hands in my lap instead.

"Kai?" He whispered in my ear when I'd dropped down into the seat next to him. "What is it?"

"Bad." I managed to get out. Before he could start asking more questions, Mr. Dickenson began the briefing.

"Listen up." He said, getting our attention. He proceeded to tell everyone what he'd told me in his office, though he left out the part about Tyson. "Okay? Any questions so far?" No one said a word. "Then I'll move on. Your mission, I'm sure, is pretty clear. First we must determine what happened to Wolf. When we have that information we'll plan our next move. The major goal will be to stop Boris from succeeding and to shut down his operations. And all the data and DNA samples he has collected must be destroyed. Oh, and this time find someone who will know where the backup data is being kept so we can destroy that too."

"Where do we start?" I asked, tonelessly.

"Moscow. Maybe you'll be able to find a clue there. Head for Japan first, though. It's crucial you bring in the last team member before Boris gets to him first."

I swallowed hard and nodded shortly.

"Good. Dismissed. Keep me informed, Phoenix." He went back into his office and I stood up slowly.

Max gave me a curious look. "A fifth team member? In Japan? Who?"

Rei was looking at me in horror. He'd put it all together. "Dear Gods, no. Kai…"

"Don't Rei." I snapped. I felt a twinge of guilt for taking out my rage and helplessness on him but I didn't apologize. I'd do that later, too. "We've got work to do, people. Chief, pack light and don't bring a bunch of toys with you. Whatever you might need we can get as we go. Max, go find us a plane that we can use for as long as we might need it." I flipped open my wallet and pulled out a business card that was blank, and scribbled a number on it. "Phone that number with the details and get ready to get us to Japan. We need to leave tomorrow."

"Got it." Max looked at the card briefly then handed it back. "I won't need that. Photographic memory." He explained when Rei blinked at him.

"Hn. Useful." was all I could say. "Go!" I commanded when they just sat there for a moment longer. They jumped up and practically ran for the elevator doors. Rei and I followed silently, for which I was thankful. I didn't think I'd be able to hold back much longer.

Some trainee agent I'd never met before was the unlucky person who got to drive us back to the Sound and Light show to get our car (after we'd gotten to ride in the box of that Mack truck again, that is). He kept glancing at me in the rear view mirror nervously.

He had good reason to. I was in desperate need of an outlet for my emotions and it would have been immensely satisfying to blow something into dust particles.

Which is exactly what I did the second his taillights disappeared around a corner, leaving us next to our car. I spun around, seeking out a barely visible boulder in the dark and blasted the unoffending rock into sand with a well-placed fireball no bigger than my fist. Rei squeaked and jumped slightly at the sudden detonation, watching me warily as I went on a rampage, looking for more rocks.

In my state, however, I'd need a whole mountain to destroy and there weren't any available at the moment. So I continued blasting boulders and cursing in every language I could think of, settling on German eventually because I found the guttural harshness quite satisfying.

Eventually Rei had to risk his hide and interrupt me, leading me back to the car and shoving me into the passenger side. I didn't complain about it. I was in no condition to be driving right then. And we needed to leave before someone came to investigate the explosions.

We got back to the hotel and I felt so drained that I just collapsed onto my bed and stared at the ceiling.

I heard Rei sigh and the mattress creak as he sat down next to me. He didn't say anything, waiting until I was ready to talk.

"This sucks." I finally said. I was horrified to hear tears in my voice. Rei smiled grimly.

"Very."

"I don't know if I'm going to be able to do this, Rei. I really don't."

"It'll be okay. You're strong, Kai. And I'll always be here for you if you need it."

Just as you've always been. I thought.

I rolled onto my side, facing away from him, and curled into a ball, feeling helpless and fragile. I felt the bed move as Rei got up and grabbed a coverlet, draping it over me and leaving me to my sorrow.

Dranzer, too, added her soothing presence and I could almost feel her soft feathers as if she'd wrapped her wings around me in a warm embrace.

When my cell phone rang, Rei answered and got all the information we needed from Max. I just closed my eyes and drifted into a restless slumber, filled with dreams that echoed my memories of the past.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It didn't surprise me to wake up the next morning with damp cheeks. In my sleep I'd cried because I never allowed myself to when I was awake.

I felt groggy and my head was all fuzzy. I rubbed the grit out of my eyes. I looked over at the other bed and saw that Rei had left.

"He'd better be bringing me coffee." I grumbled. I'm not a morning person as it is but under the circumstances this morning was worse than usual. I got up and stumbled into the shower, hoping to feel more human when I was clean again.

When I'd finished and dressed, I started packing up my stuff again. Just as I was zipping my bag up, the wayward neko-jin returned.

"Where were you?" I growled. "Tom-catting?"

He smiled sunnily at me and handed over a large paper coffee cup. "I'm not going to deign to respond to that comment because I know you need a jolt of caffeine."

I snatched the coffee from him and pried the lid off. The beautiful aromatic scent of freshly brewed coffee hit me and I think I might have moaned. Rei just rolled his eyes at me as I sipped reverently.

"I've never seen anyone have a near orgasmic experience over a cup of coffee before." He chuckled, shoving his own stuff into his bag quickly. "When you're done, we should go. The Chief and Max will be waiting for us at the airport. Max signed out a BBA plane for us. He said the Boss has cleared us for unlimited funds and equipment."

"Whatever we need?" I shrugged. "Not a surprise."

"No. It makes me feel better though."

"I'd give all my money to see that demon's spawn taken out once and for all." I crumpled my empty coffee cup and tossed it in the wastebasket. "But since I don't have to, let's go get this over with."

Rei nodded. "You feeling better?" He asked, hoisting his bag over his shoulder. "You've got your colour back, at least."

"Physically? I guess so. Otherwise? No." I followed him out to the car. He'd already checked us out earlier that morning, I assumed. "I can't express how much I'm not looking forward to this." I got behind the wheel and waited for Rei to get in before heading off for the airport.

"Yeah, well, there's not much we can do." Rei agreed. "We need him. More, we have to protect him from Boris if we can."

I didn't have to reply to that. He knew I agreed whole-heartedly with him.

Max and the Chief were indeed waiting for us out on the tarmac as Rei and I hurried over.

"Hey, you two! Ready to fly?" Max greeted us cheerfully.

"Are we cleared?" I asked, climbing the stairs behind the others as we boarded.

"Yep. So who wants to come up front and keep me company for the flight?" The blonde inquired, flashing us all a grin. I just ignored him and went to find a seat.

I could feel their curious gazes follow me and heard Rei hastily say, "Ah…Chief can keep you company, Maxie. Phoenix and I have some data to go over on the trip."

"If you're sure, Rei." Max shrugged, slinging an arm around Kenny's shoulders and leading him up to the cockpit. "Have you ever ridden up front before, Chief?"

Rei came over and sat across from me, folding his arms on the tabletop and watching me. I pulled out the files on Boris and started studying data, doing my very best to ignore him. I shoved a file at him and didn't bother looking up as I spoke.

"If you're just going to sit there and stare at me the entire time, you can help me go through the files."

"I will. In a bit." I could feel his penetrating gaze on me. "What are you going to tell him?"

Even though I knew the question was coming, I had to close my eyes and sigh, slamming the file shut. I didn't think he would leave me alone this time - and it was rather brave of him. I tunnelled my fingers through my hair in agitation, just as the plane started moving.

"As soon as we're in the air and level off, Kai, you're going to talk to me. You can't keep it all bottled up this time. It's too dangerous and I won't let you."

I hated to admit it, but he was right. So I gave him a curt nod and stared out the window for a while.

I'll give Rei credit. He managed to curb his curious nature for half an hour.

"Well?"

"What the fuck do you want me to say, Rei?!" I stood up and started pacing. I guess I was going to vent whether I liked it or not.

"You can say to me whatever you need to, Kai, to get through this. You have to get through this. We need Tyson badly. I know you agree. But we need you just as much, if not more." I looked at him startled.

"You'd all do just fine without me, Rei." I really believed that. Rei, apparently, didn't agree with me.

"No, actually, we wouldn't. There's a reason why any and all of us have followed you willingly. There's a reason why I have always followed you." He gave me a look that was so intense I had to stop and stare at him. "You are a natural leader, Kai Hiwatari. You're so strong. I've seen you stay strong under the worst possible conditions, the worst threats to life and limb and sanity. You're our captain, our protector…our friend. You always will be."

I had to sit down I was that floored.

"I…I didn't know you felt this way." I managed.

He shrugged. "No. That doesn't surprise me. You have a great gift, Kai - a natural ability. It's a part of you and one can easily forget or pay little attention to something that is a part of oneself. I sometimes forget I have a tail." He unwound said appendage and wiggled it at me. I couldn't help cracking a smile. "Ah! There. That's better. There's still hope for you."

"Maybe." I sighed and began to fidget. Me. Fidget? That's not good. I growled at myself and sat on my hands, scowling. Rei laughed in delight. "Oh, shut up."

"Sorry. It's just funny. It's going to be fine, Kai. Tyson…well, he'll be shocked, probably angry at first. But after you talk to him and explain why…even if he doesn't like what you did, he'll forgive you."

"He'll hate me." I whispered, looking down at the floor and studying my shoes since I suddenly found them fascinating. "Rei, he thinks I'm dead! Has for seven bloody years! And I'm suddenly going to pop up out of nowhere and say, 'Hi, honey! I'm home!' He'll absolutely flip out on me."

Rei frowned. "Maybe. Maybe not."

"Oh, Gods." Something rather unthinkable dawned on me at that point. "Gods, Rei…what if he refuses to have anything to do with me? He might not listen to me and/or refuse to come with us."

"Shit. You're right." Rei scowled and his tail lashed in agitation. "I never got to know him as well as you did but from what I did pick up from him was that he's more stubborn and thick-willed than you are."

I dropped my head into my hands and groaned. "Oh, things just get more and more complicated, don't they?" There was only one possible solution that I could think of.

"One of you will have to go get him and bring him to me. Some place where he can't run away." It hurt to think about it. My stomach wasn't real happy with me in fact. "Even if he does hate me, refuse to help, we'll be able to…take him into protective custody." I almost couldn't say it. I think that if it really did come down to that, it would douse whatever tiny spark of light was still inside me.

Rei nodded slowly. I suddenly felt so cold…like I had just been bathed in ice water. I began to shiver and Rei gave me a look of sympathy, getting out a blanket and settling it over my shoulders.

"Be careful, Kai. I think the stress is catching up to you. We can't afford for you to be out with the flu or something." He felt my forehead briefly, checking my temperature. "Well, you're still cool, so no fever - yet. Forget the files for now. Just try to relax and rest. I'll make you some tea to warm you up." He moved over to the kitchenette.

I think I might have pouted. I whined at him, "Coffee would be better."

"Oh no. You're nerves are already highly strung. You don't need that. You need to relax. So…tea."

I sighed and gave in. He's the healer, after all.

He brought me the tea with a few drops of honey in it and I gladly wrapped my hands around the hot mug, absorbing the heat into myself like a sponge would water, sipping slowly.

He was right, though. It did relax me.

Then again, it could have been the sleeping pill he'd dissolved in the tea, using the honey to mask the taste, the sneaky little bastard.

Five minutes after I'd finished my tea, I was out like a light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, get over it, Kai."

I glared harder at him.

He rolled his eyes. "You needed the rest! You can't tell me you don't feel better now, either." Rei's scowl dared me to claim otherwise.

The plane was landing by the time that interfering neko-jin deigned to wake me up. Now I had practically no time to plan anything, which I pointed out to my self-proclaimed protector.

"If that's your idea of lessening my stress load, Rei, it's not working."

"Come on, Kai. You didn't think I'd just sit around and do nothing, did you? It's not that complicated."

I leaned back in my seat and folded my arms over my chest, raising an eyebrow at him. "Regal me with your cleverness, then."

"Simple. I'll take Max and we'll go get him. We won't tell him about you or anything. We'll just tell him he's in danger and if he wants to protect Dragoon he'll come with us and we'll explain everything later." Rei outlined the plan for me.

I scowled. "Which you will, of course, leave me to do, right?"

Rei narrowed his eyes at me and growled in frustration. "Well?! Do you want me to tell him you're alive?"

I closed my eyes and contemplated that, weighing the pros and cons. Finally, I exhaled slowly and said, "You can. Use your judgment, though. If you think he can handle it, tell him. Or don't tell him unless it's a last resort to get him to come with you willingly."

"Okay. I can do that." Rei nodded.

"One more thing. You and Max need to be very careful. I have no doubt he's being watched, and not just by our people. Go in and get him out. Don't hang around and don't, if you spot the surveillance, let them know you've seen them." I tapped a finger on the file on Tyson. "Maybe you should go in wired. At least that way if something happens I'll know immediately and I can come help."

"I'm sure the Chief can come up with something." He agreed.

Once we landed, I had Chief outfit both Rei and Max with wires as a precaution. Then I sent them off, sounding more like a mother than Dranzer usually did. Rei finally got tired of it and flatly reminded me he and Max were experienced agents and had enough training and that they could handle themselves.

I shut up at that and waved them off, shooting a warning glare at Max when he started giggling.

~~~~~~~~~~~ POV Change ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was a period of silence in the car as Rei and Max drove to the Kinomiyas' dojo. When Max couldn't stand it anymore, he blurted out, "What's going on with Phoenix, Rei? I've never seen him so…so…out of sorts."

"I can't tell you, Maxie. If Phoenix wants you to know, he'll tell you." Rei replied, calmly staring out the window.

//Are you two forgetting I can hear you?// Kai's voice suddenly spoke in their ears.

"No." Max scowled, weaving in and out of traffic like flowing water. "But I think we have a right to know if there's going to be problems between you and this new team member. Who's a civilian I'll remind you."

They both heard a sigh and there was a moment of silence again. Then… //Fine. I won't give you details, Max. It's better for everyone if I don't. All you need to know for now is that I know Tyson. He and I were…we had a relationship.//

"Oh." Max pondered that. "How close?"

There was another pause then a quiet answer Rei hadn't expected Kai to admit. //I love him.//

Max's expression could only be described as sympathetic…in a comical way. "Fabulous. I'm sorry, Phoenix."

//No more than I am, Max.//

"This is going to be difficult."

"Very." Rei shook his head. "There it is Max."

"Here we go." Max parked across the street, taking a quick glance around. "There's no other vehicles visible in the area, Phoenix."

//There probably won't be. Proceed, Tiger. And be careful.//

"Always." Rei replied.

They got out of the car and stretched a bit, pretending as if they'd been traveling for some time. "Come on, Max. I hope he's home. I think you'll really like him."

Max, playing along (kind of), replied in his usual exuberant voice, "I've no doubt!" and followed Rei in.

Rei knocked on the residence's door and waited. Soon he could hear light footsteps approach and the door swung open.

"Can I help you?" It was a petite young woman with brown hair and warm, wine coloured eyes that opened the door. Rei blinked in surprise and frowned slightly.

"Uh…yeah. Is this the Kinomiya residence?"

"Yes." She gave him a suspicious look. "Who are you?"

"Oh, good! I thought maybe I had the wrong place. I'm Rei and this is Max. Ah…we were in town and I thought I would drop in and see how Tyson was doing. I'm an…old friend." Rei explained, lying through his fangs and holding out a hand.

"Is that so? Well, I'm Hilary." She shook their hands then stepped aside. "Come on in. Tyson's not home yet. He's visiting Gramps in the hospital."

They followed her into the living room. "Gramps in the hospital? Oh dear…" Rei gave her a concerned look, knowing Kai was probably worried at hearing that, too. "What happened?"

Hilary laughed lightly. "Oh, nothing too dire. Silly old man fell off a ladder a couple days ago when he was cleaning the eavestrophs out and busted his hip. The doctor is keeping him for a while until his hip's mended."

"Oh my. That's a relief." Rei echoed Kai's sigh of relief in his ear. "When are you expecting Tyson back?"

"Any time now. Can I get you two something to drink?" She offered, getting up and heading for the kitchen.

"No, thanks, Hilary. I'm fine." Max shook his head.

"Rei?"

"Just some tea would be fine, if you're making it."

"Sure. I'll just be a few minutes." She disappeared.

When he was sure she couldn't hear him, Rei quietly asked, "Okay, Phoenix. I know Chief's been digging up data on her. What's the story?"

//She's his cousin.// came the immediate response. //On his mother's side, she's the only living relative. Gramps is his only one on his father's side. I didn't need Chief to tell me that.//

"Okay. Anything else?"

//She can be a bit of a bossy loudmouth and she's as stubborn as Tyson and Gramps are. But she's a good kid.//

Rei was about to ask more but his keen ears picked up the sound of the front door opening. "I think he just got home, Phoenix."

//…Gods.//

Max and Rei looked towards the entry way as footsteps sounded in the hall and a voice called, "Hil! I'm back!" just as he came around the corner. "Oh! I didn't know we had…company. Rei?" Tyson stood there staring at the neko-jin in shock. "What are you doing here?"

Rei stood up and smiled, genuinely glad to see him. "Hey, Tyson. Sorry to just drop in uninvited, but…"

"Tyson! Oh…never mind. I was going to tell you we had guests, but you already know. I'll just get the tea." Hilary popped back into the kitchen.

Tyson smiled a bit after her then turned back to Rei. The neko-jin studied him carefully. The teen he had known was barely visible in this young man anymore. Gone was the light that had made his vivid, midnight blue eyes sparkle. Those same eyes were distant and weary, as if he'd seen way too much in such a short lifetime. They reminded Rei a little too much of Kai's eyes. Tyson's body had matured and trimmed down into a lean, muscular form that Rei felt was just a bit on the skinny side. And he had cut his hair! The ponytail was gone, too.

Rei just wanted to hug him and tell him everything right then and there. But he didn't. Instead, he asked, "How are you doing, Ty?" in a gentle voice.

Tyson sighed and flashed a small smile. "I'm…okay. Really. I had a rough period but I'm doing better now." He sat in an armchair and Rei sat back down next to Max on the couch as Hilary came in with a tea tray.

"That's good." Rei accepted a cup from her. "I was in town and I wanted to check up on you, see how you were. Oh! And this is Max Mizuhara. He's a colleague of mine."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Max." Tyson greeted the blonde.

"It's great to finally meet you, Tyson!" Max grinned at him and Rei rolled his eyes, nudging him.

"Don't mind him. He's always hyper." When he noticed Tyson was regarding him intensely, with a strange, far away look in his eyes, he frowned and asked, "Tyson?"

"Hmm…" he blinked suddenly and frowned. "Okay, Rei. I can't get past your mental barriers. They're too strong without me being intrusive. I can tell, however, that you want to talk to me about something really important and that…you're hiding something. What are you really doing here?" Tyson glanced at Max. "Or shall I just look at Max's thoughts to find out?"

"Uh…" Rei floundered and heard Kai curse fluently in his ear.

//Damn it! He's gone and developed abilities of his own! He's a telepath, Rei - most likely an empath as well. Be on your guard, the both of you.//

"I'm not sure where to start, Tyson." Rei finally said, hoping Kai would get the message. "I really was worried about you."

"I know. I can sense that. Look, Rei, whatever it is just tell me. You can say what you need to in front of Hilary. She won't say a word to anyone, if that's what you're worried about."

Kai was speaking quickly again, too. //Rei! Tell him the truth. He'll know you're lying if you try to anyway. Tell him what you and Max really do and tell him these exact words: the demon is still alive. He'll know what you're talking about.//

Rei and Max looked at each other. "I don't know that we should tell her, Rei." Max shook his head, though he was speaking to Kai. "She's innocent in all this."

//Bring her in, too. We can have Gramps transferred to a BBA hospital where he can be watched and protected. I don't like what my gut is telling me right now. Get them out of there quickly and quietly.//

After taking a deep breath, Rei let it out slowly and gave Tyson a nod of acknowledgement. "Okay. You've heard of the BBA?"

"Yes. It's the research and technology division of the WBC."

"Yes. It's also the front for an ultra-covert agency we like to call the Spirit Squad. The Spirit Squad was formed and now operates to find and protect Sacred Spirits and their bladers, to combat those who would harm them…like the Abbey." Rei explained. Max looked at him sharply at the mention of that place.

"I see. And you work for them?"

"Yeah." Rei frowned. "You don't seem surprised."

"No. They tried to recruit me six years ago."

*************************************

Authoress' Notes: I know I'm evil! Cliff-hanger! I might have kept on going, but this chapter was getting long. Sorry! *winces* Kai's not going to be happy, I can tell you that. More soon! Please R/R!