A/N: Yay! New story! I had forgotten that I had uploaded this to my account a few weeks back...hehe...
Mei: Sorry for the delay!
Disclaimer - Aki: Kari does not own Beyblade and/or its characters, save for the OC's to be encountered herein...
Prologue: The Mountain Chateau
The wind howled, pushing torrents of rain against the sleek black car that climbed the steep, lonely mountain road. Still, it pushed on.
"Grandmother, why are we going to the chateau now? We've almost never used it before, have we?" A young, 16-year-old girl asked from the back seat. She had been told to pack a few things and then hurried into the car a few hours ago, back in the small mansion she called 'home'. A place that now seemed a billion hours away. She was tired, and bored.
"Hush." The elderly, stern-looking woman in the front passenger seat, next to the private chauffeur, commanded. "That is strictly business, Yuriko. You need only know that it concerns you, nothing more."
The auburn-haired girl sighed exasperatedly. "Yes, Grandmother." She looked out the window at the driving rain.
As long as this won't turn out as boring as the first quarter of the holidays, I'll be fine…
What a great way to spend the holidays…16-year-old Kai Hiwatari thought, staring out the window at the driving rain.
"Kai?" the gruff, stern voice of his grandfather, Sochirou Hiwatari, interrupted the slate-haired teen's thoughts. "Are you listening to me?"
Kai nodded slowly, never averting his gaze from the window. "Yes, Grandfather."
"Good. Now, we are going to see an old business partner of mine tomorrow, so I expect you to be on your best behavior. You shall not speak unless spoken to, and you shall treat her with the respect that is due to a person of her high position."
How else would he have wanted me to act? Kai thought moodily as he rolled his eyes. Aloud, he said, "I shall do as you say." The gray-haired business mogul nodded in approval.
"Excellent."
Kai went back to staring out the window, and the limo was quiet for several minutes. Then, the 16-year-old broke the silence.
"Where are we going, anyway?" he asked irritably as he turned to face his grandfather. Instantly, he regretted having used that tone of voice. He noticed the older Hiwatari's face tighten, the mouth reduced to a cold, thin line.
"Where we are going does not concern you," Sochirou's voice was quiet, yet it demanded attention and respect. Though it was monotone, Kai could sense the threat hidden in the words.
"Fine."
As soon as we get there – wherever there is, Kai thought as he turned back to the window. The first thing I'm going to do is get as far from there as possible…I am not spending the holidays with Mr. High-and-Mighty and his pal…
"Bring these upstairs immediately," Yuriko's grandmother, Miyuri Takenoichi, ordered, gesturing to a small pile of luggage. Two male servants, both dressed in tuxedos, stepped forward. "The ones with a blue tag are to be brought to my room, while the ones tagged in red are Yuriko's." she finished. The two servants bowed, and then picked up the bags. Yuriko's deep purple gaze followed them as they made their way down the hall. She watched as they disappeared up a majestic-looking staircase.
"Yuriko."
"Yes, Grandmother?"
"If you want, you may stay in the upstairs library." Here, she gestured to a servant girl who had short, black hair and couldn't have been more than sixteen years old, at the very most. "Ryuko here will show you the way."
The girl called Ryuko stepped forward and bowed; Yuriko bowed, too, to show her acknowledgement.
"You may go," Miyuri said dismissively; Ryuko bowed again and gestured for Yuriko to follow her upstairs, which she did.
There was silence for several minutes as Ryuko led Yuriko through the upstairs hallways. She must have been instructed not to speak unless spoken to, the auburn-haired teen thought, glancing at her silent companion's nervous face. She decided to break the ice.
"How long have you been working for my grandmother, Ryuko?"
"Only for a few months, Takenoichi-sama," the servant girl replied.
"Oh." The teen fell silent as she followed who must have been her 'personal servant' – her grandmother had a nasty habit of appointing her a new one each year. Several more minutes passed, when suddenly, Ryuko stopped walking and turned to face her charge.
"The library is right through here, Takenoichi-sama," she said, bowing. "Perhaps you would like me to accompany you inside?"
Yuriko shook her head, smiling. "No, thank you, Ryuko. I won't be needing you for quite some time."
"Then, I shall summon you when dinner preparations are finished. Or would you prefer that I bring up a dinner tray for you? Your grandmother told me you are rather fond of reading."
Yuriko laughed, putting a hand to her mouth, as she had been taught. "Oh, how she exaggerates! However, I guess I would like to have a tray brought up. I'd like to get through as many books as I can tonight."
Ryuko bowed again. "Very well, Takenoichi-sama." Having finished her 'duty', she walked off down the hall.
Yuriko approached the great oak double doors. Taking a deep breath, she seized a handle, turned it, and pushed open one of the doors. She stepped inside…and gasped.
The library was huge compared to the one she was used to. The room looked to be around fifty square meters and around ten meters high. The bookshelves almost reached the ceiling, and they occupied two of the walls. A huge, three-paneled glass window took up the whole wall opposite the door. Stepping closer to the window, Yuriko saw that the two outer panels of the window were actually stained-glass windows, while the inner one was pure glass. Probably so she can keep an eye on me from here…she thought as she realized that she could see what was most likely the backyard.
She sighed as she made her way to one of the bookshelves. Running her fingers over the books, amethyst orbs scanned the different titles engraved on their spines, searching for one that sounded even remotely interesting. Soon she was curled up on one armchair, reading a rather old volume titled 'A Collection of Shakespeare'.
"Ah, Souchiro, I see you made it despite the foul weather." Miyuri said, glancing up from her pocketbook.
"Miyuri, though I'll admit I was surprised to receive a call from you – when you haven't contacted me for nearly ten years – I would never turn down an invitation from you." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Especially not when it concerns a power merge."
"Well, I'm glad to see that you had a safe trip," the gray-haired woman said as she put down her reading glasses and stood up to face her companion. "Did you bring your grandson?"
"Yes, I did. He is upstairs in the guestroom you had prepared for him, no doubt unpacking." Souchiro smiled proudly. "That is the first thing he does every time he has to stay somewhere aside from the mansion. He's very responsible."
"You've taught him well," Miyuri complimented. "Won't you sit down?" She herself sat back down on the plush armchair she had previously been sitting on and gestured to a similar chair positioned directly across from hers. "These ghastly servants of mine started dinner preparations rather late, I'm afraid."
"Not to worry," the elder Hiwatari assured her as he sat down. "I don't mind the wait. Besides," the gray-haired old man gave a small smile, but it wasn't a pleasant one. "It will give us a chance to discuss the terms of our…agreement."
Miyuri smiled back, deep blue eyes twinkling. "Of course. Now, where shall we start?"
This is so boring! Kai thought as he lay down on his bed. He and his grandfather had arrived at this mountaintop chateau around fifteen minutes earlier. Two servants, who had probably been instructed to await their arrival, brought up their luggage as soon as it was unloaded from the trunk. After that, one of them had shown him to what was to be his room for the duration of their stay, while the other led his guardian to another part of the house. I wonder what 'surprise' Grandfather has in store for me this time?
He got up from the bed and made his way over to the window. It was still pouring. He sighed. Some holiday…
His crimson gaze traveled to a door that apparently led to a bathroom. He sighed again and went over to the mahogany closet to get some spare clothes. Might as well take a bath, since dinner is obviously delayed…
A/N: Oookaaay...that was...rather short, I can tell. Gomen if you were caught hanging. I couldn't think what to write anymore! Ah, well...those are the breaks. R&R, please!
Peace out!