Wolf

Tala-centric

A/N:

A little something that I came up with. Short, drabblish-style, and not meant to be fully understood. Takes place during mid-G revolution, where Tala is defeated by Garland, and lies on the ground held by Tyson, watching Kai Hiwatari walk by him, giving the cold shoulder.

More of something that centers around our favorite wolf, Tala Ivanov, and how he actually is more than the humanoid robot he is labelled to be.

mysterio000

He watched him through blue eyes.

For a while, those aqua orbs resembled nothing. No emotions - somewhere between the line of black and white, maybe inclining a little towards the gray area where all neutrality stood and faced off against the other vibrancy of colors. They revealed nothing ; showed nothing. Worthy set of eyes that belonged to none other than the humanoid robot everyone had came to regard him with.

The title he had proudly claimed when others had simply labelled it on him, and stuck it like a price tag that he was doomed to stick with forever - humanoid robot. No one significant, not even a something, anything, but a lifeless machine with programmed words that would speak volumes the moment someone flicked a switch, and merely awaited a respond that would come from its complicated mechanic parts as it functioned in its process.

He was simply a humanoid robot.

At least, he had tried to be.

In the audience's eyes, he was the cold, intimidating Tala Ivanov. Aloof, arrogant, cynical - never stopping for a moment to stop and appreciate and smell the roses that litter his crossroads every now and then in his life. His heart was a void - the default computer part that was missing the emotional chip. He was simply functioning for the sake of its programming purpose.

If only his life was simply that simple.

As he watched him out of the corner of his eye, he felt an unknowing emotion surging within his heart. An anonymous, funny feeling he had not felt for years - or perhaps had never even came close to feeling it in the first place. It defied definitions, and he could not place a term with that sensation that was overwhelming him like a pummeling fist to his chest.

Like vices that were clutching him too tightly. Guillotines that were refusing to unclamp.

Spikes that were piercing too deeply into the core of his functioning chips.

A flash of trailing white, and then the briefest exchange of red and blue.

Even when his vision was clouded with the temporary haze of black dots that were jumbled up and refused to dissemble any moment, he could make out the solitary, lone figure among the confusing mess of black and white in the layout. The same shade of blue, the fiery flames of red.

And always, the flare of the majestic flaming aura that was Kai Hiwatari solely.

His fingers seemingly reached out for a while, and something clouded in those aqua orbs. Even in a state of semi-consciousness, Tala was aware of the ache blooming only deeper in his heart. Was it pain even that he felt? The infinite daggers seemingly stabbing his skin, ripping his soul into pieces as he watched his friend turn his back and walk away?

Pain?

Was he, as a supposedly humanoid robot, allowed to feel it in the first place? Able to feel it?

What was pain?

An involuntary grimace caught his face, and his eyes closed in a thin line. Beneath the veneer of masked strength, he knew he had seen it all. The wounds he had only opened further to allow him to peek in. How vulnerable and fragile. How prone he really was to pain and all things humane to him.

Yes. It took him long enough to realize that, but Tala Ivanov was still human.

And now, as he watched the silhouette of the muscular physique diffuse into that distorted image of jumbled-up images, he was only conscious of the small memory embossed carefully into the back of his mind since that fateful day a long, long time ago.

Now, as he sank deeper into the blackened tunnel of abysmal, surrendering to the labyrinth of swimming, swirling galaxy, the layers of voices flowed gently to his mind, allowing him to hear it clearer as they sounded like soft, silver bells.

Lulling, beckoning.

"I have to come and save you, right?" A wolf-like, feral smile was offered.

Red eyes widened into the size of saucers.

Then followed a retorting snort, as young Tala jabbed the child in the ribs. "Are we not friends, Kai?"

Silence, and then a small smile touched the lips of the young Hiwatari boy.

"Friends, Tala. Always."

In the middle of the hectic scene at the beyblading arena where the paramedics had rushed into the scene and carried the fallen beyblader onto the stretcher, a certain young woman following a few steps after Tyson Granger halted in her tracks suddenly.

"W-Wha?" Hilary blinked in disbelief as she stepped closer a little to the stretcher and took a quick glance to confirm her suspicion. It was not soon before the paramedics shoved her out of the way as they lodged Tala into the ambulance.

"Tala…crying?"

She shook her head, rubbing her eyes to make sure she had not mistaken the single droplet leaking from the corner of those closed eyes.

It could not be.

No, a wolf never cries. Especially not a wolf known as Tala Ivanov.

Owari

A/N:

Hmm, you get the idea of where this takes place in mid G Revolution now! I haven't watched that episode yet, but I do imagine that Tala did thought of how Kai had the nerves to walk by him when he was falling into a coma any moment. Like I said, it's really much ranting about my favorite beyblader, Tala Ivanov, since I practically worship the grounds he walk on and all.

Be nice and review!

mysterio000