Okay, this is JUST A ONE-SHOT….albeit a LONG one-shot…at least, I think it'll be a long one-shot…um…I don't know!
This is something for people to read since I have writers' block for my "Wish Upon A Star" story…although I have begun writing the sequel…sad, I know…
"Talking"
"Thinking"
/Bitbeast/
-x-x-x-x-
Mariah sighed for what must have been the tenth time that morning as she hiked up the steep slope to the spot where she and Rei had always sat. It had been their secret hangout…the place where they went to be alone.
Whenever one of them went there, the other usually showed up before long.
"Not this time…" Mariah thought sadly as she sat in the spot that was usually Rei's. "He's probably too busy with…what's her name…" Mariah puzzled for a few moments, then it came to her. "Salima…"
Sighing again, the gloomy girl looked out over the landscape. She had always thought that looking at it had been what cheered her up, but now she knew. Now she knew that it had not been the landscape…it had been Rei.
His words of comfort, of wisdom, had always soothed her troubles…and all along she had attributed that to the landscape.
"I'm such an idiot…" The girl thought bitterly as a teardrop landed on her knee of her pants. "Maybe if I died my hair red, he'd come back…" The thought made an unwanted giggle rise up in the back of her throat. Shaking it off, she returned to her thoughts. "I…I just don't get it…"
/Mistress./
"Yeah, Galax?"
/It's not your nature to be down…which is why you keep almost laughing…I know you miss him, but he wouldn't want you to be beating yourself up…/
"I…I guess you're right…" She confided in her bitbeast.
/I miss him too…/
"Driger?"
/Yeah…/
"Awww." Mariah teased and had to hold back another giggle. "Damn it…"
/Relax…just sit and think…who knows? Maybe he'll return…/
"He's too busy with Salima…" Mariah replied and gazed off into the beautiful landscape, but did not really see it. Her gaze slid past the diamond spraying waterfall, the lush, almost tropical forest, the brightly colored field of wild flowers, and the outskirts of her village to where the person her thoughts were constantly on was.
Sighing softly, Mariah stood and started to head back to the village.
"I might not mind having been out here in the dark with Rei…but now that I'm alone…" She theorized. The dying sun blazed red across the sky, and, for some reason, reminded Mariah of blood. Shuddering at the thought, she headed back to her dwelling and straight to her room.
"Mariah?" Lee's voice called.
"I'm not hungry." She shouted back. Lee was about to ask why, but the sound of a door slamming cut off any chance he had for inquiring.
0x0x0x0
Mariah threw herself down on her bed, and just stared at the pillow that was millimeters from her face. Then she rolled over and grouped around for her cell phone. The last time she was there, Hilary had taken her and Mathilde shopping. Both had insisted she get it.
"I'm not sure this will work…it might be out of its service range…" She concluded as she cautiously dialed the number to Hilary's cell phone. "Hil?"
A cry of surprise was her reply.
"Mariah!"
"Um…hi?"
"It's so good to hear from you! Hi!"
The pinkette had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.
"That's what's so great about Hil…she can make me laugh by just being herself…" "Hiya!"
"So…why is my best friend calling?"
"Well…"
"Wait, lemme guess! You miss Ier!" (1)
Mariah nodded, before remembering they were on the phone.
"Yeah…"
A sigh was heard.
"Well…I don't think he's coming back anytime soon, Mariah…Kai's too busy being drill sergeant…" Mariah could almost hear her friend rolling her eyes.
"I figured…"
"Buuut…I have an idea!"
"You do?" A puzzled Mariah wondered aloud.
"Yep…you'll see!"
Mariah was about to question her friend, but there was click and the line went dead.
"Thanks for trying to cheer me up Hil…" She thought, depressed, and rolled on her side so she was facing the wall.
0x0x0x0
Lee sighed and then picked up the phone.
"Hey, is Rei there?"
"Hiya Lee!" Max cried. "Yeah, he is…hang on a sec!" Some shuffling was heard in the background.
"Hello?" Rei asked cautiously.
"Rei, it's me…"
"Oh, hi Lee…" Rei sweatdropped. "I thought Max had picked up the phone and it was some fangirls…better not tell Lee that…" His sweatdrop got bigger.
"Listen, I need to talk to you about something…Mariah's been really depressed lately…"
"Mariah?" He repeated, unbelieving, as he slipped into his room and closed the door behind him.
"Yes." Lee answered stiffly.
"Well…what can I do about it? I'm stuck here!"
"Stuck," his best friend scowled.
"You know how Kai is! He won't let any of us go anywhere if it interrupts training for a tournament!"
"Mariah went and visited that place you guys spent almost all your time at…and she came back more depressed…"
"What!" Rei cried, shocked. "But…that place always cheers her up!"
"Exactly…that's why I think she's depressed…she's barely eating, too…"
Rei's eyebrows furrowed as he clenched his teeth and glared at the floor.
"Why would she do this to herself!" He snarled finally, startling Lee.
"I've never heard Rei so mad…" Lee's dazed mind muttered. "I…don't know…" He could almost see Rei gritting his teeth and trying not to scream into the phone.
"That's it." Rei bit out in a voice of forced calm. "I'm coming back to China. If it means getting kicked off the BBA Revolutions, so be it…" He hissed and hung the phone up.
"Uh-oh…" Lee panicked and hurriedly began dialing another number.
0x0x0x0
Rei stormed out of his room and slammed the phone down on the receiver. He ripped his jacket off its hanger and threw the door open to almost walk straight into Kai.
"Where are you going?" The stoic Russian scowled.
"None of your business." Rei snarled and shoved him out of the way. Kai was so stunned he did not stop the neko-jin as he stormed down the walkway and out of sight.
"What happened."
"Um…" Max was the first to speak. "Lee called and asked for Rei…I said "hi" and gave the phone to Rei…then he went into his room. When he came back out, he was like that!"
"I think I know why." Hilary commented from the porch in a sing-song voice. She had just gotten off her cell phone with someone else.
"And?" The Russian teen was running short on patience.
"I'm not telling you!" Hilary scowled as she walked back in. "Who'd trust you with anything like this! You're too afraid of your own feelings to deal with something like this!" Hilary, who by now was royally pissed, turned to the other guys, who all blanched. "By the way, I'm going away for a bit. Bye!" She waved at them, shoved Kai out of the way and skipped down the walkway and out of sight.
"Wait for uuuuuus!" Daichi, Max, Tyson and Kenny cried and raced after her. After all, it was better than facing a certain teen's wrath.
Teen in question was now on the floor, on his rear end, and not happy.
0x0x0x0
Mr. Dickenson had just gotten off the phone with two concerned bladers, both requesting for rides across the globe. One was asking for themself, and the other for a friend. Needless to say, he was quite startled when his office door was thrown open and a fuming Rei stood in the doorway.
"Rei…what can I do for you…?" He inquired cautiously.
"I need to go home. Now."
"Mariah?" The BBA leader questioned as the boy's expression face vaulted.
"How…?"
"I've gotten two similar calls, both about Mariah…if you'd be willing to share a ride with one of the persons in question, certainly, you may go…"
Rei thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Thanks, Mr. Dickenson…" He murmured in a low voice, his head down.
"You're just worried…it's perfectly fine. Besides, no last harm done."
That made Rei give him a weak smile.
"Hi Mr. Dickenson!" Hilary chirped, almost giving Rei a coronary (2).
"What are you doing here!" Rei cried in exasperation.
"I'm going to visit Mariah," Hilary shrugged as they heard the sound of running footsteps.
"What the-?" Rei began but stopped as Tyson, Max, Kenny, and Daichi came into view.
"Save us!" They cried and threw themselves on the floor.
"From what," Mr. Dickenson cried.
"Kai!" The four teens shouted.
"Kai." Mr. Dickenson asked incredulously.
"Ahhh," the four teens yelled. "Where!"
"…I think Rei and I pissed him off." Hilary stated. "I was kinda annoyed at him for trying to get involved when he's afraid of his own feelings…"
"I was annoyed because I'm sick of Kai playing tyrant, and it's really none of his business anyway…" Rei scowled at the floor.
"Well, that settles it then!" Mr. Dickenson concluded.
"It does." Kenny stared.
"Indeed it does! All six of you are going! Although if young Kai wishes to go, I'm not going to stop him…"
"Fair enough." The majority of the group chorused as Kai rounded the corner.
"What is going on?" He seethed, causing all of them to sweatdrop. Tyson and Daichi hid behind Hilary as Max and Kenny hid behind Rei.
"I am not a shield." Hilary growled at them; they sweatdropped and hid behind her legs. "If you two are looking up my skirt…" She raised a fist threateningly. Both frantically shook their heads no.
"Well." there was iron control in Kai's voice, proving that he was nearly at his limit.
"All of us are going to China." Max piped up hurriedly.
"And?"
"And the reasons are none of your business." Hilary growled, her anger now directed at him. If she was not so worried or angry, she would have been extremely mortified.
"As the captain of this team-"
"Shut up," Rei hissed. "Matters of the heart are none of your concern…especially since you can't even show your own emotions." With that said, Rei stormed off to where the jets were. Everyone else was too frozen to move. It was one thing for Hilary to say it…but for Rei to say it it was even worse.
Kai turned around and started walking away.
"What did I do?" Hilary screamed mentally.
"The flight will be ready in an hour…" Mr. Dickenson told her. She was tearing off after Kai as soon as he got the words out of his mouth.
0x0x0x0
"Kai!" She screamed, racing after him. He did not even pause for a moment. "Kai…" Hilary kept on running until she caught up to him. "Please, Kai! Please!" He stopped, but he did not turn to face her. "I'm sorry, Kai…" She whispered. "I'm sorry…"
"…aren't you going to-"
"I'm not going to make an excuse! What I said was wrong! It is your business!" Her outburst caused Kai to turn and stare at her. "While I'm at it…I might as well say it…no! I can't!" During her mental debate, Kai turned back around. She slipped her hand in his. "Please, Kai? Come with us?"
He did not reply.
She gently tugged on his hand and started to walk in back in the direction they came in. His grip on her hand, which had been slack, tightened.
"Kai?"
"Were you going to say something…?"
"Uhm…s-s…nevermind…" (3)
"You…" He struggled briefly for the right word. "…like…me?" Hilary turned her face away, beet red, and nodded. She pulled her hand out of his and started running back to the office. Kai easily caught her and, to her surprise, took her hand.
Hilary flushed scarlet and avoided looking at him. He ignored her blush and started running, dragging her along.
"You're-You're coming," she stuttered. A swift nod from the Russian and an increase in pace made her heart soar.
"But that doesn't mean I have to be nice to Kon." He growled as they raced towards the plane. Hilary, who's head had been in the clouds, sweatdropped as she was brought back down to earth. "Um…Kai?"
"…yes."
"Um…we have an hour…um…had an hour…" When Kai did not reply, she figured he had not heard her, so she was startled when his pace slowed.
0x0x0x0
Rei sat in his chair, now quietly fuming, oblivious to the frightened looks his friends were shooting at him.
"What do you think is wrong with him?" Max whispered to the other three.
"Dunno," Tyson made a face; Daichi shrugged.
"Hm…you said it was Lee on the phone?" Kenny inquired; Max nodded. "Then something might be wrong at home…" The other three started into attention.
"Like what?" Max wondered aloud, his eyes wide with worry.
0x0x0x0
Mariah woke up to the smell of salt tears.
"W-what?" she started as she sat up. It was then she noticed the tears streaming down her numb cheeks. "…Rei…" The upset neko-jin thought sadly as the tears glided down her cheeks faster. Too upset to even think clearly, she slipped out of her room and padded down the hallway silently. Glancing around carefully, she noted Lee was not around.
Just to be on the safe side, she snuck out the front door and closed it quietly. Ignoring the lack of light, she quietly crept towards the path that lead to her "special spot" that she usually shared with Rei.
"I don't care anymore…" She realized. "I just want to be in a place where I can be upset and no one is there to see…" Smiling sadly, she carefully snuck up the steep slope she had climbed earlier that day.
Feeling a sense of contentment, she collapsed exactly where she had been sitting all of three hours before. The last thing she knew was that a full moon was hanging overhead.
0x0x0x0
Hilary's cell phone rang; she pulled it out and answered it. When the person on the other side of the line said something, she froze and almost dropped her phone.
"Oh my god…" She murmured as tears started leaking out of her eyes. Kai tugged the somber, still-sobbing girl along, sending her reassuring looks every so often.
When he pulled her into the plane that was fifteen minutes from taking off, he had her sit down and sat down next to her. She threw herself at his chest and sobbed. Everyone, even Rei, froze. Kai, although extremely off-balance, hesitantly comforted her.
"What happened?" Tyson's eyes were worried as her looked upon his friend's now sleeping form.
"Someone called her on her cell phone…she froze and almost dropped it." Reminded of that, the stoic teen gently pried the cell phone from the sleeping girl's grasp and put it up to his ear. "Hello?"
"Kai? This is Lee…we have a big problem…" Kai listened and his eyes widened. "Someone tell the pilot we need to get this plane off the ground. Now!" Startled, Tyson rushed to do just that.
"What is it?" Rei managed to venture.
"You'll find out when we get there." Kai growled and shut the cell phone. "We don't need you panicking any more than you already have." Rei started when Kai said that. Tyson raced back in and dove into his seat as the plane's engines revved to life. In moments, the plane was airborne.
0x0x0x0
"Phew…they're on their way…" Lee thought as he put his sister's cell phone back in his pocket. "MARIAH!" His echo answered him. "Where did she go?"
"Lee." Startled, Lee spun to face his teacher. "You must come back…this will have to wait until morning…it's too dangerous…"
"Sensei!"
"Lee, you must come back!"
"Fine," the neko-jin growled and stormed back to the village outskirts.
"I hope you are alright, Mariah…" The sensei thought as he glanced up at the surrounding mountains before following his charge back.
0x0x0x0
The plane landed, and almost all the BBA Revolution members sprang out; Kai followed, carrying Hilary.
A panicked Lee raced to meet them.
"Mariah's gone! She just vanished!"
Rei's eyes widened and he took off.
"Rei! Wait!" Lee shouted, and was about to chase after him, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. It was his sensei.
"Rei can do this…Driger will protect him…"
"Protect him from what?" Kai snapped.
0x0x0x0
Mariah woke up to find herself staring into the eyes of a mountain lion. Its fangs were bared and about to plunge into her throat. She did the only thing she could think of; she screamed.
0x0x0x0
Rei heard Mariah's scream and rushed forward, quickly launching Driger in one swift movement. The shadowy thing leaning over Mariah took off. Panicked, Rei ran forward and helped Mariah sit up.
"Mariah? Are you okay!" Mariah just sobbed into his shirt, clutching the fabric tightly. "Shh…it's okay Mariah…" He wrapped his arms around her and comforted her the best he knew how. When she stopped sobbing, to his surprise, she pulled away. "Mariah? What's wrong?"
"I don't think your girlfriend will be too happy…"
"Girlfriend!"
"Salima…"
"No! She's with Kane!"
Mariah froze, "she is?"
"Yes…" Rei replied, looking away. "S-suki…suki desu…" He murmured, flushing.
"R-really?"
"Ever since we were kids…"
Mariah's eyes lit up and she tackle-hugged Rei.
"I take it you like me too?" She nodded vigorously to Rei's satisfaction. "Then you won't mind if I do this…" He gently pressed his lips to hers; she melted into his arms.
The new couple slept…
In the place where their relationship first began, and now, had strengthened.
-x-x-x-x-
(1) - Rei spelled backwards…get it?
(2) - that should mean heart attack…if not, then I get to yell at my mom…
(3) - she was going to say "suki desu" which means "I like you" in Japanese