An old idea; feels a little unfinished but I don't know where to go with it so I thought I'd see what you think.

"Will you be ok, Ray?"

"I'll be fine. You worry too much." Ray gave her a tired grin and tightened his grip around her shoulders, although whether that was in friendship or to keep himself upright, Mariah wasn't sure.

"Well, somebody's got to worry about you!" she replied tartly, her breath hissing out of her as she took even more of Ray's weight. "And at the moment, I'm worrying about getting you back to the hospital before you collapse! Why they let you out, I have no idea ..."

"I'm very persuasive."

"We all know that. Stupid smarmy jerk. It's just a good job that the hospital is so close to the stadium, or you'd be in trouble!" Ray shrugged his free shoulder.

"I got on TV yet again, and I got to challenge Tyson. Had to be done." Mariah shook her head ruefully.

"You're hopeless!" she remarked.

"Yup!" Ray smiled cheerfully at her as he spoke, a happy expression that belied the pain Mariah knew he was in.

Ray had insisted on hopping the last few metres into his room and bed, and had turned a worrying greenish-white colour with the effort. Well, effort and the fact that he had accidentally put his weight on his shattered ankle. However, the look he had given her as she had stepped forwards showed her exactly what he wanted her to do. Obediently she had bade him a somewhat snappy farewell, with orders to stay where he was until an adult said he could move, and left.

With one worry off her mind, she switched to another as / she sank onto the bench in the White Tigers' changing room. Drawing her small, sharp, beyblade out of her pocket, she gazed at the bit-beast cradled within it and held the blade to her cheek, allowing tears of relief to seep from her slanted eyes. The gaping, throbbing hole in her chest was full again.

"Welcome back, Galux," she whispered.

"I know how you feel." Mariah brought her head up rapidly, her fist curling protectively around her beyblade while her other hand scrubbed the tears from her eyes. Emily stood in the doorway - with Trygator clasped tightly in one hand, Mariah noticed.

"You scared me!"

Emily smiled thinly.

"Sorry." she said insincerely. Mariah scowled.

"What do you want?" she asked at last.

"To say thanks." Mariah did a double-take. Emily looked as if she had meant to say something different; a blush of embarrassment was creeping its way up her face. "You know ..." she muttered eventually, grudgingly. "Thanks for trying to beat Kai and get our bit-beasts back." The last few words came out in a rush.

"Oh, that. Did me a lot of good, didn't it?" Mariah scowled and shuddered as her chest ached in mere memory. The absolute stupidity of trying to fight Kai alone!

Emily glared at her.

"You'd have fought him anyway!" she accused.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't have done it alone! I did it then because ... because I did." She had bitten her tongue just in time.

Emily looked amused.

"Well, anyway, you did a pretty good job. I was watching it from the changing room. He'd have been hard pushed if he hadn't had that freaky mutant bit-beast," she offered politely.

"Yeah, well, thanks," Mariah's voice was tart. "In case you didn't noice, he did have the thing, and I lost Galux, so it was all pointless."

"You'll never forgive him, will you?"

"Of course not!" Eyes ablaze, they smiled grim smiles at each other. "Thanks for saying thanks, if that makes sense." Mariah said at last, breaking the eye contact.

"Vaguely." Emily turned to go. "See you around, I guess."

Mariah waved silently. As the last strand of ginger hair disappeared from the doorway, she called out quietly, just to see,

"Hey, Emily?" To her surprise, Emily's head re-appeared, magnified eyes showing a little wariness.

"Yeah?"

"Maybe we could battle some time? I'd like to see how strong you are." She looked nervously at Emily, expecting a scathing retort. Instead, Emily adjusted her glasses on her nose and gave Mariah a smile.

"Maybe." She retreated, this time for real as Mariah could hear her sensible tennis shoes squeaking down the corridor. All of a sudden, Mariah became aware of a pain in her hand. Looking down, she blinked and loosened her grip on her beyblade, revealing shallow gashes on her palm. Annoyed, she rubbed the blood off on her blouse and tried not to wince as the fabric scratched the raw flesh.

Did you curl up in a ball and scream yourself to sleep after you lost him? Did you check every half hour to see whether the bloody hole in your chest was your own imagination?

I saw your tears. You, the arrogant Yankee nerd, you let me see you cry. Bet that lost you some respect points with those boys.

Now, there is ... understanding, where before there was jealousy.

I fought Kai, that sadistic, manipulative bastard, alone because I was angry beyond belief. Angry that my Ray's team mate would do such a cruel thing.

Angry that he chose you.

I fought alone for ... you, Emily. For you and for us ... girls need to stick together, right?

(shrugs) All opinions welcome!

Review?

xIlbx