"Help!" Tyson shouted, standing on top of the hard airport chairs, waving his arms madly. "My friend has fainted!" He lowered himself, stooping over Max, who had pretended to pass out. "Buddy! Joel, can you hear me?!"
"Joel?" Ray snickered from where he was standing. He exchanged a look with Kenny.
"Remember, Ray. We've got to make a dash for the door as soon as the airport personnel are diverted," Kenny said seriously, down to business as usual.
"I'm not so sure about this plan," Dizzy commented.
"Oh, don't be so pessimistic," Kenny scolded his laptop, in which his bit beast had been trapped in during a freak power surge. Ever since then his computer always had personality...and a bit of an attitude.
"Get him water!" Tyson shrieked. A pair of airport staff ran to get some ice.
"Get up, Max," Tyson whispered into his friend's ear. "Let's go."
The Bladebreakers slipped out of the door.
Max felt the wind through his blonde hair. "Well, we pulled it off." An alarmed look crossed his face as he looked down the unused runway. Kai and Taber were head to head in combat, and there were sparks flying from their blades' impact.
Tyson began sprinting towards the battle. "Kai!"
Max, Ray, and Kenny followed close behind.
"Hey!" an airport attendant exclaimed indignantly, jogging after them.
Tyson, Max, Ray, and Kenny gathered around the Beystadium that was set up on the runway. Kai seemed oblivious to their presence, his fist clenched in concentration. "Go Dranzer!" he exclaimed.
Out of Kai's blade emerged a great fiery bird, who swooped to attack the enemy blade.
"Ignatzion, emerge!" Taber shouted in response, the wind blowing back his hair. Out of the top of his blade burst a cloud of flames.
"That's your bit beast?" Max exclaimed, eyes wide in awe.
The two fiery creatures roared and crashed into one another, and the fire of the two combined was so intense that the spectators had to turn away.
"What the –" the airport attendant breathed, stunned by the battle.
Suddenly, as swiftly as the fireball emerged, it recoiled back into Taber's blade. Taber held out his hand, and Ignatzion slipped off of the dish and right into Taber's hand. "Enough," Taber said. "I have seen enough." Taber turned and walked away.
Dranzer returned to Kai's blade, and slowly rolled onto its side. Kai picked it up and looked darkly at Taber.
Taber just snickered. "We'll see you at the tournament." Within a minute, he was out of sight.
The Bladebreakers stared after him.
"What a jerk," Tyson pouted, crossing his arms. "You could've whipped him, Kai."
Kai crossed his arms. "Hm. Tyson, you have a lot to learn. I can see that it was for the best that we got back together."
"Wouldya look at that," Max whispered in Ray's ear. "Not even a 'hello' or a 'good to see you'. Just a 'you have a lot to learn'."
Ray smiled slightly. "This is Kai you're talking about," he replied. "You'd think that you'd be used to it by now."
Max smiled and nodded.
"Whatdya mean I've got a lot to learn?" Tyson shot back. "You're acting like you're some big shot that knows everything."
"Excuse me, kids!" boomed the airport employee, who had recovered from his shock. He stared sternly down at the Bladebreakers. "
"Sorry, sir," Max apologized.
Ray grinned and help up two fingers. "My most sincere apologies. We're on our way out right now."
"Max! Ray!" a familiar voice shouted excitedly. A familiar feminine voice.
"Aw man, it's Hilary," Tyson moaned. "She had to show."
The petite brunette caught up to the group, panting slightly. "I finished studying early," she explained between breaths. "What did I miss?"
"GET OFF OF THE RUNWAY YOU [Explicit] KIDS!" the airport attendant roared, waving his fist in the air. They went.
Immedietly after leaving the airport, the Bladebreakers went to take a walk along the beach...and talk.
"Who was that?" Hilary pressed, running to keep up with a very agitated Tyson. Her brown eyes were wide with curiosity. "What were you guys doing on the runway? You could've gotten in a lot of trouble."
Tyson sighed pathetically. "Hilary, would you please just pipe down for two minutes?"
Hilary crossed her arms, insulted. "Why aren't I allowed to talk?"
Max, Ray, and Kenny rolled their eyes.
"Relax, Hilary," Kai said sternly, passing her by. She stood still and watched him as he slowly overtook Tyson. For as long as she knew Kai existed, she'd had a major crush on him. This is just great, Hilary thought. The first thing he says to me when he visits from Russia is to relax.
Hilary sullenly remained silent for the rest of the walk, while Max explained what he had read in his magazine.
"So," he finished. "I think that there is a Beyblade team out there that wants to knock us out pretty bad. I also think that Taber is the captain of that team."
"It was probably Taber or one of his cronies that pretended to be you in the chat room, Max," Tyson added.
"Yeah," Max agreed. "It's a good thing that Kenny knew that it couldn't have been me." He popped a kernel of popcorn from the bag he had purchased at a stand into his mouth. After a moment of chewing, he continued. "Otherwise, you could've been in big trouble."
"Well, whoever it was is ready to beat us bad," Ray said. "We'd better get training and send in our application forms."
"I already did that," Kai spoke, probably for the first time since they started on their walk.
"You what?" Max asked.
Kai closed his eyes. "I filled it out on the plane and mailed it while all of you guys were fighting over which ice cream flavor was the best." The way that Kai put it made all of the Bladebreakers feel very immature.
"Thanks Kai," Max offered.
"Yeah," Tyson agreed.
"Whatever." Kai brushed off the mustered appreciation like a mosquito.
A newspaper page fluttered in the wind by their feet. "Hey look," Hilary said slowly, as she picked up. Carefully, she read the headline which had been smudged with mud. "Vandals in the city."
"Oh, who cares," Tyson said with a roll of his eyes, as he took a kernel of Max's popcorn.
"Hey, go get your own!" Max protested.
"I think you'll find this interesting," Hilary insisted. She waved the paper under Tyson's nose. "Look at the graffiti mark left by the vandal."
Tyson took the paper from Hilary and examined it. "Hey, I think she's on to something!" All of the Bladebreakers gathered around the paper. It was a picture of a local library, with graffiti spray-painted on the side. The sign was a big 'T' with a fireball background.
"What do you suppose it means..." Kenny mused.
"Do you think it's Taber's signature?" Ray asked.
Hilary rolled her eyes. "Of course it's Taber's signature! If I hadn't figured that, I wouldn't have shown it to you. You said his bit beast looked like a big fireball, didn't you?"
Max, Tyson, and Ray nodded.
Kenny was preoccupied with typing furiously on Dizzy's keyboard.
"Hey, slow it down, Chief!" Dizzy complained. "You're going to short one of my circuits."
Kai looked sullen, as he stared out over the sea.
Tyson waved hand in front of his face. "Earth to Kai, earth to Kai."
Kai turned around and began walking in the opposite direction.
"Kai?" Ray called out after him.
"Hey, buddy!" Tyson took a few steps towards him.
"Leave him alone," Hilary insisted, grabbing Tyson's arm.
"Hilary, you aren't Kai's teammate. You don't know him like we do." Tyson yanked his arm from Hilary's grip.
Hilary stepped back, hurt. "I don't know if he'd like to be chased after." Then, without warning, she began running down the beach in the direction opposite of Kai. "I thought I was a teammate," she cried back as she ran.
Tyson stared after the disappearing figure. "Hilary!" he called. But Hilary didn't stop.
"Good going, Tyson." Ray turned his face away from Tyson.
"But I –" Tyson felt confused and hurt...and guilty.
"We did always consider Hilary as part of the team," Max put in.
"Yeah," Kenny agreed. "She was always there to cheer us on."
"I'm sorry, okay?!" Tyson suddenly exclaimed. "So what if she's so emotional that she can't take pressure. I don't care."
Ray, Max, and Kenny looked at him sadly.
"Practice is at ten o'clock tomorrow," Kenny finally said. "Make sure you're up. We'll meet you at your place. I've got to go home." Kenny walked away.
Ray put a hand on Tyson's shoulder. "Let's go home. I think I need some sleep."
"Yeah," Max agreed. He took a look at Tyson's face. "Hilary'll come around."
Tyson sighed and kicked at the sand. Deep down inside, he knew that it was him who should do the turning around.
"Come on, Tyson," Max called. He and Ray were a few feet ahead of him, walking towards Tyson's place.
"Coming," Tyson said, following his friends.
"I thought I was a teammate!" Hilary had cried.
Tyson wanted to get a chance to re-live that moment. He remembered all the times that Hilary had stood by him and the Bladebreakers. All the times that she had helped Kenny and Dizzy, staying up all hours of the night to try and solve a problem. One of his problems.
You are, Hilary, you are.
