Chapter Ten

"Any luck?" I asked Hilary later that evening. We all went around trying to find beyblade shops that would let us buy some equipment. But so far all I've seen were people asking me to show them BEGA ID cards so I was able to buy the parts.

"No. I had to have a BEGA card to get parts," she said with a sigh as she dropped down to a sitting position.

"Boris has planned this well, I have to admit," I said as I shook my head. "What can we do now?"

"Why not just make our own beyblades?" Max suggested.

"Can we do that?" Ray asked as he looked over at Kenny.

"I guess we can," Kenny said slowly. "But it would take a lot of time on my part. We would also have to find people who would donate the parts."

"Maxie, does your father have any extra parts we can use?" Tyson asked as he turned to look at the blond haired boy.

"I think so," Max said hesitantly. "Some of it we gave away to kids who were beginners but I'm pretty sure we still have some left over."

"What can we do in the meantime?" Ray asked as he gave Kenny a hard look.

"The only thing we can do is train with what we have to get stronger," he said with a sigh. "I'll see if there is anyway I can fix your beyblades in the meantime." He held out his hand and I hesitantly reached into my pocket and pulled out Dricer. I was never away from him and parting with him, even to get him fixed, felt weird and wrong. I handed him over before leaving the room and shutting the door behind me. I walked down the street and towards the woods; it was quiet and peaceful so it was the best place for me to think things through. I stopped walking and let my eyes shift as I listened closely.

"Hiyah!" I shouted as I spun around on the spot and brought my foot up, connecting it with someone's chest. The person went flying back but landed on their feet, smirking at me.

"You again!" I spat. "Who are you? What do you want?" I demanded as I got into a fighting position.

"My name is Kaoru and I'm making sure you don't stand in Master's way," he responded as he took a step towards me.

"You're working for Boris? Why doesn't that surprise me?" I asked sarcastically as I cracked my knuckles.

"The surprises keep on coming, sweetheart, because I don't work for Boris," he responded before charging at me. I was ready though and managed to jump into the air and out of the way. I came back down but he dodged my attack. I was about to turn around and attack him when his foot connected with my cheek and sent me spinning to the ground. "I thought you were stronger than this," he said in a mocking tone as he walked over to my side. Before I could do anything he swiftly brought back his foot and kicked me hard in the side.

'He's right. I am stronger than this. Why do I feel…so weak?' I asked myself as I curled into a ball at the pain. As I tried to move he continued kicking me and laughing manically. 'Dricer…I need your help. Lend me some of your power, please.' I lay motionless as I felt the familiar tingling feeling start at my toes and rise up my body until it filled the top of my head. I smirked and waited for Kaoru to kick at me again. I grabbed his foot and twisted it, sending him to the ground as I jumped up and faced him.

"I knew it!" He said as he stood and flicked his hair out of his eyes. "I knew you possessed the sacred spirit of destruction!"

"Destruction?" I repeated as I faltered slightly. It was enough for him to catch me off guard and send a painful punch to my abs. I rolled over a couple of times before landing on my arm and feeling pain shoot up it. I clenched my teeth and pushed myself up with my good arm. "Dricer isn't destructive!"

"Bitbeasts and humans are one of the same," Kaoru said as his eyes narrowed. "Bitbeasts and humans share the same beliefs, share the same dreams, share the same lifestyle." He chuckled before adding, "If your Bitbeast is the Scared Spirit of destruction, why're your so called friends trusting you if the only you will bring is destruction?"

"Shut up!" I snapped as I got to my feet.

"I've seen your future," he said, ignoring my outburst. "And it is dark and empty."

"Shut up!" I yelled again. The wind suddenly picked up as everything grew dark. Storm clouds rolled overhead and thunder rumbled in the distance. The smell of rain was strong as lightning illuminated the area, illuminating his smirk, which got wider.

"It's only a matter of time until you beg me to join us," was all he said before he did a single leap and disappeared. I turned my head so the rain that fell diagonally from the wind didn't hit my eyes. I held my limp arm, clenching my eyes shut every time it throbbed with pain. "Shit, I can't blade like this."

And that's when it hit me.

That was his plan.

"Ow!" I hissed in pain as I pulled my arm out of Ray's grasp. I made it back to the dojo about an hour ago and I wasn't surprised that I was met with concern. All the guys seem do to now is worry about me for no reason. I can take care of myself really well but they keep treating me like a kid that needs to be constantly watched.

"Sorry," he apologized as he reached for my arm again but I pulled it away. "If you don't let me help you then your arm is never going to heal properly," he said in a stern tone as he crossed his arms and looked me in the eye. He was talking to me like a parent would talk to their kid and I hated it when he did that. I glared at him before sticking out my arm. "Why do you keep doing that?" He asked as he gently wrapped my arm.

"Doing what?" I asked in frustration as I stared at the kitchen door. I was way beyond hungry and he was the only one keeping me from eating.

"Leaving on your own. You should've known that you'd be attacked again," he responded as he looked up at me briefly before returning his gaze to my bandage.

"You can't keep me locked up like some little kid," I hissed at him. "And I can do whatever I want!" I sighed and shook my head before adding softly. "Ray, I'm not a little kid anymore. You don't have to keep protecting me from all of the monsters that are out there. I'm capable of taking care of myself and fighting my own battles."

"I know that," he said as he stood. "Tilt your head." I did as he said and felt a shiver run up my spine as he got closer to my neck. "I know you can do all of that. It's just…I can't seem to let the old you go, y'know? I just want things to go back to when we were little, before you were banished. Things were so peaceful and we didn't have to worry about beyblading to prove a point and to change the way things are. We did it for fun."

"Shortened story version please," I muttered as another shiver went up my spine as his breath tickled my neck from being so close.

"I don't want to see you get hurt," he said as he backed away and gently put my arm in the sling he had just made.

"Kinda late for that," I said with a small laugh as I gestured to my arm that was in the sling. He just chuckled as he shook his head. His smile slowly faded as he looked at me. I was about to ask him what was wrong when he leaned over and pressed his lips to my cheek. He pulled back and made a face before turning and shoving everything back into his first aid kit. "Ray–"

"If you don't hurry Tyson will eat all of the dinner," he muttered.

"Ray–"

"You shouldn't move that arm too much if you have the chance."

I rolled my eyes and jumped down from the stool, leaving the room. Suddenly I wasn't so hungry anymore. I walked pat the dining room, ignoring Max's and Tyson's call and stepped out of the dojo. I slipped on my shoes and closed the door behind me, starting my walk. I barely even made it out of the perimeter of the dojo when someone appeared in front of me.

"Kai?" I asked in confusion. He didn't say anything; he just looked at me as his cape billowed slightly in the wind. "What're you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he responded. Wow, was his voice always that cold? "Why aren't you inside?"

"Why are you out here?" I shot back. We stayed silent, keeping our eyes on the other. "Why'd you leave, Kai?" I finally asked.

"I believe that's none of your business," he replied, harshly, turning to walk away.

"You're going to run away again?" I called after him. He stopped and turned to look at me, a hard glare in his violet eyes.

"You don't know anything about anything!" He hissed.

"You're being stupid! The team needs you!"

A very small shadow of a smile formed on his face. "You should get back inside, you wouldn't want Ray to worry," he said in a mocking tone.

"I can do whatever I want, Kai," I pointed out.

"And you're still as blind as ever." He chuckled. "Don't tell the others I was here, ok? It would ruin everything." Before I could move he ran and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Hmm," I grunted. "Jerk."