Kajuri ran out of the base after his top speed, and all the back breaking training he had been put through paid off. Within minutes he was halfway to the airstrip, and he was sure there was a bike somewhere there that's he could use to make a quick getaway.

He skidded on the tarmac of the huge open road, casting a glance behind him. The whole place was quiet, with minimal lighting and zero human presence. He took a breath as he wearily trudged to a dark building. It was gonna be fine, as soon as he caught his breath. He looked around the empty buildings, looking for parking lots, any type of vehicle but nobody left a convenient car here. Unluckily for him. He exited the last easily opened building with a dejected sigh, his parka loosely hanging off his shoulders, and sipping on a cold drink he'd found in the mess hall. His state of calm was immediately shattered by roar of a vehicle, and he froze, turning towards the source of the noise before immediately booking it across the base. He ducked behind a warehouse and snuck a peek at his pursuers. There were a couple people riding ATVs. Most of them were wearing the Snakepit's standard uniform, but one of them was obviously a night guard of sorts. At least he looked like it. He couldn't hear everything, but as the roar of the engines was cut, he heard the last part of the conversation, "This is the only way over the ravine unless he has some sort of tight rope walking skills that we never heard about. Search the place."

Kajuri concentrated, leaning forward ever so slightly to hear the night guard say, "The early morning truck, getting all the staff, it's his only way out that we can't completely monitor, but he won't get far without us finding him first."

Kajuri cursed as the squad split up, and ducked into a crate. It wasn't particularly small. But at first glance, no one could think that the Azure Eye, the tall, imposing, arrogant figure would ever fit in it, but he could. Years of hide and seek with two ridiculously over-competitive best friends had trained him for this.

Dawn came, and eventually, the scouts left. He didn't sleep, no matter how much exhaustion pulled at his eyes. Adrenaline was pumping through him, and fear was enough to sustain him for now. He poked his head out when he heard the gunning of a motor. The van was huge, one of those moving van types, and a couple people were unpacking it. It had boxes of supplies inside it and once all the things inside it were brought outside it, all the people went to put the boxes in the warehouses. Kajuri kept his breathing measured, looking side to side, before dashing out into the open for a precious few minutes and jumping into the back of the van, and tucking himself behind a few big boxes. His breath hitched as he heard footsteps, and someone slammed the back of the van shut. A couple seconds of silence, then someone climbed into the front and the engine revved to life. He didn't relax, not until they were out of the premises. Then he allowed himself to breathe.

The next hours were tense, and uncomfortable and he was careful, until the van stopped, and the driver disembarked. He released a breath when the driver didn't return after a couple seconds, and quickly snuck out of the back and looked around. He was in a gas station, probably close to the city. He ducked into the tuck shop, and acted like he was meant to be here, while keeping an eye on the van, never letting his guard down until the van left. Once it was gone, he straightened himself up and left the gas station. There was lots of greenery, but nowhere near as thick as the forest. So they must be near to the city. He just shrugged, and made his way to the front of the gas station store, "Hey, a, man, could you help me? I need to go to New Mexico. Could you point me to the right direction?" He asked the guy, giving his best impression of a lost tourist, which really wasn't that hard. The man nodded immediately, and pointed at a path, "You see that? That path leads straight to New Mexico, just take the right fork. See?"

Kajuri nodded, "Yes, I see. Thank you!" And he was off like a shot, down the path and into the city. Well, not exactly. It took him twenty minutes to reach the city, but still. He walked around a little through the sprawling place, looking for places Felicity might be waiting for him, until it clicked.

The riverside stadium!

He rushed through the crowds, and got turned around multiple times, but by the time the sun was high in the sky, he found the stadium. He stared at the old symbol of his friendship with Felicity and Boa. It had scattered paint cans, some graffiti on the wall. The same empty wooden crates were there, and the pieces of an old bey launcher that he had once broken. He looked at the pictures pasted on the walls. The oldest was all yellow and tattered, but you could make out three kids with bright-colored hair.

The next one was with Felicity wearing a Raging Bulls T-shirt, and Kajuri and Boa with caps and badges of AS Gallus.

He simply looked at the pictures until he heard a voice, "Kajuri!" He turned around immediately. Felicity was already flinging herself at him. He chuckled as he hugged her back, "Hey, Felicity. How you doing?"

Felicity separated and stuck her nose into the air, "I thought you were never gonna come, asshole."

He grinned nervously, "Right, sorry about that. The Snakepit's security is nothing to sneeze at."

Felicity nodded, "Yeah, I know. Thanks for this, by the way."

He cocked his head, "Thanks for what?"

Felicity looked away, "Giving me a second chance."

Kajuri shrugged, "You don't deserve pain. And the fact that it was my pain that was making you hurt? Well, that made me feel like a jerk."

Felicity sighed discontentedly, "Is Boa gonna be leaving the Snakepit anytime soon?"

Kajuri shook his head, "No. He made it clear he was gonna be a double agent for us."

Turns out, just escaping the Snakepit didn't just do the trick. His years spent there left scars. He was up at the crack of dawn, bed made, everything spotless. Ready for an intense day of training. Before realizing there was no training. He was antsy during the entire flight, looking for agents and hidden threats and muggers. Felicity got him a fidget cube to help with all that nervous energy, but by the time they entered Spanish airspace the poor thing was in pieces. They got plenty of odd looks as they exited the plane, some people even taking pictures of the famous teen blader. The cameras freaked out Kajuri a lot, and he slunk down and tried to hide behind Felicity to stop the cameras from getting him. Felicity cast an eye towards the crowd, "Can we get through? Sorry, no time for pictures. This is important." She wanted them away and the few paparazzi around immediately moved aside, allowing Felicity and Kajuri the make a mad dash through the airport and into the crowds of Barcelona. They paused to grab some Patatas Bravas before going to look for a taxi. The ride back to the farmhouse was the same as ever. When they stepped out to look at the quaint little house at the edge of a lake, Felicity almost burst into tears, "Really takes you back, huh?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah." Kajuri replied hoarsely.

Felicity hesitated, "Maybe we should've gone to Canada first. Y'know, see your dad. He'd be happy to see you. After all these years."

"I know." Kajuri said lowly, "I just-I just can't. Not now. I need time. I don't want him to see me like this."

"I get that. Don't sweat it." Felicity reassured him, "I'm here for you."

"Thanks Fliss."

Felicity sighed, her voice taking up a forced cheer, "Alright! Let's go see your room!"

She started running towards the house, Kajuri right on her heels.

The next few days were fun. It was just them, hanging out, helping Kajuri ease himself into normal life. They got street food, watched amateur battles, and watched movies until one day a very familiar RV drove up to the house. Felicity, who had been utterly demolishing a sandwich, whooped loudly and dashed out, "Grandpa Raul!"

The BeyTrainer easily returned the hug she gave him, "Hey, kiddo! You're back from your journey, eh? Heh heh!"

Kajuri greeted him cautiously, "Hello, sir."

Raul swung his arm around Kajuri's neck, "None of that, Kajuri! Great to see you again! Hee hee!"

Kajuri grinned uncertainly, his face turning slightly blue from lack of oxygen before he managed to unhook his arm, "Err... Thank you."

He marched up to the house, "Is breakfast over already? I do love me some home made tostadas, hah ha!"

And so, they ate breakfast together.

Felicity wrapped her fourth sweater tightly around her. Kajuri was hesitating at the door while they stood outside, ankle deep in snow. "What are you doing?!" She hissed through chattering teeth, "Ring the bell before we die of hypothermia!"

"I'm working on it!" He hissed back, before sighing and jabbing the door bell.

The echo of a bell ringing inside reached their ears, followed by a shout of, "I'm coming!" And pattering footsteps. It was opened by a petite woman with teal hair. She smiled, "Hello, how can I help-" and she froze. Staring at Kajuri's hunched form, "Kajuri?!" She gasped

Kajuri looked up furtively, "Hi, mom."

The woman dashed forward and wrapped him in a hug, "Where were you all these years?! Come in, come in! Tell me everything!" She ordered, ushering both of them inside. They were brought inside the warm house and Felicity let out a sigh of relief as she started taking off her sweaters and hanging them up on the rack. As soon as they were settled into the drawing room with mugs of hot cocoa, the front door slammed open to reveal Kajuri's father. He gasped when he saw Kajuri, "Son, where were you?!" He asked as he wrapped Kajuri in a hug.

"Sorry, dad. I'm so sorry." Kajuri said mournfully.

Felicity coughed awkwardly, as she stood up, "I'll just wait outside, alright?"

They barely paid her any mind as they had their joyful family reunion.

After he was done explaining, they called her back in, "Thank you, for bringing back my son!" Kajuri's mother said tearfully, "I cannot tell you how grateful I am!"

Felicity scratched her head, "It was the right thing to do."

The woman shook her head, "Stay for dinner! It's cold outside!"

And that's how she found herself at the dinner table, awkwardly eating stew. After the meal, as she made to leave, Kajuri stopped her, "I can't thank you enough." He admitted.

Felicity coughed, "You don't have to."

He grinned, "I do, actually. We'll keep in touch, right?"

Felicity nodded, "Obviously. We're friends, after all."

Kajuri smiled back at her, "Yeah. Friends." And held out his hand for a fist bump which Felicity half-heartedly returned. And that was that. Completely bundled up in sweaters and scarves, Felicity gave him a salute and walked away. Kajuri was back where he belonged. Boa had been snapped out of his funk. Everything was as it was... Now she really needed to take a mental health day. Maybe even a mental health week. And she did just that. She settled back into her ordinary routine, fixing beys with her grandpa, and delivering them. Life was good.

It was just another day. Felicity woke up in the morning, took a shower and blow-dried her hair before heading down for breakfast. A tostada and multiple eggs later, she ducked into the lab, "Hey, Grandpa Raul! I'm doing my delivery run! What do you want me to drop off?"

Grandpa Raul grinned at her, "Haha! You're bright and early! Here! These Beys need to be returned! The addresses are on the boxes." He pointed towards a stack of tiny boxes on the countertop. Felicity nodded and scraped them all into her messenger bag. She pulled the bag on, waved him goodbye and headed into the city. Felicity used to deliver at the town only, which was actually closer to the house, but in the opposite direction of Barcelona. But now, here she was, in the city. She went door to door without any trouble. Putting down her bag for a few moments every time she stopped at a house, until she noticed something different. She froze. And cast a suspicious eye around, her eyes shifting through kaleidoscopic colours before locking down on her target. She immediately gave chase, grabbing the culprit with ease. Kit squealed with laughter as she shook him, "Hey! Let me go!"

Felicity gave him an unimpressed look, "Hand it over, Lopez."

The orange headed boy pouted, "I don't know what you're talking about."

She put a hand on her hip, "Oh yeah? Then how do you explain... This!" And she whipped the launcher out of Kit's pocket.

Kit slumped, "How do you always know?!"he whined.

Felicity tucked the launcher back into her bag, "Magic."

Kit laughed, "There's no such thing as magic!"

Felicity winked, "How do you know?" Before he could answer, her phone started ringing. Felicity grimaced, "Sorry, Kit. I gotta take this."

She looked at the caller ID, which said Theodore Glass. She swore under her breath and clicked accept. "What do you want?" She snapped.

Glass chuckled darkly, "Is that any way to greet your manager?"

"Former manager." She hissed, "Now spill."

Glass replied smoothly, "I wanted to arrange a meeting with you-"

"No dice." Felicity said curtly, "I don't even want to be in the same room as you."

Another dark chuckle. This was getting seriously infuriating. "I'm sure you won't think that when you get here."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked suspiciously.

Another chuckle. "Wouldn't you- BEEP." Felicity hung up on him as he went on a cryptic tangent.

Felicity got a call almost minutes later, this time the caller ID was Boa. She picked up immediately, "What's up?"

Boa's voice was hushed as he whispered, "Something's up."

"I'll say." Felicity replied. "I just got a call from Glass."

A sharp intake of breath, "What did he want?"

Felicity shrugged, "To talk to me face-to-face. I said hell no."

"I dunno." Boa commented, "Maybe ya should've said yes."

"Why would I do that?" Felicity asked.

Boa gulped audibly, "Ashtem's got a new Shadow Blader."

"So? It was bound to happen eventually." Felicity pointed out.

"Felicity." Boa's voice was grave, "The new Shadow Blader. He's Shu Kurenai."