This is my first Kai/Rei story. I'm only posting the first chap because I'm
currently typing up the fifth chapter (I learned from a thing called
Writer's Block) and I really need some opinions.
Another Word for Strength Chapter 1: Disobedience
"No Kai. I don't think you'll be blading for your old team. You'll continue your service to the Russian Demolition Boys."
"What?! No way. I'm fed up being your puppet. I'm not going to take anymore of your orders!" Kai screamed at the satellite image.
"You won't deny my orders, Kai. Unless you want something to happen to your Bladebreakers. I know that would be terribly unfortunate."
"How dare you threaten my team!" Kai spat at the older man's face. "You have no authority here!"
"You'd be surprised. Now, you'll do as you're directed without complaint or else you'll see just how much authority I really have over there. I have eyes and ears everywhere."
"I won't go back to the abbey." Kai said, feeling his defences beginning to break.
"Yes you will. I know how much you'd put on the line for your teams safety, as well as a certain blader by the name of Kon. You wouldn't want to risk his life now would you?" The man pulled out his wild card. He knew his grandson would do anything for that boy's safety. They didn't invent satellites for nothing, you know.
"That reminds me. You'll serve penance for that weakness. I won't let my own grandson grow weak for some no good blader."
"You can't do this! I'll fight you. With everything I have, I'll fight you." Kai snarled at his grandfather.
"Ha. You have nothing. Now if I don't see you fighting for the Demolition boys in the next match I'll make sure you never have the chance to tell Kon how you feel. It will be on your head if something should happen to him." With those final remarks the screen turned off and the room became shrouded in darkness. He knew he had to fight with the Russian team if he wanted his friends to be protected from his grandfather, his conscience wouldn't allow him to do otherwise. He was stuck in a jam and couldn't think of any other way out.
"Damn you, Grandfather." He snarled at the blank screen. 'How did you know how I felt for Rei?' He wondered angrily.
Suddenly Boris entered the pitch black room.
"Your grandfather will be arriving within the hour and has asked to hold you in a private waiting room." He said coldly, before two abbey men grabbed him roughly and dragged him through the halls, kicking and screaming.
"Let me go you filth!" He raged, trying desperately to bite one of the men. He knew why he was being forced to wait. His 'penance' was going to be carried out when his grandfather arrived.
"Now, Kai. There's no use fighting us. You'll only cut your endurance down." Boris laughed. He was walking just behind the men so Kai could see him.
"Let me go!" He screamed again, and continued to fight off the men. Another two had to help secure his thrashing legs.
They passed by Tala and the other Demolition Boys and Kai looked at them for support, but was greatly disappointed. They just smirked and shook their heads. Kai spit on them and snarled primally.
"Kai?" A familiar voice called from around a corner, just as they were turning it. They ran smack into the Bladebreakers who were searching for Kai again in hopes to get him to reconsider coming back to the team.
"Kai!" Takao exclaimed again as they recognised the struggling figure. Hearing his friends, Kai renewed his struggle and managed to dislodge the two who held his feet.
"Let me go you bastards!" He cried and kicked at the other two who held his arms.
Without hesitation Takao leapt at one of the men and began to help him. All he could think about was that Kai needed his help. Rei and Max on the other hand were stunned to see that Kai was being forced into the abbey again.
"You better let him go if you know what's good for you." Rei yelled out and joined in the fight to free Kai. Unfortunately more men had come at Boris' call and they effortlessly pried the three teens off, and secured Kai again.
"Take Kai to his grandfather." Boris told Kai's captors and looked down at a battered Kai. "I'll see to it that you get extra special treatment after that stunt." He snarled before the men dragged him away.
"Kai!" Rei called out, but the men restrained him from going to his team mate.
"As for you three," Boris said spinning on the remaining kids. "If I ever hear that you've come back, I'll make sure you never Beyblade again. I'd advise you not to stick your nose where it doesn't belong. It could get chopped off." He nodded to the men holding the three bladers and within seconds they were sprawled on the sidewalk.
***
"Kai's being held against his own will!" Takao exclaimed loudly. "They're forcing him to fight with the Demolition Boys."
The boys had returned to the hotel to report the whole thing to the Chief.
"No way!" Kenny blinked in disbelief but the three nodded solemnly.
"I don't think that struggle we saw had anything to do with the tournament though, Takao." Rei spoke up quietly.
"What?" Takao asked.
"What makes you say that?" Max added.
"Well, you know Kai. He'd never blade for them under the threat of violence. He'd just fight back. But he was resisting, meaning what was about to happen to him wouldn't hurt him emotionally. They weren't blackmailing him then. They were going to do something else."
"Like what, Rei?" Kenny asked, bewildered.
"Well... I don't think he really cares what happens to himself so they must have threatened to expose a secret about him. Or maybe threatened a friend or relative of his." Rei answered.
"So that's what Boris meant by 'special treatment'." Takao muttered. "They were going to beat him or something."
"Exactly." Rei replied darkly. "I don't feel so good, guys. I'm gonna skip dinner tonight and just go straight to sleep."
"'Kay. Good-night Rei." Kenny nodded.
"Tomorrow we'll work on our rescue plan for breaking Kai out of there!" Takao cheered and pumped a fist into the air, restoring the joy to the room, for the most part.
"Good night Rei." Max smiled and waved as Rei turned and walked quietly back to his room.
***
Meanwhile, Kai was lying in front of his grandfather's chair. It had taken ten minutes to get him into that room and Kai had made it no easier, getting his second and third wind and resisting the men the whole way. Finally he had passed out with a blow to the head and tossed in front of the chair to wait for his grandfather's arrival.
The man dug his toe into his grandson's side and shoved brutally.
"Get up you stupid boy." He growled unpleasantly. Kai stirred slightly, but was jarred awake when a steel-toed boot collided swiftly with his side again.
"AHH!" He screamed and willed the tears to stay down.
"Good, you're awake." His grandfather laughed gruffly. He pulled Kai up by his blood-stained scarf and punched the boy mercilessly.
After a few moments of this, he tossed Kai into a wall. He was so weak by now that he just winced and slid to the floor. He was able to force down the pain and ignore it for the most part, like he had always done with the older Hiwatari's abuse. His eyes were sealed shut by tears and dried blood that had flowed from a cut he received earlier when he was with Boris, but they were pried open wide when his grandfather backhanded him across the face. The many rings on the older man's hand slashed into Kai's cheek sending blood down his face.
"Next time you'll know better than to resist me. I'll assume you'll not have anymore weaknesses from now on. You're dismissed." He waved the now bloodied hand and walked out of the parlour.
After a few minutes Kai was able to pick himself up. After making sure his cold impenetrable gaze was fixed on his face he walked out of the abbey and into the street.
The biting wind was harsh but Kai didn't notice it at all. He needed the cold air on his bruises and he needed the space to think freely. He raised a hand to his torn face and frowned. Once the blood had dried he'd have to reapply the blue triangles to hide another couple of scratches.
'The cold air will hopefully make it dry faster.' He thought sternly. He couldn't imagine how his former team mates would react if they saw him now. 'They'd see how weak I really am.'
***
A few hours later Takao, Max and Kenny were sound asleep in the beds beside him, but Rei couldn't sleep. He couldn't erase the image of Kai from his mind.
'He looked so angry.' He thought to himself. He turned his head to the side and frowned at the empty bed beside him. Kai's bed. 'I wish I knew how to help you, Kai. But I don't think we'll be able to get back into the abbey without getting caught.' He was effectively making himself feel worse. He missed their leader. The mornings were never as happy as they were when he was around. No one was around to yell at Takao for eating too much, for sleeping in, for not practicing. No one was in the mood to fill his position as leader or rational one.
'It's not that he was Mr. Cheerful or anything. He just made the atmosphere more down to earth. He was the one to make Takao and Max focus when they were hyper. He was the one to point out our faults and tell us to keep striving for perfection... even if he did that by pointing out each and every one of our faults.' Rei's brows furrowed and he turned away from the empty bed. He rolled over to face Takao's snoring figure.
"Why'd this have to happen now?" He whispered to himself. "We were just beginning to break through to him." He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment to halt the tears that threatened to come and tossed back the covers. His insomnia was getting to him and he couldn't stay in the hotel room for much longer. He walked to the door and looked back at his team. No one had woken up. He frowned again looking upon Kai's untouched bed and slipped out the door.
When he was finally outside he leaned his back against the hotel wall and looked up at the stars.
"Where ever you are, Kai... I hope you come back to us... to me. If you can't then we'll just have to come and get you." He whispered and ran into the darkness. He didn't know where he was going but he knew he had to go somewhere to be alone with his thoughts.
***
Rei ran for what seemed like hours and finally ended up in a secluded park that overlooked the rest of the city. He stopped running when he collided head on with someone.
"HEY! Watch where you're going, asshole." Rei heard the person snap from beneath him.
"Kai?" He asked aloud and looked at the person's face.
"Rei." He whispered, wincing only slightly from Rei's body weight on his bruises. "What are you doing here?"
"I needed some space and a lot of fresh air. What about you? I thought you'd be in the abbey." Rei stood up and offered his arm to Kai. He ignored the hand and lifted himself up, dusting his pants off a bit. Then he took off sprinting.
"KAI!" Rei yelled, watching his friend run away. Without giving it a second thought he shot off after Kai.
'So, you're as smart as I thought you were.' Kai grinned to himself when he heard Rei's footsteps following him. He headed towards the heart of the city and began to weave in and out of the crowds. He wondered if Rei could keep up. When he reached the end of the main street he dove into an abandoned building and climbed the stairs to the top floor, five stories up. He walked the floor looking for the perfect room when he came across a door that led to a ballroom size space. There was dirt and debris everywhere, piles of old wood were lying, rotting on the floor and a faucet in the corner dripped a steady stream of water. The building was supposed to have been renovated, but that had been over a couple of years ago.
"Kai! I know you're here somewhere. I saw you come up these stairs." Rei called from down the hall. Kai ignored the voice for a moment and walked to where the glass of the windows should have been. He sat down on the sill and gazed out over the city.
"You know, you're very loud when you want to be." He said, not bothering to turn around. He knew Rei was standing in the doorway. "It could get you killed one day."
"Kai, why did you run away?" Rei asked.
"I needed to find a place where we could talk without anyone overhearing us or seeing us." He replied, thinking of the satellites his grandfather had supposedly seen him with.
"You knew I was going to follow you?" Rei asked astonished.
"Of course."
"Why did you want to be alone?"
"There's eyes and ears everywhere. Ones that don't want me talking with you."
"Why-"
"You have an awful lot of questions, Rei-kun. Didn't you ever hear the saying 'Curiosity killed the cat'?" Kai smirked and turned to look at Rei who was blushing at the cat remark. Kai's eyes caught his reflection in a broken mirror and he saw his same old face His wounds had stopped bleeding and his triangles were freshly painted on his face.
Rei walked into the room and sat down on the dusty floor beside Kai.
"What was going on at the abbey?" Rei asked softly. "Why were they restraining you?"
"It's none of your concern." Kai snapped. "I just didn't want to go where they wanted me to. You didn't need to get involved."
"But you're a friend." Rei insisted, scooting closer to the wall. He leaned back and looked at the stars, missing the astonished look on Kai's face.
"I-I am?" he sputtered.
"Of course." Rei answered and smiled in Kai's direction. "I just want to help you. Please let me."
"Don't try to rescue me again." Kai replied sternly, regaining his composure. "It'll only cause everyone more grief. If you do then they'll come after you and hurt you guys. Especially you, Rei." He whispered the last sentence. Rei was surprised at this. 'Me?' he wondered.
"Why especially me?" He voiced his thoughts. Kai didn't look back at Rei. "Kai?" He took a couple of deep breaths and stood from the ledge.
"Never mind that. Just let me handle my own problems. I can deal with it." He exclaimed, not noticing that his voice was wavering slightly. Without turning to look at Rei he ran out of the building, hopping Rei wouldn't follow him a second time.
Rei sat on the floor stunned for a few minutes before he sighed and headed back to the hotel. He needed a little sleep and he knew tomorrow would be a long day.
~Finis
Please review! The next chapter is going to be called
Chapter 2: Mr. Dickenson's Advice
Although I'm not sure when it will be posted (it will be soon though). Please tell me what you think. Ja ne
Chibi Neko-chan (a.k.a. Kon-Kun) (I don't know why I have a guy's name for my S/N but it's really sugoi cause it's Rei's... lol... )
Another Word for Strength Chapter 1: Disobedience
"No Kai. I don't think you'll be blading for your old team. You'll continue your service to the Russian Demolition Boys."
"What?! No way. I'm fed up being your puppet. I'm not going to take anymore of your orders!" Kai screamed at the satellite image.
"You won't deny my orders, Kai. Unless you want something to happen to your Bladebreakers. I know that would be terribly unfortunate."
"How dare you threaten my team!" Kai spat at the older man's face. "You have no authority here!"
"You'd be surprised. Now, you'll do as you're directed without complaint or else you'll see just how much authority I really have over there. I have eyes and ears everywhere."
"I won't go back to the abbey." Kai said, feeling his defences beginning to break.
"Yes you will. I know how much you'd put on the line for your teams safety, as well as a certain blader by the name of Kon. You wouldn't want to risk his life now would you?" The man pulled out his wild card. He knew his grandson would do anything for that boy's safety. They didn't invent satellites for nothing, you know.
"That reminds me. You'll serve penance for that weakness. I won't let my own grandson grow weak for some no good blader."
"You can't do this! I'll fight you. With everything I have, I'll fight you." Kai snarled at his grandfather.
"Ha. You have nothing. Now if I don't see you fighting for the Demolition boys in the next match I'll make sure you never have the chance to tell Kon how you feel. It will be on your head if something should happen to him." With those final remarks the screen turned off and the room became shrouded in darkness. He knew he had to fight with the Russian team if he wanted his friends to be protected from his grandfather, his conscience wouldn't allow him to do otherwise. He was stuck in a jam and couldn't think of any other way out.
"Damn you, Grandfather." He snarled at the blank screen. 'How did you know how I felt for Rei?' He wondered angrily.
Suddenly Boris entered the pitch black room.
"Your grandfather will be arriving within the hour and has asked to hold you in a private waiting room." He said coldly, before two abbey men grabbed him roughly and dragged him through the halls, kicking and screaming.
"Let me go you filth!" He raged, trying desperately to bite one of the men. He knew why he was being forced to wait. His 'penance' was going to be carried out when his grandfather arrived.
"Now, Kai. There's no use fighting us. You'll only cut your endurance down." Boris laughed. He was walking just behind the men so Kai could see him.
"Let me go!" He screamed again, and continued to fight off the men. Another two had to help secure his thrashing legs.
They passed by Tala and the other Demolition Boys and Kai looked at them for support, but was greatly disappointed. They just smirked and shook their heads. Kai spit on them and snarled primally.
"Kai?" A familiar voice called from around a corner, just as they were turning it. They ran smack into the Bladebreakers who were searching for Kai again in hopes to get him to reconsider coming back to the team.
"Kai!" Takao exclaimed again as they recognised the struggling figure. Hearing his friends, Kai renewed his struggle and managed to dislodge the two who held his feet.
"Let me go you bastards!" He cried and kicked at the other two who held his arms.
Without hesitation Takao leapt at one of the men and began to help him. All he could think about was that Kai needed his help. Rei and Max on the other hand were stunned to see that Kai was being forced into the abbey again.
"You better let him go if you know what's good for you." Rei yelled out and joined in the fight to free Kai. Unfortunately more men had come at Boris' call and they effortlessly pried the three teens off, and secured Kai again.
"Take Kai to his grandfather." Boris told Kai's captors and looked down at a battered Kai. "I'll see to it that you get extra special treatment after that stunt." He snarled before the men dragged him away.
"Kai!" Rei called out, but the men restrained him from going to his team mate.
"As for you three," Boris said spinning on the remaining kids. "If I ever hear that you've come back, I'll make sure you never Beyblade again. I'd advise you not to stick your nose where it doesn't belong. It could get chopped off." He nodded to the men holding the three bladers and within seconds they were sprawled on the sidewalk.
***
"Kai's being held against his own will!" Takao exclaimed loudly. "They're forcing him to fight with the Demolition Boys."
The boys had returned to the hotel to report the whole thing to the Chief.
"No way!" Kenny blinked in disbelief but the three nodded solemnly.
"I don't think that struggle we saw had anything to do with the tournament though, Takao." Rei spoke up quietly.
"What?" Takao asked.
"What makes you say that?" Max added.
"Well, you know Kai. He'd never blade for them under the threat of violence. He'd just fight back. But he was resisting, meaning what was about to happen to him wouldn't hurt him emotionally. They weren't blackmailing him then. They were going to do something else."
"Like what, Rei?" Kenny asked, bewildered.
"Well... I don't think he really cares what happens to himself so they must have threatened to expose a secret about him. Or maybe threatened a friend or relative of his." Rei answered.
"So that's what Boris meant by 'special treatment'." Takao muttered. "They were going to beat him or something."
"Exactly." Rei replied darkly. "I don't feel so good, guys. I'm gonna skip dinner tonight and just go straight to sleep."
"'Kay. Good-night Rei." Kenny nodded.
"Tomorrow we'll work on our rescue plan for breaking Kai out of there!" Takao cheered and pumped a fist into the air, restoring the joy to the room, for the most part.
"Good night Rei." Max smiled and waved as Rei turned and walked quietly back to his room.
***
Meanwhile, Kai was lying in front of his grandfather's chair. It had taken ten minutes to get him into that room and Kai had made it no easier, getting his second and third wind and resisting the men the whole way. Finally he had passed out with a blow to the head and tossed in front of the chair to wait for his grandfather's arrival.
The man dug his toe into his grandson's side and shoved brutally.
"Get up you stupid boy." He growled unpleasantly. Kai stirred slightly, but was jarred awake when a steel-toed boot collided swiftly with his side again.
"AHH!" He screamed and willed the tears to stay down.
"Good, you're awake." His grandfather laughed gruffly. He pulled Kai up by his blood-stained scarf and punched the boy mercilessly.
After a few moments of this, he tossed Kai into a wall. He was so weak by now that he just winced and slid to the floor. He was able to force down the pain and ignore it for the most part, like he had always done with the older Hiwatari's abuse. His eyes were sealed shut by tears and dried blood that had flowed from a cut he received earlier when he was with Boris, but they were pried open wide when his grandfather backhanded him across the face. The many rings on the older man's hand slashed into Kai's cheek sending blood down his face.
"Next time you'll know better than to resist me. I'll assume you'll not have anymore weaknesses from now on. You're dismissed." He waved the now bloodied hand and walked out of the parlour.
After a few minutes Kai was able to pick himself up. After making sure his cold impenetrable gaze was fixed on his face he walked out of the abbey and into the street.
The biting wind was harsh but Kai didn't notice it at all. He needed the cold air on his bruises and he needed the space to think freely. He raised a hand to his torn face and frowned. Once the blood had dried he'd have to reapply the blue triangles to hide another couple of scratches.
'The cold air will hopefully make it dry faster.' He thought sternly. He couldn't imagine how his former team mates would react if they saw him now. 'They'd see how weak I really am.'
***
A few hours later Takao, Max and Kenny were sound asleep in the beds beside him, but Rei couldn't sleep. He couldn't erase the image of Kai from his mind.
'He looked so angry.' He thought to himself. He turned his head to the side and frowned at the empty bed beside him. Kai's bed. 'I wish I knew how to help you, Kai. But I don't think we'll be able to get back into the abbey without getting caught.' He was effectively making himself feel worse. He missed their leader. The mornings were never as happy as they were when he was around. No one was around to yell at Takao for eating too much, for sleeping in, for not practicing. No one was in the mood to fill his position as leader or rational one.
'It's not that he was Mr. Cheerful or anything. He just made the atmosphere more down to earth. He was the one to make Takao and Max focus when they were hyper. He was the one to point out our faults and tell us to keep striving for perfection... even if he did that by pointing out each and every one of our faults.' Rei's brows furrowed and he turned away from the empty bed. He rolled over to face Takao's snoring figure.
"Why'd this have to happen now?" He whispered to himself. "We were just beginning to break through to him." He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment to halt the tears that threatened to come and tossed back the covers. His insomnia was getting to him and he couldn't stay in the hotel room for much longer. He walked to the door and looked back at his team. No one had woken up. He frowned again looking upon Kai's untouched bed and slipped out the door.
When he was finally outside he leaned his back against the hotel wall and looked up at the stars.
"Where ever you are, Kai... I hope you come back to us... to me. If you can't then we'll just have to come and get you." He whispered and ran into the darkness. He didn't know where he was going but he knew he had to go somewhere to be alone with his thoughts.
***
Rei ran for what seemed like hours and finally ended up in a secluded park that overlooked the rest of the city. He stopped running when he collided head on with someone.
"HEY! Watch where you're going, asshole." Rei heard the person snap from beneath him.
"Kai?" He asked aloud and looked at the person's face.
"Rei." He whispered, wincing only slightly from Rei's body weight on his bruises. "What are you doing here?"
"I needed some space and a lot of fresh air. What about you? I thought you'd be in the abbey." Rei stood up and offered his arm to Kai. He ignored the hand and lifted himself up, dusting his pants off a bit. Then he took off sprinting.
"KAI!" Rei yelled, watching his friend run away. Without giving it a second thought he shot off after Kai.
'So, you're as smart as I thought you were.' Kai grinned to himself when he heard Rei's footsteps following him. He headed towards the heart of the city and began to weave in and out of the crowds. He wondered if Rei could keep up. When he reached the end of the main street he dove into an abandoned building and climbed the stairs to the top floor, five stories up. He walked the floor looking for the perfect room when he came across a door that led to a ballroom size space. There was dirt and debris everywhere, piles of old wood were lying, rotting on the floor and a faucet in the corner dripped a steady stream of water. The building was supposed to have been renovated, but that had been over a couple of years ago.
"Kai! I know you're here somewhere. I saw you come up these stairs." Rei called from down the hall. Kai ignored the voice for a moment and walked to where the glass of the windows should have been. He sat down on the sill and gazed out over the city.
"You know, you're very loud when you want to be." He said, not bothering to turn around. He knew Rei was standing in the doorway. "It could get you killed one day."
"Kai, why did you run away?" Rei asked.
"I needed to find a place where we could talk without anyone overhearing us or seeing us." He replied, thinking of the satellites his grandfather had supposedly seen him with.
"You knew I was going to follow you?" Rei asked astonished.
"Of course."
"Why did you want to be alone?"
"There's eyes and ears everywhere. Ones that don't want me talking with you."
"Why-"
"You have an awful lot of questions, Rei-kun. Didn't you ever hear the saying 'Curiosity killed the cat'?" Kai smirked and turned to look at Rei who was blushing at the cat remark. Kai's eyes caught his reflection in a broken mirror and he saw his same old face His wounds had stopped bleeding and his triangles were freshly painted on his face.
Rei walked into the room and sat down on the dusty floor beside Kai.
"What was going on at the abbey?" Rei asked softly. "Why were they restraining you?"
"It's none of your concern." Kai snapped. "I just didn't want to go where they wanted me to. You didn't need to get involved."
"But you're a friend." Rei insisted, scooting closer to the wall. He leaned back and looked at the stars, missing the astonished look on Kai's face.
"I-I am?" he sputtered.
"Of course." Rei answered and smiled in Kai's direction. "I just want to help you. Please let me."
"Don't try to rescue me again." Kai replied sternly, regaining his composure. "It'll only cause everyone more grief. If you do then they'll come after you and hurt you guys. Especially you, Rei." He whispered the last sentence. Rei was surprised at this. 'Me?' he wondered.
"Why especially me?" He voiced his thoughts. Kai didn't look back at Rei. "Kai?" He took a couple of deep breaths and stood from the ledge.
"Never mind that. Just let me handle my own problems. I can deal with it." He exclaimed, not noticing that his voice was wavering slightly. Without turning to look at Rei he ran out of the building, hopping Rei wouldn't follow him a second time.
Rei sat on the floor stunned for a few minutes before he sighed and headed back to the hotel. He needed a little sleep and he knew tomorrow would be a long day.
~Finis
Please review! The next chapter is going to be called
Chapter 2: Mr. Dickenson's Advice
Although I'm not sure when it will be posted (it will be soon though). Please tell me what you think. Ja ne
Chibi Neko-chan (a.k.a. Kon-Kun) (I don't know why I have a guy's name for my S/N but it's really sugoi cause it's Rei's... lol... )