After much staring at the computer screen and rewrites, this chapter is finally done. About time, eh? I wasn't sure what direction I wanted the story to go in, and actually had a longer chapter heading off in an opposite direction that took me about two months to write. But I think this one works better, and it managed to write itself in a couple of hours. Also, it allows me to tie things together and head toward an ending. So here it is, Logout Denied chapter 7, enjoy!

Warnings: Shounen ai, OOC-ness, small amount of language and mention of limey situations

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade, .hack//SIGN or the songs. (Translations from animelyrics.com)

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The soft light of dawn spilled over the land, gently sweeping over the two figures lying together. Rei whimpered as the brilliant beams attacked his face, causing patterns of red to dance across the inside of his eyes. Lazily, he revealed his sleep-drunk eyes to find himself gazing at Kai's own sleeping form. Fingers curled as Rei struggled to sit up; the action hindered by Kai's possessive grip. A fake breeze played with their hair, sending Rei's unbound ebony locks into a whirlwind of motion. And then, after what seemed like hours, Kai's garnet pools opened.

"Rei?" The blue-haired youth murmured sleepily, releasing his hold on the other's slim waist. Then, throwing up an arm to shield him from the morning light, Kai gazed at Rei's whole figure. It wasn't the first time he'd seen the Chinese boy naked, it'd been happening quite often that week, their sudden intimate moments, but every time he woke up to see the Tiger, the boy's beauty amazed him; mostly because Kai had never thought it possible to find anything or anyone beautiful.

"Morning," Rei said with a smile, in the process of pulling back his hair to stop the wind from messing with it. "Sleep well?" The longhaired boy added with a wink.

"I did," Kai began, sitting up and moving to where Rei sat, "until I woke up to see you trying to get away from me."

Snapping his hair band, Rei grinned and drew his arms around Kai's neck, pulling them close together. "Is that so?" He mused in a teasing tone before their lips met, Kai's hands running over his bare skin. The phoenix growled slightly and deepened the kiss, overpowering the scribe and pressing his slender back against the ground. Hands continued to roam Rei's body, sliding lower with each second. Rei reached up and ran a hand through Kai's hair as the mage kissed his heated flesh; enjoying the feelings Kai sent rocketing through him.

The past week had been unfruitful; Rei hadn't been able to get near Voltaire at all. He was staying at Takao's as a guest while in Japan, and the boy had offered that Rei could use his computer whenever he wanted, since he no longer needed it with Max back in town. At first Rei had been hesitant to spend large amounts of time in The World, but Takao had assured Rei the he could spend all day online if he wanted to, and promised to call him when it was time to eat. And so far, the arrangement was working quite nicely . . .

Rei let out a moan, which brought him away from his thoughts, and he tugged gently at Kai's roaming hands. "Koi, not now. People will start logging on soon, and may come by here."

Grumbling slightly, Kai pulled back from Rei and took to staring into the amber orbs of the other boy. Rei chuckled and reached for his clothes. Kai followed suit, and soon they were dressed and standing together, gazing over the meadow in which they'd spent the night.

Kai had been in The World for a while now, almost a month, Rei had told him, and he was starting to tire of the place. What had seemed like a vast place at first was actually quite small when one could teleport anywhere instantly, and Kai was sure he'd seen just about every area of The World. Still, he had no choice in the matter of leaving; the program still refused to let him logout. That meant Kai had to rely on others, and even though he was fond of Rei, that prospect of needing help still did not appeal to him.

"It all seems so real, doesn't it?" Rei broke the heavy silence, his golden eyes saddened as he gazed over the meadow. "To think most of us ran here to escape reality, and now it's almost like this is our reality. When you're here, nothing else matters." The neko-jin sighed and turned away from the scene. "Well, we'll want to try the Princess again, right? She's pretty much the only person who could help us discover why you can't log off."

"If we must," Kai said, distaste lacing through his voice. He was looking at Rei now, inspecting the other boy. The Tiger suddenly appeared to be tired, his honey-colored eyes missing the brightness they'd held only moments before. In fact, the scribe seemed older, like he was carrying a great weight that forced him to age rapidly. Frowning, Kai rested a hand on Rei's shoulder. "Rei, is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong." The Chinese boy said absently, smiling gently at Kai. "Hey, what time do you think it is in Japan right now? It seems like forever since I've been offline. Takao probably went out with Max and forgot about me." Rei laughed softly, leaning down to rest his hand on the grassy surface below.

//Rei, what is wrong? Something's troubling you. //

'Drigger . . . I can't tell you now. Not with Kai here.'

//But what-//

"Stop trying to change the subject," Kai said, interrupting Rei's silent conversation.

"Nothing's wrong," Rei repeated as he closed his eyes, listening to the sounds around him. Far off it sounded like birds were chirping, and he could hear a distant stream trickling along as well, not to mention Kai's annoyed breathing. It all sounded so real, not like the effects of a virtual reality game. Perhaps he'd ask Takao about it when he got offline.

Kai was glaring at him when Rei turned to look at his cyber lover, mahogany eyes showing their owner's displeasure with Rei's secretive air. And in the back of his mind, Rei felt a tug. Takao was calling him back to the real world.

"That's Takao. I have to go now, Kai." The slate-haired youth didn't move from where he stood, instead avoiding Rei's apologetic gaze and refusing to answer. Rei rolled his eyes. "Stop being so childish, Kai. You're not always going to get everything you want-"

And in a flurry Kai had turned on him, his eyes a brilliant blood red in his anger. "You are in no position to be talking like that," The mage growled, "Like I'm some spoiled child you have to train- "

"That's what you're acting like!" Rei shouted back, jumping in to defend himself. "Just because I'm keeping one thing from you-"

"Well, I'm sorry for worrying about you, then!" Kai glared at the boy and grabbed his staff from the ground, preparing to teleport away. Instantly Rei felt his anger melt upon seeing that Kai was going to flee from the argument.

'No, I can't leave things on bad grounds . . . '

"Kai, wait-"

"You obviously don't want to talk to me, so forget it."

"Kai, that's not-"

"Shut up." The column of light took Kai away, leaving Rei standing there in the aftermath of the fight.

//Wasn't that pleasant, // Drigger said dryly, moving restlessly in Rei's mind. The Chinese scribe felt another mental pull from Takao and let out a groan.

"Now what am I going to do?" He muttered, closing his eyes and logging off.

And on the other side of The World, Kai was wondering the same thing.

*****

"Well, I'm not surprised," Takao said through a mouthful of food. He slammed his fist on the table, rattling all the dishes. "That Kai, he always acts like he's better than everyone!"

"Takao! You've hardly spoken to him," Max reminded his boyfriend, glancing at Rei. The Chinese boy was pushing around food on his plate, every so often taking a thoughtful bite.

"Guys, I've been wondering about something . . . "

Takao took a gulp from his glass, wiping at his mouth. "Shoot pal."

Rei lowered his chopsticks. "Why is everything in The World so realistic? I mean, I know it's a breakthrough in technology, but don't you think it's going a bit too far?"

The two boys at the table stared at him blankly for a minute.

"You know," Max began, "I never really thought about it before. Takao and I were mainly using The World to communicate, and I never paid attention to how real everything seemed even when I was playing the game."

"Same here." Takao had stopped eating, a frown crossing his face.

"The only difference from reality," Rei paused in his thoughts. "The only difference is that we don't need food and water to survive. Also, the guidebook said you can't get hurt, but Kai has been. When I found him, he was bleeding."

"Impossible!" Max and Takao shouted in unison. They exchanged quick grins, then grew serious again.

"Rei, are you sure it was blood?" Max asked tentatively.

"I'm positive. It surprised me too, but Kai was actually hurt."

Takao was eating again, the seriousness of the situation making his stomach growl. "Have you tried talking to the Princess? She made the game, after all."

"Er, Kai isn't too fond of her. Neither am I, for that matter."

Max, who was watching Takao disbelievingly as the youth shoveled food into his mouth, was the one to ask "why?"

"The Princess had me captured, and Kai had to break me out of her palace. She has some weird idea that Kai and I want to overthrow her control of The World."

"Who knows, maybe that's the sourpuss' whole plan and you just got dragged into it," Takao grumbled. "I don't care what's happened to him, that guy pisses me off. What's his problem anyways, always so moody . . . "

"He's not that bad," Rei said quietly, once again pushing around his food.

"Rei, how can you defend him when you're in a fight? He obviously annoys you too," stated Takao, ignoring the look Max shot him. "I mean seriously, that guy has major issues."

"You just don't like him because he insults you," Max cut in, smiling at Rei. "I'm sure Kai's not as bad as Takao says."

"I don't even believe he's trapped online," Takao continued. "The guy just wants attention, he's probably some freak who wants to take advantage of people's kindness."

"Kai isn't like that!" Rei felt his skin flush as he jumped to his feet, staring accusingly at Takao.

Takao blinked. "Chill Rei, I was just thinking out loud. What's with you today? I know you had a fight with Kai, but you're really defensive. More so than usual."

"I- I-" Rei could feel his cheeks burn as Max raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile creeping across his face as he realized what had happened between Kai and Rei. Takao was ignoring the scene; already back to his food. Rei lowered himself back into his chair. "Sorry, Takao."

"Eh? No need to apologize. We all have these kinds of days."

"Oh, do you?" Rei grinned at Max, who caught the hidden meaning and blushed.

"Takao! No we don't!"

"Denying it, Max? Takao doesn't seem afraid to tell the truth . . . "

The blond let out a small laugh. "Takao doesn't even know what he's saying."

As if on cue, Takao raised his head. "What are we talking about?"

His two friends laughed, momentarily forgetting the problems at hand.

*****

"Mr. Hiwatari?"

The man at the desk raised his head, eyes narrowing when he saw who was at the door to his office. "What is it now, Boris?"

"The Chinese boy hasn't appeared today, and there is still no progress on reviving your grandson. No one can get near that wing of the house," reported the man called Boris, not pleased that he didn't have good news yet.

"For the hundredth time," Voltiare Hiwatari growled, "Don't come to me until you have revived my grandson! That girl obviously had no clue what she was doing, and still doesn't. We're safe while she keeps things quiet in The World, and I'll divert the reporters, but Boris, get into that boy's fucking room before I fire you. Or worse!"

Boris spoke through clenched teeth as he left the office. "Yes, Mr. Hiwatari."

Voltaire shook his head, immediately turning to his computer when the door was shut. "Incompetent fools, all of them." He muttered, eyes scanning the screen. He typed a hasty message then pressed the enter button, effectively sending the email off on its way. "Seems our little experiment isn't working out as smoothly as I hoped."

*****

Michael watched the girl closely, frowning when he saw her concerned expression. Emily had been easy to anger recently and he knew she was hiding something. Why else would she have the guards on watch for those two boys; the mage and the neko-jin?

"Try harder, he says." The girl glared at the virtual message in her hand. "How the hell am I suppose to stop those two from running all over this goddamn place? The one is already trapped online, and that stupid neko-jin *was* in my possession for a while . . . "

"Something wrong, M'lady?" Michael stepped from the shadows of the room, gazing calmly at Emily's stiff figure.

"When did you get here, Michael?"

"I've been on duty for half an hour, M'lady."

"There is nothing wrong." Emily turned briskly, the message vanishing into thin air. "And next time you change shifts, tell me. That goes for all the guards, so be sure to tell them."

"Of course."

"Thank you, Michael. Now, if you'll excuse me . . . "

And with that Emily left the room, leaving Michael alone and obviously not wishing for him to follow her.

*****

Kai stared up into the blue heavens of The World, lost in a sea of thoughts. Why had he gotten upset with Rei? Rei was just trying to help him, just trying to bring him home. Home to . . . to what? Kai could hardly remember his home, aside from what Rei had told him. Maybe he was better off staying here. He knew the rules of this game, and he knew how to break them. He would be fine living in The World without help from anyone.

/I told you/ Dranzer snorted. /But would you listen? Nooooo. /

'Shut up, Dranzer. I don't need that right now.'

/We just had to go fall for the Tiger, didn't we? / The phoenix continued. /Why listen to a spirit, who had foreseen all this suffering . . . /

'Dranzer, shut up!'

Kai growled, tossing his staff onto the ground. He was so sick of all this. It had felt like he could trust Rei, but obviously the neko-jin didn't trust him. And Rei's help wasn't getting Kai anywhere. All Kai ended up doing was waiting for the scribe to come back online. It was a never-ending circle, and it was driving Kai mad. Anyways, he hadn't spoken to the Chinese boy in over a day and Kai had no way to contact him even if he'd wanted to. Just like before, he was alone.

"It's time I took this into my own hands," the mage murmured in a low tone, eyes darkening to a wine hue. "It's time I go talk to the Princess for myself."

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You are always going like this, and even if you pile on the lies

You can never again return by this road.

What kind of dream were you drawing and fell into

That time when you lost your footing on the other side of the border?

The future visible in tomorrow isn't even close to satisfactory

But perhaps we're living clinging to such things

Surely the truth is that you and I are searching for the same thing

Feeling the same thing - the one truth - in different places

That alone is what we want to know.

So we are here, holding on to nothing

Prowling in dreams and reality, we're too close to the edge

You are always going like this, and even if you pile on the lies

You can't return by the road you lost your footing on

No matter where you are now, no matter what you're gazing at

Two people love each other in that way, with their hearts still separate

Tomorrow, believing in whatever kind of future is visible

We'll be walking in order to once again discover the serenity of the twilight

Walking in this place

The future visible in tomorrow isn't even close to satisfactory

But we only want the foolish strength that believes in that kind of thing

Surely we want to live with a groundless passion

Greater than regret, consolation, and the like, feeling only that much

And walking, singing while standing in this place

We are here holding on to nothing

Where will we go tomorrow? We're too close to the edge

You are always going like this, even if you pile on the lies

Until you make sure of the point on the road you lost your footing

What is being born in the light, just starting to appear?

Two people love each other in that way, with their dreams still separate

-Edge (.hack/liminality opening)

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