Lady obsessed: Erm...nothing to say really. Just a sorta apology for being so whiny though maybe it is a little late as no one really wants to read a story by a whiny authoress. Ah well I'll keep writing anyway. ^-^ Made a tiny change it Chapter 2 - only one line of dialogue.

*pokes super-deformed version of Appolene* *super-deformed version of Appolene holds up sign* "lady obsessed does not own beyblade only the new characters are hers."

The First Three Battles of Round One

Julia tapped the microphone. The bladers that had been chattering away around the room faded away into silence and took their seats. All eyes turned to the front of the room.

"Welcome regional champions!" she greeted, smiling warmly. "I congratulate you on making it far enough to qualify for the national tournament. As you may or may not know, the tournament will begin tomorrow at noon. Tonight I am going to discuss the rules with you and exactly how the tournament works.

"The first part of the tournament consists of all of you being divided into groups of three. In those groups, each blader will battle the other two and score points depending on the outcome of the battle. You score three points for a win, two for a draw and one for a loss. The person with the most points in the group qualifies for the second round.

"In the second round, one on one battles will take place with the winner going through to face another challenger. By a process of elimination we will eventually get down to the two strongest players and they will battle in the final. The winner will be our new national champion.

"The tournament is expected to last three to four days as there are a lot of competitors."

Julia went on to explain about the starting times and where they were all supposed to sign in. All the qualifiers nodded and made mental notes. Appolene stared at the floor, not really listening. She knew most of this anyway. Why was she even here?

I know why.

Appolene closed her eyes as Dalcyn's words whispered through her head.

I know why you're here. You were hoping he'd come.

She smiled. I can't keep anything from you, can I Dalcyn? She sighed again and the smile vanished. Looks like he didn't show up. But then, I wasn't really expecting him to. My opinion is worth nothing.

Don't put yourself down, Mistress. You do not need someone like that. You should forget about him and concentrate on the upcoming tournament.

I know but I can't. I haven't been able to push him from my mind for nine years. I think it's a little late to start now, especially when he is here...and because of you.

Are you saying it's my fault that you cannot forget this arrogant boy?

Not you directly. It's the blade. He was the one who gave it to me and the one who got me into beyblading. Without him, I wouldn't be here and I wouldn't have you. He is special to me even if I am nothing to him. I think of him as my friend. She bowed her head. At least, I think I do. I haven't known him very long.

Cheer up Mistress. If you can't forget him forever, forget him for now. At least until the tournament is over. Your mind should not be clouded by thoughts of him or else we're going to lose.

Yeah, I suppose so.

Kai stood right at the back of the room amongst the shadows, waiting impatiently for the end so that he could get away quickly. This tournament sounded so simple. Not much of a challenge. This is such a waste of time, he thought irritably. He glanced at the crowd in front of him. The other Bladebreakers were somewhere towards the front, listening like the rest. He scanned the remaining people for a few more seconds and then stopped.

Why are you looking for her?

Kai growled and told Dranzer to go away. The phoenix did as his master wished and went away. Kai shook his head, trying to convince himself that he wasn't looking for Appolene yet the small part of him that had been said it hadn't seen her.

Julia finished her speech, gave a cheery smile and dismissed the crowd. As one they headed for the door. Kai was lucky enough to make it out first. If he was quick enough, he could make it back to the lodge without the others realising he had already left. He headed off in that direction when something made him stop.

"Kai?"

Damn! He'd been caught. He turned his head slightly so he could see the speaker out of the corner of his eye. They weren't distinguishable as they wore black and white clothing yet when he turned to look at them properly, he stared.

"What are you doing here?" Appolene enquired.

"What do you think?" He responded coldly.

A smile graced her lips and her face lit up. She looked really pleased. Kai frowned and turned away again.

"Don't think I did it for you," he spat.

"I know but I can pretend you did," she laughed. "I'm just glad you're entering." She turned to go. "Guess that means I'll see ya tomorrow."

He glanced over his shoulder but she was already gone. He shook his head and stiffened his shoulders. Yeah, he would see her tomorrow and he'd wipe the smile off her face too. She won't be so pleased that he decided to enter once he beat her.

Appolene couldn't get the smile to leave her face. She hummed happily as she opened the door to the lodge. He does care, she thought happily. Deep down, there is something that allows him to consider other people's opinions. She collapsed blissfully on her bed and placed Dalcyn on the small wooden table.

"Tomorrow is the start of the tournament," she said, changing into her pyjamas. "I can't wait!" And she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

In the back of her mistress's mind, Dalcyn considered what the girl was thinking for a moment.

This shall be a challenge, she mused. She's going to be distracted by this boy.

Excitement awoke almost everyone in the Bladebreakers's lodge at about seven o'clock. The tournament did not start for another five hours so they had some time to kill. Ray occupied himself by making breakfast and Kai shut himself away in his room. The rest of the team were in the room Tyson and Kenny shared, trying to come up with the best way to wake Tyson up.

"Do you really think we should?" Max asked as he helped Hilary and Kenny drag Tyson out of bed.

"Of course, it'll do him good," Hilary said.

The three of them hauled him into the small en suite. Hilary switched on the shower and turned the knob so that the water was freezing cold.

"Okay," she grinned, giving the thumbs up.

Together, they shoved Tyson under the icy spray.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!"

From the kitchen, Ray almost dropped the frying pan.

"What on earth was that?" Mr Dickenson blustered, stumbling into the living room.

"I think Tyson is awake," Kai remarked vaguely as he came down the stairs.

"Good thing too," Ray said, "I was just serving up breakfast."

Seconds later, Tyson careered out of the room, his pyjamas clinging to him and hair dripping.

"C-cold! Really c-cold," he stammered.

"Well then maybe you should get dry and put some clothes on," Hilary said, throwing him a towel and pushing him back in his room.

"Lemme guess. This was your idea?" Tyson growled.

Hilary didn't answer. She gave him one last shove and shut the door. Then she came downstairs. "What's for breakfast?"

"Pancakes," Ray said, sliding them onto a plate.

Everyone helped themselves to the stack. As they were munching through their fourth, Tyson came hurrying down the stairs, pulling his cap on.

"I hope you guys left me some," said he, dropping into his seat.

There was plenty left but Tyson soon devoured them.

The stadium was packed when they arrived. They were still a little early but they needed to sign in, find out when they were up and find Julia. Mr Dickenson left them in the reception and headed off to the VIP box alone. Hilary and Kenny were going to follow him later.

"Okay, now what?" Max said as they all looked around, a little lost.

There were a lot of other bladers about and they looked just as lost as they did. It seemed Julia had neglected to mention where to go when they arrived.

"Morning boys, Hilary."

They turned to see Julia standing behind them.

"Lost?"

"Yeah, kinda," Tyson said.

"Well it won't be long until the groups are put up." She pointed to a large screen suspended from the ceiling. "It'll be on there. Then you can go through to the stadium. If you're not up first, join us in the box if you like. Here are your passes."

They each took a laminated card and hung it around their necks. Hilary and Kenny went off with Julia whilst the four boys waited in the reception.

"Hey Kai?" Tyson said.

Kai's gaze swivelled to look at Tyson to show he was listening.

"I thought you weren't entering. Why aren't you going up with the others?"

"Huh!" Kai turned his gaze to the screen and ignored the question.

Before Tyson could say anything else, the screen lit up and photos appeared along with names and numbers. The four of them scanned the screen until they found their own pictures. Tyson was in group two, Max in group five, Ray in ten and Kai was in eleven.

"And there's Kai's girlfriend," Tyson grinned, pointing to the picture of Appolene under the number one. "Not a very flattering photo, is it?"

The next thing he knew, he felt a sharp pain in the side of his head.

"Can't say much for yours either," Appolene growled, dusting her hand off on her red vest.

"Ow! Why'd ya hit me?!" Tyson yelled.

"Do you enjoy insulting me?" She snapped back. "You seem to quite keen on the pain that comes with it."

Tyson glared daggers at her and she returned it with equal viciousness. Then she turned to the screen.

"Looks like I'm in the second battle," she remarked. She beamed and winked. "Wish me luck!" Then she disappeared amongst the crowd.

Tyson stuck his tongue out at her as she went. Ray shook his head.

"Dear dear," he chuckled.

"What?!"

"You have such a unique way of handling girls, don't you Tyson?"

The Bladebreakers showed their passes to the burly security guard standing outside the entrance to the VIP box. He nodded curtly and let them pass.

"Wow!" Max gasped. "This is so cool!"

"Very nice," Ray agreed, crossing to the huge glass windows. "Great view."

"Only the best for the guests," Julia smiled.

Kai walked over to the window too. Ray was right; it did have a good view. He'd be able to see everything quite easily. Ray glanced at the captain.

"You gonna watch her match?"

Kai shrugged and Ray nodded. He returned to looking out at the stadium.

"Is she any good?"

"I only caught the end of one battle," Kai said.

"Did she win?"

He nodded.

"So it should be good then?"

Kai shrugged again.

"Well, I'm looking forward to it at least," Ray grinned, showing his fangs.

Down in the stadium, Appolene sat on a bench. She wasn't up yet but she could take this chance to study her opponents' moves. She glanced over at the VIP box and could see Kai and Ray watching. She smiled to herself. So Kai was going to see her battle. She'd show him she was good enough to play his team.

"WELCOME!!!!" Jazzman's voice bellowed throughout the stadium. "Today we begin the first rounds of the English National Tournament. We have bladers from all over the country competing here! We shall start the first battle shortly but first, we at the BBA British office would like to introduce our special guests. All the way from Japan, we have the World Champions themselves! The Bladebreakers!"

The VIP box was illuminated and the giant television screen showed the interior where the Bladebreakers waved and smiled at the crowd. All except for Kai, who stared coldly to the side. The crowd cheered and clapped.

"Not only are they here, they have also agreed to participate in the tournament so we should be in for some exciting battles!"

There were further cheers from the crowd.

"Okay! First up today we have Carl Underwood and Jamie Prescott! Let's take a look at the stats!"

The image on the television showed a photo of Carl, who was a raven-haired boy with freckles. Alongside the photo was a short profile, showing the attack, defence and endurance statistics of his blade. It looked as if he was a player that relied on offence. Then the screen changed and was replaced with a photo on information on Jamie. He relied on defence.

The screen was wiped and now showed a view of the centre of the stadium.

"Now! Let's reveal the battlefield. For those who do not know, we have created a selection of fields based on a certain terrain for these first round battles. So, here is field number one!"

The stadium opened up and the blading field was raised. There was a lot of 'oohing' and 'ahhing' from the crowd.

"Wow! A tough terrain from the very beginning. A marsh terrain. Well boys, step up!"

Carl and Jamie took up their positions either side of the field, launchers raised.

"Three...two...one! Let it rip!"

The two blades erupted from the launchers and landed in the field rotating fiercely. Both had landed on the thin ring of land surrounding the marshy area and stayed there. Neither dared move towards the centre and no one could blame them.

"If they land in the marshy part, they're sunk. Literally!" said Max.

The crowd watched as the two blades circled the field.

"Who will attack first?!" Jazzman cried, watching the blades as well.

It was Carl who was the first to attack. He charged at Jaime's blade with great force and sparks flew as the two blades made contact.

"Come on!" Jaime shouted, urging his blade to fight back against Carl's but his opponent laughed.

"I don't think so!" And he ordered his blade to move Jaime's towards the marsh.

Jaime gritted his teeth and willed with all he had to get his blade away. Slowly, his blade began to push back and away from the marsh.

"That was a close one! Jaime's blade almost got pulled into the marsh!"

Carl frowned and yelled at his blade.

"Typhoon spin!"

The blade began to rotate faster and faster and as it did so a huge gale blew up. Jaime watched in horror as his blade was thrown into the air and then came tumbling back again, into the marsh where it stopped spinning.

"No way!"

"And Carl is the winner with his amazing Typhoon Spin!" Jazzman shouted. "That means he is awarded three points and Jamie get one!"

The crowd cheered for Carl and clapped for Jaime.

"Next up, Carl will face off against Appolene Waters!"

From the VIP box the Bladebreakers cheered loudly, except for Kai, and Julia moved up to the window to watch.

On the screen, Appolene's picture had just been projected, along with the stats of her blade.

"Her blade is built for endurance," Ray remarked.

Kai nodded. He knew that perfectly well. He watched the screen as it changed to show a different picture.

"And it looks like Carl won't have it so easy this round as Appolene's blade is very powerful, helped by her bit-beast Dalcyn!"

The Bladebreakers gaped.

"A bit-beast?!"

"How did someone like her get a bit-beast?!" Tyson cried, looking up from the buffet table.

Down in the stadium, Appolene looked over at the VIP box and stuck her tongue out at Tyson. He choked.

"Did she hear me?!"

"Don't be an idiot!" Kai said irritably, pretending he couldn't see Appolene waving to him. Stupid girl, he thought.

Appolene stopped waving, frowning. He was ignoring her. So he still didn't think she was worthy of his attention? Well, she'd show him. She took up her position one side of the dish. Carl flashed a smile at her.

"Ready to lose?"

"No. Are you?" she retorted, fixing Dalcyn into her shooter.

"Not to a freakish girl like you!"

Appolene's eyes narrowed. "What was that?!"

"Bladers! Get ready! Three...two...one! Let it rip!"

"Hah!" Appolene cried, releasing Dalcyn with great power.

As soon as the blue blade landed, it spun around to meet the opposing blade that had just touched down. It was knocked backwards and Dalcyn charged forward again. Carl scowled and his blade began to fight back. Then, suddenly, it pulled away, causing Dalcyn to fly forwards, almost sending it into the marsh. Appolene clenched her hands into fists. Carl smirked.

"Typhoon Spin!"

As with Jaime's blade, Dalcyn was swept up into the air.

"Oh no! If Carl wins, he'll qualify for the second round and Appolene won't even have to battle Jaime!" Max cried.

"Oh no! Is this the end of Appolene?" Jazzman yelled.

Kai frowned. He was watching Appolene's face and could see she was smiling. He knew what she would do. He'd seen her do it before.

"Perfect," she grinned. "Dalcyn! You know what to do! Water Harpoon!"

"What the- ?!"

The blue beyblade flipped in mid-air and came crashing down on top of Carl's blade before it could move. The raven-haired boy watched helplessly as his blade was thrown out of the field, landing in front of Appolene. Dalcyn spun triumphantly and then returned to the girl's hands. She winked and made a peace sign with her fingers.

"Oh yeah!"

She picked up Carl's blade and tossed it to him. He grumbled angrily and took his place on the bench.

"And the winner is Appolene. She has scored three points. Carl scores one which currently puts him in the lead but will he stay there?!"

"That was awesome!" Kenny cheered with the rest of the crowd.

Julia smiled and Mr Dickenson nodded.

"I see what you mean. She does have great potential."

Kai remained expressionless as he stared down through the glass. Appolene was getting ready to battle Jaime, who looked pretty nervous. She smiled at him and he grinned back uneasily.

"Three...two...one! Let it rip!"

Kai leant against the glass so that he was facing the wall. He listened to Jazzman's commentary as the two battled. It seemed that Appolene had a slight advantage over Jaime as her blade could endure his defences. It was also a lot more powerful thanks to the bit-beast it concealed.

That bit-beast had been what allowed her to figure him out. What had allowed her to break his defences. She had experienced the same bullying and attempted manipulation that he had as a young boy but she had overcome it, like he had. He frowned and glanced around at the stadium. Below him, the two blades were still going at it but it looked like the match would soon be over.

He was right. The two blades crashed into each other one more time and were sent flying back out of the field.

"And it's a draw!" Jazzman cried. "Both score two points. The final scores are Jaime, three points, Carl, four points and Appolene, five points! That means Appolene goes through to round two!"

The stadium cheered and Appolene was shown on the screen, waving. Kai looked around and saw her looking straight up at him, smiling. She winked.

See Kai, she thought as she smiled. I'm stronger than I look and I'm going to take you on. Just you wait and see.

Lady obsessed: Okay, so I can't write beybattles very well but it was my first attempt at it so don't be too hard on me. And I know the title was lame too. Chappie 6 up soon.