The New Generation

Disclaimer: I do not own the Beyblade anime series and all related objects. I do own the storyline, Bradley, Evan and the priest.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

"Oh shit!"

Bradley swore loudly, swinging himself out of bed and simultaneously throwing a black jacket that hung from a hook near his bed over his shoulder. The digital clock rang in a shrill tone beside Evan's unoccupied and neatly fixed bed seeing as the twelve-year old Asian had already left for the training center with Father Matthew.

"They probably wanted to teach me a lesson for oversleeping..."

The European orphan thought as he tried to put on a rubber shoe and hop over to the desk adjacent to his bed. The beyblade and rosary were quickly scooped into his pocket and Bradley dashed out of his room at a speed most cars would never achieve. He cursed himself over and over again inside his head as he raced down the stairs and past the relatively youthful Sister Anna.

"Brad! Make sure you put those dirty clothes of yours in the bin today!"

She shouted after him and Bradley waved after him in response, not bothering to slow down for anyone or anything. The younger orphans all yelled happily as Bradley zipped by them like a bullet and ran through the open double doors of St. Joseph's Center for Children.

Bradley, panting for breath already, continued running down the street at full speed, ignoring the dull pain in his legs that was growing at a steady pace.

"Have - to - make - it - before - they - start..."

He gasped, his voice coming out in raspy, dry bursts. Bradley's foot slipped on an innocuous- looking leaf and he lost balance for but a few moments. And as such, he slammed into a bystander who was standing by the road. Bradley shouted an apology back at the general direction of the teenage boy he had mowed down and continued his swift pace.

The boy stared at the rapidly disappearing back of his accidental attacker and raised his left eyebrow in suspicion. He whirled around and transferred his interest to the bright orange bus that was approaching him.

"Never seen that kid around here before..."

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

The European's sun yellow hair was blown all the way back and he looked like he had just emerged from a wind tunnel. His long sleeveless black jacket that reached to just above his knees and was worn open above his white shirt was practically dotted with wrinkles. His arms hung limply from their sockets and acted more like dead weights to him than useful appendages. "Ha... I made it..."

A soft breeze whistled across his face and he realized everyone in the small shop was giving him the hairy eyeball. An embarrassed flush of red spread on his cheeks and he laughed sheepishly, edging to a relatively shadowed corner of the room, as to avoid further humiliation. Bradley muttered something and began to search the establishment for any sign of Father Matthew and Evan.

"Where are those guys?" He thought just as the clean glass door of the store slid open.

The very same teenager he had practically bulldozed but a few good minutes a while ago entered the room, followed by a swarm of adoring female fans. At this sight, Bradley's mouth presently hung open slightly, as if he had tasted a particularly revolting venom. "What the hell..."

The boy strode into the store like he owned it, his dark brown hair bobbing behind him like the sea of fans that did just as much. Simple blue denim jacket, pure white shirt, khaki pants... For a guy trailed around by a pack of adolescent girls, this guy sure didn't look like a popular kid until Bradley noticed a poster concerning a previous beyblading tournament.

With his name at the top.

Beside the giant sign that read: "First place"

"Hi, Mr. Jansen... I'd like to see that new magnet core version you just received from Japan. I hear it's quite special." The brown-haired kid asked politely, leaning against the transparent plastic that covered the counter.

Despite having an extremely sheltered and somewhat religious life in the orphanage, Bradley wasn't completely devoid of the seven original sins. In particular, the one so aptly titled pride. To the blonde European teen, this came quite often in the form of his competitive spirit; his burning desire to achieve victory no matter the cost. Unfortunately enough however, the russet-haired boy had unconsciously ignited that very flame.

"Same here!"

Bradley, walking towards the counter, said rather loudly, which once more caused the people hanging around in the store to notice him. The teenage boy he had run into earlier looked evidently surprised and wore a look somewhere in between puzzlement and curiousness, observing the golden-haired European who was now standing beside him. And as such, the girls following him quickly began to chatter incessantly about the newcomer in hushed tones.

"Hey, aren't you that guy who bumped into me a while ago?"

Bradley took a silent gulp and noticed a dozen pairs of eyes were locked on him, glaring at him with intense dislike.

"Er, yeah. Sorry about that."

The boy laughed and scratched the back of his denim jacket, smiling.

"It's no big deal. The name's Colin Drake. How come I've never seen you at our school before?"

A murmur spread throughout the adolescent crowd that had gathered at the store and Bradley was beginning to think that there must be only one educational facility in their town and all the kids must go there. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen more than one school when Sister Anna showed him that map when he was little...

"It's Bradley. I'm an orphan of St. Joseph's Center for Children so I take my lessons there."

He replied, half embarrassed and half defiant. The whispers grew a lot louder all of a sudden and Bradley swore that their eyes were burning into the back of his neck. But despite the abrupt increase of attention he was collecting, his chest swelled, as he was proud of the fact that he was unique. Colin shrugged and stopped leaning against the counter.

"Oh, that's sad to hear. I thought you were a transfer student and..." Colin replied calmly and the people who stared intently at Bradley but a few seconds ago began to dissipate and drift around the shop. Bradley laughed and raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"...Needed directions or something? I'm not stupid you know."

Apparently, this was a great blow to Colin's ego and the teenager took a step closer to Bradley, glaring him down. And in effect, the fans that circled the brown-haired beyblader like vultures sneered at Bradley.

"Well, you sure act like you are."

"Say that again..."

"What? Are you deaf too? You sure act pretty cocky for some unknown orphan."

Bradley's lip twitched reflexively and the blonde boy also stepped forward and stared levelly at the chestnut orbs of his offender. A negative comment about his background was a supreme insult to him.

"Yeah well, you blow a lot of hot air yourself."

The two boys' lips curled into angry sneers and were just about ready to beat each other into a bloody pulp when the door opened once more and Father Matthew, Evan and a rotund man with whitening hair entered, carrying a large transparent box that contained what appeared to be paint cans.

"Bradley! What are you doing?"

"You appear to have woken up..."

Father Matthew, who was quite obviously appalled by Bradley's aggressiveness, stood beside Evan, who aside from being completely calm actually seemed slightly amused. The plump man who had followed them was observing the face off curiously, staring at the two equally hostile adolescents. Bradley growled menacingly at the similarly threatening Colin, who was slowly reaching into his pocket.

"Is this the other one you mentioned? He seems rather energetic."

"I'm sorry! This is one of the few times he's interacted with children from outside of the orphanage! Bradley! Head over here! I'm sorely disappointed with your behavior..."

Bradley face twisted into a scowl but he gave in to his caretaker's demand and walked towards the threesome in a stiff, frustrated manner. The blonde European was being told off by Father Matthew when, without warning, Colin shouted out his name.

"Bradley! You're not escaping this so easily! I challenge you to a beyblading match, right here, right now!"

Colin yelled, his fiery red and bright gold beyblade glittering in his hand. Bradley swore loudly, received a sharp poke in the head from Father Matthew and once again turned to face the brown-haired teenager standing but a few meters behind him. The elderly priest sighed and shook his head in surrender while his relatively fat companion smiled eagerly. "This could be interesting..."

Bradley pulled out his own, unused, beyblade and stared straight back at Colin.

"Fine! Right here, right now!"

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

End of Chapter

Colin shows Bradley why he's the regional champion with a display of his dragon bitbeast's overwhelming power. But despite the insurmountable odds he is up against, Bradley hangs on to the last hope of victory, earning him a special advantage...

Review please! I don't really need it because I already write these stuff for the heck of it but reviews are great support for me!

~Pyroteknix