AN: Nice long chapter for you =P  I hope you all like it!

And for the reviewer that asked who Jade and Liika are… they are Ocs.. obviously -_-  This isn't the sequel to anything.. though I probably should write a prequel.. but its boorrring.. I started one way back in the day.  Its called 'Breaking at the Seams' its in my favourites section.  Go read it if it confuses you.

Why can't I laugh?

Why must I cry?

Everytime we say good-bye,

Why does it rain,

Here in my heart,

Everyday that we're apart,

Why can't it be,

Just you and me?

If she thought Russia in the spring was cold, she was dead wrong.  Nothing could have prepared her for the horribly atrocious onslaught of the Moscow winter. 

As soon as she stepped out of the airport doors she was treated to a wonderfully friged blast of subarctic wind that nearly sent her running back into the airport terminal.  God!  How did the people live in Moscow??  How did they live in Moscow?  For the love of God!  It was inhumane!

It didn't help that Liika only had on a vinyl jacket with a sweatshirt underneath.  Sure she had expected cold.  But 30 below?  Not bloody likely!

"Miss, I'm sorry to intrude, but you're looking to freeze to death dressed like that."  A voice spoke from beside her.

Liika blinked, shivering, and looked up into the kind blue eyes of a man in his early twenties.  He was smiling sympathetically, and gripping his warm parka around him.

Parka.  She'd kill for one of those!

"Apparently I am."  She bite back, not unkindly.  "I can't feel my face or my hands…or anything else for that matter."

The man chuckled.  "Well come one, I have a taxi waiting, would you like to share it with me?"

"Would I ever!"  She exclaimed, briefly questioning the wisdom of going off with a stranger.  However, she dismissed the thoughts because, after alll, they were riding in a public taxi, through a public place.  If he were to try anything, he'd have a difficult time of it.  She'd put her big mouth to good use.

After they were settled in the warm interior of a taxi the man signaled the taxi driver to go and they were off, navigating their way through busy Moscow traffic.

"So…"  Liika started, unable to take the silence.  It wasn't uncomfortable exactly, just…she liked to fill the quiet with noise.  It was her way.  "You're American?  You speak English flawlessly without an accent."

The man laughed, shaking his head.  "No, Canadian actually, and the American's would disagree about the accent thing.  My name Aaron, Aaron Low.  You have surprisingly little accent, for being from Japan and all."  He said, taking the hint that she wanted to fill the silence.

Liika blinked, tilting her head curiously.  How did he know where she was from?  She could have been American!  Or Canadian… "How do you know I'm from Japan?"

His grin was teasing as he threw her a wink.  "I know who you are is all.  I recognized you from the World Beyblading Tournament.  I follow the sport quite avidly actually, so you were easy to spot."

"Then I suppose you already know my name."  She asked.

"Yes, I do.  It's nice to meet you in person Liika.  You're a very good blader—from what I saw at your Olympia tournament battle."  Aaron said, smiling at her kindly.  "So what brings you to Russia?"

"Oh," she flushed, looking embarrassed for a moment.  "I'm here to visit someone."

He quirked an eyebrow.  "Then why didn't they pick you up at the airport?"

"He doesn't know I'm coming."

"Ahh…"  The smile broadened into a grin.  "A Christmas surprise then?"

She smiled back, her eyes softening.  "Something like that.  Where are you going?"

Aaron sighed softly.  "I guess you could say that I'm here to surprise someone too.  My best friend is a doctoral student at the Russian State University for the Humanities.  She's been here almost two years, I missed her, so I saved my money and hopped on a plane."  He explained.

Liika smiled.  "That's sweet.  I'm sure she'll be glad to see you."

Just then the driver turned around and said something to the both of them in Russian causing Liika to blink rapidly and frown.  It was just as confusing spoken as it was written, if not more so.

Aaron said something back in Russian and turned to her.  "The driver wants to know where you're going.  We've reached downtown, and he needs to know."

"You speak Russian??"  She demanded, her eyes wide.  He was pretty talented.

He flushed and grinned.  "I did my masters in Russian History, and so was forced to to learn it.  Where are you going?"

Wow, his masters?  He must be older than she thought.  "Um…hold on."  She paused, reaching into her purse and pulling out the envelope the Demolition Boys' letters had been in.  "Um… I'm going to…the Zworykin Group Home…on um 537th."  She thanked the lord the streets were numbers and not names.

Aaron nodded and spoke to the driver who also nodded.  "He said we'd be there in a few moments."  Aaron said, leaning back against the back seat.

Liika sighed deeply, suddenly very apprehensive about being in Russia.  A thousand 'what ifs' ran through her head, building on the doubt and pessimistic thoughts that danced through her head.  What if…he didn't want her there?

Before she knew it the car had come to a stop against the curb in front of a large red brick building.  The driver turned around once more and said something, breaking Liika out of her thoughts.  She looked up, blinking.  Flashing a smile, she pulled out her purse to extract an amount of money—she didn't know how much she should give him, but she just figured she'd give him a few bills of the Russian money Mr. D had given her and go with it.  However, before she could get the money out of her purse, a large, softly tanned hand rested on hers, causing Liika to look up questioningly.

Aaron smiled reassuringly and nodded at the door.  "Go on, I'll take care of the taxi.  I hope your boyfriend likes his surprise," he said removing his hand.

She blushed instantly and stuttered.  "How…he's not my boyfriend!"  She exclaimed looking incredibly embarrassed.

"Hmmhm," the handsome Canadian replied before reaching over her and opening the door. 

Liika had no choice but to exit the vehicle, accepting the duffle bag from the driver who had gotten out with out her noticing and retrieved it from the trunk.  It all happened in a matter of seconds and before she knew it she was watching the taxi drive away.

The cold slapped her in the face the instant she realized the taxi had driven away.  Shivering uncontrollably, Liika picked up the duffle bag beside her and turned around, scuttling towards the brick building behind her.  She knew it was the place she was looking for—she remembered the house number on the address.  Sucking a deep breath in—and making her lungs ache in the process—Liika scurried up the stairs, ringing the door bell eagerly.  Anything to get out of the cold.  And boy was it cold.

After a few moments—Liika was starting to doubt her ability to move—the door jerked open, revealing a somewhat pretty dark haired girl.  The girl scowled at Liika, eyeing her with extreme distaste before saying something snarkily in Russian.

Liika frowned in annoyance.  She didn't like the way the taller girl was eyeing her, nor did she like the tone of voice she had spoken in.  "Excuse me," Liika said, in crisp English, "I'm looking for Bryan Kaminov, is he home?"  She hoped the girl understood English.

The girl threw her head back and laughed, a cruel, shrill laugh, before returning her gaze to Liika.  "Why would you be looking for Bryan?"  She sneered, staring down her nose.

Liika bristled, gritting her teeth.  At least she spoke English, though Liika didn't know whether to be thankful or not.  She wondered if this was the girl Tala had told her about in his letter.  "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm here to visit him."  She answered sharply, sneering back at the rude girl.

The girl snickered, her sneer growing.  "Visit him eh?  Haven't you heard?  Bryan doesn't like girls!"

Liika suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and snap back that she knew first hand differently.  It also pissed her off that the bitchy girl had just called her man gay, especially when the thought of Bryan being attracted to other men was down right laughable.  "Look, is he home or not?  I'm freezing my ass off here!"

"No, unlike you apparently, he has school.  He doesn't get home until four… and that's when he decides to come home right after."  The girl said, crossing her arms against the cold.  "So then if you're done here, it is cold out here!"

"Wait!"  Liika caught the door just as the girl was about to close it in her face.  "I guess that means Tala and Ian aren't home…what about Spencer?"

The girl's eyes darkened at the mention of the other three and Liika guessed most specifically at the mention of Tala.  She had her proof this was the girl Tala had written about, and she could see why Tala would want nothing to do with her.  Sure she was pretty enough—better looking than herself—but she was incredibly bitchy.

"He's at work.  Why don't you just go away and freeze to death in the street?  They wouldn't want to see you anyway.  Don't you know?  They don't like anyone but each other."  The girl snapped, moving to close the door again.

However this time it wasn't Liika who stopped her, but a voice in the background.  Liika thought she heard the name Melaniya, but she wasn't sure…she couldn't tell the difference between Russian words and names.

Suddenly an older woman appeared beside the dark haired girl.  She scolded the girl a bit more in Russian before gently pushing her out of the way and opening the door fully and looking down at Liika. 

"Hello, I'm sorry about Melaniya.  What can I do for you?"  The woman said, smiling welcomingly.

Liika felt better instantly.  The woman had a sort of effect on people that instantly picked up ones spirits.  She almost giggled out loud.  She must be their foster mother…She thought laughing in her head.  She could see why the woman would drive her boys up the wall.  "Yeah, I was looking for Bryan…but…Melaniya? said he was at school."

The woman nodded, her smile growing a fraction.  "Yes he is, you know our Bryan?"

"Er, yes…" Liika answered, shuddering as a particularly cold blast of wind hit the side of her.

"Oh!"  The older woman exclaimed, obviously noticing for the first time that Liika was freezing to death.  "You must be frozen dressed like that!  How terribly inconsiderate of me.  Come in, come in.  You can explain how you know Bryan and where you come from over a cup of hot tea!" 

Liika nodded gratefully and picked up her bag, shuffling in through the door past the kind woman.  Bending down, Liika quickly took off her shoes and placed them neatly next to the rest of the shoes and stood up straight again.  The woman had picked up her bag from beside her and was carrying it down the hallway, motioning for Liika to follow.

The home was beautiful, obviously older, but still very nice.  The carpets were soft and padded, and the walls decorated with soft colored wallpaper.  It was nice, and Liika could tell that the two foster parents had money.  The boys were well off here—despite the group therapy time they seemed to despise so much.

"Just have a seat in here well I go fetch some tea ok?"  The woman's voice broke into Liika's study of the house and she realized they were in the living room.  Liika nodded and sat down, wondering slightly how all the people she had met spoke English.  However, she really could do nothing but twiddle her thumbs until the foster mother came back with the tea.

She didn't have to wait long, within minutes the woman came back in the room, carrying a tray of tea accessories and cookies.  Liika drooled at the sight of the cookies.  She loved cookies, no matter what kind. 

The woman chuckled, catching Liika's expression at the sight of the cookies.  "They're Bryan's favourites, I figured you might like them too," she said, filling a tea cup with tea.  "Cream or sugar?"

Liika grinned at the woman.  "Both please, lots of sugar."  She liked this woman already.

The woman chuckled again, adding liberal amounts of both cream and sugar to Liika's tea before handing the cup, and several cookies, over to the blue haired girl.  It was then that she remembered that she had forgotten to introduce herself.  Blushing slightly, the woman reached over head hand and said, "How terribly rude of me!  I'm Sashenka Zworykin."

"Liika Tomoda."  Liika replied, shaking the kind woman's hand.  "The tea is excellent, thank you."

Sashenka smiled, sipping her own tea.  "You looked half frozen, I figured you could use a good warming.  So, where do you come from?  Surely not around here?"

Liika shook her head, wrapping her half frozen fingers around the mug.  "No, I'm from Japan, I flew in oh about… two hours ago."

"Really?"  Sashenka's eyes widened a bit.  "You flew all the way from Japan just to see Bryan?  How do you know him?"

The blue haired girl flushed, smiling through her blush.  "Yeah…I spent six months with the four of them during the spring and summer at a training camp my beyblade team sponsor thought up.  He actually doesn't know I'm here…none of them do.  It's sorta a surprise.  You see I got their letters yesterday… and well…" She trailed off, her blush intensifying.

The older woman merely smiled, however, and didn't pry.  Her smile was secretive, as if she knew something Liika didn't.  "You must be the girl I hear snippets about." She stated softly, setting her tea down.  "Not much mind you, as getting anything out of those four is rather difficult."

Liika's blush darkened even more.  They talked about her…?  Her insides turned warm and fuzzy. 

"…Bryan is the most difficult of the four of them.  Sometimes I worry about him"

Liika blinked, coming back to the present to hear the last few sentences of Sashenka's speech.  "Yeah," Liika put in, smiling fondly.  "I used to worry about him too, sometimes I still do.  Then there are the times when I want to bash him over the head for being a stubborn jackass."

Sashenka chuckled.  "You must care a great deal about him to fly all the way to Russia just to see him."  She said, watching Liika over the rim of her tea mug.  She chuckled to herself again when the blue haired girl once again blushed to her roots and attempted to hide behind her mug.

"Aa…I do."

"That's good!  Bryan needs someone to care about him I think, someone that can break down those thick walls he's built around himself.  And I think that you might just be strong willed enough to do it."  Sashenka stated firmly, grinning at Liika.

Liika stared at the older woman.  Was she giving her blessings on…dating or being with Bryan??  A giggle bubbled up in Liika's throat at the prospect of Bryan needing someone's permission to anything.  He'd throw a fit.

"Thanks…" Liika said, biting back a smile.

"Well then!"  Sashenka exclaimed, setting down her mug on the tray.  "You can stay in their room until they get home from school, I'm sure they wont mind, though they don't like anyone else entering their room.  I'm sure they would make an exception for you."  She winked at Liika.  "Grab a couple of the cookies and we'll head up."

Liika did just that, she grabbed a few of the yummy rainbow chocolate chip cookies and dashed after the older woman, who had grabbed her duffle bag and was heading up the stairs that were situated in one corner of the living room.

They quickly reached the top and traveled down the hallway a bit before heading up another set of stairs.  Sashenka explained briefly that their home was four floors and that the boys lived on the top floor.  So after climbing yet another set of stairs, the two reached the fourth floor.  Liika, being Liika wasn't really paying attention and tripped over a box that seemed to be resting outside the door that the foster mother had motioned as theirs.

"Oww…" She moaned, picking herself up off the ground.

"Oh dear!"  Sashenka exclaimed, leaning down to help Liika up.  "I'm sorry about that.  The boys don't seem too keen on Christmas.  That's a box of decorations I bought for their room, but they don't seem to want them.  I was going to take them back downstairs, but I just hadn't had the chance."

"Oh that's ok.  Tala always told me I was a bit of a klutz anyway."  Liika smiled dusting herself off. It was a good thing she finished off the cookies on the way up…or else that would not have been pretty and she would have felt really bad about getting mashed cookies all over Bryan's foster mother's nice carpet.  "Say…" Liika paused, contemplating as a wicked idea came to mind.  "Do you mind if I take the box in with me?  Two of them are in need of a little…pay back for things they did during the summer."

Sashenka laughed and nodded.  "Of course!  A little holiday spirit will do them good.  Let me guess, Ian and Tala?"

"You got it!"

The woman sighed fondly, opening the door to the room and leading the way in.  "Yes, I am quite familiar with those two's pranking ways.  Some of the other children have been on the receiving end."
She could just bet they have.  Liika shook her head, stepping into the room.  When she looked around she wasn't surprised to see stark bare walls, four beds—only three of which were made—four desks and four dressers.  The room was crowded, but homey, however, it was all very sterile…the four boys obviously didn't believe in decorating.  She could tell which corner of the room was Ian's, however, as the desk was covered in papers and mess and the bed was unmade.

"I've tried to get them to decorate even just a bit, or to personalize the room, but they always refuse."  Sashenka sighed.  "Sometimes I wonder what to do with those boys."

Liika laughed out right at this.  "I know exactly how you feel."

The two women laughed for a few moments before Sashenka sobered to a smile and patted Liika on the shoulder.  "Get comfortable, it's only about 11 am here, so you have some hours before they get home.  I'll be downstairs if you need anything, and there is a bathroom across the hall.  Have fun!"  She said before striding out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Liika smiled, looking around the room once more, wondering where to start.  Opening the box of decorations, her smile turned into a grin.  This was going to be so much fun!

Like the stars in the sky,

You still keep on shining down you're light on me,

But out of reach,

And I know that in time,

You will come back to your senses,

See the signs,

And change your mind,

"God damn, I think one day I'm just going to flip out and say to hell with school."  Ian grumbled, leading the way up the steps and into the house they called 'home'.  "At least we don't have to go for two whole weeks.  Christmas is at least good for one thing."

Tala snickered behind him, holding the door open for Bryan before closing it firmly behind them.  "Just think Ian, you have a year and a half left!"

The short boy groaned, kicking his shoes in the general direction of the pile.  "Don't remind me!  A whole 'nother year of that and I might just kill someone."

"Hey, at least you'll have learned to do it in such away that no one can trace it back to you."  Tala put in.

"Good point."

Bryan said nothing, and just shoved past his two friends.  He was not in the mood to chitchat, not that he ever was, but that day had just made his normally bad mood even worse.  It wasn't that anything had gone wrong for him per say, it was just that he had been getting progressively worse since her letter came.  Everyone noticed it too, but they said nothing.  Bryan was already volatile, he didn't need any thing else to stir him up.

Her letter had just reminded him of how much he missed her—even if he didn't want to admit it.  It also reminded him of the fact that her stupid friends had pulled her away from them without even a thought to them.  Just another reason to hate them.  Her letter had also brought disturbing news.  She wasn't happy, and she was alone.  That bothered him for some reason, and angered him that her team would leave her alone like that.  He knew for a fact that Kai was in the same city, so why didn't he see her?  Didn't he see that she was a social type?  That she needed to be around people that cared?  Hn.  And they said he was cold.

"Ahh you're home boys!  Did you have a good day?"  The chirping voice of their foster mother cut off any discussion as she blocked the end of the hallway.

The three boys shrugged, muttering something about school being long and boring.  Tala noticed however, that their foster mother had a strange secretive smile on her face…like she knew something they didn't.  He narrowed his eyes slightly.  What was she up to?

"Did something happen today?"  Tala asked suddenly, catching the attention of his two teammates.

Sashenka merely shook her head, and turned around.  "No, nothing out of the ordinary.  Go up and put your bags away, then come downstairs, there's a snack waiting in the kitchen."

"Is it just me…or did she seem to be hiding something?"  Ian asked, caulking an eyebrow at his foster mother's back.

"That is precisely what I was wondering."  Tala murmured shrugging.  "Oh well, we'll find out sooner or later.  You know that woman can't keep a secret to save her life."

Bryan was already half way up the first set of stairs by the time the other two reached the bottom.  Ian stared sourly at the large back in front of him.  Leaning to the side a bit he whispered to Tala.  "Do you think he'll ever stop being so…love struck…moody…bitchy?" 

Tala snickered quietly, glancing up at his pale haired teammate.  "I doubt it.  At least not until he either gets over her, or screws her senseless…"

"Wouldn't that make it worse…the screwing her I mean?"

"Point taken."

As the reached the top of the stairs they realized that Bryan had heard everything they said and was waiting for them in the hallway.  As soon as they reached him, each got a solid punch in the shoulder before the burly boy turned and stalked down the hall, towards the second set of stairs.

Both boys rubbed their arms and scowled.  Bryan was really starting to piss them off!  Tala glared.  Bryan was getting so moody that even he couldn't stand him anymore!  And they were best friends!  It was bloody ridiculous.  He was starting to think of writing the little wench and telling her to get her tiny ass to Russia and fast if she wanted to see her beloved Bryan again, lest he himself kill him.

"Bastard…" Ian grumbled, shifting his backpack on his back and glaring.  "Hey Bryan, just because you're not getting any doesn't mean you can take it out on us!"  Ian called after Bryan.

Bryan merely paused in his ascent of the stairs and made a rude gesture over his shoulder, earning the simultaneous rolling of eyes from Ian and Tala.  Bryan wasn't even going to give his teammates the time of day.  They were irritating, and they took joy in annoying him about the wench.  They knew it upset him to mention her, but they did so continuously.  They deserved any pain they got.

Ian and Tala continued to snicker between themselves as they traveled the rest of the way to their top floor bedroom.  When they reached the floor and went to enter their room, they found Bryan frozen in the door, staring with wide eyes into the room.  They threw perplexed looks at each other and shoved Bryan out of the way to look into the room themselves.

The sight that greeted them startled the both of them.  Christmas lights were intertwined with sparkly garlands and were strung around the top edge of all four walls.  Wire garland was wrapped around many of the legs and posts of the furniture in the room, and various Christmas themed images were posted everywhere on the walls.  It was frightening.

"Holy Mother of God…" Ian muttered, his eyes widening dramatically.  "Our room has been attacked by that big fat man's cronies."

"Elves Ian, Santa's elves.  And actually, I believe the fault lies in a troublesome little blue pixy rather than elves."  Tala smirked, his turquoise running over the lump on Bryan's bed, and the blue head that was lying on the pillows.

"Ehh??"  Ian exclaimed, whipping his gaze towards where Tala was staring.  His eyes fell on the sleeping Liika and his face broke out in a large grin.  "Well what do you know, she actually took my advice."

"This must be what Sashenka was so 'mysterious' about.  She must have let her in earlier."

All of a sudden both boys were shoved out of the way and Bryan shouldered his way into the room, his eyes glaring around the room until they fell on the body on his bed.

Ian could barely contain his snickers as he watched Bryan stare at the girl blankly, obviously not really believing the fact that she was there.  Mentally he cheered.  No more Bryan mood swings!  No more angry silence, no more glares.  No more waiting after school for Bryan to get out of detention.  He just hoped she'd stay.

"Come on Ian," Tala ordered, throwing his bag into the room and catching the shorter teen by the arm.  "We have to go get our snack."

"But-"

"Now."  There was no missing the command in the captain's voice.

Ian grumbled under his breath.  Why did he always have to miss the good shows huh?  It wasn't fair!

"You don't want to be there anyway…they're probably just going to make out incessantly, shoving their tongues down each others throats.  Now do you really want to see that?" Tala asked, closing the door tightly behind them.

Ian made a face of disgust, adding a mock shudder for effect.  "Good point."

"Come on, I'm hungry."

I try to look the other way,

And keep my heart on hold,

But every time I'm close to you,

I lose my self-control

Bryan continued to stare at the small body that was huddled amidst the quilts on his bed.  He really couldn't believe she was there…what was she doing there anyway?  Wasn't she supposed to in school…in Japan, with her uncle being unhappy?  His eyebrows furrowed. 

He wasn't going to complain of course.  Having her there was a blessing.  He had missed her so badly—not that he was going to admit that to her or anyone else—but he did.  What he had written in that letter was true.  He needed her, far more than he would have liked, and far more than he expected.  Without her presence he reverted back to his old self.  Emotionless and angry, snapping and lashing out at the world.  No one got near him, and that was the way it would stay.  If he let them in they would just be taken away from him…like she was.  He hated her team even more now.

It was the reason why he had nearly broken that stupid kid who bragged about his girlfriend's neck.  Hearing him talk about his girl made Bryan think about his Kit, and that in turn pissed Bryan off.  Knowing that fucking old man and that brat pack of goodie goodies took what was his away from him incited a rage in him that he had never felt before.  A rage that surpassed even being beaten by that girly sissy boy cat thing.  But here she was…in his bed…waiting for him.

And he didn't have any clue how to react.

He was numb…partially elated, partially angry and partially something in the middle that was neither happy nor sad.  He was just…him.  How could he face her if he couldn't face himself?

"Mm…Bryan…"

Her quiet plea like moan broke his thought pattern and drew his attention back to his bed.  She was tossing in her sleep, moaning and crying his name.  She was dreaming of him…and it didn't sound very happy.

"Don't…take him…away…"

His blue eyes hardened into shards of ice at the small plea.  In only a few steps he was beside the bed, his hand already brushing away strands of hair from her troubled face.  His fingers tingled at the contact.  How he had missed her…damn her.

His touch had apparently been all that was needed to wake her from her fitful sleep as, as soon as they brushed the side of her cheek, her turquoise eyes fluttered open, still glazed heavily with sleep.

"Wh-what…?" She moaned sleepily, blinking rapidly to try to rid herself of the last dredges of sleep that clung to her eyelashes.

Bryan said nothing, merely moving his fingers across her jaw and over her lips as he stared at her.

Liika became fully awake when the pleasant, heavy feeling of his fingers on her lips registered in her brain.  Blinking some more her eyes shifted to find the source of the weight and widened in surprise when they met the icy depths of Bryan's eyes.

As soon as turquoise clashed with blue, the turquoise lit up like the Christmas lights that hung from the walls around the room.  Instantly Liika was out from under the quilt and on her feet, tripping as her feet got caught in the heavy blankets.  She fell forward, paying no mind and threw her arms around his neck, laughing gleefully as she did so.

Bryan was forced to grasp her hips firmly to steady her.  He blinked in surprise before his eyebrows furrowed.  He hadn't expected that.  The look in her eyes when she realized it was him…it was if…as if…hell he didn't know what it was as if!  It almost looked like he was the most precious thing in the world to her and that she had been waiting all her life to see him

Did he really mean that much to her??

Bryan's thoughts surged and spun in turmoil and confusion.  Unknown emotions crashed over him and he felt as if he was spiraling into oblivion.  He felt helpless.  Part of him screamed to fight it…to fight the emotional void she was pulling him into, and part of him told him to run with it.  Everything she made him feel…everything she made him want went against the very core of his training, training he had spent his entire life completing.  But…

She made him want it so badly.

For once in his life he felt loved (he assumed it was love as he couldn't remember anything like it and he had heard rumors), and he felt needed.  This little blue haired wench…so small and fragile…she needed him, needed his protection, his guidance, lets she be hurt or led down the wrong path.

By her loser team for example.

But more than that, he needed her.  It was something that scared the shit out of him and angered him at the same time.  He had never needed anything, never wanted anything so bad as he did her.  He knew she felt the same so that wasn't the problem.  The problem was his training, his inner voice, was screaming at him to stop.  To send her home and never see her again.  Could he do it?  Could he destroy the one thing that had ever made him even remotely happy?

It was only when soft lips brushed his that the answer became abundantly clear.

He couldn't.

He couldn't do it.  Or rather more precisely he wouldn't do it.  A sudden wave of possessiveness washed over him and he found his grip tightening on her hips.  Why the hell should he give her up?  Why?  So that she could go and be claimed by one of those fools she called friends?  By that…American?

Not bloody likely.

It was in that instant that he decided to say screw it to his training.  His desires and wants were more important than anything Boris had ever taught him.  Fucking Boris.  He had a hold on him even after they had escaped him.

"Ne…aren't you at all happy to see me Bryan?"

Bryan realized that she had ceased kissing him and was staring at him with eyes reflecting disappointment and sadness.  Her eyebrows were scrunched together and her lips pulled down into a frown. 

Staring at her for a few moments, he let his eyes sweep over her face, drinking her somewhat plain features.  She wasn't beautiful…but she wasn't ugly, hell she wasn't even close.  'Cute' was the closest thing he could describe her as, and that worked just fine for him.  Gorgeous women just attracted trouble, and too much attention.  Bryan was possessive to a fault.  He'd break someone's face if they looked at what was his in the wrong way.

"Bryan?" 

Liika could feel her heart deflating.  He was scowling now, his hands gripping her hips tighter.  She had thought for sure he would have been happy to see her…but he was scowling.  She didn't really expect much in the way of greetings, but geez.  He hadn't returned her hug, nor her kiss.  What the hell was wrong with him??

However, just as she opened her mouth to question him further he let out a feral growl and crushed his lips against hers, cutting off the her words before they were formed.  His tongue pried her lips open and stormed her mouth, darting everywhere and anywhere.  To further instill his upper hand he sent them both crashing onto the bed, him on top, making sure not to crush her.

Bryan was losing himself, drowning in the endless sea of want that surged up in his chest.  Her taste had changed very little in the four months since he had last kissed her.  The only difference was now the taste of candy canes and Christmas mingled with the fundamental taste of her that drove him insane.

Liika moaned against his lips, straining against his wandering hands.  Apparently she had been too quick to assume that he hadn't been glad to see her.  He so obviously was, if his hot demanding kisses were of any indication.  He was more than glad to see her.

When he pulled away slightly to give them both a chance to breathe, Liika opened her eyes stared up into his half-lidded blue orbs that were watching her while he panted and caught his breath.  One of her hands played idly with the lilac hair that brushed the back of his neck, twirling it around her narrow fingers.

"I missed you," she said softly, bringing her other hand off his shoulder to run down his jaw.

He grunted, leaning into her hand slightly.  He wasn't going to tell her that he missed her too.  She'd just have to guess.

"Kiss me again."

He had no trouble obliging and fit his lips over her once more, this time setting a softer, slower pace that made her toes curl.  He really was amazing.

"Ah gross!  Tala did you really have to make me walk in here first??" 

Bryan growled low in his throat, snapping his eyes open and towards the door where Ian stood shielding his eyes.  Slowly his lips left Liika's and he glowered threateningly at the two boys that just entered the room, snacks in hand.

"Get out."

Ian shuddered, walking further into the room, avoiding looking at the pair on the bed.  He hadn't even wanted to come back into the room, but Sashenka had demanded the pair come downstairs for group therapy time.  He was going to have nightmares for weeks.

"We'd love to, trust us," Tala said, throwing an amused glance at his teammate and what appeared to be his girlfriend.  "We tried to knock, but you weren't answering, it's not our fault.  Sashenka wants you both downstairs for group therapy time."  He said the last part with a roll of his turquoise eyes as he took a bite of his sandwich.  "That and she thinks you both need to eat.  Apparently she has no sense of 'couple reacquainting time'."

Bryan growled again, sneering in annoyance.  Damn it…stupid woman was going to drive him to killing her one day.  If she wasn't so goddamn nice and fed and clothed him…

Liika stayed silent, her face glowing in embarrassment.  It only grew worse when Tala caught her eye, and wiggled his eyebrows up and down, winking.  And when he mouthed 'have fun?'  She wanted to die. 

How was it that he always did that to her?

Before she knew it Bryan had stolen one last kiss and pulled himself off the bed.  He strode across the room and gave Ian a solid smack across the head, earning a low "Ow, hey!" and then moved to his dresser, rifling through the drawers to find a new shirt to replace his uniform top.

"You better fix yourself, or everyone downstairs is going to know you just had a roll in the hay with the most feared guy in this household."  Tala stated looking at Liika and casually taking a bite of his sandwich.

Liika blinked as she sat up then looked down and promptly turned scarlet.  Her shirt was pushed up to the point where the bottom of her black bra showed.  Hastily she gripped the hem of her shirt and yanked it down, glaring at Tala.  "Bloody pervert…" she muttered, reaching up to pat down her hair.

"Hey you were the one displaying."  Tala countered shrugging.

Bryan, by then, had changed his white uniform dress shirt and jacket to a tighter grungy looking t-shirt and casually walked by Tala, slapping him upside the head as well.

Tala choked, coughing violently.  After he stopped her glared hotly at his pale haired teammate.  "You know, one day I'm going to have to kick your ass.  You're possessiveness makes me sick."

Bryan shrugged, smirking.  He then looked towards the bed and raised a pale eyebrow.  Liika got the message and grinned, hopping to her feet and all but skipping over to his side.  Taking his hand in hers and threading their fingers together, she leaned her head against his arm.  "Try not to look so excited ok?"

"Hn."  He grunted, looking down at her.  A small smile tugged at the edge of his lips.  Mine.

"Ugh.  Would you two just get moving?  I think I'm going to throw up."

"Me too!"

Liika looked behind her and stuck her tongue out at the two boys.  They were so immature.