Outcast

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblades.

---- Rei ----

Why does Kai act so aloof? I mean, we're all team mates and we all help each other out so why shouldn't we be friends? If only I knew why he was so alone all the time, the reason behind his independent nature and then maybe I could have the solution to this problem. Watching him walk to the elevator, slightly apart from all of us, made me wonders at the person inside the shell we all know as Kai. What is he like, under all those barriers?

"He should be in this hotel . . ."

A woman in her early thirties hurried past our group, looking up and down at a piece of paper. She bumped into my shoulder and I looked around to apologise to her, until I saw what she looked like. This woman reminded me so much of HIM. Kai. She had his garnet eyes with the wild, independent streak in them. I shuddered a little before nodding at her quickly and catching up with the rest of the team. Somehow the woman made me nervous.

"You looked like you saw a ghost, dude," Tyson said to me. "What's wrong?"

"Um - nothing," I stammered quickly. "Just thought I saw something familiar."

Kai looked at me strangely, as if he didn't believe what I had to say. I don't blame him. I'm a horrible liar, but occasionally, thugs like Tyson come along and I can get away with any stupid lie. When we left the building, Kai deliberately fell back so as to wait for me. I shifted uncomfortably under his stare and we walked in silence for a few seconds.

"You were lying," he accused in a quiet voice. "I could tell you were. What did you see?"

I wondered for a moment, whether I should tell him what I saw. He might not like it and I didn't want him to be angry with me. Kai in Destroyer Mode wasn't exactly what I wanted to be faced with today. Especially when we had a charity tournament to compete in.

"Something that scared me," I replied, carefully trying to conceal the whole truth from showing in my voice. Part of it was true, so I didn't have to work that hard to make him believe me, but Kai was an intelligent being, after all.

"Right," he drawled sarcastically. "The great Kano Rei can get scared."

Was he actually TEASING me? Hitawari Kai, the most unanimated and stiff member of our team was actually making FUN of me? I knew I could have died of the shock just then. Well, that just seems to prove that this is a weird day . . . speaking of which, I didn't brush my teeth this morning . . .

"Remind me to stop over at the supermarket later on," Kai was saying to me. "I need to get a new set of toiletries. I couldn't really care about those clothes. They needed serious attention anyway."

Once again, I was shocked. How had he, time and again, almost KNOW what I was thinking in my head? First about the incident and now about the toiletries. Dumb struck, I nodded. He turned to me and I swore he smiled a little. This day was getting stranger by the minute . . . come on, Rei, speed yourself up. The rest of the gang are way ahead of you.

---- Kate ----

It had only been three days ago since I saw the strange boy on the street, who could have been my son. I remember him walking on the other side of the street from me, with four other boys around his age. He was all grown up now, so much that I almost didn't recognise him. But he always had my eyes and my pride of bearing. I knew at once he had to be my lost son. I clutched the little piece of paper to my chest and hoped against hope that he was really alive, grown up and one of the best Beybladers in the world.

"Excuse me ma'am," a polite voice interrupted my thoughts. "Do you need any help?"

"Yes," I replied gratefully. "Could you tell me where Suite One is?"

The man looked at me with wide eyes.

"You know young master Hitawari?"

I nodded slowly, acutely aware that the man seemed to be in a state between shock and awe. I wondered why knowing Kai was such a big deal.

"Well, Master Kai is at a tournament right now," he apologised. "If you want, I could deliver a message. Otherwise, you can wait for him in this lobby until he returns."

"Could you give me the tournament's location?"

---- Kai ----

Tyson had been beaten. Badly. I'd never thought that the whole tournament would blow if we put him first. However, this team had very powerful bit- beasts. Especially their leader, Adele, or whatever her name was. She and her bit-beast are connected somehow, in a more powerful bond than Tyson and Dragoon. That was how she beat him.

"Hey, good match," I heard Tyson saying.

"Any time," Adele replied.

I wasn't battling today, so I just sat back and watched. In face of Tyson's screwed up match, Max, Rei and their bit-beasts fought like hell. There were several close calls, but we won in the end. Barely. I don't see the point in long battles, they just take up so much time it's not funny. Perhaps I don't have the patience for them.

"YEAH, WE WON!"

The others were jumping, whistling and punching the air in celebration of their victory. The idiots. What was there to celebrate about, when it they won it only barely? On strategy alone, I could point out at least ten mistakes in Rei's. Max's worst mistake was on his attack. Tyson - he had a problem with every thing. Mental note to self, make them work like hell on improving those mistakes. They looked at me.

What do they want me to do? Jump and yell and cheer like the rest of them? No way am I going to degrade myself like that. I stood and huffed impatiently, folding my arms.

"That was a close call," I said flatly. "You'll need to work harder to perfect yourselves and your blades. Expect no break from training."

"Grumpy Pants," Tyson muttered.

---- Max ----

Now that I think back on it, Rei and my win was a really close one. I knew, from the look on Kai's face, that he wasn't overjoyed at our performance. As I replayed the battle in my head, I wasn't very happy either. How ironic. I'm supposed to be the happiest one in the group. Maybe Kai does have a point about the effort we make during training.

"Who's going to get the door?" Tyson asked lazily.

We were sitting around in Kai's suite again, escaping the fan girls who had followed us from the tournament. None of them seemed to notice that we were in here, probably because Kai kept such a low profile when we were travelling. Well, Kai had actually done something to help us, keeping his distance from people.

"I'll get it," Rei called. He came out of the bathroom and peered out of the little looking hole the door had, before opening the door a little. Just to be on the safe side, in case one of the fan girls had found their way to the suite. We all, with the obvious exception of Kai, held our breaths. A woman's voice spoke, before Rei's voice was heard.

"Kai, your - uh - mother's here to see you."

---- Kai ----

"Mother?" Tyson asked incredulously. "Kai has a mother?"

No I don't, my mother never wanted me. I never want to see her again. I'm an orphan and I don't have parents, let alone a mother. I don't want to see this woman. There was no point in seeing her, especially when she was the one who didn't want to see me in the first place. I felt a head spin coming along and clutched the sides of the chair.

"Tell her to go away," I said to Rei.

"How?" Rei hissed, closing the door briefly and looking back at me.

"Make up an excuse!" I shot back angrily. "I'm dead, I'm sick, I don't exist - anything! Just get her away from here!"

None of us heard what Rei said to the woman. When he came back, he looked at me worriedly. Everyone did. Why did they have to stare so much? It's like they've never seen me properly before. Still, I was too preoccupied to care. The head spin was getting worse.

[Mother!]

That's my voice . . . I recognised it . . . I was talking to someone . . .

[Let go, Kai]

It was that woman's voice again. She was telling me to go away, even after I called her.

[Mother! NO!]

---- What's Going To Happen In Chapter Three ----

"Get lost Tyson."

"We're only trying to help Kai! You can't disrespect your own mother like that!"

"Are you trying to lecture me, Tyson? You have no right."

"I know I don't! But at least I HAVE respect for elders! I, at least, had a family who loved me and brought me up carefully instead of sending me off to some boarding school in Russia and forgetting about me totally! I don't feel sorry for myself!"

He knew instantly he had gone too far.

---- End of Chapter Two ----