Ok, total spoiler for Town Gangs and Highschool Jerks. Hope you like it, read and review.

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade. Just Eri. And Chi belongs to Beyblader-grl.

Eri's Eavesdropping

Eri hopped into the tree. It was a grand tree. Today she would be enjoying the breeze and the slight sun that sparkled through the trees branches. Today was her birthday. She slowly lay back against the rough bark and closed her dozing eyes. She could feel the wind picking at her black/purple hair as her emerald green eyes began to get thinner and thinner. She could feel the wisps of hair blowing into her brow and covering her forehead. Eri loved this light-hearted feeling. There was nothing greater than enjoying a single day of peace in a silent graveyard in the long extended limbs of a full cherry blossom tree that hid her slim posture.

It was quite a disturbance to her light slumber when she heard a group of footsteps, all of which she could identify, approaching heavily along the upturned earth.

"Ok, we'll be here all afternoon." It was a harshly masculine voice she knew all too well.

"And why are we here again? On a picnic?!" And another voice that she didn't know quite as well.

"Yes, we're honouring Kai's mother's death stupid. Kai does it once a month and this month, I volunteered us all to join him." And of course the grade's player.

"After all, you have to admit, that Kai's mother was like a second mother to all of us." And the Flame brained dweeb.

"Ya I guess you're right." And then the last voice belonged to Mr. Kuznetsov.

"Well, let's put down the flowers and eat." Eri by now had figured out this was Spencer's voice.

"Always thinking with your stomach, just like Tyson." Kai's solemn voice came out in slight hatred.

"Ya well, I'm hungry." Spencer whined.

"A moment of silence please." Tala announced. The moment was calm and peaceful and Eri lay back down to enjoy the silence. They were all so faithful to the meaning of silence and prayer. Eri never would have guessed it with these five boys. After all, Kai was nothing more than a big-mouthed wannabe, Tala was the school's big-mouthed player, Johnny was just big-mouthed, Spence was more big-stomached and Bryan, well, Bryan was just naturally quiet. But Eri too put her hands together during their moment of silence to help out Kai's mother.

"Alright, we can eat now." Kai said in a low voice.

"I still can't believe you brought a blanket Spencer, and a checkered blanket at that." Johnny's voice was disgusted.

"What? I just got these pants!" Spencer whined.

"You sound just like a girl." Tala said with what sounded like a smirk.

"Well, Eri and Chi aren't like that." Johnny pointed out. This conversation was starting to get interesting.

"Well, Eri is hot, and still quite fashionable. Too bad she hides that body under all her folds." Tala's remark came out thoughtful. Eri glared. If only he could see what she had worn today. Because today she wore a purple, one-sleeved, tank top over a tight, black t-shirt and over that a mesh top of white, and the two shirts under the long, flowing mesh cut off at her stomach showing a fair bit of her toned stomach. She also wore tight hip huggers and an ocean themed wrap was hung loosely around her well-shaped hips. She hated having the body and the brains. It only got her into trouble.

"That's cause Tala digs her." Bryan growled out.

"And Bryan's afraid of her." Tala muttered back. Eri could have sworn she heard Johnny cursing Tala's name and very being, but everyone else was talking so loudly it was hard to tell.

"What is there to be afraid of?" Spencer asked through a mouthful of bread.

"Well, Kai was the man to beat before, he was the man everyone feared, right? Well, Eri's the one that took Kai down, and now she's the one to beat. She's also got a very strong influence on a lot of the people here in Bakuten. Don't you see? She could take over! She's gonna over power us if we don't do something!" Bryan ranted endlessly. That was only as much as Eri bothered to listen to though.

'Bryan's afraid of me? Why would anyone be afraid of me? True I did kind of beat up Kai a couple times. But after showing such weakness only a couple months ago?' Eri thought throughout the rest of Bryan's ranting.

"Bryan, shut up." It was Kai who cut Bryan off.

"But, Kai! She's going to overthrow your power and your hold on Bakuten!" Bryan spluttered.

"I don't think so." Johnny spoke and Eri was interested in his words. "Eri may be strong, but she doesn't like the attention. She also doesn't like big heads like Kai and the rest of us. I think she just wants equality in the school, which can never be achieved unless there's someone in power." Eri wondered how Flame Brain had gotten so smart.

"And when did you get so smart Johnny?" Tala seemed to be slightly angered by this statement.

"We talk." Was Johnny's short reply.

"And you dig her." Spencer said simply.

"Doesn't everybody just a little?" Johnny asked in a slightly nervous voice. "I mean I know Kai admires her strength and the way she can handle herself. And I know that Tala likes her because of her body. I know Bryan fears her but has that tiny bit of respect for her. I know Rei likes her because he was one of the first people she considered a friend and not an enemy. Korigan just plain digs her I think. And I know every other guy that's seen her in gym must like her a little bit." Johnny said in a rushed statement.

"What about you Jimbo? Don't you like her any?" Tala asked still sounding a bit angered.

"Ya I like her, I mean, I dunno, I just feel kinda thrown towards her." Johnny said in an uncertain voice.

"Oh he's got it bad." Spence chuckled but Eri heard him silenced quickly.

"Shut up Spencer." Tala spat at his friend.

"Aren't you supposed to be with Miaka, Tala?" Kai asked boredly.

"Uh...yeah, I guess. Chi sorta ate me out for that." Tala said sounding ashamed.

"You know, it's true, Eri has the power to take over the entire school, but she doesn't. And I think it's because she's afraid of power. I think she's afraid she'll become corrupt, like her father." Kai's statement struck Eri and it struck her hard. "I think she's afraid to be a leader."

'Yes Kai, yes I am. I don't wanna be like them. Any of them. It's in my blood to be a born leader, but all I want is to be accepted like a friend, I want to be accepted, not feared. I want...' Eri couldn't finish the thought. It hurt to even think about him.

"I think you're right Kai." Bryan said sounding less scared than before about the topic of Eri taking over the school.

'Too right Kai.'

"She's scared, that's both her weakness, and her strength." Kai's voice was so confident. How did he know so much about her and how she felt? "I know, because sometimes, I feel like that too. I feel like Voltaire will one day live through me. I feel like one day, I'm gonna betray everyone, and hurt the ones that I actually give a damn about."

"Like Chi." Johnny muttered almost inaudibly.

"WHAT'D YOU SAY?!" Kai burst away from his touching speech.

'Oh yes, that's right.' Eri thought with a giggle.

"Did you guys hear that?" Bryan asked curiously.

"Hear what?" Spencer asked sounding spooked.

"That giggle." Bryan said with what sounded like a glare of disgust.

"Nah. I think graveyards do that to you though. They make you hear things you don't like, or they make you hear lost souls." Tala said in a haunting voice.

"Shut up Tala!" Bryan spat but let it slide.

"As I was saying..." Kai started angrily grabbing at Johnny again. "...WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?!"

"Actually, it was more like 'what'd you say?!' with a hell of a lot more enthusiasm." Johnny said through his chokes.

"Whatever." Kai muttered angrily. "Just tell me what you said then."

"I said, 'like Chi' and you whacked out on me." Johnny said with a bored tone.

"What d'you mean, like Chi?" Kai asked still angry about it.

"What? You haven't noticed? I guess it's just me and Kevin." Johnny said with another sigh.

"I hate her!" Kai shouted and seemed to throw Johnny.

"Do you really? Can you say that after all you've been through together? After all she's helped you?" Johnny's questions were that of the most expertise.

'Score 20 points for Johnny.' Eri thought happily and would have clapped her hands had she not been lying perfectly still.

"What are you talking about?" Kai asked with a glare in his words.

"When you first got here, Chi was the one that walked over and asked you to play with her. In jr. High, you both got busted together at least once a week. By the end of the first year, you guys were pretty close. Of course, then you screwed everything up by becoming a slight player, not quite as bad as Tala, but a player all the same. And then when you got mixed up with your grandfather Chi was the one that helped you heal those wounds. Of course you screwed that up too." Johnny sounded like he was having fun. Like he had planned this out the whole time.

"Shut up Johnny." Kai said through hacked up breaths.

"That's enough Johnny. He's having his moments of flashbacks right now." Tala muttered softly.

And it was true. He was having flashbacks. Of little Chi asking him to play. Of Chi healing his wounds at her hang out after he got into a fight with his grandfather. But most of all, the promise he made to her after his grandfather beat her up.

Flash Back

"Kai, I'm sorry." Chi whispered, as she lay helpless in his arms. Voltaire had broken a couple of her ribs and damaged a couple other parts of her body. She was coughing up a bit of blood as well.

"D-don't be." Kai choked out. How could he have let this happen?! He just got another friend hurt. And for what reason? His protection. She protected him and she was a girl. Girls are supposed to be the weaker sex! "I-I let you down." Kai said with a growl.

"Nah. You just screwed up big time and forgot about me." Chi chuckled but ended up coughing out more blood.

"Please don't talk. You're not strong enough and you'll lose too much blood!" Kai whimpered slightly. This was his stage of weakness. His stage of being lost. "I promise, I'll protect you next time. For the rest of your life, you can count on me. Even if your life is in my hands, I'll lose my life before I even think of hurting yours." Kai had managed through gritted teeth.

"Thanks Kai." Chi had said before coughing some more and passing out.

End Of Flash Back

"I remember...holding her in my arms and thinking that everything was my fault." Eri heard Kai say in an extremely soft tone. "And I remember watching her being hooked up to all those machines and stuff. I really thought she was gonna die. And after she got out of hospital, I remember avoiding her one minute and apologizing the next. God I felt so stupid and pathetic watching Voltaire beat her up. I felt helpless." Kai muttered on.

"And then you screwed it up, again." Johnny finished from his sitting spot against a gravestone.

"Ya. I screwed up big time." Kai laughed a sickening evil chuckle.

"Kai stop!" From the sound of clothes crumpling, Eri could swear that Tala had just gripped Kai's shoulders.

"Ya man, nothing's really your fault." Spencer added in his two bits.

"Technically it is. But I'm just gonna pretend it wasn't and comfort you by saying, Chi remembers everything, and she's waiting for you Kai. She's waiting for you to go back and be her friend." Johnny said in a comforting voice.

"But after that little escapade at Ollie's where you hit her, I can't really say much about how she would feel now." Tala said with a sigh and a 'plop' indicating that he had sat down.

"Heh. I just keep screwing up, don't I?" Kai asked with sarcasm.

No one answered. The silence was starting to give Eri the creeps so she moved slightly and rustled a few branches and cherry blossoms.

'Aw crap.' Eri thought angrily.

"Someone's in that tree." Bryan stated flatly.

"Ya I think we know that." Tala said angrily while getting up and walking over to Eri's tree.

Eri quickly evened out her breathing by calming herself down and closed her eyes once again to pretend that she had been sleeping. She heard Tala getting ready to launch but continued to remain calm.

"Tala! This is a gravesite. Show some respect." Came Kai's harsh comment.

"Right, it's so peaceful here I almost forgot." Tala said thoughtfully.

'This act will be perfect.' Eri thought with a grin.

"I'll just climb the tree then." Tala announced after a moments hesitation.

Eri heard him climbing, getting closer and closer. She finally felt his hand on her stomach, which was slightly uncomfortable to her. Then her satisfaction came.

"Holy shit its Eri." Tala said a little too loudly for comfort.

Eri shot her eyes open and slapped Tala's hand away. She then did a backhand spring off the branches and did a couple more on the ground to create some distance between herself and the boys. She looked away at first and let the wind blow against her back before slowly turning her body so that the wind blew against her face. It blew all the hair away from her iced over green eyes. It also blew the mesh top tight against her belly making her stomach quite cold.

Eri yawned and stretched her arms. She had been in the same position for nearly an hour. "Damn, what a day to wear a belly top." She said aloud before looking towards the boys and smiling. "Like what you see?" she asked with a chuckle as she saw the boys' mouths hanging open.

"Eri, you're wearing...girls clothes!" Spencer burst out in amazement.

Eri pouted slightly. "I always wear girls clothes stupid!" She 'humph'-ed and turned her back to them.

Bryan was the first to recover. "What he meant to say was that you're wearing tight clothes, not your usual baggy ones." He said in a growl.

"More directly, you're all dressed up." Tala said with a smirk as his eyes travelled over her body.

"Of course I am." She said with a smile. "Today's a special occasion!" She said while spreading her arms wide and perching herself on top of the tombstone. She just noticed that the boys started getting close. There were only a couple metres from her and them now.

"And what would that be?" Kai asked smoothly. Even he was amazed with Eri's change.

"Guess!" She said playfully.

"The cops stopped hounding you?" Spencer asked with a trail of amusement in his voice.

"Nope!" Eri said cheerfully swinging her legs.

"Your brother's come back and he's not evil." Bryan said with a twisted smirk on his face.

"So not funny." Eri said with a glare at Bryan.

"It's your birthday?" Johnny asked curiously.

"Ya! Happy birthday to me, I'm only seventeen, I act like a child, and I play a tambourine." Eri chortled a bit. She really did feel childish. The guys all stared at her for a while with sweat-drops on their heads and fake happy faces plastered on.

Then a devilish grin appeared upon her features. "Chi would not be happy with you Mr. Valkov. Ditching Miaka for me. Didn't you have this conversation with her already?" Eri asked as she watched Tala's shocked expression. "And Mr. Kuznetsov here is afraid of me." She said nodding to Bryan. "Spencer here is obsessed with food, like Tyson." She said while pulling back her head and laughing slightly. "And Kai here...has a certain past he might be hiding from a few people and a few promises he might have broken to certain people." She said and dodged Kai as he lunged for her. She ignored Johnny for the time being, because she was too busy dodging Kai.

"My, my. Quite the temper we all have, hmm?" Eri asked the rhetorical question with ease.

"How much did you hear?" Bryan asked angrily.

"I was here before you were. How much do you think I heard?" Eri asked another rhetorical question.

"DAMN YOU ZELIAN!" Bryan shouted and attacked her.

"Actually I changed my last name to Dumair." Eri hummed as she stood on one hand and jumped to dodge Bryan again.

"Who gives a shit?" Kai asked as he too began attacking again.

"Don't make me use them." Eri said with an evil grin on her face. "Better tell them to stop or I'll use them, Johnny." Eri said with a glance towards the boy.

"Go ahead and use them. I don't care. I already told you I like them." Johnny said while shrugging his shoulders.

"Use what?" Tala asked curiously.

"These." Eri's low demonic voice was back. And just as she'd said it, two bright white wings burst from her back and she leapt off the ground and took flight.

"WHAT...THE...FUCK?!" Four of the boys shouted all at the same time.

Eri just kept on grinning. She flew higher and higher and higher until she felt them kick in. She let out a struggled scream before falling endlessly to the ground. As she fell, the bones in the wings slid into her back and the feathers began to spew from her back. She grabbed her head in pain and tried to shake them out. They had always hurt her. Always they hurt her when she tried to be happy or when she tried to be numb. Always then hurt her. Even after Bri, Kyoji, and Darth defeated Eshia for her. They were still there, hurting her.

Tala ran under the falling girl and made a sliding catch. But as soon as he'd caught her she jumped away from him. She was holding her arms around her body, shaking uncontrollably.

"What's wrong with her?" Kai asked sounding annoyed.

"She's back." Johnny said simply. He knelt down beside Eri and began to talk in a soothing voice. "What do you feel Eri?"

"Not this again." Eri groaned. "Just stay away this time, J. I gotta work this out on my own." She said while pushing him away and walking away from the boys. She plopped down under he tree and took several deep breaths. She let the elements around her teach her what to do. She listened to the all knowing wind. She felt the all seeing sun. She took comfort in the all feeling Earth and she just let everything slide off. All of them left her when she was peaceful. She had to be peaceful.

The boys watched from a distance they watched her sit and close her eyes, and they watched her pass out and fall sideways. What the hell was wrong with her?!