I'm sorry I've kept waiting!

Thanks for your suggestions but since I can't please everyone I'll have to choose myself. Don't worry I've got the idea. You want something cute? Well, try this one out. I cry each time I think about it T-T

Summary: Miguel tries to melt Tala's frozen heart by telling him the story about him and Mathilde. He then discovers another side of Tala, unknown to the others. Will this make the two people closer or will it draw them apart? Read on and find out.

A/N: Patience! With me, you must have patience! But if you're not a keen reader, find the Q: it's the part the most interesting.

2. White Chocolate Cream Heart

Siberia, Russia, January

Miguel put his arm up to protect himself from the snow. The wind was blowing hard, hitting him sharply. He tried to keep his eyes open but hail entered immediately if he did.

"T-Tala!" he called out, scanning through the fog for his companion.

He stumbled on the white floor. He felt himself being lifted up by someone of immense strength.

"Tala," he mumbled

The red-haired boy sent him an icy look, colder than the weather or the snow.

"Stop wasting time like an idiot girl. We have a test to pass," his partner said coldly.

Indeed, they were paired up for the 11th test. It had been a day since they'd left St Petersburg and they still hadn't found a clue of their bit-beasts' location. I wonder where old Dickenson hid them, Miguel thought. He was already fed up with the weather and Tala's coldness. He yearned for Mathilde's warm smile and her light body. He kicked the small snow mould on the ground. Hey! What's that? A glitter caught Miguel's eyes.

"Tala! Wait up!" He called as he bent down to retrieve the object from the snow.

"What is it this time?" Tala asked in a bored voice.

"Why don't you take a look at this?" Miguel handed him the ice.

Tala examined it carefully. There was definitely something stuck inside. They can't put a clue in here, can they? There was only one way to find out.

"Take out the gas and light a fire," Tala ordered.

Miguel scrambled in his rucksack. It was hard to find something when the bag was full to the top and snow was blowing in your eyes. Especially when you're wearing extra thick gloves (trust me, I did the experience). Finally, he managed to find the gaz but the next problem was to light it. Tala used himself as a wall against the biting wind. Along the whole journey, he looked like he didn't mind the weather. Maybe he's used to it, Miguel thought as he struggled to light the gas. At last, he got it started and Tala held the ice out for it to melt. At the end, the ice melted off and they found a large piece of silver with carvings on it.

It said: "Fortunate those who never turn back"

"Are you sure it's a clue?" Tala asked

Miguel shrugged.

"I guess it means that we shouldn't turn back," he answered

"How useful," Tala remarked sarcastically.

Then he began to walk away. Miguel put his things back in the bag and ran to catch up with him.

"Why are you like this?" he asked Tala, "Why can't you smile and see things in the good way? Why-."

"Do I ask you why you're Miguel and not someone else?" Tala retorted "I am not like the others and am I a beast to you?"

The last remark silenced Miguel. Tala was probably right about being one self but he couldn't believe that it was Tala's nature to be cold towards others. Even Kai's heart had melted… That night, they built an igloo and sat around the fire, eating dry meat. Miguel wondered why Mr. Dickenson had to reduce them to poor in order to pass the test.

"Don't you miss anyone back home?" Miguel attempt to break the silence.

"Miguel, we've left just two days ago," Tala said dully

"I know but somehow…" Mathilde's face suddenly appeared in front of Miguel. So near, he could have touched her.

Tala seemed to have read his mind.

"It's stupid to love," he said

"What do you mean?" those words sapped Miguel from his day-dream

"Look at you, you can't even eat without thinking about your girl," Tala stated

"Nonsense!" Miguel's eyes flashed with anger. "There is nothing richer than a true passion."

"Ha!" Tala laughed but his laughter was like a blizzard, cutting Miguel's ears, "You speak like a young girl, lost in her love stories."

"I love Mathilde!" Miguel shouted "And I'm proud of being so! You, you will never know the infinite warmness that fills your heart just by thinking of one's beloved nor the stabbing coldness when you're far apart."

"Your reasoning has no meaning. You've just talked about the happiness where ever you are then you go along about spleen. This is the default of love: you lose your reasons."

"Well, it's better than being a rogue wolf all alone on his throne."

With that last sentence, Miguel got in his sleeping bag and closed his eyes. He wished Mathilde were here instead of Tala. At least my nights wouldn't be so cold, he joked with himself to chase away the anger.

Next morning, they reached low mountains. They decided to climb over to see any landmarks. The wind blew harder as they got higher (it rhymes!). It was almost impossible to see ahead but Tala seemed to know where to go. They finally arrived at the top around midday. From there they could see most of the desert. Tala also noticed some ruins on the mountain next to theirs. After lunch (cold bread and sardines) they set off for the ruins. Miguel kept his mouth shut all morning. He had not forgotten the offense Tala did to him last night and he didn't want to be friendly with someone who's not. Tala noticed it and he appreciated the silence. What a ninny, and he meant to be a boy, Tala thought grimly. When they've reached the ruins, Miguel noticed that it used to be an ancient fortress.

"Let's have a look around," Tala said more to himself then to Miguel.

He knew that Dickenson would surely put something here since it was one of the important landmarks. At first, he'd thought that it would be like child play but he must admit that the old man put a lot of difficulty in this test.

"Over here," he called to Miguel.

When he rejoined him, Tala pointed to the inscriptions on the wall.

"My head reaches the kingdom of the sky," he read, "whilst my feet stay in the cold."

"Which means?" Miguel asked

"Use your logic," Tala said coldly.

Miguel frowned and stared blankly at the inscriptions.

"Who has its head in the sky and whose feet are cold?" Miguel muttered to himself. "A giant? No it can't be…"

"I've got it," Tala said in his usual dry voice, "it's a tree."

"A tree? Are you sure?" Miguel raised an eyebrow

"Do you have other suggestions, lover boy?"

Miguel clutched his fists. He had no idea where Tala got his idea but it did seem logic. He didn't have the choice but to follow him.

"So we must find a tree to have the next clue?" Miguel concluded.

Tala nodded and walked off. They looked around. All their surrounding was plain white, except of course the ruin behind them.

"Why don't we get down from the mountains? It would be less cold already," Miguel suggested.

Despite himself, Tala had to agree since there was nowhere else where he could imagine the tree would be.

They crossed the snowy mantle, their heads bent against the coldness. Miguel felt his legs giving way many times but he was too ashamed to call for pause. The compass showed that they were heading north. The sky got cloudy and there might be a storm. Miguel didn't like the look of that.

As night was drawing in fast, they've spotted pyramidal forms at the distant. Then they heard dogs barking. Miguel's heart gave a leap. Any sigh of humans would do. When they've got closer, the pyramidal forms became tents of horse skin and the dogs were attached to trainees. A fire was built and a couple of people huddled against each other. The flames revealed Asian faces. Tala went up to them and spoke in a language Miguel didn't understand but he guessed it was Russian.

"The Siberians said that there's a forest nearby but it's too dark to reach it tonight," Tala explained to him, "I told them that we were on a task and they accepted to share their food and shelter with us, especially that there's a storm coming.

Miguel was glad that he would be able to eat some decent food, in company of decent people. A Siberian woman handed him a bowl with some rice mixed with strange brown sauce. At Miguel's look, the woman laughed and said something in Russian.

"She said not to worry," Tala translated, "there just chopped vegetables with horse meat. The horsejust died yesterday," he added slyly.

Miguel stared at the contents in the bowl then smiled at the woman. If Tala can eat it, I can, he thought to himself. After the meal, Miguel realized how tired he was that he could hardly stand up. Seeing him struggling made the men laugh. They helped him up and led him to the tent. Miguel muttered, "Thanks," and settled himself among the furs. It would be delicious if it weren't for the strong smell of horse. Tala stayed up to talk with the Siberians and Miguel fell asleep before he came in.

Morning's cold breath woke Miguel up. Outside was still dark but Tala wasn't in the tent. Miguel scrambled out of the tent. The trainees were gone and back to the small hearth was Tala. He recognized him by his red hair. There was a light sound of music in the frozen air. It took time for Miguel to realize that it was Tala who was making them. What's this? The fellow plays an instrument? Miguel crept closer and saw that Tala was playing a harmonica. Tala was so absorbed in his music that he didn't notice Miguel. The melody he was playing was languorous and it touched Miguel's heart that this boy knew how to feel. Suddenly, barkings could be heard. Tala stopped playing abruptly and seeing Miguel staring at him, he lowered his gaze.

"It was beautiful, Tala," Miguel complimented.

"Forget what you've heard," Tala simply answered

"Why? Why are you ashamed of having feelings?"

"Didn't you see what it did to Kai? He's a weakling like the others now."

"So you fear love?"

"I despise all feelings."

"I-." But he didn't have time to finish. The Siberians arrived with fresh fishes and they set off after breakfast.

The forest was easy to find but they spent half the morning looking around each tree for inscriptions. They decided to have lunch. The Siberians had insisted on their taking some of the horse soup and so they didn't have the choice but to eat it. Miguel pulled a face as he swallowed a spoonful. Tala grinned in spite of himself. When they finished, they leaned back and watched the fire playfully. This was different from the other days which Tala seemed to be impatient to go on. But this time, he seemed to have things in mind and apart from throwing a few sticks for the fire to consume, he remained immobile. Getting tired of the silence, Miguel broke the ice, "When I first met Mathilde," he began. He was afraid at first that Tala might interrupt him but he didn't do anything. "We were both passionate by Beyblade. But it wasn't that that got us closer. People say I'm brave and am a true leader, and many looked up at me. Mathilde is the opposite of all that. She is shy and always follows the others. It's not surprising that she's the youngest in her family. We've known each other from school. I've never noticed her much until the day… I was on the school's football team and she was one of the cheerleaders. Our school was receiving visitors to play against us that day. It was nearing summer and the all was bright. The sun shined on the colored pompoms and on our red T-shirts. The match was intense but we've won. I was the one who've scored the last goal. The crowd went wild. It was fantastic! How happy I was that day when my team mates lifted me up to take the trophy. Then we had to shake hands with the losers. I gave them a smile which they didn't return. When we shook hands, they gripped tighter than usual. I later discovered that they were very angry about losing. I know because I was the victim of their rage. They ambushed me on the way home. I lived the most far away and they were no one with me. They were about six or seven and I couldn't take them all. I was knocked out in no time and when I thought my time had come, they suddenly scampered. I reopened my eyes to meet those of a pink-haired girl dressed as a cheerleader for our team.

"Wh-what h-happen-ed?" I could hardly speak

"They're gone. You're safe now," the girl spoke to me gently. I closed my eyes and felt suddenly relaxed, as if the presence of that strange girl healed me completely from all my pains. And I wasn't quite wrong. Weeks after that, I spoke with her every time I could, causing jealousy among the girls, they say. And when we've discovered that we both love Beyblade, we became inseparable. She gained confidence in herself and I introduced her to Aaron and Claude. The four of us was like one family but it was clear that the bond between Mathilde and I was stronger than the London Bridge itself." He ended the story there.

Tala got up without a word and returned to the forest, tattering the trees. They got deeper in the forest than they had imagined and found a large clearing. In the middle, stood a tall tower.

"That's queer," Tala muttered as he approached it. Tala knocked on the door, after seeing nothing of interesting on its walls.

"Good afternoon," an old man dressed in a cassock opened the door. At their sight, his eyes widened.

"You must be the young bladers!" he cried, "You're the second group to arrive. Come on, in." The man let them in through a circular room where a fire was burning regularly. But most of all, the temperature inside was totally the opposite of the one outside and Miguel and Tala was obliged to take off their coats and things.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" the old man was retrieving a kettle from the stove.

"Yes, please!" Miguel was relieved: true comfort at last!

They sat on sofas around a small wooden table, with a cup of tea in their hands. Miguel breathed in the hot scent from the tea. Warmness filled in each limp of his body. It was like heaven. Miguel had almost forgotten about the test.

"Who was the first pair?" Tala asked.

"It seems to me that they were Ray and … (it meant to be an OC I haven't thought about the name yet)," the old man answered.

"So we're not so far away after all!" Miguel exclaimed with joy.

"They've left a day ago," the old man said.

"Oh."

"So what do you know about the competition?" Tala cut in

The old man gave them a knowing smile before answering: "Many things…"

"Can you tell us where the tree is?" Miguel asked.

"Tree? I see no sense in that," the old man replied.

"So… that means we were wrong all along? It wasn't a tree we needed to find but…" He gasped, "it is the tower! Of course! It's taller than anything I've ever seen and its feet stay in the ground!"

The man smiled, "You've got it, my boy."

Tala remained silence during all the conversation. So he was wrong, was he? Hn, at least it got them here.

"So can you tell us the 3rd clue?" Miguel was asking

"Listen carefully," the man said, "No one sleeps in my bed but I'm the mother of life."

"…"

Miguel started thinking furiously. He didn't dare ask Tala's point of view, knowing him he must be angry that his guess was wrong. Miguel couldn't be more right: Tala didn't even bother to listen to the riddle. He sat there, drinking his tea waiting for Miguel to do the work.

"Would you like to rest here for the night?" the old man asked

Before Miguel could answer, Tala said, "No."

Miguel stared at him.

"We'll be going, thank you," he said as he got up.

"But-." Miguel started but Tala gave him a look which meant "no discussions"

"Are you sure?" the old man asked.

"Don't worry, we'll survive," Tala answered curtly.

Once they were outside, Miguel ran to catch up with Tala.

"What's up, man? The old man looks much less offensive than those Eskimos yet you refused his hospitality," Miguel wondered.

"If Ray and that witch girl are at a day from here, we have a lot to catch up," Tala replied.

"But we don't even know where we're going," Miguel argued.

Tala simply walked on without replying. They came out of the forest to meet a frozen lake. There was a ship half sank in the frozen shore.

"We will stop here," Tala said.

They built up an igloo and settled inside. Night here was early, it must only be four or five in the afternoon but the sky was already dark.

"Have you ever kissed, Tala?" Miguel suddenly asked. Not waiting for the answer, he went on, "It's like savoring a fruit from paradise. There was this story about sailors sailing to the New World. They suffered from seasickness. But when they arrived, they found a bush of lemons. Their supply were gone since weeks, the sailors threw themselves on the bush and ate the lemons. They were fully healed from their sickness. Well, kissing has the same effect. It's like your whole body became light, free from all the pain. And when you start you can't stop. A sudden and desperate need inflamed in your soul and your heart beat so fast, you're surprised why it didn't burst."

He paused, lost in thoughts.

"There's going to be a storm," Tala stated

"Again?"

He shook his head, "Last time, it didn't came."

"What do we do?"

"It's too late to go back. We'll dig a hole here," Tala answered

They executed but they found out that they were digging on the surface of the lake. The ice began to give way under their weight.

Q "Get out!" Tala shouted.

But it was too late. The ice broke and Miguel was swallowed up by the dark waters.

"NO!!"

Tala dived his hand into the freezing dept and snatched Miguel's arm. As he was trying to pull him up, the ice began to break. Tala didn't have the choice. His hands began to turn bright and with an inhuman strength he got Miguel and himself flying across the lake safely to the bank. Thud! They landed on the snow. Tala quickly turned Miguel over. He wasn't moving and his lips were blue. The wind was blowing hard, hail was starting to fall.

"This isn't good," Tala murmured as he scanned for a shelter. He spotted the shipwreck nearby. Having no other choice, he hauled Miguel there. He laid him on the wooden floor. He was hardly breathing. Tala noticed that his clothes were drenched. If he didn't take them off, Miguel's state would surely get worst. Tala hung Miguel's wet clothes on the broken pillar (?) and took off his own coat. He tried to lit a fire but the wooden floor would surely burn. He stared at Miguel, repeating the same sentence in his head: "Don't leave me, Miguel. You're going to survive." But he knew that it wouldn't help sitting and wishing. Tala knew what to do but he didn't have the courage to do it. Yet, he couldn't let Miguel die… Tala striped off his clothes and timidly got on top of Miguel. He began with warming his hands, starting with the fingers then up to the arms. He smoothed the curve of his neck and breathed on his cold body, in hope of waking the life in it. His lips accidentally touched the pilgrim's hand (it's just a metaphor but it's actually Miguel's hand). The icy taste, the burning desire suddenly awoke in him. The ice had melted in Tala's heart and instead a frustrated passion set it ablaze. He bombed each finger with passionate kisses. When he had finished with the arms, he descended lower. He reemerged from the depts., sweating like a house on fire and lingered on Miguel's frozen lips. The body sudden;y awake! Tala, ashamed of himself, backed off. But Miguel, understanding what had saved him, pulled him back.

"I urgently commanded you to give me another kiss," he said as he pulled Tala closer. Their lips were locked in an intense embrace; their legs intertwined, their arms held their bodies so closed we could've thought they were only one person.

Time seemed eternalized as they laid there, Tala lying in Miguel's arm.

"What will become of us?" Tala murmured

"I don't know and I don't care," Miguel answered as he lifted Tala's chin.

"What about the others? What about Mathilde?" Tala insisted.

Mathilde? The name seemed so unfamiliar to him, Miguel could hardly remember who she was.

"My heart is totally in your possession," Miguel said before kissing Tala.

When they got too cold (just about time), they dressed into new clothes. When Miguel was assorting the ones he fell into the lake with, something fell down. He saw that there were inscriptions on it. Tala read over his shoulders: "I kill for living. I depend on the mother of life. Find me and you'll find your goal."

"Another riddle?" Tala furrowed his eyebrows.

"We didn't even guess the last one," Miguel said.

"Do you remember it?" Tala asked

"Hmm…," Miguel scratched his head, "There was something about 'bed' and 'mother of life'."

"These riddles are unbreakable!" Tala moaned

"I thought you'll never admit that," Miguel smiled

Tala blushed for the first time. He was at the same time surprised and ashamed. Not wanting Miguel to notice, he briskly said, "Let's get out of here. Luck has helped us so far."

They two set out to face the cold again. But nor the coldness nor the test could destroy their new born happiness. Their hands clasped without them noticing and an unwanted smile appeared regularly on their young faces. They walked along the lake. Tala got his harmonica out and played a light tune. Miguel smiled and looked over the lake. He shivered. It must be colder on the lake bed than on the surface. Suddenly, a thought occurred him. He stopped in his tracks. Tala stopped playing and stared at him.

"The lake bed!" he exclaimed. "Of course, the bed where no one sleeps is the lake bed!"

Tala started to understand

"So…The mother of life is…?" he said

"The water!"

"So the bit beasts are in the lake?"

"I guess so."

Excitement rushed through their veins as they starting seeing sense in the next riddle.

"The person must have something to do with the water," Tala said.

"A scuba diver?" Miguel guessed.

Tala shook his head.

"He kills for living."

"He must be a whale hunter," Miguel said

"Or simply a fisherman," Tala concluded.

"But what will it do with the test?" Miguel was puzzled

Tala thought for a moment.

"If we have to go down into the lake, we'll probably need special equipments," he said.

"And this fisherman will provide us some," Miguel finished.

"But where on earth will we find a fisherman?" he asked Tala but the latter didn't answer. He was looking across the lake. Miguel did the same and saw to his surprise, a man fishing in the middle of a lake.

"Must be him," Tala murmured.

When they reached the man, he turned to them.

"We're going down the lake," Tala said to him.

Without a word, the fisherman pointed towards a little cabin near the lake. They found the equipments there, including a waterproof suit that would protect them from coldness. Thus dressed (like normal scuba divers, really), they dived in the lake where the fisherman had been fishing. The water was dark and cold bits of ice tickled their suits. They saw a little light down below. With a nod they dived deeper. The lake was deeper than they thought and when they reached the lake bad, they saw something glowing in a miniature cave. They were Wolborg and Dark Gargoyle! Overjoyed by the sight of their bit beasts, Tala swam ahead and got them in his waterproof front bag. Miguel was smiling under his mask when suddenly, a rock fell on Tala's back and broke his oxygen tank. Miguel was horrified. He wanted to shout but could not, so instead he speed through the water to reach Tala and see if he was alright. He was blacking out. Panicked, Miguel rip off the tank and put his own mouth piece for Tala. He held his breath and Tala against him and sped off as fast as he could. But soon he was needing oxygen too. He took back the mouth piece but after breathing for a while, there were no more oxygen left! Hell! Miguel then clasped his mouth over Tala's and breathing in his air but also giving what was left in him. At last, they reached the surface. The fisherman, seeing the two boys without their oxygen tank was dead worried. He took out a walkie talkie and called the security force. Miguel was lying beside Tala, exhausted. He could faintly hear an approaching helicopter before he wiped out.

Miguel woke up in a warm bed. Surprised by this, he sat up and saw Mathilde, Aaron and Claude , and other Beybladers standing around his bed. As soon asthey saw that he was awake, their faces changed from anxiety to relief.

"Miguel! I have been dead worried about you!" Mathilde said as she put her arms around his neck. The others were saying something too but Miguel didn't hear it.

"Where's Tala?" he asked as Mathilde let go off him.

At that moment Mr. Dickenson broke through the crowd.

"Miguel, I see you are well," he said, "Your friend wants to see you."

He got off the bed and swayed a little, making Mathilde screamed.

"Mr. Dickenson, can't Miguel rest a bit more?" she asked the old man.

"It's alright, Mathilde, I'll manage," Miguel said.

"Wait."

Miguel turned and Claude gave him his bey.

"Dark Gargoyle'll want to see his savior," he said.

Miguel gave him a smile and walked out of the room behind Mr. Dickenson.

They were back at the palace in St Petersburg. Tala's room stood 2 doors away from Miguel's. Mr. Dickenson opened it for him. Miguel could see a fire burning in the chimney and lying on the four poster bed was Tala. Mr. Dickenson closed the door behind him, leaving the two young people alone.

"Tala, how do you feel?" Miguel asked.

"I made us disqualified," he answered without looking at him.

Miguel took Tala's hand into his

"I don't care, you've saved our bit beasts and you're alive. That's what matters."

Tala smiled weakly.

"You're boarding the ship?" he asked Miguel

"I guess I am."

He paused.

"I'll rejoin you," Tala said

"I'll be waiting."

A bit long isn't it? If you don't like it, it's fine by me 'cause I love it (of course, it's me the writer!) Any way the next one will be shorter but very implicit. Anyway, hope you won't abandon the chocolate box by reading this one because the others won't be like it, I assure you.

A/N: The mention of Kai is very important here. You'll find more infos later on