Warning : Strong language, violence & M/M

Disclaimer : I don't own Beyblade or any of the characters. The characters you do not recognise are mine and are not to be stolen/used in any story other than my own.

------------------------------------

"As you all know, these attacks have been happening for quite a while, and there is still no trace or evidence that could lead us to a definite culprit." The tall, strong-looking officer had had the same stern expression on his face the entire time he spoke. Cold, seemingly black eyes scanned the array of students before him. "However… We do have some suspects." Whispers spread quickly through the crowd. The man continued. "Regarding this fact, we would like to speak with some of the students." Another wave of whispers shot through the shocked assembly. How could anybody suspect one of the school's own students..? And moreover, who would suspect…

"Kai Hiwatari, could you come with us please?" Kai looked up from his seat at the officers as masses of people around him started staring and whispering among themselves. He stood up and managed to see the look of disbelief on the neko-jin's face. Kai shrugged to him and his friends, then followed the officers toward the building.

'At lease someone thinks I'm innocent…' He reassured himself. 'This is unbelievable.' He was taken to a room inside the building, one of the classrooms that hadn't been affected by the fire. One of the officers motioned for him to sit down. Kai did so, and watched as the head teacher came into the room, followed by the police chief inspector. He swallowed, nervous. He hadn't done anything!

"Kai Hiwatari, I presume?" The inspector glared down at him. Kai nodded slowly. He had nothing to be afraid of, he was innocent. The only problem was – He didn't have anything to prove his innocence either. "Kai, we'd like to have a little chat with you." The inspector sat down in front of Kai, the other two officers closing in, clutching notepads, clipboards and pens.

"Tell me something young man, you were suspected of setting fire to a home opposite your own, am I correct?" Kai nodded again, he didn't dare speak – The only words he'd be able to form were not going to help him. 'I'm innocent' were often the words of a guilty conscience. "What did your parents think about that?"

"My parents are dead." Was Kai's sullen reply. The older inspector nodded his apology.

"Who looks after you?" Did he dare tell the authorities that he lived alone at 15? He couldn't think of a good answer, nor did he want the extra trouble of them eventually finding out he had nobody looking after him.

"I…" His heart suddenly raced. Looking away, he continued. "I live on my own."

Nobody had known that. Not the inspector, nor his two officers standing with him, and certainly not his head teacher, who had a very surprised look on her face. Apparently not one of the four adults knew what to say. The inspector finally spoke.

"You're fifteen aren't you?" Was that… Sympathy in his voice? Kai nodded his reply, soon to hear his head mistress voicing hers.

"For how long Kai?"

"Four years." Again, people seemed lost for words. The inspector flicked his wrist toward his officers, who wrote down these facts. He then cleared his throat.

"Although that is illegal, not to mention a shame, it is not the matter at hand." Kai's heart sank as the business-like tone returned to the man's words. "We have reason to believe that, since you were up and out at the right time, you could be involved with the afore mentioned attack. Do you understand why you are a suspect?"

Everyone was staring at him. "Yes." He began, then shook his head. "But I didn't do it." He had spoken the words more forcefully than he'd meant to, causing the inspector to raise his brow.

"Sorry Kai, but we can't just take your word for it. This is a very serious crime – Two buildings burnt to a crisp within the space of three days."

Kai looked up quickly as those words were spoken. Three days. It echoed round his head. The inspector carried on.

"And those words were spelt out along the corridor… In what seemed to be blue spray paint. A set of keys were taken, too."

Kai's hand wrapped around the cold metal in his pocket. A set of keys, not belonging to him. He had to ask, but his voice was shaky. "What were they keys to?"

The inspector studied him, slightly confused at Kai's unsteady voice; he had seemed a very confident boy. "Various offices, some of which contained school files, papers and personal belongings..." He paused, throwing a questioning glare at Kai. "Including money."

"Was.. Anything.. Taken?" Kai asked carefully. He was so confused. He had the keys, but he didn't have the money. The hadn't done anything. He hadn't attacked his neighbour. He hadn't burnt the school. He hadn't spray painted anything, he didn't even have blue spray paint… But why did he have the keys?

"Not taken, no. But a few of the student files had been read through, and a few of the photographs had been taken." Kai wondered who the hell would read school files and steal pictures of students… 'Some sick weirdo, that's for sure.'

Everyone was looking stern. Nobody in that room understood what was going on. And Kai didn't understand why he was sitting there. Why had fate decided he was to be a suspect? And why the fuck did he have the keys?

"Kai…" The inspector had obviously read the expression on Kai's face. "We had a team search your flat. We found this." The man, still looking stern and still glaring with black eyes into the confused crimson of Kai's, pulled a can of blue spray paint from a bag he had next to him. Kai's heart skipped a beat.

"That wasn't there when.. I.." The inspector glared him into a silence. Had he been framed? Was this all a big joke?

"When you what, Kai?"

"When I left!" He growled. "I haven't been back to my flat since I was relocated." Kai was indignant. He hadn't done anything. The inspector nodded, allowing Kai to leave, but he obviously didn't believe him. The two officers opened the door and beckoned Kai to follow them back to the rest of the students. For the first time in years, Kai felt like crying.

He sat on the floor, leant up against a wall, put his head down and fought the tears. He could feel people staring at him as they passed, not daring to say anything. 'Why?' That was the only word that came to his mind as he lost the battle with his tears and he felt their wetness slide down his face. A hand rested on his shoulder. He looked sideways from the corner of his eye to see lilac hair and a sympathetic pout. Helena was crouched on the floor next to Kai. Rei, Tyson and another girl weren't far behind. The small group seemed surprised to see tears on the tough teen's face. Helena gripped his shoulder reassuringly. He didn't shake her off, as he had expected himself to.

"Hey… What happened?" Kai looked surprised at her question, since when did people actually care about him? He slowly turned his face away. He didn't need people to see him cry.

"They think it was me." He groaned. At this statement, the foursome exchanged glances, and the other three sat around Kai too. He opened his eyes and looked around at them all, then sighed, burying his face in his arms.

"But… Why do they think it was you?" Kai recognised the voice as belonging to the navy-haired boy, Tyson. Kai muttered his reply, but seemingly wasn't heard. "Come again?"

Kai looked up and repeated himself directly to the confused brown eyes in front of him. "How the fuck should I know?" He sighed again, growling. He glanced sideways to see anxious golden eyes watching him, and suddenly felt a rush of calm. He wasn't sure what the cat did to him, but he knew he'd love to find out. Then, he remembered. He looked into the tanned face and spoke. "Sorry for asking about the attack on your school." Rei smiled.

"It's okay. It just got me wondering about what would happen next." The four around him were obviously look for an explanation. He continued. "When the school was attacked, I was relocated. I've only just found my feet here, I don't want to have to move again." Everyone looked sympathetic, Kai noticed. He was too.

'I know how he feels.' He mused over the thought of having to move to his grandfather's, then having to run away to free himself from the harsh words of the stern old man.

Again, the jealousy. Kai watched as Helena comforted her friend with soft touches and soothing words. He looked away, again wishing it was him making the neko-jin feel better. It was then, that he felt the tears on his face again. 'What's wrong with me?' Kai screamed at himself inside his mind. 'I don't even know him!' This time he did pull his arm away as he felt the girl go to comfort him. He just wanted to be alone. He had too much on his mind. And they wouldn't go away. He heard a sigh.

"Please talk to us." Her voice was so soft, Kai hadn't heard a voice that soft and welcoming since… He couldn't even remember. He just had to embrace it, whether he really wanted to or not. He muttered his apology and sniffed.

'How weak of me.' He reprimanded himself. It was only since being accused that he'd been like this. He used to be tough and ready for anything, but now… Now he had turned into this pitiful, snivelling wreck. "Why?" It was the only thing he could think of saying. It had slipped through his lips in a cold, dejected tone, resulting in the four friends to exchange apprehensive glances. The supposedly fearless navy-haired bottomless pit was the first to break the silence.

"Not meaning to sound dumb, but… Why, what?" Good question. Kai wasn't even sure himself what he had wanted to know. Then, he exploded.

"Why is everything happening to me?" He leapt to his feet and angrily strode off, leaving the startled group behind. He wasn't sure how harsh he had sounded, or if he had growled it or shouted it, but he had got the confusing message across that he was well and truly fed up. He had gone over to the lake, it was where he usually went to calm his temper during the long school hours. In a fit of rage, he tossed the keys into the depth of the water and slumped down beneath the overhanging branches of a large willow tree. He immediately chilled out.

Peace. Calm. Serenity. Quiet. Tranquillity. Stillness. Silence. Harmony. Kai wondered how many words there actually were to describe his current state of person. Through the branches that obscured him from sight, he saw a certain group of people settle the other side of the lake. Maybe they were looking for him. He watched the neko-jin and smiled to himself. That boy was perfect. Perfect in body and in mind. Tall, sleek and beautiful, not too rowdy, not too shy. Closing his eyes, his state of calm reminded him of the sunset, which he now knew he would share with the cat, or hopefully would… Some day.

"Rei… I wonder what his surname is…" He sighed.

"Kon." Kai jumped at the voice, opening his eyes to a mischievous cat-like expression. He smiled sheepishly and blushed slightly. The cat smirked. Kai thought he looked rather cute like that. He decided he wanted to know more about this 'Rei Kon'. Neko-jins were not from Japan, and neither was his name. He just couldn't remember where they were from.

"Where are you from?" Kai asked. Rei smirked again, he had obviously known that question would be asked next, as he answered straight away.

"A little village in the Chinese mountains." He sat himself down next to Kai, smiling. As Rei said it, it suddenly seemed so obvious to Kai that he almost felt stupid. The yellow eyes fixed on his crimson ones. "And where are you from?"

'So, my cat is clever too…' Kai smirked to himself. "Russia." Rei nodded, taking in the information. He smiled at Kai, obviously appreciating the fact that this seemingly cold, introverted boy was talking to him. 'Look at those eyes…' Kai couldn't help but stare. The only problem was, he was staring into Rei's eyes and, from his expression, Rei wasn't quite sure what to make of it. Kai stop himself from staring and tried to come up with an excuse. "Sorry… I… I've never met a neko-jin before." At that, Rei laughed.

"It's okay. I get it a lot."

"Yeah, I bet you do." Kai really hoped he hadn't said that out loud, but judging from the confused look on the cat's face, he supposed he had - 'Crap.' Seeing that the blunette was obviously lost for words, Rei chuckled. Kai wasn't too impressed with himself and tried, again, to make an excuse. "You have very distinct features, is what I meant." The cat seemed to be buying his pathetic explanation, so he continued. "People who don't know of your kind would find you… Intriguing."

"So…" The cat laughed. "Do I intrigue you?" Kai was half amused at the neko, half annoyed at himself. He'd really walked into that one. The boy had wit. Looking at Rei, he once again noticed how beautiful the creature was. Especially when he laughed – It made his eyes shine.

"You do intrigue me." He replied smoothly. A raised brow suggested the cat wasn't expecting a reply quite like that. Kai smirked, slightly raising one of his own blue eyebrows. And Kami, what an effect it had! The neko flushed red, turning a little away from Kai, who, inside, was laughing. He loved the warm feeling he had inside, watching the dark-haired teen trying to calm himself and suppress his giggles.

'So this is how it feels…' Kai had never felt that way before, so knew it had to be the one thing he'd never experienced. He sighed quietly, waiting for the cat to control himself. 'Sono koigokoro.'

------------------------------------

A/N : Sono koigokoro is Japanese for "The awakening of love".