Disclaimer
Dr Brown: Now, just breathe evenly.
Flowerperson: Ok.
Dr Brown: Can you read this?
(Flowerperson nods)
Dr Brown: What does it say?
Flowerperson: … I CAN'T SAY IT!
Dr Brown: Yes you can!
Flowerperson: I can't!
(Dr Brown hits Flowerperson with clipboard)
Flowerperson: Ow… Flowerperson does… NOT own Beyblade.
(Flowerperson bursts out crying)
Dr Brown: (with no emotion) There, there. Have a hanky.
Last time: Raven had a bad start with Kai AND Lee (she is not liked much, is she?) and Lee was all-protective of Mariah. Lee said that Mariah and Ray were meant to be but Raven told Kai to keep on fighting for Mariah, even though it's clear Raven hates his guts.
xxx
Chapter fourteen: Late Night WanderRaven walked around the large mansion's corridors aimlessly. She couldn't sleep. Nightmares…
She was limping away from a shadow chasing after her. But her leg felt like it was burning. She finally tripped, landing on the cold, stone floor.
Raven saw a blue and white boot. She looked up and saw Tala in his usual orange, blue and white bodysuit glaring at her.
"What was that kiss about?" he asked. The shadow had gone and Raven exhaled in relief.
She shook her head. "It was just to distract you."
"Do you enjoy toying with people's emotions?"
"You hate me. And I hate you. Neither of us wanted me to kiss you. You're just saying this to mess me up. But I don't care. I'm out of Boris' clutches that means that I don't have to see your ugly pale face with that stupid demon hairstyle. I have friends now."
"Oh really?"
"Mariah trusts me."
"Soon you'll betray her."
"I won't!"
"Yeah right. But apart from Mariah, who likes you?"
"Ray, Max, Tyson, Hilary and Emily."
"Just because you saved Mariah. They don't like you for who you are. Frankly, they're scared of you. Kai's the only one that's got the guts to say it to your face. And Lee is wary of you."
"I don't give a rat's arse about them two! They can go to hell as far as I care."
"Face it, Raven. You're still all alone." Tala began to walk back, into the darkness.
"No I'm not! Shut up! I'm not alone!"
"Poor, poor Raven. All alone. No friends. And brooding over her dark, unknown past." It was getting darker and Tala had completely disappeared. But she could still hear his icy, haunting voice.
"My past is of no concern to me!"
"Then how comes you keep on dreaming about them?"
A boy suddenly appeared. He had blue wild hair like Raven and chocolate brown eyes. He looked no older that nine and he was smiling. An older boy with lighter blue hair but the same brown eyes knelt down and ruffled his hair.
"Who are they?"
They disappeared into darkness.
"No! Stop! I want to know who they are!"
Fire surrounded Raven and engulfed her, burning her skin until it melted off her charred bones.
Raven shook her head and hugged herself. She had been dreaming about the little boy and the older boy more and more recently.
Who were they? They did look very similar to Raven, she had to admit, so did that mean they were her cousins? Or maybe even brothers…
And the fire… what did that mean? She had never dreamt about it before.
"Why are you walking around?" a voice asked. She turned and saw Lee Wong, Mariah Wong's brother. She had seen the files on him. His bit-beast was Galleon – a lion type and used electricity. But his weakness was his short fuse.
Raven shrugged. She was too confused for words.
"I'm sorry about earlier."
"You seem to apologise a lot. Must get pretty annoying after a while."
Lee smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.
"I have a short temper some times. Especially when it comes to Mariah. She means the world to me, after our parents died." (AN: I don't know anything about their parents. And I thought their parents being dead would add to Lee's protectiveness.)
"Must have been pretty hard."
Lee swallowed and nodded, obviously still finding the topic a hard one to talk about. "What about your parents?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "Heaven knows. But I've been doing fine without them."
"What do you mean?"
She turned to face Lee. "I can't remember anything, not before a couple of years ago. It is just… darkness. The first thing I can remember is waking up in a cold, snowy forest bleeding to death. A beyblader saved my life."
"Who?"
Raven froze, swallowing the lump in her throat. "Tala Ivanov." (AN: I realised that in my earlier chapters I've been calling him Tala Valkov. Someone told me it was Valkov, but then reading other stories about Tala, I'm wondering if it's Tala since Boris' last name is Balkov and they sound too similar. Correct me if I am wrong.)
"Tala? Of the Demolition Boys?"
She nodded. "But I thought he was the one that had hurt me so I called him some things and threw a couple of stones at him. Once Boris explained to me that it had been wolves, I tried to say I was sorry but we just got into another argument."
She paused.
"But I wish he had left me in the snow for the wolves' food. It would have been better than what happened to me when I worked for Boris."
Why was Raven telling him this? She didn't even like him.
"I would have never have thought that Tala would do that."
She shook her head. "People are deceiving."
"You?"
"Everyone. That's why it's safer to trust no one. Nobody gets hurt."
"Are you ok?"
"Peachy. Go back to your room, Lee. I can handle myself."
"If you're sure…"
Lee turned and made his way back to his room. Raven sighed, running a hand through her dark blue locks.
It was my fault Tala and I got off on the wrong foot.
But then she tried to say sorry, Tala was the one that pushed her away.
I would have done the same thing. I shouldn't have knocked Tala out.
It was a small sacrifice to get out.
But I can't forget his shocked face as I pulled away. And I can't forget the heat I felt when I kissed him.
It was just the adrenaline of helping Mariah.
Had I meant to kiss Tala?
What would happen if she did? Tala would just push her feelings away.
"Poor, poor Raven. All alone. No friends. And brooding over her dark, unknown past."
Raven clutched her head. It was all giving her a headache.
"I don't care about my past. I don't care. I don't care." She chanted to calm herself.
Stop thinking about them. It doesn't matter who they are.
They were a part of her past.
And she did not want to know.
xxx
Review please!
Quote: This is a conversation between me and my wacky friend April.
Me: (looking at the Bacon Cheeseburger) That's cruel! You're eating a pig!
April: (takes a big bite out of cheeseburger) Do you know what vegetarian actually means?
Me: Um… eats vegetables?
April: No. It means 'lousy hunter'. You're just some fluffy animal lover girly girl.
Me: Hey! I'm not a vegetarian because I love animals. I'm a vegetarian because I hate plants!
Next Chapter: Girls Night Out 1: Preparations