A/N: Yes! I did it! I've finished my first chapterized fanfiction! We're on vacation now, so...
Aki: Unfortunately, you don't have a home internet connection.
Me: I know! Don't remind me!
Aki: Let's just get on with the story...
Disclaimer - Me: I do not own Beyblade and its characters. Period.
Chapter 10: The Visit
Takao and the others rushed inside, careful not to look too harried. The first thing they saw was Kai conversing quietly with Chairman Daitouji and looking agitated about something.
"Something tells me it has something to do with whoever it is that just arrived…" Kyouju whispered to the steel blue-eyed teen, who just nodded in reply.
Frankly, Takao was still astounded that in just a few short hours, he – no, they – had learned more about their captain then he had told them throughout the years they'd been blading together as a team. He wondered what other secrets the stoic teen had kept from them.
Suddenly, before the group could get upstairs to return the journal – that was the plan, which they'd formulated rather quickly – the balding chairman turned and spotted them.
"Ah, young Takao and his friends." The jolly elder said, half chuckling at the looks plastered on their faces. "So good of you to join us!" he continued as he made his way over to them. Kyouju quickly hid behind Max, partly to avoid being seen and partly to be able to conceal the black journal. Fortunately, Chairman Daitouji took no notice of the bespectacled teen's actions; if he had, they would have been discovered, something they didn't want to happen while Kai was still in the room.
"What do you mean, Chairman?" Rei asked, trying to conceal his nervousness at being spotted.
"Well, I was just about to tell Kai here to go look for you. You see," he added, stroking his snow-white mustache, "I've taken the liberty of arranging a small get-together for you and a few of your friends, namely Max's mother, Shizuki Yuuya Tachibana Hiromi, and Tsubasa Kane. Oh, and Takao, your brother will be here as well."
"Why?" Max asked, speaking up even though he knew why the chairman invited them.
"To make a long story short, they all hold some interesting information that will prove invaluable to your formation as a team." Daitouji replied, looking very mysterious. And then he guffawed, breaking the solemn atmosphere. "At any rate, the first guest – I'd say its young Yuuya – has arrived. If you would excuse me…" the elder turned away from the group and made his way towards the front door. There wasn't any doubt that he intended to greet the visitor and lead him towards the very room where all of Team BBA now stood.
Kyouju, having finished concealing the journal within his laptop, stepped out from behind Max. He heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that Kai was no longer watching them, but the front door, no doubt visible from the slate-haired teen vantage point. He motioned to the others that he was going to make a run for the stairs; Takao nodded to show he understood.
The mousy-haired teen took a deep breath, and then ran like mad across the hall and up the stairs, causing Kai to shift his focus from the front door and back to the group.
"What is Kyouju doing?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.
"He…needs to use the bathroom…" Takao said, grinning. And then he remembered that there was another bathroom downstairs as well, one that could be reached much quicker than the one upstairs. "A-and he said that he wanted to change his tie, since we're going to have company."
"I'll pretend I believe you…" Kai said, his tone one of warning, and turned back to the door that led from the main hallway to the room they were currently in.
Presently, Chairman Daitouji reentered the room, followed by a rather shy, light brown-haired teen, known by everyone as Shizuki Yuuya.
"Hey, Yuuya!" Takao was the first to speak, waving a hand in greeting. "Nice to see that you're well. Over that bout of insanity, then?" he asked, grinning as he approached the younger teen.
"Er, yeah…I recovered pretty quickly…" Yuuya said, blushing slightly upon remembering that Team BBA had witnessed his sudden spiral into madness back when he had attempted to use a cyber bit beast – Cyber Dranzer. "Thank you for the concern, Kinomiya-san."
"Anytime, Yuuya. And don't be so formal; any friend of Kai's is a friend of mine. And I'm sure the others feel the same way," he added, turning towards his companions. "Right, guys?"
"Sure!"
"Of course!"
Yuuya grinned. "Its nice to see that Kai has such good friends as his teammates!" he commented, secretly pleased at the warm welcome he had received from people who had been strangers until just moments ago.
"Yeah, well, I'm afraid the same can't be said for him…" Takao muttered. He took Yuuya's hand. "C'mon, have a seat," he said, leading the brown-haired teen to a nearby seat.
"What do you mean, Takao?" Yuuya asked, puzzled. "Kai's a very nice person! He saved me from that big thug who attacked him back when we were schoolmates!"
"I guess he felt responsible for you," Max said, coming forward. "I mean, from what I heard, you were in the same room as he was when that happened."
"But…that wasn't the only time he was nice to me…" Yuuya added, sinking back into his seat. "I know that he took very good care of me when I was only a small kid, until he had to go away because his dad had come back to get him…"
Kai whirled around when he heard Yuuya speak. His eyes narrowed. He remembers…
"All right…" Chairman Daitouji began as he glanced about the room. Everyone expected had already arrived five minutes ago, and they had all gathered in the living room. Takao, Rei, Max, and Kyouju all sat on the rather large, overstuffed couch near the bay window. Yuuya sat with them, since he wasn't familiar with the other people in the room. Hiromi sat on a plush armchair placed at right angles to the couch, and Kane sat opposite from her, on an identical armchair. Judy Mizuhara sat on a straight-backed wooden chair with a blue cushion, and Kinomiya Hitoshi sat on a cushioned, backless chair with wheels on the bottom. Kai was in the far corner of the room, leaning against the wall in his usual manner.
"Since we're all here, I suggest we go straight to the heart of the matter." The balding chairman said, smiling good-naturedly. Everyone – except for Kai – nodded in agreement.
"All right, that sounds good, Chairman," Judy said, standing up. "Why, exactly, were we called here?"
"Glad you asked, Judy." The elder said, grinning. "It all has something to do with young Kai here," he gestured towards the slate-haired teen.
"And what's that, sir?" Kane asked, looking puzzled.
"You see, Kane, Kai's secrets have been kept locked up for far too long, in my opinion, and this fact has, in effect, hindered the formation of Takao and his friends as a team under his leadership. They don't know much about him aside from the fact that he 'grew up' training in Balkov Abbey. However, as they are about to find out, those years of his life were spent quite differently; that he grew up in the Abbey is about to be proved false…and all of you are going to help do just that."
"Huh?" Hiromi looked puzzled. What is Chairman Daitouji talking about? He glanced at Takao out of the corner of her eye. To her surprise, the brunette showed no signs of surprise at what the balding elder said. She raised a slim brown eyebrow, even more confused. And why does Takao seem to know exactly what the chairman means?
"So, who's going to start?" Hitoshi asked. He glanced around at his companions, expecting one of them to go first. The blue-haired young adult still didn't know where this was going, and he wasn't about to go and make a fool of himself by talking about something he didn't know.
"I though we'd start with his social worker, and after that, the one teen among you who knew Kai during his toddler years."
"Who would that be?" Hiromi asked, glancing around the room as well. From what she knew of social workers, they had to be adults, and the only adults she saw in the room with them were Max's mom and the chairman. Could Daitouji-sama have been Kai's social worker?
"Judy, would you kindly do the honors?"
"JUDY?" almost everyone in the room exploded; yes, even the members of Team BBA. They knew that Judy had been Kai's social worker, but they were shocked that Chairman Daitouji knew as well. How could he have?
Judy smiled gracefully and bowed, the customary sign of humble acceptance. "Very well…"
The blonde woman bent down and retrieved several files from the small briefcase she had brought with her. She took a deep breath, cleared her throat, and then began.
"This may come as a bit of a surprise to you," she said, glancing at the young people in front of her and smiling. "But I wasn't always a scientist. In fact, quite some time ago, I applied for a job as a social worker. Applied science didn't interest me very much; when I was younger, I was more interested in kids, having one of my own," here she paused and glanced at Max, who beamed. "At any rate, I got the job at Sento-Daitouji Juvenile Hall."
"Hang on," Kane suddenly interrupted. "You just said, 'Sento-Daitouji Juvenile Hall'. Does that mean, Chairman Daitouji wasn't always the chairman of the BBA?"
The jolly elder answered for Judy, chuckling slightly as he did so. "Of course not, dear boy. You have to 'rise through the ranks' before becoming chairman of any association. I wasn't always involved with Beyblading, but I was always involved with kids. That's why I founded a juvenile center; it's under new management now, though, and isn't under my name anymore."
"Err, all right…" Kane said, still uncertain. He leaned back into his seat, and the chairman nodded at Judy to continue.
"Moving on…my first real job as social worker came around thirteen years ago. My charge – the one I was responsible for – was the teen you all know now as Hiwatari Kai."
"WHAT?" At that last statement, all the teens in the room, except for Team BBA, practically jumped out of their seats.
"You mean…you knew Kai since he was a toddler?" Hiromi asked, gesturing wildly.
Judy only smiled and nodded. "He was only five at that time, but he showed incredible emotional strength for his age. Despite what he had gone through in his young life, he rebounded quite quickly. In fact, he and Max hit it off from Day One."
This fact caused even more of an uproar. It was a well-known fact among the blading teams worldwide that Kai and Max didn't exactly get along.
"What do you mean they 'hit it off'?" Kane exclaimed, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Look at them! They…they're complete opposites."
"On the contrary, Kane," Judy said, reaching once more into her briefcase. "Kai was the exact opposite of what he is now; he was just like any other kid his age. Here, I have pictures to prove it." She handed the blue-haired Australian several glossy photos.
Max gave an involuntary gasp as he caught a glimpse of the photographs. "Hey! Those are the – mph!" He got cut off as a hand clamped firmly over his mouth, courtesy of Takao.
The navy-haired teen leaned over and whispered in his friend's ear. "Max, remember that we're not supposed to know about the pictures?"
Max grinned apologetically. "Oops, my bad…" Aloud, he said, "Hey, Kane, can we see those?" and he held out a hand to receive the photos.
Kane smiled a small smile and passed two of the pictures to the golden-haired teen. "Sure, Max. Here. Oh, by the way," he added, his smile growing mischievous. "You look absolutely adorable in those pictures." He winked, and then turned and sat down. Upon sitting, the Australian glanced at Kai, who still stood in the corner. This time, however, the slate-haired teen wasn't acting uninterested in the goings-on in the room; instead, he was glaring at everyone, more disturbing than not being interested. Kane shuddered.
Takao and the others pretended to look surprised at the pictures, which were just copies of those they had found in Kai's file.
Hiromi, who was holding several photos herself, was practically squealing with delight. "Oh. My. Gosh!" she exclaimed, wringing her hands excitedly. "I don't believe it! He looks SO cute as a kid." She stopped and then half-turned to get the older version in her line of sight. "Not to imply that he's not cute now…" she said to herself and anyone else who might happen to hear.
Judy smiled and approached the auburn-haired girl. "You like him, don't you?" she asked, laying a hand on the younger girl's shoulder. Hiromi started and whirled around.
"Wh-what do you mean?" she asked, blushing slightly.
"Don't worry, there's nothing to be ashamed of," Judy said, patting her shoulder. "Crushes are perfectly all right; in fact, something tells me you've never been able to get him out of your mind ever since the first day you met him, around ten years ago, correct?"
"Ten years?" Hiromi was aghast. "I didn't meet him that long ago! I met him only two, three years before!"
"Are you sure?" Judy gently took the photos from the girl, and sifted through them until she found what she was looking for. She handed them back to Hiromi, telling her, "Take a look at the top photo; I think you'll see what I mean."
Hiromi obliged. And promptly gasped. "Waitaminnit! That's me!"
At the brunette's mention of her inclusion in a picture, the others quickly rushed to surround her.
"Hey, let me see!"
"Ouch! You stepped on my foot!
"Quit pushing!"
Kai shook his head. Most of the occupants in the room were already old enough to be considered young adults, but they were still acting like children. He glanced around; the only ones who didn't participate in the stampede were Hitoshi and the two adults.
Even though Takao and his companions were confident that they had seen all the photos in the file, they realized they hadn't seen one that had Hiromi in it, and so had joined in.
Suddenly, it was Kane who gave a cry of surprise. "Hang on! That's me right there, next to…Kai! And that kid…hey, that's-" he glanced at Yuuya, who was sort of trapped between him and Hiromi; it looked like an uncomfortable position. Kane shifted a bit to give the younger teen some more room to move. "That's… he glanced at Yuuya, who was sort of trapped between him and Hiromi; it looked like an uncomfortable position. Kane shifted a bit to give the younger teen some more room to move. "Yuuya?"
Yuuya nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I know; that's me."
"You saw it, too?"
"I not only saw it, I remember it as well." The light brown-haired teen said.
"What?"
"Children!" Chairman Daitouji cut in, gesturing with his hands and inadvertently swinging his cane around as well. "I suggest we all sit down and let Judy finish her part of the story."
Everyone calmed down after that. Judy got up from her seat once more and picked up her papers. The photographs remained with those who had held them last. Kai went back to leaning against the wall.
"Well, now that you've all seen the photos, do you recognize any of the people in them?" she asked, knowing full well the response she'd receive.
"They're us!" Hiromi said, her hand shooting into the air even though she wasn't in a classroom.
"Precisely. That's why you're all here. Apart from Max, Team BBA knows almost nothing about Kai, a factor that hinders their trust in him. He's the only one they don't know intimately right now, and since he is their captain, he can't allow their mistrust to continue. You all spent some time with Kai before, whether you remember it or not. If you can't recall those times, I'm here to help; if you do, well, then, good." Judy took another deep breath. "Now, as I was saying, Kai here stayed at my house for a rather long time, partly because we were trying to reach his father the whole time and partly because we couldn't place him. We couldn't leave him at the juvenile hall proper; most of the occupants were years older than he, so I volunteered my house. That's how Kai came to know Max." She turned to her son. "Max, do you remember anything?"
"Well, not really..."
"Come on; just try..." Judy urged. Max scrunched up his face in concentration (they have to act like they don't know, remember?). Suddenly, his eyes shot open.
"Wait...I remember...when I showed him my room..."
"Whoa! You remember something that far back?" Hitoshi leaned forward, suddenly interested.
Max nodded. He couldn't very well say that he'd had to recall it only the night before, because to do so would incur 'Kai's Wrath', as the team privately called it. He shrugged. "Mom says I have incredible memory. I can remember stuff that happened when I was four and older, but only bits and pieces…"
"Oh."
"Go on, Max," Hiromi urged, anxious to hear more. "What happened when you showed Kai your room?"
"Well, I don't remember much except that there was this one toy he seemed to like better than the rest. I said I'd give it to him as a 'welcome gift' or something like that…Anyway, I can't remember whether he accepted it or not."
"I should think not." Kai said, suddenly joining in the discussion. "I don't remember a stupid stuffed bird…"
Max grinned in triumph. "A-ha!" he exclaimed, his eyes dancing. "You remember, don't you?" he pointed a finger at his team captain.
"Of course I-" Kai started, and then trailed off when he realized his mistake. He hid his face in one hand. "Baka…" he muttered.
Judy smiled. At least that shows he's getting some of his memory back…she thought happily. Her gaze wandered off as she recalled what Chairman Daitouji had told her before she went off to America to begin her work as a Beyblade researcher. To Max, she said, "Anything else?"
"Well, also the time you asked me to help you cook fried chicken-"
"Speaking of which," Takao cut in, waving his hand in the air. "Mr. Daitouji, when's dinnertime? It's getting pretty late." The brunette was right; outside, the sky was already turning a deep shade of purple, a sign that nighttime was not too far off.
The elder chuckled. "Not to worry, Takao. I've asked several caterers to come here at around half past six."
"Oh, okay." Takao sat down in relief, and then glanced at his friend. "Sorry 'bout that, Max. What were you saying?"
Max grinned to show he understood, and then continued his narrative. "Anyway, Mom asked me to help her with dinner – fried chicken. She called Kai, too. Everything was fine until she turned on the stove. Well, Kai practically freaked out-"
"No, I didn't." For the second time that day, Kai tried to correct his blonde teammate. "I don't 'freak out', Max. You should know that."
"Wait." Kane leaned forward in his seat. "Did you just say that Kai freaked out because of the stove?"
Max nodded. "Uh-huh. He said that he was…" Max trailed off. "What was that word again?"
"Pyrophobic?" Judy asked, helpfully supplying the word her son was looking for.
Max smiled appreciatively at his mother. "Yeah, that's the word. Thanks, Mom."
"Kai was afraid of fire?" It was Yuuya's turn to be surprised. After all, he claimed to be the slate-haired teen's 'number one fan'. "But…that's his bit beast's element! How can he afraid of fire?"
Judy shook her head. "I'm afraid that's something Max and I can't divulge, Yuuya. That information is classified, and I can't do anything unless I am given permission by the subject in question."
"Oh. I understand…"
"Max, can you remember anything else?" the balding chairman asked the young teen; Max shook his head again.
"I'm sorry; I really can't remember anything else…"
"If that's the case, I suppose we should move on to the person who knew him next."
"That would be me, right?" Yuuya asked as he stood up.
"Wha-?" Hitoshi was surprised. This was getting weirder by the minute. How did Yuuya know that it was his turn?
"Well, I know that I had this…surrogate brother when I was younger; I was only around three when Kai joined us." Yuuya began, looking pointedly at the older teen, who refused to make eye contact. "Mom told me that he was staying with us only temporarily, until 'the center' could contact his dad."
"His dad?" Hiromi suddenly interrupted. "So you mean to say that Kai's parents are still alive!"
"His mother isn't alive anymore," Chairman Daitouji replied, reaching into a pocket for his handkerchief. "As for his father…we have yet to see."
"Err…all right…that helps…I guess." Hiromi leaned back against the cushions and crossed her arms over her chest. "Sorry…Yuuya, is it?" she asked, glancing at the brown-haired teen for confirmation.
"Hai." Yuuya nodded his head, took a deep breath, and continued. "Well, I guess 'the center' couldn't contact Kai's dad that time; he stayed with us until he was in the third grade…"
"And do you remember anything from that time, Yuuya?" Daitouji prompted, gazing at the teen expectantly.
"Um…I think so…"
"Good. What is it?"
Yuuya was silent for a few moments. Suddenly, he glanced towards Hitoshi. "It was you! You were the one!"
The older Kinomiya brother looked puzzled. "Wh-what are you talking about?" He asked, pointing to himself. "What do you mean I was 'the one'?"
"You were the one who helped Kai when he was in trouble in school!" Yuuya said, his eyes dancing with excitement.
"'Trouble'?" Kane asked. "What sort of…trouble?"
"There was this kid…Dunga-"
"Dunga?" Hiromi shot up out of her seat. She glanced at Takao. "Wasn't that the name of the guy who kept trying to battle Kai before?"
Takao nodded vigorously, for once managing to look as surprised as his companions. For the past five minutes, he had been trying – unsuccessfully- to react as naturally as possible; he didn't want to give away the fact that he already knew what the 'guests' were going to say.
"Yeah…don't tell me there are two Dungas!" Max was a bit more verbal in his 'reactions'; it was in his nature to make comments once in a while, so it was definitely his style.
"Anyway…Hitoshi-san," Yuuya continued, despite the interruption. "You helped Kai when he got into a fight, after Kai stopped Dunga from bullying one of his classmates."
"Sou da ne…" Hitoshi looked thoughtful. Was this true?
Kyouju, Kai noticed, was busy typing away at his laptop, looking for all the world as though he were transcribing the statements he and his companions were hearing; Rei, who couldn't think of what to do so as not to look bored, was busy 'reading' over his mousy-haired companion's shoulder.
Kai, however, felt that his teammates were being a bit too shocked or surprised. His eyes narrowed as he eyed each one of them. Breathing slowly and shallowly so as not to draw attention, he approached the couch silently until he was directly in back of Kyouju. Then he saw it: the bespectacled teen wasn't transcribing data, as he first thought; he was hacking into a foreign database.
The slate-haired teen did a double take. What was that I just saw? He thought, quickly scanning the computer screen. Hang on…that language…it's Russian! What Kyouju would want with a Russian database, I've no…wait! Kai read the words on the screen, translating quickly from what he knew – and it was a lot – of the Russian language. That's…the Biovolt database from a few years back! Kai realized, his eyes widening slightly. The one wherein they keep all the information on their experiments and other operations! Why would he…
Kai's eyes narrowed again. Unless…
The crimson-eyed blader took a deep breath, and then spoke. "Chairman Daitouji, if I may speak?"
"Ah, Kai…" the jolly elder acknowledged the young captain. "Of course you may speak. Have you anything to add to young Yuuya's story?"
Kai shook his head, smirking slightly. He had caught them! They had read the file the night before! He knew it now. "Unfortunately, no. But I do know that you've invited these people-" here he gestured towards the visitors – "all for naught. My teammates already know everything there is to know about me before I met them."
"Really?" Daitouji looked puzzled, but he didn't glance at Kai; he was glancing at the seated members of Team BBA, all of whom looked rather fidgety. "And how do you know this?"
Kai reached down and took the laptop from Kyouju, who let out a small 'eep' and scooted over to the farthest side of the couch. Kai turned the laptop around so that everyone could see what was on-screen, and started to explain. "I spotted Kyouju attempting to hack into a database; this Biovolt database, to be exact. The only reason I can think of that they would be looking for information in a Russian database is that they somehow managed to pilfer the file – which I requested – from my room, and read it." In one fluid movement, he snapped the laptop shut and handed it back to the bespectacled researcher. "I actually spotted them with it in the corridor last night, but I was stupid enough to believe their alibi."
"Busted…" Takao grimaced; he slumped back in his seat, hand over his face.
"Great…" Rei groaned. "Now we're going to get it…"
"Oh, boy…" Kyouju muttered, taking off his spectacles and cleaning them with a handkerchief. Only Max kept silent.
"You know what happened to Kai when he was younger?" Hiromi asked, playing with several loose strands of hair."
Takao nodded slowly. "Yeah…we do…unfortunately." The stormy-eyed teen was afraid to look up for fear that he would lock gazes with his no-doubt fuming captain.
"Then can you please explain why I was in a photo with him?" the auburn-haired teen. "I certainly don't remember meeting him ten years before!"
"Sorry to tell you this, Hiromi…" Max said, turning towards the ruby-eyed girl. "But you did meet him when you were younger."
"No way!" Hiromi's eyes were wide.
Rei nodded, smiling. "Yup, you met him when he was around…third grade."
"He even gave you a 'welcome to school' gift, and you gave him an origami bird." Takao added, remembering what they had read in the file.
"But I-" Hiromi began, but Kyouju cut her off.
"We know. You don't remember," the bespectacled teen said. Pushing his glasses up, he opened up his laptop again and accessed a file he had no doubt downloaded from the database he had accessed earlier. "That's because you're memory's been modified."
"Huh?" Everyone, including Kai, was surprised.
"Modified?" Hiromi asked, cocking her head to one side.
Kyouju nodded. "See, we, erm…read this portion of the file that said that Kai had gone to Russia for a family vacation for one week. The juvenile center knew only that Kai was with his grandfather; there was no word on whether his father was with them or not. So for that one week, the center was unable to 'keep tabs' on him. Right?" he turned to the chairman for confirmation.
The kindly old man nodded. "So you figured it out," He said, smiling; it wasn't a question, but a statement of fact.
Kyouju grinned. "Err…yeah. And then, Kai was suddenly back in Tokyo, less than a week after he had left! However, when one of the center's employees checked up on him, it was as though he had forgotten everything that happened over the past few years – namely, the friends he had made and the time he had spent in Tokyo. Kai, at that point, believed that he had lived in Moscow for a couple of years, and had been trained at Balkov Abbey."
"So…he's never had any official training in Beyblading before, until he became your team captain?" Hitoshi asked.
"How'd you figure that out, Chief?" Max asked, glancing at his friend. The blonde teen certainly didn't recall reading that in the file.
"Well, it's all here in the file I downloaded from Biovolt," Kyouju replied. "Through it, I found out that Kai's memory had been modified, and the 'missing' parts replaced with programmed memories that Souchirou had chosen to be 'installed' into his grandson's brain. Among these were those of his 'training' in the abbey, and the scene wherein he destroyed half of the building when he launched Black Dranzer."
"So…he didn't actually destroy Balkov Abbey?" Again, it was Hitoshi who spoke.
Kyouju nodded again. "Of course, this was all done while he was sleeping. And then, they placed him in a special room that was programmed to 'come to life' when he woke up. When he did, his surroundings changed somehow, and what he saw was a half-destroyed abbey, and beside him was Black Dranzer. At that point, the programmed memories kicked in, and Kai thought that what he saw was real. Then, being the child he was back then, his first instinct was to run, which he did. He returned here, to Tokyo, and I think we all know the story from there."
"So, some of his basic training in blading…" Hitoshi mused, "was actually programmed into him somehow, and the rest Kai worked out on his own…"
"Exactly!" the researcher said, beaming.
"Remarkable!" Chairman Daitouji exclaimed, mopping his brow with his handkerchief. "We at 'the center' had been trying to find out – unsuccessfully, I might add – why such a drastic change had occurred in Kai's personality for years, while you discovered the reason in so short a time."
"Um, Chairman?" Hitoshi cut in respectfully. "Can we get back to the subject at hand? Even if this is all true, I still don't see why Kane, Hiromi, and I remember ever knowing Kai until we met him pretty recently."
"Like I said, Hitoshi, your memories were modified, too." Kyouju said, looking up at the older teen.
"But-"
"Let me explain," Kyouju began, bringing up a second part of the downloaded file. "Souchirou had Balkov keep track of Kai as he made his way back to Japan. While Kai was still on the Trans-Siberian Express, Balkov had you, Yuuya, Kane, and Hiromi kidnapped while you were asleep. The memory modification takes only a few minutes, and so you guys were returned to your homes that same night, without anyone noticing."
"What about Max?" Hiromi asked, gesturing towards the blonde blader. "And Dunga? Why weren't their memories modified, too?"
"I guess Souchirou didn't know that Max had been Kai's friend, and Dunga…" Kyouju looked thoughtful. "Perhaps they couldn't track him down."
"But how do we know that the 'Dunga' Yuuya referred to was the same Dunga you guys encountered before we met?" Kane asked.
"Yuuya, can you remember how Kai described him?"
"Um…he said that he was big for his age, with…dirty blonde hair and a…real ugly smile, or something like that…"
"Yup. That's him all right…" Takao said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Wait…" Rei sat up straight as he remembered something. "If Dunga's memory wasn't modified…then how come he doesn't remember Kai from school."
"I don't think he was paying attention to the kids he fought…" Max mused. "I mean, he doesn't seem the type to have much intelligence…"
"You have a point there…" Kyouju said. "That part, too, has been puzzling me, but I guess we can leave it at that…"
"I still don't get it, though…" Hiromi said, glancing back at Team BBA. "If we all underwent memory modification, how come Yuuya still remembers Kai?"
"I'm not sure, but I think it has something to do with his bout of insanity back when we met Team Psykick…" Kyouju said, adjusting his glasses again. "Prior to his mental break down, Yuuya only knew of Kai as a close acquaintance. Apparently, what happened to his brain somehow overrode the modification, and he began to recall those 'early days' with Kai, where the latter was more of an elder brother…of course, that's just my theory."
"Theory or not, it makes sense…"
"Wait. Max didn't undergo…that, but how come he didn't remember Kai when they met again at the regional finals?" Rei asked.
Max spoke up. "Now that, I can explain. The Kai I knew was very different from the Kai I battled in the semi-finals; I didn't associate them as one person, even though they looked very similar…"
"Well, it was a…change in personality that led you to believe it was a different Kai?" Kyouju asked. Max nodded. "I see."
Suddenly, the doorbell chimed; everyone froze upon hearing the sound. Chairman Daitouji, however, got up. "I believe those are the caterers I hired," he explained, grinning. "If you'll excuse me…" the elderly chairman made his way to front hall, leaving the teens quite by themselves.
"So…what now?" Kane said, glancing around at his companions. "I mean…since Takao and the others already know about Kai, I see no reason why we should stay…"
"Kane, perhaps you should wait," Hitoshi said, ever the elder brother and voice of reason. "Maybe there's another reason why the chairman invited us here."
"If you say so…" the dark blue-haired Australian looked sullen, but he settled in his seat.
"But don't you think it was a bit too much, though?" Hiromi asked, looking thoughtful as she processed everything she had learned in the past hour or so they had been in the room; she was still trying to come to terms that the crush she was having right now was actually an extension of a childhood crush ten years ago. "I mean, couldn't they have just modified Kai's memory and have been done with it, instead of kidnapping and modifying the memories of all his childhood friends as well?"
"Glad you noticed, Hiromi…" Kyouju said, beaming. "Apparently, Souchirou knew that if you hadn't undergone memory modification, one of you would have somehow jeopardized their plan, which was initially to get Kai to work for his grandfather to collect the four bit beasts. To him, your relationships with him were…well, distractions or obstacles, so he went right ahead and got rid of them."
"But I'm still curious," Hiromi went on, thanking Kyouju with a slight nod of her head. She turned her attention to Kai, who was still standing quietly by the couch. "Kai, how about you tell us what happened before your trip to Russia. Since you obviously remember your younger days now, maybe you could open up a little bit more?" She got up and made her way over to the slate-haired teen. "Chairman Daitouji is right; it isn't fair for you to expect your teammates to trust you if they know almost nothing about you." She laid a hand on the slightly older teen's shoulder. "It's not just your teammates who want to know you, Kai…" she added, looking at the floor and blushing slightly. "I, too, want to know what happened to you to make you what you are now. I mean, you didn't destroy the abbey; it never happened. Something else caused you to be like this, and we want to know."
Kai was taken aback. Hiromi had never acted this way towards him before. He frowned; for some strange reason, he felt compelled to tell her what had happened between his two elders – Souchirou and Yuuhi. But could he?
He sighed and closed his eyes. His teammates had already read of his 'childhood tragedy' – his mother, the harsh treatment, the release, etc. After a few more moments, he opened his eyes again. "I'm sorry, Hiromi, but…no, I can't tell you about that part of my life."
"What! Why?" Hiromi prodded, grasping his hand. "I mean, you didn't stop the others when they shared what they knew of you! Why are you holding back?"
"It's just…" Kai closed his eyes again and sighed heavily. "I'd like to forget what happened back then…it's…too painful to recall…"
"Oh." Hiromi dropped her gaze. She wasn't about to push Kai just to satisfy her curiosity.
Meanwhile, Max and the others exchanged glances. They had never heard Kai speak like that to anyone before. What had happened?
Takao, however, could tell what Kai was referring to: the day his father had been disowned. He glanced at his captain and noticed that he was looking rather strained. No doubt he was rebelling against himself. After all, he had an image to protect, and breaking down in front of others would definitely not help.
Takao looked down and sighed. Only time would tell whether or not Kai was ready to finally open up to them, willingly.
Judy took in the scene and smiled. Kai is definitely changing…she thought happily. He's finally acknowledging his emotions; specifically those regarding his father…Suddenly, she frowned. Now if only everything goes according to plan…then we'll see if Kai is ready to move on and accept the past…
Chairman Daitouji peeked in from the back door. "Everyone, the caterers are here. They've set up the buffet outside, in the garden."
"Woo-hoo!" Takao jumped up, pumping his fist in the air. "Food! Finally!" The eager teen rushed towards the door, uttering a quick 'thank you' to the chairman as he zoomed past.
"Well, if you'd kindly follow me…" Daitouji added, gesturing towards the door. There was no need for him to say any more; in a few moments, everyone was out in the garden.
"Excuse me, Kyouju, I'd like to ask you something," Judy said. The bespectacled teen looked up from his plate, somewhat shocked.
Kyouju had elected not to sit with his 'usual crowd' and instead, he shared a table with Hitoshi, Yuuya, Judy, and the chairman. He found the atmosphere at this particular table quite relaxed that night, compared to if he had sat with Team BBA; he was sure that table would be rather…tense, after what happened, what with their 'confession' and all that. He had been wondering what Kai would do to his teammates when Judy interrupted his thoughts. He gave Max's mom an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Judy; I didn't quite hear you."
The blonde woman smiled kindly. "No, that's quite all right," she said, gesturing as though waving the incident away. "Anyway, you showed remarkable propensity in dealing with the psychological part of Kai's story – the memory modification and all that."
Kyouju could feel his cheeks heating up. "Th-thanks…" he murmured. Judy smiled and continued.
"So…you no doubt know by now that I was still involved in Kai's case even though I became a Beyblade researcher?" Kyouju nodded. "Well, perhaps you could tell me your insights as to why Kai acted the way he did when Yuuya suffered from temporary insanity after handling Cyber Dranzer? Because it seems to me he acted as an elder brother would have, even though there is no evidence at that time that Kai began to remember the time he spent with Yuuya and the relationship they had."
Hearing his name mentioned, Yuuya glanced over at the mousy-haired researcher, curious.
Kyouju gulped down some of his soda pop and nodded vigorously. "I'd be happy to!"
By this time, all ears at their table had turned over to Kyouju, making him feel a little uncomfortable because of all the attention; however, he steeled himself by taking a deep breath and began.
"Please note that this is only a theory of mine," he said, pushing his plate away so he could lean on the tabletop, "but I have reason to believe that Kai behaved that way because he in some way felt responsible for Yuuya's insanity, even though we know that that wasn't the case. Also, even though memories may be suppressed, instinct and habits – especially those acquired while one is young – once triggered, are almost impossible to restrain. Thus, even though he had no recollection of his days with Yuuya, upon seeing him 'brought down', so to speak, Kai reacted on instinct."
"Wow…" Yuuya whispered, his mouth hanging open. "Never thought about it that way…"
"Uh, yeah…Kyouju, what was Yuuya talking about back in there?" Hitoshi asked, his face a mask of confusion. "And what does this guy…Dunga have to do with anything?"
"Oh, that…" Kyouju swallowed a mouthful of bean curd and began to explain. "You see, you and Kai were schoolmates long ago…"
"Uh-oh," Takao said, leaning over to whisper in Max's ear. "Look who's coming…"
The blonde teen quickly glanced over his shoulder; Kai, who had just come from the buffet table, was coming their way. He whirled back around, and groaned. "Now we're gonna get it…"
"Get what?" Hiromi looked up from her plate, and spotted Kai. She looked back down. "Oh. That…" she glanced across the table at Takao and smiled mischievously. "Well, better you than me…"
"Shut up…"
In what seemed a split second, Kai was already at their table, and he had just set his plate down. Glancing around, he spied an empty chair nearby; he pulled it towards him and sat down.
For a few moments, no one moved or spoke; the atmosphere was very tense, indeed.
Takao glanced at his captain; Kai glanced back at him, but said nothing.
Takao blinked in surprise. He thought that he had prepared himself to deal with any of the slate-haired teen's reaction, but he certainly hadn't counted on not getting a reaction. Boy, this was difficult…
Takao glanced at his lap, fiddling with his fingers. "Uh, Kai…about your juvenile center file…" he began.
"We're really sorry that we took and read it without your permission," Max finished. Rei and Kyouju, having nothing to else to say, nodded in agreement.
Kai leaned back in his chair, glancing at each one of them in turn. "Whatever…" he said; his voice was gruff, but his face was nonchalant, which led Max and the others to believe that he wasn't feeling any hostility towards them for what they had done.
The tension at their table having been broken, Takao began to devour the food on his plate.
Across from him, Kai cringed inwardly at his teammate's eating habits, but chose to ignore it instead of commenting on it. He, too, picked up his fork and ate; however, his mind was elsewhere. He hadn't admitted it, but it was true; he was beginning to remember his childhood. He didn't know when he had started to remember, but he knew that it had begun shortly after his team had battled in the Justice Five Tournament. He put down the eating utensils for a while and glanced around at the other guests. It was good, he supposed, to see old friends again, but…
He sighed. There was something missing, and it seemed he'd never find it.
Suddenly, from up the driveway came a rumbling sound, as though of a car approaching. Daitouji got up.
"Oh, my…now who could that be?" he wondered out loud. He turned the other guests. "Just stay here, everyone, and I'll attend to whoever it is that has just arrived." With that, the rather rotund elder started off down the garden path.
"Well, there you are!" Chairman Daitouji called out as he neared the late visitor. "I was beginning to think you'd never come!"
A rather tall, dark-haired man stepped from the nondescript light blue car and closed the door. He chuckled.
"Really, sir, you underestimate me. I wouldn't miss this gathering for the world!"
Daitouji smiled. "Glad to hear it. Now, if you would follow me…"
A/N: Hehe...another cliffie!
Mei: You seem to be doing that a lot, lately...
Aki: Doesn't everyone? rolls eyes
Me: Don't mind them...anyway, let me know what you think. However, I'm really sorry to inform everyone that this is the next-to-last chapter in this fic...I might write a sequel, but I'd have to come up with a story...
God bless!