A/N: Hey there! I'm glad you guys think I'm doing a good job. Personally I believe that this is the best portrayal of Kai's character that I've ever done, and to all of you worrying out there, don't worry. Tala is still the ever-loyal friend. Oh, and he's staying at the hotel too, but he'll explain that later...
Disclaimer: I don't own BeyBlade.
Rei leaned back in his chair, a small smile teasing his lips. Shaking out his bangs he allowed himself a laugh before looking back up at the crimson-eyed enigma sitting across from him.
"So now do you understand?" he finished, still smiling. "Max and I just help each other out. He's got eyes for someone else." Kai smirked, sipping at a beer.
"Okay, but I do have one more question." The neko raised a hand.
"I think I know what's coming so let me save you the suspense. No, I am not an alien from another planet, nor do I possess superhuman powers." Two perfect eyebrows rose over ruby orbs.
"What did you think I was going to ask?"
"About me specifically, right?" Kai shrugged.
"Sort of." Rei tipped his head to the side, reaching for his own drink.
"Then elaborate." For a moment the stoic Russian simply observed the tiger while he took a long drink. Finally he answered.
"Your eyes," he started curiously. "When you were angry, they changed." The Chinese teen blinked before realization dawned on his face.
"That's what I thought you were going to ask," he half-smiled. "Most people do."
"It's not all that important," came the indifferent reply. "Just curious."
"No, it's alright. It's just that...I don't think you'd believe me if I told you. Max was the only other one who ever excepted it."
"Try me."
He hesitated, watching the slightly older teen on the other side of the table. He'd lost a lot of really great friends in school because he tried to explain himself to them. None of them would hear it, and it drove them away. Rei really didn't want to lose his chance with Kai, but if they were ever going to have a relationship, then he'd have to know sometime.
"I told you, originally I'm from China. A small village, far from the coast." Kai nodded, picking up his drink to bring it slowly back to his lips.
The tiger took a deep breath. If the guy thought he was crazy then it wouldn't have worked out anyway...
"Are you familiar with Japanese?" The Russian paused, as if thinking.
"Enough of it, yeah."
"Well, umm...my people originally had come from Japan. At least, that's what I'm told, and the people there called us---neko-jin."
Stopping, he watched Kai as he, no doubt, put two and two together. After a few seconds a flame sparked within the Russians eyes and he smirked to himself before taking another drink. Rei glared.
"You think I'm nuts," he stated flatly. The older teen looked up, shaking his head.
"No, I've seen the proof," he gestured towards the neko's eyes. "But I never did expect things like that could be real."
"At least you're honest," he grinned back. Suddenly they both looked up, hearing the door close behind them.
"Kai? Damn it all Hiwatari tell me you're home!" a slightly frustrated voice called from the entryway. Rei turned to the Russian, one eyebrow quirked in question.
"Friend of yours?" Downing the last of his drink, the older teen smirked.
"You could say that..."
"KAI!"
"Tala shut up and get your ass in here!" he yelled, frowning at the distress in the normally composed teen's voice.
Heavy footsteps thudded their way down the hall as Tala came running into the kitchen. The neko watched interestedly as a pale teen, probably, if not just shy of twenty came to a halt by the table. He had piercing, electric blue eyes that seemed to hold too many memories, and wild, flaming red hair. Rei would be lying to himself if he didn't admit that the guy was beautiful, and his faded, low-rise jeans and tight, dark T-shirt weren't helping either.
"Tala," Kai snapped suddenly before the other could open his mouth. "This is Rei Kon." Immediately the other froze, slowly turning to look down on the tiger.
"Oh," was all he could manage. The Chinese teen smiled warmly, shaking the other's hand.
"Hello."
"Hi..." He let go of Rei's hand as if in a daze, but abruptly snapped out of it when Kai spoke up.
"/What's wrong?/" The neko blinked. Russian? Inwardly he kicked himself. Duh. The guy WAS Russian.
"/Now may not be the best time.../" he trailed off, looking apologetically from Kai to Rei.
"/Spare me./" Tala sighed heavily.
"/It's Voltaire. I just got a call from Bryan...he says that Boris is planning to bail him out./"
Kai glared, turning away to stare at the wall, the glass bottle in his fist cracking slightly under the pressure. He was about to open his mouth to reply, but Rei cut him off.
"/Maybe I'd better go,/" he suggested, causing the others in the room to look up at him as he stood, wide-eyed. The slate haired teen gaped at the neko.
"You...know Russian?"
"For the most part," he shrugged. "I've been taking it back at the University." Tala actually laughed at the absurdity of the situation.
"Wow," he chuckled quietly to himself. "I feel like an idiot." Kai muttered something inaudible under his breath as the tiger pulled on his jacket. He was about to leave when the redhead tugged gently on his sleeve.
"You might as well stay now," he winked. "And we could probably do with the company." Biting his lip, Rei turned to Kai for consent. The Russian rubbed his eyes wearily but nodded, sending the neko back his chair.
"Boris isn't exactly an upstanding citizen, he shouldn't be able to make the bail with his record" Kai mused while the Chinese teen slipped out of his coat once more. Sitting finally, the other Russian agreed, but his sharp eyes were pained.
"Yes but he's never been convicted before. At least, they've never been able to prove anything before this..." he trailed off.
"Well," Rei jumped in quietly. "Can you get proof?" Kai glanced at Tala, signaling his friend to handle that one. The redhead sighed.
"Actually," he replied. "Yes." The other Russian snorted.
"Gimme a break, you could hack the pentagon if it damn well pleased you."
"That's great," his friend cried. "Get me arrested why don't you."
"It's alright," the tiger assured him. For a moment the Russian eyed him suspiciously, but finally he nodded.
"As long as you realize that I can find you now." The neko laughed nervously, but Tala just grinned, reassuring the newcomer. With a sigh of relief, Rei offered Kai his attention when he began to speak again.
"But, he'll know it was us..." he trailed off, his gaze fixed solely on Tala. Running a hand through flaming hair the Russian leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Then what do you suggest?"
"Tala, I can't let you do this for me," he argued sharply.
"I could do it." The others turned to the neko in surprise. His golden orbs were determined, even when Kai shook his head.
"Think about it!" he protested. "It would be all too easy, for me!" The red-eyed teen would have retorted but his friend cut him off.
"Okay, am I missing something here? 'Cause I'm feeling pretty lost."
"Rei's a reporter," he answered flatly. "But he isn't going to run this story."
"Why not!?" Tala shouted indignantly.
"Because," the Russian teen hissed back. "He'll have to sign his name. It's too risky."
"Kai," the neko said, turning his attention away from the redhead. "I want to help."
Tala held his breath, watching the two expectantly. He could see the fire dimming with those crimson orbs, and with a smirk he turned to Rei. Hmm. Interesting.
"You don't even know what this is about," the slate haired teen whispered. "And I told you, I don't talk to the press about it for a reason."
"And yet it seems to me," the other Russian butted in. "That sooner or later, he would have found out, am I right?"
"I'm not asking for a manuscript on your life story," the tiger finished. "And that's fine; I know why Voltaire is in prison. That's all I NEED to know to personally believe the guy should be shot."
Both of the others allowed a smile to tease their lips as they glanced at each other, before the tiger finished.
"But seeing as homicide is generally viewed as a crime, at least let me help you throw away the key."
"So where is your building again?" Tala asked, slowing to a stop at a red light. Rei pointed up the road.
"Not far, two more streets up." Nodding, the other leaned back, waiting for the light to turn green.
"Hey Tala?"
"Hmm?"
"You seem like a really good friend of his..." he trailed off, unsure of how to continue. The redhead glanced at him before he put his foot back on the gas pedal.
"I would hope so," he muttered, more to himself than the Chinese teen sitting next to him. "God knows we've been through Hell and back together."
"Well, has he always, you know, been the way he is now?"
"No," he answered softly, pausing as he turned down the second street like Rei had instructed. "But that isn't my story to tell."
"It's that one," the neko nodded suddenly towards the tall building to their right. Parking the car, Tala took out his keys before stopping the other teen from getting out.
"You know, he's actually pretty taken with you," he offered with a smile. "Just give him some more time," his blue eyes glittered wisely, against gold, but a mischievous glint sparked in their depths. "I don't think you'll be disappointed." Rei blushed, causing the Russian to laugh out loud.
"Anyway," the flustered neko glared half-heartedly. "There's a room we can work in on the seventh floor. If we can throw something together by tonight, I think I can get it on the front page the day after tomorrow." The older teen nodded, opening his door though he was still chuckling quietly to himself.
"Sounds like a plan."
Max shook his head as he gathered the plates off the coffee table, standing to put them in the sink.
"Honestly Ty, how do you eat so much? Where the hell do you put it?" The navy-haired teen smiled sheepishly, draping himself over the back of the couch.
"Sorry." The blonde shrugged.
"Not a problem, I'm just glad I ordered a large."
On his way back to the couch Max paused, looking back over his shoulder as the phone rang. Throwing an apologetic look at the other, he stepped back into the kitchen to pick the phone up.
"Yello," he drawled. "Max here, Rei's out."
"Thank you captain obvious." The American teen grinned, propping himself up against the counter.
"Any time...what's up?"
"I went in today...uh," he paused. "And I think I've got some good material for a story so I'll be working late."
"That's fine," he answered, letting his friend finish.
"Yeah so, don't wait up or anything."
"Don't worry about it."
"Okay that's it, what are you hiding?" Inwardly the blonde cursed.
"Just ordered a pizza is all..." he trailed off, hoping he wouldn't have to explain with Tyson in the other room.
"Oh..." the neko over emphasized. "I'll let you go then, but tomorrow---" Max cut him off.
"Tomorrow you've got to work," he practically stuck his tongue out.
"Yeah whatever. Just don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"Like what!?" the American teen cried in a huff. "I just met the guy!"
"Uh-huh. See you 'round."
The blonde just glared at the phone as he turned it off, seething because he realized that he'd just yelled that out while Tyson was in the other room.
Brilliant. Real smooth, he chided himself as he put the phone back on its cradle.
Walking back to the couch he hopped onto the cushion next to the other teen who was patting his hair down, growling heatedly to himself. Raising his eyebrows, Max placed a pale hand over a tanned one, effectively stopping the furious grooming.
"What are you doing?" he asked the navy-haired boy with laughing eyes. Tyson blushed, gently pulling his hand out from beneath the blondes.
"My hair's always a mess," he mumbled, picking up a notepad off the end table. "SO," he coughed abruptly. "Who was that?"
"That was Rei, he'll be late tonight." Tyson nodded, the American teen already having explained the living arrangements to him. He seemed to be engrossed in his notes, but finally looked up with a bright smile.
"I have an idea!"
"Yeah?" Max furrowed his brows, peeking over at the other teen's notes who was nodding enthusiastically. "Well?" he grinned, looking up. "Are you going to tell me?"
"Oh right," he laughed scratching the back of his head. "What I think is, seeing as we're having a fair amount of trouble coming up with our own characters, we should start off with deriving them from the people we know!"
"Like how?" he asked, watching with a faint blush as Tyson sketched a cartoon version of him on his pad.
"Like," the other paused dramatically as he finished his drawing. "This! Max Tate, the thirteen year old champion blader from America!" Tearing out the paper, he handed it to the teen beside him, grinning triumphantly. Looking it over, he nodded, with a laugh.
Standing on the white surface was a smaller Max, with large eyes and wild hair. One of his hands was resting on his hip, the other showing off a victory sign to the audience. Above him was a hastily written quote that made the American teen laugh again.
"Me? Overconfident? No way! It's just that no one can beat me, that's all!"
A/N: I had so much fun writing that! And for all of you who don't know, that was actually one of Max's quotes from BeyBlade season one. I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I am, and thanks again for all of your wonderful reviews!
Disclaimer: I don't own BeyBlade.
Rei leaned back in his chair, a small smile teasing his lips. Shaking out his bangs he allowed himself a laugh before looking back up at the crimson-eyed enigma sitting across from him.
"So now do you understand?" he finished, still smiling. "Max and I just help each other out. He's got eyes for someone else." Kai smirked, sipping at a beer.
"Okay, but I do have one more question." The neko raised a hand.
"I think I know what's coming so let me save you the suspense. No, I am not an alien from another planet, nor do I possess superhuman powers." Two perfect eyebrows rose over ruby orbs.
"What did you think I was going to ask?"
"About me specifically, right?" Kai shrugged.
"Sort of." Rei tipped his head to the side, reaching for his own drink.
"Then elaborate." For a moment the stoic Russian simply observed the tiger while he took a long drink. Finally he answered.
"Your eyes," he started curiously. "When you were angry, they changed." The Chinese teen blinked before realization dawned on his face.
"That's what I thought you were going to ask," he half-smiled. "Most people do."
"It's not all that important," came the indifferent reply. "Just curious."
"No, it's alright. It's just that...I don't think you'd believe me if I told you. Max was the only other one who ever excepted it."
"Try me."
He hesitated, watching the slightly older teen on the other side of the table. He'd lost a lot of really great friends in school because he tried to explain himself to them. None of them would hear it, and it drove them away. Rei really didn't want to lose his chance with Kai, but if they were ever going to have a relationship, then he'd have to know sometime.
"I told you, originally I'm from China. A small village, far from the coast." Kai nodded, picking up his drink to bring it slowly back to his lips.
The tiger took a deep breath. If the guy thought he was crazy then it wouldn't have worked out anyway...
"Are you familiar with Japanese?" The Russian paused, as if thinking.
"Enough of it, yeah."
"Well, umm...my people originally had come from Japan. At least, that's what I'm told, and the people there called us---neko-jin."
Stopping, he watched Kai as he, no doubt, put two and two together. After a few seconds a flame sparked within the Russians eyes and he smirked to himself before taking another drink. Rei glared.
"You think I'm nuts," he stated flatly. The older teen looked up, shaking his head.
"No, I've seen the proof," he gestured towards the neko's eyes. "But I never did expect things like that could be real."
"At least you're honest," he grinned back. Suddenly they both looked up, hearing the door close behind them.
"Kai? Damn it all Hiwatari tell me you're home!" a slightly frustrated voice called from the entryway. Rei turned to the Russian, one eyebrow quirked in question.
"Friend of yours?" Downing the last of his drink, the older teen smirked.
"You could say that..."
"KAI!"
"Tala shut up and get your ass in here!" he yelled, frowning at the distress in the normally composed teen's voice.
Heavy footsteps thudded their way down the hall as Tala came running into the kitchen. The neko watched interestedly as a pale teen, probably, if not just shy of twenty came to a halt by the table. He had piercing, electric blue eyes that seemed to hold too many memories, and wild, flaming red hair. Rei would be lying to himself if he didn't admit that the guy was beautiful, and his faded, low-rise jeans and tight, dark T-shirt weren't helping either.
"Tala," Kai snapped suddenly before the other could open his mouth. "This is Rei Kon." Immediately the other froze, slowly turning to look down on the tiger.
"Oh," was all he could manage. The Chinese teen smiled warmly, shaking the other's hand.
"Hello."
"Hi..." He let go of Rei's hand as if in a daze, but abruptly snapped out of it when Kai spoke up.
"/What's wrong?/" The neko blinked. Russian? Inwardly he kicked himself. Duh. The guy WAS Russian.
"/Now may not be the best time.../" he trailed off, looking apologetically from Kai to Rei.
"/Spare me./" Tala sighed heavily.
"/It's Voltaire. I just got a call from Bryan...he says that Boris is planning to bail him out./"
Kai glared, turning away to stare at the wall, the glass bottle in his fist cracking slightly under the pressure. He was about to open his mouth to reply, but Rei cut him off.
"/Maybe I'd better go,/" he suggested, causing the others in the room to look up at him as he stood, wide-eyed. The slate haired teen gaped at the neko.
"You...know Russian?"
"For the most part," he shrugged. "I've been taking it back at the University." Tala actually laughed at the absurdity of the situation.
"Wow," he chuckled quietly to himself. "I feel like an idiot." Kai muttered something inaudible under his breath as the tiger pulled on his jacket. He was about to leave when the redhead tugged gently on his sleeve.
"You might as well stay now," he winked. "And we could probably do with the company." Biting his lip, Rei turned to Kai for consent. The Russian rubbed his eyes wearily but nodded, sending the neko back his chair.
"Boris isn't exactly an upstanding citizen, he shouldn't be able to make the bail with his record" Kai mused while the Chinese teen slipped out of his coat once more. Sitting finally, the other Russian agreed, but his sharp eyes were pained.
"Yes but he's never been convicted before. At least, they've never been able to prove anything before this..." he trailed off.
"Well," Rei jumped in quietly. "Can you get proof?" Kai glanced at Tala, signaling his friend to handle that one. The redhead sighed.
"Actually," he replied. "Yes." The other Russian snorted.
"Gimme a break, you could hack the pentagon if it damn well pleased you."
"That's great," his friend cried. "Get me arrested why don't you."
"It's alright," the tiger assured him. For a moment the Russian eyed him suspiciously, but finally he nodded.
"As long as you realize that I can find you now." The neko laughed nervously, but Tala just grinned, reassuring the newcomer. With a sigh of relief, Rei offered Kai his attention when he began to speak again.
"But, he'll know it was us..." he trailed off, his gaze fixed solely on Tala. Running a hand through flaming hair the Russian leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Then what do you suggest?"
"Tala, I can't let you do this for me," he argued sharply.
"I could do it." The others turned to the neko in surprise. His golden orbs were determined, even when Kai shook his head.
"Think about it!" he protested. "It would be all too easy, for me!" The red-eyed teen would have retorted but his friend cut him off.
"Okay, am I missing something here? 'Cause I'm feeling pretty lost."
"Rei's a reporter," he answered flatly. "But he isn't going to run this story."
"Why not!?" Tala shouted indignantly.
"Because," the Russian teen hissed back. "He'll have to sign his name. It's too risky."
"Kai," the neko said, turning his attention away from the redhead. "I want to help."
Tala held his breath, watching the two expectantly. He could see the fire dimming with those crimson orbs, and with a smirk he turned to Rei. Hmm. Interesting.
"You don't even know what this is about," the slate haired teen whispered. "And I told you, I don't talk to the press about it for a reason."
"And yet it seems to me," the other Russian butted in. "That sooner or later, he would have found out, am I right?"
"I'm not asking for a manuscript on your life story," the tiger finished. "And that's fine; I know why Voltaire is in prison. That's all I NEED to know to personally believe the guy should be shot."
Both of the others allowed a smile to tease their lips as they glanced at each other, before the tiger finished.
"But seeing as homicide is generally viewed as a crime, at least let me help you throw away the key."
"So where is your building again?" Tala asked, slowing to a stop at a red light. Rei pointed up the road.
"Not far, two more streets up." Nodding, the other leaned back, waiting for the light to turn green.
"Hey Tala?"
"Hmm?"
"You seem like a really good friend of his..." he trailed off, unsure of how to continue. The redhead glanced at him before he put his foot back on the gas pedal.
"I would hope so," he muttered, more to himself than the Chinese teen sitting next to him. "God knows we've been through Hell and back together."
"Well, has he always, you know, been the way he is now?"
"No," he answered softly, pausing as he turned down the second street like Rei had instructed. "But that isn't my story to tell."
"It's that one," the neko nodded suddenly towards the tall building to their right. Parking the car, Tala took out his keys before stopping the other teen from getting out.
"You know, he's actually pretty taken with you," he offered with a smile. "Just give him some more time," his blue eyes glittered wisely, against gold, but a mischievous glint sparked in their depths. "I don't think you'll be disappointed." Rei blushed, causing the Russian to laugh out loud.
"Anyway," the flustered neko glared half-heartedly. "There's a room we can work in on the seventh floor. If we can throw something together by tonight, I think I can get it on the front page the day after tomorrow." The older teen nodded, opening his door though he was still chuckling quietly to himself.
"Sounds like a plan."
Max shook his head as he gathered the plates off the coffee table, standing to put them in the sink.
"Honestly Ty, how do you eat so much? Where the hell do you put it?" The navy-haired teen smiled sheepishly, draping himself over the back of the couch.
"Sorry." The blonde shrugged.
"Not a problem, I'm just glad I ordered a large."
On his way back to the couch Max paused, looking back over his shoulder as the phone rang. Throwing an apologetic look at the other, he stepped back into the kitchen to pick the phone up.
"Yello," he drawled. "Max here, Rei's out."
"Thank you captain obvious." The American teen grinned, propping himself up against the counter.
"Any time...what's up?"
"I went in today...uh," he paused. "And I think I've got some good material for a story so I'll be working late."
"That's fine," he answered, letting his friend finish.
"Yeah so, don't wait up or anything."
"Don't worry about it."
"Okay that's it, what are you hiding?" Inwardly the blonde cursed.
"Just ordered a pizza is all..." he trailed off, hoping he wouldn't have to explain with Tyson in the other room.
"Oh..." the neko over emphasized. "I'll let you go then, but tomorrow---" Max cut him off.
"Tomorrow you've got to work," he practically stuck his tongue out.
"Yeah whatever. Just don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"Like what!?" the American teen cried in a huff. "I just met the guy!"
"Uh-huh. See you 'round."
The blonde just glared at the phone as he turned it off, seething because he realized that he'd just yelled that out while Tyson was in the other room.
Brilliant. Real smooth, he chided himself as he put the phone back on its cradle.
Walking back to the couch he hopped onto the cushion next to the other teen who was patting his hair down, growling heatedly to himself. Raising his eyebrows, Max placed a pale hand over a tanned one, effectively stopping the furious grooming.
"What are you doing?" he asked the navy-haired boy with laughing eyes. Tyson blushed, gently pulling his hand out from beneath the blondes.
"My hair's always a mess," he mumbled, picking up a notepad off the end table. "SO," he coughed abruptly. "Who was that?"
"That was Rei, he'll be late tonight." Tyson nodded, the American teen already having explained the living arrangements to him. He seemed to be engrossed in his notes, but finally looked up with a bright smile.
"I have an idea!"
"Yeah?" Max furrowed his brows, peeking over at the other teen's notes who was nodding enthusiastically. "Well?" he grinned, looking up. "Are you going to tell me?"
"Oh right," he laughed scratching the back of his head. "What I think is, seeing as we're having a fair amount of trouble coming up with our own characters, we should start off with deriving them from the people we know!"
"Like how?" he asked, watching with a faint blush as Tyson sketched a cartoon version of him on his pad.
"Like," the other paused dramatically as he finished his drawing. "This! Max Tate, the thirteen year old champion blader from America!" Tearing out the paper, he handed it to the teen beside him, grinning triumphantly. Looking it over, he nodded, with a laugh.
Standing on the white surface was a smaller Max, with large eyes and wild hair. One of his hands was resting on his hip, the other showing off a victory sign to the audience. Above him was a hastily written quote that made the American teen laugh again.
"Me? Overconfident? No way! It's just that no one can beat me, that's all!"
A/N: I had so much fun writing that! And for all of you who don't know, that was actually one of Max's quotes from BeyBlade season one. I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I am, and thanks again for all of your wonderful reviews!
