This is probably the shortest chapter for this fic. A massive thank you to everyone who reviewed the other two chapters.
Disclaimer: I do not own beyblade, only this story and the sisters Alkanet and Yasha.
Three
Several days passed after Kai proposed to Mariam and the news report about Mariah being missing. Ever since that afternoon Spencer had been wondering about Alkanet and Yasha's real parents. While Alkanet did have the same hair and eye colour to Mariah, Spencer chalked it up to coincidence. There were probably plenty of girls out there with similar features or even boys for that matter. Everyone pulled their weight to help plan the wedding, knowing that patience wasn't one of Kai's virtues. The second youngest Blitzkrieg Boy had attended numerous meetings since Voltaire's death and so far his taking over of the family business was going smoothly.
He'd made a few television appearances, one being to invite all the blading teams he knew to the wedding in a month's time, that all travel expenses would be paid for by him. Kai even put his loathing of Max's home team aside to invite them as well. When confronted about the decision by Bryan, Kai simply stated that nobody should miss out on account of past grievances. There was bad blood between them and the American team sure. But Kai was willing to put that all behind him. Even BEGA was invited!
Near the end of April, all preparations had been made. Well, everything except for the cake. That would be made closer to the time, as would the rest of the food. Kai left anything food related to Spencer, knowing he could trust the gentle giant not to poison anyone. Mariam wanted to help too but as the bride she wasn't allowed anywhere near the food preparation. Tala had surprisingly been put in charge of decorations, Bryan the venue and Ian was stupidly tasked with setting up the music. Bridesmaids and best men would also be sorted out somewhat closer to the actual wedding.
Mariam had insisted on blues and pastel greens for the wedding, allowing for reds and purples too to make Kai feel a bit more at ease, glad his wife to be wasn't an enormous lover of pink. Much to Ian's disappointment Kai didn't want a stag do and Mariam had been equally adamant about not having a hen night. Both of them were being sent on a honeymoon however whether they liked it or not.
The wedding was finally a week away and all the invited teams started flocking to Moscow. Up until after the wedding, the Blitzkrieg Boys would be staying at the mansion. Kai sent somewhere around four to five limos to pick everyone up from the airport, relishing whatever peace and quiet he could get. Alkanet and Yasha were doing better with their teething now and didn't cry as much. Since the boys knew next to nothing about dresses, Mariam had been allowed to help them pick some nice ones for the girls to wear.
A little after midday Kai was just strolling down the marvellous staircase at home having what sounded like a heated debate with someone on the phone in Russian, blind to the large group of people standing in the foyer. The call ended soon after with Kai muttering under his breath, pocketing the phone angrily, still blissfully unaware that his guests had arrived and were staring right at him. Max was the first to move, putting a dark blonde haired green eyed girl on the floor. She was aged about four years old with his big bubbly eyes. Max whispered into the girl's ear and her face lit up, plodding in Kai's direction.
"Unca Kai!"
Said young man didn't bother looking over his shoulder, hastily striding down the hall and around a corner. Being small and young, the little girl couldn't keep up or understand why he'd fled.
"It's okay Charlotte." Max soothed, rubbing the tot's back. "Kai just needs time to get used to you."
Turning to the group, Max saw Tyson beaming at the front. He'd hardly changed at all over the years aside from growing taller.
"Never thought I'd see the day Kai ran from a little girl. Wonder why?"
Kenny came out from the crowd, now standing surprisingly tall for having been the shortest aside from Daichi.
"Well Tyson it's entirely possible Kai just doesn't like young children. For all we know he could just be busy."
Tyson wasn't willing to bet on the latter. Disliking kids was more Kai's style. Butlers showed everyone to a room, keeping noise to a minimum. Disturbing the young master could have its consequences. Once in their rooms, the teams all got a cheeky nap in.
Spencer and co left their rooms without the girls when it was time for supper. They'd been out when the wedding guests had arrived earlier. A few other folks were wandering around waiting for the signal that supper was ready. Max stood happily chatting to Raul, Charlotte at his side when the little girl saw her other foreign uncles, pouncing on them while they weren't aware of her presence. Most unfortunately Spencer was at the front of the group, Tala and Ian at his sides and Bryan bringing up the rear. Charlotte struck Spencer with enough force to knock him and his brothers over. Hearing pained sounds and Russian profanities, Max realised that Charlotte had snuck off.
"Are you guys all right?!"
Plucking Charlotte out of the way, Max helped the Blitzkrieg Boys onto their feet. Thankfully Spencer's weight hadn't hurt his smaller teammates. Max dreaded what reaction awaited him for Charlotte's behaviour, keeping her at his back. A loud crack echoed the hall and it apparently came from Spencer's neck. Sea green clashed with emerald green, filling the air with a tense silence. Max released the breath he'd been holding when Ian approached Charlotte and tickled her belly. This earned him the mother of all wedgies from Tala for being a softy.
Charlotte squealed in delight and hugged Spencer's leg causing Max to fear for her life once more. He'd never admit it aloud, but Max had always feared the taller blonde. His presence simply oozed intimidation. Spencer gave Max the shock of his life by plucking Charlotte up off the floor and held her up so they were nose to nose with each other. She wasn't the least bit terrified.
"This must be the ankle biter Kai told us about?"
Max nervously scratched the back of his head smiling that old cheeky smile.
"Sorry she pounced on you. Charlotte has been so excited to meet all of you ever since I showed her your picture about two years ago."
Bryan stepped forward, his eyes regaining their old steely allure. "Just try to keep it on a leash would you? Not everyone around here loves kids y'know."
Tala thwacked Bryan hard over the head flashing Max an apologetic glance. Charlotte on the other hand looked pretty upset. Just like when Alkanet looked ready to cry, Spencer's fatherly urges came forth. Max thought he was dreaming when Spencer held Charlotte close to his chest, a strong chin resting atop her head.
After supper, Spencer couldn't bear to be apart from his and Tala's daughters any longer nor did he care that the other teams were around. Kai had even made it perfectly clear that his sworn siblings were not to be disturbed at any given time. Spencer and Tala were just sat in one of the mansion's many lounges when several people walked in. Kai's old team to be precise and that included Grandpa Granger.
For the first time ever, Tyson was utterly speechless at the sight of two seemingly heartless men cradling fragile babies. Tyson was so shocked he even left the room, shook his head of such a crazy idea and walked back in but nothing had changed. Spencer was still glaring guardedly at the door and Tala had what could be interpreted as a murderous glint in his eyes. Hilary was the first to say something, her ruby eyes twinkling.
"Oh my gosh they're so cute! There's sly you boys are! Their mothers must be so thrilled!"
Tala counted down the seconds in his head, waiting for Spencer to explode. Grandpa Granger read the threatening air, setting a hand on Hilary's shoulder to calm her.
"I don't think those little ones have a mother, Hilary. In fact I'd go so far as to say they've been adopted by our stubborn dudes here. Give them some space there's a good girl."
Spencer and Tala both visibly calmed; their protective grips relaxing. Hilary inched forwards and the walls went right back up. Alkanet decided now would be a fine time to start screaming, waking Yasha from her peaceful slumber. Just in time, Bryan strode into the room carrying two bottles.
"Yeah, yeah I'm coming already. A little patience wouldn't kill you."
The room fell quiet aside from the soft sound of the sisters drinking. The former BladeBreakers simply stood staring at the alien sight before them. Bryan stood close by, his blue eyes giving the group a cold warning stare. They'd rest on Max briefly a few times before a burp drew them back to the infants. Without being told Bryan took the bottles to be cleaned. Grandpa shooed the boys and Hilary out so that they didn't overstay their welcome in the room. The old man lingered at the door and gave the stoic young men the thumbs up.
The last few preparations were made in time for the big day. Mariam insisted on following the time old tradition of the groom not seeing the bride until the wedding so Bryan was tasked with looking after her up until she had to put her dress on. Afterward he'd play chauffeur driving Mariam to the church. Kai paced nervously as Spencer tried to help him get ready, Tala and Ian watching from the side with bemused grins.
It had been decided that Spencer would be Kai's best man out of everyone while Hilary, Mathilda and Julia volunteered to be bridesmaids. Very little about this wedding followed usual standards. Kai flat down refused to wear a black or white suit, instead choosing a red one with a dark blue shirt and green tie the colour of Dranzer's eyes. His silver/royal blue hair was neatly combed, glinting in the light. Spencer assured Kai numerous times that Mariam wasn't going to bail on him. If the bluenette wasn't ready to go down the aisle she would've protested to the arrangements being made so soon. There had been some questions as to who would give her away since Mariam's father opposed to her just dating Kai never mind marrying him. Grandpa Granger stepped up to the podium, his face beaming with unspoken pride.
The church was bursting at the rafters with all the bladers invited for the special occasion. Spencer stood beside Kai at the front wearing a pastel sage green suit in silent support. Behind the vicar an organ began to play and with it, Kai's heart began to race wildly. Spencer flinched when something warm and positively fleshy grasped his hand. Looking down he saw Kai holding on to him for dear life, wondering if the soon to be enterprise lord knew he'd reached out for physical support. All but one pair of eyes gazed up the aisle as the trio of bridesmaids strolled down the soft red carpet donning pastel purple dresses of varying styles. Behind them was Mariam hanging off of Grandpa Granger's arm.
Sensing a presence to the left, Kai allowed himself to look and the sight he saw took his breath away. Mariam's dress was a soft pastel green with delicate blue ribbons that went well with her skin tone. Green eyes were highlighted by pale red eye shadow and lips a plump mahogany. Usually pale cheeks were dusted with a vague scarlet tint. Kai was so taken aback by Mariam's beauty; Spencer had to nudge him out of his daze when it came to the vows.
A large feast followed the wedding and after that, a fancy party. Everyone expected Kai to rebel at the idea of dancing but instead he hit the dance floor with Mariam, taking the first dance of the evening. A few other couples moved to join them while others were content to stand on the sidelines. Mathilda had somehow convinced Ray to get up and enjoy himself while Tyson revealed he was dating Julia. Kenny as expected ended up being with Ming-Ming. Hilary had been a bit shy at first but eventually allowed Johnny to take her hand for a dance. Salima dragged a blushing Rick from his talk with Raul. The younger Fernandez twin boldly took Emily's hand and even kissed her. Without a doubt the media was having a field day!
Spencer knew camera crews would be hovering around so he and Tala sat at a table out of sight, joined by Mr. Dickenson and Grandpa Granger. Max was at the table next to them, bouncing Charlotte on his knee, blissfully unaware of the intent stare of Bryan's eyes on his back. With all the couples that had ousted themselves, Ian wouldn't have been surprised if Spencer and Tala revealed their relationship to the world. But then his brothers were fairly reserved when it came to people they didn't properly know finding out. Bryan had heard several bladers throwing shade at Spencer and Tala, saying that two innocent little girls shouldn't be left with two "mentally disturbed" men. And those people were attending the party with black eyes.
What stuck in Bryan's craw is that the people insinuating his brothers would molest the girls were other guys. If the female population thought similarly they were wisely keeping quiet. Despite what people probably thought, Bryan deemed it a cowardly act to strike a woman unless she attacked him first. He would only hit a woman in self defence. Some hour before the party would end, Spencer had some fun of his own, allowing Bryan and Ian to get drunk to the point where they'd do anything he asked of them, roping in a tipsy Kai to get up and sing Witch Doctor with devices that made them sound like they were on helium. Oh what a sight it was to see.
Come morning a lot of people woke up with pounding headaches. Spencer wasn't one of them, smiling sweetly down at a snoozing Tala. He could've laid there all day just watching Tala sleep but the girls would likely wake for a feed soon. Throwing on a pair of sweatpants and a muscle top Spencer ventured down into the kitchen, finding leftovers from the party last night scattered across the sides. Most surprisingly there was still cake left! Applying the final touches to the wedding cake had been the proudest moment of Spencer's life. He'd even blushed when Tala told Hilary it wasn't made by a professional cake maker when she'd enquired about the marvellous towering structure.
Spencer had gone the extra mile of making wax figurines of Dranzer and Sharkrash to put on the top instead of a bride and groom figurine. Blue waves and red flames danced around the sides of all four tiers, fire and water clashing at the peak. While he waited for the kettle to boil, Spencer helped himself to a small plate of leftover food. Perhaps later he'd speak with Kai about donating what they hadn't used to the homeless. Spencer returned to his and Tala's room in time for Alkanet to wake up. Tala mumbled awake when something non lethal was chucked at him. An evil idea popped into Spencer's mind but he quickly discarded it. Kai would surely kill him if he found a baby in his bed. That idea would be saved for the girls to grow up a bit.
Later that morning Tala and Spencer left their room to find Max lugging a semi conscious Bryan up the hall towards them. Others followed at a slower pace suffering hangovers of varying intensity. Kai might not have looked hung over but Spencer could see in his crimson eyes the lingering effects of too much alcohol. Mariam on the other hand looked like she'd had the best night of her life. Everyone split up after breakfast to do whatever. All the wedding guests would be leaving in a couple of days and Kai would be off on his honeymoon with Mariam. Neither of them knew where they were going adding to the excitement and nervousness.
Spencer bravely left Alkanet in Ian's hands to take boxes full of leftover food to the nearest homeless shelter. He was gone maybe an hour, finding the short bluenette was surprisingly still alive. Alkanet had reportedly been a little darling during Spencer's absence.
It was finally time to send the other teams home. Max surprisingly wanted to stay with the Blitzkrieg Boys a while longer, voicing a desire to teach them more about how to care for the babies. The bigger shock was the boys agreeing to let him stay for two weeks! Max saw his family off at the airport with a watery smile, telling Charlotte to behave herself, that he'd be home soon. Kai said very little to his old team but grudgingly allowed them to hug him. His and Mariam's flight was the first to leave and one by one the other teams were all packed onto planes to go home.
While their stay at Kai's mansion had been a pleasant change of pace, the Blitzkrieg Boys were glad to be back in their six bed house. Instructing Bryan to show Max to a room, Spencer made a start on lunch. Looking at the wall mounted calendar he saw it was Thursday and that meant beef stroganoff and kulich night so he made something simple for dinner, a Kasha salad with purple sprouting broccoli and Russian blinis, minus the cod roe. Everyone gathered around the dinner table just as Spencer applied the finishing touches to the final plate. Max knew Spencer could cook thanks to his talks with Ian but the neatly arranged meal set before him wasn't what he expected to see.
After dinner, Spencer helped Alkanet to practise her walking while Max got to know Yasha by lying on the floor with her. Tala couldn't recall the last time he didn't have a baby in his arms, using the freedom provided by reading a book. Bryan was likely off lifting weights in his room and Ian made a video log of Alkanet's progress, giving Yasha some screen time too if she ever got jealous of her sister hogging all of Ian's attention. Max didn't mind if one or both babies clambered over him. At least if they fell there'd be something relatively soft underneath.
Spencer wasn't really sure why he readily trusted the shorter blonde with the girls. Maybe it was because Max knew what he was doing? He certainly knew how to keep the tots entertained. Tala and Ian also weren't far away so their guest was never truly alone with Alkanet and Yasha at any given time. At the very least, Spencer could prepare supper without worrying.
And that's chapter three done! Goodness me so many random pairings this time. Hopefully chapter four won't take as long and the focus moves away from Kai. Too many of my stories revolve around him and it's starting to get a bit old.
I'm starting to mix the recent manga with this story and possibly future ones but as I haven't read it (I haven't read any of the manga.) I don't really know how much I can get away with. I have seen art for it, hence why I know about Charlotte. She'll likely be one of the only manga characters coming in. I might add Kai's canon parents in another story in the possible future.
The meals mentioned are ones I found on a website for Russian dishes goodness knows how long ago and I'm likely going to try looking up more for future use.
There's at least one more out of nowhere pairing that has already been hinted at in this chapter.