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Metal Fight Beyblade is the property of Takara, d-rights, and Nelvana.
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Tales Of The Hagane Family
Chapter 5: Disturbed Evening
"It's unbelievable.", Madoka thought as she sat in her basement going over the data from Kite's battle with Yoshio. "Whoever built this bey, they designed it to be the perfect wrecker."
Yoshio's bey, known as Bandit Golem, had been causing trouble all over town and driving up business at the B-Pit as blader after blader came in begging to have their bey fixed. Some were even beyond repair, and it broke her heart to watch some of the younger ones cry after finding out their hard-earned Beyblade couldn't be fixed. Maru was worried as well. After all, Eight had fallen first to Golem's power, and it scarred her. Unbeknownst to everyone else in her circle of friends, Maru harboured a bit of a crush on Eight.
"If only your father knew, Maru.", she whispered, "Oh, the look on his face would be priceless." She giggled and looked over at her daughter, who sat on the couch in silence, re-examining the data she had collected over and over.
"Maru?", she asked while walking over to sit beside her, "Are you okay?" She looked at her face, and it was clear that she held worry in her eyes.
"I don't get it, mommy. How could a bey be that powerful?", she softly spoke, "How could a blader like him be such a bully?" Madoka pulled her daughter into a gentle hug.
"I've known quite a few bladers who were bullies.", she said. "One of them even kidnapped me to lure your father into battle." Maru's eyes widened at that remark as she looked up to her mother.
"They did?", she asked, "What happened? How did you escape?"
"He cornered me in an alleyway and next thing I knew, I was laying in a dirt hole surrounded by pincer crabs. Luckily, your father came to the rescue and defeated him, and Benkei managed to get me out of the pit before the crabs could attack me.", she explained.
"Wow, I guess some people truly have no sense of honour.", Maru said as felt her sadness grow deeper. Taking notice, Madoka placed a hand on her head and began to stroke it gently.
"Listen, my little princess, even if there are bladers like those who seek only to satisfy their own selfishness, they will never outnumber the ones who share a true passion for this sport."
Maru looked up at her, and saw the determination in her eyes, the exact same determination her father had whenever he battled. It became clear to her in that moment that both of them shared a passion for Beyblade, only on different ends of the spectrum.
"You really do love Beyblade, don't you mama?", she asked.
"Yes, I do.", Madoka told smiled "There's no greater joy than fixing a bey to the point when it looks as if it had just been built, and handing it off to the owner, whose smile and gratitude are more than enough of a reward in themselves."
"When I grow up, I hope I can be just as good of a mechanic as you are!", Maru exclaimed.
"Now that's my girl! , Madoka cheered. "Come on, I'll get my tools out and show you the basics."
"R-Really?", Maru asked.
"Yup.", Madoka said, "In fact, I think we should start with Eight's Pirate Orochi." Maru's cheeks then flashed a very soft shade of pink, which made Madoka snicker under her breath.
With their workstation set up, the two sat down and began the lesson. Madoka first went over her tools, and demonstrated the scanner she used, then showing Maru the basics of bey cleaning and re-assembly. The young data gatherer was fascinated by her mother's work, and paid careful attention to the instructions.
"Okay, Maru. Now you try with my bey.", she said, pulling a generic looking Beyblade out of one of the drawers and handing it to her.
"You have a Beyblade?!". Maru gasped.
Madoka nodded. "Yep. It was originally known as Mad Gasher 45F, and I only ever used it once in battle. After your father and I got married, I replaced the face bolt with one of an angel Bit-Beast and renamed it Heart Snatcher 12G."
"Heart Snatcher 12G?", Maru asked.
"Mmhm, the G is of course your father's first initial, and the 12 represents the age that I met him at.", Madoka explained.
"Wow, I never knew you were a blader and a mechanic.", Maru smiled.
"Heh…well, like I said, I only battled once…and I didn't even win.", Madoka blushed. Maru giggled at her mother's embarrassment.
"Ok, enough memory lane walks for now. I want you to demonstrate the skills I just taught you.", she instructed. Maru drew in a deep breath and focused her concentration.
Grabbing the clamper, she unscrewed the performance tip, carefully separated the spin track from the fusion wheel, and cautiously removed the face bolt with it's own special tool. With all the segments now apart, she grabbed the cleaning cloth and wiped off any dust and minor buffs on the fusion wheel. It looked as though it hadn't been cleaned in years. She thought it strange of her mother to neglect it for so long, especially for something that seemed to hold such sentimental value to her.
Soon, the scanner had beeped, indicating the process was finished. The bey was now fully restored and shone in the light of the desk lamp.
Madoka took the bey and looked upon it, her eyes showing what appeared to be a mixture of fondness and sadness. Maru quickly took notice.
"Mommy, are you ok?", she asked.
"Yes, Maru. I'm just remembering all the times I shared with your father over these little battle tops.", Madoka said while her eyes teared up. She wiped them dry and placed the bey on the desk. Turning her attention to Maru, she lifted her up and held her close, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Hee-hee! Mommy, stop it!", she protested.
"I'm so proud of you, sweetie. I know one day you're going to make an even greater mechanic and data collector than I am.", Madoka beamed. Maru smiled and hugged her mother.
"Thanks, chief."
"You're welcome. It's getting late, time for you to go to bed.", she said. Ascending up the stairs, she took Maru to her room and laid her down gently, as the young girl had already fallen fast asleep. She bent down and kissed her on the forehead, before draping a blanket over her.
Madoka then returned downstairs and sat at her laptop, looking at the bey she had hidden in that drawer for so many years. A thought then entered her mind, and she placed a video call.
"Come on, pick up. I know it's late, but-", she was cut off by a window popping up, which showed a red-haired blader with a blue headband around his forehead and a loose white scarf around his neck.
"Hello, my love.", he smiled. "What's up?"
"Hi, Ginga. Nothing, I just felt like I needed to talk to you.", she said.
"Something bothering you?", he asked.
"I just got done giving Maru her first lesson on bey repair, she really took a shine to it.", she explained.
"Ha-ha! That's wonderful, glad you decided to show her the ropes.", he laughed.
"Yeah, she's a natural. But listen, I showed her something else besides 'the ropes' tonight.", she said.
"Oh?", he asked.
"Yes, I showed her…my bey.", she admitted as she turned her face away from him.
"…Did you tell her the full history behind it?", he questioned.
"No, I couldn't. Too many painful memories.", she told him. The tears began to form in her eyes again.
"Madoka, please don't cry. That's all in the past, and we've both forgiven each other for what was said between us. It's nothing to be ashamed of.", he cooed to his wife in an effort to comfort her.
"I know.", she sniffed, "But I'm worried she'll eventually find out. That's why I showed it to her tonight."
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, my angel.", he said warmly. She smiled and looked at his digitized face.
"I really want to see you. Please, finish up your investigation as soon as possible. I'd like to spend time with you before Neo Battle Bladers begins.", she said.
"Don't worry, honey. I'll be home before you know it.", he promised. "I've got to get some sleep, and I assume you do, too."
"Yeah, my eyes are getting heavy.", she yawned, "Good night, Ginga."
"Goodnight, Madoka. I love you.", he said.
"I love you too." She then closed the chat window and shut down her computer. As she climbed into bed, she let her thoughts drift to Ginga, and the tender moments they had recently shared before his departure. And as the warmth of the recollection filled her body, she fell into a peaceful sleep.