Chapter 6 - Silent

It was a clear breezy day; small clouds were dotted around the sky, shielding the world below from the sunlight. A normal day; but Dan wasn't happy. It was lunch time already and he hasn't seen a single sign of Gale anywhere. He already had the idea that he didn't go to school today, yet what's been bothering him is why. He was worried about his state yesterday, maybe he got sick?

He ate his food half-heartedly under the tree while thinking about his friend. He didn't know brawling could hurt a person that badly. He didn't like the idea of it ever doing such a thing, not one bit. The brunette was so focused on the topic that he didn't realize someone sit beside him until his name was called. "Dan?"

He jerked up almost immediately with a surprised face. "Oh, Shun, I didn't notice you there."

The raven-haired male looked at him with concern. "Something bothering you?"

"Well...it's...my friend..." he muttered; a little hesitant to tell the teen about it.

"Got in to a fight?"

"No, nothing like that. He didn't show up for school today."

"So he's sick?"

"Shun, it's different. Yesterday...I tried to teach him how to brawl. But as soon as his Bakugan came out..." Dan remembered the sudden pained look on his friend's face. He shuddered. "He just passed out. It was like something was trying to hurt him..."

"Is he afraid of Bakugan?"

"No way! He's the Bakugan's Keeper!" Shun looked a little surprised. "Oh, I see..." the two were silent for a while; the sixth-grader's lunch still half-eaten. "If you're that worried, why don't you visit his house after school? I recall you doing the same thing when I was sick." the brunette suddenly laughed. "You weren't sick Shun. You just had a tummy-ache."

"...you didn't tell anyone about what happened did you?"

"'Course not." he beamed. The light atmosphere was cut off with a loud ringing noise, signaling everyone to go back to class in five minutes or else they'll be marked late. "That's my cue." the raven-haired teen stood up and offered his hand to the brunette. He took it and Shun helped him stand after he covered his lunch. "By the way Dan, are you going to join the next Bakugan tournament?"

"Actually, I'm not sure...maybe I'll sit this one out."

"Alright then. See you tomorrow." the seventh-grader took a few steps before disappearing all together in a split second. No matter how many times he's done that to him, it never seizes to amaze the boy. He's known Shun ever since he was six, and even though he's been quite distant ever since, Dan knew that he was just trying to cheer him up. The brunette muttered "Thanks" softly before going to class himself. He couldn't wait for dismissal to roll in.

-o-

It's a normal scene to see Dan running out of the campus like the hyperactive brunette he is. His expressions though can range differently depending on what he's going to do after school. Most often it's a determined look because of the tons of brawls that he's gonna face later on. Sometimes it's serious because he isn't planning on taking the predicted situation that comes in lightly. Other days are a little sad/anxious because of many reasons (most often it's a lost battle.) Today he's wearing a mixture of determination and seriousness...because Dan hates to be left alone in the dark; especially if it concerns his friends.

It wasn't before long that he was in front of the gate of Gale's house. It was a simple home; almost like his except the colors differed and there was no attic present. The brunette had only been here once since his aunt is pretty scary in his opinion. There was a time that he asked where his real parents were, and the crimson-haired boy replied with a simple shrug. "All I'm sure of is that they're somewhere out there conducting research on something."

"You don't even know what they're researching?"

"It tends to vary, but most often it's related to space."

"And you don't miss them?"

He hesitated. "Honestly...I can't even remember their voices."

The brunette stepped in and pressed on the doorbell. The sound seemed to echo, but no response came...just silence. Dan was about to knock on the door when it opened as soon as he touched it. Blinking a few times, he called out his friend's name. It looked like there was no one home; which was strange since he had presumed that Gale was sick.

He knew that he shouldn't be snooping around, but it was a good opportunity since the place looked deserted. His attention was drawn to the pictures that sat on a cabinet in the living room. One of them had a family of three; his friend looked really young back in the picture. Oh, so that's how his parents look like. The boy didn't get a chance to look around carefully before because the red head's older relative would immediately shoo them to his room. The other pictures were almost the same as the one he first saw; they were so far in the past...there wasn't a single frame that held the present Gale. A twelve-year-old kid. Dan suddenly remembered that the boy only moved in to his neighborhood at the start of the school year. And that was around three months ago. So how long has Gale been living with his aunt?

The brunette shook his head and decided to move to his room. Again, the place was quiet...almost too quiet...

Until Dan heard a bunch of muffled shouts coming from a drawer. Not wasting time, he opened it and two Bakugan flew out. "Master? Master are you here?" Ventus Serpenoid yelled as he circled the entire room. "Shoot! They took him away!"

"Took?" the sixth-grader was on high alert. "What happened to Gale?" he then noticed that there were only two balls there. "Hey, where did the other Bakugan go?"

"Saurus and Juggernoid were given to other people." Haos Falconeer replied calmly yet in slight anxiousness. "We're not sure what happened to Leonidas, but I presumed that he went with Master."

"Enough chit-chat Falconeer! We need to find Master now!"

Drago emerged from Dan's pocket after being woken up with the ruckus going on (he had been sleeping the entire afternoon.) "What's going on?"

"It's terrible! They kidnapped Master!" the green Bakugan kept on spinning in circles before finally collapsing on the desk; panting.

"Calm down you guys; where did they take him?"

"I'm...I'm not sure..." the bird-like Bakugan responded. "All I heard was that they took him to a place called a hospital."

A/N : *sighs deeply* First of all, I'm terribly sorry for: 1.) Taking really really long for this chapter. 2.) Making it a short and crappy chapter 3.) Not presenting a complete battle scene YET. 4.) Leaving you in another cliffhanger. Again.

I never expected for the story to expand before the first tournament, but after this little situation will resolve, I think I'll move on to some real strategics. Please be patient guys and bear with me. Review please?