Author's Note: Not much changed here. Just a few tweaks to dialogue. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade, just my OCs.

Chapter 3: Respect

"Honestly, Eri, how do you manage to live here?" Hina asked in exasperation, running her hands through her hair in frustration.

Her unfazed captain didn't bother to look up from her morning coffee and simply replied, "What can I say? It's a gift." Hina groaned in frustration and sent Eri a death glare.

"What's all the shouting about?" Nakia asked around a major yawn as she walked into the kitchen still in her pajamas.

"Our dear captain apparently doesn't know the meaning of keeping a stocked fridge," Hina answered, her voice muffled because her head was in said fridge going through its contents. She pulled out a carton of milk and looked at it with disgust. "This milk expired last week! How could you not notice the smell?"

Eri just shrugged her shoulders indifferently, but mentally she was laughing hysterically. Sometimes it was just too much fun annoying the sanity out of her team mates.

"All right, I can't take this anymore. I'm going grocery shopping." Hina started for the kitchen door, grabbing Nakia by the wrist on the way. "Nakia, you're coming too."

"W-what? Hey! At least let me put some clothes on!"

"You've got five minutes."

Once the two girls had left for their shopping excursion, Sonja came into the kitchen after watching the sports channel for any news on the upcoming beyblade tournaments. "Let me guess: you planned that from the start," she declared, grinning and crossing her arms over her chest in amusement.

"You got it," Eri replied with a smirk. "You know how much I hate grocery shopping."

"You're so evil."

"I know that all too well."

"Beyblade fans will be pleased to know that the qualifying tournaments for the World Championships will begin in one month. New teams must accumulate enough points in these tournaments to be able to compete for the right to represent their country. In other news…"

Click. Tala tossed the remote aside and looked across the living room to Kai, who had also been watching the news. "So, they finally announced the next World Championships. You ready, Kai?"

Kai continued to stare off into space for a few moments before finally replying, "Yes. I have a score to settle with Tyson." Tala smirked. This was good. Kai's competitive nature gave him a firm advantage in the stadium. Of course, the rest of the team hadn't been slacking either. They had all re-doubled their training since the last tournament and were stronger than ever.

'This tournament is as good as ours, Wolborg.'

What about Tyson from BBA Revolution? He's the three-time World Champion. And I have a feeling that the BEGA team will compete as well.

'Tyson's the only real threat on BBA Revolution since Max and Rei returned to their respective teams. As for the BEGA team…I have my own score to settle.'

I understand, master. I have every confidence in you. Wolborg growled deeply in his throat. Through his bond with Tala, he knew even without asking whom his master wanted to defeat.

Garland.

Ever since Tala had recovered from that last battle with Garland, the Russian had sworn revenge on him for humiliating him in such a brutal manner. Those same emotions had transferred to Wolborg through their mental bond and had inspired him to fight even harder in order to get stronger.

Yes, Garland would be in for quite a surprise the next time he battled Tala.

CRASH.

"Ian, you'd better not be messing with my computer again!" Tala shouted in the general direction of upstairs.

His only response was some nervous laughter from Ian.

Tala abruptly got up from his seat and stalked upstairs, ready to pummel his shorter teammate. Kai "hmphed" in amusement. The mental image of Ian running from an enraged Tala and Wolborg forced a slight chuckle from his throat.

"Why do I have a feeling that Eri set us up to do her shopping for her?" Hina asked in annoyance as she hefted a heavy brown paper bag of groceries in her arms and nudged the door open with her foot.

Nakia followed right behind her. "Maybe because it's something she would do," she replied with a grunt as she shifted her own burden, grimacing when she heard a crunch from inside the bag. "I really hope I didn't just break the eggs."

Hina gave her a dark stare. "For your sake, you'd better hope you didn't break them." As they started the twenty-minute walk back to the house, she thought, 'Now I'm wishing I'd brought the car.'

I tried to advise you to do so, but you wouldn't listen, Arashi pointed out.

'You don't have to rub it in, Arashi,' Hina muttered. The eagle gave a shrill, good-natured laugh and retreated from his mistress' mind.

The girls continued down the sidewalk until they came to the extreme edge of the city. Some of the buildings in this area were in disrepair, and fewer people frequented the area. The atmosphere of this place made Hina and Nakia uneasy. They had passed through earlier during the morning commute, but now the streets were almost deserted and painfully sketchy in their appearance.

Without warning, a set of hands grabbed Hina from behind, causing her to yelp in surprise. Her bag of groceries fell to the ground as her wrists were pulled behind her back and held in a painful grip. "Hehehehe…look at what we got here," a male voice sneered from behind her.

"Hina!" Nakia cried as she dropped her bag as well and shifted into a fighting stance. All the girls at the Abbey had received physical and martial arts training, and Eri had insisted that they all continue their training even after escaping. "Let her go, you creep!"

"Don't think so," said another voice. Before Nakia could react, another thug had grabbed her and shoved her face-first into the concrete wall of a nearby building, pinning her wrists behind her. "You should know these streets are dangerous, especially for little girls," her captor taunted. She tried to kick backwards, aiming for the groin, but the man reacted by blocking and pinning them against the wall with one of his legs and using his body for leverage.

"You might as well make it easier on yourselves and not put up a fight," said the first thug, twisting Hina's wrists and making her cry out in pain. Arashi gave an enraged shriek from within her mind and beat his wings restlessly, on the verge of erupting from his Beyblade to protect his mistress.

THUD.

The man lurched forward and loosened his grip, giving Hina the opportunity to break away. She stumbled forward and turned around to see her captor lying on the ground unconscious. A tall, blond, teenage boy – none other than Spencer from the Blitzkrieg Boys – loomed silently behind him, his muscular bulk making him look even more intimidating. Bryan stood beside him, lankier than his teammate but no less imposing, with a nasty scowl on his face.

"And you should know better than to lay a hand on a woman," Spencer spoke coldly to his unconscious victim.

Bryan strode forward with tightened fists, fully intent on beating the pulp out of the man who still had Nakia pinned to the wall. Ian had been driving him crazy ever since he had gotten back, and now Bryan was looking to vent some anger. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" the Russian hissed. "Only cowards flaunt themselves by preying on women."

"Heh, what do you care?" the other man replied cockily, shoving Nakia further against the wall. She cried out as the brick wall scuffed cruelly against her cheek. "What, you know these girls?"

"No, but I've had a rotten day so far, and you're a perfect way to release some steam." Bryan unleashed a lightning-fast punch to the guy's jaw, and he slumped to the ground barely clinging to consciousness, releasing Nakia in the process. The first guy woke up, staggered to his feet, and fled. His companion followed quickly on his heels.

After a brief moment of silence, Spencer asked in a polite tone, "Are you girls unharmed?"

"Yes, thanks to you," Hina replied. "You two are from the Blitzkrieg Boys, aren't you?"

"That's correct. Spencer Petrov, at your service," the taller blader replied with a half bow.

"Akiyama Hina," Hina replied with a full bow. "Thank you very much for your assistance, Spencer and…" She trailed off, turning to Bryan but not remembering his name off the top of her head.

"Bryan Kuznetsov," he supplied. He grunted in surprise as Nakia suddenly stumbled sideways from fright and latched onto his jacket with both hands, shaking uncontrollably as she struggled to remain upright. Not sure what to do, Bryan awkwardly placed his hands on the smaller girl's shoulders and said nothing, though his expression betrayed how confused he felt.

"Oh Nakia…" Hina murmured softly. She walked over to the pair and placed her hand on her trembling teammate's back. "Nakia, it's okay. We're safe."

The Egyptian nodded weakly. She backed away from Bryan and whispered, "I'm sorry."

"Uh…yeah," Bryan replied, somewhat embarrassed. Granted, he had never been in that particular situation before. His only contact with the opposite sex had been shooting death glares at his hordes of fan girls, who tried (and failed) to claw their way through security tape and guards whenever his team traveled for tournaments. To say he was unsettled by a girl actually touching him was a bit of an understatement.

Luckily, Spencer broke the awkward silence. "Come on. We'll walk you two back home. These streets aren't the safest part of town."

'Pyrix, you're starting to get on my last nerve,' Eri threatened. She was currently lying on her bed staring up at the ceiling. Her bit beast had spent the past ten minutes talking to herself about their brief conversation with Tala yesterday, and somehow her trains of thought always ended with some sort of comment about Wolborg. Apparently, the ice wolf had exchanged pleasantries with Pyrix at the same time as Tala and Eri.

But, Eri, we need to plan a strategy. The power emanating from him is stronger than I had predicted, and his build is much more muscular than mine. He and Tala have obviously done some serious training since last year's tournament.

'You've got a major case of puppy love.'

I do not!

'Don't try to deny it,' Eri replied teasingly.

I was merely commenting on our competition so we can be more prepared for when we face them in battle.

'Riiiight…and your assessment of his physical appearance was purely strategic as well?'

Silence.

'Hah.'

Luckily, Pyrix was saved from further teasing by the sound of the doorbell. 'Who on earth…?' Eri wondered. 'The girls have house keys. They don't need to use the doorbell.' She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, making her way downstairs. 'I swear if it's a door-to-door salesman I'll…' Her fuming thoughts were cut short as she opened the door to reveal Spencer, Bryan, and her two missing teammates. Hina rubbed one of her wrists as if it were sprained, and Nakia looked like she had done a face plant onto concrete.

"Nakia…Hina…what on earth happened to you two?" Eri asked, her concern for her teammates immediately banishing any anger. As team captain, she was fiercely protective of her teammates, or anyone else that managed to earn her friendship, her eyes instinctively darted to Spencer and Bryan as the first possible culprits.

"They got jumped by a couple of street thugs," Spencer quickly supplied before Eri got the wrong idea. "Bryan and I happened to be in the right place at the right time and thought it best to bring Nakia and Hina home."

Eri's expression softened in gratitude. "Spencer, Bryan, you have my thanks." She stepped aside to let them in. "Please come inside."

"Heh. It seems our reputation precedes us," Bryan whispered privately to Spencer as they followed Nakia and Hina inside. "At least it saves us time with introductions."

A few minutes later, Bryan and Spencer were sitting at the kitchen table drinking sodas and exchanging pleasantries while Eri and Sonja tended to their injured team mates. "I never realized Eri lived so close to you guys," Sonja remarked, trying to make conversation while she cleaned the cuts on Nakia's face. "Hey, stop flinching," she added when Nakia grimaced at the sting of the antiseptic.

"We actually live on the opposite side of Moscow, and that's only when we're not traveling for tournaments," Spencer explained. "We were only on this side of town to pick up some computer parts for Tala."

"Yeah, Ian trashed his keyboard this morning 'by accident,'" Bryan added with air quotes around the last two words. He gave a short laugh, remembering the morning's events.

"And Tala didn't go himself because…?" Sonja asked.

"He was…occupied with other matters," Spencer replied, not wanting to think about what Tala had done to the shrimp in their absence.

Eri finished wrapping Hina's wrist and asked, "How does that feel?"

"A lot better, thanks."

"Just make sure not to move it too much for the next couple of days," Eri advised.

Bryan broke the silence that followed by asking, "So, Eri, is your team planning on entering the World Championships?"

Eri tried to hide her surprise and simply raised an eyebrow at the question, looking Bryan square in the eye. "I beg your pardon?"

"Heh, don't try to hide it. Spencer and I can sense your bit beasts' auras," he replied with a smirk. "Plus, Tala told us about running into you yesterday."

"Oh well, looks like you caught us," Eri said with a shrug. "Yes, we are planning on entering the qualifiers."

"In that case, good luck. You'll need it," Spencer said before standing. "We should get going. Thanks for the soda."

"Yeah, see ya around," Bryan added as he followed his teammate out the door.

Sonja waited until she had heard the door close before asking, "Eri, is it okay that they know?"

"Sure. They would have found out eventually anyway. Besides, after today, the Blitzkrieg Boys have earned my respect." However, she thought to herself, 'It's up to them now to see if they manage to keep it.'

Later that night…

Once the team had gone to bed, Arashi approached Uskadu, who was also fast asleep. He had been restless ever since the afternoon and needed to confirm something with his fellow sacred spirit. Uskadu, are you awake?

The great cat spirit begrudgingly opened one eye and shifted to a sitting position, yawning as he did so. No, I'm not.

Very funny, Arashi replied sarcastically. I need to talk to you about something.

Uskadu's expression immediately became serious. I think I already know what you wish to discuss.

Those men from this afternoon…

…They weren't your average street thugs, Uskadu finished for Arashi. I could detect a sinister darkness around their hearts. Do you think…? He didn't even need to finish his sentence. Arashi already knew where this conversation was going.

Inform Pyrix immediately. We may be leaving sooner than expected.

As always, reviews are appreciated!