A/N: Dear readers, if you are tired of their constant fighting and bad language, I promise I'll make them behave in time. But you see, the conditions up there have been kind of stressing, and that's why they are not exactly at their best...
Twenty-five kilometers left.
The moonshine and the frost turned the whole landscape into silver. Tsubasa stopped for a moment to listen and enjoy the beauty of the view. He hadn't been too often on the road this late in the autumn, nor at this hour, and the ice cold beauty fascinated him. The coldness was often unpleasant, it could be even killing, but in spite of that, the frost was beautiful. Even the stillness was different, it had a kind of shimmering sound in it. He remembered his various travels in different countries, often by feet, but mostly in daytime and in warmer – and not so insecure – conditions. Only his First Big Adventure had been maybe even more unsafe...
After that tragical train accident which had killed his both parents, he had been totally alone. There had been nobody he could call a relative, and very few he could call friends. One of those few had been his pet eagle, a young bird at that time.
He had lived some years in an orphanage, but after his thirteenth birthday he had made his decision: he'd go and find his distant relatives, the descendants of his great-grandmother's tribe.
He had planned the first half of his journey very carefully. The trip over the Pacific required money and shrewdness, but after that – so he had thought – everything would go smoothly. Just walk and lift through the continent, towards north-east, not a big deal. Sooner or later he'd find someone who could help him to find his people.
So simple had been his plan. But not until he stepped on the west coast of America he truly realized how desperate the whole idea had been. The wideness of the country almost overwhelmed him. It had been so easy to plan different routes on a map, or count the day trips that he had totally forgot the shortness of his own steps. Still, there was no turning back. He had lifted his chin, gripped Aquila in his hand to give him courage and started to walk.
Later on he had often shivered when thinking how his journey might have ended. He had been too young and too confiding – but maybe his constellation had led him to meet the right people before anything too bad had happened. He had bumped into some WBBA agents in a situation he hadn't had any choices but to show what he and Aquila were worth. As a result they had asked him to join WBBA to go through the training, to become an agent himself.
He hadn't answered right away.
Despite the tempting offer, he hadn't wanted to give up his dream, or even put it off, but finally the reasonable side of his mind had won. He had gone through the hard training and became a secret-agent, spending the next years traveling round the world and crossing the Pacific more often than he cared to count. He had met people who had taught him and made him what he was today, and who had – temporarily – replaced the tribe and family he had been searching for. And finally, he had met Gingka and all the others, and with them experienced again what it meant to be a part of a team, to belong to something.
He knew that someday he'd start his journey again, and this time he would be better equipped, both mentally and materialistically. In the silvery blue moonlight he imagined how he would walk along the long, straight road, the flaming red light of the setting sun warming his back, his eagle flying above him and...
He blinked astonished.
Where did that image come from? Those two shouldn't have anything to do with his past or his future dreams! He shook his head to get rid of the drowsy feeling. Really, the lack of sleep made his brains work in a very peculiar way!
Fifteen kilometers left.
It had been his greatest mistake ever to wear a pair of brand new boots on a hiking tour!
Kyoya gritted his teeth and forced himself to walk normally. From he first day those darned footwear had gnawed his feet, and despite all the bandaging his feet were now as good as shredded. He cursed the day he had seen the advertisement on the screen of Hikaru's laptop.
"Where is Ryo?"
The blue haired secretary almost jumped off her chair when Kyoya's green and spiky mane suddenly popped up in front of him.
"Oh Kyoya, you startled me!" "What about saying "Good morning" or even "Hi" like normal people?", she thought and pulled nervously the hem of her skirt.
"Where is he?", the Lion demanded.
"I... I don't know. He was here a moment ago, but then Tsubasa came and they left somewhere and..."
Kyoya grunted and turned away to continue his searching.
"Kyoya, wait!"
Hikaru had arose from her seat and was looking at him pleadingly. The Lion stopped.
"Why is she always so nervous?", he thought annoyed. For some reason the girl seemed to be even more tremulous when alone with him.
"What?", he asked bluntly.
Hikaru wanted to shake herself. "Calm yourself!", she thought. "You know he hates cowards! Show him you're not one of them!" She forced her voice stay calm and professional.
"I want you to check if this list is alright." She handed him a piece of paper. "Ryo asked me to order some things you might need on your trip, but you'll better tell me yourself if there's anything special you want."
Kyoya took the list and gave a quick look on it.
"It's alright", he said and handed it back. "There's too many items on it anyway, so why bother?", he thought. Right then his eyes happened to glance on a certain advertisement on the secretary's laptop.
"I need those", he said and pointed the screen.
Hikaru looked at the picture of gorgeous hiking boots with rough soles.
"I think I saw exactly like those on another site, but they were cheaper. Let me see..."
She tapped vigorously.
Kyoya was astonished. He had expected a long and nervous row of explanations about why "she couldn't buy a thing like that without asking the director first, etc, etc", but not this. The whole idea of a new pair of boots had came into his head the moment he saw the ad. He had been quite happy with his old footwear until now, even though he had to admit they were almost worn out.
"There, you see." She turned the screen to let him see better. "What is your size?"
Yep, those were the very boots he had searched for his whole life. With them he would conquer the whole world, if needed. Quickly he let her know his shoe-size, before slipping out of the room to escape the further questions.
Hikaru looked at the door he had closed after him and sighed.
"He could have even thanked", she thought and felt the sad disappointment gnawing her heart. To tell the truth, she wasn't too sure if Ryo had meant she could order this kind of personal items, but when Kyoya had stretched his arm over her shoulder and said he needed something, she would have been ready to order him whatever he wanted. Even if she would have to pay for it herself. She turned back to the screen.
Well, she shouldn't have expected too much. The Lion just wasn't in a habit to say "Thank you" to anybody. But maybe when the items arrived and he'd find his new boots among them...
Smiling she continued her work.
Kyoya groaned and tried to find anything to focus his thoughts to shut the pain out of his mind. He came to think about how different everything had been with Team Wild Fang.
Hot dust under the blazing sun. Frozen mud in the moonlight.
A Bull, a Scorpion and Horus. An Eagle and a Wolf.
Three trustworthy fighters, who all shared the same ambition. An almost-too-perfect WBBA agent and a pampered chick.
The aims of these two groups had been different as well, which partly caused the unlikeness of the troubles they had met, but at least one thing hadn't changed: the way they traveled. The rhythm of his steps was the same as it had always been, only it had never been so painful to keep it up. Not even when he pulled the coffin loaded with stones with him.
And never before had he felt so clearly Leone's antipathy towards any other bey. It had usually dealt every new bey they'd met with an aristocratic disinterest, except in battles, but this time there was something more. He couldn't say if it originated from their encounters with other wolves or his own secret wish to use the bey himself.
"I can never force Leone to co-operate with anybody against its own will", he thought. "But if I manage to solve that problem, what possibilities it will open..."
Five kilometers left.
"This wasn't so hard a leg after all."
Kiti felt her courage return. The few hours nap she had got in the lorry had done all the difference, as well as the energy-bar – her last one – she had eaten on their last stop. The night was so beautiful, the moon so bright, it made her want to run and jump and sing... She took a little dance step and laughed to herself.
"I'm over tired, that's why I don't feel it anymore", she thought. "What on earth they will think of us at WBBA when we come back with an unopened tent and almost half the food? Maybe they think we were just too lazy to cook, and therefore eat only the MREs and energy bars..."
She chuckled and tried to recall an old song her brothers had taught to her as a kid. The first – and last – time she had sang it at school the teacher had put her to sit in a corner and told her to wash her mouth with soap. But the melody fitted so well with the pulse of her steps, and now she was old enough to sing whatever she wanted...
After the umpteenth verse of the monotonous song, sung in an unintelligible language, Kyoya's nerves were at an end.
"Can't you stop that freakin' noise?!", he roared.
Kiti jumped. She had been so absorbed in her own thoughts she had totally forgot her companions, and this sudden outburst had startled her. Then she flared up.
"TWINKLE, TWINKLE LITTLE STAR...!" she yelled with all her might.
Kyoya's leap was silent and quick as a flash. He grabbed the girl with his other arm, trying to press his palm on her mouth.
"I said, shut that f... OW!"
He jumped backwards, holding his wrist where Kiti's sharp teeth had pressed into his skin. The girl had ducked under his arms and stood now glaring him, crouched and her fangs visible, ready to defend herself.
"You little b...", he hissed and took a step towards her when an iron strong arm stopped him.
Tsubasa stood between them, his hands on their shoulders, keeping them separated. When he lifted his bent head they could see the soft glow of the dark purple flames in his eyes. His voice was dangerously quiet.
"Kiti. Kyoya." The grip of his hands hardened.
"Be. Quiet. Both of you."
They stared at each other a moment. Then Kiti turned abruptly and started to march forward, her head proudly up. The glow she had seen in Tsubasa's eyes had made her feel there was some powers even she didn't want to disturb too much. The pitiful cry that suddenly was chocking her throat made her want to slap herself.
Kyoya didn't move. He spoke low too, struggling against his will to hit the other to the ground.
"Listen, Eagle. Don't you ever think you could command me like this!"
"I don't." The glow in Tsubasa's eyes had vanished. Suddenly he looked just very tired. "But you know as well as I do what would be the result if we two battled right here and now."
His golden gaze didn't yield and the grip on the Lion's shoulder was as firm as before. Kyoya knew their challenge had to wait for better occasion. If they started it here, it wouldn't only wake the whole neighborhood, but also destroy half the road with its environments. But he knew he would win that battle, and he let the fact show clearly in his eyes.
"I don't care if you think you can beat me the next time we battle.", Tsubasa said and left his hand drop. "You're welcome to challenge me anytime when we are back at WBBA. But before that we have a duty to fulfill."
Kyoya felt he wanted to rip someone in pieces. Without a word he turned and started to march forward, letting the anger overwhelm the pain in his feet.
A/N: Did I hear somebody speaking about cats and dogs...?
Well, now you know where are from those gorgeous boots our sullen friend had in Metal Fury. Some day I'll have a similar pair, too!
The idea of Tsubasa's ancestors came into my head when I saw a certain sketch made by Slumber Poppy in Deviantart. I know very little about Native Americans (not even the correct name in English, sorry!), but I have understood the subject is kind of delicate in USA and Canada. In any case, I DON'T WANT TO OFFEND ANYBODY, so please correct me if you think it's needed. In a book I found pictures of the art and decorations of Naskapi tribe, and they looked like something that could be carved also on Tsubasa's hair-clip...
Another advertisement for good stories: Juniper Gentle's To Learn Their Ways and Malluchan's Breakaway have been an important source of inspiration to this chapter.