A/N- Uh... hi. Sorry. Sorry, sorry, sorry. I had a BIG case of writer's block. That, and school... etc... Hopefully, this chapter will make it up to you. =D I added a teensy bit of S/A. Don't blink. Now, on with the story!

Disclaimer - I do not own Bakugan.

Chapter 8

… On Earth …

Another one. Runo's mint-blue eyes trailed the path of yet another passing cloud. Almost silently, she lipped to Klaus, "How long till we get there, Klaus?" Miraculously, he heard her. "Ten to fifteen minutes," he replied efficiently. On cue, Runo saw the gentleman's castle looming shadily in the distance. Julie apparently had other ideas.

"You know, I cannot get over how BIG your castle is," she said enthusiastically. Runo cast her the most aggravated look she could pull together from under her eyelashes. Klaus, ironically silently sipped on his beverage. The tense air surrounding them did nothing to conceal the growing discomfort.

Julie, being a stranger to silence, tried a thorough thought, to break it. "You know, guys, when we find Alice, what do you think we should say?" Julie flashed a weak smile to support her brief annotation. Runo scrunched her face angrily. Julie receded back ever so slightly. Runo's temper had kicked in.

"How, Julie?" Runo addressed every word, "do you propose we find Alice? For all we know, she could be anywhere in this stupid world, she left NO leads whatsoever! And HOW, do you think, we can contact her? Julie, for Heaven's sake, get a thought into that head of yours!" An exasperated Runo flapped her hand nastily at the shying girl. Julie picked herself up after Runo's expected outburst. The silver-haired female, though, did not know better than to keep it in.

"Well! Way to be a downer, Runo!" Julie snarled the girl's name. Runo received this slowly. Her anger notched a level down, giving her a second to think. Shrugging the infuriating words of Julie off her pressuring mind, she humbly gave her a melting glance. "I have no time for this…" She massaged her temples. "Keep your words to yourself, 'kay?" Surprisingly, she gave the girl a forced smirk.

Stung as she was, Julie remained silent. Something given off from Runo's demeanor stilled her. "Whatever," she muttered quietly.

Klaus watched this amusedly. "Are you girls always like this?" he wondered aloud. Unpleasant looks from both the girls hushed him.

Remaining humbled, Klaus studied the forthcoming monument, unknowingly becoming slightly entranced by it, while his mind rested with other thoughts. On his left and right, the girls copied his actions.

… In Vestroia…

A mound of dirt somewhere on the planet remained pressed as Shun rested on it. Idly glancing at his partner, Hawktor, he proceeded to watch the failed attempts of Dan trying to keep everyone focused on him. This unfortunately, brought mirthful amounts of hand gestures, unnecessary when speaking.

"Guys, what are we going to DO? We may have destroyed all the Dimension Controllers, but how can we free our old Bakugan? This is Hydron we're talkin' about. It ain't gonna be easy!" Dan gave a helpless stare in Shun's direction, before surrendering to the steel gaze he was given. "Give it a rest, Dan…" said Shun, tiredly, "why don't you just sleep on it? We'll put our heads together tomorrow, alright?"

"But…" Dan tried to protest feebly, then resigning almost immediately after he registered the tired looks on everyone's face. There too, was the fact he felt the same way as they did, though protruding a jovial exterior. "Fine…" he resigned as he slumped down on his sleeping bag.

Good, thought Shun. He watched over them for a few more minutes, fully aware that Dan was feigning sleep. An irksome feel crept its way into him, but he kept his eyes shut.

"Shun, Dan does have a point. Getting through Hydron's defenses will not be easy."

Eyes lightly closed, Shun spoke, "Ingram, confidence and patience is lock and key in a ninja; the first thing my grandfather instilled in me." Hawktor swiveled to face Shun. "But I thought you said you didn't listen to your grandfather?"

Shun let out an unnoticeable snort. "Heh. That old man? Hardly." His eyes cracked open a centimeter. "But he has a good point."

Ingram had on a muse of interest. "How so?" Shun turned slightly. "He has experience," he said simply. "Though he's crazy, I doubt he's completely insane. While he's bent on turning me into the greatest ninja this world's seen, he has good ideas."

An amused smile made itself present in Ingram's voice. "I do believe this is the closest thing to a compliment you have said so far about your grandfather."

No reply.

Why couldn't she just get used to it?

Ingram watched the crackle of the flames mutely. She failed yet again. She failed herself. It was a promise. When she first took over guardianship over Shun. Ingram was a Bakugan with dignity. She was not going to fail herself, Shun… She remembered the vow she made. And a Bakugan never went back on their word. So she tried. Each time, each day, she tried to pry through Shun's hard exterior. She knew. She knew she was a 'replacement' for her master's previous guardian, Skyress – the legendary Ventus warrior - but she had no problem. Not really… but… a Bakugan and his or her partner needed to have some kind of trust. Something she felt her and Shun lacked.

She had an epiphany; Skyress was somehow rooted into Shun's emotional state. Those two had a connection she knew she could never ever penetrate. True, Shun shared more with her rather than with his other human friends, but, this went beyond friendship, it was something else. Ingram never asked Shun about his life. She told him a little about herself. But the topic of 'Shun's life' was something unofficially classified. So she tried. Tried and tried. She wanted that friendship, or trust, the one all Bakugan wanted with their masters, or at least something close to it. So far, 'close' was nowhere in sight.

She knew she couldn't level up to Skyress. Skyress was probably the mother Shun never had, or something drastically close to it. I want it, she thought sadly. I want Shun to trust as he did Skyress. He's the first partner I have had, and maybe the last. I need the experience Bakugan derive from human emotions. Shun is still human. He should one day succumb to emotions. I need to keep trying…

Looking at his closed face again, Ingram thought harder. So in this mysterious psych of Shun's, where did his friends rank? It's was clear she ranked above them, but only under the situation that she and Shun were more familial than friends to each other.

There was the loudmouth – Runo. The only connection those two had was Dan. Was there not that time, when she asked him to take care of Dan for her, for him to watch out for him? Recalling the glimmer of warmth on Shun's face at Runo; it was rare to her, Shun showing that small bit of friendship… to someone else. Ingram's guess was that Shun was warmed by her concern.

Then there was Dan himself. The two claimed to be best friends, Ingram tried to analyze the somewhat strangled relationship. It was easy to see Shun's frequent annoyance to Dan's antics. So, why were they best friends?

"…confidence and patience is lock and key…"

… Lock and key? It made sense. Patience on Shun's part, the enthusiasm on Dan's. It fit.

There was that Julie girl – the excitable one. She wasn't one of Ingram's personal favourites, but, she had a sweet heart. She'd never really seen any interaction between Shun and her, but, they were still friends. That meant something to Shun.

Ingram's thoughtful gaze scurried over to Marucho, his small form lifting slightly in slumber. Shun voiced his admiration for Marucho's intellect. He admired him. Intellect was one thing Shun liked, she knew he liked. He had a fondness for such a quality.

Ingram frowned a little. Anyone missed out? Anyone back on Earth…? Wait, wasn't there the redhead. The shy one? What was her name….- Alice? Yes, that was it. But, about her and Shun. No, nothing. No interaction at all. And they were friends? Did I miss something?... she thought aggravatingly. Think back, that lab on Earth, the grandfather of the Alice girl. Anything between them…? They didn't even speak to each other. Other than greetings. The girl did most of the talking- to everyone, except Shun… almost ignoring him. Why? Shun… wait, he seemed especially careful to avoid her. And he made no eye contact… and yet, they are friends? Ingram gave up as she sighed.

Humans are confusing…

Ingram looked at Shun wearily. Another expressionless mask. She tried talking, "Shun, do you not miss your friends back at home?"

He didn't look up. "Of course I do."

Failed again. Ingram cast her eyes to the ground.

So much to Shun… but… but…, She let the crackle of the fire lull her into an uncomfortable streak...

Unknown beside her, Shun's eyes strayed to an unnatural shade of red, in the light of the flickering fire, illuminating the excessive vapour clinging to them…

AN- As you can see, I this chapter has more Ingram POV in it. Sorry if you don't fancy her much... I just started thinking, you know, what is Shun from her view? She is after all, Shun's second bakugan. Now, please, please, please review? If I get more, I'll work my butt off for the next one...? :) Thank you for reading, and again, sorry for the LONG wait. :/