Happy new year, everyone!
Here's chapter 3!
Disclaimer: I do not- and sadly, never will- own Beyblade...
Previously ...
He turned as something glinted in the sky in the corner of his vision.
"What the-" He never finished his sentence, as something invisible rushed by him and suddenly everything went dark.
...
A Secret To Be Told
Chapter 3: A meeting
"Wh-what just happened!?" yelped Daichi, finding himself standing exactly where he was- only now it was a different time of the day, and none of the others were still in sight.
Daichi ran through town, panicking. It was like he was in BeyCity – but wasn't. This was too freaky! He was brought to a halt when his sharp ears picked up on a news telecast running on some display TVs in a shop window.
"- a fabulous, sunny day; one of the best of 2009!" the weatherman was saying.
"Two- two thousand nine!?" cried Daichi. "That dude's crazy! – It's 2003 now, isn't it!?" He called to a man walking past him. "Hey, mister, what year is it?"
The man stared at him as if he were nuts.
"2009," he answered, then walked off, muttering "Weird kid."
Daichi wanted to think that guy was pulling his leg, but he'd seemed serious.
"What is going on!?" he wailed loudly, drawing attention from some passers-by. "Where are Tyson and the others!?" Suddenly, the boy's stomach growled.
He sweatdropped. "Well, can't figure this out on an empty stomach."
...
Meanwhile, the gang had been looking for Max's dad's hobby shop, which was the closest place to Tyson's.
"It's- it's not here!" gasped Max, as they looked up and down the street for the familiar store and attached apartment.
"Maybe- we're looking in the wrong street?" ventured Ray, looking at Max worriedly as he frantically ran up and down the road.
"No! This is the right one – I'm sure of it!" said Max. He suddenly stopped in his tracks beside Tyson, his shoulders dropping. "If it's not here…. it's probably been demolished, hasn't it?" he asked dejectedly.
There was an uncomfortable silence.
"I'm sorry, Max." Surprisingly, Kai was the one to say this. He couldn't help feeling sorry for the younger boy looking at his crestfallen face.
Max looked down at the ground sadly.
"TYSON!? MAX!? KENNY!?" The others wheeled around at the familiar voice.
"DAICHI!?" shouted Tyson, his eyes widening in astonishment as he saw the small redhead sprinting towards them, not slowing down till he collided with Tyson and Max, knocking both of them over.
"I thought I'd never see you all again!" sobbed Daichi, clinging to a rather alarmed Tyson and Max.
"Hey, it's-it's okay," said Max, awkwardly patting Daichi on the head.
"Yeah, chill out, little dude," said Tyson with a grin, gently pushing Daichi away so they could stand.
"How'd you get here, Daichi?" asked Hilary curiously.
"I don't know! I woke up and you all were missing, and suddenly as I was looking around, there was this big WOOSH, it went all dark and suddenly I was here, and then I ran around and found out that it was 2009, and I was like that's not possible, but-"
"Alright, Daichi! We get the point." said Ray.
"It appears that we were somehow taken ahead in time," explained Kenny, as Daichi's jaw dropped at the confirmation. "We got here when we found a strange hieroglyphic stone."
"But how do we get back!?" demanded Daichi.
"We don't know yet…." said Max.
Tyson suddenly noticed the large knapsack filled with food on Daichi's shoulder.
"Hey, Daichi! Where did ya get all that food from?"
"Oh, this?" Daichi, surprisingly, blushed and started twiddling his thumbs, not looking at them.
"You didn't steal it, did you?" gasped Hilary.
"What!? NO! I would never steal anything!" yelled Daichi. "A nice, pretty lady gave it to me for helping her carry her shopping!"
He clamped his hands over his mouth as the words slipped out, his face turning beet red.
Tyson snorted with laughter. "Hahaha! So that's it, huh? Is that why you're blushing?"
"Aww, does wittle Daichi have a crush?" giggled Hilary.
"No! She was just really pretty, okay!" protested Daichi, but this only served to make Max, Kenny and Ray laugh as well. Only Kai didn't look amused.
These idiots… he thought, irritated. Standing around and laughing when we have a serious matter on our hands….
"Besides – she's already married! She had a baby with her!" Daichi was saying, trying to clear himself.
"Ooh, you pervy kid!" said Hilary, knocking Daichi on the head and causing more sniggers.
"Enough!" Kai finally snapped. Everyone turned to him, a little alarmed by his angry tone.
"If you childish clowns are done laughing your heads off "- he paid no heed to their scowls and affronted looks – "we have more important things to worry about than Daichi's little crush. If she can help us find a way back, then that's great, but otherwise I suggest we move on," he said in a voice dripping with sarcasm.
Daichi scowled angrily at Kai, feeling insulted. "You know what, maybe she could help us!" he cried.
The others looked sceptical, but Kai looked downright pissed off.
"And how is that?" he asked frostily, arching an eyebrow at the redhead.
"How would I know? But it's better than nothing, right? I don't see you coming up with any ideas, Mr. Smartypants!" he shouted.
"Fine. Do what you want." snapped Kai – and with that, he turned on his heel and walked away with a swish of his long scarf.
"Kai! Where are you going!?" Tyson tried to run after him, but Ray held him back.
"Let him go," said Ray. "He'll come back when he cools off."
"But he shouldn't be wandering about like that! We don't know this place!" protested Hilary.
"Trust me, you don't have to worry about Kai. He can take care of himself."
"Daichi! Where are you running off to!?" called Kenny as the redhead began sprinting down the road in the opposite direction.
"To find that lady, of course!" he shouted over his shoulder.
"Obsessive, much?" muttered Hilary.
"Kai may be able to handle things himself, but leaving Daichi without supervision..." Max trailed off.
Kenny sighed. "Guess have no choice but to follow him."
...
"Where the heck did that little monkey-boy run off to!? I swear, we're gonna have to put a leash on him!" said Tyson as they hunted for Daichi.
"There he is!" cried Ray, pointing further down the road.
"You guys sure took your own sweet time!" said Daichi as they caught up with him.
"Daichi, how do you even know here that lady went?" demanded Hilary.
"Well, when I was helping her, her driver came up and started taking the bags, and I heard her tell him that she had to stop at the baby shop next, " explained Daichi, as he scanned the area. "If we're lucky, she might still be there - I remember seeing a baby store around here..."
The others began looking around as well, and after a few moments Hilary said, "Hey, look! Here's the baby shop!" while pointing it out.
The others crowded around the window, peering into the shop.
"There she is! That's her!" cried Daichi, pointing, and the others' gaze followed his finger to look at the woman he had been talking about.
a/n: OC introduction! I admit, this chapter ends rather abruptly, but if I continued, it would have ended up being twice as long as the others.
Stay tuned! Things are starting to get interesting...!