Chapter 9
I was sitting under the apple tree on my favorite bench when Tsubasa came out with our friends and my grandparents not that far behind him. I was trying to wrap my head around the fact that I had finally earned my grandfather's acceptance after 19 years of being ignored and treated like trash. To say I was confused would be an understatement.
"You look perplexed...penny for your thoughts?" Tsubasa said as he sat down next to me on the bench. I sighed before leaning my head on his shoulder.
"How do I put this, after 19 years of being treated like trash only to find out that it was all a test to see if I was worthy of becoming the next heir of the Hagane family. I think I have the right to be perplexed and a little confused. But at the same time, I'm feeling relieved that I no longer have to fight…but what do I do now Basa?" I said closing my eyes trying to fight back my tears. It was then that I heard the soft melody of a violin playing the wedding march.
"How about you open your eyes and look at what's next my lovely swan. Just as leaves fall from the tree so that new ones can grow come spring, things are always changing. And I want to spend every day going through every change with you. Watching the seasons pass from winter to spring, spring to summer, summer to fall, fall to winter, then repeating it all over again. I wish to spend every day with you until the end of time. So, Aki Hagane will you marry me and let me become the key that sets you free once and for all?" Tsubasa said getting down on one knee in front of me a red velvet box in his hand. Inside was a silver ring in the shape of two feathers a rain drop diamond offset to the right.
"Yes, Basa yes." I said right hand covering my mouth trying to hold back the tears of joy that I was feeling. I could hear the clapping of our friends and my family but all that mattered to me was the man kneeling before me smiling softly as he always did.
"I still hate that nickname but that is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard you say. And one day you will be known as Mrs. Tsubasa Otori." Tsubasa said sliding the ring onto my left ring finger.
"I know, and it would be Dr. Otori not Mrs. Hagane, you seem to have forgotten that I am working on getting my doctorate in clinical therapy," I said smiling at him before I leaned forward and captured his lips in a sweet and loving kiss. I could hear the sound of iron hitting iron trying to break through my loving memories of the man I loved. I opened my dull brown eyes and looked up at Bao carrying a plate of food, most likely meat again. Since the day after my birthday party, I have been a prisoner to Pluto and his minions.
"I keep telling you that I don't eat meat," I said, looking up at the dark-haired boy. I was currently leaning against the bars of my cell, my blue dress torn, black ribbon holding my hair back. The one good thing about being in this cell was that I had plenty of paper to write my thesis paper and to create many Sudoku and crossword puzzles.
"It's not meat. Here you need to eat something and I was coming to see if you had any new crossword puzzles." Bao said bending down to show me what was on plate. He had brought me a helping of mashed potatoes, leafy greens, carrots and pasta.
"What kind of crossword are you looking for?" I asked, shifting through the papers covering the bottom of my cell, trying to gather all of the crosswords I could find. Some were mixed in with my thesis paper and the many letters I had written to Tsubasa.
"Anything. Although I kind of find the one you made to help you remember terms for your thesis paper kind of hard. Then again, I'm not going to become a clinical therapist who specializes in trauma," Bao said, placing the plate under the bottom rail of my cell. I gripped the rings I had hidden under the collar of my tattered dress, before digging through the papers and finding a few dozen crossword puzzles on Beyblades.
"Here these are on Beyblades. Also, I have a few new Sudoku puzzles for Aguma. Also, if you could find out if the new guy likes any kind of puzzles, I'll start making some for him. And thank you for the food." I said handing him the pile of paper in exchange for the meat free food that he had brought. I however didn't see him slip a few of my earlier letters into his pocket before leaving me to eat and work. I was polishing my rings when Pluto came into view, carrying a plate and a pile of papers. I quickly put my rings back under the collar of my dress.
"Hello princess. I bring you food and the finished product of all the puzzles you make. A waste of time as the task will do nothing in our new world order…but my master has insisted that you be allowed to enjoy whatever you desire as long as you are unharmed and do not escape for a second time." Pluto said sounding as delusional as ever. I wanted to tell this lunatic to leave me alone or I would bite off my own tongue but he would have kept going not even caring that his lord's wife had killed herself, but then they would just find another girl to replace me.
"I don't care what you or your lord wants. I just want to return to my fiancé," I said before Pluto grabbed me by my chin and pulled me against the bars.
"You don't have a fiancé; your job is to marry our lord and become his wife. As you are the strongest woman ever to come before him…you will be the queen of all the world," Pluto said laughing evilly, I pushed against his chest just enough to get him off of me. Before moving as far away from him as possible. Every time that he touched me my skin would then feel like it was crawling or it had turned to slime, I hated it.
"You will never get away with this. My friends and family will find and stop you. When my fiancé gets his hands on you; you are doomed," I said gripping the rings under my dress collar. That was when Pluto threw the plate of meat at me; I ducked my head terrified, and let the plate hit the wall behind me and shattered into many small pieces.
"That is the last meal you get until you come to your senses," Pluto said before getting up and leaving. The meal was pasta and vegetables that the plate that Bao had brought me earlier. I moved to the spot I had been sitting before that lunatic interrupted me, it was then that I noticed the pile of papers just on the other side of the bars, they were mostly Sudoku and crossword puzzles with a few of my thesis paper pages mixed in. I gathered the papers and put them under the pillow to go through at a later time. Hopefully after being saved. I laid my head on my knees, eyes screwed shut trying to stop the tears. I was covered in dirt, in a tattered dress and no shoes, my bey missing and terrified without a single ray of hope.
"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,
You make me happy when the skies are grey.
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you,
Please don't take my sunshine away.
The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping,
I dreamt I held you in my arms.
When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken,
So I hung my head, and cried.
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,
You make me happy when the skies are grey.
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you,
Please don't take my sunshine away.
I'll always love you and make you happy,
If you will only say the same.
But if you leave me to love another,
You'll regret it all one day.
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,
You make me happy when the skies are grey.
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you,
Please don't take my sunshine away.
"Please don't take my sunshine away," I sang my favorite lullaby, tears running down my face. Unbeknownst to me, the new guy that they had just recruited had been listening the whole time that I had been singing. I wrapped my arms around my knees, trying to hide my face from anyone that might come over to me. It was uncommon for someone to visit me, other than when Aguma and Bao needed more puzzles. I fell asleep after crying for what felt like forever. When I woke up, it was to the new guy laying his red jacket over my shoulders; from what my watch read, I had only been asleep for fifteen minutes.
"You have a beautiful voice. And…um…Bao said that you wanted to know what kind of puzzles I liked so I came to tell you. Can you make decoders? Puzzles where you make a quote or saying out of letters from different clues?" The guy said scratching at his nose.
"Yeah, I can make them. So, is there any specific topic in particular that you would like?" I smiled at the blonde-haired boy as he sat down in front of me, his legs crossed.
"The name's Chris and this is my beyblade Phantom Orion. Who are you?" Chris said, holding up his bey with a big smile on his face.
"My name is Aki Hagane. My Beyblade is...was Earth Cygnus. But when they kidnapped me, they took it from me. And I'm scared that I'll never see my mother's Beyblade again. It was the last present she ever gave me." I said before breaking down and crying. I told Chris everything; about how four days after my nineteenth birthday I was taken to become the bride of some Master I had never met, even though I was engaged to marry the man of my dreams.
"Hey don't cry; I'm sure that everything will work out. Your fiancé is going to come and save you, but you have to have faith in him," Chris said trying to get me to stop crying. That was before I heard someone coming down the corridor towards where they kept me. Quickly throwing Chris his jacket back, I moved to the far corner under the threadbare blanket, my head laying on the hard as a rock pillow.
Pluto entered the room and asked, "What are you doing in here?" He carried an old-fashioned Greek dress in his hands.
"Bao and Aguma said that she had been asking about what kind of puzzles I liked but when I got here she was already fast asleep. So, I was just going to wait until she woke up. Seeing as I couldn't find a pen or pencil to write her a note. So, this girl a blader or something?" Chris asked pretending that I was sleeping."
"Yes, she was, but no longer. This is the wife I picked out of our lord and master who has both a beautiful body and mind, and is the strongest around. I'm not sure if you have ever heard of the selection of bladers taken from all over world. We were trying to find people that would be good to work for our lord and master, among those bladers we found this beautiful bird. Someone who knows many forms of art from music and dance. Someone who can hold a conversation with our master. She will be the queen to our lord's new world order." Pluto said laughing evilly if I wasn't pretending to be sleeping than I would have cringed at the way he had been talking about me as if I was a piece of meat he was trying to sell.
"But wouldn't it be better to find someone who would bend to our master's will rather than challenge him at every turn? Yes, she is a looker but if her personality is the same as our master's, won't they butt heads too often?" Chris asked looking at the man with disgust. How could he talk about someone like this? If this wasn't a job, he would have broken her out of that cell and saved her right then and there.
Oh, she will bend to our master's will, after she takes this. And if she doesn't then we can always replace her with the second strongest person, maybe even her dear friend Anja," Pluto said as he moved around to the side of my cell and picked up the small bucket of rainwater before throwing it at me. I coughed and sputtered before sitting up, breathing heavily.
"Good now that you are awake you can take your medicine and dress to meet you new husband." Pluto said reaching through the bars and grabbing me by my mess of long red hair pulling me towards him. I watched as he took a small vial of blueish liquid out of his jacket pocket, smirking the whole time. I watched as he pulled the cork out with his teeth before pouring the foul liquid into my mouth, and than as quick as he could throw the vial away he covered my mouth and nose so that I would be forced to swallow the liquid. I just so happened to have the record, in my family, for the longest time of holding my breath. Or that was until Pluto grabbed my shoulder and squeezed making me swallowed everything in my mouth. After that everything is blurry, I could remember being bathed and dressed in a long white dress with a light blue sash. Made to stand by a man I didn't even know, while my bey had it's fusion wheel changed and made to fight for evil. I was saved by my brother, Tsubasa, our friends, and the other legendary bladers. When I came to my senses, I was laying on the couch in my father's office, Yu, Tsubasa and a little African boy behind Yu. Both Yu and Tsubasa were each holding my hand trying to get me to talk with them.
Yu said clearly close to crying, "Please mama come back to us."
"Oh, my little rays of sunshine, I'm alright," I said sitting up wincing at a slight pain in my stomach. Yu and Tsubasa threw themselves at me before they both broke down crying.
"Mama…" Yu said pulling away from me before holding out my broken Cygnus. My Earth Cygnus was in pieces all over again.
"Don't worry Aki, Madoka already took a look at your bey and said that she could fix it," Tsubasa said wrapping his arms around my shoulders as he watched me take in the state of my bey. I scooped up the pieces before curling up and breaking down. I could remember how my bey became like this and it was all my fault. I broke my own bey on orders of the reincarnation of the Black Sun, Nemesis. I would have started yelling if not for Yu's big green eyes looking up at me from my lap.
"Mama, what's the matter?" Yu asked.
"Cygnus will never forgive me…my mother will never forgive me…I am the reason that it's broken up like this…" I said before the door slammed open to reveal Chris, a guy I didn't know, and my father.
"Aki, that's not true…Pluto gave you a drug that made it easy for Nemesis to control you. Nemesis ordered you to smash your Beyblade to stop you because when you saw those two you said 'my only sunshine and little ray of hope.' You didn't want to break your Beyblade…" Chris said before my father could stop him. I smiled before pushing the blanket that had been thrown over me off. I was still wearing the Greek dress that Pluto had picked out for me.
"Okay, first thing first, I need a shower and a change of clothes. Second, Chris, you and the other legendary bladers get to practicing because this isn't the last we've seen of Nemesis. Third, Father, where are the parts that Mother put aside for the day that I might need to repair Cygnus? And don't give me that look; I know that she had a backup plan for her backup plans. Fourth, Tsubasa, as soon as everything is fixed and before another evil tries to take over the planet, we will get married. Finally, Yu, go have fun with your friends, but first give your mother a kiss." I said, running my fingers through my messy hair before bending down so that Yu could give me a kiss on the cheek. I watched him run off with the little African boy who had been standing behind him. I turned and watched as my father pulled out the beaten-up metal box that my mother used to carry around everywhere.
"Thank you, dad. Now I'm going to borrow the locker room shower; Tsubasa by any chance did you bring…" I said just as Tsubasa held up my duffel bag. I smiled at him before leaning up and kissing his cheek. I took the bag and beat-up metal box before heading towards the company weight room and lockers, to take a much-needed shower. Inside my bag I found everything I needed, from a change of clothes to my shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. As the hot water ran over my skin, I felt like I was in heaven, I started scrubbing at my skin trying to remove all the dirt but even after all the dirt was gone, I couldn't stop scrubbing at my skin because I just felt so dirty and I wanted to be clean again. By the time I finished my shower I had rubbed my skin raw and bloody. I sat on the bench in the locker room crying in my undergarments, when Madoka and Hikaru entered both looking shocked.
"Aki, what's the matter?" Madoka asked as she came to sit next to me on the bench.
"I couldn't stop scrubbing at my skin even though all the dirt was gone...I just felt so dirty. Now my skin is raw and bloody," I said before throwing myself at the younger girl crying. Both girls wrapped their arms around me crying. It took a few minutes before we calmed down and started helping me clean and dress the multiple injuries I had caused myself again.
"I got something for you Aki. The director gave me the box of parts and I was able to fix your bey. So here is your bey fully fixed and perfectly balanced. Now I believe your fiance is waiting for you. So, get dressed in this and show those boys what you can do Aki Hagane." Madoka said throwing a green dress with a white lace trim, a belt made from the same lace and my hip holsters, where my launcher and fully repaired bey were waiting. I smiled before standing up and quickly getting dressed.
"Wow Aki, green really is your color. I didn't believe Tsubasa when he told me about how beautiful you were the night of your birthday party, but now I can see it was true," Hikaru said smiling as she braided my hair after she had cut it down to just about halfway down my back.
"Hikaru, if being an assistant doesn't work out you would make an amazing hair stylist. And this is coming from a person that freaks out whenever anyone other than Tsubasa touches her hair." I said holding up my hair tie for her. Or at least it was until Madoka stepped forward with a satin ribbon for my hair in one hand and my rings on the old shoelace I had found after being kidnapped for a second time. I took the rings and slipped my engagement ring onto my left ring finger before slipping my promise ring on my right hand.
"Two birds of a feather. I wish he had gone with an emerald instead of a diamond. You know me and Kyoya helped him pick it out," Hikaru said looking at my left hand.
"No, I prefer diamonds, and this stone is similar to the one that was on my mother's ring," I said as I ran my fingertips over the stone. I could still feel the indentation from where the stone had been set differently.
"From what Tsubasa told me, he got the stone for your ring from your grandmother after visiting with your family so he could ask them for your hand in marriage," Madoka said thinking on what she had heard. I stared at her surprised…Tsubasa had gone to my grandparents to ask for my hand in marriage. It made sense after my mother passed away my father had taken her engagement and given it to his mother for safekeeping.
"So, this is the actual stone. This stone has a long line in my family, the heir will normally give this to his intended. And before you ask, the heir of the family is normally a boy; I think I am the first girl heir in either four or five generations." I said before reaching into my duffle bag and pulling out my little jewelry case, inside was my locket and watch. Together with the other two girls I went to the training room to watch how everyone was doing. Chris was having a hard time against Masamune and a Greek guy whose name I didn't know; he was getting worked up and needed to calm down.
I said, "Chris, calm down and don't let your emotions get the better of you." Walking around, I took a look at everyone. Kyoya and Benkei were going at it, while Kenta battled Gingka, Yu faced off against a guy in a dress, while his friend fought a boy with brown hair and glasses, Toby and Zeo fought, and Chris stood there watching. Chris took a deep breath, calming himself down before focusing on the battle again.
"Thank you, Aki," Chris replied with a smile on his face.
"Oh yeah now we're going…this is getting fun…more, give me more," the Greek boy said getting hyped up way too much. I smacked him across the back of his head.
"Focus on the battle, don't get too excited, you lose control that way. Remember you need to stay two steps ahead of your opponent. Masamune, you do the same thing; a single point. Kid, what's your name?" I said crossing my arms across my chest.
"The name's King…why should I listen to you?" King asked getting angry. I held up my Beyblade.
"The name is Aki Hagane, and this is my Beyblade, Earth Cygnus 145WD. Once you finish this battle, how about I show you how it's really done?" I said smirking at the boy. I could see the color drain from Masamune's face when I issued my challenge, actually most of the Japanese Bladers stopped to stare at me; they had all heard of only one Blader who used an Earth Cygnus.
Hang on, you're the Ki of the Mountains, the Angel with Swan Wings?" Kyoya asked looking at me after winning his battle with Benkei. I forgot that both Kyoya and Benkei were a few years younger than me and Tsubasa.
"It's not the, it's a KI of the mountains. And the only reason she was called that is because DJ Blader couldn't read Aki's handwriting on her first tournament application." Tsubasa said as he came to wrap his arms around my waist before laying his chin on my right shoulder; I tilted my head to the left before laying my hands over his letting everyone see the engagement ring.
"I was nine years old, how many nine-year-olds do you know that have clear handwriting? And don't you dare say it," I said, not even looking at him, knowing what he was thinking.
"While I do have legible handwriting, if you want a list, let's see here: Madoka, Kenta, Gingka, Hyouma, Kyoya…should I continue?" Tsubasa listed off a few names.
"Cross off Gingka and Hyouma because they had worse handwriting than mine. We don't know about Kenta's handwriting at the age of nine since he didn't start applying for tournaments until the age of ten. Madoka, we do have an application from her at the age of nine which was barely legible. Kyoya didn't show up until the age of eleven but I've found some samples of his handwriting and it was pretty bad. My point again is that most nine-year-olds don't have very legible handwriting. You are probably the only one other than Julian that I can think of that had legible handwriting at the age of nine." I said crossing out everyone on his list except for Julian.
"There they go again. Mama, how about you settle this disagreement the only way you two know how, a Beybattle. Plus, you two have been putting off that rematch for the last seven years," Yu said crossing his arms over his chest. I looked over at Tsubasa before nodding my head.
"He has a point; we could settle this argument and have our rematch once and for all," I smiled at him.
"You're on," Tsubasa said as he unwrapped his arms from my waist. I smiled before moving over to the arena that Kyoya and Benkei had been using. I walked around the circumference of the arena and held out my hand. Tsubasa shook it like he always did.
"3, 2, 1; let it rip!" We counted down before launching our beys. Cygnus and Eagle began their fierce battle for the center of the arena. Cygnus won. I shifted my weight off of my left leg and held out my left arm.
"Cygnus let's show everyone what we are made of. Special Move: Dance of the Black Swan Odile." I said with a wave of my hand in a crescendo, letting the melody of the song that sprang from my heart and my Blader's spirit take over. To me it was like I was conducting an orchestra. My hands rising and falling with the tempo that only I could hear. With every rise and fall of my hand my Bey either hit or dodged Eagle.
Tsubasa called out as he crossed his arms in front of him and then straightened them out to his sides. "Shining Tornado Buster!"
"Cygnus counter stance… now special move Tear of Sorrow," I countered.
"Not fair you used Eagle Move again," Tsubasa said, putting his hands on his hips. I started laughing finally relaxing for the first time in seven years. I could feel my Blader Spirit burning brighter with every hit. I was having so much fun that I was about to burst.
Tsubasa said, "Eagle counter stance!" As Eagle started wobbling. While Cygnus was still running strong.
"Cygnus, time to wrap this up; Special Move, Final Migration. Send Eagle flying," I said, holding my hand out in front of me. Ending our match right then and there, Eagle flew out of the arena and landed on the ground at Tsubasa's feet, who fell to his knees upset that he had lost again. I called Cygnus back to my hand, before moving around the arena and held out my hand to my opponent. Not only to help him up but also to shake his hand.
"The perfect image of sportsmanship. Shaking hands both before and after a battle. All bladers should take a page out of her book," my father said as he came into the room with the Beylin Fist bladers behind him along with the guy from earlier.
Dynamis, the Legendary Blader of Jupiter, with his Beyblade, Jade Jupiter, said, "Thank you for taking care of the legendary bladers while they were allied with Nemesis." He bowed his head before holding out his bey. I rolled my eyes before fainting; totally out of shape from not battling for a long time.