The Forgotten Days

Waist deep in a pool at a prestigious hotel one blond teen was not happy at all. Standing in swim trunks he had a long pole in his hand and was doing his best to scrub the bottom of the hotel pool without sliding deeper into the water. It wasn't that he minded water it was just he wasn't in the mood to wash up but this was his job. It wasn't something he really enjoyed either but to pay for everything he needed he needed to work. Employed by the Xian Wu hotel in Beijing the American born boy was very careful not to mess up.

The American Japanese was not a normal teen in the least despite his appearance at first glance. Commonly referred to as 'puppy' by his friends and 'mutt' by his enemies some would wonder as to the reasons. Perhaps it was because of his soft brown eyes or golden hair that could give him an almost canine-like look, or his loyal personality, but if one knew the truth they would know it was because the teen was not human. Buried in his hair were a pair of soft ears covered with golden fur. One of a few remaining of a race called Inu-jins the boy was far more fortunate than the rest of his race. They could not pass as humans as he could.

But the deep truth was deep down the teen was bitter.

"Katsuya Jonouchi, finish that pool now!"

At the yell his head snapped up, eyes focusing on his boss, a strong looking man in a six piece suit that treated his employees like filth. Jonouchi only nodded as he got back to work before crawling out of the water. He still had rooms to clean before check in time and then tables to bus in the restaurant and orders to take. He would work until well after lunch and then training would begin.

A part of him really wanted to just ditch this but he knew as a fact that it wouldn't be happening. Work was unfortunately a required evil. The hours dragged on slowly until finally he was finished with his shift and he started to head back to an old abandoned building his species, his team, had once called home. With hands stuffed into his pockets the blond inu-jin glanced around the streets, each step taken cautiously. He was accustomed to the dangers of the street and he never went very far unarmed.

Maybe others wouldn't look twice at him but most of the time on the way home from work he didn't trust anyone. In his uniform he was just too much of a target but when he managed to change his clothes it wasn't much better. Jonouchi was trying to make an honest living but many knew him on the streets from one of the local gangs. He had been the arrogant second, the muscle, the enforcer, and some things never changed.

Despite a somewhat happy life Jonouchi couldn't help but feel something was missing, an absence deep in his heart. Deep down he missed his lover and missed the team he had once been part of but he was supposed to be healing from a health condition. His life was great and so was blading but it always felt as if something more was calling to him. But he would worry about that at a different time.

Suddenly Jonouchi froze and the brown eyes flickered towards the alley behind him. He knew he had heard something, and what's more was that he smelled something. It was apparent to him that someone was following him and though they were stealthy enough to avoid human detection Jonouchi was not a normal human.

Turning around his eyes searched the dark alley before pausing, tilting his head towards the sound of breathing. "You might as well come on out," he finally called out after stretching his shoulders, sore from a full day. He wasn't in the mood for dealing with anyone that wanted a piece of him. As his mind tracked there was a groan, trying to figure out who it could be. The local street kids and gangs tended to attack rather than skulk around and the scent was human so he couldn't blame any of the Predatorials.

Turning his head he finally noticed the other blond in the shadows, standing taller than him however the inu-jin just tensed slightly. Deep down he knew that this man had been following him. Jonouchi had no idea why but he knew something had to be done. He couldn't just let him go about his ways.

However before he could say anything he heard a hushed voice from the corner. His stalker seemed to be arguing with someone, perhaps on the phone since Jonouchi didn't smell anyone else nearby. It was hushed even to his ears but he had picked up the words 'tournament', 'Jin', and then some sort of refusal. The brown eyes focused as he stepped towards the sound and saw the man in the shadow. He wasn't much taller than Jonouchi was himself and he looked up, blond hair falling into his face as brown met silver.

Jonouchi dropped into a hunched position, eyes focusing on the man as he stepped out, shutting the cell phone before stepping closer to the inu-jin. "You need to leave," he spoke in an even voice, his eyes lingering on the teen before him. He didn't say anything other than that but watched closely as Jonouchi tensed.

"Who do you think you are, ordering me around? This is my town so get lost," a growl escaped and Jonouchi stretched his muscles but it didn't seem this man was in for a physical fight. Rather than throw the first punch he fired his beyblade towards Jonouchi's feet.

There was a narrowing of brown eyes and a leap back before a black beyblade appeared in the inu-jin's hands. The black top was forced into the launcher and released before the other male could recover from the shock, Jonouchi steadying himself as the beyblade followed his movements, skidding forward as he brought his fist to bear against his opponent. Each strike was matched by his beyblade, sparks flying with each impact.

"I've come to invite you to a tournament hosted by a man named Jin. Don't enter, that's all I can tell you." The silver eyes seemed to plead with Jonouchi but the inu-jin snorted in response to that. He didn't know why this man was trying to chase him off, only that if there was a tournament there was no way he was backing out.

"If you think I'm backing out…" it began as a threat, a growl in Jonouchi's voice however whatever he was about to threaten was cut off by the ringing of his cell phone. With his attention split for a moment the man was gone and Jonouchi gaped for a moment before grabbing his phone.

"Jonouchi? I need to ask you a favor."

The blond froze at the voice, one that he hadn't heard for quite some time and one he never expected to hear asking him a favor and despite becoming somewhat friends since the heart attack he had never bothered to ask anything of Rei, or Rei anything of him. "I'm listening," he said, finally finding his voice again.

Rei wasn't sure about this Adam character and he really didn't like Hitoshi but telling Takao either of his worries was out of the question. Hitoshi was Takao's brother and Adam was like a second brother to him and had trained Kai. Any concerns he had would have been completely ignored. So instead Rei had dialed the one number he never thought he would use and waited for the owner of the number to pick up. There was one last Bladebreaker, perhaps the only one he could turn to.

Holding his breath Rei finally released it when the other answered and hadn't hung up. He had fully expected the other to hang up on him without a question since they had never been on exactly good terms. However he couldn't turn to any of the others with these concerns. Since Max seemed to know and trust Adam he couldn't turn to Kyouju or Daichi.

It wasn't that Rei didn't want Max to be happy as the American boy seemed almost melancholy since Daichi had left. He didn't need to ask why since he knew he would not be much better if he had been separated from Takao. Usually he would turn to Kai with these concerns since the Russian always seemed to be there when he needed a good talk but he couldn't this time.

"Could you come to Japan?"

There was a pause and Rei could hear a sigh from the other side of the line. He really hated to put the other teen in this situation, especially since they had never gotten along, but at this moment he didn't have much of a choice.

"I'll come, but this better be good Kon. You know I’m supposed to be healing."

"I’ll deal with Kai’s wrath. Jonouchi… why don't you call me by my first name ever?"

There was another pause and Rei could tell that Jonouchi was trying to find a way to answer this one. It was an understatement to say that they didn't get along the best, having been at odds for many years however when he needed him Jonouchi had been there. If compared to Takao and Kai, Jonouchi would be the Kai to his Takao. A talented blader in his own right he had always been there to push Rei further.

"You don't either," Jonouchi finally said and a slight laugh escaped Rei.

"You don't even let your sister call you by your first name. I'll order you a ticket; just make sure you don't miss it this time."

"It was your fault last time! I'll be there… Rei, and remember, you said you’d keep Kai off my back about showing up."

Hanging up Rei gave a sigh as he placed a call to order a plane ticket and just told them to put it on his tab. From China, Rei had made many plane trips from one country to another. At the very least he was certain Kai would be happy, once he got over the blatant disobedience.

They were meeting in Takao's grandfather's dojo and had all gathered there. Takao really wanted to see what Adam was capable of and get on with his training. They would all be training together just like in the old days and the prospect excited him. It had been since they had defeated BEGA together.

Kai took out his launcher, a newer design he made to help him gain greater speed. He took out Dranzer next, loading up his beyblade. Adam did the same thing, taking out his old beyblade and launcher. Both bladers launched their blades into the dish, clashing against each other. The young Russian gazed down, seeing his former coach was different. He held an equal edge, but the other wasn't the same. It was the style, like it was really rusty. 'Adam said he did practice, but not like he used to…He's gotten weaker, but in spirit…The way he's dishing it out, it's like Tyson's level when he first faced me,' Kai noted in his mind.

Max watched the battle, observing what could change in Adam's style and gear. He had called up Kyouju earlier before leaving the arcade, and the brunet would be right over. The blonde Japanese American smiled slightly, seeing Adam at least managed to counter Kai's frontal attack.

Adam licked his lips, feeling a bit excited about beyblading against his former student. It had been five years, mostly because he was doing something outside of beyblading. Although he carried around Aster to remember the good times he had with Hitoshi. When he saw Hitoshi on TV, he was ecstatic to see his best friend still alive. He was working at the time, and wished he could visit his old friend. Today, when he saw Hitoshi talk to his brother like he was belittling him, he knew he couldn’t allow the older bluenette to continue that tone.

Soon the battle was over, with Adam catching his beyblade. Kai had obviously suppressed him in many ways and he had missed his friend's progress. "I'm obviously rusty, aren't I?" He asked Kai.

Kai's crimson eyes focused on Adam, catching Dranzer and placed the blade back into the pocket of his pants. "You're not off, but it's going to be awhile to get you back to the powerhouse level. We'll all train you."

Soon Kyouju arrived, panting heavily. He wasn't the same kid the G-Revolutions saw him physically as anymore. The small brunet finally hit his growth spurt, becoming a toned and tall young man who stood about 5'5". He still had the same hairstyle, but wore glasses to reveal his stunning brown eyes. He wore a light blue dress shirt buttoned up, a dark gray tie, slim khaki pants, some pens tucked in his pocket pouch, and brown leather shoes. "I came as fast as I could," he breathed.

Max chuckled, gesturing Adam to come meet Kyouju, the resident beyblade whiz. "It's all good. Anyway, this is Adam Banks… He's Hitoshi's former teammate and friend." He introduced Kyouju to the tall raven haired teen. "Adam, meet Kyouju, our friend and expert in fixing, analyzing, and inventing new blades."

Kyouju chuckled, blushing slightly and rubbed the back of his head. "Oh Max, I appreciate the honesty, but your mom is the real wiz," he assured. He knew his skills were good, but he was modest about his intelligence. When he heard Max say that Adam was a friend and former teammate to Hitoshi, he instantly shook the other blader's hand. "It's an honor to meet you Adam. I didn't think Hitoshi had any friends or was on a team."

Adam smiled, laughing slightly as he shook the other boy's hand. "Well, I'm surprised that he actually coached Takao," he said. He wouldn't go into details about it, but Hitoshi always talked about training his little brother in beyblading, and how awesome it would be to pass down his knowledge to him.

Takao was leaning back against Rei's back, nestled against the other as he smiled. "By the way, a friend of mine is visiting," he said, glancing towards Takao.

"Rai?" Takao glanced over at him, wondering which one of Rei's friends would be visiting. It wouldn't be unusual for Rai to visit them, given how close Rei and Rai were.

"No," he shook his head. "Jonouchi."

Takao paused for a minute at that. He wouldn't have used the word 'friend' to describe the relationship he had seen when they had been a part of the China tournament but things could change as the two seemed to have warmed up during the Justice Five tournament. He remembered Jonouchi and his team had certainly caught their attention and the blond had even joined the Bladebreakers for that first tournament and had been a member of their team since then. However Rei and Jonouchi's relationship had always been icy at best.

The others had glanced over at Rei upon hearing this, Max grinning for a moment. "We're going to have more guests?" Turning back he flashed a grin at Adam. "Just wait until you meet him. This is going to be great!"

Adam watched his student only to see Kai fidget with his scarf. That caused him to pause and frown for a moment, wondering if there was something he was missing. Why was Kai acting the way he was?

Takao couldn't help but grin as he saw Kai's reaction. He had known Kai would make frequent trips to China in order to be with Jonouchi since they had gotten back together before the Justice Five tournament against the BEGA bladers. He had always thought Jonouchi to be good for Kai, his easy going manner enough to cheer up the stoic Russian most the time and despite all that had happened to him Jonouchi always seemed to be happy.

Pushing himself up Takao grinned. "Well we might as well meet him. When's the plane coming in?"

Rei couldn't help but shrug slightly in response. He had figured Jonouchi would find the way back to the dojo without any problems. Grabbing him Takao hauled Rei to his feet. "Come on guys, we're going to the airport!"

Jonouchi had figured that no one would be there to meet him. After all he still wasn't that close to Rei, even after they had reached an understanding, and only he knew he was coming in. However the inu-jin was pleasantly surprised as he glanced around only to be met by several familiar faces. Max was jumping around and waving his arms as Kyouju looked ready to escape. Takao was right next to Rei and then Jonouchi's eyes focused on the one he wanted to see the most. As soon as their eyes met he felt his heart skip a beat.

But their reunion would be a short one as Takao rushed over and slapped him on the back, Jonouchi noticing that another person was there.

"Jonouchi!" Takao yelled with a huge grin, wrapping his arms around his friend. The blond slapped him on the back before grinning at the others, wrapping arms around Kyouju and Max before finally letting them go. Pausing for a minute he gave Rei a brief nod before the neko-jin went to Takao's side, leaving Kai there in front of Jonouchi.

"You've grown, again" Kai said as he shifted a little, staring down at the ground.

"So have you," he could remember a time when Kai had been taller than him but he had grown a great deal in the past year or two. They now had reached about the same height again. His brown eyes locked on Kai for a moment, stepping closer.

"Just kiss already!" Takao was leaning against the wall, a giant grin on his lips as Jonouchi's grin turned to match his, taking a step forward and pressing his lips against the Russian's.

Kai was shocked to say the least but then relaxed into the touch, pulling Jonouchi closer and feeling the arms encircle his waist. Jonouchi didn't care about the stares they received, just that he was with his lover.

Adam had stiffened slightly, shocked at seeing the kiss at first but then recovered enough to notice the new teen's ears, or more precisely the fact that he had two sets. The first was slightly pointed like Rei's however the second were almost disguised in his hair, floppy and covered in golden fur.

He had seen those attributes once before and he instantly knew what Jonouchi was. He hadn't thought he would have seen another inu-jin again, having never seen another since the last he fought side by side with. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable in the presence of Jonouchi, just that he was shocked to see another of the race out in public. He had been nearly certain that they were nearly extinct.

As soon as Jonouchi drew back Kai looked over his shoulder to give Takao a glare, the bluenette just shrugging and doing his best not to laugh.

"Adam… this is Katsuya Jonouchi, the fifth Bladebreaker. Jonouchi, meet Adam Banks," Takao said with one arm wrapped around his middle, which was currently aching from laughing too hard.

Jonouchi nodded as he held out his hand. "Nice to meet you," he said as Adam slowly reached out a hand. Even if he had been completely used to non-humans it was still a little unnerving to see another inu-jin.

Turning away from Adam he flashed a grin. "You guys won't believe what happened to me on the way home from work…"

"Work?" The tone was icy and Kai stood there, arms crossed over his chest. "You were sent back to China to recuperate, not work."

"Kai… I'm fine…"

Adam blinked for a minute, wondering what the hell was going on as Takao, Max, Rei, and Kyouju held back barely contained laughter. "Looks like another lover's quarrel is coming," Max said but then glanced back and saw Adam's look of confusion.

"Lover's quarrel?" He asked, starting at Kai for a minute, wondering what he had missed in the last several years.