Ray quickly lowered his eyes to his plate, feeling terribly flustered. This was the was the fourth time he was caught staring at Mariah. Well, the fourth time she actually caught him doing it. He felt horribly stupid as he felt intense her gaze on him, suppressing her laugh at his expense. 

He tried concentrating on his Aunt Rosa's words, muttering a 'yeah' here and there, as she continued telling him of her Floral Studio, but he didn't register much. He had to consciously restrain his eyes from going back to Mariah. 

It wasn't exactly his fault, you see. When Mariah had first arrived at Tokyo, nearly ten days ago,  she looked just like the girl he remembered. Her golden eyes, her cat-like smile, her pale pink outfit clashing terribly against her hair. Her hot-pink, extremely-long hair free to sway in the wind, her favourite bandana holding it back. 

She had expressed her wish to blend into the city world, now that she was sure that she was staying here for a pretty long time. And our over-enthusiastic aunt had given her a complete make-over. Sitting at his left, Mariah wore a plain white top and a black jeans. Her hair was no longer as long as it used to be, but they could still be considered long by normal standards, reaching her elbows. She wore it into an updo these days. The only jewellery she had on was a small pendent of a curled-up cat in black and gold.

******

It was the first gift he had given her just after the First World Championship he had won as a Blade-breaker, exactly a month before they started dating each other. Yes, they had been dating each other for more than half an year now. When Mariah had confessed of her crush on him at the Asian tournament, he hadn't  known what to do about it. He had promised her that she was very much one of the most important people in his life, and that was all he had thought about her till then. 

In his complete dedication and devotion to his goal till then, he had never thought about his romantic interests like a fifteen-year-old teen normally would . Only when he returned to the village, finally achieving his dream of becoming the world champion, did he realise that he very much reciprocated her feelings. 

He'll admit it, he had completely freaked out. Things had finally started looking good for him and the white tigers, both the team and the village. They were very much ready to accept him back into the clan, even though he had run away more than a year ago. But they had withheld judgement whether he would be the next Village Chief or not, which was fine by him. Another year of carefree life according to him. 

The team had slowly accepted him as a friend again, the first one being Lee. Mariah had once again started being her old fierce self in his presence, which was what he loved the most in her. Though there weren't any restrictions on dating people in his clan, as long as they were of the same village, or a relative of the villagers, but he hadn't wanted to strain his friendship with Lee, Mariah's elder brother and his best friend, as he didn't clearly know whether he favoured them together or not.  And he definitely didn't want things to go back to awkward between himself and Mariah again. 

So he did the first thing that came to his mind. He sought his friends' permission to ask his sister out. He had never seen Lee laugh so hard. He had felt incredibly stupid standing there,  waiting for Lee to gain control, all the time blaming Tyson for rubbing his stupidity on him. Lee wouldn't let him hear the end of it for a week. Finally, he had gained his blessings. 

Asking Mariah out was a lot simpler. They had casually been talking at one of their favorite waterfalls during a picnic. He had been in the middle of explaining their encounter with the 'Dark-bladers' when he had suddenly taken her hand and confessed his feelings. She had reciprocated his feelings without a hint of hesitation. She had looked highly flustered later on, when they announced their relationship status and Lee told her about their previous encounter, despite Ray's pleading and furious glares. 

Things had grown quite and pleasant after that. He spent most of his time teaching the younger kids, both of their village and the other nearby ones, how to beyblade, much to the elders' displeasure on the latter. He studied at a community school as well as with their Village Chief Taro, and spent the rest of his time with his friends and girlfriend. 

He did miss the Blade-breakers terribly, but he was content with his life as it was then. Due to his village's isolation from the rest of the world, keeping contact with them had been quite difficult and he had only managed to exchange a few letters with them. Three to each of the members. 

He had received three back again from both Max and Kenny. Tyson had replied back twice, after apologizing for procrastinating to write him back the second time to such an extent that Ray had already sent his third letter. He had received no replies from the Phoenix wielder, much to his frustration and worry. So much for being the closest to him. 

*****

With Joseph of the Saint Shields seeking for a bey-battle with him, his departure from the White Tiger Hills had hastened. Surprisingly, both Lee and the elders had been expecting him for this, and as a parting gift from the latter, he had once again been nominated for the next Chieftain. "Grow as high as you can son," Chief Taro had said. "Bring glory to our clan, inspire the world. But do remember your roots. This is where your strength lies, this is where you will end up at the end of it all."

Mariah, the one person whom he thought understood him the most, had not been expecting him to leave again. She had been visibly upset, having taken it as a personal betrayal. When Ray had tried reasoning with her, things had gotten ugly, and if not for Lee stepping in between them, a bey-battle to destruction would have taken place. 

Mariah had thrown away the pendent he had given her and Ray had left deeply upset over the whole drama. He hadn't dared mention about himself and Mariah, as he knew that Max and Tyson would never let him hear the end of it, when there wasn't anything to let go itself. He had honestly thought they were over until she had made her surprise debut to the hospital with them. 

She had immediately apologized. After an heart-to-heart conversation with her at the dojo before coming there, they had mended ties and were ready to start anew. 

"Are you done gazing at my niece, Ray?" Questioned a smirking Aunt Rosa. Mariah had to cover her mouth to control her laugh as Ray's ears turned red in embarrassment. His aunt and Mariah exchanged a high-five as he stuttered, "N-no Aunt Ros-sa.. Just th-inking." He tried taking another bite with his chopsticks, only to discover the bowl was empty. Glad for a change of topic, he asked "Could I get some rice, Aunt Rosa? 

"Of course, dear." said his aunt smiling serenely. He already liked their new champoeneer (feel free to correct the spelling). 

Aunt Rosa, or Miss Rosa Wong to others, was in her early fifties, though she looked quite younger with the lack of wrinkles. Her black hair came just below her shoulders, slightly peppered with grey strands which she did no attempt to hide. She was dressed in a full length skirt and blouse, an apron tied over it,  like she usually does. She smelled of the Marigold and Tulips, after a long day of work at the Floral Studio downstairs. 

She was a long lost relative of both Ray and Mariah. Her parents united the Kon clan to the Wong clan through marriage more than half-a-century ago. They had moved out of the village shortly after, hoping to find new opportunities to grow and start a new life. 

Rosa was born in a small town North of the city Yokohama. She was a child of the modern world from the very beginning. Her parents never tried binding her to the codes of the village, which was a lot sticker then. She was a dual citizenship holder, with both of her parents being Chinese, while she was born in Japan. She completed her studies in Yokohama, obtaining a fashion designing degree at the end. She moved to Tokyo in search of opportunities for her career. Throughout her life, she had been to the white tiger hills only a handful number of times. Yet, she proudly declared that there was no paradise which could outshine it's natural wilderness beauty. 

She was a wonderful companion, the perfect person to go to when in doubt about the outer world. For the past three days, she had been giving them a workshop-kind of sessions for learning to blend in among teenagers. He did know a good deal of it, having been outside the village for the last two years. But Mariah wasn't so lucky. She had a lot to catch up with,  but it didn't bother Ray as much as it bothered Aunt Rosa. 

Ray had assured her that Mariah's fierce personality, her motto of girl power, her bubbly innocence, her wittiness and confidence were more than enough to make up for her lack of modern-day etiquettes. Though secretly, as he once again risked a glance at Mariah's makeover, he was selfishly scared that the Mariah he liked might change at the end of it all. 

"Get going now. I'll clean up the dishes today. You both have a wonderful day ahead of you." said his aunt, shooing them away. They both obliged, since they were pretty tired out.

As they exited the room together, Mariah interlaced her fingers with his. Ray smiled back. "I do look like myself, don't I?" she asked, fiddling with a long strand of her hair. Ray took a deep breath. She smelled of orchids today, a plus point of dating a girl who worked at a Floral Studio. "Of course you do! No amount of make over can curtain the Mariah I love." Ray assured her, feeling quite happy that she trusted him enough to confide in him. "But I doubt your own brother would recognize you, forget the rest!"

Mariah playfully punched him, a playful glint in her eyes. "I know. And I have an excellent way to re-introduce myself." Ray did not like the sound of it, and must have shown it by his frown. "Oh,  don't look at me like that," she chided, slightly pinching his nose. But before he could voice out his concerns, she closed the deal with a kiss.  

Mariah cupped his face in her hands and Ray her her by her waist. Three months ago, the only romantic gestures they dared showed one another were holding hands and sharing long hugs, that too when they were strictly alone. But his aunt had been encouraging a bit more of PDA among themselves to fit in among other teenagers.  

He had no idea whether she was a good kisser or not, nor did he know whether he was a good kisser or not. He didn't know whether this was the feeling his aunt expressed as 'a thousand butterflies fluttering in his stomach', but he did feel giddy with excitement. But their upbringing of conservatism would only stretch so much. The kiss broke up soon. Mariah was blushing just as much as him, but both couldn't hide their silly smiles. "Goodnight" Ray muttered as he headed for the stairs, as his room was in the second floor. Mariah just winked at him, her hand on the door knob to her door, which was just beside Aunt Rosa's on the first floor. 

And all he could think of until he fell asleep was, 'Change couldn't be so bad after all..'

******

Max's confusion persisted for exactly half-a-second before his eyes widened in realization. It was soon replaced with anger, betrayal and hurt so strong and deeply suppressed, he didn't know it was still present until that minute.

Max generally prided himself for keeping his cool and forgiving people easily. He had always held the policy on 'no grudges'. But this was not such a time. His hands trembled with anger as his grip on the envelope increased. A humourless laugh escaped his lips. "So, it was all about this, wasn't it? What did you think? Give me a cake, throw me a party, and I'll forget everything?!! Tuck my tail between my legs and follow you guys back to All Starz!!" he screamed.

"Wha-? no!!! Don't mix them all up Maxy-" Michael hastened to clarify, but Max cut him off right there. "Don't you even dare call me Maxy!" Michael asked his hands in surrender and continued, "They have been planning this surprise for you for almost a week now, kid. None of them know anything about it. Not even your mother, I swear. Heck,  I myself didn't know of it until today morning.!!" Michael exclaimed, pinched his throat. Max found himself replaying everything he could remember of, from the party, searching for any exceptions. 

Sure, they all had been slightly awkward at first, but that could be easily attributed to their previous encounters and lack of a personal level of contact between them all. He found himself thinking of Alan's bubbling happiness and Emily's genuine concern for him, and immediately felt ashamed of even doubting those two. He begrudgingly had to accept that Michael was really telling the truth.

Max was spurred out of his thoughts when Michael continued. "Look kid, weren't you the one telling Emily about how wrong it is to judge Hiwatari based on Voltaire?"

"How much did you listen to?" Max demanded, as he did not like people who evassdrop, and Michael was just an expert in it. "Enough to get the gist of it all. In the very same way, stop judging All Starz based on what Douglas did or rather didn't do alright? How much ever you claim Hiwatari is different from his grandfather, maybe he is, maybe he isn't, but that doesn't matter. At the end of the day, he has to tuck his tail between his legs and follow him, doesn't he?"

Max was left highly unsettled at Michael's comparison. He felt like pulling his hair out of his head, screaming in frustration. Instead, he crossed his arms, desperately trying to keep the treacherous tears at bay. "Out, Micheal." he managed to whisper-tell.

******

Michael Summers could have persisted. Could have waited till Max forgave them all for the misdeeds they never did. But he let go. He had done his best to try repair the damaged ties, but it needed abundance of time, something neither of the parties wanted to invest in.

He headed to the front door, wearing his sports shoes on the way. Just before Max could slam the door in his face, Michael tips his cap down and said, "Whatever happens Max, it will always be an honor to get to know you, and would be a greater honour to to have you on our side as we claim the world championships to ourselves the next year."

The only response he received was a door slammed in his face. Michael sighed, he hated himself to have spoiled the night for Max, but he couldn't think of any other time to give him that letter, since they were leaving within the next six hours. 

If he had given him before the party, he wouldn't have attended it at all. He hadn't want to create a scene for Max at the airport either, since both the 'White Tigers' and the 'Blade-breakers' would be present. And The Secretory had explicitly mentioned the need for secrecy, so he couldn't let the 'All Starz' know either. Michael bitterly wondered why the Secretory couldn't just mail it like normal people do. But of course, you don't question direct orders from him.

Michael whistled for a taxi and got into it. He had to admit, he hadn't thought that the pixish hyper-active blondie, who accompanied his momma everywhere she went, would grow up to become the 'two-time World Champion', a feat achieved by only a handful of bladers. Even then, his cocky self, the newest member of the 'All Starz', had liked the nine-year-old a lot, in an annoying sort of way. He revelled in the innocent boy's eyes as a hero without much effort for years. 

He truly began giving the kid more attention when he used to catch him practicing beyblading secretly. And Max had shown tremendous potential then too, having beaten Michael accidentally, key word 'accidentally', when he had been going far too easy on him during one of their secret matches. And all of this went on for more than two years, without Max's mother's notice. 

 He had kept his achievements limited to inter-school and intra-school competitions then, to keep it away from his mom's notice. He went on fake school trips and camping parties to compete in other cities, where he wouldn't catch his mother's attention. 

Those were the times when the whole beyblading world was still recovering from the shock of a seventeen-year-old, two-time World  Champion being defeated by a twelve-year-old in a bey-battle which barely lasted fifteen minutes. It had changed the whole perspective of dynamics between the 'age and the capabilities' of a bey-blader.

Max had taken up the alias 'Fritz', which meant the 'Peace King', which suited him perfectly, and tripled his efforts, new vigour coursing through the him, just like many other youngsters around the world, too young to be taken seriously until then. Suddenly, the whole world took them seriously, the whole world felt conquerable to them. Max won the New York's Championship tournament and a number of State Championship tournaments. 

The next year, at the age of twelve, Max finally decided that it was time to reveal his secret life to Mrs Tate. He applied for the All Starz team selection. Max easily passed the qualification with three others, among the hundred other  applicants. 

He won the first round against some kid whose name Michael couldn't remember, reaching the finals. Then he forfeited, or rather, was forced to forfeit, making a fourteen-year-old Emily the newest member of the team. 

But names weren't disclosed in the selection process until the winner was found, hence no one except Max, Mrs Tate and the Secretary of the state, Douglas, was supposed to know of the encounter, or rather a discussion they had. And naturally, Michael found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

Every time he remembered the heartbroken and utter disbelief look on the twelve-year-old Max or turned out to be the recipient of a cold look, like during the American championships, or an intense glare like today by a sweetheart child like Max, he wished he could stay oblivious like the rest of his teammates, oblivious like Max's  best friends Alan and Emily, who still believed that Max had voluntarily chosen to abandon the American team and join the Japanese team. 

Not that he was humiliatingly rejected, without even a fair chance to prove himself, for reasons he had no control over, for the most absurd reasons ever. Not that he had left US with all his hopes for professional beyblading crushed, only to stumble into the Japanese National Championships and Mr Dickenson by chance.

Michael sighed, things shouldn't have turned out this way, but there was no use dwelling on the past. It would take a lot for Max to even consider joining the All Starz again, if at all, but Michael held out to the hope. He was ready to do everything in his power to show that the all starz was worthy of him. 

Not because Douglas wanted that of him, but because the team needed that of him. Wrongs had to be set right. And as the captain, Michael believed that the addition was essential if he wanted to lead the All Starz to reach new heights, to reclaim the lost glory the oldest legally-established team once commanded across the world, to finally win the World Championship. 

******

Words: 3435

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PS1: Did you guys like the update? Just glance at the number of words!! How has the chemistry between Ray and Mariah come out? Are my Mariah fans happy with it? 

PS2:What do you think of Max's backstory? 

PS3: Sorry for the delay. I feel extremely happy seeing the number of people who asked for the update. I don't have the time at the moment to choose the right words, but I have something to tell you. Do expect my first author's note within the next few days. It will also tell you when you'll get your next chapter.  

Until then, don't worry. Just keep voting and commenting!! 

PS4: I have no idea why I ask so many questions, as I myself am too lazy to comment in other people's stories, but it would be wonderful if you take the pain. Trust me, your words truly mater when I'm struggling to continue at some point of the story,  and they are wonderful motivation boosters!! Even a thumbs up, or adding the book to your reading list would be enough for me!!