𝕓𝕖 𝕞𝕪 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 | 𝔽𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕕.𝕝.𝕙.

Sunrise-Chapter four

The sun was rising.

Ravlynne watched the sun blooming in the horizon, fiery petals spreading outwards into the rich blue of the morning sky, streaking it with pale pink clouds. 

The rest of the members of BC Sol had just woken up and stumbled down into the cafeteria. After a quick breakfast, they gathered in the training room, where Trad and Kristina were waiting. 

Ravlynne leant inconspicuously against a wall in a corner of the room, spinning her bey with her fingers. She had gone upstairs to take Karaginn from her dresser while the others were still eating.

Trad raised a hand to quieten the club. 

"Team, listen up. The World League is in a few weeks. This is our chance to claim the title we've been aiming for: The number one beyblade club in the world. We will be sending out a team of five people, three bladers and two substitutes in case anyone falls sick or gets injured. None of your places on the team are guaranteed except for Free-"

At this point, everyone craned their necks to look for their captain, who, of course, was nowhere to be found. Trad shot an I-told-you look at Kristina, who rubbed her forehead exasperatedly.

 "Anyone knows where Free is? He needs to be here." She asked the team. Most of the members shook their heads and looked around, as if expecting him to suddenly materialise out of nowhere.

 Rantaro rolled his eyes in an exaggerated manner and took out another lollipop to pop into his mouth. Ravlynne said nothing, only quietly exited the training room, leaving the rest of the team befuddled.

"Where's she going?"

"How does she know where he is?"

"She'll never find him. We've tried that before."

Ravlynne took no notice of the less-than-encouraging remarks of her teammates. She left the building through the back door and crossed the garden, brushing a few low-hanging leaves aside as she entered the forest. 

She immediately saw that there was a narrow trail in front of her, and fresh footprints were etched into the dirt. Ravlynne walked towards the trail.

After around ten minutes of brisk walking, Ravlynne arrived at a clearing. There was an ancient-looking, half crumbling stone bey stadium with an arena in it. 

Free was training by it, crouching to find the perfect angle to launch his bey. He looked up upon hearing Ravlynne's footsteps. There was hardly any change in his expression, but he was both surprised and nervous at her arrival.

"Kristina's looking for you. She wants you there for the tryouts for the European League, though your spot's been  confirmed." 

Ravlynne told Free. He nodded, straightened and put Fafnir back into his pocket, making it a point to avoid eye contact with her. 

Normally, his deadpan stare made other people uncomfortable. But this time, he was scared of her eyes. He was afraid that if they looked at him, she would be able to see straight through him into his mind and how much of a wreck he was at that moment.

Ravlynne noticed his tautness and smiled in an attempt to diffuse the tension. She felt a little sorry for ignoring him previously. "You needn't look so anxious. I won't tell them about your secret hiding spot."

Free finally raised his eyes to meet Ravlynne's. The serious look she used to wear vanished entirely when she smiled. 

The sunlight filtered through the leaf canopy, spreading its hazy glow over everything. Threads of light wove themselves through her raven hair, edging it with gold. He had no doubt now that her smile could light up a whole room, heck, it was as radiant as the Sun itself and as bright to him as an ember in the dark.