Beyblade Burst Adventures

Funtime is Over, Part Two

In which things at the Fun Pit quickly begin to grow darker, and Gold Eye becomes a prime target of hatred...

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Everything is in order, aside from the Hero missing from the arcade. Everyone is asking about him, and no one is happy about his absence, myself included. I dread having to tell Ashtem when/if he comes downstairs, but I can't punish Red Eye for lying and then turn around and do the same thing.

But it's after noon, and so far Ashtem hasn't shown any sign of coming out. This might be one of his more reclusive days, which would be fine by me for once. I know deep down that he won't be happy with me for punishing Red Eye like this, mainly because he was so upset with himself already...

I sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose and shaking my head. Focus, Gold Eye. He'll be very unhappy when he comes out of the repair room, but it's what he needs. He cracked a gun that was supposed to be unbreakable. If he's so thrown he's breaking things out of frustration, he needs to take some time off. The last thing I want is to see him be scrapped.

I nod to myself and press on, maneuvering through the arcade and checking up on everything. Every kid I ask is having fun, playing games and winning prizes. As I move further and further, they even begin to ask about Red Eye less.

At one point I'm in a bright yet empty corner of the arcade, looking out the window at the parking lot. The sun shines down on the pavement and the cars, heat waves shimmering in the distance. Most of the parking lot is filled, save for one space reserved for an orange minivan that smells like bread.

I'm not especially close to the Aoi family, but they've been coming here for six long years with very little breaks, so I am quite fond of them. Valt knows our rules so well he's practically a Masked Hero himself, his mother is incredibly kind and understanding, and his siblings are some of the sweetest yet sassiest kids who come here, it's always brighter with the Aoi family around.

... Why am I thinking like I'll never see any of them again? The twins and Miss Chiharu are still going to visit, and Valt will just be gone for the summe, then he'll be back and everything will go back to normal. I just have to keep Red Eye from self-destructing until then. It's my job as the team leader, after all.

"Hey, Gold Eye!" A little girl chirps behind me, and I turn to face her.

"Oh, hello there. What can I do for you?"

She smiles, bouncing on the balls of her feet and looking at the ground almost shyly. "Um... Ummm... Could you sign my notebook, please?"

"Of course." I chuckle, kneeling in front of her. She pulls out a notebook with a dragon design on it, and a pen filled with rainbow ink. She flips it open, going through several pages before she lands on one. "Here it is!" She hands me the pen and I nod, signing the spot she indicates. "And... Um... I know you guys don't like sharing your names, but could you at least tell me a smidge?"

"A smidge?" I ask, unable to help my grin. "Like my initials?" She nods and I pause, pretending to think it over a bit. "Weeeelllll, if it was anyone else I'd turn them down... But since I know you come in all the time and talk to me every single day, I'll make an exception. But-" I cross my arms, smiling at her. "You have to tell me the first letter of your first name."

She nods eagerly, holding the book to her chest. "The first letter of my first name is B! And my friends call me BB!"

"BB, huh? That's really cool." I reply, tipping my head forward a bit. "Well, my initials are NT."

"NT..." She hums, opening her book and writing it down. The N is backwards, but it's kind of cute. Kids always have interesting handwriting quirks- like how when Valt was little he always wrote his E's backwards.