Disclaimer: I don’t own Beyblade.

I’m using the Japanese-version names:

Yuri = Tala    Giancarlo = Enrique  

Takao = Tyson     Mao = Mariah

Sergey = Spencer

Boris = Bryan

 

For All Who Gave Their Lives

 

Chapter 9: The Bright Side of Life

 

If life seems jolly rotten,

There's something you've forgotten,

And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.

When you're feeling in the dumps,

Don't be silly chumps.

Just purse your lips and whistle. That's the thing.

And...

Always look on the bright side of life.

[whistling]

Always look on the right side of life,

[whistling]

                                               (Monthy Python ‘Bright Side of Life’)

 

 Yuri sat in the main room of the inn and was finishing his breakfast. It was quite good for porridge cooked in industrial amounts. Takao was still asleep, which seemed usual for him. He could nod of during the worst storm.

-         Buon giorno! – somebody cheerfully said behind him. He turned around to meet the pixyish smile of Lucrezia.

-          здр'авствуйте! – he replied with a smirk. – Where’s your cousin?

-         Gianny just woke up. – she plopped on the opposite chair and took some of the porridge. – We don’t eat things like that for breakfast in Venezza.

-         Heh… I’m not used to such food either.

-         It isn’t bad. – she smiled and ate some more. – Where are we heading by the way? I forgot to ask yesterday.

-         Schloss Feuerweg. It’s about a week of way from here. – the half-elf replied.

-         Oh! I’m so happy I have Tiramisu!

-         Wha?!. – the redhead gave the young-woman a baffled look. – Tiramisu?

-         That’s my horse.

-         Uh… oh. – the warrior bit his lip. – And here I thought I’ll spare some money and won’t have to buy those.

 

Rei sighed. He should have thought of a name for his child earlier. Now his indecisiveness lead to one of the most terrifying things – a family gathering complete with the honorary family members – Kai and Gerda. His lord seemed quite unsatisfied, while the second mage kept her face indifferent.

-         You can name him Ryu. – suggested the brown-eyed noble, clearly wanting to get over with the whole mess quickly.

-         A son of the White Tiger Family? – Rei’s mother – who bore great resemblance to her second son, Rai – gasped indignantly.

-         Calm down, Ai-chan. – her husband soothed.

-         Why don’t you start calling your children like normal people? – chimed up Gerda. – A proper name like Rudolf or Rupert would do much better.

-         This is against tradition. – answered Ai promptly. – And one should always follow tradition.

 Gerda’s mouth twitched annoyedly, but there were no other signs irritation on her face.

-         Does it have to start with ‘r’? – asked Rai.

-         No, why? – Mao gave her husband’s man a bewildered look.

-         How about Amuro than?

-         That sounds nice. – agreed the pink-haired woman. – What do think Rei?

-         OK.

 

 Boris glared at Yuri. The damn half-breed has some ideas! Like he would ride a horse! Ri-di-ci-ou-lus!

-         Don’t be stupid. – the said half-elf said annoyedly. – It’ll be faster that way. And falling of a horse is more difficult than it seems… And the harness will be tied to my saddle.

 The thief only gave the horse a look as if he expected it to bite his head of any second. The horse was dark brown and seemed rather bored. Lucrezia was already seating on her brown mare with a yellowy mane and tail named Triamisu. Giancarlo had also mounted his white horse named Pegasus. Takao was gleefully feeding a carrot to a white one with black spots, which had been named Kaze. Sergey’s horse was the biggest – it was brown and wouldn’t look out of place pulling a big cart. It had been immediately named Tiny. Last but not least was Apple, who had been named so, because the only thing he was interested in were apples.

-         How are you going to name it? – the half-elf decided it’d be better to try another way. The thief gave him a disdainful look.

-         That’s stupid.

-         I can name it for you. – the redhead said with a shrug. – How ‘bout Carrot?

-         ‘Ne Möhre?! –the thief gaped at the warrior, who promptly shoved him on the horse’s back.

-         If you want it that way. It can be Nemöre, if you want.

 The thief groaned and changed his position so it wouldn’t be so uncomfortable – lying on saddle isn’t exactly ‘fun’. When he finally settled down, he glared at the red-haired warrior and mumbled something under his breath.

 

 A violet snake was slithering towards a dark menacing forest through thick grass. It was the same one Helga chose to kill the First Mage of Feuerweg. It stopped, just a few meters before the tree-line and raised its head, hissing. A small child-like figure appeared between the trees and also hissed. The snake nodded, as if it agreed with some statement. It slithered to the nearest sunlit rock and huddled it self contently. Suddenly both the snake and the forest seemed more cheerfully. Now, anyone could not notice the beauty of the magnificent trees. And yet there was a hidden sense of danger and oppression in the air.

 

 Yuri, Takao and Lucrezia were riding beside each other and chatting about various customs at their homes. Boris seemed very out of place on his horse, seating stiffly as if he expected to fall any moment. Surprisingly, Sergey could actually ride a horse, although it seemed he hadn’t done it for a while and wasn’t exactly used to the kind of harness they were using in Shafland. Giancarlo decided he had to use Varan one before. But Varans didn’t have horses – they used creatures known as Thestrals for locomotion. They were winged, horse-like lizards distantly related to viverns and dragon-kin. It seemed they could not survive outside Var and the Dragon Archipelago.

-         Mio amico, I wanted to ask you something. – the minstrel started.

-         Yea? – the sailor raised his eyebrows.

-         Are you Varan?

 The ugly man smirked.

-         An’ ‘ow ye be knowin’ that?

-         You seem to be used to riding on a Thestral and not on a horse.

-         Ye be an observant one. I be comin’ from Var. Now ye be answerin’ me question. Ye be usin’ this overgrown pin? – the large man pointed at Giancarlo’s rapier.

-         Ah-h, it’s a wonderful weapon when you are fighting a chain mail-lover, like il rosso.

 Sergey merely sniggered.

-         What are you laughing at?

-         Red’ead there be breakin’ that pin o’yers befer ye can do somt’in’.

-         But I manage to strike before, it can easily pierce his armour.

-         Ye be ‘avin a point.

 At this instant Takao started guffawing and soon Lucrezia’s giggle joined. Yuri was only smiling.

 

A/N

Tiramisu is a kind of Italian cake.

 As far as I know, the dragon [ryu] is an opposite power to the tiger in Japanese/Chinese mythology and tradition.

 Amuro Rei was the pilot of the first Gundam. ^^ Thanks to my bro, who suggested naming Rei’s son like this!

 Anyone remember Thestrals from ‘Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix’? That’s exactly what I had in mind.

Translations:

Buon giorno(Italian) – Good morning/day.

здр'авствуйте(Russian) – Good morning/day. (I hope, I got it right – I was using an on-line dictionary).

‘Ne Möhre(German) – a carrot (actually it should be ‚eine’, but I used colloquial German)

 

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