Speechless

1: The BladeBreakers

Persephone Shae waited nervously in the tunnel of the Seaside Dome, her eyes scanning the crowds of people that had come to watch the beybladers compete. The Qualifying Match for the Beyblade World Tournament had come to an end, and she was anxious to meet her new teammates.

Well she wasn't technically a member of the team. She was going to be their manager, working alongside the team captain and their mechanic to coach the team to victory, and to help with organizing and scheduling throughout their travels.

Traveling the world with a group of boys I don't even know. Great.

She fiddled with the hem of her sweater, the once perfectly-knitted yarn was now unraveled and frayed. Her fingers tugged at the blue strings of fabric, and she closed her eyes in a desperate attempt to block out the world around her, to calm her overactive nerves. She wanted to feel excited, but at that moment all she could feel was anxiety pulsing through her veins and up her spine like some kind of acid. Her legs trembled, and she leaned against the wall for support.

Persephone's ears perked up as she heard Blader DJ announce the team, and she was thrown out her thoughts and back into reality. The roaring of the crowd ringed in her ears, and she plugged her ears instinctively. She crept up to the edge of the tunnel, relieved as the crowd died down a bit. Her hands moved from her ears, then back to tugging at the strings on her sweater.

She watched as Mr. Dickinson spoke with the team, filling them in as their new roles as the team representing Japan in the world beyblading circuit. Persephone had been grateful for the opportunity the BBA Chairman had given her. Though how she got the job in the first place was beyond her. Her legs trembled again. 

Come on Shae, calm down. You got this.

Her eyes scanned each member. She had been given files on each of them prior to the tournament. She had information on every competitor, but Mr. Dickinson insinuated to her that these four were the ones to watch. So she read up on them, learning the ins and outs of how they battled, already coming up with individualized training regimens for each of them to improve in their weaknesses. Watching them battle in person though, was a whole other experience. Their passion, the intensity in their eyes, the focus; It all amazed her. They were gonna be a tough team to beat, she was sure of it.

Her whole body tensed as Mr. Dickinson gestured for her to join them on the platform. She straightened her spine and walked out, settling on standing between Mr. Dickinson and the blue haired boy, Tyson. They boys stared at her, confusion evident in their eyes. Persephone felt herself shrink a bit, and she kept her eyes glued to the floor.

"Boys," Mr. Dickinson smiled, gesturing to her, "Meet Persephone. She works for me at the BBA, and will be joining you on your way to the world championships as your team manager."

She fiddled with the hem of her sweater and nodded to all of them with a small smile, "N-Nice to meet you all."

Tyson grinned and held out his hand, "Welcome to the BladeBreakers, Persephone! Cool team name huh?"

She hesitated before nodding and shaking his hand, "Y-Yeah," She replied, a bit caught off guard by his friendliness, but it seemed genuine enough. 

She greeted and shook hands with Max, Ray, and Kenny, all of them just as friendly as Tyson had been. She then looked up at the grey haired blader next to her, but he made no attempt to speak, or even look at her for that matter.

She gulped and moved her eyes back down, this time deciding on staring at the laces of her sneakers, resisting the urge to fiddle with her sweater again.

Kai's gaze drifted to her and he scanned her up and down, his eyes narrowing

"I hope you're ready to work," He muttered, "because I take beyblading very seriously."

Her eyes widened and she nodded, not meeting his eyes. His icy tone seemed to pierce her very soul, injecting her with fear.

He just scoffed and turned his back to her.

"Happy Birthday Tyson. Enjoy it. Because the battle for the world championship starts tomorrow," Kai said, not even turning around as he walked out of the stadium.

Persephone lifted her head a bit to watch him go, and her legs started to tremble once more.

"He's scary," she whispered, her voice wavering a bit.

"Don't worry about him," Tyson reassured her, "this is gonna be great."

"Yeah that's the spirit!" Max cheered, throwing his fist in the air.

She nodded simply, tugging the sleeves of her top over her hands, "So I guess I'll see you all on the plane tomorrow."

Persephone waved goodbye, receiving a high-five from Tyson, and started for the tunnel. She spotted Kai leaning up against the wall next to the door. She avoided eye contact with him as she tried to make her way past.

"Persephone, right?" He murmured, not looking at her.

She froze in her tracks at the sound of his voice and nodded, keeping her head down.

"Y-Yeah," she replied simply, not exactly sure what he was asking.

He only nodded in response, not meeting her eyes.

God please just let me leave please let me leave please let me leave.

"What did you think of the match?" He asked, his voice a bit less harsh.

Persephone finally mustered up the courage to finally look up at him, pausing a bit to carefully form her answer.

"I think..." She took a deep breath to steady her shaking, "I-I think you should've won," she murmured. 

Kai's eyes widened and with that, Persephone quickly made her get away out the door. He watched her go, surprised at her words, and surprised at her in general.

"Team Manager," he murmured, a small smirk playing at his lips, "Hm."

A/N:

So I wanted to step away from one-shots a bit and try out a full on fanfiction. I'll still be updating my other stories as much as I can. Let me know what you guys think of the first chapter. I'd love the feed back.

- S -