Music not mine – it’s t.A.T.u.’s

Beyblade ain’t mine either.

----

Bryan stumbled in the snow and cursed at his clumsiness. “Tala, there’s a hole here in the ground…”

“Are you stuck?” the redhead asked, trudging through the tramped path Bryan left for him to move easier.

“No… Are we being followed?”

“Not yet.”

Not gonna get us

Not gonna get us
They're not gonna get us
Not gonna get us
Not gonna get us

They're not gonna get us

Bryan grabbed Tala’s hand as his friend almost slipped. “Come on. Let’s get onto the tundra, it’ll be harder to leave a trail up there.” Bryan straightened Tala up and brushed the snow off him. “This was stupid. We should have waited! You’re still weak from that beating…”

“I’m not weak!” Tala snapped and Bryan winced.

“Wrong word. I’m sorry.”

“No… I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped. But I was slowly going crazy, and so were you. They weren’t helping you, Bryan! I could see it. Treating you like a criminal although you didn’t do anything.”

“I almost killed him, Tala,” Bryan said, turning to push his way through the snow again. “They were justified.”

“You were following orders.”

“That doesn’t matter to them.” And neither did you. They treated you as if you had gone mad, lost the plot… They caged my Wolf, and now you’re free you don’t know what to do. Bryan thought all of that but said nothing.

“And I wasn’t allowed to see you,” Tala grumbled.

“Hush. Let’s get out of here.”

Starting from here, let's make a promise
You and me, let's just be honest
We're gonna run, nothing can stop us
Even the night that falls all around us

Bryan skidded down a bank onto the ice beaten tundra, struggling plants sprouted and frozen in the virtually infertile ground. He caught Tala before the redhead fell over and Bryan lifted him off the floor.

“Bryan! Hey! Put me down! I can walk!”

“If I carry you they’ll only be one set of tracks,” Bryan said. “And you need all the energy you can get.”

“I can look after myself.”

“That as may be, but I promised Spencer and Ian that I’d take care of you.”

“Where are they?”

“They’re free. That’s all that matters.”

“I guess. Should we go back to Moscow?”

“Now?”

“Why not?”

“Because we’re not far from Murmansk and it’s a good few days by car let alone on foot.(1)” Bryan hoisted Tala up over his shoulder, ignoring the redhead’s protest. “There’s a forest over there. We can take shelter for the night.”

“We’ve got that pass through the mountains to tackle in the morning, don’t we?”

“It shouldn’t be too bad. They’re not high mountains, it’s just finding the right path.”

The full moon peeked through the splitting clouds and shone on the two seventeen year olds. Bryan set Tala on his feet and led him through the woods.

“I hope we’ll see Ian and Spencer again.”

“No doubt they’ll have been warned of our ‘escape’” Bryan replied.

Soon there will be laughter and voices
Beyond the clouds over the mountains
We'll run away on roads that are empty
Lights from the airfield shining upon you

“Hey Bry… there’s a cave over there.”

“Sure there’s no bears in it?”

Tala hopped over a couple of rocks and glanced in the cave. Bryan quickly followed, reaching over Tala and clicking his lighter, casting a glow in the darkness.

“Cheers,” Tala said. “Nope! No bears! It’s too small… it’s only just big enough for both of us.”

Bryan went onto the ledge outside the cave and pulled up some twigs and bark. He sighed, feeling how damp and cold they were, but a smoky fire was better than no fire.

Tala settled against the wall, watching Bryan determinedly get a fire going before the Falcon sat next to Tala. He lifted an arm and put them about Tala’s shoulder, the redhead smiling as he leant against Bryan’s chest for warmth and something more comfortable than the hard stone.

Nothing can stop us, not now, I love you
They're not gonna get us,
they're not gonna get us
Nothing can stop us, not now, I love you
They're not gonna get us,
They're not gonna get us

Bryan smiled as he felt Tala’s breathing even out slightly. He paused the finger-combing of the red head’s hair but grinned when Tala made a noise of disappointment.

“You’re falling asleep,” Bryan said quietly.

“’M not…” Tala mumbled. “You need to get some rest.”

“You do more. Come on.” Bryan lifted Tala off the floor and lay down, wrapping his strong arms around Tala’s slim frame, keeping him warm. Tala snuggled into Bryan’s chest and smiled. “Thanks Bryan. Love you.”

“I love you too.” Bryan kissed the crown of Tala’s head, holding him until he went to sleep.

We'll run away, keep everything simple
Night will come down, our guardian angel
We rush ahead, the crossroads are empty
Our spirits rise, they're not gonna get us

“Bryan! The road’s empty!” Tala shouted.

“What?” Bryan said over the wind.

“The road! It’s empty! Not a single bit of traffic!”

Bryan scrambled up the hill and laughed. “Check out this ice – it’s impossible to drive here! Let’s go, we’ve got an easy walk for a while.”

Tala caught up with his friend and lover, wrapping his arms about Bryan’s waist. “We’ll be home soon.”

“Did you just call the Abbey home?”

“Anywhere but that place is home. Anywhere with you is home. Nothing else matters.” Tala’s grip tightened a bit. “I can’t go back.”

“They won’t get us, Tala. Not on this road.”

My love for you, always forever
Just you and me, all else is nothing
Not going back, not going back there
They don't understand,
They don't understand us

Tala looked at the slumbering Bryan in the back of the pick up truck they had gone in. He looked so peaceful, yet worried, the brow creasing every now and again, mumbling at some dream or another.

The redhead shuffled over and brushed the silver locks from Bryan’s face. The pick up truck slowed to a halt and Tala gave Bryan’s arm a small shake.

“Bry. We’ve got to go. Bryan!”

Green eyes opened slowly and squinted. “Where are we?”

“Smolensk,” the driver said, pulling down the flap of the truck. “There’s not far for you left now. You kids take care.”

“Thank you,” Tala said, sliding out of the truck, Bryan following.

“Do me a favour,” the driver said.

“Anything within reason,” Bryan said. Tala trod on his foot.

“When you guys get home, could you send a signed photo to my daughters?” The driver pulled out a notebook and scribbled an address on the paper, ripping it out. “They’re Verochka and Tsvetkova and they’re big fans of yours.”

Tala smiled, taking the paper. “Gladly sir. Thank you so much.”

“Take care,” the driver said, waving as Bryan and Tala started off down the road again.

Nothing can stop us, not now, I love you
They're not gonna get us,
they're not gonna get us
Nothing can stop us, not now, I love you
They're not gonna get us,
They're not gonna get us

Tala gasped and he practically started sprinting down the road. “Bryan! Look!”

Bryan’s eyes widened – he never actually thought he’d be happy to see the Abbey again but he was. Somehow the Abbey looked welcoming – it must have been the lack of Boris and the interesting improvement to the gardens…

Bryan caught the gate as it swung back, Tala still running down the path. “Tala! Wait!”

They stopped at the foot of the stairs and looked up. Bryan smirked, rolling a snowball in his hands and throwing it at a window.

“Hey!” came a muffled voice from outside. The window opened. “Who the hell threw… that… holy… Gods…” Spencer’s eyes widened andhe nearly lost hold of his steaming mug of coffee.

The door burst open and a blue hair youth stumbled out. “You’re back!”

“And you’ve grown!” Bryan said, stunned at the almost 5 foot high previous Shrimp.

“Yeah yeah,” Ian said, rolling his eyes. “Damn, you guys get inside. We’ve been so worried damn you!”

“We were fine,” Tala said, reaching over to lean into Bryan.

“We had each other,” Bryan murmured quietly back.

They leant in together for a sensual kiss. Spencer grinned, waiting for Ian’s reaction, but the shorter youth just rolled his eyes and walked inside.

They’d escaped – and now they were truly free.

Not gonna get us
They're not gonna get us, gonna get us
They're not gonna get us
Not gonna get us, gonna get us, gonna get us
Not gonna get us, gonna get us, gonna get us
Not gonna get us

Not gonna get us

-----

(1) The distance from Murmansk to Moscow is about three times the distance from London to Inverness.

Pointless One Shots. Whooo!