Title: Always Follow the Rabbit

Author: Mrpointyhorns aka Blemery

Beta: Takato The Dreamer

Rating: R

Status: In Progress

Part: 1

Pairings: Taichi/Koushiro

Warnings: Slash

Spoilers: Season 1 and 2, plus some of the movies (nothing blatantly but there)

Summary: Taichi's has started to settle in his life, and while that can be quite nice, he and Koushiro have never been better, it can also be a bit disappointing, especially his dead-end job. The only thing interesting that ever happens is when he has to babysit his nephew. Until Koushiro detects a disturbance that is about to give Taichi the adventure he craves.

A/N: Just updating the chapters. I will start adding more after the updates.


"'Shiro…" Taichi called although not much louder than a sigh. He shrugged out of his jacket dropping it on the hook, but missed he didn't notice. He pulled his shoes off and put on his slippers. He shuffled into the living room. It was dark. Which was pretty unusual, but he didn't notice as he belly-flopped onto the couch. He had just spent ten hours traveling to work, working and traveling home. He had one of those desk jobs. It was too boring to be stressful, but the strain of desk work was difficult for Taichi. "Kou?"

"Tai!" Koromon bounced in from, Taichi assumed, no where, and landed on Taichi's back. "Tai! Your home! Yay!"

"Koromon?" Taichi rotated to his back and shifted Koromon to his stomach. He held him in his arms squinting at him in the dark. "What are you doing here buddy?"

"Hi, Tai." Mochimon crawled over to him and Koromon. He wasn't nearly as hyper as Koromon, but he crawled up on Taichi once he reached the couch. "We're visiting for a little while."

"Great." Taichi hugged both the baby digimon. "Where is Izzy?" He stood up a frown on his face. It wasn't like their partners never came to visit them, but they usually only came for birthdays and Christmas, because they loved cakes and Christmas dinner. So Taichi wasn't expecting them to show up. Since Koushiro had not mentioned it earlier it made Taichi curious about their unexpected visit.

When Taichi stood up he finally noticed it was dark. His eyes were already adjusted to the low light so he was able to make it back to their bedroom. Koushiro wasn't in there. So he moved on to the office.

Koushiro was hunched over his computer screen, furiously typing with only the computer's glow for light. He looked like a frazzled man ready to rob a bank with a water gun. Taichi wasn't use to seeing Koushiro like this. He sometimes got carried away with work and would forget to turn on the light, but it was curiosity that drove him not this. What was this? Taichi eased his way in the room. It was a little cluttered by the door, but the main part of the room was clear and clean. Koushiro wouldn't dream of putting his computer in an unclean room.

Taichi leaned over him, the computer was filled with numbers and symbols. Taichi knew some programming language because of Koushiro, but not this much and Koushiro was typing so quickly. He leaned back so that he could rest his hands on Koushiro's shoulders rubbing them gently. Even then, it took Koushiro nearly a minute to slow his typing. He didn't stop, but he tilted his head slightly. "Taichi? What are you doing home so early?" Koushiro glanced blearily back at him.

"Kou." Taichi laughed he held his wrist in front of Koushiro so that he could read his watch. "It's 7: 48."

Koushiro stopped typing. He leaned back against the chair. "Oh, I didn't notice." Finally, he looked like the Koushiro that Taichi knew!

"I thought you said you didn't have any interesting projects," Taichi said rubbing more firmly now that he wouldn't mess up Koushiro's typing.

"Not for work," Koushiro explained. He puzzled his lips and stared hard at the computer.

"Well, what is it then? You creating a new video game?" Taichi asked. Koushiro had done so in the past, but only as a challenge from a college buddy. The series was so successful that people were still hoping that he would make another. Although, he seriously, doubted that would be the cause. Koushiro had looked so beyond himself. It couldn't simply be Koushiro's overactive nerd coming out.

Koushiro shook his head. "I'm not sure yet." He looked back at Tai giving him a tiny smile. "Hey, give me a second and I'll start dinner."

"I'll start," Taichi replied. He could see that Koushiro was trying to make an effort not to worry him, but it was thinner than rice paper. "The digimon are probably hungry too if you haven't noticed the time."

Koushiro blushed. "Uh, well they know where the snacks are."

"Koromon probably ate all those ten minutes after he arrived." Taichi laughed. He leaned down to kiss Koushiro. "I'll start dinner, be out in five minutes or I'm sending Mochimon in to attack."

"Got it," Koushiro agreed. He reached out to bring Taichi close for another kiss. That more than anything reassured Taichi. "Thanks."

Taichi smiled as he shuffled back out, turning the light on as he left. He went into the kitchen. "I don't want to attack Izzy." Mochimon followed after him.

"Don't worry you won't have to," Taichi promised. "He'll be out here soon."

"Yay food!" Koromon bounced up on to the counter. Mochimon used a barstool to climb on the counter too. Mochimon turned on the stove as Taichi washed his hands.

"What do you want?" Taichi asked.

"Riceballs!" Koromon cried.

"But I turned on the stove." Mochimon reminded. He had scooted down to the floor and opened the cupboard looking for a pan. "We're going to have stir fry."

"With tofu?" Koromon asked.

Taichi grinned. "Actually, my mom sent this recipe that I wanted to try."

Mochimon held the frying pan up towards the counter, but frozen too far away for Koromon to reach. "The healthy food?"

"Yup. I'm starting to be more of a fan now that I'm an old man."

"You're still just a kid," Koromon said trying to stretch out and reach the frying pan.

Taichi turned off the water and went to the fridge and started to pull out a few ingredients. He smiled at their partners. "Come on Koromon you never said no to my mom's food before."

"Uh…" Koromon looked guilty.

"Tofu stir-fry sounds good to me," Koushiro agreed coming into the kitchen. He looked much better. He even had the same smile on his face that he always had when their partners were over. He took the frying pan from Mochimon. "Taichi makes awesome tofu doesn't he, Mochimon?"

"It's the best! Sometimes I dream about it. And when I wake up I'm in the digital world it's so disappointing," Mochimon sighed.

"You really like it?" Taichi asked in surprise. He began cutting the vegetables.

Koushiro put some oil in the pan. Then, he helped Mochimon onto the counter next to Koromon. The digimon agreed: they liked the dish that much.

"You should have told us sooner. I don't mind sending some care packages into the digital world from time to time," Koushiro said. He pulled out some dishes and cups to set the small dinner table in the kitchen.

"Yay!"

"Just don't send it through the digimon express! They'll just end up eating all the stir-fry." Mochimon added after his and Koromon's celebration.

"I know." Koushiro smiled and winked at Mochimon. "I can get it straight to you."

"Great!"

"You'll cook if Koushiro sends it, right Tai?" Koromon asked his partner.

"If you like it that much, I don't mind cooking packages for you two while you're in the digital world." Taichi had moved over to the stove and was seasoning the tofu the way that everyone liked. Koushiro returned to grab a bottle of wine for them to share and some soda for the digimon. The digimon had wine before when they were in their evolved forms and it had not gone over well. Tentomon had crashed into and through some walls and Agumon had set the couch on fire. All agreed that the digimon were not allowed wine.

Koushiro put both bottles on the table and then came back to look over Tai's shoulder. Koushiro was a fine cook because he could follow the instructions easily and make a decent meal, but that didn't make him a great chef. Taichi used to cook for them when they were kids and he never followed instructions. He just went with what he thought would taste delicious. He had some flops, but mostly it was delicious. That was the sign of a real chef. Koushiro usually started dinner every night and Taichi would come home and add a little something to it. Yet, the meals were the best when Taichi did most of the cooking himself.

Koushiro kissed Tai's shoulder. He kept his lips pressed against Tai's shoulder as he spoke, "I brought them over around 10:30."

"We didn't have plans that they were visiting," Taichi answered realizing that they were picking up the conversation from earlier.

"I just wanted to see Mochimon and I couldn't invite one and not the other," Koushiro explained.

Taichi stopped stirring and looked at Koushiro. He looked innocent enough, but Taichi just knew something was up. Too much had been unusual tonight for that to be the reason. Of course, Koushiro couldn't invite one and not the other. Taichi liked Mochimon just fine, but Koromon was his partner and it would be hard having Mochimon here and not Koromon. Beside it wasn't fair to the digimon either. Still, Taichi didn't think that was the only reason for the impromptu visit. "Koushiro?"

With a sigh Koushiro turned his head away biting his lip. "Sorry Tai. I just have a hunch about something, but I'm not really sure about it yet. You know how I am about being uncertain."

Taichi reached out wrapping his arms around Koushiro for someone as smart as Koushiro it was difficult for him to be unsure about things.

Taichi learned that it took a lot of courage to be unsure. First, you were admitting that it was possible or even likely that you were wrong, second you were also willingly to go through an endeavor and sometimes waste time and resources pursuing the hunch that could be wrong. Some people were not willing to give up all those things just to be told they were wrong. However, logically Koushiro knew that being wrong wasn't always a bad thing that sometimes being wrong helped solve the problem by showing which way was the correct way. Koushiro didn't mind being wrong. He just didn't like admitting to other people that he didn't know something. That he was unsure. It was more for their sake then for his, people wanted a person like Koushiro to be confident in knowledge. Yet, the truth was Koushiro's problems were greater then the average person's. So, there was no reason for him to be so guarded with his questions, especially when he was talking to Taichi. He understood Koushiro better than anyone, but he also knew that because of that Koushiro liked to admit his questions even less to Taichi. It was hard to share each other's problems when all they wanted to do was impress each other.

"The tofu!" Koromon finally interrupted them. Mochimon was stirring the ingredients in the pan so they wouldn't burn, but he looked worried about the food too.

"Alright!" Taichi laughed taking the pan and spoon back. "Thanks, Mochimon."

Koushiro was still looking away. He didn't seem to notice the conversation between the three as Taichi finished cooking and put the food in a big serving dish. Taichi poured the wine and soda for everyone and was putting his napkin on his lap when Koushiro came back to himself. He looked around the kitchen, the pans in the sink and most of the cooking supplies put away or tossed away. Koushiro looked over to the table. Mochimon and Koromon were already partly through their meals.

Koushiro took his seat quietly and began eating. It was delicious and a smile worked his way onto his face after a moment. He looked over at Taichi who was working hard on not staring Koushiro down. "How was work Tai?"

"Work? Oh well it was you know, work." Taichi shrugged, work was the last thing he ever wanted to talk about, but Koushiro usually asked. "Hiro has a new girlfriend so I had to hear about that all day too."

Taichi always complained about his job. He hadn't been able to find any work when he had originally finished school in athletic training. Before school, he played in the minor leagues in New Zealand and even pro in Milan. Taichi wanted to play more, but he was cut after the season because of an injury, it had been minor, but the second-string player had done well in his abscence and Taichi was replaced. Since he wasn't an established player he hadn't been able to find a place on another team.

He ended up back at school so that he could get a degree coaching the sport he loved. However, he couldn't find a job when he left and eventually started looking for any work he could find. Now he pushed papers 60 hours a week, he did so well that he was prompted a few times and was the head of a small team, the position really wasn't that glamorous and now he had to report his team members' behaviors to the higher-ups. He hated it, but he never tried to find another job after that.

Koushiro tried encouraging him at first, but eventually decided that it wasn't a battle he was willing to fight. He was willing to take on the earning the majority of the income so Taichi could find a job he liked. Taichi knew that, but his pride told him that he couldn't allow Koushiro to do that. So, they both left it alone.

"How was your work?" Taichi asked. Koushiro worked for a nano biology technology company. Taichi knew that meant that Koushiro basically made mini robots that were put in people, but he wasn't sure what the greater purpose was. Koushiro could do a good portion of his work from home, so he was often home all day that's why he usually started dinner. He had to go in to the lab a few times a week though.

"I finished it hours ago," Koushiro admitted.

Taichi looked at Koushiro. "Are you going to tell me what you were doing, in the dark no less?"

"I guess, I'll tell you what I know, but it's not much," Koushiro agreed. He didn't look comfortable, but he had good reasons in pushing himself. First, he was talking to Taichi so that took away most of the pressure he normally felt when he was unsure. Second, Taichi was still the leader (sort of, it was hard to be a leader of a team that was spread so thin). Third, Taichi might not be smart like Koushiro was, but he was smart in different ways and sometimes Taichi could see a solution to a problem that Koushiro didn't. Finally, sometimes it helped Koushiro to voice his problems because sometimes he was able to solve them when he had to explain it to someone. "Remember the Dark Ocean?"

"How can I forget something that made my little sister disappear?" Taichi asked both curious and worried.

"Hard to forget I know. When we were first in the digital world I already knew, there was at least one parallel world or universe, but the Dark Ocean confirmed a third world. So, I theorized that there was more then that. I didn't know how many. I was hoping only a few, but there could be an infinite amount," Koushiro explained. Taichi nodded along because he understood. It was best to let Koushiro know if he was speaking clearly or in a confusing way. He was very good about changing tactics and explaining things more simply or more complexly depending. It was years of practice explaining things to Daisuke and the others that helped. "It's hard to find proof of another universe. What makes it difficult to look for them is that you don't know where to look or what to look for."

"So, are you saying that you found something?" Taichi asked.

"Well you know that Ken and Miyako help me moderate the digital world that way we can know if something is happening before it escalates. I also keep an eye on the dark ocean. Tai this morning I detected a possible collision with another world on the dark world. I have been looking for more evidence the rest of the day. I would have gone, to get a visual, but I'm not sure how safe it is."

"A collision, like when we could see the digital world in the sky?" Taichi asked.

"That's one way. A collision can also be brief, but the affects can be seen after. I'm hoping to detect this. If the collision did happen it is possible that something is happening in that world to cause it," Koushiro explained. He looked at Taichi. "I want to be certain that it happened before I even think about what that means or what to do."

"That makes sense." Taichi nodded. He knew that Koushiro was being serious now. So Taichi was handling his job as leader seriously too. "I think we should be as certain as we can be before we make a decision."

"Right, but as a precaution I called Mochimon and Koromon here. I don't want to be separated from them if anything happens here or in the digital world," Koushiro explained blushing slightly.

"Yet, you're not so worried that you haven't sent the others their digimon?" Taichi asked.

Koushiro's blush darkened dramatically. "I just want to be sure."

"Well, I don't mind having the digimon here and I'm sure they don't mind." Taichi looked at the digimon.

"Nope." Koromon smiled.

"The three universes do seem to be rather connected, don't they? I think if something is happening to the Dark Ocean it could affect the Digital World and Earth soon." Mochimon nodded. He always trusted his partner.

"That's what I thought too." Koushiro smiled at him. "What do you think?"

"If you think it's a collision I believe you. I think, in the least, you will find evidence enough to confirm a fourth universe. I think it's good to be cautious though, just in case? Maybe it wouldn't be a big deal and why worry the others." Taichi asked. He did not want to cry wolf too early either.

"Right, but the few times the worlds have collided like the digital world with Earth or Kari seeing the Dark Ocean it has resulted in problems," Koushiro emphasized making it clear that it was unlikely to be nothing.

"Well, what I would do is make sure you have exhausted all your research here. If you can find out enough to be satisfied then great, if not I think we'll be traveling to the Dark Ocean to scout on foot." Taichi decided. "I've always wanted to see that place."

"We're only going to scout if it's safe," Koushiro warned knowing how dangerous Taichi could be sometimes. Taichi nodded. "Great. Well I'll clean up here and then we can go to bed."

"If you want to do more research…"

"No, it's fine. Since I'm taking a break I'm running some scans that take a while and don't give me much access to my computer," Koushiro explained.

"I guess you'll be going into the office tomorrow." Taichi teased. "Okay, I'll meet you in bed. I'm going to change out of these work clothes and take a shower."

Koushiro waved him away. Mochimon and even Koromon helped where they could with moving the dishes into the sink and washing them by hand. Then, Koushiro went into the spare room that was across from the office. There was a guest bed inside, but Koushiro went to the closet and pulled out beds that their partners preferred. They would probably end up in sleeping with them, but the two digimon would play video games and watch movies in their beds until they were tired. Mochimon liked to sleep in a large basket. It was set up on a pulley system that Taichi designed when Tentomon told him that he liked sleeping up high. Mochimon didn't like to sleep up as high as Tentomon did, but with the pulley system Mochimon could adjust the basket to where he felt the most comfortable.

Agumon liked the floor and so did Koromon so he had a large bed that Koushiro set up on the floor. It had a heated liquid mattress. Koushiro designed it to make the digimon comfortable and he made certain that it wouldn't set anything on fire.

After they were set, he gave Mochimon the remote and left the hall light on for them.

He went into the master bathroom just as Taichi was shutting off the water from his shower. Koushiro snuck a few glances at Taichi as he brushed his teeth. Taichi must have noticed because he made a dramatic show of drying off and dropping the towel a few times. He even went to the sink and brushed his teeth in just his towel instead of going to change first. Koushiro stole the towel as he walked away, a grin on his face.

"That's it!" Taichi tackled him lifting Koushiro up in his arms and dragging him over to the bed kissing his neck and jaw. "You're getting it."

"Oh, no! Help me!" Koushiro feigned. Taichi laughed and continued kissing as he started stripping Koushiro of his clothes. "Tai, Tai wait."

Taichi sat back straddling over Koushiro's thighs. "Why?"

"Get off a sec," Koushiro said crawling out from under Taichi when Taichi moved. He rolled on to his back and pulled his pants off.

Taichi lay back down in his normal spot on the bed. "Koushiro."

"Don't pout." Once naked Koushiro rolled over so that he was on top of Taichi. He had his legs between Tai's and their stomachs were touching. "I want to be on top."

"Okay." Taichi put his hand behind Koushiro's head drawing him in for a kiss. He kissed him passionately. He murmured softly. He expressed surprise that kissing Koushiro didn't get old, sex didn't; nothing about their relationship did.

Koushiro pulled away from the kiss. He moved to straddle Taichi's hips.

"I thought you wanted to be on top?"

"I want to be on top like this, but with you inside me," Koushiro explained.

"Hey, I'm not complaining." Taichi smiled.

"Good." Koushiro beamed. He leaned over to grab the lube from the bedside table. He rubbed it over Taichi's dick. They had enough sex that Koushiro didn't really need to be prepared as long as Taichi was slick enough.

"Which one of your co-workers called you a girl?" Taichi asked. Koushiro punched his shoulder and Taichi grunted. Koushiro kissed the spot softly. "Just a thing then?"

"Yes. I just want it today." He sat up again putting the lube on the bed. He slowly sank on to Taichi and rocked their hips together. "I like feeling my legs wrapped around your hips and I like looking at you with your head against the pillows. You're gorgeous."

"People tell me that." Taichi grinned. Koushiro laughed at him. "What they do."

"I know." Koushiro said in the dirtiest, slutties tone ever. Like it was a huge turn on that other people thought Taichi was attractive, but he was completely Koushiro's. Only Taichi knew that Koushiro generally didn't think like that so he thought the tone was from the act of sex and not Koushiro's talking.

"No, talking unless it's dirty." Taichi instructed wrapping his arms around Koushiro and pulling him down for more kissing. "Yeah use your lips like this."

"I love you," Koushiro said his eyes darkening as he pulled back to speak each word and paused to kiss Taichi relentlessly.