Me: After a break from "Digimon," I came back to write this one-shot I thought up. Being summer and all, it takes place during the summer. I also wanted to publish it on August 1, since that is around when the fifth "Digimon" movie took place. Nice, huh?
Anyways, read on, and if the characters seem OOC (I know they are), I'm really sorry about that.
Oh, and if you've heard of the song "Sleepless Beauty" from "Gravitation," it doesn't really have anything to do with the fanfic itself, just to let you know. It made for a good title though!
Disclaimer: "Digimon" is property of Akiyoshi Hongo, Toei, Saban, Disney, Tokyopop, and anyone else I may have missed.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sleepless Beauty
It was summer, and that meant it was fun in the sun time for the youth of Shinjuku. Included in this group were those who had saved the world from the D-Reaper – the Digimon Tamers.
Last summer, Takato had gone to Okinawa to visit his cousin Kai and Grandfather. This summer though, it was Kai's turn to come up and visit his card-slashing cousin.
"Kai!" The goggled boy was at the airport to pick Kai up. He waved over at his cousin.
"Takato!" his tanned cousin called back to him. Kai ran up to Takato, his luggage flying behind him. "Where are your folks?" he asked when he caught up to him.
"They're working at the bakery, so I had to come alone. They wish you well, though," Takato answered happily.
"Yeah, the flight was great!" Kai grinned. "It was even better than before when I came when that D-Reaper thing was amuck."
Takato chuckled lightly. "Well, come on – let's get going." He started leading them out of the airport.
"Where's Guilmon?" Kai asked as they walked out the door. He looked around for the red dino.
"At the park, most likely scarfing down some Guilmon bread," Takato laughed. "I'm going to pick him up later, so you're welcome to come along."
"That would be great!" Kai exclaimed. "It's too bad Gramps couldn't come. I felt bad leaving him behind with work on top of being sick."
"Don't worry," Takato assured him. "From what I gathered of him when I visited, he can take care of himself."
"Yeah, you're probably right," Kai smiled. "Hey, I can't wait to see your friends again!"
"And I can't wait to introduce you to them again!" Takato replied cheerily. "Speaking of friends, how's Minami-chan doing?"
"Oh, she's great! We hang out a lot together, and her dad's doing just fine too."
"That's good to hear."
Their conversation continued like this until they finally reached the Matsuda bakery. The automatic doors slid open, the warm atmosphere of the bakery consuming them, as well as the freshly baked bread smell. Being so inviting, the boys thought it a bit odd that Takato's parents were no where to be seen, even less no customers.
"Mom, Dad! I'm back with Kai!" Takato's voice rang throughout the building.
At the sound of his voice, Takato's mother came up from the back. "Oh, good – you two are here."
"Mom, what's wrong? Where are all the customers?" Takato sounded concerned.
"It's Grandpa – his illness has gotten worse and now Dad and I have to go and watch him in Okinawa.
"What?" Takato looked astonished.
"Darn it! I knew I should have stayed behind!" Kai spat.
"Don't worry, it's not fatal," Takato's mother assured them. "Kai, since you came up here for the summer, the two of you might as well stay," she continued. "Takato, do you think you could ask one of your friends if the two of you can stay at their place while we're gone?"
"Yeah, sure." Takato went around the back to use the phone. He picked up the receiver and was about to dial Jen's number. He hesitated for a moment though, rethinking his decision.
'Jen's already got such a large family... it might be a problem if Kai and I stay there...' Takato frowned. 'But who else can I call...' After mulling over the decision for a minute or so, he started dialing.
"Hello?" a voice at the other end came.
"Hi – um... Ruki," Takato spluttered.
"Takato?"
"Yeah, it's me..."
"What are you calling for?"
"Uh... well, you see... my cousin from Okinawa came up for the summer – remember him?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, he left Grandpa at home, but now he's really sick and my parents have to go and look after him."
"Oh, that's too bad... but what does this have to do with me?"
"Well, Kai and I need a place to stay while my parents are away, so..."
"So you want me to put you up?"
"Er – yeah. If it's not too much trouble that is..."
"Why me? I thought you would have called Jen first."
"Well, I was going too, but he's already got such a large family."
"So you called me instead because I'm an only child?"
"N-no, it's not like that!"
"You know, Hirokazu and Kenta are only kids too you know. They're also boys – I think you would be better off staying with them instead."
"Ruki, that's not why I called you! I'll admit that I thought about calling them, but I chose you because you and Jen are my two closest friends!"
At the other end, Ruki was silent. Takato started, wondering if what he said was really a good thing to do or not.
"Let me ask my family if it's alright," Ruki finally replied.
"Uh... yeah... sure..." Takato blinked. There was silence at Ruki's end while she was away, and then she came back to the phone.
"They said it's fine."
"Oh, great!" Takato grinned. "Thanks a lot, Ruki! Bye!"
"Wait a second – Takato!" but he had already hung up.
Takato ran up back to the front of the bakery. "Mom, Kai, we're staying at Ruki's!"
"Ruki's?" his mother and Kai echoed.
"Yeah, I'm going to go pack now!" Takato sprinted up the steps to his room. He pulled out his bag and started jamming in clothes and his sketchbook, among other numerous items. Kai walked into his room, strewn with stuff Takato attempted to pack.
"Whoa, this is your room?" Kai looked around at his Digimon drawings on the wall.
"Yep!" Takato answered while he kept himself busy.
"Hey, isn't Ruki that girl whose house we stayed at when the D-Reaper was loose?"
"Yeah, that's right," Takato said. "Why?"
"Oh, just wondering..."
"Huh?" Takato looked up from his belongings.
"Hey, hurry up. If I remember correctly, she lives pretty far from here."
"Oh, uh... right."
- - -
Takato and Kai were now on their way to Ruki's house, Takato's parents having left for the airport. They were walking along, dragging their luggage with them, the sun shining down on the two boys.
"This is an awfully long walk," Kai commented.
"I always walk to Ruki's," Takato said easily.
"Hey, I'm not complaining or anything. Anyways, what do you mean, always? How often do you go there?"
"Er – not often, but whenever I do I usually walk there."
"Really?" Kai's mind started to wander. "How did you meet someone like her anyways? Fighting Digimon?"
"Um... well, not exactly..."
Kai started to get intrigued. "Not exactly? Then how?"
"Uh... I can't tell you..."
"Can't tell me?" Kai repeated. "What do you mean you can't tell me? What happened?"
"I can't tell anyone. I only told her, and – " Takato stopped abruptly when he realized how odd that must have sounded.
Kai's eyebrows rose. "Only told her? Wasn't she there?"
"Did I say that? Oh, it must have been a slip of the tongue," Takato laughed nervously.
"Aww, come on, Takato! We're cousins – you can tell me!"
"Well..." Takato watched Kai's eyes widen in anticipation. "Well... I kind of saw her... in a dream."
"A... dream?" Kai looked slightly bewildered.
"Yeah... at least, I think it was a dream. When I woke up I felt that my hands were all clammy from the rain.
"Rain?"
"It was raining, and I saw her and Renamon fighting a Lynxmon fighting from up above."
Kai was listening intently.
"The weird thing was that I had never met Ruki beforehand, but yet there she was – in my dream. Then later on, I actually met her in person of course.
"Wow..." Kai whispered. "So, she's like... you're dream girl."
"What!?" Takato stared at Kai incredulously.
Kai laughed. "Maybe it's like, destiny for you two to be together!" he joked.
"W-wait a second, Kai!"
"Man, what a story to tell the grandkids!"
"Grand...kids?" Takato paled.
Kai turned to Takato. "I thought you liked that Juri girl though."
"Huh?" Takato blinked. "Uh – well – I do, but – "
"But this conversation will have to end because we're already here."
"Huh?" Takato looked up to see that indeed they had arrived at Ruki's house. The gates were open, in anticipation of their arrival.
"Well, let's not keep them waiting!" Kai started walking in. Takato followed him up to the door, where they knocked on it to announce their arrival.
The door opened, revealing Ruki behind it.
"Hi, Ruki!" Takato greeted.
"Nice to see you again!" Kai waved.
"Yeah, well come on in. You guys will be staying in the guestroom." Ruki let the boys in, kicking off their shoes to follow Ruki to their room.
"Just leave your stuff in here," Ruki pointed inside.
"Where's the rest of your family?" Takato asked as he dropped his bag.
"Mom's out on business and Grandma's shopping. I told Renamon to go and help her."
"That was nice of you," Takato smiled.
"I was going to ask you when we were on the phone what time you'd be coming."
"Uh... you were?"
"Yes, so I would know if my family would be able to greet you once you came. But someone decided to hang up before I could say anything," Ruki glared up at him.
"Uh – I'm really sorry Ruki! I didn't mean to!" Takato waved his hands in front of himself.
Ruki stared at him for a second. "Well, I guess your parents were in a hurry."
"His parents or him?" Kai murmured, to which Takato cringed.
"So where's Guilmon?" Ruki asked. "I thought for sure you would bring him along."
"Ah – I nearly forgot!" Takato exclaimed. "He's at the park – I was going to go get him later."
"Hey, let's go now!" Kai piped up. "I wouldn't mind going to see the place where you guys hang out!"
"Oh – alright! Ruki, do you want to come?"
"I guess I might as well," she sighed. "I've been completely bored waiting for you two to get here."
"Eh heh..." Takato rubbed the back of his head.
"Alright, let's go!" Kai cheered.
- - -
The three walked along the paved sidewalk to Guilmon's, Takato and Kai up front with Ruki bringing up the rear. She was listening to her discman as the boys up ahead were in another one of their conversations.
"Hey," Kai whispered to Takato. "Did you tell Juri that you like her yet?"
"Er..." Takato flushed. "No..."
"Why not? When are planning on telling her?"
"I don't know... I don't have the guts to do it. Last time I tried it was when she was possessed by the D-Reaper, but I don't think I can do it now."
"Geez..." Kai looked slightly annoyed. "If you don't, someone else might pick her up instead."
"Y-you think?" Takato seemed a bit afraid of that prospect.
"Well why not? She seems like a nice girl that any guy would be happy to go out with."
"Hmm..." Takato started thinking to himself miserably.
Kai watched his cousin's fallen face. "Aw, don't worry! You two have been through a lot together, right?"
"Well, yeah..."
"See? Why wouldn't she be with you?"
"But..."
"But nothing! Anyways..." Kai glanced back at Ruki, who wasn't paying any attention to them whatsoever. "I suppose you could always fall back on your dream girl..." Kai grinned mischievously at Takato.
"Kai, knock it off!" Takato flustered. "I only told you about that because you wouldn't stop bugging me!"
Kai laughed carelessly. "Oh, don't worry! She can't hear a thing with those headphones on."
"I wouldn't know about that..." Takato tried to steal an inconspicuous glance at Ruki. "But I think there's already someone she could get together with..."
"Eh?" Kai's eyes widened. "Really? Who?"
"Er..." Takato wasn't sure if he should be saying anything. "Well... I kind of thought that her and Akiyama Ryo would..."
"Akiyama Ryo? You mean that Digimon King guy?"
Takato nodded his head.
"Hmm..." Kai looked up at the sky, his face contorted into what seemed to be a thinking manner.
"Ahhhh, this is stupid!" Takato said abruptly. "Why are we talking about this?"
"Takato," Kai slapped his cousin on the back, "I'm sure you could win her over!"
"WHAT!?" Takato shouted.
"Hm?" Ruki looked up at the two in front of her. Takato cringed and turned around slowly. He signaled that nothing was wrong by waving his hand. Ruki just raised an eyebrow at him.
"Kai," Takato hissed, "what in the world are you talking about!? I thought you wanted me to tell Juri how I feel!"
"Well, yeah..."
"Then why do you keep bringing up Ruki?" Takato frowned.
Kai looked at Takato, a grin spread across his face. "Because it's fun."
"Huh?" Takato blinked in bewilderment.
"Hey!"
"Uh – " Takato and Kai stopped and looked back at Ruki.
"Where do you think you're going, Takato? Guilmon's place is over here." Ruki pointed up a pathway.
"Oh – uh – right!" Takato laughed. "I must not have been paying attention."
"You were that distracted to pass by Guilmon?" Ruki said disbelievingly.
"Uh... that's right! Eh heh heh..."
Ruki looked unconvinced. Sighing, she said, "Whatever... I'll never understand you..." and started up the path to Guilmon's.
Takato groaned and started following her up with Kai.
"Hey, this is a pretty secluded area," Kai mentioned as he looked around.
"It had to be. When I first got Guilmon I had to hide him somewhere," Takato explained.
Ruki walked into Guilmon's shed, where the aforementioned Digimon was resting peacefully. She moved over to him and shook him slightly. "Guilmon, wake up." Guilmon seemed to give a sort of snort as a response, and wiggled around a bit. Ruki lowered her eyelids. "Hmm... Guilmon, Takato's here to bring you – "
Guilmon's amber eyes suddenly snapped open. "Takato!"
"Ah!" Ruki fell back as Guilmon leaped into the air and out the door.
"Takato!" Guilmon came bounding down the steps at Takato.
"Eh?" Takato looked up to see a red blur coming at him. "Augh!" Guilmon flew into him, knocking Takato back down the steps. Kai had just barely managed to avoid being caught in the tumble, and gazed down to see them both at the foot of the steps. "Ow..." Takato rubbed his head. "Guilmon, that's dangerous!"
"Sorry," Guilmon replied innocently, "but you were taking so long – I was wondering when you would get here."
"Oh, yeah... sorry about that Guilmon," Takato said as he got up. "I had to pack and stuff because my parents needed to go to Okinawa."
"Okinawa?" Guilmon mimicked. "That place we went to last year?"
"Ah, you remember!"
Guilmon looked up at the person who had spoken. "Kai!" His face lit up.
"Ha ha! And you remember me, too!" Kai chuckled. "Good to see you again Guilmon!"
"Yeah, me too!" Guilmon beamed. "Takato, I remember you said Kai would be here, but why did your parents go to Okinawa?"
"I'll answer that one!" Kai dropped down next to them, pointing his index finger up in the air. "Gramps got sick, so Takato's parents went to go and look after him." He leaned over towards Guilmon. "Which is also why we're staying at Ruki's while they're away."
"Ruki's?" Guilmon blinked.
"Geez, Guilmon." Ruki came down the steps. "You nearly ran me over with that outburst of yours."
"Oh, sorry Ruki," Guilmon apologized.
She sighed again. "Well, I guess you can't help it. Anyways, we should head back before my family gets there first. They'll wonder where we've gone off to."
As Ruki thought might have happened, her family indeed did get back before they did.
"We're here!" Ruki called.
"Welcome back!" a couple of female voices answered. Ruki's mother and grandmother appeared before them, smiles on their faces.
"It's nice of you boys to stay with us – oh, and Guilmon too," Rumiko greeted them.
"Thank you very much!" They bowed over respectfully.
"Dinner's ready, so we might as well start eating," the elderly woman spoke kindly.
"Yay! Food!" Guilmon cheered happily.
- - -
After a delightful dinner and dessert, Takato let Jen know that he was staying at Ruki's. When that was over with, he and Kai spent their time unpacking with Guilmon. Takato took out his sketchbook and laid it gingerly on the floor. Spotting it, Kai picked it up.
"Hey, can I look through this?" he asked.
"Yeah, sure," Takato answered while he still unpacked.
Kai sat down on the floor and began flipping through it. Takato had numerous sketches of various Digimon, but Kai found the ones depicting Guilmon and his evolutionary forms the most entertaining. He went through all the details, including attacks. Kai turned a few more pages, when he found another drawing that caught his eye. Guilmon peered over Kai's shoulder to take a look at it too. It wasn't of a Digimon – it was a group of humans. Kai soon realized that it was the Tamers, and Takato had just started colouring it in, starting with himself, Jen, and Ruki.
"Hey," Kai lifted up the book. "This is pretty good."
"Oh," Takato glanced at the page. "Thanks... it was my first attempt and drawing humans since I did our Tamers banner."
"Tamers banner?"
"Yeah, it was this idea I had when Jen, Ruki, and I became friends and official Tamers. I did another one when we all went to the Digital World. I would show you, but Culumon kind of decided to wear it as a cape or something." Takato laughed at that last remark.
"Hmm... I bet you could do it again." Kai brought the book back down to look at the drawing. "When did you do this one?"
"A while ago." Takato sat on the floor along with Kai. Guilmon went over to him to take a seat as well.
"You didn't finish colouring it though," Kai said.
"I know – I keep putting it off for later." Takato dug into his pocket, pulling out his Digimon cards. "Hey, do you want to play a game?" He waved it in front of Kai.
"I don't have any cards."
"You don't?" Takato was rather shocked. "But I thought you said you knew about Digimon in Okinawa."
"Yeah, but that didn't mean that I owned any cards," Kai pointed out for him.
"Oh..." Takato's excitement level dropped.
"I'll play you."
Takato looked round at the doorway, where Ruki stood with Renamon by her side.
"Ruki!" Takato squeaked.
"Hey, cool!" Kai exclaimed. "Then I can see how you play the game!"
"Uh..." Takato droned.
"Come on, do it, Takato!" Kai urged him on.
"Well... I guess a game or two wouldn't hurt..."
"Okay!" Kai positioned himself in the best viewing position as Ruki took a seat across from Takato. Guilmon and Renamon joined him in observing the match from the side.
Takato gulped nervously as he shuffled his deck. He had never actually played Ruki before. If her title the "Digimon Queen" was any indication however, he had a feeling that he wouldn't fair too well. Soon enough...
"Takato..." Kai murmured monotone. "You've lost seven rounds in a row."
"Er... I guess I'm pretty bad at this, huh?" Takato rubbed the back of his head. "Eh heh heh..."
"I don't think 'pretty bad' even begins to describe this," Kai continued.
"Uh – " Takato paused a moment. He dropped his head. "Ugh... Well, what do you expect? Her title is the 'Digimon Queen'!"
Kai shrugged. "I guess we won't be able to see your true potential unless a Digimon or the D-Reaper attacks again."
"Kai!" Takato exclaimed. "Are you listening?"
"As much fun as it is to listen to you argue," Ruki said as she gathered up her cards, "I think it's time for bed now. See you." With that, she got up and swiftly left the room, Renamon phasing out with her.
"Huh?" Takato looked at the clock hanging in the guestroom. "Oh, man – she's right!"
"I would say so – look." Kai pointed at Guilmon, snoozing away comfortably.
"Alright, guess it's time to roll out the futons," Takato announced.
As night settled, the boys slipped into bed. Wishing the other a good night, they were soon both asleep like Guilmon. The summer air had cooled with nightfall, and Takato pulled the covers up over himself. Outside, the soft breeze blow against the trees, rattling the leaves embedded in its branches.
Suddenly, a rather loud thumping noise woke Takato from his slumber. His eyes opened slightly. 'What was that?' At that same moment, he saw a shadow whiz across the room. He quickly got up into a sitting position, searching around frantically. 'Okay, I'm sure I just didn't imagine that.' He found that Guilmon was sound asleep, oblivious to what Takato just saw. Kai meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen.
"Kai?" Takato said uncertainly. "Is that you?" No answer came. 'Okay, what's going on?' He moved over to Guilmon, and tried to shake him awake. "Guilmon, wake up!" he whispered, but to no avail. 'Oh, come on...' Again, something flew by Takato, but closer this time – it ruffled his hair as it passed. This really began freaking Takato out, and – "Ahhhhh!!" – he ran right out of the room.
As he ran, various thoughts went through Takato's mind, such as where Kai was. He didn't think that was him back there – whatever it was, it was small and fast. Should he try looking for Kai? The prospect of running around in the dark looking for his cousin, while something unknown was on the loose, didn't exactly thrill him. He tried thinking quickly again, which brought him to a different conclusion. He didn't know why exactly, but it seemed like the best and most obvious decision at the time.
Takato sped ahead, skidding to a halt in front of – Ruki's room. He pulled the sliding door aside, the moonlight pouring into the room. He caught his breath when he saw Ruki, sleeping peacefully in her room. The light he let in illuminated her face enchantingly, and Takato gaped at the sight. Not only that, but he also got the rare chance to see her hair let down, framing her face beautifully. What snapped Takato out of his reverie was the glimpse of that thing's shadow following him. He winced and, without a second thought, leaped into Ruki's room, slamming the door behind him.
He ran over to Ruki, dropping to his knees so he slid right into her.
"Mm..." Ruki stirred in her sleep.
"Ruki, wake up!" Takato muttered.
"Uh... what the..." Ruki turned over, opening her eyes slowly.
"It's me, Takato!"
"Takato?" she said groggily. When she realized what she had just said, her eyes widened. She shot up in bed. "Takato!?" she said loudly this time.
"Shhhh!" Takato warned her, waving his hands in front of him frantically.
"What do you think you're doing in my room!?" she fumed.
"I'm sorry, but I thought I saw something outside!" he attempted to defend himself.
"You thought... you saw something... outside?" Ruki repeated incredulously.
"Yes!" Takato nodded his head.
"And you came in here for that!?" Ruki couldn't believe this. "Look, go back to bed, Takato!"
"No! I don't want to go back out there!" Takato gripped the edge of Ruki's comforter. "It's too dark – and that thing is out there!"
Ruki stared at him, disbelief on her face. "Are you serious?"
"Yes!"
She kept looking at him with that same expression on her face. "Honestly, one would think that after fighting Digimon and saving the world from D-Reaper, you would have developed some courage."
"That's different – I was able to see those things and knew how to defeat them. This thing – I don't know what it is!"
Ruki rolled her eyes. "Stop being ridiculous. Besides, Renamon would have sensed if something was out there and would have gotten rid of it."
"But Ruki, this is the unknown! What if Renamon can't sense that?"
The girl was starting to get really annoyed right now. "That's it – you're out of here!" Ruki got up and seized him by the collar, dragging him over to the door. "Kai and Guilmon can deal with you!"
Takato panicked. "B-but Ruki, that's just it! Guilmon's fast asleep, and I don't know where Kai is!"
"Too bad, and you'll find him somewhere!" Ruki reached for the door.
"No!" Takato latched onto Ruki's leg on impulse.
"Takato! Let go of me!" her face flushed.
"I don't want to go out there!" he continued to whine.
Ruki leaned back, trying to break free. Not only was Takato clinging onto her leg, but while she was in her pajamas no less. Seeing as how he wasn't about to let go anytime soon until he got his way, she just gave in. "Fine...!" she sighed. "You can stay the night."
"Really?" Takato loosened his grip and gazed up at her with his russet-coloured eyes.
"Yes, just let go of me!"
"Yay!" Takato got up onto his feet, but embraced Ruki as soon as he did so. "Thanks, Ruki!"
Takato's sudden actions caused Ruki to fall over, blushing like crazy. Takato obviously didn't realize that when Ruki said 'let go,' she didn't mean for him to grab her again afterwards.
WHAP!
"OW!"
"TAKATO! When I said you could stay that meant you had to behave yourself!"
"Ow... sorry..."
Ruki huffed in agitation, and walked back over to her bed. She pulled the covers up around her, but then realized that Takato was inching towards her futon.
"What do you think you're doing?" She glared at him.
"Er... going to bed?" he said innocently.
"Oh, no you don't. That's where I draw the line." Ruki narrowed her eyes.
"So you want me to sleep on the hard wooden floor?" Takato made a pity face.
Ruki started twitching. "Alright! You can share my futon, but you have to sleep on the outside – understand?"
"Understood!" He climbed on board.
"And stay on your side of the futon!" she ordered.
Takato nodded, and carefully lay down next to her. After that, they didn't say anything to each other for about minute. That's when Takato decided to bring something up that had been on his mind.
"I like your pajamas."
Ruki flushed. She elbowed him in the back.
"OW!" Hmm... guess he should have thought out that complement more.
Back outside, the thing that had been haunting Takato tilted its head to the side, as if confused.
Renamon appeared on the rooftop, gazing down at the shadowed figure. "What are you doing here – Culumon?"
"Culu!" Sure enough, it was Culumon, and he walked into the moonlight so Renamon could clearly see him. "Culu! Hi, Renamon! Culu!"
Renamon leaped down and landed in front of Culumon. "Hello, Culumon," Renamon responded, "but you still haven't told me what you're doing here."
"Culumon wants to play, Culu!" the energetic Digimon beamed.
"The others can't play with you, Culumon," Renamon explained carefully. "They're all asleep in bed."
"Takato wasn't, Culu! Takato was awake, but he ran away, Culu!"
"Yes, well..." Renamon glanced back at Ruki's room. "I think you've worn him out, so I think it's best if you go back to Juri's."
"Culu..." Culumon's ears retracted back to its smaller state.
Renamon was sympathetic. "If you come back tomorrow morning, you may be able to play then."
Culumon's face lit up and his ears went back to full size. "Culu! Okay, Renamon, Culu!" Culumon jumped up onto the rooftop. "Culumon will come back in the morning, Culu!" And he leaped off, and away from sight.
Renamon sighed, and stared at the outside of Ruki's door.
"Renamon!" Kai came rushing up to the kitsune Digimon. "I heard Takato yelling while I was in the washroom. I went back to our room but he was gone! Did something happen to him?"
"In a manner of speaking..."
"Eh?" Kai followed Renamon's gaze to Ruki's door. "Is he..."
"Culumon scared him into it," Renamon said calmly.
"No way!" Kai exclaimed. "He's in there? With her?"
"I think it would be best if you went back to bed."
"Aww..." Kai had the urge to peek in on them, but he had a feeling Renamon wouldn't be so lenient. "There's no way I'll be able to sleep with this in my mind..." Kai grumbled as he made his way back to the guestroom.
Taking one last look at the outside of Ruki's room, Renamon soon too disappeared out of sight.
- - -
Morning came, as did Jen with Terriermon to Ruki's house. He walked up to the front gate and rang the doorbell. Ruki's grandmother was the one to answer it.
"Oh, good morning Jenrya," she said as soon as she saw him.
"Good morning, Hata-san," Jen replied.
"Morning!" Terriermon called from behind his head.
"Oh, good morning to you too, Terriermon!" she beamed. "I guess you two are here to visit Takato and Kai."
"That's right. Takato said to come over in the morning so that we could go out together," Jen informed her.
"Well, come on in." She pulled the door aside. "Did you have breakfast yet?"
"Not a lot."
"Then you can join us – it should be ready in a couple of minutes. In the meantime you can see the others." Ruki's grandmother led them to the guestroom.
Kai was trying to wake Guilmon, but at the sight of Jen and Terriermon, he stopped.
"Jenrya! Terriermon! Nice to see you two again!" he smiled.
"I'll get back to the kitchen," Ruki's grandmother told them before heading back.
"Good to see you too Kai – how have you been?" Jen asked him.
"Oh, I'm great! I've been trying for the longest while to wake Guilmon though..."
Jen looked around the room. "Where's Takato?"
At this, a sly grin came upon Kai's face. "Oh, he didn't spend the night here."
"Eh?" Jen and Terriermon blinked at him.
"Where then?" Terriermon asked.
Kai still had that look on his face, and Jen and Terriermon were still confused. Kai glanced around before getting up. "Follow me." He took them outside and walked around the house for a bit. Jen then realized that they were now not too far away from Ruki's room.
"Wait a second... why are you headed to Ruki's room?"
Kai glanced back at him. "Why do you think?"
"Eh?" Jen and Terriermon's eyes widened.
"You mean he's..." Terriermon trailed off.
Kai didn't say anything, just stepped in front of the door to her room. That's when Renamon intervened.
"You're not going in without Ruki's permission," she said firmly.
"Aw, but Renamon, we have to wake them up for breakfast!" Kai protested.
Renamon didn't think this was a legitimate answer. Seeing this, Kai continued.
"If Ruki doesn't wake up soon, her family will want to know where she is. Thus, they'll come to wake her up, and BAM! Wouldn't it be better for us to do it instead of causing that entire family trauma?"
Renamon's expression didn't change, but she knocked on the door. "Ruki!" she called, but there was no answer. "Ruki!" she tried again, but still nothing.
"I guess we'll have to open the door," Terriermon deduced.
Kai took it upon himself to begin sliding the door open carefully. They peered inside, to see Takato and Ruki fast asleep. What made them all do a double take was seeing one of Takato's arms slung around Ruki.
Terriermon was about to shout before Jen stopped him. "What's Takato doing in there in the first place?" he whispered.
"Culumon scared him so he ran in there," Kai snickered.
"Culumon?" Terriermon echoed disbelievingly. He started laughing to himself.
"Terriermon, quiet! They might hear you!" Jen warned his partner.
"What should we do?" Kai pondered out loud.
"One wrong move and we could end up with a nasty mess on our hands," Jen observed the two.
"It's like messing with dynamite," Terriermon added.
"Let's just drag him out," Kai proposed.
"Kai, wait!" Jen said, but Kai had already stepped into the room, approaching Takato and Ruki cautiously.
He went up to the two, and lifted off Takato's arm from Ruki. Takato however, retaliated, bringing his arm back down and snuggling closer to Ruki. Kai and the others cringed back.
"Mm..." Oh no! Ruki was waking up! Kai and the others panicked. Kai rushed back to the door, slamming the door shut. He was breathing heavily, leaning against the door.
"Whoa, that was close," Kai gasped.
"But what about Takato?" Jen said to the others. They paused for a moment – then left the scene as quickly as possible.
"Hm?" Ruki groaned as she opened her eyes. "What was that noise?" She tried getting up, but felt something heavy around her. Her eyes widened, and she looked back at Takato, sleeping in very close proximity of her.
After that, the group outside heard an awful lot of yelling, yelps of pain, and noise in general. They watched from a distance as Ruki's bedroom door flew open, Takato hurling into the air with a shout. The door slammed back shut with a bang, before the others dared to move from their hiding spot. Takato groaned as he rubbed his sore face, picking himself up slowly from the ground.
"I think it's time for breakfast," Jen stated as he started walking away with Terriermon on his shoulder.
"Yeah, me too," Kai agreed, following the wise Tamer. "I'll go get Guilmon."
- - -
The Tamers, Kai, and the Digimon were seated around the table that morning. They ate their breakfast in a rather quiet atmosphere. Takato was sitting a good distance away from Ruki, who was in a particularly peevish mood. Kai and Jen looked back from one Tamer to the other, wondering what would happen next.
Kai couldn't stand it any longer: he decided to speak first. "Takato, where were you last night? How come you weren't in bed when I got back from the washroom?"
Takato was taken aback, as he accidentally spat out some juice he was in the process of drinking. "Uh... I was..." Ruki looked up and glared at him. "Er... out for some fresh air... that's all... eh heh heh..."
"Couldn't sleep?" Terriermon joined in the conversation. Takato nodded.
"Did it help?" Kai inquired. "Have a good sleep? Some nice dreams..." he smirked, taking a pause. "... With your dream girl..." He glanced over at Ruki, who looked up at him.
This time Jen choked on his food. "Dream girl?"
"Dream girl!?" Terriermon jumped up onto his legs. "What's this about a dream girl?"
"Gyah..." Takato was at a loss for words. He heard a loud 'slap' noise from across the table. Shaking, he turned around. Ruki had slammed her hand on the table, her other balled into a fist. Sweating, Takato gulped.
She sent him an icy glare. "YOU TOLD HIM ABOUT THAT!?"
"Uh – well – that is – uh..." Takato's mind was a blank, only thinking about the horrific things the girl in front of him might do to cause him physical pain. He did what any sane male would do – he bolted. He ran right out of the room, down the hallway.
Ruki went right after him, tearing down the hallway.
"Kai, what did you just do?" Jen asked him from the corner of his eye.
"Momentai, Jen," Terriermon quipped, "Nothing like a little morning entertainment."
'Omigosh, she's going to kill me!' ran through Takato's mind as he heard Ruki's pounding footsteps behind him. He tore down the hallway, into the guestroom where he and Kai were staying. He shut the door and looked around for somewhere to hide. Ruki was fast though, and she swung the door open as soon as she got there. Takato whirled around, feeling a sense of utter dread upon him.
"R-Ruki, wait a second!" he stuttered nervously.
"I can't believe you told him about that!" she seethed, stepping towards him.
"Please, we were just talking and he kind of forced me to tell!"
"Don't give me that! You didn't have to tell him anything!"
"It was an accident, a stupid accident!" Takato lowered his head. "Nothing like that will never happen again! The last thing I want to do is make you angry!" Takato heard Ruki stop in front of him, foreboding hanging over his head. He gulped, waiting for what would happen – but nothing did. He looked up, and Ruki was just watching him.
"I know you didn't mean it Takato. I guess I was just..." she looked away, a pink hue on her face, "... embarrassed."
"Eh..." Takato gazed up at Ruki's softened features. "Sorry..." he glanced back down, when his hand hit something. He realized that it was his sketchbook. He opened it, flipping through the pages. He stopped at the one Kai had pointed out to him earlier. Takato paused a moment to think, then reached for his colouring materials. Ruki watched him, wondering what he was up to. He caught her sight, and asked, "Do you want to help me colour this in?" He lifted up the drawing to her. Ruki examined it for as second.
"Sure."
Takato smiled as she sat down next to him.
Just outside the doorway, Kai was looking in on them. 'Don't like her, huh?' he grinned.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Me: There you have it! I'm not completely satisfied with how it turned out, but it's okay. Please review, but no flames thanks!
Anyways, read on, and if the characters seem OOC (I know they are), I'm really sorry about that.
Oh, and if you've heard of the song "Sleepless Beauty" from "Gravitation," it doesn't really have anything to do with the fanfic itself, just to let you know. It made for a good title though!
Disclaimer: "Digimon" is property of Akiyoshi Hongo, Toei, Saban, Disney, Tokyopop, and anyone else I may have missed.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sleepless Beauty
It was summer, and that meant it was fun in the sun time for the youth of Shinjuku. Included in this group were those who had saved the world from the D-Reaper – the Digimon Tamers.
Last summer, Takato had gone to Okinawa to visit his cousin Kai and Grandfather. This summer though, it was Kai's turn to come up and visit his card-slashing cousin.
"Kai!" The goggled boy was at the airport to pick Kai up. He waved over at his cousin.
"Takato!" his tanned cousin called back to him. Kai ran up to Takato, his luggage flying behind him. "Where are your folks?" he asked when he caught up to him.
"They're working at the bakery, so I had to come alone. They wish you well, though," Takato answered happily.
"Yeah, the flight was great!" Kai grinned. "It was even better than before when I came when that D-Reaper thing was amuck."
Takato chuckled lightly. "Well, come on – let's get going." He started leading them out of the airport.
"Where's Guilmon?" Kai asked as they walked out the door. He looked around for the red dino.
"At the park, most likely scarfing down some Guilmon bread," Takato laughed. "I'm going to pick him up later, so you're welcome to come along."
"That would be great!" Kai exclaimed. "It's too bad Gramps couldn't come. I felt bad leaving him behind with work on top of being sick."
"Don't worry," Takato assured him. "From what I gathered of him when I visited, he can take care of himself."
"Yeah, you're probably right," Kai smiled. "Hey, I can't wait to see your friends again!"
"And I can't wait to introduce you to them again!" Takato replied cheerily. "Speaking of friends, how's Minami-chan doing?"
"Oh, she's great! We hang out a lot together, and her dad's doing just fine too."
"That's good to hear."
Their conversation continued like this until they finally reached the Matsuda bakery. The automatic doors slid open, the warm atmosphere of the bakery consuming them, as well as the freshly baked bread smell. Being so inviting, the boys thought it a bit odd that Takato's parents were no where to be seen, even less no customers.
"Mom, Dad! I'm back with Kai!" Takato's voice rang throughout the building.
At the sound of his voice, Takato's mother came up from the back. "Oh, good – you two are here."
"Mom, what's wrong? Where are all the customers?" Takato sounded concerned.
"It's Grandpa – his illness has gotten worse and now Dad and I have to go and watch him in Okinawa.
"What?" Takato looked astonished.
"Darn it! I knew I should have stayed behind!" Kai spat.
"Don't worry, it's not fatal," Takato's mother assured them. "Kai, since you came up here for the summer, the two of you might as well stay," she continued. "Takato, do you think you could ask one of your friends if the two of you can stay at their place while we're gone?"
"Yeah, sure." Takato went around the back to use the phone. He picked up the receiver and was about to dial Jen's number. He hesitated for a moment though, rethinking his decision.
'Jen's already got such a large family... it might be a problem if Kai and I stay there...' Takato frowned. 'But who else can I call...' After mulling over the decision for a minute or so, he started dialing.
"Hello?" a voice at the other end came.
"Hi – um... Ruki," Takato spluttered.
"Takato?"
"Yeah, it's me..."
"What are you calling for?"
"Uh... well, you see... my cousin from Okinawa came up for the summer – remember him?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, he left Grandpa at home, but now he's really sick and my parents have to go and look after him."
"Oh, that's too bad... but what does this have to do with me?"
"Well, Kai and I need a place to stay while my parents are away, so..."
"So you want me to put you up?"
"Er – yeah. If it's not too much trouble that is..."
"Why me? I thought you would have called Jen first."
"Well, I was going too, but he's already got such a large family."
"So you called me instead because I'm an only child?"
"N-no, it's not like that!"
"You know, Hirokazu and Kenta are only kids too you know. They're also boys – I think you would be better off staying with them instead."
"Ruki, that's not why I called you! I'll admit that I thought about calling them, but I chose you because you and Jen are my two closest friends!"
At the other end, Ruki was silent. Takato started, wondering if what he said was really a good thing to do or not.
"Let me ask my family if it's alright," Ruki finally replied.
"Uh... yeah... sure..." Takato blinked. There was silence at Ruki's end while she was away, and then she came back to the phone.
"They said it's fine."
"Oh, great!" Takato grinned. "Thanks a lot, Ruki! Bye!"
"Wait a second – Takato!" but he had already hung up.
Takato ran up back to the front of the bakery. "Mom, Kai, we're staying at Ruki's!"
"Ruki's?" his mother and Kai echoed.
"Yeah, I'm going to go pack now!" Takato sprinted up the steps to his room. He pulled out his bag and started jamming in clothes and his sketchbook, among other numerous items. Kai walked into his room, strewn with stuff Takato attempted to pack.
"Whoa, this is your room?" Kai looked around at his Digimon drawings on the wall.
"Yep!" Takato answered while he kept himself busy.
"Hey, isn't Ruki that girl whose house we stayed at when the D-Reaper was loose?"
"Yeah, that's right," Takato said. "Why?"
"Oh, just wondering..."
"Huh?" Takato looked up from his belongings.
"Hey, hurry up. If I remember correctly, she lives pretty far from here."
"Oh, uh... right."
- - -
Takato and Kai were now on their way to Ruki's house, Takato's parents having left for the airport. They were walking along, dragging their luggage with them, the sun shining down on the two boys.
"This is an awfully long walk," Kai commented.
"I always walk to Ruki's," Takato said easily.
"Hey, I'm not complaining or anything. Anyways, what do you mean, always? How often do you go there?"
"Er – not often, but whenever I do I usually walk there."
"Really?" Kai's mind started to wander. "How did you meet someone like her anyways? Fighting Digimon?"
"Um... well, not exactly..."
Kai started to get intrigued. "Not exactly? Then how?"
"Uh... I can't tell you..."
"Can't tell me?" Kai repeated. "What do you mean you can't tell me? What happened?"
"I can't tell anyone. I only told her, and – " Takato stopped abruptly when he realized how odd that must have sounded.
Kai's eyebrows rose. "Only told her? Wasn't she there?"
"Did I say that? Oh, it must have been a slip of the tongue," Takato laughed nervously.
"Aww, come on, Takato! We're cousins – you can tell me!"
"Well..." Takato watched Kai's eyes widen in anticipation. "Well... I kind of saw her... in a dream."
"A... dream?" Kai looked slightly bewildered.
"Yeah... at least, I think it was a dream. When I woke up I felt that my hands were all clammy from the rain.
"Rain?"
"It was raining, and I saw her and Renamon fighting a Lynxmon fighting from up above."
Kai was listening intently.
"The weird thing was that I had never met Ruki beforehand, but yet there she was – in my dream. Then later on, I actually met her in person of course.
"Wow..." Kai whispered. "So, she's like... you're dream girl."
"What!?" Takato stared at Kai incredulously.
Kai laughed. "Maybe it's like, destiny for you two to be together!" he joked.
"W-wait a second, Kai!"
"Man, what a story to tell the grandkids!"
"Grand...kids?" Takato paled.
Kai turned to Takato. "I thought you liked that Juri girl though."
"Huh?" Takato blinked. "Uh – well – I do, but – "
"But this conversation will have to end because we're already here."
"Huh?" Takato looked up to see that indeed they had arrived at Ruki's house. The gates were open, in anticipation of their arrival.
"Well, let's not keep them waiting!" Kai started walking in. Takato followed him up to the door, where they knocked on it to announce their arrival.
The door opened, revealing Ruki behind it.
"Hi, Ruki!" Takato greeted.
"Nice to see you again!" Kai waved.
"Yeah, well come on in. You guys will be staying in the guestroom." Ruki let the boys in, kicking off their shoes to follow Ruki to their room.
"Just leave your stuff in here," Ruki pointed inside.
"Where's the rest of your family?" Takato asked as he dropped his bag.
"Mom's out on business and Grandma's shopping. I told Renamon to go and help her."
"That was nice of you," Takato smiled.
"I was going to ask you when we were on the phone what time you'd be coming."
"Uh... you were?"
"Yes, so I would know if my family would be able to greet you once you came. But someone decided to hang up before I could say anything," Ruki glared up at him.
"Uh – I'm really sorry Ruki! I didn't mean to!" Takato waved his hands in front of himself.
Ruki stared at him for a second. "Well, I guess your parents were in a hurry."
"His parents or him?" Kai murmured, to which Takato cringed.
"So where's Guilmon?" Ruki asked. "I thought for sure you would bring him along."
"Ah – I nearly forgot!" Takato exclaimed. "He's at the park – I was going to go get him later."
"Hey, let's go now!" Kai piped up. "I wouldn't mind going to see the place where you guys hang out!"
"Oh – alright! Ruki, do you want to come?"
"I guess I might as well," she sighed. "I've been completely bored waiting for you two to get here."
"Eh heh..." Takato rubbed the back of his head.
"Alright, let's go!" Kai cheered.
- - -
The three walked along the paved sidewalk to Guilmon's, Takato and Kai up front with Ruki bringing up the rear. She was listening to her discman as the boys up ahead were in another one of their conversations.
"Hey," Kai whispered to Takato. "Did you tell Juri that you like her yet?"
"Er..." Takato flushed. "No..."
"Why not? When are planning on telling her?"
"I don't know... I don't have the guts to do it. Last time I tried it was when she was possessed by the D-Reaper, but I don't think I can do it now."
"Geez..." Kai looked slightly annoyed. "If you don't, someone else might pick her up instead."
"Y-you think?" Takato seemed a bit afraid of that prospect.
"Well why not? She seems like a nice girl that any guy would be happy to go out with."
"Hmm..." Takato started thinking to himself miserably.
Kai watched his cousin's fallen face. "Aw, don't worry! You two have been through a lot together, right?"
"Well, yeah..."
"See? Why wouldn't she be with you?"
"But..."
"But nothing! Anyways..." Kai glanced back at Ruki, who wasn't paying any attention to them whatsoever. "I suppose you could always fall back on your dream girl..." Kai grinned mischievously at Takato.
"Kai, knock it off!" Takato flustered. "I only told you about that because you wouldn't stop bugging me!"
Kai laughed carelessly. "Oh, don't worry! She can't hear a thing with those headphones on."
"I wouldn't know about that..." Takato tried to steal an inconspicuous glance at Ruki. "But I think there's already someone she could get together with..."
"Eh?" Kai's eyes widened. "Really? Who?"
"Er..." Takato wasn't sure if he should be saying anything. "Well... I kind of thought that her and Akiyama Ryo would..."
"Akiyama Ryo? You mean that Digimon King guy?"
Takato nodded his head.
"Hmm..." Kai looked up at the sky, his face contorted into what seemed to be a thinking manner.
"Ahhhh, this is stupid!" Takato said abruptly. "Why are we talking about this?"
"Takato," Kai slapped his cousin on the back, "I'm sure you could win her over!"
"WHAT!?" Takato shouted.
"Hm?" Ruki looked up at the two in front of her. Takato cringed and turned around slowly. He signaled that nothing was wrong by waving his hand. Ruki just raised an eyebrow at him.
"Kai," Takato hissed, "what in the world are you talking about!? I thought you wanted me to tell Juri how I feel!"
"Well, yeah..."
"Then why do you keep bringing up Ruki?" Takato frowned.
Kai looked at Takato, a grin spread across his face. "Because it's fun."
"Huh?" Takato blinked in bewilderment.
"Hey!"
"Uh – " Takato and Kai stopped and looked back at Ruki.
"Where do you think you're going, Takato? Guilmon's place is over here." Ruki pointed up a pathway.
"Oh – uh – right!" Takato laughed. "I must not have been paying attention."
"You were that distracted to pass by Guilmon?" Ruki said disbelievingly.
"Uh... that's right! Eh heh heh..."
Ruki looked unconvinced. Sighing, she said, "Whatever... I'll never understand you..." and started up the path to Guilmon's.
Takato groaned and started following her up with Kai.
"Hey, this is a pretty secluded area," Kai mentioned as he looked around.
"It had to be. When I first got Guilmon I had to hide him somewhere," Takato explained.
Ruki walked into Guilmon's shed, where the aforementioned Digimon was resting peacefully. She moved over to him and shook him slightly. "Guilmon, wake up." Guilmon seemed to give a sort of snort as a response, and wiggled around a bit. Ruki lowered her eyelids. "Hmm... Guilmon, Takato's here to bring you – "
Guilmon's amber eyes suddenly snapped open. "Takato!"
"Ah!" Ruki fell back as Guilmon leaped into the air and out the door.
"Takato!" Guilmon came bounding down the steps at Takato.
"Eh?" Takato looked up to see a red blur coming at him. "Augh!" Guilmon flew into him, knocking Takato back down the steps. Kai had just barely managed to avoid being caught in the tumble, and gazed down to see them both at the foot of the steps. "Ow..." Takato rubbed his head. "Guilmon, that's dangerous!"
"Sorry," Guilmon replied innocently, "but you were taking so long – I was wondering when you would get here."
"Oh, yeah... sorry about that Guilmon," Takato said as he got up. "I had to pack and stuff because my parents needed to go to Okinawa."
"Okinawa?" Guilmon mimicked. "That place we went to last year?"
"Ah, you remember!"
Guilmon looked up at the person who had spoken. "Kai!" His face lit up.
"Ha ha! And you remember me, too!" Kai chuckled. "Good to see you again Guilmon!"
"Yeah, me too!" Guilmon beamed. "Takato, I remember you said Kai would be here, but why did your parents go to Okinawa?"
"I'll answer that one!" Kai dropped down next to them, pointing his index finger up in the air. "Gramps got sick, so Takato's parents went to go and look after him." He leaned over towards Guilmon. "Which is also why we're staying at Ruki's while they're away."
"Ruki's?" Guilmon blinked.
"Geez, Guilmon." Ruki came down the steps. "You nearly ran me over with that outburst of yours."
"Oh, sorry Ruki," Guilmon apologized.
She sighed again. "Well, I guess you can't help it. Anyways, we should head back before my family gets there first. They'll wonder where we've gone off to."
As Ruki thought might have happened, her family indeed did get back before they did.
"We're here!" Ruki called.
"Welcome back!" a couple of female voices answered. Ruki's mother and grandmother appeared before them, smiles on their faces.
"It's nice of you boys to stay with us – oh, and Guilmon too," Rumiko greeted them.
"Thank you very much!" They bowed over respectfully.
"Dinner's ready, so we might as well start eating," the elderly woman spoke kindly.
"Yay! Food!" Guilmon cheered happily.
- - -
After a delightful dinner and dessert, Takato let Jen know that he was staying at Ruki's. When that was over with, he and Kai spent their time unpacking with Guilmon. Takato took out his sketchbook and laid it gingerly on the floor. Spotting it, Kai picked it up.
"Hey, can I look through this?" he asked.
"Yeah, sure," Takato answered while he still unpacked.
Kai sat down on the floor and began flipping through it. Takato had numerous sketches of various Digimon, but Kai found the ones depicting Guilmon and his evolutionary forms the most entertaining. He went through all the details, including attacks. Kai turned a few more pages, when he found another drawing that caught his eye. Guilmon peered over Kai's shoulder to take a look at it too. It wasn't of a Digimon – it was a group of humans. Kai soon realized that it was the Tamers, and Takato had just started colouring it in, starting with himself, Jen, and Ruki.
"Hey," Kai lifted up the book. "This is pretty good."
"Oh," Takato glanced at the page. "Thanks... it was my first attempt and drawing humans since I did our Tamers banner."
"Tamers banner?"
"Yeah, it was this idea I had when Jen, Ruki, and I became friends and official Tamers. I did another one when we all went to the Digital World. I would show you, but Culumon kind of decided to wear it as a cape or something." Takato laughed at that last remark.
"Hmm... I bet you could do it again." Kai brought the book back down to look at the drawing. "When did you do this one?"
"A while ago." Takato sat on the floor along with Kai. Guilmon went over to him to take a seat as well.
"You didn't finish colouring it though," Kai said.
"I know – I keep putting it off for later." Takato dug into his pocket, pulling out his Digimon cards. "Hey, do you want to play a game?" He waved it in front of Kai.
"I don't have any cards."
"You don't?" Takato was rather shocked. "But I thought you said you knew about Digimon in Okinawa."
"Yeah, but that didn't mean that I owned any cards," Kai pointed out for him.
"Oh..." Takato's excitement level dropped.
"I'll play you."
Takato looked round at the doorway, where Ruki stood with Renamon by her side.
"Ruki!" Takato squeaked.
"Hey, cool!" Kai exclaimed. "Then I can see how you play the game!"
"Uh..." Takato droned.
"Come on, do it, Takato!" Kai urged him on.
"Well... I guess a game or two wouldn't hurt..."
"Okay!" Kai positioned himself in the best viewing position as Ruki took a seat across from Takato. Guilmon and Renamon joined him in observing the match from the side.
Takato gulped nervously as he shuffled his deck. He had never actually played Ruki before. If her title the "Digimon Queen" was any indication however, he had a feeling that he wouldn't fair too well. Soon enough...
"Takato..." Kai murmured monotone. "You've lost seven rounds in a row."
"Er... I guess I'm pretty bad at this, huh?" Takato rubbed the back of his head. "Eh heh heh..."
"I don't think 'pretty bad' even begins to describe this," Kai continued.
"Uh – " Takato paused a moment. He dropped his head. "Ugh... Well, what do you expect? Her title is the 'Digimon Queen'!"
Kai shrugged. "I guess we won't be able to see your true potential unless a Digimon or the D-Reaper attacks again."
"Kai!" Takato exclaimed. "Are you listening?"
"As much fun as it is to listen to you argue," Ruki said as she gathered up her cards, "I think it's time for bed now. See you." With that, she got up and swiftly left the room, Renamon phasing out with her.
"Huh?" Takato looked at the clock hanging in the guestroom. "Oh, man – she's right!"
"I would say so – look." Kai pointed at Guilmon, snoozing away comfortably.
"Alright, guess it's time to roll out the futons," Takato announced.
As night settled, the boys slipped into bed. Wishing the other a good night, they were soon both asleep like Guilmon. The summer air had cooled with nightfall, and Takato pulled the covers up over himself. Outside, the soft breeze blow against the trees, rattling the leaves embedded in its branches.
Suddenly, a rather loud thumping noise woke Takato from his slumber. His eyes opened slightly. 'What was that?' At that same moment, he saw a shadow whiz across the room. He quickly got up into a sitting position, searching around frantically. 'Okay, I'm sure I just didn't imagine that.' He found that Guilmon was sound asleep, oblivious to what Takato just saw. Kai meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen.
"Kai?" Takato said uncertainly. "Is that you?" No answer came. 'Okay, what's going on?' He moved over to Guilmon, and tried to shake him awake. "Guilmon, wake up!" he whispered, but to no avail. 'Oh, come on...' Again, something flew by Takato, but closer this time – it ruffled his hair as it passed. This really began freaking Takato out, and – "Ahhhhh!!" – he ran right out of the room.
As he ran, various thoughts went through Takato's mind, such as where Kai was. He didn't think that was him back there – whatever it was, it was small and fast. Should he try looking for Kai? The prospect of running around in the dark looking for his cousin, while something unknown was on the loose, didn't exactly thrill him. He tried thinking quickly again, which brought him to a different conclusion. He didn't know why exactly, but it seemed like the best and most obvious decision at the time.
Takato sped ahead, skidding to a halt in front of – Ruki's room. He pulled the sliding door aside, the moonlight pouring into the room. He caught his breath when he saw Ruki, sleeping peacefully in her room. The light he let in illuminated her face enchantingly, and Takato gaped at the sight. Not only that, but he also got the rare chance to see her hair let down, framing her face beautifully. What snapped Takato out of his reverie was the glimpse of that thing's shadow following him. He winced and, without a second thought, leaped into Ruki's room, slamming the door behind him.
He ran over to Ruki, dropping to his knees so he slid right into her.
"Mm..." Ruki stirred in her sleep.
"Ruki, wake up!" Takato muttered.
"Uh... what the..." Ruki turned over, opening her eyes slowly.
"It's me, Takato!"
"Takato?" she said groggily. When she realized what she had just said, her eyes widened. She shot up in bed. "Takato!?" she said loudly this time.
"Shhhh!" Takato warned her, waving his hands in front of him frantically.
"What do you think you're doing in my room!?" she fumed.
"I'm sorry, but I thought I saw something outside!" he attempted to defend himself.
"You thought... you saw something... outside?" Ruki repeated incredulously.
"Yes!" Takato nodded his head.
"And you came in here for that!?" Ruki couldn't believe this. "Look, go back to bed, Takato!"
"No! I don't want to go back out there!" Takato gripped the edge of Ruki's comforter. "It's too dark – and that thing is out there!"
Ruki stared at him, disbelief on her face. "Are you serious?"
"Yes!"
She kept looking at him with that same expression on her face. "Honestly, one would think that after fighting Digimon and saving the world from D-Reaper, you would have developed some courage."
"That's different – I was able to see those things and knew how to defeat them. This thing – I don't know what it is!"
Ruki rolled her eyes. "Stop being ridiculous. Besides, Renamon would have sensed if something was out there and would have gotten rid of it."
"But Ruki, this is the unknown! What if Renamon can't sense that?"
The girl was starting to get really annoyed right now. "That's it – you're out of here!" Ruki got up and seized him by the collar, dragging him over to the door. "Kai and Guilmon can deal with you!"
Takato panicked. "B-but Ruki, that's just it! Guilmon's fast asleep, and I don't know where Kai is!"
"Too bad, and you'll find him somewhere!" Ruki reached for the door.
"No!" Takato latched onto Ruki's leg on impulse.
"Takato! Let go of me!" her face flushed.
"I don't want to go out there!" he continued to whine.
Ruki leaned back, trying to break free. Not only was Takato clinging onto her leg, but while she was in her pajamas no less. Seeing as how he wasn't about to let go anytime soon until he got his way, she just gave in. "Fine...!" she sighed. "You can stay the night."
"Really?" Takato loosened his grip and gazed up at her with his russet-coloured eyes.
"Yes, just let go of me!"
"Yay!" Takato got up onto his feet, but embraced Ruki as soon as he did so. "Thanks, Ruki!"
Takato's sudden actions caused Ruki to fall over, blushing like crazy. Takato obviously didn't realize that when Ruki said 'let go,' she didn't mean for him to grab her again afterwards.
WHAP!
"OW!"
"TAKATO! When I said you could stay that meant you had to behave yourself!"
"Ow... sorry..."
Ruki huffed in agitation, and walked back over to her bed. She pulled the covers up around her, but then realized that Takato was inching towards her futon.
"What do you think you're doing?" She glared at him.
"Er... going to bed?" he said innocently.
"Oh, no you don't. That's where I draw the line." Ruki narrowed her eyes.
"So you want me to sleep on the hard wooden floor?" Takato made a pity face.
Ruki started twitching. "Alright! You can share my futon, but you have to sleep on the outside – understand?"
"Understood!" He climbed on board.
"And stay on your side of the futon!" she ordered.
Takato nodded, and carefully lay down next to her. After that, they didn't say anything to each other for about minute. That's when Takato decided to bring something up that had been on his mind.
"I like your pajamas."
Ruki flushed. She elbowed him in the back.
"OW!" Hmm... guess he should have thought out that complement more.
Back outside, the thing that had been haunting Takato tilted its head to the side, as if confused.
Renamon appeared on the rooftop, gazing down at the shadowed figure. "What are you doing here – Culumon?"
"Culu!" Sure enough, it was Culumon, and he walked into the moonlight so Renamon could clearly see him. "Culu! Hi, Renamon! Culu!"
Renamon leaped down and landed in front of Culumon. "Hello, Culumon," Renamon responded, "but you still haven't told me what you're doing here."
"Culumon wants to play, Culu!" the energetic Digimon beamed.
"The others can't play with you, Culumon," Renamon explained carefully. "They're all asleep in bed."
"Takato wasn't, Culu! Takato was awake, but he ran away, Culu!"
"Yes, well..." Renamon glanced back at Ruki's room. "I think you've worn him out, so I think it's best if you go back to Juri's."
"Culu..." Culumon's ears retracted back to its smaller state.
Renamon was sympathetic. "If you come back tomorrow morning, you may be able to play then."
Culumon's face lit up and his ears went back to full size. "Culu! Okay, Renamon, Culu!" Culumon jumped up onto the rooftop. "Culumon will come back in the morning, Culu!" And he leaped off, and away from sight.
Renamon sighed, and stared at the outside of Ruki's door.
"Renamon!" Kai came rushing up to the kitsune Digimon. "I heard Takato yelling while I was in the washroom. I went back to our room but he was gone! Did something happen to him?"
"In a manner of speaking..."
"Eh?" Kai followed Renamon's gaze to Ruki's door. "Is he..."
"Culumon scared him into it," Renamon said calmly.
"No way!" Kai exclaimed. "He's in there? With her?"
"I think it would be best if you went back to bed."
"Aww..." Kai had the urge to peek in on them, but he had a feeling Renamon wouldn't be so lenient. "There's no way I'll be able to sleep with this in my mind..." Kai grumbled as he made his way back to the guestroom.
Taking one last look at the outside of Ruki's room, Renamon soon too disappeared out of sight.
- - -
Morning came, as did Jen with Terriermon to Ruki's house. He walked up to the front gate and rang the doorbell. Ruki's grandmother was the one to answer it.
"Oh, good morning Jenrya," she said as soon as she saw him.
"Good morning, Hata-san," Jen replied.
"Morning!" Terriermon called from behind his head.
"Oh, good morning to you too, Terriermon!" she beamed. "I guess you two are here to visit Takato and Kai."
"That's right. Takato said to come over in the morning so that we could go out together," Jen informed her.
"Well, come on in." She pulled the door aside. "Did you have breakfast yet?"
"Not a lot."
"Then you can join us – it should be ready in a couple of minutes. In the meantime you can see the others." Ruki's grandmother led them to the guestroom.
Kai was trying to wake Guilmon, but at the sight of Jen and Terriermon, he stopped.
"Jenrya! Terriermon! Nice to see you two again!" he smiled.
"I'll get back to the kitchen," Ruki's grandmother told them before heading back.
"Good to see you too Kai – how have you been?" Jen asked him.
"Oh, I'm great! I've been trying for the longest while to wake Guilmon though..."
Jen looked around the room. "Where's Takato?"
At this, a sly grin came upon Kai's face. "Oh, he didn't spend the night here."
"Eh?" Jen and Terriermon blinked at him.
"Where then?" Terriermon asked.
Kai still had that look on his face, and Jen and Terriermon were still confused. Kai glanced around before getting up. "Follow me." He took them outside and walked around the house for a bit. Jen then realized that they were now not too far away from Ruki's room.
"Wait a second... why are you headed to Ruki's room?"
Kai glanced back at him. "Why do you think?"
"Eh?" Jen and Terriermon's eyes widened.
"You mean he's..." Terriermon trailed off.
Kai didn't say anything, just stepped in front of the door to her room. That's when Renamon intervened.
"You're not going in without Ruki's permission," she said firmly.
"Aw, but Renamon, we have to wake them up for breakfast!" Kai protested.
Renamon didn't think this was a legitimate answer. Seeing this, Kai continued.
"If Ruki doesn't wake up soon, her family will want to know where she is. Thus, they'll come to wake her up, and BAM! Wouldn't it be better for us to do it instead of causing that entire family trauma?"
Renamon's expression didn't change, but she knocked on the door. "Ruki!" she called, but there was no answer. "Ruki!" she tried again, but still nothing.
"I guess we'll have to open the door," Terriermon deduced.
Kai took it upon himself to begin sliding the door open carefully. They peered inside, to see Takato and Ruki fast asleep. What made them all do a double take was seeing one of Takato's arms slung around Ruki.
Terriermon was about to shout before Jen stopped him. "What's Takato doing in there in the first place?" he whispered.
"Culumon scared him so he ran in there," Kai snickered.
"Culumon?" Terriermon echoed disbelievingly. He started laughing to himself.
"Terriermon, quiet! They might hear you!" Jen warned his partner.
"What should we do?" Kai pondered out loud.
"One wrong move and we could end up with a nasty mess on our hands," Jen observed the two.
"It's like messing with dynamite," Terriermon added.
"Let's just drag him out," Kai proposed.
"Kai, wait!" Jen said, but Kai had already stepped into the room, approaching Takato and Ruki cautiously.
He went up to the two, and lifted off Takato's arm from Ruki. Takato however, retaliated, bringing his arm back down and snuggling closer to Ruki. Kai and the others cringed back.
"Mm..." Oh no! Ruki was waking up! Kai and the others panicked. Kai rushed back to the door, slamming the door shut. He was breathing heavily, leaning against the door.
"Whoa, that was close," Kai gasped.
"But what about Takato?" Jen said to the others. They paused for a moment – then left the scene as quickly as possible.
"Hm?" Ruki groaned as she opened her eyes. "What was that noise?" She tried getting up, but felt something heavy around her. Her eyes widened, and she looked back at Takato, sleeping in very close proximity of her.
After that, the group outside heard an awful lot of yelling, yelps of pain, and noise in general. They watched from a distance as Ruki's bedroom door flew open, Takato hurling into the air with a shout. The door slammed back shut with a bang, before the others dared to move from their hiding spot. Takato groaned as he rubbed his sore face, picking himself up slowly from the ground.
"I think it's time for breakfast," Jen stated as he started walking away with Terriermon on his shoulder.
"Yeah, me too," Kai agreed, following the wise Tamer. "I'll go get Guilmon."
- - -
The Tamers, Kai, and the Digimon were seated around the table that morning. They ate their breakfast in a rather quiet atmosphere. Takato was sitting a good distance away from Ruki, who was in a particularly peevish mood. Kai and Jen looked back from one Tamer to the other, wondering what would happen next.
Kai couldn't stand it any longer: he decided to speak first. "Takato, where were you last night? How come you weren't in bed when I got back from the washroom?"
Takato was taken aback, as he accidentally spat out some juice he was in the process of drinking. "Uh... I was..." Ruki looked up and glared at him. "Er... out for some fresh air... that's all... eh heh heh..."
"Couldn't sleep?" Terriermon joined in the conversation. Takato nodded.
"Did it help?" Kai inquired. "Have a good sleep? Some nice dreams..." he smirked, taking a pause. "... With your dream girl..." He glanced over at Ruki, who looked up at him.
This time Jen choked on his food. "Dream girl?"
"Dream girl!?" Terriermon jumped up onto his legs. "What's this about a dream girl?"
"Gyah..." Takato was at a loss for words. He heard a loud 'slap' noise from across the table. Shaking, he turned around. Ruki had slammed her hand on the table, her other balled into a fist. Sweating, Takato gulped.
She sent him an icy glare. "YOU TOLD HIM ABOUT THAT!?"
"Uh – well – that is – uh..." Takato's mind was a blank, only thinking about the horrific things the girl in front of him might do to cause him physical pain. He did what any sane male would do – he bolted. He ran right out of the room, down the hallway.
Ruki went right after him, tearing down the hallway.
"Kai, what did you just do?" Jen asked him from the corner of his eye.
"Momentai, Jen," Terriermon quipped, "Nothing like a little morning entertainment."
'Omigosh, she's going to kill me!' ran through Takato's mind as he heard Ruki's pounding footsteps behind him. He tore down the hallway, into the guestroom where he and Kai were staying. He shut the door and looked around for somewhere to hide. Ruki was fast though, and she swung the door open as soon as she got there. Takato whirled around, feeling a sense of utter dread upon him.
"R-Ruki, wait a second!" he stuttered nervously.
"I can't believe you told him about that!" she seethed, stepping towards him.
"Please, we were just talking and he kind of forced me to tell!"
"Don't give me that! You didn't have to tell him anything!"
"It was an accident, a stupid accident!" Takato lowered his head. "Nothing like that will never happen again! The last thing I want to do is make you angry!" Takato heard Ruki stop in front of him, foreboding hanging over his head. He gulped, waiting for what would happen – but nothing did. He looked up, and Ruki was just watching him.
"I know you didn't mean it Takato. I guess I was just..." she looked away, a pink hue on her face, "... embarrassed."
"Eh..." Takato gazed up at Ruki's softened features. "Sorry..." he glanced back down, when his hand hit something. He realized that it was his sketchbook. He opened it, flipping through the pages. He stopped at the one Kai had pointed out to him earlier. Takato paused a moment to think, then reached for his colouring materials. Ruki watched him, wondering what he was up to. He caught her sight, and asked, "Do you want to help me colour this in?" He lifted up the drawing to her. Ruki examined it for as second.
"Sure."
Takato smiled as she sat down next to him.
Just outside the doorway, Kai was looking in on them. 'Don't like her, huh?' he grinned.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Me: There you have it! I'm not completely satisfied with how it turned out, but it's okay. Please review, but no flames thanks!