Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. TOEI Animations, Saban Entertainment, Bandai, FoxKids and Lord knows who else do.

Genre: Romance

Rating: G

Couple: Rukato (Duh)

Author's Note: This short little One-Shot is, somehow, an experimental fic. For example, it's my very first attempt at 1st-Person-Perspective writing, and to make it even more difficult, I chose Ruki's POV. It also is a Valentine's Day fic that is actually a Non-Valentine's-Day fic. Confusing? Well, read to find out, then.

I wrote the fic in German, originally, and then translated it to English. If you have read "Will My Soul Ever Rest In Peace", "Yuuhi no Yakusoku" or "Imaginations From The Other Side", you know the deal already, so please bear with me. This fic hasn't been beta-read, so if you find any horrible mistakes, blame it all on me

Special thanks to Austin-kun and Myo-kun for their encouragement.

I want to dedicate this fic to my beloved Franzi-chan, who lights up my life.

Reviews, as always, highly welcome. Enjoy.

Omnia Vincit Amor: A Non-Valentine's-Day

Ring-a-ding!

I automatically grimaced a bit as the familiar- and annoying- jingling of the old-fashioned doorbell sounded up. However, as hard to believe as it was, the small and rather rustic store carried an impressive collection of Digimon Cards- even though few of even the most confirmed fans knew about that.

As expected, the shop was deserted- aside from the salesclerk of course, who had taken a stand behind the cash register and greeted me with an almost insolently good-humoured smile.

"Balm for my tired eyes!" he rattled on. "A wonderful Valentine's Day to you, Miss Makino."

He gave me a strangely conspiratorial wink, but I didn't really know what to think of it. So, I left it at an incomprehensible reply voiced under my breath and focused my attention on some promisingly looking Booster Packs.

After less than a minute only, I turned around again, being somewhat frustrated. A waste of time. None of those cards currently in the assortment looked even remotely useful. In spite of this, though- force of habit probably- I ultimately grabbed one pack that was slightly better than the remaining rubbish and tossed it on the counter.

The vendor had not interrupted his constant grinning for one second, and he didn't do so now, but I had gotten used to that in the meantime. His job brought this about.

"I'm deeply sorry for not being able to offer you something more exclusive right now", he commented as he typed the price of the pack into the antiquated cash register, "but the newest delivery is due to next Wednesday only. Some problems with the shipping once again. And of all things, that happens right before the annual Valentine's Day rush."

I scanned the- still empty- store with a meaningful look, but was alert enough not to answer. Engaging this man in a conversation was the best way to throw the remaining time of the day out of the window for good.

But I noticed that this was the second time already he had mentioned Valentine's Day. Right- today was February 14th. The day people presented each other with worthless trash, rehashed dead relationships or started equally dead new relationships to begin with. In short, a day that everybody loved.

I hated it.

When I finally turned around to leave the shop again after paying for my purchase, I wasn't surprised one bit to see the mirror image of the salesclerk in the glass door still smiling at me. As I mentioned already, that came with his profession. What did surprise me, however- at least enough for me not to notice the annoying ringing of the doorbell again- was the fact that, right on the opposite side of the street, Takato and Juri were sitting on a bench.

'Of course', a thought entered my mind. 'Valentine's Day.'

That very second, as if on cue, Juri reached behind her back and pulled out a card- one of those cheap things you can find in any given supermarket- and gave it to Takato. He hesitated for the blink of an eye, then he took the gift and answered it with one of his infamous grins. Even before I could, with pathological curiosity, ponder the question whether or not one could soon see his uvula, Juri reacted in her very own way.

She gave Takato a peck on his left cheek.

He looked at her honestly baffled for a moment, then the thing I had long been expecting happened: He blushed like crazy. Personally, I was only mildly surprised.

'Of course', I mentally repeated myself. 'Valentine's Day.'

I was about to roll my eyes in irritation, but noticed to my horror that this would cause the pent-up tears to make their way down my face. Lord only knows where those tears had come from.

'What… why?'

For the moment, I just couldn't make a clear thought. Why was that happening?

(To me, of all?), a voice inside my head added.

Suddenly, for whatever reason, cold fury started to rise within me. I really hated Valentine's Day. I hated it for all I was worth.

(But it's got nothing to do with hate, quite the contrary- and you know it), that voice barged in once again.

Just great. Enigmatic voices in my head, making even more enigmatic sayings. It seemed as if I was simply in the act of going totally insane. Too bad that this didn't calm me down one bit.

Impulsively, and without thinking whatsoever, I suddenly started to run. Away. Just away from here.

"Hey! Ruki!" I heard a voice sound up from somewhere behind me- Takato's voice, but I didn't pay attention. Nor did I stop running, until eventually, my room's door slammed shut behind me.

The sun was just about to disappear behind the horizon as I (exhausted in more than one way) lolled onto my futon. Some birds were probably chirping outside. I can't remember to have attended to it, but the day was simply way too corny to go without chirping birds.

I rolled into a dorsal position and tried to recover my breath. I hadn't found an explanation for my spontaneous reaction yet. Indeed there were myriads of thoughts floating through my head, but I couldn't get a hold on any of them. I was confused, to say the very least.

"You're back already?"

Renamon had phased into visibility inside my room and examined me with a look that was difficult to interpret.

I looked up. "Yes. Mother and Grandma?"

"Photo shooting and Internet", my digimon partner replied monosyllabically, only to take a seat on the floor on my right-hand side.

"What's wrong with you, Ruki? You're different today."

I gave a lopsided and rather humourless smirk. Surely I was different, after all the entire world seemed to go nuts on this goddamn day.

"It's nothing", I heard my voice respond, but it seemed oddly far away to me. Renamon didn't even bother to object, but simply ignored my remark.

"Does it have anything to do with this… Valinor Day?"

I couldn't help but smile at this.

"You mean Valentine's Day. And didn't I just say that I'm alright?"

"I know what you said", Renamon retorted in an unimpressed tone. "So?"

I sighed. Renamon's question was justified, after all. What the hell was up with me, anyway?

(You know it), the voice piped up again. (Say it.)

"I have no idea", I answered instead. "I've seen Takato and Juri, that's all."

I could always absolutely rely on Renamon, so it wasn't too difficult to tell her about that. To think of it at all, however, strangely was a lot more difficult.

"Together?" Renamon inquired further.

For some reason, something deep within me fought against the association of the words "Takato", "Juri" and "together". I simply nodded silently.

(Say it.)

"I have realized that many, mostly younger humans engage in a new relationship on this day", my digimon partner stated. "Could it be this fact, by any chance, that's disturbing you so evidently?"

"Yeah", I answered promptly.

Then, a pause.

"No. Maybe. Heck, I don't know…"

(Say it.)

Renamon watched me with concern in her eyes. It did me good to know that she would always be there for me, but at the same time it nearly drove me insane to not be able to explain to her what was going on inside of me, because I didn't really know it myself. I wanted to accept her help- the days when I had thought that I had to fight against the whole rest of the world were long gone, but I just didn't know how.

"It could be that…" I hesitated, not knowing how to formulate that fleeting, almost ethereal thought, "…could be that to me, Takato and Juri… together… that it's confusing me somehow. It's… unfamiliar."

'And more than just unfamiliar', my mind added.

(Say it), the voice commented once again.

I lowered my glance, but then felt a soft, furry paw compassionately being placed on my left shoulder. Such a gesture was unusual for Renamon, and I gave her a quizzical look in consequence. A gentle, benignant smile had appeared on her face.

"Unfamiliar, yes", she repeated. "And it's making you angry- and sad as well."

"Nonsense", I snarled with an irate gesture. "You're…"

"…right?" Renamon suggested, still smiling. "I can see it in your eyes. And I can feel it, Ruki."

She ultimately sat right next to me now, and automatically I leaned against her shoulder. That did help a bit, but really just a bit, since suddenly a single tear trickled down my right cheek. I had no idea why (or at least I tried to persuade myself that I didn't have an idea), but slowly, I seemed to get a better notion of it all.

(Say it.)

"I'm not sure", I answered in a frighteningly throaty voice. It was true, after all. I didn't know anything. But I felt. Perhaps more than ever before.

I could see Takato in front of my inner eye. His hair, which, as a matter of principle, always looked like it had just overcome a hurricane. His reddish-brown eyes, which were so awake and full of vitality. His exorbitantly wide grin, which could ease almost any situation- and for contrast, the contemplative smile he would sometimes show to people who were important to him.

And then there were, of course, those ridiculous goggles- but it was exactly that pair of goggles which actually made him the Takato I knew and…

(Say it.)

"I… I like him, you know…"

Dear Lord, I must have sounded like an amorous schoolgirl… I wanted to curse myself for that, but I simply couldn't. I wanted to take it back, but my tongue refused to do so. It was as if the words would turn into facts only if spoken out aloud.

The voice in my head was silent about it. I had said it.

I wanted to be angry. Angry with me, angry with Renamon, angry with Takato and Juri, angry with the rest of the world. But I couldn't. Merely a hardly definable feeling of sadness had taken me over, and I was just sitting there, staring into space.

"You want him to be your mate", Renamon stated in a deadpan tone.

I turned towards her and tried to frown without provoking more tears, but failed miserably. Then again, Renamon was probably accustomed to this kind of wording, and, after all, I did know what she meant, anyway.

The bad thing was just that, despite the strange choice of words, she was probably right…

"It doesn't matter anyway", I mumbled.

(It sure as hell does matter), the voice in my head literally screamed at me now, but I ignored it this time.

"I'm sure he'll be contented with Juri, and I'm happy for the two of them."

A blatant lie. I should have been happy for them, but I wasn't; I couldn't. That seemed unfair and egocentric, but it just wasn't possible.

"You shouldn't draw premature conclusions", Renamon replied. "Everyone is the architect of their own fortune."

She got back on her feet again.

"Have faith. Fate isn't always being as cruel as it might seem at times. Otherwise, the two of us wouldn't have met each other."

An instant later, she was gone- to let her words sink in, I suppose. And really did it seem to have worked, since as I was going to bed shortly after, her words still kept going through my head.

(Have faith), the voice inside my head- or did it rather come from the heart- echoed.

(Have faith. And say it…)

The next morning, at around eight o'clock, I was only dozing semi-somnolently anymore, which is why I awoke with the first gentle rapping at my room's door already.

Yawning, I stretched, and adverted my still drowsy eyes towards the door, which swung open that moment.

Takato was only cautiously peeking inside at first, then he finally stepped on the threshold and was looking at me.

Then, his view obviously got caught on my pyjama, and his head suddenly strongly resembled a red traffic light.

"Sorry… I'm so sorry", he stammered and embarrassedly lowered his glance.

"I didn't know that you're still… I mean if I had known… well, I…"

I couldn't help myself; I simply had to laugh as I saw him like that. He was just too cute when he…

My laughter died down instantly.

'Don't think that', I mentally reproved myself. 'Self-preservation. Ask him what he wants, then throw him out of your room.'

I didn't hear that other voice in my head this time. No, I downrightly felt it.

(Say it.)

But I had said it already. To no avail.

I tried to push the voice away, but at the same time I knew only too well what it actually meant.

I should say it to him.

Takato smiled nervously. Apparently I had stopped his flood of attempted excuses, but not his uncertainty.

"Come on in already", I demanded. "I don't bite, you know. Not always, at least."

It was odd: Suddenly, the image of Takato and Juri together on a bench did not bug me nearly as much anymore as during the previous day. As if Takato's sheer presence would rouse my spirits again.

Takato did as he was told now, and nervously shifted his weight from one side to the other as he was standing in front of me.

"Well?" I asked.

He showed his trademark grin once again, but this time it was anything but convincing. It almost looked like he was afraid of something. I should soon find out what it was.

With trembling fingers, he suddenly fished a carefully folded piece of paper from out of his right trouser pocket and handed it over to me.

I looked at him righteously baffled, but eventually stretched out my hand and took the strange gift as my curiosity got the better of me. I noticed from the corner of my eyes that his blushing became even more intensive and that he looked down on the floor again as I unfolded the sheet and started reading it.

Dear Ruki,

To be honest, I feel a bit dumb to give you such a letter like a schoolboy- but I don't know if I could ever gather up the courage to tell you in person how much you really mean to me.

I'm not writing this on a card, since I know that you don't care a fig about cards, and even though I wanted to tell you this yesterday already, I'm still doing it today instead, since I also know that you don't think much of Valentine's Day. But when, if not now at the latest, should I tell you what's going on inside of me?

It's a feeling that has been gnawing upon me for a long time already, tormenting me, not leaving me alone. Maybe even since I had that first dream about you back then. I'm writing "the first dream" intentionally, because recently I've been dreaming of you a lot; albeit mostly during the day.

What, in fact, I'm trying to tell you, is that I like you. A lot, actually. To be precise, and given that I can trust in my heart (and usually I can), I have fallen in love with you. I don't know when, or where, or why exactly- simply because you are, well, you.

Every time you're near me, everything feels… right, somehow, and every time you're far away, I have that feeling that a piece of me is missing as well.

I know it's not fair to take you by surprise just like that, and I don't ask for an answer of you, either. But I simply can't help but to let you know that you are, in fact, my 'dream girl'.

Love,

Takato

Slowly, I let the letter drop on the bed sheets. Takato… had feelings for me?

"What… but… yesterday… Juri… bank…"

My brain was too overwhelmed to still be able to phrase complete sentences, but luckily Takato understood what I wanted to say.

"Yeah, that… that was kind of strange, wasn't it? But, you know, Juri's rather crazy about Valentine's Day. She's a bit traditional when it comes to that, I suppose. And since I am her very best friend, after all, she wanted to meet me to give me that card… But she and I, we both know that it doesn't mean anything, you know, nothing like that…"

He spluttered and eventually trailed off, perhaps out of shame. At least he didn't look away this time as I looked up into his wet, shimmering eyes.

It was not too difficult to read them, at least not in this case. He was absolutely serious- and I had no reason whatsoever to doubt it. He was by far the most sincere human being I knew- and, by the way, the most amazing one.

How I was feeling that moment? No author in history has ever managed to describe what it's like to be in love, so how could I possibly do it?

No floating feeling, no lambency, no epiphany.

I was just… happy.

"I'd better go now, I guess", Takato announced. His voice sounded throaty, as if he was trying to choke back tears welling up in his eyes.

That did it.

"You're not going anywhere… baka…"

I tried to show him a smile, and hoped that it wouldn't look too rusty after all that time. He was noticeably confused as I reached out for his arm and pulled him down to me, so that we both were sitting across from each other on the futon now.

"Takato… This is the most beautiful Non-Valentine's-Day card I've ever received. Undoubtedly."

He laughed shyly, which released the tension a bit. Following a sudden feeling, I leaned forward to let my head rest on his shoulder, and, totally automatically, put my arms around him. I smiled as he hugged back and held me tight, as if he never wanted to let go again. In the past, I would have felt limited and constricted in such a position. But right now (and more importantly: with him), I felt freer than ever before.

The voice inside my head was still mute. It wasn't needed anymore by now.

"You know, Takato", I murmured, "I like you too…"

Comforting warmth started to spread out inside of me, and I felt indescribably safe. Then, suddenly, the thought of his letter entered my mind again.

"Hey, Takato", I asked, "will you be my Non-Valentine?"

He laughed again.

"I'd really like to", he responded.

We slowly broke apart again, and stared into each other's eyes.

"I love you, Ruki", Takato whispered.

I rolled my eyes in fake irritation.

"Now you're being corny", I growled, but still in mid-sentence, I grabbed his hands and held them tight.

"But I suppose all is fair in love and war. I love you too, gogglehead… I love you, Takato…"

Omnia vincit amor; et nos cedamus amori.

("Love conquers everything; let us too surrender to love." – Virgil)

OWARI