Author's Notes: There are a few things I need to explain before we begin, so just bear with me here.
I decided to have this story take place before Takeru gives Hikari the promise ring. There are two distinct reasons for this. The first one is that I wanted the promise ring to have a certain place in the story, while the second one is I wanted this to happen during the December Break which is before Takeru gives her the ring.
So, after saying that, everyone's ages in this story is going to be similar to Final Hope. I don't know the Digidestined's birthdays, so I can't say for sure how old they are, but everyone is in the same grade at least.
Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
Takeru questioned his decision to ask Mimi for help. At the time when he asked, it seemed like the sensible thing to do. She was, after all, the expert of the group in the certain area he needed help with, but he was wondering if she would be able to keep this to herself long enough for his plan to actually come to pass. So, in some sort of attempt to keep the information just between them, he had asked her not to meet him at the specific store he wanted to shop in, but rather just inside the mall, where he could calmly explain what he wanted, instead of telling her over the phone. He wasn't exactly sure what her reaction would be, but he didn't want Sora or Miyako accidentally finding out about this, if at all possible. He could tell she was curious and just a little bit suspicious over the phone, but he knew she would never turn down a friend who had requested help, despite whatever help they might need.
Which all lead right into his current situation, which happened to be him standing just inside the entrance to the mall, with his heart rising to his throat as he watched Mimi walk towards him. He knew it was from more than just the chance that Mimi might tell someone what they were going to do. It was what he was going to do. When he first heard about them, it seemed like a great idea. Everything between himself and Hikari had been great in the months since they defeated Daemon. He had already told her that they would be together forever, but he knew if he went through with his plan, if he bought the item he was seeking Mimi's advice on, it would be a physical manifestation of his promise to her, and he was slightly nervous that Hikari wouldn't accept it. Not too nervous, he knew that Hikari had the same feelings as him, but just enough to want to tell Mimi that he didn't need her help anymore and to just go home and forget his plan all together.
"Hi, Takeru," Mimi said with a sincere smile as she finally reached him. "How are you?"
"Great," he said, surprised a little that he actually meant it. A few seconds ago, he wouldn't have been able to say it truthfully, but now that Mimi was actually here in front of him, his earlier resolve (the same resolve that caused him to pick up the phone and call Mimi to ask for her help) came rushing back to him.
"What do you need help with?" Mimi asked.
Takeru decided to just be direct and said, "I need help picking out a ring for Hikari." He was about to explain more, but didn't get any further as Mimi let out a squeal and grabbed his arms. He backed up a step in shock, glancing around them as other customers stopped to stare. "Mimi," he began to say, but once again, didn't get any further than that.
"No way!" Mimi squealed. "You're going to propose to Hikari?" He was shocked for only about half a second, but his slight hesitation was long enough for Mimi to continue before he could explain as she said, "You guys are a bit young, not even Yamato has asked Sora yet, but that is just too romantic. I would be delighted to help you. Hikari is going to look so pretty as a bride. Have you told your mother yet? Are you getting married after you graduate or are you going to wait a while? I've always said you two just make the cutest couple. I'm just so happy for you."
As Mimi paused to take a breath, Takeru decided that he should probably set her straight before someone they knew heard her and passed it along. "Please, Mimi, stop," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders. This seemed to calm her down, but she still had those sparkles in her eyes. He hated to crush her, but he was not actually about to propose to Hikari. He certainly intended to at some point, but that time was in the future. As Mimi had pointed out, he and Hikari were still too young to quite be at that point in their relationship. "I am not proposing to Hikari," he said firmly and patiently.
Confusion flocked into Mimi's eyes as she said, "But you said you were going to pick a ring."
"Yes," Takeru said slightly exasperated at his overenthusiastic friend. "But not an engagement ring. I want to give Hikari a promise ring," he explained softly as he felt the blush creeping up on his cheeks.
"A promise ring," Mimi repeated. Then she smiled and Takeru caught a teasing glint in her eyes as she said, "Isn't that like a pre-engagement ring?"
"Sort of," Takeru admitted.
Mimi's face split into a wide grin. "So, it'll be like you're proposing to Hikari without actually proposing to her, right?"
Takeru sighed, not really wanted to explain to Mimi that he might have actually already sort of proposed to Hikari without proposing to her with his whole "I'll be with you forever" line, without the help of a promise ring. "I guess," he conceded, allowing Mimi the victory of this particular conversation. "But that's not really the point," he continued, trying to get the conversation back to what he originally imagined it going. "I asked you here to help me pick one out since you know about this stuff."
Mimi grinned, and said, "Of course, I'll help you, Takeru."
Takeru wasn't sure whether the triumphant hint in that smile was a good or bad thing for him. Deciding that it might be best if he didn't know, he simply just said, "Thanks, Mimi." He returned her smile before continuing, "The store is this way." He pointed down one of the hallways. As they started to walk, he asked, "So what would you suggest?"
"Hmm," Mimi said. "Well, since it is Hikari, I would suggest something simple and elegant. Since it is a promise ring, I wouldn't get a diamond. Some people might get the wrong idea. I have some ideas for the stone, but I'll wait until we get to the store. And I'm guessing nothing too expensive, because you are still in high school. You can save that until you're married, and I'd rather think that Hikari wouldn't really care how expensive it is."
Wondering for a moment if Mimi's mindset that it was a given that he and Hikari would eventually get married was just her own opinion or if the sentiment was shared with some of the other Digidestined, he just nodded his head at her suggestions. She continued to talk about cuts, settings, and carats (he didn't quite understand half of what she was talking about, but then again, that was the reason he asked for Mimi's help in the first place) until they walked into the store.
A store associate walked up to them and asked if they needed assistance. Mimi waved him off with a "just browsing" line, she started walking up and down the cases. "Now, sapphires are pretty, but blue isn't really Hikari's thing. An emerald might be a possibility, given that you like green, but I really think that maybe we should forgo the precious gems, since they're just too flashy for Hikari right now. Which rules out rubies or amethysts or anything like that," she said passing by some cases with said gems in them. Takeru just followed along, smiling at her. He knew that Mimi had been the right choice to ask for help. "A pearl could be a possibility, if we can't find the stone I'm thinking of—Aha!" she cried coming to a stop in front of a case. "In my opinion, this is what you should get her."
Takeru came up next to Mimi and looked down at the pieces that she was pointing at. At first glance, the stones appeared to be white, but upon closer examination, Takeru could see all sorts of colors shimmering across the stones' smooth surfaces. Takeru had to agree that it was a beautiful stone, but he wondered why Mimi had this particular stone in mind, seemingly from the beginning as well. "What is it?" he asked.
"It's called an opal," she said. She smiled at him. "Do you know how different stones and gems have meanings?"
"I guess," Takeru said having been vaguely aware of it. He had no idea, however, what her purpose was in bringing up that certain subject. Thinking it was Mimi just wanting to ramble on about something else she knew about jewelry, he went ahead and asked, "Why?"
"Well, the opal is a symbol as well," Mimi explained. "It has a special meaning. It is called the stone of hope."
Takeru smiled, finally getting where she was going with this. "And it has all the colors of light in it, right?"
She nodded, grinning. "You have to admit, it's kind of perfect for you two. Which is why I thought of it first."
"Mimi, thank you," Takeru said. "You're right. It's perfect."
Despite agreeing on buying the opal, they still spent another hour in the store, deciding on which cut the stone should be and what the setting should be. Mimi's talk of white-gold versus yellow-gold versus silver versus whatever else she said went right over Takeru's head. He finally gave up trying to keep up with what she was saying and just asked her to pick whatever she thought Hikari would like best, since he had no idea. Despite how much he and Hikari talked, he couldn't remember a time when Hikari's preferences in jewelry ever came up.
They found a ring they could both agree on. "Do you know what Hikari's ring size is?" Mimi asked after she called the store associate over to them to open the case.
"Not really," Takeru admitted. He chuckled a little and added, "Tiny?"
Mimi rolled her eyes at him. "I never thought I'd say this, but you're hopeless." She sighed. "We'll just have to guess and I'll confirm with Hikari later. If we guess wrong, we'll come back and get it resized. I can't believe you guys have never talked about this stuff," she added with a huff.
Takeru shrugged. "Sorry. Hikari doesn't usually wear much jewelry and this is the first piece I've bought for her. The subject's just never come up before."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "You're worse than Yamato, and I didn't think that was possible."
Before he could ask what she meant by that, the store associate came up to them and asked what he could do. Mimi pointed out the ring they had picked. "You know, why don't you know her ring size?" Takeru asked. Mimi furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, so Takeru continued, "You girls spent a whole three months living together. How come it never came up then?"
"We had much more important things to talk about than ring sizes," Mimi explained, slight exasperated. "Besides, girls don't usually buy expensive rings for each other, so the point is moot. And, if you recall, you and Hikari spent most of those three months together, while Hikari was only in apartment in the evening."
"Good point," Takeru admitted. They bought the ring and left the store. Takeru offered to walk Mimi home, but she told him she was going to meet Sora not far from where they were, so there was really no need.
"I'll ask Hikari about her ring size, and get back to you later, okay?"
Takeru nodded in agreement. Before she left, Takeru had to ask, "You're going to keep this a secret, right?"
"Of course, Takeru," she said.
"I mean, you're not going to tell Sora, Miyako, Taichi, or even Koushiro? I don't want anyone to know," he added.
Mimi smiled at him. "You have my word that no one will hear about it from me," she said.
Takeru returned her smile, still slightly apprehensive. Mimi wasn't exactly known for being subtle about anything. "Thank you for coming, Mimi," he said sincerely grateful that he had friends that he could count on to help, no matter what help the situation called for.
"You're welcome," she said. She stood up on her tiptoes and pecked him on the cheek. "I'll take it back," she said with a grin. "Maybe you're not so hopeless after all."
Takeru laughed and waved her off as she turned and practically bounded away.
Hikari walked to school alone one morning, just a few days before the end of the second trimester of her third year in high school. It was rather unusual for her to walk alone now, since Takeru usually came and walked with her. But he had sent a message to her saying that he was running a little behind that morning and that she should go on without him. It wasn't very common for Takeru to be running late, but it wasn't necessarily unheard of, considering his love of sleep and that he wasn't really as overly fond of snow as she was. So, she was without company in the brisk morning air as snow drifted down from the sky. It was hardly snowing hard, but just enough that she wished she had Takeru's arm to hold onto in the possibility of slipping and falling.
Lucky enough, she arrived at the school unscathed, if a little wet from the snow. She was a little disappointed when she arrived at the classroom and Takeru wasn't there yet. He still had a while before class started, so she wasn't worried that he would be late, but it still saddened her that she couldn't see him yet.
"Good morning, Hikari-chan," one of her friends, Kotone, greeted as she walked to her desk.
"Good morning," she answered as she placed her bag on her chair. Kotone and two more of her friends, Ayano and Nanako, walked up to her. They glanced at each other nervously. Hikari asked, confused, "What is it?"
"Is everything…okay between you and Takaishi-kun?" Ayano asked, her hands wringing together in agitation.
Hikari blinked in surprise and then laughed. "Just because Takeru and I didn't walk to school together, doesn't mean we've broken up," she assured her friends, starting to wonder if she and Takeru really did spend that much time together that all it took was seeing them not together once before other people came to the conclusion that they weren't together anymore. The three girls exchanged nervous glances again. "Why do you ask?" Hikari asked curious.
"I know it's not really our business," Nanako said, quietly. "But…we just don't want to see you hurt, Hikari-chan."
"You've been so much happier since Takaishi-kun came here," Kotone added. "But…"
"Yesterday, we saw Takaishi-kun with another girl at the mall," Ayano said in a rush. "We couldn't hear what they were talking about, but they smiled and laughed a lot and the girl kissed him on the cheek before she left."
"I see," Hikari asked. She didn't doubt Takeru's love for her. She really didn't. She was just very confused on what could have happened at the mall. If it was really Takeru they saw at all. "Perhaps it wasn't him," she said.
"Maybe," Nanako agreed reluctantly. "But Takaishi-kun—"
"What about me?" Takeru asked from behind them. Hikari smiled and turned to look at him. She could hear the playful tone in his voice, so she knew he wasn't mad that they were talking about him. He had come to accept that she and her friends just liked talking about their boyfriends (and any other boys, for that matter).
"It seems that you are busted," Hikari said, teasingly, trying to see what he would do or say.
She didn't expect to see panic flash across his eyes. Something was going on, which just confused her more. He seemed to sigh exasperatedly. "Mimi told you after one day?"
Hikari's jaw dropped in shock. "Let me get this straight," she said. "You went to the mall with Mimi?" she asked. "Voluntarily?"
"Yes," Takeru said slowly confusion now flocking his eyes. "We went yesterday. I needed her advice on something."
At which point, Hikari burst into laughter. Both her friends and Takeru tried to ask her what was going on, but she was laughing too hard to tell them. She had known that her friends' worries about Takeru hadn't been true, but just hearing that he had gone to the mall with Mimi of all people (something that she usually avoided if at all possible) was just too funny. But she knew she owed some kind of explanation to her friends, who were clearly just concerned about her. She reigned in her laughter long enough to say, "I appreciate that you were worried about me, but there is nothing to be worried about. Mimi is a good friend of ours. She sees Takeru as a little brother, nothing more, I assure you."
Her three friends looked relieved at this information and wandered off to their seats, since the teacher was about to arrive. She and Takeru took their seats next to each other. "What was that all about?" Takeru asked.
"It seems they saw you yesterday with Mimi and sort of came to the wrong conclusion," Hikari explained smiling at him. "I didn't believe for a second that you would leave me for someone else, but then when I heard you were with Mimi, it just hit me as rather funny. Taichi regularly states that he wouldn't rather kill himself than spend one minute in any store with Mimi."
Takeru smiled back at her. Before he could reply, the teacher walked in and called for order. He reached over and grasped her hand in his own hand, looking at her with such an intense love in his eyes that it quite nearly took her breath away. He squeezed her hand just once before letting it go and turned his attention to the teacher. She smiled again as she turned her attention to their teacher as well, knowing that she truly never had to worry that Takeru would ever leave her.