A Total Eclipse of the Heart

by Rocketshipper

A Digimon Frontier side story: Izumi and Junpei are attacked by Rhodoknightmon while gathering supplies for the group, and are forced to spend the night alone together. Junzumi pairing.

A Total Eclipse of the Heart

-Hey there, it's Rocketshipper, tuning in for another fanfic. Yeah, yeah, I know. I hate writing, it drives me crazy. Well, I guess I must be a masochist when it comes to these things, lol. But this one shouldn't be too hard, since it's been sitting in my mind, 85 complete, for almost 4 years. The idea has been kicking around in my head ever since I saw the fansubbed version of Digimon Frontier. I LOVE Junzumi, and since there were hardly any good fics for the paring around, I ended up inventing my own plots. I also wanted to create a romance that wasn't as straightforward as the typical "two people fall head over heels for each other, but can't admit their feelings" type storyline. Of course, one side IS like that, sorta, but I tried to handle the other in a little different way, as you may see. I wasn't sure about writing this fic at all, until the summer of 2005, when I went to see the American Idol summer tour. I'm not exactly sure why, but when I heard Scott Savol and Jessica Sierra sing "Total Eclipse…" things just clicked, and I knew I was going to write this fic. The reason I'm just now starting it, though, is because I said I wouldn't try writing it until I re-watched Frontier again, and well, I just didn't get around to that until this past summer. But now I've rewatched the series, and I'm ready to begin! I hope you readers enjoy it, and that I manage to keep everyone in character, and that I can finish this before I graduate from college. As usual, let's go through the disclaimer routine. I don't own the rights to Digimon Frontier, "With the Will", or "Total Eclipse of the Heart", those rights are owned by the Japanese anime companies and various musical artists. This is just for my own random amusement. Are we tired of having to say that yet? Well, anyway, have fun. See you at the end of the fic! Oh, and one more thing, part of this fic takes place sometime during the "Royal Knights" saga at the end of the series. It's after the kids get back to the main planet, but before the land mass gets scanned too much. I'm not sure EXACTLY which episodes it would fit between though.-

-1-

She stopped to catch her breath again, wiping a strand of blonde hair away from her sweat streaked forehead as she turned her eyes up to the harsh sun of the digital world. She shifted the weight of her small bag to her other shoulder and glanced back behind her with a sigh. "Tell me again why I got stuck with you for this?" she asked, eyeing her slower companion as he caught up to her. The tall heavyset boy stopped next to her and leaned over, setting his bag on the ground and placing his hands on his knees as he waited for his breath to return. His face and short brown hair were streaked with sweat. Not for the first time, she wondered to herself how he could stand to go around wearing that one-piece mechanic's jumpsuit of his all the time, especially with weather like this. Granted, her own outfit, consisting of a short tube skirt, a matching light vest, a thin t-shirt, and a cap, wasn't exactly perfect for all occasions, especially that time they'd had to go trudging through a snowfield, but at least it was a little more functional and stylish. Of course, as she somewhat guiltily noted to herself, his overall physique couldn't be helping his situation much either. The boy straightened up, wiping his forehead with the back of one fist, and smiled wide at the girl, his cheeriness, even in the face of his companion's mildly sarcastic comments, slightly disarming.

"Because destiny says so, Izumi-chan" he replied with complete sincerity, "It was meant to be". Turning away from her companion, Izumi Orimoto, chosen child of the wind, let out a derisive snort, shifted her bag back to the other shoulder, and walked on. "Hey wait up!" Junpei Shibayama, chosen child of thunder, called as he scooped up his bag and stumbled after her. Still annoyed, but also unwilling to totally run the poor boy into the ground, Izumi slowed her pace down and allowed him to catch up again.

"You know, you could walk a little faster." She stated, giving his frame a quick once over with her eyes, "At this rate we won't get back to camp until sundown". Junpei's expression changed, becoming slightly forlorn.

"That's not fair, Izumi-chan. You know I'm not in as good a shape as you." Izumi glanced over at his depressed expression, and felt another slight pang of guilt. After a second she decided that she'd given him a hard enough time that day, and it wasn't exactly fair to be taking her bad mood out on him anyway. She smiled and laughed a little.

"It's ok Junpei. I guess I'm not in that big of a hurry to get back", her expression turned more serious and she turned back to glance over the horizon. "There isn't very much we can do back there anyway". Junpei's face changed, matching her mood, and he nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, that's certainly true", he answered. They started walking again, and Izumi's mind turned to the events of the past few days.

They'd made it back to the main planet just a few days previously, after having been blasted all the way to one of the Digital World's moons. They'd spent the time since then trying to stop the Royal Knights from systematically taking the digital world apart, but without very much success. The knights were unbelievably strong, and so far even the combined powers of Kaisergreymon and Magnagarurumon, the kids' strongest digimon forms, had failed to put even a dent in the knights' conquests. They'd seen region after region reduced to digital code and absorbed by the unstoppable villains, and needless to say, morale wasn't very high in their camp of late. Moods had been particularly down that day, and Izumi had volunteered for food collection duty because she'd thought the task would give her time to clear her head about recent events. But then Koji, ever practical, had suggested someone should go with her ("safety in numbers", that old adage) and Junpei had, of course, jumped at the chance to be alone with her again. In the end, she didn't really mind that much, Junpei wasn't bad or anything, but she'd been irritated over her lost chance to be alone. It was just then that Junpei interrupted her thought train with another comment.

"I don't really mind if it takes a while either. It's nice to get out and walk around without being all pumped up and on edge for a fight". She glanced back at him, and he smiled again, her earlier cutting comment apparently forgiven and forgotten. "Plus I'm with you". She turned away again, a little flustered, unable to think of a proper response. She'd known about his crush on her almost since the moment they'd entered the digital world. It had been pretty obvious. At times she hadn't even been above using the knowledge to her advantage, like when she told him she liked "big strong guys" to get him motivated to help out a group of digimon. She'd always tried to be pretty clear about her response to him though; she really wasn't interested. It wasn't that she hated him or found him completely unattractive, although lets be honest here, he wasn't exactly a looker, it was just that, well, she didn't feel the same way he did. He was a great guy when you got to know him, very dependable and caring, if not a bit crass and blunt, but she just wasn't in love. Takuya was much more her type, a little stubborn and headstrong, but also very courageous and optimistic. She'd been attracted to him for a while now, but hadn't really felt confident enough about her feelings to let him know. It hadn't really helped much that Junpei's crush had continued to persist despite her polite, and sometimes not so polite, rebuffs of his feelings. Still, she also had to admit that there was something a little enduring about his continued affection. There was something a little traditional and refreshing about the way he acted around her, especially in contrast to most of the other guys who'd crushed on her in her short life. He was happy just being with her, regardless of the situation, he always listened to what she said with almost rapt attention, even her slightly rude comments, and he was always putting her first. His main thought process seemed to be "what can I do for her" rather than "what can she do for me". He'd even put himself in danger of serious injury, or worse, just to make her happy. She couldn't help thinking, with a little amusement, that if she told him to jump off a cliff, he'd do it without hesitation, just for her. It was almost flattering. And she had to admit that she felt comfortable around him, after they'd gotten to know each other a little during the time they spent at the Digimon School. He'd been the only one in the group that she'd shared her problems with, which did set him aside from the others just slightly. Of course she couldn't tell him that, or else he might get the idea that she was starting to come around.

Junpei, affected by her silence and the partially troubled look that crossed her face, let out a small depressed sigh and cast his eyes down "Did I say something wrong again?", he asked, and his pitiful tone tugged at Izumi's conscious again.

"No, no, that's not it" she responded quickly "I was just…a little distracted by my thoughts…that's all" It was a lame excuse, she knew it, but Junpei didn't seem to be bothered, or else he didn't catch on at all. He smiled again, and Izumi smiled back, a somewhat haughty look flickering in her eyes. "It goes without saying that you'd enjoy the company of someone like me. Anyone would." Junpei laughed agreeably.

"So true, so true, Izumi-chan!" he echoed enthusiastically, and with that the potential awkward relationship exchange was postponed for a little while longer. As the two walked along they eventually struck up a rather pleasant round of small talk, chatting to each other about the aspects of their lives before coming to the digital world, dancing around the subjects of relationships or the Royal Knights. But Izumi couldn't keep the situation from resurfacing in her mind. Now might be just as good a time as any to finally bring the issue to a close. Junpei's crush on her was kind of cute, but she couldn't keep letting him go on thinking he had a chance when she just wasn't interested, it was unfair to him. She was going to have to make her feelings perfectly clear, once and for all. After a few minutes of thought, she decided that it was now or never. Junpei was in the middle of running down a list of his favorite restaurants in the Shibuya area where he lived. "…and there's this really awesome ramen stand just down the street from my apartment that has the best noodles in the whole ward. I eat there so often that the guy who runs it gives me a discount! Maybe you and I could go there sometime". He made the suggestion for a date almost fearlessly, and Izumi didn't detect a hint nervousness in his voice. Again she was a little surprised by his apparent lack of fear over being rejected. That or he was incredibly overconfident, she thought to herself. Either way, the comment had provided the the perfect opening for Izumi to address what she'd been thinking of for the last few minutes, so she pushed ahead.

"Actually, that's something that we really should talk about." Junpei noticed her more serious tone right away, and his face instantly became a mix of worry and partial resignation.

"What do you mean, Izumi-chan?" he asked, his eyes betraying his real fears. He must half suspect already, Izumi noted to herself as she continued.

"Well, you see Junpei. I know how strongly you feel about…" something suddenly caught her attention, out of the corner of her eye. "Junpei watch out!!" The two kids had been walking as they talked all this time, and Junpei had gotten slightly ahead of Izumi. Now, Izumi grabbed Junpei by his upper arm and yanked him back along with her as hard as she could…just as a huge energy blast cut through the earth where he had just been walking a couple of seconds before. A loud roar issued through the area as the blast smashed the ground into a flaming crater. Junpei and Izumi both fell to the ground a few feet back, shell shocked by the extreme near miss they'd just survived.

"Wha…what the heck was that?" Junpei asked, his voice shaking from the surprise. He turned and looked at Izumi "You saved my life, Izumi-chan", even through the quaver in his voice; Izumi could hear his sincere gratitude. But she was too busy staring at the sky to respond properly.

"I think we're in trouble" Izumi stated, the nervousness showing through plainly in her eyes. A chillingly arrogant laugh suddenly rang out through the air, and Junpei finally turned to follow Izumi's gaze into the sky. Hovering in the air, high above their heads, looking down on them like a hawk observing its prey, was Rhodokightmon. The Digimon's pink armor glinted in the sunlight as he stared down, his body language conveying an aura of haughty arrogance and amusement.

"So, it looks like I've stumbled upon two of the lowly rats attempting to put a stop to Lord Lucemon's beautiful plans. I wonder if Dynasmon has had as much luck in his search", Rodoknightmon commented, his pampered aristocratic voice in stark contrast to the dark malevolent aura the Digimon exuded. Izumi and Junpei both got to their feet, the food bags they'd been carrying completely forgotten, eyeing the evil Digimon warily, trying not to set off the confrontation with any sudden movements. After a moment, the two kids' eyes briefly met, and a moment of silent agreement passed between them; both of them knew that there was only one option in this situation. There was no way either of their Digimon spirits, Human or Beast, could stand up to the power of a Royal Knight.

For one long moment, the two parties remained completely motionless, staring each other down with intense concentration. Then Junpei grabbed Izumi by the hand, and both bolted as fast as they could into the woods on Junpei's right.

"Too cowardly to face a Royal Knight in battle? I guess I will have to destroy you as you retreat. " Rhodoknightmon called out as he began pursuit. Junpei and Izumi raced through the woods, pushing their legs as if they were running a marathon, dodging between trees and over bushes, trying to throw off the aim of Rhodoknightmon's attacks. They knew that their only real chance of survival would be to lose him in the thick of the trees. Junpei let go of Izumi's hand and the two of them put some distance between one another, trying to spread Rhodoknightmon's attention between two separate targets. Behind them, Rhodokightmon's yellow ribbons slashed through the air, cutting down trees and slicing deep gouges into the earth behind them.

"Izumi…head…to the left…" Junpei called out between breaths, his lungs already burning from the exertion of running "the trees…are thicker…that way!" Izumi gave him a quick glance and nod, then cut sharply to her left, leaping over a fallen log and sliding under a low hanging branch. Junpei veered right, around a thick grove of trees, and then began bearing left gradually as he went on. Behind him he could still hear the sound of Rhodoknightmon's sharp yellow ribbons slashing through the trees behind them. But after a few minutes, it seemed like the sound was getting fainter, and farther away. Junpei kept bearing left, and eventually Izumi came into sight again. She glanced to her right and gave Junpei an exhausted smile.

"I think…we might have lost him" she shouted over to Junpei. His face reflected the relief and exhaustion he felt as he replied.

"I think so to. If we don't…stop soon…I'm going to collapse…"

"Looks like the woods thin out just ahead" replied Izumi, who seemed, Junpei noted with a tiny hint of jealousy, to be getting her second wind. He looked up ahead and saw that Izumi was right, the trees were thinning out and the sun shown down brightly; the glaring light masking the view beyond the trees. A few seconds later Izumi and Junpei broke through the edge of the woods...and Junpei saw the danger just in time.

"Izumi-chan stop, it's a cliff!" Izumi saw the danger a split-second after Junpei yelled out. She instantly put on the brakes, but her forward momentum was too much, and she would have gone straight over, if Junpei hadn't immediately grabbed her arm as he attempted his own stop. She fell backwards, landing on top of Junpei right at the edge of the cliff. The impact of their landing dislodged Izumi's D-Tector, which had been clipped to her belt, and the device bounced across the ground.

"NOO!" was all Izumi could say as she made a dive for the device and missed, nearly going over the cliff anyway. The D-Tector fell, bounced off a few rocks, and came to rest on a small ledge, about 10 feet down from the edge of the cliff.

"Well, it looks like I've finally got you cornered". Junpei and Izumi immediately turned around to see Rhodokightmon emerging from the woods in front of them. Looking around, Junpei realized that Rhodoknightmon was right, there was no way they could run right or left or make it back into the woods without being attacked. Plus, they couldn't leave Izumi's D-tector there, or their fighting ability would be cut down considerably.

"This is not good", Izumi said as she got to her feet, eyeing Rhodoknightmon warily. Junpei quickly got to his feet and took a step forward, positioning himself in front of Izumi, holding his arms out to both sides as if to block an attack. "Junpei…"Izumi began as she stepped towards him.

"I'll keep him busy" Junpei said, without a hint of hesitation "You try to climb down and get your D-tector."

"But…"

"No butts, this is the only way", Junpei glanced back over his shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile. "I can handle him, at least for a few minutes. Try to hurry ok." He turned back to Rhodoknightmon and shouted up to him "Let's see if you can take me on, you effeminate freak.". Rhodoknightmon sniffed derisively at Junpei's comment and glanced down at him. "I wouldn't even break a sweat taking you on. But, warrior of pride Rhodoknightmon never passes up a challenge. Let's see what you've got".

(Evolution theme "With the Will" begins playing)

Junpei grabbed his yellow and blue D-tector from the back pocket of his jumpsuit and held it out in front of him. His left hand was immediately surrounded by a ring of glowing digital code, which he scanned across the top of the D-tector.

"Spirit Evolution!!" he called out, as the code expanded and surrounded him in a glowing cocoon of digital energy. Izumi immediately turned and dropped to her knees at the edge of the cliff, searching with her feet for the first decent footholds to begin her decent towards her D-tector. The bubble of digital energy dissipated and standing where Junpei was a few seconds go was now a large Digimon completely made out of metal. Instead of legs, it had tank treads, its hands were large gattling guns, and on top of its head was a huge cannon. "Borgmon!" the Digimon called out in a gruffer, more adult version of Junpei's voice.

(-Kaze o ukete tatsu kewashii gake de wa, jibun no yowasa bakari ga mieru ne- Standing at a steep cliff and feeling the wind, all you can see is your own weakness, right?)

Borgmon raised his two gattling gun arms and pointed them at Rhodoknightmon. "Ultimate Thunder!!" he declared, as two glowing spheres of yellow electricity concentrated at the end of his guns. After a split second later, the attack fired; the two energy balls linked together and spun into a deadly wheel of electricity, which headed straight for Rhodoknightmon.

"Child's play", the digimon sniffed arrogantly, and he swiped the electric attack away with a single swing of his yellow ribbons.

(-Demo donna pinchi mo haruka e toberu, chansu ni mo kawaru kiseki kakushi motteru- But whatever troubles you have, they'll become the chances to fly far away, and they conceal miracles.)

Borgmon began launching rapid fire Ultimate Thunder attacks, filling the air with dangerous spinning wheels of lightning. Rhodoknightmon dodged agilely between the attacks, laughing derisively at Borgmon's attempt to hit him. "You're going to have to do better than that if you want to hit me!" he called out as he landed on the ground, out of the trajectory of Borgmon's attacks.

(-Densetsu ni wa musuu no hiiroo- Legends have countless heroes.)

"Well then, why don't you try this?", Borgmon asked, his voice full of surprising confidence. Rhodoknighmon looked ahead and suddenly realized his vulnerability. Borgmon dropped forward onto his hands, bringing the large gun on his head down to aim straight for the evil digimon's head.

(-Esoragoto to itterarenai - It can't be called just a pipe dream.)

"Field Destroyer!!" cried Borgmon, as a huge blast of concentratred electrical energy issued forth from the gun on his head. The huge beam of concentrated heat and electric energy shot through the air, cutting a trench through the ground with the force of its passing, and struck Rhodoknightmon square in the chest. The beam exploded on impact, sending a huge cloud of dust and flame into the air. On the cliff face, Izumi held on for dear life as the explosion shook the rocks around her, nearly dislodging her grip.

(-Yuusha ni ima, iki o fuki kome wakatte iru sa. Ichiban daiji na buki wa kokoro ni aru nda - Now, breathe life into the heroes! I know for a fact: the most valuable weapon is inside my heart.)

"Hey, could you try not to cause too many earthquakes, I'm climbing here!" she called up the cliff.

"Sorry, Izumi-chan, but I can't hold back against this guy" Borgmon called back. Izumi glanced up the cliff with a look of worry on her face, but then resumed her decent after another moment. She had to get to her D-tector as fast as possible, before Junpei got himself killed.

(-Makerarenai tsuyoku aritai, kizu darake demo, akogareteta mirai e to, tabidate with the will - I won't lose. I want to become stronger, even if I'm riddled with injuries, I will set out in search of the future I long for, with the will)

Borgmon watched the thick cloud of debris, waiting for any sign of what his attack had done to Rhodoknightmon. Deep down, he knew that it probably hadn't put even a scratch on the invincible digimon, but he couldn't help hoping that maybe he'd gotten lucky this time. His fears were confirmed, when the dark silhouette of Rhodoknightmon's body appeared behind the settling cloud of dust.

"You're better than I though, at least", the arrogant digimon said coldy "but you're severely lacking in power. Let me show you how it's really done!" Without further warning, Rhodoknightmon suddenly leaped forward out of the settling dust and closed the distance between himself and Borgmon with shocking speed. "Spiral Masquerade" he called out, as the sharp yellow ribbons on his armor began to slash through the air like an out of control blender. Borgmon threw up his arms just in time, shielding his face from the slicing blades, grunting in pain as the sharp whips sliced and nicked the metal of his arms. After several seconds of pummeling his opponent, Rhodoknightmon paused, let out a chilling laugh, and then sliced his ribbons across the ground in front of Borgmon, slicing off the chunk of cliff that the digimon was currently standing on.

(-Niji o oikaketa tooi kioku no. Mujaki sa doko de nakushita no darou- The innocence of my distant memories of chasing rainbows... I wonder when I lost that feeling?)

Borgmon cried out in surprise as the ground gave way beneath his treads and he plummeted towards the cliff bottom. The severed section of the cliff face fell beneath him, straight towards Izumi. Spotting the falling rocks just in time, Izumi managed to take shelter under an overhanging rock shelf a few feet to the left of where she had been climbing, escaping the falling debris by inches. Borgmon fell towards the ground, but was suddenly enveloped in another bubble of digital data, stopping his fall in mid air.

"Slide Evolution!! Blitzmon!" he called out, and the digital bubble dissipated, revealing an entirely new digimon, a blue metallic humanoid shaped beetle. Blitzmon quickly opened his large beetle wings and flew back up towards the top of the cliff. "Are you alright Izumi-chan?" he called out. The girl turned, giving the digimon a slightly annoyed look, and responded.

"Yeah I'm fine, no thanks to you two. I was almost knocked off the cl…Junpei watch out!"

(-Shitteru koto ga fueteku sono tabi, akirameru koto o mi ni tsuketakunai ne- As I come to learn more and more things, I don't want to learn how to give up.)

Blitzmon immediately flew backwards, just as Rhodoknightmon zoomed past, slashing down with his yellow ribbon like a sword. The sharp edge of the blade passed centimeters away from Blitzmon's face, as he moved back, just barely missing him.. Immediately, Rhodoknightmon reversed the direction of his arm, bringing his sword slicing back up towards his opponent. Blitzmon leaned back, the blade again missing his head by mere centimeters, and then kicked out with his left leg, aiming towards Rhodoknightmon's torso. The knight quickly blocked the attack with his yellow arm shield, which gave Blitzmon the split second he needed to aim a punch straight at his head.

"Take this!!" cried Blitzmon, swinging his metal fist straight towards his opponent's visor.

(-Towa ni tsuzuku jibun no sutoorii. Unmei ni mo sakaratte yaru- My story will continue forever, I'll even go against destiny)

Just as Blitzmon's punch was about to make contact, Rhodoknightmon disappeared in a blur of motion. Blitzmon spun in the air, and just managed to catch sight of the knight coming at him from behind.

"You almost got me that time. But your not fast enough!" cried Rhodoknighton, as his slashed out with his sword again. Blitzmon flew back and to the side, but this time he wasn't fast enough; Rhodoknightmon's yellow ribbon made contact, slicing a shallow cut into Blitzmon's chest as it passed by. Blitzmon's cried out in pain and clutched his chest, as Rhodoknightmon laughed arrogantly. "Next time, I'll cut you clean in half." He bragged, raising his sword and preparing another rush. Izumi, now only a few feet above the ledge where her D-tector lay, glanced over her shoulder and realized the danger Blitzmon was in. If he could hold out for a minute or two more, she could get her D-tector and join him.

"Junpei, I'm almost there. Don't even think of giving up!!" She yelled out to him.

(-Toushi ni ima, akari o tomose, wakatte iru sa. Ichiban tegowai aite wa, kokoro ni iru nda- Now, light a fire under your fighting spirit! I know for a fact: the most formidable opponent is the one inside my heart.)

Upon hearing Izumi's words, Blitzmon felt a new reserve of strength and determination entering his body. Rhodoknightmon leaped forward, covering the distance between them in only a few seconds, aiming to remove his opponent's head with his sword. But Blitzmon suddenly moved with unbelievable speed, seeming to disappear and reappear again to Rhodoknighmon's right.

"Wha…how did you…?" the knight sputtered in surprise, trying to turn quickly enough to face his opponent.

"Haha, what was that about not being fast enough?" Blitzmon taunted, as he raised his fist and readied an attack. "Now I've got you…Thor Hammer!!" Blitzmon's raised fist was suddenly covered in crackling lightning. With all his strength, Blitzmon planted his glowing fist square in Rhodoknightmon's face, sending him flying through the air. "Mjolnir Thunder!" called out Blitzmon. His body was immediately encased in a glowing armor of electricity, and he suddenly vanished from sight again. Moving at blazing speed, Blitzmon appeared behind Rhodoknightmon, still flying through the air from the momentum of Blitzmon's last attack, and let loose with a flurry of punches and kicks, pummeling the knight with his electrified body. Finally, he flipped in mid air and smashed his foot down onto the top of Rhodoknightmon's head, sending the digimon rocketing straight down into the rocks at the bottom of the cliff.

(-Furimukanai nigetari shinai, tochuu no mama de. Me o sorashiteta yume e to, tobi kome with the will- Can't turn back and I won't run away. The dream that I was once heading for but looked away from, I'll jump right into it with the will)

Blitzmon watched the crater into which Rhodoknightmon had disappeared, his body tensed and ready for the Royal Knight to reemerge. The seconds ticked by, and no movement could be seen from below. Finally, Blitzmon let out a sigh of relief and relaxed his muscles, turning in the air to look up to where Izumi was just reaching the ledge with her D-tector. "Hey, Izumi-chan! I did it, I actually won!" Blitzmon called up enthusiastically. "Aren't the others going to be shocked when they hear thi…"

"Scarlet Tempest!!" an arrogant voice called out, and immediately a huge cloud of iridescent pink rose petals exploded forth from the crater where Rhodoknightmon had fallen. The petals soon choked the air, blocking off Blitzmon's vision in all directions. He spun around trying to get his bearings, when a dark silhouette suddenly leapt forward out of the petals behind him. "Never let your guard down until you're sure your opponent is defeated." commented Rhodoknightmon. Blitzmon spun in the air, trying to bring his fists up to defend himself, but it was too late. "Argent Fear!" cried the knight as he smashed his yellow arm guard square in Blitzmon's chest. The powerful gun embedded in the guard immediately fired, sending its round point blank into the opponent. All the air rushed out of Blitzmon's lungs in an instant, and he doubled over, gasping desperately. His head swam from the burning pain in his lungs, his vision blurred, and he lost control of his flying, sending his body plummeting to the hard ground at the bottom of the cliff.

"Junpei!!" Izumi cried out, her heart beating fast with fear for her friend as she watched him crash to the ground. Rhodoknightmon floated down and landed on a rock a few feet from where his opponent had landed. Blitzmon began to struggle to his feet, but the damage from the last attack was too much, and he was suddenly enveloped in another cocoon of glowing digital code. The glowing shell of code quickly dissipated again, revealing Junpei, back in his human body, completely vulnerable. Junpei looked up at the royal knight, fear quickly washing over his face as he backed slowly away. Although all the injuries he'd received in digimon form has been erased, the physical exhaustion of the battle was still with him, and he wouldn't be able to evolve again for awhile. Rhodoknightmon looked down at his prey and laughed confidently.

"Well human, it looks like you lose. You put up a good fight, but you were still no match for me", he commented, before slashing out with his ribbon sword. Junpei leaped to the side and the sword missed his legs by inches, instead cutting a deep groove through the rock where Junpei had just been standing. Junpei landed hard on his side and rolled down the rocky incline at the base of the cliff. His momentum was halted when his right knee smashed full on into a large rock halfway down the incline. White hot pain flared up and down Junpei's leg, making him feel light-headed and slightly nauseous, and for a second he wondered if he might have broken his knee cap. He rolled over onto his side, his bad leg stretched out in front of him, gritting his teeth through the pain, trying to catch his breath as Rhodoknightmon closed in. "Normally I wouldn't finish off an incapacitated opponent like this" he commented stiffly, raising his sword as he spoke, "but I must further the goals of Lord Lucemon at all costs. Sacrifices must be made." Junpei glanced past Rhodoknightmon to the cliff behind him, trying to spot Izumi again. Fear and resignation flooded his system; it was over, he'd failed to hold off Rhodoknightmon and now he'd die here, in a foreign world, away from his home and his parents, in front of the girl he loved and was determined to protect. In his mind he muttered a quick depressed apology to Izumi, for failing her, and then waited for the blade to fall.

"Hey, you Royal pain, get away from my friend!"

(-Yuusha ni ima, iki o fuki kome wakatte iru sa. Ichiban daiji na buki wa kokoro ni aru nda - Now, breathe life into the heroes! I know for a fact: the most valuable weapon is inside my heart.)

Rhodoknightmon turned toward the voice, and both he and Junpei glanced up to see Izumi standing defiantly on the cliff ledge, holding her D-tector out in front of her. Izumi's left hand was immediately surrounded by a ring of digital energy, which she promptly scanned across her D-tector. "Spirit Evolution!" she cried, as her body was enveloped in a bubble of digital energy. The bubble quickly disappeared to reveal a tall thin, beautiful digimon with two large brown wings, light blue hair, and a second set of blue wings sprouting from her head. Her body was covered with purple and grey armor, and her hands and feet were tipped with sharp talons, like those of an eagle. "Shutumon!" She called out, spreading her wings and flying down towards Rhodoknightmon.

"You think you'll have any better luck against me than your friend?" Asked Rhodoknightmon as he leapt up towards his attacker, bringing his yellow ribbon blade to the ready position. "Spiral Masquarade!" he called out, as his ribbon began to whip through the air like a blender. But Shutumon suddenly disappeared in a flash of movement, just as Blitzmon had done earlier, and appeared behind Rhodoknightmon.

(-Makerarenai tsuyoku aritai, kizu darake demo, akogareteta mirai e to, tabidate with the will - I won't lose. I want to become stronger, even if I'm riddled with injuries, I will set out in search of the future I long for, with the will)

"Wind of Pain!" Shutumon called out, as she swung her arms and released a swirling tempest of pink energy blades straight at Rhodoknightmon, who covered his face with his arms to avoid the attack. Immediately, her hands and feet were surrounded by glowing orbs of red energy. "Gilgamesh Slicer!" she cried as she leapt forward, smashing Rhodoknightmon with all four of her glowing energy orbs, sending him flying back into the face of the cliff. Immediately, her body was surrounded by another bubble of digital energy. "Slide evolution, Fairymon!" she called, as the bubble dissipated to reveal a thin athletic looking digimon with large transparent fairy wings, pink skintight clothes, and long purple hair. "Brezza Petalo!" she cried. Long thin tornados erupted from the tips of her fingers, and she immediately flung them forward, creating a huge funnel of roaring wind, which immediately bore down on Rhodoknightmon and drove his body deeper into the rock of the cliff. Fairymon injected as much energy and focus into the attack as humanely possible, creating a nearly impenetrable field of wind to keep her opponent pinned against the cliff. Finally, Fairymon cut off her attack, spun quickly in the air, and flew down towards Junpei. "We're getting out of here now", she stated as she landed next to Junpei. Before he could realize what was happening, Junpei found himself being lifted up under the armpits and flown through the air as Fairymon made a break for the tree line off to their right.

(Evolution Theme End)

A few moments later, with the wind attack finally dissipated, Rhodoknightmon pried himself loose from the section of the cliff he'd been smashed into, and landed lightly on the rocks below. He glanced around the area, trying to find some evidence that would point to the direction that his opponents had fled. He hated to admit it, but the girl's escape plan had been pretty good, and the boy had actually put up a decent fight. But after a few moments, with no compelling signs pointing to his enemies' whereabouts, he decided that trying to chase them down again wouldn't be worth the effort. He and Dynasmon could always defeat them later, they were currently no more than irritating ants which posed little threat to their plans to revive Lucemon. Rhodoknightmon leaped into the air and flew off towards his next assigned target.

"You get a reprieve for now, children, but it won't last forever. Count on it." He commented to no one in particular, as he headed back the way he'd come.

-2-

Fairymon flew through the woods at top speed for several minutes, with the cliff constantly on her left, keeping her eyes fixed forward, not even daring to look behind her for fear of what might be following. After a moment, Junpei, still held by Fairymon, looked back over his shoulder, and then up at his friend, concern etched on his features.

"I don't think he's following us anymore, Izumi-chan. If you don't stop soon you're going to collapse from exhaustion" he told her. His worried tone cut through the panic in Fairymon's head, and brought her back to the moment.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." She replied as she slowed down a bit. After a moment she spotted a clearing up ahead, at the base of the cliff, and headed there. She flew down behind a large boulder, which partially hid them from the view of the woods, and set Junpei down before quickly de-evolving back to her human form. The built up exertion from their encounter with Rhodoknightmon suddenly hit Izumi all at once, and she plopped to the ground across from Junpei, letting out a sigh of exhaustion as she leaned back against the cliff face behind her.

"Are you ok, Izumi-chan", Junpei asked. She looked over at him and flashed him as reassuring a smile as she could muster, under the circumstances.

"I'm fine, Junpei. Just a little tired, as you might imagine." She replied, her voice injecting just a tiny bit of sarcasm. Junpei laughed a little and smiled back.

"I guess that's understandable. Right now I feel like crashing for 5 hours straight." Junpei replied, and as he looked at her his expression changed subtly, to one of restrained admiration. "You were amazing back there Izumi-chan! Even in the heat of battle you came up with that awesome escape strategy!" he praised, causing Izumi to blush slightly. "I was about to be sliced and diced by that creep, and you evolved just in time. You saved my life." He continued. Izumi, slightly embarrassed by Junpei's praise, raised her hand in a deferential motion.

"I can't take all the credit. You were risking your life out there too." She added quickly, trying to diffuse some of Junpei's praise. Junpei shook his head.

"Yeah, but all I was focused on was just the battle, and nothing else. I didn't have any idea how we were actually going to get out of there." He said, glancing down at his feet. "And I got my butt kicked in the end." Izumi sighed inwardly, feeling a twinge of irritation against Junpei's self-deprecation. She gave him her best no nonsense look and replied.

"Don't be so hard on yourself Junpei. The fact that you managed to hold up for so long, and managed to come out of it without massive injuries, shows how well you did. At least this time we didn't end up in a coma like we did after our first battle with them." She commented. Junpei looked at her and then nodded, remembering the how all of them except Kouichi had been knocked out for several hours after their first encounter with the Royal Knights. After a moment, his smile returned.

"I guess your right Izumi-chan." he said. Izumi laughed and nodded.

"Aren't I always?" She asked, her voice injected with just a tiny bit of haughtiness. Junpei laughed and nodded quickly in agreement. Izumi glanced up into the sky, and a thoughtful look crossed her face, causing Junpei to stop smiling and look at her curiously. "I bet the others are worried sick about us by now. We've been gone for hours." Junpei nodded again in agreement.

"Yeah, I hope the Royal Knights don't find them before we get back. Without all of us together, Takuya and Koji can't use Hyper Spirit Evolution. They'll have just as much trouble fighting as we did." Izumi nodded and then stood up, a look of determination in her eyes.

"We should get going. We have a lot of walking ahead of us." She stated. Junpei looked up at her and then glanced around the clearing.

"Which way do you think we should go?" Junpei asked. "Rhodoknightmon chased us way off course." Izumi looked around the clearing, thinking about which way would be the best, before answering.

"Well, we probably don't want to go back that way…" she said, pointing back in the direction they'd come from earlier. "In case Rhodoknightmon's still around there. And we don't want to go further into the woods…" she paused a moment, thinking things over, before continuing "I'd suggest heading that way, parallel to the cliff. Hopefully we can find a way up and back towards the camp." Junpei turned his head and looked up towards the top of the cliff.

"Why don't we just fly back up there?" he asked, taking out his D-tector and looking at it. "It would be faster." Izumi shook her head.

"If we go flying around we'll be easier to spot by enemies, and we should conserve our energy as much as possible, in case we do need to fight again today" she stated matter-of-factly. Junpei didn't look entirely convinced, but he wasn't about to argue with her either, so he nodded his head.

"Ok, whatever you say Izumi-chan".

"Get off your lazy butt then, and let's get going" she said, half-playfully.

"Ok, just a sec" Junpei responded, as he grabbed a handhold in the rock he was leaning against and used it to haul himself up. However, as soon as he took a step forward, a stabbing pain shot through Junpei's right leg, radiating out from his injured knee. Junpei gasped from the strength of the pain, and immediately collapsed back to the ground.

"Junpei", Izumi cried out with concern, and immediately she was crouched by his side, her hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright, what happened?"

Junpei looked up at her, gritting his teeth through the pain, and replied, "After I de-evolved, when that creep attacked me, I fell and smashed my knee on a rock. I think its probably sprained or something." He gingerly stretched his right leg out in front of him, clutching his knee, and choked back another gasp.

"Do you think you'll be able to walk?" Izumi asked as she helped him to his feet.

"Yeah, I think I'll manage", he replied, putting on his best reassuring smile "It's really not that bad". Izumi could tell that he was lying. Junpei tried walking again. He managed to take a few steps without stumbling or even limping, but Izumi saw in his eyes how much it was really hurting him. A trickle of sweat ran down the side of his face, and he took another few steps. This time he stumbled a little, but didn't collapse completely. He glanced behind him and smiled weakly. "Come on Izumi-chan, let's get moving. I think I can make it, I'll be…" he stopped when he felt Izumi grab his arm and stop him. Without saying anything, she pulled his right arm around her shoulder while she wrapped her left arm around his waist. His heart skipped a beat at her sudden closeness, and Junpei felt his face begin to flush slightly. "Izumi-chan, what are you…?", he turned his head to look at her, but her face was turned away, looking off ahead.

"You can't walk like that, you'll just screw your leg up even more" she said quickly, still facing away from him. "I'll lend you my shoulder for now. Let's get going". Junpei looked at her with hesitancy.

"Are you sure?" he asked tentatively. She had to be aware of what such close proximity would do to him. Izumi nodded her head.

"Don't really have much of a choice." She responded, and then turned her head towards him. "Don't even think of trying anything funny though." Junpei laughed nervously, his cheeks turning redder by the moment.

"Wouldn't dream of it" he said, and Izumi laughed a little, a small smile passing over her face.

"I'll hold you to it" she added, then looked ahead again. "Ready?" she asked. Junpei looked ahead to and nodded.

"Yeah"

"Then here we go." They started walking forward together at a moderate pace. Junpei winced in pain, sucking air in through his teeth, and Izumi slowed her pace slightly. "Easy does it." she said, tightening her left arm around his waist. Junpei lost his hesitancy of being so near Izumi and shifted more of his weight towards her, off his injured leg. They continued walking and soon fell into an effective rhythm. They walked on silently for a few minutes, and then Junpei turned his head to the right to look at Izumi.

"Izumi-chan…" he said.

"What?" She turned her head to look at him and was caught off guard by the tender expression on his face.

"Thanks" he said simply, and Izumi suddenly felt her own face start to flush with embarrassment.

"Nuh..no problem, what are friends for?" she responded, and then turned back to looking ahead.

(Every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then I see the look in your eyes. Turn around bright eyes…every now and then I fall apart)

The words seemed to appear in her mind without meaning or connection, and Izumi shook her head in confusion, trying to push them away. Why had she thought of that song just then? What did it have to do with anything, and why did it suddenly make her feel, well…flustered? She shook her head again and grunted irritably, as she tried to rid herself of the random meaningless thoughts. Her struggle didn't escape Junpei's notice though. He blinked twice and gave her a curious look.

"Anything wrong, Izumi-chan?" he asked. Izumi quickly shook her head and then looked at him out of the corner of her eye, flashing a small smile to try and deflect his curiosity.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a few random thoughts I was trying to shake." She replied. Junpei suddenly looked even more curious, and a little happy.

"Where they about me?" he asked. Though his tone was playful, a look of hopeful eagerness flashed across his face for a moment. Izumi and his eyes met for an instant and then she looked away, feeling her face suddenly begin to grow hot.

"Keep dreaming, Junpei" she replied quickly, trying to keep her eyes focused forward, away from him. "It was just some random stuff from a song I heard once; I don't even know why I thought of it just then" she explained. Even as she said the words, they rang hollow in her head. There was a reason…wasn't there?

(And we'll only be making it right, Cause we'll never be wrong…)

The words flashed in her mind, and she pushed the thought process away, not liking the direction it was heading. Junpei turned his eyes forward again and hung his head in exaggerated disappointed.

"So that was all." He stated glumly, causing another small twinge of guilt to pass through Izumi, just for a moment. She suddenly felt that her last comment had gone a little too far, been too dismissive.

"I'm sorry, Junpei, it's not like that" she began, trying to reassure him. "You're a great guy and everything, really. It's just that…" she struggled to find the right words. "You're a great friend and everything, it's just that…", but she found she couldn't go on. After all the preparation and trying to psych herself up, she couldn't finish the idea; it froze on the tip of her tongue, and then died away. Maybe it was the exhaustion of the day, the near fatal battle they'd just had, but she couldn't say it right then. It seemed almost cruel to say it, the worst possible timing she could have come up with.

(Nothing I can say, a…)

The rebellious thought rose from her subconscious and Izumi mentally squashed it before it could take complete form. Junpei looked down at the ground ahead of him, his face changing to reflect the mix of disappointment and acceptance he was feeling. He'd gotten the message anyway.

"Yeah, I guess I understand" he said, nodding his head. His expression tugged at Izumi's conscious, but this time she couldn't think of any way to reply.

-3-

The two children walked on in silence for a long time, each one lost in their own private thoughts. They weren't covering very much ground; with Izumi lending support to Junpei, and the rocky, sometimes steep terrain they traveled between the cliff and the forest, they couldn't make very good time. The sun was now hovering very close to the horizon, signaling that there were getting very close to dark. As one might expect, Junpei felt like he was constantly balanced on the edge of meltdown, caused by the being in such close proximity to the girl he cared about, for going on several hours now. His pulse was racing ahead, as if he'd been running for a long time, and he was painfully aware of every sensation and movement as they walked; her left arm wrapped around his waist to steady him, the way her left breast lightly brushed against his side as they walked together, the feel of her long blonde hair on his arm, and the gentle yet firm touch of her hand on his right wrist. The pain in his leg had faded down to a constant dull throb, but Junpei had almost completely forgotten it. Being this close to her for so long was something he had only imagined up till now, and he was amazed that his racing heart hadn't exploded already. Of course, the thought of taking advantage of this close proximity was never entertained by him for more than a split second; he wasn't going to repay Izumi's help by doing something like that. Yet, despite the state of his body, Junpei couldn't find it in himself to truly enjoy the situation as he would have under normal circumstances. Izumi's last comment, and the great difficulty she'd had trying to express it, had thrown Junpei's mind into an even more awkward zone. He was almost completely sure that she'd been preparing to give him the "I only care about you as a friend" speech, which cast a depressing shadow on a situation that Junpei would have otherwise enjoyed immensely. As they walked, Junpei also couldn't help worrying about how Izumi might be feeling; he couldn't imagine that she was unaware of his racing pulse or his nervousness, even if she trusted him not to do anything, he couldn't help thinking that it must be awkward for her to be this close to someone who liked her, but who she ("maybe!", his protesting mind amended) didn't like back.

Of course, Izumi was completely aware of Junpei's flustered state, which was causing about as much angst as Junpei had expected, although she was doing an excellent job of not bringing attention to it or her tumultuous thoughts. As the time had passed her mind had continued to return to the subject she'd thought she'd finally closed; the continued nebulous situation between her and Junpei. She didn't want to see him hurt by continuing to fruitlessly pursue her, yet she hadn't been able to spit it out at that moment. Why? Was it that she didn't want to hurt him? It would only be worse in the long run if his crush persisted. Was the timing bad? No, most of the time they were both constantly surrounded by the other kids, and it wasn't like they got the chance to be alone like this everyday. So why had she not been able to say it? And why did she keep thinking of that song, the infuriating non sequitur that refused to die no matter how she tried to ignore it.

(…your love is like a shadow on me all of the time…)

Well, at least that part seemed to make a little sense, but the rest…she tried to force her thoughts onto something else again, but the subject nagged at the back of her mind. And they continued to walk on.

They reached the top of a short rocky incline and suddenly Junpei slipped, a fresh burst of pain sweeping out from his knee, and his weight fell a little more onto Izumi. She grunted under the sudden extra weight, then summoned a little more strength and pulled him upright again. "You ok?" she asked, turning her head to the side to look at him. Junpei winced from the fresh pain in his knee then smiled tiredly back at her.

"Yeah, as much as I can be I guess." Izumi laughed a little and then let go of Junpei's arm for a second, using her right hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead. She took his arm again and repositioned herself next to him, letting out a tired sigh before glancing up at him again.

"Ya know Junpei, when you get back home you really should go on a diet." She stated, her voice deadly serious but her eyes gleaming with good humor and mischief. "Lugging you around isn't as easy as I make it look". Junpei laughed and made an expression of mock hurt.

"I can't help it. It's my metabolism" he retorted back, and both of them laughed a little, the tension of the past few hours broken at last. They began walking again, and this time the friendly, partly superfluous, small talk that they'd been engaged in earlier that day, before all their troubles had started, resumed with enthusiasm. The troubling thoughts that had been churning in both their minds finally begin to fade from the spotlight, and they engaged in conversation on subjects varying from the last movie they'd seen in the human world to what they looked forward to doing first once they got back. They continued on like this for a little bit longer, and then Junpei paused again, looking at the sky and the setting sun.

"We're not going to make it back today are we?" he asked rhetorically, his voice perfectly reflecting his disappointment. Izumi nodded in agreement.

"Doesn't look like it." She replied. "We better find some shelter soon, or we're in for a rough night". She glanced up at the darkening sky, observing the clouds that were gathering above them. "Looks like it might rain" she added.

"Yeah…" said Junpei, following her gaze, and Izumi caught just a hint of apprehension in his voice. After a moment he turned his gaze back and looked at her. "I bet the others are really worried about us by now". Izumi nodded solemnly before replying.

"Yeah, but we can't really do much about that tonight." She turned her gaze forward, her eyes flashing with determination "Come on, lets find a place to stay for tonight, and tomorrow we'll just fly ourselves up over these annoying cliffs". With that the two of them started walking again, keeping an eye out for any possible shelter.

"I hope they don't decide to move around before we get back" Junpei added after a few moments. "If they start running all over the place looking for us, it will be even harder to find them". Izumi giggled and nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure Takuya will be more than willing to just go running off after us, guns blazing, without a thought. Hopefully Kouji and Kouichi can keep some sense in his head." Junpei responded with his own laugh, and soon the two of them were hypothesizing various scenarios and rash actions that Takuya might be putting the others through. Suddenly Izumi's laughter was cut short and she pointed ahead. "Look Junpei, I think that might do nicely for tonight" she said with enthusiasm. Junpei followed the direction her finger was pointing and saw a small cave opening in the cliffs, several yards ahead and to there left.

"That looks great Izumi-chan!" Junpei gushed, a huge grin spreading across his face.

"Well then, lets invite ourselves in" Izumi added, and the two of them quickly crossed the short distance, climbing the small incline leading up to the cave entrance before entering. The cave consisted of a single chamber about 10 feet across and back. They hesitated at the mouth for a moment, taking a second to scan for signs of habitation, before concluding that the cave was deserted and safe. They crossed the chamber and Izumi helped lower Junpei to the ground, where he sat with his back against the cave wall and his bad leg stretched out in front of him. She unceremoniously plopped down off to his left and waited to catch her breath. Junpei flashed Izumi a tired grin as he reclined, letting all his straining muscles finally relax.

"I feel like I could sleep for a week", he commented, and then made a show of stretching his arms out. Izumi gave him a sarcastic glance.

"Hey, if anyone has a right to be tired it's me" she sniped back, "I'm the one who half carried you all this way after all".

"For that I will be eternally grateful, Izumi-sama!" Junpei replied, clapping his hands together and bowing his head in exaggerated gratitude and reverence, that couldn't help but illicit a giggle from Izumi. After a moment she turned her gaze towards the cave entrance, and then warily got back to her feet.

"I guess I'd better go collect some wood and stuff to make a fire, or we're going to end up freezing tonight"

"I wish I could help…" Junpei replied, his previous good humor falling away. Izumi saw the disappointment in his eyes, and felt it tweak at her own emotions. Any other time she knew he would have jumped at the chance to do all the work for her, just because he wanted to make her happy. She didn't like seeing him sad like this, even if it was because of his crush on her. She turned back to him and gave him a reassuring smile.

"That's not your fault. No use getting depressed over something you can't help, alright?" she said, giving him a serious look. "You've been plenty useful today already" she added sincerely. Junpei's face and spirits lifted, and he smiled back and nodded.

"Alright Izumi-chan"

"I'll be back in no time at all. Don't go anywhere ok?" She said, giving him a playful wave as she turned and walked out the entrance.

"Not like I have much of a choice there" Junpei replied with a laugh, and watched her depart. After a few moments, he turned his attention to his right leg. He gingerly touched his knee with both hands, wincing at the fresh wave of pain that rolled along his leg. He didn't think it was broken anymore, but the knee was swelling so much that the leg of his coveralls was now almost skin-tight against it. Junpei grabbed the cuff of his pants leg and began to roll it up. He reached the bottom of his knee, took a deep breath, and then tried to force the cuff of the pants leg up and over his swollen knee; the pain flared immediately, and Junpei choked back a cry of pain and gritted his teeth against the intensity of it. For a moment he could only squeeze his eyes shut, braced against the pain, and he felt a small twinge of nausea begin in the pit of his stomache, and then it subsided. Realizing there was no way he was going to be able to roll up his pants leg the normal way, Junpei began to tear at the fabric at the edge of the cuff. It was pretty strong material and it took him a few minutes to get a good tear going, but once he did, the leg ripped open easily, and Junpei finally got a good look at his injury. His knee was swollen almost to the size of a small grapefruit, and the skin was already turning a nasty purplish blue. A few small trickles of dried blood traced down his leg from where his knee had been skinned in a few places. Junpei ripped the remaining shreds of his pants leg away, leaving his right leg exposed from just above the knee, and then stretched out his leg again. Looking at his banged up knee made him feel queasy all over again, and he turned his gaze to the side.

"Man, I bet its going to feel even worse in the morning" he commented to himself before letting out a tired sigh.

"Wow, that's got to be the worst bruise I've ever seen," Junpei turned his head to see Izumi standing at the cave entrance, holding an armful of kindling. She walked across the room and dumped the wood unceremoniously on the floor, before turning to crouch down in front of Junpei, getting a good long look at his smashed knee. She sucked air in through her teeth, feeling a sympathetic twinge of pain in her own leg. "That looks really nasty. Now I can see why you couldn't walk straight." She said. Junpei laughed a little and replied back.

"I think I'll live."

"You really should put some ice on it or something, to bring the swelling down." She said, and then sighed "If Tomoki was here, we could have had him evolve into Chakmon and had all the ice we could need". She thought for a second, and then suddenly jumped to her feet and headed back towards the entrance. "Wait just a second, I'll be back." she called over her shoulder as she exited.

"Hey, where are you goi…" Junpei called, but Izumi was already gone. He sat, watching the entrance wondering where the heck Izumi had run off to again, for only a minute or two before she returned, her arms and the front of her skirt splashed with water and dripping. "Hey, what were you doing out there?" Junpei asked, but Izumi didn't respond. She crossed the cave and knelt in front of Junpei, and before he could say anything, she was tying a soaked ice-cold bandana around his knee. Junpei jumped involuntarily as the extreme cold touched his bruised knee, and for a moment pain shot up and down his leg, before slowly subsiding under a blanket of numbness. Izumi looked at him and smiled kindly.

"I saw the stream while I was collecting wood before. Its not ice, but it's the best we can do right now. It should help the swelling a little."

"Thanks, Izumi-chan" Junpei replied, and he felt himself start to blush a little. He gently flexed his leg and then stretched it out. "It feels better already." He looked her up and down and frowned. "You're going to end up catching a cold with those wet clothes though". Izumi just laughed and shook her head.

"Don't worry. Once I get the fire going I'll be able to dry off".

"True. But you shouldn't wait too long" Junpei cautioned, his eyes looking at her with worry "I couldn't stand it if you ended up getting sick because of all this". Izumi felt a tiny blush begin in her cheeks, and turned away quickly before Junpei could notice. She couldn't help feeling touched somewhat by his concern for her, despite his own worse injuries, and also slightly exasperated at his insistence on blaming himself for everything that kept coming up. "Of course, that's because he's set himself up as your protector", she reminded herself, and once again pondered briefly why she hadn't been able to follow through with her intentions to settle their relationship, and why she still wasn't comfortable now. The thoughts raced through her head in the space of only a few seconds, and then she flashed a brief smile back towards Junpei and responded.

"You're right. I should get started".

(…Turn around bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart…)

-4-

It had taken her nearly twenty minutes, but Izumi had finally gotten the various branches and leaves she'd brought from outside to light, creating a fairly decent campfire for the two of them. By that time the sun had sunk below the horizon, and the stars of the digital world had become visible. It had started to rain lightly after awhile and now the pattering raindrops provided a constant background for their conversations. They ate some food that Izumi had managed to gather from outside, and then Junpei split one of his last remaining chocolate bars between them. Izumi marveled to herself how he'd managed to bring so many with him, just in the pockets of his coveralls, and how he'd managed to go so long without eating all of them. Izumi sat as close to the fire as she could stand, allowing the comforting heat to dry her soaked cloths. Junpei, meanwhile, in response to the heat, had unzipped his coveralls down to his waist and now sat with nothing but his thin orange undershirt covering his upper body. He'd been hesitant at first to "undress" even that far, until Izumi had indicated that it was ok, and that she didn't expect him to roast to death in his thick clothes just because she was a girl. Izumi's makeshift cold pad had indeed brought down the swelling in Junpei's knee somewhat, and now it just felt numb and very stiff. They two of them had been making more random small talk to pass the time before trying to sleep.

"So tell me Junpei" Izumi began, flashing a little half mischievous look his way, "What is up with the mechanic jumpsuit ensemble?"

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with this. It's perfectly functional!" Junpei replied and laughed.

"Yeah, if you're fixing a car" Izumi replied "But you don't really see too many people walking around in public wearing something like that". Junpei nodded in agreement.

"That's true. But it's comfortable and I don't usually care about what everyone else thinks. My school doesn't have a uniform anyway, so they don't care what I wear." Izumi nodded back and replied.

"Cool, my school doesn't either. I guess we're lucky. I've always hated most of the school uniforms in Japan. They'd cramp my style." Junpei laughed in response, and then fired a new question.

"Did you have to wear a uniform at school in Italy?" Izumi thought for a second and then responded.

"I did at one school, but I didn't stay there very long, because we moved around a lot." Junpei detected the sadness in her voice, and his expression changed to one that was more serious.

"Did you want to stay in Italy?" he asked. Izumi looked back at him and nodded slowly.

"Yeah, I really liked it there. It was beautiful" she began, her mind filling with memories of her old life there. "All my friends were back there, and I didn't really know anything about Japan or what it was like here, since I moved to Italy at such a young age. I told you before that I haven't had too much luck making new friends here so far". She looked up at Junpei and noticing the depressed look that was creeping onto his face, immediately realized what he must be inferring from her comments. "But that was before all this happened" she added quickly. "I'm really glad I came back now. If I hadn't, then I never would have come to the digital world and started this great adventure. I'd never have experienced the feeling of being a digimon, or fighting to protect all the peaceful digimon who live here." She smiled warmly at Junpei "and of course I never would have met you or the others. You guys are the best friends I've ever had". At this a huge grin broke out across Junpei's face.

"Thanks Izumi-chan" he replied, causing her to blush slightly and turn away. Right then she decided it was time to turn the conversation away from her again, and remembered something Junpei had said earlier.

"You know Junpei, that "I don't care what other people think of how I dress" thing you have may work for you now, but if you ever want to attract a girl you're going to have to start paying more attention to your appearance" She commented. Junpei looked down at his clothes, and then gave Izumi an incredulous look.

"If she's a girl who would reject me just because I wear coveralls, then maybe she's not someone I should date to begin with" he said. Izumi shook her head in response.

"No, no, that's not what I meant. Of course you shouldn't date someone shallow" she clarified. "I just mean that you should put effort into your appearance. Show the other person that you put more thought into what you wear or whatever than just throwing something on. Girls usually put a lot of thought into what they'll wear and such, so they like to see that a guy cares enough to at least give it some thought too". Junpei still looked skeptical.

"Hey, I put thought into what I'm going to wear and stuff like that" he said, then paused, looking a little embarrassed. "Most of the time" he added, causing Izumi to giggle. "Putting thought into your appearance doesn't have to mean that a guy will end up wearing the stereotypical fashion that girls like. I still think it sounds a little shallow". Izumi was about to reply again, when Junpei's face suddenly lightened. "But if that's the kind of thing you like in a guy, then maybe I should try harder at it, huh Izumi-chan?" he said, flashing another disarming grin. Izumi suddenly felt uncomfortable. The proverbial "elephant in the room" had once again been brought up. It looked like even if she was happy to ignore the issue for the time being, Junpei wasn't going to let her forget it. Again regretting her earlier hesitation, Izumi readied herself to confront the topic.

"Junpei, listen, I…" Outside the rain, which had till then been falling lightly, suddenly picked up, becoming a forceful torrent which roared off the rocks outside. Both Junpei and Izumi turned their heads towards the entrance to the cave, surprised by the sudden change in the weather. "Wow that was kind of sudden". Izumi said, more to herself than Junpei.

"Yeah…" Junpei replied, and Izumi turned towards him, surprised to see a look of growing anxiety starting to stretch across his face. For a second the look on Junpei's face only puzzled her, as she struggled to figure out what could make him so nervous. Her mind suddenly clicked on the answer, just as the first humongous bolt of lightning flashed across the dark clouds outside the cave entrance. Junpei's eyes grew wide with stark panic, and he suddenly shrank back against the far wall of the cave, trying to make himself as small as possible. The few seconds of silence following that huge electric flash were an uncomfortable eternity for both Junpei and Izumi, and then the night was filled with the near earsplitting roar of rapidly expanding and contracting air, the colossal sound of thunder. Junpei cried out in fear, hunching over and covering his head and ears with his arms as he buried his face in his knees, which he'd pulled up to his chest. Outside, the first flash of lightning was soon followed by several more, which crisscrossed the dark storm clouds like a writhing ball of snakes, and set off another series of fierce thunderclaps. With each successive crash, Junpei let out another whimper of fear, and curled up even tighter into his protective position. Izumi watched without moving, momentarily caught off guard by the sudden change in the weather and Junpei's reaction, and remembered when she'd first learned of Junpei's fear of thunder. It had been back when the two of them had been separated from the others and helped out at a digimon school, a rainstorm had popped up and Junpei had instantly flaked out when the thunder and lighting started. At the time Izumi had been skeptical of Junpei's reaction, finding it ironic that the Chosen Child of Thunder could possibly be afraid of his own element. Plus, as soon as he'd evolved into Blitzmon, he'd calmed down and dealt with the storm as if it was nothing, so she had almost completely dismissed his earlier behavior. Another crash resounded through the air, breaking Izumi's thoughts and inciting another whimper from Junpei. Feeling a mix of irritation and pity for Junpei's irrational fear, Izumi got up and scooted across the cave, intent on trying to reassure him.

"Junpei, it's ok. There's nothing to be afraid of its just a little lightning and thunder" she commented, unable to prevent a tiny bit of condescension from creeping into her voice. Junpei didn't seem to hear her, and jumped like a started animal as another thunderclap sounded outside. Izumi felt a spike of sympathy rise in her, but it still didn't drown out her annoyance with him for acting in a "childish" manner. Still, she made another attempt to get his attention, reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder. She felt him jump under her touch, but she didn't pull back. The bit of sympathy she had begun to feel was growing into real worry.

"Junpei…are you alright?" she asked, her voice reflecting the concern she was now feeling. Again Junpei didn't appear to hear her, but after a moment she felt his shoulder begin to loosen up, her close presence already starting to calm him down. She squeezed his shoulder gently, trying to reassure him and glad to see him getting under control, when the biggest lightning bolt yet struck. For a split second the sky outside the cave was as bright as day, and the lightning bolt arced down from the sky, bright and thick and unbelievably close, before striking somewhere not too far from the cave entrance. Izumi suddenly cried out in surprise as Junpei grabbed onto her in blind panic, knocking both of them to the ground. She landed on her side hard, scraping her left elbow, and almost hit her head. Feeling a quick flash of anger rise in her head, Izumi prepared to shove Junpei away. "Junpei, what do you think you're doing? Stop it, let…" she began, but her protests died away at the back of her throat, her brief anger and annoyance replaced by full out sympathy as she realized the truth; Junpei wasn't just scared, he was flat out terrified. He clung to her tightly, like a scarred child clinging to his parent, and his whole body trembled with each sobbing breath and whimper. Each new blast of thunder from outside caused him shake even more and to pull closer to her, and Izumi couldn't bring herself to push him away. She could feel his heart thudding in his chest like an out of control jackhammer and could feel the cold sweat that had broken out over his body, soaking into his undershirt. "You've really got it bad, huh?" she said, her voice full of sympathy and worry, as she raised her arms and rested her hands on Junpei's trembling shoulders. "You're ok, you're safe. Nothing can get us in here" she said softly, squeezing his shoulders as she spoke. The two of them lay where they had fallen for a long time, Junpei shivering and clinging to Izumi, and her rubbing his shoulders and saying reassuring things to him every few minutes. After awhile Junpei began to slowly loosen his grip on her, and his shaking started to subside. Seeing that he was finally getting his nerves under control again, Izumi gently detached herself from his arms and pulled him up into a sitting position with her.

For the first time since the thunder storm had intensified, Junpei looked at Izumi. His eyes were red and irritated from his crying and they betrayed the fear and shame he felt looking back at Izumi. After a moment he turned away from her and looked down at his feet, too embarrassed to keep eye contact. "I'm sorry I.." another flash of thunder issued outside and Junpei flinched away instinctively "I shouldn't have done that. It wasn't right. I'm…" Junpei's apology was cut off when Izumi move up behind him and reached around to lay her hand over his. Junpei's heart skipped a beat, this time for non-weather related reasons, but he still couldn't turn back to face her.

"It's alright Junpei" Izumi said reassuringly as she squeezed his hand "You were scared". She felt a bit of guilt begin to rise in her mind, and glanced down "I'm the one who should apologize". That got Junpei's attention.

"What?" he asked with surprise, turning his head to look at her, the storm outside momentarily forgotten. Izumi looked back at him and nodded her head

"Back when we were at that Digimon school together, I didn't take it seriously when you got scared of that thunder storm." She glanced down at her feet, suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable looking at him in the face "I thought it was stupid to be afraid of something like that, and since you were the chosen child of thunder, it seemed like just some ironic joke. Even this time, I wasn't entirely sure I believed you…" Izumi felt her face grow red with embarrassment, but she still forced herself to look up, into Junpei's eyes. "I'm sorry Junpei. I didn't mean to make light of your fear, even to myself." Despite the whole situation, Junpei suddenly felt his face begin to blush with embarrassment, and he looked down, letting a tiny smile crank on his face for the first time in nearly 30 minutes.

"It's ok" he commented quietly, looking down at the cave floor, away from Izumi. Another loud thunderclap issued outside, causing both of the kids to jump; Junpei let out a nervous whimper and tensed up again, but another reassuring squeeze of his hand from Izumi caused him to relax a little. They sat that way for several minutes, just listening to the rain and the rhythm of the thunder, and then Junpei spoke again. His voice was totally serious, and Izumi could feel the emotional resonance of it in the air. "I've been scared of thunder and lightning ever since I was 4 years old. I was on a picnic with my parents, and we were having a great time, flying kites, running around, eating great food." He paused for a second, and Izumi saw the struggle on Junpei's face as he recalled the next part "Then it began to rain…" he continued, his voice cracking. Izumi could tell, just by looking at him, just by the way his hand had suddenly started to shake again, that the memories he was recalling were very bad. Her mind suddenly latched onto the truth a moment before he spoke it aloud. "My parents called me, they told me to come back to the car where it was safe, but I just kept running farther out into the open grass in the park." Junpei paused again, and swallowed "a huge bolt of lightning struck right in front of me. I was hit by the splash energy from the strike and …it…" Izumi saw the distress on Junpei's face and tried to interrupt him.

"It's ok Junpei. You don't have to tell me if it's too hard." She said, but Junpei just shook his head, and smiled tiredly at her.

"Thanks, but…its ok. I'm fine". He turned back to face the cave entrance, and then gave a large shuddery sigh, all the energy seeming to drain from his body. Izumi prepared to interject again, but her words fell silent as Junpei spoke again. "They had to revive me with a defibrillator. My heart stopped." He said, almost too simply, and then let out another shuddery sigh. Izumi realized that he was trying his hardest to keep from breaking down again. "I had to stay in the hospital for a few days, of course, but the doctors told my parents that I was really lucky, that it didn't look like I had any neurological damage." He let out a forced laugh "I had these weird spider-web type marks all over my chest; something to do with the electric current of the lightning or something, but those faded after awhile, and the burns healed quickly too. All in all, I'd had a really close call, but come out of it completely intact." He paused again, and then looked out through the cave entrance, staring at the dark clouds beyond and the flashes of lighting crisscrossing the sky. "Except…" he began, and then flinched again as another loud clap of thunder reverberated over the cliffs outside. Izumi sat staring at him in stunned silence, unable to come up with anything useful to say. She felt even more shame over her casual dismissal of Junpei's fear, and she struggled to figure out something, anything, to say to him now.

"So…that's why…" Izumi said lamely, but she couldn't articulate anything else, and she glanced down at the floor with renewed embarrassment. After a few more moments, Junpei moved his hand out from under Izumi's and glanced back at her, trying his best to give her a reassuring smile.

"I'm alright now Izumi-chan. Talking about it really helped me a lot. I'll be ok. We should probably try and go to sleep now, or we're going to be exhausted in the morning." He turned and scooted cross the cave towards the fire in the center. As Izumi watched him stoke the fire with a stick, she suddenly realized that he was only trying to put on a strong front in front of her. She could see the way his hand still shook as he held the stick, the way he still cringed slightly every time another clap of thunder was heard outside. He was doing a good job now of keeping himself from panicking, but the years of instinctual fear were still embedded in his psyche, and probably always would be. Izumi suddenly felt a huge outpouring of compassion for her friend, and a huge desire to do whatever she could to help him. Through their journey, he'd always been there for her, even when she hadn't asked for it. He'd listened to her angst about her personal problems without complaining, and had put himself on the line, even risking death, to protect her several times. She quickly flashed back to the time they'd fought Grottomon and Petaldramon inside that underground cave. Even though he'd already been hit by an attack from Whamon that left him bruised all over, Junpei took on Grottomon with his newly acquired beast spirit and completely destroyed him, retrieving Izumi's human spirit at the same time. He'd been willing to fight for her even though he was hurt, and though she'd still thought of him as only a friend, the action had touched her. But she had forgotten that he was a kid just like her; with his own insecurities and fears and worries. She'd seen a little bit of that side of him when they'd been taken inside Sephirotmon, and now she was seeing it again. He was strong, but there were still things he needed help with. She realized then that she wanted to protect him, that she wanted to return the favor after all the times he'd protected her without hesitation. At that moment, any thoughts of "feelings" and "relationships' and those things that had plagued Izumi's mind all day just left her mind completely; all she focused on was Junpei, and how she could help him.

Junpei jumped in surprise as he felt Izumi's arms wrap around his waist, as she pulled him towards her and laid her head on back. For a second he froze, mind and body paralyzed in surprise at Izumi's sudden closeness. After a moment he regained control of his faculties, and managed to stutter out a stunned question. "What…what are you doing Izumi…?" he asked, but his question was cut off by Izumi, who made a soft hushing sound with her voice before speaking.

"It's alright to be afraid Junpei" she began, her voice barely a whisper over the sound of the storm outside. Junpei almost had to strain to hear her. "You're not ok, I can tell. But you don't have to hide it from me. I'm your friend, I'm here. You're not alone." Junpei felt tears welling up and reached up with his left hand to wipe his eyes.

"Thank you, thank you, Izumi" he said sincerely, and in that moment he felt like his heart might burst from gratitude and relief. Another tremendous thunder clap resounded outside, and Junpei jumped again, but Izumi just pulled him back closer, without saying a word. She could feel him let down his defenses, letting himself acknowledge the fear again, but at the same time relying on her. After the next thunder clap, Junpei reached up and grabbed Izumi's hands, which were clasped in front of his chest. After a moment, she unclasped her hands, and grabbed his, squeezing them reassuringly. They stayed like that for a long time; listening to the rain and the thunder outside, listening to each other breathe, not saying a word. Junpei was still shaking, and every time the thunder crashed, Izumi felt him flinch with fear, but she didn't loosen her embrace or let go of his hands, and as time went on, she felt his reactions to the thunder start to lose strength.

During that time, Junpei didn't think about his feelings for Izumi, or how being held by her should have made his day, or about any of the awkward relational issues that the situation should have brought up; as with Izumi, all extraneous thoughts had been driven from his mind. All he thought about, all he concentrated on, was the warmth from Izumi's body, flowing into his, and the comfort and safety of her arms. The fear was still there, but it was muted, deflected by that feeling of safety and support from another.

Izumi listened to Junpei's heartbeat, no longer the panicky racing pulse it had been earlier, now finally slowing down, returning to normal. The pattern of Junpei's breathing changed subtly, slowing, becoming more regular and deep, and she soon realized that Junpei had fallen asleep. She remained still for a several minutes longer, listening to his rhythmic breath, relived that his ordeal with the storm was finally over. Finally, she very slowly loosened her arms from around Junpei's body and laid him on his back on the ground. He didn't stir at all. She scooted close to the fire and added some more branches and leaves to the small flames, reviving them until the heat once again begin to comfortably fill the cave. She moved back parallel with Junpei and looked down at his sleeping figure. "Goodnight, Junpei" she whispered, smiling a little to herself, before she lay down on her side with her back to him. She closed her eyes and let her mind drift to the noises around her. It first lingered on the constant pattering of the rain outside and the low growling of the thunder, which was getting farther and farther away by the moment, before focusing on the snap and crackle of the campfire in the center of the cave, and finally, Junpei's steady breathing. It was this sound that Izumi latched onto, the steady, calm, uninterrupted breathing of her friend as he slept. And as her mind finally fell over that mysterious edge between consciousness and sleep, one final thought echoed through the corridors of Izumi's head;

(…nothing I can say, a total eclipse of the heart)

-5-

Bright morning sunlight streamed through the cave opening, falling across the two kids sleeping peacefully, if not quit comfortably, on the rocky ground inside. Izumi felt the gentle rays of the sun warming her skin and slowly begin to stir from the deep ocean of her dreamless sleep. The first thing she saw when she finally opened her eyes was Junpei's hand dangling down a few inches from her face, from the arm that was draped over her shoulder. For a moment Izumi froze, her heart skipping a beat for a moment, and then she was completely awake, feeling extreme annoyance and embarrassment well up inside her. "You sneaky jerk…" she whispered between clinched teeth, her hand balling up into a fist as she prepared to smack the boy silly for trying to take advantage of her while she was asleep. She started to turn her body, preparing to strike, and then paused as she caught a glimpse of him. He was still fast asleep. After a second, Izumi slowly lowered her arm, letting her tensed hand relax, and breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly surmised that he must have simply rolled over onto his other side while asleep; certainly not something she could get mad at him for. She mentally kicked herself for having jumped to the wrong conclusion so quickly, relieved that she'd stopped herself before actually hitting him. That certainly wouldn't have been a very pleasant wake-up call, and not one he deserved after the whole thunderstorm ordeal. She lay still for a moment, listening to his breathing, and then suddenly felt compelled to turn towards him. Moving very slowly, so as to be sure not to wake him, Izumi turned all the way over onto her right side, until she was facing Junpei. For several minutes she simply watched him sleep, observing the way his chest slowly rose and fell with each breath, how he'd propped his head up on his left arm when he'd turned over, the way his short brown hair fell around his forehead as he slept.

(Turnaround…Every now and then I get a little bit restless and I dream of something wild.)

Izumi slowly reached out and laid her hands on Junpei's chest. Her fingers bent, gripping the material of his shirt, and she slowly drew herself towards him, until her body was only millimeters from his. Closing her eyes, she laid her head against his chest, letting the warmth of his body flow into her as she listened to his heart beating inside him. Her mind was a flood of mixed emotions and thoughts, her rational side was screaming at her that she was letting herself get too close, that she should be worried that he might wake up, but it was drowned out by the rest of her feelings and thoughts. Lying there close to Junpei, hearing his heart beat and his slow steady breathing, feeling his chest rise and fall next to her, Izumi felt safe and protected and peaceful, like she didn't need to worry about anything. The heart that she heard, it beat only for her. Junpei would always try his hardest to protect her, and he'd never intentionally hurt her. It was almost too perfect. As Izumi lay there next to Junpei, she sincerely wished that the moment would never end, that she could keep that feeling of safety and peace forever.

Suddenly, she felt Junpei shift slightly next to her and Izumi froze completely, her breath caught in her throat. He moved more, started to turn over onto his back, and then returned to his original position. Izumi held her breath and watched him, her face only inches away from his chest, her heart racing at the possibility of being caught. "…Izumi…chan…" he mumbled softly in his sleep and moved again, pulling his legs up closer to his chest. Several second later Junpei yawned groggily and opened his eyes, immediately spotting Izumi sitting with her back to him across the cave, near the entrance. "Good morning, Izumi-chan!" he said cheerfully, as he propped himself up on his left elbow and smiled. Izumi didn't turn around, but responded quickly.

"Good morning" she said, fidgeting with her shoes in an attempt to look busy. She hesitated for a moment, then added "You sound good this morning." Junpei smiled gratefully and nodded.

"Yeah, mostly because of you" he replied enthusiastically. "Usually storms freak me out so much that I can't get to sleep at all, or I have nightmares. But not this time." Izumi blushed and then refocused her concentration on tying her shoelaces for the 3rd time.

"I'm glad" she said, as casually as she could manage. Junpei sat up and stretched his arms and legs, preparing to get up, and then stopped and spoke again.

"In fact…" he began, a thoughtful look passing over his face "my dreams were pretty good last night. I don't remember much, but you were definitely in them, Izumi-chan. I think we might have been on a date somewhere." He laughed a little and then blushed slightly from embarrassment "I guess that shows just how much of a dream it was". Izumi laughed a little in reply, trying to match Junpei's good natured kidding, an attempt that felt hollow and forced to her, and replied.

"Yeah, that's definitely a dream." Junpei looked down at his feet and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Yeah, figured as much" he replied matter-of-factly. Izumi stood up, still facing away from him towards the entrance, and replied.

"We better get going again as soon as possible. We've already been gone for a whole day, and I'm sure the others are going crazy with worry by now." She mustered all her composer and turned to look at him, plastering an "all business" look onto her face. "I'm going to see if I can find us a little bit of food for breakfast. You get ready here while I'm out. See if your leg is going to be ok for walking today." Junpei nodded and began to pull himself to his feet, using the back wall of the cave.

"Got it, Izumi-chan". He replied, but Izumi had already turned around and walked out of the cave.

-6-

Izumi walked several yards away from the cave before she stopped to let the beating of her heart finally settle down. It had been an extremely close call back there; Junpei had almost woken up to find himself staring right into Izumi's face, and would have if she hadn't been able to get up and move away from him so quickly. And the feeling of having narrowly avoided disaster still hung around her, making her feel shaky and exhausted, not just because she'd avoided a potentially embarrassing situation but because she couldn't completely figure out why she'd put herself in the situation to begin with. Why had she gotten so close to him like that? Why couldn't she bring herself to just tell him she wasn't interested, once and for all? Sighing with exhaustion, despite having only just woken up a mere 10 minutes before, Izumi dropped to the ground and leaned back against a nearby tree, her mind busily running through her situation. She cared about Junpei as a friend, just as much as any of the others, but she wasn't in love with him. She didn't fantasize about him, how he might look in a bathing suit or where they might go on a date, or catch herself glancing at him when she thought he wasn't looking, or blushing when she thought he might be looking at her; those were things she found herself doing with Takuya, and Koji maybe once or twice. Yet, she felt very close to Junpei in a different way and somewhere in her she was drawn to that too, that feeling of safety and dependability she'd felt that morning. But what exactly did that mean? Was that love too? Izumi shook her head, and laughed with frustration. "I'm only 11 years old. I'm too young to have to deal with this kind of complication" she commented to herself. Again, that strange tune that had been plaguing her mind for nearly a day returned to her thoughts.

(I don't know what to do and I'm always in the dark. We're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks…)

Izumi laughed sarcastically. "That's certainly true. Tell me something I don't know." She spoke aloud, before letting out an annoyed grunt and getting to her feet. She wasn't getting anywhere sitting around and thinking about this stuff now, especially since she was supposed to be collecting food, and she and Junpei had more important things to worry about, like finding their friends and saving the digital world. Izumi walked back towards the cave, searching the area for edible nuts and fruit, more than willing to let her mind focus on the search and ignore the previous thoughts. After a few minutes, she'd found enough food for a small breakfast, and quickly carried it back to the cave. Inside, she found Junpei slowly pacing back and forth across the cave, testing out his leg. Much more composed than before, Izumi smiled warmly at him as she entered the chamber and knelt down near the center, setting the food she'd gathered on the ground.

"Looks like you're a lot better today" she stated as she began to sort the food. Junpei stopped pacing and smiled back happily.

"It still hurts, but it's a million times better than yesterday." He bent over and rubbed his bruised knee gingerly, then flexed it several times before putting his weight back on it. "I think I'll be able to walk ok on my own this time. Maybe not for an extended amount of time without a rest, but…" he blushed slightly and rubbed the back of his head with one hand "At least you won't have to drag my dead weight around all day." Izumi let out a sigh of mock relief.

"That's good to know. I don't think my delicate body could survive another day of lugging you around" she commented dramatically, and fell over in a mock faint before giggling. Junpei laughed as well, and sat down next to her.

"Sorry for being so fat." Junpei replied, pretending to be hurt by Izumi's comment, and then both of them suddenly laughed harder. After a few minutes they were eating their small breakfast and making regular small talk, the awkward morning that Izumi had just had almost completely forgotten. It only took them about 10 minutes to finish eating. "Well, guess we should get going now." Junpei stated, and then gingerly got to his feet, stuffing the last of his food into his pockets. Izumi smiled and nodded.

"Yep, let's get going." She replied and got to her feet as Junpei passed her and exited the cave. She stuffed the last piece of fruit she had into her skirt pocket and followed Junpei. She stopped at the top of the small hill outside the cave entrance, and watched as Junpei slowly walked down the slope in front of her. Her mind swam with complicated thoughts again. He was a pretty amazing guy alright, and they were certainly very close. Maybe there was a potential there for them to be more than just friends. But then again, maybe there wasn't. Deep down inside, perhaps she'd been aware of that ambiguity all along. "What to do, what to do" Izumi whispered to herself under her breath and chuckled to herself. Junpei paused several yards away from the bottom of the slope and looked back at Izumi.

"Are you coming, or are you just going to stand their all day admiring the scenery" he called back to her. Izumi shook herself out of her contemplative mindset and smiled back.

"No, I'm coming" she replied warmly, and jogged down the path towards him, her previous contemplations quickly and, this time, easily dismissed from her mind. She and Junpei set off into the trees walking side by side, in search of their friends, as the sun shined brightly overhead.

-7-

-5 Months Later-

The light rain fell from the sky, enough to make a person slightly damp and annoyed, but not enough to soak anyone through. Children of various ages laughed and ran up the street, ecstatic at having finally been released from another day of school, their joyous spirits completely unfazed by the somewhat dreary day around them. Three boys in particular slowly made their way up the sidewalk, sharing an umbrella and talking animatedly amongst themselves. The two boys walking on either side were a stark contrast to the tall and wide frame of the boy in the middle. Junpei Shibayama laughed at his friend's dumb comment and then shot one back of his own, causing both of the shorter boys to double over with hysterics. They reached the end of the block, and Junpei turned to the right while the other kids continued straight ahead. He turned back and waved to them as they crossed the street. "See you guys tomorrow. Don't forget to bring the study notes." He called. The kids made sour faces at the mention of study notes, then waved back smiling as they continued on. Junpei turned and walked down the street towards his apartment several blocks away. He'd forgotten his own umbrella again, but the rain wasn't falling hard enough to be really bothersome, and there was hardly any thunder or lighting on that day. So Junpei walked home at a relatively slow pace, lost in his thoughts of the school day that had just passed and dreading all the homework he'd have to do once he got home. He shifted his backpack from one shoulder to the other and sighed. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the person standing at the end of the block till she called out to him.

"Hey Junpei, fancy meeting you here" she said, in a slightly teasing voice. Junpei looked up and blinked several times; for a moment he thought he was dreaming. Izumi was standing at the street corner in front of him, a large pink umbrella held over her head. He blinked once more, and then a huge grin broke out over his face.

"Izumi-chan, what are you doing here?" he asked as he jogged towards her. She stepped forward to meet him and held the umbrella over both of them.

"My school let out early today" she replied, "There was some accident in the science lab or something, and the faculty decided it would be safer to send everyone home early". Junpei whistled in surprise.

"How lucky. I wish something like that would happen over here. It seems like we never get any holidays." he replied. Izumi nodded.

"So anyway, since I got out early and had nothing to do the rest of the day, I thought I'd catch you on your way home. We haven't seen each other for over a month." Junpei laughed nervously and blushed a little.

"Yeah, Sorry about that. I wanted to come to your birthday party, I did, but something came up." Izumi noticed his nervousness and put a reassuring hand briefly on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I know. I got your letter last week in the mail. I understand, and don't worry, I wasn't mad or anything. Junpei smiled back with relief.

"I'm glad. I was so worried that you thought I had blown you off or something." Izumi laughed and shook her head.

"No that never crossed my mind. I know you" she responded and then looked him straight in the eye. "Thanks for the present you sent too. It was really great, I loved it." Junpei's cheeks flushed bright red and he turned his gaze away, looking down the street instead.

"I'm…glad you liked it." He stuttered out. Izumi giggled at his reaction, and then looked down the street too.

"Well, are we going to just stand in this spot all day or shouldn't we get moving? I'll walk you home." She said. Junpei nodded quickly.

"Yeah ok.", he said, trying to keep a normal face, hiding the happiness he was now feeling at getting to walk with Izumi. Izumi, of course, saw right through his attempt, and smiled inwardly. The two of them started leisurely walking towards Junpei's apartment. They shared the umbrella, but Izumi quickly noticed that Junpei was walking as far to her left as he could while still being under the umbrellas protection. His hands were jammed into his pockets and he stared straight ahead, with a somewhat serious expression plastered on his face.

"He's trying to respect my space and not let his feelings embarrass him" she thought to herself, and smiled. She turned her head and spoke aloud. "You know, there is plenty of room for both of us here" she said matter-of-factly. Junpei glanced towards her and blushed a little, then nodded.

"Yeah, I guess." He scooted a few inches to the right as they walked. Izumi smiled again. He'd grown an inch or two taller since their adventure in the digital world, but that hadn't been the only change in him since then. They'd all grown up a little, become a little more mature because of what they'd been through. Junpei in particular had become much less aggressive with his feelings since the adventure. Of course, not all of it was due to his own maturing; Izumi had to admit to herself.

"So…" Junpei began, trying, and failing, to sound nonchalant. "How is it going between you and Takuya?" Izumi had been expecting the question. She smiled and looked ahead.

"We broke up about two weeks ago." She stated matter of factly. Junpei turned his head in surprise to look at her, but she continued to stare ahead.

"Why, did something happen?" he asked quickly, his voice betraying a mix of emotions; Izumi thought she heard anger and concern, mixed with just a tiny bit of hope. "Did you have a fight or did he…" he continued, and she heard the anger in his voice growing. She shook her head and interrupted.

"No nothing like that!" She said quickly. "Takuya's a great guy and we didn't have any problems like that." she shrugged her shoulders again. "It just wasn't working out between us, that's all. The relationship didn't seem like it was going to go anywhere, we were just doing the same stuff all the time. Plus, Takuya says he thinks that maybe he jumped into dating a little too early." Izumi giggled "He was always rushing into situations without thinking back in the digital world." Junpei laughed.

"Yeah that's certainly true." He looked at Izumi and his expression softened "Well, I'm glad it didn't end on bad terms between you two." Izumi gave him a sly sideways look.

"Really, I would have expected that you'd be praying for disaster to strike our relationship as soon as possible". She poked him playfully with her elbow and Junpei blushed and laughed.

"Of course not. You know I'd only wish happiness and good luck for you Izumi-chan, no matter what". Izumi nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, I know." She replied.

(Turnaround, every now and then I know, there's no one in the universe as magical and wonderous as you)

Izumi laughed suddenly at the cheesiness of the line, not all that surprised that she'd been reminded of that song again. Junpei looked at her curiously.

"Are you alright, Izumi-chan?" He asked. Izumi nodded her head but didn't reply, as she attempted to choke her laughter. After a few more seconds she managed to get it under control. Junpei's look didn't change, and he finally decided to ask the question that had been on his mind for the past few minutes. "Izumi-chan, what's the real reason you came by?" Izumi looked at him, her face betraying only the tiniest amount of surprise, but still enough for Junpei to pick up on. "You don't live in this ward; it's not exactly on your way home." He suddenly blushed and added quickly "Of course, I was really happy to see you, don't get me wrong! It's just…If you wanted to talk to me I would have expected you to call me or something, rather than showing up all the way over here. How long were you waiting for me there anyway?"

The rain had slowed to the barest trickle and the overcast sky was already starting to break up. Izumi folded her umbrella up without saying a word and skipped ahead of Junpei, before turning around to face him. Several excuses like the one she'd used before flew through Izumi's mind in the space of only a second, but she dismissed them all.

(Turnaround bright eyes, Every now and then I fall apart…)

Izumi smiled to herself, her eyes playing across the sky, not meeting Junpei's own confused gaze. "And I need you now tonight, and I need you more than ever…" Izumi finished the line out loud. Junpei's bewilderment only grew deeper at this seemingly random statement.

"Huh?" he asked, unable to think of any other response. Izumi giggled and turned her attention back to Junpei.

"It's nothing really." She responded "Just a song I've had stuck in my head a few times recently." Junpei's confusion subsided slightly, and he smiled again.

"What song is it?" he asked. Izumi thought for a second, racking her brain for the answer.

"It's called "A Total Eclipse of the Heart". It's an English song by…" Izumi thought hard. "…I can't remember. I heard it in some American movie I saw once" Junpei nodded.

"I think I've heard that song before too. But I don't remember all the lyrics." Izumi nodded back and replied.

"Well anyway, it's a pretty cool song; I downloaded it onto my computer, and it's been stuck in my head a few times recently. The first time was actually when we were still in the Digital world. And it reminds me of you…and us, in a weird way." Junpei's face lit up.

"Really?" he asked, delighted to hear that Izumi had been thinking of him. Then his mood dropped slightly. "The song that I always felt was representative of our relationship was "Things I'll Never Say" by Avril Lavigne." The slightly depressed look on Junpei's face and the song he mentioned were too much for Izumi who burst out laughing. A hurt look passed over Junpei's face and he cast he gaze down to his feet. Izumi noticed and immediately tried to silence her laughter, although she only half succeeded.

"I'm sorry Junpei." She said, still fighting back giggles "It's just that I've heard that song before too, and you're right, it does kind of fit, and the look on your face…" Junpei still looked hurt. Izumi, exerting as much self control as she could muster, reached out to touch his shoulder, looking him straight in the eye at the same time. "I'm sorry Junpei, really. I didn't mean to make fun of you like that." Seeing the sincerity in her eyes, Junpei's face lightened, and he smiled back.

"It's ok." He responded. Izumi smiled with relief and let go of his shoulder. After a second the two of them started walking together again.

"You know." Izumi began, glancing to her left at him. "Your situation really isn't as depressing as the one in that song. After all, you HAVE been able to express your feelings, unlike the singer." Junpei returned a small smile.

"Yeah, that's true. But it's not too much comfort. The overall meaning of the song still applies." Izumi nodded and didn't reply. The situation was starting to grow a little bit uncomfortable. They were, after all, discussing Junpei's one-sided crush on her without too much hesitation. Junpei seemed to detect the slight tension that was growing, and steered the conversation back towards the original topic. "So…how exactly does that song remind you of us, Izumi-chan?" he asked. Izumi's heart leapt in her chest, but she pushed forward.

"Well…" she began, fidgeting with her hands as she formulated her thoughts "it's kind of hard to explain. It's sort of a confusing song; the meaning isn't really obvious just from the lyrics. I guess that's kind of fitting, since I'm often confused about how I feel and what I should do sometimes. But some lines also reminded me of you, and how I've thought about you and…" Her face scrunched up, her mind deep in thought as she struggled to figure out the best way to word what she said. Junpei watched her, a mix of confusion, worry, and hope running through his mind at once. At this point he felt almost foolish getting his hopes up for anything, but what she'd said sparked something deep down inside, and he waited, almost holding his breath, to hear what she might say. Izumi's look of extreme concentration remained for several more seconds, and then just melted away; she turned and looked Junpei in the eyes, smiling brightly.

"I guess what I'm really trying to say, behind all this music psychobabble is…want to have a bite to eat at that Ramen stand by your apartment?" The sentence flowed smoothly and Izumi felt the nervousness from before melt away. For a few seconds Junpei's face didn't register any reaction at all. Then his face broke, and a look of such intense joy flooded across it that Izumi couldn't help but laugh again at the extreme level of the reaction.

"R…really? Really really?" he asked, looking about as excited as a kid who'd been told school was cancelled forever. Suddenly his mood seemed to crash down several levels, just as quickly as it had risen. His self conscience doubts had caught up with him. "Do you mean like a date? Or is it something…" he began tentatively, feeling his hopes waning away. He must have jumped to the wrong conclusion, his rational mind insisted. It couldn't be true. Izumi interrupted him with a non-chalant wave of her hand, and smiled back.

"Yeah, I guess we could call it that, if we wanted to" she replied in a casual tone. Junpei's hopes rose again, but were still held in check by his nagging doubts.

"Are you teasing me Izumi-chan?" he asked seriously "Cause if you are…". Izumi interrupted again.

"Of course not!" she replied sincerely, putting her hand on his shoulder again "I do want to have a bite to eat with you. And if that's the start of something else, well then…" she didn't get to finish her sentence because the joyful exuberant look returned to Junpei's face and, if it was possible, it was even bigger than it was before. Junpei stepped away from Izumi and jumped in the air, letting out a humongous shout of joy that must have been heard several blocks away. Izumi blushed with embarrassment and signaled with her hands for Junpei to calm down. "I understand that you're happy, but do you have to let everyone in the ward know?" she asked. Junpei, for his part, calmed down visibly, but his huge ear-to-ear grin remained.

"I'm sorry Izumi-chan" he replied, his own cheeks flushing with embarrassment, "But I just couldn't help myself." Izumi laughed and smiled back.

"Yeah, I think I can understand why". A sneaky playful look entered her eyes "There are tons of guys who would kill for the honor of going out with me." She laughed at her own feigned attitude and poked Junpei in the side with her elbow playfully. Junpei laughed and nodded.

"It's true, it's true". He responded.

"Come on, we can't stand here talking all day. They'll be plenty of time for that while we wait for the noodles" Izumi replied. Junpei nodded enthusiastically and the two of them began walking together down the side walk at a brisk pace. The distance between them had shrunk again. A minute later Junpei looked to his right at Izumi, hesitated for a split second, and then asked his question.

"Not that I'm trying to jinx it or anything, but…why did you decide to give me a chance after all this time?" Izumi looked at him with a sort of sheepish grin and shrugged her shoulders.

"Nothing I can say, a total eclipse of the heart" she replied, and the both of them fell into a fit of laughter. A few moments later they turned the corner and the Ramen cart came into view, sitting right near the intersection of the streets. Suddenly a look of surprise and annoyance came over Junpei's face.

"Oh no!" he exclaimed as he furiously dug through the pockets of his jeans, before coming up with nothing. "I don't have any money on me." Izumi giggled and smiled.

"It's ok Junpei, I've got some." She replied as she began to dig through her purse. Junpei stopped her with a shake of his head and a serious look.

"I can't let you pay for it all on a date. A guy's got to contribute something!" Before she could say anything in protest he had turned and was jogging down the street. He quickly called back over his shoulder as he left. "Wait right there, I'll run up to my room and get some cash and be right back". Izumi could do nothing but watch as he ran down the street, feeling amusement at his old fashioned idea. Her mind suddenly recalled the day she'd watched him exit the cavern after they'd spent the night there, and all the thoughts that ran through her mind that day. Yes she'd done a lot of thinking since then, and since breaking up with Takuya. Junpei definitely had all the qualities of a great boyfriend. He was loyal, dependable, courageous, caring, and more than willing to put the person he cared about before himself. So why shouldn't she give him a chance? She wasn't ready to say she was in love of course; she was still young and there were so many unknown things ahead of her, but…who knew how things might turn out. She smiled to herself and walked towards the noodle cart. "Nothing I can say…a total eclipse of the heart." She said to herself, smiling; as she sat down to wait for Junpei.

-And it's done!! YAAAAY! I hope everyone liked it. I can't believe how much I procrastinated on this one. I'd planned to finish it by the time I graduated from college, but that completely fell through, and here we are in October! How time flies. This is the first time I didn't meet a deadline I set for myself. I'm so lazy . I finally decided that I was putting it off waaaaaay too much, and got down to working on it every day until it was finished, and now it is! Overall, it turned out longer than I'd expected, but the epilogue was shorter than I was expecting. Also I have to mention that the epilogue sequence of the fic was inspired by Shimegami-chan's fanfic "Room For Two". It was the first Junzumi fanfic I ever read . Also, I didn't realize it before, but Junpei and Izumi remind me a lot of Ben and Beverly from Stephen King's IT, both because Ben was fat too and because Beverly mainly liked Bill, but ended up with Ben in the end. And now that I'm done here, it's time for me to go to bed. See ya!-