Title: Touching The Sky
Friends: Daisuke, Angemon, Angewomon
Word Count: 1,233||Chapters: 1/1
Genre: Friendship||Rated: G
Challenge: Diversity Challenge: section C14: K rated
Summary: Daisuke needs lessons in how to fly. Who better than two of his fellow angels?

Daisuke spread out his wings, flapping in an attempt to get used to them. Finding out that of all things, he evolved into an angel had never crossed his mind. Given what Koushirou had told him about his parentage, he'd vaguely thought something a little …less feathery would've been involved.

But now wings of shimmering white spread out behind him, larger than any bird he'd ever seen, and he'd flown once already. He didn't remember much of that; he'd been too busy being absolutely furious to think about it.

"You need to practice," Angemon told him. "Flying should come naturally to you now that you've evolved, but the more you do it, the better you'll be at it."

Daisuke nodded, trying not to get nervous. He'd never really been afraid of heights before, but he'd never been in a situation like this either. "So I just take off?"

"It's better to take off into the wind," Angewomon suggested. "Then circle around as you get higher up. We don't work quite the same way that birds do, but it helps."

He nodded again, taking a few deep breaths. If someone had told him he'd spend an afternoon with Angemon and Angewomon, flying lessons had also not been something he would've considered. But here they were, and here he was about to take off.

Both of them leaped up into the air, waiting for him. Daisuke concentrated, the wind caressing at his wings, and did his best to follow suit. His wings spread out, catching at the breeze, and his jaw almost hit the ground as he realized, he really was flying!

And then he tasted dirt and realized he'd just fallen on his face. He blinked a few times, sitting back up. "What happened?"

"Nothing bad. The winds are just being difficult." Angemon landed next to him and offered him a hand up. "Try it again. Practice."

Daisuke flicked his wings, getting the few traces of dust and dirt off them, and tried again. This time he stayed in the air, taking long strokes with his wings, breathing quicker with every moment.

He was doing it. He was really doing it. He was flying, and flying because he wanted to, not because he was angry or because he wasn't thinking about doing it, but because he wanted to fly.

"Come on! This way!" Angewomon beckoned him higher, and he wondered if it had been the same for them, to find out that they belonged in the sky after being grounded all their lives.

It had to have been. He'd never once dreamed of flying on his own like this, but now that he could, now that he tasted the air and knew it for his own, he could never, ever give it up.

He. Could. Fly.

Daisuke laughed, pumping his wings, and charged after Angewomon. Before he could get to her, Angemon leaped in between them, a grin on his lips.

"Tag!" Angemon declared, one hand brushing against Daisuke's shoulder. "You're it!"

"What?"

Angewomon darted past him, too fast for him to catch her, and her grin mirrored Angemon's. "You know what tag is, don't you?"

"Of course!" Daisuke had been the king of tag once upon a time.

"Then you know how to play!" Angewomon declared, spiraling upward. He'd never seen either of them this playful before. Of course, most of the time they only appeared when there was a battle to fight. There wasn't much time for fun and games when trying to save the world.

But now…now was tag time! Daisuke beat his wings faster, reaching out for Angewomon, who slipped and darted away from him as quickly as she could, and he had to fight to keep up with her. Angemon flicked in close but before Daisuke could grab him, he whooshed back away, letting only the tip of his wings brush by Daisuke's face.

"You're going to have to be faster than that if you want to keep up with us!" Angemon told him. Daisuke glared at him, but with no actual heat to it.

"Oh, I can be faster!" He threw himself upward, wings curving around to cup the wind as it blew through his hair and feathers. He didn't even bother looking at anything else, but sped with all the fire within him to grasp one hand on Angewomon's ankle. "Tag! You're it!"

Both of the other angels laughed, and Daisuke let himself drop down, winging away from them, just so they'd have to fight the wind to come tag him back. He wasn't surprised when they did; this game wasn't new to either of them.

He knew there were other things he should be doing beyond just flying. He had new attacks in his new form, and he wanted to master them. Those Digimon who didn't come from eggs –he'd heard 'breeds' was becoming a common nickname for them – needed to work on their abilities more so than the usual type of Digimon. But the thought of doing anything other than owning the sky refused to sit in his mind for more than a few moments.

So he gave himself over completely to the wind, soaring as high as he could get himself to go, dropping down until the tips of his toes brushed ground, trees, and water alike, spiraling back and forth, darting around Angemon and Angewomon. They still outmaneuvered him, by dint of experience if nothing else, but he knew that wouldn't last forever.

"So, who's it?" Daisuke asked, lazily poking his head through a cloud and looking around. Angemon hovered a short distance away, as did Angewomon.

"I'm not sure," Angemon admitted, and if Daisuke could've seen his full face, he would've suspected the other of blushing a little. "I lost track."

"So did I." Angewomon glanced around. "I think that's enough flying lessons for one day?"

Daisuke didn't want to give up the air, but his stomach roared at him in a language that everyone alive, human or Digimon or other, understood. "Maybe."

He'd seen how Digimon could eat when they were freshly hatched or still very young. He'd had more than one time in his life when after a hard fought soccer game he had wanted to devour anything and everything set in front of him. But as he dropped back down to the ground, he realized that he didn't care what he ate, so long as he ate a lot of it.

"So, where should we eat?" And the sooner they got there the better; now that he was paying attention to it, his stomach kept up a solid, unmistakable grumble that couldn't be satisfied by anything short of the contents of a refrigerator. A very well-stocked one at that.

"Digitamamon's isn't that far away by air." Angewomon flicked one hand toward the northwest.

Daisuke's stomach decided Digitamamon's would have to do. He hoped the egg was ready for three fairly hungry angels.

Well, two fairly hungry angels and one angel who thought about putting his own picture in the dictionary next to 'devour'. His wings were going to hurt after all of this. Maybe if he ate enough, he wouldn't notice.

"Let's go!" He grinned at a flash of a thought. "Last one there has to pay for it!"

Angemon and Angewomon exchanged a quick look and were back in the skies a moment later.

Daisuke was last.

The End

Notes: To anyone familiar with my breeds-universe, I haven't abandoned it. I have no plans at all to do so. In fact, one of the major chaptered stories I plan for this Diversity Challenge will be the epic (I hope!) relaunch of the breed universe. I have more than one story worked out using these concepts, but this one will be the one that touches all the characters and their abilities and everything else I can think of. I also have other AU options for this Diversity Challenge and I plan to use the breeds for those. So, I hope you like the changes I have in store. And if you're new to the concept, welcome aboard!