Okay, here's it all in full instead of chapters. Hope you like it.
"Hi Sora...wanna go to Laser Quest?" Taichi asked Sora nervously. He thought, 'hopefully she'll take this as a date and not just going out for fun...'
"Sounds great Taichi, I'll call Mimi and Miyako." She paused trying to remember Miyako's phone number. "Do you have Miyako's phone number?"
"Ehrm..I'll ask Hikari..." He covered the phone with his hand gracefully and yelled, "Hikari, what's Miyako's phone number?"
"Why do you want her number, I thought you liked Sora!" She yelled from her room back to him.
Taichi blushed ferioucly, "I don't like Sora, and Sora wants Miyako's number to call her asking her if she want's to go to Laser Quest!" He paused, "You wanna come Hikari, I'll invite Daisuke, the one you have the love slash hate relationship with!" He laughed.
Hikari came into the his door way with a pillow under her arm. "Get ready!" She hit her older brother with the pillow again and again, the stitches slowly opening with each hit.
"Kari! I'm talking to Sora here!" He laughed. The stitches slowly untied eachother releasing an explosion of feathers. "Don't tell me thats-" His eye's widened, " Makura! You broke Makura!" He whined. Makura was the name of his all time favorite pillow. When he was little he would take it everywhere he went, people would say it was his baby pillow, instead of his baby blanket.
"My name's not Kari, its Hikari, and it's just a pillow Taichi!" She looked around his room for something else to hit him with.
"Kari, Makura just wasn't any ordinary pillow! He was special!" He looked at her with fire in his eyes. Taichi removed his hand from the phone, "Here's Kari." He handed his younger sister the phone.
"Miyako's number is 234-5643, can I come?" Taichi looked at her. 'Great,' He thought, 'Now the entire gang is coming..."
"Sure, you can invite our other friends too." Sora smiled. She really wanted it to be just Taichi and her, but she would probaly be shy. She hadn't felt that she liked liked Taichi until a week ago. And then there was when she was in the Digiworld, she really didn't have a choice, he was so great in so many ways. She tried not to show the way she felt, but it was the little things she did that her friends noticed. Sora would deny any of it.
"Great! See you soon, meet you at about-" Hikari looked at her brother who had grabbed the phone from her, rather violently.
"Seven." He finished, gathering feathers from Makura. "See ya then." He pushed the off/on button with his thumb. "Hikari, I want you to call all your friends, we have two hours." He gently put the feathers on his desk. Then raced over to his closet looking for some clothes. He pulled out a shirt, hanging on an orange hanger, "How 'bout this Kari?" He asked his sister, calling her by her nickname.
"No pants?" She giggled, covering her face.
"Very funny." He pulled a pair of cargo pants out. "Better?" He said while putting the pants behind the shirt, up to his body.
"I'm sure Sora will love it." She said. Then threw the cover of Makura at him.
"Sora?" He said, eyes widened. "Why Sora?" He turned around, so she couldn't notice his blush.
"Everyone knows you love her." Hikari giggled again.
"I do not!" He said, then he Taichi tried to change the subject, "So this looks good?" He asked again, placing the clothes up to him.
"You have never been good at lying kyoudai!" She laughed. "Looks good, Sora will love it."
Taichi just stood there, on his way out he took the pile of feathers he had sat down on his desk and stuck them down Hikari's shirt. "I don't love Sora."
"You can't take nothing for granted, you've got to live like today. I turn around, I see what's behind me, I turn back around-" Taichi sang in the shower. "Crap!" He droped the soap, trying to pick it up, yet it slipped out of his hands each time he tried to get a good grip. "Get back here." He mumbled. Shampoo slowly ran down his forhead, making it's way towards his eyes. Taichi squeazed his eyes, trying to stop the small amount of pain. He took a step forward, on to the soap.
BANG.
He fell backwards on his back, which was now pounding with pain, his eyes, filled with too much shampoo, and a not so good looking cut on his arm. "Crap! Crap! Crap!" He yelled, whiled getting up carefully. He rinced all the shampoo out from his hair and eyes quicky. He then put conditionair in his hair, making sure he would look good for Sora. "Geez, I'm sure Sora will love this cut."
"Tachikawa residence!" Mimi said remember old times when she lived in Japan. Now she would kid around on the hotel's phone.
"Hi, Mimi, want to go to Laser Quest? I mean, since you are here in Japan and all..." Sora trailed off. Did she really want Mimi to come? "Miyako will be there." Sora said on the other side.
"Sounds great! What time?" She asked, pulling out a pen and piece of paper from the drawer. The paper had the hote's name at the top, as the pen had the name and phone number written all over it. "Mmhmm." She said, holding the phone with her scoulder. "Okay! See you then! Buh-bye!"
Sora looked threw her closet, throwing everything that would not work onto the floor. "Will Taichi like this? Oh wait, mabe this!" She thought outloud. She finally found something that she thought Taichi just might like. "This." She said, quite satisfied with her choice. She changed into her clothes, with an hour to spare.
Sora turned on the computer, which sat up pretty fast. She went on the internet, looking who else up, Taichi. The chosen children where kind of famous in a way. The had saved the world after all... "Taiora?" She read. "Hmm..." She oppened the page which had a picture of Taichi and Sora, standing next to eachother, leaning towards eachother. "Taiora: Taichi and Sora as a couple." She read. Taichi and me as a couple!? She thought. Wow! She looked around the site, for an hour when she glanced over at the clock in the corner of the screen. "Shit! I'm late!" She turned the master button off and ran out the door, telling her mother, "I'll be back in about three hours!" Sora slammed the door.
"Okay!" Ms. Takenouchi yelled, hoping her only daugter would here.
"I wonder where Sora and Yama is." Taichi said to Miyako, Iori, Mimi, Koushiro, Jou, and Ken. They all sat on a bench inside, except Hikari, Daisuke, and Takeru, who where playing an arcade game.
Yama walked in, a bag around his schoulder. "Sorry I'm late." He tilted his head to the side. "Girls and all...To bad you can't get attention like me Taichi." He laughed.
"I don't want those sluts following me." Taichi stuck his toung out at Yamato.
"Atleast I got girls following me." Yamato stuck his fist up. "Your on!"
Taichi, the matured Taichi put his hands on Yamato's lowering them. Yamato blushed, so what if he liked Taichi. As in like like. Yamato would never admit though. He had so many female fans that always asked him out, and reason's why he always turned them down.
"Fine..." Yamato looked down, noticing the unique carpet patern. It had a big LQ, in the center and he couldn't help but laugh. "LQ...hahaha."
Everyone stared at him, yet Yamato continued to laugh, he continued laughing, and had to sit down on the closest bench. He put his hand to his stomach, for it ached with pain with each puff of air came from his mouth.
"Yama-sama?"
He coughed twice and looked up at the small group of hero's. "Yeah...I'm fine. I'm fine."
Everyone glanced from one another...
Daisuke ruined the silence, "Are we going to play?"
Mimi was a bit starlted by him, he practically screamed.
"Sora's not here yet." Taichi spoke up. He looked at his blue watch, with little black numbers. "She should have been here fith-teen minutes ago. I wonder where she could be..." Taichi thought aloud, then silently, 'What if she met some hot guy ands making out with him, or mabe she got in an accident, and needs me there! Or what if...' Taichi went through every possible thing that could happen.
"Ah!" Sora tripped over a step in the front of Laser Quest, falling onto the hard pavement. "Great!" She said, pushing herself up with her arms. "Shit." She cursed, under her breathe. Her brand new shirt she had bought herself had a bubble gum on the arm. Sora would have gone to the bathroom inside, and take the gum off, but everyone else was in there. She looked down the stip of stores, trying to look for the one that would probaly let her use the bathroom without having to buy something. She read sign, after sign. 'Borders.'
Sora knew her choice and oppened the door. She had a bag to her side, some might call a purse, that she had to check in. She asked the short, fat man, in the check in desk where the bathroom was, and he simply answered, "In the store."
Sora thought she misunderstood him, "Excuse me?" She gave him a concerned look.
"To the left, near foreign." The small man, who's name tag, read Kaz, pointed to a rather large sign that read, 'Bathroom.'
"Thanks." Sora covered the bubble gum stain with her hand and walked into the bathroom, pushing the door open carfully, making sure she wouldn't hit anyone.
She wrapped some ruff paper towels around her hand, and picked at the gum, untill it was ulmost unnoticable. It was a little moist around that area, but it was practically gone. She posed in front of the mirror, making sure she looked fine, and exited the bathroom.
"Sir, may I please have my bag?" She knew the small man, also known as Kaz, had to have remembered what her bag looked like.
Kaz handed her her bag and sat back down infront of the computer, pushing his glasses, which wear slipping off his face, up.
Sora ran to Laser Quest, and paused at the stairs. Slowly she raised one foot, then the other, making sure she wouldn't fall.
"Oh who cares about Sora, let's go play." Ken laughed and took the man at the booth his tag and told him the name 'Kaizer'. Everyone stared at him. 'It's just a game!" He tilted his head slightly to the left and smiled.
"That's what he thought last time..." Daisuke mumbled.
Hikari hissed, "Don't be so mean."
Daisuke, ashamed, whispered to Hikari, "Sorry..."
"You all can start, I'll wait here for Sora." Taichi put his hands farther down the bench, leaning back in a way.
"Sure?" Yamato, who was standing behind the sitting Taichi put his hand on Taichi's schoulder.
"Sure."
"Well okay..."They all entered their names, each one having their own special uniqueness. Yamato as Yama-sama, his famous nick-name. Mimi as Princess, as what her boyfriend, Micheal, back in America would call her. Hikari, as Angel, after all, many said she was an angel. Koushiro went by the name of Izzy, his knick-name. Jou, as Ole' Reliable, many people such as a company in America knew him as. Daisuke felt that Soccer Star suited him. Miyako decided that Micro sounded cool. Iori decided, Cop, in memory of his father.
They all enterned the small room, Yamato with his bag for some reason.
Taichi stood up, there where only several adults in the room, waiting for there child to finish the game. One small boy, that looked at the age of six, was being pulled out the door, crying, when all of a sudden Taichi heard the child laugh.
Sora looked at the boy, that was laughing at her. "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" She couldn't ignore him and raised her hand to her face, waiting to bump across something unknown.
The boy continued to laugh and the mother told her, "Nothing is wrong, it's just that Hideo here has a split personality." She smiled.
Sora smiled back, thinking 'Whatever...' And held the door for the two to get out carefully.
"Sora!" Taichi greeted Sora with a friendly hug.
Sora blushed lightly. She enjoyed the hugs, even if they where just a symbol of their freindship. "Where is everyone?"
"They're playing a game already." Taichi released the hug, and sat back down, he signaled for Sora to sit next to him. "I told them to wait, but nooo, Daisuke just couldn't wait to beat Takeru."
Sora laughed as she sat next to him. "Thanks for waiting." She smiled. "That's love, Daisuke and Hikari. I'm not sure about Hikari, mainly because of Takeru, but doesn't it make a great love triangle? Mabe I could write it as a story, change the names and all, and then show it to them and see if they notice!" She reached into her bag, pulling out her drawing book. "Whoops, wrong book." She giggled and took her writing book out. She wrote fiercly across the page while Taichi looked over, bearly able to read her rushed handwriting.
Taichi, a bit confused since Sora was talking so fast just nodded lightly.
"Everyone get out, theres an emergancy!" The man at the booth opened the door and pointed at the exit door.
Sora stopped writing and slipped the book back into her bag. Taichi stood up. "My sister's in there!" He yelled at the man. "I'm not going anywhere!"
Just then as he finished, and the man that works at the small amusement center was about to respond, a bullet came through the wall of the laser area, flying through the small room until it hit another teenager. The teenager fell to the ground, his legs letting loose. The bullet had hit him in his chest. He fell, face down, and on his back, there was no hole, but as if part of it had been bitten off by a shark. Sora turned her head and cringed at the sight of blood. Sora instinctively ran to the girl, checking for a pulse. She touched the neck, but was unable to tell and felt the wrist. Nothing. She felt nothing and now she was very frightened. She pulled on Taichi's arm. "We have to get out of here now."
"But Hikari!" Taichi jerked his arm from her and ran to the door, hitting it with his hands.
Sora knew that nothing would stop Taichi, and she went behind the booth, telling Taichi to stand back. She raced over, reading all the "ERROR" signs. She found the 'open door' button finally, and pressed it. It took her three times until it finally oppened. She leaned over the booth, to see Taichi waiting for the slow-open doors to open.
She ran next to him. "Sora, you stay here." His voice, hard.
"I'm not going to let you go in there all by yourself!" Sora yelled in the small, empty room, with only the two of them, the music from the arcade games in the background, and the dead body.
Taichi smiled, for in a way, he knew that Sora did care. "Don't get hurt." He whispered into her ear.
"The same for you!" They could now here screaming, and panick noises. The bullets searching and searching, going through the walls, hitting several of the arcade games, causing a small fire to start. Sora turned around quickly, as she heard the glass shatter. "Taichi, look." She put her hand up to right above her chest.
"Shit..." Taichi whispered. "We have to hurry and try to get everyone out."
"But how?" Sora looked up at him concerned.
"We just will!" He shot back and started going through the maze like room screaming, "Hikari! Hikari! Hikari!"
Sora, directly behind him, yelled the other names of their friends. Taichi ran through out the maze, lights blinking and people screaming. He ran and ran until he tripped.
Over a body.
Sora stopped directly behind him, and reached down to fell for a pulse.
There was a beat.
And another.
Then...
It stopped.
Sora searched the face and body, hoping that she wouldn't recognize, the person.
But she did.
And it was someone she knew, someone she stood next to, someone she considered a good friend. Who could always help. Someone who you could tell all your secrets to, and would not tell at all. Some one you could trust.
Someone with the crest of Reliability.
Jou.
Sora couldn't belive it, and looked for the wound, thinking that she could save him, save her freind. Her fingers ran down his chest, moving to his stomach. Her hands raced down his legs. Nothing. She started at the head, then down. To the neck, to the place where she found the hole. Her finger sliped in and she held her breathe taking it back out. She couldn't and she wouldn't believe it. It couldn't happen. But, it had. And she cried. A good friend, such a good friend, gone.
Taichi put his hand on Sora's schoulder, hoping to some how comfort her. Yet, Taichi also needed comfort. Sora stood up for she knew that Taichi had no idea of who it was, or if he was dead. She looked at him, biting her lip. She spoke, three words. "Jou...Is dead." She fell upon him, her hand hitting his chest. She needed to push her anger out, and she didn't realize she was doing it to Taichi. She continued hitting him again, and again and again.
Taichi held her hands together and looked at her in the eyes. "Hurry, we have to find everyone. We can't stay here."
"Everyone?" Sora screamed, letting the maniac know of where she was accedentily. "We CAN'T find everyone, if SOMEONE is dead!" She cried.
"Aaah!" Taichi and Sora jerked there head towards the scream. It was a voice. A scream. Mimi.
"Don't please, please please!!!" Mimi cried out. "You can't do this!"
Sora pushed Taichi out of the way. She blinked trying to see in the dark, gloomy room. She heard Mimi again. She was crying. Crying loud and loud. Whinning. "Mimi? Mimi!" Sora called out.
"Sora?" Mimi smiled and reached out for her leg.
Sora felt Mimi's cold, wet hand against her bare ankle. She kneeled down. "Mimi, we have to get out of her." Sora whispered.
"Sora, oh my God, I don't know, but there's somebody in here with a gun!" Mimi rubbed her eyes with the bottem of her long pink sleave.
"I know Mimi. Have you seen anyone else?" Sora helped her up, but she refused to move.
"I haven't seen anyone. We have to stay low, he isn't shooting down." Mimi pulled Sora back down.
Taichi came up behind the two girls, "Thank God your all right...Have you seen Hikari?" He looked around, hoping to mabe see Hikari with Mimi, but no signs of her exsisted.
Mimi schook her head and then looked down. She stood up, close to the wall. "Let's get out of here." She took Sora's hand to pull her up.
BANG.
Mimi's body fell to the floor, she gasped for air but instead, choked up blood. It ran down her chin, then down her neck, staining her pink shirt. Her shirt became of a crimson color all over. She couldn't breathe, but, she was still alive. She was crying, her tears, stirring up like cake mix with her blood. It ran together streaming down her small body.
"Mimi!" Sora and Taichi both cried out.
"Shit, everyone's going to die, one by one, soon to be..." Taichi looked down, "Dead." He looked up, "We're all going to die! Who the hell would do this crap!?" Mimi's body, leaned against the wall, slowly coming down to where the two other teenagers sat.
"Taichi...I think...I.." Sora couldn't get the words out. She needed to Taichi about her undieing devotions towards him, but, she felt that this wouldn't be a good time, even if it might be the last time they would be together.
"What is it?" He put his arm around her. He wanted to feel comfortable, for he knew, that, what was happening, might be the last time, the last time he could be with the one he felt love for. The one he fell in love with, unsuspectivly. He couldn't help it at all, for this was the one, he felt that he needed her. All the time, he couldn't stop thinking about her, and had to except it. So he did.
Sora looked at his face, into his gorgeous brown eyes. "Nothing..." She trailed off. Afraid that he would suspect something.
"I know theres something wrong." He said back.
Sora cursed at herself, she schouldn't have spoken at all, but she had, and for some reason she knew that this time would be perfect. She closed her eyes and leaned against the young man's broad schoulder, "It's nothing...I'm just really scared..." She emotianally slapped herself for lieying to her crush.
BANG.
BANG.
BANG.
"Sora!" Taichi yelled, over the screams of the many other people in the room. "Sora, oh my God..."
"I'm okay, it didn't hit my at all, it might have hit someone else." She wiped her forhead, feeling the sweat come down. "She whispered, knowing that the fire probaly spread through out the building.
Just then, Mimi's slender body, her clothes soaked in blood, fell ontop of Taichi's and Sora's lap. She choked the words out, "Don't...let...me...die..." Her eyes closed. "I'm so...tired." The blood for her wound went threw her shirt and soaked into the two older teenagers pants.
"Mimi, don't close your eyes! You have to stay awake!" Sora raised Mimi's head, revealing her famous pink hair, mixed with her deep red blood.
"I can't...help it...Sora..I'm...so tired, I just need to sleep for a little bit...then I'll...be better." Mimi gave a light smiled.
"Mimi! You can not and will not fall asleep!" Sora didn't want to shake Mimi, but instead tried to open her eyes.
Taichi showed Sora the wound by pointing at it. Sora turned her head. She didn't like seeing all this blood all over her closest freinds, she wanted to change everything. Her body laying on the floor instead of Jou's. Her body, being held by Mimi's instead of Mimi's being held by her own. She wanted everything to be 'perfect.' No one ever get's what they want. Even if they do save the world.
Sora teared part of her long sleeve off, with the help of Taichi, she put it around Mimi's wound, trying to stop the blood. Taichi about to stand up, was stopped by a feminin hand on his arm. "What are you doing!?" Sora demanded, a bit too loud.
The killer, ran through out the maze, hearing children, he ran towards his nearest target. He picked up the child's hat, trying to study it in the flashing lights. "Takeru..I guess you are my next victum...Must I do this?" He asked himself. He schook his head, what could he be thinking, he was the killer, he was hired, getting paid entirely too much money, just to kill some of his best freinds. It wouldn't be hard for him, he didn't really know them any how. His hair, of which the color was unknown in the dark, brushed in front of his eyes. His fingers, gently waved them out of the way. "Takeru...I will enjoy this, as much as I hate to do this." He said to no one inpeticular.
"I have to find Hikari! You stay here with Mimi!" Taichi demanded. He didn't want to leave Sora or Mimi, espicially Sora... But he needed his sister, through good times and bad, they where together. Except for the beginning of the time he went to an unknown world, known as the Digital World. He had a need for his sister, the one of who he would get advice from, the one who would know exactly how to calm him down and let his feelings be expressed the right way.
"Taichi! You can't go!" Sora yelled, for now you could hear the flames of the fire, coming closer and closer to the small group of three.
"I have to find Hikari, she needs me! You and Mimi get out of here!"His voice grew louder with each word spoken.
Taichi grabbed his arm, "I don't want you to leave me! Don't you get it? I can't do this, I need your help! Please Taichi... We'll find Hikari." Sora's felt the tears coming to her eyes, but would not let them be seen by her crush on the outside.
"Sora..." Taichi threw his jacket off, and picked Mimi's body up. "Check for a pulse." Taichi said bravely.
Sora raised her hand slowly, yet gracefully, she placed it on Mimi's wrist, searching for a pulse. She moved her finger, then squezed, moved her finger, then squezed. Five times she did that, and all she could feel was...
"Nothing..." Sora spoke. She placed her hand on Mimi's neck, hoping to feel a pulse. "Nothing..." She repeated, about to brake into tears.
"Okay..." Taichi said bravely and took a breath. "We have to find everyone else before anyone else gets hurt." He stood up, his body flat against the wall so the killer would not notice him. He reached down and took Sora's hand, pulling her up against the wall. They left Mimi's still body laying on the floor in a small puddle of blood becoming bigger.
Sora bit her bottem lip, for she was scared, and the heat from the fire was starting to effect her sences. "Taichi...it's so hot in here, we have to hurry." She took her jecket off, coving Mimi's body. She tilted her head down, whispering a smally prayer.
Taichi looked at Sora quickly and copied her move, also praying with her for their great friend, of who they had spent such a long time with, had shared such great times with, of who had smiled, and could make anyone smile with her very own smile.
Taichi took Sora's hand, pulling her back against the wall. They could now hear the screaming become louder, and more panicked. A young girl, who looked of somewhat the age of eight ran into them she cried, holding onto Sora's shirt, "Have you seen my mommy? I need my mom, I can't find her and it's getting hot in here." She cried, whiping her face on Sora's shirt. The blood from the little's girl face came onto Sora's blue shirt. She didn't want to hurt the child anymore then she was and instead rubbled the girl's back.
She leaned over towards Taichi, "Mabe she knows Hikari..." She turned her attention towards the girl, "Have you seen any other people?" Taichi and Sora where unable to hear any screaming or shouting now, due to the roaring fire.
"I did see..." The little girl coughed, "A boy, he was older than me...I think he might have had a girl with him and another boy..." She looked up at Sora and not Taichi, for the girl had a fear of older boys.
"Takeru...most likely with Hikari...and then Daisuke tagging along..." Taichi put the information together and then directed his speech towards the child, "Did one of the boys have some what of a Gilligan hat on. And the other boy with goggles?"
"I remember goggles because the light in the room would flash off them, but I don't know about-" She was interupted by Taichi.
"Deffiantly Daisuke...And where theres Daisuke, theres Hikari..." He looked back down at her, and then put one knee down so he was at her hight. He looked at her face, which of half was in Sora's shirt. "Listen, I need you to tell me which way they went, I'm pretty sure that would be my little sister and her friends." He tried to remember if he caught her name earlier, "What's your name?"
"It's Emily..." The girl, now known as Emily whispered.
"An American name eh? Well, your pretty good at speaking Japanese, espicially for your age." Taichi tried to make the girl happy, even if it might be some of her last moments alive.
She moved her face from the shirt and stared at Taichi. She studied the face, for this girl, by the name of Emily was not just a regular girl, she had visions, some may say she saw the future. She saw the future of who ever she wanted, simply by studying the face. She could tell if she could trust this teenager. Her eyes went from Taichi's hair, to his ears, to the form of his lips, and his teeth, till her eyes eventually reached his eyes. She searched his deap, brown eyes, for answers. She felt his presence, his comfort, his past, everything he had gone through. His courage. And his love...
"I can trust you..." She whispered to him. She was no longer afraid, and knew, that she had a chance of living if she staid with the two older teenagers.
"Great." Taichi smiled. He looked up at Sora, who couldn't hear any of the conversation, for the fire was screaming louder and louder.
"I hope I can help you live." Emily whispered into Taichi's ear and she went back next to Sora. Emily stuck her right hand out, pointing from the oppisite direction of the fire. "That's where I saw them." She whiped her forhead.
"Kay, we can all go that way and we have to stick together." Sora confermed. "That's the only way we have a chance." Sora glanced down at Emily, "Is that a cut?" She asked, lifting her arm up.
Emily nodded slightly, her brown hair untucking from behind her ear. Sora looked through her bag, for something, anything she could stop the blood from flowing. "Let me take a look at that." The cut, was most deffiantly due to glass, when Sora would move the girl's arm, it would shimmer with light. She went back to the search through her bag.
"Gee, Sora, you have to have something in that huge bag." Taichi slapped himself across the face emotionally. Now he was being mean and he wouldn't take it. It was just too stressful for Taichi, to know that his sister, and many of his owns freinds where dead, or rather lost in a maze with a fire and maniac in it.
"Well the only thing I have that could stop the bleeding is this..." Sora held out a maxi pad sheepishly. "It's the only thing I can think off."
"That 'ill do." Emily said over the flames, just before Taichi could say anything. She unrapped it carefully and held it against her arm.
"I would have never thought of that." Taichi admitted. Sora laughed a bit, she was embarrased, but it felt good to know that she was helping...
Taichi led the way, then Sora following him, very closely at times and Emily held the pad onto her arm, but walked next to Sora. "Takeru's hat." Taichi looked down at the ground, where Takeru's white summer hat laid on the floor in a small puddle of blood. "Blood..." He turned his head.
"It's just his hat Taichi, it doesn't mean that Takeru's dead. There's blood everywhere here..." Sora tried to change Taichi's mind, but Taichi felt as if he had fell into the deepest, darkest abyss to exist. He felt that he had lost everything that ever ment something to him. He held his hands up to his head, for a huge, pounding sound was all he could hear. His own heart beat? He didn't know, and he didn't want to know. He felt that he needed something. Something horrible. Something.
Death.
He knew that Sora was there, but the way everything looked to him was as if everyone was going to die eventually. It may not have been that day, that time, that hour. But eventually he knew he would be without his family and without Sora.
Sora.
On that, he couldn't stop thinking of her safety, yet, he felt as if he was being rude and mean to her. He didn't mean it, to cause pain to her, he wanted ever so much to be with Sora forever, yet he felt that, she would not feel the same way and with that, he felt he wanted...
Death.
The word popped up again in Taichi's head. He knew he could inflict it to himself whenever he wanted, even right now. All he had to do was pick up one of the thousand peices of metal and glass and start cutting himself repeativly, or even, just trap himself in the fire.
Sora.
He didn't want Sora to watch him die...But...the things that he had to choose in life. He felt as if he would never see his sister again, and he truely felt that way in his heart. He felt something on his schoulder, Sora's hand.
She looked at him, her cinamon brown eyes facing him. She noticed that he was crying, not loud, mabe even wimpering. But Sora needed to change that, she wasn't going to stand in the shadow's watching the one she loved suffer. "Taichi, come on...I promise we'll find Hikari..." She thought for a second, would that be good enough for Taichi? "Alive." She tried to smile, she tried to be as brave as Taichi was. But instead just stood there, a blank look on her face.
Emily looked up at Sora, "Look, is that Hikari?"
"Don't move."
Taichi turned his head. He was greeted by a black gun, the nozel of the gun facing Sora. But could easily be turned to him.
The killer looked over, "I guess I can skip Takeru and go to my main target, don't you think so Taichi?" The maniac laughed a bit.
"Your main target, what are you talking about?" He yelled over the fire.
"Can you tell it's me? Don't you know?" He smiled ever so slightly, ever so evil.
"Ishida Yamato." He spoke the name of the killer. The one who had killed Mimi, Jou, and mabe even his other friends.
Yamato shook his head, causing her blonde hair to sway back and forth, "Don't even think of trying to hurt me, or I'll kill her. I'll kill the one you never stop talking about. I will kill Sora."
Sora nervously over at Taichi, then looked for Emily. She was out of her sight. She could now see Yamato due to the growing fire. His blue eyes, of the same color, but swelled and red with fire. "I didn't want to do this to you Sora, but I knew that you and Taichi were eventually going to hook up, and the only way I can stop this is by killing you and it was suppose to be only you but you where late. And due to this, I had to kill most of our friends. Did you really want to do that? I don't think so. Just because I own the crest of friendship and wear it ever so proudly, don't you think that I just might feel love like you do?" He directed his voice towards Taichi, "I love you Yagami Taichi. I love Taichi-kun. I can admit it now." He looked over at Sora, about to talk but was interupted by Taichi.
"What the hell are you thinking Matt? You've done this? I can't believe it. You love me? Get the hell away from me! Don't you dare hurt Sora or I will kill you with my bare hands!" Taichi yelled. All he could see was the shadow of Yamato, against the raging fire, spreading.
"I do love you Taichi, the only way I can get to you is through Sora, I can't go around. Don't you understand? It wasn't suppose to be like this. I've tried again and again to get her away from you. Your relationship was going to grow into something beautiful, a flower blooming, slowly opening each pedal, that was you and her." He turned his head, the gun still pointing at Sora. "Now I will pick each and everyone of those pedals."
Sora glanced over at Taichi. She was too afraid to talk, to afraid to do anything. She couldn't help but remember what Yamato had said, 'I will kill Sora.' Sora didn't want to die, she wanted to be alive with....with Taichi. She didn't want to leave him all alone with this killer...this maniac. She looked at Yamato strait in the eyes, wanting to call out to him, to talk to him in words that he would understand. She formed the words, 'Please don't kill me' with her shivering lips.
"Don't move Sora, I want to finish my wonderful speech, mabe when I'm done I'll let you talk." He smiled slighly. "Like I said...Taichi you told me of you love for Sora, and Sora's love for you, Taichi, was quite obvious." He kept the gun up, pointed at Sora's head. "I've decided to destroy it." He smiled slighly. "This way seems fair enough, don't you think so my love." He waited for Taichi to say something.
"Don't you-" Taichi screamed over to Yamato.
"Ah ah ah, don't talk." He said placing a finger out to Taichi in a 'hush' form. "Or Sora will be gone, no wait, she wouldn't be gone, for the shell of which her soul excists in will still be here." He smirked. "Do you really love Sora? Wouldn't you rather want to be with me? Just think of it, Taichi and Yamato Ishida, or Yamato and Taichi Yagami. It's up to you. I ask of you, right now, for it seems the best time to me; Will you marry me?" He kept the gun up, his finger mooving towards the trigger.
"I will never marry you and I will never love you!" Taichi yelled, taking a step forward. "I swear to God, if you kill Sora, I will kill you with my bare hands, strangeling you, making sure your gone forever."
"Taichi...." Sora whispered under her breathe so no one could hear. "I love you." She said once. She now could admit it, and if she was going to die, she would want Taichi to know it for a fact. "Taichi!" She yelled. "I love you! Taichi, I love you!" She reapeated, her hands behind her back as Yamato had ordered earlier and a gun still facing her.
Taichi turned around and instead of being schocked as many would predict, he simply smiled and cried back, "I love you too Sora, I won't let anything happen!"
"That's what you said when she was kidnapped by Datamon." Yamato laughed, "I hate to see you two flirt so very much." He glanced at Sora, than Taichi. "Say good-bye dear child."
Sora's pupil in her eye shrunk, "Good-bye?" She could bearly get out.
"No! Yamato don't! I'll marry you, I'll marry you, just don't kill Sora!" Taichi's head hang low, as if he had lost a battle, but in a way he had. "Just don't hurt Sora..."
Sora jerked her face up towards Taichi.
"How can I trust you? I think it's too late for that." Yamato looked towards Taichi who's face he could now see. Tears where streaming down his face, his blood stained shirt, but most of all....
His slick smile.
"Emily! Now!" Taichi yelled.
"What the hell!" Emily who had sneaked behind Yamato had pushed him face forward and jumped ontop of his back.
Sora movied instinctively away and ran to Taichi, embracing him in a hug. "Oh Taichi, I'm so sorry!" Her head rested peacfully ontop of his schoulder.
"Huh? For what?"He asked, his arm around Sora and moving towards Yamato who was laying on the hard floor.
"Because of me being late..." She started, "Some of our friends had to die..." She looked up at Taichi's face, "And I schould have told you I loved you earlier..."
"Sora..." Taichi said, looking down at Sora's depressed face whiping her tear stained eyes.
"Don't think this is over yet..." Yamato mumbled reaching for the gun that had flown out of his hands. "It's just begun..." His thin white fingers, stained with blood touched the black dark handle of the gun. "Get ready." A thin smile grew on his face. "Die." One word slipped from his mouth.
"Taichi-kun!" Hikari shouted out, Takeru and Daisuke standing behind her ready to pounce on Yamato like kittens playing with butter-flys.
"Hikari!" Taichi put his arm around Sora and pulled her over to Hikari.
"I'm so happy to see you!" Hikari hugged her older brother, digging her small nose into his shirt. "Oh Taichi, I thought I was going to die and never see you again." Her tears fell onto the glass-covered floor, hitting a piece of glass, it spread throughout the area of the piece of glass.
"Such children you are...such foolish little dumb-asses...think that you can escape me." Yamato licked his top lip that was gushing blood out in a formally manner. "Think that it's going to end this easily!? Think that I'm gone?! Think that everything is happily ever after?!" He yelled at the group. "You think that everything is now perfect? Everyone is going to die now! Die!"
All six of the others stood there, staring at him.
"Death..all because of you, Takenouchi Sora, because of you everyone, everyone must die." He coughed once, a slight amount of strawberry colored blood drooled down his chin and onto the floor of which he was laying on. "All because of you." He said once more and lifted the gun up.
"Not this time!" Daisuke twisted and ran over to where Yamato layed, jumping on top of him struggling for the gun that was clutched within Yamato's hand. "Yamato you ass!" Daisuke yelled into his ear, while picking each of Yamato's fingers off of the gun.
"No!" Sora yelled from the background.
Daisuke stopped and looked up at her.
"He's right, it's all my fault. If I wasn't here, if I had came on time, all my friends...they wouldn't have died. Oh God, I'm so sorry..." Her head hang low and it sounded as if she was wishing for her own death to knock at her door.
"I'm happy you feel that way." Yamato said raising the gun up to Daisuke's head. "One my dead friend, coming up." He put his arm around Daisuke's kneck, standing up slowly.
"Yamato! Don't you dare!" Taichi yelled, his voice growing louder.
"I dare." He said, moving his finger to the trigger. "Oh, I dare."
"No! Yamato! Don't!" The gun in Yamato's hand turned away from Daisuke and he pushed his body away from Daisuke's. He pulled the trigger back. It seemed as if everything was going in slow motion. The bullut flowing through the air, slightly spinning, the little light in the room, reflecting off of it. "No God! No!" Taichi screamed once more, his voice screaming, echoeing trough out the maze.
It struck.
Again, another bullet.
It struck.
And another.
"Taichi? Taichi!" Sora called out, now all the lights where out and the heat from the fire was growing incredibily strong. She fell to the ground, her leg aching with pain. "Taichi? Oh Taichi where are you!?" She screamed, her voice cracking.
"So-Sora?" Taichi said, he put his hand out, feeling something nice and soft, a bit moist but as if his hand had been place on an old cake. "Sora?" He spoke again his hand racing up and down.
"Ah..ow...Taichi? I think I got hit in the leg..." She said, her voice bearly coming out now. She felt Taichi's hand going up and down her leg, and when his hand raced over the place of where the dark, black bullet hit, she cried slightly in pain. "There."
"Oh shit...Sora, everything's going to be okay...We will be..okay..." His mind was crazy, everything was crazy. "Hikari? Hikari?" He called his sisters name out twice. "Takeru? Daisuke?" He yelled.
"Yeah, I'm okay!" Daisuke called out cheerfully. "But I think...I think Yamato commited suicide." He said, more calmly.
Sora over heard. She couldn't think, all that flew threw her mind was, 'It's all my fault...Now not only is Mimi and Jou did, but Yamato as well. Iori and Miyako might be dead for all I know, and it's all my fault. All my fault.' The thought repeated over and over in her head in an endless circle.
"Tai? Tai, I'm okay. Takeru and I are fine." Hikari held her camera up and flashed it, being able to see everyone for a split second. She was very observent, and noticed Takeru to her side, Yamato's lifeless body on top of Daisuke slightly, blood strolling from his head, Taichi sitting on his behind, his legs tuck behind him, and Sora...Sora laying down, her eyes, watery and filled with such a horrible fear. And Emily...her small, body, laying down, her shell, her...her soul watching from above.
"Ahhh!" You could hear, "Come on Iori, we have to go! Come on!" Miyako's voice. She grabbed onto Iori pulling him. Her voice was clear, and she was alive. Alive and well. "You too Koushiro, your taking too long!"
"Well sorry Miyako, but your going to fast! I can bearly see!" Koushiro responded, him not sounding anything like himself.
"Well gee, Koushiro, excuse me for wanting to live!" She revolted.
"Shut up!" Hikari yelled. Carefully she picked the camera that layed against her up once more and clicked the button. Once more the room litted up, the light reflecting from the many small peices of glass that layed on the floor. "Over here!" She called out.
"See! Thanks to me everythings going to be fine!" Miyako's voice called out next, "Ken? Is Ken with you!?" She yelled.
Ken. It hit Sora. She now knew that Miyako, Iori, and Koushiro where safe, but Ken? What if he was dead? What if his body was laying in the blood-red fire, burning, his scin peeling off the reveal his flesh? "Taichi...get out of here." She spoke the five words, not knowing. "Get out of here!" She yelled. "Get out! Get out! Get out!" Her hands where by the side of her head know. Total pain was felt, not only her body, but her soul as well was aching, even dieing.
"What? Sora? I'm not going to leave you here! What the hell are you saying!?" He yelled looking into her crimson eyes that where noticible. Taichi could see the fire in her eyes, from the real fire in the background. There where tears, small clear rain drops falling down her cheeks.
"You can't get me out of here and you know it! Let me die here!" She thought once more, Taichi wouldn't leave her there if she talked that way, in the way of a presenter giving a speach wrong. "Taichi...I want you and everyone to live...I would just...slow you down..." She knew she was loosing blood, and fast. "I'm hurt...I know you want to help me...but...but you have to go...I love you Taichi...I love you..." Sora was crying oh so hard. Her hands every now and then whiping her eyes.
"Sora, don't you even think like that! Don't you even speak to me like that! I love you too and I'm not going to leave you here to die! We are going to live though this, I promise you that and if you don' live, I won't either!" His voice growing strong.
"I hurt Taichi..." Her voice bearly coming out. "It's my fault..."
"Wha-what?" He asked his voice quivering.
"If...If I weren't here, Yamato wouldn't have been jealous of me...and then he wouldn't have shot Jou...and Mimi...and...and himself. For all we know, Ken could be dead too...and even Emily..." She thought. "Emily is dead, she...she would have talken by know..." Her voice fading out as each word was spoken.
"Sora..." He pulled her body in a way that her back leaned against his own chest. "I know you hurt. I hurt too, we all hurt. But it isn't your fault, you can't and I will not let you convince yourself that it is yourfault. Sora, you have your love to keep us together, and I..." He looked down upon her, "Have my courage to get us out of here."
Sora raised her head, "Thankyou....Oh thankyou Taichi..." She coughed once and forced her self up, even if her leg was bad. She was leaning on her main leg, while Taichi, who had helped her up put Sora's arm around his kneck for support.
"Look!" A voice perked up. "I found them! I found them!" Ken. It was Ken, his soft voice against the fire.
"Good job boy..." A man's voice was heard. A police officer? Or just another adult in the maze, the horrible game that had gone bad? "We can get them out and everything...everything will be fine." The man turned his head, "Go! Go! Go!"
"Sora? Sora, did you hear that? Everythings going to be fine! Fine!" He repeated, his voice cheery and confident.
No responce.
"S-Sora?" His voice, shaky. "Sora!" He yelled, he squezed his eyes, and opened them wide, to release an explosion of tears, just as his pillow had released an explosion of feathers. "Oh God...Sora...you can't be...you can't be..." He choked on the word. "Dead."
Sora heard Taichi, every word, but she couldn't speak, her voice, was gone. She still layed against Taichi. and she moved her hand back and forth, touching his back softly. She was about to give up but then her hand brushed up against his back.
"Sora?" Taichi asked.
Sora oppened her eyes and her words could bearly be heard, "I...I'm fine...My....throat....just...hurts..." The last word she spoke flowed into nothingness.
"Good, I think that's a police officer...We'll be fine! He said we'll be fine!" His head turned back, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to see anything. "Hikari! Flash that camera of yours!"
Sora nodded her head, hearing how happy Taichi was, she could only hope...to be as happy as him when her leg, would stop pounding with pain.
The camera lit the part of the maze, of which everything had happened...
"Anyone hurt?" A man's voice moving closer to them all could be heard.
"Sora is! The girl by me!" Taichi yelled. "Over here! Here!" She could feel the man, trying to take Sora away from him, not after what had happened, he would not let Sora go...He couldn't and wouldn't let a chance of Sora disapearing from his reach happen.
"Thankyou boy. Ehr..Boy? We need this girl if you want us to save her." The policeman gently put a hand on Taichi's schoulder.
"Don't touch me!" Taichi snapped. "Tell me where to take her and I will!"
The man tried once more, "If we don't do this properly-"
"I CAN do it properly!" Taichi was becoming fed up with help, he knew he could do it.
"Follow me." The man held his flashlight out. "Be careful for falling debri." His head turned towards Hikari and Takeru, then Daisuke, and then to Miyako, Iori, and Koushiro. "Follow me, if you don't think you can make it, tell one of the men with you."
The other men or mostlikely firefighters now, where putting blankets on top of them all, and leading them to the exit.
'Dear Lord, please, please let me live, I know I don't deserve too, but, please, please, I, I, want to live...' Sora thought just before she passed out.
A week later...
"Taichi...?" Sora awoke from her long and deep sleep and her vision was still blurry.
"Sora! Sora!" Taichi hugged Sora in an akward position, considering she layed in the hospital bed.
Sora raised her self up and returned the hug to Taichi carefully.
Sora cried onto Taichi's broad schoulder. "I'm so happy to see you! I thought I was going to die!" Her tears poured down her face harder, as if a hurricane had just hit the coast of land.
"You werent' going to die!" He pulled Sora back, looking into her deep eyes.
"Taichi...I'm so happy..." Sora stared into Taichi's dark bark-colored eyes. She noticed that his own eyes where beginning to leak. "Oh Taichi...don't...cry!" She exclaimed whiping his tears.
"I'm so happy Sora...that your okay...that your alive...and with me." He embraced her in a hug once more. He thought outloud, "I have to be the luckiest guy in the world to have you, Sora, in my arms."
"Oh Taichi-kun...I...I love you...I'm still...Still I'm so sorry...about Yamato...and-" She was cut off by Taichi's voice.
"Sora. Listen to me, it wasn't you fault. Yamato just felt love...the wrong way. And everyone else..." Taichi searched through his mind, like a mouse searching for chease in a maze, "It wasn't your fault that they-" Died. Tachi couldn't say the word. Gone for ever. To be seen again? Mabe..Mabe not...
"Died." Sora spoke the word for him. "Yes Taichi, it was...my fault they died." Her bottem lip shivered. "Why? Why did this have to happen? Why did they all have to die...?" She wanted Taichi to say, it wasn't her fault, no matter which way she took it, it was her fault. The entire accident, the entire everything.
'Taichi had started it with one phone call, but I had to invite everyone else, didn't I? And Yamato...I schould have known he loved Taichi...and if I would have known...I would have let him have him. Let Yamato be happy, let him be with everyone, and I, myself could be living within the shadows, watching them...Everyone would be alive then, and I...I just would suffer a bit...No matter which way I went...Which path in destiny I choosed, I would suffer.' She thought.
"Sora...it just happened. We can go through this together. Your leg well eventually heal too." He placed his hand on Sora's.
It hit Sora like a train, "My-my leg?" Her leg was wounded, hurt, and she probaly wouldn't be able to walk...walk to the mall with Taichi, or perhaps the beach, or help her mother at the flower shop.
Her mother.
"T-Taichi...can I...see Mama?" She asked shakily.
"Your mom? Oh, your mom! She's been so worried about you. She's down in the cafeteria. She had been here for hours and decided to take a coffee brake. I'll get here." Taichi said with a warm smile.
"No..." Sora said, pushing the button on the wall bearly within her reach. "Yes..nurse...can you please get my mother?"
The nurse stood there, a board in her hands, "Your awake! Great! Now we can take a look at your leg."
"Get my mom first..." Sora said carefully, "I want to talk to her."
"Oh we'll do that." The nurse smiled, cocking her head to the side. She exited the room, board held up to her front.
"Taichi...?" Sora asked hanging out on to the last part of his name.
"Yeah Sora?" He looked at her in the most careing way possible. His eyebrows tilted up.
"Hold me again?" She threw her arms around Taichi. She loved the feeling. The feeling, the thought, the fact, that Taichi loved her. That she was loved by someone else other than her mom. That someone was willing to loose their own life for her's. Most of all...she loved the hug...she loved Taichi.
And Taichi loved Sora.
Here's it in full. Instead of chapters. Please review.
"Hi Sora...wanna go to Laser Quest?" Taichi asked Sora nervously. He thought, 'hopefully she'll take this as a date and not just going out for fun...'
"Sounds great Taichi, I'll call Mimi and Miyako." She paused trying to remember Miyako's phone number. "Do you have Miyako's phone number?"
"Ehrm..I'll ask Hikari..." He covered the phone with his hand gracefully and yelled, "Hikari, what's Miyako's phone number?"
"Why do you want her number, I thought you liked Sora!" She yelled from her room back to him.
Taichi blushed ferioucly, "I don't like Sora, and Sora wants Miyako's number to call her asking her if she want's to go to Laser Quest!" He paused, "You wanna come Hikari, I'll invite Daisuke, the one you have the love slash hate relationship with!" He laughed.
Hikari came into the his door way with a pillow under her arm. "Get ready!" She hit her older brother with the pillow again and again, the stitches slowly opening with each hit.
"Kari! I'm talking to Sora here!" He laughed. The stitches slowly untied eachother releasing an explosion of feathers. "Don't tell me thats-" His eye's widened, " Makura! You broke Makura!" He whined. Makura was the name of his all time favorite pillow. When he was little he would take it everywhere he went, people would say it was his baby pillow, instead of his baby blanket.
"My name's not Kari, its Hikari, and it's just a pillow Taichi!" She looked around his room for something else to hit him with.
"Kari, Makura just wasn't any ordinary pillow! He was special!" He looked at her with fire in his eyes. Taichi removed his hand from the phone, "Here's Kari." He handed his younger sister the phone.
"Miyako's number is 234-5643, can I come?" Taichi looked at her. 'Great,' He thought, 'Now the entire gang is coming..."
"Sure, you can invite our other friends too." Sora smiled. She really wanted it to be just Taichi and her, but she would probaly be shy. She hadn't felt that she liked liked Taichi until a week ago. And then there was when she was in the Digiworld, she really didn't have a choice, he was so great in so many ways. She tried not to show the way she felt, but it was the little things she did that her friends noticed. Sora would deny any of it.
"Great! See you soon, meet you at about-" Hikari looked at her brother who had grabbed the phone from her, rather violently.
"Seven." He finished, gathering feathers from Makura. "See ya then." He pushed the off/on button with his thumb. "Hikari, I want you to call all your friends, we have two hours." He gently put the feathers on his desk. Then raced over to his closet looking for some clothes. He pulled out a shirt, hanging on an orange hanger, "How 'bout this Kari?" He asked his sister, calling her by her nickname.
"No pants?" She giggled, covering her face.
"Very funny." He pulled a pair of cargo pants out. "Better?" He said while putting the pants behind the shirt, up to his body.
"I'm sure Sora will love it." She said. Then threw the cover of Makura at him.
"Sora?" He said, eyes widened. "Why Sora?" He turned around, so she couldn't notice his blush.
"Everyone knows you love her." Hikari giggled again.
"I do not!" He said, then he Taichi tried to change the subject, "So this looks good?" He asked again, placing the clothes up to him.
"You have never been good at lying kyoudai!" She laughed. "Looks good, Sora will love it."
Taichi just stood there, on his way out he took the pile of feathers he had sat down on his desk and stuck them down Hikari's shirt. "I don't love Sora."
"You can't take nothing for granted, you've got to live like today. I turn around, I see what's behind me, I turn back around-" Taichi sang in the shower. "Crap!" He droped the soap, trying to pick it up, yet it slipped out of his hands each time he tried to get a good grip. "Get back here." He mumbled. Shampoo slowly ran down his forhead, making it's way towards his eyes. Taichi squeazed his eyes, trying to stop the small amount of pain. He took a step forward, on to the soap.
BANG.
He fell backwards on his back, which was now pounding with pain, his eyes, filled with too much shampoo, and a not so good looking cut on his arm. "Crap! Crap! Crap!" He yelled, whiled getting up carefully. He rinced all the shampoo out from his hair and eyes quicky. He then put conditionair in his hair, making sure he would look good for Sora. "Geez, I'm sure Sora will love this cut."
"Tachikawa residence!" Mimi said remember old times when she lived in Japan. Now she would kid around on the hotel's phone.
"Hi, Mimi, want to go to Laser Quest? I mean, since you are here in Japan and all..." Sora trailed off. Did she really want Mimi to come? "Miyako will be there." Sora said on the other side.
"Sounds great! What time?" She asked, pulling out a pen and piece of paper from the drawer. The paper had the hote's name at the top, as the pen had the name and phone number written all over it. "Mmhmm." She said, holding the phone with her scoulder. "Okay! See you then! Buh-bye!"
Sora looked threw her closet, throwing everything that would not work onto the floor. "Will Taichi like this? Oh wait, mabe this!" She thought outloud. She finally found something that she thought Taichi just might like. "This." She said, quite satisfied with her choice. She changed into her clothes, with an hour to spare.
Sora turned on the computer, which sat up pretty fast. She went on the internet, looking who else up, Taichi. The chosen children where kind of famous in a way. The had saved the world after all... "Taiora?" She read. "Hmm..." She oppened the page which had a picture of Taichi and Sora, standing next to eachother, leaning towards eachother. "Taiora: Taichi and Sora as a couple." She read. Taichi and me as a couple!? She thought. Wow! She looked around the site, for an hour when she glanced over at the clock in the corner of the screen. "Shit! I'm late!" She turned the master button off and ran out the door, telling her mother, "I'll be back in about three hours!" Sora slammed the door.
"Okay!" Ms. Takenouchi yelled, hoping her only daugter would here.
"I wonder where Sora and Yama is." Taichi said to Miyako, Iori, Mimi, Koushiro, Jou, and Ken. They all sat on a bench inside, except Hikari, Daisuke, and Takeru, who where playing an arcade game.
Yama walked in, a bag around his schoulder. "Sorry I'm late." He tilted his head to the side. "Girls and all...To bad you can't get attention like me Taichi." He laughed.
"I don't want those sluts following me." Taichi stuck his toung out at Yamato.
"Atleast I got girls following me." Yamato stuck his fist up. "Your on!"
Taichi, the matured Taichi put his hands on Yamato's lowering them. Yamato blushed, so what if he liked Taichi. As in like like. Yamato would never admit though. He had so many female fans that always asked him out, and reason's why he always turned them down.
"Fine..." Yamato looked down, noticing the unique carpet patern. It had a big LQ, in the center and he couldn't help but laugh. "LQ...hahaha."
Everyone stared at him, yet Yamato continued to laugh, he continued laughing, and had to sit down on the closest bench. He put his hand to his stomach, for it ached with pain with each puff of air came from his mouth.
"Yama-sama?"
He coughed twice and looked up at the small group of hero's. "Yeah...I'm fine. I'm fine."
Everyone glanced from one another...
Daisuke ruined the silence, "Are we going to play?"
Mimi was a bit starlted by him, he practically screamed.
"Sora's not here yet." Taichi spoke up. He looked at his blue watch, with little black numbers. "She should have been here fith-teen minutes ago. I wonder where she could be..." Taichi thought aloud, then silently, 'What if she met some hot guy ands making out with him, or mabe she got in an accident, and needs me there! Or what if...' Taichi went through every possible thing that could happen.
"Ah!" Sora tripped over a step in the front of Laser Quest, falling onto the hard pavement. "Great!" She said, pushing herself up with her arms. "Shit." She cursed, under her breathe. Her brand new shirt she had bought herself had a bubble gum on the arm. Sora would have gone to the bathroom inside, and take the gum off, but everyone else was in there. She looked down the stip of stores, trying to look for the one that would probaly let her use the bathroom without having to buy something. She read sign, after sign. 'Borders.'
Sora knew her choice and oppened the door. She had a bag to her side, some might call a purse, that she had to check in. She asked the short, fat man, in the check in desk where the bathroom was, and he simply answered, "In the store."
Sora thought she misunderstood him, "Excuse me?" She gave him a concerned look.
"To the left, near foreign." The small man, who's name tag, read Kaz, pointed to a rather large sign that read, 'Bathroom.'
"Thanks." Sora covered the bubble gum stain with her hand and walked into the bathroom, pushing the door open carfully, making sure she wouldn't hit anyone.
She wrapped some ruff paper towels around her hand, and picked at the gum, untill it was ulmost unnoticable. It was a little moist around that area, but it was practically gone. She posed in front of the mirror, making sure she looked fine, and exited the bathroom.
"Sir, may I please have my bag?" She knew the small man, also known as Kaz, had to have remembered what her bag looked like.
Kaz handed her her bag and sat back down infront of the computer, pushing his glasses, which wear slipping off his face, up.
Sora ran to Laser Quest, and paused at the stairs. Slowly she raised one foot, then the other, making sure she wouldn't fall.
"Oh who cares about Sora, let's go play." Ken laughed and took the man at the booth his tag and told him the name 'Kaizer'. Everyone stared at him. 'It's just a game!" He tilted his head slightly to the left and smiled.
"That's what he thought last time..." Daisuke mumbled.
Hikari hissed, "Don't be so mean."
Daisuke, ashamed, whispered to Hikari, "Sorry..."
"You all can start, I'll wait here for Sora." Taichi put his hands farther down the bench, leaning back in a way.
"Sure?" Yamato, who was standing behind the sitting Taichi put his hand on Taichi's schoulder.
"Sure."
"Well okay..."They all entered their names, each one having their own special uniqueness. Yamato as Yama-sama, his famous nick-name. Mimi as Princess, as what her boyfriend, Micheal, back in America would call her. Hikari, as Angel, after all, many said she was an angel. Koushiro went by the name of Izzy, his knick-name. Jou, as Ole' Reliable, many people such as a company in America knew him as. Daisuke felt that Soccer Star suited him. Miyako decided that Micro sounded cool. Iori decided, Cop, in memory of his father.
They all enterned the small room, Yamato with his bag for some reason.
Taichi stood up, there where only several adults in the room, waiting for there child to finish the game. One small boy, that looked at the age of six, was being pulled out the door, crying, when all of a sudden Taichi heard the child laugh.
Sora looked at the boy, that was laughing at her. "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" She couldn't ignore him and raised her hand to her face, waiting to bump across something unknown.
The boy continued to laugh and the mother told her, "Nothing is wrong, it's just that Hideo here has a split personality." She smiled.
Sora smiled back, thinking 'Whatever...' And held the door for the two to get out carefully.
"Sora!" Taichi greeted Sora with a friendly hug.
Sora blushed lightly. She enjoyed the hugs, even if they where just a symbol of their freindship. "Where is everyone?"
"They're playing a game already." Taichi released the hug, and sat back down, he signaled for Sora to sit next to him. "I told them to wait, but nooo, Daisuke just couldn't wait to beat Takeru."
Sora laughed as she sat next to him. "Thanks for waiting." She smiled. "That's love, Daisuke and Hikari. I'm not sure about Hikari, mainly because of Takeru, but doesn't it make a great love triangle? Mabe I could write it as a story, change the names and all, and then show it to them and see if they notice!" She reached into her bag, pulling out her drawing book. "Whoops, wrong book." She giggled and took her writing book out. She wrote fiercly across the page while Taichi looked over, bearly able to read her rushed handwriting.
Taichi, a bit confused since Sora was talking so fast just nodded lightly.
"Everyone get out, theres an emergancy!" The man at the booth opened the door and pointed at the exit door.
Sora stopped writing and slipped the book back into her bag. Taichi stood up. "My sister's in there!" He yelled at the man. "I'm not going anywhere!"
Just then as he finished, and the man that works at the small amusement center was about to respond, a bullet came through the wall of the laser area, flying through the small room until it hit another teenager. The teenager fell to the ground, his legs letting loose. The bullet had hit him in his chest. He fell, face down, and on his back, there was no hole, but as if part of it had been bitten off by a shark. Sora turned her head and cringed at the sight of blood. Sora instinctively ran to the girl, checking for a pulse. She touched the neck, but was unable to tell and felt the wrist. Nothing. She felt nothing and now she was very frightened. She pulled on Taichi's arm. "We have to get out of here now."
"But Hikari!" Taichi jerked his arm from her and ran to the door, hitting it with his hands.
Sora knew that nothing would stop Taichi, and she went behind the booth, telling Taichi to stand back. She raced over, reading all the "ERROR" signs. She found the 'open door' button finally, and pressed it. It took her three times until it finally oppened. She leaned over the booth, to see Taichi waiting for the slow-open doors to open.
She ran next to him. "Sora, you stay here." His voice, hard.
"I'm not going to let you go in there all by yourself!" Sora yelled in the small, empty room, with only the two of them, the music from the arcade games in the background, and the dead body.
Taichi smiled, for in a way, he knew that Sora did care. "Don't get hurt." He whispered into her ear.
"The same for you!" They could now here screaming, and panick noises. The bullets searching and searching, going through the walls, hitting several of the arcade games, causing a small fire to start. Sora turned around quickly, as she heard the glass shatter. "Taichi, look." She put her hand up to right above her chest.
"Shit..." Taichi whispered. "We have to hurry and try to get everyone out."
"But how?" Sora looked up at him concerned.
"We just will!" He shot back and started going through the maze like room screaming, "Hikari! Hikari! Hikari!"
Sora, directly behind him, yelled the other names of their friends. Taichi ran through out the maze, lights blinking and people screaming. He ran and ran until he tripped.
Over a body.
Sora stopped directly behind him, and reached down to fell for a pulse.
There was a beat.
And another.
Then...
It stopped.
Sora searched the face and body, hoping that she wouldn't recognize, the person.
But she did.
And it was someone she knew, someone she stood next to, someone she considered a good friend. Who could always help. Someone who you could tell all your secrets to, and would not tell at all. Some one you could trust.
Someone with the crest of Reliability.
Jou.
Sora couldn't belive it, and looked for the wound, thinking that she could save him, save her freind. Her fingers ran down his chest, moving to his stomach. Her hands raced down his legs. Nothing. She started at the head, then down. To the neck, to the place where she found the hole. Her finger sliped in and she held her breathe taking it back out. She couldn't and she wouldn't believe it. It couldn't happen. But, it had. And she cried. A good friend, such a good friend, gone.
Taichi put his hand on Sora's schoulder, hoping to some how comfort her. Yet, Taichi also needed comfort. Sora stood up for she knew that Taichi had no idea of who it was, or if he was dead. She looked at him, biting her lip. She spoke, three words. "Jou...Is dead." She fell upon him, her hand hitting his chest. She needed to push her anger out, and she didn't realize she was doing it to Taichi. She continued hitting him again, and again and again.
Taichi held her hands together and looked at her in the eyes. "Hurry, we have to find everyone. We can't stay here."
"Everyone?" Sora screamed, letting the maniac know of where she was accedentily. "We CAN'T find everyone, if SOMEONE is dead!" She cried.
"Aaah!" Taichi and Sora jerked there head towards the scream. It was a voice. A scream. Mimi.
"Don't please, please please!!!" Mimi cried out. "You can't do this!"
Sora pushed Taichi out of the way. She blinked trying to see in the dark, gloomy room. She heard Mimi again. She was crying. Crying loud and loud. Whinning. "Mimi? Mimi!" Sora called out.
"Sora?" Mimi smiled and reached out for her leg.
Sora felt Mimi's cold, wet hand against her bare ankle. She kneeled down. "Mimi, we have to get out of her." Sora whispered.
"Sora, oh my God, I don't know, but there's somebody in here with a gun!" Mimi rubbed her eyes with the bottem of her long pink sleave.
"I know Mimi. Have you seen anyone else?" Sora helped her up, but she refused to move.
"I haven't seen anyone. We have to stay low, he isn't shooting down." Mimi pulled Sora back down.
Taichi came up behind the two girls, "Thank God your all right...Have you seen Hikari?" He looked around, hoping to mabe see Hikari with Mimi, but no signs of her exsisted.
Mimi schook her head and then looked down. She stood up, close to the wall. "Let's get out of here." She took Sora's hand to pull her up.
BANG.
Mimi's body fell to the floor, she gasped for air but instead, choked up blood. It ran down her chin, then down her neck, staining her pink shirt. Her shirt became of a crimson color all over. She couldn't breathe, but, she was still alive. She was crying, her tears, stirring up like cake mix with her blood. It ran together streaming down her small body.
"Mimi!" Sora and Taichi both cried out.
"Shit, everyone's going to die, one by one, soon to be..." Taichi looked down, "Dead." He looked up, "We're all going to die! Who the hell would do this crap!?" Mimi's body, leaned against the wall, slowly coming down to where the two other teenagers sat.
"Taichi...I think...I.." Sora couldn't get the words out. She needed to Taichi about her undieing devotions towards him, but, she felt that this wouldn't be a good time, even if it might be the last time they would be together.
"What is it?" He put his arm around her. He wanted to feel comfortable, for he knew, that, what was happening, might be the last time, the last time he could be with the one he felt love for. The one he fell in love with, unsuspectivly. He couldn't help it at all, for this was the one, he felt that he needed her. All the time, he couldn't stop thinking about her, and had to except it. So he did.
Sora looked at his face, into his gorgeous brown eyes. "Nothing..." She trailed off. Afraid that he would suspect something.
"I know theres something wrong." He said back.
Sora cursed at herself, she schouldn't have spoken at all, but she had, and for some reason she knew that this time would be perfect. She closed her eyes and leaned against the young man's broad schoulder, "It's nothing...I'm just really scared..." She emotianally slapped herself for lieying to her crush.
BANG.
BANG.
BANG.
"Sora!" Taichi yelled, over the screams of the many other people in the room. "Sora, oh my God..."
"I'm okay, it didn't hit my at all, it might have hit someone else." She wiped her forhead, feeling the sweat come down. "She whispered, knowing that the fire probaly spread through out the building.
Just then, Mimi's slender body, her clothes soaked in blood, fell ontop of Taichi's and Sora's lap. She choked the words out, "Don't...let...me...die..." Her eyes closed. "I'm so...tired." The blood for her wound went threw her shirt and soaked into the two older teenagers pants.
"Mimi, don't close your eyes! You have to stay awake!" Sora raised Mimi's head, revealing her famous pink hair, mixed with her deep red blood.
"I can't...help it...Sora..I'm...so tired, I just need to sleep for a little bit...then I'll...be better." Mimi gave a light smiled.
"Mimi! You can not and will not fall asleep!" Sora didn't want to shake Mimi, but instead tried to open her eyes.
Taichi showed Sora the wound by pointing at it. Sora turned her head. She didn't like seeing all this blood all over her closest freinds, she wanted to change everything. Her body laying on the floor instead of Jou's. Her body, being held by Mimi's instead of Mimi's being held by her own. She wanted everything to be 'perfect.' No one ever get's what they want. Even if they do save the world.
Sora teared part of her long sleeve off, with the help of Taichi, she put it around Mimi's wound, trying to stop the blood. Taichi about to stand up, was stopped by a feminin hand on his arm. "What are you doing!?" Sora demanded, a bit too loud.
The killer, ran through out the maze, hearing children, he ran towards his nearest target. He picked up the child's hat, trying to study it in the flashing lights. "Takeru..I guess you are my next victum...Must I do this?" He asked himself. He schook his head, what could he be thinking, he was the killer, he was hired, getting paid entirely too much money, just to kill some of his best freinds. It wouldn't be hard for him, he didn't really know them any how. His hair, of which the color was unknown in the dark, brushed in front of his eyes. His fingers, gently waved them out of the way. "Takeru...I will enjoy this, as much as I hate to do this." He said to no one inpeticular.
"I have to find Hikari! You stay here with Mimi!" Taichi demanded. He didn't want to leave Sora or Mimi, espicially Sora... But he needed his sister, through good times and bad, they where together. Except for the beginning of the time he went to an unknown world, known as the Digital World. He had a need for his sister, the one of who he would get advice from, the one who would know exactly how to calm him down and let his feelings be expressed the right way.
"Taichi! You can't go!" Sora yelled, for now you could hear the flames of the fire, coming closer and closer to the small group of three.
"I have to find Hikari, she needs me! You and Mimi get out of here!"His voice grew louder with each word spoken.
Taichi grabbed his arm, "I don't want you to leave me! Don't you get it? I can't do this, I need your help! Please Taichi... We'll find Hikari." Sora's felt the tears coming to her eyes, but would not let them be seen by her crush on the outside.
"Sora..." Taichi threw his jacket off, and picked Mimi's body up. "Check for a pulse." Taichi said bravely.
Sora raised her hand slowly, yet gracefully, she placed it on Mimi's wrist, searching for a pulse. She moved her finger, then squezed, moved her finger, then squezed. Five times she did that, and all she could feel was...
"Nothing..." Sora spoke. She placed her hand on Mimi's neck, hoping to feel a pulse. "Nothing..." She repeated, about to brake into tears.
"Okay..." Taichi said bravely and took a breath. "We have to find everyone else before anyone else gets hurt." He stood up, his body flat against the wall so the killer would not notice him. He reached down and took Sora's hand, pulling her up against the wall. They left Mimi's still body laying on the floor in a small puddle of blood becoming bigger.
Sora bit her bottem lip, for she was scared, and the heat from the fire was starting to effect her sences. "Taichi...it's so hot in here, we have to hurry." She took her jecket off, coving Mimi's body. She tilted her head down, whispering a smally prayer.
Taichi looked at Sora quickly and copied her move, also praying with her for their great friend, of who they had spent such a long time with, had shared such great times with, of who had smiled, and could make anyone smile with her very own smile.
Taichi took Sora's hand, pulling her back against the wall. They could now hear the screaming become louder, and more panicked. A young girl, who looked of somewhat the age of eight ran into them she cried, holding onto Sora's shirt, "Have you seen my mommy? I need my mom, I can't find her and it's getting hot in here." She cried, whiping her face on Sora's shirt. The blood from the little's girl face came onto Sora's blue shirt. She didn't want to hurt the child anymore then she was and instead rubbled the girl's back.
She leaned over towards Taichi, "Mabe she knows Hikari..." She turned her attention towards the girl, "Have you seen any other people?" Taichi and Sora where unable to hear any screaming or shouting now, due to the roaring fire.
"I did see..." The little girl coughed, "A boy, he was older than me...I think he might have had a girl with him and another boy..." She looked up at Sora and not Taichi, for the girl had a fear of older boys.
"Takeru...most likely with Hikari...and then Daisuke tagging along..." Taichi put the information together and then directed his speech towards the child, "Did one of the boys have some what of a Gilligan hat on. And the other boy with goggles?"
"I remember goggles because the light in the room would flash off them, but I don't know about-" She was interupted by Taichi.
"Deffiantly Daisuke...And where theres Daisuke, theres Hikari..." He looked back down at her, and then put one knee down so he was at her hight. He looked at her face, which of half was in Sora's shirt. "Listen, I need you to tell me which way they went, I'm pretty sure that would be my little sister and her friends." He tried to remember if he caught her name earlier, "What's your name?"
"It's Emily..." The girl, now known as Emily whispered.
"An American name eh? Well, your pretty good at speaking Japanese, espicially for your age." Taichi tried to make the girl happy, even if it might be some of her last moments alive.
She moved her face from the shirt and stared at Taichi. She studied the face, for this girl, by the name of Emily was not just a regular girl, she had visions, some may say she saw the future. She saw the future of who ever she wanted, simply by studying the face. She could tell if she could trust this teenager. Her eyes went from Taichi's hair, to his ears, to the form of his lips, and his teeth, till her eyes eventually reached his eyes. She searched his deap, brown eyes, for answers. She felt his presence, his comfort, his past, everything he had gone through. His courage. And his love...
"I can trust you..." She whispered to him. She was no longer afraid, and knew, that she had a chance of living if she staid with the two older teenagers.
"Great." Taichi smiled. He looked up at Sora, who couldn't hear any of the conversation, for the fire was screaming louder and louder.
"I hope I can help you live." Emily whispered into Taichi's ear and she went back next to Sora. Emily stuck her right hand out, pointing from the oppisite direction of the fire. "That's where I saw them." She whiped her forhead.
"Kay, we can all go that way and we have to stick together." Sora confermed. "That's the only way we have a chance." Sora glanced down at Emily, "Is that a cut?" She asked, lifting her arm up.
Emily nodded slightly, her brown hair untucking from behind her ear. Sora looked through her bag, for something, anything she could stop the blood from flowing. "Let me take a look at that." The cut, was most deffiantly due to glass, when Sora would move the girl's arm, it would shimmer with light. She went back to the search through her bag.
"Gee, Sora, you have to have something in that huge bag." Taichi slapped himself across the face emotionally. Now he was being mean and he wouldn't take it. It was just too stressful for Taichi, to know that his sister, and many of his owns freinds where dead, or rather lost in a maze with a fire and maniac in it.
"Well the only thing I have that could stop the bleeding is this..." Sora held out a maxi pad sheepishly. "It's the only thing I can think off."
"That 'ill do." Emily said over the flames, just before Taichi could say anything. She unrapped it carefully and held it against her arm.
"I would have never thought of that." Taichi admitted. Sora laughed a bit, she was embarrased, but it felt good to know that she was helping...
Taichi led the way, then Sora following him, very closely at times and Emily held the pad onto her arm, but walked next to Sora. "Takeru's hat." Taichi looked down at the ground, where Takeru's white summer hat laid on the floor in a small puddle of blood. "Blood..." He turned his head.
"It's just his hat Taichi, it doesn't mean that Takeru's dead. There's blood everywhere here..." Sora tried to change Taichi's mind, but Taichi felt as if he had fell into the deepest, darkest abyss to exist. He felt that he had lost everything that ever ment something to him. He held his hands up to his head, for a huge, pounding sound was all he could hear. His own heart beat? He didn't know, and he didn't want to know. He felt that he needed something. Something horrible. Something.
Death.
He knew that Sora was there, but the way everything looked to him was as if everyone was going to die eventually. It may not have been that day, that time, that hour. But eventually he knew he would be without his family and without Sora.
Sora.
On that, he couldn't stop thinking of her safety, yet, he felt as if he was being rude and mean to her. He didn't mean it, to cause pain to her, he wanted ever so much to be with Sora forever, yet he felt that, she would not feel the same way and with that, he felt he wanted...
Death.
The word popped up again in Taichi's head. He knew he could inflict it to himself whenever he wanted, even right now. All he had to do was pick up one of the thousand peices of metal and glass and start cutting himself repeativly, or even, just trap himself in the fire.
Sora.
He didn't want Sora to watch him die...But...the things that he had to choose in life. He felt as if he would never see his sister again, and he truely felt that way in his heart. He felt something on his schoulder, Sora's hand.
She looked at him, her cinamon brown eyes facing him. She noticed that he was crying, not loud, mabe even wimpering. But Sora needed to change that, she wasn't going to stand in the shadow's watching the one she loved suffer. "Taichi, come on...I promise we'll find Hikari..." She thought for a second, would that be good enough for Taichi? "Alive." She tried to smile, she tried to be as brave as Taichi was. But instead just stood there, a blank look on her face.
Emily looked up at Sora, "Look, is that Hikari?"
"Don't move."
Taichi turned his head. He was greeted by a black gun, the nozel of the gun facing Sora. But could easily be turned to him.
The killer looked over, "I guess I can skip Takeru and go to my main target, don't you think so Taichi?" The maniac laughed a bit.
"Your main target, what are you talking about?" He yelled over the fire.
"Can you tell it's me? Don't you know?" He smiled ever so slightly, ever so evil.
"Ishida Yamato." He spoke the name of the killer. The one who had killed Mimi, Jou, and mabe even his other friends.
Yamato shook his head, causing her blonde hair to sway back and forth, "Don't even think of trying to hurt me, or I'll kill her. I'll kill the one you never stop talking about. I will kill Sora."
Sora nervously over at Taichi, then looked for Emily. She was out of her sight. She could now see Yamato due to the growing fire. His blue eyes, of the same color, but swelled and red with fire. "I didn't want to do this to you Sora, but I knew that you and Taichi were eventually going to hook up, and the only way I can stop this is by killing you and it was suppose to be only you but you where late. And due to this, I had to kill most of our friends. Did you really want to do that? I don't think so. Just because I own the crest of friendship and wear it ever so proudly, don't you think that I just might feel love like you do?" He directed his voice towards Taichi, "I love you Yagami Taichi. I love Taichi-kun. I can admit it now." He looked over at Sora, about to talk but was interupted by Taichi.
"What the hell are you thinking Matt? You've done this? I can't believe it. You love me? Get the hell away from me! Don't you dare hurt Sora or I will kill you with my bare hands!" Taichi yelled. All he could see was the shadow of Yamato, against the raging fire, spreading.
"I do love you Taichi, the only way I can get to you is through Sora, I can't go around. Don't you understand? It wasn't suppose to be like this. I've tried again and again to get her away from you. Your relationship was going to grow into something beautiful, a flower blooming, slowly opening each pedal, that was you and her." He turned his head, the gun still pointing at Sora. "Now I will pick each and everyone of those pedals."
Sora glanced over at Taichi. She was too afraid to talk, to afraid to do anything. She couldn't help but remember what Yamato had said, 'I will kill Sora.' Sora didn't want to die, she wanted to be alive with....with Taichi. She didn't want to leave him all alone with this killer...this maniac. She looked at Yamato strait in the eyes, wanting to call out to him, to talk to him in words that he would understand. She formed the words, 'Please don't kill me' with her shivering lips.
"Don't move Sora, I want to finish my wonderful speech, mabe when I'm done I'll let you talk." He smiled slighly. "Like I said...Taichi you told me of you love for Sora, and Sora's love for you, Taichi, was quite obvious." He kept the gun up, pointed at Sora's head. "I've decided to destroy it." He smiled slighly. "This way seems fair enough, don't you think so my love." He waited for Taichi to say something.
"Don't you-" Taichi screamed over to Yamato.
"Ah ah ah, don't talk." He said placing a finger out to Taichi in a 'hush' form. "Or Sora will be gone, no wait, she wouldn't be gone, for the shell of which her soul excists in will still be here." He smirked. "Do you really love Sora? Wouldn't you rather want to be with me? Just think of it, Taichi and Yamato Ishida, or Yamato and Taichi Yagami. It's up to you. I ask of you, right now, for it seems the best time to me; Will you marry me?" He kept the gun up, his finger mooving towards the trigger.
"I will never marry you and I will never love you!" Taichi yelled, taking a step forward. "I swear to God, if you kill Sora, I will kill you with my bare hands, strangeling you, making sure your gone forever."
"Taichi...." Sora whispered under her breathe so no one could hear. "I love you." She said once. She now could admit it, and if she was going to die, she would want Taichi to know it for a fact. "Taichi!" She yelled. "I love you! Taichi, I love you!" She reapeated, her hands behind her back as Yamato had ordered earlier and a gun still facing her.
Taichi turned around and instead of being schocked as many would predict, he simply smiled and cried back, "I love you too Sora, I won't let anything happen!"
"That's what you said when she was kidnapped by Datamon." Yamato laughed, "I hate to see you two flirt so very much." He glanced at Sora, than Taichi. "Say good-bye dear child."
Sora's pupil in her eye shrunk, "Good-bye?" She could bearly get out.
"No! Yamato don't! I'll marry you, I'll marry you, just don't kill Sora!" Taichi's head hang low, as if he had lost a battle, but in a way he had. "Just don't hurt Sora..."
Sora jerked her face up towards Taichi.
"How can I trust you? I think it's too late for that." Yamato looked towards Taichi who's face he could now see. Tears where streaming down his face, his blood stained shirt, but most of all....
His slick smile.
"Emily! Now!" Taichi yelled.
"What the hell!" Emily who had sneaked behind Yamato had pushed him face forward and jumped ontop of his back.
Sora movied instinctively away and ran to Taichi, embracing him in a hug. "Oh Taichi, I'm so sorry!" Her head rested peacfully ontop of his schoulder.
"Huh? For what?"He asked, his arm around Sora and moving towards Yamato who was laying on the hard floor.
"Because of me being late..." She started, "Some of our friends had to die..." She looked up at Taichi's face, "And I schould have told you I loved you earlier..."
"Sora..." Taichi said, looking down at Sora's depressed face whiping her tear stained eyes.
"Don't think this is over yet..." Yamato mumbled reaching for the gun that had flown out of his hands. "It's just begun..." His thin white fingers, stained with blood touched the black dark handle of the gun. "Get ready." A thin smile grew on his face. "Die." One word slipped from his mouth.
"Taichi-kun!" Hikari shouted out, Takeru and Daisuke standing behind her ready to pounce on Yamato like kittens playing with butter-flys.
"Hikari!" Taichi put his arm around Sora and pulled her over to Hikari.
"I'm so happy to see you!" Hikari hugged her older brother, digging her small nose into his shirt. "Oh Taichi, I thought I was going to die and never see you again." Her tears fell onto the glass-covered floor, hitting a piece of glass, it spread throughout the area of the piece of glass.
"Such children you are...such foolish little dumb-asses...think that you can escape me." Yamato licked his top lip that was gushing blood out in a formally manner. "Think that it's going to end this easily!? Think that I'm gone?! Think that everything is happily ever after?!" He yelled at the group. "You think that everything is now perfect? Everyone is going to die now! Die!"
All six of the others stood there, staring at him.
"Death..all because of you, Takenouchi Sora, because of you everyone, everyone must die." He coughed once, a slight amount of strawberry colored blood drooled down his chin and onto the floor of which he was laying on. "All because of you." He said once more and lifted the gun up.
"Not this time!" Daisuke twisted and ran over to where Yamato layed, jumping on top of him struggling for the gun that was clutched within Yamato's hand. "Yamato you ass!" Daisuke yelled into his ear, while picking each of Yamato's fingers off of the gun.
"No!" Sora yelled from the background.
Daisuke stopped and looked up at her.
"He's right, it's all my fault. If I wasn't here, if I had came on time, all my friends...they wouldn't have died. Oh God, I'm so sorry..." Her head hang low and it sounded as if she was wishing for her own death to knock at her door.
"I'm happy you feel that way." Yamato said raising the gun up to Daisuke's head. "One my dead friend, coming up." He put his arm around Daisuke's kneck, standing up slowly.
"Yamato! Don't you dare!" Taichi yelled, his voice growing louder.
"I dare." He said, moving his finger to the trigger. "Oh, I dare."
"No! Yamato! Don't!" The gun in Yamato's hand turned away from Daisuke and he pushed his body away from Daisuke's. He pulled the trigger back. It seemed as if everything was going in slow motion. The bullut flowing through the air, slightly spinning, the little light in the room, reflecting off of it. "No God! No!" Taichi screamed once more, his voice screaming, echoeing trough out the maze.
It struck.
Again, another bullet.
It struck.
And another.
"Taichi? Taichi!" Sora called out, now all the lights where out and the heat from the fire was growing incredibily strong. She fell to the ground, her leg aching with pain. "Taichi? Oh Taichi where are you!?" She screamed, her voice cracking.
"So-Sora?" Taichi said, he put his hand out, feeling something nice and soft, a bit moist but as if his hand had been place on an old cake. "Sora?" He spoke again his hand racing up and down.
"Ah..ow...Taichi? I think I got hit in the leg..." She said, her voice bearly coming out now. She felt Taichi's hand going up and down her leg, and when his hand raced over the place of where the dark, black bullet hit, she cried slightly in pain. "There."
"Oh shit...Sora, everything's going to be okay...We will be..okay..." His mind was crazy, everything was crazy. "Hikari? Hikari?" He called his sisters name out twice. "Takeru? Daisuke?" He yelled.
"Yeah, I'm okay!" Daisuke called out cheerfully. "But I think...I think Yamato commited suicide." He said, more calmly.
Sora over heard. She couldn't think, all that flew threw her mind was, 'It's all my fault...Now not only is Mimi and Jou did, but Yamato as well. Iori and Miyako might be dead for all I know, and it's all my fault. All my fault.' The thought repeated over and over in her head in an endless circle.
"Tai? Tai, I'm okay. Takeru and I are fine." Hikari held her camera up and flashed it, being able to see everyone for a split second. She was very observent, and noticed Takeru to her side, Yamato's lifeless body on top of Daisuke slightly, blood strolling from his head, Taichi sitting on his behind, his legs tuck behind him, and Sora...Sora laying down, her eyes, watery and filled with such a horrible fear. And Emily...her small, body, laying down, her shell, her...her soul watching from above.
"Ahhh!" You could hear, "Come on Iori, we have to go! Come on!" Miyako's voice. She grabbed onto Iori pulling him. Her voice was clear, and she was alive. Alive and well. "You too Koushiro, your taking too long!"
"Well sorry Miyako, but your going to fast! I can bearly see!" Koushiro responded, him not sounding anything like himself.
"Well gee, Koushiro, excuse me for wanting to live!" She revolted.
"Shut up!" Hikari yelled. Carefully she picked the camera that layed against her up once more and clicked the button. Once more the room litted up, the light reflecting from the many small peices of glass that layed on the floor. "Over here!" She called out.
"See! Thanks to me everythings going to be fine!" Miyako's voice called out next, "Ken? Is Ken with you!?" She yelled.
Ken. It hit Sora. She now knew that Miyako, Iori, and Koushiro where safe, but Ken? What if he was dead? What if his body was laying in the blood-red fire, burning, his scin peeling off the reveal his flesh? "Taichi...get out of here." She spoke the five words, not knowing. "Get out of here!" She yelled. "Get out! Get out! Get out!" Her hands where by the side of her head know. Total pain was felt, not only her body, but her soul as well was aching, even dieing.
"What? Sora? I'm not going to leave you here! What the hell are you saying!?" He yelled looking into her crimson eyes that where noticible. Taichi could see the fire in her eyes, from the real fire in the background. There where tears, small clear rain drops falling down her cheeks.
"You can't get me out of here and you know it! Let me die here!" She thought once more, Taichi wouldn't leave her there if she talked that way, in the way of a presenter giving a speach wrong. "Taichi...I want you and everyone to live...I would just...slow you down..." She knew she was loosing blood, and fast. "I'm hurt...I know you want to help me...but...but you have to go...I love you Taichi...I love you..." Sora was crying oh so hard. Her hands every now and then whiping her eyes.
"Sora, don't you even think like that! Don't you even speak to me like that! I love you too and I'm not going to leave you here to die! We are going to live though this, I promise you that and if you don' live, I won't either!" His voice growing strong.
"I hurt Taichi..." Her voice bearly coming out. "It's my fault..."
"Wha-what?" He asked his voice quivering.
"If...If I weren't here, Yamato wouldn't have been jealous of me...and then he wouldn't have shot Jou...and Mimi...and...and himself. For all we know, Ken could be dead too...and even Emily..." She thought. "Emily is dead, she...she would have talken by know..." Her voice fading out as each word was spoken.
"Sora..." He pulled her body in a way that her back leaned against his own chest. "I know you hurt. I hurt too, we all hurt. But it isn't your fault, you can't and I will not let you convince yourself that it is yourfault. Sora, you have your love to keep us together, and I..." He looked down upon her, "Have my courage to get us out of here."
Sora raised her head, "Thankyou....Oh thankyou Taichi..." She coughed once and forced her self up, even if her leg was bad. She was leaning on her main leg, while Taichi, who had helped her up put Sora's arm around his kneck for support.
"Look!" A voice perked up. "I found them! I found them!" Ken. It was Ken, his soft voice against the fire.
"Good job boy..." A man's voice was heard. A police officer? Or just another adult in the maze, the horrible game that had gone bad? "We can get them out and everything...everything will be fine." The man turned his head, "Go! Go! Go!"
"Sora? Sora, did you hear that? Everythings going to be fine! Fine!" He repeated, his voice cheery and confident.
No responce.
"S-Sora?" His voice, shaky. "Sora!" He yelled, he squezed his eyes, and opened them wide, to release an explosion of tears, just as his pillow had released an explosion of feathers. "Oh God...Sora...you can't be...you can't be..." He choked on the word. "Dead."
Sora heard Taichi, every word, but she couldn't speak, her voice, was gone. She still layed against Taichi. and she moved her hand back and forth, touching his back softly. She was about to give up but then her hand brushed up against his back.
"Sora?" Taichi asked.
Sora oppened her eyes and her words could bearly be heard, "I...I'm fine...My....throat....just...hurts..." The last word she spoke flowed into nothingness.
"Good, I think that's a police officer...We'll be fine! He said we'll be fine!" His head turned back, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to see anything. "Hikari! Flash that camera of yours!"
Sora nodded her head, hearing how happy Taichi was, she could only hope...to be as happy as him when her leg, would stop pounding with pain.
The camera lit the part of the maze, of which everything had happened...
"Anyone hurt?" A man's voice moving closer to them all could be heard.
"Sora is! The girl by me!" Taichi yelled. "Over here! Here!" She could feel the man, trying to take Sora away from him, not after what had happened, he would not let Sora go...He couldn't and wouldn't let a chance of Sora disapearing from his reach happen.
"Thankyou boy. Ehr..Boy? We need this girl if you want us to save her." The policeman gently put a hand on Taichi's schoulder.
"Don't touch me!" Taichi snapped. "Tell me where to take her and I will!"
The man tried once more, "If we don't do this properly-"
"I CAN do it properly!" Taichi was becoming fed up with help, he knew he could do it.
"Follow me." The man held his flashlight out. "Be careful for falling debri." His head turned towards Hikari and Takeru, then Daisuke, and then to Miyako, Iori, and Koushiro. "Follow me, if you don't think you can make it, tell one of the men with you."
The other men or mostlikely firefighters now, where putting blankets on top of them all, and leading them to the exit.
'Dear Lord, please, please let me live, I know I don't deserve too, but, please, please, I, I, want to live...' Sora thought just before she passed out.
A week later...
"Taichi...?" Sora awoke from her long and deep sleep and her vision was still blurry.
"Sora! Sora!" Taichi hugged Sora in an akward position, considering she layed in the hospital bed.
Sora raised her self up and returned the hug to Taichi carefully.
Sora cried onto Taichi's broad schoulder. "I'm so happy to see you! I thought I was going to die!" Her tears poured down her face harder, as if a hurricane had just hit the coast of land.
"You werent' going to die!" He pulled Sora back, looking into her deep eyes.
"Taichi...I'm so happy..." Sora stared into Taichi's dark bark-colored eyes. She noticed that his own eyes where beginning to leak. "Oh Taichi...don't...cry!" She exclaimed whiping his tears.
"I'm so happy Sora...that your okay...that your alive...and with me." He embraced her in a hug once more. He thought outloud, "I have to be the luckiest guy in the world to have you, Sora, in my arms."
"Oh Taichi-kun...I...I love you...I'm still...Still I'm so sorry...about Yamato...and-" She was cut off by Taichi's voice.
"Sora. Listen to me, it wasn't you fault. Yamato just felt love...the wrong way. And everyone else..." Taichi searched through his mind, like a mouse searching for chease in a maze, "It wasn't your fault that they-" Died. Tachi couldn't say the word. Gone for ever. To be seen again? Mabe..Mabe not...
"Died." Sora spoke the word for him. "Yes Taichi, it was...my fault they died." Her bottem lip shivered. "Why? Why did this have to happen? Why did they all have to die...?" She wanted Taichi to say, it wasn't her fault, no matter which way she took it, it was her fault. The entire accident, the entire everything.
'Taichi had started it with one phone call, but I had to invite everyone else, didn't I? And Yamato...I schould have known he loved Taichi...and if I would have known...I would have let him have him. Let Yamato be happy, let him be with everyone, and I, myself could be living within the shadows, watching them...Everyone would be alive then, and I...I just would suffer a bit...No matter which way I went...Which path in destiny I choosed, I would suffer.' She thought.
"Sora...it just happened. We can go through this together. Your leg well eventually heal too." He placed his hand on Sora's.
It hit Sora like a train, "My-my leg?" Her leg was wounded, hurt, and she probaly wouldn't be able to walk...walk to the mall with Taichi, or perhaps the beach, or help her mother at the flower shop.
Her mother.
"T-Taichi...can I...see Mama?" She asked shakily.
"Your mom? Oh, your mom! She's been so worried about you. She's down in the cafeteria. She had been here for hours and decided to take a coffee brake. I'll get here." Taichi said with a warm smile.
"No..." Sora said, pushing the button on the wall bearly within her reach. "Yes..nurse...can you please get my mother?"
The nurse stood there, a board in her hands, "Your awake! Great! Now we can take a look at your leg."
"Get my mom first..." Sora said carefully, "I want to talk to her."
"Oh we'll do that." The nurse smiled, cocking her head to the side. She exited the room, board held up to her front.
"Taichi...?" Sora asked hanging out on to the last part of his name.
"Yeah Sora?" He looked at her in the most careing way possible. His eyebrows tilted up.
"Hold me again?" She threw her arms around Taichi. She loved the feeling. The feeling, the thought, the fact, that Taichi loved her. That she was loved by someone else other than her mom. That someone was willing to loose their own life for her's. Most of all...she loved the hug...she loved Taichi.
And Taichi loved Sora.
Here's it in full. Instead of chapters. Please review.