Note: This is set pre-hunters, but it's pretty close to the first episode.

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon Xros Wars.

Dame

Damemon, Yuu thought. I'm so sorry

Yuu stood in the park looking at the small tunnel that he now found unimaginable that he once fit into the tiny crawl space. It was ironic how as you grew older your perception of size changed. The kids running around in the park looked so tiny, and yet he had been that size once. He had been hiding from the cruel, huge, world, and coincidently meant Damemon, his partner and friend.

Yuu had hoped that Damemon would return when Taiki had gained the Code Crown. Every digimon that had died, with a dream of a better Digital World, was back, except Damemon. Yuu supposed it was because those digimon had sacrificed themselves for their friends and the digital world, or because they had died unjustly at the hands of the Bagra Army. Damemon, however, had died by his own hands when he had so foolishly believed he was in a videogame.

Damemon hadn't been the only victim under his delusion. Many other innocent digimon had died. His sister and Taiki had barely escaped the same fate. He had been fine with killing under the illusion of virtual reality, but in real life it made him sick. He hated death and how nothing could escape it. That had been why he was hiding in the first place when he meant Damemon. He had been trying to escape the death of his grandma. Someone like him didn't deserve a second chance, or his digimon partner back.

He stared at his yellow Xros Loader. He didn't know why he had one. He had only used it once, and even then it was simply to cross Taiki's digimon for him. His cynical side supposed he had it as a cruel reminder of his crimes and consequences. The innocent child inside him, that had long since been buried, latched on to the hope that Damemon would come back.

Tears began to fill Yuu's eyes and he took off running away from the park. He didn't know why he was running for his apartment. It was empty. He would be as alone there as he was at the park. At least then he would be out of the publics eye, not that it really mattered much.

His eyes burned with tears as his arm tried to hide them from sight. It wasn't working. His knuckles whitened as his grip tightened on the Xros Loader. He wanted desperately to hurl it against the retaining wall lining the stretch of sidewalk. He didn't deserve it. He might as well destroy it. Damemon was never coming back.

He brought his arm in prepared to throw the device when he outstretched his arm again. It didn't happen though. It was strange to say but he felt some force restrain him. It reminded him of Damemon, yet the thought was ridiculous. Maybe it wasn't as ridiculous as he thought. He was sure he could hear Damemon's voice floating on the wind reprimanding the action he was going to perform. Perhaps he partner would come back. Maybe he just had to redeem himself. Atone for his past mistakes and prove he was worthy. Maybe the Digital World already knew, and he simply had to prove it to himself. After all, he couldn't be a good partner if he was still absorbed by past mistakes, but even that knowledge didn't make him believe it was true.