Ok guys, I have to admit, this fic is a small test. I had a sudden urge to write last night, and working on my other story just wasn't doing it for me. Don't get me wrong, if you're currently reading Til We Meet Again, I haven't abandoned it, far from it. I just fancied doing something a little different last night. I wasn't sure what to do, and then I thought about pairings that don't seem too popular. And then Matt and Kari drifted into my head and I kinda fell in love with the idea a little bit. So I'm putting this first chapter up to see what you think. If it's not absolutely hated, then I'll carry on with it while continuing Til We Meet Again. Just a pointer, the references to the Digital World are purely memories. This fic will take place in the real world, and I'll try to stay true to the characters... with the exception of TK who is, to be quite frank, a little shit in this story. This is my first YamatoxHikari fic, so please be gentle. Flames are not necessary, constructive criticism will do just fine.

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon (unfortunately), but the people who thought Sora and Matt would make a good couple did. The only character I own is Lacey... and any others I might randomly add if you'd like me to continue with this story.

Let me know what you think. Happy reading :)

CHAPTER ONE

The heat. Oh, the heat. It was a scorching day in the Digital World, and nine year old Kari Kamiya felt weak and sore as she trudged along behind the older kids, followed by an equally fatigued TK. Their journey had been long and exhausting, their road bumpy and full of obstacles they'd needed to overcome, but their destination was clear. They were headed to a cave not far from Infinity Mountain, miles from the abandoned building that had doubled as their sleeping quarters for the past three weeks. All of the Chosen Children were tired and beginning to lose their motivation, but giving up was just not an option. Not when one of their own was in so much danger. Their Digimon were just as determined to save their friend as the Children, but the heat was affecting them also, especially the ones with fur, and they were more vocal about their misfortunes.

'It's soooo hot,' moaned Tentomon, flying close to the ground in fear that he may fall in his fatigued state.

'I think my roots have dried up. I'm so thirsty,' said Palmon as she dragged her arms behind her, desperately trying to soak up a drop of moisture from the dry, dusty ground.

'You guys should think yourselves lucky. I'm carrying a permanent coat,' Gabumon pointed out wearily, pulling on his sweaty fur.

Some weren't quite as self-focussed, worrying more about the health of the Digidestined. 'I wish we could digivolve so that you guys wouldn't have to walk,' said Biyomon sadly. 'But we don't have enough energy, and I'm pretty sure the last of it is about to burn out.'

'I have to say guys, I'm feeling fine,' chirped Patamon.

'I'm not surprised,' Gatomon said hoarsely. 'You've been hitching a ride from TK since we left.'

The older kids had refused to allow Patamon to do much - since he was small and easily carried - instead telling him to save his energy, for they were in no doubt that it wouldn't be long until they needed the defence of a powerful Digimon such as Angemon.

'You're just jealous,' the small orange Digimon replied, folding his bat-like wings and settling down into the top of his owner's hat for his second nap of the day.

The children and their partners somehow managed to laugh despite their circumstances, but Kari couldn't even force it. She just didn't have the energy. Besides, her worry had affected her in ways the others couldn't comprehend. She barely heard the quiet conversations being held between her friends; all she could think about was the consequence of not arriving at the cave in time, the fate of the Digital World in the hands of just seven Chosen Children – sure, they'd managed fine until she'd been revealed as the eighth child, but they just couldn't afford to lose one of their most valued members – not to mention the throbbing pain in her head. She knew that pain. It was a sign of things to come, and she had regrettably suffered the effects of a weak immune system since she was younger.

'Not again,' she whispered to herself. 'Not now.'

Suddenly, she felt the last of her energy drain from her body and she succumbed to the agony, dropping to her knees and holding her hands to her head. She saw a flash of blinding light, amplifying her migraine, and she was forced to close her eyes, not before seeing a tall blonde boy running towards her.

'Kari!'

Kari's body fell sideways, taking her weight off her knees, and moments before she could hit the ground, she felt herself being caught in someone's arms.

'Matt…' she sighed weakly. She was so tired she barely heard Matt make a demand to the other Children.

'We set up camp here,' he said sternly. 'We have to rest now.'

'But Matt, we need to carry on, we need to find him-'

'No, Sora. I promised him that I would always look after Kari if she needed me to, and I'll be damned if I let her come to any harm. Besides, we'll be in no fit state to fight whatever's holding him if we don't rest.'

Kari forced herself to squint at Matt, who looked down at her in concern. 'My brother. I need my brother,' she mumbled.

'We'll find him, Kar. I promise you, we'll find him.'

Kari's reminiscing came to an abrupt halt.

'Are you excited?' Lacey bounced around the room, nudging Kari in her liveliness and causing her to abandon her packing.

'Of course,' she replied, closing her suitcase and sitting on it. 'I feel like I haven't seen my family in forever.'

Her bubbly blonde roommate threw herself on the bed and sat beside her friend, picking up photo of Tai, who was shirtless and sweaty after one of his soccer matches and laughing as he had his arm around his grossed-out sister. 'And you get to spend lots of time with that gooorgeous brother of yours. Ky, is it?' she asked absent-mindedly.

'Tai,' Kari corrected. 'And funnily enough, I don't think I look at it the same way you do.'

'You're seriously unlucky. Imagine knowing the hottest guy ever… and being related to him.'

'You're weird,' Kari giggled. 'It's really not that devastating,' she added sarcastically. 'Besides, you haven't even seen him that much. If you'd spent as much time with him as I have, you'd know all about his disgusting habits and you'd be put off men for life.' She held her finger and thumb about an inch apart. 'Seriously, I'm this close to just dating girls.'

Lacey grimaced. 'What are we talking, like… biting his nails?'

'No, we're talking leaving his dirty socks lying around the house, drinking straight from the milk carton, sitting next to you and farting, etcetera, etcetera, the list goes on.'

'Ew.'

'Exactly.' Kari grinned. 'But… despite his faults, he's my big brother, and I'd be lying if I said I haven't missed him.'

'Awww, that's really sweet,' Lacey smiled. She watched as Kari moved to the other side of her bed and started sorting through a huge collection of photographs. There were some she'd taken recently, and some taken previously, pictures of herself with her friends and family before she left Odaiba to study Photography. She picked up a picture that had somehow separated itself from the pile. 'Ooh, another hottie,' she chirped. 'Who's this fine specimen?'

Kari peered over at the photo Lacey was holding and smiled. 'That's Matt.'

'A luuurve interest, perhaps?' Lacey winked and nudged Kari, who made a tutting sound and shook her head.

'Ehhh… no. He's my brother's best friend. So even if I did like him in that way, he's a guy off limits.'

'The best kind.'

'Oh, stop. He's my friend. And anyway, I used to go out with his brother.'

'Ooh, the older brother's best friend and the ex's older brother… I'm loving this drama.'

'There is no drama, you loser,' Kari said, laughing. 'Seriously, cut it out, I'm trying to get myself sorted for tomorrow.'

'Alright.' Lacey watched Kari for a while, occasionally picking up a picture and tossing it back onto the pile, until a particular shot caught her eye. 'What's this?' She waved the photo in Kari's face.

'What's what?'

'This.'

Kari grabbed it from her. 'It's me and my brother at Christmas when I was like, twelve. We kinda look alike on that one, don't you think?'

'No, this.' Lacey pointed at a tag hanging around twelve year old Kari's neck with a pink star-like symbol on it. 'Looks like Tai's got one, too. What are they?'

'Oh.' Kari thought quickly. 'Yeah. We got them from a couple of Christmas crackers. You know, the ones with the silly hats and crap jokes.'

'No.' Lacey's blunt response caused Kari to shoot a glance at her, and she was sure she felt a sweat rising on her forehead. 'They're more than that.'

'W-what?'

'That symbol. You have that exact same symbol tattooed on your wrist. And Tai-' she picked up a photo of the shirtless eldest Kamiya, '-he has the symbol on his chain tattooed there.' She jabbed his chest, almost poking a hole in the paper. 'I doubt you'd both have permanent reminders of them if they were just 'from a couple of Christmas crackers'.'

Kari gawped, racking her brain for a quick answer, but there was only one that didn't sound completely ridiculous. 'They kind of became a running joke. We'd wear them for laughs, and the symbols just grew on us, I guess. Now I suppose they represent the bond we have.'

Lacey stared at Kari for a moment and the brunette was highly conscious of the sudden urge to gulp, but without leaving much time for panic, the blonde girl grinned. 'That's cute,' she said.

'Yeah,' Kari replied, breathing a subtle sigh of relief. 'It is.'

Matt sprawled out on the sofa, taking up more space than his best friend Tai would have liked, and the irritated brunette sighed when the phone rang loudly, interrupting their game.

'I understand your relief,' Matt said cockily as Tai got up to answer the phone. 'I've kicked your ass at this, like, nine times now.' He pressed several buttons aggressively on the controller and threw it down as the sound of cheering erupted from the TV. 'Make that ten,' he smirked.

Tai shook his head. 'Jackass,' he murmured as he plucked the phone from its cradle and sat down at the kitchen table.

Matt grinned and picked up his guitar, strumming a soft tune absent-mindedly. He did that a lot. Especially when he had nothing to do. Actually, he did it when he did have a lot to do, too. Alright, so he did it all the time. It was soothing for him, the feel of the strings and the flawless noise they created when he worked his magic. Music was his release from everything. From family dramas, from petty fights with friends, and especially from…

Ping!

…Girlfriend troubles.

Picking up his phone, Matt sighed as he saw the words 3 missed calls on the screen, and opened the text message that had so rudely interrupted his mindless strumming.

Where the hell are u? I've called you like a gazillion times in the last hour! U had better not be at Tai's, u know I don't like how u are when ur with him! Y do u insist on going against me all the damn time? We're gonna be having some serious words, Ishida!

Matt ran a hand through his blonde hair. You're damn right we are, he thought bitterly. He tapped the reply button. He wanted to tell her that he was sorry, that he would see her soon and that he would make it up to her, like a good boyfriend would. But the truth was, Matt just didn't want to. He didn't feel like a good boyfriend at all, he felt like a very bad one. He felt guilty at having taken his perfectly nice friendship and turned it into something more, only to abandon it after just six months. He thoroughly regretted changing things between them, and he knew there was no turning back now. They couldn't ever go back to the way things were. 'You don't fuck your friend and then expect things to return to normal when your shitty decision bites you on the ass, do you?' Tai had said so sensitively. Matt wanted to keep the peace. He wanted an easy, quiet life. But she just wouldn't allow it. And he had been driven so crazy by her constant nagging and pressures that he just didn't have the energy to deal with it anymore. So he didn't tell her he was sorry. He didn't tell her that he would see her soon, nor that he would make it up to her. Without much thinking, he tapped out a simple, yet conclusive message.

I need some space, Sora.

The deed done, he sat back with his guitar and turned the TV channel over, watching a boring documentary as his fingers flicked over the strings of the instrument. His attention was soon turned to Tai's irritated voice as he entered the living room, holding the phone to his ear and rolling his eyes.

'Yeah, that's great. Listen Lacey, could you put Kari back on?' He shot Matt a help me look, to which Matt simply shrugged. 'Please?' Tai listened for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh of relief. 'Thank you.'

Matt smirked to himself. Lacey, if he recalled correctly, was Kari's roommate. She had met Tai once when he'd gone to visit his sister, and it seemed she had fallen in love with him. Matt had been highly amused at Tai's frustration when he had returned home and instead of greeting his friend - who had been helping his mother cook a 'welcome home' dinner for her eldest son – he had thrown himself on the couch and groaned loudly.

'She's insufferable,' he'd said miserably.

Matt had looked at him in surprise. 'Kari?'

'No, her crazy roommate, Lacey. She didn't leave us alone all week. I went away to spend some time with my sister and came back in a non-consensual long distance relationship with a fucking man-eater.'

'Language, mister.' Mrs Kamiya shot him a warning glance.

Matt raised an eyebrow. 'You already have a girlfriend, Tai.'

'Yeah, well. She wasn't having any of it. Believe me, I'm so glad to be home. I spent like ninety eight percent of the time hiding from her.'

Matt laughed at the memory and Tai looked at him questioningly. He sat up straight as Tai settled onto the couch next to him, putting the phone on loudspeaker and placing it on the table.

'How's mom and dad?' Kari's voice filled the room and Matt smiled. He'd not seen her in what felt like a lifetime, and he wished they could all get together as a group again, like in the old days. But things were different now. Most of them had grown apart.

'They're good. I'm good too by the way, thanks for asking,' Tai whinged sarcastically.

'I was getting round to it,' his sister replied cheerily. 'Have you missed me?'

'Are you kidding? I get the place to myself when mom and dad are out, I even-'

'Alright, stop. I don't want to know what you and Mimi get up to.'

Tai laughed heartily. 'Relax, your room hasn't been violated. Yet.'

'Tai.'

'I'm joking,' he laughed. 'Seriously though, yes. I've missed you. You looking forward to coming home?'

'Sure. Just as long as TK stays out of the way.' Matt winced and Tai looked at him apologetically. 'Tai? You there?'

'Yeah, I'm here. And so is Matt. And you're on the loudspeaker.'

'Shit-'

Tai's jaw dropped in surprise. 'Language, sis!'

'Matt, I'm so sorry.'

Matt shrugged. 'Don't be,' he said simply. 'I get it.' TK was Matt's younger brother, and Kari's ex-boyfriend. They had dated for almost a year, until Kari had found out that her boyfriend hadn't been entirely faithful to her. As a matter of fact, she had been devastated to discover that TK had enjoyed several extra-curricular activities during their relationship, to put it sensitively. 'You holding up ok?'

'Oh, yeah. Fine. Just don't want any awkward situations, you know?'

'Yeah, I get that,' he said quietly.

'How've you been?'

Matt smirked as Tai leaned back, slightly peeved at having his phone call hijacked by his best friend. 'I've been good. We've started on that new album.' The 'we' Matt referred to was his band, The Wolves. They weren't exactly international, but they were well known and liked across many areas of Japan, and they had made comfortable lives for themselves with the profits of album sales. In the beginning, they had struggled with being unknown, finding a label willing to sign them, and building up a fan base that had started with just their friends, but they'd finally reached a point they were happy at. Life was going pretty well for Matt.

'Really? That's great!'

'Yeah.' He grinned proudly.

'How's Sora?'

The grin disappeared. He remained silent for a moment, and Tai glanced at him suspiciously. 'She's good. But, um… I don't think there's much there on the relationship front.'

'What?!' Tai sat up straight, and Matt offered him an awkward smile.

'Oh, I'm sorry to hear that,' Kari said kindly.

Matt's mouth closed into a thin line. He didn't get it. Tai Kamiya was loyal and brave, that much was true. But he was also loud, impulsive, insensitive, brash, abrupt, and let's face it – a little obnoxious. How his little sister grew up to be the warm, sweet, caring girl she was today was a complete mystery to Matt. He liked Kari. He was annoyed to discover that his own brother had hurt her. The girl was harmless, wouldn't hurt a fly. She didn't deserve it. She was one of the good ones.

'So,' he said, changing the topic. 'I'm gonna get off now. But I guess I'll see you when you land tomorrow?'

'Oh, yeah, of course. Looking forward to it!'

'Me too,' he said with a small smile. He turned to Tai, who was staring at him with his arms crossed impatiently. He put his guitar away and swung it over his back. 'She's all yours.'

'Oh, well thank you!' Tai exclaimed sarcastically.

Matt smirked in amusement as he left the apartment. 'Later bro,' he said to his friend casually.

The strong rays of the sun hit him the moment he stepped outside and it was a sudden reminder of the scorching day Kari had fallen sick in the Digital World. He shuddered at the memory. But Tai's safe now, and so is she, he thought to himself. That's all over now. He thought back to that time as he headed to his car. On the day Kari had been revealed as the eighth Child, Tai had pulled Matt to one side and demanded he make a promise to him. If ever Tai wasn't around, Matt was to take care of her. It didn't seem like a ridiculous demand, and Matt didn't need any encouragement to make the promise. He was a brother himself after all, and he knew the worries of leaving a sibling by themselves. He also knew that there were very few people he would have trusted with his own brother's safety, so when Tai had entrusted him with Kari's, he had felt honoured. He had also been scared of the responsibility at such a young age, but a promise was a promise, and he would have given up his own life before he'd seen either TK or Kari come to any harm.

To this day, Tai made it clear that he expected Matt to look out for Kari if anything were to happen to him, and just as he had when they were children, he stayed true to his word. Ever since they had come together as kids to save two worlds, it was one of the things that bonded Matt and Kari - his responsibility for her.

And her reliance on him.