(Disclaimer's on my bio.)

The Irony of Friendship

We had stood huddled around the depression that sheltered the…how had Kari put it? Oh, right. The "flip-flop with a bent nail in it." The Digiegg of Friendship. The only question left to answer was whose it was. Us younger kids already had ours, but Tai, Izzy, and Sora hadn't been able to lift the ones with their crests on them. Would Matt be like them, or like his brother and Kari?

"It's got that same symbol," I pointed out, sparing a glance for the rock wall with the crest of Friendship carved into it.

"Yep," Tai agreed. "It definitely has the crest of Friendship on it, alright. I wonder if it's meant for you, Matt?" What is it about the Digital World that makes the older kids come at the same time that we find the Digiegg with their crest, I wonder? There's something suspicious about the whole thing. Oh, well. At least it was something even the great T.A. didn't seem to understand.

Matt interrupted my thoughts before they got further than that: "Or maybe it's meant for the one with the most friends."

"Or maybe it's meant for the one with the fewest friends," I said, half sarcastically. "Like me."

They laughed. My idol and the bearer of the crest of Friendship laughed at me when I said that! I guess it was kinda my fault for always being anything but serious. And I guess it was a pretty stupid idea, anyway. Still…it hurt.

I just stared at the Digiegg, wondering who was going to be able to lift it. Obviously not me. Tai and Matt seemed pretty much out of the running, too. With my luck, T.R. would end up getting it. Probably some chick-magnet-friendship gene or something. After all, he had managed to pick up his friendship with Kari in all of two seconds after not seeing her for however long it had been. Two years, at least.

Imagine my surprise when T.S. wasn't able to lift it. Maybe Kari could. She was my best friend, after all. But it wasn't her, or Cody either. Yolei? Maybe it was just me, but she didn't seem to embody friendship.

Turns out she didn't.

But that was it. There was no one left. Well, there was me, but I already knew I wasn't going to be able to lift the dumb thing. Any second now, everyone's eyes would be turning to me, waiting for me to try. But hey, I figured, why make an idiot out of myself more than I have to?

"I think you guys are going about this all wrong," I said, sparing the others the trouble of asking me to get on with it.

"So, you think you can lift it up?" Tai asked skeptically. I could hear it in his voice. He didn't think I'd be able to lift it either.

"Yeah, you just have to use physics." As Matt looked over at me, I tried to remember what I had learned about levers and pulleys. I thought I had an idea, but, not really knowing if I was right, I figured it was better to just play dumb.

"What do you mean?" Guess I had Matt interested. But now I really didn't want to look like an idiot.

"Ya see, in physics, there's this little thing called equilibrium," I bluffed, turning away to hide my nervousness. "When you have two libriums that weigh the same, they're equilibrium." That had to be my worst lie ever.

Tai chuckled. "Makes sense to me." He gestured to the Digiegg.

Uh-oh. "Um, ya know, Tai, I was just making that stuff up. I really don't know anything about physics. I usually leave all that stuff up to professors and scientists and Izzy. I didn't think you'd take me seriously."

Matt and Tai each grabbed one of my arms, wrestling me towards the Digiegg. "Ooh, I'm sick of all you're blabbering, Davis!" Matt cried. "You're the only one who hasn't tried yet, so just get in the hole!"

"Yeah, lift that Digiegg up so we can get outta here!" Tai grumbled.

With that, they shoved me down, practically right onto the spike sticking out of the Digiegg. Sure, part of me was upset, but then again, this was taking time away from us going after Agumon, so they had a reason to be impatient. And I was the only one left. Maybe I was supposed to get this Digiegg after all!

I planted my feet, ready to lift with all I had in me. This wouldn't be too hard. I was sure of it. Okay, so what had I done when I got my other Digiegg? Nothing, really. It was light as a feather. I wrapped my hands around the Digiegg and started counting down.

"One…" I gave the egg a test tug, and was shocked to find it heavy. I'm not really sure why I found that so surprising. I had been expecting it, after all…Hadn't I?

"Two…" I could feel everyone staring at me, like they were all getting ready to yell at me if I failed. I couldn't fail! I was the only one left! Sure, Joe and Mimi hadn't tried lifting a Digiegg yet, but we'd have to go back to the Real World to let them in. Besides, Mimi was in America, and it would take a while for her to get to Japan. There was no telling what Ken would do to Agumon in that time!

"Three…" It wasn't like anyone was actually thinking about me. I mean, it was Tai whose partner was the Emperor's prisoner. It was Tai who everyone had cheered for. It didn't even really matter if I picked up the Digiegg. Just as long as we got moving soon.

"I-I can't do it," I stammered, backing away from the Digiegg. "I give up!"

-.-.-.-

So, there you have it. The story of how I didn't get the Digiegg of Friendship. Sure, I ended up getting it later in the battle, after I realized we had to fight MetalGreymon because he was our friend. I still didn't get why I got it. I mean, Tai risked his life to save T.B., who risked his life to try to save Patamon. I wasn't even sure I would risk my life to save Veemon if he was in that situation!

Now we were back, standing in the computer room, and Izzy had just sent Tentomon out as a spy to find out what else Ken was planning. Tai and Matt called me a true friend and thanked me for my help – with a noogie. I won't lie. It felt good to be the one receiving the praise for once, even if I did get a headache. Then, as I was goofing around with DemiVeemon, Matt said something that confused me.

"He's not the only one who's got a lot to learn."

I paused at that, wondering whether Matt was talking about me or DemiVeemon, and if he was talking about me, then who was the other one? Still, I was really confused about friendship and all that, considering everything I had thought was friendship had just been challenged that day. And who better to learn from than the Child of Friendship himself?

"Great!" I cheered, turning around. "Teach me!"

Matt just chuckled. "You'll learn soon enough, Davis. Let's just take it one step at a time."

"Starting with a noogie!" Kari teased. Hey, I thought, what could it hurt? I obligingly leaned my head over and allowed Matt to once again grind his knuckles into my skull. Everyone laughed. At least it was better than when they were yelling at me earlier. And as long as I was the one inviting the laughter, they were laughing with me, not at me…Right?

Almost half an hour passed, and everyone else had gone home. I found myself wandering over by the soccer field. For once all the soccer balls had been taken in after the last practice, so I had to find something else to occupy me. I hopped from bench to bench up and down the bleachers, DemiVeemon peeking out at me from my backpack.

"Is something wrong, Davish?" he called to me.

"You don't understand about friendship!" he had said. The accusation in his voice had been the worst for me. I mean, it's one thing to know you don't understand something like friendship, or to have other people tell you the same thing, but there's just something harsher about hearing it from your partner.

I forced a smile for him now. "Nothing's wrong, DemiVeemon. I'm just bored, that's all."

"Well why don't you go do something with the others? I think TK and Kari were going to a movie!"

"Nah, I'm fine."

"I thought you were bored." Even though I recognized Matt's voice, his sudden presence caught me off guard, and my foot slipped off the bench as I turned. The next thing I knew, I was twisted up like a pretzel in between two benches.

"H-Hey Matt!" I called, trying not to sound like I was in pain. "I'm not bored! What makes you think that? I mean look at me. I'm teaching myself yoga!"

Sighing, Matt sat down on the bleachers next to my backpack. "Hey DemiVeemon," he murmured. Okay, something was definitely up with him.

"Hi, Matt!" DemiVeemon chirped, leaping out of the bag and onto Matt's lap. "What's up? I thought you'd have band practice or something."

"Not today." Prying myself out of the cramped space I had fallen into, I strained my ears to listen to Matt. "I cancelled everything when Yolei came to get me. Tai's my best friend, and if something were to happen to Agumon, it would be almost as bad as if something happened to Gabumon."

"Man," I muttered, limping down the stairs but disguising it as a run-hop. "You and Tai sure are good friends. How'd you two get so close anyway?"

Matt looked over at me with one of those looks that makes you feel like it's your dad staring at you, trying to decide how best to punish you for something when you don't even know which thing he knows about. "What do you mean?" he asked carefully.

I scratched the back of my head, asking myself the same question. "Well…" I began. "I mean, you two seem to know exactly what the other is thinking. Like back in the Digital World, you knew he needed you to punch him even though it seemed to me like a bad thing to do."

Smiling at me like it was the most obvious thing it the world, Matt shrugged. "That's what happens when you spend as much time together as we did. When we were stuck in the Digital World four years ago, we all saved each other's lives more times than any of us could possibly remember. There's a real close friendship that develops when you know you can trust someone with your life."

"Would you try to protect me if I was in danger, Davis?" Flamedramon had asked

I had hesitated, wanting to answer honestly, but honestly not sure how I would react. I wanted to be able to say yes, but I hadn't ever been in that kind of situation before. How was I supposed to know? "…Maybe."

"Maybe?" he had cried. "Maybe? What about definitely?"

"Oh…" I sighed now, making Matt study me even more closely.

"'Oh' what?" he demanded.

"Nothing!" I grinned, waving my hand. "I was just trying to think what it must have been like for you guys. I mean, you were in danger every second of every day, but you always had a whole army waiting to save your butt!"

The blond frowned. "Uh-huh." He picked up my D-Terminal from where I had shoved it into my backpack. "Did you mean what you said back there?"

It was my turn to frown. "Uh…what did I say again?"

Gently picking up DemiVeemon, he placed my partner back on top of my backpack, along with my D-Terminal, before he turned to look up at the clouds. "That thing about the Digiegg of Friendship being meant for you because you had the fewest friends."

"Oh, that!" I laughed, but inside I was cringing. Oh. That. "Yeah, I was just kidding. Ha, ha."

"Which part?"

I sobered. Crap. "Huh?"

"Which part were you kidding about?" Matt pressed, looking at me again. "About it going to the person with the fewest friends or about you having the fewest friends?"

Double crap. How was I going to get out of this one? "Come on, Matt! It was a joke! I woulda thought that spending so much time with Tai would at least get you a sense of humor!"

"You know what I think?" he asked, ignoring my babbles. "I think you were only kidding about the first part, but you really meant the rest of it."

"Hang on. Which one was the first part again?" Maybe if I pretended not to understand what he was asking, he'd get frustrated and go away.

No such luck.

"I think you meant the part about you having the fewest friends."

"Oh," I sighed, defeated. "That part."

"So?" Matt twisted on the bench so he could glare at me more easily. I turned away, not wanting to make this easy for him. "Davis…"

"What does it matter?" I asked softly, realizing he wasn't going to give up. I guess he and Tai are both stubborn. No wonder they fight a lot.

I felt Matt's hand rest lightly on my shoulder. He was nervous; I could tell. It's like when Jun tries to actually get along with me and comfort me – she gets all awkward and keeps twitching when she's touching me because she doesn't know if she's doing it right but doesn't want to stop in case I get offended. Yeah. That was what Matt was like now. Hm. Maybe those two would make a good couple after all!

He stayed quiet a minute longer, probably trying to think of what to say. That's another thing Jun does. Maybe it's just an older sibling thing. "Listen," Matt said eventually. "Davis, you need to know you have friends. You're a digidestined. That army that was always ready to save my butt? You're part of that group now, Davis. We're all your friends."

"Sorta."

"No, Davis. Not 'sorta'. We are your friends. All of us are here for you if you ever need to talk, or just to have fun with someone. That's what friends are for."

I sighed. He didn't get it. Then again, how could he? I never even told Kari why she was so important to me, let alone T.B.'s big brother. "Well, sure, you're there, but I don't know if I can go to you guys. No offense." Concern written on his face, he picked up my backpack – DemiVeemon included – and moved it to the other side of him, scooting closer. I sighed.

"See, I don't really know any of you older kids. I mean, sure, we've gone to the Digital World together, and sure, Tai's basically my idol, but that doesn't automatically make us friends. I guess I'm sorta friends with the younger group, but Cody and I don't really see eye-to-eye. He's so different than me, and I just don't know how to act around him.

"Yolei's not much better. I'm sure T.A. – I mean, TK – has told you how much we fight. It seems like even when we both intend to get along, we just…don't."

I paused. "Then there's TK. You saw us fight today. I don't know what it is about him, but he just rubs me the wrong way!" Finishing my rant, I looked up at Matt.

"Well, Davis," he said slowly, searching for the right words. "Sometimes that's just how things are. Don't think the first team got along perfectly from the beginning, either! All that matters is that you find someone who you feel comfortable with, someone you can take strength from, and expand your friendships from there."

I snorted. "Easy for you to say. You had your brother with you."

Rolling his eyes, Matt leaned back. "TK was eight years old last time, Davis. He was the one relying on me for strength. I had to find someone else."

Surprised, I leaned back alongside him. "Oh yeah? Who was that, Tai?"

I never knew Matt could laugh so hard until that moment. "Oh, please!" he scoffed. "Tai?"

"What?" I demanded, glancing at DemiVeemon to see if I was the only one completely confused. My partner's eyes were about ready to fall out of his head. "What's so funny?"

Matt slowly got himself under control, snickering slightly. "Sorry, Davis. It's just that Tai and I weren't always best friends."

"Well, sure," I said. "You said earlier that you used to fight all the time. So? He was the first one you really connected with, right? I mean, you're so close now so it had to have started early."

"No way," Matt insisted, choking back another bout of hysterics. "We hated each other's guts for a long time." He shook his head, as if remembering something. "No, Tai was probably one of the last people I would turn to at first."

"Well then who did you take strength from?"

He smiled. "Sora."

"Really? Why?"

Shrugging, he laced his hands behind his head. "I don't really know. I guess it's because we were both a little upset with our parents and were a little hesitant to fully integrate into the team. I mean, Mimi was hyperactive, Joe was scared of everything, Izzy never stopped typing on his laptop, and Tai…Well, I thought Tai was a jerk, but he and Sora had known each other for a while before we came to summer camp that year."

"I was gonna say," I interrupted. "I usually see Sora hanging out with Tai, not you."

"Kinda like how Kari usually hangs out with TK, not you?"

He just had to bring that up, didn't he? I shot him my best glare, but he was just watching me. How was I supposed to talk about this with him? T.L. was his brother, after all.

"That's different," I insisted.

"Really?" Matt asked sarcastically. "How so?"

"Well, I like Kari as more than a friend, for one thing!"

"Do you like her as a friend, though?"

What kind of a question was that? Hadn't I just said I liked her as more than a friend? "It's more than just friendship, Matt. That's why I'm so mad that T.S. is stealing her!"

"First of all, that's my brother you're talking about, so I'd appreciate you at least getting his name right." I rolled my eyes, but Matt just sighed and glanced at me. "Second, that wasn't what I asked. I asked you if you liked her as a friend. Forget anything beyond that you might feel. If you took all that away, would you and Kari still have a relationship?"

"Y-y…" I couldn't say it. Just like when I wanted to tell Flamedramon I would risk my life to save him, I couldn't. I just didn't know. I sat up, trying to think straight. I know me and Kari were friends two years ago when I had just moved to Odaiba and she asked me if I wanted to have lunch with her. I know we were friends all through the last two years when she was the only person in the entire school I could talk to. I knew I still wanted to be her friend.

But I didn't know if she felt the same way.

I sighed. "Ever since TK moved in, Kari's been spending all her time with him," I admitted. "I know we're still friends. But I don't know if we're still best friends like we used to be. I think TK's her best friend now."

"Why does it have to be either him or you?" Matt sat up, too. I frowned at the grass under my feet, wanting to scream or punch TK or kiss Kari or something! I wasn't the kind of guy who could just sit around while someone else took his girl.

"She can only have one best friend, and since TK's got that position covered, the only way I can still be close to Kari is if I'm her boyfriend!"

"What?" Matt cried, nearly falling over onto DemiVeemon.

I stood up angrily, storming onto the field. "Forget it, Matt," I called over my shoulder. Suddenly I couldn't face him any more. Storm of Friendship is right. People are just too complicated.

Matt caught my wrist before I could leave the school grounds. "Hang on, Davis!" he urged. "Let's talk about this!"

"Why?" I demanded. "There's nothing to talk about. TK's Kari's best friend, and there's no way Kari will ever accept me as her boyfriend, so it's pretty obvious I need to just find someone else to help me 'expand my friendships'."

"Davis!"

"Shut up, Matt!" I yelled, pulling my arm free. "TK's your brother, so I already know you're going to side with him on this! Ugh, he's got everything! Looks, girls, athleticism, Kari, a brother who looks out for him, just like Tai looks out for Kari. All Jun ever does is obsess over you!"

"DAVIS!"

"Leave me alone! I don't even know why I got the stupid Digiegg of Friendship! I don't even have any real friends! All I've got it a bunch of teammates and lunch buddies! How did that make Veemon Armor Digivolve? I don't know what the Digiworld was thinking, but it sure messed up this time! Gah! Flamedramon was right! I don't understand anything about friendship! Maybe it doesn't even exist!"

POW!

All of a sudden, I found myself admiring the blue sky and the soft grass underneath me. Matt leaned over me, rubbing his hand and trying not to look guilty.

"Sorry, Davis," he said extending his good hand to me. "You remind me too much of Tai. Always ignoring me and only listening after I knock some sense into you." He chuckled nervously.

Rubbing my cheek, I blinked up at him. Had he really just punched me? I didn't know whether to be offended or honored. If a noogie welcomed me to the group, did a punch welcome me to his private circle?

"Hey, Matt," I grinned, taking his hand. "I think you just knocked my brain loose!"

"No wonder Tai gave you those goggles," Matt muttered, shaking his head. "I swear you could be his clone sometimes."

"I hope not," I said with as straight a face as I could manage. "Otherwise Tai's clone wants to date his own sister."

Matt groaned, turning to walk back to the bleachers. I followed, more to pick up DemiVeemon than because Matt was going that way. "Just what I need," I heard him sigh. "Another Tai."

I laughed, coming up alongside him. "Well, look at it this way: I've got the Digiegg with your crest and the one with Tai's. That means if you act quickly, I can be a mix of you and Tai!"

The look on Matt's face as he stopped dead was priceless. "No, really. That's okay."

"What's the matter?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm just scared for the safety of the world if you happen to get the wrong combination."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Courage and Friendship? What could be bad about that?"

Matt just laughed.

Once we reached the bleachers, I picked up my backpack, shifting things around so I could close it over DemiVeemon. Matt studied me silently, walking with me towards the street as I headed home. I couldn't help but wonder if he wanted to say something else.

"Hey, Davis?" he began just as I was about to ask. He had the weirdest look on his face, something between guilt and hesitation. I don't think I had ever seen Matt show emotions before that day, and certainly not anything like what I was seeing now.

"Yeah?" I asked, almost scared to hear his reply. I did my best to summon my courage. Or maybe Tai's courage would help me more.

He sighed, walking a few steps more before he turned his head to look me straight in the eye. "I'm sorry."

In my shock, I failed to see the curb as we stepped down it, and I almost hit the street face-first. Catching myself, I blushed and turned back to the blond. "Heh. Couldn't you have waited until we were on level ground to say that?" We shared a laugh, and I was surprised at how comfortable I felt with him all of a sudden. "Anyway, what are you sorry for, Matt?"

"For laughing at you when you made that comment about not having friends."

This time, I was truly glad we weren't walking. For a moment, I couldn't do anything but gape at him. I had almost forgotten about it by now, and I had been sure that Matt hadn't even given it a second thought.

He sighed, forcing himself to meet my eyes. "I'm just used to you always joking around, so I didn't stop to think whether or not you were being serious. I'm sorry. I wasn't being a very good friend."

I was laughing, bent nearly double, before I could stop myself.

"What?" Matt demanded, face flushed such a bright shade of red that I could only laugh harder. "Don't make me punch you again, Davis!" Holding my hands up in self-defense, I backed away, trying to control myself.

"Sorry!" I gasped. "Sorry! I'm sorry!"

Matt's face softened ever-so-slightly, but he was still glaring at me hard enough to make me cringe. "I think you've established that you're sorry. Now what were you laughing about?"

I shook my head, venturing to come closer to him again. "I was just thinking that the even the bearer of the crest of Friendship isn't always a good friend. It makes me feel a little bit better about my mistakes."

Matt allowed himself to smile and shrugged, throwing an arm around my shoulder. "Yeah, the Digital World's ironic like that. Then again, maybe it's just because friendship's one of the few things that takes a constant effort."

I paused to consider that, wondering if maybe that was why the Digiegg of Friendship had felt so much heavier than the Digiegg of Courage. Because Friendship took more work. Or maybe it was just because I was so unused to the concept of true friendship that I wasn't ready to lift it yet. Whatever the case, I thought at that moment that I had found someone else to look up to. Courage was all well and good, and Tai was still my idol, especially in soccer, but there were other people on the team. I needed to learn Friendship, too.

But suddenly, I wasn't in such a big hurry. I was willing to learn slowly, from all my friends, even TJ…TK. I did have one last question, though.

"Matt?"

"Yeah Davis?"

"Back there in the computer room, you said something about me not being the only one who had a lot to learn. Who else were you talking about?"

Matt didn't say anything for a while, and I was starting to wonder if he was even going to say anything at all. Finally, though, he spoke up. "I was talking about myself, Davis."

"You? But…why?"

"Because. Right before you got that Digiegg, I saw how you wanted everyone to know how much your friendships meant to you, and I found myself thinking, why don't I do stuff like that?"

"So…what are you saying, exactly?"

Matt smirked. "That friendship isn't something you really ever know completely."

"Oh." I sighed, dejected. That wasn't exactly encouraging.

I heard a chuckle. "It's also not something you can learn alone. So what do you say? Want to learn together?"

I smiled, taking a moment to hear the challenge in his voice. Oh, yeah. This was the kind of person I could get along with. Someone to push me, but tough enough that I could push back. Someone to draw strength from.

A true friend.

The first scene and the whole concept comes from episode 11, "The Storm of Friendship."

Edited August 28, 2010 (Nothing major. Just a couple of typos and rough grammar.)