Author's Note: This is a bit cliché, I'll admit, but I like it. This is yaoi, mainly Kaisuke/Kensuke, though it's also got a few het couples, like one-sided Miyaken and Hikeru.
Beta's Note: Yep, I've been suckered into doing the disclaimering again. When Rylyn said I'd get a part in her fic, I didn't know she meant this! Digimon doesn't belong to her, and if you feel like suing, go right ahead. You'll be on a waiting list, though; she still owes me ten bucks.
Loving You Against My Will
"Hey Daisuke?" Veemon asked, leaning against a wide rock that looked over a cliff. The sun was just setting in a final blaze of glory.
"Yeah, Veemon?" Daisuke replied, not taking his eyes off the sunset.
"You don't like Kari much anymore. Why not?"
Daisuke swiveled his head to look at his blue Digimon partner in surprise. "Why not?" he repeated. A slight blush stained the copper-haired boy's cheeks. "I don't really like girls anymore. I've been thinking about it a lot and I like boys better."
He had expected shock or disgust, but instead, he was met with Veemon's nod. "I guess I can understand that. Girls are really confusing, aren't they?"
Daisuke grinned in relief and looked back to the sunset. "Yeah, they are. Besides, it's hard to stay straight with TK around." Daisuke glanced quickly back at his partner. "But you can't tell anyone I like him."
Veemon's eyes widened. "Oh! So now instead of wanting Kari to be your girlfriend, you want TK to be your girlfriend?" he asked, understanding beginning to grip him.
Daisuke couldn't help laughing at Veemon's wording. "Yeah, that sounds about right. Except TK would be my boyfriend, not my girlfriend."
"Oh. What do you do with boyfriends?"
Daisuke's blush spread farther across his face. "Well... You... Uh... Go out to dinner! Yeah. You go out on dates together and hug and kiss and..." Daisuke trailed off, not wanting to get any more in depth on what boyfriends did.
"I know what a hug is, but what's a kiss? They're chocolate, aren't they?"
Daisuke laughed again. "A kiss is when you press your lips against another person. It's a way of showing you love someone."
"Why haven't you kissed me before?"
Daisuke shook his head, trying to stifle both his laughter and his blush. "A kiss is something you give to someone you love in a more... special way." he tried to explain.
He received an adorable pout from Veemon. "I'm not special?"
"Veemon! Not like that. Like a girlfriend-boyfriend special. Except this would be boyfriend-boyfriend special." Daisuke grinned. The sun fully set, casting a final flash of white before it disappeared beyond the hill. Daisuke tilted his head, watching in appreciation.
* * *
Ken froze that picture on his monitor. Daisuke's eyes were half closed in a sleepy look, and he was sprawled against a rock, looking utterly adorable as he watched the sun setting. The colors from the sky glanced off his hair, giving him a glowing aura of molten copper. He was the very picture of bliss, with his soft lips puckered into a pouty smile, something more real than the goofy grins he gave to his friends. His eyes glimmered with a radiance that seemed to be in awe of the light show before him.
Other screens played different scenes featuring Daisuke. In one, the brown-eyed boy's eyes were flashing angrily as he argued heatedly with TK. In another, Daisuke was laughing so hard that a tear ran down his face. Next to that, Daisuke was racing to catch up with Veemon as they played tag.
Ken's favorite was lit up on the biggest screen. In it, Daisuke was kneeling in a groveling position, defiance stripped from him as he bowed, begging. "Please, Master, save my pathetic friends."
Ken smiled fondly at the memory of having Daisuke kneeling and calling him Master. "You'll be doing it again, Daisuke Motomiya. And this time you'll love it."
* * *
"What!?" Daisuke demanded.
"You heard me all right. That Ichijouji boy liked the way you played. He wants a one-on-one match. Nothing formal." the coach shrugged.
"Play Ken again?" Daisuke stammered. The coach would probably think he was insane if he didn't agree, and it might be interesting to figure out what Ken had planned. After all, knowing Ken, this wasn't just about soccer. "Sure. Sounds great!"
"Atta boy." the coach grinned and slapped him on the back.
* * *
The game was held just three days later. Daisuke showed up a few minutes early in his soccer uniform and was shocked at the turnout. It wasn't as much as he would have expected for a normal soccer game, but for a casual, almost impromptu game, it was pretty surprising. Of course, this wasn't a typical in-the-park game. This was Ken Ichijouji's version of an in-the-park game.
Ken himself was the man of the hour, surrounded by a flock of fawning reporters. The moment he saw Daisuke, however, he broke free from their hold and raced up to Daisuke, a well-practiced smile plastered on his face. He grabbed Daisuke's arm and turned back to face the swarming reporters. "I'd like you to meet my friend Daisuke Motomiya." Ken announced.
"Since when am I your friend?" Daisuke muttered, beginning to wonder if this was all just a publicity stunt.
"Since now. Smile and be polite." Ken instructed quietly.
"Why should I?" Daisuke demanded, pulling his arm away.
Ken pretended to look thoughtful. "Hm, I wonder what Kari would say if she knew that you've been lying the entire time you've known her, saying you love her when your real interests lay more along the lines of TK?" Ken smirked, grabbing Daisuke's arm back.
Daisuke looked shock. Numbly, he didn't resist or pull away from Ken. Instead he smiled for the reporters' cameras. His mind raced. How had Ken figured out his secret? Another part of his mind was laughing at the irony. Ever since he was little, he had dreamed of making friends with Ken, to have Ken drag him into the media spotlight and smile at him the way he was now...
"Good luck, Daisuke." Ken called, his voice dripping with sarcasm that the reporters didn't detect.
"Yeah. You too." Daisuke replied as he ran jerkily onto the field.
Needless to say, Ken won. Daisuke did fairly well, however-- good enough to impress the reporters who insisted on taking several pictures of the boys together. As they posed, arms slung around each other's shoulders, Ken leaned in close whispering, "Come over to my house tonight, got it?"
Daisuke nodded mutely, smiling for another picture. As soon as the camera flashed, Ken broke away. "I'd better get going." Ken gave Daisuke a pointed look. "Don't forget, Daisuke."
"I won't forget." Daisuke agreed. He broke away from the hungry reporters who demanded to know what he meant by explaining that he was going to Ken's for dinner. After he broke from the reporters' grasp, he began running to his house. The new Digidestined caught up with him quickly.
"Did all that attention from the reporters go straight to your head or did you just forget about us?" Miyako demanded.
"Sorry guys. I don't know how it could have slipped my mind." Daisuke shrugged.
"What did Ken say to you?" Iori asked.
Daisuke shrugged again. "He just wished me good luck." he lied.
Kari gave him a searching look. "Daisuke, we're your friends. We can tell when something's wrong." she told him.
"I know that, Kari!" Daisuke tried. "Nothing happened. Ken was all buddy-buddy with me for the reporters. He didn't say anything except to wish me luck. It was all just a publicity stunt and didn't have anything to do with the Digiworld."
"Okay, Daisuke. If you say so." Kari replied quietly as Daisuke whirled around and continued to his house.
The moment Daisuke entered his room, Chibimon tackled him. "Did'ja win? Did'ja beat Ken?" the little ball of blue digital fluff asked eagerly.
Daisuke gave his partner a shaky smile. "No. I lost."
"Did he cheat? I bet he did, didn't he?" Chibimon demanded, puffing his cheeks out in anger.
"No, he didn't cheat. But..."
Chibimon gave Daisuke a curious look and hopped onto his bed. "What?"
"Remember how I told you not to tell anyone that I like TK?" Chibimon nodded in affirmation. "Well, the reason you weren't supposed to tell is because boys aren't really supposed to like boys. TK and the other Digidestined wouldn't like it. They'd be really mad at me."
"What's that got to do with Ken?" Chibimon wondered.
"Well, Ken found out and I'll bet you anything he's going to try to blackmail me!"
"Are you scared?"
"Of course not! Though this isn't exactly a good thing with Ken being an evil genius and all..."
"You're right. He knows some really big words."
Daisuke stared in confusion for a moment before he understood. "No, Chibimon, blackmailing doesn't have anything to do with letters or mail. Ken is going to make me do stuff and if I don't, he'll tell TK I like him and I'll be kicked out of the Digidestined team and they'll tell everyone at school and my family will find out... Everyone will hate me!"
"Don't worry, Daisuke! I'll always be your friend!" Chibimon assured the boy, nuzzling him beneath his chin.
Daisuke grinned nervously. "I guess I should probably get going, huh? Now isn't really the time to keep Ken waiting." Daisuke grabbed his Digivice. "I want you to wait in the Digiworld, okay? I'd ask someone to take care of you, but I don't really want to try to make up excuses for everything. If I'm not back by tomorrow, just find the other Digidestined. I'll drop you off where we're planning to clear tomorrow, so it shouldn't be a problem. Just tell the others that... I don't know, tell them my parents sent me to a military camp or something."
Chibimon stared at Daisuke with wide eyes. "You're not going to leave me behind, are you? I need to protect you!"
"I'm sorry, Chibi. I just don't want anything to happen to you."
"Well I don't want anything to happen to you!" Chibimon put on his most stubborn face as he said this. Why would Daisuke want to go anyways? Surely the others wouldn't hate him just because he liked TK! Liking people was a good thing!
"Chibimon, come on." Daisuke ordered.
Knowing that there was no room for further protesting, Chibimon sighed. "Okay, I'm coming."
* * *
Daisuke bit his lip and looked at the ground, neither knocking nor ringing the doorbell of the door to the Ichijouji residence. "Guess no one's home." he said aloud, relieved, though he was just trying to fool himself. He turned to leave when the door swung open.
"I knew I heard voices! Can I help you?" a cheery woman greeted.
"You're Ken's mom?" Daisuke stammered. He'd expected someone darker, more like Ken, not this chirpy lady. He knew that he probably had already known this from the countless interviews on television and in the news, but that was before he'd put Ken and the Digimon Kaiser together.
"Oh! Are you one of Ken's friends from school?" Ken's mom's looked ready to spill over with tears of joy, and Daisuke could almost see the dream sequence running through her mind of Ken and Daisuke being friends - something eerily similar to Daisuke's old dream. "Oh! I know who you are! Motomiya! The soccer player! Ken would probably have told me so much about you, but, well, he doesn't talk much at all!" The brunette laughed nervously, seeming partly afraid she would scare Daisuke away, and partly afraid she wasn't being a polite hostess.
"Yes, ma'am. My name's Daisuke." Daisuke nodded politely. "Is Ken home?"
"I think so. I'll check." she turned around and cupped her hands to her mouth. "Ken! You have a visitor!"
Ken entered the room within moments. "Come on, Daisuke." he said, motioning with a flick of his head for Daisuke to follow. Daisuke obeyed, a knot beginning to form in his stomach, like a group of sumo wrestlers were playing tug-of-war with his intestines but kept falling down.
"You've got a nice mom." Daisuke tried to make small talk.
Ken shrugged. "She's okay, I guess." his eyes darted to Daisuke's face. "I think you know what I want."
"Well, you're going to blackmail me. That much is obvious."
Ken smirked. "For someone who acts as stupid as you, you're pretty smart.
Unsure of whether to take this as a compliment or an insult, Daisuke just shrugged. "Yeah, whatever." It was funny, but he would have died for such a half-compliment from Ken Ichijouji just a few weeks ago.
Had it been such a short time ago that his favorite daydream was one where Ken befriended him? It would have all worked out perfectly if Ken hadn't done something as stupid as becoming the Digimon Kaiser. Then, Ken would have seen what a great soccer player Daisuke was and invited him over for reasons other than blackmail. They would become completely inseperatable best friends. Ken would tease him about not doing his homework, and in retaliation, Daisuke would tease Ken about being the media's "pet". They would both slowly realize that they both had deeper feelings for each other, that they were destined to be more than friends and...
Daisuke was pulled back to reality when he discovered Ken was staring at him. Turning his head from the intense violet scrutiny, Daisuke pretended to study Ken's bookshelves. "Have you really read all of these?"
"Yes." Ken answered. Inspiration sparked in his eyes and he asked, "Have you?"
Daisuke turned back to him, surprise etched in the chocolate depths of his eyes. "Why would you think that?"
"I told you: You're smarter than everyone gives you credit for. I refuse to make the mistake of underestimating you and writing you off as an idiot like the rest of you're so-called friends."
"So-called?" Daisuke demanded.
Ken ignored that remark for the moment. "Tell me truthfully which ones you've read."
Shrugging slightly, as if it weren't really any big deal, Daisuke pulled out a selection of books. "Oliver Twist... A Midsummer Night's Dream... The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn..." he trailed off, finding Ken staring at him again.
"I see it wasn't a mistake guessing that you were smarter than you let on." Ken said.
Daisuke looked at the ground guiltily. "So what if I like to read? It doesn't make me a genius or anything..." he glanced back up at Ken, regaining his fire. "Just get to the point. What are you going to blackmail me into? Helping you take over the Digiworld? Hurting innocent Digimon? No way. Out of the question."
One side of Ken's mouth upturned in a smirk. "I think you're forgetting who's in charge here, Dai-chan. Maybe I should give you a lesson to show who's got the power here." Ken turned from Daisuke, who stood, uncomfortable from both the affectionate nickname and the word "lesson".
"I'm not a little puppy! You can't just give me a `lesson' and tell me not to misbehave." Daisuke said hotly. "And besides, where do you get off on calling me Dai-chan?"
"Such appropriate wording." Ken remarked, sounding amused with the entire situation. From his dresser drawers, Ken pulled out a leather collar with a matching leash.
"No way! Why do you even have those in your room?" Daisuke demanded.
Ken didn't bother with a reply. Instead he hooked the collar around a humiliated Daisuke's neck and hooked the leash to it. Daisuke's eyes burned like coals with a heat to match the fire that burned on his cheeks. "This is stupid." he announced. "Get me out of this thing." He fumbled blindly with the foreign clasp on the collar.
Ken gave the leash a sharp tug, sending the redhead crashing to his knees. "Be more respectful." he ordered. He smiled with the delight of a child who found a new toy. "I want you to show me how respectful you can be: Kneel and call me Master."
"No way." Daisuke protested furiously, pulling himself to a sitting position on the floor. "I am not... no way. Not again."
Ken made a motion in the air as he pretended to dial an invisible phone. "Hello, is TK there?" he mocked. "Oh, hello TK! Yes, this is Ken. I just thought you might be interested to know that Daisuke has a crush on you. Oh? You don't believe me? Would you like to see the movies?"
"What movies?" Daisuke demanded.
"You think I don't know what goes on in my own domain? I've taped every moment of your pitiful existence here."
"You've been... watching me?" Daisuke asked, more puzzled than anything.
A series of Daisuke's most embarrassing moments ran through Ken's mind, all taped for his viewing pleasure. Now they could serve another interesting purpose: Making Daisuke suffer. Of course, it all led back to that same purpose of his viewing pleasures. And this would be much better. Interactive.
"Come on, Dai-chan." Ken ordered, specifically using the nickname Daisuke had protested against. "I want to show you something in the Digital World." Seeing the other boy's mahogany eyes narrow in suspicious, he added in exasperation, "Oh really, it's not like I'm planning on keeping you there."
"How can I trust you?" Daisuke demanded without a trace of the fear that Ken wanted to hear.
"You'll just have to. Digiport open!" Seconds later, both boys found themselves in Ken's fortress, the end of the leash clenched tightly in Ken's hand from when he had pulled Daisuke in. "Hurry up." Ken ordered, yanking Daisuke to his feet. Daisuke looked around him, for the first time showing signs of being truly nervous. To be in Ken's fortress without even Veemon to protect him...
The knot of fear began to tangle in Daisuke's stomach. This wasn't good.... He shrugged lightly in an attempt to regain his nonchalant attitude. "Whatever." he replied, confidant that he radiated his usual bravado, even as he eyed the walls of the castle warily.
It only took Ken a few minutes to edit his favorite clips together and edit them all into one delicious movie. "Sorry, no popcorn." the violet-eyed boy mocked as he slid the tape in. It began playing, beginning with Daisuke's first encounter with a Digimon -- the Numemon who had freaked him out within seconds of his arrival to the Digital World. It continued with practically every insult he had received, both to his face and behind his back. There was a lengthy scene from when Ken had tricked him into begging for mercy with the whole Bakemon stunt. It finally ended with Daisuke confessing his feeling about TK to Veemon.
"Your hand is shaking." Ken said bluntly.
"Why me?" Daisuke wondered, ignoring Ken.
"I told you once." Ken said impatiently. He repeated the words he told Daisuke once, right before the other boy had discovered his identity, "Seeing you squirm is so delicious."
Daisuke stared at the taller boy. "Why me?" he repeated.
Ken shrugged. "I have too much of a conscience, I suppose." he replied cryptically.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Daisuke demanded.
"I wouldn't expect you to understand. I love pain. But to hurt living things is wrong. It's torture and murder." he explained, as if to a small child.
Daisuke snorted. "Digimon are just as real as you and me!" he declared. "And besides, that didn't answer my question."
"You're only half correct, they are as real as you, but not as me. And I did answer your question. You see, Digimon are just bits of data. Not real. I can hurt them because they don't feel. And you. You're just a dream. Nothing as perfect as you could possibly exist."
Daisuke stared, too shocked to feel flattered with this compliment. "Me? Perfect? This coming from Ken Ichijouji, boy genius, soccer star, media pet? You're the one who's perfect!"
Ken laughed out loud at this. "I'm perfect, but I know I'm perfect, and therefore can't achieve the same level of perfection as someone as oblivious to their perfection as you."
This was over Daisuke's head, but he knew there was one major point he needed to make across. "I'm real! I've a family and friends! I've got a life! How could I possibly not be real?"
"Friends? Family?" Ken smirked. "Is that what you call them? To have friends and family, people have to actually care about you." Ken looked thoughtful. "I'll make you a deal."
"In other words, you'll stick me in some situation that's win-win for you, leaving me no choice but to surrender further to you." Daisuke guessed.
"Wrong." Ken said. "You have a choice. If you stay here with me for a full week, then you can check up on your so-called friends and family. I'll let you decide whether they care that you're gone or not. If they really do care, I'll let you go free and I'll never mention TK to you again. If they don't... You stay with me."
Daisuke stared in astonishment. "Can't I cheat?" he blurted.
"I suppose so, but I doubt you'll want to." Ken shrugged.
* * *
"I can't believe I'm scrubbing the Digimon Emperor's floors..." Daisuke mumbled angrily as he rubbed his raw knuckles tenderly, resting for a few precious seconds.
"Daisuke!" Ken called. Daisuke looked up, hoping for some kind of relief. Ken held a large cup of icy lemonade. It gleamed tantalizingly in its clear glass. Ken tipped the glass and the contents waterfalled to the ground. Daisuke's mouth burned, wishing fervently that Ken had allowed him just one sip of the refreshment. Ken yanked the redhead to the puddle of lemonade. "You missed a spot."
Seeing Daisuke's evident thirst, the Kaiser shrugged. "If you're that thirsty, lick it off the ground. I won't stop you. It might even be entertaining."
Daisuke glared hatefully at Ken, but didn't dare protest. He had learned his lesson earlier, when a few smart remarks had cost him nearly an hour of having Ken demonstrate that his whip was used for more than decoration.
After what seemed like hours, the floor was clean. Daisuke retreated to the closet-sized room Ken had given him when he had first arrived, and spent several minutes trying to figure out how to ease the pain in his knuckles. There was a soft knock on the door, and Daisuke looked up panickedly, despite the fact that Ken never knocked, and if he did, he wouldn't knock like -that-.
The door opened slowly, and Daisuke smiled shyly when Wormmon entered. The small caterpillar didn't look exceptionally dangerous; maybe he was safe. "I passed you in the halls earlier." Wormmon said helpfully. "You're hands looked hurt, so I brought some medicines. If you want them, that is..."
Daisuke thanked Wormmon gratefully and allowed the green caterpillar to bandage his hands. "I owe you one." he added.
"No, it's okay." Wormmon shrugged. "It's nice just knowing you're here. Everybody else here goes out of their way just to step on me and kick me because I'm so little. You didn't."
"Why are you partners with Ken anyways?" Daisuke asked questioningly. "He always hurts you."
"Ken wasn't always like this. He was kind and gentle once, and he really still is. That part's just buried beneath all that evil." Wormmon explained.
Daisuke looked at the floor, awash in a wave of pity for the small Digimon. Wormmon was so loyal and believing! How could Ken have the heart to be mean to him? "Thanks, Wormmon. It's nice to know I have a friend here." the brown-eyed boy said, a relieved smile playing on his lips.
Wormmon's eyes widened. "A friend? Is that what we are? Friends?"
Daisuke grinned at Wormmon's surprised reaction. "That's exactly what we are."
* * *
Ken shook his head in disgust as he looked away from his monitor where amidst the entertaining images of Daisuke, one showed Wormmon and Daisuke grinning at each other and talking animatedly. "Disgusting..." Ken murmured, "but necessary. Daisuke needs to have some comfort here, and I suppose Wormmon will suffice. Finally the pathetic worm shows a use. Took long enough."
* * *
"Daisuke." Ken snapped.
"Yes, Master?" Daisuke asked, noting exactly how easily the title slipped off his tongue.
"Just how many times -have- you asked Kari out on a date? Or should I ask how many times she's rejected you?" Ken asked, lounging in his throne.
"I've lost count, Master." Daisuke said honestly. "You know I never liked her."
"Oh yes, that's right. You liked Blondie. Hope. What's his name? TJ? TV? Not that you would know. You never could get it right."
Daisuke couldn't help but blush at Ken's casual reference to his crush. "Yes, Master."
"Tell me why you like him."
"His eyes. That's what I liked first. When I met him he was staring at me with those huge, sapphire eyes. There was something about the way he was looking at me... It was more than that he thought I was Tai. I saw something else..."
Ken frowned. Daisuke, who had never been able to confess this to anyone but Veemon-and the little blue Digimon never understood half of what he was talking about - was now gushing, positively loving this. "Something in his eyes? It was probably just dust." Ken said cruelly. "How could TK ever like you? He hates you!"
Daisuke stared at Ken, looking like he was a puppy who'd just been kicked by his owner. "He's been acting friendlier to me... I mean... he... he..."
"It's in your imagination." Ken rolled his eyes. "Why would TK like you? Get this through your dense head: TK hates you. He would be utterly sickened if you told him that you liked him. He loves Kari. I should think even a half-brained idiot like you could see that."
"Shut up. Just shut up! I don't want to hear it!" Daisuke yelled.
Ken's eyes narrowed at this insubordination and sent his whip crashing down on Daisuke's chest and shoulder. "I'm not going to shut up. You need to hear this: TK hates you. He sees you only as a threat to his claim on Kari. He thinks Tai should have chosen him as leader of the New Digidestined. He's jealous of you, and because of that, he hates you."
"Liar! Take that back!" yelled Daisuke, launching himself at Ken, throwing a punch ahead of him.
Ken caught the redhead's wrist easily. "Daisuke, Daisuke." he clucked. "When will you learn not to attack your betters?"
"A couple of days ago you said I was perfect." Daisuke accused.
Ken sighed in exasperation. "You just don't get it. Being perfect doesn't mean that you're better than me. It's like... Like one of those glass figurines you can buy. They're the most beautiful, perfect little things, but they can be crushed easily."
"You aren't making any sense!" Daisuke growled in frustration, glaring at the ground.
Ken pulled Daisuke's chin up with a surprisingly gentle touch. "Yes I am. You just don't want to understand."
"Then teach." Daisuke ordered, glaring.
"You want to obey. It's in your nature; I can tell. You get a rush every time I give you an order. Do you like it when I punish you?"
"No, I hate it!" Daisuke exploded. "I hate this! Damn you, Ken! Go back to Hell where you belong!"
Ken rolled his eyes. "I'm atheist." he retorted. He casually began to finger his whip. "Who's in charge here?"
Daisuke glared at Ken hatefully before dragging out the answer. "You are." Ken lashed the whip against Daisuke's upper arm. "Master!" the maroon-haired boy hastily added.
"Better," Ken shrugged. "but you still don't believe me."
"You're right, I don't. This is just for a week. I'll scrub your floors and call you Master. One week. Then I'll go back to my normal life, and I swear I'll kill you."
Ken gave Daisuke a cold look. "The week's not over yet."
* * *
"It's no big deal." Daisuke assured Wormmon. "Just a few cuts."
"He whipped you really hard, though. And did he punch you?" Wormmon asked, sounding concerned.
Daisuke touched his cheek gingerly. "Yeah, I guess he did. Is there a bruise?"
"Purple and blue." Wormmon affirmed. "It looks pretty bad."
Daisuke only shrugged. "Just another for my collection." He winced as Wormmon began cleaning his shoulder. "Ouch."
Wormmon glanced up at him apologetically. "Sorry."
Daisuke pulled out a grin. "Don't be. No pain, no gain!"
"Right." a voice agreed. It wasn't Wormmon. Daisuke didn't want to upset the work on his shoulder, so he stayed where we was, back to the door. "You should kneel and greet your master when he enters a room." Ken instructed, sounding angry.
"I can't put any weight on my knee. You kicked it." Daisuke replied dryly.
"Do you really think I care?" Ken snapped.
Wormmon took the cleaning materials off Daisuke's shoulder and Daisuke dropped to his knees, ignoring a searing pain in the left one. "Hello, Master." he said reluctantly. Ken began to circle Daisuke, looking angrier than he ever had before. Daisuke decided this was -not- the time to piss off Ken. "Can I get you anything?" he asked helpfully.
"No, I just came to watch you and Wormmon talk about your boring, pathetic lives." Ken said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
Daisuke bit back an equally biting reply and lowered his head submissively. Ken glared and stopped circling Daisuke. "Look at you, leader of the Digidestined. Absolutely pathetic." Ken mocked. Daisuke didn't bother dodging the kick that Ken sent to his ribs. "Master?" he tried to ask, but no sound came out. "Your little friends destroyed another control spire in one of the most valuable lands in my domain! How dare they!" Ken growled, kicking Daisuke again, sending the boy sprawling.
"I didn't have anything to do with it!" Daisuke protested as he found his voice.
This only earned him a boot in the face. "Shut up, Slave." Ken sneered.
Tears slipped down his face. This wasn't fair! He hadn't had anything to do with the Control Spire, so why was Ken punishing him? It hurt so bad... He just wanted the pain to go away!
Suddenly it stopped. Daisuke opened both eyes wide, expecting some sort of grand finale from Ken. Instead, he received a strange look from the violet-eyed emperor. "You were crying." Ken accused.
Daisuke clenched his eyes shut, burying his face in the ground. "I..." he tried. Ken flew from the room before he could finish.
"Daisuke?" Wormmon asked.
A tear fell down the Digidestined's cheek. The one thing he wanted right now was comfort. Wormmon was Ken's Digimon, not his. "Veemon... Where are you?" he wondered aloud.
"I'm sorry, Daisuke." Wormmon tried.
"Not your fault. Just leave me alone, okay?" Daisuke pleaded.
"But you're still hurt."
"Maybe later? I just need some time to think..."
"Sure." Wormmon agreed, leaving the room.
Daisuke lay on the floor, his entire body aching. He hurt so bad, both physically and emotionally. So why did he still like Ken? "I am so messed up..." he murmured to himself.
* * *
Ken shook his head in self-disgust. "I panicked." he muttered furiously. But that look on Daisuke's face... Ken had looked down, expecting pain, but instead he had been faced with tears. Why did Daisuke affect him like this? Why did it bother him that Daisuke was crying? He was the Digimon Emperor! He had -killed- countless Digimon. So why shhould one boy's tears make any difference?
* * *
Friday morning. Daisuke winced in pain. Maybe he should have asked Wormmon to fix him up. Reluctantly, he dragged himself out of his cot-like bed and slipped two fingers under the leather collar in a vain attempt to loosen it. His hand slid down to his leash, which he gave a hopeless tug.
"Admiring your pitiful state?" Ken mocked.
Daisuke jerked in surprise before falling to his knees. Too tired to be rebellious, he said the practiced words. "Good morning, Master." A sulky tone betrayed the self-loathing at his own submissiveness.
Ken smirked and took Daisuke's appearance in fully, drinking it in, searching for any flaw worth punishing. Finding nothing, he stood in front of the copper-haired boy, arms crossed. "I'm fighting the Digidestined today." he announced.
"What's so different from yesterday or the day before? You fought them then too." Daisuke replied warily, though his eyes never left the ground.
Ken noted this with an amused smile. "The difference is that today you're coming with me." he replied easily.
"I... What!?" Daisuke yelped, brown eyes meeting Ken's violet ones in a moment of panic.
Ken rolled his eyes. "Don't you want to see that blue rat of yours?"
"Well, yeah!" Daisuke admitted.
"If you're good, I'll let you come. If you're not, I'll -make- you come."
"Will you let me talk to him?" Daisuke asked pleadingly.
Ken's mouth twisted into an all-to familiar smirk. "If you beg nicely."
Daisuke lowered his eyes back to the ground. "Please, Master -"
"Not here, moron!" Ken snapped. "When we get there."
"In front of my friends?" Daisuke asked nervously.
"If you still call them that." Ken shrugged. "Until then, you can busy yourself cleaning my floors."
"I did that the other day!" Daisuke protested without thinking. Ken kicked him. Daisuke rephrased his reply: "Yes, Master."
* * *
Daisuke fidgeted nervously on the Airdramon's back. "Stop that." Ken ordered. Daisuke couldn't help it. Ken had given him new clothes, and they weren't exactly what he would have chosen. Tight leather pants encased his legs, feeling like a second skin. A tight silk shirt mocked him, bearing a familiar flame pattern on the bottom half. The collar and leash he had worn all week remained to serve as accessories. Ken had the leash wrapped tightly around his hand.
"I'm doing this for Veemon." Daisuke mumbled.
The Airdramon landed in front of a Control Spire. At the same moment, the other Digidestined burst on the scene. Daisuke's heart soared for one blissful moment.
Then it fell like a rock.
Kari's arm was snaked around TK's waist. When the blond boy saw the Airdramon, he unconsciously moved between the huge Digimon and Kari. His girlfriend. Obvious, now.
"What do you want?" Miyako demanded, though she was smiling. Of course. Her silly crush on Ken. How much more of an idiot could she be? She knew he hurt Digimon. She knew he killed. Yet she still pursued her pointless crush.
"I want a lot of things. For you to all to leave my garden would be nice. Seeing as how none of you want to, I'll settle for showing off my newest pet." Ken replied.
"That Airdramon could never beat the four of us!" TK said hotly.
"Oh?" Ken asked, "Only four of you?"
"Four's more than enough to handle you!" Miyako snapped.
"But where's you're worthless little leader?"
"Daisuke's at boarding school." Iori supplied after an uncomfortable pause. It was obvious no one believed that.
"Oh? Is he?" Ken asked, smirking.
"Yeah! As a matter of fact he is! His parents sent him there and now we're taking advantage of it!" Miyako replied with a glare. Daisuke noticed she didn't defend him. And just what did she mean by `taking advantage'?
Ken seemed to be reading his thoughts. "Taking advantage of the time he's gone?" he demanded. He glared at the violet haired girl. "Just what do you mean by that?"
Miyako looked exasperated. "He gets in the way. He's always leaping into things, and he argues with TK and me non-stop and he practically smothers poor Kari over there when she's already got a boyfriend!"
"Shut up! No one talks about Daisuke like that but me, got that?" Ken said angrily.
"What do you mean `but you'?" Kari protested sounding concerned.
"Why don't you come out, Daisuke? Tell them what you think?" Ken asked, overly sweet. He shoved Daisuke off the Airdramon roughly before jumping off himself.
A crimson blush spread over Daisuke's features as he saw that all eyes were on him. A whisper went up from among the Digidestined. The only distinctive word Daisuke could catch was "Bakemon", but with that word, the rest of the conversation could be guessed. Veemon stared at him, searching. Daisuke stared back. "If you're Daisuke, you gotta answer one question." Daisuke braced himself. "What's my favorite food?"
Daisuke couldn't help but laugh. "Chocolate! Everyone knows that!"
Ken yanked the leash roughly. "Did I give you permission to speak?"
"What do I have to get your permission?" Daisuke asked.
Ken glared. "I was going to have you just beg, but you made me mad. Beg me to kiss you."
"In front of them?"
"What do you think?"
Sighing with a show of reluctance put on for his friends' sake, Daisuke lowered himself to his knees. "I..." he stammered, his eyes wide and focused on the ground. What would his friends think of this? "I want you to kiss me. I need you to kiss me. Please, Master!" Daisuke paused to give Ken a pleading look that never failed. Ken motioned for Daisuke to go on, proving that Daisuke's reluctance had not gone unnoticed. Daisuke inhaled deeply. This was embarrassing enough when it was just Ken watching, but now with the others watching...
Daisuke let out a soft whimper and used his most pathetic voice, loud enough for the others to hear, "Please, Master? Kiss me?"
Ken pulled Daisuke into a powerful kiss. Skillfully, he gained entrance and began to re-explore Daisuke's now-familiar mouth. Daisuke was stunned for a moment, not returning the kiss whatsoever, despite the fact that Ken was trying to prod him into it. Snapping out of his brief haze, Daisuke bit down on Ken's tongue as hard as he could. This only served to amuse the blue-haired emperor, if not arouse him further.
"Oh. My. God." Kari's voice made Ken reluctantly break the kiss.
"Permission to speak?" Daisuke asked quietly, his voice controlled perfectly.
"Whatever." Ken shrugged. Daisuke vaguely noted that something was wrong, but he chose to ignore it. Why shouldn't he? Ken didn't mean anything to him. The violet-eyed boy leaned against a nearby tree, watching with amusement as Daisuke tried to explain himself to the others without revealing too much.
"You and him are..." Kari sounded sick.
"This isn't what it looks like. He's making me do all this." Daisuke tried.
"Well why the hell are you doing what he wants?" TK demanded.
"It's obvious: He's blackmailing me! Why else would I obey that brat?" Ken coughed lightly to remind Daisuke of his presence and that he would more than likely be paying for that remark. Daisuke flashed Ken a cute pout. "Well you -are- being a brat, making me clean the floors twice. Besides, I was just trying to get my point across." He turned back to the others. "Anyways, Ken's blackmailing me." For good measure, he added a thoughtful, "Duh."
"We're not going to hold it against you." Iori promised.
"How do you know? Do you know what I did?"
"No, but I'm sure-"
Daisuke shook his head and turned away from the younger boy in favor of his Digimon partner. "Veemon, I missed you!"
"Daisuke!" Veemon exclaimed, no longer held back by either Iori's hand or the serious conversation. "I bet I missed you a kazillion times more!"
"I know, but I'll be back soon for good. It's a promise."
"You can't break promises." Veemon warned.
"I know." Daisuke agreed solemnly. Both partners burst out laughing with wide grins. Ken looked on, an expression of distaste written clearly across his face. Yet something inside him was crumbling at the sight; not only Daisuke's happiness, but Veemon's as well. Could Wormmon and him ever be like that?
"Daisuke." Ken tried to say, but his voice trembled. He stopped, fighting for control until all the eyes of the Digidestined and their assorted partners were focused on him. Feigning nonchalance, he finished, "You can keep the blue rat with you as long as he stays out of my way.
"Really!?" Daisuke exclaimed. He wrapped Ken in a quick hug before turning back to Veemon, whom he also hugged. "Would you, Veemon?"
"You bet!" Veemon agreed happily.
Daisuke studied Ken seriously for a moment. "You won't hurt him, will you?"
The thought hadn't touched Ken's mind, but he rolled his eyes impatiently for effect. "Whatever."
"I get to stay with you! Now you won't feel so bad!" Veemon grinned.
"Right!" Daisuke agreed, exceedingly happy as he gave Veemon another tight hug. A non-Digidestined could never understand what it feels like to be away from their partner Digimon, especially when they're having an unbearably awful time, like in Daisuke's case. Or maybe it was just him. After all, the others had all been separated from their Digimon before and dealt with it pretty well, even when they weren't exactly having a good time.
"Come on Daisuke." Ken said abruptly. "I'm bored. We're leaving." When Daisuke opened his mouth to protest, Ken added, "You know, I think being around your friends has made you more rebellious. Maybe I should just leave Veemon here - I don't want him to have the same effect on you."
Daisuke shook his head quickly before looking back at the others. "Bye, guys." He gave Kari and TK a bitter smile. "Good luck."
"Daisuke... We won't... Whatever Ken's blackmailing you with... I mean... We won't hold it against you!" Kari pleaded. "We'll understand. I promise!"
Daisuke was tempted to ask her what she thought about him having a crush on her boyfriend. *Although,* he mused, *I don't think I do anymore.* He shook his head and flashed her another grin before following Ken back to the Airdramon, giving his collar a helpless tug that was more habit than attempt at escape.
Hikari Yagami's eyes followed him until he was out of sight. She just didn't understand him! What could he possibly be hiding that he thought they wouldn't understand? Was he gay? She had guessed for a while, after seeing the way his eyes traveled across boy's bodies in a way that was usually reserved for girls. Undressing them, almost.
Sure, homosexuality was wrong, but she was fairly open-minded. She could deal with it, maybe encourage him to become straight. She'd made up a practiced plan of what she would say if he ever came to her and told her he was gay. She would tell him that it was okay, she wasn't freaked out, and she was willing to help him change.
But he wasn't coming out. Either it wasn't his sexuality that was the issue, or he would rather be blackmailed by the Digimon Emperor than tell his friends. She prayed it was the former. If it was the later, did that just show that he didn't put much faith in his friends?
* * *
Daisuke felt oddly comfortable when he woke up on Sunday morning. Today was going to be great. Not only was it his last day here, but Veemon was with him. Daisuke had found over the past two days that Veemon had spent in the emperor's fortress, that the little blue dragon made everything okay. Like right now, Veemon was curled up on Daisuke's chest, snoring with a gusto that made Daisuke giggle slightly.
Veemon cracked one blurry eye open and gave a huge yawn before smiling and chirping, "G'mornin'!" in a sleep-slurred voice.
"Good morning." Daisuke grinned.
Veemon bounced off the bed, all tiredness leaving him. "When do we eat? I'm so hungry I'll dedigivolve into Hungveemon if your not careful!"
Daisuke laughed. "You'll just have to suffer. We've been over this before. Ken eats first. It's not going to change."
"But Ken eats sooo slow!" Veemon moaned.
"Don't say that!" Daisuke warned nervously. "Ken might hear."
"But it's true! It's like someone pushed the slow-motion button on his VCR!"
Daisuke giggled, for the second time that morning. "Come on, Vee! Stop it!"
"But I like to see you smile!" Veemon protested.
"And I like smiling! But not when you insult Ken. Ken's not slow. He's just... Sorta graceful. Pretty."
A timid knock sounded on the door before Daisuke could get any further. "Daisuke-san!" Wormmon called.
"Come in!" the redhead replied cheerfully.
Wormmon entered, looking nervously around, his eyes finally landing on Veemon. "I was wondering if maybe I could talk to Veemon? Alone? Just for a few moments?" he asked Daisuke, though his gaze never left Veemon's.
"Can I? Can I can I can I?" Veemon pleaded.
"Sure thing. I'll meet you back here after I'm done in the kitchens." Daisuke agreed.
"Okay! See ya, then. Don't get in trouble!" Veemon said, as Daisuke got ready to leave the room.
Daisuke flashed Veemon a genuine grin as he left. "Same to you, Vee!"
Within a few minutes, Daisuke found himself at Ken's door, awkwardly balancing a tray laden with food. When he'd first began, earlier that week, he'd had a hard time, and when he'd knocked, he'd dropped the tray. *Who knows? If I stay here longer, I'll have this down perfectly!* he mused as he used his free hand to knock on the door. *...Not that I plan on staying here out of my own free will, of course.*
"Come in, Daisuke." Ken's voice ordered from within. Daisuke noted absently that the bluenette's voice sounded just a touch wistful as he entered. He laid the tray on the table, next to various computer printouts that Ken was poring over. "Today's your last day." Ken said bluntly.
"Yeah, it is." Daisuke agreed.
"You can go if you want. There's no point in you staying." Ken said, with a very un-Kaiser sigh. It sounded almost... defeated. Daisuke wondered over this. How could Ken be so defeated when he was obviously winning the war waged between him and the Digidestined? For every control spire they took down, he put up another five, it seemed. So why would he be so defeated? The violet-eyed emperor handed Daisuke two small devices.
"My D-3 and Digivice!" Daisuke exclaimed, his entire face lighting up.
"Go pick up your Digimon and come back here to open a Digiport on my computer." Ken instructed.
Daisuke gave Ken a searching look. "Ken, why don't you join the Digidestined?"
"Because I'm the Digimon Emperor." the boy replied, though there wasn't much conviction behind his voice.
"Come on... Please, you've got to! That would be so much better than having to fight you!"
"There's only one thing that your team has to offer me. As much as I want it... Well, I doubt I'd be able to have it even if I did join you. Being the emperor holds much more for me."
This cryptic answer threw Daisuke off a little. "Well... If you ever decide that that 'thing' is more important than being emperor, don't hesitate to talk to me. And even if we are on different sides... well, maybe we can be friends, too."
Ken was absolutely shocked. "Even after everything I've done to you? I've blackmailed you, enslaved you, beaten you... How can you offer me your friendship just like that?"
Daisuke pondered this question for a bit. "I've talked to Wormmon. He says you weren't always like this. He told me what you were like before. And that person is someone I'd really like to get to know. I guess I didn't get the Crest of Friendship for nothing, huh?"
Ken shook his head. "I don't get you."
Daisuke gave a grin. "I don't get myself, usually. I'd be surprised if you did. See ya!" Daisuke disappeared out the door, still beaming about his newfound freedom.
Daisuke cut off almost three minutes as he sprinted back to his bedroom. He knocked politely on his door, not wanting to interrupt whatever it was Wormmon wanted to tell Veemon. There wasn't an answer. He knocked again. Still, no answer. Finally, Daisuke opened the door slowly.
Daisuke was shocked at what he'd founded. Veemon and Wormmon were locked in a deep kiss, the kind that could only be described by "soul-shattering". Daisuke sat on the bed, and a few seconds later, they broke the kiss.
Veemon smiled sheepishly. "Um, thanks for explaining what a kiss is!" he said hesitantly.
"You aren't mad, are you?" Wormmon asked worriedly. "I don't want you to be mad."
"I'm not mad!" Daisuke assured them both. "Surprised, yes. Mad? Absolutely not."
"Even though Wormmon's partner is Ken!" Veemon asked.
"Especially because of that." Daisuke replied. Veemon and Wormmon exchanged a look. "Because maybe this connection between you guys will influence him to join us somehow!" Daisuke added hastily.
Veemon and Wormmon grinned at each other. "Okay." Veemon said.
"If you say so." Wormmon added.
"This probably isn't the best time to say this, but Ken said we could leave early. Like right now." Daisuke said.
"Right now?" Veemon asked, looking stricken.
"You should leave now, before Ken-chan changes his mind." Wormmon encouraged. "We'll see each other again."
"In battle." Veemon agreed wistfully.
Daisuke frowned. This wasn't right! Wormmon and Veemon shouldn't have to be on opposite sides! They should be together! Just another reason why Ken should join the Digidestined. Even Romeo and Juliet hadn't been this star-crossed! At least they didn't have to fight each other.
"I don't want Daisuke to get hurt, though." Veemon added.
Daisuke gave Veemon a smothering hug. "I'm sorry, Vee! Maybe I can talk to Ken. Maybe he'll let you and Wormmon still see each other."
"It's okay." Veemon said, returning the hug. "It's not your fault."
"Bye Vee-chan!" Wormmon called.
"Bye Worm-chan!" Veemon called back.
"Thanks for everything, Wormmon." Daisuke added. "And I promise to talk to Ken, okay?"
They left the room, and were back in Ken's room in no time flat. "Hey, Ken!" Daisuke called cheerfully. Ken looked up from his work. He looked as if he'd been crying, but Daisuke was sure he simply imagining it.
"Don't call me that." the boy said, irritated.
Daisuke ignored him. "I was wondering if Wormmon and Veemon could get together sometime. For a date or something?"
"Whatever." Ken replied listlessly.
"Right. I'll... uh... keep in touch then. Okay?" When he didn't receive an answer, the copper-haired boy opened a Digiport and left, giving Ken a quick wave goodbye.
Daisuke tumbled out of the other side, and he felt almost born anew. What an experience. He'd spent more time than any of the other Digidestined had in the Digiworld. Well, except the older Digidestined and Ken. But he'd still spent more time than Miyako or Iori! Leaving Chibimon to forage through his junk food stash, he walked out of his room, seeing everything in a completely different light. He met his sister in the living room, sprawled across a chair.
"Hi, Jun." he greeted, expecting a shriek of anger and demands of where he'd been.
"Hey, brat." she replied calmly. "Where'd you get that shiner?"
Daisuke stared. "You mean you never even noticed I was gone?" he asked. Jun gave him a questioning gaze before returning to her magazine.
Daisuke walked into the kitchen. "Hi, mom."
"Hi, hon." Mrs. Motomiya replied vacantly. "You've been keeping to yourself lately."
"I've been gone all week." Daisuke said through gritted teeth.
"Jun had to do all your chores. That wasn't very nice."
That was the last straw, and Daisuke ran back upstairs. He picked up his D-3 and checked the e-mail. There was a short list of e-mails, mostly ones directed towards the entire group. "Meeting at my house at noon -- Kari", or "Let's go to the Digiworld after school today. Computer lab at three. -- Miyako". A few were directed towards him, wondering where he was. Miyako's was the longest, a rant about how he shouldn't have made up that stupid story about boarding school just to get away from his duties as a Digidestined, and how he shouldn't have saddled her with Chibimon because he was eating her out of house and home. Daisuke rolled his eyes.
The last e-mail was from TK, announcing that there would be a meeting that Sunday at 9:00. Daisuke glanced at the clock on the wall. It was already 9:08, and it took him ten minutes to ride his bike to the school. He'd never make it. But who said he wasn't allowed to try? Daisuke showed the e-mail to Chibimon, who insisted it would be fun to see the others again, so they packed up and left.
* * *
"Hey, guys!" Daisuke said cheerfully as he opened the door, relieved he'd caught them before they'd actually left.
"Daisuke!" Kari yelped, leaping from her position on TK's lap.
"Did I surprise you?" Daisuke asked, his good mood failing.
"We weren't expecting you." TK tried to explain.
"Oh, so that's why you were letting her sit on your lap? You thought that I wasn't smart enough to figure it out? I already knew. I've known. Why did you think you could hide it from me? More importantly, why didn't you just tell me?" he received no answer. "How long, have you guys been going out, anyways?"
"A couple days after TK moved here, he asked me out." Kari said uncomfortably.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Daisuke repeated, a hurt expression on his face.
"We knew you'd just make a scene -- like you are now!" Miyako butted in, from her position at the computer with Iori.
"You know what? Forget this. If you guys are convinced that you're just so much better without me, then I'll just leave." This said, Daisuke walked out, slamming the door behind him. *Looks like Ken really did win our bet.* he thought angrily. *Who would've guessed?*
His destination was the soccer field. He let Chibimon sit on the bleachers, and found a spare ball that someone had left. He kicked it onto the field and began playing a game against imaginary players.
He didn't even let his face register in surprise when a real-life Ken Ichijouji took the place of the imaginary players, stealing the ball and scoring a goal. They played against each other for hours, neither meeting each other's eyes nor speaking. Ken won easily, but Daisuke still scored quite a few and blocked several of Ken's shots.
Suddenly Ken shifted gears and passed the ball to Daisuke. Instantly recognizing Ken's body movement as one that read "teammate", Daisuke set Ken up for a good shot before passing it back. They racked up the points easily, pulling all the most intricate plays they knew. Though Daisuke looked like a clumsy sloth compared to Ken when they were on opposing soccer teams, he was an amazing angel on the field when he was -with- Ken. He was even better than the other boys who had played on Ken's old team, who had been like soldiers under their general instead of death-defying angels of death.
It was getting dark when the stopped, and the sun was setting a blaze of pinks and purples. They sat on the bleachers, next to each other, but not together, gazing at the sight set before them. Ken was reminded of the film he had used to blackmail Daisuke, with the sun's last light turning Daisuke into a copper-tinted example of peacefulness. He also noted on the bleachers, Minomon and Chibimon were curled together, asleep. Ken couldn't resist giving the thought of the possibilities of creatures made of computer data being able to survive in the real world -- something that should have been impossible. He promised to begin governing them better, since they were becoming more and more real. He'd make a good emperor yet, uniting the entire Digiworld... joining Data, Vaccine, and Virus into one huge kingdom of progress...
"They look happy together." Daisuke said, gesturing towards the two Digimon. It was the first time either of them had spoken, and the noise sounded loud -- though not unpleasant.
"Yeah." Ken agreed, leaning back against the bleachers behind him.
Daisuke gave him a strange look. "Why do you do this to me?"
Ken looked vaguely confused. "Do what?"
"Just when I think I hate you, you do stuff like this and I can't! Do you know how hard that is?"
Ken stared. "I... don't know.."
Daisuke glared, though there wasn't much force behind it. "So the Digimon Emperor is finally at a loss of words." he retorted. He shook his head. "Look, right now, I'm mad at you, so deal with it. You come walking in to play soccer, and you make me fall for you all over again! But Minomon and Chibimon are happy."
Ken gave Daisuke a wry grin. "They really are certain that there's something special between us." he told the chocolate-eyed boy. "Wormmon told me all about it."
Daisuke gave Ken a thoughtful look. "You've changed, you know. Before, you wouldn't have even let Wormmon talk to you, much less listen to him."
"Maybe I have changed. I've realized a few things, that's for sure."
"Like?"
"Like that maybe I shouldn't hurt Digimon so much. The more I look at them... Especially here in the real world... The more real I decide they are."
"So you're just going to give up world domination?" Daisuke asked dubiously.
Ken frowned, and gave Daisuke a withering glare, reminding Daisuke that however nice Ken might be, he was still the Kaiser. "No. But I'm going to go about it a better way. I already have allies in the Virus group. Once I disable the control towers, I'm sure I can completely unify the Digiworld."
Daisuke didn't laugh, as he'd expected. "That sounds like a good idea. From what I've heard from the older Digidestined, there can be some major problems when evil Digimon get out of control."
Ken smiled, and they finished watching the sunset, the silence more companionable now. Just as the final flashes of light burst from the horizon, Ken looked at Daisuke. He was welcomed by that smile he'd watched through his monitor... How long ago was it? A week? That seemed too short to accommodate for all that had happened.
"Daisuke... Did you notice when we played soccer that when we played against each other, we didn't score nearly as many points as when we played together?"
"Yeah...Common sense. Two heads are better than one."
"I think that we could really accomplish a lot if we teamed up."
"What? Like rule the Digital World?"
Ken hesitated before answering. Had that been interest in Daisuke's voice, or had he been imagining it? "Well, yes. You keep telling me I should join the Digidestined. It's my turn to ask you to join me. Turnabout is fair play."
"It is, isn't it?" Daisuke asked. "Turnabout being fair play, I mean. It's like the saying goes, an eye for an eye."
"That's not the same."
"But it's almost the same thing. Only this is more like a temptation for a temptation. I think I'm giving in, though. It's not really fair. You would lose more and gain less if you left your post as emperor. I'd lose nothing and gain everything."
"Fair? I'm allowed to cheat. You already belong to me, really. After all, your friends and family didn't really miss you, did they? That was the original deal."
"They barely noticed I was gone... You're right. I'll accept your offer." Daisuke turned toward the boy, taking his eyes off the horizon bearing a moonrise. "And Ken? One last thing..." he kissed the violet boy soundly on the lips. "I don't think I'd mind being in love with you."
Author's Note: I have an epilouge planned out for this, though I'm not sure if I'll post it. It sheds some light to some unexplained questions in this part, the foremost and most important being: Do Ken and Daisuke succeed in conquering the Digiworld?
Beta's Note: Yep, I've been suckered into doing the disclaimering again. When Rylyn said I'd get a part in her fic, I didn't know she meant this! Digimon doesn't belong to her, and if you feel like suing, go right ahead. You'll be on a waiting list, though; she still owes me ten bucks.
Loving You Against My Will
"Hey Daisuke?" Veemon asked, leaning against a wide rock that looked over a cliff. The sun was just setting in a final blaze of glory.
"Yeah, Veemon?" Daisuke replied, not taking his eyes off the sunset.
"You don't like Kari much anymore. Why not?"
Daisuke swiveled his head to look at his blue Digimon partner in surprise. "Why not?" he repeated. A slight blush stained the copper-haired boy's cheeks. "I don't really like girls anymore. I've been thinking about it a lot and I like boys better."
He had expected shock or disgust, but instead, he was met with Veemon's nod. "I guess I can understand that. Girls are really confusing, aren't they?"
Daisuke grinned in relief and looked back to the sunset. "Yeah, they are. Besides, it's hard to stay straight with TK around." Daisuke glanced quickly back at his partner. "But you can't tell anyone I like him."
Veemon's eyes widened. "Oh! So now instead of wanting Kari to be your girlfriend, you want TK to be your girlfriend?" he asked, understanding beginning to grip him.
Daisuke couldn't help laughing at Veemon's wording. "Yeah, that sounds about right. Except TK would be my boyfriend, not my girlfriend."
"Oh. What do you do with boyfriends?"
Daisuke's blush spread farther across his face. "Well... You... Uh... Go out to dinner! Yeah. You go out on dates together and hug and kiss and..." Daisuke trailed off, not wanting to get any more in depth on what boyfriends did.
"I know what a hug is, but what's a kiss? They're chocolate, aren't they?"
Daisuke laughed again. "A kiss is when you press your lips against another person. It's a way of showing you love someone."
"Why haven't you kissed me before?"
Daisuke shook his head, trying to stifle both his laughter and his blush. "A kiss is something you give to someone you love in a more... special way." he tried to explain.
He received an adorable pout from Veemon. "I'm not special?"
"Veemon! Not like that. Like a girlfriend-boyfriend special. Except this would be boyfriend-boyfriend special." Daisuke grinned. The sun fully set, casting a final flash of white before it disappeared beyond the hill. Daisuke tilted his head, watching in appreciation.
* * *
Ken froze that picture on his monitor. Daisuke's eyes were half closed in a sleepy look, and he was sprawled against a rock, looking utterly adorable as he watched the sun setting. The colors from the sky glanced off his hair, giving him a glowing aura of molten copper. He was the very picture of bliss, with his soft lips puckered into a pouty smile, something more real than the goofy grins he gave to his friends. His eyes glimmered with a radiance that seemed to be in awe of the light show before him.
Other screens played different scenes featuring Daisuke. In one, the brown-eyed boy's eyes were flashing angrily as he argued heatedly with TK. In another, Daisuke was laughing so hard that a tear ran down his face. Next to that, Daisuke was racing to catch up with Veemon as they played tag.
Ken's favorite was lit up on the biggest screen. In it, Daisuke was kneeling in a groveling position, defiance stripped from him as he bowed, begging. "Please, Master, save my pathetic friends."
Ken smiled fondly at the memory of having Daisuke kneeling and calling him Master. "You'll be doing it again, Daisuke Motomiya. And this time you'll love it."
* * *
"What!?" Daisuke demanded.
"You heard me all right. That Ichijouji boy liked the way you played. He wants a one-on-one match. Nothing formal." the coach shrugged.
"Play Ken again?" Daisuke stammered. The coach would probably think he was insane if he didn't agree, and it might be interesting to figure out what Ken had planned. After all, knowing Ken, this wasn't just about soccer. "Sure. Sounds great!"
"Atta boy." the coach grinned and slapped him on the back.
* * *
The game was held just three days later. Daisuke showed up a few minutes early in his soccer uniform and was shocked at the turnout. It wasn't as much as he would have expected for a normal soccer game, but for a casual, almost impromptu game, it was pretty surprising. Of course, this wasn't a typical in-the-park game. This was Ken Ichijouji's version of an in-the-park game.
Ken himself was the man of the hour, surrounded by a flock of fawning reporters. The moment he saw Daisuke, however, he broke free from their hold and raced up to Daisuke, a well-practiced smile plastered on his face. He grabbed Daisuke's arm and turned back to face the swarming reporters. "I'd like you to meet my friend Daisuke Motomiya." Ken announced.
"Since when am I your friend?" Daisuke muttered, beginning to wonder if this was all just a publicity stunt.
"Since now. Smile and be polite." Ken instructed quietly.
"Why should I?" Daisuke demanded, pulling his arm away.
Ken pretended to look thoughtful. "Hm, I wonder what Kari would say if she knew that you've been lying the entire time you've known her, saying you love her when your real interests lay more along the lines of TK?" Ken smirked, grabbing Daisuke's arm back.
Daisuke looked shock. Numbly, he didn't resist or pull away from Ken. Instead he smiled for the reporters' cameras. His mind raced. How had Ken figured out his secret? Another part of his mind was laughing at the irony. Ever since he was little, he had dreamed of making friends with Ken, to have Ken drag him into the media spotlight and smile at him the way he was now...
"Good luck, Daisuke." Ken called, his voice dripping with sarcasm that the reporters didn't detect.
"Yeah. You too." Daisuke replied as he ran jerkily onto the field.
Needless to say, Ken won. Daisuke did fairly well, however-- good enough to impress the reporters who insisted on taking several pictures of the boys together. As they posed, arms slung around each other's shoulders, Ken leaned in close whispering, "Come over to my house tonight, got it?"
Daisuke nodded mutely, smiling for another picture. As soon as the camera flashed, Ken broke away. "I'd better get going." Ken gave Daisuke a pointed look. "Don't forget, Daisuke."
"I won't forget." Daisuke agreed. He broke away from the hungry reporters who demanded to know what he meant by explaining that he was going to Ken's for dinner. After he broke from the reporters' grasp, he began running to his house. The new Digidestined caught up with him quickly.
"Did all that attention from the reporters go straight to your head or did you just forget about us?" Miyako demanded.
"Sorry guys. I don't know how it could have slipped my mind." Daisuke shrugged.
"What did Ken say to you?" Iori asked.
Daisuke shrugged again. "He just wished me good luck." he lied.
Kari gave him a searching look. "Daisuke, we're your friends. We can tell when something's wrong." she told him.
"I know that, Kari!" Daisuke tried. "Nothing happened. Ken was all buddy-buddy with me for the reporters. He didn't say anything except to wish me luck. It was all just a publicity stunt and didn't have anything to do with the Digiworld."
"Okay, Daisuke. If you say so." Kari replied quietly as Daisuke whirled around and continued to his house.
The moment Daisuke entered his room, Chibimon tackled him. "Did'ja win? Did'ja beat Ken?" the little ball of blue digital fluff asked eagerly.
Daisuke gave his partner a shaky smile. "No. I lost."
"Did he cheat? I bet he did, didn't he?" Chibimon demanded, puffing his cheeks out in anger.
"No, he didn't cheat. But..."
Chibimon gave Daisuke a curious look and hopped onto his bed. "What?"
"Remember how I told you not to tell anyone that I like TK?" Chibimon nodded in affirmation. "Well, the reason you weren't supposed to tell is because boys aren't really supposed to like boys. TK and the other Digidestined wouldn't like it. They'd be really mad at me."
"What's that got to do with Ken?" Chibimon wondered.
"Well, Ken found out and I'll bet you anything he's going to try to blackmail me!"
"Are you scared?"
"Of course not! Though this isn't exactly a good thing with Ken being an evil genius and all..."
"You're right. He knows some really big words."
Daisuke stared in confusion for a moment before he understood. "No, Chibimon, blackmailing doesn't have anything to do with letters or mail. Ken is going to make me do stuff and if I don't, he'll tell TK I like him and I'll be kicked out of the Digidestined team and they'll tell everyone at school and my family will find out... Everyone will hate me!"
"Don't worry, Daisuke! I'll always be your friend!" Chibimon assured the boy, nuzzling him beneath his chin.
Daisuke grinned nervously. "I guess I should probably get going, huh? Now isn't really the time to keep Ken waiting." Daisuke grabbed his Digivice. "I want you to wait in the Digiworld, okay? I'd ask someone to take care of you, but I don't really want to try to make up excuses for everything. If I'm not back by tomorrow, just find the other Digidestined. I'll drop you off where we're planning to clear tomorrow, so it shouldn't be a problem. Just tell the others that... I don't know, tell them my parents sent me to a military camp or something."
Chibimon stared at Daisuke with wide eyes. "You're not going to leave me behind, are you? I need to protect you!"
"I'm sorry, Chibi. I just don't want anything to happen to you."
"Well I don't want anything to happen to you!" Chibimon put on his most stubborn face as he said this. Why would Daisuke want to go anyways? Surely the others wouldn't hate him just because he liked TK! Liking people was a good thing!
"Chibimon, come on." Daisuke ordered.
Knowing that there was no room for further protesting, Chibimon sighed. "Okay, I'm coming."
* * *
Daisuke bit his lip and looked at the ground, neither knocking nor ringing the doorbell of the door to the Ichijouji residence. "Guess no one's home." he said aloud, relieved, though he was just trying to fool himself. He turned to leave when the door swung open.
"I knew I heard voices! Can I help you?" a cheery woman greeted.
"You're Ken's mom?" Daisuke stammered. He'd expected someone darker, more like Ken, not this chirpy lady. He knew that he probably had already known this from the countless interviews on television and in the news, but that was before he'd put Ken and the Digimon Kaiser together.
"Oh! Are you one of Ken's friends from school?" Ken's mom's looked ready to spill over with tears of joy, and Daisuke could almost see the dream sequence running through her mind of Ken and Daisuke being friends - something eerily similar to Daisuke's old dream. "Oh! I know who you are! Motomiya! The soccer player! Ken would probably have told me so much about you, but, well, he doesn't talk much at all!" The brunette laughed nervously, seeming partly afraid she would scare Daisuke away, and partly afraid she wasn't being a polite hostess.
"Yes, ma'am. My name's Daisuke." Daisuke nodded politely. "Is Ken home?"
"I think so. I'll check." she turned around and cupped her hands to her mouth. "Ken! You have a visitor!"
Ken entered the room within moments. "Come on, Daisuke." he said, motioning with a flick of his head for Daisuke to follow. Daisuke obeyed, a knot beginning to form in his stomach, like a group of sumo wrestlers were playing tug-of-war with his intestines but kept falling down.
"You've got a nice mom." Daisuke tried to make small talk.
Ken shrugged. "She's okay, I guess." his eyes darted to Daisuke's face. "I think you know what I want."
"Well, you're going to blackmail me. That much is obvious."
Ken smirked. "For someone who acts as stupid as you, you're pretty smart.
Unsure of whether to take this as a compliment or an insult, Daisuke just shrugged. "Yeah, whatever." It was funny, but he would have died for such a half-compliment from Ken Ichijouji just a few weeks ago.
Had it been such a short time ago that his favorite daydream was one where Ken befriended him? It would have all worked out perfectly if Ken hadn't done something as stupid as becoming the Digimon Kaiser. Then, Ken would have seen what a great soccer player Daisuke was and invited him over for reasons other than blackmail. They would become completely inseperatable best friends. Ken would tease him about not doing his homework, and in retaliation, Daisuke would tease Ken about being the media's "pet". They would both slowly realize that they both had deeper feelings for each other, that they were destined to be more than friends and...
Daisuke was pulled back to reality when he discovered Ken was staring at him. Turning his head from the intense violet scrutiny, Daisuke pretended to study Ken's bookshelves. "Have you really read all of these?"
"Yes." Ken answered. Inspiration sparked in his eyes and he asked, "Have you?"
Daisuke turned back to him, surprise etched in the chocolate depths of his eyes. "Why would you think that?"
"I told you: You're smarter than everyone gives you credit for. I refuse to make the mistake of underestimating you and writing you off as an idiot like the rest of you're so-called friends."
"So-called?" Daisuke demanded.
Ken ignored that remark for the moment. "Tell me truthfully which ones you've read."
Shrugging slightly, as if it weren't really any big deal, Daisuke pulled out a selection of books. "Oliver Twist... A Midsummer Night's Dream... The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn..." he trailed off, finding Ken staring at him again.
"I see it wasn't a mistake guessing that you were smarter than you let on." Ken said.
Daisuke looked at the ground guiltily. "So what if I like to read? It doesn't make me a genius or anything..." he glanced back up at Ken, regaining his fire. "Just get to the point. What are you going to blackmail me into? Helping you take over the Digiworld? Hurting innocent Digimon? No way. Out of the question."
One side of Ken's mouth upturned in a smirk. "I think you're forgetting who's in charge here, Dai-chan. Maybe I should give you a lesson to show who's got the power here." Ken turned from Daisuke, who stood, uncomfortable from both the affectionate nickname and the word "lesson".
"I'm not a little puppy! You can't just give me a `lesson' and tell me not to misbehave." Daisuke said hotly. "And besides, where do you get off on calling me Dai-chan?"
"Such appropriate wording." Ken remarked, sounding amused with the entire situation. From his dresser drawers, Ken pulled out a leather collar with a matching leash.
"No way! Why do you even have those in your room?" Daisuke demanded.
Ken didn't bother with a reply. Instead he hooked the collar around a humiliated Daisuke's neck and hooked the leash to it. Daisuke's eyes burned like coals with a heat to match the fire that burned on his cheeks. "This is stupid." he announced. "Get me out of this thing." He fumbled blindly with the foreign clasp on the collar.
Ken gave the leash a sharp tug, sending the redhead crashing to his knees. "Be more respectful." he ordered. He smiled with the delight of a child who found a new toy. "I want you to show me how respectful you can be: Kneel and call me Master."
"No way." Daisuke protested furiously, pulling himself to a sitting position on the floor. "I am not... no way. Not again."
Ken made a motion in the air as he pretended to dial an invisible phone. "Hello, is TK there?" he mocked. "Oh, hello TK! Yes, this is Ken. I just thought you might be interested to know that Daisuke has a crush on you. Oh? You don't believe me? Would you like to see the movies?"
"What movies?" Daisuke demanded.
"You think I don't know what goes on in my own domain? I've taped every moment of your pitiful existence here."
"You've been... watching me?" Daisuke asked, more puzzled than anything.
A series of Daisuke's most embarrassing moments ran through Ken's mind, all taped for his viewing pleasure. Now they could serve another interesting purpose: Making Daisuke suffer. Of course, it all led back to that same purpose of his viewing pleasures. And this would be much better. Interactive.
"Come on, Dai-chan." Ken ordered, specifically using the nickname Daisuke had protested against. "I want to show you something in the Digital World." Seeing the other boy's mahogany eyes narrow in suspicious, he added in exasperation, "Oh really, it's not like I'm planning on keeping you there."
"How can I trust you?" Daisuke demanded without a trace of the fear that Ken wanted to hear.
"You'll just have to. Digiport open!" Seconds later, both boys found themselves in Ken's fortress, the end of the leash clenched tightly in Ken's hand from when he had pulled Daisuke in. "Hurry up." Ken ordered, yanking Daisuke to his feet. Daisuke looked around him, for the first time showing signs of being truly nervous. To be in Ken's fortress without even Veemon to protect him...
The knot of fear began to tangle in Daisuke's stomach. This wasn't good.... He shrugged lightly in an attempt to regain his nonchalant attitude. "Whatever." he replied, confidant that he radiated his usual bravado, even as he eyed the walls of the castle warily.
It only took Ken a few minutes to edit his favorite clips together and edit them all into one delicious movie. "Sorry, no popcorn." the violet-eyed boy mocked as he slid the tape in. It began playing, beginning with Daisuke's first encounter with a Digimon -- the Numemon who had freaked him out within seconds of his arrival to the Digital World. It continued with practically every insult he had received, both to his face and behind his back. There was a lengthy scene from when Ken had tricked him into begging for mercy with the whole Bakemon stunt. It finally ended with Daisuke confessing his feeling about TK to Veemon.
"Your hand is shaking." Ken said bluntly.
"Why me?" Daisuke wondered, ignoring Ken.
"I told you once." Ken said impatiently. He repeated the words he told Daisuke once, right before the other boy had discovered his identity, "Seeing you squirm is so delicious."
Daisuke stared at the taller boy. "Why me?" he repeated.
Ken shrugged. "I have too much of a conscience, I suppose." he replied cryptically.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Daisuke demanded.
"I wouldn't expect you to understand. I love pain. But to hurt living things is wrong. It's torture and murder." he explained, as if to a small child.
Daisuke snorted. "Digimon are just as real as you and me!" he declared. "And besides, that didn't answer my question."
"You're only half correct, they are as real as you, but not as me. And I did answer your question. You see, Digimon are just bits of data. Not real. I can hurt them because they don't feel. And you. You're just a dream. Nothing as perfect as you could possibly exist."
Daisuke stared, too shocked to feel flattered with this compliment. "Me? Perfect? This coming from Ken Ichijouji, boy genius, soccer star, media pet? You're the one who's perfect!"
Ken laughed out loud at this. "I'm perfect, but I know I'm perfect, and therefore can't achieve the same level of perfection as someone as oblivious to their perfection as you."
This was over Daisuke's head, but he knew there was one major point he needed to make across. "I'm real! I've a family and friends! I've got a life! How could I possibly not be real?"
"Friends? Family?" Ken smirked. "Is that what you call them? To have friends and family, people have to actually care about you." Ken looked thoughtful. "I'll make you a deal."
"In other words, you'll stick me in some situation that's win-win for you, leaving me no choice but to surrender further to you." Daisuke guessed.
"Wrong." Ken said. "You have a choice. If you stay here with me for a full week, then you can check up on your so-called friends and family. I'll let you decide whether they care that you're gone or not. If they really do care, I'll let you go free and I'll never mention TK to you again. If they don't... You stay with me."
Daisuke stared in astonishment. "Can't I cheat?" he blurted.
"I suppose so, but I doubt you'll want to." Ken shrugged.
* * *
"I can't believe I'm scrubbing the Digimon Emperor's floors..." Daisuke mumbled angrily as he rubbed his raw knuckles tenderly, resting for a few precious seconds.
"Daisuke!" Ken called. Daisuke looked up, hoping for some kind of relief. Ken held a large cup of icy lemonade. It gleamed tantalizingly in its clear glass. Ken tipped the glass and the contents waterfalled to the ground. Daisuke's mouth burned, wishing fervently that Ken had allowed him just one sip of the refreshment. Ken yanked the redhead to the puddle of lemonade. "You missed a spot."
Seeing Daisuke's evident thirst, the Kaiser shrugged. "If you're that thirsty, lick it off the ground. I won't stop you. It might even be entertaining."
Daisuke glared hatefully at Ken, but didn't dare protest. He had learned his lesson earlier, when a few smart remarks had cost him nearly an hour of having Ken demonstrate that his whip was used for more than decoration.
After what seemed like hours, the floor was clean. Daisuke retreated to the closet-sized room Ken had given him when he had first arrived, and spent several minutes trying to figure out how to ease the pain in his knuckles. There was a soft knock on the door, and Daisuke looked up panickedly, despite the fact that Ken never knocked, and if he did, he wouldn't knock like -that-.
The door opened slowly, and Daisuke smiled shyly when Wormmon entered. The small caterpillar didn't look exceptionally dangerous; maybe he was safe. "I passed you in the halls earlier." Wormmon said helpfully. "You're hands looked hurt, so I brought some medicines. If you want them, that is..."
Daisuke thanked Wormmon gratefully and allowed the green caterpillar to bandage his hands. "I owe you one." he added.
"No, it's okay." Wormmon shrugged. "It's nice just knowing you're here. Everybody else here goes out of their way just to step on me and kick me because I'm so little. You didn't."
"Why are you partners with Ken anyways?" Daisuke asked questioningly. "He always hurts you."
"Ken wasn't always like this. He was kind and gentle once, and he really still is. That part's just buried beneath all that evil." Wormmon explained.
Daisuke looked at the floor, awash in a wave of pity for the small Digimon. Wormmon was so loyal and believing! How could Ken have the heart to be mean to him? "Thanks, Wormmon. It's nice to know I have a friend here." the brown-eyed boy said, a relieved smile playing on his lips.
Wormmon's eyes widened. "A friend? Is that what we are? Friends?"
Daisuke grinned at Wormmon's surprised reaction. "That's exactly what we are."
* * *
Ken shook his head in disgust as he looked away from his monitor where amidst the entertaining images of Daisuke, one showed Wormmon and Daisuke grinning at each other and talking animatedly. "Disgusting..." Ken murmured, "but necessary. Daisuke needs to have some comfort here, and I suppose Wormmon will suffice. Finally the pathetic worm shows a use. Took long enough."
* * *
"Daisuke." Ken snapped.
"Yes, Master?" Daisuke asked, noting exactly how easily the title slipped off his tongue.
"Just how many times -have- you asked Kari out on a date? Or should I ask how many times she's rejected you?" Ken asked, lounging in his throne.
"I've lost count, Master." Daisuke said honestly. "You know I never liked her."
"Oh yes, that's right. You liked Blondie. Hope. What's his name? TJ? TV? Not that you would know. You never could get it right."
Daisuke couldn't help but blush at Ken's casual reference to his crush. "Yes, Master."
"Tell me why you like him."
"His eyes. That's what I liked first. When I met him he was staring at me with those huge, sapphire eyes. There was something about the way he was looking at me... It was more than that he thought I was Tai. I saw something else..."
Ken frowned. Daisuke, who had never been able to confess this to anyone but Veemon-and the little blue Digimon never understood half of what he was talking about - was now gushing, positively loving this. "Something in his eyes? It was probably just dust." Ken said cruelly. "How could TK ever like you? He hates you!"
Daisuke stared at Ken, looking like he was a puppy who'd just been kicked by his owner. "He's been acting friendlier to me... I mean... he... he..."
"It's in your imagination." Ken rolled his eyes. "Why would TK like you? Get this through your dense head: TK hates you. He would be utterly sickened if you told him that you liked him. He loves Kari. I should think even a half-brained idiot like you could see that."
"Shut up. Just shut up! I don't want to hear it!" Daisuke yelled.
Ken's eyes narrowed at this insubordination and sent his whip crashing down on Daisuke's chest and shoulder. "I'm not going to shut up. You need to hear this: TK hates you. He sees you only as a threat to his claim on Kari. He thinks Tai should have chosen him as leader of the New Digidestined. He's jealous of you, and because of that, he hates you."
"Liar! Take that back!" yelled Daisuke, launching himself at Ken, throwing a punch ahead of him.
Ken caught the redhead's wrist easily. "Daisuke, Daisuke." he clucked. "When will you learn not to attack your betters?"
"A couple of days ago you said I was perfect." Daisuke accused.
Ken sighed in exasperation. "You just don't get it. Being perfect doesn't mean that you're better than me. It's like... Like one of those glass figurines you can buy. They're the most beautiful, perfect little things, but they can be crushed easily."
"You aren't making any sense!" Daisuke growled in frustration, glaring at the ground.
Ken pulled Daisuke's chin up with a surprisingly gentle touch. "Yes I am. You just don't want to understand."
"Then teach." Daisuke ordered, glaring.
"You want to obey. It's in your nature; I can tell. You get a rush every time I give you an order. Do you like it when I punish you?"
"No, I hate it!" Daisuke exploded. "I hate this! Damn you, Ken! Go back to Hell where you belong!"
Ken rolled his eyes. "I'm atheist." he retorted. He casually began to finger his whip. "Who's in charge here?"
Daisuke glared at Ken hatefully before dragging out the answer. "You are." Ken lashed the whip against Daisuke's upper arm. "Master!" the maroon-haired boy hastily added.
"Better," Ken shrugged. "but you still don't believe me."
"You're right, I don't. This is just for a week. I'll scrub your floors and call you Master. One week. Then I'll go back to my normal life, and I swear I'll kill you."
Ken gave Daisuke a cold look. "The week's not over yet."
* * *
"It's no big deal." Daisuke assured Wormmon. "Just a few cuts."
"He whipped you really hard, though. And did he punch you?" Wormmon asked, sounding concerned.
Daisuke touched his cheek gingerly. "Yeah, I guess he did. Is there a bruise?"
"Purple and blue." Wormmon affirmed. "It looks pretty bad."
Daisuke only shrugged. "Just another for my collection." He winced as Wormmon began cleaning his shoulder. "Ouch."
Wormmon glanced up at him apologetically. "Sorry."
Daisuke pulled out a grin. "Don't be. No pain, no gain!"
"Right." a voice agreed. It wasn't Wormmon. Daisuke didn't want to upset the work on his shoulder, so he stayed where we was, back to the door. "You should kneel and greet your master when he enters a room." Ken instructed, sounding angry.
"I can't put any weight on my knee. You kicked it." Daisuke replied dryly.
"Do you really think I care?" Ken snapped.
Wormmon took the cleaning materials off Daisuke's shoulder and Daisuke dropped to his knees, ignoring a searing pain in the left one. "Hello, Master." he said reluctantly. Ken began to circle Daisuke, looking angrier than he ever had before. Daisuke decided this was -not- the time to piss off Ken. "Can I get you anything?" he asked helpfully.
"No, I just came to watch you and Wormmon talk about your boring, pathetic lives." Ken said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
Daisuke bit back an equally biting reply and lowered his head submissively. Ken glared and stopped circling Daisuke. "Look at you, leader of the Digidestined. Absolutely pathetic." Ken mocked. Daisuke didn't bother dodging the kick that Ken sent to his ribs. "Master?" he tried to ask, but no sound came out. "Your little friends destroyed another control spire in one of the most valuable lands in my domain! How dare they!" Ken growled, kicking Daisuke again, sending the boy sprawling.
"I didn't have anything to do with it!" Daisuke protested as he found his voice.
This only earned him a boot in the face. "Shut up, Slave." Ken sneered.
Tears slipped down his face. This wasn't fair! He hadn't had anything to do with the Control Spire, so why was Ken punishing him? It hurt so bad... He just wanted the pain to go away!
Suddenly it stopped. Daisuke opened both eyes wide, expecting some sort of grand finale from Ken. Instead, he received a strange look from the violet-eyed emperor. "You were crying." Ken accused.
Daisuke clenched his eyes shut, burying his face in the ground. "I..." he tried. Ken flew from the room before he could finish.
"Daisuke?" Wormmon asked.
A tear fell down the Digidestined's cheek. The one thing he wanted right now was comfort. Wormmon was Ken's Digimon, not his. "Veemon... Where are you?" he wondered aloud.
"I'm sorry, Daisuke." Wormmon tried.
"Not your fault. Just leave me alone, okay?" Daisuke pleaded.
"But you're still hurt."
"Maybe later? I just need some time to think..."
"Sure." Wormmon agreed, leaving the room.
Daisuke lay on the floor, his entire body aching. He hurt so bad, both physically and emotionally. So why did he still like Ken? "I am so messed up..." he murmured to himself.
* * *
Ken shook his head in self-disgust. "I panicked." he muttered furiously. But that look on Daisuke's face... Ken had looked down, expecting pain, but instead he had been faced with tears. Why did Daisuke affect him like this? Why did it bother him that Daisuke was crying? He was the Digimon Emperor! He had -killed- countless Digimon. So why shhould one boy's tears make any difference?
* * *
Friday morning. Daisuke winced in pain. Maybe he should have asked Wormmon to fix him up. Reluctantly, he dragged himself out of his cot-like bed and slipped two fingers under the leather collar in a vain attempt to loosen it. His hand slid down to his leash, which he gave a hopeless tug.
"Admiring your pitiful state?" Ken mocked.
Daisuke jerked in surprise before falling to his knees. Too tired to be rebellious, he said the practiced words. "Good morning, Master." A sulky tone betrayed the self-loathing at his own submissiveness.
Ken smirked and took Daisuke's appearance in fully, drinking it in, searching for any flaw worth punishing. Finding nothing, he stood in front of the copper-haired boy, arms crossed. "I'm fighting the Digidestined today." he announced.
"What's so different from yesterday or the day before? You fought them then too." Daisuke replied warily, though his eyes never left the ground.
Ken noted this with an amused smile. "The difference is that today you're coming with me." he replied easily.
"I... What!?" Daisuke yelped, brown eyes meeting Ken's violet ones in a moment of panic.
Ken rolled his eyes. "Don't you want to see that blue rat of yours?"
"Well, yeah!" Daisuke admitted.
"If you're good, I'll let you come. If you're not, I'll -make- you come."
"Will you let me talk to him?" Daisuke asked pleadingly.
Ken's mouth twisted into an all-to familiar smirk. "If you beg nicely."
Daisuke lowered his eyes back to the ground. "Please, Master -"
"Not here, moron!" Ken snapped. "When we get there."
"In front of my friends?" Daisuke asked nervously.
"If you still call them that." Ken shrugged. "Until then, you can busy yourself cleaning my floors."
"I did that the other day!" Daisuke protested without thinking. Ken kicked him. Daisuke rephrased his reply: "Yes, Master."
* * *
Daisuke fidgeted nervously on the Airdramon's back. "Stop that." Ken ordered. Daisuke couldn't help it. Ken had given him new clothes, and they weren't exactly what he would have chosen. Tight leather pants encased his legs, feeling like a second skin. A tight silk shirt mocked him, bearing a familiar flame pattern on the bottom half. The collar and leash he had worn all week remained to serve as accessories. Ken had the leash wrapped tightly around his hand.
"I'm doing this for Veemon." Daisuke mumbled.
The Airdramon landed in front of a Control Spire. At the same moment, the other Digidestined burst on the scene. Daisuke's heart soared for one blissful moment.
Then it fell like a rock.
Kari's arm was snaked around TK's waist. When the blond boy saw the Airdramon, he unconsciously moved between the huge Digimon and Kari. His girlfriend. Obvious, now.
"What do you want?" Miyako demanded, though she was smiling. Of course. Her silly crush on Ken. How much more of an idiot could she be? She knew he hurt Digimon. She knew he killed. Yet she still pursued her pointless crush.
"I want a lot of things. For you to all to leave my garden would be nice. Seeing as how none of you want to, I'll settle for showing off my newest pet." Ken replied.
"That Airdramon could never beat the four of us!" TK said hotly.
"Oh?" Ken asked, "Only four of you?"
"Four's more than enough to handle you!" Miyako snapped.
"But where's you're worthless little leader?"
"Daisuke's at boarding school." Iori supplied after an uncomfortable pause. It was obvious no one believed that.
"Oh? Is he?" Ken asked, smirking.
"Yeah! As a matter of fact he is! His parents sent him there and now we're taking advantage of it!" Miyako replied with a glare. Daisuke noticed she didn't defend him. And just what did she mean by `taking advantage'?
Ken seemed to be reading his thoughts. "Taking advantage of the time he's gone?" he demanded. He glared at the violet haired girl. "Just what do you mean by that?"
Miyako looked exasperated. "He gets in the way. He's always leaping into things, and he argues with TK and me non-stop and he practically smothers poor Kari over there when she's already got a boyfriend!"
"Shut up! No one talks about Daisuke like that but me, got that?" Ken said angrily.
"What do you mean `but you'?" Kari protested sounding concerned.
"Why don't you come out, Daisuke? Tell them what you think?" Ken asked, overly sweet. He shoved Daisuke off the Airdramon roughly before jumping off himself.
A crimson blush spread over Daisuke's features as he saw that all eyes were on him. A whisper went up from among the Digidestined. The only distinctive word Daisuke could catch was "Bakemon", but with that word, the rest of the conversation could be guessed. Veemon stared at him, searching. Daisuke stared back. "If you're Daisuke, you gotta answer one question." Daisuke braced himself. "What's my favorite food?"
Daisuke couldn't help but laugh. "Chocolate! Everyone knows that!"
Ken yanked the leash roughly. "Did I give you permission to speak?"
"What do I have to get your permission?" Daisuke asked.
Ken glared. "I was going to have you just beg, but you made me mad. Beg me to kiss you."
"In front of them?"
"What do you think?"
Sighing with a show of reluctance put on for his friends' sake, Daisuke lowered himself to his knees. "I..." he stammered, his eyes wide and focused on the ground. What would his friends think of this? "I want you to kiss me. I need you to kiss me. Please, Master!" Daisuke paused to give Ken a pleading look that never failed. Ken motioned for Daisuke to go on, proving that Daisuke's reluctance had not gone unnoticed. Daisuke inhaled deeply. This was embarrassing enough when it was just Ken watching, but now with the others watching...
Daisuke let out a soft whimper and used his most pathetic voice, loud enough for the others to hear, "Please, Master? Kiss me?"
Ken pulled Daisuke into a powerful kiss. Skillfully, he gained entrance and began to re-explore Daisuke's now-familiar mouth. Daisuke was stunned for a moment, not returning the kiss whatsoever, despite the fact that Ken was trying to prod him into it. Snapping out of his brief haze, Daisuke bit down on Ken's tongue as hard as he could. This only served to amuse the blue-haired emperor, if not arouse him further.
"Oh. My. God." Kari's voice made Ken reluctantly break the kiss.
"Permission to speak?" Daisuke asked quietly, his voice controlled perfectly.
"Whatever." Ken shrugged. Daisuke vaguely noted that something was wrong, but he chose to ignore it. Why shouldn't he? Ken didn't mean anything to him. The violet-eyed boy leaned against a nearby tree, watching with amusement as Daisuke tried to explain himself to the others without revealing too much.
"You and him are..." Kari sounded sick.
"This isn't what it looks like. He's making me do all this." Daisuke tried.
"Well why the hell are you doing what he wants?" TK demanded.
"It's obvious: He's blackmailing me! Why else would I obey that brat?" Ken coughed lightly to remind Daisuke of his presence and that he would more than likely be paying for that remark. Daisuke flashed Ken a cute pout. "Well you -are- being a brat, making me clean the floors twice. Besides, I was just trying to get my point across." He turned back to the others. "Anyways, Ken's blackmailing me." For good measure, he added a thoughtful, "Duh."
"We're not going to hold it against you." Iori promised.
"How do you know? Do you know what I did?"
"No, but I'm sure-"
Daisuke shook his head and turned away from the younger boy in favor of his Digimon partner. "Veemon, I missed you!"
"Daisuke!" Veemon exclaimed, no longer held back by either Iori's hand or the serious conversation. "I bet I missed you a kazillion times more!"
"I know, but I'll be back soon for good. It's a promise."
"You can't break promises." Veemon warned.
"I know." Daisuke agreed solemnly. Both partners burst out laughing with wide grins. Ken looked on, an expression of distaste written clearly across his face. Yet something inside him was crumbling at the sight; not only Daisuke's happiness, but Veemon's as well. Could Wormmon and him ever be like that?
"Daisuke." Ken tried to say, but his voice trembled. He stopped, fighting for control until all the eyes of the Digidestined and their assorted partners were focused on him. Feigning nonchalance, he finished, "You can keep the blue rat with you as long as he stays out of my way.
"Really!?" Daisuke exclaimed. He wrapped Ken in a quick hug before turning back to Veemon, whom he also hugged. "Would you, Veemon?"
"You bet!" Veemon agreed happily.
Daisuke studied Ken seriously for a moment. "You won't hurt him, will you?"
The thought hadn't touched Ken's mind, but he rolled his eyes impatiently for effect. "Whatever."
"I get to stay with you! Now you won't feel so bad!" Veemon grinned.
"Right!" Daisuke agreed, exceedingly happy as he gave Veemon another tight hug. A non-Digidestined could never understand what it feels like to be away from their partner Digimon, especially when they're having an unbearably awful time, like in Daisuke's case. Or maybe it was just him. After all, the others had all been separated from their Digimon before and dealt with it pretty well, even when they weren't exactly having a good time.
"Come on Daisuke." Ken said abruptly. "I'm bored. We're leaving." When Daisuke opened his mouth to protest, Ken added, "You know, I think being around your friends has made you more rebellious. Maybe I should just leave Veemon here - I don't want him to have the same effect on you."
Daisuke shook his head quickly before looking back at the others. "Bye, guys." He gave Kari and TK a bitter smile. "Good luck."
"Daisuke... We won't... Whatever Ken's blackmailing you with... I mean... We won't hold it against you!" Kari pleaded. "We'll understand. I promise!"
Daisuke was tempted to ask her what she thought about him having a crush on her boyfriend. *Although,* he mused, *I don't think I do anymore.* He shook his head and flashed her another grin before following Ken back to the Airdramon, giving his collar a helpless tug that was more habit than attempt at escape.
Hikari Yagami's eyes followed him until he was out of sight. She just didn't understand him! What could he possibly be hiding that he thought they wouldn't understand? Was he gay? She had guessed for a while, after seeing the way his eyes traveled across boy's bodies in a way that was usually reserved for girls. Undressing them, almost.
Sure, homosexuality was wrong, but she was fairly open-minded. She could deal with it, maybe encourage him to become straight. She'd made up a practiced plan of what she would say if he ever came to her and told her he was gay. She would tell him that it was okay, she wasn't freaked out, and she was willing to help him change.
But he wasn't coming out. Either it wasn't his sexuality that was the issue, or he would rather be blackmailed by the Digimon Emperor than tell his friends. She prayed it was the former. If it was the later, did that just show that he didn't put much faith in his friends?
* * *
Daisuke felt oddly comfortable when he woke up on Sunday morning. Today was going to be great. Not only was it his last day here, but Veemon was with him. Daisuke had found over the past two days that Veemon had spent in the emperor's fortress, that the little blue dragon made everything okay. Like right now, Veemon was curled up on Daisuke's chest, snoring with a gusto that made Daisuke giggle slightly.
Veemon cracked one blurry eye open and gave a huge yawn before smiling and chirping, "G'mornin'!" in a sleep-slurred voice.
"Good morning." Daisuke grinned.
Veemon bounced off the bed, all tiredness leaving him. "When do we eat? I'm so hungry I'll dedigivolve into Hungveemon if your not careful!"
Daisuke laughed. "You'll just have to suffer. We've been over this before. Ken eats first. It's not going to change."
"But Ken eats sooo slow!" Veemon moaned.
"Don't say that!" Daisuke warned nervously. "Ken might hear."
"But it's true! It's like someone pushed the slow-motion button on his VCR!"
Daisuke giggled, for the second time that morning. "Come on, Vee! Stop it!"
"But I like to see you smile!" Veemon protested.
"And I like smiling! But not when you insult Ken. Ken's not slow. He's just... Sorta graceful. Pretty."
A timid knock sounded on the door before Daisuke could get any further. "Daisuke-san!" Wormmon called.
"Come in!" the redhead replied cheerfully.
Wormmon entered, looking nervously around, his eyes finally landing on Veemon. "I was wondering if maybe I could talk to Veemon? Alone? Just for a few moments?" he asked Daisuke, though his gaze never left Veemon's.
"Can I? Can I can I can I?" Veemon pleaded.
"Sure thing. I'll meet you back here after I'm done in the kitchens." Daisuke agreed.
"Okay! See ya, then. Don't get in trouble!" Veemon said, as Daisuke got ready to leave the room.
Daisuke flashed Veemon a genuine grin as he left. "Same to you, Vee!"
Within a few minutes, Daisuke found himself at Ken's door, awkwardly balancing a tray laden with food. When he'd first began, earlier that week, he'd had a hard time, and when he'd knocked, he'd dropped the tray. *Who knows? If I stay here longer, I'll have this down perfectly!* he mused as he used his free hand to knock on the door. *...Not that I plan on staying here out of my own free will, of course.*
"Come in, Daisuke." Ken's voice ordered from within. Daisuke noted absently that the bluenette's voice sounded just a touch wistful as he entered. He laid the tray on the table, next to various computer printouts that Ken was poring over. "Today's your last day." Ken said bluntly.
"Yeah, it is." Daisuke agreed.
"You can go if you want. There's no point in you staying." Ken said, with a very un-Kaiser sigh. It sounded almost... defeated. Daisuke wondered over this. How could Ken be so defeated when he was obviously winning the war waged between him and the Digidestined? For every control spire they took down, he put up another five, it seemed. So why would he be so defeated? The violet-eyed emperor handed Daisuke two small devices.
"My D-3 and Digivice!" Daisuke exclaimed, his entire face lighting up.
"Go pick up your Digimon and come back here to open a Digiport on my computer." Ken instructed.
Daisuke gave Ken a searching look. "Ken, why don't you join the Digidestined?"
"Because I'm the Digimon Emperor." the boy replied, though there wasn't much conviction behind his voice.
"Come on... Please, you've got to! That would be so much better than having to fight you!"
"There's only one thing that your team has to offer me. As much as I want it... Well, I doubt I'd be able to have it even if I did join you. Being the emperor holds much more for me."
This cryptic answer threw Daisuke off a little. "Well... If you ever decide that that 'thing' is more important than being emperor, don't hesitate to talk to me. And even if we are on different sides... well, maybe we can be friends, too."
Ken was absolutely shocked. "Even after everything I've done to you? I've blackmailed you, enslaved you, beaten you... How can you offer me your friendship just like that?"
Daisuke pondered this question for a bit. "I've talked to Wormmon. He says you weren't always like this. He told me what you were like before. And that person is someone I'd really like to get to know. I guess I didn't get the Crest of Friendship for nothing, huh?"
Ken shook his head. "I don't get you."
Daisuke gave a grin. "I don't get myself, usually. I'd be surprised if you did. See ya!" Daisuke disappeared out the door, still beaming about his newfound freedom.
Daisuke cut off almost three minutes as he sprinted back to his bedroom. He knocked politely on his door, not wanting to interrupt whatever it was Wormmon wanted to tell Veemon. There wasn't an answer. He knocked again. Still, no answer. Finally, Daisuke opened the door slowly.
Daisuke was shocked at what he'd founded. Veemon and Wormmon were locked in a deep kiss, the kind that could only be described by "soul-shattering". Daisuke sat on the bed, and a few seconds later, they broke the kiss.
Veemon smiled sheepishly. "Um, thanks for explaining what a kiss is!" he said hesitantly.
"You aren't mad, are you?" Wormmon asked worriedly. "I don't want you to be mad."
"I'm not mad!" Daisuke assured them both. "Surprised, yes. Mad? Absolutely not."
"Even though Wormmon's partner is Ken!" Veemon asked.
"Especially because of that." Daisuke replied. Veemon and Wormmon exchanged a look. "Because maybe this connection between you guys will influence him to join us somehow!" Daisuke added hastily.
Veemon and Wormmon grinned at each other. "Okay." Veemon said.
"If you say so." Wormmon added.
"This probably isn't the best time to say this, but Ken said we could leave early. Like right now." Daisuke said.
"Right now?" Veemon asked, looking stricken.
"You should leave now, before Ken-chan changes his mind." Wormmon encouraged. "We'll see each other again."
"In battle." Veemon agreed wistfully.
Daisuke frowned. This wasn't right! Wormmon and Veemon shouldn't have to be on opposite sides! They should be together! Just another reason why Ken should join the Digidestined. Even Romeo and Juliet hadn't been this star-crossed! At least they didn't have to fight each other.
"I don't want Daisuke to get hurt, though." Veemon added.
Daisuke gave Veemon a smothering hug. "I'm sorry, Vee! Maybe I can talk to Ken. Maybe he'll let you and Wormmon still see each other."
"It's okay." Veemon said, returning the hug. "It's not your fault."
"Bye Vee-chan!" Wormmon called.
"Bye Worm-chan!" Veemon called back.
"Thanks for everything, Wormmon." Daisuke added. "And I promise to talk to Ken, okay?"
They left the room, and were back in Ken's room in no time flat. "Hey, Ken!" Daisuke called cheerfully. Ken looked up from his work. He looked as if he'd been crying, but Daisuke was sure he simply imagining it.
"Don't call me that." the boy said, irritated.
Daisuke ignored him. "I was wondering if Wormmon and Veemon could get together sometime. For a date or something?"
"Whatever." Ken replied listlessly.
"Right. I'll... uh... keep in touch then. Okay?" When he didn't receive an answer, the copper-haired boy opened a Digiport and left, giving Ken a quick wave goodbye.
Daisuke tumbled out of the other side, and he felt almost born anew. What an experience. He'd spent more time than any of the other Digidestined had in the Digiworld. Well, except the older Digidestined and Ken. But he'd still spent more time than Miyako or Iori! Leaving Chibimon to forage through his junk food stash, he walked out of his room, seeing everything in a completely different light. He met his sister in the living room, sprawled across a chair.
"Hi, Jun." he greeted, expecting a shriek of anger and demands of where he'd been.
"Hey, brat." she replied calmly. "Where'd you get that shiner?"
Daisuke stared. "You mean you never even noticed I was gone?" he asked. Jun gave him a questioning gaze before returning to her magazine.
Daisuke walked into the kitchen. "Hi, mom."
"Hi, hon." Mrs. Motomiya replied vacantly. "You've been keeping to yourself lately."
"I've been gone all week." Daisuke said through gritted teeth.
"Jun had to do all your chores. That wasn't very nice."
That was the last straw, and Daisuke ran back upstairs. He picked up his D-3 and checked the e-mail. There was a short list of e-mails, mostly ones directed towards the entire group. "Meeting at my house at noon -- Kari", or "Let's go to the Digiworld after school today. Computer lab at three. -- Miyako". A few were directed towards him, wondering where he was. Miyako's was the longest, a rant about how he shouldn't have made up that stupid story about boarding school just to get away from his duties as a Digidestined, and how he shouldn't have saddled her with Chibimon because he was eating her out of house and home. Daisuke rolled his eyes.
The last e-mail was from TK, announcing that there would be a meeting that Sunday at 9:00. Daisuke glanced at the clock on the wall. It was already 9:08, and it took him ten minutes to ride his bike to the school. He'd never make it. But who said he wasn't allowed to try? Daisuke showed the e-mail to Chibimon, who insisted it would be fun to see the others again, so they packed up and left.
* * *
"Hey, guys!" Daisuke said cheerfully as he opened the door, relieved he'd caught them before they'd actually left.
"Daisuke!" Kari yelped, leaping from her position on TK's lap.
"Did I surprise you?" Daisuke asked, his good mood failing.
"We weren't expecting you." TK tried to explain.
"Oh, so that's why you were letting her sit on your lap? You thought that I wasn't smart enough to figure it out? I already knew. I've known. Why did you think you could hide it from me? More importantly, why didn't you just tell me?" he received no answer. "How long, have you guys been going out, anyways?"
"A couple days after TK moved here, he asked me out." Kari said uncomfortably.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Daisuke repeated, a hurt expression on his face.
"We knew you'd just make a scene -- like you are now!" Miyako butted in, from her position at the computer with Iori.
"You know what? Forget this. If you guys are convinced that you're just so much better without me, then I'll just leave." This said, Daisuke walked out, slamming the door behind him. *Looks like Ken really did win our bet.* he thought angrily. *Who would've guessed?*
His destination was the soccer field. He let Chibimon sit on the bleachers, and found a spare ball that someone had left. He kicked it onto the field and began playing a game against imaginary players.
He didn't even let his face register in surprise when a real-life Ken Ichijouji took the place of the imaginary players, stealing the ball and scoring a goal. They played against each other for hours, neither meeting each other's eyes nor speaking. Ken won easily, but Daisuke still scored quite a few and blocked several of Ken's shots.
Suddenly Ken shifted gears and passed the ball to Daisuke. Instantly recognizing Ken's body movement as one that read "teammate", Daisuke set Ken up for a good shot before passing it back. They racked up the points easily, pulling all the most intricate plays they knew. Though Daisuke looked like a clumsy sloth compared to Ken when they were on opposing soccer teams, he was an amazing angel on the field when he was -with- Ken. He was even better than the other boys who had played on Ken's old team, who had been like soldiers under their general instead of death-defying angels of death.
It was getting dark when the stopped, and the sun was setting a blaze of pinks and purples. They sat on the bleachers, next to each other, but not together, gazing at the sight set before them. Ken was reminded of the film he had used to blackmail Daisuke, with the sun's last light turning Daisuke into a copper-tinted example of peacefulness. He also noted on the bleachers, Minomon and Chibimon were curled together, asleep. Ken couldn't resist giving the thought of the possibilities of creatures made of computer data being able to survive in the real world -- something that should have been impossible. He promised to begin governing them better, since they were becoming more and more real. He'd make a good emperor yet, uniting the entire Digiworld... joining Data, Vaccine, and Virus into one huge kingdom of progress...
"They look happy together." Daisuke said, gesturing towards the two Digimon. It was the first time either of them had spoken, and the noise sounded loud -- though not unpleasant.
"Yeah." Ken agreed, leaning back against the bleachers behind him.
Daisuke gave him a strange look. "Why do you do this to me?"
Ken looked vaguely confused. "Do what?"
"Just when I think I hate you, you do stuff like this and I can't! Do you know how hard that is?"
Ken stared. "I... don't know.."
Daisuke glared, though there wasn't much force behind it. "So the Digimon Emperor is finally at a loss of words." he retorted. He shook his head. "Look, right now, I'm mad at you, so deal with it. You come walking in to play soccer, and you make me fall for you all over again! But Minomon and Chibimon are happy."
Ken gave Daisuke a wry grin. "They really are certain that there's something special between us." he told the chocolate-eyed boy. "Wormmon told me all about it."
Daisuke gave Ken a thoughtful look. "You've changed, you know. Before, you wouldn't have even let Wormmon talk to you, much less listen to him."
"Maybe I have changed. I've realized a few things, that's for sure."
"Like?"
"Like that maybe I shouldn't hurt Digimon so much. The more I look at them... Especially here in the real world... The more real I decide they are."
"So you're just going to give up world domination?" Daisuke asked dubiously.
Ken frowned, and gave Daisuke a withering glare, reminding Daisuke that however nice Ken might be, he was still the Kaiser. "No. But I'm going to go about it a better way. I already have allies in the Virus group. Once I disable the control towers, I'm sure I can completely unify the Digiworld."
Daisuke didn't laugh, as he'd expected. "That sounds like a good idea. From what I've heard from the older Digidestined, there can be some major problems when evil Digimon get out of control."
Ken smiled, and they finished watching the sunset, the silence more companionable now. Just as the final flashes of light burst from the horizon, Ken looked at Daisuke. He was welcomed by that smile he'd watched through his monitor... How long ago was it? A week? That seemed too short to accommodate for all that had happened.
"Daisuke... Did you notice when we played soccer that when we played against each other, we didn't score nearly as many points as when we played together?"
"Yeah...Common sense. Two heads are better than one."
"I think that we could really accomplish a lot if we teamed up."
"What? Like rule the Digital World?"
Ken hesitated before answering. Had that been interest in Daisuke's voice, or had he been imagining it? "Well, yes. You keep telling me I should join the Digidestined. It's my turn to ask you to join me. Turnabout is fair play."
"It is, isn't it?" Daisuke asked. "Turnabout being fair play, I mean. It's like the saying goes, an eye for an eye."
"That's not the same."
"But it's almost the same thing. Only this is more like a temptation for a temptation. I think I'm giving in, though. It's not really fair. You would lose more and gain less if you left your post as emperor. I'd lose nothing and gain everything."
"Fair? I'm allowed to cheat. You already belong to me, really. After all, your friends and family didn't really miss you, did they? That was the original deal."
"They barely noticed I was gone... You're right. I'll accept your offer." Daisuke turned toward the boy, taking his eyes off the horizon bearing a moonrise. "And Ken? One last thing..." he kissed the violet boy soundly on the lips. "I don't think I'd mind being in love with you."
Author's Note: I have an epilouge planned out for this, though I'm not sure if I'll post it. It sheds some light to some unexplained questions in this part, the foremost and most important being: Do Ken and Daisuke succeed in conquering the Digiworld?