Author's notes:
-First off, a huge THANK YOU to everyone who reviewed!
-As a reminder, I'm using the American names when referring to the TV show of Digimon, and the Japanese names when referring to the "real people."
-I'm still honestly trying to keep everyone in character, but it's been a while since I've watched the show, and this is a somewhat AU-ish story! If there's any blatant OOC-ness, though, please let me know!
-This's almost definately gonna have some Taito fluff... eventually. If you don't like male/male pairings, don't read it! Simple, ne?
The Second Pieces: Starting Point
Yamato tapped his fingers idly on his desk and glanced at his watch. There was still half an hour until the current class ended, but Yamato wished that it were already time to go home for the weekend so he could get away from all the people that a public place like school was filled with. He didn't like people. He didn't need people. And people sure as hell didn't need him.
At the front of the classroom, the teacher had started off on some tangent. Most of the class was absorbed in his words, but Yamato wasn't interested. Instead, he tapped a rhythm on his desk and looked out of the window. He was glad he had a desk next to the window. Windows were one of the few things he liked. He liked music and cooking and ice cream and windows.
Yamato wished again that the day would be over. If that were too much to ask, lunch break would have been nice, too. He glanced at his watch. Twenty-seven minutes left, and it was only second period. Yamato groaned inwardly. Today was gonna be hell.
Taichi had decided that today would be Good Impression Day. Yesterday was not Good Impression Day, but today was. In fact, it was Good Impression Month, starting today. Yesterday must've been Bad Impression Day, so he had to make the most of Good Impression Month to make up for it. And so far, Good Impression Day had gone quite well.
He'd missed it yesterday because of his sleepiness, but he was pleased to discover that Sora was in both his first and third period classes. Koushirou was every bit as smart as his Digimon counterpart had made him out to be, if not smarter, so the younger boy was in all the senior-level classes despite being a sophomore. Taichi was disappointed that he didn't have any classes with the computer-lover, but he had made another pleasant discovery in the form of a blonde in his second period class. If he were asked to describe the boy in just a few words, the only suitable description would be that they boy looked like a god.
Taichi had sat behind the mysterious blonde, and he had decided that the other boy had not been there yesterday. When the teacher started rambling about something that was definitely not related to the material he was supposed to teach, Taichi had decided to make the most of the opportunity by studying the blonde who had drawn his attention. Fortunately for Taichi, the blonde was looking out the window and thereby giving him a fairly good view of his face. His features looked as if they had been carefully chiseled by a talented sculptor, smooth and defined and without imperfection. He hair was fine and looked incredibly soft despite the somewhat spiky style it was carefully arranged into. Taichi had wanted to touch that hair, to find out if it was as soft as it looked...
The bell had interrupted his thoughts at the time and the blonde had vanished, mostly forgotten until now. Now it was lunchtime, and as he walked into the sitting area of the cafeteria with Sora and Koushirou, he saw the blonde sitting at the end of an empty table. He decided quickly that he wanted to know the blonde's name and that Sora would know it.
"Hey Sora... Who's the blonde god?"
Sora followed Taichi's gaze and considered the blonde silently. Instead, Koushirou answered, "Ishida Yamato, god of ice. Secretly famous for what's been termed the 'Ishida greeting' by those who have received it."
Taichi blushed slightly when he realized he'd voice the "god" part, but he was somewhat puzzled by Koushirou's brief description of the boy.
"He's also famous for his good looks, you know," Sora said, looking at Koushirou. "No one would ever consider telling him, but he's got a couple of fan clubs."
"That's beside the point, Sora," Koushirou stated.
Sora sighed. "Well, might as well get it over with... C'mon Taichi, we'll sit with him."
Sora and Koushirou led the way to Yamato, arguing about something in whispers that Taichi couldn't quite make out. Their argument was hushed by their arrival at Yamato's table.
"Hi Mattie!" Sora said cheerfully as she say down next to the blonde. Yamato glared at her but didn't say anything. Koushirou mumbled a greeting as he sat down across from Sora, and Taichi cheerfully slid into the seat across from Yamato, determined to make a good impression on the blonde boy. It was, after all, Good Impression Day. Month. Something like that. Taichi couldn't quite remember now as he made note of Yamato's deep blue eye color. He'd never seen eyes like that. Of course, he'd also never seen a glare as cold and sharp as the one that the blonde was directing at Sora.
"This is Taichi," Sora said, gesturing towards the brunette. "He's new."
Yamato shifted his glare to rest on Taichi, making it colder in the process. Taichi grinned uncertainly, repressing the urge to run away. The blonde looked like he wouldn't mind killing someone...
"Oh stop it, Yamato," Sora ordered. "You need to stop doing this to everyone. This is why you don't have any friends."
Yamato glanced at her. "I don't want friends," he growled, his voice so quiet that Taichi could barely hear it. He turned his attention to his food, choosing to ignore the others.
Taichi watched Yamato eat for a moment before he too began to eat. Yamato was apparently a fast eater, as he picked up his empty tray and stormed away only minutes later.
"Well, there you have it," Sora said. "The famous Ishida greeting. He's done that to just about everyone in the school to get them to leave him alone. It's a good thing we caught him in a good mood; the Ishida greeting has gotten ugly before."
"He's always like that? To everyone?" Taichi asked as he watched the blonde leave the cafeteria. "Wait a minute, that was him in a good mood?"
"Yes, he must have been in a good mood, or at least not an unpleasant one," Koushirou commented. "The Ishida greeting would have been much worse if we had come at a bad time. As for how he treats people... Yamato has two categories in which he places those he meets: people he hates and people he doesn't care about. As long as you don't bother him, you'll remain in the safer of the two categories. People that don't immediately give up on befriending him have a history of walking away with a bloody nose or broken arm."
"Where do you two stand with him, then?" asked Taichi, thinking about how Matt had reacted to the two redheads. "I didn't see him sending any punches your way, and I doubt he enjoys being called 'Mattie,' given the glare he gave you, Sora."
"We're... kind of an exception," Sora said, poking at her food. "Koushirou has known Yamato since they were little, and I've known him since before he completely shut people out. I doubt he considers me to be a friend, but he... tolerates me. He and Koushirou actually do each other favors from time to time; Kou-chan's probably the closest thing he has to a friend."
"I see..." Taichi said, trailing off as a plan started forming in his mind. He knew that everything about the plan could go horribly wrong, but... Well, he always did like a challenge.
Yamato scowled at his locker as he dialed his lock combination. He'd finally been in a good mood, and then Sora had come by with that new kid--Tights, or whatever.
Tights. What a stupid name... he must have heard it wrong. Not that the kid's name really mattered or anything.
So Sora and Koushirou had brought what's-his-name and ruined his mood. At least what's-his-name hadn't said anything; that was definitely a redeeming factor. So redeeming, in fact, that Yamato had resisted the urge to punch the kid to make it clear he didn't want people coming around him. The kid was new, Sora had said. He obviously needed to know the rule about not coming near Yamato.
Sora should have known better. Koushirou should have stopped her. There were plenty of ways for the kid to learn that Yamato was a lone wolf without attempting to meet him. He didn't understand why people continued to try to talk to him, to be around him, to be his friend.
"Friend." He hated the word. It meant appearances and empty promises and shallow happiness. "Friends" were something he had no use for. He'd just be left behind in the end, so it was better to never create any bonds...
Yamato pushed aside a notebook that was resting on an inside wall of his locker. Carefully, he pulled out a worn-out picture. "Only a few more hours left until I can go home. Help me get through the rest of the day, Takeru," he whispered, looking at the young blonde child in the photograph. It had been nearly five years since he'd last seen his little brother. Five long years since the photograph had been taken and his mom had moved away from Odaiba and taken Takeru with her. Yamato knew that she'd moved away because of him, because he'd been secretly meeting with Takeru after their parents' divorce. And that damned show... Digimon... That was why she found out. If that show hadn't existed, he wouldn't have been separated from his brother for good.
As other students began to fill the hall after the bell rang, Yamato tucked the photograph back into its place in his locker and grabbed the books he needed. He only had to bear a few more hours of tapping a rhythm against his desk and looking out the window... And then he would be free from school until Monday.
In his next class, he was pleased to find that there was no one who would bother him. No Sora, no Koushirou, no what's-his-name. The only people in the room were ones who knew to leave him alone.
Yamato would have smiled, but he had long ago forgotten how.
Author's notes again: Yay, got to introduce some of why Yama hates Digimon so much. I'm going to try to make the chapters a little longer, but I liked where this one ended so I left it like that. Anyway, leave a comment, and I'll see ya' next chapter!
