DISCLAIMER: I don't own Digimon…

~Chapter Two~

Down

"Kari? Can I come in?" Tai realized that it was very late, but some things couldn't hold off until morning. His little sister was right where he left her, slouched in bed and emailing madly. He sighed and pulled up her desk chair, sitting down in silence.

"Kari can we talk?" Tai asked, trying to mask his frustration.

"Sure." She said absentmindedly.

"I know you're feeling rotten…"

"Tai, if you came in here for that it's not gonna work."

Tai groaned the way he usually did, and he could see a small smile curl up on Kari's lip. There was just no talking to this kid! Was he supposed to achieve glory from this? Tai glanced down at Kari's desk, something had caught his eye. There was a small engraving of a miniature heart. Inside it, the letters "T.K" were printed. The boy smiled admiringly at his little sister.

"How's TK?" Tai asked. Kari turned from her D-terminal to glare at him. Clearly he had violated one of those teenage girl rules.

"None of your business."

"Just wondering." Tai replied. Was TK insane too? He got up from her desk chair, tracing his finger delicately over the carving.

"Night Kari." He said, closing the door behind him. He got no reply, but continued towards his room anyways. Man he could never win!

Lying in bed that night, Tai got no sleep. Who should he speak with first? He knew that TK was perhaps the only person who could get through to Kari. But how was he to find TK? Matt didn't look like he was staying in tune with what his younger brother was doing, so he'd have no choice but to ask somebody. He closed his eyes and sighed, everything would be better in the morning. It always is.

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Miyako Inoue was slumped over the checkout counter of her family's convenience store. She had one hand lazily on the register and the other was casually twirling the ends of her hair into little spirals. Something had gotten into the fifteen year-old and nobody knew what it was. Perhaps the pain of Hawkmon leaving was still there and very real. Tai thought of this as he pulled open the door and took cover in the magazine aisle. Grabbing something random he headed over.

"Tai?" The girl asked, her expression something of near-surprise.

"Hey Yolei, how's it going?" Tai fumbled for cash, all according to plan. Yolei blinked several times and adjusted her big, round glasses before hastily grabbing the magazine and scanning it. It was if she had suddenly taken Tai's question as an insult! He also noticed a certain aggression as she stuffed the magazine into a plastic bag.

"That's ¥183, paper or plastic?" She snapped, practically hurling the magazine over the counter into Tai's arms. His eyebrows raised, it was worse than he thought. He offhandedly strolled to the door and clicked it locked.

"What are you doing?!" Yolei practically screamed. Tai hurried back to the counter purposefully and threw the bag onto the floor.

"Look Yolei, I know how you feel. Stop acting like you're the only one who hasn't ever lost a Digimon in their life!" Tai matched her angry tone, but Yolei's mouth was still twisted into a snarl. "Nothing lasts forever." He added and Yolei calmed down. Tai knew that he had hit some sort of vein. Yolei slumped into the cashier's seat and rubbed her eyes beneath her glasses.

"I know Tai, don't tell me. I've been acting like an idiot right?" She moaned, "I'm just so…SICK and TIRED of being without Hawkmon and having to wear this STUPID uniform!" With each accented word, Yolei pulled off a piece of the convenience store garb until she wore a plain t-shirt and jeans.

A light tapping could be heard from the door, Tai turned to see and found sweat running down the side of his head. It probably looked like he was running a bank robbery or something. All that was assuaged however when he saw Ken's frame standing at the door, meekly tapping at Yolei to let him in. Tai rushed to the door and unlocked it before storming out and grabbing Ken by the shoulders.

"Tell me you haven't gone crazy too!?" Tai whispered intensely.

"Umm…" Ken stammered shyly, "I just came to tell Yolei I was going to soccer…practice." Tai observed Ken's uniform and shoulder bag slung around his shoulder before allowing him into the somewhat hijacked store. He proceeded back to the girl he had just been speaking with.

"I miss Agumon too." Tai said, picking up Yolei's uniform hat from the floor, "But like I said, nothing lasts forever and he'll be back soon. Hawkmon too! You need to be patient, and we've got bigger things to worry about right now as well." Tai was cut-off by Ken coming around the corner of the register and being engulfed by Yolei's hugs and kisses. The two were going out and it was evident that everything was in ship-shape. Ken still looked the tiniest bit nervous, and who could blame the kid? Yolei was a little fierce, even when it came to love. Ken blushed and cleared his throat.

"Well, see you Yolei…" He left, pecking her on the cheek quickly. Yolei's face twisted up with glee as the dark haired boy left quickly. Tai couldn't help but smile. Young love was always so great to watch.

"So Yolei." He started and finished by explaining to her what was happening with Kari. The two were DNA Digivolve partners anyways, and they were a lot closer than most people in the group. Tai figured that Yolei had to know something about Kari, didn't the two keep in touch?

"Kari? She doesn't really talk to me anymore." Yolei said as she washed down the counters for a lunch break. "She's more interested in Davis as weird as it sounds. She's gone to all sorts of parties with him and his friends, and I never see her talk to anyone else. It's like she wants to hang out with completely different people, to try and forget." Yolei explained, pushing up her glasses which continually slid off her nose.

"Hmm." Tai mused, looking past the counter to Yolei's bag which contained a D-terminal bulging out of one pocket. It gave him an idea, but his sly trick would never work n somebody as sharp as Yolei. He needed a weak-minded subject. Yolei held up her red D3, almost as if she was expecting Hawkmon to pop out of the screen and jump into her arms and talk to her in his strange gentlemanly manner.

"Tai, if I were you I'd forget about it." Yolei interrupted Tai's thoughts.

"No! Yolei I…Kari's not going to change back to her old self unless…Gatomon comes back. Who knows how long that would be? What if she does something horrible? It'll be my fault because I didn't try to stop her. So it comes down to this really. Will you, or will you not help me?" Tai asked, pressing both palms flat against the counter.

"Look Tai, I agree with you completely. I just don't want to mess up Kari's and my friendship even more! Sorry but I don't think it's a good idea." She said matter-of-factly. Tai grunted angrily and shoved his hands in his pockets making his way towards the door.

"But Tai…"

"Yeah?"

"Davis might know a few things." She suggested, "Talk to him." Tai turned, knowing that he hadn't thanked the girl for her…cooperation (if that's what you could call it.

"Thanks Yolei." He said, smiling weakly. The boy left and Yolei took her spot at the register. Her mood was improved ten-fold and she already felt better. If only Tai knew how much his determination had meant to her.