A/N : Wow, that was fast, huh? Ok, here's the deal. This isn't going to be like last time, where you wait three weeks and get 3-5 thousand words. Sometimes you'll wait a month and get something that long, sometimes you'll wait a week and get something only six or seven hundred words long. And It'll vary. Don't think you'll get a handful of super long ones at the very end. i'm in the process of breaking up the story into chapters now- putting the breaks where they'll have the most emotional impact, on account of i'm just evil. It'll also depend on my work load in school. I'll try to post short chapter between either really long or really emotionally draining chapters :)

Disclaimer: Another birthday has come and I still don't own Digimon. I own a Patamon button, and a ceramic necklace with the Crest of Hope on it, but that's about it.

What lies behind you?

What secrets do you hide?

What are those voices

There on the other side?

I can still hear them

Meaningless whispering

They're here, all around me.

~ Beyond the Veil

Chapter One: Shadows and Sunlight

Everything was dark. It was not the dark of night, even in the digital world where the only light came from the stars, the ever full moon, or, in the worst times, the far of bursts of light as digimon fought. This blackness was complete. It was cold and thick, close like a blanket around him, suffocating. everything was silent and still, and he could not move, could not speak. Terror filled him, pouring from something unseen ahead. He looked around, desperate to see something, anything, even a patch of darker darkness where he knew his hand was. He hated the dark, hated not being able to see what was around him, hated knowing that danger lurked and he was at its mercy.

He tried to speak, tried to move, but his legs refused to budge. There, out of the inky mist came a light- not so much a light as something lighter, grey in the blackness. The shape was unmistakable, even though Patamon's orange and white fur was dulled by the night's gloom. He reached out to reach his friend, but his hands would not move, his voice would not shadows twisted, darkness on darkness, parting to reveal another shape, just as familiar. How could he see the silhouette, the shadow that had played against the cliff face as he'd tried to run, the tattered wings and curved horns, and not recognize it?

After all, it had haunted his nightmares for years.

There was light, real light now and brightness exploding outward. He cried out, at last his voice freed, hoarse as if he'd been screaming for hours. The light died away, and TK was alone in the darkness again, alone but for the Voice. The Voice that he had heard so often, taunting him, laughing, then reaching out with dark hands, squeezing, pressure, pain and then...

T.K. woke with a start, gasping. Sunlight was streaming through his window. Patamon was curled up on his pillow like a cat, peaceful in slumber. "Just a dream," he breathed, running a hand through messy blond hair. "That's all. It's not real." Glancing at the clock, TK saw it was quarter past seven- earlier than he usually woke, even for a school day. Still there was no point in going back to sleep at this point. As he eased out from under his bedspread, Patamon opened one eye sleepily. " Teekaay? It's too early to be awake."

TK laughed as he pulled on his favorite yellow tee-shirt. He paused, the dream- it had been only a dream, was still fresh in his mind. He always remembered his dreams. There had been laughter in the dream, in a lot of the dreams he'd had in the last few weeks. It had always been His laughter. Devimon's. TK swallowed the lump in his throat.

" Patamon, it's not that early, the alarm would have gone off in half an hour anyway."

"But you never wake up this early! And that's" Patamon thought for a second, " 30 whole minutes. That's a long time." The little Digimon stretched, half-flying, half jumping to land on the bedside dresser. " The last time you woke up early for no reason was-" Patamon frowned. " TK, did you have another nightmare?"

TK put down the Maths textbook he was trying to cram into his backpack. " Yeah," he sighed. " Look, it was... it was nothing, ok? Just a bad dream. Everyone gets them."

"Teekaay, you always say that. Are you going to tell me what it was about this time? You've woken up in the middle of the night every night for the past week, said it was a bad dream, and gone back to sleep! Don't tell me it's nothing, I'm your partner! I'm your friend." Patamon fluttered over to land on the Maths book, clearly not about to let it go.

TK hesitated, then nodded. " It's alway the same dream. I've had it for a while. Since I was a kid. After...Infinity Mountain. At first, it wasn't too often. I guess there was so much else to survive. And when they started getting worse- they were just dreams. I didn't want to disturb anyone- yeah, they scare me, but..." he trailed off. " It's always the same dream, like I said. It's dark, and I'm trapped, and I start to see Devimon." At the mention of the digimon that had deleted him, Patamon flinched. TK stopped there. It was only a bad dream, anyway, if a recurring one. " and then I wake up."

Patamon looked solemn. " TK, I think you need to tell the others. Really, I do. You've been having the same dream for years? I don't know much about humans, but I'm telling ya, that is not "just a dream". In the Digital world, Dreams like that mean something, and you're a part of the Digital world, same as me. It might be," the orange bat-pig gulped, "some kind of warning. Devimon created those Gears, and if the Zhannemon can set them off by mistake, so could someone else. Ken might not be the Digital Emperor anymore, but that doesn't mean there isn't any evil left in the Digiworld."

" Patamon," TK sighed, knowing he was losing the argument, "I ... I need that textbook."

" You need to tell them. I've got a feeling, TK. Those dreams mean something, I can feel it."

"I'm not a psychic, Pata," TK retorted. " Seeing the future in dreams- that stuff only happen in fantasy novels."

" TK, you've been transported to a world made of data, been part of two groups of chosen ones, and are talking to- oh, what did Tentomon call it?- a Quantal materializwhatsit of Data parta-Oh forget it. A Digimon. I can fly. I'm not a super-genius or anything, but I'm pretty sure that your life counts as fantasy novel."

TK had to admit, Patamon had a point there.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! The alarm clock rang out, jolting them both. How had half an hour gone by so quickly?

" Fine," TK said tersely. "I'll talk to the others. But-"

" 'But it's just a dream', I know. Still, what if it's not? Do you want to take that chance?"

TK grabbed his white hat, draped over his desk lamp, and put it on. "I know, I know. You're right, Patamon. It's just... Well, embarrassing." His shoulders fell. " I feel like- like I have to be stronger than nightmares. It was hard enough for them to start treating me like a 'big kid', like I could take care of myself , back during our first adventure, and after what happened two months ago...I dunno. "

Patamon sighed and launched himself up and on to TK's hat, tipping it forward.

"TK, no one's gonna think any less of you," he began.( TK coughed, but the cough sounded strangely like "Davis".)

" After all, Gatomon had nightmares for ages, and no one thought she was a crybaby or a wimp or whatever you're afraid of. You're both strong members of the team, and I think you need to tell someone. I bet Izzy could figure it out. Just tell Izzy, alright? For me, TK?"

TK brightened. If anyone could convince Patamon that they were just- if chillingly lifelike- dreams, it would be Izzy. " I'll right, I'll talk to him. But unless Izzy thinks they might mean something, that's it, deal?"

"TK, if you don't eat breakfast soon you won't have time to!" TK's mother called from the kitchen of their apartment.

" Deal," Patamon said as TK shoved the last of his books into his backpack. The digimon sniffed the air. " Is that French Toast? I hope your mom saved some for me!"

And with that, the two left for breakfast, leaving the behind the concerns and nightmares- at least for the moment.

And... there. yes, I know, it wasn't very long. or as... dramatic as my chapter endings usually are. Don't worry, the next chapter will be very exciting. And dramatic. And may have an explosion or two.

Review! Reviews are the best birthday gifts ever. Plus, this is my first birthday away from home. So Review. Tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you thought worked, what you want more of, make predictions of what unspeakable terror I'm going to inflict on our beloved characters, stuff like that. :) you know you want to.