Note: I'm sorry for the delay. But you never knows when the inspiration will hit you. Thanks everyone for the reviews.

Yamato awoke once again from his half-sleep, half unconscious state. He was feeling even more sick and dizzy than before. His body was sore from laying unmoving for many hours, his limbs were already numb. The headache seemed to increase with each breath he took and the boy started to feel the heavy grip of cold squeezing his chest. Raspy coughs shook his body, waking the burning agony in his dry swollen throat and doubling his headache. Yamato felt extremely nauseous, his body shuddering in dry retches.

Few minutes later Yamato was able to calm his body down a bit. He was laying completely drained of any strength. That was when he heard the laud sound of footsteps coming closer, dulled by the thick door. Loud clink came when the key was turned in the lock and than the door opened letting bright light into the pitch black room.

Two men came in, stopping not far away from the boy. Yamato struggled to lift his head, looking at them. But he was too exhausted to even hold his head for more then few seconds. Anyway he recognized his captors.

"What should we do with him?" One of the men asked, nudging the boy with his foot, rolling him onto the back.

Yamato coughed gasping for breath.

"We'll keep him for now. When we are safe, we'll let someone know about him. Maybe they would be lucky enough to find him alive." The second man retorted with a cruel chuckle.

"Maybe we should let him go." The first kneeled down, touching the boy's burning forehead. "He seems very ill."

"Why should we care? The police is too close for my liking and we'll need this kid should they find us. Come on, we have some work to finish."

They went out the room, closing the door. Yamato was left alone in the darkness again. He closed his eyes in complete exhaustion. His friends were searching him and they would never give up, but could they find him in time?

XXX

Nancy Takaishi was worried sick, sitting restlessly in the living room, her eyes focused on the door and her arm resting near the phone. It was late, far too late for her son to stay outside. Where Takeru was? He went to spend a day with Yamato, but he promised to be home for dinner. It was already dark outside and the rain was pouring hard. Nancy knew for sure that her son wouldn't worry her like that and besides Yamato would never put his brother in danger. Something must have happened...

The phone rang loudly making Nancy to jump up. With a shaking hand she picked up the phone.

"Y-yes." She managed to say, desperately trying to calm down.

"Mrs. Takaishi?" Unfamiliar voice asked.

"Yes." Nancy said not even noticing the person addressing her as Mrs.

"I'm the police officer. We are investigating the robbery in the jewelry shop in the center of Odaiba. Do you have a so named Takeru?"

"Yes. Did something happen?" Nancy asked, her hand moving to her heart.

"He's an eye witness in the case. He was with an elder boy. We believed them to be brothers."

Nancy swallowed a lump. Why were they speaking as if the boys were not there?

"Yes. Yamato is Takeru's elder brother. He's living with his father, we are divorced."

She told the officer her ex-husband's name and address.

"Please, tell me what had happen." She begged, failing to control her tears.

"Calm down, mam. Your sons were inside the shop when it was robbed. They took the elder boy as a hostage."

"Oh, my... Where's Takeru? Is he alright?"

"We asked him to sit in the car. But when our officer went to get him, he was gone. Do your know where he may be?"

"I... He could went to his friend's house. Yagami Taichi. But why he did it?"

"Mam, stay home if you please. In case your son will come or phone. We'll call you should we find anything."

Nancy sat at the couch completely drained of strength. Her elder son was in the hands of bandits and her younger one was gone missing. She could hold her tears no longer.

XXX

Seven children and eight digimons were sitting in the large living room in the Yagami's apartment. Koushiro was busy working with his computer and digivice, Tentomon right at his side.

"I think you'd better call your mother, Takeru." Sora said to the younger boy. "She must be worrying."

The blond boy nodded walking toward the phone.

"Hi, mom." He said, his voice almost steady. "No, I'm fine. Honestly I'm alright. But they... they took Yamato... I'm with Taichi and others... No, mother, I can't... Mother... you don't understand. We need to find Yamato. And we need to go to Digital world... You told them? Oh, mom... No, no I can't and I won't. Buy!"

He turned to the rest of their group.

"The police called my mother and she told them I might be here."

"We need to go somewhere where they can't find us." Taichi said. "They can spoil everything."

"And they mustn't see the digimons." Jou added.

The rest of them agreed. Quickly they got ready to went outside. Mimi found some clothes to mask the digimons' appearance while Sora and Hikari took some food from the fridge packing it into the bag.

"Taichi, Hikari, where're you going?" Mrs. Yagami asked walking through the front door and putting her soaked umbrella aside. "It's raining cats and dogs. There's nothing for you to do outside in such a weather and almost at night."

She spotted other kids and digimons then.

"What's going on, children?" She asked in a more concerned tone.

"Sorry, mother, we really need to go." Taichi said quickly, nudging his friends toward the door.

Suddenly the phone rang and Mrs. Yagami went to pick it up. After a moment her expression changed to the one of shock and concern. She turned to call the kids but saw the front door being shut as the whole company rushed out.

Once outside the group stopped few blocs away from the building. It was still raining hard and all of them were soaked in just few minutes.

"We need to find a shelter." Mimi cried.

"There are few unused warehouses not too far away from here." Taichi said, hugging his sister to provide her with little warmth. "We are being lucky since there're no one outside."

"If we won't find a shelter soon, we catch a cold for sure." Jou told them and sneezed as if to prove his words.

So the whole company started to run down the street.

...TBC