Characters: Daisuke, Ken||Pairing: Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken
Chapter Word Count: 1,534||Story Word Count: 6,280||Chapter Count: 4/8

The restaurant Daisuke found was tucked into a fold by a river, much like the one he and the others met Mimi and Michael at. He had to fight to remember that sometimes, like he fought to remember almost anything that happened before the Kaiser's net wrapped around him and he'd spent all the time since in submission to his enemy.

There weren't many Digimon there when he peeked inside, which definitely became a point in its favor. Any Digimon he saw could be enslaved by the Kaiser and tell him where Daisuke was. So seeing only a minor handful, he tucked his wings around himself and entered, heading for the counter.

"Excuse me," he said, catching the attention of one of the Gotsumon who took care of the place. The rock Digimon turned toward him. "Hey, have you got a second?"

Gotsumon made his way over there. "You want something to eat?" The Digimon gave him a quick look up and down. "Which one are you, human or Digimon?"

He'd had that question asked before. The wings tended to throw people off. So he just shrugged. "I'm a Flier. Mostly human. And I need something to eat." He hesitated for a breath. "But I don't have anything to pay with." He'd checked. He had no idea of where his money, what little he'd had, vanished off to, but he suspected the Kaiser's hand in that.

Gotsumon started to turn away. "No money, no food. Rules of the house."

Daisuke reached out a hand, his stomach rumbling harshly as he did. "What about if I work for it? I'll wash dishes for as long as I've got to, in exchange for a couple of meals."

Gotsumon now looked back toward him, head tilted to the side. "Is that so? And why should we trust a human not to run off the firs chance you get?"

"Cause I'm also a Chosen Child!" Daisuke declared, puffing his chest out and spreading his wings. He yelped a second later, his wing knocking over a thankfully empty chair. He pulled his wings back in and set the chair up again, chuckling a little weakly at that. "Uh, yeah. Motomiya Daisuke. Chosen of Courage and Friendship." He really hoped they didn't ask about seeing anything like his D-3 or Digimentals.

The three restaurant Gotsumon drew closer together, staring at him and then whispering among themselves. The one who'd talked to him before spoke up.

"The one who's been taken prisoner by the Digimon Kaiser?"

Daisuke tensed, fingers clenching into fists. "How'd you know about that?"

"We heard the other Chosen talking about it," another one of them said. "They're going to be coming back around soon."

Daisuke's heart skipped a beat. "They're coming here? The guys are going to be here?" He wanted to learn how to breathe again because somehow, he'd forgotten. To see them all again...he could hardly wait for it.

"Maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after," the third Gotsumon added. "Checking to make sure there aren't any more of the Kaiser's towers around here. They cleaned out the one that was here the other day but it never hurts to double check."

Daisuke nodded eagerly. "Let me stay here, please! I'll wash dishes, I'll sweep the floors, whatever you need me to do!" This was his best chance to find the others! Maybe even his only chance.

Again the Gotsumon muttered among themselves, then all three nodded, and the one he'd talked to first came closer.

"You got yourself a deal. You wash the dishes, sweep and mop the floor, and pretty much do anything else that we want you to do around here, and you'll have room and board until the Chosen can get here."

"Or until the Kaiser does," one of the others muttered. Daisuke stiffened, wings tightening even more around him.

"He's not around, is he?"

Gotsumon Number Two shook his head. "But I bet you if you've run away from him, he's looking for you."

Daisuke didn't want to think about that. He squared up his shoulders and raised his head. "Yeah, well, he's not here now. Can I get something to eat?"

"Just wait over there," the third Gotsumon gestured to a table off to one side. "We'll bring you something and you can start cleaning up after you're done."

The three nodded in unison, two of them heading for the kitchen, and the last one remaining behind the counter. Daisuke settled at the table, letting his wings spread out a bit, and wished that he had his D-Terminal so he could contact the others.

Are they going to have it? Or is it still there He hadn't bothered thinking about it before now, when he'd spent his days at the Kaiser's feet. What use would it be? But now when this personal nightmare of his hovered on the verge of ending, he wanted to let the others know that he was there and he was all right and wanted to go home.

At least he thought he was all right. He didn't know what he'd be like if – or when – he saw the Kaiser face to face again. Even now he could remember what it felt like to have Kaiser's hand either on his head or buried in his wings, and that touch didn't hurt at all, it felt rather good.

He swallowed and fiddled with the napkin on the table. He needed something to keep his attention focused, at least to the point he didn't start shredding something, let alone dropping feathers. His wings ached from all the flying that he'd done earlier anyway. He was too out of shape to do that again any time soon.

I'll fix that, he promised himself. I'm going to get in really good shape, like I was before. Better, even.

He jerked a bit when Gotsumon set a plate spread with all kinds of food – some of which he couldn't identify and all of which steamed hot and smelled delicious – in front of him. His eyes lit up as he turned to his new host.

"Thanks!" And he didn't have to beg for it! He did have to work for it, but he'd done that deal because he wanted to, not because he didn't have any other choice.

Okay, maybe he didn't quite have a choice but this was still so different from the situation with the Kaiser.

"You can get one refill of the late," Gotsumon told him, "but after that, you've got to get to washing the dishes."

Daisuke nodded his understanding, too eager to get to the food than anything else. As soon as Gotsumon left, he started eating, not bothering with anything like proper manners as long as he managed to get everything in his mouth without choking.

Kaiser's fortress moved onward through the thickening night, targeted for where the signal from Daisuke's collar flared softly. Kaiser dined in front of his viewscreens, as opposed to his room tonight.

It wasn't as much fun eating in there without Daisuke humbled at his feet, ready to beg for his dinner once Kaiser granted him permission to do so.

He would have to add that to Daisuke's punishment once he'd scooped him back up. He'd already made a mental list of the sins his pet committed: ignoring his master's orders to remain on the fortress, staying out long past what would've been his curfew if he'd been allowed out in the first place, forcing Kaiser to push up his plans to take certain areas by fleeing as far as he did, daring to believe that the Chosen still cared enough about him to look for him in the first place, and not treating his master with the proper respect.

Depriving his master of the pleasure of seeing him submit and beg yet again would definitely increase his punishment. Kaiser hadn't decided on just what it would be, wanting to wait until he'd recaptured him before making his final choices.

I'll let him think everything is all right for now, he decided. He would take his time getting there. Daisuke's collar would alert him whenever Daisuke moved, so even if he carried on from where he was now – a restaurant run by Gotsumon – his master could and would be on his trail.

"Ken-chan?" Wormmon murmured from far too close. Kaiser's head snapped around, eyes blazing.

"How many times do I need to tell you not to call me that?"

Wormmon flinched back at once. "I'm sorry, K-Kaiser," he murmured, ducking his head down. "But I wanted to tell you that – that – I ..."

Kaiser flopped himself back in his chair and turned his attention to the screens before him, shoving the remains of his dinner side. He hadn't left much, since there wasn't anyone to share them with now.

"I don't care. Get out of here."

Whatever else Wormmon had to say, Kaiser ignored it, splitting his attention now between watching Daisuke shoveling food into his mouth and one of his favored projects, one that he'd let slide since capturing Daisuke. One or both of them would be his in the very near future.

He liked both. He would have both.

To Be Continued

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