Daisuke didn't go to school the next day. He left home early, skipping breakfast and running out the house before anyone else woke up. Before, this would have been to avoid Jun, but since Ken utterly destroyed her reputation, she was too busy picking up the pieces of her life at a new school to focus on her little brother. Ironically, it was his parents who he didn't want to talk to. Before, they dismissed him, overlooking his struggle under the thumb of a narcissistic sibling who abused him and manipulated them at every turn. After Ken ruined Jun's life, it was a wakeup call for Daisuke's parents and they took a more vested interest in their children's lives.
It had been great. For once, Daisuke felt home was someplace safe and warm. He got to cook with his mother Junko every day, and she actually listened and believed him when he talked about his interests. His father, Daichi, approached him to build model kits, and although Daisuke wasn't terribly interested in putting together little bits of plastic and waiting for glue to dry, he was thrilled that his father stopped treating him like an idiot who would ruin everything.
Unfortunately, it was that increased attention Daisuke couldn't handle now. After all those times of going to his parents with his problems, only to be dismissed or outright disbelieved, when his parents believed the very worst of him… There was no way he could prove them right; to give them unquestionable proof that he truly was a despicable person.
Daisuke ruined everything.
The sun was beginning to set before Daisuke finally started to make his way home, carrying his duffle bag with Chibimon halfheartedly over his shoulder. After going to everywhere he could think of - everywhere except places he spent time with Ken - he knew that he couldn't stay out forever. Although he doubted the school would call to report just one day's absence, his parents were sure to notice something was amiss if he came home after dark. The irony was not lost on him - for once, he was actually guilty of what his school had always accused him of. It was just one more thing to bring him down, making his footsteps heavy as he reluctantly made his way back to his apartment complex.
Inside Daisuke's duffle bag, Chibimon was in charge of Daisuke's DT2. And by 'in charge', it meant he was responding with extreme hostility to any email sent Daisuke's way. The little dragon Digimon was beyond furious - at Ken, at their friends, at himself for being helpless to help Daisuke - and yet all he could do as fume impotently. During their day out, Daisuke had made attempts at having fun with him, but he could see just how paper thin that smile on his partner's face was and it made him angry at the world all the more for making Daisuke suffer.
Every single one of Daisuke's so-called "friends" sent an email to him - except for Ken of course - and Chibimon answered them all, handling Hikari's message with particular aggression. She only now decided to reach out to him after giving Daisuke the silent treatment for so long? How dare she! Chibimon didn't even bother reading what she said before sending a response, making sure that she, like everyone else, knew that he was the one lashing out stern words rather than Daisuke. Let them fight with him. He welcomed it. Fighting for Daisuke's sake was - literally - his reason for existing.
And it's what he would do to the very end, no matter what.
Daisuke, oblivious to the battle his Digimon was fighting for him, trudged onward, his eyes cast low. It was less watching where he was walking, and more not having the energy - or the right - to keep his head up. It was for that reason that he didn't see what was waiting for him, until a familiar voice spoke up.
"I was wondering when you'd be getting back."
Daisuke gave a start and stopped, looking up to see someone he certainly hadn't wanted to see - the senpai he had disappointed so often. Taichi stood against the wall near the stairwell, his arms crossed. Agumon was with him, hiding under the stairwell wearing a heavy coat that did the best that it could to hide his features.
"It's kind of cold out here, y'know?" Taichi said, with a lopsided smile.
Chibimon burst his head out of the duffle bag, outrage clear on his face as he bared his teeth. "I told you to leave Daisuke alone! You hurt him enough!"
At first, Daisuke froze, gawking at Taichi and Agumon with wide eyes. Without thinking, he whipped around, but found himself unable to flee when his senpai seized him by the hood of his jacket.
"Let's talk," Taichi said casually as he began to walk, dragging Daisuke along with him.
Daisuke tried to formulate an excuse, but all that came out was a rattling of nonsense that ended in a squeak.
"No!" Chibimon lunged out to smack at Taichi's arm, only for Agumon to get in the way, taking the hit for him. It did very little against the much bigger Digimon, who met Chibimon's furious glare with a calm stare.
"I think we should let Daisuke and Taichi talk," Agumon said.
"And I think you should mind your own business!" Chibimon snarled, ears canted back and tail lashing. "If you want to fight, we'll fight!"
"Right, right," Agumon said, rather dismissively, as he reached out to snatch the baby Digimon from Daisuke's duffle bag, who squirmed and kicked violently in his claws. "Let's go over here, out of the way."
"Hey! Stop!" Chibimon shouted as he thrashed, doing very little to get free of Agumon's grip as the more experienced Digimon carted him off. "I said stop!"
It didn't take long for Taichi to drag Daisuke to a park playground that went empty after sunset. By that point, both Agumon and Chibimon were well out of hearing range, the baby Digimon's complaints long faded.
With a light shove, Taichi forced Daisuke to sit down on a worn swing, rattling the chains before they creaked with the younger boy's weight. Taking the seat next to it, he rocked back onto his heels. "So. You want to talk about what's bothering you?"
Words failed Daisuke. He couldn't even look Taichi in the eye as he gripped the chains holding the swing in his faintly trembling hands. This was it. There was no escape now from his senpai's judgement.
After a prolonged moment of silence, Taichi let out a sigh. "Okay, I'll go first." Digging his toes into the ground he pushed himself back, making the swing creak as he swayed back and forth. "You know what's really bugging me right now? How much of a jackass I was to you. I mean, big time, like the biggest butthole to ever fart out a huge load of stupid."
The description knocked Daisuke for a loop, and he jerked around to outright gawk at Taichi. "Wha…? What're you talking about, Senpai?"
Taichi continued to swing, his expression nonchalant. "Back when you first told Chibimon what a jerk your sister is. You weren't even talking to me, but, like an idiot, I just jumped right on in to chew you out when I had no right to open my mouth and spew crap about something I didn't know anything about like I was an expert."
The memory twisted inside Daisuke's chest, still painful even after Taichi and Yamato had apologized after learning the truth about Jun. Worse still was the notion that Taichi was saying such disparaging remarks. It reminded him of how he blamed himself sometimes for how easily Jun manipulated him. "It… it's not your fault, senpai. You didn't know-"
"Exactly." Taichi pointed at Daisuke, the soles of his shoes skidding in the dirt to slow his momentum to a halt. "I didn't know, but I still acted like I knew everything even though I'm supposed to be your senpai and watch out for you. I treated you like dirt even though you've been my friend for a whole lot longer than I even knew that bi… jerk existed, just because I thought I knew better than you. I was an asshole, and you didn't deserve that. I'm sorry."
"Y-you…," Daisuke stammered, growing flustered after all the self-flagellating he did that day. "You already apologized to me before, senpai. You… you don't have to do it again. Not after I…"
Taichi waited, but after a full minute of awkward silence ticked by, he knew Daisuke needed a little more gentle prodding. "I know, but that doesn't mean I don't sometimes still feel like a jerk for what I did. Especially the times when I see you struggling with something, but you don't know who to talk to without getting told off for it. If I never blew up at you, then maybe you wouldn't think you can't talk to any of us when something's bothering you."
"That's not…" Daisuke faltered, turning away from Taichi to stare down at his shoes, shoulders hunching. "I'm not… I'm not trying to make you feel bad, senpai."
"That's not what I'm getting at," Taichi said, brow furrowing. He paused for a moment to consider his next words with care. "I'm not here to feel bad. I'm here because you're feeling bad. Because you're my friend. And when something goes bad in your life I wanna be there to listen and do what I can to help, not a jerk who yells and makes the bad things worse. I'd rather get buried in Digimon poop every day for a month straight than do something as crappy as that again."
Daisuke let out a breath that tried to be a laugh but could only aspire to be a wheeze. "Yuck. Don't remind me."
Taichi heard the faintest hint of that laughter and smiled in triumph. "Hey, I don't wanna think about it either. That fight was disgusting."
"No kidding," Daisuke muttered before sticking out his tongue with a grimace.
Taichi rocked back onto his heels before leaning over to pat Daisuke's shoulder. "So, what I'm trying to say is you can tell me what's really on your mind when it comes to Ken and what happened. I promise I won't flip out on you again."
Daisuke could only hold Taichi's gaze for a moment before guilt twisted in his guts, forcing him to stare down at the dirt divot beneath his feet. "I…" He faltered, quiet for a while before trying again. "What's there to talk about? Ken used me to get to you and Hikari-chan and everyone else…" The guilt burned inside him until it grew into nausea. "Then I made everything worse, like usual."
"Come on," Taichi said lightly. "You've got a lot more victories than losses with this 'Chosen' stuff, ya know?"
Daisuke shook his head. "No, I mean… That's how Jun always got to me. She'd do something terrible to piss me off, and I'd just… snap." He sucked in a breath, his muscles tensing. "Then she could use it to make me look like the bad guy all along. It's how I got kicked outta schools." When he couldn't easily pull his knees closer to his body he simply folded over into them, his voice dropping low. "'Cept Jun never did that crap to me because of mind control, so I really am the bad guy this time… and I just can't stop either… I'm still so… so angry!"
Taichi rubbed Daisuke's shoulder, brows knitting in sympathy. "Hey, you got heated up and messed up. That's all. It happens to everyone. Stuff only stays messed up if you let it."
"Like driving my friends crazy 'cause I can't stop being mad at Ken even though I know Hikari's right?" Daisuke muttered. "I ruined everything with her too."
Taichi couldn't help but laugh, though he cut himself off quickly. "Come on. Hikari will forgive you as long as you show her you're really sorry like you're doing right now with me."
"That's just it!" Daisuke blurted out before slapping his hands over his face, muffling his raised voice. "I can't stop being mad! How can I really be sorry if all I can think about is how Ken played me like he was Jun after I trusted him? I really thought he liked me too, but he was just using me because some creepy voices in his head told him I'd be dumb enough to fall for it?"
Silence hung between the two boys as Taichi took the time to carefully consider his response as he rubbed Daisuke's back. "I can't help you with how you're feeling. You feel how you feel, and it's weird and confusing sometimes, believe me." He forced out a short, humorless laugh. "Stuff that happened between you and Ken could've gone better… but it also could've gone worse."
Daisuke let out a shaky breath. "I turned his partner into a monster and got him and Tailmon killed, senpai. How could it've gone worse than that?"
A cold shudder ran up Taichi's spine. "You… really never wanna ask that question, Daisuke. Someone up there might decide to give you an answer."
Daisuke paused at the seriousness of Taichi's hushed tone and for a moment he remembered the fate of Keiko and Ryo, which felt like a blow to his already twisted stomach.
"Bad things happen sometimes," Taichi said as he straightened up, a sober expression on his face. "It's normal to feel bad about it when it does, no matter whose fault it is, but it's never gonna get better if you stop moving forward from it."
It took a while before Daisuke could finally manage a response. "How am I supposed to do that, senpai?"
Taichi began to rock, eliciting a complaining squeak from the chains of the swing. "That depends on you. I know you want to make up with Hikari and be friends again, but what about Ken and Wormmon? After everything that happened, would you ever want to be their friend?"
In spite of everything, Daisuke failed to hold back a hollow, bitter laugh. "Yeah, right. Like Ken would ever really want to be my friend… especially after what I did to him."
"What if he did?" Taichi asked, cocking his head slightly. "Let's say, just suppose he comes back and says he's sorry for what he did and wants to be friends. What would you do then?"
"He won't-"
"What if he did?" Taichi said quickly to cut off the protest. "What if Ken and Wormmon wanted to forgive you for what happened? Would you want to be friends if they did?"
Daisuke leaned into the chain, the cold metal biting his cheek. "He won't… why would he want to…" A hand on his shoulder stopped him and, unthinkingly, he turned his gaze to meet Taichi's.
"If Ken asked you if you could be friends for real this time," Taichi said slowly, "would you say yes? If you knew for sure this was Ken who wanted to be your friend even after everything that happened and there'd be no hard feelings even if you decided never wanted to see him again, would you want to be his friend?"
Daisuke couldn't hold Taichi's gaze as his eyes began to sting and his vision blurred. He looked away, fighting to hold back the emotions that spilled over onto his cheeks with little success. For reasons he couldn't understand, such a concept had been far too much for him to take. After a long pause to compose himself, he answered with a single nod, not trusting his voice not to give him away.
Taichi pretended he didn't hear the quiet sniffling, understanding quite well how a man simply couldn't let another man see him cry. Instead, he gave Daisuke's shoulder another comforting pat and squeezed it lightly as he stared upwards at the darkening sky, providing his silent support as the younger boy beside him was overcome with emotions he could no longer contain.
It was the least Taichi could do, as Daisuke's senpai.
Although Daisuke came to school the next day, he didn't talk to any of the Chosen Children except when prompted, and even then he gave evasive, monosyllabic answers. The second the bell rang to signal the end of school, he was off like a shot, leaving an annoyed Miyako to call after him in a failed attempt to remind him that he was supposed to be participating in cleaning duty that week.
"I hope he's doing okay," Takeru said as he grabbed a bucket from the storage closet, along with fresh washcloths waiting to be used. "He still won't answer my emails or calls. But I can't really force him to talk to me if he isn't ready…"
Miyako huffed quietly as she carried the erasers to the nearest window. "He could've at least helped us out after leaving it to us yesterday." Upon opening the window, she had to pause to shiver when the cold december air crept in, but soon was taking out her frustration on the erasers by beating them together outside. "We left him alone after he told us he didn't want to talk this morning, didn't we?!"
The only children assigned to cleaning duties that week were the Chosen Children. This wasn't by coincidence, as Miyako used her influence as class representative to arrange it this way so that their Digimon could come out and help when everyone had left. This allowed them to talk discreetly and get the chore done far faster than normal.
"Daisuke is dealing with some very troubling emotions," Iori said as he helped Miyako. "I see no harm in giving him a little more time to address them."
Miyako merely grumbled in response as she beat the erasers some more.
"Grrrrr!" Kyokyomon growled ferociously as he zipped across the floor as fast as his back legs could propel him, his front legs firmly holding the washcloth as he went. "Grrrrrr!"
Pafumon followed after Kyokyomon, floating directly over him. At one point, she turned to point her ears at a nearby part of the floor. "You missed a spot."
Kyokyomon immediately whipped about to attack the area in question, scrubbing it furiously. "I won't be defeated!"
Miyako blinked before she gave her partner a lopsided grin. "You could help, you know."
"I am helping," Pafumon said. "I'm supervising."
Hikari took one of the washcloths from Takeru, but lingered nearby for a few moments more before she gathered her nerves. "Hey," she said quietly, knowing that she didn't need to whisper but feeling uncomfortable raising her voice all the same. "Did… did my brother mention anything to you or Yamato about Daisuke?"
Takeru blinked as he glanced to Hikari. "No, he hasn't. Should he have?"
A sigh escaped Hikari as her eyes slid ascance. "I guess not… It's just… Taichi went to talk to Daisuke yesterday, but he wouldn't tell me anything about how it went. All I got out of him was that it was 'man talk,' so I thought maybe if he talked about it with anyone, it'd be with Yamato."
"If he did, my brother hasn't said anything," Takeru said thoughtfully. "'Man talk', huh…"
"It's too soon to know if anything will change," YukimiBotamon said as she hopped on to a desk by Hikari. She wiggled her ears as she gave Takeru a thoughtful look, one that didn't fit her squishy face. "But at the very least, Daisuke was able to say something to us today - even if it was to ask that we leave him alone."
"Did Taichi look upset or troubled at all after talking with Daisuke?" Patamon asked as he fluttered over to the bucket to take a washcloth for himself.
Hikari hesitated for a moment, thinking back to the night before. Normally, Taichi's face was an open book to anyone who saw him, especially for someone who lived with them their entire life, but after the talk with Daisuke it was too hard for her to read. "I… don't think so."
Patamon smiled brightly. "Then you shouldn't worry about it. I'm sure Daisuke just needs a little space to think things through for himself, that's all."
"I guess…," Hikari muttered as she watched Patamon land beside YukimiBotamon to hand her one end of the washcloth.
YukimiBotamon accepted the washcloth, holding it carefully with her mouth. "This would be easier with hands…" she said, muffled by the washcloth.
Patamon waited until their partners moved on to other desks to speak to YukimiBotamon in a lowered voice. "About that… It's been a while now since you hatched, and it took you a while to hatch in the first place. Is something wrong? You should've evolved back to Tailmon by now."
YukimiBotamon paused at that before she quickly shot Hikari a glance, making sure her partner wasn't within earshot. She then glanced to Patamon. "I'm avoiding taking any unnecessary energy from Hikari. She doesn't have anything to spare, so I'll have to evolve on my own for the time being."
"What!?" Patamon yelped, which drew a few eyes their way. He shot the others an embarrassed, apologetic smile for his outburst and hastened to scrub, pretending it never happened. Only when he was sure that the rest of his friends went back to their own conversations did he dare whisper again. "What's wrong with Hikari?" He chanced a glance at the girl in question who was engaged in her own whispered discussion with Takeru. "She's always had the most energy out of everyone to give!"
YukimiBotamon's ears canted back. "She hasn't had much to spare for quite some time now. Not since… that."
Patamon almost asked what 'that' was when the answer hit him. "You mean… since everyone got drained by the orb?"
YukimiBotamon gave a small nod, her eyes darting to Hikari to make sure the Chosen of Light couldn't overhear.
"I didn't realize…" Patamon glanced at Hikari then back to YukimiBotamon. "I mean, I know she was sick in bed for a couple weeks afterward, but I thought she recovered a long time ago."
"I don't think even Hikari realizes it," YukimiBotamon said before she narrowed her eyes. "And I prefer it to stay that way. She blames herself enough for what Millenniumon did."
Patamon sobered at the name, brow furrowing. "I remember, the orb tapped into Tenraimon's power and caused a lot of weird stuff to happen to you and Hikari. Do you think it did something else to her that's still affecting you two?"
"It clearly did something," YukimiBotamon said as she flicked an ear. "We already know that the orb gave Millenniumon a direct line to Tenraimon's power… through Hikari."
Patamon nodded solemnly, understanding the YukimiBotamon's anger. "So then, that must mean-"
"I'm on my own," YukimiBotamon cut in before she gave Patamon a wink. "Don't worry. I've done it before, I'll do it again."
Patamon looked at his friend for a long time before wrapping a wing around her. "You know, you're not completely alone in this. Even if I can't give you my energy, I'll still be by your side every step of the way."
YukimiBotamon's expression softened. "Thank you."
The Chosen Children and their partners continued cleaning their classroom diligently. Just as they were about to finish, a beep caught their attention - an email from their DT2. Takeru was the first to get his DT2 from out of his bag, flipping it open to see the message while the others stopped to look at him.
"It's from Koshiro," Takeru said. "He wants to meet up to go over something he found on his scanner logs from last night."
"Well," Iori said with a blink. "That could be both good or bad, depending on what it is he found."
"Did he say else?" Hikari asked, furrowing her brow.
"Nope," Takeru said as he closed his DT2. "Looks like we'll find out when we get there."
"Which means we need to finish up," Miyako said as she placed her hands on her hips. "If it's not an emergency, then there's no reason to leave this half done."
"So don't even think of ditching!" Pafumon said as she hovered over Miyako's head.
Iori gave a sharp nod. "Exactly."
"Spoken like a true class rep," Takeru said with a playful smile. "Alright then, let's finish this up so we can get down to business!"
Sora tried to be discreet as she looked at her DT2 while standing along the sidelines, her bag resting on one of the benches by the tennis court. Seeing the message to meet up, she privately lamented that Koshiro hadn't sent the message sooner - it would've been easier to just skip club entirely rather than leave halfway through. At the very least, she wouldn't have gotten changed.
Ultimately, her lamentations couldn't change anything, and she knew it. She'd just have to deal with the situation as usual - which meant sending a quick message that she'd be late, along with her apologies.
Sora quietly snapped the DT2 closed before she sighed and leaned back against the chain link fence that separated the various tennis courts from each other. It was hard enough getting through club as it was, but knowing it was keeping her from places she needed to be made time drag on even more than normal.
"Honestly, it's just so much trouble," Sora murmured before she gave a weak smile. "Well, complaining isn't going to change anything. I just have to grin and bear it."
"Takenouchi!" a familiar voice heavy with bass bellowed, startling her out of her thoughts. "Get over here!"
Sora blinked as she looked over to see the coach staring at her, his expression disapproving. She paused before moving to obey, making her way across the court to where the man stood expectantly. "Yes?"
"I saw you playing with your video game," the coach growled, his stance stern as he thrust his palm in her direction. "Hand it over. Now."
Sora stared at the coach, confusion clear on her face. "Video game?"
The coach scowled harshly before pointing at the D-Terminal. "Don't give me that. I can see it right there in your hand!"
Sora glanced down at the D-Terminal before realization dawned. She had meant to put it back in her bag, but had clearly forgotten. "Oh, this isn't a video game." She hesitated as she tried to figure out what specifically to explain what it was with the least amount of actual explanation. "It's a really advanced cell phone."
"Cell phone?" the coach repeated, mouth twisted with disbelief as he took a second look at the device. After a moment, he shook his head. "I don't care what it is. It's a distraction and against the rules. I've heard numerous complaints about you goofing around instead of paying attention to club, and now I've caught you in the act."
Sora frowned as she furrowed her brow in confusion, before she heard a snicker from behind her. She didn't have to look to know who it was, and it immediately answered the question of who had been 'complaining' about her - Rie and her friends. It was enough to get her hackles raised, as she was sure they were enjoying the show they had started.
The coach reached his hand out towards Sora, his palm facing upwards expectantly. "Now hand it over. You'll get it back after practice."
Rather than comply, Sora pulled the DT2 back and held it against her chest. "Actually, something has come up, so I'll have to leave early today."
The remark only served to make the coach more irritated. "Again?! Look, Takenouchi, you can't keep blowing off practices like this. And now you're not even paying attention when you're here! I'm not going to stand for this kind of behavior anymore, do you hear me?"
Sora blinked at that. The snickering grew louder but the Chosen of Love did her best to ignore them. "I can't help it, I have responsibilities outside of this club that I-"
"You've got responsibilities to this club!" the coach snapped, pointing at the court beneath their feet. "I don't care about excuses. If you can't give this club the 110% of your time it deserves, then you're letting the whole team down! What do you think your teammates are thinking about you right now when you just blow them off to play video games and goof off?"
As the coach made a sweeping gesture, Sora unthinkingly followed the path of his hand. No one was practicing anymore, every girl in the club and even some other students milling outside the fence were staring at her, watching the coach read her the riot act. Rie caught her attention over any other gawker, as the other girl whispered to their teammates around her to elicit a round of giggles. She could see that Rie was relishing every moment.
Sora stood in silence for several moments as she slowly processed what was happening, and what the coach had just said to her. All eyes turned to her, some gleefully so, as they waited for her to react. However, instead of tears or apologies in face of such public shaming, the Chosen of Love just felt baffled.
While she understood the words he spoke, they seemed so outrageous that she couldn't wrap her head around them. According to her coach, she was expected to dedicate everything to the club and it alone - even at the expense of everything else. Her school, her family, her friends, and even her duties as a Chosen Child were all supposed to be secondary to the tennis club.
Part of her pointed out that the coach was correct - that the club was supposed to be very important, not only to her, but to her teammates. It wasn't just that it would look good on her college application, it was simply expected of her. She, as a student, was expected to dedicate herself to her education and her club or she was a failure at both.
But that's what she had been doing, wasn't it? Even now, she was holding up an important meeting with her friends because of a tennis club. They were waiting on her, the Digital World was waiting on her, while she did her best to meet her obligations. And yet, was she really? The coach was right, she was skipping the club more and more. But it wasn't just to sneak off or 'play games;' she was trying to help people. The Digital World depended on her, as did her friends.
Yet, didn't the club depend on her as well? The coach was right, she wasn't exactly dependable the past few months as she would disappear suddenly whenever anything came up. She was hardly the only Chosen Child - there were twelve of them now, including Wallace. Surely they could do without her while she met her other obligations?
The stray thought immediately sparked a surge of anger - of outrage - as her first instinct was to reject it resoundingly. The idea was ridiculous - absurd, even. If there was anything she should be dedicating her attention to, it was her duties as a Chosen Child. The very suggestion that she should be more concerned about hitting balls around a tennis court with these people than helping her friends protect the Digital World felt so completely insane that it was laughable to even suggest it. The very idea felt like a fundamental betrayal, one that would have elicited a sharp retort from her if anyone else had said it aloud.
Many things were expected of Sora - to be a good student, to do well in clubs, to be a dutiful daughter. In all of these things, she had complied, doing her best to meet those standards and try to be happy in the process. Yet, time and again these obligations were keeping her from doing what she needed to do. While she was standing there being humiliated due to the actions of a jealous little girl holding onto a years old grudge, her friends were waiting for her.
She was always making them wait, for some club that, in the end, meant absolutely nothing.
Clearly, the coach and the students watching the show of her 'public humiliation' had nothing important to do - or at the least, had no scope of what was actually important. None of them had people - worlds - depending on them. None of them had to brave a foreign land with the real possibility of death haunting them around every corner. None of them had to fight to survive, to protect others that couldn't protect themselves. The worst they ever had to deal with were bad test results or what school they'd be getting in to - neither of which would result in someone's death. For goodness sake, one of their own had died because of their duties as a Chosen Child! There was no doubt in Sora's mind that Keiko would rather be standing there listening to some middle aged man rant about 'responsibility' in front of a bunch of giggling girls instead of being dead and trapped in what was the digital equivalent of Hell!
Realistically, Sora knew she shouldn't begrudge her classmates or her coach for being so sheltered. However, she also couldn't accept their belief that the club was more important than anything else. The concept was so narrow, so completely shortsighted that she honestly felt like she was surrounded by kindergarteners rather than an adult and classmates her own age. She was surrounded by ignorant, self-centered people who couldn't comprehend that their tiny bubble in no way constitute the entire world and that there was a far bigger picture than any one of them could even imagine. If anything, she was 'goofing around' by wasting her time here…
In that moment, Sora felt things click in to place. It was like a puzzle had all its missing pieces found again, and the full picture was right in front of her. Any confusion within her was gone in an instant, leaving her with absolute clarity.
The Chosen of Love's expression deadpanned before she turned back to the coach. "They'll just have to understand that I have very important things to do in my life. And, if they can't accept that, that's entirely their problem."
Such an assertion caught the coach off guard, but a moment later he recovered with an even sterner scowl. "Don't you talk back to me like that, missy! If you can't commit to your team and give them the respect they deserve, then you can take your video games and bad attitude and leave and don't come back!"
Sora's expression didn't change. Instead, she held the coach's gaze unwaveringly, silent for several moments. The murmuring around her continued as her classmates watched intently - clearly still expecting something. Then, like a light being flicked, a bright smile appeared on the Chosen of Love's face. "Okay!"
Without waiting for a response, Sora turned sharply on her heels, striding away - straight towards her bag on the bench.
The coach stared flabbergasted at the young girl's back. "Hey! Hey! Where do you think you're going, Takenouchi?!"
Sora put the DT2 in her bag before zipping it up, then hefting the bag to place the strap over her shoulder. With it secured, she then turned to face the coach. "I'm leaving."
"You're… what!?" the coach repeated, as if he didn't understand the words coming out of Sora's mouth.
"I'm leaving, and I won't be coming back," Sora said as her expression grew impassive. "I could say many things to you right now. I could argue with you, tell you all the ways that you're wrong. I could explain that I have very valid reasons for what I'm doing, and why. But in the end… I won't. Because, quite frankly, it's none of your business. You're not worth my time, and perhaps you never were. I've slowly come to realize that, after all you've done to inconvenience me and keep me from doing things that actually mattered - things that are far more important than something that will be nothing more than a single line on a college application." The Chosen of Love paused before she smiled crookedly. "This is nothing more than a last straw among many straws, and I guess it's been a long time coming."
While Sora enjoyed the stunned look on not only the coach's but Rie's face as well, she didn't allow her to indulge in it too much. She wasn't about to give them that level of power over her. Not now, and never again.
Sora gave a small, curt bow. "Thank you for the lessons, even if it's not exactly what you wanted to teach me." She then straightened up. "Now, excuse me." With another snap of her heels, the Chosen of Love turned and headed towards the entrance to the school locker rooms with an air of confidence.
"Takenouchi! You come back here right this instant!" the couch snapped, though his voice grew more shrill as it didn't have the desired effect, with Sora continuing to walk away. "Takenouchi!"
Sora hesitated only long enough to grab the door handles, turning to open them wide. She stood in the doorway as she met the coach's stare with a gaze of her own, then purposely yanked the door shut between them.
The meeting of the Chosen was abuzz that afternoon in Koshiro's apartment, the children and Digimon still caught up in the excited knowledge that they discovered the identity of the final Chosen Child. Wallace fairly basked in the glow, despite his less than stellar first outing, but every yawn that escaped him despite his attempts to stifle his fatigue dented his ego a little with embarrassment each time he let one slip. Staying up late multiple times in a row had wore him down to the bone. By contrast, Noire seemed to drink from an endless well of energy until he no longer knew what sleep was. Wallace envied the Black Terriermon his stamina.
During the conversation, which was something too rapid for his rough Japanese to keep up with, he noticed how surprisingly animated Mimi and Palmon were, despite it being the wee hours of the morning back home in America. She went to school just like him, yet she was still as bright here as she was then. He waited for a lull in the conversation to open up an opportunity for him to slide in next to his friend and whisper the question pressing on his mind.
"[How are you still awake, Mimi?]" Wallace asked, fighting hard against his mouth's rogue attempts to form the shape of yet another yawn.
Mimi blinked, startled by the unexpected question, then let out a giggle before winking at the tired boy. "[Palmon and I sleep twice a day - half after school, and half after Chosen duties. It really helps. You should try it too!]"
"[I think I'll have to,]" Wallace said with a smile that was eaten by a yawn, which he inwardly cursed. If only he could inherit his father's acting abilities through genetics like he did with his blond hair then he could at least pretend that he wasn't ready to fall over at any moment.
Takeru watched the tired-looking Wallace and energetic Mimi talk before he glanced around the room, taking a visual headcount. "It looks like the only one not here yet is Sora."
"She was in the middle of club, so it'll probably be a bit before she shows," Yamato said. "Should we just go ahead or wait for-"
At that moment, the front door opened to reveal Sora, still in her tennis garb. She held her bag awkwardly as Piyomon hopped around her, pleased as punch for reasons currently unknown to the Chosen Children.
"S-sorry, I'm here now!" Sora said, hurriedly. "I'm just going to the bathroom to change, so go on ahead without me!" The Chosen of Love didn't wait for a response as she carried her bag to the bathroom, though she unceremoniously dropped her racket by the bathroom door before she closed it behind her.
Yamato blinked as he stared after the Chosen of Love. "That was… fast."
"Yeah," Taichi said, the corner of his mouth twisting downward. "Usually club lasts an hour, and Sora always gets a shower and changes in the gym right after."
Yamato narrowed his eyes. "Something must have happened."
"It did!" Piyomon chirped happily. "Sora was fan - ta -stic~!" She hopped over to her friends, fluttering her wings about. "See, the coach tried to take away the DT2 from Sora, and Sora was all, 'I'm not giving it to you.' While the coach was all, 'Give me the thing or you're out of the club.'"
Agumon stared at Piyomon with wide eyes. "What happened?"
Piyomon beamed, her beak curving in a brilliant smile that was impossible for a flesh and blood avian to do. "Sora gave the coach a look - and Rie too since Rie was laughing at her again. I think Rie might've told the coach lies about Sora again. Anyway!" She threw her wings up to dismiss the tangent. "Sora was all, 'I'm done with this club. I have more important things to do.' And she left without looking back even once!"
Taichi blinked repeatedly at Piyomon. "Whoa. Really?" He lowered his voice into a quiet mutter. "Figures the one time I don't wait for her is when something happens."
Piyomon giggled, starry-eyed, as she did an impromptu dance in front of the others, her excitement overflowing. "Sora was a - ma -zing~! She doesn't let anyone bully her, not even adults!"
It was at that moment that Sora left the bathroom, having quickly changed to her regular clothes. A shower really wasn't necessary, given she hadn't actually done any exercise yet. Shoving her uniform roughly into her bag, she paused when she noticed all eyes on her as Piyomon twirled about happily. "Huh?"
"Sora, Sora, Sora~!" Piyomon practically sang as she hopped over to her Chosen Child. "I was just telling everyone how cool you were when you told that bully coach he can't push you around~!"
Sora's eyes widened before her cheeks tinted red. "O-oh, that… it really wasn't anything special."
"Yes it was!" Piyomon responded with a sunny grin. "Because you're special, then what you do is always special."
Taichi walked to Sora's side, enticed by her flustered appearance to slide an arm around her, even though the action added a rosy dusting to his own cheeks. "I've gotta side with Piyomon on this one, Sora. Makes me wish I didn't go on ahead and miss out on seeing you kick ass."
Sora's blush deepened as she glanced at Taichi before looking away. "I-it really wasn't… I just said what I was feeling, that's all."
"It's still cool," Taichi said wryly.
Sora's blush spread to her ears as her heart skipped a beat. "Ah…"
"Well, that solves that," Yamato said with a grin. While he wanted to press more on what Piyomon had meant about Rie, he opted to let Sora enjoy the moment - even if she didn't want to admit that she was.
"Since we're on the topic of good news, I've got some too," Koshiro said with a smile from his seat in front of his open laptop. "My scans detected Miracles early this morning. There's no mistaking it on the logs."
"What?!" Jou cried out as he stood up. "Seriously!? Where?"
"It first appeared in the same area as the Altar of Pride and Passion," Koshiro said as he brought up the map, and with it a time-lapse of the crest of Miracles pulsating over the stated area. "It then moved to the Temple of Miracles for several hours before returning back to the altars." The crest moved about the world as the Chosen of Knowledge spoke, highlighting the trek for the others.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Taichi asked rhetorically, excitement bubbling up. "Let's go and-"
"I would advise against it," Iori cut in, his voice firm. He glanced towards Miyako, his expression meaningful. "Not while it's… where it is."
Miyako pursed her lips around the sour memory. "Yeah, that's Zhuqiaomon's place. Ken seemed pretty sure if Zhuqiaomon caught me, I'd be dead."
"Wasn't that just because of his own issues with the Holy Beasts?" Yamato asked as he quirked an eyebrow. "I mean, he was trying to kill them."
Miyako folded her arms and furrowed her brow as she considered the question. "Ken might've been paranoid about Holy Beasts, yeah, we can't rule that out. But given the fact that he knew we were going to see Baihumon all the time and didn't say a word except to avoid going himself, I think there's too big a chance that Zhuqiaomon's opinion of us might be a little… murdery."
"That's… a really good point," Takeru said, thoughtfully. "Ken didn't seem too concerned about Baihumon, at least not like he was with Zhuqiaomon. I wonder why?"
"Something must've happened between Ken and the other three Holy Beasts," Hikari said softly. "He mentioned there was a war going on… one he didn't start but was finishing by… taking them out."
Taichi let out an uncomfortable hum at the back of his throat. "It must be pretty big, if he's still gunning for them after everything that's happened."
Daisuke's face twisted, as if he had a foul taste in his mouth. There was a lot he wanted to say, but he knew far better to voice it - especially after what happened the other day. Instead, he kept his mouth firmly shut, so tightly that his teeth ached.
"So, what should we do then?" Sora asked as she looked at the others.
"We could ask Jijimon and Babamon," Jou said as he raised his pointer finger up. "They're at the temple, so they must have seen something!"
"I believe that would be the safest course of action," Iori said with a nod.
"We should keep our expectations in check," YukimiBotamon said as she glanced about the room. "It's okay to be hopeful, but don't be unrealistic."
"It could be Ryo, but it could be someone else entirely." Patamon said as he furrowed his brow.
"Right, so everyone be careful," Yamato said as he pulled out his digivice. "And let's see if Jijimon and Babamon are in the mood to be more open with us, for once."
With a flash of a digivice to open a Digital Gate, the assembled Chosen Children quickly ventured to the Digital World. As the gate whisked them along, the real world apartment was replaced with the colorful decadence of the temple of the DigiGods, with the massive mural depicting their all fifteen crests surrounding them on the stone floor.
Wallace gazed at their surroundings in wonder, his eyes wide as he took in every detail. From his shoulder, Noir did much the same, staring down at the intricate symbols interwoven among the lines that surrounded the colorful marks of the crests.
Standing in front of the altar of Miracles was none other than Jijimon and Babamon, who looked at the Chosen Children calmly. Neither showed any sign of surprise as they watched the children arrive in their midsts.
"'Bout time you all showed up!" Jijimon said with a sniff. "Gettin' kind of lazy, arentcha? Made me lose my bet to this old bat."
"Hush, you," Babamon said as she tapped her broom against the floor. "You need to learn patience and give these children a chance to learn and do things at their own pace."
"You… were expecting us?" Takeru asked, with a blink.
"'Course we were!" Jijimon said. "After all the other visitors we've been having, we figured it was only a matter of time before you came sniffin' about as well."
"What other visitors?" Hikari asked, suddenly at attention.
Babamon sighed softly, her shoulders sagging just a little. "No one you're looking for, dear, sorry."
Hikari wilted at the news, going silent.
"It ain't gonna be that easy," Jijimon said with a shake of his head. "It never is." He paused before he gave another sniff as he glanced at Hikari. "But that's just business as usual, right? So don't let it discourage ya."
"We won't," YukimiBotamon said, with great conviction, before she glanced up at Hikari. "We'll keep going forward."
Hikari straightened up a bit as she met her partner's gaze and nodded. She wouldn't give up on Ken so easily.
Wallace glanced around the cathedral in awe, taking in the sights. However, he was quickly distracted from his sightseeing by suddenly finding Jijimon and Babamon up close and personal, staring at him intently.
The blonde blinked before he gave an awkward smile. Their intense scrutiny was more than a little startling, though he tried not to show it. "H-hello, nice to meet you!"
"Weeeelll," Jijimon said slowly as a beady brown eye peered out from under his bangs. "Now aren't you a hot piece of sliced cheese."
Wallace's eyebrows shot straight up as Jijimon leaned in close. "Eh?"
"Listen, you," Jijimon said as he pointed a finger at Wallace. "If you so much as think of making a move on my wife..." He then gave the boy a toothy grin. "...Then you better promise it's for keeps and you won't give her back-"
Babamon's staff swung about with extreme vengeance, slamming her husband's face straight into the floor of the cathedral. The floor splintered as Jijimon face-planted into it, with spider web-like cracks appearing around him.
Wallace stared as Jijimon flailed a bit before prying his face out of of the floor, only for the crack to immediately fix itself the moment he was free. "I-I promise you, I would never come between a couple!"
Noir turned to flash Daisuke a mischievous smirk. "At least not in-ten-tion-al-ly~!"
Daisuke's cheek twitched and took on a light pink hue as he refused to look at Noir, instead glaring at the ground. V-mon glanced at his partner before he shot the Black Terriermon a glare for Daisuke's sake, though it only served to make Noir giggle.
Yamato watched the two before he gave a small shake of his head. He then straightened up, quickly attempting to redirect the conversation back to where it belonged. "So if it wasn't who we were looking for, then who was it?"
"The Holy Beasts, or at least what's left of 'em," Jijimon said. "Seems they had somethin' real important to talk about."
"Like, oh I don't know," Miyako asked as she put her hands on her hips. "The Crest of Miracles, by any chance?"
Jijimon and Babamon paused and glanced at each other. They were silent for a moment before returning their attention to the children.
"That would certainly explain a few things," Babamon said, gravely.
"That indeed," Jijimon said with a nod. "It'd take about that to get that Feather-fart out and about."
"'Feather-fart'?" Taichi repeated slowly, a bemused expression on his face.
"Yep," Jijimon said, without a hint of embarrassment. "Old Feather-fart Zhuqiaomon."
"I, uh, take it you don't think highly of him," Jou said with a bead of sweat trickling down his brow.
"Not in the least!" Jijimon said, tapping the tip of his staff against the floor.
"Why is that?" Iori asked. "Is he not an important guardian of the Digital World?"
"That he is," Jijimon replied with another sniff. "Bein' one of the four responsible for all decisions in the Digital World would make him pretty damn important." He paused then cracked a toothy grin. "Well, most decisions, anyway. Naturally, not everyone gives a crap what they have to say and will do their own thing… but the majority do."
"Wait, what?" Koshiro sputtered. "The Holy Beasts are responsible for what!?"
"Mystimon told us they were the followers of one of the gods," Miyako added before pausing a moment. "The god that died I mean, Huanglongmon."
Babamon nodded, her lips pursed in a slight frown that twisted the stitches along her mouth. "Our apologies, dears. We forget sometimes that you haven't been given the time to learn many of the intricacies of how our world works yet. Allow me to explain."
Turning, Babamon raised her broom and made a sweeping gesture in the air, drawing the children's eyes to the stained glass windows adorning the temple. "Our world, our reality, was made in three parts from the programs that created our gods, each equally important." She directed her broom to the east to the glorious glass visage of the sun. "Vaccine became Light in the form of Tenraimon who in turn created life with souls just as real and true as any humans."
"Viruses became Darkness," Babamon continued after another pause, gesturing to the west where the silvery moon arranged in glass shards glowed gently. "Darkness in turn brought us Death. Those three aspects in one of course have very negative connotations, and can be abused greatly, but they are vital to our world, to end the entropy that corrupts programs over time so that they might be reborn whole and new once more."
For a moment, Babamon brought her broom down, the wooden handle clunking softly against the stone floor, and she took the time to look at each Chosen, humans and Digimon alike. Although her bangs completely hid her eyes, they could feel her gaze meet each of them in turn. She lingered on Wallace and Noir in particular before she finally resumed. "Darkness and Light naturally balance each other, being two sides of a single whole. They are absolutes that change very little, unlike the third, and some argue most important, aspect of our very existence."
That was when Babamon directed her broom to the north where the stained glass depicted a world enshrouded in twilight. "Data became Miracles. Just as a miracle allowed the very data that made up the original programs to evolve into true life, Miracles represent the act of living, growing, and changing. Because of this very nature of change, the power of Miracles is far more fluid than Light or Darkness and needs far more effort to channel it than a guardian avatar speaking for its god. That's where the Holy Beasts come in. They watch the four corners of our world and take in the measure of change, judging whether it will aid in our evolution as a world or will ultimately be a threat to our very existence."
"The only problem with that is… with Huanglongmon gone, they're the ones that get to decide what is or is not a threat," Jijimon said. "Which, as you might imagine, ultimately comes down entirely to personal opinion."
"Wait, hold up," Taichi said, raising his hand for a moment on instinct, as though they were back in class. "The Dark Masters and Apocalymon were definitely a threat to the existence of the Digital World and the real world, so why didn't the Holy Beasts jump in to stop them?"
Babamon let out a displeased sound at the back of her throat. "I'm afraid I can't tell you exactly the reason why they didn't directly pursue those threats themselves, or some others I've seen in my time. I do know that, aside from protecting their personal territories, they only act on a vote."
"A vote?" Mimi blinked, her eyes wide and confused.
Wallace raised his eyebrows. Although his imperfect grasp of the Japanese language left many holes in his translation of the explanation, that one word caught his attention and sparked bemusement in him. "The Holy Beasts are politicians? Are they elected into office?"
Jijimon let out an inelegant snort of laughter through his nose before slapping his knee.
Babamon gave her counterpart an annoyed stare before she sighed and turned her attention back to the children. "They are not elected like politicians, but their internal process would be a good comparison to a democratic government, yes. To ensure that all major decisions that concern the Digital World are not made in haste or based on personal bias, the Holy Beasts cast a vote… majority rules."
"Wouldn't that lead to a lot of stalemates?" Miyako asked as she cocked an eyebrow. "There's only four of them, you know."
Babamon sighed again a little more heavily, shoulders slumping. "As I said, the comparison to politics is a good one."
"So what you're saying is… there's a good possibility that they didn't get involved with the Dark Masters or Apocalymon... because they couldn't pass the vote to do it," Yamato said, his expression deadpanning.
"Yep!" Jijimon chirped. "The same reason why ol' Ken-chan was able to avoid being attacked all at once and killed by the Holy Beast's vastly superior forces."
Babamon nodded, her expression pensive. "They must have been in deadlock on how to deal with him or decided to just let Ken-chan do as he pleased." She paused to sigh again softly. "Or at least, that is the only thing that makes any sort of sense to us."
Yamato snorted derisively. "So they were so busy with their politics that they couldn't do anything to stop their own slaughter."
"Yep!" Jijimon said, his grin wide through his bushy hair. "If I had to wager a guess, Zhuqiaomon and Baihumon would've been voting for war, while Qinglongmon would have been against it. That leaves Xuanwumon as the tie-breaker, and he tends to avoid war - or any fight - whenever possible. Which means… two against two, a stalemate."
Takeru frowned. He recalled back to their first meeting with Baihumon, and his refusal to accept their assistance. He had assumed it was simply out of pride, but Jijimon's words certainly put a new perspective to the scenario. It was one that he didn't particularly like.
Daisuke couldn't help but let out a groan. The more he heard about how the Holy Beasts worked, the more their grandeur evaporated into a cloud of stupidity. "How the heck are they supposed to get anything done if they're fighting all the time? Who the heck thought this was a good idea?"
"They did, o' course," Jijimon said cheerfully.
"To be fair," Babamon added quickly, "it was the best system they could come up with after Huanglongmon died. Originally, they were meant to represent equal opinions on matters to their god, who would then serve as ultimate judge and arbitrate what actions the Holy Beasts would take based on the arguments they presented to him. With his absence, the Holy Beasts are left to debate among themselves what course of action he would've taken."
Hikari frowned. "Why don't they just ask Tenraimon and Narakumon what they think?"
Jijimon shrugged. "Not their gods. Doubt they even respect those two enough to care one whit that they even exist at all, 'cept to worry if Narakumon is gonna go nuts and wipe 'em out."
"I would imagine it's deep down in their programming to only obey Huanglongmon and no one else," Babamon mused as she lightly stroked her chin. "It'd be much the same as asking one of you Digimon to just follow the instruction of a different Chosen Child for the rest of your life, with no chance of seeing your partner ever again."
The very idea caused every one of the Chosen Digimon to cringe, either inwardly or outwardly, and all of them instinctively turned to their respective child.
YukimiBotamon felt her skin crawl at the idea but she quickly shoved it aside. After all, it was just a hypothetical - one that would never stand, as she'd never accept it. "So they're unable to adapt. Pretty ironic, given what Miracles stands for. Still, it does explain a few things."
"So does that mean they came by to vote on something?" Sora asked, furrowing her brow.
"Probably!" Jijimon said. "They went straight to the throne room of Huanglongmon, where all votin' happens, so odds are pretty good they voted on something."
"Can they still vote, with the others currently… not around?" Jou asked, phrasing his words as delicately as he could.
"Yep, yep!" Jijimon replied with a nod. "If yer dead, yer excused from attending… but yer considered to be abstainin'! So it's in yer best interests to not be dead, if ya wanna have a say in things."
Babamon looked weary. "Voting is required attendance for all of them, and can't happen unless they're all present, save when they declare they are abstaining from the vote. So, as you might imagine, when one of them gets stubborn about avoiding a vote, it can lead to… in fighting."
Jijimon snorted. "Puttin' it mildly there, don'tcha think? Xuanwumon hid in his fortress one time for 20 years avoidin' a vote and only counted as abstainin' when Baihumon and Zhuqiaomon came by with their armies to kick his door in and offed him for a while."
Taichi outright gawked at Jijimon. "Wait, the Holy Beasts have actually killed each other for that!?"
Babamon sighed as she ran her fingers across her face. "Unfortunately, for far too many Digimon in this world, death is hardly seen as more than a temporary inconvenience. Xuanwumon was revived and back to normal again in only three days. The Holy Beasts have a more expedited process of revival and evolution than every other Digimon due to the way Huanglongmon made them."
"T'aint nothin' to forbid it, neither," Jijimon replied. "It's seen as just one way of… negotiation. Though obviously, it ain't that easy to actually pull off as they're each equal in power to each other."
"That's got to be why Ken screwed over the Village of Beginnings," Daisuke blurted out before flinching as he felt all eyes on him. "I-I mean…" He faltered, unable to figure out how to soften the statement, but he lacked the words.
Iori watched Daisuke for a moment before turning to the others, his expression showing no signs of judgment. "I agree. The message he left strongly supports it as well."
"Makes sense," Miyako said, vaguely gesturing to the side. "If the Holy Beasts come back in full force so fast, the only way to actually finish a war with them surrendering is to cut them off from their literal life hack."
Koshiro folded his arms, his expression grim. "It's cold blooded, but it's the best strategy against an enemy that can't be killed."
"Otherwise, he'd be fighting them forever," Takeru mused as he crossed his arms. "Or until they killed him."
"So once he started it, he had to go all out to finish it," Yamato agreed. "All or nothing."
"Unless they were willing to negotiate," Hikari said, though the suggestion came out tainted with uncertainty.
"With how little it takes for them to kill each other and act like it's business as usual?" Miyako shook her head. "Messed up as it is, death seems to be like a slap on the wrist to them."
Wallace frowned as he tried to process everything he was hearing, his arms partially crossed as he tapped his left pointer finger against his chin. It was extremely hard to follow everything that was being said, but at the very least he could understand the basics. It was a bit hard to misunderstand politics and murder, after all.
After a moment, he glanced up to Noir as the Digimon rested comfortably on his shoulders, the Black Terriermon's chest flopped down on the boy's head as his ears dangled downwards. The Digimon took no effort in hiding how bored he was with the entire conversation.
"[I'm going to be quite honest, Noir,]" Wallace said quietly. "[Your world can be pretty terrifying.]"
"[Maaaybe, but just think!]" Noir chirped, with a bright smile. "[How much easier would everything go if all your problems could be solved by having your politicians fight to the death? Your dad's news programs would be soooo much more interesting!]" He then straightened up and clenched his fists, shaking them furiously with an exaggerated scowl. "[Lower our taxes or else!]"
Wallace felt a beat of sweat on his brow. Visions of Digimon violently throwing cases of tea at each other rather than into the Boston Harbor filled his mind, with Noir leading the charge in a little patriot uniform. He didn't know whether to find it unsettling or hilarious. "Ahaha..."
A loud ring stopped the conversation from progressing any further, the sound echoing off the high vaulted ceiling of the temple. It sounded like a cell phone's ringtone, one very different from the one the DT2s made. The Chosen glanced at each other before turning to Wallace, whose face had gone pale.
The blonde quickly fumbled to reach into his pocket, pulling out a small cell phone. He quickly flipped it open before his already pale face turned ghostly white. A quick glance at the screen told him exactly what he needed to know. "[I-it's… my dad!]"
"[Uh ohhhh]," Noir said as he perked up. "[Looks like he noticed you're not in beeeeed! Baaad luck, baaaad luck!]"
"[I can't believe he noticed!]" Wallace hissed through his teeth. "[He's never home, so why now-!?]"
"Huh, is that a cell phone?" Daisuke asked before he paused, furrowing his brow. In the past, he would've been completely blown away by such technology, especially since it looked like the new first-ever camera phone that had recently been released. But then he recalled his DT2 and all the things it could do, things that cell phones could never even come close to achieving.
Not only was it hard to be impressed by anything else, but it served as a constant reminder of the kind of genius Ken was - on top of being a manipulative liar. The very thought made Daisuke's stomach churn, his jaw clenching as he fought down the nausea.
Wallace hesitated a moment more before he answered the phone, knowing far better than to allow it to go unanswered. "[H-hello-]"
"[Where are you!?]" a male adult voice thundered through the small device loud enough for the other children to hear, causing Wallace to flinch back and briefly hold the phone away from his ear. "[It's 3 o'clock in the morning, and you left the house!?]"
"[I-I can explain!]" Wallace stammered as he hesitantly brought the cell phone back to his head. "[You see-]"
"[You can explain - at home!]" Wallace's father, Michael Barton, said with great authority. "[Now!]"
Wallace grimaced before he glanced at the other Chosen. "S-sorry… very sorry, I-"
"We better scram, before Wallace's dad scrambles us!" Noir chirped, showing far less consideration for the severity of the situation than Wallace did.
"I will explain!" Wallace said hurriedly, his Japanese stumbling over itself in his panic. "I will explain to him!"
Without waiting for a response, the blonde whipped out his Digivice - brown with red accents - before summoning a Digital Gate right in the middle of the cathedral. Within moments, both he and Noir were gone.
The assembled Chosen stared at the now-empty space before turning their attention to each other.
"I guess I take it for granted how much easier it is when you have parents who know about Digimon," Takeru said as he glanced up at Patamon. "And who understand."
"You've got that right," Patamon sighed, not envying the other Digimon who had to constantly hide instead of relax in their own home.
"It helps not having to sneak around at 3 am~!" Pafumon said as she rolled about, wiggling her ears to propel her in to a barrel roll in the air above Miyako.
Mimi looked thoughtfully where Wallace had been. "I guess I'll have to talk with Wallace at school later about how we're going to handle this problem. It won't be good if he can't ever come here when everyone is awake."
"Uh… so!" Koshiro said with a slightly raised voice, at a loss for how else to proceed and deciding it safer just to change the topic to something more productive. "Getting back to the subject at hand… the Holy Beasts have the Crests of Miracles, and likely came here to vote about something."
Miyako nodded. "And I'm betting Ken or Ryo might've been part of that vote, if Miracles was here. Since asking Zhuqiaomon might be suicidal, we should probably go ask Baihumon what he knows."
"But will he tell us anything?" Takeru asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"At the very least, I can assure you that he won't lie to you," Jijimon said with a shrug. "That'd go against his principles."
Babamon nodded. "Baihumon is the type of Digimon who would father face death a thousand times over than compromise his principles."
"'N' just 'bout has!" Jijimon added with a grin.
"Well, then!" Yamato said as he turned to Taichi, flashing him a grin. "How about we go knocking on Baihumon's door and see if he answers?"
Taichi grinned back. "Sounds like a plan to me."