Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Digimon Trinity

Chapter: 7/Investigation

Night advanced to midnight, and soon passed it. Bathed in the light of the waxing moon, stood the Matsuki bakery, silent and dark. Across from it, hidden in the shadows, was Renamon, her blue-eyes gleaming eerily bright.

The Guilmon has finally quieted down, she thought, in part relieved. The digimon was unquestionably a Virus-type, prone to aggressive behavior. Its high level of power did not mix well with its immaturity. It was nothing short of amazing that its human partner managed to keep it restrained at all.

Had he not, it most certainly would have torn its way out of the building, looking for a fight.

As a Data-type, she was somewhat vulnerable to Viruses, though not insurmountably so, as she had proven earlier during the evening with the Fugamon. She had both power and the experience to handle nearly any Virus at the Champion level or below, whereas the new arrival was little more than a child wearing clothes much too big for it. If it came down to a battle, she was confident in her ability to come out ahead, so long as there were no surprises. Both the boy and the Hazard sign remained enigmas. The Hazard because it was unpredictable and the boy because she knew nothing about what he was capable of. A human who could create a digimon that didn't exist until now could create anything, and she had reason to believe that he could do much, much more.

There are rumors among humans who have paranormal abilities, such as sending an astral projection of themselves to another location. Are you able to do such a thing? Or did my eyes deceive me?

She doubted that was the case. She recognized him easily enough when she saw him by chance on her way to the construction site. Such an odd event could hardly be called a coincidence.

Yet, despite following him to his home and observing him, she had yet to learn anything useful. It seemed that until he left, she was wasting time…

Renamon felt a cold chill go through her and her fur stood on end. Recognizing the presence, she leapt up to the rooftop behind her.

"Aren't you supposed to be cultivating the darkness within the Digimon Queen?" laughed a tall, lean figure with tattered wings behind his back. White horns protruded from his skull, and his white body-suit glinted like crystal in the moonlight. Renamon's blue-eyes met his unflinching red ones.

"You shouldn't be here, IceDevimon," she reprimanded. "If Apocalymon…"

"Apocalymon is occupied at the moment," IceDevimon laughed. "Something to do with the larger battle I believe; something that you should be working on now."

"There…is a new element in this," Renamon said carefully. Unlike Fugamon, IceDevimon was of a power that was beyond her current abilities. If she could digivolve… But no. She couldn't as yet. She had to play the game. Turning, she gestured to the Matsuki residence. "A human has been partnered with another digimon, using the same digivice as Rika. I believe forces are moving against Apocalymon."

"He is of the dark, as are we," IceDevimon sneered. "Forces move against us always, just as we do against them. This is the game of Light and Shadow, Renamon. You know this as well as I do." Looking at the window, he raised an unnaturally long arm, and Renamon could see ice crystals forming along his fingertips. "If you're concerned about it though, perhaps you'll allow me to remove this piece from the board…"

Renamon folded her arms over her chest. "If you are concerned enough about my wellbeing, you are more than welcome to."

IceDevimon's eyes flashed in anger. Renamon nearly smiled upon seeing that. IceDevimon had been the most opposed to her partnership with Rika.

"Concerned? About you?" IceDevimon's face drew a cruel smirk. "No. I watched you, Renamon. You allowed this pawn to enter the playing field when you could have removed it while it was vulnerable. This is your mess. You can clean it up."

With a dark laugh, IceDevimon rose into the air and vanished from sight, leaving Renamon alone with her thoughts. Returning her attention to the Matsuki residence, she walked over to the edge of the roof. No movement greeted her. No shine of golden eyes. Guilmon remained quiet and undisturbed.

Pulling her claws into the palms of her hands, she wondered if she should act now and destroy the digimon and his partner before they could become a danger to her fellow Nightmare Soldiers. Yet… She couldn't help but think of the bright, shining happiness that the boy greeted the digimon with upon embracing him. It was odd to her, but the scene had been enough to stay her hand. It was so…different from when she first met Rika. The two greeted each other warmly—almost lovingly. Nothing like the relationship she had with Rika. Renamon tipped her head back, remembering the night that the digivice joined them together.

Power… The need for it burned within the both of us then. She sought strength…a means to escape and be recognized, and when offered she took it. And I… I wanted to be even stronger.

Looking back at the window, she narrowed her eyes.

These two cannot be much of a threat though. Hazard or not, the human acts little better than a pet-owner babying a puppy. Whatever strength they possess will become mine and I will move on to the next target. The next opponent. You, human, will be left behind, broken.

Renamon's frown deepened, a part of her feeling uncertain. Dismissing the emotion, she vanished from sight. She would learn nothing more here until the boy and his digimon were gone.

She had been away from Rika for far too long anyway.

###

Ready for another day of school, Takato snuck down the stairs from the living area of the bakery and peeked around the corner, keeping a sharp eye out for his parents.

Okay, he thought, seeing that the coast was clear. This is going to be a lot easier than last night.

Quickly heading to the bakery section, he quietly slipped on his shoes and ran by his parents as they busied themselves with their morning chores.

Unfortunately for him, quiet was a sound his mother could hear even in the depths of space.

"Takato," she called, quickly turning around just as the boy stopped near the stand filled with the bread from the day before.

"Hm?" he called, a small loaf in one mouth while he busily jammed a mess into his pockets.

"Do you remember that time you found a cat and brought it home?"

Takato swallowed the chunk of bread down painfully before answering.

"I didn't just find it, Mom," he said, squeezing a few more chunks of bread into his pants pockets. "That old lady gave it to me, remember?"

"I know," she continued as he made his way toward the door that would take him to the freedom of outside. "I just want to remind you that we can't have any pets. Are you listening?" She made her way toward the kitchen exit and poked her head in. "Takato?"

Takato froze and turned to her, eyes expectant.

"Whatever animal you have up in your room, you're just going to have to…take it back, okay?"

Mie hesitated on those last words, not wanting to see her son upset. Due to the life they had, the neigh constant trouble to make ends meet, she often worried about her son's happiness. Yet he rarely complained, even when it was obvious he had his heart set on something. Try as he might, his heart often told its tale openly.

Much to her surprise, he simply gave a nervous laugh. "Mom, you're crazy! An animal!"

Shrugging his bag into a more comfortable position on his shoulders, he exited the house, leaving Mie to watch his retreating back worriedly.

###

Yeah… An animal!Takato laughed again, closing the door to the bakery behind him. If only she knew…

He breathe a sigh of relief though. He hadn't been certain he could get away without a more thorough grilling. He suspected that his parents believed he brought an animal home last night as the box and the trouble he had getting it upstairs would have been an undeniable hint. To get away with only a small reminder of the rules of their lease? He couldn't have asked for better luck.

Hard part of the easier-than-last-night part is done! Takato thought, stopping in the alleyway and closing the door behind him. Now for the even easier part. Looking up at his bedroom window, he smiled. "Guilmon! Come down here!" he called.

At the command, Guilmon, box and all, came crashing down on top of him, causing the boy to squawk and gasp as the duo untangled themselves.

"Down here, not on me," Takato scolded, getting back to his feet.

"Sorry," Guilmon grunted.

"Man… You're heavy!"

Guilmon giggled. "Yeah!"

Dusting himself off, Takato smiled. "Okay. Are you ready to go? We're going to find a special place for you!"

From within the box, Guilmon's eyes lit up. "Special? Where are we going?"

"Well…"

###

"I'll just leave that there…" Takato grunted, arranging the great wall of cardboard in what he felt was the best way to obstruct vision from anyone passing by the alleyway. "And that there…" He heard rustling behind him from Guilmon, and he turned just in time to spy Guilmon giving a piece of garbage a testing lick. Not again… "Guilmon, don't eat that!" he scolded.

"Okay…" Guilmon replied, his ears wilting slightly.

Honestly, digimon and their stomachs… Smiling apologetically at sounding annoyed he returned his attention to his cardboard wall and wiped an arm over his head. "Well, it's not pretty, but it should do." Turning back to Guilmon, he adjusted his bag. "Now Guilmon, since you can't stay at home you're going to have to stay here while I go to school, okay?"

In the cardboard box that was his shelter, Guilmon tilted his head, not comprehending why his partner had to leave him. "Go school?" he chirped.

"I know," Takato laughed falsely. "I wish I could take you with me, but I don't have a license for you and I don't think they let digimon on the grounds. If I took you with me, they'd grab you and take you away and then I'd never see you again." His expression became downcast as he thought about it. Brushing it off for Guilmon's sake, he fixed his partner with a smile. "Well, even though I can't take you to school, the two of us can play all afternoon when I get home, okay? Until then, stay in that box."

"Play now!" Guilmon laughed, tossing his head.

"I wish I could. Now I've got to go." Turning he prepared to leave, only to stop as he remembered that he still had something to give Guilmon. "Oh! If you get hungry, eat this!"

Reaching into his pockets, he dumped a load of bread in front of Guilmon, who watched it all fall with wide eyes. Sniffing it cautiously, he looked up at Takato questioningly.

You'll try to eat garbage but not this? Takato laughed mentally. "Oh yeah. This is okay for you to eat. This is food." Picking up a bread roll, he gave it a hearty bite, making throaty noises to indicate how good it was. "Now you," he said between mouthfuls before swallowing.

Tentatively, Guilmon picked up the bread with his claws and then nodded. "Ah…okay!" Dumping the whole thing into his mouth, Guilmon found himself rendered utterly speechless by the sudden delicious assault on his tongue. It overwhelmed him, and in the next moment he was busily gobbling down another bread roll…and then another…and then another. So lost in his sense of taste, he barely noticed Takato telling him to stay put and be good before departing. Instead he kept downing bread after bread until finally…

"Want more!" He exclaimed with glee, only to be met with silence.

"Takatomon?" he asked the cardboard wall in front of him. His ears dropped as he realized the boy had left him. Throwing his head back, he let out a loud, mournful howl. "Takatomonnn…"

###

"This place?" Davis asked as he and DemiVeemon followed Ken and Wormmon through Shinjuku Park, approaching a baseball field. It was the site of their newest investigation; the latest bio-emergence. "Man… It looks like a hurricane went through here or something."

He looked around, finding a dugout shelter in utter ruins. The ground looked as though it had been split open. In spite of the yellow tap around the area, he was rather surprised that they didn't find Takeru or any of Hypnos' agents conducting an investigation. He was glad though. He wasn't sure if he would be able to keep himself from punching the man this time.

Ken chuckled. "Yolei said something along the lines of that when she got home from work."

Davis raised an eyebrow, surprised at the purple-haired woman. "She actually told you?! Doesn't she work at a super-secret government building?"

"She didn't give me any details," Ken replied. "And she and I have the understanding that she can't talk about her job. That doesn't mean that I don't have ways to figure things out. Do you still have your D-Terminal?"

"Yeah," Davis nodded.

"It's kind of collecting dust though," DemiVeemon said from atop the man's head. "Everyone's been so busy lately we haven't been able to talk a whole lot anymore."

"I know," Wormmon said, looking a bit upset. "I've been trying to convince Ken to have a slumber party with everyone like he did years ago, but…"

"Yeah, but," Davis said, laughing harshly. "Adulthood sucks doesn't it?"

"I don't know why any of you humans would bother growing up," Wormmon said, looking at Ken as though he were somehow at fault for it. "It's certainly not fun."

"We'll find time," Ken said, pulling out his D-Terminal. Popping the D-Terminal open, he pressed in a few commands and waited. Davis raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Um… Isn't it a little early to be setting that up now? I thought we were here to do a job."

"We are. I have a little program installed on it now. Izzy helped provide me with some input, but this is mostly mine." Smirking, he tapped the side of his head. "Just because the Dark Spore doesn't affect me anymore doesn't mean that I can't be smart."

Davis snorted. "Yolei says you can't figure out when it's your turn to do the dishes."

"Ha… Ha," Ken said in a deadpan tone. "Anyway, it connects to the servers back at headquarters and by using it in conjunction with my digivice's detect functions…" The D-Terminal beeped as it finished. "There we go…"

"What's up?"

"Remember the digital residue that I mentioned yesterday?"

Davis' eyes lit up. "You've got something?"

"It's found a match from data I gathered from some of the other scenes and it's finally put together the puzzle." He looked at Davis fully. "It looks like in addition to our Ice digimon problem, we have a Renamon on the loose."

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