U/N: this was fun! I love Michael, and it was the first introduction of his little sister who I've mentioned a few times. She's going to be in 05 though, so that's exciting... anyway, i hope you like it :)

Title: Digimon Adventure: Moments

By: UrazamayKing

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon or its characters.

Year: 1999

Chapter 10: Monster Misunderstood

Michael:

"Michael! In here!" I turned sharply to see my father and relief washed over me—I'd been looking for him everywhere! He was safe! Alive! I wiped the tears from my face and rushed over to him dragging my little sister behind me. He was standing in a small alleyway between a makeup store and a costume shop. I should have guessed. He reached his hand out and wrapped his warm fingers around my arm tightly before pulling me sharply toward him, into the alley to keep safe. He hugged me tightly along with my sister who was crying loudly.

"Michael," He said again as I turned from him to wipe my tears, "It's okay to cry son!"

I shook my head and turned back to him with a forced smile. "I'm not crying."

But I was—and I knew I had every right to cry, but there was no way I was going to allow myself to fall apart in front of my dad. I knew he felt the same way—he too was keeping a strong, brave face to keep from crying in front of me. But there was no reason to... watching him cry wouldn't make me think less of him—it would only remind me that he was a human—just like me. He was stronger than I was though—I could tell he hadn't cried yet... but I had. I was also a ten year old boy who had just lost his mother to the monsters charging around the city.

Jenna had cried a lot though. More than a lot. She was a little cry baby. To be fair, she was seven years younger than me, and was only three years old. She barely even understood what was going on, just that there was danger everywhere and that she wanted Mommy. Which made me want to cry even more.

Dad took me by the arm again in his vice like grip and pulled me toward him to hug me again. "I'm so sorry son..." He whispered to me, his voice soft in my ear as opposed to the low gravelly voice he usually spoke with. I could smell the strong scent of his cologne as he hugged me tightly. I slowly placed my arms around his neck and faintly hugged him in return. I wasn't looking for a touching moment to open fire with my tears—I was just trying to keep strong, and I didn't want him to give me the opportunity.

Even after what had happened. I couldn't let anything bad happen to me, and crying was one of those bad things.

Suddenly my dad stopped hugging me as he perked his head up. He grabbed me around the middle and threw his other hand over my mouth as he hissed for me to be quiet. I nodded so he released me and grabbed onto Jenna and covered her mouth tightly. I could hear her crying and whimpering under his grip, but she was as quiet as she was going to get. Dad backed up as quickly as he could, hiding in the shadows as strange swishing sounds grew louder accompanied by annoying voices. I quickly rushed back to stand by him.

"Lord Myotismon says that the land of Japan is more important..." One of the voices said.

"Well Lord Myotismon is also going to kill us if he finds out that the Eighth Child is here in America and we didn't bring it to him." The second voice said.

"Good point." The first one said again as they passed the alleyway. My eyes widened as my fear was realized—they were more of those monsters! These ones were smaller and much less menacing than the one who took my mother from me. These ones looked like my Halloween costume from when I was six—just a sheet ghost.

As they were passing through, my Dad's hand slipped from Jenna's mouth and she let out a yell, but Dad quickly covered her mouth again. The ghosts doubled back and flew past again but then shrugged and headed forward once more. I relaxed a little as they passed by without noticing us. "Find every child, and bring them to the Town Hall—we'll examine them there." I heard the first one say.

"Deal." The second voice said as they faded out completely.

"What are these creatures?" Dad asked me as he let go of Jenna who was being a little quieter now. "They want the kids—do you know anything that you're not telling me?"

"No!" I insisted, "No... not that I know of." I began to think—I knew there was something—some reason they were familiar to me, but I couldn't figure out why, but as I thought my dad gave me a weird look so I shook it off and turned away from him.

I closed my eyes and instantly flashes of my mother pushing me aside as the large Gorilla shaped monster brought his mechanical arm down. I flinched and opened my eyes, spinning around to look at my dad. "What are we going to do? We can't just stay here!"

"You're right." Dad nodded, "Wait here a moment while I check to see if we're safe. Stay with her." I nodded and backed up a little further into the shadows, taking Jenna's hand and dragging her with me as Dad stuck his head out of the alley. He turned back to us and motioned for us to follow him. I smiled and nodded before running down the alley toward him with Jenna stumbling behind. She was such a clumsy kid. He reached his hand out and I took it quickly, reaching back and snatching Jenna's little hand too, before he pulled me sharply and dragged us down the back street.

"Where are we going?" I asked him.

"Home," He said flatly, "They've already looked there, they won't look again..."

It took us longer to get home than it should have because we couldn't use a car, and we certainly couldn't go out in the open where those monsters could see us. I could also barely see since I was fighting back tears, trying to keep strong. But none of that was at all as bad as Jenna.

She was the slowest, most awful travel companion there ever was. And even though she was three I kind of felt like she needed to pick up the pace a little bit.

We rounded a corner and slid to a stop as we came up to my home. I smiled at the large mansion and the perfectly mown grass and the large marble fountain in the center of the driveway. But dad stopped. What was wrong?

"Do you hear that?" He asked me, turning his head toward me slowly. I shook my head but then closing my eyes I heard a faint footstep allowing the ground to rumble slightly. I threw my eyes open as my heart began to beat quickly in a panic. "Get to the house Michael" Dad said quickly and in as much of a panic as I felt. "Take Jenna and get into the basement and don't leave." I nodded to him but he repeated himself anyway, "Don't. Leave."

I bit my bottom lip and squeezed his hand harder, unwilling to let him go but he shot me a look as if daring me to stay by his side so I turned quickly and shot off in the other direction, running as fast as I could toward my home. As fast as I could with Jenna anyway. But the footsteps were growing closer, and I couldn't let dad die... I couldn't lose them both—even though I knew this would be my father's preferred way to go—with a sense of style and dramatics. In fact this reminded me very much of one of the movies he'd made.

I looked over my shoulder and saw with a great sense of fear and disgust, the Gorilla digimon sliding out of the trees. I stopped running abruptly and spun around to get a good look at the creature.

"Dad!" I shouted, "Dad run!" But he couldn't hear me—either that or he wasn't willing to obey me. "DAD!" I screamed as loud as I could. He wasn't listening! I had to go back and help him. I couldn't let him go. I needed him. Jenna needed him... we needed to stick together! Besides, there was no way I was going to reach the house in time. Not with Jenna slowing me down anyway. "DAD!" I screamed.

"DADDY!" Jenna cried out from behind me.

I took a big breath and screamed as loud as I could. Part way through, Jenna joined in, but it didn't matter, he'd already heard me.

Unfortunately, so did the Gorilla.

The giant ape turned his head toward me and furrowed his brow making him look very angry. He scraped his feet across the ground and then set off at a run toward me.

"Electric Shock!"

I flung my eyes open as a high squeaking voice shouted out. I spotted a bolt of strong electricity shoot past me and hit the Gorilla directly in the forehead. Jenna let out a scream and fell to the ground, landing on her butt. The gorilla shook his head and then looked back toward me and then looked up to the sky and screamed out as he smashed his fist into his chest. He pulled himself to his feet and then slowly, as he lowered his eye sight toward me he set off at a run.

"Stay behind me!"

I spun around quickly and saw another one of the monsters. I couldn't help it though—I let out a scream.

"Shush!" The creature insisted, "Get behind me quick!" I couldn't move though... I was surrounded. The creature rolled his eyes and ran in front of me to greet the Gorilla. The smaller one was green with blue vertical stripes on his back and a large red fin. It was some sort of sea creature. "ELECTRIC SHOCK!" the small green one screamed, sending a blast of lighting toward the gorilla again. But it wasn't strong enough! The little one needed more power to win... Not that it really mattered which one won. We'd still be stuck against one of them.

Which meant that I had to be strong. For Dad. For Mom... and for Jenna. I turned to her and fell to my knees and hugged her tightly. "It's okay..." I whispered to her. "We'll be okay."

Suddenly a ball of light appeared in front of me with a strange grey toy in the center. I reached up and grabbed it with excitement—what was it? Suddenly it began to glow and I dropped it with a small scream.

"Betamon digivolve to... Seadramon!"

I watched, my eyes wide and jaw dropped as the small green digimon shifted shape and emerged from his strange ball of light as a large sea serpent... and then I remembered suddenly—that's why these creatures looked familiar to me!

"Michael, look at all the birds..." My mother had said to me, motioning her hand out across the horizon to the birds that were flying back after the cold winter. I was bundled up in a blanket leaning against my mother as she hugged me tightly. "And the fish, they're all coming back—oh how I love the spring." I followed her gaze into the water, and saw a very colourful fish. I rushed to the edge of the boat we were sitting in and watched it swim down the river and into the bay. I remember watching it with much excitement—and then with a flash, the water exploded in the bay, sending large waves of the icy cold water toward us as a long serpent like creature emerged from the bay and then dived back down to swim away... "You'd best not tell anyone about that Michael," I remember my mother saying to me, "If people find out about that poor creature he will never be allowed to live in peace."

Well he didn't get a chance to live in peace. Not if my mother didn't get her chance...

As I looked back to the battle I saw the large serpent fire something out of his mouth, hitting the gorilla head on. I watched in shock as the gorilla exploded into bits of dust.

I was frozen in shock for a minute, but then I rushed forward and picked up my new toy just before the large serpent looked to me. I glanced past him to my father who was running toward us as fast as he could. Until he arrived I'd have to take care of Jenna. I stood up and between the serpent and Jenna.

"We make a good team." He said staring down at me.

I shook my head quickly, "No." I told him, "Don't talk to me... We're not a team. You're a horrible monster who is killing people! That's not right!"

Before the monster had a chance to say anything my father scooped both my sister and I into his arms and he set off at a run. He was so determined, and he didn't even stop. He wouldn't stop. He was trying to protect us. He was so strong. As Dad ran I looked back and saw the serpent change back into the smaller fish-like form. He wasn't chasing us...

Maybe he wasn't so bad...

But he was still one of them.