A/N: I'm sorry about the wait. My writing schedule became packed for the unseen future. I'm not planning to forget this fic or put it on hiatus, but the updates might be a little less regular. Like I've said, I know where this fic is going and have long parts of the end-part chapters written —now we just have to get there.

If you have any questions or comments (grammar corrections...), I'd be happy to hear them.

Disclaimer: Digimon belongs to Bandai & Toei Animation.

"You think they are coming back?"

It had been two days since Takeru and Angemon had left the Chosen on the small island, and the waiting was already starting to leave its marks on the team.

"We can't really do anything else than wait," Joe answered to Taichi's musing.

The group of four boys had gathered together while everyone else was fixing their dinner or loitering around.

Taichi looked ponderingly at Joe for a few seconds after the older boy's words, taking his eyes off Koushirou's typing for a minute.

"Maybe not."

There was a loaded silence amidst the serene weather. Yamato had still been quieter than usual and a sense of brooding could be detected underneath the surface. Most of the kids had taken in the situation with acceptance and a small bit of worry. The younger team was getting bored, while Taichi and Joe were feeling the burden of not knowing what was going to happen. There were no outwardly changes in TK, but something more than Yamato was whispering to Taichi not to ask the kid to contact his older self.

In truth, Taichi wanted to ask whether Koushirou trusted the words they had been given, but it felt wrong to ask in front of Yamato; he could just hope the red-headed boy could read his thoughts.

Instead, he settled to ask, "How much time do you think has gone in our world?"

Koushirou raized his gaze and eyebrows, "Maybe half-a-day, the time-difference is escalating quite rapidly."

"So, they might not have even realized we are gone yet," Taichi replied, making Yamato stare the ground.

It was like the last time. Seven kids missing from a summer camp. Altogether. Missing. It would have made global headlines if it had been detected. For the longest time, the time difference was the biggest thing for many of their parents to take in. Many of them had seen the Digimons, seen how they transferred to the Digital World — seen how they fought for the worlds. It was already more than any parent was expected to take. But the most traumatizing factor was their disappearance. Their parents couldn't control them being pulled to the other world. They didn't know when, or why. Had something gone wrong on their first trip, no-one would have ever known what happened to them. They were just seven kids who instead of spending a happy summer camp, went missing without a trace, never to be found. Killed by monsters in an alien world.

The kids hadn't known how to react to their parents' responses, they had traveled through the another world, had survived. However, now, three years later, Taichi could feel the murmur of the same fear becoming concrete in his mind. When Hikari had disappeared into the beach out of thin air, he had had trouble sleeping the next few weeks. How had Hikari disappeared? If somebody pulled her there, could it happen again? How could he stop it? He wasn't a parent and otherwise protected by age from the thought lines of possibilities the adults went through, but the fear had nested inside him and he knew, that if something would happen to Hikari, he would never forgive himself.

"Have you made any progress, Koushirou?" Yamato asked, voice reservedly hesitant but clear.

"I think we are getting there to get Mimi here."

Taichi nodded to the good news, only to notice that Joe had wandered to the girls and the fire without him having a concrete memory of the exit. His eyes stopped on the partially visible black marks on Hikari's arm.

"They are coming back right?" Yamato asked, seeking for Koushirou's opinion.

Koushirou contemplated the answer, knowing Yamato was between the lines asking whether he trusted Takeru and Angemon. "They have no clear reason to tell us otherwise. Takeru has come across to have a quite good understanding of the Digital World, and with Angemon, I don't think they are in imminent danger either."

Yamato nodded with a small grimace before Taichi managed to interrupt the conversation, "They really haven't told you anything on what we are up against?" making Koushirou shake his head.

"If they can affect the transmission in the Human World then it quite possibly is a human. I doubt Digimons would have that kind of know-how."

"Arukenimon and Mummymon."

"We don't know what they are capable of. And they are related to the Dark Towers. However, it doesn't make too much sense that they would waste them to make artificial Digimons." Koushirou answered to Yamato's accusation fast, clearly having thought the situation through more than a few times.

"It shouldn't be Ichijouji, it would be realistically impossible," Taichi said quietly, his eyes on the group by the fire.

"True."

"Weird. I thought this would be about the younger team," Taichi said in an afterthought, "passing the torch."

Maybe the fact that they were called to the Digital World in such a young age, maybe it was a psychological coping method to deal with the potential separation from their partners — their other halves — to an unknown length of time. Somehow they had formed a thought that it was truly the younger team's turn to fix the issues with the Digital World. At first, the dilemma with the original evolution method had been a slap in the face, a clear sign of their days being far back, but, on the other hand, it had given the freedom to continue with their lives while the kids hopped on and off between the words on regular basis. Now they were back here with no knowledge for how long it would take — their normal lives on pause-button once again. And despite that the thought was unvoiced, it loomed on more than one mind almost as a taboo.

TK held the small box of spice packets in his lap while Miyako was poking the fire with a stick to increase the temperature for the fish. Sora was sprinkling something on the top but he hadn't paid attention to the discussion above the bare minimum that helped him answer back when necessary.

His eyes met with Taichi who recoiled and tore his gaze away while continuing his own discussion with Yamato and Koushirou in the shade.

There had been a lot of discussions since his older self had left with Angemon. And not all conversations had involved him.

He couldn't necessarily do anything to the situation than to let it play out but it still troubled him on top of everything else.

After initial wonder, Patamon had been his usual self and offering only a curious question or two, giving him temporary relief.

It was a little bit odd not to be a whole group, like an itching wound inside, but Koushirou had indicated that he should get Mimi to join them today, making the group the same he had gotten used to three years back.

"Thanks, TK." Sora quipped while backing the spices back to her bag. He smiled back sincerely out of sheer nature, glad to be able to help.

Tailmon and Gomamon were helping them, while Palmon was sitting, her small knees drawn, while anxiously waiting to be able to see her partner. Patamon was sound asleep on the grass near the trees.

Not before long Taichi and Yamato joined the group with the others from the riverside.

"Isn't Koushirou coming to eat?" Iori asked, stealing everyone's attention from their food.

"Nah. He said he is too close to break the progress." Taichi answered between chews.

This made everyone stare at the young teen expecting Mimi to pop-up from the screen at any second.

However, nothing happened and one by one the kids focused back on eating.

"I always thought camping in the Digital World would be more interesting." Daisuke pondered.

"We did camp for a few days," Hikari commented back kindheartedly.

"Yeah, but it was more determined …kind of."

"You had a clear plan and mission." Taichi retorted.

"Did you ever spend time like this, waiting, on your last trip?" Iori asked while Joe handed him more cooked fish.

"A few times." TK said, "for example, we waited that we got everything ready to leave the File Island."

"Most of the time we didn't have a plan at all. Just rolling with things, walking around and, usually, something came up on one way or another." Taichi elucidated with 20-20 hindsight spurred yikes-shrug.

Yamato watched Taichi a long time from the corners of his eyes. "It's not bad to have a quiet-time before something starts happening. It can sometimes teach you a lot about how you approach things." The blond finally said thoughtfully, the past rivalries and objections against Taichi's leadership un-evident in his words.

"Doesn't sound so heroic."

"I'm not if even our best moments managed to be heroic," Taichi laughed back.

Sora waited until she was certain the two wouldn't be adding anything more, "With all the wandering around, I think, we actually did really well given the circumstances. We knew nothing of Digimons or this world. Still, we got through all that."

TK mused over Sora's words. Their tactic hadn't always been perfect but things had worked out in the end. Still, he couldn't help thinking over Patamon and his original inability to fight when needed. He briefly wondered how his older self-portrayed their first trip to the Digital World; did he still remember Angemon's death?

It was the first time it actually hit him that he was with someone who had once shared the same thoughts and ideas he did at the very moment. His future self wasn't a carbon copy or a wholly different person, not someone who could read his mind, or immune to anything that happened.

He wasn't sure what the realization meant.

It took over an hour for Koushirou to finally signal Miyako sitting next to him that it was time to open the portal.

Everyone close by looked expectantly at the laptop in the darkening evening. Their waiting was rewarded almost instantly afterward as Mimi fell from the screen with a bright flash of light. It took a moment for her to regain her bearings and give a hesitant apology to Koushirou who hadn't managed to get out of her way, ending them up in a mess of limbs and bags to sort out.

Palmon was running to her partner's arms before the almost collective "Mimi!" rang in the air.

Koushirou seemed to crumble from relief as his work was done. He and Mimi took readily the left-over food Sora had put aside for them, Mimi's bring along bags full of food and snacks to be shared to everyone's diminishing stocks. Palmon sat on Mimi's lap the whole time as if nothing could deter her ever again.

The evening followed quietly. Yamato and Joe stayed up to keep watch while everyone else curled to sleep, about half in the sleeping bags they had been carrying with them, the rest on the ground under small blankets.

Yamato tapped his knee with the harmonica he had brought along. He hadn't played too much interest in the instrument after their first trip with the band taking so much of his time. However, somehow the small harmonica had felt like a good-luck charm when he had grabbed it along on the last minute before leaving to meet with the others.

Joe was nodding off against the tree behind him.

Amidst the racket of Taichi and Daisuke's snoring, Yamato looked at TK's sleeping form.

It had been a few months since their last sleep-over (TK usually visited their place, due to the awkward relationship he had with their mom). TK was sleeping soundly, but Yamato had spotted the more reserved attitude the young teen had sported in the last few days. The rhythm of his tapping became more muddled.

It had to be weird to meet with your future. Heck, he was thrown away by the sight of his younger brother over six feet tall.

…And much more reserved.

He had seen the line that TK drew. The defensiveness that kicked in full speed when threatened. They didn't talk about their parents' divorce out of a shared will. TK didn't talk about losing Angemon. Not even on the few occasions he had felt forced to bring it up with the anxiety-attacks TK had generated after their return to their daily lives without their partners three years ago.

Somehow he had thought that the easygoing attitude TK had shown with the younger team despite Kimeramon and all the hardships they had had to deal with had been a good sign. A signal that he was overacting, stepping too far to fill the boots the separation between them had forced him to leave empty.

The things he didn't want to admit.

Yamato broke the beat and got up abruptly, heading towards the riverbank that circled them.

It was very dark, and only the moon lightened the surroundings every now and then from between the clouds. His eyes were playing tricks at him with a waver in the lightning. The steady lapping of the water brought his mind to the attack of Seadramon and TK's close drowning.

TK was growing up — had apparently already grown up — which left a hollow feeling inside him.

Yamato stood there with his hands in the pockets of his green school blazer.

It was the third flicker in the air that caught his attention with its red-ish tint.

Yamato furrowed his brows, trying to squint into the darkness.

It took four seconds for him to realize that what he was trying to see didn't come from this side of the island, but from the other side, where it was concealed by the heavy trees.

"Shit."

He ran like Garurumon to the other side, to see past the tree trunks blocking the view, the red shine becoming more visible with each flying step. On the right corner, he stopped in his tracks seeing Megadramon shooting missiles into the forest a mile away from them.

It was a random targeting, trying to get them out in the open.

He stared at the scene for three deep breaths before running again to wake the others.

"What?"

The sleepy responses were soon replaced by a lot more vocal versions once Yamato tore people from their sleep.

Once he could stand without the dizziness messing with his balance Taichi ran to the riverbank Yamato had just come from, watching the scene mouth slightly open while his brains tried to work overtime.

"TK, you need to inform Takeru." Sora instructed, "Everyone else, we need to pack what we can."

"But they said we should be safe here." Iori piped in just as Taichi came running back.

"TK, you need to ask that too." Joe rejoined.

"We should be safe here if the seal lasts," Tailmon said, her voice determined enough to carry over the spurring panic.

"Seal?"

"Angemon put a light shield over the place before they left. If it's strong enough we are safe. However, if they manage to break it, we have to fight."

The notion left everyone stumped for a moment. "Like Piccolomon's shield?" Mimi asked.

"Close."

"TK!" Taichi shouted in a form of a question with everyone throwing stuff into their bags.

"Wait! He hasn't… They are on their way. We are invisible inside, but if the shield fails we should head west." TK shouted.

There was still no sound from the blasts but now the whole sky was painted with vivid red in time with the attacks.

They crouched underneath the bushes and trees with their partners.

It was an agonizing wait and many of them stopped breathing for a second when they saw the missile coming straight towards them and blew up against the shield.

There was a loud dull boom as the attack evaporated like a water balloon hitting a window.

They waited holding their breaths and then the second attack hit, still stopping a hundred feet above them.

There was a split second moment when it seemed that their pursuer was about to move on to another spot, but in the same moment it was gone and the third attack hit the dome causing a cracking sound and forming a visible long crack near the top.

"One, two…" Taichi whispered with the shimmer of the forming flame lighting the sky.

"Three!" Taichi shouted the second the dome broke around them.

"Agumon digivolve to Greymon!"

"Greymon digivolve to MetalGreymon!"

All around them Digimons digivolved to their higher forms. Tailmon, Patamon, Gomamon, and Armadillomon stayed in their child-forms as they would have been of little help against a flying dragon Digimon. Similarly, Piyomon and Hawkmon stayed on the ground to watch the situation until their help was needed.

Despite their fast attacks, the Digimons couldn't prevent one missile from hitting the forest near the island forcing everyone to shield themselves.

"Yamato, you need to evade!" WereGarurumon shouted before launching Wolf Claw from AtlarKabuterimon's back.

The teens began to run in the opposite direction of the battle. They stepped one by one over the rock path over the river, Taichi and Yamato staying on the opposite ends to help others across, attacks booming in the sky.

Once everyone was over they stopped for a second to watch the battle and saw Lilymon's Flower Cannon hit its target.

Their relief was short-lived with a new pair of missiles heading close to them from the opposite direction.

"Gigadramon!"

"Don't worry, we'll get this," Hawkmon assured before taking off as Halsemon with Garudamon. Stingmon and Raidramon joining them.

"West, was it?"

"Yeah, west!" TK shouted back to Joe to make his voice heard.

They ran in the cover of the foliage, trying their best not to split up.

MetalGreymon, WereGarurumon, Lilymon, and MegaKabuterimon had weakened Megadramon but it wasn't easy; their priority to stop it from attacking the kids forced them to take a defensive rather than an offensive stance.

The ground shook with each missile that broke through the defense.

Moreover, something was reaching them on foot.

A Sangloupmon was only seventy feet from them when the remaining Digimons digivolved. Sangloupmon was a violet canine Digimon with long blades in each paw. As a champion-level Digimon, it was an easier opponent than the two ultimates on the sky that were capable of disastrous long-distance attacks. Pegasusmon and Nefertimon shot the canine Digimon with their attacks and fought against its efforts to overstep them to reach the kids.

Their luck ran short as they could hear a second and a third howling further from the forest; the voices reaching their ears for the first time amidst the battle overhead.

"Go!" Pegasusmon shouted.

They ran to different directions when a second Sangloupmon leaped from the forest, only to be met straight with Zudomon's hammer.

It made one less opponent.

With the lack of practice for the older team and the number of attackers, they weren't nearly as well prepared than they could have been.

The land-Digimons had to give full effort to protect kids and occasionally jump away from the in-coming explosions.

The kids had to duck under the bushes repeatedly only to get right back up and run back to evade the sharp jaws.

Zudomon beat the missiles to alternate directions, causing new explosions to destroy the forest around them.

They were gaining the upper-hand in battle, but it would still take them time to actually win — not to mention that their partners' were getting tired and receiving hits.

One Sangloupmon of the pack plowed through and leaped to attack Miyako and Sora. The girls managed to jump out of the way in time but the Digimon disappeared from view as it had vanished out of thin air the moment it hit the ground.

Sora and Miyako spurted the twenty feet to Taichi, Yamato, and TK but didn't make the last few feet before the Sangloupmon re-appeared from their shadow.

Sangloupmon's teeth sank into Miyako's right arm, making her scream from the pain. Sora and the guys grabbed her other arm in a panic to prevent her from being dragged away.

One heart-stopping second later a brief flash of light collided with the Sangloupmon, dissipating it from sight.

"WereGarurumon, Raidramon! Go take help the kids!" Angemon — not their Angemon — ordered while flying up towards the second battle.

The angel Digimon stopped in mid-air, placing his staff horizontally in the air. WereGarurumon jumped off MetalGreymon's metallic claw and used the staff as a level in his free-fall towards the ground.

Angemon didn't waste time in pleasantries but helped Lilymon, MetalGreymon, and MegaKabuterimon by offering his own hits and distraction against the battered Megadramon.

On the ground, the ultimate-level support from WereGarurumon proved that they had chosen the wrong tactic from early on.

With the extra help, the Sangloupmons were being killed one by one.

It didn't take long before running Takeru found them, his focus more on the events in the sky.

Amidst the dissipating dragon Digimons and the devolving partner Digimons, he could take into account the shaken up kids, the numerous smaller injuries and slashes, and not the least, Miyako, crying on the ground, holding her bloody right arm.

A/N: Not hyper pleased with this chapter. Commas were a nightmare…

TK surprised me with his realization of his future self. (If I can say it like that.) I wasn't sure whether it's slightly too enlightened realization considering his age, but… I see TK as someone who is quite well aware of the people around him, so.

Hope you enjoyed!