Disclaimer: Digimon is a franchise owned jointly by Toei Animation and Bandai, and conceptualized by Akiyoshi Hongo. Doctor Who is a property owned by the British Broadcasting Company created by Sydney Newman. The concept of Digimon: The Tamer is a fan fiction idea. Please support the official properties.
Author's Notes: Hey folks! Welcome to Chapter 20 of the Tamer! Another big thanks to everyone who followed and favorited the story! I'm glad you guys like it! And an even bigger thanks to those who left reviews! Special mention goes to Ace Spiritwell for making the cover art. Definitely go to their profile and read their fanfiction. And why not give their deviantart account a glimpse too? Just a special mention, this chapter contains lyrics from a fan interpretation of Butter-fly, the Digimon Adventure theme tune, as performed by Sapphire. Give her some much needed love and support because her music rocks. And, when we get to that part of the story, listen to her song. It's on youtube for free and amazon for a modest fee! So, let's start Chapter 20 - Butterfly Wings.
Update: Fixed a Formatting Issue.
The Tamer: A Digimon Adventure
Chapter 20: Butterfly Wings
"That's ShogunGekomon's Palace!?" Mimi squealed, "It's beautiful! Why have we never come here before!?"
"Because it's boring," Tamer answered to them. They had no idea how he could say it with such a straight face, although he was probably tired from the two day trek it took them to get there. The castle followed traditional Japanese architecture, a wooden edifice bleached white with a tiled roof. Although castle didn't seem like the correct word. Fortress appeared more appropriate, as it situated itself atop a large hill at the edge of a peninsular outcropping, surrounding it with water on three sides and a small sliver of land connecting it to shore. Several towers stretched skyward from within the palace walls, as if to reach out and claim the sky as its own. This helped the dominating presence the castle had.
Several digimon camped along peninsula; pitched tents circled around several campfires with a few stationed at the mouth to stand guard. All were Gekomon who looked tired beyond belief, barely struggling to keep themselves awake and using the spears they carried to support themselves. As they drew closer, it become apparent that they were dazed from fatigue but their demeanor changed when they saw them approaching.
"You're alive!" the Gekomon's tone carried disbelief.
"Yeah, no thanks to them," the embittered Gekomon they'd rescued earlier grumbled. None of the digidestined or their digimon argued the point with this Gekomon anymore. It was a lost cause for everyone.
"What happened to you guys? We lost sight of you after Koromon Village blew up," the other Gekomon guard asked.
"We were captured and sentenced to be executed at Myotismon's coliseum. We'd be dead if they hadn't shown up to rescue us," one of the Otamamon answered for them. The grumpy Gekomon made no effort to deny this and simply looked away, as if to admire the ocean. The first guard nodded, "Well, it's good to see you're alright. All of you."
"Boy! I'm happy to see you guys made it too," TK said brightly, almost relieved. Neither Gekomon reacted, but motioned inside, "Head on in. Andromon is making rounds to make sure everything's in order."
They nodded their thanks and continued into the castle. As they passed through the campsite, they saw it consisted entirely of Gekomon and Otamamon. The mood was somber and silent, but notably lighter hearted than it was at Koromon Village. The digimon here were smiling and seemed contented, happily conversing amongst themselves while they stood watch at the only location where the palace could be attacked. The hill was steep and jagged, lined with sharp rocks made slippery from the tides crashing against it. The only safe path was a steep and narrow staircase that required them to climb one at a time to avoid sliding off.
When they crossed the threshold into the entrance hall, they were greeted with lavish decorations of European design that was out of place within the traditional Japanese building: Polished marble floors lined with felt carpet, silk curtains lining the stain glass windows, furnishings of pottery, a golden chandelier hanging overhead and hundreds of oil paintings covering the brightly colored walls. Only the presence of many displaced digimon living in the hall tarnished the air of wealth.
"Oh WOW! This is my dream house!" Mimi declared as she took in the sight before her, spinning in place to take in each angle of the large entry hall, "I wonder if they have balls and dances? Ooh! I want to stay here as long as we can!"
"Mimi, you're making a scene!" Joe chastised her, nervously glancing at the digimon looking to better view the commotion. Koromon, Gekomon, Otamamon, Gotsumon, Frigimon, and a few others they didn't recognize. The digidestined and their digimon were ignored though, as the attention of the crowd moved to the rescued survivors. There was a rush of greetings and relieved reunions as the separated digimon were happy to see each other again. The joy subsided to sorrow when they learned of other digimon who weren't here - the reason being obvious. The mood silenced when Andromon appeared at the top of the staircase. On sight, he stomped down the stairs to greet them, "Agumon! Digimon Tamer! I am glad to see that you are alright."
"We're just happy to see you all made it," Agumon greeted him back.
"Not all of us," the grumpy Gekomon commented. The other digimon who survived Koromon Village frowned, casting their eyes downward glumly. Andromon's expression was completely unreadable but he continued, "It is regrettable that as many digimon perished that way."
"Hey, you'll see them again, right?" Mimi said, trying to be encouraging, "After all, they just come right back at Primary Village!"
She wasn't ready for the frigid response all of the digimon gave her. Tamer had to pull her aside to explain at just above a whisper, "Mimi, I know you were trying to be helpful but that's not how it works. Most of their friends will reformat at Primarily Village - but they're more than likely to come back without memories of their previous life. For them, that's the same thing as dying."
Realizing what she'd done wrong, Mimi blurted out her apologies, "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't know! I was just trying to-"
"Save it," the grumpy Gekomon turned away. The air was tense in the entrance hall, so Agumon tried to change the subject, "How are you guys holding up? You have enough supplies or room?"
"There are adequate supplies but Koromon Village's destruction has taken its toll on the survivors," Andromon answered, "For the Gekomon and Otamamon who served ShogunGekomon, the mood is especially dire. He remains in his coma-like sleep and is unlikely to awaken."
"How long has he been asleep for? Maybe there's something we can do?" Joe offered, holding up his bag of medical supplies. Andromon shook his head, "No. His condition is not medically related."
"Then what happened?" Gomamon asked. The grumpy Gekomon turned to them and explained, "A long time ago, Etemon came here to challenge ShogunGekomon to a karaoke contest. ShogunGekomon was very proud of his singing voice and that pride was well earned. Etemon couldn't stand the idea of being second best and ShogunGekomon's pride as a singer was at stake. He sang his best songs to his best skill, harmonizing with the melody in the most spectacular way. But he couldn't compare to the musical genius of Etemon - who was by far the better singer. Satisfied that he was the best, Etemon left. His pride injured, Lord ShogunGekomon fell into a deep depression and sank into a slumber from which he's never awoken. The servants who were there with him to show their support also fell to despair and sank to sleep."
"Man, talk about egos," Matt frowned, "He lost a contest and felt so bad he hasn't woken up."
"I don't think so. Tamer, you mentioned that Etemon used his music career to experiment with songs. If he could make one that was capable of destroying a village, couldn't he also make one that could put people to sleep?" Izzy guessed. It was an interesting theory and Tamer nodded his agreement, adding, "His music always makes me sleep. But that is a good point."
"We've tried everything we could to wake him, cooking his favorite food, playing his favorite song, getting the best doctors to treat him and even tried smacking him awake with a bat. But nothing woke him," Gekomon finished, "Eventually, some of us left - unable to deal with his long slumber. Some stayed to care for him and his castle, but most went out into the world to find something else."
"Not everything. Andromon, can you take us to him?" Tamer asked. The android nodded and guided them through the castle into a grand ballroom further inside. The ceiling stretched so high they had to crane their necks all the way back just to see it. The ballroom matched the rest of the castle with its polished marble floors and long glass windows lining the walls that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. The floor was cleared of any tables and chairs, all stacked neatly in one corner. On the far end of the dance room, a large platform was set up like a stage with a microphone on the center. A sound system was hooked up on stage, connected to a set of speakers lining the walls.
Resting on the stage was a large orange digimon resembling a fatter Gekomon about the size of a truck. This digimon had two large brass trumpets sticking out the side of his head and sat in a crossed legged position with his head tilted forward. Lying around him were a group of a hundred or so Gekomon and Otamamon, curled up comfortably as they slept under blankets.
"WHOA! HE'S SO BIG!" TK awed, running up to the large digimon to better inspect it.
"And there's so many!" Tokomon added from atop his head.
"How long have they been like this?" Sora asked.
"I think about three hundred years," an Otamamon answered shyly. Agumon sized up the sleeping giant, "It's good to know that all the sleep did nothing for his weight."
"Joe, would you mind giving him a look?" Tamer asked. Joe took one glance at the giant digimon, "I don't even know where to start examining a guy that big."
"Well your dad's a doctor so go do…doctor-y things like check his pulse," Tamer suggested. Joe sighed and climbed onto the stage, staring in disbelief at the size of the giant slumbering digimon. He'd never felt so nervous and just one glance at this marvel before him left him uneasy. A digimon this big who'd been asleep for that long. Who was to say he wasn't already dead and they'd left a rotting body on the stage for all that time? Then again, wouldn't his body have just disappeared into a cloud of data if he were already dead? Joe placed two fingers on the creature wrist in search of vein and shuddered as he felt the cold slimy feel of its skin. He kept his fingers firmly pressed were it should have been and felt a weak, thready beat underneath - blood was still flowing so that was a good sign.
Then he panicked when ShogunGekomon breathed in his sleep, the sudden jerk of his arm had Joe jump away in fear that the large digimon might roll over in his sleep. He relaxed when ShogunGekomon failed to move and went back to doing whatever Tamer expected him to do. Meanwhile, Tamer asked, "Do you guys have a recording of the karaoke contest? I want to see Etemon's music for myself."
In another part of ShogunGekomon's castle, several of the survivors of Koromon Village gathered to talk about what they'd lost. The most vocal was the grumpy Gekomon, "I just...can't believe they're all gone."
"Well you heard Tamer, it had to happen!" a Koromon argued, "There wasn't anything anyone could do!"
"So what? Does that mean we were supposed to lay down and die?" Gekomon snapped angrily, "They could have done something, anything, like kill Etemon when they had the chance. But no! 'It's not supposed to happen yet' or 'That's not how it's supposed to be'! I'm tired of hearing that! Why don't they actually do something useful?"
"They saved us," a Gotsumon said wryly.
"After they left some of us to die," the grumpy Gekomon barked, "The point is, none of this would have happened if they'd just destroyed Etemon when they had the chance. Even ShogunGekomon would still be awake! Where were they when that happened?"
The room fell silent after that. They couldn't argue with the last part - they all served ShogunGekomon at some point, and they'd wanted to see their master awake again. It pained them to know that nothing could waken him - but were they powerless to do anything?
"Here's an idea: How about, instead of waiting for them to come around to save us - why don't we just stand up for ourselves?" the grumpy Gekomon added, "I say we kick them all out of this castle and tell them never to come back."
The other digimon looked at each other nervously. A Koromon spoke up, "But we can't do that! Not after everything they did for us! We'd be dead if they hadn't rescued us!"
"We wouldn't need rescuing because your village would still be around if Tamer and Agumon had just told Etemon where to find the digidestined! Koromon Village wouldn't have been destroyed, which means we wouldn't have had to run for our lives, which means we wouldn't have been captured!" Gekomon interrupted loudly, "So don't you dare defend them!"
"I will defend them," Koromon said back, "We've all lost things over the past few days. We've all lost friends and family. The difference between you and me is I know how to accept what I can't change!"
"It's now about accepting what can't be changed, it's about keeping things like this from happening!" the Gekomon snapped, "If Tamer and Agumon were anywhere near as helpful as they claimed to be, would any of this have happened?"
"We-"
"WOULD IT?" The Gekomon snapped, cowing the Koromon away sheepishly. None of the digimon could counter him on this point. He was right. None of this would have happened if they'd done more to help. If they hadn't done 'what's supposed to happen'.
Andromon produced a metal cart with a television connected to a VCR. It took the Gekomon some time to find the tape from the contest, buried with hundreds of years of accumulated recordings of the various karaoke contests. They moved into a recording studio on Tamer's insistence, "We're going test your theory Izzy - if ShogunGekomon fell asleep because he lost or if he fell asleep because of Etemon's music."
The recording studio wasn't as large or as spacious as the ballroom so they had to stand shoulder to shoulder to fit. The studio was divided into two sections: the recording booth that was full of microphones, and the command room, which had a soundboard and several computers, connected to headphones. A heavy steel door and a thick glass window connected the two rooms to each other.
"How did ShogunGekomon fit inside a room this small?" Gomamon asked.
"This room was meant for his back up vocals, not ShogunGekomon himself," Andromon explained.
"Why do we have to be in here? Couldn't we watch this in the ballroom?" Gomamon asked. Izzy waved it off, "If there's at all a chance that his music could make us fall asleep, then we don't want to listen to it accidentally and we definitely don't want anyone else to hear it."
"Okay, then why is he going in there alone?" Gomamon continued as Agumon dragged the cart into the recording booth with him. Andromon made sure the door was secure before answering, "These two rooms are sound proofed. Neither room can hear noise from the other. Not unless we push that button."
Tamer pointed at a big green button labeled talk on the console. Izzy added, "That way, if whatever music Etemon played did put them to sleep, we won't hear it."
"Oh, that makes sense!" Palmon agreed. Tamer pressed the talk button on the console and glanced inside, "Okay Agumon. Ready?"
Agumon waved through the window and nodded. Andromon quickly killed the sound between both rooms and the dinosaur pressed play. They watched with intense silence as Agumon stared at the screen. They could see ShogunGekomon waving his arms and motioning with his song. When he finished, he gave a bow and walked off stage only for Etemon to strut in. It was unsettling to see the monkey digimon again after what happened at the pyramid, like seeing a ghost in front of them. Etemon said something inaudible and started singing. Surprisingly, Agumon could be seen tapping his foot and bobbing his head to the rhythm.
"Is he enjoying the music?" Sora asked. Matt pushed the button to talk, "Agumon! You're not supposed to like it!"
Agumon raised a finger to stop him from talking, and then proceeded to wag it to the rhythm. They rolled their eyes in disbelief as Etemon finished his performance and spoke a few more words before walking away to a dancing beat. Agumon gave a slow audible clap then turned off the television, signaling through the window that it was okay. Andromon opened the door to let the little orange dinosaur out and Izzy ask, "Were you able to ascertain the nature of Etemon's hypnotic music?"
"I learned he can be a good singer. It really wasn't that bad," Agumon shrugged, earning him sighs and a scowl from Tamer, "Anything else?"
"He said there was never any contest. His was the best voice and ShogunGekomon ought to sulk in shame forever. I guess he meant it literally. He also said only a voice better than his could restore ShogunGekomon's pride," Agumon said flatly, his tone more somber. Mimi and Palmon bobbed excitedly with stars in their eyes, "Does that mean we have to sing to wake him up?"
"Well, the part about ShogunGekomon sulking was literal so why not?" Matt said sarcastically, "But why haven't you fallen asleep?"
"That's a go-" Agumon stopped, his eyelids sinking with his body as he fell to the floor. Tamer jumped in right away to grab him and cushion his descent, gently laying the tiny dinosaur down to rest on his knee. He sighed, "Well, at least we know that works. Now how do we wake him up? I wonder."
"You had a plan to wake him up, right?" Sora put her hands to her hips and looked at the boy expectantly. Tamer looked up at her offered his same dumb smile, "If I say yes, will you stop looking at me like you caught TK with his hand in the cookie jar?"
"Hey!" TK frowned.
"You have tried to get to the cookies before TK," Matt pointed out quietly, earning him a disgusted look from his little brother, "Gee. Thanks Matt."
"Matt. You're good with a harmonica! How good are you at singing?" Tamer jumped between the two, wrapping his arms around both brothers and bringing them into a huddle. Matt raised an eyebrow, "Why would being good with a harmonica make me good at singing?"
"Well, you are the musical one. It only makes-," Tamer paused, eyes widening with realization as he pushed the two away and started pacing, "Hang on…I think I did that in the wrong order. Did I? No wait, that's after the long hair. Okay, never mind! Pretend I didn't say anything and that I'm making loud, random noises with my mouth to distract you! Mimi! Can you sing?"
"Yes! I'm an amazing singer!" Mimi squealed, "What do you want me to sing?"
"You could always try ShogunGekomon's favorite song!" an Otamamon suggested as it walked in. Mimi cocked her head to the side, "What's his favorite song?"
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be preparing food for tonight?" Andromon asked the blue tadpole digimon. The Otamamon frowned, "Sorry. I heard you were trying to wake up Lord ShogunGekomon and came to see."
"So what's this song you were talking about?" Tokomon asked from atop TK's head.
"It's a song Lord ShogunGekomon wrote himself," the Otamamon explained, "It was his finest work and he was really proud of it. He spent weeks, pouring his heart and soul into it. Revising, changing, and starting over repeatedly. There was just one flaw: he was never able to sing it properly himself - it was outside his vocal range. The music was always beautiful, it was just a problem of finding someone to sing it."
"Do you have the sheet music?" Tamer asked, lifting up the unconscious Agumon in his arms. Otamamon nodded, "Of course."
"Show us."
Otamamon led them to one of the upper floors, which served as an entire library. Shelves lined every wall and each was stacked to the brim with books. A large wooden desk sat in the center with a comfort chair sitting in front of it. The desk was plain, covered in papers, splotches of ink, an inkbottle that had long since dried out and a quill. Otamamon climbed onto the large desk and rifled through the papers to retrieve the notes, "Here it is. His pride and joy. What do you think?"
Mimi snatched the papers first and glanced them over first, "The lyrics are beautiful!"
Tamer rested Agumon on the chair and took a peek at the papers, "Oh yeah, this could work. I had no idea ShogunGekomon had it in him."
"What's it supposed to sound like though?" Izzy asked.
"Something like this," Otamamon whistled the tune. It was very calming, like a gentle breeze and brought about an air of relaxation. Otamamon repeated it a few times and eventually Mimi joined in by singing the words on the paper. It took a bit of practice to get it just right, but there was no question that she should sing once she matched the rhythm set by Otamamon. It took some time to completely harmonize with Otamamon's whistle, but her voice become almost angelic when she did. There was no denying it - she was meant to sing this song.
Agumon twitched slightly while he slept, like he was trying to get up but failed. Tamer cracked a smile, "We found a way to wake up ShogunGekomon and all the other sleeping digimon. Mimi will just need to do a bit more practicing and the music will need to be figured out."
"Practice? Didn't you hear her voice! We're ready now!" Matt argued.
"She might be, but this music has a lot of instruments for the performance. If I'm reading this, we'll need keyboards, drums, guitars, and a bass," Tamer stated as he examined the music sheets, "And the ones playing the instruments will need to harmonize with her. Plus, she's good - but she has to sing better than Etemon."
"So what, are we supposed to learn how to play instruments? That'll take forever!" Matt groaned aloud, and the digidestined murmured their agreement. Matt could play his harmonica, sure. No one else knew how to play any other instruments. Tamer sighed, "Not you guys. The digimon."
"Who, us?" Tentomon asked. Tamer shook his head and pointed at the Otamamon, "Them."
"I don't mind having some background singers for my concert. I already have a few ideas for how this might look," Mimi thought, putting a hand to her chin. Otamamon nodded, "Oh! I see! We could definitely try. We'll need a few days to get it right."
"Well, we only have three," Tamer explained, "Can you do it by then?"
"I don't think I can get it ready in three. I'd need at least a week!" Mimi frowned, to Tamer's annoyance, "Mimi. It took us two days to get here and it'll take another two days to get to Myotismon's castle. That gives us three days to make this work."
As he said those words, Mimi felt a sudden nervous pang in her chest. She didn't say anything but nodded quietly. Tamer gave her a thumbs up, "We'll be counting on you, okay Mimi?"
Over the next two days. Mimi practiced the song each day in the recording room with several Gekomon and Otamamon servants. The rest of the digidestined went about the castle doing anything to help out. Izzy and Tentomon resigned themselves to the library, where the computer genius poured over endless pages of books to learn more about the Digital World. Unfortunately, none of the books were in a language he could read and his attempts to translate them were proving fruitless. It didn't help that he did find books he could read, but they were all manga about ninjas wanting to be heroes, aliens fighting over dragons, the grim reaper recruiting children to catch evil spirits, and other absurd stories. Nothing he wanted to waste his time over.
Sora and Biyomon assisted with cleaning. Tamer suggested they help with the guard duty but that became very boring, very quickly. There was little entertainment to be found when it came to staring out into blank empty desert. So Tamer took that job over for them, although he could never be seen doing it.
Matt and Gabumon found their place in the kitchen, helping to cook for the one hundred plus digimon that were now living in castle. Joe tried to help but this ended disastrously. No one knows for certain how the soup caught fire or how the bread managed to come out of the oven doughier than when they'd gone in, but it was decided that he shouldn't be allowed there again. TK and Tokomon were the only ones to witness the spectacle, but couldn't explain what happened without bursting into laughter each time it was brought up.
Instead, Joe and Gomamon got relegated to roles as gofers for Mimi. If she needed something, they'd have to get it for her right away. Of course, the number of requests escalated quickly and they had to bring in more digimon to help out. The requests were simple at first: glasses of water, something to snack on from the kitchen, or even a chair she could sit in. From there, it became absurd - costumes for everyone in her band to wear, a chair with her name on it for when they took breaks, more luxurious meals than Matt or the servants could ever be skilled enough to prepare, the redecoration of the ballroom for their performance, and the insistence on being called 'Princess'.
Despite Joe's pleas to dial back her requests, Mimi insisted on having her way so that her singing voice wouldn't be affected. Naturally, none of the servants or the survivors of Koromon Village took kindly to this. Especially when a Gekomon crashed into Mimi while trying to fetch her a platter of sushi. The sushi flew off the platter onto the frilly pink dress Mimi had made for her as part of her costume. It didn't take long for a scene to play out in the hallway, "Watch where you're going! You ruined my dress!"
"I'm sorry, Princess Mimi! It was a mistake! I'll wash it right away!" the Gekomon apologized.
"This is dry clean only! It won't be ready to wear!" Mimi scolded.
"Well, you could always use the extra time to practice," the Gekomon offered apologetically, earning him a slap from Mimi, "I will not practice outside costume!"
"Like you practice anyway," the Gekomon said under his breath. Unfortunately Mimi heard him and remarked, "If that's how you feel, then I'm done. I won't sing and ShogunGekomon can sleep forever!"
"No! Wait! I'm sorry!" the Gekomon pleaded, but Mimi was already storming off in the other direction. The Gekomon tried to speak up but stopped when the grump Gekomon appeared, "Don't. She's not worth it."
"You," the first Gekomon said, "You're the last one I want to talk to right now."
"Why? We have to stick together, especially against those digidestined," the grump Gekomon said. The first Gekomon sighed, "Why do you hate them so much? I've never seen any digimon hold as much of a grudge as you do."
"After the way she treated you, you're really going to ask me that question?" the grump Gekomon replied. The first Gekomon sighed, "I…she can wake up ShogunGekomon. Isn't that worth it?"
"You tell me. You're the one serving her," the grump answered, walking away in the opposite direction of the hallway. The Gekomon servant sighed and went about picking up the sushi on the floor. He'd need to scrub hard to get the sauce out of the carpet.
"Mimi, you should apologize to that Gekomon," Sora reprimanded the girl, "He was just trying to help. And it's not like a ruined dress is a big deal."
"It's a big deal for me Sora," Mimi frowned, "I can't go on stage looking like this! I'll die from embarrassment! This is all that Gekomon's fault!"
"What's gotten into you? You're acting all snobby. I mean, you already took the nicest room in the castle. We didn't even ask for that!" Matt observed. He took another glance at the extravagant room Mimi had been sleeping in for the past few days. High-class was the word that came to mind. The windows were dressed with velvet curtains; a vanity mirror complete with dresser and a make up kit took up an entire length of the far wall, and racks of clothing sat beside the dresser. The warm, inviting bed was lined with silk sheets and soft cotton pillows. Mimi sat on the bed with her arms crossed, quietly bouncing as if to demonstrate how cushy it was. If it weren't for the displaced digimon who now called this place home, he would've asked for it too.
Mimi took offense at Matt, "I'm acting snobby? I'm sorry if I just want a little slack every now and then! It's not like you have to spend all those hours singing! My throat hurts when I go to bed at night! And it's sore when I wake up. But it's not like I can skip practice! I only have one more day to get it right! And I-I-"
"Mimi, calm down!" Palmon implored only for Mimi to scream, "Calm down! I can't calm down! Not when I have to sing in front of all those digimon! And they expect that to help wake ShogunGekomon up! Which means I have less than a day to get it right! How am I supposed to calm down!?"
Tears welled up in her as she spoke and she choked a little. She stopped talking only when Joe put a hand on her shoulder, "Mimi. Stop. Take a deep breath."
The girl did as she was instructed and calmed down, "Thanks Joe."
"Spend enough time stressing and you learn how to deal," Joe patted her shoulder. It had been easy to think that Mimi was acting like a spoiled brat up until now. It wasn't so easy to maintain that thought after seeing her have a nervous break. Palmon took a seat beside her on the bed and rested a hand on her, "Mimi, you shouldn't pressure yourself like this. It's not healthy."
Mimi's face was expressionless as she answered, "I'm…nervous and scared."
"There's little reason for concern with your natural talent as a singer and the way your voice resonates with the music," Izzy offered as consolation, but he only got a confused look from Mimi. He sighed and rephrased, "You're a good singer and shouldn't worry so much.
"Oh…thanks," Mimi said flatly, still staring blankly. It was hard to tell from looking at her, but she was deep in thought about what to do next. The boys all looked to each other, trying to figure out what to say. Sora looked at them glancing at each other nervously and finally spoke, "Mimi. We're sorry for not noticing how you were feeling earlier. That was our mistake."
Mimi's expression finally softened, "No. I was wrong because I acted out. I shouldn't have behaved how I did. I liked being pampered and…I didn't want to leave either. After Koromon Village, Etemon, and then the coliseum. It's too much and…I don't think I can do this. I'm sorry Palmon."
Her tears came back, streaming down the side of her face. Palmon hugged her partner, "Don't cry Mimi."
Tamer finally sighed and spoke up, "You're scared. That's fine. Everyone's scared. We can stay an extra day or two practicing."
Mimi looked over at him, rubbing her eyes. That brief moment when they made eye contact, it was like they were speaking volumes to each other. None of the other digidestined knew what they were communicating in that glance, and it was so brief they weren't sure they just imagined it. Mimi asked, "Really?"
Tamer shrugged and paced around the room, "It's up to you. Right now, I think you're the only one who can wake up ShogunGekomon. But Myotismon is going for your world. And he'll do it in three days, which is our only window to stop him. The more time we spend here, the less time we have to stop him. There's a chance we're going to die, but you guys already know that. You've seen that happen already, so you know what's at stake. But do you really want to stay an extra day or two?"
The group as a whole looked at him, and Mimi answered, "I thought you said I could."
Tamer paused to look out the window, "I meant, do you really want to ensure Myotismon gets to your world? It takes two days to get there. We could leave you and Palmon behind. You guys will be safe here. But who knows how we'll manage without you two? We might all die, which means you'd be trapped in this world forever since he and I are the only ones who know how to work the gate! Then again, it might be for the best. Like I said, Myotismon gets inside your head. If you're cracking under this - I'd hate to see what would happen if he really got to you. Either way, you'll never see your parents, your family, and your friends ever again. At least, not alive. Sure, you won't have to go to school or do homework. But that'll be because Myotismon blew a great big hole in the universe where your world used to be. You won't be able to go do…whatever it is you do. I don't know, you like clothes right? Well, you won't be able to go clothes shopping. But hey. You'll be safe here. You can live with the Gekomon and Otamamon as they serve ShogunGekomon. It's up to you. If you need me, I'll be on guard duty."
Everyone was shocked by how blunt he was, especially after the two of them looked like they'd had a moment. Tamer moved to the door but stopped just as he stepped out into the hallway, as if he sensed the negative tension in the air. Without looking back, he added, "That song ShogunGekomon wrote. Otamamon said he was proud of it - it was his masterpiece. He put his heart and soul into that song. Every note and every word is a reflection of how he feels. And you have a good voice. It's like you were meant to sing it. But ShogunGekomon would be disappointed to learn that the person singing those words doesn't truly mean them from the bottom of their heart. I think you can mean it, and part of you does mean it deep down. You just forgot how to be honest with that part of yourself. You shouldn't doubt yourself so much."
He closed the door behind him and left the room in silence. Mimi stared down at the floor sheepishly, feeling worse than she did before. Matt sighed, "Talk about a downer."
"I'll say," Gabumon agreed.
"He's right, though," Mimi mumbled quietly, "Maybe I should just stay here."
"Forget about him, Mimi. He's just a stubborn jerk," Gomamon's attempt at consoling her sounded more like an attempt to insult Tamer. She nodded her head, "He is. But he's an honest jerk."
Mimi jumped off the bed and grabbed a set of clothes from the dresser. She moved behind a divider threw her ruined dress over the top. The guys naturally turned around bashfully, while Sora asked, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to sing," Mimi smiled, walking back out from behind the divider in her normal clothes.
The palace servants and some of the survivors of Koromon Village gathered in the ballroom. The stage was left largely untouched and several Gekomon and Otamamon stood on stage on instruments nervously. Mimi stood in the center and gazed out at all the digimon, many giving her disgusted looks. She knew she'd be singing front of an audience of digimon that she'd driven nuts with her demands and she'd been mentally preparing for whatever they'd throw at her. It didn't helped that they'd worked hard to move the sleeping ShogunGekomon and the other sleeping digimon off stage so they could listen - so they expected him to wake up from her performance. And she'd know right away if it were working because she'd be watching him. It reminded her that she couldn't get cold feet and a deep breath was all it took to calm herself down.
She glanced to the side, just off stage to where the others were seated to watch. Tamer was sitting beside the sleeping Agumon, patting the dinosaur's sleeping head. Palmon and Sora gave her a thumbs up in encouragement. It was now or never. She cleared her throat and spoke, "Everyone. I wanted to apologize about how I acted the last few days. It was wrong and I know I don't deserve your forgiveness. But I'll help make it right, by waking up ShogunGekomon."
There was a murmur of excitement among the digimon. She looked to the digimon on stage with her and nodded. The Otamamon on the drums behind her set the beat by clapping his drumsticks together and the song started with the keys and bass. She began to sing.
"Don't fail me now, beautiful wings!
You're my life, you're my everything!
We can fly if you believe in my love!"
Mimi paused to let the musicians play their part and waited for them to slow down before continuing.
"Ready to ride the wind now!
I'm a butterfly letting my wings out!
My friend, I can't wait to see you again!"
Another guitar solo. Mimi looked over to see ShogunGekomon stirring, his eyes twitching and his head moving slightly. It was working.
"Letting go of all my worries!
Make way, I'm in a hurry!
Right now there's no time for fooling around!
Tell me, Oh-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa!
Can I soar through the skies above?
Oh, I don't know-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa!
If I'll ever see the tomorrow I'm dreaming of!
Feels like my faith is slipping away!
This nightmare's got me losing my way!
When will it ever end?
I've got to stay strong to keep the love going!
Don't fail me now, beautiful wings!
You're my life, you're my everything!
We can fly if you believe in my love!
Feeling one with the wind now!
I'm flying free, nothing can bring me down!
High or low, I'm going wherever you go!
Rocking to the beat of my own song!
Haven't felt this alive in so long!
Let it ring, cause words mean everything!
Tell me, Oh whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa!
Could they reach out like never before!?
Oh, I don't know-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa!
Guess I'll get up and go find the answer I'm longing for!
Feels like I've woken up from a dream!
I've shaken off the misery!
Back to my care-free days!
I'm living my life and doing things my way!
Don't fail me now, trembling wings!
You're my hope, you're my everything!
We can fly if you believe in my love!"
She stopped once more for another long instrumental. ShogunGekomon's eyes were creeping open, and a few of the sleeping digimon groggily sat up. Even Agumon was starting to stir. In a moment of uncharacteristic childishness, Tamer hugged his partner and cheered. It was working and this encouraged her to sing the final part of the song.
"Feels like my faith is slipping away!
This nightmare's got me losing my way!
When will it ever end?
I've got to stay strong to keep the love going!
Don't fail me now, beautiful wings!
You're my life, you're my everything!
We can fly if you believe!
Oh yeah!
Feels like I've woken up from a dream!
I've shaken off the misery!
Back to my carefree days!
I'm living my life and doing things my way!
Don't fail me now, trembling wings!
You're my hope, you're my everything!
We can fly if you believe in my love!"
She held the last note as long as she could, then let the guitar take over the finale. The Gekomon strummed a few more strings and allowed the music to fade out. There was some mild applause and murmurs of approval - not the reaction Mimi expected to get. But one response stood out, a slow and thunderous clap from the back of the stage. The crowd turned to face ShogunGekomon as he wiped a tear from his eye, "That was beautiful."
"Lord ShogunGekomon!" some of the crowd cried in joy. They prostrated themselves before the massive orange frog while he continued clapping, "Please. Sing it again."
Mimi nodded and looked at the other digimon on stage. They smiled their approval and prepared to play again.
They did three more performances. Mimi stopped after the last one because her throat hurt. ShogunGekomon was brought to tears by her performance and was proud to see his music brought to perfection. Afterwards, the servants went about preparing a feast to celebrate the reawakening of so many digimon. There were many heartfelt reunions among the awoken digimon, whose friends were happy to see them awaken again. There were tears over the loss at Koromon Village and those who perished - and relief for those who survived.
Since Mimi was too hoarse to sing again, other digimon got up to sing in their place. Otamamon, Gekomon, Gotsumon, and Koromon each took a turn on the microphone. The other digidestined ate and drank with the digimon.
Amidst the celebration, only ShogunGekomon noticed Tamer and Agumon sneak out of the castle. Each digimon welcomed ShogunGekomon back and offered him something as a gift. He welcomed it all but eventually excused himself to the bathroom, but it was an obvious excuse to sneak away. He found Tamer, Agumon, and Andromon outside along the beach, gazing out to sea. He wanted to extend his thanks to the three for their actions - Andromon for helping the guard at the castle and the two heroes for all they'd done. He could hear the end of Agumon's sentence as he spoke.
"-eaving tomorrow morning. After that, we're depending on you to keep things safe."
"I will accomplish my mission directives until you return," Andromon nodded silently.
"Sorry to leave you hanging like this. But this next part has to happen. It will be a long time before we come back. About a thousand years. But this should make it easier," Tamer explained quietly. He pressed a few buttons on his digivice and a light flashed in Andromon's eye. The confused droid asked, "What is this?"
"A list of every digimon who owes us a favor and where they live," Tamer said, "If you need a hand, tell them we've come to collect on their debt."
"Is that Leomon's name?" Andromon asked in awe. Tamer nodded, "Yeah. Again, I'm sorry we won't be here for this next. We'll be gone for a long time. But if everything plays out how it should, we'll be back."
"You come all this way to wake me up and then you leave already?" ShogunGekomon said to them as he approached. Tamer didn't smile but explained, "Sorry. You know us. Things have to happen and it's our job to make sure they do. We'll see you another time."
"Well, at least come back inside and join us for the party," ShogunGekomon offered to them, "You two sound like you have a lot to do and you should relax while you have the time."
"We'll be back inside in a minute," Agumon said, "We just have to let Andromon know what we're doing."
"And what are you doing?" ShogunGekomon leaned in closely. Tamer sighed, "We're going to fight Myotismon in his castle, we're going to take them home. Well…that's how I'd like it to go but that's not how it's supposed to go. We'll fail and Myotismon will lead an army into the Real World. And then it's all down hill from there. But that's what has to happen, y'know."
"It has to 'happen'. Isn't that the reason we're in the mess?" ShogunGekomon asked. Tamer and Agumon remained silent, continuing to stare out to sea. Realizing they weren't going to answer him, ShogunGekomon instead asked, "Will you at least tell us what it is you're trying to accomplish?"
Tamer and Agumon exchanged nervous glances, but Tamer answered this question, "Saving the Digital World."
In another part of the castle, the grumpy Gekomon crept away from the festivities and locked himself in one of the rooms. It was dark now, and most of the lights were off in the castle. The grumpy Gekomon opened the window to the one of the rooms and met a tall pale figure. The figure moved inside, adjusting its cape to conceal everything but its masked faced. The Gekomon bowed, "Master Myotismon. They've awoken ShogunGekomon."
Myotismon frowned, "That was expected. It's irrelevant. It's what the digidestined don't expect that will destroy everything they've worked for. We're preparing to invade the other side."
"Master, will I get to join you in your glorious march on the humans?" the Gekomon asked, glancing sideways at a mirror. He hated this ridiculous illusion he had to wear, but it was part of his long-term mission for his master. He longed to stretch his wings and see his normal body again, but he would never think to disobey Myotismon. His lord shook his head, "No. You will continue your mission. Plant the seeds of doubt within ShogunGekomon and Andromon's force. Break their wills so that they falter at the critical moment. Those are your orders. You've done well so far, and I expect even more from you my loyal servant!"
"It was easy, especially when Koromon Village got blown up," the grumpy Gekomon answered, "This put them in greater despair than ever! But ShogunGekomon's return has brightened their spirits. Any doubt I've helped cultivate can't have survived that."
"Then you will work twice as hard to fan the flames," Myotismon answered, "Is that understood, DemiDevimon?"
The Gekomon nodded, "Whatever you want your maliciousness!"
Myotismon took his leave and departed for his domain. He had an invasion to prepare.
Author's Notes: And so we've concluded Chapter 20. If you loved it, leave a review to let me know! I usually reply in a day or two. I also welcome constructive criticism and speculation on future chapters! Join me in next Friday on April 1, 2016 at 5 PM CST for another rousing chapter of The Tamer! And now for some teasers for next time! Much like before, these are in no particular order and were pulled randomly from the next chapter!
"No quips? I'm disappointed," Myotismon answered with a smirk.
"Believe it!" Matt shouted at the darkness.
"Myotismon is a vampire. Watch out or he'll suck you dry," Agumon teased with a smile.
"I don't think they want your life story Wizardmon," Gatomon commented wryly.
"I've heard enough! Garurumon! Shut him up!" Matt called out to his partner.