Author's Note: That last chapter sure was a big one! Hooray, Hakuno is in the Real World! But what is the frizzling part? Well, my dear readers, this chapter, Chapter 25, marks the near end of the PROLOGUE! Yeah, that's right, all those chapters before? That's just the start of the story, the setup.
Anyway, welcome any new readers and thank you to all those who reviewed!
MaxHD2490: So did I, and I wrote it!
Ultima-owner: Wonder how Hakuno would react to a mega like Jijimon?
Argeirr: If anyone noticed, it was probably Archer. And yes, excitement and hilarity await in this chapter!
SonicDude8: I'm sure Nero and Tamano are fine, well, as fine as they can be without Hakuno to keep them in check, xD.
Yoshiki-909: The power of Archer's cooking compels you!
Darebear the bear: I remember him! Man, it's been ages since I read that manga! But no, Parallelmon won't appear as a cameo or otherwise, sorry! As for our bad Digimon Emperor, ofc he will! It'll just mean squat to Hakuno.
Student: She should go eat out! Then maybe shopping, try some sweets and snacks, explore the park, visit some of the Digidestined's homes! Congrats Hakuno! Let's hope nothing bad happens…
Deep Sea Diver Man: Thanks for the big compliment! I'm glad you are enjoying the story!
Enjoy the chapter everybody! Live or die by the sword! What power lies in your hands? Dancing flames, decaying earth, withered ocean!
Digital/Extra
Chapter 25: Her First Real World Experience
Hakuno Kishinami stood on her feet, wiping off tears she finally took notice of, she looked around her, checking the surroundings. It was… Well, different from the school's architecture that was The Holy Grail War's location of choice. If she could recall correctly from the vague fake student memories given to her by the Moon Cell at the preliminary rounds, the school was set in Fuyuki City, on a section that was particularly more traditionalist than modern, which would explain the different appearance, though similar, that the large building in front of her gave out.
"She is sure staring at our school a lot," Takeru's voice commented.
Of course, those memories were limited as is, they were only meant to keep her mind going on a repeated week by week, strictly tied to only concerns within the school grounds. So any information outside that school was vague and little to barely any knowledge at all.
She didn't even know what 'soccer' mostly was, as the Grail War's school it was based off didn't have such a sport in its curriculum. She knew it was a sport, but nothing else.
"Maybe she's comparing it to her own school?" Hikari replied, she had little idea on how on the dot she was, even if the comparison was actually between two different realities.
The Digidestined girl walked up to Hakuno and pressed a hand on her shoulder, getting the magus' attention.
"Kari?" Hakuno questioned as she recollected herself out of her own thoughts and raw emotions that coursed wildly within her. She blinked, before bringing her arms up and removing the whistle around her own neck. "This is yours… Thanks, again." She said.
Hikari took the whistle, applying it over own neck again, "No trouble, I'm glad you finally got to return to the Real World!" She exclaimed with a smile.
Hakuno couldn't blame her for not fully understanding the sheer scope of her 'returning' to the Real World actually accounted for.
A low grumble occupied the local area of ten feet.
"Oh… I'm hungry…" Hakuno finally noted her own body's needs, well, Real World or not, she still had to take care of herself.
Even if she was extremely tempted to just go exploring everywhere, she had nowhere to start at…
It dawned on her, she was sorta lost…
"Um… Archer?" Hakuno asked for some sort of guidance from the Heroic Spirit, who hadn't vanished into his spiritual form, remaining in his physical form until the time where there was a more unseen place away from the public eye.
He glanced around, taking in the sights for a brief moment, Hakuno noted that with Archer's Clairvoyance skill, he could examine far away landmarks in great detail. After a few seconds, he replied, "Tokyo, Japan. Odaiba to be specific," He commented.
Hakuno tilted her head, how did Archer know where they were? Did the Servant have some sort of connection with Japan?
"Hakuno," Hikari said her name again, causing Hakuno to look to her. "Want to go eat out with us?"
"Huh?" Hakuno replied, unfamiliar with the sentence the girl used.
"Well, you look so happy to be back in the Real World, why not celebrate it?" Hikari said.
"I don't have any money though?" Hakuno said, she knew that much.
Takeru grabbed hold of a back and gave it to Hikari, who thanked him for bringing it to her. The Digidestined girl brought out her D-terminal, "I'm sure my brother can help us with that," She said as she began typing away.
The Digidestined of Hope looked to Hakuno, "Want anything in particular?"
"Um… Anything will do…" Hakuno trailed off, she really had little to no idea on what was around.
"Hm…" Takeru said in thought, "I am feeling hungry for a burger right about now."
"I could use a chocolate shake after what we went through," Hikari commented, "The restaurant is just a bit from here." The girl looked to Archer, then back to Hakuno, "Is it okay for your partner to be out like that?"
Hakuno tilted her head, then replied, "He should be fine?"
Archer nodded in agreement, his expression quite calm as he enjoyed the peace.
"Don't leave us out!" Patamon exclaimed.
Hakuno looked too small digimon, "What about them?"
Takeru replied, "As long as nobody sees them talk, it'll be okay. We've done this before."
"Hey!"
"Kari, you're alright!"
"Is that Hakuno!?"
The magus girl looked toward the direction of the three distinct voices, spotting Daisuke, Cody, and Yolei coming to meet them. They exited the school grounds and crossed the street, luckily there were no speeding vehicles in sight, hanging on their shoulders were tiny baby forms of their digimon partners that Hakuno had briefly seen before through the television screen back in the Digital World. Hakuno felt a bit reclusive, not expecting to be the center of attention, she never had been before.
Daisuke patted her on the back, causing the slightly older girl to almost step forward in keeping her balance.
"I'm happy that you finally got back to the Real World, Hakuno, and you got Kari as well! Man, I got to pay you back somehow!" Daisuke spoke, his voice was quite loud yet it held an optimistic charisma to it that Hakuno could identify easily, he was a natural leader.
Saber was an Emperor so it wasn't that hard to pick out the characteristic when Hakuno spends so much time around the artistic Servant.
Hikari smiled, "You can help my brother pay the bill then."
"What!?" Daisuke exclaimed, "A bill? For what?"
"They're going to bring me out to eat somewhere," Hakuno said.
"Hakuno, who is this handsome guy next to you?" Yolei spoke in a matter that reminder the magus a little of Caster, just far less expressive.
"That's Archer," She answered.
"This is Archer?" Cody said. Hakuno thought him to be the most relatable person in the Digidestined so far. He was quiet, yet knowledgeable, and had proven to be reliable whenever they had conversed however briefly. Plus, he was a yog kid, and Hakuno owned it to Alice to make sure Cody was alright.
"Hmph," Archer grunted in slight annoyance at all the attention he was getting.
"He's tall, and look at those abs!" Yolei seemed lost in her own world, making Archer all the more exasperated.
"You want to join us?" Takeru asked.
"Oh, sorry I can't, I have kendo practice," Cody replied.
Archer arched an eyebrow, making Hakuno wonder what he was interested about in Cody. Perhaps it was the fact he mentioned Kendo that got Archer's attention? She knew what Kendo was, there was a club dedicated to it in the fake school of The Holy Grail War… Not to mention the tiger-
"Gaoooo!"
"Did you hear something?" Daisuke questioned.
Hakuno shook her head, best not think about Taiga any further.
Yolei snapped her fingers in realization and disappointment, "Darn, I have to help out with the family store soon."
"Well, I'll go for sure!" Daisuke said. "And if Taichi is going to be there, all the better!" He was so positive.
"Hooray!" Demiveemon shouted from atop Daisuke's head. "We can go eat!"
Hakuno smiled genuinely, "Yes!" She exclaimed, the mood was infectious.
"Let's go then!" Hikari yelled in agreement.
There was a strange smell that hung in the air, it was something that was easily identifiable yet completely foreign for Hakuno Kishinami, the restaurant she had entered appeared well-kept, but nothing overly fancy or someplace you would go to as a tourist. But, it was new, she had never seen something like this before even as it seemed to be commonplace in the Real World. There were a few people in a line to a counter where another individual took orders into a machine, overhead that person was a large board filled with a variety of bright colorful pictures, words, and prices as if they meant something of importance.
"You look as if you've never seen a burger joint before," Takeru spoke aloud towards Hakuno.
"You don't need to be so uncomfortable," Hikari said, "Nobody is going to hurt you."
Hakuno Kishinami realized that she had been quite close to her Servant, Archer, by some subconscious desire to find safety by his presence. She may have always wanted to be in the Real World, but only now did she know that it can be quite intimidating.
"Sorry," Hakuno apologized.
She felt a pat on her right shoulder, "Chill," Taichi's voice spoke next to her, "Just look up at the menu and if you see anything you like just say so."
Daisuke gave her a thumbs up, "Yeah! They have really good shakes here, you should totally get one!" He exclaimed.
"Welcome," the cashier greeted, "What would you like today?"
"Um…" Hakuno trailed off, put on the spot, she just choose what seemed the most predominant choice on the menu board. "The super duper combo?"
A few beeping noises were heard as the cashier put in the order, "A super duper combo, what kind of drink do you want with that?"
Hakuno paused for a brief moment before recollecting what Daisuke said earlier, "A shake?"
"What flavor?"
"Uh, chocolate?" Hakuno said questionably.
Hikari commented, "You must be quite hungry, Hakuno."
Hakuno's face flushed in embarrassment, "I just choose what looked best…"
Taichi, Daisuke, and Takeru blinked at Hakuno Kishinami's expression before Archer glanced at them with a face that made them recover themselves quickly and look away from the magus.
The Digital Human switched emotions rather quickly, returning to her rather bland state that made the Digidestined wonder if perhaps there was something off about Hakuno. They couldn't identify whether or not it was due to some past experience or perhaps a born defect that messed with Hakuno's emotional state. Whatever the cause, it made the moments where she did express herself to be very raw and highly potent, it could be compared to if someone just bottled their emotions up for long periods of time, releasing them in large bursts.
Daisuke walked to the cashier, "We're with her, I'll take the same thing she ordered," He said before looking to the slightly older girl, "Let's go get a table."
She nodded in agreement, "Can we get one close to a window?"
"Like seeing the outside?" Daisuke asked, to which Hakuno nodded solemnly, "Sure, if one isn't taken." They walked a bit into the restaurant as the rest of the Digidestined began ordering their meals.
Hakuno pointed towards an open table, "Daisuke, over there."
"Hey, call me Davis, we're friends aren't we?" Daisuke laughed as made his way towards the table.
Hakuno's heartbeat twice in that single moment, a friend?
She hadn't had a friend since…
No, she couldn't have friends, they always get hurt or worse around her!
But...
It felt so nice.
She couldn't help but smile.
Hakuno sat down at the table, she glanced towards Archer who lay nonchalantly against a nearby wall near them. This place was strange, but it felt quite happy and peaceful like there was a certain atmosphere to it. It was such a foreign feeling, she had never been to a place that could show such a casual demeanor, the closest representation to this would be the commissary back in The Holy Grail War… Yet, even that place held a distant looming that unsettled the magus. However, this eatery held none of that, instead, Hakuno was a bit tempted to just stay in this place for quite a long period of time if not for the fact that it was a restaurant and would probably make her leave after hours.
She started out the window, this world was so different. In the Digital World, there was always a sense of anxiety that plagued her, but here in the Real World, she felt so relaxed and unguarded. Well, not entirely, her Servant was by her side and as such did provide her a sense of protection. The Digidestined were also kind, they've helped her out, she had returned the favor in return but with this latest aid in getting to the Real World, she doubted she could find something equally giving to compressed.
"Hey, I see you find a good table, the digimon should be able to interact without people seeing," Takeru spoke as he arrived, in his hands were two large trays while Patamon sat on his hat. Hakuno Kishinami glanced towards Taichi, who also held two trays with food on them, while Hikari carried her own personal order.
Taichi put down a tray in front of where Hakuno sat, "Here's yours, Hakuno," He said as he walked across the table to sit at the other side. Hikari sat by the magus girl, with Daisuke on her other side, while Takeru sat next to Taichi. The in-training level digimon climbed on top of the free space available, looking eagerly at the Digidestineds' meals.
Hakuno blinked as she looked at her meal, something wrapped in red paper, a carton filled with shaved cooked potatoes, and then a drink that was icy cold to the touch. She looked up to see the others unwrapping their meals, taking bites, and enjoying the beverage known as a shake.
She unwrapped the food item, it was a sizable sandwich, two pieces of bread holding together a large patty of meat, lettuce, onion, tomato, cheese, and pickles. It was a bit dry but held some grease to it that stuck to the meat portion. She grasped it with both hands and took a bite.
Huh, it actually tastes good.
It was an odd flavor, but an addicting one, she had to take a moment to chew.
"Hehe, Hakuno, you got sauce on your face," Hikari commented.
She swallowed and pressed a finger to her lips, it was ketchup, that she could recognize enough from the commissary's own stores of it back in the Moon Cell. She took a napkin and wiped it off, Hakuno looked up to Hikari.
"Is this a… Burger, right?" The magus asked, pointing towards the item in question.
"Yeah, what, never had one before? You are way behind the times then, Hakuno," Hikari replied.
She didn't know what year it was, so Hakuno couldn't really say if she was behind or ahead. It didn't matter, she lacked common information.
"Delicious!" Demiveemon commented as he munched on some potato fries.
Hakuno took a sip of the shake, it took a little bit before the contents within reached her mouth but when it did her tongue exploded with sweet flavor. It practically brought happiness to her mouth when she let it go.
"I like this a lot," Hakuno shook the shake to show it.
"Yeah, as I said," Daisuke began, "They have the best shakes here!"
"So, Hakuno," Takeru asked, "How did you get to the Digital World in the first place?"
Hakuno finished eating a few of her fries before answering, "I went through a door," She said truthfully.
"What kind of door?" Taichi asked and he cut off a piece of his meal and gave it to Gatomon, who thanked him in return.
"Mhm," Hakuno looked thoughtful for a second, "I can't really remember, I was fighting against something at the time,"
Daisuke glanced towards the magus with a shake in hand, "A digimon?" He asked before taking a sip.
"Don't know, but that Dark World reminded me of it," Hakuno replied as she took another savoring bite out of her meal.
It's still good, but Hakuno briefly noted that Archer and Caster had far better cooking skills.
"Dark World…?" Taichi questioned.
Hakuno shrugged, she didn't really want to talk about it right now. She was in the Real World, that's all that matters.
"By the way," Hikari said towards her, "Where you from, Hakuno? I don't recognize that uniform from anywhere near here."
"Huh?" Hakuno replied in shock, "Well… I... Uh…"
Should she tell them?
It was a thing of the past, yet it was also a constant reminder.
She hadn't come from anywhere at all. After all, Hakuno Kishinami was frozen cryogenically due to an illness, kept there waiting for a doctor that would never come. The Hakuno Kishinami that spoke here and now, in front of the Digidestined, was a digital recreation of the real Hakuno that had gained self-awareness during the Moon Cell's Holy Grail War.
She was a Digital Human, she didn't come from anywhere.
She wasn't human.
Yet, at the same time, she was.
A contradiction that, even in the Digital World, was an unknown phenomenon.
But, she was in the Real World now, speaking to the actual bodies of humans, not avatars granted to a magus who hacked into the system to be able to participate in The Holy Grail War.
She, a human of pure data, sat in a restaurant in a world of flesh and blood.
That was when she saw it.
Hakuno Kishinami looked past the Digidestined, standing there, behind them, was a teenage girl older than her. She wore a red shirt with a black skirt and long black socks, but it wasn't the clothing that caught Hakuno off guard, but rather the twin black tails and authoritative expression that occupied that.
Her vision felt like static, her body felt like it was breaking apart for a moment, struggling to maintain its form.
"R-Rin…?" Hakuno questioned, her voice wavered with deep emotion, disbelief clouded her thoughts.
Was she really there, her friend, one of her best friends?
Didn't she kill her?
No, she didn't, she saved her.
That was wrong… Which was it, what was going on?
"Hakuno! Hey, Hakuno!"
"Huh?" The magus shook out of her stupor, her body felt intact, fine, normal again. She looked to the Digidestined Daisuke, "What?"
"You looked like you were off in your own world again," Daisuke said, "Just wanted to ask if you had a place to go."
"Um…" Hakuno looked back towards the place where she saw Rin Tohsaka.
She was gone.
But, wasn't she there just a second ago?
Perhaps she was just really tired, that must have been it, she was just seeing things. The transaction towards the Real World must've just caught up with her body and it was readjusting itself… Everything should be fine.
The Digidestined nor Hakuno may have noticed it, but Archer's eyes narrowed down at his master, towards a specific point where he saw a part of her body fizzled in and out like static.
Something was wrong.