Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Less than Human

Chapter: 25/ Resting Period: Part 1

"Well now…this was rather unexpected. All three Royal Knights have been defeated. DinoTigermon has been deleted along with a large portion of our forces…that'll put a crimp in Project Exodus for certain…"

"We still have our forces in the Verdani Terminal led by WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon…"

"Except that they've cut themselves off from us, remember? They didn't approve of Exodus or the involvement of the humans of this world. They don't want to involve innocents in a war that would surely cause severe damage and casualties to both sides."

"It amazes me that they could turn their backs on their own people knowing full well that Yggdrasil planned to wipe out the old world when he unleashed the X-Virus."

"They have their reasons, just like you had yours when you broke away from the others. Like I did when I first joined with your group. At any rate, we must rethink how we're going to go about this now that our forces are crippled…"

"Crippled? I don't think crippled even describes what happened to us last night. We were getting destroyed! I haven't seen so much as a single survivor of that battle, aside from DinoTigermon and you saw what happened to him when the Royal Knight Dynasmon caught up to him."

"Yes. That blue cloud was even more unexpected then the defeat of the Royal Knights at the hands of the Tamers. The Tamers at least we know something about in terms of their capabilities. After D-Reaper and Parasimon, defeating the Royal Knight's is certainly within the realm of their capabilities. This…entity…I've never seen anything like it. Although from what you've told me about D-Reaper there seem to be some similarities."

"D-Reaper…theChaos was a formless red mass that only took on more definite shapes in the human world. This thing…there are similarities, I don't dispute that but there were differences. If I didn't know any better I'd say that it was searching for something. Even when I'm caught up in trying to survive I pay attention to any subtleties."

"Hypnos hasn't picked up anything unusual on their scanners. It's safe to say that whatever that program was it hasn't found a way to bio-emerge yet. But if it's been assimilating data from the digimon that it's been encountering so far, I wouldn't count on that staying that way for very long. You said that it was resilient to your attacks? What do you figure? Some kind of immunity to the X-Antibody now?"

"Your guess would be better then mine. You're the one who happens to be the expert at this sort of thing, though from what I saw I would imagine that there is at least a resistance."

"Hmmm…well, there may be a way that we can use this. Project Argus is still garnering support, especially after the most recent disaster at Hypnos. If this entity makes its way to the real world and the Tamers show themselves as being inadequate with dealing with it…with or without Exodus, your people will get the aid that they need to combat Yggdrasil and his servants."

"I see. And what of the Royal Knights? What about them?"

"Their involvement may be beneficial to us later. I say let them be for now. Just make sure that you stay clear of them for the time being. I don't want to have to rescue you twice."

Renamon looked out towards the horizon from her spot on the floor by where her Tamer slept peacefully, watching the morning sun as it rose elegantly in the sky, transforming the sky from a deep darkness to a rough, golden-orange hue that only brightened as the minutes ticked by. The kitsune's ears twitched as she heard sounds emanating from within the Urazoe household, home to Takato's cousin, Kai and his grandfather, Wataru. Looking down at the sleeping form of Rika, Renamon gave a small smile upon seeing that the girl's rest wasn't disturbed, and her slow, even breathing continued unabated. Rika had been left exhausted from the battle with Dynasmon, more so then Renamon had been despite the closeness of the bond that they shared, perhaps due to Rika's age despite the experience that she had in dealing with the fatigues that came with battle. Dynasmon had been a particularly powerful opponent as well, and his last attack had caught them both unprepared to defend against it. It was a wonder that they had managed to summon the strength necessary to deliver their final blow against the Royal Knight.

And that was something that Renamon always admired about Rika. No matter how powerful her foe was or what obstacles were thrown in her way, she always had the inner strength that was required to overcome them.

Renamon placed one paw on her partner's face, caressing it as lightly as she could so as to not wake the young girl up from her sleep and thought back to last night, remembering how fearful and upset Takato had been about Rika's well-being after the battle had concluded. Renamon couldn't really blame him. He had been shut behind a force field, by one of his closest friends no less and had been made to take a back seat and watch as she and Rika, as Sakuyamon engaged in battle with Dynasmon and had come within inches of being destroyed. Not exactly the smartest move, Renamon felt upon further reflection (though she had to admit some measure of reluctance in going along with the idea to begin with) but one that she could understand given the girl's desire to protect her friends from harm.

This could become a problem, thought Renamon, her azure gaze becoming introspective as she thought over the torrent of feelings and emotions that she had experienced from her merging with Rika. Rika's still largely unsure about her feelings for Takato at present, and Takato… Renamon narrowed her eyes slightly as she thought about the goggle-wearing Tamer that was her friend and ally. …I can imagine that he must be highly confused about their situation, perhaps more so then Rika due to his own feelings for Jeri. Their friendship, their bond has been thrown out of balance by Rika's actions. Rika's desire to keep her friends, in this case Takato, safe from danger is causing her to be overprotective, which will disrupt how they interact with each other and fight battles in the future. By the same token, their uncertainty of how to interact in light of what went on between them…

Renamon shook her head as she turned her attention back to the sunrise, amazed as to how things between two people could change so suddenly and drastically because of one act of deep, loving friendship. After a fashion she could understand. In her own way, Renamon loved Rika the same way that she did her, both caring about each other and trusting each other the way that few others could. But this…what occurred between her Tamer and Takato was something that she could tell was of a completely different order then what she had known in the past, and it held the power to strengthen or destroy the bond that they shared. Renamon gave a small sigh as she thought about how things had gone between her and Rika back at the beginning of their partnership. At first glance things had appeared so simple. Rika had simply been a way for her to get stronger and Rika hadn't been much different. As time had passed they had grown to care about each other quite a bit, more then either of them would have admitted until the lack of communication between them nearly cost them their lives as well as their partnership.

And now she's going through almost the exact same thing all over again, only this time with Takato…

Renamon was jolted out of her reverie at the sound of a light knock on the slide door that led to the room. Getting up from where she sat, Renamon gracefully walked over to the door and opened it just enough to see who was there. Renamon relaxed when she saw that it was Takato, holding what looked like a tray with breakfast.

"Um… morning Renamon," said Takato in an uncertain voice. Renamon nodded in greeting to the boy and gave him a small smile.

"Good morning Takato. Sleep well?"

Takato chuckled nervously.

"A little bit. How's Rika?"

"She's still resting, but otherwise she's fine," said Renamon, taking note of the sigh of relief that the boy made upon hearing that the red headed Tamer was okay.

"That's good," said Takato. "After last night I was worried that she…well…you get the picture. You were there after all…"

Renamon looked at the boy with a concerned expression, having seen a brief shadow of fear appear on his face as the memory from last night passed through his mind.

"Takato…"

"A-Anyway! Um…I…ah…I brought Rika some breakfast that I thought that she might like. Kai and his grandfather are putting together some day clothes that she can use and trying to guess her size until we get her something from town…" Takato's voice trailed off as he began to look a little uncomfortable now, though why precisely this was Renamon couldn't tell. Rika was still fully clothed, even if she was only in her pajamas, a result of the speed that they had to depart the house from. Renamon frowned as a thought entered her mind. There was something unnaturally odd about how quickly they had arrived at Okinawa…

"Um…yeah," continued Takato, stammering a little as he held out the tray of food to the vulpine digimon. "So…uh…this is for you guys and we'll see you around whenever you two feel ready."

Takato offered Renamon a goofy, uncomfortable grin as she accepted the tray with a slight inclination of her head.

"Thank you. How's Guilmon doing?"

Renamon thought back to the crimson colored dinosaur that she had not seen these past few weeks, remembering her own surprise in spite of her exhaustion at finding that Guilmon had changed quite a bit during his rebirth, mostly in his appearance if not his personality. While the way he looked was something to wonder about, and perhaps be concerned over it was not the main thing that she regarded as being important at this moment. Guilmon's mind, or rather his memories, the lack thereof had surprised her when he had greeted her and asked her name. Later, when Takato was helping Kai and his grandfather dress her wounds he had informed her that Guilmon was missing most if not all of his memories of his previous life, no doubt as a result of his having been deleted. This, Renamon found, saddened her as it seemed to diminish the bond that she and the rest had shared with the red colored reptile for the past year. Trying to help bring out Guilmon's memories, if they were still there and only buried, was something that she intended to try at some point when she was able.

"Well," began Takato as he scratched the back of his head nervously. "His arm still hurts from last night, but as that hasn't affected his appetite I guess that he's okay. Right now he's having breakfast and hoping that Calumon will stop by later…"

Renamon nodded again and a silence fell between the two friends. After a few seconds Takato's expression became troubled.

"So…ah, I'll see you guys later."

"Of course," replied Renamon and with that Takato turned and walked away, Renamon watching him go for a few seconds before closing the door to the room and walking back over to where Rika lay, setting the tray of food down as she arrived. She debated waking Rika up so that she could have her breakfast while it was still fresh and continuing to let her rest. Fortunately, the fiery Tamer took care of the decision making for her as she made a light groan, shifted her legs beneath the blanket that covered her and carefully cracked open her eyes. Renamon paused as Rika took a moment to stretch and yawn, rubbing her eyes as she awakened to the world around her. Suddenly the girl paused, as if contemplating something before nearly flying out of her bedding, her eyes widening in surprise as Renamon caught her by the shoulders. Rika panted heavily for a moment, her eyes wide before finally relaxing and taking a look around her. Renamon waited as the young girl collected herself.

"Renamon?" Asked Rika uncertainly. "What…?"

"Dynasmon was destroyed," said Renamon. "You passed out from exhaustion after the fight was over and we devolved. It is now the morning after the battle and all is well." Renamon paused. "Well, as well as things can be I suppose."

Rika looked at her partner with a suspicious look.

"What's that mean?"

"I'll explain as you eat," said Renamon as she picked up one of two containers of food that had arrived with the tray. "Takato was kind enough to bring us breakfast while you slept…"

Rika frowned as a light blush crept its way onto her face at that when Renamon handed her the container and a pair of chopsticks for her to use.

"Hmmph. Since when does Takato get to be my nursemaid?"

Renamon gave Rika a critical eye.

"Perhaps for the same reason that you've chosen to be his protector," said the vixen with a subtle, hinting tone to her voice, causing Rika's blush to increase in its intensity as she took the container and proceeded to open it, her motions controlled, but agitated.

"Stupid…" Rika muttered to herself grouchily as she began to pry off the lid, faintly wondering why it was that something in the container felt…odd. As though it had liquid in it…

"What is Rika?" Asked Renamon. "The fact that Takato decided to get you some food or…?"

"It's…" Rika began, interrupting her partner before pausing as she searched for the right way to express what she was feeling just now. "…I don't know. Everything I guess. This whole situation. Me…him…this isn't what I expected Renamon. Things feel so weird right now, so off kilter that I don't know quite how to react to that Gogglehead. Knowing him he's going to want to give me too much space and not want to talk about …that, and if he does he's going to be tripping over his own words and…"

Rika growled at the lid that covered her plastic container. It was proving rather difficult to remove for some reason.

Renamon watched her Tamer struggle with the lid, knowing that Rika preferred to deal with even the smallest of problems on her own and respecting her desire to do so. In a way, it almost felt to her that this was an externalized struggle of Rika's emotions.

"From what I recall of our own conversations, this meeting hasn't been something that you've looked forward to with any degree of optimism. In fact, you've been more or less dreading it for weeks now. What did you call the waiting period this past week? The curse of expectation?"

Rika halted in her attempts to open her food container and closed her eyes as she gathered her thoughts. The soreness in her muscles was as nothing compared to the flurry of tightly wound emotions that she had been experiencing during the last few weeks.

"Yeah. I know. I…guess that there really isn't much to say about that. It's just…I don't know. I value Takato's friendship and I care about him a lot but…" Rika furrowed her brow and shook her head, the loose strands of her hair, no longer tied back in the traditional ponytail that was her trademark, brushing across her face and the back of her neck. Rika blew at them in annoyance as she looked back down at her food and returned to trying to open it. "…I just wish I had some clue as to what's going through his mind about…what happened between us. I wish that I were certain about anything involving that."

Rika again paused for a moment.

"I wish that I was certain about how I felt…"

Rika's frown became deeper and her violet eyes narrowed as she resumed her attack the container's stubborn lid.

"Stupid," the red haired girl reiterated. Renamon didn't say anything, as there was little that she could say that they hadn't already discussed before. The only clear option was to do with Takato as she had done with Jeri, and that was to talk to him and take things from there. Renamon sighed mentally. Rika's own questions in regard to how she felt about Takato were one of the issues that she had given much thought of during the time following the day of the kiss that she shared with Takato, and each time that she did so she couldn't arrive at a concrete conclusion as to what exactly those feelings were. She knew that in times past she felt a strong sense of camaraderie, at least once they had become more comfortable around each other and had fought side by side often enough. Their friendship had its ups and downs, as was the case with many friendships but it had grown to become consistent and strong since their early days, becoming to the point where they could easily count each other as being among their closest of friends. Rika had been greatly affected when Takato had gone into depression after Guilmon had been killed by the angelic digimon, Lucemon, and that experience combined with her desire to help Takato get through his loss had caused her to become emotionally closer to the boy…

But did that mean that she cared about Takato in a way that went beyond the normal boundaries of friendship? Or had she been moved out of pity?

A good question, Renamon felt. And certainly one worth considering along with the hundred of others that had managed to further complicate Rika's already complicated life. Renamon wished that there were more that she could do for her, but aside of simply offering emotional support this was something that only Rika and Takato could handle. It was simply a matter of finding out who would have the courage to make the first move.

Rika gave a triumphant smirk as the lid finally popped off. Setting it aside, Rika picked up her chopsticks and prepared to dig in.

"Anyway," said Rika, glancing briefly at Renamon before turning her attention to her breakfast. "What else has been going on while I was ou…?"

Renamon raised an eyebrow at Rika. The girl had cut herself off before she finished her sentence. Looking over at the Tamer, Renamon found Rika looking at her breakfast with eyes that had gone slightly wide in surprise. Moving her gaze down to the container Renamon found that the container held soup, the same kind that she herself had. Misoshiru. The same soup that Rika normally had at breakfast when home.

"Rika? Is everything…?"

"Y-yeah," stuttered Rika, frowning at herself as she did so before raising her chopsticks and began eating. "It's nothing."

Renamon kept her gaze on Rika for a moment before speaking again, this time updating her on Guilmon's condition since his revival. Rika listened intently as she ate, though her mind was more focused on the food that she was eating. As Rika ate, a thought made its way through her mind, and though it was little more then a whisper it still sent echoes through the corners of her mind.

He remembered…

A/N: Misoshiru, or Miso shiru (Miso soup) is a traditional Japanese soup containing a kind of flavored broth and miso paste (which is made by fermenting rice, soybeans, and barley with salts and some type of mold called kojikin). Any other ingredients used vary from place and season in Japan. In an English/Japanese comparison of the dub and original versions of the Tamers season (more specifically episode 43 Beelzemon's Big Day) when the Tamers made breakfast at Takato's house Rika/Ruki is supposed to have said something along the lines of how she preferred Misoshiru for breakfast before being scolded by Renamon. Whether this is true or not, I don't know for certain (as I have no access to subtitled versions of the Tamers season), but I felt that it had a place here. Not really all that big in the grand scheme of things but a nice addition nonetheless. The next couple of chapters or so will focus more on Rika and Takato as they attempt to figure out just what their relationship is while I plan the next arc of the story. 'Till next time then. Later.

-Crazyeight

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