Y/N: Cody is a lot of fun to write in the Dark Ocean. He's also fun everywhere else. He's one of my favourites. This chapter was written later to bridge the gap between this one and the next one, because Urazamay felt that the plot was a little rushed. I concurred, and ended up piecing this together. I hope it's not stiff, or awkward in any way. I kind of enjoyed the absurdness of it.

U/N: So here I wrote as Tatum, and that was kind of cool, Tatum is my friend and she is half Irish. Sometimes she forgets, and sometimes I do too, but she is and that's cool. I don't really know what to say because I don't remember this chapter, but I DO remember Lopmon, so I think she's in it. :D

Title: Digimon Adventure 07: Virus

By: YukiraKing and UrazamayKing

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

Part 3: Sidhendor and the Dark Ocean

Chapter 28: Sweeter Than Fiction

Iori Hida:

The light was dim. It was always dim, as if it was always bordering on dawn, but could never quite get there. Every once in awhile I would still forget where I was, and expect the sky to light up with bright colours, and wait to see the sun rise, but a few minutes would pass and the light would stay the same, and I'd kick myself for every getting the idea in my head in the first place.

I rolled my shoulder, testing it. I'd just finished fighting off a solitary shadow that thought he could get the jump on me. I'd very nearly had my shoulder dislocated in the fray, but I'd escaped his grip just in time. I was sure my shoulder would be plastered with bruises by morning, but for now it only burned pleasantly. I loved the feeling I got whenever I was victorious in a fight against the shadows. It was just about the only thrilling aspect of this world. I couldn't get enough of it. Winter didn't even need to send me on a mission, sometimes I just went down to the ocean for a walk. The Ocean was the best place to find the shadows. They lurked there.

The sand under my feet shifted into black beach grass, and I sighed, knowing that I wasn't going to get a second fight before getting back to the castle. I'd promised I'd be back in time for lunch too, so I couldn't just hang around to see what happened.

There was a path worn through the beach grass that led directly to the oversized door that led into the castle. I'd walked the same path a couple of times each day. I couldn't stay trapped within the castle walls. I needed to keep some semblance of freedom, and so long as I didn't expect Winter to come to my rescue, she didn't care one way or the other what I did during my stay here.

I pushed the big door open and shoved it closed behind me, kicking off my shoes, and tossing them towards Miyako's and Bengoshi's. My shoes were getting worn out, with blood stains and holes scattered through them. My clothing wasn't fairing much better. I didn't have a plan for whenever the fabric finally gave out. There weren't exactly a lot of options to work with here. I supposed I'd be able to sew new clothes out of the curtains if I had to. I didn't actually know how to sew, but I figured I could learn. I'd need to if I didn't want to walk around naked.

Turning at the next opportunity, I headed towards the dining table that was set up in the throne room. Winter had finally emerged from her dungeon, I saw. She was heading towards me, having come from a different direction. I stopped, waiting for her to catch up—mostly to be polite, rather than a desire for her company.

"Good walk?" she asked me dryly. Her eyes darted to my shoulder without any prompting. She was always able to do that. It was like she had a sixth sense for locating injuries. I rolled my shoulder again, showing her that it was fine. She didn't press any further.

"Not long enough," I said, to answer her inquiry.

"Not fun enough, you mean," she commented. I smirked at her. She knew me so well. Too well, really, considering I hadn't known her before coming for this extended stay in the Dark Ocean. She was determined to get us out before Miyako gave birth, and I was giving her the benefit of the doubt. Knowing I wasn't going to be here forever was actually going a long way to keep me from falling into the same traps that Bengoshi had.

Not being stupid enough to drink the water was a big help too.

"How's your work coming?" I asked. I didn't want to inquire about Bengoshi's well being because I didn't want anyone to make the mistake of thinking I liked the guy. I actually loathed him. That didn't mean I wanted some strange shadow virus to destroy him though. I didn't want him dead. Winter had been doing her best to find a way to reverse the process. She hadn't had long to work though, and I wasn't expecting any miracles.

"Slowly," she said bitterly. "Much slower than the infection is spreading. The Armadillomon have been keeping me updated on its progress. His arm has been compromised. It's not taking its time."

"We might lose him," I realized. I furrowed my brow, knowing that we would eventually have to tell Miyako. She wouldn't be able to handle the thought. She wasn't dealing with any of this very well.

"We very well could," Winter agreed solemnly.

I wasn't particularly thrilled with the direction of our conversation. It had shattered any illusion of a good mood that my victory over the shadows had given me. I felt the need to change the subject, and floundered for any other topic. There just weren't very many options. The Dark Ocean wasn't exactly bursting with activity.

"You might've warned me about the spirit of Yggdrasil's tree."

It wasn't the greatest of alternative conversation topics. It wasn't any more pleasant than Bengoshi. I considered it less pleasant actually. I resigned myself to the loss of my good mood. I sighed.

"And here I thought you might like the surprise," Winter said with a smirk. We were coming to the end of our journey. The entrance to the throne room was within sight. I held out my hand, to stop her. She quirked her eyebrow at me, but complied with my silent request. She glanced towards the throne room. Her smirk fell from her face as she remembered just who'd accompanied me. "I am sorry that Miyako was placed in danger."

"I know," I said. "If I would have known how dangerous it was, I would've insisted she go back."

"I tried to tell her to stay behind, but I'm not a jailer, and she's not my prisoner," Winter assured me. I sighed again, and nodded. She reached out and pushed my arm out of the way, and proceeded on her way. I wasn't nearly as comforted by her declaration as I'd hoped to be.

It took me a minute to compose my thoughts and head on to the throne room. When I got there, I noted that Bengoshi wasn't there. I knew what that meant. He had locked himself in his room, afraid of what was happening to him—and allowing the darkness to fester within him as he let the sadness and fear and anger overwhelm him.

Miyako was there though, looking down at her soup with unfocussed eyes, stirring it aimlessly with her spoon. Her sandwich looked like she'd only nibbled on the bread before disregarding it. My soup was set up across from her, and I sat down, looking at the lumpy liquid. It wasn't horrid looking, but I was getting tired of soup. I wasn't about to complain though. I wanted what was best for the baby, and Miyako needed the extra nourishment that her sandwich would provide. I was well aware of the fact that there was only so much food available at any given time. We were in the Dark Ocean—in hell. Miyako, Bengoshi and I were three extra mouths that Winter hadn't been prepared for, and Grandpa had taught me better than to turn my nose up at her kindness. She couldn't just order in extra supplies. I didn't actually know how she'd gotten what little she had, but I didn't want to inconvenience her.

Though I couldn't help but wonder why she couldn't get us out of this world if she could get food in.

I didn't want to doubt her dedication. She had personally chosen Miyako to be a digidestined. She'd been invested in Miyako's well being and happiness since Miyako was a child. I didn't think she would purposefully neglect that option of escape. She might've been exhausting all her methods of bringing us to Earth first. Maybe the world that this strangely colourless soup came from wasn't much better than the Dark Ocean was. She had to have her reasons.

I wasn't going to ask though. I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer, just in case I was wrong to give her the benefit of the doubt.

The Armadillomon were playing with a pile of pots and pans in the corner, banging on them like they were drums. It was loud, and I predicted a headache in my future, but it was an excited sound, upbeat, happy. It didn't have the same eeriness that the silence seemed to drip with. The Armadillomon were also laughing. I couldn't understand just how joyful they managed to be despite their lodging. They'd been living in the Dark Ocean for ages. I didn't even know how long it had been since they'd been taken into this world from the Digital World. They'd been used as slave labour by Dragomon and been sacrificed by the shadows. They were treated much better by Winter, but I couldn't imagine living through even a portion of what they had. Yet they were here, laughing despite it all.

It was a testament to their strength.

"Eat, Miyako," Winter ordered. Miyako's eyes jerked away from her soup, wide and searching. She was surprised to notice that Winter and I were even there. She'd been spacing out since she'd first seen Bengoshi's hand being plagued by the darkness. I was getting increasingly worried. She hadn't bothered to seek me out the night before, and she'd spent that first night—after discovering the shadow virus—sobbing into my arms until she passed out of sheer exhaustion. "You might not feel hungry, but the baby probably is."

"Eat," I agreed. Miyako nodded jerkily, and followed our instructions. She kept her left hand on her stomach. Between bites, she chewed on her bottom lip. More than once I'd seen her looking towards the door, hoping to catch sight of Bengoshi, no doubt hoping that the virus would heal itself, and he'd magically return to normal—maybe play a few card games with her and the Armadillomon. I didn't want to be the one that had to tell her that wasn't going to happen. I couldn't shatter what was left of her spirit. She was so fragile now. I couldn't bear it if I had to watch her break.

Winter dabbed her lips with a napkin, and got to her feet, excusing herself. I continued to put spoonfuls of my lumpy grey soup as she left. I wanted to escape too. The Armadillomon's drumming was the only sound. Miyako wasn't up for conversation today. She was sitting there, acting like a zombie, and I couldn't let her stay that way. I wanted her to help her, but I didn't know what she needed.

"I think I might stay in for the rest of the day," I offered, just to see if she'd hear me. She looked up to me instantly, showing me her wide, watering eyes. "Miyako?"

"I'm scared," she whispered, letting the tears fall down her cheeks.

"You're not going to be like him," I promised her. "You didn't drink the water."

"No," she said, shaking her head causing tears to splatter the table top. "Ken drank the water, Iori. He drank it and the baby came from him too. Does that mean the baby's going to be infected? Does that mean my baby is more susceptible to the darkness? Is that the reason that I haven't felt the baby move? It should have moved. It should have moved weeks ago! I should have felt that, but I haven't. I don't know if it's okay, and there are no doctors and I'm so scared!"

She wasn't the only one that was scared. I was so worried about that child, and I didn't know how to make it better. I'd gone through school for law. I didn't have any of Jou's training. I didn't know what was wrong, or if something was.

"The baby's fine," I said, with confidence I didn't have. I had to put up a brave front for her. She was already unstable emotionally. "Of course it's fine, it has you. It's probably waiting for some dramatic moment to make its first move. It wants it to be memorable."

She didn't smile, not even close, but it seemed like she was a little happier than she had been before. My hypothesis (because it could not be proven one way or the other) wasn't enough to lift her mood. I pushed back my chair, realizing she'd eaten all she was going to be able to, and walked around the table, holding my hand out to her. She zeroed in on my hand, and pursed her lips in confusion.

I rolled my eyes and grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. My other hand went to her waist, and I spun her around, feeling her pregnant belly pressed against me. She stumbled, but my grip was firm enough that she remained upright.

"What are you doing?" she asked me, when I started rocking back and forth somewhat awkwardly. I lifted my arm up and spun her under it, before pulling her close again, and dipping her slightly.

"What do you think?" I asked. "We're dancing."

"Why?" she asked, nearly laughing. I didn't dare praise myself for it. I didn't want to jinx it. I could at any second ruin things, and send her back down towards her downward spiral.

"The Armadillomon are playing for us," I said, forcing a large smile on my face, to make it seem as though I was bubbling over with happiness. Miyako had a tendency to take on the emotions of those around her when she felt lost. I had to mask my own fear to bring out her hope. I was acting like a goofball—something I wouldn't typically care to do—for the sake of her happiness. I could handle looking like an idiot if it meant I wouldn't need to see her so miserable all the time. "They deserve to be appreciated, don't you think?"

I pressed our cheeks together, and stuck our joined arms out straight, pulling her even closer than before. We strutted down alongside the table, and I realized that we had an audience in the Armadillomon—who were still playing quite loudly with their makeshift drums. I spun her, twirled her, and dipped her. I pretended I was able to tap dance, and lifted her in the air once. It took some time, but eventually, I was able to break through the walls she'd put up, and she cracked a smile. It wasn't long after that first smile that she was grinning and laughing as I whirled her around the room, much to the amusement of the Armadillomon.

"Do you think, when this is all over, you'll be teaching Armadillomon the drums?" she asked, with a laugh. I grinned at her, feeling incredibly lighter, seeing her happiness.

"Only if you have Hawkmon learn the harp," I teased her.

Her smile dimmed, and she stopped dancing, the furrow returned between her brows. I mentally kicked myself. Hawkmon was a sore subject between us.

"Do you know what happened to him?" she asked me in a strained voice. She didn't leave me any room to escape answering. She was still holding my hand, and she squeezed my shoulder—a warning in case I was thinking of running.

"No," I told her honestly. It killed me, not knowing what happened to him. I'd waited as long as I could, but I hadn't been able to find him, and I couldn't risk waiting any longer. I didn't allow my face to betray any of my thoughts though. I kept it bland and emotionless.

"Were you with him?" she asked. I cursed her keen eye and observing nature. Of course she would have caught on to that.

"Yes," I admitted quietly.

She wanted to ask more. I could see that she did. The questions were at the tip of her tongue, but she held herself back. She knew I wasn't going to answer. I couldn't. And I was fairly certain she was afraid of the answer. She let go of my shoulder, and stepped back. I let her hand fall from mine, and watched as she walked out of the room, not looking back. I clenched my fists, and headed to the door.

There were shadows that wanted to find me, and I could use a good fight.

Tatum Jefferson:

Michael had been going on for hours about his plan to break into the castle. Sometimes I wondered if he was actually worried about going home, or simply wished to explore more of the world in which his mother had been born. I couldn't call him out on this though, because I needed him to feel comfortable telling me the truth, and also, it was entirely his decision to feel whatever emotions he wanted to feel. He belonged no more to Earth than he did to this world, and if he wished to remain here when all was said and done, that would be his own decision. His duty was to be true and honest with himself and do what was best for himself. All else would fall into place around him when the moment came that he was perfectly content with the person he had become and the choices he had made.

That did not stop me from wishing he would come back with us, however. I cared about him more than almost anyone else. We were essentially an old married couple now. We had been dating officially for just about eight years, and that was a long time. Not only that though, we had lived together for three of those years, gone through hell and back together, fighting for the world, and while it wasn't explicitly my fight to be joining in on, I always had, because I wasn't a horrible person. I could see right and wrong, and ignoring this to let my boyfriend go off on his own to fight was both degrading to women everywhere, and also cowardly. I was no coward. Which was also why I was not scared to continue my life without him were he to stay here to live his life.

I did not want him to, but if he were to choose this hot, stinky world with no plumbing over the rest of us, I wouldn't stop him. It wasn't my place to do so.

We had only just escaped his rants though, and although they sounded logical when he spoke, somehow, whenever we walked away from him we realized the flaws in his plans. It was as if his energy and positivity were blinding us from the holes that could potentially get us killed, but it almost didn't matter just because he was so excitable. But we couldn't pass the guards, if we were seen we would ruin our entire lives here because we would either be on the run, or be in prison, or worse. We could be beheaded. Hideto had said that Morganna once threatened to remove his head if he were ever to set foot on her private property again, and that was horrifying simply because there was no way of knowing if she was just being dramatic, or genuine.

Aside from the obvious flaws in Michael's planning, we also could not leave through the Looking Glass, because it would kill us the instant we landed in the Digital World. I knew Mimi would want to go there, and the Looking Glass could very well take her wish over the rest of ours and then she would have killed us all. There was too much risk.

Not that we weren't already in a continuous state of danger. Hideto continually slept walked, and while he remembered nothing throughout the night, he always did wake up near the beanstalk, as if his subconscious mind needed him to climb it, and if he didn't, the story would never go the same way. He, as Jack, was supposed to climb again, and again, and eventually chop the tower down. We all went together to skip the middle steps, taking axes in an attempt to take the beanstalk down, but it refused our axes, not allowing them to even make the tiniest of marks. It was not ready to be chopped down just yet.

Lopmon, though we tried to keep her back, continued to race her turtle friend, and still never won. It seemed that she liked taking the nap more than the racing now though. She had trouble sleeping at night, and often cried, thinking about Terriermon, and of course Willis. She often became frustrated also, because of that fly that simply would not leave her alone. Michael and I trapped it yesterday, knowing that killing it would do nothing to help. So far, the fly was still underneath the glass on the mantelpiece and he yet to bother her.

Mimi was taking our new life the hardest, always becoming fed up with the simplest of problems, stressing out and crying often. It was not her fault, and no one blamed her, though it could get annoying. Her roles in this world were dangerous though, and so it was understandable. She had decided to ensure that someone kept watch of her to ensure she never went anywhere aside from home and the village ever again. I could relate to that, because if I ever walked back toward the forest it was possible that I could fall into the same patterns I recently had and resume my role as Goldilocks. Other than that one slip up, I had yet to find myself in any particular character's role, at least since I had tumbled after 'Jack' on the way to get some water. It was nerve-wracking. What if I was already living a fairy tale without knowing? I couldn't possibly know every story, and it was possible that I could die, very soon in fact. There was no way of knowing until I could recognize something specific.

And then there was Michael, who had taken it pretty rough from the start. He had been thrust into Cinderella's life and then continued to find himself in more and more danger and unpleasant situations. I had essentially kept a close eye on him for weeks, but still things slipped up.

Right now was one of those times that I let him be alone. I was not trying to be controlling or pushy, I was simply trying to keep him safe, and since that wasn't completely possible, I knew I would have to give him some space. So Mimi and I decided to take a trip out to town together, because that was our only other option aside from our living room. We hadn't come with any exact plan, aside from to get our mind off of things.

Lopmon had insisted on coming with us, not wanting to be alone with Michael and Hideto who often sat in complete silence when left on their own. She was sitting in my arms, wrapped around her to keep her safe. Today was the first day in a full week that she had decided to skip the race with her friend, and she seemed lighter—not in weight, but in spirit. She didn't seem so worked up or frustrated, but rather pleased to know that not everything in her life had to revolve around one specific thing.

"Why don't we get some candy?" Lopmon suggested, pointing toward a house that appeared to be entirely made of candy.

"I think we should avoid that particular house," I said nervously, "just in case." I knew the stories better than the others did, and that was stressful on its own. It was good that at least one of us knew what was going on, but also troubling because I could not keep an eye on all of them at every moment of every day.

The town today was less busy than it usually was, because, as it seemed, there were no festivals happening today. Most days there was something going on, whether it be a ball, or a party, or just a wedding. Something was most always going on. Today though, I could actually see through the crowds of people like I'd never been able to before, and see shops and other buildings that I'd never gotten a good look at before. The town really was magical. Michael was not exaggerating in his adoration of this place, it was just that it also seemed fake. To me at least. The way everything glistened in light that wasn't even there seemed to be an eerie sign that we were not even alive. And everyone just seemed so sure that this was the only continent in the entire ocean, which seemed ridiculous. If this world was just in a parallel universe to the one in which Earth resided, wasn't it true that it should have some similarities? I'd spent much of my time in the Digital World learning the lay of the land and about the digimon, and everything there matched up to Earth. It was never a perfect match, but there were enough similarities to draw the assumption. Here though, everything was different.

"Is that a spa?" Mimi asked suddenly, her voice weak with a timid sort of excitement. "I-is this real life?'

I followed her gaze and saw a beautiful white building made of stone, towering over many of the others, stretching across the rooftops in every direction. The windows were large and round, and people seemed to be inside enjoying themselves. It certainly seemed like a spa... and I could certainly not think of any fairy tales that explicitly taught me to avoid a pedicure... "Let's do it." I said, determined.

Mimi's face lit up and she ran off, her violet dress flopping around, restricting her movement.

"You picked a spa over candy?" Lopmon asked, suspicious.

"I picked relaxation over being eaten, actually." I told her. She gasped, and decided it was the right choice, so I followed Mimi into the spa.

It seemed so odd to be here after everything we'd been doing in this world, but it felt better than any of that too, so I had not a single care in the world. I did not get a chance to completely relax though, because every time something was brought to us, my mind went on hyper drive, searching endlessly for any warnings. Weird purple fruit were being rubbed on my feet, and at first I was skeptical, but it was relaxing. Now, what fairy tales involved purple fruit? None that I could recall, but I wasn't going to stop watching, I needed to make sure we all got home alive.

Lopmon did not have that worry, she was nearly asleep as a man with strong arms massaged her ears. "Would you like a bow for your..." the man stopped speaking, thinking about what to call Lopmon, "Dog?"

"I'm a rabbit," Lopmon said calmly, "My brother's a dog. I want a bow. Gimme."

The man smiled to her with such kindness that it nearly tricked me into a sense of security, but I couldn't be calm. I needed to keep watch and keep a hold of reality, even though it felt so good to feel this clean. Bathing in mildly warm water in a dirty tub was just not ever going to be enough for me—this though, this was good. I could get used to this.

"Where are your other friends?" the woman who was massaging my scalp asked me, "The other two?"

"They stayed home," I said, relaxed. She'd probably seen Michael and Hideto around town as well. We were well known as the people who lived in the house on the hill and paid for things with golden eggs.

But Mimi, was having serious troubles with relaxing.

The woman who was trying to massage her shoulders kept getting frustrated that Mimi's hair would not stay out of her way, and as a result she accidentally pulled it whenever it fell back over her shoulders. Mimi winced, frustrated. The woman decided finally to put Mimi's hair up first, but the hair was too knotted and tatted. It looked a bit like a lion's mane at this point, messy and frayed. The woman could not run her hands through the hair enough to put it up so she pulled a silver comb from a drawer behind her.

"Hey," I said sharply. The woman stopped and looked to me, "Is that poisoned?"

"N-No?" She stuttered, "I do not think so."

"Okay..." I decided, too comfortable to fight her. She seemed genuine. Mimi trusted my judgement in any case, so I hoped that I wasn't wrong on this one.

But Mimi didn't want the comb—not after the pain she experienced anyway. She was actually crying because of how messy her hair was. The comb tried to pull through the knots, but simply could not make any headway and as a result, always pulled sharply on her hair.

By the end of our session, Lopmon looked clean, fluffy and content, I felt more relaxed than I had been in months, and Mimi had tear stains on her face.

"I'm sorry you didn't enjoy that," I said, ashamed of how good I felt. "I'm sorry it sucked."

"No, don't be," Mimi insisted, trying to stay positive as we made our way back toward the exit to the town. We had already been gone for a couple of hours, it was only fair that we returned to the others now and to make sure they didn't do anything horrendously stupid, like steal a magical harp from a giant and cause mass mayhem and possible death. "I'm glad you're happy. I had a good time." It was the least convincing lie I'd ever heard.

Lopmon seemed to realize that too because she climbed out of my arms and into Mimi's to give her a great big hug. It seemed to help, at least a little because Mimi let out a sigh and followed it with a smile. Her fake-contentedness lasted until we came across the gates that led out of town, they were shut tight, and when we pulled on them, they would not budge.

"What the heck?" Lopmon said loudly, looking upward, "Do we have to climb?"

"I'm not climbing this thing!" Mimi insisted, "it's like twenty feet tall!"

A gentle clearing of someone's throat cause the three of us to look sharply to the left where a man was smiling up at us, "The gates are closed because of the date. It is therefore advised that anyone wishing to leave town use the back entrance."

"There's a back entrance?" Lopmon asked.

"Why is this date important?" I asked.

"It is the date the giant always comes." The man said kindly. "When he comes to the gates and sees we are not open he will turn back."

All three of us stared back at him in shock. Did he really think that these gates would keep a giant away? Besides, we knew that the giant wasn't going to be heading this way because the resident Jack was smarter than that. He had to know not to climb that beanstalk again. But we couldn't be sure unless we got back to the house, immediately. "Where is the back entrance?" I questioned.

"In the back," The man said kindly.

"Whatever," I said, grabbing Mimi's arm. "We should get going." I dragged Mimi through the town, weaving in and out of the streets. There were even less people now than there were before, and it now made sense. They were all in hiding, afraid the giant might come for them if the gates proved to be no match for him. It was probably a bad thing that my mind thought it might be a good thing. If we could get the giant into the town to disturb the people, it might serve as enough of a distraction to get back into the castle. But was it worth it?

Mimi pulled hard, stopping me in my tracks when we made our way through the marketplace. She held up a wicker basket and thrust it into my arms. "Hideto made me promise to bring back some fruit." Mimi then began loading all of the bizarre fruits that this world had to offer into my basket. The swirly ones that Hideto and I enjoyed, and the spiky purple ones Mimi liked. Everything about this world was abnormal, and it was for that reason that I did not enjoy it at all. It wasn't that I had anything against things or people that were different, I was just bitter and wanted to go home. When Mimi began questioning the man about which fruits had just enough sweetness to compliment the bitter green berries in her hand, I decided it was time to go.

I paid the man quickly and took Mimi's hand, dragging her through the streets again. "Why are we in such a hurry?" she asked.

"I just want to make sure Hideto doesn't do anything stupid." I said, clutching the basket close.

"You don't think he'd—" Lopmon started, but when I looked down to her sharply she looked horrified. It wasn't always our own choices that led to our decisions. Sometimes we found ourselves falling into the trap without our consent. Mimi's pace quickened, thankfully, and we arrived at the back entrance quickly.

It was a stone bridge that led straight out of town and across a small stream of water in the ditch below. How were we supposed to get back across the ditch to get to our house though? I figured we could solve that problem when it came to it, because this was obviously the only way out of the town right now.

We set foot onto the bridge, making our way across the long stone path. Something about it all seemed familiar, but it wasn't until we reached the end of the bridge when things turned sour.

Mimi screamed when we heard the growls from below and her pace quickened even further, but we did not make it in time. A large fat blue creature had climbed up onto the bridge with such grace it seemed unrealistic. His rolls of fat were draping over his tight pants and nearly reaching the ground. Every inch of his skin was covered in disgusting pustules and his face was long and droopy. Again, Mimi screamed, this time in disgust.

"Who goes there?" The creature asked, bending forward so that his stubby legs trembled under the shifting weight. "Who trespasses on my bridge?"

"A troll," I hissed under my breath, I cleared my throat and looked up to the big blue troll nervously. We certainly could not follow the story of the goats who tried to cross the bridge. I was not strong enough to easily push the troll aside. My eyes slowly turned to Lopmon. Perhaps she was the Papa goat. She could use her fighting skills to knock him aside and we could cross.

"Give me one reason I should not eat you!" The troll bellowed, his wretched breath wafting over us as spit flew from his mouth with each word.

"B-b-because t-there are b-bigger goats!" I stuttered, horrified.

The troll turned to me, confused, and I couldn't blame him. It made no sense. We could run back maybe, sure the bridge was long but the troll didn't look as though he would be too fast. "I do not need a bigger goat," The troll said, his voice quieter now, but spit was still flying from his mouth. "I have three goats here."

"We are not goats, you big oaf!" Lopmon shouted, jumping from Mimi's arms. "Get out of the way or I'll beat you up!" The troll simply laughed at her, his large belly jiggled and rippled with his laughter. "Blazing Ice!" Lopmon shouted, sending shards of rose tinted ice toward the troll. Most of the shards bounced from his stomach and flew into the water below, hardly phasing the troll at all, but one soared toward his cheek and sliced his skin.

The troll looked shocked and angry, turning toward the three of us with a horribly unsettling expression, "How dare you!" The troll's voice was so loud now that I could feel my bones vibrating with the bass tones. Mimi whimpered, but Lopmon seemed to hold her ground. She had faced worse before.

"BEGONE!"

We all looked back quickly to see a beautiful woman with long locks of silver hair. She was wearing a long black and green dress and both of her arms were raised high above her head where an orb of light was shining.

The troll let out a loud scream of fear and when I looked back to him he had begun toppling over, running from the woman who I knew to be the queen of this world. There was a splash from below, and he was gone, just like that.

"Thank you!" Mimi said, her voice breathy and nervous, "You saved us!"

"It was the least I could do," the queen said with a heroic sort of voice. She looked to the three of us with a stern, but caring face and then stepped forward to inspect each of us. "Are you alright?" She asked Mimi. She nodded and smiled, grateful for the assistance. The queen turned to Lopmon and crouched down gracefully, patting Lopmon on the head, "I am pleased to see he did not harm you." Lopmon seemed pleased, but when the queen turned to me I saw no flash of evil in her eyes as I had expected to, she simply walked toward me and embraced me. Something was up, that was for sure. The last time I had seen her she nearly ripped my head off for yelling at her. She had kissed my boyfriend though, and that wasn't the first time a royal member of another world kissed my boyfriend in an attempt to take him from me. I wasn't going to let that happen again.

When the queen finally let go of me I took a nervous step away from her, "Thank you," I said, though my suspicious mind had not been put to rest, "for saving our lives."

"It was my pleasure," she said kindly, "really." She then looked off into the distance with a worried expression, "You might want to hurry home. Danger could arise very shortly." She then turned her back to us, and said, "Good luck in your attempts to locate the Wizard. Though he no longer exists, and I suspect you might wish to get used to your lives here."

"Thank you again!" Mimi shouted as the queen began to walk back across the bridge. When she was out of earshot Mimi sighed, "Well she sure has had a change of heart."

"I don't trust her." I said quietly, "I really don't."

"Me neither." Lopmon agreed, jumping into my arms.

"I don't know," Mimi said with a shrug, "she seems nice."

Both Lopmon and I turned to Mimi with annoyed faces and she looked frightened when we had. Lopmon suddenly gasped and was very careful with her next words, "Mimi, don't freak out." Mimi was already freaking out, she was shaking and whipping her head around nervously to find whatever it was that Lopmon had. "You have troll spit in your hair."

Mimi's face lost all colour and she let out a scream as she tore across what was left of the bridge and took a very sharp turn. I followed her as quickly as I could but she had already made her way down the ditch, away from where the troll seemed to live. I was halfway down, following after her when she had dunked her head under the murky water to wash the spit out of her hair. I watched, feeling immensely bad for her as she scrubbed her hair. Then she froze and let out another scream, whipping her hair out of the water, splashing both Lopmon and myself.

"A fish!" Mimi's scream came loud and clear and she wasn't wrong. In her hair was a long slender black fish, gripping tightly to her hair with its mouth. It was hanging in front of her face with the rest of her hair and she began slapping the fish, screaming all the while.

"Mimi!" I hissed, nervous about the troll hearing us, but I moved forward to help her. She flung her head around to try to make the fish release her hair, but it wouldn't budge, so I caught it and began prying at its mouth. The fish appeared to have human teeth which was horrifying in itself, but its jaw was strong. Eventually, with Lopmon's help we managed to pull the fish away from Mimi's hair. "We've got it!"

"Oh my God!" Mimi sobbed, rushing up the other end of the ditch, practically crawling the whole way up. I thought we could keep the fish to eat later, so we would have some actual meat, so I ripped a piece of my dress from the bottom and wrapped the fish, tossing it into the basket with the fruits where it nearly knocked an apple out. I balanced the fruit and set off after Mimi, Lopmon in tow. Mimi had tripped, so we caught up quickly, helped her to her feet and continued on our way to the house, with Mimi acting a bit more calm, but still shuddering every few minutes, still disgusted by what had just happened.

When we reached the house, Mimi flung herself toward the floor and leaned against the counter, feeling entirely defeated. I set the basket of fruit on the table and moved the fish to the kitchen where Mimi or Hideto could prepare it for dinner. "Michael?" I called out. I heard movement upstairs, and soon Michael had appeared in the kitchen, looking like he'd had quite a relaxing day. "Where is Hideto?"

"Oh, he left," Michael said, shrugging it off.

Mimi let out a horribly loud groan of despair as she pulled herself to her feet, and flung herself toward the door, "Hideto you idiot!" She screamed, rushing off toward the beanstalk.

"Should we go after her?" Lopmon asked.

"She'll be okay," I said, though there was no way to be sure. I moved toward the living room and sat on the most comfortable chair we owned. I missed the spa and wanted to retain what little relaxation I had left in me.

"Woah!" Lopmon gasped, leaping up to my shoulder and pointing to the fireplace, "The fly!" I followed her point and saw that inside the glass Michael had used to capture the fly there was a large black monstrosity. It looked as though the fly was growing to exponential sizes simply in an attempt to escape its prison. "If that thing comes for me, I'm out of here." Lopmon said nervously.

"Yeah, it grew," Michael said, waving it off. I looked over to him and he was examining the fruits in the basket, looking for something to eat. "Creepy right? Hey I love apples!"

I looked back to the bug, and he wasn't wrong—it was creepy. It was like no matter how unrealistic it was, the fairy tales craved conclusion, like it would not stop until the story was over— "Apples?" I gasped, jumping to my feet, there were no apples in this world.

I spun around in time to see Michael's face turn pale as he fell to the ground, collapsing as the poison from the apple rushed through his body. "Michael!" I gasped, rushing toward him, nearly tripping on the apple that rolled from his loose grip as he lay on the wooden floor. Tears were in my eyes already. I'd been stupid to think this wouldn't happen. How had I let something so trivial slip through? "Michael, I'm sorry!" I gasped, bringing his limp body toward me and into a hug. The stories had to end. There was no other way. Not unless we escaped this horrible world. Mimi would be eaten and Hideto would have to face a giant.

"Kiss him," Lopmon whispered, fear taking over her voice, "K-kiss him. Do it."

"True loves kiss..." I said nervously, looking down to Michael in my arms. Was that possible? Would it work? It was part of the fairy tale—surely it had to! I leaned down and pressed my lips to his. They were cold, and stiff, death already had taken him. Was it too late? I pulled away slowly and Michael's eyes fluttered open immediately. Relief washed over me as I stared down to him, slowly waking up. He looked to me, his eyes filled with adoration and I knew he was going to be okay. "You dumb ass!" I growled as I slapped him across the face.

"Ow!" he gasped, "Tatum—ow!"

"Don't eat apples!" I snapped, "I told you that!" He looked upset with himself, so I leaned forward and hugged him, more relieved to have him alive than upset that he didn't heed my warning.

It was then that the door burst open again and Mimi and Hideto strode through the door. "I wasn't even close to the beanstalk," Hideto was saying, "I was just wandering around!"

"Alone!" Mimi clarified, "In the forest. You could have gone there!"

"But I didn't!" He insisted. "I just needed to get away from Michael."

We all turned to Michael who looked hurt, "Why?" He asked nervously.

"Because the queen told me to rip out his heart!" Hideto exclaimed, "I was scared I'd do it!"

"Why does she want my heart?" Michael gasped.

"Because you're the prettiest in the land apparently," Hideto said awkwardly, "I don't know."

"She really said that?" Michael asked, flattered.

We all turned sharply at the sound of shattering glass and looked to the pile of broken shards on the ground near the fireplace. Lopmon let out a horrified shriek, spotting the bug before any of us and she leapt toward the door, slipping through it, but the bug wasn't going to let her get away that quickly. It was now the size of a ping-pong ball and was soaring straight toward the doorway where Hideto and Mimi still stood.

But then it got caught in her hair. "NO!" Mimi sobbed instantly, too fed up with this nonsense to put up with it any longer. She reached into her hair and grabbed the massive creature. She held it in her palm and threw it toward the door where it soared out into the night air. She then turned toward the kitchen without any hesitation, the most intense frustration plastered onto her face as she reached back and held her mess of hair together into a ponytail. She then grabbed the sharpest knife from our collection and in one swift movement, sliced straight through all of her hair, cutting the ponytail off completely.

"Mimi!" Michael gasped, stifling laughter as Mimi dropped her removed hair to the counter in front of her. "What the heck?"

"I can't do it." She said, turning to us. With the way her voice sounded, I was surprised her eye wasn't twitching. Her hair now fell to a place between her jaw and shoulder, and luckily didn't look horrible. "I can't live like this anymore; we have to find the Wizard. We have to find him now."

"We don't know where he is," Michael said, annoyed as Lopmon slammed the front door, slipping through to escape her bug. She hopped around the room ensuring each window was shut tight. "We can't just keep looking, what if he doesn't exist?"

"He does," I assured him, "The queen wouldn't be so adamant about throwing us off our course if he didn't. She's not nice, she doesn't have our best interest in mind. He's here somewhere."

Hideto ran his hands through his hair, in taking a long breath, he seemed to realize something, "The woods," he said nervously, "he's in the woods."

"How can you be sure?" I asked, "It seems dangerous."

"No one goes in there," Hideto confirmed, "No one knows where the wizard is. The queen was the lady I found in there when she was telling me to turn back. She was going to remove my head for stepping on her property—but why would she have property in the woods? He's there! He has to be!"

"We're going." Mimi said very seriously, "Right now."

"It's getting dark," I objected.

"I want to go home," Mimi said, her voice calm but emotional, "We're going tonight." I looked to Michael, remembering his near death experience. The story was over which simply invited him, and myself as I had been the prince all along, into another story that could be much worse. Hideto could at any given moment release a giant from the sky, and Mimi could be eaten by a wolf. As long as we protected her in our journey through the trees it should be okay.

"Let's go." I decided. "To the wizard."

Next Time on Digimon Adventure 07: Michael learns the dangers of the dark ocean and avoiding contact with everything without ever setting foot in the world. :O Untouchable is the next chapter btw. And Cody's there too—but he's actually in the world that Michael learns the dangers of.