A/N: Here's the first update of the year 2016. Enjoy! There's no battle in this chapter, but there is still a lot of tension...
2008 February 11 (Monday), Vancouver, Canada
Eric Klein's house
There were times when Eric Klein had his doubts.
Yes, it was a fact that Satsuma's team lacked discipline and needed to be punished for their carelessness. So far, Touma and his teammates, considering the numbers of time they had disobeyed orders, had been extremely lucky: either one of the new Digimon had evolved, giving them the strength to grasp victory, or they had been saved by the unexpected, such as today's sunrise that drove Phelesmon and Neo Devimon to retreat.
Still, they couldn't be lucky all the time. Sooner or later, their luck would run out.
He let them rest first. He needed one too. After all, that last battle had lasted more than 12 hours. Still, something was off. Klein had fought long battles before, some over several days. They were not necessarily against Digimon, but they were still battles. Klein's weary mind was telling him to sleep, but his body was definitely saying that it could still fight.
Klein knew that only one of these responses was the correct one.
For Touma, the concept of sleep was a luxury that he could no longer afford, nor did he desire it. It was a memory of a distant past that he had long buried away. For the past several years, the longest time Touma had spent on sleep was two hours a night, if he was lucky.
Today, Touma broke that record times three. After returning to Klein's house at around 8 o'clock in the morning, Touma had slump into the nearest chair and fell asleep. Masaru's shouts of disbelief woke him up six hours later, at two in the afternoon.
"I missed both breakfast AND lunch?!" Masaru exclaimed in disbelief, sitting upright on the couch. Like Touma, he had collapsed on the couch the moment they had returned to the professor's house. "Agumon!"
"Wahh…" a dreaming Agumon turned onto his stomach. "A few more minutes, aniki…" he grumbled, drool dripping onto the carpet.
Masaru crawled over to the large orange lizard. "Hey," he frowned, poking the Digimon in the shoulder. "It's two o'clock in the afternoon. Aren't you supposed to be the one who's always hungry?"
In reply, Agumon's stomach growled noisily.
Yoshino, who awoke only mere moments before Masaru did, sighed as Agumon finally woke up and began immediately looking around for food to cram into his mouth. "This is the worst…" she muttered.
Lalamon floated down towards her. "Yoshino!" the plant Digimon exclaimed excitedly. "It's been a while since I've heard you said those words! Isn't this the worst?" she added teasingly.
"Don't try to be smart and copy me, Lalamon," Yoshino warned, just as a sleepy-looking Lucy walked into the living room.
Lucy yawned, not bothering to cover it up. "You guys are finally up," she remarked. "I just finished cooking some noodles. Do you guys want some?"
"Ah! So that's what the delicious fragrance I've been smelling from the kitchen was!" Agumon exclaimed. "Udon noodles! Did you make eggs?" Lucy nodded sleepily. "Yay! You're the best! Lucy-chan!"
Touma stood up. "Lucy, where are the others?" he asked anxiously.
"Bill and that armoured lizard-" Lucy began.
"Ryudamon," Yoshino interrupted. Everyone stared at her. "His name is Ryudamon."
"Right. So they're upstairs, resting still," Lucy continued. "Christina and her friends are in the kitchen eating with Fan Beemon."
"I see…" Touma replied. He seemed to be thinking hard about something.
Gaomon turned to the blond genius and looked at him expectantly. What was he thinking about?
"Anyway," Touma final spoke up. "We should eat first. Then, I have a plan regarding Phelesmon and Neo-"
"Touma," a new voice interrupted. Masaru, Touma and Yoshino turned around to see Professor Klein and Bokomon standing in the doorway. At the sight of the professor, Lucy's eyes narrowed.
"Professor Klein…" Touma muttered.
Klein turned to Lucy. "Miss Tran, return to the kitchen," he ordered her. "I want to have a private conversation with Touma and the others first."
Lucy nodded, but she was still glaring at the professor. As she turned to leave the room, the full impact of the professor's order hit her. "First?" she repeated, confused.
"I will come and address you and the others after," Klein explained. "Lucy Tran, you and your classmates are forbidden to leave the house until then."
"Why you…" Lucy seethed.
"You're a member of DATS now," Klein continued. "This is an order. It's in your best interest to obey it."
Lucy looked at Touma, who gave her the briefest of nods. "Fine," Lucy almost spit in the professor's face. "But you better be quick about it!" She added before slamming down the door behind her.
Yoshino stared at the door that Lucy had slammed behind her, half-wanting to go after her. However, before she could act, Klein turned and made eye contact with each of them.
"You should have known better," the professor's words from earlier today reminded Yoshino. "Touma H. Norstein, Masaru Daimon, and Yoshino Fujieda…the time has come for the three of you to face the consequences of your actions."
In the kitchen…
Christina and Roscoe glanced at each other across the small table as Amy continued her conversation with her mother on her cell phone. Amy's mother was shouting so loud that they could hear every word, despite Amy's best efforts to minimize the sound by holding the phone close to her face.
"Uh huh, uh huh…right. Right," Amy rolled her eyes. "Yes mom, I know. I won't do it a-"
"Always excuses from you!" Amy's mom barked into the phone. "Do you know how worried your father and I were last night?! Where were you last night?" she demanded.
"I told you already mom," Amy almost sighed. "I was with Christina-!"
"Don't lie to me young lady!" her mom interrupted. "I called her house, and her father told me she wasn't there! He was as worried sick as I was!" At this, Christina almost choked on her noodles.
"Don't worry," Lunamon patted her partner on the back. "I called him while you were asleep. He's not mad." At this piece of news, Christina sighed in relief.
"I even called the mother of that no-good Russian boy you're always goggling at!" Amy's mom continued. Roscoe's fork of noodles froze in mid-air, halfway between the bowl and his mouth. "Where were you three last night?! Answer me Amy Howard, or don't even think about coming home ever again!"
"That's not important!" Amy screamed into the phone, having lost her temper. "We were together, and we're safe! That's what important, right?! And Roscoe and I are just friends! Stop saying stupid things!"
"Amy Howard, how dare you talk back to your-!" her mother began.
"Goodbye, mom," Amy said with finality, before hanging up.
Up to now, Fan Beemon had been silently watching Amy's conversation. "Umm…" he finally spoke up. "Are you…are you two fighting now?"
Amy scoffed. "My mom's always like this," she complained. "Control freak."
"Are you going to kill her?" he asked.
Forks dropped noisily around the table at this question.
"Wh…What?" Amy blurted out in disbelief. Upon seeing that the Digimon was serious, Amy's surprise turned to anger. "Don't be stupid!" she hissed. "She's my mother! I would never-! Like you Digimon, I would never…" Amy stood up abruptly. "I…I need to be alone…"
"Amy!" Roscoe called after his friend as she quickly left the room. "Amy, wait!" the older boy insisted as he too got up from his seat and followed her.
Now, only Christina, Fan Beemon and Lunamon were left in the kitchen. Christina picked up the fork she had dropped earlier, just as Lunamon opened her mouth:
"Are you having second thoughts about your decision?" the rabbit Digimon asked.
Christina inwardly cringed at the question. Christina's thoughts could be as transparent as glass, especially when she was thinking about doing dangerous things, such as joining a secret international organization behind her parents' backs.
Lunamon knew this, ever since that fateful day when they first met.
Fan Beemon was looking at her expectantly now too. "Well, do you?" the younger Digimon prodded.
Christina put down her fork.
"Christina Liu, you want to control everyone and everything," Lunamon's words from yesterday reminded her.
'A future that I can't control is a scary thing…' Christina thought to herself. 'Especially if it's mine. At the rate this is going, I will eventually…'
When the flames had swallowed Bill and Ryudamon, Christina could only watch on in horror. Fortunately, they had survived, but would they all be so lucky next time?
Or would they end up like Judy Taylor? Or even Robert?
At the thought of her brainwashed friend, Christina gripped the edge of table so hard, her knuckles turned white.
She did not notice Lunamon glanced at those pale hands anxiously.
"I'm going to watch over you guys, even if I have to do it alone!" Christina thought of Amy, who was always full of determination, and calmed down greatly.
'To protect my friends…Yes, I can do that. I know what to expect…' Christina realized. 'Still, there are some things where the future isn't as clear,' the girl continued. She stared at her reflection in the bowl of soup in front of her. 'Just like water…sometimes the path taken is full of surprises. I hate surprises, but still…'
A little girl beamed at her as she slapped her playfully on the back. "Tag! You're it!" she giggled.
The boy blushed as he stared at his feet. "I…I like you Christina. Not just like you as a friend, but…but like like you! I really like like you!"
A faint smile appeared on Christina's lips as she thought about her some of her earliest memories of Amy and Allen. Lunamon and Fan Beemon glanced at each other, wondering what the human girl was thinking about.
"I think…" Christina finally spoke up. "Regarding your question, we just have to wait and see."
"Huh?" Fan Beemon could only say.
Christina picked up her fork again. "I don't know," she confessed quietly. "But maybe…that's not a bad thing after all…"
In the living room, the gavel of judgement comes down…
"No way! Fuck you! I won't accept this!"
"Me too! You're not my boss! I don't have to listen to you!"
Masaru and Agumon's protests were expected. However, neither Professor Klein nor Touma were ready when Yoshino stormed up to the former and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.
"I cannot accept this." Yoshino told the professor in English, before switching back to Japanese. "How do you expect us to protect the public if there are police following us all the time?! Do you know that you'll just putting more lives in danger?!"
Professor Klein glanced at Bokomon as the latter translated Yoshino's questions to him. Then, the older man sighed wearily.
"Miss Fujieda, rest assure that the police that will be tracking you and your teammates are well-prepared to face any dangerous situation. They are not all from the local police force, after all. Several of them work for the American branch of DATS."
"With all due respect professor…" Touma spoke up. He was just as angry as Masaru and Yoshino were, but he was able to keep his anger in check. "The fact remains that we are still the only ones that can fight and deal damage to any Digimon attacking us. No matter how talented these officers are, their lives will still be in danger if they stay close to us."
Professor Klein stared at Touma. For a moment, the latter thought that he had won the argument. However, the professor then said coldly:
"Like those kids in the next room?"
Touma was taken aback at the mention of Lucy and the others. He quickly glanced at the closed door leading to the kitchen.
"The scars on Christina Liu's hands will never fade," Klein continued. "They will remain with her all her life. It's the same for Bill Worthington and his face. All because you couldn't protect them and their friends."
"What?! You can't blame us for that! You bastard…" Masaru swore. Yoshino and Lalamon reached out and grabbed the brunette before he could charge in and pummel the professor.
"I, and the officers as well, understand the dangers behind this plan," Klein said quietly. "However, as members of DATS, we must always value the safety of civilians above all else. Even though Miss Liu and the others are now members of DATS, they are still naïve teenagers. They cannot protect themselves, and neither can the three of you protect them. It is better that we keep them out of the battlefield until they have a chance to hone their battle skills."
"No!" Agumon insisted. "If they have the will and power to fight, they should use it! Firamon, Dinohumon, and Snimon…We defeated them together as a team, and we can beat Phelesmon and his crony too in the same way! We'll get stronger together in battle!"
"You could not defeat Phelesmon and Neo Devimon," the professor reminded the orange Digimon. He took out his brown and red Digivice. "Although they retreated, they will be back. The way you six are right now…you won't be able to defeat them. You won't be able to protect yourselves, let alone the others."
"Shut up!" Masaru screamed. He managed to break free from his teammate's grasps. Without wasting a second, Masaru charged across the room and punched the professor in the face.
Yoshino gasped in horror as Professor Klein's glasses are sent flying off his face.
Touma stared at the carpet. He neither did nor said anything about this latest outburst of violence. Gaomon stared at him in surprise.
"Are you looking down at us?!" Masaru demanded furiously as Klein bent over to pick up his glasses. "I don't care if my opponent is one Phelesmon, three Phelesmon, or six! I will fight, and I will win! Like Agumon said, you're not protecting anyone by coddling them!"
Touma blinked in surprise as the familiarity of this conversation finally hit him…
"It's true that these humans and the new Digimon are an interesting group…" Gaomon had once said. "But it's also selfish of us to ask for their help if they are unwilling…"
"But danger will help them become stronger! Even if they forget about us and the Digimon, they will still face many dangerous things in their lives!" Masaru had insisted.
"They must learn to cope with those themselves. If something happens to them under our guidance, how could you ever live with the guilt?!" Touma had almost screamed his reply.
Touma shook his head sadly as the realization hit him: the meaning of his words then, and the meaning of Professor Klein's words now…
They were the same.
"I understand," Touma decided. Professor Klein looked at him. Without his glasses, he did not look as intimidating. "I understand," the blond genius repeated. "DATS' mission of protecting civilians… Obviously, you don't believe that we're capable of accomplishing it, so you and your friends are taking matters into your own hands. In that case, I wish you the best of luck. I'm sure you will do a fine job."
Professor Klein narrowed his eyes at him, but Touma did not break eye contact with the adult. If either of them thought the other was acting strange, they said nothing.
Ignoring the tense silence, Masaru stormed up to Touma. "What the hell are you saying?!" the brunette demanded. "Don't pretend that you're fine with being chained like a dog on a leash! You're too proud for that!" Touma was not even looking in Masaru's direction. "LISTEN TO ME!"
Touma raised an arm, stopping Masaru's fist before it could connect with his face. Masaru's face was only inches away from his. The half-Japanese, half-Austrian teen looked calmly into Masaru's wrathful face…
Touma's lips moved in silence again.
Gaomon was standing beside Touma. He was the only other being in the room besides Touma who saw Masaru's eyes brightened in shock and realization. However, this was not the only thing that the dog Digimon learned at that moment.
In that moment, Gaomon also learned that his master's silent words were not so silent after all.
Yoshino raised an eyebrow in surprise as Masaru quietly step back from Touma without a fight or even a growl. However, before she could ponder further on this strange turn of events, Professor Klein spoke up again:
"Seeing that there are no more objections, I will inform my men that they can immediately begin their mission," the professor declared. "Touma H. Norstein, Masaru Daimon, and Yoshino Fujieda: the three of you are no longer permitted to wander around this city by yourselves. At all times, a trained officer or several will accompany you. If any of you break this order, either by deceiving or injuring me or the officers, a harsher punishment await all of you. Do you understand?"
"Yes, professor," Touma replied immediately. After some hesitation, Yoshino sighed in defeat and nodded as well.
Everyone turned to Masaru. The brunette quickly glanced in Touma's direction. Once again, Yoshino felt the strange suspicious feeling rising up within her as she caught Touma giving her other teammate the briefest of nods…
"Fine," Masaru finally huffed, turning away from the professor.
Professor Klein sighed wearily. "A wise choice," he said. "However, your team's recklessness is also the source of another concern for the organization. Regarding the severe collateral damage your Digimon have dealt to this city during your battles…"
Touma and the others turned to look at Agumon.
"Wh…What?!" Agumon growled in annoyance. "It couldn't be help! You all know that physical strength is what makes GeoGreymon so powerful!" the lizard Digimon added proudly.
Klein ignored him and turned his attention to Yoshino. "Sunflowmon is the sole reason why Alexander Worthington Academy is no longer standing. Miss Fujieda, Lalamon…is there anything you two would like to say?"
Lalamon reached out and took hold of one of Yoshino's fingers in her tiny grip.
Without giving neither Yoshino nor Lalamon a chance to reply, Klein finally turned his attention back to Touma. "I'm disappointed in you Touma, I thought you knew better," the professor said sadly. "But apparently, your interactions with Daimon and Agumon have caused you to make many grave errors in your judgement."
Touma frowned as Klein walked past him, and towards the television. "Everything that I do, every decision that I make…It's all for the sake of the organization's goals," he replied quietly.
Klein picked up the remote control. "Was this decision also for the sake of DATS?" he asked quietly, turning on the television.
Masaru, Touma, Yoshino, and their partners turned towards the television, and saw Agumon staring back at them.
The Agumon on the television screen stepped forward, prompting loud screams of 'Monster' in the background. "Baby Flame!" the Agumon attacked, and then the screen went blank.
"This is Bella Rum, CTV News. What you just saw was live footage from Alexander Worthington Academy earlier last night where-"
Professor Klein turned off the television. Even before he turned around to address them, Touma, Yoshino, and Masaru knew that the professor's rage before was going to be nothing compared to what was coming next.
They were prepared for the worst.
Back in the kitchen…
Christina looked up as Lucy sat down next to her. "Hey," the Vietnamese girl nodded to her in greeting. "I saw Roscoe and Amy in the hallway. Did he finally man up and confess?"
The other girl almost choked on her noodles. "What?!" she exclaimed. "No! At least, I don't think so…"
Lucy opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something else, but then closed it. Whatever she had been thinking of saying, she decided against it.
The two of them ate their cold noodles in silence. Across from them, Lunamon and Fan Beemon had long finished their meals and were now bored. At least, Fan Beemon was.
"Lucy…tell me a story…" the bee Digimon whined. "I'm bored."
Lucy nodded absentmindedly. "After I'm done eating…" she muttered.
Christina chose that moment to repeat Lunamon's earlier question:
"Lucy, are you having second thoughts about joining DATS?" she asked.
To everyone's surprise, Lucy's facial expression did not change. "No," the girl finally replied. "I don't."
"Why?" Christina prodded. "Fighting Digimon is a dangerous job."
"The Digimon might be dangerous…but there's an equally dangerous person in my life too," Lucy replied angrily. "Before I met Fan Beemon, Touma, and the others…my mother and I were always at this person's mercy. After I met Fan Beemon, we were able to scare him away. However, he will be back. But, it doesn't matter now. Fan Beemon and me: we will protect each other, and my mother, from him. That's a promise," she vowed.
Christina understood. "So…you joined DATS because they could offer you and your family additional protection from this man? But Lucy, you don't trust them, especially that professor…"
"Adults can't be trusted, ever," Lucy declared. "It's fine. He doesn't trust me either. As long as I don't get in his way, and he in mine's, no one will get hurt."
Christina gulped. "So, let's say the professor or Touma or one of his teammates betray you…what will you do?"
"I won't hesitate," Lucy vowed. "Even if it's only once, if they hurt me or my family, I will hurt them back."
"Right," Fan Beemon agreed. "Lucy means the world to me. I'll always be there for her, no matter what."
Christina shifted in her seat uncomfortably at the brutality of both Lucy and Fan Beemon's determination. Lunamon also frowned at their decisions.
Before either of them could say something back, they all heard footsteps coming from the hallway. Lucy and Christina looked up to see Amy and Roscoe returned to the kitchen.
"Thanks for the noodles, Lucy," Amy thanked her classmate as she took her seat at the table. "They were delicious, right Roscoe?"
Roscoe nodded in agreement. Christina shot a look at him from across the table, and he nodded again. Christina nodded back. Besides her, a curious Lunamon noticed their silent exchange, but could not understand it:
'Humans…they're strange. Even without powers, they can still hear other people's thoughts sometimes…' the rabbit Digimon wondered to herself.
"So…we're all members of this DATS group now," Roscoe spoke up, getting the attention of everyone around the table. The older boy cleared his throat. "I know that we each have our own reasons for doing so, and that the decision to join…was a hard one. We don't know what will come our way from now on, and there might come a time when one of us starts to regret joining in the first pl-"
"No," Amy interrupted. She gave Roscoe a hard look. "Don't say that. We have to be strong, and that means never looking back. For our friends' sakes. Judy, Robert...even Touma and his teammates…"
To Christina, the look on Roscoe's face as Amy mentioned Touma's name was almost heartbreaking. For a moment, Christina wondered if it would be better for everyone if she just told Amy outright about the boy's feelings for her.
"Yes, you're right," Roscoe agreed, resuming his poker face as if nothing had happened. "It's important that we stick together from now on. This organization is full of secrets. No doubt there are lies and treachery as well. Christina, Amy, and Lucy too… The four of us have been classmates for years. If we can't trust anyone in this organization, at least we can still trust each other. You guys have to realize this: in DATS, we only have each other now."
"We only have each other now."
Roscoe's last words were on everyone's minds as they sat around the table in silence, thinking about them.
Lucy finally sighed. "It's not that easy," she said quietly. "Trust is something-" Lucy continued, but then abruptly stopped as she spotted something past Roscoe' shoulders. Her eyes narrowed in hatred, and Roscoe knew that if he turned around now, he would see—
"Good afternoon," Professor Klein greeted them. No one replied back. "Christina Liu, Lunamon, Roscoe Alkaev, Lucy Tran, Fan Beemon, and Amy Howard," the man addressed them each by name. "I will put your names forward to become official members of DATS during the next leadership meeting. Until then, you will be under my command. Do I make myself clear?"
Roscoe nodded. He was the only one who did. Lucy was still glaring at the professor and Amy and Christina looked like they were trying to avoid eye contact with the man at all costs.
Undeterred, the professor continued. "In that case, the four of you have a new order. That order is…"
Back in the living room, a dog gazed out the window at his master …
Gaomon stood by the window and watched Touma leave the house, accompanied by two armed officers. He watched as the three of them got into the black vehicle, and he watched as the vehicle backed out of the driveway. Even after the vehicle had disappeared down the road, Gaomon continued to stare in the direction his master had headed into.
The Digimon never knew that a single trip to a hospital for work-related research could look so much like a one-way trip to prison.
'Professor Klein…he's serious this time,' Gaomon realized. 'He intends to punish us until we learn to never overstep our positions in DATS again. But Master, he and Masaru, they're…"
Gaomon recalled the not-so-silent exchange between Touma and Masaru earlier, and wondered…
"You know nothing, you Digimon slave!" Even after all this time, Plotmon's words still managed to stir something deep within Gaomon.
"Am I nothing but a pet, bound to faithfully serve my master until my dying breath?" Gaomon wondered aloud. Gaomon thought of all the times he battled side-by-side with his master, of their victories together, and of the pain they suffered together. As he thought about all this, the dog Digimon realized that not only had he never disobeyed an order from Touma, but he had never acted on his own without his master's approval first either.
No wonder Plotmon called him a slave. She was probably right.
"Is this my purpose in the human world then?" Gaomon sighed gloomily.
"ANNNIIKKKI!" Even though he was in the basement, Agumon's scream echoed throughout the whole house. "DO SOMETHING!" There was a long pause, followed by more of Agumon's anguish screams.
Still, there was no sound of Masaru's voice, and Gaomon wondered if the dumb brunette had finally given up and accept his fate as a prisoner of Klein but also, of DATS:
"You won't get away with this!" an angry Plotmon had snapped at Professor Klein as she was taken away by DATS operatives, only mere moments after Klein had used the Memory-Erasure Device on her partner. "You don't know Ruo Lan at all! She will fight! In her own way, she will! She will keep fighting, and so will I! We will defeat you, Klein, and your precious DATS too!"
"Gaomon…Have you ever wondered if everything that DATS does is for the best?" his Master's voice was almost sad as he addressed him, as if he knew that regardless of his answer, his already limited choices would remain the same.
Gaomon was confused. However, his master was too, if his previous confessions about Masaru being correct was any indication. Could he still follow a doubtful master?
"Trust…that is what DATS, and everyone in it, lacks," Plotmon had told he and his master at their first meeting. "Without it, you guys will never accomplish your mission, let alone discover the truth."
"The truth?" his master had repeated.
"Yes," it was Plotmon's partner who spoke up this time. "If you can't trust yourselves, and if you can't trust others…you won't be able to know what you really want. To trust somebody is to be confused sometimes, because you know each other so well. So, it's alright to be confused, because then..."
"…there is no wall of lies standing between the two of you," Gaomon mouthed the words to himself, at the same time that he heard Masaru say the same words downstairs.
At that moment, Gaomon understood. And he knew that Masaru Daimon knew it as well.
The dog Digimon turned from the window and marched over to the nearest closet. Opening it, he eyed the variety of coats, shoes, and hats inside.
It was time to go on a little trip of his own. Professor Klein had decided to put trackers on the humans, but he had not thought about doing the same to their Digimon. The professor, Gaomon decided, was going to rue the day he made that mistake.
Upstairs…
As Professor Klein's authority expressed itself downstairs, an injured Bill Worthington and Ryudamon were having their own conversation about power upstairs.
"Do you still want to kill all humans?" Bill asked quietly from the bed he was lying on.
Ryudamon, lying on a makeshift bed on the floor, did not make eye contact. "No," he finally answered. "Not all humans. But, I will have my revenge against those responsible for my friends' deaths," the armored Digimon vowed.
Bill shifted in the bed as he turned over to get a better look at Ryudamon. "What happened?" he asked.
Ryudamon still refused to look at him. "About sixteen years ago, during the Year of Fire, the Digital World was invaded by a group of humans. They attacked and killed without thought or mercy. I managed to survive, but my friends…"
Bill gulped as the familiar rage returned to Ryudamon's eyes. "They turned back into eggs?" he replied.
"No," Ryudamon growled. "No, they didn't. If only they could… Those bastards…they use something that completely eliminated our data. Without our original data, we Digimon can't turn back into a DigiEgg."
"You mean…those humans killed Digimon for real?" Bill's voice was shaking as he realized the true meaning behind Ryudamon's words.
Yoshino and Lalamon came into the room just in time to see Bill choking on his breath.
"Worthington-san!" Yoshino rushed to the younger boy's side. "It's okay. It's okay, it's okay…" she repeated the mantra over and over to him, rubbing small circles on his back.
"It's okay, little brother."
Bill's eyes opened wide. For a moment, he felt his sister Serena's presence.
"Yoshino!" Lalamon gasped in horror as Bill suddenly pushed Yoshino away, sending the young woman crashing to the floor. "Why did you do that for?!" she angrily demanded from the boy.
"No, no…" Bill's words came in short breaths. "You're not…you're not!" He grabbed his head. "You're not Serena! Stay away from me!" the boy screamed.
Ryudamon silently watched the boy who was supposed to be his partner broke down into hysterics.
"Ah, ah, ah…" Bill gasped loudly. He was hyperventilating now. Lalamon reached out a hand towards him, but the boy recoiled from her touch. "Stay…stay away…" he managed to choke out.
Yoshino got up from the floor. Ryudamon looked at her with curiosity as she slowly made her way over to Bill, who was trembling and blubbering incoherently on the corner of the bed.
Perhaps his time in the human world had cause him to become numb to the strange ways humans did things. Whether the case, Ryudamon wasn't as surprised as he thought he should be when Yoshino slapped the boy across the face.
Lalamon gasped, but no words came out. Meanwhile, Bill winced in pain from the blow.
"Why…?" Bill choked out. The pain had managed to bring his mind and vocal cords back to their senses. "Why did you hit me?"
"No," Yoshino replied in English. "I'm not your sister."
Bill's eyes widened in surprise at these words. However, the boy felt an even more powerful urge swell within him when Yoshino lifted her face to look at him.
The young woman was crying.
"Yoshino…" Lalamon whispered.
Yoshino sat down on the edge of the bed. She raised a hand towards Bill. "Come here, please," she begged.
Bill complied.
Ryudamon stared at the two humans as they now sat side-by-side. The woman's face was red from crying, and the boy's face was too. Ryudamon realized with a start that the woman had slapped him on the cheek that was still smooth and uninjured.
'This woman…' the Digimon realized. 'Did she plan this? Or is she really…?'
"It's okay…" a crying Yoshino repeated her earlier words to Bill. "It's okay. I'm not your sister. But I can be family. " She hugged him again but this time, Bill let her.
"Everything will be alright…" the memory of Serena's smile comforted her brother. "We'll get through this together, as a family."
Bill found himself returning the Japanese woman's embrace. "It's okay," he mumbled. This time, he was the one returning Yoshino's words to her. "I heard what Professor Klein told you guys downstairs."
Yoshino's shoulders tensed up at the mention of the professor.
"Not only did you lose your freedom, but you also can't evolve your Digimon without his permission now," Bill continued. "We're all in the same boat now, aren't we? So…"
There was a pause. Then, Yoshino lost her composure completely at Bill's next words:
"We'll get through this together, as a family."
Ryudamon sat up as Yoshino sobbed loudly against Bill's chest.
"Stupid…" Bill tried to blink back his tears, to no avail. "Why are you crying? Everything will be fine! Pain, confusion, being prisoners… we'll get through it…"
Before he realized it, Bill had joined the woman in her grief. Her plant-looking Digimon turned away from them to give them some privacy, and Ryudamon's face said everything when he turned to look at him:
'You're crying again?'
Yes, Bill was crying again. However, his reasons for doing so were different this time, at least he thought so.
Bill thought he had lost his family forever. Serena was dead, and his parents were long gone. Even Robert and Judy, the friends he had always considered as his own siblings, were no longer with him.
Yet, here was this woman he barely knew, calling him part of her family. It was not only her… Looking back, Bill realized that the woman's Digimon, Lucy, and her bee Digimon had also wanted to help him. Hell, maybe Ryudamon was thinking about the same thing too, in his own way…
So, as Bill and Yoshino cried on each other's shoulders, they both decided that they would take a chance on this new family of theirs'.
"My son, you can only be you. You have something that your sister doesn't have…"
'Mother…' Bill thought to himself as he recalled his mother's words once more. 'Thank you. I think…I think I finally understand…'
In an undisclosed location within Vancouver…
Plotmon sat up. She raised her sensitive ears in the air.
There was no doubt about it. The sounds that she was hearing outside of her cage were getting closer and closer.
'So…are they coming to finish me off?' the dog Digimon wondered. Even as these thoughts crossed her minds, the wall in front of her cage slid open, and bright light flooded the room.
Plotmon turned her face away from the light. When she managed to open her eyes again, she saw a figure in a trench coat and hat walking down the path towards her cage.
'Ruo Lan, I'm sorry…' In her mind, Plotmon apologized to the friend and partner who no longer knew her. 'I'm sorry that it had to end like this…' She thought as the figure reached her cage, allowing Plotmon to get a good look at her executioner…
The stranger removed the large sunglasses covering his eyes.
"What the…?" a surprised Plotmon blurted out. She recognized those eyes, but it couldn't…?
The stranger pulled down the scarf covering half his face, and removed his hat.
Plotmon's jaws dropped as her visitor finally spoke:
"Good evening, Plotmon-san," Gaomon greeted the puppy Digimon. "How are you?"
Plotmon slapped herself out of her shock. "What is the Digimon slave doing here?!" she demanded. "Wait, did Klein sent you to finish me off? That man…I always knew he was a sick bastard…" the Digimon swore.
For the first time, Gaomon did not flinch at Plotmon's words.
"Yeah, he is," Gaomon agreed. Plotmon was no longer just staring at him. If her eyes were a weapon, she would be burning holes into his head by now.
"Did you just say that you disagree with Klein?" Plotmon asked again, quietly this time. "That's impossible! You and your human master are his lapdogs!"
Gaomon cleared his throat. "Apparently we're not, Plotmon-san," he replied. "Apparently we're not."
"Then why are are you here?!" Plotmon barked impatiently.
Her visitor's mouth curled up with a slight smirk. "To free you, of course," was his only reply.
A/N: So this was another long chapter. The title of this chapter reflects the mindset of the characters in it: even as they make up their minds about joining DATS, they each have their own idea of what DATS is, and means to them. Going forwards, how will these ideas influence the organization's vision and mission?
Preview of next chapter:
Allen Du, the last remaining Canadian yet to join DATS, wrestle with his indecisiveness. Meanwhile, both Robert and Phoebe are haunted by their memories, both true and false. Finally, the memories of a city under an illusion continue, until a certain someone arrives...
"Happiness is nothing but good health and a bad memory" - Albert Schweizter