A/N: About this story
This story is a retelling of certain events in Digimon Tri from the perspective of one or both of my original characters (their profiles are at the end of the chapter). It is not designed to be a retelling of Tri and assumes its readers will have seen all six movies in the series. Some events may be changed or altered to fit my retelling. Please read and enjoy, and remember that reviews are greatly appreciated.
Without further ado, I present to you - Tri: Of Honesty and Loyalty
Chapter One: The Crest of Loyalty
Location: Tsukishima General High School, Classroom 2B
"This Sunday?"
Steph Summers examined the concert tickets apprehensively. She wasn't sure what to make of the name the band had finally settled on. What was wrong with the Teenage Wolves? she thought with dismay.
"Yeah - six o'clock."
Matt Ishida stood with both hands in his pockets, leaning casually against the classroom window. Beneath his school blazer, his shirt was slightly crumpled and he wore his tie loose around his neck. He'd cut his hair shorter over the summer and the blonde strands now fell messily over his eyes. The new haircut made him look more mature and less teenage rockstar - not that Steph had minded the rockstar look …
"Can you make it?"
Steph hesitated, wondering the best way in which to word her answer. Of course she wanted to go to Matt's concert, but the soccer team's semi-finals were this weekend and she had already promised Tai that she would watch his game.
It was a stick predicament, one that Steph knew she would have to navigate carefully. Would Tai be offended if she cancelled on him to go to Matt's concert instead? And what about Matt; would he take it the wrong way if she told him about Tai's match? Probably not, she reasoned, but she didn't want to give him the wrong idea either …
While she debated her answer, Matt had begun to fidget in that adorable way he did when he was nervous about something. She glanced at the concert tickets again. Tai's soccer match was at City Field at two o'clock - if she left after half time, she could probably make it back to the school in time for Matt's concert.
I'm sure Tai won't mind, she told herself. "Sure, I'll be there."
He smiled and his shoulders relaxed as she tucked the tickets into the pages of her school planner for safe keeping. "Great," he said. "I invited your cousin, and T.K's bringing a few of his friends."
"A girlfriend, perhaps?" Steph teased as she carefully unpacked her school things. Much to Matt's chargrin, his younger brother had grown up to be quite popular among his peers, particularly, Steph noticed, with the girls in his class.
"I don't know and I'm not going to ask," Matt said somewhat irritably. No doubt he considered it rather embarrassing if his younger brother started dating before he did. "Anyway, Sora's going to be there too."
The hand holding her pencil tin slipped and spilled its contents noisily across her desk. Hastily she scrambled to stop the pens from rolling over the edge. "You asked Sora already?"
"Yeah, of course."
"Oh."
Steph busied herself arranging the scattered stationary into a row on her desk in preparation for class. She knew it shouldn't bother her who Matt had asked first - he'd told her on more than one occasion that he and Sora were just friends now. Still, it would have been nice if Steph had been his first choice…
Sensing her disappointment, he approached her desk and leaned casually against it. "Something wrong?" he asked.
She shook her head. "Not at all," she said quickly, and did her best to smile reassuringly.
Something about his expression told her she hadn't fooled him, but he let the subject drop as the classroom door slid open and more of their classmates filed in. Among them was Tai, who appeared deep in conversation with their homeroom teacher, Mr Nishijima.
As homeroom teachers went, Nishijima was pretty relaxed, so it was unusual to see him converse with a student with such a stern look on his face.
"What's he done now?" Steph wondered, her heart sinking.
"Probably something irresponsible," Matt muttered, the frustration clear in his voice. It was a tone that Steph was becoming all to familiar with from him, particularly wherever their fellow Digi-destined was concerned.
It had been six years since their first adventure in the Digital World, and while Tai's laidback attitude to school had been charming in middle school, both she and Matt were beginning to wonder if their former leader was ever going to start taking things seriously.
"What's going on?" a voice asked quietly from behind them. Steph had been so focused on trying to discern what their teacher was saying to Tai, she hadn't heard her Sora slip quietly into her desk.
"Tai's getting chewed out by Nishijima," Matt explained.
"What, again?" Sora said, clearly exasperated. "That's the second time this week. He's going to land up with detention if this keeps up."
Steph sighed. She knew a detention would likely interfere with Tai's soccer practice - and missing practice could get him suspended before the big game this weekend. Tai, sometimes you can be so irresponsible.
"One of us should really talk to him," Sora went on, and she was looking pointedly at Matt as she spoke. The blonde shifted uncomfortably against the edge of Steph's desk, stuffing his hands into his pockets once again.
"What are you looking at me for?" he asked.
"Don't you think it would be the best coming from you?" Sora said pointedly.
"It's not my fault he's so irresponsible," Matt said, sounding rather indignant. "If you're so worried about him, you talk to him."
Sora sighed impatiently. "If I say anything, he'll say I'm just being a mother hen again."
"That's because you are!"
"Shh," Steph hissed as Tai wandered over to them, seemingly untroubled by the conversation with his teacher.
"Oh, hey guys!" he said.
"What was all that about?" Sora asked as he took his seat. In middle school, Tai had claimed the desk next to Steph's in the hope she might share her test answers with him. To this day, Steph had never let him copy her work, but Tai still refused to give up his seat.
"Er, I forgot to do my list of future goals," the bearer of the Crest of Courage admitted sheepishly.
Earlier in the term, Nishijima had requested that all the students of class 2B complete a list of their goals for the future, academic or otherwise and how they planned to achieve them. The assignment deadline was weeks ago, and without an extension, Tai would likely be facing a failing grade for not handing it in.
"You still haven't finished it?" Steph asked, unable to keep the exasperation from her voice.
Tai shrugged. "Well… I didn't know what to write, and Davis already called dibs on opening up a noodle stand, so there goes that idea."
Despite herself, Steph couldn't stop herself from laughing. That was the problem with Tai - it was almost impossible to stay mad at him. Matt, on the other hand, was less forgiving.
"Just make some decisions and get it over with, dude," he said, ignoring the reproachful look that Sora shot in his direction before they were interrupted by the shrill ringing of the school bell, prompting Matt to return to his own desk and Tai to mutter under his breath.
"Easy for him to say."
Steph immediately felt guilty for having been so hard on her friend. Things certainly hadn't been easy for him lately and while she knew that Matt's frustrations weren't entirely unwarranted, she couldn't help but feel a sense of loyalty towards Tai - that was, after all, the attribute that Homeostasis had based her Digital crest upon.
"He means well," she told him kindly.
"Yeah, I know," Tai muttered, unpacking his school books and dumping them rather unceremoniously onto his desk. Their first class for the day was English, and Nishijima would be handing back their Shakespeare essays today.
"I just wish he didn't have to say it like that!"
Steph didn't know what to say to that. Tai and Matt's friendship had always been a complicated one, and unlike Sora, she didn't feel comfortable getting in the middle of it. In fact, if given the choice, she would much prefer to be Switzerland.
"So did Nishijima give you detention?" she asked instead.
Tai shook his head. "Nah, but he does want to see me after school," he said, somewhat dismayed. "Guess I had that coming."
Steph winced. "At least it's only Nishijima - he won't be too hard on you."
"That almost makes it worse," Tai told her. "I'd rather detention than a lecture."
She smiled sympathetically. "How about I stick around after school too?" she offered. "We could go down to the soccer pitch and practice a bit before your match."
Her suggestion had peaked his interest. There one thing that was certain to cheer Tai up and that was soccer - even if his teammates would rather oggle his sister than keep their eyes on the ball. Steph, of course, hadn't been on a soccer team since elementary school, but she was sure she'd still be a better practice partner than Izzy.
"Sure, but when was the last time you played soccer?" His tone was teasing, but friendly - more like the Tai she knew.
"It's like a bike, you never really forget," she said.
"You can't ride a bike either," he reminded her.
"Got something to share with the class, Tai?" Nishijima asked as he approached their desks with their essays.
Steph felt her cheeks flush crimson with embarrassment but Tai, who seemed to have forgotten his previous conversation with Nishijima, grinned. "Just planning a study session with the class brainiac," he joked.
"Uh-huh," their teacher muttered as he handed their essays back to them. The big, red "C" on Tai's was all too obvious, as was the shiny A+ on her own. "Nice work again, Miss Summers."
Muttering her thanks as he walked away, Steph quickly stuffed the essay inside the pages of her notebook. As she did, she caught Matt staring in her direction, his expression an mixture of irritation and disapproval.
Great, Steph though dismally, burying her face behind her text book. So much for Switzerland.
—
Steph Summers: One of the original Digidestined and bearer of the crest of Loyalty. Steph is in her second year at Tsukishima High School and she is a photographer for the school newspaper. She is close friends with Tai, Sora and Matt, and goes to cram school with Joe on Saturdays. Her parents are surgeons who travel frequently for medical conferences, so Steph lives in Odaiba with her sister, Daisy, and her younger cousin Becky. Her digimon partner is a Patamon.
Becky Carter: Steph's younger cousin and the bearer of the Crest of Honesty. Becky is a first year and an active member of the school's drama and dance clubs. She is in the same class as Izzy and Mimi and is best friends with Kari Kamiya. Her digimon partner is a Salamon.