I don't own digimon.

Chapter 59

All the crimes that I didn't know I did

The dawn of a new day in Aldia brings with it a refreshed me for once. Definitely needed a good night of sleep. Which also brings us right to Madame's manor. There, we find our thief getting ready for their day. And by getting ready for their day, they're currently trying to see if they already have a suit while dressed in their pajamas. I don't think I can quite describe that without having this come out as… weird.

Yet, Madame let out a chuckle. Hey. I've seen nearly all of you in some state of nakedness. As much as I prefer not to see that, I've grown kind of used to it. Please keep it to a minimum.

The thief nodded.

"Good to see you are refreshed now." Madame muttered as their gaze shifted to the floor. A pair of dolls sat comfortably there, covered in dust as a result of everything that had gone on in the last couple days/months that we were in the Digital World. "Wait. Aren't these Bubbles's dolls?"

Uh… hold them up to the ceiling. Kind of hard to really tell from where you're holding. Though, it might help to stand on something for me to get the best look.

Looking about this 'dressing room', Madame's gaze eventually focused on a stepstool. Walking over, they step on up and hold the dolls up. They've definitely seen far better days. Nothing that a little shake or two can't fix at least. Stepping back on down, that's exactly what Madame does. They're already looking a heck of a lot better. Though, if Hilda and Blance are here… Then where's Bubbles? I would assume that he would've seen them yesterday when he was putting away his dress. Or perhaps the dust obscured him from seeing it.

"That's a possibility." Madame remarked and took a deep breath. Pulling one of their less nicer dresses off the rack, they hold it up above their body. Gray lace, it played well with the bits of hair that was finally growing in. Not much, but give it some time. I'm guessing Bubbles is sleeping nearby? "Yeah."

Now dressed (kinda), the thief made their way down the hall and headed for the kitchen of all places. There we find our little dragon and his partner. Still slumbering on a table of all places, what looked to be tears of all things had pooled on the floor.

"Bubbles dear…" Madame cooed and slowly approached their son. The dolls carefully cradled by their side, it was a matter of slipping the dolls under Bubbles's arm and making a run for it. A perfect job for a world-class thief such as yourself. Right?

Madame rolled her eyes and made their way over. Each step was slow and thought out. Or at least would've been, if an audience of Ella had shown up for the moment. Already dressed for whatever today is going to bring. Most likely, the procurement of a suit of some kind for our thief here. Then maybe a trip down to the sewers. You know, a typical day in your people's life.

"Just ignore me for the moment, dear." the artificer announced, Madame's gaze swiveling back to Bubbles for the moment. Taking one more step forward, they set the princess dolls into the little dragon's arms. Then it's back to their girlfriend for the moment.

"Mommy, please leave head." Bubbles announced and rolled about the table. The dolls were still in his arms, but Phusitmon was knocked off the table.

"You really need to get us a bed." the plush rabbit digimon remarked and got a nod from both Madame and Ella. Just add it to our list of things to do today. "Though, he's been like this all night. I just got him to go to sleep."

Ella's gaze shifted away from Phusitmon and over to Madame. In their defense, he's still asleep. Even if there was a chance of him waking up while you were slipping the dolls back under his arm. Beyond the point for the moment,

"Understood…" Madame whispered, a deep breath following their answer. Then it's right back over to their girlfriend for the moment. "Are Kollmon and Cinemon up yet?"

The pitter patter of feet echoed down the hall, the answer to that question making their way towards them.

"Morning." Kollmon announced, Madame and Ella stepping out of the kitchen to let our little dragon get some proper sleep. Or at least try too get some proper sleep. "Oh. Did something like… happen?"

Madame nodded. To be fair, it wasn't that much. Just our thief finding Bubbles's princess dolls he accidentally lost a while back when picking his first dress out. You know, before this whole mess with the digital world occured and stuff.

"What do you want to do first?" Madame continued and focused back on Ella. Who at the moment, was looking over our thief's current attire. In their defense, Madame did take the time to look for one. Which was how the dolls were accidentally found.

"Getting you a suit, to start off with." Ella answered, Madame looking away for the briefest of moments. "Then we at least look for beds at the furniture store and finally, we go see Bubbles's mom."

Nods all around. Good to see we're all in agreement on this. Though, what are we going to do with Bubbles?

The couple's gaze shifted to our little dragon for the moment. Sure, they could leave him all alone in the manor. But that brought with it a risk of something happening. Things like kidnapping or even blackmail by some new distant harmony threat.

But if they took Bubbles out of his bed, the little dragon would definitely wake up and throw a tantrum. On top of freaking out about his mother being in his head or something strange along those lines. Though if you're careful, you might be able to scoop Bubbles up and take him with you. Just make sure to trade off every once in a while.

"Got it." Ella answered, stepping right into the kitchen. Reaching out for the little dragon, she carefully scooped her son up. Didn't even notice change in spots. At least for now. Then it was a matter of slowly making their way out of the manor and out onto Aldia itself.

Outside, things were bustling as usual in town. Though at the moment, the focus looks to be on the rebuilding process than anything else. "When was the last time you've gone clothing shopping?"

Madame looked away, muttering something to the ground. Oh. Guess that says it all for the moment. It's perfectly alright if you haven't. Most wizards only buy clothes when the ones they have are all finished. Even then, we're more the kind to use stuff like mending to repair the damages than go out and buy something new. Though, most of my frie-

No, we're not going to the store. Heck, there aren't any stores in the academy. Even if there were, you don't have any money. Let's say you somehow did. What the heck would you even buy there? Dog food?

Silence. More of Salamon thinking over his answer than actual quiet. Uh.. Sorry about this. I accidentally woke him up in the process upon hearing me say 'store' for some reas- Oh. Toys. You know what? I can see where you're coming from.

"It's alright." Ella remarked and looked towards Madame. Right in step with their girlfriend, she took the time to reach out with her free hand. The thief grabbed hold, giving it a slight squeeze as their gaze focused on their child. Still slumbering, even against the sort of bumpy cobblestone streets Aldia had to offer. "Any preference on the color of your suit?"

Madame's gaze shifted to their dress. While their original dress was white, would a white dress quite work? Most suits are usually brown, gray or black. I don't believe I've ever seen a white suit. Guess it's possible if given enough time. Though, the same could be said about all the other colors.

"Not really." Madame answered and let their gaze return to Ella. While they still had a bit before the cluster of the shops, it would be good "Do you want me to carry Bubbles for a little bit?"

Focusing on her passenger for the briefest moments, they look to be fidgeting about. While the dolls are still in place, it was only a matter of time before either of them did something dumb and accidentally woke Bubbles up. But that would just be silly. The worst has to be ov-

"Princess?" Bubbles whispered, our pair coming to a stop. Guess that answers your question. So carefully, the artificer handed off the little dragon over to Madame. Cradling him close, our pair headed off. But not without making sure that their partners were following right behind. For the record, they were.

"Thanks for the reminder." Phusitmon muttered and got up onto Cinemon. Taking a seat right behind Kollmon, he made sure to hold on tight. Taking a deep breath, his gaze shifts to the sky. "Uh… sorry about that. I don't think I got any sleep due to a certain someone."

I understand that feeling. Some nights, I would be unable to get sleep. Even with the use of a spell. Even when I eventually did, it wasn't even that good and I would usually wake up not that long after. That's beyond the point. Especially as the shopping district is now in view. In the time since we've last been here, not a lot has changed. Sure, the clothing store is no longer frozen in a large block of ice. Though, I guess that's to be expected. Probably be more odd if parts of that frozen cube still remained. You two ready for this?

"Yeah." Ella announced and grabbed hold of Madame's hand once more. Sure, it does suck that you'll have to transfer Bubbles over. Again. But it shouldn't be for that long… Unless one of Madame's descendants really screwed the pooch and you're not welcome in the store for whatever reason. "I don't think anything has happened… Outside of the fact that Madame is not known to actually buy anything. Outside of food."

Okay… then what the heck are they supposed to do with the money they are supposedly stealing from the townsfolk? That has to you know, go somewhere. Unless you're somehow paying them back with something of equal value. But that's probably pushing it for the moment.

Nonetheless, our heroines made their way to the door. Though, it would be Madame of all people who would open the door up. Did allow for their girlfriend to grab hold of Bubbles once more as we all head through.

Much like the shopping district, the clothing store looked mostly unchanged. Sure, the stock was probably different from what was on offer a couple of months ago, but that's expected. Seasons come and go, bringing with it their own sets of fashion. Or something along those lines, as was explained to me by a former student. Though, that's more something that depends on the region you're living in and the predictability of the weather. Doesn't really in the case of Aldia, though.

"Welcome." the shopkeeper greeted, her gaze already on Madame for the moment. A sigh followed as what appears to be a knife comes on out. I promise you we're not bringing trouble with us… for once.

"I'm not even sure what 'I' did to piss you off in the first place." Madame added, taking the time to close the door behind them. After, their focus shifted to the shopkeeper. But not before putting a hand on their whip. Just in case. "I'm just here to buy a suit or two. That's pretty much it."

The shopkeeper rolled her eyes, pointing towards the middle of the store. Uh… thanks? The least you could do is lower that knife.

"If I hear one word about my wares being gaudy…" the shopkeeper announced, knife grinding against their table. Hey. Someone is trying to sleep. That's the last thing they need to be hearing. "I will kick you all out. You'll also be banned from ever shopping here."
Uh… that's a bit excessive to justify that response. Unless whatever Madame did in the past was quite egregious to really balance out to a punishment such as this.

"He does have a point." Cinemon announced as his passengers jumped off for the moment. Doing a bit of a stretch, he decided to take a seat on the floor. Did get him a pet from Ella. Aw…

Then it was right to the middle of the store for this selection of 'suits'. Would there really be a market for such a garment. Sure, the main population of Aldia are orcs, followed by succubi. The former don't seem like the sort to get all dressed up refined. Especially while you're in the middle of a rebuilding process. The latter… maybe. But that seems even more like a stretch.

"It's possible." Kollmon remarked, looking up to the selection on offer. While there looked to be a bunch of suits, most of them were far too long for our thief to wear. Let alone in the desired color. Lots of blacks and grays. A few browns, but not much else on stock. This might be a case to get measured and have the suit made and delivered.

Madame let out a sigh and looked towards the floor. Of course they didn't have the one thing they had wanted. Sure, they could go talk to the shopkeeper. But considering she had just threatened to stab them for a past transgression reignited, that wasn't a chance they wanted to take. Especially not without a bit more looking.

"Let me look one more time." Madame announced and focused back on the rack of clothes. Pulling each suit out, a look is given. Not much more after that, especially as the garment is put back on the rack for the next one. It doesn't look like this isn't going well. At all. "There has to be one in particular that's both white and in my size."

Madame… It's alright if you're unable to find a suit in your size. We'll just ask someone to make it for you. It doesn't have to be this particular shopkeeper. There has to be someone else in Aldia that has a clue on how to make a suit. Right?

The thief nodded, pulling one last suit off of the rack. It's definitely not the one.

"Was my selection not up to your high 'standards'?" the shopkeeper remarked, knife still out as Madame made their way over.

"I would like a suit in my size. In white." the thief remarked, standing up on their tippy toes to reach over the top of the table. Which was still not enough. "I'm not sure what the fuck I did to piss you off… I'm not the madame who called your wares gaudy. I'm not her."

Tears began to fall down, Ella already making her way over. Climbing her way up onto the table, a slap followed.

"Maddie isn't Madame!" she screeched and grabbed hold of our shopkeeper's top for the moment. Of course, someone had forgotten they were still carrying a little dragon. A very grumpy little dragon. Nothing that handing him off to Madame for the moment couldn't do. "How many fucking times must I tell this to people!"

Now awake, Bubbles looked about his surroundings. Sure, he was fairly certain that he had fallen asleep in the kitchen and not in the middle of a store. Though, Hilda and Blance had made their way back to him. He didn't quite remember when exactly that he had dropped them, but they had somehow made their way back to him. Closing his eyes for the briefest of seconds, visions of his mother's dead body flashed about in rapid succession. Try as our little dragon might to push through this darkness and come on through the other side, it felt as if he was running in place and his eyelids fluttered back open. There wasn't much else he could do at the moment. No, his focus needed to be on that of Madame.

"Princess alright?" Bubbles announced, shaking about in our thief's hands as Madame tried to hug him. While he accepted the gesture, it's probably best to let him down.

"I'm very much not." Madame whispered and set their child down. Then it's right back to her whip. Giving it a slight swing, they grabbed hold of Ella and pulled the artificer back on down. Did manage to catch her in the process. So there's that at least. "People keep claiming that I did stuff in the past. How the hell am I supposed to know that I've done all these things?"

Setting Ella back down, the thief headed around to the back side of the desk. Scrambling their way up, they were now face-to-face with the shopkeeper once more.

"Is there anything that I can do to repair my relationship with you?" they remarked, the shopkeeper looking away for the moment. What looks to be a small picture sits there. Looks to be an orc. Possibly whoever was running this place beforehand?

"That was my husband." the shopkeeper continued, knife coming dangerously close to our thief. Though, Kollmon and the rest of our digimon are heading over. Just in case this situation went south. "You killed him while raiding their till, didn't you? I "

Hold up. Do you somehow have that Madame actually committed such an act? They've been under my surveillance for quite a while now. For them to sneak out and just off a person would not be in-character. Especially since they were in a place that would've prevented them from actually getting back to Aldia.

"They were murdered well before you ever made yourself known." the shopkeeper countered, pointing her knife at the ceiling. Uh… that's not even necessary. I'm very far away and your knife is definitely not going to reach me. At all. "This is all part of some big plan you're pulling on Aldia for the sake of taking it back, isn't it?"

Ella's gaze shot over to the shopkeeper, not entirely sure what to actually make of these claims. My thoughts exactly. That's quite an accusation to be making. Especially since you can't even bring up actual evidence.

"There is no need too." a voice announced, our trio turning to the far side of the room. There, a massive orc stood in the doorway. Decked out in heavy metal armor similar to Yvonne's, what looks to be a set of succubi wings hang out of her back. A set of yellow eyes stare over, strands of long red hair. Wait. Is this what Yvonne's eyes look like? Has too. Doesn't explain the massive double-sided axe on her side.

"Clan mother?" the shopkeeper announced and got a look from our heroes. Uh... I'm going to assume that's the leader of the orcs. Which is different from the mayor. Of which there's none.

"That's, like an interesting title for a leader. Though, why did you forget to do that?" Kollmon remarked, even Salamon giving me a look for the moment. Yeah. I messed th- Wait. That's Yvonne's mom?

"Correct." the woman announced and focused on Madame of all people. Fuck. Even more so as the large doubleaxe comes out. Just our luck here.

Yet, our thief motioned for Bubbles to come over. The little dragon complied, unsure of what his mom had in mind for him. I'm with you there.

"Bubbles, I need you to go and get Yvonne." Madame whispered and pointed to the legs of this strange woman. There looks to be enough room for our little dragon to slip through.

"Princess, will be okay?" Bubbles inquired and got a nod from the thief, Ella using this as the moment to get her turret all set up. Making sure to grab his partner, our little dragon dashed for his target. Thankfully, the turret started up as he did. Didn't fire anything out though.

"So you're trying to get my daughter involved?" their opponent announced, going for a swing with her massive axe. Not very successful on that front.

"Fuse!" Bubbles countered, a blue outline forming around his body. "Druplet!"

Closing his eyes for the briefest of seconds, the pair was pulled out of the room and into the fountain outside. Taking the briefest time to wring out their garments, then it was a matter of heading for the orc part of town. Yvonne had to be there. Right?

Notes:

So yeah. This is going to be a fun arc. It might not seem that way for the characters, but that's the nature of the beast.

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Next Time: Things get worse. A lot worse.