The Long Winter: Chapter 3
** Disclaimer: I don't own digimon, never will. Just did this for fun, and I promise not to sell it. So there.
** Author's notes: OK, now that that's over with. For those of you who've been asking, yes, Willis finally does appear in this fic. I've noticed that there are some authors out there who've been putting up "lonely author laments", so I'm going to do one myself. Where's everyone gone? Especially you Kale. Why have you stopped writing? I loved your fics. Faith of my Fathers was a masterpiece. Keep writing!!
Again, this fic was edited by Tiger Shark, or TS. I wouldn't feel right if I didn't give her at least some of the credit, since there's no way I could've done this without her. Now, on with the story…
** one week later **
"Tai, wait up!" Agumon panted as he tried to keep up with their energetic leader. The digimon's frozen breath trailed out in a stream behind him as he struggled along the broken street. Sora and Biyomon didn't even have the breath to call out.
Tai stopped, turned around, and tapped his foot impatiently against the snowy ground. "Come on, guys, if we keep on taking breaks like that, we'll never find him."
"Keep on taking breaks like that? What are you talking about?" Agumon cried. "Tai, we haven't stopped since daybreak! Give us a rest! Not all of us are hyperactive like you!" Biyomon walked up to join them, then collapsed on her front.
Tai looked around at the exhausted group, and relented. "Fine, we'll take a short break. Five minutes, no more!"
Sora took off her backpack, and slumped onto her haunches gratefully. Taking off her gloves, she blew into her numb hands, trying to warm them up. Looking around, she saw their digimon were both lying sprawled on the ground exhausted, oblivious of the light layer of old snow that coated it.
They had been searching for a week, wandering throughout the city in a loose grid pattern, trying to pick up a signal on their digivices. Picking their way around the snow-covered ruins of the once proud city had depressed them all, but they had pushed on. They had to find Willis, as soon as possible. Every moment they wasted, the trail became that much colder.
She looked up. Tai was still pacing around, as if he was still rearing to go. She knew he was tired. She could tell by the dark bags under his eyes, the slightly laboured breathing, the pale face, yet he wouldn't stop pushing himself as hard. "Tai, take it easy! Pushing yourself so hard isn't going to help us if you collapse."
Tai sat down reluctantly, and began fiddling with his fingers. "I'm sorry. I just can't seem to stop. I guess I'm just a little hyper."
"I'm beginning to wonder if we're ever going to find him." Biyomon muttered.
Tai leaned back, resting against a building, rubbing his hands together to warm them. "Come on guys, what'd you expect? New York is one of the biggest cities in America, and with communications down, transportation gone, in the middle of winter, and Diaboromon monitoring everything, don't you think it's a little unrealistic that we can find him so soon?" He smiled at the group trying to reassure them. "Don't worry. We'll find him, sooner or later."
Sora nodded back, and Tai gazed up at the gray sky. Despite his words, his eyes were worried. As leader, he had to put on a brave face to encourage his troops. He had learned a long time ago that he had to reassure the others by taking everything onto himself.
The truth was, they didn't even know if Willis was alive or not. They had already searched the central sections of town, the waterfront, the eastern section of town, and had come up with nothing. With patrols everywhere, and with the time and manpower they had, they couldn't afford to conduct a really thorough search. Relying on their digivices only, all they had done was wander blindly through the frozen streets, hoping to pick up a signal, but so far, nothing. They didn't even have conclusive proof that Willis was a destined, and so they had no guarantee that he would trigger their digivices anyway.
He looked up and down the streets, and checked his digivice for the thousandth time that day, the millionth time that week. It was frustrating. If he didn't have a digivice, we could pass within meters of him, and not notice. How the hell are we going to find one little boy in the middle of all this chaos? Tai bit his lip. Is he even alive?
Then he shook his head furiously. He had to be alive. They didn't waste 5 months travelling to New York just to find out that humanity's last hope had died. It can't happen, it won't happen, he thought firmly to himself. It had better not happen…
Looking at his watch, he stood up. "Come on guys, break's over. Let's go."
Sora groaned, but got up without complaint. The digimon as well levered themselves painfully onto their feet. Sora sighed. "Let's go then." Heaving her backpack onto her shoulders and putting on her gloves, she trudged off.
Tai followed them. "How do you think Izzy and Mimi's doing?" The two other digidestined were about 5 km east, scanning their section of the city.
Sora looked up at the cloud-covered sky. "Let's hope they're having better luck than we are."
Tai took out his digivice, almost willing it to pick up a signal. Shaking it, he glared stubbornly at the screen. "Willis, dammit, you'd better be a destined, or…or I'll kill you," he finished lamely to no-one in particular.
Sora sighed. "Come on Tai, I really don't think that's going to help."
"I know, but it makes me feel better." Tai responded, as he shook his digivice again. "Come on, you worthless piece of techno-crap, tell us where he is."
Sora shook her head, and padded after their digimon, who had taken the lead. "We're just wasting time. Let's go for another 5 blocks, then we'll turn north…"
Beep beep beep…
Sora's eyes widened. "Tai, what's that?"
Tai was looking at his digivice with a stunned expression on his face. The screen was glowing, and a small dot appeared, to the top left corner. Turning in that direction, he saw the dot move to the top center of the screen. Sora stared in amazement, then hurriedly took out her own digivice. Same thing.
"I don't believe it…" Tai murmured softly. "I've got a signal."
This time, it was Sora's turn to shake her digivice, to make sure it was working properly. The same dot still flashed on the screen. A huge grin broke out on her face. "I'd say we've finally found something."
Tai stood still for a few moments, amazed at their luck, then he snapped out of it. "Right." Pushing the alert button on his digivice, he sent the coded signal to the others, allowing Izzy and Mimi to pick up on their location. Grabbing Sora's arm, he began walking due North. "We'd best get out of here. A patrol will probably pass by in a few minutes, and we have to meet with Izzy and the others anyway."
Sora nodded, and began following. There wasn't a hint of exhaustion in their stride as they walked. Instead, they suddenly seemed charged with a new purpose and energy. The two children, and their digimon ran through the deserted streets, heading north.
"There you are!" Izzy exclaimed half an hour later, as he and Mimi broke into a run. Skidding to a stop in front of Tai, he looked excited, exuberant. Finally, at long last, a signal. Holding up his digivice, he showed their leader the signal he had picked up a minute ago. "You getting this too?"
Tai nodded, and showed them his own digivice. "Izzy, do you think you can show us a picture of Willis again, just so we can recognize him when we see him?"
Izzy nodded, and pulled the computer off his back. Opening it, he punched a few buttons, then turned it around to show the others. "Here he is."
Tai took a look at the picture, then turned his gaze back to his digivice. The signal was still as strong as ever. Turning, he began striding towards the phantom digivice, tracking the dot on his screen. "Come on. We didn't come this far just to lose him now."
The rest of the gang followed eagerly. After a week of fruitless searching, they were almost there. Tai followed the signal, his eyes glued to the screen. The others kept a constant lookout for danger, scanning their flanks and back constantly. It was an instinct ingrained into them by the war. Even this close to their target, it wouldn't do to get careless.
In another section of town, a couple km North West, a small boy leaped to his feet, alarmed by what he saw on the screen.
"What's wrong?" his digimon inquired. The little rookie looked like a small dog with huge ears.
The blond boy didn't answer right away. His fingers clenched tightly around the funny-looking device he held in his hand. "The dots…they're coming towards us."
The small digimon frowned. "Then don't you think we should be on our way? There' s no telling what those dots represent. In these times, it's better to be safe than sorry."
The boy was already packing what few possessions he had left in the world. Stuffing them into a small backpack, he packed up his laptop, and stuffed it into the bag along with a few cans of food and water. He looked around at the small shelter, his green eyes roving around his home for the past 2 weeks. Hastily, he checked to see if he had left anything that might indicate where he might be going.
He turned to his digimon. "Let's go." Boy and digimon bounded out onto the streets, and began running due West.
Tai frowned. "He's moving. Seems like he's on foot." He looked at the others. "You guys getting this as well?"
Sora glanced at her own digivice. "Yeah, but he seems rather worried. Look at the way he keeps changing directions. It's as if he doesn't know where to go."
Mimi snorted. "What would you do? Remember, since we can pick up his signal, he can pick up ours. Also, when Tai sent that alert signal, he must've gotten it as well. His digivice probably started beeping and flashing like crazy. I'd be scared too."
Izzy frowned. "That's not good. If he's scared and confused, that could complicate things a lot."
Tai broke into a jog, and the others followed. He gritted his teeth. We didn't track you for five friggin' months just to lose you now.
"Uh, Tai, he's starting to move west." Izzy said behind him. "Pretty fast too."
Tai glanced at his digivice to confirm it. The dot was indeed moving west, and at a fair clip. He's running from us, he thought. Then an idea struck him. "Izzy, Mimi, take our digivices." He handed his digivice to Izzy and motioned for Sora to do the same. "As long as he has our digivices on-screen, he can track us, just like we can track him."
Pulling out a map, he took out a pen and began scratching on it hastily with his mitten-clad hands. "Here's the plan. Since you guys will be holding all four of the digivices, he'll think that all of us will still be together"
He looked at Izzy to make sure he understood. "Herd him due east, so he can't escape into the country. He'll eventually come up against the sea, we'll trap him there. Sora and I will take this shortcut," Tai made a mark on the map, "and try to intercept him. He won't know we're coming since he can't track us."
Mimi quickly pointed out a potential problem. "But Tai, you won't be able to track him either. Without your digivices, you'll essentially be searching for him blind. If we don't manage to herd him properly, you'll miss him by a mile. Literally."
Tai flashed her a quick smile. "Hey, we're a team. We can do this. All it takes is a lot of coordination and a bit of luck." His eyes turned serious. "Guys, we can't mess this up. You've got to herd him properly. I suggest you two split up to prevent him from outflanking you. Sora and I will be waiting here," Tai scratched a circle on the map, "so make sure he comes our way. Exactly how to herd him, I'll leave that up to you."
Spinning around, he motioned Sora to follow, and the two children sprinted out onto the street. "If we don't manage to find each other, meet back here by sundown!" Tai yelled back over his shoulder, as he and Sora disappeared around the bend.
Izzy turned to Mimi, and tossed her Sora's digivice. Mimi caught it deftly. "Here take this, and head up this street", he pointed at the map. "Try to herd him along Main street, and the surrounding blocks. I'll be over here, due north of your position. You cover the south side." He grabbed his laptop, and looked at Mimi. "Got that?"
The girl nodded back fiercely. "Come on Palmon." Together, the girl and her digimon ran out onto the street, and moved towards their assigned positions.
Izzy was slightly amazed at how well the group had coordinated in such a short time. "Wow," he muttered under his breath. Tentomon buzzed alongside him as the auburn-haired boy began running due north. "When did we get so well-coordinated?"
Tentomon looked at his master strangely as he ran. "Ever since this war began, in case you haven't noticed."
Tai's breath burned in his throat as he ran along the street to the ambush position. Each breath of ice-cold air he took stung his throat and lungs. Sora and he were both athletes, and had played a lot of soccer, but they were sprinting rather hard as well. The bitter cold burned his cheeks and nose, and he noticed that Sora's face also looked rather red. He shifted uncomfortably in his jacket, wishing he could take it off. Despite the weather, he was sweating like crazy.
Not having digivices, they had no idea where the others were. It was as if they had suddenly gone blind. He hated it, the feeling of not knowing what was going on. "Sora, remind me to get a couple walkie-talkies after we find this guy."
Sora chuckled between gasps for breath. "I sympathize." Agumon and Biyomon tried hard to keep up with their longer-legged human counterparts.
Sprinting all of the way, the two destined managed to make it to the ambush point within a few minutes. Panting hard, his frozen breath coming out in clouds, Tai scanned the area. This would do.
Nodding with his head, he motioned towards a large garbage dumpster on the far side of the road. Sora understood immediately, jogged over to the dumpster, and hunkered down behind it. She flashed Tai a thumbs up sign. She had that side of the road covered.
Tai nodded back, and hid inside a doorway. Agumon crouched at his side, ready to digivolve at the slightest hint of trouble. Crouching down onto his haunches, Tai forced his fidgeting to stop.
There was nothing for it but to wait now, and trust that Izzy and Mimi managed to herd Willis in their direction. Tai refused to think about what would happen if they didn't. They would miss Willis by a mile, and their chance to find him would be gone, maybe forever.
But that won't happen, he thought to himself confidently. Izzy and Mimi were both competent digidestined. Given the simplest of orders, they could still be expected to do the job properly. In fact, he had found that it was best to let them come up with their own methods of working. Imposing too many orders on them usually turned out to be counterproductive.
Tai looked up the street, willing for Willis to appear. Izzy and Mimi can do it. I know they can.
Izzy panted as he tracked the glowing dot flashing on his screen. Tentomon buzzed beside him as the boy sprinted down the streets, jumping over obstacles, and avoiding rubble and debris piles. The bitter cold air whipped by the boy's face and made his eyes tear, but he kept running anyway.
To the south, Mimi was holding her side well. Willis had been forced to turn back East after having been cut off by her. Now, he was attempting a break to the North. He had apparently caught onto their attempt to herd him, and was trying to break out. Izzy watched as the dot moved further and further north, trying to outflank him.
Izzy had to admit that Willis was pretty good. But then, if he's a destined, he's got to be good. He had caught onto their little herding game a little too soon, and had forced their hand. Now, he was desperately trying to break free, to head back inland, since he knew he was being herded against the sea, but Izzy and Mimi kept up the pressure on their respective ends, allowing him no escape.
The boy gritted his teeth as he put on an extra burst of speed. You're not going to get past me, he thought to himself. Suddenly Tentomon tugged on his sleeve.
"Izzy, there's an alleyway up ahead. If we go through it, we could cut him off sooner." The streets of New York were arranged in a grid pattern, and the alleyway would allow them go right through a block, the perfect shortcut.
Izzy nodded. "Let's do it." Changing direction smoothly in midstride, he leaped over a small patch of ice, and sprinted down the dark alleyway. Jumping and avoiding debris and garbage, slipping and sliding on ice patches, he ran down the alley as fast as he could. The change in direction drastically closed the distance between the two, and Izzy's eyes were glued to the screen, even as he ran. The two dots representing himself and Willis drew closer and closer together. What would his response be?
Finally, Willis reluctantly cut back, hemmed in by Izzy. The auburn-haired boy breathed a sigh of relief, but kept on running, keeping up the pressure on his end. Now Willis was turning back south, trying to break past Mimi. She had better be on her toes.
Then he stared in disbelief as Willis seemed to cut right through a city block. The boy had apparently found another alleyway, much like the one that Izzy now ran through. The shortcut was going to take him further than Mimi's position. Dammit Mimi, you've got to cut him off now!!
Swearing under his breath, Izzy changed direction again, chasing after the elusive boy, and attempting to cut off Willis' route south, but the auburn-haired boy was helpless. He was to the north, and there was no way he could cut Willis off in time. It was all up to Mimi, and she wasn't going to make it.
Tentomon looked at the digivice. "Izzy, look!"
Izzy looked at the screen again, and blinked in confusion. "What's going on?"
The dot representing Mimi had suddenly split into two, and now both dots were spreading out into a net, cutting off Willis' escape route. "How can she do that?"
"She's got two digivices! Her own, and Sora's! She must've given one to Palmon, and they must've split up to cover more ground!" Tentomon crowed exultantly.
Izzy was impressed. "Well done Mimi…" he murmured. Then he cut back in another direction. Tossing Tai's digivice to Tentomon, he began running due East again. "Let's do the same thing. You head South East, and prevent him from backtracking on us. Come on, we've almost got him now. Just the final stretch left…"
As he ran, Izzy breathed a silent prayer. Tai, you had better be in position, because like it or not, he's coming your way. They were all running on blind coordination. If even one of them messed up in the slightest, the entire intricate plan would fall through.
This waiting is driving me nuts…Tai thought. He had been in position for a few minutes at most, and already he was beginning to get jumpy. Where is he? Did Izzy and Mimi get him? Has he passed us already?
He looked over at Sora, who was similarly crouched and hidden. Biyomon was beside her, ready to confront Willis, should be appear. He turned his gaze back up the empty street, straining his senses for any sign… anything that he might be coming. Where is he…The street was dead silent. A slight wind ruffled up the debris and dust on the ground. Where is he…
Suddenly, his ears picked up a panting sound echoing in the otherwise silent street. His heart skipped a beat, then he hunkered down even more, and put a hand on Agumon, "Buddy, better get ready…"
The sound continued, growing. It sounded like someone running, their footsteps crunching the snow, and getting closer. Tai risked a glance around the doorway. There was someone approaching all right. He could see a small figure in the distance. Ducking back into the doorway, he squeezed his eyes shut, shutting off all other senses to concentrate on listening to the sound. They had to surprise him, so he wouldn't have a chance of running away…
The sound got louder. Now Tai could hear the muffled footsteps on the snowy ground. Two pairs of distinct footsteps, one heavier one, and an extremely light one, as if its owner weighed no more than a couple pounds. Must be his digimon, Tai thought to himself.
Opening his eyes, he looked over at Sora. Pulling off a glove with his teeth, he held up three fingers. Sora nodded. Tai slowly pulled down one finger, starting the countdown. Three…two…one…both of them stood up at the same time, and stepped out onto the street, blocking the path.
A small boy skidded to a stop in front of them. He had light blond hair, bright green eyes, and a small laptop was strapped to his back. He panted for breath as he stared, wide-eyed with fear at the two strangers that now blocked his path.
So this is the kid we've been looking for all this time. Tai thought to himself. Certainly doesn't look too impressive… But then, he reminded himself, he was just a clueless eleven-year-old himself when he had first been sucked into the digital world. Agumon looked down. A small, rookie-level digimon with ridiculously large ears was at his feet. Tai extended his hand. "We need to talk."
The boy said nothing, but began backing away slowly. His eyes and face were filled with a nervous fear, a terror and suspicion of everything around him. Tai ached with sympathy. That could've been him, if it wasn't for the friends and comrades that stood beside him now. He could well understand the fear and terror this little boy must've been through.
Sora stepped up. "Don't worry, we won't hurt you. We just want to talk."
"Stay away from me!" Willis screamed, his voice shrill with terror. "You're with Diaboromon aren't you? What do you want with me?"
Tai frowned. "We're humans. How can we be with Diaboromon? Do we look like digimon to you?"
Willis looked ready to bolt at any second. "You traitors are always the same." He spat the word traitors contemptuously, like it was a bad taste in his mouth. "You'd sell out your own race out for a handful of food." Backing off, he tried turn back.
Four figures, 2 humans and 2 digimon, sprinting along different roads, suddenly blocked his path. Izzy and Mimi skidded to a stop as well, firmly planting themselves in his way. Suddenly, Willis was completely surrounded. He gazed around, wide-eyed, like a small animal that had been cornered. Again, Tai felt sympathetic for the little boy. It's the war, he thought sadly, Diaboromon, what have you done…
Sora held up her hands. "Look, I'm unarmed." The others held up their hands as well, following her lead. Sora was the best person for this, so they let her take over. She kept her voice gentle, non-threatening. "I don't know what you mean by traitors, and I know you're afraid, but you've got to trust us. We're not here to hurt you. If you'll just hear us out…"
"Stay away!! All of you!" the boy screamed. Picking up on his distress, the digimon at his heels bristled. Squaring off, it stood in front of its master and began glowing slightly.
"Bunny Blast!"
Tai's eyes widened, as green arcs of energy suddenly started spiraling around the small creature. The arcs concentrated, and suddenly a devastating green beam of energy lashed out towards him…
It was only Tai's razor-sharp instincts that saved him. Honed and trained by months of the war, he desperately dived behind the doorway he had been hiding behind. The green ribbon of energy slammed into the wall, and Tai flinched as chips of concrete slashed his cheeks.
Then he stared in disbelief as the digimon turned to Sora. "Bunny Blast!" Again the blazing green beam lanced out. No…not Sora.
Sora didn't dodge at all. She just stood there, closed her eyes, and waited for the blast. The green beam slammed into her chest, and she was blasted off her feet, flying through the air for a few meters before she finally hit the ground again. Her body carved a furrow in the layer of snow coating the street as it slid along like a broken doll.
"Sora!" The word was torn from Tai's throat as he ran desperately after his fallen friend. He didn't care about attacks anymore, didn't care about anything. All that mattered to him was to reach Sora's side.
Behind Tai, the blond boy hesitated. She didn't try to dodge at all, he thought to himself in amazement. After seeing Terriermon's attack, she's knows what it can do. Why didn't she try to defend herself?
Biyomon flapped into the air, her eyes filling with a murderous rage. Savior of the world or not, nobody got away with hurting Sora. "Spiral twist…"
"No…don't…" Sora coughed weakly as she painfully levered herself up onto one elbow. Her other hand clutched her side tightly, and her face was deathly pale. "He's just scared…don't hurt him…"
Biyomon hesitated, her unformed attack died down. Willis looked on, even more amazed. What's going on? Why does she want to protect me? He looked as the brown-haired boy finally reached her side, and knelt down to inspect her wounds with a care and compassion. Care and compassion that he hadn't seen since…he couldn't remember that far back. Are they really out to hurt me? Is this all just a show put on to get my trust? Or do they really want to help me?
Tai felt Sora's side gently, and she sucked in a breath of pain. Tai frowned. She's probably got a couple of cracked ribs. Turning angrily, he glared daggers at Willis. "What the hell's your problem? All we wanted to do was talk!"
"You don't have to be afraid of us. We're here to help you." Mimi stepped forward slowly, her arms raised to show she was unarmed. "We know you're afraid, we know the hell you've been living through, but we can help…"
Willis' instinctual fear took over again. "Don't come any closer," he warned her. Terriermon bristled again, and Mimi stopped. "You're with Diaboromon aren't you? This is all just a show to gain my trust…"
Something snapped in Tai. "Don't you ever accuse us of siding with Diaboromon. That f***ing bastard took away everything that was important to us! Our homes, our family, our friends, our lives…. Get it through your thick skull. We are sworn against him, and it will be a cold day in hell before we surrender to that puffed up spider made of cables!"
Willis was stunned into silence. Terriermon looked at his master questioningly. Were these really Diaboromon's servants? They didn't think like him at all. And…there was a certain something about them that drew him, something that they had in common, something that they had that seemed to make him understand and bond with them. Looking around, he gazed at their faces one by one. Are they telling the truth? Should I trust them?
Izzy stepped up. "Willis? It's me, Izzy. Remember me? You know, the computer geek from Japan? You've got to trust us. You're special Willis, and we need your help to defeat Diaboromon. We can't do it without you…"
Willis stared up at the auburn-haired boy. Izzy? He had vague recollections of meeting someone of that name in a chatroom somewhere, a long time ago. Diaboromon certainly wouldn't know a name like that. "Izzy? The "digidestined"?"
Izzy nodded. Willis began to step down. Looking down at Terriermon, he waved his hand once. Terriermon looked up. "Are you sure…"
"Let's hear them out, for now…" Terriermon nodded, and relaxed, a little. Willis turned back to the grim group before him and took a deep breath. "Ok…what do you want?"
Sora smiled through her pain. At least he's listening. Tai looked down at her with concern, then turned back to Willis. "We shouldn't talk here. Let's go find somewhere more secure to…"
Suddenly, a building beside them exploded. Everyone was knocked off their feet from the concussion as splinters of wood and concrete shrapnel whistled around them. Out of the smoke, an entire legion of Bakemon emerged, baring their fangs.
Willis looked in alarm at the evil digimon, then turned back to the equally stunned group beside him. I've been tricked, he thought bitterly. They were just stalling for time for their friends to get here. "Traitors!", he snarled at the group contemptuously. "I can't believe it." Turning to his digimon, he nodded fiercely, giving him the go-ahead. Terriermon leaped into the air, and a glowing green nimbus surrounded his entire body.
"Terriermon digivolve to…"
Tai, lying flat on his back, watched in amazement as the tiny digimon flashed, and digivolved. Growing larger, blue pants appeared on his legs. A green war mask covered the digimon's face, and two huge, squarish looking gauntlets appeared on his hands.
Oh sh*t. Now we're in for it…
"…Galgomon."
Elsewhere, in his dark headquarters in Tokyo, Diaboromon stirred. Something had awakened him. Spreading out his senses, he opened himself up to his network, trying to find out what it was that had disturbed him.
There. A flash of digital energy had been detected in New York, America. A digivolution was underway.
Yes.
Yes!
The dark spider grinned diabolically. Finally, after five months, they had gotten careless. They had showed themselves. Sending out electronic orders via his network, he settled back to wait.
Precisely five seconds later, the troops he had stationed in New York sprang into action. On a glowing monitor, Diaboromon watched with satisfaction as his soldiers maneuvered themselves into complicated dragnet patterns and patrols, completely surrounding the city block from which the energy had come from.
The hunt was on.
** Author's notes: TaKari / TK lovers, well, I know you don't see them at all in this particular chapter, but rest assured, I haven't forgotten about them. This is an action/adventure fic, so I can't exactly focus every single moment of my fic on those two, so bear with me. For those of you who are worried that I'm falling behind with my exams, don't be. They're coming along fine. Just to calm anyone who thinks I'm neglecting my school-work because of this.
To all my loyal reviewers, thanks a lot. Kale, Fruitloop Trooper, Turquoise Cow, Kari, raine, and a whole, whole bunch of other people. (Sorry if I offended you by not mentioning you. This is by no means a complete list). To those readers who've been reading but not reviewing, PLEASE REVIEW!!!!