Mistakes
by Laura Kamida
Rated PG-13 for Violence and Language
by Laura Kamida
Rated PG-13 for Violence and Language
Two large eyes snapped open and a sharp gasp came forth. Then there was nothing. Total and complete silence. Total and complete darkness. But she could feel it: there was something, someone, some person beside her. Her hands groped the darkness around her to see if she could examine her surroundings. Her hand rested upon the person beside her. To her dismay, it was a cold body; they lacked the warmth of life. Whoever was beside her was dead.
She blinked back tears, but she was reminded of her own situation. The tears were replaced with anger. She had made a mistake... and there was one way to rectify it.
~*~
"Oh -- oh, God, no..." Kari whispered. She layed prone on the ground, her head over the edge, looking down into the dark, seemingly bottomless canyon below. It had taken a while for the real realization to hit her, but when it did, it stunned her and took her breath away: he was really gone. Her bottom lip quivered, and burning tears streamed down her face.
"TAKERU!!!!" she shrieked, her weakened body pushing forth the primal cry with all she could muster.
Her whole body heaved with sobs. Her best friend was dead. Then... she heard something behind her. Footsteps. It was then that another realization hit her: she had to deal with the situation at hand:
Mimi. Kari had to avenge Takeru. She couldn't just let herself die, otherwise Takeru would have died for nothing. A burning, fierce rage burned within her... Mimi had to die for what she had done.
She turned over and in a flash was on her feet. Mimi was standing right there, and she uttered a sinister, savage laugh of triumph. Her flat, cold, dull eyes bore into Kari's... and Kari was jumping to attack her in a pure fury --
And for a split second -- time stood still.
~*~
Matt kicked the dusty ground and scowled. "Who does he think he is anyway?" he asked himself. "I made a comprimise with him and what does he do? He takes off, not even on his own Digimon, and goes to attack Mimi. I know that's what he's doing. Arrogant bastard. He thinks he's the top dog, and he can save the world... well, he can't. He needs all of us... Izzy, Joe, Sora, and me... and he needs to grow up and figure that out... God, why does he always have to be like this? I don't see what she sees..."
He cut himself off, and looked around to see if anyone was listening to him. The village was silent except for his even breaths.
"Well, I won't leave her like you did," he spat to the absent Tai. He walked toward Sora and Tai's hut.
~*~
Kari was frozen in mid pounce. Mimi was frozen with a look on her face that spoke bring it on.
A bright light illuminated the darkness. Kari was startled, and tried to look around for the source of the light (and whether it was friend or foe) when she suddenly realized that it was coming from her. And in a half a second, it was all over, and everything went back into motion.
Kari's momentum returned and she slammed into Mimi. They both fell to the ground, and Mimi started to scramble away with a horrified expression on her face. She stood up and started to run, but Kari chased after her.
"No!!!" Mimi shrieked. She whistled shrilly. Suddenly a huge, serpentine, flying dragon emerged and Mimi jumped up, allowing it to fly under her and catch her. "Go, Dragomon, get us out of here!" The Digimon, awed by Kari's light, sped off.
Kari was desperate to know what this light was, what it did. It was obviously some kind of power, it had terrified Mimi. But after Mimi had escaped, the mysterious light had not stopped, in fact, it only grew more intense. Kari wondered if it was an attack at all... The light grew so bright and overwhelming that she could hardly stand it... she tried to scream but no sound came out. Finally, just before everything went black, one last word was pushed from her mouth...
"Ressurection," she breathed.
~*~
Izzy climbed slowly off of Kabuterimon's back and stared in awe at the site before him. "It's... it's... destroyed!" He looked forward at the pile of rubble and stone in front of him, all that was left of Machinedramon's city. It was all charred by fire, and crumbled to the ground. "Kabuterimon, did you know about this!?" The Digimon nodded slowly. "Well, why didn't you tell me!?"
"I thought you needed to find out for yourself," Kabuterimon replied.
"Why did I need to see this for myself!? Now you've just wasted all of our time, while Takeru and Kari are missing!"
"Captured by Mimi..." Kabuterimon corrected.
Izzy furrowed his eyebrows and turned back to the burned ruins of the city where he had been not too long ago. "You don't know that."
"I do know that, Izzy."
"Nevermind them. I just want to know what happened to this city."
"I was flying patrol over this part of the Digiworld. It was the day after you came back. I was so happy to have my old post back again. Ever since I de-digivolved, I couldn't patrol... but now I could! Anyway, I was flying over and I saw a bright red light, and a Dragomon (that's an evil Digimon) flying through the air. Then the whole city exploded into flames. I could hear the Digimon within scream but there was nothing I could do. It all happened in a split second. I didn't realize it then, but now I know -- it was Mimi."
"You don't know that, Kabuterimon. You have to stop jumping to conclusions."
"And you have to stop denying the truth, Izzy." Izzy turned back to him, staring. "Don't say anything, Izzy, you know it's true. You don't believe Mimi's really evil. You were here to see if there was anything online that you could find that would make Mimi 'sane' again."
"She's sick, Kabuterimon. Very sick. Sick in the mind. Everyone has their breaking point and being out here in the wilderness and trying to survive made her meet hers... And if I can just --"
"No," Kabuterimon said, cutting him off. "You can't fix her. She's not sick. She's not insane. No one that's insane can do the things she's done. She's perfectly sane... she's just... Evil."
"No," Izzy said fiercly, his blood starting to boil. "No. I will find a way to bring the old Mimi back. If it's the last thing I do. Now let's go back to Odaiba."
~*~
Kari was not sure how much later it was when she blinked herself awake but she could hear a noise in the back of her mind. It was soft, and she focused her ears, just like she had done so many times fishing with -- Her heart started to break all over again with the thought of Takeru. She tried to stop concentrating on him, but it was impossible. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and the sound started to become louder.
Kari tried to decipher what the noise meant... It was the soft buzzing of wings.
~*~
Joe tossed and turned in his bed. He had nightmares that he couldn't remember when he woke up and continued to wake up in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. He peeled his soaked shirt off of his body and threw it to the side. He couldn't shake thoughts he had in his head that he couldn't identify.
Izzy had gone off alone to "explore the digiworld." So Joe was alone. He turned over in the bed again and stared out the window. A soft, cool breeze made the trees sway slowly back and forth. He was very glad Izzy was gone when a tear slowly traced its way down his face.
He had suspicions about what Izzy wanted to do. He suspected that Izzy wanted to save Mimi... from the other Digidestined, and from herself. Izzy thought she had some sort of mental disorder... Joe was no psychiatrist... and he hadn't had enough time to examine Mimi anyway.
But even though he wasn't a psychiatrist... he could see true love as well as anyone else could... and Izzy loved Mimi as more than just a friend. Joe wondered if perhaps things would be different if Mimi and Izzy had never been separated.
He wasn't sure what to think anymore... what if Mimi loved Izzy? What would happen if Izzy really could save her? What would happen to him if the only girl he ever loved really loved another?
~*~
A figure started to rise out of the darkness of the pit below. Kari's heart started to race as she stared in wonder. It couldn't be!!! Her spirit rose as she watched two familiar figures approach.
Lillymon!!! And... Takeru!!!
"Takeru!?" Kari screamed. "Oh, Takeru, I'm so glad to see you!!!"
"Kari?" Lillymon asked. "I heard screaming and a flash of light... I thought she had hurt you... But you must have beat her..."
"Almost... It was a draw. She ran off after I started glowing..."
Lillymon reached the top of the cliff and let Takeru go. He ran to Kari and they stood face to face. "I have to go now," she said. "But I can't carry the both of you, and I can't leave one of you alone here. You two have to protect each other... I have to lead the others to Mimi..." she drifted off. Her eyes narrowed. "She's gone too far now."
"Good luck!" Kari called as Lillymon flew off. The two friends watched as she disappeared on the horizon. Kari blinked as the first rays of sunrise peeked over the jagged cliffs of Mimi's mountain territory. Takeru grinned. Kari adored that smile. The way his gorgeous blue eyes sparkeld, the jovial, carefree look to his face, and his sweet lips curved up playfully.
"Kari, I'm so glad you're okay," he said.
"I was so worried," she admitted. "I thought I had lost you."
Takeru hugged her. They had hugged many times, but there was something different about this embrace. She couldn't figure out what it was, though.
All of this became scraps of thoughts, like wisps of smoke in her mind, when she looked into his eyes, at his face. The sunlight hit it, and there was something perfect, something magical in that moment, and she couldn't think about anything but... Takeru.
And two souls converged in the dawn when he kissed her.
~*~
Dawn approached, and still Matt kept his silent vigil over the beautiful, sleeping Sora, sitting on the edge of the bed that she shared with Tai. He watched her body raise slowly, evenly, with each breath taken. Her back was facing him, and her hair elegantly layed all over. He turned to see the first light of dawn, and turned back to Sora. He felt a strong responsibility to her, a need to protect her. Especially since her "husband" didn't do it half the time.
"He doesn't deserve you..." he whispered, the words barely escaping his lips. He slowly, hesitantly, reached out and gently touched her long, auburn hair. He ran his fingers through it and she stirred, almost waking. Matt, in a panic, rushed out just before she woke up so she wouldn't see him, stealing one last look back at her before he darted out the door.
~*~
Sora stretched, yawned, and turned over to hug Tai. He had been playing with her hair. He loved to do that, and she loved it when he did. She remembered how when they first began to date, and he would take off her hat and run his fingers through her hair. He had told her that he loved her hair, and she decided to grow it out... and she hadn't cut it since.
She giggled and reached over, her arms stretching and feeling...
Nothing.
Her eyes snapped open to see...
Nobody.
"Tai?"
~*~
The ground rushed underneath of him and the wind from his fast flying whisked his hair back. He looked forward and saw mountainous peaks. Maybe that's where Mimi is hiding out.
Tai tried to think about finding Takeru and Kari, but all he could think about was that mirage he saw... that image of a man standing in the village... Watching him. He had been watching him, watching what he was doing... and Tai felt an awful pang of guilt for leaving everyone behind... Tai knew how headstrong he could be sometimes.
What am I doing? I need everyone else's help to beat Mimi and get them back... I know that she's strong, I mean, she was one of us at one time... and she came back to life after we killed her... and who knows what Digimon she has on her side... And Matt said that we could all go together... Poor Sora, she's all alone there... and sick too... What if she has problems with the baby and I'm not there to help her??? Oh, God, what have I done!?
Matt was right about him. He was stupid. Well, I'll never be stupid like this ever again, he vowed to himself. And I'll never leave you behind again, Sora, he secretly promised her.
"Birdramon... turn around. We have to go back."
~*~
Takeru's heart fluttered as well as his eyelids. He had not planned this move... It had just... happened. And now he couldn't think of anything but the fact that he had been waiting for this moment ever since he realized that he liked Kari as more than a friend. Kari tensed up at first, but she relaxed after a second. Takeru was relieved that maybe she felt the same way about him that he felt about her. He put his arms around her, and she did the same to him.
They broke the kiss, and she looked into his eyes.
"This is... so strange," she whispered. Takeru looked back at her.
"Yes..." he said. "But isn't it great?"
Kari nodded slowly, and Takeru's heart was ready to burst with joy. "Yes, it is."