A/N: For those who haven't figured it out (um...yeah...), the chapters are titled after the song used in the chapter. Oh, and it's not really the lyrics that fit, with this song. With this song, it's more the message that's carried across. I thought it worked. And is it some kind of sign that my fingers randomly decided to type "zzzzzzzzzzz" while I was typing this chapter up?
"Thanks, Mrs. Izumi. This is really helpful."
"You're welcome, Ken." Food in hand, Ken left the Izumi's apartment and headed quickly home via Kabuterimon.
**Being Digidestined has its perks.**
Countdown: One hour, thirty minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
"Yolei, there's somewhere I have to go."
"Where, Hawkmon?"
"Does it matter? How about if I state that the place I have to go is not in this apartment?"
A/N: O.O Hawkmon was rude? Ookay...what _was_ I thinking?
Yolei pondered that for a moment. Then she sighed. "Alright." She let the bird Digimon out, then returned to what she'd been doing.
Countdown: One hour, fifteen minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
"Do you two have everything else," Ken asked Wormmon and Hawkmon.
"Yes," the Digimon chorused.
"Then let's go," Ken said. "Digiport open!" Then they were gone, leaving behind only the note Ken had written to tell his parents where he had gone.
Countdown: One hour, ten minutes until the scheduled time.
~*~
"You know what you're supposed to do?"
"We know, Ken."
"You just want this to be perfect."
"We know."
"You've told us multiple times."
"Don't worry. We know what to do."
"We'll do exactly what you told us to."
"Just chill."
Ken laughed. "Alright, I get the point."
Countdown: Forty-five minutes until the scheduled time.
~*~
"Hey Yolei!"
"Oh...hi Izzy."
Izzy held out his yellow pineapple laptop. "Laptop?"
Yolei grinned. "Thanks. Digiport open!" Then she was gone.
Izzy smiled. "Mission complete."
A/N: I've been told that last line of Izzy's is Heero-ish. What do you think?
Countdown: Twenty-five minutes until the scheduled time.
~*~
Yolei emerged in the Digiworld. She looked around and spotted Hawkmon. "Hey! What are you doing here?"
"Yolei, have me digivolve to Halsemon."
"Huh?"
"Just trust me, Yolei."
With a shrug, Yolei complied.
"Hawkmon armor digivolve to...Halsemon, the wings of love."
"Now why did you have me get you to digivolve?"
"Ready for a ride?" Sudden understanding struck Yolei.
Countdown: Twenty minutes until the scheduled time.
~*~
"Ready, Matt?"
"You bet. My guitar's tuned and I'm ready."
"Great."
Garurumon loped up to the trio. "She's on her way." Only now did Ken really start to look nervous.
"Relax," Matt told him. "It will work out. I promise."
"Are you sure?" Matt didn't answer.
Countdown: Fifteen minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
Yolei blinked as she saw Nefertimon and Pegasusmon rise above the trees. "Hey TK, Kari," she called. "What are you doing here?"
"We've been asked to be your escorts," Kari answered.
"And then we're taking the opportunity to get away from Davis, who has been following us all day." Yolei laughed.
Countdown: Thirteen minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
A beep from his D-terminal grabbed Ken's attention. After reading the e-mail, he turned to face Wormmon. "TK says he and Kari met up with Yolei."
"Then they're close."
"Yes."
Countdown: Seven minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
Aquillamon landed carefully. Before he dedigivolved, he let Yolei off. Yolei looked around. "So where's Ken?"
Wormmon crawled into her view. "Follow me." With a slight shrug, Yolei followed the Digimon.
Countdown: Two minutes until the scheduled meeting.
~*~
Ken rose to his feet as Yolei came into sight. "Hello again, Yolei."
"You know, I'm starting to feel a little guilty."
"Why?"
"You went to such trouble to get me here. Managing to tell Hawkmon to come without my knowledge, getting TK and Kari to help..." Yolei raised one eyebrow. "Who else is part of this? Cody? Davis?"
A/N: Davis-bashing infected me again here...Sometimes watching taped episodes can be a bad thing.
"Do you think I'm crazy? If Davis was involved, something would have gone wrong already." He gestured toward the picnic blanket spread just a short distance away. "Do you want to eat?"
"Alright." Ken and Yolei sat down on opposite sides of the blanket. Yolei took a bit of the food Ken had brought. She looked at him suspiciously. "This tastes like what Mrs. Izumi makes."
Ken laughed. "That's because it is."
"Why?"
"What, you expected me to cook? Yolei, I can barely boil water. You don't want me cooking." Yolei laughed. "So you wanted to talk," Ken asked her.
"I did."
"So go ahead."
"Alright." Yolei sighed. "I should start by saying I'm looking for some sort of new direction in my life."
"A new direction? Why?" Ken leaned forward, confused.
"Because," Yolei said with tears welling in her eyes, "my boyfriend dumped me." She started to cry.
"Oh Yolei..." Ken walked over to Yolei. Kneeling beside her, he reached out and held her. "Why don't you tell me about it? Maybe that will make you feel better." Slowly she told him the story.
Ken was furious with Kareshi, although he didn't even know the guy. He let go of Yolei and shifted so he could look her in the eyes. "Yolei, that boyfriend of yours doesn't deserve a girl like you. His own friends seem to be more important to him than you."
Yolei looked at Ken, puzzled. **Something deeper is behind his words. I'm sure of it.**
Abruptly, Ken said, "Look! The sun's setting!" He turned Yolei so that she could see the setting sun, then sat besider her. The sounds of a guitar started to play a song Yolei mentally put the lyrics to.
For all those times you stood by me
For all the truth that you made me see
For all the joy you brought to my life
For all the wrongs that you made right
For every dream you made come true
For all the love I found in you
I'll be forever thankful, baby
You're the one who held me up
And never let me fall
You're the one who saw me through
Through it all
Ken wrapped his arm around Yolei's shoulders, trying to comfort her in some way. She relaxed and leaned against his slender frame. "Ken?"
"Hm?" Ken was caught in the moment, too occupied to think of a full response.
"You said earlier that you wanted to talke to me too. So go ahead."
Ken, surprised by her suggestion, was silent for a few moments. In his silence, Yolei continued to hear the guitar being played.
You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't see
You gave me faith cause you believed
I'm everything I am because you loved me
"Well, first I want to thank you."
"Thank me?" The tears were starting to dry on Yolei's face. "Why?"
"For believing in me when I need someone to believe in me." Yolei had a feeling he was referring to the fight with Daemon. "For getting me to laugh again."
"Oh yeah, that Christmas party." Yolei knew this time that he referred to the game of Go Fish. "I can play that now, thank you."
Ken chuckled. "I'm not doubting you."
"Something tells me you want to tell me something besides all that, Ken."
Ken sighed. "You're right. But...let's savor the moment a little longer."
You gave me wings and made me fly
You touched my hand, I could touch the sky
I lost my faith, you gave it back to me
You said no star was out of reach
You stood by me and I stood tall
I had your love, I had it all
I'm grateful for each day you gave me
Maybe I don't know that much
But I know this much is true
I was blessed because I was loved by you
Yolei leaned her head on Ken's shoulder. "You know, I want to know what you wanted to say."
"I should have remembered how persistant you are." Ken kept his gaze carefully away from Yolei. "Well, I should begin by thanking you. I already did that, but there's something I feel I should say again. Thank you for being the first of the Digidestined to make me laugh. Not even Davis could do that before you."
Yolei giggled. "You're welcome, Ken. I'm glad I got you to laugh, and smile too. Like Kari said, you have a nice smile."
You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't see
You gave me faith cause you believed
I'm everything I am because you loved me
Ken smiled, although Yolei couldn't see him. "Thanks." He paused, trying to figure out how to say what was running through his head.
"Yolei, do you remember that battle with Daemon?"
"Of course."
"Well, there was that moment when we were working to somehow open a gate to the Dark Ocean. I had to face my dark side, and the rest of you gave me the strength to win over my dark side."
"Yeah, I remember that."
You were always there for me
The tender wind that carried me
A light in the dark
Shining your love into my life
You've been my inspiration
Through the lies you were the truth
My world is a better place because of you
"I'm not sure exactly why, but since then your face has been haunting me."
Yolei was silent for a moment. Then she sat up and shifted to face Ken. There were no tears on her face now. "Ken, I think I can explain what's going on." Ken looked over at her hopefully.
Yolei reached behind her and grabbed a stick. She sketched a design, vaguely heart-shaped, in the dirt. "What's that," Ken asked, finding it a little familiar.
"Sora's crest, or so she told me," Yolei replied.
"The Crest of..."
"Crest of Love, Ken." Her crest was the Crest of Love. And the Digiegg of Love is mine."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I think it relates to your situation."
You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't see
You gave me faith cause you believed
I'm everything I am because you loved me
"What are you saying," Ken asked. Out of sight, Matt smirked. He had a feeling he knew what was coming next.
"Ken, I think you're in love." Ken was speechless. Yolei, too, fell silent. **Am I in love? I can't hurt him, not after some of what he's been through.**
"Are you sure, Yolei," Ken asked after a few moments.
"Yes."
Still out of sight, Matt inwardly groaned. **Get on with it, you two.**
**I wish I was sure. Well, I guess I can see how this works out.**
"Yolei?"
"What?" Yolei looked over at Ken. Ken reached out and, as the sun's last rays touched them, kissed Yolei. As he played the last chords, Matt smiled.
You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't see
You gave me faith cause you believed
I'm everything I am because you loved me
Yolei was absorbed in the moment. As they broke apart, Yolei smiled. Reluctantly she noted, "We should be getting home now."
"Yeah." Yolei could tell Ken wasn't pleased with the idea. "Yolei, um, do you want to, um, go out sometime?"
"I'd love to," Yolei replied. She rose to her feet. "By the way, this is a great spot you picked out."
"Oh, thanks. I saw this place once while I was the Digimon Emperor and remembered it."
Yolei smiled. "Let's go."
"Right. Don't want our parents getting any...um...ideas."
"Of course." Holding hands, Yolei and Ken made their way from the Digiworld.
~*~
"Bye Izzy!"
"Thanks for letting us use your laptop."
"You're welcome." Izzy walked off.
Ken turned to face Yolei. "Yolei, may I walk you home?"
"But don't you need to get back across the river?"
"Wormmon'll take me across, won't you?"
"You bet, Ken."
Yolei smiled. "Then of course...but I have one question first."
"What?"
"How many other Digidestined did you get involved in this?"
"Davis was sent off on a pointless errand, TK and Kari you saw, Matt was playing guitar..."
"What about Tai, Izzy, Cody, Joe, Mimi, and Sora?"
"Well, I couldn't get in touch with Joe, Mimi, or Sora. Izzy provided laptop usage, as you know. Um, Tai told me where you were earlier, so I didn't ask him. And Cody had kendo."
"I...see. So most of the others were in on it?"
"Uh, yeah..."
"Great," Yolei muttered.
Ken faced her and put his hands on her shoulders. "No. To borrow your phrase, perfecto." Yolei smiled.
~*~*~
PREVIEW
Chapter 4: Survivor
Tai smiled. "Hi. My name's Tai."
The dark-haired girl across from him replied, "I'm Oko."
*~*
"Hey Kareshi!"
The boy turned. "Aren't you that Ken Ichijouji guy?"
"Yes."
~*~*~
"What will happen next? Tune in next time on--" WHOMP!
Okay, so that takes care of the annoying narrator dude. Anyway, please read and review. This is Argent Dragon, signing out until she can come up with material for the next chapter. Oh, and don't be surprised if Oko-Naki keeps making guest appearances in my fics.