DISCLAIMER: I do not own Digimon or any of its characters. I just like to torture them. Please don't sue.
A/N: Well, now that Kari and Davis are safely married, it's time to focus on--dun-duh-da!--The Kaiser. Somehow I have this sound stuck in my head, someone saying "Kaiiiiiserrrrr", like that family goes "flounnnnnderrrrr" on that stupid commercial for that stuff (I can't remember what it's called!), and I like the way it sounds.
Ken glanced at the clock. Eleven.
~When should I go down there?~ He'd been debating it all morning.
Wormmon interrupted his thoughts. "Master?"
"What is it?"
"Master, when do you want your lunch?"
Ken thought about that. He would have to wait until after the DigiDestined had their lunch to go down there, and they took longer to eat because they could talk to each other--wait! ~Perfect!~ "I will be having my lunch with the DigiDestined, Wormmon. Have an extra tray sent down there."
Wormmon blinked. He'd never dreamed that Ken would actually listen to him. "Yes, Master..." he said, almost dazed.
Noon rolled around. The DigiDestined were all about their own business when enslaved digimon brought food to the dining room. It was true that all the suites had small kitchenettes, and if they wanted to cook for themselves all they had to do was request the ingredients, but more often than not they didn't bother--although Kari planned to take it up very soon.
So the digimon slaves were business as usual.
What was weird was that Ken was with them. He stood, silently watching them wheel in the cart with all the trays on it. When they finished and left, he had yet to say a word.
The DigiDestined waited in the living room, expecting him to come out in a minute and go back to wherever he needed to be, but the digimon locked the main door.
They all exchanged glances and looked toward the dining room door.
"We'll never know unless we find out," Yolei said.
"Well, I'm not scared," Davis said, walked over to the door, and pushed it open.
At the opposite end of the table was a chair that was larger than the rest, making that the head of the table. The DigiDestined had never made a big deal over it, they simply sat at the end nearest the door and never bothered with it.
But today, Ken was sitting in that chair. There was a tray identical to the rest of their own in front of him.
"Aren't any of you going to eat?" There was actually emotion in his voice. He seemed to be questioning a probable disappointment.
Yolei looked at all her friends. "I don't know about any of you, but I am so hungry that I don't care what's going on or what kind of trap it might be. I'm eating." She picked up a tray off the cart and sat in her accustomed spot, second from the end.
The others watched.
Nothing happened, so finally they all relaxed and took their own seats. Cody next to her, T.K. at the end, then on the other side Kari, and finally, Davis.
Ken took the top off his own tray and started eating, too. There were three seats between where he was and where the rest of them were sitting, so it would have been hard for him to get in on any conversation that might have been going on--but it didn't matter. The DigiDestined were all in such a hurry to finish and leave the room that they did not talk.
Everyone was finished by 12:15. They weren't sure what to do, until finally Davis scooted back his chair and stood, and then helped Kari up. Ken did not protest as they left the room, so the other three followed suit.
Ken sat after that, picking at his food. ~Well, that was a grand success.~
This feeling was so different. When he had a small setback in taking over the world, he didn't feel down, he just got started on a new plan of attack. But this--this was different. He was disappointed, and upset that things hadn't gone better.
The door clicked open, and he looked up. Yolei was peeking her head into the room.
"What is it? Did you wish to spy on the Kaiser?" Ken asked in irritation.
She frowned. "I'm not spying. I just want to know what you're doing. I mean--why you're here. Why aren't you up in your own room eating gourmet stuff instead of down here with us eating mac and cheese? Not that it's bad, but it's no duck l'orange. I'm sure *you're* not used to it."
Ken frowned. There was no satisfactory answer but the truth. It wasn't that he made lying a habit, but this particular truth was not something he was ready to admit. "Do you really care?" he asked defensively.
She nodded. "So it's a personal reason. Not something you're gonna 'fess up to."
He was starting to get upset, but--he couldn't feel true anger. Usually by this time he was on his feet and getting out his whip. ~What is wrong with me? Or--or is it her?~
She sat down at the end, in T.K.'s spot. "You want to hear what I think?"
Ken looked at her over the top of his glasses. "I think you're going to tell me anyway."
His eyes surprised her. It had been so long since she'd seen them--but something she saw in them only proved the point she was about to make. She pushed the thought aside. "Of course I am, but it's still polite to warn people when you're going to be brutally honest," she said, cheerfully. "I think that *you* are *lonely* and crave the company of other humans."
~Is it that obvious?~ "I do not. I simply think that I have neglected all of you for far too long and you could use a little watching."
~Liar.~ But she could not say it to his face. "And it took you six years to remember us?"
Ken decided it was time to be smug. "And Wormmon reminded me at that."
~He makes me so mad!~ Yolei was not sure why it bothered her, why she was letting him get to her. "Well, then, you're nothing but a big fat jerk!" she cried, getting up from her chair. It toppled over and in her haste she didn't bother to pick it up. She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
Ken sat, staring at the door in agitation.
He was *hurt*.
Someone had hurt the feelings of the Digimon Kaiser, and he sat doing nothing about it.
"It was my fault," he admitted quietly.
He knew the only way to make things right was apologize.
What bothered him was that he felt the need to make things right. ~Why do I care so much about Yolei's opinion? Why should it make any difference what she thinks of me? And yet, here I sit, caring very much and wondering how to go about apologizing.~
A few minutes later, at one o'clock, he left as wordlessly as he had come.
Yolei was sprawled out on her bed, thinking over her encounter with the Kaiser, when she heard a knock at the door to her suite.
She got up and walked to the door. "Who is it?"
"It's me, Kari."
Yolei opened the door and let her in. "Hi. I guess you could hear me from out in the living room, huh?"
Kari nodded. "Yeah. That's what I want to talk to you about. What gave you the guts to pull something like that?"
Yolei motioned to the couch and they both went and sat down. "I wish I knew, Kari."
The two girls sat a few moments in silence.
"Kari...can I ask an offbeat question?"
"Sure."
"How do you think of Davis when the two of you argue?"
Kari blinked, and then smiled. "If it's my fault I just feel guilty until I apologize. But if it's his fault, at first I feel so angry it's almost like I could never like him again. Then I realize that maybe just because he said or did something didn't mean he meant it the way I took it. Maybe his intentions were good. Maybe he just plain didn't know any better. Maybe it's just the way he is and I have to learn to deal with it."
Now it was Yolei's turn to blink.
"Why did you want to know?" Kari asked her.
"Kari...I'm scaring myself. I don't know if I should even tell you, it's so messed-up..."
"I won't laugh," Kari promised.
"I wasn't worried about that. It's just plain wrong..."
"Why don't you just tell me?"
"Well, Kari, remember back before we were captured, when we were in the real world?"
Kari sighed. "Barely. I mean, I remember everything, but sometimes I think that it was just a dream I had once..."
"I know exactly what you mean. But do you remember the time before we figured out that Ken is the Digimon Kaiser? We would see Ken on the news, or in a magazine?"
"Yeah, I remember. You had the biggest crush on him..."
"Well, Kari, when he showed up, some of those old emotions got stirred up. I don't love him, I don't think I even have a crush on him. But I sympathize with him. Like the way he is isn't his fault. That we can't blame him for being upset."
"Oh, Yolei...this could complicate things...what did the two of you say when you went back in there?"
"He asked if I was spying, and I told him I wanted to know why he was there. Then he asked if it *mattered* to me why he was there, and I accused him of just not wanting to admit why, and I told him what I think."
"Which is?" Kari asked, nervously.
"That he's lonely. He wants company. Anyway, he denied that and made up an excuse, and then I smarted off about him taking six years to remember us, and he smarted back about how it was Wormmon who reminded him, and you heard what I called him right before I came out."
Kari didn't accuse her of being stupid. "You know, I think you're right, Yolei. About his being lonely. Can you imagine six years without speaking to another human being?"
"No. I can't. That's what made me think of it."
Kari sighed again. "Yolei, you can't go and fall in love with him. You know what kind of consequences that could have."
Yolei hung her head. "I also know that when it happens, it happens, and there's not much you can do to change your own feelings. Hide them, deny them, maybe, but change? No way. But Kari--I was thinking--if these feelings were...returned, by him...do you think I could convince him to let us go?"
It was a staggering thought. That after all this time he might be capable of a change of heart.
"I can't tell you what to do, Yolei, other than follow your heart. I should know. I spent a year pushing Davis away for fear of hurting T.K., until finally I just asked T.K. where we stood and he was surprised that I'd even ask. He thought that I knew we were always best friends and nothing more. The only reason he didn't get along with Davis was because he thought Davis irritated me. So the next time Davis started up about wanting me to be his girl, I went along with it like I'd always wanted to, and you know the rest of it."
"So you're saying...?"
"I'm saying follow your heart because it's smarter than your head, let people know exactly where you are or they'll trip over you, and watch your own step because you can never be exactly sure where everyone else is standing. Especially when you're walking a bed of coals."
Yolei nodded.
"Do you feel better now?" Kari asked.
Yolei shook her head. "You've been a big help, Kari, but I feel worse than ever because I know exactly what's going on and I don't like it one bit."
Kari nodded and left. Yolei didn't need any more help. She had to do the rest on her own.
Yolei paced the floor of her small living room.
~I couldn't possibly love him, could I?~
A/N: Yeah. I know. It's shorter. But I like the breakoff point. So nyeah!
A/N: Well, now that Kari and Davis are safely married, it's time to focus on--dun-duh-da!--The Kaiser. Somehow I have this sound stuck in my head, someone saying "Kaiiiiiserrrrr", like that family goes "flounnnnnderrrrr" on that stupid commercial for that stuff (I can't remember what it's called!), and I like the way it sounds.
Ken glanced at the clock. Eleven.
~When should I go down there?~ He'd been debating it all morning.
Wormmon interrupted his thoughts. "Master?"
"What is it?"
"Master, when do you want your lunch?"
Ken thought about that. He would have to wait until after the DigiDestined had their lunch to go down there, and they took longer to eat because they could talk to each other--wait! ~Perfect!~ "I will be having my lunch with the DigiDestined, Wormmon. Have an extra tray sent down there."
Wormmon blinked. He'd never dreamed that Ken would actually listen to him. "Yes, Master..." he said, almost dazed.
Noon rolled around. The DigiDestined were all about their own business when enslaved digimon brought food to the dining room. It was true that all the suites had small kitchenettes, and if they wanted to cook for themselves all they had to do was request the ingredients, but more often than not they didn't bother--although Kari planned to take it up very soon.
So the digimon slaves were business as usual.
What was weird was that Ken was with them. He stood, silently watching them wheel in the cart with all the trays on it. When they finished and left, he had yet to say a word.
The DigiDestined waited in the living room, expecting him to come out in a minute and go back to wherever he needed to be, but the digimon locked the main door.
They all exchanged glances and looked toward the dining room door.
"We'll never know unless we find out," Yolei said.
"Well, I'm not scared," Davis said, walked over to the door, and pushed it open.
At the opposite end of the table was a chair that was larger than the rest, making that the head of the table. The DigiDestined had never made a big deal over it, they simply sat at the end nearest the door and never bothered with it.
But today, Ken was sitting in that chair. There was a tray identical to the rest of their own in front of him.
"Aren't any of you going to eat?" There was actually emotion in his voice. He seemed to be questioning a probable disappointment.
Yolei looked at all her friends. "I don't know about any of you, but I am so hungry that I don't care what's going on or what kind of trap it might be. I'm eating." She picked up a tray off the cart and sat in her accustomed spot, second from the end.
The others watched.
Nothing happened, so finally they all relaxed and took their own seats. Cody next to her, T.K. at the end, then on the other side Kari, and finally, Davis.
Ken took the top off his own tray and started eating, too. There were three seats between where he was and where the rest of them were sitting, so it would have been hard for him to get in on any conversation that might have been going on--but it didn't matter. The DigiDestined were all in such a hurry to finish and leave the room that they did not talk.
Everyone was finished by 12:15. They weren't sure what to do, until finally Davis scooted back his chair and stood, and then helped Kari up. Ken did not protest as they left the room, so the other three followed suit.
Ken sat after that, picking at his food. ~Well, that was a grand success.~
This feeling was so different. When he had a small setback in taking over the world, he didn't feel down, he just got started on a new plan of attack. But this--this was different. He was disappointed, and upset that things hadn't gone better.
The door clicked open, and he looked up. Yolei was peeking her head into the room.
"What is it? Did you wish to spy on the Kaiser?" Ken asked in irritation.
She frowned. "I'm not spying. I just want to know what you're doing. I mean--why you're here. Why aren't you up in your own room eating gourmet stuff instead of down here with us eating mac and cheese? Not that it's bad, but it's no duck l'orange. I'm sure *you're* not used to it."
Ken frowned. There was no satisfactory answer but the truth. It wasn't that he made lying a habit, but this particular truth was not something he was ready to admit. "Do you really care?" he asked defensively.
She nodded. "So it's a personal reason. Not something you're gonna 'fess up to."
He was starting to get upset, but--he couldn't feel true anger. Usually by this time he was on his feet and getting out his whip. ~What is wrong with me? Or--or is it her?~
She sat down at the end, in T.K.'s spot. "You want to hear what I think?"
Ken looked at her over the top of his glasses. "I think you're going to tell me anyway."
His eyes surprised her. It had been so long since she'd seen them--but something she saw in them only proved the point she was about to make. She pushed the thought aside. "Of course I am, but it's still polite to warn people when you're going to be brutally honest," she said, cheerfully. "I think that *you* are *lonely* and crave the company of other humans."
~Is it that obvious?~ "I do not. I simply think that I have neglected all of you for far too long and you could use a little watching."
~Liar.~ But she could not say it to his face. "And it took you six years to remember us?"
Ken decided it was time to be smug. "And Wormmon reminded me at that."
~He makes me so mad!~ Yolei was not sure why it bothered her, why she was letting him get to her. "Well, then, you're nothing but a big fat jerk!" she cried, getting up from her chair. It toppled over and in her haste she didn't bother to pick it up. She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
Ken sat, staring at the door in agitation.
He was *hurt*.
Someone had hurt the feelings of the Digimon Kaiser, and he sat doing nothing about it.
"It was my fault," he admitted quietly.
He knew the only way to make things right was apologize.
What bothered him was that he felt the need to make things right. ~Why do I care so much about Yolei's opinion? Why should it make any difference what she thinks of me? And yet, here I sit, caring very much and wondering how to go about apologizing.~
A few minutes later, at one o'clock, he left as wordlessly as he had come.
Yolei was sprawled out on her bed, thinking over her encounter with the Kaiser, when she heard a knock at the door to her suite.
She got up and walked to the door. "Who is it?"
"It's me, Kari."
Yolei opened the door and let her in. "Hi. I guess you could hear me from out in the living room, huh?"
Kari nodded. "Yeah. That's what I want to talk to you about. What gave you the guts to pull something like that?"
Yolei motioned to the couch and they both went and sat down. "I wish I knew, Kari."
The two girls sat a few moments in silence.
"Kari...can I ask an offbeat question?"
"Sure."
"How do you think of Davis when the two of you argue?"
Kari blinked, and then smiled. "If it's my fault I just feel guilty until I apologize. But if it's his fault, at first I feel so angry it's almost like I could never like him again. Then I realize that maybe just because he said or did something didn't mean he meant it the way I took it. Maybe his intentions were good. Maybe he just plain didn't know any better. Maybe it's just the way he is and I have to learn to deal with it."
Now it was Yolei's turn to blink.
"Why did you want to know?" Kari asked her.
"Kari...I'm scaring myself. I don't know if I should even tell you, it's so messed-up..."
"I won't laugh," Kari promised.
"I wasn't worried about that. It's just plain wrong..."
"Why don't you just tell me?"
"Well, Kari, remember back before we were captured, when we were in the real world?"
Kari sighed. "Barely. I mean, I remember everything, but sometimes I think that it was just a dream I had once..."
"I know exactly what you mean. But do you remember the time before we figured out that Ken is the Digimon Kaiser? We would see Ken on the news, or in a magazine?"
"Yeah, I remember. You had the biggest crush on him..."
"Well, Kari, when he showed up, some of those old emotions got stirred up. I don't love him, I don't think I even have a crush on him. But I sympathize with him. Like the way he is isn't his fault. That we can't blame him for being upset."
"Oh, Yolei...this could complicate things...what did the two of you say when you went back in there?"
"He asked if I was spying, and I told him I wanted to know why he was there. Then he asked if it *mattered* to me why he was there, and I accused him of just not wanting to admit why, and I told him what I think."
"Which is?" Kari asked, nervously.
"That he's lonely. He wants company. Anyway, he denied that and made up an excuse, and then I smarted off about him taking six years to remember us, and he smarted back about how it was Wormmon who reminded him, and you heard what I called him right before I came out."
Kari didn't accuse her of being stupid. "You know, I think you're right, Yolei. About his being lonely. Can you imagine six years without speaking to another human being?"
"No. I can't. That's what made me think of it."
Kari sighed again. "Yolei, you can't go and fall in love with him. You know what kind of consequences that could have."
Yolei hung her head. "I also know that when it happens, it happens, and there's not much you can do to change your own feelings. Hide them, deny them, maybe, but change? No way. But Kari--I was thinking--if these feelings were...returned, by him...do you think I could convince him to let us go?"
It was a staggering thought. That after all this time he might be capable of a change of heart.
"I can't tell you what to do, Yolei, other than follow your heart. I should know. I spent a year pushing Davis away for fear of hurting T.K., until finally I just asked T.K. where we stood and he was surprised that I'd even ask. He thought that I knew we were always best friends and nothing more. The only reason he didn't get along with Davis was because he thought Davis irritated me. So the next time Davis started up about wanting me to be his girl, I went along with it like I'd always wanted to, and you know the rest of it."
"So you're saying...?"
"I'm saying follow your heart because it's smarter than your head, let people know exactly where you are or they'll trip over you, and watch your own step because you can never be exactly sure where everyone else is standing. Especially when you're walking a bed of coals."
Yolei nodded.
"Do you feel better now?" Kari asked.
Yolei shook her head. "You've been a big help, Kari, but I feel worse than ever because I know exactly what's going on and I don't like it one bit."
Kari nodded and left. Yolei didn't need any more help. She had to do the rest on her own.
Yolei paced the floor of her small living room.
~I couldn't possibly love him, could I?~
A/N: Yeah. I know. It's shorter. But I like the breakoff point. So nyeah!