Recalled to Life
part three: Becoming Human
by volta arovet
Cody woke by degrees. His first conscious though was to ponder how much nicer it would be if he were still asleep. Resigned to being awake, he reached out a hand to shake Armadillomon awake. Armadillomon wasn't anywhere near him, and Cody began to worry when he felt a large, warm something smothering him, and the ground beneath him started to give way as if he were sinking into the earth. Acting on learned reflexes, he quickly struggled against whatever was attacking him. Sheepishly, Cody realized that he was at Joe's house, the thing smothering him was a blanket, the soft ground was the mattress, and that Armadillomon was gone. Armadillomon was…
Banishing that sad train of thought from his mind, Cody instead focused on puzzling about how he had ended up in bed when, as his last conscious memory told him, he had fallen asleep on the floor. He finally came to the conclusion that Joe had moved him, but was worried that he hadn't woken up when moved. The necessity to be alert to danger had taught him to be a light sleeper. One day in the real world and he was already losing his instincts.
Banishing that troubling train of thought from his mind, Cody instead debated the pros and cons of staying in bed. Pro: he was comfortable, safe, warm, and the longer he stayed in bed, the longer he didn't have to face the real world. Con: he really had to go to the bathroom. He cursed inwardly; the "cons" had it: he had to get out of bed. Really. He was getting up right now. Now. His body wasn't cooperating.
Gathering all of his strength, he sat up and swung first one, then the other leg over the side of the bed. He shivered; his flannel pajamas were not as warm as his usual clothes. He looked across the room at the desk. There was something on it that wasn't there before. Walking over to it, he saw two of Joe's uniforms folded neatly. In a small pile next to them were a toothbrush, razor, hairbrush, and an envelope with the word "Cody" written on it in clear, spiky handwriting. Cody opened the letter.
"Dear Cody," the note read, "Good morning. You were still asleep when I left and I didn't want to wake you. I left some supplies if you want to take a shower. There's food in the fridge if you're hungry. I've put some money in this envelope if you need it. There's a convenience store about half a block from here. I told my parents that you're a classmate of mine whose parents are going to be away for a while, I hope that's okay with you. My parents are coming home tonight, but I should be back before they get in. I should be here at about 4:00.
"Take care,
"-Joe"
Cody casually trailed his fingers over the objects Joe had laid out. He picked up the brush and carefully ran it through his long, tangled hair. It was much nicer than the crude hand-carved, wooden comb he had been using. Still brushing his hair, he wandered about the room, looking at its contents for the first time. On the bureau was a clock, stating that there was only half an hour until Joe said he would return. Next to the clock sat a few framed pictures. Several were of a short, pretty girl with dark hair and wide, friendly eyes. In one picture, the girl was dressed in formal wear and was standing next to a boy with brown hair and rounded glasses: Jim. Cody figured that the girl was Jim's girlfriend. Another picture contained a middle aged couple, a smiling woman with brown hair and a serious man with dark blue hair. Cody recognized them as Joe's parents. In a special place in the center of the arrangement of photographs was a candid picture of Jim and a younger boy with large glasses and tousled short blue hair. Apparently, they were caught unaware while wrestling, since Jim was the only one looking at the camera. Both were grinning wildly, eyes shining with excitement. Jim had the younger boy in a headlock, but the boy had his hand in Jim's face. With a start, Cody realized that the blue-haired boy was Joe, many years ago. He had never thought that Joe was ever so young.
Gomamon, tell me about Joe…
Cody! I thought you were asleep.
I couldn't sleep.
Armadillomon snoring again? Haha.
No. Well, yes, but it doesn't bother me anymore.
Then what's bothering you? Oh, siddown. I was just raiding Gennai's 'fridge. You want a bite of my sammich? It's peanut butter and sardines. Mmmm.
Um, no thank you.
So what's on your mind?
I was just wondering, what would Joe do if he were in my place? Or Izzy, or Tai, or any of the older digidestined?
You'd have to ask Tentomon and Agumon about the other two, but I can tell you about Joe. At first he'd panic, although he's gotten pretty good at controlling that nowadays, but if you look closely, you can still tell that he gets scared. Then he'd try everything he can think of to get a port to open, and if that didn't work, he'd go and find some smart friends like me an' Gennai to help him out, just like you did. After a while, he'd make the best of the situation, like, since he wanted to be a doctor in the real world, he'd end up being a doctor in the digital world. He'd find some new purpose for his staying in the digital world. If there's one thing Joe believes in, it's that everything happens for a reason. So, having all the gates closed and being stuck in the digital world is for some reason.
He told me something like that, in my first days as a digidestined. I just wish I knew why I'm here, still.
I won't lie to you. I don't know why the gates are closed. I don't know everything. (Although don't let that get around, okay? I have a reputation to protect.) If Joe were here in your place, I'm sure that eventually he'd figure out what that reason was, and he'd never lose hope that things will work out for the best. Joe's funny like that. And you know what, Cody? I think you're funny like that, too.
Thank you. I won't lose hope. It's just, there's been no sign of what I'm supposed to do, and I've been stuck here two years as of today….
He would have stayed there, staring at the photograph forever, except that he had more pressing biological needs. Staggering slightly, he made his way to the bathroom. Once he was finished, he decided that a bath would be nice. It took him a few seconds' worth of fiddling with the various knobs before he remembered how to plug the bottom of the tub and control the temperature of the water.
He gathered the supplies Joe had left in his room, as well as a set of clothing. He dumped them onto the counter next to the sink. The lighted glinted off of the metal blade of the razor. Something drew Cody to it, and, without knowing how, Cody found that it was resting in his hand. He tested the edge of the razor with the tip of his finger and was startled when a tiny red bead of blood appeared. Surface tension broken, it spread along the razor, marring its perfect steel shine. Hand shaking, he clutched the razor in his hand and brought it closer to his skin, then farther away, the closer again. With a groan of disgust, he threw the razor back on top of the pile of clothing.
Quickly shrugging off his clothes, gently unwrapping his shoulder, he gratefully slipped into the warm water. There was a fresh bar of soap resting on the side of the tub on top of a washcloth—Joe had thought of everything, Cody reflected in admiration.
Cody took the time to enjoy bathing. It had been a long time since he had been able to let his guard down long enough to truly get clean. Of all of his digimon friends, only Gomamon had always been willing to accompany him while bathing, the rest preferring to avoid the water. Without a friendly digimon to help protect him, his cleaning was always infrequent and rushed. Being unclothed meant being exposed, and being exposed was always dangerous. He took the corner of the washcloth and rubbed it roughly against the back of his neck. When he removed the washcloth, it was tinted a light brown color, evidence of years of dirt.
Cody smirked to himself when he remembered how much Armadillomon detested water when he wasn't Submarimon. Armadillomon never fully explained himself, but Cody assumed it was something about not being able to breathe underwater when he was out of that form, or possibly he simply didn't like getting water under his shell. Laughing softly to himself, Cody recalled a time when Gomamon had ambushed Armadillomon …
Gomamon, what are you—?
Banzai!!!
Gah!
…and thrown him into the river, giving him an enforced scrubbing.
Hey, gittoff me!
Wash behind your ears, la la la! Heehee.
Tentomon, help me out!
Sorry, but you need this. You aren't exactly the freshest smelling daisy in the flower patch.
Cody!
I'm not getting involved. You need the scrubbing.
Armadillomon had been so annoyed with them!
But Armadillomon was gone, and wasn't coming back. The soap slid out of Cody's hand as he suddenly convulsed, strange choking sounds squeezing out of his throat. Angrily, he closed his hand around his shoulder and winced as his fist tightened. The water around his shoulder was tinted a deep reddish brown for a moment until the color faded away, dispersing when it diffused into the rest of the water. Cody took three deep breaths and slid deeper into the water.
Images of Armadillomon and his final battle flickered through Cody's mind, only he wasn't Armadillomon then, he was—Cody closed his eyes to block out the images. When he had first woken up, the only thing he wanted to do was to go back to sleep. With his eyes closed, it was easy to do just that.
"Cody?" Joe's voice called through the house, and Cody did not respond. "You here?" He peeked into the room and saw that Cody was not there and a change of clothes was missing. He swore softly. "I hope he didn't run off anywhere," he muttered to himself, pacing down the hallway to his own room. "Then again, if he thinks he's ready…who am I kidding?" Much louder, he yelled, "Cody! Are you here?"
Sounds of splashing came from the bathroom, and Joe sighed with relief. "I'll be out in a second," Cody called. A few minutes later, Cody stepped out of the bathroom, dressed haphazardly in Joe's uniform.
Joe smiled. "Good to see you up and about. Did you have a good day?" he asked amiably.
Cody shrugged, looking away. "I didn't do that much," he admitted slowly, not wanting to say that he had slept the day away.
"Are you hungry? Did you eat anything?" Joe eyed Cody's thin body warily. Joe was thin, but even his slim clothes hung off of Cody's gaunt frame. Cody shook his head. Joe interpreted that as a no, I didn't eat anything, rather than a no, I'm not hungry. "I'll tell you what: why don't you shave while I make you a snack, and then you can eat afterwards?"
Cody seemed slightly sick at the prospect. Joe's face fell. "What's the matter?"
The younger boy unsuccessfully tried to grasp at words. "I, that is, today, the razor, I tried, but…" he trailed off.
Joe quickly stepped forward, tightly grasping both of Cody's shoulders in his hands. "What did you try?"
Cody turned away from Joe's peering gaze. "I tried to shave, but I couldn't. I never, I never learned how."
Joe laughed in relief and eased his grip on Cody's arms. "Is that it? You scared me, Cody. I thought you…but never mind that." He laughed again and patted Cody on the shoulder. Joe looked back at Cody. His laughter stuck in his throat when he saw that tears were welling in Cody's eyes. "What's wrong?"
"I never learned to shave," Cody repeated. "It's something that every boy my age should know, but I don't even know how to do the simplest things."
Joe ran his hands over Cody's shoulders to rest gently next to his neck. With his thumbs he pressed up on Cody's chin, sparsely covered with hair, and forced Cody to look at him. "Then I'll teach you," he said, stating the seemingly obvious solution to Cody's problem.
In the bathroom, Joe sprayed a generous amount of shaving cream into his left hand, then motioned to Cody to put out his hand and covered it with shaving cream as well. With two fingers of his right hand, he scooped up some of the white foam and spread it over his cheeks. "It's really pretty simple," Joe instructed. "You just spread the shaving cream where you want to shave, then scrape it off with the razor."
Cody nodded and imitated Joe's motions. It really was simple, once he realized that all he had to do was aim the sweep of the razor at his chin. Joe had already finished—not surprising, since his face had already been shaved and he had just been going through the motions for Cody's benefit. He smiled to himself as he recalled a happy memory. "You know, Jim and I used to do this with our dad when we were young. Except, because he didn't want us to use real razors and have us cut ourselves by accident, he'd give us his credit cards to shave with. Did you ever do anything like that when you were little?"
"I don't remember," Cody said quietly.
Joe faltered slightly, but didn't allow his face to fall. He turned to Cody and looked at him appraisingly, stroking his chin in a thoughtful manner. "Not bad. Not bad at all. But…aha, I've got it!" Joe shouted triumphantly, leaning over and opening one of the drawers. He pulled something out of the drawer, then put the cover down on the toilet and patted the lid. "Sit down," he called over his shoulder, as he turned to a different drawer by the bathtub and took something out of it. "Turn around," he ordered when he saw that Cody was still facing him. Joe grabbed the brush off the pile of clothes and turned back to Cody.
"What are you…" Cody trailed off nervously, looking over his shoulder at Joe.
Joe grinned widely and said, "Relax. I'm just going to give you a haircut. It's only going to be a trim, but you'll look passable until we can get you a real, professional haircut. Now turn around."
Cody did as he was told. A moment later, he felt a hairbrush pass through his hair. It passed through a second time, a third time, and Cody felt himself melt into the touch. It was so unusually careful and comforting. He wondered if this was what Gomamon, his only companion who was cuddly in rookie form, felt like when Cody petted him. Joe gently worked his way through the knots, letting the pleasant silence be as it was.
Cody was slightly disappointed when Joe was finished brushing. He heard a funny sound and a sudden scent of some strange perfume accosted his nostrils. He felt Joe's fingers rub something into his hair. "What's that?" Cody asked, turning around to face Joe.
"When I decided to let my hair grow out, my father said that the only way he'd let me do it is if I take care of it. So, one of the requirements was that I get some leave-in conditioner. It's, ah, 'herbal garden' scented." Joe seemed slightly embarrassed. "It was the manliest scent I could find," he explained sheepishly.
For some reason, that little admission made Cody smile.
"Turn back around," Joe prompted. Cody did so. Joe pulled out a small pair of scissors and began to trim Cody's hair. "You should do that more often," Joe commented after a while. "Smile, I mean. You don't have to, but…you're safe now. You can relax. Nothing's going to hurt you here."
Cody sighed. "I know," he whispered.
"Good," Joe said with finality. "You're set." He motioned Cody off of his seat and up to the mirror. He held up another mirror to show Cody the back of his head. His haircut resembled Joe's, and Cody found that strangely comforting. "It'll do, at least until we can get you to a real hairdresser. I did a pretty good job, if I do say so myself. You look—"
"Human," Cody finished for him.
Joe threaded his fingers through the newly trimmed ends of Cody's hair. "That wasn't what I was going to say. Do you want to have a snack now? I'm not as good a chef as I am a hairdresser, but I think I can manage to fix something edible."
"Actually, I think I'd like to rest now," Cody admitted quietly.
"That's fine. Do whatever you feel you have to do."
Cody lowered his eyes, long eyelashes brushing against his cheeks. "Thank you."
Joe led the way back to Jim's old bedroom, Cody following meekly behind him. Going on some fatherly instinct, Joe went so far as to tuck Cody into bed. "Sleep tight."
As soon as Joe left the room, Cody took his pillow, crawled onto the floor, and escaped into sleep.
