Chapter Eight

Daisuke walked into the hotel room he shared with Takeru, Koushiro, Yamato, and Taichi. The other DigiDestined were waiting for him.

"Where've you been pal?" asked Takeru.

"…Yeah…"

"What?" asked Takeru, very puzzled.

"Oh sorry. Well, let's get going."

"Yeah!" exclaimed all the others.

Koushiro grabbed his laptop and turned it on. Hikari got out her D-3 and held it up to the screen.

"Digiport open!" and then the digiport opened. The whole twenty-four of them squeezed through the screen and into cyberspace, blasting their way into the Digital World.

"Okay, we should split up into two teams," said Takeru. "Hikari and I will be one team, the rest of you will be the other."

Everyone else rolled their eyes.

"Get real, Takeru," said Taichi. "Your not-"

"How about we split up into pairs?" suggested Yamato, smiling at Takeru, who smiled back.

"All right," said Takeru, quickly. "Hikari and I will be one pair, the rest of you… can pair with whoever."

"Hey," said Daisuke. "You're not the leader here!"

"No, I am," said Taichi. "And I have no problem with Takeru's plan."

"Fine," said Daisuke. "Do whatever Takeru wants, forget about stupid old Daisuke, who has just been chased by an evil Digimon, who goes to the hospital twice a week because he always blows his lungs out, let's just forget about Daisuke and not throw him a bone." When Daisuke looked up, only Ken was present. Everyone else had left.

"Let's go Daisuke," he said, and smiled. "Better luck next time."

* * *

"So umm… H- Hikari?" said Takeru.

"Yes?" asked Hikari, smiling.

"Umm…" Takeru was sweating. A slight blush appeared on his face. "Well, you know how in English we're supposed to be memorizing a siloquoy from 'Romeo and Juliet'?"

"Mm-hm."

"I was wondering if you wouldn't mind me practicing on you."

"Oh, I don't mind, go ahead."

"Okay…

"'He jests at scars that never felt a wound.

But soft! What light through yonder window breaks?

It is the east, and Juliet is the sun!

Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,

Who is already sick and pale with grief

That thou her maid art far more fair than she.

But not her maid, since she is envious.

Her vestal livery is but sick and green,

and none but fools do wear it. Cast it off.

It is my lady! O, it is my love!

O, that she knew she were!

She speaks, yet she says nothing. What of that?

Her eye discourses; I will answer it.

I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks.

[umm… oh yeah] Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven,

having some business, do entreat her eyes

to twinkle in their spheres till they return.

What if her eyes were there, they in her head?

The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars

As daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heaven

Would through the airy region stream so bright

That birds would sing and think it were not night.

See how she leans her cheek upon her hand!

O, that I were a glove upon that hand,

That I might touch that cheek!'

Phew!"

Hikari, with tears in her eyes, jumped up and began to clap.

"That was so beautiful!" she exclaimed. Takeru began to blush even more.

"Th- thank you very much," he said.

Just then, there was a red flash, and Gatomon jumped on top of Takeru's head.

"What the heck!? Hey," Gatomon began to punch Takeru in the face.

"Gatomon, stop it. What are you doing that for?" said Hikari. She ran over and grabbed Gatomon and tried to pull her off, but Gatomon slapped Hikari aside with her tail.

"Why…" Hikari began.

"It's… Veranmon…" said Takeru between punches.

Hikari's eyes went big and she gasped. "Do something, Patamon," she said.

Patamon flew over to Veranmon in Gatomon's body and said, "Your shoes are untied."

"What?" said Veranmon in Gatomon's body and voice. She looked down to find no shoes on her feet. She looked up to see Patamon's large left ear a centimeter in front of her face. Then it hit her. Veranmon in Gatomon's body fell off of Takeru.

"Nice going, Patamon," said Takeru. "Thanks."

"My pleasure," said Patamon. He turned to Veranmon in Gatomon's body and said, "Don't you even think about taking over my body, because I know Gatomon will want revenge for what you did to her."

Veranmon in Gatomon's body growled, and Gatomon fell over. The others assumed this meant Veranmon had left.

"Are you okay Gatomon?" asked Hikari as she ran over to her partner's side.

"Yeah," said Gatomon. "And may I apologize to Takeru."

"Forget it," said Takeru. "It wasn't really you."

"I'm sorry too," said Patamon.

"I understand, don't worry about it," said Gatomon.

"I'm sorry too," said Hikari. "I should have noticed Gatomon was being possesed, but I was so enraptured by Takeru's performance."

"Oh well… that's okay," said Takeru.

"I'm sorry," they all said at once, and came together in a group hug. Gatomon and Patamon pulled away and began to search for Veranmon again, but noticed that Hikari and Takeru were still embracing.

"Hmm," said Patamon. "This moment we just had was a perfect antonym for 'altercation,' you know? What just happened?"

"I don't know, but they better stop before they hug each other to death," said Gatomon. "Hey, you two! Let's go!"

Takeru and Hikari pulled away and blushed.

"All right, let's go," said Patamon, and the four of them continued their search.

* * *

Yamato and Taichi came up to a lake.

"Where are we?" asked Taichi. He noticed something oddly familiar about the lake, but he couldn't quite figure out what it was.

"Here's a hint," said Yamato. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a harmonica, and began to play.

"Oh yeah," said Taichi. "That was years ago. I'd almost forgotten."

"I remember it like it was, well, years ago," said Yamato.

Out of nowhere, a dark figure came rushing out and knocked Yamato into the lake. Yamato hit the water with a splash, and his soaked head bobbed up a few seconds later. Garurumon, Agumon, and Taichi all pulled him out of the lake.

"That was Veranmon," said Taichi. "Come on, after her!" So they all went after her.