"Bellmon, Shinka Yo!" Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. However, all the original characters in this story are my intellectual property. Spiffy, ain't it?

Author's Notes: You still with me? Good, because it's gonna get a lot hotter a lot quicker. And forgive my lack of total knowledge when it comes to Japanese schooling. Hey, I don't live there. ;) Therefore, I don't know if they have homeroom. Heck, I doubt their elementary schools do. But, for story purposes, they do now. Heh. *grins sheepishly*

***
Circle Game
***

Chapter 2: "Bellmon, Shinka Yo!"

Time is an all encompassing thing. It is the Great Leveler. In time, the weak can become strong, and the strong weak. In a single moment, a life can be either saved or lost. With a split second, a person can make the greatest mistake of their life, or the greatest decision they ever made.

Time ages everyone.

And now, time will prove who are the real heroes, and throw others to the wayside. Because, real heroism is proven with... time.

Of course.

***

"C'mon, Leala-chan," Tenshi muttered softly, hunched down on the bleachers, and watching the game in front of him intensely. "C'mon, c'mon... "

"Come on, Leala!" Daisuke shouted beside the boy, making the eleven year old jump. Oblivious of the startled Tenshi, Daisuke stood up in his seat, shouting even louder. "Go, Leala! Don't give them an inch of breathing room!"

Next to his partner, V-mon cheered, as well, shaking his hands in the air enthusiastically.

Rubbing his ringing ears, Tenshi looked over at Catherine, expecting her to show a little more restraint than her husband.

"Move it, Bonbon!" hollered the French blonde. "Hit them if you have to!"

The spectators around them turned shocked to Catherine, who blushed furiously, and stumbled out a nervous apology. In French. Needless to say, no one knew what she said. Floramon clicked her tongue, embarrassed.

Groaning in embarrassment, Tenshi hustled himself a few inches away, a bit closer to his father, who patted his head sympathetically.

"It's a Motomiya thing," Takeru said to his son, as if it explained everything. Which it did.

"Oh, she's gonna score!" Hikari proclaimed, clapping excitedly. It seemed that while her brother had been the player of the family, every Yagami had a love of the game

Out on the field, wearing the red and white of Odaiba proudly, Leala Motomiya streaked across the grass. She might not have been the quickest on her team, but the others had quickly and easily proclaimed her the strongest on offense. The girl knew how to move. It also helped that she was a girl. After all, the boys on the other team had a tendency to underestimate her if they had never played against Odaiba before. A lone, short girl on an all boys team was the least of their concerns, usually.

Which is why, at this point in the game, with five minutes left before the ending, Leala was normally enjoying herself immensely. And today was no exception. Her small stature gave her room to move sharply, passing and receiving the soccer ball without breaking stride. With a high pitched yelp that was more from an adrenaline rush than anything else, Leala nearly skidded to a halt a few feet in front of the goal.

"Motomiya!" barked a teammate. "Nail it!"

The soccer ball touched the side of her shoe, and all the excitement and shouting of the game ceased to exist for Leala. Not even needing to think, she shot the ball towards the net like a bullet, so hard that even with the goalie reaching up to grab it, it easily forced its way out of his grip and into the net.

"Yee-ess!" Leala whooped, hand raised with a 'victory' sign. From the stands, the four other Motomiyas --parents and partners-- cheered proudly.

With a grin, Leala turned to her family to wave, only to meet with a large body wearing the purple and white of Kyoto. With a grunt, she fell to the ground, clutching her stinging side.

"Ya know," the Kyoto player smirked, "little girls shouldn't play with the big boys."

Leala glared up, violet eyes darting back and forth. No referee jumping over to give the boy a foul. Fine by her. She stood up, brushing herself off as she took a glance at the boy's jersey. "Number fourteen," she stated his team number, giving him her best saccharin smile. "I'll remember that."

"You do that," the boy muttered.

"What a cheater," Tenshi murmured from his seat. "What a jerk."

Atop Takeru's head, Patamon nodded in agreement.

"Some people just don't know the meaning of fair play," Tailmon said with a frown.

"Don't worry," Daisuke tried to brush it aside, though it was more than a little obvious that he wasn't happy. "Leala can handle herself."

"As long as she keeps calm," Tenshi added, softly.

Keeping calm was on Leala's Priority List. It just wasn't on the top. Number one on it was to win the game, which was already a given, seeing how they were up by four goals with only a minute left. Therefore, number two got bumped up. Number two being to add one more goal to their lead. And if that happened to include her being... forced to defend herself against a certain Kyoto soccer player... Well, them's the breaks, as they say.

So, Leala was doing her damnedest to get as close to the Kyoto goal, and keep herself open for a pass at the same time. Not the easiest of tasks, but she was managing with the help of her teammates.

With twenty feet between her and the goal, Leala stopped. "Open!" she shouted, not particularly caring who heard.

"If you insist!" Makoto, number ten on her team, said, sending the ball her way.

A grin on her face, Leala took possession of the soccer ball, and turned to the goal just in time to see number fourteen of Kyoto move into a defensive stance a few feet in front of his team's goal. Leala's grin widened a little more.

"Well, it's your death wish," she muttered. Then, she let out a short war cry that was disturbingly well known among her teammates, and kicked the ball with barely a quarter of her strength.

The black and white patched ball shot forward like a train, arching up just slightly. The ball was barely a gray blur to any player on the field who tried to watch its trajectory. It's known that an object in motion will stay in motion... unless another object stops it. Case in point, number fourteen of Kyoto's head.

The ball collided with the shocked boy's face, and he jolted a moment, then froze as the soccer ball dropped to the ground. He then followed suit, falling on his back from the momentum without even a whimper of pain.

"Toldja," Leala shrugged, as the ending whistle blared.

"Crap!" a Kyoto player glared at her from beside his unconscious teammate. "You knocked him out!"

"Really?" she blinked. "Is that all? Sheesh, I must losing my touch." She smiled, brightly. "Last time, I broke the guy's nose!"

A few Kyoto players twitched at her cheerful statement, while her teammates simply muttered agreement, and patted her on the back to encourage her to go back to the bench with them. With an enthusiastic wave good-bye to the opposition, Leala turned on her heals, and skipped back along with her team.

"You're going to get in trouble if you keep doing that, Motomiya," Makoto mumbled. "Sooner or later, the refs are gonna realize you're knocking those guys out on purpose."

"Well," she huffed, having to tilt her head up to see him from her short vantage point, "those guys are gonna have to realize that I don't take that sort of garbage!"

"You're crazy," Makoto shook his head. "You really are."

"You say 'crazy' like it's a bad thing," Leala grinned, taking off for the stands, waving at her parents and happily ignoring her coach's insistence of her staying.

"Mama! Papa!" she called, arms flailing in the air just in case her parents couldn't hear her bellowing. She ran up to them as they got into the aisle.

And quickly bypassed both her parents to hug who was arguably her favorite family member.

"V-mon!" She wrapped her arms around the small, blue dragon, lifting him up and twirling a bit. "Didja see? I got that jerk good!"

"Yeah, I shaw," the digimon slurred, with a sheepish grin.

"Bonbon!" Catherine scolded, after her daughter put the dragon down. "You shouldn't hurt people on purpose!"

"But, Mama," Leala defended, "you told me to hit them if I had to."

Catherine blushed. "You heard that?"

"Everyone in the stands heard that," Daisuke murmured, making his wife turn an even deeper red. Grinning, he picked his tiny, eleven year old daughter up so that she was riding piggy-back style. "Wanna go home?"

"Yup! Oh, wait!" Leala climbed clumsily off her father, and rushed over to her best friend, his parents and their digimon. "Tenshi-kun!" she exclaimed, giving him a quick hug. Public expression of affection aren't usually seen as proper in the Japanese culture, but with her mother's background, Leala was a bit more comfortable. "I'm so glad you came. You hardly go to any games. Did you have fun? Didja see how I nailed that guy?"

Tenshi chuckled at his friend's rapid talking. He was used to this. "Yeah, I had fun. Yeah, I saw what you did. Better watch yourself. You'll get caught."

"Aw, all you guys are too cautious," she rolled her eyes, pushing her friend playfully. Her violet eyes twinkled, and she spun to her parents. "Tenshi-kun and I are going for ice cream!"

"We are?" Tenshi asked, a brow raised.

"Of course! C'mon!" She grabbed his wrist, and began to drag him off the stands, paying no attention to his pleading to slow down. "I'll be home in a few hours!" Leala called over her shoulder, then gave the blonde boy a tug. "Run faster, Tenshi-kun!"

"I'm running as fast as I can!" Tenshi defended, but did his best to quicken his pace. Usually, with his being much taller than her, he could outrun his best friend. However, it was impossible to keep up with Leala when she was on a high like this.

"Daisuke," Takeru smiled at the two receding figures, "does she ever stop moving?"

"Hasn't stopped since she was born," Daisuke answered with a grin.

***

Quiet, quiet. Don't make a noise. Softly, softly. Make sure no one hears.

With her small, white socked feet padding along the wood floor, Kiyoshi Ishida walked across the room with anxiety growing in her eight year old stomach. Reaching her goal at the end of the room, she bit her lip in concentration.

So close. Gently, gently. No sound. Just reach up, get it, then get out. Reach. Reach, you short little twit, reach!

"What are doing, Kiyoshi?"

The little girl with the golden-red hair froze, arms held guiltily in the air. With the most innocent look she could muster, she turned around.

One brow raised, Yamato repeated his question. "What are you doing?"

The girl's hands went up and began to move wildly, defensively. 'Nothing.'

"Oh, really?" he smirked, amused. "Then why were you trying to get my old guitar?"

Kiyoshi blinked, her brain freezing for a moment. 'I was just looking.'

"Ah... I see," Yamato nodded, sagely. He motioned with his head, and walked out of the master bedroom, "Come on."

Sighing, Kiyoshi dragged her feet along the floor like a condemned man. She followed her tall father along the hallway of their apartment, until they reached the storage closet. Yamato opened the noisy door, and the two Ishidas coughed from the dust that unsettled with the movement. Cardboard boxes and bags filled with old, rusty or dusty things littered the cramped space, and Kiyoshi watched curiously as Yamato began to rummage through the old junk. After a solid couple minutes of searching, he exclaimed victory, fishing out a small wooden box.

"Here," he said, handing it to the girl. "I probably should've given it to you sooner."

Anticipation ran through Kiyoshi, and she eagerly opened the box... to reveal a chipping, gold plated harmonica. She looked up at her father, unimpressed.

"What's wrong?" Yamato asked, not used to such a sour expression. "You don't like it?"

Kiyoshi closed the box, and placed it under her arm so she could 'talk.' 'It's a harmonica.'

"I understand that," he grinned. "I've had that since I was a kid."

'It's a harmonica!' she repeated, scowling. 'Harmonica's are stupid!'

"Hey, hey now!" Yamato held up his hands in defense. "They are not. Let me tell you something. Come here," he knelt down, and reached out to put his daughter in his lap. "When your mom and I first went to the Digital World we were... Well, your Uncle Takeru was your age. And do you know what I had with me?" he asked.

Kiyoshi nodded. 'Gabumon.'

"Eh, yes," Yamato relented. He took the box from her, and flipped it open with his thumb. "But I also had this. This harmonica went through almost all the Digital World with me." He took the instrument out of its box, running his fingers reverently across the embossed surface. "I used to play it whenever I was sad, or happy. Or just needed a way to express my feelings.
"This harmonica was very important to me. It meant a lot. Still does. So, that's why I want you to have it," he handed the small instrument to his daughter. "Because you're important to me, too. I know your mom and I don't spend enough time with you because of our jobs. But it doesn't mean we don't care for you. We love you, you know?"

Kiyoshi gazed up at her father's gentle face, and found herself smiling at him. He never was one to open up very often, so she always took what she could get with open arms. She nodded, doing her best to wrap her small arms around him for a hug.

"That's my girl," Yamato murmured, ruffling her hair, affectionately. "Now, get ready for school. And don't forget," he reminded her, placing her back on her feet, "after school you have to meet with Tenshi, so he can walk you home."

She nodded again, pocketing the harmonica. Yamato offered her another smile, as she shuffled past him. Meet with Tenshi... She could handle that. Her cousin was okay. Leala would be there, too, though. That was better. Kiyoshi had long ago decided that Leala equaled fun. Like piggy-back rides, and being thrown high in the air and caught before she hit the ground, regardless of how many times Tenshi would state it was dangerous.

Kiyoshi patted the harmonica. She could show it to Tenshi and Leala. They'd think it was nice. Still, she sighed, she would've preferred the guitar. It's hard to play "Satisfaction," on a harmonica.

***

"Tenshi-kun!" Leala called out upon seeing her best friend walk into the school, waving wildly at her locker.

The blonde waved slightly, a modest smile on his face as he walked up to her, weaving through the throng of students. "Morning, Leala-chan," Tenshi said, opening his locker to retrieve some books.

"So, what are we gonna do after school today?" she grinned. "It's Saturday, so we get out early. We'll have the whole day ahead of us!"

"Don't you have a game today?" he asked, closing his bookbag.

"Nuh, uh. Practice," she corrected him. With a smirk, she tapped the goggles that adorned her head, per usual when she was planning something devious. "But I can skip it. It's not like I need the practice."

"You're not that good, Leala-chan," Tenshi quipped, with a shake of his head.

"I'm not that bad, either," she winked, tapping his nose.

He laughed softly at her silliness. "Come on, or we'll be late for class. Again."

"Pick, pick, pick," Leala rolled her violet eyes, and adjusted her goggles and then her backpack. "School should start later."

"You should start sooner," he retorted, giving her a small push.

"Whatever," she pushed him back, nearly toppling him over. The only thing that saved Tenshi from hitting the tiled ground face first was Leala's quick hand gripping his shirt, and putting him back on his feet. "Sorry," she apologized, off handedly. They had gotten used to her accidental bursts of strength through the years.

He shrugged, clearly not bothered by her abnormal ability.

"Leala-chan!"

There are few things in life that can scare Leala Motomiya. She prided herself on being fearless, on taking risks no one else would ever even dream to. She was going to grow up to be as graceful as her mother, but as brave as her father. At least, that was the plan. That's why she had "The Goggles," as her father had referred to them as.

There was, however, one thing in particular that made the near fearless Leala Motomiya's skin crawl, heart drop, legs shake, stomach turn, eyes water, and voice rise to an even higher pitch than it already was.

That one thing came in the form of a tall, busty auburn haired girl with the dubious distinction of being Leala's cousin; Doroko Kido. Maybe it was because Doroko had inherited her mother's pretty hair and surprisingly gorgeous figure. Though, Leala's Aunt Jun swore that she hadn't "blossomed" until her late teens, while Doroko was just eleven. Maybe it was because every testosterone-toting boy in school hung on every word Doroko said, even if it was about her new nail polish. Maybe it was a lot of things, but whatever the reason was, Leala absolutely feared her cousin.

However, she hid it well. Hiding it well for Leala, unfortunately, meant that she barely said anything.

"Oh, Leala-chan, I'm so glad I caught up with you!" Doroko chirped from down the hall, her fashionable heals clicking along the floor. Once she reached the pair, she gave Leala a friendly pat on the head. "It's such a pretty day, don't you think?"

"Uh, huh," Leala muttered, her enthusiasm crushed in an instant. "So pretty."

Doroko giggled, brushing a shining auburn lock away from her face, balancing her stack of books in her free arm. "It's going to be a great day, I just know it! You want to know why?"

"Not particularly," Leala whispered, glaring at Tenshi when he elbowed her.

"I just found out that Hiro-san is going to direct the next school play!" Doroko brightly informed them, a dreamy look on her face. "`Midsummer Night's Dream.' I'm going to try out for Titania!"

"Why even bother?" Leala asked, finally giving the voluptuous girl a sidelong glance. "He'll give you a part if you just show up and wave to him."

"You think?" Doroko squeaked. "I want to try out, though. Daddy says he'll help me research the role. I want to be perfect for Hiro-san."

"Uh, huh," Leala uttered, already picturing her Uncle Shuu pulling out tombs of old Shakespeare literature, from plays to stage setups, all the while Doroko soaking it all up in that deceivingly sponge-like brain of hers. Dopey as she acted, she could memorize anything. Just one more thing that made Leala feel uneasy.

"Hiro-san is so... " Doroko cooed, chocolate eyes fluttering. "Wonderful. Don't you think?"

"Whatever. Oh, dang it!" Leala growled as the bottom of her bookbag ripped open, her books scattering onto the floor. "Oh, that's just great," she scowled. "I knew it would only get worse before it got better."

With a sigh, Leala knelt and began to pick up her things, Tenshi quickly joining her. The rest of the student body carefully, and almost subtly stayed out of the way, passing them as if they didn't exist. Leala had gained a certain reputation at school that made her an object of fear or all out ridicule. Suffice to say, the only two people who were completely unfazed by her were Tenshi and Doroko.

"I'll help!" Doroko cheerfully stated, kneeling. However, when she reached out to pick up some loose papers, the books she was holding precariously slipped out of her grasped, and clattered against the ground. "Oh, dear," she pouted.

In an instant, five male classmen swarmed around the trio like bees to honey.

"You need help, Doroko?" One asked, struggling to pick up one of the girl's blue notebooks.

"Allow me!" Another jumped in, taking the notebook away from the first boy.

"You poor thing," a blonde tsked, helping Doroko to her feet. "You shouldn't have to do grunt work."

"But-" Doroko began.

"We'll do it for you!" the five boys declared, having mild tussles with each other over the spilt objects.

Watching it all, Leala's eye twitched.

"S'okay, Leala-chan," Tenshi soothed her, patting her shoulder reassuringly. "They... probably didn't notice you dropped anything."

"Yeah, right," Leala snapped, balling her fists.

"Oh, you're so wonderful!" Doroko squealed, her hands clasped underneath her pretty chin. "Aren't they wonderful, Leala-chan?"

"Fabulous," Leala replied, drily.

"Here ya go!" One boy declared, as all five held out the now neatly piled books to Doroko. "We'll carry them for you if you'd like, Doroko."

"That's so sweet!" Doroko giggled. Then, she tapped her chin, her lips pursed. "But, some of those aren't mine."

"Huh?" The five boys blinked.

"Some of them are Leala-chan's," the pretty girl explained, pointing with a smile at her short cousin, who stood there with her arms crossed.

"Uh... " the blonde boy gulped, taking a noticeable step away from Leala. "Which books are yours, Doroko?"

"Hmmm... " Doroko bit her lip, then started pulling out her things from the piles. "This one, and this one. Oh, this one! And this one with all the pretty stickers! There," she nodded. "That's it. The rest are Leala-chan's."

The rest of the books immediately found their way back to the floor, as the five boys unceremoniously dropped them, backing away from Leala almost fearfully.

"Oh, my," Doroko said, a delicate hand over her shocked mouth.

Tenshi covered his eyes.

"Hey!" Leala yelled. "What was that for?"

"Hey, don't get mad," one boy said, backing away quicker than before, and holding his hands up in defense. "We just wanted to help a lady."

"And I'm not a lady?!" Leala growled, her fists shaking.

"Not our fault you act more like a guy than a girl," said another boy, beginning to turn away. "I mean, admit it, Motomiya. You're just not feminine."

"Yeah," The blond nodded. "What's up with those goggles, anyway? Your hair so ratty barrettes wouldn't work?"

"My... goggles?" Leala's fingers twitched. "There's nothing wrong with my goggles. My father gave them to me!"

"Well, that explains it," a boy snickered. He looked at her beaten jean shorts and red and white shirt. "Probably gave you those clothes, too. Man, were you ever born the wrong gender!"

"Ugh," Tenshi uttered, grabbing onto his best friend, and picking her up off the floor just in time to stop her from causing the five boys bodily harm.

"I am too feminine!" Leala snarled, waving her fists in the air, and trying to get out of Tenshi's grip without hurting him. "Now, get back here so I can kick your butts and prove just how girlie I am!"

The five boys showed a great deal of intelligence by not taking Leala up on her offer, and running down the hall to their respective classes.

"Stupid jerks!" Leala yelled after them. "Je vous déteste des idiots!"

"Ms. Motomiya!"

Leala froze, cringing as Tenshi gently placed her back on her feet. Hesitantly, she turned around. "Yes, Mrs. Aino?"

The thin, gaunt faced principal frowned from down the hall, smoothing a few flyaway strands of graying black hair from her dark eyes. With a sigh, she asked, "Must I give you detention for disruption? Again?"

"Um... No?" Leala gambled, hopefully.

It didn't pay off. "I expect to see you at our usual meeting place during lunch," said Mrs. Aino, firmly. "My office."

"Yes, ma'am," Leala defeatedly groaned, head down.

***

With quick, even strokes, the form of a gallant looking beast appeared on the paper in front of her. Biting her lip in concentration, she defined the horned helmet, surprisingly gentle eyes peering out, and spiked hair from the back. Broad shoulders, and a strong, humanoid body, but still retaining a reptile-like appearance. She didn't know exactly why she knew this creature was retaining the reptile look; that his previous looks were far more reptilian. Only that he was.

She finally finished his stance, on bended knee atop the edge of a cliff, gazing up at the setting sun. Or maybe it was the rising sun. No, no. She shook her head. It was definitely setting. In the upper right corner, she wrote, "WarGreymon." It was perfect.

Truth be told, she had never seen a "WarGreymon" in her life. At least, not before her real, golden eyes. But in her mind's eye, she had seen him time and again, fighting the good fight in a world that only her parents and a few other fortunate chosen could venture into.

Kiseki Ichijouji closed her sketchbook, as the art teacher informed them time was up. With mechanical movements born from years of monotony, she pulled out a small lock, and securely fastened her book closed. She had no desire of people going through it and quite possibly figuring out the truth. Her parents would catch on in a split second, even her brother would. It was best to keep things like this to herself. There was no reason for anyone else to know.

Per usual, she was almost the last one to leave the room, being a bit of a neat freak, and putting everything around her exactly where it belonged. She never minded leaving the room late. It was her last class of the day. Osamu usually walked home with some of his friends. Her walks tended to be solitary. Every so often, she would wish she could bring... But no, that would be foolish. Her parents didn't know, and she wanted to keep it that way.

Humming softly, Kiseki walked out into the hall, after wishing her teacher a good day. It was Saturday, so it was early dismissal. She was grateful for that. It meant she could spend more time with her friend. Her only real friend. The only one who understood why such an outgoing little girl could turn into such an introverted young lady.

The halls of the school were bare as she walked down them towards her locker. It didn't really unnerve her. This was a normal habit of hers. However, the footsteps behind her did make Kiseki feel mildly uneasy. She chided herself on being paranoid, some of her mother's bad habits rubbing off on her. She clucked her tongue at her foolishness, and stopped in front of her locker.

She was turning the combination when Matto saddled up next to her, almost making her squeal.

"Hey, Kiseki," her classmate grinned.

"Hello, Matto," she murmured, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves.

"Whatcha doing?" he asked, casually, yet somehow making her edgy.

"I'm just getting my books so I can leave," she answered, though she had stopped turning her lock, for fear that he would catch the combination.

"Leaving?" Someone snatched her sketchbook out of her hands. "So soon?"

"Hey!" Kiseki turned to her left, frowning as another classmate, Vansu, smiled briefly at her, then began to fiddle with the small lock on her book with his bony fingers. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Ease up there, Kiseki," Matto said, strolling past her, and successfully blocking most of her view of Vansu. "We're just curious. You weren't drawing what the teacher was telling you today in class."

"Huh?" She tried to look around him, to no avail. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, come on," Matto rolled his eyes. "We were supposed to be drawing that dumb still life. But you weren't even looking at it. I saw you drawing some sort of dinosaur in that book of yours."

"It's rude to look over people's shoulders," Kiseki informed him, her frown deepening slightly.

"We wanna see, though!" Vansu said, yelping when he cut his finger on the metal lock.

"Yeah," Matto nodded. "It's not that big of a deal, is it? Give us the key. We'll take a quick peak, and that'll be the end of it. Nice and clean, eh?"

Kiseki sighed, closing her golden eyes for a moment, and silently counting to ten. Her father had taught her a few self defense moves not so long ago. Though, he had stressed the importance of using them only when she had no other course of action. Her mother, however, would've probably pounded these two into the ground by now.

"C'mon now," Matto smiled as genteelly as he could manage, the expression so foreign that it looked like it would crack his face in half. "I just want to see what you drew in art class today."

"Yeah," Vansu nodded, struggling with the small lock on the book, biting on his tongue in concentration.

"Please," Kiseki began, opening her eyes again, "give me back my sketchbook."

"Oh, just a little look," Matto semi pleaded, obviously with no intention of handing her possession over. "Just give us the key."

"Yeah, c'mon!" Vansu added, making an even bigger display of trying to open the lock. "I mean, what kind of person puts a lock on their sketchbook, anyway?!"

"Exactly," Matto agreed, giving his friend an approving nod before looking back at Kiseki. "It can't be that big of a deal."

"It's my sketchbook," she insisted, refusing to get angry with them. No matter how much she wished a certain friend of hers was with her to 'Sound Wave' the two bullies across the hallway. Of course, that would alert the teachers, and all sorts of strange explanations would come of it. It was probably best that her... friend wasn't there. "May I please have it back?" She held out her hand, patiently waiting.

Matto stared at her hand for a moment, a scowl of annoyance slowly forming on his face. With a sneer, he leaned forward so their noses were barely two inches apart. "Y'know," he muttered, "I'm beginning to think there's something in there that you don't want people to see. Something nasty."

Kiseki blinked. "What?"

"Yeah, nasty, that's it," Matto began to nod, apparently proud of his conclusion. "Little Miss Goth has something bad in her book."

"Maybe she draws hentai," Vansu suggested, giving up on trying to open the lock with his bare hands, and resorting to banging it against the nearby lockers.

"Stop that!" Kiseki demanded, her anxiety building higher each time the precious book collided with the metal lockers.

"I think you're on to something," Matto told his friend. He turned his grin on Kiseki. "Is that what you have in there? Hentai?"

"Are you crazy?" she spat, finally at her wits end. "Of course, not! Now, give me back my book!"

Kiseki took a step towards Vansu, only to have Matto jump in front of her, his arm outstretched, hand placed against a locker to successfully block her. With a frown, he leaned towards her again. "Just give us the damn key."

He smirked as she blinked golden eyes at him. He was about to repeat his demand when a gray clad arm shot in front of his view, making Matto jump back. A loud slam resounded in the hallway as a palm-flat hand made contact with a locker. Heart racing, Matto slowly followed up the arm that was held protectively in front of Kiseki, whose shocked face probably mirrored his own. Matto's eyes continued up the arm until it reached the frowning face of someone he'd seen only a few times. Deep blue, cat-like eyes were narrowed, somehow aging the young, handsome face they graced. The new boy tilted his head, his short, light brown hair barely moving, except for a lone, long lock that swung in front of his right eye.

"Didn't you know," said the interloper in a soft voice, "that it's rude to intimidate a woman?"

"Eh?" Vansu mumbled behind Matto, too bemused to continue his abuse on the book in his hands.

Matto was the first to bring himself back to his senses. With a snort, he shrugged. "What's it to you? I haven't even seen you around here much."

"It doesn't matter," the boy said, brushing his lock of hair out of his eyes, his other arm still in a defensive stance in front of Kiseki. "You should know better than to attack a girl."

"Hey, we weren't attacking her," Matto glowered. "We just wanted to see her sketchbook!"

"It's not yours to see," Kiseki said, finding her voice again.

The boy's blue eyes looked at her for a moment, then returned to Matto. "See? The lady wants her book back. So give it back."

"`Ey!" Vansu pointed to the boy, his expression one of someone who had a great epiphany. "I know you! You're in my science class. You're that... " he began snapping his fingers, as if to jog his memory. "That Seiko guy! Yeah. Seiko, that's your name!" He grinned, rather proud of himself.

"Seiko?" Matto repeated, erupting with laughter. "Isn't that a girl's name? You have a girl's name!"

Seiko's placid face immediately shifted into a deep scowl, and he snapped his hand out, grabbing Matto by his neck, and gripping him tightly enough to abruptly halt the laughter. "My parents weren't around to name me, okay?" he snarled, smacking Matto head first into the lockers.

Kiseki cried out in fright and horror, as Seiko pulled his free arm back, before smashing it into Matto's face, resulting in a stomach turning crunch, blood spurting out of the bully's nose. Seiko released him with a disgusted grunt, and Matto slipped to the floor, moaning and holding his face. Vansu's eyes dilated at the scene, and he turned on his heels, making a break for it. He yelped, tears building, when Seiko pulled him back by the back of his shirt. The boy went into hysterics as he was spun around to face the angry, blue eyed boy.

"Please, don't hurt me!" Vansu begged, unknowingly clutching the sketchbook to his chest.

Seiko's scowl remained. "Give the lady back her book."

"Huh?" Vansu sniffled, shivering.

"Her book," Seiko repeated, losing his patience. "Give it back."

"Oh, yeah. Her book," Vansu nodded, rigorously. "Got it."

With his hands still securely on Vansu's shirt, Seiko pushed the boy to Kiseki, who was biting her lip, nervously.

"H-here. Take it!" Vansu thrust the book into her hands. He locked eyes with her, and his face crumbled. "Please, don't let him hurt me!"

"That's enough," Seiko said, pulling the boy away from Kiseki. With cold precision, he gripped Vansu's neck. "I really hate guys who pick on women. Especially when they gang up. It's so pathetic." He glared at Vansu's tear stained face with revulsion. "I should probably break your nose, too."

"N-no, please!" Vansu pleaded, his voice raising in pitch.

"That's enough!" Kiseki placed a hand over the one Seiko was using to hold Vansu. "You've done enough, really. Let him go."

"He shouldn't play bully if he can't deal with being bullied," Seiko stated, eyes focused on the quivering boy.

"He's learned his lesson," she said.

"God, yes!" Vansu cried.

"Please, let him go," Kiseki requested, gently. "Beating him up now won't do either of you any good. I got my sketchbook back. It's okay. Really," she insisted. "Let him go. Please."

Seiko's scowl didn't changed, but slowly he released his hold on Vansu, until the boy was able to run down the hall away from them, crying loudly as he did so. Matto, hands still to his bleeding face, stumbled after him, muttering something about lousy luck, lousy friends, and lousy timing.

"You all right?" Seiko asked, finally turning his eyes to her. "They didn't hurt you, did they? If they did, I'll-"

"They didn't touch me," Kiseki shook her head. "I'm fine." She ran her hand over her now bumped and scuffed sketchbook. "I can't say the same for my poor book, though."

"Stupid bullies," Seiko growled. "I hate it when they pick on women. It ain't right. You sure you're okay?" he asked, again.

"Fine," she nodded. She suddenly took a hold of his hand, frowning at his bleeding knuckles. "You hurt yourself," she stated, worriedly.

"Nah, it's nothin'," he shrugged it off, pulling his hand back. "It's probably his blood, anyway."

"You sure?" Kiseki bit her lip, hand outstretched to have another look. "It doesn't look like his blood to me."

"It's fine! No big deal," Seiko thrust his hand into his jean pocket.

"Well, okay then. If you say so," Kiseki sighed, knowing there was no way she'd get another look. "Thank you, by the way. You didn't have to help."

"Eh," he brushed it off. "Guys shouldn't pick on women. It's not fair, and I don't like it."

"Hm," she murmured, digesting that piece of information. With a small smile, she bowed. "Still, thank you, Seiko-san. My name's Kiseki. Kiseki Ichijouji."

"'San,' huh?" Seiko smirked, amused. "Well, then, Kiseki-san, the name's Seiko Natsuko. For now, anyway. Nice to meet you."

Kiseki didn't quite know what to make of his expression; amused because of her formality, or amused because he thought she was just odd. She opened her mouth to state another, softer thank you, when her eyes caught sight of the clock on the wall.

"Oh, I'm late!" she cried, biting her lip, and frantically looking behind her, down the hall. "I'll never make it in time now."

Seiko blinked, startled at her outburst. "Late for what?"

"A friend. She's waiting... " Kiseki quickly explained, upset.

"Oh. Well, I'm sure-"

"I know!" she interrupted, not talking to him. Her expression instantly switched from worried to relieved. "I should've thought of that." Kiseki finally looked back at the boy, and bowed again. "It was nice meeting you, Seiko-san. I hope to talk to you again sometime."

With a final wave, the blue haired girl ran down the hall. It was just so abrupt, it took Seiko a moment to realize that she wasn't heading for an exit, but to the computer lab. For a few seconds, he thought he should just let her realize her error, for she would surely walk out soon enough with a sheepish expression. However, when a couple minutes went by with no sign of her re-emerging, Seiko found himself walking quickly over to the lab.

"Hey, Kiseki-san!" he called, opening the door of the room. "The exit's not here. Did you get...

The room was empty. The only thing that even told that there had been a hint of life in the room was a lone computer, its low drone and bright monitor signaling its recent use. Other than that, Kiseki was nowhere to be found.

" ...Lost?" Seiko murmured, confused. "Where'd she go?

***

Leala leaned against a tree outside the school, pouting with annoyance. " ...So, Mrs. Aino gave me detention this afternoon. She says she'll let me out when I can learn to control my temper," she scowled.

"I guess we're walking without you then," Tenshi sighed, absently patting Kiyoshi's head. For her part, the silent child frowned in disappointment. "You know," Tenshi said, gently, "it couldn't hurt you to keep your cool every so often."

"Well, those guys had it coming to them!" Leala defended, stubbornly. "I'm just as girlie as anyone else. And I'll pound any jerk into the ground who says otherwise," she added, smacking a fist into her open palm to emphasize her statement.

Tenshi smiled, and shook his head. "You're hopeless, Leala-chan."

"Yeah, well... " Leala's violet eyes searched behind the two people in front of her, brightening with recognition. "Hey, Yukio!" she suddenly shouted, running past Tenshi and Kiyoshi, to go over to a short red-headed boy, with black eyes focused on the blue pineapple laptop that rested on his legs.

Tenshi stared after her. "Leala-chan has the shortest attention span I've ever seen. She's going to be late for detention," he said, making his way to his best friend.

Kiyoshi nodded in agreement, quickly following, but with an added bounce in her step.

"Haven't seen you around lately," Leala declared brightly, to the short Izumi. "Whatcha doing?"

"Programming," Yukio muttered, adjusting his small, oval sunglasses, eyes never leaving the screen. "And I'd be a lot more successful without meaningless distractions."

"I'm not meaningless!" Leala snapped, crossing her arms in a huff.

"Uh, huh." His fingers flew across the keyboard, not even halting when Leala murmured something that he was sure was very unflattering, in French. He did not stop when Tenshi finally came up and greeted him. Yukio ignored Leala's complaint of his anti-social behavior to her blonde best friend. He pretended not to hear Tenshi saying that Leala was going to be late for something.

What finally did stop Yukio, and his near incessant typing, was a flash of pink, yellow, and golden-red settling itself down next to him. Now, while someone simply sitting next to him would usually be easily ignored, this particular person Yukio found very hard to ignore. Especially when she would place her head on his shoulder, like she was doing now.

"Kiyoshi," he acknowledged, with a slight twitch born from dealing with the same situation repeatedly.

The mute girl smiled up at him, giving him a quick hug, that, per normal, left him bright red and stuttering. She silently giggled at him, which made him tense up all the more.

Leala grinned. "That's soooo cute!" she cooed, teasingly.

"Shut up, Motomiya!" Yukio demanded, accidentally slamming his fists down on his vulnerable keyboard.

The computer made a few, strange, guttural sounds, before the monitor began to glow to a blinding white, that left the four children covering their eyes. Whistling pierced the air, as if something was flying very quickly, and Tenshi felt something hit his stomach, his hands automatically going there to grab the offending object.

"What the heck?!" The blonde boy heard his best friend cry, and Tenshi finally opened his blue eyes.

"What the heck," Leala repeated, shaking a strange orange and white object in her hand, "is this thingamajig?"

Tenshi's hand contracted reflexively, and he looked down, gazing wonderingly at the blue and white computer that he held.

Yukio tapped his own purple and white device, surprised that it flipped open like a cell phone at his touch. Inside were a few unmarked buttons, as well as a strange indentation, like something was to be placed there. "Well, it looks almost like a Digivice... But that's not possible, of course."

"A Digivice?" Leala brightened. "Really? Ya think? So cool!"

Yukio frowned. "I said it's not-"

"Hey, I wonder if it does anything nifty," Leala said, shaking the object.

"Leala-chan, be careful," Tenshi cautioned. "We don't know what they are. Maybe we should leave them alone."

"No way!" Leala declared. "The computer gave me my thingamajig-like Digivice, and I wanna keep it! Look at how cool it is, Tenshi-kun!" she squealed, delighted. She tapped her goggles. "I bet Papa would be so proud if he saw this. Jealous, too, maybe. His Digivice doesn't look like this."

"We don't know if it is a Digivice," Yukio insisted.

"What else could it be?" Leala challenged.

Kiyoshi gave her red and white machine a light rap, seeing if it would open like Yukio's did. She frowned when the small, contorted triangular thing did nothing. With a small pout, she held it up to get a better look at its smooth design. Suddenly, there was a little clicking sound, and Kiyoshi smiled as her device opened.

Her smile quickly converted to a jaw slacked 'oh,' as the small computer in her hand began to glow.

"Kiyoshi," Tenshi cried, protecting his eyes from the brightness. "What did you do?"

Even if Kiyoshi could speak, she never had a chance of answering.

Only a few feet away, the doors of the school swung open, to reveal a cinnamon brown haired boy, surrounded by doting females. "Now, like I was saying," Hiro Yagami smiled, smoothly, "tryouts are going to be held in two weeks. That gives you all plenty of time to be prepared. And I do hope you're all planning on being prepared," he grinned. "Because I know I'd love to see all of you there."

The girls giggled. One in particular grabbed hold of Hiro's arm.

"Hiro-san," Doroko batted her eyes, "we're all going to be given an equal chance, right?" She ran her free hand through his thick hair. "I wouldn't want anyone to get... " Her voice dropped to a sultry whisper, and her hand swooped down to caress his neck just lightly enough to give him shivers. "Special treatment."

"O-of course, not!" Hiro stuttered, managing not to squeak, even when two other girls grabbed him, both deciding that Hiro should pay more attention to them.
As gently as he could, he struggled free. "I promise you, girls," he said turning away, "everyone will get a-"

The words died on his tongue the instant he saw the bright light underneath a tree not so far off engulf his two cousins, Yukio, and Leala. It quickly subsided, and Hiro felt his heart drop. They were gone.

Only the blue laptop remained.

"What was that?!" he demanded, ignoring the shouts of surprise from his fangirls, as he dashed away from them.

Hiro nearly skidded to his knees, stopping in front of the abandoned computer. He picked it up, staring at the screen in awe and disbelief.

"Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man!" he murmured. "It just ate them. Dude... It just ate them!"

***

Tenshi Takaishi, at first, felt himself falling. Then, much to his dismay, he felt himself landing. Hard. With a grunt and a wheeze, the air rushed out of his lungs, and he pounded his chest, gasping to get it back. Tears stung his closed eyes, as he fought for breath. "L-Leala-chan?" he coughed. "Yukio? Kiyoshi!"

"Do be quiet, Takaishi. You certainly took your time to drop in," Yukio said, calmly, from close by. "We're right here. Most of us, anyway."

"Most of us?" Tenshi questioned, finally opening his eyes to look around.

Kiyoshi crawled over to him, patting his arm, and smiling at him, relieved. About a foot away, Yukio sat, with his legs crossed, and a sour expression.

"This is your fault, Kiyoshi," he accused. "You somehow activated something. I just wish," he muttered, shaking the device in his hand, "I knew what that something was."

The golden-red haired girl placed her fist under her chin, clearly distraught that Yukio, of all people, was being so harsh to her.

"Leave her alone," Tenshi defended, sitting up. His first question was quickly answered when he noted that Leala wasn't present. That fact made him more than uneasy. It made him downright sick. Mainly because he was probably just as lost as she was.
So, he asked a second question. "Where are we?"

"Look around, Takaishi," Yukio snapped, now fiddling with his new possession. "Where does it look like? If I only had my laptop... "

Tenshi did look around, and quickly wished he had kept his eyes shut. They were in a forest of some kind. The grass was expectedly uncut, but the tone was wrong. It was bright, almost pastel like, with speckles of white and yellow. The foliage was various pink and blue hues, all much too garish to be normal. The tree bark was a deep blue or purple, the leaves varying up to the point of some individual leaves being multicolored.

And the sky... Tenshi's head dropped back. The sky was an aqua that he didn't know existed, it too oddly bespeckled. Abnormal, and unnatural. Nothing looked right.

"Oh, God," Tenshi gulped. "We're... We're... "


"In the Digital World," Yukio helped, almost monotone. "Yes. But don't ask me why we're here yet. I don't know. Technically, we shouldn't be here. Only Chosen can be, and while the three of us --four if you include Motomiya-- have all been here on short visits with our parents, it should be impossible for us to travel here without our parental unit's Digivices and D3's."

"You think Leala-chan's okay?" Tenshi asked, looking over worriedly.

"Motomiya's the last problem we need to deal with," Yukio answered. "First, we have to figure out just where we are. Second, we have to figure out just how we got here. And third, we need to figure out just how to get back home."

The ground underneath them began to tremble, and Kiyoshi, small as she was, grabbed hold of Tenshi in fright. Tenshi picked her up, scrambling to his feet in order to back away from whatever was coming. Yukio did the same.

A ear-splitting howl pierced the air, causing the trio to flinch, and Tenshi sucked in his breath as a large, furry paw stomped into the clearing they inhabited. It didn't move for a moment, and neither did they, the sound of something sniffing being loudly heard. Then, with another horrible wail, and a twisted growl, a large, wolf-like creature emerged from the wood.

Tenshi recognized it instantly, along with Kiyoshi. "Garurumon!" he exclaimed, relieved. "Thank God."

"No," Yukio shook his head. "No!"

"Eh?" Tenshi blinked confused.

Kiyoshi understood, though. She loved playing with Garurumon. Her father used to help her up on the great beast's back, and she'd hug his white, blue striped fur as he'd race along. But this Garurumon was different. He was wrong. His fur was black as night, the stripes a bright white. Glaring with hungry yellow eyes at the trio, the Garurumon growled, saliva dripping down his fangs.

"He must be viral," Yukio explained, frantically. "We gotta get out of here!"

"Freeze Fang!" the viral Garurumon howled, the ice attack soaring at the three children with alarming speed.

They managed to avoid it, but barely. Yukio could feel the coldness seep through his shoes. Still, he yelled for the other two to find cover in the woods, as he himself tried to do the same. Another Freeze Fang forced them back, though, and Yukio cursed under his breath.

"You entered my forest without my permission!" the Garurumon bellowed. "I will not permit that, humans."

"We didn't mean to," Tenshi tried to explain. "We just-"

"You should not be here!" the Garurumon shouted. "Disobedience towards the rules of my forest falls hard. And I am hungry."

Kiyoshi let out a silent scream, finding herself being flung out of the safety of Tenshi's arms, as another attack rained close on them. She tumbled roughly along the ground, rocks scraping her hands, and dirt flying into her mouth, making her gag. When Kiyoshi finally came to a stop, she tried her best to scramble up, only to be knocked down again by the Garurumon's giant paw landing right next to her.

"Oh," he rumbled, leaning down to get a better look at the frightened child. "An appetizer."

"Leave her alone!" Yukio declared.

The Garurumon easily ignored the order, eagerly leaning down to lap up his trembling first course.

"Sound Wave!"

A streak of blue energy hailed through from the woods, clapping the viral digimon on his open jaw, and making him yelp in shock.

"Sound Wave!" came the cry again, this time accompanied not only by the blue hued attack, but by a small, dull purple cat digimon jumping out of the bushes. Her green eyes glared up at the large Adult, and she took a defensive stance, trying to look impressive with her small, Child size. She was a lanky thing, with large paws and ears, with a ball shaped blue bell for the tip of her thin tail.
"Sound Wave!" she snapped for a third time, whipping her tail, the bell creating an unnaturally loud noise, and causing the attack to rumble toward the viral Garurumon.

This time prepared, the Adult digimon swatted away the offensive maneuver without trouble. "What's this?" he scoffed. "A little kitty wants to play, too?"

The cat digimon hissed, her tail shaking wildly, the bell sounding.

"Bellmon," someone said from the woods, "be careful. He's viral." Tenshi's mouth fell open when a familiar figure walked into the clearing. He never really was ever close to her, but there wasn't anyone at school who didn't know who she was. She glanced up at the Garurumon, who was now glaring at her in confusion.

"Where are all you little humans coming from?" the digimon demanded.

The girl ignored him, reaching behind her back, and pulling out a device just like the trio had. A black one. She held it out, and it automatically flipped open. In the indentation, a dark pink symbol, resembling some sort of stylized flower, began to glow. "Bellmon," the girl ordered, "shinka yo!"

The cat digimon tensed. "Bellmon shinka... "

As if sent by God Himself, light descended on the Child digimon, seemingly devouring her, then changing shape along with her, until it faded to reveal a much larger cat in its wake. No longer was she lanky or small; she was now healthy looking and clearly a match to Garurumon when it came to height. Her green eyes were narrowed, and her now fluffed, bell-less tail swung dangerously, as she lowered her odd, curling ears.

"Accumon!" the new form declared herself loudly.

"Accumon," the girl said, glancing up with complete faith at her partner, "take him down. But be gentle."

"Yes," the cat nodded.

The Viral Garurumon snorted. "Doesn't matter how large you become," he roared. "You're still just a cat!"

He lunged at her, and the two Adult digimon began to trade blows so hard, they uprooted trees with their force.

And Tenshi would have been paying attention to it all, if his eyes weren't so focused on the girl who was now watching the fight with earnest. He just never expected to see her, of all people.

"Kiseki Ichijouji...?" he murmured, now utterly lost. "What's going on? Leala-chan, where are you?"

Next Chapter: Flower Child