Note: I can't really explain what 'Recall' is just yet. I made it up, and
I'm still deciding on the possibilities of it. Comments on
characterization (especially Rika & Renamon) would be great, since I'm
still getting used to these kids and their Digital Demons. Er…Digital
Monsters. Well, I liked the Demon one better…
Summary: Jeri and Calumon are friends…but are they partners?
Calumon's Big Day
Calumon woke up to a very pleasant feeling. He was surrounded by white, feathery softness, and felt completely safe. That was important, considering he was still tired from his fight with Impmon. Soon, his green eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he could make out a…person…type…thing lying next to him. What had she called herself again? Ah, yes. A human. But what had she called herself before that?
It seemed that fight with Impmon was starting to affect his memory. At least, he thought it had been a fight. All he could remember was that Jeri (THAT was her name!) was about to get hurt when he'd jumped in, and then the very quiet way she'd sang to him and rocked him on the way home. Well, that's where he was now, then. In Jeri's home, in Jeri's room, and in Jeri's bed, which he was starting to like a lot. Maybe Guilmon and Terriermon had been right about how nice it was to have a Tamer.
"You're cute when you're pondering," a voice said.
Calumon blinked and looked up to see Jeri smiling down at him.
"Feeling better?" she asked, sounding hopeful.
The slight change in her voice, the part that sounded like she was worried about him…it was nice, he decided right away. No one had ever really been worried about him, not like this. It was different, but he liked it. So instead of answering, Calumon burrowed his way into her arms and closed his eyes. As he'd hoped, she hugged him closer and brushed his forehead with a kiss. Then the world faded to a calm, peaceful black.
* * * * *
Rika was used to eating her lunch alone. Well, not in the everyday sense. For most people, alone was just…alone. For Rika, it was still alone…but having a telepathic link with her Digimon, who just happened to be able to teleport over miles in a matter of seconds, was a decidedly different kind of alone. A fun kind. Especially when you wanted—no, needed—to talk to someone you knew would listen right then.
Not that Rika often—or ever—needed or wanted that, but it was nice to know the option was there.
And then, of course, it worked both ways, she realized as Renamon suddenly "arrived" on a tree branch overhead. Anyone else might've been shocked, or at least inclined to stare. But Rika just calmly finished her lunch. "What's up?" she asked.
Renamon peered down at her with what could only be called an amused look. That was quite unusual for her, Rika noted. It was as if she was about to tell a joke…a possibility that was truly frightening in itself.
"Calumon," she said simply, as if that explained everything she'd been thinking.
Rika sighed. "What ABOUT him?"
The amused look was still there. "He…digivolved. Last night."
Rika blinked and risked a glance upward, then reminded herself not to draw attention to a live Digimon and looked away. "How?" she asked after a long moment.
"That," Renamon replied with something of a smile, "is the interesting part. He did it to protect Takato's little girlfriend from Impmon."
Rika blinked again, this time in utter disbelief. "Takato's WHO?"
Renamon made a flimsy motion with her right paw, clearly exasperated. "You know. That girl that's always hanging around him. The one you don't like."
Rika threw her a glance.
"The one you REALLY don't like," Renamon added.
"Oh. Her." Rika blinked yet again. "Weird."
"Yes. But there is more, and it's MUCH more interesting than that."
"Really? What could be more interesting than that?"
"Calumon digivolved into Diosmon…who looks exactly the same as Calumon…and who is apparently very invincible."
"Huh." It was as close as Rika was going to get to admitting that it all sounded probable.
"And then Diosmon digivolved into Angemon."
Rika stopped pretending she wasn't interested then. "Say that again."
"Angemon," Renamon repeated.
"TK's Digimon," Rika said, almost as if it were a question.
"That's right. He called it 'Recall' or something similar, and then this purple thing around his neck-"
"That…thing he had yesterday. I thought it was a D-Power, but…"
"It wasn't," Renamon offered. "I could tell that much. But he definitely digivolved, and he was definitely very strong."
"How strong?" There was an uneasy edge to Rika's tone.
"Well, it's impossible to say. He might be able to 'Recall' any of the Digidestined Digimon. Or some of the evil ones. Or all of them. Asking him is pointless, of course."
"Of course," Rika agreed. "So what do we do?"
"I'll watch him," Renamon replied, standing up. "You…"
"What?" Rika asked.
Renamon got the amused look one last time. "Nothing. Just…have a good day." With that, she was gone.
* * * * *
Takato wasn't really paying attention to his classmates as they came in the classroom. He was thinking about what WarGrowlmon might look like if he digivolved.
Then, for no real reason at all, he glanced at the doorway, saw Calumon waving at him, and waved back. It took three seconds for that to sink in, and five seconds to realize that something wasn't quite right. He looked again.
Calumon had stopped waving, and with good reason. There was now a crowd of girls around Jeri, admiring her new pink overalls and talking about how cute her stuffed animal was. Calumon was the stuffed animal, and he was sitting in the big front pocket of her overalls, looking cuter than he ever had.
Takato blinked a few times, then glanced over at Henry, who was looking back at him with a "don't-look-at-me, she's-YOUR-friend" look. Takato had to admit that was true, and shot him a goofy "yeah, but-aren't-they-cute?" grin.
Henry sighed and shook his head in a "somehow, some-way, we'll-regret-this" manner and dropped his head on his desk.
Takato sat up in his seat and smiled. Calumon was in his class. School had never been this much fun.
* * * * *
Guilmon was bored. Well, that was a bad word for it. He was hungry, bored, and wishing he had something to do until Takato came back from whatever it was that he and Henry did at school. They didn't exactly seem crazy about it themselves, but it didn't sound like they had much of a choice. Guilmon had offered to go and defeat the evil force behind school, but Henry had calmly explained that the principal wasn't evil, just old and evil-looking. Guilmon didn't see the difference, but to help rid him of his boredom, Henry had promised to drop off Terriermon every day before he went to school.
Henry was usually good with his promises. But for some reason, there had been no sign of Terriermon today. Which left Guilmon with the huge challenge of entertaining himself.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long before he caught a familiar scent. With a feral growl, Guilmon slipped out of the park, focused solely on his newfound prey.
* * * * *
"So where is Terriermon today, anyway?" Takato asked.
Henry sighed. "It was Show & Tell day for Susie's class, and the only thing she would bring was him."
Takato made a face. "Poor guy."
"I know. It'll be at least a month before he forgives me. I just hope she doesn't lose him."
"No problem. Guilmon could always sniff him out, if it came to that."
Henry shrugged. "I guess. But I still wish I hadn't let her take him."
"Take who?" Jeri asked as she popped up beside him.
Henry took a step back, clearly startled. "Don't DO that!"
Jeri grinned. "Sorry, Henry. Didn't realize you were so jumpy."
Henry rolled his eyes. "You'd be jumpy, too, if people kept popping up on you."
"Henry's got a bunch of sisters," Takato explained. "And none of them knows what privacy is."
"Oh, they know what it is," Henry muttered. "They just pretend they don't."
"Um…Jeri…where's Calumon?" Takato asked, noticing that her front pocket was empty.
"He got hungry during gym, so he went off for a while." Jeri's voice lost some of its usual cheeriness. "I hope he's okay by himself…"
"Calumon's a very independent Digimon, so I'm sure he's fine," Henry said. "Anyway, how'd you get him to stay with you for so long?"
Jeri stared at him. "Um…what do you mean? I didn't do anything."
"You mean to tell me Calumon just walked up to you and asked to go for a ride in your pocket?"
"That DOES kinda sound like something he'd do, though," Takato pointed out.
Jeri thought for a moment. "Well, I did give him some breakfast and clean him off after the fight, but I-"
"Fight?!" Takato cried.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you. There was this mean, loud purple demon thingee yesterday that tried to hurt me."
"Impmon," Henry guessed.
Takato's eyes narrowed. "Are you okay, Jeri? If he even looks at you wrong, Guilmon and I'll-"
"Calumon beat him up," Jeri interrupted, smiling. It was nice to know Takato was concerned about her.
"Calumon? The same little guy that was in your pocket today? THAT Calumon?" Henry asked.
Jeri nodded. "Well, not exactly. First he digivolved, THEN he beat up Impmon."
Takato and Henry looked at each other, then her. "Tell us EVERYTHING!" they demanded.
"Okay! Calm down, boys! It started when I was walking home yesterday, and I ran into your friend, Rika."
"Rika is NOT our friend," Takato said firmly.
Jeri looked at him. "Takato! I'm surprised at you!"
"You don't understand, Jeri," Henry sighed. "Those are Rika's words, not Takato's…"
* * * * *
Renamon was starting to regret spying on Calumon. Not because of guilt or anything like that, but because he just wasn't that interesting anymore. She almost wished a wild Digimon would show up just so she could see him in action again. In truth, she was more interested in Diosmon, but the most dangerous thing Calumon had done all afternoon was steal a triple fudge cone from an ice cream truck.
She was so busy thinking that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her. She did, however, feel the heavy body that crashed into hers from behind and shouted playfully, "You're It!"
He wouldn't dare, she told herself. And yet, when she looked up, there he was.
It seemed Reptile Boy had a death wish. Well, she'd show him how real Digimon fought battles. All she had to do was shake away the stars and catch him, and…he was surprisingly fast, she noted as he turned the corner at the end of the block.
With a smile, she leaped to her feet. The chase was on.
It went on, back and forth, for at least forty-five minutes, when Guilmon finally gave up trying to catch her. He'd been trying to argue that teleporting was cheating, since only one of them could do it. Renamon had replied that it was simply loser talk and typical of someone with a peanut- sized brain. Guilmon had pretended to be hurt and offended.
THEN he'd shoved her into a conveniently placed mud puddle and run off laughing.
The lizard was actually very cunning, she admitted silently, wiping the mud from her fur as best she could. And she, most obviously, was a complete mess.
Correction: a complete mess that Calumon was now laughing and pointing at.
"What happened to YOU?" he asked between giggles.
Renamon frowned and dropped a pawful of mud on his head. "That."
"Hey!" Calumon tried to wipe it off.
"Here, let me help." Renamon grabbed him and dunked his face in the mud. She watched him struggle for a few seconds, then let go. "What happened to YOU?" she asked in a mocking tone.
Calumon grinned and pointed behind her. "Why don't you ask him?"
Renamon turned in time to see a red and black body coming straight at her.
"You're It!"
* * * * *
Terriermon finally stopped running to catch his breath. It had taken hours, but he'd finally escaped the horror that was Susie. He didn't feel the least bit guilty, either. You could only push a Digimon so far, and Terriermon drew the line at Princess Pretty Pants. He hadn't thought Susie would try that in public, though. She had, of course.
Realizing he was close to the park, anyway, Terriermon decided to hide out with Guilmon.
That was when he came across the first muddy footprint. Confused, he looked up.
"Hi!" Calumon said.
Terriermon blinked. "Um…what happened to you guys?"
"Mud fight," Guilmon replied.
"How'd you get HER to play?" he asked, nodding to Renamon.
"She was It!" Guilmon answered, giving Renamon a good-natured pat on the back.
Renamon glared at him. "Never do that again."
Terriermon sighed and shook his head. "I'll get a hose."
* * * * *
"I am SO sorry, Terriermon," Henry said for the fifty-second time. "I will make this up to you."
Terriermon sighed. "I might forgive you some time next century."
"Come on, don't be like that," Henry muttered as he searched for his house keys.
"Have you ever played with your sister? I mean, REALLY played with her? She's…WEIRD!"
"I know she can be…eccentric," Henry admitted, finally locating his keys.
"You are now a master of understatement, Henry. Besides, I don't think you- "
The door suddenly swung open, and Henry looked up to see his father standing there. Thankfully, Terriermon was smart enough to be quiet, but Henry had a sinking feeling it was already too late.
To make things worse, Susie appeared next, a huge grin on her face. "Tewwiamon!" she squealed, scooping him up in her arms. "I missed you today!" She turned and headed back to her room.
Henry started to say something, then sighed and gave Terriermon a sympathetic look. Terriermon's look, to say the least, was certainly not sympathetic. It was more along the lines of outraged and possibly murderous.
"Henry."
Henry swallowed noisily and looked at his father.
Mr. Wong had never looked more serious. "I think," he said quietly, "that we need to have a long talk."
* * * * *
"So, did you have fun today?" Jeri asked.
"Yup!" Calumon replied, bouncing on her bed. "We had a mud fight!"
"Really? Who won?"
"Um…I think it was a tie between me and Guilmon. I was harder to hold on to, but he's got good aim."
Jeri smiled, patting Calumon's head fondly. He was really too cute sometimes, like every other second. She couldn't remember how she'd kept busy before he came along. Then she remembered: wondering how Takato really felt about her. The thought made her cheeks turn a slight shade of pink.
"What's wrong with your face?" Calumon asked, looking confused.
"Hmm? Oh, nothing. I'm just thinking about someone."
"Is it Takato?" Calumon asked with a big grin.
Jeri blushed and turned away. "What makes you think that?"
"Well, sometimes when you're around him, he looks the same way. I figured there was a connection."
"You've…really seen him do that?"
Calumon hopped on her shoulder. "Sure! You should give him a lip thing!"
Jeri blinked. "A…what?"
"A lip thing!" Calumon repeated. "You know, those nice little soft things you give me sometimes?"
Jeri stared at him, and then giggled. "You mean a kiss?"
"No, a lip thing!"
Jeri had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. "Like this?" she asked, giving him a peck on the cheek.
"Yeah, those! They always make ME feel better. You should give him one!"
"I did, once," Jeri said quietly.
"And did he look happy?"
"Well, yeah…"
"So it worked! Give him more!"
Jeri smiled at him. "I don't suppose you digivolve into something called Cupidmon, do you?"
Calumon blinked. "Um…I could try!"
"You'd better not. You should save your strength, in case I need you again."
"Okay!" Calumon got a thoughtful look on his face. "Jeri?"
"Yes?"
"If I asked you to be my Tamer…would you do it?"
Jeri froze. "Are you…asking me, Calumon?"
"Huh? Well, um…no…I mean, at least not NOW! But…I might later…soon…so…" He trailed off, a helpless look on his face.
Jeri reached up and stroked his head. "I'd love to be your Tamer, Calumon, but…" She sighed, a sad smile on her face. "I can handle the easy side of it, like taking care of you and keeping you happy. But I'm not so sure I'd be any good at the hard side."
"The…hard side?" Calumon asked.
"Making you fight," she said quietly. "I don't like the idea of sending you into a fight, unless it was to protect me or our friends. Takato told me it can be really dangerous sometimes, and I was so scared when you fought Impmon. I thought he was going to…kill you…"
"So then…you won't be my Tamer? Ever?" Calumon asked, his ears drooping.
"I don't know if you need a Tamer, Calumon," Jeri replied. "You can take care of yourself just fine."
"But…what if I want YOU to take care of me?"
Jeri smiled a bit. "Well, if that's what you want, then I guess I could still be your friend."
"Will you still sing to me at night? And tell me how cute I am? And take me to school with you?"
"You like it when I do those things?"
"Yeah!" Calumon cried. "They're…FUN! YOU'RE fun! My fun friend!"
"Then we can have more fun first thing in the morning. Right now, I'm going to bed."
Calumon sat back and watched as Jeri climbed into bed. Then he leaped on after her and put a pillow on her chest.
"What are you doing?" Jeri asked as he piled two blankets on top of her.
"When I woke up, I was in a soft, white cave. You gotta try it!"
"That was a pillow, Calumon, and I have plenty. Just come up here."
Calumon hopped onto the pillow and bounced. "Hey, it's even softer than before!"
Jeri caught him as he came down. "But you're supposed to sleep on it. Like this." She put him down on the pillow and pulled the blanket up over them both. "Now, isn't that comfortable?"
"I like my way better." Calumon burrowed under the blanket and emerged in her arms. "Now, isn't THIS comfortable?" he demanded.
Jeri smiled and kissed the top of his head. "I guess so."
"Ooooh, lip thing! You're good at those."
"I'm glad you think so. I just hope Takato does, too…"
Summary: Jeri and Calumon are friends…but are they partners?
Calumon's Big Day
Calumon woke up to a very pleasant feeling. He was surrounded by white, feathery softness, and felt completely safe. That was important, considering he was still tired from his fight with Impmon. Soon, his green eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he could make out a…person…type…thing lying next to him. What had she called herself again? Ah, yes. A human. But what had she called herself before that?
It seemed that fight with Impmon was starting to affect his memory. At least, he thought it had been a fight. All he could remember was that Jeri (THAT was her name!) was about to get hurt when he'd jumped in, and then the very quiet way she'd sang to him and rocked him on the way home. Well, that's where he was now, then. In Jeri's home, in Jeri's room, and in Jeri's bed, which he was starting to like a lot. Maybe Guilmon and Terriermon had been right about how nice it was to have a Tamer.
"You're cute when you're pondering," a voice said.
Calumon blinked and looked up to see Jeri smiling down at him.
"Feeling better?" she asked, sounding hopeful.
The slight change in her voice, the part that sounded like she was worried about him…it was nice, he decided right away. No one had ever really been worried about him, not like this. It was different, but he liked it. So instead of answering, Calumon burrowed his way into her arms and closed his eyes. As he'd hoped, she hugged him closer and brushed his forehead with a kiss. Then the world faded to a calm, peaceful black.
* * * * *
Rika was used to eating her lunch alone. Well, not in the everyday sense. For most people, alone was just…alone. For Rika, it was still alone…but having a telepathic link with her Digimon, who just happened to be able to teleport over miles in a matter of seconds, was a decidedly different kind of alone. A fun kind. Especially when you wanted—no, needed—to talk to someone you knew would listen right then.
Not that Rika often—or ever—needed or wanted that, but it was nice to know the option was there.
And then, of course, it worked both ways, she realized as Renamon suddenly "arrived" on a tree branch overhead. Anyone else might've been shocked, or at least inclined to stare. But Rika just calmly finished her lunch. "What's up?" she asked.
Renamon peered down at her with what could only be called an amused look. That was quite unusual for her, Rika noted. It was as if she was about to tell a joke…a possibility that was truly frightening in itself.
"Calumon," she said simply, as if that explained everything she'd been thinking.
Rika sighed. "What ABOUT him?"
The amused look was still there. "He…digivolved. Last night."
Rika blinked and risked a glance upward, then reminded herself not to draw attention to a live Digimon and looked away. "How?" she asked after a long moment.
"That," Renamon replied with something of a smile, "is the interesting part. He did it to protect Takato's little girlfriend from Impmon."
Rika blinked again, this time in utter disbelief. "Takato's WHO?"
Renamon made a flimsy motion with her right paw, clearly exasperated. "You know. That girl that's always hanging around him. The one you don't like."
Rika threw her a glance.
"The one you REALLY don't like," Renamon added.
"Oh. Her." Rika blinked yet again. "Weird."
"Yes. But there is more, and it's MUCH more interesting than that."
"Really? What could be more interesting than that?"
"Calumon digivolved into Diosmon…who looks exactly the same as Calumon…and who is apparently very invincible."
"Huh." It was as close as Rika was going to get to admitting that it all sounded probable.
"And then Diosmon digivolved into Angemon."
Rika stopped pretending she wasn't interested then. "Say that again."
"Angemon," Renamon repeated.
"TK's Digimon," Rika said, almost as if it were a question.
"That's right. He called it 'Recall' or something similar, and then this purple thing around his neck-"
"That…thing he had yesterday. I thought it was a D-Power, but…"
"It wasn't," Renamon offered. "I could tell that much. But he definitely digivolved, and he was definitely very strong."
"How strong?" There was an uneasy edge to Rika's tone.
"Well, it's impossible to say. He might be able to 'Recall' any of the Digidestined Digimon. Or some of the evil ones. Or all of them. Asking him is pointless, of course."
"Of course," Rika agreed. "So what do we do?"
"I'll watch him," Renamon replied, standing up. "You…"
"What?" Rika asked.
Renamon got the amused look one last time. "Nothing. Just…have a good day." With that, she was gone.
* * * * *
Takato wasn't really paying attention to his classmates as they came in the classroom. He was thinking about what WarGrowlmon might look like if he digivolved.
Then, for no real reason at all, he glanced at the doorway, saw Calumon waving at him, and waved back. It took three seconds for that to sink in, and five seconds to realize that something wasn't quite right. He looked again.
Calumon had stopped waving, and with good reason. There was now a crowd of girls around Jeri, admiring her new pink overalls and talking about how cute her stuffed animal was. Calumon was the stuffed animal, and he was sitting in the big front pocket of her overalls, looking cuter than he ever had.
Takato blinked a few times, then glanced over at Henry, who was looking back at him with a "don't-look-at-me, she's-YOUR-friend" look. Takato had to admit that was true, and shot him a goofy "yeah, but-aren't-they-cute?" grin.
Henry sighed and shook his head in a "somehow, some-way, we'll-regret-this" manner and dropped his head on his desk.
Takato sat up in his seat and smiled. Calumon was in his class. School had never been this much fun.
* * * * *
Guilmon was bored. Well, that was a bad word for it. He was hungry, bored, and wishing he had something to do until Takato came back from whatever it was that he and Henry did at school. They didn't exactly seem crazy about it themselves, but it didn't sound like they had much of a choice. Guilmon had offered to go and defeat the evil force behind school, but Henry had calmly explained that the principal wasn't evil, just old and evil-looking. Guilmon didn't see the difference, but to help rid him of his boredom, Henry had promised to drop off Terriermon every day before he went to school.
Henry was usually good with his promises. But for some reason, there had been no sign of Terriermon today. Which left Guilmon with the huge challenge of entertaining himself.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long before he caught a familiar scent. With a feral growl, Guilmon slipped out of the park, focused solely on his newfound prey.
* * * * *
"So where is Terriermon today, anyway?" Takato asked.
Henry sighed. "It was Show & Tell day for Susie's class, and the only thing she would bring was him."
Takato made a face. "Poor guy."
"I know. It'll be at least a month before he forgives me. I just hope she doesn't lose him."
"No problem. Guilmon could always sniff him out, if it came to that."
Henry shrugged. "I guess. But I still wish I hadn't let her take him."
"Take who?" Jeri asked as she popped up beside him.
Henry took a step back, clearly startled. "Don't DO that!"
Jeri grinned. "Sorry, Henry. Didn't realize you were so jumpy."
Henry rolled his eyes. "You'd be jumpy, too, if people kept popping up on you."
"Henry's got a bunch of sisters," Takato explained. "And none of them knows what privacy is."
"Oh, they know what it is," Henry muttered. "They just pretend they don't."
"Um…Jeri…where's Calumon?" Takato asked, noticing that her front pocket was empty.
"He got hungry during gym, so he went off for a while." Jeri's voice lost some of its usual cheeriness. "I hope he's okay by himself…"
"Calumon's a very independent Digimon, so I'm sure he's fine," Henry said. "Anyway, how'd you get him to stay with you for so long?"
Jeri stared at him. "Um…what do you mean? I didn't do anything."
"You mean to tell me Calumon just walked up to you and asked to go for a ride in your pocket?"
"That DOES kinda sound like something he'd do, though," Takato pointed out.
Jeri thought for a moment. "Well, I did give him some breakfast and clean him off after the fight, but I-"
"Fight?!" Takato cried.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you. There was this mean, loud purple demon thingee yesterday that tried to hurt me."
"Impmon," Henry guessed.
Takato's eyes narrowed. "Are you okay, Jeri? If he even looks at you wrong, Guilmon and I'll-"
"Calumon beat him up," Jeri interrupted, smiling. It was nice to know Takato was concerned about her.
"Calumon? The same little guy that was in your pocket today? THAT Calumon?" Henry asked.
Jeri nodded. "Well, not exactly. First he digivolved, THEN he beat up Impmon."
Takato and Henry looked at each other, then her. "Tell us EVERYTHING!" they demanded.
"Okay! Calm down, boys! It started when I was walking home yesterday, and I ran into your friend, Rika."
"Rika is NOT our friend," Takato said firmly.
Jeri looked at him. "Takato! I'm surprised at you!"
"You don't understand, Jeri," Henry sighed. "Those are Rika's words, not Takato's…"
* * * * *
Renamon was starting to regret spying on Calumon. Not because of guilt or anything like that, but because he just wasn't that interesting anymore. She almost wished a wild Digimon would show up just so she could see him in action again. In truth, she was more interested in Diosmon, but the most dangerous thing Calumon had done all afternoon was steal a triple fudge cone from an ice cream truck.
She was so busy thinking that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her. She did, however, feel the heavy body that crashed into hers from behind and shouted playfully, "You're It!"
He wouldn't dare, she told herself. And yet, when she looked up, there he was.
It seemed Reptile Boy had a death wish. Well, she'd show him how real Digimon fought battles. All she had to do was shake away the stars and catch him, and…he was surprisingly fast, she noted as he turned the corner at the end of the block.
With a smile, she leaped to her feet. The chase was on.
It went on, back and forth, for at least forty-five minutes, when Guilmon finally gave up trying to catch her. He'd been trying to argue that teleporting was cheating, since only one of them could do it. Renamon had replied that it was simply loser talk and typical of someone with a peanut- sized brain. Guilmon had pretended to be hurt and offended.
THEN he'd shoved her into a conveniently placed mud puddle and run off laughing.
The lizard was actually very cunning, she admitted silently, wiping the mud from her fur as best she could. And she, most obviously, was a complete mess.
Correction: a complete mess that Calumon was now laughing and pointing at.
"What happened to YOU?" he asked between giggles.
Renamon frowned and dropped a pawful of mud on his head. "That."
"Hey!" Calumon tried to wipe it off.
"Here, let me help." Renamon grabbed him and dunked his face in the mud. She watched him struggle for a few seconds, then let go. "What happened to YOU?" she asked in a mocking tone.
Calumon grinned and pointed behind her. "Why don't you ask him?"
Renamon turned in time to see a red and black body coming straight at her.
"You're It!"
* * * * *
Terriermon finally stopped running to catch his breath. It had taken hours, but he'd finally escaped the horror that was Susie. He didn't feel the least bit guilty, either. You could only push a Digimon so far, and Terriermon drew the line at Princess Pretty Pants. He hadn't thought Susie would try that in public, though. She had, of course.
Realizing he was close to the park, anyway, Terriermon decided to hide out with Guilmon.
That was when he came across the first muddy footprint. Confused, he looked up.
"Hi!" Calumon said.
Terriermon blinked. "Um…what happened to you guys?"
"Mud fight," Guilmon replied.
"How'd you get HER to play?" he asked, nodding to Renamon.
"She was It!" Guilmon answered, giving Renamon a good-natured pat on the back.
Renamon glared at him. "Never do that again."
Terriermon sighed and shook his head. "I'll get a hose."
* * * * *
"I am SO sorry, Terriermon," Henry said for the fifty-second time. "I will make this up to you."
Terriermon sighed. "I might forgive you some time next century."
"Come on, don't be like that," Henry muttered as he searched for his house keys.
"Have you ever played with your sister? I mean, REALLY played with her? She's…WEIRD!"
"I know she can be…eccentric," Henry admitted, finally locating his keys.
"You are now a master of understatement, Henry. Besides, I don't think you- "
The door suddenly swung open, and Henry looked up to see his father standing there. Thankfully, Terriermon was smart enough to be quiet, but Henry had a sinking feeling it was already too late.
To make things worse, Susie appeared next, a huge grin on her face. "Tewwiamon!" she squealed, scooping him up in her arms. "I missed you today!" She turned and headed back to her room.
Henry started to say something, then sighed and gave Terriermon a sympathetic look. Terriermon's look, to say the least, was certainly not sympathetic. It was more along the lines of outraged and possibly murderous.
"Henry."
Henry swallowed noisily and looked at his father.
Mr. Wong had never looked more serious. "I think," he said quietly, "that we need to have a long talk."
* * * * *
"So, did you have fun today?" Jeri asked.
"Yup!" Calumon replied, bouncing on her bed. "We had a mud fight!"
"Really? Who won?"
"Um…I think it was a tie between me and Guilmon. I was harder to hold on to, but he's got good aim."
Jeri smiled, patting Calumon's head fondly. He was really too cute sometimes, like every other second. She couldn't remember how she'd kept busy before he came along. Then she remembered: wondering how Takato really felt about her. The thought made her cheeks turn a slight shade of pink.
"What's wrong with your face?" Calumon asked, looking confused.
"Hmm? Oh, nothing. I'm just thinking about someone."
"Is it Takato?" Calumon asked with a big grin.
Jeri blushed and turned away. "What makes you think that?"
"Well, sometimes when you're around him, he looks the same way. I figured there was a connection."
"You've…really seen him do that?"
Calumon hopped on her shoulder. "Sure! You should give him a lip thing!"
Jeri blinked. "A…what?"
"A lip thing!" Calumon repeated. "You know, those nice little soft things you give me sometimes?"
Jeri stared at him, and then giggled. "You mean a kiss?"
"No, a lip thing!"
Jeri had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. "Like this?" she asked, giving him a peck on the cheek.
"Yeah, those! They always make ME feel better. You should give him one!"
"I did, once," Jeri said quietly.
"And did he look happy?"
"Well, yeah…"
"So it worked! Give him more!"
Jeri smiled at him. "I don't suppose you digivolve into something called Cupidmon, do you?"
Calumon blinked. "Um…I could try!"
"You'd better not. You should save your strength, in case I need you again."
"Okay!" Calumon got a thoughtful look on his face. "Jeri?"
"Yes?"
"If I asked you to be my Tamer…would you do it?"
Jeri froze. "Are you…asking me, Calumon?"
"Huh? Well, um…no…I mean, at least not NOW! But…I might later…soon…so…" He trailed off, a helpless look on his face.
Jeri reached up and stroked his head. "I'd love to be your Tamer, Calumon, but…" She sighed, a sad smile on her face. "I can handle the easy side of it, like taking care of you and keeping you happy. But I'm not so sure I'd be any good at the hard side."
"The…hard side?" Calumon asked.
"Making you fight," she said quietly. "I don't like the idea of sending you into a fight, unless it was to protect me or our friends. Takato told me it can be really dangerous sometimes, and I was so scared when you fought Impmon. I thought he was going to…kill you…"
"So then…you won't be my Tamer? Ever?" Calumon asked, his ears drooping.
"I don't know if you need a Tamer, Calumon," Jeri replied. "You can take care of yourself just fine."
"But…what if I want YOU to take care of me?"
Jeri smiled a bit. "Well, if that's what you want, then I guess I could still be your friend."
"Will you still sing to me at night? And tell me how cute I am? And take me to school with you?"
"You like it when I do those things?"
"Yeah!" Calumon cried. "They're…FUN! YOU'RE fun! My fun friend!"
"Then we can have more fun first thing in the morning. Right now, I'm going to bed."
Calumon sat back and watched as Jeri climbed into bed. Then he leaped on after her and put a pillow on her chest.
"What are you doing?" Jeri asked as he piled two blankets on top of her.
"When I woke up, I was in a soft, white cave. You gotta try it!"
"That was a pillow, Calumon, and I have plenty. Just come up here."
Calumon hopped onto the pillow and bounced. "Hey, it's even softer than before!"
Jeri caught him as he came down. "But you're supposed to sleep on it. Like this." She put him down on the pillow and pulled the blanket up over them both. "Now, isn't that comfortable?"
"I like my way better." Calumon burrowed under the blanket and emerged in her arms. "Now, isn't THIS comfortable?" he demanded.
Jeri smiled and kissed the top of his head. "I guess so."
"Ooooh, lip thing! You're good at those."
"I'm glad you think so. I just hope Takato does, too…"