Disclaimer: If I owned Digimon, people would bow down to me and worship the ground I walk on. But sadly, I'm not.

Note: Umm… here's the fourth chapter.  Don't complain if it's short.  Please R&R, you know the drill.

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"Puppetmon?!" TK yelled in surprise.  Out of all the Digidestined, TK was the most hated by the digimon.  He had been kidnapped, but he easily tricked Puppetmon and was able to run away.  But before he did that, he also brought an end to a few of Puppetmon's devious plots.  It was because of him that the evil digimon realized he had never had any friends, a fact that would eventually bring an end to him at the hands of Matt's digimon, Metalgarurumon.  And now he was back, standing not ten feet away from him.  "But-- I thought… you were…" he gasped.

          Puppetmon grinned evilly.  He raised his hammer in a position that resembled a fighting stance.  "I almost didn't recognize you," he cackled.  "I guess you've grown up a little.  How marvelous."

          TK hardly noticed the fresh blood trickling down his face and soaking his shirt collar.  His hatred and anger of Puppetmon began welling up inside him, and he felt the same way as he did after seeing Devimon in the Dark Whirlpool.  He clenched his fists and narrowed his bloodshot eyes.  "Shut up, Puppetmon," he retorted.  TK could see Matt start to get up off of the leafy ground, but it was clear he was too weak.

          Puppetmon put on a mock sad face.  "You've hurt my feelings, TK!  Now I'm gonna cry.  We're gonna have a helluva time!  Puppet Pummel!"

          "Teke!  Watch out!"  His brother's cry rang through TK's ears.  He instinctively ducked out of the way as a beam of yellow energy whizzed inched above his back, scorching his shirt and burning his skin.  The blood from his face splattered on the grass below him.  TK screamed in agony, his piercing wails echoing in the vast forest.  Patamon immediately flew up to his injured partner.  "TK!  TK!  Are you alright?" he asked.

          "Y-yeah.  It wasn't that bad." TK replied weakly.

          Puppetmon yawned.  "You guys are getting boring.  I'll be back for you later, if the Bane Pollen doesn't get you first."

          "Bane Pollen?" Cody inquired.  "What's that?"

          "The dust here, if too much is inhaled, can kill you instantly," Joe replied.  "And then there's Herb Pollen, which can heal wounds-- not flesh, but things like fractures and sprains, that kind of stuff."  TK wondered if that was what healed his ankle.

          "Let's give it up for Mr. Smart Pants!  Now, I'm late for a fumigation appointment, but just so you won't get any ideas…"  Puppetmon approached TK, ignoring Patamon, who yelled at him but could do nothing to stop him.  Trying to fight a mega digimon, especially one like Puppetmon, would be suicidal.  Besides, the evil digimon's wires were controlling Patamon.  TK watched helplessly as Puppetmon raised his hammer, then smacked him over the head with it (not hard enough to kill him, however).  Everything went black

^()^()^()^()^

When TK awoke, there was a damp cloth over his head, and a blanket draped over him.  He groaned and tried to sit up.  His reward was a blunt pain in his back that caused his to whimper softly.  However, the noise seemed to fall of Kari's ears, because she turned around to see her best friend awake.  As soon as TK's vision stopped swimming completely, is was obvious they were in a clearing, everyone huddled around the campfire.  The blanket covering TK was crudely fashioned out of leaves, because since everyone was pulled into the Digital World quickly, no one was able to get anything ready.

          "Are you alright, TK?" Kari asked.

          The boy rubbed his cranium and grimaced.  "My back's a little sore, and my head hurts like hell, but besides that I'm fine."  TK put a hand to his face and felt several small scratches, and one large tear running from his left eye to the right side of his mouth.  He no longer tasted blood, so he assumed someone had cleaned his face.

          Kari smiled.  "I guess we were pretty lucky Joe was here.  He cleaned you up and treated burns for you and Matt."

          "Hey, Teke.  We're eating over here.  Wanna join us?" Matt called to TK.  He was sitting at the edge of the campfire with what looked like a branch of huckleberries in one hand.  Tai and Izzy were busy picking berries off of the branch.

          "Naw.  I'm not that hungry right now.  Thanks anyway." TK called back to his brother.  He turned his aching head to the side to see his hat, half of it beet-red, drenched in his own blood.

^()^()^()^()^

three days later

Nothing unusual was happening around camp.  The team hadn't heard a thing from Puppetmon lately, but was ready for another attack.  They were still camped out in the same clearing.  Tai and Davis soon discovered that Bane dust was flammable, and incinerated any high concentrations of it before it got too close.

          Everyone was worried about TK and Tai.  Both were acting strangely lately.  TK still wouldn't eat, and seemed uncontrollably sick.  And Tai was always off somewhere in the forest, and always seemed unusually calm.

          It was dinnertime at camp, which consisted of an edible, unknown variety of berry, just like every other meal of the past three days.  Kari sat by TK like always, watching Davis try to unnoticeably scoot closer to her.

          "Hey, TK.  Want some?" she held out a handful of red berries, but TK shook his head.  Instead, he motioned Kari closer to him.

          TK spoke in soft, raspy tones next to Kari's ear.  "Kari, promise me you will not tell anyone what I'm about to tell you."

          "I promise." She whispered back.  There was a sincerity in her voice that made TK wonder if Kari should have received Mimi's crest.

          "Okay.  I think-- I think I might have been poisoned."

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Ooh, cliffhanger.