A/N: Okay, from here on things will get a bit confusing. That dark voice that talks to Shizu calls her hikari, which means light. Unfortunately, that's also Hikari's name. Duh. So, if it's capitalized, it's Hikari Kamiya, and if it's not, it's Shizu. Not really that complicated, if you think about it.

Chapter 2: Chemistry/Midnight Visits

Miyako slid into a booth in the restaurant where Koushiro and Shizu were supposed to meet for lunch. "Sit down, Hika," she whispered fiercely. Hikari sighed and sat down.

"I can't believe we're still spying on them. . ."

"We're /supposed/ to. We're /matchmakers/."

Koushiro waved at them from a nearby table, grinning somewhat foolishly. Hikari waved back.

"Stop it. We don't know him, remember?"

The brunette gazed levelly at her friend. "That's ridiculous and you know it."

The bell on the door jingled as a slender, blonde girl stepped inside. She strode to Koushiro's seat and slid into a chair. "Hi," she murmured, just loud enough for the spies to hear.

"Hi, Shizu," Koushiro managed. "Uh, it's nice to see you again."

She shot a dazzling smile at him. "You too, Kou-chan. Shall we order?"

"Oh. Yeah."

Miyako quickly bent over to lace her shoe. "What are they getting?" she whispered fiercely.

Hikari peered at her friend. "Hamburgers. That's all they really have here."

Miyako straightened quickly, knocking her soda over. "Oops."

As the long-suffering janitor walked to their table, Hikari sighed. "Some spy you are."

~~

The door creaked slowly open, and a blonde girl peered out. Seeing nothing, she stepped out of the house, shivering as the cold of midnight struck her bare legs. Pulling her jacket on, she dashed to the car, the keys in her pocket jingling loudly in the night's stillness.

Jumping into the car, she was about to slam the door and thought better of it, closing it quietly. She slipped the key into the ignition but didn't turn it. "We're stealing a car," she moaned.

A dark figure materialized in the passenger seat. "It's your car."

"Next week it's my car," she replied. "I haven't passed my Driver's Ed test yet. You know that."

"No one will see us, Shizuko," the figure said solemnly. "Run without lights."

Shizu groaned and banged her head on the steering wheel, careful to avoid the horn. "We're. Going. To. Die."

"Run without lights. I will keep us in the shadows."

Shizuko started the car, surprised at how softly it seemed to move. She buckled her seat belt. "Will you tell me where we're going?"

The figure waited until she was out of the driveway before announcing, "Osamu Ichijouji's secret lab."

The blonde teen slammed on the brakes. "/What/ secret lab?"

"It's very complicated."

"Explain or I'm not driving you anywhere."

The dark thing raised a thin hand. His slender fingers turned the mirror to show Shizu her face. "Look well."

Shizu's eyes locked with his. "No. I'll drive."

"Good girl."

It was several miles to the so-called secret lab, and they did not speak. Finally, the shadow instructed her to turn onto a dark street.

"There," he whispered, pointing out onto an open, foggy plain. Shizu parked at the side of the dirt road and got out of the car, gritting her teeth against the cold that wrapped around her legs. She yanked her hood up, teeth chattering.

The figure ignored her, moving on into the mist. Shizu followed quietly, watching as he bent over to examine the ground.

"Give me your hand, Shizuko."

She nodded and crouched beside him, feeling the painful ice of his dark grip. Suddenly, there was a jerk, and they were in a black room. All Shizu could see was a blinking red light. She heard the rustle of the figure moving around. Finally, cold blue lights came on. Shizu gazed in awe at the computer terminal before her.

"Osamu Ichijouji built this place," the shadow whispered. "He wanted somewhere not even his brother would find him. He died, and I took this place. I made it /mine/. It is /mine/."

Shizu leaned against a wall, her breath rattling in her throat. "Whatever, Kai-sama. Just hurry up with whatever you're planning."

The spirit of the Kaiser turned to regard her solemnly. "If I hurry up, something may go wrong. Corrupting only one Gate is very difficult. You know that."

Shizu stepped forward and sank into a chair. "If we're using code, I'd better do it. You'll make mistakes."

The Kaiser sighed and leaned over her shoulder, pointing at a small box in the lower left corner of the monitor. "That one."

~~

It took them until two in the morning to finish corrupting the Gate, mainly because the shadowy Kaiser kept pressing buttons. For someone with such amazing power, he wasn't really as intelligent as he pretended to be.

"Well done," he told her grudgingly when they had finished. He slid a hand into her pocket and took the keys. "I'll drive."

Shizu snatched the keys back. "You can't drive. You've never driven in your life. /I/ will drive."

They didn't speak until they were back at Shizu's house. She collapsed into bed with a soft groan. "I can't believe I have to go to school tomorrow."

The shadow clambered over her to sit against the wall, long legs crossed. "I'll take care of it. Sleep. Your dreams will go well."

Shizu's last coherent thought was, It sure is ironic that what could best be described as a nightmare is guarding my dreams.

The Kaiser watched the pale girl sleep, his dark eyes a mystery. "Two wishes left," he murmured. "How will I manipulate you into wanting power, my little hikari?" This was more difficult for him than it had been with Ken. Shizu wasn't corrupt already; actually, she was somewhat nice, only a little bitter about her former appearance. He had chosen to give her three wishes instead of possessing her, as he had with Ken.

Maybe it had been a mistake. Then again, maybe not. It all depended on how well the Gate worked - or, in this case, how well it /didn't/.

~~

Jyou slid into his seat in Chemistry class, sighing almost absent-mindedly. It was time to get new lab partners. He hated these days. The girls /always/ got to pick, and they /always/ picked Koushiro, the smart one, the only sophomore in the class. He would get picked first, as usual, by one of the popular girls.

Ms. Kasahara clapped her hands. "All right, my chemicals, let's get started by picking new lab partners. Ladies first. Miss Ikura?"

Jyou allowed his mind to wander. He wasn't really much good at chemistry, so he rarely got picked early on. Sometimes it took the popular girls awhile to make a choice, too.

The door opened, admitting a tired-looking blonde. Jyou glanced up and almost fainted in shock. Underneath the dark, heavy makeup and revealing clothes, he /knew/ her. Shizuko.

She strutted to her seat and slid in, brushing a strand of feathery hair behind her ear. "I'm next, Ms. Kasahara."

The teacher frowned. "Miss Koyama, you're late."

"I noticed that. Jyou, would you do me the honor of being my partner?"

Jyou blinked, but obediently moved over to sit beside her. "Why didn't you pick Koushiro?"

"Ami snapped him up before I got here." She smiled at him. "I figure his best friend is just as well, you know?"

"I'm not very good at Chemistry."

Her dark lips twisted into a grin. "I adore chemistry," she purred.

The rest of the class was involved in Ms. Kasahara explaining at some length a simple experiment. Jyou spent most of the time staring at the back of Koushiro's head. To his surprise and luck, the boy who would normally be sitting in front of him, obscuring his view, had left for a meeting of the football team.

Shizu bent over and whispered, "Are you doing anything after school?"

Jyou blinked. "Aren't you dating Koushiro?"

She smiled and softly replied. "Oh, yes, of course, but we're only going to the arcade. I thought you might like to come. Those middle-school friends of yours will probably be there."

~Hikari and Miyako,~ Jyou thought, resigned. "Okay."

Ms. Kasahara stopped lecturing to glare disapprovingly at them. "No courting on campus," she snapped. "It's in the rules - along with no dark makeup for sophomores."

Shizu batted her lashes at the teacher. "We weren't /courting/, and while I am a sophomore, doesn't that part of the dress code only apply to freshmen?"

Ms. Kasahara pursed her lips and went back to teaching. Jyou was tuning her out again when he felt something painful jerk inside him. In front of him, Koushiro twitched suddenly, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Shizu shiver suddenly. Then the pain was gone, and everything was normal again.

Almost everything.

~~

Ten minutes earlier, Ken sat in his room, alone except for Wormmon. He was taking yet another day off of school, this time to check up on the Digiworld.

Wormmon poked his partner's leg. "What's that, Ken-chan?"

Ken stared at the map for a few seconds before seeing the small gray flash in one corner. "I'm not sure." He moved the pointer over to the flashing square and clicked. For a moment, nothing happened. Then the screen lurched and fuzzed into a full-color picture.

"What is that thing?" Ken asked, leaning forward to stare at the golden- armored arachnid on the screen.

"I don't know, but I think it's attacking that Woodmon!"

Ken stood up, almost knocking his chair over, and fumbled for his digivice. "Let's go stop it!"

"Ken, wait."

Halted by the serious tone in his friend's voice, Ken glanced down. "What is it?"

"It wouldn't be safe for you just now. You're exhausted. You didn't get any sleep last night. Traveling between worlds is dangerous in your condition."

Ken rolled his eyes. "We've got to get to the bottom of this, and I can't let that Woodmon die. No one else can do it."

"I won't let you go!"

Ken sighed, brushing a strand of indigo hair out of his eyes. "And how would you stop me?"

"I really don't know."

"Digital Gate, open!"

The swirling colors that engulfed the boy seemed quite normal, for an instant at least. Then everything turned pitch black. A cold hand seemed to be trying its best to tear Ken's heart from his chest, and the last thing he knew was that he had landed and there was something very large standing beside him, roaring angrily.