This story begins two years after 02. I'll assume the events of 02 took a year and I don't know the definite ages of all the characters, so the ages are as follows:
Joe = 17 Jyou Kido
Matt Yamato Ishida
Tai Taichi Yagami
Sora = 16 Sora Takenouchi
Izzy Koushiro Izumi
Mimi Mimi Tachikawa
TK Takeru Takaishi
Kari Hikari Yagami
Davis = 14 Daisuke Motomiya
Yolei Miyako Inoue
Ken Ken Ichijouji
Cody = 12 Iori Hida
Just to warn you, I'll be using the Japanese versions of the destined's names, and their American versions will be used as nicknames. So if you look at the ages, their Japanese counterparts will be next to their names.
But attacks and digimon's names will remain the same as how it is seen on Fox Kids.
Oh yeah, I also use two Japanese words, because I think it sounds better in Japanese.
Oneesama=Older sister
Ototochan=Little brother
And in response to all of you reading this: THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! And if you didn't understand the ending of the prologue, DON'T WORRY! Sorry, but I was doing it on purpose. I'm trying to be ambiguous. But if you do understand the ending, wow! I have to congratulate you! But you should be able to understand the ending by this chapter. If you still don't, I'll have to find some corner and bawl my eyes out because I'm such a lousy writer. Waaahhhhhhh!
Brother shouts, "But you already are a lousy writer!"
WAP! (I know that already.)
Disclaimer: Don't own Digimon. Toei, Bandai, and Fox Kids do. Don't sue. Need the money for college.
"I don't like him."
Takaishi Takeru
Chapter One: Meetings
Takeru's ocean blue eyes searched the homeroom class of his eighth-grade year, trying to find a familiar face. Students in green school uniforms lounged around in groups, laughing and talking excitedly. A couple of clowns were at the boards, drawing a monster, which looked suspiciously like a digimon and a person (presumably the teacher) cowering before its fangs. Two girls in identical pigtails sat next to the window and giggled as they pointed to another longhaired girl sitting one desk over and engrossed in a book. Upon finding no one he knew, the golden-haired boy sighed silently and moved from his post at the door, allowing more students to enter.
He surveyed the desks, finding the perfect one next to the girl and her book. He made his way over, ignoring how the twins had suddenly stopped pointing at the girl and were now focused on him. He set his backpack down in the chair and gently tapped her shoulder.
She blinked and looked up at him, her brown eyes questioning.
"Hi," Takeru smiled brightly, "I'm Takaishi Takeru. I was wondering if anyone was going to sit here?" He indicated the desk he'd set his backpack in.
She was startled, as if no one had ever asked her permission in her life, but she shook her head. The short braids on the side of her head whipped back and forth and the free flow of the rest in the back swished gently. Black wisps flew into her face and she brushed them back impatiently as she studied Takeru intently. She seemed almost suspicious of him. Her large eyes narrowing slightly when Takeru's smile widened even more.
He sat down after removing his backpack and regarded her curiously. No one he'd met had ever treated him like a suspicious criminal the first he'd introduced himself. The only reason he'd chosen this particular desk was for the fact that it was right next to the window and it got the most amount of sunlight in the entire room. But then, he supposed, the girl just might not like strange boys coming up to her and introducing themselves.
'Heh, probably thinks I'm a pervert now.' Takeru grabbed a pencil out of the front pocket of his backpack and tapped it absently. He stared out the window, letting the warmth of the sunlight seep into him.
"Hikage. . . ."
"Huh?" The voice had been so quiet, he thought he'd imagined it.
"My name. . . . It's Sadame Hikage."
"Oh. . . . Um, hi." Takeru didn't know what to do. Despite the fact that he had his own female fan club, he wasn't exactly a lady charmer. In fact he was quite clumsy around females. The only ones he felt comfortable with were the digidestined and they were exceptions because he'd already fought battles with them, so they were more than mere comrades or fellow students. He'd only introduced himself to her because she seemed like she needed a friendly smile, but when she'd brushed off his attempt at friendship, he had dropped it. But now that she was peeking at him shyly, Takeru was all too aware that she was a girl. What was he supposed to do? What was he supposed to say? What? What? What?!
While the blonde-haired boy was busy thinking up a response, the quiet Hikage just stared at him, wondering where she'd seen him before. He seemed so familiar. She shook her head, scolding herself gently. It wasn't everyday that she would meet a blonde-haired, blue-eyed Japanese boy. So why did he seem so familiar?
Takeru's eyes finally alighted upon the book she held in her hands and he let out a nervous cough before speaking.
"Crest of the Stars, huh? Is that science fiction?"
"Yes. . . ."
"Well, um, you like those kind of books?" Takeru wanted to bang his head against the desk. What an incredibly stupid question!
"Yeah. . . ."
"Uh-huh. . . ."
Hikage stared shyly at the floor between them. Takeru just stared at his pencil, tapping it gently against his desk, and wishing Daisuke or Hikari were here. They would be able to talk to her and get her out of her shell. He felt stumped!
After a few seconds, the dark-haired girl turned in her desk and went back to reading. Takeru let out a silent sigh of relief.
'Maybe I
can ask Kari or Miyako to talk to her later.'
"Oneesama, I thought you were going to save this seat for me!"
Takeru looked down to see a pair of legs enclosed in the trousers of the school's boy uniform. He followed them up slowly to find a boy of medium height with close-cropped dark hair and a fringe over one brow. His dark brown eyes smiled slyly down at Takeru as he in turn surveyed the golden-haired boy before him. He raised one eyebrow when Takeru blinked innocently up at him and the slow tempo of his tapping pencil slowly died out.
Whipping his ocean-blue eyes back to the silent Hikage, Takeru confirmed that the boy did indeed resemble her a great deal. But while she stared at him with a serious, almost sad gaze, her brother was the complete opposite. He was mischievous and sly. And looking back into those laughing brown orbs, Takeru could almost see something . . . sinister, but he shook his head mentally, laughing at himself for even considering anything of the sort. He could just picture Matt giving him a small, rare smile and ruffling his messy blonde hair after telling him all that.
"Well the seats taken, so I guess I'll have to sit here then." The dark-haired boy flopped into the desk behind Takeru, causing the latter to turn around and give a friendly smile.
"I'm Takaishi Takeru." He offered his hand, "What's yours?"
Something flashed in the other boy's eyes, but it was too quick for Takeru to take note of.
"I'm Shikkaku," he grabbed Takeru's hand and shook it vigorously, "Sadame Shikkaku."
"Well, Shikkaku," his ocean blue eyes bright, Takeru glanced at Hikage, who had stared silently throughout the whole exchange. Her whole demeanor had suddenly changed. She was now staring intently at both boys, but in particular at her brother. Her breathing had hitched a little and her muscles were tense. It was as if she was ready for something to explode, so she could jump into action, kicking and swinging. Takeru took note of her actions, but continued as if nothing was happening, "I forgot to mention this to your sister, but you can just call me TK. Everybody else does."
"TK," Shikkaku almost purred the name, reminding Takeru of Gatomon when she pronounced his name. "Hmm, that really suits you. TK. . . . What do you think, oneesama?"
Hikage's hands clenched the book she was reading, turning her knuckles white. Through her teeth she seethed, "What do I think of what?"
"Why the nickname 'TK.' It really suits him, don't you think so?"
The turmoil between the two siblings was so tangible, TK could almost taste the sour air hanging between the two. He wanted to break it up somehow, but was quite unsure of what to do.
"Shikkaku," the dark-haired girl bit back. She looked like she was about to say something, but suddenly deflated and went back to staring at the floor, refusing to meet Takeru's eyes. "Yes, it does."
Her equally dark-haired twin looked back to Takeru with wide eyes, "So, TK, what kind of clubs are you planning to join this year?"
Looking uncertain, Takeru answered, "I don't know. Maybe basketball."
"Really? You think you might want to join the Self-defense club? I'm the president this year. But with your athletic abilities, I'm pretty sure you won't do so bad."
"The Self-defense club? I don't know," Takeru glanced at Hikage, who was staring intently at her book. "What about you, Hikage? Are you in the club, too?"
"Of course she is," Shikkaku smiled slightly his eyes were almost hard when they landed on his twin. "She's going to be vice-president this year."
Hikage's chin fell a notch, but she kept her eyes on her book.
Takeru allowed a small frown to appear and he turned back to Shikkaku. But the dark-haired boy just smiled brightly and replied, "But I'm not asking her, I'm asking you, Takeru. Do you want to join the club or not?"
"I'll think about it." Still frowning, Takeru turned around in his desk missing the way the other boy's smile had suddenly darkened.
Two minutes before the bell rang, Daisuke ran through the door gasping and wheezing. His uniform jacket hung off one shoulder, the tie was loosened and flipped over one shoulder, holding the top of the shirt together where he had not buttoned the first three buttons. Dropping gracelessly into the desk in front of Takeru, he panted out, "Whew. Almost (pant, pant) didn't make it."
As Daisuke caught his breath and straightened his clothes out, Takeru smiled slightly, glad there was someone he recognized in this class.
"Hey, Daisuke, better watch where you're going or you might end up repeating the same mistake last year."
Daisuke groaned. His face blushed a bright crimson red and he buried his face in his hands. "Please don't remind me of that, TH."
The last year, Daisuke had been running late to the first day of class and in his haste to get into the classroom before the bell rang, he'd bowled over the teacher. To make it worst, the aging female teacher had been wearing a dress. So when the brown-haired missile had slammed into her, she'd flipped end over end and landed on her face with her underwear-clad butt facing the circle of giggling students. Needless to say she'd hounded Daisuke relentlessly the whole yearlong.
TK just grinned. "Still, that had been a refreshing way to start the school year."
"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, blondie. You weren't the one who had to sit through three hours of listening to her shriek about kids and their lack of morals these days. It so totally wasn't my fault! She shouldn't have blocked the doorway with that huge bottom of hers. I did try going around her, but she was too big! I was only trying to get to class on time!"
By this time Daisuke had lifted his face out of his hands and was wearing an angry expression. He clenched his fist close to his face. "And she didn't have to punish me for the whole year for one accident!"
Takeru hid a chuckle behind his hand. "But you didn't have to tell her to her face, that she shouldn't wear blue panties." His ocean-blue eyes were bright with barely restrained mirth.
Daisuke stopped frowning and looked at Takeru with an almost innocent look. "But . . . I meant what I said. Blue panties really don't suit her."
At this point, Takeru just couldn't take it anymore. He gave a low chuckle, which quickly became louder, until finally he threw his head back and started laughing. This caused several heads to turn, most notably, Hikage's, whose stare was indefinable. Shikkaku just smirked. The pig-tailed girls sighed in unison and one could almost see the hearts popping out of their eyes. Two more girls had just been added to Takeru's personal fan club.
"What?" Daisuke gave a small frown. "What's so funny? C'mon, PK, tell me!"
"Ha, ha, ha," Takeru shook his head. "Heh-heh. It's nothing. It's nothing, Daisuke."
"No way! It was something about me, wasn't it? Wasn't it?! Gnyargghhhh. Answer me, you—" Daisuke put one knee down on his chair and towered over the blonde boy threateningly.
BRINNNGGGG!
"Alright class, settle down!"
In a flash, Daisuke was sitting properly even though he continued to fume. From behind him he heard Takeru whisper, "Hey Daisuke, lucky we have a male teacher this year, huh?"
The rest of the day was fairly boring. Daisuke fell asleep soon after the introductions had been made, and amazingly, he managed to avoid detection from the teacher. From time to time, Takeru would glance at Hikage from the corner of his eye and each time he found her in the same position. Her head down, staring only at the surface of her desk. Then he would feel a gaze boring right into the middle of his back, but when he turned around, he'd only find Shikkaku's bright, mischievous face.
When the last bell for the day had rung, students got up simultaneously, as if it had been a choreography of sorts. Chattering brightly, students placed books into backpacks and filed out the door quickly. The glob of green uniformed boys and girls quickly joined the larger mass outside in the hallway, and the noise level rose a few more decibels.
Busy stuffing several textbooks into his bag, Takeru didn't notice the person standing next to his desk until Daisuke spoke up.
"Hey, Kari!"
Takeru's head snapped up and he stared open-mouthed at the red-eyed girl in front of him. Feeling a blush creep up his face, he quickly ducked his head and pretended to be busy ordering his books inside his pack.
"Hi Daisuke. Hi, TK."
Takeru lifted his head. Clearing his throat, he offered a weak hello. She smiled at him and he felt his heart begin to pound just a little harder.
"Hey, TK!" Shikkaku wrapped his arm companionably around the taller, blue-eyed boy and regarded Hikari almost . . . clinically. "Who's this? Your girlfriend? I thought you were interested in my sister!"
At this, Hikari immediately lost her smile, "Sister?"
"Yeah. Mm-hm. Oneesama." Shikkaku tossed his head indicating a dark, longhaired girl standing three feet behind him. She didn't acknowledge the quartet in front of her. In fact she didn't acknowledge anybody at all as she continued to stare at the ground, her face expressionless.
"Um," Takeru moved subtly, effectively getting out from underneath Shikkaku's arm, "I think you're mistaken."
"Mistaken?" Shikkaku opened his eyes wide, "but I saw you speaking to her like you were kinda interested."
"Oh, really?" Hikari regarded Takeru with one brow raised.
The latter's eyes widened slightly, "Huh?"
Daisuke frowned. He really didn't like the way Hikari was acting. It seemed like she cared too much. But most of all, he really didn't like this dark-haired kid in front of him. He seemed too . . . oily.
"Wait a minute." Daisuke pointed one finger to Shikkaku, "Who're you?"
Shikkaku blinked innocently, one finger pointing at his nose, "Me? Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Sadame Shikkaku, and that's my sister, Hikage. Who are you?"
Daisuke puffed out his chest and announced proudly, "You've probably already heard of me . . ."
"Actually no, I haven't."
". . . I'm the school's number one soccer player . . ."
"Sorry, I don't follow the soccer tournaments."
". . . I'm the one, the only . . ."
"So, what's your name, little lady?"
". . . Motomiya Daisuke!"
"Yagami Hikari. And I'm not that little."
"Hey! Wasn't anybody listening to me!"
"I think you might want to shorten your introduction," Takeru said, patting his back consolingly. He turned back to Shikkaku, "Anyway, I was just trying to be friendly to your sister, that's all."
"That's all, huh? Well, gotta go then," he smiled slyly, "and you think about our club, 'kay? Remember, oneesama's the vice-president."
After both had left the room, Hikage exactly three feet behind her brother with her head still bowed, the friends glanced at each other.
"I don't like him," Takeru said simply.
The other two agreed with small nods.
He moved fluidly from one kata to another. His muscles contracted and relaxed, easily remembering the next move and the next one and the next one. He flew across the mat in a high kick. Touching softly onto the padded blue mat, he gathered the subtle strength in his legs and suddenly was three meters in the air, twisting so his leg sweep connected with a number of imaginary attackers. He landed again and quickly put one leg back to maintain his center of balance.
From his defensive position he could see the face of his tormentor a couple feet in front of him, grinning an innocent grin, blue eyes wide with trust. He gave a feral smile, then leapt at the imaginary face putting in a one-two punch combo and adding a kick for good measure. He stayed in that position. His leg high up in the air, the large windows of the gym allowing streams of late afternoon sunlight to limn his figure and turn it into a shadow.
"Ototochan."
He turned towards the quiet voice and gave a wide smirk. The shadows previously obscuring his face disappeared as he shifted to face the person. Smiling dark brown orbs stared into equally dark brown, but serious, orbs.
"Yes, oneesama?" He was panting slightly, a sheen of sweat covered his skin, and the fringe of hair over his left brow was plastered to his head.
"What are . . . what are you planning?"
He laughed and tightened the belt of his practice gi. "Planning? Oneesama, you make it sound like I'm about to do something terrible!"
"Ototochan," her voice was suddenly sharp, suddenly fierce, "I know you! I saw that look in your eye when you were talking to TK!"
"TK, is it?" He wrapped one arm around his waist and tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Oneesama, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're beginning to get attached to this, TK," he almost spat out the last word.
Hikage lowered her eyes, her voice became meek again, "Why?"
"What's that? Did you ask why?" His voice lost all trace of playfulness and his face turned ugly. "How can you ask a question as stupid as that? Eleven years ago, he stole what was rightfully mine, and you have to ask why?" (a/n: I think the battle between Parrotmon and Greymon happened when Takeru was three.)
His expression suddenly changed, becoming calculated and cruel. "Oneesama, honestly. If I remember correctly, you were the one who helped him! How can you ask me why?"
"B-but I didn't . . . I didn't know," she whispered.
"Hmph." His expression became serious, almost grave. "Oneesama. Are you going to help me this time, or will I have to do this alone?"
The silence between the twins stretched for an interminable time. The sun slowly went behind a cloud casting the scene into shadows. The younger, taller Shikkaku standing before the older, smaller Hikage kneeling on the floor and refusing to meet his gaze.
Then the cloud passed and the dark-haired boy got his quiet answer.
"Of . . . course."
He smiled and turned around throwing a punch. "Good."
"But what if . . . he isn't . . ."
"He is. . . ." Shikkaku smirked. "Oh, he is. . . ."
The group of three digidestined friends raced to the computer lab. Two more students going the same way soon joined them. Laughing and racing each other, the special group tumbled into the lab and was greeted with a face they didn't expect.
"Jyou!" five voices chorused at once.
The tall, blue-haired young man smiled and straightened from his position in front of the computer.
"Hi guys. I wanted to check on Gomamon since I didn't have a chance all summer to see the little guy. He's been sulking in my e-mails because I took that extra anatomy class."
"Sure, Jyou," Daisuke walked up to the bespectacled young man and craned his neck. "Wow, you've really grown taller over the summer."
"Ha-ha. I get that a lot. I think the only one who can look me in the eye now is your brother, TK. Although, looking at you now, I think he's going to have some tough competition in the height department soon."
Takeru gave an embarrassed cough as the tip of his ears reddened slightly.
Jyou's gaze spanned the group, noting the fact that Kari was standing quite close to TK, and Daisuke wasn't jumping all over them to move apart. Maybe the overexcited young boy was beginning to drift from his puppy love. The dark-eyed medical student also noted the small physical appearances that had appeared in the small group. Everyone had grown a bit taller. TK was still the tallest, almost able to stare Jyou right in the eye, followed by brown-haired Daisuke, who'd finally managed to overshoot Miyako, although only by an inch. Kari was the shortest of the older kids. She was half a head shorter than Daisuke and Miyako, and only reached TK's chin. The most dramatic difference, however, was in Iori.
Jyou smiled. The little shrimp had spurted into a fine young man. He was still short compared to other kids his age, but the muscles in his chest from all the kendo training pulled his shoulders back, emphasizing their broadness and showing the hidden strength he had. The confident tilt of his chin and levelness of his gaze already earned him the respect and awe of the other students. He was still a full two and a half heads shorter than Jyou himself, but his quiet nature already showed a maturity beyond his years.
"Alright! Alright! Let's go then!" Daisuke ran back to the group and began pushing them all towards the computer. They laughed at the energetic antics of their unofficial leader, then settled down in front of the computer as Miyako pulled out a D3 digivice.
"Alright! Digiport open!"
As soon as the light had faded from the form of the last person, several digimon were cresting the top of a hill and running to the digidestined, who stood at the foot. Five digimon crashed into five humans. Four of the five humans fell onto their bottoms from the force of their partner's welcome. Amazingly, Iori was the only one still standing, even though his digimon was the heaviest.
Jyou gave a soft smile and started up the hill where he could see an orange, dinosaur-like figure watching the scene almost paternally.
"Hey Agumon."
"Jyou!" The small orange digimon ran the rest of the way to Jyou. "Where's Tai?"
"Oh, he mentioned something about Sora and ice cream. Seems like he still won't admit they're an official couple."
"I see. Poor Sora."
The dark-haired man gave a small chuckle, "I guess you're right. Anyway, where's Gomamon?"
"I heard him tell Palmon he was going to the beach for some fun since a certain digipartner didn't seem to find it worth his time to visit him. I wonder who he could be talking about?"
Jyou couldn't decide if the dinosaur digimon was being sarcastic or if he really had no clue. He shrugged mentally, "Thanks Agumon. I'll see you later."
"Anytime. See ya."
He hadn't taken a few steps before he heard Miyako's excited scream.
"KEN!"
The med student turned to watch the scene unfolding before him. An excited purple-haired girl rushed towards the approaching blue-haired boy. Jyou almost called out a warning to Ken before the two collided, but it seemed like the blue-eyed boy was already prepared. The small, worm-like digimon jumped out of his arms two seconds before imminent collision. This action gave Ken enough time to open his arms wide and catch the purple missile as they both crashed to the ground, breathless but laughing.
Closing his mouth and shaking his head at the antics of the young lovers, Jyou finally turned and continued through the dense foliage of the digital world. In the distance he could just make out he splashing of one peeved seal digimon.
Palmon looked at the irritated seal digimon and couldn't help but giggle. His face was just so cute as he splashed and pounced an imaginary Jyou. Hearing the cheerful sound, Gomamon stopped splashing long enough to glare at the plant digimon and declare, "Well you wouldn't be in such a good mood if your partner didn't visit you all summer. At least Mimi knows how to have fun!"
"Well I don't know about that," Palmon took a few steps closer to the water, "I mean Mimi is fun to be around with. She's always so cheerful, but she can be kind of forgetful too." She stepped into the cool waters and closed her eyes with a sigh of relief, "At least you know that Jyou will be here when he says he will."
Gomamon scrunched his face and splashed a wave of water at her, "Hmph. But you look forward to all your meetings anyway."
Palmon gave a shriek of surprise, but then threw water back at the other, "Ha! Like you aren't looking forward to your meeting today."
"Of course I am!" Gomamon grinned and began flipping his flippers back and forth, forcing droplets of crystal water to fly everywhere, "So that I can give him a piece of my mind!"
She replied with a laugh and returned the splashing with some of her own.
That was how Jyou found his digital partner. Sopping wet and laughing as he tried to win the splash war with the digimon of sincerity. He paused a moment to just savor the moment.
He hadn't realized how much he'd missed the little guy, although Gomamon would be the last one to ever know that bit of information, seeing as how he'd use it to gloat over his human partner. Watching his digital partner's smiling face, Jyou realized the peace he felt wasn't a result of the surroundings, but the fact that he felt as if he was finally whole. Like a piece of him had been missing. Only when he'd gotten it back did he realize how much it had been affecting him.
Not wasting another moment, Jyou started running towards his partner, "Gomamon!"
The seal digimon paused in his splashing and his opponent followed suit.
"Huh?" He looked up and was almost gaping in surprise. "Palmon, I think I'm hallucinating."
"Well if you're seeing things, I'm seeing it with you," she gave a small giggle and whapped him on the head to get him moving, "C'mon, it looks like he's happy to see you!"
"Gomamon!"
"Jyou!"
"Gomamon!"
"Jyou!"
WHAM!
After head-butting his partner in the chest and forcing him to fall onto his back, Gomamon turned and walked back towards the water.
"I'm not talking to you!"
Rubbing his chest, the bespectacled young man looked at his digimon, "Aww, c'mon Gomamon, I just got back! How about a hug first and then the trashing?"
The seal digimon just turned up his nose, "Hmph!"
"Hey, I said I was sorry!"
"That doesn't make up for a whole summer!"
Crawling to where his digimon sat, Jyou finally kneeled behind the angry digimon and spoke in a placating voice, "Alright, it was wrong of me to not come and visit just once in a while, but that anatomy class really was important."
The seal digimon gave a suspicious sniffle, "So . . . it's more important than me then. . . ."
The realization finally dawned on the dark-haired teen as Jyou looked at his digital partner's back. How much Gomamon had missed him. While he'd had his class to keep him busy, the seal digimon had had nothing except the other digimons to keep him occupied. He gathered Gomamon up into a hug.
"No. Of course not. I'm sorry, Gomamon. I should have visited more often."
Gomamon closed his eyes and smiled, feeling whole again, "That's alright. I know we'll always be friends, Jyou." Then he sprang out of Jyou's arms, "And whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me! Ha-ha!"
He raced towards the water, "Last one to the water is an Ogremon!"
"Hey Gomamon! You're gonna catch a cold!"
"Stupid! I'm a water digimon!"
"But that doesn't mean you still can't catch a cold!"
"Whatever!"
"Arrgghh! Why don't you ever listen?! Why can't we ever do anything nice and safe??!!"
"And where's the fun in that?!"
"Gomamon, you hyper ping-pong seal on caffeine! Get back here!"
Palmon gave a small giggle as she watched the taller Jyou chase his smaller digimon partner across the sands, but a sudden prickle along her green skin made her lose her smile and her cheerful mood. She glanced about, wondering what was watching them. She turned around and looked back out to the sea. Straining her eyes, the plant digimon could barely make out a small black smudge on the horizon.
"Gomamon! Jyou!"
The two stopped in their childish chase and joined the plant digimon at the edge of the water. Palmon pointed out towards the horizon.
"Do you see that?"
Both squinted their eyes and tried to make out the black smudge.
"What is it?" Palmon asked quietly.
"I don't know," Jyou murmured. He'd caught on to the plant digimon's somber mood and it was sending chills up his spine. "Whatever it is, it looks like it will get here in about fifteen minutes."
Takeru looked up at the sky as a strange damp wind blew. All he could see was an azure sky dotted with fluffy white clouds, but still the chill feeling refused to go away.
"What's wrong?" From his perch on the hat that covered Takeru's head, Patamon looked down at his partner with a worried frown.
"I don't know, Pata. I just have a feeling. . . ." Takeru turned towards the sea where Jyou had disappeared, but the dense foliage blocked his view completely. A sudden presence at his side made him turn his head.
"You feel it too, don't you?" Hikari's quiet voice reassured the golden-haired boy and he gave a barely perceptible nod of his head before returning his gaze to the stand of trees.
"What do you think it is?"
"I don't know," Hikari looked uncertain, "It doesn't feel like any powers of darkness."
Takeru nodded, "You're right. But . . . it's something . . . not in . . . synch with this world. . . ."
"Yes. That's what it is. It's not evil, but," Hikari closed her eyes trying to feel it out some more, "it definitely does not belong in this world."
"Well whatever it is, it makes me want to scratch something to shreds," Gatomon glared at the trees as if they were the cause of the strange sensation.
Takeru's eyes turned somber, "Do you think it means harm?"
"I don't know, TK," the shorthaired girl shook her head, "I really don't know."
"Well I want to go warn Jyou. Can you tell the rest about this?"
"Sure. And TK," Hikari grabbed his hand, squeezing briefly before letting go, "be careful, okay?"
Takeru smiled reassuredly to dispel the worry in the girl's red-brown eyes. "Will do." He gave a small two-finger salute before walking off jauntily. Even though his heart was pounding with a nameless dread.
Hikari watched the golden-haired boy walk off. Why did it feel like something had just been decided, and like pieces of dominoes, events were about to fall into place, leaving the two of them in the middle, blindfolded and unable to avoid the crushing weight of those falling actions. Tears pricked her eyes as an intense feeling of anxiousness to be by Takeru's side washed over her. She took one step forward but stopped when Daisuke called out to her. She held a hand clenched to her chest and drew a deep breath trying to steady herself.
Noticing her partner's silent distress, Gatomon jumped to Hikari's shoulder in one fluid action, "It's alright, Kari. Patamon's with him, so let's go tell the others first."
"Right," taking another deep breath to calm herself, Hikari marched to where the others stood.
When they saw the serious look on her face, everyone quieted down.
Miyako spoke first, "Kari, what's wrong?"
"Guys, just take this as a warning," Hikari paused, unsure of what to say next. "But . . . but," she looked back over her shoulder and at the trees, "I don't know. It's just a feeling. I thought it was my imagination at first but TK just looked so serious and that made me even more sure it was something real!" She looked back at the silent group, "I don't know what it is, but something's coming. It could be friendly . . ."
"But you don't think so do you, Kari?" Ken said.
Hikari looked uncertain, "But it doesn't feel evil."
"Evil isn't necessarily noticeable. Especially to the one doing the evil," Ken stated quietly. At his side Miyako clenched his hand tighter.
"Well, whatever it is, we can at least be prepared," Cody patted Armadillomon and got a smile in return.
"Right," Daisuke stepped into the middle of the group, going into full-blown leader mode, "Lets have Gatomon, Hawkmon, and Armidillomon digivolve. We'll keep Veemon and Wormon in reserve. Cody, have Armidillomon armor-digivolve so he can stay hidden underground. This way we won't seem like a threatening party either."
"Wow, that's a pretty good plan." Miyako grabbed Daisuke's head in a chokehold. "Alright, who did you pay to come up with that idea."
"Ack! Hey, just cause I can come up with a good plan once in a while . . . KEN! Get your woman offa me!"
Ken took a step towards the wrestling pair.
"If you take me away from my fun, I'll make sure you regret it later," Miyako's voice was sugary sweet.
Ken laughed nervously and backed away, "That's alright Daisuke. I don't think she'll hurt you . . . too much."
"KEN!" Daisuke's face was bright red, "You traitor! I thought you were my friend! Get this monkey offa me!"
"I am your friend," Ken replied, "but she's my girlfriend." He winced as Miyako managed to wrestle the goggled boy onto the ground and sit on his back while pulling his legs back painfully.
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!"
"A monkey! A monkey! Aack!"
Ken sighed, turning his eyes towards the sky, "When will he learn to keep his big mouth shut?"
"To look at her now, one wouldn't think she's a computer geek," Iori commented quietly.
"Yeah. . . ." Ken looked around suddenly noticing two of their group was missing. "Where are Kari and Gatomon?"
"She said we still have some time before anything happens, so she went to the beach to wait with TK." Iori paused a moment, "What do you think this is, Ken?"
"I don't know, Iori. If Kari said it wasn't evil, then I believe it isn't. . . ."
"But? . . ."
"But even if the thing itself isn't evil, it doesn't mean its intentions or actions will be good either."
Iori looked at the older boy with a serious gaze that was too mature for a twelve-year old boy, "I see."
When Takeru reached the beach, he saw the two digimon and lone human standing at the edge of the water.
"Jyou."
The bespectacled teen didn't turn around, "TK. Patamon."
When the blonde reached his side, Jyou spoke up again, "Can you feel it?"
"Yeah," Takeru shivered and rubbed his arms as he stared the now noticeable smudge in the distance, "It feels like a damp wind. But it's not evil."
Jyou finally looked at the golden-haired boy, "Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Kari confirmed it too." Takeru shivered again, rubbing his arms harder.
Noticing the actions of the younger boy, Jyou tipped his glasses up higher and looked closer. "TK, are you alright? You're trembling very hard."
"I-I don't k-know why," Takeru backed up until he was sitting on dry sand. He pulled his legs up and held them tight to his chest. "I-I honestly don't k-know why, Jyou. I d-don't feel cold. . . ." His teeth started to chatter.
Looking closer, Jyou could see goose bumps all over the boy's arms. He frowned and took his jacket off, draping it over the younger boy. He began taking vitals. Pulse was extremely fast, and so were respirations, but his forehead wasn't hot or clammy. Jyou frowned. He really couldn't do much more without his equipment.
"TK, do you get panic attacks often?"
"N-no. Why?"
"Why are you trembling, TK?"
Takeru shook his head, "I d-don't know."
But he could sense something was rising. Something from inside him. It was filling him with dread and he couldn't control his trembling. He was afraid. It felt like a tidal wave had been somehow trapped inside him and it had built up in unspent fury. Now it was trying to get out and he was afraid. Afraid it would come tearing out of him and destroy him in the process.
Jyou rubbed his hand in a circular motion on the trembling boy's back and gave him a bit of advice, "Just calm down, TK. Calm down. Take deep breaths. That's right deep breaths now." He looked up at the Takeru's orange digimon and demanded, "Was he like this before?"
"Uh-uh. He just started acting like that now."
Jyou examined the blonde-haired boy. Seeing that TK had stopped chattering and was now only shivering, Jyou told him, "Alright TK. I want to go home and—"
"No."
"Takeru—"
"No!" He looked up at Jyou, his eyes a little wild, "I have to stay, Jyou. Everyone—"
"Will be fine. We can take care of this, TK. I know you're worried about the others, but right now I'm more worried about you. What would I tell your brother if you came home with a fever and battle wounds right on top of it?"
"I don't have a fever," Takeru looked down and slowed his breathing, "Look, Jyou, I'll be alright. I think it was just a bit of anxiety. Y'know the new school year and suddenly this."
Jyou still looked doubtful. So did the digimon ringing around them, staring silently.
"I don't know, TK," Patamon piped up.
Takeru smiled to reassure everyone, "I'll be alright," he stood up and handed the jacket back to Jyou, "See? I've stopped shivering. I'll be alright."
After taking vitals on Takeru again, Jyou reluctantly agreed to let him stay.
At that moment, Hikari came tearing out of the trees with Gatomon not far behind.
"TK! Jyou!"
She stopped before them and took a moment to catch her breath.
"Hikari. Where are the others?" Takeru moved his pensive gaze from the girl in front of him the silent forest behind her.
She looked back, "I don't know. I told Iori I'd be at the beach with you guys, they should be here any moment now."
Right on cue, the others crashed through the underbrush and piled up at their feet. From the pile a single voice was heard, "Ged offa me, you monkey!"
WAP!
Jyou sighed, "So I guess all we can do now is wait."
I'm sorry, nothing much happens in this chapter. It's really just an introduction to the characters chapter, (Right, like you people need it. You wouldn't be reading this if you didn't know what Digimon was.) although I hope this ball of yarn starts rolling in the next chapter.
Well? Good? Bad? So-so? Constructive criticisms are more then welcome. Flames are understandable as there are some juveniles out there who can't express themselves any other way. (If the story sucks, tell me why. Hint, hint.)