Sorry this one took so long guys. Just as a note: THIS IS NOT THE END. Not yet, okay? One more chapter…okay, epilogue. To tie a few loose strings, you know? So stick around!

Sigh…Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, not now, not ever…

Future's Course

Chapter 9: And The Last Thing Out Was Hope…

"Hush little baby, don't say a word…" Pandoramon sang sweetly to the sleeping child in her arms. "Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird…and if that mockingbird don't sing…Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring…and if that diamond ring turns brass… Mama's gonna buy you a looking glass…and if that looking glass gets broke…"

"Pandoramon!"

The Digimon looked up. Kari and T.K. landed in front of her. It was the spirit who had spoken, glaring viciously, the girl behind him, looking timid and angry at the same time.

"Well well well…" the Digimon laughed. "Seams the specter and his baby-mama managed to get free, did you?"

"Cut the chit-chat!" T.K. snapped angrily.

"Give Hikaru back!" Kari added in behind him.

Pandoramon grinned slyly and evilly. "What makes you think he's yours to get back?" she hissed.

"He's our son!" Kari cried.

"Really?" Pandoramon laughed. "Perhaps you should ask him for yourself…" she shook the child awake gently. "Hikaru…Hikaru, honey…Sweetie…"

Kari covered her ears. "Stop it…don't call him that!" she shouted.

Hikaru stirred and looked up with dark, murky eyes. "What is it, mama?" he asked in a quiet voice. "What's going on?"

The moment he said it, Kari nearly fainted. "M-M-Mama?" she whispered in shock. "No…Hikaru…"

The little boy looked up and locked eyes with her. "Who're you?" he asked quietly. "Do I know you? What do you want?"

T.K. leaned forward. "We're…We're your parents…We're your mom and dad…"

"Hikaru…" Kari reached out for him. "Please…I'm your mother, not her. Please…"

Hikaru curled up closer to Pandoramon. "I have my mommy." he whispered. "Who are you? I've never seen you before in my life. Go away."

Kari wavered a moment as each of those words struck her in the heart. "How…" she whispered. "How…could you not…know us?"

She dropped to her knees, the tears flowing out. T.K. gazed helplessly at his future wife, his one true love, in such emotional pain. And in this spirit form, he couldn't comfort her, couldn't hold her, couldn't even touch her to ease her pain.

He glared viciously at Pandoramon, the creature tearing them apart. His eyes drifted longingly to the child held captive in his arms.

A glow of green on his wrist caught T.K.'s eye. One of the chains that had grabbed him had come loose, and now was wrapped around Hikaru's wrist. The chains that both of them could touch. That gave T.K. an idea.

Quite suddenly, he lunged forward so swiftly and quickly that even Pandoramon could not defend. He grabbed out, not for the child but for the chain around his wrist. With a yank, he pulled Hikaru away from the creature.

"No!" Pandoramon cried, reaching out for him. "Give him back!"

Hikaru struggled. "Lemmigo! Lemmigo! Lemmigo!" he yelled savagely.

"Sorry, kid, but it's for your own good." T.K. muttered, bringing him around to meet Kari. The girl understood instantly and gripped Hikaru in a tight hug.

Still the child fought. "Lemmigo! Lemmigo!" he cried. "Mama, make 'er leggo! Make 'er leggo!"

"Get your hands off him!" Pandoramon raged, striking forward with her whip. T.K. tried to defend his future family, but the whip was even more useful on spirits knocked him back and away. Pandoramon cracked her whip back and struck Kari full across the shoulders. The girl groaned as a wave of pain soared through her body, but she held tight.

"Stubborn, are you?" Pandoramon growled, pulling her whip back again.

This time, the purple beam hit Kari on the forehead. A gash opened and she was thrown back, just enough for Hikaru to break free. He ran forward and into Pandoramon's arms.

"There there, honey." the Digimon cooed. "Don't you worry. Mommy's here."

Kari pulled herself up with a groan. The blow above her right eye was bleeding and dripping down into her eyes, and as she rose a spasm of pain ran through from her back.

"Don't hurt yourself…It'll just get worse…" T.K. whispered, but she didn't listen.

Kari pulled herself to her hands and knees, reaching her hand out to the child. "Hikaru…" she whispered, getting his attention for just a moment. "Please, Hikaru… Don't you remember? About us? Your family? Don't you remember…Carie?"

Hikaru started. "C-Carie?" he asked, seaming confused.

Kari nodded, noticing the glimmer in his eyes. It was working! It was working! The mention of his sister had sparked something in the hypnotized boy. This would pull him out, she was sure!

Hikaru, at the same time, saw visions swim before his eyes. Laugher rang in his ears and her smile lingered in his mind:

"I'm gonna get you, Hikaru!"

"Okay, little bro!"

"You didn't think you'd leave without saying goodbye, now did ya?"

Hikaru closed his eyes a moment, and when he opened them, they were back to crystal clear blue. "Mom!" he cried, breaking free of Pandoramon's grasp and running to Kari.

Kari pulled her future son into a huge hug. "I'm sorry mama!" he sobbed. "I didn't mean to…I didn't mean to forget!"

"It's okay, son." T.K. assured him, knelling by Kari's side. "We understand."

Pandoramon burned with jealousy and anger. "You…You…" she growled. "You'll pay for this! I'll show you! I'll show you!"

She flew forward, over the small family. Kari covered Hikaru from any attack she might do, but she just flew upward. "Where's she going?" Kari asked the air as she vanished.

~ * ~ * ~

Outside the box, the others sat waiting. They didn't know what to do, and they were too uncertain to move the box. Cody sighed. "What's taking them so long?"

All of a sudden, the lid flung open. With a crash, Pandoramon burst out, flinging the kids to the ground. They scrambled back, but she didn't seam to notice them.

"I'll show you!" she raged. "I'll show you all! You won't…"

She stopped short. The box, flung open, was sending out loud wails, shrieks, and a white-and-green tornado. "No…No!" she screamed. "This…This is impossible!"

The DigiDestined clung to the ground, the trees and each other to keep from being blown away. "Where's T.K. and Kari?" Davis cried.

"They must still be inside!" Ken shouted.

"Oh…I hope they're alright!" Yolei groaned.

~ * ~ * ~

Inside the box, the spirits of the Digimon were rushing upward in one big wave. T.K. was struggling to keep his footing against the wind. "Dad, what's happening?!" Hikaru shouted over the storm.

"She…She must've…come outta the box…too fast or something!" T.K. groaned, gripping the ground. "The lid's opened…I…can't…hold…on…"

"T.K.!" Kari cried suddenly. She and Hikaru were not affected by the wind as badly as T.K. was. She pulled the bottle out from its place. "Get inside!"

"What?!" T.K. cried in shock.

Kari pulled the top off the bottle just as T.K. lost his footing. He went tumbling back into her. He had no knowledge of going into the bottle, it just…happened…

With a flash, T.K. was inside the bottle. Kari corked it, then scooped Hikaru into her arms. "Come on…We've gotta get outta here while there's still time!"

They ran, fighting against the wind to get to the fading line of light in the distance. A voice suddenly sounded. "Kari! Where the heck am I?!"

"T.K.?!" she cried in surprise, then had to steady Hikaru in her arms. "Is that you?"

"What? You can hear me?!"

Kari gasped for breath as she and their future son continued the run. "T.K., you're inside the bottle!"

"I'm what?!"

"Don't worry!" she shouted over the wind. "We'll get you back in your body, I promise!"

~ * ~ * ~

Outside the box, Pandoramon tired desperately to force the lid of the box back down through the tornado.

"No! No!" she raged. The DigiDestined shook with their voice, suddenly deep and horrible. "My souls! My souls! My beloved souls! Nooooooo!"

Yolei squinted through the light. "I can't see Kari or Hikaru!" she shouted. "We've gotta try and help!"

"Help?!" Davis cried. "I can hardly move right now!"

~ * ~ * ~

Inside, Kari pressed on. Hikaru had tried to run beside her, but that had just slowed them down, so she was carrying him now. He was clutching the bottle with T.K.'s spirit inside with both hands, even though it already hung around her neck.

"Just a little further…" she urged both the child and herself, keeping her eyes on the point of light. "Just a little…more…Just a little…"

The span of light was just a few meters away. It was so close…So close…She could see sunlight and grass and trees and flowers.…

It all vanished.

With a sickening click, it was all gone. Kari slide to a stop and stared wildly at it, shocked. "No…" she whispered, touching the gray-green wall. "No…It can't be…"

"There!" Pandoramon's voice boomed from outside the box. "There! I may have lost all my souls, but I have you! Trapped forever, do you hear you little brat?! FOREVER! My power will grow again, you wait and see! And I will be by my father's side in his rule, and we shall stay that way…perfect…for all time!"

"No…" Kari whispered, pounding on the wall. "No! No no nonononono!!!"

"Kari? What's going on?" T.K. called. "Kari, what happened?!"

"We're trapped…" Kari whispered, pulling Hikaru close. "We can't get out…We're trapped…"

~ * ~ * ~

Pandoramon's laugh rang through the trees and bounced off the walls of the DigiDestined's brains. It was painful, horribly loud, and made you sick at heart. "NOW YOU SEE!" she laughed, turning to the DigiDestined still outside. "NOW YOU SEE THE FUTALITY OF YOUR STRUGGLE?! YOU SEE MY POWER!!"

She slashed her hand forward and Davis back. The goggle-head scrambled back away from hers, back to the others. "Now, father!" she cheered. "Rise up! Now, my Lord Daemon! We can rule! We will…"

She let out a scream of pain. Roarmon, the brave little thing, was biting her dioeciously on the hand holding the box. "Get off, you little pest!" Pandoramon raged. "Get off!"

She flung her hand back and forth. She shook so hard that she lost her grip on the box. It flew away from her and smashed against a tree.

A light burst forward from the shards of the box. Roarmon went flying and Pandoramon stared in horror. "No! No! No!" she cried as the light got brighter and brighter. "No! No! Nooo!"

The light grew brighter and brighter. Pandoramon aged rapidly, in seconds she was an old, wrinkled woman. Within moments of that, she had crumbled away all together.

The light vanished. The DigiDestined lay on the ground, stunned and dizzy. After a moment, Cody sat up. "Mhm…What happened?"

Davis groaned, lifting himself up. He spotted something lying by the tree, not moving. "Kari! Hikaru!"

The DigiDestined were on their feet in an instant and at the side of the two. Roarmon was longing rubbing against Hikaru's hand, which was the only thing Kari hadn't covered from the blast inside the box.

"Kari…" Yolei whispered, shaking her friend. "Kari, Hikaru…come on, wake up…"

With a low groan, Kari stirred. Hikaru blinked and sat up, still holding the bottle, and looked around curiously. "Roarmon!" he exclaimed, scooping his partner up.

"Hikaru…" the small creature whispered, cuddling into him. "I was so worried!"

Kari sat up, holding her head, then groped for something around her neck. "The bottle…!" she gasped, searching desperately. "Where's the bottle?! Where's T.K.?!"

"I've got him, mom." Hikaru held out the small bottle. The chain had broken off Kari's neck, but he'd been holding it. Kari took it carefully, then kissed the boy on the forehead.

"You're still in one piece!" Davis exclaimed.

"Is T.K. really in there?" Ken asked, leaning down to see the bottle. There was something white and smoky, but he couldn't speak. It only worked inside the box.

Kari looked around. "But Pandoramon…" she looked around. "What happened to Pandoramon?"

The others shrugged, but there was nothing really to say. The shards of the box lay around them, and they were still in one piece. So who cared how it worked, as long as it worked.

"Well…" Davis sighed. "I guess we can head home now, huh?"

Kari gripped the bottle in her hands. "Not me." she muttered. "We've gotta get T.K. back in his body. I don't think he wants to live the rest of his life as a genie."