To be honest, I am not entirely happy with this chapter, so I may well revise it at some point. It seems too quick to me- but oh well. I plan on changing a few things later anyway, so it isn't much of a problem.
Oh, and I fell I should highlight the fact that Tai learnt a number of things in Chapter 4 on Sora's business- just in case you forgot. It becomes important now.
Read and review!
CHAPTER 6: IT IS JUST TO DO OR DIEThe show organisers had done an admirable job of pulling everything back together, considering what exactly had happened. It had continued after the madness had ended; yet the group did not remain, leaving after Mimi (Yolei soon following suit) and Kari's repeated words on how they had to follow Sora and see if she was all right.
The three girls had separated, their respective boyfriends (and husband) going with them. The rest had remained at the main entrance, not really knowing what to do with themselves.
Tai stood away from them all, forefinger and thumb slowly stroking his chin in a gesture of thought. Indeed, he was thinking, trying to understand exactly what was going so wrong with Sora's business, and how to solve such a... Conundrum.
But with what he knew, finding the answer was not exactly difficult. At least, a theory was not hard to form. He couldn't be sure if he was correct yet though- that would take time.
Still, what was far more disturbing was that it appeared that no one else had any suspicions more than bad work on Sora's part. And that spoke volumes to Tai.
What the hell had happened to their comradeship? Was this a repetition of when he had been pulled out of the Digital World during their first adventure- was the lack of a strong leader causing them to separate?
Such was the flow of Tai's thoughts, broken every few minutes as he reminded himself that this was supposed to be none of his business.
"Um... Mr. Kamiya?" came a voice nearby, causing Tai to focus and see the brown-haired girl whom he did not know standing before him
"Yes?" he said quietly.
"Hi," she continued with a polite smile. "I'm Katie, Matt's girlfriend."
"Really? Congratulations," came the bland reply. This appeared to greatly faze the girl but did not break her, for she soon pressed on.
"Um... He told me a lot about you, you know. He said that you were the leader of the group..."
"What's your point?"
She said nothing more, but instead gestured behind him. He half-turned, only to see that the group had formed itself into a semi-circle around him.
He refused to face them all front on, instead remaining with his shoulder pointing at them. Their inquisitive looks spoke volumes-
'What should we do?'
Tai found himself scowling. 'What, they just expect me to have the answer?' he thought. He was about to express his annoyance, when the voice of his sister gave him a new piece of information as she and TK returned.
"No sign of her..." He turned away from the group to look down at her. "What do you think we should do?"
"Go home," he said simply as some spots of rain began to fall.
---------
"Jeez! I know we screwed up with the party, and I know he doesn't like us much now, but surely he gives a damn about Sora!" Matt shouted as he punched at the nearest wall.
"I don't know Matt. Tai has a lot of issues that he has to sort through, and Sora is just one of them."
"...yeah, I guess so Cody. But it just gets me so pissed off! I mean, doesn't he care at all?"
"I think he does," the youngest of the Digidestined said, "More than he is comfortable with. Give him time."
"...hey," Jun suddenly said, where's Joe?"
----------
Only a moment after Kari, TK and Taichi entered the apartment, a knock was heard on the front door. Takeru had rushed to answer it in the hope that it was Sora, but instead was met with the face of a certain blue-haired doctor.
"Oh... Hi. Why are you here?"
"May I come in TK? I need to talk with Taichi..."
"Sure, sure."
Tai stood in the living room of the flat, looking out of the patio windows at the now heavily falling rain. Clad still in the clothes from the show, coat and all, he looked somewhat like he had when on the top of his island looking out at the sea. And of course he had heard the brief exchange of words and indeed recognised the newcomer's voice. What to think of the newcomer himself, though, he did not know.
The ex-castaway clasped his hands behind his back and turned to regard the older man, now walking towards him with TK and Kari in tow.
"Hello Joe," he said calmly.
"Hi, Taichi," the doctor replied with a smile. "It's been a while since we have really talked- how are you?"
"About as well as could be expected, I guess."
"Ah, that's good to know."
Tai watched as TK and Kari moved into the kitchen, apparently to give some privacy, whilst thinking of why exactly the doctor had come over. So, he asked.
"Why are you here, Joe?"
"Why? Well, I wanted to meet you again. I've missed you, Tai."
Tai found himself surprised at the comment. Joe was not here for guilt, for fun, but just... To be a friend again.
He allowed a small smile to touch him as the doctor bowed in greeting.
"I'm... Glad," he said slowly. "But is that all?"
"Of course. You don't know what you have until it's gone, right? I guess I didn't realise how much of a friend you were until you left. I don't think any of us did."
"...huh?"
"You know what happened today? Most of us have had failings like that, but never as extreme. Every time when you weren't around, things never got better. We just got further and further apart."
Tai frowned.
"So, I'm just good for holding you together, right? That's all?"
"Not all. It's just part of it. What I am trying to say is... Well, to make a start in helping each other now, we need courage. Without it, we will soon be broken."
"So you're telling me that I have to get everyone working together again? You just think that you can walk in here, and tell me what to do, is that it?"
"No, no," Joe said reassuringly, "what I mean is that only you, after all that has happened, has the courage to forgive and move on. "
"I... I dunno, Joe," Tai said, turning away and looking back out of the window. "So much has changed. What's to say that, if I were to forgive them, they wouldn't just go and forget me again?"
Joe sighed.
"Tai... Please, I- I beg you not to hold a grudge against them, and against us. Don't be stubborn. If you want their respect, show them you are deserving of it, please...
"You know, the fact that you survived alone says that you wanted to come back to us..."
Unseen to Joe, Tai's right hand slipped into his pocket and held onto something more precious to him than all the gold in the world. Indeed, there was something he wanted to return to, but the truth was that it didn't exist anymore.
But now, here was an opportunity to make it exist once again.
"In all honesty, I can't believe that you haven't learnt anything," Joe continued. "I mean, you act so differently now, so... seriously. I don't see a headstrong boy in you anymore. I see a man who is fully capable of looking at what is happening around him and making the right decision.
"Remember, Tai, you must do what you feel is right."
"Yeah... I know, I know. But... I'm scared, Joe. I couldn't stand it if they would forget me again..."
Joe smiled gently.
"You don't need to worry about that. I don't think anyone could forget you now, anyway."
And Tai found himself feeling content. Calm too, as though everything was going to be all right...
Yes. He could trust Joe. Old reliable Joe.
"For better or for worse," the older man said, "The Digidestined are slowly splitting. I mean, it took your 'resurrection' to bring them together; not even New Years Eve parties can do that anymore. It just goes to show, you are a pivotal point, and always shall be.
"I... Think I can understand about the team breaking. I mean, if we were all still a team, then we would not be in the state we are now, and someone would have put the pieces together."
Now it was Joe's turn to be confused.
"What do you mean?"
Tai paused, then said flatly,
"I have been thinking about events, and this is what I have come up with; there is nothing wrong with Sora's designs, Joe. Nothing at all. The problems are with the products themselves..."
"But that would mean that someone is changing them. Who would do that?"
They were silent for a while.
"Surely not Aoba," Joe said with a frown, "he isn't the type."
"I'm not going to point the finger, not until I am certain. That would cause more damage than good."
Those words, hinting that Tai was indeed going to do something to help the situation, caused the young Doctor to feel a grin taking over him. But, he fought it, lest he cause his old leader to change his mind.
"You... Have a plan?" he asked hesitantly.
"Perhaps," Tai replied. "But it depends on many things. What do you want out of it?"
"Huh?" Joe asked, thrown by the question.
"If I had a plan... What result would you want?"
"I don't know... For all of us to be a team again, I guess."
"I agree."
They were silent once again, neither having anything more that needed to be said, but inside Tai's head, a plan was forming, one which –he hoped- would hit two goals at once. And all the while, his hand was deep inside his coat pocket, fingering a silver disk which was, and held, something more important to him than anything else in the world.
It was that which made the decision for him. It gave him his own personal goals, and the way to reach them.
He knew what had to be done.
Soon Joe felt the urge to say something more- however he was cut off when Taichi abruptly spun on his heel and walked towards the hallway, and, front door.
"Kari," he said, voice filled with confidence that had only been present back when they were in the Digital World, "I'm going out."
"Where to?" the petite woman asked, appearing out of the kitchen and attempting to keep up with his long stride but not doing a very good job of it.
The man paused, turned, and said enigmatically,
"To find the key."
----------
Along the Odaiba seafront, benches were placed to allow anyone with a moment to spare in the course of their busy lives to look out at the wonder the sea was. Naturally, this meant that they weren't used often, and even less often at this time of year, seeing as it could get cold very quickly- but Sora didn't care much for that at the moment.
She had run straight here, sat, and dimply cried for hours, because, in her mind, she had lost everything. Her business was a shambles, her reputation was tarnished, and she was certain that Tai hated her.
The now-constant rain seemed to reflect her mood.
"You'll get a cold if you stay out here," someone suddenly said. She gasped in surprise and turned around in to see a tall man dressed in an old dark green overcoat, it's hood pulled up over his head making him appear to look somewhat like a spectre or death.
But no, she knew who this was, and couldn't decide which was better or worse.
"How... How did you find me?"
"I've been looking around for you for hours. I happened to see someone in a fancy dress sitting here in the rain and, well, there aren't many people in that sort of situation at one o'clock in the morning."
"You should go home Tai..." she said as the turned away and looked back out to sea. "Colds are going to be more dangerous to you than me."
She could have sworn that he chuckled at that.
"No," came his reply as he sat down on the opposite side of the bench from her, leaving a noticeable gap between them. He pulled his hood back, revealing his scarred face. "The doctors say I have a heightened immune system, and besides, I have a coat. And you don't."
"So? Why do you care?" She sniffled, trying not to start crying again.
He was silent for a while, seeming to be debating with himself about what to say to the red-haired woman. Eventually he spoke in a quiet but firm voice,
"Because I don't like to see you like this."
Her head whipped up to look at him in surprise, causing bits of water to spay from her hair. He remained where he was, looking dead ahead with his arms crossed, raindrops gathering beneath his nose and chin and matting down his hair.
"Huh?" was all she was able to say.
"You are in trouble, Sora. That much is clear. What interests me is why. When we were best friends, you put all you had into everything, and I can't believe that you would change into someone who produces clothes that fall apart. It doesn't suit your character."
"I... I just messed up," she whispered.
"In a way, yes you did," he said again surprising her. She wouldn't have thought he would have heard her. "But only indirectly. You see, I have a theory of what is happening. I don't want to tell it in case I am wrong- that would cause more harm than good, but I am sure that I'm close."
Sora looked back forwards and out to sea again.
"Why are you telling me this?" she asked.
He sighed, slowly pushing himself to his feet.
"I am going to make you an offer," he said as he turned to face her dead-on. "I think I know what is going on. I think I know how to stop it, and I think I know how to get you and your business on it's feet again.
"I will warn you, however, that this will not be easy, and it isn't guaranteed to work. Anything could go wrong at any time, and in the end it may fail. But, it is your life and your decision."
He held out his hand to her in the manner of a business partner.
"Will you accept?"
For a minute, she merely looked at him in surprise, but eventually began to slowly reach out towards him.
"Remember," he said halting her before they made contact. "I only have a plan. I cannot guarantee any results. I'm only showing you the door- you must walk through it."
She looked him in the eye, and felt a smile appearing on her face. Here was Tai, with a plan, offering her his help. He would make things better- she knew that he would. He always did.
In the back of her mind, she realised that she had thought a similar thing around two weeks before. And, she mused, her wish had come true.
With no doubt in her mind, she grasped his hand in hers, and shook it gently.
"Very well," he said. "Meet me tomorrow at 1pm in Kari's flat. Call the others, and ask them if they want to help. If they do, bring them along. Then, we can get started and sort this all out. Can you do that?"
"Sure, it's Sunday so it's a day off for me... And I'll call everyone!"
Her now beaming smile was infectious, and Tai soon found himself reflecting it- to a minor extent.
"Good. But before I go, I have two questions."
"...what are they?"
"First, the dress Kari was wearing last night- did you make it?"
"Yeah, I designed it and put it together myself... It was a preview of what I could do. I made a few mistakes when I was making it, but I learnt from them..."
"Okay, and second, do you have any dresses from earlier that were not used?"
"One or two, I think... I'll have to look."
"Try and get hold of an intact one, and bring it with you."
"Alright... But why?"
"To test my theory. Trust me, it will be useful."
He looked back out to the sea for a moment, then said,
"Now, Sora. Go home. You'll feel much better in the morning, and I promise that I will do all I can to help you. Don't worry about it, okay?"
"Okay... and thank you, Taichi."
He said nothing to that, instead walking towards the road and signalling to an approaching taxi. She quickly followed.
"You have some money, right?"
"Yeah," she replied and gestured to her handbag. "But what about you? How are you going to get home?"
"I'll walk," he said whilst pulling up his hood. "I kinda like the rain... It's refreshing."
"But... You'll get soaked!"
"I already am," he said as he opened the taxi door and gently pushed her towards it. "And so are you. Don't worry about me, I'm used to getting wet. It rained a lot on my island, you know."
She was about to protest again, but he raised a finger between them, a motion asking her to be silent.
"Let me walk. I need to think, and I do that best when I walk. Go home, Sora, and I'll see you tomorrow."
Reluctantly, she got into the vehicle and it drove away. But, she never broke eye contact with him as they parted.
Tai couldn't help but note with a small smile that this was almost exactly the same as when he had first got off the container ship- only with roles reversed.
Fate, it seemed, had an odd sense of irony.
The ex-castaway spent no more time there though, departing after a moment to go back to the Takashi's flat, his mind already working at what he had to do.
And, indeed, he did have a plan. He just hoped that it would work.
----------
"...hel... hello?"
"Izzy?"
"Wha, Sora? Where are you, are you okay?"
"Don't worry, I'm fine... Sorry to get you up at this hour, but, uh..."
"What's wrong? Do you need some help?"
"Tai came and talked to me... He offered to help-"
"Help? With your business?"
"Yes."
"Has he forgiven us?!"
"I don't know... He didn't say that he had, he just said that I should call the guys and get them to meet at TK and Kari's apartment. He has a plan, I think."
"Prodigious! When?"
"One in the afternoon..."
"Okay, I guess Mimi and I can be there. Look, you've had a rough day, Sora- you go to bed and I'll call everyone. I have their hotel numbers and all on my laptop, so it will only take a few minutes."
"...okay. Thanks Izzy."
"Goodnight, Sora."
----------
TK was grinning like an idiot.
It was a grin which was, normally, withheld for special occasions, such as when he was more intoxicated than he should be, and this most definitely stood in a special occasion.
The team was being recalled for a meeting.
That alone would have made him happy, for such an event had not happened for over seven years- but what made this extra special was that it was Tai who had called the meeting. Tai, who for the best part of those seven years had effectively been dead.
The man in question was sitting in the dining area of the main room, reading and writing on some sheets of paper which appeared to be from a bank. No one had asked what exactly he was doing, because he was concentrating on his task quite a bit, and neither of the Takashis wanted to disturb him.
He and Kari were getting the flat ready for the meeting, preparing drinks and food, as well as moving chairs, a sofa, and even beanbags around for form an oval shape in front of the patio window. TK could tell that his wife was pleased too; she would often start humming, something she only did when she felt content.
For once it seemed like everything was going to be okay- and all because Tai had had an abrupt change of heart.
Thanks to Joe.
Soon a knock came on the door, and Kari opened it to reveal Sora. The Takashis greeted her with relief that she was okay, and ushered her into the flat. Upon seeing Tai, she smiled and offered a small wave. He nodded in response.
"Tai?" she said, "I managed to get one of the dresses. Where should I put it?"
"Just leave it on the table, next to Kari's" he replied whilst pointing to the red dress about a metre away from him. Sora placed a similar pink one next to it.
Kari then took Sora to the kitchen, where the two and TK began to chat (and wonder at what exactly Tai would want them to do). It was still a few minutes until one as the redhead had arrived a bit early, but soon the others arrived and began to take their places by the patio- all of them also wondering what, exactly, was going to happen.
They soon got their answer as Tai folded his bank forms, slipped them into an envelope and stood. He picked up Kari's dress, and looked inside it at something, then did exactly the same to the one Sora had brought. A frown appeared on the ex-castaway's face, just before he looked over at the assembled Digidestined out of the corner of his eye, dropped both dresses back on the table, then moved towards the one remaining seat at the head of the group. As soon as he sat, they all fell silent and looked at him questioningly.
He addressed them in a calm and clear voice, whilst gazing around evenly.
"You are all probably wondering why you are here."
They did not reply, but their blank faces spoke volumes. Tai used the moment to sum up who was present.
'Kari, TK, Sora, Davis, Yolei, Ken, Cody, Joe, Jun, Matt, that Katie- Matt's girlfriend, Izzy, and Mimi... Everyone. Good. This will make things easier.'
"Well," he continued, "let me begin by making one thing very clear to you all. And I want you to remember this."
He stood again, and slowly began to pace around the group, speaking as if he was addressing an army unit.
"I don't care who you are. I don't care who you were, nor do I care who you will be. I don't care where you live. I don't care what your jobs are. I don't care about your sex. I don't care what clothes you wear, who your friends are, I don't even care whether you graduated or not."
His voice grew increasingly louder, highlighting what they all had to know and understand.
"The only thing, the ONLY thing, that I give a damn about is that all of you, excluding Jun and Miss Katie are and ALWAYS WILL BE Digidestined. But even the two girls are just as involved- they have to be to even be here now. As far as I am concerned, all of you are Digidestined, and THAT, ladies and gentlemen, means that we are a TEAM, and as a team, we work TOGETHER."
His slow trek around them ended as he moved behind Sora.
"One of our number is in trouble. And, it appears, she has been for a long time."
He paused to let his words sink in, noting how everyone was beginning to look guilty in some way. Despite his feelings on guilt and how it would get in the way, he knew that he had to get through this- else nothing would come of his plan.
So, he pressed on.
"I'll be frank. I am absolutely TERRIFIED how no one, NO ONE had yet thought that there is more to Sora's predicament than meets the eye. How many of you, before this meeting began, thought that we were all close friends? How many of you trust everyone here? How many of you would lay down your lives for them? And how many of you care about their well-being?
"Well, let's highlight the facts. Sora's case gives us an excellent opportunity.
"Sora. The bearer of the Crest of Love. Love relies on trust, right? Therefore, Sora is a very trusting person.
"Sora," he said now directly addressing her- though he remained standing behind her with a stern look on his face as if he were representing her in court, "do you trust the people who you work with?"
"Well... yes," she replied.
"Which means that you trust the people who give you contracts, the people who you compete against, such as Miss Kirishima, and the people who help you put your designs together- such as Mr. Aoba."
"Yeah..."
"Okay."
Silence.
"Now," he said whilst walking over to the two dresses. He picked up Kari's red one, and held it up for the group to see.
"This is something which Sora made herself- drew, cut, sewed, the whole lot. Now, you see, this is quite a dress- well made and all."
He moved it around in his hands, showing that it was indeed well made- and that, unlike the ones form the show, it stayed together.
"Exhibit A, everyone. Now, we move onto Exhibit B- one which was supposed to be worn at the show."
He put down the red dress, picked up the pink one, and held it up like he had with Kari's.
"Very nice, don't you think?" he said as he walked back to the group. He moved up to where he had been sitting at first, grasped it on either side, and pulled sharply in opposite directions.
They all gasped as it effortlessly tore right down the middle into two pieces. Tai threw them down in disgust.
"Now TELL ME, boys and girls, where is the second opinion? Where is the voice putting forward the idea that there is something very wrong going on? And why the hell has it not occurred to anyone that this sort of thing has only been happening since Miss Kirishima came on the scene, and only to items which Mr. Aoba's company have put together.
"Let me spell it out for you.
"You think you know each other. But you have lost touch. If you were still the team that you once were, then the events of last night would never have come around. Someone would have prevented it, one way or another.
"And that scares me."
He let the silence in the room speak for him as he sat back down, waiting to see what the group would draw from this.
It was a long wait, but eventually Matt said the words which spoke for all of them.
"I'm sorry," he said. They all soon copied him whilst Tai looked over them calmly.
"I do not want to force anything upon you," the old leader said quietly, "and I am sorry for having to present my thoughts so harshly. But it had to be said. You all have your own commitments and your own lives, but please, if you respect anything that happened when we were younger, then I ask for your help. I have a plan, and if it is to succeed, then I will need as many of you as possible."
"Um... Tai, how long would you need us for?" Izzy asked.
"My guess is four weeks, give or take."
"Well... I suppose I can work over here," the computer whiz said. "What do you think, Mimi?"
"I'll help Sora in any way that I can!" his girlfriend replied confidently.
"Matt," Katie said, "We can put the tour on hold for a few weeks..."
"Yeah... Yeah! We're in Tai!" the blonde said, a grin splitting his face. "It'll be good to kick some ass again!"
"Good," he replied. "Your band may be useful later on- is it possible to get them all over here to help?"
"You bet man!"
"Hey, you'll need a chef right?" Davis interrupted. Tai nodded.
"Then I'm in!"
"So are we!" TK and Kari said at the same time. "We'll do whatever we can!"
"I always have enjoyed working with you all," Ken said in his refined manner. "If Yolei wants to help... Then I shall too."
"You bet we're gonna help hun!" the purple haired girl said, deciding the pair's involvement.
Cody was next, "My grandfather taught me that I should honour my friends. I shall lend my assistance Tai, for whatever you need me to do."
Finally, it came to the last two- Joe and Jun.
"Well," Joe said with a small smile, "it appears that we have got our leader back. I can use some of my holiday time to stay down here, so I shall- I've missed working as part of a team. Jun?"
"I agree! I want to help!" the girl said, shaking in excitement.
Tai leant back in his chair as the corners of his mouth perked up.
"Then, you are all willing to help."
They nodded collectively in reply, newfound determination in their eyes.
"So be it."
He let his words hang for a few moments, letting the conformation sink in, before rising once more from his chair.
"Okay. We may as well begin. Sora?"
"Yes, Tai?"
"Call Mr. Aoba and tell him that you have a number of people interested in making an investment with you- but these people want to know the whole system before they do so. Say that they want to meet him in his office as soon as possible."
"Alright, but who are they?"
Tai grinned dangerously.
"Us," he said. "You see, we are going to pay Mr. Aoba a little visit..."