Disclaimer: I own nothing, please don't sue me.
Kari raced through a dark forest deep in the digital world. She had gone there with the rest of the Digidestined to relax. Ken was the latest member of their elite group, and no one was really quite sure on how to deal with him, or whether or not trust him. But she couldn't think about that right now. She couldn't think about how five minutes before she sensed the Dark Ocean was near Ken had just walked away from everyone. She just had to think about not tripping on something. If she did, she was done for. She hadn't told the others what was going on, she just quietly got up, smiled, and said she would be back in awhile.
"You can't cry right now Kari." She told herself as the tears began to blur her vision. The darkness was so strong. It was pulling at her, it was in her head. Voices kept whispering "Come on Kari. Feed that little bit of darkness inside you, you know you want to." They echoed.
"Get out of my head!" She screamed as her arms and legs were sliced by outstretched branches. She thought that even the trees were after her. The air was so thick that Kari could hardly breathe, her brown hair was plastered to her forehead. Even the scream that escaped from her parched throat was muffled as she fell to the ground.
"Gotta...get up." She tried to stand, but she had sprained her ankle. Kari wailed in pain the moment she put any weight on her foot, and the ocean was getting nearer. She tried to crawl, but realized that that was futile. The roaring was getting louder, the voices were getting stronger, and a wave of despair swept through her body. She shrieked as it became obvious that they would finally catch her.
However as the darkness began to overtake her something very strange happened. The voices inside her began to hiss. They almost seemed to back away. She felt lighter as the suffocating darkness subsided. She heard a much quieter tenor voice, singing softly above the hissing.
I was never alive
Till the day I was blessed with you
When I hold you late at night
I know what I was put here to do
I turn off the world
And listen to you sigh
And I will sing my Angel's Lullaby
She opened her bloodshot eyes and saw a familiar face. Dark blue locks gently fell in his icy eyes. His arms were wrapped around her, protecting her from the darkness. For the first time in days Kari felt completely safe. His smiling face made the dark woods seem bright. He stopped singing and looked down into her soft brown eyes.
"Come on Kari. I'm sure the rest of the group is worried about you." He stood and helped her to her feet.
"Ken, how did you know I would be here?" Kari asked, her voice trembling almost as much as she was.
"I've been there too. And... Kari, you're shaking." Ken took of his jacket and gently placed it on her shoulders. "Come on, Tai must be worried out of his mind." Ken slowly led Kari back to the rest of the group. The voices were barely audible, all she could hear was Ken, singing that song.
Months passed. Kari and Ken had been in love since that afternoon. Davis was upset, but he eventually learned to deal with it. Ken became a trusted member of the Digidestined and all seemed right with the world. Kari had heard the voices very few times in those months. And Ken always seemed to know when they were there, because the next thing she knew, he was on the phone, singing that same song to her until she calmed down. Tonight was their three-month anniversary, and they were going to dinner, and then they were going dancing. Ken never went dancing, but after about two hours of negotiations Kari finally talked him into it. And next week they would go and see an old World War II movie that was being replayed at the cinema. Kari was finishing up her makeup when TK walked in.
"So, do you think I should let Davis attempt to cook the pizza?" TK paused looking up from his book. "Goodness Kari. You look smashing." He said mocking a British accent. And she did. She was wearing a light pink spaghetti strap dress with a Rhine stone sunburst in the bottom right and Ken's black leather jacket.
"Oh and by the way, he's here."
"Thanks TK, and no, don't let Davis burn down my house." She gave him a quick hug and ran out into the front hallway.
"You guys have fun." Matt smiled as Tai shut the door.
It was around 1:30 when they left the club. Ken had actually had fun.
"See, we should go dancing more often." Kari smiled and got into the car. As they were driving home a sudden wave of pain ran though Kari. The voices cackled menacingly as Ken yelled and threw the steering wheel to one side. Before Kari blacked out she heard shrieking tires, breaking glass, laughter, and Ken singing.
Know I'm forever near
The one you can always call
Right now all you know to fear
Are the shadows on your wall
I'm here close enough
To kiss the tears you cry
And I will sing my Angel's Lullaby
She awoke in the hospital and smiled. TK and Tai had fallen asleep beside her bed. She took a minute, realized where she was and gasped, remembering the crash. TK heard her moving around, and woke up.
"Morning Sunshine." He said stroking back her hair. "You gave us a pretty bad scare. Tai, get up man."
Tai slowly opened his eyes, and smiled at his little sister. "How you feeling?"
"Like I have a headache. Where's Ken?"
"Kari. He... didn't..." TK didn't have the heart to finish the sentence as she began to cry.
Two days passed. The voices had come back with a vengeance, especially the day of the funeral. Kari had just laid in bed for those two days, in complete darkness, staring at his jacket. TK slowly walked into her room. He had come everyday to see her, but she normally sent him away.
"Kari, you need to come to the funeral." He said, gently sitting on her bed. "You have to get up." He reached for the blinds, but her soft touch stopped him. He looked down at her, she hadn't eaten in days, her eyes were red and puffy from crying, and she just looked like a mess. "Please?" Kari sighed and sat up. He was right. She quickly got in the shower, did her hair, and dressed in black, something that she never did. As they stood outside, listening to the preacher it began to snow. TK had his arm around her, and pulled her closer as it came down. She didn't even notice. Her eyes were so distant. TK noticed that she was humming.
So tell me how to stop the years from racing
Is there a secret someone knows
I'll never catch all the memories I'm chasing
I'll never be ready to let go
TK led Kari back to the car. Her head was bothering her again. The voices were screaming at her, they thought that they had won. And to her, they basically had. When they got home TK gave her a hug and told her to call him if she needed anything. She smiled slightly and sent him on his way. She knew what she was going to do. She walked into her room with every pill in the house. She sat on her bed, three glasses of water on her nightstand and about 15 containers of pills. As she picked up the first pill she couldn't help but glance at the picture on her stand. It was one of Ken and her, they were both smiling, and she noticed Davis being chased by a bee in the background. She opened her window and let the cold air come in. As she swallowed the first handful of pills the voices began to roar with excitement.
"You're doing the right thing Kari. You'll be with him again." They echoed in her mind. But they would be gone soon. All the pain would be gone soon, and she would be with Ken. That's all she wanted. But before she got to the second handful of pills she heard a soft tenor voice, singing.
And when the world seems cold
And you feel that all of your strength is gone
There may be one tiny voice
Your reason to carry on
And when I'm not close enough
To kiss the tears you cry
You will sing your Angel's Lullaby
Her hands began to shake as she dropped the pills. The voices shrieked and then ceased all together. She gently closed her window, right after she threw the pills out of it. Kari sat on her bed, looking down at her hands. A cold hand seemed to brush her cheek, and then the singing stopped.
"Let this be our Angel's Lullaby."
