----
If I fall along the way,
Pick me up and dust me off.
And if I get too tired to make it,
Be my breath, so I can walk.
If I need another love,
Give me more than I can stand.
And when my smile gets old and faded,
Wait around, I'll smile again.
Shouldn't be so complicated,
Just hold me and then,
Just hold me again...
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
If I couldn't sleep could you sleep?
Could you paint me better off?
Could you sympathize with my needs?
I know you think I need a lot.
I sharted out clean but I'm jaded..
Just phoning it in,
Just breaking the skin..
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
Start bending me,
It's never enough,
I feel all your pieces.
Start bending me,
Keep bending me until I'm completly broken in.
Shouldn't be so complicated..
Just touch me and then,
Just touch me again..
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
----
~
The stars in the cold fall night sky sparkled, reflecting off Rika's eyes as she stood out on the small stone bridge over the small pond of water in her backyard. Standing on the bridge she could faintly see over the tall wall that surrounded her house.
It was the night of the fall dance every girl in her school had been so crazy over, every one making every call they could to hook up with a guy from the opposite school, the non-stop chatter from all the girls in her classes made Rika's head spin and her stomach into a knot. What would they think to see Rika Nonaka, the ice queen, in a dress with the proclaimed cutest guy in the 'other' school as her date?
There was no turning back now. The dress was already on her, the long silk white gown that reached down past her ankles and fell over the straps of the white high-heeled sandals her mother had bought her the day before. Rika ran her fingers nervously through her curled hair that came down slightly past her shoulders and played with the diamond necklace, perfectly matching the diamond studded butterfly up the side of her dress. She still didn't understand how her mother talked her into the white eyeshadow or deep pink lipstick, but it had been in the rush of the moment that she had been pulled away from sorting through digimon cards to fix everything for the dance.
Rika drew the silver pouch that her mother had also thrown in to complete the outfit up and took out her blue and white digivice, staring at it. It seemed so useless now, Renamon being, well the best friend Rika had never had in human form, the girl who it took a whole half an hour to explain to her grandmother was the same digimon she had discovered earlier talking with Rika.
Arista seemed to love her new form. She was able to wear more than yellow fur now. She could be shown in the open, people talked to her like she was regular, she felt alive... and it upset Rika.
She didn't quite like Arista. She liked Renamon. Renamon was her friend, the one she could trust to never leave her side, the digimon she had always dreamed of. Rika broke a smile as she thought to herself the last remark.
The digimon that could scare Takato straight.
Rika jumped out of her thoughts at something white and silky being draped over her arms as she clung to the edge of the bridge.
She turned quickly to see Arista, even more beautiful than normal, standing behind her smiling.
"You left that on the chair."
Rika ran her fingers over the silk shawl-like scarf and smiled up at Arista. "Thanks."
Arista twirled around in the tight purple dress she wore and laughed. "Well, I think I went a little original in design, but it's a start."
"You look fine." Rika turned back around and stared back out at the street over the wall that separated her from the outside world.
Arista made a face and walked up beside her, grabbing the railing with her own hands and leaned over, trying to see in her own tamer's face. "Rika, what'd I do?"
"You didn't do anything, it's not your fault." Rika snapped, wrapping the white silk shawl around her bare arms and holding the ends tightly to her body.
"Well something must be wrong or you wouldn't have replied in that 'Rika' tone of voice." Arista joked, grinning widely, but stopped and frowned when Rika didn't respond, just stared in a silent anger at the water that reflected the moon above them.
Arista crossed her arms, turned herself around, and leaned her back against the railing, fingers brushing the gold arm band pressed against her light colored skin.
"It's because of Henry, isn't it?"
"No! It's because of you and that stupid form!!" Rika shrieked, glaring at her.
Arista jumped a bit at the sudden outburst from her tamer and narrowed her eyebrows.
"Do you think I wanted to be like this?"
"Whatever happened to the Renamon I knew?!?" Rika growled, pushing past her and marching off to her room, purposly ignoring Arista's last comment.
Arista stood back, hand on her chest with a blank look on her face. "Rika..." she whispered.
~
Arista sat silently on the chair in the corner of the living room of the Nonaka household, bunching the edge of her purple dress in her hand as she stared at the hallway enterance to where Rika's room was down the hall, praying she came out before---
DING-DONG
Arista's heart sank as the doorbell rang, knowing exactly who would be there when she opened the mahogany colored door.
Sighing, she sat up, ran her hand through her silk-like blonde hair, and opened the front door, to both shocked faces of Henry and Josh staring right at her and the dress she wore.
As Josh fumbled for words, Henry's eyes narrowed as he studied the look on Arista's face, his own face now growing a look of worry on it.
"A-A-Arista.. you look--" Henry cut Josh's stutters off by walking quickly in the house, sensing from Arista's facial features something was wrong with Rika.
Arista sighed and turned around to look at the now smooth-haired, finely dressed Henry already half-way down the hallway.
"He's crazy about her." Arista sighed, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning her head to the side to watch him.
Josh walked up behind her, light-brown hair being pushed back by his fingers as usual. "Oh, really, what makes you think that?"
Arista gave him a playful glare and went back to watching down the long dark hallway at the barely visable Henry.
Both digimon heard the sound of Rika's door sliding open, Henry's figure and everything within feet of him illuminated with the soft yellow glow of the one lamp Rika had in her room. The door slid again, and a dark, empty hall remained, leaving Arista and Josh silent in the living room, wondering what was to happen next.
~
Henry stood, back against the sliding door, watching Rika's back as she refused to turn around.
"Look, Arista, I said I wasn't going to talk to you unt--" Rika's voice cracked with tears as she whirled around quickly, her hair bouncing and twisting behind one shoulder from the sudden turn, her violet eyes filled with tears as she looked up at Henry in the doorway.
"Henry...." she whispered, her hand going instinctavly up to where her heart would be, but instead touched the diamond necklace she wore and suddenly her mind raced, remembering that she wore the white silk dress still.
Henry was speechless at first at the glow she seemed to be giving off, then cleared his throat and smiled.
"You look absolutly breathtaking Rika..."
Rika felt, for the first time in her life, a blush creep up on her cheeks as she looked down at the wood floor quickly.
"Now what's this about Arista?" Henry took a few steps closer to her and smiled warmly.
"I... don't want to talk about it..." Rika tugged at the diamond bracelet around her wrist and turned her back to him again.
"Well we aren't leaving for the dance until you do." Henry shrugged and collasped into the chair a bit in front of her and looked almost sturnly at her.
"Fine by me... I'd rather not go anyways." Rika turned once more and walked over to her dresser to look in the mirror at her reflection.
Henry made a slight face. "Well that didn't work." he thought aloud.
"Does this even have anything to do with Arista, you sure it's not about the weird looks all the others are going to give us when we walk in together?" Henry took a wild stab in the dark as he looked up at her.
She stared straight at her reflection for a minute or two, then turned, the high-heels of her shoes clicking on the floor as she faced him. "No... I'm sure it's not... I got over that awhile ago."
"Then what's the problem?" Henry asked growing impatient.
"Renamon.." Rika replied simply enough for Henry to piece together the whole story in his head in moments as she turned back around and put both hands firmly on the dresser top and leaned in towards the mirror with a sigh.
"Who's been there for you this whole time?"
Rika glanced over at Henry and removed one hand from the dresser and turned herself completly around, and placed it back behind her, her back now facing the mirror. "You.""I meant the whole time, Rika. The whole time... since I had to break up that little fight between you and Takato awhile back when we all first met."
Rika went silent.
Henry smirked at her silence and leaned forward in the chair, elbows on his knees and chin on his hands.
"When IceDevimon attacked..."
Rika bunched her dress up uncomfortably in her hand.
"... how about that time wh---"
"Okay, okay, I get it!" Rika blurted out.
Henry slumped back in the chair and grinned at her frustration.
"You're so cute when you're angry at me."
"Well I'm glad 'cuz at this rate I'll be angry at you alot." Rika snapped and pushed herself off the dresser.
"I look forward to it." Henry joked, putting his hands behind his head and crossed one leg over his knee and waited for another responce from her.
Rika sighed harshly and glared at him with the same old glare he remembered from her when they both first met.
"Let's go..."
Henry laughed at the irretated way she replied and stood. "Fine by me." he said in a mocking tone of her rebellous talk.
~
The dark gym was faintly illuminated by the light from the spotlight on the stage, and a disco light hanging above the crowd of hundreds of teenagers. Most broke up into groups of friends, most girls from Rika's school crowding together squealing in delight at the fancy and expensive dresses each other wore.
A group of extremly slim, long haired girls in tight dresses crowded around the punch table spreading any gossip they could get their hands on, but now the conversation skipped to one girl in particular.
"If that Rika Nonaka girl shows up in a pretty dress with a hot guy, my life will be over.." one girl said.
"If she even shows up at all, it'll be a bad name for our school!" another replied.
All the girls nodded as the lights dimmed and the DJ stepped onto the stage and announced a slow dance to start, all the girls squealing yet again in delight.
Takato, Jeri, Kazu, and Kenta stood beside the door, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the only two tamers not at the dance.
Jeri smoothed down a melon-green dress and flipped the hair styled to dangle over her eye behind her shoulder. "Com'on Takato, let's go... we've waited long enough."
Takato sighed. "Yeah."
"We'll stay here..." Kazu grinned at the couple and shifted his weight onto his other foot.
"Yeah sure we will, being the only guys in this whole dance to not get dates..." Kenta sneered just loud enough for Kazu to hear.
"Hey, it's not my fault that I got a date but since you didn't I ditched her..."
Kenta gave him a look out of the corner of his eye.
"Ick, it is isn't it?" Kazu made a face as Kenta laughed.
The slow music started to play as the light from the disco light spun around the room.
Kazu and Kenta watched, just as the door behind them opened and a blast of cold air hit them.
"Hey watch when you open that thiiiii----" Kazu spun around and slowed his speech down at the sight of Rika in the silk white dress. The couple paused long enough for Rika to smile a hello.
Henry gave both boys a look as he and Rika walked on, arm in arm, both Kazu and Kenta with their jaws on the ground at the site of the one girl they swore would never in her life be seen in a dress.
The crowd of teenagers slowly parted as they came through, the slim girls at the punch table, never picked for a dance, gawking at the site of their worst enemy even more beautiful then they were.
One grasped the table to catch her balance, another falling backwards into her friend's arms.
Takato and Jeri stood at the end of the parting crowd, both looking at the other couple with wide eyes.
"Wow...." Takato whispered at the sight of Rika, only to feel a horrible pain go through his foot as Jeri slammed her high heel into it.
He sucked air between his teeth and bit his lip at the pain, just as Jeri's face became a sweet smile. "Rika! You came!"
Rika smiled, but in the back of her mind, all the whispers and soft talking about her sunk in. She didn't know what anyone said about her, only that she didn't like it one bit. She'd heard the whispers before, the whispers she got at kindergarden and through all of first grade at the black and blue marks covering her body. She grasped Henry's hand tightly, and let her smile slip into 'cheesy and fake' mode as her mind flooded with that time of her life.
Henry's eyes became worrysome and confused as he looked at her, her hand growing tighter about his.
"I shouldn't have come.. I'm sorry Henry." she whispered, slipping her hand out of his and turning to walk out.
Henry grew silent just as Takato grabbed his arm and glared at him as Rika's high-heels clicked on the old wood floor as she walked towards the door, picking up her pace to a steady walk, then to a jog, then to a full-out run as she rushed out of the building. The gym grew a eery silence about it, all eyes now on Henry.
"No, let her go..." Henry whispered loud enough for Takato and Jeri to hear. "It'll be better for her. Josh and Arista decided not to come after all... maybe she's going to Arista.."
"You sure, dude?" Takato asked raising one eyebrow.
"Yeah... for once in my life, I'm sure."
~
Rika ran furiously through the streets of the city, not caring that anyone see her in this white dress, or her hair perfect, she just needed to get away.
She let her mind do the navigating, just running now to run, not sure if Henry had come after her or not.
The street lights made her diamonds she wore sparkle, her hair blowing in the wind that she had created as she ran as fast as her legs would carry her.
She had closed her eyes tightly as she had run, not sure when she was going to run right into something or where she was going. She just ran blindly through the streets, and took one sharp turn almost as if her eyes were open. She could tell that there wasn't any lights here, and she didn't really care. She didn't care if she was headed right off a bridge at this point, it would stop the flashbacks from occuring anymore.
She slowed to a stop, letting herself sob, not even opening her eyes to see where she had taken herself as she sank to her knees on the ground, her dress spread out around her, just curling into a ball and sobbing uncontrollably.
"Rika?"
Rika's sobs softened as what seemed like a claw was place on her bare back. She looked up at a bright red and black dinosaur digimon with worried little eyes looking down at her. "Rika what's wrong? Why do you look so pretty?"
Rika brushed her tears away furiously and looked around. She had come right in front of the small stone headquarters.
Guilmon sat abruptly on the ground beside her and tilted his head to the side in curiousity. "It's okay to cry Rika... I cry when Takato forgets to bring me my bread and peanut butter every night."
Rika couldn't help but laugh through her tears, and Guilmon perked up. "I like to laugh too.. laughing's fun!"
Rika's forced a smile and brushed away more tears.
Guilmon frowned. "Come inside!" he said, jumping to his feet and opening the black gate for her.
"You're going to get your dress real dirty if you sit there on the dirt like that..."
Rika smiled and stood up, nodding. Guilmon closed the gate behind them and settled himself across from her smiling.
"Want some?" he asked, pulling the bag of bread out that Takato had brought for him a few hours before.
Rika shook her head. "Thanks anyways."
Guilmon looked at her with a worried expression.
"If human don't want bread, something very wrong. Please tell me?"
Rika sniffed and looked away. "I'd rather not."
"Did Takatomon be mean?"
"No.."
"Henry?"
"No... no not at all.."
Guilmon thought a moment.
"I give up.. tell me?"
Rika sighed. "I've been having flashbacks of when I was a child, around Suzy's age."
"Henry's little sister." Guilmon nodded in acknowledgment, popping a whole loaf of bread in his mouth.
"When my father would hit me."
Guilmon froze, his eyes narrowing as he swallowed the bread in one big gulp and growing suddenly serious.
"Rika's father mean if he hit her... I can get him if you want..."
Rika smiled at the usually goofy digimon's seriousness.
"No.. I don't even know where my father is right now..."
"Oh..." Guilmon said quietly, and returned to his normal goofy self.
"Takatomon know about this?"
Rika shook her head no.
"Henry know?"
Rika paused. "A little."
Guilmon perked up. "What you mean, a little?"
"I told him about Daddy slapping me... nothing more."
Guilmon nodded and popped another piece of bread in his mouth, thinking to himself.
"You need to tell Henry more..."
"I know I know.." Rika sighed.
Guilmon swallowed the bread and set his eyes firmly on her.
"Henry know you're dressed like that?"
Rika softly laughed and smirked. "Yeah..."
"Did he like it?" Guilmon reached to grab another piece of bread.
"He said I looked 'breath taking'."
"That's what Takatomon said about Jeri the other day... must mean something pretty good."
Guilmon stopped and looked down at the roll in his claws, and broke it in half, offering the other half to Rika.
"Eat.. makes you feel better."
Rika looked skepticly at the roll, and sighed and took it, breaking a smaller piece off and taking an even smaller bite out of that.
Guilmon just watched her with a weird look on his face. "You eat weird..."
Rika looked up, then looked back down at the small piece of bread with barely a nibble taken out of it, then popped the whole piece in her mouth and gave Guilmon a 'look I can do it too' glare.
Guilmon laughed and popped the rest of his in his mouth.
"It all work out..." Guilmon said as he watched Rika finish off her piece of the roll.
".. Henry make it all fine. You'll see."
Rika smiled and looked out the gate at the moon high above them.
"Yeah... it'll all work out fine."
There was a complete silence between them, until Guilmon jumped up abruptly, eyes glaring in the distance at something.
Rika recognised the look and jumped to her feet.
"No.. not now..." she whispered with horror filled eyes as a loud blast came from right outside where they stood, pink colored fog filling the area.
Without her purple tinted sunglasses, Rika was blinded instantly, but the white color never died down.
She could see Guilmon clearly beside her, growling fiercly at something in front of them.
She turned around quickly to see a tall blonde haired man smiling at Rika.
"Daddy?" she whispered with wide violet eyes.
"Sweetheart... I've come back..."
Guilmon looked at Rika with a confused look on his face. "Rika? Rika that's not a human.. it's a digimon... what are you talking about?"
~
"I have a new respect for Henry!"
Arista and Josh rushed through the town on Henry and Rika's bicycles towards the large digital field.
Arista looked sharply at Josh. "I don't care about that... I know Rika's there.. she's in trouble.. I don't know why.. but all I know is that she is...."
Josh nodded as they both sped on even faster. "Arista we can't do anything to help them! We're stuck in these forms, remember?"
Arista glared at him. "I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!" she yelled as she jumped off the bike at the base of the stone stairs leading up to the headquarters, halfway covered in a pink digital field.
Josh ditched Henry's bike beside it and rushed up after her.
"Hold on Rika..." Arista whispered as she ran as fast as possible.
~
"I've changed, Rika... I want to come back.. come here to me..." Rika's father held out his arms with a smile on his face. Rika's heart skipped a beat as her eyes sparkled. Her father seemed sincere. She'd never seen him this way, and she loved it. Maybe now she'd be able to have a father, a real family... the flashbacks would stop...
Guilmon looked at Rika as she took an almost hypnotic step towards what appeared to him to be a huge ugly digimon, not knowing at all what she was doing.
"RIKA STOP!!"
Rika snapped her head towards the sound of Arista yelling at her just as Josh lunged towards her, knocking her to the ground, a large blast rushing overhead.
The image of Rika's father vanished quickly, leaving a huge MaloMyotismon in his place, holding a large cannon that was aimed for where Rika had been standing.
Josh rolled off the girl and looked at her quickly. "You okay?"
Rika was just staring in horror at the huge creature as Josh pulled her to her feet, and put an arm in front of her. "There's no way you're going to be able to destory her that easily!"
Arista froze at Josh's words, then narrowed her eyes at MaloMyotismon.
"You mess with my tamer, you mess with me." she growled angrily at him.
"You think you can defeat me, you stupid human?"
Arista took a step towards the large digimon.
"Josh, get Rika out of here..." Arista said sharply as she took another step towards the large digimon in front of her.
Josh's eyes grew a wild look in them as he felt his breath become short. "What?!"
"Get her out of here." Arista repeated, looking over at him just for a brief second. "Now."
"But Arista what about y--"
"NOW!"
Josh hesitated a moment and grabbed Rika's arm, just as the girl immediatly started thrashing about screaming her digimon's name at the top of her lungs.
But Josh's grasp was too tight for Rika to get out of as she was dragged at a extremely fast pace out of the digital field.
"You too Guilmon.. get out of here.."
"But Rena--"
"Go..."
Guilmon sighed and ran out after Josh and Rika.
Guilmon walked slowly out of the field near the end of the run, to find Josh litteraly holding the thrashing girl on the ground, trying to make sure she didn't run back in.
"GUILMON HOLD HER DOWN!" he demanded the red dinosaur.
"Where are you going!?" Guilmon yelled after pinning Rika to the ground and Josh bolting up to his feet.
"I have to save Arista!" Josh threw the coat of his tuxedo on the ground and rushed in after Arista.
Rika stopped thrashing, giving up under the strength of Guilmon.
She grew an almost sarcastic look on her face as she watched the pink ball of fog.
"Oh yeah Henry I love you and all but I let your digimon get destoryed right along with mine, I hope you really don't mind..."
"They'll be fine." Guilmon said in his goofy voice.
~
With a few clicks MaloMyotismon aimed his cannon at Arista. "Prepare to die you worthless human!"
Light filled the cannon and the blast burst out the mouth of the cannon. Arista flinched, waiting for her world to become dark, her life to end. She heard the blast rush towards her, the wind blowing against her so hard it could've swept her away. But nothing happened.
She opened her eyes at MaloMyotismon's evil laughter and looked around confused, then spotted Josh laying on the ground motionless, his clothes ripped and burnt.
Arista sank to her knees on the dirt. "No..." she felt the rush of tears come to her eyes. "No not you... no..." her voice grew louder and stronger with a realization that Josh wasn't breathing either.
She leaned over Josh sobbing uncontrollably. "No... hang on... don't die on me... don't.... please..."
~
Henry was soon on the scene, eyes shifting from Rika to Guilmon to the digital field.
"Rika.. are you hurt?" He pushed Guilmon off her and pulled her quickly into his arms. "I came as soon as possible.. I'm so sorry I shouldn't have let you go alone... I'm sorry.. please forgive me."
Rika was silent, then pushed Henry away and looked at the digital field, jumping to her feet and seeing her chance to run for it.
Guilmon became alert and tackled the girl to the ground just as she started her run.
"Henry hold her down.. don't let her in." Guilmon said as sturnly as he could with his funny sounding voice.
"Uh.. okay..." Henry stuttered, holding down Rika's arms and looking straight into her eyes.
Rika glared hard at him and started to thrashing yet again, screaming 'Renamon' at the top of her lungs, her constant gaze on the digital field.
~
Arista's mind raced. Josh laying limp in her arms, Rika's screams being heard from outside the field, MaloMyotismon's evil laughter echoing in her ears...
"No..." she said silently, then let her voice grow louder until she was shouting. "I will not be defeated like this. We've come too far for this... Josh you can't die on me now! I love you, you jerk!" she shrieked.
A bright light engulfed Arista and Josh, Arista not noticing it as she was too much in her trance to care about anything else.
"What is this!?!" MaloMyotismon yelled.
"I've loved you since the day I met you as Josh... I've loved you this whole time no matter how angry I ever got at you... Henry was right, we would find a way to be together... Josh you can't leave me now!"
The light grew brighter, and MaloMyotismon started to screech in agony.
"Don't lose hope Josh, hold on! You can pull through this! I know you can! I have faith in you! Please just hold on!"
MaloMyotismon fell on his knee and screamed as he started to become bits of data.
"Please Josh.. please I love you don't leave me..."
In a blast of red specks, MaloMyotismon was dissolved by the light. The light completly engulfing Arista and Josh now, and as the digital field vanished, the whole forest glowed with white light.
The light slowly started to die down, as a high pitched voice echoed through the forest, making Henry and Rika freeze as the light died down where they were.
"Love breaks through the curse, and love's true form is shown."
"Calumo--" Rika was cut off just as all the light died down, except for where Arista and Josh lay. The light became blue around them, then everything went dark.
"Uhhh...."
Rika pushed Henry off of her at the sound of not Arista, but Renamon as a yellow fox-like creature sat up slowly off of the figure of another fox under her.
"RENAMON!!" Rika shrieked running into her digimon's arms, knocking them both over.
Renamon laughed softly and pushed Rika off her. "Careful..."
"Sorry..." Rika bit her lip, then shifted her glance to where Renamon was looking.
A digimon identical to Renamon lay on the ground, colored ice blue with white instead of Renamon's yellow and white, and all of Renamon's purple features were navyblue.
Henry stood almost in shock. "Terriermon?" he asked in a whisper.
Rika drew out the small purse and took out her digivice and pointed it at the digimon, then smiled as she read the data, and looked up to Henry.
"IceRenamon.... armor-digivolved form... of Terriermon.... it dosen't say which egg though."
"Does it matter?"
Rika looked over at Renamon and laughed. "To you probably not."
Renamon just shrugged and watched as IceRenamon slowly sat up, rubbing his forehead with his paw.
"Wha-- what happened?" IceRenamon moaned, the voice of Josh coming through.
Henry still stood in shock, then looked up at Rika, jaw hanging open with astonishment.
"T-terriermon?"
IceRenamon looked over at his tamer quickly. "Henry!"
"You're... different....." Henry said softly, not sure what else to say at this point. He always knew that Renamon and Terriermon would have to find a way to be together, but never in his wildest dreams did he think of THIS.
IceRenamon's attitude matched Renamon's identically as he shrugged the remark off. "But I'm still--"
"-- my digimon." Henry smiled and took a few steps towards him.
"I think this suits me... except the tail."
Renamon rolled her eyes and swated him with her own tail. "Get used to it."
Rika smiled. "I'm sure he will."
Henry just grinned and walked up to Rika, putting his arm around her. "Com'on... lets go home."
"Now I get to see what the vanishing thing is all about."
With only a second's notice, both Renamon's vanished into thin air as the couple made their way home.
"Only thing is.. how the heck am I going to explain this to Suzy?"
"You'll think of something..."
Rika laughed and nudged him as they walked out of the park.
Guilmon watched the couple walk away with a grin.
"I told you Rika... Henry make it all better."
If I fall along the way,
Pick me up and dust me off.
And if I get too tired to make it,
Be my breath, so I can walk.
If I need another love,
Give me more than I can stand.
And when my smile gets old and faded,
Wait around, I'll smile again.
Shouldn't be so complicated,
Just hold me and then,
Just hold me again...
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
If I couldn't sleep could you sleep?
Could you paint me better off?
Could you sympathize with my needs?
I know you think I need a lot.
I sharted out clean but I'm jaded..
Just phoning it in,
Just breaking the skin..
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
Start bending me,
It's never enough,
I feel all your pieces.
Start bending me,
Keep bending me until I'm completly broken in.
Shouldn't be so complicated..
Just touch me and then,
Just touch me again..
Can you help me? I'm bent.
I'm so scared that I'll never get put back together..
You're breaking me in,
And this is how we will end.
With you and me, bent.
----
~
The stars in the cold fall night sky sparkled, reflecting off Rika's eyes as she stood out on the small stone bridge over the small pond of water in her backyard. Standing on the bridge she could faintly see over the tall wall that surrounded her house.
It was the night of the fall dance every girl in her school had been so crazy over, every one making every call they could to hook up with a guy from the opposite school, the non-stop chatter from all the girls in her classes made Rika's head spin and her stomach into a knot. What would they think to see Rika Nonaka, the ice queen, in a dress with the proclaimed cutest guy in the 'other' school as her date?
There was no turning back now. The dress was already on her, the long silk white gown that reached down past her ankles and fell over the straps of the white high-heeled sandals her mother had bought her the day before. Rika ran her fingers nervously through her curled hair that came down slightly past her shoulders and played with the diamond necklace, perfectly matching the diamond studded butterfly up the side of her dress. She still didn't understand how her mother talked her into the white eyeshadow or deep pink lipstick, but it had been in the rush of the moment that she had been pulled away from sorting through digimon cards to fix everything for the dance.
Rika drew the silver pouch that her mother had also thrown in to complete the outfit up and took out her blue and white digivice, staring at it. It seemed so useless now, Renamon being, well the best friend Rika had never had in human form, the girl who it took a whole half an hour to explain to her grandmother was the same digimon she had discovered earlier talking with Rika.
Arista seemed to love her new form. She was able to wear more than yellow fur now. She could be shown in the open, people talked to her like she was regular, she felt alive... and it upset Rika.
She didn't quite like Arista. She liked Renamon. Renamon was her friend, the one she could trust to never leave her side, the digimon she had always dreamed of. Rika broke a smile as she thought to herself the last remark.
The digimon that could scare Takato straight.
Rika jumped out of her thoughts at something white and silky being draped over her arms as she clung to the edge of the bridge.
She turned quickly to see Arista, even more beautiful than normal, standing behind her smiling.
"You left that on the chair."
Rika ran her fingers over the silk shawl-like scarf and smiled up at Arista. "Thanks."
Arista twirled around in the tight purple dress she wore and laughed. "Well, I think I went a little original in design, but it's a start."
"You look fine." Rika turned back around and stared back out at the street over the wall that separated her from the outside world.
Arista made a face and walked up beside her, grabbing the railing with her own hands and leaned over, trying to see in her own tamer's face. "Rika, what'd I do?"
"You didn't do anything, it's not your fault." Rika snapped, wrapping the white silk shawl around her bare arms and holding the ends tightly to her body.
"Well something must be wrong or you wouldn't have replied in that 'Rika' tone of voice." Arista joked, grinning widely, but stopped and frowned when Rika didn't respond, just stared in a silent anger at the water that reflected the moon above them.
Arista crossed her arms, turned herself around, and leaned her back against the railing, fingers brushing the gold arm band pressed against her light colored skin.
"It's because of Henry, isn't it?"
"No! It's because of you and that stupid form!!" Rika shrieked, glaring at her.
Arista jumped a bit at the sudden outburst from her tamer and narrowed her eyebrows.
"Do you think I wanted to be like this?"
"Whatever happened to the Renamon I knew?!?" Rika growled, pushing past her and marching off to her room, purposly ignoring Arista's last comment.
Arista stood back, hand on her chest with a blank look on her face. "Rika..." she whispered.
~
Arista sat silently on the chair in the corner of the living room of the Nonaka household, bunching the edge of her purple dress in her hand as she stared at the hallway enterance to where Rika's room was down the hall, praying she came out before---
DING-DONG
Arista's heart sank as the doorbell rang, knowing exactly who would be there when she opened the mahogany colored door.
Sighing, she sat up, ran her hand through her silk-like blonde hair, and opened the front door, to both shocked faces of Henry and Josh staring right at her and the dress she wore.
As Josh fumbled for words, Henry's eyes narrowed as he studied the look on Arista's face, his own face now growing a look of worry on it.
"A-A-Arista.. you look--" Henry cut Josh's stutters off by walking quickly in the house, sensing from Arista's facial features something was wrong with Rika.
Arista sighed and turned around to look at the now smooth-haired, finely dressed Henry already half-way down the hallway.
"He's crazy about her." Arista sighed, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning her head to the side to watch him.
Josh walked up behind her, light-brown hair being pushed back by his fingers as usual. "Oh, really, what makes you think that?"
Arista gave him a playful glare and went back to watching down the long dark hallway at the barely visable Henry.
Both digimon heard the sound of Rika's door sliding open, Henry's figure and everything within feet of him illuminated with the soft yellow glow of the one lamp Rika had in her room. The door slid again, and a dark, empty hall remained, leaving Arista and Josh silent in the living room, wondering what was to happen next.
~
Henry stood, back against the sliding door, watching Rika's back as she refused to turn around.
"Look, Arista, I said I wasn't going to talk to you unt--" Rika's voice cracked with tears as she whirled around quickly, her hair bouncing and twisting behind one shoulder from the sudden turn, her violet eyes filled with tears as she looked up at Henry in the doorway.
"Henry...." she whispered, her hand going instinctavly up to where her heart would be, but instead touched the diamond necklace she wore and suddenly her mind raced, remembering that she wore the white silk dress still.
Henry was speechless at first at the glow she seemed to be giving off, then cleared his throat and smiled.
"You look absolutly breathtaking Rika..."
Rika felt, for the first time in her life, a blush creep up on her cheeks as she looked down at the wood floor quickly.
"Now what's this about Arista?" Henry took a few steps closer to her and smiled warmly.
"I... don't want to talk about it..." Rika tugged at the diamond bracelet around her wrist and turned her back to him again.
"Well we aren't leaving for the dance until you do." Henry shrugged and collasped into the chair a bit in front of her and looked almost sturnly at her.
"Fine by me... I'd rather not go anyways." Rika turned once more and walked over to her dresser to look in the mirror at her reflection.
Henry made a slight face. "Well that didn't work." he thought aloud.
"Does this even have anything to do with Arista, you sure it's not about the weird looks all the others are going to give us when we walk in together?" Henry took a wild stab in the dark as he looked up at her.
She stared straight at her reflection for a minute or two, then turned, the high-heels of her shoes clicking on the floor as she faced him. "No... I'm sure it's not... I got over that awhile ago."
"Then what's the problem?" Henry asked growing impatient.
"Renamon.." Rika replied simply enough for Henry to piece together the whole story in his head in moments as she turned back around and put both hands firmly on the dresser top and leaned in towards the mirror with a sigh.
"Who's been there for you this whole time?"
Rika glanced over at Henry and removed one hand from the dresser and turned herself completly around, and placed it back behind her, her back now facing the mirror. "You.""I meant the whole time, Rika. The whole time... since I had to break up that little fight between you and Takato awhile back when we all first met."
Rika went silent.
Henry smirked at her silence and leaned forward in the chair, elbows on his knees and chin on his hands.
"When IceDevimon attacked..."
Rika bunched her dress up uncomfortably in her hand.
"... how about that time wh---"
"Okay, okay, I get it!" Rika blurted out.
Henry slumped back in the chair and grinned at her frustration.
"You're so cute when you're angry at me."
"Well I'm glad 'cuz at this rate I'll be angry at you alot." Rika snapped and pushed herself off the dresser.
"I look forward to it." Henry joked, putting his hands behind his head and crossed one leg over his knee and waited for another responce from her.
Rika sighed harshly and glared at him with the same old glare he remembered from her when they both first met.
"Let's go..."
Henry laughed at the irretated way she replied and stood. "Fine by me." he said in a mocking tone of her rebellous talk.
~
The dark gym was faintly illuminated by the light from the spotlight on the stage, and a disco light hanging above the crowd of hundreds of teenagers. Most broke up into groups of friends, most girls from Rika's school crowding together squealing in delight at the fancy and expensive dresses each other wore.
A group of extremly slim, long haired girls in tight dresses crowded around the punch table spreading any gossip they could get their hands on, but now the conversation skipped to one girl in particular.
"If that Rika Nonaka girl shows up in a pretty dress with a hot guy, my life will be over.." one girl said.
"If she even shows up at all, it'll be a bad name for our school!" another replied.
All the girls nodded as the lights dimmed and the DJ stepped onto the stage and announced a slow dance to start, all the girls squealing yet again in delight.
Takato, Jeri, Kazu, and Kenta stood beside the door, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the only two tamers not at the dance.
Jeri smoothed down a melon-green dress and flipped the hair styled to dangle over her eye behind her shoulder. "Com'on Takato, let's go... we've waited long enough."
Takato sighed. "Yeah."
"We'll stay here..." Kazu grinned at the couple and shifted his weight onto his other foot.
"Yeah sure we will, being the only guys in this whole dance to not get dates..." Kenta sneered just loud enough for Kazu to hear.
"Hey, it's not my fault that I got a date but since you didn't I ditched her..."
Kenta gave him a look out of the corner of his eye.
"Ick, it is isn't it?" Kazu made a face as Kenta laughed.
The slow music started to play as the light from the disco light spun around the room.
Kazu and Kenta watched, just as the door behind them opened and a blast of cold air hit them.
"Hey watch when you open that thiiiii----" Kazu spun around and slowed his speech down at the sight of Rika in the silk white dress. The couple paused long enough for Rika to smile a hello.
Henry gave both boys a look as he and Rika walked on, arm in arm, both Kazu and Kenta with their jaws on the ground at the site of the one girl they swore would never in her life be seen in a dress.
The crowd of teenagers slowly parted as they came through, the slim girls at the punch table, never picked for a dance, gawking at the site of their worst enemy even more beautiful then they were.
One grasped the table to catch her balance, another falling backwards into her friend's arms.
Takato and Jeri stood at the end of the parting crowd, both looking at the other couple with wide eyes.
"Wow...." Takato whispered at the sight of Rika, only to feel a horrible pain go through his foot as Jeri slammed her high heel into it.
He sucked air between his teeth and bit his lip at the pain, just as Jeri's face became a sweet smile. "Rika! You came!"
Rika smiled, but in the back of her mind, all the whispers and soft talking about her sunk in. She didn't know what anyone said about her, only that she didn't like it one bit. She'd heard the whispers before, the whispers she got at kindergarden and through all of first grade at the black and blue marks covering her body. She grasped Henry's hand tightly, and let her smile slip into 'cheesy and fake' mode as her mind flooded with that time of her life.
Henry's eyes became worrysome and confused as he looked at her, her hand growing tighter about his.
"I shouldn't have come.. I'm sorry Henry." she whispered, slipping her hand out of his and turning to walk out.
Henry grew silent just as Takato grabbed his arm and glared at him as Rika's high-heels clicked on the old wood floor as she walked towards the door, picking up her pace to a steady walk, then to a jog, then to a full-out run as she rushed out of the building. The gym grew a eery silence about it, all eyes now on Henry.
"No, let her go..." Henry whispered loud enough for Takato and Jeri to hear. "It'll be better for her. Josh and Arista decided not to come after all... maybe she's going to Arista.."
"You sure, dude?" Takato asked raising one eyebrow.
"Yeah... for once in my life, I'm sure."
~
Rika ran furiously through the streets of the city, not caring that anyone see her in this white dress, or her hair perfect, she just needed to get away.
She let her mind do the navigating, just running now to run, not sure if Henry had come after her or not.
The street lights made her diamonds she wore sparkle, her hair blowing in the wind that she had created as she ran as fast as her legs would carry her.
She had closed her eyes tightly as she had run, not sure when she was going to run right into something or where she was going. She just ran blindly through the streets, and took one sharp turn almost as if her eyes were open. She could tell that there wasn't any lights here, and she didn't really care. She didn't care if she was headed right off a bridge at this point, it would stop the flashbacks from occuring anymore.
She slowed to a stop, letting herself sob, not even opening her eyes to see where she had taken herself as she sank to her knees on the ground, her dress spread out around her, just curling into a ball and sobbing uncontrollably.
"Rika?"
Rika's sobs softened as what seemed like a claw was place on her bare back. She looked up at a bright red and black dinosaur digimon with worried little eyes looking down at her. "Rika what's wrong? Why do you look so pretty?"
Rika brushed her tears away furiously and looked around. She had come right in front of the small stone headquarters.
Guilmon sat abruptly on the ground beside her and tilted his head to the side in curiousity. "It's okay to cry Rika... I cry when Takato forgets to bring me my bread and peanut butter every night."
Rika couldn't help but laugh through her tears, and Guilmon perked up. "I like to laugh too.. laughing's fun!"
Rika's forced a smile and brushed away more tears.
Guilmon frowned. "Come inside!" he said, jumping to his feet and opening the black gate for her.
"You're going to get your dress real dirty if you sit there on the dirt like that..."
Rika smiled and stood up, nodding. Guilmon closed the gate behind them and settled himself across from her smiling.
"Want some?" he asked, pulling the bag of bread out that Takato had brought for him a few hours before.
Rika shook her head. "Thanks anyways."
Guilmon looked at her with a worried expression.
"If human don't want bread, something very wrong. Please tell me?"
Rika sniffed and looked away. "I'd rather not."
"Did Takatomon be mean?"
"No.."
"Henry?"
"No... no not at all.."
Guilmon thought a moment.
"I give up.. tell me?"
Rika sighed. "I've been having flashbacks of when I was a child, around Suzy's age."
"Henry's little sister." Guilmon nodded in acknowledgment, popping a whole loaf of bread in his mouth.
"When my father would hit me."
Guilmon froze, his eyes narrowing as he swallowed the bread in one big gulp and growing suddenly serious.
"Rika's father mean if he hit her... I can get him if you want..."
Rika smiled at the usually goofy digimon's seriousness.
"No.. I don't even know where my father is right now..."
"Oh..." Guilmon said quietly, and returned to his normal goofy self.
"Takatomon know about this?"
Rika shook her head no.
"Henry know?"
Rika paused. "A little."
Guilmon perked up. "What you mean, a little?"
"I told him about Daddy slapping me... nothing more."
Guilmon nodded and popped another piece of bread in his mouth, thinking to himself.
"You need to tell Henry more..."
"I know I know.." Rika sighed.
Guilmon swallowed the bread and set his eyes firmly on her.
"Henry know you're dressed like that?"
Rika softly laughed and smirked. "Yeah..."
"Did he like it?" Guilmon reached to grab another piece of bread.
"He said I looked 'breath taking'."
"That's what Takatomon said about Jeri the other day... must mean something pretty good."
Guilmon stopped and looked down at the roll in his claws, and broke it in half, offering the other half to Rika.
"Eat.. makes you feel better."
Rika looked skepticly at the roll, and sighed and took it, breaking a smaller piece off and taking an even smaller bite out of that.
Guilmon just watched her with a weird look on his face. "You eat weird..."
Rika looked up, then looked back down at the small piece of bread with barely a nibble taken out of it, then popped the whole piece in her mouth and gave Guilmon a 'look I can do it too' glare.
Guilmon laughed and popped the rest of his in his mouth.
"It all work out..." Guilmon said as he watched Rika finish off her piece of the roll.
".. Henry make it all fine. You'll see."
Rika smiled and looked out the gate at the moon high above them.
"Yeah... it'll all work out fine."
There was a complete silence between them, until Guilmon jumped up abruptly, eyes glaring in the distance at something.
Rika recognised the look and jumped to her feet.
"No.. not now..." she whispered with horror filled eyes as a loud blast came from right outside where they stood, pink colored fog filling the area.
Without her purple tinted sunglasses, Rika was blinded instantly, but the white color never died down.
She could see Guilmon clearly beside her, growling fiercly at something in front of them.
She turned around quickly to see a tall blonde haired man smiling at Rika.
"Daddy?" she whispered with wide violet eyes.
"Sweetheart... I've come back..."
Guilmon looked at Rika with a confused look on his face. "Rika? Rika that's not a human.. it's a digimon... what are you talking about?"
~
"I have a new respect for Henry!"
Arista and Josh rushed through the town on Henry and Rika's bicycles towards the large digital field.
Arista looked sharply at Josh. "I don't care about that... I know Rika's there.. she's in trouble.. I don't know why.. but all I know is that she is...."
Josh nodded as they both sped on even faster. "Arista we can't do anything to help them! We're stuck in these forms, remember?"
Arista glared at him. "I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!" she yelled as she jumped off the bike at the base of the stone stairs leading up to the headquarters, halfway covered in a pink digital field.
Josh ditched Henry's bike beside it and rushed up after her.
"Hold on Rika..." Arista whispered as she ran as fast as possible.
~
"I've changed, Rika... I want to come back.. come here to me..." Rika's father held out his arms with a smile on his face. Rika's heart skipped a beat as her eyes sparkled. Her father seemed sincere. She'd never seen him this way, and she loved it. Maybe now she'd be able to have a father, a real family... the flashbacks would stop...
Guilmon looked at Rika as she took an almost hypnotic step towards what appeared to him to be a huge ugly digimon, not knowing at all what she was doing.
"RIKA STOP!!"
Rika snapped her head towards the sound of Arista yelling at her just as Josh lunged towards her, knocking her to the ground, a large blast rushing overhead.
The image of Rika's father vanished quickly, leaving a huge MaloMyotismon in his place, holding a large cannon that was aimed for where Rika had been standing.
Josh rolled off the girl and looked at her quickly. "You okay?"
Rika was just staring in horror at the huge creature as Josh pulled her to her feet, and put an arm in front of her. "There's no way you're going to be able to destory her that easily!"
Arista froze at Josh's words, then narrowed her eyes at MaloMyotismon.
"You mess with my tamer, you mess with me." she growled angrily at him.
"You think you can defeat me, you stupid human?"
Arista took a step towards the large digimon.
"Josh, get Rika out of here..." Arista said sharply as she took another step towards the large digimon in front of her.
Josh's eyes grew a wild look in them as he felt his breath become short. "What?!"
"Get her out of here." Arista repeated, looking over at him just for a brief second. "Now."
"But Arista what about y--"
"NOW!"
Josh hesitated a moment and grabbed Rika's arm, just as the girl immediatly started thrashing about screaming her digimon's name at the top of her lungs.
But Josh's grasp was too tight for Rika to get out of as she was dragged at a extremely fast pace out of the digital field.
"You too Guilmon.. get out of here.."
"But Rena--"
"Go..."
Guilmon sighed and ran out after Josh and Rika.
Guilmon walked slowly out of the field near the end of the run, to find Josh litteraly holding the thrashing girl on the ground, trying to make sure she didn't run back in.
"GUILMON HOLD HER DOWN!" he demanded the red dinosaur.
"Where are you going!?" Guilmon yelled after pinning Rika to the ground and Josh bolting up to his feet.
"I have to save Arista!" Josh threw the coat of his tuxedo on the ground and rushed in after Arista.
Rika stopped thrashing, giving up under the strength of Guilmon.
She grew an almost sarcastic look on her face as she watched the pink ball of fog.
"Oh yeah Henry I love you and all but I let your digimon get destoryed right along with mine, I hope you really don't mind..."
"They'll be fine." Guilmon said in his goofy voice.
~
With a few clicks MaloMyotismon aimed his cannon at Arista. "Prepare to die you worthless human!"
Light filled the cannon and the blast burst out the mouth of the cannon. Arista flinched, waiting for her world to become dark, her life to end. She heard the blast rush towards her, the wind blowing against her so hard it could've swept her away. But nothing happened.
She opened her eyes at MaloMyotismon's evil laughter and looked around confused, then spotted Josh laying on the ground motionless, his clothes ripped and burnt.
Arista sank to her knees on the dirt. "No..." she felt the rush of tears come to her eyes. "No not you... no..." her voice grew louder and stronger with a realization that Josh wasn't breathing either.
She leaned over Josh sobbing uncontrollably. "No... hang on... don't die on me... don't.... please..."
~
Henry was soon on the scene, eyes shifting from Rika to Guilmon to the digital field.
"Rika.. are you hurt?" He pushed Guilmon off her and pulled her quickly into his arms. "I came as soon as possible.. I'm so sorry I shouldn't have let you go alone... I'm sorry.. please forgive me."
Rika was silent, then pushed Henry away and looked at the digital field, jumping to her feet and seeing her chance to run for it.
Guilmon became alert and tackled the girl to the ground just as she started her run.
"Henry hold her down.. don't let her in." Guilmon said as sturnly as he could with his funny sounding voice.
"Uh.. okay..." Henry stuttered, holding down Rika's arms and looking straight into her eyes.
Rika glared hard at him and started to thrashing yet again, screaming 'Renamon' at the top of her lungs, her constant gaze on the digital field.
~
Arista's mind raced. Josh laying limp in her arms, Rika's screams being heard from outside the field, MaloMyotismon's evil laughter echoing in her ears...
"No..." she said silently, then let her voice grow louder until she was shouting. "I will not be defeated like this. We've come too far for this... Josh you can't die on me now! I love you, you jerk!" she shrieked.
A bright light engulfed Arista and Josh, Arista not noticing it as she was too much in her trance to care about anything else.
"What is this!?!" MaloMyotismon yelled.
"I've loved you since the day I met you as Josh... I've loved you this whole time no matter how angry I ever got at you... Henry was right, we would find a way to be together... Josh you can't leave me now!"
The light grew brighter, and MaloMyotismon started to screech in agony.
"Don't lose hope Josh, hold on! You can pull through this! I know you can! I have faith in you! Please just hold on!"
MaloMyotismon fell on his knee and screamed as he started to become bits of data.
"Please Josh.. please I love you don't leave me..."
In a blast of red specks, MaloMyotismon was dissolved by the light. The light completly engulfing Arista and Josh now, and as the digital field vanished, the whole forest glowed with white light.
The light slowly started to die down, as a high pitched voice echoed through the forest, making Henry and Rika freeze as the light died down where they were.
"Love breaks through the curse, and love's true form is shown."
"Calumo--" Rika was cut off just as all the light died down, except for where Arista and Josh lay. The light became blue around them, then everything went dark.
"Uhhh...."
Rika pushed Henry off of her at the sound of not Arista, but Renamon as a yellow fox-like creature sat up slowly off of the figure of another fox under her.
"RENAMON!!" Rika shrieked running into her digimon's arms, knocking them both over.
Renamon laughed softly and pushed Rika off her. "Careful..."
"Sorry..." Rika bit her lip, then shifted her glance to where Renamon was looking.
A digimon identical to Renamon lay on the ground, colored ice blue with white instead of Renamon's yellow and white, and all of Renamon's purple features were navyblue.
Henry stood almost in shock. "Terriermon?" he asked in a whisper.
Rika drew out the small purse and took out her digivice and pointed it at the digimon, then smiled as she read the data, and looked up to Henry.
"IceRenamon.... armor-digivolved form... of Terriermon.... it dosen't say which egg though."
"Does it matter?"
Rika looked over at Renamon and laughed. "To you probably not."
Renamon just shrugged and watched as IceRenamon slowly sat up, rubbing his forehead with his paw.
"Wha-- what happened?" IceRenamon moaned, the voice of Josh coming through.
Henry still stood in shock, then looked up at Rika, jaw hanging open with astonishment.
"T-terriermon?"
IceRenamon looked over at his tamer quickly. "Henry!"
"You're... different....." Henry said softly, not sure what else to say at this point. He always knew that Renamon and Terriermon would have to find a way to be together, but never in his wildest dreams did he think of THIS.
IceRenamon's attitude matched Renamon's identically as he shrugged the remark off. "But I'm still--"
"-- my digimon." Henry smiled and took a few steps towards him.
"I think this suits me... except the tail."
Renamon rolled her eyes and swated him with her own tail. "Get used to it."
Rika smiled. "I'm sure he will."
Henry just grinned and walked up to Rika, putting his arm around her. "Com'on... lets go home."
"Now I get to see what the vanishing thing is all about."
With only a second's notice, both Renamon's vanished into thin air as the couple made their way home.
"Only thing is.. how the heck am I going to explain this to Suzy?"
"You'll think of something..."
Rika laughed and nudged him as they walked out of the park.
Guilmon watched the couple walk away with a grin.
"I told you Rika... Henry make it all better."
