Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon in any way!
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I started to pull myself back up the sheet-rope, but with every move I made, it just tore more and more.
"Gatomon, this isn't working..."
"Can you go in through another window?" She asked me. There was one below me, so I slid down a little and started to reach for the window ledge.
RIP!
The sheet finally tore all the way through, and I just managed to grab the ledge with my hand before falling.
"KARI! Are you all right?"
"Uh, fine..." I said, grabbing for the ledge with my other hand.
"I'm going to come down to you, OK?"
"Fine..." I hung on for dear life. I didn't want to think about what would happen if I fell. It was a long way down, and I could feel my grip loosening. "Gatomon, hurry up!"
Gatomon crept her way down the rope and was inches above my head. "OK, grab my paw..."
"Are you strong enough to pull me up?" I asked.
"Sure!" she said enthusiastically. I grabbed her, and she pulled with all her strength to get me up onto the ledge.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," I said, grinning. The next thing I know, I'm falling again. The ledge I had been sitting on had crumbled. Gee, great.
"So this is it?" I thought to myself. "This is how I'm going to die? Falling out a window? How pathetic! Damn cheap sheets!"
At first, I was too bitter to realize that I had stopped falling. And even when I did realize that I was floating upside down very far from the ground, I was more concerned about my dignity than to the reasons why I had stopped. I vainly tried to push my skirts away from my face and back towards my legs. It wasn't working very well, but there was no way I was going to let anyone see me in this akward position.
A window opened near my head, and I felt myself being pulled back into the building.
"My dear Hikari, what on earth were you doing?" asked Larzalere as he put me down on a sofa. "You were very lucky that I was able to sense your peril before it was too late." His tone surprised me. He actually sounded very sincere in his worry over me.
I stared at him for a couple seconds, unable to come up with anything to say. "Uh, thanks."
"You really shouldn't go out there," he said, stroking my face. Ick. "Next time, I might not be able to catch you. And that would be very bad, indeed."
"Larzalere." I hadn't realized that Alma was in the room. She was standing by the door, a look of disgust across her face. "Can I speak to you?"
Larzalere crossed the room to her, and they left through the door, leaving me alone on the couch. I was still in a state of shock over what had almost happened to me. I sat staring off into space a few moments before a thought crossed my mind. What was it they needed to talk about?
I crept off the couch and snuck over to the door. I put my head down towards the crack to try and hear what it was they were talking about. I could only catch snippets of the conversation.
"She can't be allowed to do things like that," Alma was saying.
"But what you're suggesting... I can't do that," Larzalere said. "Not to her."
Alma said something, but I couldn't quite make it out.
"There's more to this one than just that," Larzalere said angrily.
"What?" laughed Alma. "A personality?"
"I wil not deny her that."
"Humans aren't worth our time. They're so obsessed with freedom that they'll endanger their own lives just to obtain it, which is exactly what your precious little vixen in there tried to do. She'll never be content to stay here as your lapdog. You can't tame a beast that has already known freedom. She'll try escaping every chance she gets. Eventually, she'll probably get herself killed trying."
"I know you're right," Larzalere sighed.
I backed away from the door then. I wasn't quite sure what it was they were thinking about doing to me, but I knew that it couldn't be good. I could tell Alma resented me, and I was frightened of what she might do to me. I was creeping back towards the couch when I noticed a strange orb in the corner of the room.
I walked over to it. It was sitting on a pedestal. I started to stare into it. "Oh, TK! Davis!" I could see the both of them, their digimon, a boy I didn't recognize, an Otamamon, and some strange, duck creature. They were all climbing up a mountain. Then I noticed that something wasn't quite right about them, but I couldn't think of why they didn't look right. I heard a door open behind me.
"I see you've found the Orb of Sight," Larzalere said, coming up behind me. "It will show you anyone you want to see." Then, he noticed the boys. "Damnit. I didn't think they'd... Nevermind." He turned to me. "You, stay here." He left the room in a huff.
"Quite a little tool, isn't it?" asked Alma, who entered the room.
"Yes, it's very nice," I said suspiciously.
She came over to me and placed a cloth over the Orb. "You know, it's how he found you."
"What do you mean 'how he found me'?"
"He used the Orb of Sight to find someone with extraordinary beauty, and it showed him you." She paused. "Of course, the Orb isn't entirely accurate. The images shown are altered based on a personal bias of the viewer and the person being showed. For instance, when it showed you to my brother, you were much prettier. And when it showed you your friends, they were mostly as you remembered them, even if it's not how they truly are right now."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.
She laughed. "Wouldn't you like to know."
Larzalere reentered the room. "The matter has been... taken care of. I'm sure there will be no further trouble."
Alma began to leave the room, pausing a moment to whisper to her brother, "You should do it now. Pretty zombie girls listen to every command."
After she had gone, Larzalere turned to me. "My Hikari, I must tell you that I do not desire losing you." The color in my face drained and I felt very cold as I thought about what I had overheard. "My sister thinks that I should erase your memories and make you my slave." Uh oh, here it comes. "But I do not think that that is necessary." I sighed a sigh of relief. "But, I can't let your act go unpunished, can I? The windows in your room shall be locked, and a forcefield placed around every exit, including the windows. I'm sorry, dear Hikari, but you've left me no choice."
Crisis averted, at least for now, although I didn't know how long it would be before he changed his mind, if he ever did.
Who needs windows anyway? Or a door, for that matter...
I started to pull myself back up the sheet-rope, but with every move I made, it just tore more and more.
"Gatomon, this isn't working..."
"Can you go in through another window?" She asked me. There was one below me, so I slid down a little and started to reach for the window ledge.
RIP!
The sheet finally tore all the way through, and I just managed to grab the ledge with my hand before falling.
"KARI! Are you all right?"
"Uh, fine..." I said, grabbing for the ledge with my other hand.
"I'm going to come down to you, OK?"
"Fine..." I hung on for dear life. I didn't want to think about what would happen if I fell. It was a long way down, and I could feel my grip loosening. "Gatomon, hurry up!"
Gatomon crept her way down the rope and was inches above my head. "OK, grab my paw..."
"Are you strong enough to pull me up?" I asked.
"Sure!" she said enthusiastically. I grabbed her, and she pulled with all her strength to get me up onto the ledge.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," I said, grinning. The next thing I know, I'm falling again. The ledge I had been sitting on had crumbled. Gee, great.
"So this is it?" I thought to myself. "This is how I'm going to die? Falling out a window? How pathetic! Damn cheap sheets!"
At first, I was too bitter to realize that I had stopped falling. And even when I did realize that I was floating upside down very far from the ground, I was more concerned about my dignity than to the reasons why I had stopped. I vainly tried to push my skirts away from my face and back towards my legs. It wasn't working very well, but there was no way I was going to let anyone see me in this akward position.
A window opened near my head, and I felt myself being pulled back into the building.
"My dear Hikari, what on earth were you doing?" asked Larzalere as he put me down on a sofa. "You were very lucky that I was able to sense your peril before it was too late." His tone surprised me. He actually sounded very sincere in his worry over me.
I stared at him for a couple seconds, unable to come up with anything to say. "Uh, thanks."
"You really shouldn't go out there," he said, stroking my face. Ick. "Next time, I might not be able to catch you. And that would be very bad, indeed."
"Larzalere." I hadn't realized that Alma was in the room. She was standing by the door, a look of disgust across her face. "Can I speak to you?"
Larzalere crossed the room to her, and they left through the door, leaving me alone on the couch. I was still in a state of shock over what had almost happened to me. I sat staring off into space a few moments before a thought crossed my mind. What was it they needed to talk about?
I crept off the couch and snuck over to the door. I put my head down towards the crack to try and hear what it was they were talking about. I could only catch snippets of the conversation.
"She can't be allowed to do things like that," Alma was saying.
"But what you're suggesting... I can't do that," Larzalere said. "Not to her."
Alma said something, but I couldn't quite make it out.
"There's more to this one than just that," Larzalere said angrily.
"What?" laughed Alma. "A personality?"
"I wil not deny her that."
"Humans aren't worth our time. They're so obsessed with freedom that they'll endanger their own lives just to obtain it, which is exactly what your precious little vixen in there tried to do. She'll never be content to stay here as your lapdog. You can't tame a beast that has already known freedom. She'll try escaping every chance she gets. Eventually, she'll probably get herself killed trying."
"I know you're right," Larzalere sighed.
I backed away from the door then. I wasn't quite sure what it was they were thinking about doing to me, but I knew that it couldn't be good. I could tell Alma resented me, and I was frightened of what she might do to me. I was creeping back towards the couch when I noticed a strange orb in the corner of the room.
I walked over to it. It was sitting on a pedestal. I started to stare into it. "Oh, TK! Davis!" I could see the both of them, their digimon, a boy I didn't recognize, an Otamamon, and some strange, duck creature. They were all climbing up a mountain. Then I noticed that something wasn't quite right about them, but I couldn't think of why they didn't look right. I heard a door open behind me.
"I see you've found the Orb of Sight," Larzalere said, coming up behind me. "It will show you anyone you want to see." Then, he noticed the boys. "Damnit. I didn't think they'd... Nevermind." He turned to me. "You, stay here." He left the room in a huff.
"Quite a little tool, isn't it?" asked Alma, who entered the room.
"Yes, it's very nice," I said suspiciously.
She came over to me and placed a cloth over the Orb. "You know, it's how he found you."
"What do you mean 'how he found me'?"
"He used the Orb of Sight to find someone with extraordinary beauty, and it showed him you." She paused. "Of course, the Orb isn't entirely accurate. The images shown are altered based on a personal bias of the viewer and the person being showed. For instance, when it showed you to my brother, you were much prettier. And when it showed you your friends, they were mostly as you remembered them, even if it's not how they truly are right now."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.
She laughed. "Wouldn't you like to know."
Larzalere reentered the room. "The matter has been... taken care of. I'm sure there will be no further trouble."
Alma began to leave the room, pausing a moment to whisper to her brother, "You should do it now. Pretty zombie girls listen to every command."
After she had gone, Larzalere turned to me. "My Hikari, I must tell you that I do not desire losing you." The color in my face drained and I felt very cold as I thought about what I had overheard. "My sister thinks that I should erase your memories and make you my slave." Uh oh, here it comes. "But I do not think that that is necessary." I sighed a sigh of relief. "But, I can't let your act go unpunished, can I? The windows in your room shall be locked, and a forcefield placed around every exit, including the windows. I'm sorry, dear Hikari, but you've left me no choice."
Crisis averted, at least for now, although I didn't know how long it would be before he changed his mind, if he ever did.
Who needs windows anyway? Or a door, for that matter...