Sigh...I'm sorry it's taking so long, you guys. I'm on summer break now, so I can write more, but I do get a little distracted…I'm writing my own book that I plan to get published by the time I get to high school. That's a year and a half to shoot for at least 100 pages…40 down!

Please please please please please go read my story Before the Beginning. It's a kind of a

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. But this idea is mine, so please don't use it!

The Healer's Touch

Chapter 4: Threatened

T.K. sighed as he shuffled down the empty school hallway, hands stuffed in his pockets and bag over his shoulder. He didn't really want to go home now, but he had to. He couldn't risk the others getting into trouble over him…

"T.K.! T.K., wait!"

He stopped, stiffening. Kari came running up behind him, stopping by his side just before they exited the main hallway. She looked up at him anxiously. "You're not going home again, are you?"

T.K. mumbled a quiet "Mm-hm…" half to himself, turning his head slightly so he wouldn't have to look her in the eye. "I've got…stuff to do…"

"T.K.…" she put a hand on his arm. A ripple of shock ran up in and into his head, but she didn't notice. "Please…we found out everything. You don't have to hide it anymore. Please come back with us. We miss you."

He pulled his arm away from her, not roughly but nervously. She looked at him a moment, then moved around in front of him to try and look him in the eye. He gulped and turned so that he couldn't see her again, head still at one side.

"Why won't you look at me?!" she demanded, sounding hurt. "Are you scared of me or something?!"

"Kari…" He started to stutter. "I…I…"

"Are you mad at us for finding out, is that it?" she shouted. "Do you hate us, for prying into your life? T.K., we had to know! You can't just…"

"NO!" he exclaimed, suddenly turning to her. He grabbed her hands in both of his and suddenly glared into her eyes earnestly. "You've got it all wrong!"

Kari stopped, almost frightened by the look in his eyes. But suddenly he calmed, and his eyes took on a very serious, horribly sad look. "It's not…" he whispered, like he was scared, moving an inch closer to her. "It's not like that, okay?"

He never once took his eyes off her, but every second he was closer and closer. Kari stared and watched him a moment, then finally choked out a shaky response. "W-What are you doing?"

T.K. stopped, hesitated a moment, then released her hands. "It's nothing…" he sighed, turning for the door. "Nothing at all…"

Kari didn't try to stop him. She was too flustered by his actions, and by his eyes, so she just watched as he shuffled slowly away from the school.

Patamon stuck his head out of the bag to look at his friend. "She's worried about you, T.K." he just nodded. "Why'd you do that? You were so close! Why did you just stop?!"

T.K. gulped, holding everything, including tears, in. "I…can't…handle it." he whispered sadly. "She can't know…No one can know…If…If they found out, she'd be in worse danger…than any of the others…"

Patamon gazed at his partner sadly. His heart hurt, watching him suffer like this. His intentions were in the right place, but he was hurting himself…Not with the pain, but by isolating himself from everyone…everything he loved. It wasn't fair, not to them, and not to himself.

He gently brushed against the back of the human's neck, the Digimon equivalent of a hug. "Don't worry, T.K." he whispered, but not really loud enough for his friend to hear. "I'll protect you…I promise…"

~ * ~ * ~

Kari lay awake that night, worrying. Lying face-first, eyes hidden in her pillow, she muttered to herself in the period between homework and dinner.

"That look he gave me…" she whispered, remembering the encounter with her alienated best friend. "He was…so sad…Like an abandoned puppy…He pushed me away, but…" she clenched the sheets of her bed, frustrated and determined. "He needs me."

Gatomon looked up from her place on the chair. "What'd you say, Kari?"

Kari sat up, gazing around her room. She picked up her Digivice from the desk, looking at it thoughtfully. "He needs me." she whispered again. "T.K.…He needs us all… He can't make it on his own…"

She looked down at her partner. "Come on, Gatomon. We've got something to do."

Tai came in a moment later to call his sister to dinner, but instead found only a short note scribbled on some notebook paper: Tai, There's something I've forgot to take care of. Save me a little steak! ~Kari

~ * ~ * ~

Gennai looked up from his book, hearing the slight beep that warned him when someone was approaching with intent of getting into his home. Checking the screen at his side, he was surprised to see Kari standing by the edge of the lake in the middle of the dark.

He opened the gates and allowed the Child of Light to enter in, closing them up behind her. "Good evening, Kari." he said, not concealing his surprise. "What brings you here?"

Kari sat down on the mat in front of the man. Gatomon, back in her champion form, sat down next to her, confused. Kari was deep in thought a moment, then leaned forward suddenly "Gennai…" she whispered, then blurted. "I want you to show me how to use my power!"

Gennai was taken aback, then laughed a bit. "Your power, Kari?"

"Well…you know what I mean!" she sighed. "The 'Crest of Light' power you were talking about. I need to know, please!"

Gennai contemplated her, then nodded. "Ah, I see." he muttered. "Your want is not out of personal gain, but rather out of worry for your dearest friends…I suppose that's reason enough to want to learn."

Kari looked up, excited, expectant, but Gennai shook his head again. "However… It's not that easy to activate. It doesn't just wait, like Hope's does. It only appears during battle…"

Kari's excitement disappeared. "So then…it's impossible?"

Gennai sighed, silent a moment, then looked back up. "Please understand, Kari." he finally said. "The power known as Faith…that is, Light in its purest form…is only accessible during battle. It can't be used to heal or anything in the normal world, only to power up the Digimon that are fighting. Or, if concentrated hard enough, it can be fired in small blasts, but it can't be practiced. It just happens…"

Kari's head dropped, upset. Gennai put his hand on her shoulder. "I understand that you're worried about T.K." he said gently. "And you're right, it isn't healthy for him to pull away from you and the others. But this isn't the way to help him."

"Then how…?" Kari whispered, tears slowly dripping down her cheeks. "How can I help him?"

"That's something you'll have to figure out on your own." Gennai whispered, showing her out. "It won't be as hard as you think."

~ * ~ * ~

It wasn't long after that when the younger DigiDestined planned a picnic in the Digital World. It was actually a bit of bait…They figured T.K. might come along if it was something fun.

About half an hour in, the Digivices started to beep. Cody stopped his meal and picked his up. "It's T.K.!" he exclaimed, seeing the bright green dot. "He's over there!"

The others stopped, then reached for their own. "Yeah…" Ken turned, trying to get pointing the right way. "It looks like he's right over there somewhere."

Davis jumped to his feet. "He really came!" he exclaimed. "Come on, let's-"

"Hold it." Kari suddenly cut him off. Davis looked down. She was still sitting, staring quietly into her drink. "If he wants to join us, he will…eventually." she said seriously. "If he doesn't want to, we shouldn't go hunting for him. Maybe he's just here by himself…"

Davis still didn't believe it, but sat back down and continued with the picnic.

T.K. was actually watching them from a tree about twenty meters away. He was sitting on the opposite side of the trunk, leaning back on a long branch. He'd almost run when he heard Davis, but Kari's advice had eased his fear.

Patamon hovered up next to his friend's head. "Did ya hear that, T.K.?" he asked. "They want you back!"

"I heard…" T.K. muttered, a slight smile crossing his face. "But sometimes what you want isn't what's good for you."

"T.K.…" Patamon sighed, landing on his head. Nothing more was said between them, as T.K. closed his eyes, tuning everything around him out.

At least until a sudden explosion knocked them both out of the tree.

After they hit the ground, it took a moment for T.K. to regain his senses. When he did the first thing he heard or felt was Patamon tugging at his arm and crying something.

"T.K.! T.K.!" he was exclaiming. "The others! They're in trouble!!"

"Wha…? Trouble…?" T.K. was still a little off from the fall, but he could hear something that sounded like screams or groans in the background, but he wasn't quite sure…

"You boy." a cold voice suddenly drifted over, realigning his thoughts. "I know you're there. Why don't you come out and see your friends?"

Very slowly, T.K. climbed to his feet. He didn't want to come out, he wanted to run. He was terrified to see what that…thing…was doing to them…But he if he didn't go, they'd be…

He and Patamon stepped into the clearing and froze. It was a team of three Blossomon that had their friends. The Digimon were scattered around, out cold from… something… probably the same thing that had torn the picnic blanket to shreds. Two of the Blossomon held two captives each, one with Ken and Yolei, and the other with Davis and Cody. But the last one had both its vines around Kari, one squeezing her chest and the other around her neck.

"Well, well, well." a dark figure among them laughed, coming into view. "Look who's here."

T.K. stiffened. The creature was about twice as large as he was, completely hidden in a midnight black cloak. Two red eyes shown from inside the hood. "Oh, excuse me." it laughed in its cold voice. "I am Neigamon, the demon of darkness. And I suppose you're the one who contains the Healing Light, correct?"

T.K. gulped. He couldn't say a word. His throat was petrified with fear.

"Then I suppose you must be able to guess what I'm after." Neigamon chuckled, waving his hand towards the Blossomon. "So what do you say? Their lives for…Your freedom."

"No…" Kari exclaimed against the pain. "T.K.…You can't! It's too… Dangerous…"

"Quiet, you!" Neigamon swiped his hand forward. The Blossomon holding Kari tightened the vine around her throat, strangling her. Neigamon turned back, smiling darkly. "Well, boy? Would you let your friends suffer for you?"

"You big creep!" Patamon yelled angrily. "Why can't you just leave him alone? He has to go through enough without you…"

"Stop it…" T.K. whispered, throat cracking. His trembling knees gave way and he dropped to the ground. "Please…Stop it…"

"T.K.…" Patamon gulped. His partner was staring strait ahead, eyes blankly locked on Kari. He was gulping in stuttering breaths, like his body just couldn't take any more.

"Leave them alone…" he whispered, tears breaking free and rushing down his cheeks. "Please…I'll do whatever you say…Just please…Leave them out of this…"

Neigamon grinned viciously and snapped his fingers. The Blossomon vanished in puffs of black smoke, letting his friends drop half-stunned to the ground. From the smoke came several spiraling black chains that tied around T.K.'s wrists. Before anyone could react, the boy was gone and so was Neigamon.

Patamon stared a moment, then dropped to the ground and buried his eyes in his ears. Kari stumbled over to him and carefully cradled the little creature in her arms. He was sobbing hopelessly, mourning with heart-felt woes.

"T.K.…" he was sobbing. "I'm sorry…I couldn't help him…T.K.…"

"It's okay." Kari soothed down. "Don't you worry. We'll save him. We will…I promise…"