"To know courage,
To know tears,
It's come to the world."
Taichi Yagami—"Atarashii Taiyou"
(Translated by Riah-chan)
With Broken Wings
Chapter Two: "Atarashii Taiyou"
It was early in the morning when Sakiko and Koemon awoke to the sound of their cellmate scurrying about the cell. Both of the females cracked open their eyes to see him running around, desperately cramming his leftover food into his helmet.
"Kotemon, what on Earth are you doing?" Sakiko questioned, tucking a lock of brown hair behind her ear.
"Just getting something for the Kaiser's family," he answered in his sweet childish voice. "You have to deliver this to them, Sakiko. If you saw the way he made them live…"
"I promise I'll give it to them," Sakiko vowed. But Kotemon still seemed upset. "What is it?"
"If something goes wrong today, Garmmon's going to try and protect you. Don't let him—whatever you do, don't let him help you. The Kaiser uses that as his excuse to torture him. Don't let him have an excuse to do that. Garmmon's always protected us, so it's our turn to protect him."
"I won't," she promised, bending down and extending her pinky, like she did when she was little. "Pinky swear." She then helped Kotemon tie his blanket around the helmet. "There. Done just the way Mom used to tie a napkin around my lunch." There was a tear in her eye as she said this, but she secretly wiped it away. Kotemon nearly kicked himself for his ignorance. How could he be so stupid to forget? Today was the sixteenth—it was officially three months since Sakiko's mother died!
Her mother, Nari Ayamisa, had been murdered by one of the Kaiser's many mercenaries. And Nari had done nothing except criticize the way the two worlds rapidly placed a mere boy on the throne. Sakiko could never forget the sound of the shot that rang from the sniper rifle as the fatal bullet flew out, careening into her mother's chest. Her father had selfishly committed suicide a day later, leaving his only child to become a full-time fighter for the Resistance. That was where she had been trained in the graceful art of fighting: hand-to-hand combat, the martial arts, boxing, fencing, and even the use of a gun (which she was very skilled with). Sadly, her entire unit had been captured long before she could complete her training, so she never got to learn more than that. Though she hid it well, Sakiko was a very accomplished fighter—the best in her class. She only hid it to conserve her skills for a time when they'd be needed. Unlike many warriors, Sakiko knew when to wait for the right fight.
"So will we all get to see the Kaiser's family?" Koemon asked. Kotemon nodded.
"Even though it was night, I managed to memorize the way there. When the Kaiser is gone, we'll sneak in."
"So what's his family like?" Koemon questioned.
"They're much nicer than he is. His stepmother has a baby girl named Kouri." Kotemon smiled at Koemon, who nearly squealed in delight. Many Digimon (namely the uncorrupted ones) were fascinated by humans—particularly babies. And Kouri definitely had the effect of melting anyone's heart. "They're sad, but at the same time, they manage to hold onto a little bit of hope."
"That's nice to hear," Sakiko commented. "Hope is something we all need in order to survive here."
"So tell me more about them," Koemon requested.
Kotemon went into description of the entire family, being careful to leave out details of Kouji. Nobody said his name because nobody knew it. The last people to have seen him before the Kaiser's reign started were his friends, and they'd been too brokenhearted to tell the world his name. So from then on, Kouji's name was lost in the sands of time, with him becoming known only as "the Kaiser's brother," an entity without a name or identity of his own. And for some reason—barely explicable to man or Digimon—through the five months that had passed, the legend of the Digimon Kaiser had remained in tact, as though someone had written it down, like the word of any of the various gods of the inhabitants of Earth and the Digital World. Even the atheists and heretics treated this tale with the utmost respect, as though it held the answers to the universe. The story, although still unwritten, was always the same: The Kaiser—no, Kouichi—was sitting on the beach sand when Kouji confronted him to talk. Then Kouichi mysteriously gained his whip and attacked his brother. Kouji had his body slashed through and bruised, and then Kouichi tried to strangle him, electrocuting him. Their friends were only moments too late. The one girl in their group held Kouji as his last breaths escaped him. But the epilogue to that story—the fate of Kouji's body—was what had been spun into various webs, with the only ones who knew the truth being Kotemon, Kouji's parents and stepmother, Kouri, the Kaiser, and Kouji himself. Perhaps the Kaiser's legend hadn't altered because it was already graphic enough for those who wanted gore, realistic for those who wanted a more historical account, tragic enough for those who wanted to cry, toned down enough for those who wanted hope, or even…
Or it was possible it had remained because it was true.
Yes, this had to be it. The story had not altered because after years of cloak-and-dagger, false advertising, sensationalism, cults and mysterious religious sects, and other lies and deceptions, people finally wanted the truth. Well, the people who weren't under the Kaiser's influence wanted the truth, anyway. Yes, those who had seen the truth behind the Kaiser's deceit were the ones who'd stuck to the path of truth.
Kotemon had just gotten to describing the photographs—namely the picture of the Kaiser and his girlfriend—when his and Koemon's acute senses honed in on a human presence.
"What is it?" Sakiko asked, noticing the looks on their faces.
"Reiyama," Kotemon answered. Quickly, they de-organized their cell a bit to make it look as though they'd only just woken up and eaten breakfast.
"Hope you're ready for a long day's work," Reiyama greeted sinisterly. It took all of their self-control not to say, "Hope you're ready to kiss the Kaiser's—" then it would split into the swear words of Japanese and English. But they calmly walked out.
"You promise, right?" Kotemon checked, whispering to Sakiko. She nodded.
"Hey," Reiyama called, causing all three to freeze in their tracks. "What happened to the Kotemon's helmet?"
"Cracked," Sakiko answered. "We wrapped it in the blanket to remind ourselves to repair it later."
"You won't have the chance," Reiyama informed, slurs somehow making his voice a little more menacing than his usual sadistic drawl. "Kaiser's getting rid of some slaves; 'specially the ones on Cellblock 18."
"That's where Cell 24 is," Koemon commented, her eyes wide with fear.
"Yep. So if you're lucky, you might get a chance to see who he's been hidin' in there," Reiyama commented. The reason behind his unusual slurs was revealed as he exhaled close to Sakiko. His breath held the reek of alcohol. He stumbled into the cell and tossed Kotemon his helmet. "Better take it now. You can trade for repair items on your li'l black market you got going." There was no black market, but in his drunkenness, he couldn't even realize that he shouldn't have entered the cell. They had the chance to lock him in there, to pay him back for all the months of terror he'd inflicted upon them, but they decided against it. It was as though something was telling them that he would meet a fate that would serve as justice for all he'd done, and it would come without their assistance. So they simply walked over to line up next to their partners and began whispering to each other.
"We're heading for the beach again," Sakiko informed. "Aren't you afraid?"
"Nope," Kotemon answered confidently.
"But what if the Kaiser's brother washes up on shore?" Koemon questioned. Like most of the slaves, she and Sakiko believed that myth.
"I don't think he will," Kotemon affirmed. "Besides," he added, walking near Garmmon, "as long as there's something to fight for, the Kaiser's brother is still with us." He stole a momentary glance at Garmmon, who gave an almost imperceptible nod.
This battle had obviously been a victory for the Resistance, judging by all the Imperial weapons scattered on the battlefield. This war was rarely about claiming territory, unlike the wars of old, but was instead army against army, shooting until the other side finally got the sense to surrender. All the weapons of mass destruction had been put out of order under the edict of the Kaiser. He always tried to paint the portrait of a kind and just ruler ("If 'kind and just' fit the description of 'tyrant,'" Sakiko had commented bitterly), but he continued to use vicious weapons such as landmines whenever he could. Someone on the Resistance had mysteriously shut down the military satellites, so they could ambush the Kaiser undetected. All the former leaders of the world and the international ambassadors were hidden away by the Resistance for their own protection. There was speculation that American President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair were hidden on one of the Digital World's moons while Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein had "accidentally" been ejected into the orbit of Earth, but the rumors had never been proven.
Another aspect in this war was the near-absence of death on the Kaiser's side. The Resistance rarely used anything but stun weapons, but the Imperial Guard was always firing bullets into the men, women, and children—both human and Digimon—that fought against the child tyrant of both worlds. The Resistance never left weapons or their dead and injured lying around where they could fall into enemy hands—something that Kotemon had yet to figure out. And they also seemed to take the dead and seriously wounded Imperials, which was unusual in conventional warfare. But then again, this was no conventional war.
"These don't look like they can be used at all," Sakiko commented, tossing several burnt rifles into a sack she was carrying on her back. Garmmon was carrying another too, but Sakiko only filled it with whatever wouldn't fit in hers. "So, your other forms are Wolfmon and Strabimon?"
"Who told you?" Garmmon asked.
"I just hear it around." Sakiko had grown attached to Kotemon and didn't want to get him in trouble. "Someone put two and two together and figured out your other form. Besides, it's common knowledge that your Child form is Strabimon. I mean, everyone heard after the incident when you devolved in front of that Koemon…"
"Strabimon isn't my true devolved form," Garmmon corrected. Sakiko looked at him, surprised. "I only become him when something goes wrong, or if I'm forced to devolve when someone's around. It's a safety mechanism in my evolutions that Kouichi likes to take advantage of."
Sakiko had never heard anyone call the Kaiser by his real name before, so now she was completely curious about Garmmon. "So what is your true form?"
"A human."
Sakiko laughed at this. "That's a new one. Come on, you don't have to lie to me. I can keep a secret."
"It's the truth."
Sakiko was still laughing at this, which kept her from watching where she was going. When she heard the click of another landmine, her mind floated back to the promise she'd made Kotemon. She wasn't supposed to let Garmmon save her.
"Slide Evolution! Wolfmon!" He took out the defuser Kotemon had mentioned and walked closer to Sakiko.
"Don't," she warned. "I can take care of this." She opened up the circuit panel and began unplugging wires and using their electrical charges to try and short out all the circuits.
"You don't know which wires to use," Wolfmon argued. "Let me help."
"No!" she cried. "I can do this on my own!"
"Quit being stubborn!"
"You stop being stubborn! Not everyone needs to be rescued, you know. Ouch!" A small electrical shock burned her fingers, and she instinctively stuck them in her mouth. Without her hands to block the panel, Wolfmon came over and began searching through the wires to see which ones were needed to defuse. "No. Don't. Please. I promised…"
"You promised what?" Wolfmon questioned. Sakiko looked down, noticing the red blinking symbols on the ring around his neck. She knew the Kaiser was already coming. It was too late to try and keep Wolfmon from facing another beating.
"I promised Kotemon that I wouldn't let you help me so you wouldn't have to go through that round of torture again."
He looked up in surprise. "You know Kotemon?"
"Yeah. He and the Koemon you saved two months ago are my cellmates, and my best friends. He made me promise today that I wouldn't let you face that torture again."
Several bands of DigiCode wrapped around Wolfmon, devolving him. He was a human, just as he'd said. He looked directly at Sakiko with the most beautiful pair of crystal blue eyes she had ever seen.
Wait till Koemon discovers her crush is human, she thought. I can't believe this. It's like some kind of dream.
"And he said that?" her rescuer questioned. Sakiko remembered the last thing she'd said aloud, but she still couldn't recover from this shock. She suddenly lost her voice and was only able to nod. "I haven't had a friend like that in a long time. I miss the feeling." He returned to his job of defusing the mine, only to feel the sharp sting of the Kaiser's bladed whip.
"You devolved to your true form?" he demanded. The other boy ignored him and returned to defusing the mine, only to feel the whip's blade once more. "You answer me when I address you!" Still, the Kaiser was ignored and the mine attended to.
"Taken care of," he told Sakiko, only to be met with the impossibly sharp blade again. This time, the blade hit his back, snagging his jacket. He let his arms go back as the jacket was ripped off his back. Sakiko could see why he wore that jacket, even in this heat. His arms were crisscrossed with cuts and bruises, and she suspected that his left arm had been nearly broken at least once.
"Colonel Reiyama!" called a Shiisamon and a Gazimon. Sakiko hadn't even realized the Kaiser had been accompanied by his shadow.
"What is it?" he asked, sounding much more sober than he'd been a few hours ago. Maybe he was having a hangover or something, Sakiko reasoned. The man didn't look like someone who could take his own alcohol, and that had been several hours ago, so it was possible.
"The Koemon and Kotemon we were working with disappeared," Gazimon explained. Sakiko felt a surge of happiness within her. Her friends were here somewhere! Her face didn't show her excitement, though. She used to play cards with her parents, so she knew how to put her poker face to good use. She also knew how to take advantage of a situation, and did this by snatching the defuser and placing it in one place she knew they wouldn't look.
"My lord," Reiyama addressed, making both Sakiko and her rescuer sick to their stomachs, "I must deal with this at the moment."
"I'll join you after I take care of this incident," the Kaiser stated, screwing the weight onto his whip. He then raised it above his head and brought it down on the slave's back, forcing him to the sand. Sakiko cringed as he fell—never once showing his pain, but it was obvious that he could barely remain conscious, let alone walk. Then the Kaiser turned to her, his words dripping with acidy venom: "Do you know who this is?" She shook her head, not desiring to make contact with the angry eyes that were almost identical to the ones that had pulled her in. "Good," the Kaiser answered, "a slave who knows her place, unlike this piece of trash here!" He whistled loudly, summoning an Airdramon before he kicked the boy in the ribs. "Get on the Airdramon!" This shout was followed by another kick, and then another hit with the weighted whip. "Something tells me that you won't be sharing his fate," the Kaiser commented to Sakiko as he lifted his slave by the back of his shirt and threw him onto the Digimon that would be serving as their transport. Then he got on, keeping one foot on the injured slave (slowly adding pressure as the boy tried to breathe) and they took off for base. Sakiko removed the defuser from the place she'd hid it—her mouth—and spat on the ground, partly to get the sound out of her mouth, and partly—mostly—as a curse for the Kaiser. After wrapping the defuser's cord around her wrist, she picked up the jacket from the sand and held it to her heart, still shocked of the young man's severe beating.
"Kotemon! Koemon!" she called. They came running.
"No time to talk," Kotemon explained, holding his wrapped helmet and running as fast as his little legs would take him. "We have to help Kouji!"
"His name is Kouji?" Koemon asked.
"Yeah," Kotemon answered.
"I can't believe it," Koemon declared. "The Kaiser's brother is alive."
"The Kaiser's brother?" Sakiko repeated.
"Didn't you pay attention?" Kotemon questioned. "The hair, the eyes—all identical?"
"Sorry," Sakiko apologized sarcastically, "but I was standing on a bomb at the time! Forgive me for caring more about my life than about two people I didn't know looked alike!" In reality, she had noticed, but it was only Kouji's eyes that had held her attention.
They took a few shortcuts and beat the Kaiser to the base. Kotemon led the way to the forbidden cell, stopping quickly upon seeing the Kaiser, who hadn't used the cloak of darkness this time. He was shoving his injured brother across the hall, forcing him to walk. Several times, Kouji would be thrown into cell doors, causing him to face several new bruises.
Finally, the Kaiser reached the door to Cell 24, activating the shield of darkness.
"Come on!" Kotemon whispered. They ran into the cloak of shadows, keeping away from the Kaiser's wrath.
Again, the Kimura-Minamotos hadn't heard the door hiss open, so they were completely oblivious to the events that occurred from there. The Kaiser threw Kouji against the back wall, and then forced him to stand just so he could pinch the shackles on his twin's wrists and ankles. Next, he placed his whip on blade mode and let the sickle-shaped blade bite into Kouji's skin, over and over until his yellow T-shirt was literally in tatters, just barely staying on his body. Then he added the weight and electricity. And all that time, the trio was frozen in fear, Sakiko still clutching Kouji's jacket until her knuckles turned white. At last, the Kaiser turned and left, removing the invisibility shield only from himself.
They ran to Kouji, abandoning their parcels. Sakiko took the defuser and pried open a panel. Kouji was barely conscious at this point, and he didn't seem to recognize their presence.
"Stupid shackles!" Sakiko cursed, unable to short-circuit the electronic cuffs.
"Wait!" Kotemon announced. "I've got an idea!" He ran over to his package and unwrapped it, taking an overly ripened plum from his helmet. He held it over one of the shackles on Kouji's ankles and applied some pressure, forcing juice to drip onto the cuff, short-circuiting it. Koemon opened the cuff while Kotemon got to work on the other ankle.
"Kotemon, you are a genius!" Sakiko declared excitedly. Once Kouji's feet were free, Kotemon passed the leaking fruit to Sakiko, who freed his arms while Kotemon and Koemon stepped out of the way. The cloaking was suddenly broken, and the entire family was alerted to their presence. Sakiko placed Kouji's right arm around her neck to help him stand.
"We have to get this ring off his neck," she informed. Kouji's hand slowly moved toward his pocket, where he'd hidden a blue-and-black device.
"The digivice," his mother realized, taking it from his hand. She pressed the top against the ring, releasing a bluish-white light that cracked the ring, which fell off and broke. The sound of a sharp intake of breath escaped Kouji, like he was in pain. He lost his grip on reality and hit the hard, cold stone floor.
"I should have known," his mother continued. "That's why he never tried to break it in the first place."
"Why?" Koemon questioned.
"Kouji has the Spirits of Light, and like any of the Chosen Children, if he uses them too often, he suffers severe energy loss," his stepmother explained.
"But I don't understand," Sakiko commented, placing the blanket over Kouji. "How is he still alive? One of his friends held him as he died. How come he's still alive?"
"Kouji was near death when the other Chosen brought him back," his father replied. "In fact, it was so bad that we thought he was dead. His breathing was very shallow and his heartbeat was nearly nonexistent. The Chosen told us to call Tomoko so they could tell the story all at once, which they did. They stayed for three hours, too shaken up to leave. Finally, their families came and brought them home. About half an hour later, Kouji opened his eyes. That was when Kouichi came. He attacked us, all of us. Kouji just managed to pull himself out of bed to confront his brother. He held out his digivice, but he didn't even have the strength to hold it. Kouichi was furious when he saw Kouji was still alive, and nearly killed him, but something inside him decided that killing Kouji wasn't enough. That was when he decided to use Kouji as his slave, so he could kill him slowly, one day at a time."
"But those pictures…" Kotemon protested. "The Kaiser wasn't always like this, was he?"
"It's true that Kouichi was once evil, but he'd been under Cherubimon's power," Tomoko Kimura admitted. "And he reformed. Then something happened. He began getting more and more depressed, and his anger and violence began increasing. Five minutes later, he'd be his normal self, with barely a memory of what he'd just said or done. None of us could figure out what was wrong with him."
"It was around the time Kouri was born," Satomi Minamoto continued. "Kouichi had been dating Izumi Orimoto for a few months and he never showed his temper around her. But then he suddenly lost it with her, and Izumi came to Kouji for help. Kouji decided to talk it over with Kouichi in front of everybody, so if there was a problem, they could all solve it. But Kouichi ended up shouting at their youngest friend, Tomoki Himi, and it was the last straw for Kouji, who'd seen his brother doing too many things that weren't part of his normal personality. Kouichi ran off, with Kouji right behind him. The other Chosen couldn't catch up, so it was up to Kouji to get the answers on his own. And you know the rest of the story of what happened on that beach."
"He's not all evil," Kouji whispered, unable to move from his position on the cold gray stones. "The Kaiser is someone else, controlling Kouichi. Somewhere in his mind, he's been told that we're the enemy and that he's superior, just like whatever Cherubimon used to tell him."
"Then there's hope?" Kotemon questioned.
"Only if I let the other Chosen know," Kouji replied, trying to get up, but the sheer effort of it was exhausting. "Kouichi only gets this sick pleasure of watching me suffer because the Kaiser is controlling him." He finally got a good look at his other two rescuers. "Who are you two?"
"I'm Sakiko Ayamisa, and this is Koemon."
"Hello," Koemon added. "I'm the one that found out your identity of Strabimon, remember?"
"Yes," Kouji answered, seeming to lose consciousness. "I remember…"
That sudden weakness in Kouji brought Sakiko back to her senses. Instantaneously, she remembered the warning Reiyama had given them earlier.
"The Kaiser's switching around the cells," she informed. "He's planning on eliminating a few of his slaves. I think he means you. It's time we all escaped. Take only what you need." Koemon took Kotemon's helmet and added bread from the Kimura-Minamotos' rations. Sakiko helped Kouji stand and grabbed his digivice. The rest of the family took their necessities—including several photo albums—while Kotemon snatched Kouji's photos and stuffed them in the pocket of the blue jacket that had been discarded on the floor. Then he rolled up the blue fleece and placed it under his arm.
They quickly snuck out of the door with all the anticipation of World War II prisoners ready to escape their internment camp. With a few careful trips down the ramps and stairs, they reached the lowest level, where several transport trucks were parked.
"It's around dinner time," Koemon noticed. "Time for all the slaves to come back in."
"Yeah," Kotemon agreed. "No one'll notice a truck going out to pick up the slaves."
"I'll drive," Kouji's father volunteered.
"No," Sakiko warned. "I will. The other slaves would be suspicious of a man they didn't know, but they know that I don't mean trouble. You just stay in the back with…"
"With who?" asked a sinister drawl. Sakiko turned her head to see Reiyama, who was brandishing a gun. Swiftly, she handed Kouji to his father and grabbed the mercenary's arm, twisting it behind his back. She then grabbed his gun and whacked it over his head, causing the colonel to fall unconscious. For a moment, she held her finger on the trigger, but that odd conscience loomed on her again, forcing her to only steal the man's keys and secure the pistol in her back pocket.
"That takes care of one mess," she decided. "Come on!"
They scrambled in the back of a truck. Sakiko helped Kouji into it and ran to the driver's seat, where it took her a little while to figure out which key started it. But the correct key eventually showed itself, and she turned the ignition.
Thank you, Dad, for teaching me to drive when I was ten, she thought, zooming out of the base. The strong tires plowed through the sand with some trouble, but Sakiko quickly got the vehicle on the deserted highway. In back, Kotemon was passing around the food. Kouji was too tired to eat, so he slept in the back. Sakiko graciously accepted a wedge of cheese with the mold broken off of it and munched on it as she made her way down the empty roads.
Not much longer later, she looked out the window and saw an Imperial check post.
"Uh-oh," she commented, waking up Kouji. "Doesn't look too good. I'm going to have to turn away."
"Just pretend you're lost," he weakly suggested from behind.
"Driving this?" Sakiko questioned. "Somehow I don't think that the Imperial Guard is just going to let me drive on through with a shipment of slaves."
"Just say that you're transporting us from Cell 24," Kouji instructed. "Once they hear that, they'll know to let you through." He reached forward, offering his bandana.
"What's this for?"
"Your hair's too noticeable. You'd be recognized easily upon escaping."
"You should talk," she muttered angrily, knowing that Kouji's haircut made him an easy target. All anyone had to do was stop everyone that looked exactly like the Kaiser, and that wasn't too hard with his influence. But Kouji was also right. Only half of Sakiko's hair was actually brown, and it shared her head with hair she'd dyed florescent purple. She quickly tucked her hair into a crude bun and tied the bandana over it before driving up to the checkpoint.
"Name?" the officer in charge asked.
"I'm delivering a shipment of slaves," Sakiko answered, using a deep voice.
"From where?"
"Cell 24."
The officer's face turned white. "Go right ahead," he ordered. Sakiko nodded and drove through to freedom.
-------
It was sunset when they ditched the truck and found a Resistance settlement, and the Fox Leaf Arrowhead lanterns were seeing quite a bit of use. Kouji was wearing his jacket again, but with the hood covering his head and face, as everyone had agreed that it was better if his identity remained undisclosed.
A very tall, rather deep-voiced, fourteen-year-old boy with spiky brown hair (the tips dyed blond) rapidly counted the party as they waited to enter his tunnel complex, known affectionately as the Underground Railroad, after the system that had brought the African-American slaves to freedom in the 1800s.
"Two Digimon, six humans?" he checked, trying to see if anyone was near Kouji, who was hiding in the shadows.
"Actually, he's trying to find his friends," Sakiko corrected. "Would it be okay if you told him where they are? One of them is Izumi Orimoto."
"I don't know," their conductor answered. "He might be a spy."
"He isn't," Satomi assured. "We can all vouch for him personally."
"Hold on a second," the conductor said. He entered further into the tunnel and returned with a twenty-year-old young man.
"Mrs. Minamoto?" the newcomer recognized.
"Minamoto?" the conductor repeated under his breath.
"And the rest of you?" the other continued. "My brother and everyone else will be ecstatic to see you all alive and well."
"Please," Kotemon pleaded. "All our friend wants to do is find the others."
"All right," the young conductor finally complied. "You can reach them by heading west." He pointed into the setting sun. "But be careful. Wild rumors are going around that the Kaiser's looking for someone. If anyone even thinks you're with him, you could wind up dead in a gutter somewhere."
"Take my gun," Sakiko offered, but Kouji shook his head.
"You might still need it," he whispered. He then hugged his family goodbye and shook Koemon's and Kotemon's hands. "Thanks, guys, especially you, Kotemon. I owe you my life."
"No you don't," he replied. "You saved mine, so just think of what I did as repaying the favor, or paying it forward to help someone else."
"Well, thanks anyway, and to you too, Sakiko."
"You're welcome," she answered, locking his lips with hers. Her tongue slipped into his mouth, searching around, but he quickly—and politely—pulled away. Throughout the kiss, someone's face had entered his mind's eye. He didn't know why it was this face of anyone that could haunt him, but he knew he had to see this person. He had to find her, to talk to her. After all, that's what best friends were supposed to do. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I shouldn't have done that."
"No," he answered. "It's okay. But just save that for someone who deserves it."
And he turned and walked into the sunset taking with him the courage he'd found and the tears he'd spilled. A new sun would dawn on him; it would dawn on them all.
The "You are a genius" was part of one of Prince Metternich's lines in a play my friends and I had to do in history last year. The idea of everybody loving Kouji... Well, blame that on my CCS anime and manga. In that, everyone loves Yukito—Sakura, Shaoran, Touya… I kind of used a little bit of that, only it really can be seen in Sakiko.