Me: The last chapter of my story! I can't believe I'm actually going to complete a fanfiction for the first time! Whoo hoo! Reviews!
DigiDestined of Courage: Are you serious? I thought I kind of rushed things and made everything mushy and OOC! I was stuck, on what to write exactly, so just put whatever came to my mind. I guess it all worked out! ^_^ Thanks!
Jamie: Um… no? ^ ^;
Me: I refer to "The Runaway Digimon Express" movie here, so if you aren't familiar with it, I suggest you either read Tamer of Darkness' adaptation of it, or get the movie! I have the DVD, heh heh heh… and the Dukemon card which came with it too! My only Japanese Digimon card *sniff* Well, other than the other two with my SaintGargomon and Sakuyamon action figures!
Disclaimer: If I owned "Digimon," there would have been a subbed version released, as well as a better dubbed version.
Search for Santamon!!
Chapter 4: This Christmas
Christmas was here, and that meant it was time for celebration. In the case of the Tamers and their families, they were going to Ruki's for a Christmas party! Takato was at his parents' bakery, rushing about, trying to get ready to go. Why he can't learn to keep himself more organized by now, is something we may cease to know. Running around his room, Takato frantically made sure to grab all his presents, and shove them into his bag.
"Takato, we're going to be late!" his parents called from downstairs.
"I know, I know, I'm just checking everything!" he yelled back. "Okay, gifts…" He read each tag as he placed them in his sack. "…Guilmon, Culumon, Jen, Hirokazu, Juri…" he paused. That's right; he has a crush on Juri, doesn't he? Actually… not anymore. Juri had found out about his feelings for her a while ago though. Takato had to admit, that he was quite embarrassed that she realized that and even confronted him about it. She wasn't sure about how she felt for him. She liked him of course, but how much? That was something neither of them was sure of. Juri wanted some time to think about it though, so Takato let her. Months had passed by since then, and Takato found his feelings had cooled down towards her. Takato eventually went to speak to her about it nervously. They both agreed that maybe it was nothing, so they just remained friends. 'Hmm… if the thing with Juri was just an infatuation… I wonder when it'll be the real thing,' he wondered. Taking one last look at her present, he slid it into his bag, continuing on with his inventory.
"Terriermon, Kenta, MarineAngemon, Ryo… I wonder if he'll be able to make it. Ai, Makoto, Impmon, Shuichon, Renamon, Ruki…" He found himself pausing again. Of course, there are those times when it's hard to think of what to get for certain people, and Ruki was no exception. Takato took some extra thought into what he wanted to get for her. Ruki wasn't like any other girl he had met before. The thought of a plush toy had crossed his mind, but this was Ruki. He wanted something with more thought put into it. Of course he did this with the others as well, but it seemed harder to come up with something for her in particular. It came to him when he was shopping with his mother. The object attracted his attention, and he went to take a closer look. It seemed so simple, yet unique, especially since he was able to customize it. He had thought for a while what to do with it in particular, and it dawned on him. 'I hope she likes it,' he admired the gift, and the blue wrappings which adorned it. He smiled. 'Blue… her favourite colour. It's a good reflection of her too; a calm coolness which makes one feel at ease, yet that cold can be icy at times.' He thought this over. 'Actually, she's probably the more relaxing part of that analysis.'
"Takato!" His parents snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Oh, no!" he squeaked in a panic.
***
After the Tamers' adventures, Ruki's mother had realized what her daughter was really like. She didn't like it when she was forced to do modeling shoots like her mother, or wear any of those dresses she bought her. That wasn't Ruki's personality at all. Well, that caused her mother to pick out more likeable articles of clothing. In that case, Ruki allowed her to do so, and would wear anything she liked which was picked out. Today, she was wearing a lavender turtleneck sweater, which matched with her eyes. Around her neck was a gold chain her mother had given her for Christmas, with a Renamon pendent. She liked it very much, and told her mother so. Ruki planned to wear it whenever she could. Rumiko was happy with her daughter's reaction to say the least. Renamon herself had witnessed the event, and was glad how Ruki got along with her mother now. She knew all along that she cared for her, but it was great to see her actually show it.
Now the family was preparing for their expected guests. Ruki placed a plate of Christmas goodies on the table, while her mother and grandmother worked on the actual food in the kitchen. Renamon was curiously looking at the stereo Rumiko had set up.
"What are you doing, Renamon?" Ruki casually asked her partner.
"Wondering if there will be any singing going on today." She picked up a microphone, confirming her thoughts.
"I guess so," Ruki replied, rising up from the table. She went over to the stereo as well, looking through the stack of CDs there.
"Planning on singing this time?" Renamon observed her Tamer's actions.
"I don't think so," a small smile crept onto her face, "just looking for something to play in the meantime."
"Shame," Renamon said, placing the microphone down. "I bet Takato would have looked forward to hearing you sing again," she added, before disappearing into the shadows.
"What?" Ruki whirled around to look at her, but the kitsune Digimon had already gone. "What did she-" but then the doorbell rang, interrupting her in mid-sentence. "I'll get it!" Pulling the door open, she found that Jen and his family were the first ones there.
"Ruki-onee-chan!" Shuichon greeted, waving her arm left and right.
"Shuichon, Jen, you guys are the first ones here," she said with a smile. "Of course, I sort of expected that out of you."
"Thanks for the compliment, Queenie!" Terriermon beamed from atop Jen's shoulder.
"What!?" Ruki glared at the Digimon.
"Uh, I mean meanie- " Terriermon tried to cover up unsuccessfully, "I mean! ... oops!" Rhyming can be a curse. Before Ruki could retaliate, Jen held out his presents towards her.
"Um, can you show us where to put these?" he sweatdropped.
"Yeah, follow me," she answered, leading them into her expansive home.
***
Takato and his family were of course, the last ones to make it to Ruki's house. Even Ryo was there before them! By the time they got there, the party was pretty much underway. The Terriermon, Lopmon, Culumon, Ai, Makoto, Impmon, Masahiko, and Shuichon were playing with some tinsel Terriermon had pulled off the tree, while Renamon watched them from the side. Hirokazu and Kenta were with Ryo and their Digimon, most likely talking about the card game. Most of the women seemed to be helping with stuff in the kitchen, as the husbands were discussing something at the table. Takato could smell the food from where he was, filling all his senses. The place was warm with holiday cheer, and carols played in the background.
"The Matsudas are here!" Rumiko shouted as she entered the room with them. Everyone turned to greet and meet with them. Guilmon spotted the fun some of the Digimon were having.
"Takato, Guilmon will go play with Terriermon and the others," Guilmon chirped happily.
"Alright," Takato replied, and watched as Guilmon went off. Takato searched around the room, finding Ruki talking with Juri and Jen. He joyfully made his way over to them.
"Hey, guys!" he held up his hand.
"Takato-kun!" Juri got up from her spot and hugged him. "It's good to see you again," she smiled releasing him.
"Y-yeah," Takato replied, slightly embarrassed. "Nice to see you too, Katou-san." He averted his gaze to Ruki, wondering what her reaction was to Juri's greeting. She seemed slightly taken aback when he looked at her, but just told him where to put his presents. Jen helped him place them under the tree, and then went back to Ruki and Juri with Takato. "So, what were you guys talking about?" Takato asked them.
"We were telling Juri about Santamon," Jen answered him.
"It sounded like you guys had a lot of fun," Juri commented smiling. "Jenrya-kun just finished telling us about when he went to the toystore with Terriermon." She laughed at remembering what had happened. "Poor Terriermon," she added.
"Eh? What happened to Terriermon?" Takato's eyes light up in curiosity.
"Well," Jen started, until he felt something jump onto his head. Whatever it was was holding something itchy.
"Hey, don't go spreading stuff about me!" Terriermon wrapped the tinsel around Jen's head.
"Ack! Terriermon, I can't see! This stuff is itchy too; get it off!" Jen tried pulling the tinsel off his face.
"Oh… okay!" Terriermon jumped off Jen, only to pull him down to the floor.
"Ow! Not like that!" Jen cried.
"Terriermon, are we decorating Jen-nii-chan?" Shuichon came up to the two.
"Hey, that's a great idea!" Terriermon exclaimed. "Let's tie Lopmon's ribbons in is hair!
"Yay!" Shuichon cheered. "I've always wanted to dress up Jen-nii-chan!"
"Nooo!" Jen shouted when he heard this. Takato wondered how he could help his friend out, while Juri and Ruki just looked on at the scene before them. Juri laughed at the ordeal Jen had to go through. She looked around for Masahiko, who was playing with Culumon, Guilmon, Ai, Makoto, and Impmon. He was showing them the puppet Juri had given him. Juri liked having a little brother around. She diverted her attention to Ruki, who was still watching Jen getting a makeover. Takato had also, unfortunately, ended up in the team's clutches, as Terriermon removed his goggles and started tying a bow around where it used to be. Ruki just had to let out a small laugh at this. Juri smiled at her friend.
"Ruki," she said to get her attention. Ruki turned around to face her.
"Hm?"
"Jenrya-kun already told us about his search for Santamon, so tell me about yours."
"Eh? Um…"
"You were with Takato, right? Was it fun being with him?" she asked innocently.
"What!? Um… I… uh…" What could she say to her? There wasn't much to tell, since the day had been pretty much uneventful until the end. Well, except for… but no way was she going to tell her that! Thankfully, or maybe not, Hirokazu decided to speak up.
"Hey, how about some pre-dinner entertainment?" He went over to the stereo and stopped the music from playing, picking up a microphone and book. "Who wants to karaoke?" he asked no one in particular.
"Yeah, let's!" Kenta agreed with his friend. MarineAngemon made some noises of agreement as well. "Who's going to go first?"
"Hm, let's see…" Hirokazu though for a moment. "I know! Ruki!" At that, he grabbed the other's attention. "I didn't get to hear her last time, so this time I will!" He scanned the room for the aforementioned Tamer, but she wasn't there. "Ehh? Where'd she go?"
"I think she left to get some fresh air," Juri told him.
"What!? Aww, not this again!" Hirokazu quickly changed his mood though. "Kenta! How about a duet?"
"Alright!" Kenta shot up and grabbed the other microphone.
Takato was one of the few who noticed when Ruki left, and he had a feeling he knew where she'd be. Telling the others he was going to the washroom, he inconspicuously picked something up along the way.
Sure enough, she was where the Tamer thought she would be. He found her sitting in front of her room, in the same position she was in on the day of her birthday party. He carefully walked down the hall, hoping that Renamon wouldn't interrupt him this time. While Renamon was there, she just watched as he made his way down. She eyed what he held behind his back, and a small grin appeared on her face. She made her way back to the party.
Ruki sighed, watching as the sun set down on the horizon. "It's a good thing I got out of there when I did. Hirokazu and his big mouth… who does he think he is trying to get me to sing?"
"It's because he knows you have a great voice," someone replied from behind her. Recognizing it, Ruki spun around to find Takato sitting behind her on the wooden floor.
"Takato!?" She wondered what he was doing here, but then her mind shifted to a different matter. "And just how does he know that?" she frowned. Takato stiffened, knowing where she was going with this.
"Uh… I, uh…" he stammered.
"Renamon and you were the only ones who heard me on Locomon," she continued, folding her arms. "Now, I know Renamon would never tell anyone else about that, so who does that leave? Hm?" she eyed him accusingly.
"I…uh…well…" Great; he was stuck. "Sorry!" he bowed his head. "I didn't know that he would…um…well, you know…" Ruki tapped him on the head. "Ah!" he reacted, lifting his head up.
"Well, at least I'm not there doing it," she replied. Crossing her legs, she turned back to the sunset. Takato shifted over so that he would be next to her, watching the beautiful orange as well.
"So, you're not mad?" he timidly questioned her.
"I suppose not." She paused. "I can't really stay mad at you anyways." Takato glanced at her curiously. The light of the sunset shone against her face, fitting her so well. She noticed him staring, and met her eyes with his, causing Takato to blush and turn away.
"Uh- um- you know that wish Santamon was going to give us for helping him?" Takato tried redirecting her attention.
"Yeah."
"What would you have wished for if he had given it to us?"
Ruki thought for a moment. "I don't know…" she mused. She gazed back at the sunset, in all its peaceful beauty. She was reminded… "Maybe…"
"Eh?" Takato shifted a bit to see her face.
She slightly lowered her head, "… to see my father again." Takato was taken aback; he hadn't really anticipated this kind of answer from her. "Remember when I sung on Locomon?" He nodded his head. "Well, when Parisimon took control of me… I saw my father." Takato patiently listened. "We were at some swings, and that's when I sang. It was our song…" She looked back up at the sunset, and Takato followed her gaze. "I wanted to go walking with him, and we did, but…" Takato looked at her again. "… then he disappeared." Her eyes shone slightly, and Takato noticed this. "I just wonder where he is now, or why he doesn't bother to contact me." Takato gripped the package he had next to him. Ruki closed her eyes and shook her head. "Well, it doesn't really matter now, since I have all of you guys," she smiled at him. Takato went slightly red, and he fingered the box he had with him. For the first time, Ruki caught sight of the parcel he had brought.
"What's that?" she pointed at it.
"Huh? Oh, this?" Takato was startled, and he slowly revealed the item. "This is, um, for you," he stared downwards, holding out the present to her.
"Me?" Ruki wondered why he didn't just wait until they all unwrapped their gifts. She took it though, appreciatively. "Thank you," she smiled, making him even redder than he was. "Can I open it?" He nodded his head. Takato watched nervously as she carefully untied the ribbon around the present, and then undo the paper.
What Ruki found on her lap, was a box. On the top was the image of a sunset, similar to the one in front of her now. She liked that. The box itself however, seemed like a jewelry box to her. 'Why would Takato get me this? He knows I -" but then her fingers hit something, which turned out to be small key. 'A music box?' There was only one way to find out what song it contained, so she slowly lifted the cover up. When the melody escaping from the box reached her ears, she was immediately surprised. 'Yuuhi no Yakusoku…' She faced Takato. "How did…"
"I was able to get them to put that song in there," he grinned sheepishly. "I remembered the song, so I just to tried singing the melody for the people who worked there. They said that that song was sung by someone named Ai Maeda, and they had it there, so they put it in for me." He rubbed the back of his head. Ruki stared in disbelief at the boy who sat in front of her, then went back to her gift.
"I love it," she smiled.
"Eh?" Takato stopped his rubbing. "Really?" She nodded her head.
"Thank you so much, Takato." Takato suddenly felt himself feel warm all over.
"Oh, you're welcome," he said, rather embarrassed. Takato got the shock of his life right there and then, when he felt Ruki wrap her arms around his neck, and pulled him into an affectionate hug. She felt so warm… When Takato got over the surprise, he slowly placed his arms around her as well. For a moment, they just sat there, as the sunset bathed them in its warm glow. Ruki finally broke the embrace, rubbing her eyes.
"I'll put this in my room," she told Takato, as she lifted up the music box and its wrappings. Takato watched her go into her room, and then turned back to the sunset. His mind could only thing of what happened a few seconds ago.
"Let's get back to the party," he heard Ruki say from behind him. Getting up, Takato walked with her side by side, to the merry atmosphere of their Christmas celebration.
When they got back, Juri and Jen had just finished singing "Believe," with Terriermon doing some backup dancing. The Digimon, Tamers, and their family cheered for the two, as they bowed politely. Hirokazu noticed Takato and Ruki's return right away.
"Ah, Ruki! Now you can sing -," but he stopped in mid-sentence, as something else caught his attention.
"Hirokazu, I'm not singing if that's what you're planning," Ruki snapped, but Hirokazu wasn't paying attention to her apparently. Instead, he was snickering to himself, and then nudged Kenta, who was sitting next to him. Kenta looked puzzled, but then Hirokazu pointed to something. He looked to where he was gesturing, and a smirk came across his face as well. Ruki and Takato wondered what they were laughing about. Terriermon looked at the two boys, smirking away. Not wanting to be left out of anything juicy, he poked them, and asked. He raised one of his ears to listen to their whisper. Terriermon looked up, then chuckled out loud, falling on his rear.
"Terriermon, what's gotten into you?" his blue haired Tamer asked, worrying for his Digimon's sanity. Instead of answering his Tamer, Terriermon just yelled across the room.
"Hey, you two!" he gestured at Takato and Ruki. "Look up!" Jen wondered what his partner was talking about, so twisted around to view the doorway. "Eh?" the two said in unison, then did as the rabbit-like Digimon told them to. What they saw above the doorway, was…
"Mistletoe!" Juri cried with delight. Takato's eyes widened, as he saw the same mistletoe he had seen the day before. He glanced down at Ruki, who stared back at him.
"What are you two waiting for?" Hirokazu shouted at them, with his hands cupped around his mouth. "Don't pretend you don't know what to do!"
"Takato-nii-chan and Ruki-onee-chan are going to kiss!" Shuichon exclaimed, hugging Lopmon tightly.
"What!?" Everyone else's thought was brought to this statement, and they searched around for the aforementioned Tamers.
"Hey, lucky you, Takato!" Ryo yelled with a grin. Takato blushed a deep red, as did Ruki.
"You be quiet, Ryo!" she fumed at him. "If you think I'm going to -"
"Ruki-chan," Takato interrupted her.
Ruki spun around to face him. "What did you just –?" but Takato placed a quick kiss on her lips, preventing her from finishing her sentence. The others could be heard cheering in the background, while Takato stood in front of Ruki, waiting for a response. Ruki was flushed, but then she – "Aaarrrrgh!" - started chasing Takato around the room. "Get back here, Takato!" she shouted, grabbing a pillow to hit him with. The Tamers and Digimon watched the chase ensue, laughing all the way.
The thought, 'Oh my gosh, I'm so dead!' ran through Takato's mind, as he raced around the room, trying to get away from the dangerous girl. He dived behind Jen, trying to use him as a human shield.
"Hey, Takato!" Jen protested as he grabbed onto his sleeves.
"Don't move!" Takato pleaded with his friend, as Ruki came to them.
"Trying to hide behind Jen isn't going to help you!" she growled, towering above them. She tried to get around Jen, but Takato kept moving around so much, she couldn't get a clean hit. Eventually, she had to move Jen himself out of the way, but Takato slipped past her, now taking cover behind Juri. "Stop moving!" she ordered, stomping past Jen.
"Hey, watch my ear!" Terriermon complained, which earned him a whack in the face with Ruki's cushion. "Ow!"
"Ruki, don't hurt him," Juri said, looking up at her.
"I'm not going to hurt him – just hit him!"
"I'm pretty sure that involves discomfort…"
"Dinner's ready!" Rumiko announced as she came in with a dish of food. Several other parents followed her with other dishes. Guilmon's ears perked up at that, and he went to grab Takato.
"Takato! Food!" Guilmon cheered happily, as he danced around with Takato in claw.
"Whoa, Guilmon, stop spinning; I'm getting dizzy," Takato said, as his vision swirled.
"Will you two knock it off?" Ruki said, still holding her pillow. Guilmon began feeling wobbly as well, so he let go of Takato, sending him on a collision course with Ruki.
"Ahhh!" They both fell on the floor, as Juri and Jen went to help them up. Takato couldn't see anything, as the rim of his goggles had slipped over his eyelids. What he did know was that he was entangled with someone else, because he felt a warm body next to his.
"Guilmon, is that you?" he asked, feeling around. He felt a leg, but it was too soft to be Guilmon's, so to make sure, he started stroking it. Ruki felt him touching her, and she blushed.
"TAKATO!" she exploded, causing Jen and Juri to step back. Takato flinched, as he realized what he had just done.
'Oh, no!' he thought, pushing his goggles back up. The next thing he knew, Ruki was sitting on him, slamming the pillow down on his head as hard as she could. The other Tamers watched as Ruki slapped Takato silly with her pillow, and he in turn shouted out loud with each blow.
"Hey, Ruki, stop now," Ryo said, putting a hand on her shoulder. That was a bad idea, as she flung the cushion at his head, causing him to tumble over.
"Ryo!" Hirokazu and Kenta shouted, while Monodramon gasped at what Ruki just did to his Tamer.
As Ruki was about to suffocate Takato to death, her mother called her, "Ruki, the phone's ringing! Can you answer it, please?" Ruki sighed in exasperation, and tossed the cushion down on Takato as she got up.
"That was some stunt, Takato," Jen told his friend, as he helped him to sit up.
"Are you alright, Takato?" Juri kneeled down next to him.
"Yeah, I'm alright," he replied, adjusting his goggles. "Slightly sore, but nothing more. Hey, that rhymed!"
"Yep, he's okay," Terriermon said.
Ruki picked up the phone, away from the others so she could hear the person at the other end. "Hello?" she spoke into it. She didn't hear any response, so she repeated herself. "Hello?" Then she heard a reply.
"Hello?" It was a male's voice.
"Yes?"
"Is this Ruki Makino?" the voice asked.
"Who wants to know?" She didn't want to tell some stranger anything about herself. There was a small chuckle at the other end.
"Does Rumiko tell you not to talk to strangers?"
'Of course,' Ruki thought; her mother the model. "If you want to talk to my mother –"
"N-no!" he quickly said. "I actually… wanted to talk to you." Ruki frowned.
"Who is this?" she demanded.
"I… saw you on television. With that D-Reaper thing, was it? You were fighting with those Digimon creatures, and… were those other kids your friends?" The tone of his voice told Ruki that the man was grinning. She started getting nervous; was this guy a stalker or something?
"W-who is this?" she asked again. She heard more laughing.
"You don't recognize my voice?"
"Should I?" Ruki was a bit perplexed at this statement.
"Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised; it has been years after all."
Ruki started thinking; what did this guy mean?
"I just wanted to say that… I'm proud of you, Ruki," the voice softened. "Don't ever give up, or lose yourself. I hope you'll be happy in the future. Say hi to your mother and grandmother for me… and… I'm sorry for never contacting you until now."
"Wait…" it hit her like a stone wall.
"Just remember our song, okay?"
Ruki's eye's widened. "Father!" she shouted, but all she could hear on the other end, was the dial tone.
~*~*~THE END~*~*~
Me: Well, the ending was kind of weird, huh? I thought at first that it would be an okay way to end, but now it doesn't seem so as much. Oh, well. I wasn't really planning on a sequel to this or anything, but the ending makes it seem that way. Don't forget to review onegai!