Author's notes:

Last chapter: David and Devinne were playing video games in their home when suddenly, their Nintendo 64(c) started shinning. They were
enveloped by a white light and we knew no more about them.

Disclamer: We know who owns what. Don't sue.

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Tanomoshii Sugoroku 02
by Kino Hikari (hikari_san@hotmail.com)
and Wanderer D (wandererd@hotmail.com)
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I opened my eyes, and everything was dark.

I hate the dark. I always have hated it, that claustrophobic feeling it gives you when you can't see the walls around you, and you don't quite know where you end and the confining space begins.

It always reminds me of those few, desperate moments when I first opened my
eyes and found nothing. I knew my eyes were open, somehow, but there was still nothing standing before them. Nothing beyond the warm place I had subconsciously inhabited and enjoyed...

Until then, that is.

I struggled against the impossibly hard surface that had been my niche for an eternity, but I now had no desire to remain there. Actually, I wanted nothing more than to get out!

Why? Well, I guess that everything changes, and change itself has always been an important part of my life.

I didn't know that then, though. And I didn't even bother to think about it, all I did was push against that wall.

Push, push, push...

And then... I felt it give.

Just a little, mind you, but it renewed my struggles. It gave me a feeling of hope that there was something beyond that tiny confined space, and, finally, I felt the wall surrender and break. I was free!

As soon as I was certain I could, I jumped through that small hole, enlarging it in the process with my body, and feeling the rough edges scrape against my delicate skin.

But that was the least of my worries.

You see, I didn't know what light was exactly. But the sudden contrast from the eternal darkness I had been stranded in, and the few seconds of intense agony my eyes felt were enough to draw a yelp of pain from me.

The very first thing that escaped my mouth.

Ironic that it would be a cry of pain.

I remember looking around, not knowing--and at the same time understanding--what all these new
things around me were.

The first image that filled my eyes when I looked up were the green leaves that adorned an oak tree.

My vision was suddenly blocked by the face of a large red and purple striped creature. I was startled, yet not afraid. Somehow, I knew that this creature would not hurt me. Little did I know at that time that he would be the one to help me take my first tentative steps into this brave new world.

"What have we here?" he said. His voice was gregarious, and I had the feeling he would have many fantastic stories to tell once I was old enough to understand them.

I tried to respond, but the only sound I was capable of was a soft squeaking sound.

The strange creature looked down at me and smiled.

"So sorry," he said, "but you won't be much of a conversationalist for a little while. Not to worry, Little One, you'll be able to talk soon enough." He laughed. "And I get the feeling you will talk up a storm, too."
With that, he turned around and started walking towards the strange,cube-like structures of varying colors that seemed to tower all around us. I followed, hopping along, as my body was really nothing more than a whitish little blob, as he talked out loud.

"You're the first one to be born this year," he casually mentioned. "Primary Village hasn't seen many newborns lately...much less a Yukimipotamon like yourself."

Yukimipotamon?

So, that was what I was, then? The name, or title, didn't hold any real meaning to me. Still, it gave me a sense of belonging. A sense that I was supposed to be there.

"Anyway," the striped creature continued,"I think that that's why you were born with that color. Maybe Yukimipotamon have to take a specific time before hatching to be born the normal tone. You were in that egg a little longer than I remember most are...and even so, you are smaller than most I have seen... No matter, you're here, and that is all that counts."

He regarded me with a fond smile, then started down a small hill. A little confused
with all his blabbering, I followed him again. It wasn't like I much to do,anyway.

And just as I jumped--or rather bumped since I lacked feet--to the top of the hill, I overlooked what looked like...

To be honest, I didn't have the slightest idea of what it looked like, but it certainly looked fun.

And it was full of eggs! All colors, all sizes, all laying seemingly at random, in no particular order. It was like chaos, but beautiful chaos. All those different shades, all those different textures! It was like a symphony for the eyes!

The strange creature--I'd yet to hear him mention his name--motioned for me to come closer. I walked up and looked at the egg he was pointing at.

"That, my friend, is another Digimon, like me and you," he said. So not only was I a Yukimipotamon, apparently, I was a digimon, too. The creature continued, "I sense it's
close to hatching, so your job is to watch over it, and call me when it does."

A little awed at the importance of my current occupation, I could only nod in silent solemnity--er...not that I could have said anything, had I wanted to--nd started my vigil, determined to take my very first job seriously.

With a chuckle, my companion left, promising to return shortly.

Which brings me to my current situation, sitting--or standing, I wouldn't know the difference really, as I have no lower appendages. No appendages at all, come to think of it... Well, whatever I was doing, I was watching that other egg for all I was worth, and I was determined not to let anything happen to it.

But...them it started to move.

Erm...is that normal?

I was suddenly afraid I had done something wrong, and made the only noise I knew how--

I squeaked for all I was worth.

After a moment of my frantic squealing, the red and purple creature returned, looking a little
nervous by my cries.

"What's going on, Little One?" he asked, and then smiled at the sight of the egg. "Ahh, you have done a good job, my little friend. Come, let's watch and see who will be joining us, shall we?"

I hopped over next to the red and purple digimon, whom I was still uncertain of name, and watched the egg as it twitched. After a moment, a small black shape was visible through a hairline crack in the shell.

It was hatching!

The black shape pushed its way out of the shell, much as I had, and had a similar reaction to the sudden brightness. I looked at it, and it then blinked back at me with huge blue eyes.

"Well, I'll be a Monkeymon's uncle," the creature exulted, "another Yukimipotamon!"

So it was another one like me...

"You two are a pair of the rarest digimon around, I'd say," he said to me. "Oh, how rude of me...I
haven't even intorduced myself yet..." He smiled sheepishly, and nodded his head. "I'm Elecmon, I am in charge here at Primary Village. You babies are my job, you see...I watch over all of you and make sure you don't get into too much trouble." He winked at me. "I get the feeling you are going to do just about everything you can to make sure I don't succeed at that, ey?"

I would have laughed...if I could.

"Well, Yukimipotamon," he said as he lifted me from the ground, "meet Yukimipotamon."

He set me down next to the other Yukimipotamon, and then scratched his head as he looked us over.

"You're quite a pair, you two..." Elecmon said. "I've never seen Yukimipotamon with spots before..." He looked at me, then his eyes moved to the other baby with the huge blue eyes. "Nor have I
seen one that was all black...how peculiar..."

He watched us for a moment as we gazed at one another, unsure of exactly what to think of this other Yukimipotamon...and then we realized that it didn't really involve any thought... We were the same, and that meant we were friends.

Elecmon turned to tend to the other babies as we two unusual baby digimon bopped about on our lack-of-legs, squeaking at one another and laughing inwardly at how ridiculous we sounded.

I remember thinking that Elecmon must have loved his job very much...

As time passed, the other Yukimipotamon and I became good friends, and we often aided Elecmon in his duties. We helped him watch the other babies, and we managed to keep them out of trouble...even if we didn't follow our own example.


"Yukimipotamon!" I heard Elecmon's voice call out. But I didn't move. He couldn't see me, I knew, and I wanted to keep it that way. Something had changed...I wasn't the same anymore, somehow... I felt weird, like I didn't belong anymore, and I just wanted to hide. I never wanted to come out from under that bush!
I heard the other Yukimipotamon squeaking worriedly to Elecmon, no doubt explaining what had happened. You see, we had been playing together, when this sort of odd light engulfed me. It was all silvery and warm, and it had startled me, so I ran, trying to get away from it. Then, when the light had abated, I opened my eyes and I felt...different. I wasn't sure what had changed, but I knew, without a doubt, that something had. And so, I had sought refuge beneath the bush. It didn't last long, though.

Suddenly, the foliage parted, and Elecmon gazed down at me, relief in his large dark turquoise eyes.

"Ah," he said as he scooped me up, "you gave us quite a scare, Nyaromon..."

"Nyaromon? But I thought I was a--"

I stopped. Had I...spoken?

Elecmon laughed heartily. "You can speak now, Nyaromon, you have digivolved to a new form," he said to me, and carried me over to a nearby pond so I could see my reflection.

I had done what?

I heard Yukimipotamon squeak something to Elecmon, but I couldn't quite hear what he said.

"That she did," Elecmon replied to Yukimipotamon over his shoulder. "But, don't worry, it will be your turn soon enough."

Elecmon set me down beside the pond and I looked at myself. I was so different now! A pair of triangular ears crowned my head, and my huge green eyes stared back at me from the smooth surface of the water. I even had a tail now! I saw Elecmon's reflection in the water as he leaned down over me.

"Strange," he said softly, and I looked up at him. "The colors," he clarified, reading my perplexed expression. "Nyaromon are usually kinda yellow...but not you... You have spots...very interesting... I shall like to see what happens when you grow up some more, I feel you will have a beautiful coat."

"I'm unique!" I said with a smile, then looked at the Yukimipotamon, who suddenly seemed very small anymore.

"Why don't you grow up, too?" I asked him, and he blinkd at me. "Look!" I said excitedy. "You'll get a tail!"

Elecmon patted me on the head. "Don't worry," he assured me, "your friend will digivolve soon, I'm sure of it." He smiled, and then turned. "Well, come on, Nyaromon," he said, and I followed as he headed away from the pond and toward the shallow river that ran through the village. "Now that you're bigger, you can help me feed the babies. Come one, we're going fishing!"

"Fishing?" I repeated, unsure of how I even knew what that meant. "But...I dunno how to fish!"

"That's no problem," Elecmon said as he dropped to all fours. "I'll be doing the actual fishing, you can just help me drag the fish back to the village."

"Okay!" I said eagerly, and then paused as I thought of something. "Erm, but, Elecmon...?" He turned and looked at me. "What if the fish are bigger than I am?"

He laughed. "I'll be using a net," he assured me, "stop worrying so much. It'll be easy, I promise." Then his eyes moved to the black Yukimipotamon. "But you will have to watch over your little friend there while I'm working on fishing, okay?"

If I'd had hands, I would have given him a crisp salute. But...I didn't, so a simple, "Sir, yes Sir!" sufficed. I turned and looked at Yukimipotamon and smiled. "So...not much of a talker, are you?" I asked, and Yukimipotamon just looked at me. I sighed. Okay, this was getting boring. I gave Yukimipotamon a sidelong glance. "Okay, Little Guy, you need to hurry up and digivolve so I'll have somebody to talk to..." I paused, and then thought of something. "Hey, I know," I said to the little digimon, "let's play a game!"

Yukimipotamon squeaked in approval, and proceeded to bounce in small tight circles.

"Okay, here's what we're gonna do," I continued, "I'm gonna close my eyes and count to ten, and you rund and hide, and I will try to find you, okay?" Yukimipotamon nodded. I closed my eyes and slowly began to count, smiling as I heard Yukimipotamon run--er, bounce--off to hide. "...eight, nine, ten!" I said.

"Ready or not, here I come!" I opened my eyes and looked around--
--to see Yukimipotamon standing a few feet away from me, a big goofy grin on his face.

I would have slapped my forehead had I had any hands.

"No, no, no, Yukimipotamon," I chided, "you're supposed to hide...like so I can't see you."

This took a second to sink in, and then Yukimipotamon nodded eagerly. I closed my eyes again.

When I reached ten, I called out again, "Ready or not, here I--oy vey..."

This time he had his face buried in a bush...the old "I can't see you, you can't see me" routine. I
shook my head.

"Perhaps we should try something a little simpler," I said, more to myself than anyone else, and bumped over to Yukimipotamon. I tapped his head with the tip of my tail, and he jumped, then beamed, overjoyed and astounded that I had been able to find him. I flattened my eyes. "Okay, Yukimipotamon, we're gonna try something different this time," I said, and he listened carefully. "How about I hide this time, and you try seeking? How's that?" Yukimipotamon squeaked something I couldn't quite understand (I found I was having more difficulty understanding his squeaking now that I was a Nyaromon...I wondered how Elecmon still managed to understand...?), and I nodded in agreement, even though I had no idea what he had just said. "Okay, just close your eyes," I told him, "and start counting." He squeaked something. I frowned. "Oh, right...I forgot...you don't know how to count yet...do you?" I thought for a moment. "Okay, how about you just wait till you hear me shout 'ready!' and then come find me?" Yukimipotamon squeaked in agreement. "All right then...close your eyes--no peeking!--and listen for my call."

With that, I bounced off to go hide. I tried the bush where Elecmon had found me earlier, then decided that was too easy. So I leapt out of the bush and headed a little farther into the small woodsy area nearby. I circled a tree about three times before deciding there was no possible way I could climb it, and so I headed back to the bush, as it was about the only other place I could think of. I flattened myself against the ground as much as I could, trying to become invisible.

"Okay!" I called. "I'm ready!!"

I saw Yukimipotamon open one beady black eye, and then start looking around. Then I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to make myself smaller. After a few moments had passed, I started wondering what was taking him so long. After all, it wasn't that difficult of a hiding place... I waited a moment longer, then slowly opened one eye.

There was a strange shadow in front of me. I opened the other eye, and glanced up at what was casting the shadow. My eyes popped open wide and I stumbled backward at what I saw.

"What in the--?" I gasped. "Ack! Elecmon!! Help! A monster!!"

I leapt out of the bush as the strange creature with huge blue eyes stared at me like I was from another planet, seeminlgy startled and amused by my behavoir. It was not much bigger than me, and it was all black, save for a white patch over its right eye.

"Um...boo?" it said, and I let out a shriek and buried my face in the ground.

"Aaaugh! Don't eat me!!" I cried, wishing Elecmon would come and rescue me from thsi strange new creature.

"I guess it's my turn to count now."

I blinked and lifted my head. What had it said?

"Your turn to...?" I echoed, and narrowed one eye. "Who are you?"

It grinned, and I suddenly recognized that mischeivous smirk. It was Yukimipotamon! But...well, he wasn't a Yukimipotamon anymore.

"Heyyy," I said, "so you finally decided to grow up, huh?"

He paused. "Well, it wasn't like I really had a choice," he said, "it just sorta...happened."

"It's more fun, though," I assured him. I looked him over. "Hey, you know, we're like opposites," I said. "You have a white patch over your right eye, and I have a black one over my left. My tail is white with a black tip, yours is balck with a white tip!"

He looked at his tail. "Isn't that normal?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Not acording to Elecmon..." I replied. "He said most Nyaromon are kinda yellow. I like my spots better, anyhow, don't you? Hey, where did Elecmon get to, anyhow? He said he was going fishing, but I don't see him anywhere! Oh, just wait till he sees you, he'll be so delighted!"

The other Nyaromon squinched up his face at the realization I had said all of that in one breath. Then he smiled. "Well, let's go see if we can find him," he said. "Let's go scope out the riverside."

"Okay!"

With that, we bounded down to the riverside to look for our missing guardian. We scanned the whole of the riverbank we could see...but there was no sign of elecmon. The black Nyaromon paused pensively, and I cast him a look.

"Did Elecmon leave us all alone?" I asked softly.

Before the other Nyaromon could answer, there was a distant noise like that of an explosion, and we turned out heads in tandem to see a small red dot flying through the air from one end of the Primary Village town to the other.

The opther Nyaromon looked at me severely. "What the heck was that?"

I shrugged, which was quite a feat, since I didn't really have shoulders.

"I dunno, but it looks like fun," I told him. "Let's go check it out!"

"Race you there!" the black Nyaromon challenged, and he started forward.

"Hey, no fair!" I called, struggling to catch up to his head start. "You have longr legs that I do!"

He stopped. "L-legs?" he asked, looking down. "B-but, we don't have any--"

I shot past him.

"Hah! I knew that would work!"

"Hey!" I heard him protest, and he started hopping faster.

"Last one there is a boogermon!" I called, and laughed over my shoulder. "Oh, come on," I taunted, "surely you can go faster than--oomph!"

"I left the kids alone, how could I forget the--oof!"

As I tried to get my bearings back, I glanced up to see who I had run into.

"Elecmon!" the black Nyaromon gasped as we both staggered back to our feet. Er...well, Elecmon to his feet, anyhow...

"Nyaromon...wha...?" he said, clearly a little bewildered.

"There you are, Elecmon," I said, staring up at him. "We thought you ran away!"

Elecmon seemed not to hear me as he gaped at the other Nyaromon.

"What happened?" he asked. "Where is the other Yukimipotamon?" He looked at the new Nyaromon, and smiled knowingly. "You, too?"

The black Nyaromon beamed. "Yeah!" he said, hopping up and down. "Isn't it great?"

"I..."

Elecmon, it seemed, was rather speechless.

I grinned wickedly. "I think I liked him better before he could talk..."

The black Nyaromon gave me a snide look, then smiled and bounced over next to me.

"You were right," he said to me, "this is much better than being little."

"See?" I said proudly. "That;s what I'm talking about..." I turned to Elecmon. "So...where were you, anyhow? I thought you were going fishing?"

Elecmon suddenly looked a trifle sheepish. "Well, you see, I was," he began, "but...something came up in Primary Village and...now we have a lot of work ahead of us..."

"What do you mean by that?" the black Nyaromon asked. "What happened, anyhow? We saw you jumping around the village!"

With a sigh, Elecmon proceeded to explain about the little Digidestined boy named TK who he found snoopong about the village, making the digi-eggs hatch at an alarming rate by rubbing them. Angered, he challenged TK's Patamon to a contest, a sort of survival of the fittest challenge. That was what the "jumping around" had been... Elecmon and Patamon had been having quite the intense battle, so it would seem. After Patamon had been officially declared the winner, Elecmon had seen TK and the little digimon off, happy that the boy had turned out to be friend instead of foe. The only problem was, now Elecmon had several dozen new babies to care for.

"Now we've got to get back to the village and get organized," he said. "There are a lot of new mouths to feed..."

"All righty then!" I said, hopping forward. "Let's go round up some baby digimon!" I puased and looked back at the black Nyaromon, then looked up at Elecmon. "Erm...Elecmon?" I called, and he stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"Yes?"

I hesitated. "What are we to be called?"

"Called?" he asked, confused.

"I know most digimon go by their digimon names," I said slowly, "but we are both the same." I paused and looked at the black Nyaromon again. "What are we to do?"

"Hmm..." Elecmon thought this over for a second, then regarded me with a serious look. "You know, you're right... Most digimon do go by their birth names, and those names change when we digivolve. That is the natural way of things."

"But, even when we digivolve," I protested, "he and I will both be the same." I frowned. "That would get very confusing..."

The black Nyaromon blinked twice in rapid succession. "She's right, Elecmon," he said. "Can't you think of something?"

Elecmon suddenly looked a little wan. "Well, let's go take care of all the new babies, and then we will sit down and think about this," he suggested quickly.

We could both tell he was at a loss for a solution.

"I suppose," I said after a moment, then turned to the black Nyaromon. "We should start thinking, though," I told him. "We need to come up with names for ourselves..."

The black Nyaromon looked thoughtful for a moment as we trailed behind Elecmon. Then he looked up, and his blue eyes brightened.

"Elecmon," he beckoned, and Elecmon made a wordless sound of acknowledgement, though he did not stop walking. "Elecmon, what are those things?"

Now Elecmon paused his stride.

"Hmm? What things?"

He pointed with his tail. "Those, up there," he clarified, "dangling from that tree. The things with teh spots."

"Those would be called dice," Elecmon asnwered, giving the black Nyaromon a strange look.
"Why do you ask?"

"Perhaps I could be called 'Dice' as well?" the little digimon suggested, and Elecmon smiled.

"Very well," he said, "Dice it is."

"I like that!" I said, and grinned, eager to find a title for myself. "Okay, my turn!" I cried.

Elecmon looked back at me.

"Well," he said after a moment, "you could be just Nyaromon."

I pouted. "But, Elecmon," I whined, "we're unique! You said it yourself; we're not like other Nyaromon!"

"Yeah!" Dice said ardently. "We have spots!"

"So, unless I have my own name," I concluded, "what is to distinguish me from any normal Nyaromon?"

Elecmon was a little startled by this. I suppose he hadn't expected us to be so...insightful. After all, we were still mere children, in the life span of digimon. He paused, and glanced around. He spotted something on a nearby boulder, and huried over to it.

"How about 'Domino'?" he suggested.

"What's that?" I asked, eyeing the little balck-and-white piece of plastic he held in one claw.

"It's actually a game," he explined, "that I challenged TK to. But dominoes have spots, just like dice. See?" He held it up to the light.

I smiled. "A game, huh?" I said. "I like games... Especially games with spots..." I looked over at Dice. "Well, what do you think?" I asked him.

He smiled widely.

"I like that!"

"All right!" I said, and--had I had any--I would have pumped one fist victoriously in the air. "Domino and Dice! What a team!!"

Elecmon just sighed and shook his head at out juvenile enthusiasm.

"Well, Dice, Domino," he called over his shoulder as he headed toward the village again, "come give me a hand with the others. It's time we ate..."

[End Part 2]