Fated: Part Eleven

The Plan

"No... no way...!"

The man smiled and opened his arms wide. "Rika... my daughter-- come see Daddy." He had missed her a lot.... So much, in fact, that it had been nearly unbearable for him... to just be away from her. And he was almost positive that he had hurt her when he left... but he could explain his reasons. When the time was right, he would explain it all....

The redhead shook her head violently. No-- it couldn't be! Her... her father had left back when she was young.... so young. He had left without saying a word... without tucking her in before bed... without doing anything. And yet... there he was, standing there and offering a hug that felt so needed at the moment.... She wanted to... but.... "W-Why...?" she finally stammered, unable to move. It wasn't like she didn't want to run into his arms.... She was just... confused. Veryconfused.

What...? No hug? Not 'hello,' or even something similar to that? But... he had been expecting one! Then again... he didn't think he'd see her this soon. Was she...? Yes... that had to be it. She... she must have been friends with his dreamer.... Perhaps they were.... Yes, well, that wasn't important right now, was it? "Why, what?" he questioned, shifting his body around in order to look at the twinkling stars. Mr. Nonaka went on:

"Why am I trying to bring your dream to life? Why haven't I told you I've been close enough to touch you? Why did I kidnap your friend? Or... is there something else...?" He knew her all too well.... It was almost like they had a connection of some kind. Of course, that was not possible.... If it were, she would've been able to find him much faster....

What...? How did he... know? "Please... please just tell me-- why? Why EVERYTHING?!" she cried, falling to her knees. It hurt so much.... Her father had left her long ago; her best friend suddenly disappears... and somehow leads her back to him. A shriek of agony exploded from within her. What the hell was going on?! She hadn't meant for the tears to come-- they just made her hurt more-- but they pushed their way out....

The older man let out a soft, slightly annoyed sigh. He hadn't expected her to be this emotional. He... he had expected her to be stronger and less shocked, but... that didn't matter right now. She was still his daughter... right? Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he kept his gaze where he had set it. Night... the time that seemed to aid him the most anymore.... It was as if he had married the dark area of the day a long while ago.... Said he: "Everything...? If I were to tell you everything, my dear, that would take too long.

"Perhaps I can explain my actions in much shorter terms...."

~*~

"Anything?"

Kazu and Kenta shook their heads slowly. Not a thing... well-- except a cat, but that didn't count, did it? God... it was getting later and later.... Where was he? They had searched practically everywhere! You know how tiring that was?!

So then... he was still missing. When would they locate their friend...? With a prolonged sigh, Jeri looked around. Where...? Gasping, she instantly grasped Henry's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "Rika's not here!" she noted. Hadn't she gone off in search as well? If so then... maybe... maybe she found him!

What?! Henry, alarmed and weak from the walking, stared at the girl he liked unsurely. "Are you positive... you don't see her coming? Do you see her anywhere?" The blue haired boy's eyes widened nervously. What if... something happened to her...? "We agreed to meet back here at midnight!" God... already, he felt worried for everyone. Somehow... somehow, he was going to screw up.... Sure... he could find a way to take the blame off his young shoulders. He could say that it wasn't really his fault-- Rika hadn't gone with them.... But, still... he couldn't help but be scared....

"We've gotta keep searchin'!" Everyone turned to Kazu; he chuckled embarrassedly. Gee... it wasn't like he NEVER said anything like that... was it? Well, they didn't need to make such a big deal out of it! "I mean it, guys!" he exclaimed, elbowing Kenta for some type of support. Ya know... he wasn't all brains, and he was willing to admit that. Besides, Kenta fell more under that category (although, for that matter... Henry would, too).

Huh? What the heck did he want him to do? I mean-- what was there to say? Kazu got himself into it, so he could most certainly get himself out as well! 'I ain't gonna be his voice!' The boy edged away from him; he slowly joined the group with Jeri and Henry.

Man! Everyone had to just leave him! It wasn't like he was talking nonsense! Even he understood what he meant-- which was a rarity. "Come on! What I mean to say is... since Rika's not giving up, why in the world should we? Isn't Takato OUR friend as well?" God... he had to learn how to say crap like that.... Maybe he'd take some sort of class for speeches and stuff. Yeah! That'd be awesome! Then he could be a leader of some big army! You know, an army that respected his words of wisdom like people respected their bosses and heros! He'd boldly step forward and--

"He's right...," Jeri whispered, although eyeing the spaced-out boy with a strange look. Takato WAS their friend, and he was probably scared and lonely. He needed them.... The most frightening part about that was... what if Rika didn't find him...?

Henry nodded as Kenta piped in with a little comment about them being like a salad-- you need all of the ingredients for it to be just right! "Then," he stated, "it's settled." How could he possible forsake a friend like that...? For a moment, he must've just been dumbfounded by Kazu's sudden outburst! "Let's go...." And with that... Jeri, Henry and Kenta began to walk away. They didn't know where they were headed... but they believed in themselves and each other.

YES! He would become very powerful and mighty! He-- the boy stopped dead in his thoughts and glanced around. Wha... what? Where were they goin'?! "Hey-- wait for me!" With grunt, he sped off... hoping to catch up to them in time.

~*~

Mr. Nonaka laughed heartily while his daughter tried to deny all that he had told her. Why he was laughing confused even him, but he knew that it felt good to do so. She was just like her mother-- stubborn to a fault! He faintly wondered how Rumiko was doing... then pushed that careless thought aside. Why should he bother...? She didn't want to be with him anymore, anyway. To her, all he seemed to care about was that 'stupid card game.' To him, she only seemed to care about the outer beauty in everyone... including their child.

"You see... in order to make your one true dream a reality, Rika," he added as she attempted to plug her ears, "I needed someone with a large imagination. Someone who had big, hopeful dreams of their own. One thing that fell under my advantage was his wide variety of knowledge in digimon. I barely needed the DM program!"

No... she wasn't going to believe any of it. None of it could've been real! It... it couldn't be her father! He wasn't like that-- not that cruel! Her memories of him had always been so warm... now that she could think back and not cry.... Her dad cared for her, yes... but would he put an innocent person's life at stake? No... at least, she didn't think so.... "But... he's my best friend...," she choked out. Darn tears... they were such pains.... And yet... when she remembered who had taught her how to cry once more, she couldn't help but like them at least a little.

Her 'best friend?' "Well... Daddy can be your 'best friend.' You don't need him anymore!" Besides... once boys get old enough, they don't want to be 'friends' anymore.... He should know-- he had been one once. Didn't she see? All he wanted for her was to be happy.... He had thought that, by coming back to her AND creating something that she loved, she would feel better.... Now... he wasn't so sure. He just wanted her to come hug him... but she hadn't moved from that spot since she landed there....

"No!" No... Takato was her best friend! No one else! She didn't want anyone to take his place... not even her own father. She had grown too close to that goggle-head... to just give up on him now. You could say that she.... "I don't care if you're back! Takato was the only one by my side when my life turned upside down!" Making her way back to her feet, she glared at her father. No... he was not her father.... This man was a stranger to her....

Rika spat, "Where the hell were you?!"

Ooh... there was that fire-- the one that he thought would be burning brightly in her eyes! That's what he had been hoping to find! It was still in there... just not as strong as he imagined. Still, the boy must not have been able to extinguish the whole thing! Although somewhat taken back by her snappy attitude, Mr. Nonaka grinned widely. "Working on this... for you."

Hah! Like she cared! She didn't even WANT something like that! Not now, anyway.... And how-- even if she did long for them-- was he supposed to make fictional creatures come to life? There was no possible way! None! So then... her father had turned into a lunatic... how nice. That made her feel sooo special....

FLASH!!!

Everything was so bright.... What was going on?!

"Ah... so he has finally fallen asleep."

Rika turned, confused even more now. What did he mean by that? What... what had they done to him...?! Was he being tortured? Oh, God... she didn't want him to die....

Right as she was about to ask him... a loud BOOM echoed from the sky. The redhead brought her attention back to the window. What... what the heck...?! Above the building... the clouds swirled and rumbled and raged; the strange, rainbow-colored light shot out from the very building in which she stood once more. It spread out across the sky... and seemed to travel on forever..... What she didn't know was... that it was actually surrounding the entire world....

Rika stared at the scene, mouth open in a dumbfounded gape. What...? Something was... coming from the sky! Objects-- oddly-shaped ones-- seemed to form within the clouds! They fell, tossing and tumbling in the air. Slowly, as they came into view... the girl understood what he had meant. But how could it be...? How could he possibly be able to create...?

"Digimon...." she mumbled, placing a hand on the cold glass.

~*~

Susie giggled lightly. Princess Pretty Pants was being VERY stubborn! She didn't want to go to the ball! All she did was throw a fit, toss aside her beautiful dress and nearly beat up her best friend-- who was, by the way, Bunny Wunny. My, my-- what a naughty princess!

She shook a finger at the toy, pretending to be annoyed by its actions. "Bad! You need to get weady!" Susie demanded, barely able to hide her happiness. Games were almost like real life to this child! She enjoyed every second of it!

"But Pwincess Pwetty Pants doesn't wanna!" Upon 'hearing' this, the girl picked up her Lopmon stuffed toy and hit the Terriermon one with it. A fight was beginning! Ooh! Who would win?! Why-- whoever was the toughest, of course! And--

Wha...? The child stood and walked over to the window. "What's that...?" she pondered aloud. Suddenly... a creature fell from the sky... and it was really close by-- so close, that she could make out what it was! Susie glanced at the immobile object on the floor, then to the more life-like and moving one tumbling in the air. Her eyes lit up with excitement; with a slight squeal, she exclaimed:

"Terwiermon!"

~Elsewhere....~

"Look-- up in the sky!"

"Is that a bird...?"

Kazu snickered heavily. "Does it LOOK like a bird?"

Okay-- so it didn't really look like a bird! Wasn't that what most people said after that comment was made? Ooh! It just confused him so much! "FINE! Is it a plane, perhaps?!"

"Oh, yeah... it's really a plane-- not! Where'd you come up with a stupid idea like that?!"

Henry sighed and glanced at Jeri. She... she looked really pretty in the moonlight.... Almost like an angel.... Was... was she his guardian angel...? Could she be...? He watched as her face twisted into that of unknowing... and she pointed to the sky. "What...?" His tired grey eyes followed her finger....

"It can't be...," he whispered, as his friends all began to stare in surprise. "Digimon...!"

~*~

Yes... digimon. Only a few formed at first; Rika named each one as it came into view. ("Gekomon. Monochromon. Leomon. LadyDevimon.") She could go on forever if she wanted to.... Each one was designed to perfection... probably from the livid mind of her father's 'dreamer.' She scoffed, hiding her true pain. More and more filled the sky. Rika noticed that, right before they slammed into the ground, the creatures awoke and somehow prepared a safe landing. Would they... be able to talk like in the TV show? Maybe.... It probably depended on whether or not Takato dreamed them that way.

Takato....

The redhead suddenly flung herself away from the picturesque view. Let's face it... it wasn't very reassuring.... She couldn't take it anymore.... Even if they weren't hurting him... wouldn't they be weakening him? And what if he had no strength left...? Would he still be able to live, or...?

An ear-splitting CRASH (almost like thunder, but much louder) came from the sky... and the light show ended. Already...? Then... how many did he make...? How many were out there? The man laughed manically as the digital creatures stormed about the streets below. This... this was what he had always wanted! His life-long dream come true! A Tentomon buzzed past, being chased by a larger, more terrifying Kuagamon. Okay... this kid's seen the first episode-- no doubt about it!

Chk!

Mr. Nonaka's office door opened, and a man dressed completely in black tossed a bundle of something into the room. As it landed... Rika knew exactly what-- no, who-- it was.... "Takato!" she yelped, racing over to check him out. Oh, God! This couldn't be happening! He was out cold and barely breathing! Cradling his mop head in her lap, she sent a swift, dagger-filled look toward her father... then turned her attention back to her fallen friend.

"Hang in there, Goggle-head! Please... don't leave me." Why was everything bad heading toward them...? She suddenly remembered about that moment... right before they were separated.... Whatever he had been trying to say... he had not been able to finish.... Now she faintly wondered... what could it be...? She wanted to know... and if he died, she'd probably kill him, so....

Why was she so interested in that boy? What did he have... that made her like him more than her own father?! She had not seen him, her father, for quite a few years! Didn't he matter to her at all...? He shrugged; like Rika... he was able to hide his emotions from the rest of the world. He'd keep on trying. No matter what, she'd at least say something decent to him! "Rika," he started... although he didn't get to say much more. Amazingly... her goggle-headed friend was waking up!

"Ugh...." What the heck... was going on...? Takato brought a hand to his head groggily. He felt like crap. A huge, messy, stinky pile of dog crap. At least he felt safe.... Cracking his eyes open, Rika's head and upper body came into view.... "Wha...?" he mumbled numbly. Was it just him... or did she look worried?

Rika, who (although she would not admit it) had tears of joy streaming down her face, let out a sob. She thought he was gonna die! How could she ever think that? God-- she was so pessimistic! "Don't you ever scare me like that again, okay?!" The girl barely gave him any time to sit up right! She just wrapped her arms around him and bawled like a baby! He... he was alright... as in NOT dead.... Well, now. That was one thing her father did that didn't make her angry....

The brown haired boy was... well, in heaven. Yes... he was enjoying this.... Rika worried about him that much? Then... she cared more than he had originally thought.... Maybe he had a chance. All he had to do was tell her.... Placing his arms in the 'rightful positions,' he returned her hug; her scent was so nice.... Whenever he was away from her... he tried to imagine her aroma... but couldn't. At that moment, he felt so much love just bubble up inside of him.

"Excuse me... children."

Wha...? Both kids turned to the voice. "You...," Takato muttered. He... he was the guy who had called him... what was it again? His 'dreamer?' Yeah... that was it. Wait-- was he the guy in charge of it all...? He was, wasn't he?! Why that dirty--

The man cleared his throat rather loudly. "Now that I have your attention... I must say-- I'm impressed, lad. I never thought that one would be able to be so active after what had just taken place...."

Huh? What the heck was this guy talking about? What happened? Confused, the brown haired boy turned to his friend. "What... does he mean...? What did they do to me...?"

Rika moved her eyes to the floor. Could she...? But she... she didn't want to tell him-- especially after hearing the words come from her father's mouth.... It scared her so... so much. She didn't know what to do anymore! Her mind was a total and complete blank! In the end, she just shook her head sadly and whispered: "I'm not sure whether I should believe him, or...."

"Come now, Rika!" protested the man. How could she? Why was she being so difficult...? It was like he never meant anything to her at all.... "Why wouldn't you trust... your own father?"

WHAT?! Did he just say...? But... why? How could he be her father...? Didn't he leave her and her mom a long time ago...? He looked at Rika... and saw, by her facial expressions... that it was true.... Then... if it was, why were they...? Oh, God! He was so confused now! Within his mind, a boot began to pound on his brain (at least... that was what it felt like).

A growl escaped the redhead's throat. He was making her so mad! Why was he acting so... stuck-up? Jumping to her feet, she glared at the man before her once more. "You're... you're NOT my father...." No... she was sure of it-- no matter what he claimed, he was different from the man she had known.... He had changed. Well, ya know what? So had she! He would just have to get over it!

Her words hit him like an arrow; they struck their target precisely-- his heart. Trying to regain his composure, he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead. She... what was wrong with her...? He had hoped that she missed him, yes... and he had also hoped for a little bit of anger. The thing was... he didn't want it to be directed toward him.... It wasn't like he was any different from the day he left.... Once he was sure that he would not overreact, he sneered and tilted his head toward the window. "Look out there, boy-- see for yourself...."

Takato glanced at Rika, who had a hazy, unknown look on her face... then stood. He didn't have a single clue on what had happened... except that it dealt with him sleeping.... Man, that helped.... Other than that, he was clueless. That was the story of his life nowadays.... What could be so important about what was outside the window anyw--

"Oh, my...!" The boy gasped as he saw the view below. There was no... no way! It suddenly reminded him of... 'Jurassic Park,' for some reason. All over... digimon-- real, live digimon! Not some stupid guys in costumes or robots that broke down! These were... these were...! Takato instantly pressed his face to the window, grin widening into a gape. It was so cool! There were huge ones, small ones and medium-sized ones, too! You could say... that he was in his 'other' heaven.... The one that did not contain Rika, that is....

At least SOMEONE enjoyed his project.... "You like it, don't you...?" he asked. When the kid merely nodded absentmindedly and kept staring at the scenes below... he laughed. Now he could see why his daughter liked him so much.... The boy was just as addicted as she was! "Just think... you were the one to create them...."

So cool! OH! A Devimon! And an Angemon! Look-- a... what? Takato spun to face Mr. Nonaka with wide eyes. Did he just say...? "I... created them...?" But how...? He hadn't done anything! Yes... once again, the poor boy was confounded....

"Although it was my programing and plan... you, with your strong imagination, were the one to actually decide what digimon would appear... and what ones would not." He grinned a grin that was more evil than happy... and made Takato shudder slightly. "It is you... who are to be held responsible."

Rika didn't understand any of it! What did he mean by 'to be held responsible?' Suddenly... the reason hit her. Duh! He... if anything happened, and he was blamed... he'd say that it was Takato's fault! He would claim that Takato was the one to 'create' them! That wasn't fair! "Don't play us for fools, father!" Yeah... okay, so she was rather harsh with the word 'father,' but.... "We aren't as gullible as you think!"

Oh... Takato slid his gaze over to the girl from his dreams. She... she wanted him to come stand by her, didn't she...? Well, fine with him! Shifting from one spot to the other, he felt something in the pit of his stomach.... You know? Like something... bad was going to happen-- soon....

"Really?" Chortling lightly to himself, the man pointed to the creatures roaming the streets. "Look at the people run! They fear them-- the digimon! Yes... many children would love them, but as for the parents...." His creations would be called abominations... unless....

Takato sighed. Back and forth, back and forth! Would those two ever stop? As soon as he awoke, he had heard nothing but a long, consistent quarrel between the father and daughter! Were... weren't they supposed to be family...? He knew that if that were him... he would rather... but it wasn't him, now was it...? He whispered, "What are you trying to accomplish...?"

So... he saw through his act, eh? Oh, well.... "I need you to--"

CRASH!

The window/wall was suddenly shattered into millions of minuscule shards! As they looked on, an overly large Meramon strutted into the room, laughing like a madman! "Where... is he...?" he rasped, blue eyes locking in on the closest thing to him-- Mr. Nonaka. Studying the man closely, the digimon leaned forward. "Are you... the creator...?"

What... was going on?! He had not planned this! Reaching under his desk... he spat out shakily: "In a way-- yes. But, also... no." His creations-- his glorious creations! What... happened to them?

"Then... die." The digimon's whole body seemed to explode with fire; within seconds, there was nowhere left to go! Rika and Takato, forgetting just how high up that building was, jumped. Their clothes and hair were singed slightly, but no real damage was done.... They didn't even know what happened to Rika's dad! But at the moment... they had something more important to worry about:

The ground was closing in, and they had no place safe to land!

~*~

A/N: CLIFFHANGER-- again.... *notices the looks of irritability* Eh... heh.... G-Gomen ne, mina-chan.... I know I told quite a few of you that it would be out by Saturday.... My bad.... In fact, I actually added two parts that weren't originally in this just to make it long enough to satisfy some of you (namely Eagle_33).... I can explain for my tardiness, though.... I am usually on the internet at night due to my liking to type either in the morning (if I don't have school) and really late at night. So... Saturday, I had everything practically ready-- I just needed to type the A/N. Then... one of my buddies called me up and said they feelt like going to the drive in. Even though they wanted to see Spider-Man (which I had already seen)... I agreed... why? Well... let's just say that... the last time I'd been to the drive-in was when they were showing the Lion King.... Yes... laugh-- I don't get out much. Anyway, after that, I spent the night. In the morning, I left early to go shopping (not just any shopping, people... GROCERY shopping...) with my family. One good thing that came of it was that my sister and I pulled our money together to buy 'Ah! My Goddess!' the movie! (Is it just me... or does Belldandy's English voice sorta sound like Jeri...?) So... Sunday night-- tonight, more or less... although it could be considered Monday, now-- I worked on this chapter.

*checks clock* Okay... it's 12:36.... Yes-- AM.... Estoy cansada... muy, muy, muy cansada.... Well... I'll just say this: I hope you all like this chapter! I can't wait to start the next one (which I'll probably do tomorrow)! I will tell you this-- the 50th reviewer will get a walk on role in the next chapter... well, IF I get that many reviews for this one.... If not, then perhaps the next chapter...? Also, it would be nice it some people sent me some digimon info I could use in this story; names, attacks and descriptions would help out a lot. Well... I'd better let you go read the preview.... Ja!-Angel-Chan (Man... two weeks until the end of Tamers...? That sucks....)

Fated: Part Twelve

We're Partners!

"Why can't I have the teddy?!"

"Because Mommy gave it to me, so nah!!"

Two children stared each other down... eyes flickering with small, yet strong fires. In between them sat a brown stuffed bear.... As you could guess, the children were about to fight over it.... Who won, however... would be determined by whom soever was the more powerful....

And, being siblings, there was more of a chance at them being equals than anything....

The girl took a step forward, letting out a light growl. It wasn't fair! She deserved the toy-- not Mako! Definitely not him! "Well," she snipped, "you can't have it!"

That wasn't fair! "Mommy said--" he stopped and stared out the window. What... what was that...? Pointing, he stated, "Look, Ai! Is that...?"

What was he trying to do-- trick her? Like she'd fall for it! The girl started to reach down for her prize... then stopped. But... his face was so sincere.... Maybe he wasn't lying.... Ai carefully followed her brother's wondered gaze. She gasped.

There... sitting outside their window, sat the strangest creature they'd ever seen! It was completely purple, except for the white around its face and belly... and had the largest pair of green eyes....