In the Dark
Part Twenty: Connections and Fears
***
Standard Disclaimer Thingie: Plot belongs to me. Characters do not, as they belong to some big company in Japan. I tried to write them to ask for permission to use them, but my Japanese is not so good. Therefore, I'm using them without permission. I also get no money for doing so. Remember, don't steal, don't sue! Enjoy!
***
When the light had faded, the digimon that appeared where Armadimon had been before was quite unique. Submarimon, a white and blue fish-shaped digimon, floated at the surface of the water, awaiting his passenger.
"Be careful," Jyou warned as Iori climbed aboard. The younger chosen nodded simply, and then was gone as he and Submarimon submerged.
Under the water, Iori's vision was clear despite the murkiness of the water. Ahead, he could see the end of Mega Seadramon's tail quite clearly.
"Oxygen Homing," Submarimon called, and a blast of air slammed directly into the skin of his opponent.
"That should do it," Iori noted. Even under water, they could hear the giant serpent's scream of annoyance as it whirled to face its attacker.
***
Patamon finished munching the roll that had been given him. "I think I can evolve now, Takeru," he reported cheerfully, mouth half-full. He swallowed the last bite.
"Right. Let's try it," his partner agreed, pulling his digivice from his pocket. "Digimental up!"
"Patamon armor evolve! Pegasmon!"
"Should we fly all the way back to the cabin, or only as far as the edge of the lake?" Takeru questioned.
"Don't go all the way back," Hikari advised. "You might be needed. Wait here, if only for a bit."
Koushiro nodded. "Iori might need you to assist him," he agreed.
A few minutes later, Tailmon and Hawkmon had also evolved. Holsmon perched on the roof of the stone building, as there wasn't much space inside. From this vantage point, Miyako could easily see the battle that was occurring underwater.
Mega Seadramon's screams of anger were occurring at regular intervals now, and Miyako was certain that Iori was glad Submarimon was such a fast swimmer. It was obvious; however, that one armor-evolved digimon wouldn't be enough to defeat the serpentine monster.
Unlike Iori, Miyako didn't have a clear view of the underwater occurrences. A large amount of bubbles on the surface and the amount of dark magic in the air clouded the view considerably. She squinted through the haze and rubbed her eyes, but her sight didn't clear.
Recognizing that vision wasn't going to be much use to her in this instance – magical or not – Miyako reluctantly shut her eyes. Even then, she could sense the dark magic surrounding the lake, swirling around in many directions. As she'd explained to the others earlier, although most of the magic was dark, only some of it could be said to have been formed by the Kaiser. From the moment Miyako had first glimpsed their latest enemy, she'd seen and felt his magic, and she knew its distinctive feel quite well.
Suddenly, an idea came to her. In the currents of magic floating through the air, Miyako noted one with Ken's distinctive feel and tried to follow it. In one direction, it seemed to float away from them – back, she supposed, to wherever Ken currently was – but in another direction it seemed to flow directly into the murky water.
'Of course!' Miyako realized then that she had been so intent on finding the dark tower somewhere on the ground that she'd never even though to look within the water. She opened her eyes and caught sight of the current she'd sensed. She followed it visually – a more difficult task – through its whirling, twisting course and then it plunged into the water not far from the stone building she was atop.
"Holsmon!" she gasped suddenly, alarming her partner. "Follow my gaze. What do you see beneath the surface?"
Holsmon's superior vision followed the finger Miyako pointed toward the water and caught hold of a dark something underneath. "Something," he answered after a moment. "I'll need to fly closer to see what it is, though."
"Do it then," Miyako said, and climbed onto her partner's back. As they took off into the sky, she heard Koushiro calling after her, wanting to know her destination, but she was too absorbed to answer him.
Over the water, the mists rising off the water and the swirling magic still made it difficult for Miyako to see past the surface. Holsmon was better able to spot what Miyako had sensed from the stone island though, and pointed it out to her. "I think we might have found what we were looking for."
Miyako squinted, trying to see past the mists and swirls. The source of the magic she'd sensed was down there. "It's a dark tower, isn't it?" she asked, but it was more of a statement than a question. Of course it was a dark tower – it was the source of the Kaiser's magic in this area. "Can we destroy it from here?"
"I'll certainly try," her partner answered. He flew higher, circling the lake and then flying again closer to the underwater obelisk, this time at a better angle. "Red Sun!" he called, the beams of red light piercing through the water. For a moment, the dark mists in Miyako's vision parted at the intrusion, and she followed the beams through the water.
There was no satisfactory sound of a crash to tell them that the beams had hit the target, only a splash of water and a light hissing sound as the sand on the bottom of the lake took the bruising intended for the tower. "It's not easy to aim at things under water," Holsmon reported, an apologetic tone to his voice. "Submarimon would be better equipped for that task."
"Yes, but he's over there," Miyako gestured vaguely with her hand to another section of the lake, where Iori and his partner were trying to evade the dangerous Mega Seadramon. "How do we get him here to destroy this thing? If only there was some way to signal him… that's it!"
Struck with inspiration, Miyako directed Holsmon to fire the attack again, this time in the direction of Mega Seadramon. "I know that it won't hit him," she acquiesced, "but it'll get Iori's attention."
***
Under the water, the situation had rapidly become worrying to Iori. After Submarimon's first, successful attack, the giant Mega Seadramon had turned and headed straight for them. With self-preservation being a priority, they'd quickly turned and fled, but not so fast so that the giant serpent didn't try to follow. Several times since then, the enemy had shown signs of wanting to break off the attack and return to the stone building, and Submarimon had used those times to taunt the serpent back to them, focusing his rage on them once more. It worked, but baiting such a dangerous enemy was dangerous and, as Iori was discovering, quite frightening.
Suddenly, twin beams of red light cut through the murky water, striking the sand directly between the two underwater fighters. Iori stared at the spot where the beams had been, and then regained his voice. "I think that was Holsmon's attack," he managed to say.
"What's he doing, firing at the water? He could have killed us!" Submarimon wanted to know. Mega Seadramon was equally enraged at the attack, and he seemed to think, for some reason, that Iori and his partner were responsible for it. Letting out another ear-splitting screech, the giant serpent resumed his pursuit of the armored digimon.
"Miyako must have had some reason for that," Iori said, thinking wildly while at the same time being propelled through the water at a high rate of speed. "But what - ?"
"Maybe it's a signal that everyone's gone to safety?" Submarimon suggested. "And that now we can get out of here?"
Iori pondered this theory for a few moments, and then the water was once again split by the red beams, this time a short distance ahead of them. "I don't understand," the boy admitted truthfully.
Before Submarimon had the chance to offer another theory, the attack was fired once more, this time a bit farther away than the last attack. "I think they might have lost their minds," the digimon admitted finally.
"Possible," Iori sighed. He'd only known Miyako for a short time, but he'd already learned that she sometimes had a tendency to perform illogical acts.
"Hey – I think I see something over there," Submarimon said then, turning them to face where Holsmon's last attack had landed. "Can't tell what, though yet."
Since they were approaching the spot at a very fast speed, it wasn't long before Iori also spotted what his partner had seen. He didn't have to look at it long before he identified it, though. "A dark tower!" he breathed. "So that's where it's hidden."
"And that might explain the attacks. They were trying to get us to notice this thing," his partner realized. "Should we destroy it?"
Iori nodded. "Let's do it."
***
Three pairs of tiny feet clicked along the smoothly polished floor, propelling their owner, a small green caterpillar digimon, through the hallways of the building. He scurried along the floor as quickly as he could, red eyes of captured and enslaved digimon peering out at him from within their tiny cells. They frightened him, but then, everything frightened him nowadays; made him nervous.
At the end of the long hall there was an office, cluttered with books and a few tables to hold the desks. The room was occupied by a single figure, who towered over the tiny caterpillar and commanded the entire building. The fearful digimon peered around the edge of the doorway to see his master standing, as he often was these days, over a pile of books, muttering to himself under his breath as he scribbled with ink on another paper.
"Master?" the intruder questioned fearfully, not daring to interrupt or disturb the work. As always, he was the bringer of bad news, and this frightened him; but the last few times he had brought such news, his master had seemed unconcerned, even uninterested. He was never quite certain what the reaction would be.
The head bent over the book glanced up slightly, and two eyes peered at him through tinted lenses. Cautiously, the servant studied the eyes so that he might gauge just how to deliver the information, and was alarmed. "Master, you look exhausted," he said, rather than impart the information. As soon as he was finished speaking, he regretted the words.
"What business is it of yours?" came the snapped reply. "Leave me, unless you have something useful to report. I doubt you do."
Yes, the servant realized, his master was exhausted. He tried to recall the last time his master had rested, had slept, and found that he could not. His latest project – it frightened the diminutive digimon to think of the details – had occupied all his waking hours and most of those usually allotted for sleeping.
"Only that Mega Seadramon was defeated, Master," the small caterpillar reported, lest he be scolded later for failing to give information. "The tower in that sector was destroyed."
Again, his master paid little attention to the news. Instead, he continued mumbling to himself under his breath and making marks with the pen.
***
One of the wondrous things that Sora and Yamato had brought with them along with many other useful supplies was a large wooden tub, just large enough to serve as a bathtub. Although it was smaller than the porcelain tubs at the palace, it was water sealed and so served its function.
Exhausted and covered with several days worth of dirt and grime, Miyako was more eager to relax in hot water than to eat. In the back of the cabin, she slipped into one of the curtained-off 'rooms' and used the small heating stove to heat several buckets of water. When they were hot enough, she poured the water, bucket by bucket, into the tub. A large cover kept the water from cooling until she had filled the bath all the way, and then she stripped of her clothes and slipped into the wooden tub.
It had been quite some time since hot water had been available to her. When they'd still been living within the tents, space was made available for bathing, but it was next to impossible to have heated water. As a result, baths had been quick and hurried and not in the least bit relaxing. Now, as the heated water surrounded her tired muscles, Miyako let herself relax and escape, her mind drifting....
***
While Miyako soaked in the water, the others took advantage of the food.
"I think," Koushiro advised, "that if nothing else this incident should teach us all not to leave the cabin in the middle of the night." He focused his eyes on Daisuke and Takeru in particular.
Daisuke did his best to avoid the accusing stare. Takeru apologized between bites. "We didn't expect anything to happen," he explained. He shoveled a few bites of fish into his mouth and swallowed quickly. "We've never been attacked that close before."
"You're just lucky no one was hurt," Jyou admonished, leaning against the wall and observing the feast. He sighed.
Hikari sighed. Having finished her own meal, she stood and carried her plate with her. "We can hardly expect Ken to sit in the forest and wait for us to come to him, Takeru," she said. "Eventually, I expect he'll probably spread out."
Daisuke swallowed the mouthful of food he'd been eating. "Spread out?" he echoed.
Koushiro agreed. "Once he's fully conquered whatever territory he has, he'll spread out and expand beyond it. Unless we manage to stop him."
"It appears he has more territory than we originally thought," Iori spoke up for the first time. "Each time we've entered lately we've gotten lost. If we do free the territory, I hope we can find time to map it more extensively."
Koushiro nodded. "I hope so, too," he answered. "At any rate, I hope you all manage to stay out of trouble for a few days. I'm heading back to the palace tomorrow."
"To get supplies?" Takeru wondered.
"I'm sure I'll bring supplies back," the wizard responded. "But I'm going mainly because I want to get a few things. If any of you have messages to send, I suggest you start writing them now." He glanced toward Hikari with a meaningful expression.
She sighed somewhat dramatically. "I know. I do hope you can manage to tell him a few things, Koushiro. I'm so bad at breaking bad news to him, and he's so bad at receiving it."
Koushiro raised an eyebrow. "I'll do my best," he answered. "But I'm sure your brother would more than likely prefer some sort of a personal note from his sister."
***
Early the next morning, Koushiro arose and packed a single back full with as many books as he could afford to carry. Since no carriages or wagons remained at the cabin, he would need to walk a fair distance until he was able to evolve Tentomon and then fly the rest of the way home.
The snow was still on the ground, though a significant amount of it had melted. In truth, he'd picked a good day to leave; the sky was clear and there was no sign of any further snowstorms.
"Then you think the barrier is related to Hikari?" Miyako questioned. They stood just outside the cabin, where they could talk without fear of being overheard or interrupted. Discussions of this sort were quite secret.
"I am almost certain that, from what you told me, it is the same sort of magic," he answered. "I also suspect that it is quite old. It could have been placed there by one of the old Kings – old Queens more likely, since that magic has always been stronger in the females. This is all speculation, however, and I'll need to do more research to find out for certain."
The younger magic-user had a grim expression, and Koushiro knew immediately why. He sighed deeply. "I don't like it either, Miyako, but it's not wise, what you're thinking. Hikari cannot know."
"I know," Miyako admitted with a sigh of her own. She shook her head to clear the thoughts from her mind. "Let me know what you find."
"I will," he promised.
From the pocket of her warm winter cloak, Miyako removed an envelope and passed it to him. "I expect my sister is still at the palace. If so, I'd like you to deliver this. If she's not…."
"Then I'll find someone who can deliver it," Koushiro interjected.
The door opened and the others exited the cabin and came out into the cold morning. "I don't know why you have to leave so early," Takeru grumbled, yawning.
One by one, the others gave their correspondence to the departing wizard. Hikari had, somewhat reluctantly and very carefully, composed her letter to her brother. Takeru had written one to his brother, Daisuke to his sister, who he suspected was also still at the palace, and Jyou had several, each to various members of his medical staff, filled mostly with instructions.
***
Koushiro arrived at the palace shortly after noon and found that things were calm. He was surprised, though, when Mimi hurried up to him shortly after his entrance.
"What's happened?" she wanted to know. At his blank look, the girl expanded. "The last few times anyone's returned from near Primary Village, it's been for help. Has there been another attack?"
"No," Koushiro replied, shaking his head. "All is well, everyone is safe. Or at least they were when I left this morning." He frowned for a moment, trying to imagine how much trouble the younger Chosen could have had in the last few hours.
Mimi breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. No one's dared tell Taichi you were spotted," she admitted. "We were a bit afraid of what he'd do if he thought something was wrong."
Koushiro sighed deeply, remembering Hikari's reluctantly written letter. "Well, go and tell him I'm here now," he said. As Mimi walked off down the hall, he thought to call after her: "Be sure to tell him everything's fine!"
***
Taichi sighed, rubbed a hand over his eyes, and massaged his forehead. Only just after noon and he was already developing a monstrous headache. The day didn't seem to be off to a great start.
"You look tired," Sora told him, noticing the movement. She reached across the table and put a hand on his. "Do you want to get some rest? I could have things pushed back a day."
"I'll be all right," he answered, sinking into his chair. They'd paused the day's meetings, activities, and other things for the noon meal, and tired as he was, he'd wanted a quiet, peaceful lunch. Just him and Sora.
"Are you sure?" she asked, concern clear on her face. He nodded, taking a bite of his food as though this would prove his claim. She seemed unconvinced, but said nothing more, returning as well to her own food.
For a few moments, there was silence, and only the muffled sounds of chewing could be heard. Then, there were two light raps on the door. Both heads turned expectantly as the door opened and a servant poked his head in.
"Excuse me, sire. Lady Tachikawa wants to see you. She says it's urgent."
"Urgent? Mimi?" Taichi echoed. He sighed, trying not to imagine precisely what Mimi considered urgent. "Tell her to wait a few minutes. We're almost done here."
Sora frowned. "I wonder what it could be."
"I'm afraid to ask," Taichi answered, rubbing his head again.
A few minutes later, the food had been eaten, the dishes cleared, and Mimi was permitted into the room. She plastered on to her face the calmest expression she'd been able to muster up in the last few minutes.
"Urgent?" Taichi questioned. "What's urgent?" He had an expression on his face that indicated that he thought that it was probably not urgent, or it was very bad.
"Urgent?" Mimi echoed. That had probably been a bad word to use. Now he worried. "Ah, probably it's not really that urgent," she admitted.
He nodded slowly, and folded his arms across his chest, waiting. Now he was probably impatient. Mimi decided it was best to get to the point.
"It's just that Koushiro arrived a short while ago," she said. "I assumed that you'd want to talk to him." She waited, wondering if he'd become concerned.
He appeared skeptical. "You couldn't have sent someone else to tell me this?" he questioned.
Mimi hesitated a moment. Sora interrupted: "Why has Koushiro returned, Mimi? Does he need something?"
"No, no," Mimi answered, careful to sound as calm and tranquil as she possibly could. "He didn't say why he returned, but he did say that everything was fine."
***
Inoue Momoe was sewing. This wasn't her favorite activity, but it did pass the time and it did accomplish what needed to be done, which was, of course, to make more baby clothes for her unborn child. She hadn't realized how much a new baby needed until she'd talked with her mother, and then she'd begun to wonder if she'd ever be finished.
Jun, Mimi, and Sora had offered to pitch in and assist, and already the daunting task seemed a bit more manageable. Today, Mimi and Sora were both busy elsewhere, though, and so it was only Jun and Momoe sitting in the parlor, stitching baby clothes and talking about everything but what their siblings might be doing at that moment.
There was a knock on the door, and a familiar face peered around the door. "Am I disturbing you?" Koushiro questioned.
"No, no," Momoe said, gesturing for him to enter and trying to ignore the nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach. If Koushiro had returned, and sought her out, did that mean that something had happened to Miyako?
Jun was more direct. "Has something happened?" she asked, rising to her feet, the baby clothes she'd been stitching forgotten, falling from her lap.
The wizard shook his head. "Everything's fine," he assured them, removing
two envelopes from within his winter cloak, which he hadn't yet removed. "I
left this morning to get a few supplies, that's all."
"Medical supplies?" Jun persisted.
Koushiro sighed. "Everything is fine," he repeated, slowly. "No one is hurt. I came because I wanted to get a few books I think I might need." He paused, and when no one tried to contradict this, he added: "I assure you that if anyone was hurt, it would not be kept from you."
Momoe nodded, feeling a bit calmer now. She'd never found reason to doubt him, and she trusted him more now that her sister was learning from him. "Thank you Koushiro," she said. Jun seemed to relax, and sat down, gathering the material to her lap again.
"I came to see you – both of you – because I volunteered to carry correspondence back here," Koushiro further explained. He held out the two envelopes, and gave one to each of them. "When I announced my plans to leave last night, I offered to carry a few letters, and both your siblings took the time to write to you. Further indicating that they are alive and well."
Both women took the envelopes eagerly and set aside the sewing to open them. "Will you be leaving soon, Koushiro?" Momoe questioned. "If we want to send something back?"
"I'm not certain yet," he replied. "But I'll let you know when I have some definite plans."
As soon as he'd left the room, Momoe tore open the letter and read eagerly. Miyako, as Koushiro had claimed, reported that she was in fine health and, although the situation was always dangerous, she was perfectly safe for the moment. There was some news about what activities she'd been engaged in, what spells she'd been learning, but most of the letter was filled with questions about the others and questions about Momoe and her pregnancy.
'I'm sorry I can't be there for this,' Miyako had written. 'But nothing will keep me away when you finally have the baby!'
With a contented sigh, Momoe decided that she'd get to work writing a response right away. She looked up from her letter to ask Jun if she'd like to put aside the sewing, but the other girl had a grim expression on her face as she read.
"Is something wrong?" Momoe questioned, the nervous feeling returning.
Jun looked up from the letter and smiled, overenthusiastically, it seemed. "No," she answered a little too quickly. She sighed. "I've just got to go home for a little bit, that's all."
"Not bad news?"
"No, no, nothing like that," she replied, and this time the response seemed genuine. Before Momoe could ask another question, she stood, setting the sewing aside. "Excuse me."
Then she was gone.
***
Daisuke was perched in the rafters of the cabin. Like Miyako, he'd come to enjoy the spot, and the vantage point it provided. From above, it was possible to watch all the happenings in the cabin and stay out of the way at the same time.
Miyako was perched on the opposite side of the rafters, engaged for the moment in the serious study of a book that Koushiro had left behind. He wasn't sure why she was reading it so intently, but she seemed completely focused on the task.
Iori was also focused on his task, which was trying to work on his map project. To Daisuke, the large parchment marked with charcoal and ink looked like a mess of lines and circles, but it apparently made sense to at least two people – Koushiro and Iori – d because they spent a great deal of time adding more charcoal and ink lines to it and discussing where the charcoal and ink lines should be added.
Takeru had taken it upon himself to fix the furniture problem – more specifically the table problem. The problem was, quite simply, that there was no furniture. Far from an experienced carpenter, Takeru had managed to enlist Jyou's help, but no one really expected Jyou to be of much assistance.
Hikari had been attempting to clean some laundry in the back room they'd previously used for bathing. After scrubbing and beating the clothes and blankets until they were clean as they possibly be, she'd hung them on a sturdy rope stretched in front of the stove. Now, though, with nothing to do but wait for them to dry, she emerged into the communal area and gazed at the scene.
Iori was apparently making progress with the creation of the map, but Takeru and Jyou had so far succeeded in accidentally banging Jyou's thumb a six times, and little else. Gomamon found this insanely hysterical, and the laughter was catching, so soon Patamon was chuckling despite himself.
Hikari found her warmest cloak and her gloves and was preparing to leave, unnoticed in the commotion. Daisuke, perched in the rafters and observing all, dropped down from the ceiling in a smooth sweep, startling her as she hadn't noticed him.
"Not going out alone, are you?"
***
After he'd delivered all the correspondence except Hikari's letter, Koushiro made his way down to the basement room that was his lab. No one dared venture into his territory alone, so he wasn't surprised to find it exactly the way that he'd left it. The servants in the castle were known to clean most every square inch – but they stayed away from that room. It wasn't clear if it was because they were afraid of his magic or they found the task too daunting to try. At any rate, there was a thin layer of dust covering every book, bottle, and jar in the room.
Koushiro sighed a sigh borne of relief, contentment, and frustration. He wasn't sure whether to be upset with himself for not being more organized or if he should feel content that he was in his own space once more. He was relieved to find that nothing had been touched. He pushed the heavy wooden door open all the way and then moved several piles of books out of the way so he could maneuver to the fireplace.
The room was deceiving. All at once it appeared to be tiny and huge. Every wall was lined with bookshelves, save one, which was home to the fireplace, to which he moved now to light. There was only one window, a half-window that could barely be seen from the floor of the room and had a view of mostly the ground. A desk and a few small tables occupied the center of the room, and they, too, were mostly covered with books, scrolls, parchments, and a few bottles of ink. Koushiro might have been a wizard, but his true passion could be found in anything that caused him to wonder.
Tentomon avoided the clutter and hazards of the room by flying swiftly over and across it to a perch on the upper sections of one of the bookshelves. He avoided, for the moment, commenting on the state of the room. It wouldn't really make Koushiro mad, but it wouldn't please him either. Instead, he just made himself comfortable and watched as his partner used the candle to ignite the fireplace, coaxing the embers gently until a flame had been lit.
"I wonder if it's easier that way or with magic," a voice interrupted idly, a question playing at the edge of the tone.
"I'm not certain," Koushiro answered, not taking his eyes off the fireplace yet. He prodded the wood for a few moments until a substantial flame had been lit, and then he rose and turned to face the doorway. "I don't often use magic to light a fire."
"But you know how," Taichi pressed. "So why don't you?"
The wizard shrugged lightly. "My magic long ago ceased to be amazing to me," he replied. "Most often it just tires me. It's easier, I suppose, to use a candle."
Intrigued by this, Taichi wondered: "Magic no longer amazes you?"
Koushiro frowned, considering the question. "Magic does amaze me," he admitted. "It's my own magic that does not. The magic of others amazes me. Such as, for example, the magic of our current enemy."
'And your own magic,' he added silently, remembering the conversation with Miyako. After a pause, he changed the subject. "You didn't come here to talk to me about magic, though. You came for this." He removed an envelope from the pack he'd brought with him, held it out.
Taichi crossed the room in two steps, each of which barely avoided a pile of books. "Hikari?" he questioned.
The wizard nodded, struggling with his pack to remove an amazingly large pile of books. "I'm sure Mimi's told you everything's fine."
The other frowned. "Everyone seems to have this expectation that I'd go crazy if something happened."
"I'm certain they just don't want you dashing off again," Koushiro assured him. "You're needed here, I'd expect."
"You'd expect?" Tentomon interrupted, laughing to himself. "I'd assume!"
His partner shrugged. "I don't know what's been happening these past weeks," he admitted. "It's possible that he isn't."
Taichi found that statement funny. "If I wasn't needed, I'd be on a vacation," he answered. "I begin to think that even the simplest decisions need my input, my approval." He shook his head in disbelief and turned to leave. "Thanks for the letter, Koushiro."
***
Even though the sun was out, the cold remained, and so did the snow. A scarf, a cloak, boots, and a pair of gloves did less than Hikari would have liked to keep her warm, but the space in the forest that surrounded her was worth it.
'I don't know how I'd manage,' she thought with a sigh. 'Only a day in the cabin and I'm crazy with the need to escape. Day after day? I'd lose my mind.'
Her feet made crunching noises in the snow as she made her way through the forest, bound for the Primary Village. It was the only safe place to go, and she hadn't been there in a while. Though with this cold, she wouldn't stay for more than an hour or so before she'd want to return to the warmth of the cabin.
The woods were silent aside from the crunching of the snow. She became suddenly aware of the quiet and paused in her footsteps, listening intently.
"Something wrong?" Daisuke asked, noticing her abrupt pause and turning in his own steps. She shook her head and gestured for him to be silent. He did so, listening intently as she did, no doubt, she thought, wondering if something was wrong. Wondering if something was following them, ready to attack.
But the silence continued until all Hikari could hear was her own breathing, steadily in and out. It hadn't warmed enough for the snow to melt, so there was no falling snow as there would be deeper in the forest. And whatever digimon were around were no doubt taking shelter in the cold. Hikari stood, though, listening, until she could feel her legs go numb from the cold and knew she'd need to walk to warm herself.
"Did you hear something?" Daisuke questioned, a concerned tone in his voice now. She sighed, shook her head, and wondered for a moment about telling him not to worry. Then put that aside.
"No. It's just so quiet," she answered instead. "I was … absorbing it."
He seemed to accept the answer, and they resumed walking, still as quietly as they had been, but at a slightly slower pace. She noticed him watching the trees with some concern, as though they were being watched.
"Do you always do that?" she asked, surprising herself with the spoken words. When his response was a questioning expression, she elaborated. "Watch. To see if you're being watched?"
The question had apparently surprised him, because he stopped in his tracks, considering it. "Not always," he said, half defending himself. "Mostly when I'm in unsafe places with you."
"With me?" Hikari echoed. "Are you afraid of something? Because of who I am?"
Daisuke thought this through further while they resumed walking, and she took the moment to marvel over this sight. A few years ago, he'd simply have answered, not thinking about the question first, but now he was obviously putting thought into his response. She wondered if it was experience or simple maturity that had brought about that change, and supposed it was a combination of the two.
"Maybe," he replied after some time. "I'm not sure."
"Are you frightened of someone kidnapping me? Holding me for ransom?" Hikari questioned, pushing the line of thought deeper. She turned her head, facing forward, and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "Or are you only afraid of my brother?"
"Some part of it might just be your brother," he admitted, and she laughed.
***
That's a little better. I actually did what I wanted for once, and got this part out before I have to return to school. Admittedly, very little actually happens in this chapter, but still, it's an accomplishment.
Just what was in the message Jun received? Why is she upset about it? Will these questions every be answered? Will this story ever be finished?
^_^;; Eventually, I hope, the answer to the last one will be yes.
Thanks for reading, reviewing, etc. I'll try to have the next part out soon, but no promises. Ja!