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Second Chances For Sora - Chapter 13
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"Sora, I'm not sure how much more of this I can take!" Tai wailed as he ran down a path through a park.
The girl jogging in front of him shot him a glance and just smirked.
"Gimme a break, Tai! Are you a man or not!? You better pick up the pace or your name's Mud!"
"In a second, you can name me DEAD! 'Cause this jogging is killing me!"
"All right let's take a break for a second!" Sora said reluctantly. Tai slumped down on a nearby bench, while Sora just continued to jog in place.
Tai eyed Sora rather suspiciously, partially from what had transpired the night before. Seeing Sora's face for that brief instant on his computer screen had REALLY freaked him out. Additionally, he found himself mentally questioning the origin of where she got all this near-limitless supply of energy.
Then again, it was before seven in the morning. Tai COULD have been just overreacting this time around.
"Listen, Tai...the final soccer match to win the title is in just a few days. THREE to be exact! We gotta be ready and willing to take them down!"
"I suppose next, you're gonna tell me that this is war!"
"Weeeell...I wouldn't go THAT far..."
"BUT?"
"But you said yourself that these guys are absolute terrors on the field. They shoot first and ask questions later...?"
Tai chuckled a little, being that he was slightly short of breath. "Something like that."
"C'mon, wimp!" Sora enthusiastically exclaimed. "This is the THIRD time you've stopped! We still have a ways to go before we're ready!"
"You really got your heart set on this, huh?"
Sora stopped jogging in place, but leaned a little on the bench Tai was sitting on.
"Well, it's not just that, Tai. Aside from the last soccer match the two of us were in...I, uh..."
"What?"
"Well, back when I was on the girls' soccer team, we also made it to the finals...and they were really depending on me. But when Mom stopped me from playing...they lost the match without me to help them. I vowed never to let that happen again, no matter what."
Tai slowly nodded as he remembered. During those times, Sora and Tai were on separate soccer teams. But it had become something of a tradition to watch each other's game, and Tai had come. He was surprised to see that Sora wasn't there, bur decided to watch the game anyway. Then he began to realize the great significance of Sora's words.
"I remember now," Tai said, "I found you, dripping wet..."
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FOUR YEARS AGO...
"Yes, yes...I understand. I'll keep my eyes open, but let's hope you can get a hold of her soon. It looks like rain."
Mrs. Kamiya hung up the phone and suddenly turned her head as she heard the door open.
"Tai, thank goodness! The rain was just starting up! So, how did Sora's soccer game go?"
"Actually, she wasn't there! She didn't show up for the entire game! And her team LOST, to boot!" Tai almost panicked.
"She wasn't there?! But I just talked to her mother over the phone! She said that Sora ran off to the game anyway!"
"Well, she STILL didn't show up! Right after the game was over, I ran off to find her!
"Oh, dear! Then...where IS Sora?!"
"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out!" Tai nearly yelled, turning back to the front door and grabbing an umbrella.
"Tai, just where do you think you're going?!"
"Where else? I'm going out to find Sora!"
"But sweetie...! It's really starting to come down! Sora could be out there all drenched!"
"All the more reason to find her!" Tai declared dashing out the door before his mom could say another word.
Tai has been searching the street for almost fifteen minutes, though it seemed like forever to him. He was tired of running, but at least he could keep dry, thanks to the giant umbrella he was using. Tai had gone pretty far, but he wasn't about to give up. It was as if some higher power was almost forcibly drawing him out here and compelling him to stay outdoors until he found who he was looking for. And just then...
...Tai found her.
Originally, Tai had expected to find Sora sitting on a bench or rock. But she was walking instead. Drenched by the rain. Covered in flood from the sky. Soaked in tears from the heavens, which only served to amplify her own. Where she was walking to, she didn't know, nor did she care. All that was going through her mind was that she just had to keep moving.
"SORA!!!" Tai yelled from behind her.
Sora didn't turn her head. She either didn't hear him or didn't care to listen.
Tai never liked forcing himself on someone, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him. He rushed up to his best friend from behind and turned her to face him. Sora didn't even try to fight him off. Yet another bad sign. Tai felt a shiver up his spine as she stared back at him with a hollow look in her eyes.
Then the questions came. Tai babbled at least a dozen questions. They were spilling out of his mouth faster than he could think them up, so many of the questions repeated themselves. Sora had felt so traumatized from the occurrences a couple of hours before.
Even if this mental status was only temporary, Sora already acknowledged in the back of her mind that this was something that would imbed itself into her mind, and this memory could never hope to be removed, no matter how hard she tried to pull it out.
Mrs. Kamiya was truly at a loss for words when Tai brought Sora back to his apartment. Tai's mother called up Sora's mom, and told her that her daughter was safe and sound. Since it had already gotten late, Mrs. Kamiya thought it might be best for Sora to spend the night.
The girl's soccer uniform was soaked from the rain, so Mrs. Kamiya took it to be washed while Sora engaged in a hot bath. The 11 year-old girl didn't say anything, nor did she display much emotion. Purely out of concern, Tai peaked in to get a look at Sora's face. It was the same as when he found her.
Still a blank slate.
Sora had a set of clean clothes in her soccer bag, but she decided to save those for tomorrow, so she borrowed some of Tai's clothes to sleep in. Still feeling sorry for her, Tai let her sleep in his bed. By now, the Kamiya family was just starting have dinner, but Sora was too tired and depressed to eat. Still, Tai stepped into his room, and brought Sora a tray of warm soup to have. She had already gotten under the covers of Tai bed, but it seemed she wanted to get something into her system. Tai watched with some surprise as Sora consumed her soup rather quickly, but at the same time, she kept being quiet.
Not once leaving her side while she ate, Tai asked about three or four times what was wrong, but Sora was as silent as ever. He scratched his head and adjusted the goggles still fastened around his head and sighed. Sora silently handed Tai back the tray and he turned to go but just then-
"Tai..."
The young boy whipped his head around and looked at Sora. Her voice was a faint whisper, but it was more than enough to grab Tai's attention. He placed the tray down and walked back to Sora, kneeling at her side.
"Sora..." he nearly whispered back, "What's wrong?"
Tai almost gasped when he got a look at Sora's face. Her tears were already starting and she was ready to cry. And cry she did. She wailed and sobbed, throwing her arms around Tai, who turned a little red. He closed his eyes halfway and hugged her back, doing his best to comfort her.
Later Sora would reveal everything that had occurred from her point of view, but for now...a pair of arms to hold and keep her safe in her small pocket of the universe was all that Sora needed for now.
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"Sorry, Sora..." Tai said. "I guess I forgot...until we got paired up on the same soccer team, you had never won a championship title before."
Sora nodded, a little sad and angry at the memory.
"I was so close to winning...so close, and yet so far."
Tai knew what Sora needed was some good ol' comforting, so while she sat down on a park bench, he leaned forward a bit, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind. Sora was taken aback for a moment.
"Whoa, HEY...I mean...uh, Tai? Excuse me, I-" Sora stammered, tuning red.
Looking back, Sora realized that while she was glad that the two of them had gotten together, this passionate part of Tai was something new that she hadn't exactly gotten used to yet...not that she was complaining, of course.
"What's wrong?" Tai asked softly, closing his eyes.
"H-hey, we sh-shouldn't be getting all mushy while we're training...!"
Tai began to smile and only tightened his grip around his girlfriend more.
"I don't care," he sighed.
"Uhhh..." Sora went, thinking for a moment.
She realized that she was talking nonsense, and decided to give in. She closed her eyes, as well, and smiled as she held onto Tai's arms, which were firmly wrapped around her like a ribbon.
"Mmm..." she sighed.
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Sora and Tai parted soon thereafter, and agreed on when they should meet up back at Tai's apartment. Unfortunately, Sora was running low on clean clothes to wear, so she decided to quickly jog back to her "old" home, and "borrow" some more. Afterwards, she would head back to Mimi's, and chill until the afternoon, which was when Tai and Sora would hold their sleepover.
It was still pretty early in the morning when Sora got back to her old apartment, and Mrs. Takenouchi had gotten out of bed barely a half-hour ago. "Sor", her "first" child was already in the kitchen, and her mother was pleased to see that her daughter had already made some coffee.
"Up early too, huh?" Sor asked her mother.
"Yep..." Mrs. Takenouchi replied.
Sor poured some coffee for her mom, and the two of them sat down at the table, slowly drinking the beverage, full of caffeine to wake the two females up. Sor had gotten a little sluggish, and wanted to take a shower, but decided to save it for the afternoon, since she had a date with Matt that night.
KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!
"I'll get it, Mom," Sor said as she got up.
Sor opened up the door to have her eyes greet the living mirror that was her sister. Sor would have been surprised or something like that, had she not woken up early. She was still pretty groggy, and was too tired to deal with her twin sister right now.
Sor let her sister in, and Mrs. Takenouchi was a little more alert when she saw her other daughter walk in.
"OH! H-hello, dear! I wasn't expecting to see you here this early," she almost stammered, somewhat embarrassed that she was still in her bathrobe (and Sor in her pajamas), while Sora was fully dressed.
Apparently, THIS Sora was a real early bird.
Then again, she recalled that Sora used to be an early bird when she was a few years younger. Guess old habits die hard...or not at all, especially if you're the mother of a double of your only daughter who spent the last four years on her own without any help or human contact.
(Boy, what a mind job!)
"I wasn't expecting to see you at ALL," Sor added.
"Oh, honey...don't tease now!" Mrs. Takenouchi gently scolded. "So, what brings you here?"
"Well, I was just, ah...going to spend the night at Tai's...you know...a sleepover. And I just wanted to know if I could borrow some of your clothes, sis?" Sora asked, turning to her sister.
Sora had her back turned until she heard the words "Tai" and "sleepover" come out of her sister's mouth.
"Haven't you 'borrowed' enough from me?" Sor asked, slightly annoyed.
Sora knew in the back of her head that her twin meant that she was referring to more than just borrowing clothes. But she was too much in a cheerful mood to be down right now.
"Geez, what bug flew up YOUR pants and bit you?!" Sora smirked.
Sor rolled her eyes, and led Sora into her room. Mrs. Takenouchi watched all this and lightly chuckled, seeing as how her two daughters were acting like real sisters.
"So, what do you want? A dress? High heel shoes? Jewelry and makeup?" Sor asked.
"Yeah, right! I'd sooner jump out a window than wear that stuff!" Sora laughed.
Aside from her tag and Crest of Love that she kept from her travels in the Digital World, Sora didn't own any other jewelry or makeup, nor did she want to.
"Actually, I just needed a few more pairs of socks, undergarments, jeans, T- shirts..."
"Oh," Sora said, slightly surprised. "I have plenty more pairs of those that I don't need."
"Really?"
"Really. I keep a few pairs for myself, but I wear skirts and dresses more often, especially since I go out on dates with Matt. So...anyway, if you want them, then they're all yours. Mom said that she'd just give them away if I didn't wear them. She didn't want to see them to go waste."
"Oh...well, thanks!" exclaimed Sora as she gathered up what she needed into a small duffel bag. "Hey, speaking of Matt, he has a band now, right?"
"That's right. The Teenage Wolves."
"Interesting. Are they any good?"
"Check 'em out and see for yourself. They practice at that big, abandoned warehouse just outside of the town."
"Oh, yeah...I think I've seen it."
By now, Sora was all packed up and ready to go. But before she left the bedroom, Sor stopped her by grabbing her arm.
"Did we forget something?" she asked, slightly annoyed.
"Um, no but..."
"But what?"
"Well, I...you don't...really like me, do you?"
Sora looked at her double with wide eyes. She was amazed that she asked her this question, but at the same time, her brain was still trying to grasp with the idea that she was – literally – talking to herself. There was also no doubt in her mind that Sor was also thinking these same thoughts.
Taking a deep breath, Sora stared at her twin for a long, hard moment before finally answering.
"Well, I'll say this much...I'd be lying if I said I hated you. But I gotta admit...you're not exactly my favorite right now...and your definitely a few notches away from...well...just don't go there."
"Is...is Tai everything...y'know...everything you expected?"
"If you mean romantically, then yeah! Everything and more."
"You're really lucky to have each other."
"From the way he was acting when he visited me for the first time at Mimi's, I'd say I arrived in the nick of time. Y'know, he told me that he'd almost given up hope on you...it's refreshing to know that at least one of...US didn't," Sora stated, sounding a little angry.
"What's THAT supposed to mean?" Sor snapped.
"Gee, and here I thought you lost half of your brain! Prove me wrong and figure it out for yourself!"
"Huh?!"
"You BROKE Tai's heart! Tai Kamiya...your...OUR...BEST FRIEND!"
"Hey, he had his opportunity!"
"Yeah, right! How do you figure? You didn't even give him a chance!"
"I did too! I waited for him for FOUR years and what did it get me!? Nothing but heartbreak, pain, impatience, and frustration! I dropped several subtle or obvious hints as to how I felt, and the best response I got was that of a grain of sand!"
"HEARTBREAK?! I find it hard to believe that you even know the meaning of the word! Whatever kinda hints you gave Tai, did you ever stop to think that a simple 'I love you' would be more than enough to catch his attention?!"
Sor stopped talking for a moment and thought about it. It was true...during that time, she tried to express how she felt to Tai in SO many ways...EXCEPT for the direct approach. She felt so amazed that she hadn't thought of it, and that just made her feel even more ashamed. But she did her best to hide what she was feeling for the moment.
"Even when he and I are together," Sora continued, "I can FEEL his pain! And that's just for starters! You hurt a lot of other people too!"
"Hey, now that's going too far!"
"IS it? Ever think about how Tai's pain affected his sister, Kari? Or how much that made T.K. worry? How about Mimi, as well?"
"MIMI?!" Sor nearly screeched. "What the heck does SHE hafta do with all this!?!"
"I'll say it again, idiot! You're supposed to be smart! Figure it out!"
The two Soras glared at each other for a few seconds, until Sor decided to speak up, albeit a little hesitantly.
"Look, you just...you just don't understand. What happened between me and Tai was complicated-"
"Oh, I understand, all right. You don't have your way with Tai, so you just decide that the only way to get him back is with downright revenge, cutting yourself off from him as much as possible!"
"STOP! You're twisting around the truth!"
"So you don't deny it?"
"I...I..."
"WELL?"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"
In the kitchen, Mrs. Takenouchi heard this and the shouting was definitely potent, waking her out of her half-asleep state. She decided not to get herself involved in their discussion unless it was absolutely necessary.
"Just...just GO...go already, will you!?!" Sora stammered, turning away from her double.
Sora walked around to face her sister once more, despite the fact that Sor had her head lowered. And the sound of heavy panting that Sor was emitting didn't help soften the situation one bit.
"Y'know, I'm almost surprised that Tai still considers you one of his buddies. You ought to be ashamed to call yourself his friend..." Sora grimly whispered in a...VERY eerie voice that made Sor a little suspicious.
But she said nothing.
Sora turned to leave, but she came back to face Sor one more time.
"By the way..." she said. She paused a bit before continuing to talk, causing Sor to look up.
Sor watched Sora use her free hand to reach under the collar of her yellow T-shirt.
"What?" Sor whispered in a semi-"defeated" voice.
Sora removed the piece of "jewelry" from around her neck and dangled it in front of Sora's eyes, causing them to widen. And that's not too surprising, considering the fact that – technically – Sor had lost the item that was presented in front of her.
It was the Crest of Love.
"I deserve this more than you," Sora said firmly.
Sor whipped up her head in frustration, and a couple of angry tears began to seep down her cheeks. Her sister leaned her face forward until their eyes were locked in place with each other. Sor felt an extremely uncomfortable chill run up her spine when she heard the next few words tumble out of her double's mouth.
"One more thing. We may be the same person...but I'm more Sora Takenouchi than you'll EVER be."
Sora immediately left the apartment, before Mrs. Takenouchi could stop her to explain what all the yelling was about. She began to feel a little guilty about what she said to her sister, but at the same time, she felt that her words were somewhat justified.
I guess I was a little hard on 'sis', Sora thought to herself.
"But she can't continue this way! She's gotta respect other peoples' feelings!" she finished transferring her thoughts to her voice.
HONK, HONK!
Sora turned her head and saw that a car had pulled up by the sidewalk. She smiled a little as she saw that her dad was the driver.
"Need a lift, sweetheart?"
Sora smiled a little more, and nodded.
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Out at the warehouse where Matt and his band practiced, the music that came from inside it ceased.
"Okay, guys...that's enough for now. Let's take a break!" Matt hollered.
All of Matt's band members agreed and temporarily left the warehouse to get something to eat. Matt gave his friends some money to buy him something as well.
Matt put down his electric guitar, and suddenly turned his head when one of his band members tapped him on the shoulder.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Uh...not to break your concentration, but your girlfriend's here."
"Huh?! She is?"
Matt's friend pointed out the window, and Matt indeed saw Sora standing there outside. But upon closer observation, he noticed that his "girlfriend" was dressed pretty casually, clad in a yellow T-shirt, blue jeans, and dark gray sneakers.
"Oh! R-right! M...my girlfriend! Uh...thanks!" Matt said nervously as he left the warehouse.
Sora looked at her red watch for the fifth time since she got here. Then she looked back at the parked car with her father at the wheel. She held up her hand to indicate that she only needed five minutes. Mr. Takenouchi understood and nodded. Sora finally exhaled a sigh of relief as she watched Matt walk out of the building to meet her.
"Um...SORA! What, uh...what're YOU...d...doing here?" Matt almost sputtered.
"My sister sorta told me about you and your band, so I just came to say hello," Sora replied, in a friendly voice.
"And that's it?"
"Actually...no. I, uh...wanted to apologize."
"For what?"
"Well, for the way I acted when you hugged me, y'know? I didn't mean to be so cold when I pushed you away."
"Oh, is that all? Well, don't even give it another thought. That's behind me now."
"I just thought it would be polite to apologize anyway."
"I see. Thanks, all the same. Besides, it's written all over your face that you're not romantically interested in me."
"Yeah," Sora said, blushing a little. "Tai's the one I care most about."
"Well, I for one am really glad to see that you two got together. You two are practically made for each other."
"No argument there, but things aren't going as smoothly as they could be."
"How so?"
"First, Tai's mom thinks that I'm cheating on YOU."
"Sora, how could you!?" Matt said, raising his voice and pretending to sound hurt.
The two kids laughed before Sora continued.
"And second...well, everyone thinks that Tai and I were meant for each other...but I'm afraid my sister doesn't agree," Sora said, with the cheerful expression on her face slowly turning into a frown.
"Hmm..." Matt quietly said to him himself, the wheels turning.
Matt thought about Sor and his date with her tonight. It was definitely time for a little chat with her...
Sora turned away from Matt for a moment to take notice of the nearby river outside of the warehouse. The two continued their conversation while walking for a few minutes along the riverside. "Y'know...everyone I meet seems to think that...I'm JUST some copy of Sora. But I'm not."
"Well, hey...I certainly don't see you that way," Matt said.
Sora turned around to face Matt with a dubious look on her pretty face.
"Oh, come on, Matt...can you honestly look at me and say that?"
Matt looked closely at Sora and rethought.
"Okay, okay, you got me. I'll admit that SOME part of me only sees you as...a COPY."
"Man, if people keep calling me that, I might really take offense to that word," Sora joked. "Anyway, I'm NOT a copy. I'm my own person. I may LOOK like Sora, sound like her, and have her memories, but I'm more."
"It sounds like you're, uh...trying to prove that...you're NOT Sora..." Matt said, suspiciously.
Sora began to stammer as she realized that the conversation was taking a detour that that she didn't want to go into.
"Wha...oh, NO! I, uh, I didn't mean it like that! Heh, heh...no, um...what I meant was..."
"Yeah?"
Sora turned a little more serious and looked a bit sad for a moment.
"It's just that...well, I wanna be recognized as an individual...y'know?"
"Uh..." was all that Matt could get out as Sora looked at him with a certain amount of passion in her voice, and a cute fixed (and facial) expression.
Matt couldn't help but blush a little, despite the fact that her passionate features weren't directed towards him. He began to chuckle.
"Wanna let me in on the joke?" Sora asked.
"Nothing...you just reminded me of...HER...when you acted like that," Matt said.
"I rest my case," Sora noted, as she rolled her eyes.
"Aw, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that you looked really cute when you did that."
Sora shot Matt a wry smile and shook her head slowly.
"Don't even try, Matt."
"Huh?"
"You may have romanticized my sister that way, but I already have a TERRIFIC boyfriend."
"Hey, wait a sec! I wasn't trying to...to..." Matt stammered, pointing at Sora.
"ANYTHING you say!" Sora went, cutely smiling and shrugging. "It's clear that you're not the same cold, 'lone wolf' kid that I remember, but let's get one thing clear..."
"What now?"
"When it comes to you and my sister...do whatever you want, okay? That's YOUR business. But try that charm on ME..."
"And?"
"I'll make it simple...keep your paws to yourself."
Matt had no choice but to smile and agree, especially since Sora had grabbed the outside of his hands and was pinching the skin. He interpreted her actions as a sign that this would probably be as close as he would ever get to holding Sora's hands.
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"So what was that all about?" Mr. Takenouchi as he drove Sora away from the warehouse.
"Oh...let's just say that I was just setting up some ground rules with Matt."
Sora's dad took this as a sign that this was something he probably didn't want to know about.
"So, where to now?" he asked.
"Can you drop me off at Mimi's place? I'm gonna chill there for a few hours and then head over to Tai's for a sleepover."
"Sure thing, sweetheart. But you mind if I stopped off at the store? I need to pick up a few things for dinner tonight."
"Go ahead...I'm in no rush."
Mr. Takenouchi pleasantly surprised at how relaxed and reasonable this second daughter of his was. Sor had become something of a nagger and complainer over time, despite the fact that her parents knew that she was a teenager and she was just growing up. But Sora here seemed to be as cheerful and easy-going as she was when she was only eleven.
Sora decided to go into the store with her dad, sensing that he wanted to talk with her some more.
"Y'know, Sora...your mom still wishes that you would come home to live with us," Mr. Takenouchi noted.
"I...I know. I'm just not ready yet," Sora stated.
"Well, don't worry...I talked it over with her, and I think she understands. But she still misses you."
"But...HOW could she possibly have missed me?! Up until a little while ago, she had NO idea that I'd even existed!" Sora asked, very confused.
"Well..." Mr. Takenouchi began to say, while reaching for a can of sauce on a high shelf, "...you see when your mother and I got married, she really wanted kids."
"And?"
"Y'see...your mother and I, uh...TRIED to have children, but...we...didn't have much luck. Mom was VERY disappointed, and finally after a few years...YOU were born. She may never have shown it, but she was extremely protective of you, wanted to make sure that one way or another...she would never lose you."
Sora's eyes widened a bit at this revelation, since her father was revealing a side of her mother's that Sora never knew existed.
"Umm...go on."
"Anyway...after our first child, your mom felt that she couldn't deal with the possibility that she might never have another kid. But when you came to visit us, she told me in private that she was overjoyed that we now had TWO daughters."
"Okay..."
"And the reason she was so eager to meet you was that...well, somehow she knew that you'd be pretty different from our 'other' daughter, and...she told me that she felt it was really important to treat you fairly...not just a double of our kid, but as an individual."
The last word that came out of Mr. Takenouchi's mouth hit Sora hard. How ironic that one of the things that she desired most – to be treated like a separate person – came from her mother. Sora's attitude towards her would slowly, but surely do a one-eighty.
Wow, Sora thought. I never imagined Mom being described like that. She wanted children that badly? And here I thought she was my worst nightmare come to life...
Not much was said from either Sora or her dad the rest of the time they were at the store. But the conversation picked back up inside the car, as well as the mood of the talking, especially since they began to chat about Sora's relationship with Tai.
Within minutes, Mr. Takenouchi dropped off Sora at Mimi's apartment. Sora said goodbye to her dad, and she even "let" him kiss her goodbye on the forehead before she exited the car.
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The next few hours passed by pretty fast for Sora, and before she knew it, she was already at Tai's house having dinner with the Kamiya family. She was welcomed with open arms by all of them, and even their pet cat, Miko.
So much was said during the meal. Although the conversation seemed pretty normal, it would take a miracle to read in between and behind was what being said. That is, to differentiate between what was being said and what was REALLY being said.
After dinner, Sora volunteered to help Kari and Mr. Kamiya with the dishes. Tai's mom was going to help too, but before she did, she took Tai aside to talk to him.
"Tai...listen, I...I've seen the way you and Sora have been acting around each other and it worries me."
"Mom, what are you talking about?"
"The way Sora's behaving towards you...I...well, I..."
Mrs. Kamiya sighed, closed her eyes, and placed her hand against her forehead before speaking again.
"I'm just very concerned. Now, first of all...I know that Sora loves you very much. Don't...don't try to deny it, sweetie. But...I have to ask you something, and I think you know what it is."
Tai had a sneaking suspicion in the back of his head that he knew what she was going to ask. And he'd be right.
"Tai, are you and Sora...seeing each other? I mean...behind Matt's back?"
Mrs. Kamiya knew that normally, Sora and Tai were smart kids and definitely knew the difference between right and wrong. Still...when you're in love, that emotion can make you do crazy things, and the ethics of the right deeds and wrong deeds become compromised.
Tai smiled and shook his head.
"No, we aren't, Mom. And believe me, that IS the truth."
"All right," Mrs. Kamiya sighed. "I trust you and Sora."
"Look, if you really need a explanation, then just call up Sora's mom...she'll explain everything to you."
"Okay, honey. I just don't want to see you do the wrong thing," Tai's mom said before giving her son a hug.
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In another apartment building, Izzy Izumi, the Digidestined of Knowledge, still had his eyes glued to his yellow laptop. On occasion, the signal inside Etemon's pyramid that he was searching for would appear only for a brief moment, and then it would be gone.
The only difference this time...was that the signal WASN'T going away. In fact, the energy signal began to GROW...almost as if it was calling out to Izzy, whom found this all very strange. It almost seemed like the signal had a mind of its own, and WANTED to be investigated.
This time, Izzy AND the signal were present at the same time, and staring at each other. But after so many hours (well, maybe not HOURS) of slipping in and out of consciousness in front of his laptop, he was determined NOT to let the signal slip through his fingers so easily this time around.
Izzy began typing furiously on the laptop's built in keyboard, and set up a program to record the patterns and fluctuations that the energy signature was emitting. The teenage boy smiled confidently, thinking that it wouldn't be long now before this case would be cracked.
"Gotcha now," Izzy almost whispered at the computer screen.
--------------------------------------------
"Hey, where's Sora?" Kari asked as she passed out bowls of ice cream to everyone sitting at the table.
Tai looked around and saw that Sora was missing.
"Hmm...that's strange. She was just here. Maybe she's in my room," Tai said.
The fifteen year-old knocked on his bedroom door, but there was no answer. So he tugged at the doorknob and peeked inside the room.
He immediately saw a bright light in the room, and knew that it had to have been his computer. Peeking into the room further he saw Sora sitting at the desk where the computer was. But then his eyes narrowed when he got a look at Sora.
She just sat there at the computer, with what looked like a blank stare, and glassy-looking eyes to match. True, it may have been a trick of the light reflecting off of Sora's face, but there was something about the situation that he just couldn't-
"Tai, honey?" Tai's mom yelled, breaking his concentration.
"Yeah, Mom?" he hollered back, turning his head back towards his family.
"Tell Sora to come get her dessert."
Tai nodded and pushed the door open all the way and called for Sora. She quickly broke out of her "trance" and her finger dashed over to the switch to turn off the computer. Tai was a little frustrated that he wasn't able to get a look at whatever Sora had been staring at on the computer screen.
Sora quickly turned her head and looked at Tai, feeling half-panicky.
"Something wrong, Tai?" she asked rather fast.
"Umm...no, my mom just wanted to tell you that dessert's ready."
"Oh, great! Ice cream?"
"Yep."
"Awesome! I'm there!" Sora exclaimed as she happily whizzed past Tai and headed back to the table.
Tai looked at Sora and sighed, putting one hand on his hip and exhaling deeply. Anyone could have seen at that moment that he was not a happy camper.
Man, he thought. What is UP with her?!
After dessert, Tai's parents decided to turn in early, and Kari went back to her room to chat with T.K. over the Internet. The two remaining individuals decided to stay up like they used to and play games, and watching late-night movies on the television.
"Ah, this is a lousy movie, Tai. Turn it off, will ya?" Sora complained. "Sure," Tai shrugged as he reached for the remote control and pressed the "POWER" button. "But why?"
"Well," Sora purred as she curled up to Tai on the couch, "Everyone else is gone...we got some real privacy now."
"I can see our sleepovers will be real different from now on," Tai noted.
Sora giggled, knowing that Tai couldn't have been more right. Tai laughed too until he noticed that there was something attached around her neck, but he immediately figured it out what it was.
"Hey, Sora...is that your crest?" he asked, pointing.
"Huh? Oh, uh...yeah."
"Can I see it?"
"Sure," Sora said casually, removing the pendant from her neck, and handing it to Tai.
Tai stared intently at the tag and the crest inserted inside it. "Wow," was all that he could say.
"Wow?"
"It's just that...I haven't seen the crests in a long time."
Sora was pretty curious at what Tai meant, so their conversation turned to their adventures in the Digital World. Similar to their first date, Sora was informed about just how much she missed while she traveled the Digital World by herself. Only Tai went more in-depth this time, including his little sister becoming the Digidestined of Light, and the temporary loss of their crests during their final battle in the Digiworld against the mighty Apocalymon.
Tai was a little afraid that the topic they were discussing had drifted far from the little romantic mood that Sora had in mind, but apparently she didn't seem to care much. In fact, she seemed very interested in what Tai had to say. She became extremely interested when Tai noted how powerful their crests proved to be and how they had the power to digivolve their digimon even further into their "ultimate" forms.
"Well..." Sora began to say, taking back her crest, "...looks like I'm gonna hafta teach Birdramon some new tricks! I hope she digivolves into something awesome!"
"Oh, I don't think you gotta worry about that..." Tai said, half-grinning. "Hey...just outta curiosity, Sora...has you crest ever glowed?"
"Glowed?" Sora asked, making sure she heard right.
"Yeah, that a sure sign that your 'champion' level digimon is ready to digivolve again. So...has it ever glowed?"
Sora's expression turned a little sad.
"Umm...actually, no," she said in a low voice.
"Oh...sorry," Tai said, putting a comforting arm around his girlfriend. "Let me guess...you're worried that possibly it's because you're not sure if you really know what love is...right?"
Sora gave a small gasp and stared at Tai with wide eyes.
"HOW...how did you-"
"Well...truth be told, your sister went through the very same thing about four years ago. She was really upset about it."
Sora started to think about her past conversation with Sor. And Sora remembered how she said that her sister that wasn't at all deserving of the Crest of Love. Sora meant it when she said she was worthier of it than Sor would ever be! And in due time, she would do her best to prove it!
"I'm no crybaby!" Sora declared, putting her arms around Tai's neck. "Birdramon will digivolve when the time is right, and hopefully...when it counts!"
"YOU'RE certainly handling this better than your sister was," Tai observed.
"Yep! I can be patient!" Sora said, turning cheerful again. "So what? My crest just turned out to be a late bloomer!"
Yeah, Tai darkly thought. Unless...it's NOT a real crest...
--------------------------------------------
"...d that all it meant was one just ONE more go! And the dude couldn't believe it! Whatta slacker!
Matt chuckled to himself over the dinner table, at his little humorous story, while Sor just picked at her food, somewhat sadly.
Her brain was going in and out of her cognizance of the situation at hand. She and her boyfriend, Matt, were out on a dinner date.
"...oring you?" was the last bit of talk that entered Sor's ears and fully registered inside her head.
"Wha...what?" went Sor, becoming more alert.
"I asked if I was boring you?" Matt asked.
"I...uh..." Sor began to say.
"I mean, you've been almost demanding that we have a nice, peaceful dinner date for a while, and now that we're finally here, you zone out on me," Matt noted, not as annoyed as he should have been.
"Oh...! I...I'm REALLY sorry, Matt!" Sor sputtered. "I...I have...o-other things on my mind."
"Well, that much was obvious," Matt said, smiling at Sor.
Reaching out to touch Sor's hand, Matt did his best to comfort her and reestablish the romantic setting.
"I'm sorry," she said again. "You were really sweet to listen to me and take me out to this nice place for dinner...I'm also sorry that I'm not being better company."
Sor tried her hardest to enjoy the rest of her dinner and did her best to talk with Matt and to try not think about Tai and Sora, but it wasn't easy. Matt, however, was a little more sympathetic and told her to freely speak her mind.
"Matt?"
"Yeah, Sor?"
"Am I...different?"
"What do you mean?"
"Do I seem...y'know...DIFFERENT?"
"Nah..." Matt said, trying to sound comforting again. "You've always been the same..."
Sor looked at Matt with a dubious look on her pretty face, similar to the way Sora did earlier.
"Oh, come on, Matt...can you honestly look at me and say that?"
Matt stared hard at Sor, and realized that one of the most important things in a relationship...was honesty.
"Okay, Sor. The truth is that...you HAVE changed...a LOT."
"How?" asked Sor, desperately wanting to know.
"Well, let's see..." Matt said, preparing to vocally unleash the mental list that was being written.
Sor nodded.
"Well, you're older...you, uh...you're pretty popular in school, you get along much better with your parents than you used to...umm...you're more into wearing makeup, jewelry and dresses, you stopped playing soccer and switched over to tennis, you hang more with those girl 'groupies' of yours than the Digidestined, and..."
Matt really didn't wish to point out the last part, but Sor asked him to be honest, and that's just what he was going to do.
"And?" Sor pushed.
"And, uh...jeez, this is hard to say..."
Matt was forced to take a deep breath for finishing his sentence.
"...AND...you're in love with me...and NOT...with Tai."
Sor's eyes widened at this undeniable piece of truth.
"I mean, let's face it, Sor...you and Tai had more compatibility than any two kids I've ever seen, and you've changed considerably. No offense, but I'm surprised that Tai still recognizes you. At times you seem like a completely different person."
Maybe Matt's right, Sor thought. All signs having been pointing to this. Maybe the problem's not with Tai or my sister...maybe it's...me.
"Thanks, Matt...you've really been a big help through all this," Sor said, smiling. "And I'm sorry again for being such a pain...to you and everyone else."
"It's cool, Sor."
"How do you put up with me?" Sora sighed, still smiling a little.
Matt took a deep breath.
"Believe me...it AIN'T easy, that's for sure..."
The couple laughed a bit, and reached forward to kiss each other. But before they could say anything else...
RRRRRIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!
"One sec," Matt said as he reached for the cellular phone in the pocket of his coat that had been hanging on the chair he was sitting at.
"Yeah, this is Matt," he said.
Sora looked at Matt suspiciously as he talked over the phone.
"Oh, hi! Yeah...no, no...Sor and I are just having some dinner...uh, huh...y- you did?...you what?...when?...and where di-...tomorrow?...around the morning?...you bet!...and what about...yes, but...everyone?...oh, right...okay, then...yeah, you can bet we'll be there!...okay, later...you, too! Bye!"
"Who was that, Matt?" Sor asked. "That conversation sounded pretty serious."
"More than you think, Sor. That was Izzy."
"Oh? What did he have to say?"
"Brace yourself, Sor...he had some pretty heavy news..."
--------------------------------------------
RRRRRIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!
Tai's thoughts were interrupted for the umpteenth time as he reached for the ringing telephone as quickly as he could, so as not to wake up his parents.
"Kamiya residence," he said as he picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Tai?! This is Izzy!"
"Yeah? What's going on?"
"I'm sorry to call you up this late, but what hafta say couldn't wait!"
"You got my attention," Tai said casually.
"Listen carefully...the energy signal I picked up in the Digital World is back, and this time it isn't fading. I'm going to round up the others, and schedule a 'visit' back to Etemon's old home. And make sure to bring along the 'other' Sora, as well."
"Why?"
"Because there's also a chance that the old computer's have files on it that can TRULY explain where Sora came from...well, THIS one I mean."
"Ah...I see..." Tai said, taking a quick glance at Sora who had her back turned. "So you think that the signal is coming from the pyramid's computer?"
"Possibly. Do you understand how crucial this is? This could be Sora's chance to have all of her questions answered."
"Yeah, I got it," Tai said in a low voice, which turned into a mutter. "Maybe I can have MY questions answered, too."
"What was that?" Izzy asked.
"Nothing, just thinking out loud."
"Anyway, when do you want us there?"
"Tomorrow. Early. Make sure you tell Kari, too."
"Oh, don't worry about that...I will."
"Okay...anyway, I'll call you in the morning for the details."
"Great...thanks, Izzy. G'night."
"Goodnight, Tai."
"Who was that, Tai?" Sora asked as Tai hung up the phone. "That conversation sounded serious."
"More than you might think, Sora. That was Izzy."
"Oh? What did he have to say?"
"He wants us to join him to go back to Etemon's pyramid tomorrow. He said something about its computer, and its data files. It might have some info on where you actually came from."
Sora's eyes narrowed until she was almost squinting.
"Really..." she said, in a near-cold tone.
"Really. And everyone else will be there."
"I see..." Sora said as she turned away from Tai. Half of her mouth curled into a grin.
"Yep...he wants us there, bright and early...or something like that."
"Perfect," she whispered.
"What was that?" Tai asked.
Sora paused for a moment and then turned back to Tai with a cheerful look on her pretty face.
"I said, that'll be perfect! Maybe I'll get to see Biyomon!"
"Uh...yeah, maybe..." Tai said, scratching his head. "Excuse me for a sec...I gotta tell Kari."
"Sure," Sora said, nodding.
But as Tai turned to go, Sora grabbed him by the arm and pulled him towards her. She closed her eyes as she smushed her lips against Tai's yet again.
"Hey...don't be gone too long. Otherwise I'll hafta take my half of this sleepover someone else."
"If you do, make sure it's not to wherever Matt is," Tai said, smiling now, too.
"Never happen," Sora assured Tai. "Now go on."
Tai smiled as he walked into his room (where Kari was) and closed the door behind him...
...and Sora smiled to herself after the door was fully shut. Her eyes narrowed as she seemed to glare at the door that had been opened and closed by the boy who had just entered through it.
"This little expedition may be more complicated than you think, Tai," she said quietly. "But then, you haven't always thought ahead the whole way, have you?"
Sora took the crest from around her neck and looked at it with something enigmatic in mind.
"Tomorrow may turn out to be quite a day."
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TO BE CONTINUED... (YEP, AGAIN)
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Second Chances For Sora - Chapter 13
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"Sora, I'm not sure how much more of this I can take!" Tai wailed as he ran down a path through a park.
The girl jogging in front of him shot him a glance and just smirked.
"Gimme a break, Tai! Are you a man or not!? You better pick up the pace or your name's Mud!"
"In a second, you can name me DEAD! 'Cause this jogging is killing me!"
"All right let's take a break for a second!" Sora said reluctantly. Tai slumped down on a nearby bench, while Sora just continued to jog in place.
Tai eyed Sora rather suspiciously, partially from what had transpired the night before. Seeing Sora's face for that brief instant on his computer screen had REALLY freaked him out. Additionally, he found himself mentally questioning the origin of where she got all this near-limitless supply of energy.
Then again, it was before seven in the morning. Tai COULD have been just overreacting this time around.
"Listen, Tai...the final soccer match to win the title is in just a few days. THREE to be exact! We gotta be ready and willing to take them down!"
"I suppose next, you're gonna tell me that this is war!"
"Weeeell...I wouldn't go THAT far..."
"BUT?"
"But you said yourself that these guys are absolute terrors on the field. They shoot first and ask questions later...?"
Tai chuckled a little, being that he was slightly short of breath. "Something like that."
"C'mon, wimp!" Sora enthusiastically exclaimed. "This is the THIRD time you've stopped! We still have a ways to go before we're ready!"
"You really got your heart set on this, huh?"
Sora stopped jogging in place, but leaned a little on the bench Tai was sitting on.
"Well, it's not just that, Tai. Aside from the last soccer match the two of us were in...I, uh..."
"What?"
"Well, back when I was on the girls' soccer team, we also made it to the finals...and they were really depending on me. But when Mom stopped me from playing...they lost the match without me to help them. I vowed never to let that happen again, no matter what."
Tai slowly nodded as he remembered. During those times, Sora and Tai were on separate soccer teams. But it had become something of a tradition to watch each other's game, and Tai had come. He was surprised to see that Sora wasn't there, bur decided to watch the game anyway. Then he began to realize the great significance of Sora's words.
"I remember now," Tai said, "I found you, dripping wet..."
--------------------------------------------
FOUR YEARS AGO...
"Yes, yes...I understand. I'll keep my eyes open, but let's hope you can get a hold of her soon. It looks like rain."
Mrs. Kamiya hung up the phone and suddenly turned her head as she heard the door open.
"Tai, thank goodness! The rain was just starting up! So, how did Sora's soccer game go?"
"Actually, she wasn't there! She didn't show up for the entire game! And her team LOST, to boot!" Tai almost panicked.
"She wasn't there?! But I just talked to her mother over the phone! She said that Sora ran off to the game anyway!"
"Well, she STILL didn't show up! Right after the game was over, I ran off to find her!
"Oh, dear! Then...where IS Sora?!"
"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out!" Tai nearly yelled, turning back to the front door and grabbing an umbrella.
"Tai, just where do you think you're going?!"
"Where else? I'm going out to find Sora!"
"But sweetie...! It's really starting to come down! Sora could be out there all drenched!"
"All the more reason to find her!" Tai declared dashing out the door before his mom could say another word.
Tai has been searching the street for almost fifteen minutes, though it seemed like forever to him. He was tired of running, but at least he could keep dry, thanks to the giant umbrella he was using. Tai had gone pretty far, but he wasn't about to give up. It was as if some higher power was almost forcibly drawing him out here and compelling him to stay outdoors until he found who he was looking for. And just then...
...Tai found her.
Originally, Tai had expected to find Sora sitting on a bench or rock. But she was walking instead. Drenched by the rain. Covered in flood from the sky. Soaked in tears from the heavens, which only served to amplify her own. Where she was walking to, she didn't know, nor did she care. All that was going through her mind was that she just had to keep moving.
"SORA!!!" Tai yelled from behind her.
Sora didn't turn her head. She either didn't hear him or didn't care to listen.
Tai never liked forcing himself on someone, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him. He rushed up to his best friend from behind and turned her to face him. Sora didn't even try to fight him off. Yet another bad sign. Tai felt a shiver up his spine as she stared back at him with a hollow look in her eyes.
Then the questions came. Tai babbled at least a dozen questions. They were spilling out of his mouth faster than he could think them up, so many of the questions repeated themselves. Sora had felt so traumatized from the occurrences a couple of hours before.
Even if this mental status was only temporary, Sora already acknowledged in the back of her mind that this was something that would imbed itself into her mind, and this memory could never hope to be removed, no matter how hard she tried to pull it out.
Mrs. Kamiya was truly at a loss for words when Tai brought Sora back to his apartment. Tai's mother called up Sora's mom, and told her that her daughter was safe and sound. Since it had already gotten late, Mrs. Kamiya thought it might be best for Sora to spend the night.
The girl's soccer uniform was soaked from the rain, so Mrs. Kamiya took it to be washed while Sora engaged in a hot bath. The 11 year-old girl didn't say anything, nor did she display much emotion. Purely out of concern, Tai peaked in to get a look at Sora's face. It was the same as when he found her.
Still a blank slate.
Sora had a set of clean clothes in her soccer bag, but she decided to save those for tomorrow, so she borrowed some of Tai's clothes to sleep in. Still feeling sorry for her, Tai let her sleep in his bed. By now, the Kamiya family was just starting have dinner, but Sora was too tired and depressed to eat. Still, Tai stepped into his room, and brought Sora a tray of warm soup to have. She had already gotten under the covers of Tai bed, but it seemed she wanted to get something into her system. Tai watched with some surprise as Sora consumed her soup rather quickly, but at the same time, she kept being quiet.
Not once leaving her side while she ate, Tai asked about three or four times what was wrong, but Sora was as silent as ever. He scratched his head and adjusted the goggles still fastened around his head and sighed. Sora silently handed Tai back the tray and he turned to go but just then-
"Tai..."
The young boy whipped his head around and looked at Sora. Her voice was a faint whisper, but it was more than enough to grab Tai's attention. He placed the tray down and walked back to Sora, kneeling at her side.
"Sora..." he nearly whispered back, "What's wrong?"
Tai almost gasped when he got a look at Sora's face. Her tears were already starting and she was ready to cry. And cry she did. She wailed and sobbed, throwing her arms around Tai, who turned a little red. He closed his eyes halfway and hugged her back, doing his best to comfort her.
Later Sora would reveal everything that had occurred from her point of view, but for now...a pair of arms to hold and keep her safe in her small pocket of the universe was all that Sora needed for now.
--------------------------------------------
"Sorry, Sora..." Tai said. "I guess I forgot...until we got paired up on the same soccer team, you had never won a championship title before."
Sora nodded, a little sad and angry at the memory.
"I was so close to winning...so close, and yet so far."
Tai knew what Sora needed was some good ol' comforting, so while she sat down on a park bench, he leaned forward a bit, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind. Sora was taken aback for a moment.
"Whoa, HEY...I mean...uh, Tai? Excuse me, I-" Sora stammered, tuning red.
Looking back, Sora realized that while she was glad that the two of them had gotten together, this passionate part of Tai was something new that she hadn't exactly gotten used to yet...not that she was complaining, of course.
"What's wrong?" Tai asked softly, closing his eyes.
"H-hey, we sh-shouldn't be getting all mushy while we're training...!"
Tai began to smile and only tightened his grip around his girlfriend more.
"I don't care," he sighed.
"Uhhh..." Sora went, thinking for a moment.
She realized that she was talking nonsense, and decided to give in. She closed her eyes, as well, and smiled as she held onto Tai's arms, which were firmly wrapped around her like a ribbon.
"Mmm..." she sighed.
--------------------------------------------
Sora and Tai parted soon thereafter, and agreed on when they should meet up back at Tai's apartment. Unfortunately, Sora was running low on clean clothes to wear, so she decided to quickly jog back to her "old" home, and "borrow" some more. Afterwards, she would head back to Mimi's, and chill until the afternoon, which was when Tai and Sora would hold their sleepover.
It was still pretty early in the morning when Sora got back to her old apartment, and Mrs. Takenouchi had gotten out of bed barely a half-hour ago. "Sor", her "first" child was already in the kitchen, and her mother was pleased to see that her daughter had already made some coffee.
"Up early too, huh?" Sor asked her mother.
"Yep..." Mrs. Takenouchi replied.
Sor poured some coffee for her mom, and the two of them sat down at the table, slowly drinking the beverage, full of caffeine to wake the two females up. Sor had gotten a little sluggish, and wanted to take a shower, but decided to save it for the afternoon, since she had a date with Matt that night.
KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!
"I'll get it, Mom," Sor said as she got up.
Sor opened up the door to have her eyes greet the living mirror that was her sister. Sor would have been surprised or something like that, had she not woken up early. She was still pretty groggy, and was too tired to deal with her twin sister right now.
Sor let her sister in, and Mrs. Takenouchi was a little more alert when she saw her other daughter walk in.
"OH! H-hello, dear! I wasn't expecting to see you here this early," she almost stammered, somewhat embarrassed that she was still in her bathrobe (and Sor in her pajamas), while Sora was fully dressed.
Apparently, THIS Sora was a real early bird.
Then again, she recalled that Sora used to be an early bird when she was a few years younger. Guess old habits die hard...or not at all, especially if you're the mother of a double of your only daughter who spent the last four years on her own without any help or human contact.
(Boy, what a mind job!)
"I wasn't expecting to see you at ALL," Sor added.
"Oh, honey...don't tease now!" Mrs. Takenouchi gently scolded. "So, what brings you here?"
"Well, I was just, ah...going to spend the night at Tai's...you know...a sleepover. And I just wanted to know if I could borrow some of your clothes, sis?" Sora asked, turning to her sister.
Sora had her back turned until she heard the words "Tai" and "sleepover" come out of her sister's mouth.
"Haven't you 'borrowed' enough from me?" Sor asked, slightly annoyed.
Sora knew in the back of her head that her twin meant that she was referring to more than just borrowing clothes. But she was too much in a cheerful mood to be down right now.
"Geez, what bug flew up YOUR pants and bit you?!" Sora smirked.
Sor rolled her eyes, and led Sora into her room. Mrs. Takenouchi watched all this and lightly chuckled, seeing as how her two daughters were acting like real sisters.
"So, what do you want? A dress? High heel shoes? Jewelry and makeup?" Sor asked.
"Yeah, right! I'd sooner jump out a window than wear that stuff!" Sora laughed.
Aside from her tag and Crest of Love that she kept from her travels in the Digital World, Sora didn't own any other jewelry or makeup, nor did she want to.
"Actually, I just needed a few more pairs of socks, undergarments, jeans, T- shirts..."
"Oh," Sora said, slightly surprised. "I have plenty more pairs of those that I don't need."
"Really?"
"Really. I keep a few pairs for myself, but I wear skirts and dresses more often, especially since I go out on dates with Matt. So...anyway, if you want them, then they're all yours. Mom said that she'd just give them away if I didn't wear them. She didn't want to see them to go waste."
"Oh...well, thanks!" exclaimed Sora as she gathered up what she needed into a small duffel bag. "Hey, speaking of Matt, he has a band now, right?"
"That's right. The Teenage Wolves."
"Interesting. Are they any good?"
"Check 'em out and see for yourself. They practice at that big, abandoned warehouse just outside of the town."
"Oh, yeah...I think I've seen it."
By now, Sora was all packed up and ready to go. But before she left the bedroom, Sor stopped her by grabbing her arm.
"Did we forget something?" she asked, slightly annoyed.
"Um, no but..."
"But what?"
"Well, I...you don't...really like me, do you?"
Sora looked at her double with wide eyes. She was amazed that she asked her this question, but at the same time, her brain was still trying to grasp with the idea that she was – literally – talking to herself. There was also no doubt in her mind that Sor was also thinking these same thoughts.
Taking a deep breath, Sora stared at her twin for a long, hard moment before finally answering.
"Well, I'll say this much...I'd be lying if I said I hated you. But I gotta admit...you're not exactly my favorite right now...and your definitely a few notches away from...well...just don't go there."
"Is...is Tai everything...y'know...everything you expected?"
"If you mean romantically, then yeah! Everything and more."
"You're really lucky to have each other."
"From the way he was acting when he visited me for the first time at Mimi's, I'd say I arrived in the nick of time. Y'know, he told me that he'd almost given up hope on you...it's refreshing to know that at least one of...US didn't," Sora stated, sounding a little angry.
"What's THAT supposed to mean?" Sor snapped.
"Gee, and here I thought you lost half of your brain! Prove me wrong and figure it out for yourself!"
"Huh?!"
"You BROKE Tai's heart! Tai Kamiya...your...OUR...BEST FRIEND!"
"Hey, he had his opportunity!"
"Yeah, right! How do you figure? You didn't even give him a chance!"
"I did too! I waited for him for FOUR years and what did it get me!? Nothing but heartbreak, pain, impatience, and frustration! I dropped several subtle or obvious hints as to how I felt, and the best response I got was that of a grain of sand!"
"HEARTBREAK?! I find it hard to believe that you even know the meaning of the word! Whatever kinda hints you gave Tai, did you ever stop to think that a simple 'I love you' would be more than enough to catch his attention?!"
Sor stopped talking for a moment and thought about it. It was true...during that time, she tried to express how she felt to Tai in SO many ways...EXCEPT for the direct approach. She felt so amazed that she hadn't thought of it, and that just made her feel even more ashamed. But she did her best to hide what she was feeling for the moment.
"Even when he and I are together," Sora continued, "I can FEEL his pain! And that's just for starters! You hurt a lot of other people too!"
"Hey, now that's going too far!"
"IS it? Ever think about how Tai's pain affected his sister, Kari? Or how much that made T.K. worry? How about Mimi, as well?"
"MIMI?!" Sor nearly screeched. "What the heck does SHE hafta do with all this!?!"
"I'll say it again, idiot! You're supposed to be smart! Figure it out!"
The two Soras glared at each other for a few seconds, until Sor decided to speak up, albeit a little hesitantly.
"Look, you just...you just don't understand. What happened between me and Tai was complicated-"
"Oh, I understand, all right. You don't have your way with Tai, so you just decide that the only way to get him back is with downright revenge, cutting yourself off from him as much as possible!"
"STOP! You're twisting around the truth!"
"So you don't deny it?"
"I...I..."
"WELL?"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"
In the kitchen, Mrs. Takenouchi heard this and the shouting was definitely potent, waking her out of her half-asleep state. She decided not to get herself involved in their discussion unless it was absolutely necessary.
"Just...just GO...go already, will you!?!" Sora stammered, turning away from her double.
Sora walked around to face her sister once more, despite the fact that Sor had her head lowered. And the sound of heavy panting that Sor was emitting didn't help soften the situation one bit.
"Y'know, I'm almost surprised that Tai still considers you one of his buddies. You ought to be ashamed to call yourself his friend..." Sora grimly whispered in a...VERY eerie voice that made Sor a little suspicious.
But she said nothing.
Sora turned to leave, but she came back to face Sor one more time.
"By the way..." she said. She paused a bit before continuing to talk, causing Sor to look up.
Sor watched Sora use her free hand to reach under the collar of her yellow T-shirt.
"What?" Sor whispered in a semi-"defeated" voice.
Sora removed the piece of "jewelry" from around her neck and dangled it in front of Sora's eyes, causing them to widen. And that's not too surprising, considering the fact that – technically – Sor had lost the item that was presented in front of her.
It was the Crest of Love.
"I deserve this more than you," Sora said firmly.
Sor whipped up her head in frustration, and a couple of angry tears began to seep down her cheeks. Her sister leaned her face forward until their eyes were locked in place with each other. Sor felt an extremely uncomfortable chill run up her spine when she heard the next few words tumble out of her double's mouth.
"One more thing. We may be the same person...but I'm more Sora Takenouchi than you'll EVER be."
Sora immediately left the apartment, before Mrs. Takenouchi could stop her to explain what all the yelling was about. She began to feel a little guilty about what she said to her sister, but at the same time, she felt that her words were somewhat justified.
I guess I was a little hard on 'sis', Sora thought to herself.
"But she can't continue this way! She's gotta respect other peoples' feelings!" she finished transferring her thoughts to her voice.
HONK, HONK!
Sora turned her head and saw that a car had pulled up by the sidewalk. She smiled a little as she saw that her dad was the driver.
"Need a lift, sweetheart?"
Sora smiled a little more, and nodded.
--------------------------------------------
Out at the warehouse where Matt and his band practiced, the music that came from inside it ceased.
"Okay, guys...that's enough for now. Let's take a break!" Matt hollered.
All of Matt's band members agreed and temporarily left the warehouse to get something to eat. Matt gave his friends some money to buy him something as well.
Matt put down his electric guitar, and suddenly turned his head when one of his band members tapped him on the shoulder.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Uh...not to break your concentration, but your girlfriend's here."
"Huh?! She is?"
Matt's friend pointed out the window, and Matt indeed saw Sora standing there outside. But upon closer observation, he noticed that his "girlfriend" was dressed pretty casually, clad in a yellow T-shirt, blue jeans, and dark gray sneakers.
"Oh! R-right! M...my girlfriend! Uh...thanks!" Matt said nervously as he left the warehouse.
Sora looked at her red watch for the fifth time since she got here. Then she looked back at the parked car with her father at the wheel. She held up her hand to indicate that she only needed five minutes. Mr. Takenouchi understood and nodded. Sora finally exhaled a sigh of relief as she watched Matt walk out of the building to meet her.
"Um...SORA! What, uh...what're YOU...d...doing here?" Matt almost sputtered.
"My sister sorta told me about you and your band, so I just came to say hello," Sora replied, in a friendly voice.
"And that's it?"
"Actually...no. I, uh...wanted to apologize."
"For what?"
"Well, for the way I acted when you hugged me, y'know? I didn't mean to be so cold when I pushed you away."
"Oh, is that all? Well, don't even give it another thought. That's behind me now."
"I just thought it would be polite to apologize anyway."
"I see. Thanks, all the same. Besides, it's written all over your face that you're not romantically interested in me."
"Yeah," Sora said, blushing a little. "Tai's the one I care most about."
"Well, I for one am really glad to see that you two got together. You two are practically made for each other."
"No argument there, but things aren't going as smoothly as they could be."
"How so?"
"First, Tai's mom thinks that I'm cheating on YOU."
"Sora, how could you!?" Matt said, raising his voice and pretending to sound hurt.
The two kids laughed before Sora continued.
"And second...well, everyone thinks that Tai and I were meant for each other...but I'm afraid my sister doesn't agree," Sora said, with the cheerful expression on her face slowly turning into a frown.
"Hmm..." Matt quietly said to him himself, the wheels turning.
Matt thought about Sor and his date with her tonight. It was definitely time for a little chat with her...
Sora turned away from Matt for a moment to take notice of the nearby river outside of the warehouse. The two continued their conversation while walking for a few minutes along the riverside. "Y'know...everyone I meet seems to think that...I'm JUST some copy of Sora. But I'm not."
"Well, hey...I certainly don't see you that way," Matt said.
Sora turned around to face Matt with a dubious look on her pretty face.
"Oh, come on, Matt...can you honestly look at me and say that?"
Matt looked closely at Sora and rethought.
"Okay, okay, you got me. I'll admit that SOME part of me only sees you as...a COPY."
"Man, if people keep calling me that, I might really take offense to that word," Sora joked. "Anyway, I'm NOT a copy. I'm my own person. I may LOOK like Sora, sound like her, and have her memories, but I'm more."
"It sounds like you're, uh...trying to prove that...you're NOT Sora..." Matt said, suspiciously.
Sora began to stammer as she realized that the conversation was taking a detour that that she didn't want to go into.
"Wha...oh, NO! I, uh, I didn't mean it like that! Heh, heh...no, um...what I meant was..."
"Yeah?"
Sora turned a little more serious and looked a bit sad for a moment.
"It's just that...well, I wanna be recognized as an individual...y'know?"
"Uh..." was all that Matt could get out as Sora looked at him with a certain amount of passion in her voice, and a cute fixed (and facial) expression.
Matt couldn't help but blush a little, despite the fact that her passionate features weren't directed towards him. He began to chuckle.
"Wanna let me in on the joke?" Sora asked.
"Nothing...you just reminded me of...HER...when you acted like that," Matt said.
"I rest my case," Sora noted, as she rolled her eyes.
"Aw, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that you looked really cute when you did that."
Sora shot Matt a wry smile and shook her head slowly.
"Don't even try, Matt."
"Huh?"
"You may have romanticized my sister that way, but I already have a TERRIFIC boyfriend."
"Hey, wait a sec! I wasn't trying to...to..." Matt stammered, pointing at Sora.
"ANYTHING you say!" Sora went, cutely smiling and shrugging. "It's clear that you're not the same cold, 'lone wolf' kid that I remember, but let's get one thing clear..."
"What now?"
"When it comes to you and my sister...do whatever you want, okay? That's YOUR business. But try that charm on ME..."
"And?"
"I'll make it simple...keep your paws to yourself."
Matt had no choice but to smile and agree, especially since Sora had grabbed the outside of his hands and was pinching the skin. He interpreted her actions as a sign that this would probably be as close as he would ever get to holding Sora's hands.
--------------------------------------------
"So what was that all about?" Mr. Takenouchi as he drove Sora away from the warehouse.
"Oh...let's just say that I was just setting up some ground rules with Matt."
Sora's dad took this as a sign that this was something he probably didn't want to know about.
"So, where to now?" he asked.
"Can you drop me off at Mimi's place? I'm gonna chill there for a few hours and then head over to Tai's for a sleepover."
"Sure thing, sweetheart. But you mind if I stopped off at the store? I need to pick up a few things for dinner tonight."
"Go ahead...I'm in no rush."
Mr. Takenouchi pleasantly surprised at how relaxed and reasonable this second daughter of his was. Sor had become something of a nagger and complainer over time, despite the fact that her parents knew that she was a teenager and she was just growing up. But Sora here seemed to be as cheerful and easy-going as she was when she was only eleven.
Sora decided to go into the store with her dad, sensing that he wanted to talk with her some more.
"Y'know, Sora...your mom still wishes that you would come home to live with us," Mr. Takenouchi noted.
"I...I know. I'm just not ready yet," Sora stated.
"Well, don't worry...I talked it over with her, and I think she understands. But she still misses you."
"But...HOW could she possibly have missed me?! Up until a little while ago, she had NO idea that I'd even existed!" Sora asked, very confused.
"Well..." Mr. Takenouchi began to say, while reaching for a can of sauce on a high shelf, "...you see when your mother and I got married, she really wanted kids."
"And?"
"Y'see...your mother and I, uh...TRIED to have children, but...we...didn't have much luck. Mom was VERY disappointed, and finally after a few years...YOU were born. She may never have shown it, but she was extremely protective of you, wanted to make sure that one way or another...she would never lose you."
Sora's eyes widened a bit at this revelation, since her father was revealing a side of her mother's that Sora never knew existed.
"Umm...go on."
"Anyway...after our first child, your mom felt that she couldn't deal with the possibility that she might never have another kid. But when you came to visit us, she told me in private that she was overjoyed that we now had TWO daughters."
"Okay..."
"And the reason she was so eager to meet you was that...well, somehow she knew that you'd be pretty different from our 'other' daughter, and...she told me that she felt it was really important to treat you fairly...not just a double of our kid, but as an individual."
The last word that came out of Mr. Takenouchi's mouth hit Sora hard. How ironic that one of the things that she desired most – to be treated like a separate person – came from her mother. Sora's attitude towards her would slowly, but surely do a one-eighty.
Wow, Sora thought. I never imagined Mom being described like that. She wanted children that badly? And here I thought she was my worst nightmare come to life...
Not much was said from either Sora or her dad the rest of the time they were at the store. But the conversation picked back up inside the car, as well as the mood of the talking, especially since they began to chat about Sora's relationship with Tai.
Within minutes, Mr. Takenouchi dropped off Sora at Mimi's apartment. Sora said goodbye to her dad, and she even "let" him kiss her goodbye on the forehead before she exited the car.
--------------------------------------------
The next few hours passed by pretty fast for Sora, and before she knew it, she was already at Tai's house having dinner with the Kamiya family. She was welcomed with open arms by all of them, and even their pet cat, Miko.
So much was said during the meal. Although the conversation seemed pretty normal, it would take a miracle to read in between and behind was what being said. That is, to differentiate between what was being said and what was REALLY being said.
After dinner, Sora volunteered to help Kari and Mr. Kamiya with the dishes. Tai's mom was going to help too, but before she did, she took Tai aside to talk to him.
"Tai...listen, I...I've seen the way you and Sora have been acting around each other and it worries me."
"Mom, what are you talking about?"
"The way Sora's behaving towards you...I...well, I..."
Mrs. Kamiya sighed, closed her eyes, and placed her hand against her forehead before speaking again.
"I'm just very concerned. Now, first of all...I know that Sora loves you very much. Don't...don't try to deny it, sweetie. But...I have to ask you something, and I think you know what it is."
Tai had a sneaking suspicion in the back of his head that he knew what she was going to ask. And he'd be right.
"Tai, are you and Sora...seeing each other? I mean...behind Matt's back?"
Mrs. Kamiya knew that normally, Sora and Tai were smart kids and definitely knew the difference between right and wrong. Still...when you're in love, that emotion can make you do crazy things, and the ethics of the right deeds and wrong deeds become compromised.
Tai smiled and shook his head.
"No, we aren't, Mom. And believe me, that IS the truth."
"All right," Mrs. Kamiya sighed. "I trust you and Sora."
"Look, if you really need a explanation, then just call up Sora's mom...she'll explain everything to you."
"Okay, honey. I just don't want to see you do the wrong thing," Tai's mom said before giving her son a hug.
--------------------------------------------
In another apartment building, Izzy Izumi, the Digidestined of Knowledge, still had his eyes glued to his yellow laptop. On occasion, the signal inside Etemon's pyramid that he was searching for would appear only for a brief moment, and then it would be gone.
The only difference this time...was that the signal WASN'T going away. In fact, the energy signal began to GROW...almost as if it was calling out to Izzy, whom found this all very strange. It almost seemed like the signal had a mind of its own, and WANTED to be investigated.
This time, Izzy AND the signal were present at the same time, and staring at each other. But after so many hours (well, maybe not HOURS) of slipping in and out of consciousness in front of his laptop, he was determined NOT to let the signal slip through his fingers so easily this time around.
Izzy began typing furiously on the laptop's built in keyboard, and set up a program to record the patterns and fluctuations that the energy signature was emitting. The teenage boy smiled confidently, thinking that it wouldn't be long now before this case would be cracked.
"Gotcha now," Izzy almost whispered at the computer screen.
--------------------------------------------
"Hey, where's Sora?" Kari asked as she passed out bowls of ice cream to everyone sitting at the table.
Tai looked around and saw that Sora was missing.
"Hmm...that's strange. She was just here. Maybe she's in my room," Tai said.
The fifteen year-old knocked on his bedroom door, but there was no answer. So he tugged at the doorknob and peeked inside the room.
He immediately saw a bright light in the room, and knew that it had to have been his computer. Peeking into the room further he saw Sora sitting at the desk where the computer was. But then his eyes narrowed when he got a look at Sora.
She just sat there at the computer, with what looked like a blank stare, and glassy-looking eyes to match. True, it may have been a trick of the light reflecting off of Sora's face, but there was something about the situation that he just couldn't-
"Tai, honey?" Tai's mom yelled, breaking his concentration.
"Yeah, Mom?" he hollered back, turning his head back towards his family.
"Tell Sora to come get her dessert."
Tai nodded and pushed the door open all the way and called for Sora. She quickly broke out of her "trance" and her finger dashed over to the switch to turn off the computer. Tai was a little frustrated that he wasn't able to get a look at whatever Sora had been staring at on the computer screen.
Sora quickly turned her head and looked at Tai, feeling half-panicky.
"Something wrong, Tai?" she asked rather fast.
"Umm...no, my mom just wanted to tell you that dessert's ready."
"Oh, great! Ice cream?"
"Yep."
"Awesome! I'm there!" Sora exclaimed as she happily whizzed past Tai and headed back to the table.
Tai looked at Sora and sighed, putting one hand on his hip and exhaling deeply. Anyone could have seen at that moment that he was not a happy camper.
Man, he thought. What is UP with her?!
After dessert, Tai's parents decided to turn in early, and Kari went back to her room to chat with T.K. over the Internet. The two remaining individuals decided to stay up like they used to and play games, and watching late-night movies on the television.
"Ah, this is a lousy movie, Tai. Turn it off, will ya?" Sora complained. "Sure," Tai shrugged as he reached for the remote control and pressed the "POWER" button. "But why?"
"Well," Sora purred as she curled up to Tai on the couch, "Everyone else is gone...we got some real privacy now."
"I can see our sleepovers will be real different from now on," Tai noted.
Sora giggled, knowing that Tai couldn't have been more right. Tai laughed too until he noticed that there was something attached around her neck, but he immediately figured it out what it was.
"Hey, Sora...is that your crest?" he asked, pointing.
"Huh? Oh, uh...yeah."
"Can I see it?"
"Sure," Sora said casually, removing the pendant from her neck, and handing it to Tai.
Tai stared intently at the tag and the crest inserted inside it. "Wow," was all that he could say.
"Wow?"
"It's just that...I haven't seen the crests in a long time."
Sora was pretty curious at what Tai meant, so their conversation turned to their adventures in the Digital World. Similar to their first date, Sora was informed about just how much she missed while she traveled the Digital World by herself. Only Tai went more in-depth this time, including his little sister becoming the Digidestined of Light, and the temporary loss of their crests during their final battle in the Digiworld against the mighty Apocalymon.
Tai was a little afraid that the topic they were discussing had drifted far from the little romantic mood that Sora had in mind, but apparently she didn't seem to care much. In fact, she seemed very interested in what Tai had to say. She became extremely interested when Tai noted how powerful their crests proved to be and how they had the power to digivolve their digimon even further into their "ultimate" forms.
"Well..." Sora began to say, taking back her crest, "...looks like I'm gonna hafta teach Birdramon some new tricks! I hope she digivolves into something awesome!"
"Oh, I don't think you gotta worry about that..." Tai said, half-grinning. "Hey...just outta curiosity, Sora...has you crest ever glowed?"
"Glowed?" Sora asked, making sure she heard right.
"Yeah, that a sure sign that your 'champion' level digimon is ready to digivolve again. So...has it ever glowed?"
Sora's expression turned a little sad.
"Umm...actually, no," she said in a low voice.
"Oh...sorry," Tai said, putting a comforting arm around his girlfriend. "Let me guess...you're worried that possibly it's because you're not sure if you really know what love is...right?"
Sora gave a small gasp and stared at Tai with wide eyes.
"HOW...how did you-"
"Well...truth be told, your sister went through the very same thing about four years ago. She was really upset about it."
Sora started to think about her past conversation with Sor. And Sora remembered how she said that her sister that wasn't at all deserving of the Crest of Love. Sora meant it when she said she was worthier of it than Sor would ever be! And in due time, she would do her best to prove it!
"I'm no crybaby!" Sora declared, putting her arms around Tai's neck. "Birdramon will digivolve when the time is right, and hopefully...when it counts!"
"YOU'RE certainly handling this better than your sister was," Tai observed.
"Yep! I can be patient!" Sora said, turning cheerful again. "So what? My crest just turned out to be a late bloomer!"
Yeah, Tai darkly thought. Unless...it's NOT a real crest...
--------------------------------------------
"...d that all it meant was one just ONE more go! And the dude couldn't believe it! Whatta slacker!
Matt chuckled to himself over the dinner table, at his little humorous story, while Sor just picked at her food, somewhat sadly.
Her brain was going in and out of her cognizance of the situation at hand. She and her boyfriend, Matt, were out on a dinner date.
"...oring you?" was the last bit of talk that entered Sor's ears and fully registered inside her head.
"Wha...what?" went Sor, becoming more alert.
"I asked if I was boring you?" Matt asked.
"I...uh..." Sor began to say.
"I mean, you've been almost demanding that we have a nice, peaceful dinner date for a while, and now that we're finally here, you zone out on me," Matt noted, not as annoyed as he should have been.
"Oh...! I...I'm REALLY sorry, Matt!" Sor sputtered. "I...I have...o-other things on my mind."
"Well, that much was obvious," Matt said, smiling at Sor.
Reaching out to touch Sor's hand, Matt did his best to comfort her and reestablish the romantic setting.
"I'm sorry," she said again. "You were really sweet to listen to me and take me out to this nice place for dinner...I'm also sorry that I'm not being better company."
Sor tried her hardest to enjoy the rest of her dinner and did her best to talk with Matt and to try not think about Tai and Sora, but it wasn't easy. Matt, however, was a little more sympathetic and told her to freely speak her mind.
"Matt?"
"Yeah, Sor?"
"Am I...different?"
"What do you mean?"
"Do I seem...y'know...DIFFERENT?"
"Nah..." Matt said, trying to sound comforting again. "You've always been the same..."
Sor looked at Matt with a dubious look on her pretty face, similar to the way Sora did earlier.
"Oh, come on, Matt...can you honestly look at me and say that?"
Matt stared hard at Sor, and realized that one of the most important things in a relationship...was honesty.
"Okay, Sor. The truth is that...you HAVE changed...a LOT."
"How?" asked Sor, desperately wanting to know.
"Well, let's see..." Matt said, preparing to vocally unleash the mental list that was being written.
Sor nodded.
"Well, you're older...you, uh...you're pretty popular in school, you get along much better with your parents than you used to...umm...you're more into wearing makeup, jewelry and dresses, you stopped playing soccer and switched over to tennis, you hang more with those girl 'groupies' of yours than the Digidestined, and..."
Matt really didn't wish to point out the last part, but Sor asked him to be honest, and that's just what he was going to do.
"And?" Sor pushed.
"And, uh...jeez, this is hard to say..."
Matt was forced to take a deep breath for finishing his sentence.
"...AND...you're in love with me...and NOT...with Tai."
Sor's eyes widened at this undeniable piece of truth.
"I mean, let's face it, Sor...you and Tai had more compatibility than any two kids I've ever seen, and you've changed considerably. No offense, but I'm surprised that Tai still recognizes you. At times you seem like a completely different person."
Maybe Matt's right, Sor thought. All signs having been pointing to this. Maybe the problem's not with Tai or my sister...maybe it's...me.
"Thanks, Matt...you've really been a big help through all this," Sor said, smiling. "And I'm sorry again for being such a pain...to you and everyone else."
"It's cool, Sor."
"How do you put up with me?" Sora sighed, still smiling a little.
Matt took a deep breath.
"Believe me...it AIN'T easy, that's for sure..."
The couple laughed a bit, and reached forward to kiss each other. But before they could say anything else...
RRRRRIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!
"One sec," Matt said as he reached for the cellular phone in the pocket of his coat that had been hanging on the chair he was sitting at.
"Yeah, this is Matt," he said.
Sora looked at Matt suspiciously as he talked over the phone.
"Oh, hi! Yeah...no, no...Sor and I are just having some dinner...uh, huh...y- you did?...you what?...when?...and where di-...tomorrow?...around the morning?...you bet!...and what about...yes, but...everyone?...oh, right...okay, then...yeah, you can bet we'll be there!...okay, later...you, too! Bye!"
"Who was that, Matt?" Sor asked. "That conversation sounded pretty serious."
"More than you think, Sor. That was Izzy."
"Oh? What did he have to say?"
"Brace yourself, Sor...he had some pretty heavy news..."
--------------------------------------------
RRRRRIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!
Tai's thoughts were interrupted for the umpteenth time as he reached for the ringing telephone as quickly as he could, so as not to wake up his parents.
"Kamiya residence," he said as he picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Tai?! This is Izzy!"
"Yeah? What's going on?"
"I'm sorry to call you up this late, but what hafta say couldn't wait!"
"You got my attention," Tai said casually.
"Listen carefully...the energy signal I picked up in the Digital World is back, and this time it isn't fading. I'm going to round up the others, and schedule a 'visit' back to Etemon's old home. And make sure to bring along the 'other' Sora, as well."
"Why?"
"Because there's also a chance that the old computer's have files on it that can TRULY explain where Sora came from...well, THIS one I mean."
"Ah...I see..." Tai said, taking a quick glance at Sora who had her back turned. "So you think that the signal is coming from the pyramid's computer?"
"Possibly. Do you understand how crucial this is? This could be Sora's chance to have all of her questions answered."
"Yeah, I got it," Tai said in a low voice, which turned into a mutter. "Maybe I can have MY questions answered, too."
"What was that?" Izzy asked.
"Nothing, just thinking out loud."
"Anyway, when do you want us there?"
"Tomorrow. Early. Make sure you tell Kari, too."
"Oh, don't worry about that...I will."
"Okay...anyway, I'll call you in the morning for the details."
"Great...thanks, Izzy. G'night."
"Goodnight, Tai."
"Who was that, Tai?" Sora asked as Tai hung up the phone. "That conversation sounded serious."
"More than you might think, Sora. That was Izzy."
"Oh? What did he have to say?"
"He wants us to join him to go back to Etemon's pyramid tomorrow. He said something about its computer, and its data files. It might have some info on where you actually came from."
Sora's eyes narrowed until she was almost squinting.
"Really..." she said, in a near-cold tone.
"Really. And everyone else will be there."
"I see..." Sora said as she turned away from Tai. Half of her mouth curled into a grin.
"Yep...he wants us there, bright and early...or something like that."
"Perfect," she whispered.
"What was that?" Tai asked.
Sora paused for a moment and then turned back to Tai with a cheerful look on her pretty face.
"I said, that'll be perfect! Maybe I'll get to see Biyomon!"
"Uh...yeah, maybe..." Tai said, scratching his head. "Excuse me for a sec...I gotta tell Kari."
"Sure," Sora said, nodding.
But as Tai turned to go, Sora grabbed him by the arm and pulled him towards her. She closed her eyes as she smushed her lips against Tai's yet again.
"Hey...don't be gone too long. Otherwise I'll hafta take my half of this sleepover someone else."
"If you do, make sure it's not to wherever Matt is," Tai said, smiling now, too.
"Never happen," Sora assured Tai. "Now go on."
Tai smiled as he walked into his room (where Kari was) and closed the door behind him...
...and Sora smiled to herself after the door was fully shut. Her eyes narrowed as she seemed to glare at the door that had been opened and closed by the boy who had just entered through it.
"This little expedition may be more complicated than you think, Tai," she said quietly. "But then, you haven't always thought ahead the whole way, have you?"
Sora took the crest from around her neck and looked at it with something enigmatic in mind.
"Tomorrow may turn out to be quite a day."
--------------------------------------------
TO BE CONTINUED... (YEP, AGAIN)
You have selected...Disclaimer!...not rated!...I'm sorry, there are no remaining showtimes for your selection! Please check again later! To find out what happens next chapter, please stay patient and keep reading! There is no information on the next segment either! Keep a lookout for another upcoming title called "Whose Liner Does NOT own Digimon"! (This title is not yet rated.)