Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Does anyone really own anything? Does anything really exist? Or are we all just typing into the void?
AN: ::Bows head:: I am a horrible person. I left you with that cliffhanger for far too long. I am very sorry. Life sucks when it gets in your way. The real world is terrible for the creative process. Anyway, this chapter is extra long to make up for the long wait. And it doesn't end in a cliffhanger. And it features a surprise cameo from someone you haven't seen for chapters. All this and more for you, the reader. Feel free to review or not… that won't make the chapters come faster, unfortunately. It just makes me smile.
Chapter Sixteen
When all the stars were falling, I reached up like you said,
When all the stars were falling, one hit me in the head…
And I fell down, down, down, I fell down, down…
When all the stars were falling, they fell from above,
And I though of hate, I thought of hate, and then I thought of love…
I fell down, down, down, I fell down, down…
And I've learned how to dance from a Vincent Van Gogh,
And the nights were wrapped in a white sheet…
And now no one even says hello,
'Cause I couldn't stand on my two feet…
Now all the stars have fallen.
"When All the Stars Were Falling"
Lisa Loeb
Kari gritted her teeth in annoyance as she clambered over the guardrail and onto the soft, giving terrain of the beach. The sand glowed ivory in the first stirrings of dawn, although the sun had not yet cleared the horizon. The streets were quiet, deserted at that early hour, and Patamon and Gatomon ran free onto the beach, unafraid of prying eyes. Kari continued onto the pale stretch, looking neutrally out onto the distant, sapphire horizon. Behind them, Tai grunted as he followed his sister's lead over the guardrail and onto the beach.
He'd caught her on her way out the door, and refused to let her go alone when she wouldn't tell him where she was going. His angry questions had tapered off as he'd followed her, to his extreme confusion, to a church to pick up a Digimon. After retrieving Patamon, who had been waiting at the gate for them, he'd said nothing. He guessed they were going to help one of the new kids with some problem in the digital world, or return this stray Patamon there. Now, however, they were at the beach, although to do what, Tai couldn't guess. Kari wasn't answering his questions, none of them were, and now she was just standing there, staring down at her D-3, her Crest in hand, as though waiting for something.
Time stretched around the siblings, as the sea breeze cried mournfully in the in the drought dried grass lining the pristine dunes. Then, suddenly, the wind died, and Tai could feel the weight of something, something immense and unfathomable, weighing down around them. After a long moment, Kari clipped her D-3 to her waist with a frustrated sigh.
"He didn't even bring his D-3… perfect, just perfect," she muttered to herself, ignoring the strange looks she was getting from the digimon and her brother. Tai opened his mouth to demand to know just whom she was talking about, but shut it again when Gatomon gave him a dangerous look. Kari may have been capable of a dangerous temper, but she was nothing compared to her digimon, and Tai had the scars to prove it. Many were the times Gatomon had 'accidentally' scratched Tai after he upset Kari.
Directing his attention back to his sister with an innocent look in Gatomon's direction, he stepped forward with interest when he saw what she was doing. The Crest of Light was glowing a warm rose in Kari 's hand, slowly increasing as she concentrated. The glow grew slowly, brighter and brighter, until the tiny charm in the hands of one small girl began to eclipse the coming dawn.
Tai's jaw fell open in shock as, just a few feet in front of them, the very fabric of reality began to waver.
****
Matt stared down at his brother worriedly, adjusting the teenager's head on his lap, trying to restore the feeling to his long asleep legs. TK's sleep had slowly become restless, his respiration and eye movement slowly increasing, as though he was in the grip of some unpleasant dream. The dark world was motionless around the pair, the gloom and silence making Matt uneasy. He felt as though something was wrong, as though they were in some sort of danger, but looking around, he saw nothing. It felt almost as though… it felt like TK was in some sort of trouble, not from without, but from within.
In his own mind, where Matt couldn't help him… so with a heavy heart, the older Ishida maintained his vigil, his normally icy eyes soft with sympathy.
*****
Trapped in his nightmare, TK was again chained in the dark fortress of Spiral Mountain. The air was thick and heavy with shadow, with evil seeping through the air, like the coppery, metallic taste of blood. The small cell reeked with smell of blood and fear, but there was also a tinge of something else in the air. Something that drove Devimon to rage every time he entered.
It was a smell of rain and grass. Like the wondrously clear sky and clean wind after a summer storm, it was something the darkness and evil couldn't seem to overpower.
It was something Devimon never failed to punish him for. Huddled, shivering and wet in the corner, a young TK tried to keep himself warm by huddling as close to the wall as possible. He had no idea how long he'd been in this place, and he only had a vague idea as to why. Sometimes the reason was very clear to him, at times when hunger and cold drove him perilously close to unconsciousness, kept awake only by the constant threat of Devimon returning and the fear laced adrenalin that thought lent him.
As his heart beat painfully fast in his chest, TK knew he couldn't give in, he couldn't die here. He had only a vague idea of what it meant to die, although Devimon threatened him with it often. He'd heard the others saying Devimon couldn't kill him, that then 'it' might be passed to someone else. It was then that he realized that they brought him here because they wanted something he had, something special about him.
Feeling the temperature drop, a sure sign that Devimon was approaching, TK pressed his hands over his ears to block out the awful sound of the demon's voice and the terrible things that it would say. He wasn't a bad, evil child; he wasn't! He wasn't unloved and unwanted! Someday he'd be back home… someday… someday…
This is all my fault! I wish I wasn't like this! What's wrong with me? I wish I wasn't special… I wish… I wish I were someone else, just for a little while. I wish… I wish they hadn't chosen me… what's wrong with me…I wish I had a new life…what's wrong with me?
And so his mantra went, on and on into the darkness of his nightmare, into the unending midnight of his captivity.
****
Matt's eyes widened as TK's Crest began to flash, shimmering in time to the boy's heartbeat as he tossed and turned. Then TK calmed, slowly coming to wakefulness as his heartbeat slowed. After a few minutes, TK woke completely, blinking groggily up at his older brother. A look of confusion swept over his features as he registered their surroundings.
Sitting up slowly, TK gazed around at the darkened beach, glancing over his shoulder at the oily tide and the flat, slate colored sky. His eyes were dark and troubled, and his voice was small when he finally spoke.
"I… I thought I had dreamt this…"
Matt placed a hand on his brother's forehead, concern dominating his features. "No, I'm afraid this was real, squirt. You were out for a while there. Maybe you should lie back down for a bit, you look a little tired… well actually, you look so exhausted you're practically transparent."
TK shook his head a little wildly, his expression confused and upset. "No… no I can't… sleep here. I—I can't get any real rest here… not in this place…" he trailed off, his eyes flicking off into the distant horizon.
"TK, calm down. I don't think you've totally woken up from your nightmare—"
TK's attention snapped back to him. "I didn't have a nightmare."
The older boy scoffed at this, staring his brother levelly in the eyes. "Please, TK, I wasn't born yesterday. You were whimpering in your sleep."
Staring at Matt for a long moment, TK's expression closed and he turned away. "It's no big deal. I'm fine."
"You don't seem fine." Matt tried desperately to keep his tone level, casually tracing random patterns in the sand.
"Don't worry about it." TK's gaze did not so much as flicker in Matt's direction as he spoke.
Matt scoffed again, clearly amused. "Not much chance of that happening. You can talk to me about it…" His tone turned serious, and he hesitated, unsure of how to say this, "you know you can tell me anything, okay?"
Silence stretched between them, and then, unexpectedly, TK spoke into the void. "We… there was a battle yesterday, in the Digiworld. We knocked down some control spires, on File Island. I—it was… it was… I guess I just don't understand why it has to be this way. Then I came home, and you were here, and everything seems so… twisted and—I don't know—tired, I guess. Everything—everyone—seems so tired of fighting, like we're all stretched thin. Or maybe I'm the one who's tired. I don't know."
Matt's clear blue eyes softened as he began to understand the reason for his brother's melancholy…. as he began to understand his brother. He did understand, all too well. Fighting wasn't something that came naturally to Ishidas; in fact, it was his own reluctance to fight that had come between himself and Tai so often in the digital world. Looking at the sad but determined look on TK's face, he sympathized with the feeling of great responsibility come far too young. But deep inside his soul, in a place dominated by bright blue light, he had always felt compelled to protect his friends, no matter what. It was that same light that he had always related to TK, and now it was telling him that TK wasn't being entirely honest with him.
"But that wasn't what you're nightmare was about." It wasn't phrased as a question, and Matt hadn't intended it to be.
Glancing wryly at the older boy, TK smirked slightly. "You know, for a newbie, you've got this big brother thing down cold."
Matt smiled slyly, flipping his hair in mock arrogance. "Despite what you may have read in 'Teen People,' I'll have you know my talents extend far beyond singing well and looking hot. Brotherly concern is one of my many, many lesser-known talents. Nice try changing the subject, but flattery will get you nowhere. So spill."
TK's eyes focused out onto the distant gray horizon, and his voice fell soft as he spoke. "I was dreaming about… about what happened to me on Spiral Mountain."
Feeling ice drop into the pit of his stomach, Matt swallowed. He hadn't really put too much thought into what it must have been like for TK, held by the Dark Masters for six months. To be totally honest, he hadn't wanted to think about it. The last time he'd really considered it was when he'd found TK's hat in the ruins of the dark fortress, so many years ago. But realizing, now, that the memories haunted TK enough to create nightmares of such terrible power, he didn't know what to think, let alone say.
"Oh—oh, TK, I'm so sorry…"
TK turned back to his brother then, a soft, small smile on his face. "You have nothing to be sorry about, Matt. Remember what I told you last night? You saved me, Matt. None of this is your fault, or mine, or anyone's. It just happened." He was rubbing his wrists as he spoke, an action that did not go unnoticed by Matt, who reached out and took TK's hand, pushing up the sleeve of his rumpled, stained uniform shirt.
A thick, raised white scar surrounded TK's wrist like a horrible bracelet, with small scars trailing up the arm. Silently taking the other arm, Matt pressed his lips into a thin line, his eyes growing colder than TK could ever remember seeing them. His gentle touch belied his angry face though, and he rubbed the scars softly with his fingers, as if to sooth them away.
TK spoke quietly, his voice almost ashamed. "They don't hurt anymore, Matt. Don't worry about it…"
The rubbing fingers halted, but Matt did not relinquish his grip, nor did he raise his eyes. "How?"
Cocking his head slightly, TK looked at his brother in slight confusion, trying to tug his hands away. "What do you mean?"
Icy eyes flashed up to his face, and TK stilled, letting his hands go limp in Matt's grip. "How did you get these? WHAT did they DO to you?!?"
Sapphire eyes wide at his brother's anger, TK stared at Matt for a long moment before acquiescing. Lowering his head, he spoke his answer towards the pale hands gripping his arms. "It was… the manacles they used to keep me chained against the wall. They—I—the cuffs kept cutting back into my skin so they never healed, really, until I got out. It's okay now, though."
Dropping TK's hands as if they had burned him, Matt leapt to his feet in anger. "Okay? OKAY? It's not OKAY, TK! This is not OKAY! God, I wish… I wish I had another shot at the Dark Masters! Death was too good for them! How can you sit there, as if, as if—AS IF IT DOESN'T EVEN MATTER WHAT THEY DID TO YOU! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?"
Still kneeling in the sand, TK endured the barrage, unmoved by the passionate anger that had taken hold of his brother. Unknowingly, Matt had hit upon the mantra of the lost little boy in the dark dungeon, the question of what was so wrong about being who he was. "Time, Matt. I've been dealing with this for a while. There was a big span of time when I couldn't remember what happened, but I knew in my heart it was something terrible. Something so awful my mind couldn't even bear to remember it, except in shadowed nightmares. And when my memories did return, I was so… so overwhelmed by everything, and I didn't know what to think. But if I'm angry at anyone, it would be myself… because I'm not angry at them… because I still fear them, and the nightmares won't seem to leave me… and I am sorry, Matt."
His anger spent, Matt stared down at the top of his brother's golden head, and whispered, "Why are you sorry?"
TK's answer was so soft it was almost lost beneath the crashing of the waves. "I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to get home to you sooner. If I weren't so afraid, maybe I would have remembered sooner. Because I'm still afraid."
Dropping back down to the sand, Matt pulled the younger boy into a rough hug, tears glinting in his eyes. After a moment TK responded, wrapping his arms around Matt as if he'd never let go. Blinking back his tears, Matt whispered gruffly into his brother's ear, "It's okay to be afraid sometimes, TK. I was scared out of my mind the whole time you were gone that I'd never see you again. I was so scared for so long that I didn't even remember what it felt like not to be scared, until you came home. Even now, I'm afraid, so, so terrified that I'll let you down again, that I'll lose you again, that—that I can't even conceive of the words to describe it. That's why I was so cold to you, these last few days, because I couldn't even deal with the idea of getting close only to lose you again, somehow. To find you hated me like I thought you should, blamed me for not saving you like I blamed myself. Then, when I was taken here, all I could think was how I'd had the chance to be near you again, to have you in my life again, and I'd blown it because I was a coward. I was such a coward, and I'm so sorry, TK. I'm sorry I gave up on you… I should have believed you were coming back. I should have believed…"
The brothers hugged for a moment longer, and Matt was ready to say more, when TK pulled away suddenly, tilting his head as though listening to something. The older Ishida looked around curiously, but could neither sense nor see anything out of place. Out over the ocean, the sky was changing from flat, starless black to flat, sunless gray, which apparently was what passed for dawn in this hellhole of a dimension. Turning to TK, he watched his younger brother's unfocused eyes, as the boy seemed to draw inward.
"TK, what…?"
Shaking his head, TK shushed Matt absently. "Shh… I think… I thought I heard… Kari…" Standing up, TK reached for his Crest, drawing it from under his shirt and clutching it in his fist. Caught on TK's statement, Matt's eyebrows raised sardonically.
"Kari? Kamiya Hikari? Reeeeeaaaalllyy?" He drawled, liberally lacing his words with innuendo. Then he fell silent as the memory of Kari in his apartment several weeks ago, stealing the Crest of Hope, surfaced. Frowning, he watched his brother stand with his head bowed, crest glowing warmly in his fist. Listening for something… listening for someone… for Kari… just like Kari had gone looking for him.
Standing also, he moved closer to his brother, a collection of incidents, connections, and coincidences forming a pattern in his mind. A pattern that pointed to something he wasn't sure he was ready to believe. "TK… TK, what's going on between you and Kari?"
Or rather, he thought wryly as TK's crest began to glow brighter, what's going on between Hope and Light?
Ignoring his brother, TK's head snapped up, and his eyes focused on a spot on the beach, seeing something where Matt saw only empty space. "Kari… she's here… but how did she know where I was?"
Staring in vain at the spot that so fascinated his younger brother, Matt rolled his eyes. "Good question," he grumbled, unable to see anything but water and sand. Then something wavered, and like TK had earlier, he tilted his head in confusion. The atmosphere before them began to shimmer, and a hole appeared in the air, like a piece of reality itself had been cut away. A blinding light distracted him from the hole in space, and Matt turned to see that TK's crest had erupted into brilliance, and in the hole, an answering pink light shone like a rose colored dawn.
TK was frowning in intense concentration, and when he spoke, his voice was thin with strain. "Matt… Matt, you have to go through… while we're holding it open. Go towards the pink light…" He trailed off, his eyes clenched tightly shut.
Matt looked towards the pink light, realizing it must be Kari on the other side. Unsure, he looked back at TK, and then he realized that they were using their crests to create a portal between the worlds. "But… but TK…"
Shaking his head, TK didn't open his eyes. "NO, Matt, you have to go first. I'll be right behind you, but right now, we need to hold it open… please, just trust me… I—we can't hold this much longer…"
Staring hard at his brother, Matt sighed in defeat and headed towards the rose light. It grew brighter and brighter as he approached it, until all he could see was pink, and then, just as it grew so blinding he had to blink, he stumbled onto softer sand. Opening his eyes in shock, he drew a deep breath of warm, fresh air, and looked around at the real world, which seemed suddenly vibrant and colorful compared to the dark ocean. Before him stood Kari, her crest alight in her hand, with her Gatomon, a Patamon he suddenly recognized as TK's, and… and TAI?
Matt grimaced and wondered if it was too late to go back when the combined light of the crests flared and the TK was beside him, panting heavily. A blur of orange shot past him, and TK's arms were full of a very upset Patamon.
Smiling tiredly, TK endured the harangue, allowing Patamon to burrow into his shirt, which was beginning to look slightly the worse for all its adventures. When Patamon had finished, TK looked up, still hugging him to his chest, to see two VERY displeased Kamiyas. Tai looked at the two brothers, and then back at his sister, obviously at a loss for words for the first time in his life. Kari, however, suffered no such handicap.
Marching straight up to TK, she stood with her arms crossed over her chest, anger practically radiating off her. "Where's your digivice, Takeru?"
"I…ummm…"
"And Patamon. Any particular reason you didn't bring him?"
"Well, Kari, I—I"
"Any plans for back up? Or did you just waltz off on your own into the Dark Dimension?" Her tone was clipped, and TK knew better than to lie to her, but he certainly didn't want to admit that that was exactly what he'd done. Trying to make his tone soothing, he smiled earnestly at her.
"I didn't want to risk involving you guys… you could have gotten hurt."
As soon as he said it he realized it had been the wrong thing to say. Kari's eyes narrowed, and she seemed to grow taller, her rage was so fierce. "Oh. I see. You couldn't risk our lives, but YOUR life is totally expendable. Is that it?"
Eyes wide and innocent, TK stammered a disclaimer. "No—no—that's not what I meant and you know it! Patamon was exhausted from yesterday, and the rest of you weren't in much better shape! I did what I thought was best at the time, and I'm not going to apologize for wanting to protect you. It all worked out in the end, anyway." He ended with a soft smile, looking pleadingly down at Kari.
The brunette in question pursed her lips in annoyance, finally tearing her eyes away from his all too innocent expression. "You're every annoying when you do that," she muttered finally, uncrossing her arms and sighing in defeat. "Just don't make a habit of it, okay?"
Before TK could even open his mouth to answer, Tai had regained his sense and jumped into the conversation, his eyes angry. "Kari, what's going on? How do you know Ma—Ishida's kid brother? He's probably trouble, just like his brother…"
Matt snapped out of his amusement at TK's scolding, his face stony. "What do you mean by that, Kamiya?"
TK, stung at this unprovoked attack from someone he'd hoped to be friends with, someone he remembered being friends with, stepped back from Kari in surprise, his eyes hurt. Patamon and Gatomon glared at Tai in tandem, their displeasure palpable in the air. Kari, seeing TK move away and understanding the reason behind his pain, turned on her brother, her ire raised again at the senselessness of this feud. She refused to see anyone else hurt by it, least of all TK. She'd promised to help him, to heal him, and if that meant taking her brother down a peg or two, then all the better, in her opinion.
"That's enough, Tai! TK never did anything to you, and you have no right to say anything to him! I'll be friendly with whomever I please. I'm fifteen years old, and you don't make my decisions for me. Don't you dare smile, Matt; you're just as guilty as he is! You two can fight all you like, but leave us out of it," she ground out, turning and walking towards the street. "Come on, TK. School will be starting soon, and you need to change."
Smiling inwardly at the older boys' dumbfounded expressions, realizing how rare it was for Kari to lose her temper twice in one morning, TK moved obediently after her. "She's the boss," he tossed back at the pair in explanation, shrugging as though he had no choice in the matter. Although, considering the state of the Child of Light's temper, obeying her was probably a good idea if he wanted to live out the day with his limbs intact.
After a long moment, Matt and Tai started after their siblings, carefully avoiding speaking or eye contact, tacitly agreeing to endure each other's presence for the moment. No fight was worth Kari's temper; that much was for certain.
Take these pink ribbons off my eyes,
I'm exposed, and it's no big surprise…
Don't you think I know exactly where I stand?
This world is forcing me to hold your hand…
I'm just a girl. I'm just a girl in the world.
That's all that you'll let me be.
Oh, I'm just a girl, living in captivity…
Your rule of thumb makes me worry some.
Oh, I'm just a girl, what's my destiny?
What I've succumbed to is making me numb…
Oh, I've had it up to here…
Oh, am I making myself clear?
"I'm Just a Girl"
No Doubt
She needed a manicure. And a massage. And a latte.
Not necessarily in that order.
But soon, before she ran screaming out into the streets.
Drumming her pink nails on the table, Mimi waited for her boyfriend to appear. Ex-boyfriend, that is. As soon as he arrived, she was dumping his cheating ass. With any luck, all this could be accomplished before her no foam, low fat, skim milk French vanilla latte and cinnamon raisin low-carb muffin came. She'd hate to ruin her appetite with the thought of him and that skinny, blond, fluff-for-brains cheerleader… ugh, doing things. No more, she promised herself. No more jocks or bad boys, no more useless men and their insincerity.
Finally, she was going back to Japan, back to her real friends, where people had substance. Not that people in America were lacking in substance. That particular epidemic seemed to be confined to the pool of eligible guys in New York City.
Beep! Beep!Sighing deeply, Mimi flipped out her cell and checked the text message. It was John… running late. See you soon. Flipping her metallic pink phone closed, Mimi smirked to herself as her latte and muffin arrived. Probably having trouble getting his zipper up after bopping that pom-pom toting bimbo in the locker room. Resigning herself to wait rather than put off the inevitable confrontation, she pulled out a Japanese language newspaper and flipped to the Tokyo section. Always nice to know what was going on at home, especially since she hadn't had time to call Yolei or Joe for a week.
Hmmm… renovations in the Diet building… Tokyo to bid for next Winter Olympics… that would be fun… Various stocks went up and down… the Yen strong against the dollar… that sounds like a good thing, but who can tell with economics…. The Yen will probably be down again next week. Boy resumes life after twelve years missing… Hmph… that kid looks like Matt… kind of cute in that way… ohhh… new designer… lordy, that dress is ugly though. Isn't Fashion Week coming up? That'll take my mind off John…
Wait.
Twelve years missing.
Looks like Matt.
Mimi flipped back to the article with shaking hands, doing the math in her head. Twelve years… Matt was… let's see, eighteen two months ago, and he was, YES! Six, he was six when his brother disappeared! What had Yolei been on about a few weeks ago? Something about Kari climbing a fire escape… she remembered that particular mental image vividly. Something about the Crest of Hope…
Mimi reached out, unconsciously tapping her own crest, hanging from a charm bracelet, as she thought. It was too much to be a coincidence. She'd known something was going to happen this week, she'd felt charged with anticipation for days. Maybe this was it.
Grabbing her cell, she popped it open and scrolled down to a familiar number, refusing to think about the international surcharges she was about to incur. Pressing it to her ear, Mimi twirled a strand of cotton candy hair, willing the call to be picked up.
"Moshi, Moshi?"
Mimi's heart leapt. "Joe! I'm so glad you picked up!"
"Hey, Mimi! I haven't heard from you in a while. What can I do for you?" To say Joe sounded pleasantly surprised would have been an understatement.
"I saw an article in the paper, and I had to call. That boy, Joe, the one they found… is it him?" She didn't need to specify, there was only one missing destined, after all.
Mimi could practically hear Joe smile, a continent away.
"Yes, Mimi, it's him."
Smiling softly to herself, Mimi leaned back in her chair, ignoring the odd looks she was getting from the other patrons. Joe let her think, of all her friends, he had always respected that she would come to her conclusions in her own time. They had always been able to talk, and they both had a tendency to babble when under pressure. But despite having less than steely nerves, they were profound thinkers underneath it all, and had often discussed the Digital World in abstract and philosophical ways that would have impressed Izzy. Yolei and Izzy focused on how the Digital World worked… Mimi and Joe concerned themselves with why it was the way it was.
"I thought something was up," she mused. "What do you think it means? Do you think… do you think the fighting will end now?" Her voice was small, but hopeful.
"I don't know, Meems. I saw him at the hospital for the exam… he seemed… well, I think he was in shock when he got to me. He seemed pretty shaken up, apparently he'd seen Matt…" Joe trailed off, his voice troubled.
Frowning, Mimi thought that over. "But… Matt must have been… thrilled to pieces to see him!"
"Not exactly," Joe's voice was grim.
Mimi's heart fell. "Oh no! Oh, Joe, what do you think happened?"
There was a long pause. "Well, in Matt's defense, I was pretty damn shocked to see Takeru, and he's not even my brother. That's… that's not the worst of it, though."
Her brown eyes deeply troubled, Mimi gripped the cup of her now cold latte between numb fingers. She was not prepared for what came next.
"There were—there were scars, Mimi. Terrible scars… horrible things happened to that boy on Spiral Mountain. He—seemed to take it all in stride, but that could be a mask. And a mask like that can't last for long."
Her perfectly glossed lips forming an 'O' of utter horror, Mimi tried to erase what she'd just heard. "Oh, Joe… oh god. Why do these things happen? He was… what, three? How could such evil exist, that could hurt such a child?"
"I don't know, Meems. I just don't know." Joe sounded tired.
Drumming her nails against the porcelain coffee cup before her, Mimi came to a decision. "Next week, Joe."
"What? Next week what?" Joe went from tired to confused in record time. Mimi always had that effect on him.
"I'm coming home next week. It was going to be a surprise for later this month, but I'm stepping up my departure. I'll be there to help in a week." Mimi's voice had left its soft tone, and was hard with determination and anger.
The warmth in Joe's voice carried clearly through the miles between them. "I suppose you'll be needing someone to pick you up at the airport."
Mimi smiled softly. "That would be nice… I'll call you later this week to work it out. Bye!"
Clicking the phone off practically on top of Joe's hurried goodbye, Mimi's smile grew.
Always leave them wanting more.
With that thought in mind, she waved a greeting at her soon-to-be ex-boyfriend as he entered the café.