Could You Read My Mind?
Author's Note: Originally I wanted this up two days ago—which is when I actually finished it—but I had to edit quite a bit because I was confused on whether or not I should include a song at the end. The ultimate decision was negative...no, I'm not talking about Yuuhi no Yakusoku.
Disclaimer: Digimon belongs to whoever owns it; characters you recognize belong to the creators of Digimon; this story belongs to yours truly. Also, Yuuhi no Yakusoku belongs to AiM or whoever owns it...probably whoever owns Digimon.
KawaiinessPnay, Thank you. Although I've seen FET's fandub, I did not directly use that dialogue, I used a subbed version of the movie. I'm not sure if they're the same but the sub was what I used.
DigiqueenTMIM, o.o Wow, you must really like Clay seeing as 95 of the review was about him...Unfortunately, AOL doesn't except emails from certain providers for some reason so I don't think I'll be able to send you anything...But thanks for your review!
Lavos, The Time Apocalypse, Millenniumon? As in Monodramon? I never really thought about that seeing as how getting into the mind of a Digimon will be kind of hard, but we'll see. :) But you've just given me a huge idea! This chapter is gonna be dedicated to you. :) Hope you like it!
Ao-Senshi, Thank you but I don't think I'll be telling you whose POV the chapters are in, just to keep you guessing...pretty obvious though. "Child" is the Japanese version of "Rookie" and since I'm using the original names in this story, it's fitting that I use the Japanese terms as well. Baby, Baby II, Child, Adult, Perfect, and Ultimate; those are the original stages for those of you who don't know.
:) I don't mind, after all it was the movie and a stack of Rukato stories that inspired this one.
Chapter 3: To Put It Short: Bug Off.
Of course Hirokazu felt that it was necessary to ruin my day even further—him and Takato. Renamon would not even mention it without my permission for she actually understood me—the gogglehead didn't and so decided to spread my song around.
I sighed to the soft wind and sat down against the wooden beam outside my room, my eyes fixed on the slowly setting sun. I heard the gogglehead faintly call out my name, but within a millisecond I could feel my partner's presence and soft retreating footsteps determined that they'd both left. I made a mental note to thank the Child later and leaned further into the beam, recalling the river of memories that had flooded into my mind this afternoon.
We'll be together forever, forever, Because we promised that setting sun,
I want to see you soon, Please convey that feeling.
You unexpectedly dove into my lonely heart;
You kindly wrapped up the things that hurt a little.
It was the first time I felt so relieved so
I squeezed that warmth into my outside pocket; Do you want to go walking?
We'll be together forever, forever, Because we promised that setting sun,
In lonely times, we can look at that lengthening orange.
That setting sun will whisper, "It will be okay"
I want to see you soon, Please convey that feeling.
So that I can meet you with your very favourite,
My best smile, I'll hang in through every day.
We'll be together forever, forever, Because we promised that setting sun,
It might seem discouraging but we'll embrace the beautiful orange.
"It will be okay" is what that setting sun taught us,
If I really believe, that feeling will definitely reach you.
We'll be together forever, forever, Because we promised that setting sun,
Even if we are far away, We'll still feel that same orange.
"It will be okay" Because that setting sun connects us,
Don't cry anymore, In the light of the love in our hearts.
In the light of the love in our hearts...
Yuuhi no Yakusoku. The song I had sung on Locomon. It was strange how I still remembered the song my father had taught me, even after I thought I hated him and wanted nothing to do with him. We'll be together forever, forever, Because we promised that setting sun. Well we had definitely promised this same sun but have we been together forever? No. Although I was allowed to see him at anytime, he had still broken his promise, leaving the song with no meaning. His inability to follow through had been a terrible blow to the young me so I had cut off the world until I became a Digimon Tamer.
A small smile flickered across my features as I thought of Renamon. Because of the deep connection between the two of us, our relationship went farther than that of even Takato and Guilmon. Although the kitsune had once been as merciless as I was—due to my influence— she was the one who truly understood how I felt and how exactly to free me from my cold cover. But it was the other Tamers who'd taught me about the values of friendship and, when Leomon died, that Digimon were as real as I was, contrary to my original belief that they were just weapons.
My friends had played a big part in this journey, but it was my partner who'd gotten me to slowly unwind.
I shifted slightly on the floorboards, resulting in them creaking in protest and let my lavender eyes trail a bird as it glided across the orange setting. The bird lifted itself higher with one powerful stroke and found itself together with its flock. It was probably my imagination getting the better of me but I picked out a section that seemed different from the others and concluded that they were a family.
Every year since he left, he would call to wish me a happy birthday and to just try to be a normal parental figure through the telephone. He'd called six times; I'd answered none. I knew that the cut between us was only wedged deeper by my stubbornness, but I felt that I couldn't give up to the man who had destroyed our family—a family that he was a part of. However after six years of anger, disappointment, and sorrow, my feelings had changed. After everything that has happened today, I was beginning to realize that I'd probably been too harsh in the judgement of my father. He deserved a chance at forgiveness after all these years, didn't he? I owed him the shot; he was my Dad.
Now that I think about it, I really don't understand why I had been so stubborn and bottled up all this time. Compared to Juri, I don't have anything to complain about. Even though she lost her mother, she always had a smile on her face and a positive outlook on the world and the people around her. My Dad wasn't dead so I should at least try to repair our relationship instead of being that stubborn little girl.
I heard the faint echoes of hands bringing brought together and my mother's repetitive thank yous. I closed my eyes and sighed inwardly, pulling my legs closer to my body and, using the beam as a support, propelled myself onto my feet and turned around with the intention of going back to the party. Azure blue flooded my vision, catching me off guard for half a millisecond. I found myself staring into Akiyama Ryo's awestricken gaze and a frown immediately replaced my mellow look, a mental breath escaping me.
The fifteen-year-old had an excellent way of appearing whenever I didn't want him to, like the time in the Digital Zone with Megadramon, when he followed me down that pit before Renamon and I Matrix-Evolved to Sakuyamon, when Takato and I met up with Jen during our final clash with the D-Reaper, and today when he popped out of nowhere to save the day again. What did he do for a living? Stalk me and sweep me off my feet whenever I appeared to be some kind of damsel in distress? I resented that; I may be eleven but I could take care of myself just fine without him butting in. My frown dropped quickly; then again, in every situation he was only trying to help. I couldn't hold that against him, now could I?
"What do you want Akiyama?" However, our past still had an effect towards our rivalry and I wasn't about to give in to this little card game.
Ryo's expression instantly changed and his teeth bit on his lower lip in a pouting way. I had to restrain myself from laughing at how idiotic he looked; the infamous Puppy dog look apparently wasn't going to "work every time". "What? Aren't you glad to see me?" he pouted, his eyes looking hopelessly down at mine.
I had a sudden urge to roll my eyes at this childish act. He was older than me by a full four years and now it seemed that he was younger than me by that amount. "No," I answered, crossing my arms to emphasize this point. Don't think I ever will be for the rest of my life either.
The boy finally decided to drop the childish approach and ask me the question directly. "Why's the Digimon Queen outside by herself? Shouldn't she be inside greeting her guests?"
I should have known where this conversation was headed. "Last time I checked, I didn't need to report my every single movement. Do I need to ask you when to breathe next?"
Ryo sighed. "Look Ruki, I just came out to see what was bothering you, not to bug you and such. Can't I just be concerned about you?"
Did he want to play this card again? "Do you really think that I am just someone to save Akiyama? I can take care of myself perfectly without your concern; same thing goes for your help. I don't need you interrupting everything I do, nor do I need you questioning my every motion. I have my own reasons for acting as I do and fortunately, they are my own private reasons. To put it short, bug off."
A spark of genuine hurt crossed the older boy's face and for a second I felt terribly sorry for being as harsh as I was. However the second passed and Ryo was back to his old self and as a consequence, so was I. He took a step forward and had his infamous grin on. "You didn't think that a few words would spray Akiyama Ryo away, did you?"
The thought had briefly crossed my mind seeing the bug that you are. A smile crept onto my face as I repeated his action; I wasn't about to back down. "No, the mere presence of Makino Ruki should have already killed him. Then again, it should have killed him a year ago."
His smile widened as he subtracted more distance between us. "Then it appears as if he survived you."
I hurriedly dropped my smile and glared deeply into his sapphire eyes. I may not have wanted to back down, but his closeness made me feel uncomfortable. "If you want to keep 'surviving', I'd suggest you stop your advances," I said coldly, causing a flicker of uncertainty to sprint across his gaze. Sure, play the victim now.
"What are you implying Ruki? Did you actually think I would harm you in any way?" His frown was light and his eyes probed mine for an answer. I saw realization take its place in his eyes and he swayed slightly in his stance. "It has something to do with what's bothering you," he breathed. His gaze immediately sharpened and he boldly took another step towards me, leaning forward so that our faces were almost touching.
"Tell me what's bothering you Ruki, or I won't back down."
An unexplainable fire raged through me and I was pretty sure some of that fire burned into him, especially allied with the strength of my will. Who did he think he was? Did he think that he could just go anywhere asking these sorts of questions? He had no right; what I wanted to be kept a secret shall remain a secret. A part of my brain was reminded that he was merely concerned about my state-of-being but he had gone too far. He was no God.
"Don't say I didn't warn you, Ryo," I reminded, but after a few seconds it was apparent that he was insistent in keeping the distance between us. Fine.
A dull sound was heard when knucklebone introduced itself to cheekbone, causing Akiyama Ryo to stumble backwards in shock. I bet he never thought I would actually hit him—although I had implied to many times in the past. Oh, so now you're backing down, I thought as I slowly let my hand drop to the side.
Ryo's normally clear azure eyes were clouded with disbelief when they found mine, once again making me regret my rushed action. "I warned you," I muttered, turning my gaze.
"I was only worried about you," he repeated. "I already told you that Ruki."
I sighed, directing my eyes to confront him; we were here before and I didn't feel like starting over again. "I told you that I don't need nor do I want you worrying about me. Do you truly think that once you've 'solved' all my problems, I'll be indebted to you? And I'll be another one of your brainless fan girls just waiting to serve your ass? Sorry Akiyama, but I don't think I will anytime soon so you can just stop your act." Scowling in irritation, I brushed past him so I could get back to the party. I hated him right then; I hated him for worrying about me; I hated him for treating me like I was some kind of...some kind of pet, one which needed constant attention and protection.
"Whoever said that I was acting?" I heard him mumble behind me and for the third time today, I was filled with a powerful regret. I glanced upwards and saw the last crimson rays spouting from the horizon, set against the light purple clouds and blackening sky. If I could give my father a second chance, why couldn't I give Ryo one as well—start again as friends?
"I have to learn to make up my mind," I muttered as my walk led me into the dark corridors of the house, the diverse conversations now within my range of hearing. But then again, why should I even care?
Author's Note: Okay, I lied. This chapter wasn't that much longer than the last but I liked it :) Also, I just noticed something in this chapter that I tend to repeat myself a lot because of the lack of creativity. Have to get rid of that habit soon. Pretty OOC but like I did with Takato, I had to take into account the fact that she was only eleven (in the original, people) and since most eleven-year-olds don't rush to get into a relationship...
This chapter was actually inspired by reviewers such as Cloaked Fox who has a solid reputation as a strict reviewer, mainly because of a lot of OOCness that occur in romances. If you are reading this Cloaked Fox, know that I have tried hard to capture Rika's character and not to insult me to death if I messed up. Constructive criticism is appreciated though. X.x