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Author's Note: End of fourth arc.
One thing I've noticed: this story has exceedingly decreased in words while I have edited it. Probably due to the removal of the extremely large author's notes I once posted on each of my chapters. Anyway, thank you so much for reading. Please tell me of your mistakes in review form.

Love Knows No Bounds
Bind 16: Hopeful Light

-

'No one understands your pain.'

Far out into the never-ending distance, directly above Hikari, a small point of light broke into the Endless Darkness and its swirling mass of murkiness. Although the pinpoint of light was small and weak, its light made the Darkness visibly squirm and edge about its prey. An angelic voice could be heard echoing into the Darkness from far away, the sound barely above a whisper. "Hikari. Please, come back with me. You have to come back."

'You are lonely within this vast world.'

Tailmon and BlackTailmon, standing by Hikari's side, looked around within the black fog, wondering where the source of the reassuring voice was. The two Digimon could feel life, strength, and joy coming from the sweet, beautiful voice; they openly welcomed such good feelings, their hearts renewed and awakened with hope. "Who can that be?" they wondered curiously together.

'Listen not to the Light.'

"Hikari!" the unknown voice called out again, "Please come back with me! Come back to me, Hikari! Come back, please… I'm right here for you." The rustling of feathers seemed to reach the ears of Darkness' prisoners while feathers of Light showered all about them. A gentle gust of warm air blew against the young woman, reviving a spark of life within her.

'Do not go to the harrowing Light!'

Ignoring the voice within, she spoke out, "T-Takeru? Takeru, is that you?"

'No one will love you again.'

"Hikari—Hikari… Oh, Hikari, where do you think you're going? Why are you leaving us all behind? Why are you leaving all of your friends behind you?" the stranger's voice echoed through the Dark void. "None of us have left you."

'Never again.'

"Takeru? Takeru, is that you?" Hikari's voice could barely be heard since it was hardly over a mumble. She did not want to hope; that would be far too cruel for her shattered heart.

'The cruel Light takes everything and returns nothing.'

"Hikari." The soft, immaculate voice and the snow-white angelic feathers were floating gently across the air, warming the icy atmosphere of the Dark mist. The Darkness now began to writhe as its hold on to the human girl's frozen heart began to crumble. Light was rebuilding its bonds with the overcome Chosen Child. Realizing this, Tailmon and BlackTailmon silently began to celebrate; the two could feel Hikari returning to them.

'The Light offers you nothing!'

"Takeru." Slight, unnoticeable movement could be seen in Hikari's body; Hikari tilted her head upwards ever so slightly to gain a better view of her surroundings. Tailmon and BlackTailmon gasped in shock when they looked into Hikari's eyes; her once dazzling, enchanting ruby orbs were now lifeless, dull, and utterly empty of any emotion. "Takeru, are you there? Is it you?"

'Hope only exists to bring you sorrow.'

The invisible speaker then answered, "You know who I am, Hikari. I'm right here with you, Hikari. I'm right beside you. I've always been beside you. Please, don't turn your back on me now, Hikari." Her heart jumped at the stranger's words, the thought of Takeru's revival spurring something inside of her; but then reality harshly slapped Hikari in the face.

'Lies, those are all that the Light will tell you.'

There was no possible way for Takeru to have—with her disheartened realization she slid back into the depths of her shell. The Darkness' powers were reinforced; therefore the Dark mist gained the power to throw Tailmon and BlackTailmon, Hikari's two guides out of Darkness, out from its bowels and into the original plain of the Digital World. They landed with a thud against the ground. Before the two of them was the barrier of Darkness that they could not reenter.

'You do not need anyone else; they only subsist to beget you more grief.'

Tailmon cursed beneath her breath as she shook the dust from her white fur. "Damn, what am I going to do now? Damn the Darkness! It shouldn't be like this!" Banging her paws against the black barrier, she shouted frantically, "No, Hikari! Don't give up to the Darkness! Never give up! Don't give up Hope, Hikari. We're still with you!"

Glaring at the barrier dismally, BlackTailmon shook her floppy head with remorse. "We can't break through such a powerful barrier, Tailmon. Even if it is Darkness, it is being powered by Miss Hikari's spirit; and Miss Hikari has an extremely powerful will, so it will be impossible to breach the Darkness, lest we risk harming her. We will have to trust Miss Hikari to get out from there with her own will."

"I know," Tailmon cried, pawing at the barrier sadly, "but I can't just leave Hikari here, BlackTailmon, and I can't just sit here and do nothing either! I have to do SOMETHING to help her! I've already let down Patamon and Takeru, and I'm not ready to lose Hikari—I won't lose Hikari; I refuse to lose her too." As she cried frustrated tears for her trapped partner, a thought then lit inside the cat-like Digimon's head.

"Wait a minute… BlackTailmon, if we hurry, maybe we can get the others here in time to help Hikari realize who she is. Maybe one of the other kids will know how to get Hikari out of this mess." The cat's azure eyes then widened at realization. "Maybe her older brother will know what to do! We have to go get Taichi!"

And with that resolution, the two feline Digimon raced across the forest, and they tried to find a way to contact the Human World using the terminal from where Hikari had appeared. They were so distracted by their new idea that they did not notice a strange aura near the terminal. If Tailmon had been more aware of her surroundings, she would have spotted a shadowed figure speeding off towards the Dark barrier, where Hikari was.

-

'Hope lies to your heart.'

"Yes," Hikari murmured despondently, her heart incased within the Darkness. "Takeru is not here. It's just my mind playing tricks on me. I'm just trying to fool myself from the truth, like I did before." Her thoughts went back to the past, how she had lied to herself, how she had forced herself to hope when she had nothing to hope for.

"Takeru is dead, and there's nothing I can do to bring him back. It's because of me Takeru is dead; I killed him!" When she looked at her hands again, she saw the blood dripping from her hands. "I killed him with my own hands… Takeru is never coming back! There's nothing I can do to bring him back! He's gone!"

'Because of Hope, your wishes of destruction have become reality.'

"No. Stop lying to your self," the kind voice whispered to her. "You never killed me! And you don't have to bring me back, Hikari… All you have to do is to return to us, return to the Light."

She turned away from the sound, unable to face it. "No, don't turn away… Look at me here. Come back with me to the Light, Hikari. Don't abandon us! Hikari, please don't abandon me!" the angelic voice yelled out determinedly.

As the voice rang out and faded, she could feel the warmth from the soft, snow-white feathers and voice beginning to disappear with her belief of Takeru's life.

'See how selfish the Light is?'

"Abandon you?" Hikari quickly stood onto her weak feet, her fists clenched into tight fists; her knuckles were turning white. Within her lifeless, dull scarlet eyes burned the cold, pure passion of anger and hate. 'How can you possibly say that to me, Takeru? How can you heartlessly spout out those words to me without any regret?' she thought with spite.

'Yes, Hope abandons you for its own selfishness; disbelieve in the evil Light.'

The Dark mist multiplied in its size, its barrier growing ever larger; the fury within Hikari's heart fed the Darkness like never before.

Against the shadows, the Light began to fade and dim.

"Who abandoned who, Takeru? You left me alone in this world, without anything left! When you died, you took all of my hope with you because you were my Hope. You were MY world to me, Takeru!" She screamed in fury and slammed her fists against the side of her dark, dreary prison.

"Everything that I ever believed in, everything that I knew, I saw in you," Hikari sobbed, cold tears drizzling down her pale, chilled cheeks. "You had my dreams, my hopes—my future! And now you've left me her alone, without anything of my own! Who are you to demand me not to abandon you?"

'Hope has no love for you.'

"Why is your heart so empty, Hikari? Why are you feeling so hopeless and hateful?" A breath of warmth kissed her cheek and she felt the traces of an embrace. "Hikari, look at me. I'm right here; I've never left your side, and I never will. I'm alive right now just as much as you refuse to believe me." A gentle, warm hand then cupped the mourning girl's chin; and with that, her head lifted upwards to meet bright, shining orbs of heavenly cerulean.

'Do not allow for your eyes to be blinded by Light!'

"Takeru." She gasped for air, her breath hastily taken away at the sight of the angel before her. And once she had lost her breath, Hikari could not find it again; before her stood a magnificent and heavenly sight. Haloed in golden Light and dressed in sparkling ivory robes, Takeru smiled with a warm, supernatural glow; his already golden hair was now accented with radiance alike to sunshine; the boy's face, which had always been loving and kind, had now a celestial awe; the famous Ishida eyes were now swirling storms of infinite blue and brilliant stars. The sight of Takeru's luminous, delicate feathered-wings was the most breathtaking sight of all. Hikari could only gape at her sweetheart in wonder. "Takeru, it—it really is you. You are alive."

A sad, serene smile spread across the blonde boy's lit, compassionate face. Caressing the girl's face with the utmost tender hands, he whispered into her ear, "Yeah, it is me. I'm here with you. Just like you, I'm alive, Hikari. I'm alive as long as you wish to remember me. I'll always be alive as long as you never forget me."

"I could never forget you," she cried as more tears trickled down her face. She placed her hands against Takeru's chest to help her stand still; it was rather draining for her to keep on her feet.

Strangely, she felt rather weak and knew she could not keep her own strength. Fortunately for her, Takeru did not mind being her support; in fact, he enjoyed the contact. Who knew when he would be able to hold Hikari in his arms again?

There was a moment of silence before either of them said another word.

"But you almost did," Takeru simply replied, breaking the silence and brushing Hikari's tears away with his glowing hands. "You almost forgot me."

"I would never forget you, Takeru, never!" She sobbed into Takeru's soft, silken robes and tightly gripped them in her small hands. She feared that if she let go her distrust from before would make Takeru disappear for infinity.

Sensing her fears, Takeru lightly chuckled as he embraced Hikari with all the love in his being. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. And I know, Hikari. I know you would never intentionally forget me, never in your life; but a moment ago, you nearly did."

"How? How could I do something so horrible?" she demanded through her tears, her voice catching in her throat. Listening to Takeru about forgetting him was extremely heartrending; she felt as if she would shatter into a million pieces.

Takeru caressed Hikari's head with delicate hands, his slender fingers combing through her soft, chestnut hair. The feeling of her hair was like silk sifting through his fingers; Takaishi Takeru could not fight the urge to nuzzle his face into her sweet rose-scented hair. "When you allowed your heart to be overcome with Darkness, Hikari, you almost forgot everything that stood for Light, you almost forgot Hope," he murmured. "You nearly forgot me. You practically forgot the reason why I loved you so much."

"I'm so sorry, Takeru," she apologized once more, her tears continuing to flow from her scarlet eyes. "I don't know why or how I could have ever forgotten myself or you, but now I realize the terrible things I have done."

"Sh," Takeru hushed, soothingly rubbing her back. "Don't cry anymore, Hikari. You know I can't stand to see you cry, especially if you're crying for me—all of what has happened is now in the past; and besides, you haven't done anything more terrible than what I have done." He sighed about the past, still incredulous at his behavior. "I was the second Digimon Kaiser, remember, Hikari? I was the meaner of the two too."

Nodding in remembrance, she tried to stifle her giggling and her continuous tears. "You were mean, but you were so handsome in that outfit, Takeru."

"Ha," Takeru laughed, "okay, I'll admit, I did look dashing as the villain, but now I regret ever surrendering my heart to Darkness, even for a moment." Resting his head against hers, he kissed the top and said, "I can't have allowed you to feel the same unhappiness, Hikari. Now that you remember your true heart, we can finally get you out of this hell hole."

Her tears immediately stopped and her eyes grew wide at Takeru's language. "Takeru!" she exclaimed in utter surprise. 'Since when did Takeru say things like that? I thought he was a gentleman.'

"Heh, sorry about that, Hikari," he apologized sheepishly, a rosy pink hue descending upon his cheeks. "I sort of got carried away with myself. When you become a full-fledged being of Light, your resentment for Darkness can kind of grow." He scratched the back of his head from embarrassment. "You should have seen me when I heard what was happening to you; I tried to get to you as fast as I could."

After those words, Takeru slipped one strong arm beneath Hikari's legs and another beneath her back, holding the teenage girl to his chest. Surprisingly to the young lady, she heard the mellifluous heartening thumping of his heart. To keep from Takeru using too much of his own strength, the Yagami girl wrapped her slender arms around the neck of her angel, slightly holding herself up.

She blushed, nervous about her current position, as Takeru laughed with amusement. "You know, Hikari, I always planned on doing this on our wedding day, but I guess doing this while saving you from Darkness will just have to do now for me."

Hikari gawked at her guardian angel, her own cheeks heating slightly. "What do you mean by 'our wedding day', Takeru? Don't tell me you—Takeru, you planned out our lives all the way to our wedding day?" Heat ran down from her head to her toes before she managed to say, "Wait, how did you know we would ever get married?"

It was now Takeru's turn to blush once again. "Well, I—I actually was hoping that you and I would—well, in class I would daydream about us and, you know—I just hoped that we would be together for the rest of our lives." Turning away from Hikari, he dared not to look at her in the eye. How embarrassing, he could not help feel. "Although it doesn't seem likely now, I wish I could change that."

"Yeah, I want that now too, Takeru," Hikari whispered as she buried her face into his robes. She guessed that now she had to confess something to him. "I always dreamed about being with you, Takeru, since we first met and when we were little. I wish for us to be together for the rest of our lives with all of my heart."

Smiling, Takeru spread his great glistening wings and readied himself to fly. "Hold onto me tight, Hikari," he murmured to her firmly, "I won't take any risks losing you again."

As he began a steady rise from the depths of Darkness, the Darkness itself would not surrender its prey without a fight. A black atmosphere built a barricade against the heavenly being and his loved one of Light. Evil creatures then appeared from the sinister void, their spiny arms reaching out at Hikari. "Come back, Descendant of Darkness! Come back to your true home!"

Narrowing his dazzling cerulean eyes into an intolerable glare, Takeru growled as he harshly spat, "How dare you insinuate such an insult towards her! You call this ugly pit her home? Go back to the disgusting depths from which you came, you monsters!"

The creatures did not heed Takeru's words as they continued to grab at Hikari. When the disgusting beasts neared the pair, the ones of Darkness were instantly pushed back by the mere force of Takeru's determination to protect his charge.

"Stay—Away—From—Her!" Takeru yelled as he forcibly flew his way out of the grasps of the creatures, destroying the Darkness' barrier in the process. Wind whistled wildly in Hikari's ears, as she felt chilled. Only Takeru's protective arms gave her soothing warmth. And when the barrier was shattered, bright, blinding light surrounded Takeru and Hikari, taking the two lovers into their own world for a temporary moment.

After a few minutes of silence, Hikari still within Takeru's arms whispered to her angel, "You have to leave now, don't you, Takeru?"

A woeful look etching onto his face, the blond boy nodded ruefully. "I don't want to leave; you have to understand that, Hikari. But, I have to return to the World I now belong to. Now that I don't have a purpose to remain in this World, I can't stay—I-I wish this moment would last forever, just between you and me." With one hand he traced her cheek and brushed back her hair. "I wish this moment would last forever."

"But, you promise to be with me always, right, Takeru?" Hikari questioned as she rested her head against his chest. Closing her revived scarlet orbs, she inhaled the aroma emitting from his being; the Chosen Child of Light would always remember the image of wild flowers and sunrise to Takeru. "You promise that as long as I remember you and my love for you, you're always going to be with me in my heart?"

"Yes," Takeru answered with a choke in his voice. "As long as we remember each other and our hearts, you and I will always remain together in spirit." Embracing Hikari more earnestly, for the first time since his revelation about his love for her, Takeru began to cry. He was being torn by the emotions to hold onto Hikari and the responsibility of letting her go.

When she felt the warm trickle of tears on her forehead, Hikari looked up into the teary, stormy cerulean eyes of Takeru. The Child of Light could not hold back her gasp. "What's wrong, Takeru?" she asked as she put a hand to his cheek, outlining his jaw with her thumb.

Takeru shook his head in answer, forcing Hikari to frown at him disdainfully. "Takeru, please tell me what's wrong; I refuse for you to leave like this. I'm not letting go of you until you tell me why you're so sad."

"It just hurts me, Hikari," Takeru finally replied, the angel now trying to force back his tears. "I'm hurt to think that you're going to have to go on with your life without me. You'll grow older, not to mention prettier, and you'll get married to some great guy. After that, you'll probably have wonderful kids and live happily ever after; and I'll never have been a part of that. I'll never have had the chance to be that lucky guy who gets to spend the rest of his life with you."

SLAP!

"What are you talking about, Takeru?" Hikari demanded angrily, gripping her angel's arms forcibly. Her eyes were a furious ruby blaze glaring at his calm, cool sapphire orbs.

Shocked, Takeru placed a hand gingerly on his cheek. There had only been a few times where he had hit, had seen hit, or had been hit by anyone. Actually, Takeru had only hit bullies and Ken; Taichi and Yamato were the only ones to fight intensively in front of him; and Taichi and Ken were the only ones to have repaid Takeru for another blow. Never had he expected to be hit by Hikari. She was just too sweet of a person to do something so dynamic. "Hikari—"

"Takeru, you and I are always going to be together. No matter how I go on with my life, you are ALWAYS going to be a part of it. There will never be day where you aren't," Hikari sighed, placing her own hand over Takeru's, her cool forehead a contrast to his heated, red one.

"But Hikari—"

"No 'buts', Takeru. As long as I exist, I will ALWAYS love you, no matter what," she assured him. "You've made sure of that a while ago."

"I can't argue with that," he chuckled, a smile finally brightening his features.

Before he landed on the ground, he scanned the wild flower field for any danger. He sensed a mysterious but familiar presence, a presence Takeru had perceived many times before when he had been in the Digital World.

'Where have I felt this feeling before?' He thought while making the steady descent. 'I know this person, but I just can't name him. Who is it? The air feels chilly and dark, but it still feels warm and happy at the same time. Who could it possibly be? Who can be both Dark and Light?' Fortunately, Takeru could not pinpoint the location, and the Chosen Child figured the familiar aura would not harm Hikari in any way.

Clutching to Takeru's neck, Hikari made a slow descent to the ground, Takeru grasping her waist tightly. "Will you be all right here on your own, Hikari? You know I don't want to risk your safety; and if you feel uncomfortable, then I'll be more than happy to take you somewhere else."

Hikari nodded to his question with assurance and a warm smile. "Don't worry, Takeru. I'll be safe here; it's so close to Primary Village."

"All right, Hikari. I'll trust you," the angel sighed as he gazed at the surroundings. As fiery orange petals danced along the wind, the Chosen Child of Hope could not help but remember the past. "It's amazing, isn't it, how this one little place as so many memories? And all of those memories aren't entirely good or bad; they're both happy and sad."

"Let's just remember the happy ones," Hikari muttered as she neared her sweetheart's face. "Let's just remember our moments together." Recognizing the indication, Takeru did not argue against the girls movements.

And for the second time as a parting gesture, Takeru and Hikari kissed each other as a farewell.

Seconds ticked away before Takeru or Hikari thought of breaking the enchanting kiss. The emotion caught in between a simple gesture could not have possibly been described; together, the two Chosen Children felt as if they were alone and standing still in time, but at the same moment, time was flying past them, leaving the two in infinity. "I'll see you again one day, Hikari," Takeru, the kiss finally broken, promised as he began to fly away, alone this time. "My heart will always be with you, and I'll come back to you." He held onto her hand as he slowly ascended with the steady pumps of his wings.

"I know you will," Hikari called out, standing on her toes as she tried to keep their hands linked. As soon as their hand broke contact, Takeru's image dissolved away in a shower of stars and glitter.

When the remnants of Takeru's essence dissipated, Hikari slumped to the ground on her knees. She did not know how, but she found some way to summon more tears to her eyes. Right then, Taichi ran into the field of flaming-colored flowers; a look of worry was etched across his face. As soon as Taichi reached Hikari, he quickly picked up his sister into his arms and hugged her fiercely.

"Are you all right?" Taichi asked her gently, the older brother rocking his little sister in comfort. "You aren't hurt, are you, Hikari? When we found out that you were gone, I got so worried. Mom and Dad are having a fit right now, and Yamato and Sora are on the other side of the Digital World looking for you. What happened to you, Hikari? You—you didn't run into any Evil Digimon, did you? Did the Dark Ocean come back?" Taking a glance to the side, Taichi glared in the direction of the remnants of the Dark barrier; although Hikari did not notice it, the remaining Darkness quickly fled into the Dark Forrest beneath his dangerous glare.

"I saw Takeru, Taichi," Hikari cried, a small smile playing onto her lips. She tenderly traced a finger across her lips at the memory of Takeru and her last kiss. "I don't know if you believe me, Taichi, but I saw Takeru; he rescued me. Takeru rescued me from the Darkness."

Placing a gentle hand on top of her head, he murmured, "I know, Hikari. I saw him too."

Hikari stared in shock up at her older brother, who slightly looked grim. "You saw him too, Taichi? You actually saw Takeru?"

Taichi nodded in affirmation; his face was so serious but expressionless. It was a poker face Hikari could not even decipher. "I saw Takeru also, Hikari. Who else do you think it could have been helping you fight away all of that Dark mist? I only know one other person who's strong enough to scare away the Darkness like you and Takeru."

The young lady's face broke into a joyous smile. "Even when he's gone from our Worlds, Takeru is always here by my side to protect me. He always was there for me, and he forever will be."

"That's right, Hikari," Taichi replied quietly to her, holding his sister closer to him, "no matter where you go, Takeru will constantly be there to protect you. He's made sure that he's going to be your guardian angel from now on."

"You don't think Tailmon will mind, do you?" Hikari lightly joked. "You know, she won't mind sharing the partner-protecting job, you think?" Her elder brother chuckled at the joke as he helped his younger sibling and himself to their feet.

"No, I don't think she'll mind at all, Hikari. I actually think she might enjoy the sharing; less work for her, you know?" He chuckled while wrapping a playful arm around her shoulders. "Heck, when Tailmon started helping me take care of you, I felt so relieved because you're a handful. I bet Takeru is even thinking what the hell he's gotten himself into." Hikari punched Taichi in a playful manner, the two siblings laughing quietly at their thoughts.

And as Hikari led the way to the Digital Port, Taichi turned and looked up at the sunset sky. The vast open space was painted with brilliant blues, gentle pinks, valiant oranges, burning reds, and deep purples. The Leader of the Chosen Child smiled sadly as he whispered a silent thank you to the artistic heavens. "Takeru, thanks for protecting Hikari," he murmured for no one's ears. "I promise that one day I'll return the favor."

-

"All right, Taichi, time for some explanations. What happened in the Digital World?" Sora asked as she and Taichi stepped quietly out of Hikari's bedroom. It was the evening now, and Hikari, Taichi, Sora, and Yamato and just arrived at the Yagami residence from the nearest Digital Port, which was the campsite.

Mr. and Mrs. Yagami were currently with Mr. and Mrs. Takenouchi, Taichi's parents trying to regain their wits about nearly losing their own little baby. And once they had reached home, without much effort, Taichi had put Hikari to sleep; his little sister had absolutely worn herself out from her day's experience. Now in the hushed living room there was only Taichi, Sora, and Yamato to discuss the latest events.

"What happened today, Sora, is that Takeru proved to all of us that love knows no bounds," Taichi whispered, settling his self onto the couch. Without noticing himself, he had also tired himself from what had happened in the Digital World.

Yamato, sitting across from his friend, gaped at his large haired companion in shock. "What do you mean by that, Taichi? What do you mean by Takeru proved—"

"Takeru rescued Hikari in the Digital World today, Yamato. He rescued my little sister from the Darkness, the Dark mist," Taichi quickly answered, closing his eyes in remembrance. The thought of Darkness trying to swallow Hikari still infuriated him to the bottom of his soul.

Yamato and Sora first glanced at each other in question before they turned to stare at their friend in confusion. "What do you mean by this, Taichi?" Sora inquired cautiously; she did not want to send Yamato a false hope about his little brother. Already they had faced Takeru's death twice: no one could bear his death a third time. "Does this mean that Takeru—does it mean that Takeru is still alive?"

"No."

The short and simple answer cut coldly at Yamato and Sora. Taichi, like on the bus ride to the campsite, was acting strangely odd again. The bizarre sensation that was emitting from him made Yamato and Sora believe that some anomalous being currently possessed him. "Then what did you mean by what you said earlier, Taichi?" Yamato demanded warily.

"Takeru is not still alive, but he was allowed for a temporary moment to be here on this plane to save Hikari," Taichi explained, his eyes still closed. "He was in a tangible form, but he wasn't alive. I guess we can just say that he was serving his job as Hikari's guardian angel." Once that was said, he looked up and grinned merrily at his friends; his personality had altered once again.

Sighing happily, Yamato relaxed against the couch as he recognized Taichi's more familiar persona. The dashing blonde Ishida then joked, "Ah, so I guess Baby Bro actually got accepted to the High Above. Well, at least that's relieving to know; I should have figured that he would become Hikari's guardian angel, of course."

"Yeah," Taichi agreed, laughing a little with Yamato. "Although, I don't understand why you were ever worried about Takeru, Yamato. Of course he'd get accepted and be given the wing and halo treatment. I mean, Takeru is the obvious choice." He chuckled even further while resting his arms behind his back. "You, on the other hand Yamato, I'm a little worried about."

"And what do you mean by that, Taichi?" Yamato muttered precariously as he grabbed Taichi's shirt from across the coffee table. "You think you're going to get in to Heaven and I'm not?!"

"Let me put it this way simply for you, Yamato: HELL YES!"

"Hey! You're going to get it now, Taichi!"

And as Taichi and Yamato pushed themselves into one of their childish brawls, Sora sighed in exasperation, wondering how she ever became friends with them at all. A small sensation rushed through the orange haired girl for a fleeting moment, making Sora turn her head towards Hikari's door. She smiled as she guessed why her Crest trait had been suddenly activated.

The faint, shining outline of a winged man kneeled beside Hikari's bed while shimmering feathers of Light showered the room. A glowing hand kindly caressed the girl's cheeks as another luminous hand tucked her into bed.

"Thank you, Takeru," she murmured in her sleep, a small smile playing on her scarlet lips. In her hands hugged to her body were Takeru's digivice and her own D-Terminal which now held both the Digimental of Light and Hope.

Takeru smiled pleasantly at his dear as he lightly kissed her cheek. "Sweet dreams, Hikari. Remember," he whispered lovingly in her ear, "I'm always with you."

"I love you, Takeru."

"I love you too, Hikari," Takeru grinned as he brushed stray strands of hair away from her peaceful, slumbering face. He kissed her ear gently and then rested his forehead against hers. Only for a moment more did he dare play with her silky chestnut-colored tresses. After a few minutes, Takeru could hear his superiors calling out to him, marking the end of his brief visit. Giving Hikari's cheek another affectionate peck and then kissing her hand, he bid his farewell.

'Hope.'

"I'll come back soon, Hikari. I don't know when, but I'll come back and see you again."

'A note of love for you.'

"I know you will."

'To let you know that I care.'

After stroking Hikari's cheek one final time, Takeru stepped quietly from her bedroom and spread out his magnificent, incandescent wings for flight. He flapped his wings a few times before leaving Hikari to her dreams and happy memories, making sure a floor of snow-white feathers would greet her in the morning. And the fair angel flew into the night, his brilliant wings cascading a hopeful light to the hopeless beneath him.

'And that I think of you.'

'Each and every day.'

-