Chapter Two: The Cast

Note- I don't own Paint It Black the Rolling Stones do.

"I see a red door and I want it painted black. No colors anymore I want them to turn black." Kari rolled over and hit the off button on the alarm. It was purely a reflex action, she was still asleep. That's was why a minute later the alarm clock on the other side of the room went off. She got up and turned it off, she was still more than half asleep.

Kari went over to the bathroom and turned the cold water on. It was an old habit from before her brother Tai went to college. With Tai out in Chicago there was really no way he could use up the hot water, but she just didn't care enough anymore to change the habit.

She stepped into the ice cold water and let it wash away the sweat and grime of the day and night before. This was also the time she chose to initiate her morning TK cursing. Tai had once said that for someone she said she never wanted to see again she was a bit obsessed with him.

She had kicked him so hard for that he was probably still speaking a few octaves higher. The truth though was that she was a bit obsessed, her hatred for TK was one of the few things that kept her going in life; along with Gatomon, her mother, and her brother. There was also, hidden deep within her and barely ever shown, a longing to see him again and put the pieces back together. She had tried for three years to squash that feeling and, so she thought, nearly eliminated it.

As Kari walked back to her room she felt a pair of eyes on her, "What do you want Gatomon?" she asked.

"I was just watching you Kari, no need to be so jumpy." The cat digimon explained.

"Sorry," Kari told her best friend as she pulled on a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt, "I'm really sorry I just had a really bead dream last night."

"What was this one about?" Gatomon asked curiously, Kari had been having nightmares for the past month or so.

"I don't want to talk about it." Kari said with finality.

"Oh so it was about when-"

"I said I didn't want to talk about it." Kari snapped cutting the digimon off, before leaving and heading downstairs for breakfast. Gatomon stared in shock at her partner, sure Kari could be short sometimes but she never yelled at someone without apologizing; TK being an exception to this rule.

"Morning Kari." her mother said as Kari got herself a bowl of cereal, she gave her mother a quick nod. "Kari there's a concert tonight." her mother began.

"So?" Kari asked as she sat down.

"You're going." Mrs. Kamiya said pushing a ticket across the table.

"I don't feel like it." Kari said closing her eyes and leaning back in her chair.

"Too bad you don't have a choice in this." Kari's eyes snapped open and she nearly choked on her spoon. "It's unhealthy for someone to do so little socializing," Mrs. Kamiya continued, "so you're going to go there, talk to people, and have fun. Do you understand?"

"Mom," Kari whined, "do I have to"

Her mother gazed at her unflinchingly, "Yes Kari, you have to do this. Ever since we moved here you've made even the most antisocial people look normal, so you are going young lady."

"Fine Mom," Kari said, "I'll go there, and talk to people, and have fun, and I won't be home 'til morning, and before you know it you'll be a grandmother." Mrs. Kamiya didn't bat an eyelash, she had already heard this argument and it wasn't going to work.

Yamato Ishida looked around the stage he and his band was going to play on that night. "An okay place." He remarked. "So what is the other band we're touring with like?" he asked the head of band security, surprisingly, a kid the same age as his kid brother.

Of course Jack wasn't only an eighteen year old kid; he was an eighteen year old kid with and above average dose of cynicism and an odd madness behind his rarely seen eyes, and, never to be forgotten, an odd ability to not be seen if he didn't want to be. "They're called Black Wings; they're like Evanescence only darker." Jack explained. Neither 'Shorty,' the singer, nor her boyfriend 'Big T,' the lead guitarist, would appreciate the comparison; but it was probably a little better than just flat out saying that they were a metal band whose main influences were Iron Maiden, Slayer, and Korn.

Matt studied the tall, thin, short haired youth in front of him; he was dressed simply in a pair of loose green pants and a black shirt with a snake on it. "So how'd you get your job?" he asked.

"The guy doing the hiring was getting mugged so, model citizen that I am," Matt could hear a snicker in the kid's voice as he said this, "I beat the shit out the mugger. The very grateful manager offered me the job as a thank you." Jack explained, he was wearing sunglasses which made it impossible to read the expression in his eyes; but something told Matt that he could trust this kid with his life.

As TK left the airport the enormity of the task before him began to sink in. He was completely clueless as to where in the country the Kamiyas lived or what Kari looked like now, save for a dream he had had of her before he left. In the dream she had long black hair that reached midway down her back, she was wearing a T-shirt that stated, quite literally, that her only problem was her ex, and a pair of jeans. She also had her old camp whistle around her neck. TK was so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the two people walking towards him.

The two people were too occupied speaking to each other that they didn't notice him. As such it was no surprise to any onlookers when the three collided and they all fell to the ground.

"Oh I am so sorry." a pink haired girl told her as she got up and helped pull the blue haired boy next to her up.

"Yeah we should have been watching where we were going." the boy said as he adjusted his glasses.

TK looked at the girl amazed by his luck. "It's no problem Mimi," he said, "and … Joe." The second part was slightly more confused than happy.

"Huh, who are you?" Joe asked, and then he smiled knowingly. "TK its great to see you again." he remarked. "God you've grown."

Mimi squealed and hugged TK. "Hey little buddy." she told him. "What brings you to the states?"

TK couldn't believe his luck anymore. Nope this definitely wasn't happening, the fall must have jarred his brain a bit, and he was undoubtedly lying comatose on the sidewalk right now. I mean Joe and Mimi, who could've seen that one coming. "I'm trying to find the Kamiyas, you know where they are?" he asked just in case this was reality.

"The last I heard Tai was attending college in Chicago on a soccer scholarship." Joe told him, there was a warning note in his voice that told TK he wouldn't find a very warm welcome in Chicago. Mimi didn't seem to share Joe's pessimism, all she was doing was smiling; it was slightly unnerving.

"I'll be sure to stop by when I'm leaving." he promised as they exchanged farewells. "Oh yeah," he called back over his shoulder as he left, "make sure you use a condom Joe!"

To his complete surprise Joe yelled back, "I always do."

Melissa was wandering down a back alley of Chicago. "Demi?" she called out, "Demi where are you?" The past year had undoubtedly been hard on her and she wouldn't tell anyone why, not that anyone cared enough to listen. If any of her former friends they'd be laughing their heads off, gone was the hip trendy popular girl that they knew. If her parents ever spent anytime around her they'd wonder where their pristine little girl had gone.

Behind herself Melissa felt an ominously evil presence and she ran, her legs pounding a fierce frantic beat upon the street. It was back and now it was time to run.