A/N: I've noticed that is getting a lot of complaints about the way they do things. Personally, I think that it's good that they have rules that people should listen to because this site is being kept running BECAUSE of them, but the thing that I don't agree with them is the deleting of fics without any warnings to the authors. I think that the author should have the right to know why their stories are being deleted AND should be given a warning to change those mishaps in their fics in order for it NOT to be deleted. It's just a suggestion if any makes of is reading this.

Sorry about your fics Noriko Fujita!! I'm a fan too!!!

Anyways, here's the other chapter 13, I hope the other 50% was enough to let you know that I was still alive and not lying in some gutter somewhere in the city. :) Anyways, I hope you like it!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon or its characters and any similarities or things that seem frighteningly similar to another fic is simply a coincidence and everything in this fic is COMPLETELY from my imagination. No plagiarism involved, iie, nada, wala, zip, zero, nopperinos. Thanks!

Voguish Fib

chapter 13 (the other 50%) - Not So Close Enough

He didn't want to keep thinking about that stupid dream. It's over. Done with. Gone. He sighed. It was pretty intense though. Everything--from the colors of that butterfly's wings to the sound of Hikari's frightened scream. Taichi shook his head. He didn't want to relive it again and again. Some things are just too hard to bear.

"Taichi! We're already a bit behind...do you think we're gonna make it before they reach Furugawa?" Yamato asked, anxiously. He glanced over at Taichi, who still looked like he was in deep thought. He was seriously worried about his brown haired friend. Whatever that dream was about really shocked him out of reality. In all seriousness, Taichi looked wretched and stressed out as if he hadn't been sleeping at all, even if he had been sleeping most of the trip.

Maybe we should stop for some food, Yamato thought to himself, realizing that he was starving. They hadn't eaten in almost two days. With that thought, he realized that maybe even the kidnappers and Sora hadn't had time to eat since no stops were made, only when they had to relieve themselves near the bushes, and he and Taichi hadn't had even an hour's rest.

Almost as if on cue with Yamato's thoughts, the main kidnapper and his followers turned right, their horses galloping down into a cascading route of stair-shaped, ruby-colored rocks protruding out of the earth like wildfire that never ceases. In reality, the rocks were a type of gate, a gate that was "alive" in a way. They detect what is good or evil and let any hungry bypassers in, but fight to keep the evil out. Yamato's eyes followed them until they reached the lowest surface, revealing the little mythical town of Kuro-aki. It was a town filled with species that resembled humans, but were more like mutant-mortals because they contained powers that surpassed humans, even if they lived the same life cycle as humans did.

"Taichi, we're gonna have some rest after all," Yamato told his friend with a smile. "Then after we've rested for an hour or two, we could go down there and get your girlfriend back." He smirked at Taichi before turning his attention back to the town below.

Taichi's eyes followed Yamato's down the path of the ruby stones. He sighed. "Good...this horse needs it--whether he's stronger than normal or not, he needs to rest." He wasn't in the mood to cause Yamato physical pain at the moment, so he simply ignored his little comment. "Hey Yamato...why don't we just go down there right now?"

Good point, Yamato thought. "Because..."

"Exactly, so let's go! I'll race you!" Taichi said tapping his horse's rump, making it gallop towards the rocks before Yamato could answer. He turned back, seeing Yamato slap his reins quickly to try and catch up to Taichi. Taichi smirked defiantly as he turned back to see where he was going.

All of a sudden, a large wisp of flames stopped him from getting anywhere close to the little town below. It was everywhere Taichi was, burning his elbow when the horse fell back, burning his knees when he went forward. Smoke began to seethe into his lungs and seemed to lash at him from everywhere else.

"Holy shit!!" Taichi swore as his horse lifted up it's front legs and whinnying wildly. Taichi fell off the horse, rolling backwards until he came to a halt against a large tree. He rubbed his bruised head as he watched the flames slowly back down.

"What the..." Yamato whispered, pulling at his horse, watching the flames too. He turned back to Taichi. "Hey... you okay?" he asked, dismounting his horse and rushing towards Taichi.

"Yeah...what the hell was that? It almost killed me!! We're not evil you idiotic rocks!!" he snarled lifting himself off the ground with the help of Yamato.

"But you have evil intentions," came a small, antiquated voice.

Taichi and Yamato turned to a small bald man wearing several long shawls over him. He had squinty, baggy eyes and a toothless expression that seemed to appear happy even if he was talking of serious matters--such as now. He held a staff in his bony hands and had a single hair protruding just above his forefinger's knuckle.

"What evil intentions? I have NO evil intentions!" Taichi shouted at the small man, waving both fists childishly.

"I'm old but I'm not deaf boy!" the little man screeched, hitting Taichi over the head with his staff. He looked over at Yamato. "Is he always this irritable?"

"When he doesn't get what he wants," Yamato replied calmly.

"OW!! That hurt you demented old weirdo!!" Taichi growled inanely as he jumped up and down.

"Oh, I see," the small man muttered to Yamato. His eyes turned to Taichi, after deliberately ignoring his complaints and name calling. "So, young man. Is there something in that little town that means a lot to you? Something you truly care for? Or is there something there that you want for your own greedy, sexual desires that your own body cannot produce satiation for itself?"

"What the fu--"

"UNLESS--there is something there that you want to hurt or destroy badly with your own bare hands? Or maybe it's simply your angry, irritating thoughts that want to inflict bodily damage to a man that does not mean harm to you? Maybe you want to steal something from that man you want to cause bodily damage to and then humiliate them in front of their subordinates?"

"N...um...kind of...on the last one...I think..." Taichi answered softly scratching his head in confusion. "Hey wait! What did you mean about my own greedy se--"

The small man slightly giggled from embarrassment. "Hehe, oh that! Never mind it! It was for this advertisement for a sort of sexual enhancement for the elderly--"

"AHH FORGET IT!!"

"WE DON'T WANNA KNOW!!" came the screams from Taichi and Yamato as the shut their ears tightly until he ceased speaking.

"Ehem. Sorry about that...anyways, I haven't introduced myself yet," the old man said, changing the subject quickly. "My name is Gonnai, of the Kami peoples!"

"Gonnai?" Taichi and Yamato repeated simultaneously.

"Yes Gonnai, twin brother of Gennai, older brother to Honda and Mitsubishi, and father of 12, uncle of 21," Gonnai replied proudly.

"Twin brother?" Yamato asked.

"Of Gennai-san, master of the mind and spiritual arts?" Taichi continued.

"Yes, do you know him?"

The two boys laughed heartily, hitting each other and bursting out into laughter again once they gave another glance at Gonnai. Gonnai stared at them with a lifted brow. He put his hands on his waist.

"What seems to be so funny?" he asked quietly.

"Gennai-san is a tall, quiet man who looks and acts nothing like you," Taichi explained, still a little giggly from his outburst of laughter. Gonnai quickly frowned. He hit Taichi over the head with the staff once more.

"OWW!! You jerk--I don't care if you're an old man!! I'll rip your damn bal--"

"TAICHI!! Will you cut it out? Gonnai-san might be able to help us," Yamato said, giving Taichi a stern eye as he held him back from causing bodily damage to Gonnai instead of the kidnappers.

"I see now why the Gate of Toyota will not let you enter Kuro-aki," Gonnai grumbled.

"Look, all we want is to get his girlfriend Sora from those guys who kidnapped her. Could you help us get in so we could get her back?"

"Oh! His girlfriend?"

"She's not my girlfriend! She's just...I mean...she can't be considered my girlfriend because...well..." Taichi looked down as he pointed his forefingers together. His cheeks were slightly tinted.

"You had a fight and that was the last time you saw her and now you don't know if she'll forgive you for whatever you did to her. Am I correct?"

"Uh...yeah..." Taichi replied, almost numbly.

"Then if it's for the affection of the woman you love then I don't understand why the gate won't let you enter," Gonnai said matter-of-factly.

"Woman I...love?" Taichi slunk back. Did he love Sora? That question, it's many versions, and it's many possible answers had driven him mad over the past few weeks of being with Sora. Had he really fallen in love with that crazy nymph?

Gonnai's voice interrupted Taichi's thoughts. "I think that if you channel that thought and power into your mind then that's all you need to enter the gate."

"Really?" Yamato asked. "Well what are we waiting for? I'm tired and I'm hungry and I really wanna go home, so hurry up Tai!!"

"Okay, okay!!"

The two stepped towards the gate slowly, leaving their horses with Gonnai who stood back, watching hopefully, to see if the two of them could make it inside. For Taichi, it was easy enough to think only of Sora, for at the moment, she was all his mind was occupied with. His thoughts were filled of her, his senses were filled of her, and even when she annoyed him to bits with her drinking and tomboyishness, he realized for the first time that he couldn't live without her.

By this time his eyes had been shut tight, his thoughts less violent than they had been in years.

"Sora..."

Taichi opened his eyes and walked towards the stones as if it were nothing. He closed his eyes, hoping to the gods above that he was not going to be burnt to a crisp. He had heard stories of this gate when he was small and the second try always caused permanent physical and emotional damage. The flames did things that could destroy a mortal with one wisp and damage the immortal for a long time and even kill them.

For seconds he stood there with his eyes shut. When he didn't feel his body burning like the depts of hell, he realized he wasn't going to die after all. He opened his eyes and looked down. Yamato was already at the foot of the town.

"Hey!! Wait for me!!" Taichi called out, tripping over some rocks before catching up with Yamato.

)()()()()()()(

"You know Jyou, maybe you're right...maybe I should go home," Sora said as Willis and Daisuke chained her to a chair next to the bed. It had been very difficult to bring her into the Kami man's house. Jyou had been sweating in every possible place hoping she wouldn't start screaming and causing a scene. Maybe she did want to go with them after all.

Jyou looked up at her expectantly with hopeful eyes. "Really?" he asked smally.

Sora scoffed. "What do you think? I know you're only doing your job, but couldn't you send one of your little helpers to my mother and tell her that I can make my own decisions? Let me go Jyou!! Let me go!!! You know, you should be glad that I didn't tell on your ass!!! You better be glad I didn't make a scene because I thought I could put some sense in your head..." Sora continued.

"She talks a lot Jyou," Daisuke whispered.

"I know," Jyou whispered back, exasperated.

"Can't we put something in her mouth to make her shut up?" Willis asked.

"No...no we can't--" Jyou began. He thought about it. If she was quiet, he wouldn't have her warning words in his conscience. He was very sensitive. Everything Sora had been saying was staying in his head. Now if she was quiet... "Okay, fine, put this on her," Jyou said, handing Daisuke his belt.

"--and I told you once before, Myotismon is NOT someone you can trust! Jyou!! Aren't you listening to me--mmhhh!! Mmmhhh!!!" Sora muffled.

"That's better," Willis said, smiling at Sora. Sora glared at him with all the hatred she could waste on him...but to be honest, she was as exhausted as the rest, especially having gone through all she had in two days without anything to bring her energy back.

I guess, I'm going back to Furugawa... Sora thought as she slunk back in her chair.

)()()()()()()(

"Excuse me, do you happen to know where the new visitors are? We're a friend of theirs," Yamato asked one of the Kami townspeople.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I heard there were some passersby, but I haven't a clue where they are," the woman replied.

"I'm terribly sorry young men, but our town is not as small as you think. I wouldn't know where they are."

Those were the replies they got from mostly everyone they asked. (With the occasional, "You two look like fine young gentlemen. Would you like to marry my daughters?")

"Kami-sama...I never knew this small town could feel so big...doesn't anyone know where they are?" Taichi asked rhetorically.

"I know where they are," came the voice of a small boy. Yamato and Taichi turned to him. He looked about the same age Hikari would be now. He had on a dirty, brown shawl and held a basket of apples in one hand. "I'm Takato."

"So you can help us Takato?" Yamato asked.

"Of course, but first, do you have a place to stay?"

Taichi looked at Yamato. "Um...actually, we were just hoping to join our friends," Taichi answered.

"Oh all right, but it would be quite difficult to go to them. Sakana-san is very strict when it comes to the number of visitors at his house. He already has nine children to take care of," Takato told them as he began walking away with Taichi and Yamato following after.

"What Taichi is trying to say, we'll be glad if you had a place for us in your home," Yamato said, glaring slightly at Taichi.

"Cool," Takato said with a smile.

They walked for some time until they reached a small shack-like house, identical to all the ones next to it. It was neat, though, with small flower gardens in the front and freshly cut, green grass. Takato looked up at the two young men staring astounded at the neighborhood. At the house next door, a man came out, holding a strange looking cat under his arm.

"Hello Takato-kun," the man greeted.

"Hello Sakana-san," Takato replied, waving.

Taichi and Yamato looked at one another again. They were thinking the same thing. "Takato? He's your neighbor?" they asked simultaneously.

"Yup."

Takato entered his house and put the basket of apples down on the table. Taichi looked around. The inside of the shack seemed larger than it looked on the outside. He shrugged, the town's name itself was pretty outrageous, so there was no need to question the rest of it.

"Takato, did you get what Mama asked for--" a voice called from one of the rooms. It was a girl. A very attractive girl. The two boys gulped as the watched her come out. She had lengthy golden tresses, dark turquoise eyes, and very long, pale legs from what Taichi and Yamato could see through her white robe. A smile formed on her beautiful face."Well, you never said we were going to have visitors," she said.

"I didn't know we were going to have visitors. I found them on the street, looking for those guys who came here a while ago."

"Oh, how nice--"

"Takato!! You should've brought me with you--" came another voice from another room in the hall. Taichi and Yamato's eyes followed the voice. It was yet another gorgeous girl. This one had a darker, ash blond hair and her eyes were a bright green. "Hi," she said shyly, walking up behind her sister.

"Are...are these your sisters?" Yamato asked with awe.

"Yeah," Takato said, rolling his eyes.

"They're--" Yamato began, walking up to the beautiful girls.

"Beautiful, pretty, graceful, magnificent, cute, hot, attractive, blah, blah...yeah, I got it," Takato continued for him.

"So Takato, how are you gonna help us get to my friends?" Taichi asked, turning back to Takato.

"Look, you guys are tired. It is customary to let the visitors rest before they go on their journey once more. Those four aren't going anywhere yet, so don't you worry," Takato answered, patting Taichi on the shoulder.

Taichi sighed. He might as well enjoy the fact that someone was asking him to rest. He's never had someone ask that of him before. His life was always a long, hard chase filled with secrets and heartache. He was tired of it so why would he refuse someone asking him to sit down for a while? He sat down on the chair that Takato offered him.

"Thanks," he said.

After a second of silence, "TAKATO!"

"Yeah, she's pretty too," Takato answered before Yamato could ask.

A/N: Finally!! I finished!! I'll get started on the next one right away! Oh yes and another reminder, the characters are speaking in a modern dialect in a setting that seems like it's from the past--I did that on purpose! All part of the title. Thanks!