So how long has it been since I've updated now? Six? seven months? Sorry, I've been busy with several things. Work in the summer and when I finally got out of that school. But I've managed to get back into the swing of things as far as writing goes, and who knows I might just have the next one done in less than a month! Again, like the last one I wanted to get this chapter up fast because it's been too long since I've updated, so I didn't do an extensive proof reading job. Also this chapter is a bit shorter than the others. I cut down one chapter into two once again so I could give you guys something. Anyway here it is.

Disclaimer: Do I own Digimon? No, if I did you wouldn't be reading this at a fan fiction site.

Chapter Three: Tournament: Registration

The concept of time was odd. When I had first decided to enter the DC tournament, a week had seemed like plenty of time to relax and try and enjoy myself before the time came. However, now that the week had passed, now that the week had turned into half an hour, it didn't seem like a mere week could ever be enough.

Entering this tournament was going to take every bit of strength I had. It would be a lot harder to participate in than I thought. It was a lot easier to picture myself competing when it was a week away. Now that the day had finally come, the idea - despite the reason I was doing it - was much less appealing.

"Krystal!" Labramon barked sharply. "Are you going to sit there and stare at the stadium all day?"

I sighed before speaking. "Sorry. I was just.taking it all in."

She nudged me ahead lightly with her nose. "Well, take it all in when we get inside. Registration began an hour ago. If we don't get in line now we'll be waiting forever."

"Yeah," I grunted as I attempted to avoid rolling my eyes. "And that would be absolutely horrible."

This was probably the first time I was actually hoping for a long line. The longer the line, the more time there would be before the tournament, the more time before I would have to register. Before I was officially registered it didn't seem so bad. I wasn't officially in the tournament yet. There was still a chance I would hear something from Cam about his job, and I could just drop out. It was a very small chance now, but it was still a chance. Once my name was on that paper, there would be no way out.

It was a useless hope though. It had taken longer than Cam had predicted about his job. His superiors' meeting had only continued to be pushed back over the week. The mere fact that they were putting off the announcements for so long was a bad sign. I know there already was no way out.

"Krystal?" Labramon said, trying to coax me inside once again.

Again, I nodded in response, and looked up at the stadium. The crowd of people walking inside was now becoming even more noticeable. Labramon was right; it was about time we went inside. Enough of this worrying and feeling sorry for myself shit.

I took a stressful breath and walked towards the stadium; if you could call it that. When the town heard it was going to be hosting the tournament they took all of a month to transfer our hockey arena into the best combat ring they could. I guess it was unfair to judge now though, seeing as I hadn't seen what they had done with it yet. Still.I was pessimistic.

There was a crowd to fight of the arena's glass doors. I reluctantly fought my way through the crowd, who too, was attempting to make their way in. Most of them looked to be spectators. Labramon and I seemed to be the only human-Digimon pair. I discovered why that ratio was so diverse, as I passed through the doors and caught my first glimpse inside the arena. All the competitors had gotten here early. Like Labramon had said, I predicted that there would be a long line, but I never imagined it would be this long.

The building was divided into three layers. The bottom layer, which was usually covered in a sheet of ice, was where the combat floor had been set up. Four white lines that had been painted to the floor marked the area where the fight would take place. Very little room remained outside the ring. There was a mere foot or two of pace for the referee - if there even was one to take his place.

The second layer, circled the combat floor, and contained the seats for spectators. I didn't bother to add up how many there were.

And finally the third layer - which Labramon and I stood upon, was a simple walkway, which permitted for easier travel around the spectator seats. It like the previous layer, circled the next layer. During the time of the time of the battles, I assumed that it would be empty. However, that was far from the case at the moment. Now, the third layer was busy with arriving spectators, and combatalists who were intelligent enough to come early, and were already registered. Those who hadn't registered composed the line that had just taken me by surprise.

The line began a couple feet away from the doors, circling around the strip, ending only a few feet from where it began.

Labramon sighed. "I told you we needed to get in line."

I tried to hide a smile. "Yeah, too bad, looks like we're going to be waiting for a while." Labramon led me to the end of the line.

I relaxed. Okay no problem. I don't have to compete any time soon. I can just sit in this line for awhile and collect my thoughts. Sure, eventually I'd have to compete. Not just compete; I'd have to go into battle with my Digimon. It was the very same thing that had lead to my parent's disappearance; it was what had taken them away from me. Sure they wouldn't be life or death battles, but they were close enough that I resented this stupid sport.

Hide the resentment. I kept telling myself. Just put on a fake smile and hide the resentment.

"Krystal! Labramon!" It was Alex's voice.

I held back a sigh. I was going to have to try twice as hard to fake that smile. Alex pointed towards the ground in front of him. "I thought you'd be late, I saved you a spot!"

"Great," I mumbled, doing an adequate job of hiding sarcasm

In addition to the fact I would now have to put up a fake mood, the two hour wait in line I was looking forward too had now been cut down to about fifteen minutes.if I was lucky. Alex was in the first eighth of the line.

I couldn't exactly ignore him either. As much as I resented him at the moment, he was still my friend, and he was only trying to do me a favour. I'd need to be my battles. Maybe if he continued to bother me like this during the day I'd let him know.maybe. Labramon and abandoned our place in line and joined up with Alex and Lopmon. We received a few grumbles from the people behind us. I ignored them. Not like I cared anyway.

They had obviously been in long for some time. Lopmon had fallen asleep atop of Alex's head, and Alex had a jittery "jump up and down" feel to him he got when he was excited, Especially when it was prolonged excitement. I remember seeing it before when a new "death-defying" roller coaster opened at the amusement park. Except that time I was just as excited as him, there was no resentment. Now I could only look at him and see it as almost pathetic.

As I arrived he looked me up and down. He was holding back laughter.

"Nice," he said with a hint of laughter in my voice.

At first I was confused, but I soon realized his attention was focused on my outfit. Jeez! I had completely forgotten I was wearing it. The outfit was my attempt to hide my identity. It worked, but it didn't exactly make me look dignified.

The best thing I could find amongst Cam's things to cover my face was an old balaclava with two orange stripes running diagonally down the face, forming an orange X. I poked a hold in the back so my hair, which I pulled into a ponytail, could poke through it. The balaclava alone made me some lost skier, so I attempted to find clothing that matched it. Maybe put together a whole superhero style outfit. It didn't work out quite as well as I hoped. I used an old leather jacket of Cam's with bright orange flames at the bottom and cuffs. They were a darker shade of orange than the X, but they worked. The pants were easy. They were the only part of the outfit I hadn't borrowed from my uncle. They were mine: Simple orange and black pants. I'd gotten them for Christmas from my grandmother - on my mother's side. It was about the same year her eyesight started to go bad. I had only worn them once out of politeness when I went to visit her. I believe her reaction was: "Where did you get those hideous pants?" I've never loved her more.

"Nice," Alex repeated with obvious sarcasm. This time a bit of laughter escaped. "May I ask why you look like.um." he was trying to think of some clever remark. He was never very good at that. ".that."

See what I mean?

For the first time all day I smiled. He was right I did look ridiculous. I was not ashamed to admit it.

"What?" I said continuing to smile and placing my hands on my hips. "You don't like the look of the masked Digidestined?"

He couldn't stop the laughter this time. It all burst out. I guess the name had set him off.

When he finally calmed down he said. "Do you?"

I laughed. "Hell no! But I have to cover my face."

He too laughed, tossed his hand and spoke like an effeminate male interior decorator.

"And you just have to match everything else I mean - woo!"

I laughed once again. This was nice. This was exactly why he was my best friend. He made me forget everything. It was like before Cam's job was in jeopardy. Not that everything was peachy keen then, but at least it was tolerable, at least there was hope things would get better. Not fear that they'd be worse, along with the obligation of having to do something I hated to end it all. Even for just a moment he made me forget.

Unfortunately a moment was all this brief happiness lasted for. Alex leaned his head a bit to see the front of the line. "Can't this line move any faster?" Then he went and said things like that. And made me remember how shitty things could be. I didn't answer his question. I tried to get the conversation going the way it had been, but not even Labramon would let me do that.

"I know. I'm eager to fight, see what all the fuss is about."

I thought about shooting her the evil eye. I didn't. If she was having fun why ruin it. The line moved about a foot forward, the three of us that were awake followed it. Shortly after it moved up again the same amount we moved with it.

Lopmon had woken up. He said hello to Labramon, and followed it up with some snide remark. Maybe he said hello to me. I don't know.

The line moved. We moved with it.

Lopmon and Alex began to talk. I phased most of it out. Something about battle tactics mixed a friendly insult or two. Labramon joined the conversation.

The line moved. We moved with it.

They attempted to include me into the conversation. And for awhile I attempted to be part of it. It didn't work very well. Those few moments of happiness I had a second ago were gone now. They weren't coming back probably because I wouldn't let them. I wasn't in the mood. Not long after my fourth one word response I was fazed out of the conversation. Good. I wasn't interested in being a part of it anyway.

The line moved. We moved with it.

I took a glance around the arena. There were so many excited happy faces. They were all looking forward to participating in this tournament. No irrational resentment towards Digimon. No stupid bitterness stopping them from having a good time. It was difficult not to hate them.

The line moved. We moved with it.

I didn't want to hate them. They were just having a good time. They were just doing what they found fun. How could they know how miserable I was? How difficult a time I was having enjoying myself.

The line moved. We moved with it.

The hardest part was: I actually wanted to be able to enjoy this. Yes I admit it. Digimon were part of my heritage; even if it was only one generation back. My parents had been monumental in the Digital field, and a part of me wanted to be a part of that.

The line moved. We moved with it.

But I couldn't. I wouldn't even try. There was no point. I resented Digimon, and all things related to them, too much for taking my parents away from me. I didn't care how irrational it was.

The line finally could move no more. The four of us were at the front of it. The person ahead of us stepped away from the registration table and one of the employees waved Alex and Lopmon to come ahead. Just by looking at the guy signing Alex in, I didn't like him. He was just one of those guys that became too enthused with whatever he was interested in. In this case Digimon - or Digital Combat at least. Always yelling and excited, like it everything about was so spectacular. The enthusiasm in which he asked Alex questions was almost sickening. I tried to tune it out, but failed. The high pitch of his voice was impossible to ignore.

Fortunately I didn't have to endure it for long. Another table opened up and I was waved ahead.

"DC card please," the receptionist said in a monotone voice, tapping her two inch long, bright blue fingernails on the fold out table.

I removed my DC card from my Digivice, and handed to her. She took it and, snapping pink gum that matched the colour of her hair, scanned it with a wand.

She had the exact opposite enthusiasm for her job that Alex's registered had. He obviously didn't care what went on here. To her this was a job; she was here for the money. I liked her.

She read the number of points on the wand. "Insufficient DC points, next please."

"I would like to apply for celebrity status," I managed to choke out; like I was ashamed of it. Actually I was a little.

Annoyed, she rolled her eyes and released a deep sigh. I didn't blame her, if I had her job I doubt I'd be acting much differently. This just meant she was going to have to go through a bigger hassle. I'm sure she would prefer just to scan me through as fast as she could. That's what I would like to do.

She blew a bubble. It popped and she pulled the gum back into her mouth. "Those applying for celebrity status and not holding ample DC points must provide reason for why they should be accepted."

She said it in one breath. It was obviously scripted.

I reached to waist. I had my D3 clipped to my waist in plain view. No point hiding it. I was wearing a mask. Why would it matter?

I placed the item on the table. She obviously didn't have much interest in Digimon, but I'm sure she had been told enough to know what I was showing her. I told her anyway.

"This is a D3. It's the upgraded version of the conventional Digivice. Only special Digidestined are granted these."

She looked unimpressed as she gave me an annoyed look.

"Sorry," she said still annoyed, but this time her voice had a dash of satisfaction in it. I think she enjoyed giving bad news. "We already have several entries with these; that Adam kid and three others." She looked down at a palm pilot. "Once we have that many it's of no other interest to our sponsors - too bad." She motioned towards the palm pilot. "Looks like one of them just signed up two minutes ago. Had you been here earlier you woulda made it."

That surprised me. More D3s? They were supposed to be a rare occurrence. Even most of the Elite Digidestined didn't have D3s. I knew that Adam was a big shot Combatalist. He was the son of two elite Digidestined: Janine and Dan. That explained where he got his, and I knew Alex had one, but who where the other three? Kids of the other elite team? Aside from Alex's father I hadn't met any of them. I just assumed they lived in other parts of the country. Then again, this was one of the biggest tournaments, they could have traveled here.

I got a sinking feeling. It wasn't because I wouldn't be able to compete in the tournament - because I could. I had more than just a D3 to help me with that. It was the sudden increase in competition. If there were children of the elite here there could be some serious competition. Before now the only combatalist I was truly worried about was Adam. His Digimon was the only one (that I knew of anyway) that was capable of reaching the Champion level. Now there were three more. Not good! I needed that prize money.

"Anything else?" the receptionist asked, still very annoyed. I was beginning to like her less. At least when I was miserable I pretended to care.

"Yes actually," I said reaching for the string on my neck.

I didn't want to have to do this. Revealing I had a crest was a serious risk. I wanted to avoid at all costs showing I was the daughter of two of the most powerful Digidestined. I remember Andrew telling Alex to avoid at all costs revealing even that he one. It would draw too much attention. The D3 was unavoidable, and he could get away with it. It could be explained as a simple upgrade as new generations came about. Dr. Izumi had even theorized that as more generations past more upgrades on the Digivice would occur. Alex didn't go about broadcasting he had a D3, but he could reveal he had one without any serious penalty. But a crest? That would be big! I had a mask on, so I could afford to reveal mine. But it would still attract a lot of unwanted attention while I was here. Unfortunately I had no choice now. If I wanted that money I needed to be in the tournament, and if I wanted to be in the tournament I needed to show my crest.

Carefully, I removed the tag and crest from my neck, and placed it on the table. I didn't remove my hand. No way in hell could I afford to lose it.

She still looked unimpressed, but did release a defeated sigh. If she had any training about granting celebrity status at all, she would know what a crest was.

She didn't care enough to examine it, and make sure it wasn't counterfeit. She simply began the next string of questions.

"Name?"

Great, I was regretting saying this. I had been as creative with my name as I had with my lame outfit.

"Masked Digidestined."

Her eyes rolled. "Oookay. Digimon conventional level?"

"Rookie."

"Digimon name?"

"Labramon."

She continued to ask in the same manner, taking down my information on a piece of paper and then inputting it into the palm pilot. I could only assume it had a remote connection to the tournament computers. I'd heard all about their database from Alex. I breathed a sigh of relief when the questions were over. I hadn't enjoyed that. At least now I could sit in peace before the tournament began.

Labramon and I began to approach the concession stand. Alex and Lopmon had asked to meet us there.

"Well wasn't she just a barrel of sunshine," Labramon said.

"Reminds you of someone huh?" I said.

I had meant it as a joke. I expected Labramon to laugh. She did - sort of.

"Heh.yeah." was all she managed to choke out.

Her reaction hurt. I wasn't really like that was I? I didn't come off mean and bitchy? No, it was just being around Digimon. They brought out the worst in me. I didn't act like that all the time. Digimon that's what it was. Yeah.

We reached the concession stand. Alex was sipping a soda, and Lopmon was busy shoving one of two hot dogs in his mouth. I gave Alex a scolding look, as Lopmon swallowed the first dog and got to work on the second.

"Do you really think you should let him stuff yourself before he has to fight?" I asked.

"Ever heard of cramps."

Alex laughed and stared at me. He thought I was joking. When he noted the look on my face, he realized I wasn't. Now the smile on his face was a satisfied one. He always had it when I said something stupid.

He shook his head. "Krystal are you forgetting one of the cardinal rules of Digital Combat?"

"You know damn well I know nothing about Digital Combat." He kept the satisfied smile on his face. He liked it when he knew something I should know.

"It's not about Digital Combat, it's about simple fact. Digimon are no good in battle if they're hungry. You know everything about past battles in the Digital wars. You should know this."

I gave myself a serious mental slap. How the hell did I forget that? It was common knowledge. It was something the Digidestined learned during one of their first fights. It mainly applied to Digivolution. Digimon couldn't Digivolve if they were hungry. The same applied to basic combat without Digivolution. In the early days when the Digidestined fought Devimon they had come close to losing several battles because their partner's were hungry. Like when Greymon fought Shellmon. He was the only one who could fight because he was the only one who had eaten.

Again I mentally slapped myself. Stupid! I had forgotten one of the most basic ideas. Two year olds knew that much.

It didn't exactly give me hope for the fight. Just one stupid mistake like that could cost me the match. I wasn't up against filthy street punks like my last battle. I was up against veteran combatalists. I would need to know this. The fact that Labramon could Digivolve wouldn't be enough. If the combatalists I faced were good enough, they could overcome Shisamon's power through strategy. I needed to use my own knowledge of Digimon to find ways around those strategies and not make stupid mistakes like I just had. Already I was prepared to send Labramon into the fight without any food in her stomach. I couldn't let something stupid like that happen again.

I shook it off this time. This time I wouldn't be paying for it. Unless you counted that satisfied grin Alex had on his face. A quick change in subject was in order.

"So, how does this thing work? When do the fights get started?"

The concession receptionist gave me a look. I pointed to a hot dog, and held up two fingers. She got to work.

"Depends which one fights you're talking about," he said, finishing off his hot dog. "The preliminary fights should start in about an hour or two. That'll weed out a lot of people."

"Preliminaries?" I snapped. I did not like the sound of that.

He nodded as if I shouldn't be surprised. "With a tournament this big there has to be preliminaries. There's like thousands of people registering."

I was starting to get worried. "Are you telling me I might not even make it to the actual tournament? How many people get 'weeded out.'?"

"All but sixteen," he said it so casually, like it was no big deal.

"All but sixteen?!" I yelled. "Are you telling me I've got a sixteen in one thousand chance of even coming close to winning any prize money?"

He sensed the fear emanating from my voice; finally realizing that this was completely new to me. He seemed almost afraid to say what came next. But it wasn't like Alex to hide things.

"Actually it's not just a thousand, its thousands. Plural." I was about to yell something, but he quickly interrupted me. "But don't worry. The odds are probably pretty good you'll make it to the tournament. Aside from Adam's Digimon, Labramon is the only one who can make it to the Champion level."

He meant to make me feel better. He didn't. I knew as well as he did there was more to this game than power alone. If I went up against a superior strategist there was a good chance I'd lose. I couldn't lose! Not with what I had at stake. I didn't let me see my fear. I pushed it aside, and put on a smile.

"Yeah, I guess that's true."

If he didn't believe my act he didn't show it. I heard a ding. My hot dogs were ready. I handed one to Labramon, and was about to take a bite into my own when - I felt a strong hand placed firmly on my shoulder. "Excuse me, Masked Digidestined?" I turned. There was a large man wearing a black suit. He was a big guy. He loomed a foot or two above me. He would have looked just like what's his name in that old movie if he was wearing sunglasses.

I felt intimidated. I didn't show it. I was very experienced at hiding my emotions.

"Yes?" I said calmly, though I certainly didn't feel calm.

"I'm going to have to ask you to come with me."

Now fear really rushed through my body. What had I done? Did he figure out who I was? And even if he did why was he putting on this big secret service act as if I had done something wrong. Even if I were to be discovered this wasn't the kind of treatment I would be expecting.

Again I hid the fear, and spoke a single word. "Why?"

"You'll see when we arrive."

I pushed his hand off my shoulder. I looked him defiantly in the eye. "Again I ask: Why?"

He looked as unmoved as I was pretending to be.

He, like I had, repeated, "You will see."

Alex attempted to step between us. "Hey! Either answer the question or leave her alone!"

"No, Alex. It's okay. I'm going to go."

"What?" Alex yelled. "You don't know this guy."

He was right. Following this guy was ridiculous. Unfortunately it didn't look as if he was going to give me much choice. He could outmuscle either of us in a second. Sure Labramon or Lopmon could take him down in a second. That would definitely get him off our backs, but I might as well see what he wanted. If he had wrongful intentions he wouldn't be standing long.

I didn't say anything to like that to Alex. The only thing my mouth could get out was.

"I'm a big girl Alex. I'll be fine."

"But-"

"I'll be fine!"

Instead of speaking he exchanged a look with Labramon. She nodded back at him. I guess her reassurance was enough. He nodded his approval to me. The man in the suit didn't say another word; he just motioned for me to follow. Labramon and I cautiously did so. I quickly consumed my hot dog as Labramon and I were led to down the line for registration. The man stopped at a door, and fumbled with a key ring to unlock it. He motioned for us to go inside. We did. Inside the door was a white hallway. There were several doors on either side of the hallway.

"Come with me," he said, walking down the hallway.

I continued to keep my guard up as I followed him. We followed the hall around a couple corners before finally arriving at a door. A door no different from any of the others, except for a sign bolted in the center of it. I couldn't read what it said. It was written in Japanese. I didn't even bother; I had a rough time understanding French, let alone a foreign language. My guide opened the door. It revealed a stairwell leading up. He motioned me to go.

"My superior is waiting to meet with you. I will wait for you here."

His superior? Could he mean - no, couldn't be.

I began to take the first few steps but before Labramon could follow me the man's large foot was placed in her way.

"The Digimon stays!" he bellowed.

I quickly turned. I continued to put on my tough act. "Labramon goes where I go!"

"The Digimon stays!" he repeated.

"It's okay Krystal," Labramon said. "I'll be fine down here."

"You sure?"

Labramon looked the guy up and down and grinned. "Yeah, no problem."

I grinned back. She was right. I was hesitant to leave Labramon alone with him, but he was nothing to worry about. Labramon might get a little bit of trouble from a rookie Digimon, but even a human as big as this guy was no match for her. I left them alone and began ascending the stairs. The door closed behind me.

Cautiously I ascended the stairs. What the hell was going on here? I had come here innocently enough for this stupid tournament now I was about to be interrogated by some big shot. I didn't do a god damn thing. I may have been entered this tournament the easy way, but it was legitimate. I knew this tournament would be nothing but trouble. I reached the top of the stairs and entered an office. Or what appeared to be an office. There was filing cabinets, chairs, and everything else that there should be in an office, but the wall opposite to me was glass. It allowed for an entire view of the arena - from the, now shrinking line, to the battle arena below. There were even two TVs that gave a zoomed in view of the fighting arenas. It made it look more like a press box at in a sports arena.

In front of the glass wall and the Televisions was a desk, littered with several papers and other office knick-knacks you would expect to see on a desk. A large leather office chair faced away from the desk and towards the glass wall. It was easy to see there was someone it the way it swivelled, but it was impossible to see who because the back of the chair was so tall.

"Ah," a voice from the chair said. "She's here. Check her out will you."

It was then that I noticed the Digimon standing on the desk. I couldn't believe I hadn't noticed it before. It was only a rookie, so it wasn't enormous, but it was big enough that I should have noticed it. Before I was even able to identify it, it flew over to me, stopping to a hover at my face. I struggled at the moment to identify it. I knew what it was.I'd seen it a million times before. It was a very popular Digimon, but the tenseness of the situation had locked up my memory. Having a bug the size of a small dog staring you right in the face doesn't help either.

Its insect eyes shimmered, and changed colours several times. A DNA scan? Yes. If I remembered properly this Digimon could scan biological creatures DNA. It unfortunately learned that trick after the Digital war after long exposure to non-digital creatures. I could remember that but I couldn't remember its damn name!

When its scan was complete the Digimon flew back to its perch on its master's desk.

"So what's the verdict Tentomon?"

"It's her all right," Tentomon said. "I'd recognize that DNA anywhere. She's gotta be a blood relative of Kris."

That's it! That was its name! Tentomon! A ladybug Digimon.

The chair swivelled, revealing the person who had insisted on having his goon drag me up here. The face was unmistakable. The creator of Digital Combat, the founder of this tournament, and most importantly: former elite Digidestined.

Koushiro Izumi: Otherwise known as Izzy.

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So what's going to happen here? What does Izzy, now head of the DC Corporation want with Krystal? You'll have to wait for me to write more to find out. Make sure you tell me what you think I always appreciate reviews. This was first Chapter of three featuring the DC tournament. Hopefully I'll be able to write a lot come Christmas break. I have exams coming up so writing will have to take a backseat, but come December 18th, I'm done so about a week from then I might have a new chapter.that's Christmas isn't it. I'll see if I can get you guys that for a gift. For now you'll have to wait about a month.

Stay tuned for Chapter Four: Tournament: Preliminaries