I had better post this before I forget…so tired….anyhow sorry to disappoint a few of you who thought Devimon was a major character to the storyline…although who's not to say he'll come back in more ways than one in a future chapter? But seriously, I have an idea for a big battle in either chapter ten or eleven and it doesn't involve wild Digimon.

Once again thank you a million times over to all who decided to review. A mental grin is being beamed your way!

Mute: Looking through the writer's memories, she doesn't own Digimon or any of the wonder characters in it. Heaven help us all if she did

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Me: Someone asked how Devimon was able to look like a human…well I dimly recall him able to pass through walls so I figured he had other special powers, being a demon and all. Plus the fact that when you write a story you get a creative license giving you the power to do the impossible…that's the beauty of fan fiction!

"Let him go!" thundered a yellow blur as she streaked towards Devimon. The white tips of tails burst into crackling blue flames in the wake of her anger and static electricity was clearly coursing through her fur.

Devimon looked up in surprise as the raging female closed the distance between them; yet his grip on the writhing Takato didn't alter in the slightest. Almost casually he side stepped the rampage of adrenaline filled muscles and snapping jaws.

"I recommend you do as she says."

The black demon's face developed a knowing smile as he turned to face another, except his trademark colour was white. He was accompanied by a young girl who did not betray a single ounce of fear, although her eyes had been enlarged slightly at the sight of the captured Takato. But it had only been for a second. That was all.

"Ah, my dear brother, how nice to see you again…"

A flash of confusion raced through Rika's quick-thinking brain. How could Digimon be related to each other? It wasn't like they were flesh and blood! Unless of course, it was a formal greeting reserved for similar looking Digimon. And indeed, many similarities could be noted between the ex-angels. Rika nodded her head confidently. That must be it.

"And this must be your tamer…" finished Devimon as his thoughtful gaze rested on the Digimon Queen.

Rika's body gave a tremble of apprehension as those merciless eyes bore into her with such sharpness it were as though their possessor was willing her to bend in half. The eyes flashed with a gleam of contentment before diverting themselves back to Icedevimon.

"I must congratulate you on your taste…she is a pretty one, hmm?" smirked the midnight coloured demon delighting in the discomfort he was causing in both Digimon and partner.

Rika became aware of how parched and brittle her mouth had became when Devimon fixed his unnerving leer on her again, resulting in an unsuccessful attempt on her part to repress another shudder than flowed through her body. Noticing this, Icedevimon's hand surrounded her shoulder in a protective grip and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Two violet eyes flickered to his face, surprised at the gesture, before casting themselves downwards again, the icy outer façade residing in them once more.

"Err, a little help please?" a young voice timidly broke through the tension of the moment. Takato blushed as four pairs of eyes beamed their full attention at him.

"This is your last chance Devimon! Release my Tamer and I will spare you!" threatened Kyuubimon as each word emerged as a short, angry hiss.

"Only if you tell me the secret to your digivolution…or your precious human will part company with his head!" retorted the unfazed Devimon, secretly amused at the unhealthy shade of white Takato's face had turned at his last remark.

"Well your courage has increased dramatically since we last met brother. You can now stand up to a human child!" Icedevimon sneered.

Devimon gave him a well aimed death glare as his nails dipped painfully into Takato's shoulder blades, causing him to yelp and Kyuubimon to become even more enraged.

"Why do you concern yourself with the troubles of two partners who pose more of a threat to you than help?"

"It would seem that being in this realm has…softened me", grimaced Icedevimon a hint of disgust barely audible in his voice, "I find myself recently becoming hindered by the development of something these humans call a conscience. It's forcing me to place myself in the same position Kyuubimon currently inhabits…how would I feel if Rika was encircled by a pair of arms as repulsive as yours?"

Sparkling amethysts travelled up to meet scarlet orbs, surprise unveiled in them once more. This moment was to be disturbed though…

"Wanna play!" chirped a childish voice as a small Digimon bounded enthusiastically into the scene, giggling with such glee that both Rika's and the two demons' lips curled back in a bitter grimace.

Takato blinked. "Who's that?" he questioned motioning to the cheerful fuzz ball with his head.

"No idea", replied Kyuubimon an expression of bafflement now present in her eyes.

"I'm Calumon! Whatcha doing?" he remarked admirably as he leapt up to land uninvited on Devimon's shoulder.

The black demon scowled as though someone was waving a carton of sour milk under his nose. Eyes flashing angrily, two slim fingers streaked forward vertically and flicked off the minute cutie so he had a fairly undignified descent to the ground.

"Hey! Pick on someone your own size!" yelled Takato indignantly, feeling a flicker of compassion and righteous anger stir in his heart as he watched crystalline tears coat the now damp fur of the tiny creature's cheeks. Sniffling, it (none were quite sure of its gender) walked off to seek refuge behind the nearby dustbin.

Kyuubimon's face paled slightly, knowing that provoking the quick temper of an evil Digimon was not the best thing Takato could have done. But then again, what more could she have expected from her golden-hearted tamer? If only he wasn't quite so vocal…she need not have worried.

Before Devimon had a chance to retaliate to the boy's cheek, a white hand shot out of nowhere and slapped him clean across the face, forcing him to stumble awkwardly and drop his captive. In a matter of seconds black and white were on the ground, outstretched talons grabbling at non-existent hair, bony wing blades being shoved in the other's face, legs slashing inwards and primitive growls being emitted. It was a more demonic male version of a cat fight.

Takato had wasted no time in running to the side of his Digimon, thrusting his small arms around her thick neck and burying his face into her soft, warm, breathing mass of chest fur.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" he murmured repeatedly feeling the hot pinpricks of tears seep through his closed eyelids.

"I know, I know, I know…" murmured Kyuubimon back, her usually assertive voice soaked in warm honey, a soft voice reserved just for him.

Small hands clasped individual tuffs of fur as they were a lifeline to reality and seemed to develop a life of their own as they hauled the rest of the body upwards. Slender legs scrambled around for a foothold and trainer-clad feet slipped clumsily on the striped harness circulating the kitsune's neck. Kyuubimon said not a word as his warm, gentle breath slide alongside her face as he eventually drew level to her ears. She flew along the ground smoothly, careful not to bump her passenger too much, who was half hanging, half clinging to her neck. Yet he valiantly held on like a limpet, his hands turning white from the pressure he was inflicting on them, the fingers tightly entwined with strands of snowy velvet.

Rika simply rolled her eyes at the tender reunion.

"Take that!" the voice of one of the demons cracked through the air like a whip, though no one could tell who the voice belonged to. The flurry of white and black had not slowed down in the slightest, the only living thing paying any attention to the fight being Rika.

Kyuubimon continued her walk, ignoring the undignified scrap behind her, until Takato raised his head wearily.

"We can't just leave Rika and Icedevimon to fight alone!"

"There is no way I am letting you go back there Takato…"

"You are way too overprotective…"

"Can you blame me? I think I'm acting reasonably well considering the fact that you could have got killed by an insane demon…"

"And who was it that saved me from the insane demon? In case you've forgotten, Icedevimon is the reason I'm on your back and not on the ground!"

Kyuubimon halted. She hadn't thought of it like that. That meant she owed a massive debt to Icedevimon as much as she despised the thought of it.

"I'm not going to force you to come back if you don't want to but you've no right to keep me back here!"

The Tenko's head flicked away to a sideways angle in order to observe the angry look on his face. Just a quick glance; yet it was enough to show her that he was being serious and meant every single word he uttered. Inwardly she let out a mental sigh.

"Alright…but no unnecessary risks!"

Takato grinned.

"Yes, mother."

An amused spark arose in Kyuubimon's eye as a single tail detached itself from the others and affectionately bopped him on the head gently.

"Watch it or you'll lose your ride!

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"Weakling!"

"Horn-head!"

The air swung around, thick and heavy with insults as Rika watched the brawl between the two demons with a pained expression on her face.

"Whussy!"

"Human pet!"

A muscle started to twitch in Rika's cheek.

"Yobbo!"

"Housewife!"

"SHUT UP!"

The two demons halted and turned their surprised faces towards the visibly fuming human.

"STOP ACTING LIKE A PAIR OF SIX YEAR OLDS AND GET OFF THE GROUND!"

The demons cowered as they saw purple fire roaring in Rika's eyes and hastily pushed themselves up onto their feet.

"Now shake hands!" she ordered.

The two rivals unwillingly stretched out their forelimbs to each other and proceeded with the awkward handshake.

Rika smirked before seeing the newly arrived Takato and Kyuubimon gaping.

"WHAT ARE YOU STARING AT?"

The two flinched before quickly saying, "nothing!"

Icedevimon and his counterpart released each other's hands as they realised that had just been intimidated by a young human who did not possess the power to hurt them in any physical form. They glowered at each other, secretly embarrassed.

"I don't think they need our help." Kyuubimon whispered in Takato's ear.

"Agreed!" he responded quietly.

"Hey! Takato!"

Takato blinked at the mention of his name before raising his eyes to view the newcomer.

"Ack! Henry! Where have you been man?"

Henry blinked.

"The dentist."

Five pairs of eyes regarded him in disbelief, jaws stretched to their limit.

"Why? Did I miss something? Wow…when did Renamon digivolve?"

Five sweatdrops fastened themselves to the heads of the owners of the goggling eyes.

"Wow gogglehead…your friend's timekeeping is just as good as your taste in headwear…" remarked Rika.

Henry took no offence at the statement choosing to use the next few seconds to observe Rika with his calm eyes.

"Who's this Takato?" he finally asked.

"Oh, that's Rika. She's a Digimon tamer just like us! Her partner is Icedevimon."

"And not just your average tamer either," the girl stated factually, "the best! I'm the Digimon Queen!"

Icedevimon tilted his head slightly in order to confirm this, his thin-lipped smile daring anyone to disagree.

Everybody was startled by a sudden snarl from Devimon as he glared maliciously at them all.

"Is this the bad guy we have to beat?" questioned Henry looking at Takato for confirmation.

"Yep!"

"Monumental Henry, I've got it covered," chuckled Terriermon before turning to Icedevimon and adding, "what is he, your lost relative or something?"

"Enough with the chit-chat! I've finally lost all patience with you!" proclaimed Devimon before raising a single claw and indicating a defenceless Rika.

"No!" whispered Icedevimon hollowly, eyes widening to impossible sizes as he realised was about to befall his tamer.

"Evil Wing!" Devimon cackled as the attack raced towards the teen.

Rika just stood there in disbelief, heart galloping in her chest as the blast neared her. For once the blood that travelled the many vessels in her body, matched the temperature of her personality. Turned cold by pure, undeniable fear.

"Tundra Freeze!"

A sharp onslaught of slender icicles shot across her line of vision, severing the dark energy into tiny, insignificant flakes that merged with the air into nothing.

The girl just concentrated on regaining her lost breath, body quivering like a blade of grass being molested by the wind. Feeling halfway back to normal she then twisted herself round to stare at the one who had saved her.

Icedevimon stood there, arm outstretched and hand still pointing in the same direction he had sent the attack. But a truly terrible expression was firmly glued to his face. It consisted of a strange combination of fear and cold, menacing rage, unlimited fury. Not unsimilar to the contorted features on the face of a parent whose child had been ruthlessly knocked aside by the unfeeling metal of a car.

"You attacked my tamer…" Icedevimon hissed, voice bubbling over with feelings he tried to hide.

"…And you saved me…" whispered Rika disbelievly to herself.

"No one threatens my tamer and lives!" finished the white demon before launching himself upon the temporarily mute Devimon.

Kyuubimon observed the new fight seeing how Icedevimon took control from the start and how his rival was forced to employ defensive stances, having no time to make a counter strike. More than that, she understood why the icy one had the advantage. For once he was fighting for the sake of his tamer and not just for himself. His selfless desire to protect Rika was fuelling every fibre of his body with new found strength.

A small smile graced Kyuubimon's muzzle. He was finally beginning to understand.

Her musings were harshly interrupted by a dying scream as Icedevimon slashed down, clean through Devimon's skull causing his head to disintegrate into data with the rest of his body following suit.

Takato shivered unable to get the vision of Devimon's pain-filled face out of his head where it quickly sealed itself into his memory. It was not going to be one he would be able to forget easily.

"That was horrible!" he whispered to his partner, nails grasping his palms already sticky with sweat.

"Fighting is never pretty," murmured the vixen, understanding lighting up her eyes. Over the past few days she had began to see there was more to life than fighting, more pleasure to be derived from the simpler aspects of life. She had a single person to thank for that.

Takato peered at her.

"I thought you liked fighting?"

"True, but I have more worthy priorities now." Kyuubimon sighed as she cast a very fox-like look at him. She shut her eyes and closed herself off from the added power her champion form offered her, feeling a glow of warm light envelop her. Within a few seconds she reverted back to her old body supported on her two hind legs.

"Renamon?"

"Yes Takato, it's me," she chuckled, a paw flashing out and ruffling his brown hair affectionately.

"Hey! Watch the goggles!" laughed the abused boy as he tried to fend off the strong arm that was massaging his scalp.

The arm was withdrawn suddenly and Takato blinked. He glanced round to see that all three Digimon were regarding the air in front of them with intensity. The air that seemed to be shimmering and blurring at certain angles.

"Is it a digital field?" demanded Rika having recovered from her ordeal.

"No," replied Icedevimon, flexing tattered wing muscles.

Static electricity rippled through the air before three rectangular shaped objects appeared, hovering before each tamer. On impulse they reached up and enclosed the source of interest in their hand. At once they stopped shining with an eerie light and the air returned to its normal condition.

The tamers opened up the caverns of their hands to reveal a blue card in each.

"It's a card to digivolve a rookie to a champion. But I've never seen a card quite like this before…" Henry pondered aloud.

"But why on earth have I got this card as well? Icedevimon's already a champion level Digimon!" scowled Rika before waving a fist at the sky, "Hey God! What are you playing at?"

"Yeah but what he got so weak that he had to revert back to the rookie stage?" suggested Takato only to be rewarded with a dirty look from the miffed girl.

"And what are the chances of that goggle-head? I'm too good a tamer to allow that to happen!" growled Rika before returning her attention to the clouds above, "listen God! If you hurt google-head I'll go to church each week, pray every day and spread the Word!"

"Let's just be grateful for what we have got!" Henry remarked wisely before spinning round to walk home, colliding with Takato as he did so, sending them both spiralling to the ground in a tangle of arms and legs.

Rika smirked before clearly telling the sky, "By the way God…I lied."

God must have been listening as the heavens decided to open and let the rain pelt the strange group into a drenched state. There was a series of groans and mutters.

"Don't you know better than to tempt fate?" Henry asked Rika, raising his eyebrows quizzically.

Rika rolled up a hand into the formidable weapon more commonly known as the fist.

'Must not punch goggle-head's friend, must not punch goggle head's friend…'