Standard Disclaimer: EAT THE CHICKEN! I DON'T OWN DIGIMON! MOO!
Author's Notes: (cackles) My insanity knows no limits! XD
Begin!
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Chapter 3: Adaptation
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/Sidewalk, En Route to School, Odaiba, Thursday, November 4th, 7:31 AM/
Walking along the way towards school were three people.
Tai, who was rubbing his scalp angrily. Koromon was hiding in the massive jungle Tai called 'his hair'.
Kari, who walked beside Tai. Gatomon hopped from rooftop to rooftop above them.
And TK, who was walking beside Kari. Patamon was hiding under his hat.
"Man…my head still hurts…" muttered Tai. "Why'd you have to yank my hair so hard, Kari?"
Kari sighed. "Look, I apologized for pulling your hair already." Of course, the Kamiya children had a tendency to get rough when scuffling for the remote control. Even so, she had pulled a bit harder than she intended to. "But it proves a point I've said time and time again: YOU need a haircut."
TK lightly smiled. "Tai? Cutting his hair? You ask the impossible," joked the Child of Hope.
"Exactly!" snobbishly said Tai. He always got huffy and defensive when the subject of cutting his hair came up.
Koromon poked his face out of Tai's brown 'mop'. "Plus, his hair DOES provide a good hiding spot!"
Patamon protested, "Well it's not as good as TK's hat!"
"You're missing the point here…" muttered Kari with a sigh.
Tai frowned as he replied, "Then what IS the point?"
"YOUR. HAIR. NEEDS. CUTTING. It's too long! One of these days, it's going to get caught in a door and you'll hurt yourself!" exclaimed Kari.
Tai snorted. "Yeah right. My hair doesn't need any cutting."
TK sweatdropped as the two bickered over the Child of Courage's hair. I wonder if Matt and I will bicker this much when we move in together?
"Hey, look!" exclaimed Koromon. "I see Davis and Yolei!"
Tai and Kari stopped their bickering to look. TK squinted as he gazed across the street to see four figures; Davis was in the front, and Yolei was several feet behind. Also, Jun and Momoe were walking between the two 'siblings/rivals', smiles on their faces as they talked.
On the other hand, Davis and Yolei looked downcast.
Kari frowned. "I wonder why those two look so down?"
"So, you didn't mind sleeping on the couch last night?" asked Jun.
Momoe smiled as she shook her head. "Nope. It was actually quite comfy. At least it's better than the chair."
"Speaking of which, how's Mantarou doing?"
"Oh, don't worry about him Jun," lightly replied Momoe. "It's not like it's new to him."
As the two friends continued to chat away, the growling stomachs of Davis and Yolei echoed through the air. Wonderful…just wonderful, thought Davis with a grimace. His mind had a momentary flashback to breakfast…
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/Flashback/
/Inoue Apartment, 20 Minutes Ago/
"HI!"
"WHA!" yelped Davis as Demiveemon suddenly erupted from his bowl full of cereal (Trix, FYI), splattering milk and cereal bits everywhere. The Child of Miracles fell backwards onto the floor as Demiveemon looked at him happily. "Like my trick Davish? It's like the bunny-out-of-the-hat trick, except with cereal!"
Meanwhile, Yolei was laughing at Davis. "Ha ha! Nice one Demiveemon!"
"HI YOLEI!"
"WHA!" yelped Yolei as Poromon suddenly erupted from her bowl of cereal (Honeycomb, BTW), sloshing milk and crunchy cereal everywhere. The Child of Caring fell backwards onto the floor as Poromon looked at her confusedly. "What? I wanted to try it too!"
Yolei facefaulted as Davis laughed at her.
Suddenly, Jun grabbed Davis and Momoe grabbed Yolei. "Come on you two! We're going to be late!"
As Davis and Yolei were dragged out of the door – backpacks on their backs – they yelped, "But…but…breakfast!"
The door slammed shut behind them.
Subaru and Sasuke then looked down at Demiveemon and Poromon. Then they looked at the mess. Then back to the Digimon. Then the mess. Digimon. Mess.
The husband and wife turned to each other…
"1, 2, 3!"
…and played one round of Ro-Sham-Bo.
Sasuke grimaced as Subaru's rock crushed his scissors. Mrs. Inoue smiled as she said, "Sorry honey. You get it this time."
"I know…"
/End Flashback/
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Davis grumbled as his stomach growled. Man…I'm going to be starving by lunchtime…
A momentary scowl crossed Davis' face. Things were steadily getting worse for him; Jun at least had someone in the household that SHE could talk to. Demiveemon was swell and all, but he needed human interaction! He didn't know much about Mantarou…but the 19-year old Inoue didn't seem to have much 'friend' material.
The Child of Miracles frowned as he felt a pent-up anger enter his head. It was all happening too fast; on Monday, the apartment he had lived in for the past five years had been repossessed. On Tuesday – after sleeping on the streets for the night – the two Motomiyas had been grateful for the opportunity to take shelter in the Hida apartment until their situation cleared up. Yesterday, the situation had cleared up thanks to Jun…but their new home had been the Inoue apartment. Now, the Motomiyas were only a memory; now they were Inoues. Davis Inoue…that name STILL sounded terrible! This was all becoming too much…he now had a stinky name, he was now siblings to one of the most irritating girls on the face of the planet, and worst of all: he was HUNGRY! Screw this; give him a battle against an evil Digimon or an unstoppable foe anyday!
Eh, at least we HAVE a home… Perhaps he was being too harsh. Maybe he was having a bit of trouble adapting. That had to be it…because he was a Digidestined. He could overcome any obstacle! He'd get through this, no problemo!
And as they neared the school, his spirits immediately brightened the moment he saw Kari walking towards the four Inoues. The fact that TK was accompanying her – Tai was Davis' personal idol of sorts, so he didn't count him – didn't bother him; he had long abandoned his jealousy of the close relationship the Child of Hope shared with the Child of Light.
"Yo Kari! Tai! TC!"
Well, almost.
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/Inoue Convenience Store, Odaiba, 7:45 AM/
Demiveemon and Poromon were dead silent.
Sasuke and Subaru were staring straight into their little eyes.
Finally, Subaru said, "For the mess you made – and for making Davis and little Yolei miss their breakfast – you have to be punished." Sasuke, meanwhile, was in the kitchen, doing something.
Demiveemon gulped. "W-what do you have in mind?"
Suddenly, Sasuke came in and put two shot glasses down on the table the two In-Trainings stood upon. A foul-looking – and weird-smelling – liquid sat in both.
Poromon asked, "What's in that?"
"Tabasco sauce, soy sauce, toothpaste, pepper juice, mustard, Ovaltine chocolate powder, and a dash of cherry-flavored cold medicine," said Sasuke with a wicked grin. "We make our kids drink this slop when they get punished…and I'm happy to say that it works so well that we haven't been forced to make it for the last several months!"
"However…we will ALWAYS remember the recipe for our 'Torture-Cola," said Subaru with a wicked grin. "And now you have to partake. Open wide!"
Sasuke then pried open Demiveemon's mouth and dunked the first glass of 'Torture-Cola' down his throat. Then he pried open Poromon's beak and dunked the second shot glass of the liquid down his throat as well.
In a matter of moments, the Digimon's faces turned green.
Demiveemon burst off for the bathroom.
Poromon flew off for the kitchen sink.
The sounds of hurling reached the ears of Subaru and Sasuke moments later. Sasuke grinned. "Alright! It even works on Digimon!"
Subaru sighed as she headed for a door in the living room; instead of leading to the apartment hallway like the other rooms in the apartment complex did, this one led to a stairway that connected to the Inoue Convenience Store directly below them. "Well honey, we need to get downstairs. It's almost 8 o'clock."
"But what about the Digimon? We can't just leave them up here," said Sasuke with a hint of worry.
Subaru frowned. That was true; after the little 'trick' the little Digimon had played on Yolei and Davis that morning, she wasn't about to trust them to stay out of trouble without supervision. But that would mean taking them down into the store…
A light bulb suddenly flashed above Subaru's head.
Sasuke then turned it off with the pull of its cord.
Subaru annoyingly turned it back on. "I have an idea. Don't turn it off."
"Heh. Sorry."
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/Homeroom, Odaiba School, Odaiba, 8:02 AM/
"Kari Kamiya."
"Present."
"Matsuya Jiyu."'
"Here."
"Zeru Mayaki."
"Here."
"Davis Motomiya."
"…"
"Davis MOTOMIYA."
"…"
A sigh escaped the lips of Mrs. Hakashi. The brown-haired woman taught math for the Middle School faction of the Odaiba school; although she looked graceful and eloquent in her black dress, she would NOT tolerate smart-alecks or troublemakers. And right now, Davis was about to experience that lack of tolerance. "DAVIS MOTOMIYA."
As Mrs. Hakashi's black eyes glared at the goggle-boy, Kari frowned as she glanced sideways at Davis. He looked inattentive, bored…and slightly annoyed. She leaned over to her desk's other side towards TK, whispering, "What's with Davis? He's acting weird."
"I don't know," whispered TK in reply. "But I do know he's asking for it."
"DAVIS MOTOMIYA!" yelled Mrs. Hakashi, her patience finally having reached its limit. She strolled over to Davis' desk – clipboard in hand – with a determined stride and glared down at him. The other students subconsciously leaned away from the teacher as she passed by.
Davis didn't pay her any attention. The other students paled out of shock; did this kid have a death wish?
Mrs. Hakashi finally lost her patience. "Very well Motomiya. If you're going to act this way, then I'll simply have to give you a detention slip. So I'll give you one, last, chance. DAVIS MOTOMIYA."
This time, it was Davis' turn to lose his patience. "I'M NOT DAVIS MOTOMIYA!"
Mrs. Hakashi stepped backward out of surprise. The rest of the class recoiled; they hadn't expected Davis to lash out like that. Finally, Davis angrily muttered, "My name is Davis Inoue."
Mrs. Hakashi blinked as she glanced down at her clipboard and flipped a few pages to the 'Teacher's Announcements Bulletin'. She looked down several lines, and then blinked. "Oh. You're right. I forgot the note." Mrs. Hakashi mentally kicked herself as she walked back up to the front and said aloud, "Davis Inoue."
"Here," replied Davis with an annoyed tone.
Kari blinked as Mrs. Hakashi continued on; what was wrong with Davis? If she didn't know any better, he was…upset. But about what? Moving in with Yolei's family? Why was that bad? …then again, I just answered my own question.
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/Lunch Table, Odaiba School, Odaiba, 12:09 PM/
"It's weird; Davis has been acting moody all day," said Kari with a frown. The new Digidestined had gathered at one table outside during lunchtime – the same one they always gathered at for lunch – save for one: Davis. He was sitting on the soccer field bleachers, eating lunch by himself.
Yolei shrugged as she eagerly bit into her sandwich; this was the first time she had been able to eat since she had left home that morning. "He's probably just hungry. You know how irritable some people can get when they're hungry."
"It's not just that though…" said TK with a frown. His eyes momentarily gazed up to the rooftops, where their partners sat…well, save for Demiveemon and Poromon of course. "He's acting like some great wrong's been done to him…"
"He's still upset over his parents' death," said Cody as he quietly sipped his apple juice. "After all, not everyone can experience something like that and come out unscathed." Cody knew that very well…his father, Hiroki, had died when he was only four. His grandfather, Daniel, had died at the hands of the Gravemon during the Odaiba War. Only Anna, his mother, was left…and if it hadn't been the mature philosophy his father and grandfather had taught him, he would've broken down by now. "I think he's just having some trouble adapting."
"Adapting?" said Kari, TK, and Yolei simultaneously.
"Yes. It's not often that someone can simply make a transition between families without some emotional damage." Cody sighed as he gazed toward the soccer field bleachers several dozen yards away, where Davis sat alone. "If he's going to make the transition between Motomiya to Inoue, he'll need help."
Yolei frowned as she ate her desert – a candy bar – in silence. Honestly, she WOULD like to help Davis make the transition into her family. They were friends, and that would be the friendly thing to do.
Of course, it would've been simpler if Davis didn't rub her the wrong way. That boy had an uncanny knack of doing that.
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/Outside Inoue Convenience Store, Odaiba, 3:27 PM/
"So, how was YOUR school day?" asked Jun happily as she, Momoe, Yolei, and Davis walked closer towards the family convenience store.
Yolei lightly replied, "It was good. Gym class made me sweat like a pig though; I'll need a shower."
Davis angrily replied, "Lousy."
Momoe blinked as Davis walked towards the door. "Geez, bro. What's your problem?"
Davis suddenly whirled around, his eyes narrow with anger. "DON'T CALL ME THAT! I'M NOT YOUR BROTHER." With fury in his stride, Davis walked into the convenience store, complete with the customary DING.
Yolei scoffed. Here was an example of why it was so hard to work with Davis. "Geez! What's eating him?"
"Oh, he'll be fine," said Jun with a smile. "He's just putting up his 'Anger Front'. He always does that when he's feeling moody. Once he gets used to this place, he'll be fine…speaking of getting used to this place, has Mantarou gone bed hunting yet?"
"Yep," replied Momoe as the three girls walked towards the doors. "Mantarou should be back later on this afternoon with the bed parts. If we work hard, we should be able to complete them by tonight."
DING.
As they walked inside…
"Welcome to the Inoue Convenience Store!"
"Please take your time, and take what you need!"
Jun, Yolei, and Momoe blanched as they halted right inside the store. Davis had not moved after moving only a few steps inside; his eyes were affixed to the image of Demiveemon and Poromon standing on the front counter.
Demiveemon happily said, "Hi everyone! Welcome to the Inoue-"
"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING OUT HERE?" yelled Davis.
"Mom and dad made them the store's new mascots," said Chizuru with a smile; she was in the aisle adjacent to the four Inoues, currently sorting through a number of candy bars. Plus, since she went to a different school, she had gotten here more quickly. "It was the only way they could keep them out of trouble after this morning."
"…I guess that makes sense," said Momoe.
Yolei stammered, "B-b-but they're Digimon! They can't just be out in public! I mean, sure the whole world knows about them now, but we just can't be careless about how we reveal them!"
DING.
Yolei, Davis, Jun, and Momoe froze as a husky man in a gray trench coat walked in. He was over fifty judging by the wrinkles on his face, and his graying hair and large eyeglasses further cemented that image. He wore a gray bowl hat on his head, and his voice was rough. "Pardon me."
Momoe and Yolei gaped as they moved aside for the man to pass; he was Mr. Takenawa, one of the store's most loyal customers. As he walked past the counter…
"Welcome to the Inoue Convenience Store!"
"Please take your time, and take what you need!"
…Demiveemon and Poromon did their chant. Davis and Yolei froze as Mr. Takenawa turned his head to face the In-Training Digimon. As he leaned inward to get a closer look, he frowned. Then he raised both hands. Yolei's face went as white as a sheet. No…don't hit them!
"Aw…cute little things," said Mr. Takenawa with a smile as he petted Demiveemon and Poromon on their heads. "Never seen you two little guys before."
"They're the new mascots!" exclaimed Subaru as she walked up to the front counter. "Welcome back Takenawa. Should I ring up your usual?"
"Yes ma'am, that would be nice. I'll just grab my things, pay up, and be on my way." The old man smiled as he petted the two Digimon again. "Such nice little mascots."
Davis and Yolei facefaulted. Jun and Momoe sweatdropped. Yolei grumbled as she got back up. "Gah…no more weirdness for one day! I need to take a shower." With that said, Yolei walked towards the back and up towards the stairs.
Davis just sighed as Demiveemon smiled, oblivious to the fact he had been petted by a non-Digidestined human. "Demiveemon, what am I going to do with you…?"
"For one, you can give me any leftovers from lunch!"
"Sorry pal, no such luck."
"Darn!"
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/Inoue Apartment, Odaiba, 3:34 PM/
Davis grumbled as he walked towards the restroom. "Man…gotta go to the bathroom…"
He twisted the knob and walked inside…and he immediately saw a naked Yolei about to step into the shower.
Davis gaped out of shock. His sense of decency was about to take over his initial male impulse to watch a naked female body – after all, he WAS a hot-blooded male like any others, subject to his own impulses like anyone else - but of course, Yolei was quick to bite.
"AAAAIIIIEEE!"
Or shriek, in this case. She quickly hopped behind the curtains and roared as she grabbed a shampoo bottle. Yolei the She-Hulk had just come out. "EVER HEARD OF KNOCKING?" She then threw the shampoo bottle.
Davis yelped as he closed the bathroom door, causing the bottle to clatter harmlessly onto the floor. Davis quickly retorted, "EVER HEARD OF LOCKING THE DOOR?"
The Child of Miracles grimaced as he slumped to the floor, his breathing ragged. He had just seen a naked Yolei. Oh man…I'm going to be sick…
In a way, it was sort of his fault; at his old home, the Motomiyas ALWAYS locked the bathroom door when they were using it, so they had never knocked. Apparently, the reverse was true in this household.
Davis felt dizzy. He had seen a naked girl…he was feeling sick just thinking about it! Oh geez…my eyes burn! What to do, what to do!
Then he got an idea.
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/Inoue Convenience Store, Odaiba, 3:48 PM/
Mr. Takenawa quietly placed a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, a box of bran cereal, and three Baby Ruth candy bars on the counter. "And the total once again comes to ten dollars and forty-seven cents?"
"Yes, and that price includes tax. You know us too well Takenawa," replied Subaru as she accepted Takenawa's money. Sasuke, meanwhile, was rummaging through the second cash register, making sure all the money tallied so far was there. "Okay…ones, fives, and tens are good…now about the twenties…"
"Mr. Inoue?"
Sasuke tilted his head to see Davis standing in front of the counter. "Yes? What can I do for you?"
"Do you have any pepper spray?"
Mr. Inoue nodded. They always kept at least two cans under the counters. "Yes. Why?"
"Can I see it real quick?"
Sasuke frowned…then he shrugged. It's not like Davis was going to use it on someone. "Okay." He reached down and pulled out a black can with a red top. He then handed it to Davis, saying, "Just be careful with it."
"Thanks." Davis then pointed the nozzle and sprayed himself in the eyes. "AAAAAHHH!" Davis' eyes immediately closed as they began tearing. He was temporarily blind…and yet he calmly said, "That's better." He then handed it back to Sasuke. "Thank you."
Sasuke just stared on, open-mouthed out of absolute awe. "…uh……you're welcome…"
Subaru and Takenawa just looked on quietly. Finally, Takenawa asked, "Does that boy have a screw loose?"
"No…he's just being himself," replied Subaru as she watched Davis try to find the door.
THUNK.
"Ow."
BONK.
"Gah…"
CRASH!
"WAH!"
Subaru winced as Davis walked straight into a pile of boxes, each one filled with bags of chips. …well, we've certainly added an eccentric member to the family…
DING.
Subaru turned around to see Mantarou walk in, a smile on his face. "The bed hunt is a success!"
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To be continued…
Next time…
Chapter 4: This is a Construction Zone; Please Wear your Hardhats
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Author's Notes: (smiles slyly) I don't think any words are needed.
See you soon, and please review!