Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or any of the associated franchises. I am just using them to entertain the masses with a good story. I only own the characters, plot, and other story elements that I had to create.

Chapter 3

Roy Foxlore

Rika, Seiko, and Renamon spent the rest of the morning talking about how Renamon had come to the real world and the whole back story. At noon, Seiko made the tamer and digimon a large lunch as a sort of welcome to the family gift to Renamon. As they ate Rika turned on the TV and it was the noon hour news. They were doing a report on the bank robbery yesterday, and added in that some new information. As Rika watched she remembered her dream last night. She realized that the guy who had saved Renamon, he had been in her dream.

She thought back to day of the bank robbery and remembered what the guy had said. This is my oath, for she is a protector like me. We don't only fight for ourselves, but for the ones who can not protect themselves. For, if we should fail in the fight, they will be the ones who shall bear the consequences. Rika realized the guy said the same thing in her dream, but he elaborated on it more. Rika looked over to Renamon who eating her meal in a respectful silence. Renamon was her digimon partner, but Rika realized that she acted a lot like a parent would. Trying to protect her from anything that could hurt her and she couldn't handle on her own. Rika looked back to the TV, and this time her grandmother caught her stare.

Seiko looked at the TV and saw the end of the report and then got an idea in her head. She smiled as she turned to Rika and said, "Rika, I think we should go see that guy they are talking about on the news. If the reports are right, he saved Renamon's life. I think it is the least we can do."

Rika thought about it a second before she turned to look at her grandmother and then at Renamon. She was silently debating before she faced Renamon and asked, "What do you think Renamon?"

Renamon almost choked on the piece of food she had in her mouth. This had to be the first time Rika had actually asked Renamon her opinion, but I guess there is a first time for anything. She swallowed and said, "Well, we at least need to return the torn part of the handkerchief he used to bandage me. Last night I went out and got most of the blood out of it."

Rika nodded her head and said, "I guess it's settled then." The trio finished their meal and then went into the over packed closet that belonged to Rika's mother. After digging through the many dresses and other clothes they found some clothes they could use to disguise Renamon. Though she could just enter the hospital through her ability to walk through the shadows, Seiko thought it best if she could talk to the young man who saved her life face to face.

After having Renamon try on multiple things they finally found something that would do the job. Renamon was now wearing a pair of long jeans that were tight enough to fit right around her waist, but long enough that they hid her feet. They hung just barley above the ground, making it impossible to notice Renamon's strange feet unless you bent down and examined them closely. Seiko gave Renamon a shirt that was a simple white. The sleeves were just the right length that they met up with Renamon's armguards, completely covering her fur. The last two touches were a trench coat and an old hat that used to belong to Rika's father. The combination of these two things hid Renamon's face from anybody who didn't look straight at her. Renamon hid her tail in the back of the coat and put her paws in the coats pocket. When it was all done you would have thought Renamon was just a person who had gotten bundled up for the cold weather.

Rika looked Renamon over a second before she smiled and said, "Well Renamon, its official. You can join a big time crime syndicate and not be out of place."

Renamon tipped the hat up enough to show Rika her face as she glared at her a bit. Seiko then dug out her and Rika's winter jackets and the trio left the house. They walked down the street to the bus station and took the bus the 10 blocks to the hospital. While they road Rika and Seiko shared a seat and Renamon sat behind them. The bus came to a stop and a mother with three small children came on the bus. She walked down the aisle and sat on the opposite side of the aisle then Renamon. Two of her kids sat with her, but a young girl was forced to share the seat with Renamon.

Renamon sat and looked out the window, not wanting to get the child's attention, but that was impossible. The child looked up at Renamon and after staring at her for a second the kid turned to her mother and asked, "Mommy, why is this person dressed like that?"

The mother turned and looked at Renamon for a second before she replied, "She is just bundled up for the weather. She must just be a little cold"

The girl looked back and tugged on Renamon's sleeve as she said, "Is that true, are you cold?" The girl continued to tug on Renamon's sleeve, and she did her best to ignore the little girl's constant barrage of questions. The bad thing was as the girl tugged on the coat Renamon's tail began to become uncovered. The girl then noticed the patch of yellow fur, and before Renamon noticed it the girl had yanked on her tail, hard. Renamon quickly snatched her tail away from the girl, hid it back in her coat, and moved her hat enough that the girl could see Renamon looking at her with an evil and icy stare.

To say the least the girl was silent for the rest of the ride, looking at Renamon every now and then, making sure she wasn't going to scare her anymore. They reached the hospital a few minutes later and the trio left the bus. Once they were on the street Rika turned to Renamon and said, "Nice job with that little brat Renamon. I doubt she will be so talkative to strangers anymore."

Seiko shook her head and led the group into the hospital. She walked up to the information desk on the opposite side of the room and hit the call button. As they waited, Rika and Renamon looked around the room. It was a fairly large waiting room. A central aisle ran between the front door and the information desk. On either side of the aisle were about ten rows of chairs, most of them filled with people who were sick or waiting to see family and friends. Along the walls were some paintings that Rika guessed were supposed to help calm people down.

After a few minutes Seiko turned to Rika and Renamon and said, "Were lucky, we can go see him right now. He is in room 710. So, let's get to the elevator." Rika and Renamon followed Seiko to the elevator and stepped in. Seiko pushed the button for the seventh floor. As the elevator went up Renamon turned her head to Seiko and asked, "How do you know which floor he is on?"

Seiko turned her head and smiled as she said, "I guess this your first time to a hospital. The most common system in hospitals is the first digit in a room's number tells someone what floor the room is on. Like for room 710, the first number is a 7. That means the room is on the seventh floor of the hospital."

Rika shook her head a second as she thought about how Renamon and her grandma were getting along. Here she was worried for the longest time that her mom and grandma would freak out and have Renamon taken away, but here they were talking like two old friends. The elevator doors opened a few second later and the trio stepped out. Seiko guided Renamon and Rika through the twisting halls of the hospital until they found room 710. It was a single room, and after checking the nurse schedule they were happy to find they had an hour before anyone was supposed to come and check on the guy. Seiko opened the door and the trio saw Roy Foxlore was sitting up in his bed, watching a movie on the TV.

Roy turned his head when he heard the door close and looked at the group. The old woman and the person in the trench coat weren't familiar, but he knew the girl from somewhere. It then hit him that she was the girl that had been threatened by the leader of the bank robbers. He adjusted himself in the bed so he was somewhat facing the group and said, "Now isn't this a surprise. I am getting a visit from two people I don't know and the girl that had been saved by that Kitsune yesterday."

Seiko walked forward and offered her hand as she said, "Hello, I am Seiko. This is Rika, my granddaughter. We just came to thank you ourselves for helping to save Rika and Renamon."

Roy took Seiko's hand and shook it as he said, "Thank you, but who is your friend in the trench coat."

Seiko walked over and made sure the door was locked before she nodded at Renamon. Renamon returned the nod and took off the hat and trench coat. She set the trench coat and hat on a coat rack that was in the room and stretched out a bit as her tale returned to its natural position. Roy looked over Renamon a second before he said, "Well, I never expected to see you again."

Renamon nodded her head as she dug in the pocket of the jeans she was wearing and pulled out the clean half of the handkerchief. She walked over to Roy and handed it to him as she said, "Here, I believe this is yours."

Roy took the handkerchief and looked at it. There was only one drop of blood still on the white fabric. He looked at it closely and noticed that the fabric looked a bit worn, as if someone had scrubbed at it for a while. He looked back at Renamon and then bowed his head slightly as he said, "Thank you, Renamon wasn't it?"

Renamon nodded her head and said, "Yes, my name is Renamon, and I wanted to thank you for saving my life. I am in your debt."

Roy shook his head and said, "There is no dept between us. After I saved you, you quickly repaid the dept by drop kicking the leader of the gang across the room." Roy then smiled as he turned to Rika and said, "So, I guess that it isn't coincidence that you two showed up here at the same time."

Rika nodded as she said, "We will explain everything, if you promise to keep it a secret."

Roy gave a reassuring smile as he said, "I am honored you view me trustworthy enough to be trusted with this secret." With that Rika began to explain what Renamon was and where she came from. As she talked, Roy listened intently and took in every bit of information. After Rika was finished Roy leaned back and rubbed his chin a second before he said, "Well, I guess anything is possible."

Roy glanced over to the clock and noticed that the nurse could come in at anytime. He turned his toward Renamon and said, "You better get back into your disguise. The nurse could come in any second."

Renamon nodded her head and walked over to the coat rack. While she was putting the coat on Seiko walked over to the bed and said, "I hope you would join us for dinner some time. If anything, I think it would be an appropriate way to pay you back for your bravery."

Roy nodded his head and said, "I will take you up on that offer. Tell me, what is the date today?"

Seiko glanced at her watch and said, "It is the 18th of December."

Roy thought a second before he said, "That's good. The doctor said I am healing really fast, so I will be released in three days."

Seiko smiled as she said, "That's great. How about you come over to our house on Christmas and join use. I know my daughter would be happy to meet you."

Roy shook his head and said, "I can't. I have to be at the orphanage on Christmas because of a previous obligation, how about Christmas Eve?"

Seiko nodded her head and said, "That would be fine. Here, you look thirsty. Rika, why don't you run down to the vending machine and get him some water. I will wait outside the door in case the nurse comes by." With that Rika and Seiko left, leaving Renamon and Roy alone in the room. Renamon finished putting on the trench coat and was about to put on the hat when she began to think about Rika's dream. She had said Roy was their, and he had told her the error of her ways. Renamon turned to Roy who was watching his movie again. She was silent for a second before she said, "Roy."

Roy turned and with a kind face said, "Yes Renamon."

Renamon second guessed her self for a second before she said, "At the bank, you mentioned something about the life of a protector. What was it again?"

Roy blinked a few times before he smiled and said, "It is the only thing I can remember about my father. He and my mother were killed when a vengeful coworker broke into the house, intending to kidnap me. He had already killed my mother and was about to kill my father when my father stared down the barrel of his gun and said, This is my oath, for I am his protector. I will not let you lay a hand on him. The life of a parent, of a protector isn't important for we don't only fight for ourselves, but for the ones who can not protect themselves. We must succeed in our fight, for if we should fail in the fight, they will be the ones who shall bear the consequences. My father then charged the criminal, taking five bullets in the chest. It didn't stop him, he took the gun from the man and with super human strength he picked him up and threw him against the far wall. The bullet wounds then caught up with him, and he fell over, dead. This happened when I was four. The police came and took me to the New Hope Orphanage, and I have been their since then. I am 16 now, and most parents don't want to adopt someone who is as old as I am. They want a young child they can raise, not a teenager who will be ready for collage in two years."

Renamon looked at him as the cheerfulness in Roy's face left for a few moments, and the scars of the incident surfaced. Renamon noticed the very soul of Roy seemed to have made it way into his eyes, showing the pain of living at an orphanage for so many years. It didn't last long though, because Roy quickly brought himself back to reality and said, "So, any more questions."

Renamon shook her head. She did have more questions for Roy, but felt that it would be for the best if she waited to ask them. She put on the hat and was about to leave when Roy called her name. Renamon turned and saw him smiling as he said, "Hey, don't be a stranger. The New Hope Orphanage is filled with kids, but none of them my age. It is nice to be able to talk to someone who can keep their mind on the conversation long enough to make it worth while."

Renamon thought about it a second before she nodded her head and said, "Sure, it is the least I can do." With that Renamon left the room and met up with Seiko. Rika popped into the room a second to give Roy the bottle of water before the trio of girl left the hospital. Rika and Renamon were heading back to the house while Seiko was planning to go the mall to do some shopping. As Rika and Renamon rode on the bus back to Rika's house, Renamon couldn't seem to get that kid out of her head. He had been so polite, courteous, and open minded. Most people would have yelled for help or thought they were going mad if they saw a yellow talking fox in their hospital room, but he had just accepted her as a person, and talked to her like he talked to Rika or Seiko.

Back in the hospital, Roy was replaying the whole visit in his head. Seiko acted so kind like a grandmother he never had. Rika was a bit cold, but she was defiantly trying to be nice. When he had talked to her at the bank she had been as cold as ice and hard as stone. Here, she at least tried to make a decent conversation. Then there was Renamon, a real live digimon. He knew about the card game from the other kids at the orphanage, and he even had a few common cards one of the kids had given him. Yet, he didn't see her as some strange creature that should only exist in someone's imagination. Renamon felt like a person to him, like any normal human. He shrugged as he turned back to the TV to finish watching the movie as he thought, "I guess time will tell if Renamon will be a friend or acquaintance."

Roy spent the next two days in the hospital, being released with a clean bill of health in the morning of the third day. During his stay some of the kids from the orphanage had come and visited him the day after Rika, Renamon, and Seiko had visited. Then, surprisingly Renamon stopped by for a few minutes one night while he was reading a book. She had realized that she didn't know where the orphanage was. Roy chuckled and told her the orphanages address. Renamon thanked him and they had a quick conversation about the weather before she left. Roy was amazed she could travel through the shadows like that, and wondered what it would be like to do that.

When Roy was released no one there from the orphanage to meet him, but he had expected as much. The kids weren't allowed to go anywhere on their own, and Mrs.Starshine had to be a mess after dealing with thirty kids for four days on her own. Roy began to walk down the street, enjoying the crisp air. He loved winter, Christmas joy in the air, the feel of the cold air in his lungs. It was easiest his favorite season. As he walked down the street he passed several shops. Many had holiday displays. It was the 21st, and Christmas was in 4 days, his birthday was in 6. He sighed as he thought about being another year older. He thought about the many years he had spent at the orphanage. Ever since his father and mother had been killed, he had spent all his spare time training. He vowed that if he had to protect himself or someone he cared about, he would not have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

He reached the orphanage an hour later, having walked the long distance from the hospital to the orphanage. The orphanage was a dull grey in color, with the evidence that the owner didn't have to funds to fix everything. Some of the paint was chipping off on one side, and a vine had taken over the other. The building was three stories tall and a patio could be seen setting out of the roof, but it showed signs of rarely being used. There were toys and other things in the yard all around the building. Roy smiled, it wasn't much, but it was a roof over his head. When he walked up the walk he could already hear the kids inside yelling that he was back, and as he opened the door a wave of small hands and feet jumped on him. Mrs. Starshine was in the door way when Roy got out from underneath the mountain of kids. She smiled as she said, "It is good to see you're alright Roy. I have good news for you?"

Roy smiled at the kids as he said, "What is that Mrs. Starshine?"

She smiled as she said, "Someone wants to adopt you."

Roy looked at her with surprise as a man with yellow hair in a full business suit walked up beside her. He took of his sunglasses to reveal his amber eyes. Roy had a gut feeling; this guy was up to no good. As he looked the stranger over the guy offered his hand and said, "I am Yamachi."

Not wanting to be rude, Roy shook Yamachi's hand and said, "Roy Foxlore. So, how come you want to adopt me?"

Yamachi pulled his hand back as he said, "You are old enough to fend for yourself. I want someone I can call my son, but don't want to have to go about teaching him about everything he sees. I have been looking for someone like you for quite a while." Though Roy still didn't like the vibes he was getting from this Yamachi character, he wasn't about to tell him no. He had wanted to be adopted for so long. He knew he could stand whatever this guy could dish out.

An hour later Yamachi left, saying he would return in the afternoon to pick Roy up. When he was out of sight Roy went into the house and after trending to his chores he went up through the old houses attic and went up to the long forgotten patio on the roof. He sat up their, watching the sun get higher in the sky until it was high noon. He was about to go inside when he heard foot steps and turned to see Renamon was standing on the patio's railing. Roy smiled as he said, "Well, I am glad you found your way here."

Renamon nodded her head and stepped down off the patio railing and onto the aging boards as she said, "I circled the block a few times until I saw you sitting up here. So, this is your home."

Roy nodded his head as he said, "Yep, for the past 12 years, but not anymore."

Renamon gave him a questioning look as she said, "Why, what has happened?"

Roy chuckled as he said, "I guess I should have been on the TV sooner, this guy came here and adopted me. So, I guess this is the last few hours I will be at this old house."

Renamon looked out over the city as she said, "Well, I guess a lot of good came out of that bank robbery."

Roy walked over to the railing and leaned on it as he said, "Really, why do you say that?"

Renamon walked over beside him and said, "Well, Rika is much more open now, both of us being put on the brink of death has opened her eyes and heart a bit, and you are getting adopted."

Roy nodded his head and said, "I think your missing one thing."

Renamon looked at Roy as she asked, "What could I have forgotten."

Roy smiled as he looked over to her and said, "Why, I got to meet a very kind person, or should I say digimon."

Renamon blushed slightly as Roy turned back out over the city as he said, "I spent the first 10 years of my life at the orphanage training, trying to become as strong as I could. I checked every book out of the nearest library that had to deal with self defense. I took moves form several different fighting styles and combined them into one that was simple for me to learn, yet would allow me to practice and perfect the moves for years. I still train when ever I feel the need to, but it is always just to keep my skill up, my sense as sharp as humanly possible. Spending all that time training made it impossible for me to keep friends for long, and after I started lightening up on the training, there was no one my age at the orphanage to be friends with. I became a sitter for all the other kids. Now don't get me wrong, it is fun to be their big brother of sorts, but for the past few months I just wanted someone to have as a friend, someone who I can have a conversation like this with. Conversations where I can get out the stuff that has been bothering my heart, stuff that is too complicated for the other orphans to comprehend."

Renamon looked at him, the pains of his heart starting to show up on his face again, but this time they seemed to have healed a bit. Before she could figure out why they had healed Roy had put his happy demeanor back on as he sighed and said, "I am sorry, here I have been chewing your ear off with my problems."

Renamon shook her head and said, "No, it is alright Roy. Truth be told, I wish I could talk to someone about the strains on my heart."

Roy turned as he said, "Well go ahead, I am listening."

Renamon was silent for a minute before she said, "Well, the night after the robbery Rika had a nightmare about losing me. The next morning she told her grandmother about me. As we talked about how I protected Rika and listened to her Rika's grandmother, the older woman who was with us when we visited you, compared me to a motherly figure in Rika's life. That has been eating at my mind since she has said it."

Roy turned around and leaned his back against the rail as he said, "So, does Rika have a mother or is she gone."

Renamon shook her head as she said, "She might as well be gone. Her mother is a famous model, and she spends most of her time off some where at a photo shoot. Then, whenever she is home she is trying to make Rika just like her. That is why Rika is a kind of tomboy, just trying to be something other then what her mother wants."

Roy nodded his head as he said, "I see. Rika's mother is trying to form Rika, while you are letting her be what ever she wants to be, guiding her as best you can without oppressing her will. I still don't see the problem."

Renamon sighed as she said, "It is just my mind is split. One side is saying I can be a better mother to Rika then her real mother is. Another side is telling me that I can't be Rika's mother because she is a human and I am a digimon. Finally, a third side is saying that I can't be her mother because I have no right it. She has a mother, and no matter how poorly she does her job, I can't take it from her."

Roy nodded his head as he said, "Now I understand. Renamon, here is my advice. Your right, you can't be Rika mother and you don't have the right to take her away from her real mother, but it doesn't stop there. Renamon, you can fill a gap in Rika's life. You can help Rika like a mother would, with out taking her place. All you have to do is be there when she needs you, and do not contradict her own mother. That way, you can be a presence in her life with out taking her mother's place."

Renamon nodded her head as she saw a black car pull up. Roy looked over his shoulder and saw Yamachi stepping out of the driver's seat. He stood up and stretched as he said, "Well, that's my ride. Remember, don't you be a stranger Renamon." With that Roy walked down through the door that led to the patio. Renamon watched him go before she disappeared into the shadows, and began to make her way back to Rika's house.

Roy picked up the small suitcase and followed Yamachi out of the orphanage. He turned and took one last good look at the place before he stepped into the back seat of Yamachi's car. As they drove, Roy noticed that the back of the car was separated from the front by a piece of glass. Before he could figure out what the glass was four he heard a strange sound. It sounded like gas coming through a pipe. He then began to smell something in the air, and he tried to lower the car windows. He flipped the power switch several times, but the windows wouldn't move. He then felt his head getting light and his eyes getting heavy. He tried to open the car doors, but they were locked and he had no means to unlock them. Soon, the gas overtook him and he slumped over in the seat, out like a light.