Artistic Differences
By theladyknight
Disclaimer: Digimon—not mine!
A/N: Friday night, and it's downpouring, and I'm stuck at home because we have to leave really early to go to a wedding tomorrow morning...oh well, I was at one of my friend's houses until 12:15 this morning so it made up for it! In that time, I managed to get this chapter out...so here you go!
Kuroi Black Nightingale: Your wish has been granted…lol…I feel like a fairy godmother saying that. –Stares- I didn't get enough sleep last night. But yeah anyway, the takari in here is a result of your request…
Ballet Kitty: There are four chapters left after this for everything to come together. Keep reading…
KatyRose: -blushes- Wow…holy cow that was such a nice review. I really had to smile when I read it. Thanks for all the nice words!
Im4eraqt: Hey kohai! Nothing you said in "GOL" reviews was crud, though we've already talked about this before. Now that school's out—and yearbook signing is hopefully over—you might get a chance to read more of this fic. Lol! Did you get the e-mail I sent…my computer might not have sent it…
Indigowolf: Soccer's over, but I could have him run over with a car or something. Sadly, they didn't have cars back in medieval times, but I could throw in an anachronism…Marcus run over…I like the sound of that. But his fate, or what's planned for him, will be the best…
Calare: I like happy endings too. I'd write more bittersweet ones, but then I'd have to do a sequel to resolve it because I hate when things end and leave you with hundreds of unanswered questions. I have to have closure. So, yeah, most of my fics will end with a happy ending.
And thanks to: sora's-evil-twin, sorato-takari, scorpion05, Kay, Rocken Rodney, fallenangel558, Cloud-821, yamatoishida27, and KoumiLoccness.
Chapter 21: Phase 2—Passing on the Word
"Sora, I have absolutely no idea where you got that idea from, but it was pure genius," her father stated. The king rose from his jeweled throne, embracing his daughter in a warm hug. "I am incredibly proud of you."
The grin on her face lit up the entire room. "I just want to see Matt and the Ishidas set free."
"And that will happen. I'll make sure of it."
The princess looked around the room. Two weeks is really not that much time. "Everyone who is needed to pull this off must be informed as soon as possible."
"Who all are we inviting in?" Kari did not want to be left out of the conversation.
"The Ishidas—they're a must; Izzy, Joe, Ken, Cody, and a few more select individuals. There'll be less doubt among the villagers and officials should younger people only be allowed."
Mimi agreed with her, happy she could get her two cents worth in. "That is a good idea. And only those who need to know should know. Things could be awful should the wrong people learn about it."
"I agree one hundred percent. To successfully pull this off, only the right people should know. Since we know who we all want involved, each of us should be responsible for informing a person or group of people what their role will be." King Haruhiko rang a bell in the throne room. A tall, wispy servant entered the room, bowing before the two royals. "Please let Queen Toshiko know we request her audience here immediately."
The man bowed again. "Of course, sire."
"It's going to take a lot of brainstorming," Sora looked around at her friends—or in this case they could be considered allies. "But we can do it..."
T.K. Ishida longingly gazed at the dessert the guard in front of him was eating. That looks so good.
"Forget it, kid." Henry had seen him gazing at it. Taking one last gigantic bite, the pastry was gone. "I have strict orders from Lord Ichijouji not to give you guys any extra. From what he's said, none of you deserve it."
The blond wearily strode back to the end of the cell where his two parents resided, each looking as bored as he felt. "Malcolm, how long are we going to be down here?"
The artist studied his wife. "As long as it takes the royal family to prove we're innocent."
T.K. sighed. I miss the outside world, Matt, painting…Kari… He blushed at the thought. From the moment they met, he knew there was something special about her. T.K. always loved hanging out with his brother—he was his best friend—but for the longest time, the boy had wanted someone his own age around as well.
When the reached the castle, the young artist never dreamed he'd find someone to be just that. Kari proved to be everything he wanted and more. The boy instantly hit it off with her as they shared a common interest in Matt and Sora. Their friendship had grown from there, slowly blossoming into something more. Matt never thought he'd make friends or fall in love when he came here. I didn't think it would happen to me either.
T.K. hadn't seen Kari for a few days, but being in the dungeon cell stretched that time. It felt like years to him.
Footsteps coming down the stairs snapped the teen from his pensive thinking. Could it be?
"Henry, you can go up."
"Sorry, sire, but Lord Ichijouji gave specific orders…"
Dang it…
The king came into view, dressed in rich purple robes with a golden lining. His authority, shown off by his attire, was clearly making the guard nervous. "I have discussed this with him already, and he has consented. Remain at the top of the staircase. I'll lead the Ishidas up to you in a minute." Henry began to protest, cut off by King Haruhiko. "He has given his permission. Please, Henry, do not disobey these orders."
Though he still looked wary, Henry finally agreed, trudging up the staircase. King Takenouchi approached the cell door with his wife close behind. "Is there any news on Matt?" Nancy fearfully asked.
Sora's mother shook her head. "Not yet. But we do have some good news for you."
"What?" They tried to keep their voices low, but the family couldn't hide their anticipation.
"Sora has come up with a plan to prove you're innocent." The king briefly outlined the plan, making sure he hit every key point. "And we have a job for you all."
Queen Toshiko smiled at their dazed expressions. "We need scenery for this "play." Tai designed it last year," she paused at T.K.'s wince, "…yeah. We want your family to design the set for that reason, and so we can keep you up to date on any news regarding Matt and help out with the plan."
"Will we get to see Kari…" the blonde's face turned bright red, "and the others?"
King Haruhiko gave a hearty laugh. "Yes, T.K., you will get to see the others. And Kari."
They're never going to let me live this down.
"It looks like we many need to start planning their wedding eventually, after Sora and Matt's, of course."
Both adult artists' faces lit up. "You mean…you gave your permission?"
"We look forward to calling Matt our son."
Nancy wiped a tear off from her eye. "And we look forward to having Sora as our daughter."
"And Kari in the future." Malcolm nudged his son, giving him a large wink in the process.
With T.K. blushing yet again, the four adults shared a laugh. Sora's father took the cell keys from his pocket, carefully unlocking the door. "I'm going to need to tie this rope around your arms to keep up the act."
Each held out his or her arms, allowing Queen Toshiko to tie gentle but impressive knots around their hands. "We'll be able to take them off after meeting with Lord Ichijouji."
"Which we should be doing. He's leaving to talk with one of the ministers in Carroll later today and won't be back till late. Let's go everyone! There's still a good two weeks until the celebration, but to get everything done that needs to, we need to start."
T.K. smiled up at him. "Let's go prove we're innocent…"
You'd think that after living in this castle for nineteen years, I'd be able to find Cody without any problems. Unfortunately, it's always been the opposite.
Sora had spent the last twenty minutes searching high and low—more often low—for the young teen. She was now heading to his room. My luck, he'll be there.
It was vital to the success of the plan that Cody be involved; the princess just had a feeling. Somehow, Cody's presence will make a difference. I don't know how exactly, but he is an important key.
His room, one of the highest in the place, was where she found him. The girl was a bit startled by that as the young boy could scarcely be found in his room. He usually preferred being around parts of the castle, unselfishly helping others.
"Sora, what brings you here?"
She grinned at the boy, sitting down next to him. "I need to talk to you about something important. No one can hear us around here, right?"
Cody laughed. "No one comes up to this part of the castle quite often."
"Are Lord Ichijouji and Marcus around?"
"Lord Ichijouji's in a meeting with your father, and then he's leaving for the day on business. Marcus left to do some hunting after breakfast." Why's she wondering that?
Seeing his confused face, Sora continued on in a hushed voice. "You have to swear that you won't reveal anything that I tell you, with the exception of talking about it with those people I say you are able to. Also, if you agree to help us, you're going to be in the front lines."
He was incredibly befuddled now. "Sora, can you tell me what you're talking about? I am not following you one bit."
"We're going to free the Ishidas."
Cody immediately understood. Lord Ichijouji would go crazy if he knew. And Marcus…well, I definitely want Matt back soon. "I won't tell anyone; I promise."
Sora gave a sigh of relief, launching into an explanation of what was planned. The boy listened intently, nodding his head occasionally and choosing not to interrupt. "Count me in. I know they're innocent."
"Thank you, Cody. I know you're going to play a huge role in this. I trust you more than the others, and that's why I am giving you one of the most important jobs."
"Me?"
"Yes, but you cannot—no matter what—tell anyone this."
He nodded solemnly. "You have my word, Princess."
"I need you to let Matt know about the plan. You are going to be our messenger back and forth. He needs to know what's going on."
"But, Matt's in hiding! No one knows where he is." Cody tried to rationalize.
She gave him a secretive smile. "Do you remember the night of the ball when I had you deliver a note to Joe?"
"Yeah, but what does…ohhh." It had sunk it. Matt's hiding at Joe's house!
"Kind of shocking, no? We have been lucky so far. Lord Ichijouji searched the house, but thankfully Matt was well hidden. You, Joe, Matt, and I are the only ones who know. I needed you to know because I can't be seen at his place that often. People would start to wonder. But if we have you run back and forth, "getting things for the royal family" from town and his shop, well, you see my point."
"I'll do whatever I can to help. I know they're innocent, and the right person should be punished. Just tell me what to do."
The redhead wrapped the younger boy in a bear hug. "You don't know how much you're going to help. Here's the plan…"
"So where are you headed, Cody?" Mimi stopped walking, ending in the middle of the Roselle town square.
Cody looked at the two females standing before him. "I'm off to Joe's house. I'm going to pick up some "medicine" for the Ishidas while I'm there too."
Kari laughed. "We are headed to Izzy's. And Sora told us to pick up some plants."
"Thank God Sora's in charge and not Tai. He would not have a plan. We'd all be so confused."
"Or out in the garden digging with spoons." Kari interjected.
The lone male was a bit confused, so he decided it was time to leave them. "I'll meet you two at Izzy's when I finish."
"Okay," they answered in unison, waving, and heading off toward the other side of town. Cody backtracked and headed to the doctor's office.
KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Hello?"
"Hello, Joe."
"Oh, Cody. What brings you here? Come in."
He followed Joe in, taking note that there was someone sitting in one of his kitchen chairs. "I need to talk to you and pick up some more medicine for those with missinghimitis."
Gesturing to the far corner of the room and a small sofa after realizing Cody knew about the hoax, Joe faced the boy. "Give me ten minutes tops. I just need to mix up some medicine for Lord Molitor."
"Of course,"
"Doctor Kido, is this…whatever that young lad said contagious? Do I need medicine for that too?"
Joe smiled, shaking his head good-naturedly. "You'll be fine without it, Lord Molitor."
"If you're sure…"
Cody sat down on the seat, patiently waiting for the doctor to finish. He looked all around the room and was surprised by the neatness and arrangement before him. It only seems like one person lives here. But I know otherwise.
"Take one spoonful of this two times a day, once in the morning and once at night, and your voice should return quickly."
"Thank you, Doctor Kido." The old man croaked out, pulling some gold out of his pocket for payment before departing, tipping his worn-out hat in Cody's direction.
Joe turned back to the boy as the door shut. "So, what do you have to tell me?"
"Sora has a plan to prove Matt and the Ishidas are innocent."
It hit Joe like a gigantic tidal wave. I knew she'd do it. "What is it?"
Looking back and forth to make sure all the windows were closed, the teen stepped closer to the blue-haired man. "Matt needs to hear this too. You may as well bring him out or have us go to where he is hiding." Doctor Kido's face paled. "Princess Sora told me all about it. And I'm not going to tell anyone."
Joe still looked a bit queasy, as if he would faint any moment, but nonetheless, he gathered himself, leading them both into his bedroom.
"What's up, Joe?"
"I bring a visitor, Matt."
The bond looked back, nearly falling off the bed in the process. "C…Cody? What are you doing here?"
He understood the artist was shocked and really couldn't blame him. "Sora told me what happened and how you ended up here. She sent me here as a messenger."
"Why?" Though he still wasn't happy with another person knowing, Matt wanted to hear his reason for being at Joe's.
"Sora's come up with a plan to clear your name. She and the others are going to put on a supposedly fake trial at the Independence Day Celebration. They're going to get all those suspected there and involved. At the same time, under sworn oath to the king, those suspects must tell the truth before everyone. We'll catch whoever is guilty."
It was sinking in quickly between the two older boys. "That's brilliant." Joe murmured.
"I'll say."
"Sora has lined up specific tasks for everyone to complete while there. You two have each been given something."
"Even me?" Matt was a bit confused.
Cody smiled at him. "She wants you there for when the truth is revealed, and so her father can announce that the two of you will be married."
His jaw dropped at the unexpected answer. Slowly it closed, turning into a large smile. "Well then, I'd say that's a good reason to be there. What are our jobs…"
It was chaos. Simply stated; there's no other way to explain it. The floors were littered with the beginnings of blueprints. Unfinished experiments lay all around the room. It was far from being a disaster zone, but clean didn't describe it either.
"Ugh! These are new shoes."
"Mimi, they'll be fine. You'll be fine. There's nothing alive down here."
"I doubt that."
Kari sighed. "Well, if your shoes do get ruined, just talk to my brother. I'm sure he'd love to buy his wife-to-be a new pair."
"In all the commotion from the ball, I forgot about my wedding."
The two girls found themselves making idle small talk in Izzy's personal laboratory, waiting for the boy genius to come back with some tea. Both girls had different, completely opposite views of the place.
To Mimi, it was a zoo. Literally. She was in awe of some of the different experiments, particularly the plants, but certain some critter would jump out at her in the next minute or so.
Kari, on the other hand, was incredibly fascinated. Every invention and contraption appeared phenomenal. She knew Izzy would be famous in the future for one of this many fabulous designs. T.K. would love it here.
"You forgot about your own wedding? That doesn't sound like you."
Mimi giggled lightly. "Mother and Father, along with your parents, are in the process of making all the preparations, when they have the time. Kari, I want to know if you'll be in the wedding party."
The younger girl squealed. "Of course, Mimi! I would love to."
"Great! And by that time, we'll have the Ishidas name cleared, and when they, of course, agree to be in the wedding, you'll walk down with T.K." Kari's face tinted a light shade of pink, but she did a very good job of hiding it.
"That's…nice."
"So, to what do I owe the honor of hosting the two of you?" Izzy had returned with a large pot of warm, herbal tea. Kari sighed, glad she was off the hook for the time being.
But Mimi wouldn't let her off that easily. As the older girl reached for her cup, she leaned over to Kari's ear and whispered, "Just return the favor. I'd better be in your wedding party when you and T.K. get hitched."
"Kari, are you okay? Do you want me to open a window or something? You look really warm."
His statement caused her to blush even more, this time unable to hide it. "No, Izzy. I'm fine. I just drank the tea too fast. We come from the castle with a request from the princess." It was time to get back on track. And not think about T.K.
Izzy smiled. Sora was a good friend, and he knew any request she made would be logical and well thought out. "Go ahead and tell me. Hopefully, I can help out."
"We need you to help prove Matt is innocent."
A look of doubt etched itself on the boy's face. He studied Mimi, as she had proclaimed the task, wondering if for once this was a joke. Sora's normally not a prankster. But she can get to be an imp when Tai's around. "The chances of doing so seem highly unlikely. We have no proof that Matt was guilty, nor do we have any that prove he's innocent. The odds of success are not in our favor."
Kari smirked at him. "But they are…"
The girls spent the next quarter of an hour explaining the beauty of Sora's plan. "Basically, being that you are the smartest, Sora wants you to play the role as the defense lawyer. You're trying to prove the Ishidas are innocent. Tai is going to be Marcus and Lord Ichijouji's lawyer." Mimi explained.
"Tai?"
"I know my brother isn't the best choice, but he's already started preparing for his task. Knowing Tai, he'll be able to get it all to come together in the end."
At first I never believe it possible, but I think there's a chance it could work. "Count me in. I liked Matt and T.K. Their family wouldn't betray the crown. Marcus doesn't seem as sincere as he seems, and Lord Ichijouji is kind of power hungry. Even Ken's said that about his father."
"That's why they're our prime suspects. And speaking of Ken, we're going to need you to pass on the word to Yolei, Davis, and Ken, in addition to serving as a lawyer."
Mimi nodded. "We'll stop back later this week or next with a list of instructions from each of them. Well, once Sora gets them all figured out. Kari and I will have a set of tasks for you too."
Izzy opened his mouth to respond, only to be interrupted by the front door opening and closing. "I hope it's okay that I let myself in."
"That's Cody. He was at Joe's house." Kari provided.
The boy joined them all in the room. "Sorry to barge in like that."
"Oh, it's okay. We were just finishing up. Is there anything else you guys need?"
"Sora told us to pick up some plants as decorations and decoys." Mimi stood up. "But nothing fancy, mind you."
Izzy and the others rose from their seats as well. "I know the perfect ones." He led them deeper into the laboratory, heading straight back to the greenhouse.
Kari lingered behind the others. She couldn't help but examine each item the teen had made, scattered all about the room. Every one sparked her interest though she didn't know the purpose they were made for.
But one stuck out above all the others.
"Hey, Izzy, what do these things do?"
He stepped out of the greenhouse after handing Mimi and Cody each a large, flowering plant. "Oh, those are something I head about out West. I decided to make my own. They're called walkie-talkies. Here, I'll give you a demonstration. Kari, take that end, and I'll take the other."
Kari picked up one of the two tin cans attached together by string, moving to the far end of the room. Izzy stood across the room with the other can. "What do I do?"
"Say something into the can that I can't hear."
The brunette gave him a puzzled glance before whispering something into the contraption. Her jaw dropped as Izzy began to laugh.
"What?"
"Kari said that Tai looks like a hairy monkey."
"Good Lord! How did you…"
Smiling, Izzy launched into an explanation of how these walkie-talkies worked. I think Sora would love to hear about them. "They could really come in handy." Cody thought out loud.
"I'll start to make some more sets, in that case. You go back and talk with Sora. It's getting dark out. I'll see you all soon…"
"Cody, why are you hesitating?" Kari saw the boy remain back behind them. They were now arriving back at the castle and dusk was falling.
"I though I heard something. I'm going to go check it out. Go ahead to the castle. I'll be fine."
"If you're sure." Mimi didn't want to leave him out here alone especially in the fading sunlight.
"Yep, I'll catch up to the two of you later."
He waited for them to head into the castle before darting off into the dark foliage. Being he was short and thin, the boy could dart in between everything. The shadows offered perfect protection.
Cody could still hear the voices. They were vaguely audible, but he could make out words and phrases.
"We're waiting for your word to go."
"Where are you at?"
"Group one is in Maple River, moving south. The second group is at Mount Carmel, heading east."
"I'll meet you again soon. But, are you sure no one suspects anything?"
A laugh. "These imbeciles? No one even considers it."
I have a feeling you're wrong.
Knowing their talk was almost over, Cody scampered out of the forest, narrowly avoiding scraping his knee on a tree stump.
The castle was in sight, and the boy couldn't wait to find the red-haired princess.
Wait till Sora finds out everything I learned today…
A/N: Two stories done, but I'm going out of town again—this time, only 2 days. So, maybe I'll get more than one update of this story in this month. –Thinks- Nah, I doubt that'll happen. But I can always wish. 4 more chapters to go of this story! Now onto "Game of Life". Please review!