Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon or anything to do with it. I am just, quite simply, utterly and completely obsessed.

More More Happy Christmas

Chapter 2: Secrets

"Hey, guys. Remember this?"

"The Odaiba Blackout? How can we forget, the history teachers use it every year as an example of current events."

"I'm serious. I was living there at the time, you know."

"You're joking! I was there, too!"

( - ) ( - ) ( - )

Tokyo, Japan - Odaiba District

December 18th, 1996 - 8:32 PM

Takuya's uncle called his sister-in-law as soon as the electricity was back on. Shortly afterwards, he loaded his nephew into his car and drove him back to the family's apartment. Takuya was strangely quiet, clutching his bag tightly as though guarding a precious treasure, but Uncle Hiro chalked it up to a sulk and ignored it.

After being scolded by his uncle, mother and father each in turn and forced to 'apologize' to Shinya for taking some of his toys along, Takuya stormed up to his room, dragging his bag with him and making sure to slam the door. He pouted at himself in the mirror before dropping onto his bed.

"Hmph! I'll show them!" He muttered, pulling the zipper of his bag open clumsily, "Shinya took my stuff first, but nobody'll ever take this from me, not even him!"

He reached deep into his bag, pulling out the huge egg that had come from the broken machine. It was the size of his head and bright orange, covered in large red polka dots. He smiled broadly, pulling the sheet off his bed.

"Gotta keep it warm so it'll hatch!" He chanted to himself, hiding the bundle deep within a mass of pillows. "I'll have the coolest pet ever with an egg like this, and Shinya won't have nothin'!"

Now content with his deviously rotten older-brother schemes, he jumped off his bed and went to find replacements for the action figures he'd left at his uncle's shop.

( - )

"What…?" Izumi blinked, staring into the microwave in dismay. "I can't eat this!"

On the plate that had contained her special Italiano treat now rested a huge purple egg decorated with blue swirls. The little girl reached in and pulled the egg out with a curious, "Ooh…"

Her little hands ran over the smooth surface curiously. "Hey, it's still warm… Oh!"

The egg suddenly jumped a little and shook all over, as though something inside it had kicked at the shell. Izumi scrambled to keep ahold of it, but her blue eyes lit up in excitement. "I get it! The microwave made you all warm real quick, so you're almost ready to hatch, right?

"Well, don't worry!" She jumped down from the chair, clutching the egg tight as she ran back to her room. "I'll take real good care of you 'til you hatch, Mr. Egg! Real good care!"

( - )

Junpei hurried home, ignoring the way his shoes filled with water as he splashed through the puddles. He was a bit more preoccupied with the large object he had stuffed down his shirt, hidden 'discreetly' even as he bustled up the stairs and into his apartment.

"Hi mom, I'm home!" He shoulder, toeing off his shoes and rushing through the hall towards his room.

"Junpei…" His mother called. "Come here a moment, please."

"Just a sec, mom!"

"Now, young man."

Junpei winced and backtracked slightly, leaning out from behind the kitchen door to try and hide the new bludge under his shirt. "Y-Yeah, mom?"

Mrs. Shibuyama folded her arms, holding a spatula loosely in one hand and looking rather cross. "And where, exactly, have you been?"

"Just the library, mom." He grinned hesitantly. "You know, just reading up on some stuff."

"You better not be sneaking off to the candy counter of the convenience store again!" She warned, waving her spatula threateningly. "Just look at you, you've already put on far too much weight. At this rate, you'll be as big as a house!"

"Right…" Junpei shifted, covering the shape all the better before bustling off to his room. "I'll keep that in mind, Mom. See you later!"

He shut the door and sighed, lowering the blue egg, covered in jagged yellow lines, to the floor. He grinned broadly when he got a good look at it, insides squirming with excitement. "Better keep this safe." He muttered, pushing it gently to hide it under his bed. "Man, Easter is gonna rock this year!"

( - )

"Really, mom, you don't have to worry." Yutaka sighed, cradling the phone against his shoulder. "We didn't even blow a light bulb."

He stepped around his baby brother as Tomoki chased after the orange and white striped egg rolling across the floor. "No, Tomoki was fine. Seriously, he didn't even whimper."

Tomoki giggled, rolling the egg into his nursery and chasing after it as it rolled under his old crib. "Yeah, I know it was weird, but everything's fine, really. Nothing strange around here."

( - )

The twins huddle together in their closet door, warm and clean from a fresh bath and wrapped snugly in matching blue and black pajamas. They crouched low, whispering to each other secretly as they stared down into the pair of old shoeboxes beneath them.

"You really think they'll be okay in here, Kouji?" Kouichi asked breathlessly, clutching the stuffed black cat that was his favorite toy.

"Yeah, sure they will!" Kouji piped, tucking another dish towel into one of the shoeboxes, protecting its contents from harm and warming it all the same. "And just wait, if we keep them warm, they'll hatch real soon, just like on TV."

Kouichi nodded, bending down to stroke his own egg sweetly. The two eggs looked almost exactly the same, just like the twins themselves, except that Kouichi's was black with a single purple stripe through the middle, while Kouji's was white with a blue stripe. It had taken some time to sneak their prizes in without their parents knowing, but neither boy doubted for a moment that it had been worth it.

"Whattya think'll hatch, Kouji?" The elder twin asked, but before his brother could answer there was a knock on their bedroom door.

Both boys jumped and reached simultaneously to close the closet just moments before their mother, Tomoko Minamoto, walked in. She was smiling, cradling a white stuffed dog that not an hour before had been rapidly loosing his stuffing through a popped seam.

"Time for bed, boys." She said brightly, kneeling down between the two futons as the twins scrambled under the covers. "Here you go, Kouji. I fixed your Inu-chan right up."

"Thanks, Mama!" The boy held his favorite toy affectionately. "He's all better!"

"That's right." Tomoko smiled, leaning over to kiss your slightly-younger son on the forehead lovingly. "Just be careful, or you'll tear him again. And I'll set your nightlight up for you."

"Thanks, Mama." Kouichi mumbled, cuddling his kitty and kissing his mother on the cheek as she tucked him in. He was really the one who needed the light, Tomoko knew. Kouji hadn't been scared for a while now.

She smiled, reaching over to turn on the small, star-shaped nightlight just before she stood. "Sweet dreams, my little darlings." She cooed, turning out the lamp. "Your father will be in to say goodnight in a little bit."

"G'night, Mommy!" The twins chorused as she closed the door.

Kouichi giggled a bit, rolling over to smile at Kouji in the low glow of the nightlight. "You know what I bet?" He whispered softly. "I bet they're gonna be lizards! Really big lizards!"

Kouji grinned and pulled the game onward. "Nuh-uh! They're gonna be birds!"

"Or snakes!"

"Or dinosaurs!"

The two dissolved into giggles, burying their heads into their respective pillows to muffle it just as the door opened again. Kousei Minamoto, their father, stuck his head into the room with a serious smile.

"Good night, boys."

"G'night, Daddy." The two chorused, turning a bit to smile up at their father before settling down.

Kousei smiled at them, about to close the door, when he caught sight of the soft light shining in the corner. A light frown crossed his lips as he pushed the door open to fully enter the room. "You boys are a little old to still need a night light, aren't you?"

He clicked off the light and pulled the tiny lamp from its plug. In the sudden darkness, he couldn't quite see Kouichi's eyes suddenly widen. "Daddy, no!"

"Now there's no reason to shriek like that, Kouichi." Kousei admonished, patting his son's head gently. "You're getting to be a big boy, and big boys need to be strong and brave. Look at Kouji. He's not scared."

"But…but…" Kouichi whimpered, sitting up a bit and clinging to his kitty. "But I don't like the dark!"

"Well, a few nights like this and you'll be over that, now won't you?" Kousei said far too brightly as he moved out to the hallway. "Good night, boys."

The door closed, cutting off the last source of light. Kouji sat up and reached over to hold his whimpering brother's hand. "You okay?"

"I don't like the dark." Kouichi mumbled miserably, squeezing the other small hand. "I don't wanna be in the dark, Kouji."

"It'll be okay, Nii-san." Kouji soothed, lying back down and keeping his hand on Kouichi's, their free hands still gripping their toys. "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise…"

( - ) ( - ) ( - )

"Scared of the dark?"

"Yeah, I was terrified for years. I thought there were monsters in the closet. It drove Mom nuts."

"That's not so weird."

"Yeah, lots of kids think monsters are hiding in their closets."

"Wonder what gives them that idea…"

( - ) ( - ) ( - )

Tokyo, Japan - Odaiba District

December 19th, 1996 - 1:01 AM

A scream of terror echoed through the darkness of the Minamoto house. Kousei was only barely roused by the noise, but Tomoko was up at a shot. After all, she was being summoned.

"MOOOOOOOOOOM-MEEEEEEEE!"

She burst into her son's room, snapping on the light as she did. The boys were both awake, Kouichi a mess of tears and sobs in his brother's arms.

"Kouichi, sweetheart, what is it?" Tomoko gasped, scooping the crying six-year-old into her warm, loving embrace. "Are you sick? Did you hurt yourself?"

"It's t-too da-dark!" Kouichi sobbed, burying his eyes in her clothes. "T-too dark!"

Tomoko rocked her son back at forth, stroking his hair kindly as she looked to Kouji for some sort of explanation. The slightly younger twin looked a bit shaken up, as though he'd been startled, but it hadn't been enough to reduce him to his brother's current state. "Something big fell in the closet." He mumbled, pretty rationally for a six-year-old. "Nii-san got scared, 'cause it's so dark…"

"Dark?" Tomoko's eyes searched the wall, finding nothing but and empty socket. "What happened to your nightlight?"

"D-Daddy took it 'way." Kouichi whimpered, rubbing his eyes.

"Daddy said we're too old for it." Kouji added softly.

"Daddy said what?" Tomoko bristled all over at the news, her eyes darkening somewhat dangerously.

Almost on cue, Kousei appeared in the door, his face stuck in mid-yawn. "What's all the ruckus?"

Tomoko whirled on her husband. "Kousei, how could you?"

"Huh? What?" The man suddenly snapped awake. "What could I have done?"

"You took away their nightlight!" Tomoko exclaimed as she stood, still clutching Kouichi in her arms. Kouji scrambled up to hold onto his mother's legs, peaking out at his father hesitantly. "Look at him, Kousei! He's terrified! You know he's afraid of the dark!"

Kousei's face turned red very slowly. "That's what this is about? That stupid nightlight?"

"They're six years old, Kousei!" Tomoko snapped, setting Kouichi down. The twins instantly huddled together as their mother advanced steadily. "Plenty of six-year-olds are afraid of the dark!"

"You're too soft on them, Tomoko." Kousei sneered. "Everyone needs to learn to grow up sometime."

"You can't force them!"

"Who says I'm forcing them? If Kouji can handle it, then Kouichi should be able to!"

"Don't lump them together just because they're twins! They're different people!" Tomoko took a very deep breath after her final outburst, claming herself. "I will not argue with you in front of the boys, Kousei." She muttered evenly before striding out of the room.

Kousei glared after her and left without another look to the twins. For a moment the two sat there alone, holding onto each other with the stuffed dog and cat squished between them. Neither said anything out-loud, but something about the situation was communicated between them all the same.

A short while later, their mother returned, looking somewhat ruffled and clutching the small nightlight in her hand. "Here you go, boys." She sighed, plugging it back into its place and turning it on. "I'm so sorry, Ichi-kou. Are you okay now?"

Kouichi sniffled a bit. "I'm fine, Mama."

"That's good." Tomoko cooed, tucking him in again and gently kissing his forehead. She moved to the second twin and did the same. "Thank you, Ni-kou, for being so brave."

Kouji took this kiss without another word, blinking up at her with a somewhat unreadable expression between happiness and concern. Tomoko ruffled his hair lovingly before she stood. "Now, let's all go back to sleep, okay? Everything's fine now. Mommy loves you both so much."

"'Love you too, Mommy." The twins echoed together.

Tomoko smiled from the door. "Goodnight, my little darlings." She whispered, and turned out the lights.

As soon as she left, both boys sat up, staring at each other in the light of the nightlight, wide-eyed. After a moment, Kouichi whispered. "There was a noise…right, Kouji?"

As if to answer him, something in the closet rumbled and shook, followed by a pair of high-pitched giggles. The twins stared at the closed door a moment, then back at each other. Their lips simultaneously moved to form the same hesitant whisper. "The eggs…"

There was another pair of giggles. The twins climbed out of the futons and moved to the closet door slowly, side-by-side. Kouji reached forward to grasp the doorknob and hold tight.

"One…"

"Two…" Whispered Kouichi, gripping his brother's hand.

"Three!" They shouted together and opened the door.

Sitting in the two shoeboxes, half-buried soft towels and the clothes they'd knocked down, were a pair of amazingly similar…things. They looked like teddy bear heads that had been torn off their bodies, minus a large amount of cuddly stuffing. They were soft, fluffy and squishy, with cute little ears and absolutely adorable, beady little eyes. The one in Kouji's box was white with bright blue eyes, while Kouichi's was black with yellow eyes.

With identical shrieks of joy, they leapt up and at the two boys. The black one crawled immediately into the folds of Kouichi's jimmies and sat there purring as Kouji caught the white one in both hands. They stared up at the little boys and cooed lovingly, giggling.

"What are they?" Kouichi gasped as the little black one settled into the crook of his shoulder.

"Well, one thing's for sure." Kouji blinked at his white one. "They're sure not dinosaurs."

( - )

Tomoki had only recently moved from his crib into a brand-new 'big boy' bed. As such, he wasn't quite used to things being able to fall out of it. Like his egg.

The object in question seamed to have broken on impact, until you noticed the small, watery-blue creature sitting the midst of the remaining shell. It look like a large drop of living water, with beady black eyes and a tiny little mouth attached to show you which side was the front.

Tomoki sat atop his bed, looking down at the little thing as though it would vanished. The creature looked up at the boy as well, blinking occasionally and cooing oh-so-softly.

"…Jellyfish!" Tomoki suddenly exclaimed, jabbing a pudgy finger at it.

The creature smiled broadly. "Poyo!" It shrieked happily and blew bubbles into the boy's face.

Tomoki giggled. "Bubbles! Yea!"

He swiped at the clear, dancing forms, popping a few, and laughed happily again. The little creature, obviously pleased to have entertained him, fired off another round of floating spheres. They burst along Tomoki's hands and face, making the little boy giggle even more.

Quite soon, it developed into a kind of game in which they only barely knew the rules. It wouldn't have mattered either way, for if anyone had looked into the room that night, all they would have seen was a laughing little boy, playing with bubbles.

( - )

Izumi's eyes lit up again when she saw the little shape curled in her baby doll's crib. Of course, the huge explosion followed by a large cloud of white smoke had scared the bejeezus out of her, and she had a hard time explaining to her father that, no, her EZ-Bake oven had not exploded again, and everything was just fine…

But what little girl could resist and adorable little green blob, especially as it took shelter under a large, wide leaf?

The leaf-creature looked up at her with small, bright eyes, suckling a purple pacifier. "Ga goo?"

Izumi's heart melted instantly into a puddle of goo. "So cute!" She shrieked, snatching it up and cuddling it close. She rubbed her cheek against its smooth, soft leaf. "Mr. Egg-Weggy, you hatched! And you're soooo cute!"

The leaf-thing cooed again, rubbing against her like a cat. Izumi giggled. "Leaf-leaf, you tickle!" She laughed, falling back to sit on the carpet. She set the little thing in her lab, giggling all the more as it squirmed cutely and batted its eyes at her.

"What'sa matter?" Izumi asked as it squirmed out of her lap and started bouncing along the floor. "Are you hungry? Issat it?"

The green thing turned back and cooed in confirmation. Izumi smiled and jumped up. "Well, babies do need good food!" She sparked happily, picking up the leaf and skipping into the kitchen. "You just wait, Baby-leaf. I'll get you something good!"

( - )

Junpei had never been one to believe in monsters under the bed. It was just kid's stuff, his dad always said. Utter nonsense.

Of course, being thrown four feet straight in the air from the force of a mini-explosion and the resulting shock reaction, all the more amplified by well-tuned bedsprings, was probably nonsense, too. But that's what had happened.

As such, Junpei felt no shame in hanging off his bed, his head turned upside-down to look under the dark space at the bizarre little…monster…that had appeared from his egg.

It looked like a ball of fur, or one of the fuzzy cat toys his grandmother got for her mean old tom-cat, who usually tore them apart. The lowest layer was a blue blob, but it was all but hidden by the long white hair surrounding it. The only thing that could be seen clearly were a pair of beady black eyes, poking out from the mess of white like a pair of buttons.

Junpei blinked at the little guy. The little guy blinked growled at him playfully, like a dog asking another to play-fight.

Junpei never had any pets, especially not dogs.

"Well…this is weird…"

The little creature growled again and lunged with playful squawks that sounded distinctly like the barking of a small terrier. Junpei shouted in surprise, yanking his head up as the creature came bounding out, yip-yapping all the way.

It turned on the spot when it realized he wasn't there anymore, looking around in confusion as though he'd disappeared altogether. Junpei huddled up on his bed, holding his breath, still startled and wondering deftly if this creature was going to attack him…

Then he coughed, which drew the hairball's attention to his location. With a triumphant bark it leapt onto the bed, knocked the boy flat on his back and preceded to lick his face.

Surprised shrieks of ticklish laughter echoed through the still night air, accompanied by the barks of a small dog.

( - )

Takuya coughed. This was only to be expected as the egg, which had been lying next to him on the bed at the time, had suddenly exploded in a large puff of white smoke. Though Takuya was the lucky type of child who did not have asthma or any other breathing problems, it was only natural for him to choke on the free-floating foreign dust. He would have been expecting this, had he known the event would happen.

However, he did not in the least expect something small, red and squishy to come catapulting out of the smoke and leap to the top of his head.

"Hey!" He exclaimed, reaching up to grab it. "Leggo! Get offa me!"

The creature gave a high-pitched giggle. Takuya finally got a handhold on the shapeless lump, pulling it off to get a good look. It was red and squishy, three little horn-like protrusions rising from it, and had wide, expressive eyes. Its little mouth was currently spread into a wide smile.

"Kyrii!" It shrieked.

Takuya just stared at it a while, then grinned slowly. "Wow…H-Hey, little guy." He switched the creature in one hand, stroking its forehead with the other gently. "You're pretty cool, for a little red…head-thing…"

The creature seamed pleased, so one could only assume it was an act of affection when he reached over and bit Takuya's pointer finger.

It may have been an act of affection, but it still hurt.

"YEE-OW!" Takuya screamed, yanking his hand back. The little creature went flying across the room and into the wall, bouncing off harmlessly and sagging to the ground with all the form of a hacky sack.

Hacky sacks, however, usual stay where they have been thrown. This little guy decided that he'd just found a fun new game and began bouncing off everything he could reach at high velocity.

"Hey, NO!" Takuya exclaimed, running after it desperately. "Stop! You're gonna break something! I'm gonna get in trouuuuuubllllllle!"

TBC…

When you're counting, the number two is read as 'Ni'. The kanji letter can also be read as 'Ji', so Tomoko calling Kouji 'Ni-kou' is basically the same as her switching Kouichi's to 'Ichi-kou'. I needed cute mama-type nick names for them. 'Ichi' means one, BTW.

As a small note, I think it's a general rule that all baby Digimon are soft and squishy, so they can be thrown around and not be harmed. And in case you couldn't figure it out, the baby Digimon are as such:

Kouji - SnowBotamon

Kouichi - Botamon

Takuya - Punimon

Tomoki - Poyomon

Izumi - Leafmon

Junpei - Can't remember the name, but he appeared in Season 1. The one T.K. mentioned "Looked more like a grandpa" 'cause of it's whiskers.

'Bejeezus' is a southern word. You're talkin' to a Texas girl. Remember that.