Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Digimon seasons or any of its characters. The plotline is based off a Manga titled "Penguin Brothers", which has not been licensed in America. I don't own that either
Shades of Gray: Chapter 12
"So rumors do come true," Jyou said.
Mimi blinked. "Don't you mean wishes?"
"… Anyway," Koushiro coughed. "I guess the hypothesis I had turned out to be Yamato and Taichi's plan in the end."
Ruki looked pissed. "So… all this segregation was just because those two morons wanted power?"
"Think of all the people who worshipped them as idols…" Izumi sighed.
Kouji frowned. "So what? They're going to turn Gray now. Wasn't that the plan?"
"I think Sora's taking this harder than we anticipated," Juri whispered.
"She's fine," Mimi said. "She was… just shocked they admitted to such a thing."
Iori smiled. "Look, everyone's a Gray." He cocked his head towards the balcony. Everyone looked below.
"Go count the numbers," Jyou ordered to Miyako.
"Do we even need to count?" she twitched.
"We need numbers," he said stubbornly.
Sora was ambling down the hallway while the team cheered at their accomplishments.
Something's still not right… She sighed as she walked down the hallway. It doesn't feel like a victory.
"Takenouchi!" someone called. Sora looked up to see Ken exiting a room. "I heard what happened yesterday. Congrats."
"Thanks," she smiled weakly.
The boy grinned. "I'm surprised you found out those two were best friends."
Sora looked up. "What? How did you know?"
He placed a hand over his mouth. "Uh… never mind."
"You're hiding something," she glared.
Ken leaned against the balcony rail. "You don't look too happy. You know the number of Grays have exceed those of Blacks and Whites."
"I didn't do much… It was mostly Koushiro and the others. All I did was talk…"
"You know, I've seen many people who've vowed to change this school. In the end they failed and got bullied. You came… and pushed everyone in the right direction. If you feel like you haven't done anything, there's probably something you still have to do."
A mission… I still have to complete… Between Yamato and Taichi…?
"Well, I think that's enough dramatic talk for one day," Ken smiled. "I'll tell others you have a headache."
"Huh? Oh… thanks, Ken," she smiled.
He pushed himself away from the rail. "One more thing." He handed her a slip of paper. "From someone of your past."
She opened the slip. Sakura Elementary School.
Sora woke up the next day depressed. She couldn't think straight as she trudged down the hallway. School's almost over…
"You look more depressed than yesterday," Ken commented.
The girl met eyes with her underclassmen and, before she could answer, was interrupted by Yamato. "Here."
"Huh?" The Gray blinked. "Yamato… You're in regular clothes!"
Indeed, the boy now donned a white shirt with a green jacket over it. He wore baggy khaki pants and clean black sneakers. A navy blue scarf was wrapped around his neck. "Go ahead and do it." He threw a bag into Sora's arms.
"What's this?"
He began to leave, "Didn't you say you would burn it?"
His uniform… She thought. "You and Taichi were supposed to burn it together in front of everyone."
The former White Leader shrugged. "Too bad. You'll have to make him forfeit first."
"Make who forfeit what?" an all-familiar voice sneered. "I can't believe you gave up so easily, Ishida!"
"I can't believe how persistent you are," he calmly said. "We've lost, Yagami."
"You're not going to give us your uniform?" Sora inquired.
He crossed his arms and snorted. "As if!"
"Take it by force!" Someone shouted. A group of Grays lunged at him in attempts to take his clothing.
The brunette struggled on the ground, hitting random people he could get. "Get off!"
Yamato and Sora watched, sweatdropping at the sight. Ken grinned. "Desperate times mean desperate measures."
"Okay, TAKE THE DAMN THING!" Taichi shouted as he crawled out of the mob. His jacket was no longer in possession. Now he was wearing a white un-tucked buttoned shirt over his black pants.
The Grays cheer as one held up his jacket in victory. The boy handed it to Sora. "Here you go!"
"Thanks…" Sora said with beady eyes. "I guess."
"Aren't you going to burn it?" someone asked.
She shook her head. "No… even though we've won, there are still a few people who aren't Gray. We don't know if someone else will start causing fights… so I'm going to wait until everyone converts back. So… everyone, please work hard to achieve our new goal!" The girl bowed.
"This is so corny," Taichi rolled his eyes. "I liked your personality better when you slept in my bed."
Whispers began to ensue.
Sora looked flustered. "What? Don't say anything that'll make misunderstandings!" She scolded at him.
Thump.
Everyone caught sight of Yamato… who had just walked smacked into an opened door. He twitched and continued stumbling down the hallway.
Someone asked, "Did he… just… hit his head?"
"Wow… Sora!" Taichi placed an arm around her. "I think I like you better now! Anyone who can disturb a guy like that… You're something! This kind of stuff with you seems to mess with his head!"
The girl sighed. "Kind of stuff?"
"Let's be friends, Piyo!"
"W-wait! Did you eat something bad?" She glared as he put his face very close to hers.
"Let's forget out past up until now."
She placed her palm against his forehead and pushed him away. "Get lost, Yagami!"
"Tch, I know you love me on the inside," he said as he walked away. "See you around, Piyo!"
The boy turned to his left and continued his way. Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed him by the collar, dragging him into a small room.
"Don't touch Sora," a firm voice said.
"I see how she gets to you Ishida. Looks like you're not that emotionless after all."
Yamato grabbed the boy's shirt and shoved him against the wall. "Don't touch her! Don't you dare touch Sora!"
Taichi chuckled. He too grabbed his adversary's shirt and lifted him a bit above ground. "The real Yamato… I thought I'd never see this side again! It's amusing, really."
"Why don't you understand that she's the Sora from our childhood?"
"Because… the Sora I know would never forget us," the brunette said thinly. "She doesn't remember me, Yamato. She doesn't even remember you!"
The blonde released his grasp. "I know… There's a reason for that."
"What is it?" he dropped the boy. "Why doesn't she notice us?"
"I can't say," Yamato said quietly. "It's better if you didn't know."
"Are you punishing me? The son of the family who broke yours apart?"
The boy narrowed his eyes. "Yagami--"
"Heh. You gave me that look three years ago. It's been a while. You know, sometimes I find it ironic that we swore to be best friends when we were younger. Sora brought us together then… and now she's put us farther apart."
"Koushiro," the girl said meekly. She placed her hands behind her back. "I heard a rumor."
"Another one? Guess they're becoming popular huh, Sora?" he smiled as he turned away from the computer. "What is it?"
She gulped. "I heard that… you like me."
The boy blushed. "Oh." That threw me off. Only Yamato knew…
"I'm sorry, I cannot accept your feelings. I only see you as a friend," she said. "But those rumors are false anyway, right?" The girl looked hopeful.
The male redhead was quiet, folding his hands behind his head. "Why would you think that?"
Because you're supposed to like Mimi! What happened to Mimi? The girl wanted to scream. "I guess… I thought you would always see us partners, not lovers." She shifted the weight of her leg.
"I see," he sighed. "I'm sorry Sora. Please don't let this affect you."
She nodded. Easier said than done. What if Mimi finds out…?
"I need to meet Jyou about the numbers, so I'll see you later, okay?" He smiled at her with that innocent look.
"Okay," she waved. She was left alone in the room.
Thoughts flooded her mind. I need to focus on getting my memory back! Damn it, Sora, why are you trapped in so many situations right now? "Huh?" Sora noticed a sheet of paper on the keyboard Koushiro had been on. The top had read "Sakura Elementary School: Attendance Sheet."
She blinked at the list. It had her name, Yamato's, Taichi's, Hikari's, and Takeru's.
The girl quickly checked her watch. It was 3:30 PM — the time Yamato usually left the school. Sora quickly darted out of the room, and then nearly stumbled down the stairs as she exited the premises. Looking to the right, and then to the left, she found Yamato turning onto a street. "Yamato!" she cried.
The boy stopped at the curb. His eyes were staring straight at her.
Sora ran to him. "Yamato… I want to know what this is about!" She handed him the paper. "Don't lie to me!"
Someone screamed.
She broke her gaze and saw what had happened. A car had crashed into a light pole and the man inside was knocked unconscious. A woman's body lied on the ground, staining the pavement with blood.
It was too late when Yamato pulled her towards him and embraced her. "Don't look, Sora! Don't watch…" He placed a hand behind her head and buried her into his chest. Please don't remember…
Yamato felt something cold on his shirt. Sora lifted her head slowly, her vacant eyes swimming in tears. "Too late, Yamato-kun…"
To Be Continued…