a/n: Trying to wade through the first movie within this month (because I just want to hurry up and get to the onsen scene)
There were a few forums regarding the Digital World on the internet and Takeru was an avid follower/participant of several of them, thanks to the insistence of Koushirou, who realized Takeru's communication skills would be the best to keep them in touch with the rest of the chosen around the world. He had a cup of ice in front of him; it was starting to get warm.
He opened his forum inbox, breaking ice against his teeth. Someone had left him a private message, but it wasn't exactly exciting news. A quick scan of the header revealed who had sent him such a pointless message during a time of crisis. Catherine. He sighed.
Ever since the France trip he and Taichi had made three years ago during their second Digital World crisis, Catherine had been trying to reconnect with him. She was cute—in hindsight, he realized she looked kind of like Hikari—but a few conversations with her had revealed her vanity. He wouldn't have minded her recurring attempts at becoming online penpals if it had been only that; she was coming onto him something fierce and it had become a bit tiring going along with her compliment fishing. His little childhood crush was not something he was proud of. Still, gentleman that he was, he reminded himself to reply later with a vaguely busy message.
He pulled up instant messenger. Tons of blinking windows contained messages from various school friends. Their friend group chat was also blowing up. He absentmindedly keyed in a few replies, then responded to Suzuki, who had a question about homework as usual.
The room was quiet in Patamon's absence. Though he appreciated Koushirou's genius and forethought in creating the safe data space, a part of him missed the cheery conversation and endearments that filled the emptiness of the apartment. His partner was probably snoozing away or chatting with Tailmon and the others. As long as he was safe.
"Oh, Hikari-chan," he said out loud.
She had signed on. Maybe fresh out of the bath? He closed his eyes and willed himself there with her. Dressed down in a sweatshirt, uniform strewn on her bed—no, she would have hung it up neatly. Bare feet in slippers, legs swinging from her chair as she chatted with her friends. Speaking of legs, he had caught a glimpse of her dancing in short-shorts during her class' gym period earlier that day and that had really been something...
Takeru was busy trying to figure out how to somehow keep guys away from her without being obvious when a new window popped up on his screen.
hika83: Takeru-kun, are you there?
"Hikari-chan~!" He sang, suddenly in high spirits. He was glad now that there was no one with him there to witness that.
bbTakerun: Hey. I'm here.
hika83: Hi. How is everything?
Did you get a chance to talk to Yamato-san?
bbTakerun: I think he's cooled down a bit, but things are still tense.
Sora-san texted me earlier saying that niisan and Taichi-san were kind of avoiding each other at school today.
hika83: Figures… poor Sora-san..
bbTakerun: and poor us.
But I think niisan's just being stubborn. He can't stay away forever.
hika83: Is that why he didn't come to Koushirou-san's place today?
bbTakerun: Nah, apparently he had band practice.
He might have been avoiding it though.
hika83: Oniichan's definitely avoiding something too.
bbTakerun: You did get him to show up today, though.
hika83: I didn't say anything.
He's being rather complacent.
bbTakerun: I think that's partially what's bothering niisan.
But I know it's probably killing him.
He wants to be involved more than anyone else.
hika83: We should try to give them space to talk.
Is he coming tomorrow?
bbTakerun: Sora-san said the same thing.
Hmm… forecast on that is uncertain at the moment. I'll give him a call.
hika83: Mmkay. Good luck!
Brb, dinner!
I'm going to need it. Takeru made a face and picked up his phone.
"What is it?" Yamato picked up on the first ring. He must have been waiting for it.
Takeru could hear chopping and water rushing in the background and figured his brother was late in preparing dinner, as always.
"Are you over yourself yet?"
Yamato's annoyance was almost tangible. "Over myself? What is that supposed to mean? Everything's cool."
"We all agreed to meet up again tomorrow."
"Hmm." Silence, except for sizzling noises from the frying pan. Yamato let out a huffy, reluctant breath. "Okay."
Takeru knew the battle was over before it began. Clearly his older brother had been waiting for an excuse or some sort of prompting to be able to show up without losing too much face. He smiled knowingly. "Sora-san's really worried. She said you and Taichi-san are still avoiding each other."
"Nobody's avoiding anybody. We both went to see Nishijima-sensei. Well, I didn't exactly plan on him being there, but anyways." Yamato grunted and began carefully peeling daikon. The squint on his face may have been from thinking about Taichi, but it also might have been to keep his eyes from watering because of the daikon.
"Oh, you made up with Taichi? That's good." It was funny how Takeru seemed like the older brother at times like this. "I thought you were still sulking because you didn't show up today."
"What do you mean by sulking?" Yamato was chagrined, but unable to react further due to the phone cradled in his shoulder and the large root vegetable in his hand.
Takeru ignored him and continued. "We agreed to meet up again on Saturday. You better come this time. Bye."
He promptly hung up before his brother could protest any further, then resumed his work at the computer. If he were to be completely honest, he would have admitted that he was eager to get back to his conversation with Hikari. She wasn't back from dinner yet.
With a few deft keystrokes, he pulled up a worldwide message board. The Kuwagamon sighting had been all over the news in Japan, but there was little chance of it getting out promptly to the rest of the world. Japan always seemed to be the crux of the happenings with the Digital World, but it occurred to Takeru that the rest of the world's chosen ought to be kept abreast of the impending danger. He allowed himself a brief sigh after sending the alert. It was a lot to think about, the happenings of the past few days. He felt a need to remain calm and in control, but there was a pulse of anxiety constantly racing through him. When he woke up in the mornings he had to take deep breaths to remind himself that nothing was lost—that everyone and everything he cared about was okay. Hikari. Patamon. His brother and father a few miles away, his mother at work or in the next room over typing furiously to meet her deadlines.
He needed to know they'd be okay.
There was a faint rustling sound and a soft click; the sound of the front door opening awakened him momentarily.
"Takeru!" The rustling sound was amplified: grocery bags filled with sustenance. His mom's voice heralded him. "Tadaima! Sorry I'm late… I brought takeout! Let's eat!"
"Okaeri!" He called, clicking away from the Digimon forum just as his mom peeked around the door. "You're earlier than usual."
She shook her head seriously. "Never as early as I should be. How long as it been since we've eaten dinner together?"
The computer screen flickered and she brightened.
"What were you up to? Chatting?"
"Mhmm. Actually I was just on the phone with niisan."
Her eyes furrowed and he noticed that her worry lines had deepened. "The Digimon that appeared the other day, Takeru… I know that you guys are inevitably going to get involved as always. I can't say I'm exactly happy about it, but… is everything okay? Maybe I ought to try to get some time off work."
"It'll be okay." He rested a gentle hand on her arm and willed it with all his might.
Not one to be overly concerned, she smiled. "If you say so, Takeru, then I'm sure it will be."
The chat window blinked again, and he couldn't help but take a glance. Hikari's icon had gone from idle to available.
"Dinner, right? I'll be right there," he promised.
She grinned in a playful manner, and anyone could have seen the resemblance to Yamato. "Who are you talking to that you're all worked up? And don't think you can hide that from me. I'm your mother, after all."
Takeru grimaced. "Wouldn't dream of it."
"Is it Hikari-chan?" She asked abruptly. No beating around the bush, and besides that, the twinkle in her eyes was apparent.
"Mom…" he groaned, but she was already gaining steam.
"It's been so long since we've had her over… why don't you invite her sometime? Preferably on a day when I'm here so I can see her. Or maybe not, so you know, you guys can have some privacy. How are things? Good? Steady? Any progress?"
Takeru was backing away slowly. "I'm not inviting her if you're going to be like this the whole time! And for the thirtieth time, we are NOT dating!"
"Yet," she threw in triumphantly. "Just as soon as you man up! You're so popular with all the other girls, but you really can't do a thing about her, can you? I'll heat up the food." With that parting shot, she went sashaying out the door.
Was karma biting him for giving Yamato a hard time earlier?
bbTakerun: Hikari-chan, I'm going to go eat dinner too. Mom came home early tonight.
hika83: Hi. She did? So you can eat together! It's been a while, huh?
She always works so hard… I hope she isn't overworking herself. Tell her I said hi!
She was concerned, knowing his family dynamics well. It was clear she was thinking about his well-being, though as a friend and sister or more he wasn't certain. Sweet as ever.
bbTakerun: Thanks Hikari-chan. I called niisan, btw. Talk to you when I get back ;)
hika83: Otsukare!
I'll be trying to work on oniichan while you're gone..
"Sorry to keep you waiting!"
"Yaho, Takeru-kun!" Mimi called.
Hikari smiled slightly as Takeru walked up to join the waiting group.
"Nice hat," she commented as he settled into his usual position beside her. He wore hats so well. Seeing him in one always triggered small bouts of nostalgia.
The off-hand compliment threw him off-guard. It wasn't necessarily the words—she was always sweet and generous with her words—it was more of the combined effect of her words with her glistening eyes, clear voice, and the fact that she looked like an absolute doll. Thigh socks! She was wearing thigh socks! A veritable idol.
"Hey. Thanks," he managed to get out.
"Takeru-kun, what about Yamato?" Sora interrupted his revelling.
He smiled, remembering his brother's not-so-hidden eagerness to rejoin the group. "He'll be here. He texted me saying he'd be a bit late because practice went long."
Sora gave Taichi a sidelong glance, but save for a quick furrowing of the brow, he didn't so much as acknowledge the mention of Yamato.
"Is Yamato-san really going to come later?" Hikari asked softly. "I know he seemed willing enough on the phone, but.."
"I think he's just trying to play it cool." He grinned.
She thought for a moment. "Oniichan doesn't seem too keen on confrontation… he'd rather avoid the topic all together. But I think it's necessary." She gave a quick look over to where her brother was talking to Koushirou, who had just arrived clutching a pair of goggles.
"I agree." Tailmon, who had been conversing with Patamon at their feet, was suddenly listening in.
"But if they don't want to talk, how are they going to talk?" Patamon asked brightly.
"Like we talked about yesterday, we might have to make it happen," Takeru said, tapping the brim of his cap. He took it off as if to adjust his hair.
Hikari nodded. "I'll talk to Sora-san—"
The unexpectedness of a hat plopping down on her head cut her off.
"Mm?" She squeaked in surprise.
"Oh," Tailmon mouthed. She and Patamon nudged each other.
"Looks good," he chuckled. It was a tad big on her and sliding down, but the effect was cute.
If she was any other girl she would have blushed madly and squealed. Protested. Some sort of cute, predictable reaction, each time becoming a little more captive to his charm.
But she wasn't, and she also knew him like the back of her hand.
"Hmm.." She took the cap off her head and tiptoed upwards towards him, face coming close.
"E-eh? Hikari-chan?" He was the one bewildered and blushing.
Her arms encircled his head as her warm, lithe hands nestled the hat on his head, positioning it backwards this time. She adjusted the cap and his hair with butterfly touches, each one sending a new shiver down his spine.
"There," she giggled, satisfied. "You look like a baller now."
Tailmon was smiling, seeing the contrast between Hikari's playfulness and Takeru's bashfulness. In a way it was almost contrary to their usual personas.
"Takeru, you look cool!" Patamon chirped.
"Oi, everyone!" Taichi called from where he and Koushirou stood.
"Oniichan?" Hikari turned and walked towards her beloved brother without hesitation, leaving Takeru partly happy and partly defeated at how quickly she had reacted to her brother's call.
Whenever she was stressed or uncertain, she had a tendency to stand closest to the person she relied upon the most. When she was younger, that had unquestioningly been Taichi, but lately— especially since their adventure in the Digital World three years prior—she had taken to standing next to Takeru. Even so, Takeru found it difficult holding a complete victory over her hero. While she now looked to Takeru most of the time for protection and reassurance, there were times when she would revert and go straight to Taichi.
"Looks good~" a teasing voice floated from behind him.
Mimi and Sora had huge grins waiting for him when he turned around.
"I can't win," he lamented, looking over to where Hikari was listening intently to her brother. "Even when I try something to get closer to her, she always has the upperhand."
Tailmon had scampered after Hikari, leaving Patamon in Palmon's arms.
"Hikari-chan's pretty mature, huh?" Sora said, laying a sisterly hand on his shoulder. "It's okay though, Takeru-kun. You've been there this whole time, protecting her. She knows she can depend on you when things are rough."
"Sora-san, you're too serious!" Mimi complained.
"W-what? It's true though," Sora protested.
"Takeru-kun!" Mimi prompted. "Be more direct! Be more aggressive! It's all about the mood and the romantics! Like, 'I am the one for you!'"
He laughed at her dramatics. "Mimi-san, you haven't changed."
"Why does everyone keep saying that to me?" she muttered as they joined Koushirou and the others.
"Koushirou-san, did you not get any sleep last night?" Hikari was asking concernedly.
"I did sleep for about three hours." The red-haired tech master had sunken cheeks and extreme dark circles, but he seemed proud as he held the pair of goggles up. "I finally finished them. Try them on, Taichi-san."
Taichi slipped them on over his wild shock of hair and Hikari smiled. Takeru's white hat and now Taichi wearing goggles. Things really seemed to be slipping back to several years ago.
"Via those goggles, you should theoretically be able to spot distortions in space," Koushirou explained for the purpose of the group.
Agumon patted Taichi's leg to get his attention. "Taichi, we're gonna go back into the server space."
"You can get in via Koushirou-san's computer right?" Takeru said, looking down at Patamon.
"Any large monitor connected to the internet should suffice," Koushirou answered. He scanned the area. "That should work."
They made the short walk over to the public terminal and saw their Digimon safely into the data space. Sora had to make sure to collect their little hat and trenchcoat disguises (all chosen by Takeru).
"So then now what should we do?" Mimi's high ponytail swung as she turned.
"According to my research, distortions seem to happen where a lot of data accumulates." Koushirou struck a few keys on his laptop. "You should be able to track the data flow through those goggles."
Hikari was listening intently, eyes doe-like and wide. Takeru had a little smile on his face, probably because Hikari was staying right beside him. Mimi couldn't help but notice how they stuck by each other like a unit—that much hadn't changed since they were younger.
"Colors mark the difference in data format and strength," Koushirou continued. "The red spots are concentrations that relate to distortions."
Taichi flipped the goggles upwards, and the familiar feeling of goggles around his head gave him pause.
"It's likely that infected Digimon will appear from areas with large amounts of distortion," Koushirou concluded.
"Hmm, I see," Hikari said.
"We should check this area for distortions to make sure that no infected Digimon will appear," Koushirou suggested, and they all nodded in agreement.
As they left the terminal, Sora suddenly ran forward towards the rail where a dark-haired girl in glasses stood with a fretful look on her face.
"Mochizuki...san?" Sora prompted. "Hm? What's wrong?"
The girl's eyes widened in recognition. "Um.."
"Did something happen?"
Sora's friendly concern seemed to help put the girl at ease. "Mmm.. well I was looking for something, but I ended up getting lost," she stammered.
"Then let us show you around!" It didn't bother Sora unduly that they were in the middle of checking for distortions. Someone in need was just as important.
The girl turned ashen as she noticed the chosen group waiting for them with half-curious (Hikari, Koushirou), half-disinterested (the other boys) faces. The thought of spending time with so many new people was overwhelming. "But…"
Sora caught on to her hesitation and offered a reassuring smile. "It's fine! Anyways, we're also in the middle of looking for something."
Mimi appeared out of nowhere and looped an arm through hers. "Mhmm!"
Sora gently took hold of her other arm, and she found herself speechlessly led away. "Come on, let's go!"
Digiegg 6: Headcanon, playdate
Inspired by fanart. Taichi and Yamato have study sessions and video game sessions at the Yagami's, and naturally, Takeru tags along. The three of them play video games while Hikari dozes off behind them. Eventually, Hikari wakes up and joins the fray, and proceeds to kick all of their butts. The three boys like to insist that they went easy on her, but I'll leave that up to your judgment.