I finally got some chapters typed for you! Thank you for waiting patiently as I sorted out my life. Now, cue the drama!

Chapter 8

Darkness.

That's all Yuzuki could remember after being attacked by the Scubamon. Did she end up in the other world?

Slowly opening her eyes, she noticed two figures standing over her in a dimly lit room. Realizing her worst fears had come true, she began to thrash, hoping to escape their clutches.

"Yuzuki, calm down!" one of the demons yelled.

"We need to calm her down before she hurts herself!" the other called back.

"Let go of me!" she yelled at the monsters. Making her hand into a fist, Yuzuki swung at the creature to her left. As her fist made contact with its stomach, the creature doubled over in pain. The second enemy grabbed at her arm and quickly crawled on top of her, holding both her arms and legs down.

Moving its hand and placing it on her cheek, the creature spoke softly. "Yuzuki, calm down. You're safe."

At those words, Yuzuki stopped moving. She noticed the lack of webbing on the hand caressing her cheek. She noticed the soft, sandless bed she was laying on. She noticed the light glossing over the blues walls, filled with color and not resembling the grey world she feared. Last of all, she noticed the figure above her, brown eyes and spiky hair, looking down at her with worry in his eyes.

"Taichi?" she whispered.

He let out a breath and relaxed his shoulders. "Yea. How are you feeling?"

Confusion still apparent on her face, she spoke "I'm ok, but uhh, why are you on top of me?" Her cheeks began to redden.

Noticing the compromising position they were in, Taichi quickly hopped off the bed and looked away, his own cheeks mimicking hers. "You were a little frantic, so I got on top of you to hold you down until you came to your senses. Though not before you got a good swing at Jou."

"Who is fine by the way, thanks for asking." A voice grumbled from the floor. Moments later Jou stood up. He quickly fixed his glasses and gave the girl a stern look. "How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?"

Taking a deep breath, Yuzuki shook her head. Quickly turning to Taichi, she asked "Why am I here? Where's Tailmon?"

At the mention of her name, BlackTailmon hopped onto the bed. Yuzuki sat up as the cat nestled into her lap. "I was worried about you." she whispered. "The Scubamon attacked us and they were going to send you to that place. I couldn't do anything to help. Thankfully this human and his Agumon saved us."

Yuzuki felt her eyes water. Keeping her face hidden, she muttered "Why?"

Taichi looked at the girl, exhausted and helpless, she looked so frail.

He turned to Jou. "Why don't you go tell everyone what happened. We'll be right out."

Jou nodded and turned away. As he left the room and closed the door, Taichi moved toward the distraught girl and slowly sat at the edge of the bed. Yuzuki flinched as the mattress lowered to accompany the new weight. She refused to look up.

Their silence ended when Taichi finally spoke "Was any of it real?" His voice seemed strained.

Shocked, Yuzuki snapped her head up. "Of course it was!" Pausing to look back down at the sleeping BlackTailmon she whispered "I mean it didn't start out real, but I couldn't stop myself from falling for you." Her cheeks tinted. "That's probably what angered the Scubamon."

She looked back up at Taichi. He looked completely deflated. Reaching for his hand, she squeezed it tightly "I'm sorry. I made a whole mess of things."

With a sigh, Taichi squeezed her hand in return. "There's 11 people in the living room hoping for some answers. Let us help you. What do you need to protect?"

Yuzuki's eyes began to widen again. Pulling her hand away. "You can't help me. None of you can." Her voice grew more frantic. "If I don't do what he says then he's going to-" She began to shake slightly, using all her energy to hold back tears.

Taichi grabbed the girl by her arm, pulling her into a hug, disturbing the sleeping digimon. "Shh shh it's ok."

She couldn't hold it in any longer as she began sobbing into his shoulder. Sliding her arms up his back, she pulled him closer. BlackTailmon squeezed away from the two humans. As she reached the other side of the bed, she watched her partner completely break down, something she hadn't done in years. There was something special about the holder of the crest of courage. He reached a part of Yuzuki she had closed off years ago.

The two stayed like that for awhile until a knock at the door broke their trance. The knob turned as the door slid open revealing Sora.

"Everyone is getting ready to head home for the night to get some rest. Yamato and I will be out in the living room if you need us. I brought some tea." She tiptoed in and gave Taichi a sympathetic look as she set the mug on the nightstand. Looking over at the clock Taichi realized it was after 10pm. No wonder everyone was heading home, they had been sitting out there for over an hour.

"Thanks Sora, I think we're gonna rest tonight and-"

"No." a shaky voice interrupted. Shocked, Taichi looked down to see its source. Yuzuki had puffy, red eyes, but her face was firm. "As much as I don't want to, you guys deserve to know. You'll need to protect yourselves. And who knows when the Scubamon will come back." She took a deep breath. "I'll talk."

Taichi was at a loss for words. He turned to Sora for confirmation. With a quick nod, she replied "Alright. I'll tell the others to stay. Taichi, why don't you give her a change of clothes. Are you hungry Yuzuki? We ordered food and despite Daisuke and Takeru inhaling half of it, there's still some left."

Yuzuki just shook her head. "The tea is fine thank you."

Looking down at the girl with a small smile, Sora replied "Ok, you just come out whenever you're ready."

As she left, Taichi stood up and walked over to his closet. Pulling out some sweats and a football shirt, he tossed them onto the bed. "These should fit well enough. Take your time. I'll be right outside the door." He took one last glance at the girl. Her eyes were dull, empty. She looked exhausted, like she would pass out at any moment. He thought about forcing her to rest, but his team needed answers, and he worried that she really needed their help. Sighing one last time, he carefully opened the door and stepped into the hallway.

"You look like shit." Taichi snapped his head up. Yamato was leaning against the wall. He could hear furniture being moved in the living room as everyone situated themselves again.

"Yea, well it's not everyday your girlfriend tries to kill you, only to need saving when she's attacked by Scubamon herself" he joked.

Yamato opened his mouth to respond, only to close it when the door began to creak open. Yuzuki appeared, hair thrown up in a bun, wearing Taichi's somewhat baggy clothes, and holding BlackTailmon. She refused to look at Yamato, or anything other than the ground for that matter. Taichi wrapped his arm around her as Yamato led them to the living room.

The room had been rearranged. The couches and chairs had been pushed as far back as they could. The floor was littered with blankets and sleeping bags as everyone sat around. There were two empty spots next to Yamato's and Sora's blanket nest. As Taichi led Yuzuki to their designated spot, he noticed how hard everyone was trying to not look at them. Hikari kept sneaking glances their way while talking with Takeru. He could see the worry in his sister's eyes.

Finally sitting down where they were told, Yuzuki reached for a blanket and slowly wrapped it around her shoulders. She never looked up from the ground.

"It's a long and complicated story. Are you sure you guys are ready for it?"

Hikari sat up and slid over to the girl. Placing her hands on Yuzuki's knees, she whispered, "Please talk to us and let us help you."

Yuzuki nodded and Hikari slid back over and sat next to Takeru.

Sighing, Yuzuki started, "Ok, BlackTailmon and I became partners when I was 10 years old."