This chapter took far longer to complete than it should have. Partially because I'd spent far longer than necessary researching 2005 supercomputers and Japanese van model sizes, going back and forth several times on feasible passenger capacities and seating arrangements before settling on the scene below. And that was before I got into Hurricane Touchdown canon. But also, I'd wanted to take time over my Winter Break to get some writing done and unfortunately got sick and was unable to do much of anything, really. February break is coming up in a couple weeks, however, so fingers crossed my luck is a bit better then.
And yes, I am aware of both the upcoming movie and reboot Adventure series. I'm less enthusiastic about them continuing to age up the Chosen CHILDREN even more in the former… but the hype is REAL for the latter after seeing those beautiful character designs and reading the teaser synopsis and I am so here for a new AU story that I'm already coming up with fun theories that probably won't pan out but hey, that's what fanfic is for, right?
(Because there's a very strong chance you'll be getting some new one-shots from me out of both.)
o
o
DIGIMON TRI: BALANCE
o
It wasn't the most awkward car ride Jou had ever been a part of, but it was close.
Granted, 90% of that was because Mimi spent the entire time on his lap.
Why she was sitting there, he couldn't s—actually, no, that wasn't entirely true. He knew the logical why: because math. Nishijima-sensei's van was one of the larger models currently out on the market, but it still only seated twelve. He and his driver occupied the front two, leaving ten. If they included the American boy—Wally or Willis or something like that—then that put the (human) Chosen's numbers at eleven. Meaning they were one seat shy.
Or they would have been, except Mimi—being Mimi—had decided that wasn't an issue because she could just share with someone. She used to do it all the time back in New York with her friends. All things considered, it wasn't a terrible idea. Haneda was less than twenty minutes from their destination, so it wouldn't be for long. There were even two perfectly acceptable choices. Hikari and Sora were both on the petite side. It would be a little tight with either one of them, but if their digimon remained on the cabin floor, it wouldn't be unmanageable.
Two by two, seats began to fill up. Takeru and Yamato climbed into the back. In front of them, Daisuke and the American boy. Apparently, they had enough history together to engage in friendly discussion while Lopmon and Terriermon played janken for Wallace's lap. Taichi had climbed into the van next, and unsurprisingly, Hikari followed after her brother. Well, that settled things.
Then Jou made the mistake of pausing to blink, and before he realized what was happening, all but one of the remaining seats had been claimed and he was still standing outside with Mimi. She looked completely unfazed when she grabbed his hand, practically throwing him into the last seat right before unceremoniously plopping herself down on top of him, upper torso twisted in such a way that she could continue the story she'd been sharing with Sora from across the aisle.
His body went stiff as the door slammed shut beside them.
Sora, taking visible pity on his unexpected predicament, was trying to hold back her laughter.
Unfortunately, Gomamon and Palmon were far less subtle in their whispers.
"Wow. I've never seen that look on his face before!"
"I have. Remember before we knew it was Devimon's castle, and everyone went to go take a bath…."
It would be the longest twenty minutes of his life.
ooo
"Do they need to hold still?" Wallace questioned.
Koushiro shook his head. "Not at all. The program can detect any digimon within its line of sight, no matter how fast they're moving."
"Good." Wallace grinned, glancing down at the pair. Terriermon had won the game, then almost immediately conceded to his brother's pout, leaving Wallace pulling double lap duty. "Because I'm not sure they know how."
"Waa! So mean, Wallace!" Terriermon pouted.
"Mean!" Lopmon echoed, soliciting a round of soft laughter from the group.
The gentle hum of the van engine filled an otherwise oddly amicable silence in the seconds that followed; for all the uncertainty looming over them, conversations remained relatively light. Questions between digimon and partners had given way to Daisuke's retelling of the events in America three summers prior, offering as much self-important hyperbole as Iori was willing to let him get away with. Occasionally, Hikari and Takeru would share knowing glances with one another, but otherwise seemed content to remain silent, leaving the youngest of the group to bear the burden of reigning in Daisuke's ego. Even Wallace appeared far too amused at the embellished tale to comment much.
Koushiroabruptly cut injust as Daisuke was getting to the part where he, as leader, gave a rousing speech that motivated the group as a whole.
("Was I there for that?" Iori mouthed silently to himself.)
"Here they are." He sounded far more relieved than intended at the news. "Terriermon and Lopmon. Beast and Data types, respectively, even though they're twin digimon. They even originally hatched from the same digiegg. Fascinating."
The pair in question turned to one another with mirroring raised brows, then simultaneously redirected their brows towards Wallace. The American Chosen looked similarly confused, head tilting as he pondered something.
"Terriermon? Lopmon? I'm not sure where you got those names, but they're Gumimon and Chocomon."
"In their Baby forms, yes. But they're in their Child forms right now." Koushiro turned the laptop screen for Wallace to see, using two keys to alternate back and forth between the data windows. "See?"
Wallace leaned forward, eyes narrowing. He couldn't read half the words on the screen, but his katakana was still good enough to him to quietly echo the pronunciation of each name, syllable by syllable. When he was finished, he looked back up: "You're saying their names change every time they evolve or devolve? Doesn't that get confusing?"
Daisuke shrugged. "You get used to it."
"I'm surprised you don't know any of this," Taichi folded his arms across his chest, leaning further into his seat. He'd remained quiet for the first half of the trip, listening and observing the interactions between the younger generation and Wallace. Daisuke was clearly vouching for him, which normally would have been enough, but there were a few lingering doubts that continued to nag at him. "How long have you been a Chosen Child?"
Hikari, recognizing her brother's tone for what it was, sighed: "Oniichan..."
Wallce took the question in stride, however, glancing once between Hikari and Taichi as their familiar relationship clicked. He'd remembered Hikari speaking of her oniichan during their adventure in America. It was nice to finally put a face to a name, even if that face was clearly suspicious of him.
"If you mean how long I've had Gumi—I mean Terriermon and Lopmon..." The names felt as foreign to his tongue as they sounded to his ears, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw Koushiro nod approvingly. "...then since I was young. I think their egg hatched when I was about three or four."
Sora glanced upward as she did a bit of quick calculating in her head, before turning to Taichi with wide eyes: "Hikarigaoka."
Mimi, too, looked taken aback, if for a slightly different reason: "That was way before I met Palmon. Even Michael-kun didn't find Betamon until around the same time."
"Michael?" Wallace echoed curiously. Choice of suffix aside, the name didn't sound Japanese to him.
"A friend of mine from New York. He's another American Chosen, like you. Sort of." As she spoke, she leaned forward to look down the seat aisle. She felt Jou briefly tense even more beneath her and, figuring he was concerned about her falling, made a point of using the head rest as extra support. "Michael Barton. Do you know him?"
He thought about it for a moment. Barton...Barton…. "I know an actor by that name."
"Oh, yeah. Michel J. Barton. That's his dad." She beamed in amusement. "He's pretty cool. A little full of himself, which is probably where Michael-kun gets it from. But they're both really nice. He used to come with me to the Digital World sometimes after school."
"He sounds like a very lucky guy." Wallace commented in earnest. Then, his smile warmed as he momentarily switched to English: "His father's a big, Hollywood movie star, and he gets to go on dates like that with a pretty girl like you. I'm a bit envious right now."
Daisuke smacked his forehead before Mimi had the chance to preen. His English skills were all but nonexistent, but he knew that tone. "If you're going to keep that up, can you at least stick to one girl? Or language?"
"I have no idea what you mean," The American blonde stated innocently.
Terriermon threw his tiny arms and not-so tiny ears up, missing Wallace's face by mere centimetres. "Wallace is just looking for a date for the party! His mama told him he could have one if he wants."
Lopmon, initially with a claw to his mouth, decided to imitate his older brother's gesture for emphasis.
Daisuke's expression went even flatter. "Seriously?"
For the first time, Wallace let out a slightly nervous chuckle, pausing to collect himself by pushing down the digimon ears obstructing his vision. He could feel the dozen or so eyes, digimon and human alike, peering at him from several directions. They seemed oddly more interested in that than his origin story. How coincidental, given his traitorous partner was an unabashed gossip.
"It's not like that," he tried. When that clearly didn't work, he opted for a different approach. "I don't know if you use the same phrase here, but in America, we call it a 'plus-one'." Only Mimi seemed to recognize the term, which told him he was on the right track. He'd meant it when he told her she was pretty, yes, but she hadn't been the one he'd originally had in mind… "Mama's friend is getting married next weekend. Mama is here as one of the bridesmaids, and brought me so I could translate for her, since she doesn't speak as much Japanese as I do."
"She didn't teach you?" Sora asked, surprised.
Wallace shook his head. "No. I learned from...someone else."
"An old girlfriend, right?" Daisuke chimed in. "That's what you told us back then."
Hikari sat up a little straighter in her seat as Wallace nodded. His expression seemed at ease by the memory, but there was something in his eyes...just for a moment, a tiny flicker. It corresponded in near perfect sync with a dull ache radiating from his heart.
The movement had drawn Takeru's attention, and when he glanced over at his best friend, he saw her looking at Wallace contemplatively.
"So you're here until the wedding?" Mimi asked.
"Until a little after. This is out first time to Japan, so Mama booked us for the entire month." He alternated between Daisuke, Hikari, Takeru, and Iori, finding four completely different expressions staring back. "I was hoping for the chance to see you all again while I was here, but I wasn't expecting it to be so soon. Or in the middle of another fight."
"Isn't America in school too right now?" Iori wondered aloud.
(Inwardly, Jou and Koushiro admitted to themselves they had been thinking the exact same thing. Fitting that the one who inherited their crest traits in his digieggs would be the one to ask.)
"I'm home-schooled." Wallace explained. "I still go to the local schools for state exams and a few other things, but I usually do all my lessons at home."
Daisuke's eyes were as wide as his goggles. "You can do that?!"
Wallace chuckled again, and this time, it was a bit more genuine. "In America, you can. I think as long as Mama follows certain rules and I take the tests I'm supposed to, it's fine. Plus, it made taking care of these two much easier." He tilted his head down towards his partners, who in turn grinned back up at him. "You can't really bring a digimon to school."
Chibimon, Poyomon, and Upamon exchanged glances before bursting into a fit of low snickering.
Tailmon slapped a paw to her forehead, while Patamon tried to look as innocent as he wasn't.
"I see." All eyes turned to find Hikari's soften. She spoke with a gentle understanding as she scratched at one particular spot behind Tailmon's ear. "That explains why you and your Mama are so close. I remember you speaking of her so fondly, even back then. You must get to spend so much time together that way. Even now, you're traveling with her for something special."
Taichi's shoulders instinctively relaxed the longer his sister spoke, and for the first time since the start of their trip, the corners of his lips twitched upward at the sentiment. Family was important to the both of them. Hikari, in particular. Not only did they share an incredibly strong bond as siblings, but she was almost as close to their parents. How many times did he come home from school to find her and their dad watching television together before dinner? Bonding over a shared fondness of some of the most ridiculous variety shows. And their mother...second only to Taichi in protectiveness, especially when it came to Hikari's health.
"It is special," Wallace agreed, setting his eyes on the young brunette. He seemed to mull something over in his mind for a second before coming to a decision: "But you know what would make it even more special, Hikari? If you were to come with me. I think that would be fun." His smile was so charming, his tone so sincere, that it was impossible to interpret the invitation as anything but.
Hikari blinked twice, mouth slightly agape: "Me?"
"Of course!"
Silence.
To some, the temperature in the van seemed to drop by a few degrees.
Sora looked at Mimi. Mimi looked at Sora.
Then, as if reading the other's mind, they both glanced towards the back of the van. Takeru was staring at Hikari, looking uncharacteristically uneasy.
The van gave a sudden, sharp jerk as the driver made a right turn, then began to slow. Ahead, a gate appeared. Darkness loomed in the distance as the moon remained hidden by a few clouds. Only a few dim lights outlined the facility, casting it into an ominous shadow.
"I think we're here," Koushiro stated grimly.
ooo
Daigo reached into his pocket for identification as the van pulled into the security gate. His eyes were steeled, face expressionless as he reached across the driver's seat to show the guard.
"You couldn't drive a little slower, could you?" He muttered while waiting for the guard to let them in. "I really wanted to find out how that was going to play out."
ooo
ooo
Himekawa Maki was having a bad day.
One that was growing exponentially worse as the van pulled into the main garage entrance. Fluorescent lighting from above clashed with the bright bulbs of the vehicle headlights. She winced at their harshness, and promptly ignored the half a dozen agents flanking her on either side when they flinched. It made little difference to her what they thought. Her heart had long ago shut itself away from their fear and disdain.
The engine cut. The lights dimmed. The passenger side door opened, and from it emerge the primary source of her headaches.
"You're fired."
"What, again?" Daigo seemed unfazed by the threat of looming unemployment, taking the time to close his door before crossing the short distance between them. A lazy grin splayed across his features at the sight of her, posture at ease. "Does this mean I don't have to file the paperwork for this evening? Because that really would be the best news I've heard all day."
Maki's left eye twitched. Anger radiated from her in cold, iridescent black waves.
Daigo didn't bat a single eyelash.
Behind him, the sound of the van's back door sliding open cut into a (one-sided) tense silence. Muttering voices were heard. Most of them soft. A few low-pitched, but most of them ringing significantly higher. Younger. Flashes of non-uniformed wardrobes and relative heights were perceptible at even a single glance, and before she allowed herself to fully register their significance, Maki shut her eyes. A hand went up to cover them as she took a slow, deliberate breath.
"Please tell me you haven't just kidnapped a bunch of children."
"I'm wounded. Do you really think so little of me?" Then, not willing to let her answer that truthfully, he quickly added, "They came willingly. All of them."
"Define 'willingly'," she stated dully.
She heard him shift his weight again. There was a notable pause until he spoke again, and when he did, his tone had changed. "Look, Maki-chan..." (She knew he was serious when he refrained from using that accursed nickname, even if he remained allergic to addressing her properly as his superior.) "You and I know keeping them in the dark for long won't work. Half of them are even more stubborn than you are. At least two are smarter than us both. They're going to find out eventually, and if we're going to have any chance of convincing them, they'll need to hear it from us."
"Of all the idiotic things you've—" but when she lifted her head again, her eyes caught a glimpse of something just past his shoulder. Something that caused her to freeze in place.
Recognizing that look, Daigo followed her gaze.
Most of the group had emerged from the van by then, with the Ishida/Takaishi brothers being the last ones. Their hair and clothes were still visibly damp, no doubt from the earlier water-side battle. The younger of the girls, Hikari, was in a similar state. It hadn't been much an issue in the warm van, but the sudden blast of air conditioning was causing them all to shiver.
Their partners seemed to be doing their best of offer what small amounts of warmth their tiny bodies could provide, but it did little to ease Taichi's concerns, in particular. The leader of the Chosen was currently speaking softly to his little sister as she rubbed at her arms, occasionally shaking her head and forcing a smile for his sake. Most everyone else's attention was similarly focused on Hikari, Sora in particular alternating between the Yagami siblings with a hesitant worry that could only come from experience.
In the end, it was Wallace who stepped in with a solution, making a show of offering the jacket tied around his waist. Hikari's reluctance to accept was quickly overshadowed by an apparent flattery as she graciously accepted.
"You see it too." She barely registered Daigo's voice murmuring in her ear. "Images on the screen are one thing, but—"
"It doesn't matter." Maki spun on her heels sharply as the agents behind parted way. "You may as well bring them inside. And get those three some towels before we're responsible for sending them to the hospital with fevers."
Daigo nodded absently, taking the time to salute her retreating form before reaching to rub the back of his neck.
"Damn. Looks like I'm gonna have to do that paperwork after all."
ooo
ooo
An observation gallery. Or some sort of boxed conference room. Whatever it was called, one thing was blatantly obvious to the Chosen: Nishijima-sensei hadn't brought them there by mistake. Nor had he accidentally left them unattended for the last several minutes, promising to return with someone they were 'going to want to speak to.'
Regardless of his reasoning, it left them with a full, unhindered view of the room below. And the dozen scientists, white lab coats and all, moving from station to station with methodological precision as they recorded and cross-checked lines of code scrolling across more than three times as many monitors. Colored lights dotted the consoles, each twinkling with a delicate fury.
Koushiro's eyes were wide as saucers, face pressed into the cool glass as he took in the sight of it all.
"Prodigious."
From her seat in one of the large office chairs, Mimi smirked. "It's official." She tilted her head up, covering the mouth piece of her cell as she lightly swiveled back and forth in her seat. "We've never getting him to leave now."
A few chairs down, Wallace bit back a laugh as he returned his attention to his own parental phone call. Daisuke had been kind enough to lend him his cell, and while he'd had every intention of leaving a message, his mother had surprised him by actually being in their hotel 'd spend the next several minutes trying to assuage her usual worries about how late he would be out and who these friends of his were and how did he even make friends when they'd been in Japan less than a week and whether or not Gumimon was behaving himself.
"I always behave myself!" Terriermon cried in protest, loud enough for the receiver to pick up.
Most of the rest of the group had scattered throughout the room. A few took seats at the center table, while others opted to remain standing. Takeru and Hikari shared a two-person bench along the far wall while they warmed themselves up with a small space heater provided by one of the agents. Yamato lingered close by, toweling off his hair with one of the fluffy, white towels Gabumon handed him.
Until he sneezed.
"Bless you!" Terriermon and Lopmon called out from across the room.
"Oh, I do hope you're not getting sick," Gabumon dipped his head down sadly, even as he continued to peer up at his partner. "Though...I don't believe you ever actually explained how you three got so wet?"
Wordlessly, Yamato pointed back towards the twins.
"We said we were sorry!"
A sudden jiggling of the doorknob startled Sora, who had been leaning against the adjacent wall. Out of habit, she swiftly moved closer to where Taichi and Jou were standing, Piyomon close at her heels. They and the rest of the room straightened as the door opened, revealing Nishijima-sensei standing beside a stoic-looking woman. Her eyes scanned the room, taking in the sight of the eleven children and their partners, before stepping forward.
"The current Chosen, I presume." Even her voice betrayed very little. Behind her, she heard Daigo shut the door with a soft click. She took that as her cue to continue. "What we're about to discuss can not leave this room. Then again, I trust you lot understand the importance of secrecy."
Daisuke timidly raised a hand. "Umm...are we in trouble?"
"That depends." The woman turned her steely gaze towards him. "What did you do?"
"N-Nothing!" He gulped, shrinking further into his seat. Whoever this woman was, he reminded her a little too much of his mother for his liking.
Laughter rang out as Daigo stepped forward. "Try not to let her intimidate you. I promise she's quite nice when she wants to be." As if to prove his point, he placed a friendly hand on her shoulder. As if to disprove, she sent him a scathing glare for his efforts. "I'd like you all to meet Himekawa Maki, head of the Incorporated Administrative Agency. She's here to answer as many questions as we're legally allowed to divulge. And maybe one or two we're not."
The group collectively bowed in polite greeting before Taichi stepped forward.
"I—"
"I have a question." Koushiro's voice rang out from the back. No longer glued to the window, his eyes were alert and fully aware (if a bit glassy). He indicated to the room below. "How is it you're in possession of a top-of-the-line, BlueGene L System? The last anyone officially heard, it was stated to be housed in America."
Maki's brows rose, and she forgot to be pissed at Daigo long enough to turn to him in amazement.
Daigo shrugged. "I told you he was smart."
"How do you know…?" Taichi began, before once again realizing his error. Instead, he shook his head. "No, never mind. I can guess how you know. But what is it?"
"It's a SuperComputer developed by IMB that was only just released this past March." It was moments like these he wished Miyako was there with him to appreciate the gravity of it all. She and Ken were the only other two Chosen who had ever come close to sharing his love of technology, and between the two of them, only she had retained that same passion through the past few years. "You guys don't understand. That, down there, was ranked the Number one System during the ISC. At last count, each one performs at approximately 136.8 terriflops."
"Well, he's right about one thing." Daisuke wrinkled his nose. "I definitely didn't understand any of that."
"I think he's speaking in tongues again," Mimi muttered under her breath.
"Are you getting any of this, Tentomon?" Yamato turned to the bug digimon, who promptly flailed in self-defense.
Quickly regaining her composure, Maki hid any lingering awe behind a deliberate cough before folding her arms across her chest. "You're...admittedly more well-informed that I would have guessed, Izumi-san. I suppose I should be more concerned about that than I am, but right now, we have more pressing matters to address." Her eyes lowered to the smaller occupants of the room. "Such as your digimon."
"Hey! Who're you calling a 'depressing' matter?!" Chibimon squirmed in Daisuke's arms, offended.
"What she means," Daigo stepped forward, sensing the room's growing unease. "Is that their sudden reappearance is a bit...unexpected. The scientists you see down there now? They're working overtime trying to recalculate the hypo-electrical wavelength algorithms."
Looks were exchanged, each more at a loss than the other. Koushiro appeared momentarily bemused, his lips moving in silent echo as his mind tried to fit the pieces together. At one point, he went still. So still that the others were starting to worry, before his head abruptly snapped up in realization:
"The Portals!"
Even Maki was struggling to hold back a smile. She hadn't been much of a fan of children ever since she was one, but she was starting to warm a bit to Izumi. He was certainly a better conversationalist than the majority of her subordinates. "Precisely. It's one thing when a friendly digimon crosses over with their human partner. But I don't have you tell you what can happen when something far more sinister breaks through."
She didn't.
The room fell into an ominous silence as memories resurfaced. Different faces to different minds. For Wallace, it was the image of his beloved, if corrupted, Chocomon's "Wendigomon" form. For Iori and Daisuke, it was impossible not to think of Diaboramon. And the Original...or, now technically Second Generation Chosen...the horrors of Vamdemon's brief stint in their world left scars that lingered to that very day.
"That's where we come in." Daigo indicated towards the in-house systems with a single jerk of the head. "We've recruited some of the best minds in four separate countries—yes, America included—to gather and interpret the unique energy signatures of the Digital World. Cross-referenced with some of the most recent tears...what you, Izumi-san, referred to as portals...and we hope to eventually predict and proactively respond to whatever threat comes through."
Even Daisuke understood that much; one by one, eye lit up with the growing realization of what their predecessor's true intentions were.
"You...really used to be Chosen Children." Taichi straightened, though it was more as if his eyes were seeing through Daigo and Maki. To a past so similar to his own, it made him wonder about the future. If there was any hint of potential familiarity in his calligraphy teacher's easygoing demeanor. Or Maki's stoic determination. "And you're picking up where you left off."
"You say that as if we ever stopped fighting." Daigo grinned at him.
"The difference is, we have a bit more firepower on our side now." Maki added. "We can keep both worlds safe...and..." She hesitated here, voice nearly faltering as a flash of memory threatened to resurface. "...most importantly, we can keep you safe. So that...none of you will ever have to feel the same loss we did."
Loss.
Takeru reflexively held onto his partner a little tighter. Willing his breath to remain even so the others would suspect. His heart pounded in his chest, and even as his eyes took in the sight of a forlorn Maki, at the same time, they saw the glowing eyes of a being which had haunted him for half his life.
But then Hikari let out a faint whimper beside him. Inaudible to anyone's ears but his. He glanced to her out of the corner of his eye...and saw her face pale as she held a hand to her chest. Her knuckles were white. As if she were in pain. Except her eyes weren't closed, and she wasn't looking down or at Tailmon or even at him. She was staring at Maki as if she could physically sense the woman's pain.
"Who did you lose?" Daisuke asked, though even he looked hesitant to do so. "Your digimon?"
In a rare moment of uncertainty, Maki turned to Daigo. She knew this was as hard for him as it was for her. It had to be. The idiot was so careless with his feelings on any given day. If she, the so-called ice princess, could still feel those residual aches from something that happened to them more than a decade ago…
Yet, somehow, the eyes that met hers seemed at ease. Even reassuring.
He nodded once.
She got the message, closing her eyes to steel herself—and her heart—once more.
"We lost one of us. Another Chosen Child."