Reviewer Question: what fanfiction tropes do I like?
I consider myself a simple writer, with simple delights. Fix-its are my obvious jam. I'm also big on found families, childhood friends to sweethearts, & hurt/comfort/sickfic/letmebeweak. If it's done well, Amnesia can be fun. Pretend Couples when written as a comedy and where both parties are 100% in on the joke are also great. I have a couple Soul-bonding favorites from way back when. And, of course, every once in a while, I'm down for a good Medieval Fantasy AU. You know, as you do.
Reviewer Commentary: I sure do have a lot of characters to keep track of now!
Yes. Yes, I do. (insert overly dramatic sobbing here).
Because of this, I'm not going to pretend that every character will get equal attention. I will do my best to share the spotlight, but some people are simply more important to the narrative and will be given POV scenes more often than the rest.
I'm also pleased that people liked the scenes I pulled from canon. I did say way back when that there were some things from the movies I couldn't bear to leave out. And this is still technically TRI, even if I've scrambled the plot a lil bit. Plus, Trollkeru telling ghost stories to distract Hikari from being sad while screwing with his big bro? Chef's kiss levels of perfection. And Hikari telling Homeostasis to GTFO was one of the single greatest moments in all Six movies.
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DIGIMON TRI: BALANCE
o
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Wallace proved himself an excellent storyteller.
And a deceptive one.
His setting was an American farm on a hot, sunny day in July. One on the outskirts of his home state. Peaceful, quiet, and wholesome. He detailed a loving family consisting of a father, mother, and their young son. He explained important highlights of the culture and daily routines, including the animals they cared for and the crops they grew. He mentioned how often the rain fell and the sun shone. He clarified that, while neighborly visits were scarce due to distance between properties, they were always welcomed with warm smiles and a fresh pitcher of homemade sweet tea.
If one hadn't known it was meant to be a ghost story, one might have assumed he was recounting a cheerful memory of his childhood.
Except, to those listening in rapt silence, his voice seemed a little too cheerful. His smile, a little too bright. An ominous, underlying aura weighed his every sentence. Even the digimon could tell that something was amiss.
"One last bit of trivia," Wallace held up a finger in the air with his free hand; the other continued to hold the flashlight steady beneath his chin. "Corn in the summertime is famous for growing extremely high. Depending upon the rainfall, stalks can reach over ten feet by harvest."
"3.048 meters," Koushiro translated.
The flashlight wavered. Wallace's eyes turned upward as he attempted a mental count.
"Right. That."
He recovered quickly. His audience barely noticed.
"They aren't just tall, though. They're thick. Roughly three feet of space separates each row, but each row is planted with no more than ten inches between seeds." This time, he purposely extended his hands as a visual for the Metric users. "To make things worse, leaves can extend in all directions, so even those three feet can feel almost...claustrophobic."
Mimi nodded. She'd seen several corn fields during family trips to Long Island, and was prepared to validate every one of Wallace's claims. Her grip on Sora's arm tightened.
"On the day this particular event took place, it was noon. At least, the little boy thought it was noon. It could have been earlier. Or later. He'd woken up in the middle of a sea of corn so vast, he couldn't see the sun overhead. Nor could he hear any signs of life around him.. His stomach told him he was late for lunch, but at the same time, he couldn't remember having breakfast. In fact, he couldn't remember much at all about that morning."
Yamato's knuckles were already white. From what Wallace had gathered, that was too easy an accomplishment. He aimed higher.
"He could remember one thing, and one thing only. Getting a drink from the family well. It was old, dug generations before, and barely used. Their home had plenty of running water, and his parents had warned him more than once to be careful. Though, strangely, they never explained why. Despite having earlier quenched his thirst, the boy realized his throat was parched. It was so hot out, the shade from the leaves made very little difference. He felt dizzy. He tried calling for help, but not even the wind answered. So he picked a direction and started to walk.
"Every step, dried leaves crunched beneath his feet. His muscles ached and his stomach growled and his tongue felt dry. The longer he walked, the most lost he was. It was just an endless sea of corn. He never realized how vast his family's field truly was. His legs ached and his heart pounded in his chest and his breathing grew heavy.
"Then, he heard the strangest sound. It was like...rubber boots stepping through wet mud. Squick."
Yamato flinched. Taichi bit back a snicker. Takato's eyes were wide. Ken shifted awkwardly in place. Miyako's cheeks puffed out in defiance, refusing to be taken in by the dramatic showmanship while also visibly unsettled by the increasing strangeness of the tale. Xiaochun tried to imitate Miyako's brave facade, though one hand gripped the edge of her brother's sleeve. The digimon had all gone still. Daisuke was still trying to visualize 3.048 meters of corn stalk.
"At first, the boy thought he had heard wrong. There were no puddles. It was too hot and dry and it hadn't rained at all that week. The only place there could have been any mud was the area surrounding the well. Maybe he had accidentally found his way back? The thought cheered him up, and he started heading towards where he thought it had come from.
"He ran for over five minutes. There was no mud. No well. Nothing but more corn. He was more lost than ever.
"Then he heard the same sound again. This time, from behind."
Ruki's brows rose. Jou, Koushiro, and Ryo leaned forward in anticipation. Even Leomon sat up straighter.
Takeru smirked.
"A chill ran down his spine. He felt like he couldn't breathe. The sound was closer now and made even less sense, because he knew it wasn't his imagination. He turned around, but then he took a step back. The leaves crunched beneath his feet, dry and loud. He looked down. He looked left and right. Everywhere looked exactly the same. Corn, corn, and more corn. The impossibly wet footsteps started to approach, so he turn and blindly ran away. His shoulders crashed into the stalks. Leaves scratched his face and arms, leaving little cuts that stung his cheeks.
"At one point, his foot caught on an exposed root. He fell flat on his face."
Sora bit her lip, gently patting Mimi's head. She found Wallace's story gripping in her own right, but the younger girl was staring to cut off circulation to her lower arm.
"Pain shot up his leg. His ankle was twisted. And the footsteps were nearly upon him."
Wallace paused for dramatic effect, subtly taking in the sight of his audience. Their expressions wildly varied. Some looked fascinated. Some were mildly curious. Some were literally on the edge of their makeshift seats. Yamato looked about two seconds from passing out.
"He tried to scream, but his voice had gone completely hoarse. More crunching. The stalks behind him parted, and when he turned back to look-"
The bushes behind Wallace rustled.
Two shadowed figures burst into the clearing.
Screams rang out from nearly all the girls, Daisuke, Jou, Takato, and half the digimon. Yamato fell backwards onto the ground below and chose not to get up again. Taichi, Sora, Ken, Jian, and Xiaochun shot up in preparation for battle. Leomon gripped the hilt of his sword. Agumon took another healthy bite of fruit, chewing contently in his obliviousness.
"Ryo!" Hopmon exclaimed.
"Ruki!" Pokomon was right behind him.
The two child-level digimon bounced their way around the campfire until they reached their respective partners. Hopmon was all too happy to throw himself into Ryo's extended arms. Pokomon settled into Ruki's lap, gently nuzzling the girl's stomach in greeting.
"It looks like you two had fun." Ruki stated dryly, despite offering a pat on the head in turn. "Didn't we warn you about going all out again? No wonder you took so long to make it back."
"Sorry!"
Neither digimon sounded very sorry.
The rest of the group deflated. Sighs of relief were heard as they settled back into their respective seats. Leomon relaxed his grip.
Mimi's hand went to her chest. "Well, I just lost about five years off my lifespan."
Takeru alone appeared completely unfazed. He glanced behind, where Hikari had buried her face into the back of his shirt. Some of the tension in her shoulders eased, and he knew then it was pride alone keeping her from opening her eyes. He absolutely would have grinned teasingly if she could see him then, so he mentally stored that precious ammunition for later use and instead turned his cheerfulness on Wallace.
"That was pretty lucky," he commented. "I'm not sure I could have planned timing like that if I tried."
"I'm not sure I could have, either." Wallace, already recovered, mirrored Takeru's expression perfectly.
Miyako shuddered. "Scary. The both of you."
Ryo watched the two younger blondes exchanging sentiments as he absently rubbed Hopmon's belly. Their energy seemed genuine, though he couldn't help noting hints of weariness behind it. Similarly, most of the Chosen were beginning to sport shadows beneath their eyes. More than once during Wallace's story, he'd caught an attempt at concealing yawns.
Sure enough, Hopmon gave a wide yawn of his own.
Ryo took that as his cue.
"I'm with you. We should probably at least try to get some sleep tonight." It was just shy of impossible to calculate the precise time dilation effect, given how often it fluctuated between Worlds and Dimension, but he strongly suspected the hour was much later than they were all letting on. "Call it a hunch, but I have a strong feeling tomorrow is going to be the first of a long list of days to come."
Experience left Chosen and Tamer alike in unanimous agreement.
o o o
o o o
During the night, Leomon awoke to a jolt of pain.
He hissed, biting his tongue to keep from crying out. Most of the children were still asleep. Mimi looked so at peace, curled on her side towards Sora with one hand tucked beneath her head. Leomon would have sooner suffered the rest of the night in silence than risk waking her.
As if tempting his conviction, another jolt hit. Stronger than the last. It shot up his right arm like a bolt of electricity burning his nerves. The urge to grab at his wrist with his uninfected hand was strong. He resisted, instead looking down to inspect the security of the bandages. To his horror, he noticed sparks of pink crackling just over the top. He checked to see if they had come loose. They hadn't. The infection had resumed its spread.
He closed his eyes and willed the pain to subside.
More than a minute passed. Gradually, it dulled to a more tolerable ache.
He let out a heavy breath and looked down again. Tailmon was standing to his left. He had not heard her approach.
"Bad dreams?"
Leomon could not remember the last time he had dreamed. Perhaps in his former life. He knew digimon were capable of dreaming, but either his mind refused to bow to the whims of his subconscious, or else it simply refused retention of instances when he did.
"Something like that."
It was not a lie; he deemed his current condition parallel to a waking nightmare.
"I see." Tailmon looked to him with empathy. Her head bowed, and in the dim light of a dying campfire, Leomon saw glistening memories pool at the corners of her eyes. "I still get them too. The days before I met Hikari...before I remembered who I really was..." She looked back to her partner, sleeping between Sora and Miyako. "...ironically, those are the days I would just as soon forget."
"Yet you cannot," Leomon surmised.
She shook her head.
Her eyes were hard. Far too hard for one of her size. Leomon could sense the pain she carried. Weight bore on her shoulders far heavier than most warriors he had encountered over his many lifetimes. Heavier than the weight shouldered by her peers. Tailmon was a naturally evolved Adult surrounded by Child levels. This fact could not be so easily dismissed, even for one who had been Chosen.
One of the Lopmons approached. Behind, Chosen and Tamer partners gathered. Their exchange had drawn attention.
"There, there, Leomon." Lopmon reached up to pat the Beast King's arm. "Wallace always says that if you have trouble sleeping, warm milk can help." He called back to the others. "Do we have any warm milk to give him?"
"It's fine." Leomon shook his head. "There is no need to trouble yourselves for my-"
In that moment, a horrific realization struck him.
Lopmon was patting his arm. His exposed, unbandaged arm. On almost the exact spot where, not a moment before, Leomon had witnessed the infection spark.
"No!"
Koushiro shot up from his makeshift bed. He blinked slowly, lost in the haze of fog between dream and consciousness. His head turned towards the sea of slumbering Chosen. The only signs of life to be heard came from the ongoing snoring battle between Daisuke and Taichi. He then turned towards the crowd of digimon to his far left. It was unclear whether or not he was capable of registering any of their presences.
Tentomon hobbled to his side. He spread his wings, flapping them at a rate that produced a gentle hum. Koushiro's upper body began swaying to the natural lullaby until he fell back against his laptop bag. Sleep quickly reclaimed him.
When Tentomon was certain his partner was out, he turned back to the group. Every one of them was staring.
A bead of sweat formed on his brow. "Ah...can we all pretend you didn't just witness that?"
Leomon would not have to pretend. Not once had his attention faltered away from Lopmon. His eyes scanned over every inch of the rabbit-like digimon. Watching. Waiting for any of the tell-tale signs. A flinch. A wince. The smallest flicker.
Nothing happened.
Seconds passed. Minutes followed.
Transmission from Ogremon had been near-instantaneous. As had the painful physical effects. His wrist where they made contact had felt like it was on fire. It was a pain no living being could ignore, let alone a passive Child level. But then, Ogremon had been wild. The infection had spread to the point where it fully intertwined with his data, far beyond Leomon's current ability to regain some control.
Perhaps...so long as it is dormant...the risk of spread decreases.
He could think of no other explanation.
Leomon relaxed. Though his heart continued to pound in his chest, he allowed his body to slump back against the tree. He let out a slow, uneasy breath. Then swallowed. His throat felt scratchy. Not so parched as the little boy in Wallace's story, but enough that he knew he had gone too long without water. His head also hurt. Stress, perhaps. Or a lack of sleep. Or too much.
"Good." He murmured to himself. "That's...good." He looked to the stars, attempting to discern the hour by midnight. It saved him from the dozens of questioning looks his fellow digimon sent him. "Forgive me for the disturbance. I was merely...startled. That's all."
"Startled?" Guilmon echoed, looking between Leomon and Lopmon.
Both were Beast Types, but that was precisely where the similarities ended. Leomon was large, muscular, and carried a sword. He was proud and forceful. His aura was intimidating even to those who knew him. Lopmon, on the other hand, was small, cute, and about as intimidating as Culumon.
Yet this was not the first time he had witnessed a Leomon seemingly terrified by one a fraction his size and strength. Guilmon recalled the day he had met Leomon hiding in the shadows of an empty shrine. A Leomon that visibly recoiled at the sound of 10-year-old Juri's voice, only to run away each time she batted an eyelash in his general direction. He never pretended to understand what went on between them that day, but he was pretty sure startled was a good word to describe Leomon's reactions.
"Do all Leomon's startle easily?" he wondered aloud.
Terriermon and Lopmon tried to shush him, but the damage was done.
"All Leomons?" Leomon was quick to note the dinosaur digimon's unfamiliarity. That labeled him partner to a Tamer, which meant he originated from another digital world. The thought was not so surprising to him as he found it intriguing. "Am I correct, then, in presuming you have encountered another in your Dimension?"
Terriermon and Lopmon shared an uneasy look. Behind them, Guilmon and Monodramon shuffled their feet awkwardly. Renamon did not allow her face or body language to betray her emotions. However, her refusal to look directly at Leomon was telling enough.
"We did." Terriermon eventually relented. "A long time ago."
"He died," Lopmon clarified.
The air around them grew solemn. Gomamon and Palmon placed their paws together, bowing their head in belated prayer. Tsukaimon watched them for a long moment before mirroring the gesture. Loss was no strange concept to any digimon. Not even the young Viral Type.
"I see." Leomon alone dared speak. "If you will permit it, I offer you my deepest condolences. And apologies. We Beast Kings value our honor in battle far more than our lives themselves. However," his eyes flickered towards Mimi, "I have recently witnessed first-hand how the risks we take can adversely affect those we seek to protect. It is...not something I would have previously considered. Although I am remiss to admit that it would changed very little in my case."
Patamon nodded. "I still remember when I died fighting Devimon. That part wasn't so scary, but it was hard knowing that Takeru would have to watch."
Renamon straightened. "You died?"
"You don't look very dead to me," Terriermon commented.
"It was only for a little while." Patamon shrugged "I got better."
Guilmon, Terriermon, Lopmon, and Monodramon exchanged bewildered glances between them.
Tailmon scampered over to her dear friend's side. Patamon's casual demeanor hadn't fooled her. She knew him well enough to detect the pain he buried deep inside. Not unlike his partner, he flashed her a smile too bright to be genuine. She placed a paw on his back. Her eyes met Renamon's. An understanding passed between the two Adults. Renamon's unspoken question was answered with a solemn nod.
"Digimon in our World can be reborn. I'm guessing they can't in yours?"
"No. They cannot." Renamon shook her head. "Once turned to data, a digimon from our Dimension can be absorbed into the one who defeated them."
Piyomon shuddered. "How awful."
"That definitely doesn't happen here." Tailmon was similarly unsettled at the thought. Her frown deepened. "When we lose too much energy, either from injury or using up all our raw power, we revert back to egg form. Inside, we sleep until we've regained enough strength to hatch back into our first Baby forms."
She looked up in time to see a shooting star streak across the sky. Hikari once told her about a tradition in the Real World. If anyone were lucky enough to catch such a rare, fleeting sight, they would be able to make a wish. Tailmon had watched her partner close her eyes and bow her head and wondered what she had wished for. Hikari never told her, insisting that it wouldn't come true if she did.
"Of course, that only happens in the Digital World, where lost data can find its way back to the Village of Beginnings. For those who die in the Real World..."
She trailed off.
Patamon, sensing her distressed, continued on her behalf: "...the rules change. Death for a digimon is permanent in the Real World, just like it is for humans."
Renamon did not take this revelation lightly. She allowed time to process, taking her cues from Tailmon. With a small degree of impress, she noted how the feline did not give much away. Like Leomon and herself, she bore only her pride on her sleeve.
Still, it was not difficult to form an assumption.
"May I ask his name?"
Tailmon hesitated only a moment.
"Wizarmon."
It was not a name Renamon recognized, but it was one she would remember.
"She reminds me of Juri," Lopmon leaned in to whisper to his brother.
Tailmon overheard. Her whiskers twitched. "Juri?"
"..ah!" He jumped at having been caught, then promptly deflated. "Yeah. Another friend of ours. A human. She was Leomon's partner."
The air around them seemed to drop several degrees.
More than a few Chosen digimon paled, including Patamon. Losing a dear friend was tragedy enough, but not one of them could bear the thought of losing their partner. Or, worse, forcing their partner to suffer a permanent loss. Not when they had seen what it had done to that Maki woman. An original Chosen, whose cold heartache remained with her well into adulthood.
Leomon's thoughts were elsewhere.
Partner.
In his former life, he had been graced by the light of Taichi's digivice, allowing him to achieve new levels of Evolution. He had formed a deep bond of friendship with the bearer of Purity. He had fought alongside the children, content with viewing them as his equals or better. Still, never in his wildest dreams had he once imagined himself a Chosen digimon in his own right. Honor would never have allowed such hubris.
Except he had been Chosen. Not in another life, but in another Dimension.
He could no longer stop himself. His mind wandered with the thought of possibility. He wondered what was so different about his other self to have been granted such a fate.
And what type of human this Juri was.
o o o
o o o
Iori might have been woken up by Leomon's shouting had he not already been awake.
Sparse clouds drifted by overheard. He watched the night sky with passive interest, taking in the unfamiliarity of the constellations. Astronomers in the Real World used constellations as identifiable markers for travel at night. He wondered if any digimon ever considered a map of the stars to be useful. Prophecies existed, after all. Why couldn't constellation names and legends?
The Digital World's equivalent of cicadas chirped in the far distance. He tried counting the number of times he heard them.
Embers from the fire popped. He tried counting those too.
"Can't sleep?"
The voice came from behind.
He tilted his head back. Across the dying flames, he saw an upside-down Xiaochun laying on her stomach. She was propped up by her elbows.
"It's the time difference for me." Though soft enough not to disturb the others, her voice carried over the crackling campfire with ease. "It was about ten in the morning when I left. I didn't expect it to be so much later here."
She sat up, stretching both arms over her head. The thin blanket she'd been using pooled around her waist. She was close enough to the fire that it hardly mattered. The night air indicated a late summer or early autumn season.
Iori pulled himself up into a mirroring position. He searched the area around them. Every other Chosen, plus Takato, was fast asleep. Miyako was in the far corner with the rest of the girls. Takeru was with Wallace, Ken, and Daisuke. The latter snorted loudly before rolling over. In turn, Taichi offered a deep snore before a barely-conscious Yamato gave him a solid punch. Then all was still.
Among familiar faces, he was alone.
"I was thinking of going for a walk," Xiaochun told him. "Would you like to come?"
It was easier to gauge her expression from that angle. She seemed genuine.
"I mean, if you don't want to..."
A voice in the back of his head began to scold him. It sounded suspiciously like his grandfather.
"N-no. That's not...I'll go with you." He shook his head, rising to his feet. Jou and Takato were closest. Neither showed signs of being disturbed. "It's better not to wander around alone, especially at night."
Xioachun giggled and winked. "How chivalrous of you."
Iori had no idea how he was supposed to feel about that.
There were several path options to take. Xiaochun spent less than a second contemplating them all before heading due Northeast. She was light on her feet, barely drawing the attention of the digimon, as she weaved her way through the sea of sleeping bodies. Iori followed after her with little difficulty, though his brows furrowed before they reached the edge.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Relax. It'll be fine. We'll be back before anyone notices we're gone. Promise."
o o o
Jian noticed the two tweens long before they disappeared into the trees. His eyes narrowed.
To his immediate right, Ruki rolled hers.
"Oh, let her make a friend."
There was a tote bag at her feet. She'd brought it over at the start of their watch shift. Near the top were four pre-packaged sandwiches and a reusable bottle of water. She grabbed two of the sandwiches at random and held them up for Jian to choose. It was a ritual they'd shared countless times over the last few years. Particularly when their shift ran well into the early morning hours, when all that was left for food options was whatever the convenience store shelves had to offer.
Without looking, he indicated towards the egg salad.
Her expression flattened. He wasn't even paying attention. She knew for certain because he hated egg salad.
Briefly, she considered calling him out there and then before deciding he would learn his mistake soon enough. The spare sandwich (ham katsu) went back into her bag. She pried open the plastic case for the egg salad, split the two halves, and passed him the first while taking the second for herself.
By her count, less than hour had passed. That still left just over two before it would be time to wake up Yamato and Takeru. (Wallace had offered to take Yamato's shift in apology but, for some reason, Miyako was adamant that the two younger blondes could not be trusted unchaperoned.) Any other night, Ruki would have been content with the arrangement. Jian was easily her favorite shift partner, especially given her usual alternatives. But that was regular Jian, not Overprotective Big Brother Jian.
"Xiaochun making a friend doesn't bother me," he insisted.
"If you say so."
She inspected her half of the sandwich. The bread was thick and felt slightly stale, but the filling smelled fresh. Based on the packing, Juri had gone to Lawsonthis time, rather than the FamilyMart directly across from HYPNOS. Good. Their recipe flavors tended to last longer.
"What bothers me is the fact that they both left without either of their digimon."
She paused mid-bite.
Jian's focus had shifted. She followed his line of sight to the digimon. A quick mental count confirmed it; with precisely zero exceptions, every partner could be accounted for. The most obvious being the two Lopmons standing side-by-side.
He actually had a point. A really good one.
That annoyed her far more than the thought of the youngest Lee running off in the middle of the night with no explanation. Running off was something Xiaochun did all the time. It was a habit of hers most of the Tamers came to expect. Running off with Iori was slightly more suspicious, but he was a Chosen and therefore someone they considered trustworthy. But running off without either of their digimon to protect them? That left Ruki with precisely zero means of defense on Xiaochun's behalf. Which put her on the losing side of the debate.
She hated losing. That much hadn't changed since they were kids.
"Ten minutes." A compromise. "The nearest village is at least twice as far. And, if I recall, only Child levels live there anyway. We give them ten minutes for their late night stroll before heading after them.. Think you can hold out for that long?"
Sometimes, Jian wondered if his reasonable nature had rubbed off on her. The Ruki of their childhood would have added far more insults towards everyone involved the instant she realized he was right.
He sighed. Nodding in agreement, he slumped back against the tree. Their shoulders barely touched as he settled into a position suitable for eating. The sandwich was half-forgotten in his right hand. He still had yet to look at its filling. With little regard, he brought it to his lips and took a bite.
Which he promptly spat back out.
"What the-? Who bought egg salad?"
Ruki tried not to laugh. She didn't try very hard.
"Juri did." In consolation, she offered him her water bottle. "But you picked it. Technically speaking. So, really, it's your own fault for not paying attention."
He downed a third of the bottle in a single breath, desperate to wash the taste out of his mouth. The remaining sandwich half was returned to Ruki, who had significantly fewer qualms over its flavor. Egg salad was actually her second favorite, right after the red bean and cream. She was all too content with breaking off a piece, popping it right in her mouth where Jian could see.
He withdrew every previous thought he'd had about her being reasonable.
"Feel better?" she asked.
"No." He tried to glare at her. The longer he tried, the more difficult it was to bite back a smile. Adorable was not a word he would ever use to describe Makino Ruki, but there was a vaguely similar air about her when she was being so childishly vindictive over trivial matters. "I guess that means more for you tonight."
She smiled (a little too) sweetly before taking another bite.
He shook his head, running his hand through his hair. It felt slightly greasy at the roots. His last hot bath had been the morning of their departure. One of the few luxuries he missed each time they went to the Digital World. Or, rather, a Digital World. Ryo insisted there were natural hot springs, but they had yet to come across any.
"I'm going to go freshen up. There was a river not too far from here. We crossed it on the way back from meeting Ken and Miyako's friends."He passed her back the water bottle. She set it by her feet."Back in a few."
His chosen path brought him adjacent to the gathering of digimon. Discreetly, he gestured towards the Terriermons. One recognized the gesture for what it was and followed. The other casually waved farewell to them both. Renamon caught the exchange and searched for Ruki in the dark. Their eyes met long enough for Ruki to shake her head.
In the next moment, another presence made itself known. She heard him come up the other side of the tree, pressing his back against the trunk. Close, but purposely keeping his distance.
She wasn't surprised he was still awake too.
"You're not on watch duty tonight."
"Couldn't sleep." Ryo shrugged even though Ruki wouldn't be able to see. "Seems to be going around." He looked to the forest, brows furrowing in a genuine, if mild, concern. "Is Jian alright? His face looked slightly green just now."
The corners of Ruki's lips twitched. "He's fine. Just ate a little too much egg salad."
"I thought he hated egg salad."
"He does."
It was several seconds before the implication of her prank set in. Ryo blamed the late hour. Sleep deprivation was a habit that kept him on edge enough to stay alive among potential dangers, but at the expense of more subtle logic. He bit back a grin as his shoulders shook.
"Here, I was thinking it had something to do with Xiaochun."
He'd noticed the young pair slip away from the campsite. His earlier quip about Xiaochun wanting to challenge a fellow martial artist may have been more accurate than Jian preferred. Though Ryo would admit he hadn't anticipated she would chose the middle of the night to do so, rather than wait until morning.
"She works fast."
Ruki snorted into her water bottle. "Don't let Jian hear you say that."
Tilting his head to one side, Ryo could just make out her silhouette in the dark. Her side of the tree faced the fire. He couldn't yet see her face, but he took note of the sandwich in her hands. And the water bottle.
"I'm not worried." He dismissed the notion. "I'm pretty sure I could take him."
"Please. You can't take me on. Not unless you want to start training with us."
It wasn't the first time one of his fellow Tamers had extended the offer. It wasn't even the first time Ruki had.
But this time, she'd only said it jokingly. So he laughed. She joined in, and Ryo's ear instinctively turned towards the sound. Laughter wasn't hard to come by in their Dimension by any measure, but he cherished those pockets of moments between them all the same. Getting her to laugh was so much better than getting her mad at him.
The tension in his muscles eased.
Ruki set the two sandwich halves back in their container. After taking one last bite, which she promptly followed with a large gulp of water.
Ryo watched her profile out of the corner of his eye.
"You two really have gotten close."
"Hmm?" She swallowed, momentarily confused by the comment. It was sometimes difficult to discern Ryo's motives by tone alone. His acting had improved over the years. A casual air could mean anything from an accusation to an oncoming tease. "What's what supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." His lips twitched, as they always did when he knew she left herself open. "It's just that I couldn't help notice you're drinking from the same water bottle Jian did."
The timing was perfect. She had just brought the rim of the bottle to her lips and tilted it back. Her eyes went wide. She reflexively gasped, choking on her latest mouthful. What followed was a series of undignified coughs and sputters that left Ryo confident in his early assumption that she simply never realized until he brought it to her attention.
The Indirect Kiss had been completely unintentional.
A small knot in his stomach untwisted. He'd meant it when he commented on how close Jian and Ruki had gotten. It was obvious to anyone watching them interact. There were times when he grew suspicious, though he knew fully well he had no right to be. Still, it was easier to tease than accuse.
"Don't worry. I won't say anything." Had he been facing her then, he would have winked. Getting Ruki to laugh was better than getting her mad at him, but the latter was so much easier. "Besides, it's only a water bottle. It's not like you two kissed for real."
He braced himself for the oncoming explosion.
It never came.
Ten seconds of silence passed. Confused, Ryo risked a glance around the tree trunk.
Ruki had gone completely still. Her lips were parted as if she meant to say something, but nothing came out. No yelling. No insults. No flustered denial. She looked like a proverbial deer trapped in headlights. Her face wasn't even slightly red. If anything, she had turned white.
That's when Ryo realized. She couldn't deny his tease because it would have meant lying.
He felt the breath leave his lungs.
"...oh..."
A wash of emotions flooded his senses. Too many to fully register, let alone justify. He wanted to feel anger. Hurt. He couldn't. He and Ruki weren't together. They never had been. Every moment between them came and went with too many words unspoken. She'd known how he felt and he'd known how she felt...or, at least, he'd thought he'd known. Because he'd allowed himself the blissful cover of ignorance.
Worst of all, the part of him that had long suspected was the same part that tried to convince the rest of him it was a good thing.
"Ryo. I..."
"It's fine, Ruki. Really." He tried to keep his voice neutral. It came out dull. "I was just surprised. If this is what you really want-"
"It was a mistake."
He heard her move against the tree. As if turning to look at him. He didn't dare look back. His gaze remained dead ahead, refusing to give into temptation. Through the trees in the distance, he could see tiny balls of light disappearing and reappearing. Digital fireflies. Close but never appearing to touch. Each time two of them got close, the lights faded into darkness.
"It happened a few months ago." She was actually attempting to explain. Ruki seldom saw the need to explain herself. For that reason alone, Ryo let her. "We'd just gotten back from patrol. One of the graveyard shifts. I was tired and pissed about something that happened and couldn't sleep. He suggested we blow off some steam in the training room. We sparred until we literally collapsed. After that...I don't even remember exactly how it happened. It just...did."
She hadn't wanted to think about that night ever again. And Ryo was the last person in the multiverse she ever wanted to find out. Even Juri didn't know
Shutting her eyes tight, Ruki buried her face in her knees. She hadn't lied to Ryo just then...it was true that the exact details remained a bit of a blur...but she could still picture the events of that night clearly in her mind. The way her heart pounded in her chest from the heavy workout. Adrenaline coursing through her veins. And serotonin or endorphins or whatever it was that left her feeling so good.
She'd been half asleep at that point. Satisfied at having someone to vent her frustrations to who understood. Jian said something to her. She didn't remember what. She smiled back. Then his lips had been on hers. Slow and soft and gentle.
It had even felt...nice.
The first few seconds, she'd been tempted to kiss back. Except it hadn't felt right. Not bad. Just...there had been no flutter in her chest or turn of her stomach or any of the reactions she would have thought came with her First Kiss.
Like she'd known, even then, she was kissing the wrong person.
"It was a mistake, and we both knew it."
She repeated because she couldn't bring herself to tell Ryo the rest.
How she had been the first to pull away, but Jian had been the one to apologize. How they'd separated in an air of awkwardness. How she'd stumbled back to her room in a fit of frustration and weariness and nearly felt like crying but had stubbornly refused to do so. Realizing long after her head hit the pillow that she'd inadvertently left him behind to clean up alone.
"I..." she lifted her head. Her eyes remained as dry as they had that night. "I honestly thought he would start ignoring me after. But..."
The next morning, she'd returned to the training room. It was spotless.
"...he didn't. He stayed. It was as if it never happened. We never talked about it. I think he wanted to get as much as I did. That was how I knew we'd be okay, in spite of what happened."
Maybe even because of.
Until then, Ruki hadn't entirely understood why she was so desperate to explain herself. Now she knew. If nothing else, she wanted Ryo to understand the exact reason why she and Jian were so close. Why she trusted him enough to let her guard down more than most. Why he was her best friend.
Because he stayed.
He he had been in a better frame of mind, Ryo might have realized what she meant.
All he could think of was how it felt like an indirect insult.
It had always been his choice to continue making trips, even though he knew she hated them. Ruki was not the kind of girl who would ever wait for someone. She wasn't some fisherman's wife staring lonely out into the vast ocean, life on hold while her beloved went on his adventures. Ryo never expected her to be, which was why he had convinced himself that, no matter how many times he left, she would be fine.
She had her family. She had her friends. She had her digimon partner.
She had Jian.
She didn't need him.
"...ne, Ruki..."
He heard her shift again. As if she'd been waiting for his reaction. He wondered if she was staring at his back through the tree trunk.
"What you said the other day during the briefing...the part about me not being a child of any world...did you mean it?"
Her answer was quick and certain: "Yes."
He'd anticipated as much.
"Then ask me."
She gasped, knowing exactly what he was referring to. The Unspoken Question he'd been trying to get her to ask him for over a year. The one she saw in his eyes each time he looked at her.
"No."
The one she refused each time.
He didn't repeat the command. It would have been a futile attempt. Ruki was just too stubborn. He'd always liked that part of her, even when it frustrated him to no end. But it meant that, even if she wanted to ask him, her pride would never allow it. And his would never allow him to try convincing her otherwise.
After all...it couldn't have been mere coincidence that those few months ago was around the same time she cut her hair.
o o o
o o o
Xiaochun was...a lot.
Iori knew it was impolite to think of a girl that way, but the more time he spent with her, he the more he was convinced there was no other possible description. She was spontaneous. Energetic. Random. At one point, she randomly cartwheeled over a small stream they crossed with no explanation. Conversation between them was minimal because she kept leaving his side to check out something on the trees along their path.
The fourth time she did it, he began to suspect he was missing something.
The fifth time, he realized.
Each time she approached a tree, she pressed her palm to the trunk. What looked like purposelessly rubbing at the rough bark actually resulted in visible scratches pointing in the exact direction they were heading. There was a rock in her hand. When she'd picked it up, he couldn't be certain, though he would wager it had something to do with her earlier cartwheel.
"You're marking our path."
Surprised flashed across her face. It was gone as quickly as it appeared.
"Ryo-sensei taught me this trick." She idly tossed the rock into the air a couple times before holding it out, though Iori could see nothing outwardly unique about it. "He knows I have a habit of wandering when I get bored, so he said that if I mark the trees, it can help me find my way back in case I end up lost."
"Or help them figure out which direction you went," Iori surmised.
She nodded, smiling brightly.
Iori was impressed. In his years of traveling to and from the Digital World, including trips planned for longer than an afternoon, he couldn't recall any of the other Chosen having such a contingency plan. Not even the older children.
One of the trees had fallen over. Its roots stuck up out of the ground, dried and withered from lack of nutrients. The trunk landed on a slight angle. Xiaochun saw this as an open invitation to jump on it, extending her arms as she started walking along the top. Each time she wobbled a little too far to one side, she would giggle, not caring that she could fall at any moment.
Except Iori watched her feet. Her legs were straight, with a slight bend at the knee. Each step she took was perfectly aligned with the one that came before it. The soles of her shoes curved just enough for a proper grip on the rounded surface. For all her melodramatic showmanship, the entire lower half of her body was in complete control. She was in no danger.
It was like the hidden rock all over again.
"Whoa-ahh!"
Xiaochun's arms flailed. She teetered a little too far to one side, lost her balance, and toppled over.
Iori caught her.
"Oh!" She blinked several times before smiling up at him. "Thank you! I must've..."
Iori stared back with a near blank expression. Mildly confused at most. He wasn't flustered or embarrassed by the sudden close proximity between them. His face wasn't even red. It was as if he either didn't notice, or didn't care.
Xiaochun wasn't sure which thought annoyed her more.
"Really?" Pulling herself to a proper stand, she set both hands on her hips. "Nothing? Even Jian-nii-chan cracks a smile around Ruki-nee-chan once in a while. What are you, part robot or something?"
She extended a finger to poke his chest.
He caught it.
She tensed.
"You're faking." Iori glanced towards the fallen tree, then back at the girl in front of him. The difference in their heights left him tilting his head up a few centimeters to make up the difference. That didn't bother him either. "You've been acting strange this whole time. First by hiding what you were doing with the trees, and now losing your balance and falling on purpose." His brows furrowed. Speaking his thoughts aloud only deepened his confusion. "What I can't figure out is why."
Why the deliberate deception? None of her actions seemed purposely malicious. At the same time, they didn't seem to carry any motive at all.
Moments like these, Iori wished Takeru was with him. His jogress partner had always seemed more in tune with what girls were thinking or why they did certain things. Then again, the last time he'd asked Takeru for advice, the older boy had given him a series of strangely contradictory statements he insisted weren't. Iori had walked away more bewildered than before.
He let go of Xiaochun's finger. Their arms dropped to their respective sides. He continued watching her in hopes of some clue. She stared back in a mixture of surprise and partial disbelief. Seconds ticked passed with each chirp of the cicadas in the distance. Neither of them dared blink.
Then Xiaochun smirked. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, a completely different girl stood in front of him.
She grew still and calm, posture straight but shoulders relaxed. An aura of confidence surrounded her that Iori recognized from many of his grandfather's most advanced students. Her eyes were sharp and alert to her immediate surroundings. She exuded strength and competence and a full awareness of her abilities far beyond her young age.
"You noticed." She was pleased. "People don't usually notice. Not even Ryo-senpai and the others. Although..." A subtle shift in weight to one side. She used the same hand to tap at her chin with one finger. "...in their defense, I really used to be that air-headed when I was younger."
Iori was still taken aback by the sudden transformation. And the fact that she continued to offer no motive to her actions.
"So you...let them think you still are?"
To Xiaochun's credit, he had been nearly fooled as well. As early as their first meeting, when she'd wailed to her brother about Lopmon with little regard for who was in earshot, she'd already been in character. Then there were her animated conversations with Mimi. Not to mention, her own admission that she regularly wandered off, to the point where one of her seniors had to show her a trick to...
That's when it clicked.
"You want people to underestimate you." He blinked at the realization. "You...actually like it when they do."
"I mean, not always." She amended. "Just usually." A shrug. "Habit. You see, when people dismiss you so easily, they let their guard down. It's way easier to learn about someone when their guard is down." Her arms crossed over her chest. A pout appeared. "Except you. You don't ever let your guard down, Iori-kun, do you?"
The informal address came as yet another surprise, though he was beginning to suspect it shouldn't have. Miyako and the rest of the Chosen all referred to him as Iori-kun, but the honorific hit differently when coming from a girl his age.
"...habit?"
He found himself echoing her reply. Then wondered where the urge to do so came from.
Wherever it was, it earned Xiaochun's approval. She laughed. A slightly more muted giggle than her earlier exclamations of joy. Going so far as to politely raise a hand to cover her mouth.
Iori didn't join her.
She sighed.
"Are you sure you're not part robot?"
He knew she was at least partially joking, yet he still took the bait. His eyes narrowed.
"Stop calling me part robot."
"Sorry, sorry!"
It was the kind of apology that came from someone who had every intention of calling him a robot again.
Xiaochun abruptly spun on her heels and started walking. Her hands fell behind her back, interlacing her fingers together. She was closer to the other Xiaochun now. But not quite. More like a mix of the competent warrior and whimsical girl. Both mischievous and open. Someone spontaneous in her strangely well-thought out , but at ease around a near-stranger like him.
As contradictory as Takeru once insisted.
"Why did you want me to go on a walk with you?" Iori followed after her, quickly catching up to her pace.
"Because you were awake."
He hadn't anticipated such a matter-of-fact reason. "That's it?"
"Well, I admit, I was kind of curious about you." They fell into step with one another, Xiaochun slowing her pace so that they could continue talking. There was no rock in her hand this time. "Mimi-san said you studied martial arts too, so I thought we might have that in common. Then there's also the fact that I'm pretty certain you haven't smiled once all night. That doesn't seem healthy in a boy your age."
Iori had no idea how to respond to that.
"At first, I thought it had something to do with Miyako-san. But..." she considered it before shaking her head. "No. That's not it."
"Miyako-san?"
"Well, yeah. I was watching your reunion." She stared straight ahead as she stretched her arms behind her, all the while watching Iori through peripheral vision. "You two seem close."
Though confused at what Miyako had to do with anything, he nodded. "We are." He had no reason not to admit as much. "Miyako-san and I grew up in the same apartment building. Our families have been friends since before I was born. I even stayed with them for a while after my father died."
Xiaochun nearly faltered on her next step. Only years of honed reflexes kept her upright.
She hadn't expected Iori to volunteer something so personal as the death of a family memory. Every impression she'd had of him indicated he was private to the point of introversion. In a lot of ways, he really did remind her of Jian. Both were reserved and quiet and, if she was completely honest, a bit of a puzzle to her. The kind she was determined to solve.
"So...she's kind of like what Ruki-nee-chan is to me," she reasoned. That piece was easy enough to place. "I do have a real big sister, but I would trade Jaarin-nee-san for her in an instant. Ruki-nee-chan is much cooler. She and Juri-san, both."
Iori wasn't entire comfortable with the idea of trading siblings. Or willingly giving one up. Then again, he was an only child who would never truly understand that sort of familiar relationship.
(Though he did suspect Miyako might share Xioachun's too.)
"If it's not Miyako-san..." Xiaochun was still speculating, "What has you feeling so down?"
"I'm fine," he insisted.
She quickened her step until she was directly in front of him, spinning on her heels so they were face to face. Only a few decimeters separated them as she continued walking backwards, matching their earlier pace while somehow avoiding the rougher terrain behind her.
"Ne...remember what I said earlier about people letting their guard down?" She stopped. He was forced to do the same. Her expression softened. "It's not always a bad thing, Iori-kun."
It was the second time she'd referred to him that way. And the second time he considered saying something but didn't.
Her softness unnerved him. Hikari often looked at people with a degree of softness, but that was different. For as long as he'd known her, Hikari had been the only person more in tune with the feelings of others than Takeru. Iori sometimes wondered if Takeru had even learned it from her. Xiaochun was not Hikari any more than she was Miyako or Sora or...well, she was a little like Mimi, but still different enough that Iori was already starting to lose his train of thinking. That was how much she had unnerved him.
"I'm...not entirely sure it's something you would understand, Lee-san."
Not as someone who willingly deceives the world into thinking so little of her.
"You can call me Xiao-chan, you know. Everyone does." That was precisely as much thought as she gave to the matter before she pointed a finger in the air. "And I wouldn't be so sure about that. Does it have anything to do with having a digimon partner..." she added more fingers with each point "...or traveling to different Worlds...having to save no less than two of them at a time...being one of the youngest of your group...or definitely being one of the best hand-to-hand fighters of said group?"
"I study Kendo," he corrected.
"Close enough."
He opened his mouth to say more. Then closed it. His shoulders slumped. The fight left him. He could just as easily walk around her, but that grandfather-like voice in the back of his head was insisting it would be easier to speak up. Maybe someone who wouldn't understand was the best person to talk to after all. Then she wouldn't have to keep looking at him like that.
"Daisuke-san, Miyako-san, and I weren't Chosen at the same time as the others." He considered adding Ken to the list, but he wasn't sure exactly when Ken had received his digivice. "Takeru-san and the others were all brought there during the summer of 1999-ah..."
Someone from another Dimension might not experience the same flow of time at the same rate.
Or use the same calendar.
"That's a little over six years ago in our World." He clarified. When Xiaochun nodded, he continued, "I never heard the entire story of how long they were there, and everything they went through, but..."
He thought back to the first day of School Festival Week. His conversation with Daisuke. A shadow swept over his features as he recalled the somber sentiment shared between them. How learning more about their friends had made them feel so much more like strangers.
His fists clenched tightly at his sides.
"I heard some of it recently. Takeru-san and Hikari-san went through so much more than the three of us ever knew about. And that was when they were only seven. I was seven when I was Chosen too, but...even the things I went through...all the battles I fought...it was never anything like that." His knuckles turned white. "I couldn't imagine going through what they did, let alone surviving on my own. It was around then I realized...exactly why they had been Chosen in the first place."
Xiaochun wagered a guess: "And you don't think you're as worthy as they are?"
She was a little too accurate for his liking.
He nodded. His digivice weighed heavily in his pocket. He could feel it pressed against his leg through the fabric of his pants. He resisted the urge to reach for it. To feel the cool comfort in his hands.
"When the digivices...well, we call them D3s...came to the three of us, it...didn't really feel like being Chosen. More like being at the right place at the right time. We were all conveniently there. Daisuke-san was standing in front of the computer. Miyako-san and I were in the hall. No one else was around except for...are you laughing?"
First, it was a twitch of the lips. She pressed them together tightly in attempt to maintain her composure. A muted snicker was her first sign of failure. Before long, she was audibly giggling. Even when Iori called her out on it, she only turned away to keep from doing so directly in his face.
"I'm so sorry, Iori-kun!" Her apology was more genuine this time. Still, after several deep breaths, she remained cheerful in stark contrast to his somberness. "It's not anything you said, I swear. I mean, not specifically. It's just..." She straightened, turning back. "Do you know how I got Lopmon as a partner?"
He didn't.
"I was seven years old too." Fortunately, she didn't gloat any further over yet another commonality between them. "Jian-nii-chan and the others had been Tamers for a while and had just taken their first trip to the Digital World. I sort of knew about Digimon from the cartoons and card games, but I'd only just learned that Terriermon was more than a stuffed animal.
"Papa took me to the park to play. While I was on the...I think it was the climbing frame? Anyways, I was almost to the top and thinking about how much I wanted to see Terriermon again. Then this strange cloud appeared and the next thing I knew, I was in the Digital World. I think I even knew that. At the time, though, I just wanted to keep playing.
"I probably should have been scared, but everything around me seemed like so much fun. I ran around without any adults of older kids telling me what to do. That's when I found Antylamon. I found out later he was supposed to be our enemy, but I had no way of knowing then. I just saw this cool, giant rabbit I could play with. So I made him play with me. He gave me rides all around the desert. Then he protected me from a real bad digimon, and that's when my digivice appeared!"
She finished her story with a flourish, looking as proud as the day she executed her first Card Slash.
Iori was speechless.
His earlier assessment of the girl was proven accurate. Xiaochun really was a lot. He simply hadn't realized how much of that would turn out to be so...familiar. She'd been the same age as him. She'd been at the right place at the right time. Chosen by chance.
She...really does understand.
Better than he did, apparently.
And she still wasn't done.
"It gets better." She leaned in, as if imparting some special secret. Iori remained frozen in place. "Takato-san literally made up Guilmon! He drew a picture and used a special card in his reader that wished him into existence. Hiro-san and Kenta-san followed him and the others when they went to the Digital World and whined until the Digital World gave in and gave them partners. At least, that's how Ruki-nee-chan described it." She bit her lip in amusement. "But the best on is Juri-san. She chased her partner all over the park the first time they met! And that was days before she even got her digivice!"
Iori blinked. Twice. "Seriously?"
"All true. I swear!"
She had no reason to lie. He had no reason to suspect she was still trying to deceive him. At worst, he might be able to accuse her of oversimplify things. Maybe.
"Do you like being a Chosen Child, Iori-kun?"
He didn't need to think about his answer. He nodded.
"Then does it really matter how or why?" She stepped back and extended her arms, spinning around to gesture at the World around them. "Look at where we are! We're in the Digital World! Us! You and me and the others. We get to have these amazing partners and friends and adventures that other kids like us never will. And, yeah, I know we're here because a lot of bad things are happening...but that's because we're the ones who are going to make a difference. Just like I'm sure you already have."
The moon dipped behind the trees, light filtering through the leaves. Beams appeared all around Xiaochun as she turned back with a look of pure happiness. Iori knew then she truly believed every word she said. It wasn't about some cryptic prophecy or deeper meaning behind it all. Xiaochun was just a girl with a digimon partner who loved every minute of being a Tamer.
He understood that now.
The corners of his lips slowly turned upward. For the first time in what felt like weeks, Iori smiled.
Xiaochun's expression brightened even more.
"That's much better."
But the moment was gone as quickly as it came; Xiaochun stiffened before turning on her heels. She tilted her head down, turning her ear towards the path ahead.
"What is it?" Iori asked.
She pressed a finger to her lips and continued to listen.
"It sounds like...a group of digimon. Little ones." The cries were too high to be anything larger than Child levels. Her head shot up. "I think something's happening up ahead."
"We should get the others." Iori glanced back over his shoulder, wondering if Takeru was on watch duty yet.
"And tell them what?" The initial question was sincere. A mischievous glint appeared in her eyes. "We should go take a look. That way, we can report back anything important. Like whether or not it's something we even need to wake everyone over."
"But..."
His protests fell on deaf ears.
"Come on, Iori-kun. It's this way!"
She took off at a jogger's pace. He was left helplessly staring after her retreating form. Torn between two choices. Stay together, which meant following her into uncertainty, or rush back to the campsite for backup.
There was a rock by his feet.
Sometimes, even contradictory choices can meet in the middle.
He picked it up and headed for the nearest tree. Its surface was smoother than the one Xiaochun had used, so it took several passes before a suitably visible scratch appeared in the tree's bark. He finished with two additional lines indicating direction.
Then, against his better judgment, he ran after her.