Digimon: After the Fight Series
Part Two: Izzy's Dream
"We'll try again tomorrow," Izzy said calmly and then stormed off. T.K blinked.
"That was one side of Izzy I've never seen before."
Kari was shaking. "That was scary. Is that girl really that evil?"
"Don't say such a thing," Yolei said, comforting Kari. "He's just moody and jealous. C'mon, let's go home."
---
"Knowledge rests not upon truth alone, but upon error also."
-Carl G. Jung
Darkness. Despair. Hate. Jealousy.
Izzy tossed and turned, the dark room seemed to be mocking him. He opened his eyes, but it was no use. There was about as much light in the room as under his eyelids. Izzy tossed his covers aside and felt around for his bedside lamp. He found it, and flipped the switch. Izzy sighed in relief as his room was bathed in light. He sat up and fixed his blanket, shaking his head.
"It was a stupid dream, Izumi. Don't let it get to you."
Izzy turned to look at his laptop on the desk next to his bed. He frowned; he wanted nothing better than to go back to the digital world, back to Tentomon and File Island. Izzy flopped backwards back onto his bed and fell asleep, leaving the light on.
"I really don't see the point in coming back here!"
"Aw, don't be like that, Yolei," T.K said as he turned the computer on. "At least this isn't the detention room, anymore."
"Why do we keep coming back here? The gate's sealed shut inside and outside, and I'm tired of looking at the same boring grey wallpaper!"
"Hey, look at this!"
Kari's voice entered the room before she did; she looked both excited and worried.
"What is it?" T.K asked, moving to her. Kari grabbed Yolei and T.K's wrist and dragged them to the window.
"Nah, you're kidding me!" T.K moaned. He watched as snow fell from the sky, white powder in a frenzy swirl of puffs.
"I have to walk home in this? And I just put away my winter clothes yesterday, great!"
"Actually, you won't be walking at all."
Kari, Yolei, and T.K spun around in surprise. Katrina was smiling at them. Kari blinked.
"You look different today."
"It's 'cause I'm not wearing my school uniform."
Kari noticed this. Katrina was wearing denim caprice, a black-and-white tank top, and long black fingerless gloves. Kari admired Katrina's belt buckle, it was the Tao symbol, the yin-yang sign. Even Katrina's hair clip and earrings were a different color than her school uniform hair clip and earrings. Kari looked at Katrina's boots, they were the same model as Kari's, except blue with a black stripe on it. T.K frowned.
"Whaddya mean we won't be walking at all?"
"Yeah, and why are you here anyway?" Yolei asked, suspiciously.
Katrina sighed and dropped her tote bag on the windowsill.
"I came here looking for Izzy so I could apologize. I heard from his friends that he hangs around at the middle school after school. When I got here, it started snowing like crazy. When I realized he wasn't here, I tried to leave, but the snow is piled up so high..."
Katrina sighed sadly. "If my dad finds out I'm stuck in the middle school, he'll totally get suspicious."
"Suspicious of what?" T.K asked. Katrina turned to him.
"Running away."
Kari's eyebrows furrowed. Wait, did anyone else see that twinkle in Katrina's eyes? That twinkle of…a lie?
"Well," T.K said. "I know one thing, my mom will be too occupied to realize I'm gone, let alone it's snowing."
Kari nodded. "Yeah, same here. Although, I'm sure Tai will be looking for me."
"Ah…no I won't."
Kari, T.K, and Yolei turned around in shock. There they were; Tai, Izzy, Sora, and-
"Matt!" T.K exclaimed.
"What are you guys doing here?" Kari said, but then she regretted asking. She knew exactly what they were doing here, trying to get to the digital world, but she couldn't say that with Katrina standing there.
"Tennis practice got cancelled," Sora said, still in her tennis suit and a sweatband on her wrist.
"We came looking for you," Tai and Matt said.
Izzy didn't say anything, but no one seemed to notice.
"Okay," Yolei said. "So you guys are here. Where are Davis and Cody?"
"Cody went home with a fever," T.K replied. "And Davis had soccer practice, so he probably went home because of the weather."
"The weather sucks, huh?" Sora said, trying to keep the atmosphere cheery.
It didn't work.
"We're going to try to continue our…project," T.K said, eyeing Katrina. "Izzy, you Kari, and Tai can come with me."
The three of them nodded and left the other four standing in the hallway. Katrina moaned and sank to the floor.
"Are you okay?" Sora asked, joining her.
"I'm fine," Katrina assured her. "I just hate this weather. It makes such a big difference moving from Miami to here in Odeiba."
Sora smiled. "Wow, Miami? Really? I have a friend who lives in New York."
Katrina looked at Sora. "The 'Big Apple,' huh? I lived there for five years, it's so nice there. Have you ever been to America?"
"No," Yolei interrupted. "But we've visited Russia!"
"Yolei!" Sora snapped. Yolei covered her mouth. Katrina frowned.
"Russia, really? What's it like?"
"We weren't there for long, you see. We were too busy herding digi-"
"Wild dogs," Sora said through gritted teeth. Yolei blushed.
"Yolei, could you get us a couple of sodas, please?" Matt asked, hanging her change. Yolei nodded and ran off. Matt shrugged of his guitar and set it down, sitting on the wall opposite them. Katrina admired the guitar.
"You play in a band?"
"The most popular band in all of Japan," Sora added, grinning. Matt threw her a tiny smile.
"Could you play for me? I mean, I'm not trying to, you know, ask for a free concert, but you know-"
"It's okay," Matt said, laughing. "I'd love to play for you guys."
"It's his only passion," Sora whispered. Matt shot Sora a dark look, but he unpacked his guitar and thrummed a few strings.
"You're a little sharp," Katrina suggested. Matt looked at her.
"Are you a musician?" he asked her, impressed.
She shrugged. "Nothing major. I played the flute for 5 years, but my musical passion is the ocarina I've played since I was five. I was also in a chorus a few years ago, but quit in middle school."
"How come?" Sora asked as Matt warmed up and adjusted.
Katrina sighed. "That was the year my father met Chantal Wyatt. You see, my mother died just after I was born. My father raised me as a single parent all my life, so I'm not used to having a…well…"
"Mother-figure around?" Matt finished. Katrina nodded.
"I'm the same," Matt said.
"Really?" Katrina asked. She blushed as he winked at her. She was falling in love.
"Aw, c'mon Izzy, don't be so rough on her," Tai said.
"I'm not," Izzy said, stubbornly.
Kari giggled. "Well, one way or another, you'll have to be a lot nicer. And we have to be careful around her. If we're going to be stuck here all night, the least we could do is keep the digimon secret among ourselves."
"I'll bet $20 that Yolei's already blurted the secret," Tai remarked.
"You're on!" T.K laughed.
"You guys aren't helping!" Kari huffed.
"Sheesh, little sis," Tai said, taking a step back. "Don't make me call the navy to calm you down!"
"Will you stop that racket?" Izzy muttered as he once again clacked on the computer.
Tai frowned as he looked at Izzy. "Goodness Izzy. I see a totally different side of you when she's around."
"What are you talking about?" Izzy said, whirling around to look at them.
"It's true," T.K said, putting his arm on Tai's shoulder. The both of them looked mischievous.
"Don't pick on Izzy like that," Kari said, defensively.
"What's wrong with Katrina, Izzy?" Tai prompted. "Is she too smart?"
"Or too cute?" T.K said a teasing grin on his face.
"How can you say that?" Izzy remarked, now on his feet. Kari's mouth opened wide.
Izzy was blushing.
"You're kidding me, right?" Kari said, stunned. Izzy was trying to hide his blush, but it was no use. He might as well go ahead and try to hide his hair.
Tai folded his arms across his chest in achievement. "I knew it the moment she walked through those doors. You like her."
"I don't," Izzy said, weakly.
"You don't have to hide it, Izzy," T.K continued. "We know you really do."
Izzy exhaled and glared at them, trying to calm his temper, but it was no use.
"Go to hell, Tai!" Izzy shouted at Tai. He spun around and ran into the storage room, slamming the door behind him. Kari whirled around to look at Tai and T.K. Her face was as mad as Izzy's was.
"Are you two happy? Why do you have to be such bullies?"
"But Kari," Tai said defensively.
"Grow up!" she shouted and ran into the storage room too. It was full of computer parts and gizmos. This would be Izzy's dream room, had he not been upset at the moment.
"Izzy? It's me, Kari."
"Over here," his voice said. Kari stepped over several computer parts and made her way to the opposite wall where Izzy was sitting. Kari sank to the floor.
"They didn't mean to be mean."
"I know," Izzy replied.
"Why don't you talk to her?"
"Because she thinks I'm a big jerk," he said sighing.
Kari shook her head and took Izzy's hand. He looked at her in surprise.
"No, that's not true," Kari said. "She said she came here looking for you. So she could apologize."
Izzy blinked. "She did?"
"A-huh," Kari said, smiling. "If she thought you were a big jerk, she'd probably have gone home instead of risking her life to find you."
Izzy nodded. "Okay then, let's go back."
Kari smiled. "There we go. And don't worry about T.K and Tai, I've been meaning to give them a 'proper beating.'"
"Ouch, sounds frightening," Izzy said, cringing.
Kari smiled. Izzy got to his feet and helped Kari get to hers. The lights above them flickered and went out. Kari screamed and fell over.
"Kari?" Izzy said. Déjà Vu, he thought. This is how my dream was last night.
Kari crawled on the floor. "I'm fine, but try not to walk! I'll find the door."
Izzy sank to his hands and feet. This is exactly how his dream was. What was going on? He waited for Kari to run into the door. Soon enough, the door creaked open.
"Kari! Izzy!" T.K's voice flooded into the room.
"Right here!" Kari said. She could hear Izzy behind her, trying to reach them. Kari felt around in the dark, and she closed her hand around something.
"You don't have to break my wrist!" Izzy exclaimed.
"Sorry," Kari said as she pulled both of them into the computer room. They both landed in a heap, the only light came from the glowing monitor of one computer.
The one that held the portal.
"Prodigious," Izzy said, noticing this.
"Wasn't there a snow storm when you guys first went to the digital world 4½ years ago?" Kari asked, dusting off her pants.
"Yeah," T.K said as he grabbed Kari and Izzy. "C'mon, Matt has a flashlight and the radiator still works, we can't freeze in this storm."
Kari allowed T.K to lead her into the hallway where the rest of the gang was pigging out on chips and soda.
Kari joined them, sitting next to Tai. He was wearing a large blanket around him, almost like his own tent. He wrapped one side around her and they both shivered under the large blanket.
"How about a campfire song?" Matt suggested.
"What campfire?" Yolei said, moody. She defiantly wasn't happy.
"It's alright, Yolei," Sora remarked. "Just get into the mood."
Yolei sighed. "Fine. But I'm not singing."
"That's okay," Matt said. "Katrina will."
"Huh?"
Everyone in the group looked at each other, than Katrina. She looked as if she had just been told to flush herself down the toilet.
"I-I can't," she whispered.
"Yes you can," Matt said, thrumming the strings threateningly. "I know you can."
Katrina blushed again as Matt winked at her. Izzy shot Matt a dark look.
"Um, restroom break," Kari said, noticing Izzy.
Kari, Izzy, Yolei, and T.K got up and went to the restroom. Kari put a hand on Izzy's arm.
"It's nothing," Kari reassured him.
"Whatever," Izzy said, spirits low. "It's obvious he's a lot better than I am."
Kari put her hand up and slapped him. "Don't be such a downer!"
Izzy stared at her in surprise, touching his bruise.
Déjà Vu.
Kari gasped.
"I'm sorry Izzy!"
"Don't be," he said as Yolei and T.K came back. "I just wasn't quick enough."
"You refused to speak to her, that's what," Kari said. "Matt was the only one who bothered to get to know her, and they have so much in common. They both live with their dads, they're both musicians, and they're both trouble-makers."
"Is he still hung up on that?" Tai asked, walking over to them.
"Did you see that weird computer screen?" T.K sad before things got nastier.
"Yeah," Izzy said, snapping out of his phase. "Maybe it could lead us back to the digital world!"
"Did you hear that?" Yolei asked, eyebrows furrowed.
"Hear what?" Tai asked. The hallway was silent.
"There it is again!" Yolei said and she took off down the hallway.
"Yolei!" Kari said as she followed her. Soon T.K, Tai, and Izzy were following her and then they stopped.
"Where'd they go?"
Yolei looked around. The flashlight was dimming and the area was empty.
"What exactly did you hear, Yolei?" Kari asked.
Yolei looked at them; her face looked haunting in the dim light. "A girl screaming 'save me from him.'"