Velvet Whispers

DISCLAIMER: I don't own digimon, or any of the characters in this story, but what I do own is this little piece of Gatomon's history, so if you want to include it in your Gatomon fics, please email me at to ask me. If you do not, I will send a large pink marshmallow to crush your house. Thank you. I took the bartender's name from the Robbie Williams song 'One For My Baby', and before some weirdo decides to sue me, I have no idea whether that's an original Robbie or if it's Frank Sinatra – it's from the album 'Swing When You're Winning'. And just so people don't get confused, it is NOT Joe Kido. This fic is not set at any particular time – possibly just before one of my many fics in which Myotismon returns. None of the digidestined know of his return. The town being functioning is no indication of his being around, because for the purpose of this short story I have decided that it will function with or without Myotismon's presence, although obviously without him there would not be quite so much fear among the townspeople. Enjoy!

Myotismon walked along the main street in the town below his castle. The sun beat down upon the ebony umbrella he held that protected him from its burning rays. Although all he was doing was walking at a steady pace along the road, he drew glances of fear and surprise from the various henchmen around him, firstly because they all knew what he could do to them if they angered him, and secondly because it was extremely unusual to see him in the town, much less in the middle of the day.

He was here because of the rumours that had filtered up to the castle from his henchmen, and various other digimon that stopped at the town. A digimon who had earned the name Black Velvet from the long black cloak she always wore had been coming here recently, and she seemed quite at home. The digimon also said she was a good fighter – she had gotten involved in a brawl only the week before, and her opponents were not a pretty sight.

Of course after they had attacked her they looked a whole lot worse.

The digimon said the attackers still bore nasty cuts across their faces where she had landed blows on them – what she had used became more fantastic every time he heard the story. At first it had been a knife, then she had hooks for hands, and some said she wore gloves with knives attached, like Freddy Kruger. Myotismon smiled. That would make a good addition to his army.

He had seen her himself a couple of times – he did occasionally come down to the town after dark, and she had been in the local bar, chatting to the bartender or shooting pool with a couple of digimon. She cleaned them out of digidollars, as he recalled, and his smile grew. As far as he could tell, she did not have hooks for hands – someone who did surely could not have played pool that well. He had not seen a digimon play so excellently since… he frowned, then pushed the thought away. It was a preposterous idea – she would never return…

However, after the rumours of the fight had reached his ears, he had chosen to make it his personal business to find this 'Black Velvet'. He had tried to send Demidevimon after her, but he claimed she always disappeared whenever he got near. Myotismon was more inclined to think Demidevimon had become more interested in the bar than recruiting a useful ally, but he had let it slide this time, for he was far more concerned with finding Black Velvet. He would punish Demidevimon later, when he was bored.

First he went to the bar she frequented, but there was no sign of her. He called to the bartender. "Joe. Have you seen the digimon Black Velvet?"

Joe the bartender looked startled, then troubled. "Yes. She was in here a while ago. She left when some Sharmamon came in, as if she didn't want to draw attention to herself. But I think they followed her. I don't think it was anything she can't handle though… they looked like they were looking for a fight. Still, I'd hate to see anything happen to her."

"It is imperative that I find her. Do you know where she went?"

"Well… I'm not sure, really. I don't think she went out the front door, and there are loads of alleys out back – she could have gone down any of them. Why do you ask, Lord Myotismon?"

Myotismon stared down at the barkeep, and Joe visibly shrank. He really wished he hadn't said that now. But instead of striking him, Myotismon actually answered him – he must have been more preoccupied with finding Black Velvet than Joe had thought.

"I feel she would be of some use to me. I have heard she fights well."

Joe nodded. "She does, my Lord. But I think perhaps…"

"Yes?" Myotismon asked. His voice had taken on a dangerous quality.

"Well sir, she's, um, a sort of free spirit, and I don't think…" Joe stammered. His voice trailed away as he saw the look in Myotismon's eyes.

"Really now, Joe. Do you think I'd give her a choice?"

At that Myotismon stood, and strode quickly out of the back door.

Joe watched him go, worry in his cat-like yellow eyes. 'Black Velvet' was a good friend of his, and he seriously hoped that her constant claims that she could take care of herself extended to dealing with Myotismon.

But he doubted that, and that was what frightened him. If Myotismon knew who Black Velvet was, all her merits would count for nought.

Myotismon moved silently through the dingy back alleys, pausing every now and again. No light penetrated these pathways, and Myotismon was able to move freely without the hindrance of his umbrella. As Joe had said, behind the bar there was a veritable labyrinth of passages, and Myotismon, although not lost, had no idea where to start searching for Black Velvet. He stopped at a fork – the third he had reached this afternoon – and looked down each tunnel carefully. It was no use simply wandering blindly throughout the maze – he would never find her that way.

He was saved from having to make a decision by a harsh cry of pain coming from the middle pathway. He followed the noise, and stopped a few metres away from the source. Three Sharmamon had surrounded a small figured cloaked in black. That had to be her. Two Sharmamon were already out for the count slumped against some dustbins, and one of the remaining three had ugly red slash marks across his face.

"You'll pay for that," he snarled at her.

"Sure I will," Black Velvet replied lazily. "Come and make me, then."

All three rushed her at once. Black Velvet whipped round, a blur in the centre, and there were yells of agony from the Sharmamon as they all staggered back sporting nearly identical bloody marks raked over their bodies. Black Velvet went after them methodically and individually, punching each repeatedly until they fell to the floor, unconscious.

The last one didn't go down too easily. He came at her from behind, and Myotismon watched with interest to see what she would do. A long white tail that he hadn't seen before shot out from under her cloak and slammed into the side of the Sharmamon's head. She rose into the air as she hit him, and her hood bounced on her head, then slipped off, revealing delicate features and rather large ears.

The Sharmamon collapsed on the floor with a groan, and passed out. Myotismon stared in shock at Black Velvet, and not because of the ease with which she had despatched her foes, but for another reason. The digimon he was looking at… he recognised her. Realising she would probably look his way soon, to check the surrounding area for observers, he melted into the shadows, confident that she wouldn't see him. She had been taught well in the ways of looking for the opposition, but the teacher would always know better than the student.

Gatomon glanced around quickly, as he had predicted, to check that no-one had seen her true identity. A satisfied smile crossed her face, and then she raised the hood carefully over her ears, so that it covered her features once more.

Myotismon smiled cruelly, and went to step out and 'surprise' her… but something stopped him. In his mind he was replaying the fight. Every attack she had thrown had landed directly on target… it was a rare pleasure to see someone fight that well. Unlike most, she also looked very beautiful in combat – it suited her excellently. He watched her leave, his common sense demanding to know what he was doing… but if he let her know that he knew about her, she would stop coming back here. He had no real idea why she had come back, but he sensed it was something she had to do, something she liked, maybe even loved to do. Otherwise she wouldn't do it– she had more sense, and probably knew the danger she was putting herself in, although perhaps not to the fullest extent, considering it was likely that she didn't know he had returned.

He didn't know why she had reappeared, but he liked it. It was almost as if she needed to be here, close to where she had grown up… the place she always professed to hate so much. And as Myotismon watched Black Velvet disappear from sight, he realised that it was almost as if he needed her to stay close too.

And that he would probably never know why.

A/N: So, what do you think? There is a slim possibility that Gatomon would hear of Myotismon's return from one of the townsfolk, but at this point in time, she has not. Or perhaps she has. Perhaps she has her own reasons for not mentioning it to the others yet. I'll let you decide. Oh, and the bit where she replaces her hood is kind of taken from that classic scene in Aladdin yeah, the Disney film where Aladdin sees Jasmine for the first time by the way – I'm really not too fond of the title, so if you can think of something better, please review and tell me! Or if you think it's good, please tell me so I can feel better about myself! Thanks!