Hi guys, we're back with another chapter. Now, we got an important message for you guys so that'll take the place of my usual bit for the reviews.

Now you see, FernClaw and I are going to take a break from Secrets and so after next week's chapter we're going to be away for a little bit. Recharging the batteries and what not. We won't leave you hanging for long and we'd appreciate it if you guys would be patient with us until we manage to refresh ourselves and get back in the game.

With that said, I hope you guys enjoy these next two chapters and hope too see you when we come back.

Chapter 45: Shattered.

Sleep didn't ease his fears, rather draw them out and make them stronger in his dreams. He tossed and turned in his sleep. He couldn't shake the look of contempt he'd seen from both of his parents now. It haunted the brunette, making him doubt his own parents' seemingly good willed intentions.

He bolted upright feeling someone grab his shoulder, smacking his head into the person.

"Ah Takuya!"

"Owww… owww…" Takuya whined, pulling away to see whom he had bashed his head into. He opened his eyes and allowed his abilities to kick in to let him see who had reached out to him. "Shinya?"

The younger boy moaned, holding his forehead where he was hit. "Jeez… that really hurt…"

"I-I wasn't expecting someone to just wake me up like that!" Takuya whispered loudly as to make sure not to possibly wake up their parents or the baby. "What were you doing?"

"You were tossing and turning." Shinya answered, pulling his hands away from his forehead. The spot where he was hit had turned red. "Like you were having a nightmare or something."

Takuya sighed. "I guess you could say that." He looked at his brother's forehead and winced. "That's gonna leave a bruise… guess you don't have as hard a head as I do."

Shinya rolled his eyes. "Wait, you can see? It's really dark though."

"Night vision." His brother answered, much to his brother's amazement. The look on Shinya's face instantly told Takuya that he wanted to know more. Might as well get it over with he figured. "I can smell, hear, and see better, I'm stronger, faster, and more agile, and I control fire."

"Whoa…" the young boy was in complete awe of his brother. "Can you show me?"

Takuya slapped his hand over his face and groaned weakly. "Should have seen that one coming."

"You promised Takuya." Shinya countered, pouting lightly.

The elder boy groaned again, "Fine, but turn on the light first."

"Really!?" Shinya got up immediately and turned on the light, making Takuya flinch and wince at the sudden burst of light.

"Some warning would be nice," Takuya muttered rubbing his eyes, and giving them a moment to adjust. He blinked a few times, "Alright... Are you ready?"

Shinya nodded vigorously, "Yeah!"

"Of course..." Takuya replied sheepishly, he took a deep breath and evolved. "This is it Shinya."

Shinya studied Flamon closely, taking in everything he saw. "Wow… that is so cool."

Takuya felt like Shinya was far too easily impressed but quickly learned how curious the boy was when he got up close to take a closer look at the flat horns poking out of the mess he called hair. "What're you doing?"

"Lookin'." The boy answered simply and touched the flat top of the horns. "Why are these sawed off?"

"I dunno. That's just how they are." Takuya answered as Shinya started to examine the tattoos, paying no regard to Takuya's personal space much to his annoyance. "Same as those."

"They kinda look like those tribal tattoos." Shinya observed. "Can you do anything in this form?"

The fire Digimon sighed. "I can do everything I mentioned before but better." He answered and let a flame flicker on his index finger and float around harmlessly in midair before them, effectively entrancing the young boy. "Zoe liked that too."

"Zoe? Oh right, the girl you like." Shinya gave his brother a sly smile. "How're things with her?"

"Huh?" Takuya lost control of the flame, letting it flicker out. He blushed brightly, "S-she's fine."

Shinya grinned, "Is that all?"

"It's all you're gonna know!" Takuya stuck out his tongue, twitching his tail in annoyance. Shinya reached out, grabbing at Takuya's tail, "Ow- Hey! Shinya!"

"You have a tail... That's so cool!" Shinya burst out happily, letting go, "It's soft too!"

Takuya glowered a bit, "knock it off already will ya?"

"Aww come on Takuya! You're just so cool looking! I mean, look at your feet! They have these huge claws and your gloves look awesome!" the younger chatter on, eyes wide with excitement and curiosity, "Man I wish I could see you fight!"

"Not a chance, it's too dangerous!" Takuya said quickly, "Besides, there's nothing to fight."

Shinya pouted again, "aww..."

"Can we go back to sleep now?" Takuya moaned lying back on his side, curling up.

"But there's still so much I wanna know." Shinya whined, making his brother moan again and hide under his blanket before changing back with a brief flash of light. "Can you turn into anything else? Dad mentioned something like that when you rescued him."

Takuya groaned, refusing to budge from his spot despite his brother shaking and trying to pull the sheet free from his grip.

"Come on Takuya…" The younger brother continued, tugging at Takuya's blanket.

The older Kanbara held his grip tight, not giving any slack for his brother to pull it free. "Please… just let me go to sleep…"

Shinya huffed and let go of the blanket. "Fine…" he responded, a little disappointed, before crawling back to his bed. "But you owe me tomorrow." He added before drifting off to sleep.

Takuya sighed to himself and relaxed himself and turned to stare up at the ceiling, feeling a great crashing wave of nostalgia wash over him. He couldn't even remember the last time he was in this room but the ceiling looked the same as it did before when he still lived there.

He remembered staring up at it before whenever he couldn't sleep at night and would just dwell in his thoughts.

He was home now. What happens now? Everything has changed so much since the last time he was home. Would he be able to adapt? Would things be better for him now? He had a sister now. Takuya still couldn't get over that fact. When in the world did something like this happen?

The boy sighed again softly, and rolled over to face the window. He didn't even know where to begin with his family any more. His father and brother were on his side, but his mother seemed less than happy to see him.

"Mom..." he whispered, closing his eyes. "Do I really scare you that much?"

No answer came to mind as the brunette drifted back to sleep, his mind still unsettled. Morning came sooner than Takuya would have liked. Shinya pounced on him like a hyperactive cat. "Takuya wake up! Breakfast is ready."

Takuya groaned softly, "Shinya go away..." He pulled the covers tight over his head.

"Come on Takuya!" Shinya persisted, "Get up!" He pulled the covers off his brother, and gasped lightly.

"What?" Takuya half growled, sitting up.

Shinya gaped for a moment, "Um... You... You're that thing again..."

"Huh?!" Takuya looked himself over, groaning loudly. "I evolved in my sleep!?" He huffed to himself and tried to change back, finding he couldn't. "Not again..."

"Come on Takuya, stop messing around!" the younger boy stated.

Takuya turned to face his brother, His voice cracking. "I'm stuck!"

Shinya stared at his brother in disbelief. "Y-you're stuck? What do you mean you're stuck?"

"I can't change back…" Takuya whined and tried to change back only for nothing to happen. He groaned and held his head, getting a headache from trying to force it. "No, no, no… this cannot be happening… this cannot be happening!"

His younger brother looked worried, not used to seeing his brother freak out like that. "Why can't you change back? I thought you had it under control."

Takuya moaned weakly, shaking his head. "I do… I just… I-I… I get stuck… I…I get stuck sometimes…"

"You do…?" Shinya frowned, worried. "How do you fix it?"

The older boy took a breath trying to calm down and think this through. He was stuck as Flamon before and that was because he had trouble accepting his new form. Takuya didn't think he had that problem accepting Flamon so what could be the problem?

"Man, I don't have a clue…" Takuya groaned and fell back in his bed. "Mom's gonna flip her lid if she sees me like this…"

Shinya felt horrible for his brother. He went to Takuya's side, trying to comfort him. "It's not so bad... right?"

"Not so bad?! Shinya! I can't become human!" The elder boy shouted, "Mom already doesn't like me around! This will make it so much worse!" He pulled the covers over his head, moaning softly.

"Is there anything I can do Takuya?" the younger brunette asked softly, "I can get you some breakfast?"

Takuya pulled the blanket back, muttering softly, "I'm too worked up to eat..."

Shinya sat beside Takuya. "Want me to call your friends?"

"No," the boy muttered softly, curling up on his side. "I... I don't know Shinya..." Takuya shivered, "This is really bad..."

The young Kanbara felt horrible for his brother. He had no idea what he could do to help. There wasn't much he could do in his position. This was all still entirely new to him.

"I just… I just need to stay away from everyone right now…" Takuya muttered softly.

"I don't think that's going to help you." Shinya stated. Being a recluse was not going to help Takuya in the slightest bit. Something like that never does anyone any good. "What if we talk to Dad about it?"

Takuya scoffed lightly. "What is Dad going to be able to do?"

Shinya frowned. Sure their father couldn't really do anything. The most their father could do is try to talk to their mother but she was just as stubborn as Takuya could be. "Well… maybe just having his support could help."

The older brother appreciated the gesture but it just wasn't going to help him right now so he just sighed and just burrowed under his blanket.

Shinya felt frustrated with the lack of success with his brother and decided that maybe confronting his mother one more time could bare some fruit. He scurried downstairs and found his mother rocking Yuuko in her arms on the couch.

"Good morning sweetheart." Yuriko greeted her youngest son with a small smile but it faded with the frown he was giving her.

"Why are you being so mean to Takuya?" Shinya asked bluntly, not wasting any time getting to the point.

Yuriko sighed. "It's complicated Shinya. I'm just thinking about the family."

"But Takuya's part of the family! And just because he can turn into that creature it doesn't mean he's dangerous. He saved Dad's life remember? And he saved us from that scary monster that was here that first time." Shinya remarked, crossing his arms. "He's a hero!"

"Takuya also had a temper and after seeing him fight that other... thing, I'm afraid of what he could do to you or Yuuko."

Shinya gaped at her, "Takuya would never-"

"I don't know that Shinya, and neither do you," the woman started, her tone dangerous.

"But mom-"

She raised her voice, "No buts Shinya! I am not ready to trust him. Not after all the destruction in the city, or after the fight in our living room. He's dangerous, and he knows that."

The young boy lowered his head and retreated back upstairs, muttering under his breath. "Takuya's not dangerous..."

He trudged back up stairs feeling defeated and returned to his bedroom, "Takuya?" The elder boy didn't respond when Shinya opened the door. "Takuya? Takuya where are you?" He looked around. His brother's bed was empty and the window was open.

Takuya huffed, landing nimbly on a rooftop. He looked back in the direction of the house, feeling bad for just leaving like that. He knew Shinya would worry over him but Takuya just couldn't stay there in that house anymore; not with the off-putting tension between him and his parents, specifically his mother.

The boy doubted that she would ever trust him again. All she could see was a dangerous monster and it hurt knowing that.

Going back home felt like a mistake. Takuya huffed and looked to his D-Tector. Now he had to figure out where he was going to stay.

Staying with the Minamotos was out of the question and he couldn't very well stay with Zoe either. No way in hell would Mr. Orimoto even let him enter the premises much less stay the night. There was Mrs. Kimura but he didn't want to impose on her anymore than he already did. That left Tommy and JP. Takuya sighed, knowing what the obvious choice was.

The boy fumbled with the D-Tector and waited until he heard a reply.

"Takuya? Hey man, what's up?"

Takuya scratched at the back of his head awkwardly, not sure how to put his request. "Hey… uh, I kinda have a problem…"

"What's wrong? Your family giving you trouble?" JP asked sounding concerned.

"You can say that… look, I just… I can't stay with them right now and… I really don't have anywhere else to go right now either…" The Digimon boy responded nervously. "So I was wondering… if… well… if I could stay at your place for a while?"

The elder boy laughed lightly, "It's no problem Takuya, Do you need an escape now?"

"On my way now..." Takuya replied sullenly, "Um.. I have another problem too."

"What's wrong?"

Takuya sighed, "I woke up this morning as Flamon, and I can't change back again! I'm really freaked out now..."

The boy's defeated tone made JP feel bad for the poor boy. "We can figure that out once you get here, kay? I'll leave my window open so you don't have to come into the building."

"You are a life-saver JP," Takuya said gratefully, "I'll be there in a bit."

"No problem Takky, I'll see you soon," JP said cheerfully. The call ended and Takuya resumed leaping carefully from rooftop to rooftop. He still felt sad and upset but relieved that a friend was willing to help him.

It didn't take long for Takuya to arrive at the apartment, having rode on top of a passing train most of the way. The trip had offered some reliefs, allowing the boy to jump as high as he wanted, move as fast as he wanted; just getting rid of any frustration he had with the energy he burned. It wasn't much but it was something.

He found the open window and glanced at the street below to make sure no one was around before jumping. Takuya landed on the windowsill, startling JP. "Hey, thanks again for helping me out."

"Yeah, don't worry about it." JP ushered the Digimon in and closed the window. "And don't worry about my Dad. He won't be here till like way early in the morning."

"Right." Takuya nodded and sighed, sitting down on the couch, minding the gadgets that were cluttered between the cushions.

JP grinned sheepishly. "Hope you don't mind the clutter. Wasn't expecting anyone over today." The teenager sat at his workbench and turned his chair to face his friend. "So, what happened?"

"Well… for starters, did you know I had a little sister as of a few months ago?" The fire Digimon started, thinking it was a good place to start. "Cuz I didn't till yesterday."

The elder boy's eyes went wide at the new information. "What? Seriously?! No way! I didn't know your mom had another kid!"

Takuya nodded. "Yeah... she had another kid... I almost feel... Like I've been replaced ya know? Like she doesn't need me now..." the boy said softly, hugging his knees to his chest, "My dad seems to want me home, but not my mom..."

"That's rough..." JP said softly, trying to be sympathetic. "I wish I could help you more Takky."

"Just getting out of the house has been helpful. I couldn't take being there..." Takuya admitted, "Thanks for letting me come over on such short notice- and like this." He gestured to his Digimon body.

JP nodded, "It's no trouble, really. How can we change you back is the question."

"I have no idea... this is really stressing me out now," Takuya leaned back, frustrated.

"I can tell- Hey did you eat anything yet? I was about to make breakfast when you called."

Just the thought of food made Takuya's stomach respond with a growl, effectively answering for him. "Uh… yeah… Breakfast sounds really good actually… if you don't mind."

JP grinned at his friend and nodded, making his way into the kitchen. "Omelets okay with you?"

"Whatever's fine." Takuya replied, not wanting to impose on his friend's hospitality.

"So, do the others know you're coming here?" JP asked.

The boy shook his head in response. "I haven't told anyone. I don't want to bother them… but knowing Shinya, he's probably gonna worry and call Tommy." And as if on cue, the D-Tector started to buzz. "And that would be Tommy."

"Takuya, are you okay? Shinya called. He told me that you just disappeared." Tommy voiced his concern, seeming a little relieved to know that Takuya was able to answer. "What happened?"

"I'm fine Tommy… I just… I couldn't be home right now." Takuya answered weakly. "I'll come back eventually… I just can't be in the same house as Mom right now."

Tommy paused, "Did... something happen?"

"No, I just... It's difficult to explain... Just tell Shinya not to worry for me?" The Digimon asked, his voice straining. JP stood and went to the kitchen while Takuya talked with Tommy.

"Alright, I'll talk to you later then Takuya," Tommy said with a hollow sigh, "I hope your brother understands."

Takuya sighed as well, "me too. Shinya doesn't seem to get how upsetting this is."

"He's worried Takuya, and you've run away from him," Tommy countered.

"I know! I just..." Takuya snapped, groaning with frustration, "I'm stuck as Flamon again and I don't know how to change back this time!"

There was another pause as Tommy took in the information. "I'll try to make Shinya understand, kay?"

"Thank you Tommy... Sorry for shouting at you just now..." Takuya murmured softly.

"Don't worry about it, I know you're stressed out and you don't mean it," Tommy soothed, "Just collect yourself and calm down. We can figure this out."

Takuya smiled, "Right... Thanks again Tommy."

"Anytime."

Tommy hung up the call and Takuya took a deep breath to calm down. "God, what a mess. This is all just… I can't just catch a break, can I?"

"Takky buddy, you need to relax. Just take a moment and take a load off." JP told his friend, bringing in their omelets. "Like Tommy said, we can figure this out."

Takuya nodded silently, biting into his omelet and momentarily forgot about his grief. "Hmmm, this is pretty good." He commented and started to eat with more gusto. "Dude, this is awesome."

JP grinned at the boy, glad to see Takuya enjoy their breakfast. After seeing the crestfallen look on Takuya's face, it was a bit of a relief to have the boy relax and enjoy himself for the time being.

"So… let's go ahead and figure this out, alright?" JP suggested, hoping that they could make a breakthrough. "Alright… you were stuck before, how were you able to fix it before?"

Takuya sighed and put his plate away. "Well… last time… I just had trouble accepting my Digimon form. I had to realize I was okay with my new form. But I don't have an issue with Flamon. I'm over that."

JP scratched the top of his head, trying to wrap his brain around the issue. "Well… what if we figure out what makes you uncomfortable?"

"Easy… My mom makes me uncomfortable. I feel like I can't even be around her without having her glare at me." Takuya answered, feeling upset as he recalled the look she gave him. "She looks at me like I'm some kind of monster."

"Maybe you just have to make her see that you're not the monster she sees," JP suggested lightly.

Takuya looked at him, "It's not that simple JP. She REALLY doesn't want me around- and especially not around the baby..." He looked down at his plate, feeling miserable.

The elder boy sighed softly, "Look Takuya, I think you need to give it some time with your mom. She's probably nervous around you because of the baby. You have to remember Dracmon painted your Digimon form in a pretty negative light."

"I know... I just... I've been so afraid to come home... Like... She never even tried to see me after Dad threw me out, or when I was in the hospital... My Dad at least tried..." Takuya's voice wavered, feeling brokenhearted over the entire situation. "I don't want to go back there... That's not my home anymore..."

JP moved beside Takuya and wrapped an arm around the smaller Digimon boy. "Look Takky, I know this is a lot and you're still trying to overcome past experiences but I really believe you need to give your mother a chance. Your dad came around and that man is more stubborn than you are- no offense." he cracked a weak smile, hoping it would make Takuya do the same.

Takuya couldn't help but snort in amusement at JP's remark. "Everyone in my family is stubborn." He replied with the faintest of smiles on his face.

The elder boy rolled his eyes at the comment. It was a step in the right direction. "So, just give your mom some time. Eventually she'll realize that you're not a threat and be more than willing to have you back home."

"I suppose… if Dad can accept me I guess Mom will… eventually…" Takuya offered, mostly to himself. How he hoped that would be the case. Takuya wanted more than anything to be able to live a normal life with his family. "Right?" he turned to JP, hoping some positive reinforcement would help.

"Of course. We know your mom. Everything will go back to the way they used to be in no time." JP encouraged his friend. "Just give her some time to get used to Flamon."

Takuya nodded. "Yeah…" he heaved a sigh and offered JP a faint smile. "Thanks for the support JP. Things have been really rough and I just appreciate the help you guys have been giving me."

"What else would we do? Leave you hanging?" the elder boy grinned, "We're a team and we're friends. We stick together, no matter what."

"Yeah... I guess so," Takuya murmured quietly.

JP sat back beside the flame Digimon, "Hey, you said it yourself. We're a team. I know we weren't as strong as you or Kouji, but we always worked together."

"But I-"

"I wasn't finished. Everyone looked to you to lead Takuya- even when everything looked hopeless you never gave up. That's why we would never give up on you Takky," JP leaned forward and ruffled Takuya's thick mane, "That's what friends are for."

"Ah JP! Leave my hair out of this!" Takuya yelped, a smile finally gracing his face as he tried to escape the elder boy.

He laughed and sat back, "It looks better that way!"

Takuya stuck out his tongue and tried to bring the wild orange mess of hair back under control to no avail. He snorted, "sure it does."

"It makes you look distinguished." JP joked, grinning widely.

Takuya rolled his eyes and shook his head violently in an attempt to stick it back like it used to. It didn't do much. He sighed and just decided to let it go. "Well, my hair is always a mess anyway." Takuya told himself.

The boy glanced around, having never been in JP's home often. They were usually always at the park or at the Minamotos or Kimuras. He had to note the clutter of gadgets and models that were scattered across the furniture. "You're really into electronics and stuff huh?"

"Well, I guess. I just like making stuff and tinkering with it." JP answered and grinned sheepishly. "I'm always making something or building models in my spare time."

Takuya nodded and got a good look at some of the models. They ranged from random devices to large-scale models of planes, boats, and robots. "Well, I gotta say dude, a lot of this stuff's impressive. When'd you get into it?"

"Well, I've always been a little interested but I guess I started as soon as we got back from our travels in the Digital World." The elder boy shrugged but grinned at a memory. "You wanna see something really cool?"

This piqued the Digimon boy's interest. "Heck yeah."

JP eagerly got up from his spot on the couch and went into his room, picking up a clutter of objects and bringing them to the living room. "You are gonna flip."

Takuya watched as JP placed one figure on the coffee table and immediately was in awe of what he saw. It was a model of a rocket ship, one the boy was familiar with. "Dude, is that what I think it is? This is awesome. It looks exactly like the one we flew in when we were on one of the Digital World's moons."

"That's not even the best part," JP hooked the little rocket ship up to a some sort of cable, lighting it up with tiny LED lights.

"Whoa..." Takuya stared at it in awe, "Man, I wish I could build something like that."

JP blushed lightly, "Thanks Takky. You're the first to see it."

"It's amazing! You did that all by yourself?" the younger boy asked, thoroughly in awe of the miniature rocket.

"Not all of it, I had some help from my professor and some of my friends in class- mostly for the lights and wiring them. But I built the rest of it!" He stated proudly.

Takuya looked up, "How is that going by the way? School? You're going to a trade school now, right?"

"It's great. I'm studying robotics and engineering and taking a few computer coding classes on the side. One of my professors recommended I try to get an internship with the space program."

"Wow! Why haven't you told us JP?! That's so cool!"

JP scratched at the back of his neck sheepishly. "I just didn't think it was that big of a deal… that and well, we were a bit preoccupied with the Digimon thing so…"

"Seriously? Man, I wish we knew about this way earlier. This has got to be like the coolest thing ever!" Takuya stated excitedly. "This is easily ten times cooler than anything I've done since we came back from the Digital World."

"Really? What've you done since we came back?" JP asked curiously.

Takuya shook his head. "Not much really. Just uh… got back to school and well, dealt with that. Being part Digimon kinda took top priority after that."

The elder boy nodded in understanding. Had it really been that short of a time that Takuya had become a Digimon? It really did seem like it was only a couple of months since this whole thing started up again.

"But dude, seriously, you gotta tell everyone about this. They are gonna freaking flip when they see all this stuff." Takuya continued and looked back at the model rocket. "Man, I still can't get over how cool this is."

JP smiled. "Well, I guess I do have the time and opportunity now."

"You should," Takuya urged.

"I'm just not sure about it- I mean, it's a big deal and I'm not sure I'm ready for such a big responsibility." the elder boy admitted sheepishly.

Takuya smiled as JP put the model rocket back to it's spot so it wouldn't be damaged. "You're really smart JP, You can do this."

"You think so Takuya?"

"JP, You overcame so many things in the Digital World, You can take on that internship no sweat. Give yourself some credit buddy," Takuya encouraged.

JP laughed lightly, "I guess so, I forget how much we actually did in the Digital World."

Takuya nodded, "We really did a lot when you think about it." He stretched back, leaning against the arm of the sofa. He wrapped his tail up beside his leg and yawned tiredly.

"You look beat buddy. Why don't you go ahead and get some sleep." JP suggested to his friend, taking notice to the faint circles around his eyes. "You look like you really need it."

Takuya tried to hold back another yawn but failed miserably. "Yeah, I guess… I had a crappy night last night."

"You're welcome to crash in my room right now. I got a few projects I wanna work on so don't mind me." JP told him, pointing towards a door. "I'll come and get you if it's dinner time or if someone calls."

The fire Digimon nodded, feeling his eyes grow heavier by the second. "Thanks buddy, you're the best." And with that Takuya got up from his spot on the couch and went into his friend's room, crashing hard on the bed.

After how poorly he slept last night, it didn't take long for sleep to find him and whisk him away. But much like before, it was not a peaceful sleep.

Images of his mother's apprehensive face played over and over in his thoughts. She would not trust him; she would not trust him anywhere near her or the baby. The sharp look in her eye bore right into him and made him feel scared and small.

It plagued him.

He woke up, the setting sun's warm beams washing over his body. He sat up slowly, finding himself more tired than before falling asleep. He shifted around, pulling his knees to his chest. Takuya wrapped his tail around his feet and rested his chin on his knees.

"Why is she so afraid of me?" the boy whispered. Sure he knew his appearance looked frightening, and his attacks were fierce, but he was still the same boy she raised. He thought about that notion for a moment.

He had been imprisoned; tortured, nearly killed on several occasions- his body had suffered so much abuse and pain. He closed his eyes, trying to block the painful memories.

Takuya knew his friends would always stand by him, but what he needed now was his mother. Someone to tell him everything would be all right, to hold him gently and ease his pain. He needed her now more than ever and she wanted nothing to do with him, and it hurt.