Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A/N: Done another chapter today!

Following the Footsteps of Destiny

Chapter 18: On The Other Side Of The Gate

Ryoko Ishida

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

Ryoko and the others landed up on the computer room floor in a pile of bodies, and he let out a groan.

"Ouch!" Dai moaned, sitting up and climbing off of Mickey. "I hope we don't have to go through this every time we come back!"

"Dai! Look at Embermon!" Takara squealed in surprise and pointed at Dai's head.

Embermon had turned into a large red head with pointed ears, a forked tail, and big emerald green eyes.

"Dude, what's happened to you now?" Dai asked, poking the little digimon in the cheek.

"I guess I don't have enough energy in the human world to maintain the rookie stage for long periods of time. This is my in-training form. My name is now DemiEmbermon."

"That's cool. At least you'll be a lot easier to hide now!" Dai laughed.

The goggle headed leader turned to the rest of them and gave them a serious look. "You guys heard what Leomon said. We have to find the rest of your digimon partners. I say we meet back here in this computer room tomorrow and head to the Digiworld again. Is that okay with the rest of you guys?"

"That's fine with me," Takara said.

"Us, too," the twins added.

"And me," Sam grinned.

Ryoko merely nodded and gave the others a smile.

"Awesome. Well I better go find my soccer coach and make up a story about why I wasn't able to show up," Dai said with a laugh. "Then I better get home. My Uncle Joe and Aunt Jun are coming over for supper which means I have to put up with Ema all night!"

The goggle headed leader made a face and quickly started for the door. "See you all tomorrow."

"Bye!" DemiEmbermon called out, waving his tail at them.

"Make sure you keep DemiEmbermon hidden!" Ryoko shouted after his friend.

"I will," Dai replied.

"We better go, too," Mickey said, elbowing Matty in the side. "Our parents will be home soon."

"And I'd better go before my mom freaks out!" Sam added.

The three of them left, and Ryoko turned to Takara with a gasp. "Kara! I completely forgot about Taysuke's soccer game again! Our parents!"

"Oh no!" Takara shrieked. "They're probably worried about us! We better get to the soccer field and quick!"

Ryoko headed for the door and together the two of them raced out of the school.

Matt Ishida

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

Matt was doing his best to concentrate on the game where Taysuke had just scored another goal, but his blue gaze kept drifting towards the street. Where could they be? Ryoko's not the type of kid who just disappears without bothering to tell us where he is. He always phones us if he knows that he's going to be late or gone for a long period of time.

He felt Mimi take his hand and turned to give his wife a worried look. She squeezed his fingers and bit her lip, her amber eyes sparkling with fear. Mimi was making a huge effort to keep her attention focused on the game, but she, too, kept glancing towards the street.

Taniko, who sat on his other side, gave him an encouraging smile, but it did not really help much.

Matt sighed and covered his face with both hands. He did not know what he would do if he ever lost his son. He could still remember the moment when the doctor had first let him hold Ryoko, on the day that his son had first come into the world. His little boy had been so perfect with big blue eyes and tiny little fingers and toes. Ryoko had seemed so small and defenceless in his arms. The amount of love that he had felt for that tiny little baby had been almost overwhelming. That day, he had made a promise to himself that he would keep Ryoko safe as much as he could in a world that was often filled with sorrow and sadness. He had promised himself that he would not let Ryoko grow up with a lonely childhood like the one that he had had to endure. With every hug and every smile, it proved to him all over again just how wonderful fatherhood really was. If anything happened to his only child, he knew he would never be the same person again.

He glanced up at Tai, and Tai gave him a strained smile from his seat between Kenzo and Sora. It was obvious that his best friend was worried about Takara.

So am I. After all, he and Mimi were Takara's and Taysuke's legal guardians. If anything were to happen to Tai and Sora, the Kamiya children were his' and Mimi's responsibility. He had been shocked when Tai and Sora had told him, but it made sense since T.K. and Kari already had three children of their own to look after. Matt had been honoured. He loved Takara and Taysuke as if they were his own, and it was the least he could do for Tai after everything that Tai had done for him. There were not many people that he would trust to look after his own son which was why he and Mimi had named Tai and Sora as Ryoko's legal guardians. He knew they loved Ryoko and would give his son a good home if anything were to happen to him and Mimi.

"Look!" Ema suddenly shouted. "It's Kara and Ryoko!"

Matt jerked his head up and let out a gasp of relief at the sight of his son racing towards him.

Mimi scrambled off the bench, and Matt quickly followed her.

Takara and Ryoko came to a stop in front of them, and Matt was almost flattened from behind when Sora and Tai ran into him.

"Ryoko! Where have you been?" Mimi cried, throwing her arms around their son and kissing his cheeks. "I was so worried."

"I'm fine, Mom," Ryoko said softly, his sparkling blue eyes filling with emotion. Their son hugged Mimi tightly and hid his face against her shoulder.

"Takara, you know you're suppose to phone us if you're going to be late!" Sora scolded, hugging her daughter tightly.

"I know, Mom," Takara said meekly. "I'm sorry."

"Well, you're safe so I suppose that's what matters," Tai sighed, kissing Takara's forehead and giving her a warm hug.

Matt hung back, not trusting himself to speak yet.

Ryoko kissed Mimi's cheek before pulling back and smiling at her.

Then his son turned to him, and the smile faded from Ryoko's face. His son's blue eyes shifted nervously to Takara before turning back to him.

"Dad, um..." Ryoko broke off, stared at him for a moment, and promptly threw his arms around him. "I'm really sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to make you and Mom worry," Ryoko mumbled into his chest.

Matt wrapped his arms around Ryoko's shoulders and rested his cheek against the top of his son's golden head. "Where have you been?" he asked quietly.

Ryoko blushed and glanced quickly at Takara. "We got held up at Dai's soccer practice with the twins, and we...um...lost track of time."

"Yeah," Takara said, nodding in agreement.

Matt exchanged a look with Mimi, and he could tell that his wife did not believe that explanation either. Since when has Ryoko started lying to me?

His son must have sensed what he was thinking because Ryoko suddenly looked guilty and hugged him tighter.

"I love you, Dad," Ryoko mumbled.

Matt smiled and kissed his son's golden hair. "I love you, too," he murmured.

One day Ryoko would be ready to tell him, and Matt knew that he would be there to listen.

Ryoko turned and held out a hand to Mimi who smiled and came forward. She took her son's hand and then wrapped her arms around both of them.

"I love you, Mom," Ryoko said, smiling at her.

"I love you, too, sweetheart," Mimi said softly.

Matt leaned over Ryoko to kiss Mimi's lips and smiled at her.

She kissed him back, and they hugged Ryoko tightly between them.

I wonder what brought this on all of a sudden. Ryoko's acting a little odd compared to usual.

Takara stood with her parents' arms around her and exchanged an amused look with Ryoko.

"The same goes for you," Matt added, giving Takara a stern look and leaning over to kiss her cheek. "You kids are going to drive us crazy!"

"I have to agree with that!" Tai grinned, putting an arm around Ryoko and ruffling his golden hair.

Sora and Mimi both laughed before cuddling each other's kid with hugs and kisses.

"Kara! Ryoko!"

Matt turned to see Taysuke running towards them with Ema, Kenzo, and Taniko.

"Where have you been!" Taysuke gasped, coming to a stop in front of them.

"We got held up at Dai's soccer practice," Ryoko mumbled, pulling away from Tai and staring at his feet.

Taysuke gave Ryoko a suspicious look. It was obvious that the younger Kamiya did not believe Ryoko either.

"Ryoko, why do you always call Dai by his full name whenever he's around, but you use his nickname when he isn't?" Taysuke grinned, suddenly changing the subject.

Ryoko's cheeks turned a bright red. "I don't know what you're talking about," Ryoko mumbled.

Matt stared at his son and frowned. What was that all about?

"So, how did you do?" Takara asked.

"We won!" Taysuke said happily, and then his face fell. "You guys didn't even get to see it."

"We're really sorry," Takara said softly, giving her younger brother a hug.

"We'll be at your next game, I promise," Ryoko said, hugging Taysuke who hugged him back.

Matt looked up and smiled at his best friend, and Tai smiled back at him.

"That's okay," Taysuke said, beaming at Ryoko. "As long as you guys are safe."

"Why wouldn't we be?" Takara said innocently, and for some reason she and Ryoko started to laugh.

"Alright, lets get moving," Ema interrupted. "I have to get to Dai's house before my mom thinks I've gone missing!"

Matt rolled his eyes and smiled with amusement. Tai was right. It was nothing short of a miracle that Joe was still sane with Jun for a wife and Ema for a daughter!

Matt wrapped an arm around his son, who smiled up at him, and they all left the soccer field.

Sam Ichijouji

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

Sam walked through the front door of his house and entered the kitchen where his mother stood at the sink. She fixed him with a disapproving look and crossed her arms. "Honestly, Sam. I knew you wanted to watch Dai's soccer practice, but it shouldn't have taken this long! You're almost late for supper!"

Sam winced. "Sorry, Mom. We got held up. Where's Miya? I don't see her here."

"She went to fetch your father from the convenience store with Ami and Noah. She should be back at any moment."

His mother had just finished speaking when Miya burst into the kitchen in a fit of giggles.

"Where are Ami and Noah?" their mother asked, frowning at her daughter's behaviour.

"They've gone back to Ami's house," Miya managed to say between giggles. "Noah's family is having dinner there tonight. Oh, if any of you see Noah again, don't mention anything about flowers!"

"I'm not even going to ask," Sam muttered as Miya collapsed into a chair, laughing harder than ever and holding her sides.

Sam glanced at his littler brother who was seated at the table and grinned. "Well, at least you're normal, Nao!"

Nao beamed at him and gave Miya a curious look.

A moment later their father came striding into the room and frowned at Miya. "Really, Miya. You should be more sensitive to Noah's feelings," their father said.

"What did you do this time?" their mother demanded.

"He'll get over it!" Miya giggled.

"Daddy, I don't think Miya's being very nice," Nao said seriously.

Their dad laughed and leaned down to give his younger son a squeeze. "No, she isn't."

Miya just rolled her eyes and continued to giggle.

"Time to eat," their mother announced, setting the food out on the table. "Kari and T.K. already came by and picked up Rina so we won't need an extra plate."

Sam took a seat next to Nao at the table and gave his father a smile. "Is Miya embarrassing Noah again?"

"You could say that!" his dad laughed. "The poor boy picked the wrong person to place his affections upon!"

"Hey!" Miya shouted. "This is your daughter we're talking about here!"

"Exactly," their father said dryly and everyone laughed, even Miya.

Sam hesitated and reaching out he gave his father a hug.

"Hey, what was that for?" his dad asked, smiling at him with affection and stroking his hair.

"Nothing," he said softly, ignoring the curious stares from the rest of his family. Don't worry, Dad. You're not going to lose me like you did my uncle!