Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A/N: Another chapter! It's a little shorter than a few of my last ones, but there's a lot to it, and poor Matty gets left in the dark!

Following the Footsteps of Destiny

Chapter 120: Black and White

Kari Takaishi

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

Kari Takaishi listened to Daichi's story in shocked silence, and as soon as the goggle-headed leader stopped talking, the quiet atmosphere of the room erupted into utter chaos.

"Ken Ichijouji! I knew you and the others had gotten yourselves into a couple of tight situations, but I didn't realize things had ended up getting so out of hand. If I had known sneaking into Vampiramon's castle was going to be so dangerous beforehand, I would have demanded Izzy let me come with in order to keep you out of trouble!" Yolei shouted, crossing her arms and glaring at her husband. "Honestly, Ken, you're worse than Sam, and he wasn't exactly doing a good job of keeping himself out of danger either. If you ask me, I'd say you're lucky Spritemon didn't end up killing both you and our son! What were you thinking running after Wormmon like that? I know you wanted to save your partner, and I probably would have done the same thing, but still..."

Ken cuddled Minomon tightly against his chest and gave his wife a rather weak smile. "I'm really sorry, Yolei. I know you're angry, but I couldn't just stand there and watch Spritemon hurt my partner. The only thing I regret is putting Sam in danger. He could have died because of me..."

"Dad, you would have died if Glowmon hadn't digivolved," Sam said quietly.

Ken studied his son's face for a long moment, and smiling slightly, he motioned for the raven-haired Digidestined to join him. Sam, who had been trying unsuccessfully to hide behind Noah in order to avoid his mother's wrath, hesitated and slowly began to move closer to his parents. Yolei frowned at her son, but a gentle push from Noah sent the raven-haired Digidestined tumbling directly into his mother's arms, and the two of them smiled at each other. Sam's smile looked a little weak, but Yolei didn't appear to notice. "Sam, I'm so proud of you. I thought your dad would be the one looking out for you, not the other way around!"

"Sam and I would never let anything happen to Ken," Glimmermon said cheerfully.

Yolei nodded in agreement and stroked the little digimon's head. "Thank you for everything, Glimmermon. I knew you would digivolve soon. Dracomon's a great champion, just like Stingmon. Sam must be very happy for you, and I know you're happy for him, too."

"That's right. Sam and I make a great team!"

"You're the best digimon partner ever," Sam whispered, holding Glimmermon close.

"Dracomon sounds so cool!" Miya squealed, beaming at her brother. "Way to go, Sam, you and Glimmermon are awesome!"

"What about me?" Minomon asked hopefully.

Nao quickly scrambled over to his father's side and shyly wrapped his arms around Minomon in a tight hug. The little in-training digimon beamed at Nao and happily rubbed his cheek against the raven-haired boy's chest. "Hello, Nao. It's nice to meet you. Sam told me all about you, and Miya, too."

"Really?" Miya asked, looking a little bit surprised.

Minomon nodded solemnly and cuddled himself against Sam's stomach. "I haven't seen you since you were a tiny little baby. You sure have grown since then!"

"That's right. I almost forgot. Dai told us you and the others had met Noah and I when we were babies. You met me a couple of months before the gates to the Digital World closed, right?"

"That's right."

"How weird is that? I can't believe I actually knew you before Sam and the others went to the Digital World, even if I was too young to realize it at the time."

"JewelBeemon's amazing. You're really lucky, Dad," Sam mumbled.

"You're lucky, too, Sam," Nao said shyly. "Both Dracomon and JewelBeemon sound like really great digimon."

Sam laughed and gently ruffled his little brother's lavender hair. "Thanks, Nao."

"I'm glad you all like me!" Minomon said, beaming at his partner's children. "I like all of you, too."

"As if we could ever not like you, or Glimmermon," Miya snorted.

Yolei turned slowly to look at her husband, and a warm smile slipped across her face. "I was wondering when you were finally going to use the power of your crest. I knew you would eventually. I've always believed in you, Ken, even if it didn't seem like it sometimes when we were younger. After your Crest of Kindness appeared, I had my doubts, but deep inside my heart, I think I knew all along you would find your way."

Ken leaned over Sam's smaller body and gave Yolei a quick kiss on the cheek. "I know. Thank you."

"I'm glad you were able to get your crest to work, Ken. I've always wondered what Stingmon would look like as an ultimate," Davis said thoughtfully. "Not that I mind DNA digivolving with you or anything. You know that's one of the best things that's ever happened to me, but the fact that Wormmon basically has two ultimate forms now shows just how much you've learned to believe in yourself over the last twenty-five years. You're lucky, Ken. I've been waiting a long time to see your crest in action."

Ken blinked in surprise and glanced self-consciously at his feet. "Thanks, Davis. I...I'm glad you're happy for me. I have to admit, I was a little nervous about what you might think..."

Davis raised his eyebrows and moved over to sit next to his best friend. "Ken, don't tell me you were actually afraid I was going to be upset about Wormmon digivolving into JewelBeemon."

"Well..."

"It doesn't matter how many forms Wormmon has or how he reaches them. You'll always be my DNA partner, even if we never get to DNA digivolve ever again."

Ken slowly looked up and smiled at his best friend. "I should have known you were going to say that. I wonder if we will get to DNA digivolve again."

"Only time will tell. Until then, you have your crest and we have JewelBeemon."

"That's right. DemiVeemon and I will always be friends, no matter what," Minomon said cheerfully.

DemiVeemon nodded in agreement and beamed at Minomon. "I couldn't have said it better myself. The two of us make an awesome team!"

"I wish I could have seen JewelBeemon," Tai complained. "Better luck next time, I guess. Welcome to the club, Ken. Doesn't it feel great to have a crest that actually works?"

"Tai!" Sora scolded.

"I'm just kidding, Sora. You know I don't mean it like that."

Ken smiled hesitantly at the former leader and shrugged his shoulders. "It does feel kind of nice."

"And as an added bonus, you get to be one of us now," Matt smirked. "That makes nine working crests instead of just eight."

"We really are proud of you, Ken. You know that, don't you?" T.K. asked quietly. "And not just you. We're proud of Minomon, too."

Kari smiled at her husband and turned to look at Minomon. "You were great, Minomon. You helped Ken and Sam. The same goes for you, Glimmermon. Dracomon's every bit as wonderful as JewelBeemon."

Both digimon gazed shyly at her and nodded.

"Thanks, Kari," Glimmermon said softly.

Ken's whole face had turned pink during the exchange, but somehow he managed to smile at T.K. and proceeded to gaze nervously at his hands.

"Dad, what did Davis mean when he said Wormmon's new digivolution is a sign of how much you've learned to believe in yourself over the years, and why do I have a feeling you're hiding something from me?" Sam asked bluntly, interrupting the conversation before his father or anyone else could change the subject.

Kari stared at the raven-haired Digidestined, and Kari winced at the sudden fear in Ken's deep blue eyes. Poor Ken. I wish there was something we could do for him, but I don't think anything we say is going to make the slightest bit of difference. Sam obviously hasn't given up on his efforts to learn more about the Emperor, and I don't think we can stop him from finding out the truth much longer. Every day he becomes more and more aggressive about Ken's past, and he's more insistent than ever to learn the truth behind his dad's riddles. Clearly he doesn't like the fact that a part of his father's past remains a mystery to him, and if Ken doesn't tell him about the Emperor soon, I'm afraid someone else will. One way or another, Sam will find out the truth. The question now is when that moment's finally going to arrive...

"Dad..."

"Sam, we have other things to talk about right now," Ken mumbled, avoiding his son's eyes.

Sam immediately snapped his mouth shut, but the intense look on his face betrayed his silence. Obviously he was determined to find out the truth, and that unfortunately was going to cause a lot of problems.

I'm sorry, Ken, but your conversation with Sam is far from being over...

"Ken's right. We do have other things to talk about," T.K. said seriously, turning to look at Mickey. "Why don't we start with you, Mickey? I think you have a little bit of explaining to do, and I'm sure your mother feels the same way, even if you don't!"

Kari gazed quietly at her slightly older son, but Mickey refused to meet her eyes. Instead, the older twin gazed miserably at his feet and held Palelymon tightly in his arms.

"Mickey, I can't believe you put your life on the line like that! That's the sort of thing I would have expected from Matty, not you!" Matt snapped, frowning at his nephew.

The former musician was obviously more concerned than angry, but Mickey wilted under his uncle's gaze nonetheless and buried his face in Palelymon's fluffy ears. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to put myself in danger, but I made a promise..."

"Don't apologize to me, Mickey. Apologize to your mother!"

"What he means to say, Mickey, is he's glad you're safe, and he was really worried about you. He hopes you'll be more careful in the future," Ryoko snorted, rolling his eyes.

Matt's face turned a deep shade of red, but he didn't deny his son's words. Instead, he ignored Ryoko and continued to gaze at Mickey with a frown on his face.

Kari smiled sadly to herself and held out her arms. "Mickey, why don't you come here and explain to me why you felt it was so necessary to put your life in danger."

Mickey hesitated, but a quick hug and a warm smile from his Aunt Mimi got him moving, and as soon as he was within touching distance, Kari pulled the older twin into her arms and hugged him tightly against her chest. "Mickey, you were the one who always caused me the least amount of trouble, but maybe I was only kidding myself because I was hoping your good behaviour would rub off on Matty and teach him to be more responsible, but now I'm starting to wonder if it might be the other way around."

"Mickey, you did inherit some of my personality after all!" Tai said, beaming proudly at his nephew.

"No wonder he's starting to act like a crazy person!" Matt complained. "Look what you've done, Tai! You're turning my nephews into juvenile delinquents!"

Tai chose to ignore that comment and proceeded to whisper something in Matty's ear. The younger twin suddenly burst into laughter, and both Matt and Mickey glanced suspiciously at the snickering duo before turning away again.

Kari buried her face in Mickey's silky, golden hair and gently rubbed his back in a soothing gesture. "Why, Mickey? Why did you do it?"

"Mom, Luciamon asked me to help DarkAngelicmon. I promised her I would, and I...I can't break my promise. He needs us, even if he doesn't know it yet, and I'm not going to give up on him!"

"Why not?"

Mickey slowly looked up at her and managed a shy smile. "I know this might sound a little strange, but...I don't believe he's really evil. He might have let himself become corrupted by the Powers of Darkness, but there's still hope for him. Luciamon made it sound as if he wasn't always a bad digimon, and she would know. She was one of his best friends, and he cared about her a lot. I know we can save him, and I won't give up until we do."

Kari glanced quickly at the others and smiled slightly when she realized none of them were paying the slightest bit of attention to her and Mickey. Tai and Matt had gotten into one of their usual arguments over their twin nephews, and that gave her the perfect opportunity to find out what was going on with her son without any other interruptions. "Mickey, how can you be so sure?"

Mickey frowned thoughtfully at Palelymon and shrugged his shoulders. "It's just this feeling I have. I'm not really sure how to explain it, but there's something about the emotion in his eyes whenever he looks at me or Matty that makes me think there's more to him than meets the eye. He doesn't hate us, Mom, not like Vampiramon or Spritemon. In fact, I think he enjoys interacting with humans, especially when it comes to Matty, and I guess you could say me, too, but that could have something to do with Angelicmon and Gabrielmon. He genuinely seems curious about humans, and I think he wants to learn as much as he can about us, especially when it comes to the human heart."

"Which isn't so different from the heart of a digimon."

Mickey nodded in agreement and gently stroked Palelymon's ears. "I know, but I think that's something he has yet to figure out."

"Maybe, but that still doesn't explain why you risked your life to steal one of his feathers."

Mickey blushed and quickly hid his face against her shoulder. "Dad gave me Angemon's feather as a symbol of hope, but I wanted one from DarkAngelicmon, too, because it means the same thing. Every time I look at it, it reminds me never to give up on myself, or on DarkAngelicmon. It helps keep me focused on what I have to do, and I know it'll give me motivation to do my best no matter how hard things get. I won't give up on DarkAngelicmon. I won't!"

Kari closed her eyes and rested her cheek against Mickey's forehead. She felt him snuggle closer to her, and a small smile slipped across her lips. "Mickey, before you were acting as if you hated DarkAngelicmon, and you were clearly angry at him for trying to hurt Matty. Do you still feel the same way now?"

"No, Mom, I don't hate him. I don't think I ever really did. I was angry at the way he kept trying to come after Matty, but I think I understand him a little bit better now, and I hope one day he'll come to understand me, too."

Kari slowly opened her eyes and smiled at her son. "May I see these feathers you've been hanging onto for safekeeping?"

"Of course."

Mickey shyly placed both feathers in her hands, and she held them up to the light. One black and one white. They were complete opposites of each other, and yet they still symbolized the same thing. Hope.

Kari turned to gaze at her husband and felt her throat close up. Thank you, T.K. Thank you for finding a way to get our son to believe in himself again...

"Are you going to ground me now?" Mickey asked hesitantly.

Kari slowly ran her fingers over DarkAngelicmon's black feather and frowned thoughtfully at its shadowy surface. It doesn't feel evil...

"Mom?"

Kari gave her son a reassuring smile and quickly shook her head. "No, Mickey, I'm not going to ground you. I probably would have done the same thing if I were you. Besides, I think you've learned your lesson. Try to stay safe from now on, okay?"

"I will. Um...would you really have done the same thing?"

"Yes, and more than likely Tai would have had a huge fit over it so I can't really blame Gabrielmon and the others for giving you a hard time. Like I said before, Mickey, I'm not going to ground you, but only on one condition."

"What's that?"

Kari kissed her son's smooth cheek and placed her lips close to his ear. "You have to promise me you won't give up on DarkAngelicmon, no matter what."

Mickey beamed at her and wrapped his arms tightly around her neck. "I won't. I promise."

Poor Luciamon. She gave up her life to help us, and it cost her everything. If only things could have ended differently...

"Mom, what are you thinking about?"

Kari handed the feathers back to her son and let out a deep sigh. "I wish I could have met Luciamon. She sounds like she would have made a great friend. I'm glad she wasn't evil after all."

"She would have liked you, Mom. I know it," Mickey said quietly. "I think the two of you would have ended up becoming really close."

If only. She gave up her life to help my sons. How can I ever repay her for that?

"She'll be back, Mom. You'll see."

Yes, she will, just like Patamon, Wormmon, and so many others...

"What are you two talking about?" Ema asked.

Kari looked up and blinked in surprise when she realized everyone was watching her. She felt Mickey grow tense in her arms, and glancing down, she gave her son a curious look. "What's wrong, Mickey?"

Mickey leaned close to her and buried his face in her hair. "Mom, will you please keep our conversation a secret from my friends? Especially Matty. You can tell Dad and the other adults, if you want, but I would prefer if Dai, Ema, and the others were kept in the dark about what's going on with me at the moment. I don't think Matty really understands how I feel yet, and I want him to see the good in DarkAngelicmon without help from anyone else. It's important that he does, otherwise he'll never be able to help me save the fallen angel."

Kari sighed and held her son close. "Okay, but what if Matty doesn't figure it out?"

"He will. I know he will."

"Hey, Kari, aren't you going to tell us what's going on?" Ema complained. "Why does everyone ignore me all the time?"

"Do we really need to answer that?" Noah snorted.

Kari motioned for T.K. to join her, and without a word, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek. "T.K., I think we've all been hard enough on Mickey for one day. I really don't think it's fair to get him into trouble for doing what he believes is right."

T.K. studied her face for a moment and nodded slowly. "If you say so. You'll tell me everything, won't you?"

"Of course she will," Mickey mumbled, earning himself a fierce hug from his father.

Matty glared at the three of them and crossed his arms over his chest. "Wait a minute, are you telling me Mickey's not going to get into trouble? But...but, I would have gotten into trouble if I had done the same thing!"

Kari gazed directly into Matty's amber eyes and shook her head. "No, you wouldn't have."

Matty slowly came towards them and poked Mickey in the chest. "You're hiding something from me again, aren't you. Fine, be that way, but you know what, Mickey? You always think with your heart and forget to use your brain sometimes. You're like Dai in that sense, but I suppose I'll forgive you. This time."

"Hey, don't bring me into this!" Dai muttered, glaring at Matty.

Mickey laughed and slipped his arm around Matty's shoulders. "I might think with my heart sometimes, but so do you, Matty."

"Make that all the time, but at least I stay a little more level-headed than you do!"

"No you don't!" Rina giggled, leaping up and scrambling into her father's arms. She pulled Patamon off of T.K.'s head and gave the little rookie a tight squeeze. "You're so cool, Patamon! Daddy must be very proud to have you for a digimon."

"I'm proud to have T.K. for a partner! I'm so glad I finally got a chance to meet you, Rina. You're a great human. I know Gatomon's really going to like you."

"I hope so. I can't wait to meet Mommy's partner."

"Hey, aren't we going to talk about the crests?" Ami interrupted.

"What about them?" Kenzo asked curiously.

Ami ignored the dark-haired boy and turned to look at her brother. "Dai, did you guys really bring the crests back with you?"

"Of course we did! Are you trying to call me a liar or something?"

Kari glanced at her sons and felt her heart leap into her throat. "My crest..."

"That's right," Matty said softly.

Mickey slowly lifted his hands and grabbed onto the chain circling his neck, which she had not noticed before. He pulled it over his head and held the object out to her in the palm of his hand. She glanced at it and let out a gasp. Glimmering faintly in Mickey's grasp was something she had never thought she would ever see again. The Crest of Light.