Disclaimer: For the one-hundredth and sixty-ninth time, I do not own Digimon.
A/N: Okay, another chapter done. The next one will be in a new POV so watch for it!
Chapter 169: An Unexpected Twist
Daichi 'Dai' Motomiya
File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
Letting out a startled gasp, Daichi stumbled rather ungracefully out of the gate, and losing his balance he promptly fell on his knees, his nose nearly smashing painfully into the hard, dry earth crumbling beneath his hands and feet. Off to his left, Takara was apologizing profusely to Matty, whom she had just flattened, and on his right Mickey was attempting to help Sam into a sitting position, but from the way Sam kept trying to push Mickey's hand away, it was obvious the raven-haired Digidestined didn't want any help.
In more ways than one.
I had a feeling Sam would try to pull something like this, but if he thinks Mickey is going to put up with his attitude forever then he's in for a big surprise. I know Mickey acts a bit timid most of the time, but he can be pretty aggressive when he has to be, especially if his heart is really set on something. And what's even more funny is the fact that most of the time Mickey doesn't even realize just how much his concern for the people he cares about makes his true personality shine brightly through his shy exterior. How can Sam just ignore someone who's trying so hard to help him?
Glaring at the raven-haired Digidestined, Dai opened his mouth to make a retort, but before he could utter a single shout or reprimand, somebody slammed into his back, knocking him flat on his face in the dirt. Turning his head slightly, he caught a glimpse of golden hair, and muttering to himself he quickly squirmed out from underneath the blond who had just tried to flatten him. "Ouch! Hey, Ishida, watch we're you're landing!"
"Oh, sorry."
What? That's it? Not even a single insult?
Sneezing and coughing up dirt, Dai slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, and turning to face Ryoko, he plastered what he hoped was a reassuring smile on his face, his hand coming up to give the golden-haired Digidestined's shoulder a quick squeeze. "Don't worry about Sam. I promised you I would fix things and I'm not going to break my promise just because he's acting like a complete jerk to all of his friends."
"I know," Ryoko murmured, avoiding his eyes. "It's just...it's hard, and I feel so useless. I mean, he won't even look at me!"
"Of course it's hard, you idiot! Having friends isn't supposed to be easy. Besides, he's avoiding me, too, not just you."
"What should we do?"
"Nothing for now. We have a job to do, remember?"
"Yeah, but..."
"I told you, don't worry about it. Let Sam give us the cold shoulder. It's not like you're all alone, Ishida. We're in this together, remember?"
Ryoko stared at him, and smiling faintly the golden-haired Digidestined mumbled, "Nothing you say is going to make me feel any better, but...I guess I don't mind being an outcast for the most part as long as I have someone to share the burden with."
"That's what I'm here for."
"Huh?"
Glancing around to make sure no one could overhear them, Dai whispered softly in the golden-haired Digidestined's ear, "That's what being the leader of the Digidestined is all about. It's my job, isn't it? But, I'm not just helping you because I'm your leader. I'm mostly doing it because I'm your friend."
"Dai..."
And there he goes again, calling me by my nickname, but what does it mean? I don't understand him. Why doesn't he just call me 'Dai' all the time? Is it because I always call him 'Ishida?' I only do it because he does the same thing to me...
"Gatomon!" Kari suddenly shouted, the sound of her voice catching the goggle-headed leader off guard.
Pulling away from Ryoko, Dai turned to see Gatomon, Gomamon, Hawkmon, Penguinmon, Armadillomon, and Gotsumon hurrying towards them. As Izzy had instructed, all five digimon were present, and as far as Dai could tell, before his large party of Digidestined had arrived from the human world, the small group of digimon had been lounging in a small patch of green grass near the gate, waiting patiently for three of their partners to make an appearance, but at the same time it was obvious they had also been keeping a close eye on Infinity Mountain, watching for any signs of unusual activity.
"Kari, I've really missed you," Gatomon said soberly, leaping into her partner's arms and burying her face against the female Digidestined's neck. "It's good to have you back in the Digiworld. My claws have been itching to pick a fight with Vampiramon. Once I get to be Angewomon again, even DarkAngelicmon won't be able to stand against my arrows!"
Laughing, Kari hugged Gatomon tightly and rubbing her eyes she gave the little female digimon a warm smile. "I've missed you too, Gatomon. I hope you're not upset it took me so long to come and see you."
"Don't worry about it. I've been helping Dai and the others as much as I can, even without you here, but it is nice to have you back."
"It's been along time, Noriko," Penguinmon said solemnly, turning to his partner and hiding his face against her legs. "I was starting to think we'd never see each other again."
"Same here, Penguinmon. I can't even tell you how glad I am to be here. You've been watching over Dai for me?"
"Of course, but he's a very stubborn human. Kind of like you."
"See? I knew it!" Davis shouted triumphantly, pointing an accusing finger at his wife. "It is your fault!"
Rolling his eyes, Daichi glanced between his parents, but instead of getting angry, his mother merely waved aside his father's insult with a smile, and hugging Penguinmon tightly around the neck she said, "Thank you, Penguinmon. When we head back to the human world, you're coming with us. Now that you and I are finally together again, I'm not letting you out of my sight."
"That's good. I really want to meet Ami."
"What about you, Gomamon? Aren't you going to say hi to your partner?" Matty asked curiously, nudging the little rookie with his foot.
Instead of answering, Gomamon stuck his nose in the air and frowning he turned to gaze at the shadowy form of Infinity Mountain, its dark surface hovering menacingly over File Island. The barren landscape beneath their feet seemed to spread out from the base of the mountain like a plague and the comparison caused a shiver to race down Dai's spine. Since the gate was positioned right where the grass began to recede, eventually disappearing completely beneath a sea of rocks and dirt, the mountain itself wasn't hovering directly above their heads, but they were still close enough to its base to get a good glimpse of the jagged rocks and steep cliffs winding around its rough surface.
A path, but we can't see the whole thing because parts of it are hidden behind rocks and boulders. I bet it circles around the entire mountain. That must be our way up, but...is it safe? Vampiramon could already be waiting for us...
"Hey, Gomamon, sorry I'm late," Joe said pleasantly, crouching next to his partner. "You're not angry, are you?"
Turning to face his partner, Gomamon said nonchalantly, "I guess I'll forgive you, this time."
"Is that supposed to be your way of showing you care? Thanks a lot, Gomamon. You never change, do you."
"You're one to talk!"
For a moment, the two of them just stared at each other, and then without warning Joe suddenly pulled Gomamon into his arms, surprisingly the little digimon. Smiling slightly, he gave his partner a quick hug. "It's good to be back."
"It's good to have you back," Gomamon mumbled, looking suspiciously teary-eyed.
"Is something wrong, Gomamon?" Joe asked, looking concerned.
Squirming out of his partner's arms, the little rookie huffed and quickly shook his head. "No way! I just have something in my eye. Are you ready to knock this Vampiramon down a peg or two?"
"As long as you're with me, I'll take on anything," Joe replied, smiling at his partner. "And just so you know, I feel the same way. About being here with you, I mean."
Gomamon ducked his head and blushing he proceeded to fiddle with a small rock lying next to the cobalt-haired Digidestined's foot. "I know."
"So, you guys really are going to climb Infinity Mountain?" Gotsumon asked anxiously, glancing nervously over his shoulder.
"Of course!" Tai said enthusiastically, pumping his fist into the air. "Besides, it's not like we really have much of a choice."
"But-"
"Don't worry, Gotsumon, they'll be back before we know it," Armadillomon said mildly. "Until then, I intend to take a nice, long nap. It makes the time go faster."
"Sam, Izzy told us about your father," Hawkmon suddenly interrupted, his voice surprisingly calm and his face expressionless. "I'm very sorry to hear how upset you are. I hope you won't forget how important he is to you, even if you believe you'll never be able to forgive him."
Blushing bright red, Sam bit his lower lip and shaking his head he quickly turned his back on the little rookie. "I haven't forgotten anything. Well? Aren't we going to climb Infinity Mountain? That's the reason you guys all dragged me here in the first place, isn't it?"
"Speaking of Infinity Mountain, I know you talked to Izzy not that long ago, but I still have to ask in case anything has changed since then. Did you guys catch a glimpse of Vampiramon or one of the others trying to reach the Spirit Chip before us?" Matt asked, ignoring Sam and turning his attention to Hawkmon's group. "As you already know, Izzy certainly thought there would be a chance you'd catch them sneaking around. I can't see them just sitting back and waiting for us to get the Spirit Chip without having their say in the matter. That's really not their style."
"No kidding. They like interfering with our plans," Davis snorted. "They knew we were coming here today and I bet you anything they're waiting to ambush us."
Shaking his head, Hawkmon sent Matt an apologetic look. "Unfortunately, no. Nothing has changed since we last spoke to Izzy. We haven't seen a single digimon come anywhere near Infinity Mountain all day, but...I can't help thinking they might have somehow gotten past us."
"You mean, you think they've already reached the top of Infinity Mountain?" Agumon asked curiously.
Gatomon leaped out of Kari's arms, and landing on the ground next to Agumon she waved her fist in the direction of Infinity Mountain. "I don't know about having reached the top yet, but I definitely know they're up there somewhere. It's just this feeling I have."
"We all feel it," Gotsumon mumbled, shuffling his feet. "We've done our best to keep out of sight as much as possible, but considering there aren't exactly many places to hide around here, it hasn't been all that easy to do."
"If they are waiting for us on Infinity Mountain, they would obviously have had to start climbing from the opposite side otherwise you guys would have seen them," Ryoko said shortly, wrinkling his nose. "How much do you want to bet they have a scout of their own?"
"You think Vampiramon had someone watching Gomamon and the others earlier today?" Alopemon asked quietly.
"Who says it was a while ago? They could be watching us right now, even as we speak."
"Halomon?" Mickey gasped, rounding on his partner.
Reacting instantly to Mickey's request, Halomon fluttered into the air, and turning slowly in a circle he frowned at the landscape, his bright blue eyes narrowing in concentration. "If there is someone watching us, it's not DarkAngelicmon."
"Maybe not, but that doesn't mean DarkAngelicmon has forgotten about us," Celestimon countered. "At the moment, we're not close enough to Infinity Mountain to be able to sense him yet, which means he could still be waiting for us."
"But he's definitely not waiting for us on the ground. That's one small consolation, at least," Noriko sighed.
"Too bad it doesn't mean much," Tai snorted. "Like Halomon said, one of the others could have been watching Gomamon's group or they could be watching us right now. Knowing exactly where your enemy is can be a huge advantage. With that kind of information, they could easily climb Infinity Mountain without anyone noticing. I know some of Vampiramon's allies aren't all that smart, but if they really want to stay out of sight there are still some places to hide around here, closer to the mountain. There are several possibilities they could use, though DarkAngelicmon wouldn't be able to."
"Tai's right. We don't have a clue where they are, but they might know where we are. If that's true, it puts us at a huge disadvantage," Ryoko complained. "They must know about this gate, even if not exactly its actual location. No wonder Izzy wants us to be so careful..."
Making a face, Dai turned to look at the television monitor, and crossing his arms over his chest he gave the man staring back at him a expectant look. "What do you think, Izzy?"
"I think you all need to be extremely careful. Anything could happen on Infinity Mountain today, so keep your guard up. I know Soulmon was following us yesterday when I mentioned the gate, but I don't think he was close enough to hear my words, and even if he was, I'm pretty sure we got rid of him before he had a chance to mention the gate to Vampiramon. But...even if I'm right that doesn't mean Vampiramon didn't already know about the gate near Infinity Mountain. We really are at a potentially huge disadvantage, but I knew already after talking to Gennai that using the gate near Infinity Mountain would be risky..."
"We'll be careful," Takara promised.
"Hawkmon, if you don't mind, I'd like you, Armadillomon, and Gotsumon to remain behind. I'll be keeping in contact with you through the gate so stay close by in range of the television monitor. I know it's not the same as actually being on Infinity Mountain, but if you spot anything unusual on your end, be sure to let me know. Davis and the others will stay in touch with me through e-mail in case something goes wrong, but if for some reason they can't contact me, you guys will be my backup, assuming you see anything of course, but I'm sure something like a big battle, the light of a Spirit Chip, or a huge explosion won't be too hard to spot. I like keeping my options open when it comes to lines of communication."
"Sure, you can count on us," Gotsumon said eagerly.
"Great, now you've got me imagining all of the things that could go wrong. Thanks a lot, Izzy!" Matty said weakly, "'If for some reason we can't contact you'...Talk about the wrong kind of motivation."
"Oh, I'm sure you'll be fine," Izzy said cheerfully, waving them off. "Have fun, and whatever you do don't let Vampiramon get her hands on that Spirit Chip!"
"That's easy for you to say," Embermon grumbled.
"Izzy, tell Yolei not to worry about Sam," Hawkmon instructed. "I will most certainly do what I can to help, but I don't think any effort on my part will really be all that necessary. Sam will find his own way, maybe sooner than we think. "
"Don't worry, I'll let her know."
"Say hi to Rosa for me!" Gotsumon shouted, anxious to be heard over the sudden burst of conversation from the rest of the group.
"He doesn't have to, I'm right here!" Rosa called out, her face appearing suddenly on the television monitor. "I miss you, Gotsumon, but don't worry, I'll be there before you know it."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Appearing suddenly beside Rosa, completely obscuring Izzy from view, Cody peered into the monitor and he smiled at his partner. "I'll come as soon as I can, Armadillomon."
"Don't worry about me, Cody. I'll wait as long as you need me to," Armadillomon said pleasantly, setting himself next to the monitor and curling himself up into a ball for a long nap.
"Wake up, lazy bum!" Hawkmon scolded. "Don't expect me to watch Infinity Mountain all by myself!"
"What about me?" Gotsumon piped up.
"Half the time you're as bad as he is!"
Shaking his head at the bickering trio, Daichi quickly pulled out his D-Coder, and taking extra care to make sure he kept it covered with his hands, he pointed it at Infinity Mountain. "Well, the Spirit Chip is definitely still up there. Now that we're close to Infinity Mountain again, my D-Coder has started to glow like crazy."
"Same with mine," Ryoko said quietly, holding out his own D-Coder for emphasis. "You know what that means, don't you? We need to be extra careful to keep them hidden. If Vampiramon and the others really are on Infinity Mountain, any sigh of the light coming from our D-Coders will give away our location, which is exactly what I don't want. After what happened yesterday, I'm not going to make the same mistake twice."
"Are the crests glowing too?" Kari asked, glancing curiously at her brother.
Tai gave her a quick smile, and discreetly holding out his crest, he nodded his head at its glowing surface. "Looks that way. What about you, Matt?"
"Mine's definitely glowing. How about you, Joe? Has your crest started to glow?"
Taking a quick peek at the small trinket hidden beneath his shirt, Joe blinked in surprise and he slowly lifted his head to gaze at the golden-haired Digidestined. "Yes, actually it is. I have to admit, I wasn't really convinced it would glow, but it looks like you guys were right."
"Of course we were!" Tai snorted, rolling his eyes.
A sudden gasp caught Dai's attention, and turning around to search for the source of the noise, he spotted Takara staring wide-eyed at something in her hands, the look on her face a mask of shock.
"What's wrong, Kara?" Dovemon cried, hovering anxiously next to her partner's shoulder.
Immediately, Tai was at his daughter's side, and slipping an arm around her shoulders he gave her a concerned look. "What is it, Kara?"
"You're not hurt, are you?" Glowmon gasped.
Instead of responding, Takara slowly spread her fingers apart, and she held out the object in her hands, taking extra care to keep it at least partly hidden from any intruders who even now could be watching them from afar. At first Dai couldn't figure out what was wrong, but a second look at the Digivice in Takara's hands made him freeze in his tracks, his heart leaping painfully into his throat.
Takara's D-Coder Digivice was glowing.
"Impossible!" Matty whispered, shaking his head in denial.
"I don't understand," Mickey gasped, scratching his silky blond hair in confusion. "Kara, your D-Coder didn't glow yesterday, so why..."
"The Crest of Courage," Tai said quietly, staring at the D-Coder in his daughter's hands. "Why didn't I see it before? It's because of the Crest of Courage!"
"But Mickey's right! Takara's D-Coder didn't glow yesterday when both my D-Coder and Daichi's D-Coder started to glow," Ryoko protested.
Blushing a deep shade of red, Takara quickly ducked her head, and avoiding Ryoko's eyes she mumbled, "Maybe it did, but we just didn't notice."
"What do you mean?" Kari asked uncertainly.
Dai took a small step closer to Takara, and almost as if she could sense his presence, the female Digidestined suddenly looked up at him, giving him a weak smile. "Dai, the only reason I noticed your D-Coder glowing is because it was sticking half out of your pocket. With Ryoko, he was already holding his D-Coder in his hand, and since he had it displayed where everyone could see it, it's not like his D-Coder's glowing surface was all that hard to spot, but with me..."
"You had your D-Coder in your back pocket," Ryoko said bluntly, his deep blue eyes lighting up with sudden understanding, "But unlike Dai, your Digivice wasn't sticking half out of your pocket. Yours was entirely hidden, and not only that you also didn't have your back turned towards us like Dai had his back turned towards you. So, even if a faint glow could be seen coming from your pocket, we never would have noticed it."
"If I recall, the only time you pulled your Digivice out was when we were all with you near Infinity Mountain. You had Dovemon digivolve," Sam mumbled, avoiding the female Digidestined's eyes. "It was glowing then, but the D-Coders always glow right when our partners digivolve, so I never thought anything of it. After Dovemon became Ibismon, unlike the rest of us, you put your Digivice back in your pocket right away. That would explain why we never noticed your D-Coder glowing..."
"But...after we left, Kara stayed near Infinity Mountain with Mina and Izzy to take on Vampiramion," Mickey countered. "She must have pulled her Digivice out at least once while Ibismon was fighting. It's just natural instinct to do so. Wouldn't someone have noticed it glowing then?"
Everyone turned to look at Takara, and shrugging her shoulders the female Digidestined gazed self-consciously at her feet. "No. Except for one small incident, I kept my D-Coder in my pocket the whole time."
"When was that?" Tai asked curiously. "I mean, when did you have it out?"
"I took it out briefly to check what was going on with the rest of you guys, and now that I think about it, it was glowing at the time, but...I thought it was just responding to Dovemon being in a higher state of digivolution. Looking back on it now, I realize how wrong I was. Our Digivices only glow when our partners first digivolve and once they reach a new digivolution the glow normally disappears. Our Digivices don't usually keep glowing the entire time our digimon are in an evolved state. At the time, though, I was so busy worrying about everyone else that I didn't even notice. I never thought..."
"I noticed your Digivice glowing too, but like you, at the time it never even occurred to me that it would be because of the Spirit Chip," Mina suddenly said softly from the television screen. "It makes sense, though. You have a connection to the Crest of Courage because of your father, just like Dai, whose own connection to the crest comes from Davis. It's only natural that your D-Coder would respond to the barrier created by the crests."
"Prodigious, this is fantastic!" Izzy shouted happily from the monitor, leaning around his wife for a better look at the screen. "Only...I can't believe I overlooked something so important! Of course Takara's D-Coder would glow! Gennai's information wouldn't make any sense if it didn't."
"There he goes again!" Mimi groaned from somewhere in the background.
"How could I have missed such a crucial point in my theory? You don't think it's because I'm getting old, do you?" Izzy asked, ignoring Mimi and glancing anxiously at his wife.
"Of course not. I think it's more because you keep getting too excited all the time!" Mina laughed, kissing her husband's cheek. "Time to settle down a little, I think."
"But-"
"Isn't it obvious why Takara's D-Coder went unnoticed?" Matt said seriously. "It's because we were so busy focusing on Dai and Ryoko that no one bothered to remember all of Gennai's words. We were so convinced the Spirit Chip had to belong to one of them, and because of how sure we were, any other possibilities there might have been out there never even crossed our minds."
"And look at the result!" Davis snorted.
"Davis is right. I think from now on we need to be a bit more careful," Noriko said seriously. "Another mistake like this could cost us a Spirit Chip."
"No kidding," Veemon piped up. "And that would be bad."
Ignoring Veemon and his parents, Daichi turned to look at Kara, and gazing into her eyes, he gave her a steady look. "So...the Spirit Chip might not be mine after all. It might not even be Ishida's. It could belong to you."
"Dai, I..."
"How could I ever forget about you?" Tai murmured, pulling his daughter into a hug and tugging gently on her ponytail. "You've always been brave, even when you were little."
Beaming at her father, Takara whispered, "It's okay, I don't mind. Even I didn't notice, and besides, there were so many other things going on yesterday...with being attacked and then having to worry about Sam..."
"I know, but I still feel guilty. What kind of father forgets about his baby girl?"
"Oh, Dad."
Feeling suddenly uncertain, Dai looked away, trying unsuccessfully to avoid Takara's eyes, and frowning he said quietly, "The Crest of Courage is just as much a part of you as it is a part of me, if not more so. The Spirit Chip should belong to you."
"Maybe, but I know it's not mine," Takara said softly.
"Huh?"
Taking his hand, Takara smiled at him, and giving his fingers a tight squeeze she said, "I'm not saying I'm not brave, but just because the powers of the Crest of Courage originally belonged to my dad that doesn't mean the Spirit Chip of Bravery belongs to me. It belongs to you, Dai. I know it in my heart and it suits you better than it suits me."
"I don't know about that..."
"When it comes to bravery no one matches you, Dai, no one expect maybe our fathers."
Without thinking, Dai quickly pulled the female Digidestined against his chest, and wrapping his arms around her waist in a tight hug he murmured, "But...you are really brave. That's one of the things I admire about you."
"It's one of the things I admire about you, too," Takara mumbled, her cheeks turning a bright shade of pink.
"If you two are done, can we go now?" Ryoko smirked, crossing his arms over his chest.
Jerking away from Takara in surprise, and taking extra care to avoid Tai's eyes, Dai glared at the golden-haired Digidestined.
Does he...could he actually approve of me as a...of Kara and I being together?
"You'd better hurry," Izzy warned from the computer. "We don't want another late night."
"Wait!" Sam cried, his cheeks turning pink. "Hawkmon, I..."
"You'll be fine, Sam," Hawkmon said simply. "I believe in you."
Grabbing onto Sam's arm, Dai quickly dragged the other boy towards the base of Infinity Mountain, the rest of the group trailing along behind him.
Kara...what do you really think of me?
"Daichi, wait up," Ryoko said nonchalantly, appearing suddenly out of thin air beside him, his bright blue eyes twinkling mischievously in the afternoon sunshine. "You know...the next time Kara compliments you, you could at least try to kiss her something. Don't you think it's time you put some of that bravery of yours to good use?"
"Huh?"
Instead of replying, Ryoko merely smiled innocently at him, but before he could say anything in response, the golden-haired Digidestined quickly melted back into the crowd, disappearing from view. Blinking in surprise, Dai felt his cheeks turn a deep shade of red, and realizing he had been left behind, his mouth hanging open almost to the ground, he quickly hurried after the rest of the group, wondering what in the Digiworld had just happened.