Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: Not really much to say for this one, but in the next one we'll be back to Ryoko's POV.
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 272: The Power of Temptation
Makiya 'Mickey' Takashi
Net, Northern Hemisphere, Digital World
Makiya Takaishi slowly opened his amber eyes, his body protesting the thought of having to get up, but before he could move a single muscle he knew immediately that something was very wrong. His natural instincts were screaming at him in such a way that he could not ignore the voice in the back of his head, and a quick glance at the screen on his orange D-Coder told him that it was fairly early in the morning. The chamber they had chosen the night before as a campsite was deathly quiet, and all of a sudden Mickey's sense of danger was on high alert.
Being careful not to make too much noise, he slowly reached over to touch the figure that should have been curled up in the sleeping bag positioned next to him on the stone floor. Instead, his hand fell through empty air, and a soft gasp escaped his throat when his fingers brushed against the fabric of a sleeping bag that was most definitely lacking a human occupant.
Something in Mickey's brain seemed to click, and sitting up with a cry of horror he turned to gaze at the empty sleeping bag with fear in his eyes.
Matty!
Mickey was wide awake now, and glancing frantically around the small cavern, he held his breath in the hopes of spotting his twin brother wandering somewhere nearby. His heart sank when he didn't catch sight of a familiar blond head gazing back at him from somewhere in the cave, and taking another quick look he realized that Celestimon was also missing.
Having both Matty and his digimon partner go missing at the same time was definitely not a good sign, and freezing in place, the events of last night came rushing back to him in a flash of painful images.
Mickey knew his brother didn't like the atmosphere of the Ice Caverns any more than he did, and there was no denying that the darkness was thick inside the tunnels and chambers of the strange underground caverns that seemed to frighten all digimon alike, but for some reason the darkness seemed to be affecting Matty more in this place than it did him.
While that in itself wasn't necessarily unusual, it was strange that Matty had not really confided in him about the Ice Caverns.
Mickey had felt the tension building in his brother's body the day before, and he knew Matty had been unusually nervous, but despite his few attempts to cheer the younger twin up, nothing had seemed to work.
For whatever reason Matty seemed oddly preoccupied by those strange crystal mirrors, and Mickey hadn't failed to notice the way the younger twin had seemed so intent on them. Right from the start Matty seemed to have had a hard time turning his gaze away from the mirrors, and although it had worried Mickey, he hadn't known what to do to keep Matty's attention focused on something else.
While the crystal mirrors frightened Mickey, and he could feel the darkness radiating from their eerie, glowing surfaces, there was nothing particularly interesting about them that had caught his attention. When he did look in the mirrors, he sometimes thought he caught a glimpse of something shadowy lurking in their depths, but he was always quick to avert his eyes and focus on the task at hand.
For whatever reason Matty seemed unable to do the same, and though Mickey had his fair share of problems, he knew his brother had much more to worry about at the moment than he did.
Mickey wasn't blind to the fact that Matty was having a hard time dealing with the uncertain relationship between Daichi and Ryoko, and he hadn't failed to notice how much it was hurting his brother. Matty was suffering, and Mickey knew the younger twin was afraid of being pushed aside in favour of Ryoko's friendship. And while he desperately wanted to help, he knew this was something only Dai could fix.
Mickey had his own issues with Matty that he had managed to mostly keep to himself thus far, and though they weighed on his mind and were eating him upside, he knew now wasn't the time to focus on his own misery. Matty's problems with Dai and Ryoko were more of an immediate concern that needed to be dealt with quickly, and it would have been selfish of him to focus only on his own suffering. Thus, he had managed to push his own troubles with the younger twin to the far depths of his mind for the moment, and thinking on that sudden revelation now, he suddenly wondered if perhaps that was the reason why he didn't find the crystal mirrors particularly interesting.
Is it because I had the strength and presence of mind to push the darkness away and keep it at bay? I know there's something wrong with those mirrors. It's almost like...they're trying to lure you in when you look at them. It's like the darkness is trying to pull you in and separate you from the people who care about you. But I wouldn't look. I wouldn't listen to the voices...
That was sort of what it felt like in his heart. Somehow he had unknowingly constructed an unseen barrier around his troubled thoughts about Matty, and in doing so it had allowed him to push aside those thoughts in order to focus on the issue with Dai and Ryoko. Having inadvertently found a way to protect himself from the darkness of the cave, it had allowed him to focus solely on the task at hand and to ignore the lure of the crystal mirrors.
But it wasn't only the mirror that concerned him. When their journey had reached a crossroads the night before and they were deciding which path to take would be the best one to follow, something strange had happened to Matty.
As they stood there debating what to do next, Matty's eyes had been drawn to something unseen on one of the paths, and Mickey couldn't forget the way it had looked as if he his twin had seen a ghost. When asked about it, Matty had refused to give him a straight answer, but the younger twin's face had turned white, and Mickey had seen his hands shaking.
He knew in his heart that something horrible was happening to his brother, and while he was sure it had something to do with Dai, Ryoko, and the darkness of the cave, he felt powerless to do anything about it. And even now, thanks to his own hesitation, Matty was gone.
This is all my fault. I knew something was very wrong with him, but I did nothing to stop this from happening...
Mickey could feel his own guilt eating away at his soul, and in that moment the sheer terror he felt at the loss of his brother almost overwhelmed him. The despair in his heart was so thick he couldn't seem to think straight, and all around him he could feel the darkness pushing to find a way inside his mind...
Matty could be anywhere by now, especially if he touched one of those crystals...
Or maybe not.
My Digivice!
Mickey jerked his head up in surprise, and while he knew without an ounce of doubt in his heart that Matty had done exactly that with the crystals, that did not mean all was lost.
While it was true that Matty had given himself over to the crystal mirrors sometime during the night, Mickey knew he couldn't let himself panic. Matty was out there somewhere in the depths of the Ice Caverns with only Celestimon to protect him if he got into trouble, but that didn't mean there wasn't a way to find him again.
He isn't lost yet. I can still reach him!
Mickey quickly looked at his D-Coder again, and sure enough he spotted Matty's signal further off. Ryoko and Dai were still in the same spot that they had been in the night before, and it was with some relief that he realized the other two boys weren't actually all that far away from Matty. As soon as they woke up and spotted Matty's signal, they would actually be able to reach him first before the rest of the group could.
It did not even cross Mickey's mind that Ryoko and Dai wouldn't go after Matty first once they saw his signal, since the younger twin, being all alone, would be in far more danger than anyone else in the Ice Caverns. Mickey only hoped that they would discover Matty's signal in time to reach him before something terrible happened.
Please, Dai. Wake up! You need to save Matty. You need to help him...
Mickey knew there wasn't much he could do to help Matty at the moment, except to keep moving, but in order to do that he needed to wake the others and deliver the bad news.
How am I supposed to tell my Mom?
Mickey quickly gave himself a mental shake to get his thoughts back in order, and scrambling out of his sleeping bag he made his way over to Tai's side. Kneeling next to the former leader, he gave Tai's shoulder a firm shake, and immediately the dark-haired man's eyes snapped open, his gaze strangely alert as those dark orbs came to rest of Mickey's face.
Mickey didn't hesitate, though it pained him to speak. He merely sat back on his heels and said quietly, "Matty's gone. Help me wake the others."
Thankfully Tai had the presence of mind not to ask any questions. Instead, the former leader leaped out of his sleeping bag and woke Agumon before moving on to shake Matt's shoulder.
Once everybody was more or less awake, Mickey immediately went to his mother and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "I'm sorry, Mom."
The dark-haired woman held him close, and speaking quietly in his ear, she said in a tone that was full of sorrow, "Matty's gone, isn't he."
Mickey buried is face in his mother's shoulder, his eyes growing dark with pain and fear. "I should have done more. I knew he was hurting..."
"No, Mickey. You did your best, and I'm proud of you. Regardless of anything you could have done, this would have happened sooner or later."
"But-"
"Sometimes we have to find our own path in order to heal, even if the way forward is dangerous," his mother said softly, hugging him tightly.
"But why?" Takara moaned, her face a mask of worry. "Why would he run off like that?"
"Why don't we ask the person who knows him best out of all of us?" Matt said calmly, his handsome face not showing any emotion.
Mickey felt the eyes of everyone in the group settle on his face, and holding Halomon tightly in his arms he kept his gaze focused on his feet. When he spoke, it was an effort to stop his voice from cracking. "It's Dai and Ryoko. Matty's afraid. He feels like if the two of them become good friends, he won't have a place anymore."
"But that's silly!" Sam protested, looking rather shocked. "Dai cares about all of us equally. He would never forget any of his friends!"
"I know that, and you know that, but Matty has blinded himself to the truth. He hasn't said it in so many words, but I think he's afraid of being forgotten, not just by Dai, but maybe by everyone."
There was a long moment of silence, and then Mimi spoke, her words full of pain. "We always knew there was tension between Dai and Ryoko, and though he would sometimes hint at it, he would never tell us the full extent of what was going on. I was hoping they would eventually grow out of it, but I should have known it wouldn't be that easy."
"He's too much like me," Matt said simply, his gaze settling on Tai's face. "I know how he feels because I once felt the same way, but with Ryoko it's more complicated than that. Even I wasn't fully aware of what's been going on with him until more recently. He won't talk about it, but I know it's been eating him up inside."
"You mean this thing with Matty?" Palmon asked.
Matt nodded slowly, and crossing his arms over his chest, he said, "Matty and Dai. I think...Ryoko has always felt a strong connection with Dai, but because they both have strong personalities and different ways of thinking, like Tai and I do, they haven't been able to reach a sense of mutual understanding yet. Ryoko clearly feels that pain very deeply, and because he doesn't want to get hurt, he's been pushing Dai away all these years and keeping him at arm's length."
"But that's not what he really wants," Gabumon said soberly.
"No, it isn't," Matt agreed, his sapphire eyes growing thoughtful. "He's afraid of being hurt and rejected because the two of them are so different from each other, and he's dealing with the pain in the only way he knows how."
"The same way you did," Tai said softly, smiling at the memory. "By closing yourself off from others to avoid getting hurt."
"But Dai would never reject Ryoko!" Glowmon cried, hovering anxiously in the air.
"We know that, but that's not how Ryoko sees it," Mimi insisted. "And if I'm understanding this right, then there's an added problem on top of Ryoko's already troubled mind."
"You mean Matty," Halomon said solemnly, fluttering his ears.
"Yes, Matty," Matt replied in a low voice, his expression growing dark. "Ryoko wants to be close friends with Dai, which I think is something we've all suspected to one degree or another for a long time now, but his own fear of being rejected isn't the only thing holding him back. I think Mickey would agree with me here when I say Ryoko has always felt more like a brother to him and Matty than a cousin. Am I right?"
Mickey felt his uncle's intense gaze boring into him, and feeling suddenly embarrassed, he nodded and said shyly, "He's the same age as us, and he's always been there since the very beginning. We often make jokes about being triplets because Ryoko's always been with us since we were babies. I...I love him like a brother, and I know Matty feels the same way even if they do fight once in a while."
"Do you all see the problem then?" Matt continued, his tone lacking emotion. "Ryoko has always been loyal to Mickey and Matty. He loves them like the siblings he didn't have until recently with Mimi being pregnant. He knows how close Dai and Matty are, and though he wants the same thing for himself, he can't bring himself to show Dai his true feelings at the risk of hurting Matty. He doesn't want to take Matty's best friend away, even if it means losing Dai. He would rather suffer in silence than hurt Matty because the alternative would be too much to bear for him."
"Which means Ryoko senses the fact that Matty's losing faith in him," Halomon sighed, shaking his head. "He must feel Matty's uncertainties towards his friendship with Dai, which is holding Ryoko back even more from saying something to Dai about his own feelings."
Mickey could feel sudden tears stinging his eyes, and holding Halomon close, he said, "The one thing Ryoko doesn't realize is that Matty feels the same way he does. Matty doesn't want to lose Dai either, but at the same time it's hurting him to see Ryoko so unhappy. He blames himself for that, and that makes him feel both guilty and selfish. Deep down inside, I know he wants Dai and Ryoko to be good friends, but at the same time he's afraid that if he allows that to happen he'll be pushed to the side and forgotten about. And if that happens, what's left to stop that from happening with someone else in his life? I'm pretty sure his fears run deeper than just Dai. I think...just from the subtle hints he's given that the problem is a lot more complicated than we realize. It's not just about Dai and Ryoko. He's afraid we're all going to leave him behind."
"And he had the nerve to call mean an idiot," Sam grumbled, smiling fondly at the memory.
"If what you say is true, though, then that suggests Matty believes Dai and Ryoko will eventually find a way to overcome their fears and become the good friends they should have been from the very beginning," Joe suggested, a thoughtful look on his face. "He believes there's a good possibility that it can and will happen. And if it does, they're both going to leave him out in the cold."
Mickey couldn't help smiling, and nodding, he said, "That's because even though Matty doubts himself, somewhere deep down inside he still believes in Dai and Ryoko. He has faith in them that they can overcome the barriers between them. Unconsciously, he believes they'll find a way to work things out, and though he might be hurting right now, he's actually giving them a really nice compliment without even realizing it."
"So let me get this straight," Davis said slowly, scratching his dark hair in confusion. "Dai and Ryoko actually really like each other and they're too afraid to admit it because they think the other hates them? On top of that, Ryoko and Matty are in some kind of war over who Dai will choose as his best friend? And since Ryoko and Matty also care about each other, they've basically been shunning Dai for the sake of trying not to hurt each other?"
"And least on Ryoko's part," Gomamon said cheerfully, looking very amused. "The shunning part, I mean."
"And since they're basically jealous of each other, Matty and Ryoko have created all this tension between themselves as they compete against one another to see who Dai will eventually choose as his best friend?"
"That pretty much sums it up," Veemon agreed, shrugging his shoulders.
For a moment Davis looked completely flabbergasted, and then finding his voice, he said bluntly, "Well, that's got to be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard."
Mickey was so startled he stared at Davis with his mouth hanging open, and letting out a snort, Ogremon said, "Can't argue with you there!"
"Care to elaborate?" Matt said dryly, raising his eyebrows.
"My son doesn't pick and choose," Davis replied, beginning to look extremely amused. "Despite the way Dai might have treated Ryoko in the past, I think it's pretty obvious that he doesn't favour one friend over another. Ryoko might have more of his attention lately, but that's only because Ryoko keeps pushing his buttons all the time, which is something Matty never does. Dai knows his friendship with Matty is solid, or at least it was, and that's why it doesn't weigh on his mind the way his friendship with Ryoko does."
"So what are you saying exactly?" Gatomon asked, sounding impatient.
"Dai cares about Ryoko and Matty equally," Davis snorted, sounding as if that should have been the most obvious thing in the world. "Like I said, the only reason Matty hasn't been on his mind as much as Ryoko lately is because he didn't think he needed to worry about Matty. Matty never treats him the way Ryoko does. In Dai's eyes his friendship with Matty is right where it should be. It's his friendship with Ryoko that he needs to patch up, so that's where his concentration is at the moment."
"Do you think Dai knows how Matty is feeling right now?" Mimi asked slowly, a slight frown on her pretty face. "I mean, since he's been concentrating so much on Ryoko lately, do you think he's aware of the sudden change in Matty's behaviour?"
Davis frowned, and speaking carefully, he said, "That's a good queston, Mimi. I think he's aware of Matty's uncertainties, but I'm not sure if he realizes yet the extent of how far Matty's fallen. I mean, Matty's been pretty good at hiding his feelings on the matter, especially from Dai, and even if he did say something to Dai about it, I don't think Dai realizes yet what a serious issue it's become."
Mickey thought back to the night Matty didn't come home with him like usual, and nodding, he said, "Matty did say something to Dai. I'm sure of it. But like you said, I don't think Dai realizes just how far Matty's fallen because usually Matty isn't somebody he has to worry about."
"Whatever the case, they're both being silly," Davis said, shaking his head in disbelief. "It's a waste of time for them to be fighting because Dai has always been a firm believer in advocating that you can have more than one best friend. In the end Dai will choose them both, and they'll have gotten themselves all worked up for nothing."
The truth of those words was so clear to Mickey that for a moment he couldn't understand how Matty and Ryoko couldn't see it for themselves. Dai would never choose between them because Mickey knew he would want to keep them both. Ryoko and Matty were equally important to the goggle-headed leader, and if anything Dai would take himself out of the picture first before he would let himself be the cause of a falling out between Ryoko and Matty."
"According to our Digivices, Matty's somehow ended up near Ryoko and Dai," Joe suddenly spoke up. "That could be both good and bad."
"Good if he needs some help, bad if the three of them get into it with each other," Dovemon translated, making a face.
"How did he end up all the way over there?" Agumon asked, looking confused.
Mickey felt his chest tighten, and keeping his gaze focused on the ground, he said quietly, "I think Matty got himself transported there through one of the crystal mirrors."
"Of course," Matt murmured, his sapphire eyes once again growing hard.
For some reason Takara looked particularly upset by this, and wrapping her arms around herself, she said, "But how could that have happened? Matty knew those mirrors were dangerous! He saw what happened to Dai and Ryoko!"
"Who says he willingly transported himself through the mirrors?" Gatomon countered. "How do we know he wasn't forced through it?"
"You think someone attacked him?" Gomamon asked skeptically.
Mickey looked at his mother, and shaking his head, he said sadly, "No, he willingly left this cavern on his own."
"I agree," his mother said quietly, reaching you to wrap an arm around his shoulders. "But at the same time something must have happened to give him incentive to do so."
Mickey thought about that for a moment, and keeping his head lowered, he said slowly, "Those mirrors really seemed to bother Matty. He didn't like them at all. It would have taken something big for him to end up getting transported through one."
"But what?" Sam asked. "That's the real question."
Mickey was quiet for a moment, and gathering his thoughts together, he said, "There's darkness radiating from inside of those mirrors. The force of that darkness is strong. I can feel it in my bones even now. Whatever happened to Matty, I have no doubt it has something to do with the Powers of Darkness."
"Tai, what do you see when you look into those mirrors?" Matt said calmly, his strange question shattering the uneasy silence hanging over the cavern.
Tai was sitting next to the former musician, and without looking at Matt, he said just as calmly, "I don't see anything in those mirrors, but if I could see something I would have seen you hating my guts, and instead of wanting to be my friend, you would be wishing you'd never met me. At least, that's what I would have seen as a kid. If we're talking about when I was older, I would have seen you despising me for feeling as if I'd taken Sora away from you, and you would resent not only me, but my wife and later my children as well."
There was a collective gasp from the three remaining younger Digidestined, and staring at Tai in shock, Mickey was at a loss of what to say.
Matt did not seemed particularly concerned by his best friend's sudden revelation, and speaking as if he didn't have a care in the world, Tai nudged the former musician in the shoulder and said, "What do you see when you look inside those mirrors?"
"I don't see anything either," Matt replied, not the least bit fazed by Tai's words. "But if I could have seen something, it would have been the jealousy I felt towards you when we were kids, and I would see you despising me for having dated Sora went we were teenagers. I would see you regretting the fact that you chose me as your best friend, and you would be turning your back on me for how much I hurt you. I would see you as we were when we were children, but instead of trying to be my friend you would have hated me and cast me aside like I meant nothing to you."
Matt's words were just as shocking as Tai's, and staring at is uncle in horror, Mickey said in a quiet voice, "What are you trying to say?"
Matt looked at him then, and Mickey jumped when his uncle suddenly moved to sit in front of him. The former musician's expression suddenly softened into a look of sympathy, and reaching out to place a gentle hand on his shoulder, his uncle said, "I had my suspicions earlier, but I think I understand fully now. Mickey, what do you see when you look into those mirrors?"
Mickey blushed at this, and avoiding his uncle's eyes, he said, "When I look directly at them I can see...I don't know what I see, but they look like dark shadows. I never really got a good look at them though, because I...I always turned away from them."
"Wise move," Matt murmured, shaking his head in regret.
"I...I can see those shadows, too," Takara suddenly spoke up, and immediately looked as if she regretted it. "I can hear them whispering to me in my head. I...wouldn't look at them, though. They felt dangerous to me."
This sudden revelation surprised Mickey. He was fairly certain the shadows in the mirrors had something to do with the Powers of Darkness, and normally the darkness didn't seem to affect Takara any more than it seemed to affect Daichi. His cousin had always been pretty rock solid when it came to not letting the darkness affect her heart. For it to have affected her now seemed a bit out of the ordinary, and it made him worry.
Is something bothering her?
Matt seemed to sense that something was off, as well, because his penetrating blue gaze quietly settled on the female Digidestined's face, and the intensity of his eyes made her blush before she quickly looked away again. Tai also sent a glance in his daughter's direction, and Mickey didn't fail to notice the concerned expression on the former leader's face.
They see it too. Something's very wrong...
Mickey wasn't sure if he should say something or not, but for some reason he felt he owed it to Kara to help her out a bit. "I heard the whispers, too. They were in my head, but I couldn't hear what they were saying because I tried my hardest not to listen to them."
"I'm proud of you," Matt said quietly, reaching out to ruffle his hair.
"I didn't listen either," Takara mumbled, still avoiding Matt's eyes.
Matt chose not to react to her obvious discomfort, and Mickey couldn't help feeling sorry for his female cousin. All her life Takara had been at the mercy of really two fathers and two mothers, and he knew she felt Matt's scolding just as keenly as she did Tai's. And even though she hadn't said so, Mickey was sure she was upset at the thought that she had possibly failed Matt and the high expectations he carried for her.
Luckily, though, Matt did bombard the female Digidestined with questions. Instead, he turned to the rest of the group and said, "What about the rest of you? Did you see anything in those mirrors?"
Sam, Mimi, Joe, Davis, Kari, Ogremon, and the rest of the digimon insisted they hadn't seen anything in the mirrors, and turning to his uncle, Mickey said quietly, "What are you trying to say?"
"I might not see anything in those mirrors now, but that's what I would have seen back when I was a child and a teenager. Back then, the mirrors would have haunted me because when I was young I doubted the strength of my own heart," Matt said quietly, moving to sit next to the former leader again and placing his hand on the dark-haired man's shoulder. "It's the same for Tai. When we were kids and teens that's what he would have seen in the mirrors if he had allowed his heart to falter. Even as an adult, if he didn't believe in himself or have any faith in me, he would see me resenting him and his family. I don't have any solid proof, but I suspect the mirrors attack those whose hearts are faltering in the darkness. For those of us who don't see anything, it's because our hearts are sound and we've come to terms with all of the obstacles in our lives. As a result, the mirrors can't harm us or trick us. They can't lure us in with their illusions of reality."
"And that's why Sam can't see anything in the mirrors," Tai added. "He's a good example of what Matt's talking about. Sam doesn't see anything because earlier he came to terms with his father and the Digimon Emperor, and now his heart is free from the darkness."
"And you think that what's happened to Matty then?" Joe asked, adjusting his glasses. "He let the darkness in the mirrors feed off the uncertainties in his heart?"
Matt nodded, his face once again lacking emotion. "Matty's heart is conflicted. This situation with Dai and Ryoko has made him vulnerable to the darkness, and because of that he's become a perfect target for the mirrors. They've been feeding on his doubts and fears, and I can only imagine the images they've conjured up inside his head."
Mickey felt a shiver race up and down his spine, and as the realization of what had happened slowly started to sink in, he choked out, "That's why Matty left. The mirrors were haunting him, and he must have had a hard time telling the difference between what was real and what wasn't. He purposely went looking for the mirrors, to find out what was happening to him!"
"And he didn't think it would have been a better idea to simply consult us on the mirrors first before doing something so rash?" Sam countered, raising his eyebrows. "At least that way we could have all gone together. It would have been a lot less dangerous that way."
"You could have learned the same lesson earlier," Glowmon teased, making Sam blush.
"He probably thought he was going crazy," Takara murmured, almost to herself. "Maybe he didn't think we would believe him."
Okay, there's definitely something there, but what is it?
Mickey knew something big was going on, since Kara could see the shadows in the mirrors, as well, but he didn't have time to dwell on it at the moment. He filed the information away for later, though, since seeing those shadows meant that as unbelievable as it might seem, Kara's heart had been touched by the darkness.
She was faltering, and he had no idea why.
"I saw the way Matty kept looking at the mirrors," Matt said slowly, shaking his head. "I warned him not to, but whatever he saw was fascinating enough to make him disregard my words. Instead of ignoring the mirrors like Mickey did, he sought to understand what they were showing him. That desperate need to know is what must have caused him to get out of bed last night."
"That still doesn't explain why he let himself get transported though those mirrors," Gatomon pointed out.
"I don't think he did. I'm pretty sure he only went to study the mirrors to find out what was happening to him. Something must have gone wrong, and whatever it was, that's what got him pulled through the mirrors."
Mickey blushed at the way Matt had singled him out, but since he didn't think it was a big secret anymore that the darkness was affecting him, he chose to ignore Matt's look and focus on Matty instead. Shoving his D-Coder into the pocket of his coat, he quickly scrambled to his feet and said, "We should hurry and catch up to Matty as soon as possible. I know Dai and Ryoko are closer and they'll reach him before we do if they spot his signal, but...I don't think we should leave those three alone together for very long."
"Because you know Ryoko's heart is also faltering in the darkness," Sam said slowly, watching him closely. "I think we can pretty much say for certain that Ryoko is also seeing stuff in those crystal mirrors."
"And who knows what might happen if those three are left alone together on their own for too long," Halomon warned, giving Sam a knowing look.
"Like Matty, Ryoko's heart is conflicted," Matt said quietly, reaching out a hand to help his wife to her feet. "This whole thing with Dai and Matty has made him vulnerable to the darkness. I could see it in his eyes when he looked into those mirrors, and the images must have seen..."
"Dai will keep him safe. No matter what else happens, I know that much at least," Mimi said firmly, holding tightly to her husband's hand.
"I don't think seeing Tal and Kenji helped him all that much either," Matt said, letting out another deep sigh.
"Why is that?" Tai demanded, stepping in front of the former musician and giving him a hard stare.
Matt looked startled for a moment, and shrugging his shoulders, he said, "You saw the way they are with each other. No doubt or hesitation. Those two share an unbreakable bond that must have seemed impossible to share for Ryoko. It's like a hurtle too tall for him to jump. Something like that would have seemed overwhelming to him, and instead of using it for motivation he's obviously allowed it to further deepen his misery. I know Kenji and Tal spoke to him about Dai that day. I was hoping it would open his eyes, but..."
"I don't think it would have mattered even if Ryoko had never met Tal or Kenji," Tai interrupted.
"What do you mean?" Matt asked, looking confused.
"Well, Ryoko sees that kind of thing almost everyday, so that kind of behaviour would have eventually affected him the same way sooner or later."
"Huh?"
"The bond you talked about between Tal and Kenji," Tai said patiently, looking amused. "Isn't it the same kind of bond you and I share?"
Matt blinked at the former leader, and then his face suddenly softened into a warm smile. "Yes, of course."
"There you have it then," Tai said simply, looking rather proud of himself. "If the friendship between Tal and Kenji hadn't affected Ryoko in such a manner, eventually ours would have."
Matt nodded to show he understood, and keeping his gaze focused on Tai, he said, "Ryoko's every bit as much a target for the mirrors as Matty is. Mickey's right. We should hurry."
"We'll go as soon as I email Izzy to let him know what's going on," Joe interrupted, motioning politely for Davis to hand over his D-Terminal.
As everybody got ready to leave, Mickey couldn't help looking around at the faces of all the people he cared about. Everybody looked equally worried about both Ryoko and Matty, but the look on his mother's face hurt him most of all.
She was scared for Matty, and so was he, and the expressions on Matt's and Mimi's faces didn't help him feel all that confident in Ryoko, Which in turn made him feel guilty for doubting his cousin.
Who knew what was going to happen between those three if they didn't get there in time, and as Mickey followed along at the back of the group there was only one thought running through his mind.
What if they were too late?