Day 4 - Goggles: Through The Lens

Six-year old Taichi Yagami was walking around the streets of Odaiba with his mother, Yuuko, and his four-year old sister, Hikari, when something almost got him blinded. He was forced to cover his eyes with his arm until the blinding light disappeared. He looked towards the window of the store they were walking by and noticed a pair of goggles with big lens, which were reflecting the rays of the light from the sun. Taichi was immediately mesmerized by it.
"Mommy." He let go of her hand and placed his over the window, staring down at the goggles with amazement and curiosity.
"What's wrong, Taichi?" Yuuko asked as she returned with Hikari to where he was and stopped behind him.
"What's this?"
"These are goggles, darling. It's a kind of glasses."
"They are beautiful. Can I have one?"
"Not today, Taichi. We are late for your sister's appointment with the doctor. Let's go."
The boy looked over his shoulder towards the goggles with a sad expression and tears in the corner of his eyes as he walked away, upset for not having the thing that drew his attention like none other had before in his life.

.

Taichi woke up that morning with Hikari shaking him quite strongly. He squinted and mumbled something inaudible before burying his face into his pillow.
"Come on, Taichi. It's your birthday!" Hikari said excitedly. "And mommy and daddy have a gift for you."
"A birthday gift?!" He immediately opened his eyes and jumped out of his bed. "Where is it?"
"It's in the living room, I think, but…"
Taichi rushed towards the door, but his mother was faster and walked in.
"Oh good, you're awake." Yuuko smiled and looked over her shoulder. Susumu was standing right behind her.
"Happy birthday, brave boy." He stopped beside his wife and knelt down to be in Taichi's eye level. "We have a little something for you. We hope you like it."
The child grabbed the bag from his father's hand with the largest smile ever and sat down on the floor to open it. Beside him, but standing up, Hikari was looking at it carefully and apprehensively. She was just as curious to find out what it was. Taichi let out a small gasp when he pulled out a round package from the bag. The smile on his face got surprisingly wider and he felt a wave of excitement and happiness overwhelmed him as he tore the wrapping paper open.
He stared at his image on the lens of the goggles now resting on his hands. It didn't get him blind this time and it was nowhere reflecting the sun like the one in the store, which made him a little sad. But then he understood it was because his room with Hikari was still dark.
"So what did you think of it?" Yuuko asked. "Is that what you wanted?"
"It is." Taichi nodded. "I loved it."
"We're glad to hear it, son. We've seen how much you kept talking about these goggles in the past two months, so we just had to buy it to you."
"You look so cool with it!" Hikari exclaimed while she stared at her brother amazed.
"Thank you, mommy and daddy!" Taichi ran towards them and hugged each one of his parents. "You're the best parents ever! Thank you so much! This is the best birthday gift."
"We are happy that you like it." Yuuko said happily. "You look great with it. Come on, let's see how you look with it in the mirror."

.

Taichi jumped out of his bed as soon as his alarm clock rang. He had been excited for August 1st for about the past two weeks. He quickly ran to his calendar and put an X on that date and then ran out of his bedroom.
"Today is camp day!" He announced loudly to whoever wanted to hear it or not. "Woohoo!"
"Only something so exciting as a summer camp would be able to get out of bed at 7am on summer vacation." Yuuko placed some fried eggs on the table.
"I've been waiting for this moment for a while now. I can't believe I'm going to the summer camp with Sora and Koushiro! It's going to be so fun! Aren't you excited for it, Hikari?" Taichi looked to his right, where his sister usually sits, but she wasn't there. "Hikari?"
"I'm here, brother." She spoke from the door of their bedroom and the boy looked at her. She was still wearing her light pink pajamas.
"Why aren't you dressed yet? Sora and Koushiro will be arriving soon."
"Your sister isn't going, Taichi."
"What?! Why not?"
"She was feeling sick last night and hasn't gotten better yet. I'm afraid she will have to miss it this year."
"This is so not cool!" Taichi said sadly. "I was really looking forward to going with her too."
"I know. She was too. But there will be another opportunity next year."

About half an hour later, Taichi was already wearing some cool summer clothes and was just waiting for Sora and Koushiro to arrive.
"Mom." He yelled from his bedroom. "Have you seen my goggles?"
"They are on the chest of drawers."
"No, they aren't. I left them here and now I can't find them. They're gone."
"Are you sure you didn't leave it somewhere else and can't remember where?" Yuuko walked into his bedroom.
"No, I'm pretty sure I left them here. I can't go to summer camp without them."
"Don't worry, we are going to find them." She walked out of the room and Taichi followed her closely.
They looked everywhere and there was no sign of the goggles. Taichi was starting to get nervous with the mere idea of losing his favorite goggles. Yuuko looked at her bedroom door and contemplated going in for a moment. Neither Taichi nor Hikari was allowed to go there, but she realized she also hadn't seen Hikari anywhere. So she opened the door and immediately spotted her daughter sitting on the floor next to her bed, with her knees pressed against her chest. Taichi's goggles on her head.
"Hikari? What happened?" Yuuko approached her. "Why are you wearing your brother's goggles?"
"What?" Taichi asked from the hall and then stopped by the door of his parents' bedroom.
"I thought this would make him stay here." She confessed.
"Oh darling, I know you really want to go to the summer camp with him, but you need to get better first. I wish you didn't have to miss it, but not everything is the way we want." The woman said softly. "Now, please give your brother's goggles back to him."
"I'm sorry." Hikari removed them from her head and went to return them to Taichi. "I didn't mean to make you angry."
"That's okay, Hikari. You didn't make me angry." Taichi felt a lump on his throat and put his arm around her shoulders. "Camping won't be the same without you."

.

Daisuke touched his new goggles for what it seemed like the millionth time that evening. He was still having a hard time realizing he had gotten them from Taichi, whom he looked up to so much as a soccer player.
"They won't fall from our head, I promise." Hikari said in a light tone as she looked at him.
"Oh I know, it just feels unreal to me. Taichi actually gave me his goggles. This is so cool."
"Well, you better believe it." Taichi said. "I have no doubt they will be in good hands from now on. You proved to be worthy of it and I'm sure you keep doing it throughout your journey."
"I believe in it too."
"I still don't quite understand what's happening, to be honest."
"I would be surprised if you did." The older one let out a laugh. "I had no idea what was happening when I first went to the Digital World too."
"Were you confused too?" Daisuke turned to Hikari."
The girl nodded negatively. "I only joined the group later. In a way it helped me, because they all were very experienced already."
"Hikari's a faster learner." Taichi said proudly and quickly turned serious. "I hope you'll get to understand what it means to wear these goggles, Daisuke."
"I… I…" He began to panic. He didn't think he could ever be worthy it.
"You're going to scare him, brother." Hikari couldn't help but giggle, though.
"Well, I have to go. See you tomorrow, bye."
"Bye, Daisuke."

Taichi couldn't help but felt empty in a way. He hadn't regretted giving his favorite goggles to Daisuke at all. It simply felt like transferring his previous leadership to someone else who would be better fitting the position than him at the moment. He was aware he wouldn't have enough time to focus on the Digital World and the threats that were rising because of his real life duties.
"I thought that was very brave of you." Hikari spoke as she looked from her classmate to her brother. She had been watching Taichi carefully ever since they left her school building. "I didn't think you would give Daisuke your goggles. You've had since you were six."
"Yeah, well…" He couldn't help but feel a pain on his chest. Hikari had touched a soft spot. "Daisuke proved himself to be a good new leader, so it only seemed fair he inherited my goggles. I won't be able to go to the Digital World that often anymore, but I have no doubt you, Takeru and him will make a new great team. Besides, me and the others will be here ready to jump into action if needed."
Hikari simply smiled and looked up at Daisuke's floor. "I know, and I also know he will be a great one, but I just…" She looked down again. "It seems strange not having you as our leader anymore. I guess I always assumed we'd all be fighting together again."
"A lot has changed in these three years, sister. Even the Digital World seems to have changed too, and the fact Daisuke's digivice is different than ours just proves it. Besides, our partners can't seem to evolve, so we won't be much of a help actually."
"Yeah." She nodded. "It will be strange at first to see your goggles on Daisuke's head. To me they will always be yours. It's part of your story, in a way."
"It's also part of my courage." Taichi stated looking ahead. "Maybe it will help him somehow."
"That's a poetic way to look at it."
"Come on." He looked at Hikari. "Let's go up before mom gets worried we didn't get home yet."

.

Sora and Hikari were walking to the Yagami's house. The brunette was holding a bag from a store in her hand.
"I must confess it was a very good idea of yours, Hikari." Sora said with a smile. "Taichi will be so surprised and happy. I can already see it."
"Thank you so much for going with me, Sora. I don't think I would have been able to choose one without your help. I just hope he likes it."
"You're welcome. I have no doubt he will." She looked at her watch. "Well, I'm supposed to meet Yamato now, but I will call Taichi later to wish him happy birthday and ask how everything went."
"Alright. I'll see you later. Bye."
'Bye."

"Hello, mom."
"Hello, darling. You arrived a little later." Yuuko said as she finished decorating Taichi's cake.
"Yeah, I went to buy…" Hikari looked around the apartment. "Is Taichi here?"
"No, he's at Koushiro's house, but said he's coming home soon."
"Okay. So, I went to buy his birthday present with Sora."
"What did you buy?"
"Look." She took a brand new pair of goggles out of the bag and showed it to her. "What do you think of them?"
"Oh honey, I think they are amazing! He's gonna love them!"
"I think so too." Hikari quickly shoved them into the bag. "He's coming."
"Mom, I'm home!" Taichi announced seconds later when he opened the door. "Hello, sis."
"Hi, Taichi."
"Oh my God, this cake looks delicious! Can I try some of its cover?"
"No." Yuuko took his hand away from it. "It's going to ruin the cake. We'll eat it later."
"Damn it." He complained, but moved away from the sink. "What's in the bag, sister?"
"It's for you actually." Hikari handed him the tag. "It's your birthday present."
"She went to buy it with Sora." Yuuko said over her shoulder as she put the cake on the fridge. "She has just gotten back."
"Really?" Taichi raised his eyebrows in surprise before looking down at the bag in front of him. "What's it?"
"Why don't you see for yourself?"
"Okay." He pulled it out of the bag and his eyes widened as soon as he laid his eyes on it. "New goggles?!"
"That's right." She nodded. "I wanted to give you something different this year, and I thought of new goggles. Then I found this store and just knew it had to be them. I hope you like them."
"Are you kidding me? I love them!"
"Good, I'm glad." Hikari smiled. "It's too bad you don't have your blue hairband anymore, but I think you will look cool without it too."
"Thank God that hideous thing is gone." Yuuko joined the conversation.
"Mom, my blue hairband was so cool and stylish. How could you hate it?"
"Stylish? It was really ugly."
"Then why did you buy it for me?"
"It was the only thing that kept your hair in place."
Hikari couldn't help but laugh, followed by their mother right away. Taichi pretended to be offended, but joined them in the laughter too.
"Thank you so much, sister. This is the best birthday present ever."

.

Taichi leaned against the rail of the Rainbow Bridge and stared at the horizon; his goggles hung around his neck.
"Are you alright?" Sora asked concerned. "You just went through a very traumatic moment."
"I'm fine." He replied without looking at her. "At least now we can finally say everything is over and we can go back to our normal lives."
"Until a new foe comes our way." Koushiro frowned.
"I really hope this is the last time." The girl moved a lock of her hair from her face. "I don't want to have to help to kill a friend's partner ever again. Or even witness it."
"We did what we had to do." Yamato stated. He had his elbows rested on the rail, leaning his back against it.
"It surprises me you're echoing Taichi's reasoning now."
"Well, he didn't kill Meicoomon alone. Omegamon did, so I guess it's only fair to say it's something we decided together."
"When you put it like that, it makes sense." The red haired boy nodded. "I still don't like this feeling that comes with having to deal Meiko won't get to see her again because she was killed on Earth."
"If we didn't do it, things would only get much worse than they already were, if that was possible."
"I don't even want to think about this possibility." Sora shivered at the mere fact. "Has Hikari forgiven you already?"
"I'm not sure." Taichi looked down at his goggles and grabbed them, observing his reflection on the lens. "Now she's talking to me again, which is good sign I think."
"It is. I always knew she couldn't be angry at you forever." She smiled. "I'm happy for you."
"Thanks, Sora." He kept on staring at his image on the lens before he took his goggles off, folding them in in his hand.
"What are you doing?" Yamato inquired, looking intently at him.
"I don't think I need to wear these anymore." He returned his attention back to the horizon.
"Are you sure about this?"
"I am. I love these goggles, but putting them away means a new phase for me. I'm fully ready to embrace it. I'm not going to be a professional soccer player anymore."
"What?!" Koushiro asked surprised. "This has been your dream for as long as I can remember. Probably even before we met."
"He's right. I remember that's all you talked about when we first joined the soccer club at school."
"Things changed. Everything that happened this year has got me thinking. People don't think there are good Digimon and we can't really blame them, can we? So, I think I can change their mind."
"And how are you going to do that?" Yamato asked.
"I'm not sure yet, but I'll figure it out. More people are getting Digimon partners each year, and people's opinions on them need to change soon."
"I agree with you, and I can't think of anyone better for this role than you." A smile appeared on Sora's lips. "You can definitely count on me to help you with whatever you need about this."
"With me too." Koushiro echoed.
Yamato frowned and shrugged when the other three looked at him apprehensively and couldn't help but smile. "You can count on me too."
"Thanks guys." Taichi said grateful and shoved his goggles into his pockets while pulling away from the rail and walking away, followed by his three best friends.