I'm back! I was supposed to have this chapter up long already. I've been trying to write these chapters like actual episodes and at the same time only telling them from Yume's point of view. Yume's clueless about Digimon and only knows what comes from Kari and Tai at this point. We, as in us readers, know everything that has happened from the other characters' points of view because we've watched the series. I'm starting to question my choices for this format, but I'm five going into six chapters in and I really can't change it now. Live and learn.
Mr. Naito was working late that evening and Mrs. Naito hadn't felt much like cooking. Instead, Yume's family had convenience store takeout, which wasn't bad at all. At the table, Yume's brothers talked about the time they spent with their friends and the soccer game they played.
"You should have gone with us," Seiji said to Yume. "We had so much fun!"
"Maybe next time," said Yume. "I had fun with Kari. We had an adventure of our own."
"You stayed out of trouble, right?" Mrs. Naito asked.
"Yes, Mom," Yume replied. "We were out trying to find Meeko. She got out last night and never came back."
"I'm sure she'll come back," said Mrs. Naito. "She's gotten out before, hasn't she? She'll go home when she's ready."
Yume nodded. "The last we saw her, she was running back home."
"That's good," said Mrs. Naito.
"Mom, can I go back over and visit?" Yume asked. "I want to show Kari what my brothers brought back from camp. And I need to give her back her shorts."
"Finish your dinner first," said Mrs. Naito.
The door opened and Mr. Naito announced himself. "I'm home!"
Mrs. Naito got up from the table. "Welcome back, dear. I'll get your dinner for you."
"It's just a bunch of rocks," Fuyu said to Yume. "I don't think Kari would be that interested."
"What about the necklace and the game?" Yume asked.
The boys looked at her in confusion.
"What necklace and game?" asked Ichiro.
"The ones on my desk with the rocks," said Yume. "You put them there."
"Yume, we didn't get you a necklace or a game," said Ichiro.
"We only brought back the rocks," Seiji told her.
Yume blinked in confusion. "Then where did they come from?"
"Maybe Mom and Dad got them for you," Ichiro suggested.
Yume shrugged. "Whatever. I still want to show her."
She finished her food and ran to her room to get the presents and Kari's pants. She put it all in her backpack and went back over to the Kamiyas' apartment. Yume rang the bell and waited.
"I got it!" she heard Kari call.
The door opened and Kari stood on the other side.
"Yume?"
"I brought your clothes back," said Yume. "And I wanted to show you what my brothers got me."
The girls went into the living room. Sitting next to the sofa was a familiar white and brown cat.
"Meeko! She came back," Yume said with a smile.
"She came back after you left," said Kari. "So what did your brothers get you?"
Yume started with the rocks.
Kari looked them over, checking out the different colors and shapes. "I don't think you had anything like this in your collection before."
"Maybe one or two," Yume said. "But then there's this." She pulled out the necklace with the lavender star.
Kari looked at the necklace. "It's really pretty."
"And the thing is, my brothers say they didn't get it for me," said Yume. "They only got me the rocks."
"Do you think your mom and dad got it for you?" Kari asked.
Yume shrugged. "I didn't ask them. They might have. It was next to the rocks. And then there's this." Yume reached into her bag and pulled out the little game. "I've tried playing it, but it only lit up once and then nothing. I think the batteries are dead."
Kari looked at the game in Yume's hand. "Tai has one like that. He said it's a Digivice. He was asking if I had one last night. He also asked me if I remember something that happened where we used to live."
"What was that?" Yume asked.
"Agumon got really big and was fighting a giant bird," Kari replied.
"I remember a dinosaur and a giant parrot fighting outside of our apartment building when I was really little," said Yume. "Everyone thinks I was dreaming it."
Kari looked at the Digivice in Yume's hand. "We should tell Tai." She looked over that the bedroom door. "Maybe we should wait. Somebody named Matt called earlier and Tai took the phone into our room with Agumon and I haven't heard anything since. I think it had to do with something on the news."
"The news?" Yume asked.
"More monster sightings," Kari replied. "There were Digimon attacking Tokyo Tower, but some of Tai's friends were there and their Digimon stopped them."
"Wow!" exclaimed Yume.
Kari looked over at the bedroom door again. "Wanna go on the balcony? Just for a little bit, until Tai comes out of his room."
"Sure. Maybe we can see how bright the moon is," said Yume. She started putting stuff back into her backpack.
Kari went out to the balcony and Meeko tried to sneak out with her.
"Meeko!" Kari picked up the cat. "Where do you think you're going? You can't come out here at this hour. Go back inside." She closed the door.
Meeko turned and looked at Yume with big eyes.
"Don't look at me like that," said Yume. "You had your adventure for today."
Meeko let out a meow and walked off.
Yume shook her head. "Silly kitty."
She put her presents back into her backpack, but put the Digivice in her pocket so she would remember it. She left the backpack by the sofa and went to join Kari out on the balcony. But Kari wasn't alone. The strange cat from earlier that day was standing on two legs and there was another child sized form in tan jumpsuit and indigo witch's hat and cape.
"Merlin?" Yume whispered.
She opened the sliding door, but they didn't notice her. Instead, they were focused on the glowing object in the cat's paw.
"Wizardmon, tell me is this girl the eighth Digidestined?" the cat asked in a female voice.
"Yes," responded the other person – Wizardmon. He sounded older than his childlike size would suggest. Wizardmon took the object from the cat.
"Well, then who is her Digimon?" she asked.
"I think you know," answered Wizardmon, looking at Kari. "You were waiting for someone. Try to remember, Gatomon."
"Hold on, my memory is starting to come back," Gatomon said. "Yes, I was definitely waiting for someone. Ever since I was Nyaromon, I was so lonely. Every day I just kept waiting and waiting. The seasons changed and years rolled by and still I kept waiting, but no one ever came. Then when I became Salamon I started searching. I went on a journey, but what I finally found was not the someone I had been waiting for. Instead if found evil and darkness: Myotismon. Then those days of torture and despair began and I started to forget, forget that I was waiting for someone, searching for someone."
"What are you guys talking about?" asked Kari. "What does any of this have to do with me? If anything, it has to do with Yume."
"Yume?" asked Gatomon.
"She has a Digivice, too," Kari told them.
The two Digimon then noticed the other girl standing behind Kari.
Yume was staring at Wizardmon. There was more detail to his clothes, like the skull on his hat, the red vest, zippers and patches on his jumpsuit, the crescent moons on his boots, and the designs inside his cape, but he had the same straw hair that stuck out from under his hat and the staff he carried was almost the same as the one she drew only with the center looking like it had been smashed. And then there were the worn brown gloves he wore. His skin and eyes were different from what she drew, too. His face was grayish-blue and his lower face was covered by the collar of his cape, not a scarf, and his eyes were green, not purple.
"You have a Digivice, too?" Wizardmon asked Yume.
Yume nodded slowly. She reached into her pocket and took it out to show them.
Wizardmon's eyes widened. "This makes no sense. There is only to be eight Digidestined. If there is a ninth, where is your Digimon?"
"Wizardmon, I saw this girl drawing a picture of us," said Gatomon.
"How?" asked Wizardmon, even more surprised. "I don't remember seeing her when I was searching the city."
"I think I have," said Yume.
"You have? Where?" asked Wizardmon.
Yume nodded. "In my dreams. I remember your gloves. You were always in the dark, but I could see you moving your hands around funny."
"Can you show me?" Wizardmon asked.
Yume started turning and twisting her hands like she had seen done in her dream. Twist, pause, reposition, repeat.
"How do you know this?" Wizardmon asked slowly, shocked.
"I watched you do it," Yume replied plainly.
"What is it, Wizardmon?" Gatomon asked.
"Those aren't meaningless hand movements she's making," Wizardmon replied. "I use those specific gestures to break black magic."
Yume's eyes lit up. "You can do magic? Cool!"
Wizardmon chuckled, and rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Well I am a wizard."
Yume and Kari giggled.
The sliding glass door at the other end of the balcony opened and Tai and Agumon came running out.
"Hey, who's out here?" Tai yelled. He saw Kari and Yume with Gatomon and Wizardmon. "What do you Digimon want?"
Wizardmon put his hands up. "Wait, listen to what I have to say."
"Kari, Yume, you get over here!" Tai ordered. "Those two are evil Digimon!"
"No, they're not evil," said Kari, stepping in front of them. "Gatomon has been searching for me, for me and the eight Digidestined child."
Agumon fired a fireball at the two Digimon.
"Watch out!" Gatomon pushed Kari out of the way and took the full brunt of the attack. She fell on the balcony.
"Kari, are you okay?" Tai cried, seeing how close his sister had been to being burned.
"Oh, no! Gatomon!" cried Kari. She went over to her. "You all right?"
Gatomon picked herself up. "I'm fine. This is nothing compared to what I've been through."
"Did you see that?" Tai asked Agumon. "Gatomon saved Kari."
Wizardmon turned to Gatomon. "Now that you remember, do you understand?"
"Yes," said Gatomon. "I was waiting for the Digidestined human I belonged with. That's you, Kari. You're the eighth Digidestined."
"You were waiting just for me?" Kari asked.
"I've been searching forever and ever for you." Gatomon ran up and gave Kari a hug.
"You could have just called," quipped Kari. She turned to her brother. "Guess what, Tai? Gatomon's my Digimon. Now I got one, too!"
"Don't be silly, Kari, that doesn't make sense," said Tai.
"It makes perfect sense considering she's the eighth Digidestined," said Wizardmon.
"That's right and I'm her Digimon," claimed Gatomon. "No matter what happens, I'll always protect her."
"What doesn't make sense is the other Digivice," said Wizardmon.
"Other Digivice?" asked Tai.
Yume held up the Digivice she had. "I found it on my desk. I thought my brothers got it for me."
"So there's another Digidestined? But Gennai said there were only eight," said Tai.
"I don't know how it is possible, but it is," said Wizardmon. "Yume has a Digivice of her own."
"But then who is her Digimon?" Tai asked.
"We're not sure," said Gatomon. "But Yume says she's seen Wizardmon in her dreams."
"Wizardmon?" Tai repeated.
Gatomon looked over at Wizardmon. "He's my friend. He put himself in great danger to bring me this Digivice."
"But I don't remember waiting or searching for anyone," said Wizardmon.
"Could it be that you don't remember either?" Gatomon asked. "You were very lonely when I first met you. Could you have completely forgotten that you were waiting?"
"It is possible," Wizardmon admitted.
"Well then, why are you a part of Myotismon's army?" Tai asked. "And how do I know I can trust him or not? He brings the Digivice to you and then there's another and you think he's Yume's Digimon? Seems fishy to me."
"Frankly I don't care whether you trust me or not, but I'm going to follow Gatomon as long as she needs me," Wizardmon told him. He held out Kari's Digivice. "Here. You take the device."
Tai took it from Wizardmon.
"Why give it to Tai?" Agumon asked. "It belongs to Kari."
"She can't be seen with it," said Wizardmon. "And neither can Yume. If Myotismon finds out that they have a Digivice and that Gatomon and I, possibly, are their Digimon, then he'll destroy us and he won't rest until he finds Kari and Yume. If you have the Digivice, then their secret will be safe."
"Okay, I'll take it, but you better not be double-crossing us," said Tai. "What's next?"
"Your sister needs her crest – her real one," said Wizardmon.
"The real one?" asked Tai.
Gatomon took out a familiar looking necklace. "This crest is just a copy that was created to find the Digivice. Myotismon is the only one with access to her real crest. We've got to get it back."
Yume and Kari looked at the necklace.
"That looks like what you showed me," Kari said to Yume.
Yume nodded. "I have one like that."
"You do?" Tai asked.
Yume nodded. She went inside and got the necklace out of her backpack. She came back out on the balcony and held it up. "Here. See? It was with the Digivice."
"But is it real or a fake?" asked Tai.
Yume shrugged. "It's pretty." She slipped it on over her neck. When she did, both her crest and Digivice glowed for a faint moment.
"What was that?" Agumon asked.
"I guess that means Yume really is a Digidestined," said Tai.
"Now we must get Kari's crest from Myotismon," said Wizardmon. He turned to leave with Gatomon.
"Wait!" Tai called. "Where's Myotismon's hideout? We'll come with you and we can help you."
"No, it's too dangerous," said Wizardmon. He picked Gatomon up under one arm and flew away.
"Be careful, Gatomon!" Kari called after them.
"Good luck, Wizardmon!" Yume said.
"Can we trust them?" Agumon asked.
"We have to," said Tai. "We have no choice." He turned to Yume. "Yume, I need your Digivice. Wizardmon's right; you can't be seen with it. It's probably a good idea to give me your crest, too."
Yume was a little reluctant, but handed the Digivice and crest over to Tai. "Don't lose them, please."
"I won't," Tai promised.
And so they waited out on the balcony for Wizardmon and Gatomon to return.
Nobody really said anything while they waited, they just watched the direction Wizardmon and Gatomon flew off in. Then there was a flash of lightning and a sudden storm rolled in over only one particular area.
"Look there! Up in the sky!" cried Tai.
"Wizardmon and Gatomon are in a fight," said Agumon.
"Oh, no," said Kari. "I hope they're not being hurt."
There was another crash of thunder and lightning hit the ground.
"Whoa! Let's go!" Tai said to Agumon.
The two turned and ran for the door.
"Wait up!" Kari called after them. "I wanna go, too!"
Tai turned back to her. "I can't risk you getting hurt. Wait here!" He ran through the apartment and out the door with Agumon, pausing only to grab his shoes.
Yume looked at Kari. "Should we follow them again?"
"No." Kari went back to the railing and watched the storm continue.
The girls continued waiting. The lightning and thunder eventually stopped and then there was nothing.
"What's taking them so long?" Kari asked.
Yume shook her head. "You don't think something happened to them, do you?"
Kari whined. "Come back, Gatomon. I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you. But I'm sure Tai and Agumon will take good care of you."
Yume hoped the same thing for Wizardmon.
"Kari," Mrs. Kamiya called. "Is Yume here? Ichiro is looking for her." She opened the door and saw the girls standing out on the balcony. "You girls come in here. It's late and it's time for bed. Yume, your brother is here. You were supposed to be back home ages ago."
"But," Yume started to say.
"You girls can play together in the morning," said Mrs. Kamiya.
Yume and Kari exchanged looks.
"Bye, Kari," Yume said sullenly. She walked inside and saw her eldest brother standing by the front door. She followed him back to their apartment. She didn't notice the worried look Ichiro gave her when she went in her room.
She couldn't see the stars. The fog was too thick and continued to get thicker. The laughter was back and there was no light to drive it away.
"Wizardmon," she whimpered.
The laughter grew louder.
"Wizardmon! Come back!"
But her cries went unanswered.
I'm not sure when I'm going to back with the next chapter. Maybe this month, but don't hold me to it.
