Digimon Adventure: Unto the Third Generation

Chapter 03: The Kids Are Alright

I try not to stew on the awesome fight I missed last weekend. The one that, incidentally, happened to occur at Tetsu's dad's funeral. My own fault really, just desserts for being "sick" during such an important event.

...What? Don't think I'm heartless. I'd loved to have been there for Tetsu. Solemn and I just don't go together. Besides, Tetsu has other people around better suited for that. My sister, for instance.

The day after the funeral, the three of us are heading to school, traveling in a pack as we typically do. Kin is with us too. But he's not really one of us, ya know? He's just… jeez, maybe I can break this down.

Kin is fourteen, like Taji and myself, and also like my sister he was a soccer player. I say was because he dropped it entirely about a semester ago. We all know that cause we go to school with him, but as far as I know his parents don't. No idea where he is after school almost every day. Even before that he had a pretty bad attitude, but these days it's like he always walks around with a twenty pound chip on his shoulder. So yeah. Not to speak for the others, but he's not really "our kind of people."

All the same, he is a child of the Digidestined, so I feel a certain obligation to let him in on our plans.

"I spent plenty of time in the Digital World when we were children," Kin says. "I don't need to go on a field trip."

"It's not a field trip," I insist. "It's a legacy! The offspring of all the original chosen going back to where it began."

"I don't remember saying that," Tetsu says.

"Whatever. Muchomon and I have better things to do with our weekend," Kin says. "I have plans with Vicky tonight anyway."

"That's right, Tama," Taji says. "Don't forget: Kin's better than us. He has a girlfriend now."

Kin rolls his eyes at her, but does not deign to comment.

I place my hands behind my head and sigh. "Fine. I knew you'd be a spoilsport anyway. Why is it you never do anything fun?"

A muffled voice in my backpack interjects, "Perhaps his childhood diet contained less lead paint than yours."

Taji shoots me an angry look. "You're smuggling in Yokomon again? Tama, you're going to get yourself suspended!"

I smile playfully. "No worries. I'm not going to school anyways. Just wanted to stick about long enough to give Kin the invite spiel."

"Brother, please don't di-"

Before Taji can finish her thought, I dart away down a side street. "Bye Tetsu! See you tonight!"

My friend only shakes his head and keeps walking.

And so my day begins.

And let us begin our OC roll call with a dear friend of mine:

On File Island where once there stood an abandoned factory there is now a clinic-come-medical research facility. At least, that's what it used to be. In the present, the number of chosen milling about File Island is much less than what it once was and the resident Digimon require very little in the way of medical care. These days most medical facilities are located in densely populated regions, such as Folder Continent. Still, the smaller File Clinic survives thanks to a small clientele who are willing to travel out of their way for a higher quality of care, and a doctor who is willing to try and fix a Digimon's problems rather than recommending they be killed and rebooted at Primary Village.

This is the home of Joe Kido and, more importantly, his son.

In a certain room in the clinic, a Digiport opens. I plop through it, collapsing to the ground. Biyomon follows immediately after me and does the same.

"You know, I've heard birds are supposed to be light so they can fly," I mutter, with all Biyomon's weight pressing down on me. "So how do you manage to be so fat?"

Biyomons hmphs. "That's easy for you to say," my partner says. "I never know what trouble you're gonna get me into. I have to be ready to fight at all times!"

I roughly shove the bird Digimon off of me. "Please, like you've ever fought a day in your life. I don't even know what your Champion form looks like!"

Before we can squabble some more, a voice speaks up outside the door. "Yeah Dad. I'll get back to work in a few, just let me check my school email."

The door opens and in steps a tall, wiry boy with dark hair and glasses. He's not a month older than me, but he's already filled out from full days of work in the Digital World. The kid's a grade-A nerd, I can tell you that from experience, but no one would ever mistake him for a wimp. I wonder if his dad was the same at our age.

The boy sees me and stops in his tracks. Behind him enter a white seal-like creature with an orange strip of fur down its back. "Say Fumio, didja get any-" The Digimon spots me and immediately dives behind his partner, hiding his eyes behind clawed flippers. "Home invaders! It's just like Mom warned us!"

"Shut up Gomamon!" Fumio whispers urgently, shoving the Rookie into the room with his foot and closing the door.

The boy stares down at me, hands on his hips. I stand up and deliver a mock salute. "Wassup Fumio? Thought I'd drop in and say hey."

"Tama, what are you doing in my room? On a school day! I'm gonna catch hell from Dad when he sees you. And then he'll call your dad and we'll both catch double-hell."

All I can do is rub my head at his scolding. This is just like him. "Dude! Dude. Chill. I'll be gone before anyone is the wiser. I just came to let you know that all the Digidestined kids are getting together tonight for a trip into the Digital World. Thought I'd see if you wanted to hang."

"Ah… I see," says Fumio. "Well thanks for the invitation, but you could've texted. Anyway, this my weekend at Dad's and there is no way he's letting me hang out with friends. There's just too much work to do."

I frown. Digidestined or no, Fumio and I have always been really good buds, but for the last couple years it seems Joe has insisted on working his son to the bone. Shouldn't kids get some time just to be kids?

"I understand man. Let me know if we can hang out sometime. I mean, I miss you."

Fumio's frown softens. "Yeah. Me too."

Down the hall, I hear a voice approaching. "Fumio! The hell is taking so long?"

And since I don't feel the need for my spotlight chapter to contain another overly long battle sequence, I take this opportunity to depart.

"Digiport, open!"

Meanwhile in Odaiba, Tetsu and Taji have found that the anticipation of adventure from yesterday has little endurance in the face of school day tedium.

Tetsu and Taji are both shuffling through their lockers when a boy in the year below approaches. "Excuse me, Tetsu?"

"Yeah?" Tetsu turns to look at his cousin.

Hiroaki is the son of Tetsu's aunt, Kari. Like his mother, he has light brown hair and is a bit on the short side. He also possesses the same wide, honest eyes she had as a young girl. More directly, Kari passed on the whistle which her mother once gave to her. While Hiroaki seldom has reason to use it, it can always be seen hanging from his neck.

Hiroaki performs a polite bow. "Hello cousin. I just wish to state my profound regrets at your father's passing, and at the disturbance that occurred yesterday. I would have attended the ceremony, but I already had a special examination scheduled for that day and my mother insisted I must attend."

Tetsu rubs the back of his head. "Hey, don't worry about it. I know what a stickler Aunt Kari can be. As for the disturbance… Well, you know, our parents have a lot of enemies. If it hadn't been Devimon, it would've been someone else.

"But thanks for the kind words."

Hiroaki smiles. "Of course Tetsu. Please let me know if I can help out with anything." He turns to go.

But as he does, Tetsu begins to think. Tama had indicated earlier that he was going to invite the rest of the old crew to this weekend's outing. Tetsu knows though that Tama is unlikely to factor Hiroaki into this event. The two had never meshed and, unlike Kin, Hiroaki isn't especially fun to harass. Still, he is one of the original crew, and none of the Digidestined kids have made an effort to hang out with Hiroaki at all…

Come to think of it, does Hiroaki have friends?

"Hey Hiro, doing anything this weekend?" Tetsu asks.

The boy turns back around. "Uh, no. Don't think so. Why do you ask?"

"A bunch of us are getting together tonight and going to the Digital World for the weekend. All the kids of the original Digidestined. Well, most us. Want in?"

Hiroaki blinks. "Uh, yeah. Yeah! Where are we meeting?"

"My place. Around nine. Come in through the Digiport."

"Absolutely. Okay! See you then!"

Before Hiro can scamper off, Taji leans past and calls, "And Hiro! This is kind of a secret, okay? Don't tell your mom."

Hiroaki merely nods back to her and heads off for class, smiling broadly.

Taji sighs and leans back against her locker. "He's totally going to tell her."

"No, Hiro wou-" Tetsu stops himself and considers for a second. "Yeah, he'll definitely tell."

My next stop is a residence in the Shinjuku ward of Tokyo. This time I manage to land with a bit more grace, on my feet even. Biyomon is not so lucky and once again collapses in a heap.

It's for the best really. Makes me look better.

I smile broadly. "Hey Mari. It's been way too long."

The room's resident turns her wheelchair to face me, revealing a smile much brighter than my own. Mari Izumi lost the ability to walk in an incident when we were all pretty young, but I've never seen it get her down. She's one of the nicest and most vibrant people I've had the pleasure to get to know. (And one of the prettiest, but don't tell her I said that.)

"Good morning, Tama. Do you make a habit of sneaking into girl's rooms without warning?"

I chuckle awkwardly. "I-um, no. Sorry. I just thought I'd let you know that Tetsu is leading a bunch of us into the DigiWorld tonight. It'll be like an adventure! You wanna come?"

"An adventure, hmm? Well it has been some time." Mari starts to wheel toward me, then suddenly stops. She looks down, and I can see the wheels in her head start the turn. "Sorry, I don't think I'll be able to go. Thank you for telling me."

My smile falters a tad. "Really? If it's the chair, don't stress. We can-"

"I won't be free," Mari interrupts me. "Perhaps another time."

Thoroughly rebuffed, I nod. "Right, I understand."

As if on cue, the door opens and Mira's mom pops her head in. Haruka Izumi doesn't look much like her daughter. For one, she doesn't have the red hair Mira inherited from her dad. For another, Dr. Izumi's face is deeply scared, with a dark red gash from her chin extending almost to her hairline, obscuring her right eye. If you look closely there are several wounds on her face that didn't heal quite right, but that one stands out the most. I don't remember what she looked like before the incident. I think they got rid of most of the pictures.

"Oh, I'm sorry Mari," says Dr. Izumi. "I didn't realize you had company. How are you, Mr. Ishida?"

For the next several minutes I make friendly conversation with Mari and her mother, not mentioning my weekend plans. When at last we leave, Biyomon and I do so through the front door.

"I don't see why you can't be a more responsible young person, like Mari," Biyomon squawks as we cross the street.

"Oh please. She was skipping school just like me."

"She's homeschooled now, you nitwit! Or didn't you notice the books on her selves?"

I'm formulating a reply, but it stops in my throat. Across the street from Mari's house is a strange looking man. He's staring at me.

The guy has red hair and dark glasses, and most of him is hidden by a grey coat. At his feet is what I assume to be his partner Digimon. It looks like some kind of red beetle with dead, green eyes.

"Uh, hi?" I address the man. Through my body I feel blood and adrenaline pumping.

The man looks back at Mari's house. "There's a girl who lives there. She's about the same age as you."

"Yeah?"

The man seems to be pondering something. "Are you her friend?"

Beside me, Biyomon waves a hand in front of the bug Digimon's face. The beetle-thing makes a faint clicking sound and refocuses his eyes on my partner. Biyomon nearly jumps out of his skin.

"I guess so."

The man makes an expression that, in the right lighting, might appear to be a smile. "I'm glad to hear it. Stay safe young man."

The man passes me by, walking the opposite way down the street. Slowly, his partner follows.

I shake myself. Something about those two felt… not right. As if they'd been hollowed out. And why was he so interested in Mari?

"Creep."

The Suzuki household might seem a little off to many people. In many families in this day and age everyone has their own Digimon partner. In the Suzuki family though, each family member appears to have their own domestic pet. The mother has her cat, the father his dog, and the son a puppy. Only upon further inspection would one notice that these creatures are Digimon partners. It would take closer inspection still for an outsider to realize that behind the domestic visage, one of these Digimon is, at her resting state, one of the most powerful beings on the planet.

Gatomon is lazing on a pillow that had been discarded on the floor when the front door swings open with a slam. The feline Digimon lifts a single eyelid to confirm the intruder's identity. "Hey Hiro. In a rush today?"

"I-uh, not really," Hiroaki stammers. "Just gotta a few things to do tonight."

The young chosen flies up the stairs before he is questioned any further.

At the door to his room, Hiro is greeted by another fluffy, white creature. Unlike the Champion Digimon, Hiroaki's partner wears its Holy Ring around the neck, a necessary alteration as it does not possess Gatomon's long tail. One defining characteristic it does display are long, floppy ears which hide its face when viewed from the side.

Salamon jumps against Hiroaki's legs and makes a sound between a purr and a growl. "You're back, you're back! Are we gonna play? Gatomon and Labramon are boooring."

Hiro smiles at his companion's pestering and ruffles the fur on his head. "Oh we're gonna play, buddy." Hiroaki closes the door behind them. "I think you're going to like this."

The boy explains his weekend plans to the Rookie Digimon as he packs a knapsack for the forthcoming expedition. Salamon sits on the bed, panting and listening with rapt attention.

When at last the boy finishes his story, Salamon leaps upwards, howling happily. "The DigiWorld! It's been too long! I miss it, Hiro. I miss the smells and the forest and the- The fights! I bet we'll get jumped by some Kuwagamon or something and then I'm gonna-"

"What? Hey, no way!" Hiroaki interrupts. "We are not going to the Digital World to fight! You know that isn't what we do, Salamon. It's not like that anymore over there. People have been going to the other world for a long time now. It's civilized."

Salamon's ears hang limply over his face as he pouts. "But Hiro, I'm a Digimon. And a dog. Fighting is what we do. It's what your mom did. How else do you handle savage monsters?"

Hiroaki shakes his head. "That was back then. They only did what they needed to. People and Digimon didn't know better. The world was in danger. Now we all work together. No more fighting. No more killing.

"Now listen Salamon. If I take you over there, I don't want you picking any fights with the native Digimon, okay? The first sign of violence and we are leaving. Are we clear on that?"

Salamon continues to pout, but nods soberly. "Yes Hiro. No fighting. I promise."

At that moment, a knock comes from the door. "Hiroaki? Can I come in?"

Hiro looks at his packed bag, then at the door. "Um, yes Mom. Come in." Quickly the boy sends his puppy a look that says nothing less than Shut up. Intuitive as partner Digimon typically are toward their chosen, Salamon immediately attempts to perk up and look like his usual, energetic self.

Kari Suzuki opens the door and steps across the threshold, smiling as she is wont to do. "Our feline friend mentioned you seemed in an agitated mood when you got home this afternoon. Anything going on that I ought to know about?"

Hiro manages a fake smile and a disingenuous "Oh, you know, not much." On the inside though, the lad is on the verge of a cold sweat. I know Taji said to keep this on the down low, but can I lie to Mom? I've never lied to her! What can I say? Does it matter? She's the Digidestined of Light. Can she read minds? Are you hearing this right now, Mom?

With all these competing noises in his head, it is a small miracle the only tell young Hiro exhibits is an overly long silence.

The Digidestined of Light leans slightly to the left, looking past her son. "Does whatever's on your mind have to do with the packed bag on your bed?"

"Uh- Yes!" Hiroaki blurts. Okay, fine. No lying then. Just the truth- or at least the "truth." "Tetsu is having a sleepover this weekend. He invited a bunch of the guys- me too. I was wondering, can I… May I go?"

"Tetsu's having a sleepover?" For a second, Kari's face goes blank. But almost immediately, she brightens. "What a lovely idea. Of course you can go, Hiro. Have fun."

Hiro smiles, genuinely this time, in response. Not willing to risk further questioning, he grabs his bag- and Salamon (who releases an excited yelp as he's hoisted into the air). "Thanks Mom! Love you!"

And he's gone.

With her son absent, Kari allows her face to relax into a neutral expression. She sighs.

"You aren't happy, huh?" asks Gatomon, sauntering up the stairs. "I don't get why. The kid never gets out. Ain't this a good thing?"

"Sure it is. Of course I'm happy for Hiro," Kari says. "But yesterday was Tai's funeral. And the attack. And the very next day, Tetsu happens to invite a ton of friends over, including at least one he isn't close to at all? I can't imagine what the poor boy is going through."

"Eh, maybe not," says the cat. "But he was your brother too. And our friend. And Tetsu's your nephew, right? If you're so darn worried, why don't you have a chat with him?"

Kari sits down at the edge of her son's bed. "And say what? It gets better? He'd be-... He'd be proud of us? I don't know if I buy any of that."

Gatomon hops onto the bed and climbs into her partner's lap, nuzzling Kari's stomach with her head. "Maybe the words aren't important. Just be there. Share some a' that light you got."

The woman smiles sadly, in a way that shows all of the years that have passed since her last adventure, and the toll each of them has taken. Absently she strokes her partner's back with her right hand. With her left, Kari finds herself grasping the area under her neck where once the Crest of Light had hung.

As she leaves the room, Kari hears a vibrating sound coming from the kitchen. Her cell phone on silent, thrumming against the counter as a notification is received. She checks it. A new message from a contact she hasn't heard from in a few weeks:

Tonight?

The last stop on my list is a hotel back in Odaiba. This one has me a little intimidated I'll admit, but if this is important to Tetsu then it's worth going that extra mile to make sure our reunion tour is legit.

I knock twice and wait.

The woman who answers is about my mother's age, but with more fashionable hair and decked out entirely in pink. "Oh, hello. Do I know you?"

"Yeah sorta, Ms. Tachikawa. I'm the son of your friends, Ma-"

"Oh!" Mimi's eye's fall on Biyomon. "Of course! You're Tama, Sora's boy. Please, come in!"

The woman steps aside and allows us to enter. Almost instantly a green creature with a flower growing out its head wraps Biyomon in a tight hug. "Biyomon! It's so good to see you again."

"You- you might have the wrong bird."

The hotel room isn't especially big, but it's comfortable enough. It contains a TV set, a desktop computer (which have become popular utilities since the introduction of Digiports), a couple lamps, and a pair of beds. A teenage boy is lounging on one of them playing on his phone, his own floral partner beside him.

"Mark, say hi to our guest," says Mimi.

The boy looks up. "Oh, hey. You must be one of the Digidestined kids, right?"

"Yeah, the name's Tama." I point over my shoulder. "And that's my buddy Biyomon."

Meanwhile, Palmon is giving Biyomon a thorough inspection. "I don't get it. You sound wrong, but why do the two of you look totally the same?"

"Please just- stop touching me."

"Good to meet you," says Mark.

"So what brings you both here?" Mimi asks.

Hmm. Now I have a dilemma. We agreed not to let the parents in on our little trip, but I won't get much of a chance to give Mark the lowdown without her listening in. Of course, while the other parents would likely be against us going off on our own both due to recent events and most of us not having much training in terms of self-defense, Mimi has been out of the loop for a while and it doesn't seem like Mark has any trouble taking care of himself.

I place my hands on the back of my head. "We're planning a trip!"

"A trip, huh?" says Mark. "Who's we?"

"The other Digidestined kids. Tetsu, Taji- I believe you met a few of them the other day."

Mark nods. "Yeah, the funeral."

"So where's this trip to?" Mimi asks.

"The Digital World. Tetsu's been feeling sentimental with… everything. He thought it'd be neat if we got all the kids together to go there, like we did when we were little. Like you guys did, when you were younger than us." I gesture toward Mimi. "Also, Tetsu said you kinda kicked ass- uh, pardon my language- in the fight that broke out."

"You got that right," says Floramon. "Jerks didn't know what happened."

"You dropped me," reminds Mark. "And got the shit kicked out of you by a teddy bear."

"He was a real bear!" says Floramon. "A real bear Digimon! I almost had 'im. And it's not my fault you humans have no balance."

I shake my head. "Whatever. Point is you can Digivolve, and aren't bad in a fight. Who knows, maybe we'll need some muscle.

"Putting all that to the side though, you're one of us. Wouldn't really be a reunion without you there. Are you in?"

Mark looks toward his mom and raises an eyebrow. "What do you think?"

The woman shrugs. "It sounds like fun. Actually, I wanna go!"

My stomach drops.

Mimi starts to laugh. "But don't worry! This old lady isn't going to cramp your kids' style. If that's a thing you still say.

"Go on Mark, have some fun with your friends."

"So, when are we leaving?"

When I go to exit, a voice speaks up behind me. "Tama! Please, please don't leave me!"

I turn to find that Palmon has pried the window open and is trying to force Biyomon through with her long, vine-like fingers. "C'mon, I just want to see you Digivolve! You'll be a pretty Birdramon, right? I wanna know!"

I should hang out with these guys more.

I arrive in Tetsu's room at nine in the evening. Seems like I beat the rush. The only people here so far are Tetsu, Agumon, and Hiroaki. Oh, and one other.

The white dog Digimon growls and runs up to us. "It's a bird! A big, big bird!"

Biyomon sighs. "I never imagined before today that other Digimon could be more troublesome than human children."

"See? You oughta appreciate me more," I say. "Good to see you, Hiro. Didn't know this would be up your alley."

"Oh yeah! I've always wanted to try camping," Hiro says, clasping the straps of his pack tightly. "When do we leave?"

"Just as soon as the others get here," replies Tetsu. "So Tama, how did your recruiting go today?"

"Well, I only got one out of three. That's still a win in my book though."

"Okay, and who's the one?"

Before I can answer, the screen of Tet's computer glows again. From it Taji and Jyu emerge, along with their partners. Wormmon is on Jyu's shoulders like usual. He looks completely awake for once. Gabumon, for his part, looks like his usual subdued self.

"Hey guys. I brought some snacks," says Jyu. "Not enough for the whole weekend. We'll need to do some foraging."

"I brought my knife, a fire making kit, a few flashlights with spare batteries, and a compass," says Taji.

"Um, I brought my sleeping bag!" says Hiro. "And a few changes of clothes. And some candy bars."

"Not bad," says Taji. "Now tell me, Tama, what did you bring?"

"Well, actually I-", but before I was forced to make up an ending to that sentence, the screen lit up again and two figures took form. A teenage boy a couple feet taller than me and a flower-creature about the same size as Biyomon.

I motioned toward the pair. "I brought them!"

"Hey guys. Hope I'm not running late," Mark says. "I was getting some materials together."

"Oh, hey Mark," says Tetsu. "Wasn't expecting to see you tonight."

"Oh. Um, I'm sorry? I thought we were invited."

Floramon crosses his arms. "But we won't stay where we aren't welcome."

"Oh no!' Jyu says hastily. "You two are great. Of course you're invited! Tetsu was just surprised. Welcome aboard."

Taji looks to Tetsu. "Okay man-with-the-plan, where are we going?"

Huh. That thought hadn't even occurred to me. Obviously we are heading to the Digital World, but that's kinda like saying you're vacationing in Europe. It's a big place. Huge, actually. When our parents first visited, that world was a vast frontier. To a group of preteens it seemed like an untamable, incomprehensible mass of unnatural biomes.

Since the widespread use of Digivices and Digiports though, this philosophy has proven to be inaccurate. Humans have spent a great deal of time there and sorted it into more readily digestible topographical chunks.

First there is Server Continent, where the Digidestined spent a great deal of their time in the old days. For that very reason it was a very popular spot, especially after Takeru Takaishi's books came out. For the last several years though the entire area has been closed off by order of the UN. You can't Digiport in if you want to.

The second major region is Folder Continent. This one has remained popular. The entire area is littered with human cities and resorts at this point. Hardly any room is left over for non-partner Digimon to live. Folder is nice enough for a vacation, but a bit too inhabited for an "adventure."

There are a few other areas out there still mostly left untouched. Directory Continent and WWW Continent both exist. Humans are also aware of a few smatterings of island and the Digi-equivalent of the North Pole. But all of these areas are either a complete blank for us, brimming with predatory Digimon we don't want any part of, or simply inhospitable to human biology.

Based on all this information, I'm pretty sure Tet will draw the same conclusion I do.

"We're going to where it all started, of course. It's gotta be File Island."

Deep in his throat, Agumon rumbles something I take to be an agreement.

"All right then," says Jyu. "Does everybody have what they want to bring?"

The room nods.

"Okay then. Who would like to do the honors?"

No one says anything, and Tetsu steps forward. The young man raises his device toward the computer screen.

"Digiport, Open!"

"Takeru, wake up. It's Sora."

"Mmmmrr, what?"

Takeru Takaishi wakes up to Shaiwase shoving a phone in his face. After a few moments of blinking, he takes it.

"Sora. It's what? Two? Whadya want?"

"It's the kids, Takeru," answers his sister-in-law. "They all left for the DigiWorld last night. On their own."

"Oh, okay," Takeru yawns. "That's not great. Groundings are probably in order. Anyone gone to grab 'em yet?"

"That's why I'm calling. We have a big problem. All the Digiports are closed."

"What? No, it doesn't work like that."

"They're closed, T.K. The Digital World is blocked off and none of us know why.

"Until we figure it out, the kids are on their own."