A/N: Trying to get back into updating again--what has it been, a year? For anyone who has been waiting for e-mail replies, I apologize. School hates me, work sucks, and my body likes being sick. I will reply to all e-mails once finals are over next week. This chapter may need some editing later, but I wanted to get this out early. :) Thanks to everyone reading this!

Tortured Minds, Broken Souls

Part Two: Friendship

"Friendship takes time, and we have no time to give it."--Agnes Repplier

It was almost time….

The glossy green leaves currently hiding the curious onlooker shifted slightly; if one were to stare at the bush hard enough, they might have caught a pair of rather suspicious eyes glaring back at them. Sadly, the only person within viewing limits was currently entranced by something else entirely: a book. All for the better, right? With a soft snort, the 'hunter' turned from his 'prey' for a moment.

This plan had to work! He'd been devising the stupid thing for almost a week now, and--by golly--it would work! All he had to do was hope that all the pieces would fall into place (which, most likely, they would). Rest assured, he was prepared for a good round of 'laugh-your-arse-off-at-the-gullible-idiot!' Still… here's hoping that Bookworm actually feared things other than a late fee from the library. Glancing back at the oblivious figure huddled over the 'precious' paperback (God, who wanted to read books for fun?), the teen took a second to chew on his thumbnail nervously. Darn nail-biting habit….

"Boss! Everything's ready!"

Kazu spun on his heels, slapping a gloved hand over lacky no. 1's big mouth. Moron! Didn't anyone know how to follow orders these days? "Shut up," he hissed, "or the plan's as good as dead!" Why did he even bother? The last two missions had ended quite miserably thanks to certain incompetent people (no names, of course). It was like everyone enjoyed seeing his plans sink! The taste of agonizing defeat sucked way too much to have it happen all the time. With a sigh, the boy turned to the only one he trusted to be obedient: "Kenta, how's everything?"

Glasses gleaming mischievously, his cohort flashed a thumbs up. Now that was a good sign. Maybe they actually could pull it off this time…. "Ikari and Sato are ready whenever you are, man," he said, squeezing into the small group as best as he could.

Alrighty! Now, he knew he had to hold in his laughter until the end--but, dang, was it hard! No need to break down before it was done, eh? He could see it now, how perfect it would be. In the end, the whole school could share a hearty laugh, praising him for such an entertaining sight. A toothy, dimwitted grin became plastered on Kazu's face as he nodded to Shou, aka lacky no. 1, to get ready. As Shou got into 'costume' (which was awesome, by the way, seeing as the great Kazu made it), Kenta let out a soft whistle. Groupies 2 and 3 whistled back, albeit badly… who the hell taught them how to whistle?

"Showtime," Kazu murmured, gnawing on his thumbnail again.

The two started walking up, talking about God knows what and taking their sweet time. Come on, come on, get to the point before you miss the target! Ikari finally stated, "Oh, hey! Did you hear? Someone saw one of those creatures running around recently."

Sato gasped, though it sounded more like a fish without water. Kazu made a mental note to teach them all how to act, and maybe make them join drama club. "Really?" he asked. "You mean those digimon things from a few years ago that destroyed the city?" The prey looked at them for a moment….

"Yeah… I've heard that people have been going missing around here, too. I wonder if that has anything to do with it."

Hell, yes! Success! Kazu couldn't help but chuckle softly as the two walked past , still chatting about random crap. The bookworm shifted uneasily for a moment, casting a glance up and down the street. Why, what was she looking for? Hmm? In that moment, he gave the word to start phase two.

Shou, clad in a plaster mask and fur coat (courtesy of Kenta's mom, who knew nothing of this idea), leapt from the bushes. A thundering "Rrrraaargh!" exploded from his lips as he bounded toward the target: a frail girl hunched over a thick book.

She looked up; all color drained from her already pale face; her mouth slacked, closed, then opened again to let out a scream… but none came (much to Kazu's disappointment). Her eyes were wide in fear, crying, pleading for help. Instantly, she was up, book flung at her attacker before she fled. Was that clatter her glasses falling to the concrete? Oh, well, who cared about that?

Then she screamed. A shrill scream that pierced the serenity of the schoolyard. It was music to his ears, simply blissful. …he was enjoying her reactions way too much. Maybe he was a sadist?

Nah.

She stumbled and fell over the street curb as she ran. Unable to get back up, she began to crawl. How pathetic. Was this all he could get out of her? Well, he supposed that would suffice. After debating whether or not he was pleased with the results, Kazu finally popped out of the bushes. Guffawing as loudly as he could, he pointed and shouted, "Idiot!" a few times while his comrades joined in suit. Best prank ever! Ah, who cared if it was a little cruel? Most people would probably get a kick out of it! As he moved closer, still chuckling, his eyes caught her confused look full of tears; it was almost like she were asking him why…. Gee, and why not? With another laugh, Kazu crossed his arms and--

A car. There was a car. Oh, shit, and headed straight at her!

Kazu felt his whole body clench up. This wasn't a part of his plan! God, now what? What should he do? Run out and save her? After all that? But what about the laughs? Where was the humor?

…everything was silent--like someone put the world on mute. No laughter, no comments, just him and his thoughts. 'I need to do something!' he realized. 'Why the hell can't I move?!' If he didn't do anything, it wouldn't really be his fault… would it?

Maybe the car would stop in time. Things like that happen all the time, right? People know how to watch the road, it's the law. Glancing over, he blanched: it was like the driver didn't even see her! What now? He wanted to do something, but the car kept coming, and he still didn't budge.

The next moment seemed so much longer than a few mere seconds. The girl tried to stand. Ankle twisted from earlier, she tumbled. Not fast enough. No way could she make it. Crap, crap, crap. Stand up, idiot! Almost on her…! Suddenly, she was flying toward him. Wait--flying? A mop of brown hair filled his vision, and all questions were answered. Kazu was filled with a sudden wave of relief. The car buzzed past harmlessly, blaring a rather annoying car horn.

"What were you thinking?!"

W-what? Takato was instantly up in Kazu's face, jamming a finger at his chest accusingly. "The hell do you mean, man?" Kazu shouted back, shoving the boy away from him. What was his problem? Sure, things looked bad a few minutes ago (heck, his mind had been racing so fast that he could hardly remember what he was thinking!), but everything was peachy-keen now, right? The bookworm was not a dark stain in the middle of the road, just shaking and sobbing in Rika's arms. A shrug. "It was just a prank."

A growl leaked from Takato's throat (since when did Takato growl?) before murmuring, "Just… just a prank?" What was he going to do--hit him? Hah! He'd like to see him try! A smirk formed on Kazu's lips at the thought. After a moment of silence, Takato had finally calmed himself down. "You almost let someone die."

"But no one actually died. See? No harm done." They'd gotten quite the crowd, hadn't they? The various gazes seemed a little unnerving, but the extra attention was what he had wanted. He was actually surprised that none of the faculty had appeared yet, screaming their wrinkled heads off at him. …perhaps he had overdone it--just a little. That didn't matter, though. No one got hurt, so everything should be fine and dandy again! 'Just laugh and continue on, please.' With a grin, he leaned toward the cowering girl and added: "Right, Booky? You're A-okay!"

She looked away, hugging her bent book and broken glasses closer. "Stop it," Rika hissed. "You've done more than enough." Was it just him, or was her voice dripping with a lot more malice today? Kazu snorted at the redhead as she attempted to comfort the poor 'victim.'

A shift to the right brought his attention back to Takato. Finally! He looked a lot calmer now. Maybe he'd finally come to his senses and realized, 'Hey! Kazu's not the bad-guy here!' Instead, he whispered, "Kazu, I--people are getting sick of your shenanigans. This one went too far. I really don't think you understand the seriousness of what happened. Someone almost died. …darn it. I really don't feel like putting up with your crap--not today." He massaged his head and groaned, face scrunched in pain. "You should just stop it, seriously. Look at what happened today: I might not have been here."

So… was he trying to say it was all his fault? No, nu-uh, sorry. Sure, he knew he played a part in this mess, but it was a minor one. How could he be the only one to blame? What gave Takato the right to place the blame solely on him? "N-nothing bad happened. Can't we just forget about it?" Damn, his voice had gotten shaky while saying that. …was that what this was? Make-Kazu-feel-horrible plan, in action.

No one even answered him. No one….

"I see how it is! You guys just don't know how to appreciate a good joke, do you? I try to supply the funny, and just because something ALMOST happens, I'm mister bad-man-naughty-pants. Well, excuse me, but if that's how you feel… than I suppose we aren't friends, are we?"

Takato faltered, mouth hanging open in shock. Yeah… what now, huh? Like he was going to put up with someone pushing the blame on him. Kazu rolled his eyes, shoved his hands into his pockets, and spun around. His ex-friend sputtered something stupid-sounding in the background, but he ignored it. Didn't want to catch the stupidity, after all.

…he couldn't help himself. He had to at least peek at her--his prey. An odd emotion walloped Kazu upside the head when his glance met her swollen eyes: guilt? Anger? At what, himself? What a laugh. "Screw you all," he muttered as he trudged away. His posse, which had been scattered throughout the area, silently followed at his heels. That was what he needed, people who would stick with him. People who were loyal, no matter what. No one wanted people who would only bring them down. "Let's go."

Kenta was the only one who lingered. He glanced back and forth for a moment, worry apparent on his face. "Hey!" Kazu called, waving the boy down. "Come on, forget about those losers!" He noted that his pal seemed rather reluctant; he'd have to question him about it later.

It was the start of a new day, and the end of something precious as well.

A/N: Simply put, they both overreacted. Takato's sense of justice clashed with Kazu's 'I'm the best!' attitude. I really didn't want to do this, I swear! However, whenever I wrote this chapter, the two were stubborn idiots (well, Takato's dealing with massive headaches and Kazu's prank got way too serious) and ended up butting heads like mad. I don't like it, but the characters wanted to fight; their ideals were just too different. ;-; Kazu should have taken most or part of the blame (it was his fault she was there in the first place), and Takato should have been much more understanding (who knew a car would come, or that she would run into the street and stay there?!). Don't worry, though. In a way, it's like those fights people have where they don't talk for ages, then say: Why the hell aren't we talking, anyway? My love for the dumb duo is much too great to get rid of them before Destined. They'll be making a come-back.

Wow… I wrote a lot for wanting to explain things in few sentences. Bah. Anyway, one chapter left, following none other than Rika! Be prepared, 'cause I'm on a roll! Once finals are over, that is. Comments are always welcome; I'd like to know what people think.--Angel-Chan