Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.

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Faraway From Truth

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Kako let Kouji sleep past noon. When he finally woke up, it was dinnertime, and all the questions he had wanted to ask her, all the things he had wanted to discuss with her (such as her grandfather and their dear old teacher, Mr. Ogata) were forgotten.

The salty scent in the air had grown stronger than he had remembered it before he slept. Sitting up, Kouji discovered the reason Kako had let him sleep longer. She was curled up with her back to him, fast asleep with his cell phone in her left hand. Shaking his head, he gently took the cell phone out of her hands and pocketed it. Kouji then placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking her lightly. "Kako," he murmured in a quiet voice. He was still tired, and it was hard to keep awake.

In her sleep, she was murmuring something. Something that started with a 'K,' Kouji observed It was completely unintelligible, just a bunch of nonsense following a 'K.' Instead of paying more attention to what she was saying like he wanted to, the boy shook her harder and repeated her name in a louder voice. When she still didn't rise, Kouji yelled, "Wake up!"

"Five more minutes, Mom," she mumbled, left hand raised. Kako waved it in his direction, nearly hitting the bandana boy's nose.

Kouji caught a hold of her hand, then rolled her over and leaned forward until his face was inches from hers. Just to be sure she wouldn't hit him, the boy grabbed a hold of her other hand and waited until she opened her eyes. The result after that was expected, in a way. Kako screamed and jumped into a sitting position. As Kouji was holding her wrists in his hands, he was yanked forward across her in consequence. He also let go of her wrists.

Pushing Kouji off, Kako slapped me away. She does hit hard, and I don't think she was even trying, he thought, wincing. "Kouji!" she screamed furiously, edging away from me. "DO NOT DO THAT TO ME!"

Rubbing his injured forehead and rising to his feet, Kouji muttered, "I told you to wake up."

Kako stood up as well, shaking her head and brushing the dirt from her clothes. She smiled softly as she looked out into the sky. The sunset was beautiful from the cave's entrance, and Kouji didn't really have to guess to know what was on her mind. "How are you feeling?" she asked, turning her head in my direction as she walked out of the cave. He turned away from her and silently walked a step behind her. At the moment, he felt more like a bodyguard than anything.

He guessed he must have worried her when he didn't answer because she turned her head around and gave him an odd look. Quietly, she murmured, "Kouji?"

The truth was that Kouji was spacing out. "Hm?" He shook my head, mainly to clear it. He realized that they had both stopped just outside the mouth of the cave. In the distance, Kouji saw a large dark dot, but was convinced it was just the sunset playing with his vision when he looked again in that direction and found nothing.

Sighing, Kako walked behind him and pushed him forward. "Let's move it," she muttered, knowing all too well what was wrong with him at the moment. He was thankful she didn't ask anymore. At the moment, talking seemed to hurt his throat, and while Kouji should have told her that, he didn't want to worry her.

Kako's far more fussy than Mom, Satomi, Piximon and Kouichi put in a room all together when she wants to be, Kouji observed with a smile. Guess that's why Mom likes her, he thought, walking on his own now and taking a glance at Kako as she now began to walk beside him. They strolled down the beach slowly, bathing in the last rays of the sun for the day. "We should call Kouichi," Kouji realized aloud, hand reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. Just as his fingers ran over it, he stopped. No, he's probably training right now.

"We should hurry," Kako pointed out, eyes glued to the sky. There was a dream-like look in her eyes as she turned her gaze to Kouji with a smile. With a laugh, she confessed, "I didn't eat breakfast or lunch and frankly, I'm hungry!"

Kouji was unable to control himself as he joined in Kako's laughter all the way back to the house.

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Kouichi, gasping and choking, stumbled from the shadows Duskmon had come from before withdrawing himself from the boy. "G-gh...Duskmon, did you have to make it so tiring?" he managed to mumble, a hand outstretched as he tried to find the bed. "This isn't Dad's bedroom, is it? I'll be murdered if it is..."

Eventually Kouichi found the bed and plopped down, moving towards the wall it was situated against and pulling the covers well above his head. So many questions floated through his head, all waiting to be answered the next morning.

Duskmon watched in amusement, not meeting Lowemon's piercing gaze. "You realize in the morning he'll want to eviscerate you, right?" the digimon asked, shaking his head and turning his head in Kouichi's direction with a sigh.

The other digimon now looked at Lowemon. Chuckling, Duskmon returned, "That'll only be if he wants to do the same to himself." Absentmindedly he found himself looking at Kouichi once more. Amusement faded from his eyes as he quietly made his way outside.

Again shaking his head in exasperation, Lowemon took his post by the bed for the moment. Kouichi, if you knew all the things that thing did for you, and I'm sure you do, you'd be far more grateful. I wonder exactly how much energy he used up. Gazing around the room, Lowemon fought the urge to groan. "And yet he still finds times for games," he muttered disapprovingly, quickly making his way out of the room, knowing all too well that if he didn't, he would be caught.

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Pressing a hand against the wall, Kako made her way to her bedroom. Her eyes slipped shut occasionally, dripping with sleep. Sleep...

"Kako, you passed your room," Kouji murmured from behind her. He stood in front of the entrance to his own room, gazing at Kako with an eyebrow raised in question.

She looked over her shoulder slowly, blinking a few times to focus her view on Kouji. "I..." mumbled Kako, shifting her weight from one hand to another to turn her body around. "Uh...where's my room?"

Exhaling through gritted teeth, Kouji took a hold of Kako's arm and led her to her room, opening the door, pushing her in, then practically slamming the door shut. For five minutes, he leaned against the door and shut his eyes, wondering exactly what he was doing.

"...night, Kouichi," he heard Kako murmur.

Stunned, Kouji whirled around to see the shut door staring back at him blankly. He became convinced either Kako was dreaming, or he had been hearing things. Either way, we must really miss Kouichi, he observed as he walked into his own room.

After getting pushed inside by Kouji, Kako had semi come to her senses and quickly changed into her PJs, ignoring the fact that Piximon was still in the kitchen, and crawled into bed. Every muscle ached from the lack of action that day. Pushing the covers and crawling into bed, Kako yawned and murmured, "Good night, Kouichi." Falling into a state of unconsciousness, she snuggled up against the figure in the bed, warm, happy, and asleep.

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Yawning and rolling over to face the alarm clock, Kako stretched her arms in front of her at comfortable angles. 5:22. Too early, the girl thought lazily, turning to face the wall. "Kouichi," she mumbled, "move over. You're hogging all the space..."

A groan answered her request, followed by shifting. Kako pulled the covers around her tighter. She found herself lacking warmth when the blanket was pulled off of her. Snapping to her senses, Kako rolled off the bed, landing on the floor in a noisy thud.

From the hall, faint screaming was heard, followed immediately by a thud. A few more dull hits sounded that could be heard from Kouji's room across the hall.

Rolling out of bed and on to his feet, Kouji rubbed his eyes sleepily. He didn't even want to look at the clock. Who the hell is making all the racket at this hour? Did Piximon blast his way into Kako's room? A quick look at his surroundings revealed Piximon was fast asleep on a small table in the room. Frowning, Kouji walked out of the room. There was an annoyed look on his face as he opened Kako's door. It was soon replaced with utter surprise. Kouji quickly stepped to the side as Kouichi's body came flying out of the room, hitting the wall directly across. Horrified, Kouji dared to take a peek at Kako.

"TELL YOUR STUPID PERVERT OF A BROTHER TO STAY OUT OF MY ROOM THE NEXT TIME HE WANTS TO VISIT!" Kako screamed, pointing at Kouichi. She was crimson, a mix of fury and embarrassment on her face.

Groaning and sitting up, Kouichi mumbled, "I knew Duskmon was up to something..." The next second, he fell to his side and shut his eyes.

I don't want to know. Kouji walked over to his twin and lightly kicked the older boy's back. "Up," the bandana boy ordered, no trace of emotion visible on his face. "If you're going to sleep, do so in my room. Apparently, Kako doesn't want to admit how much she loves your co-"

He had no time to finish. Shrieking angrily, Kako threw the contents of her open suitcase at him. All Kouji could do was drag Kouichi into his room (thankfully it was only a foot away) and shut the door. With all the racket, he was amazed neither his father nor Satomi had woken up.

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"Sorry," Kouichi mumbled, resting his head on the table and staring blankly at the bowl he was facing.

With a sigh, Kako pushed the bowl closer to his face. "Eat it," she snapped, looking away as her cheeks began to warm up again. A soft sigh was emitted from Kouichi and all traces of the blush vanished as she sent a quizzical look in his direction.

The younger twin sat with his chair backwards, chin resting on the table. There was a thoughtful look on his face as he looked at his older brother, contemplating what had brought him here.

Kouichi, on the other hand, felt incredibly miserable when he realized several things. Duskmon tricked me in more ways than one, the boy thought, eyes slipping shut. Great. Kouji probably thinks I don't trust him now. He winced as his brought his head up off the table. "I..."

Noticing the uneasiness in the air, Kako cleared her throat. For the sake of breaking the silence she asked, "Uh, so how'd you get here?" The other questions, such as what he had been doing in her bed, Kako decided to spare him at the moment.

Not up to talking, Kouichi mumbled, "Velgemon."

Oh...we're taking the short answer quiz? Kako rolled her eyes. "Riiight..." she muttered. When Kouichi looked at her, trying to look completely serious, the girl snorted, "Next you'll be telling me it was a non-stop trip." His eyes left her and focused gloomily on the table space in front of him. Kako twitched. Pressing her lips together angrily, she chose not to speak.

Kouji said all the words for her. Sitting up straight, his hands dropped to his side. "Idiot," the bandana boy growled, slamming a hand down on the table and glaring at his brother. Kouichi just shrugged. "Who the hell told you not to make any stops?" Kouji demanded.

Eyes slipped shut. In a soft voice, Kouichi whispered, "Me." At a snort of annoyance, Kouichi's eyes opened, gazing at his brother with cold eyes. "Besides, it's not my fault I'm here," he declared, volume of his voice rising.

There were soft footsteps coming from the bedroom. "Kouji, is someone over?" a woman asked after a short yawn that sounded much more like a sigh.

The gentle voice of Satomi startled the three. Kako suffered the most shock as she tipped her chair to the side, yelping as she nearly fell over. Before Kouichi could make it under the table, Satomi walked into the room, her eyes widening for a split second before she turned around and headed back to the bedroom. "Kousei," she called out, "come here for a second, would you?"

There was a loud scuffle behind her back, in which Kouichi dove under the table. He was almost successful, and would have been had Kako and Kouji not jumped to their feet to pull him up. Kouji did most of the work, while Kako occasionally kicked Kouichi's shin or hit his shoulder.

"What is it?" Kousei asked. He yawned loudly, stretching his arms above him. As his eyes opened halfway through the yawn, all time ceased to stop.

Kouichi struggled against his brother's grip, trying to release his hands from behind him. "L-let me go! We aren't playing cop and robber here, Kouji!" he snarled, looking behind him and trying to step on the younger twin's feet.

Expertly, Kouji kept his feet well out of his brother's reach. Cackling, he returned, "Just reliving my childhood."

The girl rolled her eyes. "That was lame, Kouji."

"Like you could do better."

"Yeah."

"I'd like to s-"

"SHUT UP AND LET ME GO!" Kouichi screamed.

Kako aimed a kick for his shoulder. "WE'RE NOT TALKING TO YOU!" she snapped.

Pushing his brother back, Kouichi barely got out of harm's way. He looked down at the floor, utterly embarrassed that one, he was at the mercy of his brother and Kako and two, his father and step mother (although she was more Kouji's step mother than his own) were gazing at him with disbelief in their eyes.

Noticing the family moment in the air, Kako rushed to the bedroom to check for her backpack and Piximon, finding the digimon (who had skillfully managed to keep his stuffed animal appearance), picking him up, and racing out the door.

Kouji let go of his brother's hands and Kouichi shrugged him away, turning away from his father. He cleared his throat, eyes still glued to the floor. "I'm sorry...for the trouble," he murmured quietly.

Mr. Minamoto remained silent, trying to take in the sight before him. "Wh-when did you come?" the man found himself asking his older son. Somewhat hesitantly, he took two steps forward.

"Yesterday night." Kouichi dug his nails into his palms as much as possible to prevent himself from stepping out of line in any way.

The youngest Minamoto watched his father's expression change from calm to extremely puzzled. "Yesterday night?" Kousei repeated, "You gave the ticket to your-"

Eyes squeezed shut, Kouichi turned around and nodded, a pained expression on his face. She's not my girlfriend, he thought, so badly wanting to say it. His mouth opened several times before he finally said, "I...a friend dropped me off. He...has connections." Nervously, Kouichi opened his eyes, trying to ignore the pounding of his heart.

"I think we need to have a nice, long, way overdue, half-family talk," Kouji interrupted. He didn't have to look at anyone to know what they were thinking.

It's about time we fixed things up.

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"That makes no sense," Kouichi uttered in disbelief, eyes betraying his confusion, worry, and above all, his anger.

Quietly, Kouji nodded, his eyes focused on the table lamp to his right. The older twin stood up and let out a sigh. "What are you doing?" interrupted Kouji as he switched his focus from the lamp to his twin.

The completely solemn look on his brother's face had Kouji worried. With some difficulty, Kouichi said, "You see...I came here in such a hurry that..."

Kouji twitched. Hurry up and spit it out! Patience had never been his strong suit.

Taking a deep breath Kouichi listed, "I forgot my clothes, my toothbrush, money, Kako has my jacket and my hat, and...no, I have that." He stopped to shake the confusion out of his head. "Oh, and I forgot to tell anyone other than Mom, which means one very angry brother of Kako's will be snapping at me for missing practice. I doubt they'll notice," Kouichi snorted. The boy suddenly became aware of the other two presences in the room. Uncomfortably, he took a seat again.

Taking this opportunity as a way out of the house, Kouji stood up and cleared his throat. Looking at his brother with a piercing gaze, he declared out loud, "Yes, of course. We ought to get some clothes." The bandana boy realized he sounded utterly robotic, but didn't care. Kouji yanked his brother to his feet and dragged him out the door. "I've got money, we'll be out past lunch, see you then, bye!" he yelled as they walked out the door.

Kousei and Satomi exchanged confused and slightly looks.

"Kousei," the woman started, about to stand up.

Mr. Minamoto shook his head. "I think...I think this is something we shouldn't interfere with. If I know Kouji, and although I should, I wonder-" For a moment, he stopped, trying to get the words out. "All I can say is that they want us to stay out of this," Kousei told his wife at last, rising to his feet. "And I think it would be best if I called Tomoko."

Children. Satomi shook her head with a small smile on her face. Her thoughts began whirling towards her husband's ex-wife. I wonder how it must be for her...away from her two sons, thought Satomi. Her eyes slipped shut, and she felt as if she lost connection with the world. Her sons...I wonder how it must have felt like to have been with them...to have borne them...

Countless times, she had wondered why Kouji would not accept her. It made so much sense, and yet she hadn't seen it before her. Her eyes opened. Rising to her feet and gracefully brushing a strand of hair from her vision, Satomi called out, "Kousei, make sure when they come back, they stay. I'm going to make something special for dinner."

Filled with nostalgia from her own childhood, Satomi made her way to the kitchen.

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The twins walked silently along the shoreline, not meeting the other's eyes or saying anything. It was Kouichi who broke the silence first. He sounded guilty when he confessed, "Duskmon's somewhere in the house."

The younger twin rolled his eyes. "I know. If you came here as Velgemon, he'd have to be," Kouji replied matter-of-factly.

Kouichi shrugged, feeling distant from his brother although he was at his side. A painful sensation ran through him. "D-...did someone really lie about that?" he asked in a whisper.

"Yes." Stopping in his tracks, Kouji looked at his brother. Emotions flooded him and pushed him past his limit, but they wouldn't let up. "Kouichi," he found himself choking. After Kouji realized he couldn't get the words out, he shut his eyes and drew several quick, long breaths. "Kouichi," he repeated, opening his eyes, "why did you come here?"

"Duskmon," Kouichi whispered. "I'm not sure of the real reason, Kouji. Duskmon wanted me to, but a part of me was worried about you two. N-no, not that I didn't trust you!" he blurted aloud, turning his body to face his brother with a pained expression on his face. His eyes began to sting. Kouichi quickly lifted an arm to wipe his eyes, but dropped it a second later as they came spilling out. He felt weak, hopeless, stuck in the dark.

Surprised at his brother, Kouji lapsed into silence, watching as Kouichi cried silently, his body shaking. "Why-" started the bandana boy.

Furiously, Kouichi shook his head. "I trust you. I trust you, Kouji. But that means that I can't. I trust you with Kako, but I can't...I can't trust you," he cried, kicking the sand in front of him before storming away.

The younger twin was far more shocked than he had initially been. Kouichi, what's with you? He ran after Kouichi, walking after the boy in a quick pace, making sure not to fall behind. Kouji was far too determined not to discover the reason of the sudden outburst. Sure, things had been emotionally shaky, but Kouichi had never been one to break out like that.

"Where's Kako?" Kouichi suddenly asked. He looked over his shoulder with a blank gaze. No tears remained on his face.

Kouji lifted a hand to his forehead. What is this? One moment he's having a breakdown, the next he's perfectly fine. It irritated the younger boy, but Kouji figured it had something to do with the incident before the zoo. He swallowed a smile when he realized, Kouichi's like a zoo himself.

The loud rush of the waves up the beach and the chatter of the people around completely drowned out any other noise. "I'm right here, why?" asked a girl, popping up from behind Kouji.

The bandana boy nearly died of a heart attack. To make matters worse, Piximon flew above his head and declared, "You're supposed to be training! Never fear! Piximon's special training regime can be put into action instead. Yup, yup!"

Stumbling forward, Kouji yelped. it took a while for him to get his bearings to prevent himself from falling into the sand. "You!" he shouted furiously, pointing at Kako, then Piximon.

Kako smiled pleasantly in return before averting her gaze to Kouichi. "Anyway, what's up?" she asked, arms outstretched for Piximon to come back. "Piximon, get back here. You're too obvious." The pink digimon returned to Kako and the girl laughed.

A flicker of emotion ran through Kouichi's eyes. "My jacket and my hat."

Kako fell silent.

"Kako," Kouichi growled. His eyes narrowed onto her in an almost menacing manner.

Turning slightly pink, Kako opened her mouth, ready with an explanation. Before she could say a word, she turned around and shut her eyes.

Ryuusei, surfboard in hand, stood in front of Kako, dripping wet and grinning. "Kako! Hey, I f-wait...he multiplied?" His gaze shifted to the twins, both of whom were glaring coldly at him, Kouji out of hatred and Kouichi out of annoyance. "They really look alike."

"That's an insult!" Kouichi snapped. Twitching, he turned to Kako and asked, "Kako, could you please give me my jacket and my hat?" His voice lowered out of the fear he was being too loud.

The girl opened her eyes and looked at the sand in embarrassment. "Y-yeah...it's in my backpack," she mumbled, slinging the said item off her back and to the sand. She kneeled down and opened it. After a few seconds of staring at it somewhat brokenly, Kako pulled the jacket out of the bag and threw it to Kouichi. Any sign of a smile had disappeared from her face.

Letting out a sigh and smiling somewhat, Kouichi put on his jacket, taking his D-Tector from his pant pocket and placing it in his jacket pocket. He held out a hand, clearing his throat when Kako returned a perfectly innocent face. "My hat," he told her, walking over and snatching the backpack from in front of her. Kouichi lifted it up and sifted through, immediately reddening.

Seeing this reaction, Kouji ran over. "I wanna see!" he snapped, trying to peek over his brother's shoulder.

Quickly, Kouichi grabbed his hat and tossed the bag back to Kako. "Don't open it in front of anyone," he told her, adjusting his hat on his head. "Great, now I feel normal again!" Kouichi froze at the sound of sniffling. He swallowed and turned his head to Kako, who was crying openly. "N-no-"

Sobbing out loud, Kako cried, "YOU'RE SUCH A JERK, KOUICHI!"

"Ack! No! Kako, please don't cry! NO! Come on, Kako," the boy begged, racing to her side and falling down to his knees in front of her. Eventually, when her cries quieted down, Kouichi let out a groan and lay down on the sand. "You," he mumbled, lazily raising a hand and pointing to Ryuusei. "Who are you?" The hand dropped down to shield his eyes from the sun.

The two boys locked eyes as if they were studying each other. Finally, Ryuusei shut his eyes. "Ryuusei Egawa," he introduced himself, brushing his blond hair back. "You are...?"

Kouichi took his time before answering. His eyes were still glued onto the boy. "Kouichi Kimura," he replied softly, rising to his feet and brushing the sand off himself. "And you know Kouji." As he said his brother's name, Kouichi looked in the younger twin's direction, finding Kouji edging towards Kako's backpack. In a swift movement, Kouichi yanked the backpack out of his brother's reach. "NO," he growled. Looking in Kako's direction, he murmured, "I need to talk to Kako alone, so...if you'd two excuse us..."

In the next few moments that passed, Kouji found Kako stand up and race off with his brother. The only thing on his mind was the backpack. What's in it that Kouichi doesn't want me to see...? Could it b-ew, Kouji, what are you thinking? What are you thinking? Kouji shook his head out of confusion and looked at Ryuusei, eyes focused in a piercing glare when the boy took a step forward. "Don't think about bugging them, Surfer boy," he warned. There was a smirk on Kouji's face. Show no fear...show no fear. Oh, yeah, other than the fact that we're on his terrain, there's n-wait...what's Piximon doing here? Irritably, Kouji picked the digimon up off the sand. Of course. Kouichi's playing bodyguard.

Ryu snorted and taunted, "What? Afraid your big brother'll beat you up if you don't keep me here? Poor baby bandana brain."

All control Kouji had snapped. "Kouichi can't beat me. I'm no baby, you lousy excuse for a younger brother. Don't you know? Kako's going out with Kouichi, and you aren't getting in their way because I say so. If Kouichi has a say in this-" Kouji paused and rolled his eyes. If he had a say in anything, that would be the end of all relationships he had with anyone in the world. "The point is, I don't care what Kouichi says, you aren't getting in between!" he shouted, annoyed more with himself than Ryuusei.

There was a smirk on Ryu's face, one that reminded Kouji greatly of Kanaye. Silence fell between them, and Kouji reverted from his annoyance to a calm, collected mind. Why? He began to wonder, Why don't I trust him? I trust his brother, but I can't trust him. Why? Desperate for an answer, Kouji asked, "You have a sister?"

"Nope. Just Ichiro. You know, I get the feeling that your brother's a lot nicer than you are. Later, loser," Ryuusei snorted, waving casually before heading for the waves with his surfboard.

The lack of understanding annoyed Kouji greatly. Cursing loudly and ignoring any stares he received, the bandana boy raced towards the house.

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"I'm really sorry for making you cry," Kouichi murmured, looking down at the sand below his feet. He ascended the three steps it took to get into the inn, taking a look behind him. "Really..."

Kako laughed lightly, taking her backpack from him. "Idiot," she scolded, "I was acting. Ryu's just...I don't know. He's just way too close for comfort, and besides, I knew you'd do that." Walking to the front desk, she smiled up at Ichiro. "Hey, do you have a meeting room or something that's empty that no one will interrupt us in?" Kako asked the young man.

With an eyebrow raised, Ichiro gazed down at her somewhat astounded. "Wow...you really are Hideki's sister! Kako, where's your innocence?" the boy demanded.

Reddening past crimson, Kouichi edged away from the two as far as possible without having to run out the door. He quietly took a seat in one of the nearby chairs, trying to deal with the heart attack that had been dealt to him. Kako shrieked, "Ichiro! Stop acting like Hideki! That's something he would say!" Angrily, she reached over the counter to take a swipe at him, but Ichiro jumped back.

"Actually," he commented, "Hideki called this morning. Yeah...around five. Called me just as I was coming to work. He said he wants you to call him back. As for rooms, as long as you don't-" Ichiro stopped, noticing Kako's annoyed glare. "Well, anyway, follow me," laughed the young man, leading the two to a meeting room.

After Ichiro left, Kako leaned against the door and sighed. Kouichi headed for the nearest window, watching the sky absentmindedly. "Ogata's here," Kako murmured.

Kouichi's gaze turned to the girl, but nothing else happened.

"It's kind of strange when you think about it. Ogata, my grandpa, your dad...Kouji not receiving Lobomon or his D-Tector yet...none of it adds up, Kouichi. You know something, don't you?" Kako asked.

Eyes slipping shut, Kouichi murmured, "Just wait a bit longer." A silence that lasted about a minute came between them. After it passed, Kouichi walked up to Kako and looked her straight in the eye. "I don't know that much. That...that book I gave you, you didn't open it yet, did you?" he asked in an anxious tone. Kako shook her head. "Good. Kako, you have to read it. Now. I'll wait for you outside, okay. I just...I just don't want you to read it with me around. And don't tell Kouji...please...I'll explain after, but please, don't-" Noticing his voice was cracking, Kouichi stopped and drew a deep breath. "Just...read it now. And don't tell me anything. I'll talk to you after," he mumbled, gently pushing her to the side and walking out of the room.

Stunned, Kako sank down against the now closed door and gazed at her backpack. What...? Hesitantly, she reached for it and pulled out the book. The knowledge that nothing would ever be the same after she opened it lingered in her mind even after she opened it.

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A/N-

.:victory dance:. I'm disappointed in this chapter! Advice is nice. I have a habit of making short, stupid rhymes today. Guess what? I'M NEAR THE END! Now instead of talking about the future, I will merely state that I meant to have this up a lot earlier!

Because every day is the end of the world, I THANK YOU ALL WHO REVIEWED-

GemmaniGirl, Winter's Light

Writing isn't the same if you don't have anyone to read.

Review or PM or Flame.