A/N: If I put a star next to the Digimon's name that mean's their actual Digimon, although I don't think I need to. But with the Digimon that actually exist I won't give a description, unless you want me to describe them, then let me know. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it and please review.
I want to do a shout out to vire the first reviewer to this story. Thanks for the review, I hope to hear from you and other reviewers soon.
The team made it out of the forest, but found themselves in a cavern unfamiliar to Kouichi who had spent much time in the Dark Continent. It seemed that once you crossed the strange tunnels, you can't go back the way you came, which made things problematic for the Warriors- who were now lost. Unfortunately for them, while their path was still straight, the odd tunnels were still present.
The team was a little mad at Junpei for straying from the group, causing them all to be lost. But there was no time for blame, when they desperately needed to reach the Venus Rose.
The walk started to become tiresome, until the heroes came at a cross-road of three different tunnels.
"Which one should we take?" Izumi asked.
"I don't know," Kouichi responded, slightly embarrassed, "Nothing here is familiar to me."
"Oh, "Junpei whined, trying to mask the panic in his voice, "what should we do now?"
"We don't have a choice," said Kouji, "we'll just have to pick one."
They were about to pick a tunnel, when a sound began to rouse Tomoki. "Everyone, can you hear that?"
Everyone perked their ears to hear what Tomoki had heard. It was the sound of water dripping. While it's not unnatural to hear such a sound in caves, it was strange to hear it, since nothing was even wet.
At first, they thought it was nothing to worry about until dripping turned into trickling and the trickling into gushing. Soon a tidal wave raged through the tunnels sweeping the team away, separating them throughout the three tunnels. Kouich and Tomoki were carried off to the middle tunnel, Izumi, Jupei and their Digimon companions, drifted away to the left tunnel, leaving Takuya and Kouji to fend themselves against the raging waters in the right tunnel.
Tomoki woke up, slightly dazed. He remembered water rushing in and pulling him under. Tomoki was still too young to swim as well as the others, but surprisingly he found himself on dry land, despite the water still flowing violently a mere two feet away.
"Are you okay?" said a familiar voice. Still dazed, Tomoki recognised the voice, but didn't know its owner.
Tomoki turned his attention away from the water to the owner of the voice. He had hoped to find his surrogate brother, Takuya, or even Kouji, but was shocked to find Kouichi was the one called to him. Tomoki wasn't disappointed to find him there, after all, despite their past quarrels when he was Duskmon, Kouichi was a kind person, but they had not known each other for very long. He had considered all of the other Warriors as his surrogate siblings, yet he still considered Kouichi to be a stranger.
Trying to be polite, Tomoki gave him a quick nod, which he returned with a soft smile. "I'm glad," Kouichi replied.
"Where are we?" Tomoki asked.
"I'm not sure, but I don't see a way out."
The two searched every inch of the area and not a single exit, until Tomoki spotted one of the strange openings. It was a risky move, since they didn't know where they would end up and they wouldn't be able to go back the way they came in. But they had no choice, the two entered the strange breach and prepared themselves for what was to come.
The torrent began to die down, making the waters still enough for Izumi and the others to head to shore. The group was tired from the ragging rapids and were grateful to finally be able to rest, but they were also eager to join up with the rest of the group. Although, strange as it seemed, it looked like there was no other way out than through one of the odd entryway they had seen before.
"It looks scary," said Neemon.
Bokomon snapped his waistband in reply to his remark. "Stop talking! You're scaring Patamon."
But the young Digimon was far from scared. In fact, he seemed drawn to the opening. Having once been one of the Three Great Angel Digimon, everyone knew that he had a strong insight. So Junpei and Izumi needed to trust that insight in the hopes of reuniting with the others.
Takuya and Kouji woke up in what looked like a void. There was nothing there, not even an opening, just empty space…
Worried about their teammates, the two boys searched frantically for a way out but found nothing.
Suddenly, two holes began to form above their heads, but they weren't openings. Images began to form from inside them, one of Tomoki and Kouichi and one of the rest of the team.
"Guys," Takuya cried, hoping the others could hear him, "we're here."
"It's no use," Kouji said, frustrated, "All we can do is watch them."
Kouji paid close attention to the window from which he could see his twin, how he wished he could be there. He would've jumped at the chance to try to communicate with his counterpart. When he first realized they were brothers, he was surprised, but a part of him was thrilled to have a sibling. After spending time with Takuya and the others, he was beginning to enjoy company. Maybe he and his twin could keep each other company. The two clearly shared a sense of loneliness albeit for different reasons and they both really wanted to know about the remainder of their family.
They may not be close now but one day, Kouji hoped, they would as close as brothers could be.
Kouichi and Tomoki found themselves in what looked like a play-room. A small table was at the center with toys and games scattered all over the place. There were even a few children drawings that hung on the walls.
Tomoki was amazed by the amount of toys that lay before him, and wanted to play with some of them, but understood that getting to the others was their first objective. Unfortunately, they couldn't find an exit anywhere. They searched the place from top to bottom but the closest thing they found to an exit was a door that led to a kitchen.
"What should we do?" asked Tomoki.
"We don't have a choice. We'll just have to wait for an exit to appear."
Suddenly, they heard the faint sound of whimpering coming from under the table. Kouichi and Tomoki stood on opposite ends of the table and slowly crouched down to find the source of the sound, expecting it to be a threat. But instead they found a group of young frightened Digimon. Like most young Digimon they had a round shape, but each one had distinctive characteristics that differentiated them from the others. They were all shaking with fear when they were discovered by the human children, fearing that they would hurt them.
Realizing that their presence was causing the young ones anxiety, Kouichi slowly reached his hand out to them and said with a gentle voice, "We're sorry to have startled all of you. Won't you come and play with us."
The young ones were confused at first but became excited at the thought of playing with their toys and games. So, they all quickly bounced out of their hiding spot and began to pulling the two humans in every direction, each one wanting them to play something different.
Everyone was having so much fun playing with the human children except for one young Digimon called Nyaromon*, who was isolated from the rest of the group, happily playing with a set of building blocks. The little Digimon seemed to prefer to play alone instead of with the others. Then another Digimon flew by called Pagumon*.
"Give me those blocks," Pagumon ordered maliciously.
Nyaromon was slightly frightened by him, but he ignored Pagumon and continued to play with the blocks.
Angered, Pagumon knocked over Nyaromon's tower of blocks and then began to cry.
Kouichi and Tomoki heard the cries and rushed in to see what was happening.
They asked both Digimon what had happened and Pagumon was the first to explain. "I was just playing by myself and Nyaromon knocked over my tower for no reason."
The two humans looked at the cat-like Digimon, but Tomoki was the one to scold him.
"Nyaromon," Tomoki scorned, "Don't be mean. We're all supposed to be friends here."
Tomoki never tolerated bullies to begin with and scolded the idea altogether, but he didn't realize how strongly it affected victims, when no one knows who the real bully is. Nyaromon remained silent at the accusation, thinking that no one would believe the truth. So he quietly left to play in another little corner.
"Geez," Tomoki sighed, "I just wanted him to apologize."
Kouichi had lived a hard life, which led him to conceal his true feelings so that he wouldn't burden anyone. And, being an expert at hiding the truth, he knew that there was more to this story than Pagumon was letting on.
After a vigorous amount of games, the young ones became extremely hungry, so the two human offered to make them something to eat. They made their way towards the kitchen they had found earlier and looked for the ingredients that they would need.
Kouji stared intently at the window displaying his twin. Somehow he could sense his brother's feelings towards the situation as if he had experienced it firsthand. But that didn't seem possible since they were two completely different people even though they're twins. Not to mention Light and Darkness, while inseparable are natural opposites.
And yet he seemed to understand his counterpart to some extent. He could sense Kouichi's pain and anger even though he masked it with such a gentle smile. This made him want to learn more about his brother's life...not just because they shared a mother but because they had a surprisingly strong connection.
Kouichi and Tomoki were now chopping vegetables; Kouichi cut the carrots while Tomoki was charged with the onions. Tomoki liked onions when they were cooked, but they were a pain to cut. Unwanted tears streamed from his face as the onions irritated his eyes. It was an unpleasant feeling for the young human.
"I hate this," the young one whined wiping the tears from his eyes and there were still so many onions left uncut.
Noticing his discomfort, Kouichi took a bowl of water and placed it next to the cut onions.
Confused Tomoki stared at him quizzically until he replied, "It helps stop the crying. The onions absorb the moisture slowing down the chemicals that irritate the eye."
"I see. You know a lot about this stuff," Tomoki said genuinely impressed.
"It's not really a big deal I do it a lot," he said as he finished cutting the carrots and moved on to something else. "Besides this is your doing a good job for someone who doesn't usually cook at all."
"But it's amazing you know so much." Tomoki's amazement was boundless. All of his other comrades seemed to show their talents right away, but Kouichi seemed to hide them until they were needed.
"Lots of people know things that they try to hide," he simply said.
Tomoki was confused but shrugged it off as he continued to cut the onions. It seemed as though Kouichi's trick was working because his eyes didn't sting as much.
It was time to serve the food. The two humans had prepared a vast array of things to eat that caused everyone's mouth to water at the sight. No one hesitated to take a bite out of everything in an almost savage manner.
The little Nyaromon was the only one who didn't eat yet. He seemed slightly depressed as he continued to play by himself. Then Kouichi came from behind him with a plate full of food and placed next to the young Digimon.
"You have to eat to," the human encouraged with a smile.
Nyaromon looked at him curiously. "You're not angry he asked about what happened before?"
"I can't be mad at something I don't know."
Nyaromon was stunned, he didn't expect anyone to believe that Pagumon's story wasn't true.
"I understand," he continued, "you don't like to cause a fuss, so you keep quiet…But is it really alright when you didn't really do anything wrong."
The young Digimon considered this for a minute and replied, "But I don't think they'd believe me anyway."
"Maybe, but it'll only get worse." Kouichi looked at the little Digimon who stared back at him, eyes filled with intent. "I understand…you're scared that you might not like what will happen next, but what about the others who suffer because of this lie."
"Others?" Nyaromon asked.
"He might do the same thing to the other Digimon and because everyone thinks that Pagumon can do no wrong everyone will believe him instead. Are you really okay with that?"
The cat-like Digimon looked down, a bit disappointed in himself. He had never thought about that before, he never really minded what the others thought about him, he just wanted to play without being troubled.
"I won't say anything if you don't want me to," the human continued and with that he left the young Digimon to his thoughts.
When everyone had finished their meal, they returned to their fun. A small group of Digimon invited Tomoki to play with the toy arrows. Everyone was trying their best to hit a bull's eye, but the young human couldn't even hit the target. And his frustration only led to his determination to at least hit one point of target. But soon his goal became too hard to continue.
Depressed by his loss young Tomoki was left to skulk, when Kouichi placed a gentle reassuring hand on his shoulder and said, "You need to calm down and keep a sharp eye otherwise you'll always miss."
Tomoki was sure that he was talking about the arrows, it was true that he was in a rush to make the shot but he didn't expect his impatience to affect his aim. So with Kouichi's advice in mind, he tried the toy arrows again, this time taking head to maintain his concentration.
He placed the arrow in the bow then drew it back, focusing on the target the entire time. He calmed himself, picked a spot to shoot and released is projectile, finally landing on the target. Not exactly a bull's eye but he was proud that the arrow had actually gone in a place that he wanted it to go.
Proud of his accomplishment, Tomoki celebrated his victory with the younger ones, who in turn cheered with delight. But not before going up to the Warrior of Darkness.
"Thank you, Kouichi." Tomoki gave him a grateful smile. "I'm sure you'll make a great brother."
Kouichi was left somewhat shocked by the remark. It wasn't that he didn't want Kouji to be a part of his family, but for as long as he could remember it had always been him and his mother, and occasionally his grandmother. He just hadn't prepared himself for what would happen once they all returned home. He had spent his whole life believing that he was an only child, and Kouji had believed the same… one way or another there lives were certainly going to change. But Kouichi kept on wondering if this was a good kind of change.
There was also the issue of his father, that he never even knew, and his new wife. She seemed nice but would he even accept Kouichi into his care. After all, he hadn't told anyone that he was actually the father of twin sons- not even to the twin he was raising- and he had left his first wife without considering the consequences of their divorce and claimed her to be dead. It's not that he hated his father for the divorce, but it just felt as though he wanted the rest of his so called family to disappear.
Nonetheless, Kouichi thanked Tomoki for the remark, trying to ignore his anxieties for the time being.
"I think Kouji's really lucky," Tomoki continued, "you're really nice and you know a lot of things."
Kouichi looked at the young boy with a caring smile in reply. "You said you have an older brother, right?"
Tomoki nodded.
"...What's he like?"
Tomoki pondered his question for a moment. "Well, he's in University now so I don't see him too much, but when I do see him we never played a lot. At first, I thought he was being selfish, but then I realized that he was trying to show me how spoiled I was."
"I see," Kouichi said, genuinely interested.
"When I go home, I'm going to thank him and show him how much I love him." Tomoki noticed Kouichi's troubled face, forgetting that the twins were undergoing a bit of an estranged relationship, realizing his error he quickly added, "Don't worry about Kouji, he's really nice. He doesn't like to show his feelings too much but he does care. And he worries about you a lot…"
Kouichi glanced at Tomoki somewhat surprised. Takuya had told him the same thing and hearing those words being repeated made it feel strange.
"I can tell," he continued, "he looks at you with a worried face because even though you smile you look sad." Tomoki caught himself before he continued, "But it's probably none of my business."
"It's alright," Kouichi replied, "It's just a new experience to me that's all."
"Well, I think you'll be a really good brother." Tomoki smiled.
"Thank you." Kouichi smiled back.
Izumi, Junpei and their Digimon companions found themselves in what appeared to be an ordinary forest. Trees full of fruit and green shrubbery all around, a clear blue sky and peaceful winds. There was no danger at the moment but the gang needed to find their way to the others. They needed to stop Cherubimon from completing his conquest of the Digital World.
They had wondered the path for a while with no success so they all decided to rest by a stream for a bit until they came up with a new plan. Izumi and Junpei splashed a bit of water on their faces, while Bokomon was doting on Patamon to take a bath and Neemon was swimming without a care in the world.
While they cooled off in the water everyone was aroused by Junpei's question, "Hey, do you all really think we can trust Kouichi?"
"What's with this all of a sudden?" Izumi retorted, curiously.
"It's just that he used to work for Cherubimon and I don't want to risk any ambushes."
"You don't have to worry about him," Bokomon replied, "He was chosen to inherit the Spirits of the Ten Legendary Warriors just like the rest of you. The Warrior of Darkness is the most mysterious of them all but he's still one of you."
Junpei still wasn't entirely convinced so Izumi decided to try to soothe his troubles. "You know when I first came here I always thought people didn't like me because I was different but now I realize they didn't want to be with me because I pushed them away. If you push Kouichi away without even trying to understand him you'll never know if you can trust him for sure."
"I guess you're right," he smiled at her but still hesitated. Pushing someone away with haste is one thing but gaining trust was completely different.
Still sensing doubt Izumi continued, "You know the first time I saw you I thought you were careless by choice but now I think you want to make friends but don't know how to just yet." Junpei stared into her eyes. "So, now I want to know you better."
Junpei was flustered with excitement, excitement he couldn't contain when he rushed to his crush fully expecting her to reply happily only to find that she was preparing to deliver a light but harsh blow to his head, when he got too close.
"Don't go getting ideas," she glared with a playful air, "I said I want to know you better, but that don't misinterpret what I say."
Junpei backed away appologizing, he liked Izumi but knew from experience that she was quite capable of defending herself from anyone.
Exhausted from playing, the young Digimon fell into a deep sleep. Some slept amongst their unfinished games while others had cleaned up their portion of the room before retiring to slumber. They all slept peacefully, with nothing but sweet dreams invading their minds.
All except Pagumon…who was still awake.
He slowly crept amongst the sleeping forms to make his way towards Nyaromon. It seemed that blaming the cat-like Digimon for the block tower incident wasn't enough for him. He needed to get him into really big trouble. So, as Pagumon approached the sleeping Digimon, he prepared to fire at it with a poisonous attack only to be stopped by a strange shield.
Angry, Pagumon turned to see who had shielded Nyaromon from his attack and saw before his very eyes the Legendary Warrior of Darkness.
Then he heard a voice call his name, it was the young human who had believed his lie. He seemed upset at what had happened, demanding an explanation. He hadn't noticed that everyone had already awoken and witnessed his attempt to attack the cat-like Digimon. Pagumon was embarrassed at both his failure and his behaviour.
Then he saw the Warrior of Darkness turn into the other human child and realized that both children must've inherited their Spirits.
Pagumon was genuinely if not slightly sorry for his behaviour, all he wanted to do was play with the blocks but Nyaromon wouldn't let him. The other Digimon explained that it was because he hadn't asked him nicely.
"I'm sorry I blamed you Nyaromon," said Tomoki, embarrassed."
"It's alright," the Digimon replied, "I should've said something." He looked at Kouichi, surprised to believe what he had seen. He had been defended by a Legendary Warrior without even realizing it.
"In any case," Tomoki pressed, "I still want you two to play together."
Both Digimon nodded as Nyaromon offered Pagumon to build a tower together.
Tomoki and Kouichi smiled at the two new friends, when an opening appeared. It was time to leave. They said their farewells and made their way back to the intertwining system of caverns.
"Hey Kouichi," Tomoki asked.
"What is it?"
"You knew about Nyaromon, didn't you?" Tomoki's eyes didn't exactly meet his.
Kouichi nodded.
"Then why didn't you say something before." His voice was a bit forceful. Tomoki felt guilty about punishing a bully who wasn't even a bully at all.
"There are people who keep secrets because they think it'll protect them or those around them. Sometimes they can be wrong, but if you reveal something that doesn't want to show itself you could make things worse."
"Still," Tomoki pondered, "won't things get worse if you don't say anything?"
"You might be right. But those people feel safer when they're alone."
Tomoki didn't bother trying to continue. He kept his silence and the two walked off in search of their missing teammates.
A/N: So, what do you think I should do the next one about? Do you think I should continue?