A/N: This chapter was difficult to write and it is not one of my favourites, however necessary it may be. I hope that it turned out all right...It is also the longest chapter so far and they are only going to get longer.

Digimon Frontier: The Return

Chapter Six: Far From Home

"Who do you think they are?" Tommy whispered, though he addressed no one in particular.

The train had been in motion for almost ten minutes, but they were all still standing outside the compartment, none of them having attempted to enter just yet due to the two unknown girls and the fact that they did not know where the final member of their group was.

"Maybe Bokomon's message reached others besides us." J.P answered with a slight shrug. "After all, it did sound like they were just broadcasting and hoping for the best, not actually trying to pinpoint our location specifically-almost as if something was not letting them…Chances are, that plenty of people could have got the message."

"Yeah, that does make sense since only Takuya and Koji received the message out of our entire group, but why?" Koichi asked with a confused frown. "Not to sound arrogant or anything, but they aren't really needed."

"It could be a mistake." Takuya murmured thoughtfully, thinking about Worm's earlier words- Everyone who needs to be onboard, is accounted for-."Then again, it might not. Maybe they are meant to be here just like we were meant to be here four years ago."

The boys fell silent and turned to stare at the girls who had yet to notice they had additional company. The first girl had light brown shoulder-length hair (cut in an edgy sort of style) and sapphire blue eyes, as well as pulling off a rather tomboyish look, dressed in navy hot pants, a light blue and white striped vest with white boots. The second girl appeared to be more feminine with russet-coloured hair tied up with a bright pink ribbon and honey-coloured eyes. She wore a short hot pink dress with a red half jacket and gold wedge sandals.

"What do you think, Koji?" Takuya asked turning to face the raven, as he was the only one to have not said anything since the train had begun to move.

Koji shrugged lightly, his impassive expression turning contemplative.

There could be many reasons why other people were present besides them, each of those reasons probably as unlikely as the next. Just like there could be many reasons why there were two trains at the station instead of just one, or why only Takuya and himself received the message and none of the others did. Koji answered in the best way he could, given everything he knew.

"Until we actually find out what's going on in the Digital World, I think we should just take things as the come for now." He said carefully. "There's not much else we can do."

"Always the calculative and logical one. I knew there was a reason why we kept you around." Takuya said with a sly grin. Koji glared at him but otherwise chose not to comment.

"What about Zoe?" J.P asked sounding concerned.

"I don't think she's on this train." Takuya said quietly after a few moments of collective silence. "I mean, she'd probably be in this compartment if she was, don't you think? And if she was on this train, we definitely would have met up with her by now."

"Yeah." Tommy agreed with a nod. "Maybe she's on the other train?"

"It's possible." Koji said. "But just like the current state of the Digital World and these two girls, we cant know that for sure."

"We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed and hope that Z is on the other train." Takuya said, not really liking that they did not know much but understanding that there was no point in stressing over it.

"Now that we've got that all out of the way." Koichi began, drawing all attention his way. "And as fun as it is to stand in doorways, can we please go inside already?"

Takuya nodded and stepped into the compartment, closely followed by the rest of the group. The girls turned at the sound of them entering, finally realizing they were no longer alone.

"What, did you all get a weird message as well?" The one dressed in blue asked abruptly, her sapphire gaze drifting over each of them in turn. The girl beside her blushed slightly and avoided their eyes entirely.

Takuya rubbed the back of his head, unsure of how to respond. How exactly did you go about telling two complete strangers, that they were heading to a world which was practically unknown to all but a few of the human population, and that there would probably be something dangerous going on when they arrived?

Answer; you did not. They would probably think him and his friends were utterly insane. Takuya knew that was how he felt when they first discovered the Digital World.

"Something along those lines." He heard J.P mumble and saw the older boy glance at him and mouth 'What do we tell them?'

Takuya inwardly groaned. This was one of the many downsides to being the leader; everyone looked to him to lead the way (well, duh since he was the leader, but he didn't always have the answers, so that kinda put him in a tough spot if his friends always expected him to know what to do). Takuya also noticed that Koji was smirking, and guessed that the raven knew exactly what his current thoughts were and found them rather amusing.

"Yeah, we got the message." He said, glaring slightly in Koji's direction and deciding to go with the flow for now. He concluded that it would be best if the girls saw where they were going for themselves and then he and the others could explain once they got there.

"And you decided to come, even though you have no clue what this is all about?" The girl questioned firmly. Takuya grinned while he and the rest of the guys all took a seat.

"Same thing could be said about you and your friend."

The girl smirked.

"Touché."

"I'm Takuya Kanbara." He added.

"Yoshiko Nagata." The blue-eyed girl replied.

Takuya then turned to introduce the rest.

"The small one is Tomoki Himi-."

"But you can call me Tommy." The thirteen year old interrupted while glaring at Takuya for the short comment. Takuya simply rolled his eyes and continued.

"The twins are Koji Minamoto and Koichi Kimura. You can tell them apart easily because Koichi smiles a lot and Koji never does."

Ignoring one raven's heated stare and the others muffled laughter; Takuya introduced the final member of their group.

"And the big guy is J.P Shibayama." J.P grinned and waved cheerfully.

"Pleased to meet you." Yoshiko answered politely.

"And you are?" Koichi asked turning to the girl dressed in pink, as she had remained silent during the entire exchange.

"C-Caede Hiwatari." She stammered and then blushed furiously when she saw they were all looking at her.

Koichi smiled at her shyness. "It's nice to meet you."

"Y-Yeah." Caede blushed again and went back to staring at anything besides them.

"Don't mind her." Yoshiko said with a slightly amused roll of her eyes. "Caede's rather shy but she's nice once she gets comfortable. We've been friends since the sandbox, so I should know."

Silence quickly descended upon the group. Now that the introductions had been made, it seemed as though no one could think of anything to say.

"Hey J.P…Do you have any chocolate, because I'm really hungry?" Takuya suddenly asked rather loudly causing Caede to flinch a little.

"No Taki. Sorry." Was the reply while Koji mentally rolled his eyes and started counting down from ten, wondering just how long it would take before Takuya exploded.

"Damn, that sucks-Hey, wait! What did you call me?"

Koji smirked faintly. That had not taken long at all.

"What, Taki?" J.P questioned.

Takuya glared at the older teen. "Don't."

"Don't what?" J.P asked, cultivating an image of feigned innocence.

"Don't call me that."

"Awww, but I like calling you that." The seventeen-year old whined and after a moments silence, added. "Taki."

"That's it!" The brunet roared. The two boys fell to the floor, with J.P laughing and Takuya attempting to make him apologise.

Koji sighed but said nothing and continued to stare out the window into the constant blackness they were passing, having not yet reached the end of the tunnel. Tommy and Koichi just shook their heads while the two girls stared at the figures wrestling by their feet.

"Is this a frequent thing?" Yoshiko eventually asked, her blue eyes narrowed and fixed on Takuya, who had been subdued by a widely grinning J.P (which was a give-in and something all the boys had seen coming, as J.P was much larger than their hot-headed friend).

"Pretty much." Koji drawled in a jaded manner, his dark eyes still fixed upon the scenery outside the window, while they continued glide along the tunnel. On the floor, Takuya huffed as J.P let him go and both boys returned to their seats.

"Stupid nickname." The brunet mumbled and crossed his arms.

"I don't get what the big deal is, it's just a name." Yoshiko said, tilting her head slightly to the left. "And kinda cute."

Takuya blushed furiously while glaring at his friends, who were unsuccessfully attempting to stop themselves from laughing.

"It is not." He declared, letting out an irritable huff. "And you'd have a problem too, if they started calling you something stupid, like…like Yo-Yo."

"Did you know that your ears turn red when you get embarrassed?" The blue-eyed girl asked, looking unfazed and somewhat amused.

Takuya just groaned and buried his face in his hands, while the laughter of his friends rose.

This was going to be a long train ride, he thought miserably...Especially with them all making fun of him. It was a damn conspiracy!

Zoe made her way through countless compartments, steadily growing more irritated with each empty one she entered.

"This train cant be empty!" She hissed, her green eyes flashing with annoyance and mild despair. A small voice in the back of her mind whispered mockingly to her and the golden blond found herself doubting her own statement.

What if it was empty and she truly was the only occupant?

"And if that's true." She found herself whispering aloud. "Where are the boys?"

Zoe stopped walking and sat down on the edge of a chair with a heavy sigh, while burying her face in her hands.

They had to be here, but if they weren't…

Zoe felt panic form within her. What was she going to do? Why was she the only one here? Would she be able to handle whatever was ailing the Digital World, all on her own? Zoe sighed once again. She didn't think that she could, not without any help.

The golden blond sat in silence for what seemed like a very long time, lost in her many thoughts and concerns. After a moment, she stood up and smoothed the creases in her pants.

"No point in getting all worked up about this." She whispered to herself merely to break the silence. "I've only checked half the train, and for all I know, the boys could be somewhere in the front."

Invigorated by this tiny bit of hope, Zoe opened the door to the next compartment and began making her way through it, just as she had been doing before with all the others. She had passed through three more carriages when her hope started to waver slightly, doubts from before re-entering her mind and causing her stop walking.

"Just a few more." She assured herself and walked towards the next door. Before she even had it halfway open, the sound of crying reached her ears along with a calm voice gently comforting whoever was sobbing.

That voice sounds familiar, Zoe thought in surprise, but there was no way that he could be here. Curious and a little apprehensive, Zoe opened the door completely and gasped softly, garnering the immediate attention of all who inhabited the compartment.

"Zoe?" Tyler questioned, more than surprised to see his stepsister standing before him.

Zoe felt shock flood her system at the sight of Tyler, but then she caught sight of the small boy seated next to him, who had tears streaking down his face and she became distracted by his sad appearance. The blond was instantly reminded of Tommy during their first trip to the Digital World and it brought a sharp pain to her heart. He was so small and didn't look like he was any older than eight or nine.

"You know her?" A girl with pale pink hair asked and Tyler simply nodded.

"Well, who is she?" A guy with dark brown hair and green eyes asked impatiently.

Tyler didn't answer, but kept his grey eyes fixed on Zoe who didn't seem to hear the questions. Her sea green eyes were fixed upon the young boy he had been trying to comfort and contained a far away look that made him think she was remembering something. Suddenly, she flinched and seemed to snap out of whatever she had been thinking, her eyes softening. Tyler watched as she walked towards him and knelt beside the small boy, putting a hand on his knee to gain his attention.

"Hi there." Zoe murmured softly and the boys grey eyes flicked to her briefly before travelling back to the floor, fresh tears forming. Unfazed by the lack of response, the blond girl took a seat beside him.

"What's your name?" She asked. "My name is Zoe."

Tyler mentally rolled his eyes. He had already tried that, but the boy refused to speak. The child had been crying ever since the train had started moving, and probably even before that. Therefore, the redhead was more than surprised when he heard the young boy answer in a somewhat shaky voice.

"H-Haru. Haru I-I-Ishida."

Zoe smiled and Tyler felt slightly irritated that she had managed to do something when he could not. However, he kept his expression neutral and simply moved a few inches away, seeing, as he was not needed any longer.

"And how old are you, Haru?"

"N-Nine."

"Can you tell me why you're crying?"

The boy sniffed. "I got lost."

"And somehow ended up on the train without wanting to." Zoe then said and the boy nodded.

"I w-was just t-trying to get back to my Mom." The boy stammered, rubbing at his eyes. "W-We got s-separated when her p-phone started acting funny."

"Don't be scared." Zoe told him gently, but curious about what had occurred with his mother's cellphone."Where we're going, isn't so bad, and you'll be back with your Mom before you have time to blink."

"A-Alright." Haru smiled hesitantly and nodded. He was still scared and didn't really understand what was going on, but Zoe sounded kind and she had treated him nicely, just as the redheaded boy had tried to do as well. Haru now felt a little bad for ignoring the older boy, but resolved to apologise the first chance he got and to say thank you.

"Wait a minute. You know where this stupid train is going?"

Zoe looked up at the tall guy who had spoken, suddenly remembering there were others here as well. She felt Haru flinch next to her and instantly wrapped a protective arm around his small shoulders.

The guy had dark brown hair that was tied back (almost the same as Koji's had once been, but much longer and accompanied by no bandanna) and greyish green eyes. He was wearing a light grey sleeveless shirt and dark blue jeans, and had black wristbands on both his arms. Next to him stood the girl with pale pink hair the colour of cherry blossoms, pulled into a messy bun and soft amber eyes. She wore brown shorts and a beige shirt with a pale pink duster over it.

"I'm Zoe Aisako." The blond said, deciding not to answer the previous question just yet. She didn't know how much information all of them could handle and didn't think it would be wise to just blurt it all out at once.

"You're related to Tyler then?" The girl asked. "Sister?"

"Stepsister." Zoe replied offhandedly while Tyler remained impassive. She silently wondered is he was ever affected by anything. "And you are?"

"Saya Hiroe." Zoe recalled seeing the girl at her school...A year above her if she remembered correctly, so that made her Tyler's age. Zoe then turned to face the glowering brunet.

"Ren Takahada." He said immediately without giving her time to ask. "So, where are we going anyway?"

Zoe frowned at the demanding tone and chose not to answer. Instead, she turned towards her ever-silent stepbrother, mentally smirking when Ren scowled further at being ignored.

"Is there anyone else on this train, besides all of you?"

Tyler shook his head and Zoe felt her heart drop a little. She didn't understand. The guys were the one's who had received the distress call, so why weren't they here with her? She stared at the people around her. In addition, why were all of them here?

"How did you all get here?"

Tyler's eyebrow rose but he remained quiet. What kind of pointless question was that? He could ask her the same thing. Zoe sighed and turned towards the others who would most likely be more helpful than the reclusive redhead would.

"Well, I was shopping when I got this strange text message telling me to come here..." Saya began, frowning slightly. "I don't really know why, but I felt like it was the right thing to do. So, here I am."

"Then I can presume you all received something similar." Zoe said thoughtfully, understanding the confusion on the girl's face. It had been the same for her and her friends, just four years ago. So, if they all got the S.O.S, then they're digi-destineds, the blond thought and glanced momentarily at Haru who was clutching her arm as if she were going to suddenly disappear and leave him all alone. Even him.

"You sound like you know more than you're letting on." Ren asked, glaring at her.

"And if I do?" Zoe asked coolly, not liking this guy's attitude one bit.

"Where are we going? Is this place some kind of secret?" Saya asked, interrupting whatever comment Ren had been about to make.

"Sort of." Zoe replied, glancing at the girl. "Not many people know that it exists."

Tyler closed his eyes while listening to the conversation. From what he had gathered so far, they had all received the same cryptic message. They had all felt compelled to be on this train for some bizarre reason. And Zoe, his stepsister, seemed to have been through this sort of thing before...He didn't know what was coming, but he felt like it was something important...Something life changing. And that made him nervous.

Ren scoffed, sitting down and crossing his arms across his chest. "This is so stupid."

Zoe bristled at the remark. The Digital World was in some sort of danger and she was stuck with a bunch of people, who couldn't comprehend the severity of the situation they were in. Saya was curious and Haru was a child, so Zoe could excuse their behaviour. Tyler was behaving like his usual, uncaring self, so she could excuse his attitude as well...But her impression of Ren Takahada so far, was less than remarkable. His arrogance and condescending demeanour, made her want to pull him over her knee and give him a good smack. Goodness knows his parents obviously never did it enough.

"If it's so stupid, why the hell did you get on the train?" She snapped, her temper finally reaching its limit.

Ren just shook his left hand casually as if brushing her off. "Same reason as everyone else, I guess."

The train shook slightly and light burst through the windows. Every occupant turned to discover, that they had finally exited the tunnel.

"Ten minutes until arrival." Announced the voice of Angler.

"Arrival to where?" Ren asked irritably as he got to his feet, starting to grow tired of all this vague nonsense.

Before the blond girl could tell him to sit down, as she didn't think it was the best thing to be doing right now, a bright stream of light surrounded them while the train began to shake and tremble violently. Zoe hugged Haru tightly as he let out a whimper. Tyler grabbed the seat's edge, to prevent himself from falling forward. Saya's arms covered her face and Ren swore as he was flung backwards.

Within seconds, the light was gone and Zoe wondered what had happened. Her question was answered immediately when she saw the purple and green device, strapped to her wrist.

"What is it?" Haru asked with interest, stroking his own brown and green one in a slightly scared, yet fascinated way. Saya, Ren and Tyler each had one as well, in a variety of colours.

D-Tectors…was Zoe's first thought, but these were very different from the one she had had before. She unstrapped hers and almost dropped it when the thing began to shine. Once the light had cleared, she no longer held a watch, but a small device the size of her hand, and that seemed to resemble a cell phone of sorts.

Hesitantly, the rest of them followed her lead and were soon holding the same device as she was.

"Wow." Haru exclaimed, his child-like curiosity overpowering his fear.

This is just getting stranger and stranger, Tyler mused while he stared at the object in his hand.

"Everything you know, is about to change." Zoe whispered and smiled, at the sight of her second home, not too far off in the distance.

Meanwhile, with the other group, they had recently experienced the same thing, but with more vocal responses.

"What the heck is this thing?" Yoshiko demanded, eyeing the blue and green device in her hand warily as if it might explode any second.

"It's so cool." Tommy said, inspecting his own white and green one with wonder. J.P, Takuya and Koichi murmured their agreement.

"They're different from the old Digi-vices." Koji commented, holding up a navy and white one.

"Wait…Digi-vices? Can someone please explain to me what's going on, and why the hell this isn't bothering any of you?" Yoshiko asked, looking around expectantly with a slight glare

"Where are we?" Caede suddenly asked, her voice full of awe.

They all turned to stare out the windows, the boys smiling at the familiar green world below and the girls looking unsure.

"Welcome to the Digital World." Takuya answered simply and as if on queue, Worm's booming voice sounded.

"Next stop, Flame Terminal."

A/N: What do you all think of my Oc's? I'd love to hear your opinions as well as any possible future pairings...Except for Koji/Zoe, of course.

Note; Digi-vices started off as watches because not all of them brought phones this time. Once unstrapped, the watches turned into flat devices with a screen and four buttons, as well as a button on the side and a silver stripe on the top...Each is, of course, two different colours. Uses will be explained in the future.

List of all characters outfits in detail.

Takuya K. - Black, baggy ¾ pants, an orange T-shirt that says 'Burn' in black on the front with the kanji for fire on the back. Beige cap and fingerless gloves. Orange socks with black and red takkies (or sneakers). Goggles worn around neck.
Digi-vice; Black and red.

Koji M. - Long black pants and a white T-shirt. Navy blue jacket with collar, sleeves rolled up to elbows. Black and white takkies. Black bandanna around neck. (and yes, I know both him and Takuya have items around their neck).
Digi-vice; Navy and white.

Zoe A.-Indigo ¾ cargo pants, a pale pink, tight fitting T-shirt that reaches midriff. Black headband and purple flats (or pumps...whatever you want to call them).
Digi-vice; Dark purple and light green.

Koichi K.-Long cream-coloured pants, a long sleeved red shirt and a black button up over shirt (like the outfit he wears in Frontier, but different colours and no cap). Black and red takkies.
Digi-vice; Black and grey.

J.P S.-Yellow T-shirt with a black lightning bolt on front and navy blue 3/4 pants. White socks, blue and yellow takkies.
Digi-vice; Electric blue and yellow.

Tommy H.-Dark brown shorts with silver chain, white T-shirt with sleeve edged in green. Orange and green takkies with white socks. (No hat-as much as I love it!).
Digi-vice; White, green and orange.

Tyler A.-Long navy blue pants with lots of pockets, a white long sleeved shirt. Blue and white takkies. A silver chain with an amber pendant.
Digi-vice; Violet and white.

Ren T.-Grey sleeveless shirt, dark blue jeans. Black and white takkies with black socks and black wristbands.
Digi-vice; Grey and white.

Yoshiko N.-light blue and white striped tank top. Dark blue hot pants with a yellow heart on left leg. White knee-length boots with yellow soles and stripes down the side.
Digi-vice; Sky blue and dark blue.

Caede H. -a short, polo neck hot pink dress with no sleeves- not too short of course and similar to the dress Corina/Mint wears from Tokyo Mew Mew when she transforms, except for the top section. A red half jacket and gold wedge sandals.
Digi-vice; Hot pink and red.

Saya H.-Brown shorts. Beige shirt and a pink duster thrown over it with short sleeves. Light brown takkies (sneakers) and pink socks.
Digi-vice; Brown and pale pink.

Haru I. -green T-shirt with charcoal dungarees. Brown and black takkies. (He's only nine after all)
Digi-vice; brown and dark green.