A/N: Written for the Tale in Fragments Challenge, 10 prompts List 1, prompt #10 – blanket, and for the Female Character Appreciation Competition (with Ruki), both on the Digimon Fanfiction Challenges Forum (link's in my profile).

Enjoy. :D

Picnic Day
10. Blanket

Ruki's in the Digital World again, and she can spend as much time as she likes there because no-one's waiting for her at home. Her grandmother's spending the day with some old friends of hers, and her mother has a photo-shoot. But while those things would have annoyed her before she's fine with it now, because she's got her friends to spend time with, and Renamon.

It's an all-girls day this time, since Juri managed to dissuade the boys. Ruki imagines it's because she wants to plan something without a certain someone around, and Jenrya's birthday is coming up.

Ruki hasn't forgotten at all what Juri had planned for her birthday. Though until Juri's own birthday comes around Ruki's going to have a hard time returning the favour. Especially since Juri's too sweet to pay back like she would Ryo or even Takato…

Though she wonders why Juri outed all the boys for her little agenda.

'So they can keep Jenrya occupied,' Juri laughs, spreading the blanket out. Ruki considers, then helps. Shiuchon brings over the cutlery, one by one but no-one's in any particular rush.

'We need more girl tamers,' Juri says suddenly. And she's right; there's only the three of them compared to all those boys. 'But with Yamaki-san having a partner now, it might not be that long.' She claps her hands together in glee, though truthfully Ruki doesn't see what's so good about Yamaki having a partner digimon. Even if he had turned out to be a great help in the end, she doesn't have to particularly like him. 'Maybe I should have invited Reika-san and Megumi-san too.'

Ruki thinks that would be awkward, especially to a pre-teen guy's birthday party planning session. 'We're enough,' she says. 'But if we need more people, surely all those boys aren't necessary to babysit Jenrya.'

'True,' Juri muses, 'but it's nice to just be us girls for a bit. Well, girls and partner digimon,' she amends. 'And Calumon.'

'Are you sure Calumon can keep a secret?' Though Ruki's not too fussed if Calumon can't. Takato can't keep a secret, and she's sure she'll find more people and digimon incapable too. She's not too big on secret parties anyway. That's Juri's forte. She's just here to keep things reasonable.

Though she wonders briefly who filled in that role when it came to planning her birthday party. Jenrya probably; she couldn't imagine anyone else actually being reasonable. Especially not Shiuchon whose wonderful idea is to dress Jenrya up as some female model on TV…though it's probably a good thing she's graduated from "Pwincess Pwetty-pants."

But Shiuchon's choking on her own laughter saying that, and Ruki finds herself thinking about how ridiculous an image makes and she starts laughing too. So's Juri, and for a moment the three girls are simply rolling on the blanket and laughing. Never mind how different they are: that picture was just so silly they could all react the same, share the same.

And Ruki enjoys every bit of it now, because it's not a waste of time at all but something that brings her closer to everyone.