Myotis: Okay… as I recall, that death-threat stated they'd be here soon.

Sarah: You sure they're serious? I mean, will she really?

Myotis: …Knowing her? Count on it…

Wraithmon: You want I should freeze them?

Myotis: Wraithmon, although I appreciate it, despite the fact that you are stronger than most Rookies, you stand no chance against that girl.

Wraithmon: Wow. When are they supposed to be here again?

Myotis: Right about…

Rika: YOU!

Myotis: …Now, I believe.

Rika: You have some explaining to do, you twisted psycho!

Myotis: …I have no idea what you are talking about.

Rika: Like HELL you don't! What's with you making me fall for that Ianu guy, huh? I thought this was a Rukato!

Myotis: Well…it was, at the start. And in a way, it will be. But I don't think that's how it's gonna end.

Takato: But…I thought Rika and me was your favorite pairing?

Myotis: Trust me, my friend…it is. But I felt I should try something new.

Rika: Without our consent, of course. What is it with authors like you?

Myotis: Hey, my world, my rules. If you don't like it, I'm afraid that's too bad!

Rika: WHAT?

Myotis: Wraithmon, hide. Sarah, to the escape pod. NOW.

Wraithmon: Oh shoot…

Rika: JUST WAIT, YOU MANIPULATIVE JERK!

Myotis: While she's at that…response time.

Lady Azura: Whew…glad you still like it. I'll try not to screw it up again.

CaliCallMePrincess: You mean an infatuation? Yep, that's a good way to put it. And they get to the village here, so I hope you like it. Anyway, thanks for continuing to read and review!

Sarah: As I've said, Myotis does not own Digimon. He only owns Ianu Arukado, Mareo Arukado, Devamon, FallenAngemon, Dreadmon, and various characters that he has created.


Digimon Tamers: Life's Pain and Death's Comfort

Chapter Five: Unity of Two Lonely Hearts
The Tamers, tired and hungry(especially Guilmon and Terriermon), trudged on towards the village to the South. Out of the Desert of Sloth was a somewhat scenic grassy field. The blue sun(!) was setting off in the distance, and the map of their D-Powers told them that the town was just off in the distance. After about ten more minutes of walking(So far, no one seemed to be a talking mood…they were all lost in thought.), they saw it just a little while away, which was more than enough to make all of them break into a run. Takato could not help but express his joy.

"FINALLY! Now we can rest!"

"Ah, cool it, Gogglehead. It's not like we've been walking for days."

Terriermon, still holding on to Henry's neck for dear life, was on the verge of using words he shouldn't.

"Henry, slow the he… I mean, heck down!"

Apparently the Desert of Sloth's effects hadn't worn of yet.

"Sorry, Terriermon. I guess I'm more tired than I thought…"

He then pulled out his D-Power to get some information of the town.

"Let's see…Geos, the Village of Sands. It doesn't have much of a history, other than being founded by the first person to cross the Desert of Sloth…wait, 'person'? That's odd."

Takato made it to the entrance first.

"Don't sweat the details, buddy! What matters is that now we can SLEEP!"

Rika couldn't help but grin.

"One-track mind…"

Once they all made it to the village, their hopes fell. The entire 'Village of Sands', as Geos was appropriately dubbed, was rather run down. The buildings seemed to be rather nicely carved out of mountain stone, and in a way were quite beautiful. But that was about it. Many…strange looking people, who all looked quite downtrodden, walked through the streets. By strange looking, I mean that every second or so their appearances would scramble, like a program on a computer with a nasty visual glitch. It didn't look like they would find a decent resting place here. Henry slapped his hand to his forehead as he realized something.

"Oh, of course! They're a desert village, so how the heck are they going to be prosperous…"

Guilmon didn't seem to mind at all, sniffing everywhere for a scent of food. He was snuffling around what looked like a street vendor when the 'owner' got on to him.

"Hey, you. Just what are you doing?"

"Looking for food. Got any? Please?"

"Yeah. You got any money?"

"Money?"

"Yeah…you know, that stuff you use to buy things with. Money."

"Um…I don't have any."

"Then I don't have food for you."

"Aww! Come on, please, please?"

"Will someone please call him off or something?"

Takato rushed over to his partner.

"Ah, sorry. He's just not eaten in…well, a long time by his standards."

"Well…if you had some money, I'd be happy to feed you. But that's how it is, I'm afraid. Sorry."

"That's okay…"

Takato and Guilmon began to turn away, and then heard screams from further in the town. Startled, Henry dashed up to the street.

"Oh, man…you guys, come see this!"

When the others came to his point, they were quite surprised. What appeared to be gigantic black widow spiders with bird's wings were flying around the village, landing on buildings, and worst of all, attacking the villagers. At first, they would've mistaken them for Digimon, but minus their wings and great size, they looked exactly like real spiders. Terriermon, startled and confused, looked up at Henry and yelled.

"Wha-what the heck are those things, Henry?"

"I'm not-"

Rika, holding her D-Power out, broke him off.

"Feathered Spinner. Class: Arachnid. Element: Wind. A species of flying spider that is large enough to attack large mammals. They often attack in groups. They have no poison and try to trap dangerous prey or enemies in their webbing, which is stronger than steel."

Takato stared at them in a combination of fascination and fear.

"Those are some of those monsters Ianu hinted at? The force far more dangerous than Digimon? Gimme a break! Sure, they're kinda scary, but how tough could they be?"

Before Rika and Henry had a chance to tell him not to get full of himself, all of the Feathered Spinners turned their multi-eyed heads towards the Tamers and Digimon. Those on the houses climbed down. Those attacking people left them alone. Those flying above slowly descended. There were six in all. They all stood facing Takato.

"Gogglehead…I think they understood you."

"Um…sorry?"

All of them let loose a painful shriek. They teamed up in pairs and advanced towards the Tamers and Digimon. Rika once again had a confident look in her eyes.

"Renamon, that qualifies as a challenge."

"Good. I was so bored."

Two approached them. Another pair came towards Henry and Terriermon.

"Geez…they're pretty ugly, don't ya think, Henry?"

"Hm…Well, that would depend on if you like spiders or not.(Myotis: I sure as heck do.)"

The final pair walked towards Takato and Guilmon.

"Takatomon, they smell weird."

"I'm sure they do, but let's take care of them before we talk about them, okay boy?"

Then it began. All three Digimon became their Champion levels, and started the battle against the strange creatures.

"Watch it, Kyubimon. They seem kind of quick."

"We'll see. Come on, beasts!"

Angry at the comment, one of the Feathered Spinners charged at Kyubimon with, as Rika predicted, surprising speed. She leaped over it and landed on the other, which began to buck wildly in an attempt to throw her off. The first turned around and began to leap at Kyubimon, who reacted by leaping high into the air. She then launched her attack.

"Fox Tail Inferno!"

The fiery technique engulfed the targeted monsters, who screamed with pain until the attack ended, revealing that they had been burned death.

"Two down, four to go. Move it along, you two!"

"Geez, Rika, have some patience! Growlmon isn't as fast as Kyubimon…"

Said Digimon was using his Dragon Slash technique to fend off the two violent spiders. Eventually, a well-aimed shot cut one of the monsters in two, and the other hesitated. The unfortunately foolish creature decided to attack, and got Pyro Blasted right in the face.

"How's that, Takatomon?"

"Brutal, buddy. But good job!"

All turned to see Gargomon's situation, which was…bad, to say the least. He was trapped in one of the Feathered Spinners' web, and couldn't move his legs. Oh wait, that means he's got a perfectly good chance. Gun-arms, after all. Henry, not wanting the risk, decided to help.

"Hang in there, Gargomon. Digimodify! Power, activate!"

Gargomon's attack strength, now greatly increased, made short work of the final Feathered Spinners.

"Take this, ya freaks! Gargo Laser!"

The lasers fired from Gargomon's guns, which seared right through the approaching monsters, who did not even have time to express their pain before their disintegration. Upon their vanishing, the web did as well.

"Who's bad? I'M BAD!"

"(Sigh)…Gargomon, calm down…but, good work, anyway."

Then, the villagers, who had been watching the whole thing with great interest, approached the victorious party. A middle-aged looking man stepped towards them and spoke with a big smile.

"Warriors, we cannot thank you enough. You've saved us from those fiends!"

Takato, somewhat embarrassed, scratched the back of his head and looked away.

"Oh, it was nothin'. They weren't that tough."

"But still! We must repay you. We will try to do anything you ask!"

Henry then got an idea.

"In that case…do you have a place we could rest at for a while? We could use some food, too."

"Is that all? Done! Follow me, my friends! We have a lovely inn this way!"

They did, and they were shocked to see that they did indeed have a very nice inn. It seemed like a hotel, as it had three floors, beautiful interior and exterior design, and more or less seemed like a little piece of home. Takato was taken up in the awe of it all.

"Wow…no offense, but how did you guys manage to get this place?"

Their guide, who had introduced himself as the village headman on the way there, turned and smiled at the boy.

"Actually, we don't know. It just sort of popped up one day. We've certainly been grateful for it, though! Anyway, help yourselves to anything you wish in the dining hall. Consider yourselves heroes! Think of this as a second home…as thanks, you may stay for free at any time you wish."

Henry was quite relieved at this.

"That's great. We don't have any money at all. So, what are you guys gonna do?"

Instead of answering, Guilmon and Terriermon rushed off to the dining hall. Takato just chuckled and followed them.

"Okay…question answered. I guess I'll join them. Rika, Renamon…what about you?"

"I'm going to sleep. Make sure Gogglehead and the other goofballs don't wake me up."

"I suppose I will, as well. Dreadmon's tail…hurt worse than I thought. He's surprisingly strong."

"Okay, then…see you two in the morning."

With a nod from each of them, Rika and Renamon walked upstairs to the third floor, where their rooms were. After exchanging goodnights, Renamon warped away, supposedly to somewhere more comfortable. Rika crawled into the big comfy bed in her room. She drifted to sleep almost immediately.

Hours passed, and the others had gone to bed. Although a certain pair of Digimon were reluctant to stop eating. At about midnight, Rika woke up. Finding she was unable to go back to sleep, she walked to the large window of her room to find that it had a balcony outside. She opened the windows and walked out onto the balcony. She looked out into the night and saw the moon, which was an odd color of violet. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath of fresh air. Then she heard a voice.

"Lovely night, is it not?"

Frightened, she whirled around to see a tall young man standing there, leaning against the entrance to the balcony. He looked extremely familiar, yet at the same time, very unfamiliar. He was somewhat taller than her, and wore a black pair of pants that seemed to be made of leather. He had a sleeveless shirt, which was also black, and looked like it was made of the same material. His arms were very thin, as was the rest of him. His long hair, which extended just below the shoulders, was bright silver. In the moonlight, his skin was pale to the point of being snow white. One of the strangest things about him were his eyes- one was a brilliant emerald green, and the other was crimson red. Rika immediately braced herself.

"Okay, who are you, how did you get here, and what do you want from me?"

He sighed and looked down for a moment. Then he responded.

"I was hoping you would recognize me, Miss Nonaka, but I suppose that is understandable that you did not. You have only seen projections of my past self."

"…Ianu?"

"Yes."

She wasn't sure what to think. This was Ianu? He was much taller than when they had encountered him. His hair wasn't anywhere near that bright, his clothes where much different, and his eyes were both green then. But, his past self? What did that mean?

"Just…what are you saying?"

"Well…The original sight of me that you remember is when I was 14…that was three years ago. I have…changed much since then."

"I guess that makes since. So what the heck do you want?"

"…Simply…to speak with you."

"…Huh?"

"That is all. I have come here simply to pay you a visit, talk with you, and perhaps explain some things to you that you may be wondering about."

Now she was really confused. First he comes in, treats her and her friends like trash, acts nice after more or less abducting them, and now he's being a gentleman to her. What was is this guy's deal?

"Look, you've made it clear that you don't like us. Why are you so nice to me, then?"

"I…suppose I did not mean it. I certainly do not dislike you, Miss Nonaka, although your friend with the goggles irritates me, and while the other boy has done nothing to make me dislike him, I also have no particular reason to like him, either."

"And about that, do you have a hard time remembering names or something?"

"…Not particularly. I tend to not use the names of people like…them."

"Uh-huh. Keep in mind you're talking about my friends, buster."

"My apologies. I shall try to refer to them as you wish. Now, I assume you would like answers."

"You can bet your pretty face on it."

Naturally, Rika began to turn slightly red when she said that, realizing once again how she felt, and that would just clue the enigmatic boy further. To her surprise, he chuckled a bit. That was a first.

"Very well. Allow me to first apologize for forcing you into all of this, although that alone hardly makes up for it. But…I do not have fond memories of most humans. I have learned that most of them refuse to this sort of thing on the spot."

"True, but you didn't have to do it like that. You could've asked first. Takato probably would've jumped in to help."

"Really? I feel foolish now. However, I suppose it is said and done. Now, ask me what you wish to know, and I will answer."

Rika thought for a moment.

"Okay, first off…What is it about these swords you want us to find for you?"

"They are…seals, which house an ancient force. I wish for them to be gathered. At the moment, it is too dangerous for both of us to tell you why. I do promise to tell you of them at a later time."

"Okay, that sort of helps. Now, I have a simple question. I want a straight answer. Understand?"

He nodded.

"Good. Now, why is it that you are so friendly towards me, and no one else?"

His reaction totally and utterly shocked her. He actually seemed nervous. She felt nervous herself, now.

"Well…I suppose…it's because I find myself…attracted to you."

There was a long, awkward silence. After a minute or two, Rika finally regained her composure.

"You're…serious? Do you know what you are saying?"

"I do…in fact, it is more than that."

"I-I don't…believe this…!"

She began to feel faint. Ianu, looking rather concerned, was afraid she would fall over the edge.

"Are you alright, Miss Nonaka? You seem ill…perhaps I should not have said that…"

"N-no, I'm fine…just surprised. But…listen to me. I cannot believe I am saying this, but I think it's mutual."

"Oh! You mean you…?"

She nodded. She was, once again surprised. Not only by the fact that she admitted that, but also by the huge smile on the normally sullen face of Ianu.

"But listen…you don't have to call me Miss Nonaka…just Rika, okay…?"

"Of course…Rika. It's so strange…I have not felt happiness such as this in so many years…and you have given it to me."

"You're…welcome, I guess. But…you should know that Takato, Guilmon, Henry, and Terriermon all seem to think we're enemies. Can't you just show them that we aren't?"

He then looked sad.

"It…is a good idea, Rika. But they would not accept me. They would accuse me of using you to manipulate them. I promise to you that I will tell them in time, but it is far too early now. I'm…so sorry to put you through all of this…"

"Look, stop apologizing. It doesn't suit you. Just ask next time you need help, okay? And it wouldn't hurt to help us out when you need us. You and Dreadmon could probably do more damage than Takato and Henry combined."

"Heh…He is quite strong, isn't he…you know, you and Dreadmon are probably my only friends. Although, I am not surprised."

"Hey, you aren't so bad when you're not being so cold-hearted. It wouldn't be a that way if you treated other people as nicely as me."

"That is because…I do not like anyone the way I like you."

Further blushing from Rika.

"Still…what about Dreadmon?"

"Well…I met him in his Rookie form of Wraithmon when I was leaving my home in England. We found that we were partners, and could not really help but be friends after that."

"England? That explains your accent. But…you have a Japanese name. How come?"

"That…I must save for another time, as well. I wish I could tell you everything, Rika…but now is not the time…"

"It's okay…just tell me when you're ready. But, can you tell me more about Dreadmon? I can tell he's different from other Digimon. He's a Champion, but his strength seemed to be around an Ultimate level."

"Dreadmon is…well, speak of the devil."

Rika turned around to see Dreadmon hovering just outside the balcony, watching themwith a cold stare,his large wings slowly beating, causing a gentle breeze.

"Lord Ianu. I do hate to interrupt, but we must return to the castle soon."

Rika rose an eyebrow towards Ianu.

"Lord Ianu?"

Ianu simply sighed.

"He insists on calling me that. Anyway, I regret to say that our time together for now must draw to a close. However…I shall return to you, wherever you may be, soon enough. I will be greatly looking forward to seeing you again, Rika."

And with that, he bent down, took Rika's hand, and kissed it. Even MORE blushing in Rika. He straightened himself back up, and smiled at her, then walked towards Dreadmon, who was looking at Rika with all three eyes in a cold, seemingly cruel stare that made her feel very uneasy. Rika did her best to speak, which was hard at the moment.

"G-goodbye, Ianu…"

"Farewell, for now…"

He then did a back-flip off of the balcony. Rika gasped and ran to the edge, and saw nothing when she looked down. She looked up, and saw Dreadmon flying off, with Ianu flying by his side. He had bat-like wings similar to Dreadmon's.

What IS he…?

Geez, does EVERYTHING here have wings? Devamon, Dreadmon, those Feathered Spinners, and Ianu…ah, whatever. I gotta sort all of this out…

She walked back inside, half in a state of bliss and half asleep. Once tucked into her covers, she fell asleep. She didn't realize that a certain fox Digimon saw the entire thing.

I'm not sure if I should be happy for her, or worried if this is true. I won't tell her about it…but if she asks me, I have little choice. Ianu, if you can hear my thoughts, I beg of you not to break this girl's heart.

After her thoughts, Renamon soon followed Rika's action and drifted off to sleep. The Tamer and Digimon, both with much more knowledge on their minds, and Rika, with a powerful and growing feeling of happiness in her heart, dreamt of cryptic things that would soon be understood.


Myotis: MAN, that took a long time! But I really liked this one. I hope you all did, too!

Rika: …Maybe this isn't so bad.

Sarah: Told ya. Pay up.

Wraithmon: Shoot! Fine, take your bloody money, you brat!

Sarah: Sweet. A hundred bucks.

Myotis: Whoa! Wraithmon, where'd you get that?

Wraithmon: Selling some of your books.

Myotis: …I'm going to count to ten. You had best be at least halfway across the world by then.

Sarah: Ah, calm down, Myotis. I'll buy 'em back.

Myotis: (Hugs) Sarah, I could swear you're an angel sometimes.

Sarah: Okay, I get it already! Let go! Don't you have wrapping up to do?

Myotis: Oh, right. Anyway, I think chapter six will be up in a little while. So in the meantime, tell me what you think so far! Thanks for reading!