Having returned from the depths of Nowhere, Chocolate Usagi rears her head to bring you all un-bettaed Digimon fanfics.
I'm back from Procrastinationville, lovelies. Also, I've found I like writing for Mimi. She is, essentially, me.
Darkness Dawn 2
"That's Why They Call It the Blues"
--
Tokyo was much larger than Takeru could have fathomed. The train station alone could arguably have been a city on its own. On his left was a small pub and eatery. To the right was a barbershop. Beyond that was what appeared to be a clothing store. Even further down was a "novelties" shop and a—
Hikari tugged on her husband's shirtsleeve. His head snapped back quickly and he saw her smiling up at him, a bit pained.
"You okay?" she asked, tightening her grip on Takeru's sleeve. He gave a quick smile that he hoped was assuring. On any other occasion such a smile would have made Hikari swoon and her heart skip a beat—yes, even after all these years. Now, however, it only made her own features turn down even more.
"Yeah." He wrapped his arm around the woman and squeezed her around the shoulder briefly. "Yeah. I just…I guess I can't imagine living in a city as huge as this."
Leaning into the small gesture of comfort, Hikari nodded. "Well, let's catch up with the others or we'll get lost."
"Okay," Jyou began, clearing his throat. All eyes fell on him and he faltered. Jyou wasn't accustomed to being in charge. "Um…the hotel's at Jinan, Shibuya-Ku. We're a few hours early still. I suggest we go and check into our rooms now and get ready for the…" Uncomfortable glances were tossed back and forth. "...You know." Mimi started crying again.
The hotel was near impossible to track down. The streets here were far more confusing than they were in Odaiba; only the most major streets had signs, and there seemed to be no reason to how everything was ordered. Even Jyou, who had been to Tokyo twice on business, had no idea where it was. It took almost an hour to make the trip from the train station to the hotel, and another twenty minutes to check in. They had figured the simplest way to do things was just to rent two two-bedroom suites and one one-bedroom. Taichi, Yamato, and Jyou would share a room (after drawing straws it was decided that Taichi and Jyou would get the beds and Yamato would make a hopeful attempt to sleep in the chair), Sora and Mimi would have another, and Hikari and Takeru would share the one-bedroom.
After dropping their luggage off at their respectable rooms, the group met up in the lobby. Brandishing a map of Tokyo, Jyou said, "Okay. So if the ceremony is at Koushiro's house, and it's…here." He placed his finger on a spot on the map. "And we're…" Dragging his finger all the way across the map, his face fell. "…Here."
"That's all the way across town. How are we ever gonna find it?" Sora asked incredulously, allowing herself to fall back into a chair.
"Yeah," agreed Yamato. "It took us this long just to find the hotel. How the Hell are we ever gonna get there in time?"
"We'll leave now," ordered Taichi. "Everyone go get dressed. We're leaving in ten minutes."
"Ten minutes?!" cried Mimi. "That's not even enough time for me to--"
"Mimi, please. Not now. It's been a long day and it's not gonna get any better. So just give it a rest, will you?"
Normally Mimi would have taken serious offense to this and probably would have hit Taichi before running off dramatically with tears in her eyes, then she would have made him pay for dinner that night to make up for snapping at her.
Now she just stood there, reserved, looking down at her pink shoes and wringing her hands together.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly.
Taichi sighed and ran one hand through his hair and placed the other firmly on Mimi's shoulder. "No, I'm sorry, Mimi. I…this whole thing has just—you know. I'm really…really not looking forward to this."
"Tai…" muttered Hikari, wrapping both arms around one of her brother's. "It'll be okay."
Taichi feigned a smile for his sister's sake. Slinging his arms around Mimi and Hikari, he grinned broadly. "I know. Now come on, guys! Let's go get dressed." He then plastered on a sour face as he turned to Mimi and said, "We're still leaving in ten minutes."
"AWW!" she protested, but Taichi was already bounding over to the elevator.
--
Sora looked at herself calculatingly in the full-length mirror in the restroom attached to the hotel suite. She took half a step back, pivoted to the left, and attempted to straighten out her skirt.
"Damn. Hey, Hikari? You got a lint roller or something?"
Hikari came around the corner then with a small makeup bag in hand. She hardly looked at Sora before saying, "You look fine."
"No, I don't. I don't know what I was thinking when I grabbed this shirt and this skirt.I hate them together." She clicked her tongue against her teeth. "I hate this skirt altogether. I've been meaning to just throw it out. And I haven't worn these shoes in so long they don't even fit right!"
"Sora," Hikari said again, "you look fine." She was already applying her lipstick in the mirror. She opted for a nice, sedate pearl, which was highly contrasted to Mimi's choice in a vibrant shade she called Luscious Ruby. "Right Mimi?" asked Hikari, nudging the woman who was currently struggling to tie her hair back.
"Unh, hnnh," Mimi managed around the hairbrush in her mouth.
"You didn't even look!" Sora steamed. Irritated, Mimi grabbed the brush out of her mouth, slammed it on the sink, and turned to Sora. She looked her up and down before returning to her hair.
"Hikari's right. You look fine, Sora."
Resigned, Sora turned back to the mirror and sighed. "I still hate this damned skirt."
"You should," piped Mimi. "It's gross."
--
In the boys' room, Jyou adjusted his tie, willfully ignoring the snickers from the other guys.
"Will you three please just shut up?" he pleaded.
"The invitation said casual, Jyou," Yamato said. "You're in a freaking tux!"
"Yeah, well excuse me for actually wanting to dress up for an event as solemn and sacred as this, Mr. …Mr. …Mr. WHITE-COLLARED SHIRT AND FADED KHAKIS," erupted Jyou.
Takeru poked his head around the corner, wide-eyed. "Mister what?"
Jyou's face flushed red, partly from his embarrassment and being poked fun at, and also partly from the lung power it took to yell "Mr. White-Collared Shirt And Faded Khakis."
"Yeah, you heard me, what with your…your top two buttons conspicuously unbuttoned in a seductive manner," Jyou prattled, flipping Yamato's collar. Yamato, in return, stared blankly at the ranting man. "Yeah. How's that? Yeah. And your, your, uh…your shirtsleeves all rolled up to you elbows. Oooh. Real tough."
Yamato gestured to his choice in apparel and coolly said, "I look good. You—" He poked Jyou squarely in the chest, "look ridiculous." Jyou brushed the offending hand away and straightened his lapels.
"I do not look ridiculous. Tasteful and ridiculous are not synonymous, Yamato." He turned to face the other men, suddenly serious and slightly downcast. "If you must know, it just so happens that Koushiro gave me this tie as a gift when I got certified." He looked back up and realized he had inadvertently cast a shadow on the previously light mood. He blinked and scratched his head saying, "Uhh, it's imported. From Sweden. It's silk—very high thread count. Here, feel—"
"What? I'm not touching your tie, you weirdo!" Yamato wailed, struggling to free himself from the offending hands. Takeru laughed through his toothpaste.
Taichi stood up from his spot on the bed.
"Are you guys finished?" he asked. The three froze.
Yamato was pulling on Jyou's face, who in return had one hand firmly embedded in Yamato's blond hair and the other awkwardly holding his elbow at an angle. Takeru had been poking his brother in the face with the end of his toothbrush.
"Uh," Jyou said around Yamato's hands. "Yeah. Yeah, we're finished."
"Good. We have to find Kou's house, remember? Come on."
The three watched the stoic Taichi leave the room, presumably headed for the lobby.
"Um. I'mma go sthpit," Takeru muttered, slinking back into the restroom.
"Yamato, is Taichi okay?" Jyou asked carefully. "I mean, I know he's shaken up and all, but he's…"
"Not acting like himself, yeah. I know. I'm worried, too."
--
Yamato and Jyou hurried to meet everyone else in the main lobby of the hotel with Takeru rushing after them, struggling to get his jacket on and yelling, "I told you guys to wait for me! I had to spit!"
Once the whole group was together again (almost), that awkward silence befell yet again. It was unavoidable.
"Is everyone ready?" Taichi demanded.
"Oh, God…" shuddered Mimi, burying her face in her hands. Sora put her arms around her in a comforting gesture. "How can you guys all be so calm? I mean, we're going to Kou's funeral, for goodness—yeah, I said it. Kou's funeral. Grow some balls, would ya? That's what it's called when someone dies, Jyou. A funeral. Kou's dead. He's dead. Our friend, you know, KOU? He's DEAD. I just…I still can't really, I mean…" After that she dissolved into unintelligible whimpers and utterances. Only the words "fun," "hotel," "mascara," and "running" could be made out.
"Good," Taichi said, clapping his hands together. "Now is everyone ready?"
Mimi nodded pathetically from behind Sora's arms.
"Okay. Then move out, troops."
Mimi lagged behind the group and pulled on Jyou's arm.
"Hey, Jyou. Sorry about, you know, about that whole ball thing. I'm sure you have them," she said, sniffling. Jyou laughed and patted Mimi's head gingerly, not able to tell if she was serious or not. He decided not to risk furthering her risk of emotional damage.
"Uh, ha. Ha, ha, thanks, Mimi. That really, uh…means a lot. Thanks," he said.
--
It took far too long to find the house, in Yamato's opinion. He was a country boy at heart, and was therefore completely useless in coordinating the wild streets of Tokyo. He took it upon himself to be the designated clock watcher. That was how he knew that it took far too long to find the house.
"We made it in record time," Jyou announced jovially.
That only pissed Yamato off even more.
"Record time? Are you stupid? We were walking around for almost two hours, you know."
"Yeah, I know," retorted Jyou. "And we're early."
Before the group stood a two-story red brick house. It was surrounded by a white picket fence and had a large doghouse in the front yard. The grass was a healthy green and freshly cut and two full rosebushes protruded proudly on either side of the full porch. It was a small house, but it was a beautiful one.
"Aww, cute!" gushed Mimi. "I wanna live there!"
"You can't live there Mimi, now come on," Sora said as she dragged the woman after the rest of the group.
Taichi stood in front of the door, frozen. He held the antique brass door knocker in his hand, the cool metal making the moment seem much more real. He sighed heavily and leaned forward, resting his head against the door. He closed his eyes, forbidding those tears from falling (he was a grown man, damn it) and shook his head slowly.
"I can't do this. What am I doing? I can't do this."
Then the coldness from the metal door knocker was enveloped in a soft heat and Taichi looked up to see Hikari's hand over his own.
"You're not alone, Tai. We're all here. We'll get through this. Together," she said quietly, turning his face with her free hand so that she could discreetly wipe her elder brother's moistened cheek.
"He was my best friend, Hikari. I just never realized it until now."
"I know. Now, come on. He's waiting for you."
The two lifted the knocker together and brought it down heavily on the door three times.
And waited.
The door opened widely and a stout, slightly older man stood before them. He wore glasses and had thinning black hair.
"Oh, hello there. Are you all here for the memorial service?" he asked, smiling gently.
"Yes. We received invitations, but they were—" Jyou explained, pulling his envelope out of his jacket pocket, but the man waved it away.
"No need, sir. Please, come in," the man said, holding the door open for all the guests. "You're a little early, but that's all right. You're not the first to arrive, actually. There's food in the kitchen, if you're hungry at all. Oh, allow to introduce myself. I'm Murakami Hiroshi. I was Izumi-san's business partner. I'm, uh…Izumi-san left control of the company to me."
"Control of what company?" Mimi asked around a mouthful of bread.
"Oh. Uh, his company. ITech," Murakami explained.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait—Kou owned ITech? I thought he worked for a company," said Yamato.
"Oh, no. Izumi-san apprenticed at a technological institute while he was teaching at the university, but he thought businessmen were too corrupt. He decided to start his own software company. I…assumed you all worked there."
"No. We were friends with Kou…awhile ago," Taichi told him. "Didn't you send us these invitations?"
"I'm sorry," Murakami said slowly. "I don't think I know what you're talking about. Perhaps I should see those invitations, sir."
Jyou nervously pulled the paper out of his pocket once again and handed it to Murakami. After reading it, the stout man smiled comfortably and returned it to Jyou.
"Ah. I see. If you all would please follow me?"
Murakami led the confused group up the stairs and down the hall. At the end of the strip was a door that stood slightly ajar. There was a dim light spilling out from the room and Murakami knocked quietly.
"Takami?" he called. "Can I come in? Your guests have arrived." Murakami pushed the door opened and nodded for the group to enter.
In the dimly lit room was a girl sitting cross-legged on the messy bed, surrounded by papers. She was relatively young, around fifteen.
But the first thing Taichi noticed was her hair.
A black headband kept most of her bangs pulled back, but a few wisps fell into her brown eyes, and her curly locks fell down her back.
It was an unmistakable shade.
Fiery red.
Just like Kou's.
"This is Takami," spoke Murakami. "She's Izumi-san's daughter. She sent you the invitations."
The girl looked up and gave a quirky half-smile that was so familiar it tore at Taichi's heart.
"Hey," she said. "I'm glad you guys could make it. There's something I wanna ask you."
--
I seriously had to consider the "balls" joke with Mimi. And the chapter title means nothing. I was listening to the song when I named it. I know. *disappointing*
Well, it's 2:50 in the morning and I'm cutting my hair in a few hours, so I should finish this up and get some sleep.
BUM, BUM, BUM. Hope it was worth the wait and hope someone enjoyed it. I'm liking this story. It thrills me so. :D Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this, and SUPER THANKS to everyone who took the extra time to review. I squeal with joy when I see reviews.
CU thrives on your feedback, so go ahead. And if you wanna flame me, BRING IT.
HI AMBER! 3