Chapter Summary: In which Jenrya learns being a dad is hard, and being a dad to two Digimon-turned-children is harder. Temper tantrums and adolescent issues weren't supposed to be in his job description this soon. Ruki tries her best to be a mom.
Note:
Osanaki = Childish, immature
Age:
Jenrya, Ruki: 26
Renamon: 10
Terriermon: 8
The pitter-patter of rain invaded the room when the door slid open to allow his friend in. Ruki gave a cursory glance to the books spread out across the floor, the food tray in her hand finding its place among them not long after.
"You're skipping school but still doing homework. What's wrong with you?"
Jenrya pretended he didn't hear her quip and muttered her a thanks before reaching for a piece of mochi.
"I still have to study. I'm not gonna hide in your house forever, you know?"
Ruki seemed to take his unbothered reply as a personal challenge to get through his skin.
"Great. Now if only you could tell your worried parents that." She gave a disgruntled reply as she turned around to close the door back, but not before checking around for any watching eyes first.
When it still didn't work, she took a seat across him and grabbed a mochi of her own. He could just tell from her expression that she wasn't about to give up just yet.
"If you don't care about your parents, at the very least talk to your sister," Ruki said through muffled words, the mochi stuck to her teeth expanding and shrinking with every syllable. She smirked when he finally showed a response.
Thankfully, the exercise books provided Jenrya with enough distraction to not lose his calm. But the annoyance still showed on his face, the violent pencil scritch-scratch on the paper's surface only making it all the more noticeable. Not that Ruki needed it to read through him.
He huffed and wrote faster, not caring if his words were no more than scribbles.
"If I talk with Shiuchon more, they're gonna start to notice and grill her for information. And then I'll be gone from this place, and I don't know if I'm forgiving enough to not punch a certain someone in the face."
Ruki fell silent. Her mouth however didn't and continued to loudly and disgustingly munch on every last corner of her disfigured mochi.
"Can you not?" He whined, turning to her sadistic face.
"Oh, I cannot not," she said with glee. She finally swallowed it though, giving him at least some peace of mind. She continued, "You got issues with your parents, but instead of giving it to them straight, you came here and took away my privacy. So as long as you're here, I'm gonna annoy the heck out of you as payback."
Ruki's mischievous grin promised nothing good, yet Jenrya couldn't find it in himself to do anything but give her a grateful smile in return.
"Thank you."
She smiled back.
"You are so not welcome."
Jenrya seized the plate away from her before she could start a mochi slaughter again. That didn't stop her from clinking her nails on her glass of water while he went back to his homework.
The Makino compound was generally a very quiet place, seeing to its little number of occupants despite its size. Guests tended to not disturb the atmosphere, and even the noise of children running about was minimal as its youngest daughter was only discovering running was faster than walking.
However, today was one of the very few occasions where noise was unavoidable. While their newest addition slept away in their room, Jen and the rest of the family tried their best to keep it down while they prepared for a surprise party. Despite the crashes, clunking, and countless other multitudes of sounds, Jenrya thought they did a good job at keeping the newest addition to the family asleep.
"Jen, a bit to the left. Ruki, stay there," grandma Seiko said from behind them.
"Like this?" He held the banner's corner onto the wall, making sure his feet didn't overstep the chair he was standing on. He turned around to see her giving him a thumbs up.
Having her approval, he focused on hammering the nail through the banner and into the wall. On the opposite side, Ruki began to do the same. They came down to marvel at their work and gave each other a high-five.
"Welcome back, Renamon and Terriermon," Ruki read the words written on it aloud. "The glitters aren't too over the top, are they?"
Compared to the rest of the washitsu(1), the banner was a colorful pink and stood out like a sore thumb against the dull brown and green of the room. Jenrya personally thought the clashing themes added to the atmosphere.
"I think it looks just fine." His mother-in-law came in with a box of cake in her arms. Glued to her feet was three-year-old Yurin suckling on her finger. The woman set the box on the kotatsu(2) where it joined the rest of their festivity treats.
Jen picked his daughter up when she was about to bang her fist onto the box.
"Whoa there. No playing with food," he chided and bopped her nose, her giggling music to his ears. He turned to his mother-in-law. "Mama, are they still asleep?"
"They are," she said and then cupped her hand over her grinning lips, whispering conspiratorily. "I went to look in for bit earlier. Snapped a bunch of cute pictures for the family album, hoho."
"Cute, or embarrassing?" Ruki put her hands on her hips. "I clearly remember the ones you used to entice my husband into doing stuff for you. You know, the ones with my face on them?"
"I'd say your sleeping face was kinda cute," Jenrya chimed in. At her pointed look, he held up one hand in a surrenderring pose. "I was just the beneficial third party. You can't put the blame on me."
Yurin simply cooed in his other arm at their interaction.
"Alright, alright. Settle down." Grandma clapped for their attention before carefully taking the girl from him. "Jen, you go wake up the kids before the food goes cold. I don't know what the government has been feeding them since they came back, but I figure they'd like a warm breakfast."
"As the matriarch wishes." Jenrya bowed a la stage performers to the amusement of his wife and mother-in-law. His grandmother-in-law didn't deign his antics worth even a side-eye and only focused her attention on playing with Yurin.
"Such coldness Ruki, my dear, I'm hurt." He clutched his heart and turned to his wife. "Mayhaps I a kiss can cure this ailment?"
"Fine." Ruki shook her head in amusement and briefly pecked his cheek. And thus was he cured from a feigned heartache. It was soon unjustifiedly replaced with a dislocated shoulder. Or at least it felt like it.
"Ouch. You really need to watch your strength." He patted his shoulder, his eyes trailing her retreating fist.
"Don't be dramatic. Now go wake them up. I'll set the dishes."
"Alright, but I'll need more of that kiss to treat my newly acquired injury." With his bargain done, he left the room with a grin.
Jenrya journeyed the corridor of the house towards the room where the Terriermon and Renamon slept, his steps growing ever so slower as his thoughts weighed him down.
Their Digimon. Sleeping in their house. It all still felt unreal despite already seeing it for himself.
His thoughts wandered to his partner. They hadn't talked much last night, only bits of conversation before sleep took ahold of Terriermon. There was so much Jenrya wanted to ask, to tell! The sixteen years of not seeing each other had left a Terriermon-shaped hole in his heart waiting to be filled again.
Before he knew it, he'd reached his destination. His hands shook from nerves even after he balled them into fists. Behind the door was his partner he hadn't seen in so long.
Had he changed enough that Terriermon wouldn't recognize him anymore? Would they be able to reconnect again? These kinds of thoughts swirled in his mind as his knuckles shakily hovered over the door–
A snoring from inside pulled him from his muse. The fear that had gripped him suddenly felt unfounded as recalled all the moments they'd been together.
Of course Terriermon would recognize him, what was he thinking? They talked just fine last night. With a chuckle, he knocked on the door to no response, only the continuous snoring of the person on the other side.
"Terriermon, Renamon? I'm coming in."
He slid the door open to find the source of the snoring expecting his partner... only to surprisingly see Renamon instead. In fact, the whole scene was the opposite of what he had in mind.
Terriermon was actually lying comfortably on his futon, snuggling against his pillow. Renamon however somehow had managed to cross the floor and was now hugging the far-side wall of the room.
The noise from the door was loud enough to stir Terriermon up. He looked around with half-lidded eyes, squinting when his sight landed on the figure that was supposed to be lying down next to him.
"Renamon? The heck you doing kissing that wall?"
"Five more minutes..." Renamon drawled, pausing her snores only to doze off into slumberland again.
"Suit yourself." Terriermon yawned and wiped his eyes. It took awhile, but he eventually found Jenrya standing by the door. "Oh, Jen."
Jenrya smiled and sat next to Terriermon. "Good morning."
"Did you snap Renamon's picture?"
He rolled his eyes but answered kindly nonetheless. "I'm sure mama already did."
"Hehe, good."
At the very least he knew his partner never changed.
The family welcomed their arrival by blowing the confetti cones. The beaming smile on Terriermon's face was everything to Jenrya at that moment. The little guy rushed towards the table, Renamon unwillingly dragged along as well.
"Look, Renamon! There's cake! And candies! An–And... Whoa, is this your mom's manju, Jen? I... I never thought I'd eat this again," he added somberly. Then, as if a switch being flicked, he returned back to his hyperactive self, a manju now residing in his mouth. "This is single-handedly the best day in my life!" he said with muffled words.
"At least chew your food first." Renamon chided but couldn't help herself from getting a piece either. She swallowed the first few bites. "This is wonderful. Oh, who's this?"
Renamon smiled and bent down to greet Yukirin who had bumped into her legs. Terriermon took advantage of the distraction and swiftly transferred the manju from her hand into his inflated cheeks. Renamon was a saint for not strangling him then and there. Instead, she raised the girl up and twirled her around with a laugh.
"Fwast! Fwast!" Yukirin cheered.
"Her name's Yukurin," Ruki said, holding her arms out to the girl who happily jumped back into her embrace. Renamon's face fell but didn't voice her disappointment. Ruki chuckled, pinching her cheeks. Thankfully his wife heeded his words and didn't leave any bruises anywhere this time. "Oh, you're so cute, Renamon. Don't worry, she definitely likes you."
Terriermon swallowed, or rather, inhaled the food he was chewing. "Isn't Yukurin the actress from the heaven sword movie or something(3)? What's with your family's obsession with naming kids after acto–"
Jenrya covered Terriermon's mouth before someone decided to stuff his mouth with soap, and that someone was himself. The Digimon's muffled voice didn't deter him from making sure people hear it regardless. "Mhmfhhm mfhm mhfmf mhmhfh!" he cheerfully and unintelligibly said.
Jenrya had a suspicion they weren't even words in the first place and his partner was just making weird noises for fun. Jenrya ruffled the blue hair that was so similar to his own if he disregarded the kink hair and the scattered green strands decorating it.
"What am I ever gonna do with you." He shook his head but couldn't help the smile that crept up his face. "Now if you'd behave, we have a party to start."
Food was served and talking noises were soon replaced by munching and chewing with the occasional exaggerated sipping courtesy of Terriermon. He seemed to have found a new hobby in blowing bubbles into his drink, to grandma's horror.
Renamon was reserved at showing her interest in the food. Mama who saw through it had taken to making sure she sample every last one of them. And sample she did, not leaving even a crumb on her plate. Had Renamon been less polite, she'd have licked her plate clean. As it was, she only ran her finger on the remaining cake icing from her plate and sucked on it.
Jenrya and Ruki exchanged glances throughout the whole thing, their words not enough to convey their feeling. It had been so long since they last enjoyed a meal with their Digimon at the same dining table. Yukirin sensed their joy and sought to express it through her giggles and flailing around.
When it was time for dessert, Jenrya went to the kitchen to take out a tray of pudding from the fridge. When he came back, Mama was in the middle of telling a story to a transfixed Terriermon. Renamon was feigning disinterest but she was no doubt paying attention from the way she leaned in to hear better.
"...en's parents almost called the police but thankfully our Ruki here called them first."
Jenrya tapped the tatami with his feet when he entered to announce his presence. "Gossiping about me I see."
"Jen!" Terriermon said. "Granny Rumiko says you ran away from home! Is it true?"
Jenrya noted the affectionate use of granny as he gave everyone their pudding before taking his seat again.
"It's an old story. Not something I was proud of."
Ruki laughed, helping herself to a spoonful of pudding. "Man, you had everyone so worried back then. Even Takato called all the way from Okinawa."
Terriermon looked at Jenrya like he was a superhero of some kind. It was a bit unnerving and Jenrya couldn't figure out why.
"Wow, Jen. You had quite the adventure while I was away."
He shrugged, peeling off his pudding's cover. "I wouldn't call it an adventure."
Their conversation soon, again, took a turn to Jenrya's family naming tendency.
"Talk about names, you two are gonna need new ones soon," Mama said, stealing a spoonful of pudding from grandma's plate. "Your Digimon names stick out too much."
"I don't want a Chinese actor's name on my name tag, that's all I ask," Terriermon replied, trying to steal a whole pudding from Renamon but was stopped with a whack to the head.
Renamon leaned further away from Terriermon to guard her pudding. When she was sure he wouldn't try anything funny, she turned to mama.
"What do we need names for?"
"Yamaki-san suggested we enroll you for school. We don't want you to attract attention," Ruki replied.
Terriermon raised a brow. "Jen's siblings did well with weird name– I'll shut up now," he said quickly, hiding a fearful face into his empty pudding cup after Jenrya stared him down
For a few seconds, Jenrya froze. Did he see that right? Was Terriermon... scared? Of him?
It was meant to be in a teasing manner, but the brief terrified look on Terriermon's face distracted Jenrya enough to miss the conversation going on around him.
"...ow about Tera then? What do you think, Jen?" Ruki asked.
"Tera? Oh, the name?" He turned to his nodding wife.
"Tera for Terriermon, and Rena for Renamon."
"I like it," Renamon said. "I suppose I will answer Li Rena if anyone asks my name, then."
"I think it's fine," was Terriermon's surprisingly sassless reply. The unnerving feeling Jenrya had early slowly crept back up.
Before he could address it, Terriermon was back to cracking jokes and grinning like everything in the world was providing entertainment for him.
Perhaps the Digital World had changed their Digimon more than they'd thought. And perhaps this strange feeling was only Jenrya's imagination.
Shinjuku station was as much a station as it was an underground labyrinth(4). Shops lined up the walkway that stretched far beyond what Jenrya could even see. Terriermon who trudged alongside him stared at everything in wonder.
The shopping trip was Ruki's idea since both Terriermon and Renamon needed new clothes. What followed was two pairs of wide eyes that latched onto anything that they caught sight of.
"This place huge," Renamon remarked with her eyes darting around, no doubt trying to memorize their steps. "Was this here before we left?"
Terriermon bobbed his head, amazement and wonder reflecting on his young face. "How do you not get lost with all these people here?"
Jenrya smiled and took Terriermon's small and soft hand into his. "Don't worry, there's no chance I'm letting you out of my sight today."
It was the first time Jenrya actually paid attention to their height difference and looking at it now, it finally registered that Terriermon was really small.
He supposed that he should've already realized that after last night, but it wasn't until now that the whole situation dawned on him, especially when Terriermon squeezed his hand back.
The quips Jenrya had been awaiting never came. Instead, Terriermon lifted his head up and gave him a grin so bright and cheery that Jenrya's heart almost stopped. "Of course you won't, Jen." Terriermon said with an innocent giggle.
Jenrya knew that giggle. It was the same kind Yukurin would give him when they played together. The one that tickled and warmed his heart no matter how many times he heard it.
At that moment, the unnerving feeling inside him finally clicked. The odd behaviors, the out-of-place childlike wonders, the tiny and fragile hand he was holding...
Jenrya's sight landed on Renamon who was chatting excitedly with Ruki.
Holding Terriermon's hand just a bit tighter, Jenrya grasped the Digi– No – the child's shoulder with his other hand and pulled him closer and away from the wave of human traffic that was coming against their direction.
Terriermon had placed his trust on him, so Jenrya would do his best to keep that trust there.
"So, what's on the agenda?" Jenrya asked when the two of them finally caught up with Ruki and Renamon. They were nearing Keio Department Store's underground entrance.
"I'm thinking clothes first, and then toiletries. We're going to be here for awhile, so that means lunch too."
"You think we can look at toys while we're at it?" He gave a slight glance to Terriermon who'd found a piece of stray paper on the ground and was playing with it.
Ruki shrugged. "We'll have plenty of times to buy the whole mall, so why not?"
With their itinerary planned out, Jenrya led the four of them into the mall, Terriermon following him rather close.
"Terriermon, are you okay walking with so many people around?" He asked before he even realized it.
The boy blinked up at him. "Huh? Hm, I think I used to not mind it, but everything is so big and scary now. Strange... I wonder why I never noticed that before."
"Is that so?" Jenrya nodded at the answer. "Well, just stick close to me."
Passing through the entrance, the smell of food slowly wafted towards them. This was the underground level. According to the directory, children's wear was on the seventh and eighth floors, so they headed there first. They could come back down to the depachika(5) later for lunch.
When they ascended the escalator, Terriermon suddenly hugged him tight. "Jen, don't let go," he hissed. Fingers clawing into Jenrya's shirt, he refused to look anywhere but down at his feet.
Jenrya smiled and patted him reassuringly. "I won't. I'll let you know when we get up there, okay?"
Terriermon nodded, still looking down. The trembling boy had a brief moment of respite whenever they got onto a new floor only to latch onto him again when they found the next escalator. He finally heaved a sigh of relief when they arrived on the seventh floor.
In front of them, Renamon too was reacting much the same and rejoiced at having found a bench to sit on. Sadly for her, their shopping adventure had only just begun, and thus were she and Terriermon dragged away by a very enthusiastic Ruki.
It could just be the light, but Renamon's skin was rather pale now that Jenrya noticed. He looked down at his own arm almost automatically. He didn't think it looked much different.
Since Ruki was the more fashion-oriented between the two of them, it fell on her to pick out the clothes. Jenrya didn't have time to warn the poor kids before she whisked them away to the changing rooms, rows and rows of clothes already waiting for them every time they tried out a new one. No matter how much she denied it, she was her mother's daughter through and through.
"Hm, I don't think green suits you, Renamon."
"Terriermon, try the other one."
"Alright, stand next to each other. I want to see how you look."
After about a thousand shirts and dresses with picture sessions in between, Ruki left to pay for the clothes. or at least she was supposed to. She was probably going to take awhile choosing the best clothes of the bunch because they didn't want to take half the store home.
With the source of their misery gone, Terriermon and Renamon crumpled on the floor resting against each other's back.
"I finally know what torture feels like," Terriermon said, turning his head to Renamon. "I don't remember her being this meticulous. You?"
Instead of answering, Renamon only stared at the floor.
"Renamon?"
"O-oh, you were saying?"
"Wow, you're really out of it. Jen, how do we file for child abuse?"
Jenrya ignored the comment and helped lift them both up to their feet. He thought of a way to raise their spirits.
"Wanna bail and look at toys before Ruki comes back? Rest your eyes a little from seeing all these fabrics," he said, pulling out his phone to message Ruki they'd be moving on first. "We can come back later to get your toiletries."
"Do I not?" Terriermon grinned. Again, Renamon's response was lackluster, only nodding and wrapping a hand around her stomach. The boy pushed his head into her face, his hair definitely brushing against her nose. "You okay?"
Renamon didn't seem to mind and even chuckled. She playfully pushed his face away but not to the point of hurting him. Burning the sight to memory, Jenrya listed this interaction of theirs as one of the most precious things he'd ever seen.
"I think I ate the wrong food. You might want to move away if you don't want vomit on your face."
"Eh, wouldn't be the first time. Maybe you just need some fresh air-cond air."
"Fresh... air-cond air?"
Jenrya shook his head as he led them to the toy section.
"Are we looking for toys for Yukurin?" Terriermon asked when they arrived, bright and excited eyes scanning the colorful collections of dolls, action figures, and countless other items, all neatly stacked between endless rows of shelves.
"Actually, I was thinking of getting some for you two." Terriermon whipped his head up with a toothy smile that almost split his face. Jenrya gestured with his head. "Go on, find whatever you like."
Terriermon nodded and began bouncing into different lanes, head turning left and right to whatever that caught his eyes.
Instead of following after him, Renamon opted to plop down on a nearby seating spot, both her arms hugging her middle. It wasn't his imagination. She was paler.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Jenrya brushed the bang covering her forehead, his palm feeling the gathering sweat and heat she was giving.
She shook her head weakly, looking up at him with a face that much resembled his wife's. She clenched her teeth in pain as she hunched down more and more.
"Renamon?" Jenrya kneeled and held her shoulders, panic rising inside him. And then without warning, she belched her breakfast onto his shirt in pained heaves.
"I-it hurts!" Renamon managed to say through gritted teeth. She covered her mouth before she could throw up again. Without thinking, Jenrya picked her up into his arms and carried her to the nearest toilet.
While he was occupied with Renamon, Terriermon bounced back merrily to their spot, oblivious to what had transpired.
"Jen! I found–" His steps immediately faltered when he found neither of them there. The small bunny plush he was carrying fell to his sides, and so did his smile. "J-Jen? Renamon?"
Renamon heaved the remainders of her breakfast into the men's toilet's sink, dry belching once there was nothing left to throw up. When she finally got enough strength to pull herself up straight again, Jenrya led her to a bench outside.
He gently moved his hand in a circle over her back, wishing he could do more while she clenched her stomach and hunched over in pain.
The stomach pain, the nausea... Jenrya chided himself for not noticing sooner. He let the girl lean onto him while he called his wife.
"Ruki, we have an emergency. It's Renamon."
"What's wrong? Where are you now?" To her credit, Ruki remained calm as she listened to his words.
"We're outside the toilet. Renamon got cramps."
There was a short pause before she answered. "Alright. I'll be there."
When Ruki arrived and saw Renamon's state, she immediately pulled the girl in for a hug.
"Renamon!"
While his wife tended to the girl, Jenrya collected the shopping bags she'd dropped in her hurry. His eyes fell on the shirts and dresses that were peeking out of them. Four bags, two each for Renamon and Terriermon.
Terriermon...
Jenrya's eyes widened in realization and he slapped his forehead so hard it burned.
"Ruki, look after Renamon! I'll be right back!" He left the bags with the two of them and sprinted towards the toy section. Hopefully the boy was still there.
His shoes slipped on the tiles when he stopped at the entrance, slightly stumbling forward. His footing kept him straight, allowing him to continue towards the tiny figure who awaited his arrival in silence.
Jenrya sighed in relief, glad the boy hadn't gone anywhere. The moment their eyes met however, he knew he'd been worried about the wrong thing.
Terriermon stood there holding a stuffed toy by its arm. There was no quip, no mirth, nothing but silence and a pair of tearful bloodshot eyes.
Jenrya could count on one hand how many times he'd seen Terriermon angry. His laidback nature and optimistic outlook always kept him level-headed. Even when he got serious, Terriermon never was someone to display emotional outbursts.
Until today.
"You left me!" Terriermon shouted with an accusing glare. He choked under his sobs, his shoulders shaking.
With all the rage he could muster from his tiny body, he threw the stuffed toy that softly hit Jenrya's chest before thudding harmlessly on the floor. When that didn't satisfy him, he proceeded to throw himself instead and thumped his fists over and over on Jenrya's stomach.
"I hate you, I hate you!" He said, his hits growing weaker and weaker until they stopped entirely and fell to his sides. The boy looked down, his voice barely louder than his sniffles. "You promised you wouldn't leave me. You lied..."
Jenrya bent down to look him in the eye. Terriermon rightfully refused to meet his gaze, instead setting his line of sight on the stuffed toy on the floor.
Jenrya swallowed the hurt and carefully picked it up. It was a pink bunny plush(6), its design a striking resemblance to his sister's old plush that she'd often played with to replace Terriermon. Even when Jenrya offered it back to the boy, the only response he got was an upset grunt.
Jenrya's bubbling frustration urged him to call on Terriermon's immature behavior, but the shout building up inside his throat never came out, stopped by the quiet sniffles of the child before him.
Right. A child, he reminded himself for the umpteenth time.
When he'd realized he'd gotten a son instead of a friend back, he didn't mind it. After all, he thought with slight humor, taking care of Terriermon wasn't much different from managing a little brother back when he was younger.
The thought of having to raise Terriermon didn't seem so daunting when all the boy did was being his old self with slightly more immature behavior. Seeing the boy like this now, Jenrya finally remembered that a human child was not made out of just laughter and joy, but of tears and temper tantrums as well.
Jenrya hung his head in shame, both for his mistake and for trying to treat Terriermon like he would an adult despite knowing their circumstance.
"Terriermon, I'm–"
"I'm sorry!" Terriermon cut him off, the telltale of another waterwork trailing along his voice. "I... I don't know what's going on with me. My mind's all messed up. Just... Please don't talk to me for now and I'll be me again when we get back home," he said, words chopped at places where he couldn't control his sobs.
Jenrya's breath hitched, feeling the words cut through his chest like a knife as it stayed there and twisted the more the silence between them carried on.
"Terriermon, no," Jenrya breathed out. "I'm the one who's supposed to apologize."
The boy ignored him.
In his pants pocket, his phone vibrated to remind him of the other urgent matter he had today. Taking a deep breath, Jenrya put both hands on his shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze.
Today wasn't going as planned, but Jenrya wouldn't forgive himself if he left this matter unresolved.
"Listen, I made a mistake today, and I promise I'll make it up to you. But we have to hold this conversation until later. We need to take Renamon home."
The mention of Renamon's name surprised Terriermon enough to snap his up neck. The eyes that were so full of rage before now showed nothing but concern.
"Renamon? What's wrong with– Whoa!"
Instead of responding, Jenrya lifted the boy up and carried him in his arms. For the second time today, his complacent arm muscles despaired at the stress he was putting them through, while his feet complained of double duty trying to keep him stable and not stumble forward while running.
He might or might not have taken the plush along as well without paying, but he could deal with that later.
When they called for a taxi home, Renamon inexplicably threw herself onto Jenrya and requested to sit with him. And Despite Terriermon's stabbing words earlier, the boy too refused to give up his seat next to him. With two stubborn children in emotional distress, Ruki relented and opted to just glance back every so often from the front passenger seat.
The whole way, Renamon clung to Jenrya's side while Terriermon watched in concern from his other side. It wasn't much, but he let her squeeze his hand whenever the pain got unbearable.
"There, there," he whispered to her lock of hair resting against his cheeks. "We'll get home soon."
Granny and Mama were waiting for them at the front door. Jenrya hoped they hadn't been standing there since the call earlier. Mama's fussing over Renamon only made her plant more of herself into Jenrya's side once they stepped out of the taxi.
The strange behavior continued until they got to her room where she requested only his presence. She avoided Ruki's concerned eyes.
"Just call me if you need anything, okay?" Ruki said, the hurt obvious on her face when the girl avoided her advance for a hug, hiding herself behind him instead.
Jenrya nodded his head at his wife, his hand on his chest as in a weak attempt to give her comfort. "I'll look after her," he promised through their locked gaze. She nodded back, her smile small but enough to reassure him she'd be alright.
"I'll bring you porridge. Would you like anything with that?" Ruki asked Renamon who responded with a shake of her head. "Alright. Take this, they'll help with the pain."
She handed a tablet of painkillers and a mineral water bottle that Jenrya took after Renamon refused to even look at them. Or her for that matter.
Jenrya pecked his wife's cheek before patting Terriermon's shoulder. "You go help Ruki. She's gonna need a lot of hands in the kitchen."
"But–" The boy's reluctance faltered at Jenrya's pleading look. The conversation they'd left hanging earlier hung heavy over the both of them, but after some brief uncertain glances at Renamon and Ruki, he nodded in understanding. "Okay," he said, still with reluctance.
"Thank you." Jenrya smiled. "The kitchen's just right around the corner so if you break any plates, I'll hear you."
The message seemed to come across and comforted the boy greatly. He grinned. "I'll make sure to break as many as I can."
Ruki threw him an impressed stare and grabbed his hand to lead him away. "I'll take that bunny from you if you even leave a scratch on them."
Terriermon immediately hugged his new toy close. "You won't dare..."
Soon, his and Ruki's voice faded to just murmurs, leaving Jenrya and Renamon standing in front of the door. Renamon suddenly groaned as she hunched down again.
"Let's get you inside," Jenrya said, helping the girl to her futon. He popped the pills into her hand and gave her the water bottle. "Swallow with the water, don't chew."
Renamon nodded and did as told, even if she struggled a little. Her face cringed briefly, no doubt having bitten on the pills. She managed to swallow them in the end.
They sat in silence, only accompanied by the crunch of Renamon's empty water bottle that she was fiddling with.
"I'm weak," she finally said, dropping her head in shame.
There were a thousand words she left unspoken, but all the same too loud to ignore from her defeated posture. It reached a breaking point when what seemed to be the last burst of stomach pain left her hugging it again. Her laugh was bitter, her smile fragile.
"Is this why you've been avoiding Ruki?"
Jenrya watched gravity claim more of her sagged shoulders, the invisible weight on them manifesting as a sigh on her lips.
"She can't see me like this."
"Ruki doesn't care about that."
"But I do. I do care." Renamon looked up to him for the first time, her confident and resolute eyes he remembered from his childhood nowhere to be seen. She looked almost pleading when she spoke up.
"I've fought Digimon twice my size, acquired injuries that left me limped, but the pain never held me back from protecting Ruki and again. Now I'm just–" The words seemed heavy ok her tongue, her face pained as if saying it meant admitting its truth. "Now I'm just fragile," she ended, looking away from him.
Ruki and Renamon's partnership had always been different even when compared to the rest of the Tamers. Jenrya's own was of mutual standing between him and Terriermon that inched more towards friendship. But Renamon? She saw herself as Ruki's guardian first and foremost.
Jenrya sometimes wished he had half the motherly touch his own mother had showered him with, so he could envelop the poor girl and let her cry into his shoulder. His attempt at consoling the girl only ended up with him taking her hand in his.
"Humans aren't as strong as Digimon, but that doesn't necessarily make us weaker," he attempted. Renamon only shook her head.
"How can I protect Ruki if I can't even handle a stomachache?"
"You don't," he answered to her grimace. The blow he'd landed her might've as well been physical and it would've hurt less. "Look, Renamon. This transformation, I know it was sudden. But as it is, you can't protect Ruki anymore like you did in the past."
She gave a defeated nod, but he wasn't finished.
"You Digimon have been looking after us, and now we want to return the gesture. Let us take care of you this time. I'm sorry it had to be this way, but you are our children now. It's our job to make sure you're safe and healthy.
"But that doesn't mean you can't still look after us. What you did earlier, it hurt Ruki a lot."
"What?" Renamon snapped her head up, confused. Her face was blank for a brief second in thought before the realization set in. She gasped. "But– That was– I didn't mean it that way..." Renamon said, regret across her features.
Jenrya smiled softly. "Right now, Ruki wants to reconnect with you. You may not be able to physically protect her anymore, but the little words and gestures can go a long way to make her happy."
Renamon nodded again, shame yet again enveloping her being. But beneath all that, Jenrya could see the fire returning alight in her.
"I'm sorry. I'll make up to it and apologize to her."
Renamon's hand that he held in his suddenly seemed so small.
"It's alright," Jenrya assured. "You're a child now. I expect things like this to happen more often."
"When you ran away from home, was that..." Renamon left the words hanging, but Jenrya remembered the whole ordeal all the same.
As he recounted the story, his lips pulled into something that wasn't a smile but not exactly what one would find on a frown either.
"When I was twelve, my dad forbade me from pursuing programming. He knew that was the field I wanted to work in, yet he kept insisting I gave up on it. He said he wouldn't be paying if I chose to go for it. At the time, I thought he was just trying to stop me from trying to bring you all back.
"My mom was the one who convinced me to go to the junior high that all my friends attended. We got into fights a lot."
Jenrya paused when he felt Renamon's hand squeezing his in what appeared to be her attempt at comforting him. He smiled.
"I ran away after I couldn't take it anymore and Ruki just so happened to cross paths with me. So I stayed with her. Nobody knew. Well, not until Ruki told on me." He chuckled at the memory. "I was so angry at her."
Jenrya continued. "It took awhile for me to realize, but my parents really were just looking out for me. They knew I was dead set on bringing you back, so they didn't want me to live just for you guys' sake."
"Did... did you make up with them?" She sounded scared of the outcome, and Jenrya didn't fault her for that. He'd be too, but thankfully the story didn't end that way.
He nodded, softly patting her hand. "I did. They live here too actually, but mom's with Shiuchon in China and dad's still busy cleaning up stuff at Hypnos. Who knows when he'll be back."
He chuckled again and looked at her wistfully.
"Dad's been working hard ever since the day you left. He came home late all exhausted, but I never noticed. Sometimes I imagined I'd actually fought harder. At least that way, I could help him and he wouldn't be burying himself in work all the time.
"He tried to prevent that life for me. I was the one who was too selfish to see it." Jenrya looked her in the eye, pleading. "Promise me if you see him, don't say anything hurtful. I know he got us separated, but he's had enough regrets to last a lifetime."
Renamon nodded, putting her other hand on top of his. She held it with determination.
"I promise."
"Thank you." Jenrya looked at the girl and imagined she was Yukurin. Without missing a beat, he leaned in and planted his lips on her forehead.
She froze, allowing him to stand up and pull his hand with him. He didn't have time to look at her reddening face because he too turned turned around to hide his own blush.
"I'm gonna check on Ruki and Terriermon. The porridge should be almost done by now."
Once the door behind was closed, he leaned his back onto it, sighing. If he was surprised to see Mama grinning beside him, the adrenaline was preventing him from showing it.
"You left the door ajar so I snapped some pictures," she said, holding up her phone.
"I hate you," he muttered.
"Tsk tsk. Now what did we just say about hurtful words?"
"That it doesn't count for eavesdroppers."
After getting mama off his back with the promise of letting her annoy him later, he made his way to the kitchen. He stopped just before the entrance to hear voices coming from inside.
"...aybe I did something wrong. What do I do, Terriermon?"
"I still say that you're overthinking it."
Jenrya peeked inside to see Ruki stirring the rice porridge by the stove, her back to Terriermon. The boy himself was sitting on the pantry swinging his legs. He'd have interrupted if not for recognizing the voice his wife was using. She only sounded like that whenever she came to him to complain about her workplace.
They were having a private conversation.
He shouldn't be listening in but he did so nevertheless, hiding himself behind the wall.
"It's just she never acted like that before. She didn't even want to look at me..."
"It's not you," Terriermon said after a pause. There was a slight hesitance in his voice, as if not wanting to talk about it. "I used to think I was level-headed. Then today happened. The transformation did some strange things to us. So believe me when I say she didn't mean anything by it."
There was a long stretch of silence before he spoke again.
"She doesn't mean it, even if she says she hates you to your face. So don't worry."
Jenrya decided he'd heard enough and made his presence known. He greeted them, acting like he hadn't just eavesdropped on them like the hypocrite he'd never admit he was to his mother-in-law.
"Jen, you're just in time." Ruki smiled at him, the telltales of her distress hidden well beneath her nonchalant demeanor. "The porridge is almost done. How's Renamon?"
"She's getting better." He smiled back, seeing no use to bring it up.
He turned to Terriermon who avoided looking at him in the eyes. The boy was fiddling with his fingers, lips opening and closing in a continuous attempt to strike a conversation. Ruki nodded encouragingly at him which gave the boy the courage to finally address Jenrya.
Terriermon's eyes flitted around in abashment as he spoke, his fingers nervously stretching in and out.
"Jen, I... Uh... When we were at the mall... You see..."
Jenrya decided to save him the embarrassment and patted the boy's shoulder, prompting him to look up in surprise.
"You don't have to say it. I understand."
That was all the encouragement he needed to have all the words flow out of his mouth.
"No, I have to say it!" Terriermon grabbed Jenrya's outstretched hand and move it closer to the middle of his body, successfully locking Jenrya and his attention in place until they finished this conversation.
"I was being a brat at the mall. I'm sorry for acting like that. And..." Terriermon glanced at Ruki again before turning back to him. He spoke slow and quiet. "I don't hate you. I was angry when I said that so the words just came out. I don't hate you... So please don't hate me either," he finished and averted his eyes again.
Jenrya held Terriermon's hand for support, not trusting himself to not cry a manly tear after the touching words.
"I understand, Terriermon. I'm sorry too for breaking my promise. Will you forgive me?"
Terriermon fell silent but nodded as he stared at the floor. Jenrya continued.
"And... I don't hate you either if that's what you think." When their eyes met again, he plucked what few amounts of courage he had at his disposal and uttered the heaviest word he'd ever known. "If anything, I love you a lot. Either as a friend or a father, you are the best thing that happened to me. You can have my word for that."
Jenrya's heart beat quickly at his second attempt to assassinate it. Flirting with Ruki never felt like this, or at least not anymore, since the gestures were more playful rather than anything. He wasn't sure if someone ever died over being too affectionate, but still, he felt it was worth it.
Terriermon's blush started out small before immediately spreading to the rest of his body. Ruki's laugh only made it worse. Despite the boy's embarrassment however, a tiny bit of a smile appeared on his face. That alone brought great comfort to Jenrya. They started off shaky, but he knew they'd be just fine from now onward.
Renamon apologized to Ruki and cleared the air between them. In between the spoonfuls of porridge his wife fed her, Renamon spared brief glances to Jenrya that would leave them both red in the cheeks. Ruki took it as Renamon getting sick, so she began to fuss over the girl.
Terriermon sent Jenrya a curious look. The boy was about to say something when the notification ping from Jenrya's phone caught his attention. Jenrya didn't dare ask how he even figured out his password. Whatever the boy saw however left him wide-eyed and speechless.
"J-Jen! You have to see this!"
"What's wrong?" Jenrya took the phone and read the sender's name. It was one of his friends. There was a link to a video attached with the message "is this you" on it. To his surprise, and horror, the link led to a recording of his and Terriermon's argument at the mall.
Comments were flooding below the video, all too overwhelming for his short-circuited brain to even read. Ruki didn't have the same issue.
"What's this?" She said tilting the phone to read better, Renamon peeking in as well. His wife then laughed. "Oh my god. Hear this: Happened at Keio this morning. A man left his son at the toy store after carrying his sick daughter to the toilet. The son got angry and started hitting him– Bahahah! Look at these other comments!"
Terriermon hid his face while Jenrya read them. Most of them were talking about how he handled the tantrums while some focused on how he left the toy store running and carrying a child both times.
"Isn't that granny?" Terriermon who'd gotten over his embarrassment came and pointed at a profile picture of his mother-in-law. The boy read it aloud. "There's a continuation to this. What does that mean? Oh, she left another one of that blue sentences."
Jenrya felt dread creeping over his spine. This couldn't be good. Because he took too long, Ruki stole his phone and clicked on it. And he was right. It wasn't good.
The caption read "my son-in-law being a good father today". Mama must have recorded it when she eavesdropped earlier. She even got the part when he kissed Renamon's forehead. Snapped a few pictures, she said.
Renamon was blushing as Ruki repeated the video over and over. Jenrya's torment too was far from over when Terriermon pulled on his sleeve to get his attention. The boy was frowning.
"How come Ruki and Renamon got a kiss but not me?"
His wife's laugh got even louder. "Yeah, Jen. Why the discrimination? Come on, indulge the boy, would you."
Jenrya's eye twitched. "Maybe I would if you actually put the phone down and not record me?"
"Nah, I'll pass."
With Terriermon's big eyes on him, Jenrya found it hard to say no. Renamon too was watching in anticipation. He sighed.
"Alright, come here."
It lasted for a brief second. when he pulled away from Terriermon's lock of hair, a beaming smile was etched on the boy's face. Jenrya smiled back, patting his head.
He turned to Ruki. "Satisfied with your blackmail material yet?"
She grinned evilly, swaying the phone left and right. "Oh yes, it's perfect."
Before soon, the topic shifted away to things like school and what they'd have to expect once they started going. Jenrya watched Ruki alternate between feeding Renamon and Terriermon, the latter enjoying the attention after Ruki decided to not let the boy feel left out.
It was going to be hard dividing attention between them with Yukurin in the mix. But Jenrya felt they could manage it somehow.
"Jen, you too. Open your mouth," Ruki said, a spoonful of porridge coming his way. He laughed, opening his mouth wide to accept it.
"Ohhh, no fair." Terriermon grumbled.
Renamon surprisingly was looking just as disappointed. "That was the last one too."
Jenrya shook his head with a smile. He stood up. "I'll bring some more for you guys."
He exchanged a glance with Ruki when he left the room. They nodded at each other, no words needed to convey their feelings.
Yeah, they'd manage somehow. If they couldn't, well, they could still learn.
1- Washitsu is "an open room, one that has no dedicated purpose". Basically it's a room in a Japanese house that can be the living room, the family room, or whatever. It literally means "Japanese room".
2- Kotatsu is a table with a heater underneath and covered with a blanket to trap the heat. You usually see this in anime when the characters watch tv.
3- Yukurin, or rather Yuk Lin, is a Hong Kong tv actress that appeared in the movie "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" as Siuchiu. Have I watched it? No. Did I scour Google for all this trivia? Yes.
4- Shinjuku Station is the busiest train station in the world. It's also a maze to navigate through if you're not a local.
5- Depachika is what you call the basement level of a department store. Foodstuffs are sold here.
6- The pink bunny plush appeared briefly in episode 32 after the Tamers left for the Digital World. Shiuchon had put a make-shift horn on it to make it resemble Terriermon.
A/N:
This chapter was a kinda hard to write, especially since I just couldn't get into Jenrya's head. His interaction with Renamon was the most difficult so far, but thankfully I pushed through :v
If you notice, I've been sprinkling bits of backstories for the Tamers. I actually have been thinking of making prequel series for this story, but nothing has come out of it yet.
Next chapter is gonna be Juri's pov with a surprise appearance of another character (he's related to Ryo, but you won't expect it).
Stay tuned for more.You can see the story's progress on my tumblr account grammarknighty.