Intertwined Destinies
Previously in Intertwined Destinies:
Etemon has been defeated, but the digidestined weren't unscathed. Tai was almost fatally injured and was saved by Jade when she transformed into Phoenixmon, but instead of fighting Etemon herself, Phoenixmon allowed Tai and Greymon to fight first. Greymon digivolved to the Ultimate level and became Metalgreymon, and it was his attack that opened a dimensional rift. Etemon was sucked into the rift, but before the rift could close Tai and Metalgreymon were also pulled through. He was pulled into the Human World where he realised no time had passed since they were first sent to the Digital World. Despite how much Tai wanted to stay, he knew he couldn't and foundhis way back to the Digital World.
In the Digital World, the digidestined separated. Jade ran from them first and was finally reunited with her digimon partner who she calls Tom, no matter was digivolution he is in. In Jade's absence from his life, Tom went insane and destroyed the world that he ruled. It is also revealed that Tom was once a human, who tried to kill Jade when she was a baby, but when that failed his soul latched onto her. The shard was removed from Jade when she was first pulled into the Digital World, and that was how Tom was born.
Tai and Agumon have found TK and now they are working towards finding the other children, because they need to fight together to win, or they would lose.
The next chapter of their adventure awaits...
Chapter 17: Inner Powers ~ Matt
Matt stared at the lake's edge with a puzzled frown. He was trying to get back to TK, but somehow they had gotten twisted up on the lake and he couldn't remember which way back to the amusement park. It had been a day since he had left TK, and he was angry at himself for breaking his promise to his brother. He had never done that before.
When his parents divorced he had blamed his mother, because it was like she was always screaming at dad for something trivial. And then she got a promotion at work, but to accept the promotion meant that they would need to move again, and dad couldn't because of his job. So his mother had filed for a divorce and took TK with her. Matt was just happy that TK was at the same school as he was, even if it was the other side of town.
TK had always had an issue with bullying, he just didn't know how to stand up for himself. It made Matt feel strong to be asked to help, and it meant that he could spend more time with TK. Summer camp was great, aside from the fact that the English students were snobs and wouldn't lower themselves to join them in their activities, because it meant that TK was with him full-time. And then they had been sucked into the Digital World and very slowly TK was becoming stronger and not coming to him as often as he used to. TK was making friends.
He had fought with Tai after File Island broke apart because he didn't want TK to be alone, but now he had willingly left him behind. He felt like a hypocrite. What if something happened to TK when he was alone? Matt's thoughts then turned to Tai and Jade.
Tai was a natural leader, and he was always looking after the others. He wasn't sure if the others had noticed, but Tai had lost weight as he had given food to the younger children and digimon before having his own. Of course, by that time there wasn't much to eat. It irritated him, but he hadn't said anything because Tai was happy doing what he was doing. He was curious about Tai's black arm band, the boy had been wearing it for years and Matt had never seen him with it off. He had wondered if Tai was mourning someone, but he had never asked.
And then there was Jade. She was the only English student who wasn't a complete snob and had actually made an effort to understand their language. Tai appeared very protective of her, and Matt had to admit that at times he was worried about her, especially now that she had run off. That blast after she disappeared had scared the living daylights out of him, and he hadn't approved how they split up after that. However, with her memories and abilities, Jade could more than look after herself.
"Where are we Matt?" Gabumon suddenly asked, breaking into his thoughts. "Don't tell me we're lost again?"
"Okay, I won't," Matt replied with the hint of a smile. He looked up at the cliff face and saw something that could possibly help them. He pointed. "But just take a look at that ridge up there."
"Where?" Gabumon asked, before looking up at the cliff as well. "Hey! Other digimon!"
"I say we follow them wherever they're going and hope they're not lost too," Matt suggested.
"I thought we weren't lost?"
"Did I say we weren't?"
Gabumon grumbled good-naturedly but otherwise followed Matt up the cliff side after the Frigimon, Monzaemon, and Kokatorimon. Gabumon was worried about the others, probably more than Matt was, because he knew roughly where each digimon was and how they were. Tokomon was worried about TK, Agumon was too far away, Gomamon was weary, Palmon was apprehensive, Tentomon was scared, and Biyomon was determined. Gomamon was close by, so he was willing to walk after the digimon as they were headed to where Gomamon was.
"Huh, well that's weird," Matt muttered as they stared at a building built into the side of the cliff. The three digimon had already gone in. "It's a restaurant in the middle of nowhere?"
"The perfect location for hungry digimon," Gabumon quipped. He was more than ready to charge forward to find a friend, but when they got closer the object of his attention came flying out the door. Matt stopped in shock, but Gabumon leapt forward and helped Gomamon up from where he had landed upside down.
"Gomamon! Are you okay?" he asked.
"Gabumon! And Matt!" Gomamon crowded with delight and relief. "Is Joe going to be happy to see you two?!"
"Take us to him," Gabumon requested. Gomamon smiled and led the duo around the back of the restaurant to the kitchens. Matt couldn't figure out how either of them had ended up working in the kitchens of a restaurant, but even he recognised the exhaustion on Gomamon's face as he chatted about annoying customers with Gabumon.
"Hey Joe! Guess who I found!" Gomamon crowed as they entered the kitchen.
"Hey Matt!" Joe welcomed with obvious relief. He was standing over the stove making a stew of some kind, but he stepped away from it as he rolled his shoulders to relieve the tension in them.
"Hey Joe," Matt greeted. "Where have you been and what are you doing here?"
"Well, you see…I…um," Joe stammered, obviously unsure as to how to answer.
"You left, and then Mimi and Izzy, they both disappeared," Matt explained. "Then TK and I were left alone."
"I know," Joe sighed. "Well, it started when we all went our separate ways to look for Tai and Jade. I wasn't lost, I definitely knew where I wasn't, but I just didn't know exactly where I was. We were following Gomamon's sense of Jade, though it was so faint that at times we weren't sure we were going the right way at all. It was probably worse when all sense of her disappeared."
"She disappeared?" Matt asked with wide eyes.
"About two days or so after she left us," Gabumon explained.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Matt asked him, hurt. "We worried about her too."
"Probably because you all blamed her for Tai's disappearance," Gomamon scolded. "It wasn't her fault that Etemon was messing with the dark energies, nor could she have predicted that Tai and Metalgreymon would be sucked into the dimensional rift."
"She panicked more than any of you guys," Gabumon continued. "Because she alone knows what could have befallen him."
"Why'd she leave?" Joe asked curiously. "Sure, if she didn't trust us she would have just stayed with you guys like she did at the beginning, but she just ran off on her own."
"Her digimon partner was coming to kill us so she needed to go and reassure him that we were not the enemy," Gomamon stated bluntly.
"I remember her saying something about her partner," Joe muttered as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Something about him being in a lot of trouble."
"Jade is the ruler of the Digital World," Gabumon told him. "It would only make sense that her partner is just as powerful."
"But why would he want to kill us?" Matt asked in confusion. "You guys never wanted to kill us when we arrived."
"Well, it's been, what? A couple thousand years since the Sovereign was last seen in this world?" Gabumon continued. "And I bet anything that her partner was the one who scared Agumon after he hatched. Remember? At the pyramid Agumon admitted to hearing a digimon cry out in agony. He probably went insane and crawled off to a dark hole to die."
"Just how old are you guys anyway?" Joe asked.
"Older than you," Gomamon quipped. "Though Agumon is the oldest out of all of us."
"He obviously didn't die though," Gabumon cut in before they could get too wrapped up in everyone's ages. "Gennai is afraid of him, so he probably did go insane and when he heard that the digidestined were here he might have wanted to come after you in revenge."
"Why revenge?" Joe asked nervously.
"Well, it was something that Leomon told us while we were cutting down trees. You guys weren't there, but Leomon told us that we needed to protect Jade as well as you guys, because the digidestined have always protected the ruler of the Digital World."
"So, Jade's like the queen, and we're her knights?" Joe tried to reason.
"As fascinating as this is, we can talk about it when everyone is together," Matt interrupted. He turned back to Joe. "How did you get to be working here? And when can you leave?"
That launched Joe into a story about how he met a little digimon that looked like a bat who led him towards the restaurant after saying that there were humans in that direction. Of course, he had no idea if the digimon was telling the truth or not, but as he was a little disorientated he followed. They ended up at the restaurant and pigged out on food because they were hungry. When it came time to pay, of course the currency that he had was no good.
So to pay back the owner of the restaurant Joe was now cooking and cleaning. What had started as three days payment, had turned into six weeks. Matt couldn't believe it when first Vegimon, the waiter who looked like a yellow vegetable, and then Digitamamon, the owner of the restaurant who looked like an egg with legs, berated Joe and criticised everything about his technique and added more time onto his punishment.
Matt could now see why the two looked so tired, and why Joe had burns on his hands and arms. Joe probably hadn't cooked a day in his life before working in the restaurant, and he certainly wasn't doing himself any favours by all the mistakes that he seemed to be making. He felt sorry for the guy, but he needed to get TK before he did anything else. Digitamamon and Vegimon left and Matt watched them go with narrowed eyes.
"Hey, Joe?" he began as he looked out the door across the lake. "I need to go and get TK, but after I do we'll come back here and help you work off your debt, okay?"
"Really?" Joe asked, completely gobsmacked and slightly hopeful. "You will?"
"That's what friends do Joe, when things are tough they help each other out," Matt explained, a faint smile on his face. He hadn't had many people he could call friends before coming to the Digital World. He was, however, slightly alarmed when Joe started to cry from his gratitude. Seeing the older boy cry was alarming, as Joe never cried. He whined and complained, but he never cried.
"I'll always remember this Matt," he said. Matt nodded but promised himself that he would hurry back. He darted out the door, Gabumon on his heels, and made his way back to the swan boat they had used to cross the lake.
"I don't like leaving them," Gabumon admitted as they reached the shore.
"Neither do I," Matt told him. "But Joe will be fine until we get back with TK."
Gabumon nodded and grinned when he spotted the boat. He was about to climb in when a harsh voice echoed from behind them.
"Where are you going?" it demanded. "You're not finished, I checked the schedule."
The two of them turned only to be greeted by Digitamamon. The egg was glaring at them, and all things considered, Matt didn't like the way it looked at them.
"Schedule?" Matt queried.
"The work schedule," Digitamamon clarified. "Now get inside and start cooking or you're fired!"
"I quit," Matt told him, puzzled and confused. He shrugged at Gabumon. "How's that?"
"You can't quit!" Digitamamon roared. "I say you stay!"
"Hey, what's the big deal, egg-head?" Matt asked. "I'm coming right back. Besides, you already got a slave working in your kitchen."
"Oh, I see, so you don't care what happens to your friend while you're gone? Selfish, aren't we?"
"What are you talking about?" Matt demanded of him. Now he was getting worried. Not that long ago they were being told to leave by the very same digimon in front of them, and now he wouldn't let them go?
"I'm just saying, while you're away there's no telling what might happen to your little friend. So many accidents can happen in the kitchen you know?"
Matt could feel the blood drain from his face as he understood the implications of what Digitamamon was saying. If he left, something bad would happen to Joe.
"Is that a threat?" he demanded as he raised his fists.
"Easy Matt, he's already cracked," Gabumon cautioned him. Matt growled but he knew that he couldn't leave now. Not only would TK never forgive him if he left when he could have done something to help, he would never forgive himself if something happened while he was gone. He allowed his fists to drop to his side, but he was still furious at how he had just been manipulated.
"I'll stay," he hissed.
At least, working in the kitchen was familiar to Matt as he was often forced to cook for himself when his dad worked late. He considered himself pretty good, and his dad had once told him that he would have no problems finding a girl when he was older. So when he arrived back in the kitchen he immediately walked over to the stove and told Joe to work on the dishes. Digitamamon watched them work for a few minutes before leaving with a very satisfied laugh. Gomamon and Gabumon sat off to the side, curious about what they could do to help, and wondering what was going on.
"This water's hot," Joe stated, looking over his shoulder at Matt. "If I had some rubber gloves my fingers wouldn't get all wrinkled. So, hey? Just what are you making over there? Is there some reason you're not talking to me? I mean, I know you think I can be irritating sometimes but what gives? Matt?"
It wasn't that Matt was ignoring Joe, he just didn't want to be working in the kitchen. But still, Digitamamon's words kept echoing through his mind:
So many accidents can happen in the kitchen…so many accidents
I can't leave him, Matt thought as he stabbed a bit of the rice cooking with a little more violence than necessary.
"Did you hear me? Earth to Matt, come in Matt!"
Although he does talk a lot, Matt thought without saying anything. All he did was sigh and try to force his mind away from what was outside of the kitchen.
"Weren't you going to get TK?" Joe asked, and instantly Matt's thoughts returned to why he couldn't go. "If you want to leave it's okay."
"I decided not to go!" he snapped. He instantly regretted it, but not being able to go after TK was troubling him. He was only eight years old. But, a lot of time had passed in the Digital World, TK could very well be nine now without them knowing any different. His birthday was in September.
"Hey, wow, I'm sorry if I said something to make you mad," Joe blustered, turning back to the dishes.
Man, I can't believe what a jerk I'm being. Joe's just trying to be nice and I bite off his head.
"Hey, I'm sorry," Matt mumbled, deliberately pushing away any bad thoughts. "I didn't mean to yell at you okay? I guess I was just thinking about something else."
"Oh. Yeah?" Joe asked hopefully, turning back so that he could look at the other boy.
"Anyways, I'm a really good cook," Matt stated in a bragging tone. "Everything will go a lot faster if we work together, and we'll be out of here in no time."
"Alright, I guess that sounds like a plan," Joe agreed.
"I make a mean PB and J, you know?" Gomamon piped up from the corner of the kitchen.
"And I'm an expert at boiling water," Gabumon added, not wanting to be left out.
"Alright then!" Joe cried with hope and excitement in his tone of voice. "We can do it!"
Hang on TK, I gotta solve this first, Matt thought as he looked out the window. I will come back for you, I promise.
As the days passed, it seemed almost impossible that Matt would be able to keep his promise. It seemed that nothing could go right in the kitchen, and all the accidents would be Joe's fault in some way or another. Matt did his best not to get too irritated with Joe, and thinking that if this is how Joe was with another person to help, it was a miracle he hadn't seriously injured himself yet. If he were to leave, Joe would probably end up with a knife in his foot, or boiling was down his front, or he would trip and crack his head open on a table.
Matt shivered slightly, thinking about everything that could go wrong when someone with extreme bad luck was released into a kitchen. Joe, on the other hand, was having a mild panic attack as he studied how tense Matt was.
"Boy oh boy! I don't understand why I'm so accident prone," he started to babble. "Okay, so balancing plates on a platter is not one of my natural skills, but now it seems worse than ever. Sorry Matt."
Look at me, I'm falling apart. And why am I talking to myself? Even worse, why am I listening and talking back? I've got to do something to snap out of this.
The tray of plates that Joe was holding in his hands, that was shaking even worse than his hands were, suddenly tumbled to the floor and shattered. Joe stared at the mess and moaned even as he spotted Matt spinning around in alarm.
"That did it, I snapped," Joe announced as he leant back against the wall. He had no idea why Matt wanted to stay at all, all he did was make a mess of everything.
"It's okay, don't worry about it," Matt told him in a strained tone of voice. He was tense, but he couldn't take it out on Joe. Still, he couldn't help but complain to himself in silence.
Half of what I cook ends up on the floor, and the other half is on his clothes. This job is giving me a killer headache. Tell me this all just a bad dream.
The two digimon were watching the two humans in concern. They were all tired, but the digimon had a reason to maintain hope. A day after Matt arrived at the restaurant, Agumon's presence had gotten stronger which meant that he had gotten back from wherever he had been. Tokomon had also digivolved into Patamon, and Jade had made a brief appearance to their senses before taking off again.
"Do you think they'll be coming here soon?" Gomamon asked as they started to clean up the mess that the digimon customers had made in the dining room.
"I hope so," Gabumon said quietly. "Matt and Joe can't handle this for much longer. They'll either get seriously hurt, or their friendship will fall apart. Has Joe always been this clumsy?"
"He worries, and the more he worries the less coordination he has," Gomamon replied as he slid across the floor to mop it. "But this…this is more than normal clumsiness."
Both digimon suddenly froze as a new person made an appearance in their minds. Grins spread across their faces before they could help themselves and they looked to the windows. Gabumon walked across first and tried to look for their Sovereign, but couldn't see her.
"Is she there?"
"No, I can't see her."
"Get back to work you two!"
Gabumon and Gomamon launched back into cleaning as Vegimon roared at them. They would just have to look for her once they stopped for the night.
That night, the group of four stopped working with obvious relief and went their separate ways to relax. Matt wanted to spend some time on his own by the lake, and after he left the sound of his harmonica reached the others. Joe found a nice tree to lean against before passing out from exhaustion. This left Gomamon and Gabumon to go for a walk unhindered to search for Jade.
"What are you doing working in a restaurant?"
The two digimon looked up in delight as Jade's voice echoed from the trees. She partly hidden in the shadows, but the two red eyes on her shoulder made the digimon nervous. The eyes soon disappeared, and it looked like Jade was watching them go, before she leapt from the tree and landed on the ground in front of them. Gomamon leapt into her arms with a cry of delight, and Gabumon wrapped his arms around her waist with equal joy.
"Where'd you go? Did you find your partner? Why were you gone so long? Have you seen the others? Did you know that Agumon and Tai are back in the Digital World? Can you make Digitamamon let Joe and Matt stop working? How long are you staying? What was on your shoulder before? Where did it go?"
The questions bubbled out of Gomamon's mouth in one great big rush and didn't stop until Jade placed her hand over his mouth. Gabumon flicked his ear in annoyance and led them over to a tree so that they could all sit down and remain out of the way of anyone passing by.
"I went after my partner, you know that, he missed me a lot and at first didn't recognise me," she started to explain. "We fought for a bit before going to the Shadow World to see what damage he had done in the time I was gone. He's looking at a lot of work in the future to rebuild that world. I've been watching over all of you when I could, and I saw Tai and Agumon return safely. They're with TK and Patamon at the moment and are making their way here."
"Matt will be happy to hear that," Gabumon muttered as he leant against Jade's side. The humans weren't the only ones tired with their work schedules.
"I'm sure he will. They should be here tomorrow or the day after," Jade told him. "In regards to Digitamamon, I personally wouldn't be able to influence him as he is serving the darkness at the moment, but I know someone who may have a chance of convincing him to let your partners go. I will stay as long as I can, but I am tracking a rogue digimon and as soon as he appears I will be going after him. My partner was on my shoulder, he went off to watch our quarry while I talk to you. Any more questions?"
"Your partner felt cold," Gomamon told her seriously.
"Of course he did," Jade told him with a laugh. "He is the ruler of the Shadow World and the physical embodiment of darkness. His digi-egg is pure black, and Gennai and Lucemon were convinced that he was pure evil and should have been killed before he hatched. I convinced them to let him live, and he knows this. His loyalty belongs to me, and only me, and he hates all other digimon. Apathy is the best emotion you could get from him. If he doesn't dislike you, it means that he will tolerate your presence for as long as you don't irritate him."
"Doesn't sound like a very likeable digimon," Gabumon observed.
"That's because he's not. He protects the darkness of the Shadow World, and due to his negligence he has allowed the darkness to take root in this world because they couldn't live in the Shadow World. The only ones who could tolerate him in the long-term, aside from myself, are the dark creatures of the universe."
"But how can you stand him?" Gomamon asked curiously. "You always reacted badly to the Black Gears, and Etemon's Dark Network."
"Tom was born from me, he is the darkness of my soul living separately."
"What?" the two digimon asked.
"When I was a baby, a human in my world tried to kill me and failed. A part of his soul latched onto me and would have eventually taken over me if I hadn't been brought here. His soul shard was removed from me, and when it left it took all the darkness in me. So because he is a part of me I can stand his presence, just as he can stand mine. Normally, being in the Digital World without me with him causes him pain, just as me being in the Shadow World without him would cause me pain."
"So you need each other?" Gomamon asked.
"Yes. Now, go back to the others and keep them safe."
"You're leaving now?" Gabumon asked sorrowfully. "The others don't blame you anymore, you know?"
"I know, but you guys are fighting only a small part of the Digital World. I have to look after all of it. I will see you before I go, I promise."
Gabumon and Gomamon watched as Jade scurried back into the tree before she leapt across the branches into the growing darkness. Once she was gone from sight they started to trek back to the restaurant.
"I don't think I like her partner," Gomamon said just before they reached the clearing where Joe was still unconscious.
"Maybe not, but it's obvious she loves him," Gabumon told him. "Go to sleep. It'll be a busy day tomorrow."
"Goodnight Gabumon."
"Goodnight Gomamon."
Matt hadn't played his harmonica for a while, and it was only as he was playing it now that he realised how much he had missed it. He used it as coping mechanism, and it calmed him down. He loved to create music, and one day he was going to form a band and play music for a living. He would show everyone just how powerful music was.
"That's a beautiful sound."
"Huh? Where'd you come from?" Matt asked after jumping at the sudden appearance of a little digimon that looked like a bat.
"I was just passing by when I heard the sound of your music," the digimon explained. "You're very good. I'm a bat-digimon, we have good hearing and it sounds as if you're worried about something."
"How could you tell?" Matt asked curiously.
"A musical instrument often reflects the person playing it. Your music sounds sad, so I figure that you're sad about something. I wonder if you're hurting yourself to help out a friend."
"And how would you know?" Matt asked him, turning so that he was once again looking out at the lake.
"Well, it's obvious what's happening at the restaurant," the sheepish answer was. Then the voice turned mischievous. "I see what your friend is up to."
"What are you talking about?"
"I think he's making all those mistakes on purpose."
Matt's eyes went wide. Sure, he had thought about it for a heartbeat, but Joe was a reliable person and would never do something so underhanded as sabotaging his hard work. Joe didn't want to stay at the restaurant any more than Matt did.
"He can't be!"
"Just so you won't leave him there alone," the digimon continued. It was almost hypnotising how his voice would speak Matt's deepest fears.
"Not him," Matt muttered. "Joe just wouldn't do that to me."
"Humph, you're a nice guy," the digimon decided. "But remember, nice guys end up washing dishes for the rest of their lives!"
The digimon flew off into the night, leaving Matt alone with more worries than he had had previously. He considered playing his harmonica again, but he didn't think it would calm him down any more tonight.
"Joe? Can't be…or could it?"
He would just have to watch his friend in the morning.
"Slimy little weasel," Tom hissed as Jade joined him on the branch he was on. He was watching Demidevimon talk to Matt. "Waste of digi-space. I wouldn't have this much of a headache if I could just delete you."
"You know that I don't want him to be deleted," Jade told him as she made herself comfy. "What's he doing?"
"Turning Friendship against Reliability," Tom muttered. "It's almost disgusting how easy it was to do as well."
"They're under a lot of stress."
"No excuse."
"You turned against me."
"You left me."
"Not by choice."
"…fine," Tom sighed. "What's your plan? If Demidevimon's plan works Friendship's power would disappear and your Protectors would be helpless against the evil darkness."
"Courage and Hope should be here tomorrow," Jade told him, watching as Demidevimon chose that moment to fly away. "Everything will work out once they're together again. I'm sure of it."
"You're not going to interfere?"
"What type of ruler would I be if I interfered with every little thing that plagues them?" Jade asked him as she picked him up and put him across her shoulders again. "I talked to the digimon so that they would stay strong, but the bond that holds the digidestined together must be maintained by the digidestined…not me. I can't make them be friends."
"You don't sound like a nine year old," Tom grumbled as she started to run through the trees after Demidevimon.
"I have the power and memories of the previous Guardian of Truth, and the guidance of Lucemon to fall back on. I have your knowledge to bounce ideas off of, and it's not like I've had much time to be a child."
"If you take me back to the Human World with you I can make it so that you never have to go back to those humans who call themselves your relatives."
"I can handle it," Jade told him.
"You die in the Human World and you won't be coming back again," Tom warned. "And it's not like you have a successor."
"You are worrying way too much," Jade told him sternly. "Stop it. If I am in trouble, now that I have my memories back, I will just run away to this world to escape them."
Tom said nothing more, and instead turned his red eyes towards Demidevimon. He had a suspicion about who the bat's master was, and he wanted to have first dibs.
"Listen, I promise you I'll come right back! You just have to let me go and get my little brother!" Matt begged the following morning as Digitamamon came into the kitchen to check on their progress. It had been days, and Matt really wanted to go after TK before his imagination of the worst happening drove him insane.
"No, I can't do that," Digitamamon denied him
"Please! It's really important!"
"No!" the digimon snapped. "Now get cooking before the customers start complaining!"
Matt really wished that Digitamamon had a neck so that he could strangle him, but before he could think too much about it there was a loud crash from behind him and even without looking he knew that Joe had just broken something else. Digitamamon's non-existent neck was suddenly replaced by Joe's in his mind and he really wanted to shake some sense into him.
"Not more plates!" Digitamamon cried. "That's another week for the both of you!"
"What are you talking about?" Matt growled in anger. "I can't stay here another week. I've got places to go!"
"You will stay, alright! And no tips!"
Digitamamon left the kitchen and Matt sunk to the ground as he stared at the mess of broken plates scattered across the kitchen. Maybe Joe was really doing it all on purpose? Maybe his desire that Matt was to stay with him overrode his desire to get out of his debt?
"Joe, why are you doing this?" he asked hopelessly.
"You think I'm doing this on purpose?" Joe demanded of him. "You think I'm juggling plates while I wash them? Something tripped me!"
"Quit making up excuses!" Matt snapped at him as he stood up.
"I'm not!" Joe cried back. Matt huffed his disbelief before walking outside before he could say something that he would probably regret later. From behind him he heard Joe's parting comment, and he felt like the biggest jerk in the world.
"You've got to believe me, Matt."
Gabumon subtly pushed Gomamon out of the kitchen and into the dining room. Chances were that if Tai and TK came into the restaurant, it would be by the front door instead of the kitchen. That didn't mean that they would be happy while they cleaned, even if the restaurant was currently empty. At one stage they had gotten hopeful when the door opened, but instead of their friends a small black feline-type digimon waltzed through the door and the two of them felt a chill rush down their backs. The red eyes of the kitten frightened them, and they both froze in what they were doing. All the digimon did, however, was jump up onto the table at the back corner of the restaurant and watch them with his unblinking red eyes.
Gabumon was the only one brave enough, or suicidal enough, to go over and ask for what the digimon would like to eat. The digimon said nothing, but his stare convinced Gabumon that it would be best if he went back to what he was doing and ignore the cat in the corner. Gomamon looked at him in concern, but at the shake of his head, Gomamon went back to what he was doing. The only stop that Gabumon made was to the kitchen to grab a bowl of soup that Matt had made before storming out and place it in front of the cat.
There were no "thanks", but Gabumon wasn't expecting it.
A few minutes later the doors swung open again and the group they were waiting for entered the restaurant. Tai, Agumon, TK and Patamon stopped just inside the door as they recognised the two digimon cleaning up.
"Gomamon!" Tai cried in delight.
"Gabumon!" TK cried at the same time.
"TK!" Gomamon cheered.
"And Tai!" Gabumon finished. They were both so happy now. They were sure that Tai or TK would be able to get their partners away from the restaurant.
"If you're here then my brother must be here too!" TK said as he hugged Gabumon around the neck.
"And Joe must be here too, right pal?" Tai asked as he looked at Gomamon. There was a smile on his face, but his eyebrows were furrowed as he recognised the exhaustion the two had.
"Yeah, he's here, but…" Gomamon trailed off, his eyes looking towards the kitchen.
"What's wrong?" Tai asked. TK released Gabumon and looked at Gomamon in concern. Agumon and Patamon moved forward so that they could greet their friends, and Gabumon couldn't help the quick once over he gave Agumon to make sure that he was alright. Agumon nodded, but when Gabumon gave the same once over on Tai he noticed the stiff way that Tai held his arm. His eyes flicked back to Agumon who nodded again with a sad look in his eyes.
"Joe can tell you about it," Gomamon told Tai as he led them to the kitchen before Digitamamon or Vegimon could spot them. Tai followed him, allowing the others to follow him.
"What happened to his arm?" Gabumon asked in a hushed whisper so no one else could hear him.
"That's what Datamon did you him in the pyramid," Agumon hissed back.
"But that was weeks ago!"
"It was only a few days for us," Agumon corrected. "We'll explain it all later."
Gabumon nodded before speeding up a little to catch up with the others. He only glanced back once and was surprised to see that their only customer had disappeared, leaving behind just an empty bowl.
"Joe?" Tai asked as soon as he stepped into the kitchen.
"Tai! I'm so glad to see you guys!" Joe cried. He rushed over and pulled Tai into a hug before pulling back and ruffling TK's hair. "But don't break anything."
"Sure, but, what are you doing here?" Tai asked as he hid the wince Joe's sudden hug had caused when he bumped his arm.
"Hey Joe, it's great to see you, but where's Matt?" TK interrupted before Joe could answer.
"Oh, um, Matt's around back," Joe told him. TK smiled brightly and rushed off with Patamon, calling out to his brother as he did so.
"So, what are you doing here?" Tai asked again.
"It's a really long story that I don't want to go into right now," Joe admitted.
"Great, do you have your medical stuff with you?" Agumon asked instantly. Tai closed his eyes and let out a sigh.
"It's under the sink," Joe told him. "Why?"
"Tai needs a splint on his arm."
"Tai?"
"I'm fine Joe," Tai told him. "My arm just needs to be kept immobile for a while, and a splint is the best way to do it. I would have done it myself, but I didn't have the right things to make one."
"There are plenty of cloths here that I can use as a bandage," Joe mused as he took Tai's arm into his hands. Tai bit back the curse that he wanted to utter. He hadn't been prepared for Joe to grab it. Still, he couldn't stop the blood draining from his face.
"I need some long sticks to brace this," Joe said, though his eyes were serious as he looked at Tai and his complexion. "Do I want to know how you got this?"
"Datamon did it," Agumon explained.
Joe's eyes widened in alarm, he thought about how long Tai had been using a broken arm without a splint or a cast to support it. Tai waved off his concern and walked outside. He needed to see Matt with his own eyes before they did anything about escaping from this place. He saw TK just outside the door looking up at him with reproach in his eyes. Tai just smiled and pushed him towards Matt who was reclined on the ground staring at the sky. TK bounced over, but not before one last sad glance at Tai.
"Hi-ya Matt!" TK said as he moved into Matt's line of sight.
"TK!" Matt cried in shock before his expression became one of joy and relief.
"I thought I'd never see you again!" TK told him as he hugged him tightly.
"Hey kid, are you okay?" Matt asked as he sat up.
"I'm great now that we're together again!" TK told him. "Tai told me that you were fine."
"So where's Tai?" Matt asked, curious about when Tai had made it back to the Digital World, and where he had gone.
"Hey Matt," Tai greeted as soon as Matt saw him.
"Alright! There you are!" Matt cheered. He quickly studied the boy and frowned when he noticed that he seemed rather rundown. There was also the way that he held his arm, and Joe's concerned expression when he appeared behind Tai, which made Matt aware that Tai was far from 100% healthy.
"So, seems like something weird is going on around here," Tai understated.
"Yeah, you can say that we got ourselves into some hot water," Matt informed him with a serious expression. That made Tai smile.
"Oh, a cooking joke." Matt smiled at him as well before looking back down at TK who hadn't moved from his side.
"I'm really sorry I didn't come back and keep my promise to get you TK."
"That's alright, I'm sure you would have if you could have Matt," TK forgave.
"Anyhow, you're here and that's what counts."
"You know, what counts is that we get out of this weirdo place and quick," Tai told them seriously.
"What? Run away?" Gabumon asked incredulously.
"Of course run away," Tai told him. "I don't see any guards around here."
Once he said it, it seemed so obvious that that's what they should have done. Digitamamon would probably make more money once they were gone as they wouldn't be breaking any more dishes or wasting food, and if they didn't want to work why did they have to stay at all? Sure, Joe was acting weird and Matt still wasn't 100% positive that Joe wasn't deliberately sabotaging his work.
"Before we go anywhere I need to put a splint on that arm Tai," Joe interrupted their leader's planning. "You could damage it even more."
"Fine," Tai sighed. "Tell me what to do."
"Sit on this step and don't move," Joe ordered him. "Honestly, walking around for weeks with a broken arm."
"It's broken?" TK asked. "I thought it was just sore and he wasn't telling us."
"It's broken," Joe told him. "Can you find me two long sticks TK? They need to be straight."
"I can do that! Come on Patamon!"
As TK ran off Matt stood up and walked over to the other two boys. Gabumon darted inside with Agumon at Joe's request to grab some clean towels, but Gomamon sat next to Tai and stared at his arm. Matt knelt next to Tai without saying anything, but he could tell that the other boy was uncomfortable with how many people were around him.
"That arm band is probably keeping the bones roughly aligned," Joe muttered as he accepted several towels and began to tear them into strips. "You can keep it on, though the arm may get hot after a while."
Tai sighed in relief, which intrigued Matt but didn't faze Joe. When TK came back with a collection of sticks Joe selected two and expertly put Tai's arm into a splint. Tai didn't make a noise of complaint, though his face had gone pale. TK was telling Gabumon and Gomamon how his crest had glowed and Patamon had defeated a lying digimon who wanted to make them forget each other.
"Okay, that should do it," Joe announced as he leant back. Tai looked at his arm and smiled at Joe gratefully.
"Let's go then!" TK cried as he stood up. Patamon was sitting on his hat and at their trusting expressions Tai stood up in agreement and started to walk away from the restaurant. Joe started after them without any hesitation, but Matt paused on the steps. He had so many doubts in his mind, and he wasn't sure he wanted to travel with them. Sure, he had been relieved to see that Tai was alive, and he wanted to know if the others were alright as well, but that digimon had made him doubt his friends.
"Well, well, well, you weren't planning on running away now were you? That would make me very angry."
The group turned in time to see Digitamamon make his appearance from the side of the restaurant. Matt groaned in annoyance, he really disliked this digimon.
"Yes, that would be a very bad idea," Demidevimon said from the trees nearest to the others.
"Hey, isn't that…" Joe began as he looked at the little digimon.
"Him again!" TK shouted in anger.
"Demidevimon!" Patamon growled with equal anger.
"It's the evil digimon we met before!" Agumon stated and suddenly everything clicked into place.
"You lied!" Matt shouted.
"You lied to me to get me to come here," Joe added. "And you're the one that's wrecking everything!"
Now Matt felt like more of a jerk than ever. Demidevimon was the one breaking everything? And then he had the nerve to come up to him and say that Joe was doing it on purpose. That lousy, no good, lying digimon!
"So we're going to teach you a good lesson!" Tai decided. Agumon and Patamon both attacked him eagerly, but when they missed Demidevimon flew away. "After him guys!"
Agumon, Tai and Patamon rushed off after Demidevimon and left the others standing around with Digitamamon glaring at them.
"How dishonest!" he hissed at them. "Trying to leave without paying me."
"You're a thief!" Matt yelled at him. "We've worked here long enough to pay for a trip to Hawaii!"
"Hawaii is not on the schedule, but if you insist I'll send you to the moon!" Digitamamon started to grow in size until he was taller than Matt. Of course, as he was closest to Matt he attacked him straight away and it was only through Matt's ability to dodge that he missed most of the charge. As it was he was clipped and he crashed to the ground in annoyance. He wasn't hurt, but the attack had annoyed him.
"Matt!" Gabumon called in dismay.
"You want to leave you have to beat me first!" Digitamamon told them. Matt nodded at his partner and soon Gabumon was digivolving into Garurumon. The giant wolf wasted no time in rushing after Digitamamon, but it was as he was attacking that the bystanders understood that they were in trouble. Nothing seemed to put a dent in Digitamamon's shell, and the egg-digimon had no problem causing damage to his opponents.
"Garurumon!" Matt cried in horror as Garurumon went flying into the side of the building. He was ready to rush after him when another cry echoed from behind him. He spun around in panic.
"Matt!" TK cried.
"Call off your beast!" Vegimon ordered. The yellow digimon had wrapped TK up in his long arms and was dangling him high off the ground.
"Matt! Help me!" TK begged.
"How nice, your little brother decided to hang around!" Digitamamon laughed cruelly before attacking Garurumon again.
"Matt! Somebody! Get me down!" TK continued to beg. He was clearly terrified, and Patamon was off hunting Demidevimon with Tai and Agumon.
"That's going too far! I've had it!" Joe hissed. Gomamon nodded up at him before digivolving into Ikkakumon. Ikkakumon poked Vegimon with his horn while Joe climbed up onto the roof of the restaurant. While he was doing that Tai reappeared having left the attacking to the digimon, and he alone saw what Joe was doing.
"Joe, be careful," he ordered under his breath.
Reliability will be fine, Jade's voice whispered in his mind. Friendship needs you now.
Tai nodded and slowly started to make his way around the fight so that he could get to Matt.
"Back off fur-ball or the kid's lunchmeat!" Vegimon told Ikkakumon.
"Stop that!" Matt ordered Vegimon as TK cried out again from the rough handling. Being shaken like a rag doll upside down was definitely not high on Matt's list of priorities. Vegimon turned to snap at Matt but before he could Joe leapt from the roof and crashed into Vegimon. In the scuffle TK fell to the ground, uninjured, but Joe had taken his place as hostage. But where TK had only been held from his ankle, Joe was wrapped up from shoulders to knees so that there was no chance he could escape.
"Joe! He's caught!" TK said in alarm as Matt came up behind him and wrapped him into a hug.
"Joe!" Matt called.
"Matt, you were right," Joe told him just as Vegimon squeezed. Joe grunted from the sudden pain but continued regardless. "You always said that we would all have to work together to get out of this mess. Now, it looks like my turn."
"Matt, we've got to help him!" TK yelled as he looked up at his brother.
"Go on Ikkakumon, blast them now!" Joe ordered.
"Tell your friend that I'm a very short tempered Vegimon!" Vegimon told Joe as he dodged Ikkakumon.
"Do it Joe!" Matt begged.
"No!" Joe told him. "You've got to attack while I keep him busy. Attack! I'm fine!"
Oh, man. After I accused him and doubted him…he still risked himself for TK, Matt thought. He couldn't believe that he had ever doubted the boy in front of him. He was a true friend, and as Matt had told him earlier, friends help each other when they need help. And Joe needed help.
"Joe…NOOO!" Matt screamed as Joe let out a gasp of pain. His crest suddenly lit up and he looked at it in shock. Ikkakumon had meanwhile rushed off to help Garurumon deal with Digitamamon, without much success.
"I see you two don't know when to quit," Digitamamon told them both. "I'll destroy you both with one shot! Nightmare syndrome!"
A black mass of something came out of the gap in Digitamamon's shell where his eyes normally were and wrapped up both Champion level digimon. The black mass formed a ball around the digimon, before spitting them both out on the ground. They were groaning, so whatever the ball had done it had shaken them up.
"No, this is bad," TK muttered. "They're too strong!"
"We can't…just give up! We've got to beat them!" Matt cried. Tai darted up behind him and put his hand on his shoulder in support. Matt looked at him and nodded his appreciation. He looked back to the fight where Garurumon was forcing himself to his feet. They could beat this egg.
But I can't beat them alone, Matt thought. I need Tai, TK, Sora, Izzy, Mimi and Joe! Together we're strong!
"And we can beat anything!" he said aloud. "Garurumon!"
Garurumon stood up as Matt's crest started to glow even brighter. Power rushed through him and he knew what he could do.
"Garurumon digivolve to – Weregarurumon!"
Weregarurumon looked just like a werewolf in pants with spiked gloves and knee-guards. He stood on his two hind legs, and with his front claws held up, he looked beyond formidable.
"Coming up: one scrambled egg!" Matt joked as he held his glowing digivice. Tai pulled TK back a little so that they could watch without getting in the way.
"You and your little doggy don't frighten me!" Digitamamon told him as Weregarurumon stepped up to fight. "Nightmare syndrome!"
The black mass shot towards Weregarurumon, but instead of wrapping him up in whatever horror it produced, Weregarurumon caught it and sent right back towards Digitamamon. The attack hit him in the face and when he stood up again it was with a lot less confidence than earlier.
"Impossible," he breathed.
"That was just the beginning you little poacher!" Matt told him.
"Again with the egg jokes," Tai muttered. TK giggled.
Weregarurumon charged, and this time no amount of egg armour could protect Digitamamon and he was sent flying over the hills and away from the restaurant. TK cheered, and so did Joe who was still hanging in Vegimon's hands.
"They…beat Digitamamon!" Vegimon stuttered.
"Time for me to fly!" Demidevimon announced. He took off into the air, and no one noticed the black shadow following him through the trees.
"Well, he's gone!" Agumon said as he dusted off his hands in exaggeration.
"Vegimon, you better let go of him!" Matt ordered as he turned towards their last opponent.
"Unless you want to be salad?" Weregarurumon suggested. Vegimon, very wisely, put Joe on the ground and ran away.
"Yay! Wow, that was so cool Matt!" TK cheered as he threw his arms around his brother's waist. "You're the awesomest big brother!"
The digimon de-digivolved: Ikkakumon into Gomamon and Weregarurumon into Tsunomon. Tai walked over to where Joe was picking himself off the ground and bumped his shoulder with a grin.
"I gotta hand it to you Joe," he said. "That was really brave."
"All I did was get grabbed," Joe told him as his face flushed red.
"By a giant vegetable," Gomamon corrected.
"A cranky one," Tsunomon added. The two of them laughed.
"Ah, Joe?" Matt began hesitantly.
"Huh?" Joe said with a blink. He took in how embarrassed Matt appeared to be and remained silent as he waited for the other boy to talk.
"I'm really proud…how you handled the situation."
"At my old school, I was voted most likely to chicken out," Joe told him in an effort to defuse the tension. "I guess we showed them."
"I also need to apologise."
"Why, Matt?"
"Because I…I never should have doubted you Joe."
Tai started to laugh, and instantly the tension was gone.
Jade had waited until the end of the battle to follow Tom, but when she did it was just in time to see Demidevimon activate a portal of some kind to a dark throne room where a black silhouette was perched. From the way that Tom had sunk his talons into the tree they were hiding in she knew that he recognised the silhouette.
"Myotismon! One of the humans got the crest of Friendship to glow and called on Weregarurumon," Demidevimon explained pathetically.
"What?!" Myotismon roared. A cloud of bats burst forth from the portal and surrounded Demidevimon even as he tried to explain what had happened, and what he had done.
"I tried, but –"
"Perhaps your brain is too small for this job?" Myotismon asked him just before the portal closed. The only sound that came from the clearing was Demidevimon's curses.
"You rotten kids and you rotten digimon! You'll pay for this!"
Jade gently pulled Tom's talons from the tree without hurting him and thought about what it meant for Myotismon to be involved in this most recent plot. This dark digimon seemed intent on stopping the crests from glowing, which meant that he was aware of the role of the digidestined in the Digital World. He was also a product of Tom's, but where Tom had fallen into insanity, the evil that had helped in Tom's birth had been transferred to Myotismon. So they were up against a digimon who was not only intelligent, but one who had no problem killing people or digimon to get what he wanted.
"Explain to me when exactly Myotismon defected, and what you think his plans are," she requested.
So Tom did.
With Digitamamon and Vegimon gone the digidestined were able to linger and take their time in escaping the restaurant. Joe wanted Tai to wear a sling, but Tai told him that under no circumstance would he wear something that would make it difficult to travel. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to win, Joe stopped asking him to wear one, but he did take a couple of extra towels from the restaurant in case he needed to redo the splint or someone else got hurt.
Tai told the small group about his return to the Human World, and how no time had passed since they left. He told them about the digimon who were crossing over and causing damage, and how he had only been gone for just over three hours. They didn't ask about the shoes that he had on his belt, and Tai hadn't told them about the aspirin he had brought along, but they were all worried about the implications of not being able to go home until all the evil was undone.
"Our first plan of attack should be to get everyone back together," Tai told them to cheer them up. "We still need Mimi, Izzy and Sora."
"And Jade," Matt added with a frown. He thought that Tai would have said her first.
"She has stuff to do before she can join us again, but she is watching out for us," Tai told him.
"She was here yesterday," Gabumon added helpfully. "She told us that you guys were close, and that she and her partner were tracking someone."
"Creepy little guy he is," Gomamon added. "If anything, he looks scary in the daytime."
"When did you see him?" Agumon asked.
"He was in the restaurant when you guys arrived," Gabumon told him. "And then he was gone when we went into the kitchen."
"You know, maybe Jade thought that he could talk some sense into Digitamamon, you know, into letting us go?" Gomamon suggested. "She did say that she would see if someone else could talk to him instead of her."
"But we managed to get out on our own," Joe reminded him.
"So Jade's partner didn't have to do anything," Gomamon told him. "It could be a good thing. He was scary."
"She called him Tom, remember?" Gabumon told him. "We can't just keep calling him 'Jade's partner'."
"I have no problem with that."
The digimon screamed as a new voice appeared, this one just oozing darkness. Goosebumps appeared on their arms and Matt pushed TK behind him protectively.
"Oh please, like I would be able to get away with attacking you," the black digimon that had been in the restaurant earlier remarked. "And don't call me 'Tom'. I am the Lord of Darkness, you will address me as such, or as 'Jade's partner' unless I tell you otherwise."
"You're Jade's partner?" TK asked as he looked around Matt's body. "Nice to meet you! I'm TK."
"Charmed," the kitten drawled. "Well, you're not completely useless, I'll give you that much. I'm still not impressed, but as my Master has some fondness for you, I shall leave you with this warning: hurt her and there won't be a single world you can hide in where I won't find you and end your miserable existence. You are supposed to protect her, but from what I hear she is doing more protecting of you than the other way round."
"Yes, My Lord," Tai told him completely serious with a bow. "We will protect her with everything we have."
"Hmm," Tom mused as he flicked his tail in the dirt. "You may just prove to be tolerable. Now, shoo! I have important business here and you are in the way."
Tai nodded again and pushed the others further down the path. They followed him instantly, but they were all curious. The digimon, before following, all bowed as much as they could to Tom before rushing off. Jade stepped out from behind the tree she was hiding behind and frowned at Tom.
"Was that necessary?" she asked.
"Oh yes," he told her as he leapt into her arms. "They need to know that you are important, and that their job involves protecting you. Now, when you are with them again and I am not, you will be safe."
"And there are those who call you cold hearted and evil," Jade said with a smile. "You're just too sweet to me."
Tom blushed but otherwise didn't make any other comment.
Further up the path Matt was trying to get Tai to explain why he was being overly respectful to the creepy cat. The digimon were on Tai's side and explained to Matt that the Lord of Darkness was the one that Gennai was afraid of.
"That little cat has the power to destroy this world?" Matt questioned them.
"His only equal is the Sovereign," Tsunomon stated. "Don't judge him by his appearance. He could digivolve easily and level this land as easily as Demidevimon tricked us."
"The only person or digimon that the Lord of Darkness will listen to, is Jade," Tai added. "If he decided that we weren't doing our job to protect her, he could very well decide to kill us all. If bowing to him, and agreeing with his demands keeps us alive and Jade safe, I will do it. Besides, couldn't you feel the darkness coming off him? I felt dizzy the moment he appeared."
"We could feel it," Agumon told him. "But we're digimon so we can sense the changes in the air."
"I couldn't feel it," TK told him.
"Neither could I," Matt added.
"I had goosebumps," Joe admitted.
"So, he's dangerous then?" Matt clarified. "We'll just stay on his good side. Easy enough. Now, to more important matters, which way should we go?"
They had come to a fork in the road, and it was unclear as to which path would lead them to their friends. Tai pulled out his digivice and held it up, and Matt copied him. Both digivices beeped, but both in opposite directions.
"Well, I guess we're splitting up again," Tai observed. "Joe and I will go up this way."
"Alright," Matt agreed. "TK and I will go left then."
"Just so we don't lose each other," Tai suggested. "Let's meet at the foot of that mountain when we find the others. Sound good?"
"Deal," Matt said with a nod. "See you in a few days!"
Tai waved as they disappeared and pulled Joe after him as they went along the right-hand path. He had no idea who they were going after, but he did know that it was important that they get back together. The Lord of Darkness had pretty much told them that they were meant to be together, and Tai would do anything to ensure that they were all safe. Now he just needed to find them all.
This chapter was long, but I want the digidestined to go home soon so the next chapter will be even longer. It's almost finished, but I just haven't got the ending right yet. You guys are awesome and I love you all. To my reviewers who asked questions, here are my answers:
KhaalidaNyx: The ages of the digidestined: Tai-11, Matt-11, Izzy-10, Sora-11, Mimi-10, Joe-12, TK-8 and Jade-9. And no, they are not physically aging because time in the Human World has basically stopped for them. If they were there for a few centuries they would age like Gennai did, but they won't so they haven't. Emotionally however, they are aging a lot.
Impstar: I will do my best. Two more chapers and the kids will be home, I promise.
Liedral: Yes, yes, yes, and no. It's like when she was fighting the digimon with the Black Gears. Leomon remarked that he could have listened to her all day, but the Black Gears inside him her voice was like nails down a chalkboard. The stronger the dark digimon, the weaker Jade would feel, just as the stronger she is (so whether she is human or Phoenixmon) the greater impact she has against the dark digimon.
il2swim57: I have a plan for them and they won't be excluded. I have digimon planned for them, but not all of them will have crests. For her House, it's a surprise (*wink*). And I only intend to go to the end of season 2 at the moment, the amount that I have planned will probably ensure this story goes for a while. We'll see about the other seasons if I want to link them together. At the moment, no. Curiosity is a good thing.
allie1207: Yep, Tomomon is a cat. Think of a male version of Gatomon without the tail ring and a forked tail. And red eyes, don't forget the red eyes.
SilverDragon-Purity: Yes, you'll see, I do remember (and I have a plan for it), the digimon didn't stay there permanently, he will get his soul pieces back, the Triwizard Tournament is up in the air at the moment and won't happen until season 2 is definitely finished, the prophecy will be a part of this story, and Tom's fate is undecided so far.
Keep up the awesomeness my readers!
Next up in Intertwined Destinies:
Chapter 18: Inner Powers ~ Izzy and Mimi