DISCLAIMER: I don't own Digimon or any video games, books, films, TV shows or pieces of music referenced in this story. Original characters owned by me are stated in my profile.
Chapter Five: Busted
Tuesday 21st September - 10:21am
Redcliff Mount High School, Room P16 - History Block
As Mr. Alistair finished his latest rant on medieval society and walked out of the classroom, Cam grinned and leaned back on his chair.
"Twenty-six minutes…" he mumbled as he gazed at the ceiling.
"Cam, what are you on about?" Steph sighed, gently slapping her friend round the back of the head to wake him from his daydream.
"Ow! What was that for?" he whined and glared at the girl.
"Fun. Now, what's this about twenty-six minutes?"
"You've been spending too much time with Rika…and I've noticed that Big Al always leaves the classroom exactly twenty-six minutes into the lesson. Weird, huh?"
Takato turned around and joined in on the conversation. "Not on Fridays - then he usually doesn't leave 'til, like, nearly the end of the lesson."
"Yeah, I'm still working out the exact timings for Fridays, but it looks like around forty, forty-five minutes in."
"Damn, and I thought Mr. Alistair was boring…" Rika muttered as she doodled a stylized taijitu symbol on her already-completed work.
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Cam exclaimed and glared at Rika's back.
"Only that if you can't find anything better to talk about than the timing of your teacher's bathroom breaks, then you really need to get a life."
"She has a point there…" Steph laughed, grinning at Cam's flustered expression.
"Fine…Takato, you think of something to talk about!"
"What? Why me?" the brown-haired Tamer groaned.
"Because I said so, now talk!"
"Ummm…okay…hey, I know - I can't believe the trip to France is next Friday!"
Steph grinned and shot a glance over at Henry. "I know, and us three will be leaving poor Henry all on his lonesome…"
Cam and Takato nearly jumped out of their seats as a loud thud reverberated around the classroom. The boys looked at Rika to see that she had slammed her forehead against the table and was now muttering angrily.
"You have GOT to be kidding me…"
"Awww…what's the matter Rika? Gonna miss my razor-sharp wit?" Cam teased, unable to keep a straight face.
"Miss it? I'm gonna be stuck with it for a whole freaking week!" the redhead groaned, slamming her head into the desk again.
"Wait…you're going? But they gave the forms out last year!" Takato exclaimed in a confused voice.
"Apparently, there was a spare place and my mum just had to sign me up…"
"Hang on, you don't want to go?" Steph asked.
"No I don't want to go! I didn't want to go even before I learned Tweedle-Dumb and Tweedle-Dumber were going, so how do you think I feel now?"
"Hey! Wait, am I Dumb or Dumber?" Cam butted in, scratching his chin thoughtfully.
Rika turned and fixed him with an icy glare before she started talking. "The fact that you can't figure it out on your own should be a pretty big clue…"
Steph laughed at this and shot Takato a grin. "Damn, Takato, I think that's the closest thing to a compliment you'll ever get out of Rika!"
"Being smarter than Cam isn't much of a compliment, though…" Henry chipped in, laughing at his friend's outraged look.
"Hey, what is this? Gang up on Cam day? Don't make me go all Kung Fu on yo ass!" the black-haired boy said in an agonisingly terrible American accent.
"Uh, Cam? You're forgetting that I really do know martial arts and so does Rika," Henry laughed, glancing at the female Tamer before continuing. "And if I were you, I'd be shutting up right about now…unless you want a repeat of the arm lock incident…"
Cam glanced at the redhead and winced as she cracked her knuckles loudly. "Shutting up now…"
2:46pm
Outside Redcliff Mount High School
"Hey, Takato!" a voice called from behind the brown-haired Tamer. He turned to see Cam and Steph running towards him eagerly.
"Hey guys! What's up?" he replied, waiting for them to reach him.
"I was wondering if you wanted to come round to my house and hang out. Me and Steph are trying to finish Halo ODST on Legendary and we need a little help," Cam said, grinning sheepishly.
"Ah, damn it! I can't guys, sorry. I have to…ah…work at the bakery!"
"Oh, okay then…um, see you tomorrow I guess."
"See ya!"
When Takato was out of earshot, Cam frowned and turned to face Steph. "Is it just me, or was Takato lying through his teeth?"
The blonde-haired girl nodded and looked thoughtfully at the rapidly-retreating Gogglehead. "Yeah, he was…pretty badly, actually, if it was obvious enough for you to notice."
"I'd say 'Hey!' out of principle, but you have a point. I say we follow him, find out where he's really going!"
"Agreed."
The pair followed their brown-haired friend back to the bakery where he lived and worked. After about five minutes, Takato leapt out of the door wearing his usual blue hoody and khaki cargo pants, with the addition of an over-stuffed backpack.
"Bye mum, bye dad. I'm going to Henry's!"
"Be back by five thirty!" a woman's voice shouted after the boy as he set off up the road at a run. Cam and Steph had to hide behind a parked car to avoid being spotted by the boy.
"Damn, he can move fast," Cam muttered as he set off after Takato at a run, keeping low so that he wouldn't be seen.
"Yeah…wait, didn't Henry say he had Tai Chi on Tuesdays?" Steph asked as she tried to keep up with her much taller friend.
"Yeah, he did…boy, Takato really does suck at lying."
"Hmmm…I wonder what's in the bag."
"Food? Drugs? Guns?"
"Damn it Cam can you not…Wait, he's headed for the park! I wonder why he's going there…"
Cam shot the girl a dirty grin and stopped running. "Maybe he's going to meet his sweetheart, Rika…"
Steph rolled her eyes and sighed. "That was just a stupid rumour - hell, Luke Aaron probably started it after Rika, Takato and Henry beat the crap out of him and his henchmen."
"Every rumour has a grain of truth…"
"Like the one about you and Natalie Kingmaker?"
The boy shuddered and began to look violently ill. "Point taken…But I still don't see why he's always nice to her in school, even when she's such a cold-hearted psycho and treats us all like crap!"
"Takato's nice to pretty much everybody. And Rika's not that bad…"
"Easy for you to say - she didn't nearly break your arm off!"
"Oh, stop exaggerating. Let's just keep following him - I wanna know why that jerk blew us off!"
They followed Takato from a safe distance, easily keeping sight of the boy thanks to his bright blue backpack and hoody. The boy stopped in the middle of the forest, took off his backpack and began shouting at a large hill.
"Here, boy! I got some food for you!"
"Looks like the Mighty Matsuki has finally lost it…" Cam groaned before calling out to the brown-haired boy. "So, tell me again what this has to do with working at the bakery?"
"GAH!" Takato yelped and spun around so fast he nearly fell over. "Cam? Steph? What are you doing here?"
"We could tell you were lying about working tonight, so we decided to follow you and find out why you blew us off!" the normally-timid girl growled and glared at the boy.
Wow, she really has been spending too much time around Rika. Cam thought as he walked towards his flustered friend.
"So, who were you shouting to? An invisible pet?" the black-haired boy teased, looking around at the surrounding woodland. The boy nearly jumped out of his skin when a growling voice rang out, seemingly from inside the hill.
"I smell Takatomon…and…" sniff, sniff. "FOOD!"
A red blur flew through the air and slammed into Takato, knocking him to the ground. Steph screamed as she saw a black-striped red dinosaur sat on her friend's chest, its mouth open wide, ready to…
…Lick his face?
"YAY! TAKATOMON'S HERE!" the creature cheered in a child-like voice, licking the brown-haired boy's face relentlessly.
"Guilmon! Get off me!"
"Oh, sorry…" the saurian mumbled and climbed off of the boy's chest.
"What…the hell…is that?" Cam stammered, pointing at the red dinosaur.
"Takatomon…" he whined, pointing back at the black-haired boy. "I thought Henry said it was rude to point!"
"It is boy, but…ah, damn it. This is gonna take some explaining."
"Damn right it is! You told Henry about this guy and not us? We've been friends since, like, FOREVER! Steph, back me up here!"
"He's…so…CUTE!" the blonde-haired girl shrieked before leaping at Guilmon and hugging him relentlessly.
"Ah, help me Takatomon! She's trying to load my data!"
Takato nearly fell over from laughing so hard. "No she isn't, boy! That's called a hug!"
"Oh, I know about those! Terriermon told me about them! He said Henry's mum does those to Henry!" The childlike saurian turned and looked at Steph curiously. "Does this mean that you're my mommy?"
"Awww…" the girl squealed before tightening her hug, nearly crushing the breath out of the poor dinosaur.
"Ow! Takato…mon…are you sure…she's not trying…to load…my data?"
"So…let me get this straight. The kid's TV show Digimon is actually real, bad Digimon keep attacking England, for some reason they keep appearing in the park and you, Henry and your partners are the only ones standing between them and us?" Steph said slowly, trying to digest everything she had been told.
"Uh…yeah, pretty much…" Takato lied. He had decided against telling them about Rika and Renamon - partly out of respect for their privacy, but also because he didn't doubt that Rika would inflict unimaginable pain on him if he told anyone.
"Damn…"
"So, you and Henry are…Tamers?" Cam asked, making sure he had the right word. When Takato nodded, she continued. "And you created Guilmon from some doodles and some stats you'd written down? How did you know what stats to write?"
The Tamer looked a little uncomfortable at this question. "Uh, well…when I was younger I used to have that whole obsession with Digimon, remember? Well, I started collecting some of the cards for the Digimon I liked when I was seven and I got a pretty good idea of what was good for each level of evolution. I did my drawings and stuff back then as part of a 'Design Your Own Digimon' competition, and I kept a copy of everything in a drawer in my room. I'd forgotten all about it until my D-Arc appeared and it somehow started homing in on the notes. When I got them out of the drawer, it scanned them and Guilmon appeared in the middle of the park."
"Whoa…"
"Okay I got another one," Steph said, looking thoughtfully at Takato. "Why are they appearing in Kirkfield? I mean, it's not exactly a tourist spot, and there's nothing that important nearby."
"I have no idea. I think Henry has been working on a theory, though - you'll have to ask him. Something to do with inter-di-thingy barriers and the internet."
"Okay…Oh, I know! Is England the only country with Tamers and Digimon and stuff?"
"That one I can answer! I know that there are a few more Tamers in Japan, but I don't know about any other countries."
"How do you know there are Tamers in Japan?" Cam asked, a mischievous grin on his face. "Did your sweetheart Rika tell you?"
"WHAT? No! I mean, she's not my…I mean she didn't…I…"
"Actually, that's a pretty good idea," Steph said, sighing as she saw Cam grinning at her now. "Not the sweetheart thing! I mean about Rika telling him - she did just move here from Japan. So, Takato - did Rika tell you about the other Tamers?"
"N-no!" the Tamer stammered, inwardly cursing his inability to lie.
"You really need to learn how to lie, mate…" Cam laughed and shook his head. "So, that means that our resident psychopath is probably a Tamer too!"
"What? N-no! Rika's not…oh what's the point, she's gonna kill me when she gets here anyway! Yeah, Rika's a Tamer…"
"I KNEW IT!" Cam roared triumphantly and pointed at Takato. "Secret meetings in the middle of the woods, blowing off your friends to meet each other - you two ARE in love!"
"No we're not! She's been teaching me how to use these things called 'modify cards' on Guilmon to make him fight better."
"She threatened to kill you if you told anyone that didn't she?" Steph asked, a massive grin on her face.
"Yeah, how did you guess?" Takato said sarcastically.
"Because she's stood behind you. And boy does she look mad…"
"YOU TOLD THEM I'M A TAMER?" Rika roared in Takato's face as she throttled him two-handed.
"It…wasn't…my…fault…" the boy croaked as he fought a losing battle for air. "Tricked…me…Very…easy…to do…"
"Wow, she really is mad…" Steph muttered as she watched her friend's face turn purple.
"Yeah…Hey, Guilmon, shouldn't you be…I dunno…helping Takato right about now?" Cam asked and frowned as Guilmon shook his head. "Why not?"
"Rika scares me…" the red dinosaur mumbled.
"So…The dinosaur with the big teeth and claws who can breathe exploding balls of fire is scared of the redhead with a temper?"
"Uh-huh!"
"GET BACK HERE YOU STUPID GOGGLEHEAD!"
Cam, Steph and Guilmon turned and saw that Takato had finally broken free from Rika's death grip and was running for his life. The boy tripped over a large root as he ran, landing flat on his face and provoking a loud burst of laughter from the two non-Tamers. A glare from Rika shut them up, and the girl began stomping towards them.
"If either of you tells ANYONE about my being a Tamer…or my training Gogglehead and Brainiac…"
"You'll kill us both in horribly painful and imaginative ways?" Cam finished, wincing as a smile that could only be described as Pure Evil appeared on the redhead's face.
"No, I won't kill you…"
"I will!"
"WAH!" the two schoolchildren and Guilmon yelled as one and spun around to see a very angry looking humanoid fox, her hands and feet wreathed with blue fire.
"Where the hell did you come from?" Cam gasped, staring at the flaming kitsune.
"Nowhere," she answered simply before winking out of existence, reappearing next to Rika a split second later.
"Cool…" Cam and Steph mumbled.
"Okay, I'm outta here. You owe me another week's supply for this, Gogglehead!" Rika shouted as her partner picked her up and disappeared into thin air.
"Did you see the look on their faces? That was priceless!" Rika chuckled telepathically as Renamon placed her down gently in her room.
"It was…amusing…" the kitsune admitted with a smile. "I did not know that it was possible for a male human to scream like that…"
"It's not meant to be possible. Well, unless you kick them in the…Anyway, do you think they'll keep their mouths shut?"
"If they are stupid enough to talk after that little display, we would be doing the human gene pool a favour by removing them. They will keep quiet."
"Good. I still can't believe that Gogglehead! How stupid do you have to be to get followed by Cam of all people?" the redhead sighed and slumped onto her futon. "At least I got a little amusement out of the whole thing…"
Wednesday 22nd September - 9:30am
Redcliff Mount High School, Room M1- Music Block
First period on Wednesday was Music, and Rika was stuck with Gogglehead, Brainiac and their two dimwit friends once again. They were currently being forced to answer some insultingly easy questions on a text about the origin of rap music.
This is ridiculous…I thought Music lessons would be about music, not a history of some pathetically overrated gang culture. The girl sighed as she felt boredom rapidly encroaching upon her mind. She had finished the questions, which were meant to last them until the end of the lesson, within ten minutes. How old does she think we are? This reads like it was written for a two-year-old…
"Is all the work at this damn school this easy?" she whispered to Steph, who was busy doodling a picture of Guilmon dancing in a field full of flowers.
"Pretty much, yeah…I guess it kinda depends on which teachers you get, but it's mostly like this. Kinda like it is with homework."
"Wait, you mean they're not just going easy on us because it's the start of the year?"
"Nope!" Takato butted in cheerfully. "We got lucky with the teachers we got - most of them don't bother setting homework very often, and when they do it's never much."
"Not bad…" Rika muttered and smirked, stealthily taking out her iPhone and skipping the song that had just started playing. At her stuffy old private school, she'd been laden down with so much homework there often hadn't been enough time to finish it all. The relaxed homework schedule at Redcliff was a welcome change to her old life.
"You'll wanna be careful Miss Gorak doesn't see that…" Takato muttered, noticing the small, white earphone in the redhead's right ear.
That was one of the only downsides of her new school (other than the incessant violence) - the banning of all MP3 players and mobile phones from school property. The ban on phones was easy to get around - you just kept it turned off and only took it out of your pocket when nobody was looking. The ban on iPods was what bothered Rika the most. At her old school, she'd spent most of her break and lunchtimes listening to music while she read. When she'd tried that one day at Redcliff, a teacher had immediately confiscated her iPhone and given her an incredibly patronising and nonsensical lecture about following rules. As a result, the redhead had been forced to replace her usual silver headset with a much smaller, more easily-concealed pair of white earphones. An unexpected bonus of this switch was that Rika was now able to listen to music in some lessons as well, as long as she was careful about it.
"You're kidding right? I'm pretty sure she's asleep," Steph giggled.
"What makes you say that?" the brown-haired Tamer asked, looking at the obese teacher. It was actually impossible to tell if she was asleep or not, since she had her back to the class.
"Well, Joe Carr has been throwing little paper balls at her head for five minutes, and she hasn't even stopped him. She just does this weird coughing thing every so often."
"It's called snoring, Goldilocks!" Rika snapped, amazed that her classmate could be so stupid.
"Dude…that's some messed up snoring!" Cam chuckled before joining Joe Carr in throwing paper at the teacher. "And how come you've given everyone a nickname except me?"
"Because the ones I came up with for you weren't suitable for public use," the redhead smirked, enjoying the irritated look that passed across the boy's face.
"Well fine then! I'll just think up a nickname for you then. Hmmm…let's see…how about…"
"Cam, I recommend you choose your next words very carefully…" Steph warned, noticing Rika cracking her knuckles.
"Ummm…does 'The Digimon Queen' meet with your approval?" Cam asked, wincing as the redhead turned to glare at Takato.
"What? I swear I didn't tell him about that!" the brown-haired Tamer said, panicking.
"Actually, it was Terriermon who told us about that," Steph mumbled. "We went to meet him after you left. Practically had to fight Henry's little sister to get hold of him - she thinks he's a doll!"
"Yeah," Cam chuckled, struggling to speak through his laughter. "She even…she dressed him up in a…a pink tutu and called him…she called him Pwincess Pwetty Pants!"
The black-haired boy fell off his chair, howling with laughter and waking up Miss Gorak. The fat teacher sat up suddenly, nearly flying off of her chair and glared around the room until she spotted Cam rolling on the floor.
"What on EARTH do you think you are doing, Cameron?" she shrieked, nearly giving the boy a heart attack. The woman suddenly noticed the collection of paper balls spread around the bottom of her chair and decided to blame it on the most obvious culprit. "How long have you been throwing things at me, hmm? You've earned yourself a detention! Now, go to M2 - I won't have you disrupting my class anymore!"
Cam quickly gave up trying to protest his innocence - he was still laughing too much to string together a coherent sentence. He staggered out of the room, clutching his ribs and struggling for breath, completely destroying Miss Gorak's illusion of authority.
"And if anyone else thinks this is funny, they can join him in detention!" she growled and glared at Steph and Takato, who were trying desperately not to laugh. The duo were saved by the bell, which rang just as Takato began to crack up. "Alright, end of lesson! Everybody out!"
As soon as they had left the classroom, Takato, Steph and Henry burst out laughing.
"I can't believe…you let Suzie…dress Terriermon…in a tutu!" Takato howled, tears of mirth running down his cheeks.
"Princess Pretty Pants, huh?" Rika said and chuckled darkly. "This should make for good ammunition…"
Takato was surprised to find Rika in the library at lunch that day. When he asked her about why she was there, and where her usual hangout was, she replied that she usually snuck off school grounds using Renamon's Kohenkyo and hung around in the park, then told the boy that it was none of his business and he should stop stalking her. Wow, I can't believe my 'Rika sneaking off school property at lunch' theory was correct… Takato thought to himself as he rapidly retreated to the company of his friends.
3:40pm - Outside Redcliff Mount High School
Takato and Steph were stood outside the school's main entrance, waiting for Cam to finish his detention. This wasn't the detention he had earned in Music - keeping a child after school in England for any significant length of time required at least twenty-four hours written notice to the parents. This was a detention he had earned on Monday for getting into an argument with his RE teacher.
It's easy to forget how pissed off Cam gets about stuff like that. Takato thought idly. In fact, other than Rika's teasing, I think that's the only thing I've ever seen really get under his skin…though I have to admit, it was pretty funny when he accused Mr Zaffino of being a Nazi Propaganda Artist. I wonder if Cam even knows what half that stuff means…?
The goggle-wearing Tamer was brought back to reality by a loud beeping emanating from the D-Arc attached to his belt.
"What the…?" he muttered as he activated the device's holographic display, cursing as he read the text displayed there. "Ah, crap! Steph, I gotta go - there's a Digimon Bio-emerging in the park, and if I'm reading this right it's pretty damn powerful."
The blonde girl nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. "I'll tell Cam where you are. Break a leg!"
"Thanks…I think."
According to the compass on Takato's D-Arc, the Digimon was Bio-emerging at the south-west end of the park, not far from Guilmon's den. The boy collected his partner en route, and was at the emergence site within five minutes of his D-Arc first going off.
"This is…different…" the boy mumbled as he stared at the Digital Field. It was unlike any he had seen before - the cloud of fog was much thinner than normal, with trees and a vaguely dog-like silhouette visible from outside the field. "Maybe we should wait for the others, boy - I don't like the look of this…"
"No! This Digimon has nearly broken through all the way into this world! We have to stop him now, Takatomon, or he could get away!" Guilmon growled, his pupils reduced to mere slits.
"Ah, damn it…well, if you're sure…"
The boy and his partner began walking slowly forwards, entering the Digital Field cautiously. The dog-like silhouette quickly resolved itself into a massive blue-furred wolf covered in jagged red symbols. The Digimon was wearing a matching purple helmet and collar that reminded Takato oddly of a bat's wings. By far the most terrifying parts of the wolf, however, were the enormous metal claws and axe-like blades protruding from its paws.
What have I gotten us into now? the Tamer thought, a wave of fear flooding his mind as he raised his D-Arc to scan his opponent.
Name: Sangloupmon
Level: Champion
Attribute: Virus
Special Attacks:
Black Mind
Sticker Blade
As his stats appeared on the screen, Sangloupmon sniffed the air, turned and glared at the boy. Okay, cool head, don't panic, don't wet my pants with fear, don't scream like a little girl…
"Fresh blood…" he growled and began to pace slowly towards the Tamer.
"Leave Takatomon alone! Pyro Sphere!"
A red fireball rocketed through the air and slammed into Sangloupmon's purple helmet. The attack did little except scorch the metal slightly and anger the helmet's owner. With a howl, the vampire-wolf leapt at Guilmon, his jaws open wide ready to tear the smaller Digimon's head off. With a yelp, the dinosaur leapt to the side, Sangloupmon's jaws snapping shut on air. The wolf growled and pounced at Guilmon again, this time trying to attack with his massive paw-blades. The saurian barely dodged this attack and ended up lying flat on his back, easy prey for the lupine Digimon's next attack.
I gotta help him somehow… "Digi-Modify! Hyper Speed activate!"
Guilmon rolled to the side and leapt to his feet, easily dodging Sangloupmon's next few attacks and working his way behind the larger Digimon. He launched another Pyro Sphere, only to have it deflected by a sweep of the wolf's massive claws. Takato reached for another card and slashed it through his D-Arc.
"Digi-Modify! Power activate!"
Guilmon ducked another slash at his head by his opponent as an intense red light began emanating from his mouth.
"Pyro Sphere!"
"Black Mind!"
As the overpowered ball of fire rocketed towards him, Sangloupmon seemed to sink into the ground, disappearing from sight. The fireball slammed harmlessly into the ground where the lupine Digimon had been standing, creating a metre-wide crater in the soft earth. Where the hell…? Takato thought, scanning the area for the Digimon with his D-Arc, a horrible sinking feeling flowing through him as he noticed the absence of any digital fog. Oh crap…the Digital Field has completely dissipated! This guy could be anywhere by now. Suddenly, the boy felt a shadowy presence behind him and he dove to the left, acting purely on instinct. A blue and purple blur shot past the Tamer, and he felt a sudden, burning cold in his right calf. He…he cut me…
"Gah!" the boy yelped in agony as he looked down at his leg and realised what had happened. The cut wasn't deep, but there was quite a bit of blood and it hurt like hell. Fighting back tears of pain, Takato looked up to see the vampire-wolf licking a thin line of blood from his paw-blade.
"NOBODY HURTS TAKATOMON!" Guilmon roared and leapt at the wolf, claws outstretched. "Rock Breaker!"
"Pathetic…" Sangloupmon snarled contemptuously as he batted the attack aside with a flick of his massive paw, sending the red dinosaur crashing to the ground. The wolf pounced on the prone saurian and pinned him down, opening his massive jaws to finish the childlike Digimon off.
"Guilmon, no!" Takato called, helpless to save his partner once again. The boy felt his spirits soar as a familiar voice called out from behind him. Rika!
"Digi-Modify! Digivolution activate!"
DIGIVOLUTION
"Renamon, Digivolve to…"
Takato turned to see a glowing blue Data Sphere explode, revealing a nine-tailed golden-furred fox.
"…Kyubimon!"
"Alright, Kyubimon - let's show this guy who's top dog…Digi-Modify! Target Lock activate!"
"Fox Tail Inferno!" the vulpine Digimon called, blue fireballs bearing a disturbing resemblance to Halloween pumpkins gathering around the tips of her nine tails. With a flick, Kyubimon launched all nine fireballs at Sangloupmon, striking him in his open mouth, throat, eye and underbelly. The vampire-wolf roared as he was sent flying through the air, away from his saurian prey. With a growl, Sangloupmon pushed himself to his feet and activated his special attack again.
"Black Mind!" he snarled and began to sink into his own shadow once again.
"Oh, no you don't! Digi-Modify! Lucemon's Radiance activate!"
"NO!"
Kyubimon began to glow with an intense golden light that soon spread across the entire area, bending impossibly around obstacles to illuminate every surface. Sangloupmon let out a roar of pain and disbelief as the light washed over him, dispelling his shadow while he was still sinking into it and severing all four of his limbs just above the knee. Static flickered across the vampire-wolf's body as his data began to lose cohesion.
"No…not like this…slain…by a mere…child…" he growled as his data finally broke apart, quickly being absorbed by the wounded Guilmon.
With a flash of white light, Kyubimon de-digivolved to Renamon and teleported to the saurian's side, helping him to his feet. Rika turned and saw Takato lying on the ground and walked over to him, a smirk on her face.
"Sorry we took so long, Goggles. I was all the way over on the other side of town when my D-Arc went off and…uh, Gogglehead? You still with me?"
A tear finally managed to squeeze itself out of the corner of Takato's eye as the adrenaline rush of combat wore off and the pain of his injury hit him in full force.
"My…leg…" he hissed through gritted teeth as Rika crouched down beside him. The redhead winced as she saw the blood staining her fellow Tamer's khaki cargo pants and quickly rolled them up to get a better look at the wound.
"Takatomon! Are you okay?" Guilmon whined, nuzzling his Tamer's arm gently and looking worried when he didn't answer.
"Ah, crap…He's gonna be fine, Guilmon. Okay, Gogglehead, listen carefully. The cut's not too deep so you shouldn't need stitches, but we are gonna have to clean and bandage it. Do you have a First Aid kit at the bake-no, scratch that. It's too far to go without being seen. Damn…looks like we're headed to my place," Rika sighed dejectedly. "Can you walk?"
"I think…Yeah I can…" the boy said, getting shakily to his feet.
"Let's go, my house is just through this patch of trees," she said, pointing towards a fenced-off area of woodland with "PRIVATE PROPERTY - NO TRESPASSING" signs nailed to the fence at regular intervals.
"Ah…I don't think we should…what if we get caught?"
"It's my mum's land, Goggles," the girl muttered, sounding almost embarrassed about it. "They're not gonna arrest you if you're with me."
"Oh…" Whoa, her mum owns all that land? Her family's gotta be pretty rich…
"Whoa…" Takato breathed as he caught his first glimpse of the traditional Japanese mini-mansion that was Rika's house.
His breath was completely taken away by the beauty of the property. They had left the forest at the rear of the grounds, meaning that the two Tamers got a beautiful view of the Zen garden and Koi pond that dominated the area. The boy glanced at the redhead next to him, noticing that she looked oddly uncomfortable.
"My grandma's out with friends until this evening and our housekeeper has already gone home. We should be able to get your leg sorted out before anyone gets back." Rika muttered, and Takato nodded, still trying to get his head around the property's incredible size and beauty. "Renamon, you and Guilmon stay hidden - I don't want to risk you guys getting seen by someone."
The kitsune nodded and led a reluctant Guilmon away into the trees. When the two Digimon were safely out of sight, Rika started walking towards one of the house's three back doors, Takato limping along behind her.
"Whoa…" the goggle-wearing Tamer breathed again as he walked through the door. The back door led into the kitchen, which was about the same size as the whole "Bakery" section of Takato's house and was furnished with shiny, high tech appliances. The main entrance was even more impressive, dominated by a massive wooden staircase easily wide enough to drive an American SUV down. Japanese artwork lined the walls, and a large circular rug woven into a mandala-style pattern covered the hard wooden floor.
"Try not to get blood on anything - I don't want to have to try and explain that to my grandma," Rika sighed. She actually had an explanation for such a situation lined up, but it was one she'd rather not have to use - mostly because of the extremely awkward and embarrassing conversation it would lead to.
"Uh-huh…" Takato mumbled, completely awestruck by his richly-furnished surroundings. The boy let himself be led up the stairs and into a bathroom that was the size of his house's living room.
"Wait here, I'm gonna go get the First Aid kit from my room," Rika ordered as she left the dazed boy marvelling at the shiny toilet, returning thirty seconds later with a green plastic box. "Sit down and roll your trouser leg up."
Takato did as he was ordered, sitting on the ridiculously shiny toilet and rolling his cargo pants up past his knee. Rika winced as she got her first good look at the cut - it extended from about an inch below the Tamer's knee to an inch above his ankle. The redhead took a white cloth and dabbed on some clear liquid from a clear glass bottle.
"Grit your teeth, Gogglehead, 'cause this is gonna hurt…"
"YOW!" the boy shrieked as Rika began cleaning the wound with the cloth. "What the hell is that stuff, acid?"
"It's rubbing alcohol. And suck it up, you're gonna take worse knocks than this in your Taming career."
"ACK! Your bedside manner needs some - YOW! - some work, you know that?"
The redhead fixed him with a glare before continuing. "It's kinda hard to feel sympathy for a scratch when you've been run over by a feral Monochromon!"
"Whoa…how did you not…I mean how are you…"
"Not dead? My grandma found me and called an ambulance. I was in hospital for a week, and couldn't fight for two, but I survived."
"Damn…OW!"
"And what the hell were you thinking? Sangloupmon is one of the most dangerous Champions out there, and you just rushed straight at him!"
"The Digital Field was collapsing - he'd almost completely emerged into the real world when we arrived. I had to try and - YOW! - try and keep him busy until you or Henry arrived. What other choice did I have?"
"Ah, crap…You did the right thing Goggles, just be a little more careful next time - I don't want this to be a regular thing!" Rika snapped as she finished washing the cut.
"Yes, ma'am…"
"Alright, now for the bandages…" the redhead mumbled as she rummaged through the green box.
"Hehe, First Aid is a pretty useful skill for a Tamer to know," Takato grinned as Rika began to wrap his leg with bandages. "Where did you learn it?"
"Kenta, one of the Tamers back in Japan taught me," the girl said as she cut the end of the bandage off with a small pair of scissors and knotted it expertly.
"I remember him - the quiet one partnered to MarineAngemon, right?"
"Yeah. All done. Change the bandage after you shower or bathe, and try not to let your parents see it. The cut shouldn't get infected since I used the alcohol rub, but if it does you should go see a real doctor."
"Really? That wasn't as bad as I expected."
Rika snorted and rolled her eyes. "Wouldn't have known it from the fuss you were making…"
"Hehe, yeah…Thanks by the way. I know you didn't have to do all this…"
"Are you kidding me? If I didn't sort out that scratch you'd have had to see a doctor, and the way you lie, you'd have been blabbing about what happened in no time! Stupid Gogglehead…"
Takato grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, good point…I'd better go find Guilmon and take him back to his hideout. Do you know where Renamon will have hidden him?"
Rika looked distant for a few seconds before she answered. "She took him back there herself. She's been waiting there with him to stop him from running back over here to check on you."
"Uh, how do you know?" Takato asked, his confusion clear on his face.
"Because I just asked her," Rika replied, continuing with a sigh when Takato's confusion only deepened. "Digimon of the Renamon evolutionary line can form mental bonds with those closest to them. Renamon and I have one of those bonds. It lets us communicate telepathically, feel what the other feels, stuff like that."
"Whoa, that's kind of cool…"
"Yeah, it is. Oh, one last thing - you said you created Guilmon yourself, right?"
"Uh, yeah…"
"Did you create any later forms for him?"
The boy shook his head and chuckled. "I tried when I first created him, but I couldn't get the pictures right. How do you get a Digimon to digivolve, anyway?"
"The first time it happens is usually when their Tamer is in grave danger, or has a really strong urge to protect somebody. What happened to you earlier would normally have sparked a digivolution in Dino-boy. After the first time, you unlock something called your 'Guardian Spirit' and can use a Digivolution modify card to digivolve them at will."
"Oh, okay. When did Renamon first digivolve to Kyubimon?"
"It was back in Shinjuku. Jeri and Leomon were getting their butts whooped by a Devimon-"
"Wait a second…Did this happen on top of a weird skyscraper with two towers?" Takato interrupted, wincing as he saw the suspicious glare Rika threw at him.
"How the hell did you know that?" she growled, clenching her fists menacingly.
"Uh…promise you won't freak out?" the brown-haired Tamer asked hesitantly, continuing when Rika failed to answer him. "I kind of…had a dream about you…"
"What? What kind of weirdo are you?" the girl yelled and took a step forward.
"Not that kind of dream!" Takato exclaimed quickly, breathing a mental sigh of relief as the angry look in the redhead's eyes disappeared. "I dreamt that a girl in a green dress and a Leomon fought against a Devimon, and Devimon was about to kill Leomon when you showed up. Your D-Arc started glowing and Renamon digivolved to Kyubimon. You used a couple of modify cards - a Power card and a…Light Trainer card or something."
"You mean Light Training Manual?"
"Yeah! Anyway, Kyubimon used Dragon Wheel and tore Devimon to shreds with one attack. The weirdest part is, I had the dream weeks before I met you. Come to think about it, it was before I even found out Digimon were real…"
"That's…still pretty weird!" Rika snapped and glared at her fellow Tamer.
"Yeah, you'll get no arguments from me…" Takato mumbled, then grinned cheerfully and laughed to himself. "Wow, I've gotta be the only guy in the world who has actually met his 'dream girl'."
Rika's only response was an angry growl.
Takato looked at his watch, eyes widening when he saw the time. "Ah, crap! I was meant to be home ten minutes ago! My mum's gonna kill me…"
Rika cut the boy off at the bottom of the stairs as he dashed for the front door. "If you EVER mention that dream to anyone, or even think about making another 'dream girl' joke, I'll send you to Dreamland for good, understood?"
"Yes, ma'am," the goggle-wearing Tamer gulped.
"Good. Now get out of my house before my grandma gets home!"
When Takato eventually limped in through the bakery door, he was over half an hour late.
"Where have you been, young man? Your father and I have been worried sick!" his mother yelled furiously.
"Sorry! I was in the park with Cam and Steph and my watch stopped working!" the boy replied, using the excuse he had thought up on the way over.
"I don't want to hear your excuses and…why are you limping? And is that BLOOD on your pants?" the woman shrieked in horror.
Damn, hoped she wouldn't notice… "Oh, the blood isn't mine, it's Cam's. He cut his hand on some broken glass and thought it'd be funny to get it all over my pants. I'm limping because I tripped over a tree root and landed weird trying to get away from him."
"Humph! Well…don't let it happen again, you hear me?" the woman growled, apparently satisfied by her son's tale. "Now I'm going to have to throw those pants away…You tell Cam the next time he pulls something like that, he can buy you a new pair himself!"
"Yes, mum."
And Rika says I can't lie! Chalk one up for the Gogglehead!