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 Twelve: Worth Fighting For

Thursday 14th October - 8:35am

Redcliff Mount High School - Room P12

"Uh, Rika? You don't look so good…" Takato whispered hesitantly as he sat down next to the redhead.

"Urgh…" she groaned in reply, lifting her head from the desk and fixing him with an exhausted glare. "If taking care of Calumon is anything like taking care of a kid, then I'm becoming a nun!"

"That bad, huh?"

"He woke up and started singing and dancing at one o'clock in the morning. And two o'clock. And three o'clock. And four o'clock…and after that, Renamon got so mad she threw him out the window. So yeah, it was that bad!"

"Miss Nonaka, is there something that you would like to share with the rest of the class?" Miss Byron snapped and glared at the girl.

"Kiri sute…I mean, sorry Miss Byron," she replied as Takato fought to repress a fit of laughter.

"Good. Now, if I have your permission to continue with the register?" the woman said sarcastically and scowled.

"You know, if she ever Googles 'kiri sute gomen', she'll tear your head off. And maybe we should show Calumon where Guilmon sleeps," the brown-haired boy suggested as the teacher resumed her droning. "That way he could spend the night there instead of somewhere he can make a nuisance of himself."

"That's…actually not a bad idea, Goggles. Why didn't I think of that?"

"Exhaustion? And don't sound so surprised - I do have my moments, you know!"

"As rare as they may be…"

Wong Residence - 2:56pm

"Mum, I'm home!" Henry called as he dumped his school bag next to the door and kicked off his shoes. "Mum?"

"She's not in," his father's voice called from upstairs. "She left to do some shopping before she picks Suzie up."

"OK," the boy replied as he walked up the stairs, heading for his father's office. "How come you're not at work?"

"I am," the man chuckled from his high-backed leather office chair as Henry walked into the room.

The Tamer's eyes widened and his jaw dropped open at what he saw. Where the Wong family's single desktop computer had once sat, there were now four tower units, six monitors and a veritable forest of external hard drives.

"What the…" he mumbled, staring at the computers with a hungry look.

"I know - it's computer nerd heaven! Now that I'm working for HYPNOS, they arranged to have all this stuff sent over so that I could work from home."

"It's…it's like the bridge of the Enterprise or something!"

"I'm pretty sure the Enterprise would be a little less messy," a high-pitched voice squeaked from behind the two Wongs, and they turned to see Terriermon stood in the doorway.

"Terrier…actually, he has a point. Mum is going to freak when she sees this."

"I'm pretty sure my new HYPNOS salary will calm her down…" Janyuu grinned as he held up a copy of his contract.

"Is that in Yen or Pounds?" Terriermon asked and rubbed his eyes.

"Pounds."

"Whoa…enough zeroes for ya?" the Digimon mumbled as he stared at the number. "I think I need to lie down."

The rabbit wandered out of the office in a daze, heading for Henry's room. When he was out of earshot (or as close as it was possible for him to get) Janyuu turned to his son with a serious expression.

"Henry, we need to talk."

"I'm pretty sure I can guess the subject," Henry sighed and sat down on a second leather office chair.

"Henry, what you and Terriermon do…it's not something any child should have t-"

"Dad, just stop right there," the boy said and shook his head. "I don't like it any more than you do, but I don't have a choice. If I don't fight, a lot of people will die."

"But…does it have to be you? I mean, Rika and Takato have partners too, surely they can handle it?"

"We already tried it like that. My reluctance to fight sent Terriermon berserk when he digivolved and almost got them killed, then when I flat out refused to fight, Terriermon couldn't digivolve when he needed to and I almost got Steph killed."

"Henry…"

"I have to do this, dad. If I stopped and somebody got hurt…I'd never be able to live with myself."

"Ah, damn it, neither would I…" Janyuu sighed and slumped in his chair. "Alright, you've convinced me, but I don't think we should tell your mother about this. She may be a little…how should I put this…"

"Less understanding?"

"Something like that, yeah," the man chuckled and shook his head ruefully. "And Henry? If you, or any of your friends need help with anything…"

"Thanks, dad."

Henry jumped as a sudden scream interrupted the father-son moment. The rapid pattering of tiny feet could be heard heading towards the office and Terriermon skidded into view, a panicked look on his face.

"Okay, don't freak out, but…I think Jaarin may know I'm alive."

"WHAT? How?" both father and son yelped in shock.

"Well, I was wandering around and her bedroom door was open, a-"

"PERVERT!" the fifteen-year-old screamed as she launched herself at the Digimon, hands outstretched ready to strangle him.

"Gah! MOMENTA-urk!"

"When the hell did she get home?" Janyuu murmured as his eldest daughter slowly throttled the life out of the rabbit.

Nonaka Residence - 3:02pm

"Grandma, I'm home," Rika called as she closed the front door behind her and slouched over to the kitchen, her limbs leaden with exhaustion. "Grandma? Hello?"

This is weird - the car was still outside. The girl glanced at the fridge and saw a handwritten note stuck to it with a magnet.

'Rika

Gone out with some friends for a late lunch, will be back around 4.

Grandma xxx'

Huh, I guess she must have walked. "Renamon, it's clear. My grandma's out with friends."

The kitsune materialized behind the girl without a sound. "You could have used telepathy, you know."

"I know, but we hardly ever get to talk out loud these days. It makes a nice change."

"Indeed, it does. You are late home today."

The redhead rolled her eyes and snorted derisively. "Stupid Food Technology teacher got in a mood when I told her I didn't plan on being some spineless housewife."

"Why do I get the feeling that sentence originally ended with the words 'like you'?" Renamon chuckled.

"Because you know me so well?" the girl smirked and yawned loudly. "Anyway, she kept me back for ten minutes and gave me a detention for next Monday."

"You do not sound at all bothered by this turn of events."

"Nope. It's only an hour and it's not like I had anything planned. Speaking of plans, we've got…" the redhead trailed off as she broke out into another yawn. "Ah, damn it. Anyway, Goggles came up with a good idea for sorting out the Calumon situation."

The vulpine Digimon blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"That was my reaction too. He said we should put him in Guilmon's den - that way he has some company, has a place to sleep and shouldn't get seen by anyone."

"Hmmm…I cannot help but question the wisdom of leaving those two alone together for long periods of time."

"And I cannot help but question the wisdom of four hours of sleep!"

"Point taken."

"Good. I've got some homework I need to get done before I pass out from exhaustion. Think I'll do it in the garden…"

3:35pm

Doing her homework in the garden proved to be a very bad idea for the exhausted Tamer. It was oddly warm and sunny for early October in England and this fact did nothing but make the girl even more tired, destroying her concentration and nearly lulling her to sleep. The gentle, soothing chirping of the birds hopping around the beautiful Zen garden did little to help. Renamon, having had just as little sleep as her Tamer, was having just as much trouble staying awake.

By the Sovereigns, Rika, why can't you just admit defeat? the kitsune thought groggily as she teleported next to the girl and gently shook her awake for the third time in thirty minutes.

"Rika, you're dozing off again."

"Wha…? Oh, right. Thanks."

"Maybe you should go inside. Try to sleep and leave the homework for later," the Digimon suggested gently.

"Yeah, maybe you're right," the redhead finally admitted, glancing at the sheet of paper in front of her to see that she had written less than a dozen words in the time she had been outside. With a sigh, she gathered up her pens and paper and climbed to her feet. "I'm gonna kill Calumon if he ever…"

Renamon frowned as her Tamer trailed off and started staring at something behind her with a shocked look. The Digimon turned and quickly matched the girl's expression when she found herself gazing at the smiling face of Seiko Hata. The brown-haired woman gave a small bow before she spoke, looking directly at the Digimon.

"Hello again."

Hello AGAIN? Rika thought, confusion raging in her mind. "Renamon…"

"I will explain later."

"Not good enough."

"What…what do you mean, hello again?" the girl asked her grandmother in a quivering voice.

"I owe this kitsune a great debt," Seiko said as she began walking toward the two partners. "Remember when you were involved in that hit-and-run accident? It was her who told me that you had been injured and showed me where you were. I always knew you had a guardian spirit watching over you."

"She…she did?" the redhead mumbled, wincing as she remembered the so-called 'hit-and-run'. In actual fact, she had been hit by a swipe of an angry Monochromon's tail and injured badly enough to hospitalize her for a week. Blaming it on a car accident had seemed to be the only plausible explanation.

"Yes. If it wasn't for her…well, you probably wouldn't still be alive. The kami are finally smiling on you."

"Grandma, I…" the girl began, not wanting to burst the woman's bubble. "I don't think…she's not technically a real kitsune."

"Oh, I know that!" Seiko laughed, surprising both her granddaughter and the Digimon. "With the amount of time you spend playing that card game, how could I not recognize Renamon - my granddaughter's favourite Digimon? I'm not quite as oblivious as your mother, you know."

"Wait, you mean…you knew about her for all this time? And you don't…have a problem with her?" Rika asked tentatively.

"Of course not. And before you ask, yes I do know about what you've been getting up to. Did you really think I wouldn't notice all the sneaking around? The scrapes and bruises?" the woman said, sounding oddly calm. She shook her head gently and placed a comforting hand on her granddaughter's shoulder. "I know that you two have been fighting to protect all of us, and I am so proud of you."

"It's not just us, you know…" the girl mumbled, shuffling uncomfortably at the praise.

"I know - that nice Jeri girl was one too, and I overheard you talking about a few others back in Japan. Are there any of them here in England?"

"Yeah, there are a couple of others. I'd…rather not say who they are without their permission."

"I understand. Renamon, I want you to know that you are always welcome in our house. However, it may be best for you to stay out of sight whenever Miranda or Rumiko are around."

"Thank you, Mrs Hata," the kitsune replied politely with a small bow.

"Um, does this mean that you haven't told mum about this?" Rika asked nervously.

"Rika, do you remember when you were nine and you got that splinter? Your mother was this close to dragging you to the hospital - just imagine what she'd be like if she knew about Renamon! Don't worry, your secret is safe with me."

"Thanks, grandma," the girl said with a small smile that quickly turned into a yawn.

"Oh my, was there a midnight attack?" Seiko asked with a small frown.

"No, I was up all night babysitting a Digimon called Calumon. He somehow managed to get here all the way from Japan."

"Hmmm…he wouldn't happen to be a small, white thing with big green eyes and extendable ears, would he?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

A small white head poked out of the woman's handbag and extended its ears, an enormous grin on its face. "Surprise!" Calumon cheered around a mouthful of food.

"Calumon…" Rika groaned.

"Um, what was it that Terriermon said…oh, yeah - MOMENTAI!" the cream puff shouted and leapt at the redhead, spreading his little arms wide and hugging her.

"You just had to be cute, didn't you?" she groaned and reluctantly hugged the small Digimon back. "I need to lie down…"

Five minutes later…

"Renamon…why didn't you tell me my grandma saw you before?"

"I…do not really know…"

"You don't know? How can you not know?"

"I…Rika, I have been keeping something from you. The fight with Devimon…was not the first time I digivolved."

"W-what?"

"After Monochromon hit you, I Dark Digivolved. When I saw you lying there, broken and bleeding, I…I was so angry, and I just ripped him to shreds. I lost control much like Gargomon did and I was ashamed. When I came to my senses, I saw that I had no way of getting you to the hospital myself, so I…"

"You told my grandma I was hurt?"

"Yes. I made her believe…I thought I made her believe I was a real kitsune and told her where you were. I used her religion to manipulate her. It was…wrong. You have every right to be angry with me."

"Are you totally insane? You saved my life! How could I be anything but grateful?"

"You know what we were like back then. I was…afraid of showing that I cared for you."

"Renamon…"

Redcliff Mount High School, outside Old Science Block - 3:46pm

"I still can't believe you got me a detention," Steph grumbled and shot Cam a venomous glare.

"How was I supposed to know Big Al was stood behind us? You didn't notice either!" the boy replied, giving the blonde-haired girl his best 'puppy-dog' eyes. "I'm sowwy…"

"That only works when Guilmon does it. Well, him and Suzie…and Calumon…anyway, let's get going. I don't want to be stuck in this dump a second longer than I…"

The girl trailed off, her eyes widening with fear as a large cloud of fog suddenly appeared, swirling around the two children. Both of them recognized the fog, either from experience or from Takato and Henry's descriptions.

"Oh, no…" Cam mumbled as the Digital Field thickened and a bright white light appeared, hovering in mid-air.

"I don't want to die!" Steph moaned.

"Hold me!"

The children closed their eyes and huddled together as the light intensified, becoming so bright that it shone through their eyelids. Suddenly the light vanished and the girl began to cry, whimpering in terror as she felt something brush against her cheek.

"Pipuhpi?"