AN: This is the Writer. You can call me Joe, Manco or Blondie. Doesn't matter. You'll be pleased to know the next chapter is almost done, so the wait will be not be nearly as long, 2 to 3 days. Just have to revise it. I wonder if you have stuck to the story. Those of you reading it for the first time, I thank you for your time and I will do my best to make sure it ends well. Those of you who have read it in the past, thanks for waiting. I hope it was worth it.

Disclaimer: Right now, the story is not particular violent, but it might get violent later on, I'll make the necessary adjustments, rating wise, and also, the romances are pretty standard. I'm a big fan of Taiora, but that's not where we want to go right now, so don't worry, not a big romantic fella anyway.

Also, I don't own Digimon...

Session 8 -The Nights...-

"Taichi, apologize" said Bruce.

Taichi shook his head, slowly, his gaze never leaving its place.

"Boss..." said Jill, a hint of worry in the tone of her voice.

"Tai... come on, man"

Their focus, their breathing, all controlled, and at the same time, stiff, heavy.

"Someone is going to die, now" said Lao, pointing a handgun at the bunch, to his left, to his right, his men, older, experienced, with looks fixed on their face, like gargoyles, also pointing their guns. Dressed in expensive suits, with fine watches and silk ties, they almost looked out of place.
Tai analyzed every inch of the place, 2 exits, one to the left, the other, south. He measured the distance between the 2 parties. These men weren't alone, they had backup somewhere in the shadows.
This wasn't their first rodeo.
Surrounded by shipping containers, this had become his life. They were looking for someone, logically, this was the first stop.
Tai concentrated on his own gun, on the force he was using to jam it into their guard's ribs. He held him in place, and nobody moved. This silence was familiar.
Bruce and Jill were armed, their guns in their holsters, a quick draw and they would all be dead.

"Look, Lao, Tai was kidding, that's what he does, he's a kidder, you know he didn't mean that nonsense, right, Tai, you didn't mean any of that" said Jill, a smile on her face.

Whether it was fear or readiness, Tai didn't know.

"You're a dead man, Tai" said Lao, incensed.

"Get in line" said Tai, a smile on his face.

"Mother-"

"Back the hell up" yelled Tai, "don't make me shoot him, now back up"

"Lin, get your ass out here, Lin" yelled Bruce,

"Control your boy or you'll be picking him off the floor with a paper cup"

The men next to Lao stiffened. Tai tightened his hold on their guard.

Bruce and Jill slowly lowered their hands.

"Hands up, guys" said Lao, no longer angered, but scared. His bodyguards glanced at one another. Safeties off.

Bruce smiled, nodded.

Jill smiled, nodded.

Tai exhaled hard, a few seconds, that's all it would take.

"Paper cup?" a voice said out of darkness.

The tension was suddenly gone.

"Really, Bruce, that's the best you've got?"

"Lin?"'

Lin's laugh was hysterical, and it seemed to grow louder as he got closer.

"You've made my day, Bruce"

"Happy to be of help"

"Put them down, boys, Lao, let it go..."

"Boss, I-"

"Let..it...go..." he said as he stepped into the light "besides, you couldn't take Tai on even if these guys helped you"

Tai flung their guard to the floor, followed Bruce who was walking behind Lin. Jill smiled, shrugged her shoulders and followed Tai.
His office was small, but big enough to hold them all.

"Sit down, gentlemen, how can I help you this evening?"

"We're looking for someone, someone you've had dealings with in the past" said Bruce who sat to the left of Tai.

Jill stood, her guns still ready.

"You want to find someone, you should get yourself a nice P.I, I thought this was a business deal"

"It is a business deal, see it's our business to make sure there is a proper balance to the criminal underworld in this area, anyone trying to upset the balance, is
going to have to answer to us" said Bruce.

"Your threats are insignificant, Bruce, I know who you work for"

"Do you?" asked Tai.

"You're a newcomer, and you dare to question my intelligence?"

"Tai is right, you don't really know who we are, Lin, and that's good and bad" said Jill.

"Who are you looking for?"

"Someone called Renner" replied Tai.

"Never heard of him"

"You're not fooling us, mate, we know he's spoken to you, if not, we can always get the Russian to help us" said Bruce.

"You don't know the Russian" said Lin, smiling.

"We know the Russian, we're also in touch with the Americans, and that's bad for you" said Jill

Silence. A man thinking his options over. The lights flickered, and time ticked slowly by. This was the night shift, and although he would never tell Kari where he was at this hour, he still longed for answers.
The transition had occurred without a hitch, he was now working for Faraday Industries, a company with very questionable security methods.
The money was good, the company even better, and no one asked questions.
It was perfect for Tai. Lin stood, slowly, said,

"You're not a rat, Bruce"

"You should know, Lin, there have been some inquiries as to the nature of your business, the triads, the russian, sasha, they're all looking at you, looking at me, asking me to deliver, I try telling them you've done no wrong by us, but it's bad business, mate, so, consider our business transactions terminated, we apologize for wasting your time" said Bruce, as he stood up, motioned Tai to stand up, they walked all the way outside before Lin stopped them.

"Renner's here, but I don't know where, OK?"

Bruce nodded, turned around and made his way toward his car.

"What about our business?"

"What about it?" said Jill as she followed Tai who was already gone, disappearing into the night.

"Tai?"

Still lost in the dream, wondering whether it was a vision, a memory or a construct, designed to teach him a lesson.

"Tai?"

There was the voice again, it was familiar. Distant, but very familiar.
Kari.
He looked off in the distance.
Empty battlefields were no place for a teenage girl, especially his sister. A desolate wasteland laid in front of him.
Whatever battle had been fought was long over.

"Tai?"

He opened his eyes. There she was, in all her glory. She was dressed in her high school's colors, a soccer jersey on top of her green blazer.

"You look like hell" she said, a beautiful smile on her face.

"Wish I could say the same"

"What have you been up to, late nights, we don't see you anymore, is your job that demanding?"

"Something like that...late night shift is horrible, and I'm not exactly the early morning type, am I?"

"I know things have been awkward..."

"What are you talking about, Kari?"

Then he remembered...he had been so busy with his new life, he had forgotten he was supposed to repair the old one.
His last encounter with Matt and Sora had been nothing short of a disaster.

"I'll fix things, somehow" he said, his turn to smile.

"You could start by going to the game today, Davis is starting"

"Will everyone be there?"

"More or less"

"I'll be there...and I will behave..."

She smiled, and walked over to his study table, replete with books, notes, and his pistol. She had noticed it. She wanted to ask, didn't get the chance.

"You're probably wondering what that is..."

"You DID say you were a security consultant..."

"In case you're wondering, I have license to use it, to have it at home, and no, I've never used it on anyone"

"Let's hope you never do, the only thing that bothers me..."

"What?"

"Just what kind of security do you do?"

"Don't really know, I've never seen what I'm protecting, I just know it's important"

She nodded, a little peace of mind, but still very worried.
Just who were these people?
What did they do, and what did they want with her brother?
She left the room, with more questions than answers.

With no work today, Tai took to wander around the city, hitting up new restaurants and wondering just what he would make of his life. He had returned to the land of the living so fast, he really had no time to think. A clean bill of health had been his priority, followed by answers to his questions. He was still working on that last one.
He knew less than he did before.
Could he really trust the people he worked with now?
What were their real motives? Tai thought about this as he ate his sandwich, sitting on a bench in one of the many parks around the area.
He had no reason to seek company. Despite his desire for solitude, he was at peace.
Everything looked brighter. The air was sweet. The heat, tolerable for a man dressed in black.
It was the closest he had come to happy in such a long time.
His mobile rang.
His fantasy gone. No more pretending to be a normal person. No more pretending to be just like everyone else.
He answered,

"Go for Tai"

"Tai?"

The voice set him back.

'Why are you calling me?'

"Yes?"

'He doesn't remember my voice'she thought.

"Tai, it's Sora"

"How can I help you, Sora?"

"Are you busy?"

"I'm having lunch, care to join me?" he asked, taking a gamble. If it paid off, she would decline, and leave him alone, if it backfired, it meant having lunch with Sora.

"Kari told me you've been working nights, that's a rough shift"

She deflected the question. Smart.

"Yeah, it's my day off, I'm at the park, just a few blocks away from your mom's place"

Silence.

"I think I'll take you up on that offer"

"Excellent"

More silence. They each hung up, no other words spoken.

What a way to come back to reality.

She got there fast. He observed as she walked up to him, serious. She must have caught herself, because, she tried her best to smile, but it wasn't right. He said nothing, did nothing. She sat to his left. Looked the other way.

He grabbed the bag on the ground, next to his right foot.

"Sandwich?" he said, without looking at her

"Where did you get it?"

"A deli, just a few blocks from here"

"You bought two?"

"I bought five, that's my last one" he said, finally looking at her, smiling.

It was too much, she couldn't be angry anymore. She laughed, as he smiled. There she was. The person he used to know.

"Five?!"

"Five"

"Why, Tai?" she said, laughing.

"Why not? I'm hungry, and that's what I wanted..."

"We don't always get what we want, Tai"

There was silence. Maybe she shouldn't have said that. It brought on painful memories, but if he was thinking of them, it didn't show.

"I used to think that way, it's amazing what happens to you when you almost die"

"You did die, I was there" she said, still somber.

"Well, me too, doesn't mean a thing though, I mean, we're here now, aren't we? he said, smiling.

"You got me there" she said, smiling. She couldn't help but smile now.

She took a bite out of her sandwich. It was good, full of flavor, fresh, and a little spicy, oddly enough, just the way she liked them.

"You can't live your life with fear, with regret, no, I'm done with that"

She was still eating, he continued,

"I'm going to do whatever I want, whenever I want to, and with whomever I want to"

"Now you sound like you're dying all over again" she said, mouth half-full.

"Quite the contrary, young lady, I am a man reborn"

"I know your right cross is more than reborn" she said, smiling.

He smiled sheepishly,

"I AM sorry about that, it was more of a reflex than a conscious act"

"It didn't look like a reflex, that's all I'm saying"

"Really?"

"You looked like you enjoyed it"

A big smile on her face. A real smile.

"Maybe..." he paused, continued, "maybe I did, still didn't mean to break my living room coffee table doing it"

"He went down hard, didn't he?"

He sighs,

"Yes he did"

Silence. She finished the rest of the sandwich, and Tai, without missing a beat, gave her a beer.

"Beer?" she asked.

"Why not, are you driving?"

"I thought it was illegal to drink in public?"

"What cop would arrest you?"

"Several of them, as a matter of fact, I was arrested for protesting several times"

"What were you protesting?" he asked, as he opened a beer of his own.

"The medicine trials for JCS, I marched with all the people who lost their loved one...the frustration we felt was incredible, it was cathartic to do it, and that's
why I didn't mind at all when we were arrested"

She was silence. Her eyes gleamed. Tai felt something for her. Something he'd forgotten a long time ago. He felt sorry for her. He felt awful for everything he put them through. For everything he'd done to her.
He grabbed her hand, startling her, yet she didn't flinch, didn't pull back,

"I'm sorry, and I promise you I'll never hurt you like that again, none of you" he said, staring into her eyes, they were warm, caring, loving eyes.

She squeezed his hand gently, firmly,

"I know" she said, almost whispering.

Now there was silence and it seemed interminable. To an outside party, it would be nothing more than a date between two people who seemed to be perfectly matched for each other. But it wasn't that.
It was a shot at redemption, a second chance at friendship long gone.
He let her go. Took a sip of beer. She followed suit. It was good.
It was just what she needed.

"So...what do we do now?" she asked

"Help me"

She turned around to see his face, it was disconcerting to see him with short hair, dyed jet black, combed so thoroughly, and his wardrobe.
Black had never been Tai's color, but now, it was all he wore, but the worst thing, the detail that pulled at her heartstrings, was his eyes, one brown, one blue. Eyes that no longer shone with brightness and hope, and courage and love. There was nothing in his eyes anymore. Just dull colors.
How she wished she could bring back the spark that lit up his eyes so long ago.
She would try. She was sure of it now.

"Of course" she said, "what is it?"

"Help me bring us all back together, we need this, we need to start over" he said, with a small hint of concern in his voice.

She slowly smiled, one big happy smile, eyes gleaming. It was quite the sight.

"Nothing would make me happier"

He nodded and smiled.

She stood up.

"Thank you, Tai, you've given me exactly what I needed, and you can count on me"

"Good to hear" he said, finishing his beer.

"One condition, though"

"Name it"

"Please refrain from knocking out Matt with a single punch in the near future" she said, smiling, continued, "as entertaining as it is, I really do think you might hurt him one of these days"

"I can see how that could be a problem...I make no promises though"

He smiled.

She smiled.

"Good bye" she said and walked away. He nodded.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

They did share the same concern. He also worried he'd hurt him someday beyond repair.

Tai went home, surprised by his encounter with Sora. It had been pleasant, civil and above all, he had done nothing to upset her. He spent the rest of the day cleaning the apartment, reading Wealth of Nations and cleaning out his pistol. He put it back together, put away the oils, and the rags. Placed it in its holster.

There was a reason he had been issued a sidearm.
He fell asleep with terrible thoughts floating through his head.
The alarm on his watch went off. The times was 6:45 p.m.
The date was no longer important.
He no longer cared about the four years past.
They couldn't help him. Couldn't hurt him.
He looked at his mobile, an unread message...

'Tai...took the car, left you an alternate method of transportation, take care of her and return her at your discretion'
-Bruce

Tai washed his face, combed his hair, and grabbed his black leather jacket, left his car keys and went downstairs to the garage.
In place of his car, a red Ducati 999.
A helmet hung from the left side handle, a pair of matching gloves and the keys in it.
Taichi smiled.

"All right" he said softly to no one.

AN: OK, so that's that. As I've said in the past, I accept all forms of constructive criticism as well as any grammatical corrections. I'm not perfect, you know. The part with him and Sora wasn't too easy to write, if it felt awkward, then maybe it was supposed to be. The next chapter will be up very soon, 2 to 3 days max. I was supposed to be one long chapter, but I don't want you reading a lot. Take care, friends, and see you next time. The Writer.