"Well, you'll have to tell her eventually…" Platinum tapped her index finger on the reception desk. Will nodded. He glanced at her hands, admiring her glossy violet nails. She looked very nice today, wearing a lovely white blouse and khaki shorts. Her hair was tied into two long pigtails.

"You sure got dolled up today." Will tried to make small talk, shuffling the large knapsack on his back.

Platinum stuck her finger in the Tamer's face. "Hey. This isn't about me. It's about Soul. There's no way I'm letting you prolong this." She then pointed to a door. "Get in there."

Will sighed as her stumbled across the tiled floors of the hospital's reception area and opened a door. He wished he had Blacky at his side instead of in his D-Wrists, but the tamers thought it would be a bad idea to take their Digimon inside a cleanly place such as a hospital.

"Hey, Will." Soul smiled. Her voice was still scratchy from the battle three days ago. Will shivered as he noticed the pink stained gauze that poked out from a disposal bin not far from them. The blonde tamer wasn't alone, as Viral and Spade were there as well.

"So Will…" Platinum appeared, blocking Will's exit. He swallowed hard and walked over to Soul's bed.

"Will. I'm so glad that you're okay." Soul blushed. "I… I'm sorry I got us both hurt. I wasn't in the right mind, you see… But you're okay."

Will cracked a solemn smile. He noticed her hair, neat and trimmed at her shoulders. Platinum must have straightened it for her. He remembered when they carried her to the hospital. Her golden locks had looked as though they were hacked off.

"You saved the day, didn't you?" The girl poked Will in the shoulder. "You're really good at thinking your way out of tough situations. Spade and Viral said that they'd let you tell the story."

The dark haired tamer shot a look at the two tamers on the other side of the bed. Spade grinned nervously as he shrugged his shoulders. Viral stayed silent.

"Will, before you tell me, do you have Lopmon with you? You saved her from Heart, right?"

Here it was. What he was dreading. Will's knapsack grew heavy on his shoulders. "Um, she didn't kill her. I made sure of it."

Platinum ventured into the room and kicked Will's heel, silently scolding him for dragging this conversation on. Will nodded and sat on the bed. "Soul… I have to tell you something…"

"What is it?" Soul's eyes softened, her bubbly mood subsiding into mild curiosity.

"When I got to the dock, I got really heated when I saw a big monster attacking you guys. Please understand that I was coming off of the shock of almost being dead."

"Uh-huh…" Soul murmured. Will knew that she could feel the tension that beginning to form around the tamers.

"Well, Blacky and I decided that the best course of action was…" Will shifted, trying to find the right words. "No, what I mean is, I didn't bother to get a rundown on the situation and I went in without thinking."

The color drained from Soul's face. "Will… What are you saying?"

Will choked on his words. "Soul… Lopmon didn't survive the fight. I… I… killed her…"

Soul's pupils shrank in horror. "No… That can't be right. Heart must have done it… Not you. No, not Will."

The male tamer removed his sack. He opened it, revealing a brown egg with pink stripes. "I'm really sorry, Soul. I didn't know… I-"

Soul immediately burst into tears. "My baby!" She wailed, snatching the egg form Will's hands. "How! How could you let this happen? Will, how could you do this?"

"I… Soul, it was a mistake. I had no idea about the Dark Digivolution." He neared Soul, ready to embrace her. Pain shot through Will's head as Soul's lashed out at him, driving her fist into his cheek. He stumbled to the floor, dazed.

"Damn it! You said you'd protect us! Instead, you murdered my child!" Soul was beside her. She forced herself off the bed, swiping at Will with blind fury. Spade and Viral grabbed her arms. She roared as Platinum tried to push her back into the bed.

"I'm sorry! I wasn't- It didn't-" Will stammered, still shocked by the girl's sudden outburst.

"You bastard…" Soul cursed. "You! I won't forgive you! I'll kill you, you son of a-"

"Enough!" Platinum slapped Soul across her face, leaving a red print on her cheek. "You act as though Will's the only one to blame here. In case you've forgotten, you were the one who caused Lopmon to Dark Digivolve! Will wouldn't have to kill her if you hadn't messed up!"

Soul was breathing heavily, tears streaming down her face. "Will said that-"

"Don't even try." Viral was the one to speak up. He grabbed Soul by the front of her gown. "You were the one who used Lopmon as a meatshield! You turned her into Wendigomon!" The teen pushed her onto the bed. "You effed up! Now you have pay for it!"

The blonde turned her head. There was complete silence within the room.

"I don't want to die." Soul said finally. The magnitude of the situation finally seemed clear to her. "You're right. I did this. I put myself above my own child. I was so frightened, I… I killed my daughter…" The blonde covered her face with her palm. Her face turned red. "But I couldn't help myself."

"What is she talking about?" Spade asked.

"I was afraid!" Soul cried. "I didn't want to die!" Her frantic crying turned into painful wails that rang through the hospital hallways. The tamers looked away in pity. "And now my fear took away my sunshine! I did it! I killed Lopmon! I did! I did!" She clutched the egg with her other hand, cradling it as her tears fell on its shell.

Viral lifted his hand, noticing splotches on blood on his fingers. "Guys, get a doctor! Her wound's opened up!"

…

"Atomic Blaster!" BlackWarGrowlmon bellowed, firing hot plasma at a swarm of seven Waspmon. The yellow and black hornet Digimon were terrorizing an elementary school. The playground was a mess from laser stings from the Insect Digimon, and Blacky wasn't helping with his clumsy feet making impressions in the earth.

The Waspmon scattered, buzzing furiously, as one was vaporized. Another's wing was grazed by Blacky's attack, and it fluttered weakly a few feet from the ground. "Get it!" Will commanded. Blacky rushed at the injured Digimon and slashed it in half with his blades. The Waspmon exploded into data bits.

Blacky roared, stunning the other Waspmon in the air. The cable on the back of his metal torso floated up and stabbed at the giant bugs, turning two into data.

"Okay, Blacky! Fly up and finish it!" Will commanded, a slight edge in his voice. Blacky obeyed, firing up his boosters and crashed into another Waspmon.

"Turbo Stinger!" The last three Waspmon shot energy blasts from their cannon-like stingers. BlackWarGrowlmon deflected the blasts with its arms. He roared to intimidate the Digimon again.

The biggest Waspmon buzzed angrily at the other two, who in turn made distressed noises. The Waspmon then rushed one of his subordinates, driving its stinger into it. It screeched and dispersed into bits. The second cried out and began to run away, but the big one blasted it in the back. It too exploded.

"What the-" Will gasped as the big Waspmon began to absorb the data. Its body contorted and morphed into a new form. A giant bee with a massive weapons container on its back took Waspmon's place. Its stinger morphed into a large rail cannon with bumblebee stripes.

Will's DX-Wrist whined as it spit out info on the new Digimon. "CannonBeemon. An Ultimate Level Virus Type Digimon. Special moves are Rail Cannon and Sky Rocket." The teen read out loud.

"Blue Flare Breath!" Blue flames engulfed the Insect Digimon. Will saw Coredramon flying into view, his mother Jerri on his back.

"Mom! I don't need your help right now." Will grumbled as Coredramon landed. "Blacky and I can take care of ourselves."

"I know." Jerri rustled Will's hair. "I just wanna get in on the action. Is that so wrong?"

The dark-haired tamer shoved her hand away. All Will wanted was to blow off some steam by blowing up some Digimon. "Yes! It's my kill!" He growled as he pointed at CannonBeemon. "Blacky! Set!"

"Atomic Blaster!" BlackWarGrowlmon's chest erupted in a blast of energy. It missed the nimble Ultimate, who in turn charged its cannon.

"Rail Cannon!" A laser shot from the Ultimate, grazing Blacky's shoulder. Data spilled from the metal like blood. CannonBeemon then rammed into Blacky at blazing speeds, dashing away and striking again before he could react.

Coredramon took off, much to Will's dismay. The dragon tackled the bee midair, causing it to teeter. Blacky took this opportunity to clip its wing with his blades.

"Sky Rocket!" The Ultimate shrieked as missiles streamed out of its container. Blacky took the blast head-on, intent on making sure none of them hit the school, which wasn't too far behind them.

Coredramon roared and smacked CannonBeemon with its tail, smashing it into the earth. The bee wasn't finished however, and shot another blast from its cannon, impaling its wing.

"Coredramon! Straighten yourself!" Jerri called as the Champion plummeted. He straightened his body and tilted his wings, granting him a safer crash. Jerri rushed to the dragon as he degenerated into Dracomon.

"Blacky!" Will yelled. "Take it down!"

"Right!" The dark dragon bellowed, speeding towards the Insect Digimon, who hovered weakly above the ground. "Double Edge!" Blacky's arms collided with CannonBeemon's cannon. The two pushed against each other, trying to topple one another.

"I said, TAKE IT DOWN!" Will thundered. BlackWarGrowlmon's pupils shrank, and he let out a deafening roar. He forced CannonBeemon backwards, cleaving through the Ultimate like butter. It scattered into data, which then floated into Will's DX-Wrist.

"50 Data Points collected!" The DX-Wrist chimed.

"Not bad, Will." Jerri ran up to her son and placed a hand on his shoulder. He shrugged it off. "Will?" She asked, surprised.

The young tamer's eyes were different. His irises were blood red, and his pupils were reptilian-like, narrow slits filled with anger. He made a low growling sound.

"Will!" Jerri said again, louder. Will blinked. His eyes returned to their normal color.

"What?" He groaned, holding his head. "My head hurts now."

"You got pretty heated back there." Jerri sounded concerned. "Are you okay?"

Blacky degenerated and joined Will's side. The male tamer shrugged. "I just got a lot on my mind. That's all."

"Is it Soul?"

"No duh, Mom." The tamer touched his cheek, which still stung.

"Will, you know you're the leader here, right?" Jerri placed her hands on Will's shoulders. "You have to learn to lead your friends without hesitation. You'll have to learn to control your emotions so you can lead efficiently."

"Since when?" Will was taken aback. "Who made me leader?"

Jerri chuckled. "Your friends did. Haven't you noticed how they have been going to you for instruction? You're a natural born leader."

"I sure do screw up a lot."

"Of course you will!" Dracomon chimed. "No one is perfect. You just have to learn."

"Were you the leader when you went to the Digital World?" Will asked.

His mother shook her head. "Your father was our leader. Him and Liollmon didn't start off well, but in time, they became wonderful leaders. It was all thanks to their hard work. Not to mention that they always talked to the group to figure out what we had to do."

Will nodded, scratching behind Blacky's ear. Screams of awe erupted from behind him as a group of kids appeared. The all stared at him, wide eyed.

"Wow!" A boy said. "That was so cool! You totally destroyed those Digimon!"

The teen smiled nervously. He still wasn't used to the fact that so many people knew about Digimon now.

A little girl hugged Blacky. "Thank you for saving our school!"

"Aw, it was nothing!" The dark dragon squeaked. "It's our job to protect everyone from bad Digimon!"

A young woman, probably a teacher, called the children. They groaned and began to disperse.

"I wanna be just like him when I grow up!" Will heard a child murmur. "I wanna get a Digimon friend too, and fight bad ones!"

The tamer sighed. I may look like fun, he thought, but there's much more to being a tamer than fighting.

An alarm from the DX-Wrist shook Will from his thoughts. "Another one?" He glared at the gauntlet, which was displaying a map and a glowing dot.

"I'm going to get dinner on." Jerri patted her son's head. "Be back before six."

"Here, take Thunderbirmon to get home." Will pressed a button on his gauntlet, releasing the massive blue thunderbird. Jerri nodded her thanks as she and Dracomon mounted the Digimon and took off.

"C'mon Blacky." Will stretched his body. "One more for the day."

…

A pale blue sky overlooked the concrete jungle of Brooklyn. The sun drooped lazily in the sky. It was a calm afternoon, where one could sit and watch the world go by, a state of bliss overtaking them. Unless you were a lost Digimon.

"Oh… What am I doing here, Culu?" A small creature waddled through a dank alleyway. It was pure white, save for its tips of its feet and crinkly ears. A symbol consisting of a red triangle surrounded by three smaller black triangles adorned his head.

The Digimon's large green eyes were laced with worry. "One second I'm at the Village of Beginning, greeting all the newborns, and the next, I'm thrown into some crazy new world!" It stamped its tiny feet. "I wanna go home, Culu!" It wailed.

"Hey! Are you lost?" The Digimon's ears twitched as a young girl called to him. He turned and saw her, interest in his eyes.

The girl had long black hair tied into a side ponytail. She had two long bangs hanging from either side of her head with a bell tied to each. She wore a pink sweater and blue skirt, not to mention bright yellow shoes.

"My name is Risa. What's yours?" She bent down and held out her hand to the Digimon.

"Calumon!" He laughed. "You're funny looking for a Digimon."

"I'm no Digimon!" Risa joined in with the Digimon's laughter. "I'm a human! You're in the Human World!"

"Really, Culu?" Calumon's ears flew open, taking a wing like shape. He floated above Risa, who stood up and caught him. "It's weird here. But I like you."

"I like you too, Calumon." The girl said. "Do you want to come with me and be my partner Digimon?"

"Partner?" Calumon pondered for a moment. "Yeah! That sounds like fun!"

Risa squealed as she hugged the little Digimon close. "Yay! We'll have soo much fun!"

"Risa!" A masculine voice called out. "Where are you?"

"Oops. Calumon, in here." Risa stuffed the small monster down her sweater. "I don't know if my brother would like it if I kept a Digimon."

Calumon responded with an understanding 'Calu!' as Risa bounded out of the alley and onto the sidewalk.

"There you are." A black haired teen with a gold headband took hold of Risa. "I was worried about you. Don't run off like that again."

"Sorry, Kai." Risa pouted. She peered behind her brother. A cream colored dog eyed her with concern. "Hello, Lar!"

Labramon nodded. "You should be more careful…" He growled under his breath to make sure no bystanders heard him.

"Okay. I'm sorry again." She petted the Digimon, who in turn jumped up and licked her cheek.

"We need to get home now." Kai announced. "Dinner's almost ready, and I have to go to work too."

"Are you ever going to tell me what you do at work, Kai?" Risa took her brother's hand. "And why you need Lar for it?"

Kai and Labramon exchanged looks of uncertainty. "I already told you, Risa." Kai chuckled as he led her down the street. "We're making a better world."