Digimon World Tour Chapter 43: Home Away from Home, a digimon fanfic

Digimon World Tour

Recap

[Greg] We met up with Rika in San Francisco, and you would think everyone would be happy, right? Wrong! Kari showed her grittier side with a Three Doors Down cover, which somehow cheesed Matt off and made him tell her off. Kari had a nightmare... (pause) What do you mean Laylamon sneaked her way into the hotel!? Why didn't anyone tell us? Anyway, Kari had a nightmare which convinced her she was no longer worthy to hold the Crest of Light, so she decided to kill herself at midnight wearing an outfit completely made of white. After Gabumon made Matt see the error of his ways, Tai got on the phone with him and urged him on. He picked the right scantily clad Kari, and the two went to a nearby park. There, they had to face Dianamon, who put AncientGarurumon to sleep and Kari in a spell. Thanks to their bond, Matt unlocked his partner's Burst Mode, and Dianamon was defeated! L.A., here we come!

Chapter 43: Home Away from Home

Greg

We would've had Kari checked out by the label's psychologist, but Commander Sampson intervened. So in between concerts, DATS flew out the company psychologist, Dr. Akihiro Kurata, to San Francisco. He was a very nasty man who shook hands like a fish, and his breath smelled like fish as well. Nobody really liked him, Marcus and Thomas least of all. "He's an insult to the psychological profession," Norstein sniffed. "I just want to punch him in the face," Marcus said. "You want to punch everyone in the face." "Not Rika, or Kari, or Anya." "Point taken." After one session, Kari decided she'd had enough, and in her usual kind and gentle way, told him she'd no longer need his services. Dr. Kurata took this about as well as you'd expect.

We had to hurry to Los Angeles, because we had three shows there. DATS and RCA Records had managed to secure for us a mansion in Bel Air for the time we were there. We took a limo from the airport, and inside the cooler, there was a bottle of champagne (a Dom Pérignon '85). Marcus opened it, and spilled most of it on the floor and in my lap. "WHOO-HOO-HOO-HOO!" he yelled. I slowly nodded my head and replied, "And this is why we don't have champagne."

We finally arrived at the mansion, with our bags being delivered in a separate limo. Outside, we were met by a relatively handsome man in his mid-50s, who looked just like a younger Roger Moore, except with less hair. He was just standing there with his arms folded, looking like he owned the place. He walked out to the limo and helped the girls out. Kari was charmed. "Greetings, young ladies, and young gentlemen. Welcome to The Belvedere," the man said. Marcus started laughing out loud. "The 'Belvedere'. Ha ha ha ha!" The man shook his head, brushing it off. Then, he continued. "I am your landlord, and I suppose co-ed fraternity father, Maxwell Caulfield."

That name sounded very familiar to me. "Wait. Maxwell Caulfield. Wait a minute... I think I know which movie you were in," I said. Suddenly, Matt remembered something as well. "Yeah... me too." We came up with our answers at the same time. "'Grease 2'/'Empire Records'." Maxwell laughed at that. "You're both right! I was in both of those films." So, we introduced ourselves to him. Maxwell took the time to gently kiss each girl on the hand. This guy really was a gentlemen, if ever I saw one. Maybe even more than Thomas.

"So, let me see if I have each of your names correctly. The leader of the band here is Yamato, who goes by Matt..." "That's right." "And the one in the bucket hat is... T.K.?" "You got it!" "Then this one with the pants smelling of Dom Pérignon is Greg?" "Got it, Mr. Caulfield." "Maxwell, or Max, if you don't mind. And this... rough-looking fellow over here is..." He snapped his fingers over and over. "Marcus! Marcus Damon!" "Oh, right. Marcus. Thank you. And this dashing young fellow is Thomas." "Correct." "And now, the three ladies. The one with the spiked hair is Rika." "Bingo!" "Splendid. And then there's Kari..." "Yep!" "And finally, Anya." "Exactly." "Wonderful. Now, why don't you come inside, and I'll give you the tour."

Thomas

Mr. Caulfield was an expert on this particular estate. The architecture was simply superb, rivaling that of the Norstein family home in Austria. It had 13 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms, plus a pool that was decorated with the 12 signs of the Zodiac in tile on the bottom.

After the tour, he explained why he was doing what he did. It turned out that he had been in contact with our own Commander Sampson. "Commander Sampson saved my life once," he explained, "Years ago, I was touring West Palm Beach in Florida with my wife when we were held hostage in a restaurant. Your commander led the SWAT team that rescued us. After we returned to California, I found out the name of the officer and wrote a letter to him, claiming I owed him my life, and that I would return the favor if possible. I suppose this is the favor." He took a sip of his drink. "I'm renting this place for a month from the owners, the Hiltons." "Excuse me, do you mean the hotel magnate Hiltons?" I inquired. "The very ones. They allowed us to use this mansion for exterior shots for 'The Colbys'. I was Miles, the playboy son with the bad attitude." "Reminds me of someone I know," I said, looking directly at Marcus. Maxwell chuckled. "Oh really?"

"Are you saying I've got a bad attitude, huh, Nerdstein?" Marcus asked, challenging me. "'Nerdstein'? What an interesting pet name," our host commented. "A pet name? What are you getting at, buddy?" "Nothing, really. I'm attempting to figure out the dynamic between the two of you. I do it with everyone on set." "Eh, whatever. Just stay away from my girl Rika, you got that?" Our host snorted. "What gives you that idea? I'm a married man. I'm not as shallow as my characters are. Besides, even if I was, she clearly isn't my type."

Greg

We unpacked, each taking a room. Then, we made our way to the Staples Center where we'd be playing that night. We did soundchecks and everything. By 8 PM, we were ready to rock. The crowd was sold out, but the LA crowd didn't seem to care. Sure, there were always a few excited people from out of town, and a few dedicated fans who had followed us from Boston, but the locals were only mildly enthusiastic. I just couldn't get a vibe from them. Maybe they'd seen people like us all the time and thought we weren't big enough. Who knows? The next two concerts were the same. We performed our hearts out on the 7th, because that was the last concert we'd have to do for a month.

["Semi-Charmed Life [Radio Edit, Live]"

Written by Stephan Jenkins

Performed by The Teenage Wolves

Lead Vocals: Matt Ishida [Michael Reisz])

We start in Los Angeles, at the Staples Center, during a Teenage Wolves concert. Matt speaks with the audience for a second. "OK, so you know about our hit 'I Turn Around', right?" The audience cheers. "Well, our label says our song sounds just like a song that was a hit in the 90s. Only thing is, I can't think of it off the top of my head." He snaps his fingers trying to remember it. "Let me call in my little brother. Uh, T.K., what was that song again?" he asks his little brother. "I believe it was 'Semi-Charmed Life' by Third Eye Blind," he says. The audience cheers. Matt acts like he remembers now. "Oh yeah, that's right. Well, I told the label they were nuts. You really don't think I ripped off Third Eye Blind, do ya?" The audience isn't so sure. "Aww come on, guys, you're killing me." After a few seconds, he addresses the audience again. "OK, OK. How about we play that for you right now?" The audience cheers. "OK, then, here we go!" The band then starts playing as the lights come up.

Matt/T.K.:

Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...

Doo doo doo

Matt:

I'm packed and I'm holding
I'm smiling, she's living, she's golden
She lives for me, says she lives for me
Ovation, her own motivation

Matt/T.K.:

She comes round and she goes down on me

In the audience, we see Maxwell relatively enjoying himself from a seat of his own.

Matt:

And I make her smile, like a drug for you
Do ever what you wanna do, coming over you
Keep on smiling, what we go through
One stop to the rhythm that divides you

And I speak to you like the chorus to the verse
Chop another line like a coda with a curse
Come on like a freak show takes the stage
We give them the games we play, she say...

"I want something else, to get me through this
Semi-charmed kinda life, baby, baby
I want something else, I'm not listening when you say good-bye"

The joint is really rocking as both the Ishida brothers show skill with their instruments.

Matt/T.K.:

Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...

Doo doo doo

Matt:

The sky was gold, it was rose
I was taking sips of it to my nose
And I wish I could get back there, someplace back there
Smiling in the pictures you would take
Doing crystal meth will lift you up until you break
It won't stop, I won't come down
I keep stock with the tick-tock rhythm, I bump for the drop
And then I bumped up, I took the hit that I was given
Then I bumped again, then I bumped again
I said...

"How do I get back there, to the place where I fell asleep inside you?
How do I get myself back to the place where you said..."

"I want something else, to get me through this
Semi-charmed kinda life, baby, baby
I want something else, I'm not listening when you say good-bye"

It calms down a bit before going to the middle of the bridge.

Matt:
I believe in the sand beneath my toes
The beach gives a feeling, an earthy feeling
I believe in the faith that grows
And the four right chords can make me cry
When I'm with you I feel like I could die
And that would be alright, alright

The band, with the exception of Matt and Marcus, stops playing as Matt grasps the mic stand with both hands.

Matt:

And I want something else, to get me through this... life
Baby, I want something else
Not listening when you say...

The band eventually reenters.

Matt:

Good-bye, good-bye, good-bye, good-bye

Matt/T.K.:

Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...

T.K. quickly plays a chord.

Matt:

The sky was gold, it was rose (T.K: Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...)
I was taking sips of it through my nose (T.K.: Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...)
And I wish I could get back there (T.K.: Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...)
Someplace back there, in the place we used to start, ay yi yi yi (T.K.: Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...)

Matt/T.K.:

Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...

(Matt: I want something else) Doo doo doo, doo doo-doo doo...

The song ends as the two brothers duet on the last guitar tabs, then Marcus wraps it up as the audience cheers.

Greg

We introduced Max to the Digimon, and he seemed to like them. At least, he didn't mind them being around and would keep quiet about the whole thing. It was raining the day after the first concert, so we spent the afternoon watching a private collection of 'The Colbys' and 'Dynasty' studio masters. It seems all the Colbys and Carringtons ever did was fight and scheme and slap each other. "How do people even watch this?" I wondered. Veemon agreed. "Yeah, it's like nobody's getting anywhere. All these people are in suits and ties and they threaten each other. Why don't they just fight each other, or get along, or something?" Max had the answer. "It's escapism. It makes people forget their own wretched lives. It's the same with 'Dallas'." "Oh."

Kari

I tried to make Gatomon's DigiEgg very comfortable in my room. It had been at least a week, and she still hadn't hatched. "Well, this is our new home for a month. It's beautiful. Don't you think, Gatomon?" I asked. The egg said nothing. I tapped it, then put my ear up to it. Nothing was moving. "Oh no... are you even alive in there?" Maybe it had come to this. "Oh, Gatomon... I know what I did was wrong. All I want to know is, why aren't you coming out? I apologized to Marcus, and I've tried being the same me I've always been. What am I doing wrong?"

Marcus

It'd been over a week, and Agumon still hadn't come out of his DigiEgg yet. I'd been on the sidelines for over a whole week, and it was driving me nuts. I paced back and forth on the floor. "C'mon, Agumon, give me a sign or somethin'..." Nothing. "I've never felt so useless," I went on. Nothing again. I dived for the egg on my bed and shook it. "Say something already!" Again, nothing. I let out a deep sigh. "You know, if I were really your boss, you'd be fired for taking a week off without notice." The sweat from my heart made it up to my eyes. "All right, so I screwed up. I made you lose control. It's my fault, I'll admit it. But you're not really gonna hold that against me, are you, A-agumon?" No answer.

I made sure the door was shut, then I just jumped back on the bed, desperately holding that stupid DigiEgg.

Kari

"Gatomon... what I did was wrong. I forced the light, and it became darkness. I gave into temptation and went against everything I had ever believed. I'm sorry." Still no answer. The tears kept flowing as I held the egg tightly. "It will never happen again, I promise." As my tears dropped on the egg, I heard it start to crack. Finally, it fully hatched, and a yellow head with a cat-like tail bounced around my lap. It turned around, saw my face, and immediately reacted.

"Kari! Kari Kari Kari Kari Kari Kari!" Then it jumped up on my head and started licking my hair. I giggled. "Well, I'm glad you know who I am. But which one are you?" "Oh, Kari, you probably don't recognize me. I'm Nyaromon, but someday I'll be Gatomon again. Kari, I heard every word you said, and I forgive you." I picked up Nyaromon from off my head and hugged her. "Thank you so much, Nyaromon." I kissed her on the top of her head.

Marcus

Koromon was trying to eat my head, just like the last time. I pulled him off. "Koromon!" "Boss!" I was going to cuddle him a little, but I finally let him back on the bed. "Hey Boss... you crying?" I wiped away my tears. "No, you idiot! These are sweat drops from my heart!" We laughed about that. "Boss, I'm hungry." "Me too. Why don't we raid the fridge?" "Yay!"

We walked down to the kitchen where Kari and her Digimon had the same idea. All four of us got a snack, just happy to be there with our friends again.

Greg

Now that we'd taken a break from the concerts, we were settling into a new routine. We were going to be idle, filthy rich people. "Screw it," Marcus said immediately. "Hmmm? What do you mean by that?" Max asked. "You heard what I said. You're not gonna turn me into one of those people. I've seen those DVDs, and it's not gonna happen. I'm gonna practice my drumming, go out and party, and then who knows what else I'll do? But what you're not gonna do is teach me how to play croquet, or serve tea, or whatever it is you rich people do."

"Um, Marcus... I'm rich, but I don't do any of those things," Rika reminded him. "...Oh." Max just snickered at the whole thing. "Yeah, go ahead and laugh, old man. Old rich man, old rich Rex Manning!" Marcus yelled. That only made him laugh even more, pounding his fist on the table.

"Has Mr. Caulfield lost his mind?" Anya asked me. "If he hasn't, it's a great defense mechanism," I whispered back.

Just then, an elderly lady entered through the breakfast room door. "Hallo, luv," she said. Then, she and Max quickly kissed on the lips. We didn't know what to think. "Um, Maxwell... who is this, this... eh, woman?" Matt stammered. "Oh, heh heh heh. Pardon me. Everyone, this is Juliet Mills. Juliet, these are our guests for the month, the Teenage Wolves." We made some attempt to wave hello.

T.K. tried to smooth things over. "Ms. Mills, it's nice to meet you. Your son is really awesome." "Oh, you've met him?" she asked. "Well, yeah, isn't that Max?" "No, silly. You mean our son Sean." "You don't mean..." Max and Juliet looked so natural together in that moment. "We're married."

"You're married!?" all of us except Thomas asked at the same time. "To each other?" Rika added. They both nodded. "I'll... be right back," Rika said. I don't know what she did when she left, but it didn't sound good.

"Of course, I knew it all the time," Thomas claimed after she left. I raised an eyebrow. "You knew, and you didn't tell us?" "I did my research last night, and considered it irrelevant. Apparently, I was wrong." "It really isn't relevant, Thomas. True love knows no age," Max chimed in. Marcus snickered, "You're a cougar hunter." "And you, sir, are a loudmouthed punk. I would take you over my knee if you were my child." "You wanna bet?" Max was cool as a freshly pickled cucumber. "I'll admit you have the age advantage, and you probably are more in shape than I..." He then stood up, making his six-foot presence known. "But I would not suggest picking a fight with me." "Bring it!"

So, we went to a gym, gave each fighter an hour to train and warm up, and then the fight began. I don't want to bore you with details, so we'll just say that Max definitely earned Marcus' respect. We went home rather quickly. Marcus wanted to forget the whole thing ever happened

We had a nice, quiet dinner where Max gave us our first lesson in fitting in with the fabulously wealthy.

Thomas quickly became promoted from teacher's pet to teacher's aide. The Digimon were included to fill the table and so they could learn as well. The spread was magnificent. Well, it was decent for ten people and eight Digimon. "There aren't any fried eggs, though," Agumon noted. "Agumon, at a formal supper such as this, you must make your dietary restrictions known in advance," Juliet instructed. "I don't have any of those, I just like fried eggs." Juliet called the chef over and instructed him to make some fried eggs.

Marcus was no better. Both human and Digimon acted like swine, stuffing their faces. Agumon found something that he didn't like. "You're not supposed to eat the plates, you know," Marcus said. The dinosaur-type Digimon went for his finger bowl and drank up the water in it. Unfortunately, this misinformed Kari as she went for her bowl as well. Thomas caught this. "You're not supposed to drink that, it's for washing your hands," he calmly, but quickly, informed her. The girl gasped and dropped it, spilling the water and lemons on the floor. Marcus didn't have any concern at all as he drank the water in his finger bowl. "Aww man, the water here is absolutely delicious. Here, try some, Kari," he offered as he extended the bowl to her. Juliet covered her face with her palm.

After dessert (Flame on the Iceberg), we were treated to some after-dinner entertainment: Max performing his classic hit "Say No More" from the movie "Empire Records". It had some audience participation because we were the band.

["Say No More (Mon Amour)" (from Empire Records)

Written by Ralph Schuckett & Chris Ward

Performed by The Teenage Wolves

Lead Singer: Maxwell Caulfield]

Marcus taps out the beat and the band gets started. Max borrows some of his cheesy dance moves from the music video he filmed for the movie.

Max:

You call me on my car phone with that je ne se quois
You say you need a little of my ooh la la
I know you get lonely in your canopy bed
Well say no more baby, I'll be running everywhere

Max/Band:
Say no more, Mon Amour

Max:
I'll bring my lovin' right to your front door

Max/Band:
Here I come, baby, je t'adore
Lips are for kissing, baby
Say no more

Juliet and the Digimon seem to enjoy it. Trivia: Ralph Schuckett, who co-wrote this song, also wrote the theme music to "Kate and Allie" and "Another World", and was the senior composer for 4Kids Productions.

Max:
Say no more (Anya/Kari: oohh say no more)
Mon amour
Uh huh
(Anya/Kari: mon amour)

You greet me with a smile and a glass of rosé
I find myself distracted by your black negligee
You tell me everything with that look on your face
Well say no more baby, let's cut to the chase

Kari and Anya wince at some of the lyrics.

Max/Band:
Say no more, Mon Amour

Max:
I'll bring my lovin' right to your front door

Max/Band:
Here I come, baby, je t'adore
Lips are for kissing, baby
Say no more

The bridge mostly consists of Max passionately making out with his wife Juliet (who is 18 years older than he is) and making various steamy remarks in French. Marcus makes mental notes of what he's saying, so he can use some of it on Rika.

Max/Band:
Say no more, Mon Amour

Max:
I'll bring my lovin' right to your front door

Max/Band:
Here I come, baby, je t'adore
Lips are for kissing, baby
Say no more

It ends with Max breathing out more French phrases to his wife. The band stops playing and walks out, with the Digimon staying behind.

Greg

After the entertainment, and before we were dismissed for the night, Max made a few remarks. "I thought you all did... reasonably well. There's plenty of room for improvement. You will have to improve because I am inviting Joan Collins to dine with us next week." Marcus and Rika groaned. "And I'm expecting all of you to be on your best behavior and in your best apparel," our host went on. More groans from everyone.

Marcus

I don't know who's worse. Commander Sampson, or this guy. This is torture.

Rika

Oh no. Not Joan Collins. Not the woman from Dynasty. If she's anything like what I've seen, she's going to be dressed to the nines, and Max will expect us to be dressed up too. The fine dining I can handle, the wardrobe I can't.

Kari

At last! After watching it, now I can live it! What color should I go with?

In the Bagra Army's headquarters, Laylamon has just finished giving her report to Lord Bagra and AxeKnightmon. "Your incompetence astounds me!" AxeKnightmon shouts. "Well, actually, it was a very good plan. That Yamato fouled everything up," Laylamon counters. "Oh well, no matter. Now that they have survived, we will simply have to come up with another plan of attack."

Author's Notes:

Yes, this is a slower and more filler-based chapter than most, but I figured we all needed to cool down after that intense psychological drama with Kari.

I was going to use the Carrington mansion, better known in real life as the Filoli Estate, but it located thirty miles south of San Francisco.

We'll try to keep things interesting around here. After all, we do have a wedding coming up. The question I have for you is this: I am considering giving Mr. Caulfield a Digimon of his own, a Candlemon (which Digivolves to Wizardmon, then Mistymon, and then Dynasmon). Granted, he won't become a permanent member of the team (like they need a 55-year-old British actor joining them), but he will act as more of an adult force (Commander Sampson without the experience, and another Royal Knight joining the team). Would you like to see this happen?