Act 1: Beating Heart

Segment 1: Come From Away

Chapter 1-6: Don't Move

While other people might be sleeping in or enjoying a brunch with friends and family, Asuka was busy elsewhere: the soccer pitch. There were a few people standing around with clipboards, after all, and she was standing around professional soccer players, who had a bye for the week, so there was a training game today instead. She held her head up high, standing out to the sideline, tucked just a touch inside on the right. She'd been told to hold a mid-high attacking line and wait for long diagonals.

She spotted the deep-lying midfielder look up. Here it comes! She began to pace toward the defensive line, checking how far back her opponents were standing. One of them had made the mistake of falling too far back. The offside trap did not exist. She broke into a jog as the ball floated up in the air and watched as it came down right in front of her. Her opposite number was too slow to react, and with a deft touch and flick, she was gone, and cutting toward the edge of the box.

"Cross!" yelled a teammate, wearing a training bib. Asuka took the ball to the goal line and sent in a hard, low ball across the face of goal. The spinning ball skidded across the turf, curling away from two defenders, and right into the path of the teammate who had yelled for it. She was more than ready to take the shot. They watched in expectation as she swung through…

And the goalkeeper made a heroic fingertip save, jumping up to protect the top corner. The ball clipped the crossbar on its way out for a corner. Her teammate knelt in the turf, not believing how the keeper had managed to keep that one out. Asuka came over and hugged her. "Next time," she said.

The resulting corner was a bit short and was easily headed away, so it forced Asuka's side to scramble defensively. She hustled her way to her wing and got in the way of the passing options, forcing the left back to send the ball back to the goalkeeper. Counter successfully stopped. She checked over her shoulder at her agent and high school coach, who was in attendance today. She gave her a thumbs up and a wide smile. It seemed a few other people on the sideline had taken notice.

Asuka returned her attention to the game in front of her. The ball was at the other touch line now, giving her a chance to walk and catch her breath. With three people standing around her, the best she could do was cover the zone and react when needed, at least according to the drafted game plan.

The opponents worked in a cross of their own. Her team's keeper looked up and quickly threw the ball out, hoping to start something. The midfielders looked up. Here we go again! This time the defensive line knew better than to let her roam and kept her tightly marked. But she had already shoulder-checked and saw the right fullback in support. A deft backheel later and her teammate zoomed past with the ball as the coach on the sideline clapped in encouragement. Asuka made her cutting run in support. With the opposing left back distracted, the centre backs occupied with a tall striker and her supporting attacking midfielder, and the other team's midfielders caught ball-watching for a moment, Asuka was slipped a lateral pass. Just maybe – maybe – she had a shot of her own. The angle was hard, but if she dared to use her weak foot…!

The ball came across her body, and she opened her hips. It was awkward, as she was right-footed. She couldn't go for the far corner. But maybe she just had enough of a window!

The goalkeeper tried to close the gap left below her body, but she was just fractions of a second too slow. The ball flew between her legs and into the back of the net.

Asuka was immediately surrounded by her teammates. It turned out that was the last action of the training match, too. Applause came from the benches. "Well done girls!" the coach shouted. The goal had preserved the draw between the two sides. "And Asuka, you really impressed today. I hope to see you in a game soon!"

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, bowing slightly.

"Just eighteen? Wow. Not even done high school yet." "That was some really impressive observation, too. Wasn't she listed on the provisional U-20 squad a bunch of times too?" Her teammates – and her opponents – were complimentary. "What a shot that was! Hey Asuka, wasn't that your weak foot?"

She giggled nervously. "I wasn't sure about the far corner, but it already passed to my left foot by then, so I had to shoot. I'm glad it worked out."

"No need to feel bad for wanting it yourself. Any of us would too!" Her teammate, who'd had the shot saved, side-hugged her. "I'll score some other time, it's fine. Besides, that save is why Kurumi is our starting keeper. Right, Kurumi?"

Kurumi flicked her short hair to the side. "That's what I do."

Even after the shower, Asuka's heart was still a bit jittery. If anything, it was more jittery than before. She looked around at the other professionals, and at the locker room. Maybe… maybe she could dare to dream.

Her agent was waiting outside, ecstatic. "You're on all of their shortlists."

"What?!"

"Yeah, for the next season. I told them you wanted to at least finish high school properly, but I guess some of them are a little impatient."

"Oh my god. That's amazing!"

"Congrats, Asuka. There might even be interest from abroad, if you want it."

"As in…?"

"NWSL. One of the scouts was from the Portland Thorns."

Asuka was taken aback. "No way." Her agent nodded. "I… oh gosh, there were a lot of people there."

"Are you intimidated?"

Asuka laughed nervously. "A little, to be honest."

"It's natural to be intimidated. Don't let that stop you!" Her agent had to make his way off to another match for someone else. He waved goodbye and took off, letting Asuka bask in a little bit of glory on her way home.

The sun was on its way down by the time she had finished her train journey. Unfortunately, the club's training pitch was a long way away from home, or at least it felt like it. Maybe the excitement was making time feel longer. She emerged from the platform and headed to street level, earbuds in her ears, hype music on. She nodded to the beat, not caring that a few people were staring. She was in a great mood.

A notification sound came through her earbuds. Who dared interrupt her jam session?

• • • • • • •

Yuuka~

heeey~
How did it go?
15:57

aaa
15:58

?
15:58

aaaaaAA
15:58

u ok?
15:58

AAAAAAAAAA
15:58

asuka you ok?
15:58

i scored
they loved it
15:59

oh myyyy~
15:59

hehehehe
15:59

• • • • • • •

Of course it was Yuuka. Who else? Ah, she worried so much about other people. Asuka grinned as she made her way up to her apartment. Her parents were on a shopping adventure, or so they had said as much earlier, so they wouldn't be home yet.

Apparently, someone – or something – didn't know. What was that? Asuka squinted from down the hall at the balcony. Was that… a bird? That was a frickin' big bird if it were a bird. It had wings and all, and two legs, and a beak. For all intents and purposes, it was a bird. And three claws on each wing. Wait, what?

Asuka blinked as she put her soccer bag down, thoroughly confused and mildly concerned. She pulled her earbuds out and left them on the table. What the hell was this?

It was apparently daytime napping, sat against the balcony wall, facing the inside of their apartment. Was it wearing a headband with a feather?

Asuka shook her head. Boy, this was one hell of a day. "Wait!" she exclaimed. "That – no! No way!" Her hands covered her open mouth and looked around, as though someone would have heard her. She walked towards the balcony door and slid the glass door open. The sound of cars came through, as well as some bug making a noise outside – and the sound of gentle sleep.

"This has gotta be… but there's no way!" she wondered aloud.

Hawkmon snorted and awoke. "Wha- ahhahh!" It yelled and tried to back up.

"Shhhh! Don't. Move."

Hawkmon seemed terrified. It choked out, "I – I won't!". It stared at Asuka with wide eyes as she looked it up and down and all over.

"A real, genuine, Hawkmon, huh?"

"T-t-t-that would b-b-be me," it stuttered.

"Neat." She held out her hand. "I'm Asuka! Nice to meet you."

"I-" Hawkmon started. "I- uhh, yes!" It hopped to its feet, regaining its composure. "Very well met!" It shook her hand with a wing.

"Huh, I had no idea your wings were so flexible."

"They are a marvel of Digimon!" It bowed deeply. "My apologies! This must be your residence. Forgive me for trespassing!"

"Hey, no problem at all. You just needed somewhere to nap for a bit, huh? Couldn't have picked a better place."

"I – I see. Indeed!"

Asuka walked back into the apartment, but Hawkmon didn't follow. "You can come in, you know."

"Ah! Thank you!" The apartment was cooler than the outdoors. Asuka slid the door shut.

"So," she said, opening a sports drink, "how did you get here?"

Hawkmon stood right in front of the balcony doors. "Ah, a terrifying story. I was minding my own business in the Digital World, flying about with some friends, when the sky darkened and Dark Digimon invaded!"

Asuka blinked. "This sounds like a very bad time."

"It was! And so we were harassed out of the sky, and got separated from each other. For hours we were doing nothing but dodging attack after attack!" Hawkmon shuddered. Even now it could still remember the hot flashes of energy beams. "Ah, if it weren't for Omegamon…"

"Who? Omegamon… oh, that one. Takaharu's favourite," commented Asuka.

"Who's Takaharu? Wait! How do you humans know who Omegamon is?!"

Asuka cackled. "Ah… that's too funny. Takaharu's a friend of mine. He's been obsessed with Digimon ever since we were kids."

Hawkmon seemed to understand what was happening. "Oh, so just like we have legends of the Human World, you must have stories of your own about ours!"

Asuka nodded. "I don't know how much of them are true, if any of it, but that's exactly what's happened. Man, the look on Takaharu's face – hey, just a sec, let me take a picture of you." Asuka whipped out her phone and snapped a picture of Hawkmon. "He's going to love this!"

"Is this a good idea-"

"Of course, it's a good idea!"

Hawkmon seemed nervous. "I don't think all humans will react very well to finding out about Digimon. I think I've already scared a few other humans off myself," it admitted.

"Bah, they're just anxious little things."

"Little? They seemed quite tall."

"Okay, so maybe I'm a bit short, so what?" Asuka shrugged, waving her phone around. She couldn't wait for Takaharu's response. What would he think? He'd probably think she asked Rei to photoshop Hawkmon in. "Ah, Takaharu, just you wait – you can meet Hawkmon in person!" she giggled as she tapped her message in and sent it.

A quiet Sunday night, just as Ryuta preferred it. A faint late-night breeze whistled through the fencing on the roof of the apartment. The management had been spending a lot of effort on improving the roof access and garden for a year now, and so it was a nice little place with some benches and planters. It was great for clearing his mind when he needed some peace.

He sighed, looking out at the night lights of Sumida. From up here, he had an unobstructed view of Tokyo Skytree. According to Takaharu, it made the city feel similar to Toronto. He was glad it didn't for himself. Toronto, huh? He'd been in the same class as Takaharu before this year, but he never knew he wasn't the only one who came from Canada. Not that the two of them would have crossed paths as kids, though. Ryuta himself was from Vancouver, or technically, Burnaby, but nobody over here in Japan could pin Burnaby or the other suburbs on a map. The innocent lie was easier to tell.

His sister, Haru, was starting to act more and more like himself with every year. He crossed his arms on the fencing, and leaned his forehead against his arms. Looking down had stopped giving him nausea a long time ago, though occasionally, he still wondered if the fence would give way.

She was starting to come into her own as a person. It was a bit bitter for him to swallow. She used to be so innocent and curious, but now she was finding her own interests, had her own opinions, and expressed herself with strength and vigour. She loved to draw, but he never had the patience to learn that. It was a bit embarrassing that there was something he couldn't help her with now. "Haru," he muttered, "are you going to grow up as fast as I did?"

The wind replied with intensity, howling as it passed through the metal grating. "Please don't. It's not healthy for you."

It had been a year. A year since… Ryuta cringed. It would be best not to think about it anymore. There was nothing he could do, or anyone could have done. He did his part. He tried his best. Right? He choked back tears. It was half a world away. The other side of the planet. Toronto, eh?

Ryuta turned open his wallet. He still kept his British Columbia health card on him, despite not having gone back since he left shortly after Haru was born. His parents had said they wanted to give them the choice of citizenship. He figured he had already made up his mind: whatever got him as far away from them as he could.

The night breeze grew colder as the darkness sapped the warmth from the earth. He had the grades to do it. It was just a matter of pulling the trigger, of making the choice. He could reclaim his old home province for himself. Maybe… maybe he just needed an opportunity to wash away the memories of being a kid. Rewrite his time in BC. Reclaim his story.

His face twitched. Sometimes, the feeling came back raw on his cheek. But even then, it was the words, the scowl, the angry voice that hurt the most. Fortunately, mother Kanae and father Hideaki had learned not to do that again with Haru. Though, he wondered, if he hadn't so vocally protected her… would they still?

He shook his head and rubbed his face. It was about time he stopped ruminating on these things, but ruminating was so often all he had left. It was like a crappy restaurant you felt compelled to return to, not because it was good, but because it was familiar, and they knew your name and listened patiently as you laid out your life to be carved at the table. He turned around to head back to the apartment.

A pair of violet eyes stared back at him. They approached him slowly. Two rows of fangs glinted in the moonlight and night lights of Sumida. Then, then there were the shiny, bright white scales and the powerful, membrane-joined wings. It was an unmistakeable form.

Ryuta stared, mouth agape. Surely his eyes were deceiving him. These things should be myths – fiction – relegated to the bins of desire and allegory. What, then, was this thing padding quietly toward him? It stared up at him with rounded pupils. The violet irises almost seemed to glow in the night.

"You won't run?" it asked softly. "The others did." Ryuta's breath hitched.

There was no way, of course, but then again, dragons shouldn't exist.

"Of course not." Ryuta knelt down. The dragon was perhaps the size of a large dog – somewhere between an unusually bulky German Shepherd and a Saint Bernard, and almost purely white-scaled, if it were not for its deep violet breast plates and wings. Little nodules of amethyst-like growths dotted its back and limbs. It had a fist-sized amethyst for a tail tip, while gold horns swept back from its head, along with its two rigid ears and a third, knife-like horn growing from its snout. Its claws, three on each limb, were also gold. Ryuta figured, if it wanted to, it could slice his arm open if it charged him. As it swept its head from side to side, he marvelled at the purple blade edge of its snout horn.

"Why not? All the others run in fear. What makes you so special?" The dragon halted just a metre from him.

"I have no reason to fear a dragon."

"Oh?" The dragon charged him, testing him. Ryuta blinked, his body twitching backward. The dragon gazed at him, walking to his left. It ruffled its purple wings. "You tell the truth."

"I try my best."

"Tell me. This is the Human World, correct?"

"Yes. Tokyo, Japan. Sumida Ward. Though I hardly think that matters right now."

"In time, I'll learn. And your name?"

"Ryuta. It, hah… It means large and great dragon."

The dragon snorted, amused, and put its paws up on Ryuta's knees, its snout right up against his face. Ryuta could feel the hot air blowing against his neck. "Amedramon."

Ryuta's face went from awe to surprise. "Dra… mon?" He blinked. "I've… never seen a Dramon like you before."

"So, there are other Digimon out here then."

"I, well… in stories, and legends," Ryuta confessed. "Perhaps there might be others, but I've yet to see any besides you."

"Don't move."

"What?" Amedramon's claws poked at his skin as it managed to climb onto his back. "Geez, you're hefty."

"Stand up for me, would you? You said this place was Sumida Ward?"

Ryuta managed to stand upright. Amedramon was still just as tall as he was, but it insisted on lifting its feet off the ground. Ryuta grabbed hold of its feet, allowing it to stand up with him as a support and gaze at the night lights of the area. "Yeah, just one of many wards in this city. It's a really, really big city, I have to admit." It occurred to him then that he was holding a Dramon in his hands. A real, live Dramon. Unless, of course, he was hallucinating it all. Even so, perhaps some hallucinations were welcome experiences.

"I'm aware. The Digital World is nowhere nearly as exciting as this."

"And you said you scared off some humans earlier?"

"Ah. My appearance did."

"I see. That's unfortunate."

"Is it? I came here because of it, did I not?" Amedramon looked down at Ryuta from above, its snout upside-down in his vision.

Ryuta blinked. "So…"

Amedramon snorted. "Ryuta, if you don't mind, I'd like to stay here a while."

"Yeah, of course. I… I'm just not sure others I live with would appreciate it. Stay hidden while you're there, eh?"

"As you wish." Amedramon dismounted from Ryuta's back, claws barely clacking landing on the tiled floor.

Ryuta led Amedramon downstairs from the rooftop garden. "Did you fly up here?"

Amedramon sighed. "I wish I could. I can only glide with these little things," it commented, flapping its wings. It described them as little, but Ryuta was sure its wingspan was about as long as Satsuki was tall. "I climbed my way up. The stairwell was open, and… I admit, the smells were welcoming and delicious."

"You haven't eaten in a while, I take it."

"No. It's been… tough."

"I'm sure there's something."

Ryuta and Amedramon arrived at the Koyama residence. The lights were out, as his parents slept early and so did Haru. He was the exception, in that he slept late and still woke early. Maybe his bad habits would catch up to him some day.

He hadn't eaten yet himself, in truth. He had been too bothered by Haru's recent questioning about his future to eat. He worried that his plan to study abroad, in Vancouver, would make Haru feel lonely. But he himself needed a mental break from the people that gave him so much trouble.

His dinner was packed into the fridge, a box of chicken curry. It wasn't Japanese style, but Thai red, like he preferred it. The stuff here was too mild for his tastes. Amedramon slunk into Ryuta's bedroom, curling up in a corner, watching as he moved back and forth, trying to make as little noise as possible. The microwave was far too loud.

"Brother?" asked Haru. She rubbed her eyes. "Why are you awake so late again?"

"Why are you awake so late? You should be asleep."

"Brother, I'm worried. Are you going to leave me?"

"Of course not."

"Then why did you say you were leaving Japan next year?"

"I…" Called out, Ryuta stared at the microwave. It turned off and sang happily.

"Can I come with you?"

Ryuta sighed. "I wish you could." Haru made the noise she would make if she were about to cry. "Ah, please don't, you'll wake the parents. I'll try to visit as much as I can, okay?"

"Why do you have to leave?" Haru complained. "Can't you stay here?"

"It… I want to see the world for myself, starting with Vancouver."

"You grew up there. I didn't. So take me with you!" She seemed indignant.

"They don't let siblings stay together like that. I'm sorry. I'll send you messages every day, okay? When you visit, we can go see Stanley Park together."

Haru did not seem convinced. "You promise?"

"I promise. Now go to bed, please." Ryuta guided her back to her room. If it weren't for a last-minute complaint from him, they would have shared a bedroom, and he could only imagine how disastrous that would have been, for so many reasons. Saving on money aside, their age difference was too vast.

But that was his parents in a nutshell. At least they taught him frugality. It was one of a few positive things he learned from them.

He took the box of food back to his room, not caring that the smell would probably get into his clothes. He couldn't afford to have any of the three of them spot Amedramon. Haru would have squealed either in excitement or fear, and neither Kanae nor Hideaki would have been a fan of having an animal in the unit, even if it was a Dramon.

"Ryuta, what was that about?"

"Nothing."

Amedramon blinked. "That's not the truth."

He sighed. "It's complicated. Here," he said, changing the subject, "let's split this." He had an additional plate with him, on which he scooped out half of the rice and spicy sauce. Amedramon put its paws up on his desk and looked it over, then looked at the extra fork. "So, I didn't know if you could use one, but I got one anyway."

"Of course I can. These are hands." Amedramon picked up the fork with deft fingers.

"I – okay. I wasn't expecting that," Ryuta admitted, staring at Amedramon's apparently opposable digit. "How… ah, whatever. Digimon are Digimon."

The two ate in silence, grateful for each other's company.