I don't own digimon

Story 69 (Nice.)

Where is everyone?

Labramon was actually kind of annoyed that he got dropped down onto the Real World. Right in the middle of his nap, no less. Would it hurt to just wait a few moments so he could wake up and actually see the giant portal that was going to suck him. No, that was asking too much from the Digital World. Even if they had, it probably would've pulled one more trick on him to get him to head through. Definitely something that it would do on a bad day. Forcing that thought out of his head, Labramon focused his attention ahead.

At the moment, the labrador digimon was sitting in front of a two-story house. Done up in a shade between orange and red, all the curtains were closed. While he could hear music and the television playing in the background, that didn't explain why there wasn't anything in the way of people nearby. Where could they have gone? Was this some kind of emergency that he hadn't been told about? Or were they just on vacation and hadn't been kind enough to wait for him to show up. Considering that his partner didn't know that he was coming back in the first place, Labramon was more than willing to look past that last one. If only he got a vacation as well. That was only fair, right? Shoving the thought away, the labrador digimon headed for the front door. Perhaps he would be able to find an unlocked door or open window that he could sneak through and then wait patiently for his partner to return. It would be just like a school day. Except nowhere near as exciting when his partner came home.

"I wonder what stories Mitchell might tell me." Labramon thought as he reached the front door. Done up in white of all colors, someone had installed a doggy door. Hopefully, it wasn't blocked. Pushing it with his head, Labramon was met with no resistance. Yep. This was his ticket in. Putting a bit more force into it, the labrador digimon managed to get his entire body through. Waiting a moment for the doggy door to swing back and forth a couple times before shutting, it provided the perfect opportunity to begin assessing what he was getting himself into. The floors looked to be carpet, but someone had clearly gotten into the wallpapers. Why else would there be five different wallpaper patterns in the near vicinity? Was Mitchell that indecisive or had something occurred in the house's past to require so many different patterns? If they actually looked decent, Labramon wouldn't have minded it. But no, all of the patterns appeared to have been stolen from the 60s. Great if you're into that kind of thing, but not so if you're living in the 21st century. A shame that the latter had become the dominant species. Beyond that, a large light hung overhead to illuminate the hallway. On at the moment, it did seem wasteful for Labramon. No one was in this room. They could easily go without a room being all lit up. Now, where was the light switch? Had to be around here somewhere.

Scanning the walls for the elusive switch, Labramon eventually found it. Hanging on the wall within the white protective plate, this would require a bit more finesse than most problems he had to solve in the digital world. Getting up on his hind legs, he reached out to the switch. Paw just grazing his goal, he managed to get it down… only to end up on his back in the process. Nothing that rolling over couldn't fix. Once Labramon had done that, the labrador digimon took a moment to let his eyes adjust to the darkness. Or rather lack of darkness. Ahead looked to be the living room. Even from this distance, he could just catch the sound of something being played. Perhaps Mitchell and his buddies were playing one of those 'videoy games' or whatever the heck they were called. Tentatively approaching, Labramon scanned the area for signs of people. But at every turn of his head, he was met with an empty space. Had a digimon like Anubismon swooped down and forced them to meet their maker? No. Anubismon only targeted digimon. For them to target a human, they would've needed to have done something major. Like killing and absorbing digimon or causing a massive event that killed a bunch of digimon. There had been at least two of those in the last couple years, so it wasn't out of the realm of possibilities. Labramon shook those thoughts out of his head and focused on the source of the noise - a movie playing on a large TV. Looked to be something involving a bunch of toys on their way to a great fiery doom. Quite an odd thing to be watching with no one in the room.

"Where's the remote?" Labramon thought as he stepped over the divide between the hallway and the living room. Much like the entranceway, all the lights had been left on. A couch lined the right wall and the back side of the room, while a single chair with an end table served to flank the left side of the room. The finishing touch was a doggy bed off in the corner. Far too small for someone like him, had Mitchell actually replaced him? This could not stand. Whenever his partner decided to show his face, he was going to get one hell of a talking too. Maybe even a headbutt as well. Yeah. That would show him. Yes. Then he would get his own human. One that would actually care about him and not abandon him the moment he disappeared. As far as the labrador digimon could tell, this plan was absolutely flawless. Nothing was bound to get in his w-

"Arf." a voice announced and Labramon spun around. Standing before him was his replacement. An absolutely dopey black labrador. Staring at him like this was somehow weird, Labramon thought his options over. As opposition went, this was hardly terrifying. If anything, they were kind of cute. Like a partner in crime. A shame that he didn't speak a lick of dog. What an odd design decision to be made when his kind was created. A canine digimon that was unable to speak the very language of the creature he was emulating. Perhaps that was a problem they fixed in later models. At least, Labramon told himself that to feel better.

"Do you have a name at least?" Labramon inquired and the black lab stared back at him for a couple seconds. Not even a bark or a whine, this was absolutely unhelpful. Thankfully, Labramon knew of another way in order to get the information that he was looking for. Looking at his companion's neck, a collar hung proudly. There, he could just make out the tag hanging off of that - Lucky. By no means the name he would've chosen for a dog (if he was a human at least), it worked and at least sounded memorable. Which were the two things that mattered when it came to a dog. Okay, there was probably a third qualifier in that. But Labramon couldn't remember what said qualifier was or how it interacted with the other two at the moment. "Okay Lucky, tell me about yourself."

Lucky looked up and barked. By no means the loudest sound Labramon had ever heard, it was near the top of that list. Not that the labrador digimon could think of any other sounds that could go with it here. Probably sirens and the sound of people screaming. Those always did get on his nerves. Hopefully neither of those things would come up.

"Good to know." Labramon muttered and took a moment to compose himself. Looking at Lucky, he took a moment to think of what he should ask next. Judging by his companion's size, the dog had been with Mitchell and his family for some time. Perhaps they had gotten Lucky right after his disappearance. If they had, it made this whole mess that much worse. Not only had they gone out of their way to replace him, they did with full knowledge that he would not be able to object or even attempt to take back his rightful place. At the same time, that was not a reason for him to kill Lucky. No, that would just make him worse than his partner. Instead, he would just need to show Mitchell the mistake he was making in putting his fate in Lucky over him. How exactly he could show that remained to be seen, but it didn't stop the idea from hanging tightly within the labrador digimon's mind. Perhaps if he gave it enough time, the answer would come to him. Wasn't the worst idea in the world by a long shot. Though, it would probably help if he asked Lucky a couple questions. Perhaps he could just interpret the sounds made and hope for the best. "Do you know where Mitchell is?"

Lucky ran a circle in place and laid down. Catching a look from Labramon, they didn't look to understand the question here. Or if the dog had, perhaps they had agreed to keep their location a secret. Quite a trick Mitchell had taught them here. Nothing that a little persuasion couldn't solve. The food sort, of course. Any other form would do little to actually help him reach his goals. Now where was the food? Had to be kept in the kitchen. That was where they kept his stuff. Not that he needed such specialized food in the first place. Contrary to his appearance, he could eat almost all the food that humans could eat without issue. Why they never just asked him was a mystery that could be solved once he found Mitchell. If his answer made sense, of course. Letting the thought fade, Labramon headed away from the living room and into what he could only assume to be a dining room. Looking at the bottom of the table, it looked alright. Perhaps if the top was visible, then maybe his opinion would be different. Labramon doubted it. A table was a table in his book. What mattered was what you put on said table. For now, he looked to the doorframe. There, the kitchen awaited. Unlike the hallway, this room had been done up in a yellowish orange color with what looked to be hardwoods. For once, this combination didn't look completely awful. A welcome relief after whatever the heck that hallway was doing, but told him little about where Mitchell had gone. As for the appliances, those all looked to be done up with a black finish. While snazzy, the lights being on felt a touch overkill. Looking around for the light switch, Labramon found himself coming empty on that.

"Darn it." he muttered and let out a sigh. Of course this switch was evading him. Probably on purpose. Looking around one more time, his gaze came upon a door. Set off to the side, it didn't really look like it went anywhere. Then why have a door in the first place? Just silly. Unless it was to prevent Lucky from getting somewhere. Wouldn't surprise him in the slightest.

Jumping at the handle, Labramon grabbed hold with ease. Pulling down and kicking away from the obstacle, the door opened up. Getting down right after, he walked around to see the uncovered area. Shelves of food stared back, all beckoning to be eaten. At the same time, this all looked to be stuff meant to stay hardy over a long period of time. Was Mitchell planning to be gone for a long time? Labramon doubted it. He had a dog, after all. That was just animal cruelty otherwise. His Mitchell was not the kind of person to engage in those kinds of activities. At least, that was what the labrador digimon wanted to believe. Now where were the dog treats? They had to be somewhere in here. After all, this was where they were kept back when he was a part of the family. Though, Mitchell's family liked to keep them up high to prevent him from getting at them. A futile attempt in every sense of the word. Staring up, Labramon could see his prize. Getting up on his hind legs, he jumped with all his might. Grabbing hold of the top shelf, then came the matter of actually pulling the treats down. Reaching out with his mouth, Labramon made an effort to grab the box of treats. All he accomplished was knocking said box to the floor. Treats flying out, he could hear Lucky heading his way. Honestly, he was surprised that was what brought the dog over. If he was that mutt, he would've come over when the sound of another dog jumping up echoed over to him. Labramon dropped the thought for now. He got Lucky over and that was the only thing that mattered. Now came the problem of actually getting him to talk. Would be far easier if he had a partner and/or could speak dog. Labramon jumped down, taking care to not smash the treats. The result did leave a bit to be desired. Landing on his size, the labrador digimon rolled over in order to be on his feet once more.

"Now will you tell me where they've gone?" Labramon inquired and Lucky let out a low bark. Absolutely unhelpful. Unless Lucky was purposefully bullshitting him. Wouldn't put it past the dog or Mitchell's family. He had not been there to protect his partner when it came to Ordinemon or Eosomon. That was more than enough of a reason to lie and deceive them. Could they even forgive him for turning his back on them when they needed him the most. Try as Labramon shove that thought away and continue with his questioning, it just kept coming back. Why couldn't his mind just leave him alone here. Had the choice been given, he would've absolutely gone out and fought by Mitchell's side. But that was in the past. Right now, he needed to get answers from Lucky. "Is that all? I think you're holding out on me."

Lucky looked down at the floor and ate a cookie. Pushing one in Labramon's direction, the labrador digimon refused the treat. Once he had gotten the information, then maybe he would have one. Until then, it would have to wait. Now what to ask now? Perhaps information on what was too occur. That was always helpful. Unless Lucky's sources were bad. "Now, do you know what's happening around here?"

Lucky took a seat. Staring at Labramon, the dog was met with a confused look. In turn, Labramon let out a sigh. Just his shitty, awful luck. Of course the dog didn't know. Probably was using him to get all these treats at this point.

"Do you know anything useful, mutt?!" he continued and got a bark from Lucky. Sitting down, the labrador digimon looked for something to focus on. But all he had on hand was the pantry and Lucky. Yes, he could just go somewhere else. But where was the fun in that? There was no one in this home. Unless they were to show up right now, all he could do was wait. Sooner or later Mitchell and his family were bound to come home and realize what had happened. Knowing him, he would probably tell him to get out of the house and never come back. They had replaced him with a newer, superior model after all. So what if Lucky couldn't live forever. The time they had spent with them was worth far more than the time spent with him. There was no contest here. Nothing he could do would come close to actually beating Lucky out. While murder was still an option, he sucked at that. If he was any other digimon, then maybe he could p-

Labramon didn't get to finish his inner monologue, Lucky choosing to put his head on Labramon. The Labramon struggled to get out, but didn't get anywhere on that front. What was the dog doing now? Just when he thought he had some idea of what he was dealing with, Lucky chose to surprise him.

"I don't need your affection." he muttered and felt Lucky's head get off of his. Shooting the dog a look, that was Lucky's cue to go elsewhere. Tempted as Labramon was to go elsewhere, he decided against it. This was an obvious trap and he was in no way going to fall for it. No, the labrador digimon would stand his ground. That would show Mitchell and his family that he was far smarter than they would ever be. At least, Labramon told himself that as he chowed down on one of the dog treats. By no means great, it would give him the energy needed to ward off any more tricks from Lucky. Especially as the dog came back with a stuffed llama chew toy. Slightly bigger than Labramon, was this some kind of enforcer employed by the dog? Possible. Would explain why he was so confident in bringing his friend over to him. At the same time, was this some kind of intimidation tactic? If it was, how the hell was it supposed to scare him? If anything, it just made him want to laugh. What kind of creature thought bringing a stuffed animal, let alone the kind you're supposed to chew up, to a test of the mind? Labramon let out a chuckle and gave the stuffed llama a push. In return, the chew toy fell onto him. Weighing ever so slightly more than he did, the labrador digimon felt kind of stupid here. For as confident as he was that he could somehow get through this trap, to be defeated like this was absolutely humiliating. The only way this could be made worse is if this was when Mitchell deci-

The sound of a car stopping cut off Labramon's thought. Looking in the direction of the hallway, footsteps echoed about in the direction of the door. That was no doubt Mitchell. Probably with his family to boot. This was the final revenge. The coup-de-gras of this twisted scheme to humiliate him after all these years.

"Labramon?" a voice called out and Labramon raised his head to the best of his abilities. In the distance, Mitchell made his approach. A man now, he was dressed in one of those tropical shirts with a pair of tan shorts. Already heading over to him, Labramon braced for whatever fate that might await him.

"Let me guess. You thought I replaced you?" Mitchell announced and Labramon reluctantly nodded. Trying his best to look away, he didn't manage to reach his goal in the slightest. "Silly Labramon, of course I wouldn't replace you."

Getting a hug, Labramon looked down at Lucky. While the dog had won this round, he would win the war.