Okay, so I was almost worried I wouldn't get this one out in time because I had my 2nd shot of Pfizer but the good thing is my arm isn't as sore anymore so yays, right? Okay so here we are with episode 5, which has a focus on the Motomiya family. They have a fun dynamic too.

5. The Crest of Light

Yuki had been exposed to a lot of crazy movies and video games, thanks to her brother and cousin loving to play them but what happened today definitely topped it all. She had been sitting on the left side of the couch, legs crossed as she read her favourite book. Being engrossed in the current situation in the book, she visibly jumped as she heard a tap on the window and looked up. The last thing she expected to see was a calico-coloured cat perched at her window.

"Dai!" Yuki cried immediately. "Look!"

Dai looked up from his game and stared for a moment. "Mom! Dad! I think you guys better get in here!" He dropped the game console, quickly opening the window to let the small cat in as his parents came. Their dad had only come in a few minutes ago from the restaurant and their Mom had been preparing dinner but both came in. Yuki wasn't sure whether to think of her brother as brave or stupid for letting in the strange-looking cat, but it didn't look like a normal cat to her. Her mother's gasp made it clear that something wasn't right.

"Gatomon?" Kari began but the cat creature cut her off.

Davis also looked taken aback by the sight of the creature and Yuki realised he wasn't laughing it off either. "What in the world?"

"Man, couldn't you guys have let me in a little sooner?" The cat grumbled, shaking the water off her fur causing it to form a small puddle on the ground. "A digimon could get sick out in this stormy weather. I'm not Gatomon though. Not sure how she is, but I suppose since she can armour-digivolve, she's probably mostly in one piece. My name's Mikemon!"

"Mom, Dad, what's a digimon?" Yuki asked softly.

"This is so cool!" Dai said excitedly. "It's like one of my video game characters came to life. Don't you think, Yuki?"

Yuki bit her lower lip, not replying because, unlike Dai, she could feel the atmosphere of the room being quite tense. Her parents exchanged a look with each other and Davis was about to speak but Mikemon cut through first.

"You haven't told your children about the digital world?" Mikemon's voice was sharp, almost cutting that even Dai's face fell and Yuki had to flinch slightly.

"The gates closed, and we weren't able to open them after Sam disappeared," Davis said frowning, finally speaking up. "We didn't mean to hide it, but we weren't sure if we could get the gates open again and just telling our children about the dangers, we faced was something that never really needed to be said then, you know? But anyway, what's going on? Has something gone wrong in the digital world?"

Dai looked like he was about to ask a question and even Yuki couldn't deny that she wanted to know but their mother glanced their way and smiled.

"I promise we'll explain everything," Kari said to the both of them with a small smile. "I know you both must be really confused and have a lot of questions. But I promise we'll tell you everything once we assess the current situation ok?"

Dai glanced at Yuki who nodded at him and shifted aside as he moved to join her on the couch as well, her mother moving to sit next to them as the couch was three-seater. Their father moved towards Mikemon, reaching out to his hands as the digimon's expression was still slightly harsh.

"Hey," Davis said gently. "I get it, you're mad at us for not telling the kids and I'm not going to tell you not to be mad but will you please tell us what's going on so we can help? I know you might not believe us right now, but we are worried about our partners."

"Mikemon," Yuki added quietly, trying to help her father. "I can't explain why Mom and Dad hid the truth from us. I have a lot of questions from them myself and I'm sure Dai definitely does. But please tell them what's going on first?" She didn't know if it would make a difference to her asking – but she felt since she wasn't the one Mikemon was upset with then maybe the digimon would actually listen to her. There was silence for a moment before Mikemon nodded, perching onto the ground in a rather cat-like way and Davis sat on the floor beside her. Yuki had to smile at this – her Dad was trying to get the feline creature to let her guard down by seeing things from his level. Dad is amazing – I hope I can be as kind as him and Mom someday.

"A lot," Mikemon said. "A couple of years ago, darkness spread across the digital world. It was like permanent nightfall had taken over, a night where morning wouldn't come at all. A digimon named Daemon took over, a human child and an army of Commandramon alongside him. The darkness that had fallen wasn't normal either. It would either corrupt a digimon's very data, or the weaker ones would be deleted permanently after falling severely ill."

Kari bit down on her lip. "Permanently? But digimon never…"

"The darkness has changed many of the rules and laws of the nature of the digital world than you're used to," Mikemon said simply. "Primary Village has been destroyed as have any digimon babies or digieggs that were existent there. However, there is some good news. Those digimon who can armour-digivolve are not affected by the virus. Daemon clearly doesn't know the reason for that but…" She suddenly began coughing, trailing off mid-sentence.

"Mikemon," Davis said, reaching out to catch her as the digimon swayed and collapsed.

"Dad, what happened to her?" Yuki jumped to her feet, running over to her father, her mother and brother soon joining her as well. Had she actually gotten sick in the rain? Or was something else the reason? She shook her head, it's not like she could figure out the reason, she didn't know enough about digimon to do so.

"I'm not sure," Davis admitted, shaking his head. "She was talking and she just collapsed all of a sudden."

"You don't think she got sick from the cold, do you?" Dai asked, crouching down beside his sister as well. "Maybe we could help her get better together."

Kari smiled a bit but there was something different about her mother's smile when she looked up at her. "Dai, Yuki, why don't you two take her to your room and help her feel better? Get some cold cloths, bring her some food and allow her some rest."

Yuki grabbed Dai's sleeve when he looked ready to protest and for a moment, their eyes locked. She hoped he would get the message and not be stubborn for once. Her brother rolled his eyes but turned back to their parents.

"Okay," Dai said with a shrug. "But we want answers later ok?"

Yuki didn't bother to scold Dai for that because she was curious too. Instead, she reached out her arms and took Mikemon from her father.

Davis tousled her hair and then Dai's as well. "Don't worry. Like your mother said, we'll tell you everything. Besides," He winked at both of them. "I don't think you two will let us get away with not doing so."

Dai grinned. "Of course not! Right sis?" He glanced at Yuki, whose lips were pursed into a slight frown as she looked down at the digimon in her arms. The digimon appeared to be breathing steadily but she looked exhausted.

"I'll settle Mikemon down in my room, Dai, can you bring her some food while I get the cold cloths?" Yuki asked, more focused on the digimon than on wanting answers. They could always get those later. The digimon did not look well and upon closer inspection, the feline digimon did let out a shudder now and then. She waited for Dai to nod before bringing the digimon to her room and laying her down there. Watching her for a moment, she stayed there to make sure Mikemon was still asleep before standing back up and heading to the kitchen. She filled cold water and grabbed some cloths from the cupboard, returning to her room. Dipping the cloth in cold water, she placed it on the cat-like digimon's forehead.

"Here, Yuki," Dai set down a plate of food, sitting down on the ground beside her. "You ok?"

"I don't know, Dai," Yuki admitted honestly. "What kind of place is the digital world if Mikemon got so badly hurt in it? I mean, it's her home, after all. Home is meant to be a safe place."

Dai didn't reply for a moment and Yuki glanced over at him to see his forehead crinkled together in deep thought.

"Sometimes in my video games, when darkness comes to a place or bad guys, home can become really scary," Dai finally said. "I think bad people hurt Mikemon's home and that's why it isn't safe anymore. I mean, it's the same with the books you and MJ read, right?"

Yuki blinked. It sounded so simple when her brother put it like that. She supposed if robbers broke into her house and tried to hurt them, they may not be so safe in their own home either. She may not understand everything but somehow, that didn't matter at that moment. She understood enough.

Just then, Mikemon shifted, coughing and slowly opening her eyes.

"What…what happened?" Mikemon asked, managing to sit up and blinking as she looked around.

"You collapsed while explaining things to our parents," Yuki explained gently. "How do you feel?"

Mikemon groaned slightly. "Like I didn't sleep long enough…I know I have important work to do but…" She trailed off.

"You won't be able to do anything if you don't take care of yourself first," Yuki said gently, realising she sounded a lot like her Dad in that moment.

Dai snorted. "You're an expert at taking care of yourself, sis." He grinned at her causing her to swat his shoulder.

"You're not much better, Daichi, at least I use my brain," Yuki huffed, frowning.

"Not when it comes to taking care of others," Dai returned, still teasingly. Yuki rolled her eyes and gave her brother a playful shove. Honestly, did he have to do this right now? Idiot. Honestly. She returned her attention to the digimon.

"Either way, you won't be able to do what you want to do if you don't rest," Yuki said gently. "I don't understand everything that is happening in your home, but you want to save the digital world, don't you Mikemon?"

Mikemon nodded slowly. "I want to, I want to help all the digimon that are suffering."

"I want to make sure you're able to do that," Yuki said softly. "I don't want you to fall ill and be unable to do what you wish to do so much. So please, will you let me and my brother help you?" She could feel the desire Mikemon had to want to seek out help from her parents to save her home. I may not be as strong as Dai, Mom or Dad but I can support them, at least.

Mikemon relaxed but reached out, her paw touching Yuki's hand. "I will."

Yuki smiled and before either of them could speak, a bright light flashed. Mikemon's paw opened and a strange-looking object that had been in her hands began to glow brightly. A sky blue watch appeared around Yuki's wrist and she stared for a moment. What in the world was going on?

Mikemon smiled. "I guess half of my job is done already. Your compassion makes you perfect for being a DigiDestined."

"I agree on all the compassion stuff," Dai said, scratching the back of his head. "But what's a DigiDestined?"

"And why am I perfect for being one?" Yuki added in, staring at the strange-looking watch that had appeared on her wrist. She had a feeling it had something to do with her parents, but she couldn't be sure about it.

Mikemon smiled. "I can't rest and explain everything. But I promise we'll talk with your parents and they'll understand."

"Everyone keeps saying that but no one is explaining anything," Dai grumbled and Yuki could feel her brother's frustration, sighing a little. She knew Mikemon had tried to explain earlier but if she asked her to explain now, it may make her sound like a hypocrite because she had just asked her to rest.

"Then I guess we can wait a little longer, can't we Dai?" Yuki said softly. "Just so Mikemon can get her rest."

Dai sighed. "I guess I can't argue with that logic, but you should eat something too, Mikemon. It'll help you recover your energy better."

Yuki brought the plate slowly forward and Mikemon managed to grip the spoon of rice, closing her paw around it as she brought it to her mouth beginning to eat. This made the brunette girl smile. She supposed waiting a little longer wouldn't hurt as long as the exhausted digimon would be alright.

Mikemon coming to the real world and telling them what was going in the digital world was a lot to take in, especially after so long but somehow Davis was taking it in much more stride than Kari was. The young woman's face was pale, her fists were clenched.

Davis took his wife's hand. Even at 35 years of age, she was still so beautiful to him and he hated to see her face morph into as much sadness and concern as was prevalent right now.

"Kari," Davis began softly. "I know all of this is a lot to take in. I mean, the digital world being taken over, Daemon coming back and that human kid with him…"

"What are we going to do, Davis?" Kari asked softly. "All those digimon, being corrupted, being hurt and we didn't even know about it. How much time have we wasted while they were suffering?"

Davis didn't have the answer to that, but he shook his head. "We can't focus on that right now. If Mikemon was sent here, we have to act now. I know it's hard, Kari, but I promise, we're going to fix this. Just like we fixed things with the Hollow, with MaloMyotismon and all our other enemies. We're not going to let the digital world or our partners ever suffer." Was he nervous? Maybe a little because it had been so long but at the same time, he knew they could find a way to make things right and if Gennai had been the one to send Mikemon here then maybe he had a bigger plan in mind.

Kari was quiet for a moment, and she didn't speak but Davis knew she was one of the strongest people he had ever met. He knew as shaken as she was, she would bounce back from it, even if it wasn't going to be easy.

"Do you think there are new DigiDestined?" Kari asked softly. "I mean, we weren't called on the first instance until things got this horrible and I don't want to think Gennai would ever make the same mistake twice of hurting our partners like he had. And that child…could it be…could it actually be Sam?"

The thought had occurred to Davis too because while the battle with Daemon had been a short one, the demon lord's irritation had been quite clear at being sent to the Dark Ocean. His stomach dropped slightly especially since the best way for him to get revenge against Ken – and nearly all of them in a way – would be to kidnap and raise his son. His fist clenched.

"If it is, we'll save him," Davis said firmly. "Besides, there's no way I'm letting my best friend suffer any more than he has already. Ken doesn't deserve this and neither does Yolei."

A small smile crossed Kari's face, her face turning less pale than it was before and she put her hand over Davis's one, nodding as well. "I'm worried about Gatomon but I'm worried about Sam too. I think we need to call Tai and arrange an old-fashioned DigiDestined meeting. Besides, our children have questions now too and Dai and Yuki won't let it go that easily." Her smile widened slightly, mischief prickling in her eyes. "Why did both my children have to take after you? I'll go grey early."

Davis huffed, pretending to be offended. "I resent that!" He then smiled, wrapping an arm and pulling Kari close. "Our children take after you too, which means they're definitely strong enough to handle the truth, no matter what happens."

Kari rested her head against Davis's shoulder. "Davis? Do you really think our little Dai and Yuki could be DigiDestined? If Sam is in the digital world…" She trailed off but Davis shrugged.

"I don't know, Kari," Davis answered honestly, stroking her hair gently as he thought about it. "I mean, it could be but that's why it's most important that we're honest with them. I mean, you became a DigiDestined despite not going to summer camp, right? I want our children to be more ready."

"Me too," Kari said softly. The two were silent for a while, Davis gently brushing his fingers through his wife's hair slowly. He didn't know what was coming – but he knew one thing. Whatever happened, he and Kari hadn't been alone when they were kids and if Dai and Yuki were DigiDestined, they wouldn't be alone either. He knew they would be okay.

"Should I call Tai?" Davis asked, knowing calling the older leader was probably the best thing they could do to arrange the meeting.

Kari nodded. "Yeah, we need everyone to be here to tell them what's going on. Mikemon should tell them what she told us so Izzy can figure out what we can do next." She exhaled slightly. "I'm scared, Davis. A part of me hopes Dai and Yuki aren't the new DigiDestined. We went through a lot as kids and I don't want…" She trailed off and Davis understood what she wasn't saying. She didn't want their children being targeted by the Dark Ocean as she had been as a child. She didn't want them to suffer.

"I'm not going to let the Dark Ocean or the World of Darkness get close to you or our kids," Davis said firmly. Suddenly, Ken's dreams were making some sense. He squeezed his wife shoulder, shaking his head. "We were able to protect you once and I'll grab you, our kids and pull you out of the darkness, no matter how much it hurts. No one messes with my family." A scowl filled his face. He would never let the darkness harm those who were precious to him. "Kari?" He removed his hand from around her shoulder and cupped her face in his. "I'll always protect you, I promise."

Somehow, when Davis spoke about protecting her and the children, Kari couldn't help but believe it. It was the same security she had felt back when she was a little girl and scared, with him and with her brother, that nothing could ever harm her as long as they were around. This was the same man who had promised no one would ever judge her for her strange powers of light as long as he was around. The one who had attempted to keep in touch with her even when he was on a completely different continent to her. She knew when he made this promise, he truly meant it. She kissed the hand cupping her cheek and nodded.

"I know," Kari said softly. And that was all that needed to be said.