The tamer awoke to a confusing sensation.
He and Ren were still cuddled up together in his bed, and he still had his head buried in Ren's back.
And he had a mouthful of fur.
It took him a moment to fully appreciate his predicament.
"Hrmff?"
He pulled his head back, nearly gagging at the sensation of soggy fur.
"...eugh, gross."
As he pulled back, he noticed the wet patch where he'd been drooling on the back of Ren's ruff.
"...aw, crap."
As if on cue, Ren woke up, looking back over his shoulder to see what the fuss was about.
"Hmm? What is wrong, Tamer?"
"Nothing! Just... ummm... nothing."
"Are you sure?"
The tamer let out a long sigh. He knew it would be wrong to try and hide this from Ren.
"Well... I might've... drooled on your fur."
Ren's face contorted in disbelief at the tamer's admission
Hesitantly, the digimon reached over his shoulder, feeling through his fur. His expression changed to disgust as his fingers touched the dampened fur. He let out a whine.
"Tame-errr. My fur is all gross."
"Sorry! I can't help it. Sometimes I just drool in my sleep."
He untangled himself from the digimon and sat up against the headboard, rubbing his face with both hands.
"...it'll dry up. No worries, right?"
Ren also sat up, again sitting cross-legged. He still had a dissatisfied look on his face, staring at the tamer expectantly.
"...alright, I guess that is a bit gross. Look, you're welcome to have a shower and you'll be all clean again."
Ren seemed to ponder that for a moment, but his expression didn't change.
"I do not think I can stand having to dry myself like last time."
"Oh... yeah, I guess that's a hassle. Ummm... what about a damp towel?"
The digimon's expression perked a bit at the alternative option.
"I think that would be simpler."
"Cool. Alright, you can just help yourself. There's hand towels in the vanity drawer."
Ren hesitated, before speaking up.
"Could... could you do it?"
"Uh... can't you do it yourself?"
"I could... but it would be easier if you helped."
Ren reached over this shoulder to demonstrate.
"...it is a bit tricky to reach that spot."
"Oh... I guess... sure. Come on then."
He got up and gestured for Ren to follow him, leading the digimon through to the bathroom.
He went over to the vanity and started the water running in the vanity. He also pulled a hand towel out of the drawer. Once the water had heated up, he ran the towel under it and then wrung it out.
"...here we go."
Ren turned away and the tamer took that as his cue. He began cleaning the damp section of fur at the back of Ren's neck.
As he was scrubbing, something piqued his curiosity. Despite having just woken up, Ren's fur was perfectly neat and tidy, with the exception of the wet patch he was working on.
He thought back and remembered thinking the same thing about Yuki's mane. Despite having been in a battle, it had been perfectly smooth and tangle free.
"Hey Ren..."
"Yes?"
"How come you don't get bed hair?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, how come your fur doesn't get all messed up in the bed? Like... when I wake up, my hair's normally all over the place. But your fur is still perfect. It's just... strange."
"Well, that is one of the benefits of being a digimon. As part of my data, my fur has a natural position. It will always settle back to that unless there is some external influence..."
Ren turned to give the tamer a pointed look.
"...like someone drooling on it, for example."
"Um... yeaaah..."
He gave the digimon a sheepish look, but it quickly turned into something more playful.
"...so if I were to..."
He quickly ruffled his hand through Ren's fur, leaving odd strands sticking out in all directions.
Ren stared at the tamer with a grouchy expression on his face.
"Did you have to do that, Tamer?"
"Sorry, I couldn't resist."
He gently smoothed over the mussed fur, watching as it easily settled back into its natural position.
"...man, that is so not fair! A quick tidy up, and it looks perfect again."
The digimon couldn't help but look smug.
"Yes, well... I need to be able to resist sudden attacks from my tamer."
The tamer gave a laugh.
"Fair enough."
—
It took a little while, but eventually Ren was satisfied that his fur was clean again. He had objected to the tamer using the hairdryer to dry him off, instead opting to use a towel to dry off the small section of fur.
After that, the pair went through the usual morning routine and headed to work.
—
Arriving at the office, the tamer parked in the usual side street and the pair headed in.
The tamer gave his customary greeting to Barb as they entered the office. However, she pulled him up, waving him over to the front desk.
"Miles... ummm... Fiona needs to see you."
"No worries. I've gotta check if there's anything important from yesterday, but I'll make sure to go see her later."
"No, you need to see her now please. It's... urgent."
"Oh, ummm... ok."
He noticed the concerned look on her face as he walked away. He gave Ren a nudge, before gesturing back to the front desk with his head.
"Dunno what the big deal is. I just had a day off."
"I cannot imagine, Tamer."
Heading through to the cubicles, he popped his head over Fiona's partition
"Hey Fiona."
"Hmm? Oh... you're here, Miles."
"Yeah. Barb said you needed to see me. Something urgent?"
The tamer couldn't help but notice the wary look she was giving Ren.
"...is everything ok?"
"Yes. Please come with me, we need to talk."
"Um, ok. What about?"
"I will explain it to you in the room."
She grabbed her laptop and led the pair to a meeting room.
Before entering, she turned back to face the pair.
"...just you please, Miles."
The tamer gave her a confused look.
"Ren can sit in, surely?"
"Sorry, this is a sensitive conversation."
He looked over to Ren, giving an apologetic look.
"Sorry, Ren. Do you wanna grab a seat over there?"
He gestured to a set of chairs down the aisle, but Ren didn't seem interested.
"No, I will wait for you here."
"Alright."
The tamer entered the meeting room and closed the door, leaving Ren awkwardly standing outside.
He took a seat opposite Fiona.
"...so... what's this about?"
"I will be blunt. We were advised of an incident involving yourself and your digimon, and there is concern that your digimon may be a hazard to your coworkers."
"What? Because of that thing at the park? What does that have to do with anything here?"
"Well, the police contacted us yesterday to alert us to what happened. They also confirmed that they issued you a stat-dec for a dangerous digimon. The company is particularly concerned given how soon this happened after you introduced Renamon to the office."
"Come on... it was just a digimon battle."
He received a harsh look in response.
"Miles... I think you know it was not a typical battle. The fact that police were called indicates the severity of the incident."
"I don't get why you're calling it an incident. It was just a battle. The digimon just got a bit... carried away."
"Alright, well..."
Fiona spun her laptop around to face him.
"...can you explain this?"
The screen showed a YouTube video. It took him a moment before he realised it was a recording of the battle taken by one of the bystanders. The video was paused, showing the moment Yuki had lunged at him. Despite the video being taken from a distance, the anger and intent were still quite clear on Yuki's face.
The tamer felt himself go feint at the sight, but tried to hide it from his coworker.
He leaned back into his chair and folded his arms defensively.
"Well... Yuki was a bit upset after I pulled his tail."
Fiona gave a curious look.
"Yuki?"
"Yeah, that's the nickname I gave Youkomon. That wasn't Ren."
"Miles, the video shows that your partner, Renamon, digivolved into this Youkomon, who then tried to attack you."
"Yeah, but they're not the same digimon."
"Miles, you know that even when a digimon digivolves, they are still the same individual."
"No, not in this case. It was a dark digi-"
He was trying to explain the digivolution, but Fiona cut him off.
"I'm sorry Miles, but it doesn't matter. This is not a negotiation. The company is placing you on administrative leave until the matter is raised at the directors' meeting next week. A decision will then be made on how the company proceeds."
"Oh, come on. What, are you gonna fire me?"
"That is for the directors to decide."
His eyes widened at the possibility
"Seriously Fiona, nothing even happened!"
"Regardless of what you claim happened, or didn't, this is the company policy. Until the matter is resolved, you are not to attend the office."
"What about-"
"You will continue to receive your full wage until a determination is made."
He let out a sigh and stared at the ceiling, realising there was no point arguing.
"Right... so I just go home until someone calls me?"
"Yes. We will let you know once a decision has been made."
"Fine."
He got up and walked out, not bothering with any pleasantries.
Ren was still standing just outside the meeting room, with a concerned look on his face.
"Tamer-"
The tamer held his hand up to stop the digimon from saying anything.
"This isn't the place, Ren. We'll talk later. Come on."
"I... yes, Tamer."
The pair left the office and headed for the tamer's car.