Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, nor do I own When the World's Not Ending, by Smartalec121 or any of their associated works.
Off the Beaten Path
Chapter: 31/ What's Past is Prologue
"This is good bread," Coronamon said between munches, a surprised look upon her face.
"I told you!" Calumon chirped. "It's the best bread in the whooole world! Followed by Guilmon Bread, which is even better bread!"
"How can something be better than what's already the best?" Coronamon asked, confused. Calumon, however, didn't answer. Instead, he simply bit into his piece of bread and munched away happily.
What a strange little digimon, Coronamon thought as she waited for an answer. When it became obvious that none would be forthcoming, she shrugged and resumed eating.
The street below bustled with life of the human kind, and while full of activity, it looked quite peaceful. People came and went seemingly without concern.
So different from the digital world, she thought, remembering the violence of the Sovereigns as they rampaged across the landscape. Not for the first time, she wondered what they were fighting over. Then again, asking such a question felt like an exercise in futility. So many digimon fought seemingly for the sake of fighting even when it didn't involve the loading of data it was like no one knew any other way.
Even that Jijimon and Babamon fought, and they loved each other. Her eyes fell in recollection. At least they don't try to delete one another like everyone else does.
"Are you okay?" Calumon asked, seeing her sad expression. Blushing in embarrassment, she angrily wiped at her eyes. Small sizzles could be heard as steam rose from her heated body.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about how nice it is having a friend that's not trying to load your data. Thank you."
"Oh, you're welcome." Calumon smiled again, feeling glad that he had helped her. "I know all about how scary fighting is. I don't really know why anyone does it. Couldn't we just settle disagreements over a friendly game of tag?"
Coronamon, in spite of herself, barked a laugh. "Oh, if only it were that simple, huh?"
Calumon's smile faded. Coronamon still appeared sad.
"Hey," he said. "If you'd like, I can introduce you to someone who you could be friends with. He's been sad for a while and I don't think I'm the right digimon to help him smile. He likes to play games though."
Coronamon took another bite from her bread and mulled it over. She came all this way from the digital world in an attempt to escape the violence there. A friend who just wanted to play games? She liked Calumon so far, but was really it okay to make friends in the real world? Calumon seemed rather flighty.
What if I make them cry? Will I get arrested? Loaded? Are digimon even allowed here? What if…?
"Come on!" Calumon jumped off the rooftop they were on and began to fly off. "I'm sure they'll love meeting you! Race you there!"
"Huh?!" Coronamon looked up, bewildered. "Race you…? Calumon! Where are you even going?!"
Laughter was all she received in response to her questions.
###
Suzie arrived at Hypnos, panting and sweating. She hated the idea of looking like a wreck at a time like this, with what she was going to have to confront, but she couldn't help herself. Ever since Hypnos contacted her and filled her in on the situation, it was like a switch had been flipped. She hadn't even bothered to go home first to drop off her things. Impatience ruled her now and she would see this through as soon as possible.
What would Henry think if he saw you now? a part of her thought exhaustedly. Wiping her arm across her brow, she scowled at the sheen of sweat that dampened her sleeve. Probably get on my case about how I ruined my clothes.
"Are you all right?" Lopmon asked from atop her head. Glancing up, Suzie took a moment to catch her breath before answering.
"Running multiple city blocks is no problem," she wheezed. Leaning forward, she let out a shaky breath. "It's what a Tamer is supposed to be able to do, right?"
I must look like such an idiot right now, she thought, a bead of sweat crawling down her cheeks. Taking one of her hanging ears, Lopmon proceeded to pat her partner's face down in an effort to dry her off.
"You pushed yourself too hard," the former Deva chided gently. Suzie's scowl deepened.
"Not that hard. Gogglehead would have biomerged to Crimson Mode if Hypnos called and said their crazy program woke up with Jeri's memories."
She let out a shaky, anxious laugh that quickly transformed into soft crying. Lopmon hugged her partner's head with her ears.
"That-That sounded like I don't care about my brother," Suzie continued as she began to sober up.
"Suzie, you know you do. And you also know that Sleipnir is not Henry."
"Yeah, you're right." Sniffing, Suzie straightened up. She took a deep breath and felt a little better. She didn't feel terribly improved, but Lopmon's reminder was both necessary and welcome.
I just ran several blocks all over a call about Hypnos' malfunctioning program. A malfunction caused by their screwup with my brother's digivice. It's not Henry. There's no way it could ever be him.
"It's just confused," she said aloud for her own benefit.
"Sleipnir?" Lopmon asked.
Suzie nodded. "It got turned on with memories that don't belong to it. No wonder why it freaked out the first time. It's probably really confused." She adjusted the straps of her school bag. "Well, this time Princess Suzie will actually fix things for a change."
Lopmon arched an eyebrow. "I haven't heard you say that in a long, long time."
Suzie fell silent at that for a moment. "You're right. Sorry. Finding out Sleipnir was asking for me while sounding like my brother must have made me regress or something. I'll keep it under wraps."
Taking another breath to steady herself, she passed through the main entrance of the Shinjuku government building. There, waiting for her at the main reception desk, was MarineAngemon and Kenta, a massive bandage plastered across the latter's nose.
"What the heck happened to you?!" she asked, suddenly alarmed.
"Masaru," Kenta shrugged nonchalantly, as if that explained everything.
"Why?!" Suzie's voice rose an octave, causing eyes to turn toward them.
"I'd rather not talk about it," Kenta replied. His voice sounded thick and congested. "It's not a big deal anyway."
"It sure as hell is a big deal!" More eyes turned toward them, but Suzie didn't care. "That lunatic wannabe street fighter broke your nose! He's never done that before!"
"It was an accident."
"Pih!" MarineAngemon said with what an unmistakably disapproving tone.
"Well, it was. I didn't know he was trying to get through to Takato…"
"Hold on! Takato was involved too?!"
"Pih! Pihpih!"
"Yeah, he was and… MarineAngemon, it's more complicated than that."
"Puh!" MarineAngemon puffed his chest out in apparent frustration toward his partner. Kenta scowled.
"I know how it looked! But just think about it for a minute…"
Done listening, Suzie marched on over to Kenta. Grabbing hold of him by the front of his uniform, she yanked him down so that they were at eye level.
"Talk now! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't go and put that moron in a wheelchair!"
"Pih?"
Kenta glanced over at MarineAngemon with a confused look. "What do you mean Takato or Masaru?"
"Might as well include both of them," Suzie growled. "Masaru might not have the goggles, but he's still a gogglehead. Good grief, what the hell is wrong with today?! Where is Takato? He'd better not be at Model Girl's place!"
"He should be," spoke up the voice of Riley from behind them. Turning, Suzie and Kenta saw her approaching them. "Himiko's orders are for the two of them to stay there and out of the way if Guilmon hasn't reverse digivolved." Riley winced upon seeing Kenta. "That looks bad."
"It was a lot worse before Masaru reset it for me."
Suzie rolled her eyes. "Oh, so because he reset your nose that makes everything fine. Is that it?"
"We'll look into it," Riley said, placing a warning hand on Suzie's shoulder, indicating that the topic was over now. Suzie huffed in frustration, and turned toward the taller woman.
"Fine. Whatever. But are you sure I'm the best choice here? You're not letting Guilmon in here because of how he digivolved. Last I checked, I don't have a very good track record either."
"It's been over a year since your incident," Riley pointed out. "And you haven't had one despite everything that's happened since then."
Suzie dropped her gaze, remembering just how close things had gotten during the battle with Titamon. Smiling, Kenta joined Riley and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.
"I trust you," he said. Suzie could tell that he meant it, but her nerves didn't feel settled. Not with memory still so close to the surface.
"I've heard that one before," she grumbled. "And do you know how stupid you sound saying that with your nose all messed up like that?"
Kenta simply beamed at her around the thick bandage and red swelling of his nose. Suzie rolled her eyes.
"Let's just get this over with before I barf, okay?"
###
Suzie found Alice at the control center for the Danger Room. The other girl's blue eyes rose up and greeted her with a subtle nod.
"No Dad?" Suzie asked.
"Not presently," Alice replied, shaking her head. "Likely for the same reasons that Takato isn't here."
At the mention of Takato's name, Suzie noted a subtle shift in her voice that would have gone unnoticed by anyone unfamiliar with her. For her, who had known her for years now, she easily detected a note of barely contained anger.
"Sounds like a stay of execution," she quipped in response. Leaning forward, she looked down into the Danger Room. Sleipnir was coiled on the floor, waiting patiently. "What am I walking into here?"
"It seems to still remember you, despite the removal of Henry and Terriermon's memory files," Riley said, folding her arms together. She glanced over at Shibumi, who stood off to the side, going over a set of data.
"Right," Shibumi nodded. "It seems that by accessing those memory files initially, it created duplicates of them and stored them in its own program. The process seems to be similar to how humans remember things. Each time you remember something, you're creating a copy of it that overwrites the previous one."
"Great, so how long until the copies start growing a second head or something?" Suzie asked sarcastically.
"For now, let's focus on what this means for it and for us," Riley said. "Its sense of identity doesn't seem to be very well established yet, but so far it doesn't view itself as either Henry or Terriermon. It just has their memories. I don't think we have to worry about it trying to replace either of them. Not yet anyway."
"Not yet, she says." Suzie crossed her arms. "All right. Let me in there."
"Are you sure?" Lopmon asked.
"No, but I'd feel better about it than doing nothing."
"Should we go in too?" Kenta asked, indicating himself and his partner.
"Yes," Riley nodded. "And me as well, since I have Sleipnir's digivice. Alice. Shibumi. Watch over us."
"Yes, ma'am," Shibumi nodded.
Suzie swallowed nervously as they entered the Danger Room. Uncoiling like a whip, Sleipnir rose up to greet them.
"Suzie!" it exclaimed excitedly, and her breath caught in her throat. With a blink of her eyes, she saw Henry's face flash across her eyes, smiling happily at her.
Big Brother!
Her heart rate rose and she clenched her fists tightly. From her side, she was aware of Kenta and MarineAngemon's gazes on her, clearly concerned.
"H-Hi," she forced herself to say to the towering serpent. "I-I heard you wanted to see me."
Sleipnir tilted its head to one side and she saw a confused light in its grey eyes.
"You're unhappy. Why?"
Lopmon hopped down from Suzie and stood in front of her.
"There's no easy way to say this," the former Deva began. "You sound like her brother."
"I…am her brother?" Sleipnir's light changed as it sounded further confused. "No. I am Zero Arms Sleipnir, unit 001. I am not…Henry Wong? Or Terriermon. I…" Sleipnir fell silent and drew in upon itself.
"Are you okay?" Suzie asked. Behind her, Kenta looked over at Lopmon.
"Better question, was it all right to say that?"
"The truth is better than a falsehood," Lopmon replied. "If it builds its world on a foundation of lies, then you have a fragile world that will leave it with nothing when reality comes to light. This way is difficult, but will be a stronger foundation."
"Sleipnir," Riley said now, stepping forward. "The memories you have are a result of files you inherited from another program while we were building you. It was not our intention."
"What she's trying to say is, we're sorry for confusing you," Suzie added. Taking a deep breath, she stepped toward Sleipnir and held out a hand. Sleipnir drew up to it and sniffed it gingerly.
"I am…Zero Arms Sleipnir, unit 001," it repeated to itself softly. "Created and programmed to defend humanity from digital threats, foreign and domestic. I…" It closed its eyes. "No. Fighting… Fighting is wrong! I hurt someone! I…"
"What's going on?" Suzie asked, looking over her shoulder. Riley was already tapping buttons on her Ark device.
"I'm not sure. Shibumi? Can you tell me what's going on here?"
"The duplicated memory files have fully integrated with its digi-core and have become a shared state. It looks like it's causing a race condition."
"Whatever that is, it's got to stop!" shouted Suzie, turning back to Sleipnir. "It looks like it's in pain!"
"Shut it down, Shibumi," Riley ordered.
"Working on it. Sleipnir is resisting though!"
"It's resisting?!"
Suzie's lips trembled as she heard Sleipnir – Henry – cry out in emotional agony. The dragon coiled and twisted in the air and then dove its head down and smashed it against the metal flooring. Suzie felt the vibration beneath her feet and she unconsciously shifted her balance to keep from falling over.
"Suzie, stay behind me," Lopmon said, getting into a guard position. "You may have to digivolve me."
"Get ready, MarineAngemon," Kenta said, drawing out his digivice.
"N-No," Suzie whispered. Sleipnir shrieked again and threw itself upward, becoming a pronounced, exclamation point in the air that reminded Suzie of a cobra preparing to strike. Her mind raced, trying to understand what was going on and how to resolve it without deleting Sleipnir.
It's not its fault it thinks it's Henry! It's not! It's… She closed her eyes. Hearing only the sound of her brother's cry, she could picture him there in the Danger Room. It was him, but it wasn't…
"Evacuate the room," Riley ordered. "Shibumi, prepare for lockdown! Everyone out! Now! Suzie! Did you hear me! I said evacuate…!"
"Jian!"
Suzie's voice erupted from her throat like the blast of a canon. Sleipnir froze in place, eyes focusing on her. Then, as if on some hidden signal, it began to relax and descend toward her. Gulping, Suzie stepped around Lopmon.
"Suzie…?"
"Hang on a second," Suzie replied sternly, her tone brooking no argument. She approached Sleipnir and held out her arms, indicating that the program was to come to her. It slipped its head into her embrace and let out a strained sigh. She could feel the tension buzzing beneath its armor, struggling to find balance between conflicting algorithms.
"Jian," she said softly. "You are Jianliang, okay? You're digital, but I'm still your sister."
"Jianliang," Sleipnir sighed. At that, she felt the AI's body shift and alter, shrinking down and shifting its shape. She held on tightly, refusing to let go – too scared to let go in fact for fear of what she might see. How long the change took, she didn't know, but when it stopped, she heard Lopmon's voice behind her. A small whisper of surprise and awe. Drawing back, she saw Henry's face looking up at her, shadowed by a mop of white hair with green tips. His eyes this time were no longer grey, but gold again.
He's…human looking? Suzie blinked back tears she didn't realize she had.
"I am…Jianliang," he said exhaustedly, and then winked out of existence.
"Sleipnir has deactivated itself," came Shibumi's report from above.
###
Himiko sat across from Suzie and Kenta, her expression a mixture of irritation and sympathy. Sympathy dominated, as the sight of the girl seated in front of her with a horned bunny in her lap, a cup of hot tea in her hands and a miserable, sad expression on her face. She had only a brief summary that Sliepnir had abruptly remodeled itself to resemble her brother, something that must have shocked her to the core.
"Sleipnir has begun modifying its programming," she heard Shibumi saying – had been saying for some time now. "The race condition appears to remain, but it's no longer as serious a situation as before. I've never seen anything like this. It's evolving rapidly before our eyes! Its rewriting parts of its own code!"
"Terrific," Himiko said. "One more thing for us to worry about. But how did it happen?" She looked pointedly at Suzie. "You said you named it?"
"Jianliang," Suzie said quietly. "It was one of the names my parents said they wanted to give Henry when he was born. Came down to a coin toss. Mom and Dad used to joke about it."
"Mizuno, why is this important?"
"Names have always been an important means of defining identity and grounding even an object's purpose in our minds. It can even serve as a shortcut for information. We all know what a chair's function is because we all know what a chair is and what it's for. Without that categorization or knowledge about the purpose of function, a chair has very little meaning and could take on other roles. Additinoally, in some mythologies, knowing something's 'true name' is to have power over it as well. Suzie naming Sleipnir after an alternate name of her brother might have given it a means to create a kind of 'compromise' in its conflicting programming. It's not Henry, and with how deeply integrated the memory files are now, it can't be Sleipnir either, but by becoming 'Jianliang' it can create a similar identity for itself and resolve the conflict."
"How'd you think of it?" Kenta asked.
Suzie shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it just came to mind because it was like having a second Henry there." She scowled down at her tea. "I've been around Takato too long. That's the sort of boneheaded thing he would do."
"You might have saved its life, Suzie," Lopmon said from the girl's lap. Suzie ran a finger along her teacup. Himiko found herself wondering if the act had been worth it.
Sleipnir wasn't designed to be what it is, or to have a 'human' life, she thought.
"Continue monitoring," she said to Shibumi. "Beyond that, under no circumstances do you reactivate it."
At that, Suzie's head rose, as if in objection. She said nothing though.
"We're going to have to tell Mr. Wong," Riley said from the side. "We can't keep him from being involved any longer."
Leaning forward on the table, Himiko proceeded to nurse her temples. Riley had a point. She didn't want to involve Suzie's father, but the situation had tremendously altered to the point where she couldn't begin to predict his behavior if she continued to bar him.
"I guess there is no delaying that any longer, is there?" She then made a shooing gesture with her hand. "Everyone out. I have work and thinking to do."
With that, everyone got up and filed out of the room. It was a testament to how Sleipnir's situation affected everyone that they did so with no arguing or objections. Heaving an exhausted sigh, Himiko leaned back in her seat and stared up at the ceiling.
Yamaki… How did you do this every day?
###
Rika arrived at her home with Toshiko and Kayoko in tow. She wasn't sure what she expected to find when they got there. If she had to pick though, BlackGrowlmon watching Renamon and her grandmother playing a game of Go outside by far sat pretty close to the absolute bottom of expectations. The towering black-scaled dinosaur lay on the ground, his chin propped on the lawn and gold eyes watching the back and forth between the two with utter fascination. Concerning the setup itself, the board was laid out over a blanket, protecting the pillow seats that the kitsune and the elder matriarch sat upon from potential dirt, giving the scene the appearance akin to a picnic.
Next to her, Kayoko took out her phone. Flipping it open, she took a picture of the scene.
"Found my new wallpaper," she said amiably.
At that, Seiko looked up and smiled.
"Welcome home, Rika. Did you have a good day?"
"What little of it was left, sure," Rika shrugged.
"She's leaving out the part where she has to take makeup lessons for the classes she missed," Kayoko said. Rika shot her friend a sharp glare, but didn't deny or berate her for speaking the truth.
"It's not a big deal. The teacher was pretty understanding. He just wants to make sure that I won't fall behind, that's all. How's things been?" She cast a look over at BlackGrowlmon. "You holding up okay, Dinoboy?"
"I'm doing okay," BlackGrowlmon said, though she heard an undercurrent of disappointment in his voice. "I'm still too big though. Standing upside down didn't do anything, so I tried meditating like Chou Sensei taught me, but that didn't help either. I only got bored."
"W-Why were you standing upside down?" Toshiko asked a little hesitantly, clearly needing some adjustment to the presence of the large dinosaur in her friend's yard.
"It's how we used to de-digivolve before we figured out how to do it without it," BlackGrowlmon explained. "It was supposed to make us so tired that we couldn't stay big anymore. When I first digivolved, it didn't really work. Even when Takato tired me out with running, I was still stuck as Growlmon."
"How'd you eventually manage it the first time?"
"I saw a rainbow."
"A…rainbow."
"Yeah, I know it sounds weird, but I saw it right after a rainstorm and it just looked so pretty that I just kind of…forgot that I was so big, I guess?" BlackGrowlmon scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Explaining it is kind of hard."
"It sounds like, for a moment, you weren't thinking about your troubles," Seiko suggested, placing a black stone on the board.
"Maybe." BlackGrowlmon looked dejected. "But I have pretty big troubles now. Bigger than when I was just Growlmon for the first time. I feel…itchy in my head."
"Well, don't you worry, big guy," Kayoko said cheerfully. "I've got just the cure for your head itch."
BlackGrolwmon lifted his head, eyebrows raised in curiosity. "You do?"
"You do?" Toshiko asked, voicing Rika's own unspoken question.
"Sure!" Kayoko turned to look at Seiko and bowed politely to her. "With your permission?"
Seiko gave the girl a knowing smile. "Of course."
"You're in for a treat, Gill…Guil…" She looked up at BlackGrowlmon. "I'm sorry. What are you called right now?"
"BlackGrowlmon."
"BlackGrowlmon." Kayoko flashed the dinosaur a grin. "You're in for a real treat." Slinging off her long, thin bag, she unzipped it and produced a curved, wooden bokken. "Have you ever seen a kenshibu?"
"Ah… No?"
"Ever hear of Kenbu?"
"No."
"Watch and learn and enjoy then," Kayoko said, drawing the wooden blade up. "You too, Bushy Tail." She smirked at Renamon. "Sword dancing is the one thing Nonaka here consistently lost to me in back in the day."
Renamon arched an eyebrow at this, but saw from the expressions from all three girls that this was no idle boasting on Kayoko's part. Rika especially squirmed in discomfort.
"Only because I never practiced it like you do," she huffed, annoyed at her friend's unnecessary needling.
"Oh, please. You did Shibu Shibu when we were kids."
Rika folded her arms together. "Fans are not the same thing."
"Oh sure, but it's all still poetry and dancing in the end." Kayoko grinned at her friend. "Do you still have your fans by the way?"
Rika glowered, seeing the challenge in Kayoko's eyes. She knew it was a trap. Kayoko was out of practice as well, but her family ran a school dedicated to the practice of Kenbu, in which she had been trained in since early childhood. However rusty she might be, she had miles more experience – and interest – in the art of sword dancing. Rika had only limited experience in the Shibu Shibu part of Kenshibu, and while she appreciated the classical aesthetic of the art style, it wasn't something she really kept up with.
And ever since she pushed me into modeling, I haven't been able to do it that much.
Kayoko's challenging grin tugged at her though, and before Rika knew it, she already started off in the direction of her room.
"Give me a minute," she grumbled. She did her best to ignore Kayoko's jubilant cry.
She made it to her room in record time and hastily changed into her day outfit. Jean skirt, T-shirt with a full-heart pattern and turquoise sleeves that revealed a generous amount of her upper arm. Once clothed, she dug around her belongings and quickly produced a pair of folding fans. A light blush colored her cheeks. She pulled one open, revealing a dazzling display of blue and white color, resembling to her eyes a passing cloud in the sky. Curious, she fell into a crouch. The muscles in her legs protest a little, but the memory in them remained clear even after all the time that passed.
I might lose, but I'll go down in style, she thought. With a nod, she snapped the fan closed and rejoined her friends. Seeing her, Kayoko nodded respectfully. They stood facing one another, Rika with the koi pond to her back, Kayoko a pair of boulders and the main entrance behind her.
Rika snapped her fans open and began.
Their match was not traditional or even remotely standard, and never had been. That was how they preferred it. There were no rules here per se, or any particular pattern to follow. Unlike previous matches between them, they did so without any poetry, music or beats. Whatever rhythm they followed would be their own choosing, though the absence of music left things feeling awkward and unsure of herself. To find a flow, she brought one of the fans close to her face, hiding her mouth and blushing cheeks, and with the other one, she swept it about her, giving it a slight flutter.
I am a bird soaring in the sky, she thought to herself, and at once she began to feel better and more at ease. Playing the part of the fictional bird, she slowly dropped closer to the ground, swinging closer to the koi pond as she did so. She then rose it back up, dipping down and twirling the 'bird' in its sky.
Kayoko moved now. Drawing up her bokken, she executed a number of high, arching, slashing cuts. Unlike Rika, whose legs flowed from straight to bent at need, Kayoko's knees were consistently bent and her stance was wide. She stomped forward like an earthbound dragon, churning up dust from the ground. She thrust her bokken at the koi pond and then proceeded to make her way in its direction, hacking and slashing the whole way. Taking the hint, Rika swung her 'bird' up, mirroring the slashing arcs. Still hiding her face, she more fluidly approached the koi pond bridge. There, she snapped both fans closed and pointed them at Kayoko like daggers. Wordlessly, Kayoko shifted her stance in response, rising like a tower and bringing her feet closer to each other while still keeping them apart enough for sword work. She drew her bokken over her head, point aimed directly at Rika. Her eyes flashed in challenge.
Rika, getting more into the motions now, twirled about so that her back faced her friend. She knelt while leaning far backward, causing her to look at Kayoko from an upside-down angle. Both fans snapped back open and she drew them about her like a pair of axe blades, forming a wall. Rising back up, she twirled again, bringing herself back to face her friend. She drew the fans up to her cheeks where she gave them a light flutter just below her eyes before pulling them back again. Spreading her arms out, fans fully exposed, she presented herself also in challenge.
I am open. Strike me if you think you can.
In response, Kayoko drew her bokken down to a resting position. Drawing away from the bridge, she circled about, once again slashing about her. This time, her cuts began near her ankles and gradually rose up toward her head, appearing like a tornado. Rika fell into a crouch and started toward her as well, fans whirling in tight, circular motions until movement from out of the corner of her eye caught her attention.
She risked a glance and saw Takato standing at the gate, watching her and Kayoko's match with a mixture of curiosity and bewilderment.
"Ah!" Rika gasped. Her footing fumbled and she ground to a halt. Seeing this, Kayoko ceased her cuts. She was sweating, and her breath came out in heavy pants, but the sparkle in her eyes indicated she was having fun.
"Are you all right, Nonaka?" she asked, lowering her bokken. Seeing that Rika was looking elsewhere, she followed her gaze over to Takato. Kayoko grinned.
"Looks like that's my win," she said, turning back to Rika, who flushed profusely at having been caught by Takato. "Good match though. I needed that workout."
Drawing an arm around Rika's shoulder, Kayoko pulled her into a close, companionable hug. Despite her embarrassment, Rika allowed it.
"Hey, Gogglehead!" Kayoko called, waving her bokken at the boy. "I bet you're wondering what we're up to. We figured we'd put on a show for your partner to help take his mind off his problems and…"
A soft glow suddenly forming around the tall, black dinosaur. All eyes turned to watch as BlackGrowlmon's massive body shrank, shrugging off his excess data. When the light ended, only the red-scaled, shorter form of Guilmon remained, blinking at himself.
"…and it looks like it worked," Kayoko grinned. Reaching up, she ruffled Rika's hair.
"Kayoko…" Rika groaned and she blushed even harder. She attempted to break free from her companion, but that only caused Kayoko to continue ruffling her hair.
"Oh, don't be like that. I earned this one. Jeez, do you know how soft your hair is? How do you get it like that?"
Ignoring their antics, Takato rushed over to his partner.
"Guilmon!"
"Oh, I'm back!" Guilmon laughed as Takato crushed him to his chest.
"A-Are you all right?" Takato asked. "How do you feel?"
"Like an itch is gone," Guilmon replied, inspecting his scales. They were a brilliant, vibrant red again. "It was kind of fun changing colors, but if it makes my head itch, I'd much rather stay red. How are you?" Drawing back, he cocked his head in concern, seeing the tears forming in his partner's eyes. "Ohhh… Your eyes are leaking."
"I'm fine, I'm fine." Takato wiped at his face. "I'm just glad that you're you again. All day I was afraid… Afraid that I was turning you into a monster again."
Guilmon gently wrapped his arms around his partner and drew in a deep breath, taking in Takato's scent. He could smell all his worries and fears and through them could paint the picture in his mind of what Takato feared he was being turned into. He knew as well this fear was not wholly unfounded either, given how real it had been for both of them. In an effort to push back against it, he said only one word.
"Momentai."
###
"Thank you," Takato said, bowing politely to Kayoko and Rika as the sun cast a golden glow across the darkening sky. "Both of you. For taking care of Guilmon and helping him de-digivolve. I don't know how I can thank you guys."
"That's easy," Guilmon said. "You can bake them bread or cookies. That's always a good way of saying thank you."
"Well, there's one idea," Takato said, rubbing the back of his head. He smiled at them and Rika found herself returning it. For the first time since Yamaki's funeral, she saw genuine warmth returning to her gogglehead.
"It's no problem," she replied.
"It really isn't," Kayoko agreed. "But since you're offering, I wouldn't mind a pastry."
"Kayoko!" Toshiko hissed from behind her. "Rude!"
"Tell you what," Takato said. "The next time you come by the bakery, you can pick something out. It'll be on the house. Or, if not, I can make something. Not sure how well I'll do, but I can at least promise it'll be good."
"Jeez, Nonaka. You snagged yourself someone really nice. Can I have him?"
Rika rolled her eyes and did her best to ignore the flash of jealousy in her heart. She knew Kayoko didn't mean it, but she couldn't help the emotion.
"We'll be in touch," she said. Reaching out, she clasped his hand and gave it a soft squeeze. "Take care of yourselves out there."
"You too," Takato smiled. Releasing him, the three girls escorted Takato and Guilmon to the gate. Bidding their final goodbyes, the duo headed off. Pressing her lips together, Rika watched them go. She felt as though she should say something more, but as nothing came to her, she saw no need to drag out the goodbyes any longer than they already were.
Kayoko leaned an arm on Rika's shoulder.
"You've got it bad, Nonaka," she chuckled. "I told you that you'd get bit by the bug eventually. And you didn't believe me."
"Knock it off." Rika brushed her friend off. "He doesn't see me like that."
"No," Kayoko agreed. "But it's still nice seeing you branching out."
"And becoming a Tamer isn't?"
"She just means she's glad that you're getting out more and falling in love," Toshiko said, chiming in. "Usually, you'd just stay home."
"And act stuck up about it," Kayoko laughed. "Princesses have to come out of their castles sooner or later. Funny how for you it took a knight in shining armor to do it."
"Didn't I say to knock it off?" Rika huffed. Pulling out her cellphone, she checked her messages. Nothing new from Hypnos. I guess whatever they were doing, it all worked out in the end.
"Anyway, speaking of studying, I have to get back to it. I've missed a lot of class recently. I can't fall behind."
"Do you mind us sticking around a little longer then?" Kayoko asked. "I've got notes you can use."
"Thanks. That'd be great."
"Can-Can I have Kenta stop by?" Toshiko asked, shrinking into herself. "I didn't get to see him because he became busy."
Rika hesitated at that, remembering her mother's objections to Takato. She would be home soon as well, bringing with her all her noise and worries. She quickly shrugged however.
"Sure. Grandma and Mom will probably get a kick out of MarineAngemon anyway."
Rika wondered if that would be true, but at present she found she didn't want her mother dictating all of her social interactions with the Tamers.
The three of them soon settled in her room, piling out their notebooks and assignments. Toshiko chattered away on her cellphone, texting to Kenta and any thoughts for her two friends too bizarre or vocally exciting for her normally shy exterior to say aloud. Rika lost herself in those moments, feeling her heart warm from the presence of her friends. Not for the first time did she feel a great swell of emotion in her, remembering her counterpart from the other world and her more adversarial behavior.
She couldn't be friends with these two numbskulls, she thought, watching Kayoko attempt to play sword fighting with Toshiko using their pens. I bet she wouldn't spend the weekend with them or even think about having a Kenshibu dance off. I bet, if it were up to her, she'd spend all her hours sitting alone in her room.
Her face fell at that. Does she ever get lonely? I mean, I know I can go long stretches and not be bothered by it, but to be alone like that…
"Hey, Kayoko?" she said suddenly, without realizing the question was coming.
Kayoko, holding a struggling Toshiko by the wrists, turned to her.
"Yeah?"
Rika ran her tongue along her lips before answering.
"Do you want to do more of our dance duels again? It's been a while and I kind of forgot how fun they used to be."
"Even though you'll lose again?" Kayoko grinned. Rika saw that it wasn't an unpleasant look. There was no mockery in her voice either. Rika had piqued her interest, but wanted to make sure that she was all in for the suggestion. Rika blushed. She found herself wondering how much of her own pride had to do with their recent lack of dance duels.
"I'll be better than you before you know it," she answered with a challenging smirk.
"I'll believe it when I live it, Nonaka," Kayoko replied with a laugh.
A loud, dull knock on the gate broke across the yard.
"Rika?" Seiko called from inside the house. "Could you get that?"
"It's Kenta!" Toshiko announced, looking up from her cellphone. Shooting to her feet, she rushed out of the room, nearly tripping as she did so. Rika, more casually, moved to join her. Kayoko, alone with Renamon now, stretched and let out a loud yawn.
"You take well to your rivalry with Rika," Renamon observed.
Kayoko met the vulpine digimon's eyes levelly, not in the least bit bothered by her cool, intimidating, blue eyes. Still stretching, she grunted as something pop comfortably in her shoulder and then relaxed.
"Didn't always used to be that way," Kayoko said, lowering her arms, "but I've had a lot of time to realize she can be good for pushing people when they need it. It took me a while to realize that I needed it." She shrugged, her dark eyes following Rika and Toshiko as they appeared on the stone path leading to the gate. She smiled softly. "I can't call myself her friend if I don't at least return the favor once in a while."
A small, barely visible smile graced Renamon's features. "Gaiomon would have liked you."
Kayoko raised an eyebrow at her. Seeing the curiosity in her eyes, Renamon shifted topics. For her, the pain of her loss remained too near.
"Your sword dancing… I found it interesting to watch. I would like to learn it, if you don't mind."
"You're asking me to train you in the art of dancing?" Kayoko grinned, clearly liking the idea. "Name a date, Fluffy Tail."
###
Off in the distance, framed against the moonlight, a tall, lithe figure, watched the Nonaka household with gleaming red eyes. A metallic tail, thin and rat-like, whipped about behind it, and the hilt of a weapon holstered against its leg glinted. Raising its hand, it mimed a gun with steely claws, aimed directly at the Nonaka household.
"Bang," he whispered before fading from view.
###
A/N: It should be noted, though I feel this goes without saying, that the fan and sword dances portrayed in this chapter are not in keeping with any traditional styles in Japanese culture and are more akin to improv. While I did do research on the dances, I felt more that the personalities of Rika and Kayoko – particularly with their playful competitiveness – would inevitably evolve into something personal between them, indulging their somewhat rebellious streaks against convention while simultaneously pushing each other's creativity and ability to perform improvisational dances under pressure. If there are any rules in their 'battles' it's to keep a basic, barebones form for the dance styles (i.e. fan dancing should be recognizably fan dancing to a layman who knows very little about it) and what their intended audience – usually Toshiko – thinks of their performance. So, to my readers, please do not take this as an accurate description of Kenshibu or any related styles.
For the computer tech stuff, my research on race condition is when a device or system attempts to perform two or more operations at the same time/access the same resource instead of the proper sequence. This can be a result of errors in old data, errors in writing new data, processed in the incorrect order, etc… Either way, it's considered a serious issue.
'Till next time. :)
-Crazyeight
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