I know, I know, it hasn't been my customary 6-12 months. Haha. Honestly, I have another 2-3 chapters worth of content written that just needs to be refined and separated into proper chapters, so hopefully I can keep up with it at least a once a month if not more for a little while. I WILL be working on some new chapters of a couple of my other works as well, including a A Different Path, Lost in the Dark and I'll be doing some outlining and brainstorming for my next big project, which is the continuation of my one-shot Where Darkness Hides-a Ken/T.K. focused story, (friendship, not relationship) for when this one finally comes to and end.

I also released a small one-shot T.K./Tai friendship fluff story called "Panic Attack" check it out and let me know what you think.

As always, I appreciate your feedback. It REALLY motivates me to keep going. Thank you for following along with my writing and putting up with all my long breaks. You'll never know how much I truly appreciate knowing people (strangers) actually like my writing.

Ken's heart was pounding in his ears as he stared at the bedroom door.

T.K. was finally awake.

The moment that Kari stepped out of the room and told them he'd woken up, a weight had lifted—only to be replaced with the anxiety of and pressure of what came next. The hard conversations that were to be had. He wanted to rush in there and tell T.K. how mad he was, how scared he was, how sorry he was and how relieve he was… but he couldn't move—he didn't know how to say what he wanted, he wasn't even sure he knew what he wanted to say. Kari finally stepped away from the door after handing Joe the glass of water and turned, their eyes met briefly, both he and Kari immediately looked away from each other. They hadn't spoken a single word to one another since arriving back in the real world.

She blamed herself, and he couldn't lie. He blamed her, too. But whether he agreed with the choice's she made that got them here or not, he couldn't argue with the facts: and those facts were as clear as day—T.K. couldn't have survived much longer on his own, and they couldn't allow him to push them away anymore. They were all in this together now, whether or not anyone liked it.

Tai stepped over to Kari, whispering to her. She turned away from him—they'd been fighting since they got back to the real world. Tai followed after her into the kitchen, clearly frustrated with his sister, ignoring Ken's stare as he rounded the corner.

Ken ran his hands through his hair and stood from the couch, ignoring Yolei's questioning stare and Davis's raised eyebrow. Walking out onto the balcony, he quietly shut the door behind himself, letting the muggy summer heat wash over him. He let out a shaky breath and leaned his elbows onto the railing, wrapping his hands behind his head and closing his eyes. The faint hum of the city far below Izzy's apartment helping him tune out his spiraling thoughts. His mind going back to that night, remembering T.K. falling to the ground and Shadowseraphimon's dark aura pulsating through the air. His own voice echoing in his mind. "T.K.!"

#

Ken watched as T.K. collapsed to the ground. He ran past Davis and Kari, lying unconscious on the ground ahead of where T.K. had fallen—knowing Yolei and the others were on his heels. His knees hit the ground hard, the moisture of the disheveled soil and grass soaking into the knees of his pant. He reached over and pulled T.K. onto his back. Blood dripped from the corner of T.K.'s mouth and his complexion had gone white.

"T.K.!" Ken hissed. "No, no, no!" He growled. Reaching over, he grabbed T.K.'s wrist—he couldn't find a pulse. Shit! He pressed his ear to T.K.'s chest—his heart. He could hear it, faint, slow, but it was there. He turned, looking for help—Gennai was standing beside him, readying to kneel. "Do something!"

Gennai grimaced. "Ken, he's—"

"No!" Ken shouted over him. "I won't accept it. Help me get him up."

"Ken." Gennai's voice was somber but firm. "He forced Patamon to warp digivolve. He forced Patamon to evolve to mega, there's nothing we can do now—"

"Shut up!" Ken growled.

Suddenly, the ground shook and the bright light from above made Ken turn away, shielding his face. The sound of the digimon fighting was deafening, the proximity of the battle making it too risky to stay there.

Ken could finally look up into the sky. The digimon floating above were barely recognizable. One, clearly an evolution of Mephistomon and the other Patamon's mega evolution, but wrong, somehow, the colors on his armor dark green and his wings dark, batlike, not the form of an angel, an aura of darkness pulsating from his body.

"Shadowseraphimon…" Gennai acknowledged. "Corrupted."

Ken closed his eyes, grimacing. It wasn't unlike what he'd done to Greymon as the digimon emperor—forcing an evolution resulting in a corrupted version of what should have been.

Ken heard a high-pitched sound, drawing his attention back to the sky, Mephistomon shifted, raising his hands toward Shadowseraphimon's much smaller form, several circular runes made up of purple light formed around Mephistomon, in a variety of sizes and angles, a feeling of desperation clung to the digimon's sudden movements. The single invisible attack that Shadowseraphimon unleased, ended what couldn't even be called a fight.

Mephistomon's form cracked and shattered, the data particles fading away instantly. "Master…" a strained whisper lingered in the wake of his demise.

Matt was suddenly shoving Ken away from T.K. He couldn't describe the panicked look on Matt's face as he gripped T.K.'s shoulders, shaking them firmly. "T.K.!" Matt's voice shook. "No—! T.K.!"

A horrible shrill shriek sounded from above them, making them all cover their ears—the monstrous, inhuman noise coming from Shadowseraphimon, who was writhing in pain in the sky, holding onto his head.

"We have to get out of here!" Izzy shouted from behind.

Ken glanced back to see that almost everyone, aside from Izzy and Yolei, had gotten the others back through the portal and were waiting for them. "Help me pick him up." He told Matt.

Matt shifted, fighting back a groan as he grabbed at T.K.'s arm to pull him up.

Dark spheres suddenly shot out from Seraphimon's form, crashing into the barrier and into the ground, causing large explosions—the barrier cracking, water spraying through.

"He's lost his mind." Gennai yelled over the commotion, shielding his face from the brightness that surrounded Seraphimon. Aquilamon, Stingmon, Kabuterimon and Ikkakumon were all evolved and standing between them, and Shadowseraphimon's uncontrollable rampage.

Matt groaned, clearly in pain, before looking over at Ken. "Ready?"

Ken made to nod when he heard Yolei yell out Kari's name. He looked up, seeing Kari limping toward them, holding her arm tightly. "Kari?" She looked like she could pass out any second.

Matt didn't seem to notice Ken's attention, his focus going in and out as he put his hand under T.K.'s head. "Help me!" he snapped.

Ken looked down at T.K., the sight of his friend draining all the will from his body—gone. The word rang in his head as the thought hit him.

T.K. was gone.

Matt growled, gritting his teeth, ready to snap at Ken to help, when Kari pressed her hand onto his shoulder to steady herself as she fell to her knees weakly at his side. Her eyes seemed glazed over, lost of light and focus as she stared down at T.K.'s body.

Matt turned to her, mouth open to say something, but it was lost before he could make it out. Kari grabbed hold of T.K.'s hand, and instantly a soft, white, barely noticeable glow appeared around her and T.K. both.

Matt's mouth dropped open, shifting as he still held onto T.K., but was no longer trying to lift him. "You…" he blinked hard before his gaze locked on T.K.'s face, hopeful but undeniably terrified.

There was a sudden darkness around them all. The brilliance of Shadowseraphimon vanished. Ken turned to look. Seeing in Shadowseraphimon's place was a miniscule white blob—poyomon.

Stingmon was already moving before Ken could shout, speeding into the air as Poyomon began falling toward the ground. It only took a few seconds for him to catch the baby digimon.

Ken turned back to see that Kari was leaning over T.K., eyes closed, brows furrowed with deep concentration, sweat building on her face, clearly in pain. His eyes lowered, seeing her hands pressed firmly to his chest. The glow brightened and was the only source of light around them now.

Matt held T.K.'s hand tightly, leaning forward, pressing it to his forehead. "Please…" his voice shook—if it hadn't been deafeningly silent, no one would have been able to hear.

Kari gasped, biting back a groan of pain, leaning forward so that her head was directly over T.K.'s chest, her forehead inches above where her shaking hands pressed into his shirt. "Don't let go, T.K." she spoke between clenched teeth, desperate. "Please…"

"Do you know what you're doing?" Gennai spoke, loudly.

Her body tensed, tears streaming down her cheeks, falling onto T.K.'s shirt. "I don't care."

"You're going to die along with him if you continue to pour your life essence into him like this. The power of Light is strong, immense, and even feels immeasurable at times, but you do have limitations as a human being. You are not immeasurable."

Kari let out a cry of pain, shaking her head. "I don't care!"

"Even if you succeed, there could be irrevocable consequences."

Ken couldn't breathe, his eyes fixed on Kari and T.K., paralyzed by fear. He was helpless. He couldn't do anything. But he knew this wasn't right, that T.K. wouldn't have wanted this. "Kari, he…" his voice caught. He couldn't make the words come out. "He wouldn't…" he forced his eyes closed. "Kari, he wouldn't want you to do this. He wouldn't want to be the reason you…"

"Shut up." Matt's coarse voice shook.

Ken looked up in surprise. Tears he hadn't realized were forming in his eyes spilled down his cheeks as he looked over at Matt in disbelief.

Kari shook her head, pleading quietly. "T.K., please, please… T.K."

Ken's voice shook. "Matt…"

Matt refused to look at him, his eyes focused solely on his brother—nothing else mattered to him, no one else mattered to him right then. He was being unequivocally selfish, and, in that moment, he didn't care.

Kari inhaled sharply, wavering in place. The glow vanished as she lost consciousness. Ken leaned over T.K.'s torso, grabbing her so that she wouldn't fall on top of him. Gennai was quick to help Ken lift her and lay her on the ground.

"Is she…?" Ken's voice was full of fear and apprehension.

Gennai shook his head quickly. "She's still alive."

Matt's voice went shrill as he yelled out. "T.K.!"

Ken froze, hearing T.K.'s soft groan from behind him. He slowly turned around. Matt had pulled T.K. into his arms, sobbing silently over him. He was still unconscious, but his face wasn't nearly as pale as it had been moments before, his expression full of discomfort.

Gennai looked solemnly at the four of them.

#

"Hey." Davis's voice cut into Ken's thoughts, pulling him out of his memories with a jolt.

Ken shifted, turning to look over his shoulder at his friend. He gave him a single nod before turning back to look out over the city, the blue skies and bright sunshine pouring over the cityscape felt so displaced considering the past few months—it was nearing the end of summer now, but they'd been under a dark cloud since spring.

"Joe just came out." Davis said softly as he stepped up and leaned his back against the railing, facing the opposite direction as Ken, reaching out a bottle of water.

Ken straightened and looked at Davis. "What did he say?" he took the water from Davis's hand, turning his attention back to the city.

"He's dehydrated, has a headache and is still refusing food." Davis sighed. "He doesn't think he needs to go to the hospital, but they're monitoring him."

"Has anyone told him what happened?" Ken closed his eyes. "What Kari did to save him…?"

Davis didn't answer at first. "I don't know. Kari said he was in a panic when he first came to, so Matt probably had to say something to calm him down. So, he probably wasn't very forthcoming with the details."

Ken ran his hands over his face. "He's going to be pissed."

Davis crossed his arms, his voice low. "No shit."

Ken swallowed hard. "I don't know what to do, Davis."

"It's too late. It's already decided." Davis turned around and looked out over the city. Reaching his hand out, he tapped on the invisible wall suspended a few feet away from the balcony, a chirping sound accompanying the digital particles, which vanished as soon as he dropped his finger. "We took things into our own hands, right or wrong. We've forced our way into this fight." He turned to look at Ken, his expression rigid, but resolved. "We have to work together now, whether or not he wants to. If anything, this should give him a new resolve to survive, right…?"

Ken bit back tears, turning his face away from Davis, nodding. "Yeah…"

#

Matt sat on the edge of the bed, staring at T.K. unapologetically.

T.K. sat, his back against the headboard, staring at his hands in his lap, the faded scar on his wrist an unpleasant focal point. There was a figurative wall between them, built by everything that had happened since he'd first encountered Wisemon all those months ago. Despite the sudden wave of exhaustion that hit him, he knew he couldn't avoid this conversation forever.

"What now?" He finally looked up at Matt, meeting his brother's eyes for the first time with genuine intent. He watched as Matt closed his eyes, his jaw tightened, his expression full of unease as he let out a deep breath.

Matt turned away as he opened his eyes, staring at the floor. "It kind of depends on you, at this point."

T.K. felt his chest tighten with frustration. "How, exactly?"

Matt let out a shaky breath, finally looking back up at T.K. "Well, you know you can't continue down this same reckless self-destructive tangent you've been on for the past three months, but what happens next depends on how willing you are to accept our help or not."

T.K. opened his mouth, hesitating before responding. "Did what happen with Mephistomon not open your eyes at all?" He felt so defeated, and he knew it showed on his face. "Everything I was afraid of happened within hours."

Matt's expression softened, the guilt showing in his eyes. "Yeah, T.K., you were right." He inhaled slowly, trying to even his voice. "But we were caught off guard. We had no idea what was going on or who we were up against. You set us up for failure by not confiding in us from the very beginning."

T.K. wanted to argue, but he waited for a minute, collecting his thoughts.

Matt shook his head, not giving T.K. time to respond. "Damn it, you knew you couldn't do this alone, T.K."

There was a moment of silence before T.K. spoke, his tone cold. "You're right." T.K.'s eyes showed little emotion. "But at least none of you would have gotten hurt." His gaze fixed on the cut on Matt's face.

Matt shook his head, fighting hard not to let his anger take over. "So what? A few scratches and bruises or your life?"

"It almost wasn't just a few scratches and bruises, and you know it!" T.K. snapped, trying to keep his voice low. "You have to understand where I'm coming from, Matt. Please."

"Listen, I hear you T.K. but it's not just that anymore. Things have changed."

T.K. watched Matt's eyes shift toward the door briefly before they met back with his, anxiety slowly building in his chest. All he could do was stare at Matt with a questioning look.

"Look, there's a lot we need to discuss, but right now, I just want you to focus on regaining your strength. We're safe right now, so just take some time, alright?"

"What's changed?" His voice was quiet.

Matt didn't respond right away. Their eyes locked. He could see the concern growing in T.K.'s expression.

"Matt." T.K. felt himself getting lightheaded, the anxiety tightening his chest. "What changed?"

"Do you feel it?" Matt questioned lightly. "At all?"

T.K. frowned at that. "Feel what?"

Matt said her name hesitantly. "…Kari…"

T.K. raised an eyebrow at Matt, clearly confused.

"Never mind, listen—"

"No. Not never mind. You already said it's because of Kari and the crest of light that I'm still alive, right? So, what is it? Did something happen to her?"

Matt stared at T.K. for several seconds, gauging his brother. "She's fine, T.K."

"Then what?" T.K.'s voice broke.

Matt hesitated. "Can I say something first?"

T.K. just stared, waiting for answers.

"We made a choice, T.K. and we all know what we're getting into. Especially after what happened. We all do…" Matt had a determined look on his face. "That includes Kari, too. We're all here and we're not going anywhere."

T.K. wasn't convinced, he could tell Matt was diverting. "There's more to it than that."

Matt let out a deep breath and ran his hands over his face before looking back at T.K. "I think it's better if Kari explains."

T.K. felt his heart rate increase as he looked toward the doorway apprehensively.

Matt saw how troubled he looked. "You don't want to talk to her?"

T.K.'s eyes lowered, unable to hide the hurt in his expression.

"Kari told me what happened the day they finally confronted you." Matt spoke hesitantly.

T.K. looked back at Matt, knowing he was dodging again.

"Kari stole Davis's phone and by the time the others realized what was happening and caught up with her, you had just shown up."

T.K. looked down at his hands.

Matt pursed his lips, looking up at the door again. "You know, she was only doing what she had to."

T.K. felt tears stinging at his eyes, a lump forming in his throat, his head throbbed, and he felt so tired.

"I know what you're thinking, T.K., I get it. But what would you be doing if any one else had been put in this position? Me, Ken…" He hesitated. "…Kari…?"

He had to look away from Matt, unable to respond to his pleading stare. He didn't know how to be okay with putting them all in so much danger.

Matt spoke softly. "T.K., please, just talk to me."

T.K. finally looked back at Matt, giving him a defeated look. "I'm terrified, Matt."

"And you think I'm not? But we're not giving up."

T.K.'s eyes filled with tears, and he looked away from Matt before they could slide down his cheeks.

"T.K.…" Matt closed the distance between them, putting his hand on T.K.'s shoulder supportively.

T.K. shifted away from Matt. As he did, his head throbbed, making him wince, reaching up to hold the side of his head.

"What is it?" Matt's voice sounded muffled.

"Nothing." T.K. knew his voice betrayed him. "I'm just tired…"

"Does your head hurt?" T.K. grabbed Matt's arm tightly, stopping him before he could stand up to go get Joe.

"It's just a headache." He squinted at Matt through the pain. "I just need…" he could feel himself losing consciousness. "I just…"

"T.K.!" Matt grabbed hold of T.K.'s arm and pulled him against his chest for support as he passed out.