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: 27/ Castles Made of Sand

Rika continued holding Takato's hand after leaving the funeral. She ignored the looks they got from passersby and from Suzie, Kenta, Alice, and Toshiko. She didn't care what people thought about them for her open display of care and tenderness. She just wanted to comfort her friend; to let him know that he had her support and friendship. He didn't return her grasp. Didn't appear to acknowledge it even, but that was fine. She could only guess how he was feeling, but she doubted it involved anything positive.

She looked at Takato from out of the corner of her eye. His face looked pale and drawn and his eyes were distant. He looked this way since they began taking care of Yamaki's cremated remains. His thoughts remained at the funeral, still picking up bones with chopsticks and putting them in the urn.

"So, what happens now?" Kenta asked, plainly growing uncomfortable with the silence as they made their way down the street. He looked over at Janyu, who, along with his wife, walked alongside Suzie. Glancing at the teen, Janyu adjusted his glasses, his expression pensive.

"Do you really want to talk about work at a time like this?" Suzie berated Kenta.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Kenta replied defensively. "I mean, what are we doing now that the funeral is over with?" He sighed. "I'm not saying it well, am I? I just…kind of wonder if we should leave it off like this or do something that might help us feel better, even if it's just a little bit."

Suzie bit her lip and looked over at Takato. Guilmon, who loped alongside him, seized on Kenta's suggestion with hope in his eyes.

"Maybe we can watch a movie and have some snacks?" the dinosaur suggested. "Maybe hang out and play a game?"

Rika felt Takato's hand finally twitch in her hand. Unexpectedly, he squeezed her hand. She returned the gesture, her heart buoying a little at even this small sign of life in him.

"I'm not really in the mood," Takato said flatly. Rika pressed her lips together at that, but it was difficult to argue, all things considered.

"Me neither," Suzie added. Her brow knotted together, plainly in thought about something.

Rika watched Kenta deflate a little. Toshiko hesitantly touched a hand to his elbow.

"M-Maybe it's just too soon," she said. "It was a nice idea though."

Toshiko gave Kenta a small smile, indicating that she thought well of his suggestion. Rika tilted her head at her friend thoughtfully before turning back to Kenta. He still looked troubled, but Toshiko's kind words looked to have lifted his spirits a little.

"Another time," Rika said. "It's been a pretty rough day. We could use some quiet time."

"There's never going to be quiet time," Takato spoke up mechanically. Rika looked at him with an arched eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"We're never going to catch a break," Takato replied. Despite the emptiness in his voice, Rika felt the muscles in his hand tighten. "We killed one of Zhuqiaomon's servants. He's not going to just let that go."

"I'm afraid I must concur with his sentiment," Renamon said, still in her Rika disguise. "The Sovereign will see it as a challenge to his power and authority in the digital world. Unless the other Sovereigns intervene, we should expect a reprisal from him."

"Will they intervene?" Kenta asked.

"They didn't before," Takato said, and a note of despair made itself known in his voice. "Azulongmon didn't stop Zhuqiaomon from sending Deva after Deva after us. He's not going to stop him this time."

"But we're friends with him now, aren't we?" Guilmon suggested. "He might not have known that Zhuqiaomon would do what he did, but maybe he knows now?"

"Or maybe he just doesn't care."

"He cares," Alice spoke up. All eyes turned to her, as if surprised that she was there. She had been silent the entire time she had been there. It had been easy to forget she even accompanied them. Takato's crimson eyes met Alice's blue. Rika saw something pass between them. What it was, she couldn't say, but the narrowing of Alice's eyes suggested that she wasn't happy.

An uncomfortable silence fell over the group. Rika's brow furrowed, matching Alice's expression, both plainly not sure what to make of his mood. It was clear that he was speaking out of anger and sadness, but at the same time she knew little to nothing about these Sovereigns or Devas. In all the time prior to recent events, the closest encounter she had with the digital world had been in the subway tunnel when a digital field flooded it. She and her grandmother got out of there without much difficulty beyond a dropped cellphone and nearly getting separated. But that wasn't the same thing as the experience Takato, Suzie, and Kenta had.

"Who is Zhuqiaomon?" Rika asked. "Or these other Sovereigns? Are they like the Harmonious Ones from the TV show and card game? You said one of them was an Azulongmon."

"O-Only Azulongmon appeared in the TV show," Toshiko stammered out, and then blushed when all eyes fell on her. Feeling self-conscious, she pulled closer to Kenta, as if trying to use him as a shield against everyone's attention, including his own. "I-I watched it."

"Look, why don't you ask your partner to fill you in on the details?" Suzie asked irritably. "She's got the direct line on that sort of thing, what with her having worked for the birdie."

"Momentai, Suzie," Lopmon replied from atop Suzie's head. She looked at Renamon. "I haven't been a Deva in years. I am curious about the state of the digital world and why the Sovereign, in all his wisdom, would choose to act as he did."

"That's not a bad idea," Janyu said. "Maybe we should go to Hypnos and discuss things…"

No!" Mayumi's angry tone cut across their conversation, abruptly ending Janyu's participation. "I don't want to hear anything more about the digital world today! Janyu! We need to take Suzie and Lopmon home!"

Stunned silence fell over the group as Mayumi glared at her husband, her face flushed and tears brimming at the corners of her eyes. Suzie gaped at her mother; a bit shaken by her sudden outburst of emotion. Looking embarrassed, Janyu rubbed the back of his head.

"Right. Perhaps later. I'll bring it up with Ms. Hata. I need to speak to her about Sleipnir tomorrow." He bowed to the others. "Take care of yourselves."

With that, the Wong family turned and departed. Takehiro turned toward the rest of the group and gave an awkward smile.

"Well, as far as I'm concerned, you're all more than welcome to take some bread home with you before you all head off yourselves. Don't worry. It's on the house." He glanced at Mie, but she didn't appear to look like she was going to argue. Instead, her eyes were on her son.

"That is very kind of you," said Renamon, giving the Matsuki's a polite bow. "However…" She glanced over at Rika. "I believe your family desired for you to return home after the funeral?"

Rika felt her heart sink at that, but she nodded reluctantly, understanding her partner's reasons for bringing it up. She wanted to give the impression that she would be a responsible member of Rika's family.

I'm already pushing things a little by staying as long as I have.

"You should go," Takato's dull voice said, and just like that he pulled his hand out of hers. Rika frowned down at her palm before looking back at Takato.

"I don't think it would be a bad idea to bring home some bread," she said. "It might go a long way toward making it easier for our families to get along. Especially since we're going to be working together."

She felt eyes on her again. Curious, concerned, and wary were what she detected from them. Wariness especially from Toshiko, who knew her well enough to recognize that she was being combative; unhappy at Takato brushing her off. Rika took a moment to settle herself.

Why am I taking it so personally? I've got to remember that he's not in a good place right now. Between Yamaki, that D-Reaper Jeri thing, and what Titamon did to him, he needs patience. She gazed into his eyes. They looked so uncomfortably lifeless, like the light in them had been extinguished. They reminded her of Guilmon's scales and how worn out his color looked. Rika shivered, feeling a sudden chill in the air.

"Fine," Takato said, his gaze unflinching. "Do whatever you want."

Rika heard Kenta let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay," said Takehiro, sounding uncertain and awkward. "Now that that's been settled, let's go. Breads on the house, so don't worry about holding back?"
"Even me?" Guilmon asked, his golden eyes perking up excitedly.

Mie patted the dinosaur on the head. "I guess we can make an exception this time, but you're going on a diet after today."

"Ohhh… Not again… Takatomon!"

Takato pressed forward, seemingly not listening to the pleas of his partner's stomach.

###

Takehiro showed everyone where the bread was stored and gave them bags with which to store them in. Takato, Rika noticed, disappeared upstairs to his room. Closing up her bag, Rika started after him, only for a voice to give her pause.

"Be careful."

Turning, Rika saw Alice standing behind her, blue eyes locked on her.

"What do you mean, Blondie?" Rika asked, though she felt she had an idea already.

"Just what I said. Be careful. I heard about what Titamon did to him, and I remember what he was like after Jeri died. He won't be there in the way he normally would. He might even be rude to you."

Rika frowned at the blond-haired intern. She remembered hearing that Takato had shut down emotionally for a time. A part of her wanted to brush off this girl's warning, believing that there was no way Takato – even grieving as he was – could be nasty to anyone. But she knew pain, when it ran deep enough, could make people behave in ways counter to their nature.

I've seen him hurting before, but not like this. I'll have to keep that in mind.

"Thanks for the heads up," she nodded to Alice. Turning, she followed after Takato's trail up to his room and knocked on the door.

No answer came. Swallowing fear at what that silence meant she slid the door open.

The quiet of his room greeted her, as did his slumped figure. He sat at his desk with his head buried in his arms. His jacket and goggles lay discarded on the floor like refuse.

"What do you want?" he asked quietly. His voice held no emotion. He wasn't challenging her presence, but the exhaustion in his tone suggested she wasn't wanted.

"Sorry," she said, closing the door behind her. "I'm just worried about you. I wanted to make sure that you were…" She paused, not sure how to phrase her feelings. "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

It sounded lame. Of course, he wasn't okay. If he were fine – at least relative compared to now – he'd be more like she knew him when they first met.

"I'm not going to do what Jeri did," he replied softly. Here, his voice hitched a little.

"What did she do?" she asked, sensing the importance of those words. It might have been a social faux pas to ask, but she had caught enough hints to guess what happened to this world's Jeri Katou.

"I'm not going to pretend things are going well," Takato said. "Because they aren't. I don't know how to fix things and it feels like everything was destined to be like this."

"I can't accept that," Rika said, feeling the need to push back on Takato's darkness. "We can make our own destiny. I changed mine. It doesn't have to keep being like this. We'll figure things out."

Takato fell silent and Rika again shivered a little. She rubbed her arms, wondering what was going on with the temperature. It hadn't been particularly chilly. Spring was well underway and the weather report called for a warm day.

"Why are you like this with me?" he asked after some moments.

"Like what?" Rika asked.

"Just…everything. You're not like this with Kenta or Suzie. Why me?"

Rika cocked her head to one side in confusion before understanding dawned on her. A red discoloration rose into her cheeks and she glared at the floor.

"It's not like that," she said, though a part of her wondered if she were lying. While she felt concerned for all the Tamers, she paid special attention to Takato. "You just seemed hit by this awfully hard. Everyone says that you have that habit." Her eyes lifted and fell on Takato's back once more. "You don't have to carry the whole weight of the world, Gogglehead. It's okay to share."

"Even if it gets people killed?"

Rika opened her mouth to say that if they shared the load together, no one would die. She stopped herself though before she could even get the first word out. Takato, undoubtedly, said similar things in the past, and seen it fail repeatedly.

"I don't plan on dying."

"No one does. But it still happens."

Rika sensing that she wasn't getting through to him, went over to his bed. She drew off the top blanket and took it over to the boy where she draped it over his shoulders. He didn't react, even when she hugged his shoulders and leaned her face into his messy hair.

"A Tamer never walks away from danger," she said. "I'm not and neither should you. It's okay to share the weight. We'll all carry it with you."

Takato didn't respond, but the tension she felt in his muscles was answer enough. Softly, she began to hum a slow, gentle tune. Takato still said nothing, but she felt him tremble beneath her touch.

She held him like that for some time. How long, she didn't know, save that it was long enough for Takato to drift off to sleep. She drew back, taking in his face and the soft, slow rise and fall of his breathing. She could see the lines of strain in his skin. She traced a hand along his cheek and, much to her surprise, placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. She felt herself grow rigid at the sudden, yet strangely pleasant, electrical shock she felt between them. Heat flushed the length of her body and suddenly frightened, she drew back. Gazing down at the boy who had not roused from her touch.

She stood there for a minute; her mind dizzy with the enormity of what she just did. Her face flushing, she looked away, feeling suddenly ashamed.

I shouldn't have done that, she thought, her heart pounding in her chest. Yet, in spite of herself, she ached to reach out to him and help shoulder his burden.

"Sweet dreams, Takato," she said quietly. Drawing back, she gave him one final look before exiting the room.

###

Rika bid the others goodbye before setting off. Toshiko did likewise, as they lived in the same general area. For once, Rika was grateful for her friend's lack of chattiness and for her hobby of running. Rika ran. She didn't care that her dress wasn't made for running or that she would ruin it with the smell of sweat. She ran and Toshiko kept pace with her with Renamon following at a discrete distance, back in her normal form and carrying the bread bag to avoid unnecessary spillage. Both seemed to intuit that Rika needed to pound out the stress of the last few days on cold, hard pavement.

How long it was they ran, Rika didn't know. Eventually though, her legs gave out on her and Toshiko was there to catch her before she collapsed.

"A-Ah! Rika! Are you okay?"

Rika gulped down great feasts of air and angrily jerked away from Toshiko. Seeing the girl's surprised and hurt expression – so reminiscent of Takato's – made her heart crack.

"S-Sorry," Rika wheezed. Pressing her hands against her eyes, Rika found herself unexpectedly starting to cry. "I'm…s-s-sorry."

"Rika…" Toshiko swept Rika up into a hug and the girl buried her face into her friend's shoulder. Rika bit back her tears, hating their presence. All the while, Toshiko rubbed her back and whispered gentle shushes. Were it anyone else, Rika would have lost her temper, but not Toshiko. Getting mad at Toshiko was like kicking a puppy, so she vented her frustration by giving voice to it.

"I am so…stupid!" she growled.

"W-What?" Toshiko drew back, her eyes wide and bewildered. "About what? Rika, what are you talking about?"

Rika didn't answer right away. Her lungs were still working overtime, providing as good an excuse as any to delay answering while she sorted herself out. It wasn't easy and Toshiko, seeing the shaking in her legs, nodded to a nearby bench for them to sit at. Rika allowed herself to be led to it.

"What happened?" Toshiko asked once Rika's breathing began to calm down.

"I was selfish, that's what happened," she replied. She felt Renamon's presence, always attentive and close by. For her Other-Self, that might have been a comfort, but for her, she felt strangely naked.

Push through it, she told herself irritably. She's your partner.

"I'm not sure how to explain it," she said. Leaning her head in her hands, she closed her eyes. "It's stupid and it's embarrassing and on a day when we buried Yamaki."

Toshiko knotted her brow up, plainly not following. Rika pressed her lips together, deciding to bite the bullet.

"I kissed Takato."

Toshiko's eyes went wide with surprise.

"O-Oh! I… Oh."

"Exactly. Oh."

"W-Was it…on the lips?"

"No, it was on the cheek." Rika made an annoyed sound and lifted her head. "He was also sleeping when I did that, thank goodness. The last thing he needs is to have that hanging over his head right now. Though…" She dipped her head down. "I think he already thinks I like him in that way."

"D-Do you?"

Rika chewed her lower lip. "I should," she said. "The Other-Me liked her Takato badly enough it was giving her an aneurism. And I do like-like him a little. But…" She slumped against the back of bench. "I picked the worst time to be in competition with myself."

Toshiko adjusted her glasses and frowned. "I'm not sure I understand. H-How did it happen?"

"I was just…" Rika gestured with one hand at the empty air in front of her. "…watching him. He fell asleep after we talked and he just looked so tired and out of it. He's so upset about Yamaki's death and I-I guess I thought I was going to make him feel better, but…" She shook her head. "It was stupid. What I did was stupid and selfish. I've made things stupidly complicated."

Rika stomped on the ground angrily, causing Toshiko to jump in alarm.

"Sorry," Rika apologized. "I guess I'm just feeling sorry for myself."

"I still don't know if I understand. I mean, I guess I do. A-About the kiss I mean. I…" She shrank into herself. "I thought about doing that with Kenta to help him feel better, but that kind of thing only works in stories."

Rika glanced at Toshiko and smiled at her.

"That's kind of why I said what I did was stupid."

"But the other stuff? I don't get that."

Rika looked down at the pavement.

"I guess I'm just mad that things aren't going as well here as they are in her world. I'm a Tamer now, but things are still a mess. I know it's unrealistic to expect things to suddenly change, but I hate it anyway. I want things to be different. I want to show that I can be just as good as her at fixing things!" She stomped on the ground again. "Except I'm only making things worse."

"Maybe she didn't fix things?"

Rika looked at Toshiko, bewildered. "What do you mean by that? I saw her world! Everyone that died there was still alive!"

"You saw only a fragment of that world," came Renamon's voice, phasing into view. "You do not know what kind of trials your other-self endured. All you know is that, by her presence, things were different."

Toshiko beamed at Renamon.

"Thank you. I couldn't have said it as well as that." Toshiko turned back to Rika. "If Kayoko were here, she'd say something about how that Other-You is you, so she'd probably make a mess of things too." She gave a sudden nervous laugh. "N-Not that I think you would. I mean, I think you're pretty awesome."

Rika allowed a small smile to touch the corners of her lips. She felt a little better.

"Thinking about it though, Kayoko would be right. And I'm stupid for not thinking that too." She harrumphed. "I still have a mess to clean up. I can't do worse than whatever she'd do in this situation. Probably better actually. She couldn't handle having feelings for her gogglehead. I can."

"So, you do like-like him?"

Rika fell silent. Did she like Takato? Or did she like the Takato she met in the Other-World? They were functionally the same, but with some key differences. Still, she knew her version better by now and she found herself admiring how he carried on despite the weight of everything grinding him and the others down. The few times she saw him actually having fun and being a typical, goofy teenager, she saw all the things she liked about him and why her alternate-self liked her Takato as well.

"A little bit, yeah," she admitted. "Maybe not as strong as I would like it to be though, but that's just me being in competition with myself, I guess. I've got to remember that it's not a competition. Takato is a person and he needs… He needs…" She twisted her face up at how corny the next word was, but fortunately Toshiko saved her the trouble.

"He needs love."

"Yeah. Thanks. Not this stupid thing I have right now, whatever it is."

Toshiko giggled. "Sounds like you love him enough already to realize that. Any one of our classmates would have dived right in and not looked back." She gave another giggle. "I could tell Kayoko what happened. She would help check you on it."

Blushing, Rika opened her mouth to protest, only to hesitate. What reason did she have for not telling Kayoko? She'd always been a good check on her worst behaviors.

"That's…not a bad idea, actually. But I'll tell her." She glanced at Toshiko and gave a dry chuckle. "And yes, you can be there when I tell her. Might as well rip the Band-Aid off."

"Why do you make us sound like we're painful?"

"Because I don't like being embarrassed and I'm…easy to embarrass." The blush on Rika's face darkened, but they both knew it to be true. The sooner she pushed past it, the better.

###

Upon entering her home, Rika found her mother waiting for her on the steps. Rika took her shoes off and then looked up at her. Rumiko's eyes were anxious and tense, searching over her daughter for any sign of her emotional weather. Rika gave her one by softening her gaze.

"I'm home," she said quietly. Rumiko nodded. Approaching her, she hesitantly reached out. Rika stepped into the awaiting hug and allowed herself to be pulled into her mother's embrace.

"I'm glad you're back," Rumiko said. "Oh, Rika…" Her voice choked and she tightened her grip around her daughter. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there. I… The thought of you and funerals…"

Rumiko's words fell into quiet sobbing. Reaching up, Rika returned her hug, offering her some degree of comfort despite their disagreements. From out of the corner of her eye, she saw her father standing in the hallway. He nodded to her before turning away and returning to his room. She would visit him there after seeing to her mother and grandmother. He had a game of Go waiting for her.

"I've seen Mama upset before," she said, taking up a black stone and setting it on the board, "but I've never seen her the way she was when I came home."

"She was worried," her father said, adjusting his seating while considering his next move. "After you left, we talked. And after that, she paced a lot."

"She didn't drink? Or go to a shoot?"

"Rika, when your mother drinks, it's to enjoy something, not to forget what's bothering her. And she wanted to be home for you." He leaned back and took up a white stone. "Believe it or not, she's been doing a lot of thinking lately. She's realizing that a lot of things happened right under her nose because she didn't make herself available for you to talk to her."

"I told her what was going on when Hypnos got involved."

"Yes, but you didn't talk to her."

I didn't talk to you at first either, Rika thought, but she didn't say that out loud. She knew the difference. She confided in her father once everything became known and never in her mother.

"I don't know how to talk to her like that," she admitted. She watched as her father set his stone down on the board, adding it to a group that was slowly encircling one of her pieces. She frowned, wondering why he was trying to capture the stone positioned there. It was a loner and offered no advantage for him.

Unless I'm missing something?

"You'll have plenty of time to practice," her father said with a dry chuckle. "She's making herself available."

"I wonder if I'll be able to. I'm going to be pretty busy from here on out."

"Hopefully not too busy." Her father watched as she placed a stone onto her main path of attack, ignoring his previous move. "I'd still like to see another motorcross race with you before you get to be too old to see them with your old man."

In spite of his teasing grin, Rika wrapped her arms about herself guiltily.

"I'm sorry we didn't get to go. I know you got those tickets for us."

"Don't worry about it. I had a feeling you wouldn't be up to it so I gave them back to my friend. He's fine with giving me another batch as long as I take him out drinking sometime."

Rika hmphed. "Mom's not going to like that."

Her father shrugged. He was used to it, and as he rarely turned up drunk after such outings, he wasn't concerned. Taking up a stone, he added it to his previous move. Fuming, Rika again glared at that corner of the board, wondering just what she missed about it that her father was focusing on.

###

Night found Riley Ootori making her way down the busy streets of Shinjuku's western business district. All about her, people milled about, life seeming to return to normal to the point that it felt to her like nothing had changed in the last few days.

Just having my usual stroll to the Matsuki's bakery to get a light snack for myself and Yamaki. She gripped the lighter in her hand tightly and for half a second, she felt the hot flash of pain in her throat, reminding her that the feeling of normal was nothing but an illusion created by long habit. She wasn't going to the bakery to get a snack that would make her concerned about whether or not she would be able to fit into her uniform. She wouldn't be getting Yamaki any day-old bagels or even anything fresher. She was instead making a delivery.

Her thumb ran along the lid of the lighter – given to her by Himiko – and flicked it open. There was something oddly satisfying about that click, but at the same time, it sounded too painful for her to bear.

And I don't want to just throw it away. If I do that, it'll be like…like throwing him away.

The Matsuki bakery came into view. Its front lights were out, which didn't surprise her. But she saw the signs of life in the upstairs areas. Taking out her cellphone, she pulled up Takato's number. She hesitated on it for a moment before hitting the call button.

"H-Hello?" came Takato's voice a few seconds later. He sounded tired.

"Did I wake you up?" she asked.

"Ms. Ootori?"

"That's me. Could I see you for just a minute? It won't take long."

"One second."

He hung up. Riley pursed her lips together. She remembered him sounding like this after Jeri's death.

Not a good sign, she thought.

She watched as he emerged from the alleyway. He was still dressed in his funeral attire and his expression reminded her of a desert. She saw that the spark of life that normally lit his eyes was greatly diminished.

"Hello, Takato," she greeted at her approach. "How are you feeling?"

Takato didn't respond right away as he looked straight at her, seeing but at the same time not seeing her.

"Why is everyone so worried about me?" he asked. "Shouldn't they be asking you that?"

Uh oh.

"I made my peace with this being a possibility a long time ago," Riley said. She tossed her head over her shoulder. "Let's go for a walk."

"Where?"

"Anywhere. Just to clear our heads. The fresh air will do you good."

Takato hesitated as she started off. She hadn't waited to see what he would do, but she knew full well that she would draw him after her. True to form, Takato fell into step beside her. She took that as a good sign.

"You know, Yamaki always thought quite highly of you," Riley began. "He would sometimes tell me that he thought you were just what Japan needed."

Takato's silence reigned between them.

"He believed in you," she continued. "Back before the change in government, he would stress how you put him in his place on more than one occasion. I think he admired that you were principled. You were like something from out of an old story. He thought that made you well suited for dealing with the digital world. I think he described you as something like a narrative of goodness for the digital world's chaos."

"I'm…not…that kind of person," Takato said quietly.

"So, you can talk," Riley chuckled. "I was starting to think I was having a conversation with myself."

Takato sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Riley placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. For the first time, she realized just how much he had grown in the last four years, and he still wasn't at his full height yet.

"Why?" Takato asked, and she heard his voice quaver. "I couldn't keep Yamaki safe for you. I…failed you two. I…" He trailed off and she saw him clam up again.

"Don't beat yourself up about it, okay?" She gave his shoulder a squeeze. "He always knew there was a chance he would die someday. In this business, it's a fact of life. He just wanted to make sure that he spent his time making tomorrow better for others. Helping you make tomorrow better for others." Riley sniffed. "Don't-Don't get me wrong. When I get home, I'm going to bawl my eyes out and probably have a stiff drink. I'm going to realize just how big that apartment is without him and how quiet it is. Even though he was never much of a talker. He…"

Riley dabbed at her eyes as tears threatened to spill forth. Seeing this, Takato turned toward her and she saw the faintest glimmer of life return to his red irises. Awkwardly, he folded his arms around her and Riley crushed him into a powerful hug. She shuddered against him, struggling to keep herself under control a little bit longer. She didn't want to break down yet. Especially not here.

"Don't let this eat you up," she said instead, squeezing him all the tighter so she could hold on to what little self-control remained to her. "I know it'll be hard after everything that's happened these last few years. But… But…"

Riley squeezed her eyes shut and this time failed to stop the tears from coming. They poured down her cheeks, hot and wet. They felt like fire on her skin.

How am I still crying? a part of her wondered. How do I even have any tears left after these last few days?

"I've got to go," she said. After pushing Takato back she pressed Yamaki's lighter into his hand. "He believed in you," she said, closing his fingers around it. "And I've seen you pull off enough miracles to believe in you too."

With that, Riley turned and half-ran, half-walked away from the boy, leaving him standing in the crowd, his eyes empty and lost.

###

Cities sleep eventually, or at the very least, doze lightly. Shinjuku was no exception to this and soon enough found many of its streets deserted. Traffic lights clicked between their colors and walk signs changed from Walk to Don't Walk without a single sign of life between them. Only a crisp, cool wind made its presence known in dreams.

Within the ruins of Chuo Park, a mist bloomed into existence. Within it, a small, shadowy figure formed. It turned its wolfish head around, taking in its new surroundings before exiting the digital field, revealing itself to be a dark-furred, wolf-like creature with a great, red jewel imbedded into its forehead. It looked this way and that before sniffing the air. Catching a scent it did not like, it crouched, growling at the night.

A shadow fell over it as a new figure emerged from a fog of its own, eyes burning a hellish red and illuminating only a cruel smile beneath them. A clawed hand lashed out, snatching hold of the wolf before it could react. The shadow's smile grew as it squeezed the wolf's skull until, with a loud yelp from the poor beast, its body shattered and dissolved. The digimon's data glowed and was drawn into the shadow that slew it, and within moments, the park was devoid of its visitor.

The shadow remained for a moment, basking in the afterglow of its victim. Then, it too, vanished from sight, leaving only the cold wind behind.

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