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Familial

At first, Rika thought she would just wait for the dreams to pass. She told herself it was just because of how re-encountering Parasimon had dug up old memories associated with that initial invasion, and that her mind would eventually bury said memories. Even calling them nightmares was giving them too much credit, so she was ready to just stick it out for a few days.

Then a few days did pass, without the restless nights going with them. Images of a playground at sunset continued to bounce around her head, with the occasional verse from a song she very much wished to never hear again, let alone sing herself. Being honest with herself, Rika knew the subconscious reason for it all, to highlight mental baggage that was still holding her back four years later.

Eventually, Rika decided that she would follow her nature, and deal with the source directly. After twelve years, it was time to confront her estranged father.

Of course, that turned out to be easier said than done. Going to her mother, Rika learned that points of contact between her parents had become nonexistent over the years. Rumiko had some threads she could try to follow, but couldn't make any promises as to them leading anywhere.

In the end, it was Guilmon of all people that presented a solution. Rika wasn't even certain he had been paying attention when she told her friends what she was trying to do, but before she knew it, Guilmon had dug up a business card and a story about an investigative journalist he had run into a couple weeks back. Another week after that, Rika had an address that was within a train's ride from the city.

The biggest decision following that was whether or not Rika would make this trip alone, not being entirely sure which she would prefer. Rumiko offered to go, though Rika could easily tell that her mother wasn't enthusiastic about going, having put that part of her life to bed long ago. In the end, her friends offered to go in her mother's place, and to Rika's surprise just as much as anyone's, she accepted.

As the train pulled out of the station, Rika settled into the small group of seats with her friends, having chosen a window seat for herself. Takato sat to her right, attention locked on a sketchpad he was scratching away at. Directly in front of Rika was Jeri, who gazed out their shared window. Henry sat at Jeri's left, reading some book that Rika didn't recognize.

The Digimons' attendance was a little spottier. Renamon was accompanying them, though did so out of sight and in her own way. The usual challenge of getting him on a train had ended with Guilmon remaining behind, much to the saurian's disappointment. Conversely, Terriermon was currently wedged in between Henry and Jeri, barely putting any effort into pretending to be a stuffed animal as he looked around the train car. Luckily, it was mostly empty, so keeping up appearances wasn't a priority at the moment.

The car was also quiet. Not so much in any way that felt paranoid or judgmental, but it still made Rika feel uncomfortable. This wasn't her friends' typical behavior in this kind of environment. While Rika appreciated the quiet sometimes, it felt like everyone was aware of that and actively trying to appease her. Having had enough, she looked to each of them before taking a deep breath.

"Not a single comment from any of you?" Rika asked, trying her best to not sound confrontational.

Each of her friends looked up from what they were doing, though none of them replied immediately. Instead, they glanced at each other, as if debating between themselves who would answer the question.

"I mean, no comments, anyway," Takato said, nervously scratching the back of his head.

Rika leaned forward. "Okay, what's that mean?"

Terriermon perked up. "That no one's looking to get threatened with physical violence today."

"Terriermon…" Henry warned as he closed his book.

"It's just that there really isn't anything to say," Takato cut back in before the Digimon could elaborate. "We know this is a big deal for you, so none of us wanna make this any more stressful than it already is."

"Plus, we don't really have any advice to give you either," Jeri added. "This is uncharted territory for us."

"Fair enough…" Rika conceded, pausing for a second. She accepted their answers, but wasn't quite ready to accept the silence yet. "How do you think you'd handle being in my shoes?"

"I'm not sure." Takato glanced upwards, thoughts clearly circling in his head. "Honestly, it's hard to even think about."

Rika nodded, even smirking a little. "Yeah, I guess it's hard to imagine your parents pulling a disappearing act."

Takato's shoulders sank. "If anything, with the way my mom is, it's more a matter of figuring out how to pull a disappearing act on her."

"Hey…" Rika said, softly but sternly. "Don't talk about her like that. She's only hard on you because she worries."

"How can I forget?" Takato replied as he sank in his seat.

Memory suddenly jogged, Rika pointed a thumb at his bag. "By the way, your mom wanted me to make sure you brought some school work with you."

"I did…" Takato whined.

"It's a long train ride, both ways. You can spend a little time studying."

"I know…"

"And don't give me that tone."

Takato sat up straighter. "Sorry…"

"Seriously?" Henry said after a brief pause, looking down at his partner. "You have nothing to add?"

Terriermon shook his head. "I think they've just said it all."

Rika paused again, her brain suddenly catching up with the conversation they were just having and the insinuations that seemed to have come out of it. Her face heating up, she risked looking to Takato again, but found he was avoiding eye-contact.

"Still, can't really complain," Takato put forward. "There's only been one time in my life when I felt like I couldn't tell my parents something."

Rika couldn't help but smile again, knowing full-well how Takato was raised reflected in how he interacted with and treated other people. He was typically an open person, in a way that less obligated others to do the same, but more encouraged them to do so. While open communication was still a work in progress for the Tamers, they were still significantly better at it than when they had all first met, largely down to how Takato had rubbed off on all of them.

Still, Rika was also more than aware that their imperfect communication was no better reflected than in Takato's contradictory nature. Open and honest until he thought his feelings were a burden on the people around him. He didn't lie about his feelings per se, but he became a bit less direct if he thought he was sparing someone else his problems.

Case in point, Takato had been honest about the hallucinations forced on him by Parasimon in their last battle, and had even shared how seeing a leveled Tokyo had made him feel. With that said, his answers had been quick and succinct, like he still wasn't quite comfortable owning up to that part of himself.

Rika still couldn't trace back to where this particular chip on his shoulder came from, as no story Takato or his parents had ever told her made sense of it. With that line of thought came Rika's first time wondering how much Takato's parents knew about Megidramon and similar incidents that followed.

"Back to your case, though," Henry put forward, cutting off Rika's line of thought. "Closest thing to that my family had to deal with was after my dad didn't tell us how Juggernaut would affect the Digimon. Even then, I was the one keeping my distance from him."

"How did you guys end up fixing things?" Jeri asked softly, which knowing her, came from both wanting to encourage the conversation and her own curiosity.

Henry paused, even taking a second to glance outwards. "There wasn't any one thing that did it. It was a while before we had a real conversation, even after the Digimon came back."

"For the record, I thought you were all being melodramatic," Terriermon chimed in immediately.

Henry arched an eyebrow at his partner. "Dad's decision almost killed you guys."

Terriermon shrugged. "Yeah, and he apologized to me for it, which is more than I can say for other people who have almost killed me over the years."

"I've never tried to kill you," Rika said through her teeth, not needing any clarification where the conversation had been steered.

"Yes you did," Terriermon shot back at her.

"No, I only ever went after Dinoboy," Rika pointed out, mostly holding onto her patience. "You, on the other hand, almost brought a parking garage down on my head."

"Oh yeah…" Terriermon paused to stroke his chin. "Did I ever apologize for that?"

"No."

"Huh…" Terriermon shrugged again, which Rika almost pointed out still wasn't an apology.

"But that's the gist of it," Henry concluded, speaking loudly enough that it was clear that he was trying to cut the conversation's current detour short. "The way back for us was a slow one."

"How do you feel now?" Jeri probed further.

"It's not a good memory, but I think we're past it." Henry placed a hand on his chin, not looking directly at any of them. "Mom likes to always point out how similar Dad and I are. Guess that's helped me understand things from his perspective better, even if I still don't agree."

Based on everything she knew about Henry, all that rang true to Rika. Not unlike Takato, Henry could be contradictory if circumstances were right. Despite how level headed and open minded he typically was, he could also be stubborn. Rika could very easily imagine Henry being angry at his father while silently mulling over the circumstances that led to Hypnos and the Monster Makers deploying Juggernaut in that final battle.

"And now you're getting ready to go to your dad's alma mater," Terriermon added enthusiastically.

"I haven't even applied yet," Henry argued, though without much conviction.

"Oh, come on, Henry." Terriermon smugly crossed his arms. "You really think we're not gonna get into Stanford."

Henry hesitated before his eyes darted towards his partner. "Wait, who said you were coming with me?"

"Who said you have a choice?"

"Don't worry, Henry," Jeri cut in, her neutral tone quickly making way for a wide grin and her fist pumping in the air. "We'll all visit, and take America by storm!"

"Maybe storm wasn't the best way to describe it, Jeri," Takato offered with a nervous laugh.

"No, her word choice was intentional." Henry sighed, looking to Jeri only to receive a mostly innocent smile in return.

"Would your dad even be okay with you making a trip like that?" Rika asked Jeri, noting how reserved she had been up to that moment.

Jeri shrugged, though kept smiling. "I'm sure he could be."

"Are you actually?" Terriermon questioned.

Jeri rested her chin in the palm of her hand, gazing out the window again. "Being honest, I wouldn't say he's any less strict than he was before everything with the D-Reaper, but he tries to be more understanding."

"Well, at least something good came out of that mess," Rika put forward. It went unsaid amongst the group that how emotionally distant Jeri's father was contributed to all the repressing she did, so it was reassuring to hear that they had reached an understanding.

Jeri nodded. "Dad's still not the best at talking about his own feelings, but he was supportive when I started seeing a therapist after you guys saved me, and didn't ask any questions when I told him I wanted to start my sessions again."

"You went back to therapy?" Takato asked, mostly curiously, though Rika could detect a slight hint of concern in his voice.

"Sorry!" Jeri turned back to the group, placatingly waving her hands at them. "That wasn't meant to be some big secret. Honestly, I kinda just forgot I hadn't told you guys yet."

"For how long?" Rika asked, hoping her tone was a bit more neutral than Takato's.

"A few weeks now." Jeri kept smiling, though nervously started massaging her wrist. "I had a talk with Impmon that made me realize that just wanting to have everything together wasn't enough to make it so."

"They got you on happy pills?" Terriermon asked without hesitating.

"Terriermon!" Henry hissed, one of his rare instances of actually being angry at one of his partner's comments.

"What?" Terriermon whined, almost indignantly. "You act like I'm supposed to automatically know how all this works."

"It's alright, Henry," Jeri said calmly before looking down to the Digimon in question. "No, I'm trying to do this without meds for now."

"Why's that?" Terriermon asked, significantly more tactfully.

Jeri looked away again, down at her hands. "You know, it's funny, but if anyone else told me they were on medication, I like to think I'd be supportive and wouldn't think any less of them. When it's me, though, I guess I'm still a little scared that I'd stop thinking and acting like myself. Weird double standard, huh?"

"Not as weird as you think," Takato replied, so softly that they probably only heard him because of how close they were sitting to one another.

"The sessions are helping though!" Jeri seemed to bounce back, smiling as the enthusiasm came back to her voice. "Turns out I had a lot more thoughts to sort than I realized."

Rika found her eyes drifting down to Jeri's hands again, noticing she was picking at an armband on her right wrist. Pink, purple, and blue in color, Rika couldn't recall ever seeing Jeri wear it before.

"Anything in particular stand out?" Rika asked as she looked upward again.

"Nothing that can't hold for another day," Jeri answered warmly. Whether consciously or subconsciously, she pulled the sleeve of her shirt over the armband. "Think I've been center of attention enough for now."

"Anyway," Takato said, slowly scratching the back of his head as he turned to face Rika again. "Sorry we can't be more help than that."

Rika looked to each of her friends one more time, not quite as disappointed as Takato seemed to think she was. No, she hadn't gotten the answers she had asked for, but there was some reassurance in being reminded of the more positive traits they had all picked up from their families. Much as she had grown closer to her mother and grandmother over the years, when thinking about the ways she had changed for the better, Rika gave a lot of credit to the people currently in front of her.

"Eh, you guys are already helping plenty," Rika summarized as she leaned back in her seat and settled in for the rest of their journey.

What was left of the train ride passed without any real excitement. Spurts of silence and small talk made up the bulk of it, eventually ending with the intercom announcing the stop they had all been waiting on.

Now getting to the later parts of the afternoon, Rika led the group through a suburban neighborhood, stopping on the corner of the street they had been originally pointed towards. With one last deep breath, Rika stepped away from her friends, knowing she had to at least do this part on her own.

Rika expected the walk past the last couple houses to feel longer than it was, but instead she arrived at the house in question before she knew it. The neighborhood was quiet, and she couldn't see or hear any signs of activity within the house itself. That said, any doubts they had been given the wrong address ended once she saw her father's name plastered on the mailbox.

After staring at the front door for a few seconds, Rika instinctively took half a step forwards, only to retract once her thoughts caught up with her. Maybe odder than her stopping before reaching the stoop was realizing the reasoning for it. She didn't feel nervous or afraid, or even the smallest sense of dread at the idea of reuniting with her father. Instead, it was a single realization, one she hadn't even considered in the weeks leading up to this moment.

"I don't have anything to say to him."

"I'm sure you'll think of something," Renamon replied confidently from Rika's left, having appeared the second she hesitated to step forward.

Rika shook her head. "No, I mean I have nothing I want to say to him."

"Being perfectly honest, Rika, you've actually been a bit more reserved about making this trip than I thought you'd be," Renamon pointed out as she turned to look the house over, casing it more than likely.

Rika couldn't deny it. Despite the determination she had felt to see this day through, her usual drive, the fire she would normally pour into something she set her mind to had been missing the last couple weeks. With the thoughts and memories crowding her brain in that time, she had jumped to the most obvious answer as to how to get them to settle down. Suddenly, nothing felt as cut and dry.

"What does that say about me though?" Rika asked calmly, still trying to fit the pieces together in her head.

Renamon turned back towards her and gave a slight shrug. "I believe that's for you to interpret."

Rika thought back to the arrival of her alternate universe counterpart, almost a month ago at this point. She remembered the emotions she had felt finding out that her namesake's father was a part of her life, and the insecurity she had felt on realizing the change in temperament and demeanor his presence had caused. More than any of that, though, she was scared of her friends finally realizing how defective she was.

On the thought, Rika looked down the street in the direction she had come from. Takato gave a reassuring smile and a wave in her direction. Terriermon looked like he was getting impatient and complaining from his spot on top of Henry's head, who himself looked like he was losing interest in pacifying his partner. Jeri simply stared back at her, completely neutral expression on her face.

"Maybe it says more about them," Rika said quietly, something finally clicking into place.

She thought back to the train ride, though not to the communication, open mindedness, and acceptance her friends learned from their families and extended to her. Much simpler than that, Rika zeroed in on the first thing they had done that day, the one thing her father had stopped doing over a decade ago: They had shown up.

They had shown up, and would always do so unless she forced them to stop. Same for her mother and grandmother, the former only currently absent after being persuaded to be so. In the end, there wasn't much else for her to ask for.

"Let's get out here," Rika said as stuck her hands in her pockets and motioned back towards the rest of their group.

"Are you certain?" Renamon asked back, though maintaining the confidence she had started the conversation with.

"I don't need this," Rika concluded, speaking with more conviction than she had felt all day. "All these years, I thought I had something to prove to him, to show him what his decision led to. Now I know what that is."

"And what's that?"

"I got them." Rika gestured to the others before turning to look her partner in the eye. "I got you."

Knowing she didn't need to elaborate, Rika turned away from her father's house and started walking. Not once did she feel the need to look back.

"What about your father?" Renamon asked as she followed behind her.

Rika shrugged. "He didn't even know I was coming, and he knows where to find me if he wants to talk."

"Very well," Renamon replied. Without facing her, Rika could hear a smile in her partner's voice.

"Everything okay?" Takato asked as they got closer, surprisingly more curious than worried.

Rika smiled. "Better than ever."

"Find what you were looking for?" Jeri joined in, though her tone and her own smile said she knew the answer.

"More or less." Rika slowed down a hair as she made it to them. "Let's go home."

"Wait, we came all this way and we're leaving already?" Terriermon complained as everyone fell in step beside her.

"Why do you sound so disappointed?" Henry asked, almost cautiously.

Terriermon seemed to deflate. "Because I bet Renamon a thousand yen that Rika would deck her dad, right in the schnoz."

Henry rolled his eyes. "Do you even have any money?"

"No, so you're gonna have to pay her now!"

"I accept both cash and personal checks," Renamon confirmed smugly.

"I am sorry, by the way," Rika felt compelled to say. She scratched at her cheek as it started to heat up. "For dragging you guys out here and wasting the day."

"Actually, I had fun today," Takato replied, not an ounce of insincerity in his eyes or voice. "We should all take a real trip sometime."

"Stanford, Stanford!" Jeri chanted playfully.

Henry sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day. "I'm not winning that one, am I?"

"Guess that depends on your definition of winning," Rika teased before looking forward once more.

The sun was starting fall to the horizon, though Rika wasn't worried about any coming darkness. Not as long as she had her family.

Author's Note:

Hoping that ending doesn't feel anticlimactic. I stand by it, as it felt the most honest to me, but I'm sure there's at least a couple readers who would have liked for Rika to ring the doorbell.

Other trivia: Was proofreading and knew something wasn't sitting right so I went to Google. Turns out Stanford is never named as the Monster Maker alma mater, with Palo Alto University being the only name used anywhere. Decided to leave things as they were though, partly because the fandom has basically accepted that Palo Alto is a stand-in for Stanford (which is probably how I made the mistake in the first place), and also because all the extra syllables threw off the rhythm of Jeri's chant in the end.

Anyway, we're creeping up on the end now. Title of the last chapter? Slice of Life.