As another school day came to an end, Takato, Rika and Henry started to leave the school, after saying goodbye to their friends, the three headed back to the park, wondering how their Digimon were doing.
"Takatomon!" Guilmon called, continuing to show joy at seeing his Tamer, making Takato smile and try to correct his partner. "Guilmon, I keep telling you I'm not a Digimon."
"No, but you are a fine Tamer." Renamon commented, her tone full of nothing but respect to the brunette, which made Rika smile at seeing all her friends getting along, causing her to then add. "And just as great a best friend."
"Thanks. So how's your training with Guilmon?" Takato then asked the vixen, who smiled, looked at Guilmon and commented. "His training is coming along nicely. He is managing to control his power. And he's also managing to speak more properly and slowly."
"Renamon is good teacher. Renamon make Guilmon smart." Guilmon stated happily, before correcting himself. "I mean she helps make Guilmon smarter."
Takato was happy to hear that Guilmon training was doing well, but saw that they were hiding something.
Curious, Takato then asked. "What is it? Did something happen?"
Renamon sighed and look at the Tamers.
"Before Gorillamon's attack, I was helping Guilmon trying to stay calm and try to control his power when a Digimon showed up and tried to pick a fight with Guilmon."
"His name's Impmon. He's really mean." Calumon added, his ears shrinking from the sad feeling he was getting.
From what the Digimon had told them, Takato, Rika and Henry looked at each other, knowing that there was another troublemaking Digimon, only he seemed more focused on breaking the relationships of human Tamers and their Digimon as opposed to those Digimon that Bio Emerged to the Real World to destroy any and all they could find.
"What happen next what did impmon did to make guilmon" Takato asked in worried voice
"He tried to attack Guilmon, which made Guilmon lose a little control." Renamon informed, smiling before she then said with a sense of pride for the red dino Digimon. "But Guilmon managed to fight the Hazard and stopped himself from causing any serious harm."
From Renamon's words, Takato let out a small sigh of relief as he rubbed Guilmon's head.
"I'm so happy that you're ok, buddy." Takato said, continuing to smile at Guilmon, which made Guilmon smile back.
"Impmon bad, but Guilmon senses something about Impmon that makes him act bad." Guilmon then said, feeling empathy for the troublemaking Digimon, while Terriermon and Renamon felt it best to avoid Impmon, or scare him off if he ever tried anymore stunts with them.
It was then Henry spoke up. "We need to be careful with him. He might cause more trouble or try to pick a fight with Guilmon again."
"If he does, we'll be ready for him." Renamon replied with a determined tone.
"And not only do we have the advantage in numbers, but Impmon is pretty week, even for a Rookie." Terriermon commented, thinking to how Impmon's attacks were more annoying than painful.
While Impmon and his motives were a serious subject, Rika was a little curious as to the new addition to their group.
"I have one question, where did this little guy came from?" She asked as she picked up Calumon, who smiled at her.
"I came from the Digital World to get away from all the big and mean Digimon that live there." Calumon said, before saying with a joyous tone. "And after wandering through this place, I found you guys. You guys are all so nice and kind to me that I don't want to leave."
From Calumon's words, Takato looked at him and said. "You don't ever have to leave, you're welcome to stay with us."
"Calumon can have sleepover with Guilmon." Guilmon then offered, gesturing to his shed, Calumon continuing to smile at the kindness of Takato, Guilmon and the others.
However, Renamon had to speak up.
"Can I make a suggestion?" She asked, the foxy Digimon speaking her mind. "We have more than enough room back at Rika's, not to mention her family already know about the existence of Digimon, so why don't the two of you stay with us?"
"Whoa this is sudden. Why ask, Renamon?" Rika asked in a curious tone.
"Well… I... I thought Guilmon could continue his training with me back at our place." Renamon said in reply, blushing a bit.
"Yeah." Rika said suspiciously, but then she turned to Takato, who nodded at Renamon's suggestion.
"I don't see why not." He said, thinking Guilmon and Calumon having a proper roof over their heads was a good idea.
But wanting his thoughts on it, Takato turned to Guilmon and asked. "What do you say, boy, want to stay with Rika and Renamon?"
"Guilmon would like that, but Guilmon likes it here." Guilmon replied, his answer a little surprising, but Takato, Rika and Renamon respected Guilmon's decision, the red haired Tamer smiling as she told Guilmon. "Well if you do change your mind, you are always welcome."
"Come on Renamon." Rika then said, taking her leave, causing the vixen to nod in reply and loyalty, smiling at Guilmon for a moment, before walking up to and joining Rika, heading back to her household.
"It's about time we headed off as well." Henry pointed out, allowing Terriermon to rest atop his head as he was about to head home as well.
"See you guys later." Terriermon called to Guilmon and Calumon, waving and saying his goodbyes, which left Takato with the duo.
But knowing he too had to go home, after rubbing Guilmon's head and saying his own goodbyes to his partner and to Calumon, the brunette headed home, leaving Guilmon and Calumon.
Following Guilmon into his shed, Calumon asked with a curiousness. "Why didn't you go with Renamon?"
"Guilmon likes it here. Guilmon also wants to stay so he can keep an eye on Impmon and see if he can make Impmon a friend." Guilmon replied, bringing up Impmon's name worried Calumon, before the Hazard Digimon smiled and rubbed Calumon's head as Takato had done to him, assuring the catalyst Digimon.
"Guilmon promise to keep Calumon safe if Impmon is mean again." He then assured, before Calumon watched on with a curiousness as the red dino Digimon started sniffing around the shed, stopping near the side and began to dig.
"Guilmon also promises to share tasty food Takatomon made." Guilmon said, returning to Calumon with a small plastic bag filled with bread and cookies, making Calumon's ears perk up joyfully as he took one of the cookies and began to nibble upon the tasty treat.
-Meanwhile-
Within another section of the park, a man and a woman were sitting on a bench, getting rather close to one another.
"I've been doing a lot of thinking, and you see, it's just..." The man began to say, only to stop when the woman, most likely his girlfriend, interrupted. "It's a little cold."
"And a fire would be nice. And a comfy couch, with me." She then said in a more 'friendly' tone, making both blush and giggle.
However, as close as they were getting to each other, both were soon alerted that there was a third wheel on their date.
"A fire?" Both heard a voice ask from the shrubs.
"Allow me! Bada-Boom!" It then called, casting out an inferno to erupt between them, scaring the pair, and not just from the sudden flames, but namely at the unknown creature that had caused it, which made both run away.
And watching the pair scream and run for their lives, Impmon jumped from the bushes, laughing at his terrible idea of a joke.
"I tell ya, that never gets old." Impmon laughed, having already pulled the same stunt on several people beforehand, and wasn't planning on stopping anytime soon.
"Let's see who the next victim is."impmon then said, heading back in the bushes and began to wait.
However, his pranking had to be put on hold when he heard his stomach growling.
"Hey, keep it down will ya?" He yelled at his belly, which just continued to let out growls and groans, causing Impmon to sigh in annoyance.
"I can't go pranking like this. But let's see if I can't get that red simpleton to help me out." He thought aloud, making his way back into the park and smirked as an idea came to his head.
-With Guilmon and Calumon-
Back in the shed, both Digimon continued to eat and enjoy the snacks Takato had made for his friends, Calumon smiling as he commented. "Takato's really good at making food."
From his words, Guilmon smiled and said in reply. "Guilmon agress. Takato is also a good friend."
But from Guilmon's words, both heard a laugh come from out the shed, causing Guilmon and Calumon to look over and saw Impmon.
"What did you say, Takato's your friend?" Impmon asked, sounding disgusted.
"You Digi-pets are all the same. You think exactly how your so called friends want you to think. But I tell you, a real friend wouldn't lock you up like this." Impmon then ranted, his tone, scaring Calumon and causing him to hide behind Guilmon.
"What do you want?" Guilmon questioned, remaining strong for Calumon as he approached the bars of his shed, getting face to face with Impmon.
"What do ya think I want?" Impmon asked back, swiping the bag from Guilmon's paws and began to eat.
And after finishing off the last traces of food, an idea came to Impmon's head, where he then said. "Now listen to me, Pineapple head, I'm assuming you can think for yourself when you don't have that human or those Digi-pets around with ya, so what do you say we have a little fun?"
"Fun?" Guilmon asked curiously. "What kind of fun?"
"It's a little game I call 'Hide and freak'." Impmon replied.
"It's pretty simple to play, all you have to do is wait for some humans to get all warm and chummy with each other, then you leap out, yell a little and watch them turn tail and run." He then went on, laughing at remembering all those he had frightened.
However...
"That doesn't sound fun." Guilmon then commented, ceasing Impmon's laughter.
"He's right. That just sounds mean." Calumon added, getting a little more confident as he stood beside Guilmon, opposed to hiding behind him.
"Oh what do either of you two know about fun?" Impmon asked, placing his hands behind his head and turning away as he began to head off. "You spend your days with a no good human and at night, you are all locked up. Face reality, Takato doesn't care about you."
'No stinkin' humans care about us.' Impmon then thought bitterly, the memory of two children fighting over him like he was a toy entering his mind.
"Say what you want about me but you're wrong about humans! Takato does care about me and you're nothing but a mean Digimon! Now go away!" Guilmon said angrily, his anger and confidence against Impmon made Calumon put up a braver stance as he stared at Impmon with an angry face.
But shaking his head from such thoughts, Impmon picked up his pace as he left. "This isn't the last you seen of me! Catch you losers later."
Watching Impmon leave, Guilmon could sense Impmon was hiding something.
"What do you think makes Impmon so mean?" Guilmon then asked Calumon, who rubbed his head and said. "I'm not too sure."
"I'm just glad to have you acting like you." Calumon then commented with a cheerful voice, making Guilmon smile back, before the pair began to dig around the shed, finding some junk along the way in their search for more food Guilmon had hidden, unaware that outside the shed, atop one of the trees, Renamon had watched the whole event between Impmon and Guilmon play out.
'Guilmon, you continue to impress me.' Renamon thought, smiling at the kind hearted Digimon, proud he didn't resort to violence or agreed to help Impmon in his terrible ideas for fun.
"Sweet dreams." She then whispered, taking her leave and heading back to Rika's, knowing Guilmon could look after himself.
-Meanwhile-
After leaving Guilmon and Calumon back in the shed, Impmon took a stroll through the park, having quit his game of tormenting couples and was now kicking an empty soda can, partly out of boredom, but also out of anger.
Giving the can a hard kick away, Impmon then said to himself. "Scaring humans is beginning to bore me, I need a new form of entertainment."
However, Impmon broke from his thoughts when he looked ahead and saw a large fiendish dragon-like Digimon that had four red eyes, razor sharp teeth and claws, a set of tattered wings, black skin and a long tail a few feet from him.
But not fearing it, for it was trapped in a Digital Field, struggling to make its way completely into the Real World, a smirk appeared on Impmon's face.
"That's more like it. Someone's Bio-Emerging! Time to make some trouble!" Impmon said with a smile, running up to the Devidramon, climbing up a gazebo and making his presence known to the dark dragon Digimon as he then called out, trying to get Devidramon's attention and on his nerves. "Hey! You there, four-eyes, whatcha doing? Oh, I'm sorry the mean old baby can't get out of the Digital Field? Guess you're not so tough now."
"And what do you say to that? Not a thing." Impmon then teased as he stuck his tongue out and pulled a face, continuing to try to tease and anger the Devidramon.
"Oh, I'm so scared. Nya, nya, nya, nya, nya. Who's the man, I am!" Impmon continued to tease, running a finger through the Digital Field, thinking he was invincible and that the Devidramon was completely trapped, incapable of fighting back.
But in his actions, Impmon's finger had left a small tear, which began to spread and cleared the Digital Field, freeing Devidramon.
And as the last of the Digital Field cleared, Devidramon let out a small growl, breaking Impmon from his laughter and causing him to sweat.
"Oh, come on, I didn't mean it. I'm laughing with ya." Impmon said with a nervous smile, thinking his taunting and teasing would caused Devidramon to retaliate.
However, luck seemed to favour Impmon, for Devidramon, after letting out a powerful roar, took to the skies.
"Uh oh..." Impmon said, watching as Devidramon flew off and headed for the city, where he then commented on the mistake he had made. "This is what is called a tactical error."
Flying through the night skies and leaving the park, Devidramon headed through Shinjuku, his speed tearing up the rooftops of several buildings as he then flew atop two skyscrapers connected to one another, forming an H shape, the base of Hypnos, while inside the building, the blond haired man watched, flicking his lighter.
"That's enough. This is becoming a personal embarrassment." He then said, rising from his seat and headed to the monitoring room, planning to find a way to dispose of the unwanted Digimon, unaware that such a task would soon be handled.
-At the Nonaka residence-
Within her bedroom, Rika was sitting on the floor, kneeling by a desk as she examined her Digimon Cards, deciding which ones she would keep on her person if and when she and Renamon would be in combat with another troublesome Digimon, making sure she had a balance of Cards, not only to give Renamon an advantage, but also Cards that would benefit Takato and Henry.
"So how is Guilmon?" Rika then asked, not taking her eyes off of the Cards, sensing the foxy Digimon had returned.
"He is just fine. There was a moment where Impmon showed up and tried to lower Guilmon down to his level, but he refused to join him in his endeavours." Renamon replied, before informing. "However, we have another problem, another problem Digimon to fight."
"Are you ready?" Renamon then asked.
"Is that rhetorical?" Rika asked back, pocketing her Digimon Cards and her D-Power, before standing and facing Renamon with a confident smile, where she then instructed. "Renamon, I'll call Takato and Henry, you head over and get Guilmon."
"There is no need. Guilmon's senses are greater than mine. I am sure he already knows there is a Bio-Emerged Digimon out there, just looking for trouble." Renamon replied, before saying. "However, I can sense this Digimon will be a problem if taken on solo."
"Then hold off this new enemy together until we can come up with a combat strategy." Rika said in reply, causing Renamon to nod in understanding as she headed off.
And leaving her room, Rika, after putting her shoes on, withdrew her cell phone and made two calls, informing her friends to what was happening in the downtown area.
-At Wong residence-
Within his bedroom, Henry was at his desk, busy and doing his homework, while Terriermon was looking outside the bedroom window, with his ears risen up.
Noticing this, Henry then asked."What is it?"
"It's another Digimon." Terriermon replied, managing to set his ears down as he asked. "Can we go out and take it on?"
"Alright. But if it comes down to it and I need to Digivolve you, try and stay in control." Henry said in reply as he grabbed his D-power and his Digimon Cards, about to head off, but stopped when he heard his father called for him.
"Henry, you have a phone call. It's one of your friends, Rika Nonaka." Henry heard his father say.
Leaving his room and entering the living room, Henry saw his father holding the phone, which he then took.
"Thanks dad." Henry then said, before answering the phone.
"Rika? What is it? Is it another Digimon?" He asked, making sure he was out of ear range from his parents.
"That's right. From what Renamon told me, it's somewhere in the city. I told Renamon to find Guilmon and try to hold it back, just in case we need Terriermon to Digivolve." Rika replied.
"Understood. We'll meet up with you as soon as possible." Henry said, ending the conversation, where he then returned the phone back to his father and told him. "Dad, I need to go out for a few minutes. Rika is having a little trouble with the homework and needs me."
"Normally I would say no since it is a school night, but since the problem is to help someone with their school work, I suppose we can let it slide this once." His father replied with an understanding smile.
"Thanks dad." Henry said, heading back to his bedroom and grabbing Terriermon, hating to lie to his parents, but knew it was for the greater good.
-With Guilmon-
Around the time Henry had gotten the call, Guilmon and Calumon were pacing through the park, Guilmon knowing he was supposed to stay in his shed and out of sight, but he was certain if the Bio-Merged Digimon was left as is there was always a chance it might attack innocent people.
Riding Guilmon's back, Calumon was curious and asked. "Where are we going?"
"Guilmon's going to find bad Digimon and stop them." Guilmon replied, exiting the park and followed his sense of smell, leading him around Shinjuku's streets, stopping momentarily as he picked up the familiar scent of another Digimon closeby, where he then looked over his shoulder and saw Renamon, leaping from a street sign, a full moon behind her as she made her way through the air with grace, leaving Guilmon silent at seeing the foxy Digimon and her beautiful form.
And after Renamon landed before him, taking off, he started to follow the yellow furred vixen to the Digimon, while he then thought. 'I hope Takatomon be there to make Guilmon strong.'
-Meanwhile, at the Matsuki bakery-
Like Henry, Takato was in his room, at his desk and doing his homework, though his was less than half done and had several drawings over the pages, drawings of alterations to his original Growlmon pic.
"Ok, I'll remove the back spikes, that way I'll be able to ride Growlmon." Takato thought aloud, using an eraser on his latest drawing of Growlmon.
"And then I'll add blaster cannons to his shoulders to give him some serious firepower." Takato then said, about to draw, only to stop and think. "Nah. That'd be too much for him to carry?"
Sighing, Takato grabbed a fresh sheet of blank paper and put his pencil to it, about to draw another design for Growlmon.
However, looking over the desk, past the previous drawing of Growlmon, one of the betters he had decided to keep, a smile appeared on Takato's face as he looked at a framed photo he had of Rika, from her last birthday, smiling to see Rika finishing blowing out the candles on the cake, while he was beside her and cheering.
And after looking a little closer, Takato could just make out Renamon, hiding within the shadows, also seeming happy for her Tamer.
Smiling at the memory of the birthday, Takato remembered the gift he gave her, a toy replica of Sora's Digivice, which held an electronic Biyomon that Rika could feed, raise and grow into Garudamon.
And even after the battery had died, Takato remembered that Rika kept the Digivice and proudly hung it upon a coat hook in her room, a way of saying that she continued to cherish Takato and his kindness.
Breaking from the past, Takato looked to the paper, thinking on if there were any improvements he could make to the final draft of Growlmon, where his thoughts turned to some surprise.
"Guess I really drifted off." He commented, looking at his latest drawing, only the figure he had drawn was not of Growlmon, but of Rika, which wasn't as detailed compared to his Digimon drawings, namely because he had spent less time on it, there was no colour and he had yet to learn to draw the human form, to which the face consisted of two dots for eyes and a curved line for a smile, while the hair was styled as Rika's but lacked refinement.
The body was a bit of a surprise to Takato, seeing he had drawn the yin yang symbol on the chest and the comma-like marks Renamon had on her legs on Rika's legs, guessing he had drawn them while he noticed Renamon in the picture.
But even though it was a rushed drawing, Takato couldn't take his eyes off of it, all he could do was continue to gaze upon the picture, while one thing came to his mind, Rika, thinking how lucky he was to have her as a friend and wondered what his life would be like without the red haired Tamer.
However, a sudden ringing broke Takato from his thoughts, making him look over to see he had a new phone call, which he quickly answered.
"Hello?" Takato asked, wondering who was calling, and was pleased to hear Rika's voice.
"Takato, listen up. We have another Digimon somewhere in Shinjuku. I've already told Henry, and Renamon is meeting up with Guilmon. Use your D-Power to lock onto our location so we can take this troublemaker down." Rika said.
"You've got it, Rika." Takato said in reply as he got up from his desk chair, grabbed his Card holder and his D-power, about to head off, but gave his Rika drawing a final look.
"I'm glad that we are best friends, and maybe I…" Takato began to say, only to then stop trying to figure out his thoughts and feelings as he cleared his throat.
"Maybe I'm starting to like you." He then said as he started to leave his room, oblivious to the fact he didn't hang up, Rika having heard every single word the brunette had just let out and expressed, leaving her silent, while inside, she began to wonder about the brunette and how she really felt toward him.
-Meanwhile-
Finally arriving atop an intersection bridge, Guilmon, Renamon and Calumon all saw the Digimon that had Bio-Emerged, it staring down and around the area.
"Who out there is worthy of me?" Devidramon then questioned, getting a quick answer as its amazing sight then picked up on seeing the three Digimon.
"Ah ha!" He suddenly bellowed, leaping down at the three with a mighty roar, flying past and creating a powerful updraft.
"Calumon, get back. It isn't safe." Renamon said with a seriousness in her voice, causing Calumon to get off of Guilmon's back and took cover behind a wall, while the foxy Digimon and Guilmon got ready, watching as the Devidramon then landed.
Staring at Guilmon and Renamon, Devidramon's maw gained a wicked smile.
"Looks like I get to take out two Rookies for the price of one." He commented.
"Think again. We won't go down without a fight!" Renamon said back, before striking.
"Diamond Storm!" She called, tossing a wave of light shards at Devidramon.
"Pyro Sphere!" Guilmon followed up, spitting out a ball of flame alongside Renamon's attack.
But as the attacks headed for Devidramon, he countered, bringing up his claw and smacking away the combined power of Guilmon and Renamon as if they were nothing.
A little stunned, Renamon commented. "Not good. He's stronger than I anticipated."
"Guilmon, we won't be able to defeat this Digimon head on. We'll have to stall him until Rika and the others to arrive." The yellow furred vixen then said, believing their friends, their Digimon Cards and Terriermon's Digivolution could give them the upper hand.
"Guilmon can do that." Guilmon replied, respecting Renamon's plan of attack, which made the foxy Digimon smile, before she and Guilmon got serious, turned back to face Devidramon and charged at him.
Seeing the pair heading for him, Devidramon let out a another roar as he brought his right arm up, then back down, trying to crush Guilmon and Renamon, who both managed to avoid his claw, Guilmon jumping to the left side, while Renamon leapt to the right.
"Let's try this again." Renamon then said, preparing a second Diamond Storm attack.
"Pyro Sphere!" Guilmon called, spitting out another shot of flame, while Renamon released a secondary wave of shards, both attacks striking Devidramon and hitting the sides of his face.
Though the attacks only seemed to enrage the Devidramon as opposed to harm him, evident as his claws lunged down, grasping Guilmon and Renamon tightly, before he flew upward.
"Let us go..." Guilmon groaned, feeling Devidramon's hold over him intensify, looking over at Renamon and saw her in equal pain.
Devidramon looked at them with an evil smirk.
"Ok, I'll let go. But be careful what you ask for." He said in reply as he started to open his claws, loosening the tight grasp and allowed Guilmon and Renamon some relief.
However, both saw they were over eight feet off of the ground.
"Happy landings." Devidramon then said, releasing Guilmon and Renamon, who plummeted downward, Calumon watching from his hiding spot with complete fear and concern for his friends, causing him to then cover his eyes, not wanting to watch anymore.
However...
"Digi-Modify! Hyper Wing active!" Calumon then heard a familiar voice call, making him look over and saw Guilmon gain a set of six wings of light, slowing down his fall and leaving Guilmon and Calumon surprised, just before Calumon looked over and saw Takato and the other Tamers rushing over.
"Wings? Not like wings from Hazard mode!" Guilmon said, surprised.
"Guilmon, use the wings and catch Renamon before she hits the ground!" Takato then called, which made Guilmon look over at Takato, glad to see his Tamer, before he did as he was told, flying down as fast as he could, approaching Renamon, who could only watch as the ground came closer and closer to her line of sight, her heart rate and fear at her demise increasing by the second.
Renamon then closed her eyes, ready for impact, but felt her fall slow down as something wrapped around her, making the foxy Digimon open her eyes, amazed to see she was in Guilmon's arms, the red dino Digimon smiling at her, making her smile back, grateful that Guilmon had saved her life.
"Thank you." Renamon said as Guilmon helped her down, making Guilmon smile and say in reply. "No worries. Guilmon do anything to protect friends"
"Look out! Here he comes again!" Terriermon suddenly called out, breaking the pair from their moment as they saw Devidramon lunge down at them, forcing both to rush back, just as Devidramon slammed his right fist into the concrete floor, leaving a massive hole and causing debris to spread throughout the area.
Luckily, Guilmon had gotten out of harm's way as he made some distance away from the dark dragon Digimon, reuniting with Takato, Rika and the others, where the Hazard Digimon then put Renamon down, allowing her to stand once again, before Guilmon, Renamon and Terriermon all joined one another, ready to fight as a team against their new enemy.
Taking out their D-Power, Takato analyzed the dark dragon Digimon, gaining intel on it.
"That's Devidramon, and you better believe he gives the evil eye a whole new meaning. Champion Level, Virus Type. And he better trim his nails soon, or that Crimson Claw attack he has could seriously hurt somebody." The brunette then explained.
"But now that we have Terriermon, we can put an end to this fiend's rampage." Renamon then said with confidence in the beast Digimon and her friends.
"More Rookies to crush!" Devidramon bellowed as he noticed Terriermon and Calumon, lunging at the Tamers, causing Takato and Rika to each withdraw a Digimon Card, while Henry readied his D-Power.
"Digi-Modify! Power activate!" Takato announced, sliding his Card through his D-Power, increasing the strength of his Digimon.
"Digi-Modify! Celestial Arrow activate!" Rika followed up, sliding her Card through her D-Power, its effects causing a pink arrow made of pure energy to appear in Renamon's possession.
And using his D-Power, alongside the faith he had in his partner, Henry Digivolved Terriermon, causing Terriermon to call out as he changed from Rookie to Champion. "Terriermon Digivolve to... Gargomon!"
With Terriermon now a Champion and Guilmon and Renamon powered up, the three Digimon attacked.
"Gargo Pellets!" Gargomon called, firing a barrage of bullets from his Gatling Arms.
"Pyro Sphere!" Guilmon let out with a mighty cry, shooting out a blast of flame that was double the size of his first few attacks, while Renamon summoned an arrow of light and cast it with her bow.
The three attacks were more than a match for Devidramon, which caused him to roar in pain, throwing him off balance and caused the dark dragon Digimon to tumble down from the air, where he then crashed into a building, the impact not only damaging Devidramon, but also the building, where its structure became unstable, sections of the building then broke from the side and fell down, aimed for the Tamers.
And while Takato, Henry and Calumon managed to steer clear of the danger, Rika was paralyzed with fear as a section of glass and concrete headed right for her.
"Rika!" Renamon called out, looking to see the debris was heading right for her Tamer, filling Renamon with utter concern, knowing her chances of saving Rika were greatly against her.
Rika closed her eyes, ready for the impact, feeling absolute fear at the belief it was the end for her.
"Rika, look out!" She then heard Takato call, before she felt someone shove her aside, knocking her to the ground and just out of harm's way, where the debris fell with a mighty crash.
And after Rika opened her eyes, feeling she was no longer in danger, she was surprised to see Takato standing before her, mixed emotions filling the red haired Tamer at seeing Takato had risked his life for her.
However, some confusion fell upon Rika as she noticed a strained expression on the brunette's face, before he dropped to his hands and knees, showing that a fair amount of the glass had shot into his back, horrifying the Nonaka.
"Takato!" She cried out, running over to the brunette, as did Henry and Calumon, the three all worried for their friend.
But Takato just looked up at Rika, gave her smile and said. "I'm happy that you're save, Rika."
"Takato..." Rika began to say, her hands clenched and shaking, before she questioned, tearing up at seeing her best friend injured and feeling as though part of it was her fault. "Why did you do it? Why would you do something so idiotic?"
"I did it for you..." Takato replied, his words leaving Rika silent.
"I did it because you are my best friend. I did it because I can't imagine having you out of my life. I did it because I care about you." Takato then went on to say, pulling himself back to his feet, smiling as he looked at Rika and then told her. "I care about you, more than just a friend. You are brave, smart, cool and very beautiful. I'm not sure how you feel about me, but I just knew I had to tell you just how much you mean to me."
Blushing at his words, Rika remained silent.
However, before she could reply, they all heard something crash into the ground, turning around to see Devidramon had recovered from the initial attack and used the concern for Takato and Rika as a distraction, pinning Renamon and Gargomon to the ground with his tail, destroying Renamon's Celestial Arrow and preventing Gargomon from firing any further rounds, while grasping Guilmon within his left claw.
"just give up there no way You can beat me, Rookie." Devidramon said with a malicious arrogance, throwing Guilmon to the ground, before he began to attack, slamming fist after fist upon Guilmon's beaten and damaged form, all the while Impmon watched from the distance, atop a street sign, cheering Devidramon on, but none had noticed him.
"That's it, fight, fight, fight! Now that's entertainment. Just look at Pineapple head, he's gettitn' sliced and diced. Serves you right for refusing to join me." Impmon called, continuing to enjoy the show, not caring who won, or if the Digimon sided with the Tamers survived.
"Guilmon not giving up..." Guilmon groaned as Devidramon stopped for a moment to look upon his victim.
"Like Takato, Guilmon will protect friends!" Guilmon shouted in a determined voice, which made Takato smile at his partner, filling him with pride and continued determination.
And with that power, Takato's D-power started to shine With a powerful red light, leaving him, Rika and Henry in awe, failing to notice a similar energy emitting from the gem on Calumon's forehead.
"He's Digivolving!" Rika said, amazed, continuing to watch alongside Takato, Henry and their Digimon as Guilmon's form was enveloped in energy that began to grow in size and strength.
"Guilmon digivolve to..." He began to call as his skin began to peel off of his body, revealing his mainframe and changing his physical structure, changing into what looked like a larger form of Guilmon, which had a set of horns, long white hair and two blade-like appendages connected to both arms.
"Growlmon!" The new form of Guilmon roared out, leaving Takato and the others in surprise.
"Takato? Isn't he the drawing of Growlmon you showed me in class?" Rika asked curiously, causing Takato to nod in reply.
"It is, but this Growlmon is ten times cooler." He then said, watching as Growlmon faced up to Devidramon, ready to fight the dark dragon Digimon.
Upon seeing the Champion form of Guilmon, Devidramon let out a fearsome roar, one Growlmon let back, before both lunged at each other, trying to gain the upperhand as they clashed against each other.
It seemed as though both were equal in strength, continuing to try and repel the other, before Growlmon showed a more fearsome side to him as he bit into Devidramon's shoulder, making Devidramon roar in pain and back away.
"Pyro Blaster!" Growlmon roared, spitting out a large blast of flame, which Devidramon managed to avoid, striking the building behind him and shaking those up inside.
"I can't believe this is happening." Riley said in worry, only for the blond haired man to say, remaining calm. "That's because it isn't."
"The public will know nothing of this debacle." He then explained, before facing the brunette and instructing. "Riley, you'll be in charge of making a convincing cover story."
"You're joking, right?" She asked, finding it hard to make up a believable reason such destruction occurred that wasn't because of monsters from another world.
Back outside the building, Growlmon and Devidramon continued to fight.
Each striking the other with punches and whacks with their tail, but refused to stop.
"You think you can beat me because you Digivolved, think again, I..." Devidramon began to say, but stopped when Growlmon grabbed him by the tail, started to spin him and then tossed Devidramon into the air.
"Pyro Blaster!"Growlmon roared, shooting a wide stream of flame upwards, consuming Devidramon and tearing him to shreds, utterly destroying him, leaving Takato and the others in awe.
However, seeing Growlmon then roar again as he absorbed Devidramon's Data particles, Takato felt a great concern, worried his partner would lose control once again, putting Renamon and Gargomon on alert if they had to subdue the Hazard Digimon a second time.
And while Gargomon got his Gatlin Arms ready, Renamon, though taking a battle ready stance, felt hesitant in attacking Growlmon, even if it was for his own good.
As Growlmon approached them, staring down at Takato and the others, they stopped when they heard growling coming from Growlmon's stomach.
"Takatomon? Are you ok?" Growlmon then asked, sounding like the kind hearted Digimon he was, surprising Takato and the others that he was normal.
"Growlmon, you're alright?" Takato asked back, part of him certain Growlmon would lose control.
"I feel fine." Growlmon replied with a friendly smile, making Takato smile back and comment. "I guess Renamon's training is really paying off."
"I agree. Renamon is a great teacher." Growlmon replied, his words made said vixen smile.
"But now that Growlmon is big and not Guilmon anymore, what do we do?" Growlmon then asked.
"I'm afraid all we can do for now is wait, boy." Takato replied, before saying. "Come on, Growlmon. Let's get you back to the park and find somewhere to hide you."
"Hold on a second, Takato." Rika spoke up with a seriousness in her voice.
"You're not in the best shape to be running around." She then pointed out, taking his hand and instructing. "You're coming back to my place so we can address those injuries."
"But what about Growlmon?" Takato asked, still concerned about his partner.
"I will look after him." Renamon offered in a friendly tone, facing Growlmon as she then said. "Come on, Growlmon. Let's get you out of here."
"And you're coming with me." Rika said to Takato, keeping hold of his hand as she lead him away from their friends and back home.
-Several minutes later-
Finally making their way back to Rika's home, after getting inside, Rika called for her mother, needing some help in treating Takato's injuries.
And after her mother helped Takato out of his jacket and the white top he wore underneath, she then helped him onto Rika's bed, the brunette resting on his chest, Rumiko used a pair of tweezers to pull the few shards still in his body, she then rubbed the wounds with a cotton swab covered in disinfectant, making Takato flinch at the stinging he felt, but he knew if the wounds were not treated properly, they could become infected.
"Rika?" Rumiko then spoke up, getting her daughter's attention, where she was then handed a roll of bandages.
"Can you apply these around Takato, while I fix up his clothing?" She asked, causing Rika to nod in reply as she then took a spot beside Takato and bandaged his body, taking care as she wrapped the bandages around Takato's body.
And seeing Takato was in good hands, Rumiko then took Takato's shirt and jacket and exited Rika's room so she could patch up the small holes in his clothing, certain Takato's parents would put the boy in hot water if they found his clothes with holes in the back.
'Better give Yoshie a call afterwards.' Rumiko thought as she began to sew up Takato's shirt, certain his parents were worried as to where their son was and how he was doing.
"Ow! Rika, be careful that hurts." Rumiko then heard Takato call out, before she heard Rika say in reply. "Well stop moving. I need to finish wrapping the bandages around you."
"Rika... thank you." Takato then said, quieting down and making Rumiko smile, knowing not only that Takato was in good hands, trusting her daughter, but continued to express her own happiness in having Takato in their lives, before she got back to keep sewing Takato clothes
-Back in Rika's room-
"And there we go." Rika said, finishing bandaging Takato's back, watching as the brunette sat up beside her, making her smile and say as she ruffled his hair teasingly. "Now that wasn't so bad was it, Gogglehead?"
"I guess not." Takato replied, smiling back at Rika, before commenting. "You make a pretty good nurse. You just need to work on how you treat your patients and your bedside manners."
"Very funny." Rika said back, just before looking past Takato, out her bedroom door and at her garden.
Summoning the courage inside of her, Rika then turned her attention back to Takato and she said with a seriousness in her voice. "I want to ask you something, Takato. What you said back there, did you mean it?"
Realizing Rika was referring to him saying how much he cared about her after risking his life for her, Takato nodded in reply and said with seriousness and honesty. "Of course I did. Rika, we've known each other for years and I really like you. I truly care about you, and I meant every single word I said."
Rika blushed a little when she heard Takato's reply, leaving her silent as she continued to look at Takato, the brunette remaining quiet as he gazed upon Rika, wondering what she was thinking.
And after a few seconds, Rika broke the silence.
"The day we met, you were the first person to speak to me. That was one of the best days of my life." Rika said with a smile at the memory, before she continued. "We became best friends, and I felt I was no longer alone. You have always been there for me and I now realize just how much you mean to me as well."
From Rika's words, Takato blushed a little.
"Rika, I..." He began to say, only to stop when Rika moved her head forward and quickly pressed her lips against his, kissing him, which left Takato stunned, not only from it being his first kiss, but it being his first kiss with the girl he had fallen for.
Looking at Takato, Rika smiled.
"I know how you feel about me, I overheard you on the phone ." Rika explained, making Takato blush, which increased as Rika placed her right hand on his shoulder and smiled at him. "But after hearing what you said, I figured out that I feel the same way about you."
And acting on their feelings for each other, Takato and Rika closed the gap in between them as they engaged in a second kiss, only this one was filled with more love as the pair continued to express their feelings.
-With Growlmon and Renamon-
While Takato was staying at Rika's for the night, Renamon escorted Growlmon back to the park, knowing Growlmon was far too large for his shed and searched around for a large enough location for him to rest.
"Here we are." Renamon then said, going beyond their training area and finding a field big enough for Growlmon, to which the Hazard Digimon then curled up and lay on the grass, letting out a yawn as he was about to go to sleep.
However, curiosity filled him when he saw Renamon standing a top one of the branches.
"Renamon not going home?" Growlmon asked curiously, causing Renamon to explain. "I'm going to stay here for the night. I want to keep an eye on you and make sure nobody bothers us."
"But what about Rika?" Growlmon then asked.
"I'm sure Rika would understand if I stayed here." Renamon replied, smiling at Growlmon's consideration.
'And I'm sure she would like to have some privacy with Takato.' The foxy Digimon then thought, certain her Tamer had similar feelings to those Takato had expressed.
"Ok then. Good night, Renamon." Growlmon said, lowering his head, closing his eyes and slowly drifting off to sleep, which made Renamon smile as she looked upon Growlmon and whispered. "Good night, Growlmon."
-Several hours later-
Unsure how long it had been since he went to sleep, Growlmon let out a yawn as he awoke, looking around and saw it was still dark, noticing that he was still in his Champion form.
"Growlmon woke up really really early. And Growlmon still Growlmon." He commented as he sat up, wondering how Renamon was doing and looked over to see that try as she might, Renamon was tired herself and had fallen asleep, resting against the tree she had set up for her patrol.
Seeing Renamon sleeping peacefully, Growlmon smiled, but noticed how Renamon was clutching her legs close to her chest as she slept, making Growlmon think. 'Renamon doesn't look very comfortable. Growlmon make things better.'
With that, Growlmon then reached up for Renamon, carefully scooped her up in his right claw, where he then lay down on his back and placed Renamon on his chest, smiling as he watched Renamon spread her body out, taking a more relaxed position on his body.
And after seeing Renamon looking more relaxed, Growlmon placed his right arm over Renamon to keep her warm, smiling as he watched her sleep.
But having Renamon so close to his body, Growlmon felt something, a strange warmth inside of him, which puzzled him and left him wondering why he felt it when the foxy Digimon was around.
He was in love.