Chapter 2: Auburn Eyes

Gatomon had spent the last few days feeling as though something was wrong. Exactly what was wrong she couldn't tell, but she hadn't been able to shake the sensation that there was some kind of anomaly in the world around her, constantly just outside her peripheral vision. Then the universe dropped the anomaly right in front of her, out of a tear in reality no less, yet she felt she didn't have significantly more information than she had that morning.

Eyes locked on her partner, who still held the boy that emerged in her arms, Gatomon tried to figure out the most delicate way to proceed. The boy, Akira, had addressed Kari as his mother. While Gatomon had no intent of becoming an expert on human reproduction, she knew the age gap between them wasn't wide enough that this boy could be her partner's child. Still, there was a resemblance, and Akira didn't sound like he was lying. Whatever the case, though, everyone else seemed frozen in place and someone had to make a decision as to what their next step should be.

"Kari?" Gatomon said gently and softly, which was usually enough to get her partner's attention.

"I'm sorry…" Kari replied nervously, separating herself from Akira while staying on one knee to remain at eye-level with him. "I'm not sure why I did that."

"You usually aren't," explained a voice that sounded more childlike than Gatomon had anticipated.

She turned towards the goat digimon, whose name she knew was Oryxmon despite having never seen a digimon like them in her entire life. With an almost naive smile and look about their eyes, Gatomon didn't sense any danger or ill will from Oryxmon or Akira for that matter, though something about them still felt out of place.

"Usually?" Gatomon questioned, deciding they needed to know more one way or another.

"Yeah," Oryxmon answered enthusiastically. "All the times we've met, and all the times we haven't but would have."

"They're younger than they were after the last couple jumps," Akira offered.

"Huh…" Oryxmon's eyes wandered around the group. "I guess so."

Oryxmon suddenly began to glow, shrinking and changing shape into a form more readily recognizable to all of them, Salamon. The white-haired plot hound continued to look them all over like nothing had changed. Despite them having taken on her own Rookie form, Gatomon still felt like she was staring at a foreign entity.

"Who are you?" Gatomon asked, eyes now locked on the Rookie.

"I'm Salamon!" they declared proudly.

Gatomon sighed. "I mean besides the obvious."

"Well I don't know how else to answer that question." Salamon's enthusiasm lowered some as they raised an eyebrow. "Who is anybody? Who are you?"

"I'm…" Gatomon hesitated, slightly annoyed as she weighed the question herself.

Salamon grinned. "Not easy being put on the spot, huh?"

"You were running when you appeared," Sora pointed out as she took a step forward, worry in her reddish brown eyes. "What were you running from?"

"The Light Eater." Salamon's expression and eyes sank, followed by a long enough silence that made it clear they weren't going to say more.

"Easier question," Mimi piped up, placing both her fists on her waist. "Where did you come from?"

"Weren't we on the bridge?" Akira answered, looking upwards and taking in the surrounding mall. "How'd we get all the way over here?"

Salamon perked back up. "The tide brought us here."

"The tide?" Kari asked, an uneasiness reaching her eyes.

"Izzy usually helps with the explaining..." Salamon trailed off, like they were genuinely struggling to find the words.

"Maybe we should head over to his office then," Mimi suggested. "Even if he ends up being as clueless as us, we still need to get out of sight."

Kari stood up and pulled out her cellphone. "I'll call T.K. and see if we can meet us there."

Gatomon took another look at Akira, enough of his facial features essentially spelling out who his father was. Kari likely reached the same conclusion.

"We should probably let the others know too," Mimi added before looking to her left. "Any luck with Tai and Matt?"

"They're not answering…" Sora paused to look down at her own phone. "Probably still in the Digital World. I'll text them to meet us when they get back."

There was no overt confirmation from anyone before they started moving, or at least not one that Gatomon heard. She tried to stay vigilant as she walked with the group, and even though she no longer sensed anything trying to sneak up on them, she couldn't shake the paranoia that she was still missing something just outside of her peripheral vision.

Green hills stretched over the horizon just outside the digital city's limits, an area Matt probably wouldn't have minded walking through if his feet didn't hurt. That said, he had long ago stopped expecting consistency when it came to the placement of the gates the Digidestined used to enter and leave the Digital World, so he was mostly able to keep the discomfort from bothering him. If anything, he was more concerned with getting home before another evil digimon showed up.

"So I think we can call that a win," Agumon piped up, looking over his shoulder and back towards the city. The site of their battle with Reapermon was out of site by this point.

"You know we wrecked a whole city block, right?" Tai pointed out, giving his partner a side-eye.

"Exactly!" Agumon pointed a confident claw into the air. "Just the one."

"And that was mostly Reapermon's doing," Gabumon added thoughtfully.

Tai shook his head. "But not entirely."

"We went there to talk, and he started the fight," Matt spoke up, sensing the tone of his friend's voice become a bit more serious. "That wasn't on us, Tai."

"Says you," Tai replied with a grin, his tone lightening again. "When you have as much natural charisma as I do, you have to take it personally when someone tries to kill you."

"Please…" Matt rolled his eyes. "You have all the natural charisma of a Numemon."

Tai shrugged. "All I hear is jealousy in your voice."

Matt held onto his response, partially because he knew Tai's ego would take any denial as an affirmation, but also because it was clear he wasn't in the mood for opening up. The last year had seen a lot of change for all of them, and possibly for Tai most of all. His stronger sense of duty to the Digital World and the threats that came to and from it, as well as his commitment to the better future he tried to present to Reapermon, all stemming from a promise to the dying Daigo Nishijima. Tai had only mentioned said promise one time, but it was clear to everyone that their late teacher's last moments had affected him.

Not that any of that kept Tai from trying to pretend otherwise. As far as outward appearances were concerned, he often seemed the same as ever, right down to his obnoxious personality. He even dressed like he always used to, favoring his blue t-shirts, cargo shorts, and goggles, though at least the goggles now served a practical purpose thanks to Izzy's upgrades.

"You know, I ran into a group of Numemon a little while ago," Agumon chimed in suddenly. "Their leader was a surprisingly good singer."

"You get his number?" Tai asked. "He might have some pointers for Matt and his band."

Matt sighed. "I'm never gonna try and help you feel better ever again."

"We'll see…" Tai paused, reigning in his cocky grin. "So, any plans for tonight?"

"Not really." Matt paused himself, giving the question serious thought. "Between tomorrow and Dad working late, tonight's probably gonna be quiet."

Tai's eyes widened. "I'm willing to bet T.K. and your mom wouldn't mind you dropping in on them."

"I know…" Matt knew better than to disagree with Tai, though still tried to avoid those dinners when possible. As much as he loved his mother, them having lived apart most of his life naturally came with them not always knowing what to talk about. He would go out of his way to show up if invited, but didn't feel comfortable inviting himself over.

Tai looked forward again. "I'd ask you to stay for dinner, but my mom's cooking doesn't usually agree with people who haven't built up a tolerance for it."

Matt raised an eyebrow. "I appreciate it?"

"Since you saved my life today, I think we can call it even."

"As long as we're only counting today."

With that, they arrived at the outdated TV set that represented this end of the digiport. At first, Tai seemed to reflexively raise his digivice to it, but suddenly seemed to hesitate.

"Tai?" Agumon was the first to ask.

"It's vibrating," Tai replied, presenting his digivice to the group.

Matt hesitated himself, just long enough that any reply he might have given was cut short by a light. Not a light originating from Tai's digivice, but one being drawn to it. As this registered to all four of them, a matching energy began to build up around them.

"Scatter!" Tai ordered, jumping backwards with the rest of them as one final pulse rippled across the area.

Matt nearly lost his footing, recovering to turn back towards whatever had almost hit them. He had expected whatever chaos had started to continue, but was surprised to not only find the energy had dissipated, but also that it had dropped four new and unconscious individuals in its place.

The two digimon among them were instantly recognizable, an Agumon and a Gabumon by whatever stroke of random chance had allowed that to happen. The two humans with them, on the other hand, seemed less familiar.

Both were girls who looked to be around eleven years old, covered in dirt and bruises, though luckily seemed to to have no serious injuries. The first girl had blonde, shoulder-length hair, and wore jeans and a green sweatshirt that was about the same shade as the t-shirt Matt was currently wearing. The second girl's hair was of similar length, though was brown and a bit more unkempt. She wore a yellow t-shirt and cargo shorts, as well as a blue headband and goggles that hung around her neck.

"Where'd they come from?" Tai asked, goggles pulled over his eyes, likely scanning the area using one of Izzy's add-ons. Eventually, he pulled them back up to his forehead.

Matt looked skyward. "Looked like they were drawn to your digivice."

Tai continued forward, kneeling down next to the girl with the goggles and shaking her shoulder. "Hey, kid, can you hear me?"

She grunted, her eyes struggling to open. "Dad…?"

Tai snorted. "Don't think so. Name's Tai. You?"

The girl's eyes opened instantly, lucidity and fear seeming to fill them as she looked Tai dead in the face. She scrambled backwards just as quickly, having barely made it to her feet before tripping over the the unconscious Agumon behind her.

"Ouch!" the digimon yelled in a voice with a slightly higher pitch than their own Agumon. "Rei, what gives?"

"What's going on?" Rei demanded as she frantically looked around the area.

Tai stood back up and crossed his arms. "You're in the Digital World."

"No, I mean…" Rei scrambled back to her feet. "How did we get here?"

"Well, what do you remember?" Tai took a step closer. "Maybe-"

"Stay back!" Rei jabbed a finger in his direction, causing everyone to hold in place.

"Rei?"

All eyes gravitated to the new voice, finding the blonde girl and the other Gabumon conscious and sitting upright. Though she seemed calmer than her counterpart, she was still clearly nervous as she took in her surroundings.

Rei's eye twitched, before looking away from the other girl. "Of all the people for me to be stuck here with…"

"You treat all your friends like that?" Matt asked without thinking.

"She's not one of my friends," Rei shot back, still not looking at any of them.

The blonde girl's eyes sank downward as she pulled her knees up to her chest. Not wanting to add to the clear isolation she was feeling, Matt delicately approached her.

"Don't listen to her," he said softly as he stretched out a hand to her. "What's your name?"

"M-Mariko…" she answered, lips quivering and eyes tearing up as she gave Matt her full attention. She didn't take his hand, instead allowing the Gabumon next to her to help her up. "E-Everyone calls me Mari, though."

Matt didn't reply, instead just staring at Mari and trying to make sense of her. He fixated on her eyes, and not just the sadness in them. The irises were reddish brown, a familiar shade that could only make him think of one other person. Instinctively, he looked to Rei, and despite her being slightly farther away, he could tell her eyes were the exact same color.

"They don't like you either, huh?" Tai commented as he arrived at Matt's side.

"They have Sora's eyes."

Tai remained silent, his lips parting slightly as he looked between the two girls, connecting at least some of the same dots that Matt just had.

"What are you staring at?" Rei asked, her voice softer though not seeming any less hostile.

"Who are you two?" Tai asked back, though the look in his eyes said he had reached a conclusion.

Gatomon kept all of her senses open as their group moved across the city, though luck seemed to be on their side. Discretion tended to vary amongst her friends, so there was always the risk of attracting unwanted attention. Moving across the last crosswalk before reaching their destination, however, they remained mostly unnoticed.

The building they were heading for was in sight, which contained the office that Izzy still claimed to be only watching for a friend. Gatomon looked over her shoulder one more time, to confirm they were not being followed. Satisfied, she led the final approach.

Taking just a couple steps away from the building's entrance, Takeru "T.K." Takaishi waved to get their attention. Not that he was usually difficult to spot, but the boy tended to change his wardrobe up often enough to occasionally throw the others off. Today he had kept things simple with green shorts and a yellow t-shirt, capped off with one of his bucket hats. Gatomon wondered if T.K.'s collection of hats had something to do with his head being Patamon's favorite perch, which was the orange, winged digimon's current location.

"Daddy!" Akira called out as he ran past Gatomon.

Much like with Kari previously, the child didn't hesitate to latch himself onto his supposed father's waist. Obviously confused but still too empathetic for his own good, T.K. simply smiled and placed a gentle hand on Akira's shoulder.

"Hey…" he said warmly as everyone drew closer. "You must be Akira."

"He does kinda remind me of you," Patamon pointed out as he hopped from T.K.'s head to Akira's.

"So…" T.K.'s focus landed on Kari. "Busy day?"

"Apparently both of you will be getting busy at some point," Mimi teased with a playful wink, causing both of them briefly look away from each other.

"Mimi…" Sora warned, only receiving a giggle in return.

"That's assuming they're both who they say they are," Gatomon added, deciding someone needed to keep them all on task.

"Anyone ever tell you you're a little paranoid?" Salamon commented with a shake of their head.

"What do you think, Kari?" T.K. asked, always the second to put all his faith in her.

"I…" Kari paused to look down at the two individuals in question. "...don't think we have anything to worry about. At least not from them."

T.K. nodded confidently. "That's good enough for me."

"Let's get inside then," Gatomon replied, hearing no objections as they all moved to the elevator.

For what must have been the tenth time that day, Matt tried to keep his balance, this time as his group stumbled into Tai's bedroom via the computer screen on the room's desk. Conversation had stalled by this point, Mari and Rei both either refusing or just unable to give any further answers. For better or worse, however, one of their new arrivals was more than chatty enough to make up for their silence.

"You know, if I had to pick, I'd say jumping to a different reality is an easier trip than just going to the Digital World," Rei's Agumon declared, no regard for anyone who might hear her as she spoke. "It's less bumpy and better for naps."

The alternate Agumon being so talkative might have been helpful if not for how she didn't say much more than her silent companions. Despite responding to questions, she didn't give many definitive answers. Matt had even tried changing the subject by asking how there could be a female Agumon, especially given that the only possible difference between the two yellow dinosaurs was that Rei's partner might have been slightly shorter than Tai's. Neither Agumon were particularly helpful on that note, both even going as far as to look at him like he'd asked a dumb question.

With that said, Matt preferred the unintentional condescension to the energy he was getting off of Mari's partner. Despite there being no real physical differences between them, Matt felt like he would have no problem telling this Gabumon apart from his own. This Gabumon had not made a sound since appearing, instead simply staring at him with a leery intensity. Matt tried not to stare back, wanting to avoid being at odds with a digimon connected to his would-be daughter.

A buzzing in his pocket cut off his thoughts, cuing him to fish his cellphone out of his pocket. He looked to Tai as he did, finding him already reading something on his own device.

"Sora wants us to head over to Izzy's office," Tai summarized before dropping his phone back in his pocket. "I'm guessing this wasn't a one-off thing."

Matt shrugged. "When is it ever?"

"Hear that?" Tai glanced over at the two girls. "No reason to be so secretive at this point."

"Why do you have to ask so many questions?" Rei grumbled, dodging all their gazes as she took a step to the door. "Can we just get going?"

"Fine…" Tai put his hands on his waist and didn't take his eyes off her. "No need for the attitude."

"And you don't need to be so annoying," Rei added, a slight twitch in her eye.

Gabumon stepped forward diplomatically. "Maybe we should-"

The turning and clicking of the bedroom's doorknob rang out, pulling all attention towards it. Matt glanced around the room, unsure how or even if he should respond. Tai, on the other hand, was pinching the bridge of his nose, a response that made all the more sense when his mother peered through the door.

"I thought I heard you in here," Yuuko Kamiya said with a friendly smile.

"What's up, Mom?" Tai replied through his teeth.

"Just checking in. Hi, Matt." Yuuko stepped in, briefly pausing as she noticed the rest of the room's occupants. "...and guests?"

"Y-Yeah!" Tai stepped forward, a nervous smile on his face. "They're actually the new blood, fresh off of being chosen by the Digital World."

Yuuko tilted her head, eyes wandering between the girls and their digimon. "How are there two Agumon?"

"Mom, Agumon are a species. The Digital World is full of 'em."

Rei's Agumon extended a claw upwards. "Pleased to meetcha!"

"A pleasure." Yuuko accepted and shook, never dropping her pleasant tone and demeanor. "How do you tell each other apart?"

"Honestly, I probably couldn't tell most humans apart if I couldn't smell you," Agumon chimed in enthusiastically.

"Unfortunately, he's not joking," Gabumon commented without said enthusiasm.

"Will they be staying for dinner?" Yuuko asked. "There's plenty of liver sticks to go around."

She looked around the room again, though this time her gaze landed on Rei in particular. The girl seemed to clench up, alternating between maintaining and breaking eye-contact.

Tai took a couple steps closer to his mother. "Well, uh, you know, we've got to run if we don't want to miss their induction ceremony. Right, Matt?"

"Huh?" Matt spit out by accident, despite part of him having known he was going to get roped into whatever tale Tai came up with. "I mean yeah! T.K. and Kari are waiting up for us."

Yuuko didn't take her eyes off Rei. "Sora too?"

"Uh-huh," Matt answered, though now a little suspicious at how specific the line of questioning had become.

"After then?" Yuuko leaned in closer. "I'm thinking about whipping up a four-bean dipping sauce."

"No!" Rei snapped, with an urgency and dread that could only come with familiarity. Clearly realizing her mistake, she put on a nervous smile to match Tai's. "Sorry, I meant no thank you."

"Our parents are expecting us," Mari offered, earning her a glare from Rei that seemed to shatter the bit of confidence she had been able to dig up.

Yuuko's eyes darted between them. "Are you two related?"

"Mom, why are you asking them so many questions?" Tai asked, this time putting himself in between his mother and the two girls. "You're gonna make them late."

"Fine, just be careful," Yuuko requested, before turning her attention away from her son. "Matt, make sure he calls if you run late."

"I'll try," Matt replied, two parts of him fighting over whether he would pawn the request off on Sora.

"Have fun!"

The group moved out of Tai's room en masse, heading straight out of the apartment. Though he tried to keep his focus forward, Matt didn't miss Mari giving a shy but well-meaning wave backwards, and couldn't miss Rei's Agumon shouting her own goodbye.

Rei, on the other hand, never looked back, marching forward as though she couldn't leave fast enough.

Gatomon didn't have to prompt anyone to knock on the office's door, with Sora doing the honors as soon as the group made their way down the hall. A faint buzzing started immediately after, followed by the door being opened by a familiar red insectoid digimon.

"Greetings all. Your host awaits you," Tentomon said as he held the door so everyone could shuffle in. Once the door was shut, he turned to the other side of the room. "Izzy?"

"Just a second…" Koushirou "Izzy" Izumi clicked his computer mouse with one hand and typed with the other, likely wrapping up whatever he had be juggling before they had called. His misbuttoned shirt, askew necktie, and just the general tired expression on his face said enough about how long he had been at this.

"I guess everyone's a little busy today," T.K. commented, just a touch of levity in his voice.

"Whatever would give you that idea?" Tentomon added as he landed himself on the nearest sofa.

"Did you sleep here last night?" Mimi asked, almost sounding more irritated than concerned.

"Let's focus on the task at hand," Izzy replied as he finally moved away from his computer.

"So yes then?"

Ignoring the comment, Izzy approached the office's common area and stopped in front of Akira. By this point, the child had taken a seat on an armchair, with Salamon at his side. Izzy knelt down to look the boy over at eye-level.

"Hi, Izzy," Akira said with a friendly grin and wave.

"He certainly looks the part." Izzy stood back up and crossed his arms.

"We think they're telling the truth," Kari stated, standing next to the armchair though seemingly refusing to sit down herself.

"Their truth, anyway," Gatomon added.

"Like I said…" Salamon groaned. "Paranoid."

Izzy raised an eyebrow. "You have thoughts?"

Gatomon nodded. "A different Kari might be Akira's mother."

"You mean as in they're from an alternate reality." Izzy paused for a moment before nodding.

The Digidestined had had limited yet memorable experience with alternate realities in the past. Granted, they had not encountered alternate versions of themselves living different lives, but Izzy had made the possibility clear when he had originally explained the phenomenon. It was clear that everyone had hoped that that specific conflict would be their last when it came to dimension hopping, though Gatomon maintained a gut feeling things wouldn't be so easy.

"I didn't recognize it at first because the tear looked different, but I'm almost positive," Gatomon explained, recalling the rifts and portals they had made use of less than a year ago.

"Different how?" Izzy questioned, thoughts clearly turning behind his eyes.

"Calmer, but the energy felt the same."

"You felt it?" Kari asked, not hiding the worry in her eyes.

Gatomon hesitated, having told Sora the truth about only keeping her more recent concerns to herself because she wanted to confirm them. She looked to Biyomon and Palmon, hoping the two had sensed similar and could at least support her recounting of the day's events, though they gave her the same quizzical stares as everyone else. Of her friends, only Patamon and Izzy didn't seem to be waiting for an answer, with the former currently scrunching up his face like he was trying to remember something.

"We can circle back to that in a little bit," Izzy suggested, the tone of his voice basically declaring he knew more than he was letting on. "There's something else that's standing out to me."

"He's got that look in his eyes," Patamon pointed out as he brought his attention forward again.

"The two of them…" Izzy shifted his attention back to Salamon and Akira, prompting everyone else to follow. "They could from an alternate reality, but not a parallel one by the look of it. We've dealt with different realities before, but nothing resembling this kind of time dilation."

"So they're time travelers too?" Mimi asked, skepticism in her voice and on her face.

"Like that Wells fellow?" Tentomon put forward.

"Not quite," T.K. replied, though not looking at anyone in particular. "How would they even do that?"

"I said already," Salamon perked up impatiently. "The tide."

"They keep mentioning that." Kari put a hand on each of her elbows and seemed to go a bit stiff.

Salamon tilted their head in her direction. "When are you gonna stop pretending you don't know what I'm talking about?"

Another pause followed, though the answer was becoming clear. Between the choice of wording and mix of uneasiness and familiarity on Kari's face, everyone's thoughts seemed to be ending up in the same spot.

"The Dark Ocean," Gatomon concluded.

"So to clarify…" Izzy spoke a bit slower, as though he were treading more carefully. "By accessing your version of the Dark Ocean-"

"The Dark Ocean," Salamon interrupted.

"Excuse me?"

"There's just the one," Salamon explained, a gleam in their eyes and levity to their voice remaining despite the subject matter. "It's the space between what is, was, will be, and could've been. A constant companion to all walks of life."

"They're losing me," Patamon admitted, his face scrunching up again.

"The Dark Ocean is a void," Gatomon tried to simplify, though the best she could do was make guesses based on what was being said. "I think..."

"Yep. From it, you can access anywhere and anywhen." Salamon paused, bringing a paw up to touch their chin. "Though it's easy to get lost in if you don't have a paddle."

"What kind of paddle?" Patamon asked, sounding no less lost.

Salamon instead turned back to Izzy. "Should I just wait til everyone else gets here to explain?"

"I think so," he answered, still clearly sorting out his own thoughts.

"Izzy, what's going on?" Sora asked sternly.

"We don't have all the pieces yet."

"Sounds like we have some of them though," Sora argued, her lack of specific information never overriding her concern for the group.

Izzy hesitated, then shook his head. "I just don't want to make any unilateral decisions until Tai and the others get here."

He moved back to his desk, leaving the conversation behind. Sora kept her eyes on him for a few seconds before exhaling, apparently choosing to trust his judgment at least for the moment.

Gatomon couldn't help but return her focus to Akira and Salamon. Even if they could be trusted, there was some kind of shadow hanging over them. She found herself agreeing with Izzy's suggestion to wait for the others, because whatever was coming, she had a feeling they would need all hands on deck to stop it.

Author's Note:

Trivia regarding names…

Rei's name is borrowed from both Sonfaro's Digimon: Godfall and Crazyeight's Digimon Trinity, both naming characters from their respective stories after the character from the V-Tamers manga.

Mari[ko] came from my desire to give at least one of the kids a Japanese name that could be shortened into something more Anglo sounding, in keeping with 01's dub. I've also been revisiting my share of X-Men media as of late.

Akira was a placeholder name, one that came about due my starting the first outline of this story around the time Akira Toriyama passed away, and it ended up sticking. Rest well, Sensei.