Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
Seeing Red
Chapter: 09
The clack of the train tracks filled the air as the group sat in the subway car. Jeri looked back and forth between her friends and pressed her lips together worriedly. The air had a still feeling to it accompanied by a sort of tension. It felt to her as though a storm were brewing.
A look at Rika's expression, a dark frown on her face, was certainly one source, though by far not the only one, as Henry's uncertain, blushing, Takato's uncertainty and Terriermon's quizzical look were another. And still this was not all of it, though it was no wonder. Renamon's surprise appearance in a human form had taken everyone by surprise.
Well, I guess this explains why she wanted the bikini, she thought, tapping her fingers upon her knees. It struck her as odd though. Renamon rarely bothered with her transformation ability when visiting public areas, preferring to either stay out of sight or, when visible, at Rika's side. Today she made an exception for some reason, and chose, of all things, an enormously beautiful appearance guaranteed to draw the eye. Getting a good look at her, Jeri saw that she resembled some kind of cross between Rika and her family, mixing and matching appearances to create something rather unique. The shape of Rika's eyes and smooth, long hair; Seiko's playful smirk and Rumiko's blonde strands and height. Perfectly blending the maturity of the eldest matriarch with the youth of the other members of the household made it difficult to guess her simulated age. She could have been slightly older than the Tamers or well into adulthood.
From the looks she got as they made their way to the subway – sans Guardromon, who would meet them at the beach – she was quite the stunning visage. A fact only helped by the grace and poise Renamon held herself with. She stood as a commanding beauty, and the smile on her face suggested that she was quite aware of it.
Next to her, Kazu leaned over to Kenta, whispering something in his ear. The bespectacled boy elbowed him in the side, blushing furiously. Jeri's ears perked up, focusing on them.
"Hey, Kenta. If she can change her shape to look like that, do you think she has a vagina?"
"Kazu!" Kenta made a harsh, shushing sound. "She can hear you!"
Jeri's eyes flickered over in the direction of Renamon, rather curious herself as to whether that was the case. The tall, lean human-disguised vixen gave no notice that she did so. Jeri however was of the same mind as Kenta that she heard everything that was said.
Kazu, however, stubbornly refused to care.
"So what? I'm just curious. Can't blame a guy for being a little bit curious, right?"
"So what? Kazu, she can wipe the floor with your sorry butt!"
"Great. Now I'm imagining her doing that in a skin-tight leather outfit with a whip…"
"Would you shut up?!"
Jeri helped that by kicking the boy.
"Owww! Jeri! What the heck?"
"Thanks, Jeri," Kenta breathed a sigh of relief. Jeri giggled.
"You're welcome," she said, a bright blush burning on her face as the image of Renamon wearing a corset was now firmly branded in her mind. Thanks a lot, Kazu…
Across from them, Takato looked over at his friends, wondering just what was going on between them that caused Jeri's rather unusual, if brief, burst of violence. Obviously, Kazu lay at the center of it, which didn't surprise him. Following that train of thought from there, it didn't take much to figure out precisely what was on Kazu's mind. Soon enough, his eyes fell on Renamon, who continued to stand between their two groups, her eyes cool and without concern.
As if sensing his gaze, she glanced over in his direction, lips curling in a small, amused smile. Takato felt his face heat up and he yanked his eyes away with an effort.
"What's eating you?" Rika asked, sensing his sudden discomfort.
"Oh… Nothing important," he replied. He scratched his head, feeling her gaze on him. His blush deepened under her scrutiny, knowing she expected him to reply.
"And?" she prompted. Left unsaid was her knowledge that anything that got Takato squirrely about something ought to be brought out into the open lest it make him even more unsettled. He considered trying to brush the question off, but soon decided against it.
We trust each other, so why not trust her with this?
"Still wondering why Renamon decided to look human for our trip to the beach," he confided in a low voice. His eyes went back to Renamon. Her back was to him now, but he felt certain that she could hear him no matter how quiet he spoke.
Rika frowned slightly next to him, her eyes falling upon her partner once again. "She's been acting weird ever since she bought herself a bathing suit."
Takato's eyes went wide and he spun on her. "She bought a bathing suit?!"
"Could you make it any louder, Gogglehead?" Rika deadpanned, though her eyes took on an anxious, annoyed look. "I'm pretty sure Terriermon didn't hear you."
"Oh, I totally did," came the giggling voice from the Rookie in question from his spot on Henry's lap across from them. "But don't let me stop you. Keep going. Let's hear more about Renamon's bathing suit."
"B-Be a good digimon, Terriermon," Henry stammered out, adjusting his old over his partner. His grey eyes flickered over to Renamon, who regarded him curiously. Henry's blush darkened and he looked away hastily.
Rika cocked an eyebrow at this and then looked at her boyfriend suspiciously. Takato was studiously doing his best to avoid looking at Renamon though it appeared that some effort was needed on his part to do so. Rika found herself fuming, wondering just what was going through Renamon's head. She made quite the striking figure and an easily distracting one at that. Even she found it hard not to linger on her and could only imagine how much harder it would get for all of them once the regular clothes came off.
Rika's scowl deepened and a light red began to spread across her cheeks.
Renamon… Just what are you thinking? she thought at her partner through their mental link. It's bad enough that you're making Kazu and Henry trip over themselves around you, but Takato…?
"Takato appears to be doing quite well," came the amused reply from the vulpine digimon. "You know he's loyal to you."
Rika shot a glance over at the boy, who was now looking at her questioningly, wondering at her silence.
That's not the point! Renamon! Why are you doing this? What's gotten into you?
A smile curved along Renamon's lips and the tail behind her swished playfully, coming dangerously close to Henry before retracting. The half-Chinese Tamer's blushing face kicked its intensity up another notch and he shifted Terriermon again, looking as though he were trying to bury his face behind his partner. Rika would have been amazed at her partner's sudden ability to unsettle the otherwise unflappable boy if not for present circumstances and Kazu's own attentive eyes.
"Don't worry, Rika. Just watch."
Rika groaned mentally. Bad choice of words, Renamon…
"Just relax, Rika. Focus on yourself and Takato. I'll take care of the others for you."
Rika hmphed and folded her arms together. Just how am I supposed to relax when Kazu is all eyes on you right now? And how are we going to explain away your tail?
"I'm sure there won't be any need for explanations. Guilmon and Guardromon won't. I'll just be one more oddity, although the packaging is much nicer."
Renamon!
"Rika?" came Takato's voice, intruding on her private conversation with her partner. "Are you okay?"
"Peachy," she grumbled, slumping in her seat and crossing one leg in front of the other irritably. She withdrew from her connection with her partner, feeling that at this point there was nothing she could do to change her partner's mind. "Apparently, Renamon's up to something but she's not looking to fill me in on it."
"Wonder what that could be," Takato said, looking back at the kitsune, his crimson eyes curious. Rika's lips pressed together angrily.
"Maybe her plan is to get you to gawk at her," she said tightly. Takato turned back toward her, an eyebrow lifted. A faint blush colored his features and his mouth twisted in embarrassment and discomfort.
"Rika… I wouldn't…" He gestured at the vulpine helplessly. "C'mon. Rika, sure Renamon looks… Okay. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't find her beautiful, but she doesn't hold a candle to you."
Rika narrowed her eyes, jealousy flashing dangerously within them. "Of course, you would say something like that."
Takato stiffened at that and now she saw that he had hurt him. Immediately, she felt her heart clench painfully and she turned away, not wanting to see the full extent of her words' impact on him.
"Sorry," she said, wanting to kick herself for picking now of all times to prick him on her thorns. "Of course, you would say something like that. Because you mean it."
And it was true. While Takato would often do his best to try and massage her feelings, but he never said anything he didn't mean. He wasn't the sort of person who went purely on looks after all. His first love had been Jeri after all. This wasn't to say that the brown-haired girl was ugly. Far from it, she certainly was pretty in her own right and Rika would sometimes find moments admiring her. But even when they were children, there was no denying that compared to her, the Digimon Queen, Jeri was a candle next to a sun. A gulf that only grew as they matured. Rika drew eyes whether she wanted to or not, and would often draw them away from Jeri whenever they were together. If Takato had been as shallow as she had just accused him of, Jeri would never have figured in the picture from the very beginning.
From out of the corner of her eye, she saw Takato's face twist in confusion, mixing with the cloud of hurt she had inflicted on him earlier. A second later, understanding seemed to dawn in his eyes and her hands tightened about her arms.
"Rika… You're not jealous, are you?"
Rika hmphed again, once more feeling a flash of anger. A brief introspection told her that he had indeed hit the bullseye, but she was loath to admit it.
"Jealous? Of what? Renamon's the best at everything she puts her mind to, even looking like a human. It's natural for everyone to think the same."
Takato gave her a soft, sympathetic smile and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah, well, I think that no matter what, you're still the coolest thing out there."
Rika felt her lips fight against her in an attempt to curl into a smile. His words – his stupid heart – were getting to her. She wasn't about to give him a win just because he knew how to help her feel better.
"Even cooler than Guilmon?"
Takato barked a laugh and glanced over at his partner, who stood transfixed by Renamon, golden eyes wide. "Well, I wouldn't want to hurt his feelings." He lowered his voice and leaned closer. "Can we at least agree that you're the most beautiful and amazing person I know, no matter what?"
"I'd say you're getting too good at smooth talking," Rika grunted. "But…sure." She looked back at him, the tension leaving her face. "Sorry again."
"Don't worry about it," Takato beamed, giving her shoulder a loving squeeze. They held each other's gaze for a moment and once again Rika saw why she had fallen in love with him. There was just no dishonesty in him. Or at least not the kind that would mean anything. She could trust her heart with him because he wouldn't take her for granted to even consider it.
I just…wish I wasn't so prickly sometimes, she thought.
"Roses are prickly too, but that doesn't stop them from being…beautiful," whispered the memory of their Noh theater date. Once more, her blush rose and she struggled to force it down.
"You two sure look happy over there," Kazu noted from across from them.
"Took the words right out of my mouth," Terriermon chimed in, much to Henry's distress.
"Terriermon!" he hissed.
"Moment-!" Terriermon began, only to get cut off as Henry clamped a hand over his mouth.
"So what if we are?" Rika demanded, her irritation roaring back to life once more. Next to Kazu, Jeri bit her lip. "What about it?"
"You're crazier than a fruit bat, Rika," Kazu chuckled, thumbing the tip of his nose as he eyed the pair mischievously. "It's no big deal. I'm glad you two are happy." He looked over at Takato. "Hey, Chumley. If you need any tips on making her really happy, I've got some if you'd like to hear the-Ow! Jeri!"
"Leave them alone, Kazu," Jeri said, retracting her foot from his ankle. Kazu scowled at her, but before he could further respond, movement from Renamon caught his attention. Looking up, he saw the kitsune-turned-human arch her back and stretch. His mouth fell open as he watched her digital breasts push against her shirt, stretching the fabric until she relaxed with a yawn.
The train car fell deathly silent as all eyes fell on Renamon in stunned amazement and shock. Gradually, their motion began to slow and steel squealed slightly as the driver threw on the brakes. Shaking her head to send her golden hair swirling about her, she cast an azure look about her, smiling.
"We've arrived," she said as the train finally halted with a jerk. The door snapped open and Renamon glided toward it. Her tail swept about her, brushing Kazu on her way out before she faded from view with the whistle of a flute.
Kazu leaned out from his seat, staring at the spot that she had just vacated in bewilderment.
"Okay. She's got to be messing with me."
"Kazu, you're just being paranoid," Kenta said, getting up from his seat.
"Only because she's always been out to get me!"
Shaking his head, Kenta looked at MarineAngemon, who shrugged his tiny wings.
"Pih?" the fairy asked. Kenta sighed.
"You said it, buddy."
"Heyyy…" Kazu whined. "What'd he say? It was about me, wasn't it? Kenta…"
"Momentai, Kazu," Terriermon giggled as everyone started toward the door. "You're sounding crazier than Renamon right now."
Kazu snorted as they disembarked. "Yeah, but I'm still not as crazy as Rika when she's on her period."
"Kazuuu…" began Takato warningly as Rika frowned at the taller boy. Kazu waved his hands at them placatingly.
"I'm just kidding. Lighten up! Jeez Chumley. You don't have to be her knight in shining armor all the time you know."
"And you don't have to be so stupid all the time," Rika growled in response. Although Kazu was her friend – if in the loosest sense of the word – the fact that he went out of his way at times to take potshots at her had a way of wearing on her patience for him.
"Come on, you guys," Jeri said, throwing on a smile and stepping up between them. "We're all here to have a good time, so can't we just do that?" She gave Kazu a hard, meaningful look. The boy chuckled and shrugged.
"All right, all right. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get under your skin like that."
Rika pressed her lips together, but she nodded, deciding to accept his apology. Kazu, in spite of his immaturity, did at least mean his apologies when called out on his behavior. She still didn't like it though. As much as he antagonized everyone, it felt as though he reserved a special attention for her because she bit back.
In many ways, Kazu was an example of honesty at its extreme.
I'm not too different from him though, am I? she wondered, remembering how she had snapped at Takato earlier, and how often she had been 'prickly' with him over the years. She lowered her eyes a little, mulling the thought over as they began their remaining trek toward the beach. Hefting her bags and switching them over to one hand, she left her free hand drift for a moment until she was sure no one was watching. Then, she slipped her fingers around Takato's and gave him an apologetic squeeze, holding it for some minutes before finally releasing him.
"What's up?" Takato asked, looking at her with eyes full of warm concern. Rika shifted one of her bags back to her free hand and hmphed.
"Just thinking about how glad I am you're a gogglehead," she said simply.
Ahead of them, Kazu watched them over his shoulder with an amused grin on his wolfish features.
###
They found Guardromon standing amidst the crowd of people, his massive swim trunks hoisted up around his waist as he held an umbrella over him. Spying the group as they approached, he waved a heavy arm to flag them down.
"It is good to see that you arrived," he greeted. "I trust that the trip was uneventful?"
"It was all right," Kazu said, planting his hands on his hips. He looked around, making a note of the distance that many beachgoers were keeping with regards to the mechanical digimon. "You didn't scare anyone or anything, did you?"
"All I did was land," Guardromon said, pointing out toward the parking lot. "When I began to look for a place, I quickly found one. Some people apparently found a much nicer spot down that way." He angled his arm downwind where the beach was considerably more crowded than where they currently stood. "Perhaps they saw some family or friends and desired to be closer to them."
Kazu sighed and shook his head. "Man, we're never going to get people used to digimon being around if they keep running off. Okay, Kenta. You and MarineAngemon are our frontline guys today."
"Huh? Why us?"
"Duh! Because MarineAngemon scores really well with girls. Besides, you're in serious need of a girlfriend anyway, Chumley and the beach is the best place to get one."
"Kazu…" Adjusting his glasses, Kenta glanced around him nervously. "Kazu… I don't know about this."
"It's an attitude like that is why you're still single, Chumley," Kazu berated as the others began to unpack their things. Kazu looked up at MarineAngemon meaningfully. "You'll be his wingman, right?"
The pink fairy digimon looked at Kenta, smiling. "Pihpihpuh!"
"I have no idea if that means yes or not," Kazu said.
Kenta groaned, blushing. "Can't we just have fun without going through all this? I thought we came here to relax?"
"Yeah, but you're always moping about being single…"
"Oh, Kazu," began Jeri, plucking the umbrella out of Guardromon's hand and taking it over to where Rika was presently laying out a blanket. "Leave him alone. If he doesn't want to be in a relationship right now, you shouldn't push him into it. Remember Ayaka?"
Kazu's expression twisted painfully at the name. "Yeah…" he answered reluctantly, looking about at the crowd around them before settling on Takato and Rika, his eyes contemplative.
Taking hold of the umbrella, Rika stabbed it into the ground. Rising to her feet, she took hold of the hem of her shirt and adjusted it before suddenly noticing Kazu staring. She frowned.
"Kazu…" she began warningly.
The boy blinked. "Huh? What?"
Rika narrowed her gaze at him. "Eye discipline."
"What? Hey! I promise I wasn't staring! I was just…" He looked about him helplessly, noticing how everyone was focused on him. He blushed darkly. "I was just thinking about stuff," he finished, his voice coming out weak. "Honest!"
"If that's the case, then why isn't there smoke coming out of your ears?"
Kazu scowled and then looked at Guardromon. "C'mon. Let's go find something to do. Maybe we can find Takato a girl or something."
Rika's hands tightened into fists at that but bit her tongue on a retort. Instead, she brushed herself off and looked over at Takato.
"I'll be back," she said, heading off in the direction of the changing rooms. Jeri was quick to follow along. Renamon watched them leave for a moment before turning her attention in the direction of the retreating Kazu and Guardromon. After a brief consideration, she glanced over at Kenta and Henry, both of whom was looking a little bit lost at the present. Henry, especially.
As her eyes settled on the half-Chinese Tamer, the boy tried to pretend that he wasn't aware of her gaze and turned to his partner.
"I'm heading into the water," he said. "Come on, Terriermon."
"Eh? Oh. Okay, sure."
With that, Tamer and digimon headed off, leaving Renamon alone with Kenta, MarineAngemon, Takato and Guilmon. The kitsune's tail swished behind her in thought.
So strange to see so much trouble over one's appearance, she thought. Shaking her head, she made her way over to one of the bags containing their things and produced a volleyball. Glancing over at Kenta, she went over to him. Seeing her approach, the bespectacled boy blanched nervously, his eyes dropping briefly down to her chest before yanking themselves back up to her eyes through sheer force of will. Renamon smiled in what she hoped was comforting encouragement and, therefore, disarming to his nerves.
"Why don't we play a game?" she offered.
###
Rika was a bundle of nerves when she emerged from the changing room, her regular clothes neatly packed in her bag. She looked down at herself, frowning once more at the amount of skin her new swimsuit was showing off. It was…different, to say the least, and not at all something she was sure that she liked despite having decided to purchase the outfit in the first place. The bikini wasn't as bad as some of the outfits that the other women on the beach were wearing, and it certainly left more to the imagination (imagination that Takato she knew had in abundance), but she had never shown this much before. Her shoulders and belly were bare and the curve of her chest peaked out over the top much more aggressively than the sleeveless affair she wore when she first asked Takato out. She scowled and adjusted a strap. It was comfortable and fit snugly, but she felt that she was in danger of falling out of it.
Boys really are lucky, she thought, casting her gaze over at the distant Takato, who wore nothing but a pair of dark blue swim trunks. Nothing anywhere near as elaborate as hers and Renamon's outfits. Nothing attached to his chest that needed support. Just simple muscle.
"That looks good on you."
Turning, Rika saw Jeri approach wearing a two-piece, olive green outfit with ruffles lining the sides of her waist. Rika blushed lightly, noting how well it suited her. She was…cute to say the least.
"Same to you," Rika grunted, adjusting her bag and starting off back in the direction of Takato and their towels. She set a quick pace, wanting to get there quickly so as to get under the umbrella and thus out of the harsh sun. Jeri giggled, easily falling into step beside her.
"Sooo…" she began meaningfully.
"So, what?" Rika responded stiffly, already guessing what Jeri was about to say.
"Are you going to let Takato put lotion on your back?"
Oh, for goodness sake… Rika groaned mentally. "If it'll stop you from asking about it, sure. Just don't be surprised if Takato's head explodes from all the skin-to-skin contact."
"I won't," Jeri giggled again. "Besides, I'm sure he won't be the only one."
She practically sang out the end to that sentence, causing Rika's cheeks to warm once more.
"You…are dangerous," she muttered, stomping a foot down on the sand to get rid of some of her growing frustration.
"Sorry. I guess if it were me, I'd be more…you know."
"You'd like it more?" Rika cast a look at Jeri, and not for the first time did she feel as though she had stolen something from the other girl. Seeing her look, Jeri looped an arm about hers and tugged her along.
"Maybe a little," she said, smiling softly. "Don't feel pressured to do anything though. I was just having a little fun. Sometimes you're just fun to tease."
Rika's eyebrow twitched at that. "Who are you? Ryo?"
"No," Jeri giggled. "More like Renamon. But you know I don't mean anything by it." She gave Rika's arm a comforting squeeze and then drew away. "Just have fun, okay? Do whatever feels natural for you two."
One of Rika's eyebrows arched.
"Whatever feels natural, huh?"
"Well… Within reason." Waving cutely at the taller girl, Jeri stepped back. "It looks like Renamon's playing with Kenta, so I'm going to see if I can figure out what she's up to. Have fuuun…"
"Jeri… Wait!"
"Hm?" Jeri paused in place, looking at Rika with raised eyebrows. The Digimon Queen fumbled, trying to find something to say that might implore her to…what?
Stay? She looked back at Guilmon and Takato, the latter of whom was unpacking a frisbee from their belongings. She felt her heart skip a beat thinking about how it would just be them now, alone and without the others. Nothing she hadn't done before. So why was she so nervous?
The imaginings of Takato's fingers upon her bare skin tickled at the back of her mind and she found herself blushing once more. Fear rose up in her heart, but seeing it for what it was now, she ruthlessly pushed it down.
"Nothing," she said, shaking her head. "Go have fun."
"You too," Jeri beamed before hurriedly departing. Rika watched her go for a moment before returning her attention on her lover-boy. He had taken out his old goggles and was presently strapping them onto his head. He looked so carefree. She knew he was likely feeling different on the inside – heaven forbid Takato ever relax – but outwardly he might as well have had not a single worry on his mind.
She felt frustrated by that. Stomping on over, she drew up next to him and snatched his goggles off his head.
"Going for a swim," she said as he whirled about in bewilderment. She flashed him a smirk. "Catch me if you can."
"Heeey!" he called after her as she broke into a run toward the water.
Finally get to try these stupid things on, she thought in amusement. Strapping the goggles onto her head she dove headlong into the water and escaped the sounds and heat of the beach around her.
8