Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ An Absence of Light ❯ Strawberry Skies ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter 3: Strawberry Skies

 

 

Guilmon sniffed at the ground for a long moment, his yellow eyes lighting up in recognition. “Terriermon,” he said finally, glancing over his shoulder.

 

Behind him, Renamon swished her tail in annoyance. “So find him. We agreed that I would track Lopmon.”

 

“They both came this way,” Guilmon confirmed, sniffing again. “But their smells go different ways.”

 

“Then we split up.” Renamon leapt past him and sped off across the desert plain, heading south. “Remember!” she shouted back at him. “The faster we find them, the faster we get back to our Tamers!”

 

“Takatomon,” Guilmon murmured fondly as he ran to the east. “I hope he's got some Guilmon bread and peanut butter left…”

 

* * * * *

 

It was only natural for Shuichon to eventually gravitate towards Takato. Jenrya's leaving had left something of a void in both their lives. Shuichon was missing her big brother, and Takato was missing a sensible, nonviolent friend to get advice from…and he could've really used some, since he'd had very little experience with girls in the past.

 

Shuichon, while she refused to admit that she even thought about Jenrya, clearly missed Terriermon, and was always asking Takato to share memories of him. Takato didn't mind at all; it was great to talk to anyone about Digimon, especially another Tamer. He wisely left Jenrya out of the stories unless they didn't make sense without him. Takato was no mind reader, but he could see the girl flinch every time her brother was mentioned. He'd had no idea that someone so young could hold such resentment toward a loved one, especially since he'd always thought Jenrya would make a decent brother. Though, maybe that was just his `inner only child' talking.

 

Soon, Takato found himself taking Shuichon along on what would've otherwise been dates with Alice. For some reason, Alice never complained about the younger girl's presence. She later confessed: “I'm used to kid siblings. At least she's nicer than my little brother.”

 

It was on one of these outings that they happened across the playground where Shuichon had first accessed the Digital World. Without warning, she broke away from them and ran up to the top of the slide, looking around expectantly.

 

Takato started to go after her, but Alice held him back, shaking her head.

 

“Terriermon?” Shucihon asked hopefully, searching the night sky frantically. Then, in a smaller voice: “Oniichan…?”

 

Takato sighed, his heart aching for the little girl. He was so distracted than he didn't notice several shapes emerging out of the darkness…but Alice did.

 

“Takato,” she whispered, squeezing his arm hard.

 

He started to turn to her when he finally noticed the men. There were about seven of them, and none of them look very friendly.

 

“Evening, folks,” one of them said with a wicked grin. “Spare some yen for the unfortunate?”

 

“We also take wallets, jewelry, and other valuables,” another added.

 

“And lives,” said a third, flicking open a switchblade.

 

Takato's first instinct was to get to Shuichon, but two men had already blocked both ends of the slide. But then, he could hardly leave Alice to whatever fate these men had in store for her, either. And while he wasn't what he would consider a religious person, he wouldn't have been opposed to a miracle just then.

 

Shuichon whimpered in fear and sat down, hugging her legs tightly. Tears rolled down her face as she pressed it into her knees. Slowly, she began to rock back and forth, muttering softly.

 

That was when Takato saw it: a blurry, pink shape just above Shuichon's head, growing larger by the second.

 

Pretty soon, the men noticed it as well, and froze.

 

“What is it?” Alice whispered uncertainly.

 

Takato knew what it was. At least, he thought he did. What he didn't know was how it had gotten there or why it was there. Then he realized what Shuichon was muttering.

 

“Please help me, Terriermon…Lopmon…anyone…”

 

“You guys picked the wrong fleshbags to mess with tonight,” said a threatening voice from the pink shape.

 

What could only be described as a small, violet demon leaped seemingly out of thin air, fireballs flying from his fingertips. “Night of Fire!!!”

 

Seven fireballs the size of watermelons locked onto the men and chased them everywhere they went. The ones that tripped over each other got their bottoms singed, and the ones that stayed on their toes ran away screaming in fear. In a matter of seconds, they were all gone.

 

The demon smirked triumphantly and blew smoke from his fingers. “THAT was easy.”

 

The pink shape in the sky promptly vanished in a flash of light.

 

“…Impmon?” Takato asked uncertainly.

 

“Yeah?” the demon asked, turning to him.

 

“Um…thanks. Really.”

 

“Don't go gettin' mushy on me, kid. I owed you one, that's all there is to it.”

 

Takato nodded and turned to get Shuichon, only to find that Alice was already at the slide, trying to coax her down. But there was an odd look on Alice's face, like she'd seen a ghost.

 

Shuichon slowly lifted her head, only to stare into a pair of bright green eyes in a white face.

 

“Are you okay, culu?” asked the small Digimon on her shoulder. “We came as soon as we could.”

 

She didn't say anything. Instead, she grabbed Culumon and hugged him.

 

“Shuichon?”

 

The girl turned to see Takato coming up the ladder.

 

“Let's get you home,” he said, reaching for her.

 

Shuichon nodded and went into his arms, clutching him tightly as he went down the ladder. She did not let go once they were on the ground, and he had no desire to make her.

 

“So how many tykes does a Digimon have to save to get some food around here?” Impmon asked as they left the park.

 

* * * * *

 

Ruki was not at all surprised when she got an e-mail from Takato around 2 AM. In truth, she'd been sitting by her computer hours before, waiting on…something.

 

She had been asleep, but something had jerked her awake. After reading the e-mail, she no longer had any doubt what that something had been.

 

A digital field had opened up nearby, and she had sensed it. Probably it was only so jarring because she hadn't felt one in months.

 

Unfortunately, despite how detailed the e-mail was, Takato's message left more questions unanswered than Ruki would've preferred.

 

For one thing, someone or something had to open the field in the first place. Initially, she'd suspected Culumon, since he was arguably one of the most powerful Digimon alive, even if he didn't know it. But he was also an amazingly lucky creature, so it was more likely that he and Impmon had simply been nearby when the field opened up.

 

Perhaps Ruki should not have so quickly dismissed Takato's assumption that Shuichon had somehow caused the pink field to open. Culumon, at least, had clearly arrived with the intention of helping her. She had been asking for help, after all. And she did happen to wear an awful lot of pink.

 

* * * * *

 

To say Lee Janyuu was a lenient man was a bit of an understatement these days.

 

He had, of course, always had trouble some disciplining Shuichon, she being the youngest and most precious of his children. But now that Jenrya had extracted himself from the family, he was intensely worried about driving any more of his children away by displeasing them. His wife, however, was under no such delusions, and firmly kept the children in line as she always had. In fact, perhaps Mayumi was a bit sterner with them than before. She was convinced that Jenrya's leaving was due to a lack of discipline on her part, and was determined not to make that mistake again.

 

Despite those opposing theologies, both of them objected strongly to Takato sleeping over.

 

It was partially Takato's fault for telling them about the almost-attack earlier that night beforehand. That had just scared and worried them. Then he'd made the mistake of mentioning the digital field.

 

Mayumi had merely given him a blank look, while Janyuu turned white as a sheet and politely asked Takato to leave.

 

That was when they happened upon another problem.

 

Shuichon had fallen asleep in Takato's arms, and her little fists had a perfect deathgrip on him. Unlike Takato, her parents were not at all amazed by this feat of strength, and in fact found it quite disturbing.

 

Takato had spent the next hour explaining that no, he was not interested in Shuichon THAT way. It was extremely lucky that Alice had come along, so Takato had proof that yes, he was dating someone else's daughter.

 

Impmon, who had been remarkably well behaved up until that point (in other words, silent), finally lost it. “Look, if it weren't for ME, you wouldn't even have a little brat to fuss over, and if you keep this up, you're gonna wake her!”

 

Alice had used the silence that followed to express that see, Digimon WERE concerned about the well being of humans as a whole and children in particular.

 

“Whatever, blondie,” Impmon snapped. “The kid's not gonna let go anytime soon, so they might as well get comfortable on the couch. Me, I can't take any more of this whining. Come find me when they start talkin' reward money.” With that, he marched out, muttering about annoying fleshsacks.

 

Takato finally did end up on the couch, with Shuichon snoring lightly on top on him. It was an oddly endearing experience for him, and he finally understood what it meant to be responsible for a tiny, innocent person, and why Jenrya had taken the job so seriously. That night, he made a solemn promise to himself, to Shuichon, and to Jen, that he would look out for her as if she were his own little sister.

 

Had someone revealed to him that Taichi of the Odaiba Chosen had once made a similar promise to his younger sister, Hikari, and their parents, Takato would have smiled.

 

* * * * *

 

“Hey, Jen-kun! We got mail!” Terriermon said, hopping up and down excitedly in front of Jenrya's laptop.

 

Jenrya sighed and opened his eyes. “You're making it very hard to meditate, you know.”

 

“You can do that later! It's from Ruki!”

 

“Really? Must be important for her to send something.” Jenrya got to his feet and walked over to his computer, annoyed to find Terriermon had already opened the e-mail. “Now, was this MY mail, or ours?”

 

“Um…well, since it's Ruki and all, I just figured it was Official Digimon Business, and-”

 

“I don't read YOUR mail before you do.”

 

Terriermon pouted cutely. “I don't GET mail and you know it. Can't I at least pretend I'm still popular?”

 

Jenrya rolled his eyes. “What's it say?”

 

“She says Takato and Shuichon were attacked by some men, but-”

“WHAT?!” Jenrya cried.

 

“Calm down! They're fine, nobody got hurt…'cept for the men. Impmon and Culumon showed up.”

 

Jenrya regained some of his color. “Why'd you leave that part out?!”

 

“You cut me off, what was I supposed to do? Anyway, Ruki wants to know if there's anything weird on our end. Digital fields opening up, fun stuff like that.” He pouted. “Well, I can answer that. It's so boring here no one would dare attack. Unless they happened to NOT be locked in your room with me, that is.”

 

“I told you before we got here that you wouldn't be able to go out whenever you wanted. They may be monks, but that just makes them even more likely to think you're a demon or something.”

 

Terriermon looked offended. “Oh, that was low, Jen-kun. I could see if I was Galgomon. But ME, a demon?! That's like calling Culumon a brutal fiend! At worst they'd think you snuck in a rare breed of rabbit or dog. And monks can't exactly refuse a starving animal shelter, can they?”

 

“You're not starving,” Jenrya pointed out, rubbing his temples.

 

“Yeah, I am! For ACTION, baby!”

 

Jenrya gave him a Look. “Keep your voice down and get off my chair.”

 

Terriermon glared at him before hopping down. “The old Jen would've at least pretended to smile,” he muttered before ducking under the bed.

 

Jenrya shook his head and went back to his meditation. It seemed no one was very impressed with the new version of Jenrya, but he wouldn't let that stop him. This was the right path for him, he was certain of it. He had known it wouldn't be easy, and he had promised himself that he would do his best to remain faithful to his cause. Terriermon would forgive him eventually. At least, he always had before.

 

He made a mental note to e-mail Ruki back and let her know all was quiet in their neck of the woods.

 

* * * * *

 

Takato breathed a sigh of relief as he and Alice left the Lee residence the next morning.

 

“At least they didn't yell at us again,” Alice said, trying to cheer him up.

 

Takato shrugged. “I wouldn't call it a productive visit. Shuichon has to be home at five every day and she can't go too many places besides. She'll probably be bored out of her mind.”

 

“But she'll be safe,” Alice added after a second's thought.

 

Takato didn't say anything.

 

“Won't she?” Alice pressed.

 

“I'd like to believe that. But next time a digital field opens, it might not be Impmon that comes through. If Shuichon really can open them, and she doesn't know how to control them…” He bit his lip.

 

“Somebody call me?” asked a somewhat bored voice overhead.

 

The two teens looked up to see a violet tail hanging from a tree branch.

 

“Is he always around?” Alice asked in amusement.

 

“Now that you mention it…” Takato raised his voice. “Impmon! Still waiting on that reward?”

 

Impmon instantly leaped down. “How much cash we talkin'?” he asked eagerly.

 

“When's the last time you ate?” Takato asked.

 

“Um…been a while. So what about the cash?”

 

“How would you like free meals from my family's bakery?”

 

Impmon glared at him. “You think you can pay me in day-old bread like you did your dinosaur friend, think again, kid.”

 

Takato smirked. “Guilmon said you ate plenty of his share the last time.”

 

“People change,” Impomon snapped. “So do a Digimon's tastes.”

 

“We have more than just bread, you know. There's all kinds of sandwiches. You could have as many as you wanted every day. If…”

 

“What?!” Impmon asked, on the verge of drooling despite himself.

 

“If you agree to protect Shuichon.”

 

“Aw…where's the fun in that?!”

 

“Free meals and exercise, assuming you keep anyone from hurting her.”

 

“Don't see why I have to be the `mon,” Impmon muttered.

 

“We wouldn't ask you if we didn't think you were perfect for the job,” Alice chimed in.

 

“Yeah! You're the toughest Digimon we know!” Takato insisted, winking at her.

 

Impmon didn't look convinced, but he stopped frowning. “All right, I'll do it. But those sandwiches better be REAL good and fresh, kid. I taste one day-old bun and the brat's on her own, you hear?!”

 

“You won't regret this, Impmon. I'll be sure to let Ruki know how responsible and brave you're being, stepping up to the plate like this.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. You be sure to tell her I'm workin' for practically bread and butter, too,” Impmon grumbled as he leaped back into his tree.

 

“Do you think he'll really do it?” Alice whispered.

 

“Oh, he'll do it,” Takato said confidently. “I'm not the only one he owes a favor to.”

 

* * * * *

 

Juri was awakened by a soft, warm pressure against her lips.

 

“Mmm…Ruki-chan,” she murmured sleepily, kissing her lover deeply.

 

“Wow,” said an awed, dizzy voice that was definitely not Ruki's.

 

Juri's eyes snapped open to see Culumon staggering away from her, bright red in the face. Ruki stood a few feet away, a hand covering her mouth to keep from laughing.

 

“CULUMON!” Juri shrieked happily, somehow forgetting to be mad as she scooped up the little Digimon and gave him another kiss.

 

“AH! No more! My head might explode!” Culumon whimpered, struggling to get out of Juri's arms.

 

She laughed and let him go, laughing harder when he tried to hide up Ruki's shirt.

 

“HEY! Get outta there, you little--!!”

 

“Hide me! Hide me!!!”

 

“Not THERE!” Ruki said firmly, tossing him onto the bed.

 

“Relax, Culumon,” Juri giggled. “I won't kiss you again. What are you doing here?”

 

“Turning red, I guess,” Culumon replied uneasily.

 

“He came from a digital field last night,” Ruki explained.

 

“Oh, yeah! Some bad men were messing with our friends!” Culumon said heatedly.

 

“Our…friends?” Juri asked, looking worried. “Which friends, exactly?”

 

“They weren't hurt,” Ruki said at once.

 

“Was…Takato…?” Juri whispered.

 

Ruki closed her eyes. “Yeah. Him, Shuichon, and Alice.”

 

“Shuichon?!” Then Juri calmed down and looked confused. “Alice…?”

 

“You probably wouldn't remember her. We met her…a while ago. She and Takato…hang out now.”

 

“Oh,” Juri said softly, looking away.

 

“Does that surprise you?”

 

Juri shrugged, looking uneasy. “Well…I've never known Takato to…hang out with girls before…”

 

“That's because he always hung out with you before, and me when it was work-related.”

 

“Oh. Right,” Juri murmured sadly.

 

“Juri-chan, he's just trying to move on, like you did with me. You DO remember me, don't you?”

 

“Very funny, Ruki. Of course I remember you. But Takato…he…he was…”

 

“Yes. He was, until you cut him off,” Ruki reminded her. “That's WHY he's moving on.”

 

“I know, but…I can't just…stop caring about him, even if we're not…friends…”

 

Ruki shook her head. “I never said you couldn't care about him. But you running back into his life at this point isn't an option. You made a choice, and he's trying to respect it. Seeing you again would only hurt Takato and drive him and Alice apart, which I'm pretty sure neither of them wants.”

 

“I really messed up, didn't I?” Juri asked quietly.

 

“It was nothing I would've done, but I haven't known him as long,” Ruki replied, touching her shoulder. “You forced him out of your life, Juri. He has to be the one to let you back in his. I don't think he's ready to do that yet.”

 

“But I miss him, Ruki,” Juri moaned, burying her face in her hands.

 

“I know you do,” Ruki sighed, pulling Juri into her arms.

 

* * * * *

 

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