Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Digidreams Do Come True! ❯ Takeru & Hikari’s Relaxing Dinner! ( Chapter 4 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Relaxing Pikachu 
This chapter is introducing Takeru and Hikari, who are trying their bests to enjoy what's left of their evening while waiting on Daisuke and Ken.
Unfortunately, Hikari has a strange feeling pertaining to their Digimon friends and of Daisuke. What could it possibly mean?
Anime/Manga: Digimon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Mystery / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 10.11.2006 | Updated On: 03.07.2011 | Pages: 5 | Words: 6.7K | Visits: 1.2K | Status: Work In Progress
This chapter is introducing Takeru and Hikari, who are trying their bests to enjoy what's left of their evening while waiting on Daisuke and Ken.
Unfortunately, Hikari has a strange feeling pertaining to their Digimon friends and of Daisuke. What could it possibly mean?
Anime/Manga: Digimon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Mystery / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 10.11.2006 | Updated On: 03.07.2011 | Pages: 5 | Words: 6.7K | Visits: 1.2K | Status: Work In Progress
Hi again all. I’m sorry I took such a while to update this chapter. I had a bit of trouble with the actual title, and I wasn’t very confident with this either in general, but I just said, “Forget it!” and decided to update it anyway. Enjoy. I also must thank my online buddy, Hikumi, for helping me with the title since I was literally stuck with it. I couldn’t figure out too well. Thanks Hikun!! Now, as always, I do not own anything dealing with this series.
Chapter 04: “ヒカリちゃんは大$ 628;くんが苦労です...”
“Hikari-chan wa Daisuke-kun ga kurou desu...”
“Hikari’s predicament with Daisuke...” Takeru and Hikari’s Relaxing Dinner!
It was a nice, sunny day in Odaiba, Tokyo, and both Takeru and Hikari were taking full advantage of what remained left of that fall day. Both were currently at a new restaurant; an outside pizza parlour. The two were celebrating their latest victory, getting through all of their exams.
“I thought we were going to never finish with all of that testing,” Hikari exclaimed happily.
Takeru, who was holding four drinks in a cup-holding type case, sat down at the table, which had a big umbrella overhead. “I’m glad too. Junior high is a lot tougher than I realized, but we don’t usually get exams at this time of the year, do we?”
“No, we don’t. Oniichan was going on about how weird it was for us to be having them.”
“I hope Iori-kun spends his last couple of years in elementary school wisely.” The boy began to set the drinks down. He had a cola, while Hikari had lemonade. The two remaining drinks were for Ken and Daisuke. “I hope they hurry with that pizza. It’s supposed to be a traditional style from America, or something like that.”
“What kind did we get again?”
“Shikago Diipu Dishu Sutairu (Chicago Deep Dish Style),” he answered slowly. “I think I said that right.”
“I was actually in the mood for *okonomiyaki (お好み焼き), but that’s not something you can prepare here.”
“Yeah. Could you imagine them grilling something like that outside? Besides, *we’re not in Osaka, Hikari-chan.”
“True. I like Osaka-style okonomiyaki a lot. That restaurant, Okonomiyaki Mizuno (‚お好み焼き美津の), prepares great okonomiyaki and in so many different styles too! I went there with oniichan and Sora-san a few times. Sora-san was visiting her father there, and asked us to come along. Her father took us there, and I’ve loved it ever since!”
“Don’t I know it,” Takeru laughed. “You always suggest going to okonomiyaki restaurants whenever trying to decide on where to eat out and you always insist on going to Osaka.”
“Well, Osaka’s is the best to me.”
“Well, unlike okonomiyaki, this is going to cook a bit longer, since it’s not cooked on a grill, as you already know. It’s pretty big too. I ordered the biggest they had, and asked for ‘extra cheese’, too. We should have a lot left over. That type is supposed to be extra filling.”
“Oh, thank you for my drink. Junk food is something we definitely need after all that testing we just finished up with.”
“Yeah, and some nice relaxation.”
“You don’t think we’re over doing it, do you?”
Takeru took a sip of his soda. “What do you mean?”
“There are probably enough fat calories in that pizza to turn someone really slim, like your brother, into a sumo!”
“No way,” Takeru heartily laughed. “I hardly ever eat a lot of junk food; my mother won’t let me.” He gave her a grin. “I bet if this was okonomiyaki, you wouldn’t be complaining.” Hikari couldn’t help but blush slightly. The girl practically loved the delicacy. “It’s time to live a little, and we don’t have too much to worry about.”
“We don’t?”
“Daisuke-kun eats a lot, and he’ll probably eat the most of it!”
Both Takaishi Takeru and Yagami Hikari were 13 years old, and in their first year of Odaiba Junior High. Just like when he was in Odaiba Elementary school, and his last year at Kawada Elementary before transferring, Takeru was the star basketball player. The boy had also grown a bit taller, as well as a bit more handsome. He was almost as big as his older brother, Yamato; the heartthrob of Odaiba High. How his brother could ever manage to get into a relationship, and keep one, was beyond him. Girls seemed to always tag after him. Even in elementary school, Yamato always had a problem with girls trying to pursue him; Takeru was having this particular problem now amongst his schoolmates.
Hikari was apart of her school's cheering squad and was in the school’s photography club. She really enjoyed photography, and was the photographer of their school’s newspaper. The shoulder-lengthened haired girl was still kind and polite, and was still cute, small, and petite. Something else that hadn’t changed about her was her ability to sense certain things. The main difference was that it wasn’t as strong as it once was.
“You know, I wonder why Daisuke-kun isn’t here yet,” Hikari mentioned randomly. “He promised that he would come with us. I hope nothing has happened. I’m actually starting to worry about him.” The girl heaved out a long, sad sigh, as she thought of her once cheery friend. ‘He just hasn’t been himself, lately. Normally when I ask him to join me for something, he’s the first to run by my side.’ She looked to her right, the chair empty. She slightly frowned, as she just wasn’t used of Daisuke’s not being around. ‘He hasn’t talked to me much lately, either. He doesn’t even seem to get jealous when other boys approach me. I’m starting to really miss his attention.’
“Ichijouji-kun was supposed to have been here by now, too. We all studied hard thanks to his idea of having a study group. I’m sure that’s the reason we probably did okay on our exams. He said that he was coming after he spoke with his soccer coach about something.”
“What about Daisuke-kun?”
“He said that he had to get in some practice, and that he’ll meet up with us later. He also told me to go on and order without him.”
“Practice? Practice what? There’s no soccer club meet today.”
“I’m not sure; he didn't say.”
“I just really hope he gets here soon.” Hikari, to Takeru, was starting to seem a bit uneasy over the goggle-boy’s not being there. He couldn’t help but wonder why. “I just have this feeling that something’s wrong.”
“You’re worrying too much over nothing.” He gave her his signature smile, which all the girls loved, and that all of his friends were quite used to. “You know how he is when he gets wrapped up in something.”
“I guess so,” she slowly replied. She wasn’t very content with his answer. Hikari still wasn’t convinced that Daisuke was all right, but she didn’t feel like burdening Takeru with how she felt on the matter, and decided to get off of the subject. “I think it’s really nice that Ichijouji-kun goes to school with us now.”
“Definitely! I couldn't imagine going to that school. It seems perfect for a person like Jou-san, though.”
“To be honest, I really feel that he switched schools to be with us...and Miyako-san.”
“Why do you say that? Why did you single out Miyako-san?”
“I really feel that he really....um...likes her company.”
“Sounds like there's more to that. You think that Ichijouji-kun likes Miyako-san? When first meeting, he didn’t seem to like her in ‘that way’, if that's what you're saying.” She nodded to him and sipped some more of her lemonade. “I’m not so sure about now. Those two don’t even talk to each other much anymore, unless it’s by phone or e-mail. Since she’s usually busy with Koushirou-san doing Computer Club stuff and Ichijouji-kun is usually busy with soccer, it’s a wonder those two associate with each other at all outside of school functions. I’m a bit surprised that he didn’t join the Computer Club.”
“I’m surprised too, thinking about it now. I always thought he liked computers.”
“Maybe he didn’t join because of soccer. The Soccer Club here trains very hard, and their coach, works both him and Daisuke-kun hard. I bet he makes those two practice the most because they’re two of the best players in the entire club that this school has ever seen since your brother and Sora-san graduated. Taichi-san broke a lot of records and tons of awards for this school, just like Sora-san was the best first-year female soccer player this school had seen. It dropped, slightly, since she started to play tennis. I’m surprised she played soccer at all, since she was getting so serious about tennis.”
“I think oniichan talked her into playing their first year since she was pretty good. I was surprised that she was allowed to switch in her second year, though.”
“I guess that makes sense, but still surprising about what you’re saying about Ichijouji-kun.”
“Well, if Ichijijouji-kun didn’t like Miyako-san in the beginning, I feel that it’s obvious that he does now. He seems to always talk about her. I’ve noticed him doing that a lot, lately; besides, she was the first girl to believe in him after he finally came to his senses, and stopped being the Digimon Kaiser.”
“Actually, that was Mimi-san...”
“Aww, Takeru-kun, you know what I mean.”
He laughed.
“You know something else I’ve noticed lately?”
“What?”
“Oniichan.&rdquo ; ;
“What about him?”
“He’s been a bit edgy and short-patient lately, and I can’t figure out why. Oniichan has never been like this before.”
“I-it’s probably nothing,” Takeru answered quickly, growing a bit uneasy. “It’s probably a guy thing.”
“You and your, ‘it’s a guy thing’. I’m sure I’d understand if he explained it to me.” The girl frowned, as she played with the straw of her drink. “I hate it when he gets like this and yells at me for no reason. He’s been like this for a little over a week now.”
“Maybe he’s stressed out from soccer. High school is probably a lot tougher than junior high, since they work you harder there,” the blonde said, hoping Hikari would drop the subject. ‘I feel really bad for Taichi-san right now. I just wish I would’ve never told him about it, but it’s not like I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to.
‘He goes around, acting like the happiest person alive, especially when he’s out on the field. He’s just wearing a mask to hide how hurt and depressed he really is, and I’m not supposed to even mention it to anyone.’
“I doubt it. He’s had tough captains before, and he’s never acted like this before! He usually welcomes the challenge.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t bother him about it.”
“Takeru-kun,” she gave the blonde a suspicious look, “you almost sound like you know more than you’re telling. Is this true? Do you know something about oniichan that I don’t?”
“Me? Know something?” He nervously laughed and unconsciously pulled at his collar. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You do know something about my brother! I can tell by that uneasy look you get and that nervous laugh you usually give off whenever you’re trying to hide something! You’re also pulling on the collar of your shirt!” Takeru looked down, and realized that he was, indeed, pulling at the collar of his uniform shirt, and stopped. “You may be an excellent basketball player, Takaishi Takeru, but you’re a terrible liar!”
“Well, I, um...”
“Come on, please tell me what’s wrong.”
“Okay, okay, you’re right.” He figured that lying wouldn’t help much since the girl had pretty much pointed out that he was obviously fibbing. “I do know what’s going on with Taichi-san, but I’m not supposed to discuss it with anyone.”
“Why, because my brother said so?”
“No, because my brother said so.”
“Yamato-san? What does he have to do with my brother?”
“A lot,” Takeru muttered.
“I still don’t understand it, but you can still tell me,” Hikari told him sweetly. Her concern for Taichi was pretty strong, and she hated to see her brother unhappy. “I promise that I won’t share the information with your brother, or mine. I just want to help oniichan. He’s always taken care of me, now it’s my turn.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t betray my brother’s trust again.”
“Again?”
“I already messed up when I told Taichi-san.” Hikari stared at the boy, a look of perplexity on her young face. Takeru noticed the girl’s inquisitive look, and continued. “I didn’t know at the time that I wasn’t supposed to have shared this with him, but I brought it up in conversation with him one day.
“Later on that day, when I went to visit my father for the weekend, my brother told me not to tell anyone about what was going on, because of how upset Taichi-san might get if he found out. He also mentioned that he wasn’t ready for everyone to know yet, especially Taichi-san, as well as the third person who’s involved, who I’m also not supposed to mention either.”
‘What’s with all of these secrets?’
“I felt awful after he told me this, but I never revealed that I told your brother what he told me not to tell. I did promise him, though, that I wouldn’t tell either. After that, I told Taichi-san about what happened and how he wasn’t supposed to have known. The secret that I revealed to him, is probably bothering him a little, which is causing him to be a bit moody. I think he wants my brother, and the other person involved, to just tell him this secret directly and feels bad because he heard it through a third-party. I really think he feels betrayed right now,” Takeru finished up. He’d said all that he’d wanted to, but wouldn’t allow himself to go any further. It was difficult enough to say what he had without giving too much away. He also didn’t want to make his brother look bad.
‘Taichi-san is feeling betrayed by both of his friends right now; one he’s always trusted, and another he’s always confided in. I hate keeping this from Hikari-chan, since she probably could help him to cope with this, but a promise is a promise and keeping this secret is starting to drive me crazy.’
“Oniichan feels betrayed?”
“Yeah, probably, but I really shouldn’t get into that either. I promised my brother I wouldn’t. It’s just a bond that we brothers have. I’m sure you’d understand it better if you and Taichi-san were brothers.”
“This just isn’t fair! I want to know what’s going on with oniichan!”
“As obvious as he’s been lately, I’m sure he’ll let it slip out. I doubt he can keep it in for too much longer.”
Hikari stopped trying to pursue the matter and went quiet, her mind wandering once again.
“Hikari-chan, what’s wrong?” asked Takeru, breaking the silence. “If it’s about the secret, I already explained that I ca---”
“N-no, it’s not that,” she interrupted vaguely. “I was just thinking about Tailmon, and wondering how she and the other Digimon are doing.”
Takeru stared up at the bright, clear-blue sky and nodded. “I really do miss Patamon.”
“I miss them too, but right now...I’m a bit worried.”
“I wish there was some way we could go see them all again. It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two years since we’ve seen them last. No random gates have opened up or anything since that final one back then. I wonder how they’re do---wait, what do you mean you’re worried?”
“I have this feeling that we’re going to see them all again pretty soon, only now I feel that it’s going to be because of something bad.”
“What happened to your optimism?”
“I’m not sure.” She stared down at the table, a forlorn look upon her face. “I’ve had this feeling for a long while now, but today, it seems to be intensified. I really can’t explain this feeling. I also feel that if we do see our Digimon friends again, that we’re going to be different in some way.”
“Different?” She nodded. “Different how?”
“I’m not too sure; I don’t even know how, I just know that we will be if we see them again.”
Takeru could only stare at the girl curiously. “I’m really starting to wonder about you.”
“What do you mean?”
“When we left our Digimon the first time, you just knew we’d end up seeing them again, and we did. Random gates opened and we were able to spend a lot of time with them during our adventures two years ago.
“If I’m remembering right, the first time we had to leave our Digimon, you weren’t crying or anything. You didn’t even look sad. You just seemed to feel bad for Mimi-san, since Palmon couldn’t face having to say goodbye to her. I guess you’re just emotionally strong.”
“That’s because I sensed that we would see them again, so I didn’t have any reason to be sad and I didn’t have any reason to cry.”
“You have to be the most mysterious person I've ever met! You are always sensing things and not being able to explain them.”
“I don’t know why I’m like this,” Hikari apologized, her head hanging.
“Don’t worry about it, and what’s with that apologetic tone? That’s just what makes you special, and that’s something I really like about you.”
“I guess...” she murmured depressingly.
“Hey, don’t’ worry. I’m sure everything is fine in the Digital World. No gate has opened to allow us back to help them, so everything must be okay on their end.”
She gave him a halfhearted smile. “There you go again, always being hopeful. No wonder you have the crest attribute of hope.”
Right at that moment, their huge pizza was brought to their table. Takeru was ready to eat, but Hikari refused.
“Takeru-kun, you know we can’t eat without the others; it would be rude.”
“I say we make an exception! We’ll just leave them some.”
She shook her head. “I refuse to; besides, I’m still a bit worried about Daisuke-kun.”
“I’ve never seen you this worried over someone, aside from Taichi-san, before. If you want, we can wait for both Ichijouji-kun and Daisuke-kun.”
“I’m just getting a weird feeling about him, and Ichijouji-kun. I really do hope those two are alright.”
“I could call to see if those two are still around, or better yet, I could just call Ichijouji-kun.”
“I would really appreciate that.”
“I’m pretty sure he has his mobile phone with him."
The once feared Digimon Kaiser, Ichijouji Ken, attended school with Hikari and the others now. He still had his “pretty boy” looks, and was much taller now. He was a bit taller than Takeru, but slightly shorter than both Yamato and Jou (who still towered everyone). No one knew exactly why in his final year of elementary, why Ken transferred from the prestigious Tamachi Elementary to Odaiba Elementary. *It was said that Tamachi Elementary was one of the best schools for one to send his or her child, and how it was an honor to even be accepted into the school.
It wasn’t quite like a private school, but with the expectations and standards, one would’ve thought so. His switching from a school like that, to a “typical public school”, boggled the minds of many. Rumors circulated, some saying that the time where he was “missing”, had something to do with it, or either he had somehow lost his noteworthy intelligence that he was most known for, or either he couldn’t take the pressure of the school, and had no desire to go to Tamachi Junior High or Tamachi Senior High. Hikari pretty much figured that he enjoyed their company, and just wanted to be with them. For whatever the reason, Ken was genuinely happy now; something he hadn’t been for many years up to that point.
Ken, who was also a first-year student, and age 13, was the star of Odaiba Junior High’s Soccer Club. The only other person, who could even rival his extreme talent and skill, was Daisuke, who made just as many saves, great plays, and goals as he did. Out of the other members of the Soccer Club, their captain worked both Ken and Daisuke the hardest, by allowing them to do early practice drills more.
He was still smart, just not as smart as he was with the Dark Spore’s powers while he was the Digimon Kaiser, as he had other things on his mind, like friends for one. Ken still made satisfactory to above average marks all on his very own.
Takeru went through his list, and chose “Ichijouji”. The phone rang for a moment, when a voice on the other end finally answered.
“Moshi-moshi. what can I do for you?” the owner of the voice routinely and cautiously answered.
“It’s me, Takeru.”
“Hi, Takeru-san. Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing’s wrong; just wondering when you and Daisuke-kun are going to get here. Hikari-chan is growing concerned over you two.”
“I’m still at school looking for Miyako-san. I was going to ask if she wanted to join us, but no one’s seen her around; Koushirou-san either. I figured that she’d be with him someplace, but no one’s seen either of them.”
“Did you try the Faculty Computer Lab or the Student one? How about the library? Those places are the most obvious to look.”
“I checked the library and most of the computer labs. I haven’t gotten around to checking the one in the West Wing since it’s so far out of my way. I was thinking about checking there next.”
“Other than your hunt for Miyako-san, what else is going on?”
“Oh, I just got out of a meeting with my captain. I noticed the time, and was about to head on over to join you, but I’m not sure what’s wrong with Motomiya. I saw him heading towards the gym when I was on my way to speak with my soccer club captain. I’m standing in front of the gym now, and it sounds like he’s still in there.”
“Why would he be there?”
“I have no idea, but I guess he lost track of time.”
“I just got an idea; why don’t we just bring the pizza there to celebrate?”
“I guess that’s okay, and if we need to heat anything, or get ice for drinks, we could just go to the kitchen the Cooking Club uses. I’ll go tell Daisuke about it right now!”
“You all owe me big time, you know that, right?”
“I know, I know. We were going to split the bill three-way since Hikari-san, somehow, managed to get out of paying,” Ken said with a sweat drop. “You pay for the entire meal, and both Motomiya and I pay you back whenever we meet up.”
“Okay then. We’ll leave here in a bit. It shouldn’t take us too long to get there.”
“Alright, bye.”
****
Ken hanged up his phone, and stared at the closed, gym doors. ‘What is wrong with Motomiya? He’d never purposely keep Hikari-san waiting.’ The boy slipped his phone back into his green uniform jacket pocket. ‘I guess I should go in and talk to him now...’
****
“Well?” Hikari questioned eagerly.
“Change of plans,” he put his phone away, “I’m paying, and we’re taking everything back to school.”
“Huh? Back to school?”
“Ichijouji-kun just got out of a conference, and he said that before he went to that, he saw Daisuke-kun heading towards the gym.”
“Why would he go to the gym?”
“Who knows,” Takeru answered plainly. “He’s been acting strange lately, anyway. He really hasn’t been his usual, overly-confident, cheery self.” After he made this statement, he noticed Hikari’s look growing somber once again. “Hikari-chan?” She remained quiet for a short moment, and looked up at Takeru. To the boy of hope, she looked like she could’ve started crying at any moment. “Hikari-chan, what’s wrong?”
“Do you think that he...hates me?” the girl asked in a voice barely above that of a whisper. As much as she didn’t want to talk about it, she realized that she couldn’t keep it in any longer.
“Hate you?”
She nodded slowly as she stared down at her lap, her eyes stinging due to her trying her best to hold back tears. “I-I think he hates me.”
“You’re the last person he would hate!” he assured her confidently. ‘Daisuke-kun has a big crush on her; how could she possibly think that he hates her? Hikari-chan is a wonderful person...I just wish that I didn’t feel the same way Daisuke-kun does. I like Hikari-chan too, but, I’m too scared to pursue it. What if she doesn’t feel the same way back like how she is with Daisuke-kun? Besides, if I did try to ‘get Hikari-chan’, I know how upset Daisuke-kun would get if I did, and I like having him as a friend. If I did something like that, he’d probably be worse off than what he is now. His affections for her seem to be much bigger than mine, and I’d hate to make a friend upset or sad, when it could have been easily avoided.’
“Well, it’s like he’s been ignoring me lately, and I just sense coldness from him.”
“He’s been cold and ignoring everyone. It’s not just you, but me too, and even Ichijouji-kun. Something is bothering him that he doesn’t want to talk to us about.”
“Well I intend on finding out!” Hikari said with determination. At the moment, the girl was reminding him of Taichi. The Yagami look of determination between the two siblings was uncanny. “I hate to see him upset, or any of my good friends sad.”
“That’s the spirit. I’m sure he’s just having a problem with his parents, or maybe he’s annoyed that he’s in his sister’s shadow, as surprising as that sounds. She always made decent grades, even if she did spend most of her time chasing my brother. As far as Daisuke-kun is concerned, he feels that she’s the favorite out of the both of them.”
“How do you know?”
“He’s pretty much said as much whenever he complains about his sister, even though you know he loves her still and would do anything to protect her. He never directly says it, but that’s the impression I get. Jun-san was pretty good in school, so maybe his parents are expecting too much out of him, sort of like the situation with Ichijouji-kun used to be.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Miyako-san told us about that, and how his parents were seeing him as his older brother, especially after his death. Ichijouji-kun seems to really trust Miyako-san to share something so personal with her.”
“I’m almost positive that’s the problem, but, seems he would’ve gotten over it by now.”
“Takeru-kun,” Hikari rose from her seat, “what are you waiting for? Let’s go!”
“Okay, okay.” Takeru paid for the pizza and carried the box. Hikari carried the drinks in the carrier.
The two, with their book-bags in hand, made their way back towards school. Takeru took in a big breath of fresh air. “It’s so nice out here. It’s supposed to be sunny and clear all weekend. We should all do something tomorrow afternoon after the tennis match of Sora-san and before the concert of my brother’s group.”
“That’s a good idea, but,” she looked up towards the now darkening sky, “I think you’re wrong about the weather.”
He looked over at her. “Eh? What do you mean?”
She pointed upwards. “Look at how cloudy it’s getting.”
“What the...”
“The weather man must was wrong. It looks like a storm is coming. We should hurry and find shelter before it starts raining.”
The wind began to pick up. Other people were gathering around to see what was going on, as the odd looking storm clouds around, began to form into some type of a long, spinning funnel.
“Takeru-kun, I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Whoa, that looks like a tornado!” a bystander pointed out.
“We don’t get tornadoes here!” another person panicked.
Takeru began to get the same worried feeling that Hikari had. This just didn’t seem natural somehow. “They’re right; we don’t usually get tornadoes here.”
The wind level began to rise more, as everyone tried their bests to take cover to avoid the unexpected, oncoming storm. The funnel grew more violent and powerful. It then made its move. It didn’t go towards any of the buildings or people around, instead...
“Takeru-kun,” she held her uniform skirt down with a bit of difficulty with her barely free hand, since she was holding her book-bag, “that thing is coming towards us!!”
“RUN!!”
Hikari dropped the drinks, and ran alongside Takeru, who had tossed the pizza box aside. Before getting too far, a bright light seemed to flash, blinding them in the process. It was as if lightening had struck right in front of them.
“Hikari-chan, are you okay?” Takeru questioned, while shielding his eyes.
Before the girl could respond, she turned to face the funnel. She seemed to be drawn to it, and appeared to be in a trance-like manner.
“HIKARI-CHAN!!”
Before everyone knew it, Hikari was sucked into the funnel, and her book-bag fell from her hand, which seemed to wake her up, as she began to call for help. Takeru stared wide-eyed at the sight. He wasn’t sure what to do. After Hikari had been taken completely in, the vortex came towards him, but instead of running, he stood his ground. He took off his signature off-white hat (which he’d put on after school let out), and tossed it aside along with his book-bag. He knew that this wasn’t normal, nor did he care where he would end up.
“I can’t let her down! I have to save her!” Takeru said with determination. “Hikari-chan, I’m coming! Just hang on!”
The tornado engulfed the young teen, which disappeared soon after, leaving behind people staring on in shock, trying to figure out what had just happened...
Author’s Notes
Note 1: Okonomiyaki is pretty much a “Japanese Pizza”, but it’s not cooked like it is in the western world. Instead of baking it, it’s grilled, and seems more so like a pancake than a pizza. For more information on okonomiyaki, you can look it up online and places like wikipedia.
***
Note 2: There are different ways to prepare okonomiyaki, and one is the “Osaka-style” way, to my understanding. The Osaka-style way, pretty much prepares it like a pancake, and has lots of different ingredients. The restaurant I mentioned, Okonomiyaki Mizuno, is a real place in Osaka that’s been in business for over 60 years. I know this much, if I ever manage to visit the country, I will most definitely check out this place. ^_^
***
Note 3: The stuff about Tamachi Elementary being a prestigious school, and such, was pretty much made up. It was more than likely one of those fancy-pants, private schools, since the students wore school uniforms. In Japan, public elementary schools don’t usually require them, although, there are some on occasion that might. This was pretty much Ken’s case, to my knowledge. He attended a public school which required uniforms. Also, with the way his parents were, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the school was known for their “smart students”, or something along the lines of that. Now, feel free to correct me if this information is wrong pertaining to Tamachi Elementary. I’m pretty sure it was supposed to have been a public school.
Chapter 04: “ヒカリちゃんは大$ 628;くんが苦労です...”
“Hikari-chan wa Daisuke-kun ga kurou desu...”
“Hikari’s predicament with Daisuke...” Takeru and Hikari’s Relaxing Dinner!
It was a nice, sunny day in Odaiba, Tokyo, and both Takeru and Hikari were taking full advantage of what remained left of that fall day. Both were currently at a new restaurant; an outside pizza parlour. The two were celebrating their latest victory, getting through all of their exams.
“I thought we were going to never finish with all of that testing,” Hikari exclaimed happily.
Takeru, who was holding four drinks in a cup-holding type case, sat down at the table, which had a big umbrella overhead. “I’m glad too. Junior high is a lot tougher than I realized, but we don’t usually get exams at this time of the year, do we?”
“No, we don’t. Oniichan was going on about how weird it was for us to be having them.”
“I hope Iori-kun spends his last couple of years in elementary school wisely.” The boy began to set the drinks down. He had a cola, while Hikari had lemonade. The two remaining drinks were for Ken and Daisuke. “I hope they hurry with that pizza. It’s supposed to be a traditional style from America, or something like that.”
“What kind did we get again?”
“Shikago Diipu Dishu Sutairu (Chicago Deep Dish Style),” he answered slowly. “I think I said that right.”
“I was actually in the mood for *okonomiyaki (お好み焼き), but that’s not something you can prepare here.”
“Yeah. Could you imagine them grilling something like that outside? Besides, *we’re not in Osaka, Hikari-chan.”
“True. I like Osaka-style okonomiyaki a lot. That restaurant, Okonomiyaki Mizuno (‚お好み焼き美津の), prepares great okonomiyaki and in so many different styles too! I went there with oniichan and Sora-san a few times. Sora-san was visiting her father there, and asked us to come along. Her father took us there, and I’ve loved it ever since!”
“Don’t I know it,” Takeru laughed. “You always suggest going to okonomiyaki restaurants whenever trying to decide on where to eat out and you always insist on going to Osaka.”
“Well, Osaka’s is the best to me.”
“Well, unlike okonomiyaki, this is going to cook a bit longer, since it’s not cooked on a grill, as you already know. It’s pretty big too. I ordered the biggest they had, and asked for ‘extra cheese’, too. We should have a lot left over. That type is supposed to be extra filling.”
“Oh, thank you for my drink. Junk food is something we definitely need after all that testing we just finished up with.”
“Yeah, and some nice relaxation.”
“You don’t think we’re over doing it, do you?”
Takeru took a sip of his soda. “What do you mean?”
“There are probably enough fat calories in that pizza to turn someone really slim, like your brother, into a sumo!”
“No way,” Takeru heartily laughed. “I hardly ever eat a lot of junk food; my mother won’t let me.” He gave her a grin. “I bet if this was okonomiyaki, you wouldn’t be complaining.” Hikari couldn’t help but blush slightly. The girl practically loved the delicacy. “It’s time to live a little, and we don’t have too much to worry about.”
“We don’t?”
“Daisuke-kun eats a lot, and he’ll probably eat the most of it!”
Both Takaishi Takeru and Yagami Hikari were 13 years old, and in their first year of Odaiba Junior High. Just like when he was in Odaiba Elementary school, and his last year at Kawada Elementary before transferring, Takeru was the star basketball player. The boy had also grown a bit taller, as well as a bit more handsome. He was almost as big as his older brother, Yamato; the heartthrob of Odaiba High. How his brother could ever manage to get into a relationship, and keep one, was beyond him. Girls seemed to always tag after him. Even in elementary school, Yamato always had a problem with girls trying to pursue him; Takeru was having this particular problem now amongst his schoolmates.
Hikari was apart of her school's cheering squad and was in the school’s photography club. She really enjoyed photography, and was the photographer of their school’s newspaper. The shoulder-lengthened haired girl was still kind and polite, and was still cute, small, and petite. Something else that hadn’t changed about her was her ability to sense certain things. The main difference was that it wasn’t as strong as it once was.
“You know, I wonder why Daisuke-kun isn’t here yet,” Hikari mentioned randomly. “He promised that he would come with us. I hope nothing has happened. I’m actually starting to worry about him.” The girl heaved out a long, sad sigh, as she thought of her once cheery friend. ‘He just hasn’t been himself, lately. Normally when I ask him to join me for something, he’s the first to run by my side.’ She looked to her right, the chair empty. She slightly frowned, as she just wasn’t used of Daisuke’s not being around. ‘He hasn’t talked to me much lately, either. He doesn’t even seem to get jealous when other boys approach me. I’m starting to really miss his attention.’
“Ichijouji-kun was supposed to have been here by now, too. We all studied hard thanks to his idea of having a study group. I’m sure that’s the reason we probably did okay on our exams. He said that he was coming after he spoke with his soccer coach about something.”
“What about Daisuke-kun?”
“He said that he had to get in some practice, and that he’ll meet up with us later. He also told me to go on and order without him.”
“Practice? Practice what? There’s no soccer club meet today.”
“I’m not sure; he didn't say.”
“I just really hope he gets here soon.” Hikari, to Takeru, was starting to seem a bit uneasy over the goggle-boy’s not being there. He couldn’t help but wonder why. “I just have this feeling that something’s wrong.”
“You’re worrying too much over nothing.” He gave her his signature smile, which all the girls loved, and that all of his friends were quite used to. “You know how he is when he gets wrapped up in something.”
“I guess so,” she slowly replied. She wasn’t very content with his answer. Hikari still wasn’t convinced that Daisuke was all right, but she didn’t feel like burdening Takeru with how she felt on the matter, and decided to get off of the subject. “I think it’s really nice that Ichijouji-kun goes to school with us now.”
“Definitely! I couldn't imagine going to that school. It seems perfect for a person like Jou-san, though.”
“To be honest, I really feel that he switched schools to be with us...and Miyako-san.”
“Why do you say that? Why did you single out Miyako-san?”
“I really feel that he really....um...likes her company.”
“Sounds like there's more to that. You think that Ichijouji-kun likes Miyako-san? When first meeting, he didn’t seem to like her in ‘that way’, if that's what you're saying.” She nodded to him and sipped some more of her lemonade. “I’m not so sure about now. Those two don’t even talk to each other much anymore, unless it’s by phone or e-mail. Since she’s usually busy with Koushirou-san doing Computer Club stuff and Ichijouji-kun is usually busy with soccer, it’s a wonder those two associate with each other at all outside of school functions. I’m a bit surprised that he didn’t join the Computer Club.”
“I’m surprised too, thinking about it now. I always thought he liked computers.”
“Maybe he didn’t join because of soccer. The Soccer Club here trains very hard, and their coach, works both him and Daisuke-kun hard. I bet he makes those two practice the most because they’re two of the best players in the entire club that this school has ever seen since your brother and Sora-san graduated. Taichi-san broke a lot of records and tons of awards for this school, just like Sora-san was the best first-year female soccer player this school had seen. It dropped, slightly, since she started to play tennis. I’m surprised she played soccer at all, since she was getting so serious about tennis.”
“I think oniichan talked her into playing their first year since she was pretty good. I was surprised that she was allowed to switch in her second year, though.”
“I guess that makes sense, but still surprising about what you’re saying about Ichijouji-kun.”
“Well, if Ichijijouji-kun didn’t like Miyako-san in the beginning, I feel that it’s obvious that he does now. He seems to always talk about her. I’ve noticed him doing that a lot, lately; besides, she was the first girl to believe in him after he finally came to his senses, and stopped being the Digimon Kaiser.”
“Actually, that was Mimi-san...”
“Aww, Takeru-kun, you know what I mean.”
He laughed.
“You know something else I’ve noticed lately?”
“What?”
“Oniichan.&rdquo ; ;
“What about him?”
“He’s been a bit edgy and short-patient lately, and I can’t figure out why. Oniichan has never been like this before.”
“I-it’s probably nothing,” Takeru answered quickly, growing a bit uneasy. “It’s probably a guy thing.”
“You and your, ‘it’s a guy thing’. I’m sure I’d understand if he explained it to me.” The girl frowned, as she played with the straw of her drink. “I hate it when he gets like this and yells at me for no reason. He’s been like this for a little over a week now.”
“Maybe he’s stressed out from soccer. High school is probably a lot tougher than junior high, since they work you harder there,” the blonde said, hoping Hikari would drop the subject. ‘I feel really bad for Taichi-san right now. I just wish I would’ve never told him about it, but it’s not like I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to.
‘He goes around, acting like the happiest person alive, especially when he’s out on the field. He’s just wearing a mask to hide how hurt and depressed he really is, and I’m not supposed to even mention it to anyone.’
“I doubt it. He’s had tough captains before, and he’s never acted like this before! He usually welcomes the challenge.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t bother him about it.”
“Takeru-kun,” she gave the blonde a suspicious look, “you almost sound like you know more than you’re telling. Is this true? Do you know something about oniichan that I don’t?”
“Me? Know something?” He nervously laughed and unconsciously pulled at his collar. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You do know something about my brother! I can tell by that uneasy look you get and that nervous laugh you usually give off whenever you’re trying to hide something! You’re also pulling on the collar of your shirt!” Takeru looked down, and realized that he was, indeed, pulling at the collar of his uniform shirt, and stopped. “You may be an excellent basketball player, Takaishi Takeru, but you’re a terrible liar!”
“Well, I, um...”
“Come on, please tell me what’s wrong.”
“Okay, okay, you’re right.” He figured that lying wouldn’t help much since the girl had pretty much pointed out that he was obviously fibbing. “I do know what’s going on with Taichi-san, but I’m not supposed to discuss it with anyone.”
“Why, because my brother said so?”
“No, because my brother said so.”
“Yamato-san? What does he have to do with my brother?”
“A lot,” Takeru muttered.
“I still don’t understand it, but you can still tell me,” Hikari told him sweetly. Her concern for Taichi was pretty strong, and she hated to see her brother unhappy. “I promise that I won’t share the information with your brother, or mine. I just want to help oniichan. He’s always taken care of me, now it’s my turn.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t betray my brother’s trust again.”
“Again?”
“I already messed up when I told Taichi-san.” Hikari stared at the boy, a look of perplexity on her young face. Takeru noticed the girl’s inquisitive look, and continued. “I didn’t know at the time that I wasn’t supposed to have shared this with him, but I brought it up in conversation with him one day.
“Later on that day, when I went to visit my father for the weekend, my brother told me not to tell anyone about what was going on, because of how upset Taichi-san might get if he found out. He also mentioned that he wasn’t ready for everyone to know yet, especially Taichi-san, as well as the third person who’s involved, who I’m also not supposed to mention either.”
‘What’s with all of these secrets?’
“I felt awful after he told me this, but I never revealed that I told your brother what he told me not to tell. I did promise him, though, that I wouldn’t tell either. After that, I told Taichi-san about what happened and how he wasn’t supposed to have known. The secret that I revealed to him, is probably bothering him a little, which is causing him to be a bit moody. I think he wants my brother, and the other person involved, to just tell him this secret directly and feels bad because he heard it through a third-party. I really think he feels betrayed right now,” Takeru finished up. He’d said all that he’d wanted to, but wouldn’t allow himself to go any further. It was difficult enough to say what he had without giving too much away. He also didn’t want to make his brother look bad.
‘Taichi-san is feeling betrayed by both of his friends right now; one he’s always trusted, and another he’s always confided in. I hate keeping this from Hikari-chan, since she probably could help him to cope with this, but a promise is a promise and keeping this secret is starting to drive me crazy.’
“Oniichan feels betrayed?”
“Yeah, probably, but I really shouldn’t get into that either. I promised my brother I wouldn’t. It’s just a bond that we brothers have. I’m sure you’d understand it better if you and Taichi-san were brothers.”
“This just isn’t fair! I want to know what’s going on with oniichan!”
“As obvious as he’s been lately, I’m sure he’ll let it slip out. I doubt he can keep it in for too much longer.”
Hikari stopped trying to pursue the matter and went quiet, her mind wandering once again.
“Hikari-chan, what’s wrong?” asked Takeru, breaking the silence. “If it’s about the secret, I already explained that I ca---”
“N-no, it’s not that,” she interrupted vaguely. “I was just thinking about Tailmon, and wondering how she and the other Digimon are doing.”
Takeru stared up at the bright, clear-blue sky and nodded. “I really do miss Patamon.”
“I miss them too, but right now...I’m a bit worried.”
“I wish there was some way we could go see them all again. It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two years since we’ve seen them last. No random gates have opened up or anything since that final one back then. I wonder how they’re do---wait, what do you mean you’re worried?”
“I have this feeling that we’re going to see them all again pretty soon, only now I feel that it’s going to be because of something bad.”
“What happened to your optimism?”
“I’m not sure.” She stared down at the table, a forlorn look upon her face. “I’ve had this feeling for a long while now, but today, it seems to be intensified. I really can’t explain this feeling. I also feel that if we do see our Digimon friends again, that we’re going to be different in some way.”
“Different?” She nodded. “Different how?”
“I’m not too sure; I don’t even know how, I just know that we will be if we see them again.”
Takeru could only stare at the girl curiously. “I’m really starting to wonder about you.”
“What do you mean?”
“When we left our Digimon the first time, you just knew we’d end up seeing them again, and we did. Random gates opened and we were able to spend a lot of time with them during our adventures two years ago.
“If I’m remembering right, the first time we had to leave our Digimon, you weren’t crying or anything. You didn’t even look sad. You just seemed to feel bad for Mimi-san, since Palmon couldn’t face having to say goodbye to her. I guess you’re just emotionally strong.”
“That’s because I sensed that we would see them again, so I didn’t have any reason to be sad and I didn’t have any reason to cry.”
“You have to be the most mysterious person I've ever met! You are always sensing things and not being able to explain them.”
“I don’t know why I’m like this,” Hikari apologized, her head hanging.
“Don’t worry about it, and what’s with that apologetic tone? That’s just what makes you special, and that’s something I really like about you.”
“I guess...” she murmured depressingly.
“Hey, don’t’ worry. I’m sure everything is fine in the Digital World. No gate has opened to allow us back to help them, so everything must be okay on their end.”
She gave him a halfhearted smile. “There you go again, always being hopeful. No wonder you have the crest attribute of hope.”
Right at that moment, their huge pizza was brought to their table. Takeru was ready to eat, but Hikari refused.
“Takeru-kun, you know we can’t eat without the others; it would be rude.”
“I say we make an exception! We’ll just leave them some.”
She shook her head. “I refuse to; besides, I’m still a bit worried about Daisuke-kun.”
“I’ve never seen you this worried over someone, aside from Taichi-san, before. If you want, we can wait for both Ichijouji-kun and Daisuke-kun.”
“I’m just getting a weird feeling about him, and Ichijouji-kun. I really do hope those two are alright.”
“I could call to see if those two are still around, or better yet, I could just call Ichijouji-kun.”
“I would really appreciate that.”
“I’m pretty sure he has his mobile phone with him."
The once feared Digimon Kaiser, Ichijouji Ken, attended school with Hikari and the others now. He still had his “pretty boy” looks, and was much taller now. He was a bit taller than Takeru, but slightly shorter than both Yamato and Jou (who still towered everyone). No one knew exactly why in his final year of elementary, why Ken transferred from the prestigious Tamachi Elementary to Odaiba Elementary. *It was said that Tamachi Elementary was one of the best schools for one to send his or her child, and how it was an honor to even be accepted into the school.
It wasn’t quite like a private school, but with the expectations and standards, one would’ve thought so. His switching from a school like that, to a “typical public school”, boggled the minds of many. Rumors circulated, some saying that the time where he was “missing”, had something to do with it, or either he had somehow lost his noteworthy intelligence that he was most known for, or either he couldn’t take the pressure of the school, and had no desire to go to Tamachi Junior High or Tamachi Senior High. Hikari pretty much figured that he enjoyed their company, and just wanted to be with them. For whatever the reason, Ken was genuinely happy now; something he hadn’t been for many years up to that point.
Ken, who was also a first-year student, and age 13, was the star of Odaiba Junior High’s Soccer Club. The only other person, who could even rival his extreme talent and skill, was Daisuke, who made just as many saves, great plays, and goals as he did. Out of the other members of the Soccer Club, their captain worked both Ken and Daisuke the hardest, by allowing them to do early practice drills more.
He was still smart, just not as smart as he was with the Dark Spore’s powers while he was the Digimon Kaiser, as he had other things on his mind, like friends for one. Ken still made satisfactory to above average marks all on his very own.
Takeru went through his list, and chose “Ichijouji”. The phone rang for a moment, when a voice on the other end finally answered.
“Moshi-moshi. what can I do for you?” the owner of the voice routinely and cautiously answered.
“It’s me, Takeru.”
“Hi, Takeru-san. Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing’s wrong; just wondering when you and Daisuke-kun are going to get here. Hikari-chan is growing concerned over you two.”
“I’m still at school looking for Miyako-san. I was going to ask if she wanted to join us, but no one’s seen her around; Koushirou-san either. I figured that she’d be with him someplace, but no one’s seen either of them.”
“Did you try the Faculty Computer Lab or the Student one? How about the library? Those places are the most obvious to look.”
“I checked the library and most of the computer labs. I haven’t gotten around to checking the one in the West Wing since it’s so far out of my way. I was thinking about checking there next.”
“Other than your hunt for Miyako-san, what else is going on?”
“Oh, I just got out of a meeting with my captain. I noticed the time, and was about to head on over to join you, but I’m not sure what’s wrong with Motomiya. I saw him heading towards the gym when I was on my way to speak with my soccer club captain. I’m standing in front of the gym now, and it sounds like he’s still in there.”
“Why would he be there?”
“I have no idea, but I guess he lost track of time.”
“I just got an idea; why don’t we just bring the pizza there to celebrate?”
“I guess that’s okay, and if we need to heat anything, or get ice for drinks, we could just go to the kitchen the Cooking Club uses. I’ll go tell Daisuke about it right now!”
“You all owe me big time, you know that, right?”
“I know, I know. We were going to split the bill three-way since Hikari-san, somehow, managed to get out of paying,” Ken said with a sweat drop. “You pay for the entire meal, and both Motomiya and I pay you back whenever we meet up.”
“Okay then. We’ll leave here in a bit. It shouldn’t take us too long to get there.”
“Alright, bye.”
****
Ken hanged up his phone, and stared at the closed, gym doors. ‘What is wrong with Motomiya? He’d never purposely keep Hikari-san waiting.’ The boy slipped his phone back into his green uniform jacket pocket. ‘I guess I should go in and talk to him now...’
****
“Well?” Hikari questioned eagerly.
“Change of plans,” he put his phone away, “I’m paying, and we’re taking everything back to school.”
“Huh? Back to school?”
“Ichijouji-kun just got out of a conference, and he said that before he went to that, he saw Daisuke-kun heading towards the gym.”
“Why would he go to the gym?”
“Who knows,” Takeru answered plainly. “He’s been acting strange lately, anyway. He really hasn’t been his usual, overly-confident, cheery self.” After he made this statement, he noticed Hikari’s look growing somber once again. “Hikari-chan?” She remained quiet for a short moment, and looked up at Takeru. To the boy of hope, she looked like she could’ve started crying at any moment. “Hikari-chan, what’s wrong?”
“Do you think that he...hates me?” the girl asked in a voice barely above that of a whisper. As much as she didn’t want to talk about it, she realized that she couldn’t keep it in any longer.
“Hate you?”
She nodded slowly as she stared down at her lap, her eyes stinging due to her trying her best to hold back tears. “I-I think he hates me.”
“You’re the last person he would hate!” he assured her confidently. ‘Daisuke-kun has a big crush on her; how could she possibly think that he hates her? Hikari-chan is a wonderful person...I just wish that I didn’t feel the same way Daisuke-kun does. I like Hikari-chan too, but, I’m too scared to pursue it. What if she doesn’t feel the same way back like how she is with Daisuke-kun? Besides, if I did try to ‘get Hikari-chan’, I know how upset Daisuke-kun would get if I did, and I like having him as a friend. If I did something like that, he’d probably be worse off than what he is now. His affections for her seem to be much bigger than mine, and I’d hate to make a friend upset or sad, when it could have been easily avoided.’
“Well, it’s like he’s been ignoring me lately, and I just sense coldness from him.”
“He’s been cold and ignoring everyone. It’s not just you, but me too, and even Ichijouji-kun. Something is bothering him that he doesn’t want to talk to us about.”
“Well I intend on finding out!” Hikari said with determination. At the moment, the girl was reminding him of Taichi. The Yagami look of determination between the two siblings was uncanny. “I hate to see him upset, or any of my good friends sad.”
“That’s the spirit. I’m sure he’s just having a problem with his parents, or maybe he’s annoyed that he’s in his sister’s shadow, as surprising as that sounds. She always made decent grades, even if she did spend most of her time chasing my brother. As far as Daisuke-kun is concerned, he feels that she’s the favorite out of the both of them.”
“How do you know?”
“He’s pretty much said as much whenever he complains about his sister, even though you know he loves her still and would do anything to protect her. He never directly says it, but that’s the impression I get. Jun-san was pretty good in school, so maybe his parents are expecting too much out of him, sort of like the situation with Ichijouji-kun used to be.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Miyako-san told us about that, and how his parents were seeing him as his older brother, especially after his death. Ichijouji-kun seems to really trust Miyako-san to share something so personal with her.”
“I’m almost positive that’s the problem, but, seems he would’ve gotten over it by now.”
“Takeru-kun,” Hikari rose from her seat, “what are you waiting for? Let’s go!”
“Okay, okay.” Takeru paid for the pizza and carried the box. Hikari carried the drinks in the carrier.
The two, with their book-bags in hand, made their way back towards school. Takeru took in a big breath of fresh air. “It’s so nice out here. It’s supposed to be sunny and clear all weekend. We should all do something tomorrow afternoon after the tennis match of Sora-san and before the concert of my brother’s group.”
“That’s a good idea, but,” she looked up towards the now darkening sky, “I think you’re wrong about the weather.”
He looked over at her. “Eh? What do you mean?”
She pointed upwards. “Look at how cloudy it’s getting.”
“What the...”
“The weather man must was wrong. It looks like a storm is coming. We should hurry and find shelter before it starts raining.”
The wind began to pick up. Other people were gathering around to see what was going on, as the odd looking storm clouds around, began to form into some type of a long, spinning funnel.
“Takeru-kun, I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Whoa, that looks like a tornado!” a bystander pointed out.
“We don’t get tornadoes here!” another person panicked.
Takeru began to get the same worried feeling that Hikari had. This just didn’t seem natural somehow. “They’re right; we don’t usually get tornadoes here.”
The wind level began to rise more, as everyone tried their bests to take cover to avoid the unexpected, oncoming storm. The funnel grew more violent and powerful. It then made its move. It didn’t go towards any of the buildings or people around, instead...
“Takeru-kun,” she held her uniform skirt down with a bit of difficulty with her barely free hand, since she was holding her book-bag, “that thing is coming towards us!!”
“RUN!!”
Hikari dropped the drinks, and ran alongside Takeru, who had tossed the pizza box aside. Before getting too far, a bright light seemed to flash, blinding them in the process. It was as if lightening had struck right in front of them.
“Hikari-chan, are you okay?” Takeru questioned, while shielding his eyes.
Before the girl could respond, she turned to face the funnel. She seemed to be drawn to it, and appeared to be in a trance-like manner.
“HIKARI-CHAN!!”
Before everyone knew it, Hikari was sucked into the funnel, and her book-bag fell from her hand, which seemed to wake her up, as she began to call for help. Takeru stared wide-eyed at the sight. He wasn’t sure what to do. After Hikari had been taken completely in, the vortex came towards him, but instead of running, he stood his ground. He took off his signature off-white hat (which he’d put on after school let out), and tossed it aside along with his book-bag. He knew that this wasn’t normal, nor did he care where he would end up.
“I can’t let her down! I have to save her!” Takeru said with determination. “Hikari-chan, I’m coming! Just hang on!”
The tornado engulfed the young teen, which disappeared soon after, leaving behind people staring on in shock, trying to figure out what had just happened...
Author’s Notes
Note 1: Okonomiyaki is pretty much a “Japanese Pizza”, but it’s not cooked like it is in the western world. Instead of baking it, it’s grilled, and seems more so like a pancake than a pizza. For more information on okonomiyaki, you can look it up online and places like wikipedia.
***
Note 2: There are different ways to prepare okonomiyaki, and one is the “Osaka-style” way, to my understanding. The Osaka-style way, pretty much prepares it like a pancake, and has lots of different ingredients. The restaurant I mentioned, Okonomiyaki Mizuno, is a real place in Osaka that’s been in business for over 60 years. I know this much, if I ever manage to visit the country, I will most definitely check out this place. ^_^
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Note 3: The stuff about Tamachi Elementary being a prestigious school, and such, was pretty much made up. It was more than likely one of those fancy-pants, private schools, since the students wore school uniforms. In Japan, public elementary schools don’t usually require them, although, there are some on occasion that might. This was pretty much Ken’s case, to my knowledge. He attended a public school which required uniforms. Also, with the way his parents were, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the school was known for their “smart students”, or something along the lines of that. Now, feel free to correct me if this information is wrong pertaining to Tamachi Elementary. I’m pretty sure it was supposed to have been a public school.