Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Digimon Tamers: The Next Level ❯ Episode 9: Winging It ( Chapter 9 )

"But that's not possible!" Yamaki shouted as everyone backed away from the Juggernaut missile. "The Juggernaut system took up a whole damn floor in the Hypnos building!"

"Apparently they've found a way to miniaturize it!" Henry shouted. "Take that thing out before it deletes the Digimon!"

"Gargo Laser!" "Guardian Barrage!" "Diamond Storm!" "Kahuna Waves!" Each Digimon sent their attacks at the missile, but the Tamers only watched in horror as the projectiles phased into it without any effect.

"Guess it requires a direct approach," Antylamon said, setting the girls down. "Bunny Blades!" With a flourish, Antylamon's hands converted into axes.

"Don't!" Suzie cried out. "You'll be deleted! I don't want to lose you after we just met again!"

"I'll be fine," Antylamon reassured her. "Trust me!" Antylamon yelled, bringing one axe-hand down towards the missile. For a second, her arm nearly phased into the machine and Antylamon struggled to bring her hand down. Grunting, she continued to press and with one final scream, the missile split into two halves and fell silent.

"You did it!" Suzie cheered, hugging Antylamon's leg. Antylamon breathed heavily but smiled.

"Now let's get out of here before more of those damn things are shot at us!" Rika ordered.

Marine Angemon nodded and began inhaling. "Ka… hu… na… WAVES!" A gigantic blue bubble emerged from his mouth, encapsulating all the Tamers and Yamaki. It rose up into the air, accelerating rapidly and leaving the Hypnos complex far below and behind them.

******

While the bubble floated away from the compound, Takato took the opportunity to fell everybody in on what had happened with Shibumi. Right after he finished his tale, they touched down on the roof of the school, one of the few places Hypnos wouldn't immediately think of to look. The general feeling was one of total surprise. None of them could quite believe what they were hearing.

"This can't be happening," Kenta said, shaking his head. Marine Angemon was perched on top of him, snoring softly as the effort of transporting everybody had drained him. "This is like something out of a movie!"

"Yeah, really," Kazu agreed. "Secret government conspiracies, black trucks, hidden army bases, and a plot to rule the world. It's like something out of one of those James Bond movies." He had always thought living in a movie would be kind of cool, but now that he had no choice, the idea lost it's flash.

"I really don't care about any of that," Rika growled. "All I know is that I was put through four years of hell on the whims of some lunatic, and I will see them pay."

"Rika…" Renamon said softly, taken aback at the fire in her lover's eyes. Still, she couldn't help but feel the same rage. She wanted to make them pay just as badly, but she also knew that emotions made everybody do crazy things.

"We can't be thinking like that!" Henry reprimanded. "This is a time to start thinking logically, not to go off half-cocked."

"I never do anything half-cocked," Rika replied, glaring at Henry.

"This is not the time for arguing!" Takato snapped angrily. Rika looked at him in shock for a second before settling back down into Renamon's side with an angry sigh. Henry took a deep breath to calm himself again, and Takato continued. "Right now we need to figure out where to go next. This place isn't going to stay safe for very long." Eventually, Hypnos would find their hiding spot on top of the roof and they'd be trapped.

"Well," Jeri put in, "thanks to you, we sure as hell can't go home."

"Hey, I don't like it any more than you do," Takato told her. "I still haven't been able to see my parents since I came back." He wondered how they were doing, and how they took finding out Takato was back only through Hypnos agents at their door. The original plan had been to meet with all his friends first and then go straight home, but now that wasn't possible.

"Why did you even come back, anyway?" Jeri asked. "What is it you were hoping to accomplish? None of us thought you were coming back, and we moved on." It had been hardest for Jeri, having to say goodbye to another important part of her life.

"I came back because this is my home. I belong here, with all my friends. Not a day passed in the Digital World where I didn't miss every single thing about the Real World. Everybody I cared about is here, everybody I love."

"Oh, don't give me that love crap. If you had really loved me like you told me, you never would have left in the first place."

"I didn't think I had a choice!" Takato argued. "I thought it was either leave the Real World forever or die. I picked what I thought was the only option available."

"It would have been better if you had died," Jeri snorted. "At least then, I would have known you were gone forever and I would have been able to move on. But no, you left, giving me some half-assed promise to be back. I believed it for a while too. And you know what I did? I waited. I actually waited for you to come back. After a while though, I gave up my foolish hope. Everything's changed Takato," Jeri shook her head.

"One thing hasn't changed," Takato disagreed. "I never stopped loving you, Jeri."

"Then you're a bigger fool than I thought, Takato Matsuki. I stopped loving you a long time ago. And now… now I hate you." With those last words, Jeri walked away, leaving Takato to sink to his knees. The major driving force behind his desire to come home had just disappeared, and he could only wonder if he had made the right decision.

******

While Takato and Jeri had been arguing everybody had moved away to give them some semblance of privacy. Most took the time to reacquaint themselves with their partners, such as Kazu.

"Guardromon, buddy?" Kazu asked hesitantly. He wasn't entirely comfortable with things like this. Emotions had never been his strong point, beyond his usual machismo.

"Yes, Kazu?" the big robot asked.

"I just wanted to say, well, you know…" Kazu stuttered, unable to say what he really wanted to, but Guardromon understood.

"I missed you too Kazu," he said, placing his metal hand on Kazu's shoulder. He couldn't see it, but the boy smiled. Once again, together, they were the unstoppable team.

******

"I can't believe you're back, Lopmon!" Suzie laughed. She, like everybody else, had expected that they had seen the last of their partners four years ago. "Now I just have to find that Miss Pretty Pants dress again."

"Oh no!" Lopmon cried. "Not again!" She loved Suzie like a sister, but the incessant dresses had been too much for her to take. Fortunately for her, Suzie was only playing around.

"I'm just kidding," Suzie smiled. "I outgrew that a long time ago, thanks to you."

"Thanks to me?" Lopmon asked, looking up at her Tamer.

"Yeah! Because of all the time I spent with you, I learned that I was strong enough to protect the people I cared about."

"Suzie…" Lopmon said softly, as the girl picked her up in a hug, gentle instead of the crushing ones she had given as a child.

"Of course, that doesn't mean we can't stick Terriermon in a dress," Suzie added. "Just for fun."

The serious look on Suzie's and Lopmon's faces was priceless before they both began to laugh, the image of Terriermon in a pink dress too much to handle.

******

Rika whispered into Renamon's ear, and the fox digimon nodded. Rika gave her one last kiss before getting up and crossing to where Jeri was sitting. She was worried about Jeri and her behavior of late. She decided it was time for them to talk; she wanted to see Jeri happy. The girl in question was sitting with her back against the wall, a scowl on her face.

"So," Rika asked. "Why don't you tell me how you really feel about Takato?"

"I'm sure you heard," Jeri told her. "I hate him."

"Bullshit," Rika nearly spat. That was almost exactly what she had said about Renamon years ago. It wasn't true then, and the circumstances weren't all that different. "I don't believe you for a second, Jeri. I've known you longer than that. Just cut the crap and spill it." Sometimes a direct approach worked best.

Jeri didn't respond at first. She wanted to tell someone, but she wasn't sure Rika would understand. A minute later, though, she asked, "Rika, if you don't mind me asking, who was your first?"

"My first?" Rika said, raising an eyebrow. "Ohhh, my first. Well, that's kind of a tricky question for me. Well, my first experience... was with Renamon... but, you mean my first time with a guy, right?" Rika chuckled. She couldn't remember who it had been, just one more in a string of failed attempts to fill in the void left by Renamon leaving. She wasn't proud of the fact, but now that Renamon was back, it didn't really matter. "Hell, it's been so long, I can't even remember. Why? Was Takato…"

Jeri broke in with, "A few years ago, after Takato and I started dating, I told him that I wanted my first time to be with him. He told me the same thing. But then, he left before we could finish our promise to each other. I know he's kept his half, but…" she trailed off, unable to complete the thought.

"You haven't," Rika finished. Jeri nodded, hanging her head slightly.

"Exactly. And because of that, what was supposed to be the most special night of my life became something much less," Jeri said wistfully. "After it happened, I was always able to make the excuse that Takato wasn't coming back and that he wouldn't want me to wait for something that would never be possible. But now he's back and I don't have any excuse."

"You're going to have to face him sooner or later," Rika said, settling down next to Jeri. "I know it's easier to just push him away, just deny that you still have feelings for him, but if you don't acknowledge the problem, you may just miss out on the best thing that ever happened to you. Trust me. If I hadn't done the same with Renamon, she probably wouldn't be in my life to this day."

"I suppose you're right," Jeri sighed, "but I really do still love him. I just worry that once he finds out that I wasn't able to keep the promise, he'll stop feeling the same way."

"Now," Rika said, "I may not know Takato as intimately as you, but I know what kind of a guy he is, and that he's cared about you for a long time. He's not going to let something like this change that. You know that better I do."

A faint smile broke onto Jeri's face for the first time in a while. "He really is a great guy, isn't he? I just need some time to reassure myself of that."

"Gotcha," Rika nodded. She gave Jeri one last squeeze on the shoulders before standing up to give the girl some time to think. It was her wish that everything would end up working out between them. They were two of her best friends, and she wanted the best for them. Which meant…

"Ow! Hey, leggo!" Takato said, being painfully dragged along the ground, his ear firmly in Rika's grasp. "What's this all about? I was just going to…"

"You were just going to royally screw everything up with Jeri," Rika finished for him. "I'm going to tell you this once, and only once. Leave Jeri alone for now, Takato. She needs time to work out some issues that she has. If you know what's best, you'll give her that time."

"What does she have to work out?" Takato asked, confused. "If it's coming between us, then we need to work it out together, right?"

"It's not my place to tell you what it is," Rika shook her head, "but I can tell you it's something she needs to work out by herself."

"But…"

"I'd listen to her man," Kazu said, coming up to clap a hand on Takato's back. "She's liable to kick your ass if you don't."

"Heck," Kenta added, "I'll probably help her. I'd hate to see you screw things up with Jeri twice."

"It's a conspiracy!" Takato said, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "All right, all right, I get the message." He stared wistfully at Jeri, but made no move. He would just have to trust her.

"Well, now that that's settled," Henry announced, "Maybe we can figure out what to do next?"

"I have an idea," Jeri said, moving over with the rest of the group. She was careful to maintain a distance from Takato and instead stood close to Rika and Renamon. "There's no place in the Real World that we can go to, right?"

"That's it," Takato agreed. "that's what we've got to do. We have to go to the Digital World." He flexed his fist into the air, a serious look on his face.

"How are we going to do that?" Henry wondered.

"The same way we do everything," Rika told him. "We wing it."

"Woah," the three of them said at once after looking at each other. "Déjà vu."