Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Flash ❯ 6 ( Chapter 6 )

Notes: Quicker! Quicker updates I tell you!! QUICKER!!!!!

Warnings: things are getting just this side of sketchy now, expect something interesting to happen.

Disclaimers: the kids show never mentions the yakuza, so do you really think I own it?

Flash- 6

And all hell breaks loose.

Jun and Yamato are facing off, Taichi is trying to monitor the twins after hearing their mother cuss for the first time, and I'm running for the phone because… damn. Really, I don't think I've ever dialed so fast in my life.

Before he even has a chance to speak I'm already talking to him. "Ken? What's up? You paged me."

There's a soft clicking on the other end. Cell phones, gotta love 'em. "Yeah, Dai. Um, I just talked to Miyako."

"Oh." Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit…

"So, she's packing a suitcase and calling me every slur in the book and telling me she's taking the kids far away for ever and ever." There's a pause and I can hear a screeching sound in the background. Damn that woman can holler like a freaking banshee when she's pissed! "Want to stop by my place for dinner?"

It's rough, but I think I manage to keep the smirk out of my voice. "Just dinner?" Come on- give me some credit here. It's been seven years. I've waited that long to get in bed with this man and after today, another seven hours might kill me.

Ken laughs a little sounding genuinely happy. It's an amazing noise. "No, I think some celebratory sex might be on the menu as well."

"Well it's about fucking time," I gush. No pun intended in my words. "You better be prepared to fuck and get fucked senseless, Ichijouji. There's been more than seven years worth of planning for this on my part."

Something breaks in the background on the other end of the line and he sighs again. "It's been more than that on my part too, Dai. Meet me at my place and make it soon. She's leaving now." Despite our joking I can hear a shake in his voice.

"Ken," I keep my words soft, gentle. "I love you. Everything's going to be okay, I promise. We'll figure something out, okay? You'll see them again. That bitch can't keep them away forever." If only I could believe what I'm saying. Our situation at the present moment seems impossible. I'm wrenched back into reality when I hear Jun screaming.

"He's nothing but a whore! JUST LIKE YOUR WIFE!" I think her voice is reaching the core of the earth.

"I've got to go now, Ken. Tai and Yamato stopped in and then Jun came home with my niece and nephew and some serious shit has hit the fan. I'll be there as soon as I can." Glancing over my shoulder I see the blond man red-faced and crying. Jun's crying too. Great- time to do damage control.

"Was that Jun I just heard? She knows about Sora?"

"I think the entire free world knows, Ken."

There's a chuckle on the other end. "Yeah. Hey, wait, you've got a niece and nephew?"

"Yep. I'm a proud uncle of twins. It's a long story and I'll tell you when I see you. Or sometime during all of it. After all, we've got seven years worth of sex to catch up on." I'm smiling now, I can't help it. Something about Ken Ichijouji makes me tingle- spine to toes. God damn, I can't wait to slap that ass.

There's a sound something like a door slamming and Ken is still chuckling. "I should have known you'd be a horny bastard," Ken mutters. "Not that I'm one to talk. I might just wait for you naked…"

"I'll be there as soon as humanly possible," I promise him. We exchange good-byes and hang up.

Turning back to the party in the kitchen I see something that's been years in the making. Yamato and Jun are hugging one another so fiercely it looks like it hurts. Tai is just watching with sympathetic eyes. My sister, ever the pillar of strength, is comforting the Chosen of Friendship. Her hand strokes his back as she carefully guides him to his lover's waiting arms. I can hear Taichi's hushed voice.

"Yama, it's okay," he's murmuring. "You'll always have me. This isn't the end of everything, it's the beginning." And he's right. It is only the beginning.

I step up to the group and meet Jun's liquid copper gaze. Before saying anything I bend down and scoop up my niece. "Hey, Yume," my voice is gentle, she's just a kid after all. "Why don't you and your brother go hang out in your room for a bit, okay?" Something about this pair of children tells me that the female is the strong one. She must take after her mother. "Your mom or I will be in there in a couple minutes, all right?"

The little girl nods and I set her down. Kissing each of them on the forehead I watch as Yume takes Tenshi's hand and they toddle off to their room to wait. With something akin to regret I focus on my sister once again. "They ever seen you blow up like that before?"

She nods. "Once," is all she's willing to supply right now. "You just call Ken?"

"Yeah," glancing at Yamato and Taichi I see them gazing into one another's eyes lost to the world. "Seven years, Jun," I reason with her. "That's a long time."

"Yes, it is, Daisuke. Take care of yourself, all right? You look like you're gearing up to leave again." Her words are careful, measured. She knows me all too well.

"Yeah, Jun. There's some stuff I need to tell you. Like the reasons why I have the tattoos and why I can't see Mom and Dad, and why I was gone for so long." If I could look her in the face for this I would. But part of me really is almost ashamed to tell her. "All that money I sent you, it had to come from somewhere, right?"

She nods and her face sags a little looking weary. "How did you get it, Dai? Listen, if you owe-"

"That's not it, Junny-Jun. That's not it at all." Pulling it together I look up, into her eyes, into her face. "Hi," I hold out my hand, "Motomiya Daisuke. Former errand boy promoted to pusher for the yakuza in the Odaiba, Nihombashi, and Kanda districts, not to mention half of Ueno. Pleased to meet you." Not surprisingly, she doesn't shake hands.

"No fucking way," she breathes. "You sent me freaking drug money?! You worked the red light district and didn't tell me? You little bastard!" This is pretty much the reaction I expected. Then she stops and something seems to sink in. "That's why you have to leave again, isn't it?"

"Yeah," my throat is gravelly and I have to cough and clear it. "I wish I didn't. Everything is finally settling down, falling into place and it just figures that now I've got to run again."

"Then stay," she pleads with me, a hand on my arm. Eyes serious, she looks so much like Mom it's scary.

"Wish I could, Junny. But, a favor's a favor and this one means I either cough up the ultimate price or do one last disappearing act. Either way, you won't be hearing from me ever again. It's bad enough that so many of you guys know about it at this stage in the game. They found out I was back a lot faster than I anticipated." Chewing my lip for a minute I hear her sigh in defeat.

"If that's the way it has to be," she finally concedes.

"It is." I nod and add, "I really wish it didn't have to be, but it does. Look on the bright side though- I'm not your brother by blood so it won't be that bad, will it?" When she gives me I hard glance I raise my hands in mock defeat. "Just trying to lighten the situation with a little black humor. It does a body good sometimes."

That's when the couple in the corner throws in their two cents. "You know it doesn't have to be that way, Daisuke," Taichi pipes up. "Can't you bargain with them at all? I mean- yeah it's favors for favors but what if you go back in and break down that one big favor into a few little ones or something…?"

Looking at him, I see my idol leaning against the counter relaxed to all the world, one hand clasped tightly around Yamato's. "It sounds like a good idea. But we'll have to see." Yamato is being awfully quiet. "You got anything to add to that? Or are you content to watch me go down in flames?"

The blond man shakes his head. "Not flames, Daisuke. More like Napalm. But that's always been your style." Stopping for a moment he studies me for a reaction. "Just be careful. Seven years is a long time. Tai and Mimi followed a piece of your trail, you don't know if anyone else did too."

Instantly alert I begin to wish I at least had a knife on me. "You didn't…"

"No," he confirms. "But I'm just saying it's better to be safe than sorry, Dai. For what it's worth I missed you too. It's not only Tai's legacy that you carry, it's mine too. Just be careful. That's all I'm saying."

"Understood," my heart is racing from adrenaline. It's hard to imagine another one of the Chosen following my path. No wonder Taichi and Yamato are so anxious to protect me. "It was good to see you guys though."

Tai raises an eyebrow. "But…"

I smile at him trying to be badass but managing to be coy. Ken does that to me. Only Ken. "He paged me. His wife packed and split taking the kiddies with her. He needs me and I need him. Really, I wish I could stick around longer. But…"

"Yeah," Yama nods. "It's okay, Dai. We understand."

"Better than most," Taichi adds. "Go to him. He's waiting."

There's some tearful hugging before my departure. This good-bye feels so final. It wasn't supposed to be this way. Everything was supposed to go fine. I hadn't planned on even seeing any of them. Sometimes even the best of plans get fucked up, I guess. Trudging down the street I head off toward Ken's, my mind lost in memory but still alert to whatever might be out there. Behind me I can feel not just the weight of my past, but the pressure of a shadow. Someone's tailing me.

Just when my mood was starting to lighten up too. Dammit. Keeping my pace normal I don't glance around. How do I know there's someone back there? I can hear them. Whoever it is, is being very sloppy about their job. Reflections on a few windows give my shadow away too. Turning a corner I decide to duck into a side street and wait for my target to pass by. Funny, I picked pockets for a while too- when I first left. This maneuver takes me back. Damn…

He's getting close. I can hear him. Doesn't want to lose sight of me so he speeds up a little. A few more seconds and he'll be right in front of me and I can get some answers. My mark is passing the comfy little hiding place I've found when I reach out and grab him. One hand over his mouth, my other arm around his throat, I pull him out of public view with me. There's a brief struggle and I feel a sharp elbow in my stomach. Thank everything I can think of for gyms. The blow doesn't stun me the way my mark expects and he hesitates for a minute. Oh well, his loss…

Clutching him tighter I proceed further down the street, further away from lingering eyes. Finally, I stop and throw him against a wall as I set my bag down on the pavement. Chibimon pokes his head out and gasps with me.

"Takeru? Why the fuck are you following me?"

He coughs, massaging his throat. "You've got a pretty strong grip you know that?" Muttering to himself he keeps trying to rub the pain away. Wont' work, I know having experienced it myself.

"Quit dodging the question. Why were you following me?"

Aqua eyes raise to meet me and time slows. He's reacting faster than I anticipated, but I'm still prepared. I've had more practice at this than he has. After all, he's the Child of Hope and Hope isn't naturally a violent thing. Courage is though. Takeru is moving for me but instead of catching me, all he gets is an upper cut to the jaw, which subsequently throws him back against the wall again.

"What the fuck are you doing, blondie?" My body is relaxed, ready for action, in a fighting stance. "Stop wasting my time and answer me."

He rubs his jaw and I can see a thin trail of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth. Damn, must've hit him harder than I meant to. But this is getting way to sketchy. Something's off kilter here in a big, bad way. Then he's laughing. And that, more than anything, disarms me.

"You just don't get it, do you, Dai?" His voice is scathing. "You weren't supposed to contact the others. They weren't even supposed to know you had come back into town. It was okay for Jun to know because who was she going to tell? But, no! Instead you had to go and fuck up everything for me and now I don't even think I'll get paid!"

"Just be careful. Seven years is a long time. Tai and Mimi followed a piece of your trail, you don't know if anyone else did too…"

No. Fucking. Way. It was a warning. "What are you talking about?" Rushing him, I pin him to the wall easily as he flails and tries to escape. I notice the circles under his eyes look more pronounced now, his face isn't just thin, it's gaunt- stretched almost too tightly over the bones. No wonder he can't fight me. "What did you do you little bitch?"

Aqua fire pierces me. "You weren't supposed to see them. That way, they wouldn't know and they could all go on thinking what I had already told them. Of course, it was supposed to be taken care of hours ago, but I let personal conflict get in the way. Forgot rule number one: leave emotion at the door." This can't be happening. Not like this. How did this get by me?!

"Ken," I hiss at him. "You better not have done anything to him-"

"Relax, Princess," he coughs against my forearm which is still pinning his throat. "Your baby's fine. I just wanted you to know what was going on. How much he really cares for you. Too bad he won't ever get to see you again."

I hear a click and react without thinking. A metallic click like that means only one thing. This little punk's got a knife. What a rookie. Stepping back I kick out at the hand that holds the blade and he drops it. Before he can blink he's pinned again. "I hope that's not the only one you've got on you, TK," I make his name a venomous hiss. "Because I would love any excuse to kick the living shit out of you."

"You won't get a chance," he grins at me and fights against my grip. Doesn't he know anything? "You owe a favor and it's being called in."

"How the fuck would you…" No. It just can't be.

"I was sent to collect you," he sneers. "But it looks to me like you're resisting. Which leaves only one option."

Well, I guess now I know what Takeru was doing when he wandered off into oblivion. Still, my source never mentioned this. I knew some things- but not this. "You cheap little motherfucker," I hiss at him. "You sold me out!"

The blond grins again and gives his best impression of a sinister laugh. Not as good as Ken's stint as the Kaiser, but close. "You finally figured it out. Good for you, Motomiya. But, alas, you are still resisting me. Which means you'll just have to die." His entire demeanor is changing like liquid before my eyes. However, I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve. Even if they're short.

"What'd they buy you for, huh? What did they offer you? Everyone has a price. The yakuza works on that principle. Not that power and ammo will get you places, but that everyone can be bought. What did you sell out for, Takaishi?" It's the first time since I've been home that I've dropped every pretense I've got. And this… this is nothing. I haven't even laid all my cards on the table.

"Oh at first it was nothing, Motomiya," he slowly pushes me off, but only because I let him. On his best day this runt is no match for me- in brains or brawn. "When you vanished your old boss thought it would be good for you. You know, take a vacation. But after seven years, Daisuke? Well, as you can imagine, they gave me your old job and your boss determined you were nothing more than a loose end. Normally when shit goes down like this the runner is given so much time to sort out his affairs before his final job. They gave you the allotted time, but then you still didn't come back."

We're facing off to one another as the daylight begins to dwindle. Shadows stretch along this empty side road. Out of the corner of my eye I notice that it dead-ends. Only one way in and one way out. That little shit- he planned for this. Well, I can give him something he could never have planned for. But he's still bent on talking, so I'll let him waste some time. After all, once I'm done here I'll still have one more stop to make before visiting Ken.

"But then there was this little coup d'etat, you see. And your boss was… 'overthrown'," he even supplies the air quotes. "Before you could return things already changed and a new power was on the rise. But, I'm sure you knew that." He looks at me and catches my subtle nod. Indeed, I did know. I know more than he can imagine. "And then, ultimately, I was weighed against you. Even though I knew you weren't coming back I was still pitted against you. This fucking ghost from the past! Do you know what that did for me?!" He's raging now. And I think I'm starting to see where those mood swings come from. My own anger is starting to boil. Someone's going to have to answer for my lack of information…

"So I gave them whatever I had. Everything, Daisuke. Do you understand what I'm saying? Every last god damn thing in my possession. And it still wasn't enough. But, then, I remembered I had something to give that no one else could offer up." Here it comes… "You."

The snort I give is bitter and escapes before I can really stop it. "You gave them more than you had rights to give, Takaishi. I heard about what happened to Yamato a couple years ago. How he was mugged, and beaten, and would have been raped if Taichi hadn't shown up when he did. It's a good thing Tai loves your brother so much. I know how yakuza guys work out- he couldn't have taken them all without extra adrenaline and anger on his side."

The blond stops from the pacing he started as I was talking and gives me a careful glance. "True," he agrees. "When you fight like you've got nothing left to lose it always gives an advantage." That predatory grin is back. "And that's why this time, Daisuke, you can't beat me. You've got something to lose now."

There's a growl behind me. Chibimon has seen plenty of these fights go down in his time. But I'll be dammed if I let him do my dirty work. "Chibi," my voice is deadly, "do me a favor and go scout at the end of the road. We don't want any interruptions while I beat the piss out of Takaishi."

"Sure thing, Dai," his voice pipes up, and I hear him scamper off. He's good at recon. Always nice to have a partner.

"You never answered my question," I say after a few moments of silence. The noise of the city is distant, but surely only a couple dozen meters away. However, without daylight no one can see what we're going. "What did they offer you? And don't tell me it was Keiko."

"You shut the fuck up!" Takeru is pointing at me and shouting. "You don't know a fucking thing about me and Keiko. So don't you even say her name you son of a bitch."

Tsking him, I shake my head. "You don't know anything about my mother, Takaishi, so leave her out of this." It's fun to be formal in a fight. Someone like Takeru will always get frustrated with it. Depersonalize, that's the key. Especially when you know your enemy as intimately as I know mine. "But, getting back to Keiko… she's a geisha, Takaishi." Although, not quite so formal. However, now's not the time to drop informal terms on the apparent love of Takeru's life.

"She is not," he roars at me. It's been a while since I've heard voice inflection like that. Seriously though, he's roaring as accompaniment to his anger. These are the silly thoughts that flash through my head- they keep me calm, from spazzing out.

"She's nothing more than a call girl. She's a hooker, Takaishi! You sold out everything and everyone you love for a prostitute! Even your brother, you sick fuck," it's difficult to watch this, but his world is crashing down. Still, there's more fuel for the fire. "First she got you all strung out on the shit you were selling and then she fucked you until you were retarded. Then she walked out on you. You think that's love?" The tears in his eyes make them shimmer in the looming twilight. It's almost enough to make me pity him, but not quite.

"She is my life," he breathed. "She's everything to me." Collecting himself he fixes me with a glare and stands tall. Well, as tall as he can. Even at his full height I'm still bigger. It's actually kinda funny. "Now all I have to do is take care of you and-"

"And what, Takaishi? You think they'll just give her to you once I'm dead? Think again. They played you! Every time she sucked your cock she got paid more than both of us combined. Every time she was in your bed you paid for it. They used you, Takeru, as surely as they use anyone else. Someday I hope you see that." My speech completed I hit him with another upper cut and step around him to deliver a hardcore kidney punch. Finally, a hard clip across his temple and he crumples like a freaking rag doll- he's down for the count.

Reaching in my pocket I pull out my leather gloves. Never know when you'll need a pair. Bending down I pick up TK's knife, close it, and put it in my pocket. Giving him one last kick, just for good measure, I mutter, "Dumb motherfucker."

It's time to find Wallace, but first I've got to run a couple errands. There's an ATM nearby, so there goes errand number one. Another block away I find an internet café and fire off a couple emails that need to go out. Then I use the payphone.

His voice is gruff when he answers, like I woke him out of a sound sleep or something. "What the fuck do you want?"

"Wallace," I keep calm, smooth, cold as ice, yeah that's me. "Something just came to my attention and I need to meet with you about five minutes ago. Usual place?"

He's barely registering this, I can tell. Good. Element of surprise is always a plus. "Yeah, I'll be waiting. How long you going to be?"

"Give me ten minutes and I'll be there." I hang up and start on my journey. Really, it will take me less than five, but he doesn't need to know that. Asshole sold me out to Takaishi. I get him all set up here in Japan, give him a nice cushy job and life and how does he repay me? This is utter bullshit.

Our "usual place" is actually the alleyway next to his apartment building. He's got two apartments. One for his regular public life and another for the gopher work he does for the yakuza. I know he's staying in the shithole since that's where I just called. Sliding into the shadows I wait, patiently, for my prey. "Come on you little prick. Get your ass out here…" I'm whispering to myself. First sing of insanity they say: talking to yourself.

There he is… Stumbling like a drunken bastard down the fire escape. Our meeting spot is right below it. He stands there and looks around for a minute or two before lighting a cigarette. Deciding to wait, I watch him smoke it, then put it out. So many cancer fiends out there. Ticking off the seconds in my mind I wait for another minute, then step forward. From where I was hidden it looks like I'm just arriving.

"Wallace," I call and nod. He nods back. Without waiting for him to speak I punch him sending him sprawling further back into the alley. "How's it goin', man?"

The American sputters for a minute trying to comprehend what the hell just happened. "Dai?" His blue eyes are luminous, fearful, questioning. "What the shit is this?"

"Nothing," I reply shortly. "I had a run in with Takaishi. Guess what he told me that you definitely neglected to mention." Reaching into my pocket I absently stroke the weapon hidden there thinking of how perfect all of this will be. But no, I must wait until he coughs up some information for me.

Chibimon, however, seems to know what I'm thinking. I know he doesn't like it, but then, he doesn't have to. Someone's got to get this shit done and it might as well be me since it's my ass we're talking about here. "You don't have to do things this way," the blue dragon speaks behind me. Unfortunately, he knows he's lying and he knows I can tell that too. It's a sad, sad state of affairs.

"It looks like I don't have much of a choice, Chibi." Glancing over my shoulder I meet his ruby eyes. In his own way, my digimon is one of the most beautiful creatures ever to grace my life. And I wonder what will happen to him when I die. All digimon are reborn… That thinking time costs me though. A fist connects with my cheek and stuns me for a moment. Too bad, really. I was going to give him a chance. Now… well…

Wallace punches me in the stomach and I take it like a trooper. Another hard hit across my face and then I stop him with a perfectly timed crack at his knee. It's a weak spot for him since the cartilage began to wear away a couple years ago. Ligaments and bone and other assorted tissues snap with a sickening wet sound and he cries out, losing his balance.

"Too bad," I tell him. "You were putting up a pretty good fight. I think back in the day you would've given me a run for my money. However, we live in the present, in reality- as it were. So, how's about you be a friend and tell me what's really been going on." Giving him a quick summation of Takeru's past seven years I watch as he just nods. Which sucks, because I know both of them are telling the truth now.

"He wasn't lying, Dai. Shit man, I wish I had just told you now." He looks up at me, blond hair hanging in his face. It reminds me of when we were twelve for some reason, so I hit him again to make the memory go away. "You gonna turn me in?"

Stooping, I decide to help him up. "No," I reply evenly. "I'm not gonna turn you in." Reaching into my pocket I click open the blade and in one swift motion shove the metal into his heart. Between the third and fourth rib, that's the ticket. Right in there. Wide blue eyes stare at me in horror, in shock. Twisting the knife a little bit I feel him clutch at me desperately in his last attempt to hold onto this world. "You forgot who I am, Wallace. I hope your next life treats you better," I whisper my good-bye in his ear and drop him onto the pavement. Leaving the knife protruding from his chest I peel off my gloves and put them back in my pockets. This is all well and good, but now I'm behind schedule. Shit. I had planned to make one last stop too… Looks like I won't get to it. Oh well, this is good enough. With Takaishi's prints on the murder weapon all is well. Especially since I only beat him up a little. He'll get charged with this one. Fine with me.

Turning to leave, I pick up my bag and offer an open spot to Chibimon. His eyes are tired and sad. "I wish you wouldn't do things like that," he says quietly.

"I know," is all I can say to him. As we walk through the streets of Tokyo, I enjoy what will be my last night in this city- ever. Probably my last night on earth. When I reach Ken's building I turn my back to the door and blow a kiss out into the streets. "It's been real," I whisper. Then I go inside where Ken buzzes me in. Walking up the stairs I try not to cry, but it happens anyway.

When I lift my hand to knock he's already there. Through my tears I see him, his eyes… they're so understanding. He kisses me and everything fades away. The whole world disappears. There is nothing but Ken. He pulls me inside his apartment and comforts me as I cry. But I don't tell him why I'm so upset. He'll know soon enough. I love him so much…

************

Okay kids… hope you liked this part. After the last one I needed to put in some action. Up next: CITRUS. Aw yeah… get rowdy now… And yes, originally I was going to write in Dai's last errand but opted not to. Fear not though, all shall be explained. One more chapter and then an epilogue and this bad boy will be put to bed! It's been real! **kiss** Review or criticize as you like- I love you all anyway!!