Digimon Adventure Chronicles II: Secrets Revealed

...chapter TWENTY FIVE – Secrets Revealed

“Wake up, wake up!” Hikari shouted, shaking Vamdemon's body roughly. He groaned and opened his eyes to see the room lit up with colored lights and soft music playing in the background. Hikari was still in her pajamas, but there was no hint of sleep remaining in her features as she bobbled up and down with excitement. “Happy Christmas!!!”

“Did you seriously wake me up just for that?” He grumbled and tried to turn over and away from her, but she would have none of it. She grabbed his arm tightly and pulled him upright so that he had no choice but to acknowledge the colorful room.

“Yes I did, and its time you dropped your attitude, for this is a day of peace.” She stated. He gave her an incredulous look and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Seriously...this is a holy day, and I know it doesn't mean much to you, but it would be respectful if, for just today, you didn't give anyone a hard time.”

He glowered, but quickly was rid of his scowl. “Fine... If that is what you desire then I shall make it so.”

She smiled thankfully at him before setting herself upon the floor, where a number of colorfully wrapped boxes were set. To her side was Tailmon and Agumon, who were staring greedily at their own piles. “Go on guys, dig in!” They did, tearing at the paper with their sharp claws and pulling out the items inside. She too opened her presents, though slower and with less vehemence than the digimon by her side. Vamdemon watched without much understanding at their joy as they took part in the unwrapping.

Hikari's gaze met his. “You're not jealous are you?” She asked quietly.

“Of course not.” He said lazily and pushed his tired legs off the side. “Why would I be?”

“Well, because you're not down here having fun with us...”

“I would hardly consider that fun, Hikari.” He said, watching the mess grow.

“That's right, your idea of fun involves feathers.” She teased. Her words emitted an incredible glare from his being. “Hey, you're breaking your promise already!”

“Then keep quiet!” He retaliated, eyes shifting to an oblivious Tailmon, who was, along with Meeko, rolling around on the ground where a bag of catnip laid. Shuddering in distaste, he pulled himself off the couch and stretched his stiff muscles. “Is there breakfast?”

“Of course! Mom and dad cooked up some good stuff. There's hard boiled eggs, rice, salmon, umm...French toast, fruit, you like fruit!”

Vamdemon rolled his eyes and disappeared into the kitchen to satiate his hunger. Hikari stood and skipped after him merrily. “Aren't you excited about the party?”

“So much that I can hardly contain it.” He muttered and spooned a large serving of strawberries.

“Wait until you see what we've chosen for you to wear! It's adorable!” She said, looking to garner a response from him since he wasn't keeping his word.

“What?” Vamdemon asked incredibly. “I can dress myself, thank you...”

“No you can't and you know it, and besides, we've got to get you in the Christmas mood, so Mom and I picked out a cheery outfit for you!”

“...Yuuko?!” He said with surprise, dropping his spoon. He turned to the woman with a horrified expression. “You did such a thing...”

She smiled gently at him. “Come now, dear, it isn't that big of a deal. It will look good on you.”

He groaned and slumped in his chair. “You traitor... Why are all the women in this house out to get me?”

Hikari rolled her eyes and disappeared into her room momentarily, returning quickly with a bundle of clothing in her hands. She spread the items out on the table where there were no dishes. Vamdemon's eyes widened as he took in the clothing's appearance. “You're kidding...right? Please say this is a joke...” He glanced between the two females pleadingly.

“Don't you like it?” Hikari pressed.

“No!”

“Eh, it'll grow on you.”

“It's nothing like me! Look at it! It sparkles!!!” He practically screamed, now standing, having pushed himself out of his seat in exasperation.

“Take this as a chance to reinvent yourself.” Yuuko said pleasantly.

“Besides, he'll like the colors!” Hikari teased.

“Brat!” He said fearfully. She shook her head with amusement and grabbed his arm, pulling him towards the bathroom. Taichi watched with confusion as the struggling duo passed by his room and disappeared into the confined space of the bathroom.
Vamdemon's voice could be heard from behind the door. “Unhand me! Hikari!! Please, let me go! What are you doing!? Help! Taichi!!! Susumu!!!!!! Someone, anyone!”

Yuuko shook her head as Taichi entered the kitchen and started shoveling food into his mouth. “Of all of us, why is Hikari dressing him?”

“Because you wouldn't know how to get the bow in his hair.” She said simply.

“...right. What exactly are you making him wear?” He asked, starting to feel sympathy for the bathroom captive.

“You'll see.” She said. Almost fifteen minutes passed before Hikari and Vamdemon emerged from the tiny room. Hikari was smiling happily, compared to Vamdemon who looked simply murderous. His pants were the only bland part of his outfit, being a simple black. The sweater that had been forced over his head was a dark green that had silver and emerald green bits of glittery threaded lining woven between the fabric. Tied into his hair, which itself was held in a red, white, and green scrunchie, was a bright red bow that too had silver threads holding it together. Finally, attached to the bow were two silver bells that jingled softly when he moved.

Taichi groaned apologetically at the appearance of the seething man.

“I hate you.” Vamdemon stated.

“No you don't.” Hikari retaliated. “You said so yourself the other day.”

“I changed my mind. I HATE YOU.”

“You promised you would behave!” She complained.

“That was before you made me look like a candy cane!”

“That's enough, children.” Yuuko yelled at them, causing them both to shrink back at her reverberating voice of authority.

“Sorry, Mom...”

“Yes, Yuuko...”

She smiled pleasantly and patted Vamdemon on the shoulder. “I think you look adorable. I'm sure the others will agree.”

“They'll all laugh at me.” He said dismally and fell back into his seat. “Especially the damned angel. I'll never live it down.”

“Angemon will love it.” Hikari said, sitting across from Vamdemon.

“Because it'll give him a reason to tease me.” Vamdemon countered and dug into his bowl of strawberries in frustration.

“...at least you'll have his attention.” Hikari muttered.

Vamdemon's eyes snapped to hers with an angry glint. “Is that what this is about..?”

“You bet it is.” She said with a grin. “And you can't just be mad at me, Mom helped pick it out too, remember? She was a conspirator as well.”

Vamdemon groaned and slumped in his seat. “I don't WANT the attention...”

“Yes you do.” She said gently. “You've got to attract him some way.”

“This isn't the way to do it!” He said with a panicked voice and ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

“Well you aren't going to say anything yourself.” She argued.

“What do you know?” He argued back.

“I know enough that you have no confidence in yourself.”

“I don't need confidence when I know stand a chance!” He yelled, then brought his voice down. “Hikari, I'm not stupid, he's way out of my league. I came to accept it a few days ago and I've decided its something I don't want to act on...”

“Angemon wouldn't approve of that, you know. You are supposed to tell him everything.”

“I don't care.” Vamdemon growled. “I don't want him to hate me, and he will if he knew about this, so I want it kept quiet.” Hikari frowned slightly and he leaned forwards. “I mean it...Hikari...”

“Fine, fine, whatever.” She muttered. “But that doesn't mean I'm letting you change your clothes.”

“I still hate you then.” He grumbled and stood with his empty bowl to throw it in the garbage. Angrily he crossed back into the living room and sat back on the couch. Tailmon glanced up at him from her position under the tree.

“You're looking festive.” She said sarcastically.

“Can it, fur ball.”

“Don't tell me what to do, bat man.”

“Don't criticize me.”

“I wasn't.” She said, then laughed. “Okay, I was, but its all in good fun. It doesn't look bad.”

“Liar.”

“Whatever you say.” She brushed the issue aside and stood, crossing to his location. “Why didn't I find a present from you under the tree?”

“Huh?” Vamdemon wondered. “What are you talking about? Present? From me? Hah! And what is this tree nonsense? What I saw this morning, was it?”

“Yes, that was it. Humans stick presents under a decorated tree on Christmas day. They are said to come from a fat man called Santa Clause who travels down chimneys, but its just human mythology.”

“What a ridiculous notion.”

“I don't know, there are some pretty strange things in the digital world, this isn't too hard to imagine. And why wouldn't you get me a present? I thought you liked me?”

“You are backing me into a corner I am not comfortable with...”

She smirked and jumped on the couch beside him. “We've made amends. You should have presented me with a gift today to seal it.”

“And just how would you expect me to purchase this theoretical gift? I have no money, remember? And even if I wanted some, your male counterpart won't let me out of anyone's sight, so I have no chance to work. That still annoys me. Surely I've proven my worth to him by now – I've shown that I am sorry for what I attempted. I deserve the freedom to work if I wanted to, not that I do. It's the principal of the matter.”

“Maybe he's got some ulterior motive.” She stated slyly.

“Like what?” He asked obliviously.

“I don't know...a crush, perhaps? An infatuation? Much of Takeru exists in him. They both hate darkness and the monsters that come from it, but Angemon is different in his interests. Yes, he hates the powers of darkness, but only if they are being used incorrectly. I think that from the moment he learned of you and what you represented he had made it his own personal mission to liberate you from the dark power that had caused your corruption, and in the process of cleansing you, he has become interested in you in other ways.”

Vamdemon was silent as he watched her knowing eyes for a few moments. Cats always were like that. Somehow they managed to know everything and tell you nothing at the same time. “...is that really what you think?”

“Maybe.” She grinned and jumped back onto the floor to attack her catnip. From the side Miko jumped and pounced on her back, and a cat fight ensued, resulting in Tailmon losing track of her conversation as she was chased into Hikari's bed room.

“What's with girls sometimes?” Agumon wondered from his spot underneath the tree. Vamdemon looked at him in surprise, having forgotten he had been there in the first place.

“You are not to repeat anything you just heard.” Vamdemon told him, extending a hand and pointing a finger menacingly at the lizard, who held up and waved his arms.

“Cross my heart, I won't.” Agumon said pleasantly. “But for the record, I think Gatomon is right.”

“Huh...you...do?” Vamdemon asked, amazed that the lizard was speaking seriously.

Agumon shook his head “I think he likes you.”

“How can the two of you say it so calmly...”

Agumon shrugged and sprawled out against the floor, obviously care free. “What other way is there to say it?”

“The simplistic minds of the lower levels...” Vamdemon muttered.

“The simplistic minds of humans.” Tailmon taunted quietly, checking to be sure Hikari wasn't in hearing range.

“Who asked for your two cents??”

“Who asked for yours?”

“Shut up and leave me alone. I'm going back to sleep.” Vamdemon grumbled, annoyed. He shifted onto his side and buried his face into the back cushions of the couch. Tailmon shrugged and leaped onto his shoulder, where she too laid down to nap, despite Vamdemon's weak growl of displeasure.

break

“Come on everyone, we're leaving!” Taichi called from down the hall. Hikari, Vamdemon, Tailmon, and Agumon spilled out of the doorway and shuffled after him. The group of five traveled down the hall, gaining stares from the neighbors along the way.

'You would think they would be used to it by now...' Hikari thought as she struggled to keep up with her brother under the weight of the large bag she was burdened with. They reached the elevator and pushed themselves inside amongst a number of other people, who gawked as well, mostly at Agumon, of course.

The minutes spent in the cramped box seemed like an eternity, and it didn't help that every time it stopped they had to push to the side and allow people to enter and exit. Finally the elevator reached the ground floor and Taichi's group spilled out and continued on their way to the car.

“I hate that thing.” Vamdemon muttered, thoroughly annoyed with the close contact he was forced to endure.

“You hate everything.” Hikari muttered.

“Add it to the list, we've got cars, you, me, and now elevators.” Tailmon said as she leaped atop her shoulder.

“You lazy beast.” He growled. “Walk like the rest of us!”

“Why should I? I'm the queen around here, I deserve to be treated like royalty.” She stated.

“I thought I was the queen.” Hikari laughed, referring jokingly to the time she had spent in the Dark Ocean over a year ago.

“What would YOU possibly be the queen of? Annoyance? Displeasure?”

“And what had you intended to be the king of? Stupidity? Foolishness?” She retorted, and glanced backwards to see a look of unhappiness upon his face. Her playful gaze softened as she realized she had prodded at an unhealed wound. “It's all in good fun...I'm sorry.”

“I understand...” He said as they stopped at the trunk and put the large bag inside. “It only hurt because it is true.”

“True?” Hikari said. “Don't be silly, Myo, you aren't either of those things. You're one of the most intelligent people I know, and I even thought that when you were still my enemy, and there's no way you can be a fool considering all of the tricks and traps you've pulled off over the years.”

“Hikari, you don't need to lie to appease me.” He said as Agumon clasped his seatbelt and the car began to move.

“I'm not lying!”

Vamdemon sighed and leaned against the door. The sun peered teasingly from behind the dark clouds that had been hanging low in the sky for the past two days. It's light fell upon his face gently, reminding him of a time long ago...

It had been a day like this, but during the summer instead of a bitter winter. A storm was approaching suddenly and there had been little time to seek shelter inside his home before the rain poured from the clouds. Then too the sun had been hiding behind the puffy wisps of darkness. On that day, during the storm that had brought the children of twilight, as they had come to be called, to the digital world, it had represented a glimmer of hope in the rains of hell. Now it just seemed like a grim reminder of what he had lost.

“Oh!” He jumped back suddenly at a shadow that flashed across the sun. Hikari glanced back at him then followed the path of his gaze. Circling the sun was the serpent the two had seen during previous nights. He asked her with a low voice, “...have you ever seen it in the daytime before?” She shook her head and watched the creature circle around the bright orb. “This is troublesome.”

“Troublesome?” Hikari repeated and stared at him with worry. “How's that?”

“If this thing is appearing in the sun light that might mean the forces that brought it into existence are strengthening.”

“But you said it doesn't serve our enemy...”

“It doesn't...but its power grows as the enemy's does, but let's not worry about that right now... Your party is about to start, after all.”

She nodded her head and turned around to see the large hall finally come into view. The car stopped and the five of them came out and emptied the trunk. They crossed the short distance from the parking lot to the building and knocked gently on the door. It opened slowly to reveal Sora, who wore a soft pink sweater. She blinked a few times as she took in the appearance of the latest guests.

Taichi was dressed completely out of the season, in a generic suit and tie. His sister was sporting a white sweater with a pink scarf. The digimon, of course, were in the nude. Vamdemon's appearance struck her the most, and she was certain by the look of displeasure planted upon his face that he hadn't had a choice in the attire.

“It's on the tip of your tongue, child, I see it. Don't.” He grumbled and swiftly moved past her. Taichi shrugged and followed him. He was in turn followed by Agumon, then Tailmon. Hikari remained.

“Was that your doing?” Sora asked her.

“Of course!” Hikari said with a smile. “If I didn't he would have just thrown on one of those hooded sweatshirts he always wears, and that wouldn't fit with the holiday at all.”

“...what's he so upset about it anyway? It doesn't look bad or anything.”

“Because he's Myotismon. He's stubborn, and he doesn't like the shine to it.”

“Shine?”

“There's some metallic thread running through the green fabric. It kind of glitters in the light and he doesn't like it.”

“Aw! How cute!!!” A voice from inside called.

“Mimi...” Hikari muttered with a laugh and finally entered the building. Sure enough, there she was hovering over a perturbed Vamdemon and examining each item of clothing he was wearing. The girl had drawn a small crowd consisting of an incredulous Takeru, an amused Angemon, an unsure Iori, a confused Armadimon, a sympathetic Yamato, and a scheming Ken.

“What are you all gawking at? Is this a circus? A zoo? Leave me alone!” Vamdemon growled.

“You can't expect to walk in here wearing that and not be ridiculed...” Takeru said, which resulted in Mimi promptly whacking him over the head.

“You big meanie? What's wrong with you lately, TK? You're the only one who seems to have a problem with this brilliant, festive outfit so keep it to yourself.”

“Yeah, keep it to yourself.” Vamdemon repeated with annoyance. “Besides, I had no choice in what I wore today. The child of light forced it on me.”

“How can she force you to do anything? You're stronger than she is.” Takeru stated. Vamdemon glared at him.

“He can't dress himself, Takeru, his arm is broken.” Angemon said and patted the boy on the head to try and abate his irritated mood. Vamdemon nodded to affirm the words and sent the boy one final angry look.

“I don't know, its missing something.” Ken said in thought and turned to Angemon. “What do you think?”

“Missing something?” Angemon wondered, looking at Vamdemon, who appeared apprehensive. “Ah!”

Ken grinned. “It would go great, don't you think? Iori, go run and grab it, would you?”

The small boy nodded, and along with Armadimon, retreated to the main hall of the large building. Vamdemon looked back and forth from Ken to Angemon, trying to figure out what they were planning. Iori returned to the room with something clutched behind his back. Slowly he brought it forward and presented it before Vamdemon. It was a red hat with white trimming and a white puffball at the tip.

“...what is that?”

“It's a Santa hat!” Mimi exclaimed and laughed.

“Santa? Oh! That fat man with the presents?” Vamdemon recalled, having just learned the tale a few hours ago.

“That's right.” Ken chuckled. “And his hat will go right along with your outfit there.”

“...no way.”

“We'll vote then, to make it fair.” Ken said. “All in favor of adding the hat to Myotismon's attire say 'I'!”

The decision was unanimous and the red cap was shoved over Vamdemon's head, flattening his bangs against his face. “I hate hats.” He complained. “Oh, is Koushiro here?”

“Yeah, he's in the other room, on his computer, as usual.” Iori said.

“Excellent. Can you bring me to him?”

“Uh,” Iori started, and glanced towards Angemon, who shrugged. “Alright, follow me.”

The two exited the room, leaving the rest of the small circle wondering what Koushiro could possibly be needed for. Slowly the group dispersed and rest of the children arrived. Some were talking idly while others played group games of cards and consoles. Vamdemon had finished whatever it was he had inquired about and was sitting lazily in the kitchen of the hall, eying the various snacks and candies spread upon the long table indecisively.

From behind him, another person approached. “What are you doing in here all alone? Don't you want to play a game?”

“What could I play, I've only got one usable arm.” He said tiredly.

“So? You could play a cards with Yamato, Taichi, and Daisuke.”

“They are playing strip poker.” He stated, looking at the girl incredulously.

“Point taken.” She laughed. “But you look so sad in here. Aren't you having a good time?” Sora asked quietly.

“I am...I guess...” Vamdemon admitted, and stood from his chair to cross to her position. “But it doesn't feel right. I feel so out of place amongst you all. The happiness and joy that comes from your beings clashes with the things I have experienced.”

“That's why today you can start anew. That's one of the principals of Christmas you know, repenting for past sins and celebrating the birth of a man that is said to be the most forgiving of all.”

“I guess so, but it is still difficult. I feel like no matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, I can never make up for what I have done...”

“You are doing fine.” She said gently “I applaud you for the efforts you have made thus far. Just push a little more and you'll have it. I'm going to go have some more cookies before Daisuke eats them all. You should grab some too, you might like them.” She smiled and walked off towards the edge of the kitchen to make a plate.

Vamdemon nodded and moved to follow. “Wait.” Angemon said from a spot behind the doorway, grabbing hold of Vamdemon's arm and catching him off guard. He turned his head slightly and looked at him as Sora slipped away back to the main hall.

“What?” He asked, rather perturbed at the interruption and slightly panicked at being cornered alone.

The angel frowned. “You know what.” He said, and paused, looking Vamdemon squarely in the eye. “You haven't kept your promise to me.”

“I have so.” Vamdemon argued and tried unsuccessfully to jerk his arm away. “I've talked to you when I was upset, haven't I? Yesterday, and the day before that...”

“But that wasn't all that you promised.” Angemon said and moved closer to him. “You promised me that you would let me know when you were experiencing new emotions...not only unease...”

“I don't know what your talking about...” Vamdemon said quietly. He tried to back away but was pinned rather roughly against the frame of the doorway.

“I've been talking to the children, you know. Keeping up with you, which you should have expected, because I said I would be, and I've learned a few things from Koushiro, Sora, and Hikari.”

Vamdemon paled slightly and swallowed a lump in his throat, causing Angemon to smile weakly. “Koushiro has told me the details of what you need to do to fix your predicament, which you somehow managed to keep from me, and Sora has informed me that you have completed step one. Hikari has helped me come to this conclusion...”

“I-” He tried to defend himself but was interrupted.

“Do not lie to me, Myotismon.” Angemon said rather harshly, voice low. “Because I know that the things I say are rooted in fact, and I will not appreciate being lied to yet again.”

“I...”

“ I want to know...” He prodded, and glanced downwards momentary. “When you were going to tell me that you are in love with me.”

“I...I...” Vamdemon paused and drew in a breath, knowing that resistance would be futile in this situation, and spoke the truth. “I wasn't. I didn't want you to know. You found out because...”

“Hikari told me last night of her suspicions.”

'Suspicions! I could have denied it...' Vamdemon shut his eyes and shivered slightly, cursing the child of light as many ways as he knew in his mind. With a start he drew back fearfully when Angemon laid his other hand on his shoulder.

“Why do you flinch..?” He asked worriedly.

“Aren't you going to...punish me?” Vamdemon opened his eyes hesitantly and Angemon stared at him strangely.

“Why would I punish you?” Vamdemon turned his gaze away and said nothing in reply. Angemon shook his head as if dazed. “Myotismon, it would be wrong to put blame on you or harm you for the yearnings of the involuntary muscle known as the heart. You can't control who you fall in love with.”
Vamdemon looked at him again, confusion evident in his features. “Now, you will explain things to me. Why you have told me so much of your uneasy emotions but were not going to divulge what you felt for me?”

“...I didn't want to get in the way...” Vamdemon said, voice a whisper.

“Get in the way of what?”

“Everything...” He said nervously. “I didn't want to interfere with...with Takeru...or Tailmon...”

Angemon smiled slightly. “What makes you think that I'm interested in Tailmon?”

Vamdemon stared at him. “I just assumed...”

“Ah, but assuming is never a good thing, now is it?” Angemon said wryly. “I thought you would have learned that by now, and even if I were interested in her, it would do me no good, because I fear she is incapable of loving again unless she can move on from Wizarmon's death...”

“...but Takeru...the bond between human and digimon...”

“Is as much in tact if that digimon is in a relationship as it would be if he weren't. Any other excuses?”

“I didn't want to face rejection.” He said finally. “All my life I have been turned away...by my family...by society...and I need this love thing to work. I want to be a digimon again, more than anything else, so I can fight that monster which made me what I am. I wanted to make sure I invest my time in someone that has the ability to care about me in return...”

“I thought you wanted me to trust you?”

“I do...” He muttered. “I do want you to trust me... I just...didn't think it would be a big deal if I hid this one thing little thing from you.”

“Little?” Angemon almost yelled. “You call this little, Myotismon? You have a history of doing rash things when your emotions are involved. You can't handle keeping this sort of thing bottled up inside of you! What if Hikari hadn't guessed, and hadn't told me? Would you have gone and hurt yourself again?! What if you can't find anyone else because you aren't given the chance to get out and look? Would you have decided that you wanted to die again?!”

“I-”

“Do you understand what I am telling you? Do you understand why I am angry, why I am not going easy on you? What you did last time upset me greatly, Myotismon, as did this evasion of yours after you promised to tell me everything that was bothering you. I don't want to see you hurt again.”

“I understand, and I am sorry...” He whispered, an uneasy tear rolling down his left cheek. Angemon's gaze softened at the display of emotion. “I don't know what to do anymore... I don't know when to open my mouth or when to keep quiet... What I am experiencing here is different than anything I've ever been through before.”

“I will forgive you, but this is your last chance... Three strikes and your out, as the humans say.”

“Was it obvious to everyone but me?” Vamdemon wondered. “It seems like everyone is finding out as lately...”

Angemon laughed slightly, trying to shed the anger that had boiled inside of him earlier. “After Hikari suggested it, it became so. The signs were there...you've been showing them during the entirety of the two weeks you've been here, long before I stopped to consider what they might be. It was just a matter of interpreting them, but I don't think many of the others have noticed.”

“Signs!” Vamdemon scowled. “Like what? I only ever told Sora what I was feeling, and I didn't say who, so what did I do that was so obvious?!”

“Lets see... You obeyed me from that first time in the mall, you are calmer when I am around compared to when I am not, how you always seem to want to make me happy, how you are most happy yourself around me, how I am able to garner information from you when none of the others can, how I seem to drive your nightmares away...”

“You're an angel, I was a vampire... I obeyed you because I was afraid of you.”

“It was more than that. Your fear melted away as soon as I mentioned food. I could feel it in your body – you relaxed quite quickly. Hikari said you were reared among angels, so you can't completely fear us. In fact, it just makes more sense of your emotions in that children tend to be attracted to those who are like their parents. Your subconscious made you behave the way you did around me. And why did you think you would be rejected?”

Vamdemon stared at him. “I...assumed... Assuming is never a good thing...”

Angemon smiled. “You're finally getting it.”

“So what are you saying?” Vamdemon asked tentatively. “Your riddles make my brain hurt, and I'm not in the mood to be toyed with right now...”

“I am saying...that I wouldn't mind being in a relationship with you, especially if it will benefit the children.”

Vamdemon's body slackened slightly. The only thing that kept him from falling to the ground was the wall he leaned against.

“I have thought about this all night. At first I was kind of distant, from myself, from my thoughts. I couldn't believe what I was told, and I was having trouble coming to grips with the burden, no, thats the wrong word, the incredibly important task that had been placed upon me. I came to understand that I was the best candidate, by far, after all, the other digimon aren't even human shaped, not that that matters, but... Furthermore, I am the only one that is aware the extent the abuse you have endured went to, and I fear most wouldn't be as understanding about the situation and your resulting fear. Then I needed to think about if I could do for you what is required. I had never really thought about love and relationships before. I think it was because I was always in the child level. I always understood things better than others then, but I feel like I wasn't as aware of my own emotions and desires until I evolved for an extended period of time and experienced them. I knew you would be there, at the mall, but when I saw you I froze with an unknown feeling even to myself. I didn't understand then what that strange attraction was, but I think it was the beginning of love. It would certainly explain my obsession with keeping you safe, content, as well as my willingness to spend my 'swindled' money on you. The more I thought about that, the more I felt like it would be the right thing to do; to go along with your desires and help you, myself, and the children all at once.” Angemon paused and wrapped his arms around Vamdemon. “Are you feeling alright? You look ill.”

“I'm...fine...” He pushed out. Angemon smiled and leaned forward. Blue eyes met each other as a gentle kiss was planted on Vamdemon's lips.

“Now you look even worse.” The angel said with a laugh, gazing at Vamdemon, whose body was slackened and unresponsive. He pulled away and snaked an arm around his waist, leading him through the doorway to the main hall. “You should sit down before you pass out.”

“I take it then...that your decision...was to pursue this?” Vamdemon asked weakly.

“Obviously.” Angemon said, pouring some fruit punch and placing in front of the pale man. “Drink.”

Vamdemon sighed but did so. The liquid felt refreshing as it traveled to his stomach and slowly he began to regain color.

“If I know you well enough, and I believe that I do, then you aren't going to want the children aware of this?”

“No way.” He said quickly. “Sora maybe, but only because I promised her I would tell her when I worked things out. I don't want to deal with the rest of them knowing.”

“And that is probably for the best. Humans don't approve much of this type of relationship, as you saw at the mall.”

Vamdemon nodded tentatively and slumped against the table. “Everything I do manages to upset someone...”

“Don't worry about it. Humans are creatures separate from us. You shouldn't let their beliefs upset you, especially since Digimon are governed by different biological rules than creatures that live on Earth.”

“You know, you can come off as awfully cold sometimes.”

“Only when I want to be. Hmm, we will have to find a way to hide our relationship from Takeru...”

“Eh?”

“A lock for your door ought to do it... That way he won't be able to come in the bedroom and see us together.”

“I'm staying with you?”

“I don't see any other way a relationship would work.” Angemon laughed slightly. “And besides, I want to keep an eye on you so you can't hide anything from me again. It should be simple enough to convince him that I'll be in with you to watch over you, because that is a real reason. He knows how upset I was when you tried to kill yourself.”

“About that...” Vamdemon muttered and stared Angemon in the eyes.

“Are you glad now that I saved you? You said that night that I shouldn't have wasted my time.” He asked.

“Yes... I wasn't exactly thinking straight...”

“That was apparent.”

“They were bad memories...” Vamdemon said quietly. “I don't know why, but ever since I was captured by Hikari and Koushiro I've been having nightmares. Though they weren't always about the death of my partner, they usually were, and they were always the most vivid. The only time I ever escaped it was around you, but I couldn't say something like that... I'm not even sure if the reason you were able to protect me was a result of love, since I had no clue what I was feeling then. Even Tailmon said this...that you are naturally calming. You are a special digimon in that aspect, but I digress... That night was the result of a culmination of days of nightmares, unhappy thoughts of being trapped in a humans body, and that horrid movie your family was watching. It reminded me far to much of that day...”

“Sweeney Todd reminds you of your partners death?”

“Yeah...he was stabbed in the throat...”

Angemon remained quiet for a few seconds as he processed the information. He knew that whatever Vamdemon had been having nightmares of must have been horrid, and he knew it involved murder, but he never thought it might be so violent. “I'm sorry.”

“It was long ago.” Vamdemon muttered and shook his head.

“That's what you were going to do, wasn't it...” Angemon said slowly. “Towards the end.”

“Yeah... But let's save this for later...so everyone can hear. I don't want to speak of it twice.”

“I understand.” Angemon nodded and turned to the doorway. The boys were in the other room playing various interactive video games while the girls were gathered in a small circle and were talking amongst themselves. A bout of laughter erupted and died down quickly. Sora and Hikari stood and headed towards their position.

“Aw man!” Hikari complained. “Daisuke ate them all!?”

“Seriously?” Sora wondered and peered from around Hikari. “Well, we can't prove it was him. I wouldn't be surprised if Taichi took part in it as well. It's alright though, I hid some earlier.”

“Really?” Hikari laughed. “That was smart!”

“I know.” Sora beamed and reached into a cupboard and pulled out a covered plate. She set it upon the table and removed the covering. Upon the plate sat cookies of various flavors. All of them, of course, appeared delicious.

Angemon smiled and reached for some that were drizzled with chocolate. “This is my heaven.” He stated and ate the sweet and chewy cookie with bliss. Grabbing more he shoved them in Vamdemon's direction, who accepted them with slight disdain at the digimon's giddy behavior.

“And what are you boys up to?” Hikari wondered.

“I'm not a boy.” Vamdemon grumbled as he stuffed a cookie into his mouth.

“Oh?” Hikari said with a raised eyebrow. He stared at her for a few seconds before understanding her reaction.

“Aargh, not like that, brat! You know what I mean!”

“I don't know, you do look kind of girly with that long hair.”

“Hikari...” He pleaded and rubbed his head. “I'm not in the mood.”

“You're no fun.” She pouted.

“I'm exhausted, Child.” He defended.

“And why's that.”

“None of your business.”

“Cut it out.” Angemon said pleasantly, the cookie's effect still in place. “She knows, there's no reason to hide it.”

“But-”

“And you said yourself that Sora could know.”

“Ugh, you're going to spread it across the whole group, I just know it.” Vamdemon glowered with frustration. “Are you sadistic, by any chance? Because you sure do enjoy causing me misery.”

“Myo, Hikari already knows.”

“She had a lucky guess, that doesn't count.” He grumbled.

“Whether she guessed or not, she knows.” Angemon said with amusement.

“Ah, so that's what you were talking about. You weren't too hard on him, were you? You promised you would be gentle.” Hikari said.

“I was.” Angemon replied. “I only yelled a little.”

“That's good... So what happened?”

“It is being pursued.”

Hikari smiled wide. “Really! That's great! I'm happy for you Myo!”

“Umm, what's going on? I'm a little lost...” Sora spoke up.

“Er...I promised you that I would tell you when I made sense of my love interest.” Vamdemon said quietly, having shrunk downwards into his chair. “Well, it was just clarified...”

She watched him for a few seconds before the realization dawned upon her. “Angemon?” Vamdemon nodded his head and let out a frustrated breath. “No one else is to know.”

“Don't worry, your secret is safe with me.” She said with a smile and laughed. “Boy am I glad we didn't go through the list then, Angemon here would have been at the very bottom. We would have been sitting there for minutes!”

“I'm sorry.”

“Oh, no, there is nothing to be sorry about. There's nothing wrong with being different, Myotismon.”

“Don't preach to me.”

“You were the one who was talking all angsty!”

“Yeah, you're impossible.” Hikari backed her.

“You're impossible.” He retorted uncreatively. “Go away and leave us alone.”

“Oh, what for? You want to have some private time?” Hikari asked suggestively.

“Brat! OUT!” Vamdemon yelled and the two girls scurried off.

Angemon shook his head in amazement. “I don't understand how you manage to take every good thing and twist it around. What would be so terrible about 'private' time, as Hikari put it?”

Vamdemon stared at her with terror. “Do you know what she was insinuating?!”

“Yes. Yes I do.” Angemon stated.

“Then you should know why that isn't an option!”

“It will have to be if you plan on being a digimon again.”

“I know that.” Vamdemon said lowly. “And I intend to put it off as long as I can without jeapordizing their lives.”

“I thought you wanted to return to normal as soon as possible?”

“Not since I found out what I have to do...”

“Vamdemon, I won't hurt you.”

“I know that, but... It won't be so easy to forget that every other time I experienced sex it was in conjunction with immense pain and torture.”

“I understand that. As long as you try your best that is all that matters.”

“Whatever. I'm hungry, when is the food?”

Angemon shook his head and prodded Vamdemon forwards. “Alright, it should be here soon. We'll wait in the dining hall then. They left the room and crossed the threshold into the room where a number of other children were already seated and waiting as well; most of them engrossed in conversation. Vamdemon took a seat beside Ken, and Angemon beside him. After a few minutes Takeru seated beside his partner and the hall filled up with the rest of the kids. Finally, the food was brought in and unveiled...

The variety was huge. Fish, Turkey, Ham, potatoes, yams, salad, fruit, and more. There wasn't much talk as everyone dug into the long awaited feast. After the gorging, the empty dishes were left on the table to be cleaned at a later time and everyone shuffled into a large, carpeted room to form a circle on the floor with their respective partners to their left. Spread on a couch behind Takeru and Hikari was Vamdemon, who couldn't be bothered to dirty himself on the ground.

“So, what are we all going to do?” Taichi wondered.

“How about spin the bottle?” Veemon suggested happily and glanced at Tailmon, who let out a frustrated sigh.

“Yeah, that's a great idea!” Daisuke supported loudly.

“I don't think so...” Hikari muttered and leaned towards Takeru jokingly.

“Hey, it's cliché as hell, but what about truth or dare?” Yamato wondered.

“Truth or dare?” Taichi repeated, thinking about the suggestion.

“That sounds like a good idea, but there is so many of us...” Sora said, surveying the group.

“We can put the names in a hat,” Hikari suggested, leaning towards the game. “So its easier for someone to have a turn.”

“That's a good idea, and then whoever last went chooses the next name and the next question.”

“Yeah!” Hikari beamed. “So is everyone up to it?”

“That depends what this game entails.” Vamdemon muttered tiredly and popped open an eye.

“It's really simple.” Ken said. “Someone will start the game by selecting a name. That person then says truth or dare, like the name of the game suggests, and depending on what they choose either a question will be asked that must be answered truthfully or a challenge will be put forth that must be completed.”

“It sounds like something I should fear.” Vamdemon stated.

Hikari laughed. “Its a game everyone fears but its really fun. Are you in? We'll go easy on you, right guys?”

He sighed in defeat, realizing the girl would get on him if he didn't comply. “If it will make you happy...”

“Great!” She exclaimed. “Everyone else?”

The group nodded their heads in agreement. “So how many people are playing?” Miyako wondered. “There are twelve of us chosen kids, so that means there are twelve digimon, and then there's Myotismon, so that makes twenty-five.”

“That's a lot of players...” Iori said quietly. “Will it work like that?”

“Sure it can.” Mimi piped up. “We'll play in teams with our partners.”

“Does that mean I'm off the hook?” Vamdemon asked.

“Of course not.” Hikari said smugly. “You can be on my team.”

“Umm...no.”

Hikari rolled her eyes. “Takeru's then?”

“Nuh uh.” The boy muttered in protest.

“Oh come on, boys.” Miyako said whilst shaking her head.

Hikari muttered. “You're playing with me, so deal with it.”

“Yeah, deal with it.” Tailmon repeated with a laugh and jumped on top of him. He turned and glared at her; a look she returned in the typical way of a cat.

Turning away, he buried his face into the couch. “I hate you all.”

“Always so negative.” Angemon muttered and sat up straight. “Anyway, there needs be more rules.”

“Huh? Why's that?” Daisuke asked.

Angemon shut his eyes for a moment and glanced around. “Because you are all children, and I don't want any inappropriate activity to occur.”

“Kill joy.” Yamato muttered.

“Does that mean no French kissing?” Taichi teased, knowing the angel wouldn't appreciate the humor.

“Absolutely not.”

Sora suggested. “How about this – you can decide if something is appropriate as we go along?”

“...that is fine.”

“Great, then let's get started!” Mimi exclaimed. “Who wants to go first?”

“Wait up, Veemon's not done with the names yet.” Daisuke said.

“Come on, Veemon, hurry up.” Armadimon pushed.

“I'm going as fast as I can...” Veemon said, cutting the final strips of paper. “There we go, all done.” He placed the pieces with the names into a bowl and started to shake it. “First up is...Jyou and Gomamon!”

“Wonderful...” Jyou muttered and adjusted his glasses.

“Don't worry, buddy, we'll be fine.” Gomamon said happily. “We'll take dare!”

“No we won't!” Jyou argued.

“Yep yep! Dare!” Gomamon repeated and Veemon smiled impishly at Daisuke.

Break

The game had lasted for almost two hours. There were a lot of players, after all. After the game was the opening of presents. Wrapping paper littered the floor, though some had been arranged into larger mounds. The presents, of course, were put to the side in obviously neater piles.

“That was fun.” Mimi said with a yawn.

“And it passed a lot of time.” Palmon said.

“You know what that means.” Angemon said to Vamdemon, who nodded slowly. He pushed himself up and walked past the angel to the floor to sit cross legged on the ground. The children and their digimon had shifted their full circle to a half circle that he had become the center of. Closing his eyes, he thought of all the trials he had been through just to be in this room, and letting out a held breath of air, he opened his eyes and began to speak.

“Two weeks.” He said slowly. “It has been two weeks since the day I was captured by Hikari. At that time I feared more than anything that I would be killed, but I was not. I never did thank you for that...so I will do so now.” He paused and bowed his head. “Thank you. Your kind, merciful actions were not expected”

“If you were afraid we would kill you, why did you try to do it yourself?” Mimi asked softly and Takeru's eyes grew wide with anticipation.

“Ah...” Vamdemon stuttered as a vision flashed through his mind and his resolve momentarily faltered. He brought his hand to the stone by his chest and focused for a few seconds as Angemon's hand was placed with care upon his shoulder. “Alright. I promised that I would spill my secrets tonight, so I will, starting with Mimi's question. If any of you has one, a question that is, please, feel free to interrupt me and ask it. So....you all know that I hold a tag and crest. They once belonged to a human child, like yourselves. His name was Edward, and he was my partner.”

“Yeah, so? What does that have to do with the question?” Takeru interjected.

Vamdemon turned slightly to stare at the rude boy. “I'm getting there... He...we...weren't well liked by the other children, and especially by Simon, who was...I suppose...the leader figure of the group. He felt that we dragged them down, kept him and the others from becoming as powerful as they could, and sought to remove the problem. My partner was killed by his. Murdered before my eyes. It is of this that I have been dreaming tirelessly of. The night I was at your house...” He nodded towards Takeru. “... That movie intensified the negative emotions I was feeling to a point that I truly believed that death would be the only way to quell the pain. In a daze I inflicted upon myself and in the same order the wounds my partner had sustained years ago... If Angemon hadn't stopped me I would have slit my throat and it would have been all over...”

“So it was justified.” Hikari said quietly, and glanced and Takeru.

“No.” Vamdemon muttered and shook his head. “There is no justification for an act of cowardice. I was a fool in choosing not to seek help from any of you, and the bearers of hope especially because they were in the room next to mine. My actions that night have disgraced me, but humans have a saying that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I feel that from that time my resolve to fix my predicament has grown stronger. I've been through many phases while I've lived amongst you – fear, anger, uncertainty, self loathing, hatred, and even happiness.”

“Love...” Sora whispered to herself, disappointed he hadn't acknowledged it.

“You all, well...most of you...have gone out of your way to make me happy. I was unsure of what to think or feel at first, but I will no longer run from the yearnings my heart. I am thankful...grateful...and even happy. I feel as if I've finally found the home my heart has been searching for. It is with all of you, even if you were once my enemy. Thus, I intend to fight as hard as I can to ensure I become a digimon again and fight by your sides, to defend you all from the monster that has wronged us both.”

“Which is..?” Angemon prodded, catching his hesitance.

“...Piemon.”

Takeru stared at Vamdemon even harder. “That's it? That's the name we've been waiting to hear? That's who this big bad enemy we have to face is? We've beaten him before.”

“And you had beaten me before as well, but I managed to come back. You threw him into a gate,” He rose his arms as if to summon the attack, causing most of the children to grow confused. “that you are unsure of how it operates. I don't know if he survived or was reborn and regained power, but he exists and found me with the digital guardians. Angered, he cast a powerful spell on me in the hopes that you children would kill me not knowing that I was human and mortal.”

“So why hasn't he attacked us yet?” Taichi asked.

“He wasn't planning on making the same mistake twice. Last time you fought him and the other dark masters went after you smugly. He didn't anticipate at all that you would be able to defeat them, so he was going to grow powerful in secret and attack without warning at the height of his power. He intended the waiting period to be just a few months, but the magic he used nearly killed him, and he needed to start gaining power over again. Though my humanity is a nuisance to us all, it gives us a temporary advantage because he thinks I am dead. During the next few months, you digimon need to get very powerful, very fast. You must learn to hold a level above child, and you all must be able to achieve perfect evolution.” The small creatures stared up at him in astonishment that they must do such a thing. “I know it sounds frightening, but Piemon is after power greater than ultimate, akin to myself as BelialVamdemon, but even more powerful. Remember too that I had used the power of a human to evolve. He is doing the same thing by drawing on the power of his own human partner. If we plan to beat him it will be necessary. Tailmon,Angemon, and I can help train you in that aspect. So...any questions?”

“Who are the digital guardians?” Mimi asked.

“What were the other crests, digimon, and humans from your time?” Koushiro and Miyako exclaimed.

“How do you know Heaven's Gate?” Takeru inquired.

Vamdemon stared at them, momentarily overwhelmed at the amount of questions. Hesitantly he took a sip of water and worked on the answers. “The digital guardians are creatures, neither human or digimon, that sometimes work alongside the gods and are responsible for selecting chosen ones and protecting the digital world. Sometimes they are created in an instance of prolonged exposure to data, such as the case was with Yukio...”

“Yukio...” Iori whispered. “Oikawa?”

“Yes...Oikawa. I survived inside of him for three years, and when I left, his body couldn't handle the loss of data. Unwilling to die, he became a digital guardian and helped Gennai heal me after I fell by your doings. Gennai, of course, knew of my heritage, having selected me as part of that original horrid group...”

“Oikawa was chosen...so...was he supposed to be part of your group?” Iori asked.

“My group proceeded what his would have been by many years, so no... The whole thing failed for him because your grandfather interfered. Hiroki and Yukio were chosen because of their deep bond and love for one another-”

“Love?” The boy whispered.

Vamdemon paused. “Yes, child, love. Why is it that concept seems so hard for your species to grasp? Anyway...those two were meant to unify and cleanse the digital world of my generations wrong doings, but that fell through, so Yukio was left as basically one half of a whole, and well, you know the rest...” He stopped for a few seconds and watched the troubled look on Iori's face before continuing. “My generation was made of five children. Simon, Rachel, Matthew, Jonathan, and Edward. The digimon, as you know them...were Piemon, LadyDevimon, MetalSeadramon, Pinocchimon, and myself.”

“Our enemies...” Taichi said and Vamdemon muttered somberly.

“The crests were cruelty, hatred, malice, illusion, and darkness.”

“Why are they all bad traits?”

“The idea was that we would embody, take on, the traits which cause trouble in the digital world, and was supposed to prevent other digimon from using them. It worked in that aspect, but Piemon became corrupt, and the others followed soon thereafter...”

“It was a good theory.” Koushiro said.

“Yes, but I wish it had been better tested before it was put into effect. As for how I know Heavens Gate... I am...or was...part angel.”

“What!?” Was the unison reply of all but Hikari and Angemon. He grimaced slightly at the prospect of explaining.

“Yes, part angel, but that's the not the start of it. I was born not from an egg, but like a human, from the womb of my mother. That bit wasn't unheard of, as it had happened before in the digital world, but still I wasn't at the child level. I was born a perfect level Vamdemon, despite both my parents being angels. Naturally, it caused an uproar, and genetic testing was done, but it only proved that my mother was faithful and the man she was married to was indeed my father. The only explanation is that my data was coded wrong during development, much like a mutation in the DNA of a human child... I was Vamdemon, but I had angelic traits, such as blue eyes and long blond hair. I was able to be out in the sun for decent spurts of time and was also able to use their attacks...Heavens Gate, Heavens Knuckle...I knew them in addition to Bloody Stream and Night Raid.”

“Freaky.” Koushiro said. “Things must have been hard.”

“I guess so. I was young, so I didn't know better, but everyone feared me. Some thought I was a gift from the gods, meant to unite the species, but most just saw me as a filthy demon and a sign of destruction. I wasn't allowed to attend school for the longest time, so I spent most of it with my mother at home doing handiwork. Then, when I did go to school, the students hated me because I learned quicker than they did. They would pick fights with me knowing I was at a disadvantage and couldn't fight back very well, and often they would take my things and if they didn't destroy it they would put it somewhere I couldn't reach. They treated me like I was unimportant, a trend that carried along with me to the chosen ones.”

“Very interesting.” Hikari said. “Makes something make a lot more sense.”

“Shut up, Hikari.” He said with a glare.

“Can you tell us...what your partner was like?” Tailmon asked softly and Vamdemon turned towards her uneasily. “If you are comfortable with it... I've seen a bit of him and I'm rather curious...he seemed like a nice boy.”

Fighting with conflicting emotions, Vamdemon spoke. “He was...far too nice. It was his downfall, I would say... What exactly do you want to know about him?”

“Anything that you're willing to part with. If it makes you more comfortable you can talk about the others as well...”

“Alright...well... Simon was wasn't a very good boy. Even from the beginning, when I met him during an attack on a village he had an attitude about him that unnerved me. He held a degree of control over the others I had never before witnessed. Rachel was his girl friend... She wasn't bad, really, but she held grudges like you wouldn't imagine. He didn't give her much freedom, not that she really complained, but he always held her back when she tried to do something kind. Jonathan was odd...he was a very hyper boy, but like Rachel, he wasn't a bad person. Matthew was quiet. Very quiet. It took a lot of prodding to get him to say anything, even when Pinocchimon was involved. The two were close though, and I guess they learned to communicate well without words... Oh, Piemon was Simon's partner, LadyDevimon was Rachel's and usually existed as Lilithmon, MetalSeadramon, who usually stayed at child level, was Jonathan's, and as I just said, Pinocchimon's was Matthew. As you know, Edward was mine. Edward...he was a good boy. If I had to compare him to one of you it would be to Yamato. He had a cool temperament and was worried about the well being of the others, although Simon never did let him help out, not that he could do much before we met. He was further forced to rely on the others because he was an albino. That means that he lacked pigment in his body... His hair was long and white, his eyes were a clear, light blue, and his skin was as pale as mine. Because of his condition he couldn't see very well. His glasses were huge, since people like him have terrible vision, but he never complained. I guess he was just happy to be alive... We were a good pair really...neither of us could be in the sun for too long and darkness was fitting for our being...I miss him.” He paused and looked sad for a moment. “But that is just another reason for me to work as hard as I can to get strong again. I will avenge his death.”

“What happened to the other kids?” Koushiro asked after a pause. “Are they still alive?”

“That I am unsure of. I know Simon is in some form, because Piemon is drawing on his energy to become powerful.. The others may be being used in a similar fashion, but I never saw them killed... The last I can remember of them is a spell being cast to put them into some sort of ageless state. Why, I do not know, since the others chose not to use their energy in the fashion Piemon did, but that is what was done with them.”

“Wait...the others chose not to do the same as Piemon...” Taichi repeated. “Are you saying they are alive too?”

“Well...yes, they are alive as well, but they aren't nearly as powerful as they once were. I'm not even sure if Piemon will be making use of them the same way he did before. They are slowly breaking away from his influence. I would like to...if possible...try and rescue them.”

“Huh?”

“They were my friends, at one point, before Piemon and them became corrupted. I was freed from Piemon's control, so I believe it is possible to free them as well. I'd like to try, at the very least, and if it isn't possible, then... Then they can be destroyed.”

“Fair enough.” Taichi said. “But what do you mean when you say corrupted? What caused that?”

“Our enemies in the digital world were generally random digimon that were causing an uproar, but at one point we had to fight Apocalymon. I'm not sure if it was the one you faced, most likely it was, but that isn't what matters. The creature used some sort of scratch attack on Piemon during the battle. We didn't think much of it at the time, since we won soon thereafter, but after a few weeks he began to change. His hatred and anger began to boil over and he became more and more like Simon. He had become corrupted by whatever was planted inside of him, and had began to spread the virus to the others. He didn't give it to me for a long time, because he thought its power would be wasted inside of me, but when torture and abuse stopped working to keep me in line he felt he had no choice and thus you children were called upon to try and put an end to us.” Vamdemon yawned and stretched slightly. “So...was that enough? Can I stop now?”

“Yeah, of course. That was plenty of information, thank you.” Taichi stated with a nod.

“That means we can finally do what I've been waiting for.” Yamato said and headed towards another room.

“What's that?” Takeru asked grumpily.

“He's going to sing.” Angemon said, and addressed the other children. “Takeru already knows this, but he's really good.”

:Ooh, what song?” Mimi wondered.

“Dust in the Wind.” Yamato said, returning with the guitar. He sat down and began to play, and the night arrived with the peaceful melody.

Break

Authors Note – Well that was painful. I'm never doing that long a chapter again >_<. But yeah, read and review please, since this took me forever! Hope I answered all your questions, and the next installment's prologue will be posted up in a day or two!