Adult-FanFiction.org : Anime

Fortuna	By : Kali Category: Digimon > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 10779 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon: Digital Monsters, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
Kali
Notes:� Hey all!�
I�m still alive!� I just took a
month off to get my papers and various class-related projects out of the way.� But now that I only have one paper and a
presentation left, then finals, I�m feeling a little more relaxed and ready to
write!� So, here�s the next installment.

Warnings:� Yaoi, adult language,
adult situations, and probably WAFF enough to give one cavities.

Disclaimer:� *checks*� Nope.� Still don�t own it!� Go jump in a swamp, lawyers.

Pairings:� Taito!�
*squeals*�
And DaiKen, Takari,
and mentioning of Joe/Mimi, Izzy/Miyako.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 05

�� As Daisuke once
wisely claimed: when in doubt, deny, deny, deny.

�� I think its
just been such a weird day, that�s all.��
I replied to his subtle question of �what the hell is up with you
lately?�� His eyebrow went up.� �Everything�s off, you know?�

�� There was a pregnant pause of
silence behind me, and I winced, hastily whirling around with a rather panicky,
apologetic expression on my face.�
�Oh!� Tai, man that was stupid of
me!� I�m sorry, I��

�� He actually laughed at me.� Well, okay, it was more of a humorous
chuckle, but still.� He leaned against
the wall by the door, his arms full of his pajamas.� �It�s okay,
Yama.� Honest.� I do know what you meant and not�well, not
me.� I was just trying to decide if I buy
that lame excuse or not.� You�re not
easily flustered, and lately that�s exactly what you have been.�

�� I sighed, dropping down to my bed in
relief.� Partly.� At least I hadn�t inadvertently stuck both
feet in my mouth.� Unfortunately, I
wasn�t as convincing as I wanted to be.�
That�s the last time I take Daisuke�s advice.� �Really, Tai.� There�s nothing weird going on.� I wasn�t feeling so well today, and I�ve been
worrying about you and Hikari, and�the usual teenaged angst crap, I
guess.�� There.� Maybe that would put him off my trail.

�� Taichi, gave me a curious look, then shrugged.� �I�ll
be right back.� We�ll talk more when I�m
not leaving a wet spot on your floor.��
He disappeared out the door and I blinked, rubbing at my face to try and
get rid of the heat turning my face red yet again.� While Taichi was gone I hurried to get into
the pajama bottoms I would wear to bed.

�� I cursed when I had them on,
though.� They were way too small for me,
since the last time I�d worn them had probably been at least a couple of years
ago.� Shit!� What was I going to do now?� I decided to go immediately the next day to
find some pajamas.

�� Uh�Yama?� I think you need new pajamas.�� Taichi�s amused voice made me scowl.

�� Yeah, thanks.� Hadn�t noticed.�� I growled flatly and peeled them off.� �Crap.�

�� He snickered again and shook his
head.� �Want to borrow a pair of my
jogging pants?� They might be a little
big on you, but at least they won�t cut off your circulation.� �He tossed a pair of black sweat pants at me
and I obediently put them on.

�� Thanks.� I�ll have to go buy something else
tomorrow.�� I stood and ran my fingers
through my air, pulling the covers on my bed back and slipping between the
sheets.� Taichi flopped down on the futon
the floor.

�� Yeah.� So this �teenage angst crap� you
mentioned...what�s that about?� Something
I could help with?�� Taichi asked,
tilting his head inquiringly.

�� Nah.� It�ll go away eventually.�� Probably not, but he didn�t need to know I
was lying through my teeth.� �Mostly I�m
worried about you and your sister.�

�� Taichi laid
on his back, tucking his arms under his head on the pillow.� �Hikari will be fine.� I�ll do everything I can to make sure of it.�

�� Yeah, but what
about you?�� I asked softly,
tucking my pillow under my head so I could lie on my side and see him.� �Tai�what she
said�she was angry and irrational.� I
don�t think she really meant it.� When
she cools off and realizes what she�s done, I�m sure��

�� No, Yama.�� Taichi halted my attempts to make things seem
fixable.� �I know her.� She meant it.�
I�can�t say I want to go back anyway.�
I haven�t felt at home there since�the last time we were in the Digital
World finishing what we started against Myotismon.�

�� How do you mean?�

�� It didn�t feel like I belonged
there anymore.� I�m still trying to
figure that out.�

�� Well, I think we all went through
that somewhat after we got back.�� I
reasoned, thinking about it.� �I
felt...disjointed, like I didn�t quite fit in with everyone else around
me.�� I admitted slowly.� Taichi turned his head to look at me with
interest and recognition.

�� Did it ever go away?�

�� Not really.� It�s still there, but it has�lessened a lot
over time.�� I shrugged.� �I asked Izzy once
about it.� He said it isn�t a strange
occurrence.� I guess it happens to
soldiers frequently after long and violent conflicts.� Izzy gave me the
example of WWI when he told me about it.�

�� Really?� That sounds right, if you think about it.�� Taichi nodded, looking around somewhat
relieved that he hadn�t been slowly losing his mind without a reason.
�Especially us older kids, and our siblings.� We were just kids, and we were frequently
fighting life and death battles for years.�

�� Yeah.� Exactly.� Izzy said when
those surviving soldiers in WWI went home, they had a
lot of trouble adjusting to regular, peaceful lives.� Many didn�t adjust and went crazy.�

�� Taichi shivered.� �That�s freaky.� How is it that we�re not insane?�

�� Probably because
we were all so young.� Kids adjust
easier to changes in lifestyles than adults do.�
Partly because our lives are already always shifting with just growing
up, but also partly because sometimes we don�t know we�re supposed to be upset
or depressed or whatever.� Kids tend to
look at the world in a much simpler light than adults.�

�� That�s true.� At least we all have each other.�� Taichi sighed deeply.� �The world may forget about the Digital World
and the things that happened, but we never will.�

�� No.�
As long as we still are allowed, as long as we have our Digivices, we�ll keep going back.�� I agreed.�
�There�s still things we can do to fix the
damages done, after all.�

�� Yeah.�

�� at the
risk of channeling my little brother, I think things will work out somehow,
Tai.� I know it�s easy to say it,
but...it�s still how I feel about it.�� I
reached out and clicked off the lamp, giving my best friend as reassuring a
smile as I could manage.

�� I�m trying to believe it, too,
Yama.� I�just need more time to absorb it
all, you know?�� He sighed again and
pulled his covers up over himself while I settled in comfortably in my own bed.

�� Get some sleep, Tai.�� I advised, yawning.� �You can come help me shop for pajamas
tomorrow, if you want.�� I heard a rather
dubious snort and glared down at him over the edge of the mattress.� �What?�

�� You�re asking the wrong shopping
partner, that�s what.� You are so metro,
Yama, and shop like Mimi and Miyako on a sugar high with gold credit
cards.�� The ass snickered at me and I
huffed, insulted, rolling over on my other side to give him my back.� �Oh, come on.�
You always look good so it�s worth it, right?� I�m just saying I�d be useless to you
shopping.�� I heard him rustling around
but didn�t turn over, still miffed.� Then
his voice came from somewhere behind me � sounding awfully close.

�� Yama�I wasn�t insulting
you�Yama?� Matt?� Ya-ma-to!�

�� God!� Quit whining, Taichi!�� I caved and flipped over, coming face to face
with him.� He knelt by my bed, resting
his chin on his folded arms, batting big, beautiful brown eyes at me.� �Ah!� I yelped and reared back, and he lifted
his head grinning at me.� How could I
stay annoyed with that endearing expression.� �Damn it, Tai!� You�re going to drive me crazy!�

�� He gave me a fake pout.� �I really didn�t mean it like that�I was just
trying to say I wouldn�t be a good person to take with you shopping.�

�� I blew out a breath in a huff.� �I know, I know.� I�m just going for pajamas, Tai.� It�s not like I�m picking clothes for my next
gig.�� I smirked.� �For that I�d take one of the girls with
me.� You
have no sense of fashion.�

�� Aww�you
don�t think track pants are fashionable?��
He teased me.� I was glad it was
dark and he couldn�t see me blush � because those track pants suited him just
fine, in my opinion.

�� For a soccer
game, yes.� Outside
a stadium or of the field, no.�� I
replied, instead of telling him what I really
thought of Taichi in track pants.� Dead sexy.

�� I must be a great disappointment to
you, oh wise style guru.�� Taichi laid back down and curled back up under the covers.� �Goodnight, Yama.�

�� I smiled to myself.� No,
Taichi.� You are anything but a
disappointment to me.� I told him
silently.� �Goodnight, Tai.�

~~~~~~~~

�� The sound of a phone ringing woke me
up the next morning.� It was Taichi�s
cell, to the tune of the theme from one of his favorite animes.� When it kept ringing, I sat up and looked
around blearily.� �Taichi?�� He wasn�t in the room, and his futon was
neatly piled in the corner out of the way.�
�Where�d he go?�

�� Another phone started ringing a few
seconds after his cell stopped ringing, and this time it was my cell
phone.� I grabbed it off my desk and
answered gruffly, �Ishida.�

�� Matt!�� Hikari�s voice woke me up the rest of the
way.� �I�m sorry, did I wake you up?�

�� Ah�kinda��
I glanced at my alarm clock and blinked.�
�But I should be up anyway so it�s okay.�
What�s up?�

�� Is my brother okay?� He�s not answering his D-terminal or his cell
phone.�

�� Um�last I saw he was fine.� He left both in my room, Hikari, and probably
doesn�t know you�re trying to reach him.�
Hold up.�� I went out to the
living room and found her brother doing sit ups on the floor while a university
soccer game raged on TV.� I watched for a
moment dumbly, mesmerized by his lack of a shirt, those damn track pants, the
movement of muscle as he moved, little beads of sweat trickling off him�

�� I shook myself and wiped the drool
off my chin.� �Taichi��

�� He paused in mid-sit up.� �Oh!�
You�re up!� I didn�t wake you up
did I?�

�� I laughed.� �You sound like your sister.� She�s trying to call but you left your cell
and stuff in my room so you didn�t hear it ring.�� I held out my phone.� �She called me looking for you.�

�� Taichi rolled to his feet and took
it from me.� �Oops!� Sorry, pal.�
Thanks.�� He spoke into the
cell.� �Kari?� Hey, sorry about that.� No, I�m in the living room.�� He laughed and winked at me.� �Nah, he was being lazy and sleeping late
anyway.�� I rolled my eyes and left him
to talk to Hikari, going to the kitchen to scrounge up something for breakfast.

�� Yawning and half-listening in, I
decided toast was good enough and popped bread slices into the toaster.� �Taichi?� You eat yet?��
I called.

�� His bushy head of hair popped up
from the sofa.� �Not really, no.� What are you making?�

�� Toast.�� I yawned again.� �Want?�

�� Please.�� Taichi looked back at the TV screen.� �So you�re on your way to Miayko�s?�� He asked his sister, returning to their
conversation.� �Yeah,
alright.� No, I�ll be here.� Matt, too.� He wants to buy pajamas but we can do that
later.�

�� I blinked and looked down at myself,
remembering then that I was wearing Taichi�s sweat pants.� They were baggy on me, and sagged dangerously
off my hips. Not awake enough � or energetic enough � to care, I shrugged and
looked for something to put on our toast.

�� Are you alright, Kari?�� I heard him inquire gently.� �no, I�m fine.� Really!�� He sighed.�
�Yes, I�m lying but I will be fine.�
I�ll tell you about it when you get here.� Yeah�okay.�
See you later.�� Taichi hung up
and sat silently on the couch, staring off into space, blindly.� Frowning, I left the toast on plates and went
back to the living room.

�� What�s up?�� I asked, dropping down onto the sofa next to
him.

�� Taichi snapped out� of a daze and glanced at me.� �Oh.�
Hikari is stopping by on her way to Miyako�s.� She said she had something to talk to me
about.�

�� I slipped an arm around his
shoulders.� �Something happen?�

�� I don�t know.� She said Sora was walking with her here on
her way to tennis practice, that�s it.��
Taichi leaned forward, his head burying itself in his hands.� �She knows something�s up with me.� I�I�ll have to tell her what Mom�said.�

�� I nodded and squeezed his
shoulders.� �It�ll be alright.� I�ll be right here with you, Tai.�

�� He sat up and turned to me, a small,
sad little smile gracing his face and my heart ached for him.� �I know.�
There�s nothing I can ever say or do to tell you how much I appreciate
you, Yama.� I�don�t deserve you, but I�m
so glad you�re around.�

�� Taichi�what do you mean �you don�t
deserve� me?� You�re my best
friend.�� I grabbed his hands in mine and
gripped them hard.� �There�s nothing I
wouldn�t do for you, Tai!� After all
we�ve been through together, do you think I would just sit by while you�re
hurting?� I couldn�t do it, Taichi!�

�� He moved into my arms, burying his
face in my neck and wrapping his arms around me.� �What would I do without you?�� I heard mumbled.� All I could do was hold him to me and try to
make him laugh. I ran my fingers through his hair and replied dryly, �Fail at
life in general?�

�� Success!� He gave a choked snicker and snuggled against
me � uh�not that I minded but�

�� There�s that ego of yours that I
love so much � when it doesn�t annoy me.��
He let his head rest on my shoulder, seeming to be perfectly content
where he was.� I was awake now, and
becoming more and more aware of everything about him.� I�d hoped that after a good night�s sleep
things would set themselves right again and I wouldn�t
be so jumpy and twitchy around him.� Fat
lot I know.� Here we were, on my sofa,
cuddled up like the lovers we were not.� He wasn�t wearing a shirt, he was warm and
tanned and gorgeous�

�� Hey, Yama��

�� Hmm�?�� I made a noise, not really registering that
he was talking to me again.� I was absorbed
in the feeling of him pressed against me, the smooth skin stretched over his
lean, athletic muscles, and the scent of him called to me somehow.� I turned my head a little, just enough to
borrow my nose into his hair and inhale deeply, letting it out on a quiet sigh.

�� About yesterday�with the fortune
teller lady��

�� That snapped me back to
reality.� I couldn�t help stiffening up
and pulling back some.� �Wha�what about it?�� I tried to sound nonchalant though I�m sure I
failed miserably.

�� I asked her two questions and her
answers got me thinking about some things.�

�� Oh.�
Okay.� As long as he wasn�t going
to ask me about what she�d told me, I
could breathe again.� �Only two
questions?� No wonder it didn�t take you
long.�� I commented. �What did you ask?�

�� I asked�if the person I loved would
ever return that love someday, and she told me they would but�that I had to be
patient and let them figure it out for themselves.�� He laughed and the tone was self-mocking.� �Me?� Patient?� Right.�

�� There was a great deal of white
noise and buzzing in my ears, and my heart was clenching painfully in my
chest.� He�loved someone?� Taichi was in love?� And he�d never said a thing to me about it at
all.� I struggled to keep from turning a
very nasty shade of green at the jealousy that streaked through me at the idea of anyone else where I wanted to be � even if I�d only just
figured that out for myself.� �Uh huh.� And the
second question?�� I managed to get out
evenly, going very still.� If Taichi
noticed the change in me, he was ignoring it because he didn�t move away or
give any indication that he noticed.

�� Oh, that was about soccer.� I asked if I was going to be good enough for
a national team someday and she told me I was good enough now�I just had to wait for the opportunity.�� Now he looked up at me with a grin, and I had
to relax a little.

�� Ah.�
Well, I think any one of us could have answered that question, Tai.� Especially Ken and
Daisuke.�� I tilted my head at
him, setting aside my jealousy in favour of getting
more information about this mysterious person from Taichi � so I could find
them and make them disappear.� No way
would I ever accept someone else as good enough for him.� Not even myself.� Unsurprisingly, I also felt guilty about it
because I only wanted him to be happy.�
It was selfish of me to want to make whoever it was go away even though
they could make him happy, but the guilt didn�t change the fact that it was how
I felt.� �So that first question�who�s
the unlucky soul?�� I teased, trying to
hide how anxious and possessive I was feeling.

�� Taichi blushed
bright red and scuttled away from me to the other end of the couch.� I blinked, a little confused and a little
hurt.� �Tai?� What�d I do?�

�� Nothing!�� He was quick to respond, waving his hands
defensively at me.� �It�s just�well,
I�you see��

�� Amused, I folded my arms across my
chest and regarded him with a snicker of my own.� �Honestly�you�d think you were a love-struck
school girl the way you�re floundering and blushing.�

�� Shut up, Ishida!�� Taichi scowled at me, pressing his palms to
his cheeks and visibly willing them to stop being so red.� �I am no such thing!� It�s just�I�m not sure I�m ready to say who
it is yet.�

�� This is me you�re talking to,
Tai.� Whoever it is, I�m not going to go
around telling people about it.�� I
huffed.� �But if you�re not ready then
you�re not ready and I won�t push.�� I
raised an eyebrow at him, thinking of one way I could at least find out a
little bit more.� �Just tell me one
thing: girl or guy?�

�� He stared at me, jaw dropping
open.� It would have been funny if I
hadn�t been serious.� �You�what?�

�� It�s an easy question, Taichi.� If you�re worried I�m going to think less of
you because of something like that then you haven�t been paying
attention.�� I felt heat crawl up my neck
and looked away, pretending to look at the clock on the wall.� That�had come out before I�d really thought
about what I was saying.

�� Matt�are you trying to tell me
you�re�gay?� No wait.�� Taichi was moving down the couch closer to me
again, looking a little too
interested in my answer.� Oh�shit.� What had
I gotten myself into?� �Bi?� You like girls � I�ve seen that � but, guys,
too?�

�� Feeling really ridiculous and rather
embarrassed, I gave a short nod.� �So?� I
demanded shortly. ��It doesn�t change who
I was five minutes ago.�

�� Not saying that!�� Taichi rushed to assure me.� �I swear!�
Same old Yama.�
I just�wow, you know?� I suspected
but never knew��

�� That shocked me a bit.� Was I obvious?� �You suspected?�� I repeated mechanically.

�� Well, you know�I know you so well,
Yama, and I probably see things most want.��
Taichi reached out and grasped my hand and even though my instinct was
to pull away, I passively let him keep it.

�� How did we get on me?� You didn�t answer my question.�� I wanted off this topic � pronto.

�� I don�t say �I�m not ready� because
I�m afraid of how you�ll react, Yama.� I
swear.� I just�haven�t figured out for
myself if how I think I feel really is love or if I�m just�being hopeful.�� He looked down at our hands.� �And I don�t know what to do about it all
anyway, so there�s no reason to really discuss it.�

�� Well if you tell me then maybe I
can help.�� I glanced at him, shivering
as his thumb idly moved across the back of my hand in an absent way.� I don�t think he realized what he was
doing.� He was always an affectionate,
friendly person, but lately some of the things he did had been on the edge of
�friendly� and bordered on affectionate of a different sort � which just
confused the hell out of me even more.

�� When he looked at me this time, our
eyes met and locked.� It seemed very much
like he was trying to tell me something silently in those bright, brown eyes
but I couldn�t read them one bit.

�� I�promise to tell you soon,
Yama.� I just need a little more time to
think.� Okay?�� He flushed.�
�But I will answer your question, since I think you already know just by
how I reacted.�

�� It�s a guy.�� I blew out a breath and mentally banged my
head against a brick wall.� On the bright side, at least when I beat the guy into the ground I
wouldn�t have to feel guilty about hitting a girl � which I wouldn�t do, even if I am that jealous.� Oh forget it.�
I�m so messed up at the moment I don�t even make sense to myself.� �Fine.� Thanks for at least telling
me that much.�

�� Matt�� Taichi watched me get up and
walk toward the kitchen.� �I�m
sorry.� I really am.�

�� It�s fine.�� I sighed and picked up the two plates with
our toast on them, setting them on the island countertop that served as the
table for Dad and I.�
�I get why you�re not ready to say anything.� I�m just�disappointed.�� I so couldn�t tell him it was because I was
turning into an ugly green monster, after all.�
�When you are�I�ll be here to listen.�

�� Still.� I�m sorry.��
Taichi came over and sat on the stool across from me, hanging his
head.� �Thanks for the toast.�

�� I shrugged.� �I�d have made something more substantial but
we need groceries pretty badly.� Maybe we
should get a few things when I get my pajamas later.�

�� He nodded and went to work on his
toast.� �Sounds like a plan to me.�

�� And that settled that.� Some silent agreement had been reached that
we�d both let the topic drop.� At least I
knew that a relationship beyond our friendship wouldn�t be completely outside
the realm of possibility.

�� Maybe.� If things didn�t work out
with the other person.� Who was I
kidding?� I didn�t really know what was going on in my head or heart
anymore than Taichi said he did with himself.

�� Poking at my toast unhappily now
that any appetite I�d had evaporated, I shoved my last piece of toast at Taichi
and got up.� �Here.� I�m going to take a shower before your sister
gets here.�

�� Taichi blinked and swallowed.� �Okay�� I could feel his eyes on me as I
left, and there was concern in his voice.�
�Yama?�

�� I paused and looked back, though I
really didn�t want to.� �Yeah?�

�� Are you�okay?�

�� Yeah.� Fine.� Eat your toast, Tai.�� I turned away again, lying through my
teeth.� I don�t think he believed me, but
he didn�t cal me on it, which surprised me a little. �He usually did.� Instead, he let me go silently.

~~~~~~~~

�� After one of my patented long
showers, I finally emerged fresh and clean and feeling a little more capable of
facing my best friend normally again.�
Hikari had arrived sometime when I�d been in the shower, and when I
stepped into the living room, I could tell things were not sunshine and flowers
for the two siblings.

�� Hi, Matt.�� Hikari greeted me quietly, in a subdued tone
that had me instantly concerned.

�� Hey.�� I responded, grabbing a seat on the
armchair.� �Things okay
at Sora�s?�

�� She nodded.� �Her mom was very reasonable and very
kind.� She said I was welcome as long as
I needed.�

�� I smiled.� That sounded like Mrs. Takenouchi.� �Good.�

�� Now will you tell me what�s going
on, Kari?�� Taichi asked
impatiently.� �I can tell something�s up
with you, so spill!�

�� I could say the same thing to you,
Taichi!�� She gave him a hot glare and he
flinched.� �Why didn�t
you tell me last night what Mom said to you?� I think I deserved to hear it from you.�

�� I frowned and watched the colour drain out of Taichi�s face.� How had she found out about that?

�� Kari�I was going to but�last night
I didn�t really want to believe it and�� Taichi bit his bottom lip and closed
his eyes, looking away.� �I didn�t want
to worry you more.�� He finished in a
rather defeated voice.

�� Hikari sniffled and drew him into a
hug.� �You idiot!� I want to know these things!� I know you�re used to taking everything on
yourself, but Taichi�you can�t always do that!�
Please don�t act like I might break under a little stress when you know
I won�t!�

�� He held her tightly and I saw the shudder
run through him.� It made me ache for
him, for both of them.� I spoke up hesitantly, not sure intruding on the sibling moment would
be welcomed.

�� Don�t be too hard on him,
Hikari.� He�s telling the truth about how
he didn�t really understand what had happened yet.� He just wanted to process it a little himself
first before he told you.�

�� Taichi�s eyes met mine, liquid with
unshed tears, silently thanking me.�
Hikari pulled away from him and wiped at her own eyes.� �I know�it�s just that we�re supposed to be
there for each other and how can I do that if he doesn�t tell me things in time
for me to help?�

�� Believe me, I know what you
mean.� But we�ll work on getting him to
understand that, won�t we, Hikari?�� I
smiled wryly and she giggled.

�� Sure, Matt.�

�� Ah!�
I�m wounded!� My best friend and
little sister are ganging up on me!��
Taichi clutched at his heart and fell back against the sofa with a
melodramatic moan of agony.� I rolled my
eyes and Hikari grinned and smacked him on the knee.

�� That�s what you get!�� She admonished teasingly � and at the same
time seriously.� �From now on, Taichi�please
talk to us about these things � and everything! � instead of
hoarding it?�

�� He sat up and clasped her hand,
bringing it to his lips to brush a fleeting kiss over her knuckles.� �I won�t make promises, Kari, but�I�ll
try.� I�m trying to do a lot of things.�

�� She nodded.� �Okay.�
That�s all I can ask is that you try.�

�� How did you find out about what Mom
said anyway?�� Taichi asked, still
holding her hand absently.

�� I�d forgotten to take my software
for my digital photos with me, and Sora and I went to get it earlier this
morning.� Mom wasn�t there, but Dad was.�� She looked rather grim.� �He got mad and demanded to know what we�d
done to upset Mom so much.� I guess when
he got home from work last night he found her in hysterics.�

�� Molten brown eyes hardened and I
winced.� �He didn�t hassle you about
staying at Sora�s did he?�

�� No.�� Hikari shook her head.� �I got mad at him right back and told him
exactly what was going on � as far as I knew � and he got this strange
expression on his face, like he was partly very confused, partly resigned, and
partly frustrated about it all.� I don�t
think he really paid attention to how bad things have gotten with Mom, Taichi.�

�� Wouldn�t surprise
me.� He�s hardly ever home, and
when he is and she does the overprotective mother thing, he just sees it as
normal and that we�re � I�m � being disobedient
and rebellious.�� Taichi ran fingers
through his hair in agitation.� �She must
have told him that she�d kicked me out and he didn�t understand why.�

�� I think so, too.�� His sister nodded sadly.� �Taichi�I told him that I really didn�t know
exactly how bad things were, which was the truth, and
he wants to talk to you.� I think he�s
worried about Mom.�

�� Taichi stood and went to stare out
the balcony doors. I could feel the waves of emotion rolling off him, and had I
been in his place, I could hear the questions I�d be demanding answers to.�
Worry for his mother?� That�s
fine, but what about his kids?� What
about the son that had just been expelled from his home and family?� The daughter stuck in the middle unsure of
what to do or say to help?� Why does he
even care when he�s never home � job or not?�
Seeing that my best friend wasn�t going to say anything for a bit, I
turned to Hikari.

�� So what did he say about you
staying at Sora�s?�� I asked. She looked
away from her bother to me.

�� After I explained that Taichi had
moved here to your place, Matt, and that he wanted me away from Mom until
things could be worked out so I was staying at Sora�s, he agreed that it was
probably best for a while.� But he wants
to hear Taichi�s side of it before he confronts Mom and decides what to do from
there.�� Her gaze flickered back and
forth between us.� �He said as long as we
continue going to school, keep our grades up, and all that then we could stay
away as long as we needed to.�

�� I�m not going back.�� Taichi stated abruptly without turning to
look back at us.� �Not even if things get
worked out.� I�d decided that some time
ago, Kari.�

�� What?�� She sprang to her feet, surprised and
saddened.� �Why?� Taichi��
Hikari cut herself off and chewed on her bottom lip at his expression as
he turned, one that said he had made up his mind and
there would be no changing it.

�� I haven�t belonged there for a very
long time, Kari.� It�s been driving me
crazy for years. I need�� he paused, collecting his thoughts.� �I need to be on my own to find the place I do belong, and to live in the
independence that came with being Chosen.�

�� Her eyes widened, and I could see
she understood exactly what he meant.� Of
course she would.� That little episode she herself had gone
through that had nearly cost her all of her friends (meaning us Digidestined) had been in great part exactly about
this.� There had been other factors, but
in essence Hikari had felt lost.

�� Oh, Taichi!�� Tears threatened to spill.� �I had no idea you were going through this��

�� He sighed and went to her, gathering
her into his arms.� �I know.� It�s okay,
Kari.� I was dealing with it fairly well
until Mom�well.� It just sped up my plans
a little that�s all.� I�d intended before
to move out after graduation and work during the summer � unless I got a
scholarship, then I�d go straight to university and play for a university team
while getting a higher education.�� He
glanced at me.� �That�s why I was so
hyped about that soccer camp Coach Hinamoto told us
about a couple of weeks ago.� He said
there might even be scouts around at the time, so��

�� And Mom told you no?�� She pulled away and this totally incredulous
expression came over her face.� �She
actually wanted to prevent you from gaining anything from this very real chance
at doing something really great?� How could
she?�

�� She didn�t let me tell her that
much, Kari.�� Taichi stuffed his hands in
the pockets of his track pants.� �She�s
ridiculously paranoid about anything involving the Digital World or Digimon.�

�� Oh.�� Hikari sighed deeply.� �I�m so sorry.� I can�t believe I didn�t notice any of this.�

�� It�s not your fault, little sister.�� Taichi brushed her hair away from her face
gently.� �There�s nothing you could have
done anyway.�

�� Still�� she sighed again, then jumped as a beeping noise came from her purse.� �That�s my D-terminal.�� She dug it out and flipped it open, reading
the email quickly.� �It�s from Miya.� She wants to
know if I want to gout with Daisuke, Ken, Takeru, and Iori to see a movie
tonight.�

�� You should.� Go out and have some fun, Kari, with what�s
left of our break.�� Taichi smiled at her
and she gave him a one-armed hug.

�� Okay.� I should get going to Miya�s
anyway.�� She whipped off a quick reply
to Miyako and tucked her D-terminal back into her purse.� Taichi and I followed her to the door,
watching her pull her shoes on.

�� Do you have money, Kari?�� Taichi asked.�
She nodded, opening her purse again.

�� Yes.� Dad gave me some extra.� Here.��
She handed him a wad of bills, but he pushed it away with and adamant shaking
of his head.

�� No, Kari, you keep it.� I have money of my own I�ve been saving for a
long time now.� Keep that in case you
need something or whatever.�

�� But�� Hikari put the money back in
her purse.� �Alright.� But if you need some, just ask.� Promise?�

�� Uh huh.�� Taichi gave her one last hug and shooed her
out the door.� �Go have fun, Kari.� Say hi to the others for me.�

�� And me!�� I piped up, waving over his shoulder at
her.� �Tell Takeru I�ll call him soon.�

�� Sure, Matt.�� She waved back.� �Bye, guys!�

�� Taichi stepped out into the hall to watch
her until she disappeared into the elevator, then came back inside quietly.

�� I was waiting for him in the living
room.� He came in wearing a mixed
expression of relief, sadness, and determination that made me simply open my
arms and welcome him into them.� His own
circled me and held tightly, a tremor running through his frame and escaping on
a shuddering sigh.

�� You okay, Tai?�� I asked, rubbing his back slowly.

�� I�ve been better.�� He answered, voice muffled by my
shoulder.� �God!� That was one of the hardest conversations I�ve
ever had with her.� I�m so glad it�s
over.�

�� I nodded, his hair tickling my jaw
and chin, and squeezed him a little tighter briefly.� �She took it all well, didn�t she?� I won�t say I told you so.�

�� A dry chuckle sounded in my
ear.� �No.� Of course not.�

�� I let him go after one last hug and
looked outside to take stock of the weather.�
�What we need is fresh air!� Let�s
go find some pajamas for me and maybe stop at the grocery store for some
groceries.�

�� Taichi nodded.� �Sure.�
I�ll just go find a better shirt and my jacket.�� He disappeared down the hall and I grabbed my
keys and wallet from where I�d left them next to the phone in the kitchen.

�� Ready?�� I asked when he reappeared.

�� Yeah.�� Taichi followed me to the door where we
slipped on our shoes and I put on a light jacket.� Then we were out the door and off on our
shopping excursion.

~~~~~~~~

Kali Notes:� Thanks everyone for reading!� I�m back � for a month, at least.� lol �Please R/R!!!!

Relevant Episodes: ��Season 01, episodes 43-44.
- 4
- 5
- 6
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Fortuna