I never thought I would forget this hate...

If I don’t make it.
Know that.
I’ve loved you all along.

Our Lady Peace -- 4 am

Tk’s POV



"I think my feet are going to fall off." Miyako complained as we all sighed. It had been the third time in the last minute she had moaned about some part of her anatomy aching. It was getting really annoying considering we were all feeling the strain now. Walking uphill isn’t exactly something that I look forward to every Saturday.

"I know that you’re all tired, but we have to keep going! We’re sitting ducks out in the open like this!" Daisuke attempted to encourage. "Just think of it this way. Only a few more meters, and we’re at the top!"

"Yeah, let me break out the champagne." Iori muttered sarcastically, as he wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. "Come on Dai, let’s take a breather or something!"

"Fine, we’ll rest, but only for a minute! Come on guys, the Digimon Emperor could be out here just waiting for us!" Dai declared stubbornly.

"At least if he caught us we wouldn’t have to walk all the way up this stupid mountain and we would be near his base." Miyako snapped again.

"A minute, don’t push my patience." Dai retorted back. Over the years, their fighting hadn’t gotten any better. It hadn’t gotten any worse either, but hey, at least they weren’t ripping each other’s throats out. Yet…

"Hey Tk, you want to help me get something to drink?" Kari asked, smirking a little. "I saw a water basin a little back there."

"I’ll come too if you need help!" Dai shot out, appearing next to me mysteriously. I subconsciously chuckled, glancing down at the shorter leader. He looked up at me, not quite catching my eyes, but I could still see the never-ending spark of challenge they held.

"It’s okay. I think we’re capable to bring water back." I stated almost laughing slightly.

"Well, with your intelligence level..." he started, but was cut off by my fist lightly hitting him in the shoulder.

"As if you’re one to speak Mr. I’ve Failed Every Test But The Ones They Have In Art Class." I joked aloud. Unlike Tai, Daisuke was a brilliant artist. Everything he drew was just so beautiful and capturing, a true display of talent.

"Get going and fetch me water slave!" he brushed me off, winking as he sat down on the ground, rubbing his knee slightly. He had taken a horrible kick there in one of his more recent matches, and he had to wear a brace for a few days. The price you pay for playing soccer.

"Come on Tk!" Kari smiled widely, clutching onto my arm and dragging me halfway down the mountain to the light waterfall. It almost resembled a running faucet, but with a lot less water.

But by the time we had reached this ‘water source’ the sky had turned darker, the sun was setting. Sunsets were always so beautiful in the Digiworld. Acres of gold and light pink splashed in the sky, making it appear like a painter’s pallet.

"These are gonna take us forever to fill." I sighed; looking at the small bottles Miyako had supplied for beverages. I gently placed the smooth blue plastic container down, letting the water tumble into it neatly, not spilling over.

"As if we’re in a huge rush." She giggled, turning her beautiful amber eyes on me. "Besides, we don’t get to spend as much time alone as we used to."



"God! What took you so long?" Miyako shouted as she ran over to greet us. A hint of sarcasm in her massive eyes.

"Got lost." I joked, throwing her purple bottle over to her.

"Yeah right..." she smirked, taking a huge gulp. She set the bottle down on the floor, grabbing her long, pale lavender hair in her hands and pushed it under the red cap she sported. A way to relieve the heat I guess.

"Where’s Dai?" Kari asked, scanning the area, not finding the goggle-clad leader. She shook his bottle slightly, almost uncomfortably as she walked over to where Iori was sitting calmly.

"He went off in there a few minutes ago. The heat was getting to him." The young boy pointed to where there was a small forest. A few trees could be seen, but there was a mountain of shrubs and peat practically acting as a wall. I couldn’t see in, and I knew that Dai couldn’t see out. "We convinced him to let us stay here for the night. We’ll continue hiking tomorrow."

"Great, more time away from Izzy." Miyako muttered as she sighed deeply. "I swear, we’d better kick the Emperor’s ass soon, so we can get the hell out of here!"

I laughed as I rolled my eyes at the group. I definitely didn’t envy Daisuke for having to lead us. Speaking of Daisuke... "Hey guys, I’m gonna go give him his water." I said walking into he forest area. "And besides, we should all be together at night!"

Upon first walking in, all I saw was green. From the outside it looked so ordinary and boring, but inside it was like a maze of foliage. Even though it was sorta freaky, it was beautiful all at the same time. Breathtaking really. The deeper I got, the more wonder I found. Not only were the trees large and full, they draped everything in shadow. The mysterious effect given to such a small area was simply stunning.

But I still hadn’t found Daisuke. Hell, he couldn’t have gotten that far in such a short amount of time. But I knew better than to doubt his abilities. Just as I was about to give up, I saw a completely clear-cut area. The dirt was pale beige, sand almost, surrounded by lush green grass. This wasn’t a tremendously huge area, but still big enough. And sitting right in the middle was Daisuke.

"Stupid knee." He muttered under his breath, as he tried to stand up. Sadly, his efforts were worthless, because he ended up stumbling, ending right back on his back. Looked rather painful.

"Need help?" I inquired with a hint of superiority, stepping closer to him. My cerulean eyes sparkling with amusement as I spied my brunette friend struggling to stand.

"Not on your life." He spat back. "Why don’t you go off and help

Kari." His tone was rather frosty, even for him. But I smiled, gracefully moving out of the shadows and into the dim light of the moon.

"Because I’d rather be here, helping you." I purred almost playfully, striding over and picking him up from behind. Once he was in a standing position, I wrapped my arms around him and nuzzled my face near his neck. He moaned lightly as he relaxed into my grip.

I loved the way he felt in my arms. His body fit mine so perfectly almost like a giant jigsaw puzzle. My lips trailed down the side of his face, finding the small groove in his neck that separated shoulder bone from neck bone; reacquainting themselves with his body. He sighed deeply as I pressed my mouth down on his skin, kissing him lightly.

It had been so long since we had been able to do this. Being in an open relationship was something we both wanted, but never really got around to doing. Sure it would have made things a lot easier for us, but there was just something in the back of my head that told me to keep this a secret.

Daisuke muttered my name so softly as I turned him around to face me. God, he was so beautiful... it wasn’t even funny how gorgeous he was to me. His gleaming cinnamon eyes that held a spark of fire like none other surrounded by a head of untamable copper hair that seemed to tickle my face whenever I got close enough.

My hand lightly cupped his angelic face, guiding his face closer to mine. Ever so slowly our lips met, savoring the kiss that we just engaged in. His arms made their way around my waist, pulling me in closer to himself.

"I’ve missed this." He silently chuckled, not breaking the kiss.

"I’ve missed you." I retorted, parting slightly. "I’ve missed not being able to hold you." I whispered as pulled him as close to me as humanly possible. "I’ve missed the feel of you in my arms." I muttered, strengthening the grip I had on him. "But most of all, I’ve missed not being able to kiss you and tell you how deeply in love with you I am."

"As if I could ever forget." He smiled, cuddling his head to my chest. "God I love you Tk." He sighed. "I love you with all my heart, and I always will."

At those few words I melted. No matter how many times he spoke them, I would always feel the same afterward. My mind completely fogged over with happiness as my legs turned into jelly. I couldn’t even describe how much I loved him.

As much as I didn’t want to, we broke our embrace and began walking back. The others would get worried and start looking for us if we didn’t return soon. "Meet me here, tonight. After everyone’s asleep." I whispered gently, kissing his cheek.

"Okay." He replied, carelessly brushing his lips against mine before we both made our reappearance. Kari glanced up at us before returning to the deep conversation she was having with Iori. Miyako on the other hand was just staring at a small picture of Izzy and herself that she kept n the locket he had given her.

"God, glad to know you two didn’t get eaten or something. That would entail us looking for your bodies after... and I’m actually quite comfortable where I am right now." Miyako started to mutter to Daisuke as he playfully pushed her.

"Glad to know that you’re so loyal to me, that you’d do anything to insure I’m safe." He rolled his eyes, casually throwing a glance in my direction. I smirked, being the only one that caught it.

"What took so long?" Kari inquired, brushing a strand of her brown hair from her face.

Before Daisuke could say anything, I spoke up. "Dai’s knee gave out on him, and he was all helpless in the forest." I pouted in the most babyish tone alive.

"Spare me." He puffed, limping away from me, over to his sleeping bag. I stifled a smile as he shot me an intentional dirty look, which I thought to be absolutely cute.

"Night everyone." Miyako whispered, as she lightly tugged at her glasses, removing them from her face. Hawkmon nestled in closely to her, causing her to giggle as his feathers came in contact with her skin. "Sweet dreams." Kari added before lightly kissing Iori and turning to her own bed. She yawned, covering her mouth with her hand as she slowly shut her eyes, tumbling into a deep sleep.

I rolled over, looking Daisuke right in the eyes, smiling at him widely. He smiled back before yawning and closing his eyes, extinguishing the brown orbs that held an unfathomable fire. The goggles he treasured had been long removed and were resting in a neat pile near his head.

I loved watching him sleep. I couldn’t even count all the times I just stayed lying awake gazing at him. His hair drooping in front of his eyes as small wisps gently rose and fell in rhythm to his breathing. In what seemed like a few minutes to me (when in reality had been a few hours) a chestnut eye flared open as he smiled slightly again; sleep still clinging to him heavily.

My face was literally unreadable at that moment. I looked as if I were asleep with my eyes open. Wide awake sleeping. I lost awareness to the rest of the world when I looked at him. He was mesmerizing, almost magical in his own way.

"Ready?" he whispered so lightly, the wind picked up his voice. I nodded, watching him get up first before I lazily dragged myself from my sleeping bag. A radiate smile crept to my lips as he grabbed at my hand, leading me back into the deep forest, complete isolated from everyone else. "Why did you want to see me here?" he asked a little louder as we walked right back to the area we were a few hours before.

"Being the completely subtle guy I am, I called you out here for a little quality time." He shorter boy, the object of my affections laughed madly, before he finally caught his breath.

"You are so lame." He smirked, waving me off lightly. He threw his hands up in the air in defeat, turning away to continue walking. But something happened, and his knee buckled, causing him to lose his balance.

"Dai!" I almost shouted, rushing over extremely quickly to catch him in my arms. He tumbled right into me, letting out a soft groan as he hit my chest. "You okay?"

He was cursing lightly under his breath, but nodded reluctantly, breaking free of my gasp. "Yeah, I’ll be fine." He muttered, sighing deeply. "I wish this thing would get better."

"Well." I stated with a faint smirk. "When I was younger and I got hurt, my mom would always touch the wound and kiss it, making it feel better instantly." I pulled him in closer, more suggestively than I had intended.

"Well." He retorted, biting his lip to keep from laughing. "Does your mom have her kisses marketed? Bet they would really help me out…"

"Sorry there, I think you’re gonna have to settle for her son’s." I whispered, leaning in slowly.

"You mean her stupid, son…" he joked, but was cut off as I pressed my lips on his deeply, throwing everything I had into that kiss. He let out a weak moan of happiness, as his fingers hugged my shoulders, grasping on tightly.

Before he could do anything else, I grabbed his arms, pulling them from me violently. I clutched onto the small area right above his elbows tightly, refusing to let go. We broke apart slightly, allowing as much air travel through our lungs as possible before returning to what we were originally doing.

"Tk…" he almost scolded as my lips slid across his cheek, kissing the side of his neck aggressively. "We shouldn’t be doing this." He muttered, but his words didn’t even cross my mind twice before I quickly slid my hand under his jacket, trailing my fingers down his spine.

"That’s what you said last time. And the time before that, and the time before that." I stated jestfully, effortlessly tugging the flame licked jacket off his shoulders roughly, throwing it carelessly.

"If that jacket gets dirty you’re paying for the dry-cleaning." He smirked before his mouth became prisoner to my own. His slender physique melting into mine.

"Whatever." I mumbled, brushing away strands of his wild brown hair before aggressively pulling his face into mine. "Whatever."



Ken’s POV



I was getting bored. Technically, I was fed up and bored, but more bored than anything. It had been a really long time since I had been around kids my own age, and just sitting, wasting away in this miserable world wasn’t exactly something I looked forward to. But it was better here than on Earth. At least here I was respected and feared; I wasn’t just a product of the media, some little toy they used for advertising.

Here, I was someone important. Someone powerful! I was an Emperor! A God in my own way. I had the power to create life and take it away. Though, I enjoyed the ending of life much more than the creating. I wasn’t just this weak, feeble human.

Humans, in my opinion, we just dolls. Just a simple toy that God played with when he was bored. We served no purpose, only to amuse and to be controlled. But I wouldn’t let myself be manipulated that easily. I refused to be that puppet to a superior being.

Dolls were lifeless objects that never existed; they had no brain or heart or soul. They had no conscience and emotions. Just pieces of clothe sewn together, to create a cute little creature. This enraged me to the point of insanity. If anything, I would be the puppeteer, controlling all the dolls I wanted. I would be the one to decide what happens to who and when.

That’s why I stayed here all these years, locked away from people. Some might say I’d grown insane over time, being isolated like I was. But I just look that time to concentrate on the other things in life, I thought alone with no distractions.

I sighed deeply, pulling my long Prussian hair from my tinted shades and lightly placed it back in its original place. My hairstyle still hadn’t changed over the years, and it still stuck up in that odd manner it did. My eyes briskly scanned the screens that loaned the walls, covering everything in a mechanical blanket. Nothing. As if I was expecting something; nothing ever happened at night here.

But something caught my eye. My head snapped around, only catching a white blur walking into what looked like a forest. Several other figures were all huddled together, sleeping in a small circle with two sleeping bags empty.

The Digidestined. My foes for the last seven years. I had spent a huge chunk of my life trying to destroy them, but they just wouldn’t die. They would just crawl away off to Earth and escape me. But I had come close a few times.

I could clearly remember the time when I had caught their proud leader and threw him in the dungeons a few months before. That had been fun; just spending hours torturing him. The group literally fell apart during the week I had him, and I knew then that he was their strongest link. And everybody knows if you take away the strongest link, the rest of the chain breaks.

"So what do we have here?" I inquired, zooming in a little. Using common sense, the white blob I saw was Tk and that stupid hat he wore. It amazed me how after all this time he still managed to keep it that same color white. It was such a pure color, almost like freshly fallen snow. "So, whose with you?" I wondered, smirking a little.

My attention fell to an object left scattered on the dirt, lightly glistening in the moonlight. A pair of goggles. ‘Those are Daisuke’s.’ I thought, a little surprised. I knew for a fact that the leader never left anywhere without those stupid goggles. They were passed down from the elder leader, his hero.

A smile crossed my lips. So, the leader and the annoyance were leaving the group unguarded. Probably off to find out some way to penetrate the defenses of this base no doubt. Well well well… I wouldn’t let them do that now. It would take away all the fun of having to capture them for myself.

I opted to listen in on their conversation, just wondering what the two were talking about. Sadly, my cameras didn’t go that far and I was cut off from them. The control spires in that area must have been knocked down. Damn them!

Then, an idea crossed my mind. If they figured out how to get in, and I was here waiting for them, they would easily fall into my trap. I definitely needed to hear this talk. Now, over the years, when I was still a child, I created hundreds of underground paths. And the Digidestined always wondered why I always seemed to just pop up wherever they were at any given moment.

I rushed through the maze of neatly dug tunnels, skillfully racing through the right opening. My hair gently caressed the sides of my head as I raced underground, using my speed to my advantage. I was amazed at how quickly I had seemed to get there. But when I stopped running, my legs felt like dead weights, literally ready to fall off at any given moment.

As I crept from for the dreary passage, sand lightly sprinkling on my head from the ground above, as I brushed it away slightly annoyed. The small pellets began to spike at my face as I hissed under my breath. They’d better be worth this. Stealthily, I pulled myself up into the undetectable opening, conveniently covered with a fake blanket of twigs and leaves. How cliché…

But nothing in the world could have prepared me for what I saw next. I was shocked to say the least. Here I was, expecting them to be forming some secret plan to get into my base. What I did not expect to see was them wrapped up in each other’s arms, locking in a passionate embrace.

Without even thinking I turned my back on them, giving them a little privacy. I mentally slapped myself for not picking up the signs of this, considering it was now as clear as day and night. ‘So that’s why Tk was so upset when Daisuke was captured.’ I thought, felling slightly embarrassed.

"I love you Tk." Daisuke whispered, my ears barely picking up the sound.

"I love you to Daisuke. More than anything." The taller blond replied softly, his voice dripping with devotion and love. Almost at once a plan had formed in my head and it was at least ten times sweeter than anything else I could have come up with by myself.

I left them alone to do whatever they were planning on doing, trying too hard to not think about it that much. But also, trying to fight off the small twinge of an unfamiliar feeling that was sparking in my brain. As I sunk back to my tower, I cursed the guardian of Hope slightly, knowing that he already had better than he deserved. A hell of a lot better than he deserved.

Tk’s POV

The second I opened my eyes, I knew I was in heaven. Dai’s body was wrapped securely in my arms, his back pressed against my chest. His chocolate colored hair resting comfortably under my chin as his head snuggled my neck closely. It was pure bliss holding him in my arms.

And if I had said that I liked watching him sleep before, I also had to say that watching him wake up was something I could do forever. It was almost routine with him. Open one eye, groan and shut it again trying to steal an extra few minute’s rest.

I would always laugh at this, which caused him to smirk sideways and stick his tongue out at me. The best part of my day was definitely waking up with him beside me. And waking up with him beside me was something I planned on doing for the rest of my life.

I was so caught up in picturing my perfect little future with him, that I didn’t even notice he had shifted slightly; his hair tickling the underneath of my chin. But I did notice when a pair of soft lips pressed against my neck, pulling me from my glassy stare.

"Good morning." He muttered, bringing his lips up to mine for a quick kiss. My fingers danced in his hair for a brief moment as I pulled away, smiling my head off.

"It definitely is." I joked cutely, earning myself another kiss.

"I could get so used to this." He sighed dreamily, cuddling up to me as much as possible. He let his head rest against my chest, shutting his eyes firmly.

"I already have." I whispered in his ear, kissing the side of his face lightly.

"I don’t even want to move right now." He sighed again. "I never want to leave your arms."

"And I don’t ever want you to leave them." I smiled pulling his warm body against mine. But looking down at my watch, I groaned softly. "But we have to get going fast. The others should be waking up right about now."

"Do we seriously have to?" he asked, moaning. "I mean, is it really that bad if we take one more day off before finding the Emperor’s base?"

"You’re so cute when you’re irresponsible." I laughed.

"Wrong, I’m cute all the time." He smirked, reluctantly pulling away from me. He moaned again as I pulled him back down, not wanting to break away from him just yet.

"I can’t wait to get you home…" I trailed off, kissing his neck again. Daisuke laughed whole heartedly, sighing as I pulled away. "Stupid Digiworld cutting into my love life."

"You mean your imaginary love life." He winked. "Cause that’s what its gonna be if we get caught." Responsibility was a mask he didn’t wear often, but when he did I always found myself moaning.

"And we can’t have that happening now can we?" I inhaled, taking in the fresh morning air, not to mention the slight smell of his hair that was still stuck to my face. He absentmindedly threw my shirt at my face, barely giving me enough time to catch it as the sleeves slapped my cheeks painlessly.

"What excuse this time?" he inquired as he winced almost unnoticeably. I knew he hated lying, and lying to his teammates was something he hated even more.

"Firewood sound good to you?" I asked, picking up a twig that I had been sleeping on all night, rubbing my back as the faint pinging ceased.

"Whatever." He smiled, grabbing his jacket and pulling it over his shoulders.

Several minutes and a few sticks later we returned, greeted by the faces of the others. Our Digimon all huddled into a pile sleeping on each other like pillars. It had been a mutual agreement that they stayed over night in the Digiworld now that the Emperor had decided to make this his permanent abode.

I chuckled softly to myself as Patamon slumped over like an adorable beanbag, his small arms bent in an uncomfortable position. Veemon groaned as he seemed to lose his peaceful position on Armadillomon and hit the floor. I broke out into a full scale fit of laughter as the blue dragon landed on Patamon’s wing, causing my Digimon to scream loudly.

The next bit was pure commotion as Veemon suddenly sprang into reality, startled tremendously. He practically jumped out of his skin, smashing his face into Hawkmon. Having a horn stuck in you wasn’t the best way I can think of waking up to, and the bird Digimon obviously agreed with me as he yelp before landing flat on Gatomon. Yet throughout all of this, Armadillomon didn’t even flinch.

I was joined with the laughter of the others as they all made their way to their respected partners, trying to keep their giggles in check. Dai was the first one there, picking up Veemon with an infinite care I knew all to well. His laughter ringing slightly after the fiasco died down.

"Well, a good morning to all of you." Kari giggled a little, stroking Gatomon’s pure white fur.

"Depends on who you ask…" Hawkmon winced, rubbing his side where he and Veemon had collided.

"Sorry Hawkmon." Veemon apologized again.

"Think nothing of it." The bird sort of smiled. Daisuke was sprawled out next to him, his eyes shut as he slept peacefully. Miyako shifted over to us, smiling widely.

"Do you ever let him sleep at night anymore?" she asked quietly so only we could hear. I turned the brightest shade of crimson as my head snapped around, looking her straight in the eyes, almost slack-jawed. Lying to her now would be useless, she already knew.

"Get out of my head Miyako." I muttered, glancing over at the sleeping boy so close to me. My mind mentally caressed his figure over and over again. I turned to her, whispering one word. "How?"

"You two are horrible liars." Was all she replied winking. "Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone."

"Miyako." I stared in disbelief. "How do you know?"

She blew out a huge gasp of air, looking at me with frustration embedded into her pretty face. "So sue, me, I saw you two making out a few weeks ago."

I smiled to myself, knowing my best friend too well. "You’re an even worse liar."

"Yeah, damn crest of Sincerity. Screws me over all the time."

"Well I’m glad you know. At least now I have someone to confide in." I smiled warmly.

She nodded wordlessly, and I thought she had left the topic well alone but like Miyako, she didn’t. "So tell me Tk, is he a good kisser? Cause you seemed to be pretty winded when I saw you."

"Shut up Miya." I muttered, blushing a little again. She laughed, looking over at Daisuke a little.

"Bet you love the fact soccer’s a sport that takes endurance…" she joked.

"MIYA!" I screamed, instantly clamping my mouth with my hands. I slightly resembled a cooked lobster right now.

"Shut up Tk." Dai moaned, covering his ears and falling asleep again.

"I am not saying anything!" she defended herself before I could snap. "I am shutting up and walking away."

"What’s going on over there?" Kari inquired. I didn’t even have to look at my face to see it was still red. I’m pretty sure they could have fried an egg on my cheek.

"Will someone wake the fearless leader so we can get going? In three hours we have to get back or else they’ll leave without us!" Iori sighed. Veemon appeared at his side, pushing on him gently.

"Wake up Daisuke!" he pleaded as Dai groaned.

"Why do bad guys always have to be attacked at first thing in the morning?" he yawned.

"Well Dai, we could phone up the Emperor and ask him if he’s free around two to fight. That sound okay to you?" the youngest quipped.

"Settle it with my secretary and then get back to me." He rolled over, falling back asleep. Miyako shot me a look as I smirked.

"Come on Dai, let’s get going." I picked him up, holding him a few more seconds that I should have. "Do you want me to carry you or something?"

"Why not." He yawned again. His sleepy brown eyes opened momentarily before shutting again. He stretched once and rubbed his eyes furiously then stood. "I’m up, I’m up."

We all laughed at him, shaking our head sighing deeply. As much fun as he was, the question of how he became our leader floated in our minds over and over again.

That day was completely wasted. We searched that small section of the Digital World a thousand times, not finding anything. The three hours we had slowly ticked down, until we had only six minutes left.

The search ended with us giving up on that area, and going home. As soon as we were in the real world, we went on with our regular activities. Iori having a Kendo practice to get to, Kari having to go shopping with Miyako and myself, I had to get some groceries. Dai had to leave for a soccer practice and he had his stuff waiting for him on the other side; I knew if he missed one more practice he would be in serious trouble. And it was as simple as that. It was as if we completely forgot about everything. I would have given anything to just have a normal life like everyone else. But I knew I wouldn’t be that fortunate for a long time.

By the time I actually got to the Inoue convenient store and back to my place, it was pretty late. (Considering I lived on the other side of town.) But I got half price on everything there, so it made the trip well worth it. Daisuke and myself were much like In-Training Digimon. Bottomless pits.

As I shuffled into the elevator, and kicked at my floor number, I prayed that Dai was home. Technically, he had his own place, but he hardly ever used it. He stayed with me a great majority of the time.

The door to my place was slightly open, and upon walking in, I saw a dusty soccer bag in the hallway. I entered the kitchen, slightly struggling for balance only to find him hunched over a newspaper reading thoughtfully. "Whatcha doing?" I asked as he looked up from the article he was looking at.

"Jogging, what do you think?" he replied sarcastically, shutting over the paper.

"Cute." I stuck out my tongue. "Help me out here, these bags are heavy." I said motioning to the bags that dangled from my arms like deadweights.

"Sure." He muttered, grabbing all the bags from my left hand, bringing them to the counter. He set out sorting the groceries, hooking the fridge door open with his foot as he placed the milk and juice in.

"What were you reading? You were pretty caught up in it." I asked, looking down at the paper. The headline reading two teens were found dead in their apartment; creepy.

"Well, there was a study taken saying whipped cream improves your sex life." He spoke.

"Who in their right mind does these ‘studies’?" I asked aloud. "And who would be stupid enough to believe them?" almost at once I felt something hit my back and clatter to the floor. Turning around, it was a bottle. ‘He so didn’t…’ I laughed mentally, looking up at him

"Shut up and get your cute ass in here." he smirked, shaking his can of whipped cream thoroughly. I shook my head, rolling my eyes at why I did some of the things he did. And it always came down to the same answer. I was sickeningly in love with him.

"Mmm." I muttered, licking the last little bit of white off his shoulder blade. "Almost as tasty as you."

"Remind me to listen more to those studies there."He smiled kissing the tip of my nose. "Either that or remind me to get sprinkles next time."

"Why not chocolate sauce and some ice cream, make a sundae." I suggested jokingly.

"Don’t tempt me. Two of my favorite flavors. Vanilla and Tk." He laughed, resting his head on my chest. "My new favorite dessert."

"You’re a nut." I chuckled.

"And peanuts too…" he went on listing as I laughed. "You know what?" he said after we both quieted down.

"What?"

"I like it when you laugh." He mumbled quietly. "It’s contagious when you’re in a good mood."

"And I’m always in a good mood when I’m around you." I sighed, inhaling the smell of his hair. "God, you have no idea how happy you make me."

He turned around, so now he was staring down at me. He smiled weakly as I fingered the hair that fell to the side of his head. My palms cupping his face, bringing my head up to his for a lengthy kiss. "Tk, I love you so much. I would be so lost without you."

"Not half as lost as I would be without you. It drives me crazy when I can’t hold you every second of the day." I quickly pulled him under me, my body crushing his slightly.

He happily kissed me, sighing in pleasure when I pulled away, leaving just enough room between us so we could speak. "Do it again." He muttered dreamily.

Just as I was about to kiss him, the phone rang. I growled softly at whoever was interrupting my personal time with Dai and picked up the phone clumsily. "Hello."

"Hey Tk, listen, we found the Emperor’s base. Izzy and Miyako stayed up late yesterday night and according to them his base is in the Serven Desert. A little while from File Island." Kari squealed giddily. "Meet us in twenty minutes so we can go take him down! My place okay?!"

"Sure, that’s great." I cheered; my eyes falling on the person next to me who was slowly kissing a trail down my chest. "See you there."

"Oh, and if you hear from Daisuke, tell him too. We can’t get a hold of him."

"Oh I’m sure I’ll see him." I laughed lightly, as he suddenly halted, listening up once he realized we were talking about him. I gingerly placed the phone back in its original spot as looked down at him. "Why’d you stop?" I smirked. "I was enjoying that."
"We found him didn’t we?" his face broke out in a huge grin. As I nodded, he shouted out in joy. "Finally! I swear I’m going to make him pay for what he did to me." His eyes suddenly became slits in his head.

I knew better than any one how much he hurt Daisuke. He still had huge lash-marks on his back from where he had been whipped. Most of the other welts, bruises, cut, scrapes and gashes I didn’t want to know where they came from, and all I could do for him was apply cold compresses on all of them when he refused to go to a hospital.

"Come on, we only have twenty minutes." I stated, breaking him out of his shell of revenge. As I started to get up, his strong hand pulled me right back down, pinning me to him.

"That’s more than enough time." He smirked as I felt the blood rise up to my face. My cheeks, flaming red once again.



"There you two are!" Iori exclaimed. So what if we were a few minutes late… "Come on, let’s get going!"

"Nice to see you too." Dai greeted snippily. I lightly kicked his leg, signaling him to cool it. Those two always rubbed off on one another the wrong way.

We let the others go in first, stealing a few more moments alone. "See you in a few." I smiled, leaning down and kissing him quickly. If I had known what I did now, I would have made that kiss last a lot longer, and would have made it a lot more meaningful.

"Come on!" Kari giggled happily. You would think she was this ideal picture of perfection and innocence, but in reality she wasn’t. She was probably more bloodthirsty than any of us. She was always rushing headfirst into battles, getting off on the high they presented. I think it was all due to the fact she was trapped in a state of suspended animation here after a battle with the Scubamon; after that, she never really was the same.

"Where are we going exactly?" I asked, looking over at Miyako who yawned heavily.

"The Serven Desert." She replied, covering her mouth. "It’s not too far from here, and if what Izzy and I pulled up is correct, which it is, the land is completely deserted. There used to be miles of valleys and foliage, but something happened and it all shriveled up and died."

"Pleasant." Dai sighed.

"Woah…" Kari gasped, halting right in her spot. It took the rest of us a few seconds to get to where she was, but as soon as were by her side, the same reaction echoed.

We were standing on a cliff, overlooking everything. There was a small bridge made completely of stones and compressed dirt. It didn’t look to safe from where I was standing. Words escaped us looking at the sight.

It was barren, dead, ugly… nothing like the rest of the Digiworld. I shivered suddenly as a cool chill raced up my spine. I didn’t like it here. "Come on, It can’t be that hard to hide a base here." Iori muttered.

With our Digimon already waiting for us, we slid down the short cliff, landing on our feet when we hit the ground. We weren’t even there for three minutes before the Emperor appeared. A sadistic smile crept on his face as he glanced at all of us. His gaze soon fell directly on Dai, smiling twistedly.

"What, back for more abuse so soon? I thought I beat enough sense into you last time that you would give up." He spoke coolly. Dai’s temper was steadily rising to the point he would blow.

"We’re here to finish you off Emperor." His response was like steel. His fingers ran over to his Digivice, and instantly, Veemon Armor-Digivolved. The others followed his lead as their Digimon quickly changed to their strongest evolution possible. "Get him Flamdramon!"

It was chaos from that point on. The Emperor had a creature called Deltamon right behind him, ready to strike. His blast causing a triple threat. We almost had him beat, but reinforcements swiftly came, outnumbering us greatly. Digmon had been knocked unconscious, and Iori was at his side, protecting his now In-Training Digimon.

Looking up, I saw Daisuke running over to help Flamdramon, who was on the verge of De-Digivolving. But at that moment, his knee decided to call it quits, and he hit the ground with a painful snap. My entire body froze at that moment. I didn’t dare breath, but then the fear of him getting hurt overcame me, and I raced over to his side.

"Dai!" I screamed, collecting him in my arms. He was holding his leg, sobbing in sheer agony. I pulled him close to me, shielding his body from everything dangerous.

But out of nowhere, a Bakemon came swooping in, diving to try and grab Daisuke. But instead of letting it get to him, I got in the way, allowing its head to collide with my back painfully. I screamed only once, biting down on my bottom lip till I could feel the blood dripping into my mouth.

"Stop it!" Dai begged the Bakemon. The Emperor’s malicious laughter rang through the land sending chills down my badly pulverized back. "STOP!"

I knew I was one hit away from a broken spine, and as I braced myself for another blow, but then, the Emperor yelled. "Enough Bakemon!" the ghost stopped instantly, and I fell limply over Dai. Our foreheads touching as I gave him a reassuring smile. Tears were welled up in his eyes, looking right into mine as he shook his head several times before wrapping his arms around me.

"Tk I’m sorry." He apologized over and over again.

"Well Digidestined, looks like you’re beaten." He smirked contently.

"Dai…" I coughed, groaning in pain. He winced looking around, inhaling deeply after a few moments and I could tell there was something going on in that head of his. My eyes sprang open as something dawned on me. "Daisuke no!"

"I have to." Was his quiet response. He left the warmth of my arms, and stood up shakily, almost toppling over from lack of support.

"Well, what do we have here?" The Emperor chuckled evilly.

"Please." Daisuke bowed submissively. "Spare my friends. Take me instead."

"Dai no!" I coughed again, hitting the ground. Blackness was creeping up on me, as I saw the panic in his shinning eyes. "Please God don’t do it…"

"Tk please, I don’t… can’t, let him hurt you…" he whispered. Out of nowhere the Emperor appeared behind Daisuke, grabbing his arm tightly, squeezing painfully.

"So, I get to have my little toy back again. Fun." He lipped, the malice dripping from his voice. Daisuke flinched as he pressed the side of his face against his, forcefully guiding his head so he looked at me. "Take a good look at him Daisuke, because it’s the last time you’ll ever see him again."

"Daisuke stop!" I cried, springing to my feet, ignoring the explosions of pain rocketing around my back. I reached out to grab him, but the Emperor just shoved him harshly to the ground and grabbed me by the shirt, yanking my face so it was only an inch away from his.

"He’s mine now." He smiled cruelly, I picked up a hint of contempt and anger in his voice, shuddering at the frigidness to it. "Just deal!" I was forcefully pushed into the sand, landing on my back. I screamed out in pain, trying desperately to stop him from taking away the one person that meant so much to me.

"Daisuke!" I hollered as I watched him being dragged away. Bakemon floating around me, pinning me to the ground until they were on the Airdramon. They vanished without a trace as soon as Daisuke and the Digimon Emperor were out of sight.

My body went numb as Miyako’s arms shot out around me like a comforting blanket. Somewhere deep inside of me, I had a sinking feeling that that would be the last time I ever saw him again. And at that feeling, I broke down crying, knowing now I was as good as dead.

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