A Seraphic Tale Chapter 16

[kudzumac]

 Kudzu: Hello everyone, and welcome back. After a nice break, it's time to return to this fic. In today's installment, Yun makes a new friend. Joining me and Ayaka is Leopardmon once again, as well as Rita and Plutomon.

Rita: Hi again!

Kudzu: So, Ayaka, what did you do during the break?

Ayaka: Actually, Leopardmon invited me to watch the D&D game that Plutomon runs. Half of it went over my head though, but it seemed like fun.

Leopardmon: Yeah! It was great, Me, Zero, Rita, and Mister Swallowtail had a blast! We got to finally meet the Big Bad of the campaign, and there was also a side quest involving fire breathing chickens and---

Pluto: Leopardmon, please keep details of our game to yourself, we do have a sporking to do.

Leopardmon: Oh right! Um, is it going to be as bad as last time?

Kudzu: Hopefully not, though surprisingly, there won't be a digimon battle this time!

Pluto: Ah, so it will most likely be more social then?

Kudzu: Yeah, anyway, let's get started- Roll Episode!

EPISODE 16: The Boy With a Constellation's Name

Rita: Is this kid really going to have a name like that?

Kudzu: let me check what Hokuto's name really translates to... and this time the author got a name translation right- Hokuto does indeed mean Big Dipper.

Ayaka: You don't sound happy.

Kudzu: I was hoping the author would get another name wrong.

Pluto: Is there anything else you're not happy about, Kudzu?

Kudzu: I'll explain about what I read ahead for Hokuto when we get to him.

Rita: That's foreboding.

The weekend has come once again for not just Yun, Lucero, Kokomon, and Gummymon, but for all kids, especially those who hated school with a passion.

Ayaka: Japan. School exists for Saturdays.

Rita: But, doesn't the author treat schools like American ones anyway?

Kudzu: Eyup.

Yun had woken up earlier than the others. At around 6:40 AM. She went to the basement, got on her dad's computer, listened to music for a while, updated some of her storie, and got off. After that, she decided to draw some pictures at her very messy and unkempt drawing table.
She had finished her drawing featuring Kokomon and Gummymon, and now she's working on one with Lucero on it. Of course, it's still in it's beginning stages. After about 20 minutes, Yun decided to take a break from drawing and went back upstairs.

Kudzu: As an amateur artist, twenty minutes of drawing before a break is nothing compared to what you can do in an art class, which can last for a couple of hours.

When she arrived in the kitchen, she saw little Kokomon standing there, comfortably wrapped in one of Yun's blankets, even though it's much too big for her. Yun noticed this and smiled.

"Good morning, Kokomon!" Yun cooed sweetly as she kneeled before the little pink blob.

"Morning," Kokomon replied just as sweetly. Touched, Yun gently caressed the little pink blob and wrapped her in her arms.

"You're up early," Yun said.

"I noticed you were gone," Kokomon replied.

"Nah. I was just in the basement working on some stuff," Yun said quietly and reassuringly.

"You working on your school project?" Kokomon asked.

"It's already finished! I plan on turning it in on Monday," Yun replied.

Leopardmon: School Project?

Ayaka: An anti-drug poster for a contest.

Leopardmon: Ah! Ok!

"I think you'll win! Your project's beautiful!" Kokomon told her, which made Yun blush a bit.

"Oh, no no. I don't think I'll win at all," Yun said.

All: Sure you won't.

"Oh! Yun! I notice you sleep with this blanket every day. Why is that?" Kokomon asked, pulling part of the blanket she's wrapped in with her mouth. Yun took little Kokomon into the living room and sat down on the couch with her.

Yun took Kokomon out of the blanket and set her down on her lap. Yun unfolded the blanket so she could get a better look at it. It's two feet smaller than Yun and it's mostly white, but has little angels with blonde hair, white wings, and smiling faces embroidered on the top left and bottom right parts of it. There are also yellow stars and little red hearts embroidered around it. In the very middle are the words 'Little Angel' in English in multifarious colors, like pink, blue, purple, light green, etc. Yun folded the blanket back up and held it close to her chest.

Leopardmon: This takes place in Japan, right? So...shouldn't the words Little Angel be embroidered on the blanket in Kanji?

Kudzu: I think so, but we, like Yun know next to nothing about who made the blanket.

"Mom says when I was first born, I was wrapped in this very blanket. She says it was made by my grandmother's friend. I've never met her friend, and I don't know her name, but I guess I've held on to this thing a lot. I don't sleep without it," Yun explained.

"But you're not a baby anymore, right?" Kokomon asked.

"Yes, but I can't help but cherish this thing. I guess you could say it's the only memory I have of my birth," Yun replied.

Pluto: While I understand the sentiment... this just feels a little creepy. Also... *checks last chapter's notes* I think the author may indeed have a thing about Angels.

Kudzu: That's... not the only thing the author apparently likes. I think I recall something about a thing for tickling being mentioned in another spork that was done for a different story.

"It's cute!" Kokomon piped in.

Kudzu: *Checks blanket description again* Eh... I guess it might be cute? But to me it feels like a generic baby blanket?

"It is! And it's soft too! If you want, I could wrap you and Gummymon in this thing!" Yun exclaimed with a smile.

Rita: Would a blanket that's been used for eleven years remain soft?

Kudzu: No, I think if it's going to be used for a while, a blanket's softness will eventually fade, even if it was well taken care of.

And speaking of Gummymon, he just so happened to trot into the living room, looking kinda weary and not all that awake just yet.

Kudzu: Yeah, that sounds like my twin bro during the rare times he's up in the mornings.

Ayaka: You're a twin?

Kudzu: Yeah? Huh, thought someone would have told you that by now. Eh, oh well.

"Mornin'..." Gummymon murmured with his little beady eyes only half open. Yun walked up to him, picked him up, put him and Kokomon into the blanket, and wrapped the two little blobs in it. The two little blobs closed their eyes and fell back asleep. Yun held them and closed her eyes as well, but not to sleep.

Rita: Is there a point to this?

Kudzu: Cutes, I think.

Rita: Oh.

Yun laid against the couch, holding her two little friends in her cherished infant blanket like a mother who is holding her newborn child for the first time. As Yun drifted off to dreamland for a bit, she remembered very lucidly the day she first met Kokomon and Gummymon. Yun had finally let the thought of having Digimon partners for real sink in. It had been about two weeks since she met her new friends, and boy had they come at the right time for her!

Ayaka: Doubt that. She got them after a bad day and an improbable incident if I'm reading the notes right. 

Pluto: *also checks the notes* Did we ever figure out how Mrs. Nemoto beat Yun and her mother home?

Kudzu: Nope.

Yun was loving every single minute she spent with her Digimon, and cherished them as if they were real pieces of heaven itself. Yun would never want to trade them for anything else. Nothing else in the world seemed that important to her than Kokomon and Gummymon anymore.

All: *Stare uncomfortably*

Rita: She... sounds either brainwashed or the author's thing for Heavenly Hosts is coming through again.

Not only that, Yun was excited. Excited for today's Digimon Brigade meeting. Her mind was a whirlwind of happy thoughts just waiting to burst open like an erupting volcano at any moment. She couldn't wait to tell all her friends about her trip to the Digital World, the D-Chips, the digivice and all the things it can do. She couldn't wait for today.

Unfortunately, she was unaware that the meeting she looked forward to was going to have to wait much longer than expected. It seemed destiny had other plans for Yun.

Leopardmon: Are you sure it was destiny?

Kudzu: It's what the author defines as "Destiny."

Leopardmon: Oh.

At around 9:00 AM, Yun, Kokomon, and Gummymon sat down to watch an episode of Pokemon. After that, Yun got dressed. She dressed in a short sleeved white shirt, a red sleeveless hoodie with a zipper, and her blue capris.

Rita: At least it's not as descriptive as other outfits- seriously, the costume porn in this is kind of annoying sometimes.

Pluto: At least she's not dressing like your sister does when she puts on a show.

Rita: Yeah, that's true... some of the costumes Nita puts on can be... excessive.

She played with Kokomon and Gummymon like no tomorrow. Soon, Lucero had joined the little play date. He put on a sleeveless dark green shirt and beige khaki shorts. They were having a lot of fun. Teruki was watching them with a smile while reading the paper at the kitchen table. Hisako was busy prepping herself up in the bathroom. Ayaka was still asleep in bed.

Ayaka: If this is Saturday like I think it is, I should be in school... but I guess the author thinks all schools are like the ones in America.

Kudzu: Most likely, yeah. There's a time and a place for writing what you know, but there's also times where research helps as well.

But even after Yun continued to play with her friends, she desperately wanted that Digimon Brigade meeting to start so she can explode like a bomb and tell everyone about the stuff she discovered and the things she experienced. Right now, she, Lucero, Kokomon, and Gummymon are in Yun's room, looking at Yun's yearbook from 2010.

Rita: I know America uses yearbooks, but does Japan?

Kudzu: Let me check real quick... *Googles* Huh, apparently they do, and in 2017, there was some vandalism towards them going on, but I don't know if that mystery's been solved yet or not.

"Is that thou?" Lucero asked curiously, pointing to a picture of a rather straight-faced Yun in a page full of pictures of kids' faces.

"Yep! That's me!" Yun replied.

"Wow! You didn't change one bit!" Gummymon exclaimed.

"I don't ever wanna change! Not ever!" Yun said.

Kudzu: You're going to change, Yun- Physically at least due to puberty. You can't stop Puberty no matter what you do.

Leopardmon: Not wanting to change reminds me of Petermon's MO... he tended to kidnap Digimon that didn't want to grow up past Rookie. *Looks worried* Petermon isn't in this story, is he?

Kudzu: He shows up near the end as an ally.

Leopardmon: Oh. *looks even more worried* What about Tinkermon?

Kudzu: No sign of her from what I can tell.

Leopardmon: *sighs in relief* That's good... she's the more dangerous of the two due to her ability to de-age Digimon with her Fairy Powder, and when she works with Petermon, their Petermon Syndrome combo forces rookie and below digimon to follow them to their hideout.

Ayaka: *horrified to hear this* So, you were turned into a rookie and basically kidnapped?

Leopardmon: *Nods sadly* Yeah... I had been hit with the Fairy Powder so much, my mind reverted to being a bratty kid... I'm getting better though! So, there's nothing to worry about, I just have to keep going to Therapy until I'm mentally an adult again!

Pluto: *silent*

Rita: Um... let's move on.

Kudzu: Yeah.

"But don't you ever want to grow your hair out or put it up?" Kokomon asked.

"Nope! I NEVER put my hair up! EVER! And I don't ever want to do so!" Yun replied sharply.

Kudzu: She said nothing about growing her hair out, I think.

Ayaka: You're right, she didn't.

"I see. Okay then. If you don't want to change how you look, that's perfectly fine with me," Kokomon said.

Rita: Of course you'd feel that way, Kokomon, you're a blind supporter of Yun along with Gummymon.

Pluto: Change happens whether you like it or not, that's how the world works. Whether Yun likes it or not, or tries to stay the same, things like puberty for humans, or an accident will change how she looks.

"Doth thy school make yearbooks every year?" Lucero asked.

Kudzu: They're called yearbooks. Of course they make them every year.

Leopardmon: I know that Lucemon has amnesia here, but I find him not even using context clues to figure something out annoying.

Kudzu: What can I say? Digimon are morons in this fic when it comes to human stuff.

"Yep! It's a tradition for all schools. It's been like that for years and years," Yun replied.

"I'd love it if I was in something that would take place forever and ever," Gummymon said.

Aldamon: *Pokes his head in* That sounds like a time loop, and since I've been in one all I can say is that no, you would not love it after a while. *Leaves before anyone can say anything*

"We can always take pictures with cell phones and digivices, right?" Kokomon said.

"That's true! We can!" Yun said.

It's here that Yun suddenly saw Hisako come into the room, looking very prepped up. She is wearing a sleeveless cream white blouse along with a violet purple skirt that goes to her knees, black Chinese slippers, a bracelet made of pink quartzes with a heart hanging from it, two ruby earrings, and a sapphire necklace with a silver chain. Yun couldn't help but notice.

Ayaka: I... don't think the random jewelry go well together.

Kudzu: Also, Chinese Slippers? I would have thought Sandals would work just as well? Also *Googles* Huh, apparently what comes up look simliar to house slippers in Google, but the slipper in question also was used when studying martial arts or performing Tai Chi.

Ayaka: Wow, didn't know that.

Kudzu: Eh, I had suspicions while I could still watch Kung Fu movies on El Rey... before the channel was dropped from Direct TV.

"Yun?"

"Yeah?"

"You might want to brush your hair and teeth and put your shoes on."

"Why?" Now Yun was confused.

Rita: *As Hisako* Because it's time for the plot to kick in!

"Because a friend of mine at work has just moved into the area two days ago, and I want to go over and get her settled in. Plus she's having a little moving in party. I want you to come with me. We leave at eleven," Hisako said.

This made Yun's eyes wide and her jaw drop to the floor. A party? Her mom's friend is having a moving in party? Today? At eleven? And she wants Yun to come with her? Yun couldn't understand. Why? Why does she have to go?

"Mom? Why do I have to go?" Yun asked politely.

"It's just to get you out of the house for a bit. Plus we won't stay there long," Hisako told her.

"But I am gonna get out of the house today! My friends and I are having a Digimon Brigade meeting today at three!" Yun retorted.

"We'll be back by then!" Hisako said. But Yun didn't look convinced. Not one bit.

"You say that but then lots of time passes and we don't get home by the set time at all!" Yun sneered a bit, putting down her yearbook.

Leopardmon: Is... Is Yun fighting against the storyline?

Pluto: Eh, something will come along to Railroad Yun into the plot hook.

"Yun. It'll be fine. Besides, Ayaka's gonna be home all day today," Hisako whispered.

At first, Yun was a bit confused as to why Hisako would tell her this. But then the answer pounded on her ears like the beginning of a horrid rap concert.

Plutomon: See, told ya.

"Suzuki! I told you already we're not friends anymore! Can't you take a hint?"

Leopardmon: Suzuki?

Ayaka: Ex-friend apparently, still don't remember much about my old world outside of what's been shown or mentioned in-story. I don't even know who Suzuki is, or why we aren't friends anymore.

Rita: Maybe we'll find out later?

Ayaka: I really hope so.

Yun could feel extraneous and potential pressure amassing onto her heart. She sighed.

"On second thought...maybe I'll go after all," Yun muttered. "But! On one condition! Can I take Lucero, Kokomon, and Gummymon with me?"

Hisako nodded. "Sure. I don't mind. But be sure to hide them so nobody finds out what they really are. And if you want you can bring your games."

Then, Hisako left the living room. Yun got her digivice out.

"Yun? What art thou doing?" Lucero asked.

"Texting Mina-chan and letting her know the meeting's gonna be re-scheduled for tomorrow," Yun said as she began typing out her newly formed text into her digivice.

"But Hisako-dono said we might be home by three," Lucero said.

"She says we'll be back by certain times a lot, but then the events go on and on and we end up not getting back by then at all! So I'm doing this as a pre-caution," Yun said as she finished typing out her text to Minako.

Kudzu: *Blinks* Huh, so that's where Yun gets her manipulative streak from. Hisako just played Yun into going along with the plot.

Ayaka: Huh, you're right. Though, I'm not surprised Yun's digimon and Lucemon get to go with her.

It read:

Mina-chan. It's me, Yun. Mom's making me go to a friend's party so I can't make today's Digimon Brigade meeting! SORRY! She didn't tell me about it beforehand! I'm so mad! You're probably mad too. Would tomorrow at around noon be better? A million sorries!

Yun pressed the send button and it was sent successfully.

Rita: Huh, guess the Digivices in this story gets a good signal if they can send messages easily. 

Deciding not to make a huge fuss about the sudden announcement, Yun decided to prepare. She brushed her hair and teeth, put her silver Nintendo DS and some games and a book into a small green purse that Rena had gotten her for her 10th birthday (which is also good enough to fit Kokomon and Gummymon in so long as she didn't zip it up), put on a pair of black socks with white, pink, and red hearts on them, put on her white sneakers, and put two packs of fruit snacks into her pockets. Lucero did the same. He didn't understand what was going on and did not make a fuss, but so long as Yun was by his side, he chose not to worry about it. Yun also put her digivice in her pocket so she wouldn't lose it.

Leopardmon: That Imprint thingy is still going strong with that line about Lucemon.

Kudzu: Eyup.

And speaking of her digivice, as Yun, Lucero, Kokomon, and Gummymon waited for Hisako to come into the living room and tell them that it's time to go, Yun noticed a button on her digivice blinking. Yun flipped open the digivice and was relieved to see a text from Minako.

It read:

Morning Yun! It's alright. Stuff like that happens all the time. You actually picked a really good time to tell me this because I was planning on texting everyone about it at around eleven! I didn't get the chance to do so right now. Thanks a lot for letting me know! And I'm not mad. I'll ask everyone if tomorrow at noon will be good. Thanks!

Yun felt relieved reading the text.

Ayaka: Yeah, after Chapter Nine, we're relieved to.

It seems Yun really did pick a good time to text Minako about it since Minako was planning on letting everyone know about the original Digimon Brigade meeting date. Now she had nothing to worry about. And at the same time, she was thinking about something else. Maybe this whole party idea won't be such a bad idea. Especially since Ayaka's going to be home all day and might do a LOT of yelling, and Yun hated the sound of yelling and screaming.

Ayaka: Of course I'm the reason Yun goes out, just to avoid interacting with me. She doesn't know that I'll yell at her all the time! So far, all I've done was yell whenever I showed up in the fic. Well, it's actually the Puppet Inky II is piloting, but still... *Sighs* Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to say is that Yun? People are going to yell and scream whether you like it or not. That's just the way of the world.

Perhaps this will be good for Yun. Later, 11:00 AM came and Hisako put everyone in the car. Both Yun and Lucero sat in the back seat. Yun held onto her purse, which as Kokomon and Gummymon in it. In a few minutes, the car slowly drove away from the drive way and onto the streets.

Yun looked outside upon seeing the car leave the drive way and observed all the scenery running past her. She saw the houses, the trees, the birds flying around, the telephone wires, satellite dishes on people's houses, cars, bikes, a group of kids playing basketball in their backyard, everything.

Kudzu: I may not know much about Japanese Towns, but I'll be honest- this feels more like an American one to be honest.

She lifted her purse up so Kokomon and Gummymon could see all the scenery too, and they loved it. A few minutes passed, and upon feeling the car suddenly stop in front of a traditional Japanese house, Yun realized that the trip wasn't as big as she thought. Much to her surprise, Yun realized they're on Senko Avenue, which intertwines with Kin Avenue, which is where Aria lives. Yun couldn't believe how close this house was to Aria's house, even though their houses are starkly different from one another.

Kudzu: You haven't been to Aria's house yet, you don't know what it looks like.

The plate on the front of the gate read 'Kamitsure', possibly the surname of the people living here.

Leopardmon: Well, who else could it be? I mean, it's not like they plate hadn't been changed yet, right? So that possibly probably isn't necessary.

Yun was surprised with how traditional the house looked. She had seen traditional Japanese houses before, but those were mostly on TV. She never expected to see one in real life, let alone have one so close to where she lives! The roof is thatched in an old style, and the walls and partitions look to be made of wood and paper, possibly having those sliding doors called fusuma too. Yun could see immediately that one part of the house leads to a full on tatami room with shoji, which are very thin paper doors that allow light to permeate them and light up the room. Hisako opened the gate and walked on a little stone path that lead to the front porch.

Kudzu: On one hand, I can tell that the author most likely researched this. On the other hand... I'm not sure if Yuki would scream at this description or not. I mean, yeah, thatched roofs are a thing, but I dunno, don't some Japanese houses have shingles or tiles on the roof too?

Yun and Lucero followed her without a word...and then Yun turned her head to her left and saw the garden.

And a boy.

Ayaka: Is it time to talk about Hokuto yet?

Kudzu: Not yet, not until he's properly introduced by name.

A boy is standing in front of a garden full of white star flowers and holding a few of them in his land...and he just so happened to lock eyes with Yun. Both of them were frozen in place. Yun couldn't believe her eyes. There's a boy in the garden looking at her.

Rita: Uh... there isn't a love triangle in this story, is there?

Kudzu: Not that I can tell. Why?

Rita: Because I feel like this is going to lead to a second Imprint for Yun.

Kudzu: I'm going to have to talk to the Imprinting Expert for this one. I'll report the findings in a moment. *Pulls out phone and starts texting*

Ayaka: Who do you know that's an expert on imprints?

Kudzu: A guy in Greece. *Looks at her phone* And according to him, harem-style imprints where the victims imprint on one person is possible as seen in PKH. But... this may turn into a Twilight Situation.

Ayaka: So... keep an eye on Hokuto?

Kudzu: Exactly.

A very slim and thin boy, almost emaciated looking, with a head of thick, dark chocolatey brown hair covered by an indigo blue snow hat.

Kudzu: You know, if he wasn't eating that much, I... don't think his hair would be thick, but that's just me.

Parts of it stuck out from his hat, but he did not seem very cognizant of this fact. Round, clear, coke bottle glasses only barely concealed a set of cobalt blue eyes, eyes that looked as though they were a mixture of blue and grey. His eyes didn't look very lively or animated. In fact, quite the contrary! Hollow and almost listless and apathetic, they looked, but at the same time, full of surprise because of Yun's presence. His skin is just as white as Yun's, like snow and porcelain. There wasn't one blemish on his skin. Not one freckle, not one little bump, not one scratch, nothing. The boy's skin was just as flawless as Lucero's (Yun's wasn't exactly flawless, but it wasn't bad or squalid either). The boy is wearing a green and dark blue rugby polo shirt and a pair of strikingly pale blue pants. Yun had never seen pants like them, pants that were so pale blue that they almost looked white. Was it called cloud blue? She didn't know. The boy also wore black and white sneakers and dark blue socks.

Rita: The description porn here seems to make Hokuto obviously important.

Kudzu: Eyup.

But what Yun noticed the most was the white and yellow thing wrapped around his neck.

At first glance, one would think it was a scarf or even a stuffed animal, mostly a stuffed animal. A stuffed white weasel with intricate yellow markings all over it. But something about that stuffed animal wasn't right. It didn't look...fake. That was it. It wasn't fake. Even Yun could see this very well.

Rita: Hokuto... has Kudamon as his partner?

Kudzu: Eyup.

Rita: Did... you happen to copy this for Percy?

Kudzu: No? I didn't even hear of this fic until around.... 2018 I think? Well after my laptop died with the story notes.

Rita: Oh.

Suddenly, the boy opened his mouth just a little bit, almost as if he wanted to speak. Yun had suspicions, and she decided to try and confirm them by talking to the boy.

"Umm...Hi!" Yun blurted out finally.

Unfortunately, the boy didn't respond. He simply ran back into the house, still holding the white star flowers in his hand. Yun sighed despondently and ruefully. Lucero put a hand on her shoulder.

Leopardmon: Yes Hokuto! Run away from the imprint!

Pluto: Might not be that easy if it's already set in.

"What's wrong?" Lucero asked kindly.

"I think I scared him," Yun muttered.

"Maybe he's just shy," Kokomon piped in.

"Could be! But he doesn't look like much," Gummymon muttered.

Rita: Is Gummymon jealous of Hokuto?

Kudzu: I really hope not, I do not need to get implied incest from this since the fic likes to paint Yun as her digimon partners' mother.

While Yun became slightly overcome with feelings of dejection and despondency, Hisako was overcome with nothing but absolute joy and excitement, especially when she saw a woman come out from the house. About Hisako's age, with curly dark brown hair going down her shoulders and dark green eyes, wearing nothing but a short sleeved red violet shirt, beige jean pants, and maroon shoes.

Ayaka: YOU DON'T WEAR SHOES IN HOUSES IN JAPAN! Hell, even in schools, there are lockers for indoors shoes which you can swap out for outdoor shoes after school.

"Kamitsure-san?"

"Oh my! Wakamiya-san! Hi!"

The two women embraced each other, squealing and acting like long lost friends who had not seen each other for the longest time. They hugged and exchanged happy greetings.

Ayaka: Wow... Mom is... really friendly with that woman.

Rita: A bit too friendly, now that I look at it.

Pluto: Is Ayaka's mother Hisako cheating on her husband with Mrs. Kamitsure?

Ayaka: Uh.. I really hope not.

"Wow! It's been such a long time! How've you been, Kamitsure-san?" Hisako asked.

Leopardmon: You're co-workers right? Why are you acting like it's been years?

Kudzu: This spork is feeling like it's taking years...

"I've been well, thanks! And I thought I told you to call me Aki while we're not at work!" The woman, Kamitsure Aki, exclaimed happily and joyously.

"Sorry, Aki," Hisako said.

"It's alright...Oh? Now who're they?" Aki exclaimed once she caught sight of Lucero and Yun.

Knowing that Aki saw her, Yun tensed up while Lucero said nothing.

"This is my daughter, Yun, and my adopted son, Lucero. Yun, say hi," Hisako said to Aki at first as she introduced them, then to Yun. Yun could feel her insides doing backflips.

All: *stare*

Ayaka: ... Since when was Lucemon adopted?

Kudzu: Uh... probably a cover story, and since Lucemon is the love interest...

Pluto: That's just wrong. *Shudders*

Leopardmon: Uh... didn't Lilithmon have a thing for her brother Beelzemon in our fic? At least that's what I heard...

Rita: Yeah

"Hi..." Yun muttered very shyly. Aki clasped her hands together.

"Wow! You're so pretty! You look just like my daughter Airi when she was your age!" Aki exclaimed happily.

"Th-Thanks..." Yun muttered again. Aki then turned to Lucero.

"Wow! Aren't you a handsome cookie!" Aki exclaimed. Lucero was taken aback by Aki's compliment.

Ayaka: Okay, anyone else getting uncomfortable by just about everyone calling Lucemon handsome?

Everyone else: Yes.

"Nice to meet thee, ma'am. But cookies are food," Lucero replied.

"Yes yes, I get the picture! Come in! Come in! My husband's passing out food to the other guests as I speak!" Aki said as she escorted everyone into the house.

Rita: Aki is actually not at all weirded out by Lucemon's speech patterns...

Kudzu: Yeah, that is kind of weird- maybe some sort of weirdness censor brought about by what happened to Hokuto?

Ayaka: Speaking of, is it time yet?

Kudzu: Not yet.

Lucero and Yun saw that there are a lot of women in the main room, talking amongst themselves and eating the food samples that a man is passing out. Yun plodded into the room and watched everything happen around her. Aki was too busy introducing her husband, the person passing out the food, to Hisako. Yun sat down and decided to play her Nintendo DS while everyone else minded their own business. After about a few minutes, Yun started to feel like she's being watched. Yun turned around and saw the boy peeking out from one of the hallways, observing her with indifferent but interested eyes. But right when she laid eyes on him, he gasped and ran away again. Yun was surprised. This boy is more taciturn and diffident than she and Lucero are combined! Yun couldn't help but feel a little curious about the boy.

Ayaka: This still feels like an imprint to me.

Kudzu: Yeah...

Rita: I mean, at least he's not watching her sleep?

Pluto: Watching... her sleep? Isn't that frowned upon among humans?

Kudzu: Not in the Twilight Saga- that mess painted stalking as being romantic. *Shudders* I hate that series.

Lucero suddenly noticed Yun spacing out.

Kudzu: *Eyeing the Fourth Wall Reader as it spikes* Please don't think about Dorumon, Please don't think about Dorumon....

"Yun? Something wrong?" Lucero asked.

"Wha? Oh! Nothing," Yun muttered. Kokomon and Gummymon remained silent throughout the whole thing, though Gummymon is starting to become rather impatient.

Kudzu: *Sighs in relief as the Fourth Wall Reader goes back to normal* Phew, that was a close one

Yun wanted to continue playing her Nintendo DS happily, peacefully, and without interruption, but didn't get the chance to do so. A loud, high-pitched shriek came right into the room, along with another shriek. Yun covered her ears, turned around, and saw two little girls fighting over a toy, which scared the other guests as well. One girl has a mass of curly light brown hair while the other one has them in pig tails. Both looked to be about four to six years old in age. Yun tensed up even further. Aki suddenly saw the little fracas and proceeded to break them up.

"Ack! Kimi! Nene! I thought I told you two to not fight over toys!" Aki pulled the two girls apart and took away the toy truck that they were fighting over. Aki then scooped the curly haired girl, Nene, into her arms and lifted her up. She bowed before the guests. The girl she wrapped in her arm screamed again.

Kudzu: Um... I'm not sure if bowing in apology is appropriate here...

Ayaka: Why not contact Yuki?

Kudzu: I... don't know how to contact her... That, and I can be awkward about asking people questions sometimes.

Ayaka: Oh.

Rita: On the bright side, at least we're getting some normal kids for once.

"Sorry about this!" Aki exclaimed as she bowed before them. Suddenly, the pig tailed girl, Kimi, lit up upon catching sight of Kokomon and Gummymon and ran toward them. Lucero tried to stop her, but she kept struggling.

"Dollies! I want the dollies!" Kimi yelled.

Leopardmon: Is there a point to this scene?

Kudzu: To show why Yun hates little kids and babies.

Leopardmon: Oh.

"No! They're not...thine!" Lucero told her, even though he messed up his own dialect. Unfortunately, Kimi got away from Lucero's clutches and literally pulled Kokomon out of the bag and began playing with her. Yun gasped.

"Hey! Give her back!" Yun yelled as she tried to take Kimi's tiny but strong hands off of the poor, defenseless Kokomon. Unfortunately, Kimi was NOT giving up.

"No! Mine!"

"It's mine! Give her back!"

"No!"

Rita: How old is Kimi?

Kudzu: I think she's supposed to be four?

Rita: She's acting more like a two year old in the "Mine" phase.

Kimi and Yun fought over Kokomon, who was now grimacing in pain. Hisako and Aki tried to break them up and get Kokomon out of Kimi's little hands, but it seemed Kimi was willing to do just about anything to get what she wanted. She bit Aki and grabbed Kokomon again, but this time much harder than before.

Pluto: This child is pretty determined to get what she wants... she'd probably make a horrible D&D player though.

Rita: I'm just freaked out that she bit her own mother!

Yun wanted to cover her ears (because of Kimi's high-pitched screaming) and save Kokomon without getting her hurt or making Kimi cry. Unfortunately, Yun has had just about enough. She literally ripped Kokomon from Kimi's hands in a paroxysm of anger.

"LET GO OF HER, YOU STUPID BRAT!"

Ayaka: Wow, she sounded like me for a moment there.

Yun screamed as loud as her lungs could muster, leaving practically everyone in the room silent and speechless. She held the scared and frightened little Kokomon in her arms tightly, away from Kimi's reach. Yun stared down at the speechless Kimi with a very choleric and ferocious look in her eyes, like that of a lion wanting to pounce on it's prey at any moment. The entire room was dead with silence...but Kimi finally started to cry. Loudly.

"Bweeeeh! You're a big fat meanie!" Kimi squealed through her tears, which made Yun frightened.

Leopardmon: Why is Yun frightened?

Ayaka: Probably because a four-year-old called her out for being a brat in their own way.

"Kimi!" Aki took the crying Kimi away by the hand, but Yun took Kokomon and Gummymon and ran away. The guests immediately started talking and gossiping as Aki took the two crying girls back to their rooms.

Rita: I... don't think that's something worth gossiping about. I mean, it was just kids being kids, right?

Kudzu: Got to make the sue suffer a little bit, I guess.

Meanwhile, Yun managed to find the backyard, which was confined by a fence. Yun could see a nice, thick, green bush of morning glory vines covering one part of a fence like a blanket.

Kudzu: Yeah, I have Morning Glories growing wild at my house, and let me just say that they can be the perfect hiding spot for lizards or snakes.

Rita: Wow, that's a neat factoid, though... let's hope the morning glories don't choke out other plants and they're properly maintained.

But she wasn't enjoying it, nor did she want to. Her ears were still ringing because of the children screaming earlier, and her heart began to feel heavy with bricks of guilt because of making Kimi cry. She didn't mean to snap at her like that or to make her cry, but what else could she have done to make Kimi realize that Kokomon wasn't hers? How would a little four year old girl take an eleven year old seriously? Yun held onto Kokomon and Gummymon tightly and silently shed tears herself. Kokomon and Gummymon felt very bad because of what happened, even though they knew if they did anything people would see and find out they were Digimon. But still, it was hard to watch Yun suffer.

All: *Groan*

Ayaka: Of course my sister must be suffering. *Gags*

Yun hugged her little friends tightly. Yun absolutely hated young children, especially babies or bratty kids who cried and whined incessantly over the littlest things possible. And to her, Kimi and Nene were those very children.

Rita: So... normal kids then? What about Aria?

Aria was one thing, since she's seven years old and has possibly been brought up right and knows that what belongs to other people don't belong to her.

Kudzu: I've read ahead and Aria's situation... hooo boy am I going to have words to say when we get to that.

Ayaka: Abuse?

Kudzu: Over the top abuse, yes.

Ayaka: Oh. Joy.

Yun loathed being in the presence of crying babies and young children who shrieked and yelled and stole things from others. Yun was convinced that her very presence frightened babies and young children as if they perceived her as some scary monster about to eat them.

Ayaka: That's... a weird thing to be convinced about.

Kudzu: Maybe they sense she's really a sue- they say that kids can be perceptive about things.

Not only that, Yun is also convinced that they hate her simply for existing. Sure, it's normal for babies to cry and kids to behave rather inappropriately at times, but Yun couldn't deal with things like that. She can't handle the crying, the loud shrieks, their inappropriate behavior, all of those things.

Pluto: Again, inappropriate behavior is part of being a child, not all children can be like Perfect Angel Aria, after all.

Kudzu: Yeah, kids can be brats, that's pretty normal.

Yun cried not just because she let herself succumb to Kimi's brattiness, but because she made Kimi cry, and that basically proved why Yun hates kids. Yun is convinced her very presence makes kids cry. Yun wanted to ask for Kimi's forgiveness, but she assumed that just saying sorry wouldn't help anything. Why would a little four year old girl forgive an eleven year old for yelling at her? No way would that happen! Yun convinced herself that there was no way a child would forgive Yun for making her cry.

All: *Stare*

Pluto: That... is some strange mental gymnastics.

Ayaka: Yeah... 

Kokomon was the first to speak.

"You okay?" She cooed quietly.

"No! I'm not! I can't believe Mom took me here!" Yun muttered.

Ayaka: It was either go with her or stay home with me, Yun. You chose to come to Hokuto's house.

"She didn't know," Gummymon said.

Yun sighed abjectly. "Yeah. I know. It's not her fault. But still! I hate little babies and little kids! They hate my guts!"

"Do they really?" Gummymon asked.

"YES! Yes they do! They all do!" Yun yelped.

Leopardmon: Aria is a little kid and doesn't hate you.

Kudzu: That's because Aria is a "Perfect Angel" that can do know wrong, so obviously she doesn't count in that statement.

"Ummm...I do think you yelling wasn't the best way to handle it, but thanks for saving me," Kokomon said.

"I know. But how else can you make a whiny little kid take you seriously about stealing someone else's stuff? Like I said, all little kids and babies hate my existence! And besides, even if I say sorry they'll never forgive me!" Yun said.

"How do you know?" Kokomon asked.

"I just do!" Yun replied back sharply.

Rita: Yun is sounding like my evil twin here- in the sense that she acts like she knows everything. Except in this case, my sister is worse because she actually puts together a dossier on a target to fuck with them.

Leopardmon: Rita, your sister is pure evil. Yun, unfortunately tries to be a genuinenly good girl.

Yun sighed again and shed some more tears while clinging to Kokomon and Gummymon. But Yun was oblivious to the fact that the boy from earlier is standing in front of the morning glory vines! And looking at her! He still has the white star flowers in his hand but he looked at Yun, who is oblivious to his presence. But instead of his eyes being full of apathy and listlessness, he looked at Yun with an almost caring and sympathetic look in his eyes. He even saw Yun's tears a little bit. Feeling a little flame of compassion and empathy buring in the dark and apathetic ocean that is his heart, he very slowly and silently ambled toward the sniveling Yun. He stood in front of her for a few minutes, then bent forward and gently tapped Yun on the arm with his hand. Yun stopped whimpering and looked up. She was surprised to find the boy standing right in front of her.

Leopardmon: Was there a shorter way of saying all this?

Kudzu: I think so, but I don't feel like typing it out, else we'd be here all day. Also, looks like the imprint between Yun and Hokuto is in full effect here.

At first, Yun was frightened. Her mind was filling up with worry. Did the boy hear her conversation between Kokomon and Gummymon? Does he now know that they're real? Yun's mind was wracked with bad thoughts, but the boy said nothing. He continued to look at her with eyes full of empathy and compassion.

Ayaka: Yeah, this is definitely an Imprint, isn't it?

Kudzu: Most likely, yeah.

As Yun looked at him, she also noticed the little white weasel stuffed animal still wrapped around his neck. She saw that the stuffed animal's ears have black tips, along with a little pink nose with the same pinkness as Kokomon, striking gold eyes like the sun and it's golden effulgence, and a little orange earring on it's left ear. Suddenly, Yun saw white flowers presented before her. The boy looked at her and showed her the flowers. Yun saw his face and she could see that he has a look that's saying, 'Don't cry. Please accept these flowers.' Yun was a little reluctant to accept them at first, but seeing the compassion in the boy's eyes, Yun very slowly took them. She smiled just a little bit.

Leopardmon: You know, this moment is kind of cute, in a weird way.

Kudzu: You have a point, though the use of big, fancy words is kind of killing the moment. I mean, seriously, the narration sounds pretentious when it uses words like Paroxysm and Effulgence.

"Thank you," Yun muttered. The boy nodded and turned to look at the morning glory vines, which have now closed up (or, have been for quite a while).

Kudzu: *Sighs* You can't go one chapter without parentheses, can you, Author?

Yun suddenly gathered an interest in looking at them with him. She stood up and ambled toward the vines. She stood right next to the boy and smiled at the thick and tall vines enveloping the big wooden fence.

"These are morning glories, aren't they?" Yun asked.

The boy nodded. Yun decided to continue the conversation.

"I have a fence full of them in my backyard too. They're all blue. Blue's one of my favorite colors," Yun said.

The boy said nothing.

"They're beautiful. I like looking at them," Yun said.

She expected the boy to say nothing, but...

"White."

"Eh?"

"The ones here are white."

Kudzu: *Dryly* What sizzling chemistry these two have. 

Yun gasped. The boy spoke! Although his voice was very low, Yun could tell he had sort of hit puberty early and that his voice has a sort of low and somewhat nerdy tone to it, but it was also nice and dulcet-sounding too. Yun smiled.

Rita: Are we going to talk about Hokuto soon? Cause him being described as hitting puberty early is starting to creep me out.

Kudzu: Soon, I promise.

"I didn't know there were white morning glories. I'm sure these must be pretty too!" Yun said.

The response she got after this statement was something she NEVER expected.

"The morning glory is a common name for over 1,000 species of flowering plants in the Convolvulaceae family whose current taxonomy and systematics is in flux. Morning glory species belong to many genera, some of which are calystegia, convolvulus, ipomoea, merremia, rivea, astripomoea, operculina, stictocardia, argyreia, and lepistemon."

All: *Stare*

Rita: Um... is the author using Hokuto to show her research?

Leopardmon: Uh... that went over my head, and I'm usually pretty smart. Was the last one a digimon name?

Pluto: Kudzu? What was that just now?

Kudzu: *Sighs* Say hello to Hokuto's "Quirk." he randomly explains things as if he was a living encyclopedia.

Ayaka: That's going to be annoying, isn't it?

Kudzu: Eyup.

This was only the very beginning of the boy's long, long, LONG and graphically detailed explanation about morning glories. In fact, he talked and talked and talked about even the very detailed aspects of morning glories and their origins.

Kudzu: Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm glad that the author didn't show this explanation in full detail.

Yun was flabbergasted. Even though this boy is speaking in a very low and timid voice, she was surprised he could even speak at all. She liked the sound of his voice. As the boy got further into the explanation, Yun suddenly started eyeing the little white stuffed animal wrapped around the boy's neck. The boy didn't notice, but Yun looked at the white weasel for a bit.

That's when her suspicions got confirmed.

One of it's eyes moved. It looked right at her, without moving one inch of it's body.

Pluto: That is some dedication for pretending to be a stuffed animal.

Leopardmon: Yeah, I don't really get why we have to pretend though? I mean, our fic takes place in a Marvel universe, weird stuff like that is normal.

Yun tensed up a bit and looked away. But after a second, she looked at the boy's pocket and saw something shocking.

Kudzu: I'm not going to say the obvious joke. *Glances to the rest of the sporkers* And y'all ain't either.

An egg-shaped thing with a silver strap and a gold ring on it.

'It's a digivice! So I was right after all! That white thing's a-' Yun thought, but her thinking was interrupted when the boy finally stopped talking and turned to look at Yun with a straight face.

Kudzu: Yes, we know it's a digimon. He has a digivice. People can put two and two together to make four, Author.

"I heard you yelling," The boy said. When Yun heard the word yelling, she assumed he was talking about the incident from earlier.

Ayaka: Well, there wasn't anyone else yelling that we know of.

"Oh! Did you? I'm sorry! It's just...your little sister took one of my stuffed animals and wasn't being nice. I didn't mean for you to-" Yun explained, but she was unexpectedly cut off by a very strange and almost undeniably caustic statement.

"She's not my sister."

This left Yun speechless, other than a little "Eh?" coming out from her mouth.

"She's not my sister. She never was my sister and never will be. None of them are. That man who's passing out food...he's not even my real father. Just a man who my mother married," The boy said again.

Rita: So... Hokuto hates his potential half-siblings, and his step father?

Kudzu: Yeah, certainly seems that way.

Yun was so confused. The boy talked about Kimi like she was some freeloader who was taking up space and irritating him out of his mind. Why in the world would this boy say something like that? Sure, Kimi wasn't exactly the best little kid to know and probably not the best sister to have either, but she was still human.

Rita: That was some backhanded defending right there.

Kudzu: Eyup.

But this boy...he made her and the others sound...inhuman. But Yun refused to say this out of fear that she might accidentally anger him. She couldn't picture him being angry, and she did not want to know what it was like either. So she decided to move on to something else.

Leopardmon: Yun's a coward if she doesn't want anyone to be angry at her.

Kudzu: Yeah... you wouldn't like Hokuto when he's angry...

"Ummm...Oh! My name's Wakamiya Yun. What's your name?" Yun introduced herself as politely as she could. Thankfully, the boy's solemn face softened just a little bit.

"My name is-" The boy was about to say his name.

But someone else did it for it.

"Hokuto! Lunch is ready! And Airi needs your assistance!" It was Aki who called out to him.

The boy, Hokuto, finally darted back into the house. Yun, Kokomon, and Gummymon were left alone in the backyard. Yun could hear one of the little girls crying again, but she was too stunned by the sound of his name.

Kudzu: Okay, now that he's been properly introduced, it's time to delve into spoilers.

Pluto: Are you sure that's wise?

Kudzu: Maybe not, but I have things about Hokuto that need to be said. For starters... Hokuto's issue is that his Bio-Dad was a mad scientist trying to digitize humanity to advance them and grant them immortality. Hokuto, was the one he experimented on as a baby, up until his rescue by Link- and we will get to him- a year before the story began. 

Ayaka: That's... that's horrible!

Kudzu: It really is, and somehow, everyone knows Hokuto was the victim and calls him a Lab Rat instead of giving him pity for being a victim, which in my opinion is BS. However... there's another thing about Hokuto.

Rita: The experiments made him a monster, didn't they?

Kudzu: Yeah, of the beserker variety. Get him pissed enough, and he becomes a pseudo-werewolf and will attack bot friend and foe. And when he hurts Yun in Monster Mode's debut? She defends Hokuto instead of being afraid of him.

Ayaka: Wh...what? That... that is incredibly stupid!

Kudzu: I know. Unfortunately, we can't spend all day talking about it so... we have to move on.

'Hokuto? His name's Hokuto? Hokuto like the constellation? Big Dipper? Oh wow! Hokuto means Big Dipper! He's named after the constellation? Awesome!' Yun thought. She never dreamed of meeting someone who's named after a cluster of stars, let alone the Big Dipper of all things.

Leopardmon: *sighs* I'm starting to see why Dorumon likes to bang his head against the wall, according to the notes so far. There were so many ways the author could have shortened this reaction from Yun since it's repetitive.

Suddenly, Lucero and Hisako both appeared and approached Yun.

Ayaka: Oh, now they check on Yun?

Kudzu: Well, now that the event flag for Hokuto was done, they could now go and check on her. But, Hokuto took priority.

Rita: Event Flag?

Kudzu: I play Visual Novels sometimes, ok?

"Yun! Art thou alright?" Lucero asked kindly.

"Yes. I'm fine now. Thank you," Yun replied quietly. Hisako, with a worried look on her face, put a hand on Yun's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, dear. For putting you through something like that," Hisako muttered.

"It's alright. You didn't know," Yun told her.

"That's true. But I really must say...I don't think it was very nice of you to call Kimi a stupid brat, Yun," Hisako said with a more solemn expression now.

Ayaka: Is... Is Mom actually scolding my sister!?

Kudzu: Holy shit, a rare moment of Hisako being a decent mom!

"I'm sorry! But how else was I gonna make her let go of Kokomon? And she kept screaming and crying too!" Yun said.

"You have a point, but there are better ways to handle the situation, and calling names isn't one of them," Hisako reproved her calmly.

"I know, and I'm sorry. Now you see! All little kids hate my guts!" Yun said.

"That's not true."

"Yes it is! She even called me a big fat meanie!"

"I do agree it wasn't nice of her to take Kokomon and call you names and I'm sorry you had to go through this, but please let us adults handle situations like that from now on?"

"She wouldn't have listened anyhow."

"She would've."

Yun wanted to say "How do you know?" but Hisako would counterargue by saying she's raised two kids. Hisako had a point. She couldn't deny it. As much as Yun hated little kids, even she had to acknowledge her own wrongdoing, even if she didn't mean for it to happen on purpose.

Leopardmon: You sure you didn't mean it, Yun?

But the damage had been done and it couldn't be helped. Yun knew this well. Lucero smiled gently at her and rubbed her back in a consoling and kind way. Kokomon and Gummymon kissed both her cheeks. These small gestures were to let Yun know that it's not the end of the world. Yun relished these kind gestures greatly.

Rita: Oh, she's relishing them alright, but probably because she likes the good attention she's getting.

But one thing did catch her interest though, and it was enough to make her stay at the Kamitsure house for a bit longer: Hokuto.

Pluto: It seems that Lucemon now has a rival for Yun's affections.

Kudzu: We'll see how it turns out.

A while later, everyone gathered at the table, ate food, and talked amongst themselves. Yun sat in between Hisako and Lucero so she wouldn't have to deal with the other guests, who were very likely to question her and talk to her if she were to sit next to them. The only food that Yun ate were carrots. Only carrots. That's it. Yun didn't like the other foods that were presented at the table. Celery was the worst of them.

Leopardmon: Why is Yun only eating the carrots?

Kudzu: Because sometimes Autistic people have certain textures in food they don't like? I guess? Also, I like celery- might be stringy, but it's still tasty in ranch dressing and soup.

But she also made sure to give Kokomon and Gummymon some food too. Kokomon requested carrots while Gummymon requested the pieces of watermelon. Thankfully, nobody was cognizant of the fact that Kokomon and Gummymon are real and are Digimon too.

Leopardmon: *Growling* How convenient. Also, is there no meat available for this meal?

Kudzu: I... have no idea?

Yun thanked her lucky stars for making sure they made it unscathed, at least. Out of boredom, she turned around.

And there he was, Kamitsure Hokuto, sitting at the corner and facing the garden, manipulating string with his fingers. Cat's Cradle it was called. Yun knew of this well, but never really understood why people called it Cat's Cradle. But what she saw next to him made her cringe. There was Nene, the six year old little curly-headed girl who is Kimi's sister, who is also kinda bratty and inappropriately behaved.

Kudzu: Yes, bully a child for being a child. Because if they can't be perfect little mini-adults, then they aren't worth Yun's praise.

Leopardmon: Is there a point to this scene?

Kudzu: Probably to give Yun a second chance about dealing with little kids.

The little girl watched as Hokuto manipulated string without difficulty and with utmost devotion. Yun assumed that Cat's Cradle was his favorite diversion, but also had an aversion to his little sisters (if he ever called them that). The little white weasel didn't move an inch, even as Nene is looking at it. And Nene certainly became interested in the string.

Rita: It's string though, I don't see what the big deal is?

Kudzu: Eh, Cat's Cradle has it's chrams, I guess?

"Hey! Can I play with it?" Nene asked in a high voice.

Hokuto said nothing.

"I'm talkin' to ya! Lemme play with it!" Nene exclaimed, becoming a tad choleric.

Hokuto shook his head. This made Nene angry. She literally snatched Hokuto's string right out of his hands.

"Gimme! Mine!"

Yun and Lucero gasped when they both saw this. Not wanting to let Nene get away with her transgression, Yun got up and stood before her.

"That's Hokuto's string! Give it back!" Yun edicted sternly, standing before Nene with arms akimbo and a very strict expression on her face.

Rita: It's... just string. He can get some more.

Nene wanted to yell and scream like Kimi did, but unlike Kimi, she knew that if she screamed and yelled, Yun would get mad as well, and Yun being mad was NOT a pretty sight. Even Nene, with her meager six-year-old intelligence, knew this well. Nene pouted a bit and gave the string to Yun.

"Good! Now tell me. YOU wouldn't like it if I took something that was yours, would you?" Yun exclaimed.

"No," Nene muttered.

"That's right. Now be a good little girl and go play," Yun gently pushed the girl and she (Nene) walked away without complaint or protest.

Ayaka: *Grinds teeth* She just guilt-tripped a little girl, didn't she?

Kudzu: Yup.

Hokuto looked her way. Hisako, Aki, and Lucero all smiled. Kokomon and Gummymon silently rejoiced. Yun then approached Hisako.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom," Yun said.

"Alright. It's down the hall on your right. It's next to the bedrooms," Aki told her. Yun took Kokomon and Gummymon with her.

Rita: Uh... that's a transition.

Pluto: While using the bathroom is a necessary need for both humans and digimon... is there a point to this?

Kudzu: *sighs* The first instance of Yun defending Hokuto when she barely knows him as a person.

Pluto: Oh.

So Yun went down the hall and found the bathrooms. She was relieved to see that nobody was there. Once she did her business, she left feeling refreshed...until she saw three ladies walking down the hall gossiping. And in a very maligned manner at that.

All: *Groan*

Leopardmon: *Holds his head in his hands* This is going to turn into a soapbox moment, isn't it?

Kudzu: Yeah, most likely.

"My goodness! That Kimi girl almost gave me a heart attack with her screaming!" One lady with a ponytail said.

"I know, right? I honestly pity the poor woman for having so much to deal with. Did you know her ex-husband worked in a nuclear weapon's plant in Cuba back in the eighties?" One woman with a braided pig tail said.

Leopardmon: Um... Kudzu? Why didn't you mention that detail?

Kudzu: Honestly? Forgot about it.

Leopardmon: Oh, ok.

"What? You're kidding!" Another woman with a birth mark under her right eye exclaimed, shocked.

Thankfully, they didn't see Yun. But Yun couldn't help but feel curious about their conversation. She knew eavesdropping was wrong, but something about the conversation didn't quite sit well with Yun.

Rita: Because the plot said so and so Yun must do a bad thing so she can moralize later.

"It's true! Not only that, he opened a facility in Tokyo a few years ago and one of the machines exploded. It killed so many people! Oh, the horror!" The ponytail lady said.

"By the way, is it true that he was the father of one of her children?" The lady with the braid asked.

"Yes. The one with the glasses who doesn't speak. Hokuto, was it?" The birth marked lady said.

"That's the one. Something about that boy doesn't sit well with me."

Kudzu: Well, knowing what we do now thanks to my spoiler talk, there's a good reason for that.

"I agree. He doesn't speak to anyone at all, he's always wandering around doing whatever he pleases, and he always looks as if he doesn't acknowledge the fact that people are around him. He totally ignored me when I tried to start a conversation with him!"

"He's so...ghostly."

"Yes! And pale too!"

"Not only that, he looks exactly like his father. Dear me, I certainly don't want my children hanging around him."

"He's certainly not normal. That I can guarantee with utmost certainty. I definitely don't want my children being involved with a child of Hizashino Saruto! That'll be his payment for killing all those people back then!"

Leopardmon: They're treating him as a monster... just because of what his father did? That... doesn't make any sense.

Kudzu: People rarely do, Leopardmon.

Yun was absolutely outraged and incensed!

Kudzu: Pretty sure those mean the same thing.

They're gossiping and gibing about Hokuto as if he's not human! And they're actually planning to hate him and tell their kids to hate him JUST because he happens to be the son of someone who worked in nuclear weapon plants and killed people in the past?

Rita: Yeah, and for all we know, those deaths could have been an accident! *Sighs* Gods, it's as if my sister is in charge here with how people are acting. She'd pull this stunt too on someone who pissed her off, even if she had to make shit up to do it!

For Yun, this was just utterly, excruciatingly, and absolutely intolerable. She couldn't let those woman get away with their snide and causic comments. Yun stomped in front of them, red in the face with anger.

Kudzu: And here comes a potential soapbox.

"You don't know ANYTHING, you big fat skeletons!

Pluto: Fat.. skeletons? That insult makes no sense at all. Docking EXP for a failed attempt at Vicious Mockery. *Scribbles down in his personal journal*

You don't know a thing about Hokuto-kun and his ancestry! So what if his previous dad worked in a nuclear weapons lab and killed people?

Leopardmon: Those people could have been killed in an accident, as Rita said before- you don't know all the details Yun, and in my former life as a strategist, even I knew that jumping to conclusions about someone is dangerous.

It doesn't mean he's gonna do the same thing! And it certainly doesn't mean they have to be reminded of that on a regular basis! And it certainly DOES NOT mean he's automatically abnormal and inhuman! I thought you adults were better and smarter than that! Quit making up all those lies and claim you know him when it's blatantly clear that you don't know one little thing about Hokuto-kun!

Ayaka: You barely know him too, Yun. *sighs* God, it's as if she's trying to be holier than thou right here...

Kudzu: That's exactly what's going on.

If you hate the Kamitsures so much, then why'd you come to this party anyhow? To eat food? Well if you hate this party, then you can leave for all I care! Good riddance! People like you don't deserve to be here anyhow!"

After that articulate little tirade, Yun stomped off. But not before she unknowingly heard more gossip from the three women who were quite unphased.

Kudzu: A reasonable response after an eleven year old chewed out an adult.

"My! What an ill-tempered child she is!"

"Goodness gracious. I think the boy's influence is rubbing off on her."

Ayaka: Nah, she's always like this- Hokuto has nothing to do with it.

But Yun didn't care what they thought. She didn't care if they made up lies about her and spread them around. Let them spread rumors! But she DID care about Hokuto, even though she just met him today. Gummymon certainly noticed this.

Kudzu: Incoming praise from the Sue Groupies.

"Wow! You were awesome back there, Yun! I didn't think you had it in you!" Gummymon said.

"They have no right to think Hokuto-kun's inhuman just because his biological dad happened to commit crimes! So what?" Yun exclaimed.

Kudzu: Unless it was on the news, you wouldn't know if the crimes were true or not, Yun.

"I'm very proud of you for standing up to them like that. You're right. It wasn't their place to say those things. You certainly showed them no mercy!" Kokomon said.

"Good! They don't deserve mercy!" Yun exclaimed.

Ayaka: *Stares in shock* That's... uh... 

Rita: Sounds like Nita alright.

Yun suddenly found herself in the back yard again...and what she heard left her frozen and speechless.

Leopardmon: It was a huge fart!

Kudzu: *giggles*

"Hokuto...I think you should be friends with her."

A voice. But it wasn't Hokuto's! Definitely not Hokuto's at all. It sounded...much lower and kinder than the other voices she heard today. Yun turned around and saw Hokuto sitting in front of the garden, looking at the white star flowers listlessly and with an apathetic expression on his face. Yun suspected that the voice didn't belong to Hokuto, that was for sure. And her suspicions about the white weasel were confirmed a second time.

The white weasel was doing the talking.

Pluto: Yes, we can figure that out on our own, Author.

"It might be good for you," The white weasel said in a low, mature, civilized, and kind voice. But Hokuto didn't look at him, nor did he show any reaction on his face

"No. I can't. She already knows. I can tell," Hokuto replied softly.

"How do you know?"

"Everyone else knows, so she must know too...that I'm a lab rat."

This made the white weasel slightly mad. "Don't ever say such a thing! You know very well that's not true!"

"It is. You don't get it."

Kudzu: Ugh, the angst here is getting annoying.

"Perhaps not. But it doesn't mean that there are no such things as people who truly care about you."

"No one can ever care about me or understand me. They either automatically hate me or pity me. I'm not them. I'm not..." Hokuto let the sentence drift away.

Rita: *Glaring* Hokuto, shut up. Yes, you were mistreated, but that doesn't make you any less human than me and Ayaka. Also, the Auto-Hate is kind of suspicious, ya know?

Kudzu: Yeah, it really is.

"I know what you're going to say. Also, that girl...Yun, was it? She seems nice enough. I think she'd be a good friend for you. You heard her yelling just now, didn't you?"

"Yes."

Ayaka: The whole town could have heard her shouting during the party.

"I don't sense any wickedness in her heart."

"Your senses must be playing tricks on you, then."

Kudzu: Yeah, considering what Yun does later in the story? Hoo boy, is it played for pity points when she beats herself up.

Ayaka: Yun does what now?

Kudzu: From what I can tell, she not only beats herself up verbally, but slaps herself a few times as well.

Ayaka: That... that isn't normal. At all.

"My senses never lie to me. Hokuto...please. Give her a chance. For me? Please? You never know. She might turn out to be the best friend you've ever had."

"What if she doesn't."

"I'll know if she does or doesn't. You can count on me, partner."

Hokuto said nothing and nodded.

"Also...she has Digimon."

"Huh?"

"I can feel them. Those green and pink creatures in her purse. They're Digimon too. I can feel them."

"Really?"

"Yes. I suppose she knows about me too."

"That can't be true!"

Kudzu: Look into your heart, Hokuto- You know it to be true... or something. I dunno. Probably just misquoted that star wars reference.

"But even if she did know, she didn't make a fuss about it. Doesn't that count for something, Hokuto?"

Yun gasped slightly and hid behind the wall. She was right all along! That white weasel wrapped around Hokuto's neck IS a Digimon!

All: WE KNOW!

And it even knows that Kokomon and Gummymon are Digimon too! Yun got out her digivice, messed with it a bit, and finally got the white weasel Digimon's information to present itself. Yun was surprised with what she found.

"Kudamon, a rookie level, vaccine attribute, holy beast Digimon. It's special attacks are Bullet Whirlwind and Blinding Ray," Yun recited the information displayed on the digivice, turned it off, and put it back in her pocket. Yun looked back out and saw that the two of them are silent. They weren't talking anymore. Yun finally got the mettle she needed to approach him and talk to him. So she did.

Kudzu: Kudamon also has a third move called Holy Shot. The first two moves are also shared between the version shown in the fic and my own, but also with the original version of Kudamon, which was white and purple, instead of white and yellow/gold. The white and yellow version is also the more popular design due to its appearance in Digimon Savers/Data Squad, where Kudamon was the partner to Richard Sampson (I forget his Japanese name), the leader of DATS

"Hokuto-kun? May I sit with you?" Yun asked as politely and lucidly as possible. Hokuto looked up, confused at first, and then nodded. Yun sat down next to him without a word. After a few minutes, Yun decided to start a conversation.

"Umm...I'm not sure if you know, but your mom works in the same place my mom works. Some coincidence, isn't it?" Yun said.

Hokuto said nothing, but Yun didn't seem bothered by it.

"Those white flowers are pretty. Did you plant them?" Yun asked.

"No. My real father did," Hokuto replied softly.

Rita: Didn't they just move in though?

Kudzu: Eyup.

Rita: So... how did Hokuto's father plant the flowers before they moved in?

Kudzu: *shrugs* Maybe it was Hokuto's father's house first? I dunno.

But Yun was able to hear it without a problem. Yun wanted to ask him more about his real father, but from the way those ladies talked about him, she figured it was a sensitive subject that she shouldn't mention. She decided to keep her thoughts tucked away in the back of her mind. Suddenly, Hokuto spoke.

"Your friend."

"What?"

"Your friend with the blonde hair. Why does he have those tattooes?" Hokuto asked. Yun was flabbergasted by Hokuto's sudden question. But then again, practically anyone would be curious about Lucero's strange tattooes, so perhaps it wasn't all that surprising.

Kudzu: Well, at least Hokuto is getting some intel for his rival for Yun's heart.

"I...I don't know," Yun muttered.

So Yun and Hokuto spent some time together. The more the two had their conversations, the more and more Yun began to notice Hokuto cracking the faintest of smiles. Yun felt happy with the fact that she was ever so slowly helping the boy come out of the shell, even just a little bit. She even noticed Kudamon smiling too, but neither of them said a word.

Leopardmon: *Groaning* Is this chapter over yet?

Kudzu: Almost... unfortunately we still have a little more to go through.

Leopardmon: *sighs* I see...

And speaking of strange coincidences,

Ayaka: Which no one was at this time.

as Yun and Hokuto are having their conversation, Hisako and Aki are having a conversation of their own. Hisako is helping Aki in the kitchen.

"Your daughter's a real cutie, Hisako-chan!" Aki exclaimed.

"I'm glad you think so. I've seen your son a few times. What was his name again?" Hisako asked.

"Hokuto. That's his name."

"Hokuto...that means Big Dipper, doesn't it?"

"You got it!"

"That's a nice name to give to a boy!"

Suddenly, Aki sighed rather dejectedly. "Hisako-chan...sorry about my two youngest daughters causing a ruckus. Kimi and Nene are always fighting over little things and stealing other people's stuff."

Rita: Lady, you need to discipline your daughters better- letting them get away with stealing and not doing anything about it other than a light scolding leads to monsters later down the road.

"It's alright. It's not your fault. And sorry if Yun kinda took it a bit too far."

"I don't blame her. My son's like that too."

"Really?"

All: *Confused noises*

"Yeah. Forgive me for saying this, but when it comes to shyness and socializing, Hokuto is much worse than Yun. He's not autistic, but he's been through some pretty bad things."

Kudzu: Knowing what I went into earlier in this spork... yeah, that's an understatement.

"It must be hard."

"It is. To be honest, I've only just gotten custody of him a year ago."

"A year?"

"Yeah. My late ex-husband raised him most of his life and forbade me from ever having contact with him.

Rita: That's abuse, I think.

Kudzu: Yeah... I'm pretty sure it is.

I don't want to delve too deep, but what he did to my son was awful. But another problem I'm having is that Hokuto can't seem to connect with anyone. He even looks as though he doesn't acknowledge anyone in the family as his family."

"How so?"

"He's told Kimi and Nene that they're not his sisters. They don't understand what he's talking about so I don't think they take him very seriously. Not once has Hokuto ever called me mom. I guess that's not surprising considering we've never had contact with one another. Grr! That stupid ex-husband of mine! I'm glad he's gone! After what he did to Hokuto, I refuse to have anything to do with him! But...Hokuto doesn't seem to believe what his father did to his was cruel."

Kudzu: Uh... Hokuto's dad turned him into a pseudo-werewolf according to the text, with a bloodlust problem. Pretty sure that's an example of being cruel.

"Sometimes children interpret their parents' actions differently depending on how they were raised."

"You've got that right. Not only that, Hokuto's been fighting cancer lately so he has to wear that wig a lot.

Kudzu: Wait, cancer!? Well, missed that detail the first time I read this.

Ayaka: Uh... holy shit?

Rita: This is making me uncomfortable.

Leopardmon: What's cancer?

Pluto: According to Rita, it's an incurable disease humans can get due to mutated cells in their body, and... well, it will kill them if it's not treated in time with surgery or chemotherapy. In all honesty, Hokuto should be in a hospital for children, since Rita told me that was a thing as well.

Leopardmon: Oh, I get it... so... Hokuto is dying?

Kudzu: Unless his Cancer is in remission... most likely.

Leopardmon: That's messed up.

He's off the chemo and the cancer's gone, which is good, but we still have other stuff to get through. I need to find some way to help Hokuto adjust to his new surroundings.

Kudzu: Okay, so he is in remission. That's good, I think. 

Leopardmon: Still messed up though, what if something happens to him that causes it to come back?

Sometimes he looks as though he doesn't consider himself human."

All: *Shift uncomfortably*

Kudzu: Yeah... uh... due to the whole pseudo-werewolf thing... It's kind of obvious he isn't COMPLETELY human. Anymore anyway.

"I think Yun might be able to help him out."

"Really? How so?"

"I've seen them interact a couple of times, and I heard Yun yelling at some of the guests because they were talking bad about him. This is the first time Yun's ever stood up for someone she's only known for an hour and a half."

"Guess he's rubbing off on her, isn't he?"

"Who knows."

Kudzu: It's most likely the imprint causing this apparent OOC behavior.

The two women laughed at that last comment and then decided to continue freshening up.

Ayaka: If they weren't in the kitchen, then I'd have a lot of questions about those last two words.

Pluto: Why is that, Ayaka?

Rita: *confused*

Ayaka: Uh... I'll explain later in private, Pluto. I don't think Rita has had Sex Ed, yet.

Pluto: Sex...Ed? 

Ayaka: *Blushing* Uh... Kudzu?

Kudzu: *Sighs* I'll explain in private too, Plutomon.

Rita: *Utterly Mortified*

During this time, Yun decided to leave Hokuto at the garden while she settled back into the living room with Lucero, Kokomon, and Gummymon.

Leopardmon: *Running his fingers through his fabulous hair* Can't this chapter end already!?

"What doth thou think of that boy thou were talking to just now?" Lucero asked.

"He's nice," Yun muttered.

"He's got a Digimon!" Gummymon exclaimed. Kokomon gently whacked him with her ear.

"Gummymon! Don't say it so loud!" Kokomon scolded, which made Gummymon feel guilty.

"He does?" Lucero asked.

"Yeah. Not only that, I accidentally overheard a conversation going on between them. To be honest, I don't know how to ask him about it. I don't want to startle him or make him freak out or anything," Yun explained.

Rita: Yeah, introducing Plu to my parents and Nita was a bit awkward after I was practically kidnapped out of a hospital room I was in, but after the initial meeting, things got easier. Also, Yun? Have you tried asking Hokuto if he liked digimon?

Pluto: *Grumbles* Your sister is still pure evil, and it takes everything in my power not to murder her so you wouldn't get into trouble.

Rita: I know Plu, I know.

Suddenly, Kokomon's face lit up as if a light bulb had gone off in her head. Yun didn't notice this. Secretly, Kokomon got out of the bag and took Gummymon with her. They left Yun and Lucero in the living room while they went off to play in the garden...well, technically they hid in one of the big bushes next to the white star flower garden, out of everyone's sight. Yun got her digivice out.

Ayaka: What are those two blobs up to?

Kudzu: You'll see...

"I'll ask Mel-chan and see what she thinks," Yun said as she flipped her digivice open and began typing out a message.

Hi Mel-chan! It's me, Yun! I have a question! See, my mom took me to her friend's party (where I'm at right now). I found out her son has a a Digimon! Not only that, said Digimon knows that I have Digimon too! I overheard a conversation between them. I want to let him know that I have Digimon too, but I don't want to do it in a way that'll scare him or make him think weird thoughts. What do you think I should do?

Yun pressed send and the message got sent.

Rita: Yes, that tends to happen when you press send, unless your signal's crap.

"I found out thou hast Digimon because they intentionally presented themselves to me," Lucero said.

"You've got a point," Yun said.

"Art thou interesting in making Hokuto-dono into a member of the Digimon Brigade?"

Pluto: Uh... what?

Kudzu: I... think the wrong word was used there.

"In a way, yes, but if he doesn't want to, I don't want to force him. I learned that the hard way."

Ayaka: Wait, when did Yun learn not to force someone to join? 

Kudzu: I... don't know? I think we missed something here.

"Perhaps such a scenario is possible. But thou never know. Perhaps Hokuto-dono will love thy invitation and thy Digimon."

Ayaka: Of course he will, because of both my sister is imprinted on both Lucero and Hokuto, as well as a Sue.

"Maybe. But considering how indifferent and frail he is, I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't interested."

"Let us wait and see."

"Yeah."

"Hm? Now where are Kokomon and Gummymon?"

Yun looked in her purse and saw that Kokomon and Gummymon aren't there.

"Hey! You're right!"

"Thy digivice is beeping," Lucero pointed to her digivice. Yun pulled it out of her pocket, flipped it open, and saw that she got a reply back from Melody.

Yun! For me, the best way to let someone know that you have a Digimon is if they accidentally pop out somewhere and start talking while not knowing people are watching them. Aria and MarineAngemon did that with me, and she was cool with it, so it should work for you too! Peace out!

Yun sighed with relief. She closed her digivice and put it back in her pocket.

"She wants Gummymon and Kokomon to expose themselves?" Lucero asked.

"Yeah. That's actually a pretty cool idea," Yun said.

Kudzu: While it may seem like a good idea, it could also be a bad one, considering what happens to Lopmon later in the story.

Ayaka: What happens to Lopmon?

Kudzu: She gets kidnapped.

Pluto: Kidnapped by who?

Kudzu: *Sighs* You'll see when we get there... but that chapter's a long way off.

"Doth thou agree with her?"

"Sorta. Mel-chan's a bit unorthodox at times, but she means well."

Rita: Yeah... unorthodox and having anger issues since she seems punch-happy. Remember what happened with Kokatorimon?

"I certainly see why Melody is thy friend."

Kudzu: Yeah, we all know that Melody is just wanting to be Yun's Girlfriend or something.

Yun laughed in response to Lucero's well-intentioned comment. He blushed a bit, but not out of embarrassment. Unfortunately, their bliss was interrupted by a very unlikely voice.

"What? What in the world are you saying?"

Leopardmon: *Sighs* Is this more drama?

Kudzu: Eyup.

Loud yelling permeated the room, which made Yun cover her ears and Lucero stand up in alarm. Yun knew that voice well. It was Hisako! Yun and Lucero went inside to see what was going on. Much to Yun's infuriation and Lucero's surprise, Hisako is yelling at the exact same ladies that Yun yelled at earlier today! The pony tailed lady is standing in front of a choleric and dismayed Hisako with her arms crossed.

"Exactly as I said! You should keep your daughter away from that kid!" The ponytailed lady edicted angrily.

"Who are you to decide who my daughter should be interacting with?"

"You're sure not doing a good job of pickin' the right people to be with! The Kamitsures are bad luck! They're cursed people!"

"Is that what you think? Aki's always been there for me at work! She's helped me a lot and I love having her around! She's not cursed or bad luck or whatever!"

"And what about the boy? Shouldn't you be keepin' your daughter away from him? He's not exactly the best kid to befriend, y'know?"

"You don't know that!"

"I do know he's the son of Hizashino Saruto, the man who intentionally blew up part of a nuclear weapons facility and killed dozens of people!"

All: *stare*

Rita: It... wasn't an accident?

Kudzu: Seems that way, but we don't have all the details on the incident.

Ayaka: So... they're blaming a kid for what his father did? That... that is messed up.

Leopardmon: Plu, you were tricked by the real villain of our fic, right? Do people still blame you for being a victim?

Pluto: They do, but this is different from what I went through- this is basically blaming an unrelated party for someone else's crime. Which is stupid to do. I believe there's a saying somewhere about the Sins of the Father?

"That doesn't mean Hokuto-kun's gonna do the same thing when he's older!"

Pluto: Hisako does have a point here, The Sins of the Father don't usually get repeated by the child outside of bad writing.

"How do you know? He's not even your kid! And you should be happy that you don't have him as yer kid! He's paler and ghostlier than a ghost itself! You should make sure your kid don't get influenced by his bad ways!"

Kudzu: Just noticed this, but is the Author doing a badly written southern accent again? Cause if so, I may just explode.

"Exactly what do you mean by bad ways?"

"Don't you know? You should've seen the stuff his dad did to him. He's-"

Ayaka: *reads ahead and sighs* About to be cut off by Yun throwing a tantrum.

Yun was outraged. Not wanting to stand by and let these women talk bad about Aki, Hokuto, and the Kamitsures in general, she stomped over to them and stamped her feet before them. Hard.

Stamp! Stamp! Stamp!

Apparently her foot stamping was so loud it silenced not only Hisako and the three nefarious and virulent ladies, but the rest of the guests as well. Yun couldn't tolerate all their egregious calumny and virulent remarks about Aki, Hokuto, and the Kamitsures in general. Yun found them to be insidious. Now Yun had a few goal: to befriend Hokuto and prove these ladies wrong! She looked at the three ladies with both a very courageous and choleric expression on her face, her green eyes full of fire. Lucero watched as one of the ladies made another caustic remark.

"It's very improper of a young lady of your age to stamp your foot like that!" The birthmarked lady exclaimed.

"It's even MORE improper to talk bad about people you don't know!" Yun yelled back. Hisako didn't say a word. She knew that Yun was right.

All: *Glare*

Ayaka: Of course my sister is right. She's the main character, she can do no true wrong. *Gags*

Rita: Ayaka, I'd suggest my parents adopt you into our family, but I don't want to expose you to my evil twin.

Ayaka: Thanks, but Megan's mother offered to take me in as well- she thinks having an older sister figure for Megan might help prepare her for future stepsiblings- did you know that Megan's mom is actually dating Esteban's dad?

Rita: First I heard of it.

Kudzu: Gossip between chapters, please!

After that piece of rhetoric, Yun turned around and ambled toward the garden, where she saw Hokuto kneeling before the white star flower garden yet again. Lucero watched her pass by and was surprised with how ardent and compassionate she looked through her simmering anger. Yun stepped off of the porch and crossed her arms.

Ayaka: Lucemon, my sister is throwing a tantrum. She's not looking that compassionate right now.

"Hokuto-kun!" She yelled. Her voice was so loud it caught Hokuto's attention. He stood up slowly, with flowers in hand, and Yun took a few steps further, her face softening just a bit. She put her hands in her pockets and looked straight into Hokuto's cobalt blue eyes, even though they were hidden by his round glasses.

Yun finally dropped the bomb.







Leopardmon: What was that for?

Kudzu: Couldn't resist making that reference.

"Wanna come to my house and hang out?"

Everyone, including Hisako and Aki, gasped, though for different reasons altogether.

"Yu-Yun! What are you doing?" Hisako exclaimed.

"She can't be serious!" The lady with the braid yelled.

Ayaka: My... my sister just invited a complete stranger to our home, of her own volition. Even my mom thinks this is out of character for her! Just... what the hell is going on here!?

Kudzu: My guess? It's the imprint for Hokuto.

Aki put her hands to her mouth, not wanting to say anything. But she couldn't believe her eyes. Someone is actually asking Hokuto to come to their house and hang out for a while. To Aki, this was a miracle. Something she never, ever, EVER expected in a lifetime, especially considering the things Hokuto went through (which Yun didn't know about).

All: *Groan*

Leopardmon: *Stabs the parentheses with his sword* Enough is enough!

But the problem was: will Hokuto accept her request?

Kudzu: Yes. Because she is the Sue.

Will he finally open up and befriend Yun and possibly see the world through her eyes? To be perfectly honest, Aki didn't care if Hokuto gained a totally different perception of the world that she expected. She didn't care if he displayed some weird behaviors similar to Yun's and if he adapted to her life style even though he should come up with his own life style.

Rita: That... that is an alarming thing to not care about. What if Yun is a bad influence on Hokuto!? Don't you think anyone acting out of character is alarming at all, Aki!?

She prayed and prayed, hoping for Hokuto to accept her kind and generous request. If he did, she would faint happily to the floor. She didn't care about what the other guests thought. This is Hokuto's opportunity to make a friend.

Rita: And because the plot and imprint say so, Hokuto will be friends with Yun.

Yun thought differently. She stared intently into Hokuto's eyes, which are hollow and listless. To be honest, even though Yun is putting up a bold front and actually had the audacity to ask Hokuto to come to her house directly and without one quiver in her voice, on the inside she's scared and shaking like a leaf.

Ayaka: Sure she is.

Her insides are doing back flips and she felt as if her legs would turn to jelly. She was afraid that Hokuto might turn down her request, but at the same time she expected it because most of her attempts to befriend new people and invite them to her house and hang out practically always ended in failure.

Rita: We haven't seen any fails though? Is this the narration telling us what's up, instead of showing us, again?

Kudzu: Yup.

Part of it was because Yun realized that those people weren't as kind and truthful as Yun thought. Hokuto wasn't one of those cases. To Yun, Hokuto seemed like a feral animal, lost in a world of totally different species and with absolutely no knowledge or awareness of the world around him.

Leopardmon: *Shifts into his Beast Mode* As someone who can mode-shift, I find this highly offensive. Animals, feral or not, have feelings too!

Ayaka: I didn't know you were a transformer.

Leopardmon: Of course I am! I think besides me and Zero, Gallantmon is the only other Royal Knight with a different form they can take!

It seemed as if he was deprived of everything and now doesn't know what's normal and what's not. Yun wouldn't mind if he didn't know anything about her favorite anime, manga, games, books, etc. She wouldn't mind if he didn't speak much or socialize much or had a bit of a complicated childhood. She wanted to show those ladies that they're wrong in their perception of Hokuto!

Kudzu: And here, we see Yun's motivation for doing this- to spite those badmouthing a kid like a bunch of assholes.

Rita: Spite can be one hell of a motivator in all honesty.

Pluto: Too true.

She wanted to give Hokuto a chance, something not very many people did, which Aki knew from experience but Yun knew just from observation. Perhaps this is a nice opportunity for Yun to make a new friend and convince him (gently, of course) that she is a person he can trust.

Pluto: *Chomps on the parentheses with his shoulder jaws* I find those to be quite annoying.

Ayaka: Wait- those things move!?

Pluto: Well, yes. All the mouths on my body move. *Chatters waaay too many teeth on his body to demonstrate* I normally do this to frighten Nita into behaving though... or when I chase villainous digimon around.

Rita: How much more of this chapter is left? It feels like we've been here forever...

Kudzu: *Checks* One huge wall of text to break up, and a bit of dialogue it looks like. So, we're very close, Rita.

Hokuto thought about Yun's question and ruminated deeply, going into a pensive state while staring at Yun, to which she didn't mind. He was never asked this question before. Nobody did. Hokuto thought about the sudden change in his life and the things that came with it. Like Aki said, Hokuto spent most of his days in the hospital due to cancer (which Yun didn't know about yet) and had to go through chemotherapy a lot.

Rita: *Sighs* I seriously hate those parentheses...

Hokuto didn't know about friends.

Kudzu: *Sighs* I don't see how, I mean, was your dad's rep so bad that it kept people in the hospital from befriending you, like nurses or other patients?

Well, the most recent friend he made is Kudamon. He kept wondering what it was like to have a human friend, someone his own age. He was never exposed to those kinds of social luxuries, and now that he is, he didn't know how to answer to them or how to react to them or how to display social cues. He barely ever interacted with his sisters (then again, he didn't consider them sisters since they're born from the person Hokuto's mom married, the man passing out food),

Kudzu: *Summons a winged mallet with the Omega Symbol on the head* Do I need to Eject a bitch?

Ayaka: Woah, what's with the mallet?

Kudzu: This, is the Omega Hammer of Ejection, I swing it, and whoever gets hit is sent flying. Not to be played with lightly, though it's been years since I've actually summoned it.

Ayaka: When was the last time you summoned it?

Kudzu: Uh... Well... um... let's just say I used to do comics in highschool, ok?

Ayaka: Oh, and.. how long ago was that?

Kudzu: *Sighs* Over a decade ago...

mother, and new father, and he hasn't been to school for a really long time. Hokuto never did think that people were actually interested in being his friend or even interacting with him. But Yun...she was another story entirely. Hokuto stared at Yun intently, with his listless face, and absorbed all her features, trying to brand them into his mind.

Leopardmon: Imprints are creepy.... *Lays head on his beastmode's paws*

Her short brown hair, her striking emerald green eyes, her white skin (darker than his and Lucero's combined), her dignified stance, her piercing voice (when she wanted to be loud), her sweet voice (when she wanted to be soft and quiet), her clothes, everything. Yun is the first person who ever gained an interest in Hokuto at all. Not only that, he actually started to become interested in her. Hokuto never expected himself to be interested in anyone else (except Kudamon).

Kudzu: *Uses her Hammer to eject the parentheses* Gods above and below, I hate those things in the narration! Also, this must be what an Imprint is like for the Imprintee.

Ayaka: Yeah... this is kind of creepy like Leopardmon said.

Hokuto thought about Kudamon's advice.

"Give her a chance. You never know. She might turn out to be the best friend you'll ever have."

Kudzu: I'd make a Friend Like Me joke, but Yun doesn't deserve that song.

Kudamon was right. He needed to give her a chance. He didn't know what she was like. You never know until you try. Hokuto was a little embarrassed, but he refused to show it on his face. He decided to take it.

He very slowly turned around...and walked toward Yun. Stopped right in front of her. Everyone (except Yun and Hokuto) gasped. Hisako with surprise, Aki with joy, and everyone else with dismay. Yun and Hokuto didn't see what was so wrong with inviting someone to their house, but nevertheless, Hokuto accepted Yun's offer (albeit silently).

Ayaka: *Flatly* Just had to make a big show of him saying yes, huh?

Kudzu: Eyup.

A few minutes later, the guests left, and Hisako and Aki talked amongst yourselves.

Kudzu: You mean themselves, author.

Hokuto, Yun, and Lucero are still in the garden.

"I don't think I've introduced you. Hokuto-kun, this my friend Lucero," Yun said.

"A thousand salutations to thee, Hokuto-dono," Lucero bowed before him and introduced himself. Oddly enough, unlike the others, Hokuto did not say anything about Lucero's strange dialect. Yun assumed it was because he was probably never exposed to other dialects before. He just accepted it without question.

"Your tattoos are cool," Hokuto muttered.

"Oh? Really? Umm...thanks," Lucero said, blushing a little bit.

Rita: This might turn into a thruple.

Ayaka: What's a thruple?

Kudzu: It's what happens when three people are in a poly relationship, I guess. I've only heard it associated with X-Men's Jean Grey, Cyclops and Wolverine though.

Suddenly, all three kids heard a loud and piercing rustling sound.

Pluto: Um... rustling isn't piercing? It can be loud, maybe, but Piercing?

It came from the bush right next to the white star flower garden. After that, out came Kokomon and Gummymon! They tumbled before the trio of children, playing amongst themselves.

"Gummymon! I told you not to do that!" Kokomon yelled.

"Aww! I just wanted to see what it felt like!" Gummymon whined back.

Rita: *Baffled* What...what were they doing!?

Pluto: Something they might be much too young for, be they human or digimon, most likely.

Kudzu: We don't find out as far as I know so... I'm honestly afraid to think about it.

Then, the two little blobs saw the trio looking down at them with surprised faces. The two little blobs gasped, frightened by the fact that Hokuto saw them.

Hokuto was the most surprised. Yun has Digimon!

Ayaka: *As Rita, Leopardmon and Plutomon leave the room at the chapter's end* Hokuto, Kudamon just told you that Yun has digimon! Why are you surprised!?

Kudzu: Hey, at least we didn't have a battle! But seriously, this chapter was painful to get through... Anyway, I have no witty commentary to say about this chapter other than it was on the annoying side so ne--- *Is interrupted by a handsome young man with a wing-like cape, a winged circlet, long black hair, and golden eyes dressed in what may be a combination of samurai and viking armor* Uh... Magni? What are you doing here? Chapter's over.

Magni: Sorry, I just wanted to know what was going on, and would like to assist you and Miss Ayaka? So, may I help next chapter?

Ayaka: Uh... Kudzu? Who is this?

Kudzu: Ayaka, meet Magni, Magni, this is Ayaka. And... I don't see why you can't help.

Magni: *Smiles* Thank you, um... might I ask what's happening next chapter?

Kudzu: Right! Next chapter introduces another Chosen Child and his partner... that's... all I know because I skipped reading that chapter. Anyway, see y'all next time!

Comments

[pan2000]

Yun was loving every single minute she spent with her Digimon, and cherished them as if they were real pieces of heaven itself. Yun would never want to trade them for anything else. Nothing else in the world seemed that important to her than Kokomon and Gummymon anymore.

While it IS preferrable to Harrymort and Jonnie who care about nobody but themselves, it is becoming an obsession.

I think the Heaven obsession will reach Pucci levels.

Rita: Lady, you need to discipline your daughters better- letting them get away with stealing and not doing anything about it other than a light scolding leads to monsters later down the road.

"It's alright. It's not your fault. And sorry if Yun kinda took it a bit too far."

If Yun has an issue with stealing, I will defend her this time.

Magni: Sorry, I just wanted to know what was going on, and would like to assist you and Miss Ayaka? So, may I help next chapter?

Ayaka: Uh... Kudzu? Who is this?

Kudzu: Ayaka, meet Magni, Magni, this is Ayaka. And... I don't see why you can't help.

Magni: *Smiles* Thank you, um... might I ask what's happening next chapter?

Oh hi, Magni!

Ayaka: Japan. School exists for Saturdays.

Rita: But, doesn't the author treat schools like American ones anyway?

Kudzu: Eyup.

Yes. On the one hand, text there is in English and not Kanji, on the other there is Wapanese... shows weeabooism.

Kudzu: I'm going to have to talk to the Imprinting Expert for this one. I'll report the findings in a moment. *Pulls out phone and starts texting*

Ayaka: Who do you know that's an expert on imprints?

Kudzu: A guy in Greece. *Looks at her phone* And according to him, harem-style imprints where the victims imprint on one person is possible as seen in PKH. But... this may turn into a Twilight Situation.

Awwwww!

"Perhaps not. But it doesn't mean that there are no such things as people who truly care about you."

"No one can ever care about me or understand me. They either automatically hate me or pity me. I'm not them. I'm not..." Hokuto let the sentence drift away.

Bawwwwww!

But seriously, the readers are excluded. We are just annoyed by the wangst.