Opening notes (January 2012):

This story was first written during the height of my Wizardmon fascination back in 2001. If anything I was even more enthralled by angst back then so if angst is not your cup of tea, back out now.

Digimon was about monsters who were created by the dreams of children around the world and those images interacting with the nebulous qualities of the internet. Since I have no interest in kids, this story only has the digital monsters and not the humans. However, I'm using the fan-created gijinka form of them...humanized yet still with some aspects of their original physical characteristics...such as Gatomon's cat ears.

Those who remember the original show will 'get' the various name references like Server and Pata. This isn't a necessary part of understanding the story...just an added benefit.

As of this note I'm editing only and really only to fix some of the more glaring typos plus a few more descriptive sentences here and there. Hopefully this will get me motivated to finish the story even though I'm sure every has forgotten it existed by now.

I don't own Digimon. Nor do I know much of anything about the military other than we (in the 'free world' all owe them our lives.

A False Calm: Teiru & Wizard

Captain Teiru Ange of the Vaccyne Air Force, a slim womon with snow-white skin and purple hair, looked over across the town's sports field where a large audience had gathered. Young and old alike, they had their eyes peeled to the sky. Smiling thoughtfully, she followed their gaze with her intense blue eyes until she spotted the familiar yellow and purple Scout cruising the wind currents.

It was an early jet model-Alpha Class-long decommissioned from active service, but its current owner kept it in just as good a shape as when it had been new. That was a little difficult considering what the owner expected the craft to do most days. This was not to say that it was unworthy of the task- the primitive Alpha Class Scouts made decades ago were built more for maneuverability than speed-but they also had whole crews to keep the temperamental beasts at 'flight ready optimum' back then- not just a single mon.

Hands up to shade her face, Teiru watched as the sleek little plane did tight loop-de-loops, spins, and sudden stalls, almost chuckling at the gasps of the other onlookers as the craft almost-but not quite-crashed a wing tip into the grassy earth before sailing back up into the clouds.

She'd seen this many a time before and had long ago stopped worrying about the pilot's sanity.

'Wizard' well knew how to handle both himself and his machine.

Teiru had met him almost a year before when she had been a prisoner of war. Back then, she was a coveted prize of Captain Myotis 'Nightmare' Belial, the premier ace pilot for the enemy Viralians. A victim of faulty instruments, she'd been obliged to bail out, breaking an arm in the process. The Viralians had been short a doctor, so they had impressed a mercenary pilot who possessed some medical skills into taking care of her until she was well enough to be 'processed'.

She and 'Wizard'-for that was the only name he would give- had after a short period of distrust become fast friends. So much so that he had risked his life to fly her out from underneath the Viralian's noses back to her own side of the conflict.

Wizard had never really told her of his past beyond that he had once been opinionated about the war, but preferred not to give his loyalty to either side anymore since a bombing raid had destroyed his place of childhood. Instead he freelanced as a courier or an entertainer, depending on the state of the world's politics. She had quickly learned that pestering him for additional details had as much a chance of getting more information out of the mon as her attempts at having Wizard join the Vaccyne military got him into an Air Force uniform. Wizard would simply turn away and start 'working' on his plane.

End of conversation.

Ah, the performance was over… he was coming down for real now. She waved at the civilian air security team as she loped over to the plane; they waved back, accustomed to her presence at these demonstrations. From the bottom of the Alpha two thick, structures reminiscent of a quadruped's hind legs unfolded and gently touched down on the field. The whole plane appeared to crouch into a low bow before the approach of royalty as the cockpit's shield opened upwards. A figure wearing a yellowish flight suit with large zippers and a purplish cape emerged from the pilot's seat, sparing a moment from shutting down his instrumentation to give her a little wave.

Grinning, she watched as the modestly-sized plane's owner removed his headgear and tossed it over to her before adjusting his scarf and agilely leaping down from the cockpit to land in a poise that mimicked that of his craft's. The mon's pony tie, however, must have gotten loose and fallen inside the helmet sometime during his flight, allowing dirt blonde hair to flow freely about his neck and shoulders as he righted himself. Smirking a little, she handed the hair piece back to him and watched as he tamed the wild locks once more into their customary place at his back.

Large green eyes like fine glass work, delicately pointed ears, skin the shade of a winter's storm cloud. Her friend was shorter than most males and of a wiry build under the baggy flight suit that made him appear both younger and weaker than he really was-to more than one bully's chagrin. It didn't help that he hardly ever spoke to anyone else and kept to himself, shaking his head at offers of arm wrestling and other common macho displays. Teiru supposed one couldn't really blame the local braggarts for tagging him as an in-training: a hapless and inexperienced youngster not yet into his full adulthood.

But Wizard was no in-training and anything but helpless- and admittedly she loved to be there when he proved it to the idiots, for when he did fight it was like watching a dancer in motion.

Oh, how she adored everything about him really; call it hero worship for his saving her, but it was true.

Such a pity he chose to hide so much of his face behind the ever-present purple scarf that he kept wound around his head from neck to eyeballs, its absence would make it easier to give in when she felt the urge to kiss him.

It had to be because of the scars.

They were one of those things he had never chosen to explain to her, but she had seen his entire face once when he'd thought she was asleep in her cell and he had helped himself to a drink from the water pitcher by her bed. His mouth had been marred by seven pale slashes that ran vertically across that orifice as if someone had purposely and very precisely taken a sharp knife to his lips. Teiru couldn't imagine how he had got them.

Oh, she had asked him about them. But the haunted look that had crept into his eyes after he'd hastily covered himself again had persuaded her to never ask twice.

"Wizard," she said by way of greeting after realizing that she'd been standing there dreamily staring at him for several minutes. Gods… she had it bad!

"What is it, little Gato?" he asked in his soft voice, taking his helmet back while gallantly offering his arm to her. She reluctantly declined. There were too many onlookers watching them and it wouldn't do to add more talk to the grist mills. She could almost hear the tongue wags as it was: "Decorated ace pilot having an affair with a mysterious Datan loner that no one knew much of anything about?" they'd chatter. "Those Datans are not trustworthy. They say they are neutral but are quick to hire themselves out to whomever in a whim. What if he was a spy for the other side?"

Silly old hags. Wizard was a friend. So what if he didn't want to fight in the current war despite the undeniable fact that he could handle a plane as well as any ace and was adept at unarmed combat? So what if Datans worked as much for the Viralians as for the Vaccynes. That didn't automatically make him one with the enemy. Heck, there were quite a few honored Datan enlistees in the Vaccyne military!

Brushing the troubling thoughts aside, Teiru pretended to be offended by his remark. For some reason that she could not fathom, he liked to tease her by comparing her to an untamed feline. "How many times have I told you not to call me that? Do I look like a gato? Do you think I'm just a wild thing who has nothing better to do than hang around worshiping your daredevil antics?"

He shrugged, the twinkle in his eyes letting her know that he was probably grinning like a demon behind that cloth.

"Oh, you! You're incorrigible," she pronounced, then turned to caress his plane which he'd christened 'Thunderball'. Teiru had often joked to her brother, Pata, that Wizard would probably marry the piece of antiquated hardware if he could based on the fact that he spent so much time doting on its every need. "She could maybe use with a touch of paint, you know," she slyly informed him. "I think you must have scraped some off the wing tips that last time."

"She's all right," the stunt pilot said a little defensively, peering at the wing's edge nonetheless. "Thunderball knows I wouldn't hurt her."

Teiru rolled her eyes. "Men! What would you do if 'she' turned out to be a 'he'?"

"Then I guess I'd have to give up my plans to mate her with your 'Claw'," Wizard returned smoothly, continuing with his inspection.

It took her a moment to realize what he meant. She had naturally named her own craft-a top-of-the-line Gamma jet fighter-'Lightning's Claw'; which just so happened to be a very masculine name.

"Okay, so I'm being hypocritical. So sue me." She snickered a bit at the image of him trying to 'breed' their respective machines.

"Sounds like a good idea," Wizard grunted, finishing a quick inspection of the plane's wings and landing gear. He'd do a much more thorough job of checking her over after Teiru had gone back to the base, but for now he'd take a break since she obviously wanted to talk. The small community airfield sported a diner and he started walking in that direction, seemingly unconcerned about whether she followed him or not. "Consider yourself sued. Shall I claim my winner's due now or do you want to go through the whole hassle of getting a judge and jury?"

Teiru laughed as she walked beside him, seeing where he was heading for. "I suppose as retribution you want me to spring for your dinner?"

He paused as if he hadn't thought of that, opening one of the four zippered pockets adorning his yellow flight suit in order to pull out an old time piece. Noting what time it was, he put the object back in its place.

"Since it is dinner hour-yes, that would be acceptable."

"Honestly," Teiru jokingly patted him on the ribs. "I don't know where you put all the food I end up feeding you and still stay so slim. Don't you eat when I'm not here?"

"Well…" he coughed and began walking a little faster towards the diner.

"Wizard!" she jogged a little to get ahead of him, stopping his 'retreat' with a hand to his chest. "Just out of curiosity, when did you last eat?"

"I'm fine," he grunted.

"That's not what I asked." She stared him straight in the eye. "You haven't eaten since I bought you lunch yesterday, have you?"

"No, mother."

He tried to cover it with humor, but she could tell he was getting irritated with this line of questioning.

"Damn it, Wizard, you know it's more dangerous for you to fly after so many hours without eating. What if you get dizzy while doing that dive? I don't want to be watching them scrape what's left of your hide off the burnt up turf!"

"Are you still buying dinner?" he asked, pointedly removing her hand from his torso.

Teiru scowled at him, hands on hips. "If I don't, will you still eat one?"

"Of course."

"Today?" Ange stressed. Another thing she'd learned about him- he tended to twist things to his advantage if you weren't paying attention.

Wizard looked skyward. "Looks like the rains are still holding off."

Bowing to the inevitable, Teiru curbed her temper; there was no use bullying him. The mon wasn't one of her underlings and if she persisted on this he'd point that fact out to her in a not-so-polite manner. Better to try a track that was more likely to get a helpful response.

"Wizard… why didn't you eat?" she whispered, making sure she loaded both question and her eyes with dewy concern. "I can't concentrate on my job if I'm worried you're ill."

It worked.

"I um… blew my ready cash." He cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable.

The captain's eyebrow rose. He was so frugal with every expense not tied to his plane to the point that he just rented the hangar for Thunderball and for all practical purposes lived there. "All of it? How?"

"Maybe I gambled it away?"

There was that teasing voice again, willing her to overlook something important.

Not this time.

Her ears lowered as her tail rose, ready for a confrontation.

"Maybe your telling me lies."

"Gato…" he sighed in defeat. "Let it go."

"No. What happened, Wizard?" She lightly touched him on the shoulder. "Are you in trouble with your rent? Does Thunderball need replacement parts? I can't promise anything, but-"

"Here."

He opened another pocket and withdrew a small package which was practically shoved into her hands.

"What's this?" Teiru asked, eyeing it uncertainly as if it might explode while in her grasp.

"Happy Birthday."

"But my birthday isn't for six more days."

Her friend's tone was resigned as he chuckled. "I know. But I don't want to be interrogated every hour between now and then. Even I have my limits."

Teiru stuck her tongue out at him, but that only seemed to increase his smug humor, so she turned to inspect the neatly wrapped item in her hand, turning it to see every angle. It could be anything. Well, anything that was very small.

"Wizard, are you saying that you've skipped meals in order to buy me a present?" It was a rhetorical question because obviously he had.

The Datan folded his arms over his chest, waggling an index figure to indicate a negative sentiment. "Uh, uh… I'm not saying anything that might be used against me."

"You did." Frowning, she held the box back to him. "I can't accept this. You should get your money back. I'd rather see you with some decent mass encased in that silly suit of yours than have a dust magnet on my desk."

Jade green eyes showed his hurt over the rejection and she belatedly realized that she should have just gracefully accepted his gift.

"It's neither a dust magnet nor something that I can return," the Datan said in his softest voice, not even rising to defend his rather flamboyant choice in flight wear.

Damn. What did he get her?

"Wizard…" Ange grumbled just a bit as she backed off, "What am I going to do with you?"

He cocked his head. "I thought you were taking me to dinner," he reminded her.

Ange almost whacked him with the package. Instead, she decided to open it. If it was truly something he couldn't return, then there wasn't anything she could do but keep on scolding him until he retreated to his hangar to escape her tongue and temper. If it was returnable, she'd do it herself and stuff the money in his toolbox or someplace similar when he wasn't looking.

The package, as she'd already noted, looked small and unassuming wrapped in its plain brown mailing paper with nothing to give away what it might contain. Probably some old knick-knack he'd picked up from a wandering street vendor. Never one for great patience, she ripped through the modest trappings to get to the prize underneath.

It was a wooden jewelry box.

Heart beating a little bit faster, Teiru popped open the hand-carved lid to reveal an old-fashioned 'friendship' ring with the universal symbol of Light engraved on one side, her name on the other. Carefully, she lifted the golden item out of its container, admiring the craftsmanship. It was a little big for her finger, but that was easy to fix. Only, she wasn't sure whether to be happy or angry with him: This had cost more than the price of a few meals.

She decided on happy.

"Oh, Wizard, it's beautiful. I'll have Patty size it down so I can wear it always."

"No."

He reached over to pry up the bottom of the small box and pulled up a golden chain, then apologetically took back the spherical ornament. "Legend says one should never break a friendship ring lest the friendship itself be affected," Wizard solemnly recited to her as he thread the chain through the ring. He then placed the necklace around her neck. "There. Now it looks twice as pretty."

She blushed, and then surprised him by jumping up enough to plant a quick kiss on his forehead and hugging him tightly, fingers entwining in his dusty-gold hair. She gave him another, longer kiss on the back of his ear and felt him quiver.

To heck with what the town might think! Teiru felt no inclination to let disengage, nor did he seem inclined to pull away.

Gods, but she felt so good next to him, Wizard thought as he breathed deeply of her scent. And the sensitive spot on his ear felt as if it might tingle forever. Still, this was neither the time nor place to alter their relationship. Did you mean to imply earlier that I was going to get dinner or be dinner?" he joked, and then stiffened in her grasp.

"What?" she asked, tilting her head enough to see his eyes lock on something in the distance.

Just like a soldier's. A raptor's fixation on a potential threat, she thought a trifle uneasily. "If I didn't trust his word for it…"

"Your brother and your second are heading this way." he said evenly, sharp eyes tracking the two Vaccyne pilots walking briskly toward them.