Humans lie. It was a simple fact. I knew this from experience. Sure, Ken never lied to me. Even when he was under the Dark Seed's control, he always told the trust. The truth might have been cruel and tainted by the Dark Seed's influence to corrupt my friend, but it was the truth nonetheless.

Humans lie. I've seen it. I've experienced it! And yet, I wished my partner never had to live through it. A sigh escaped me as Ken's ears twitched slightly as he slept restlessly on the floor of his room. I snuggled closer, hoping to give him some type of comfort in his fragile state.

I hate to admit it, but I wasn't surprised that it happened. I expected it; though, I wished it hadn't. I never wanted for my best friend, my partner, my child to be this upset, to be heartbroken. Yet, I had seen it coming. I knew Ken's folks loved the fame and would do anything to get it back. But what they did was unthinkable.

I never thought they would yell at their own son and tell him how they hated him. Ken always wanted friends. I wanted him to have them too. But now that he has them, actually has good honest friends; his parents try to rip it from him. I tried not to shake in anger and accidentally wake Ken up. Ken needed his sleep. I closed my eyes as I recalled the last couple of months.

It was probably a week after the defeat of BelialVamdemon when I noticed the changes. After the defeat of BelialVamdemon, Ken was opening up a little more to his friends. Daisuke mostly since they were best friends. I was glad for that. I was the only one who knew Ken (more then Ken knew himself) and was glad that Daisuke was starting to scratch more than just the surface. Over the next couple of weeks, Daisuke started to notice subtle things at first. Like when Ken tilted his head a certain way as if he was listening to something far away. Or when Ken glanced at Tailmon when she slept in his lap, even though no one knew why since she was Hikari's partner. (Although, I have the feeling that Tailmon knew that Ken is part cat as well and is only trying to protect him.) Or even when Ken seemed most comfortable on a sofa, snuggling in a warm blanket, either asleep, reading a book, or watching TV.

Eventually, Daisuke asked me questions about Ken being a Neko. I wasn't sure what that was at first until he told me what it was. I had to say I was more than a little hesitant. I've heard the things Ken's parents said when he's in school and I've seen the news on TV. Both were not pleasant. I feared in that moment that Ken was going to be rejected by this best friend. It was the opposite actually. Daisuke apparently had a cousin who was also a Neko and was excited to learn that Ken was one too. He was more than a little excited to see what Ken's tail and ears looked like. Though, the problem was getting Ken to show himself without scaring him or making it awkward. We ultimately decided to wait until Ken was ready to reveal himself.

This was months ago and Daisuke took that time to get closer to Ken, which I encouraged very much. The two of them were inseparable. They had gotten so close that Ken almost showed Daisuke his ears, but held himself back out of fear. Daisuke took no offense to this, even though he was a bit down that Ken might be afraid of him, and simply waited for Ken to come around.

The other Chosen had started to notice too and asked Daisuke about it. It turned out that a few of them either have a family member or knew someone who was a Neko. It was a relief to know they would accept Ken for who he really was. It was nice to know that Ken won't have to deal with the uncomfortable pain of hiding his ears when he's with them.

Ken seemed so happy whenever he was with his friends. He truly thought things were looking up and that the others would truly accept the real him. I, on the other hand, knew this was only half of the case. Ken doesn't hear the things I hear while he's in school or doing errands for his parents, school, his friends, or for their neighbors.

When Ken was not there his parents argue, a lot actually. At first, they were happy for Ken, they truly were. Ken told me the promise they made before I was reborn. I was happy for them, but it didn't last. Ken didn't see it, but I saw the frowns on their faces, the disapprovals when Ken talked about Daisuke and the others. I saw the way they argued when they saw that Ken was spending more time with his friends than his studies. Don't get me wrong. Ken still spends long hours in his studies, he still gets high marks on tests. He's still at the top of his class, but he doesn't overdo it like before.

I often frowned when his parents sent him off to go study when it was only the middle of the day. You would think they would send him off to go play like most parents would. I often suspected that they wanted to yell or do something when Ken talked on the phone to Daisuke for long hours of time. I was always happy to see Ken's smile, his tail held high in a happy manner, and his ears resting in a relax position on his head, but not flattened. Ken was happy. I was happy that he was happy, but his parents were not.

His parents missed the press, the attention, and the fame of being the parents of a genius. It made me mad just thinking about it. Ken never wanted any of that stuff. There was a reason why Ken didn't like interviews, the fans, or the overexerting pressure of pleasing everyone's expectations.

I hated to see Ken so unhappy. Was that what they wanted? Was that why they yelled at him and tried to control him again? I huffed bitterly at that and instantly regretted it. Ken's sensitive ears twitched and flatten against his skull in distress. His tail moved in anxiety as he tried to cower away from a potential threat. He let out a small whimper in his sleep, making my heart sink further. I whispered words of reassurance and comfort that he was safe and loved and that everything was going to be okay. Ken seemed to hear me and quieted down, for now at least.

I let out a sigh. This was horrible. Ken didn't deserve this. Maybe I should have said something to Tailmon, to V-mon, to someone. Ken wouldn't be in this position because of me. A tear managed to fall down my face. I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself. I couldn't afford to be upset. Ken needed me.

My eyes traveled to the bruise on Ken's cheek. I tried not to let my anger loose and attack Ken's parents. I would have, happily, but then Ken would be defenseless and scared. I couldn't do that to him.

It was my fault and I had to make it right. I didn't tell anyone about Ken's parent's behavior. Over the month's things had gotten worse. Ken's parents argued more and often said hurtful things, which I was glad Ken wasn't there to hear. I didn't stop Ken as he shifted me closer to him. I could practically feel his distress and fear. This was not how this day was supposed to go.

My mind wondered if Daisuke would rush over when Ken didn't show up. We were supposed to go to Iori's birthday party and Daisuke, being the leader that he was, was taking the liberty of picking Ken up and bringing him to the party. My antennas drooped as I thought about what might happen when Daisuke got here. It was possible that Ken's parents might keep Ken prisoner. They made it pretty clear, from the yelling I heard, that "those children" were a bad influence on him and that he was forbidden from continuing any contact with them. I rolled my eyes and glared at the door.

How dare they say that they wanted the "old Ken" back? Did they really like the way Ken was before? Or were they just too blind by fame to really care? It was obvious that Ken was hurt by this. They told Ken they wanted him to be himself and not act like his brother just to please them. They said that they were sorry for what they did. Yet, here they were yelling at Ken and holding him prisoner in his room just for being him. I felt so mad right now and wished we had some help.

What could I do? Daisuke would be here soon and we were locked up in Ken's room. I just hoped there was a way to slip by them or attack them, whatever came first. I smiled at that. Ken's parents deserved more than just my sticky net that's for sure.

"Mhm?" I turned to look at Ken and gave him what I thought was hopefully a calm smile. Ken's tail slowly uncoiled from around his small form and moved to the side as Ken slowly woke up. Ken limbs were the next to move as he uncurled himself from the human size ball that he managed to do while he was crying just hours ago. A few cracks were heard (from Ken's back probably) from being in one position for too long. Blurry, sleepily violet eyes stared at me in confusion as his ears twitched up in a similar manner.

I looked at Ken worriedly. "Ken, are you okay?" Stupid question, I know. But what could I say in this situation?

"Wor-Wormmon?" Ken slurred in a sleepy voice. I frowned slightly in concern. My instincts were telling me that there was something wrong with my partner.

"Are you okay?" I asked again after I confirmed that it was indeed me. Ken gave out a long hiss as he touched his still bruised cheek.

"Owww," he hissed in a catlike tone, now fully awake. If the situation weren't so dyer I would have found his catlike quirks adorable and amusing. But at this very moment, it just concerned me. "God that hurt."

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" I asked; my antennas still drooped.

"My head…my tail…my pride…" He grew quiet as his eyes began to moist. "My heart…"

I sighed as I saw the tears beginning to form. "What did they do before they throw you into your room?" I asked quietly.

He let out a shaky breath. "I wanted to reveal myself to the others." I smiled warmly at that. Ken was finally going to tell them, about time. "I wasn't sure how, though. After I put Iori's present in my duffle bag, I went to talk my parents," Ken whimpered slightly. "I wasn't sure how to tell the others, so I wanted their advice." Ken let out a small sob as his ears flatten against his skull. "They were furious." He paused. "They yelled at me…saying that they hated this new me. That…they wanted the old me back. They wanted me to stay home and study, so they could get the press to start talking about my accomplishments again. They wanted…they wanted…"

I snuggled closer, trying my best to hug him as he sobbed a fresh batch of tears. "Shh, it's okay. I'm here." I did my best to calm him down as he held me close.

"Why?" he sobbed. "Why did they attack me? Why did they lie?"

"I don't know," I lied. I knew what they wanted, but I refused to tell him. I couldn't bring myself to hurt him more than he already was. "What do you mean they attacked you?" I asked when his words registered in my head.

"He slapped me and I kinda collided with mom's china."

"You mean the one on the wall?"

"Yeah," he sniffled. "He started yelling that I should act my age and to start being the genius that they know I am."

"What happened?" I asked when he stopped.

He blinked, trying to hold back his tears. "I may have said I am not Osamu."

My eyes widen at this. I knew how Ken felt when he was always compared to his brother. Daisuke and the others always reminded him that he was Ken, always would be Ken, and should stay true to himself. Despite all of us saying that this is actually the first time Ken actually said it out load. "Of course, you're not Osamu, Ken. You are Ken and always will be." I paused as his ears perked up a bit at the comment before going back down. "What did he do?"

"He stepped on my tail to prevent me from running." I narrowed my eyes at this. Ken's tail was very sensitive. His parents knew this. "While I was in pain he picked me up from around me neck and slammed me against the wall."

"HE WHAT?" I was horrified. If I digivolve to Stingmon right now, I would show him how it feels to be manhandled! (Or was it cat-handled? Ken is a Neko after all.)

"Mama screeched that I would never be able to replace Osamu." I was relieved at that, but the tone in his voice still troubled me. "But, he said that he never wanted a Neko for a son either." I gasped in horror. They never wanted him? How could they say that? No wonder Ken was so upset.

"I was scared," Ken's voice trembled in fear. "He started to choke me. I was afraid he was going to kill me. I was on the verge of passing out when he let me go."

"And then he threw you into your room and locked the door," I finished, horrified as Ken curled into a ball again and began to cry for the third time that day.