Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

The Passing of Petals

A Digimon Tamers story by: Crazyeight

Takato's breath came out in cold puffs as he jogged down the streets of Shinjuku. Spring hadn't yet fully wrested the city away from winter's icy grasp, necessitating the use of a jacket to pass for something resembling warmth. Fortunately, the chill wasn't such that it made staying home the smarter decision, and indeed the day could be easily described as pleasant thanks to the lack of wind and the strong presence of sunshine. Few clouds dotted the sky, and Takato's odd, red-colored eyes rose toward it.

A memory tickled in the back of his mind from almost a year ago, when a mesh of grid-like lines dominated that clear blue sky. His heart fell a little, reminded of a friend who now lay behind that barrier, living in a world once more invisible to the naked eye. A world born from the hearts of humans and their interconnected, communication network.

Oh Guilmon…

With an effort, he pushed the memories of that year aside. Today was not a day for reminiscing. Today was a day for fun. For making new memories. At least, that's what he hoped for anyway.

Please be home. Please be home. Please be home…

He repeated the thought in his head like a mantra, feeling a touch of worry flutter through his mind. Of late, one of his more human friends, Rika Nonaka, had become rather difficult to see, though this was hardly a surprise by itself. Even during their adventures – and more so before they became friends – she had always been standoffish, and since their otherworldly companions were forced back behind the barrier that separated their two worlds, this trait had worsened. He could understand that. Their entire group all had a hard time wanting to be together like they used to when such an important part of their lives – indeed, their very souls – had been ripped from them.

We can't keep drifting apart like this, he thought, remembering how Rika had been when they first met. I've got to show her that she has friends who care about her!

That thought steeled his resolve and he continued on, but even as he did so, he felt the keen loss of Guilmon and the others – the digimon that he and his friends were partnered to – strongly. Passing a familiar alleyway, he found himself remembering a time when he met Rika under less hostile conditions, and how she teased him in an odd, deadpan tone, asking if he had come to confess to her. How baffled and exasperated she and her partner Renamon made him back then, causing Guilmon to quip about how their idea of a joke involved a good punch to the funny bone. Yet, thinking back, he wouldn't have traded that meeting for the world.

Sometimes I don't know how Henry could forgive his dad for forcing our digimon to go back to the digital world, he thought with a touch of sorrow as he left the alleyway and the past behind him. He could forgive a lot of things – as he forgave Rika's attempts to kill Guilmon – and he felt that he could forgive Henry's father, given enough time, but there were days that the idea seemed beyond him.

Drawing near to Rika's home, he quickened his pace. The door to the massive gate was closed, a bit unusual for Rika's family given the time of day. Takato tilted his head to one side questioningly at this.

Are they out? he wondered. Maybe that's why she's not answering her cell? Man… She's probably going to think I'm stalking her or something.

Takato's face became a portrait of tension while coming to a halt in front of the main entrance, the question hanging in his mind as he knocked and waited. As always, he felt a touch of amazement by the high wooden walls. Befitting her family's more traditional, wealthy roots, the walls surrounding the girl's home gave the impression of a fortress or castle.

She really is a bit like a princess, isn't she? I wonder why I never really thought about it before…

Time came and went, and after a few minutes, he knocked again, though he was starting to feel more certain that, yes, Rika and her family were out and that, for whatever reason, she didn't want to be disturbed. Takato could understand that. Rocking on his feet, the boy waited a few more minutes, if only to be polite in case his first knock hadn't been heard, before turning to head off.

"I'll try and get in touch with her later," he murmured to himself. "Man, I really hope she's okay. I…"

The sound of approaching footsteps drew him up short, and spinning about, he saw the familiar, fire-red hair that was his friend's calling card as she and her family rounded the corner. Unable to believe his luck, a smile split across his face and he started toward her at a jog.

"Rika!" he exclaimed happily, causing the girl's violet eyes to swing up at him in surprise. "Hey! How are you…?"

"What are you doing here?!"

Takato blinked and ground to a halt, the unexpected edge to her voice catching him by surprise.

"Uh…huh? I'm here to see you?"

Alarm bells went off in his mind and at once his mind jumped into warp speed to try and determine the cause of her sudden anger at him. And angry she was, and more. Her eyes had narrowed and her lips set themselves into a small, thin line, sharp as any knife. He knew that look well, having seen it on her face during her less than friendlier days. It was the look of someone assessing a potential threat and how to best remove it.

"Rika…" Rumiko began fortunately, coming to his defense with a warning tone. "I know you're upset right now, but he's your friend. You shouldn't speak like that to someone who came all this way to see you and cares about you."

Rika flushed noticeably and looked away, but her angry expression didn't vanish. If anything, it hardened and she clenched her fists together tightly.

What's…What's going on? Why is she so upset? Something had to have happened!

He frowned, still trying to work it out. He expected Rika to still be upset about the loss of Renamon, but this…

He blinked again, noticing that his friend and her family were dressed rather formally, all three of them in dresses – something wholly alien in his experience with Rika specifically – and all were in black.

It's like they've just come back from a funeral…

The alarm bell from earlier paused in mid-ring and his thoughts crystalized with unnerving clarity. Oh kami…

Rumiko turned a kind, thoughtful gaze on the stunned Takato and offered him a kind smile. A smile, Takato noted in his newfound comprehension, held a touch of sadness to it. It was then, he saw that her cheeks glinted wet in the light of the day, and that she wore none of the makeup he was accustomed to seeing her with. Swallowing, Takato found his emotions sobering up immediately as Rika's grandmother – Seiko Hata – unlocked the door to the Nonaka residence and pushed the door open.

"Would you care for something to eat, Takato?" she asked politely, her own smile lighter than that of her daughter and granddaughter, but still quite somber. "I'm afraid we don't have any cookies made ready, but we should have some crackers if you'd like some."

"That's…That's fine, Ms. Hata," Takato replied, his thoughts starting to pick up speed as the weight of what he walked into settled heavily on him. "I…just wanted to talk to Rika for a little bit."

Rika's still angry eyes snapped over to him as the two elder women looked at each other and then at the two youths.

"All right," Seiko replied, her polite smile softening a little. "The offer still stands in case you change your mind. You're always welcome you know."

"Thank you, Ms. Hata," Takato said in a quiet tone, bowing his head to the matriarch politely. Sensing their need for privacy, Rumiko gave her daughter's shoulder a soft squeeze before following her mother into their home. In the quiet of the street, the two Tamers stared at each other for one long moment, Takato with sympathy, and Rika hating it.

"I'm sorry," the brown-haired boy said finally.

"So I guessed," Rika replied irritably, folding her arms together. "Are you going to apologize for showing up because you 'didn't know' now?"

Takato frowned at that, not liking the implied accusation.

"I would have shown up anyway, you know."

"That's because you're a Gogglehead," Rika snapped, using her old nickname for him derisively. "I don't need you feeling sorry for me."

Takato sighed inwardly, running a hand through his hair.

"Can I at least feel bad that you're upset? I mean, you're my friend and I…I hate seeing you get hurt."

Rika hesitated before her expression softened a little.

"Do whatever you feel like," she muttered, her tone still tense. "What are you here for? I know it's not for a pity party. It's not like I gave anyone a heads up about…this."

She kicked at the ground with her dress shoes indicatively. Takato scratched the back of his head, shifting his feet awkwardly, hesitating between telling the truth and dancing around it before settling on the truth and being as plain as possible. If nothing else, she appreciated honesty and disliked half-heartedness.

"Um…well… I…kind of was looking to hang out with you today. You're always so busy that it's hard to fit in with your schedule, so…"

He drifted off, feeling Rika's hard eyes on him. Lowering his arm, he nodded to her, his expression solemn.

"I get this is a bad time. I'm not going to push you into anything you don't want to." A memory of another friend, Jeri Katou, standing alone with her heart shattered from Leomon's death and himself, feeling helpless to do a thing about it, flashed through his mind as he continued. "I just…I just want to be there for you, even if we don't say a thing to one another or do anything."

A pall of silence fell between the two, and Rika's hard expression didn't change until, finally, her shoulders sagged and she heaved a heavy sigh, suddenly looking tired.

"Just…stay there," she said, turning toward the entrance to her home. "I need to change before I do anything or go anywhere else."

Takato blinked but nodded. "Okay," was all he could muster out as she disappeared into her yard. Sighing, he leaned against the wall and looked skyward, feeling like an idiot, wondering what he could say or do to help Rika feel better, or if he was even the right person for that.

"I don't know if I can," he said aloud to himself, thinking about how he had dropped the ball on their friend Jeri back when she had gone through her horrifying ordeal with the malevolent, otherworldly entity known as the D-Reaper on top of losing her digimon partner. Fortunately, things had more or less worked out and she was okay, but…there remained scars. He didn't want to repeat that mistake with Rika, and yet…

She's…not the sort of person who…well…she doesn't like dealing with this kind of stuff. Not directly. She'd rather dig her heels in, pretend like there's nothing wrong and glare at anyone who says otherwise.

"Is this a good idea?" he asked the sky out loud. "Am I doing the right thing?"

In his mind's eye, he saw Guilmon, the crimson, digital reptile, beaming at him with his bright smile and his big, golden eyes full of confidence in his human partner.

"You'd probably say something like how I'm skating on sausages, huh boy?"

"Skating on what now?"

Jolting to attention with a light yelp, Takato spun about, his whole body turning into a flagpole.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Asaji! I was just… Oh."

Flushing in embarrassment as Rika looked at him flatly, with only the faintest hint of curiosity flitting in her eyes, the brown-haired boy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"Sorry. Reflex."

"Right. So what did you want to do?"

Takato lifted his eyebrows at the girl. "You really want to hang out?"

Rika paused before shrugging.

"Not…really," she admitted. "But I don't have anything better to do and I'd rather hang out with you than spend all day at home right now." She met his eyes, the curiosity becoming more evident in them now. "You said you'd keep the conversation to a minimum, right?"

"Yeah," Takato nodded, thinking back to the way her mother and grandmother looked; that air of sadness between them. "If that's what you want."

"I do."

The pair stood there in silence for a moment before Rika shifted. "So…" she began, letting her sentence trail off, indicating that she wanted to know if he had anything in store for her.

"Oh! Right! Um… Yeah, anyway… I had an idea, but I wanted to see if you'd like to do anything first before… Hey, is that a new shirt?"

Rika raised her own eyebrows, a bit baffled by Takato's unexpected question before glancing down at the dark grey, skull and bones T-shirt she wore underneath her leather jacket before scowling up at him.

"What is it with you and my shirts?" she demanded heatedly, her fists lifting from her jacket's pockets. Takato instantly regretted how, once again, his mouth and brain moved in opposite ends to one another and he raised his hands in a placating gesture, trying desperately to salvage the situation before it took a turn for the worst.

"Whoa, hey! Calm down! I've just never seen it before and it's different from what you usually wear. It's…ah…" His mouth and brain staggered in their flailing attempts to stumble their way through their usual dance routine. With an effort, he pushed through and forced an awkward smile on his face. "It's…kind of cool."

"I'm not wearing it to be cool! I'm…" Rika pressed her lips together, her fists trembling as her face flushed. With a visible effort, she forced her hands to unclench. "Tell me you didn't come all the way down here just to compliment me on how I look, because this is a really bad time for…"

"No!" Takato interrupted forcefully in the heat of the moment. "I just wanted to invite you to a Noh play! That's all!" His expression softening, he lowered his hands to her. "That's all," he repeated quietly.

The two young teens stared at each other in stunned silence for a moment, Rika clearly taken aback by the suggested outing and Takato, surprised he was still alive at all. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Rika's hands returned to her pockets, herself looking a bit abashed.

"Well…why didn't you say that in the first place?" her tone a touch gentler all of a sudden. "You wouldn't have looked like a stupid gogglehead if you started with that instead of commenting on my shirt."

Takato felt a light breeze playing on his hair and he again scratched the back of his head, feeling the tense air between them.

"Sorry. I'm just… You know how I am. Open mouth, insert foot, like usual." He barked a harsh laugh and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm your gogglehead. Court jester or something like that."

A ghost of a smile, faint and plainly not liking being teased out of its hiding place, touched the corners of the girl's lips. "And here I thought you were a knight, seeing as how you and Dinoboy biomerge to become one and…"

Rika hesitated, and the hurt, angry look from earlier returned, reminded of the sting of their partners' absence. The tense air returned between them and Takato resisted the urge to look down at his shoes and count his laces.

"This…is okay, right?" he asked. "I mean, you're okay with…?"

"Don't baby me, Takato!" Rika snapped suddenly, stepping around him. "I'm a Tamer. You're a Tamer. Let's just…try to make the best of this since you've got my attention, okay?"

"Ah… Right." Scratching the back of his head uncertainly again, he fell into step beside her. As they walked in silence, Takato found himself wondering what had happened. Who she lost. It wasn't a question to be asked out loud to her though. How could he ask her something so personal?

I'm not like Jeri's doctor, he thought. And usually if I try to fix something, I end up breaking it. Maybe this was a bad idea after all…

Nonetheless, they were committed now. The best he could do was, as Rika said, to make the best of it and hope to come out at the other side maybe a little bit better than before.

"So…" Rika began, picking at the threads of conversation. "A Noh play, huh? How did you get enough money to afford those kinds of tickets? I didn't think you had that kind of allowance."

"Hm? Oh! Well, you remember how Yamaki set things up for us as a way of saying thanks for saving the world?"

"That's right," Rika narrowed her eyes in bitterness at the reminder. "Because money buys happiness."

Takato bit back a response on how she was being unfair and that Yamaki was trying to do the best he could with them, all things considered. He knew she wouldn't hear it. She didn't the last time he made that argument, and she had been mad enough then.

That's an old wound that doesn't need picking at…

"Well, I figured it would be a nice place to spend it on with you sometime," he continued. "I saw you leaving one once with your grandmother and you looked like you enjoyed it…"

"Wha…? Were you stalking me again, Takato?"

"Stalki…" Takato choked on some spit at that. "I never stalked you! I was just picking up stuff for my parents that day and just happened to see you! If anything, you've stalked me! Twice!"

"What can I say?" Rika asked, a touch of humor for once appearing in her voice. "You made a tempting target." She glanced at him curiously. "Are you sure you have enough for those tickets? It's no big deal to me, but you're not exactly rolling in money, even with what Yamaki gave you and all that Guilmon Bread you and your parents are making now. I can pay both our ways you know."

Takato simply smiled at her. "I like to do things for my friends once in a while. If you think it's a big deal, you can treat me next time."

Rika shook her head. "Fine," she reluctantly conceded. "But like I said, money doesn't buy happiness."

"Since when can happiness be bought?"

"Great. You're starting to sound like Henry."

"Um… Isn't that a good thing?"

"No. You'll lose your goggleheaded charm if you keep that up. I don't know about you, but I like Henry being Henry and you being a Gogglehead. Balances things out and it helps me keep the two of you straight in my head. I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't have to have at least one of you to keep from doing something stupid."

"I'm not exactly going to be racing against a fireball anytime soon…" Takato began, only to stop when he saw the way Rika tensed up at the mention of their adventures. "Sorry."

Rika pressed her lips together tightly.

"Don't say that. I don't want to pretend that she was never a part of my life. I'd rather think about how she and the others are looking for a way back home. Back to us. So if it hurts a little bit, at least…at least that proves that Renamon mattered to me."

She frowned, as if in deep thought about something that troubled her. Takato tilted his head at her questioningly, a part of him feeling as though she were talking about something other than Renamon.

Sensing that this was connected to earlier, he said softly, "You know, you always had a bigger heart than you liked to let on."

Rika shot him a dark look, but rather than rise to take the bait, she contented herself with glaring at the street in silence as they continued on their way, broken only once by single word.

"Gogglehead."

Her glare to his questioning look as the boy opened his mouth was enough to remind him that in the realm of the self-styled Digimon Queen, silence reigned.

###

The two Tamers sat in the auditorium, the crowd hushed as the play began. At the far end of the stag e, a man wearing traditional samurai clothes inched his way along while the seated actors chanted, their voices rising and falling in a single, monotonous, almost hypnotic tone, punctuated by the beat of their instruments. It was…different to say the least. While Takato had always had a rough idea of what a Noh play was, he had never been to one before. The cost of the tickets aside, it didn't appear to hold much that would catch his particular interests in the way digimon or other such anime normally did. The plain stage, absent of anything else except the actors and a single painting of a tree in the background. And everything moved so slowly.

Well, not slowly, Takato corrected himself. More like deliberate. Very deliberate. The actors really care about what they're doing. But still… I'm kind of surprised that Rika likes this. It doesn't seem like her style. Although, on second thought… He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Is it her style? She does like this kind of thing, right?

Takato rolled the thought around in his head for a moment. Now that he thought about it, he didn't know for sure that she liked Noh plays. There was a rather long list of things that he didn't know about her despite having known her for over a year now. Since the end of their adventure, she largely kept to herself and her busy school schedule made it rather difficult to hang out with her and get to know her. It was almost like she had come from a different world and then returned to it once all was said and done.

Kind of like that story about the girl born from the bamboo… He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Man, I am such a Gogglehead. I only ever saw her visiting the one time with her grandmother and I thought that meant she liked Noh plays? I go to all kinds of places with my parents because they're my parents. Why should she be any different?

Of course, that was one of the purposes of today's outing, though it had become quite…complicated to say the least.

His eyes flicked over to the girl again. To the casual observer, she was watching the play dispassionately, seeming not to care that much about what she was seeing. Yet to Takato's practiced eye, the slight frown that broke her flat, almost empty gaze showed that she was concentrating on the play, thinking about it and turning it over in her mind. Yet she betrayed nothing of her thoughts.

Well, she's always been pretty hard to read. But I guess if she didn't want to be here, she wouldn't be. She doesn't do things that she thinks are boring.

Feeling that he could take some solace from that, he settled in and resumed watching the play as it continued to unfold. It still struck him as strange, but at the same time it did fascinate him. What was more, he enjoyed using his imagination to make it seem more real and to add to it.

There's no way Kazu could sit through this though. He'd be complaining about the lack of explosions. Not to mention the lack of bikini girls…

An actor dressed as a dog flipped and bounded onto the stage suddenly, howling with its paws up in the air. He heard Rika gasp softly – just barely loud enough for him to hear – and he saw how her body went rigid at the sight.

Renamon… he quietly realized, seeing a shimmer of unshed tears in her eyes. She's thinking about Renamon…

"Rika…?" he began in a low voice. Seeing that he noticed her sudden rise in tension, she shot him a dark glare again that told him plainly that he wasn't to say a thing about it. He promised after all to do just that.

His heart and head swirled in conflict, but for the time being he opted to protect the peace between them and let the play continue uninterrupted.

###

Although the sky remained clear and sunny, Takato felt that clouds hung in the air as he and Rika exited the Noh theater wordlessly. They hadn't spoken once the entire time, and when all was said and done, Rika simply got up and headed toward the exit, no remarks about what they saw and no expectation that Takato should follow her. Yet as he caught up, he saw that the tears she held back earlier had slipped free against her will, trailing a path down her cheeks. He bit his lower lip, trying to think of something he could say or do to help take the sting out, but the knowledge that Rika reacted poorly to gestures of sympathy drew him up short.

Am I even being a good friend by putting her through this? he wondered, starting to feel angry with himself for his inability to help her through her pain. All I've done is goggleheaded this up from one moment to the next. I…

He closed his eyes, his own tears starting to well up from his inner frustration.

I'm such a heel. What can I do? Everything just…gets ruined! I…

"Thanks."

The quiet, unexpected word cut across the tempest of his thoughts like a knife through butter, catching the boy by surprise.

"Huh?" he asked in confusion as he turned toward his friend just as she finished wiping her hand across her eyes to rid herself of the offending tears.

"For…this." She shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant in spite of her damp face. "Might not have been one of your better ideas, but…" She shrugged again, trailing off, uncertain how to continue. Seeing his eyes, damp and shimmering as well, she sniffed and cocked a curious eyebrow at him.

"Are you all right?"

"I-It's the cold," he stammered out, hurriedly wiping at his eyes. "And…things. You know. No big deal."

Rika eyed him skeptically.

"'No big deals' are usually big deals coming from you. I've seen you get upset about 'no big deals.' You don't have to hide it from me."

Takato met her eyes levelly. "Neither do you, you know."

At that, Rika scowled noticeably. Feeling alarm bells go off in his head, Takato scrambled for a defense.

"I mean, I already know you can kick my butt! It's not like that's going to change because I…you know. Because your…" He coughed politely. "…upset."

"I don't like it when people see me like this though," she replied, still frowning. Sniffing loudly, she glowered at him, daring him to say something. When he didn't, she turned away, the pair continuing their trek.

"Well…I am seeing it now," Takato pointed out. "If it helps, I promise not to tell anyone about it. It can be our secret."

He offered his friend a big, comforting smile, and she gave him her darkest glare of the day yet, but upon seeing that he was determined not to wilt under it this time, she gave up and sighed.

"You're such a gogglehead."

"I know. It's what we goggleheads do. And I have you to tell me that every day."

"I just miss hearing her voice," she confided as they walked. "Always knowing that she's there and that she'll come when I call. I…" She licked her lips, looking pained. "You and Henry are going through the same thing about Guilmon and Terriermon, huh?"

"Yeah," Takato agreed, thinking of all the times he visited his partner's old hiding place. "It hasn't been easy. Even a year later."

Feeling a touch of self-consciousness, he looked around.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't. I already said that."

"I know. It's just… This was supposed to help you feel better and it…doesn't seem to be doing that. I just… I don't know what to do to help."

First Jeri… Now Rika… Kami, am I any good to anyone?

"You'd have had a hard time with that even on your best days," Rika admitted. "But this time I think you bit off more than you could chew."

Coming to a halt, she swiveled about so that she stood in front of him, causing Takato to jerk to a halt in surprise. Their eyes met, and Takato gasped. For a moment, the way she looked at him, it was like he was seeing her with her guard down. A soft appreciation for his efforts lay in her violet depths and instinctively Takato lifted a hand, a part of him wanting to still try, no matter what.

"Rika…"

"My dad died a few days ago," she cut in, causing his hand to pause in midair. Breaking the contact between their eyes, she lifted hers toward the sky and sniffed again. "Car accident. My dad's dead and all I can think about is Renamon. That's…something else, isn't it? In the end, after all this time, I can't even think much of anything about him and I…don't know how I'm supposed to feel about that."

Takato's hand retreated, but only a bare inch before he frowned at himself. Summoning his courage, he placed his hand on her shoulder, and the girl stiffened in surprise, looking at the appendage resting on her jacket before turning her attention up at him, where she found his warm, red eyes greeting her.

"Takato…"

She trailed off, and after another moment, Takato spoke.

"I…I don't have any words that can help. I wish I did, but all I can do is this. I've got your back. I know that might not mean much, but…um…"

"Takato?"

"Ah!" He blinked. "Uh…yeah?"

Rika shifted as she looked away, a faint blush starting to rise on her cheeks. Bringing a hand to rest on his, she gently removed it and brought it down between them, yet kept him in her grasp.

"You're…getting mushy."

Stillness hung between them before Rika's lips quivered and then, much to both of their surprises, curved upward into a small smile. A tiny laugh, short and almost a giggle, emerged from the girl and she shook her head in amazement.

"You're getting mushy," she repeated, eyeing him with a touch of amusement in her eyes.

"That's…That's a bad thing, right?"

Rika hummed for a second before releasing his hand and turning away. "I'll let you think about that for a bit. Anyway, I'm going to head home now. Catch you later, Takato."

"Wait!"

Rika turned, lifting an elegant eyebrow at him. "What? You've got something else planned?"

"Um…" Takato rubbed the back of his head, now uncertain as to what to do. He had said 'wait' impulsively and, true to form, had no clear idea what to follow that up with. Scrambling, he fought to find something, and soon enough, he did.

"Could I…keep hanging out with you for a little bit longer? At least until you get home?"

A ferocious blush burned his cheeks now as Rika contemplated him, a part of him getting the distinct impression that his words had come out wrong, or at the very least would give the wrong impression given how 'mushy' she claimed him to have been. Yet his words had been honest. He did have her back and would no matter how she felt about her father. He was her friend, and he felt she deserved no less than his support as she worked through her feelings.

"Sure," Rika said with a simple nod, her eyes thoughtful, yet as always, betraying nothing. With little else to be said, they headed off together.

###

They found the cat about halfway through Shinjuku park, lying there just off the side of the path, eyes closed and unmoving. Takato missed a step, his breath catching in his throat at the sight.

"Something up?" Rika asked, pausing in her stride as she noticed his stop. Approaching the cat, Takato knelt down, earning a concerned look from the girl.

"Takato, don't. If it bites you…"

"It won't." Takato gave it a gentle nudge, his expression falling. "It's dead."

"All the more reason to leave it alone," Rika admonished, approaching from behind. "You don't know what kind of diseases it might have so… Takato! What are you doing?"

Shrugging off his jacket, he wrapped it around the dead cat, taking care to make sure it was properly tucked away.

"I'm going to bury it." He lifted himself up with a slight grunt, his skin prickling at the loss of heat. Rika could only stare at him in utter bafflement.

"Gogglehead. I can understand the sentiment, but…" She grimaced. "You don't know if that thing had any diseases or something like that."

"I'll make sure to wash myself well when I get home." Takato lifted his jacket up and felt his skin recoil at the unnaturally stiff bundle in his arms, his body knowing instinctively what he held without needing to be told.

"Takato…!"

"I'm going to bury it, Rika," Takato said firmly, almost yelling. Looking ashamed for his outburst, he looked away. "Sorry. It's… I used to know this cat. A few months before I created Guilmon, an old lady gave me this cat. Said that she couldn't keep it anymore and thought that I looked like the right person for it. But…we can't have pets at home because of all the food and everything, so I had to let it go. I tried to keep track of it and feed it, but it disappeared."

He stroked the cat unconsciously through his jacket, remembering the feel of its fur from when it still lived and breathed, meowing at him, not understanding why he had to leave it behind.

Oh kami… he thought, feeling a tremble working its way through his body. You too… I failed you too…

"I just… I want to give it a proper resting place, so that it's not just going to end up somewhere forgotten like it's…like it's trash that got thrown out."

Rika eyed him for a moment before asking, "Where are you going to bury it?"

Takato relaxed a little, grateful that she wasn't going to argue with him on it, though the look on her face suggested that she would give him an earful later.

That's okay though, he thought, his thumb finding the faint outline of the cat's ear in his jacket. Don't worry, buddy. I'll give you a good resting place.

"I was thinking somewhere near Guilmon's old home."

"Right. And dig with what?"

"Uh… Well, I'll have to buy a shovel since we don't have one at home…"

"So you're just going to carry it all the way to my place and then to Guilmon's home? After you've bought yourself a shovel?"

"I'm not going to take long with…"

"Takato…" she began, only for Takato to interrupt, already predicting what she was going to say.

"Okay, you're right. That's not a good idea. I guess this…"

"Oh, for goodness sake!"

Grabbing him by the arm, Rika yanked him along after her, nearly causing the boy to trip over his feet in the process.

"Whoa! Rika! What are you…?"

"Taking you home, what's it look like I'm doing?"

"But… My place is in the other…"

"My home, Gogglehead!"

Takato fixed her with an utterly baffled expression as his feet settled into her pace. "You're really not making any sense. I thought you didn't want me to bring…"

"Takato? I thought you promised to keep the conversation to a minimum today."

"Ahhh…" He glanced down at her rough grip on his arm. "Could you at least let me go? I can keep up you know."

Rika harrumphed in response, but reluctantly released her grasp on his arm. They continued on in silence the rest of the way, eventually arriving back at the main gate to Rika's home. Stepping into her yard, Rika glanced around, frowning as she saw no one.

"Grandma must be inside," she muttered. "Takato. Wait here until…" She blinked, seeing that he was shivering, the chill from the cold air having wormed its way into him, having become bereft of his jacket in order to carry the cat. Tugging off her own leather jacket, she swept it around the boy in a single, smooth motion that caught him dumbfounded.

"Wait here," she repeated before bounding off into the house. Minutes passed, and before too long, Rika reappeared, a shovel in hand and herself wearing light blue jacket.

"Come on," she said, indicating the backyard with a toss of her head. "Grandma says there's a spot we can use out back. Sorry. We only have the one shovel. Mom doesn't do a whole lot of gardening like Grandma does."

Takato's eyes widened at that.

"Wait. You're okay with…?"

"It's a better idea than whatever it was you had," she said as they walked around the side of the house. "You've always got to play the dumb knight when it comes to stuff like this and you get yourself worked up over things you can't fix."

Takato pressed his lips together at that. Well… She's not wrong…

"I know," he admitted while he followed her. "I'm not very good at solving problems. I know it's sometimes a bad thing to get involved in everything and try to force things to change but…" He sighed. "I can't just do nothing."

Coming to a stop, Rika stabbed the tip of the shovel into the dirt and yanked up a small patch with a grunt.

"The nothing you did today was helpful you know," she pointed out.

"It was?" Takato hadn't expected that considering how upset she had been.

"A little bit, yeah." Rika grunted again as she continued digging. "You were there for me, and…I don't know. Sometimes… Sometimes that's enough. Sometimes, you have to wait out the storm instead of yelling at it."

"Well, yeah. I mean, it's not like yelling at it will do any good."

"I've done my fair share of those a lot lately," Rika chuckled. "Pretty exhausting really."

Takato glanced skyward, thinking of Jeri and all she still had to struggle with.

"Speaking of storms… What if one doesn't end though?" he asked. "What if there's nothing but one big storm as far as you see and it just goes on forever?"

Rika dug out another layer of soil, her brow furrowed in thought.

"I don't know," she admitted finally. "Something to think about, I guess. But…" Stepping away from the hole, she settled her violet eyes on him and gave him a small smile. "…at least I have you to help with that." She gave a small giggle as if a funny thought occurred to her. "Maybe we can yell at the storm together or something."

"Yeah, maybe," he agreed with a short laugh himself. "I'm pretty sure you'd scare it off though."

Rika grinned before gesturing to the hole in front of her. "Think that's deep enough?"

The mood quickly became somber at the reminder of the grim job, and after a quick inspection, Takato nodded.

"Yeah," he said, kneeling down and, carefully, unfolding his jacket. Removing the cat from within, he settled it into its new home. As he stood back up, Rika offered him the shovel. Taking it, he finished the job, and with a final pat on the soil to say goodbye and pleasant dreams, he stepped back.

"Thanks, Rika. You didn't have to do this."

Rika shrugged. "We're friends. Besides, I knew you were going to get yourself twisted up like a pretzel unless I pitched in. You can yell at a storm and make it go away sometimes."

"I guess so," Takato laughed, starting to take off the jacket she had loaned him, only for Rika to shake her head at him.

"Hang on to it. At least until tomorrow. You still need to get home so you can wash yours, and there's no way I'm letting you put it back on after you carried a dead animal around in it."

"Oh!" He adjusted the leather jacket on himself, not sure how to react to that. "Uh… Thanks."

"No need to thank me for doing what friends do," Rika replied with a small smile. She looked at him hesitantly for a moment before stepping closer and drawing him into a hug. Takato stiffened in surprise, but he soon found himself returning the hug, pulling her tightly to him.

"Rika…"

"Take care of yourself on your way home, Takato," she said, her voice muffled against his shoulder and thick with emotion. "Don't give us another storm to yell at because you went and did some boneheaded, goggleheaded thing, got it?"

Takato smiled, massaging her back. He could feel her heart beating against his as the warmth of her cheek pressed against him. Her hair tickled his face, but surprisingly he found that…pleasant. A reminder of their friendship.

"I promise."

He felt her smile against him.

"Good, because if you don't, I'll make you regret it." Drawing back, she gave him a once over, her eyes curious. "That jacket looks pretty good on you. Never thought I'd hear myself saying that."

"T-Thanks," Takato blushed at her rather unexpected compliment. "But I still think it looks way better on you. I-I mean… Ah…"

"Go home, Takato," Rika chuckled. "Before you embarrass yourself or something. I'll see you tomorrow to get my jacket."

"R-Right." Picking up his jacket and bowing in thanks, he headed off, only to pause at the gate and look over his shoulder one final time, a small smile on his face.

"Later, Rika," he said softly before resuming his trek once more, disappearing down the daylit streets of the neighborhood.

###

A/N: So the genesis of this idea is from 'Those Sakura Days' where it's mentioned briefly that Takato showed up to see Rika and thereupon found out by accident that she was getting home from her father's funeral and had told no one about it. It's been picking at the back of my mind ever since and this week I sat down to write it out. Bit of a slow crawl doing it, as my work schedule has become a touch more hectic with spring bringing more customers and we're finding ourselves suddenly a bit short staffed (yay).

Hope you all enjoyed the fic, and I'll see you all next time. :)

-Crazyeight

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