#repeat hikari

[koushirouizumi]

Digimon Adventure 02 ~ A.M.V. {Anime Music Video} Title: “Kocchi wo Muite” {“Look This Way”} Sung by: Yukana Nogami Music © CLAMP / Kodansha (Originally from: Cardcaptor Sakura) Featuring Duo/Ship/O.T.P: + {Daikari} / {DaiHika} (with equal Hikari<->Daisuke P.O.V's, though leaning a bit more in Hikari->Daisuke focus) [+Bonus Ken, 02 Chosen as Support; Taichi & Hikari as Platonic/Familial/Supporting each Other]; {KenDai(+Miya)Hika can be read in; However, the main focus of this one is Daikari specifically, with KenDaiHika as side Poly!}

Summary:

“Although you show COURAGE, YOU’VE{?} got it Backwards A {maiden}[?]’s Heart is {fragile} and Trying…”

“Throughout all of the {xxxx} WE’RE Invincible”–

Digimon Adventure 02 © Toei Animation A.M.V. by Me No $$$ is being made off this Fanwork

Notes: - The 1st minute took about 45 min; 2nd part made took about just over 2hr’s; The 3rd+4th parts from interlude on took 35~ min each, Altogether, it's already taken 3~4+ hr's. - This is my 08/02 Focus work, for August 2nd anniversary of Adventures timeline! (by August 2nd, Vamdemon's invasion of Odaiba had Begun) Daisuke, who was initially captured inside the same center as Odaiba convention center Vamdemon kept Tailmon trapped in; just might have come across a Certain Person (or two) Near this and the following exact Day{s}... (Alluding to Daisuke's official Drama CD audio Track from "Digimon Adventure 02: Spring 2003"!) - This A.M.V. is overall a Standalone work. (It is not directly involved with my other work); However, it can be considered a work For the storyline that’s a precursor to Repeat-verse, which came before that story was conceived!) Therefore, it can be watched as a Standalone! - I reused a part of an older edit for the earliest Tri P.V.; (for timing placements) it had an old subtitle on, but I’ll remove that for the finished version! - (There is a moment of Hurricane Touchdown!Taichi for Timing) {As it works for my fan-‘verse, I left it in, with a bonus by end!} However, the work is overall/near-wholly 02-focused (so far)! - There is a small amount of out-of-context scenes, However, they’re meant to overall parallel the lyric{s} on-screen. - There is a single Tri spoiler from Kyousei; involving the character of "Homeostasis", that (mind)-possesses Hikari briefly in Adventure Ep. 45 previously. {"Gennai" [Tri] can also be seen for some short seconds} - Major handful of "The Beginning" sequel spoilers by ending; However, it's all actually immediately Pre-Final battle. (The Digimon in final battle can be seen Clearly, +Rui)

{I have not yet re-written the Daikari storyline involved with the past ficverse of mine in full; So please take this work as a sort of preview to it!} The ending lines and following sequences especially hint/allude a little more to my ficverse's potential turnouts; but it can be viewed/read as semi or even fully canon compliant too!

(Further lyric{s} under ‘read more’!)

“Turn this way, don't look anywhere else, darling It'd be bad if you weren't completely by MY side… Although you show courage, you've got it backwards A maiden's heart is fragile and trying—”

If we get separated by any distance I’ll come after you

(J.P.N): {Verse #1} Kocchi wo muite yo So mi shinaide Daarin Chanto watashi no soba ni inakucha dame da yo Tsuyogari datte uragaeshi Otome-gokoro kyun��to setsunai…

Donna ni tookute hanarete 'te mo  Oikakete 'ku wa— I'm like a jasmine flower, right? You want to turn towards my strong fragrance I love you more than anyone So look at only me, okay?

{Verse #2} If it’s for "love", you’ll get stronger, darling So it’s true, I’ll "always" be your ""cute kid""-- Although there are some bad feelings in life No one will ever give up on a m a i d e n’s heart--(?)

Throughout all of the pain We’re invincible

I’m clumsy around you Protect only ME A magical love ONLY for US We should KEEP THAT our S E {C R E T}— Jasumin no hana no you ni ne Tsuyoku kaotte furimukasetai Dare yori mo anata ga suki Watashi dake mitsumete ite ne?

Koi no tame nara tsuyoku nareru no Daarin Honto wa zutto kawaii ko de itai kedo Yakimochi datte maji da kara Otome-gokoro dare ni mo makenai

Donna ni tsurai koto ga atte mo Futari wa muteki--

Bukiyou na anata no koto Mamoreru no wa watashi dake da yo Koi no mahou futari ni dake Wakariaeru HI{MITSU na n’ da yo}–

I'm like a "jasmine flower", right? You want to turn towards my strong fragrance I love you more than anyone So look at only me, okay?

Jasumin no hana no you ni ne Tsuyoku kaotte furimukasetai Dare yori mo anata ga suki Watashi dake mitsumete ite ne?

NOTE: The speaker may be speaking as if theyre NOT BEING CONSISTENT with their {FEELINGs}.

(Implied/Spoken): {My fic-verse Only}

"...I'm sorry." {"For before"}

"{None of it was} 'Your fault'." -Hikari to Daisuke

{"...It wasn't 'YOURS', EITHER--"}

[Note: Please regard banners BEFORE INTERACTING] (Failure to acknowledge may likely result in Block)

[taichi-x-koushiro]

@taikouvember!

Prompt: LIGHT; + What is your favorite aspect{s} about their relationship/dynamic with Hikari? + What is your favorite aspect{s} about their relationship/dynamic with Mimi? {Belated}

{This AMV has background implied KouTai, as typical for this series!} (along with sections for Mimi & Hikari separately, + {Side} Koushiro & Mimi, & {Side} Koushiro & Hikari {Background Implied Only}; Platonic/in Spinoff AUs or Otherwise) * Koushiro & Hikari is only applicable to more fully main-canon compliant timeline{s}; [in that specific case, Taichi & Koushiro are platonic, but in most of my works/AMVs, they're intended as Ship.]

{Polyships can also be read in for A.U. Potentials, including Koushiro x Taichi x Mimi as a trio/OT3!!}

Note: -This video’s embed may randomly not display at times, Showing like it’s “down”, but it’s not at this time! {It usually happens late at night[s] or seemingly when Tumblr is {seemingly} experiencing very high traffic} If that happens, please consider watching the Direct link here! (If it seems permanently down, please leave a comment or tag to notify me!)

Note: Many more AMVs for this series have been made since this particular one, which could be considered an “New Phase” (or in-between point) of the 2nd-to-3rd phase/set of AMVs! (This AMV was closer to the "3rd Phase" stretch) {As in, the next series of AMVs I had initially planned to make; many more have been Inspired to be made since!!} Please see this post, made later than this post was, for most of the rest of the AMVs + edits currently in this series!

{This specific AMV is also a Positivity work for Mimi Tachikawa & Hikari Yagami; [Tri. versions of both + Koushiro & Taichi Included] +both as separate characters. Please acknowledge+respect this if you share!}

Digimon Adventures ~ x Kagerou Project “My Funny Weekend” AMV [music © Jin, singer: Hatsune Miku {Vocaloid}] featuring CHARACTERS/DUO/SHIP[s]: MIMI TACHIKAWA, HIKARI YAGAMI (as supporting characters) + Taichi Yagami [Taichi “Tai” Kamiya in U.S. Dub] x Koushiro(u) Izumi [Koushiro “Izzy” Izumi] ~ {KOUTAI}/[Taishiro(u)] & with bonus scenes for: Jou Kido x Mimi Tachikawa [Joumi] as a main ship Miyako Inoue x Hikari Yagami [Miyakari] Sora Takenouchi x Mimi [So(Ra)Mi] as side main ship Mimi Tachikawa x Meiko Mochizuki [MiMei] {brief} Miyako Inoue -> Mimi Tachikawa [Mimiyako] as implied crush Taichi x Koushiro x Meiko [TaiKouMei] x Mi (Mimi) as equal polyships Taichi x Koushiro x Mimi [TaiKouMi] as an equal OT3 Daisuke Motomiya* x Hikari x Miyako as equal polyship {brief} (* Ken can be read in into the background if you like Dai/Ken[suke] ) [ or DaiKenMiyakari as an equal polyship ] Yamato x Sora [Sorato] / x Mimi [YamaSoMi] as an equal OT3 {brief} [or +Jou for YamaJouraMi] as equal polyships ~ you can feel free to read in whichever of the above pairs you want (or anything else that’s in my shiplist pretty much!) however, please keep in mind the main ship is Taishiro. It is not intended as brotp only but as ship.

PAST AMVS / VIDEO EDITS IN THIS SERIES: Kagerou Daze (Heat-Haze Daze) / Children Record [+Adv Chosen] / RED / Additional Memory and Imaginary Reload music edits for KageDaze / Days (short edit) / Lost Time Memory / Yesterday Evening / Summertime Record / Shounen Brave [+Jou] / Outer Science [+Villains] / Headphone Actor (short edit) / DAZE (short version / TV Size OP) / KOUSHIROS ? CYBER JOURNEY [+Maki] / Brave Heart x Kaien Panzermast [+Chosen Children] / Night Tales Deceive [Yobanashi Deceive] / [KOUSHIRO’S] Imaginary World / Mekakushi Code [Blindfold Code] [+Yamato&Sora&Adv Chosen] / Ultramarine Rain [+Mrs Yoshie Izumi; Izumis] / Imagination Forest [+Mimi&Jou] / Transparent Answer [TaiKou+Meiko] / Jinzou Enemy [Artificial Enemy] / DEAD and SEEK (short edit) / Headphone Actor (Full version Preview) / Otsukimi Recital [Moon Viewing Recital] [Advs Taishiro & 2020 Taishiro] (Note: Check the link for ‘ Otsukimi Recital ‘ for all links to any past AMVs as well as story info / the story introduction link!) (*It’s ok to start on/only watch this current AMV!) [*You may understand the story/implied timeline of things better if you begin from my “Kagerou Daze” AMV, though it’s also not required! “Children Record” is also recommended as a starting point/upbeat song! “DAZE” also serves as a mini Opening theme song and is also upbeat!] {NOTE : PLEASE read my FAQ and “about” sections BEFORE interacting directly with me, my contents / fanworks / this series, or my blog!!!}

[More info + lyrics under the ‘read more’!]

Keep reading

[ayukaze]

[dude1818]

Rewatched the Revue Starlight movie. Read the Wikipedia plot summary first this time, since my main complaint last time was I had no fucking clue what the timeline was at any point, and it definitely helped

The movie is still an absolute spectacle. The revues are so far beyond what they were in the anime, although I somewhat miss the aesthetic consistency. All of the flashbacks with baby Karen and Hikari are adorable, but I do wish they didn't make up fully half of the runtime. As cute as they are, they aren't as interesting as the modern day scenes, and I still think the revues needed more set-up instead of jumping right in. I was able to understand what they were about this time, but what I think the anime did so well was establish the personal conflicts irl in the first half of each episode before translating them to the revue. I wish the movie had spent more time on that aspect

One of the things that threw me off most my first time was what Hikari was doing in London. I didn't realize she had gone back after they performed the 100th Seisho Festival, so her return to Tokyo in the movie completely broke the timeline in my head. (Apparently there's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of her withdrawal from Seisho, which I either missed or conflated with her dropping out mid-year two.) Her running away from Karen is kind of the core driver of the movie, though, so no wonder I didn't get it at all

More importantly, I actually get what Nana was doing this time. Her decades of protecting the other girls was actually at an end now, and that was destroying her. Her once last attempt at directing was to make sure they were actually ready for what came next. I think I nominally understand that the first time, but I didn't "get it." Her revue with Junna I definitely hadn't gotten. It was in part the same thing, forcing Junna to use her own words instead of relying on the words of others, but it was also the one thing that Nana could move on from. "Her Junna" was holding Nana back, which is why Junna was the one who won that revue, forcing Nana to also be ready to move forward

[aph-japan]

{D.N. A n g e l} ~ STAGE 4

[reinemichele]

(Translation here, page 5)

I'm sure that JPN laurants, or even overseas laurants who can speak JPN, have expressed the (positive) impact that idoido/marchen have had on us, but I just really hope Revo understands that like the chemicals in my brain do a little jump every time I hear this

[kaizokuou-ni-naru]

the official one piece channel released a music video to promote volume 109 much like how they did with volume 106 and the start of egghead:

and i watched it and i started bawling almost instantly. below the cut is the rough (very rough, i'm not great at translating music) translation i did of the lyrics, so you all can cry along with me.

例えば誰か一人の命と/tatoeba dareka hitori no inochi to 引き換えに世界を救えるとして/hikikae ni sekai wo sukueru toshite 僕は誰かが名乗り出るのを待っているだけの男だ/boku wa dareka ga nanorideru no wo matteiru dake no otoko

if, for example, by saving the life of one person i could save the whole world i would be a man who only waits for that one person to declare himself

愛すべきたくさんの人達が/aisubeki takusan no hitotachi ga 僕を臆病者に変えてしまったんだ/boku wo okubyoumono ni kaete shimattanda

to all the many people dear to me i sadly became a coward

小さい頃に身振り手振りを/chiisai goro ni miburiteburi wo 真似てみせた/manete miseta 憧れになろうだなんて/akogare ni narou da nante 大それた気持ちはない/daisoreta kimochi wa nai

the gestures i learned when i was small i've showed you how to copy and i've come to yearn for something no grand ambitious feeling

でもヒーローになりたい/demo 'hero' ni naritai ただ一人君にとっての/tada hitori kimi ni totte no つまずいたり転んだりするようなら/tsumazuitari korondari suru you nara そっと手を差し伸べるよ/sotto te wo sashinoberu yo

but i want to become a hero if only to you alone if you ever stumble or fall i'll quietly reach out a hand

駄目な映画を盛り上げるために/dame na eiga wo moriageru tame ni 簡単に命が捨てられていく/kantan ni inochi ga suterareteiku 違う　僕らは見ていたいのは/chigau, bokura wa miteitai no wa 希望に満ちた光だ/kibou ni michita hikari da

for the sake of bringing this no-good movie to its climax lives were simply thrown away but no, what we dream of seeing is the light that has fueled our hopes

僕の手を握る少し小さな手/boku no te wo nigiru sukoshi chisana te すっと胸の淀みを溶かしていくんだ/sutto mune no yodomi wo tokashiteikunda

that small hand gripping mine all of a sudden melts all the hesitation from my heart

人生をフルコースで深く味わうための/jinsei wo furucosu de fukaku ajiwau tame no 幾つものスパイスが誰もに用意されていて/ikutsumono supaisu ga daremo ni youi sareteite 時には苦かったり/toki ni wa nigakattari 渋く思うこともあるだろう/shibuku omou koto mo aru darou そして最後のデザートを笑って食べる/soshite saigou no dezaato wo waratte taberu 君の側に僕は居たい/kimi no soba ni boku wa itai

so that you might deeply savor life as a full-course meal with all its many spices laid out for everyone though at times it may be bitter and full of sour thoughts and at last you'll eat dessert laughing i want to be by your side

残酷に過ぎる時間の中で/zankoku ni sugiru no naka de きっと十分に僕も大人になったんだ/kitto juubun ni boku mo otona ni nattanda 悲しくはない　切なさもない/kanashiku wa nai, setsunasa mo nai ただこうして繰り返されてきたことが/tada koushite kurikaesarete kita koto ga そうこうして繰り返していくことが/sou koushite kurikaeshite iku koto ga 嬉しい　愛しい/ureshii, itoshii

i certainly came to adulthood in the midst of these times that are far too cruel but i'm not sad, and i'm not in pain although things have just repeated like this yes, although things will repeat like this i'm happy, my dearest

ずっとヒーローにありたい/zutto 'hero' ni aritai ただ一人君にとっての/tada hitori kimi ni totte no ちっとも謎めいてないし/chittomo nazomeitenai shi 今更もう秘密はない/imasara mou himitsu wa nai

i always want to be a hero if only to you alone without any mystery left after everything, i have no secrets anymore

でもヒーローになりたい/demo 'hero' ni naritai ただ一人君にとっての/tada hitori kimi ni totte no つまずいたり転んだりするようなら/tsumazuitari korondari suru you nara そっと手を差し伸べるよ/sotto te wo sashinoberu yo

but i want to become a hero if only to you alone if you ever stumble or fall i'll quietly reach out a hand

[ophanum]

' DO I WANNA KNOW ? — Alice in Borderland

ft. Yandere! Suguru Niragi, Shuntaro Chishiya, Morizono Aguni, Takeru Danma, Mira Kano, Rizuna An, Hikari Kuina, Ryohei Arisu x Male! reader

Synopsis: Alice in Borderland cast if they were yandere. All except for Usagi because she's an angel in my eyes.

tags & tw/cw: Yandere, smut, porn without plot, AIB-typical violence, bondage, kidnapping, manipulation.

notes: This is inspired by my work in progress in wattpad called King, you should go check it out here.

❝Cause there's this tune I found that makes me think of you somehow and I play it on repeat until I fall asleep.❞ -- Do I wanna know? by Arctic Monkeys.

NIRAGI

Niragi will be a bit of the type of person (yandere) to be clingy all the time, which is always ten feet away from you, either stalking or trying to impress you by belittling you. Yep, bullying you s/o so they think your cool, nice going Niragi. But you don't conform, just stare at him with an undersmirk that keeps him weak and falter for some reason. But under all that, he just really want to eat your validations when it happens. It makes him into a pathetic fool and he kinda of hates it, but because of you he'll do anything. Blood on his hands if anything. Praise kink. Sucks at your dick and let his own dangle out and untouched and red because he doesn't want to be a bad boy. And he'd have that puppy eyes, wanting your approval.

CHISHIYA

Chishiya is the type of person to be flirty around you, dropping his smirks and mysterious glances at you like a fox. Because of the situation where you are in with blood gore and suffering in borderlands, he hates it when you suddenly leave the conversation (albeit uncomfortable) and leave him there to overthink where he did wrong in the conversation. He will keep you close though, not wandering too far from his radar. He would tie you up to the bed. Stare you down with those cat-slit eyes fileld with those deep knowledge but right now, just right now, everything is reserved just for you. You smirked under the cloth tied around your mouth. He would kiss you passionately, taking it off, but when you suddenly bite the corner of his neck, his eyes shoot up, whimpering as he does so. He gasp and stared at you like you offended him, surprised that you did that. He backed to your legs. "You're such a tease." He whispered. Looking down at you at the same time rubbing his clothes dick. It didn't take long for him to fully undress his bottom part and expose all of it to you as he whimpered, moaned, and growled until he comes. Always stare dazing-ly at you, like he can't seem to think when you are in his line of sight. Shower thoughts.

AGUNI

Aguni was firstly impressed how you survived the whole thing. Seeing you in one game and thought you were going to die in a day but you didn't. He wanted to recruit you in the military, but before that, he wants to test you first. Hatter was the first one to see how he was the one who keeps smiling at you and tries to create bad situations a bit loose so he could swoop in and make himself known to your peripheral, even for just one glance, when usually he would be in control of the situation far more earlier until it becomes a bad one. All he wants you to do is watch him as he undress himself and do it to amuse you. When you compliment his muscles he would flex it without shame. Wear clothes that would reveal it more. Kiss you under a tree at night while forehead touching, his eyes gazing into you, but even so, He would masturbate behind you while you sleep. He would like vanilla sex but at the same time he is a dom that love you with all his heart.

HATTER

He would be the type of person to keep you to himself wherever he goes. Not flaunting you in public, but he would always be five feet away from you. He would flirt with you nonstop but when it comes when you're the one flirting, he would be flustered and on his knees. He can share you, but if there would be someone who would cross the line, anything above sexual, he would immediately be furious and fuck you senseless. Keeping you in line. Call him daddy and shit. Licking his fingers while mentioning eye contact his mouth wide open as he feels a twitch on his pants. A moan leaving his lips and eyes hooded. Aguni would be trying to calm him down whenever there's someone touching his man. Hatter would be crossed armed while glaring blankly at a wall, while Aguni is beside him standing with his hands on his pockets, talking to hatter out of the thought of murdering he person who touched you wrongly. Oh, and he's hesitant for you to go to dangerous places. But now that you got the hardest challenges, it make him turn on and keep you to himself even more. Another night of pleasure and praise, ruffle his hair and let you suck his dick. He would always be turned on whenever you lick your fingers.

ANN

She would absolutely love to tie you up against the bed and take you for herself. A lot of teasing and banter at first, but when she started smiling around you and protecting you from harm in games, then the other could think it was already obvious. What was interesting is, she may be a tsundere. But there will be moments where she will be the one to tease you, and sometimes it's not really teasing, she would just be enjoying herself on top of you. Grinding her ass on you and sometimes masturbates when you aren't around. If the yandere goes too hard, she will be very VERY desperate and will and ultimately-- wear bunny clothes to seduce you. Probably smell your underwear and masturbate to that. She loves to enjoy herself when you're not looking, undress herself while you sleep and enjoy herself.

MIRA

she will try to seduce you at first, rub her hands on your clothed dick and winks. But now where the yandere begins. You go to a game and she's there. she protects you, even if it's not obvious, since she's too busy. But when she's covered in blood, she will lick it up from her fingers and shove her fingers onto your mouth. You try and run away and you did. She's fine and just sighed at you with a dreamy look. When you wake up, you'll realise you are in a dungeon, you are tied up to a chair. And Mira will strip herself while lap dancing, and enjoying you. Sucks your dick. She is a sadist, so she'll probably drown you while riding your dick. and if you are a woman, then grinding I guess.

In the kitchen, she would just probably just smear herself with sweet food or honey and masturbate to you, using whatever she can find in the kitchen.

KUINA

work out sex. period. So aggressive with you. A lot of makeout sessions. Will let you suck her off. And she would be on the moon. Yandere her will be just her own self except the intensity of sensitivity she has when you give her affection. She would literally be a dog to you if you ignore her. Naive and so intent to what you're going to do to her.

ARISU

Acts innocent but really is dirty minded. Will hump the pillow and say "Please, not there—!" And you would laugh in the background. and he would do anything to please you, like anything, he would kill, but also he would be fine if you want to kill him. He's literally a doormat that you can step on whenever you'd like.

[khunyuki]

"I've lived my life with blade and you always in my mind"

ꜱɪᴅᴇ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ: 𝚋. 𝙹𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚢, 𝙹𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚢

Synopsis: Uzui Kagami admires Captain Ashiro Mina but that doesn't mean it didn't bother her whenever she hears Soshiro talk about her all of the time. Meanwhile, Hoshina Soshiro doesn't really think of Captain Narumi Gen as a threat but with how clingy he is to Kagami, boy does it feel so annoying.

Pairing/s: Hoshina Soshiro x Fiancee!OC

Notes: Sorry I posted this late, I had a hard time writing it but enjoyed it in the end. I love jealous Soshiro who acts like he isn't jealous at all <3 Also, stop being so negative, Kagami! Soshiro loves you with all his heart😭

Warning/s: Side-B manga spoiler, overthinking, jealousy

Genre: Song-inspired (kinda), Angst? (kinda), Hurt/Comfort (kinda)

Masterlist: TOC, Previous, Next

𝓒𝓸-𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓼𝓸𝓷 𝓲𝓼 𝓴𝓲𝓵𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓮 𝓼𝓵𝓸𝔀𝓵𝔂

𝓘 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓴, 𝓘 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓴 𝓽𝓸𝓸 𝓶𝓾𝓬𝓱

'𝓑𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓴𝓲𝓭𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓭𝓸𝓷'𝓽 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓶𝓮

𝓐𝓷𝓭 𝓘'𝓶 𝓼𝓸 𝓼𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓸𝓯 𝓶𝔂𝓼𝓮𝓵��

𝓘'𝓭 𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓫𝓮, 𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓫𝓮

𝓐𝓷𝔂𝓸𝓷𝓮, 𝓪𝓷𝔂𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓮𝓵𝓼𝓮

𝓜𝔂 𝓳𝓮𝓪𝓵𝓸𝓾𝓼𝔂, 𝓳𝓮𝓪𝓵𝓸𝓾𝓼𝔂

𝓢𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓯𝓸𝓵𝓵𝓸𝔀𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓮

- Jealousy, jealousy by Olivia Rodrigo

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Ashiro Mina, the Captain of the Third Division of the Defense Force, is someone Kagami admired starting from the day she joined the force. Just like how she looked up to Shinomiya Hikari when she was still alive.

A charismatic, strong and determined, kind yet strict woman. The one who initiated the change in kaiju neutralization for the better, as well as someone who a lot of people idolize.

It would certainly be strange if someone dislikes her, no?

Said woman was the topic of Kagami and Soshiro's conversation in the study room.

"Captain Ashiro is so amazing! She neutralized that honju from this morning with such ease. That precision, power, and accuracy was so excellent it's like..."

Kagami rambled on and on about how great Captain Ashiro Mina is and how she wants to be someone like her who gives people inspiration etc, etc...

Soshiro just watched his fiancee fondly, nodding his head whenever she looks his way, agreeing with her sentiment. Whenever she talks about something she likes, she could talk for hours on end about it.

"You sure do like her that much, huh?"

"I do! I know it's still too early for me to dream of becoming/doing something as close to what she's done but someday I want to be able to stand as her equal in terms of greatness"

Soshiro loves it whenever she's like this, she's willing to admit that she still need to work hard in order to be what she wanted to become. Her confidence in saying that she'll someday be able to do just that with such assertiveness makes him think that she really can do it in the future.

"Somehow, I'm getting jealous of Captain Ashiro who you like so much. Just joking"

He rested his chin on his hand as he showed her a teasing grin. He was just joking, of course, but seeing her red in the face after was really cute. He ruffled her hair as a sign of affection.

"You're the one I like though"

She muttered those words as softly as a whisper, so silent that he didn't catch it. He had to stop his actions to ask her to repeat it again.

"It was nothing"

"If you say so"

With her firm denial, Soshiro relented and fixed her hair. Her straight and silky hair wasn't really tangled much but it still has to be fixed in order for her to look presentable. He gently used his fingers as a comb, massaging her head slightly while doing so.

"By the way, I have to head to the Third Division tomorrow for a meeting about the goodwill kendo match that'll take place in a month. So I'll have to pass your compliments to the captain myself"

"Noooo"

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The next day, Kagami bid him farewell fully expecting him to come back later into the night. She gradually became worried when he doesn't answer her texts or calls. She wasn't able to catch some sleep at all until she received a report about him getting injured while helping with kaiju neutralization.

Immediately, she asked for permission to take the day off in order to look after him. It took a while to get permission but fortunately they allowed it after seeing the bags under her eyes and the increasingly anxious look getting worse by the second.

Kagami immediately got changed and prepared necessary things before going. She didn't use the their division's car, preferring to commute by train or taxi as it was a private affair. After arriving at the hospital he was admitted to, she hurried to his room.

Stopping suddenly after seeing two prominent figure entering his supposed room. It was no surprise that Captain Ashiro would visit him after he got injured under her care.

She didn't want to eavesdrop but she also didn't want to interrupt their conversation. She was about to leave to give them space when she heard the captain thanking her fiancee. Curiosity got ahold of her making her erase her presence and listen to their conversation in the hallway.

"Hoshina, you are indeed a blade specialist. You undoubtedly saved that child's life. Now then, I still haven't heard you answer."

"My answer?"

"Will you join my force, Hoshina?"

That question struck Kagami like lightning.

"I appreciate the offer, but to be honest, I am quite torn. My only talent lies in the blade. But in our last mission, not even those blades were able to be of any assistance."

"Hoshina, will your power not evolve any further?"

"Huh? Oh, no... That isn't... what I meant"

"Then you just have to further polish your swordsmanship, Hoshina. Join my force and master your craft."

"Up till now, I've been treated no better than a tumor in my division. If you're saying even someone like me can be of help... Then I would love to join the Third Division"

"Then it's settled..."

Kagami stopped listening any further and was occupied by her thoughts. Was he... Was he leaving her? No, him leaving their division was fine but couldn't he gave at least talked to her about it first? Her mind was filled with questions and an unsettling feeling.

Due to her zoning out, she couldn't her them talking about her after. With Soshiro asking if she could join them too and Captain Ashiro agreeing as she wanted to ask her to join too if given the chance to talk to each other. She could only settle for requesting that he passed her message to her for now.

Sensing the people inside moving, Kagami snapped out of her thoughts and ran away. Captain Ashiro and Platoon Leader Ebina could only see her long black hair before disappearing in the corner.

"That person seemed familiar"

Captain Ashiro referring to the running female from earlier.

"Maybe it's someone you know, ma'am?"

Platoon Leader Ebina asked, in which Captain Ashiro shook her head.

"Must've been my imagination. Let's go"

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Currently, Uzui Kagami was at a cafe resting after shamefully running away. There really wasn't any reason to do so but somehow, she doesn't want anyone to see her. She didn't know why she felt so upset despite them only talking about their mission... And him accepting her offer of moving divisions.

She was happy for him, of course. But deep inside, something was bugging her and she didn't quite know what.

Was it because her fiance was leaving her alone? No that wasn't it. She was fine with him leaving if it meant he could improve even more.

Was it because he was complimented by her idol, hearing her greatly acknowledge her strengths? No that wasn't it. He deserves to be complimented by everyone, not just by Captain Ashiro, because of how amazing he truly is.

Was it because she knew what he meant when he called himself a tumor in their division?...

Or was it because her words couldn't touch him compared to the words of someone greater than her?...

Kagami pinched her skin to snap out her bad thoughts. She shouldn't think too much or else she'll lose sight of herself and the truth.

But what if he's leaving because he no longer wants to be with her? What if he wanted to be by the side of someone stronger like Captain Ashiro? What if it was an excuse to get away from her and break their engagement since he finally realized he could be with someone better than her? What if--

Ah... She was starting to hate herself again and it was her own fault. Kagami used to think negative all of the time but Soshiro always reassured her by being by her side. And now he's leaving...

'Pretend. Let's pretend, Kagami. If we continue to pretend that everything is fine then we'll believe it eventually. It's fine. Everything is fine.'

She thought as she ordered a Mont Blanc for takeout like she wasn't experiencing a mental breakdown.

.

Bracing herself, she rehearsed her words in her mind. She'd tell him she's late because of the long line at the cafe then she saw Captain Ashiro leaving the hospital. Yes, that's fine. She shouldn't tell him she eavesdropped on their conversation and thought the worse. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door and smiled like it was nothing.

"I'm sorry I'm late. There was a long line at the cafe so it took a bit too long to buy this"

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

After joining the First Division, Kagami participated in joint trainings with the rest of the Eastern Division. In the corner of her eyes, she could see her fiancee, now Vice Captain, arriving with Captain Ashiro and the rest of the Third Division.

Somehow, the bubbling and unsettling feeling on the pit of her stomach was starting to resurface and she felt virtually uncomfortable. She'd already forgotten all about it so why did it come back?

"Are you okay? You look pale"

Her friend now superior, Shinonome Rin, noticed her feeling under the weather.

"I'm kinda nervous about being around this many people"

She made an excuse and Rin took her words at face value, knowing how easily nervous she was.

"You can rest back inside if you want. The fun part's for later, for now, it's just formalities"

"Thanks"

Kagami thanked her friend and slipped inside the building. The Ariake Maritime Base is huge but having multiple divisions visit at the same time felt like the atmosphere was cramped. She rested inside for a few minutes before a familiar voice disturbed her.

"Kagami~ Hide me"

Behind her, she could feel the presence of her Captain pressing against her back. His arms were now enveloping her as he is playing his switch, with his chin resting on her head.

"I don't feel the sense of urgency in your voice Captain. Also, aren't you supposed to be with Vice Captain Hasegawa and the others?"

Kagami tried to slip off his grip but failing. Ever since she joined the First Division and got involved with her lazy captain, he's been clinging to her nonstop. Maybe that was her fault cause she kept picking him up and transporting him somewhere, saving his games for him, and hiding him. She reap what she sow.

She bent down and took his knees on her hands and gave him a piggyback ride. Used to it, Captain Narumi Gen rested on her comfortably.

"Captain, did you know that this is an abuse of power?"

"I do but do I care? Nope"

Kagami just sighed as she carried him back to where he came from, the meeting room where all captains and vice captains were present.

The door was being guarded by the platoon leaders of the First Division so they knew to let them in without asking. Her friend, Rin, was shaking her head once again.

The sound of the door opening stopped the conversation the people inside were having, thus bringing the attention to the two of them. The attention and multiple eyes on her was enough to fuel her anxiety and also make her red from embarrassment. She was used to the First Division seeing their antics but not with other divisions, especially her fiance, around.

She hurriedly placed him down besides Vice Captain Hasegawa, who threw her a grateful look, and confiscated his switch. Captain Narumi whined at her betrayal, wanting to sneak out again but was forced to stay put by the hand on his shoulder. Vice Captain Hasegawa begged her to stay and watch over him to which she reluctantly agreed. She was just an officer who had absolutely no right to be present in that meeting but here she is, babysitting her captain.

She couldn't bear to look at her fiance as she didn't know what to do or how to explain her situation to him. All she ever told him was that she's babysitting her captain and not the extent of it. That's why she couldn't see the glare and killing intent he's sending on Captain Narumi's way.

Captain Narumi clearly amused with his rival's expressions couldn't help but feel smug despite not knowing what he's annoyed about. He just felt like he won against Soshiro for once... Not that he ever lost to him. Chuckling, he motioned for her to come near and whispered.

"Look at how pissed Hoshina is. I don't know what I did but it's hella funny"

Kagami was confused for she had never seen her fiance pissed at all. She took a glance at him to see him smiling sweetly at her then back to her captain.

"I think it's just your imagination Captain Narumi"

"Like hell it is"

Hearing Kagami refute him, Narumi Gen just sulked but still relished in his rival's obvious display of irritation.

Kagami turned back to listening to the meeting and focused her attention on the voice of the person currently talking, Captain Ashiro.

Captain Ashiro has now grown into a fine woman but her charisma was still the same. Her face has gotten even more prettier with her silky straight, long black hair placed in a high ponytail.

Kagami touched her own hair styled in a loose braid cascading over her shoulder. She used to style her hair in a high ponytail just like Captain Ashiro's whenever there were missions then let it down when there aren't. Hearing it being compared to each other after Captain Ashiro grew hers made her feel like she had to change her style hence the braid.

She didn't want to admit it but Captain Ashiro became one of the sources of her insecurites and she hates herself for it. Just how could she feel jealous of someone she used to admire the most, still admire until now. Someone she and her fiance admires and deeply respects. Maybe that's why she didn't accept the offer to join the Third Division back then. Or else she'd fall into a deeper rabbit hole of complex emotions she no longer wants to feel.

She always tried to stop that feeling. Never once addressing it as to not let it interfere with her daily life and how she interacts with them. But whenever she and Soshiro talked, he would be praising Captain Ashiro nonstop with how honored he is to be chosen to be by her side.

Still, she pretended that it was fine cause he always reassured her that he only admires Ashiro Mina as his captain. With the same admiration that she felt before that disgusting feeling bubbled up inside her.

"You feeling okay over there?"

Captain Narumi noticed the sad expression on her face that was hidden by her bangs from people in front of her but not the person under her. He expressed his concern towards her and she could totally see that in his eyes.

"Wanna sneak out and play?"

That was his way of comforting his as it is the only way he knows himself. Giggling at his attempts, she karate hopped his head and told him to stop getting distracted. She felt better now than earlier so she gave him back his switch as long as he behaved.

She stopped thinking about her jealousy and just focused. She was given the chance to attend a meeting she would normally not be able to be allowed it. She should take this seriously. Well, at least she should acknowledge her fiance with a smile first after ignoring him for so long.

With a shy smile, she finally gained the courage to look at her fiance who has long since been staring at her and Captain Narumi. She gave him a discreet wave, something only they could see then turned back to listening.

.

"Hoshina, are you alright?"

"Of course I'm fine Captain. Never been better"

Ashiro Mina isn't really afraid of anything, rather she stopped being afraid. But the way he smiled when he said that gave her a bad feeling to which she just ignored, feeling sorry for the recipient of that smile. She remembered how he started getting annoyed when the two came in and recognized that the woman who brought Captain Narumi inside was her vice captain's fiancee. How could she not when she's all he ever talked about when he had the chance. Still, she felt sorry for the beating Captain Narumi will experience later by the hands of the man beside her.

.

Hoshina Soshiro didn't like the way Narumi Gen clinged to his fiancee. Ever since they went inside with him on her back to how she kept placing her hand on his shoulders to keep him still. He didn't like his smug smile as he noticed him glaring and when he made her lean closer to him. He didn't like how he made her smile after seeing that there was something bothering her.

That's fine though, for she finally smiled at him after ignoring him the whole time. That discreet wave of hers that only the two of them could see before the focus back on the meeting again. Despite feeling shy and anxious at a place where she shouldn't be, she still made the effort to notice him.

The problem was that lazyass captain of her that kept clinging and making her babysit him. He guess he should punish him by beating him up during the 1v1 activities later. He has to show him just who is better amongst the two of them. Of course while showing to his girl, after all that is the most important agenda.

<- Previous Next ->

[fulgurbugs]

If the Octopath 1 gang had latent powers like in 2 , what would they be?

ok here’s what me and my gf came up with:

Ophilia: Holy Aid

3-skill latent:

1: Overheal: casts Heal more with overhealth potential

2: Ward: give elemental defense and reflect to all allies. the number of elemental defense turns rises with boost, but it will only grant one stack of reflect no matter the boost.

3: Rise again: give the rise again status to a number of allies proportional to boost

Charge time: Slow

Cyrus: Refocus

Sp refill + overflow (restores cyrus’s max sp pool, example: if he uses it at 50/300 sp, he will have 350 sp)

Charge time: Fast

Tressa: Call Favor

Hired Help for free

Charge time: Medium

Olberic: Protect and Counter

Forces next instance of damage to solo-target him, even if it’s a spread move, and grants him damage reduction based on BP used. He then deals damage proportional to the damage taken (before reduction)

Charge time: Slow

Primrose: Rehearsed Routine

3 dances in succession. can choose any combination of dances and targets

Charge time: Fast

Alfyn: Potent Remedy

3 skill latent

Cure and Prevent :Alfyn’s next concoct heal is strengthened, cures status, and adds rehabilitate stacks proportional to boost, without use of ingredients

Invigorate: Alfyn’s next concoct gains the effect of whimsical leaf (boosting the affected target’s turns in the order)

Stabilize: Alfyn’s next concoct cleanses all debuffs (for allies) or buffs (on enemies) on his targets. does not affect status conditions. can only cleanse effects that are temporary and have a turn count indicator

Charge time: Slow

Therion: Sabotage

All enemies targeted by therion’s next action are also afflicted with shackle foe and armor corrosive, triggering before his selected action and lasting a number of turns proportional to boost.

Charge time: Medium

H’aanit: Forest’s Blessing

Use Provoke without consuming beast uses. use one additional beast.

Charge time: Fast

we decided to give 2 characters the hikari/ochette special of having 3 unique skills, but making them unique so otherwise we tried not to repeat any. for ophilia we figured some standard supportive effects would be good.

for cyrus he definitely has a big problem especially earlygame managing sp, so we gave him a simpler one. i imagine if we came up with some ex skill, this could be more relevant endgame by combining with a temenos-style nuke skill.

Tressa: another one that can def fall off if you grind money, but absurdly powerful earlier. honestly even in ch4 veteran mercenaries can be steep, so it’ll stay relevant for a while

Olberic: wanted to play into his wall-defensive capabilities, so this can be used if a boss purple smoke big attack is coming to save you from that situation if you have no other options. the counter makes him feel more like a duelist than a wall i hope. the counter attack triggers as a separate instance like an eye for an eye does

Primrose: wanted to give her a throne type extra action, but didn’t wanna use the same powers. instead she gets a third action but is limited to dancing, but you could use this when you need to get up multiple buff types, like speed and attack boosting therion for an aebers, or being able to lion dance your physical attackers and peacock strut your elemental ones.

Alfyn: also gave him the three unique actions with different concoct based support effects, gave him the helpful heal/cure status combo for free, and then utility he doesn’t have in ot1 with the whimsical leaf effect and the ability to mass cleanse debuffs and buffs

im also not as familiar with concoct in ot1 as its a bit less easy to understand without the castti explanation menu so hopefully none of that is redundant.

Therion: lets you not have to choose between shackle and corrosive and allows for multi target. it is limited to his target, but the multi target can be applied with aebers reckoning, or subclass skills like spells or arrowstorm.

H’aanit: provoke in 1 is dookie from a butt so give her opportunities to use it more by not losing your monsters as fast. plus, you can use more of them so that’s fun.

kinda wanna give them OT2 style EX skills next…..

[belit0]

Indra family

What If Ame started to call Indra 'father' instead of 'dada' because her brothers call him that and decided to copy them skkfkd

this actually happened to me but with my grandpa kskdkskd instead of lolo (grandpa) I call him Tang (Father) because I hear my mom call him that often but changed overtime because of my cousins kskdkdekkfkd

You do realize that you are about to send this man into an existential crisis similar to his meltdown with black zetsu, don't you? DAMN SHIORI DAMN

The first time it happened, Indra almost died.

Ame had tugged at his sleeve, her tiny hand barely curling around the fabric as she looked up at him with those round, wide eyes.

-Father, can you help me?- she had asked, her voice sweet, light, completely unaware of the devastation she had just wrought.

Indra had blinked, looking down at her, and for a brief, fleeting moment, his mind refused to process what he had just heard.

Father.

Not "Dada."

Not the soft, innocent title that had clung to her lips since she had learned to speak.

Not the gentle, endearing syllables that had, against his own better judgment, warmed something deep within him every time she used them.

No.

Father.

Like Raizen said it.

Like Hikari and Inari, in their half-mocking, half-admiring tones.

A tone similar to those who looked upon him with reverence and distance, as though he was something to be followed rather than loved.

Something in his chest clenched.

-...What did you say?- His voice was calm. Measured. Not betraying the sudden, inexplicable weight in his ribs.

Ame tilted her head slightly. -Father, can you help me?- she repeated, entirely unbothered, as though it was the most natural thing in the world.

Indra stared at her.

He knew exactly where she had gotten it from.

The twins.

Raizen.

His sons, who had long abandoned childish affections in favor of something colder, more proper.

Of course she would follow them.

Of course she would hear them and decide to copy them.

But she was five.

She was still supposed to be small enough to tug at his sleeves and call for him in that soft, high-pitched voice.

She was still supposed to be the child who nestled against him in the early mornings, mumbling "Dada" into his robes when she was too tired to function.

And now—now she stood there, looking up at him with those same round, trusting eyes, calling him something that felt like a chasm opening up beneath his feet.

Indra inhaled slowly through his nose.

-...Why are you calling me that?

Ame blinked. -Because Hikari and Inari do.-

Simple.

Obvious.

Indra’s jaw clenched.

-You always call me "Dada."

Ame shrugged, as if this were a non-issue. -I can call you Father now.-

No.

No, she could not.

His spine was straight, his expression unreadable, but somewhere deep inside, something inside him was wilting.

Ame, entirely unaware of her father’s internal suffering, merely took his silence as acceptance.

She smiled up at him, her usual beaming grin, and reached for his hand. -Come see what I drew.-

Indra allowed himself to be led away, his mind a spiral of unspoken protests.

"Dada" was slipping from his grasp.

And for the first time in his long, battle-worn life, he had no idea how to fight it.

Ame was blissfully unaware of the turmoil she had just unleashed upon her father’s soul. She tugged him along with all the confidence of a child who believed the world bent to her whims, guiding him toward a low table where her latest masterpiece awaited.

-Look!- she beamed, pointing at the scroll spread open before them.

Indra, still reeling, lowered his gaze.

It was a child's drawing, crude and uneven, but unmistakable.

Two figures stood side by side, their hands linked.

One was significantly taller, drawn with long, flowing hair and a stern expression. The other was small, round-faced, with what he could only assume were supposed to be pigtails.

Him and Ame.

Something in his chest tightened.

-That’s you,- she explained, pointing at the taller figure, -and that’s me.-

Indra lowered himself to one knee beside her, studying the drawing with a look that betrayed none of his emotions.

His fingers traced the edge of the scroll, lingering.

-Ame,- he said slowly, carefully. -What does this say to you?-

She blinked, looking up at him. -It’s us.-

His grip on the scroll firmed.

No.

It was more than that.

It was proof.

A declaration.

An undeniable, unshakable truth put to paper.

Without a word, Indra reached for a brush and dipped it into the inkstone beside her. With practiced strokes, he wrote in clean, deliberate script above the drawing:

Dada and Ame.

He did not write "Father."

He did not entertain the idea.

The title forced upon him by duty and respect had no place in this moment, not in something so pure, so untouched by expectation.

Ame watched him, fascinated, as the ink dried.

Indra set the brush down, exhaling slowly.

Then, with quiet finality, he turned to her and met her gaze. -I am Dada.-

Ame blinked, processing.

Then, with the easy acceptance of a child, she shrugged.

-Okay.

Indra stared at her. -Okay?-

She nodded, smiling again. -Okay, Dada.-

The relief that surged through him was irrational, overwhelming.

He was a man of control, of restraint, of unshakable will—but in that moment, when she looked up at him with those bright, innocent eyes and called him that once more, Uchiha Indra nearly let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

Instead, he reached out, settling a hand atop her head. -Good.-

Ame beamed, her tiny hands patting the scroll with pride. -What if we put it in your armory! So you can see it every day?-

Indra considered it.

His armory, that cold place, untouched by feelings, metallic and distant, where there was never any room for any emotion.

And yet—

-Yes,- he said simply. -We can.-

[koushirouizumi]

{D I G I M O N} @.M.V. By Me “Summer Time Record” {New Version} © Jin

(– P l s tell me you {H E A R} IT???)

[koushirouizumi]

{Repeatverse Part 51} {DO NOT Repost or Reproduce my writing under any circumstance!}

(Because I still really like this description I wrote for my fic and I only have to modify one word for this new art to still fit it)

{Edit/Crop by Me} (Please Ask to Use!) (Full version of the new arts can be found on the website, but have transparent backgrounds there so far!)

LOOK AT MY FAV KOUSHIRO IZUMI

LOOK AT MY FAV KOUSHIRO{U} IZUMI IN BI COLORS----

from the collaboration official game art with "Dragon Poker"! The collaboration will run Feb. 12th through 26th. The event will start when the game comes up from maintenance that day.

It's a short time window for people not local, but at least we get gorgeous new character arts!!!

[sweet-hearts-and-destiny-knots]

Although it's implied by an issue of Paldean Sports Monthly found at the academy's library that Grusha's career ending injury was sustained at Mount Glaseado two weeks after the interview during a snowboarding competition, the circumstances of the accident are different in Sisterhood's universe.

Grusha received his injury at none other than Sinnoh's Mount Coronet. Once regarded as a holy place in the region's distant past, over the years it's gained a reputation for repeated disasters. Nothing proves this more than the fact Absol now inhabit the area and constantly scout the perimeter, warning those they approach with unearthly howls in an effort to convey the dangers present.

No snowboarder has ever managed to conquer Mount Coronet, and Grusha wasn't satisfied with his status as the second best the world had to offer. What better method for him to snag first place than to accomplish a feat long deemed impossible? Additionally, he was an adrenaline junkie in his prime, so the concept of boarding down a mountain supposedly forsaken by Arceus sounded entirely too enticing to Grusha.

It bordered on irresistible.

Despite a relatively short and slate-haired young woman pointedly informing him his intentions were foolish as well as encountering four incessantly wailing Absol on his way to the summit, Grusha remained undeterred. Once there, he told his Rotom Phone to begin streaming and announced to his audience he would not only be attempting, but achieving the Mount Coronet challenge.

He managed to dazzle all those who watched. Not a soul could tear their gaze away from the screen. Even those who initially held doubts began to believe Grusha may indeed be the first person in snowboarding history to shred Mount Coronet to completion. Two thirds of the way down, however, is when that fateful accident occurred and the trajectory of his life changed forever.

His viewers heard a chilling scream, then the video abruptly ended. Grusha's Rotom Phone had immediately ceased recording and sent out a distress signal. The excruciating pain in his left leg soon caused Grusha's grip on consciousness to slip away as the falling snow piled over his body.

He later regained lucidity at a hospital located in Jubilife City where he learned one of his bones had been dislocated as well as broken. Among the medical staff present, Sinnoh's recently crowned Champion, Hikari, the relatively short and slate-haired young woman he met before, was staring at him from the opposite side of the room wearing an unreadable expression. Grusha braced himself for the scolding he assumed imminent, but it never came.

Hikari only sent him a brief look of sympathy, then turned on her heel and exited the room. He later learned she was the one who responded to his Rotom Phone's distress signal and rescued him, then refused to leave his side until his awareness was restored.

Chairwoman Geeta swiftly caught wind of Grusha's condition, and following his return to Paldea offered him the position of Glaseado Mountain's Gym Leader. With nothing remaining but a prowess in Pokémon battles to aspire towards, Grusha established himself as a formidable opponent for challengers nearly overnight in spite of the Ice-type's assortment of weaknesses.

But his former confidence had been shattered. The Grusha of the present possesses a cold demeanor, a visibly broken spirit, and his endeavors as a Gym Leader, regardless of how impressive they are, thinly conceal a desperation to retain his position.

It isn't until receiving his second loss from Juliana during the League-mandated inspection that Grusha feels something stirring deep within his heart, something The Sub-Zero Shredder honestly never thought he would experience again - sincere passion for his craft.

[hikaritakaishi]

Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning [My Movie Review]

♡ ! SPOILER ALERT! ♡

This review will contain spoilers of the movie, continue reading if you already saw the movie, or just don’t mind the spoiler! Enjoy & comment something if you want to share an opinion! ♡

After what seemed ages of waiting, Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning finally aired in Portugal, on May 16, 2024, several months after it’s national premiere in Japan, on October 27, 2023. I was worried that it wouldn't come to my country, but perhaps due to the huge acceptance of Digimon Adventure: LAST EVOLUTION KIZUNA, the distributor made the hearts of the DigiDestined from the most hidden corner of Europe warm again and brought us the sequel. Thank you remembering us once again! ♡

I really tried to keep my expectations as neutral as possible until the day I went to see the movie, which was pretty difficult, due to the fact that I was constantly being bombarded with online information about it, whether on Tumblr or Twitter, or through video recommendations on Youtube. I was so excited for the movie, that I had to control myself immensely not to go see the spoilers.

Initial considerations? I like it. In general. But let's go in parts!

This will be an analysis of what I consider to be the most important points of the movie and what caught my attention the most. A personal analysis, so don't take it too seriously if I don't talk about a certain point or a certain specific topic, I probably just missed that.

Firstly, I would like to comment on the initial dynamics of the movie.

Everything seems to happen much faster here than it did in Kizuna. Despite being two movies with practically the same time span, this one seemed to go by much faster. But it might just be me. [LAST EVOLUTION KIZUNA have 94 minutes, and The Beginning have 87 minutes total].

 We're introduced to the key plot problem pretty quickly too.

People's digital devices are glitching, and the same message is repeating itself on all of them, not just on the phones and televisions, but on computers and large digital screens in cities all around the world. And this all around the world is very important, because it not only brings us closer to what will be the future of humanity and it’s increasing contact with the Digimon and the Digital World, but it opens the path we take since 2012 [time of the movie] until to the epilogue of 02 (which the production team and Toei animation seem to insist on wanting to keep canon, despite all the script inconsistencies it can cause, or how different from the initial profile of each character it may be).

“May everyone have friends, may everyone have a partner Digimon”

It's the message. Meanwhile, we are told that a suspicious and unknown Digitama appeared in the sky of Tokyo, right above the Tokyo Tower, and it’s been there for a while. Taichi and Koushiro are showned to be trying to help resolve this issue as professionals in the field of diplomacy and technology respectively, but without major progress.

I think it's important to highlight that they are the only two characters from the first season of Adventure who appear in this movie, and even so, without any direct speech or great relevance, beyond contextualization, and later Taichi as well again for the context of “space- time”, in that frame we see in the trailer of the movie with Hikari, which we later discover is located in Hikarigaoka, where Rui also lived when he had his first contact with Ukkomon.

The focus is on the characters from 02, or at least, it should have been. But as in Digimon Adventure Tri, this focus is overshadowed by the introduction of another new character in the story: Rui Owhada [or Lui, in Japanese pronunciation].

Rui [or Lui] is a much more charismatic character than Meiko was in Digimon Adventure Tri. There is no doubt about that.

Meiko was a somewhat empty character. A static character without great charisma. The only pleasant scenes she had were driven by the other characters around her (namely Mimi).

Rui doesn't. Rui is a character on his own. With a much more aggressive personality and a much more interesting past. The only issue here is the length of the movie: This movie is too short; too short for us to get attached to this character and actually be able feel empathy for everything we are shown about him. So short, that it's difficult to develop both this new character and the others around him, which, by the way, is a shame.

I mostly went to see the movie in hopes to see more from the 02 cast, and not because, again, of a random character they created for this new script. Just like what happened in Tri.

And this is important because notice that one of the most complex and best-built characters in the Adventure universe is literally the character with the most screen time: Takeru.

Analyzing Takeru's character as a whole is extremely time-consuming, because he was in every season, and practically involved in all the main events of the plot, either by himself or through the relationships he establishes throughout the plot, which feed the character's emotional charge. Which makes him a very complex character.

There's no time for that here. There is no time to establish a relationship between Rui and the other characters, nor to establish a relationship between Rui… and the audience.

Rui's childhood is very shocking and once again, Digimon brings a very strong narrative based on a complex and deep family plot.

We had already had examples in Adventure of family issues with Takeru and Yamato, Koushiro, and in 02 with Iori and also Ken. To a certain extent, even with Miyako. But here we reach a higher level of complexity... and violence (remember that the age to see the movie is over 12 years old. I can totally understand why).

Rui is physically abused and neglected by his mother, who leaves him out in the cold, starving when he makes a childish mistake or does something she doesn't like... when he is only four years old. His father has a very serious illness and depends on his wife to survive. Rui is then shown as a sorrowful child, lonely and without any support network. We've never had anything in the Digimon Adventure series so… raw. The aura of the movie is deeply heavy and dark.

The evolutions and battles in this movie are far from being the focus, which probably frustrated many people who went to see the movie for this more dynamic side of the anime.

It is a film with a moral content and even touches on the philosophical, about the bonds we create with others and their nature, about how we should relate to others and learn about them every day we have them in our lives.

It's about healthy communication, and how it's okay to correct the people around us, as long as it's made based with pure intentions. Because love is not omissive. Love corrects, love draws the other's attention for what really matters, in the form of love. In the form of companionship. Nothing physical or superficial is worth the price of a real bond.

The movie really grew with it’s audience. It is not, at all, a movie targeted for new fans of the franchise, or for those who know little about the Adventure series universe. It's for those who know the characters, for those who grew up with them. If you don't know the characters, you will miss details and conversations that are important to really understand the plot as a whole.

Daisuke and Ken look on Rui’s past with him. They see the arrival of Ukkomon in his life, who should’ve bring peace and comfort, but it is only the beginning of all his problems.

Let's take a break from the movie's plot to talk about the characters of 02.

I'm going to divide them into groups, because it seems like they individually… don't have much progress or very memorable scenes, honestly. It doesn't even make sense to separate them, in my opinion, and you'll understand why.

♡ Daisuke & Iori

There is not much to talk about them here. Daisuke and Iori are the flattest characters in the movie. Iori much more than Daisuke, let's be honest. Iori barely speaks, and has very few relevant scenes.

Daisuke works at a ramen restaurant, as he always wanted, where he gathers his friends to talk about the problems they are facing right at the beginning of the movie.

His personality is practically the same, Daisuke from 02 is the same Daisuke from The Beginning, and even the same character as in Kizuna, he is just taller here and wears different clothes. He still aspires to have his own ramen business and is extremely focused on his career goals. Which was predictable, given the way he talks about his dream in 02.

Daisuke's only two relevant scenes are seconds long: the first when he convinces Rui that the bond of friendship he and his Digimon partner share is much more than something superficial; it's something that comes from the heart, and that no object makes a difference between them, namely the Digivice, (something we also expected to hear from Daisuke in 02, which justifies my opinion that in the meantime... he remains the same).

The other is a scene that had enormous potential, but is cut short by a comical moment in which Miyako pops up.

Daisuke is talking to Ken seriously about Rui, and how he and his Digimon could understand each other better if they just communicate more effectively and directly, and Ken comments that Daisuke's more serious side is very pleasant and rarely appears. However, Miyako speaks up and dismisses the subject. Sadly.

We could have had a conversation here that could tell us more about Daisuke’s presente self and way he sees life now.

*sigh* Anyway.

Iori, again, doesn't speak much. Seems to only have intermediary interventions, and serves as a “pair” for Daisuke and Rui in the snowball fight that we see at the end of the movie. A very beautiful scene, don't get me wrong, but only if we see it from the perspective of Ken and Miyako, and Hikari and Takeru. I'll talk about that now.

♡ Ken & Miyako

Ken and Miyako are two characters who seem to grow more together than apart within the movie's plot. Which is natural, given that we know at the end of 02 that they become in fact a couple, and that they build a family together in the future. Here we see the first steps towards their future as a couple.

As expected, nothing explicit or direct is given to us about the nature of their relationship, but we can understand that there is progress, especially by the end of the movie, before the snowball fight, when Miyako tells Ken something that seems extremely vague, but actually means something.

 “Let's do it together! "  What? I don't think they are aware yet. Ken also seemed very confused about it.

“ Keep thinking Ken, we have to find another solution. “ We also see Miyako trying to support Ken at that moment when they have to make a decision about the future of Ukkomon and the world.

Here comes what I said above: Love cannot be omissive. We cannot expect the least from those we love. If we know the potential of the person we have by our side, we have to support them. If we see that they are trying to go further, we must support their journey and be a source of advice and rest. Alone we can go faster, but with the right company we can certainly go further.

And I think this is where the movie touches on something really important.

It is in these small moments that we see that they really want to tell the audience something beyond, but we need to have a fine power of perception.

No conversation or comment is random, everything contributes to the story. Digimon Adventure has always been made up of metaphors and subjectivities, it is necessary to know how to interpret and be attentive.

In the midst of that dilemma of whether or not to defeat Ukkomon that we talked about a moment ago in relation to Ken and Miyako, we have another moment that I consider important between Takeru and Hikari, which for those who don't know the characters, can take it as a normal conversation of two people who know each other well. Too well, even.

♡ Takeru & Hikari

Keeping in mind their journey, and everything they went through together, is the key to understand the nature of the relationship they share now. But before that:

Much like Ken and Miyako, Takeru and Hikari do not exist separately in the plot. It's ridiculously difficult to separate them. If you talk about one, you have to talk about the other.

At the beginning we see them together in the city when the electronic devices break down, and this dynamic continues throughout the entire movie.

They practically always walk side by side, Hikari takes the front seat in Takeru's car, and even when they are talking to Rui and trying to understand what happened to him in his past, they were a nucleus apart from the others. Nothing new, really. More of the same. But it's in that conversation I spoke about earlier that we understand something that is even part of the main moral of the movie: the way they now communicate with each other now, is different.

Anyone who has followed Takeru and Hikari throughout the series knows that the main “problem” in their relationship has always been direct communication.

Exposing things to others as they are is scary. And none of them were good at doing that.

Deliberating about feelings, exposing what disturbs us, what distresses us, what we think of a certain attitude of the other person. That was always Takeru and Hikari's problem and what hindered the possible evolution of their friendship, into a real love relationship.

In Tri we discover that Hikari starts to look at Takeru differently. And we know that Takeru has concrete feelings for Hikari (Said by the actor who plays Takeru's voice) And then? It's done? Things… are much more complicated than that.

They first need to accept the situation in question (And I tell you this as someone who also developed a romantic relationship with a childhood friend. It's not easy. Trust me. It's far from easy!)

And far from being quick.

It requires a lot of deliberation mostly. Just accepting the fact that we see that person we grew up with differently, someone who has always been part of our life, and we can lose them. Just because we developed feelings. Is scary. There's a lot to lose. It's all or nothing. Especially when one side has trauma associated with romantic relationships. (remembering that Takeru's parents are divorced) it's even worse.

What seems to exist between them in The Beginning was the result of a long process. But effective, it seems to me. Whatever decision they made, it went… pretty well.

Takeru is completely against defeating Ukkomon, from the moment he realizes that this could also imply the disappearance of his Digimon partner.

He probably saw the suffering Taichi and Yamato went through when Agumon and Gabumon disappeared and the suffering he would go through if he lose Patamon... again. And he is extremely vocal and firm in what he says and what he thinks about all of that. Impulsive really.

Until Hikari intervenes. Which cuts through his catastrophic reasoning. She asks him to think, opening up a new perspective on the situation.

Here we have a conversation between them that is quite lengthy (compared to the fast action standard of the rest of the movie) in which Hikari tries her best to make Takeru use reason and not emotion in his deliberation on the situation.

Takeru who, remember, whenever “darkness” or “sacrifice” is mentioned, leaves his rationality aside, becomes blind with pain because of his past traumas.

Hikari's role here is almost the same as Miyako’s in Ken's case: calling to earth and calming Takeru, always in an understanding way, because you can see that she knows where that feeling comes from and that position initially adopted by him (and it is something which she can almost predict would happen, by the speed with which she responds) but she knows that he is better than those triggers that make him impulsively speak based on emotion and neglect reason.

It's about getting to know each other. Knowing how to talk to our person about the most difficult topics. Because it is necessary to strengthen your union. Predict reactions, and be there to calm them down, because you may even know that the person is not to blame for the feelings and traumas they carry, but believe that they are bigger than them. And expect the same from the other side.

The way Miyako knew that Ken could find a solution, he just needed to think a little more. Hikari understood perfectly where Takeru's impulsive reaction came from, but she knew that if she appeal to his racional side he would be able to think of a better alternative to the problem, which he thought would be the end of the world.

That's why I separated this analysis into groups (although the first one isn't... substantial) and decided to analyze the characters together, because that's what this movie is about.

It's about who you are with your people, and the bond you share with them. In a world so individualized, so selfish and so distant (largely because of technology, which distances us from each other), I found it a very necessary message.

And the role of adults? With children and more painful lives?

It is to understand that children are also humans. Who also think, and feel, and understand things. Just like them. Adults tend to forget that they were once children themselves.

We already saw this topic being developed in Adventure 02, but seeing Rui as an adult, reaching to his mother in the past, and drawing her attention to the fact that she neglects her son, is something very touching. Sometimes, we just need a wake-up call, and we can change the future. Ours, and our future with others.

 The DigiDestined of 02 encouraged Rui not to give up on someone he loved, Ukkomon, because after all, he only acted the way he acted because he thought it would make Rui happier, even though he failed. Several times.

Ukkomon basically gave Rui everything he thought he needed, everything he wanted. But this is not always ideal.

He acted with his partner's happiness in mind, and this blinded him to the risks he was putting him into. He idealized their entire relationship, and everyone's relationship with him. Instead of being, real. And real things are never perfect.

Rui wanted friends? He gave him friends. He even reprogrammed his parents. They became manufactured humans. And the movie is about reality and accepting it as imperfect as it is.

Do you know what that reminded me of? That whole fantasy created by Ukkomon of “perfect world where Rui is never sad and everything is wonderful?” The fantasies in which the characters from 02 cast were trapped in at the end of the series. That world created with the characters’ deepest desires.

Takeru wanted his family united. Iori wanted his father back and to be able to show him the Digital Word. Miyako wanted attention. Ken… wanted to redeem himself. Hikari wanted peace. It's exactly the same thing.

Think about it with me: For example, Takeru's parents could’ve stay together, they could never have divorced, but they would still have problems. They would argue, and there would be conflicts. Which doesn't mean that this wouldn't traumatize their children even more. Maybe the divorce was in fact the best option for all four of them.

Ken felt he deserved the same suffering he inflicted on others. Would that really be the answer to appease his soul?

But none of it was real.

Not even Hikari's utopia of a world constantly at peace is real. Not even the absence of siblings in Miyako's life would solve anything. Things are not black and white and really, what we want is not always what we need.

Rui just needed to talk to Ukkomon and be sincere.

Where is Mimi tho?!

I will end with a few quick notes that I think are worth highlighting: First, the music and animation in general. As expected, they are excellent.

Very well done visually, appealing scenes, and the last snowball fight scene is so simple… but so delightful.

Life is made up of beautiful moments as well as tragic moments, light and darkness.

Did you notice that part of the movie takes place in a much dark environment, and when the main action is resolved, the movie gains light? I believe that is not just because!

Visually it can be very strong because there is blood, there is violence, there are physical wounds, it conveys the affliction in a very literal way.

Another thing that was expected to happen, but that probably wasn't even thought of properly when the Epilogue of 02 was made, was the problematic of whether or not everyone deserves, has enough morals and ethics, to have a Digimon partner.

How do you maintain peace between humans when you give them free access to machines of war and mass destruction? How do we build the world we see bz the end of 02 where everyone lives in peace even under these circumstances? Which is the the role of the government?

We'll probably need one more movie to find out.

Honestly, I hope you enjoyed this short (not... that short in fact) and sincere review. If I were to give stars, I would give the film 4/5 stars.

It could’ve been better, sure, if there was at least another half hour of animation.

But I don't complain. Despite that, I liked it. I cried, I laughed, just like I cried and laughed when I saw Digimon in my childhood, and that's everything for me. I was surprised by the message of the movie and the way they chose to visually convey it to us. Either way, I hope there's one more movie. To finally conclude the arc of all these characters, and finally, reach the epilogue of 02 (but in a dignified way please).

♡ Thank you once again Digimon ♡

[seventeenlovesthree]

Digimon Adventure Reboot Sequel AU - Chapter 8: You Will Be On Your Own Then. And So Will I.

Summary: The Chosen Children finally learn the truth about their origins and why Taichi had always been a key figure in everything. Taichi himself is being confronted with the fate of the world(s) and has to make a final choice for the sake of the future - but thanks to a wishful encounter, he doesn't have to do it alone.

Chapter list: [Prologue] [0] [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Resources: [Concept] [Designs] [First Idea] [Playlist] [Ao3]

Word Count: 5902

The Chosen Children and their Digimon partners found themselves getting pulled into a dimension of white, reminiscent of the blinding lights that had engulfed them in Taichi’s room before.

“Where the heck are we?!” Once again, Jyou was the first who found his voice – it surely wasn’t the first time they had been thrusted into a space robbing them of their physical forms by a higher force. So floating around without direction - like they did in this very moment – didn’t exactly feel foreign to them.

“Is this… The network?”, Yamato tried to guess, but wasn’t sure whatsoever, as this place didn’t resemble the familiar digital highway, full of colourful pathways.

Instead, a sense of emptiness was surrounding them – if it wasn’t for the endlessly seeming number of bubbles looming above their heads.

“It’s… Quite different…”, Koushirou whispered, eyes glued to the bubbles and before he could even dare to ask what those were, Taichi’s voice drew their attention towards him.

Or rather - towards it.

“It’s the realm that bridges all parallel universes besides your own and the Digital World…”, Taichi said in a weirdly monotone tone, eyes half closed and shimmering in the same opal colour as before. Meanwhile, he was the only one who seemed to stand comfortably. “And now that the Child of Light has finally approached us, I shall introduce myself to you.”

A moment of sheer shock and silence, only interrupted by Mimi uttering:

“T-Taichi-san…?”

“That isn’t Onii-chan”, Hikari said firmly and everyone turned towards her. She seemed to have been the only one who had at least vaguely sensed what was going on before – but now, Koushirou quickly picked up the pieces as well:

“It’s another being speaking through him to us… Right?”

“Precisely. It’s been a while, Chosen Children.”

Sounds of disbelief could be heard, as they all tried to process that information.

“Who or what are you then?!”, Takeru was the first who hissed – and was already on his way to press forward, if it hadn’t been for Patamon holding him back. “And what have you done to Taichi-san?!”

“Takeru, be careful!”

All of the Digimon were hesitant, as if they couldn’t fully determine whether it was an enemy to be attacked – or not. Thus, they rather remained in a cautious pose, each of them close to their respective partner, with Agumon being the only remainder, who stared at his soulmate with absolute dread.

“Taichi…”

“My name is Homeostasis…”, the being continued talking through Taichi’s voice – but the longer it spoke, the more they could hear the robotic echo seeping through, indicating that it was definitely not their friend who was in control. “I am the one who desires balance, order and harmony – and I needed the Child of Courage to gather all of you once again.”

“Once… Again?”, Yamato repeated – just for the scenery around them to change just so slightly. Countless images of giant Digimon fighting against one another at different points in time, as Homeostasis started to elaborate:

“For as long as the Digital World existed, the balance between Light and Darkness had to be restored, over and over again. Said balance, in all worlds and universes, can only be achieved by utilizing the connection between humans and Digimon. Their bond had been tested by us before. And so we had found out that partnerships between humans and Digimon, their wishes and hopes, had the potential to cause unlimited evolution. They were the key to summon the Light to lock the power of Darkness away. And to ensure that this procedure would be maintained in the future… It’s our duty to scout the most suitable partnerships, the highest possible potential. But the search to find humans to partner with Digimon has become unfeasible. There are too many contenders in all the different universes, the scanning requires too much time, too much energy. In addition, most partnerships do not reach the same potential that we had once discovered… So we decided to emulate the potential instead. Through the course of time, the connection between the human world and the Digital World has continued to increase. By now, they are almost completely intertwined and thus, it became easy for us to just replicate the system that has already proven to be successful - and apply it to another universe.”

To underline the point, it made Taichi look up to the bubbles – indicating that those were the different universes it had been referring to. 

“We used the information we had already gathered through scanning all of your predecessors in Hikarigaoka, Japan, in 1995 of an alternate universe. We were in possession of all the data we needed. So we copied the baselines of your Digimon partners as well as the basis of the Crests that already existed. Courage, Friendship, Love, Knowledge, Sincerity, Reliability, Hope and Light. The power of the bonds between your predecessors and the Digimon had been successfully tested before. So we were convinced that, once we recreated the same partnerships between the Digimon and their specific human counterparts and give them their designated Crests as catalysts again, we would replicate the same successes.”

Another moment of silence followed. Eventually, Mimi was the one who tried to coherently summarize the information bomb that had just been thrown at them – thanks to her grandfather passing down just as much knowledge about the network as Koushirou usually rambled about:

“Wait… So you didn’t just replicate the Digimon and the Crests, but… Us too?! But we aren’t just characters in a computer made of data, are we?!”

Jyou wasn’t any less shocked at the revelation, touching his own head as if to soothe a rising headache: “Wh-what does that make us then? Are you saying that we’re… Reincarnations of people who have already existed before us?! Are these people dead then?!”

“They still exist in an alternate timeline, a parallel universe, Child of Reliability”, Homeostasis responded - and caused Jyou to shudder after getting directly addressed with that title. “But time there passes differently due to the timeflow of the Digital World. And those Chosen Children have lost their use to us a while ago. Thus, you were not reincarnated, you are-“

“We’re basically rebooted copies or clones, correct?”, Koushirou concluded in a high-pitched tone – only to be greeted by another emotionless reply:

“You may call it that, Child of Knowledge.”

But that aggravated Mimi even more, as she screeched “What the heck?!” out loud. Sora had floated to her’s and Koushirou’s side, intending to give them comfort, similarly to how Palmon and Tentomon tried to shield them – even though she had raised her shoulders and her voice was rather raspy as well:

“Does that mean that our universe itself is only a copy too?”

“No, every universe and every timeline therein is unique and completely accessible to us under normal circumstances. We just decided to insert the codes of your scanned selves into this world specifically, creating improved versions. However, everything in your world is real, including your families. Only your codebase is branched from your Source Tree in the other timeline. We generated and implemented your Crests into this universe from the very beginning, so it was then only a matter of time until your codes - and thus your selves - would get drawn into this version of the Digital World as well. However, we still needed to ensure that you would all meet each other again for maximum success. The Child of Light is aliased as the source of life, they would always be needed as the origin of these eight Chosen Children, in every timeline. Unfortunately, we did not have access to them in this one. They had denied us access for inexplicable reasons. But since the Child of Courage was related to them, we calculated that they were the best option for us.”

Despite everything, despite the full extent of a reality that had been unknown to them all along, that seemed so vast, so confusing, so completely overwhelming and dreadful… It was the last bit of information that hit a nerve in Sora specifically; she threw a glance at Hikari, who gazed at the corrupted version of her brother with tearful eyes, as if it had been her fault it had come down to this. Overcome by empathy and the spark of realization, Sora shouted just as loudly as Mimi before: “So you were possessing Taichi all this time?!”

“The Child of Courage has always been a formidable fighter, one of the most valuable soldiers… By accessing them in this timeline, we could ensure that their potential would intertwine with the potential of the other timeline’s self. Their Digimon partner would be capable of accessing evolution more easily as well. And the combined karmic power would enable them to gather all of you quickly as well. They were familiar with all of you already, they would subconsciously recognize all your basic traits and personalities and thus, they would be capable of approaching and attracting all of you naturally. That way, they helped all of you to access your potential even faster as well. Without realizing it.”

“That’s a nice way of saying that you used him and us without our knowledge or consent”, Yamato spouted sarcastically – which was not picked up by the being at all, as it simply continued to justify its actions:

“It was the most logical conclusion. The Child of Courage is the perfect catalyst. We soon realized that the memories of their other self would flow into their consciousness the more we interfered with them. A mere side effect, but a useful one: By entering their body and familiarizing them with all they had achieved before, we simultaneously enabled them to access the whole extent of their fighting prowess – which also improved their strategies and their overall usefulness in this universe. We could give them directions, send them wherever we needed them to be to have maximum impact. We could even alter or suppress their memories if necessary. We hoped that they would become the mightiest force. It may be possible for them to reach even higher evolution levels and settle the ongoing fight between Light and Darkness once and for all.”

“And if he fails…?”, Koushirou whispered after a while, barely coping with the idea that the meeting between him and his best friend had potentially been orchestrated…

“Then we will have to try again in another timeline.”

In contrast, existential dread had hit Jyou wholeheartedly, so he just sacked down, staring at the never-ending whiteness below him. “This… This is a nightmare.”

Gomamon gave him a saddened look – just like the humans, the Digimon exchanged helpless glances. It was as if that being, Homeostasis, had actively implemented a mechanism within them to prevent them from going for the attack – and there was nothing even the chattiest Digimon could say about it.

Takeru was at a loss for words as well and Mimi desperately tried to wipe her upcoming tears away.

“Was he just… A little doll in a game this entire time? Are we nothing but cattle to you?!”

“Oh Mimi…”, Palmon did her best to attempt to hug her grieving partner.

“Taichi was completely out of his mind, he even fainted during that last battle – and you are okay with that?!”, Yamato screamed, gritting his teeth, clenching his fists. All the puzzling things Taichi had said before… If all of this was true, he really must have been on the brink of going insane.

“It was indeed an unfortunate event… The Child of Courage wasn’t meant to get corrupted any further so quickly. The decrease of their mental stability may have been the cause for inconsistencies in the code and for Diablomon to enter your universe in the first place, which had not been calculated by us. But by taking over their body, we could act in their place and eliminate the threat immediately.”

“You’re a heartless monster!”

Now the tears kept running down Mimi’s cheeks without stopping. She genuinely had intended to make Taichi open up and confess all his worries and doubts, no matter the cost. Never would she have been able to imagine how big of a cost it all had been. Thinking about what exactly he had been going through made her feel nauseous.

“Let Onii-chan go!”, Hikari finally raised her voice, desperately pleading: “There is no need for you to torture him any longer now that he is ‘damaged’, isn’t that right?”

“Hikari-chan…” Once more, Sora felt her heart stinging just listening to and looking at Hikari. 

So when Agumon finally found his own courage, joining Hikari in her attempt to plead by screaming “TAICHI, WAKE UP!��... To hers and everybody’s surprise, it seemed to reach through to the real Taichi.

Not only did one of his eyes start to twitch, the opal glimmer vanished for a few seconds and a quiet “Nghh…” could be heard.

“H-he reacted, didn’t he?”, Takeru gasped excitedly. “What should we do?!”

“He… He is still in there, so there must be a way to get him back, force his consciousness to the forefront.” Koushirou’s mind was doing somersaults, looking to find a loophole that would fix everything, while ignoring the logical side of Homeostasis reasoning; it was acting as a cleaning software with the intention of keeping viruses and other disturbances away. And yet, the seed of guilt that had been growing in his chest told him that what was going on was wrong. If only he had been more adamant about making Taichi confess what was going on, maybe they could have found a solution much earlier. Interrogating him about multiverses instead must have made him feel so much worse…

“That sounds painful!” Mimi was still wiping at her eyes, not feeling any less guilty.

“We have no other choice but to try!”, Yamato said, but despite his urgency, mainly tried to convince himself. “This thing is playing God and that bullshit’s unacceptable!” There was a time when they already had thought Taichi had died in combat – so back then, they didn’t have any other choice but to push through either.

However… Had there ever been a reason to seriously worry? Yamato couldn’t allow himself to dwell on that thought any further; the fights against Algomon, MIlleniummon, Abbadomon… All the adventures they had gone through by gatehopping… Even the forming of Omegamon and as much as he had always relied on it… If it had all been tampered with behind the scenes to some degree… He loathed how much less significant it would have felt. 

How much less meaningful everything would have felt.

“I agree, but… How…?”, Jyou intervened. “Should we fight? Against him…? I mean… Who or what are we to interfere with the everlasting fight between Light and Darkness?”

Hearing that, Sora immediately jumped in: “We can’t give up here, Jyou-senpai! Chosen Children or not, he went through all of this, if we let it continue, then…” She paused after having glanced over to Taichi again - the glimpse of emotion had turned into a stoic face of stone again. It was a painful sight and she thoroughly hated the idea that it had probably never even been possible make him confess, prohibited by this higher being. “Taichi needs us, he heard Hikari-chan and Agumon! So maybe if we keep doing that, it’ll work! Even if… Even if we’re just copies…”

She couldn’t help but feel disheartened for a moment – just like Yamato did, just like Jyou did, just like they all did. It was all so surreal and they couldn’t possibly know if any of what they would attempt to do even mattered in the grand scheme of things. If it hadn’t already been decided for them, if their lives just had to be – indirectly – sacrificed…

“Sora!”, Piyomon squealed, ripping her partner out of her gloomy thoughts. She exchanged another quick glance with her fellow Digimon companions, tears glimmering in the corners of her eyes as well. Then, the small bird breathed in deeply, pulling herself together before continuing: “It doesn’t matter if any of you or any of us were just… Copies at some point! What matters is that we decided to go on together!”

Tentomon had jumped to her side as well - despite his expression not being the easiest to read, he waved his claws vigorously. “It’s true, we went through everything side by side, from the very beginning and… Even if some things we encountered were calculated or whatever, we still had agency! We made lotsa choices ourselves! Koushirou-han, the light that you shared with Taichi-han, Sora-han and Hikari-han - that couldn’t have been a copy, now, could it?!”

With that, Koushirou and Sora looked at each other, remembering the times they had combined their powers to support Taichi with the help of Hikari’s light in the past. And even if those powers had been just passed on to them, even if her Crest of Light had not belonged to her initially – and neither had theirs –, it still had to have some weight. Unexpectedly to them, Hikari gave them a nod as well – as if she was silently agreeing to it.

“You too, Yamato!” Gabumon floated to their side as well - they all seemed to have agreed not to let their partners falter like that. While neither of them truly knew what it meant to be copied or rebooted, it didn’t make a difference to them. “The hope that you shared with Takeru, Jyou and Mimi… It had to be real! You are our partners and there have been so many hardships, so many obstacles… Still, they were our own, we overcame all of them, we and nobody else. We won’t let these efforts go to waste!”

“And if we had to meet Jyou and everyone hundreds, thousands, millions of times again”, Gomamon said proudly, hitting Jyou’s leg in a supposedly encouraging manner, “Who the heck cares?!”

Palmon however chose a softer approach and gently smiled at her partner from below. folding her vine-like fingers into a prayer pose. “I would want to meet Mimi over and over again – and see each and every of her versions thrive!”

“Palmon…”

Those words were enough to stop Mimi’s tears and she returned the glance with a loving smile as well – just to turn around and face the aforementioned Jyou, Yamato and Takeru. 

“There may have been feelings of familiarity before, even if we couldn’t pinpoint why exactly that was the case, but… These feelings only helped our bonds to grow further.” As an Adult level Digimon, Tailmon had an easier time putting her thoughts into words as she stood next to Hikari. If a former version of Hikari really had been possessed by this being before, it may have helped her and Tailmon to intuitively grasp it. “Whatever may have happened in another universe, even if things were similar to some degree… And even if we were tasked to fulfill a certain mission, it doesn’t completely determine the paths we chose in this universe. The fact that you all react the way you do now is proof of that.”

“If anything, I’m sure all of this only made our connection stronger!”, Patamon cheered as well, as his partner beamed over to his brother and the others as well. “We evolved together and wrote our own stories!”

Either of them had their own thoughts and feelings on the matter – some more unsure, doubtful and hesitant than others. 

The first one who moved - was Agumon again. Facing the shell of his partner heads-on, aiming for his heart and soul to finally achieve what he had failed at so many times.

“Taichi… You have seen all these battles your other self fought… You saw all of your friends going through their own fights, over and over again, but you kept quiet for our sake… Even if you didn’t have to. You didn’t want to worry any of us. You suffered for years and years… I’m sorry I didn’t see it sooner. But we are here now. And we’re going to put an end to this! TAICHI!”

“Taichi!”

“Taichi-san!”

“Onii-chan!”

Even if they couldn’t know if their next steps would be successful, even if they hadn’t saved Taichi yet – all they could do was try. And go forward. 

~

The shimmer of opal, surrounding his senses like static, had stopped like another slap to his face, allowing Taichi’s to witness, hear, sense the conversation. So far, he had been nothing but a mere spectator, as if his soul was watching himself act and talk from afar through a screen or mirror. Like a surreal out-of-body experience…

Nourished by the voices that had called out to him, he felt like he had regained at least the willpower to address the shapeless being:

‘Homeostasis…?’, Taichi asked internally – and even though he couldn’t see any responder, a voice clearly echoed inside his head, making him feel weirdly light with every single word.

‘Greetings, Child of Courage. We meet eventually.’

‘I heard it all…’, he said quietly, more to himself than anything else, feeling dizzy, as if somebody had shown him a summary video in fast-forward-mode. “And I understand it now. I think…’

‘We appreciate your cooperation up until now. You were needed for a higher purpose.’

‘Yeah, I believe I got the gist of that. The most valuable soldier, the perfect catalyst, huh…?’

Hearing himself say it like that, it made an awfully lot of sense, he had to admit. Based on everything they had heard back when they first entered the Digital World, the fight against Darkness, the maintaining of balance appeared to be a daunting, never-ending task. Thus, simplifying, optimizing the process really seemed to be the most logical thing to do.

‘Is that why I wasn’t afraid back then…? Why I couldn’t remember how I got to certain places, why there are so many blank spaces in my memory? Why… Everything fell into place so neatly? My bond with Agumon, meeting everyone… Fighting, evolving, succeeding…’

‘Indeed. And all your capabilities will be the key. You can end it all. For the sake of harmony.’

He hadn’t even questioned the smoothness of their battles for such a long time, quite the contrary – until the visions had begun to become more forward, he had actually enjoyed being so powerful, almost invincible. That he could have been a dependable beacon, the literal Chosen One, strategist, leader…

It – he – had been too perfect. Until he wasn’t anymore.

‘... It wasn’t all just a lie, was it? I’m still… Me, aren’t I?’

He couldn’t not ask all these questions himself – just like he had asked Agumon about whether he had met someone like him before; just like he had wanted to hear from Yamato about Omegamon and if he had ever wondered why it was so easy to achieve…

All these feelings he harboured – feelings of affection, kinship, adoration, love for each of his friends… Had they ever really been his own…? Had Tentomon and all the other Digimon been right, had the light, the connection to the others, their choices been genuine? Or had it all been fabricated from the very beginning for the sake of a greater good?

Panic rose inside of him - and resentment. Anger, frustration… Uselessness. How was he supposed to fix this? In any other situation, Taichi’s gut would have told him to jump, attack whatever it was that had possessed him, punch it, rip it out of his chest, his head, but… How?

Jyou had not been wrong, how did you attack a being without a physical shape, something that was inside of you for who knew how long? That had basically directed, guided you…? Most importantly… Who – and what – would he become without it…? He was afraid to consider the implications. And indeed, who was he to disagree with its plans? If he had really been deemed ‘the perfect choice’ to ensure a smooth outcome, if his self had the inherent “potential” to win an eternal battle that so many before him failed…? Even if it would mean the end of “himself”.

Taichi closed his eyes - internally. There had to be something. The net had always been a safe space for him, had helped him to stay grounded despite the chaos inside his mind… So he had to at least try to utilize that. Clear his mind – or maybe even force the headache to become so unbearable it would drive every external force out of himself?

He had no idea. Despite all those encouraging words, the familiar voices of his friends and all their partners, he didn’t know what to do.

Familiar voices that would have soothed him under any normal circumstances… Instead, the storm behind his eyes culminated in a colourful crescendo; faces he had known for years, mingling with those of “the other universe”, contrasting and complementing each other, merging and separating in frightening ways. 

Until Taichi saw him. Looking straight at him like a mirrored image of himself. The same face, the goggles… Fortunately, no bloody stains this time.

An image he had grown so accustomed to – that it naturally seemed to draw Taichi towards itself, unable to suppress the urge to reach out to him.

‘Is there any way to put an end to this…?’, he asked through his thoughts, gathering the a last glimpse of hope, courage even…

Thus, his heart started pounding again when he heard his own voice respond:

‘What do you think we could do?’

He barely saw his other self moving his lips… This was probably the wildest thing he had ever done, talking to himself like that. 

‘I’m not sure…’, Taichi said, trying not to succumb to his own despair. ‘I’m really not, but there has to be a way to change this. This can’t be our fate… I’d try anything!’

‘Then why don’t you wish for it?’

Hearing that suggestion, Taichi frowned. Was this a trap? Just another illusion to keep him trapped in this despair without any real solution?

‘We aren’t inside some kind of fairytale, are we?’, he asked, almost feeling a little mocked – although he didn’t hear his other self laughing. ‘If it was that easy, then… I would have done that ages ago. I can’t just wish for this nightmare to go away, that’s silly.’

‘Is it any less silly than the headache idea? Or any miracle we have ever achieved before?’ This time, Taichi at least assumed his other self to smile – encouragingly. Accompanied by the unexpected softness of a hand touching his shoulder. ‘Come on, humour me, little me.’

A switch flipped - memories were fusing and, once again, separating. He must have seen it all – must have experienced it the same way, Taichi simply knew. This was his – their – only option.

And his eyes - this time for real - snapped open.

 “Nghhhh, t-that’s enough…! Get out…!”, Taichi’s physical form screamed out for all the others to hear – while his inner voice added: ‘Please, just this once… Help me!’

~

The light had swallowed it all once again.

If he had to describe it, Taichi would have said that a sword had been cutting through reality. A giant sword, consisting of a ray of light just as white as their surroundings – only distinguishable by a faint orange glow. The materialization of his wish…

He couldn’t have said who exactly had used it though. Who of them had gone for the blow, separating bubble after bubble after bubble. 

His vision was still blurry. Old memories and current impressions were still running circles, images of WarGreymon, Omegamon, various other people – including himself – floating by.

But with every passing second, it became lighter. More quiet. Now he was all alone inside of his mind, hoping that everyone else had returned to the real world safely…

‘Hey…’

Taichi turned around. With his consciousness still surrounded by nothingness, engulfed by the light, all he could see was himself. His other self.

‘Y-you!’ He had no clue how else to call him – even if he was sure that they had talked before, this felt different. ‘It’s not a dream this time, right?!’

‘No, this is as real as it can get – inside your head, that is.’ The other Taichi grinned cheekily – and for the first time, it really felt like he was talking to a separate person. ‘Speaking of which, how is your headache?’

‘Still there, but it’s a lot better now.’ Truthfully, he could think more clearly. As if a rock had been lifted from his brain. ‘Did we… Manage to push it out?’

Taichi knew he didn’t have to specify, his other self just nodded.

‘Basically. It really was always up to us to settle it all. And you did well, I wouldn’t have been able to get here if you hadn’t broken through that barrier with your wish. Sorry for the teasing though.’

The apologetic glance made him blink. He remembered it now – earlier, when he hadn’t been sure if he was being tricked or not, his other self had honestly wanted to convince him to wish to be rescued…

‘So the wish-thing wasn’t just a fluke?’

‘No. This dimension, just like the Digital World itself, had always had wish fulfilling capabilities, reading the hearts of those that entered it. A neat little factor Homeostasis had been keeping from you, just like it hid itself. Sneaky…’

‘I… Really had no idea what was going on.’

‘Neither did I for a long time, but that was the point. And with this entire experiment, I wasn’t nearly as affected as you were. So… I’m sorry that I couldn’t help you sooner.’

Taichi couldn’t suppress the feeling of awe. His mind had intertwined with the one in front of him countless times - and yet, despite everything he thought he knew about his life, he seemed like a completely different person now. A sense of wiseness and maturity, hardened and even a little worn out by his own adventures and yet, he radiated warmth. He still had that aura of serene calmness that made him wonder what else had caused him to become this way…

‘... You went through all that suffering before me though. Right?’, Taichi asked in a sympathetic tone, making the other one chuckle. Despite the weariness, he still seemed to be an overall positive guy after all.

‘You saw it all, didn't you? Okay, not all of it… This appearance here is just a digital memory of my 17-year-old self speaking to you since you are 17 too. Like… A Hologram Ghost, so to speak, because everything beyond that probably would have made your head explode’, the other Taichi elaborated, pulling on the white shirt of his supposed school uniform as well as the mess of brown hair on top of his head. ‘At least that’s how Koushirou explained it to me, you know. So you can’t possibly know what happens going forward until… Well, until you’re close to 40 yet.’

‘40…?!’ Taichi’s eyes widened even more and his other self laughed loudly. 

‘I’m 38 years old in my own 2026 already, so it’s good you won’t have any knowledge of anything that happens till you reach that age!’

He absolutely hadn’t considered the time difference between their universes at any point before, since he hadn’t even been born in 1995 yet. But he was convinced that, if Koushirou had been involved – not matter the version –, he could have trusted in that information.

‘Either way, none of this should have happened. No matter how much it tries to convince you that all of this was done for the sake of ‘maintaining balance’, you didn’t deserve to be used like this. Homeostasis decided to act on its own and every time you went into the net, thanks to our consciousnesses merging, the barrier between the universes got more and more fragile. That’s how you got those dreams about my life and I started to have visions about yours. And that’s probably also what Homeostasis meant by saying that’s how Diablomon got into your universe. It was actually looking for me to get its revenge. Again….’

‘But now we’re going to end it for good?’, Taichi asked – and a smaller version of the sword appeared again. Two of them to be exact, one for each of them.

‘Yes, if we decide to cut it now, that'll be the end of the connection. Hikari already did it by herself, so we should be able to do it as well.’ 

Taichi swallowed. To think that his sister had been going through something similar before… Although it had been the other Hikari, it was soothing to know that she had successfully overcome it. 

‘You will be on your own then. And so will I’, the other Taichi continued – which made him grip around the sword more tightly.

‘Which... Is not a bad thing.’

‘No, it’s just a new beginning. There will have to be new, other Chosen Children and they will also be picked by Homeostasis again. Light and Darkness will always have to oppose each other. Even if we wish for it to end, this battle cannot ever be stopped. But history won’t repeat itself the same way, the universes will not interfere with each other’s fates anymore.’

It was an endless story without question. But no matter how frightening it all had been so far, Taichi felt a glimpse of excitement. Maybe it was a part of his inherent personality to be fearless after all…? This was something he would have to figure out.

‘I still want to thank you.’

This time, the other Taichi blinked.

‘For being a warning?’

‘No, for being different. We are similar, yeah... But not the same. And we'll keep changing... On our own, like you said. Even if… I have no idea what will happen when I get back. It’s… Scary as hell.’

Even without the connection intact, the nightmares would most likely not disappear immediately. The memories wouldn’t completely vanish for quite a while either, he would have to learn to distinguish between them. Would have to face everything and everyone with completely new eyes…

‘It is. We’re definitely not the same and that’s a good thing. Thanks, little me.’ The other Taichi grinned his trademark grin again – and raised the sword. ‘One more thing though.’

‘What?’

‘Let the others take care of you too. I promise… That’s the most important lesson you’ll ever learn. You gotta get your shit together, just like I do, sure. But you don’t have to do it alone. They’ll be waiting for you out there.’

Taichi found himself returning the grin – and raised his sword as well, ready to go for the final cut. It was true, that much he knew by now. Without them, he wouldn’t have regained consciousness. Without them, he wouldn’t have been able to make this wish. He wouldn’t have met his other self – just to part ways again. Forever.

Not all questions had been answered. He was pretty certain he would have to face new questions he had never asked – or been asked – before. Things wouldn’t be easy, but he wouldn’t shut them out again. Neither Agumon nor his friends. 

“... Thank you. For everything.”

Once he opened his eyes in his universe, the dream would end. And his own life would begin.