To Have And To Hold From This Day Forward - Chapter 4: School Daze
My final piece for Miyakari Autumn! Holidays and being sick made this take much longer to get out, but I wanted to end the year with some YURI!!!
This piece is inspired by @sluggybasson107's art of Yolei and Kari as elderly lesbians in love, as once I saw it, I INSTANTLY knew what I wanted this last one to be. Thank you to Sluggy and @digitalworldbound for Miyakari Autumn, and I'm so happy to have helped contribute to it! Here's to 2024 where I want to write more Digimon lesbians!
Summary: With all said and done, Yolei visits her wife while she's teaching, so she and Kari can enjoy the wonderful worlds they've helped foster.
You can also find the whole thing on AO3 here!
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Ugh, why did the sun have to be so bright?
For some ungodly reason, the early afternoon sun managed to pour in through the blinds just right to shine right in her eyes. It caused Yolei to stir and grumble as she began to paw for her glasses on the nightstand. Her eyes were squinted shut to try and keep some of the light out, and once she finally settled on her glasses, she put them on and pushed herself up.
An early nap was always appreciated, but it was inevitably waking up while it was still bright out that was a pain. She let out a loud yawn and stretched her arms above her head, leaning back slightly as she grimaced from the back pain. No matter how gracefully she aged (and in her opinion, she certainly aged gracefully), there was no escaping all the aches and pains that came with her age.
She could hear her partner start to rush along the wood floors to reach her room, and sure enough, Hawkmon popped his head in with a bright smile.
“Ah, you’re finally up! How was your nap, my dear?” Hawkmon asked with the same energy he always had over the years of being her partner.
“Not long enough,” Yolei grumbled, but unable to hide her smirk as she looked over at the Digimon. Hawkmon tutted playfully as he rounded the bed and hopped onto the bed next to her.
“You always say they aren’t long enough,” Hawkmon said.
“Because they never are,” Yolei groaned. She adjusted her glasses and her body slumped slightly.
“It must be because Kari isn’t here. You always seem to get a good night’s sleep when she’s around,” Hawkmon teased. Yolei’s cheeks tinged a gentle pink and she couldn’t stop the giggle that bubbled from her throat.
“Yeah. I know she loves teaching, but would it kill her to take a day off now and then so I could get a good nap in?” she asked. Hawkmon shook his head.
“Speaking of her, do you want to stop by the Digital World and see her and Gatomon?” Yolei added after a moment.
Retirement had been good for her… up to a point, but Yolei tended to get stir crazy more often than not. She took up small personal projects, whether programming or audio related, just to occupy her time while Kari was out. Even despite their age, she still wanted to teach, still wanted to help out younger DigiDestined who just got their partners. It was incredibly admirable, and Yolei respected her to no end, but god she missed her.
“There are few things I’d enjoy more right now,” Hawkmon told her.
At least it meant she and Hawkmon had more excuses to go to the Digital World. Not that they needed an excuse, but being able to see her wife there was always a plus. Yolei uneasily pushed herself up off the bed, giving her partner a wide grin.
“Do you mind grabbing my cane, though?”
Without another word, Hawkmon was already rushing off to the doorway to pick it up.
“Thanks,” she smiled as he handed it to her, and despite the assistance the cane provided, Hawkmon held onto her free hand to help keep her steady. “You weren’t too bored while I was sleeping, were you?”
Hawkmon shook his head, “After all these years, I’ve figured out ways to occupy my time while you’re busy,” he said with a cheeky smile.
“Trust me, I know— you’re the whole reason our bookshelf is getting so much use right now,” she laughed, loud and full and just as good for Hawkmon to hear as always. Just as much vim and vigor as always.
They took their time heading into the living room, and although Yolei was tempted to peel from his side to head straight to the computer, she decided to take her time. Better to save her energy for the Digital World, anyways.
“You know, you should take the time to reread some of these, too, they’re quite enjoyable,” he said. Yolei shrugged.
“Maybe. Maybe I’ll bring something next time we stop by the Digital World,” she mused with a hum.
“Perhaps a picnic? It would be nice for us all to spend a day out and about. It could even just be the four of us, if you want,” Hawkmon suggested.
“That sounds nice. I’m sure Kari would like it, too,” Yolei said, a smile tugging at her lips just at the mention of her wife’s name. There were dozens of nice spots they could pick out, and it would be fun to pack up some boxed lunches like they used to for their kids so many years ago. She was getting excited just thinking about it, the idea growing in her head more and more.
It was putting a spring in her step that Hawkmon was making sure to keep a careful eye on.
“Ok, let’s get going, my perfect queen awaits,” Yolei grinned, sitting down at a desk that was off to the side in their living room, where the computer— and her D3— lay. “Do you remember where she said she was teaching today?”
“Just by Primary Village. I believe she has a class of kindergarteners who all have newly hatched Digimon,” Hawkmon said. Yolei nodded and her fingers began to tap away on the keyboard with that same deftness they held when she was a teenager. She locked in the coordinates of a gate right by Primary Village then grabbed her D3.
“Digi-port open! Let’s roll, Hawkmon!”
Her D3 shone a bright light, and in a flash, they were gone.
***
“—is like an extension of yourself. Your partner can end up reflecting you in a lot of ways, so as you grow up, you two will be able to learn a lot about each other and yourselves.”
Yup, that was Kari. A dopey, serene smile settled on Yolei’s face as she followed the source of the voice. Her and Hawkmon briefly settled behind some bushes, watching the scene before them: Kari sat cross-legged in front of a group of about twenty kids and their baby Digimon, while Gatomon sat next to her. She was beautiful as always, and Yolei couldn’t help but stare, caught up in her wife’s visage.
“It’s important to take good care of them, too. A Digimon isn’t like a pet, even if they may look like animals as they Digivolve. But it is made easier since they can talk,” she said with that light, lilting laugh. The other kids fell into a mess of giggles while their partners cooed in their laps. “Your Digimon will Digivolve at their own pace, too, so don’t be upset if it takes longer for them to reach In-Training or Rookie than your friends. It’s very important to not push your Digimon. Just like you, they’ll grow when they’re ready.”
And her smile, Yolei loved her smile. It was so bright and wonderful and had her heart swelling. It was while Yolei was staring like a moon-eyed teenager that Kari finally caught sight of her, and smiled and waved, a light blush settling on her own cheeks.
“Class, it looks like we have a visitor today. I’d like to introduce you all to Mrs. Inoue and her partner, Hawkmon,” she said, gesturing over to Yolei, still standing behind the bushes.
“Ah! Kari!” Yolei shouted in shock.
“Mrs. Inoue used to help me and other DigiDestined keep the Digital World and the human world safe,” Kari said, pausing for a beat, the sweet and innocent smile on her face seeming somehow… ominous. “She’s also my wife,” she added. Yolei turned a bright red and ducked her head, slapping a hand over her mouth in shock.
“B-Babe!” Yolei cried out over the tittering giggles of her class.
“Is it appropriate to call your wife a ‘babe’ in front of her class?” Hawkmon asked, a gentle, teasing tone to his voice. She looked down at him, to see him with his hands on his hips, looking rather smug. She narrowed her eyes at him.
“Oh, come on, with how many times I’ve helped save the world? After fifty-something years? I think I’ve earned the chance to call my wife babe whenever I want,” she grumbled.
“Do you wanna offer any words of advice to the next generation of DigiDestined, Yolei?” Kari asked sweetly. Yolei’s head snapped towards Kari, and she suddenly felt strangely shy. The next generation of DigiDestined… while she knew her wife had taught plenty of them, it was rare that she spoke to the classes. Davis had always been more than ready to share exploits of their heydays as heroes, and Ken, TK and Cody had been there to try and instill responsibility where Davis hadn’t as much, but Yolei hadn’t spoken to a class of Kari’s since, well… since she started teaching, probably.
Hawkmon gave Yolei a gentle pat on the arm, and with a deep breath, the woman walked over towards her wife with her partner in tow, looking over at the group of kids who looked up at her in wonder.
“Well, Mrs. Kamiya is right, first of all, you need to make sure to listen to your partner’s needs, but also…” she trailed off, taking a moment to think. This was her chance to really wow a whole new generation!
“…Uh, remember that being a DigiDestined is an important responsibility. You and your Digimon can help do a lot of good in this world and our world, and you should always remember to help others, whether Digimon or humans,” she said.
“That’s great advice, thank you, Yolei,” Kari said. Yolei rubbed the back of her neck with her free hand.
“Aw, don’t mention it…”
Kari slowly pushed herself off the ground and folded her hands in front of herself, “Ok, class, next we’re going to—”
“Is your class ready to see Primary Village?”
Every head turned to see Elecmon walking up with a bright grin plastered to his face.
“Yes!”
Kari gestured to Elecmon, “Elecmon here is the caretaker of Primary Village, which is where Digimon are born. He’s going to show you around and tell you all about the village and what it’s like to care for the baby Digimon. Make sure to be good, don’t be too loud, and don’t touch any babies unless you’re given permission.”
The kids all got up and started rushing around the Rookie level Digimon in excitement. Kari looked at Gatomon.
“Would you mind going along to supervise?” Kari asked. Gatomon groaned.
“Do I have to?” she whined, “They always try to grab my ears and my face and it’s the worst…”
“Don’t worry, I will be there to help supervise and make sure your face stays intact,” Hawkmon said as he strode over to his DNA Digivolution partner.
“You better.”
As Elecmon led the class off, Hawkmon and Gatomon held up the rear, with Hawkmon giving Gatomon a reassuring pat on the shoulder to soothe her nerves.
Luckily they were still close enough for Kari to keep an eye on, but once they were gone, Yolei walked up behind Kari and let her chin rest on her wife’s shoulder.
“You really gave them some great advice, you know,” Kari said after a few moments, leaning her head into Yolei’s.
“W-what? Really? I was just saying what I thought. I want them to realize how important it is to do good.”
“It was still inspiring,” Kari smiled, “I’m sure they’ll think about that for years to come.”
Yolei could only hope.
“You know, even at my worst as the Emperor, I never wanted to try and do anything to Primary Village. It never felt right to go after babies,” Yolei said.
Of course, that didn’t stop her from conquering the surrounding areas of File Island, from taking control of Elecmon…
Yolei cringed and swallowed hard, but managed to calm slightly as Kari wrapped an arm around her waist. Yolei returned the gesture in kind, relishing in the warmth as she gently rubbed her wife’s side.
“See? Even back then you knew what was too far,” Kari smiled.
“Maybe you’re right.”
“Besides, you don’t have to worry about that now. That’s far behind you.”
Something Yolei was grateful for. It was only thought about in brief ways like this, no more nightmares about the atrocities she committed.
Kari turned to face Yolei, taking her free hand in both of hers, gently tracing circles along the back of her hand.
“We’ve really helped make this world a peaceful place,” Kari said.
“And we have a lot to be proud of, don’t we? I mean, look at you,” Yolei said, nodding to all of the children running around Primary Village, with wide smiles on their faces, their giggles filling the air. Hawkmon was frantically trying to make sure everyone behaved, while Gatomon kept a reasonable distance from the kids. Yolei and Kari laughed at the sight.
“Even after you could’ve retired, you’ve still worked so much to teach kids about Digimon. You’ve probably done more for DigiDestined than most people,” Yolei said.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Kari said.
“I would,” Yolei grinned, leaning in to place a kiss on her cheek, then another one closer to her lips.
“Yolei!” Kari giggled, squirming around a bit as Yolei held her close.
“Oh, come on, your students are busy over there, we deserve some time for ourselves— you deserve a little break,” Yolei snickered as she planted another gentle kiss on her face.
Kari turned to face her, looking up at her. Age had brought them closer in height, but only just barely. Yolei was happy to remain taller throughout all these years.
“All these years and you’re still the most beautiful woman ever,” Kari said, the edges of her eyes crinkling with wonder and joy.
“I dunno about that, I mean, I’m looking at the most beautiful woman ever right now,” Yolei told her. Kari leaned up and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Yolei held her closer.
“I love you,” Kari said as she leaned into Yolei’s touch.
“I love you, too.”
“I’m happy to have helped make a better world with you, two better worlds,” Yolei mumbled.
“And we’ll keep doing that for the rest of our lives,” Kari nodded.
“Yeah,” Yolei said with a gentle sigh, looking out at Primary Village again, unable to help but laugh as Hawkmon was struggling to keep hold of four different baby Digimon that had been handed off to him.
The two held onto each other, contentedly watching Kari’s class.
Together, they had helped keep the worlds safe, had helped people and Digimon come together in a way that they could witness kids and their partners for years and years.
Kari helped bring Yolei from her lowest, showed her unconditional love, and Yolei returned it in kind, keeping Kari safe, sound, and secure, just as Kari did. They were a team, and always would be.
Light, Love, and Sincerity, staying together forever, no matter what life brought them, or what it would bring them still.
To Have And To Hold From This Day Forward - Chapter 3: Cold And Alone
Miyakari Autumn may have ended a few weeks ago, but I am still set on finishing this lil fic! This one is for the prompt "Cold and Alone" and I am SO excited to have it out because I've been working really hard at it!
Summary: For years, Kari has been tormented by forces of darkness that she can't even fully comprehend. Now, so many years later, and it's trying to claim her again to extinguish her light. But Yolei will be there to try and protect her wife, no matter what threatens the love of her life.
You can find the whole thing on AO3 here!
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Work couldn’t end soon enough. As much as she loved working for Izumi Technologies, some days were incredibly tiring, there was so much to do, and all she wanted was to be back with her wife and kids and especially her wife.
Oh, how she missed her wife.
As she looked down at her phone while on the subway back to their neighborhood, one taken at their wedding, at the moment they shoved cake in each other’s faces, Yolei held a fond smile on her face and held back from tearing up. Even fifteen years later and there wasn’t a day she didn’t feel the same way as that fateful day. Hawkmon looked up at Yolei with a knowing smile in his eyes.
“It’ll be nice to get home and relax with our family, won’t it?” he asked.
Our family. A pair of words she still couldn’t believe at times. After the start they had, that she had, here they were, with a home and a family.
“I’ve been waiting all day,” Yolei said simply.
When the subway dinged, Yolei was quick to maneuver through the crowds, a spring in her step despite how tired she was. They’d have dinner and once the kids were in bed they’d cuddle up on the couch with some wine and snacks and continue one of those horrible American dating shows Yolei got caught up in during the brief time she stayed with Mimi during undergrad. It was the ultimate guilty pleasure, and the two frequently lamented how one lady was meant to pick out a partner between all sorts of men who clearly didn’t deserve her.
She was buzzing with excitement as she approached the door, having to hold back from squealing with delight. She swung the door open and popped in with the same dramatic flourish as always.
“Honeyyyyyyyy I’m home!”
…
Where was her beautiful wife to greet her?
Yolei’s smile quickly gave way to a deep frown as she slipped off her shoes and padded inside.
“Babe?” she called out as she craned her neck to look at her son and daughter watching TV, “Hey kids, where’s mom at?”
They remained distracted by the television for a few moments before their son Ichiro looked at her, a Nyaromon sitting in his lap, while a Poromon was nestled next to their daughter. Gatomon was curled up on the couch with her eyes closed.
“Oh, hey mom! Mom’s taking a nap,” he told her.
“A nap?” Yolei repeated quietly.
“Yeah! She picked us up and then said she wasn’t feeling good so she wanted to lie down before dinner,” their daughter Haruka added.
“I’m gonna go check on her real quick and then we’ll figure out dinner, ok?” she said. They both cheered, but despite that Yolei couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious. She wasn’t even sure why, but something in her gut left her on red alert. She barely processed Hawkmon peeling from her side to occupy the kids as she started to walk again. When she approached their bedroom door, she couldn’t help but hesitate for a second as she reached for the door knob.
Kari was feeling alright this morning… maybe it was some sort of 24 hour fever? It was the season, after all…
They were probably out of stuff after their kids both got sick a few weeks ago, too, so she’d have to pick stuff up…
Her mind was racing with thoughts of what to do, what might be wrong, and how to handle it all in that brief time before she opened the door. She held in a breath and slowly peeked inside to see Kari lying on her side, facing away from the door.
“Oh, baby…” Yolei frowned. She stepped in and closed the door behind her, “Kari, are you ok? Are you asleep?” Her voice was soft and gentle as concern creased her features.
“Mmmm’kay,” Kari mumbled, her voice barely audible. Yolei was straining to hear her and walked forward, rounding the bed and crouching down to look at Kari.
She seemed… mostly fine? Maybe a little paler than normal, although her eyes were tired, with thick, dark circles underlining them. Yolei’s mouth dropped open a bit.
“Are you sure? You look kinda rough,” Yolei whispered. At the very least, there was no trash can or mess nearby. She brought the back of her hand to her wife’s forehead, letting it rest there for a moment. It was something her mom and dad did when she was a kid to check for a fever, but frankly… Yolei couldn’t exactly tell. Was this supposed to be helpful?
“You don’t feel warm or anything,” she said.
Kari shook her head, “I’m ok, honest,” she breathed out, “Just not feeling that great. I was feeling kind of bad during the last half of the day but it got worse when we got home.”
“Oh, baby, I’m sorry. Look, I’ll take care of things tonight, ok? I can get dinner handled and take care of the kids,” she smiled, hoping the sight would help assuage some of her wife’s pain, “Is there anything you need?”
“Maybe something for a headache and a glass of water?”
“Of course. I’m on it, my perfect queen,” Yolei said, standing up and planting a gentle kiss on Kari’s temple, “I’ll be right back.” She snuck out of the room as quietly as she could so as to not disturb her wife, and closed the door behind her. As she let out a sigh, she saw everyone’s heads peeking around the corner. Yolei offered a smile as she walked over.
“Is mom ok?” Ichiro asked.
“Yeah, she’s just really tired and has a headache,” Yolei frowned, “I’m going to get her some water and then I’m going to pick us up some dinner.” Dinner… dinner… Where was there to get something quick? She could probably call for some delivery from Davis’s restaurant? Then she’d have to get Ichiro’s and Haruka’s orders and their son was still pretty picky at times…
“Yolei, are you ok?” Hawkmon asked as she leaned against the counter after pouring the glass of water for her wife. Yolei folded her arms and sighed.
“Yeah, I’m fine, Hawkmon. I think,” she paused for a beat, then another, “…I always just get anxious when one of us gets sick.”
Hawkmon gently patted Yolei’s knee, “There, there, my dear. Everything will be fine. Kari is strong, and you’ve heard the stories from her parents, right? She’s been through worse than a mere cold.” Hawkmon offered a smile. Yolei slowly broke from the deep frown both on her face and in her expression and returned a small smile in kind.
“You’re right, but I guess that’s just what has me so stressed,” she shrugged, “I’m just overthinking it.”
She grabbed a bottle of painkillers from the cupboard and grabbed it and the glass, “I’m going to pick up dinner for everyone after I drop this off, do you mind watching the kids while I’m gone?” she asked. Hawkmon saluted.
“Gladly!”
Yolei walked as quickly as she could back to their room without breaking into a run, and when she opened the door she saw Gatomon sitting next to Kari, gently rubbing her arm. Gatomon’s ears perked up and she turned to look at Yolei. Yolei once again rounded the bed and placed the water down. She opened the bottle and pulled out a pill.
“Still feeling rough?” she asked, voice low and soft. Kari nodded as best she could as she slowly pushed herself up and took it from her hand.
“Yeah… I’m probably just going to try and fall asleep after this,” she mumbled, then took a long drink of water.
“I’m gonna pick up some dinner, do you want me to get you anything?” Yolei asked. She reached to take one of Kari’s hands in her own, gently squeezing it. At the very least she wasn’t too warm or too cold. Honestly, it brought the same warmth and relief it always did. It helped loosen up the tension she had been feeling more and more by the second ever since she got home.
“No, I don’t really feel all that hungry,” she said with a shrug. Of course, that just meant Yolei would pick something up for her anyways and put it in the fridge in case her wife wanted a midnight snack. Yolei gave Kari’s hand one more squeeze, which Kari returned, mustering up a weak smile to offer her in hopes of assuaging her nerves. As much as Yolei appreciated it, and though she didn’t let it show on her face, it didn’t do all too much to help.
“Make sure you keep a close eye on her,” she said to Gatomon, shooting her a playful wink.
“Don’t worry, she’ll be perfectly safe.”
Yolei headed for the door, grabbing a jacket on the way out. As she passed by the living room, she pulled her phone from her pocket.
“Ok kiddos, Digimon, mama’s picking up curry, what do we want?” she asked as she opened up her notes app.
“Me and Poromon want katsu!”
“Oh, we want katsu, too!”
“As tempted as I am to branch from my usual choice, I think I will go with the katsu as well.”
They all talked at once, and it was only thanks to going through this type of situation so many times that she managed to catch it all. Lots of katsu, she would get a chicken cutlet for herself, seafood for Gatomon, and vegetable curry for Kari.
“Perfecto! Be good, I’ll be back soon!” she said with a wave before popping out of the apartment. If she kept her mood up, then she wouldn’t have as much reason to worry.
…That was what she tried to tell herself, at least. If she kept moving, kept herself focused on picking up on food, and kept her thoughts on anything but that anxiety gnawing at her, then she could make it through the night without much issue. The cold winter night nipped at her ears and clouded her glasses. She pulled them off and wiped them with her jacket’s sleeve when she got into the elevator.
Thankfully the curry place they frequented was only a few blocks away. Even if she wasn’t a fan of making the walk in this weather, the prospect of delicious curry and dinner with her family (even if it would be without her wonderful wife) left her chest feeling warm. The streets were still busy in the early evening, and people talking to each other or on their phones, advertisements playing on giant screens over various buildings, and music playing from stores and radios all helped drown out some of those errant thoughts that kept trying to poke at her more and more.
Christmas lights were starting to be put up on a few of the smaller restaurants and storefronts, and as Yolei gripped onto the phone in her pocket, thoughts of their honeymoon, of their first times taking their kids out to see Christmas lights and watching the wonders in their eyes, all filled her mind. Of going to Mimi’s Christmas parties and kissing under mistletoe that her idol would sneak her when no one else was looking.
As she reached the curry shop, someone opened the door and the delicious aroma of food wafted out. She took a large step to grab the door just in time and whipped in, unable to help but shiver as the warm air hit her body.
She checked her phone for any word from Kari, half-relieved and half-worried to see there was nothing from her. She could only hope that her wife was simply sleeping off her headache and exhaustion.
She droned off her order once she reached the front of the line, and stepped off to the side to let the next woman put her order in. She rocked on the balls of her feet and listened to the music playing as she waited for her food, and jumped when a loud pop song started blasting from her pocket.
“Sorry! Sorry!” she apologized to the other patrons and the staff who turned to look at her. Yolei tapped on her phone and brought it up to her ear.
“Hello?”
“Kari is missing!”
An iron hand gripped her heart as fear took over her body. Hawkmon’s words rang in her ears over and over as all of the air was pushed from her lungs. This couldn’t be happening. How could this be happening? The girl working the counter calling her order was distant to her as the world fell away around her. This felt like all of her worst nightmares come true. Hell, this was a nightmare she couldn’t have even begun to imagine.
“Yolei! Yolei, you need to get back here right now!”
“I… I…” she breathed out slowly, swallowing down a lump in her throat.
She wanted to scream. She was mere moments from screaming, and instead barely managed to hold back as she burst out of the restaurant and started sprinting back home, pushing through anyone and everyone who didn’t move out of her way. Her breathing was heavy with each stride she took down the streets. Her brain buzzed, louder and louder with each passing second, almost enough to cause her to collapse. She didn’t even think about how her phone call was still going, all that mattered was getting home. What she would do when she got there she had no idea, but it was the first step.
Nothing else mattered.
She had to get home.
She had to figure out what happened to Kari.
The elevator up was agonizingly long. If it wasn’t for the fact that it would be hell to go up a dozen flight of stairs or so to get to her floor in her boots, she would’ve sprinted her way up, taking the stairs three at a time. By the time the elevator reached her floor she was ready to claw through the door. Her hand fumbled in her purse as she tried to get her keys, and after a moment she finally slammed them into the lock and barreled through into the apartment.
Haruka and Ichiro were both on the verge of tears, with Ichiro struggling to hold back from sobbing as he started to sniffle loudly. Gatomon rounded the corner on all fours and skidded to a stop in front of Yolei. Hawkmon flew over to the entryway and Yolei knelt down.
“What happened? What do you mean Kari disappeared?” she asked, voice wavering as she did her best to try and keep it together. If she broke down then her kids wouldn’t be far behind. For now she had to hold it together. For her kids’ sake, for Gatomon and Hawkmon’s sake, and for Kari’s sake. If she lost it and started sobbing now then she couldn’t save Kari, and nothing was more important than getting her home safely.
“I-I was just sitting there next to her and she kept mumbling about how she ‘didn’t want to go back’ and ‘she couldn’t face it again’.”
“A-And then she just disappeared?” Yolei asked. She was so focused on Gatomon that she didn’t see her kids running forward, and nearly fell over as they grabbed onto her.
“Is mom gonna be ok?” Haruka asked.
“Mommy, where'd she go? Why is she gone?” Ichiro cried as he shoved his face into the arm of her jacket.
“M-Mom’s gonna be fine, kids,” Yolei choked out, before she swallowed hard. She couldn’t tell them the truth that she didn’t know— she could barely even handle that right now.
“Gatomon, are you sure she said that? Did she say anything else?”
Gatomon shook her head, “I couldn’t make out some of it, she was mumbling into her pillow a lot of it.”
“Didn’t want to go back…” Yolei mumbled to herself. All of a sudden the lightbulb went off in her head and she froze. No. No no no. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. Not after so long.
“It’s-it’s the Dark Ocean. It has to be. It got to her somehow,” she said. Her breathing was getting quicker and more shallow, and it took Hawkmon’s hand on her arm to just barely stop her from hyperventilating.
“But how? It’s been years since it’s tried to get her!” Gatomon said.
Years. As far as she was sure, the last time had been when the two of them had their Digimon DNA Digivolve. Before that it was when she was kidnapped by whatever force was there that wanted her. It had her again, and she couldn’t let it keep her. Her heart continued to pound in her chest, and she started pacing.
“We-we need to get there. The three of us. We have to rescue her,” she said, the words rolling off her tongue quickly as her mind raced frantically. Both of the Digimon looked at each other and nodded as the two children looked at her, still afraid.
“Mom is gonna be ok, right? You’ll get her back, right?” Ichiro asked.
“Of course we will,” Hawkmon assured the boy, wanting to cut in just in case Yolei continued to unravel.
She pulled her phone from her pocket and brought it to her ear as she started to call her sister.
“Momoe? I need you to come over and watch the kids. No, this is an emergency! Kari is missing!” she shouted, “Me, Hawkmon, and Gatomon are going to get her now. You need to get here as fast as you can, please,” she begged, voice on the verge of breaking. She fell silent as her sister spoke, then hung up and turned to look at her kids.
“Aunt Momoe is gonna be here soon. Don’t open the door for anyone except her.”
“Mom will be ok, right? You’ll be ok, right?” Haruka asked. Yolei crouched down and opened her arms, at which the two ran to her for a hug.
“We’ll all be ok, I promise,” she said, planting a kiss to each of their heads, “We’ll be back soon,” she added, before standing up. Without another word, she strode towards the balcony and whipped open the slider door, then turned to look at Hawkmon and Gatomon. “You guys ready?”
Gatomon ran to her side, while Hawkmon flew out the window. As soon as he was out, he Digivolved into Aquilamon, and flapped next to the balcony. Gatomon ran and jumped, soaring through the air to grab onto Aquilamon. Yolei took a few steps back and swallowed hard, then started to run. She couldn’t let this stop her, she couldn’t waste any time. She jumped up and landed on the railing, nearly tumbling forward, then hopped off and landed on her partner.
“Gatomon, you remember where Kari disappeared, right?” Yolei asked.
“Yeah, it was that way!” Gatomon shouted over the wind.
“Aquilamon, go!”
“On it!”
***
As her eyes slowly opened, she was met with the sight of a dark, lifeless sky and the sounds of the ocean’s rough, choppy waves. She could barely move her head enough as her body moved, but she was just cognizant enough to realize that she was in the ocean, being carried by the ways.
She was back in the Dark Ocean, and she didn’t have it in her to try and swim away. To do anything more than just lie there and stare up at the sky. The voices had been scratching at the inside of her head for weeks now, trying to tempt her to come back here, “where she belonged”. And the whole time, Kari had shouldered that burden and those voices by herself, through teaching and dinners with family and friends, and here it had taken her.
The darkness was going to claim her. It was going to push her under the currents and use the light she held for its own nefarious purposes.
And there was nothing she could do.
“Child of Light, I always knew you would come back, and here you are at my home yet again,” a rough voice rang in her head, “Just accept what awaits you and give up. Let the waves wash away the Light and bring you unto my domain.”
Her lips parted just slightly as the spray of the ocean flew on her face from yet another wave. She wanted to say something. To scream. For Gatomon, for Yolei, for her family, but she didn’t have it in her. She felt weak, barely able to keep herself floating along the water. Everything in her head felt fuzzy, except for that booming voice that seemed to absorb everything else. Her arms were held out, the only thing that seemed to keep her afloat, using most of her strength as her eyes slowly closed again, somehow less dark than the world she ended back up in.
“Time after time you push others away, yet once again you end up here. A sign that your presence here is meant to be.”
She pushed them away. Even that day, as the voices got louder and louder and overwhelmed her to the point that she had to lie in bed and hope it could go away, she pushed away Yolei. Her wife, her partner in life, all because she felt like a bother for it. Everyone would just worry if she told them that it was back, waiting impatiently for something to happen, if something happened. Did she even deserve Yolei? Deserve the life she had with her, Ichiro, Haruka, and their Digimon? All of her friends, her family?
No, maybe she didn’t.
All of the sounds slowly started to meld together, gnashing against her mind in a painful cacophony. Would it just be easier to sink beneath the waves and be taken by this?
Maybe… Maybe…
Her presence here was meant to be.
“Kari! Kariiiiiiiiii!”
Huh? Was that…?
Though her eyes were closed, it felt like she could see her. Yolei out there, somewhere, looking for her. Trying to find her. But there was no way she could actually be there, right? She was trapped here, no one else could be here… no one but her and the one who brought her here.
She could still hear her wife, repeatedly calling for her, her cries getting more and more distressed, close to breaking as her voice strained with each shout.
Rain started to fall, quickly picking up and drenching not just Kari in the ocean, but also Yolei, whose bangs were now matted to her face and stuck to her glasses, and Gatomon and Aquilamon.
She could see the pitch black silhouette with its shining red eyes piercing the horizon, and her fingers gripped Aquilamon’s feathers tighter than before.
“I don’t care who you are!” she screamed, “Give me back my wife!”
“The Child of Light is actually the Bride of Light? It doesn’t matter, she has brought herself to my domain and I will not let go of her. I will take her Light and plunge it into Dark as I have sought to do for so long.”
Yolei brought a hand to her head and clenched her eyes shut as the voice spoke directly into her head, rattling her skull.
“I will keep her, so go now or drown.”
She grit her teeth, trying to steady herself as the voice finally went quiet.
“We’re not giving up Kari!” Gatomon shouted at the hulking behemoth.
“Right!” Aquilamon shouted.
They were right, they wouldn’t give her up. Yolei helped bring her back from the brink before, and she would do it again, no matter what.
“Kari! We’ll fight this darkness together! As many times as it takes! I don’t care how tough it is and I don’t care what’s out there trying to take you away, but I’m here! Remember what I said? The darkness will never beat you! And it will never split us apart! Do you hear me? Kari!”
She hoped Kari could hear her voice. She needed her to know this, to know her strength. No matter what happened, she would be strong enough to get through this. And Yolei would always be there to remind her of that and fight for her.
Yolei’s eyes began to scan the ocean, looking for any hint of her.
“Where is she? Where is she…?” she mumbled to herself, head jerking in every direction to try and spot her. Finally, her eyes spotted pale alabaster in a sea of murky waves, and she felt her heart stop.
“Aquilamon, there!” she shouted, pointing in the direction she was. As soon as they were above her, Yolei pushed herself up and jumped off her partner, careening towards the water as she dove down.
“Yolei!”
“Yolei, what are you doing!?”
She could hear the Digimon, but their voices felt far away as she plunged into the water, barely able to keep hold of her glasses. She broke the surface and swam over to Kari, struggling against the current the whole time.
“Kari! Kari I’m here!” she shouted. She could see Kari’s eyes, just barely open, but they still held the same affection as always. It was the smallest shining light imaginable in this hell. Kari let out a weak cough, offering her a small smile as she reached out a hand to her. Yolei grabbed it, doing her best to tread water. “Please, tell me you’re ok,” she begged.
“Thank you… for always fighting for me. I’m sorry… I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I just… I didn’t want to bother you. I didn’t want to worry the kids,” she breathed out, tears pooling at the corners of her eyes, “I don’t want it to split us up.”
“It won’t, I promise. We’ll keep each other safe, just like we always have.”
Ever since she realized the errors of her ways, how horrible she had been, and how happily Kari was to accept her in her life as a friend and eventually a lover, she wanted to keep Kari safe. And she wanted Kari to keep her safe— it would be how they got through the tough times together.
“We’ll go home and-and the kids will be so happy to see you, and we can have dinner, whatever you want, even if it’s something I think is gross,” Yolei rambled.
Kari laughed weakly, “Even shirasu don?”
“I’ll eat five bowls of it just for you,” Yolei choked out, unable to stop herself from crying, too.
“Kari! Kari!” Gatomon cried out as Aquilamon finally lowered to the water’s surface.
Yolei reached for Kari, pulling her towards her and helping push her up onto her Digimon.
“Yolei, get on!” Aquilamon shouted. Yolei started to swim towards Aquilamon, but before she could get to her partner, she started to struggle.
“Get her… out… of here!” Yolei gasped before she dropped beneath the tides.
“Yolei!” Kari shouted, reaching into the water to be met with nothing.
“We can’t leave without her!” Kari screamed, panic clear in her eyes as she couldn’t even so much as see any sign of the other in the water.
Aquilamon, however, pulled away, and started to head back to the shore.
“I’ll go back for her, but Yolei wanted to make sure you were safe!” Aquilamon said. Aquilamon flew fast, nearly crashing into the sand as he met the ground. Kari tumbled off Aquilamon and Gatomon hopped next to her.
“How are we going to get her? None of us can swim,” Kari whimpered. The three stared out at the horizon, and at this point, the waves were so rough that none of them could even begin to guess where she was.
Yolei saved her. Yolei did everything she could to save her, and now it was because of her that her wife would drown. Kari’s body shook as tears started to fall uncontrollably.
“Yolei! Yoleeeeeeeeeeeeei!” she screamed, gasping for breath after, “Yolei! Don’t leave me! Please!”
She pushed herself up and tried to run forward, before almost immediately tumbling forward into the water. She got onto her knees, hands digging into the wet sand to try and anchor herself as the tide ebbed and flowed. She didn’t have her Digivice, none of the others were there…
“Yolei! Yolei! I’m sorry!” she screamed, hoping to be heard above the wind and the waves.
“I will claim this one’s lifeless body and then as the Light inside you burns out, I will take you and let the darkness fill you as it has been waiting to do so.”
Kari gripped her head, unable to stop herself from screaming.
“Not like this, not like this,” she mumbled to herself. It was a struggle, but she forced her eyes open.
“Yolei! I love you! You’re my light, and I can’t lose that or you!”
A bright light gathered at her chest, over her heart, and she started to glow. Gatomon and Aquilamon rushed forward, and the light gathered and shot towards the two of them, enveloping them. Kari turned to watch in silent awe.
A deep red light shot from the murky ocean, a beacon in the dense darkness, before turning to shoot towards the Digimon. The two lights fused together, before shooting out in a blinding burst of pink and red energy.
“Gatomon!”
“Aquilamon!”
“DNA Digivolve to…!”
The light shimmered away to reveal their DNA Digivolved form.
“Silphymon!”
Without wasting a moment, Silphymon shot into the air with a speed never before seen from her, jetting straight towards where the light from the ocean had come from. She dove into the water, an aura of light covering her and keeping her safe as she swam down deeper and deeper and deeper. It was hard to tell, but she could just manage to see Yolei, still sinking further into the depths.
From the shore, Kari watched with her jaw dropped, heart pounding in her ears as she waited for something, anything, that could show they were ok. She couldn’t lose any of them.
She didn’t know what she would do if she did.
But suddenly, a geyser of water shot up and Kari squinted to see Silphymon, with Yolei draped over her shoulders.
“You can try and save them all you want, but you’ll fail. I will kill you and claim the Child of Light no matter what it takes!”
Silphymon’s jaw clenched, as she stared at the silhouette that seemed to be covered by that perpetual fog.
“Kari and Yolei are our friends, our family, and our partners, and you’ll never lay a hand on them!” Silphymon shouted.
“Thousand Whips!”
The fog broke just enough for an innumerable amount of tentacles to burst forth towards Silphymon, but the Digimon was unfazed.
Instead, she started to charge up energy, once again radiating that aura she had when she Digivolved.
“Static Force!”
It was an attack Kari knew all too well from all of the foes the two of them fought against, but this was unlike anything Silphymon had ever unleashed before. Far larger than any attack their partners had unleashed in this form, and Kari couldn’t help but wonder if this would be something to surpass one of Wargreymon’s strongest attacks.
The blast of pink energy tore through the tentacles, shredding them into pixels of data effortlessly and dissipating the fog. Kari could see the face of her long-time tormentor, some sort of horrible sea monster adorned with prayer beads, chains, and strange markings. But the sight was short-lived, because as soon as the blast had met the monster, it too was destroyed instantly.
And once it was, Kari suddenly felt like she could breathe, like a massive weight had finally been lifted off her shoulders. Her first taste of air after decades plunged into the darkest depths.
Silphymon sped back towards her, reaching her in no time, and gently set Yolei’s unconscious form down and into Kari’s arms.
“She’s still breathing,” Kari whispered, then looked up at Silphymon, “Thank you for saving her. For saving us.”
“We wouldn’t be able to call ourselves your partners if we couldn’t keep you safe, could we?” Silphymon asked, trying to break the tension in the air with the soft-spoken comment.
Kari held onto Yolei tight, crying into the crook of her shoulder while the two Digimon de-Digivolved into Gatomon and Hawkmon. As they did, the Dark Ocean seemed to melt away around them, slowly fading into the shore of the beach at Odaiba. Though it was pitch black outside, the lights of the city shone behind them.
“We’re back home…” Hawkmon said with a sigh of relief. Yolei slowly started to stir, then began to hack, sputtering out water from her lungs. Kari pulled away just enough to give her wife some space, the relief on her face clear.
“Yolei, Yolei, you’re ok,” Kari said with a wavering voice. Her eyes slowly fluttered open and she looked at Kari, her face instantly breaking into a wide smile.
“You’re safe…” she breathed out before coughing again.
“Yolei, please, don’t push yourself,” Kari told her.
“’M fine, I’m fine,” she mumbled, shaking her head, “You can’t expect me not to push myself now that I know you’re safe and sound.”
She was safe and sound, they both were, when it wasn’t that long ago that she was ready to give herself up to the Dark Ocean.
“I know, but I’m still going to tell you,” Kari said, gently tracing her fingers down Yolei’s right cheek, just to assure herself that she was real and there. That she wasn’t still floating in that horrible ocean, ready to be brought under at any moment.
“Fair enough,” Yolei said, letting out another cough. She then looked back at Kari, that grin turning slightly mischievous, “So I’m your light, huh?”
The tears started to stream down her face faster and Kari couldn’t help but laugh, “Of course you are, silly,” she said, slowly devolving into a crying, laughing mess as she pulled Yolei back in for a tight hug.
Yolei pulled away, just for a moment as she planted a long kiss on her lips, then nuzzled into her again.
“I hope you know that you’ve always been my light. And you always will be.”
To Have and To Hold From This Day Forward: Chapter 2 - You Make Me Feel Warm
My second entry for Miyakari Autumn! I still plan on working on the last two and will hopefully have those posted in December! I have some good ideas but I need to make them clearer and have the time to actually work on them.
This one is a little bit shorter because I worked with a writing/dialogue exercise I saw and wanted to test myself when it came to limitations/strict guidelines in writing a piece, so I'm really nervous about it, but I hope you all enjoy! And thank you again to @sluggybasson107 and @digitalworldbound for putting on this wonderful event and letting me be sapphic as hell with my writing <3
Summary: This is just but one stop in the long road that is and will be Kari and Yolei's life: their honeymoon.
You can also find the whole thing on AO3 here!
---
“You’re still looking at the lights?”
Kari looked over her shoulder, her smile soft and warm as she locked eyes with Yolei. She nodded to the balcony, still leaning against the railing despite the light dusting of snow.
“They are pretty beautiful,” Yolei said simply, settling next to her wife. She stared out at the bustling city that stretched out for miles, all lit up for the holidays.
“I kind of want to just stand out here all night and watch. It’s so over the top compared to home,” she said, her eyes sweeping over what seemed like a forest of trees all lit up in reds, yellows, and blues.
“You’re right.” Yolei had traveled to plenty of places during her university years, but there were few places that were as grand a spectacle in the winter as New York.
“Coming here was a great idea,” Kari said, letting out a content sigh.
Yolei hummed in agreement.
“It’s been a great honeymoon,” Kari smiled, angling her head to get a better look at Yolei, offering her that same, trademark smile that always caused butterflies to swarm around in her stomach. Even after so many years, it still had that effect on her. She wondered if Kari still had that same feeling with her even now.
Yolei leaned into Kari, who nuzzled into Yolei’s arm.
“I remember when we got serious… I wracked my brain thinking of where I’d want to suggest for our honeymoon,” Yolei admitted, her cheeks starting to burn a deep crimson as she glanced away.
“So you decided to take us to the busiest city in two worlds,” Kari teased gently. Yolei couldn’t help but blush as she stared ahead.
A beat of silence drowned the world out, then Yolei swallowed hard, “Did you ever expect to end up here when we first met?” she asked, hoping the light tone of her voice undercut the seriousness of her question.
“I used to believe I’d end up in a similar place. That one day I would get married, have a child, and teach when I didn’t need to stay home all day,” Kari explained.
A taxi driver laid on their horn, sound blaring through the borough, rising all the way up to their hotel room, and it mingled with English Christmas songs that were playing from an old, tinny speaker at a corner store.
Kari smiled, a light pink dusting her own cheeks as she looked down at her wedding ring to admire it. She twisted it with her right index finger and thumb, her smile growing the whole time.
Yolei sighed, “I wish I didn’t think like this, but I can’t really help it. I guess part of me still thinks about the past and how we started out. And then I can’t help but feel like… I don’t know, maybe I don’t deserve this?” Her stomach turned and she was unable to look Kari in the eyes at that moment, as tears started to glisten in her own.
Kari reached for Yolei’s left hand with her own, their rings gently clinking together, then looked at her, “You never have to worry, because I’m always going to be glad that I have you by my side for better or worse,” she told her, her voice a whisper that was nearly drowned out by the sounds of the city. Kari wanted Yolei to be the only one to hear it, though.
Yolei cradled Kari’s cheek with her free hand, then closed her eyes and leaned in to gently and lovingly kiss her.
[Image Description: A digital drawing of Miyako and Hikari as an elderly couple cuddling. The background is a muted pink while Miyako and Hikari have a white boarder around them. Hikari has her head resting on Miyako's shoulder, hugging her wife. Their eyes are shut with glasses. Miyako has a purple sweater and black leggings while Hikari has a white sweater, pink shirt, and a long yellow skirt. Their shoes are generic black slippers. End Image Description.]
💜🩷 Miyakari Autumn Event 🩷💜 Day 4 (You make me feel warm)
Entry for Miyakari week's third prompt: cold and alone!! didn't manage to do yesterday's prompt as I originally planned, but I still wanted to participate a little, so here we are.
Miyakari Week/Miyakari Autumn (MiyaHika Week) Day 3: Cold and Alone
Dark Ocean.
The neverending nightmare for Hikari as the bearer of light. It is mostly associated with her special stats (and also her negative feelings).
My take of Dark Ocean is that it takes references from Dark Cave (or Dark Space) in Adventure (where Yamato and Sora are trapped because of their negative feelings). Besides the said cave, the said individuals are literally sinking to the bottomless dark water with no point of return (that is until their partner digimon and their friends slap some sense on them).
I guess this can be applied to Hikari (which kinda fits her emotional struggle and how her tendency to resign herself to fate makes the situation worse-blame her altruistic side of this!). The bearer of light sinks below the surface of Dark Ocean which is basically the bottomless ocean. Miyako, who just witnessed Hikari's most vulnerable side, cannot afford to lose her precious friend. For saving her friend, she will do anything. Even diving to the Dark Ocean so that she can save Hikari, reassuring the younger brunette that she is not alone anymore.
characters: hikari and miyako
summary: When Hikari is bombarded with the possibility of being in love with her best friend, she panics. As she slowly comes to terms with her new-found feelings, Hikari discovers that there is a lot more to her self than she originally thought.
a/n: sorry i'm posting day two a little late! i went to go see the ballad of songbirds and snakes tonight!
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
To Have and To Hold From This Day Forward: Chapter 1 - Falling For You
My first entry for Miyakari Autumn is here!!! Thank you so much to @sluggybasson107 and @digitalworldbound for putting this on, I have been SO excited!!! I'm starting with Day 2 but will be working on the other days next month once I've finished with some big priorities!
I have wanted to write this idea for a while and it all came to a head when I decided recently to make this entire fic based around a Digimon Emperor!Yolei and Gogglehead!Kari AU, and I'm so so so excited to share this first one with y'all because I am very happy with it, haha. I absolutely LOVE Miyakari and I'm glad I got hit by the Miyakari bug recently because these two girls are so wonderful and I love them with all my life. My daughters who are also wives.
Summary:
Kari Kamiya never expected to take over as the leader for a new group of Digidestined. She never expected that she would have to lead new and old friends into battle against another Digidestined that wants to take over the Digital World.
And she would have never in her wildest dreams expected to one day share a future and a life with her.
You can also find it on AO3 here!
---
No matter how much they did, how many spires they toppled, and how many Digimon they freed, the Digimon Emperor started right back up whenever they left the Digital World without fail. The fact that she didn’t need to worry about resting and could instead throw as many poor Digimon at them as she wanted without any concern simply caused anger to flare up in her chest even more as they approached a small mountainside village that had recently fallen under control of the Emperor.
TK flanked her and Davis covered the ground approach on Raidramon with Cody and Armadillomon in tow. She swallowed hard as they got closer, and snapped her goggles over her eyes. “TK, you go left, I’ll go right!” Kari shouted, trying her hardest to make sure she was heard over the harsh winds. She looked down and saw Raidramon coming up on the semi-fortified gate to the village, and knew that now was the time to strike. The Digimon in the village had them outnumbered, but with most of them being rookies and a handful of Centarumon backing them up, it seemed manageable. She didn’t want to fight them, but it was just until they could get the control spire down. They had been through much worse than this in the past few weeks, and they would free this village no matter what.
The crack of thunder screamed through the air as the wooden gate to the village shattered into splinters and Raidramon burst through. Cody and Armadillomon hopped off his back, and Cody wasted no time Armor Digivolving his partner into Digmon. So far, so good. There was no sign of the Control Spire, but there was also no sign of the Emperor.
“Rosetta Stone!”
“Star Shower!”
The two attacks launched towards a clumped up group of rookies and two Centarumon, the impact of thee stone slab against the ground stunning them before the stars broke the Dark Rings. She frantically looked around for the Control Spire, her eyes only catching thick forests and far off mountain peaks. As the sounds of Raidramon and Digmon shouting out their attacks rang in the air, Kari’s breathing started to speed up, the knowledge that Davis and Cody could get overwhelmed if they took too long leaving her on edge. There was a brief reflection of the sun’s harsh rays that glared against her goggles, and she pulled them up and shaded her eyes with her hand. Kari’s eyes widened as she saw just a hint of shiny black in the mountain range that she immediately recognized.
“She must have thought we wouldn’t be able to find it…” she mumbled to herself.
It was far out of the way and well hidden, and there was no way this wasn’t personally chosen by the Emperor to best maximize the space she controlled. Kari looked down at Davis and Cody.
“Hey! I found the Control Spire!” she shouted. Davis shot her a thumbs up and a grin.
“Kick its butt!” he shouted, “We’ll be fine down here!”
She hoped so.
Pegasusmon’s wings flapped as TK caught up to her.
“As soon as we knock that spire down, the Digimon in the village will be back to normal, let’s go,” Kari said, and Nefertimon sped off ahead.
“Hey, wait up!” TK shouted, and Pegasusmon flew after her, “Kari! Slow down!”
But no, she couldn’t slow down. She wanted to topple that tower as fast as possible, because these Digimon needed to be freed.
How could she be so cruel? To try and rule the Digital World with an iron fist without any care for the world or its inhabitants. How could she sleep at night? Kari could still barely believe she had her own partner.
How could she be so unlike the girl she met at school just a few weeks ago?
***
Even though she and the other DigiDestined had been working their butts off around the Digital World, gym class never seemed to get easier. Today they were running, and despite how she had managed to outrun a Unimon while being chased yesterday, this was somehow worse.
Kari managed to stick to the middle of the pack, and had been so focused on keeping a decent pace that she hadn’t noticed someone run up next to her. Their footsteps were in sync, and it was only once she finally noticed the extra noise that she turned her head, nearly letting out a yelp as a girl with lavender hair had seemed to pop out of nowhere. However, it didn’t take long to realize who it was: Yolei Inoue.
She was a year older than her, but Kari knew about her from all the positive things Izzy had to say about her from her involvement with the school’s computer club— especially about the fact that she was something of a whiz when it came to programming. He passed leadership on to her when he moved on to middle school, but still kept in touch with her frequently.
“All this running sucks, huh?” Kari asked between breaths. Maybe starting up a conversation would make the rest of the period go faster.
“Yeah, I hate it. I wish we could run inside or something, it’s getting too warm,” Yolei said, wiping a light sheen of sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.
“You’re Kari Kamiya, right?” Yolei asked. Kari’s eyes widened as her eyes locked onto Yolei.
“Oh— yeah! How did you—”
“Your brother’s come into our store before. He’s talked about you a bunch,” she said, then nodded to the goggles that hung from Kari’s neck, “Plus I recognize your goggles.”
Kari looked down and laughed gently, “I guess they do make a statement.”
“They really do,” Yolei smiled. Kari suddenly felt flush, but shook her head. The heat must have been getting to her…
It was weird, but this was one of the first times in a while she really talked to another girl her age. Sure, Sora and Mimi were her friends, but the latter was in America and the former was busy with sports and school. She couldn’t exactly tag along with either of them that much, not when she was so busy in the Digital World.
At the same time, though, she felt a bit lost. Yolei was a little bit older than her, and she couldn’t help but feel out of her league. The gym teacher’s whistle rang through the air over at another track where the boys were running.
“I bet you’re usually pretty busy with computer club, huh?” Kari finally asked as they rounded the track.
“Yeah, but the vice president’s been handling a lot for me since I’ve had a lot to take care of after school,” she said.
“Oh! Are you helping out with your family’s store?” she asked.
“Mhm.”
Things went quiet between them, and Kari focused on not falling behind.
“You’re friends with Cody, right? I see you hanging out with him and that other guy a lot,” Yolei finally said. Kari blinked.
“Oh, yeah, him and Davis. Or do you mean TK?” she asked. She hadn’t realized Yolei seemed to notice her that much, but it sort of made sense— she had recognized her by her goggles, after all.
“I meant the loud one with the dark, spiky hair, but I guess both,” Yolei said. Kari started to laugh, which turned into a wheeze with how out of breath she had been getting.
“Yeah, he’s kind of a character,” Kari said, still smiling. “Cody’s a great kid, too— how do you know him?”
“We’ve been neighbors for years.”
“Well if you ever want to hang out, I’m sure Cody would be happy to hang out with you, too,” Kari offered.
“I’ll have to see,” she said, her voice suddenly sounding clipped. Kari felt herself shrink a bit as she looked over at the other girl, suddenly feeling so much smaller than she already was.
Kari focused straight ahead, her face suddenly burning as she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.
Thankfully, the teacher blew their whistle again, signaling the students to finish, and the two girls skidded to a stop simultaneously. Kari plopped down on the ground, taking some time to catch her breath, then Yolei stepped in front of her, casting a much needed shadow over her. Kari looked up, and Yolei offered her a hand. Kari took an extra moment to rest, then grabbed Yolei’s hand to get up.
“I’m sure we’ll see each other a lot more,” Yolei said with a smile on her face.
Kari felt the heat get to her again and her cheeks flushed. She needed to get some water to try and cool off…
“Y-Yeah… I hope so.”
***
Her breathing sped up as the memory rolled through her mind. Bile rose in her throat and she had to choke it down as anger flooded her. All she could focus on now was the black obelisk just ahead, and destroying it.
“Kari!”
TK’s shout registered too late, and as Kari looked over at him, she saw a blade of air shooting up at her from the edge of her peripheral vision.
“Nefertimon, watch—!”
Although Nefertimon started to move right, the attack still slammed into Nefertimon’s left wing, causing her to spin and Kari to fall off.
“Kariiiiiiiiii!”
TK’s scream was distant as she plummeted. She clenched her eyes shut out of sheer fear, feeling the wind whip against her body before it suddenly stopped. Before she suddenly stopped. Kari hesitantly opened her eyes and looked around, only to be met with a pair of big, round lenses.
“So you’ve finally fallen for me, huh?”
The Emperor.
She was holding her in a princess carry as she rode atop an Airdramon that was flying just above the canopy of the forest below. Kari flushed and glared at Yolei.
“Why did you catch me?” she asked harshly. The Digimon Emperor raised an eyebrow, then tilted her head and smiled.
“And let you fall?”
“It would get rid of a lot of your problems,” Kari spat. Yolei gasped in faux offense.
“But then I wouldn’t be able to see you, and I do so enjoy our meetings,” Yolei grinned.
Despite the intense wind and the harsh chill that came from it, Kari felt her face heat up intensely even as she shivered.
“I told you we’d see each other a lot more, and I intend on making sure that stays true. It’d be a shame if I lost out,” she added.
“So you’re doing this all just to… to see me more?” Kari asked, jaw dropped in disbelief.
Yolei cackled and shook her head, “Oh, I didn’t realize you had such an ego, Kamiya.”
“I-It’s not an ego…” Kari trailed off quietly.
It wasn’t lost on the brunette that she was still being held so gently by the Emperor. It was unnerving, and the more she thought about it the more her heart sped up.
“No, seeing you is just one of the many joys of it all,” she added
“Why are you doing all of this?” Kari asked. Despite how angry she was, her voice came out as little more than a weak, indignant squeak against her foe.
“I told you, because I truly do enjoy our time together, as rare as it is.”
That caused Kari’s flush to deepen and her brow to furrow, “N-Not that! I meant taking over the Digital World! Hurting all these innocent Digimon! Why would you want to do this!?” she shouted.
In an instant Yolei’s expression became impassive. She looked over her shoulder, seeing the small dot that was Pegasusmon’s attempt to approach the Control Spire and her minions. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Then tell me so I can understand!” Kari begged.
Yolei scoffed, slowly turning to look back down at Kari, “No,” she said simply. Kari couldn’t stop herself from tearing up. But even that wasn’t enough to stir Yolei.
Her cape whipped in the wind which was the only sound around them.
“Even if I told you, would that change anything?” she finally asked.
“O-Of course it—”
“Of course it wouldn’t,” Yolei interrupted immediately, “We would still be enemies. You and your friends would still hate me. What would be the point?”
Kari was speechless, her face crestfallen as she looked up at the Emperor.
No, she wasn’t the Emperor… it felt like this was the best look at Yolei Inoue she had ever gotten. Her heart ached.
“If we were enemies you wouldn’t have caught me, or-or you would’ve dropped me already,” Kari said, her voice cracking.
“I already told you, I enjoy you too much to stop our little games of cat and mouse.”
That cool, confident aura came back in an instant, and it seemed impenetrable.
Maybe there was no way to get her to realize why this was all so horrible.
Maybe there was no getting through to her.
Maybe there wasn’t even someone to get through to.
Kari didn’t want to believe that there wasn’t a good side of Yolei somewhere. Somewhere, deep down, there just had to be. Even if the others thought otherwise, she couldn’t believe it was as simple as that.
Even if it was becoming harder and harder to think it, Kari still wanted to believe it with all of her heart.
There had to be good in Yolei Inoue.
“Cat’s Eye Beam!”
Two red hot lasers sailed right by Yolei, missing by only a few feet. Yolei clenched her jaw as she saw it from her peripheral vision.
“It’s a shame that our time together is up again,” she sighed, not wistful or playful, but genuine.
“Kari!”
Before Kari could say anything, TK, Pegasusmon, and Nefertimon started to approach, flanking Airdramon on both sides.
“Put her down right now!” Nefertimon shouted.
“You’re not getting away with her!” TK followed up.
The look on Yolei’s face was… smug. Confident.
Like she knew she would be able to get away with her.
Kari’s stomach churned again.
“Well, my dear,” Yolei started, “I guess it’s time to say goodbye yet again.”
Nefertimon sped up, now flying next to Airdramon.
“You know, Takaishi, if you try and shoot me down, she’ll go, too! Be careful!” she taunted, laughing after. Kari could practically feel TK’s anger despite the distance.
Yolei let her down gently, and Kari looked at her with sad eyes, before she took a breath and jumped. Nefertimon managed to maneuver herself for Kari to land on her in time.
“Silver Blaze!”
Pegasusmon fired an emerald beam from his forehead directly at Airdramon, but it zoomed up, dodging just in the nick of time. TK and Pegasusmon stopped next to Kari and Nefertimon, watching as Aidramon twisted in the air to face them. Yolei looked down at them.
“It was fun, but I really must be going. I have big plans to work on,” she said, that playful tone seeping back into her voice. She then brought her hand to her mouth and blew a kiss to Kari in an exaggerated manner, then waved with her fingers.
“Goodbye, my darling and your merry band of fools! I can’t wait to square off again! Ohohohohoho!”
Kari was still, quiet, trying to keep a stony expression but unable to hide the way her face was becoming redder by the moment. TK’s knuckles were turning white with how hard he was clenching his hands.
“Blue Thunder!”
Another attack shot up, this time from the ground, as a large ball of lightning sped towards Airdramon. Airdramon flapped its wings, causing the attack to dissipate, and the harsh gust nearly caused Nefertimon and Pegasusmon to spin away.
Without another word, Yolei flew away, still standing on Airdramon’s head. Nefertimon and Pegasusmon slowly landed, and Kari offered a weak smile to Davis and Cody.
“I’m so sorry I went off ahead without you all,” she said sheepishly, “I saw the Control Spire and I thought if I could take it down, then we could be done.” Once again she got ahead of herself and was more focused on finishing the job than doing it safely.
Tai wouldn’t have done that. Even if her brother could be rash, the safety of the group under his watch was always paramount. She was barely treading water in comparison.
“Kari, it’s ok. You don’t have to apologize, we came out of it ok,” TK said, offering her a lopsided smile. That smile didn’t offer her much reprieve in those moments, though.
“Even though TK is right, it’s important that we’re more careful next time,” Cody said. She knew Cody didn’t mean to lecture her, it was just a reminder of her mistake. A mistake that was so obvious in hindsight, but her tunnel vision left her so dead set on the immediate victory that seemed just in reach.
She wished she could just set all that guilt aside, but it was going to stay with her for a long time, she knew it. Even if they took down the Control Spire and helped the village, it could’ve gone so wrong. Someone could’ve gotten hurt.
“Where does that stupid Digimon Emperor get off trying to kidnap you, anyways!? Ugh, she’s the worst,” Davis huffed. He folded his arms and pouted, now glaring up at the sky
“She wasn’t always like this…” Cody mumbled, “I wonder what caused her to change… or if she was always like this.”
Kari looked up at the sky, holding her hand up to her heart. Yolei was long gone by now, probably planning some new way to ambush them. She was starting to add more forces to major areas she wanted to hold onto, and they’d have to push hard to try and free those sections from her control. If Yolei was able to separate her from the group, then those excursions would probably be doomed in an instant. There was going to be a lot of planning and preparation in the upcoming days…
A hand on her shoulder caused her to jump in place. Her eyes went wide and she started to pant.
“Whoa! I’m sorry, you were zoned out there, so I wanted to let you know we were thinking about heading back,” TK said.
Kari let out a long, relieved exhale, “Yeah… yeah that’s a good idea. Sorry, just a lot on my mind.”
“Let’s head back then! We deserve to relax!” Davis whooped.
But even still, Kari couldn’t tear her eyes away from the horizon, where the Digimon Emperor lay in wait somewhere out there.
She could feel her heart speed up again, as a rush of butterflies started to swarm in her stomach. So many of the things that had happened during this trip to the Digital World slotted together perfectly. Neurons lit up, causing a light bulb to shine as bright as the sun in her brain.
[Image Description: A digital drawing of Miyako and Hikari in their halloween outfits (Miyako as the devil and black Hikari as a cat) from the promotional art for the 02 movie. Miyako faces Hikari with hearts near her head. She’s smiling while bringing Hikari close with their hands clasped together. Pink hearts are around Miyako’s head and the characters have a white border around them. The background is a dark pink with a light pink background. End Image Description.]
A ficlet for Miyakari Week Day One | School Daze: school festivals, stressing for exams, nature walk, picnics.
A/N: Hi, I'm alive and writing for the first time in well over a year. Miyakari makes me so happy in a way I can't even begin to describe, so I desperately wanted to create something for at least one day of their celebration week! 🩷💜
Summary: Hikari and Miyako trek through the forest in search of inspiration.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
hello! this fic is dedicated to @sloanerisette ! thank you for your humor, dedication to the fandom, and your continuous contribution to Miyakari 💪💕
characters: hikari and miyako
summary: When Hikari is bombarded with the possibility of being in love with her best friend, she panics. As she slowly comes to terms with her new-found feelings, Hikari discovers that there is a lot more to her self than she originally thought.
(each chapter of this fic will be a represent a different prompt of miyakari week! thank you all for your continued support! )
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Miyakari Week/Miyakari Autumn (MiyaHika Week) Day 1: School Daze
It was such a surprise to find out that there is a event dedicated to Miyako and Hikari as the couple. Thanks to the mod for this event!
Okay, enough of the out-of-topic talk.
Even the different grade year is not a problem for the girls. Which is apparent in Miyako (the 3rd grade middle schooler) helping Hikari (the 2nd grade middle schooler) do her homework.
This is post-02 content (or canon divergence-ish .tri content if you want) in terms of timeline.
📚 School Daze; School festivals, stressing for exams, nature walk, and picnics
🍂 Falling For You; Apple picking, corn mazes, pumpkin patches, Halloween costumes, cosplay, “Hold me I’m scared”
❄️ Cold and Alone; The Dark Ocean, angst, unrequited feelings, loneliness
💕 You make me feel warm; Baking, eating sweets, video games, cuddling, watching movies, playing in the snow
We’re back!
After a brief intermission, we are back for Miyakari content! This content creation event will only be four days long, taking place November 16th - 19th! The event hashtag will be #fallingformiyakari
Thank you guys for being patient and understanding- life gets crazy sometimes! We are so excited to see what you guys create!
