“Goodbyes Aren't Forever”

By

Jennifer Morton

and

Shelli-Jo Pelletier

* * *

~~~ Jennifer's P.O.V. ~~~

We were battling the evil virus, which was proving to be more difficult then we had hoped. We weren't prepared for the power this thing posessed. He acutally managed to absorb our Digimon's data as well as ours. Just when things were looking grim, Lexxy and Izzy managed to summon all the FDD Digidestined and Digimon in the world to show up and help us fight. With their help, both Magimon and Sunemon finally digivolved into thier mega forms, Magickmon and Kitsunemon. It was amazing! We defeated the virus and saved the Digital world! I wonder what will happen now?

* * *

Home. . . .

The words hung in the air like fireflies, tantalizing and magical . . . but somehow fragile. The FDD’s looked at one another as Izzy continued to talk, unaware of their discomfort.

“All that remains is to return the Digital World to its original form, before the virus’s interference. It’ll be rather like a computer rebooting, in my opinion,” added the short redheaded boy thoughtfully.

Samee tipped her head. “What . . . does that mean for us, exactly?” she asked, voicing the thoughts of all the other FDD’s.

Izzy got quiet. For the Crest holder of Knowledge, this was not a good sign.

Tai took it upon himself to answer the uncomfortable question. “Well, we kinda think that, when the Digiworld goes back to normal, everything here gets erased. Like, all the pieces from the Internet and stuff. . . .”

There was a heavy silence, until Jenn cleared her throat. “You mean, everything that was created by us . . . including our characters and-and our Digimon. . . ?”

Tai just nodded wordlessly.

“We’ll never be able to come back here, will we?” Tania muttered, her hands in her pockets.

“It’s not likely,” Sora admitted, feeling uncomfortable. After all, how would she feel if she was told she had to say goodbye to Biyomon?

Skye’s blue eyes filled with tears that she tried to hold back, not wanted to cause a scene. “W-what? But if everything is erased . . . our Digimon—!”

“They’ll return to their original form, as data on the Internet,” replied Matt.

That wasn’t much comfort for the FDD’s. Their Digimon stayed close to their partners, looking up at them quietly. None of them asked any questions, or objected. They understood what was going to happen, but as the selfless protectors of the Digital World, they knew this was the only way. They took comfort knowing that their human partners would finally be returning to their own world, even if it would be alone.

“H-how long do we have?” Erica said, sniffling. “Do we have time to say goodbye?”

Izzy nodded. “We shouldn’t wait too long, lest the data become unstable. But it doesn’t need to be done immediately.”

“Let’s meet back here in an hour,” Jenn said quietly. Without further speech, the FDD’s and their Digimon each turned and walked off in separate directions. They wanted to be alone for this. The original Digidestined stood there and let them go. They understood that some things had to be done in private, and they trusted the other children to return in time.

* * *

Samee and Sunemon sat on a cliff side, staring blankly off at the sky.

Samee sighed, looking down at Sunemon. She wondered what would have happened had she never been put under the spell of her own character, the Digimon Queen. She and Sunemon would have more to reminisce about now. "I'm sorry, Sunemon."

"About what, Samee?"

"That I never had the chance to get to know you properly." She paused and stared back up at the sky. "Just think of all the time I was trapped as the Digi Queen. I could have been fighting alongside the others, and being a better friend to you."

"Well, it's never too late, ya know. . . ." Sunemon smiled up at Samee. Samee hugged her Digimon tightly.

* * *

In Secondary Village, Kristina and Jaymon sat among hundreds of colorful digi-eggs.

Jaymon looked curiously over her human's shoulder, seeing her strange posture. "Whatcha doin' Kristina?"

"You'll see." She pulled a piece of paper out of view, so as not to ruin the surprise. "Almost done!" After a final scribble and then, "There, all done!" Kristina turned around, presenting Jaymon with a drawing.

"Is that for me?" Jaymon gasped.

"Something for you to remember me by." Kristina smiled widely. This was her perfect way to say goodbye.

Jaymon flapped her wings excitedly, pointing to the drawing. "It's us!" she chirped, hugging he partner. "Thanks, I love it!"

* * *

Erica and Cheekomon lay in a bright grassy field, staring up at the clouds.

"That one looks like a Garurumon having a bad fur day!" Erica laughed, pointing to one of the clouds. She was trying hard to be strong about all this, but inside she was bawling.

Cheekomon tried to laugh along with her Digidestined, but was struggling to hold in her sadness as well. Finally, she turned to Erica and frowned. Someone would have to say it eventually. "Erica, I don't want you to go."

Erica immediately hugged her Digimon. "I know. I don't want to go either."

The cheetah Digimon's gaze wandered for a moment as a thought ran through her mind. She then looked back at the blonde girl with hopeful, teary eyes. "Erica, could you do something for me?"

"Anything, Cheeko."

"Could you . . . sing for me . . . one more time, please?"

Erica smiled warmly at her Digimon and nodded. Then holding her Digimon closely, she began to sing.

* * *

Alex and Nerimon rested in the woods under the shade of the trees. They searched for the right words to say to one another.

"This is weird," Alex finally said. He sat up, stretching his arms up over his head. "I mean, home is going to be so . . . small compared to all of this." Nerimon also sat up. Alex didn't notice the thoughtful expression on the red dinosaur's face as he continued to reminisce. "I'm gonna miss everything about this place, even the battles!" Alex laughed.

"So what about you and Erica?" Nerimon finally asked, catching Alex totally of guard.

"W-what do you mean?" Alex stuttered, looking away.

"You like her, don't you?"

Alex blushed. "Well, I. . . ."

"You need to tell her how you feel, before it's too late!" Nerimon said urgently. He felt very strongly about this.

"Even if I did, Nerimon, she and I live too far away from each other."

Nerimon looked up at his Digidestined with sad blue eyes. "Alex, remember when we all got separated on different islands? We were all so far away from our friends, but that didn't stop us from getting together again, even when things seemed at their worst."

"That's a good point." Alex sighed. He didn't want to spend his last moments with Nerimon arguing, so he just left it at that. Although Nerimon made a good point, Alex knew that his Digimon could never understand the difference between this world and his own. Instead of saying anything else, he pulled Nerimon close and gave him a noogie.

* * *

Emily and Huntermon took a quiet stroll down the beach, the waves a gentle background noise as they walked. Emily had her hands in her pockets, eyes down on her feet. Huntermon looked down at her paws as well. At the same time, they stopped and looked out at the calm waves.

After a moment, Emily took off her shoes and socks. She wiggled her toes, feeling the cool sand as she walked forward into the surf. As she closed her eyes, she felt the salty wind blow her hair. Emily realized with all the battles and danger they had been through lately, she hadn’t had time to appreciate the Digiworld for the beautiful place that it was.

Huntermon watched her for a moment, head tipped curiously. “Hey Emily,” she said softly. “Do you remember? This is where I digivolved to Agurimon for the very first time.”

Emily looked over her shoulder. “I would never forget that. That Seadramon didn’t know what hit him!” Suddenly she smiled and kicked her feet. The splash of water hit the little fox Digimon, who jumped back.

“Hey!” Seeing her partner’s sneaky grin, Huntermon’s tails began to wag. “I’ll get you for that!” She jumped forward into the waves and splashed Emily back. In moments the two girls were rolling and wrestling in the waves.

* * *

Dani and Pandamon were also on the beach, but a fair distance away. They were sitting and watching the waves. The blonde girl looked at Pandamon, biting her lip reluctantly before asking her question. "Hey Pandamon, would it be okay if I could see Kombatmon one last time?"

Pandamon smiled. "I think you have a crush on him," he teased.

Dani blushed, she couldn't really argue with the fact. She thought Kombatmon was quite the hunk, for a Digimon.

"Pandamon digivolve to . . . Kombatmon!"

The tall, humanoid panda stood before Dani as he smiled warmly at his Digidestined. "Well, here I am," he said simply.

Dani looked up at the Champion with tearful eyes. When she opened her mouth to speak, she burst into sobs and ran to hug her Digimon. "Kombatmon!" she cried.

Kombatmon put a comforting paw on her shoulder and smiled. "Dani, please don't cry," he whispered, wiping his partner’s tears.

* * *

Tania and Yazumon walked through the woods, watching the small woodland Digimon as they went about searching for food. Tania stopped and leaned against a tree. She didn’t know what to say. She wanted to find some quip or joke that would make the situation better, but nothing came to her mind.

Yazumon couldn’t stand the silence any longer. He nudged Tania’s leg. “Tania, please say something?” he begged.

The brown-haired girl sighed. “Why does this have to be so hard?” she whispered. She looked down at her sad-eyed Digimon and forced a smile onto her face. “Hey, it’s been one crazy ride!”

“Yeah, that’s true,” Yazumon laughed.

Tania kneeled down next to her Digimon and took her cap off, plopping it down on his head.

Yazumon looked surprised. “But Tania, when this world is gone—”

“Shh, that doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t have traded any of this for the whole world.”

“Aw, Tania. . . .” The dragon Digimon and the human girl hugged tightly.

* * *

Lina walked along the edge of the woods in a little field, with Diratimon flying just above her head, keeping a lookout. Of course, there was nothing dangerous to look out for. “This place is a whole lot nicer without evil Digimon taking over,” Lina said, looking around. She could hear the sounds of birds (well, bird Digimon) in the trees, and watched the sunlight filtering through the trees. It was a beautiful place. Lina remembered when she first arrived, how the woods had looked so big and scary. Only Dotremon had made her feel like everything was going to be okay. . . .

At that moment, Lina was jolted back to reality when she felt a heavy weight settle over her neck. “Hey, Digiworld to Lina! Come in, Lina!” said the blue spotted dragon.

Lina laughed. “I’m sorry, Diratimon. I was just remembering what it was like when I first got here and we just met.”

“I’ve grown a bit since then,” Diratimon said with a grin.

She nodded, trying to be more serious. “Yeah. We’ve had a bunch of adventures. My life is going to feel so empty after this.”

“Speaking of empty, my stomach is calling for food! Let’s find something to eat!” Diratimon joked, not letting his partner dwell on her sad thoughts.

Lina chuckled and carried her Digimon into the forest to look for some snacks.

* * *

Skye wandered into the thrown room of the Digi Palace, standing proudly in the peaceful Digiworld. She placed a hand on one of the beautiful marble pillars, caressing its smooth texture. As she gazed around, noticing the bright oil paintings and vibrant tapestries hanging on the walls, all the way to the elegant gold and crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, she realized that they were so busy battling and saving the Digiworld that she never had a chance to truly look around this place that she had created in her dreams.

Just after Skye sat on her thrown for the last time, a voice broke through the silence. "Your majesty." Magimon bowed playfully.

The blue-haired girl laughed. "You know very well that once the Digiworld is reborn, this palace and my royalty will no longer exist. I’m going to be just a regular girl again."

"Well, no matter what the future holds, you'll always be a princess to me." Magimon smiled.

Skye blinked back thankful tears. She took off her star locket and looked down at it thoughtfully, then smiled back at the feline Digimon. "Magimon, I want you to have this. Guard it with your life, and remember me." Skye placed it around Magimon’s neck.

Magimon bowed once more, this time being serious. "I will, Princess Skye." And with that she leaped into Skye's lap. She purred loudly as Skye ran her fingers across her soft white and blue fur.

* * *

Lexxy and Cunomon sat on a large, flat rock, soaking up the sun. They looked around the bright scenery without speaking.

“Hey, Lexxy?” asked the little blue dragon finally.

“Yeah?”

Cunomon looked down. “Um, I-I know it seems like we fight a lot, but. . . .” It was always hard for him to be mushy, but he really wanted to say this before it was too late. “Well, I want you to know—I’m really going to miss you, Lexxy. You’re my best friend.”

“Oh, Cuno!” Lexxy wrapped her arms around her partner and gently kissed the top of his head.

Cunomon looked up in surprise. “Lexxy? Are you crying?”

“No, no, I’m fine.” The girl wiped her eyes. “You’re my best friend too, Cuno. You always will be. I’ll never forget you.”

The little dragon’s tail wagged like a happy dog’s. “Thanks, Lexxy. Thanks a lot.” He curled up in her lap and closed his eyes as she happily scratched his ears for him. With the wind rustling her long black hair and the grass around them, Lexxy couldn’t think of a better way to end their last day.

* * *

Jennifer and Foximon sat high up in a tree. Jenn realized, sitting up there, that she was no longer overwhelmed by her fear of heights. It had finally been conquered. Of course, with many of the evils she and the others had faced, it made falling from a tree seem like a harmless thrill ride. She knew she would just pick herself right up again if it happened.

Jenn rested her back against the thick trunk as Foximon curled up on her knee. "This isn't fair," the little fox sniffed.

"Cheer up, Foximon, I know we'll be together again someday," Jennifer replied optimistically.

Foximon was surprised by Jenn’s optimism. "But, Izzy said. . . ."

"Trust me." She hugged her Digimon close. Jenn thought to herself that if this world was anything like the TV show, then she would no doubt see Foximon and the others again.

"You won't forget about me, will you, Jenn?"

The redhead put her arms around Foximon, hugging her tightly. "Foximon, I could never forget about you."

* * *

At sundown, the eleven humans and their Digimon partners met at the Digi Palace, and the original Digidestined with their Digimon weren’t far behind. When everyone had gathered, Izzy told the FDD’s to take off their Crests.

“To accomplish this transference, your Crests need to be placed in close proximity and in a central location.”

Patamon leaned close to Tentomon and whispered, “What did he say?”

“He said they have to put their Crests in the middle of the floor,” the bug Digimon explained.

Together, with their Digimon watching, Jenn and her group of Digidestined came forward and put their Crests in a circle on the throne room floor. As they all took a step back, Erica looked up in surprise, feeling someone slipping a hand into hers. Alex was looking at her and smiled.

“Erica, I need to tell you before it’s too late,” the brown-haired boy said. “I-I really like you.”

“I really like you too, Alex.” Erica wondered if she should do something or just leave it at that, but then she decided to act. She wrapped her arms around Alex and pulled him close, giving him a kiss as everyone burst into a cheer. At the same moment the Crests sprung to life! A multicolored column of light burst up through the circle of Crests, which began to dissolve into pixels as their data began to break down. The breakdown began to spread outward, breaking down the data of the building and reaching for the human children.

The FDD’s looked at one another with some fear in their eyes, wondering if this was supposed to happen. Tai called for them to be calm, and Izzy reassured them that everything was going as planned.

“Come on, guys, let’s do this!” Jenn told her team. She reached out and took Lexxy’s hand on one side, and Skye’s hand on the other. One by one, all the FDD’s took each other hands, as they were standing in a circle around the column of light. Even as everything around them was breaking down, they continued to stand together.

Quickly the FDD’s began to feel lightheaded. The light in front of them was blinding, forcing their eyes to close. Though they struggled to remain conscious, everything began to go black. The last thing they saw was the blinding light in front of them, hearing the voices of their Digimon behind them cheering them on.

* * *

Jennifer picked up her head, wondering where the bright light had gone. She looked down with confusion and saw a pillow under her head. Her hands were not wearing the red gloves that had become familiar to her.

With a gasp Jenn jumped out of bed and caught sight of her reflection in her dark computer screen. Her hair was brown now, not red. She was wearing pajamas, not a lavender tanktop. After a moment of thought, Jenn remembered she left the mysterious box that her goggles had come in on the table (it felt like a lifetime ago!). She looked around the room, but the box was gone, as were the goggles themselves.

Shaking her head, Jenn sank into her computer chair. “It couldn’t have been just a dream. . . .” she muttered to herself. Her hand pressed the power button on the computer. Maybe she would see if anyone was on her instant messenger program, or send some e-mails. She wondered if any of her friends had had the same dream, as crazy as that seemed.

After her computer finished booting up, Jenn turned on her messenger program and her eyes widened with surprise. She couldn’t believe it, but there was the ten familiar names she associated with her friends, fellow Digimon fans. All eleven of the FDD’s were online! That had hardly ever happened before. . . .

A window popped up on her screen, followed by several more. “Jenn your online!”

“You made it!”

“Were all here now!”

Jenn read them as fast as she could, typing so quickly she made a lot of typos (but so did everyone else, so it was fine). As she read their messages, Jenn’s thoughts were confirmed. All ten of her Internet friends were talking about an amazing experience. They talked about invented Digimon and digivolving. They talked about a blue-haired princess and a palace under the sea. About an evil queen who became an ally. About a haunted house and a village of colorful eggs. An amusement park and a firewall. A cloud with evil glowing eyes. A column of light.

Jenn summed it up when she typed out, “There’s no way 11 people could have the same dream. That means it was real.”

Nobody disagreed.

~~~Jennifer P.O.V.~~~

Well there you have it! The story of eleven ordinary kids who got to live out their own daydreams. I wasn't lying to Foximon when I said we'd be together again. If you’re a Digimon fan like my friends and I are, then I'm sure you know very well that things have a way of working out. After all, goodbyes aren't forever. . . .

* * *

Far away in another world, a small red and purple creature was tending to a field full of colorful eggs, muttering to himself while he worked. As Elecmon turned away to tend to a crying Botamon, he missed eleven eggs in a cluster as they began to crack open. At the same time, they broke open and eleven pairs of eyes peeked out at their new world.