Present: The Digital World

"She called it hover-skating," Cody went on.  He and his digimon were making their way through the dark forest, hunting a certain mysterious young woman and her digimon partner.  Armadillomon had picked up Rakunamon's and Tsuriai's scent and was now leading the way to their location.  But, as the dark-haired boy and his Rookie-level digital monster trekked, they talked about the missing girl and all the strange things that happened that day.  There were so many weird things going on that Cody simply couldn't explain.  There were so many questions.  "We were actually floating on top of the railway tracks!"

"Ya think THAT'S weird?" Armadillomon raised an eyebrow.  "Wait till ya hear what happened to me!"  The little yellow digimon scurried along the ground, telling his Digi-Destined partner all about how, while he was Upamon, he could hear Tsuriai talking to him just as if she were standing there right next to him.  But, all the while, she was still trapped in the roller coaster with Cody.  "I'm tellin' ya, Cody" Armadillomon continued his story.  "I could hear everything she was thinkin'.  I could even sense how scared she was up there."

"That IS strange," the dark-haired boy admitted.  Now one more thing was added to the ever-growing list of questions and uncertainties.  Cody fell silent, considering everything he had discovered about Tsuriai.  First, there was her bodysuit which she called her uniform.  The emblem of a non-existent school was embroidered on its sleeve.  And, by odd coincidence, the city had just unveiled a new project that included the construction of a new high school on the other side of town that would share the same name as that of the school identified on Tsuriai's clothes.

The second question that loomed in Cody's mind was her real origin.  She never did say what city she was from.  She never told anyone where she was just before she was pulled into the Digital World.  All she ever said was that she was taken away from her family.

Then there was her odd behavior during the struggle against a Viral Agent at the roller coaster.  Momongamon and Ankylomon were battling against just one Agent, but even together they weren't strong enough.  And, as soon as Tsuriai heard that TK and Kari were in trouble at the Ferris Wheel, she sent her digimon away to go help them.  Why did she do that when she and Cody were in trouble themselves?

And then there were all the other small questions.  Why was her digivice different from everybody else's?  Why couldn't anyone find any information on her digimon?  Why and how was she pulled into the Digital World in the first place?  How is she able to 'hover-skate', as she called it?  What did she do to Upamon?  Cody's imagination started to assimilate all his questions and all the answers he had come up with so far.  But some things simply did not make sense.  And it got him to wondering.  Is she even human? he gasped.  Maybe she's a digimon after all.  It was the only way to explain all the strange things he saw that afternoon.  Or maybe she's magic...

Suddenly, the boy heard his name.

"Cody?" Armadillomon looked up to his human partner with worry.  "Watcha thinkin' about?"

The young man let out a slow sigh.  "Tsuriai," he admitted.  "She's a complete mystery to me."  He shifted his eyes downward toward the ground, watching every step he took.

Armadillomon seemed to understand.  "You're not sure how to feel about her," he interjected.

Cody just nodded his head, neither smiling nor frowning.  His brow was knitted in confusion.  "Right," he replied.  He took a deep breath and slowly let it out.  "With everything that happened today, I know she's not telling us the truth," he said.  "Or maybe she's just hiding something.  But..."  Suddenly, the boy paused, not knowing how to phrase his next thoughts.

His digimon partner, however, seemed to know exactly what was on his mind.  "But you like her," Armadillomon finished for him.

Cody froze immediately upon hearing his partner's words.  He practically stopped breathing.

Armadillomon stopped walking as well, turning around to face the young man who was his Digi-Destined partner.  "I know how you feel," he admitted.  "I like them, too."  He referred to Tsuriai and Veric.  "Even though I don't know everything about them, I do know one thing," he continued.  "They are my friends."

"I know, Armadillomon," Cody conceded.  "They're my friends, too.  But there are so many unanswered questions surrounding them," he argued.  "We don't know who they really are."

"Yes," the little yellow digimon answered.  "We do.  Tsuriai is a sweet and smart young girl with a big heart.  And Veric is her digimon.  He will do anything to protect her and to make her happy, just like I do for you, Cody."

"But she's lying to us," the dark-haired boy pushed.  He shook his head, trying to understand what such a friendly, peace-loving girl could possibly want to hide from the others.  "Why is she keeping secrets?"

Armadillomon looked up at his human partner, their green eyes meeting.  He could see the mess of emotion welling up inside of Cody.  The boy liked Tsuriai and Veric, and he wanted desperately to believe that there was nothing bad about them that he and the others should be scared of.  But just knowing that the blonde girl and her digimon were withholding information was disturbing.  It was a struggle between Cody's heart and his mind.  Which one should he trust?

"I don't know, Cody," the armored digimon admitted.  "But, I look at that poor girl and all the suffering she's been through and all the things she and Veric have done to protect us," he argued.  "And I just can't believe that they'd ever want to do us any harm."

Suddenly, memories of Tsuriai rescuing the Digi-Destined from Pirates when they first entered the Digital World after tearing the Firewall down flashed through Cody's mind.  Twice she came to their aid.  And then there was the great escape from Negabyte's castle.  She freed all the digimon and sent Centaurumon and Momongamon to help the Digi-Destined.  Then she helped Cody and Armadillomon escape the Viral Agent at the roller coaster earlier that afternoon.  Momongamon even went to save TK and Kari from several other Viral Agents.  None of their actions hinted at ill will from them.  Everything they did was selfless and full of love for the Digi-Destined.

Then, Armadillomon said something that tugged at Cody's heart.  "Maybe they're hiding the truth," he offered, "because they want to protect us."

All of a sudden, a warm feeling washed over the dark-haired boy.  It was as if a light had turned on in his heart.  She's protecting us... he considered the possibility.  He had never thought of the secrecy and mystery this way before.  And, as he ran it over and over in his mind, the more it made sense.  Maybe Armadillomon is right.

Armadillomon smiled as Cody's eyes lit up.  "I think the poor girl could use some friends right about now," he said.  His words reminded both of them of how terribly depressed Tsuriai and Rakunamon had been all evening.  "What say we go find her."

Cody gave a small smile and nodded his head.  "Lead the way."

Scene 3

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