Assault At Sunset

By EntreriRose

"Are you all right?"

"Huh?" Maelyn looked up at Ken's pallid, worried face as he pulled her hand away from where Yamato had struck her. It throbbed dully, the slight pain bearable.

"Yep, he broke your nose," she heard Jyou mutter to the side. All of the others had gathered around Taichi, eager to help their leader in anyway.

"Great," Taichi swore. "And Mr. Too-cool gets away without much more than a scratch."

"Umm . . . Tai? What exactly were you two fighting about now?" Mimi, in the usual fashion of a busy body, had to dirty her nose with the minor details of everything.

"It's nothing," Sora interrupted a bit too promptly, drawing the group's attention.

"I think that I might know," Maelyn said softly, being helped to her feet by an attentive Ken. "You see, I was down by the lake with Shinimon and . . . well-"

"Maelyn, don't you dare!" Taichi cried.

Now all eyes were focused once again on their bloodied leader. Taichi grinned sheepishly and sank back down into Sora's lap.

"Oh . . . I get it!" Hikari started her juvenile giggling. "You and Sora are-"

"Hey!" Five teenagers groaned, except the shamed couple and those that knew about them, as Takeru interjected. "Where'd bro go?"

"I don't think any of us give a damn," Tai snorted.

"Yeah, he's acting like a big old baby," Sora added.

Maelyn quirked and eyebrow troubled by the group's apathy toward their friend but opted to remain silent.

"Besides," Gomamon gave a big, dopey smile. "He's just being Yamato. He'll turn up sooner or later."

"I guess so," Takeru conceded. "He has done this before."

Maelyn shook her head, almost not believing what she heard. "Some friends you guys are!"

"Huh?" It seemed the Chosen Children were always in sync.

"How can you just abandon him like that?" she clarified.

"Oh . . .?" Again Taichi made a failed attempt to pull himself to his feet. "And how can you defend him after that entire fiasco. For Christ's sake, he hit you hardest."

"I . . ." Maelyn really couldn't think of a valid reason. "Well I'm not about to sit around on my ass with evil talking monster things out there. He could already be dead for all we know."

"Geeze, what's gotten into you?" The bloody leader finally made his feet. "You'd think you actually like the bastard with the way you're talking."

"Take that back!" Maelyn shouted, immediately regretting it.

Taichi grinned wickedly. "You do, don't you? You've got the hots for Yamato." Maelyn hung her head, growing increasingly angry at his taunts. "You know . . . I'm sure he'd like a good fuck about now. Why don't you-"

"Taichi, stop that!" Sora scolded from the side.

"If you think that," Maelyn said seethingly, "then he should have hit you harder." With a flounce she turned from the group, waving away Ken's protests and pleas as she started in the direction that Yamato had previously run off in.

"Where do you think you're going? Get back here!" Taichi tried to thrust his obvious power over the others on her.

Maelyn looked over her shoulder at the boy with tall, wild hair and blood smearing his face. In that instant she could comprehend just why Yamato hated him to the point of beating him into the ground. Taichi had assumed his role without unanimous consent and expected everyone to follow him blindly. Frightening as it was, Maelyn could feel empathy for Yamato, at least on this issue.

"Blow me, Leader-boy," she spat over her shoulder and disappeared into the trees.

* * ***

His head buried in his hands, Yamato sank deeper into self-pity. He hadn't known what had come over him; only that one of his punches landed of Maelyn and had downed her.

Gabumon watched in silence, only the slightest hint of any judgement shining in the depths of his wise red eyes. He didn't understand Yamato's action but he found himself capable of forgiving them. Cloaked in quiet, he continued a worried vigil over his dear friend.

With a pitiful sigh, Yamato turned his face to the burning sun, a hand slowly drifting to his jacket pocket. Bringing the slightly rusted instrument to his lip, Yamato played out a low mournful tune.

*****

The quiet notes lightly danced on the wind; Maelyn wasn't quite certain if she had even heard them. Having no other leads, she followed sorrowful music in hopes that it would eventually bring her to Yamato. But she didn't expect to find him seated in the center of a small clearing, tears streaming down his pale face as he poured his soul into the singing harmonica. Maelyn felt it tugging at her heartstrings and, not wanting to break the painful beauty of the scene, ducked behind the nearest tree as not to be seen. She didn't know how long she watched him play, didn't notice that she could no longer feel the hot midday sun on her bare legs. The fiery colors of sunset only increased the splendor of the song; it's hushed, lamenting melody washing over her, sending her into a daze.

The rustle of leaves and brambles as Maelyn fell over snapped Yamato and his dozing partner out of their spell. Icy blue eyes canned the perimeter warily, noting how a particular group of bushes were trembling violently.

"Go away Maelyn!" Yamato snapped.

"Oh don't act like you're so tough," she retorted, pulling twigs and such out of her mussed hair. The blond youth blinked at the curious girl. "Well," she said impatiently. "You ready to go back to the group or what?"

Yamato turned away, his cheeks touched with color as he flushed in silent shame. "I'm not going back," he said softly.

"Why the hell not? We do have to save two worlds, you know. I don't think we can afford to waste any more time while you sit here wallowing in self-pity."

"Shut up!" Yamato sprang lithely to his feet, feeling his anger quickly returning. "You don't know anything about, so just shut up!"

"I know you're a selfish, spoiled, pompous jackass!" Maelyn crossed her arms defiantly, not about to give him an inch this time.

"Shut up!" He was trembling visibly now, white knuckled fists clenched at his sides. "Shut our I swear I'll . . ."

"What?" Maelyn asked mockingly. "You'll hit me?"

Possessed by his rage, Yamato charged the smaller girl, his momentum giving him enough force to pin her against the tree she was nonchalantly leaning on. His fist flew up, poised to swing down for a crushing blow square in the center of her now colorless face. It was the sight of that face, shadowed and contoured by the failing sunlight that had stopped him from striking. Maelyn had gone limp between him and the rough trunk of the unforgiving tree; emerald eyes squeezed shut in terror, and tiny pools of tears just beneath the thick lashes. Yamato could feel her quivering against him, as though begging him physically not to hurt her.

Lowering his opened hand, the tall young man tried to stammer an apology. "Maelyn . . . I . . . uh . . . I didn't . . ."

Her eyes flickered open, Maelyn gazed up into his wide, sapphire blue eyes. The look within their shimmering depths was frightened, a keen fear of what he had almost done again. For the first time Maelyn thought she saw the truth of Yamato, the vulnerable, scared and lonely young man that kept the world at a distance with his cold demeanor. And, as much as she would hate to admit it, she found what she saw there absolutely beautiful.

Maelyn tried vainly to respond, to find some way to break the tense and awkward moment. But she again lost herself in those two points of cobalt light. Shivering , she let her eyes slip closed again, feeling his breath stirring the wisps of hair that hung about her forehead and warming her skin. Stealing another look, she saw the brilliant colors of sunset reflected in those perfect eyes, setting gentle fires on his face and hair. Despite herself Maelyn felt herself sinking toward him, his lips a magnet for hers.

* * * * *

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Taichi howled in pain as Jyou continued to tend to his blasted nose. The air was thick with a tense uncertainty. Hours had passed and the group had yet to hear from either Yamato or Maelyn. Of course prideful Taichi could hardly care if her ever saw either of them again. Let those two have each other, he thought bitterly. Maybe I'll get lucky and they'll slaughter each other.

Across the clearing, on of the younger members of the group was plagued by a different set of thoughts. Ken sat against an old tree, his head hung and his partner Wormon on his lap. Inside he was torn, tossed between a long standing loyalty to the group and his unexplainable affection for his newest friend. It took all his willpower not to disappear into the twilight, into the forest himself and to further the alienation from the rest of the Chosen Children.

He couldn't though, Ken knew that he simply could not leave. With a soft, resigned sigh, he let his gaze drift over the shaded clearing. Those dark eyes popped wide when he realizes that a certain reptilian digimon was also absent.

"Uh . . ." he looked around, finding that all the others had conveniently forgotten about him. "Guys," Ken said softly. He flushed a light, frustrated shade of pink when still no one paid him any heed. "GUYS!!!"

"Huh?" All eyes fixed confused looks on the normally soft-spoken boy.

Ken never got his chance to speak. A cry sounded from above as the dark shadow descended over the ambushed group.

* * * * *

A lone, reptilian figure stumbled through the tress. With each fall, she tenaciously lifted herself up and put her short legs back to running. Maelyn was in grave danger, Shinimon could feel it in the air. If only her legs were longer or her leathern wings stronger, then perhaps she could reach her in time.

Shinimon's heart sank as the last rays of the sun were blackened out by a large, writhing mass. She was too late. With a feral growl, the purple dragon digimon stubbornly pressed on.