Too Little Too Late
 

(This takes place during the episode "A Very Digi Christmas" between the time when the old digidestined are reunited with their digimon counterparts in the real world, and when the digimon start attacking during Matt’s concert. Hope that’s not too confusing.)

Snow fell ponderously on the city of Tokyo, covering the high rise buildings and pavement in soft white. Everywhere were frantic last minute Christmas shoppers, scurrying along the busy sidewalks as they tried to find the perfect gifts for their loved ones. Two teenagers were swept along with the crowd, each dragging what looked like a large toy behind them, one an orange dinosaur and the other a pink bird. They were stopped on the sidewalk a few times by excited children, wondering how the toys moved on their own. "Oh, it’s just some new technology," one of the teens explained to a little gaggle of children, brushing back a strawberry blond lock of hair as she smiled kindly at them.

The tall youth next to her smiled too, though his chocolate brown eyes were trained on his companion most of the time. " ‘Scuse me!" a child tugged at the older boy’s sleeve, "Can I see how it works?"

"Go ahead Tai," urged the girl with red hair, "Show them,"

The boy named Tai nodded and bent down to eye-level with the children. "It’s voice activated, you see," he told them quite seriously, "Listen. Agumon, step forward three steps!"

With a slight jerk, the small orange dinosaur took three steps forwards. Choruses of "ooohs" and "aaahs" brought smiles to the faces of Tai and his companion. "Happy Sora?" he whispered to her, "Toy stores will kill us if they ever figure out who we are!"

But Sora was barely listening to him. "Look how happy they are Tai. They’re so easily entertained," she said softly, crimson eyes shining.

"Yeah, I wish Kari was still this age. She was so much cuter back then," Tai lamented, earning an elbowing in the ribs from Sora.

She was looking at him reprovingly, "Hush up. We better go though, it’s getting kind of cold," 

Tai watched as she pulled her sky blue robe tighter around herself, and wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck to keep out the chilly breezes. "Yeah, I suppose," he turned to the little children and grinned apologetically, "Hey kids, sorry but we gotta go. Have a Merry Christmas!"

"Happy Holidays!" Sora called cheerfully before grabbing Biyomon by the wing and dragging her off. 

The two friends walked in silence, it wasn’t often that they were alone together anymore. The silence wasn’t the same comfortable silence of understanding anymore, it was more like an awkward space that needed to be filled with unnecessary chatter. "Agumon did a great job, didn’t he Sora?" Tai asked.

Sora sighed. He had changed so much, and she herself had changed too. He wasn’t like the old Tai, who was just fun-loving and careless. It was true that he was more gentle, thoughtful, and kind, but it seemed to be aimed at her most of the time. She was still caring, but allowed herself to relax more and act silly at times. It was as if each had taken on a few qualities of the other. They had been so close that their personalities were bleeding together and intermingling. "Yeah, he was pretty good," she replied to him after a long pause.

"Wasn’t I good too?" Biyomon piped up, wanting some recognition as well. 

Tai grinned like a Chesire cat, "Are you kidding? You were great Biyomon!"

"Hey Tai, can we run up ahead?" Agumon pleaded, "I could use a good run to stretch my legs, and the crowds are so thick that no one will notice us!"

"I dunno," Sora bit her lip, "You could get lost…"

Biyomon flew up and patted Sora on the cheek. "Don’t worry. We know where your homes are," she reassured her friend.

"Alright, get lost you annoying digimon you!" Tai told them, "Go digimon! Run, run as fast as you can! We’ll still catch you, ‘cause you’re no Gingerbread Man!"

Sora frowned at him, though her eyes still indicated she saw the humour. "Tai, I can’t take you anywhere, can I?"

"Nope!" he said cheerfully, "I’m a lost cause,"

They walked in absolute quiet, until Sora decided to speak up. "It’s nice to see you wearing the blue headband, something to keep your hair from looking like a mop," she said.

"And it’s nice to be wearing something other than my school uniform," Tai acknowledged.

Sora sighed, "I know what you mean. You know, it was really nice of the new digidestined to bring the digimon to our world. I wish we had the ability to do that, then I’d get to see Biyomon much more often,"

Tai nodded in agreement, "Yeah, I miss Agumon a lot when he’s in the digital world,"

They had reached their building and headed straight for the elevators. Tai pressed the button for level five and seven, and they waited as the elevator zoomed upwards. "I hope that Biyomon found her way to my place alright," Sora worried.

"She’s probably there waiting for you," Tai said in the reassuring Tai way.

The doors of the elevator slid open, and Agumon stood outside. "Tai!" he greeted, "You’re here!"

Tai turned to Sora, "Bye Sora! See you later!"

"Goodbye Taichi," Sora said softly as the doors hissed shut.
 

~~~
 

The phone rang continuously, but the Kamiya apartment was quiet. The answering machine kicked in, "Hi, this is the Kamiya resident. Please leave a message and we’ll try to call you back as soon as…KARI!" there was a loud thump and laughter, "Ummm, as soon as possible," another voice continued, while giggling. 

A loud beep followed the message, and there was a sound as if someone was clearing their throat. "Uh, Tai? This is Matt. Just wanted to invite you to my concert today. If you drop by my rehearsal before the concert I’ll get you the tickets. Well, hope to see you there. Later,"

The machine beeped again and shut down, the comforting silence returning once more to the apartment. 

Only to be disrupted again. 

The sound of a slamming door and footsteps echoed through the empty apartment. Tai hung his coat on the coat rack and made a beeline for the couch. Agumon came quickly after him, but stopped at the answering machine, the blinking light attracting his attention. "Hey Tai, why’s this thing blinking?"

Shoes came flying at Agumon, and he let out a yelp before ducking out of the way. The shoes hit a button on the machine and clattered harmlessly to the ground. There was a faint whirring sound as the tape rewound, and played messages. "Tai, where are you? This is Mom. Me and Dad are out at Grandma’s for the night. The presents are under our bed, but don’t let Kari find them! Have a merry Christmas, we’ll be home by midnight! Lots of love,"

Another beep, and Matt’s message played. Tai sat up on the couch, listening intently. "…to see you there. Later,"

The tape stopped there and Agumon jumped up from his ducking position on the floor. "A concert Tai! That’s so great! Uh, Tai…what’s a concert?"

"Well, it’s a thing where lots of people sit in a big place listening to someone play music and sing," Tai told him, excitement in his voice, "It’s gonna be pretty cool. Whaddaya say Agumon, wanna come along?"

"Yeah! Oh boy! My first concert!" Agumon did a little dance on the spot.

Tai grinned down at him and flopped back on the couch, "Wake me up around four, okay?" he told Agumon, "We’ll go to Matt’s rehearsal around five,"

Agumon grinned his sharp-toothed grin, "Alright. I’ll go take a nap in your room. Sleep well Tai,"

As soon as the door closed behind Agumon, Tai pulled out a small velvet box and tossed it lightly from hand to hand, as if puzzling something. In his mind’s eye he could see the object inside; a silver band with four blue stones surrounding a jewel that looked curiously like a diamond. A flower on a ring.
 

~~~
 

Sora lay back on her bed, listening to Biyomon’s soft breathing as she slept. Her mind kept rewinding the message Matt had left on her machine. The concert. She wouldn’t miss it for the world. A smile crept along her face, but was instantly supressed as she thought of Tai. Her best friend, and she was determined to keep it that way. At a time she had wanted more than friendship, but he had always been too dense to notice. And now that she had finally gotten over him, had finally moved on, he took notice. She saw the way he looked at her now, tenderly, wistfully, yearning for what he had missed. But it was too little too late. 

Sora Takenouchi had finally developed a fondess for someone else. Guilt overwhelmed her, but she knew that Tai would find someone new very quickly. He had an adorable quality about him, and of course other girls would take notice. Silently, she slid off the bed and tip-toed to the door glancing back to make sure that she had not disturbed Biyomon. The digimon only shifted in her sleep and snored slightly. A gentle smile lighted Sora’s face, and she headed to the kitchen humming to herself. She’d take some initiative this time. She wouldn’t wait around waiting for Matt to make the move, as she had with Tai. I’ll bake some cookies, and hopefully Matt will get the message, she thought to herself, If he says no, then at least I tried.

She set about gathering ingredients for cookies and glanced casually out the window. Instead of seeing snow, Sora saw rain. "Liquid sunshine," her mother had said when she was younger.

Hopefully the rain would stop and snow would take its place again. The rain seemed to enchant her, and she watched it unfalteringly. "What’s a few raindrops between friends?" the words echoed through her brain. 

It was from the e-mail Tai had sent her just before the battle on the internet, apologizing for their fight. She still didn’t know why she had gotten so angry, maybe because she was hurt that he didn’t like her style, maybe because she had been fishing for a compliment and had received an insult instead. Raindops, raindrops, raindrops…

She turned her gaze from the window and started to work busily at the cookies, making and mixing the batter. Using the back of her hand she brushed her hair out of face, unknowingly leaving a flour mark on her nose as she sang Christmas carols. 

Outside it was once again snowing.

~~~
 

"Oooooh, that’s pretty. Can I have it Tai?" Sora pleaded.

Tai shut the lid of the box and stuffed it back into his pockets. "Sorry. It’s supposed to be for the girl I’m in love with," he told her, making a face, "Yuck. Can you imagine? Girl cooties…"

Sora looked somewhat disappointed as she lay back on the hill, a slight breeze stirring the strands of hair around her face. Tai lay back beside her and tweaked her braid, "Sora-chan, I didn’t mean to offend you," he said apologetically, "I was just joking,"

She only looked at him with her innocent, childish eyes. "It’s not that. I just…it’s so pretty,"

"Don’t worry Sora, I bet you’ll get a ring someday! Dad says that one day girls won’t be so disgusting,"

Tai doubled over in pain as Sora punched him in the stomach. "I’m NOT disgusting," she said coldly as she stood up, brushing grass off of her skirt.

"But-but you’re not REALLY a girl!" Tai protested, not covering his mistake very well.

Sora’s face flushed, and she whipped her head around so that her braids slapped her cheeks gently. "You’re a mean person, Taichi Kamiya, and I never, ever want to talk to you again!" 

"Wait! Sora! I…here, how about you wear the ring for one day? Will you be my friend again?" Tai asked, genuinely worried about losing his best friend.

The last rays of sunlight danced across Sora’s face as she closed her eyes and envisioned the sparkling blue stones. So tempting, enticing, and beautiful… She held out her hand to shake. "Deal," she said firmly, "Now give me the ring,"

Tai pulled the box from his pocket, plucked the ring from its place, and handed it to Sora. "Don’t lose it, ‘kay? Mom and Dad will get real mad at me if you do!"

Sora nodded her head and slipped the ring on her finger. It was a comforting, cool weight against her skin, but it was too big for her thin finger, and promptly fell off into the grass. Tai watched as it fell, almost in slow motion, gleaming brightly before disappearing in the long grass. Both children immediately dropped to their knees, feeling through the lush grass with their fingers. Sora gave a small whimper as the sun finally dropped out of sight, and darkness took over, but continued searching doggedly for the ring. Next to her, Tai was frantically combing the grasses with his fingers. "Please, please, please…" he muttered to himself.

Finally, Sora’s fingers stumbled across the ring, and she snatched it up with relief. "I found it!" she squealed.

"Gimmee back," Tai demanded, holding out his open hand, "You lost it and now I want it back!"

"Nuh-uh. You gave it to me for now, and I’m keeping it!" she pulled out a slender gold chain from underneath the collar of her dress and showed it to Tai, "I’ll put the ring on this chain, and I promise I won’t lose it again, okay? I’ll give it to you tomorrow, honest Taichi!"

"Awrite…" Tai said reluctantly, holding out his little finger, "Pinky-swear on it, okay?"

Sora linked her finger with his, and they shook on it.

"We’ll be best friends forever, right Sora?"

"Yup, forever…"

Forever.

Tai rubbed his eyes sleepily and yawned. He had dreamed about being six with Sora again, the dream seemed to be a common occurance nowaday. Because of the ring? Because…because…

Could he love her?

"No…no, it can’t be love…" he murmured. 

Of course not, after all there was no love at the age of sixteen. There was crush, there was the need to look popular, the need to feel wanted, but there was no love in highschool. No, he liked Sora, after all she was his best friend, had been for thirteen years.

Thirteen. An unlucky number. 

He couldn’t risk it. Thirteen years of friendship was too much to throw away foolishly. Of course he wanted something more than friendship, and for a time he was sure that she had felt the same way, yet… he knew he could live with her love only as a friend, but he couldn’t endure the thought of losing her altogether. He sat up from his position on the couch and dragged his fingers through his tangled mop of hair. I’ll finish mulling this over later. Right now I’ve got a concert to get to. Maybe if I catch Sora at Matt’s rehearsal, give her the ring…maybe she’ll understand what I don’t.

A quick glance at his watch informed him that if he didn’t head out, he would be late for meeting Matt. "Agumon!" he yelled, "Agumon we’re gonna be late if we don’t get going! Wake up!"

No answer.

Feeling slightly irritated, Tai stood up and stomped towards the door, rapping sharply on the door. "AGUMON! WAKE UP!"

There was a thump and a muffled yelp before Tai finally barged in, eyes closed. "Hope you’re decent," he muttered as he felt his way around the room. 

He reached out a hand and swept something solid off the table, wincing as it clattered to the floor. "Agumon, can I open my eyes yet?" he demanded.

"Uh…Tai, I’m a digimon. You don’t have to close youre eyes,"

"Oh," Tai opened his eyes to see Agumon tangled in the bedsheets and blankets, "Sorry. Guess I’m used to going through that process with Kari. It’s such a pain sharing a room with her. Now c’mon, let’s go! We’re going to be late!"

"But…I’m stuck!" Agumon wailed miserably.

Tai stormed out of the room, "I’ll wait for you outside. I don’t have time for this,"

He threw on his jacket, stepped out the door, shoved his shoes on, and waited. Minutes later Agumon came careening around the corner and out the door. "I’m ready, I’m ready!"

~~~
 

For the third time that day Tai was being shuffled along the sidewalk by the crowds. For the second time that day kids were excited about his ‘awesome’ toy. But it was Christmas Eve and he was feeling generous. 

On the first day of Christmas 

My true love gave to me 

A partridge in a pear tree 

On the second day of Christmas 

My true love gave to me 

Two turtle doves 

And a partridge in a pear tree 

On the third day of Christmas 

My true love gave to me…

Tai tipped his imaginary hat to the friendly carolers and made a quick pitstop at the homeless shelter, donating a ten dollar bill. The place was actually pretty cheerful. A small fake tree, decorated with popcorn strings, was nestled in one corner, and bright silver tinsel hung from the rafters. Large silvery stars were taped to the wall, twinkling as the light bounced off of them, and small lights shone unfalteringly from all over the room. The woman who served the food to those less fortunate was round and plump with wisps of grey escaping her hairnet and a warm-hearted expression on her face. She shook Tai’s hand heartily and thanked him profusely. "You’re an angel, boy, an angel!" she exclaimed.

He grinned and bowed, "Merry Christmas!"

"What was that all about Tai?" Agumon gasped out as he ran to keep up with his partner.

Tai shrugged his shoulders, "Few years back had a friend who was homeless. Lived in his car with his family. They depended on places like that and good-hearted people like that woman. Figured I should actually give this Christmas,"

Agumon was silent.

~~~
 

"Sora! Sora slow down, we’ll make it don’t worry!" 

"We’re going too slow Biyomon! Come on, you don’t want to be late, do you?" Sora asked.

Biyomon took in a deep breath, "Of…of course not! But, do we have to go so fast?!"

"We’re almost there!" Sora exclaimed, almost running to her destination.

Leaving behind a befuddled and exhausted pink bird.

The digimon put her legs to the test as she ran to catch up to her partner and friend. She finally caught up, huffing and puffing, and waited with Sora while looking like she would collapse any second. "Phew! I’m pooped," Biyomon half-complained.

Sora clutched the large package to her chest and smiled down at her friend, "Don’t worry. You can rest later," she glanced at the long line snaking its way towards the stadium. "Wow! This is so exciting! People are already lining up for Matt’s concert,"

"Don’t worry Sora!" Biyomon reassured her, "We’ll be sure to get good seats. Especially when you bring him these homemade cookies!"

Sora glanced down at the present she had so meticulously wrapped. The ribbon was tied perfectly, and the overall presentation was pretty impressive. "I hope so…"

"Sora! Wait up!" 

Tai ran up with Agumon close on his heels. 

"Oh…Tai," she said somewhat nervously, trying to minimize the chance of his seeing the present.

Agumon immediately headed for the box, sniffing at the aroma of cookies. "Mmmmm…something smells good!"

The door to Matt’s rehearsal area opened and Gabumon shuffled out into the cold air. "Matt’s busy getting ready. Here, take the tickets," he handed them the tickets to the concert, and stared at the wrapped box of cookies with a glazed look in his eyes, "but I’ll take those to him. Mmmm…"

Laughing, Biyomon pointed accusingly at the other digimon, "I bet you will, no way! You’ll eat the whole thing yourself!"

"I resent that!" Gabumon replied a little grumpily, "I’m on a diet!"

Sora and Tai smiled at each other, their faces showing small signs of uneasiness. It’s now or never man, do it now or don’t do it at all…

Tai took a deep breath and his hand fumbled around in his pocket as he tried to grasp the velvet box. "So, umm…Sora?"

Her heart fluttered inside her chest, his voice was so soft… "Yeah?"

"Are-are you going o the concert with anybody? I mean…not that it matters to me, just wondering…" Tai was mentally knocking himself on the head. Not that it matters?! He located the box and fished it out of his pocket.

Meanwhile, Sora was wondering if God wanted to personally punish her. She liked Matt and wanted more than his friendship, but she cared for Tai as well. What if she lost his friendship as a result of his feelings for her, and her feelings for Matt? She didn’t want to risk losing it. Thirteen years of friendship.

Thirteen. An unlucky number.

Maybe this was a test of their friendship? She couldn’t lie to him, not effectively anyway. She took in a shuddering breath and focused her gaze on Tai. "No, I want to be available in case Matt is free afterwards," she said clearly, her face a mask. Unreadable. Without emotion.

And then her façade broke. She was visibly uncomfortable as she attempted to halt her squirming. Sora squeezed her eyes shut in anticipation of Tai’s reaction.

Silence.

Tai held the velvet box in his hand loosely, barely conscious that it was there. Matt? Why didn’t I see it? He cleared his throat, "Oh, Matt huh?"

Sora nodded miserably.

This was not the time or the place to dwell too long on his disappointment. He had missed his chance somewhere far back in history, and now it was time for Sora’s feelings to be taken into consideration. All this thinking took a split second, and he looked fondly on his distraught friend. The box was shoved back into his pocket, maybe if things worked out between Matt and Sora he would ‘lend’ it to his best human male friend. Tai placed a comforting hand on Sora’s shoulder, at least he hoped it was comforting. "It’s okay…" he said softly, a small smile of mingled sadness and happiness showing his words were genuine.

Sora opened one eye cautiously, and then the other. Tai was smiling at her, no sign of resentment in his eyes. She read his face carefully, searching through the face that she knew so well. There were some signs of sadness, but overwhelming that was the fact that he looked glad for her. She was mildly surprised that he didn’t seem to be as bothered as she would have thought, but it relieved her conscience greatly. "Really Tai? You’re not angry with me?" she asked, eyes full of hope.

"No, of course not…" he placed his other hand on her shoulder, resisting the urge to embrace her knowing that he would crush the presents she hugged so tightly. Instead, he spun her gently around and pushed her lightly forward to encourage her, "Now get in there, and say ‘hi’ to Matt for me!"

Sora smiled gratefully at him, inwardly and outwardly thanking him for understanding. "Thanks Tai…"

The digimon, who had been silent through the whole scene, were visibly relieved that they were free to speak once again. Of course, Agumon’s stomach prompted him to speak first, "The least you could do is leave us the cookies!" he complained in a mock tone.

Again, Sora smiled as she turned to face him, "I’ll tell you what. I’ll make some special ones just for you," she looked pointedly at Tai.

Gabumon made a sweeping motion with his hands towards the door, and Sora stepped through, Biyomon close at her side. Behind her were left a boy and his digimon, clutching their tickets in their hands. Tai stared at the door intently, the bittersweet grin on his face again, "I’ll be waiting, thanks…"

He was contented that Sora was happy, he really was. Being rejected wasn’t too painful after all, the throbbing in his chest would subside soon enough. He placed his hand over his heart and felt it’s somewhat unsteady rhythm. Maybe a little torn, bleeding, and bruised, but definitely not broken. Agumon tugged on Tai’s sleeve to get his attention. "You know what Tai?"

Tai looked questioningly at his friend, "What?"

"You’ve really grown up,"

"What do you mean?" asked Tai, clearly confused.

"Well," Agumon scrunched his eyes up in thought, "You just seem a lot more mature now. You donated money to that shelter, and you handled that with Sora really well,"

Tai glanced at the door again, "I owed it to her, she’s my best friend after all"

He turned and shuffled towards the stadium.
 

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