Butter-Fly Effect

After some discussion, you all agree that Kari's idea of walking around the lake is best. No treacherous paths over mountains, no worrying about impassible objects, no randomly deciding to try and figure out how many of you your partners can carry at a time.

Also no chance of getting through without talking to anyone, but it's not like you were ever worried about that. You're a group of humans carrying Digivices, it'd be hard not to recognize you as DigiDestined. And you remember a good amount of how to handle fangirls.

Hopefully, it doesn't come down to that again.

Still, you like the idea of a peaceful walk besides a lake. You're not entirely sure how long it would last, but you can at least enjoy it while it happens.

If it happens. You're not quite there yet.

There's actually a pretty nice view as you walk this way, you think. It's still in the distance, but you can clearly see mountains on one side of your vision, sloping down to the forests on the other.

Sunsets are still not your favorite thing, but you think that has more to do with you taking a number of long walks west than anything else.

"You know, sometimes I really wish I'd brought a camera," Mimi comments. You consider pointing out the fact that it's not like any of you knew you'd end up in the Digital World, but you just know that will lead to someone asking why you didn't pick one up while you were back home. Like that would be more important than dealing with whatever caused your friends to be chosen in the first place.

"It is really pretty," Kari agrees. "So, where's the lake?"

"From what I can see..." Izzy pauses, before pointing to the place just below where the forest meets the mountains. "It would be roughly around there, though we aren't high enough to actually see it."

"Okay, so we're just going that way!" Tai declares. "Got it!" He quickly bolts, followed by Agumon, before anyone can tell him that it's a bad idea.

Mimi sighs. "Well, at least if there's any mean Digimon around, they'll find him first."

"...I'd be more worried about them getting lost," Palmon points out. "It wouldn't be the first time."

"Patamon, do you think you could catch up to them and slow them down?"

"I can try!" The little Rookie replies to his partner. "It... might be a bit fast, though. It'd probably be better if we all go."

And thus, the rest of you end up running ahead as well, hoping that your resident goggleboy doesn't run with his partner over a cliff or something. You probably don't have to worry too much about it, but it's better to be safe.

---

Once you've all managed to catch up with Tai, and prevent him from disturbing a sleeping Cherrymon, things... stop being so interesting for a bit.

While the view before was pretty, it really was just a sign of how far you still have to go. Sure, it's just a few days, but...

You're a good way away from the forest, but there's still some trees around. A few of them have interestingly-colored leaves, but there doesn't seem to be much else besides that.

You could probably take advantage of this lack of activity to... well, to do anything, really. It's quiet enough, and there's enough of you, that it'd probably be safe... or you could just go the really safe route and simply talk to people. It's your decision.


[ ] Read some more of that book you picked up in those ruins.

[ ] It's been a while since you really had a talk with Tai.

[ ] Matt and TK have taken it upon them to guard the rest of you. Despite a total lack of activity. You should talk to them.

[ ] Joe and Mimi seem to be having a talk about something...

[ ] See if there's anything you can help Izzy with. Even if it's just distracting Tai so he won't break his computer while it's rebooting.

[ ] Kari's being quieter than usual...

[ ] Some of the trees grow fruits. Have Biyomon use them for target practice. If they're edible afterwards, you could even keep the fruit!

Getting used to long walks is one of those things that you didn't even realize was happening until it did. Mostly because you generally had more pressing things to think about, such as the fate of the world, or if you'd still have food and water three days from now.

Then Izzy started playing around with Digicode on... well, you'd call it a larger scale than usual, but when the two of you hacked into basic access for the Digital World actual years ago, you don't think it's actually possible to say that accurately. And you arrived in a place where there was nothing to do but walk.

You miss File Island. Sure, there was little to no chance of ever getting home if you just stuck around there, but you could get anywhere on the island in just a few days if you knew the right path to take. Supposedly.

It's not like you ever actually saw the north side of the island or anything. And you're pretty sure the 'right path' was Infinity Mountain, which had all sorts of other dangers, but you'll take the residents' word for it.

Either way, none of you are strangers to walking, as even Joe has sort of caught up with everyone else on that, and Matt and TK are handling guard duty, so it should be safe for you to have a talk with Tai. Not that you really know what to say, when things have been so much weirder than usual lately. "You thinking about anything?" You decide to ask, hoping desperately that the answer isn't 'no'.

"Sort of." Well. Better than nothing, at least. "Do you think anyone's noticed that we're gone yet?"

"Maybe. Even back home, it's been a couple hours already." Even just counting the time you spent there. "I don't know if they'd start worrying yet, though. Unless they think we got lost in the woods or something." And wouldn't that be something? The DigiDestined, chosen to save another world entirely, lost in the woods.

...Then again, sometimes, that's not entirely inaccurate.

"...Would they be wrong?"

"Well, we're not lost right now!" You point out. "Last month, though... maybe." You're not sure who it was last month for, and you don't actually think it matters. There's plenty of woods in the Digital World, someone should have gotten lost there.

"Right. Just... do you think it'll be over soon?" You consider reminding Tai that your predecessors lived in this world for well over a year, but decide that it wouldn't be particularly helpful.

"Maybe. I mean, we're getting close to Kari's Digimon, so... that could be a sign." You sort of hope it is. "Really, I'm more worried what will happen when we get home." It's not like you and Biyomon haven't become sort of a common sight, but... "Do you really think that Agumon can keep a low profile?"

"I can try!" The little dinosaur speaks up. "You never know, I might actually be good at it!"

"Well, he's not as big as the last one," Biyomon points out. "So he might manage. And I don't think he'd randomly break any vending machines or anything."

"...But Numemon live in those."

"Not in our world, Agumon," Tai sighs. "Not in our world."

"Oh. I think I'll like your world, then."

That thought scares you, for some reason. Maybe it's because you were used to the Analog World just having two Digimon in it. Or maybe it's just you realizing how horrifically unsubtle some of these Rookies can be.

Mostly Agumon and Tentomon, actually. That's probably not a good sign for the future.

"It'll be nice to have more Digimon around!" Unfortunately, it seems that your partner does not share your sense of priorities when it comes to things like not attracting attention from everyone.

"Let's save that for when it actually happens," You state, deciding not to think about the possibility for any longer than you have to right now. "So, would it be too much to ask you not to break anything the next time we meet someone else, or...?"

That's enough to get you glared at, and for the two of you to move to talking about more trivial things, that don't involve the fate of the world or trying to teach a dinosaur how to stealth. It's nice.

---

You see the glimmering waters of the lake a few days later, and that's when it occurs to you that you never actually agreed on what direction you would move in once you got there. You should probably get that settled before you actually reach the shore.


[ ] Clockwise (Passes Digitamamon's restaurant)

[ ] Counterclockwise (Passes the amusement park)