Memory Lapse
part 2~

This was not what the Child of COurage had been expecting.

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?" Daisuke exploded, staring incredolously at Ken. His patience had been tried over and over and over again that day...and now this!? "Tell me you're joking, Ichijouji."

"Ichi...?"

Daisuke blinked and allowed his breathing to return to normal. "You're not joking, are you? You honestly can't remember?"

Ken slowly sat up, looking intently at the palms and backs of his hands. The only light in the black cave was the screen of Daisuke's D-3, which cast an eerie glow on the face of both boys. "I don't understand...I can't remember anything! Who are you?!"

"Whoa, Ken, don't freak out there...I'll help you. If there's anything I can do, that is." It was Daisuke's turn to worry now. "What have you forgotten?"

"Well, if I knew, I wouldn't have forgotten it!" Ken seethed.

It seemed he hadn't fogotten how to insult people. "Well, you certainly have the same personality."

Ken stopped short. "...I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. Without you I dare say I'd be even more confused. What was your name again?"

Taken aback at Ken's sudden shift in attitude, the younger boy stammered, "Mo--Motomiya Daisuke."

"Hajimemashite." Ken reached out and shook Daisuke's hand, Western-style. "Now, uh--Motomiya-san, is it?--who am I?"

"-kun is fine," Daisuke assured him. "Or even just Daisuke. And you're Ichijouji Ken. You're from Tamachi, Japan; eleven years old, you play soccer and know judo, you're really smart...euh...I don't really know a lot about you, actually, now that I think about it."

"Did we know each other well?"

"Well, kind of." Daisuke hesitated to mention the whole Digital World bit--if the Digimon Kaiser was out of commission for a while, why push him back into it? "We played soccer together. I'm from Odaiba."

"Odaiba. Tamachi. Soccer." Ken repeated Daisuke's words, seemingly absorbing them. "All right, another question; what happened to me?"

"You...fell," Daisuke said slowly, uncertain how to phrase what he needed to say. "You and I were....fighting...and we both fell from one of the mountain ledges. You hit your head pretty hard."

"Fighting?" Daisuke prayed that Ken wouldn't ask too much. He was fortunate that the ex-Kaiser was taking this all so well; then again, he had always seemed like a patient and composed person. "A physical fight? What were we arguing about?"

"It's not really important, Ken. Just a minor disagreement."

"But you're helping me now, so we must have made up."

"You could say that." Daisuke grinned. "We may have had our differences in the past, but I wouldn't leave you behind when you were hurt. And you are hurt, so you should lie back down."

"Right." Ken lay back again, pillowing his head on Daisuke's jacket. "Thanks a lot for taking care of me...Daisuke."

"No problem...Ken."

@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@~*~@

For the next several hours Daisuke moved between sleeping and thinking. The situation with Ken was particularly difficult; for one thing he shouldn't be helping his enemy, and then, what exactly was happening with Ken? He had learned a bit about amnesia in school, but he wouldn't be able to diagnose it. Then again, all the evidence was right there in front of him. He couldn't even remember his own name, Daisuke. What other proof do you need?

The mahogany-haired boy cast another furtive glance at his charge, who lay with the glowing D-3 beside his head. What if Ken never recovered his memory, Daisuke wondered? What if the Digimon Kaiser was gone forever? I'd feel...sorry for him. Imagine having lost everything dear to you. Even though he's an enemy, I still feel...guilty, somehow. This isn't the way he should have lost the battle between us; over a stupid accident.

But then, wouldn't it be even more wrong to let him continue as he was?

~to be continued...

author's note: a short chapter. I tried to really work some feeling into this one. ^_^ more soon. enjoy!