Digimon Adventure Tri: Echo

8) Bound by the Divine

Going back to school life after all that had taken place over the weekend was a feat that Taichi didn't realize he was capable of. He suddenly felt immense sympathy for the second generation of Chosen Children. They had marched into the Digital World to save it from catastrophe day in and day out without fail, but he didn't know if he was capable of balancing such extremes. Being aware of the adventures of his fellow Chosen Children was one thing, but stepping into their shoes and living a similar experience was something else entirely, and Taichi wasn't exactly prepared for how much it caught him by surprise.

The first part of the school day pressed on in a drag that made Taichi exhausted just to think about. He found himself glancing over in Meiko's direction more than before though, and she often returned the favor. When he looked closely, he could see her Digivice peeking out from the space between her skirt and top, the blue object attached firmly to her waistband. Taichi reached for his own Digivice whenever he caught sight of it just to make sure that he hadn't lost the most important item he owned at some point in the day. He hated how damn paranoid he had become over the past week. It felt like he couldn't relax all of a sudden, and he hated the way that the anxiety attacked his nerves and grated on him without anything even loosely resembling mercy.

Lunch had consisted of an intense discussion regarding the events from the second half of the previous day. Sora and Mimi had been all too happy to tell Taichi and Yamato about their encounter with Brachiomon, and Meiko chimed in every once in a while to offer her quiet feedback. She still struggled with finding the confidence to communicate openly, but she was at least making an attempt. 

Taichi had left them behind at the regular time when the five dispersed to go to class, and he had run a hand through his brown hair to keep himself from getting too caught up in his own thoughts. Doing something else was good. It prevented his own mind from running rampant.

He slid into his regular seat in Daigo's class soon afterwards, and Taichi let out a small sigh. The teacher was sitting on the floor at the front of the classroom as he wrote quickly and elaborately on a piece of paper. Daigo hummed to himself with a strange sense of jubilation that Taichi had to confess he wouldn't have seen coming from someone like that. Daigo didn't seem to notice him for a while, focusing on blowing the ink down on his piece of paper. He preferred to write with brush and ink rather than a normal pen or pencil, and Taichi couldn't tell if that was a testament to Daigo's potentially traditional values or if it was simply yet another quirky fact for him to keep in mind about his already peculiar teacher.

When Daigo did finally rise to his feet, he had seemingly written something important on his page. He didn't lift it into the air to examine it the way that he usually did, but Taichi decided that it wasn't his business to snoop into what Daigo was doing anyways. Instead, he simply watched carefully as Daigo turned on his heel to face his student with a gentle smile. As usual, his eyes were weary and never seemed to find true happiness. Taichi didn't understand how someone with such a bright voice and demeanor could be hiding so many demons, but once again, he knew that it wasn't something that he should have been investigating intensely. It was Daigo's business above all else, and he didn't want to push where he knew that he wasn't wanted or needed.

"You seem stressed," Daigo commented as soon as he noticed that Taichi was staring at him. He let out a small humored laugh when his student perked up with something between curiosity and panic blooming in his gaze. "You don't need to worry about it. I know that a lot has been happening as of late. Just yesterday, we had another one of those monster attacks everyone has been so worried about."

If Taichi was being honest with himself, the previous morning didn't even feel real. It felt like some distant figment of his imagination that he wasn't even supposed to know about, much less come into direct contact with on a regular basis. He was aware of the fact that he had encountered Meiko as a Chosen Child for the first time the previous day, and that had come along with his meeting with the rest of his team and their brief conversation with Qinglongmon. Still, it seemed as if there was a divide between all of that and what had happened in the afternoon. He hadn't been this used to eventful days in a long time, and Taichi prayed that he adapted sooner rather than later. He was getting pretty damn tired of having to put up with the tricks his mind played on him, and it had only been a week or so since this disaster started. Could one week last an eternity? Taichi was really starting to wonder.