Fiberglass Slipper: Part 3 - Rough Winds Do Shake the Darling Buds of May
Title: Fiberglass Slipper: Part 3 - Rough Winds Do Shake the Darling Buds of May
What: Digimon Tamers fanfiction
Rating: PG13
Words: 1838 + two Digimon cards and a graphic
Summary: Jenrya breaks his arm in an attempt to climb a tree one-handed. Drama ensues (especially in this chapter), as well as several Digimon card battles (still lovingly based off the Pokemon TCG) and trades. Established Jenrya/Ryo, a bit of Ryo/Ruki, background Takato/Juri. Written for 30_ways using theme #14 - trees. Part of a WIP which is, on my harddrive, up to Part 7 and still going strong.
Previously: Part 2 - ...Bring May Flowers
Notes: With thanks to the With the Will Card Terminal for the Digimon card scans. I know I only updated this yesterday, but, damnit, I'm up to Part 7 and I'm itching to post. :S
Sample: Takato, can I ask you a personal question?
“Pass the milk.”
Ryo does so, then shakes his head as Jenrya drinks it. “You’ve really got to stop drinking it straight out of the carton, Jen, that’s disgusting.”
“I agree,” says his mother, and Jenrya thinks this is probably the only time he’ll ever hear her agreeing with him. “So, Ryo, what time’s your train?”
“Three. Still got a few hours left in Shinjuku, eh, Jen.”
“Wouldn’t you like to go spend time with your other friends in Shinjuku, instead of spending this whole weekend with Jenrya?”
Jenrya almost protests, until Ryo shoots him a look that says, ‘behave.’ “Yeah, I probably will, Mrs. Lee. I mean, no offense but Jen gets kind of annoying sometimes.”
“You have no idea,” grins Rinchei.
The older Tamer shares a smirk with Jenrya’s brother. “I might go see what Ruki’s up to.”
“What are you doing?” Jenrya demands, once they’re back in his room.
“Trying to make sure I can still hang out with my- my boyfriend in future,” Ryo hisses, then kisses him to shut him up.
It doesn’t work. Jenrya pulls away, glaring. “Why do you always do that?”
“Do what?”
“Hesitate before saying I’m your boyfriend.”
Ryo is too sarcastic for this time of morning. “Because you say I’m your boyfriend all the time.”
Jenrya winces, and taps on his cast. “Okay, I deserved that.”
“Yeah,” says Ryo, finding a shirt, “you did.”
Jenrya packs up the rest of Ryo’s things in silence.
After seeing Ryo off from the street corner, Jenrya takes the stairs back up the apartment building. “Lovers’ spat,” asks Terriermon gently.
“We’re not lovers,” Jenrya snaps.
Terriermon pokes him low on the collarbone, right over a bruise. Jenrya flinches. “I don’t know how that managed to bruise, there’s bone there.”
“Momentai, Jen.” Terriermon replies.
“Takato, can I ask you a personal question?”
“Sure, I guess.”
“You might wanna close the door for this one.”
“Door closed. What is it?”
“Do you and Juri...”
“Do we what?”
“Do you, have you ever...you know...
“I heard a crash, are you alright?”
“You could have warned me to sit down, too!”
“So have you?”
“Jenrya, we’re fourteen!”
“Which makes it legal, this is Japan...”
“No! I mean, I’d like to, I guess, but I’m not allowed to so much as close the door when she’s over, and I’m not even allowed in her room when I go to her place.”
“Huh. Okay.”
“Besides, her dad would kill me if we did, and then Mom would kill whatever’s left, and then who would look after Guilmon?”
“Good point.”
“Why do you ask, anyway? Have you and Ryo...?”
“...almost. Once.”
“Oh man, I did not need that mental image. Why ‘almost’? What happened? Did your mom-?”
“Oh, gods, no! I stopped him.”
“Why?”
“Er, the cast?”
“Sounds like an excuse to me.”
“I just wasn’t sure, okay?”
“Yeah, fair enough, I guess. How many hickeys.”
“...fourteen.”
“Oh, good Lord!”
“Yeeeah. You sound like your mother.”
Jenrya shakes his head. “Makino Ruki, I will never get used to seeing you in uniform.”
“Shut up,” retorts Ruki, sitting down carefully in her skirt, “I couldn’t be bothered getting changed. Are we going to play, or what?”
Ryo says it’s helpful to play people better than you. “Yeah, yeah, we’re going to play.”
They set up a game, and Jenrya double-takes Ruki’s starting Digimon.
“Ryo’s card, isn’t it?”
“Traded fair and square, before you accuse me of ripping him off.” Ruki replies. “How can you tell?”
Jenrya points at it. “Maple leaf in the corner.”
“He’s Canadian?”
“That’s what I said,” Jenrya smirks. “It’s from his surname; ‘aki’ means ‘autumn’ and he can only draw maple leaves.”
“Go figure,” says Ruki, rolling her eyes, “I never pegged him as having much artistic talent. Do you mark your cards as well?”
“Yeah, saves me confusing my cards with anyone else’s. My Chinese name’s in the border.”
“How very Card Captor Sakura of you. Am I the only one who doesn’t doodle on their cards?”
“Well, Takato puts those four triangles Guilmon has on his snout by the B attack, Juri uses stickers, I think ’kazu and Kenta put their names on their cards, even Shuichon writes her Chinese name on her cards, so yeah, I think you’re the odd one out.”
“Maple leaves, huh?” Ruki blurts out, suddenly squinting at his cast, then his card, then back again.
She starts laughing. “Oh, that’s priceless!”
Jenrya puts his head in his hands. “Ryo’s got to get better at the whole ‘symbolism’ thing...”
“Terriermon, what’s this?”
“Jaarin’s, not mine, geeze. I thought you might want to see this.”
“You know I don’t read tablo- what?”
“That’s kinda what I was thinking. I mean, check out this photo...”
“Pass me the phone.”
“If you’re a reporter, Ryo moved to another country.”
“Mr. Akiyama, it’s Jenrya. May I please speak to Ryo?”
“Oh, alright, then. Ryo, it’s for you. No, it’s Jenrya...”
“Hey.”
“‘Legendary Digimon card player Akiyama Ryo has recently been seen out and about with one Digimon Queen Makino Ruki-’”
“What?”
“‘-on the streets of West Shinjuku. Witnesses report the two were laughing together and holding hands. Are we likely to see a union of Digi-royalty? Check out these photos and decide for yourself!’”
“I hate the paparazzi, don’t you?”
“You were holding her hand?”
“They obviously didn’t publish the photos where she yelled at me for trying.”
“You kissed her!”
“Only on the cheek. She hit me afterwards, but the look on her face was completely worth it.”
“Was it worth me?”
“Jen, I-”
“You came up to Shinjuku without telling me.”
“It was just a day trip. I was gonna surprise you, but no one was home when I went to your place.”
“...I was at the hospital.”
“So I went and hung out with Ruri.”
“Oh, so she’s got her own little nickname now?”
“Jen, or should I say Cinderella, I give everyone nicknames, you know that.”
“Yeah, but ‘diamond’ is so much less demeaning than Cinderella.”
“Well, you never said you didn’t like it.”
“Ruri. Is she your new girlfriend?”
“Oh, please. You shouldn’t believe everything you read in the tabloids, Jen. But would it really be so bad for your mother to believe it?”
“What?”
“Look at it from your mom’s point of view. If I’m going out with Ruki, then I can’t possibly be corrupting her precious younger son, can I?”
“...maybe.”
“If it means we can go out again, it’s worth it, right?”
“Ruki-”
“I don’t think she’ll mind. And I can bribe her with a few cards if she does.”
“I don’t like it.”
“Stop sulking, Jen. It’s just temporary, yeah? I promise you, she won’t come between us.”
“She already has.”
“What?”
“N-nothing.”
“Sure. Okay, I’ve got to go.”
“Alright. I’ll see you...whenever.”
“Yeah. Jen?”
“Mm?”
“Love you.”
“I- he hung up on me.”
“I guess he didn’t want to hear the answer.”
“Terriermon, you have got to stop eavesdropping on the phone.”
“So do you love him?”
“I...”
Ryo and Ruki omake: Background Noise
They’ve made it a point to let the Digimon go play at the park together once in a while, just the three (six, counting partners) of them once in a while. Like old times, with no girlfriends (Juri) or boyfriends (Ryo) or hangers on (’kazu, Kenta, and half Takato’s class last year) invited. Besides, it’s a chance to catch up.
“Someone’s looking uncharacteristically happy,” observes Takato.
Jenrya frowns at Ruki. “I wouldn’t call it happy, more ‘smug’.”
Takato tilts his head to the side, questioning. “Any particular reason why?”
Without speaking, Jenrya moves to his bag and throws Takato a magazine.
“Jenrya, I didn’t know you read the tabloids.”
“Jaarin reads them, Terriermon steals them when she comes back for visits,” Jenrya sighs. “Page twelve.”
Ruki smirks in the vague direction of Terriermon and Guilmon as Takato reads in silence.
“You and Ryo, huh? I saw that coming back in the digital world.”
Jenrya raises his eyebrows.
“Jenrya, did you and Ryo break up?”
“No.” he snaps.
“Then... What?”
“We’re not really going out,” says Ruki, eyes blazing, “we’re just pretending to so that Cinderella over here will be allowed out with Ryo again.”
Jenrya hates that nickname. “Don’t call me that.”
“And...you’re...happy about this?” Takato asks Ruki.
Her eyes speak of triumph. “It’s brilliant; it means Mom’s finally stopped asking when Ryo’s going to ask me out, and those stupid girls at school can’t call me ‘frigid’ or ‘ice bitch’ because it’s all over the magazines that Makino Ruki has a boyfriend.”
“Who...happens to be someone else’s boyfriend,” Takato hazards.
“You like him, don’t you?” Jenrya demands, turning on Ruki. “You wanted him, and that’s why you’re so happy that you’ve finally got him.”
All Jenrya learned about life, he learned from Digimon in some way or another: People blink a lot when they lie, and Ruki is no exception. “No, it’s just Mom and everyone at school-”
“No, Ruki, you don’t care what anyone else thinks, that’s what makes you Ruki.” Jenrya glares. “You wanted him.”
“And so what if I did?” Ruki retorts. “Can’t you just let me enjoy feeling like I’ve got him?”
“We were meant to have fun today,” attempts Takato.
“Because he holds your hand when you go out, and calls you Wildcat and his little diamond, Ruri?”
“You’re fighting over a boy,” Takato points out. “You’re fighting over Ryo, who may just be the stupidest person in the world to fight over.”
Jenrya ignores him. “Does he kiss you, Ruki? Does he bite you just low enough to hide if you wear your shirt higher?”
The younger boy glances between them, disturbed. “You know, this really sounds like something you should take up with Ryo instead of arguing over it.”
“Well, has he ever told you he loves you, Ruki? Has he ever told you that?”
“What, because you’re so in love with him?” Ruki yells.
“Guilmon, we’re going home!”
Ruki takes in the guilt on his face and uses it. “You don’t love him, Jenrya! You don’t deserve him! He comes all the way up from Kitakyushu and tells you he loves you and you don’t love him. You just want to own him, let the world know you go out with the Digimon King. Only, that’s right- you don’t tell anyone you go out with him, do you? Just Takato, and Terriermon, and leave the rest of the world to figure it out.”
“Bye, Terriermon!”
“Maybe it’s just a sham, but I’m not ashamed of him!” Ruki shrieks. “Maybe he’s just using me, but I love him. Which is more than you can say!”
Jenrya can only get out one word. “I...”
“We’re leaving, Renamon!”
Renamon nods, and phases out, and Ruki stalks off without another word, leaving Jenrya to stare after her.
Terriermon hops onto his shoulder. “If you tell me to momentai...” Jenrya warns him.
The child shakes his head. “Takato’s right; you need to talk to Ryo.”
Part 4 - Undone by a Touch of Sun in June...
What: Digimon Tamers fanfiction
Rating: PG13
Words: 1838 + two Digimon cards and a graphic
Summary: Jenrya breaks his arm in an attempt to climb a tree one-handed. Drama ensues (especially in this chapter), as well as several Digimon card battles (still lovingly based off the Pokemon TCG) and trades. Established Jenrya/Ryo, a bit of Ryo/Ruki, background Takato/Juri. Written for 30_ways using theme #14 - trees. Part of a WIP which is, on my harddrive, up to Part 7 and still going strong.
Previously: Part 2 - ...Bring May Flowers
Notes: With thanks to the With the Will Card Terminal for the Digimon card scans. I know I only updated this yesterday, but, damnit, I'm up to Part 7 and I'm itching to post. :S
Sample: Takato, can I ask you a personal question?
“Pass the milk.”
Ryo does so, then shakes his head as Jenrya drinks it. “You’ve really got to stop drinking it straight out of the carton, Jen, that’s disgusting.”
“I agree,” says his mother, and Jenrya thinks this is probably the only time he’ll ever hear her agreeing with him. “So, Ryo, what time’s your train?”
“Three. Still got a few hours left in Shinjuku, eh, Jen.”
“Wouldn’t you like to go spend time with your other friends in Shinjuku, instead of spending this whole weekend with Jenrya?”
Jenrya almost protests, until Ryo shoots him a look that says, ‘behave.’ “Yeah, I probably will, Mrs. Lee. I mean, no offense but Jen gets kind of annoying sometimes.”
“You have no idea,” grins Rinchei.
The older Tamer shares a smirk with Jenrya’s brother. “I might go see what Ruki’s up to.”
“What are you doing?” Jenrya demands, once they’re back in his room.
“Trying to make sure I can still hang out with my- my boyfriend in future,” Ryo hisses, then kisses him to shut him up.
It doesn’t work. Jenrya pulls away, glaring. “Why do you always do that?”
“Do what?”
“Hesitate before saying I’m your boyfriend.”
Ryo is too sarcastic for this time of morning. “Because you say I’m your boyfriend all the time.”
Jenrya winces, and taps on his cast. “Okay, I deserved that.”
“Yeah,” says Ryo, finding a shirt, “you did.”
Jenrya packs up the rest of Ryo’s things in silence.
After seeing Ryo off from the street corner, Jenrya takes the stairs back up the apartment building. “Lovers’ spat,” asks Terriermon gently.
“We’re not lovers,” Jenrya snaps.
Terriermon pokes him low on the collarbone, right over a bruise. Jenrya flinches. “I don’t know how that managed to bruise, there’s bone there.”
“Momentai, Jen.” Terriermon replies.
“Takato, can I ask you a personal question?”
“Sure, I guess.”
“You might wanna close the door for this one.”
“Door closed. What is it?”
“Do you and Juri...”
“Do we what?”
“Do you, have you ever...you know...
“I heard a crash, are you alright?”
“You could have warned me to sit down, too!”
“So have you?”
“Jenrya, we’re fourteen!”
“Which makes it legal, this is Japan...”
“No! I mean, I’d like to, I guess, but I’m not allowed to so much as close the door when she’s over, and I’m not even allowed in her room when I go to her place.”
“Huh. Okay.”
“Besides, her dad would kill me if we did, and then Mom would kill whatever’s left, and then who would look after Guilmon?”
“Good point.”
“Why do you ask, anyway? Have you and Ryo...?”
“...almost. Once.”
“Oh man, I did not need that mental image. Why ‘almost’? What happened? Did your mom-?”
“Oh, gods, no! I stopped him.”
“Why?”
“Er, the cast?”
“Sounds like an excuse to me.”
“I just wasn’t sure, okay?”
“Yeah, fair enough, I guess. How many hickeys.”
“...fourteen.”
“Oh, good Lord!”
“Yeeeah. You sound like your mother.”
Jenrya shakes his head. “Makino Ruki, I will never get used to seeing you in uniform.”
“Shut up,” retorts Ruki, sitting down carefully in her skirt, “I couldn’t be bothered getting changed. Are we going to play, or what?”
Ryo says it’s helpful to play people better than you. “Yeah, yeah, we’re going to play.”
They set up a game, and Jenrya double-takes Ruki’s starting Digimon.
“Ryo’s card, isn’t it?”
“Traded fair and square, before you accuse me of ripping him off.” Ruki replies. “How can you tell?”
Jenrya points at it. “Maple leaf in the corner.”
“He’s Canadian?”
“That’s what I said,” Jenrya smirks. “It’s from his surname; ‘aki’ means ‘autumn’ and he can only draw maple leaves.”
“Go figure,” says Ruki, rolling her eyes, “I never pegged him as having much artistic talent. Do you mark your cards as well?”
“Yeah, saves me confusing my cards with anyone else’s. My Chinese name’s in the border.”
“How very Card Captor Sakura of you. Am I the only one who doesn’t doodle on their cards?”
“Well, Takato puts those four triangles Guilmon has on his snout by the B attack, Juri uses stickers, I think ’kazu and Kenta put their names on their cards, even Shuichon writes her Chinese name on her cards, so yeah, I think you’re the odd one out.”
“Maple leaves, huh?” Ruki blurts out, suddenly squinting at his cast, then his card, then back again.
She starts laughing. “Oh, that’s priceless!”
Jenrya puts his head in his hands. “Ryo’s got to get better at the whole ‘symbolism’ thing...”
“Terriermon, what’s this?”
“Jaarin’s, not mine, geeze. I thought you might want to see this.”
“You know I don’t read tablo- what?”
“That’s kinda what I was thinking. I mean, check out this photo...”
“Pass me the phone.”
“If you’re a reporter, Ryo moved to another country.”
“Mr. Akiyama, it’s Jenrya. May I please speak to Ryo?”
“Oh, alright, then. Ryo, it’s for you. No, it’s Jenrya...”
“Hey.”
“‘Legendary Digimon card player Akiyama Ryo has recently been seen out and about with one Digimon Queen Makino Ruki-’”
“What?”
“‘-on the streets of West Shinjuku. Witnesses report the two were laughing together and holding hands. Are we likely to see a union of Digi-royalty? Check out these photos and decide for yourself!’”
“I hate the paparazzi, don’t you?”
“You were holding her hand?”
“They obviously didn’t publish the photos where she yelled at me for trying.”
“You kissed her!”
“Only on the cheek. She hit me afterwards, but the look on her face was completely worth it.”
“Was it worth me?”
“Jen, I-”
“You came up to Shinjuku without telling me.”
“It was just a day trip. I was gonna surprise you, but no one was home when I went to your place.”
“...I was at the hospital.”
“So I went and hung out with Ruri.”
“Oh, so she’s got her own little nickname now?”
“Jen, or should I say Cinderella, I give everyone nicknames, you know that.”
“Yeah, but ‘diamond’ is so much less demeaning than Cinderella.”
“Well, you never said you didn’t like it.”
“Ruri. Is she your new girlfriend?”
“Oh, please. You shouldn’t believe everything you read in the tabloids, Jen. But would it really be so bad for your mother to believe it?”
“What?”
“Look at it from your mom’s point of view. If I’m going out with Ruki, then I can’t possibly be corrupting her precious younger son, can I?”
“...maybe.”
“If it means we can go out again, it’s worth it, right?”
“Ruki-”
“I don’t think she’ll mind. And I can bribe her with a few cards if she does.”
“I don’t like it.”
“Stop sulking, Jen. It’s just temporary, yeah? I promise you, she won’t come between us.”
“She already has.”
“What?”
“N-nothing.”
“Sure. Okay, I’ve got to go.”
“Alright. I’ll see you...whenever.”
“Yeah. Jen?”
“Mm?”
“Love you.”
“I- he hung up on me.”
“I guess he didn’t want to hear the answer.”
“Terriermon, you have got to stop eavesdropping on the phone.”
“So do you love him?”
“I...”
Ryo and Ruki omake: Background Noise
They’ve made it a point to let the Digimon go play at the park together once in a while, just the three (six, counting partners) of them once in a while. Like old times, with no girlfriends (Juri) or boyfriends (Ryo) or hangers on (’kazu, Kenta, and half Takato’s class last year) invited. Besides, it’s a chance to catch up.
“Someone’s looking uncharacteristically happy,” observes Takato.
Jenrya frowns at Ruki. “I wouldn’t call it happy, more ‘smug’.”
Takato tilts his head to the side, questioning. “Any particular reason why?”
Without speaking, Jenrya moves to his bag and throws Takato a magazine.
“Jenrya, I didn’t know you read the tabloids.”
“Jaarin reads them, Terriermon steals them when she comes back for visits,” Jenrya sighs. “Page twelve.”
Ruki smirks in the vague direction of Terriermon and Guilmon as Takato reads in silence.
“You and Ryo, huh? I saw that coming back in the digital world.”
Jenrya raises his eyebrows.
“Jenrya, did you and Ryo break up?”
“No.” he snaps.
“Then... What?”
“We’re not really going out,” says Ruki, eyes blazing, “we’re just pretending to so that Cinderella over here will be allowed out with Ryo again.”
Jenrya hates that nickname. “Don’t call me that.”
“And...you’re...happy about this?” Takato asks Ruki.
Her eyes speak of triumph. “It’s brilliant; it means Mom’s finally stopped asking when Ryo’s going to ask me out, and those stupid girls at school can’t call me ‘frigid’ or ‘ice bitch’ because it’s all over the magazines that Makino Ruki has a boyfriend.”
“Who...happens to be someone else’s boyfriend,” Takato hazards.
“You like him, don’t you?” Jenrya demands, turning on Ruki. “You wanted him, and that’s why you’re so happy that you’ve finally got him.”
All Jenrya learned about life, he learned from Digimon in some way or another: People blink a lot when they lie, and Ruki is no exception. “No, it’s just Mom and everyone at school-”
“No, Ruki, you don’t care what anyone else thinks, that’s what makes you Ruki.” Jenrya glares. “You wanted him.”
“And so what if I did?” Ruki retorts. “Can’t you just let me enjoy feeling like I’ve got him?”
“We were meant to have fun today,” attempts Takato.
“Because he holds your hand when you go out, and calls you Wildcat and his little diamond, Ruri?”
“You’re fighting over a boy,” Takato points out. “You’re fighting over Ryo, who may just be the stupidest person in the world to fight over.”
Jenrya ignores him. “Does he kiss you, Ruki? Does he bite you just low enough to hide if you wear your shirt higher?”
The younger boy glances between them, disturbed. “You know, this really sounds like something you should take up with Ryo instead of arguing over it.”
“Well, has he ever told you he loves you, Ruki? Has he ever told you that?”
“What, because you’re so in love with him?” Ruki yells.
“Guilmon, we’re going home!”
Ruki takes in the guilt on his face and uses it. “You don’t love him, Jenrya! You don’t deserve him! He comes all the way up from Kitakyushu and tells you he loves you and you don’t love him. You just want to own him, let the world know you go out with the Digimon King. Only, that’s right- you don’t tell anyone you go out with him, do you? Just Takato, and Terriermon, and leave the rest of the world to figure it out.”
“Bye, Terriermon!”
“Maybe it’s just a sham, but I’m not ashamed of him!” Ruki shrieks. “Maybe he’s just using me, but I love him. Which is more than you can say!”
Jenrya can only get out one word. “I...”
“We’re leaving, Renamon!”
Renamon nods, and phases out, and Ruki stalks off without another word, leaving Jenrya to stare after her.
Terriermon hops onto his shoulder. “If you tell me to momentai...” Jenrya warns him.
The child shakes his head. “Takato’s right; you need to talk to Ryo.”
Part 4 - Undone by a Touch of Sun in June...