Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Digimon Adventure: REMIX ❯ Roaring Strong! Gomamon's Day to Shine! ( Chapter 7 )

Hey, it's Jou today. So we went through the sewers, and eventually made it to Toy Town. The only problem is that most of us made it as toys for Monzaemon's toys. Mimi was free, though, and Palmon evolved to Togemon, then drove the Black Gear right out of Monzaemon. He pointed us towards Mugen Mountain, and then wished us well on our journey.

Jou sighed as they walked along, through the wastes beyond Toy Town. They were headed for Mugen Mountain, like Monzaemon had suggested, but something seemed very out of place to him. If only he could place what it was. It was a good way through the day, he realized, as they walked. And it was getting much colder. "Guys, this cold isn't a very good thing."

"Oh come on," Gomamon said, stopping in front of him. "I mean, sure, this is no day at the beach, but it's not that bad. And pardon the pun, but chill out! You're the only one here who has a problem with the cold." All the children shivered as Jou looked them over, which was not surprising, since most of them were wearing summer clothes. "Just think warm."

"Well I'm allergic to the cold, and to fur," Jou said, wrapping his arms around himself. "Beyond which, if it gets any colder, all of us are going to catch a cold."

"Ah, it's not that bad, Jou," Taichi said, stretching his legs. Hikari was huddling next to Patamon, shivering in the cold as he spoke.

"Maybe not," Koushirou said, walking over to Taichi. "If you happen to have as much fur as you do."

"Hey, don't insult the hair," Taichi shouted, making a fist. "Anyway, if it does snow, we can make snowballs and have a snowball fight."

"And make a snowman," Mimi said, her eyes brightening.

"Who is Snowmon," Patamon asked, keeping one of his ears over Hikari.

"Probably a Digimon from their world," Palmon said. "And a really nice one, too."

"It's hard to explain, without making one," Koushirou said.

"Well, it certainly sounds delicious," Tentomon said. "If you can eat it, count me in."

"Not exactly," Koushirou said. "Actually, what's so fun about it is that you can throw snowballs and have fun. It's a game."

"You throw food?" Tentomon looked very confused.

"That's not what he said," Piyomon said. "He said it's a game, like for fun."

"And we could build a snow castle," Yamato said, looking at Taichi.

"Yeah, well you'll need it," Taichi said, throwing an imaginary snowball at Yamato. Yamato mimed getting hit right in the chest, and fell over.

"Well, I could beat both of you," Sora said, hurling airballs at both of the boys.

"I'd build an igloo," Takeru said, jumping up.

"I'd be glad to help," Patamon said, looking towards Takeru. "Well, if I knew what that is."

Taichi jumped aside from Sora's 'attack', and threw another in response. "Eat that, Sora!"

"Ow," Sora said, rubbing her shoulder. "This would be even more fun if we actually had some snow."

"Igloo? Is that food?" Tentomon looked at Takeru.

"No, it isn't," Koushiro said.

"You're all crazy," Jou said. "It would be horrible if it started snowing right!"

"Lighten up, Jou," Sora said, turning around. "We're just trying to be optimistic."

"So, when is it gonna snow, Goggles?" Takeru looked up at Taichi and grinned.

"Probably any minute now," Taichi said.

"Right on Jou's head," Yamato said, laughing.

"That would be really cool," Takeru said.

"Y- Yeah," Hikari said, getting up. "I just w-wish I had a winter coat."

"Well you can always try growing some fur like your brother," Koushirou said. Taichi swung a punch and Koushirou dodged, causing Hikarti to laugh a bit. "Or not."

"I would just say to be careful," Taichi said, rolling over to Gabumon. "I know Hikari wouldn't try it, but someone could try stealing your fur tonight."

"Goggles, don't even joke about that," Yamato said, growling with Gabumon. "It isn't funny."

Jou was shaking his head was they moved on, and Hikari was shivering, a lot. Agumon stopped for a moment, and sniffed the air. "Hey, that smells weird," he said, looking towards a set of trees. "It's not very strong, but..."

"I wonder what it is," Gabumon said.

"I don't know," Taichi said, trying to smell whatever it was. "Hey, he's right. And it smells like..."

"Very familiar," Koushirou said.

"It smells like a health spa," Mimi shouted, her face breaking out in pure joy. "Well, like the hot springs at one, at least." She led the charge, and everyone followed her there.

"Oh, wow," Palmon said, looking at the bubbling water. "It is a hot spring."

"Beautiful," Mimi said, taking off her shoes and socks. As her foot touched the water, she screamed in pain and pulled it back. "Hot springs aren't supposed to be this hot! They should have a warning about this boiling water."

"Well that's no good," Jou said, sighing. "Another day without a bath. This is just wonderful."

"And nothing to eat either," Agumon said, looking over the hot spring. "Too bad Monzaemon couldn't help us with food, huh?"

"Indeed," Gabumon said, sighing. "But maybe..."

"I don't think that any of us can eat rocks," Jou said, looking around.

"Not rocks," Hikari said, looking towards an old-fashioned icebox. "It's a fridge!"

"The cold has obviously gotten to your brain, Hikari," Jou said, not turning around. "There is no way that something like that could be out here, and even if it were, it wouldn't be working."

"But there is, Jou," Gomamon said, walking over to it. "And whatever it is, I bet there's food in it."

"I'm so hungry I could eat a Monochromon," Taichi said, opening the icebox. "Or at least a lot of these eggs."

Jou turned around, and saw what the others had been talking about. "Hey! We can't do this, Taichi! Those eggs might not be fit for us to eat!"

"Then let me be our guniea pig," Taichi said, narrowing his eyes. "If I turn purple, or get sick, or anything weird like that, we'll say you're right and I'm wrong. Unless you have a better idea?"

"That isn't the whole thing," Jou said, looking at the box. "Those eggs aren't ours. What if whoever owns them finds out and gets mad at us? Just taking them makes us thieves."

"Then we just explain the situation," Mimi said, picking up two of the eggs. "We're stuck out here in the freezing cold, with nothing to eat, and we found your eggs, Mr. Digieggmon. We're really sorry we took them, but it was either that or starve to death."

"That's right," Koushirou said, sitting down. "It's an emergency situation."

Jou simply sighed as Sora prepared a fire with loose sticks from the mearby trees, and Taichi and Yamato dragged a heavy stone into a position above the fire. He didn't try to help, and soon everyone was ready to eat. He was just preparing some chopsticks, at Takeru's request, and trying to ignore the fact that everything in his mind told him this was a bad idea.

"Sunny side up eggs are one of my specialties," Sora said, cracking open one of the eggs on top of the stone. The Digimon were already stuffing themselves on their own share of the eggs, shells and all.

"How are the chopsticks coming," Taichi shouted, from behind Sora.

"Yeah, stop taking your time, we want to eat," Mimi said.

"Oh, sorry," Jou said, finishing up the sixth pair. "Here's number six." Mimi's hands shot out and grabbed the new pair, and Jou started another one. He couldn't help but think of the danger of eating strange foods, not to mention someone else's strange food. "Why am I always the one who has to think of the danger," he muttered, working away the sticks.

"These eggs are delicious," Mimi said, swallowing down one. "You're a great cook, Sora."

"I could do better," Yamato said, not even having tasted the eggs yet. "Of course, that's just my opinion."

"Obviously," Taichi said, sticking out his tongue. "I think we should've had Sora cook the fish, though."

"Hey, why don't you all tell me how you like your eggs, and I'll try to make them that way," Sora said, finishing another two eggs.

"I like mine with salt, and maybe a bit of pepper," Jou said, wincing as his pocket knife slipped. "Although, I suppose that doesn't matter."

"I like mine with ketchup," Taichi said, taking the two eggs.

"Ketchup sounds good," Takeru said, looking up at Taichi.

"Good? I like my eggs plain," Hikari said, looking sick. "Taichi always makes me sick wih all the ketchup he uses."

"Jou, is something the matter?" Gomamon looked up at his partner, concerned. Jou usually wasn't this quiet.

"I like wasabi and mexican-style hot sauce," Yamato said, grinning.

"How about a reality check," Sora muttered, working on another egg. "Anybody else?"

"I like my eggs with toast and syrup," Mimi said, closing her eyes. "And sometimes even cherries."

"That sounds good," Takeru said.

"Well, I like mustard and vinegar with my eggs," Koushirou said. Suddenly, everyone was staring at him in shock, with several of the children making gagging sounds. "There's nothing wrong with that!"

"It just sounds so disgusting," Sora said, watching as the last two pairs of chopsticks fell on top of the stone. "Hey, Jou finished! Come on... Jou?"

"I'll be back later," Jou said, walking off. "All this talk is making me sick to my stomach, and I also need some time to think." He heard someone mentioning Gabumon as he headed off, and he went off into the forest. "Mustard and vinegar, blech. Those kids are just too weird."

"I think I'm starting to understand something," Gabumon said, staring off into the boiling hot spring. "Love is like a hot spring, where if you stay outside of it you'll be freezing cold, but if you go in you risk being injured from the heat. Unless you've found the right partner to help you, taken the right precautions, you'll almost certainly be hurt if you fall in love. But then how can I be in love with someone I've known for not even a week?"

Jou walked out of the trees, and stretched, then looked around. "Oh, Gabumon, I didn't know you were here," he said, the Digimon not even responding.

"It's strange, really, that I would feel this way about someone who I didn't even know three days ago," Gabumon continued, unaware of his companion. "Love for a stranger, love at first sight. It's strange really, but it's there all the same. I can't stand to live without . . . Oh, Jou! When did you get here?" His head turned quickly to face the human, and he looked a bit embarrassed.

"About the time you said 'it's strange really,' or somesuch," Jou said, rolling his eyes. "Are you in love, Gabumon?"

"Uhh, well, I suppose, in a way, yes," Gabumon said, looking back towards the spring. "But I don't know how the person I love would react, if I told them how I feel."

"Well," Jou said, not sure how to really respond. "I guess this is something I can't help you with, really. I don't have any idea at all how you should act. But, could you tell me who it is? Is it Palmon?"

"No, it's not Palmon," Gabumon said, sighing. "But I can't tell you who it is, just yet. Maybe later, once I have an idea of how to act about it. But, please, don't tell Yamato or the others. I'm trusting you with this secret, Jou."

"All right," Jou said, sitting down. "So, I heard your thoughts. Would you like to hear mine?"

"Sure," Gabumon said, cursing his luck. "But only for a few minutes. We should get back to the others before it's dark."

"I know," Jou said, sighing. "Anyways, I've been imagining weird things lately. Especially since we got here, when I go to sleep. My dreams are totally different from what I think they should be, not to mention the wierd black figure watching it all. I hardly know what to think, especially about what's going on. And I'm getting a bad feeling, and it's only getting worse as we get closer to Mugen Mountain."

"Well, I have heard that a dangerous Digimon lives somewhere on the other side of that mountain, the shaded side," Gabumon said. "But what if it's only a rumor? It's probably best that we don't worry about it until we know for certain, right?"

"Sometimes I would agree," Jou said, looking down at the ground. "But not about this, I guess. It would probably be better for one person to take the risk than all of us. But, Monzaemon did say we should head there. It's definitely conflicting information." He turned towards Gabumon, but found that the small Digimon was already gone. "Well, time to head back, I suppose."

As he got up, he headed back towards the fire, and the children.

"It's not that big of a problem," Taichi shouted.

"You really want to risk your sister climbing that mountain?" Yamato was glarign at his best firend, and standing in front of the youngest kids. "I may not care about the danger for myself, but I do for Takeru. I'm not going to let you risk him, Tai!"

"There isn't anywhere else to go," Taichi said, clenching his fists. "And Monzaemon even said we should, and after we got rid of the Black Gear."

"You mean after I got rid of the Black Gear," Mimi said, smiling.

"Yeah, whatever," Taichi muttered, glaring at Yamato.

"But only a few of us would be able to make it all the way," Yamato said. "And none of us will want to stay behind if we're all following your stupid charge up the mountain."

"You're just a coward," Taichi shouted, swinging at Yamato.

"You're just an idiot," Yamato responded, stepping back from the punch. "Try to see things from my point of view here. I'm not the only one with a little sibling, and you aren't giving any thought to Hikari."

Jou approached the other kids, and sighed. "Hey, what's up? Why are Taichi and Yamato fighting?"

"A conflict of interests and duty," Koushirou said, tapping his fingers on the top of his laptop. "They can't agree on whether or not we should climb Mugen Mountain like Monzaemon said, or if we should just try to find another way home."

"Mugen Mountain," Jou said, nodding. "Well, Monzaemon did say to head this way. But have any of you gotten a bad feeling about this?"

"Well, only the fact that Taichi is saying to go right now," Sora said. "Otherwise no. Like you just reminded us, coming this way was Monzaemon's advice, and he's a good Digimon."

"Goggles is saying hat we should go right now," Mimi said, turning towards Jou. "He says we'll have a good view of the island, so we can decide where to go next. Maybe we can find a beauty parlor once we get up there."

"If we get up there," Koushirou said. "Because Yamato has a very good point himself. It's dangerous to climb the mountain, because there could be all kinds of evil Digimon or Black Gear Digimon waiting to attack us if we do climb it. What if there are more than we can handle?"

"Both very good points," Jou admitted, trying to rqationalize each one on it's own. But given both evidences, how could he ignore one just to support the other? "This is a very difficult decision even for one person to make."

"Come on, Yama, don't be such a coward! How are we going to get anywhere if we don't take chances?"

"Stop yelling at me, Tai, and put your fists down when you're talking to me. You can't just push your way into being the leader here."

"That's not how you acted back in the dried out lake," Taichi muttered, watching Jou approach. "Hey, Jou! Help us settle this once and for all. Tell Yamato that I'm the one who's right about this."

"But the point is, neither of you is totally right," Jou said, holding out his hands. "You both have strong points, but ignoring the other's point just to make yours isn't going to get us anywhere but fighting. Yes, if we climb the mountain we'll have a great view of the island, presumably. But, it is also very dangerous."

"Well, which do you say we should do," Yamato said, turning towards Jou.

"I say we think about it and try to reach a safe compromise," Jou said, looking at each of the younger boys.

"All right, let's just go as far up the mountain as we can," Taichi said. "That way we admit it's dangerous, but we stiall at least take the risk."

"That's like trying to make half a bomb, Tai. It just doesn't work that way, inviting danger like that." Yamato was keeping his cool, but he clearly refused to find a compromise.

"Just be quiet, both of you," Jou said, gritting his teeth. "Give me a few minutes to think this over, and we'll see what I can come up with. You guys are being very difficult."

"Us? Difficult?" Yamato looked shocked. "Jou, you're the most difficult person I've ever met!"

"Come on, Yamato, admit it, you're just a big coward!"

"Take it back, Tai!"

"Just shut up both of you," Jou shouted. "You're giving me a headache."

"You guys are being really loud," Patamon said, from atop Takeru's head. "I bet you could all think better if you just sat down and were quiet."

"And if Goggles removed his namesake," Sora said. "This fighting is getting us nowhere. Besides, it's getting dark. So if you can all act your age instead of your shoe size, we need to decide what to do, as a group."

Gabumon sighed. "I think we should just sleep on it. I'm sure we'll all think much more clearly in the morning. Plus, we definitely can't climb the mountain while it's so dark. Let's all just rest. We can decide in the morning."

It was, by Jou's figures, past midnight when his watch started. And he couldn't figure out any way to resolve the issue peacefully. "Why am I always the cautious one," he asked himself, looking up at the strange stars in the sky. "I can be spontaneous. But, when I need it the most, I can't find a solution to the problem. Unless, I go and do it on my own. But that definitely isn't safe."

"No, I'm resposible for their safety, even if it risks my own," he said, getting up. "That's it, I'll do it myself. This way if anyone gets hurt, at least he knows the danger." He picked up a stick and wrote a quick message in the dirt by the fire, to let them know what he was doing. But not in time to stop him.

"Jou? Are you going to climb the mountain all by yourself?"

"No, Gomamon, can't you see that I'm bringing this invisible Gomamon to help me?" He gestured towards the fire, and Gomamon sighed.

"You know I can't leave you to take the risk all alone," Gomamon said, chuckling. "We're partners, I have to protect you."

"No, Gomamon," Jou said, evenly. "I can't expose you to the danger. I have to do this alone."

"I won't let you do that," Gomamon said, firmly. "Look, I know you want to do this alone, but if we're together it's going to be a lot easier for us to make it up. What would you do if you fell and were alone?"

Jou thought about it for a moment, and envisioned himself falling on a bed of dagger-shaped rocks. Then the hours of slow and painful death that would follow. He had no desire to die like that. "Okay, I get your point," he said, shaking his head. "If you insist on coming, I have no problem with it."

Silently, they headed towards the mountain. For they most part they also climbed it silently. They took short breaks about every half hour, but even those were overshadowed by the almost oppressive silence. They'd had several such breaks before Gomamon slipped on the rocks.

"Here, give me your hand," Jou said, as Gomamon held on to a not especially sturdy rock. "If you can call that a hand."

"What!?" Gomamon looked up at his partner dubiously, then his eyes widened. "Hey! You may actually have a sense of humor."

"Well I don't mean to," Jou said, grabbing Gomamon. "Or wait, that's a good thing, right?"

"If you really have one," Gomamon said, sighing as he set his flippers back on the ground. "Thanks for the hand." They both looked up at the sound of a familiar buzzing.

"Dammit," Jou muttered, watching the black gear trace a path across the sky. "It's another black gear. Well, I guess that we did know the risk coming in. Are you still up to it?"

"As long as you are," Gomamon smirked, heading on. "Come on, I smell water not too far ahead."

The water had been a bit further than he'd expected, but they both drank deeply before a flapping sound broke their peaceful silence. Jou turned first, and saw a white horse appreaching. It looked like a white pegasus combined with a unicorn, and was wearing a bright read mask over its face and horn. "This is just what we need," He muttered, watching th Digimon circle around.

"What was that?" Gomamon looked up and around, and his jaw dropped.

"Just a flying horse, no doubt hunting us down," Jou said, heading towards a small crack in the mountain. It wasn't quite a cave, but it would, hopefully, suit their purposes. "Come on, we have to hide."

"But Jou, that's Unimon, he's a guardian Digimon," Gomamon said. "Sure he lives alone, but that's just his choice. He's really a nice Digimon, unless you threaten the island." But he still hid, knowing that if Unimon had been hit with that black gear from earlier, they were definitely in trouble.

"Gomamon, your information hasn't always been especially accurate," Jou said, kneeling down in the crack. "Now be quiet."

Unimon landed gracefully, trotting right past them as he headed for the water they'd been drinking from only a moment earlier. He didn't seem to notice them at all, and Jou watched as he started drinking the water. He did seem to be gentle, and he certainly didn't seem to be hunting for them.

"I told you," Gomamon said. "Maybe he can help us. He was guarding us along with all the other older Digimon. I'm sure he'll know something."

"Be careful," Jou said, watching Gomamon head out.

"Always," Gomamon said. As he approached Unimon, he had to get a speech, something to let him know who he was. He was so nervous his ears were ringing. "Hey, Unimon! It's been a while since I saw you."

Unimon's heard turned towards the new voice, but he said nothing. After looking at Gomamon for a minute, he went back to drinking his water. "Unimon, it's me, Gomamon. I evolved from Pukamon!"

"Pukamon?" Unimon turned around for a moment, and looked Gomamon over again. "Hm. . . yes, I see. Gennai must have gotten your partners here after all. But I'm worried. He didn't. . ."

Gomamon looked in shock past Unimon. The ringing in his ears wasn't just a figment of his imagination, it was the black gear. "Unimon, move fast! You're in danger!"

The black gear flew too quickly, quickly embedding itself in Unimon's neck. Unimon screamed out in agony, and Gomamon ran back to Jou. "Okay, I was wrong. He's trouble. But it's not his fault, Jou. It's the black gear!"

"I saw," Jou said, narrowing his eyes. "We have to get away before he can start attacking us."

"Too late," Unimon said, looking in on their crack. "But we can play a game, if you'd like. I'll even give you a fair chance, since I have a home field advantage. The game is tag, except if I tag you, you're out. Permanently."

"That really doesn't sound good," Gomamon said. "So, how is it we're getting a fair chance here?"

"I'll let you run, and try to get away. Then, in one minute, I'll start chasing you," Unimon said. He stepped away from the crevice and let the partners step out. "Your time begins right now!"

"This is not good," Jou said, running away as fast as he could. "Taichi, Sora, anyone, please help us."

"Oh, Digimon Kami, please help us escape from this ordeal, send our friends to save us." Gomamon looked to the sky, pleading for his life. "I'll do anything you want if you just let us live!"

"This is no time for prayer," Jou shouted, his eyes wide. "On the other hand, maybe it is."

Sora woke up and stretched her arms. Piyomon was still sleeping on top of her, keeping her warm, and she gently picked her partner up as she sat up. She looked around the cave twice, and gasped. "Somebody should already be awake," she said, blinking. "But everyone's sound asleep." She stood up, set Piyomon on the ground again, and walked to the cave entrance.

"Where's Jou?" She walked to the fire and saw his message. "Wait for me to get back, I'll hurry as best I can. Don't worry, Gomamon is with me. ~ Jou."

Her eyes widened as she realized what he'd done. "Guys! Taichi, Yamato! You have to get up, right away!"

"Five more minutes," Yamato said, rolling over and hitting Taichi with his elbow.

"Hey, Yamato!" Taichi woke up with a start. "What have I told you about touching me while I'm asleep!"

"Huh? But, Tai-kun, I wasn't doing anything," Yamato protested, looking up at his friend. "And I don't think I need to repeat what you said. Say, did somebody just call us?"

"Taichi!"

"Sora!" Taichi jumped up and ran to the front of the cave, expecting to find Sora caught by Digieggmon, or some other evil Digimon. "Agumon, wake up!"

"I'm awake," Agumon said, getting himself up. He walked to the hot spring and howled in pain as his claws were scalded by the overly hot water. "Okay, now I'm awake!"

"All right," Sora said, pointing to the message. "Jou went up the mountain by himself, He might be in danger."

"Someone has to stay to protect the rest of us," Yamato said, rubbing his eyes. "I'll volunteer for that."

"And I'll help you get there quickly," Piyomon said, walking out of the cave. "Sora, if I evolve, You guys can ride on my talons while we go to find Jou and Gomamon."

"Right," Sora said. "Do it, Piyomon!"

Piymon nodded as the energy filled her and then burst past what she could handle. "Piyomon evolve!" Her body expanded int a longer and realtively more slender form, her wings filling to more than twice their relative size. Her beak was full of sharp teeatch, and she smiled as the process finished. Not as attactive as before, but much more powerful. "Birdramon."

"Let's go, Taichi, Agumon." Sora jumped on Bidramon's left talon, while Taichi and Agumon got on the other, and in a moment they were off. "Don't worry. We're coming, Jou!"

"Do you not like my game," Unimon asked, staring down at Jou. "Of course, I suppose whether you like it doesn't matter. After all, who does like to lose? Holy shot!" A ball of energy shot from Unimon's mouth, and Jou gasped as he saw his who life flash before his eyes.

"Well, that's a disappointing sight," he muttered, as the flash concluded, still leaving plenty of time for him to see his demise. "Is my life really that dull?"

"Meteor wing!" Fireballs burst from the sky, intercepting and stopping Unimon's attack before it could reach Jou. "Looks like we were just in time," Sora said, jumping down to land next to Jou. Within seconds, Taichi and Agumon were there too. "Whoever that is almost had you beat."

"Jou, why did you take that stupid risk," Taichi said, grabbing the older boy by the wrist. "Even I wouldn't be dumb enough to try this with only Agumon. We need to work as a team."

"That's why you were fighting with Yamato," Jou said, his eyes widening. "I'm sorry, Taichi. I really was stupid, wasn't I?"

"Yeah." Taichi looked over, and saw Unimon turning for another attack. "Agumon, get him!" Agumon nodded.

"Agumon evolve!" His body expanded with the power, and he prepared to fight. From his giant sized dinosaur body rippling with muscles, he stared at Unimon. "Greymon! Mega flame!"

"Holy shot," Unimon shouted, launching another shot. This one got through its target, and hit Greymon as well. "And you four don't even know the rules. If I tag you, you're out! So let's try again. Holy shot!" The attack flew forth again, slamming into Greymon. A roar of agony rocked the ground as he gave up his energy, devolving to Agumon.

"Agumon!" Taichi ran over to his partner. "Sora, be careful. Don't let him get Birdramon!" He stood in front of Agumon, using his body as a shield.

"Don't worry about us," Birdramon said, circling around Unimon. "He's focusing on . . . Where did he go?"

"Holy shot!" The silver ball of energy connected, throwing Birdramon to the ground. She barely kept herself from crushing Sora with the impact. "Corn thrust!"

"No!" Jou grabbed a rock and threw it at Unimon, just managing to deflect the nearly fatal attack. "I have to protect you guys."

"Jou, this isn't Unimon's normal behavior," Gomamon said, looing up. "If we can get rid of the black gear, he'll defitely be willing to help us."

"The gear," Jou said, as Unimon charged at him through the air. "I have to get rid of it."

"Jou, don't be a fool," Taichi said. He watched in shock as Jou grabbed onto Unimon, riding on his back, right behind the gear. He strained at it, tryign to pull it out.

"Stop, Jou! You don't have to impress me," Gomamon said, his eyes wide at the sight. Unimon began bucking, trying to get Jou off. "Besides, getting yourself killed is not an impressive move."

"I have to do this," Jou said, feeling a light pain in his fingers as he pulled at the gear. But he still wasn't making any progress. "I have to save my team. I'm the only one who can do this!"

Unimon finally succeeded, and Gomamon leapt after the falling Jou. "I'll save you, Jou! I promise." As he fell, he felt a power surge deep inside of himself, and he squeezed his eyes tight. "Gomamon evolve!" His body grew to ten times it's size, and was now covered in shaggy white fur, with a tusk on either side of his mouth, and a large black horn on top of his head. His eyes shone blue in the morning sunlight, and he let out a mighty roar. "Ikkakumon!"

Jou fell on Ikkakumon's back, and looked up. "Great, and I'm allergic to fur."

"Hang on, Jou. We're going to handle this the right way now," Ikkakumon said, growling. "Harpoon vulcan!" He released a horn-shaped missile which flew over Unimon before breaking up, revealing the real weapon. The orange missile that had been within the horn targeted itself to the black gear, and flew straight.

The gear shattered, and Unimon fell to the ground. He didn't fall like he'd been criticall injured, and in fact landed standing upright. He looked around for a moment, then flew off, without so much as a word of apology. As Ikkakumon slowly made his way towards Birdramon and Greymon, Jou started sneezing.

"I told you I was allergic to fur," Jou said, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket.

Moments later, Sora and Birdramon had gone to bring the others, while Taichi and Greymon watched as Ikkakumon devolved to Gomamon.

"That was pretty impressive," Taichi said, as Jou launched into another sneezing fit. "And don't worry about Jou, I don't think he's any more allergic to your fur than he is to my hair."

"I heard that," Jou said, blowing his nose on a nearby leaf. "And I swear, I'm allergic to fur."

"Dander, actually," Koushirou said, as Birdramon returned with the other kids. "But come on, let's head on up the mountain! Everyone's waiting for you, Jou."

Jou sighed, sneezed, and shhok his head before turning around. "All right," he said, leading the way.

Not a bad day, even though I am a... all... ah-choo! Er, Allergic to fur, that is. Why did my partner have to be furry? But at least he's strong, and we make a pretty good team. But what's waiting for us at the top of Mugen Mountain? I guess you'll have to keep reading Digimon Adventure: Remix to find out.