The Great Binary Archipelago All Out Race [Kath/Amy][Career]

Listening closely to Amelie’s take on her words, Katherine couldn’t help but feel like what she had already felt since she met the brunette was true: This girl was something else. –You’re completely right. But… -She continued. –It’s not much of a choice, you see? If I start knowing more about something I can’t stop, but I also can’t choose to study some stuff and not others. –It sounded weird, but Katherine was a knowledge-eating machine, without a defined route. –It’s like I just read and investigate about the first thing I find; until I’m satisfied and then stumble into another. –To be honest, the girl felt kind of silly explaining this that way, but she felt like she could trust Amelie would know how to handle such a vague explanation.

Katherine then nodded at Amelie’s question. –Yes, there’s a career I'm interested in taking. –The girl answered firmly. –I want to be a fashion designer. –Since years ago, the girl had been drawing clothes sketches and models, it was something she had a lot of fun doing and sort of made her happy. She could only think of how excited she would be to see one of her designs actually made a reality with a model wearing them, or even wearing them herself. She had heard from one too many teachers before that sort of career was a waste of her intellect, but she couldn’t care less. The brunette firmly believed every branch of knowledge is important, and none of them should be misprized.

Jazz tilted her head at Amelie’s statement. –That we would have to… evolve? –She was fine with she having to evolve but the bunny seemed rather confused at Amelie’s statement about she evolving. Katherine then realized Jazz wasn’t around when Amelie explained everything about those humans that could evolve into digimon. Before the conversation could go on, though, Liquid had interrupted them, and now they were sitting at his table.

-Last place-sis… -Liquid muttered, his eyes widening at the brunette’s statement, showing her commitment to the race. Katherine and Jazz’s eyes glimmered at the girl’s confident way of talking. Maybe it was Amy’s words, but some sort of excitement ran through Katherine’s body; this was going to be awesome! The candle then took the last bite of food and bowed to the whole table. –Thank you very much for all of your help, sisters! –He immediately said. Katherine smiled at the waxy digimon. Liquid had a dream and was willing to work hard, to be humble and to be grateful towards his friends, all while he looked to accomplish that dream. How was that less than admirable? Even if the kid had a quirky attitude.

-I know we can improve the boat greatly with all the materials the old man brought! –He added, smiling. –And we should start right…! –Suddenly, the small face the ball of fire over the candle’s head had, who usually had Liquid’s same facial expression, started to look tired, almost closing its eyes. The candle let go a big yawn. –I’m sorry… I’m just… -Another yawned followed. Even though worried at first, Katherine then only chuckled at the candle’s change of mood. It had been a long day no doubt, so it was only logical for him to be exhausted.

Jazz chuckled too. –Liquid, you’re all worn out… -But the bunny’s sentence was interrupted by her own yawning. -Well, you must be fairly tired too, Jazz. –The brunette said, smiling at her partner too. –I think we should call it a day, everyone. –It sure was a little risky to take the night off, since that would leave them only with tomorrow to work. But it didn’t make any sense too overwork right now, that could cost them at the race since they needed to be at a 100%. They had formed the team, reunited the 4 fruits (which was the hardest task of them all, no doubt) and tested the boat in just one day, so they couldn’t say they had been lazing around. –Tomorrow, we can wake up early to start working on the boat. –The girl suggested. Jazz nodded, yawning again. A loud snore could be heard already, coming from the table. Nanimon was out for good. Which was sort of weird since he didn’t seem like he did much, but who was Katherine to judge.

-Okay, Beer Flag Team, then let’s give it our best! –Liquid replied, trying to recover his usual hyperactive self, but failing at it. -…Tomorrow. –He added, with a sleepy expression. –There’s a big room upstairs with some beds. –The candle explained as he hopped towards the stairs. –You can sleep there once you feel like resting. –He added. –You can leave the old man there; he sleeps pretty much anywhere. Good night, everyone. Yia, yia… yia… yia… -Liquid hopped up the stairs, leaving shorts and sleepy ‘Yias’ like he was trying to do his usual laugher but was too tired to accomplish. Katherine then turned at Nanimon, who seemed to be sleeping comfortably. It was sort of a relief they could leave him there since he seemed rather heavy.

-I’m going to go and put Jazz to bed. –The brunette stated, getting up the table, and carrying Jazz in both arms, whose looks were not too different from Liquids. Katherine didn’t feel as tired herself, but then again, she didn’t have to run for her life from a giant tortoise today, so it wasn’t hard to see why Jazz was the most exhausted out of the two. The girl carried the bunny and went up the stairs. She found, as Liquid said, a big room with 8 beds, 4 on each side of the room. Liquid was already sleeping, tucked in on one of the 4 to the left side. The flame on his head had lowered its intensity greatly, and for some reason, it wasn’t burning the pillow even though being in contact with it. Katherine assumed then that it worked sort of like Roff’s flame body, the Meramon they met at Rustport, who could control if their flames burnt or not. The girl couldn’t help to wonder why Liquid had so many beds if he was working on this boat by himself all along, as she placed Jazz in one of the beds and tuck her in. –I’m proud of you. –The girl muttered.

Katherine went down the stairs again and got out of the house to take some fresh air. The moon was beautiful that night, laying its white light over the surface of the lake. The brunette then turned her gaze back to the house, wondering if Amelie had gone to sleep too. She felt like they two had a lot of things to talk about. She had so much to ask her.

On her way down, while she walked the stairs to the first floor, Katherine had found Ooi about to go up. –Oh, Ooi. –Katherine turned at the short girl. –I saw a bathroom next to the big room, there’s a shower in there. –The girl said with a smile, to the girl with a clear sleepy countenance. –Have a good night, Ooi. -She then added, with a lower tone. 

After noticing there was no one left inside the house except for the big Nanimon, still snoring and sleeping comfortably over the table, the brunette proceeded to turn the lights off. She then turned at her backpack, still laying on the ground. She opened it, took her digivice out and then headed outside again. The weather was sort of cold, for a jungle, at least. The night was as starry as it could get, small paths of what seemed to be data, traveled through the sky, along with some small stars glimmering in the sky. This world definitely had shown the girl some landscapes and scenarios she had never witnessed back in the human world. How long was it? She started thinking. She had been keeping a record of every day inside the Digital World, so it was almost a month and a week since she had arrived. –Earth... time… -The brunette muttered. There was so much stuff she still didn’t know about the Digital World, about digimon. Was she losing time here? No. She had learned so much today too! The girl shook her head, trying to take these thoughts off her head. Upon raising her gaze and looking back at the lake, she now saw Amelie. She was just lying there, looking straight into the sky. The moonlight bounced off her skin and outlined her features, also lighting up her blue dress, while a soft breeze moved her dark as night hair slowly. Katherine just stared at Amelie for some seconds, all kinds of thoughts traveling through her head, from what was she doing there and if she wanted to be alone to the recurring thought of what kind of digimon the girl could transform into. Maybe she would be a great model for Katherine’s designs, after all, the girl thought, chuckling at the idea immediately after, thinking how odd it would be for her to ask Amelie to try the clothes she designed, and also feeling kind of glad by the fact that Amelie didn't immediately dismiss the career she liked, as everyone else tended to do. The girl slowly walked towards the brunette with a taciturn expression.

-You don’t feel like sleeping right now either? –Katherine asked, tilting her head, looking at her friend. –Can I take a seat here? –The brunette asked. If Amelie agreed on it, she would sit next to her, right by the lake. –During my whole life, I’ve tended to associate something beautiful with something I fully understand. –She explained. –I think something’s beauty is truly appreciated when you fully understand something or how it works. I even think that can even be extrapolated to a person. –There she was, talking a bit too much about her odd way of thinking. –But I somehow find the Digital World so beautiful, even though I don’t fully understand most of it.

-Amy… -Katherine turned at the girl, while the moonlight now bounced over both of them. –You mentioned you have been at the Digital World for over 6 months, right? –The girl changed her expression to a reflective one. –But then you said… Earth time. –The girl then waved her hands dismissively. –I mean, you don’t have to tell me, I know I can be annoying with all of these questions but… -She continued. -… what did you mean? –She asked.

Even though a dreamer, Katherine was capable of giving herself a reality check every now and then. She was the first to understand some of her objectives towards certain things could be naïve at best, and probably impossible at worst. This wouldn’t stop her though, she had already held back one too many times at life before going into the Digital World, so she was going to follow her instincts and try to have the best of fun out of it, and she was clearly having that right now.

-I know it is, and I know you’re right. –The girl explained to her peer. –But you know? I recently decided to stop thinking about the goal so much, and started enjoying the ride. –She added with a smile, to then scratch the back of her head adding one extra explanation. –I-I’m not talking about something like the race! Of course, I’m focusing on the goal in that one. –The girl giggled right after.

-Your romantic… side? –Katherine tilted her head, looking at the girl. She realized up to this point she had been looking at Amelie like a mentor more than like a friend, when she was a regular girl, with about as much questions about everything as herself. Just, much fewer questions than her regarding the Digital World. It was logical for Katherine to think of Amelie as a ‘digital mentor’, but maybe she should start thinking more about her as her ‘human friend’. In all honesty, Amelie was only the third person Katherine actually got to meet inside the Digital World and she had never been very good at making friends. But then, a thought crossed her head: Why not try something different? If she had taken a different life philosophy upon entering this world, why not take a different stance towards making friends? Why not just try being herself? The brunette could feel how her once tense shoulders relaxed, as she had loosened up a weight from them. She then chuckled at the girl’s statement, going back into the conversation. –You should pay attention to it more often, Amy! –The girl replied. –What if its eager to get out and you’re just holding it back? Plus… -She made a pause, placing her index finger in her lower lip, thinking about everything the girl had just said. -… It seems like your romantic side can throw some really poetry-like sentences.

-Always evolving, huh? –The girl then turned back at the lake, observing the majestic landscape the Digital World was offering to them that night. –Then that makes it only more fun to explore. –Katherine then lowered her gaze sighing as Amelie told her what she had already realized. She was putting the girl in a pedestal just because she knew so much more about the Digital World than her and had been treating her like a mentor more than like a friend. –I’m sorry… -She said, knowing she hadn't been herself. She had been treating Amelie as if she was a teacher at school. Of course, like any student, she treated those nicely and was well-mannered in front of them; but she didn’t act quite as she would act in front of a friend, she wasn’t herself.

Her way of treating Amy was about to change, forever. The girl took the decision in that exact same instant. –It is amazing you have mentored so many ‘digidestined’. –The girl said, assuming that was the word she used to refer to humans that had traveled into the Digital World and had some sort of relationship with digimons or could become a digimon. Katherine then shook her head. –But this is different… -She added. –Cause you and I are not mentor and apprentice. –The girl continued, blushing slightly. –You and I are friends. –She then raised her looks at her, a small grin showing, still in her shy, blushed face.

What came next, definitely qualified to be one of the most important reveals Katherine had received since her journey started. –W-what? –The girl then got awfully close to Amelie. –Is that true, Amy!? Are you serious!? –The girl still couldn’t believe it. Even though Talia had prepared that fake letter for her, one of the things that had Katherine the most worried was that her parents could be really worried for her, for where she was during this month. The girl then raised her gaze to think. –That means… -The girl then reached the mathematical conclusion. –...I’ve only been 4 days away from home right now! That’s great! –The girl squealed, excited. Four days was not enough for her mom and dad to start doubting the letter sent by Talia was real. She was safe! That was definitely one of the best news Katherine could have received.

After calming herself down and giving her personal space back to Amy (without apologizing this time, even though she thought about doing it for a second, she was done acting like Amelie was some stranger), the girl shook her head. –I’ve never been back to the real world. I’ve been trapped here since I entered. –Since Amelie left the door open for another question, the girl then tackled the obvious one. –What’s the way of coming back? I once heard something about a train station but… -The girl frowned, remembering Tripmon didn’t give many details about it, back at Rustport. -… I don’t know what’s the Trailmon you’re supposed to take for that. –She added. She wasn’t planning on going back soon, much less now that her worries about her status back at the human world have banished; but still, of course, it was a very important piece of info knowing how to go back for when she needed it.

-I know I can’t be of much help regarding Digital World information, not that you need much of that either. -Katherine started. –But… Is there something you want to ask me, Amy? It can be anything, for real. –The girl added. If she was going to be treating Amelie as a real friend this time, she was willing to open to her, even though that wasn’t something she usually did.

It was hard to not put deep thought into everything Amelie said. Especially for someone like Katherine, who tended to over-analyze stuff that was thrown at her every time she could. The girl could also see why she previously had trouble seeing her peer as a friend more than as a mentor; her way of speaking was so mature, so reflexive. She could learn from Amelie just by listening to her talk. Katherine couldn’t help but let a smile take over her lips when the girl mentioned how happy she was of having met her and Jazz. Then she passed to remember how Jazz laughed very impolitely at Ooi falling that morning. For some reason, it seemed like that had been days ago, while only hours have spent. It didn’t seem necessary to give any impressions about Jazz, even though she could come up as rude sometimes, she had probably already proven she meant well. Liquid, on the other side, Katherine had noticed Amelie wasn’t at the same page with the candle’s way of acting. –Liquid is… the most complex digimon I’ve met so far. –And who could blame Amy, really? The guy had acted both very nicely and very recklessly a couple of times already. –I can tell he’s been alone for quite a while. He’s quirky and doesn’t know how to deal with people because he hasn’t had any friends ever. –The girl sighed, immediately after, noticing how that sounded awfully like her. –Heck, maybe he and I are very alike, now that I think about it. –The girl added, lowering her gaze, in a sad manner.

-That’s not true. –Katherine replied to Amelie’s negative insight, shaking her head. –And I think this romantic side of you feels the same. –The girl continued, rising her view, looking straight into Amelie’s eyes. –You may think that, but you’re not always saving yourself the risk. Why would you say we’ve got next to zero chances of losing the race if not? You know very well that, theoretically, competing in an all-out race full of gigantic sea digimon willing to crush us inside a small boat lead by a digimon who will literally extinguish if he touches the sea puts our chances of losing highly above zero. –The girl explained, firmly. –Now don’t get me wrong, I also think that we’re going to win, Amy. But I’m willing to admit that’s my romantic side speaking, because that’s not a realist take on it –The girl continued. She having the courage to say all of this to Amelie was a clear showing that her attitude towards the girl had changed. –I know that one part of me believes if you try very hard, you can stop the world from chewing on your ideals. Just like we’re going to stop that giant dragon-lobster from chewing on us. –She then made a pause, tilting her head at her friend with a smile. –Maybe you should start to accept some part of you thinks the same, too.

Granted, this reading Katherine had just made of Amelie based on what she said about they winning the race could be completely wrong. It was a prompt analysis that led her to think she knew how a part of Amelie really thought; but truth be told, it could just be that Amelie had some super-awesome aquatic evolution that was also a bunker and would take them safely to the goal, being that the reason why she was so sure they were going to win. Even knowing this reading of the girl was probably mistaken, she decided not to apologize for it. Part of treating Amelie like a friend meant to stop being scared of making mistakes in front of her.

Speaking about reading, Amelie had pulled a very much simpler but also very much righter reading of the girl. Yeap, that was her, extremely awkward and shy when dealing with people. The girl then chuckled at Amy’s statement. –Well, I think you look cute. And that could be as intimidating as it gets for some. –Katherine lowered her gaze, looking at Amelie’s blue dress. –And I’m the one who knows about fashion, so trust me, I would know. –She concluded her statement with a wink, in an obvious teasing tone. Her eyes then widened, knowing that even though she had asked her a lot about Digital World stuff, she didn’t know much about her friend as a girl, more than as a tamer. –I never asked, Amy… How old are you? –She asked, looking at the girl. –Are you a high school student too, or…? –The girl let her question opened, hoping her peer would interrupt to answer.

Then, when Katherine thought Amelie couldn’t be more amazing Digital World-wise, the brunette opened up a portal out of thin air, stating she could go back to the real world through there. The girl’s eyes widened as she stared at the glowing circle of energy just above them. –T-that’s… amazing! Can all of those digivice do that? Could mine do it? –The girl asked, still staring at the portal until it closed, then shaking her head. –I’m not at all interested in going back now, but if I ever need to, I’ll try to keep you close, then. –She added with a smile.

–Terminus… -The girl then muttered. She had heard some bandits mentioning that place before during her adventure alongside Miyu. The largest city of the Digital World. Katherine knew for sure her trip would take her there someday.

Even though her friend had just literally opened an interdimensional portal in front of her by just messing with her digivice, what came later was the most surprising thing of the whole conversation for Katherine. Even if she couldn’t tell for sure, Amelie seemed to be showing some sort of insecurity, which wasn’t something she had seen in the girl during any of the conversations they had previously had. Amelie always seemed so sure of herself, so confident towards everything happening around her, seeing her doubting about someone's sentiments of friendship towards her was impressive, to say the least. After giving back a short shocked countenance, Katherine quickly answered, without even stopping to think, surprisingly even for her.

-Of course I meant it! –The teenager replied, firmly. –We definitely have different points of view towards multiple things so far, Amy. And I’m sure we’re going to have them towards many more in the future, but even if it comes a time when I don’t understand what you do or what you’ve done… -The girl made a brief pause, closing her eyes with a smile. –I will think the best of you. –After a moment of silence, the girl spoke again to add something. –Plus… -She turned back at the moon. -… I’m convinced we’re really not that different. –The girl genuinely felt like they both had a side they had trouble admitting they had, being for Katherine her pragmatic, pessimistic self, and for Amelie her romantic, optimistic roundabout.

Trying to hide everything Amelie’s words had shaken inside of her, was probably the hardest thing Katherine had to face that day, and that was saying a lot. Neither the giant tortoise or the awful insects have moved inside the brunette the kind of things the teenager had moved with her words. It was crushing, painful indeed, especially because she was right, without even knowing it. Katherine already knew this about Liquid, she knew he was hiding many things from them. The fact that her friend was actually standing up for her, when she was exactly the same that the candle, simply broke her heart. She now regretted her way of acting during her whole life, but at the same time, she thought she couldn't act differently. She just wanted to cry now. 

-I think you’re right. –The girl simply said, smiling. –I actually think the same. I can’t disagree with anything of what you just said. –Crisis adverted, seemingly? That answer should be enough to leave that topic be. Any other mentioning of it would make the girl burst to tears.

The topic about the race made Katherine only think that there was a huge gap between the understanding Amelie had about the Digital World compared to hers. She could try, she could give it a big chunk of trying, but she still couldn’t see how they had no chances of losing. –Do the opposite…? –The girl muttered, raising her gaze and giving it some deep thought. Underestimating their opponents and thinking about their shortcomings? That didn’t seem like a good idea for her. First of all, she had absolutely no reason to underestimate them and she couldn’t think of any shortcomings they had! Maybe Amelie meant overestimating themselves and thinking about the Beer Flag Team's strong points? The first part didn’t seem like a good idea either, but Amelie could scare off a giant digimon with just her gaze, so that was definitely a point on their sheet.

Now, being because she had almost zero knowledge of her friend’s or Ooi’s skills or because she was completely unaware of what could be their opponent’s weaknesses; the truth was Katherine couldn’t really reach her friend’s position about the race right now, and that was just fine. In the end, they both thought they were going to win, and that was the bottom line, so no point in arguing about it. Nevertheless, this topic had raised her awareness that she should ask Liquid whatever he knew about the TOXIC team, that giant sea-serpent-like creature or the evil-looking octopus-lobster team, whatever their name was.

Katherine’s train of thought about the race had reached his final destination and wasn’t moving any further now. Why? Well, the brunette had something more important to think about just now, like Amelie’s suddenly having moved towards her, being awfully close, only centimeters away from her face. Being the Japanese culture as coy as it was, people didn’t tend to get that close to someone unless they had some type of close friendship or… something else. Was their relationship like that? Were they that close friends? Maybe not, maybe there was something else; something she had noticed since she met her and judging by her name: Amelie was not Japanese. That would explain why, just like Katherine, she had no trouble getting physically close to someone if she needed to. This was different, though. It had been years since Katherine had someone this close to her, definitely never happened during the two years she had been living in Japan. It was true Katherine had approached her like this before, but it was different, she wasn’t looking at Amelie as the girl was looking at her now. When she did it, she was not observing every detail of her face, she just did it out of pure excitement. Now her peer was the one getting closer, and she just couldn’t stop looking at her.

Then, being as close as they were, Katherine’s gaze met Amelie’s. She had the most beautiful, deep blue eyes the girl had ever seen. They sparkled in the night, like they were lighting up all the darkness around them. Katherine tried to move, tried to react, but couldn’t, she couldn’t stop staring at Amelie’s pale, delicate skin; but what she really couldn’t escape from were those beautiful summer-sky blue eyes. The teenager was speaking, Katherine could see her lips move slowly, but she was so nervous she couldn’t even listen to what she was saying. Then, Amelie touched her curly, black hair, moving it to whisper into her ear. Katherine was completely paralyzed, having goosebumps as she ever had. Maybe it was due to the fact of no one ever approached her like this, or maybe it was the fact of Amelie doing it. She could listen to what she said this time, maybe because she wasn’t looking into her eyes or maybe because Amelie soft voice had woken all of her senses. Katherine blushed like she never had, letting her hair cover her eyes and trying to hide her countenance after the girl moved. Once the nervous, shaky sensation disappeared, the girl was left with just sadness. Why? Why did she feel so sad now?

-O-O-Of course… -Katherine was barely able to speak, her gaze aiming straight at the ground.

The brunette tried to recover a hold of herself as her friend spoke as nothing had happened. Maybe she was that used to get that close to people in that way. Constructing her very own city? Even though her mind was all over the place thanks to what Amelie had said and done during this conversation, this was something that big that even Katherine in her current state couldn’t miss. She would, of course, ask her about this when the time was proper. Right now, she just needed to end this conversation as soon as possible. Amelie's actions had only made her senses wake up and realize how sad she felt about everything.

-Yes, I’m sixteen years old and I’m at high school or senior high school if you want to be more specific. I should graduate next year. –The girl explained, her eyes still trying to escape Amelie’s. Katherine felt she should talk about the gems when she got the chance since that was also an important part of what she was doing right now. And this would be a good time to talk about it, were not for her current state of mind. So she decided to leave that for later.

She then listened to the girl’s explanation carefully. As it only confirmed she would have to go to Terminus someday, as she expected. -Y-Yes! –She nodded about she having a D-Terminal. That thing Reviewmon had given to her back at Whitewater. She honestly hadn’t use it properly yet, but this was a very good opportunity to do so. –I will add you tomorrow, as soon as I wake up. –The girl finished, still without looking Amelie into her eyes. The close encounter with the girl had only destabilized Katherine more about what she had said earlier, and she was not able to keep this conversation going for much longer.

Without even replying anything to Amelie’s final sentence, the girl was about to suggest they went to bed until her friend did herself.

-Y-Yes! It’s so late and we have so much to do tomorrow! –She promptly answered, standing up. –I’m going to rush to the bathroom and then sleep okay? It was nice talking to you, Amy, I’ll see you tomorrow. –The girl then walked at a fast pace towards the house. -Sleep tight. –She added, before starting her trip back.

After taking her backpack, going up the stairs and entering the bathroom, the girl leaned on the closed door, covering her mouth with her right hand to avoid making any sound in case she started to cry, her eyes wrinkling.

-Being… straightforward, huh? –She asked, muttering. The girl managed to stop herself from tearing, washing her face and brushing her teeth, to then go to sleep. She left her hand empty, getting into bed with Jazz and hugging her. She didn’t feel like sleeping alone that night.

Her eyes closed, cold water fell through Katherine’s body while she took a well-earned shower. Even though yesterday had been completely exhausting for her and she had actually considered taking it before going to bed, she didn’t feel in the mood to do so last night after that conversation with Amelie. It may not have seemed like, but the girls were chatting for almost an hour, and even though she had managed to get a good amount of sleep, the truth was she wasn’t feeling fully rested that morning. Nevertheless, still feeling with enough energy to tackle such an important day, the girl had woken up early and walked straight into the shower. Maybe not as early as she could have, though, since Liquid and Amelie’s bed were already empty when she opened her eyes.

Luckily, thanks to the money Coaltmon insisted on her taking back at Whitewater, she had managed to buy not only some clothes, but also some personal care products, like shampoo and soap. Granted, the shampoo bottle was oddly shaped and the soap had a very particular (yet delicious) smell, but they would do, considering she couldn’t take anything before leaving Shibuya. Getting out of the shower, the girl simply dried up using her light green towel, putting it around her body and brushing her teeth right after. The girl went out of the bathroom, wearing a pink short around 10 inches over her knees and a white beach-styled blouse. Staring at the room’s layout, other than noticing Jazz and Ooi still fast asleep, the (recurring) thought of why Liquid built all of this to work alone in here, simply confused her. For a second, she considered she should ask the candle about this later, but just like Amelie mentioned last night, did it really have a point to have to question someone who was supposedly their teammate? He should have told them all of this, and much more, from before. A sad countenance took over the raven-haired girl’s face. Was she actually in a spot where she could criticize this? She sighed, trying to forget about this topic, and staring at her digimon partner. She figured she should wake her up later since it was not eight yet. Turning at Ooi, she started thinking about what Amelie said last night; to her, it still didn’t look like their odds of winning were the best, but she was extremely glad they had a team of such marvelous people (and Digital Monsters). She also remembered Amelie mentioning her excitement about the race; the tall girl looked stunning when she was reflexive, but the glimmer her blue-eyes acquired when she smiled or got excited about something, definitely beat any kind of expression the brunette could have by a fairly large margin. The girl then chuckled, remembering her friend’s words. So she was cute too, huh? She thought. That compliment was particularly special coming from someone like Amy.

Katherine went down the stairs, thinking about making the breakfast while she combed her hair, slowly. It definitely got too curly during mornings, especially after showering. The girl turned to the kitchen, only to discover Amelie was a step ahead of her, as usual. The tall blue-eyed teenager seemed sort of concentrated, while she cooked something around the house's small kitchen. Katherine simply stared at her for a couple of seconds, to then greet her when she turned. –Good morning, Amy. –The girl said, as she slid the comb through her lower strands of hair. Katherine didn’t even consider the girl might be making breakfast just for herself, that wouldn’t be at all like her. –Thanks for your hard work. –She said with a sincere smile, walking towards her and leaning over the wall. –Do you need help? –She asked, looking at her work. To be fair, Katherine knew she wasn’t especially good at cooking and she probably would perform fairly well at any task Amelie demanded, but it wasn’t a good idea for her to start fiddling around her kitchen without asking if she needed or wanted her help. After all, the girl was only an expert at making those eggs sandwiches she tended to take to school every day, which weren’t at all hard to 'cook'.

Since she had reached the ground floor, two things, aside from her cooking friend, had raised Katherine’s attention; the first one being that Nanimon was nowhere to be seen, the second being that a small, light blue colored radio-like device was over a small shelf, close to the table where they ate last night, playing a soft, very tropical music that, as all the music she had heard inside the Digital World, had no lyrics. It was quite relaxing, with a beach-styled tune. –Did you put that? –Staring at the radio, she asked, obviously addressing Amelie. –It sounds good. –She added, smiling again at Amy. It reminded Katherine of a very Spanish-like style of music, like the one she used to listen to back in Spain or Argentina during the weekends, when she was only a child.

-How did you sleep? Are you feeling ready? –Katherine asked, looking at Amelie from head to toes. She couldn’t say her peer looked completely refreshed, but she wasn’t feeling that rested either so she kind of understood. The girl then took a glance around the whole ground floor. –Any idea of where Liquid and Mr. Nanimon are?