Flight of the Wizardmon

"Who are you?"

"I am Wizardmon."

"How are you able to fly like that?"

How are you able to fly like that? Really? That's the question she had to ask, out of the thousands that he expected when she first laid eyes on him. How are you able to fly like that? He could only stutter and stammer nervously, wondering how he could explain it briefly (there really wasn't a way to do so), and let out a quiet sigh of relief when Gatomon showed up to save him.

Oddly enough, it was one of the things Wizardmon remembered most about Kari. In his time with Rika before and during their living in the Digital World, whenever he thought of Kari the first thing that popped up in his head was that innocent question. Somehow, it showed what a remarkable child she was, and still is to this day. She never did get her answer, but when he began teaching her about the abilities of Majin Digimon, she just assumed flying was one of his abilities. True, he knew how to levitate, but levitation is not the same as flying.

How are able to fly like that?

Wizardmon sat up in his bed, glancing down to the small clock near Tai's head. It read 12:45; quarter till one in the morning. He sighed, thinking back to his dream. More like a memory; of his times with Witchmon and his siblings. Wizardmon rubbed the fabric of his coveralls with his hand, looking down at himself as though to simply take in his appearance. Summers got pretty warm in Tokyo, and Wizardmon long since decided he would be more comfortable sleeping in just his coveralls and vest. He seemed to have kicked off the blanket in the middle of the night; the Kamiya family's air conditioner automatically turned off around midnight to save on power. Sorcermon, also wearing just coveralls and vest for pajamas, laid curled up with the blanket tucked in close around him, keeping in the cool body temperature ice and snow Digimon were known to have. Wizardmon took another look down to Tai on the bottom bunk, who wore a sleeveless shirt and shorts for pajamas and laid with his limbs spread everywhere.

An hour or two outside won't kill me. Wizardmon decided, quietly climbing down from the bunk bed. I could use the fresh air. The Majin snuck over to the dresser, opening one of the small drawers that held his cape, cowl, skull pin, and gloves. His boots rested near the door and his hat on top of the dresser next to Sorcermon's. Making sure his roommates still slept, Wizardmon pulled off his vest and slipped out of the coveralls, folding them neatly and placing them into the drawer. Digging into the bottom of the wood, he finally managed to pull out a pair of black yoga pants Rika bought for him, insisting he would feel cooler than wearing his baggy coveralls during the hot summer months. He left the shirt she bought him in the drawer and pulled on the pants, the fabric somewhat baggy and stopping at his ankles. He tiptoed out the door and towards the terrace.

How long had it been since the last time he did this? Years, he supposed. Not since his time with the Yamada family. But he longed to feel them again, to see them again. They were special to him; a secret he kept simply because he held them so close and because….of his fear. He shut the curtains to the terrace before slipping out and closing the door behind him. The warm summer air wrapped him in a warm embrace, and he took a deep breath before sighing in content. Looking around one more time, he closed his eyes and focused his energy. Within seconds, he could feel the change, and the familiar tingle in his shoulder blades. Opening his eyes, he looked behind him and smiled.

A pair of black, feathery wings graced his back.

Sighing, he stretched the feathered appendages and flapped them a bit, his smile growing at the feeling of them moving. He never could explain why he had wings. Maybe all Wizardmon Digimon had them; though he never met another one of him. FlameWizardmon and Sorcermon didn't have them; they couldn't fly or levitate at all. Or perhaps they were just his Beelzemon wings, somehow spiritually connected to him; or they could be his Angel of Darkness wings. He didn't know; he really didn't care. All he knew is that he had these wings all his life. Even in his Impmon form, he noticed once or twice he still had those wings. In his Champion form, when he folded his wings close to his body, the bend of the wings hit his shoulders and the tips brushed the ground. But he was the only person or Digimon who knew they existed. Only he could see them resting on his back, feel the smooth feathers, and hear them flapping in the wind as he flew. Nobody else could do the same. Eventually, he learned to make it seem like he couldn't see the wings unless he wanted to, just so he wasn't tempted to rub his feathers when he got nervous. That habit moved to rubbing his staff. But sometimes, he wanted to see and feel the one thing that made him unique from other Majin. He wanted to be able to see them as he flew, because it was something that made him feel free, no matter how cliché it sounded.

Wizardmon looked out over the city lights, levitating a bit to stand on the railing of the terrace. He took another breath, rocking back and forth on the railing. Then, he forced himself to fall forward, shooting headfirst down towards the pavement. But he hardly touched the trees before he spread his wings and took off into the air. He smiled broadly, flapping the large black wings and carrying himself higher and higher into the sky. The wingspan stretched about a foot or two longer than his arms as he spread them, giving him the perfect amount of power to lift him up and do any kind of trick flying he wanted. He did flips, spins, sudden drops and catching himself. Wizardmon allowed himself to laugh, unable to remember when he enjoyed himself so much. The wind blew so much he got some goose bumps, apparently forgetting he was shirtless. Still, he didn't really care. He flew higher and higher, above the clouds, but only stayed for a moment before allowing himself to fall back down again. Once he broke through the very few clouds in the sky, he spread his wings again and began gliding towards the Kamiya apartment.

Laughing again, Wizardmon finally settled down onto the terrace, sitting on the railing and staring out into the open air. His wings relaxed, and he panted a little from the intense bout of flight. He couldn't remember the last time he flew, much less had so much fun doing it.

"Wizardmon?"

Startled, Wizardmon jumped and suddenly fell backwards and onto the concrete of the terrace. Groaning, he stood and looked up to see Kari staring back at him. "Oh, good evening. Did I wake you?"

Kari stared at Wizardmon, blinking a few times and rubbing her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things. A quick trip outside for fresh air certainly took an interesting turn. "Uh…"

"What?" Wizardmon shrugged. "You've seen me shirtless before. You know, with that whole swimming lessons thing Rika insisted on."

Finally, Kari managed to utter out a word: "W-wings."

Wizardmon froze. "What?"

Kari swallowed. "Y-you….have…..wings…."

Wizardmon stared at her. "You can see them?"

"How could I miss them?" Kari breathed, stepping closer to Wizardmon. "They're almost as tall as you." She continued forward, but Wizardmon stepped backwards until his back and wings hit the wall and railing. Kari still stepped forward, staring mesmerized at the wings. She reached out and touched the feathery appendages, and a small smile appeared on her face as she rubbed the feathers. "They're so soft. Have they always been black?"

Wizardmon looked down. "They turned white when I died, but back to black when Myotismon resurrected me."

Kari nodded in thought, still petting the wings. "They're pretty."

Wizardmon didn't speak for a moment. "You're not supposed to be able to see them."

Kari blinked in surprise, stopping her petting, and looked to her Digimon friend. But he kept his eyes down. "What do you mean?"

"I've had these wings all my life." Wizardmon replied softly. "Nobody's ever been able to see or feel them. It's like they're ghost wings to everyone but me….and now you. It's been my secret for so long, a secret I hoped to keep."

"I can keep a secret." Kari assured. "I bet I'm the only one who can see them besides you." Wizardmon still kept his head down, his eyes mostly hidden by his long bangs. Kari frowned, instantly picking up on what he was doing. "Oh no you don't. No burying yourself away in a corner and hiding yourself from me." She remained right in his path, almost cornering the Digimon and standing about a foot in front of him. "Talk to me. I know you hate doing that, but you're going to do it anyway." Her gaze softened. "Please, Wizardmon. I hate it when you act like this."

Wizardmon found it hard to refuse her, and he felt a pang of guilt for making her worry. But he couldn't look up into her eyes, so he locked his gaze onto her bare feet. "You've seen my wings. You'll look at me differently."

Kari blinked in surprise. "Differently how? I mean, I'll certainly notice the wings more, but I don't see—"

"You've seen me for who I am." Wizardmon half-snapped, half-muttered. Kari stared, allowing Wizardmon to make the next move. The Majin sighed, his wings drooping. "It was one thing to show myself when we first met; I thought you'd freak out just because I was a Digimon. When I found out you knew about Digimon for a long time, I was so relieved. But there were so many things I couldn't let you see: the thread over my mouth, the Angel of Darkness within me, and these." His wings twitched a bit. "I'm a freak. A monster. Once you found out about the thread and the Angel, I knew I had to keep the wings a secret or I'd definitely lose you. And it's not just you; I have to keep them hidden from everybody. Only now you've seen it….and everything has to change."

Kari sighed, then raised a hand and lightly tapped her fist against the Digimon's skull. He hardly reacted. "What exactly do you think I'll see you as?"

"A monster."

"You realize 'Digimon' is short for 'Digital Monster,' right?"

"I mean a real monster! The kind of monster that terrifies people; the kind of monster that hides under your bed at night and haunts your nightmares; the kind of monster that nobody could ever care about."

Kari gave a soft laugh. "I never imagined someone like you would be so self-conscious."

Wizardmon cracked a smile. "You'd be surprised. There are lots of Majin in Witchenly alone that are afraid to leave the village in fear of the other Digimon discriminating against them. Majin aren't like other Digimon. We're…different…too different. We have powers and abilities other Digimon don't have; we even Digivolve differently than other Digimon. We're more powerful in many ways, and oftentimes more dangerous. Only so many of us have the thread like Sorcermon and I do. I was lucky—or rather unlucky—enough to get the Angel of Darkness and these strange wings."

"Wizardmon, you know you don't have to be afraid to be who you are." Kari said, gently guiding Wizardmon's head up to lock eyes with her. "Especially around me and Gatomon and Rika and Sorcermon and all the DigiDestined. Why are you so afraid that one of us is going to leave you? You tell yourself that you're a monster, and you will listen to anyone who says you don't belong somewhere. Yes, there is an Angel of Darkness inside you and you've done some things that you aren't proud of." She put a hand to his chest, over his heart, and the feeling of her warm hand against his cold skin made Wizardmon tense a little. "But you have such a bright and wonderful heart inside. You keep doing this to yourself, giving in to an old fear, and I have to admit I'm a little scared for you."

"Old habits are hard to break." Wizardmon shrugged a little. "In the time between Witchmon's death and meeting Gatomon, I was so distrustful and lost in my misery. My heart turned to stone until Gatomon could help me." He wanted to look down again, but Kari stood firm, keeping her eyes onto his. "My worst fear is losing the people I care about, because I'm terrified of returning to that cold-hearted Digimon I used to be. I never want to be alone again."

"So you hide these 'flaws' and you're always so protective so to keep us close." Kari guessed. Wizardmon nodded, and suddenly jumped when Kari wrapped her arms around his neck in a warm hug. He hesitated for only a moment before returning the hug. "I know this is going to be a really hard thing to break, but I'm sure you'll be able to let go of what happened. Just try and remember that if you're ever in trouble or you need to talk, you've got about….." She stepped back and started counting off her fingers, much to Wizardmon's amusement. "Twenty-something people or Digimon you can turn to. I know it's not going to be easy for you; like you said, this has been a part of you for a long time. And I bet we're going to have this conversation again, maybe two or three more times, but it's a process."

Wizardmon chuckled. "You, Kari Kamiya, are quite a remarkable girl."

Kari giggled, hugging Wizardmon again. "'How are you able to fly like that'?"

Wizardmon outwardly laughed, wrapping his arms around Kari and wrapping his feathery black wings around the both of them. "Now you know."

Kari's smile grew, and she gave her Digimon friend one last squeeze before pulling away. "It's our little secret. I promise. Now off to bed with you; it's almost two in the morning."

"You're one to talk." Wizardmon ruffled her hair as they walked back inside. "Don't you have school tomorrow?"

"I was studying for a test."

"All the more reason to get to bed! Now off with you!"

"I'm going if you're going!"

"I'm going!"

The two of them stifled laughs, careful to not wake anybody as they disappeared into their respective bedrooms. Luckily, Tai and Sorcermon still slept soundly as Wizardmon climbed onto the top bunk and laid down to sleep, wrapping his wings around him like a blanket of feathers.

The next morning was the normal routine: Datirimon bouncing into everyone's rooms and waking them up, eating breakfast together, and everyone going off to their daily business. Mr. Kamiya disappeared to work while the Digimon walked with the human children to school. Tai broke off at a different train stop, waving to the others as he walked off.

"Good luck on your test." Sorcermon told Rika and Kari as they approached their school.

"Don't need luck." Rika assured with a confident smile. "We're going to nail it!"

"On the wall?" Datirimon asked innocently, causing laughter amongst his friends.

"We know you'll do great." Gatomon assured, resting in Wizardmon's arms. "Just stay calm and stay focused."

"Thanks Gatomon." Kari said gratefully. The girls waved goodbye to the Digimon and walked towards the doors, meeting up with T.K., Yolei, Davis, and Cody along the way. Kari looked back to see the Digimon still there, always waiting until the girls entered the building before leaving. Wizardmon's eyes locked onto hers, and his wings appeared on his back. He spread them a little, knowing only he and Kari could register their appearance. Kari smiled warmly, happy to know last night wasn't an insane dream from studying too much.

"Whatcha looking at, Kari?" Rika asked, looking back to the Digimon.

Kari paused. "Have you noticed anything about Wizardmon lately?"

Rika looked to her Digimon. She shrugged. "Just that he seems emotionally healthier since the whole MaloMyotismon incident. Definitely glad he can talk without the fear of choking to death. Why?"

Kari's smile grew. "No reason."