Those of you that came straight here when you clicked on the skip to this chapter: Go back and read chapter 43 first and then come back here. I'm telling you to do it. Go on. Go!

Those of you that came after reading chapter 43: Enjoy the finale.

"Sorry I'm late!" Davis cried as he ran out to join the Destined Jedi on the wooden walkway. He panted like a dog as he bent over his knees to catch his breath. He had run all the way from his apartment.

The gang had all decided to ring in the New Year at Decks in Odaiba. From where they stood, they had a spectacular view of the Rainbow Bridge and the impending fireworks show. There was a half hour to go before it was officially 2003. Everyone was happy to spend time together after emerging victorious in an eight-month war they had fought tirelessly to win.

Yolei rolled her eyes. "Lucky you. We were about to ask that they start the fireworks show without you, Davis," she teased.

Ken chuckled beside her.

Davis pouted. "That's not funny, Yolei. If you must know, my dumb sister thought she was my parole officer. She drilled me on where I was going; what I'd be doing; what time I'd be back; and whether or not Joe would be there."

Joe's face paled. After the other night, he wanted nothing to do with that crazy burgundy-haired girl. She was too insane for him.

"Please tell me you didn't say I'd be here," he begged.

Davis flashed him his goofy grin and a thumb's up. "Don't worry, dude. I've got your back."

Everyone gathered around laughed. Joe's face burned bright red, but chuckled along with them. A flash interrupted them causing all to turn to find Kari, who lowered her camera. The laughter resumed, with the Jedi of Light joining in with them.

Matt leaned over the railing beside Tai and Izzy, carrying a can of Coke in his hand. The two smiled at him and carried on their conversation. Something still bothered the blonde that he couldn't sit quietly.

"Hey, guys. I just thought of something," he said. "Do you remember when Force Ghost Gennai told us about that backup option Jedi? I can't get it out of my head."

"I don't remember him saying something about it," Tai replied, cocking an eyebrow in confusion. "You sure he said that?"

"That's because he was about to when Wizardmon interrupted him," Izzy explained.

Matt's frowned, nodding his head. "You heard it too then, Izzy?"

Izzy nodded. "Yes. It wasn't that hard to overhear. Plus the way Wizardmon cut him off told me that was something he didn't want us to know yet."

"Then who is it?"

The three boys scratched their chins, trying to think of possible ideas of who it could be. They quickly found that they did not have a single clue. Whoever this mysterious backup Jedi was, it was obvious that Gennai and Homeostasis went to painstaking lengths to keep their identity a secret.

Ken overheard their conversation and decided to join in with some theories of his own.

"Young Gennai actually told us when we finished our task in the forest that this other Jedi was also supposed to be a replacement Chosen One in case I didn't turn away from the darkness," he said. "Since I did, however, Homeostasis decided it was better just to have it be twelve Destined Jedi."

Izzy was even more intrigued. A potential thirteenth Destined Jedi on the same power level as Ken? How come this Jedi never revealed themselves before? They really could have used them this time, or even last time. Maybe there was a way they could find out.

"What if we reach out to this thirteenth Destined Jedi and see if we can convince them to join us?" Tai suggested. "It's better than running into the possible scenario of them becoming another Digimon Emperor."

"That's a good idea, Tai," Ken nodded in agreement, frightened by the idea of someone else falling into darkness the way he had after being rejected as a Destined Jedi. "But where do we start?"

"I have an idea!" Davis exclaimed, joining his friends. "How about I reach out to them to see whether they have good vibes around them?"

The other four looked at each other. It didn't sound like a bad idea, and worth a try. They shrugged, giving Davis their permission. The Jedi of Courage and Friendship smiled and clasped his hands together, reaching out far beyond the boundaries of Tokyo for any traces of Force energy.

Davis could not find a specific person to lock on to, but he did sense something that made him feel uneasy. Somewhere, something was building. And it did not seem good. He opened his eyes, stopping the scan.

"What did you find, Davis?" Ken asked, concerned about the way Davis snapped out of his meditation.

"I don't know," Davis replied. "But I have a bad feeling about this. Darkness is out there somewhere."

Ken reached out as well, only to have the same results. He shook his head, confirming what Davis felt. "Same. That's not the only thing that we should all be concerned about. Remember the prophecy?"

Tai squinted his eyes trying to follow along. "Yeah. What about it? We found the snake and took it out."

"Yes, we did, but killing Oikawa was only a small portion of it. Why doesn't that line up with the prophecy?"

The remaining eyes widened when they recounted the prophecy:

Only kindness will restore balance twice by destroying the snake in the garden and ending a war without swords.

The Darkness will try to destroy the Light, but only by purifying both ends can peace be restored.

Matt said what they all thought. "Cody killed Oikawa with his lightsaber, and as far as we know nothing was purified. I bet a million to one that mysterious Digimon Yolei spotted has something to do with this."

"Then I'll do what I can to –" Izzy then stopped himself when he realized what he was about to say. It was so automatic that he forgot where he and the other older former Jedi now stood. He blushed with embarrassment. "Sorry, guys. My bad. That's your mission now."

An uncomfortable silence fell over the once joyous, lighthearted atmosphere. Tai sadly looked down at the wooden planks under his feet.

Matt cursed under his breath. "This sucks," he mumbled. "Being treated like chopped liver after all we've done. We could help you guys."

"I don't like it either, Matt," Tai said, patting him on the back. "But Davis is more than capable of leading this group himself. I'm sure they'll do just fine with him as their leader."

Davis beamed at the praise, but there was an underlying sadness in his expression. As well as a frustration and anger toward the situation.

"That's bull," he vented. "Homeostasis can do whatever it wants, but you guys will always be Destined Jedi. Without you, we would not be where we are today. I wouldn't be the leader I am without you, Tai."

Warmth spread through Tai's heart. A grateful smile sprang up his face as he wrapped Davis in a headlock.

"But you will always be the little kid who followed me around like a lost puppy to me, Davis," he snickered, pressing his knuckles into the boy's skull. Davis laughed through the pain.

Ken laughed with them, then smiled at Izzy. "We'd be honored to have you help us on our quest to discover this mysterious evil and the rest of the prophecy, Izzy," he said. "You do your part, and we will too. How about it?"

The former Jedi of Knowledge was caught off guard by the request. After the initial shock wore off, it was replaced with a sense of joy and pride. For someone as smart as Ken, who could probably do it by himself, to ask someone like him to help him was an honor Izzy could not believe. He smiled with pride and nodded his head.

"I would be honored to," he replied.

"Ken!"

The Jedi of Kindness jumped in surprise as an arm wrapped around his shoulder. He quickly settled down when he saw it was Yolei.

"Come on. Let's talk." The lavender-haired Jedi then pulled him away from his friends. She stopped before they reached the end of the walkway. "I have something I want to give you."

"What is it?" Ken asked.

Yolei kept her eyes locked on his scar. It had started to fade away over these past two months, but there was still a pale red line cutting through the right side of his face like a river.

"As a New Years present, how about the chance to start off fresh?" she said. "I'll heal that scar of yours for you so that you don't have to wear it as a reminder of your past pain. You're not the Emperor anymore; you're the Chosen One. You should reflect that by getting rid of the scar."

Ken lightly touched his face and traced his fingers along the scar. The offer was tempting. Very tempting. The scar was the first thing he saw every time he woke up in the morning and looked in the mirror. Always a reminder of all his past transgressions and the horrible things he had done. He never wanted to go down that path again. Then he realized: That's why he should keep it.

"Thanks, Yolei, but I'd like to keep it if that's okay," he replied.

Yolei's eyes widened, surprised by the refusal. "Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Yes. Though I have improved thanks to all of your guys' help, the Emperor will always be ready to take control of me if I slip. My fight with Noriko showed me that. I'd like to keep the scar as a reminder to always stay on the right path and keep the darkness away when it tries to take hold of me."

The Jedi of Love and Sincerity bit her lip in thought. She could understand that reasoning. It made sense to her. She smiled with a light nod of her head.

"Okay," she said. "You look hotter with the scar anyway."

Her cheeks blushed a deep red. She didn't mean to say that out loud! Yolei quickly stumbled to try and recover some of her dignity.

"I mean…not that I'm saying you're hot – I mean, you're dreamy!" Yolei wanted to run and hide somewhere. She was so embarrassed; practically digging her own grave at this point. "I mean, you don't need a scar to be cute. I've always thought you were cute. I mean–"

"It's all right," Ken said as he grabbed her by the shoulders to silence her. They shared an awkward laugh, their faces making them look like two tomatoes, until he added, "Yolei, I know that everyone has forgiven me for everything I had done before denouncing the dark side, but I haven't. I want to say that I'm sorry for kidnapping you that one time."

Yolei brushed it off with a wave of her hand. "It's in the past, Ken! You're not that person any more," she said.

The twelve-year-old girl tilted her head back to look up at the night sky. The stars twinkled above hypnotically. It was rare to see stars in a place like Tokyo, but it was a regular occurrence in Odaiba. The absence of many lights and buildings compared to across the bay made it easier to stargaze.

"Do you know the best part about the New Year?" she asked. "It's a physical reminder to start fresh again, just like your scar is that physical reminder for you." Yolei then tilted her head back down to smile at Ken again. "Not to mention the fireworks are pretty to look at."

Ken felt like two stones inside his chest collided and produced a spark that traveled down into his chest. His heart fluttered when he noticed how pretty Yolei looked in the moonlight. What was this feeling he was experiencing? He didn't understand. For all the talk of him being a genius, Ken was not as well versed in the study of human emotions. What was this feeling?

Yolei snapped him out of his thoughts with a joyous exclamation of, "I'm going to Asakusa with my family tomorrow! Hopefully I get a good fortune for next year. I'm feeling pretty lucky after what we did today!" she sang until an idea popped into her head. She clasped her hands together and pleaded with joy, "Want to come?"

Ken shrugged. "Sure. What do we do?"

"What do you mean? Same thing that most families do at shrine on New Year's Day." Yolei replied, confused. Then it hit her. She gasped. Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. "You mean, you and your family have never gone to a shrine or temple on New Year's Day?"

Ken shook his head. "No. We've never been the type of people that do that. We're pretty atypical when it comes to your normal Japanese family traditions," he said. "We always just stay home to avoid the crowds and start the year off with our resolutions."

"Then that does it. You're going to start the year off by doing something you've never done before. I'll pick you up tomorrow morning. Have your yukata ready."

Yolei then swiped Kari's camera from her and pointed it towards her and Ken before he had time to register what was happening.

"Selfie!" she cried, taking the picture.

More sparks multiplied from those stones in his chest, creating a blazing fire. She really was pretty, wasn't she? The prettiest girl wanted to spend time with him, someone who had a beast suppressed inside, and looked past everything. Whatever his fortune was the next morning, it would never beat this moment in time. 2003 was looking better every minute.

Everything went black for Izzy as someone wrapped their hands over his eyes. The night sky disappeared.

"Who's doing that?" he said.

A familiar giggle tickled his ear. "Guess who."

That voice. Blush flooded Izzy's face until there was no difference between where his face ended and his hair began.

"Hi, Mimi."

Mimi took her hands off his face and leaned over the railing beside him. The buoyant smile on her face was so contagious that Izzy couldn't help but smile too. She reached into her bag for something.

"I have something for you," she said as her hand emerged a second later with a melon bread from 7-Eleven. "You should have this. You've been losing too much weight from all the stress of the last few days."

"No thanks," he politely declined, but Mimi was not having it.

"No. I insist." She shoved the package into his hands. "Eat it. Someone has to take care of you if you won't take care of yourself."

Izzy huffed with annoyance, but gave in and opened the package. It was better to just go along with it than tire himself out trying to argue with Mimi. The girl was a master arguer. She knew every single way to drive you crazy until you finally gave up. He took a bite of the sweet bread. It was then he realized that he had skipped out on lunch and dinner that day.

"This is the first thing I've eaten since breakfast," he said, enjoying the sweet taste.

"What?!" Mimi shrieked. "Izzy! You need to take better care of yourself!"

"Yeah, yeah. I know," he relented with a sheepish grin.

"Great! So when should I pencil you in?"

Izzy choked on his bite. Pencil him in? What did that mean? He coughed and pounded his chest to force the piece back into his mouth. A small bit of vomit came along with it, filling his oral cavity with the disgusting taste. He put that back down before swallowing the piece of bread through the right pipe.

"You okay?" Mimi asked, slapping his back alarmed.

He nodded after taking a deep breath. "Yeah. What are you talking about?"

Seeing that Izzy had caught his bearings, she clarified.

"Izzy, I can't keep showing up randomly. I have to know how to fit in shopping days when there are sales." Mimi adjusted her blouse and fluffed her hot pink hair before smiling sincerely at him. "Someone needs to look after you, and from what I've seen you function better under a set schedule. Tell me what days you want me to come over to clean up."

Izzy was shocked by the offer, but also touched by it. It was nice to know how much Mimi cared about him. Even so, he wouldn't go so far as to beg for her services.

"Mimi, I don't need a maid," he said.

"Hey! Let's get this straight. That's right. I'm not your maid. You're going to start keeping your room cleaner. It won't get messier just because I'm coming over to help, alright?"

Izzy blushed. "Of course."

His blush got worse when Mimi hugged him next. Her body felt warm against him, sparking feelings that he had never felt before. Butterflies swarmed around in his stomach just like the last time she was over when he and Tai were discussing the prophecy. It felt like his head was going to explode from all the feelings building up like lava pushing against the peak of the volcano before erupting.

"It's the New Year. Let's start it off right with a cleaner room and taking better care of ourselves," Mimi whispered in his ear. "Does that sound good?"

Izzy smiled as he finally let all his inhibitions go. He lifted his arms and wrapped them around the Jedi of Sincerity.

"I'd like that," he whispered back. "How do Mondays and Thursdays sound?"

"It's a deal!" Mimi squeezed him one last time before letting go. She looked over at Yolei and shouted, "Hey! Throw that camera over here!"

The lavender-haired girl nodded and carefully tossed the Nikon camera to her. Mimi spun Izzy around as she pointed the front of the camera towards them. Before she could snap the picture, she had one last request for him.

"Throw in that you have to hang with me every Saturday night. No exceptions."

"What?!" Izzy exclaimed, the butterflies tickling his insides even more. But it was too late. Mimi planted her lips on his cheek and took the picture before he could say anything else.

"Why did you have to do that song? You know I hate that song," TK laughed as he and Kari teased each other about their song selection during karaoke earlier in the night.

"I know what I like, and I won't apologize for it," Kari shot back before continuing to laugh with TK. "At least I didn't do yours. It is so typical."

"Shut up!"

Their laughter soon died down as the two gazed at the Rainbow Bridge in silence. TK stole a glance over at Kari. His face flushed red. He turned back to look at the bridge before Kari noticed. Thankfully, she didn't.

TK hesitantly lifted his arm and inched it towards her shoulders. Sparks flew through his entire arm as it rested around Kari's shoulders. The Jedi of Light jumped slightly, not expecting it, but settled in with a warm and content smile.

Kari opened her mouth to say something, but the words never came out as Davis came strutting over to them. He stopped and frowned at the sight of TK having his arm around Kari, but didn't say anything about it.

"Hey, guys. Did ya make any New Year's resolutions?" he asked, trying to keep the conversation friendly.

TK smiled and shook his head. "Nah, I've got everything I need," he said as he gazed down at Kari.

"I have one!" the Jedi of Light exclaimed.

"What is it?" TK and Davis asked.

Kari looked around and saw Mimi using her camera to take pictures of everyone. She waved as the Jedi of Sincerity turned to look at her, signaling that she wanted the camera.

Mimi nodded and tossed the camera, which was then snagged out of the air by Sora. Tai took it from her and made a goofy face standing next to Sora as he took a picture of them both. Kari giggled. Her brother then threw the camera underhand to her and she caught it.

With her camera back in her possession, Kari left TK's side and stood next to Davis while holding up a peace sign. Davis quickly realized what she was doing and posed like Rock Lee in the Naruto manga. TK laughed.

"My resolution is to take more pictures of all my friends," Kari said before snapping the picture. "I don't have as many of us as I would like."

"Then let's do it," Davis said as he took the camera from her.

He puckered his lips and closed in on her cheek. Kari anticipated it, however, and ducked her head down. Davis was unaware as he felt his lips hit someone's cheek. The camera flash slammed against his eyelids as he took the picture.

When he opened his eyes, Davis realized who he had really kissed. And it wasn't Kari. TK had leaned over Kari and took the kiss for her. The Jedi of Courage and Friendship screamed in horror and disgust. He stuck his tongue out and wiped it with his hands to get rid of the taste of TK's cheek. The Jedi of Light and Hope doubled over in hysterical laughter. The rest of their friends looked over and laughed with them.

"That ain't right!" Davis shrieked, spitting out whatever taste lingered in his mouth. "That ain't right, dude!"

TK smirked teasingly. "Whoa, I didn't know you felt that way about me, Davis."

The Jedi of Courage and Friendship glared at him and muttered curses under his breath. He slammed the camera into Kari's hands before stomping off to a different part of the walkway.

"Oh, Davis. Come back. Don't be such a drama queen." Kari laughed. She gave the camera to Cody and grabbed Davis' arm to stop him from going any further. A flirtatious smile played on her lips. "Come on. Just one more? No tricks."

Davis' anger vanished the second he saw the smile on her face. Blush flooded all over his cheeks and he stuttered a barely coherent agreement. Kari wrapped her arm around his shoulder and they posed for a picture.

"Okay, ready?" Cody said, adjusting the camera.

The two nodded.

"One."

Kari lifted her arm and put two fingers up behind Davis' head so they looked like bunny ears. He had no idea it just happened.

"Two."

Kari bit her tongue to suppress any giggles that threatened to come out.

"Three."

FLASH!

Cody smiled and handed the camera back to Kari. Davis left her side and started gushing to Cody about how awesome it was to actually have a cute picture with Kari.

'Yeah. Real cute alright,' Kari giggled to herself. She turned and walked back to TK.

The blonde's face was etched in a frown as he glared at Davis, but shrugged it away. Kari smiled at him and pointed the camera towards them.

"Ready?" she asked, then took the picture before he could say anything.

"One more," the blonde grinned and took the camera from her, keeping it pointed at them, and snapped a better photo of them.

Kari happily complied.

"Hey," TK said. "Before Davis came, it looked like you wanted to say something. What was it?" he asked.

A shy smile graced Kari's features as she took TK's hand in hers. The blonde's face turned red for what felt like the millionth time that day. He turned his face away to hide it. The Jedi of Light carefully thought of what to say, but was surprised at how easy it seemed to come.

"I just wanted to say that I'm glad you showed up earlier and we did karaoke," she said. "I have my best friend back, and that, um," she swallowed a knot in her throat and looked up with eyes shining brightly. "I really missed you. I really missed us together."

TK couldn't describe how he felt in the moment. It was such a conundrum of emotions that he could not pin down one single definitive emotion. These were words he didn't know that he needed to hear, but was glad to receive them. He would just say he felt…happy. Happy that Kari no longer was hesitant to be around him. Happy that she wanted them to be best friends again. He just felt happy.

TK lifted her hand up to his lips and kissed the backside of it.

"I promise, I've missed you more," he teased.

Kari blushed and the two stared longingly at each other, unsure of what else to say. Now that everything they wanted to say was off their chests, they didn't know where to take this conversation. So instead, they turned and leaned on the railing to look out at the Rainbow Bridge again.

Five minutes until midnight. Five minutes left of 2002.

TK reached out to wrap his arm around her shoulders again. This time, he pulled her in close to him. This was how he would spend the last five minutes of the year: Feeling Kari's warmth closely beside him. She rested her head on his shoulder. There was nothing better in the world.

"I love ya. You know that?" he said, trying to mask it as more of a friendly statement than what it really was: A declaration. There. He said it.

"Yeah. I love ya too," she replied, but not in the way TK had hoped.

It didn't bother him though. He was just content with the progress they had made so far. Maybe things would get further, and maybe, just maybe, she would finally see him the way he wanted her to. He couldn't wait for 2003 to come.

Sora and Tai were thankful to finally be free of their friends and have some peace and quiet all to themselves. They stood somewhere further down the walkway away from everyone else, watching the night sky be reflected in Tokyo Bay.

Stealthily, Tai wrapped his arm around Sora's waist to pull her close to him, but was greeted with a smack.

"Ow!" he whined. "Sora!"

"Not here, Tai," Sora said sternly.

"But I wanted to spend the last minutes of the year holding my girlfriend. You're so mean!"

Sora bit her lip, feeling guilty and conflicted. As tempting as it was to give in, she stayed strong.

"Not even a kiss?" Tai whimpered, putting on his best puppy dog eyes. "Just one little kiss?"

"I-I don't know."

"It's New Year's Eve. It's the perfect time to tell everyone." Tai smiled smugly. "Plus, we can start the year off right with that kiss."

Sora tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and squeezed her forearm nervously. "It's not that I don't want to, but the attention that we're going to get…" she blushed furiously. "It's just not right showing so much public affection."

"Says who?"

"Says…" Sora stumbled over her words before finally balancing herself to speak. "Politeness! Society! That's who!"

Tai inched closer, keeping his eyes fixed firmly on his girlfriend. "Sora, it's time."

"Not happening."

"Totally happening."

"Tai!"

"Sora."

"I swear, if you –"

Tai grinned that famous smile of his, and without warning tickled her. She squealed while trying to squirm away, but he held on tight until she was breathless and begging for Tai to stop in between laughs. Her laugh. It was his weakness and always magically made Tai pull her close. Acting on instinct as many times before, his arm draped across her shoulders and brought her close. Their lips were just mere inches apart.

Neither noticed that Mimi was looking in their direction after taking a picture of Joe. The former Jedi of Sincerity noticed their mannerisms and nearly dropped the camera in shock.

"OH MY GOSH! NO WAY!" she squealed.

The couple across the way jumped out of their skin at the abruptness of the scream. The gig was up. Their little secret was not so secret anymore.

Mimi's scream also drew everyone else's attention to her. Matt grumbled to himself, folding his arms across his chest still hurt from the rejection. Kari's eyes bulged out of their sockets.

"Are you two dating?" Mimi shouted, bouncing with excitement. "AREYOUAREYOUAREYOU?"

Tai and Sora looked at each other, both at a loss for words. Sora's face was as red as her hair as she silently pleaded for Tai to do something. He was embarrassed more from being called out, however, and did nothing. His throat constricted to restrain any words from forming.

"Well, uh…" he choked, turning his attention back to Sora. One look at her and he was put at ease. Their friends no longer existed; it was just him and her.

"What do you think? How about it?" he chuckled nervously to Mimi.

"TEN! NINE! EIGHT!" A crowd gathered around the kids on the wooden walkway, waiting for the spectacular view as they all counted down.

Tai gave Sora his famous grin and took her face in his hands.

"SEVEN! SIX! FIVE! FOUR!"

He leaned forward, puckering his lips as they got closer and closer to each other.

"THREE!"

At the 10-yard line.

"TWO!"

The 5-yard line.

"ONE!"

Touchdown.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

A multitude of fireworks exploded in the air as the other Destined Jedi shouted with joy watching this unexpected new development with their two friends. 2003 was shaping up to be full of surprises.

Unfortunately, after a period of peace, darkness always find a way to invade and destroy.

That's all folks. That's the end. After eleven months, we finally have reached the end. I never in my wildest dreams imagined how popular this story would become. Thank you all so much from the bottom of my heart. I appreciate all the support, encouragement, reviews, and kind words you all have given me over this past year. You are the reason why writing fanfiction for you guys is so awesome. I really mean it. Thank you.

Whether or not this tops 02 by a mile or what have you, I will leave that up to you guys in the reviews. Let me hear every last thought you have about this story before we move on.

Instead of the four month break I took between The Destined Jedi and this story, I will be back next week. I hope all or most of you will be around for the third installment of this series: Revenge of the Infected. I am so excited to share that story with you guys because I think it is the version of Tri we didn't know we needed. That is how confident I am that the story is going to be great. I hope most of you will think so too.

Before we get there though, it is time to say goodbye.

So long

Farewell

To you, my friends

Goodbye, for now

Until we meet again