A Displaced Gatomon runs Day Court in Princess Celestia's stead and a Wizardmon from a far off digital world studies magic under Princess Luna. This is their story.
Gatomon worked tirelessly to ease Princess Celestia's burden of ruling Equestria alongside Princess Luna.
Wizardmon arrived in Equestria to study magic and found a mentor in Princess Luna.
Every day at sunset these two Digimon come together to talk and enjoy one another's company. From the rise of Nightmare Moon to Princess Luna's return these two Digimon will form a bond with their pony partners and each other to face whatever fate throws their way.
A tale involving two Digimon and the Princesses they call friends.
She awoke to the sight of a cave wall, light streaming in from an exit to her right. She blinked as the world was slightly fuzzy, everything not right in front of her face was blurred around the edges but she could still pick out shapes and recognize objects despite the less than stellar clarity of her vision. Everything looked bigger and she found it odd that she wasn’t panicking at the fact that her arms, legs and indeed most of her body was gone.
The sound of water dripping from the ceiling startled her out of her daze and she attempt to turn towards the sound, only for her small round body to tilt forward and with no understanding of how to move as a round blob her face quickly met the ground in an undignified faceplant.
She grumbled and rolled onto what she assumed was her back, her large round ears twitched at the sound of another droplet of water hitting the ground and she sighed.
“God damn it…” she groaned and after a bit of wiggling and sussing out how exactly her new body worked, the tiny creature known as a YukimiBotamon got back up and took a proper look at where she found herself.
She was in a cosy alcove nestled beneath a cliff in the middle of a forest. Herbs and other plants grew in cracks in the stony ground and water trickled in from a small, unseen stream as well as dripping down from the ceiling. Near the back of the cavern was a large crystalline tree with several colourful gemstones resting in its branches and images of the sun, the moon and a six-pointed star displayed on its trunk almost as if the tree had grown to look that way naturally. A marble white glasses case and a strange four sided device with curved indents where the edges of the device met sat at the base of the tree.
The small device was white, attached to golden thread and had a small screen and several buttons. The YukimiBotamon bounced over and inspected the device.
“This is a Digivice from the Digimon Adventure anime,” she said breathlessly torn between curiosity and excitement, until she remembered her lack of limbs. “…If I had arms, I’d be pressing all the buttons right now…”
She glared spitefully at the glasses case. “How the hell am I supposed to use this when I can’t open it!”
She sighed in frustration and turned her gaze to the tree. She looked thoughtful as she took in the symbols on its trunk and the gems in its branches.
“The Tree of Harmony huh? Well the Elements have been returned to it so either this is way before the show or after season four,” she mused. “I’ll find out once I don’t have to bounce everywhere.”
“I mean,” she continued, talking simply for the sake of talking as she glanced around nervously. “I’m here in Equestria… as a Digimon after, a-after that car- “
She started to breathe deeply in an attempt to calm her nerves as existential fear rooted itself in her mind and her last memories of home resurfaced to the front of her terrified mind.
She walking up the driveway she shared with her neighbours. The roaring of an engine and the screech of a cars breaks was the last thing she heard before she was lifted off her feet and overwhelmed and blinded by pain, barely noticed the pavement of the drive rushing up to meet her…
“I died.” she whispered fearfully, her small form shaking as she blinked back tears.
Her memory was hazy, she felt like she was having a lucid dream as strange yet familiar figures crowded around her. She couldn’t move, couldn’t speak and could only watch as a white, winged equine with its head, chest and legs covered with white armour stood in the forefront of her vision.
“My name is Arbiter and you died before your time,” he stated sorrowfully. “My partner and I are working to catch the one responsible for your death but we couldn’t just stand by and do nothing, we were able to transform your consciousness into pure data. Your body may be dead but everything that makes you who you are, your soul, has survived thanks to our efforts.”
“You’ll be sent to a new world with your memories intact, in a form that will allow you to survive,” Arbiter explained. “I can’t bring you back on your home world, since you have no body to return to so this is the best we could do.”
“Mum…?” she forced out worriedly.
“She’s fine, we’ve got under protection in case she’s targeted, needless to say, you won’t be seeing her again…I’m sorry.”
Alone, scared out of her wits and reeling from everything that had happened in such a short amount of time, the YukimiBotamon sat crying at the base of the Tree of Harmony.
She spent her days eating the herbs that grew in the cavern, drinking from the trickling stream and spending entire days watching what little she could see from the cavern exit to avoid boredom. The cavern offered food, water and shelter yet it lacked the mental stimulation she needed, so when sleep eluded her, she took to meditation.
She found it easy to look within and tune out the world around her, the quiet nature of the cavern certainly helped and it was during these sessions of introspection and meditation that her curious mind learnt the most about her new form. She could feel how everything worked and came to understand it all as her “stats”. Her stats weren’t something she knew off the top off her head, she had to focus on them as if she were focusing on a part of her body to identify pain or discomfort and had to actually seek out her stats to know what they were at any given time.
My overall health is well, my health and… Oh my mental health dictates how many times I can use a move so if I’m mentally fatigued or worn out or even hungry I won’t be able to defend myself as well. She mused as she took all the new information about herself.
Wait I have a hunger bar? That’s nice to know, if I can figure out exactly when I get hungry I could plan accordingly and it looks like I generate and store energy as I go about my business, Ah I see, if I have enough I digivolve to the next stage.No set attack or defence stats but I guess those are covered by my MP and HP anyway and having exact numbers would just be complicated.
Interesting, it feels like something’s off or different to how it should be, no wait- my normal isn’t a YukimiBotamon’s normal so my messed-up vision is some kind of glitch?
I wonder what would happen if I tried to train or something…how would I even go about that?
A few days later, she woke up to find herself slightly larger, with pointed ears and a tail.
"Looks like I digivolved in my sleep," Nyaromon muttered and moved her tail around as she tested out her new form. “I wonder if I can use this…”
She bounced over to the glasses case and wrapped her tail around it as she attempted to use her tail tip to pry to case open. She grunted with effort as she shoved and pushed at the case but it remained closed despite her efforts.
“I miss my hands,” she grumbled and looked over at the digivice. “I should be able to get this working at least.”
Carefully, she pushed one of the buttons and the screen not only lit up but displayed a hologram that listed her stats as well as the current day, time and she even noticed a small icon in one corner to indicate the weather.
“Cool!” she exclaimed. “My Digivice is awesome!”
Days turned into months and months bled into years as the small Digimon simply lived. Now a four-legged, puppy like Digimon called Salamon she hid the glasses case under one the tree’s roots and awkwardly slung the digivice around her neck.
"I wonder who my partner is?" she mused out loud as she stared out at the forest. "I'm a digimon now and I have a Digivice, that means I have a partner, right?"
"Right?"
She sighed and looked back at the Tree of Harmony, it was beautiful, inviting even as it stood a place of sanctuary and safety in the unknown.
“I need answers or at least more information, ok I can do this. I just got to make sure I don’t get lost,” she said, a smile that was a reflex more than a display of confidence gracing her face. “It’ll be fine...”
She stepped out of the cavern and made sure to look long and hard at the are the cavern was in. Once satisfied that she would be able to find her way back, she headed out into the depths of the forest. The creatures of the forest left her alone for the most part and she wondered if her nature as a digimon had to do with it. Eventually she reached the forest's edge and stared slack jawed at the world beyond.
It was as if a child's imagination was brought to life, the ground was a mix of plaid hills, rainbow polka-dot pavements and checkered square plains as chocolate milk rained down from pink clouds.
"...I'm back before the Princesses defeated Discord," she realized and turned around to head back the way she came. "Nope, not dealing with this."
She left the chaos and madness behind her and paid no heed to the sounds of the forest as she walked on the path back to the cavern. She could hear the thumps of something large and wooden racing through the forest and the pounding hoof bets of whatever the larger creature was chasing. It was only when she heard a human sounding scream that the rookie digimon took action. She moved as fast as her paws could carry her and bust out of a bush to ram a timberwolf in its wooden head just as it was about to pounce. Both her and the beast tumbled backwards from the impact but the Salamon was the first to recover.
She felt it, a gut instinct telling her to fight and to protect whoever it was that the wolf thought was an easy snack. She stood her ground as the beast growled and darted forward.
"Puppy Howl!" she cried out and let out an ear piercing, high pitched howl that stunned the timberwolf and with the creature dazed, Salamon turned to face the person she was rescuing.
Oh yeah, I’m in pony land. She realized as the blurry shape of a pony stood in shock before her. The pony’s mane and tail were pink and she could make out a horn but not much else from her short-sighted and blurred vision.
"Run for it!" she exclaimed and her outburst spurred the pony into action, they scrambled to their hooves and took off into the woods with Salamon not far behind.
"This way!" the digimon called out.
They tore through the forest with the little digimon leading the way and after several panicked minutes, they skidded to a stop at the entrance to the cavern.
"You'll be safe here," Salamon explained. "Nothing ever messes with this place. Once you feel ready to leave I'll guide you back to the forest's edge and you can make your own way from there."
Now that she could see the pony up close, she noticed that not only did the pony have both a horn and wings but was a young mare.
“T-thank you,” the pony said as she stumbled into the cavern. “I owe you my life.”
“I dunno what happened, I just felt like I had to do something,” replied the rookie. “Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine.” The mare replied and their conversation was interrupted by the growling stomachs of both pony and digimon.
“I hope you like herbs, that’s pretty much all I have here, I’ll try and see if I can find enough for you.” The Salamon stated.
"Thank you, um...?" the pony trailed off.
"Salamon, just call me Salamon."
"Thank you, Salamon."
"I've never seen something like you before, may I ask what you are?" the mare asked as the pair shared a pile of herbs for a simple meal.
"I'm a digimon, a Salamon," replied the rookie. "Once I digivolve, I'll be called something different though."
"Digivolve?"
Salamon scarfed down a few herbs before she replied. "Over the course of a life digimon store energy in their bodies. When they reach a certain age or have enough energy, they metamorphize into the next life stage, we call that digivolving."
"Right now, I'm a rookie digimon, when I get strong enough I'll digivolve into a champion digimon." she continued.
"I see, it sounds complicated." the mare replied.
"That's life." Salamon stated and shrugged as well as she could.
They continued eating as they talked. "You live here by yourself?"
"I'm waiting for someone," Salamon replied.
"Waiting for who?"
"I don't know," she stated and showed the mare her Digivice. "It's connected to this, whoever is supposed to own this becomes my partner and it'll be my job to protect them."
"May I see?" The pony asked, Salamon nodded and the mare reached out a hoof to grab the Digivice. The Digivice's screen glowed brightly as pony and digimon stared at it shock.
“I uh, guess that means we’re partners…” Salamon said. “What was your name? I don’t think you told me during all this mess.”
“I’m sorry, it slipped my mind with everything that happened,” the mare replied sheepishly. “My name is Celestia.”
Go figure. The digimon thought. “Well from now on, not only are we friends but I’ll be here to protect you and stuff, if ya know, you don’t mind…”
“Then perhaps you could help my village?” Celestia asked. “My little sister and I live in one of last strongholds against King Discord’s rule and we’re running out of food…”
“Shouldn’t there be bucket loads of food out there?” Salamon asked and the young alicorn shook her head.
“No, it’s tainted with Discord’s magic and anypony who eats it becomes twisted by his powers,” Celestia explained. “My teacher, Starswirl has been working day and night with an ally of his to try and purify the cursed food Discord creates but it’ll be too late if we don’t find an alternative!”
I’m probably going to regret this, but….
“What if you just defeated Discord?” Salamon asked.
“How? He’s too powerful!”
“Do you trust me?” Salamon asked seriously. “Because I know a way to defeat him…”
“Yes, I trust you, I’ll do anything to save my sister!” Celestia replied, almost pleading with the rookie digimon.
“Grab as many herbs as you can from here, dig up some to grow if you can and don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine. Get these to your village,” Salamon explained. “You need to live, save as many lives as you can. Learn as much about magic as you can and once you’ve learnt about the Elements of Harmony, come back here.”
“You won’t be coming with me?” Celestia asked.
Salamon shook her head. “I can’t risk drawing attention to myself, who knows what Discord would do if he found out about me,” She smiled encouragingly. “Not matter what happens or how long we’re separated, I’ll be here waiting for you.”
“I can’t move...” Salamon moaned. “I’m so hungry…”
She was lying on the cold, stone ground, not a herb or edible plant in sight nor in reach of the starving digimon. A shadow fell over her and she struggled to look up to find a familiar armour wearing, winged digimon standing before her.
“You’re that white Pegasusmon. Arbiter, right?” she asked drowsily.
The larger digimon unfurled his wings and dropped a fruit basket in front of Salamon. “Here, eat these.”
She forced herself to sit up and practically shoved her head into the basket, devouring everything she could get into her jaws.
“Thank you!” she happily replied and took a bite out of an apple that had a smiley face on it.
“You need to be more careful, you may be a digimon but death from starvation is still possible.” Arbiter chided.
She swallowed a mouthful of grey mushrooms. “I know but, I thought I’d be fine. What are you doing here anyway?”
“A Wisemon has been working with a prominent magic user in this world for many years now and since its my job to watch over digimon from the digital world he came from and with my partner working to save people from the thing that killed you, I thought I’d drop by and see how you were doing,” He explained and shrugged. “I was on my way to visit Wisemon anyway.”
“So, I really was murdered?” Salamon asked. “What exactly happened?”
“Your world is one where techonology and automated systems have become interwoven with every part of society, a Digimon known as Diaboromon has been hacking into that technology and using it to kill people,” Arbiter replied. “My partner studied how Digimon function as living beings and found a way to convert humans into data, we’re now using that to try and convert the minds of Diaboromon’s victims before they die and give a fresh start in this world as Digimon. You re the first successful conversion and the second we have sent to this world.”
“Why this world?” she asked. “And what happened to the other attempts to save people?”
“This world is linked to my Digital World through it’s shared use and understanding of magic and the level of technology Diaboromon uses for his crimes is non-existent in this world which makes it a perfect place to prevent more unnecessary deaths,” He explained. “The first Digimon we sent here was… incomplete. Diaboromon had taken control of a smart house and set it ablaze, killing the family within as well as preventing us from extracting all the data in time due its security measures. So, we took what we had and merged it all into one complete packet. There was barely enough left to form a functioning mind and no trace was left of the humans that it once was.”
“At least it gets a fresh start and we have strived to do better since then.” Arbiter stated. “It goes by the name Omnimon now.”
“I just, I don’t know what to say… that’s horrible. Someone just killing others because they can.” Salamon said as she tried to process everything.
“That’s why we’re trying to stop it or at the very least, save as many lives as we can,” Arbiter replied and turned to leave. “You can use your Digivice to contact me should Diaboromon somehow find its way here, or in case you need my help.”
Years passed, Salamon went from a small, cream coloured, lop eared puppy with a golden holy ring around her neck to a slightly larger white cat-like Digimon with a slightly pudgy figure, large pointed ears with tufts of purple fur on the end, blue eyes, large paws and a long thin tail with purple strips near the tip and topped with a tuft of purple fur to match her ears.
The Champion level digimon fiddled with the small holy ring on her tail as she watched the outside world pass her by in the cavern. Her muzzle twitched and nudged a pair of spectacles back up from where they slid down.
Hoof steps broke through the ambient sounds of the forest as two ponies stepped out of the brush and into the cavern. Gatomon smiled at the familiar face of her partner, though the mare had grown a fair bit since the pair last met. The digimon tuned out the conversation between Celestia and her younger sister Luna and looked out at the world beyond.
Time to go… She mused. I just hope I’m doing the right thing.
She looked over at the two alicorn sisters as they finished gathering the Elements.
I hope I’m doing the right thing, I want to help them but I don’t know if everything will happen the same way as in the show. All I can do is hope and try my best to be there for them.
His staff lay abandoned in the sand as the wind whipped around him, the sandstorm roaring as if in defiance against him as he stood before the large stone doors and the small podium that would be the key to his freedom. he approached the podium; the top was covered in several rectangular indentations and each one engraved with one of the five core elements of Witchelny's magic system.
The Digimon known as Wizardmon reached into the pocket dimension within his cape and pulled out a deck of cards. With the wind at his back and his hat pulled low to shield his eyes from the sand he placed the cards, each one depicting a different digimon, into the correct spot and the podium glowed with light as the stone doors creaked open. He could feel his energy draining from both the toll needed to open the door and from the battering of the storm. He quickly grabbed the cards and stored them away as he stumbled towards the portal.
A gust of wind knocked him forward and the wizard digimon was sent careening into the portal. Blinded by light, drained from his ordeal to even reach the stone doors be barely noticed the soft ground beneath his feet or the shade proved by the canopy of the forest he was now in. His hat tumbled onto the ground as he collapsed, with no strength left to stand and he could just make out the shape of something small and white approaching him just before he passed out.
He awoke in a soft bed, in a room made of stone with wall mounted torches providing light. The room was sparely furnished, save for a bookshelf and a writing desk. He saw his hat hanging off the bedpost and his cape hanging on a coat rack. He felt off, incomplete without his attire and tried to sit up. His body refused to cooperate, despite his mind feeling refreshed it seemed his body still had some ways to go to recover from his inter-dimensional transit. Without his cape he felt exposed, vulnerable and pulled the blankets further up to hide his stitched-up mouth just as the wooden door in the corner of the room creaked open.
He had never seen a Gatomon before though he instinctively knew the feline that walked into the room carrying a small wooden crate was definitely a Gatomon. The feline blinked in surprise, her round spectacle sliding down her muzzle slightly as if to accentuate her shock at seeing him awake. She looked about to say something but decided against it, instead chose to place the crate by Wizardmon's beside and rummaged through it. She pulled out a wooden bowl laden with various foodstuffs and a wooden mug and pitcher of water. She handed him the bowl with one paw, wrapped her tail around the mug and placed it, along with the pitcher on the desk.
"I'm Lily, sorry, I have a lot to do. I'll be back in a minute!" the feline stated and hurried out of the room.
Wizardmon just stared at the empty doorway, waiting and after a minute of no sign of the feline returning Wizardmon began to silently eat the food she had brought him. He remained alert as he ate and could make out the sounds of hooved creatures going about their business and the fleeting noise of paws pounding against carpet or stone followed by a fleeting glimpse of Lily as she darted through the halls carrying all manner of things in her paws or held tightly in her long tail.
He felt his strength return as he ate, soon his bowl was emptied and he felt brave enough to try testing his magic. With a thought he commanded the bowl to float over to land on the desk and with a bit of strain he levitated the pitcher and mug over to himself.
“Um, I was going to ask if you needed help...” Lily said from the doorway as Wizardmon finished pouring himself a drink. He sheepishly nodded and with a kind smile, she took the pitcher from him and returned it to the desk.
“Sorry for the rushed introduction, I was in the middle of clearing out my schedule so I look after you properly,” She explained. “I work as an adviser as well as doing odd jobs around the castle.”
“You were pretty banged up and practically covered in sand. I found you near some old ruins,” the Gatomon continued. “You’re not from around here I’m guessing?”
He didn’t trust himself to try communicating just yet, if simple levitation gave him trouble he didn’t want to see what would happen if he tried talking so he shook his head.
“You’re a Wizardmon so… judging from the sand on you when I found you I take it you used some sort of portal to get here?” She asked.
He nodded and looked a tad sheepish at his lack of a more substantial explanation. She didn’t seem to mind his silent replies and continued talking.
“Just rest up for now, I’ll grab some books for you to read,” she stated. “From what I’ve read about inter dimensional travel, you’ll be adjusting for a while so just take it easy. Oh and… would it be ok if you called me Gatomon out in public? it’s kind of a long story but…”
He shrugged and made himself more comfortable as the feline left the room in search of the promised books. There was an air of duty and compassion about her as she left and Wizardmon had a feeling that Lily was someone he could trust. He still hid the lower half of his face beneath the blanket again despite this but when she returned with an armful of tomes, it didn’t look like she really cared about what he did, as long as he was safe and on the road to recovery she let him do his own thing.
Over the next few weeks a routine was quickly established, Gatomon would bring him his meals and reading material for the day and while he would busy himself with a novel or two in-between meals, she would be watching him as she sat perched on a nearby windowsill or atop the bookcase. She seemed determined to ensure his recovery though eventually, whether she got bored enough or decided he was doing well enough to not need her vigilance for the rest of the day, she would sit at the foot of the bed with her own choice of literature and read quietly next to him. It was oddly peaceful to him, free of the stress and worries he had dealt with back in his home village.
He could see the effort she put into being his caretaker, she would still be wake when he was mere seconds from falling asleep and arrived with breakfast so early in the morning he had to wonder if she got any sleep at all. So, as Gatomon kept an eye on him, he started keeping an eye on her.
Once he paid attention the patterns were easy to notice and as his strength returned to him in leaps and bounds, what little courage he had returned as well and for the first time in three months, after he made sure his mouth was hidden under the blanket, Wizardmon gathered the nerve to speak.
"Uh, hello?" he said nervously.
Gatomon jumped, startled by the noise and her reply made Wizardmon think that perhaps this wasn't such a good idea.
"Holy shit you talked!"
Once she had calmed down and much to his embarrassment, apologized repeatedly for her outburst, Gatomon quickly adapted and the two began the first of many conversations.
"So, you were turned into a digimon?" he asked, stunned by the revelation.
"I died, my mind was turned into data and poof, digimon," she replied. 'I'm just as surprised that you're a real digimon. I never thought I'd meet one."
"But you were able to figure out I arrived here via the portal, what did you think I was?" Wizardmon asked.
She shrugged. "For all I knew you could've been like me and just figured out how the Wizardmon species travelled between dimensions. You've been awfully quiet until now."
"I see, my father taught me how to travel to this world when it was clear i couldn't remain at home with him," He replied. "He said that this world and ours shared a connection due to both worlds having a similar form of magic used by its inhabitants."
"Oh, OK. So, what are you going to do now?" Gatomon asked.
"I don't know, but I think, I would like to learn the magic of this world." he said.
Gatomon hummed in thought as she mulled something over, she pushed her glasses back up her nose and hopped off the bed.
"I think I can help you, since I work for the princesses I could introduce you to them and maybe they can help you out," she stated. "I need to introduce you to them anyway if you're stay in this world is permanent."
"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to trouble you..." he nervously replied.
"I'd just be doing my job," she said causally. "Advise the princesses, introduce to foreign people seeking help or asylum, dealing with foreign nations on their behalf. I've been doing this for twenty years now, even helped pass a few laws and stuff. Heck, I'm the Equestrian ambassador to the dragons. There's nothing to worry about."
"That went well." Gatomon stated happily as she walked beside Wizardmon.
"I-I don't know what to say," Wizardmon said, flabbergasted as he nervously pulled his hat down to cover his face. "My teacher will be one of the princesses!"
"Luna was adamant about taking you on that's for sure, maybe she's seen how well Celestia does with that school she built on Mount Canterhorn and wanted to take on a student herself?" Gatomon suggested. "Though with how the school for gifted unicorns is generating a town around it I don't know why she didn't just go there to find a student and with both her and Celestia overseeing the building of Canterlot Castle to better provide jobs and security for the families of the foals already attending the school, eh Luna has her reasons."
"What will you be doing now that I'll be studying with the princess?" Wizardmon asked.
"The usual, paperwork for Celestia, checking on the castle staff, helping run both Day and Night Court and holing up in the library once everyone's gone to bed," she replied. "Insomnia sucks..."
In one of the castle's towers Princess Luna stood elegantly before Wizardmon as he sat hunched over a desk, muttering as he wrote with a quill and inkwell.
"A successful spell comprises of three factors, intent, emotion and power. Without all three working in harmony a spell will fail or miscast resulting in an entirely different, sometimes random effect on both the target and the caster..."
As he continued to write, he moved the brim of his large pointed dark blue hat just enough to allow him to see the page clearly while he took care to keep the lower half of his face covered by the collar of his matching dark blue cape. Time moved at a snail’s pace as he answered question after question written on the pile of parchment in front of him until finally, Princess Luna called things to a halt.
"Enough!" She exclaimed and he visibly jumped in his seat at the loudness of her voice. He returned his quill to the inkwell beside him as the pile of parchment was encased in Luna's magic and floated towards her. He waited nervously in his seat as she looked over them with a critical eye.
He didn't dare move until she finally placed the pile of papers onto a desk in the corner of the room and addressed him.
"Thou hath done well. From this we see that thine understanding of magical theory is sound and the problem solving thou showed when faced with a spell's theoretical use is practical, if lacking in imagination," She stated. "Though the number of spells thou are able to cast is few, as expected of one not of this world, we would still like to see thine strength in combat!"
"Come, my student!" she declared. "It is time for the practical exam!"
She led him to the courtyard and found Gatomon waiting for the two of them. She was lying on a rock, sunbathing and perked up as she noticed them.
"So, it’s time the practical exam, right?" she asked and hopped off the rock.
Luna nodded. "Indeed, old friend, are thou prepared?"
"Of course I am, I know I'm going to get my butt kicked." the feline replied with a shrug and a cheeky grin.
"Wizardmon, thine task is to do battle with Lady Gatomon," Luna instructed as she moved to the edge of the courtyard. "You have five minutes to display the extent of your magical abilities to defeat your opponent>"
"I get to fight baack!" Gatomon singsonged.
"Are thou prepared?" Luna asked.
Wizardmon adjusted his hat and cape and moved to stand across from Gatomon, he could see the playful look in her eye and knew she wouldn't him any serious harm. He nodded and watched Gatomon shifted to stand on all fours, keeping her body close to the ground as she flicked her tail, which caused her holy ring to slide downward and rest near the base of her tail to prevent it from sliding off.
He then realized just how smart Gatomon really was if she was taking all of her weaknesses into account. Regardless of any doubt or worries he had, he felt that no matter what happened, the two of them would at least have fun.
"Begin!" Luna exclaimed.
Hours later as the sun began to set, Wizardmon stumbled up the stairs after Gatomon as they both headed for an unoccupied lounge. The room had a wooden floor with a large red rug taking up most of the floor place, a fireplace crackled merrily as bookshelves and cabinets filled with board games, hidden stashes of treats and drinks, various trinkets and odds and ends lined the walls. A few lounges and large, alicorn sized cushions were situated near the fireplace. Wizardmon took a seat on a plush chair while Gatomon flopped down onto a cushion.
"I won... Ow..." she said and looked a bit frustrated when her glasses slipped off her nose again.
"You fight well for a Gatomon without SaberLeomon gloves." Wizardmon pointed out and she looked down at her white, slightly large front paws.
"I never got any gloves when I digivolved, there are no SaberLeomon here for me to copy the data of after all." she replied.
"Surely this land must have an alternative?" he asked.
"I don't need no stinkin' gloves" she grumbled back and found the energy to adjust her glasses.
"No, I suppose not..." Wizardmon agreed and the pair trailed off into a comfortable silence.
Wizardmon eventually broke the silence. "Lily?"
"I told you Wizardmon, it's Gatomon now." she stated quietly.
"But, Lily is your true name is it not? All digimon have a true name where I'm from." the warlock stated.
"I thought Digimon went by their species name? Then again, I wasn't born a Digimon, not like you- a real Digimon."
"Does that even matter? I could tell you my name-" Wizardmon replied.
"Don't worry about it, just call me Gatomon." she said calmly.
"Alright... Y-you're not mad, are you?" he asked nervously.
"Nah, I spent three months patching you up after all, we're practically friends now!" Gatomon replied with a grin.
Night had fallen and while Gatomon was gripped in the throes of insomnia and Celestia slept like a foal, Princess Luna and her student were holed up in the Princess's office.
"Thou hath made leaps and bounds in thine studies Wizardmon," Princess Luna stated. "Tis time thou learn about the bulk of our royal duties in The Dream Realm."
"You're going to teach me dream walking? I'm honoured by your trust in me, Princess." Wizardmon replied and dipped his head respectfully.
"It seems our lessons on proper etiquette have paid off," the Princess of the night mused. "Thou art worthier of our time than the mewling masses that our sister's partner entertains during Day Court."
Luna's face had contorted into a look of disgust for a brief moment.
"Is that why you cancelled Night Court? To have more time for my training?" Wizardmon asked curiously.
"Aye, we did and from what we hath heard, Celestia has returned to her proper duties of attending court instead of allowing Gatomon to run amok."
"To be fair Princess, Gatomon was only seeking to help." Wizardmon stated.
"Hmm, thou hath a point, my sister's negligence is a matter for another time for tonight, we shalt instruct thee on the magic of dream walking."
With her horn aglow, Princess Luna moved furniture to the edges of the room and took a seat on the soft rug in the centre of the cleared space.
"Come, sit and we shall show thee the spell forms thou will be learning this night."
Both apprehensive and curious, Wizardmon sat crossed legged on the floor across from his mentor and paid close attention to her instructions. As the hours passed his feeble attempts at the new spell improved as Luna repeatedly demonstrated how the spell was cast.
"Good, tis nearly perfect but thou must pour more power into it to cast successfully." Luna instructed.
"I-I'm trying..." Wizardmon grunted, his hands glowing with arcane energies as the unstable spell from sparked popped and just like all the other attempts, blew up.
"You're still having trouble mastering spells?" Gatomon asked as she Wizardmon sat in their usual lounge as night approached.
"Yes, and I think Princess Luna might be getting angry with me because of it," the wizard digimon sighed. "She's been so distant and curt as of late and I was wondering if you could help."
He looked at her hopefully and Gatomon absentmindedly push her spectacles back up her muzzle as she thought about his predicament.
"You lost your staff on the way to Equestria right?" the small feline asked. "I didn't see it with you back when I first found you."
"No, I was caught in a sandstorm while opening the gateway to get to this world and I forced to leave it behind," Wizardmon replied and pulled out a deck of cards from the pocket dimension within his cape. "These were more important at the time."
"You used those to travel from Witchelny to Equestria right."
Wizardmon was surprised she knew about the cards. "You've heard of these?"
"I've seen them before, it was a long time ago," she said and shrugged. "Why not make a new staff?"
Wizardmon pondered the idea as he returned the cards to the inside of his cape. "I'd need the right kind of wood and a few tools but it shouldn't be too hard," he sighed in resignation. "As much as I want to be able to cast without a medium, I don't like seeing Princess Luna like this and if this will make her happy..."
"I've been thinking, maybe Princess Luna is your partner, like how Celestia is with me?" Gatomon suggested.
"...I don't know, I do have a Digivice that's like yours but she's my teacher and a Princess. I doubt she's destined to have a screw up like me for a partner." Wizardmon admitted.
"You're not a screw up, you're my friend," Gatomon said softly. "And does it really matter if you two are partners or not? At the end of the day you're still friends, aren't you?"
"I guess you're right, thank you Lily." Wizardmon replied and Gatomon rolled her eyes, a smile in her voice.
"I told you to stop calling me that..." she grumbled half-heartedly.
With a playful look in her eye, Gatomon hopped up off the cushion she sat on and smiled.
"What kind of wood and tools do you need? I bet the local carpenter's or someone on the castle staff could help," the feline suggested. "We could make you a new staff now!"
"Well.... Here's what we'll need." Wizardmon replied and the pair left the room as he began to list the items he needed.
Hours later a large branch had been recovered alongside a several different types of knives, all of which were laid out on a table in front of the two digimon.
"So, are you gonna make it look like you're old one?" Gatomon asked as Wizardmon finalized a quick sketch of what his old staff, one common for all digimon of his kind looked like. She frowned at the drawing. "It looks like a sun."
"It's supposed to represent a Digitamamon as it digivolves into its final stage, a symbol of how a Wizardmon can harness his power for good or ill, just like the result of a digivolution..." Wizardmon explained.
"It looks like Celestia's cutie mark." Gatomon stated flatly.
"And what would you suggest?"
"A moon or a star motif, duh," was the feline's reply. "Light and darkness, good and evil and all that."
"Huh, that sounds like a good idea..." Wizardmon mused and began a new sketch.
"Your welcome!" Gatomon chirped.
It took the rest of the night even with Gatomon helping but by dawn they were done. A simple wooden staff adorned with a crescent moon and a few stars rested on the table.
"Welp, I'm going to make the world's sweetest cup of tea... I can't wait for ponies to invent hot chocolate..." Gatomon grumbled and shuffled out of the room.
Wizardmon picked up his new staff, invigorated by the accomplishment he had achieved. With newfound energy he headed towards Luna's study, he had a spell to practice.
"Now then Wizardmon, here the dream realm thine power is only limited by thine imagination but should we come cross a nightmare, let us do the fighting, thou art too inexperienced with dream walking to truly fight in this realm." Princess Luna instructed as the dream realm phased into view around the student and teacher.
"Of course, your highness, I won't let you down." He replied and gripped his new staff even tighter. Wizardmon was determined, even if he could only assist in some small capacity, the wizard digimon would do whatever he could to help Princes Luna.
The dream realm was a vast expanse of stardust and empty space and Wizardmon was left in awe by its beauty even as whispers of darker, sinister things faded in and out of the edge of his hearing alongside cheerful laughs and cries of delight that sounded oh so very far away. He followed the princes further in as they passed a myriad of doors, no two looked the same and Princess Luna took a cursory glance at each before she moved on to the next.
"Each of these doors leads to a dream somepony is having somewhere in Equestria," She explained. "Tis our duty, and now yours, to distinguish a dream from a nightmare and bring a night of peaceful slumber to the land."
"And you can tell from just a glance?" Wizardmon asked.
"Aye, should a door appear damaged or worn, tis the result of a nightmare plaguing a pony and feeding off their fear and pain til it has the strength to escape the dream to find a new host." Luna replied. "Magic exists in all things Wizardmon and manifests itself in strange ways, the nightmares are but one example and we have no doubt that thou will find others in thine pursuit of arcane knowledge."
A battered, light pink door with an eight-pointed star surrounded by four short lines that symbolized beams of light carved into the wood caught their attention. it was scratched in several places and had chunks missing from near the edges. The aura of love, despair and grief that rolled out from behind the door made Wizardmon flinch as Princess Luna carefully approached.
"This is a strong one, a reoccurring nightmare that has attached itself to its host, most likely for several years," Luna observed. "How has it gone unnoticed till now?"
Before they could react, the door shattered into bits of wood and splinters as a figure stepped out. Wizardmon's instinctively knew what it was.
"A Myotismon here? But then- Gatomon!" He cried out and made to dash for the room shrouded in darkness beyond the broken door.
Only someone who knows about digimon other than myself or Gatomon could create one in their dreams and there's been no other sightings of digimon in this world aside from the two of us. Gatomon has never spoken about it but I know she knows more about digimon than she's letting on!
Why didn't she tell me she was having nightmares? He realized.
He rolled to the side to avoid a lashing from Myotismon's crimson lightning, the vampire digimon smirking as he took the full power of a spell from Princess Luna without a scratch and with a flick of his cape a swarm of bats engulfed the princess.
Wizardmon immediately rushed to Luna's side, using his staff to knock the bats aside and kept a close eye on other digimon as Myotismon slowly advanced towards them. The princess tried to get to her hooves but it was clear she had no fight left in her, her ever flowing mane and tail had ceased their movements and her body was covered in tiny scratches and bite marks.
I need to do something! For Luna, for Gatomon!
Wizardmon stood his ground as the silent yet terrifying Myotismon stopped to stand before him, lazily preparing himself for another attack. In a flash Wizardmon darted towards his enemy, his feet leaving the ground as he reached eye level with the ultimate level digimon and stared coldly into his eyes.
"Vision of Terror!"
Myotismon screamed and stumbled back in shock, his attacks unfocused as the vampire tried to strike an imaginary foe. Wizardmon pointed his staff at Myotismon, lighting sparking off the tip as an orb of energy formed.
"Thunder Ball!" Wizardmon cried out and fired the magical projectile. It hit its target and exploded, catapulting Myotismon back through the doorway and Wizardmon flew after him.
On the other side of the door was the castle, blanketed in the darkness of night and surrounded on all sides by an overgrown, dense forest. Wizardmon looked up to see a shadow on the moon that looked a mare's face while the heavenly orb gave off a strange rainbow coloured aura.
He frowned from behind his cape collar and looked back at Myotismon. The other digimon had shaken off the effects of Wizardmon's attacks, his face twisted in to a snarl but Wizardmon was prepared.
"Magical Game!" the champion level digimon declared and planted his staff on the ground as a beam of light erupted from it and shot into the heavens. Seconds later a spiralling tongue of flame descended down from on high to strike Myotismon, an explosion followed suit and when the smoke cleared, the digimon born from a nightmare was nothing but a pile of ash.
"Now to dispel this nightmare once and for all, I have to find Gatomon." Wizardmon decided and went in search of his feline friend.
He found her locked up in the castle dungeons, her white fur covered in dust and grime and her blue eyes void of the joy and life he was used to seeing in them.
"Gatomon?" He asked softly and when she looked up, she seemed to be looking through him rather than at him.
"Whaddya want?" she mumbled. "You won now go away..."
"I won? Gatomon get a hold of yourself, please! This is all just a bad dream!" He pleaded but Gatomon turned away from him and curled up into a ball.
"I wish it was, I lost, I failed everyone. Luna slid into Nightmare Moon, imprisoned Celestia and k-killed you, turned into that monster Myotismon and you're just a hallucination..." she sniffled. "Go away..."
Wizardmon stepped away from the bars as Gatomon broke down crying muttering "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." between sobs. His heart broke at the sight of her like this and that only gave him ore drive to bring an end to her suffering.
"I'm only limited by my imagination..." he mused as Princess Luna's words echoed in his mind. He steeled his resolve and, in a blink, was inside Gatomon's cell.
With a thought the world warped into the lounge they had spent their evenings whiling away the hours with conversations, discussions and quiet, lazy days spent pouring over books and scrolls. He picked up Gatomon and walked over to his usual seat, sat down and let his feline friend sob into his chest until finally, she regained her composure and regular demeanour.
"What-what just happened?" she asked weakly and froze in place staring up him. "Uh.... This is new?"
"There's nothing to worry about, it's just a dream." Wizardmon replied calmly and ran a gloved hand down her back.
She relaxed under his touch and moved around to curl up in his lap.
"If you say so..." Gatomon murmured.
Eventually Gatomon sat up and looked at him. She looked weary and for once Wizardmon could see just how long she'd been dealing with the nightmares by herself. Unbidden she began to speak.
"A year before you showed up we got word that one of our oldest allies, The Crystal Empire had been taken over by a tyrant king. Celestia and Luna wanted to go and defeat him as soon as they could but I convinced them to let me go scout for information first," she explained. "I-I wish I'd let them confront him, he had everyone, mare, stallion and foal working in the mines until they just couldn't move anymore and then he- he used them as ingredients for some sort of crystal or gem he was trying to make..."
"He wanted nothing more than power. When I saw that I went looking for an artefact I knew could defeat him... only to fall for one of his traps," she continued. "I was forced to live through my worst fears and well, you know what I saw..."
"Your nightmare." Wizardmon concluded.
"You don't see stuff like everyone you know love being taken away and expect it to not leave scars. It only got worse after I met you... I have to be strong for you, Tia, Luna and everyone else, as long as I'm okay, you're all okay...." She trailed off and Wizardmon wrapped her in a hug.
"You don't have to do this all by yourself, you have the Princesses to support you, I'll support you," Wizardmon stated. "You're not alone."
As the sun rose, Wizardmon awoke from his jaunt into the dream realm and frantically rushed over to Princess Luna as she showed the first signs of stirring.
"Princess! Are you alright?" he asked worriedly and Luna blinked at him, taken off guard by his concern.
"W-we art fine Wizardmon, we take it thou dealt with the nightmare?" Luna asked.
"Yes, your highness. It will trouble Gatomon no further."
"Thou were reckless!" Luna snapped and got to her hooves. "If the nightmare had escaped it would have endangered all of Equestria!"
"You were in danger! I felt- no needed to protect you!" Wizardmon replied and the thought struck him as odd.
"We are a princess of Equestria, we can take care of ourselves!" Luna argued.
Wizardmon looked at the princess of the night, his expression calm as he remembered one of the first times Gatomon had ever spoken about herself. She had recounted the events that led to her meeting Princess Celestia, of finding the alicorn in danger and an instinctual need to protect her from harm. Looking back on his fight with Myotismon It was a simple matter for Wizardmon to connect the dots.
"Princess Luna, I fought the nightmare not because I believed you were weak, I just simply felt I needed to help you," he explained and pulled out a Digivice from the folds of his cape. "Perhaps if you look at this you might understand?"
He held it out to her and she wordlessly grabbed it in her magic. s he suspected the Digivice's screen began to glow brightly and a sense of bewilderment and joy filled him. he swept his hat off his head as he bowed, his head low and voice humble as he spoke.
"I am your partner, Princess. Through dark and light, war and peace and beyond! I will stand by your side to protect you, to support you for you are my friend."
He was met with silence and after a while, he risked a glance up to find Princess Luna utterly speechless.
"U-um too much?" he asked sheepishly and was bowled backwards by the force of the Royal Canterlot Laugh.
From behind his collar, Wizardmon smiled, he had never seen Luna this happy and he was glad to witness it.
Three Years before the rise of Nightmare Moon
"You want us to handle The Grand Galloping Gala?" Gatomon asked Princess Celestia as she, Wizardmon and Luna sat at the breakfast (Or dinner in Luna's case) table. One of the feline's ears twitched in irritation. "Do you have any idea how much work that is?"
"Thou can be surprisingly clever and well organized when thine mind is put to the task at hand," Celestia replied as a cup of tea hovered in her magic. She smiled knowingly as she continued. "There will be representatives from Griffinstone and The Dragon Lands this year and We have made sure to provide catering suitable to predators such as them."
"We have organized several meat dishes to present at the buffet this year." Celestia added as her partner's face went from excitement to annoyance at the prospect of meat in her future.
Gatomon sighed in resignation. "Well it is free food, what do I have to do?"
"You mean what do we have to do," Wizardmon interjected. "I'm helping you, whether you want me to or not."
"And get more time to spend with you?" Gatomon replied. "No way am I missing out on that!"
"Here's what thine tasks are for the preparations," Celestia stated and floated a scroll over to Gatomon. "This is just the things we are unable to oversee due to our duties, we trust thou will take care of them?"
"We'll be fine Tia." Gatomon replied.
"Alright just one more thing and we're done!" Gatomon exclaimed and moved down the list to the last time.
Go find a date.
"What, the fuck?" Gatomon said flatly. "Go find a date? Is she serious?"
The feline sighed and rubbed her eyes, clearly fed up with her partner's antics.
"Wizardmon, do you wanna go to Gala with me?" she deadpanned but was quickly stunned by his answer.
"S-sure, I'd be honoured to go with you."
She blinked once, twice and finally his words registered.
"Okay, I'm done, see you tonight."
"Yes, of course." Wizardmon replied and the two digimon went their separate ways.
"What was I thinking?! This could ruin everything, what if I'm a bad date or something happens? What if we stop being friends? I don't know what to do!"
Out of the corner pf her eye, a blurry yet recognizable Princes Celestia was giggling at Gatomon as she panicked. The holy digimon whirled around and pushed her glasses back up her muzzle as she glared hotly at the solar princess.
"You're not helping!"
Celestia stiffed her giggles and walked over to place a comforting hoof on Gatomon's shoulder. "Thou hath known each other for many years now. Surely the bond thy two share is strong enough to handle such a difficult time."
"Please don't pull that motherly stuff with me, I'm older than you," Gatomon replied and sighed. "I guess you do have a point, even if I'm still bat shit terrified."
"Tis normal to be afraid about a date, it shows thou truly does care for Wizardmon." Celestia replied and smiled impishly. "And we may have heard a few rumours that he wishes to court thee."
"Can you confirm them as fact?" Gatomon replied flatly.
"Why not ask him thyself?"
"And just how am I going to do that? Oh, hey Wizardmon there's a rumour going around that you want to court me, care to tell me if it's true or not?" Gatomon snarked just as a knock sounded at her door. "I swear to god if that's him and he heard me..."
"Gatomon? we need to be downstairs to greet the guests." As if on cue Wizardmon called out and Gatomon's paw quickly met her face.
"Fuck my life..." she muttered under her breath and quickly smoothed down her fur and cleaned her glasses with a stray piece of cloth before she made to leave. "Alright, show time."
"This is so boring..." Gatomon muttered as she stood by the castle entrance with Celestia, Luna and Wizardmon as the four of them greeted a seemingly endless stream of guests. "This is why I just park myself at the buffet table every year..."
"Wizardmon, go an attend to thine date, we have things sorted here." Luna commanded.
"Gatomon, thou can leave, we will be alright." Celestia said with a sly smile.
The two digimon shared a look, bowed in respect to their partners and made a beeline for the buffet table. Or rather, Gatomon made a beeline for the buffet table.
"Food!"
"Gatomon! Wait for me!"
By the time Wizardmon had arrived, Gatomon was holding a pie in both paws and scarfing it down without a care in the world.
"... Is it good?" Wizardmon asked and the feline grabbed a second pie, balanced it on her tail and while she carried both, motioned for him to follow her. They both soon sat under the night sky, sitting back to back as they ate. After a while both had finished their food and simply looked up at the stars.
"I feel like we should be doing something special... or something, what do you think?" Gatomon asked.
"I suppose but we don't have to do anything special, we could just... talk, like always." he replied. Ï do have to thank you though, I was nervous about eating in public like this..."
"Come on, I know you don't like to show most of your face and it would be rude to force you out of your comfort zone like that." she replied.
"I haven't told you why I keep my mouth covered, have I?"
"I just figured it was a Wizardmon thing, you can be pretty shy at times." she said.
"It's... more than that, perhaps it would be better if I just show you..." Wizardmon stated and held down his collar.
"Perhaps you can figure it out?" he stated without moving his mouth.
Gatomon blinked at the oddity, Wizardmon's mouth was stitched up, as was normal for his kind but he just smiled, he had spoken and she had definitely heard him.
"You're either telepathic or projecting your voice because you won't- no you can't speak right?" she realized.
He nodded as his smile shifted to show a hint of sadness and Gatomon once more heard his voice. "I was born with a glitch that rendered me mute, as a rookie Impmon, I learned how to project what I wanted to say into the minds of others, to them it would sound like I was speaking when in reality it's nothing more than a magic trick."
Wizardmon readjusted his collar to hide the lower half of his face once more and continued his explanation. "The village I grew up in didn't take kindly to glitched digimon and once word got out, my father gave me instructions on how to travel to other worlds and the next thing I knew, I was trying to get a portal to work in the middle of a sandstorm."
"You were exiled for being a mute? I swear if we ever go to Witchelny, you’re taking me to your home village so I can knock some sense into everyone..." Gatomon grumbled and Wizardmon laughed.
"I won't be going back," he stated. "Luna needs me and... I'd miss you."
".... I don't know what to do anymore..." Gatomon sighed. "What even are we Wizardmon?"
Wizardmon just looked confused. "I don't follow."
"We've spent years together, shared stuff about each other that not even our partners know and I just, I dunno, maybe I'm overthinking things." she admitted.
"Again." he teased.
"Shut up..."
"Still you do have a point," he mused. "What do you think we are?"
"I dunno more than friends at least." Gatomon said with a shrug.
"Gatomon I know you're smarter than that..."
"I'm scared alright!" she snapped back and winced. "Sorry... I just- how the hell are you so calm?"
"Well, I suppose it's because I've known for a while so I've had time to uh, deal with my nerves..." he replied. "So, with that said..."
He stood up and held out his hand.
"Would you care to join me for a dance?" he asked.
"Uh ok?" she replied and grasped his gloved hand with a paw. Wizardmon floated up into the air, he quickly steadied his grip on her with both hands to hold her up at his eye level as they hovered above the ground.
"I thought this would make it less embarrassing." he admitted.
"Y-yeah, sure. whatever works." Gatomon mumbled and the pair began to dance. it was almost beautiful, graceful even as they moved in the air in sync with the music.
"So, you're serious about this whole courting thing?" Gatomon asked.
"Only if you're comfortable with it, I have no desire to pressure you." Wizardmon replied.
"Well this is sudden but... it's you, ya know? I'm okay with this," She replied. "It took me a while to realize it but, I really do care about you and I just hope I don't mess this up..."
"Funny, you took the words right out of my mouth." he said.
From within the ballroom Celestia smiled as she caught sight of the two digimon before she was pulled back to her present conversation with a group of nobles.
Luna stood in a shadowy corner of room and looked on at the two digimon bitterly before her gaze swept over the crowd.
"Even on a night such as this our subjects, our sister and our own student are too wrapped up in themselves to appreciate our hard work," she snarled quietly. "Our work in the dream realm, forgotten upon waking, our duties in Night Court ignored in favour of our sister's pet deciding the Day Court's rulings... An insult to everything we hath worked for!"
"We will wait, perhaps Wizardmon is right and we need to be more patient but even our patience can only hold for so long."
Six months before the rise of Nightmare Moon.
The Night Before Hearth's Warming.
Snow blanketed the castle town as the giant stone doors that led into the castle proper closed shut behind two familiar figures.
“I can’t believe Tia kicked us out of the castle!” Gatomon exclaimed. “We were so close to a breakthrough on those digivices!”
She fumed by the main gate until a gust of wind blew through the town and caused the feline’s mood to shift from annoyed to miserable as she shivered in the cold.
“My fur will keep me warm, my arse,” She muttered and sighed, her front paws glowing with holy light as she warmed herself up. Beside her Wizardmon watched on in fascination.
“I didn’t know you could do magic.” He said.
“I run on sugar, food, friendship and hugs. Since I don’t sleep much I have a lot of time on my hands, or uh, paws. Even with you patrolling my dreams every night, old habits are hard to break.” She replied.
“That explains why the library is always organized,” Wizardmon said. “So, what do we do now?”
“I dunno, what do you wanna do?” She replied with a shrug.
They walked aimlessly through town, admiring the festive atmosphere and the various stalls selling a variety of goods for the holidays. Eventually the two of them wound up in a quiet, secluded park with trees decorated with mage lights that lit the area with a warm, inviting light.
“This is the gala all over again, I feel like we should be doing something special.” Gatomon admitted as they sat on a park bench.
Wizardmon pulled her to his side, lightly petting her back as she snuggled into his embrace. “Isn’t this enough?” He asked her.
“I guess, not much has changed has it?” she stated. “We still do our usual things, just with more hugs and “cute stuff”, as Tia calls it.”
“Do we really need to do anything else? I-I like this.” Wizardmon admitted shyly.
“I know, I do too. Everyone keeps judging us though and with Tia so busy and Luna so distant nowadays I just can’t help and overthink this stuff.” she replied and sighed, her face betraying her apprehension.
“Lily?” Wizardmon asked.
“What if I told you something bad is going to happen soon, would you believe me?” Gatomon asked weakly.
He didn’t to reply with words, instead he pulled Gatomon into his lap and nuzzled her, a gesture she returned as her spirits were somewhat lifted.
“Something is going to happen and I thought our presence was enough to stop it but with how Luna’s been acting, I’m worried. I’ve noticed alicorn magic has similarities to holy and demon digimon powers and, well holy digimon can slide and turn into a demon digimon and vice versa so… something like that could happen to Luna or Tia,” Gatomon continued. “I was hoping there was a clue to help them with our digivices….”
“But the question is what we do with the information if we find it?” she asked.
“You can’t bring this to the princesses in case the knowledge of what they could become triggers a slide correct?” Wizardmon clarified and Gatomon nodded.
“Not to mention there are larger forces at work, If Luna slides into… something else then I’ll have to tell Tia exactly what to do to preserve the future of Equestria even if we have the means to save Luna… It’s complicated,” Gatomon stated. “Do I risk changing the future for the sake my friend? Or sacrifice my friend’s well being and happiness for the sake of a brighter and safer future?”
“Then don’t worry about it, if it is meant to happen and you know things will turn out for the best for everyone, then let it happen,” Wizardmon said warmly. “You don’t want to cause a self-fulfilling prophecy, do you?”
“I know, I know. I’m just worried, it’s another story when I risk losing my friend and then there’s you. I-,” Gatomon struggled for the right words, her vulnerability in full display as opposed to her usual, relaxed self. “I love you and knowing we could be forced to fight or end up apart for years… it terrifies me…”
They fell into silence, Gatomon shaking from terror, Wizardmon remaining still and unmoving as they both held onto the one another. They sought only one another’s embrace, the simple feeling of security they found in each other’s company and the unwavering trust and support both freely offered to the other. The silence went from oppressive to peaceful the large bell tower in town announced the coming of midnight.
“It’s Christmas Day…” Gatomon said quietly.
“I’ve never noticed before but you’ve never really called Equestria’s holidays by their proper names.” Wizardmon said.
“Where I’m from Christmas is the proper name, I got used to doing my own thing every year with these anyway.” she replied with a shrug.
“We should head back, perhaps Princess Celestia will let back in now?” he suggested hopefully.
“Before we do go back, hang on a sec,” Gatomon said and pulled out a small box from behind her back. “I’m glad you showed me how that pocket dimension spell of yours works, it wasn’t easy hiding this before.”
She held out the box to him and cheerfully said “Merry Christmas!”
He chuckled, took the box and pulled out a small wrapped package from the folds of his cape and handed it to her.
“Happy Hearth’s Warming.” he replied and the two digimon opened their gift. They both looked down at the contents of their presents, then back at each other, bewildered by what they saw. Both of them held a computer chip around the size of a floppy disk. The chip Gatomon had given Wizardmon a light pink colour decorated with the crest of light, likewise the chip he gave her was light blue and bore the symbol of a crescent moon.
Gatomon made several high-pitched whines as she attempted to speak, only to look back down at the chip, blush and fail to get any words out. Wizardmon was silent, a thoughtful expression on his face as he pulled out a small scrap of paper.
He cleared his throat, which got a giggle out of Gatomon due to the fact both of them knew he couldn’t speak.
“Lily, will you- “
“Given that we both just each other a copy of our own code, and know full well that doing so is the Witchelny equivalent of a marriage proposal, do you really need to ask?” Gatomon cut in. “I mean with these we can…. Oh my god we’re going to make a Digi-Egg!”
With that exclamation, both digimon burst into a fit of joyous laughter, a tangle of limbs as they hugged one another in the quiet of the night. Eventually, they wandered on back to the castle, chatting away about all manner of things and spent the rest of the night sitting in their usual seats in their usual lounge, drafting up their plans for the future. For them it was nothing concrete, just whims and half-baked ideas to pass the time until one or both of them grew tired enough to drag themselves to bed and when they finally did decide to retire for the night, they both found their respective rooms sealed off due to “an unfortunate accident” with the cleaning staff, or so the guards told them. So, the two digimon trudged back to the lounge, Wizardmon rested on one of the longer couches while Gatomon curled up on her usual cushion after she’d moved it to be closer to her beloved.
Wizardmon could sense something was off about the Lunar Princess, he had for a while now yet refused to voice his concerns and simply did what he could to ease his partners doubts and worries over how her subjects saw her. It started as little things, asking for his advice during Night Court, teaching him more about dream walking so he could assist her in the dream realm but eventually she forced herself to work more and adding onto his workload as a result. He strived to do what he could but as the years wore on he could only watch as Princess Luna turned away from the public and looked on at them with bitterness and disdain.
He could feel her magic changing and warping as the days went by, her patience running thin and something, something that he could only describe as not Luna took root inside her heart. As much as he tried to help, his efforts to appease the princess of the night only seemed to fuel her downward spiral as she lauded his actions as something to be praised, to be seen as superior to Gatomon and he hated it.
And so, Wizardmon stood on the balcony outside Luna’s chambers as the princess raised the moon to mark the beginning of the night and for him, the beginning of the end.
“I ask again, will you stand with me as I claim what is mine and take vengeance upon my subjects?” She asked coldly.
Wizardmon didn’t trust himself to speak and so, with a heavy heart, he nodded. He knew that it wasn’t about loyalty or the bond they shared it was the knowledge that his partner, his friend was going down a dark path and would need his support, it was both his destiny and his duty as her Digimon to stand by her side regardless of what she became.
“Will you raise your might against my sister to id me in claiming my right to rule Equestria alone?” She asked and again, he nodded and all warmth fled his body at her final question. “Will you cast aside your love for Gatomon and face her in battle to serve me?”
He closed his eyes, he could feel the wind as it was whipped up into a flurry by Luna’s power, could sense the intensity of both her emotions and magic through their shared bond.
When he opened his eyes, Wizardmon had made his choice and nodded one final time. Luna’s mane and tail swirled into a vortex, both partner and Digimon ready for the task ahead, their resolve, their will focused to one singular goal. The Digivice that marked them as partners hovered in front of them, the screen emitting a dark blue light as something emerged from the device.
A small dog tag like item floated in front of the pair, encased within was a small, silver chip engraved with the symbol of a crescent moon. Wizardmon recognised it as a tag and crest, for a moment, time stood still as Luna took the crest in her magic and hung it around her neck, the digivice affixing itself to the tag as both glowed brightly.
Power and emotions flowed from both objects and into Wizardmon, he was lost in a sea of jealousy, rage and darkness that he knew wasn’t a part of Luna but something else, something alien. He gave in to Luna’s power and emotions but stood firm as the darkness that had invaded his partner attempted to twist him as well.
“Wizardmon Digivolve to…!”
“That’s odd,” Celestia spoke up from her spot on the balcony outside her chambers. “Luna hasn’t lowered the moon yet…”
Gatomon sat up from her spot on her partner’s back, instantly alert despite another sleepless night. She had joined Celestia out on the balcony to watch the solar princess raise the sun but with that one comment, Gatomon felt dread for the first time in many years.
“Oh, no… no please no- Wizardmon! Luna!” Gatomon cried out and desperately raced out of the room and down the hall. She barely registered Celestia calling out to her in shock and the sound of her partner running to catch up with her. Gatomon burst through the doors to the throne room and stopped, frozen with terror.
A tall, black coated alicorn mare sat atop Celestia’s throne, silver armour covered her legs, chest and head as her green snake like eyes bore Gatomon as the pony seethed with restrained fury. The mare’s starry mane and tail whipped round her violently in an in unseen storm and Gatomon noticed that a digivice, alongside a tag and crest had been fused to the mare’s metal chest plate.
She heard Celestia walk into the room and barely had time to push her out of the way as a red whip of energy shot out from the shadows and made to strike the white alicorn. Without even seeing the technique in person Gatomon knew what it was, words failed her as the familar form of a Myotismon walked out of the shadows, readying another Crimson Lightning to attack them with.
She paused, her hyperawareness of the situation made her notice some rather odd details about the other digimon, the collar of this Myotismon’s cape was higher, high enough to cover the lower half of his face and she took note of his eyes, a familiar shade of green and looking so sad as if the other digimon wanted to do anything else other than attack her. In her frightened state Gatomon put two and two together and looked over at Celestia, the white alicorn was in shock, the horror of who she was facing was clearly evident of her face as Nightmare Moon and her partner walked forward.
No words were exchanged nor needed to be said as Gatomon walked over and pulled out her digivice from her pocket dimension and handed it to Celestia, a determined look on her face. The elder princess looked back at her sister, then over to the doorway where several members of the castle staff were looking on in confusion and fear.
Celestia grasped the digivice in her magic and with a spell, fused it to her regalia. A grim look crossed her face as she addressed her sister.
“Luna, we beseech thee! Please lower the moon and stop this madness, let us help thee!” she fried out and The Nightmare snarled at her in response.
“Help? You want to help me now? The time for idle pleasantries and falsehoods ends now!” Nightmare snapped. “Myotismon, destroy them!”
Gatomon was the first to act, she rushed forward, she could feel the strength of her bond with Celestia, how it gave her the power she needed to face the one she loved in combat. She was stronger, faster and moved with enough speed to catch the other digimon off guard.
“Lightning Paw!” She cried out as holy energy gathered in her forepaw and she sent it slamming into Myotismon’s stomach with the full strength of an alicorns might. The blow staggered Myotismon and before either of them knew, they were both tumbling out of the window that just so happened to be behind them.
She felt power through her bond with Celestia and grim yet hopeful determination from the solar alicorn. The two shared the same thought, idea and will and golden light engulfed the throne room.
They weren’t going to fight their loved ones, they were going to save them. That same light surrounded Gatomon and she felt ll of Celestia’s fear, hope and love for her sister, her pride and joy t seeing Gatomon and Wizardmon find happiness together and the selflessness both Celestia and her Digimon embodied to serve Equestria.
“Gatomon, Digivolve to…Angewomon!”
She spread her new wings and hovered in the air as Myotismon floated before her, he looked surprised at the sudden change in her appearance and seemed to be studying her as she got her bearings. She realized she lacked the winged helmet Angewomon normally wore and instead her face was in plain sight, with her glasses still intact.
“Ok, I have wings, six of them! This is weird!” Angewomon said s she flailed around in the air. “Don’t you dare laugh!”
Myotismon still chuckled good naturedly, despite the glare from the angel digimon. She rolled her eyes and finally righted herself.
"Hello Angewomon..." Myotismon said calmly.
"...I don't want to do this..." Angewomon admitted as she watched Celestia fly off into the night with her sister hot on her heels.
"But we have to, our partners need us." Myotismon replied, still calm despite the sad expression he wore.
The two floated in the air for a moment, Angewomon laughed bitterly and looked over the princesses as they did battle, beams of magic lighting up the night sky and impacting clouds with enough force to shatter stone."...If something happens could you tell Celestia my true name? It's just kinda funny, I've been hiding a part of myself from her- I just wanted to be there for without the baggage of a prior home or family I'll never see again so-"
"You embraced your role as her Digimon so she wouldn't worry." He observed.
"Yeah..."
Myotismon was lost for words until finally as explosions and the Nightmare’s cries of fury broke the silence of the night, he spoke. "All this time... I was the only one you showed that pain to...Lily if something happens to me-"
"I won't fight you, I refuse! I'll heal you and Luna- if I don't..." Angewomon trailed off, she trembled in fear for she knew what would happen if she could do something.
She opened her mouth to reason with her beloved but he laughed sadly and interrupted her. “Magnus, my name is Magnus and from the looks of things-"”
He prepared his crimson lighting once more as Celestia was struck with one of Nightmare Moon’s attacks, the white alicorn was sent crashing down into one of the lesser used rooms in the castle’s lower floors.
“No... Please, you don’t have to do this!” Angewomon begged as The Nightmare cackled with laughter.
"I'm sorry Lily, The Nightmare commands that I fight," Myotismon replied and darted forward to strike."Crimson Lightning!"
The mark hit home, the red whip lashed at Angewomon's wings and she was sent tumbling to the ground below in a panicked glide as her remaining wings just barely supported her weight. She got up on shaky legs but was bowled over by a swarm of bats. She sat up as a shadow feel over her. Myotismon loomed overhead.
“Why aren’t you fighting back?” he asked.
The angel sat there, scared, confused, emotionally and physically wounded, she felt drained and weary as she warped and dedigivoled back into her champion form.
“There’s nothing left to fight for...” Gatomon said weakly.
A bright light lit up the night and both digimon watched as Celestia rose into the air, a swirling vortex of energy around her as she wielded six gemstones in her magic.
“I’m so sorry…” Gatomon said softly and the feline digimon broke down sobbing as Nightmare Moon was banished.
When she had calmed down, Myotismon was gone and so, Gatomon ran into the forest in search of him. She found her beloved, once more a Wizardmon, in a small clearing, his digivice in hand. Elated, she ran towards him.
“Lily, stop!” he commanded, his voice fearful and movements shaky as he used his staff to support himself. “it’s not safe…”
“Magnus?” she asked, her voice sounded so small and weak in contrast to her usual relaxed nature.
“S-something was wrong with Luna, a dark presence corrupted her and I can still feel it,” he explained. “It feed off of or used her emotions to gain a hold of her, I-I’m not safe-you need to go!”
“I’m not just going to leave you like this!” she protested.
“You have to, I’ll find a way to cure myself of this corruption, just trust me… please Lily...” he begged and she could tell his heart was breaking just as hers was.
She blinked back tears as she forced out a reply. “Nightmare Moon will return in a thousand years and new bearers of the Elements of Harmony will be selected to defeat her and save Luna… I-if you’re not back by then, t-then I’ll bring you home no matter what, alright?”
Wizardmon nodded, the pair of them trying their hardest not to cry. “See you in a thousand years… Love you…”
“I love you too.” Gatomon replied and watched him hobble away.
Over the centuries Gatomon and Celestia worked towards making Equestria a peaceful, inclusive nation for all creatures and when Gatomon grew to become Angewomon, the angel digimon worked tirelessly to aid the kingdom even as her heart yearned to seek out her beloved, to offer him whatever help she could but instead she stood by Celestia’s side even as time passed and the spark that drove them dulled and the light faded.
Partner and Digimon sat side by side in the throne room as the last petitioner for the day left and Day Court came to an end. They looked calm, almost peaceful in the light of the setting sun and a stray beam of light glinted of the digivice and crest attached to Celestia’s regalia. Guards and castle staff alike walked out of the room to leave the two to their own devices.
The doors closed and Celestia sagged in her seat. “I do care for my little ponies but I do wish they knew how handle some things on their own.”
“Oh, a monster attack? We got it covered but god forbid we get into a fight with each other.” Angewomon snarked.
Both of them shared a knowing grin before they burst into a fit of giggles. Their laughter brought a sense of joy and cheer to the empty room but when they finally calmed down, an air of sadness and grief permeated the area as the cheerful, serene masks they showed to the public finally slipped.
“Just fourteen more years…” Angewomon said softly.
“Indeed, are you holding up alright?” Celestia asked. “I checked your stats and your energy meter is getting rather low.”
“I’m holding on, don’t you worry,” the angel digimon replied and stretched out from her spot next to the throne. “I’m not going anywhere yet.”
Celestia stood and stretched out her wings as she shook herself to ese any sore muscles or joints from a day spent sitting on the throne. She reached out a hoof and helped Angewomon to her feet.
“Care to join me for tonight’s moon raising?” the solar princess asked.
“Nah, I’m going to go and check on Sunset, it’s tea time and she hasn’t shown up yet.” The digimon replied.
“I believe you mean dinner time?” Celestia playfully corrected and Angewomon rolled her eyes.
“Yeah sure, you know what I mean…” Angewomon said.
“You truly care about Sunset, don’t you?” Celestia asked.
“How can I not, an orphaned filly that snuck into the school on the day you were watching the entrance exams and passed the practical portion of the test with flying colours in the hopes of gaining a scholarship was picked up as the personal student of the princess. I want to do what I can for her…” Angewomon said. “Sure, I have more to do with making sure she’s fed and that she does her homework while you’re off filing paperwork but I think she appreciates the time I take out of my day to be there for her, at least I hope so.”
Celestia smiled and followed her friend out of the room. “Why don’t you go and get dinner started. I’ll go and fetch Sunset, she is my student after all.”
“I know, I know, save the adoption papers for after she passes her mid-term exams in a week,” Angewomon said with a smile. “I’m just a bit worked up about this whole thing, you know I get paranoid.”
‘Though my student could do with taking my lessons of friendship to heart, I’m sure she’ll be happy with the idea of you taking her in officially,” Celestia replied. “Perhaps that will change her attitude for the better.”
Angewomon didn’t know where it had all gone wrong, a peaceful evening and a tasty meal was swiftly interrupted by Celestia finding her student in possession of several spell books Sunset had been forbidden from reading, the argument that followed broke the hearts of both the princess and her digimon and now guards scoured the castle in search of Celestia’s runaway pupil. She knew where to find Sunset and headed directly for an abandoned room in one of the lesser used castle towers.
“Sunset!” the angel called out as the 10-year-old filly was walking towards the portal, a pair of saddlebags strapped to her sides.
Sunset turned around and glared at Angewomon, the sheer mix of emotions behind the filly’s gaze struck her as deep as any physical blow.
“What are you here to take me out of the castle? To banish me!” Sunset snapped. “Or are just here to try and convince me to say sorry? Because I won’t!”
“No, I…” Angewomon tried to protest but anything was about to say was silenced as the filly before her continued to rant.
“You think you can tell me what to do? You bring me food and gifts and help me with schoolwork like you’re my mom? You’re not my mom so stop acting like you are!” Sunset screeched and bolted through the mirror, the glassy surface of the portal rippled as she went through.
Angewomon fell to her knees, Sunset’s words ringing in her ears as her previous failures danced through her mind. S tears blurred her vision the world seemed to shift for the angel digimon and something within her finally gave. Her wings felt like a weight on her back as she silently cried tears of grief and regret over those she had failed to help.
Though her failures were few in number compared to the good she had done throughout her long life she neither registered nor cared for the praises and adoration of Equestria in that moment.
The weight on her back lifted as all sense of drive and purpose left her. She spread her lone tattered pair of wings to hover above the ground, used a clawed, gloved hand to flick her silver hair out of her face and caught her reflection in a nearby window.
LadyDevimon chuckled sadly at her new appearance, her red eyes were void of joy or life and the devil digimon floated back down to the ground and walked over to a corner of the room.
She summoned a cushion and took a seat, her actions sluggish and half hearted. Her drive was gone, the motivation to do anything simply ceased to exist for the fallen angel so she simply sat there and waited.
There’s no point anymore…
She heard metal impacting the marble floor of the hallway outside a few minutes later, she didn’t need to look to know that the gasp that followed not long after was from her partner.
“Lily?” she heard Celestia ask softly.
“What?” came her tired sounding reply.
No more words were exchanged as the devil digimon heard her partner move across the room to sit down beside her and LadyDevimon stiffened slightly as a wing was wrapped around her slouched form. Together the pair sat for hours even as Celestia lowered the moon to make way for a new day the pair still didn’t move.
With bleary eyes, LadyDevimon watched the sunrise and sighed.
“I guess I can’t go around like this...” she said quietly. “I can’t expect you to do everything around here either.”
Celestia remained silent, content to simply let her partner talk.
“S-She’ll be back eventually if my foreknowledge is proven correct and besides,” LadyDevimon said with a forced smile. “Gotta keep up appearances, right?”
A few minutes later, Princess Celestia and Angewomon walked out of the room to begin their day, the same thought running through their heads.
14 more years and then our light will return.
13 years before the 1000th Summer Sun Celebration
At Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, the top of a tower exploded as a dragon’s head forced its way through the roof. The purple scaled creature looked out at the town around it in a daze, its mind still too young to comprehend what it was seeing.
“I told you this would happen!” Angewomon yelled out as she and Celestia flew past the overgrown baby dragon and into the room it occupied, a pair of potted plants stood off to one side and several teachers cowered behind their desk as a purple filly unicorn filly surged violently, her magic as wild as the untamed Everfree as it lashed out against anything and everything.
Angewomon widened her stance and stood her ground as she withstood the full force of the surge while her partner worked to calm the young filly at its heart. It took only moments but soon the filly’s magic was under control and things were reverted back to normal. Angewomon walked over to the baby dragon sucking its own tail while Celestia spoke with the filly and the young pony’s confused parents. The angel digimon scooped up the baby dragon and made to leave the room.
“Um... Lady Angewomon?” A small voice asked and she turned around to see the filly, now with a star burst cutie mark looking up at her concerned. “What’s going to happen to the baby dragon?”
Angewomon smiled warmly as she answered the question. “Well, my little pony, since this little one has no home or family, I’ll be adopting the young dragon. You don’t have a problem with that do you?”
“You’re really going to look after a baby dragon?” the filly asked, awestruck. “That seems like a lot of work.”
“I don’t mind.” Angewomon replied with a shrug.
Deep beneath Canterlot was an enormous cavern filled with books, scrolls and relics from before Equestria was founded. It once been called The Founder’s Archive with items and tomes written by Equestria’s founding ponies but had been renamed in the past few centuries after some recent additions from the Castle of the Two Sisters had been added anonymously and the place was now known as The Restricted Archives. The room was lit by torches and a few candles as a figure moved through the room. A tall imposing figure whose menacing visage was ruined by the fact that he had a cape collar so high that covered the lower half of his face.
His nervous tick of readjusting said collar didn’t help much to improve his image either. Myotismon crept into the archive and quickly began scanning its contents, searching for something. Carefully, he levitated several old books and scrolls to an empty desk and began to read their contents as he pulled a small notebook and a quill to take notes.
“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it Myotismon?” a voice said from the entrance and the vampire-like digimon fumbled for a moment as he looked up to see Princess Celestia smirking at him.
“H-hello…” He mumbled. “I was just leaving…”
Celestia giggled. “Please, stay. There’s no need to excuse yourself on my account,” she smiled warmly. “You’re more than welcome to use this place for your research.”
“Thank you,” Myotismon replied quietly and continued going through the various texts as he spoke. “How’s Lily?”
“She’s slowed down a bit but she’s still waiting for you and Luna, as am I,” Celestia replied and cheerfully added. “She has a son now.”
“Oh?”
“A baby dragon was hatched recently at the school, so she adopted him. She’s taking it well… after she spent a night in the library reading up on everything we have about dragons, that is.” Celestia explained with a smile.
“That sounds like her, she likes to know everything she can about a situation before she does something about it.” Myotismon replied.
“I’ll leave you to your work Myotismon but before I go, would you like me to pass on a message to her?” the princess asked.
“Just tell her to wait for us, Celestia. All you two need to do is wait,” he replied calmly. “On the thousandth year the stars will aid in her escape and she will bring everlasting night.”
