Digimon Adventure~Summer Camp (Book 1)

My Sister's Keeper

After escaping the collapsing forest, Tai's group found themselves sluggishly walking through the desert. "This road has to be going somewhere, right?" Tai asked as Kari coughed. "Don't count on it. Nothing is certain in the Digital World." Tentomon replied, as Arashi stifled her own coughs Kari began coughing again, catching the attention of Gatomon. "Do you have a fur ball, Kari?" Gatomon asked worriedly. "No, silly I'm okay." Kari smiles at her voice hoarse. "Kari, if you need to rest, *cough* we can tell you, brother." Arashi struggled to make her way through a sentence without coughing. "I told you, I'm fine," Kari replied as she and Arashi started falling behind their steps wobbly, and their faces tinged with red. "One thing's for sure, only a cactus could love this place," Sora states.

It couldn't have been more than a step after Sora's words when Arashi and Kari simultaneously collapsed. "Kari!" Tai exclaimed upon noticing his younger sister passed out atop Arashi moments after. Tai, Gatomon, and Meicoomon quickly ran over to the two girls. A few minutes later the DigiDestined were at a bus stop with Kari and Arashi resting on the bench under the metal awning with wet rags on their foreheads. Kari's head was resting on Arashi's lap as the older girl sat back in an obviously uncomfortable position. "They have to stay out of the sun and we've got to find a way to get their fevers down soon," Sora told the others. "Don't worry, I won't leave you," Gatomon vows, looking over Kari.

"Yeah." Kari gives a small smile and slight nods at these words. "I thought you were getting better... I–" "It's alright. I'm fi—" Arashi's attempt to console Meicoomon was cut off by a rather painful-sounding fit of coughing. "You're not fine!" Meicoomon snapped. "How come you didn't say something before now? If we had known sooner we could have rested until you felt better." Tai struggles, staring at Kari and Arashi, clearly shaken by their sudden collapse. "You mad? I didn't want to slow everyone down." Kari coughs as Arashi makes a sour face. 'It's my fault, I'm the one who got Kari sick... This is all my fault. Tai should be mad at me.' She thinks to herself. "I'm not mad," Tai assures his sister.

Tai watched in horror as the paramedics placed his insensate sister atop the gurney and hoisted her into the ambulance.

T.K. watched the two girls with wide eyes, just as disquieted by their collapse as Tai was while Tai and Izzy conversed not so far away. "I wasn't paying attention. We probably shouldn't have even brought her along." "Huh?! What are you talking about? We had to bring her. We need her if we want to save the Digiworld. She's one of the DigiDestined, have you forgotten that?!" Izzy snaps at Tai's words. "Not at all but her being sick. We should have left her someplace safe. We could've left them both someplace safe. I knew that Arashi was... she fell but then Sora— We should have split up so someone could take care of them while the others looked." Tai said unable to hide his distress. "Split up? Tai, this isn't like you." Izzy frowned. "I'm just a little worried about them. It's all a part of what I do to be a good leader, Izzy."

"Yeah, but—" "Izzy, I found it!" Tentomon shouts flying over to his partner. "We're saved!" He cheers. "Look, right up ahead," Kabuterimon says a few minutes later as he flies the digidestined across the desert. "You wanted civilization? Well, it doesn't get more civilized than this." He boasts as the kids fly over what appears to be a large city. "Is that America? Do you think they have a bathroom?" T.K. asks. "That's New York City... but that isn't!" Sora points out. "That's Rome, we studied it in geography," Izzy began, "and up there, that's the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. They're all smushed together." He states. "It's like that theme park in Florida!" Tai adds. "Except that this place is deserted, there's not a sign of life anywhere." Sora points out. As the others fawn over the city, Kari who lay wrapped in Arashi's arms groaned, catching Tai's attention.

"Hey, Izzy, Kari's getting worse! Let's find someplace to land!" "Oh, yeah right!" Izzy yelped before looking down at the city below. "This looks like a nice, quiet spot!" Sora points out a large two-story home. Upon entering the house the kids laid Arashi and Kari down in one of the bedrooms. After a few minutes of checking, their hopes were beginning to dwindle, the only thing they'd found so far were empty cabinets and drawers full of utensils they didn't need. "These cupboards are empty. There's not even a spec of food." Izzy stated, upon climbing a stool to check the upper cabinets while T.K. and Tai searched the drawers. "Hey!" Agumon called, "This what you're looking for?" He asked, holding a box of medicine.