Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon, never have and I never will. Don’t sue me because I’m writing this; sue me because you can...

---

Government Confines

Developments

---

“Diamonds, huh,” Jerry shifted uncomfortably in his bunk. “You own a diamond mine.”

Mech’s eyes pierced through the dark. “Diamond mines. I own more than one.” He stood in the nearest corner of the barracks to Jerry. Obviously being to big for any of the bunks, he resigned to take up his own small area not far away from the human who had fallen into his path.

“Why was the mine abandoned?”

“The previous owner was off fighting against the uprising and was killed,” he replied. “The payoff from that particular mine was enough to buy three more. More than half of the profit goes to the resistance.”

A new voice broke in from the bunk under Jerry. “And you still have enough to keep your metal polished.” It was Marcus. “I’m damned impressed,” he said.

“Are you always an ass,” Jerry asked, peering over the side the bunk.

“YES,” Patrick answered from three feet away.

“Nobody asked you.”

“Well,” Pat said, “I don’t think you’re quite the type to answer honestly. I should know; you were inside my head for nearly a day and a half.”

“I figured that as well,” Mech said from his corner.

“In my defense, you’re not exactly a basket of roses yourself, Pat.”

“You do…”

“I should know, I was inside your head for nearly a day and a half.”

“As I was saying,” Pat asserted, “You don’t know anything about me except that I enjoy walking through the desert.” The Digimon grunted as a pillow collided with his stomach. “I think it would be helpful if we rectified that situation.”

“Yeah,” Jerry agreed. “If we’re going to work together, we might as well get to know each other. Right? Mech, switch on a light.”

“Maybe.” Mech flipped the light on. “What do you have to say about it?”

Marcus groaned. “Turn the light off, I’m tired.”

“Quit your whining. The kid’s right.” Pat threw the pillow back to his human. “Names Patrick, call me Pat. The smart-ass in the bunk under you is Marcus.”

“I’m Jerry, that’s Mech over in the corner.”

“Obviously,” Marcus remarked irritably. “That’s why you called him Mech five minutes ago.”

---

Alice sat in silence, steadily marking her paper with strange little details. Those details slowly merged with each other to become an image of her partner, Casey, who was rapidly losing patience with her inability to move.

“Okay,” Alice said at last, “you can blink now.” Casey did just that, trying desperately to remove the burning sensation that one gets when one doesn’t blink for half an hour.

Casey didn’t say anything.

Alice glanced up from her paper briefly to look at the Digimon. “Don’t give me that look. You’re the one who wanted me to do a portrait of you.” Casey groaned a loud groan and rolled her eyes.

Alice smiled and nodded. “Don’t worry, I’m wondering the same thing.”

Yeah, Casey inwardly smirked. Why did I let myself ask that stupid question? She sighed.

“Alright,” the human cracked her knuckles. “Done.”

“Oh, thank god!”

Alice smiled.

“You enjoyed that, didn’t you?”

“Maybe,” Alice replied.

“Who taught you to do that?”

“Do what?”

“That thing with the paper.”

“Oh,” Alice said. “My dad did, before he died.”

“What’s a dad,” Casey asked naively. She sat down on the bunk with her human.

Alice sighed heavily. Casey just stared, unknowingly. “A dad is…” She broke off, not quite knowing how to explain what a father was. “Well, who raised you?”

“What?”

“Who raised you,” She asked again. “Who brought you into the world and took care of you while you were young?”

“Digimon come from eggs,” the BlackExVeemon stated simply. “Why?”

“Well,” Alice started hesitantly, “Humans, have to be… intimate… to have a child.”

“Ooooh.” Casey blinked, and then blinked again. “I don’t want to know the details on that.”

“Anyway, it takes two to tango, so to speak.”

“I didn’t want to know the details,” Casey said again.

“You wanted to know what a dad is.”

The Digimon conceded. “Alright, go on.”

“A dad is someone who helps procreate, and then helps to raise the child to adulthood.”

“And you had one?”

“His name was Greg.”

Alice’s partner put an arm around her. “Sounds like he’s special to you.”

She hugged her partner back, tears welling up in her eyes. “I miss ‘em. Ever since he was killed, mom got into alcohol and my brother and I started fighting more and more.” By now, Alice was weeping uncontrollably in her friend’s arms.

“I’m sorry I brought it up.”

---

Garth was up, wandering around the base with Mike back inside him. The boy didn’t want to be alone, understandably so, and Garth offered to share his body again with the six-year-old. Presently, the two were exploring yet another dark corridor, not expecting much in the way of adventure.

Garth, the human said, I’m thirsty.

Ya’re? Garth thought for a moment. Now that you mention it, so am I.

The Digimon had become more of a parent then anything to the human. He had quickly become accustomed to the role himself, and rather enjoyed being needed in someone’s life and existence.

I think the kitchen is this way, he said as they rounded a corner. Dead-end. Alright, Garth mused, So it isn’t this way. Come to think of it, why is that corner there in the first place if it doesn’t have a purpose?

They made an about-face and retraced their steps. Garth, Mike said again. What are you?

He stopped. I’m a Digimon, of course. You know that.

I know, but what kind are you? Why are there so many?

Garth didn’t reply for a great many moments. Finally, he did reply. I’m a Garurumon. To be perfectly honest, I have no clue as to why there are so many different kinds of Digimon.

Oh.

They started moving again. You should probably get to know the others too, Mike.

I don’t want to.

I’m sorry you feel that way. Garth twitched his tail. Jerry seems like nice human to me.

---

“So what did you do before you came here,” Pat asked Jerry. “You seem to know a lot, where’d it come from?”

“I was a student in high school,” Jerry answered thoughtfully. “The day I came here, was the first day I ever had detention.”

“So you are the goody-two-shoes I thought you were,” Marcus said cynically. “You must have been picked on a lot. You’re a runt.”

“You would have picked on me a lot, wouldn’t have you,” Jerry retorted. “You’re a bully. A smart one, but a bully nonetheless.”

“I don’t know,” Pat interjected. “He seemed pretty concerned about Mason when we left.”

“I was just wondering how long he could hold ‘em off.”

“I have half a mind to thwack you for that.” Pat was now visibly annoyed. “Mason saved your life and all you can do is…”

“Excuse me for being practical. Anyway, I never said I wasn’t concerned about him.”

“You sure act like it then,” Jerry said, shifting in his bunk. “I don’t know why you have such a problem with people anyway.”

“It’s actually quite simple,” Mech said judiciously. “Someone hurt him when he was young, and never got punished for it.”

“You a psychologist,” Marcus demanded. “You have no idea of anything about me!”

“I do have a background in the field.”

Marcus grumbled and rolled over, trying to shut out the conversation.

“Mech’s right.” Jerry looked over the edge of his bunk at Marcus. He frowned. “That’s the entire point of this exercise, to get an idea about you.”

“Alright,” the other human said in a strange, calm voice. “What about you, then? You had to be some sort of prodigy.”

“No just smart enough not to extort anyone else.” Mech and Pat were silent, watching the conversation unfold.

“Some people would say that you’re a wuss.”

“Let me just ask you a hypothetical question,” Jerry said, trying to suppress his frustration. “If have anything you wanted, what would it be?”

“What kind of a dumb question is that?”

Mech rumbled from his corner. “A persons answer to that question can tell one a lot about them.”

“Oh yeah?” Marcus thought for a moment. Then he replied: “I’d wish you all would shut up and let me get some sleep.”

“Wish granted,” Pat declared. “Mech, turn off the light. The way I figure it, he’ll open up when he feels like it.”

“I agree,” Mech agreed. And with that, Mech turned off the light, and the room sat in darkness once again.

---

Thank you to all that have review so far, especially Jared Head. The encouragement is wonderful. I hope you’ve enjoyed chapter three of Government Confines.

Suggestions for chapter four would be helpful, so include those in your reviews or contact me at