Digimon Adventures and Guardian Belief

The med bay was chaos those first hours back.

Yeti bustled from bed to bed, trolleys full of supplies moving familiar paths as they were emptied and restocked due to demand.

Dislocated limbs needed to be popped back into place, cuts needed to be cleaned and bandages, splintered removed, head wounds examined and carefully tended to…

The Guardians hovered nervously through the whole process, barely able to calm the equally-anxious Warriors and Digimon in the hallway.

Andromon and Tokage sat sentinel on either side of the door, still as statues if not as quiet, gears going at full power as they tried to determine how bad the situation was.

Kuma paced the entire length of hallway in a fit, Monzaemon watching with a similar sense of restlessness as his partner mumbled and growled under his breath.

Unimon was settled by the far wall, gaze undeniably locked on the door as Torime endlessly groomed their wings, noticeably not looking that way at all.

Deltamon was much too large to join them, but his whines and whimpers echoed off the wooden walls in a sad song all the same.

Wizardmon sat quietly against the wall, seeming much smaller than he really was as he worried over how Evie and Gatomon were doing.

Leomon, arms crossed, leaned against the wall beside him, a frown etched into his face.

When the door opened at least six hours later, all of them leapt to attention, every nerve on-edge.

North looked over the worried faces, a tired smile forming beneath his heavy beard out of relief.

“Little ones are alright now.” He assured, chuckling softly as all the tension drained out of his audience at the news. “Are very tired, and will take time to heal, but is not so bad.”

The holiday spirit paused for a moment, considering.

“Would you like to see?”

Nodding eagerly, the Warriors and smaller Digimon squeezed through the yeti-sized door, taking in the room in subdued silence.

All of the Chosen were fast asleep, partners lying beside them on the yeti-wide beds, clearly recovering from their last battle.

Casey was laid out on her back, entire torso covered in bandages and wrappings to hold her ribs in place, right arm safely in a sling as Agumon hugged her uninjured limb like a teddy.

Kim had her left leg elevated, a cast encasing the entire limb up to the hip, half-lying on her side to hold Gabumon close as he dozed fitfully.

Ma cuddled Biyomon close, curled around her partner, thick bandages wrapped around her head.

Bee’s own ankle was propped up on a few pillows, head also safely wrapped in gauze and bandaging, with Tentomon sprawled across her chest like a snoring shield.

Ally was on her front, the sheets pooled around her hips to reveal the white bandages there, every breath ruffling the petals on Palmon’s head as the Digimon wormed her way underneath.

Faye was sprawled on her own bed, though her injured right leg was held safely on a pulley to keep from slipping back out of place, Gomamon lying across her neck like a limp rag.

Evie seemed small under the thin sheets, cool cloths across her forehead and neck attempting to combat her fever as Gatomon lay on the pillow by her head, too exhausted to so much as twitch at the new people in the room.

But it was Rocky that pulled at the heartstrings, arms still tight around her Digi-Egg as she slumbered, subconsciously using her body to shield the delicate shell from harm.

Bunny twitched from his spot between Casey and Evie’s beds, one paw on Agumon’s back as if to make sure they were still real.

Jack shifted from his half-sprawled position on Kim’s bed, one hand tightly clasped in hers and his staff positioned to protect her sibling in the other bed.

Tooth fluttered around Ma, giving quick directions to her fairies as she fussed over the bandaging and blankets, humming an ancient lullaby under her breath.

Sandy floated by Ally’s side, petting her hair soothingly as he sent out dreams, keeping an eye on the slumbering girls in case of nightmares.

North moved to gently maneuver Faye fully onto the mattress, a hand on Gomamon’s head soothing them both back to sleep as he went to check on Bee.

The sight of them-small and hurt and loved, having tried so hard and given up so much-humbled the group nearly into tears.

Splitting up slowly, the Warriors and Digimon gravitated towards the beds, taking up vigil wherever there was space.

They had plenty of time to thank the girls once they woke up, anyway.