Finding Strength Within | Digimon Savers/Data Squad |

Oh my god, I finally finished this chapter. ;w; As usual, I've been through quite a lot since my last update. Depression hitting me, having a falling out with a good friend and not speaking for two months, and working so much I'm exhausted all the time. But I was typing this out on my phone whenever I had the chance to. (Other than that, I've been playing Persona 5. It's AWESOME and one of the characters reminds me of Masaru. xD)

Things are a lot better for me now than they were a few months ago. This is the end of this arc, and the next one will focus solely on Rosa and her family. Just bear with me, as work has been incredibly stressful lately.

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon Savers or any other OCs that appear in this story other than my own.

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School was hell the following day for Tohru. She constantly fought against her lack of sleep to stay awake during her classes. Her mind was a jumbled mess of fear and anxiety. She knows what she saw now, and she couldn't continue to deny its existence. There was a ghost in her home, and not just any spirit, but that of her grandfather. She still had his face engraved in her memory. His eyes were dead and lifeless, his entire silhouette a very pale and translucent white. He was wispy; she was sure if she tried to touch him her hand would go right through him.

He had stood over her, his eyes staring right through her, into her soul. Tohru made a beeline for her room and slammed the door shut, crawling back under the covers and refusing to fall asleep for the rest of the night. She clutched Terriermon close to her chest as tears streamed down her cheeks. Her face as pale as the ghost she'd just encountered. Why? Why was she being haunted by the ghost of her grandfather? Why did his presence feel so...dangerous? If this was her grandfather, wouldn't his spirit be a bit more benevolent? He had been a kind person in his life. There was never a bad bone in his body. Yet she felt as though her and her grandmothers' lives were in grave danger.

A loud thud was heard in the classroom, each student turning their heads to the source. Tohru was slumped over, head face down on her desk and a soft breathing sound emitting from her mouth. Masaru immediately began to panic upon seeing his best friend sleeping in class again. He knew she'd get in trouble if she was caught-which she did. Their teacher looked at the sleeping girl disapprovingly and tossed a piece of chalk at her head. The thick, short white stick hit its target and Tohru jolted awake with a snort.

Everyone in the class, aside from Masaru and the teacher, began snickering at her expense. Tohru looked around before her emerald hues settled on the strict looking man with his arms crossed, foot tapping against the floor. The brunette timidly shrunk in her seat, expression apologetic. Her teacher gave her another warning; if she fell asleep in his class again she would be staying after school. While Tohru felt embarrassed to be outed like that in front of her peers, there were far more pressing concerns that she was worried about.

Her grandmother was home alone right now. Was she okay? Tohru had no way of knowing, and it was eating her up inside. She seemed to be in a daze the entire day, Masaru had noticed. She barely paid attention in class, got beamed in the face with a volley ball during gym and barely touched her lunch. Even during their walk to DATS headquarters, she was quieter than usual.

Masaru couldn't tell what was going on in her head. She seemed to have so much she worried about, and kept it to herself. He wanted to help her, but didn't know how to. Not when Tohru hadn't told him what was bothering her so much. While Tohru was changing into her uniform, the other three could no longer hold back their concerns.

"So, since you're the one who's closest to her, can you tell us what's going on with her?" Yoshino questioned the auburn haired teen, crossing her legs as she sat down with a mug of tea. From the expression he gave her, it was apparent that not even he had an answer to Tohru's strange behavior.