Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ A Perfect Picture ❯ Digi-disaster ( Chapter 6 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or any of the characters thus associated with it. I own only this storyline.

Note: Malomyotismon is sometimes called Belialvamdemon. I don't know why. My guess is that one is the Japanese name and one is the English, but I only know the Malomyotismon one, so that's what I'm going with. I've put all the Digidestined and their digimon with Japanese names if I could; if I couldn't, then I used the English names, but I'm sure you all can figure it out.

Chapter Six: Digi-disaster

Daisuke stumbled as he landed hard on his feet in the Digital World, but he managed to at least stay upright. It simply wouldn't do to have him trip over his own feet and land on his butt in front of Ken-wouldn't be dignified. The genius, of course, landed smoothly and didn't so much as take a step forward to catch his balance.

"Show-off," muttered Daisuke good-naturedly, and Ken grinned back at him. Dai liked that smile. It was real; there was nothing hidden behind the taller boy's smile, and Daisuke appreciated that. He might be forced to hide behind his carefully constructed walls, but at least he had gotten the singular privilege of being the only one capable of breaking down Ken's walls, and it made his life much more bearable. If just one of them could show his true feelings, everything would work out fine.

Not that Daisuke always hid his feelings. He had simply constructed a wall of false cheer that he wore around the other Digidestined. Thinking back, he couldn't ever recall hiding his feelings from Ken, at least not when they were alone. Even when the violet-eyed boy was a self-proclaimed tyrant, Daisuke hadn't hidden anything from him.

He hadn't hidden anything from Malomyotismon either, and that's what had Ken so confused now. Daisuke smiled to himself as he thought of the question Ken had once asked him earlier today, right before they left for the Digital World: "If you're so lonely, why couldn't Malomyotismon use that against you when we fought him?"

Daisuke hadn't replied, because they were getting pulled into the computer by that time, plus he didn't have a good answer. Now that he had one, he decided to answer Ken's question. "I think Malomyotismon's illusion attack couldn't faze me simply because I wasn't lonely then. I had my friends, or who I thought were my friends."

"To be honest, I only recently realized just how much they ignore me, and how barely they tolerate me and my antics. Only problem is," he added on a lighter note, "as soon as I get serious around them, they begin to worry about me and ask me if I'm feeling all right."

Ken blinked at him, then slowly his face softened into a smile. "They worry when you're serious, huh? Hm, I wonder why?" he mused, feigning puzzlement. Daisuke just grinned and punched him lightly on the arm. Then his face grew serious, and he gazed at Ken silently. The ex-Kaiser quickly sobered up and stared back at his best friend. "What's wrong, Dai-chan?" he asked quietly, concerned.

The cinnamon-haired boy just shook his head and began walking off, gesturing for Ken to follow him. Doing so, the paler boy took the time to study his lover. Daisuke seemed quieter around him than around his friends, but that may have just been because he didn't have to put up a mask in front of Ken. He was always very careful around Ken, almost as if afraid of him, but that wasn't right.

Ken realized with a start that Daisuke was afraid of being rejected by him, since others had done so all his life. His parents and sister were never home, so he had no family. At school, the only sport he participated in was soccer, and his teammates worked well with him, but they never hung out together any other time. The other Digidestined ignored him when they could, and seemed to only use him when they needed to feel better.

The blue-haired genius smiled softly. Daisuke was a good listener, and gave good advice, and he never, ever gave up on anyone he'd decided to befriend. Ken himself was a prime example; it had taken Daisuke dozens of tries before Ken would even work with the other Digidestined. Then, once he had accomplished that, Daisuke began to work on breaking down Ken's walls and getting the fallen Kaiser to forgive himself for his crimes against the digimon.

Ken's face was drawn with determination. Daisuke had never given up on him, and he wasn't about to give up on the brown-eyed boy. Now if he could just find a way to show him that.

Unaware that Daisuke had come to a stop at the edge of a cliff, he kept walking-right into his boyfriend. The two Digidestined children tumbled down the cliff and under a bridge made of rock.

Looking around, Ken recognized this place. It was the same place that he and Daisuke had participated in their most unforgettable fight. The Kaiser had trapped the other Digidestined children, then used some Bakemon to trick Daisuke into believing that they were his friends. He had made Daisuke bow with his face to the ground and beg for the lives of his "pathetic friends." Hell, he had even made the boy's own digimon partner restrain him.

It had been a moment of utter humiliation for Daisuke, when Ken had stated that he loved watching him squirm. Yet, he had come out of it magnificently, offering himself in their place. Of course, it was a pointless gesture since those weren't his friends, but a bunch of Bakemon, but it was a noble one, and it forced the Kaiser to admire someone who obviously had a great deal of strength in him.

Daisuke brought him back to the present as he giggled. "Last time we did this, it was me pushing you down the cliff, remember?" Ken chuckled and nodded, then looked around again. "What'd you bring me here for?" he asked quietly.

Daisuke raised an eyebrow, then replied, "I promised you I'd tell you what the other Digidestined children are getting themselves into, didn't I?" When Ken nodded, he continued. "Well, I decided it would just be easier to show you instead. I had intended to go over the bridge to get to where we need to go, but you knocked us all down the cliff instead."

Ken flushed, then looked at Daisuke sheepishly as he apologized. The Keeper of Friendship just waved his apology away. "No need to apologize, Ken. It's actually quicker to go this way to get to where we need to be. I just honestly wasn't expecting to get the chance to go this way, that's all."

Standing and dusting himself off, Daisuke helped Ken to his feet, then started walking again, Veemon trotting beside him. Ken got up and followed, carrying Wormmon in his arms.

Shortly thereafter, Daisuke stopped again, and Ken stopped with him. They were on the side of a mountain, and below them was a beautiful valley, filled with vivid greenery and sparkling rivers. Ken frowned, wondering what kind of disaster could possible happen here.

Daisuke looked at him and spoke softly. "The other Digidestined demanded that I come with them here. I tried to get out of it, but they wouldn't listen to me, as usual. If they bring me down into that valley, there's gonna be trouble. Actually, if they bring either of us into that valley, there's going to be trouble."

Ken waited silently, letting Daisuke speak on his own time, not pushing, just listening. Taking a deep breath, the bearer of the Crest of Courage continued his explanation. "If just the two of us go down there, it should be okay because we won't hurt each other because of our bond, but if the others are there, we may try and hurt them."

Ken spoke, unable to contain his curiosity any longer. "What do you mean, we may try and hurt the others? What's down there that would make us do that?"

Daisuke looked at him incredulously. "You don't know what's down there, Ken? Come on, now, look with more than your eyes, Ken. Look again, and tell me what's wrong. It's the only way for you to understand how urgent this is."

Ken looked at his best friend for a few long moments, puzzled, then looked back towards the valley. This time, he sent out his other senses, seeking for what it was that Daisuke was so afraid of. Concentrating on the task at hand, he only dimly heard the younger boy speaking. "Use that part of you that makes your crest work, Ken, and you'll see what I can."

Following the whispered commands, Ken tapped into the power source inside him that allowed his digimon to digivolve. Somewhere in the background, he heard the sounds of Wormmon digivolving into Stingmon, but that wasn't important. What was important was what lay in the valley, undulating sluggishly like thick molasses.

Ken's eyes widened in fear as he recognized the Dark Ocean overlapping the valley. The rivers filled with the evil water from that land, and the black sand that stirred slowly in the breeze, like some great beast awakening from a deep sleep, beckoned to him, calling him forward into its embrace.

Before he had time to react, he felt strong arms pulling him backwards, away from the edge of the cliff he had been standing on. Coming back to himself, Ken began to hyperventilate. It was impossible that the Dark Ocean could be here, and that it could be so powerful.

The strong tanned arms that had wrapped themselves around him pulled him back against a firm chest, toned from years of soccer. Daisuke was holding him tightly, rocking them both back and forth. "How is that possible?" stammered Ken, referring to the Dark Ocean appearing in the Digital World.

"It gets worse," muttered Daisuke darkly. When Ken didn't say anything, but gazed at him with wide eyes, he stated, "Remember when we banished Daemon to the Dark Ocean? When you had to use your digivice to open up the portal so we could lock him away?"

The ex-Kaiser nodded numbly. He remembered that night, when he had been forced to face his past all at one time and it had nearly destroyed him, and most likely would have if Daisuke hadn't been there. The other Digidestined had tried to help, but it was Daisuke that had gotten through to him, and made him face the past and taught him to forgive himself.

"He's down there, and he's waiting for us. That's what the Digidestined are doing. They know he's down there, and they need us both to help bring out Imperialdramon Fighter Mode, but they won't look closely enough to see that Daemon's brought the Dark Ocean with him."

"They already flew over the area once, and no one detected anything, not even Kari." This knowledge surprised Ken. Kari was the keeper of the Crest of Light, so she should have been able to sense the darkness better than either him or Daisuke.

"Then why will we be the ones who turn against the others?" Ken finally managed to choke out. Daisuke just smiled, but it was bitter. "You were once the Kaiser, Ken. You might not be the Kaiser anymore, but it's still there, inside you, and he can call to it. Not to mention that you're upset at the other Digidestined, even if you try to put it out of your mind. In my case, it's because I prefer you over them now, and where you go, I'll follow. It's as simple as that."

Ken looked at Daisuke, shocked at his words. Would he truly follow him, even if he were to become the Digimon Kaiser again? Searching the younger boy's face, he knew that he was telling the truth, that no matter what happened, he would follow Ken. His expressive brown eyes were filled with trust and confidence in Ken, and it made his chest ache to see it. Daisuke would never say no to him, and that could very well prove dangerous.

Sighing, Daisuke got up and held out his hand to Ken. "C'mon, Ken-chan, we'd best be getting to the meeting place before the others show up. We can talk more on the way, all right?"

Nodding numbly, Ken took his boyfriend's hand and let himself be helped to his feet. Picking up Wormmon, who had de-digivolved when Daisuke had pulled his partner backwards, he followed Daisuke, thinking about everything that had happened in the past two days.

All right, people. Sorry, no commentary today, folks. It's late and I'm tired, but I got this idea and it wouldn't let me sleep, so I had to write it. Raven's already sleeping, so she wouldn't be of any use anyhow. Anyhow, read and review so that I'm inspired to continue, all right? Thanks!