Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Deep As You Go ❯ Something More Than This ( Chapter 12 )

Deep As You Go Part Twelve
Disclaimer: Same old, same old. I do not own Digimon (at least until I get a hold of the crazy glue and that flamethrower...but never mind about that just now.)
Author’s Notes: Eep, sorry this one took so long! I’ve had writer’s block (and then on Monday I got into my first car accident, which sucked. Anyone who cares for details can read about it in my blog, though I doubt anyone wants to hear about it, hence the not wasting space here.) Anyway, getting down to the last three chapters or so now. Maybe more, I dunno. Depends on if I get any good ideas. But, as always, enjoy and review. (Especially the review part.) (Though enjoying is good too.) (Have I lost control of this paragraph?)
----


“So this is the Hizukari Motel. Looks just like I thought it would,” Ken mused as he stared up at the decrepit building. It was every inch what a seedy motel should be.


“I don’t like it,” the Kaiser said, pouting. “It looks...common. I remember when you had a taste for the finer things in life, which this most certainly is not. There are probably cockroaches in the sink.”


“So?” Ken shrugged. “If it’s that bad, then it’s less likely to attract people who might recognize me. And, more importantly, it will attract people who won’t care whether they recognize me or not. This seems like a good place to start if I want to disappear.”


“You’re no fun anymore, precious,” the Kaiser complained. “There was a time you would’ve scoffed at these accommodations just as I have. Back when you still had a spine, that is.”


“It’s the best we can do,” Ken replied. “What little we have will get us a few nights here. After that...” His voice trailed off. “I don’t know what we’ll do after that. Maybe there won’t even be an after that.”


“You disgust me,” the Kaiser said airily, as if this was nothing new or notable, simply a fact. And Ken nodded in reply, as if he too had accepted what the Kaiser said. “But if this is the best you can do, I suppose I’ll deal with it for now. There’s always the possibility that we can find better accommodations later to make up for these shabby living quarters.”


Ken nodded again, slowly walking towards the door. A figure huddled in the dark just to the right of the entrance suddenly scrambled to its feet, moving towards Ken. Ken’s eyes caught the familiar glint of a knife and he paused, watching with a strange detached air as the figure moved closer, revealing a tall man in a shabby coat carrying an old but sharp knife. Despite the fact that his reflexes were quick enough to avoid the attacker easily, Ken remained rooted to the spot, barely reacting as the man bore down upon him and placed the knife at Ken’s throat.


“Give me your money, now!” the attacker threatened, his voice rushed and breathless. Ken didn’t flinch.


“You don’t want to do that,” Ken replied in a flat voice.


“Really? Why not?” The knife was pressed closer to Ken’s neck, and he had a sudden flashback to when he had held Daisuke in a similar position. He smiled slightly, wondering why Daisuke had been so frightened. The cool edge of the knife felt good against his hot skin, and he almost longed to pull it closer, to let it cut him and spill his blood.


“I’ll warn you one more time,” Ken said softly. His tone was neither threatening nor overconfident, simply the voice of someone offering polite advice. “He’s very annoyed by you. He’s the only one who gets to toy with me, after all. If you were smart, you’d leave before I let him have his way.”


“Uh-huh.” The attacker laughed and Ken could smell alcohol on his breath. “And who is this we’re talking about, huh, kid? You got a bodyguard or somethin’, hidin’ in the alley waitin’ to ambush me?”


“He says he’ll let me have the knife if I want it,” Ken continued, a strange amused quality entering into his voice, as if he were enjoying a dark joke that no one else would ever find funny. “I dropped mine...before...I haven’t had time to get another. I’ll try to keep him from hurting you too much. I don’t want to hurt anyone.” Ken gave a queer hollow laugh, as if he were laughing over someone’s coffin. “I’m afraid that if I do I won’t be able to stop. I’m already addicted to hurting myself, if I start hurting others like you, I might just keep going. I’d be a serial killer in three days or less.” He laughed again, and the attacker felt an inexplicable shiver run up his spine. “He says he’d like that. He says we’d be an unstoppable team like before, and he’s always right. That’s why I keep him close, because I’m always wrong and stupid and disgusting.”


“J-just shut up and give me whatever money you’ve got!” the attacker stated, but his voice had begun to shake. Ken laughed again.


“It’s really not worth it,” Ken continued. “I barely have anything, just pocket change. And it’s stolen money in the first place, all that we could manage in an hour or so. It’s really not worth it to try and steal it. You’re risking your life and you don’t even know it.” Blithely ignoring the knife at his throat, Ken moved a little to the right, cocking his head as he listened to the voice only he could hear.


Then he started to laugh, and his attacker felt a shiver go through him. His hand began to shake and he suddenly jumped backwards, away from Ken.


“W-what are you?” the attacker demanded breathlessly. “Some kinda refugee from an insane asylum?”


“You...think I’m insane?” Ken’s eyes were two hard amethyst stones. He smirked, and when he spoke again his voice was the Kaiser’s. “How amusing. You’re really an interesting little bug. I have an idea. Why don’t you give me your money?”


“Are you nuts?!” Even as he spoke, the attacker stumbled back a step, and Ken stepped forward.


“Didn’t we already establish that?” he asked lightly. “Now now, don’t look so upset. My darling did warn you not to get me mad, after all. Pity he didn’t warn you not to bore me as well.”


Stricken by a sudden, inexplicable terror, Ken’s erstwhile attacker turned to run. Before he quite knew what was happening Ken jumped at him. In mere moments the attacker found himself thrown flat on his back on the ground, his own knife being held at his throat. Ken, kneeling beside him, smiled wickedly.


“There, you see? Now don’t you wish you had let him go when he asked?” Ken questioned. His tone was conversational and non-threatening, but he held the knife closer to the man’s throat as he spoke, drawing just the tiniest bit of blood. “You’re really a fool, you know. He stopped me before because he cared. But he doesn’t really care about you, I’m afraid. You’re just a stranger, after all, and you did threaten us. He might actually let me kill you. Yes indeed...” Ken nodded thoughtfully. “He might at that. He might not intervene to save you the way he did for that fool Motomiya. Wouldn’t that be an interesting thing?”


“L-let me go man,” the man stuttered. Without even realizing it, he began to
tremble in fear. “I wasn’t--I wasn’t gonna hurt you or anything, I swear! It--it was all--”


“Quiet. I’m considering.” The man snapped his mouth shut. “It might make for an interesting experiment, don’t you agree? I could kill you and see if he tries to intervene. I doubt he would. He did let me take over, and he isn’t so much of an idiot that he wouldn’t have known what I’d do in his stead. And it has been so terribly long since I spilt fresh blood...I must say, I’ve almost missed it. What do you think, hmm? Should I kill you or not? Answer quick, or else I might get bored and kill you just for the heck of it.”


“I--I--I--” the would-be attacker sputtered, strangely mesmerized by Ken’s glittering eyes, like a bird about to be swallowed by a cobra. Ken smirked.


“What an elegant defense,” he mocked. “My, my, what shall I do with you? There are so many things really. I could kill you slowly, or quickly, or perhaps find a happy medium between the two. I could slice off a limb or two and let you go, how about that? There are oh so many possibilities. I’ve always thought torture is an under appreciated thing. A little messy, true, but effective. And quite fun. It allows the mind to expand in so many creative ways.” He raised an eyebrow as the man began to sob quietly. “You’re crying now? How tiresome. I had hoped that someone so willing to kill someone else for a bit of change would be more...manly, if you will, in the face of his own death. You’re quickly trying my patience. Perhaps I’ll just kill you and be done with it.” He moved to slit the man’s throat, then stopped. He glanced irritably to one side. “Oh come now, precious, why should you care? He nearly killed us, I’m perfectly within my rights to--Oh, all right, darling. If only to shield myself from your whining.” He sighed and stood, placing the knife in his belt.


“I--I--” The man didn’t move, still stuttering.


“Go on,” Ken growled. “He’s given you a reprieve, though I can’t fathom why. Consider yourself lucky. I would’ve killed you for sure without him here in my head, whining like the brat he is.”


The would-be attacker gulped and slowly began to stand up. Ken suddenly pulled the knife out again.


“Ah, wait a second.” The man froze as Ken leaned forward and used the knife to work a pack of cigarettes out of the pocket of the man’s jeans. Taking his prize in one hand, Ken put the knife away again and waved his other hand in a shooing gesture. “That’s good. Go on.” When the man didn’t move, Ken fixed him with an angry glare. “I said, go. Stand there one more minute and I’ll kill you where you stand, Ken or no Ken.”


Without a word, the man turned and fled down the street. Ken watched him go for a moment, then turned back towards the motel. In that moment a marked charge settled over his features and he slumped a bit. The Kaiser reappeared beside him.


“Now that was fun!” He stretched his arms out, grinning widely. “You see what a good time we can have when you just let me run the show, my dear? If I hadn’t been here you’d be lying dead in a gutter right now.”


“You didn’t have to toy with him like that,” Ken said quietly even as he stuffed the cigarettes into the pocket of his coat. The Kaiser glared at him.


“Not this again. You’re no fun at all, pet. No one would have cared if I killed that lowlife.”


“I would’ve,” Ken replied. “I don’t want to hurt anyone, I told you that.”


“And I told you, you’re a fool,” the Kaiser grumbled. “There was no reason to save his pathetic life. He tried to kill us, after all. It was his own stupidity in attacking us that would’ve led to his death, if you had let me have my way. He’s just a foolish little puppy who thought he could bark at the wolf. That sort of stupidity deserves death. Just think of it as natural selection at work.”


“That sort of choice isn’t mine to make,” Ken argued. “I don’t want to kill anyone. If--if you had killed him then....”


“Then what? I might have done it again?” The Kaiser shrugged. “So what if I had? I have the power to, after all. And those who have power can do anything they want. Isn’t that why we took over the Digital World? Not because we wanted to, but simply because we could.”


“I....I don’t want to do things that way.” Ken lowered his head, shoulders slumped apologetically. “I’m sorry. I can’t--I can’t do things that way.”


“Don’t apologize,” the Kaiser snapped angrily, and Ken flinched. “Apology is weak, just as you are. You’re a pathetic mass of nothing, and this is the last time I’ll let you dictate what I do. You’re my slave, not the other way around. Next time, we do things my way.” He started towards the motel and stopped in front of the doors, gesturing to Ken. “Come on, darling. Let’s get this over with.”


Ken didn’t reply and didn’t move. He stared fixedly at the pavement below his feet, looking as though he were about to collapse. The Kaiser angrily stalked over to him and slapped him. Ken’s head jerked to the side, but he didn’t speak and he didn’t start walking.


“I said, get moving, pet!” The Kaiser’s eyes bore into him. “Standing here like a statue won’t do anything for you, my dear. I’ll make you walk, if I must.”


“I know.” Ken took a stiff step forward, eyes lowered meekly. “I’m sorry. I just...I don’t want to do anything at all. I just want everything to stop.”


The Kaiser’s angry gaze softened into a smile, and he kissed Ken lightly on the lips.


“There there, precious. It will stop, I promise you. Yes...” He ran a hand along Ken’s cheek. “Very soon, it will all stop. And then you’ll be nothing but a memory.”

~~~


Daisuke drove along the same road Ken had walked earlier, scanning the area around him as he went for any sign of his friend. He felt tired and strangely sluggish now that his initial fervor had worn off, but he managed to stay awake. Wormmon was perched on the seat beside him, holding Ken’s D-3 and acting as de facto navigator.


“Are we getting any closer?” Daisuke leaned over a little, trying to keep his eyes on the road and Wormmon at the same time.


“A little,” Wormmon said. He looked around. “Ken-chan was here, though, I’m sure of it.”


“Yeah,” Daisuke nodded. “I kinda feel it too. It’s weird, but sometimes, even last year when I was in America, I’d close my eyes and I swear I could hear his heart beating with mine. It was sorta creepy but also...I dunno, comforting. Like he was almost there with me, you know?” He turned his gaze back to road. “I wonder if he ever heard my heart. I don’t think he did. I--I don’t think this would’ve happened if he could.” Daisuke laughed bitterly and shook his head. “That’s a stupid thing to say, isn’t it? Like a little heartbeat could change everything that’s happened.”


“I think it could’ve,” Wormmon said softly. “Ken-chan always liked that he could feel you even when you two weren’t together. He said that it made him feel like he was never alone.”


“And then I left and ruined it all,” Daisuke murmured darkly. “Dammit, it’s not fair! If I could hear his heart beating, why couldn’t he hear mine? Why’d he have to end up feeling alone? I--I should’ve been with him. I should’ve made sure he was okay with me leaving and I shoulda guessed that something was wrong when he stopped writing me letters. Now Ken could be in big trouble and it’s all because of me.”


“But it’s not all your fault,” Wormmon objected. “There was no way you could’ve known what was wrong. Even I wasn’t sure until it was too late to do anything.” Wormmon looked suddenly miserable. “Ken-chan hid how much he was really hurting from everybody. I knew that he didn’t want you to go, but I didn’t think things were so bad. I thought he’d feel better after a while, once he realized that you’d be back in a year and that the rest of us were still there for him.”


“It still all comes down to me.” Daisuke leaned on the steering wheel and watched
as it began to drizzle again. “Because I’m the one who left. I never thought anything like this would happen. I--I know Ken has a bunch of issues, he always has--hell, forget issues, he has a subscription. But I thought he’d gotten over it, at least as much as that’s possible. It’s been years since he was the Kaiser. The Digital World’s fine now, and part of that’s because of him. I was a little worried when we started college, because of the change in environment and all, and Ken being kind of a book nerd, but he seemed fine freshman year so I thought everything was okay. I was happy and so was Ken and it seemed like everything was finally gonna be all right. Then I leave for a year and it’s like everything that came before was wiped out and we’re back to square one. Except it’s different now, because when Ken was the Kaiser all we had to do was defeat him and we’d be okay, and this time it’s not so easy. It’s more important this time.”


“But you still saved him before,” Wormmon reminded him. “I’m sure you can do it again.”


“I’m glad somebody is,” Daisuke muttered. “The thing is, I don’t know how to fix things this time. Last time it required action to stop him. You know, with V-mon and the Digimetals and stuff. I was good at that, right? Fighting and not giving up and getting Ken to realize what he did wrong. And even all that wasn’t enough last time. You had to die to save him. And--and we can’t do things that way this time. I’m not letting anyone die this time, especially Ken.” Daisuke’s grip tightened unconsciously on the steering wheel. His hands were shaking slightly from the frustration. “Damn it, why’d it have to be me who had to do this? I’m not good with words like everybody else. I’m the guy who rushes headlong into the fight and starts beating people up and stuff. I’m not smart like Ken, I can’t make up long, convincing speeches or anything. So how’m I gonna talk him out of this? Who do I convince him that--that he doesn’t have to be all lonely anymore? He’s not the reason I left, he’s got to know that! If anything, he’s the reason I came back. But how can I let him know that if he keeps pushing me away every time?”


“You just have to keep trying,” Wormmon said with certainty. “You know you’re the only one he’ll listen to, Daisuke. Ken-chan cares about the others too, but you’re the one he needs to talk to. You--you have to show him that you still care for him.”


“But I have!” Daisuke glanced briefly at Wormmon and nearly rammed into the car in front of him. He slammed on the brakes just in time, then looked over at Wormmon while the car was stopped. “What else can I do? I’ve told him that I can’t hate him and that I miss him, but nothing seems to work!” I haven’t told him that I love him, though. But can I really say that? I’m still not even sure how I feel about Ken. I don’t know if he’s just a friend, or if I--or if I feel the same way about him that he feels about me. I can’t tell him I love him if it’s not the truth. That’s the worst thing I could do, because if it’s a lie and I let him believe it, things’ll be worse when he realizes that I was lying. I have to be honest with him now, or he’ll never trust me again, and then I’ll really lose him. But I don’t know if it even is a lie. I just know that I think about him all the time and that I’m worried about what might happen to him--


--And I know that when he kissed me, I liked it. But is that love, or something else? No one’s ever kissed me like that before. Did I like it because it was that kind of kiss, or because it was Ken who gave it?


“My head hurts,” Daisuke whimpered, resting his head on the steering wheel. Someone honked behind him and he looked up, realizing that traffic had begun moving again and he was still at a stop. “You know, maybe I should think about all this after we find Ken, ‘cause if I keep driving like this I’m probably gonna get into an accident, and then Takeru’ll kill me.” He sighed. “Wormmon, when did things get so complicated?”


“Haven’t they always been complicated?” Wormmon said with a bit of a smile. “Ken-chan’s a very complicated person.”


“I guess you’d know that better than me,” Daisuke said. “I wish he wasn’t. Then maybe I’d be able to figure out what was wrong and how to fix it. Right now I’m getting a headache just thinking about everything. I wish I’d never decided to go to stupid America in the first place. Then everything would be all right and we wouldn’t be in this mess.”


Or would we? Daisuke thought suddenly. If I had never gone away then yeah, Ken and I would still be friends and I’d be happy. But would Ken be happy? It had to have taken all the courage he had to write me that letter, and he couldn’t even send it. How long has he been in love with me? Has he always felt that way and just never said it? And if I had stayed, would he ever have even written the letter? Maybe I never would’ve known. I would’ve moved on, maybe found a girlfriend or something, and Ken would’ve always been there, lurking by himself in the shadows, miserable and too shy and scared to ever say anything. Maybe I would’ve ended up here anyway. That’s why I have to figure out how I feel, and soon. Because I can’t let Ken sink into his loneliness every time I go away. I--I have to face this. Daisuke swallowed heavily. I have to take care of things now, before they get any worse. Ken’s been hiding things for too long, that’s what got us into this mess. Because he couldn’t let me know how he felt, and I didn’t know enough to notice there was a problem. And I can’t let that happen again.


I have to save Ken. And I have to make sure nothing like this ever happens to him again.


The thought overwhelmed Daisuke for a moment. Never again? Can I even do that? I don’t even now if I can help him now, let alone in the future!


“Um...Daisuke, the road...” Wormmon’s voice snapped Daisuke back to reality just in time to almost miss his turn.


“Ack, sorry!” Daisuke ran a hand through his hair and sighed. With an effort he turned his thoughts from Ken and concentrated on the road.


I’m almost there, Ken...just wait for me a little longer. I’m coming to help you, and I’m not going to let you run away from me. Not this time.


~~~


The inside of the motel wasn’t much better than the outside. The crude lobby consisted of two moth-eaten sickly green couches and a plaid chair that looked as if it had been snatched off a curb while waiting for the garbage truck. There was no carpet, though an old rug had been thrown rather haphazardly over the floor near the middle of the room. A single light bulb dangled mournfully from the ceiling. The Kaiser swatted at it as he and Ken walked across the floor to the front desk. A woman who looked to be in her late forties sat behind the decrepit desk, smoking a cigarette and watched something on a small TV. She didn’t even look up when Ken entered.


“What a dump,” the Kaiser sneered. “I’ll bet it has rats, too.” He suddenly smirked and reached for the knife under Ken’s jacket. Ken sidestepped the attempt and kept walking. “Come now, precious. You wouldn’t object to a little target practice, would you?”


“Not now,” Ken said in a low voice. The Kaiser chuckled.


“Have I offended your delicate sensibilities, my dear?” He wrapped an arm around Ken’s shoulders. “Don’t be so uptight. If we have to stay here, at least we can have some fun.” He cast his eyes around the nearly empty room. “If we’re lucky, maybe someone else will want to try his luck with you. Wouldn’t that be fun? I wouldn’t kill anyone, of course, since it upsets you so much, but, well...you’d be surprised what a person can live through. Think of it as an experiment, of sorts.”


Ken nearly told him to be quiet again, then gave up and made his way to the front desk. The woman there continued to ignore him.


“I’d like a room,” Ken told her, not caring that she apparently hadn’t noticed him.


“How nice for you,” she replied, not looking up.


“She’s ignoring us,” the Kaiser pouted. “Don’t worry, my love. Just let me handle this and--“


“No!” Ken snapped at him. The woman suddenly glanced up at him.


“All right, all right, geez.” She shook her head. “You don’t have to bite my head off.”


“I wasn’t talking to--never mind.” Ken sighed. “How much does a room cost?”


“How much you got?” the woman countered.


“Do you always answer a question with a question?” Ken said without missing a beat.


“You wanted to know how much a room costs.” The woman shrugged. “So, how much do you have?”


“Let’s go,” the Kaiser hissed, disgusted. “I’m not letting you waste all our money at this rattrap of a motel.”


“What will this get me?” Ken reached into his pocket and pulled out about half of what he had left. The woman at the desk looked at him with distaste.


“Bus fare,” she said.


“You are not giving this wench the rest of our money,” the Kaiser said with finality. “Let me take over. I’ll convince her.”


“I can handle it,” Ken said to him. The woman at the desk cocked her head at him.



“What are you, some kinda schizo?” she asked, taking a puff on her cigarette.


“Something like that,” Ken murmured. He slid the money towards her. “This will get me a room for at least one night, yes?”


“No,” the woman said. “I told you, it’ll cost more than that.” She paused a moment to look him up and down, then smirked. “But, uh, maybe we can work out a deal, you and me.”


“I think not,” the Kaiser sneered at her. “Don’t you dare agree, pet! Nobody touches you but me. You may have whored yourself to your dear Daisuke before, but I’ll be damned if I let anyone else have you now, right before my eyes. Let me teach her a lesson.”


“No,” Ken said, both to the Kaiser and the woman. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little more money. “How about this?”


“Eh.” The woman shrugged. “That’ll get you a night. Maybe,” she added, her gaze sweeping him again.


“I know what you’re doing,” Ken said calmly. “I’ve given you more than enough for at least two or three nights worth of lodging. It wouldn’t be enough somewhere else, maybe, but this place looks like it’s being held together by scotch tape. How many nights will this get me?”


“I already told you.” The woman turned away from him. “And you know my conditions. Take it or leave it.”


“I’ll deal with her,” the Kaiser repeated, wrapping his arms around Ken’s neck and kissing him. “Please, darling? Let me have some more fun.”


“Y--you’ll have to deal with him next,” Ken said softly, his eyes low. The woman glanced back at him, arching an eyebrow.


“Him?”


“I’m sorry,” Ken half-whispered. “I’m sorry for whatever it is he’s going to do. I’d stop him but...but I’m just so tired right now. I’ll have to let him have his way. I’m sorry.”


“Uh...yeah. Whatever.” The woman shook her head and turned back to the TV, tuning him out.


“That’s a dear,” the Kaiser purred as Ken closed his eyes. “You just take a little nap, my love. I’ll teach the nasty woman a lesson...”


“Four nights,” Ken said firmly, and the woman glanced up again, looking exasperated. “I want four nights’ worth of lodging, and you’re going to give it to me for this price.” He nodded at the money on the table.


“Look, I told you--” The woman began, then cut off as Ken pulled back his coat a bit to reveal the knife at his belt. Idly he picked it up and tossed it in the air, catching the handle deftly.


“So, do we have a deal?” Ken ran a finger along the edge of the knife, drawing blood. He smiled and put the bleeding finger in his mouth, slowly tasting his own blood.


“Y-you think you can threaten me?” Despite her words, the woman’s voice was shaking slightly. “I can call the cops, you know--“


“You won’t.” Ken shrugged. “We both know you won’t. I heard the rumors on my way here. Drug dealers, robbers, people on the run...they like to stop by this motel, hide in the shadows. One police call and this whole place will be shut down. And I’m sure all the nice criminals will be quite pleased when they hear that you made the call that got them all arrested...” He tossed the knife up again and caught it easily. “What was it the waitress told you when she came back with the check, precious? I recall something about someone being shot...the man working the front desk, as I recall. Nasty business... the whole town knows except the police. I heard they tossed the body in the river so no one would know. After all, what would the local criminal element do without their favorite scummy motel? The ambience just isn’t the same in one of those fancy places.” He looked sideways at the woman. “Don’t you agree?”


“L-look, I don’t want any trouble--”


“I’m not being any trouble,” Ken said, still throwing and catching the knife. “I’m still paying, aren’t I? You’re the one who keeps being difficult. Just give us a room, and I’ll leave you alone. He won’t harm you, so you don’t need to worry about that. So, do we have a deal?”


“I--I could get fired for this!” the woman said angrily.


“My heart bleeds for you,” Ken said dryly. “Or it would, if I had one. Do we have a deal or shall I see if you have a heart?” He smiled wickedly and did another throw-and-catch with the knife. This time when he caught the knife he held it out threateningly. “So, what do you say?”


“Fine, fine, whatever!” The woman threw up her arms in defeat and took the money on the table, then dug around for a room key. “I told you, I don’t want trouble.”


“We’re never any trouble,” Ken said, carefully putting the knife back on his belt, but leaving one hand down to pull it out again if needed. “You were the one being difficult.”


“Right.” Her back turned, the woman didn’t notice the sudden, marked change in Ken’s stature. He sighed and pulled his hand away from the knife.


“We won’t be staying more than a few days,” Ken said softly.


“We?” The woman turned and handed him a key. “There’s more than one of you?”


“You...might say that.” Ken put a hand to his head and took the key.


“I need your name,” the woman told him, opening a book. “Doesn’t have to be your real one. It usually isn’t.”


“Ich--” Ken cut off as the Kaiser elbowed him in the ribs.


“Not your real name, you fool!” he hissed. “She told you that a fake name would work. Your name is too recognizable. Make something up.”


“Motomiya Daisuke.” The name came to Ken automatically, and he winced the moment the words left his mouth. The Kaiser glared fiercely at him, and Ken shrunk under the gaze.


“As always, he’s the first thing in your mind,” the Kaiser growled. “But not for long. I’ll drive him from your mind eventually, I swear. You can’t cling to him forever, pet.”


Ken swallowed his reply and looked at the floor while the woman wrote the fake name down. She closed the book and nodded at the door.


“You’re in Room 303. Third floor, the door faces the outside.” She took another puff on her cigarette and just avoided blowing smoke in his face. “Right near the stairs, in case you need to make a quick getaway.”


“Doubtful,” Ken said as he turned to go back outside. The Kaiser walked beside him, whistling to himself.


“Third floor, she said,” Ken murmured as he and the Kaiser walked to the side of the motel where there was a line of doors. “This is 103, so I suppose that’s our room, up there.” He nodded upwards as he began to climb the steps. He paused briefly when he reached the third floor and looked down.


“What are you waiting for?” the Kaiser muttered.


“I was just looking,” Ken said in a subdued voice. “It’s--it’s a very long way down. If someone jumped from this height onto the pavement they’d probably die, don’t you think?”


Without waiting for an answer Ken walked over to his room door and opened it. The Kaiser stepped inside first and Ken followed, closing and locking the door behind them.


“Hmmph. Just what I expected.” The Kaiser cast a disapproving eye around the room. A shabby double bed sat in the middle of the room next to an old nightstand with a small lamp on it. An old TV sat on a wooden crate across from the bed, and there was a small dirty bathroom.


“It’ll have to do.” Ken sighed and dropped his duffel bag on the floor before
falling onto the bed and burying his face in the pillow. “It’s all we can afford. And you didn’t have to threaten her.”


“What did you expect me to do? Negotiate?” The Kaiser shrugged and climbed onto the bed, kissing Ken on the cheek. Ken swatted at him.


“Not now,” he said. “Now I just want to sleep.”


“I’m not sleepy,” the Kaiser purred, roughly rolling Ken over so that he was on his back. The Kaiser gave him a sly look. “Make me sleepy, precious.”


“I don’t care,” Ken said, his eyes half-closed. He didn’t resist as the Kaiser leaned down to kiss him again, and he didn’t protest when the Kaiser started to pull Ken’s coat off.


“Poor thing,” the Kaiser said in a husky whisper. “So you’ve given up, is that it? You look so cold and pale. Let me warm you up.”


“If you want,” Ken said, his tone flat. The Kaiser slapped him.


“Don’t be so boring,” he murmured, nipping at Ken’s ear. “I heard you, you know. You used his name for your cover. You were thinking of him, weren’t you?”


“It was a mistake,” Ken told him as the Kaiser started kissing his neck. “I--I didn’t mean to--”


“You need to be punished, darling,” the Kaiser said as he began to pull off Ken’s shirt. “You need to forget that name right now. But I’ll take care of that. It’s my name you’ll be screaming when I’m done.” He gave Ken a fake innocent smile. “Scream for me?”


“Just--just do whatever you want,” Ken said, staring blankly at the wall. “I’m too tired to care anymore. Just do whatever you want with me.” The Kaiser chuckled and leaned down to kiss him again.


“I’ve been waiting for you to say that all day.”


~~~


“Are you sure this is the right place?” Daisuke murmured as he pulled into a parking space by the Hizukari Motel. “It doesn’t look very...um...It’s a dump.”


“That’s where the D-3 says he is.” Wormmon looked apprehensively up at Daisuke. “I don’t like this place, Daisuke. I don’t like that Ken-chan’s here.”


“Me neither,” Daisuke admitted. “But if he is here then I’ve gotta find him.” He parked the car and started to get out. “You’d better stay here, Wormmon. Make sure nobody steals the car or anything. Don’t want Takeru to kill me because I lost his stupid car.”


“Are you sure I shouldn’t come with you?” Wormmon asked. “For protection?”


“I’ll be fine,” Daisuke said airily. “Um...at least I’m pretty sure I’ll be fine. Anyway, don’t worry about it. Just watch the car.”


Daisuke carefully entered the motel’s lobby, wondering suddenly if it might have been better to bring Wormmon along after all. The entire place made his skin shiver.


So...what do I do? Just walk over to the front desk and say I’m looking for Ken? He glanced towards the front desk, which was staffed by a woman with a cigarette. She glanced up at him, looking annoyed.


“Can I help you?” she asked dryly.


“Oh! Um...I guess, yeah.” Daisuke decided to try making something up. “I’m looking for a friend of mine. He was, uh, supposed to get us a room for a few nights.”


“Name?” The woman rested her chin in her hands. “Or a description? And proof that you’re not a cop.”


“Huh?” Daisuke stared cluelessly at her and she laughed.


“Yeah, that’s proof enough. So what’s your friend’s name?”


“Ichijouji,” Daisuke answered quickly.


“No one by that name here,” the woman said, shrugging.


“What? You’re sure?” Daisuke leaned forward. “But I’m sure he’s here! Um...maybe you saw him? He’s kinda tall, real thin, long black hair and purple eyes...um, he has this long black coat, too, and he might have a duffel bag or something with him...”


“You’re looking for him?” The woman shook her head. “I guess that’s the ‘we’ he was talkin’ about. But if you want my advice, kid, I’d go find another friend or business partner or whatever he is. That’s one seriously disturbed kid.”


“But you saw him, right?” Daisuke said eagerly.


“Yeah, yeah, he was here.” The woman waved a hand. “Gave me the name--ah, what was it? Wait, I remember--Motomiya Daisuke, I believe.”


“That’s him,” Daisuke said quickly. He used my name! That’s a good sign, isn’t it? He’s thinking of me. But that might just be because....well, I won’t think of that right now. I’ve found him, that’s all that matters. At least I found him. “C-could you give me his room number?”


“Room 303, right at the top of the stairs. And don’t say I didn’t warn you.”


“Um...thanks. I guess.” Daisuke hurried out of the lobby and stopped by the car.


“Did you find Ken-chan?” Wormmon asked nervously.


“Yeah, I found him,” Daisuke said, nodding.


“So what are you going to do?” the Digimon wondered.


“I guess I’m gonna go up to his room and talk to him,” Daisuke said. “And hope that I can think of something to say.”


“Do...do you want me to come with you?”


“You’d better not,” Daisuke said with a sigh. “I think this is something I gotta do.”


“Good luck, then.”


“Thanks. I think I’m gonna need it.” Steeling himself, Daisuke walked over to the stairs and made his way to room 303.


When he reached Ken’s room, Daisuke paused. Should I knock? I guess I have to, I can’t just barge in. He’s probably got the door locked anyway. He raised his hand to knock, then hesitated again, putting his ear near the door. He could just hear the sound of someone inside, moaning softly. Is he alone? What if he’s got someone in there, like...like...I don’t know. Maybe I should come back later? Daisuke shook his head. No. I’ve gotta do this now. Gathering up all his courage, Daisuke knocked twice on the door.


There was silence from inside, then the sound of a voice talking. Daisuke could only make out one voice, but he had the strange feeling that there was a conversation taking place inside. After a very long pause, the door swung open.


Ken stood in the doorway, smoking a cigarette and wearing nothing but a bed sheet wrapped around his waist.


----
That may not be the best cliffhanger yet, but I’d say it’s my favorite ending image so far. Let it tide you over until the next part gets written.
Converting /tmp/phpOgYqbc to /dev/stdout