The Bee and its Stinger

Chapter 3
A Little Digivice

Osamu frowned at his top drawer. It was closed, but that didn't change what was inside. Most weren't particularly important; they were more things he reached for when he needed them. Spare exercise books. Spare paper. Spare pens, pencils, rubbers, rulers, staple pins and butterfly clips. Then there was the little sliding puzzle Ken had gotten him for his birthday that he played with when he needed a breather, plus a few odds and ends he tinkered with in his spare time. And lastly, the Digivice that had been initially intended to enter that very same place.

That was before Ken getting mixed up with it, and to be honest Osamu had no idea whether he should give the device to his little brother so he could return there at will, hang on to it so he would at least know when Ken disappeared, or get rid of it because of the inherent dangers he faced. Fighting monsters more than twice his size to save the world? That wasn't something an almost nine year old should be doing in his opinion, and it didn't sit well with the older brother part of him that Ken was marching into that sort of trouble.

He was still briefly considering the alternative, but thought it to be unlikely. The consequences of that would surely have seeped into his normal behaviour if that was the case, and now that the two brothers were past their little argument, Ken was as kind and understanding as ever. Asking for some money for fundraising chocolate once and then not again when their parents didn't hear, although Osamu had and later slipped him 200 yen. The next day Ken brought a slightly more expensive – and tastier –s bar he had been expecting and split it with his elder brother.

It would have been nice to enjoy it more, but he had been in the middle of something and sadly had to scorf it down. Still, chocolate was the sort of thing that tasted almost heavenly even when swallowed whole.

Neither of them had mentioned the Digivice then, although Ken had looked extremely quickly towards the drawer. He hadn't asked though, and Osamu was finding himself reluctant to offer.

Part of him was very concerned as to what sort of world it was. Ken's description made it sound like a fairy-tale land, where good always triumphed over evil and the hero (or heroes) were pure and naïve. In truth though Osamu thought those were the sorts of people who had difficulty surviving in the real world. They also reminded him of Ken – and therein lay his evidence as well. Ken's world far too often revolved around others, so much so that it was often difficult to see where the interests of the world ended and where Ken's own began. Like how diligently Ken studied when Osamu was occupied with his own books, and how he struggled to push his marks to the top of the learning curve. Or how he played with the tracks in the playroom on the ground floor of their father's work when the family went to visit – for often Osamu found himself swamped with admirers. Or how Ken weeded the garden with his mother and claimed to enjoy it…though Osamu suspected that that at least had to be for want of his mother's company than for want of the weeding itself.

Osamu didn't know when – or where – it had started. Maybe from all parents wanting their children to do their best at school – and his best had simply amounted to this. It would have been easier for Ken if his best hadn't set an impossible threshold – maybe easier on their parents too, because it did seem like they didn't know what to do with either of their children. But Osamu couldn't imagine himself still existing without the sweet image of innocence that was Ken.

Until less than a week ago, when he had snapped – and Ken had snapped right back. It had been so shocking that he had simply stared in silence as the other stormed off, because Ken really was like a sponge at times, collecting his ill-feelings and depositing them somewhere without anyone – not even he himself – noticing. The sort that could forgive anyone easily enough, could try and make friends with the most unlikely of people (which was what had prompted his own interest in martial arts like judo and kendo to begin with), and could go on without even realising they hadn't reached the inner surface of their heart where their true desires lived.

In truth, if this Digital World was a place that would lead him to grow up without losing the kindness that defined him, then he really shouldn't have a problem with it. But his problem went beyond the inherent dangers – and the fact that he wasn't there to protect him –

Actually, that was the crux of the issue: his absence. Because it sounded like a world where society ceased to exist, where only a few humans stood and they had to prove their worthiness to the true citizens of that land and fight for whatever honour they were given, not only with their minds but their hearts and souls as well. A place where people weren't ranked at schools, where it seemed one's life was set by the grades they made and the names they took…for already people were asking and presuming about his future, a future that was a good seven years away at the very least.

Funnily enough, Ken had pretty much hit the nail on the head, but no-one really noticed that. He hadn't said it to anyone else but Osamu after all, but Osamu couldn't help but think a policeman was a pretty good role for him. Not necessarily one dictated by academia, but a good role nonetheless. Just not one Tokyo would expect from their resident genius.

It was those expectations that were entrapping, but Osamu wasn't naïve enough to believe any other world could be free from that. Still, he would essentially be starting from scratch in such a world, and part of him longed to be able to at least escape there – for a time. Like a holiday resort, where the hottest part of summer could whistle away. Part of him envied his brother to be able to go there when he apparently could not; nothing had happened when he touched the Digivice after all but the reaction with Ken had been instantaneous. A dark bitter part of him wondered what he lacked that his brother apparently possessed. The rest of him was happy for his brother, but still wanted a part of that world. Somewhere away from the one where he lived, where it seemed expectation and routine was dominant.

And then there was the part of him which had difficulty in believing it still. While the possibility of other worlds wasn't exactly outlandish, it seemed inconceivable that a little kid had managed to wander into it when no-one else had. Billions of yen went into finding the possibility of other worlds, and years of research and overall hard work. Sure, serendipity played a role as it often did with major discoveries, but nonetheless it was a minor role. Luck favoured the prepared after all.

And then there was simply the fact that he was the older brother of the pair, and older brothers simply didn't like seeing their younger brother (or brothers as it may) grow up.

He thought about it all, weighing the pros and cons in his mind as the Digivice burnt a metaphorical hole through his drawer chest. And eventually he concluded that while he wasn't as good a person as his little brother, he couldn't stop the other from visiting his other friend.

Though he would have to put his foot down when it came to parading around the world; he'd go mad one way or the other.

'Really?!'

Osamu winced as Ken's voice seemed to reach an all-time high.

'Yes,' he sighed. 'Really, but –' He stopped, almost expecting the other to burst with excitement, but instead finding his little brother looking at him expectantly. 'No spending more than a few hours there – max. And I want to know when you're going so at least I know where you are, and no talking to any strange…Digimon, was it?' Ken nodded, though he looked a little muddled. 'And no getting into unnecessary fights and don't go making friends with everyone you see either –'

'I'm getting confused,' Ken confessed. 'I can't help it if someone wants to fight.'

'No, I suppose you can't.' Osamu sighed again; it seemed he did a lot of that, but explaining what he was thinking was always difficult. 'Though you could help trying to be friends with drug addicts.'

Ken furrowed his brow. 'I don't think the Digital World has drugs,' he mused.

'Or evil Digimon,' Osamu amended.

'But Wormmon said they weren't always evil.' Blue eyes peeked up innocently. 'Maybe if they had friends, they wouldn't be so bad. Even Milleniummon seemed so lo – ' He suddenly cut off, wincing and rubbing the back of his neck.

Osamu stepped forward and pushed the hair back, frowning when he found nothing under searching fingertips. 'Were you leaning too far forward?' he asked.

'I might have been,' Ken confessed.

'You know what will happen if you don't sit up straight,' the elder Ichijouji scolded lightly.

Ken nodded, wide eyed and no doubt thinking of the Japanese retelling of the Hunchback of Notre Dame. 'I'll try to remember,' he promised. 'It's just awkward to sit like that sometimes.'

It was; Osamu could assent to that, having been guilty many a time of bending over his books and winding up with a sore neck or a sore back afterwards. 'But promise to tell me whenever you go to the Digital World, and promise to be careful.'

'I promise,' Ken said solemnly, knowing his brother was serious. And his face mimicked the expression so accurately that if Osamu was any less composed a man – or a boy more accurately – he would have collapsed on the floor in a fit of giggles, because there was something indescribably cute about seeing your own face three years younger and reflected back at you with an innocence long escaped.

'Alright, alright, you can have it.' Laughing, he put the device into Ken's eager hands. 'Just don't make me regret this.'