Expedition into Nowhere

Chapter Two: Setting Off

By Apple from Mars

Pairings: Daisuke X Wallace X Ken, Takeru X Iori, Miyako X Hikari, Taichi X Yamato, Sora X Mimi, Koushiro X Jyou, Jun X Osamu

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Wallace looked over the group with a keen eye from his vantage point on the roof. They where obviously skilled in their own ways, but as a group they seemed rather miss-matched, as though things didn't quite fit right. But the blond somehow had a feeling that things would work out.

Down bellow, Taichi was finishing packing some extra things into his backpack. Hikari was sitting in the back of the truck with her pack, looking sulky and shooting dangerous glares to anyone who came near her. Wallace decided he pitied Miyako, who had been trying to strike up conversations with the girl all morning.

"Wallace, are you done packing yet?" Wallace turned to see Daisuke standing half in, half out of the window, grinning at him. The maroon haired teen pulled himself out onto the porch room and seated himself next to Wallace.

"At least it'll be more interesting than our last trip." Daisuke pointed out. Wallace snorted.

"Our last trip sucked. Don't ever mention it again."

Daisuke leaned over and nibbled on the blonde's earlobe. "I'd make it up to you but you know the rules."

Wallace shivered at Daisuke touch, before nodding. "Don't freak out the customers until after the trip is over and we've been paid." Wallace suddenly grinned. "Can we freak them out after the trip?"

Daisuke laughed. "Don't we always? Of course Ken will pretend not to notice us."

"We could gang up on him." Wallace suggested, and he and Daisuke shared an equally evil smirk.

"We'll work out the details later." Daisuke said, getting up and dropping lightly back through the bedroom window. "Right now we're supposed to be going."

Wallace followed suit, but before the two went down stairs, they shared a quick kiss.

Feeling somewhat giddy, Wallace bounded down the spiral stairs, wincing as he heard them moan in protest. They where defiantly going to have to do something about those floorboards. The fifth and seventh steps already had huge cracks in them, but Wallace suspected that that was mostly the twin's fault. Osamu and Jun would never admit it, but their children where devils with way to much energy.

"About time you two got down here." Ken remarked from where he had been standing, just beside the porch door. Wallace wondered briefly if he could find an excuse to drag Ken upstairs for a minute, but Ken was already out the door, Daisuke following close behind.

"You ready?" Osamu was sitting in the driver seat of his large blue pickup truck, leaning out of the window with raised eyebrows. As usual, he had offered to drive the group to edge of town and as far as the nearest road went. The rest of the trip they would be walking, since no roads went through the dense jungles.

"All set." Ken said, throwing open the passenger side door and climbing in.

Wallace could just see three people sitting in the back seat already, so he shrugged and followed Daisuke around to the back of the truck. The tailgate had already been closed, and the other seven people where already inside. Wallace took a quick moment to do a head count and see who he would be spending the next twenty minutes with.

Hikari was leaning against the open window at the back of the truck, looking suicidal. Miyako was right next to her, and next to the purple haired girl was Sora. Since Sora had only arrived an hour or so ago, Wallace hadn't gotten a good look at her. She had a tough sort of build, and was watching everyone around her with a look of suppressed interest. In particular, she was watching Mimi, who was also sitting in the back. Jyou and Koushiro where sitting quietly, as was Iori. Iori had also arrived an hour ago, and Wallace took another second to get a good look at the boy. His face was schooled into a blank expression, and he obviously trained in some field that required meditation.

"Wallace, if you'll remember, Osamu has no qualms about leaving you behind. Hurry up before he stars the car!" Daisuke's voice pulled Wallace out of his thoughts and on impulse he jumped into the back. Not a moment to soon, because a second later the truck started and Osamu pulled out of the driveway.

"You've been left behind?" Sora asked, her curiosity apparently getting the better of her. Wallace shuddered and quickly answered before Daisuke could butt in.

"That happened last time. And Daisuke, you SAID you wouldn't bring that up, so don't even TRY to tell them about it. I have no qualms, as you put it, about throwing you out of the truck."

"I'd like to see you try." Daisuke taunted, and even though he was smirking widely he said nothing.

Sora glanced from one to the other in confusion, before smiling slightly "Do I want to know?"

Daisuke let out a resounding "NO!" at the same time Wallace let out a cheerful "YES!" and the two promptly became engaged in a glaring contest. Sora shook her head and glanced at Mimi for a second before turning and watching the houses go by.

"If they get too annoying you could always throw them out. I'm sure I can navigate without them." Ken's voice drifted to their ears from the front seat. He leaned out the window and grinned at them, his blue hair blowing across his face in the wind.

"Curious. Do you always behave in this manor?" Koushiro asked. Ken blinked, and then smiled.

"I'm sorry. Yeah, we're like this most of the time. If we get too annoying tell us to shut up, otherwise Daisuke will talk until your ears fall off."

They where leaving the village behind and now the forest whistled past them in a green tangle of leaves and trees. Osamu began followed a bumpy dirt road that seemed to be entirely made of potholes. The second they turned onto the road, Wallace and Daisuke grabbed onto the sides of the truck as though they where the only things standing between them and eternal torture. The rest of the people in the back exchanged worried looks before following the navigator's example.

"What kind of road IS this?" Jyou moaned three minutes later.

"I don't think this should even be CONSIDERED a road!" Mimi wailed. She was clinging to the side very tightly, looking rather panicked.

"The only road that goes into the part of the forest we need to be in." Daisuke explained, then he and Wallace let out identical groans as the bumping stopped and they came out onto gravel.

"Aw crap." Wallace swore. "I forgot Osamu likes the stream."

"Stream?" Miyako asked worriedly.

Daisuke nodded. "Just try not to fall out. You're going to get wet no mater what."

Up front, both Ken and Osamu had rolled up their windows.

"Hang on back there!" Ken's voice could now only be heard through the small window that Hikari was leaning against. The depressed teen had a firm grip on the edge of the truck, and looked as though she would rather be anywhere except where she was.

Up front, Osamu started going a few miles faster. Daisuke shut his eyes. Wallace let out an overdramatic sigh. And then they where drenched in water.

The stream it's self was huge by steam standards, but it wasn't big enough to be a river. It was wider than it was deep, but considering it was three feet deep this didn't mean anything. The thing with this particular stream was that it had a habit of sending water very high into the sky, until it came plummeting down and drenched anyone in its way, even if they where riding in the back of say, the back of a blue pickup truck.

"I'm WET!" Mimi screeched, horrified. In truth, she was one of the least wet. The water seemed to have done no damage to any of the backpacks, all of which where waterproof, but the people where indeed drenched. Daisuke and Wallace, riding in the most exposed area of the truck, looked as though they had just gone for a swim in their clothes.

"Yeah. Remind me to kill Osamu." Wallace grumbled, shaking himself like a dog and sending drops of water flying in all directions.

"Can I kill him too?" Miyako asked, looking almost as murderous as Hikari. Daisuke shrugged.

"Sure. Get in line."

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A/N: Wow! No footnotes! As you can tell, most of the Japanese stuff was mostly for the first two chapters and last two as well. Oh, and did you know that that little gate thing on the back of trucks is called a tailgate?

I wrote this whole thing in one big rush, which is strange for me. I really like this story, it's so fun. Yay for Wallakensuke! I actually wrote it last night, but the internet server was being stupid and I couldn't get online to upload it. Anyway, chapter three won't be up for a little while. Enjoy!