This chapter is short and seems relatively pointless, but it sets up some stuff for later on…particularly in the main Kingdom of the Elemental Hearts. In other words, don't skip this one just because it's short. It has some important character development.

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, nor do I own Kingdom Hearts. I'm just a rather creative person with an overactive imagination.

Elemental Hearts - Inside/Outside

Chapter 4: Dream A Little Dream

It's not often you hear laughter in the Realm of Darkness.

Actually, such an event is extremely rare, but often extremely pleasant, a bit like finding a diamond ring as the prize in your cereal box. These sounds of light and joy drive away the Heartless, so for several meters around whatever event might cause the mirth there is not a sign of the wiggling, heart-thieving pests.

Riku and Kouichi didn't know that, but the King did, so he was encouraging their joint laughter with a series of hilarious escapades, circa Disney Castle.

"And then, WHOOM! Donald went flying right through the library doors and bowled down half of the broom-sweepers as they were comin' back from their chores!" The mouse giggle and splayed out his white-gloved hands to demonstrate. "I guess that's what he gets for tryin' out spells without reading the book first, eh?"

Kouichi giggled, one hand moving to cover his mouth in an almost feminine manner, as Riku tossed his head back with a hearty laugh. Mickey let a wide grin spread over his own features let his own merry laughter float over the dark road.

"Well, enough about me!" Mickey bounced a few steps ahead of his companions and turned to face them, waiting patiently for them to catch up. "Let's hear more about you two, ne?"

"Like what?" Riku shrugged. "I don't have anything to tell, you probably know more about me than I do."

Kouichi gave a quietly nod, agreeing with Riku's statement. "I'm not sure I have anything interesting to say, either."

"Of course you do!" Mickey grinned wider, obviously planning this conversation long before he had brought the subject had been brought up. "You've said a lot about your past, but I haven't heard a lick about your futures yet."

"Futures?" Both boys chorused, and glanced at each other in confusion.

"Sure!" Mickey laughed, rocking back on his heels. "I may not look it, but I'm kinda an old fogey. You're both young, you've got your whole lives ahead of you. Tell me what you want to do with it. Tell me about your dreams!"

Riku and Kouichi glanced at each other again. The younger boy shifted shyly and motioned with his free hand, the other still wrapped protectively around his Staff, for the silver-haired young man to go first.

Riku sighed and turned his blue eyes up to the grayish sky with a contemplative sigh. He took a moment to think, contemplating his options. What did he want? What did he really…really want?

"I guess…I'd like to get home." He said after a long while, his eyes glazing over slightly. Then he laughed. "Boy, never thought I'd say that…"

"I don't get it." Kouichi blinked and turned his head to one side in confusion. Riku muffled a grin at how cute the dark-haired boy could be sometimes.

The silver-haired boy just smirked and pushed his hands into his pockets. "When I was on the Island, all I wanted to do was get off. Sora, Kairi and me, we were gonna take this raft…just a makeshift plank of wood with some food and what could have been sails…and search out other worlds. Stupid, right?"

Kouichi and Mickey shook their heads. Riku gave them both an odd look, but went back to explanation.

"But it's weird now. Now that I'm in other worlds, out by myself…I just want to get back." He sighed, bringing his eyes down and shaking his head. "No matter what I do, I'm hollowing at the moon. Guess that just shows how screwed up I am."

There was a moment of contemplative silence between them, then Kouichi spoke in a soft, even voice. "I don't think so."

Riku turned his eyes back to the smaller boy, a bit surprised. Kouichi smiled up at him. "Sometimes it takes a while to work out what your heart really wants. What you want as a kid is never the same as what you want when you grow up. It just takes time to know where you belong."

His blue eyes dropped just a little to hide behind sparse bangs shyly. "Don't you…think?"

Riku looked at him a moment, then grinned. "Yeah. I think you're right."

Kouichi's smile widened a bit. Mickey grinned broadly and nodded, then turned to the dark-haired boy. "What about you, Kouichi? Is there anything you've always wanted?"

The boy hesitated, and a cautious expression flickered over his face. A few fingers made their way to rest on his lips contemplatively, a distance look in his navy blue eyes. "Like…anything?"

"Anything at all!" Mickey nodded, giving the boy a gentle nudge. "Come on, Kouichi, I know you've got something. Everyone has a dream!"

Riku's icy blue eyes glanced at his companions with an unreadable expression. At least, he hoped it was unreadable, as he didn't really want either of his friend to know exactly how curious he was about Kouichi's dream. Maybe it was something he needed help with, something Riku could do to assist. After all, Kouichi was a very modest boy. It wasn't like he'd wish for anything spectacular…

Kouichi hesitated a moment, gripping the Staff in his hands a bit more tightly before he found the voice to answer. "I…I want to be…strong."

Whatever it was Riku and Mickey had been expecting, that wasn't it, and it took a long moment of shocked silence between them before they found the voice to speak. "What was that?"

Kouichi shifted hesitantly, wringing the Staff between his hands in a very nervous manner. "I…I want to be strong." He repeated, glancing to the ground shyly. "Strong enough that people…don't have to protect me."

"Really?" Riku cocked his head to one side in mild confusion. "What do you mean?"

Kouichi hesitated again, as though uncertain of what he was saying himself. Then he took a deep breath and spoke, very softly.

"Ever since I was a kid," he sighed heavily, gazing at an indeterminate point on the ground, somewhere beyond his moving toes. "Someone's always had to…watch out for me. My mother and grandmother…my brother…now you guys."

He glanced up at Riku and shrugged, somewhat guiltily. Riku scowled. He'd told the younger boy over and over again that he and Mickey were more than happy to help him through the Worlds of Darkness, but Kouichi still seemed to consider his own presence a burden to them.

"I guess…there's a part of me that's always wanted to get out of that." The dark-haired boy continued, biting his lip as his voice gained more confidence. "I…I want to be strong enough that nobody has to worry about me anymore. I want to be able to…protect…the people I care about…instead of the other way around."

He fell silent again, a light blush painting his cheeks. They were going to laugh at him, he thought, it was stupid to think that someone as pathetic as him could protect anyone…

As though reading his mind's troubled thoughts, Mickey suddenly smiled up at the dark-haired boy brightly. Gloved hands reached up to pat the other's arm in a comforting manner as a light chuckle fell from his lips. "You're a good kid."

Kouichi's eyes widened in surprise at the strange statement, but Riku just grinned.

"What he means is…" The silver-haired boy leaned over to put his hand on Kouichi's shoulder, "you really want to help people. Not a lot of people do that, you know.

"So you…" Kouichi hesitated a moment, unsure. "You don't think it's…stupid?"

Mickey just laughed. "Dreams can never be stupid, kiddo. They're your dreams! Even if nobody else understands them, you can never have a stupid dream."

Riku nodded in junction with the mouse-king's response. A light flush colored Kouichi's pale cheeks and he looked down, a soft smile on his lips. "Gee…Thanks, guys."

"In fact, I'll give you a hand!" Mickey piped, unable to hide a rather excited sparkle. "With a couple of free lessons! How'd you like to learn a little magic, Disney Castle-style?"

Kouichi jerked slightly, startled by the sudden offer. "Do you…do you really mean it, Mickey-san?"

"Sure I do!" Mickey grinned broadly and offered up his hand. "I bet you'll get it down real quick! You look like a fast study to me."

"Wow…" Kouichi reached out hesitantly and shook the gloved hand. "That'd really be great. That is, if it really isn't any trouble…"

"No trouble at all!" Mickey nodded brightly and moved forward down the street, scouting ahead. "We'll start tonight! But first we gotta find a place to camp, before it gets too dark to see. Come on, boys, get a move on!"

He burst into a run. Riku's smirk widened across his face and he reached back to grab Kouichi's arm. "Come on. We don't want to let him beat us, now do we?"

The younger boy smiled and shook his head. Another round of laughter and giggles echoed over the dark hills as the three travelers chased after one another, scrambling for food and supplies and a good, defensible position. The Heartless wouldn't come near them tonight. That was a future they could be sure of.

TBC…

Ah, Disney-esque sappiness. You had to have some of it, you know, after all this is a Disney game. Besides, I just can't write Mickey being so…serious…He just doesn't fit in that idea. Which, of course, throws off the serious-Riku, shy-Kouichi scenes just a bit…