Disclaimer: Yeah, all recognizable characters are still not mine.

Chapter 4: Golden Glow

Kaito blinked in surprise at their new surroundings. Though he still had little experience in traveling the worlds, he certainly hadn't been expecting to step into an old forest. Trees towered above them, filtering the late afternoon light into a dappled pattern as it fell upon the ground.

An almost subliminal presence he'd been gradually starting to be aware of since he had started traveling with Ansem seemed strangely absent here. On a hunch, he pulled out his card gun and inspected his ammo. Sure enough, that extra glimmering, shadowy edge on his cards appeared to be gone. He wasn't sure exactly what that meant, but suspected that this world probably had almost no raw ambient magic, just like home.

So, not likely to have giant monsters pop up again. Maybe we're back to magic expressing itself through levels of talent. That would be refreshingly normal.

He took a few tentative steps forward, and couldn't resist a grin when leaves crunched underfoot. Looking around with a speculative gleam, he performed some quick mental calculations about size, tone, and pitch, then proceeded to beat out a complicated musical tattoo from the surrounding dead foliage, humming the Ride of the Valkyries.

His instincts for being observed kicked in after a moment, but he continued until he heard an amused snort from Ansem.

"You're very easily entertained, aren't you?"

Bringing his leaping dance to a flourishing finale, he finished with a crackling stomp and grinned. "Yep."

And the more harmless to you I seem, the sooner you're likely to talk to me. It would be an added bonus if I could get you to crack a genuinely happy smile, because I don't think I've seen you anything but serious, grim, sarcastic, or for a change of pace, grimly amused, since I met you… however long ago.

I wish I had a watch.

Note to self: Buy a watch with a day-tracker, in order to have good reason to force Ansem to sleep. And eat. I think I've been up for over 48 hours straight, can't remember when or what I last ate, and he's probably been going for longer. Transportation provider having psychotic episodes due to not taking care of himself equals bad.

"It helps that I'm running on nothing but adrenaline right now," Kaito hinted. "Everything becomes hilarious after a while."

"Unlike before, when the whole world was simply there for mild amusement?"

Ansem stared at the trees for a moment, then started walking in what looked to Kaito like a completely arbitrary direction.

If he doesn't have wilderness survival training, we're screwed. Downtown Tokyo is not conducive to learning how to navigate under tree cover that blocks most of the sky.

Realizing he was about to lose sight of his guide, Kaito hurried after Ansem and settled into keeping pace beside him. The ground was hilly and uneven, with a slight grade suggesting that overall they were walking downhill.

"So where are we? Do you sense anything weird going on? More importantly, does this place have signs of civilization?"

"You're being annoyingly talkative."

"I'm a city boy. Maybe I like having a certain level of ambient noise."

"A forest is hardly silent. Besides, I saw you at your night job. You're perfectly capable of prolonged silence when you feel like it. You probably only chatter when you feel like winding people up."

"Touché." He wasn't about to mention he talked to cover being uncomfortable, too. "This is a good time for me to feel quiet, then?"

"Yes."

"Ah."

I've been saying that a lot. I need to come up with some better lines, before I become monosyllabic whenever I'm confronted with paradigm-shifting information or not-so-subtle ultimatums. Ultimata? Ultimatumum?

...Definitely need sleep soon.

Resigned to the fact that Ansem wasn't going to explain why they were walking through a forest yet, Kaito took the opportunity to appreciate his surrounding as they walked, both visually and aurally. Ansem was right about one thing—once he started listening, there were sounds everywhere. Birdsongs, rustlings, the crunch of leaves and more all combined into an amateurish concert of nature.

So intent was he on following the music, he took several moments to process that Ansem had finally stopped and nearly walked into him. A last-second dodge saved him from impact, and he leaned against the trunk of a nearby tree instead as he studied the new landscape. A pond spread across a clearing in the forest a few yards ahead, and on the other side a dock and a comfortable-looking cabin sat backed nearly up to the water's edge. A rear deck held a few pieces of metal furniture, and pale light glowed through the blinds covering one of the windows.

"I'm not familiar with this world, but the technology level here seems similar to rural parts of your world. I'd rather avoid people altogether, but we're not equipped for camping. If we're lucky, whoever lives here won't object to some unexpected company until I can figure out whether or not this world is free from interference."

Kaito glanced at his companion. While Kaito was still wearing the black sweater and blue jeans he had picked up in Yugi's world, Ansem had donned his hooded black cloak the moment they had left. He seemed disinclined to doff it again anytime soon, though he'd been leaving the hood down lately.

"Well, let me do the talking? If this world is anything like the last few you've been in, you're more likely to scare people off than look harmless."

"Knock yourself out."

Hmm, maybe you are relaxing just a little bit around me. Your speech patterns are getting a lot less formal.

They skirted the pond and approached the cabin, Ansem hanging back a ways while Kaito advanced on the front door. Kaito knocked, hoping that if they weren't somewhere that spoke Japanese, then they would be lucky and it would be English. His accent might not be perfect (he knew his /l/ still sounded more like /r/ if he wasn't careful), but he at least felt confident in his fluency. His smattering of other languages was getting rusty.

The door opened to reveal a tall, middle-aged man with heavily salted hair, a small scar on one eyebrow, and an expression somewhere between bored and wary. Brown eyes instantly darted to Ansem's position before looking back to Kaito, jaw setting in a manner that clearly indicated an utter lack of tolerance for any potential trouble.

Please, I don't want to look like an idiot.

"Can I help you kids?"

Yes!

"Hi!" Kaito chirped in his best 'Trust-me-I'm-harmless' voice. "My friend and I ran into some car trouble down by the main road, and my auto insurance can't send someone out here until tomorrow. We saw the dirt road leading this way, hoped maybe someone would be here. Could we possibly impose on you for an evening?"

The man blinked, processing that rush of words, before his expression passed from blank to vaguely irritated, and then resigned.

"So much for a night of fishing before the gang shows up," he muttered under his breath, then raised his voice. "There's no way you can walk back to the main road before it gets dark, so you might as well come in. Even summer nights get can hit freezing this far up in the mountains, and I'm not completely heartless."

Ansem twitched at the man's last word, Kaito noticed, and he recalled DiZ's explanation of the black creatures with the same name. Those things really must have done a number on his life from before.

He quickly smiled at the man. "Thanks! My name is Kur—Kaito. Kaito Kuroba."

He got a raised eyebrow at that. "Jack O'Neill. Who's your friend?"

Ansem stepped forward into a shaft of sunlight from the slowly sinking sun. The response was immediate, though not quite what Kaito expected.

"God!" The man—O'Neill—jerked a few inches back, hand automatically reaching to where, Kaito realized, a shoulder-holstered gun would normally hang.

Okay, cop or military? Bearing says military. Time to panic? No, not yet, first find out why Ansem-san is freaking out what's probably an experienced military man.

O'Neill visibly pulled himself together, relaxing his hand and straightening from his half-defensive stance. "Sorry," he said, not sounding very apologetic. "I don't meet a lot of people with golden eyes, especially if they look like they're glowing."

Ansem shrugged. "It's the sunset."

"Yeah, sure, you betcha," came the skeptical reply. "You have a name?"

"Ansem."

"Catchy. Not from ancient mythology, is it?"

"Not unless I've unknowingly had divinity thrust upon me, no."

A faint snort. "Nice. Fine. Come on in. You guys can fight over who sleeps on the couch and who get an air mattress." They stepped inside, trailing behind O'Neill as he headed to the kitchen.

Interesting. Ansem-san disturbs him, but he's confident enough in his own abilities that he'll still let him in the house. But what was with the questions?

"Either of you a decent cook?"

"Only if you count making tea," Ansem replied. "Though at least I don't burn water, like someone else I know."

Kaito snickered. "I'm decent enough, if you've got the ingredients."

"Great. I've had some steaks marinating, and we can grill them tonight. When my team comes up tomorrow they'll just have to grab supplies on the way."

"If you're making the main dish, I can raid your fridge for some sides."

"Sweet. Just ask if you can't find anything."

They fell into some semi-awkward small talk as they began dinner preparation, mostly Kaito fabricating a back-story for why he and Ansem were so far out in the middle of nowhere—Minnesota, America, apparently—in the first place. He settled for the idea that Ansem, a friend of his parents, was thinking about buying land out this way and he had come along for the ride, providing transportation from his family's home in California.

Thankfully, O'Neill was intelligent enough to see their reticence towards sharing much, and didn't seem to think it worth asking too many probing questions. Kaito still breathed a sigh of relief when the older man finally went outside to start grilling, and glared at Ansem from over the cutting board.

"How long do you need to evaluate this world?" he murmured, mindful of the open windows even though O'Neill probably couldn't hear a thing over the cantankerously noisy grill. "I'm a good obfuscator, but this guy is sharp. If I give him enough information he'll spot the inconsistencies, and I don't want to still be here if he figures us out."

Ansem calmly filched a carrot slice from the salad ingredients on the cutting board.

"A world like this is too big to evaluate from just one place when I don't already know where all the powerful hearts are. He's one, but there are likely others. Since you both seem admirably occupied at the moment, I'll go now. It's easier to direct the dark corridors across space when I'm by myself, so I won't be long."

"And what do I say if he comes inside before you get back?"

"Make something up. You've already said you're good at that, right?" Before Kaito could retort, Ansem vanished into a dark portal.

He sighed, and went to investigate the pantry for potatoes. Luckily, O'Neill decided to keep the steaks company outside, and Kaito fell into the familiar rhythm of cooking, letting himself relax for the first time in what was probably days. He'd learned to cook after his father had died and his mom had started working again, leaving her with less time and energy to spend in the kitchen. After a while he went from assisting to making whole meals, and started using the familiar routine as a way to unwind.

As a result, Kaito was yawning when Ansem returned, just in time for O'Neill to yell an inquiry on the state of affairs inside the kitchen.

"Nearly done!" Kaito called back. He shot Ansem an inquiring look, and received a nod.

"They seem safe enough," he said quietly. "We'll stay the night, and leave in the morning."

Kaito grinned. "Arm-wrestle you for the couch?"

"I could defeat you with both hands tied behind my back."

"Only because I'm dead on my feet, you cheater. You must sleep with your eyes open, or there's no way you'd still be awake and sane."

"You just have low endurance," Ansem retorted, rummaging through drawers in search of eating utensils. "Hm, no chopsticks."

"For steak, salad, and baked potatoes? And I work nights and go to school during the day, plus drama club and homework. When do you think I ever have time to sleep?"

"I like chopsticks. Even if I'm using a steak knife with them. The fact that you regularly get no sleep means that you have no reserves to draw on if you need them."

Kaito carefully balanced the food dishes in his arms and headed for the patio. "And you do?" He stopped, realizing too late his path was barred by the closed back door.

Should have remembered that before I had my arms full.

"I slept the entire day before I met you, and I have practice being awake for long stretches of time. I'll pay for it later, but there's no time to waste right now."

Ansem smirked at Kaito's predicament, purposefully slowing his collection of condiments and other necessities.

"Jerk." Kaito rolled his eyes, then raised his voice to be audible through the window. "Hey, Mr. O'Neill! Can you open the door?"

Only the fact that he didn't feel like acting the child amongst two adults kept Kaito from sticking his tongue out at Ansem when the door opened. Ansem followed behind, and food was quickly distributed between plates. Relative silence reigned for a while as all three men attacked their dinners with a will, broken only by the occasional smack marking the death of a blood-sucking mosquito.

After they finished devouring dinner, O'Neill raided the fridge for a beer, offering Ansem one and Kaito a choice of milk and water. Kaito wasn't surprised when Ansem declined—he could think of three reasons off the top of his head why drinking a beer on a journey like theirs would be a bad idea—but it struck him as odd when the man opted for milk instead. It seemed so… chronologically out of place with his appearance.

Not my place to judge his drinking habits. It's probably more surprising that, this being a bachelor pad, the milk is still good.

They chatted a while over their drinks, Ansem deciding to play his part and ask O'Neill about what living in the area was like. From the way O'Neill spoke, Kaito would have though the place was paradise if he hadn't already seen it. Probably full of lots of fond memories.

Kaito held back his exhaustion as long as he could, but eventually succumbed and released a massive yawn. That effectively broke up the discussion, and they returned inside. By a two-to-one vote, Ansem was given dish-duty while O'Neill grabbed the sleeping bags and air mattress from the attic and Kaito moved the coffee table in the living room off to the side.

Mumbling apologies to O'Neill for being rude, he took a sleeping bag and, with a sleepily triumphant grin at Ansem, stretched out on the couch. He didn't even remember his head hitting the pillow.

Kaito awoke to being lightly shaken.

"Five more minutes," he mumbled automatically in Japanese, rolling over and pulling the sleeping bag over his head.

"Kaito-san." The deadly serious note was back in Ansem's voice, and Kaito snapped awake.

Back on adrenaline already. Or maybe I'm suppressing dopamine… Ugh. Focus.

"What is it?" he asked.

"O'Neill-san's friends are almost here. They're going to know that there are no cars between here and wherever the closest town is."

"Oh." So much for our cover. "And we didn't even get breakfast," he muttered half-heartedly.

"It's after noon. I woke up an hour ago, but thankfully O'Neill-san has been outside fishing rather than trying to play the not-so-gracious host, or asking why we're not in a hurry to get back to our supposed auto, and I managed to grab some lunch. You're a thief; steal something to eat on the way, but make it quick. I don't want to stick around any more than you do."

Kaito quickly raided the fridge, watching from the corner of his eye as Ansem rolled up his sleeping bag and straightened up the room. The man was either extremely neat, very polite, or both.

"Kaito! Ansem! Come on out for a minute!"

Kaito gulped down the last of a bagel and cream cheese, secreted a few more portable foodstuffs about his person, and exchanged glances with Ansem. "Disappear now, or in a minute?"

Ansem shuddered. "Those are some powerful hearts out there, but I can smell a residue of darkness with them and it's strong. They may not have Heartless here, but I want to know what it is before we pull our vanishing act."

"You lead, oh superior in age and wisdom."

Ansem muttered under his breath what Kaito thought was "If only," and headed for the door. Kaito followed, shielding his eyes against the daytime glare.

Three new people stood in the gravel driveway with O'Neill: a tall, powerfully built black man with a knitted cap that looked slightly ridiculous pulled low on his forehead, a shorter man with glasses who smiled politely at them, and a beautiful blonde woman with striking blue eyes and a perfect poise that bespoke military experience.

"Kaito, Ansem, meet the gang: Murray, Daniel, and Sam," he pointed to them in turn. "Kids, meet our gatecrashers. Kaito is on the right, and Ansem is the one on the left with the glowy golden eyes."

Sam raised her eyebrows in a Significant Expression at the statement, then smiled brightly and stepped forward, hand outstretched. "Nice to meet you guys."

Kaito shook hands, unsure of just where the test lay hidden, but decently sure that the test was for Ansem, not him, and had to do with O'Neill's unusual reaction the night before. An almost imperceptible gesture flashed from her free hand just before she let go of Ansem's, and O'Neill seemed to relax a bit. Kaito wondered if Ansem noticed too, but decided to make no comment.

Daniel hurried forward after a moment's pause as well, though Murray stayed put and merely offered a respectful half-bow. Kaito instinctively bowed in return, which caught the attention of Daniel.

"Are you Japanese?" the man asked in Kaito's native tongue, with a flawless accent.

Kaito stared for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Nice to meet you," he added politely, also in Japanese.

"I figured as much," O'Neill offered, walking closer. "Daniel, why don't you drive these two back to their car? I'm sure you'd love the chance talk nice with some friendly foreigners. They said it broke down somewhere near the turnoff for here."

"What?" Daniel replied, looking somewhat distracted. "Jack, there was nothing to see on the way up here but trees. Lots of trees. I don't know why you complain about seeing trees so much offw—at work, when they surround you every time you take a vacation."

"Nothing?" O'Neill's voice hardened, and he turned on them with a definite aura of looming. Kaito took a step back, closer to Ansem.

"Sorry to have caused you any trouble, Mr. O'Neill," Ansem declared. "No hard feelings?"

Behind him a dark portal flared to life, and he grabbed Kaito by the shoulder, dragging him through before anyone else could move.

Inside the corridor, Kaito rubbed his shoulder from Ansem's vice-like grip.

"Did you figure out what the darkness was?"

"It came from Murray-san, and seemed like the remains of something foreign that hasn't faded away completely yet. He seemed like he would be okay — all four of those people had some darkness lurking in their hearts, but together they should keep one another in the light."

"They seemed like an interesting bunch," Kaito commented as they walked quickly through the corridor towards their next destination. "I wonder what the deal with the eyes was, though?"

"Carter, you're sure he wasn't, I don't know, some minor goa'uld trying to hide on earth?"

"Positive, sir. I didn't sense even a trace of Naquadah."

"Peachy. Daniel, are there some aliens with beaming technology that we don't know about yet?"

"If we don't know about them, how could I tell you? I'll have to do some research to see if ancient mythology ever talks about a dark portal like that. But still, that Kaito kid looked like your average Japanese teenager."

"For crying out loud — don't tell me we have alien kidnappers running around earth now. I thought we were done saving the world, already!"

"Indeed. I have anticipated resting after this long battle for some time."

"Maybe we can let the world take care of itself for once, Jack. He didn't seem hostile, at least, and the kid seemed comfortable traveling with him."

"It's never that easy, Danny… never that easy."

"It'll keep for a few days, sir."

"I give command 12 hours before calling one of us in for a 'crisis.'"

A considering pause.

"No bet, sir."

"Hah!"

This is the result of Stargate SG-1 and Kingdom Hearts simultaneously staging a coup on my higher brain functions. Stargate is set at the very end of season 8, for the people who like timeframes. Kingdom Hearts is still very close to when Sora woke up and started traveling. I hope to eventually make it through most or all of the Kingdom Hearts II major plot points. We'll see how that goes, and how much of a part Kaito steals from the show.

No real action, still. SG-1 doesn't lend itself very well to the heartless, but the characters demanded a fic. Daniel's voice started out the loudest, and then Jack weaseled his way into the main part. He's a sneaky one…

Ansem is starting to loosen up a little — exhaustion and the need for a comrade are beginning to lower his defenses. DiZ is off plotting somewhere, but the King might find our brave travelers sometime in the near future. Or they might find some hidden plots in a heartless-infested world. Look forward to it!

Questions? Comments? Worlds you want to see? Leave a review! Please?

10/06