AUTHOR'S NOTE

Whelp. First fanfic. Gonna leave a little disclaimer here and say that Inside Out belongs to Disney-PIXAR. Little unsure as to my characterization as well as some dialogue meant to parallel the movie, so feel free to leave a review. Good, bad, doesn't matter. Every little bit counts.

Fate is a funny thing.

Most people like to believe that they're the master of their own destinies. They believe that they can accomplish anything they put their minds to, corrupt the inevitable in their favor. Regardless of whether or not they have any chance of swimming with the sharks, they'll willingly dive in and expect to come out in one piece.

Fate is what guides us on the path of life, through thick and thin, leaving us none the wiser to its' invisible presence. However, what if fate wasn't some unseen force? What if it had its' own hopes and dreams, its' own strenghts and weaknesses?

What if fate didn't want to be in control anymore?

The story you're about to read may ring familiar to a fable you've heard before, yet nothing like it. It is the story of a girl who has to realize that life isn't peaches and cream, and the story of a woman who has to lose everything in order to get what she needs most. This is a story that, while different, rings alike with its' companion in that they both start with one question.

"Do you ever look at someone and wonder,"What is going on inside their head?"

I remember when it all started.

The day I-...er...Riley was born.

Darkness.

An infinite canvas of tarish black nothing, No beginning, no end, no...nothing. If you ended up in there, there'd be nothing. Pure, unfiltered, concentrated nothing. Practically, a static black hole by any comparison.

Then, there was light.

Clusters and pricks of energy, as radiant as the rays of our golden sun, started to emerge. They floated aimlessly for a few seconds, like cosmic jellyfish in an atheial void, sentience not yet an aspect of their existence. Mere moments later, they started to cluster together, swirling into a burst of cosmic energy like no man has ever seen with their naked eyes before. The energy kept rushing around itself, a whirlwind spinning faster, faster, faster, until...

Light consumed the dark for only a few seconds, leaving as soon as it had made its' presence known. In its' wake, it left behind something greater than darkness.

It left Joy.

It was so exciting! I mean, not as exciting as when managed to get our first goal in hockey- trust me, NOTHING'S ever going to beat that one- but this was definately something for the record books.

I remember what it felt like when I was...made. You ever get that feeling, the one where you know something good's around the corner, and you know it's coming, and when it happens, you feel like nothing could ever go wrong? That's what it felt like when I came in. But that's not the best part about that day...

The woman, taking note of her light green floral dress and skin as yellow as a freshly bloomed sunflower basking under the first golden rays of spring, noticed something off in the distance before her, almost beckoning to her like a flame to a moth. Her aura illuminated her every step as if she were a living lightbulb.

I don't know what drew me to the console- if you could call it that. I mean, when I first came around, it was just a button! You could barely fit anybody else around it! It was almost as if it were meant for only one of us...

She makes her way to the small white pedistal, a large circular button at center stage.

It looked so inviting! I mean, nobody else was there to push it. Call it curiousity, but if nobody else was going to do it, I felt obligated to see just what it did.

The woman lays a single hand upon the button. She takes a breath, looking down at the podium.

Click.

Instantaneously, the podium begins to glow a vibrant yellow as the large expanse of nothing rots away to unveil a large image, floating in the void. The gentle laughter of a newborn is heard as the picture comes into focus. It shows the faces of a man and woman. The woman's long brown hair was relatively unkempt, her complexion a tired albeit glowing red. She wore a colored set of glasses, a shade Joy couldn't exactly reconize at the time.

The man looked slim, his shorter hair equally tatered. His slim face ended in a broad chin that was accompanied by a moustache almost resembling the harriest of catterpillars.

"There she is.." the woman coos, her tone soft and comforting, in a sense.

"Hey Riley," the man softly exclaims, as to not disturb the bundle in his wife's arms. "We're your parents!"

Joy takes her hand off of the button for a moment, looking at herself.

I remember the first time I saw Mom and Dad. They looked so peaceful, so calm. Thoughts raced through my head at a million miles per hour. Who were these people? What's going on?

And then, they spoke. They said her name.

Riley.

Was..was that my name? And if so, were these beautiful people my parents? I mean, the resemblance was a little off, but this was a mind-shattering revelation. I-I had to talk to them!

"You are?"

No response.

"Hello?!"

Nothing.

Joy leaves her post at the button and walks towards the screen, an expression of confusion and slight fear on her face. The people on the viewscreen continue to coo at camera. She stands at the projection's screen, looking up at the massive faces.

"Hell-ooo! I'm right here! It's me, Riley...right?"

It was a trying moment to say the least. They were literally inches away from me. No matter how loud I yelled, how much I could do...they couldn't hear me. Not a peep...

"Come on! What do I have to-"

Joy looks back at the pedistal, an odd idea popping into her head as she scampers her way back to the button.

At that point, I had realized something. If they couldn't hear me...

Joy pushes the button once again, the distinct giggling she had heard moments prior starts up again. A distinct grin grows across her face as she pushes harder into the button.

And in that moment, something unique happened. A light yellow orb pops into existance, slotting itself into a track that corrodes away at the void, leaving behind a vibrant shifting colorscape behind her.

The first memory orb! You could feel the energy in the air, the sheer possibilities coming to mind! I left the console for a moment just to get a look at the thing...

Suddenly, the shrill, eardrum-piercing cries of an infant started to droll out. Joy turns to face the console.

...And that's when things got complicated.

Standing at the console was a short and stout woman, her short arms barely reaching the button. Her woolen sweater, white as the clouds in the skies, raised slightly as she reached.

Joy quickly runs over to the little lady, trying to get her attention.

"...Excuse me? What are you-"

The blue invader looks up to Joy, taking her hand off of the console for a moment.

"Are you Joy?"

Joy gives a look of confused concern.

"Actually...My name is-"

The woman holds a hand out.

"Sadness."

Things only got more complicated from there. Over time, we got upgrades to the console, Headquarters, Heck, the Personality Islands are beyond description! Not to mention the other emotions who started coming in!

Fear, Digust, Anger, it always seemed as if Headquarters was growing every day! Quite literally, in some cases.

But..

I still have thoughts. Thoughts, that bring me back to the day Riley born.

I think about what it'd be like...

...What it'd be like

To be her.

I mean, I'm Riley's Joy! I'm the part of her that makes her happy, brings the spark to her life! Not to gloat, but I've made sure to control whenever I could so she could be happy...

But I want to be there. I want to feel what she feels! I want to be there, taste things I've never tasted, smell smells that I've never smelled in Headquarters.

I want to talk to Mom and Dad in person.

...

Overall, she's happy. We're happy! Everything is in its' right place, and life couldn't be better!

Besides, Riley's 11 now. What could possibly go wrong?