Hello, fanfiction readers! This is my first Inside Out fanfiction. This story is based on a film of the same name, but plays out much differently.

To note: the emotions don't (physically) appear in this story. They certainly influence the actions of some characters, which is true for any story, but they're absent as characters for 3 reasons:

1. It would somewhat clash with the tone of the story.

2. Including them would seem a bit like filler and would be unneeded.

3. Most importantly, I wanted Riley herself to have something of an identity. This story is centered on her as a person, and her emotions are of influence, but Riley is ultimately the focus.

With that said, let's move on.

Kids World

In the year that Riley had been living in San Francisco, she'd been faced with many hardships; many ups and downs; but throughout it all, she'd always pulled through in the end.

She'd made many friends there, too; there were Harriet and Madison, a pair of girls hardly ever seen without each other. Harriet had blonde hair, like Riley, but it was a much lighter shade. She was a bit shorter than Riley, and thinner. Madison had dark skin and black hair, and she was about an inch taller than Riley was.

There was also Harold. Riley sometimes joked that he could've been her Minnesota friend Meg's fraternal twin. He had fuzzy red hair, freckles, and green glasses. Riley was taller than most of the kids her age, and Harold was no exception. He was actually older than Riley by a month, but many adults would look at the two together and think Riley was older.

In terms of personality, Harold was very cynical and depressing to talk to. However, Riley would always look to him for personal help when her parents weren't available, and usually, he'd willingly help.

However, the classmate that Riley had bonded with the most during her year at San Francisco was Annis. Annis had short auburn hair, which used to be red, and bright eyes. She was about an inch taller then everyone in her class, Riley included. She'd been the first person in the school Riley had befriended, and at times, Riley was reminded a bit of Meg when she was with her.

Then again, there was some times when Annis acted out a bit. Sometimes, she spoke when there was no need to, and she'd butt into things when she was not needed. She'd make an offensive comment occasionally, but she'd always apologize.

In short, things were looking up for Riley at San Francisco. It seemed that she would finally adapt to the city.

But then, everything went to Hell. In a way that nobody quite expected.

Two months. That was all it took.

Those who lived had a hard time piecing together exactly what happened. Survivors traced the epidemic to a chemical plant studying toxic gas. Somehow, accidentally or not, the gas got released.

The gas spread across the state, then the country, quickly. It stayed in the air for a few hours, then dissipated. It seemed like everything would be back to normal after it disappeared.

Then, adults and teenagers started dying off. Parents, workers, etc. It happened so quickly that nobody even had time to try and create a cure for what had happened.

For two months, the best dying parents could hope for was by trying to prepare their children to go on without them. Some parents even tried to teach their kids to handle 'grown-up' jobs. Other, more unhinged parents, simply took their children with them.

Why did the gas not affect the children? Most adults thought it had something to do with their varying immune systems. If that was the case, it was a bit of dying comfort for the parents, in their final moments, knowing that their children wouldn't be affected.

Then, after two months, it was all over. Throughout the entire country, the only ones who survived were those under the age of thirteen.

Most kids burnt the corpses throughout the city. Others simply dumped the bodies into the sea.

Riley didn't even consider those. She wanted to dignify the death of her own parents, who had tried to prepare her for a life without them. She took the bodies into the forest, and buried them as best as she could.

It took an hour, but she finally finished. When she was finished, she simply sat down at the tree she buried them at, reminiscing times with her parents she knew she'd never be able to relive. She wondered now, how she could possibly get on without her parents to guide her. It had been hard enough at San Francisco when they were alive, it seemed borderline impossible to move on now. She let a tear slip down her cheek.

When a hand rubbed Riley's shoulder, she barely reacted. Annis sat down next to Riley at the tree.

"Hey," She said quietly. Annis hadn't spoken to Riley for a month, since her own parents had died. Riley silently noted that Annis seemed to be in a better mood now.

"Uh, our friends are moving the kids in your neighborhood to this hotel," Annis explained, staring at the tree. "You'd want to join?"

Riley didn't answer. Secretly, she knew that was the option she'd pick. There was no way she'd stay in her own neighborhood, all alone. She quickly nodded.

"Hey, I know this seems bad, but you'll see, this will be so much fun," Annis unexpectedly said, which shocked Riley. She'd never, ever consider what was happening fun.

"Think about it," Annis said, wrapping her arm around Riley's shoulder. "A world without adults. There was a movie about that, right. It was called... Kid's World. Yeah, that's what this is. A Kid's World."

Riley guessed that Annis was trying to lighten the mood, but it had the opposite effect. Instead, Riley started crying again.

Annis realized the harmful things she was doing by having said that, and hugged Riley. "Hey, it's okay, Riley," She comforted her. "I'm sad, too. I was just trying to cheer both of us up."

Riley didn't say a word. She only cried into Annis' shoulder.

"It's okay to cry, Riley," Annis whispered as she hugged her. "It's okay. This will all turn out alright." Then, she started to whistle to Riley. It was something she would always do to ease her.

Admittedly, Riley felt better by crying. "Come on, smile for me," Annis said, putting a smile on her own face. Riley, in spite of her mixed feelings, put on a smile to appease Annis. The two girls got up.

"Come on, let's go," Annis said, holding Riley's hand. "You'll love the hotel."

As the two began to leave the forest, Annis began to chat non-stop. "There's a pool, and a hot tub, it'll be so great!" She said cheerfully. "I tell you, Riley, in a few months, you'll forget this ever happened."

Riley briefly turned back to the place where she buried her parents. She didn't want to forget about them. That would be the worse thing ever.

But, she didn't want to disappoint Annis. So, she turned away from the grave, and followed Annis out from the forest.

End of Chapter One

You wouldn't believe how hard it was to write this. If it seems mean-spirited or a bit weird, I promise you, this story will pick up. I simply wanted a way to get the adults out of the situation, to see how the children would handle things.

Reviews are appreciated, as are constructive criticisms. No flames, please.