Now that Namine was about to erase what little remained of his memories of her, he was lost as to why he had chosen this in the first place. Namine was here in front of him—real, tangible—and he cared about her. But he knew these feelings were fake, fabricated, and the thought of losing what was real frightened him. In fact, as she approached him with outstretched hands, he was down-right terrified. What if he was no longer himself? Weren't memories what made a person themself? But he had already made his decision and her hands were already on his head. Memories wove and twined in the depths of his brain. Black overtook his vision.

"Namine!" he called happily when she entered the small drawing room. Everything was delicate about her as usual. He knew there were important things he should be doing, but here he was still within Castle Oblivion. She was fragile; he had to take care of her. At least that was what he told himself when the pang of guilt hit him. That was what he told Donald and Goofy when they left without him.

"Good morning, Sora," she said, a gentle smile plastered on her face. She gave him a soft kiss that made his head swim with longing. Catching her wrist, he pulled her down for a firmer one. Still smiling, she pulled away. "We should eat."

There was a glint in her eyes that he was unsure of. Was it guilt? What did she have to feel guilty about? He was the one staying put instead of saving the worlds. Regardless, it sat in those depths more often than not, putting a distance between them. "Yeah," he said, though his mouth felt dry.

When the food was gone and things felt right again, she said, "Thanks, Sora."

"For what?"

"For…staying with me."

He took her hand, feeling the delicate outline of her bones underneath. It would take little pressure to fracture them. Cradling it with care, he gave her a wide smile. "No need to thank me. I'll always choose you."

The glint was back, but now it was shallow, swimming behind the shine of held-back tears. She squeezed his hand, grasp tighter as if telling him that she wasn't as fragile as he thought. "I know."