It's Spriteing on the night that P.F.S.L. comes to visit their game, big, sticky droplets falling down onto their heads and P.F.S.L. scowls up at the sky. "Can't you make that stop?" he asks, sounding grumpy as Vanellope and Sour Bill lead up to the code. Vanellope has the piece of paper with the instructions clenched in her fist, terror filling her as they get closer to the thing that ruined her life for so long.
"No… I can't control the weather," Vanellope responds, trying to keep from being sarcastic. It's hard. Every inch of her wants to jump up on the branch and scream "Doy!" to him but she knows that she can't. She's the president princess now and she has duties. She giggles under her breath at the word and P.F.S.L. looks at her oddly.
"I'll check that in the code then," he says, taking the paper from her. Sour Bill hooks him up so that he can dive in and Vanellope stands still, wanting to step forward and wanting to step back. P.F.S.L. seems to understand her indecision and he grins, saluting her once. "I'll try to find your memories."
With that, he jumps and Vanellope rushes closer, watching as he swims through the code. He takes his time, searching through each individual strand and part, mumbling to himself as he looks them over. After a while, Vanellope sits down, looking at the ceiling and thinking about the responsibilities that she now faces. Sometimes, in the darkest parts of her, she wishes that she were back in her bed in the hot springs. She didn't have to worry when she was in there.
Taffyta joins her hours later, sitting down next to her, straightening her skirt but not saying a word. Vanellope takes comfort from her presence, not needing her memories to know that Taffyta had always been part of her reign. When it's nearing morning and the arcade will be opening, P.F.S.L. comes out, looking enthralled and Vanellope stands up, excited. "You found the memories?"
P.F.S.L. shakes his head though and Vanellope resists the urge to slump back against the wall. "No, unfortunately I didn't, kid. And if I didn't find it that means your memories aren't in there. Your code is fascinating though. Nearly as fascinating as the night that I went through both Fix-It Felix Jr.'s and Heroes Duty's codes."
"You've been through the other game's codes?" Vanellope asks, momentarily distracted by the games of her friends, feeling protective.
Shrugging, P.F.S.L. disconnects himself, waving away Sour Bill as the candy tries to help. "Helps with the line of work, kid. Seeing all the different codes is good for if a real emergency comes up."
Taffyta frowns at him, vocalizing what Vanellope had been distracted from. "If our memories aren't in there then where do we go from here?"
"You have a few options, kids. You can try to reset the game again, see if you forget that the memories are out there." Vanellope and Taffyta are shaking his head before he even finishes the sentence and so he holds up his hands in surrender. "Right, right. If you don't want to do that then you try to find them in some of the other games. If they've been taken out of your code then they could be anywhere. You'll recognize them as the parts of code though. You know what they look like?"
"You're not going to help us?" Vanellope asks, panic rising up her throat as P.F.S.L. shakes his head. "But-"
P.F.S.L. steps away from them, giving them a wave as he heads out of the castle, not waiting for them as they hurry after him. "Sorry, girls. Arcade's going to open and I have other things to do. I'm trying to entirely reprogram my game. Speaking of, your Sprite should be easier to dodge now. Good luck racing."
Vanellope and Taffyta don't stop following until they were out of the castle and Vanellope looks up at the sky. P.F.S.L. had separated the drops so they were further apart and, like he said, easier to doge. Vanellope wants to cry as a large drop of Sprite lands right in her face.
Racing that day is horrible. All Vanellope can think about is the memories. She dies and regenerates more times than she can count as she gets distracted, getting crushed by the gumballs, driving off the sugared ice slope and falling off the chocolate bridge. Taffyta just looks at her knowingly from the arcade screen and Vanellope doesn't look at anybody but her. She can't stand the looks of the concerned citizens.
When the arcade closes, Vanellope grabs Taffyta's wrist. "We're going to the other games. You heard him. We have to find our memories somewhere."
Taffyta's eyes widen as she looks at Vanellope, her face conveying the fear that she feels. Vanellope doesn't let herself feel the fear. She is fearless. At least, that's what she tries to convince herself of as she looks at her friend. "We can't do it alone."
"Then we'll ask Ralph. He'll help us. I bet Calhoun and Felix will too. That's enough, right?" Vanellope asks, hating how much the last word sounds like she's pleading. She feels like she's pleading.
Taffyta looks at her for a moment before she inclines her head, not saying another word. Vanellope doesn't say anything else, just smiles slightly and goes to ask.
Ralph says yes immediately when asked because he'd do anything for Vanellope and Vanellope is not afraid to take advantage of that. Calhoun says that it sounds like an adventure and she's in but Felix takes a while to convince. He's made no secret of the fact that he's extremely happy to be back in his game and, besides visits, he's not looking forward to leaving it again. When he knows that Calhoun is going without a doubt then he sighs and nods, giving in.
Planning doesn't take too long and Vanellope tells Sour Bill that he's in charge of Sugar Rush while she's gone. They will only be able to search the games while the arcade is closed. Vanellope and Taffyta aren't really needed as racers every day and one of the other soldiers could stand in for Calhoun but Felix and Ralph are needed for their game. Besides the fact that if racers saw them then there would be a catastrophe.
They examine the games that they are familiar with first, knowing that they'll spot anything that's out of the ordinary. Some of the citizens in the games help them and most of the games have very easy format. Pac-Man, for instance, only takes them a few minutes to look through. Vanellope enjoys the work and she says hi to everybody. She loves that she's able to leave her game now. She loves the other games.
Taffyta recognizes the joy on her face and she teases her about it, returning Vanellope's hug when Vanellope runs at her, overjoyed. When they've finally examined all the games that they can reach from Grand Central Station, they get trip permits which are granted almost immediately.
Grand Northern Station is a different world, one that Ralph and Felix can't join them in because it's a journey that has no promises of getting back in time for the arcade to open. Only unneeded characters who can prove they're not needed can go. Vanellope is surprised when Calhoun gets a permit as well. "Can't let two children go and look through games they've never been to by themselves," Calhoun says and they're both touched by the care for them.
"Well thank you," Vanellope says. For just a moment, she thinks that she should deny her, tell her to stay in her own game (especially because she's not a child but a teenager) but she's a bit worried so she keeps her mouth closed. The games in the other stations are different, some much newer and more violent. It'll be nice to have Calhoun by her side.
They leave the next day, with Sour Bill watching out for Sugar Rush and the end of the day race going on. Vanellope and Taffyta get ready for a new kind of adventure. Vanellope wants her memories and she'll do whatever it takes to get them.