I ran through the halls of Castle Oblivion, not really knowing where I was going. I knew I was being reckless in that I wasn't paying attention and that I could be caught any second, but I didn't care. A feeling in my chest seemed to be pulling me in a certain direction. I could only follow it and hope for the best.
I emerged into a large common room. To my right, there was an immense door. I had a strange feeling, and I felt a name flash through my head.
Sora.
It was him. He was close. I could feel it.
How could I talk to him? Somewhere that wasn't here. Maybe… maybe I could manipulate his mind so we could be somewhere else, in his memories. We would be safe there for the time being.
But where? The only place I knew of that was connected to him was the islands. That was it! I could place ourselves in a memory of the islands.
I sat down in the center of the room and closed my eyes. I focused intently on the high hill from my vision—I pictured the environment, the feel of the cool night air, all of the sensory traits I could. Anything that could make it feel more tangible.
Suddenly I was standing under a tree in part of my vision. But it was different than I'd imagined it. The hill was floating, and instead of a cool night we were hanging in a swirling, angry purple void. I looked at myself, quickly registering I was okay, and then looked up. My heart skipped a beat.
"I have to keep her safe. Naminé! Can you hear me?" The person turned around.
It was him. It was Sora.
He had a look of worry on his face. He was the same age as me, from the looks of it. Incredibly spikey brown hair, blue eyes that reminded me strikingly of my own. This was it. It was him.
Suddenly I remembered the dream from what seemed like a million years ago. The man on the horse, riding towards me, emanating a blinding light in the incessant darkness. The horse galloped full speed ahead and stopped in front of me. The man dismounted, and for the first time I could see his face. It was Sora.
He extended a trustful hand and smiled.
Suddenly I snapped out of my vision, an expression of incredible sadness coming across my face. The silver armor and horse melted away, but the sweet and trusting expression was still there. I felt horrible that I'd rewritten such an innocent boy's memories. Everything he held dear had been replaced by me.
"Naminé!" He yelled excitedly, running over to me. He extended his arms as if waiting for a hug, but I couldn't bear to do so.
"Sora! I knew it. You came for me." A small smile crossed my face. Despite everything, he'd battled through the castle to get here. All for me. He'd done so much for me, yet what had I done for him? I'd erased all his true memories and filled his head with false ones.
He nodded with a smile. He stepped forward and held my hand. "It's you! It's really you! I've been through so much just to see you!" He clasped my hand tightly, like he'd never let go.
"Yes. I wanted to see you too. But this isn't right. I messed up. I wanted to see you." I looked at the sand. He got closer, his face worried.
"But… this isn't the right way."
"Naminé?" He asked. His voice was sad and troubled.
"I was lonely for so long. I just… couldn't bear it anymore." I looked at the crown necklace hanging on his chest. I hadn't consciously acknowledged it, but ever since that dream had begun, ever since Marluxia had first said his name…. it wasn't all just to protect Roxas. I would never do anything to put Roxas in harm's way, but…. Ever since that first dream, I had longed for him. I had longed for another friend.
And in some strange way, he reminded me of Roxas. The first thing I'd noticed was the perfect blue eyes. But there was more. The way he acted, his voice…. It was like déjà vu. It was like having another Roxas. I'd played along with the traitors' plans so I could see Sora.
"So I called out to your heart and had you… come all the way out to this place. You came for me and I'm so… so happy, but…" I shook my head as emotion threatened to overwhelm me. "But, to your heart, I had to!"
"Don't worry." He said with a shrug. "I'm here because I promised to protect you."
"Sora…" I smiled, then looked down for a second to regain my composure. "Thank you. And I'm sorry." I pulled my hand away. His expression broke my heart.
"I'm not supposed to be… in this picture." Suddenly, I felt my consciousness being sucked out of my body. It was just an empty shell now, a ghost-me without a soul. I felt myself on the other side of him, and he turned around when I spoke.
"That's true." Sora gasped. "Naminé?" He asked, confused.
"That isn't me. I'm not there." It was true. As I spoke, my consciousness was being pulled two ways. Half of me was in the room back at the castle, empty except for the two of us, standing in a trance. The other half was here, with his consciousness, in this strange memory-dream-world.
"I don't really exist… inside your heart." Despite the fact that I was talking, the voice came from the other me twenty feet away.
"I don't exist in anybody's heart." Judging from him turning from the other Naminé back to me, my voice was alternating between the both of us.
"I never have existed anywhere." My voice was sad. I had no place in anyone's heart. I was alone.
But Roxas?
Well, I'm sure I never had a place in his heart, too. He could have been bluffing the entire time. Nobodies don't have true emotions, anyway. We can pretend that we do, but we'll never be Somebodies. We'll never be able to feel fear, or love, or… anything.
So the whole time, Roxas was just pretending to be kind to me so I wouldn't feel as bad.
"What—what are you saying?" Sora asked the both of me. "What's gotten into you? Weren't we inseperable? Always together?" He clasped his hands over his heart. "But then, you had to go away… I came here so I'd never lose you again!"
I shook my head. So I really was a witch, then, wasn't I? He completely believed all of the things I had drawn, all of the implanted memories…
"Was it really me… you wanted to see?" I asked, sadness permeating my voice. I was going to lose him as a friend, wasn't I?
"Of course it was! I know… I've forgotten a lot of things in this castle, but never anything about you!" He reached into his pocket. "Look! You gave this to me, didn't you?" He held the star charm. It was the exact copy of the one I'd dreamt about. The same one I'd 'given' him the night of the meteor shower.
"You have it! My good luck charm!" The other me exclaimed, taking on a life of her own.
"NO, SORA!" I yelled. "You can't believe me!" The other Naminé turned away.
"What am I supposed to do?" Sora asked, distressed.
"Think, Sora. Think just one more time." I willed him to think of Kairi. Please remember her, Sora. You have to. She's the true memory buried deep inside your heart, somewhere…
"About who's most special to you. Call out to that piece of memory that glimmers faintly deep inside your heart. No matter how far away the light gets, your heart's voice will always reach it."
"Who's most special to me?" He looked down at the good luck charm in his hand. "That's an easy one. It's you, Nami—what?" He was cut off before he finished my name as the star began to glow in his hand. It let off a blinding burst of light, and when the brightness had died down the star had changed. It was different now, some kind of shell-like object. Sora looked at the object in his hand with fascination and then at the other Naminé. She turned back, and for a second she transformed into the other girl, Kairi. As I saw her smile I felt myself lose my grasp on the memory-world and completely slip back into the room in Castle Oblivion. My knees buckled for a moment. The manipulation had weakened me slightly. I looked at Sora, whose face was still tranquil as he enjoyed the last few moments of the vision. Suddenly his blank expression turned determined as he fell out of the dream world and into the present.
"Naminé!" He cried, running to me. "It isn't you. The person most special to me… it's not you. Right?"
I sighed slightly, not loud enough for him to hear. "No. The girl you really care about—the one who's always with you—it's not me." I turned partially to look him in the eyes. "It's her."
"But then… who—who is she?" He questioned desperately. "Because I can't… think of her name. If she's so special to me, then why can't I remember?"
A pang of guilt hit me in the chest. It was all because of me he couldn't remember Kairi. It was all my fault, all my doing…
"Because…" I averted my eyes, knowing I wouldn't be able to look at him when I told him the truth. "I went into your memories and…"
"Let me explain this." I was cut off by a voice that seemed distantly familiar. I gasped a bit, looking towards the speaker. No more than thirty feet away stood a boy Sora's age. The trademark silver hair and piercing eyes matched exactly the boy Riku from my visions. Was this the real one, or the copy?
"Plain and simple." He walked towards us. When he reached me I flinched a bit, but he walked passed me and addressed Sora. "Your memory is a train wreck. You're not the one that's meant to protect Naminé!" He swiped his sword so it was blocking me from Sora. "It's supposed to be me!" He pointed his sword at Sora's face. I covered my mouth with my hands. This couldn't end well.
"But you and your messed-up memories are always in the way! Sora!"
Riku attacked Sora, and I moved out of the way as a short battle ensued. For a while it seemed as if Riku had the upper hand, but slowly and surely, Sora gained on him. I'd never seen such skill in fighting in my short life. A few minutes after the initial attack Sora hit Riku in the side. I winced as I heard a whoosh of breath from Riku and he fell to his knees, clutching his chest. Sora's keyblade disappeared and he ran over to Riku.
"Riku…" Despite the fact he'd just won the battle, Sora looked pained. He seemed like any second he was about to extend a hand and help Riku back up.
"Want some more? AH!" He yelled as I saw a ball of black and blue energy form in his hand. He threw it at Sora, who was knocked off his feet and now laid flat on his back.
"Sora!" I exclaimed in worry. My eyes followed the panting Riku as he stood up and stepped forward to stand at Sora's feet. With effort, the brown-haired boy sat up.
"Riku…" Sora seemed at a loss for what to say.
"Looks like I win." Riku's voice was somewhat smug.
"Riku! STOP!" I commanded. Any farther and Sora might get hurt.
He ignored me. "You are through!" Riku raised his sword, and prepared to bring it down on Sora.
"I SAID STOP!" I yelled, clutching my fists. All of a sudden I saw the copy fall to the ground, a stunned expression on his face.
"Riku?" Sora whispered hesitantly. "Riku? Riku!" He looked up at me.
"What did you do? What did you do to him!" Sora yelled at me. Tears welled up in my eyes. I couldn't answer, for I myself didn't even know what I had done.
All of a sudden Larxene materialized next to me via black portal. "Broke his heart. I'd say she more like smashed it, really."
"Smashed… his heart? Then… what's gonna… what's gonna happen to Riku?" Sora's voice was desperate.
Larxene laughed, sending chills down my spine. "Oh, you're so much fun to watch. If it's Riku you're worried about, then don't. Because… Riku was never really here."
"What do you mean?" Sora asked angrily.
"Do you really think I'm just gonna say it? That's too easy. Oh, what to do?"
"Quit the games!" Sora ran at her and swiped his keyblade, but missed. She kicked him square in the chest, sending him flying.
She sighed. "Alright, have it your way then. I know it'll kill you to hear this, but I think I can live with that." She smiled at her own sadistic humor.
"That thing lying there is just a puppet that Vexen made as an experiment. No more than a toy. It's laughable, really. It called you a fake, but it was a fabrication all along!"
"That Riku… a fake?"
"Fake in every possible way! It was only finished recently. How can it remember anything?" She knelt down next to the stunned replica and grabbed it by the neck. "You get it? Its memories of Naminé were just planted, not real." She threw the lifeless body off to the side of the room.
"Then…" Sora started.
"Yup, that means all this time it's been picking fights with you over memories that were counterfeit, trumped up, and completely bogus." She pivoted and stared at me. "Isn't that the truth, Naminé?" I couldn't answer. She walked closer to me and took my chin in her hand. "Oh, so cute! But behind this little face you do awful things." I twisted my face out of her hand.
Sora looked at me, sadness filling his eyes. "Naminé?"
"You're so stupid! Don't you get it now? That's what Naminé's powers are about. She can enter, rearrange, and even create new memories of anything, even things that never happened." It was the first time I'd ever heard a full description of my own abilities. How was I able to do all that through simply drawing?
"The girl you've been trying to protect all this time is really a manipulative witch who shackles people's hearts." My head shook slowly as the shame threatened to swallow me up. No! I didn't mean to…. I wouldn't have done it, Sora, if I had known better….
"Na… then… my memories are all…?"
"Oh, you do get it!" Larxene exclaimed. "Lies, lies, all lies. Just Naminé's illusions, nothing more. Binding you in the chains of your own memories was central to our trap. It makes me tingle to think how easily you were duped! So close to it, we were almost there. This was our only chance to turn the Keyblade Master into our puppet. But that jerk Axel… he used Naminé to betray us!" Her voice turned angry, and I heard a metallic sound as she summoned her kunai. "So now, I'm left with no choice but to eliminate you!" She started walking towards him.
"DON'T!" I cried, running in front of her and putting myself in between the two, my arms spread wide.
"Huh? It's a little late for the witch to grow a conscience." Her voice was like liquid acid. "Last time I checked, you're the one who fooled around with his memories, creating this mess! " As she spoke, my arms had started to sink. What she said was true. I had been the cause of all of this.
"I know, but…" I started to plead.
"I should tell you… that I'm in an extremely foul mood!" She gritted her teeth as lightning bursted around her. "Thanks to you, all our plans are RUINED!" She lifted an arm and knocked me on the side of the head. Her powerful blow was enough to knock me far away from the two of them, so much so that I was lying next to the Riku Replica.
"Naminé!" Sora called. Larxene's strike had left my head feeling jumbled. I curled into a fetal position as I tried to get my thoughts straight.
"What's this? Are you upset?" She giggled. "And you don't even actually know her!"
"Maybe not," Sora murmured, "But still…. I made a promise!"
"What?"
"A promise… I made to Naminé…to keep her safe. Maybe my memories are fake, but the promise is real to me!" I looked over to them with difficulty. Sora had managed to get to a standing position, but as I looked he stumbled. "That's why…. I'll keep it."
"You're such an idiot! There is no promise, and there never was! You're just delusional! Must you insist on playing the hero?" She paused as he looked up. "Whatever. If that's the way you want it, you're going down alone!" She raised her kunai in the air, but a shield thrown at her caught her off-guard.
Out of nowhere, I saw two creatures run up behind Sora.
"Not if we can stop you!" Yelled the shorter animal. A duck, from the looks of it, but it could talk and was wearing blue clothing. It carried a staff and I saw it cast some sort of spell over Sora that enabled him to finally stand up.
The other, a dog-like creature that stood on two legs, grabbed the shield as it came back like a boomerang. The two stood in front of Sora, whose expression rapidly became more surprised.
"Donald! Goofy!" Sora cried. "You found me!"
"Of course we did!" The taller one said. "We were worried about you."
"We promised! We promised we'd protect you!" The smaller one added.
Sora's face softened, a smile appearing.
The larger animal turned back to Larxene. "You won't ever be alone! It's always been the three of us, and we stick together!"
"And that is how it's going to stay!" Added the mage.
"Okay. Have it your way." Larxene's voice was cross. "More pain for you means more fun for me!" She brandished her kunai with a sinister smile.
As another battle ensued, my thoughts finally began to straighten out. I could move again. I rubbed my head, but I stayed on the floor as I tried to regain my consciousness. It felt like when Larxene hit me she'd given me Novacaine—I felt numb. Some of it was emotional, some was physical. After all the battling was done—that was, if Sora could win—what would happen to the two of us? What I'd done was so unjustifiable, so… would he be able to forgive me? I wouldn't blame him if he didn't.
I heard Larxene pant as she hit the floor. I slowly sat up to watch. She clutched her chest, doubling over in pain. "No," She whispered. "No! I refuse to lose… to such a bunch of losers!" She looked at her hand, as black smoke started to envelop her. "I'm fading… No, this isn't the way I… I won't allow!" She disappeared as the cloud of black smoke dispersed. Was she… eliminated?
Sora and his allies looked over to me. They walked forward, Sora hanging back the farthest.
"You must be Naminé!" The shield-wielding warrior said. "It's good to meet 'cha! We're friends of Sora's and my name is…"
"You're Goofy, and you're Donald." I finished. How did I know that? My mouth seemed to have taken a life of its own.
"Yeah, but how did you know that?" The duck, Donald, questioned.
"Congratulations, Sora! You finally found your friend! I'm so happy for ya!" Goofy was smiling, but Sora looked sad, distant. Goofy noticed this and started examining Sora's face. He still hadn't responded.
"Gee, there sure are a lot of questions." A small cricket on Sora's shoulder chirped. What was with all these animals wearing clothing?
"Naminé, I know this probably won't be easy for you, but could you tell us what happened?" The smallest animal asked. I looked up, at Sora. His eyes were still averted from me.
"Of course." I replied. It's the least I could do. The first step to set things right: the truth. "It's my fault, after all."
I stood up, slowly. I was still ashamed, but at least my confession might make me feel better, if only a little.
"I took the people in memories that were inside Sora's heart….and little by little, I replaced them with false memories."
"How? What about Sora's promise?" Donald asked.
"Made up. It was fake. Sora never really promised me anything. Me being with him on the islands, that was a lie. Just like everything else." Just like my whole life, my friends. I had surrounded myself, unknowingly, in lies.
"We never met. I was never Sora's friend." No matter how much I yearned to be.
"And you were never anything more, either." Sora spoke to me for the first time in a long while.
"No. You see, in all of your true memories… I was never really there."
"Gee, then that must mean it was your magic that made the rest of us lose our memories, too! Is there any way for us to ever get them back?" The cricket asked me.
"I can fix everything! If we go to the thirteenth floor." I could make things right. I could redraw everyone's memories, rewrite so everything was right again.
"But, Marluxia, he…" I couldn't finish the sentence. What would Marluxia do once he found me? I might not have the time to rewrite all of the memories. Such a tedious process, starting all over and redoing an entire fifteen year's worth of memories, not to mention Goofy's and Donald's too… it would take a while.
"I bet I know who that is! Was he the fella that made you tamper with all our memories?" The cricket asked.
"If I didn't obey… he said I'd be locked in this castle forever! I've been… alone for so long…" I remembered what it had been like before I'd awoken in the castle. It was worse than this. I had been… floating in darkness. Suspended in time. Alone… there was only silence… no one there but me….and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't speak, hear, see, move, breathe…. The darkness was everywhere. In my mouth, my eyes, choking me, swallowing me… I could never go back to that again.
"So you did what he told you to do because you were lonely?"
"I'm so sorry…" I said, on the verge of tears. I couldn't offer much else than my apologies, but I hoped he could understand the depth of my regret.
"Don't be!" Sora said, startling me. "Please don't cry!"
"Oh, of course." I wouldn't, if that's what he wanted. "I know I really don't have the right to." If someone here was most entitled to break down, it was him. He was the one who was alone right now… despite the three allies standing beside him, he had two best friends out there who cared for him very much, and he didn't even know where they were, and he couldn't even remember anything about the girl… not even her name…
"That's not what I meant!" Sora exclaimed, pain on his face. I looked from the floor back to him. "What?" He turned away and crossed his arms.
"It's like this: I'm really not happy with you messing with my memories, but… you know, I can't really get mad at you for it, either. These memories you gave me… in my head, I know they're lies, but they still feel right. Like the promise I made… I said I would protect you, and I wouldn't make you cry. Not ever. Naminé," He turned around to look me in the eyes. "If you cry now, I'll feel guilty! Like I let you down! So don't cry, please… until I get my memories back, smile, and… try to be happy. It's easier on me that way."
"Sora…" Why was he being so kind to me? I was used to the Nobodies, all of them acting so heartless…was this what all Somebodies were like? Or was it just Sora? Was he just special? I felt a connection to him that I'd never felt to anyone before… not quite the same as Roxas, but close. Part Roxas, part uniquely his own… it was hard to describe.
"Oh, brother, that's a bit much!" Donald remarked.
"It's okay! Sora always gets like this every time he gets around a girl!" Goofy replied, completely ignoring the fact the two of us were still standing right here.
"Aw, cut it out!" Sora said, half angry, half embarrassed. "I thought you both lost your memories too!"
Donald laughed. "Too bad! Good friends don't forget things like that!"
Goofy laughed heartily. I felt my face grow hot. Was I…blushing?
"Come on!" Sora said, a smile on his face.
I giggled. So this is what friendship was like? It seemed nice. I wished that I could have something like that, someday.
Sora's breath caught in his throat when he saw me laughing. "There! That's it! That's the Naminé I remember!" He paused, as if reminiscing. "Yeah, I really liked it when you used to smile. Of course, that was really only in my fake memories, but what I'm feeling now definitely isn't fake. It's real."
He…. He really did feel that way about me? After all I'd done? How could he be so completely forgiving?
"Thank you!" I said, clasping my hands over my heart. I couldn't have explained the feeling if I'd talked for an hour. Those two words described it in its entirety.
"Well then, let's go!" Sora said, looking to his two friends.
"Oh boy!" Donald responded excitedly. "I can't wait to get my memory back!"
"Naminé? Marluxia is gonna be up there, so maybe you better stay down here!" Goofy said.
"Yeah! Maybe you could look after Riku?" Sora added. "We'll come get you when it's over."
"Okay," I replied. They turned around and headed for the steps, waving. Donald and Goofy continued, but Sora turned back and stopped for a moment.
"Please be careful, Sora." I called after him. He smiled.
"I'll be okay. I promise." I watched him go, wishing them godspeed. Even after they were gone, I lingered, praying that they would be okay. Marluxia would prove to be a tough opponent.
I walked back to the side of the room and sat down next to the frozen replica. His face was still as it'd been when I smashed his heart. Frozen in fear, shock and disbelief….
All of a sudden, I wasn't sitting by Riku's side. I blinked, and as the flower petals and smoke around me dissipated, I was looking Axel straight in the eyes. A quick glance to my side showed me I was standing in front of Marluxia, his hand on my head.
"Is that your shield? Won't do you any good, I'm afraid." Axel said, looking at Marluxia. Shield? Marluxia was using me to stop Axel from attacking?
"I wonder," Marluxia's voice came from a few feet directly above me. "Are you listening, Sora?"
The huge door behind Axel opened and closed, and Sora stood there with Donald and Goofy flanking him.
"Oh?" Axel asked, glancing to Sora out of the corner of his eye.
"Axel says he's willing to harm Naminé to get me." Marluxia addressed Sora. "You won't let that happen, will you?"
Sora, let him do it. If it means killing me to get to Marluxia, let him kill me. Marluxia must be eliminated. The evil must be destroyed.
Sora brandished the Keyblade, and Donald and Goofy got ready to attack.
"Oh, come now. You're Marluxia's puppet already?" Axel snorted.
"After I finish you, he's next!" Sora shouted angrily.
Axel laughed. "Now, Sora, we've got more in common than you might think!" He turned around. "I'd really rather not fight you, but I can't dishonor the Organization, now can I?" He twirled his chakrams as they lit on fire.
Marluxia grabbed my wrist and pulled me to the side of the room, so we were out of the way. I watched the battle with worry. Two of my friends were fighting each other, and I didn't know how far they would go to win. Would Axel kill Sora, like he mercilessly eliminated Vexen? Would Sora have the heart to kill Axel?
"Come on," Marluxia whispered lowly. "We're leaving." He summoned a portal and pushed me into it before I had time to protest.
We were in another room, nearly identical to the one before us. The only appreciable difference was that instead of a set of large doors, this room's north side was connected to a hallway. It was dark, so much that I couldn't see the other end. We waited for several minutes for Sora to finish Axel and move on to here. I looked at my arm, noticing an ugly mark: a bruise had formed from when Larxene had kicked me….after I'd been dragged out of Roxas's room. I sighed. Roxas. I didn't want to think about him just yet. I couldn't tangle myself in this emotional spiderweb any more.
But… if Sora succeeded, what then? Would he take me back to the island? After he left the Castle, wouldn't he forget everything about me? And what about Roxas? Could I just leave here, knowing he would be staying behind?
My thinking was cut off by the sound of footsteps. Sora came into my sight, panting angrily. Goofy and Donald weren't far behind him.
"You defeated Axel." Marluxia chuckled evilly. "The Keyblade's power… how I've longed to make it my own."
"Let Naminé go!" Sora shouted.
"You've no chance of winning." Marluxia assured him. "Naminé," He placed a large hand on my shoulder, "erase Sora's memory."
I gasped. Erase? A mental image of Sora laying on the ground, his face twisted in frozen pain like the replica, flashed through my head. I shivered. I couldn't. I wouldn't.
Sora and his friends jumped back at the command. I pushed Marluxia's arm off me. "If I do that, then…." I questioned him. How could he even ask me of such a terrible thing?
"That's right. Sora's heart will be destroyed." Marluxia looked smug. Sora's face tightened in rage.
"His… heart, destroyed?" Goofy asked, worried.
"You can do that?" Donald asked, wide-eyed.
"I'd have preferred him unmarred, but he can be rebuilt more to my liking with time." Marluxia said. "Naminé, do it."
"NO!" I refused. Marluxia turned to me in dark surprise. "Sora forgave me even… when I deceived him. So how could I destroy his heart? There's no way!" I clenched my fists in anger.
"I don't care what happens to me. I won't hurt Sora! I won't do it!" I yelled, adamant in my decision. To get to Sora, he'd have to step over my dead body. I spread my arms wide in protection.
"Then you will—" Marluxia began.
"Do it, Naminé!" Sora yelled from behind me. Everyone in the room looked at him. I took in a sharp breath. Wh—what?
"I don't care! You can erase my memory!" Sora declared.
"Sora! Why'd you say that?" Goofy asked, distressed.
"Because… who will I look after if I don't have Naminé? So just do it! Erase my memories! Destory my heart! I promised… I'd always protect you! You have to believe me!"
"Sora!" I said.
"I don't need any memories to take on someone like Marluxia!" He remarked angrily.
"You bet!" Donald backed him up. "I bet if Sora forgets, he could still take you on! We'll still remember!"
"Donald's right! He and I can remember everything for Sora!"
"See? I'll have all my friends' memories. So I can piece my own together again!" Sora said.
"You ignorant fool. If Naminé uses her powers to erase your memory, you'll be nothing but an empty shell. Your heart will no longer be able to feel or to care. Just like Vexen's pathetic imitation of your Riku." I looked away. The crushed-heart Sora flashed through my mind once again.
"Take another guess!" A familiar voice came from behind Sora. I gasped as a dark portal spat out a fully-working Riku Replica. He pointed his sword straight at Marluxia as he was thrown through the air towards the taller man. I ran to stand next to Sora.
"It can't be!" Marluxia gaped.
"Riku!" Sora exclaimed.
"No." The replica responded. "Just an imitation."
"You're a shell! A shell who has had everything taken. Everything!" Marluxia said incredulously.
"What can you possibly think I ever had? Both my body and my heart are fake. But there is one memory I'll keep. Even if it's just a lie! Whether it was a phantom promise or not, I will…. protect Naminé!" He swung his sword angrily.
"Imbeciles," Marluxia growled. He extended his arm to the sky and a single petal floated down from nowhere. When it touched his hand, a flash of light and flower petals revealed his scythe, long and deadly. He waved the scythe and a small storm of dark matter and flower petals swirled around him. "You would knowingly shackle your heart with a chain of memories born of lies?" Sora gritted his teeth and prepared to battle Marluxia, the Keyblade glinting in the white Castle light.
"You would be one who has a heart, yet cast aside your heart's freedom?" Marluxia was really angry now. The Replica put an arm out in front of me.
"You turn from the truth because your heart is weak. You will never defeat me!" The floor began to shake.
"What's going on?" I asked. Sora growled. The Riku Replica readied his attack.
"He's mine," Sora whispered, and attacked Marluxia. I could only watch as they fought each other. Blow after blow, I cringed in anticipation. Every time Sora got hit, it felt like I did too. I could hardly bear to watch. I clung to the Replica to stop myself from joining the battle.
Sora swiped at Marluxia with the Keyblade, and right as he was going for his next attack, Marluxia disappeared in a shower of flower petals. All was quiet.
"Is he gone?" Donald asked Sora, who gave him a thumbs-up.
"You could say that," A bodyless voice answered. Everyone tensed in surprise as a dark portal formed. Marluxia was present again.
"However, what you destroyed was merely an illusion of me."
"Ah!" Sora snarled.
"So what?" the Riku Replica yelled, running to Marluxia and swiping at him with his sword. The sword merely cut through the image of Marluxia like smoke. He disappeared once again, only flower petals littering the ground.
"Another imitation," Growled the replica as we ran up to him. We all studied the large, heavily decorated set of white doors standing in front of us.
"He's really…. In there?" Sora asked.
"Yes." I said. Marluxia's power to replicate himself had been unknown to me before now.
"I knew it. I can feel his power. It's trying to destroy my heart." Sora said quietly.
"Gawrsh! We'll just take care of him together!"
"Sora! Come on!" Donald called.
Sora turned to the replica. "Riku? Protect Naminé."
He gasped a little. "You don't…. mind?"
Sora smiled a bit. "Should I?" They spent a long moment looking at each other.
"All right." The replica replied.
"Wish me luck!" Sora said as he headed for the door. He took a long breath and opened and closed the door. All was silent.
My eyes lingered on the door for a minute. Don't worry, Sora. I know you can do it.
"Is he going to be all right?" I asked Riku.
"I don't know," He confessed. "I don't know much about Sora, but I do know he has a strong heart. I think he can do it. I have faith in him."
All we could do is wait. I grew more anxious by the minute. Every second that ticked by, I knew Sora was fighting Marluxia. I played with my hands, twirled my hair, fiddled with the hem of my dress, anything to get my mind off of it. After seven minutes, I was starting to grow really worried.
Unable to stay silent any longer, I groaned. I laid flat on my back, and the replica looked at me in fascination.
"How can you sit still like this?" I questioned, propping myself up on my elbows. "Sora is in there, and he's fighting Marluxia, and he's taking so long and—" Riku held up a finger to quiet me.
"Sora will be fine. I'm sure of it." He turned back to the door and sat in wait. He was incredibly still, so much so that if I didn't see him blink every once in a while I wouldn't have even thought he was alive.
My heart leapt when I saw the door open wide. Sora came running out with Donald and Goofy, who closed the doors behind him.
He ran determinedly as I stood up, heading for the back of the room. Once he was halfway back, he pointed the Keyblade at the door. A shining light shone from its tip and a ray shot out towards the door, forming the image of a keyhole. The whole door lit up and then there was a giant flash. When I opened my eyes, all evidence that it had once been a pair of double doors was gone. The opening where the doors had been was just a wall now. Still decorated, but smooth as if it had always been a part of the castle. I couldn't believe my eyes.
"Are you okay, Riku?" Sora asked after a moment.
"I'm not Riku," He replied. "I'm a fake. I can't remember why I was created, or where, or when. All that's inside of me is time with you and Naminé. But I know… that those memories are not real." His face was melancholy.
"Gee, Naminé, can't you use your magic to put Riku's memory back to normal?" Goofy questioned me.
"Well, I…" I didn't know if that was possible.
"It's alright," The replica said. "I'll deal." He turned to walk away.
"Wait!" Sora called. He stopped.
"Who cares if someone created you? You're you, and nobody else! You have your own heart inside you! Those feelings and memories are yours, and yours alone! They're special!"
"Sora, you're a good guy. I don't have to be real to see how real your feelings are. That's good enough." He walked to the hall at the back of the room.
"Riku!" Sora said. This time the replica didn't stop. He just kept on walking until my eyes could no longer see him.
"Riku…" Sora watched him go, sadness filling his eyes. After a moment of silence, Donald addressed me.
"Can you put our memories back?"
"Yes. Not remembering something…. Doesn't really mean that it's gone."
"Whaddya mean?" Asked a confused Goofy.
"When you remember one thing, that leads to remembering another. And then another, and then another. Our memories… are connected. Many pieces are linked together- like they're in a chain… that makes up each of us. I don't actually erase any memories- just take apart the links and rearrange them. You still have all your memories."
The cricket appeared on Sora's shoulder. "So you can put 'em back together?" He questioned.
"Yes, but first I have to undo the chains of the memories I made on my own. After I've done that, I have to gather up the memories scattered across each of your hearts and then reconnect them. It might… take some time, but…. I think it might work. No… it will work. I'm sure." I smiled. "It's my turn to look after you."
"Alright." Sora smiled back. "We all really trust you."
"Oh… wait a second! You said you'd have to undo the links of the memories you made! But that means…" The cricket said.
"Yes. You won't be able to remember anything… about what happened here." I looked down sorrowfully. I wished it could be different, but it was the only way. If it meant losing my only friend to have him regain his true memories, then so be it.
"Not even you?" Sora asked unhappily.
"I'm sorry. It's the only way, I'm afraid." I turned around and walked towards the wall.
"Sora… you have a choice. You can lose your memories of this castle, and reclaim your old ones, or keep your memories here and give up the memories you've lost," I said quietly.
"Do I have to…. To choose?" He asked me, his voice soft with sadness.
"Yes." I nodded. He was silent while he thought. Some horribly selfish part of me wished that he'd choose the latter.
"Make me like I was."
I gulped down tears. "Oh. Okay. Nobody needs to keep a bunch of memories that aren't real, right?" I forced a smile. "You want to remember all the people who are… really important to you. Anybody…. Would choose that…" I closed my eyes and exhaled. It was the logical decision; I didn't understand why some part of me had been foolish enough to hope he'd pick me.
He was silent. "Follow me." I said, before I could hear his apologies and change my mind. I led him down a side hall and through a few others to a large room with a strange, egg-shaped structure in the center.
"To remember again, we have to sleep in that?" Donald asked skeptically.
"Yes," I answered. "It's going to take a little time, but I'll take care of you."
"Gawrsh, when we wake up, we won't remember who you are anymore!" Goofy said.
"But then how are we going to be able to thank you?" Donald added.
"Don't worry about that!" The cricket emerged from Sora's hood, holding a small book. "I'll just make a big note in my journal: and, it will say, thank Naminé!" Sora smiled.
"Oh, good! That makes me feel better." Donald said. Goofy nodded.
"Well, good night then, Naminé," Goofy said, waving.
"Good night, Goofy." The two of them waved at me and walked off to their respective pods.
"You too, Sora." I said, my attention turning to him.
"Okay," He said, and he began to climb into the large pod in the center.
"All of this…. May have started with a lie, but I really am glad that I could meet you, Sora." I smiled.
"Yeah. Me too. When I finally found you, and even when I remembered your name, I was happy." He turned back, letting go of the pod's extending petals.
"The way I felt then…that was no lie." He gave me a long, kind look straight in the eyes. And suddenly, I was glad he'd chosen this path. He had a long, good life ahead of him. A destiny to fulfill. And I was happy that I wasn't getting in the way of it.
"Goodbye," I said, savoring his kind eyes and gentle smile while I could.
"No, not goodbye!" He said. "When I wake up, I'll find you. And then, there will be…. No lies. We're gonna be friends for real. Promise me, Naminé."
"You're going to forget… making that promise." I predicted.
"If the chain of memories comes apart, the links will still be there, right? So the memory of our promise… will always be inside me somewhere. I'm sure of it."
"Yeah, you're right!" I said, suddenly happy. Even if he woke up and remembered nothing about me or what time we'd spent together, the memory would still lie somewhere deep within his heart. Always.
"Okay, it's a promise!" I said with a smile.
"Good. Until later," He smiled. We walked forward to meet each other. We both extended our pinky fingers and shook on it. Just like kids. Just the like past we'd never had.
But at least we'd have the future.
He waved and hopped into the pod without another word.
"A promise… huh." I examined my finger as if it held some kind of magic. "Sora, some of your memories' links are deep within the shadows of your heart. And I won't be able to find them. But don't worry… you made another promise to someone." The petals of the pod began to close as he turned around. "…Who you could never replace. She is your light- the light within the darkness. Remember her, and all the memories lost within the shadows of your heart will come into the light."
"Another promise." He pondered.
"Look at the good luck charm. I changed its shape when I changed your memory. When you thought of her just once, it went back to the way it was!"
He pulled the charm from his pocket and gave me one last glance before the petals closed, blocking him from my sight.
I could feel him slip from consciousness, into sleep. I closed my eyes and imagined myself in there with him. With a little effort, I found myself floating beside him in the darkness. He looked at the charm, and the ghostly images of a bunch of people appeared, including Riku and Kairi. He looked up, and his eyes lingered on Riku for a moment, but when he saw her, his whole face lit up.
"Kairi!" He called, overjoyed at the memory of her name. She smiled and nodded, and a flash of light changed the darkness and ghostly figures to a white background. The people became focused, clear and colorful. "My friends…" He whispered in joy. He looked to me. I could feel myself slowly slipping away as the need to begin the process grew more urgent. "Naminé?"
"Don't worry. You might forget about me, but with our promise, I can come back." I extended my little finger.
"A promise is a promise." He replied.
"Yes. One day, the light…. It will be ours, and it will bring us together. Till then, I will be in your heart." A single tear ran down my cheek.
"Right. Forgotten, but not lost."
