Ah boy ok time for the second Coco chapter which, no lies I kinda had writer's block with this one, so if you find that it sticks a little too close to the movie at points... that's why. But hey, Coco is a pretty strong movie on its own so if it ain't broke, don't really fix it? Anyway, let's get started! (UPDATED 11/7/20)


Chapter 30: Recuérdame

Remember me
Though I have to say goodbye
Remember me
Don't let it make you cry
For even when I'm far away, I hold you in my heart
I sing a secret song to you each night we are apart

By the time Sora, Donald, and Goofy make it to de la Cruz's tower, the musician's fiesta has cooled down a bit, with the dense crowds of attendees starting to thin out as the night wears on. As a result, the tight security surrounding the mansion has also loosened a little, allowing the trio to sneak in through an unguarded back door. They're met with a lengthy staircase to ascend to get to the mansion's main floor, one that they tackle with haste in the hope that they aren't already too late.

"I wonder if Héctor's already caught up to Miguel by now," Goofy muses as they continue scaling the seemingly endless stairs.

"Hopefully, he has," Donald says. "After all, there's only a few hours left until sunrise. He's running out of time."

"Once Miguel takes his photo home and we figure out a way to keep him from being forgotten, he won't be," Sora chimes in, trying his best to focus on the conversation at hand. Even though the girl in the black coat continues showing up in his field of vision every now and again, silently reminding him of someone else he wants to help, but is still so ill-equipped to do so. At least at the moment. "And hey, maybe helping Héctor out will help us get ahold of that Key."

"That sure would be convenient," Donald notes somewhat dryly.

"Well, if it doesn't, then maybe we could ask Mr. de la Cruz for help," Goofy suggests. "He does seem to be pretty famous in these parts, after all. Maybe he could help us figure out our way around here so we can find it."

"Just as long as we find it before Xigbar does," Sora says, resolved.

"And just as long as he doesn't get his hands on it after we do," Donald adds in yet another reference to the Key they'd recently lost in Corona. A grim reminder that Sora in particular isn't bound to forget anytime soon, though not for a lack of trying to.

After what feels like hours of traversing the lengthy spiral staircase, eventually the trio makes it to the main floor of the mansion. They emerge into its grand ballroom, which is more or less empty now as the remaining party guests are enjoying the booming fireworks show from the balcony outside. As a result, the hall is only really dimly lit by the collection of black and white film clips projected along its upper halls, testaments to the illustrious career de la Cruz had in life prior to his death. As the trio wanders into the grandiose ballroom from one of its side entrances, they notice a particular pair coming down the staircase on the far end of the room. Thinking they might be security guards on patrol, the trio quickly takes cover behind one of the several large pillars lining the room, only to catch onto the ongoing conversation between the pair even from a sizable distance away.

"Soon, the party will move across town for my Sunrise Spectacular," the tall, well-dressed skeleton proclaims as he walks alongside the smaller figure accompanying him. "Miguel, you must come to the show! You will be my guest of honor!"

"Miguel!" Sora gasps. He moves to step out into the open until Donald quickly pulls him back.

"Hold on!" the magician warns in a harsh whisper, knowing it's wiser to get further context for what's going on first.

"You mean it?!" Miguel exclaims with obvious delight to the man. The man who, without a doubt, has to be his legendary great-grandfather.

"Of course, my boy!" Ernesto warmly agrees.

While Miguel would love to accept the honor of seeing Ernesto de la Cruz himself perform in person, he ultimately receives a prompt reminder as to why he can't the moment he steals a brief glance at his clearly skeletal hands. "I… can't," he sighs, lifting his jacket and shirt up to reveal his similarly bony torso, his skin fading more and more by the moment. "I have to get home before sunrise… o-or else…"

"Oy! I really do need to get you home…" Ernesto frowns in apt concern over the boy's deathly condition. The musician wastes no time in heading over to a nearby vase, plucking one of the several marigold petals from it so he can perform the well-known family blessing Miguel desperately needs. "It has been an honor," the musician says fondly as he walks back over to the boy. "I am sorry to see you go, Miguel. I hope you die very soon." An awkward beat of silence ppasses as Miguel sends him an alarmed look, one that Ernesto eases with a small chuckle. "You know what I mean. Now," he kneels down to the boy's level, holding the petal up to carry out the special ritual. "Miguel, I give you my bless-"

"Wait!" Sora shouts, knowing that they don't have any more time to sit on the sidelines and watch. Donald and Goofy have no choice but to follow as he bolts out from behind the pillar, all three of them rushing across the length of the ballroom to stop de la Cruz's blessing just shy of him giving it.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" Miguel spins around with a surprised smile as he spots the trio.

"Let me guess," Ernesto chimes in with an amused grin over the boy's excitement. "Friends of yours?"

"Yeah," Miguel nods enthusiastically before he turns back to the trio. "I can't believe you guys are here! And just in time too; there's someone I'd like you to meet. This is my great-great grandfather, the Ernesto de la Cruz!"

"It's a real honor to meet you, sir," Goofy says, offering the musician a polite nod.

"Yeah, Miguel's told us a lot of great things about you," Sora adds with a bright smile.

"Ah, well, the honor is all mine," Ernesto gives the trio a cordial grin and a small bow. "After all, any friends of my great-great grandson are friends of mine. Unfortunately…" his smile falls as he glances at the petal in his hand. "You've come at a bit of a bad time. I was just about to send Miguel back to the Land of the Living. As I'm sure you know, he doesn't have much time left to lose."

"Wait, Miguel, you can't leave just yet," Sora interjects urgently. "We still have to help-"

"You have to help me, chamaco!" A familiar, obviously angry voice echoes through the hall. Startled, the entire group turns to see a skeletal figure standing in the shadows of one of the nearby archways. "We had a deal, remember?"

"Who are you?" Ernesto questions, eying the silhouette suspiciously. "What is the meaning of this?"

The unknown figure steps into the light, revealing someone who surprises everyone present, though largely for different reasons across the board. "Héctor!" Sora, Donald, and Goofy exclaim in shared relief that he's made it on time. Miguel, on the other hand, flinches as Héctor approaches, his frustrated sights set on him as he continues his harsh accusations.

"You said you'd take back my photo! You promised, Miguel!"

"...You boys… know this, uh... man?" Ernesto spares a brief glance at Miguel and the trio before frowning back at Héctor.

"Y-yeah," Miguel nods hesitantly as the musician places a protective pair of hands on his shoulders. "We all just met him tonight. He said he knew you."

Ernesto stills at this, his eyes widening with recognition as he looks to the much more worn skeleton standing before him. "...H-Héctor…?" he muttered incredulously, though none of the others really hear him.

"Wait so… is that why you guys came all the way here….?" Miguel asks the trio with a worried frown.

"Yeah," Sora nods solemnly. "We wanted to make sure you went back with his photo."

"So you could put it up before the night's over," Donald adds.

"And he can finally have a chance to cross the bridge," Goofy finishes with a hopeful smile.

"B-but.. But I-"

"Miguel, please," Héctor pulls the picture out of his vest and holds it out to the boy. His expression is weary, tired, telling of just how close he is to being faded and forgotten altogether. "Just… put my photo up, that's all I ask…"

Miguel wavers at this desperate plea, knowing that he can't very well tell Héctor no, not when he indeed made a promise that he can very easily keep. And yet, before he can reach out to grab the photo, Ernesto suddenly intercepts it instead.

"My friend…" the musician begins. He frowns as he looks between the smiling picture and the saddened skeleton before him. "Y-you're being forgotten…"

"And who's fault is that?!" Héctor snaps in sudden anger. "Those were my songs you took! My songs that made you famous!"

"W-what?" Miguel raises a confused eyebrow, the trio mirroring his bewilderment at such a brazen accusation.

"If I'm being forgotten, then it's because you never told anyone that I wrote them!" Héctor exclaims hotly.

"B-but… that's crazy," Miguel speaks up, shaking his head. "De la Cruz wrote all his own songs…"

"You want to tell him?" Héctor shoots Ernesto a critical look at this. "Or should I?"

"Héctor," Ernesto says, his tone calm and even. "I never meant to take credit. We made a great team, but… you died, a-and I only sang your songs because I wanted to keep part of you alive!"

"Oh, how generous," Héctor scoffs coldly as he turns away from his former partner.

"...You really did play together…" Miguel mutters, stunned that Héctor really has been telling the truth all along.

"So… if you guys used to be friends, then… did something happen to change all that before Héctor died?" Sora asks, wondering if there's more to this conflict. After all, based on how upset Héctor seems to be and how oddly nonchalant Ernesto is coming across, it wouldn't have been very surprising if there is.

Héctor pauses at this, glaring over his shoulder at Ernesto, who only lets out a steadying sigh as he keeps his grip on his former friend's photo. "T-that… doesn't matter."

"No, it doesn't," Héctor surprisingly agrees. "I don't wanna fight about this. I just want you to make it right. Miguel can put my photo up-"

"Héctor-"

"And I can cross over the bridge. I can see my girl." Héctor stops as Ernesto takes a step away, still not handing the photo over as he looks over it in apparent hesitation. Almost as if he doesn't want his friend to achieve his last lone desire after all. "Ernesto…" Héctor sighs morosely. "Remember the night I left?"

"That was… a long time ago."

"We drank together and you told me you would move heaven and earth for your amigo. Well, I'm asking you to now. Please."

"...Heaven and earth?" Miguel pipes up in newfound curious realization. "Like the movie?"

"What?"

"That's… Don Hidalgo's toast," Miguel explains, his practically encyclopedic knowledge on de la Cruz's filmography serving him well. "In the de la Cruz movie, El Camino A Casa."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Donald asks, Sora and Goofy similarly confused.

"It doesn't," Héctor shakes his head incredulously. "I'm talking about my real life here, Miguel."

"N-no, it's in there," Miguel insists, glancing around the film clips playing throughout the room before spotting the moment in question. "Look!"

Sure enough, one of the projections depicts de la Cruz in the midst of a toast with one of the film's characters. A toast that sure enough includes the exact same phrase Héctor had mentioned before: "To our friendship! I would move heaven and earth for you, mi amigo!"

"B-but in the movie," Miguel continues to explain. "Don Hidalgo poisons the drink…"

The pair on screen toast, though as de la Cruz downs his shot, he quickly spits it out, realizing that it's indeed poisoned. And as Héctor watches this all too familiar scene play out, he can't help but reach the exact same ominous thought Miguel had before him. "T-that night, Ernesto…" he begins softly, somewhat shaken. "The night I left… We'd been performing on the road for months. I got homesick… and I packed up my songs. You begged me to stay, you said you couldn't achieve your dream without my songs… But I insisted on going home, back to my family. Then… you offered to send me off with a toast… Y-you even poured the drinks…" Héctor tenses, the dawning, dreadful realization hitting him hard as he finally begins to unravel a mystery that has plagued him ever since his arrival in the Land of the Dead. "After that… you walked me to the train station… But I felt a horrible pain in my stomach. I thought it must have been something I ate… or… something I drank… I collapsed, and then… I woke up dead…" He pauses, only for a moment until he delivers the truth of the matter, however awful and unthinkable as it might be. "You poisoned me."

Miguel lets out a soft, startled gasp at this and at the same time, Sora stumbles back, relying on Donald and Goofy to support him as he reels from the mere thought of another twisted case of malicious poisoning and all of the unpleasant associations he has with it. After all, even while the poison Maleficent had inflicted upon him fortunately hadn't been fatal as what Héctor suffered from had, he understands all too well just how horrific such an affliction is on any scale, deadly or otherwise. Just as much as he's terrified at the mere possibility of it somehow happening to him again.

Even so, Ernesto maintains a cool head as he tries his best to de-escalate the situation. "Y-you're confusing movies with reality, Héctor."

"All this time I thought it was just bad luck…" Héctor shakes his head, his voice still quiet as the full weight of the truth falls over him. "I-I never thought that you might have… t-that you…"

In an instant, shock turns to fury as Héctor suddenly lunges at Ernesto with an enraged shout, knocking him to the ground. The most Sora, Donald, Goofy, or Miguel can do is watch as the pair grapple for a moment, with Héctor angrily trying to land a punch against his alleged murderer all the while.

"How could you?!" he yells, rage rising in him over the thought of the life he'd lost, the years he'd never got to have because of this man's greed alone. Even so, Ernesto doesn't care to answer, instead calling for his security staff as he narrowly avoids the brunt of Héctor's feverish attacks. "You took everything away from me! You rat!"

What happens next is far too fast for either Miguel or the trio to even try to intervene. A group of de la Cruz's bulky security guards rush in, easily pulling Héctor off of Ernesto, despite the former's attempts at struggling from their steady hold on his bones.

"Have him taken care of," Ernesto instructs his guards. "He is not well."

The guards do as they're told, dragging Héctor through a nearby door despite his desperate attempts at breaking free. "N-no!" he cries as he's carried out of the room. "I just wanted to go home! No!"

Upon watching all this, the trio make the first move to go after Héctor, at least until Ernesto speaks up to quell their clear concern. "Ah, m-my apologies for all that, mi amigos," he says, his tone still relaxed as he readjusts his disheveled suit jacket. "But I can assure you that there is nothing to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about?" Sora scoffs crossly as he turns to face the musician again. "Are you kidding? You poisoned Héctor!"

"Now, now, mijo, I did no such thing," Ernesto continues, shaking his head. "I was there the night Héctor passed away. It was truly tragic; I would have done anything in my power to save him if I could have. But unfortunately, there was nothing I could have done."

"Yeah, nothing but take him out of the picture yourself," Donald accuses with a bitter scowl.

"And then steal the songs that he wrote!" Goofy adds, just as incensed.

"Certainly you three don't believe such a ridiculous accusation," Ernesto lets out an almost nervous chuckle as he glances over at the boy standing beside him. "Miguel, of course you don't believe it. Do you?"

Miguel flinches as the musician's expression turns serious, his uncertainty and anxiety over this situation as a whole rising by the second. He briefly looks at the trio, all three of them shaking their heads with the silent warning that Ernesto is not to be trusted after what they'd just heard. A warning that Miguel can't help but agree with to some extent, yet for the sake of his only way back home, he decides to play it safe, at least for now. "Uh, n-no! E-everyone… knows you're the… the good guy…"

Despite his best efforts to hide it, Ernesto easily hears the doubt in the boy's tone. His expression is unreadable as he looks first to Miguel, then to the trio glaring him down scornfully, and then to the faded photo still in his hands. Miguel winces as he watches the musician fold that photo up and slip it into his suit pocket, essentially taking away any remaining chances Héctor might have had to make it back to the Land of the Living. Even so, he can only hope it isn't too late for him to do the same. "Papá Ernesto?" he ventures nervously, though even that show of familial respect sounds wrong now. "Y-you were about to give me your blessing… r-remember?"

For a moment, Ernesto looks at the marigold petal in his hand, Miguel's last ticket home, his last ticket back into life itself. And then, in a cold, deliberate move, he crushes the petal completely. "Security!" he calls a brand new pack of suited guards, catching the others completely off guard. "Take care of Miguel and his… friends. The boy will be extending his stay."

"W-what?!" Miguel gasps as two of the guards swiftly grab him. Likewise, even more pile onto Sora, Donald, and Goofy, restraining them before they can even think to summon their weapons to stop this seige. "B-but I'm your family!" Miguel cries as the guards drag both him and the trio away.

"And Héctor was my best friend," Ernesto callously shrugs, essentially admitting his guilt. Not that he actually feels guilty about it in the slightest.

"So you did kill him!" Sora exclaims in apt anger as he tries pulling away from the guards holding him. Donald and Goofy attempt to do the same.

"B-but why?" Miguel asks, distraught. "H-he was your best friend; was it really worth it just to get his songs?!"

"Success doesn't come for free, Miguel," Ernesto replies with a rather smug smile, walking away while Miguel and the trio are hauled off against their will. "You have to be willing to do whatever it takes to… seize your moment. I know you understand."

With that, the musician turns away, satisfied that his renowned reputation will be secure with the disposal of the only ones who could stand to ruin it. The only ones who know about the murderous secret he's been keeping for decades, and will gladly continue to do so for as long as time allows. And fortunately for de la Cruz, he has all the time in the afterlife at his disposal to do exactly that.


The guards drag the group out of the mansion, out to a large, wide pit tucked away out of sight at the back of the estate. Much like de la Cruz himself, they show no regard for any of their pleas or resistance as they simply toss all four of them into the cenote, a deep, largely inescapable sinkhole with a vast pool of water at the bottom. Miguel hits the water first, the trio splashing in soon after and barely managing to keep their boney forms held together until they manage to surface. Amidst their mutual alarm, Sora is the first to notice Miguel struggling to stay afloat, so he wastes no time in rushing over to the boy to help pull him over to the small stony island at the center of the pit. By the time Donald and Goofy make it to shore, Miguel is still in the middle of coughing up the water he'd accidentally swallowed, still relatively in a state of shock after everything that just happened. Shock that is completely understandable given just how abruptly things have been turned on their head completely.

"Miguel," Sora kneels down to the boy's level, placing a comforting hand on his back in the hopes of calming him down. "Are you ok?"

Miguel sniffles, tears streaming down his face as he shakes his head morosely. "N-no, I'm not!" he cries truthfully, leaning against the older boy for support. "I-I've spent my whole life looking up to de la Cruz, only to find out that he… he killed someone! A-and now… without his blessing, I… I'm gonna…" He trails off, choking on a sob as he stares down at his shaking skeletal hands. The rest of his body is starting to show a similar skeletal appearance, a clear sign that he doesn't have much time left before his deadly fate is sealed.

"Aw, shucks, we're not about to let that happen to you, Miguel," Goofy says with a sympathetic frown.

"Yeah!" Donald chimes in much more adamantly. "We'll get out of here and get you that blessing, even if we have to make de la Cruz give it to you!"

"I-I don't want his blessing anymore!" Miguel protests tearfully, shame filling his tone. "I just… I just want to go home…"

"And we'll get you home," Sora assures, though his confidence slips as soon as he glances up at the cenote's only exit far above them. "Somehow…" He stills, however, caught off guard once again by the lone figure standing at the upper edge of the hole: none other than the girl in the black coat, still following him in a way that only he can see. Still giving him an unspoken reminder that Miguel is far from the only person who needs his help.

The entire group is startled as they realize they aren't alone in the pit. None other than Héctor stumbles forward out of the shadows, weak and weary to the point that he can't even stand as he clumsily stumbles to the ground.

"Héctor!" Miguel jumps to his feet, rushing over to help the ailing skeleton with the trio not far behind. Héctor only has the briefest amount of time to glance up and hobble to his feet before Miguel crashes into him, throwing his arms around his boney waist as he lets out another heavy, guilt-ridden sob. "Héctor, y-you were right! I should have gone back to my family-"

"Whoa, hey, now, it's ok-" Héctor attempts to calm the distraught boy, but he's far too stricken by grief and panic to stop now.

"T-they told me not to be like de la Cruz, a-and I didn't listen," Miguel weakly wipes some of his tears away. "I told them I didn't care if they remembered me. T-that I didn't care if I was on their stupid ofrenda!"

"Hey, chamaco," Héctor eases the whimpering boy into a gentle embrace, sparing the trio a brief, mutually worried glance over his daunting plight. "It's ok…"

"I-I… told them I didn't care…" Miguel mumbles again, his voice still heavy with remorse and regret. Both of those things are quickly cast aside however as a golden flicker flickers through Héctor's bones, his body trembling involuntarily as he suddenly falls back onto the ground with a pained groan.

"Héctor!" Miguel and the trio exclaim in frightened unison as they all rush over to help him.

"I-it's happening… isn't it?" Sora dares to ask, knowing he doesn't have to be specific about exactly what.

"Si…" Héctor nods gravely, glancing up at the night sky high above the cenote in immense anguish. "She's forgetting me…"

"W-who?" Miguel asks, concerned.

"My daughter…" Héctor sighs, closing his eyes sadly. "She's why I wanted to cross the bridge. I just… wanted to see her again… I should have never left her to begin with. I wish I could apologize. I wish I could tell her that her papá was trying to come home… That he loved her so much… My Coco…"

While the trio stands by in solemn silence at this, Miguel's eyes widen upon hearing this familiar name. "Coco…?" he whispers, slowly reaching into his jacket to pull out a photo . Carefully, he presents the weathered picture to Héctor, an image of a woman, her young daughter, and a man whose face had been torn off of the photo entirely.

"W-where… did you get this?" Héctor asks, staring at the photo in awe.

"T-that's my Mamá Coco," Miguel points to the little girl in the old picture before motioning to the woman. "That's my Mamá Imelda… I-is… is that… you?" He points at the faceless man, a man that Miguel has never known the true identity of… until now.

Slowly, Héctor glances up at the boy, their eyes mutually wide as they look at each other in disbelief over the dawning realization. Yet even so, the pieces all line up perfectly; there's proof, connections, it all makes sense, even as they say it out loud. "We're… family?" they echo each other, stunned, yet small smiles starting to fill both their faces.

"No way…" Sora gasps softly, Donald and Goofy equally stunned by such an incredible revelation. Yet even despite the surprise and sweetness that revelation carries, there's still some sadness to it all the same.

"I always hoped I'd see her again…" Héctor says, looking down at the photo of his daughter fondly. "That she'd miss me, maybe put up my photo. But… it never happened. You know the worst part? Even if I never got to see Coco in the living world, I thought at least one day I'd get to see her here, give her the biggest hug…" His small, wistful smile fades as he realizes that even that simple dream would never get to come true now. "But she's the last person who remembers me. The moment she's gone from the living world…"

"Y-you'll disappear… from this one," Miguel fills in fretfully. "You'll never get to see her…"

"Ever again…" Héctor shakes his head with a tired sigh. His smile slowly returns as he keeps his sights set on Coco's image, a sense of warm nostalgia washing over him . "You know, I wrote her a song once. We used to sing it every night at the same time, no matter how far apart we were. What I wouldn't give to sing it to her… one last time…"

And so he does sing it, a warm, gentle lullaby that carries every ounce of love Héctor has for his daughter in each and every word. A song that he'd sang to her so many times before in life, but will never get to do the same in death.

"Remember me… Though I have to say goodbye, remember me… Don't let it make you cry…"

"For even if I'm far away, I hold you in my heart… I sing a secret song to you each night we are apart…"

"Remember me… Though I have to travel far, remember me… each time you hear a sad guitar…"

"Know that I'm with you the only way that I can be… Until you're in my arms again…"

"Remember me…"

The song echoes off the cavern's walls as it comes to an end, a sad, solemn silence taking its place. The impactful weight of the tune and what it means falls over everyone in different ways, but for Sora in particular, it strikes something of a much stronger chord entirely. Because as the song's final refrain echoes through his mind, it does very much the same in his heart. It's even stronger as he spots her again, the girl in the black coat, standing at the peak of the pile of rocks before the group. Time seems to slow, the rest of the world essentially fading dim as Sora stares up at her, her mysterious figure unmoving as she returns his gaze from beneath the shadows of her hood. She speaks, repeating the tune's central phrase, albeit not in song but in simple words. Words that ring every bit as clearly as the melody itself had she calls to his memory from afar.

"Remember me…" she says, her voice soft and sad at first, but it grows more steady as she repeats herself.

"Remember me…" Her tone is almost pleading, as if she's begging someone, anyone to do so in the absence of anyone who once had.

"Sora…" The moment she says his name pierces him like an arrow straight through his heart as she implores him one final time. And this time, as she slowly, finally begins to remove her hood so he can at long last see her for who she really is, his heart does all it can to listen. "Please… Remember me…"

So that's exactly what he does.


Her existence began between white walls that were every bit as blank and featureless as her own face initially was. She was born with nothing, no personality, no memories, not even an identity. Just an assigned number that, with the addition of an X, had somehow turned into a name. But even with that name, she was still just a Nobody, the fourteenth Nobody to be exact, that filled out the ranks of Organization XIII. And so it was that her first few days of life were empty, formless, a thoughtless, aimless blur.

That is, until she met Roxas.

From the moment she first saw him, she'd felt a connection to the Organization's mutually younger member. A connection she couldn't quite explain, even as she was assigned to accompany him in missions. And perhaps, as she began to spend more time with him, that was also when she began to develop a true identity all her own.

Yet almost just as soon as their budding friendship began, it had to be put on hold as Roxas slipped into a mysterious, lengthy slumber, leaving her to carry the usual workload for them both. Much like Roxas, she could use a Keyblade, making her a valuable asset to the Organization and their seemingly endless hunt for the Heartless. And with their only other wielder down and out, that only served to make her even more valuable of an asset in his place.

Yet even so, in her spare moments, she still did what she could to care for him, sitting dutifully by his bedside, gathering shells for him from a sunkist shore that rang somewhat familiar even though she had no memory of it. Still, she patiently waited through the lonely weeks until his awakening. And when it happened, she soon found herself in the company of a another new friend alongside him: Axel.

It wasn't long before she found her favorite part of every day to be the sunsets seen atop the clock tower in Twilight Town. The warm, wonderful hours spent with Roxas and Axel, where they could leave their worries behind and simply talk and laugh and enjoy ice cream together were well worth cherishing. And it was in those peaceful hours that she couldn't help but feel that, even though they were all Nobodies, she was still somehow somebody all the same. Or at least, she was starting to be.

And yet… she wasn't. And all it took to inform her of that fact was an ill-fated encounter with an alleged imposter she'd been sent to defeat. In that mission she'd failed, and returned with far more questions about who she was and what her purpose was than she'd ever dared to ask before. Questions that the Organization had no intentions of answering for her and questions that were left unanswered as she fell into a long state of slumber filled with dreams of a boy she didn't know, but felt a strong, unshakable connection to all the same.

When she finally awakened, she made discovering the truth her highest priority. She had to know, needed to know who she was, where she'd come from, why she could use the Keyblade, all in the hopes that unlocking the mysteries behind her past could somehow prove to be the key to her future. And yet, it was only as she finally uncovered that truth, that she ultimately found she had no real future at all.

She ran from the Organization, unable to bear staying with Roxas and Axel knowing what she knew now. She had kept herself concealed from them for quite some time by staying in Riku's company, but unfortunately she couldn't run from them forever. Eventually, Axel caught up to her, and in concern for her wellbeing, apprehended her to take her back. She had hoped, at least for a moment, that could mean things could return to the way they used to be between her, Roxas, and Axel. That their friendship could pick up right where it had been left off, that those blissful sunsets could go on forever.

But they couldn't; she knew that. Just as much as she knew what she had to do to set things right.

Her very existence was a mistake; she'd only ever been a twisted tool, a soulless puppet created by the Organization to further their dark agenda along. She was a shadow of someone who was sleeping, someone who risked never waking up again as long as she was around. Her life wasn't her own, the memories she hadn't made for herself didn't belong to her; she had never owned anything, not really.

Except for the bonds she had made with her two closest friends, bonds that she knew were doomed to burn out in the end. But the most she could hope for was that by giving those bonds up, she'd save them both… somehow.

Naminé was the one to tell her the full truth of the matter, of her origins as a replica and what would happen if she returned the memories she'd stolen to their rightful source. She'd disappear, fade from the existence that she'd never belonged in to begin with. And the moment she did, so too would every last memory that she'd ever lived, any fragment of her wiped from clean from the minds of everyone who'd ever known her. How fitting, she thought, that she would leave the world in the very same way she'd emerged into it: as absolutely nothing at all.

But even knowing the grave cost, she was determined to stay the course, determined to undo the wrongs her mistake of a life had wrought. She was going to return to where she'd come from, to go back to where she belonged.

And she wasn't going to let anyone stop her.

Axel brought her back into the fold of the Organization one last time, and she allowed it to happen, if only to see him and Roxas one last time. Even then, that final meeting was filled with sadness, her time running out as she found she had no choice but to face Roxas in an arduous fight, knowing that he had a role to fulfill every bit as much as she did. The battle was long and grueling, and in the end, it was one she fortunately lost.

She found herself strangely at peace as she began to fade away in Roxas' arms, bidding him one final request: to keep the Organization from gaining control over Kingdom Hearts at all costs, a request that she felt confident he would fulfill. A tinge of guilt touched her in her final moments as she watched the grief well up in his face, as he pleaded with her to stay with him, but it was already too late. Her time was up, however brief it might have been. But even though that time had been borrowed at best, if there was anything she would have never changed about it, it was the chance she had gotten to meet Roxas and Axel, to be their friend and spend what blissful, little time they had together. Time that had come to an end now, that no one would remember other than her as she disappeared altogether.

And as she did, she at last returned what she'd unintentionally taken. She gave back the missing memories that were keeping him asleep. She finally found a way to set everything right.

She went back to where she truly belonged: to Sora.

And the moment she did, not even a whisper or a fragment of her was left behind. Nothing, not a single trace of her remained… not even the recollection of her own name alone.

Until now.

This entire storm of unfamiliar memories strikes Sora in a raging torrent that only takes seconds in real time. But it's enough, enough to tell him the full story of who that third heart within his own actually is, to tell him of her tragedy, of her far too short life and the ultimate sacrifice she'd made to save him, even when she hadn't really known him at all. In light of it all, he stands stiff, shaken, barely even feeling present amidst Donald, Goofy, Miguel, and Héctor in the still-immediate aftermath of the latter's solemn song. Because now, the only thing Sora can think about is her, especially as he looks at her again as she stands in the shadows of the cenote. She's finally unhooded so he can see her short black hair and bright blue eyes and the expectant expression she's sending his way as she asks one final thing of him, a question only he can hear.

"Who am I?"

His heart aches as he hears her voice again, catching the immense grief behind it, grief he now finally understands. Still, he speaks her name in a soft, remorseful whisper, knowing that he owes her that much after costing her the life that had truly become her own after all, a life that had only been cut so painfully short because of him.

"...Xion…"

Instantly, the world around him floods in a familiar sort of formless gold, leaving nothing and no one behind aside from the two of them. Even then, she doesn't linger long, instead only offering him a warm, grateful smile as she vanishes once more, even if her presence hardly fades from his heart. As she disappears, a question takes her place, one that only serves to fill him with even more guilt as he thinks of all he's taken from her.

"Do you remember what was forgotten?"

"Yes…" he replies quietly. Even though he wishes that there was so much more he could do for her than merely remember her alone. "I do…"

And just like that, the Key is his; a Key that's bought at a price that was far too high and nowhere near high enough.

The startled reactions from the others as the Key brightly flashes into his hand are largely lost on Sora as distracted as he still is. The ongoing melancholy filling the pit is broken by newfound confusion at this, especially from Héctor and Miguel.

"¡Qué susto!" Héctor gapes, glancing up from his family photo to stare at the Key. "What is that?"

"That's the Key we've been looking for!" Donald exclaims with a relieved grin.

"How'd you find this one, Sora?" Goofy asks. But him and Donald stop short upon noticing their young companion's rather distraught expression. "Sora…?"

Sora doesn't answer and barely even regards the Key now resting in his grip either, his focus still devoted entirely to thoughts of Xion and her memories he'd just seen. With so many emotions torn between grief and guilt hitting him all at once, he's hard pressed to tell even Donald and Goofy about any of it right off the bat. Which was why he largely remains silent, allowing the Key to disappear for the time being as everyone gets back to discussing the previous matter at hand.

"De la Cruz stole your guitar… he stole your songs…" Miguel says to Héctor with a sense of rising frustration. "You should be the one the world remembers! Not him!"

"I didn't write "Remember Me" for the world," Héctor counters. "I wrote it for Coco. I'm a pretty sorry excuse for a great-great grandpa, huh?"

"Are you kidding?" Miguel scoffs with a bit of an incredulous smile. "A minute ago I thought I was related to a murderer! You're a total upgrade!" Héctor doesn't return his grin, yet even so, Miguel pushes in closer to his newfound family member. "M-my whole life, there's been something that's made me different… and I never knew where it came from. But now I know: it comes from you. I'm proud we're family!" He steals a brazen glance up at the open hole hanging high above them, proclaiming that fact to anyone who might be able to hear. "I'm proud to be his family!" he shouts, letting out a joyous grito as he did.

"I'm proud to be his family!" Héctor hops to his feet as he lets out a zealous shout himself. The pair continues cheerfully celebrating the discovery of their relation, eliciting a warm laugh out of Donald and Goofy alike as they happily watch the pair from the sidelines. At least until Sora finally speaks up to divert their attention instead.

"Donald, Goofy…" his voice is strangely weak and wavering as he keeps his sights set on the ground before him. "T-the third heart… I-I know who she is now…"

"What?!" the pair exclaims in mutual surprise.

"Well, who is she?" Donald presses, immensely curious.

"H-her name was-is Xion," Sora takes in a steadying breath as he tries to figure out how to condense her story in a way that makes the most sense. "She was…" He trails off already, not wanting to explain what Xion had been made to be, but rather who she had ended up becoming in the end instead. "She was Roxas and Axel's friend back when they were in the Organization. But… something happened, a-and, I don't know if I completely understand it but… she's gone now," he sighs, not bothering to explain his role in why that was the case just yet. "O-or, maybe not gone all the way," he reminds himself of her current place of residence: inside his own heart. "But no one remembers who she is, not even people who used to know her, so…"

"So… what do you think we should do then?" Goofy frowns sympathetically. "Do we wanna find a way to get her heart out of yours like we are with Roxas and Ventus?"

"Yes, of course!" Sora nods, not even having to think twice about that. Not after how much Xion had given up for his sake, after how she's probably standing right on the front lines of his heart even now alongside Roxas and Ventus to protect it from Xehanort's power. "M-maybe if we find that Key to Return Hearts, then we can-"

"We can't, Sora, not yet," Donald interjects sternly.

"B-but we found the Key!" Sora protests, summoning said Key to show the pair once more.

"But we still haven't found a way to protect you from Xehanort, remember?" the magician huffs indignantly. "How many times do we have to tell you, that needs to come first! We don't know how much time you have to lose and we shouldn't be wasting it!"

"Helping Roxas, Ventus, and Xion isn't wasting time!" Sora snops in rising frustration. He nearly adds that he considers coming to their aid to be a far more valuable use of their time than working toward a solution they don't even know exists to a problem that should be solely his own. But he narrowly refrains against saying any of that, knowing it's just about the last thing either of his companions would want to hear right now.

"And we will help them," Goofy counters with much more patience than Donald had previously shown. "But first things have gotta come first. And right now, I'd say the very first thing we should worry about is finding a way out of this hole…"

No sooner than a moment after the captain says this, an entirely new howl echoes into the cavern to take the place of Miguel and Héctor's fading gritos. The source of which reveals itself as a familiar stray dog poking his head over the edge of the cenote's entrance.

"Dante!" Miguel calls with a relieved smile. He'd previously lost track of his canine companion back at the plaza, but sure enough, Dante, as loyal as ever, has somehow managed to follow him all the way here. And as it turns out, the dog has miraculously managed to lead someone else here as well.

A large, colorful panther-like alebrije peers over the edge of the hole alongside Dante, letting out a powerful roar. Despite the creature's initially intimidating appearance, Miguel can't help but let out a joyous laugh upon seeing her, especially as he spots the older woman perched upon her back.

"Who's that?" Sora asks. He puts his previous conversation with Donald and Goofy aside, at least for the moment as they all step forward to join Miguel.

"That's my Mamá Imelda!" the boy grins brightly, ironically glad to see his great-great grandmother after trying to avoid and evade her all night.

Likewise, Imelda is quite happy to see her great-great grandson, though her relief over finally successfully tracking him down dulls as her gaze just so happens to fall upon her estranged husband accompanying him. "Héctor…" she scowls, her tone icy.

"I-Imelda!" he greets her sheepishly, knowing that he's just about the last person she ever wants to see. And after how he'd failed to ever return to her and Coco, whether that was his fault or not, he can't help but agree that she has every reason to feel that way. "Y-you look good!"


Fortunately, Pepita is large enough to easily whisk the entire group out of the cenote, even if Imelda does make a point of making Héctor cling onto her alebrije's tail rather than riding properly on her back. All the same, she reacts warmly enough to the trio as Miguel introduces them to her, thanking them for their assistance in keeping the boy safe throughout the night, especially after they bring up their encounters with the Heartless. After a swift flight over the city, Imelda guides Pepita in to land atop a sizable rooftop, where the rest of the deceased Riveras await her return. Upon seeing that Miguel is with her, the family is overwhelmed with relief as they greet the boy with a round of fond embraces and well wishes, all of them more than glad to see him safe and sound after all.

As Héctor and the trio dismount from Pepita, Imelda takes over checking over Miguel, noting the fact that the bones of his hands are very clear to see now. "Mijo, I was so worried!" she folds the boy into a tight hug. "I'm so glad we found you in time. And we have you three to thank for keeping him safe from horrible monsters you were telling me about," she offers Sora, Donald, and Goofy a cordial nod.

"You're welcome, ma'am," Goofy says with a respectful grin.

"Yeah, helping people is what we do best," Sora adds, casually hanging his arms behind his head.

"Especially when it comes to keeping them safe from the Heartless," Donald quips, an air of confidence in his tone.

Imelda sends them another thankful smile at this, though it's quick to fade into a scowl as she glances over at Héctor next. "I can't say the same for you though. How many times must I turn you away?!"

"Imelda-" Héctor tries interjecting, but Imelda is far too embittered by even having him in her presence alone to stop now.

"I want nothing to do with you!" she exclaims angrily. "Not in life, not in death! I spent decades protecting my family from your mistakes. Miguel spends five minutes with you and I have to fish him out of a sinkhole!"

"I wasn't in there because of Héctor," Miguel quickly steps in between the couple. "He was in there because of me. H-he was just trying to get me home. I didn't listen, b-but he was right. Nothing is more important than family…" He pauses for a moment, long enough for Imelda's sharp gaze to soften into genuine surprise upon hearing this, especially as the boy turns back to face her. "I'm ready to accept your blessing, a-and your conditions. But first, we need to find de la Cruz. To get Héctor's photo."

"What?" Imelda asks, confused.

"So he can see Coco again!" Miguel quickly explains, his tone earnest and determined. "Héctor should be on our ofrenda. He's part of our family-"

"He left this family!"

"He tried to go home to you and Coco," Miguel vouches just as unflinchingly. "But de la Cruz murdered him!"

"I-it's true, Imelda," Héctor says softly as his wife looks to him in shock at such a claim. Even so, she isn't about to fold on her harsh feelings for him so easily.

"S-so what if it is true?" she counters with a frustrated huff. "You left me alone with a child to raise and I'm just supposed to forgive you?"

"Imelda, I-I-" Héctor is unable to finish his apology as his bones suddenly shudder gold once more, the suddenness of the shift forcing him to his knees. All Imelda can do upon seeing this is gasp in newfound genuine concern, even as Miguel and the trio rush to his side to offer him some much-needed support.

"Héctor…" Imelda says softly, keeping her sights set on him.

"I-I'm running out of time…" he glances up at her weakly. "It's Coco…"

"She's forgetting you…" Imelda infers solemnly, sadly almost.

"You don't have to forgive him," Miguel implores her as the trio slowly helps Héctor back onto his feet. "But we shouldn't forget him."

The other Riveras stand by, all mutually sharing the same sort of sympathetic sentiment towards Héctor's dreadful plight. Imelda, however, still isn't ready to let her decades old resentment go just yet. "I wanted to forget you…" she shakes her head as a hint of lasting grief fills her tone. "I wanted Coco to forget you too, but…"

"This is my fault, not yours," Héctor speaks up repentantly. "I'm sorry, Imelda…"

For what seems like ages, Imelda says nothing, instead meeting his remorseful gaze evenly as she continues to internally wrestle with her own conflicting emotions. Even so, she does well to not let most of them show as she turns back to her great-great grandson evenly. "Miguel, if we help you get his photo, you will return home," she insists firmly. "No more music."

While he would have fought with everything he had against such a terrible condition hours ago, Miguel doesn't resist it at all now, knowing that something much more important is at stake. "F-family… comes first," he nods, glancing up at Héctor with a small smile.

Imelda looks back at Héctor, inevitably letting out a relenting sigh as she sets her own resolve. "I can't forgive you… But I will help you."

Miguel and Héctor both perk up at this, especially as the other Riveras voice their agreement and support. And they aren't the only ones to do so either. "And we'll help too!" Sora eagerly volunteers. He does stop short, however, upon noticing the skeptical glances his companions are sending his way. "Come on, you guys," he urges them in a whisper. "I know you said we'd leave as soon as we got the Key, but… we can't just leave Héctor hanging. It's like I said; helping people is what we do."

Donald and Goofy exchange a brief glance at this, knowing that Sora is likely talking about more than just Héctor in saying this. And really, they both find they're hard pressed to disagree with him in a circumstance like this, even if they still do believe that a few of the other people he wants to help can afford to wait. "Garwsh, you do have a point…" Goofy holds first with a small, amicable smile.

Donald does the same a moment or two later, albeit a bit more begrudgingly. "Fine, but if Xigbar shows up again-"

"Then I won't have to worry because I know you guys have got my back," Sora warmly assures, playfully throwing an arm around both of his companions' shoulders.

The pair lets out a shared, bright laugh at this, one that Sora readily joins in on as he offers Miguel and Héctor a confident nod to show that they're in on the mission to retrieve the photo as well. Their assistance will be more than welcome too; after all, they'll likely need all the help they can get in simply making it to the fraudulent musician to begin with.

"So," Imelda addresses her great-great grandson with a daring grin of her own. "How do we get to de la Cruz?'

Miguel smirks, ready to do whatever it takes to keep the memory of his true great-great grandfather alive. Even despite de la Cruz's cruel attempts at snuffing that memory out altogether. "I might know a way…"


Each year, de la Cruz's Sunrise Spectacular is held in the city's largest open-air amphitheater, one that can hold an audience of up to thousands. Practically every seat is filled tonight too, the entire place packed in preparation for the main event, the grandiose concert that will mark the end of yet another Dia de Muertos. And with sunrise just about an hour or so away, that concert kicks off with its opening act to preface de la Cruz taking the stage, an act that gives the Riveras and the trio a perfect opportunity to slip into the venue with relative ease.

Given how bustling the backstage area currently is for the show at hand, the group emerges into the midst of it all largely unseen. They find a small nook to regroup one last time before their scheme is put into play. "Ok, is everyone clear on the plan?" Miguel asks as they all huddle up.

"Find Héctor's photo," Victoria nods.

"Give it to Miguel," Julio adds.

"Send Miguel home," Imelda finishes.

"Got your petals?" Héctor asks the group, to which each Rivera holds up a single marigold petal that can be used to send Miguel home in the event they're separated. Even though the trio can't necessarily do the same, they're still similarly equipped with petals to hand off to the nearest Rivera, just in case.

With their daring plan confirmed, the collective group charges on ahead, with Imelda leading the way as she calls back to the others. "Now we just need to find de la Cruz-"

"Yes?"

Imelda lets out a startled gasp, spinning around to face the musician in question himself as he stands at the end of the corridor she's passing by. The others all make sure to stop short just out of de la Cruz's line of sight, leaving Imelda in the midst of a rather awkward encounter as he looks her over. "Do I know you…?"

His question is swiftly answered by Imelda's shoe slamming him across the face, making his entire head spin, literally. "That's for murdering the love of my life!"

"W-what the…?" de la Cruz trails off, completely disoriented as he rights his head on his shoulders again.

"She's talking about me!" Héctor proclaims, stepping out into the open before he sends Imelda a soft smile. "I-I'm the love of your life?"

"I don't know, I'm still angry at you," she scowls , her shoe still aimed at de la Cruz.

"H-Héctor?" de la Cruz starts, alarmed. "How did you-"

He's cut off once more by Imelda slapping him silly once more, her fury still very much palpable in light of what this man has done to her family both in the past and now. "And that's for trying to murder my grandson!"

"Grandson?"

"She's talking about me!" Miguel proudly joins the pair.

"You!" the musician exclaims hotly as he begins to put the pieces together. "Wait, you're related to Héctor?"

Miguel doesn't bother answering as he spots Héctor's photo peeking out of de la Cruz's suit pocket, the very prize they've come all this way to retrieve. "The photo!" he alerts the others, prompting the rest of the Riveras as well as the trio out of hiding to confront him. Upon realizing just how outnumbered he is here, de la Cruz doesn't hesitate to take off and run in the opposite direction, with the others all rushing to give chase after him.

"You said the 'love of your life'..." Héctor smiles at Imelda as they run down the hall together.

"I don't know what I said!" she rebuffs him, flustered.

"That's what I heard…" Miguel shoots her a wry smirk himself.

Even so, the levity doesn't last long as the group soon runs into a large pack of de la Cruz's security guards upon emerging into the main backstage area. While the Riveras and the trio get to work fending off those guards, Imelda continues pursuing de la Cruz, making it to the musician first as she manages to get a hold of Héctor's photo. Unfortunately, he isn't about to let her get away with it that easily. He briefly grapples with her to reclaim it, only to be stopped by Miguel rushing in to tackle him to the ground. Imelda falls back onto the ground, only to realize what she miraculously still manages to have in her hand.

"Ay! Miguel! I have it!" she shouts, holding the photo up. Miguel only has a chance to briefly return her relieved smile, however, before more guards show up to chase him. Imelda quickly picks herself up off the ground to help him, only for the very floor under her feet to suddenly begin to move. She gasps, realizing that she's on a rising platform that's steadily elevating her up toward the stage above, one that she finds she wasn't able to get off of in time as it continues carrying her upward.

Amidst this chaos, the others finish off the last round of guards, only to see de la Cruz rushing up the nearby stairs to the stage to go after the photo for himself. "Imelda!" Héctor calls after his wife, wasting no time in hurrying toward the stairs himself. Miguel and the rest of the family do the same, the trio trailing behind right after them, only for the entire group to be abruptly halted by the formation of a sinister dark portal blocking their path.

"You folks better hurry and get to your seats," Xigbar remarks with his usual easy smirk as he steps out of the dark corridor to greet the group. "You don't wanna miss the show, do you?"

"Xigbar!" Sora, Donald, and Goofy exclaim in mutual surprise and frustration.

"Ugh, you again?" Héctor echoes their annoyance. "Get out of our way! We don't have time for this!"

"Aw, sure you do," Xigbar retorts patronizingly. "After all, it's not like you're working on a tight time limit or anything, right?"

"Leave Héctor and the others alone, Xigbar!" Sora orders, stepping forward with his Keyblade in hand. "You're here to deal with us, not them."

"Sure, I'll be more than happy to be on my way without any incidents," Xigbar goads evenly. "Just as soon as I get my hands on a certain special Key. Word on the street is you three already found it. Mind if I take a peek?"

"Oh, I'll show you a peek alright…" Sora mutters crossly as he traded his usual Keyblade out for the Key in question. He rushes forward with the sparkling weapon, taking a broad, brazen swing that Xigbar only narrowly blocks by calling upon one of his two arrowguns. "Go help Imelda!" Sora shouts to the Riveras now that the path to the stage has effectively been cleared. "We'll take care of him…"

No one in the family argues with this plan, all of them rushing to the stage so they can assist Imelda in keeping the photo secure. With them gone and all of the guards that formerly filled the room now knocked out, that effectively leaves the trio alone with Xigbar in what's already a palpably tense encounter from the very start.

"Tch, three against one?" the sharpshooter says with a faux disapproving frown. "That hardly seems fair."

"After all the trouble you've caused us before, I'd say it's pretty fair for us," Sora counters as he, Donald, and Goofy all glare at him crossly.

"Come on, don't you wanna make things a bit more… interesting?" Xigbar proposes, his cryptic smile returning. "Even I can admit that the last two Keys we got from you were achieved through some… pretty low blows. So why don't I even the playing field a bit by actually giving you a genuine shot to hold onto that one this time around?"

"Here's a better idea," Donald pipes up angrily. "Why don't you let us keep the Key we found and get lost!?"

"Yeah, this Key's ours, fair and square!" Goofy adds just as adamantly. "We're not about to let you have it!"

"Really?" Xigbar smirks, not paying too much mind to either the captain or the magician as he settles his sights on Sora instead. "Not even if I could offer you some… 'inside information' on how you might be able to help a certain little lost puppet?"

Sora gasps at this, completely caught off guard in just about every single way. "Y-you… know about Xion?" he asks, knowing that's largely impossible now. Nobody remembers a single thing about her since her unfortunate demise, or at least from what he understands of the situation, nobody should. The Organization always does have a strange way of obtaining knowledge that no one else seems to have, after all.

"I've… heard of her, sure," Xigbar nods vaguely. "But of course, I'm not really at liberty to say how or what you could do to safely get her or Roxas or that other kid out of your heart. Unless…"

"Unless… what?" Sora dares to ask, briefly fearing that he'll demand the Key itself outright. A trade he ultimately knows he couldn't make, regardless of how much he wants to help the trio of hearts within his own.

Yet strangely enough, that doesn't seem to be the sort of game Xigbar is playing here. "Unless you win a simple wager. A one-on-one scuffle, just you and me, kid," he sends Sora a knowing grin. "If you win, I'll tell you what I know. If I win, I walk away with the Key. Sound like a deal to you?"

Before Sora has so much as a second to answer, Donald and Goofy get the jump on him to do so instead. "No deal!" the magician snaps, taking up a protective stance in front of Sora alongside the captain. "We don't make bargains with anyone from the Organization!"

"Especially not for a Key!" Goofy staunchly agrees. "Isn't that right, Sora?"

For a moment, Sora doesn't answer, instead looking between his two companions who are essentially making this decision for him. A decision that, when it comes right down to it, they really have no part of. After all, he's going to be the only one fighting, for the purpose of obtaining information related to his own heart. Information that he largely lacks, that he knows he needs if it can help, even in some small way, give Xion, Roxas, and Ventus the freedom they all rightfully deserve.

Information he's determined to obtain, whether his companions approve of it or not.

"It's a deal," he says sternly, ignoring the pair as he looks to Xigbar evenly.

"What?!" Donald and Goofy balk at him, stunned, but he doesn't waver. Instead, his grip only tightens on the Key in his hand as Xigbar's confident grin widens in anticipation for the duel ahead.

"Sora, you are not fighting him all by yourself!" Donald protests hotly.

"I have to," Sora says simply. He skims a hand over the bones that would normally cover his heart if not for his current skeletal form. "For them."

"B-but what if he's lying?" Goofy asks in a fretful whisper. "What if he doesn't really know how you can help them and he's just trying to get the Key instead?"

"Well…" Sora hesitates, somewhat uncertain as he realizes that's a very real possibility. "I-I guess I'll just have to risk it then."

"No, you're not!" Donald argues resistantly. "We won't let you!"

Sora's more than ready to insist upon his choice, but he finds that he doesn't have to as Xigbar suddenly opens fire on the trio completely out of nowhere. While Sora manages to use the Key to deflect the majority of his small, sharp laser-like arrows, Donald and Goofy aren't so lucky as several of the darts strike them between their exposed bones, catching them by their clothes and pinning them up against the nearby wall.

"Can we cut the chatter already?" Xigbar deadpans as Sora turns back to him, angry and appalled by this unexpected attack. "I know you fellas might look like skeletons right now, but I'd rather not wait around until we all actually are skeletons, if you know what I mean."

Sora doesn't bother responding to this snide remark, instead opting to launch his first real attack in this fight. He charges forward, Key raised and ready, only for Xigbar to disappear into thin air the moment he brings it down in what would have been a devastating strike. "Sorry, I'm not much on duking it out in close corridors," the sharpshooter says, reappearing just a bit down the hall. "Why don't we take this one outside?"

As Xigbar vanishes once more, Sora readily gives chase, though he only stops short to spare a worried glance at his companions behind him. Both of whom are quite upset with him even as they try freeing themselves from the arrows still keeping them pinned and restrained. "Uh, Sora? A little help?" Goofy asks as he pulls against the arrows tugging on his sleeve.

"You'd better help us!" Donald fumes crossly. "Because as soon as you do, we're taking that Key and we're leaving before Xigbar comes back!"

"We can't leave yet!" Sora protests firmly. Regardless of what either of them have to say, he will not back out of this brawl, regardless of how reckless and dangerous it might be. Not when he stands to gain so much from it.

"Sora, so help me, if you run off to go fight Xigbar on your own, then we… we'll… we'll tell Riku the truth about what's happening to you!" Donald threatens, absolutely livid.

"We will?" Goofy gapes, surprised by the magician going to such extremes.

Even despite his stern resolve, Sora hesitates briefly upon hearing this, a familiar burst of panic rushing through him at the very thought of Riku discovering the truth. And yet, he's quick to chase that panic away as he realizes what's at stake here; namely the opportunity he's been looking for, to at long last repay the lofty debt he owes to the trio of hearts that are tirelessly trying to shelter his own. A debt he can't let go unpaid. "Go ahead and tell him then!" he shouts sharply, turning away from the pair. "But I am not giving up what could be my first real chance to help them, not after everything they gave up for me!"

"After-what?" Goofy frowns in confusion, though Donald's continued fury quickly overpowers him.

"Sora! Get back here!" the magician yells in outrage as Sora swiftly runs off, Key in hand to face Xigbar alone. In a fight that both Donald and Goofy fearfully doubt he can actually win on his own as they dread the grim possibility of what might happen if he doesn't. "Sora!"


"Ladies and gentlemen, the one… the only… Ernesto de la Cruz!"

Imelda is frozen, transfixed by the bright spotlights and thousands of sets of eyes falling upon her as she finds herself somehow standing on the very center of the stage. Her already palpable alarm only grows, however, as she realizes de la Cruz is gaining on her, ordering his remaining force of security guards to seize the photo she's still tightly holding onto. At the same time, she also spots Miguel and Héctor waiting in the wings on the other side of the stage, with her great-great grandson in particular softly encouraging her to do something she hasn't done in decades.

"Sing!"

Initially, she resists the very idea, her age-old hatred of music and how it has torn her family apart still ringing true. But as she watches de la Cruz's henchmen continue to approach her, she knows that, for Héctor's sake, she really has no other options.

So, she sings.

"Ay de mí, llorona," she begins, somewhat unsteadily after decades of no practice whatsoever. Even so, it already begins to work as she grips the mic in front of her, the guards stopping their approach out of surprise, surprise that her family very much mirrors as they stay on the sidelines. "Llorona de azul celeste…"

Her confidence grows a bit as Miguel hands Héctor a guitar so he can gently accompany her soulful ballad. "Ay de mí, llorona," she scales down the other side of the stage as de la Cruz's guards stealthily continue their pursuit. "Llorona de azul celeste…"

She glances up at her husband for just a moment, catching the awestruck smile he's sending her way as he plays for her. Just as he always used to do in the short, but happy years they'd had together in life. Years that, for the first time in a long time, she finds herself looking back fondly on for a change.

"Y aunque la vida me cueste, llorona. No dejaré de quererte."

The orchestra in the pit below suddenly joins in at this, adding a bombastic flare to the tune that Imelda readily welcomes as she rushes onto the bottom half of the stage, embracing this moment with gusto as the audience does the same. "¡No dejaré de quererte!"

As the audience brightens over this bold performance, a handful of them also happen to spot what they believe to be just another act accompanying it, one taking place high above the stage itself. There, two figures that can hardly be made out in the shadows obscuring them begin to engage in what seems to be a dramatic duel, one that, unbeknownst to anyone watching it, is far more than just a simple act.

Sora wastes no time as he finally catches up to Xigbar, not even letting the sharpshooter get a sardonic word in edgewise out before he lashes out with a heavy ice spell. Xigbar swiftly steps out of its path, letting loose a few arrows that Sora manages to dodge just as easily as he lets the Key spark up with lightning magic for his next attack.

"My, my, you sure are fiesty tonight," Xigbar muses with a taunting smirk as he teleports out of the path of that spell. "You must really want to help out that 'heart squad' of yours, dontcha?"

"Yes," Sora sternly replies, gearing up for a low swing. "I do."

"Me subí al pino más alto, llorona." By now, Imelda has gotten into the full swing of her performance. She dances across the stage as she sings, largely for the sake of avoiding the guards that are still trying to nab the photo from her. She smoothly averts them, steadily making her way closer to where Miguel and Héctor are eagerly awaiting her offstage. "A ver si te divisaba."

Xigbar grins as he narrowly evades the broad swing Sora sends his way, not even bothering to shoot any arrows off as he simply teleports away once more. "That Key sure is something, isn't it?" he goads, reappearing on the far end of the stage's uppermost platform. "It puts just about all other Keyblades out there to shame-well, almost all of them. But have you ever really taken the time to think about why we're all out here working so hard to drudge all thirteen of 'em up to begin with?"

"Como el pino era tierno, llorona-"

"I know why I'm looking for them," Sora shoots back, using the Key to effectively block a few of the projectiles Xigbar shoots at him. "To keep them out of the hands of the likes of you."

"Yeah, but you gotta wonder just what makes them so special in the first place," Xigbar continues as casually as ever. "Where'd they come from? Who made them? And why are they so important when it comes to unlocking Kingdom Hearts? You can't tell me you haven't thought about one of those questions, if not all of them, at least once."

"-al verme llorar, lloraba..."

"I don't need to think about them because once we find the rest of the Keys, nobody will ever need to worry about you guys misusing them ever again!" Sora exclaims as his Key strikes the sharpshooter's arrowguns evenly.

"Ay de mí llorona, llorona-"

"You know, they say whoever manages to track down all thirteen of those Keys will become the King of Kingdom Hearts itself," Xigbar pushes Sora back with another wave of arrows. "Now, I think that's just a silly old legend myself, but who knows? There's always at least a little truth behind every legend, so maybe this one could actually be true."

"Well, if it is, then that gives us an even better reason to keep them as far away from Xehanort as possible," Sora counters as he tries for yet another heavy swing.

"Llorona de azul celeste."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll change your tune once you finally join the winning team," Xigbar assures as he leaps out of the Key's brutal path. "After all, it's not like we can get very far when it comes to calling on Kingdom Hearts without you, Sora…"

"W-what?" Sora stalls at this, completely caught off guard by such an ominous statement, even though he doesn't have a single clue as to what it could mean. Still, it breaks the steady flow of the battle just long enough for Xigbar to make his move as he sends a deadly barrage of arrows flying straight at Sora in an attack he has essentially no way to dodge or deflect in the slightest.

"Ay de mí llorona, llorona," Imelda gasps as a hand suddenly latches onto hers, another voice joining her own in harmony with the song. She turns to find none other than de la Cruz himself, now sharing the spotlight with her. The crowd grows wild at the mere sight of him while the now-duet continues. And all the while, the pair engages in something of a 'dance', one that's essentially a battle for Héctor's photo above all else. "Llorona de azul celeste."

Sora only has the briefest of seconds to react to the vicious onslaught spiraling his way, and he does so not with the Key, but rather with his free hand. A powerful surge of equal darkness and light pours out of it, somehow becoming a solid force as he sweeps his hand out wide in front of him. That force turns into something of a shadowy, yet glistening shield that stands before him, one that's more than sturdy enough to take the brunt of Xigbar's arrows without even sustaining so much as a single crack to its almost marble-like surface. That is, at least until Sora reaches a tentative hand out to curiously touch it, at which point it completely crumbles and vanishes into thin air.

"Whoa…" he whispers, admittedly awed by all of the strange, yet special things his relatively new powers seem to be able to do.

"Well now! That sure is a fancy trick you picked up there," Xigbar taunts, oddly nowhere near surprised by it as Sora himself is. "Why don't we put it to the test?"

"Y aunque la vida me cueste, llorona-"

By now, Donald and Goofy have long since freed themselves from the arrows that had pinned them down, emerging from the backstage area to find spot Sora and Xigbar still dueling it out high above the stage. While they can't exactly see what was going on, they waste no time in hurrying up the nearest ladder to reach the elevated platform, knowing just how risky it could prove to be if they leave Sora to fend for himself in a difficult fight like this for too long.

Yet unbeknownst to either of them, Sora is holding his own quite fine as he decides to rely more on his powers rather than the Key itself. That magic proves useful in deflecting most of the arrows Xigbar fires at him, with the few that do actually reach him not causing any real damage as they simply skim across his currently boney body with little issue. At the same time, he makes good use of his powers on the offensive side of things too by conjuring up several sharp spires similar to the shield he'd made before. With a wave of his hand, he conjures them out of the floor itself, sending a series of rocklike spikes jutting out toward Xigbar in a swift, single wave. And this time, the sharpshooter isn't able to fully evade such a sudden, daunting attack.

"No dejaré de quererte."

Xigbar falls back hard, one of his arrowguns falling out of his hands as he lands near the edge of the stage's upper platform. He has no real time to recover from the heavy blow as Sora doesn't stop there, fueled by practically blinding fury he doesn't quite know the source of. He finds a way to make some 'arrows' all his own in the form of hundreds of sharp, deadly specks of hardened darkness and light, all of them hovering just above his open palm as he prepares to send them flying at the downed sharpshooter. Until…

"Sora?!"

"Y aunque la vida me cueste, llorona," de la Cruz sings by himself now as Imelda has switched her focus to slipping away from him. Something that he isn't about to let her do so easily, at least until he steals back the photo she had taken from him. Or rather, until the truth behind his murderous misdeeds is buried away forever. "No dejaré de quererte."

Sora freezes, sparing only a slight glance over his shoulder at Donald and Goofy as they stand on the far edge of the platform behind him. Both of them are in nothing less than complete shock as they witness the palpably devastating power their young companion is so freely, willingly wielding.

That shock can only stand to last for a second or two, however, before an entirely new sickening surprise falls upon the trio. Sora gasps, his magic abruptly burning out in an instant as one of Xigbar's arrows strikes him squarely in the elbow of the arm that's still holding onto the Key. Any other time, it would have been an agonizing blow, but in his current form, he feels not even a pinch of pain, not even as the lower half of his arm is torn clean off the rest of his body, throwing both it and the Key away from him in the process.

"¡No dejaré de quererte!"

His disconnected hand still clutches the Key tightly as it skids across the platform before coming to a stop in the middle of it. Without a beat of hesitation, Donald and Goofy race forward to try and reclaim it, but Xigbar beats them to it as he teleports to stand directly before it.

"Ah, here it is," he grins as he picks the Key up, easily prying Sora's arm off of it in the process. "Er… you can have this back though. Pretty sure the old man wants the entire package, not just a loose arm."

Sora stumbles forward, not even bothering to catch his arm as Xigbar carelessly tosses it back over to him. Instead, his sights are set solely on the Key that he's just lost in a moment he hadn't even seen coming, a Key he can't afford to lose, especially not to an underhanded tactic such as this. "Y-you… you can't-" he stammers, unsure of what to say to keep that Key from being taken away.

"Uh, I think I can, kid," Xigbar says, slinging the Key over his shoulder. "We did have a deal after all. And I won, fair 'n square."

"¡No dejaré de quererte!"

"B-but… no…" Sora falls to his knees, overwhelmed by the mere thought of yet another Key slipping away from him because of his own weakness, because of his own failure once again. He pauses, sparing a brief glance at his companions, both of whom are stiff in the same sort of distressed indecision he's currently lost to. Because really, what can any of them do to break a deal that had already been so solidly bartered, regardless of how horrific that deal has turned out in the end? "P-please," Sora tries begging all the same, largely since it was the only thing he can think of at such a twisted crossroads. "Don't take it. Y-you don't have to tell me anything at all about Roxas or Ventus o-or… or even Xion." He shudders as he says their names, realizing that he's essentially failing each of them too. That he's been failing them from the very start and that he still has no idea how to stop failing them for a change. "Just… d-don't take the Key… please…"

"Ay-ay-ay!"

The song comes to a dramatic end on the stage below (especially as Imelda slams her boot down on de la Cruz's foot so she can take the photo and run), and in its place, silence fills the platform above. For what seems like ages, Xigbar says nothing, his expression completely unreadable even despite the small smile spread across his face. Sora knows there isn't a single chance that he'll fold just because he pathetically pleaded and begged, no member of the Organization would. Every one of them he's encountered thus far has clearly shown just how far they're willing to go to get what their master wants, both when it comes to the Keys and to his desired thirteenth vessel. And yet…

"Well… since you asked so politely…" Xigbar's grin widens as he suddenly holds the Key out to Sora. "Go ahead, take it, kid. It's all yours."

Naturally, Sora hesitates at this, looking between the sharpshooter and the Key he's offering to him in apt suspicion. "W-what… why would you…" he trails off, every bit as bewildered as his companions are if their mutually confused expressions are anything to go off of. "W-what's the catch?"

"No catch," Xigbar shrugs, setting the Key down within reach of the fallen arm Sora still hasn't bothered to reclaim. "Consider it to be a bit of an… extra edge in what's coming for you just around the bend." His smile grows a bit darker, more ominous as he summons a dark corridor behind him to leave through, without the Key in his possession. "I have a feeling you're gonna need it, your highness…"

Xigbar offers him a rather mocking bow to pair with his knowing smirk as he steps backward into his portal. And just like that, the sharpshooter is gone, willingly leaving both the very prize he'd come here to obtain, as well as a still immensely baffled trio in his wake.

Sora can't help but frown as he carefully reattaches his arm before using it to reclaim the Key just as gingerly. He briefly wonders if it's somehow some kind of ruse or deception, but sure enough, it still radiates the same sort of light and power that it did before; which means, it's the real deal. The fact hardly comforts him as he stands, filled with far more questions than he really knows what to do with.

"He just… let you have it?" Goofy asks as he and Donald step forward following Xigbar's departure.

"Yeah…" Sora nods, still immensely perplexed as he looks over the Key once more. "But… I have no idea why he would. And why did he call me 'your highness'?"

"Who cares about any of that?!" Donald pipes up impatiently. "Instead, do you mind telling us exactly what kind of magic you were using just now? Because I've never seen any sort of magic like that, and we've definitely never seen you use something like that before!"

"R-right… that…" Sora winces, glancing away apprehensively.

"Sora, you said you weren't gonna lie to us anymore," Goofy says, his tone and expression mutually disappointed.

"A-and I won't!" Sora protests earnestly. After all, he knows that there really isn't much he can lie about to the pair anymore now that it's all been unintentionally revealed. "I guess I just… forgot about these new powers. B-but it's ok! They're actually a good thing! They're really strong; you guys should see how I can power through a whole bunch of Heartless using them and I-"

"Using darkness?" Donald asks incredulously. "Because that's sure is what that magic looked like to me."

"It's not darkness," Sora initially lies, though he's quick to correct himself upon noticing the skeptical glance his companions are sending his way. "O-ok, so there might be a little darkness in there, but there's plenty of light too! Besides, this isn't like… e-everything else; I'm completely in control of this, I promise."

"That's not the point, Sora," Goofy counters worriedly. "The point is that these new powers of yours are-"

The entire conversation is abruptly interrupted as the trio happens to overhear the intense confrontation taking place just offstage down below. A confrontation that the entire audience is also able to bear witness to as it's projected on the stadium's screens for all to see.

"Ernesto, stop!" Héctor pleads with de la Cruz, his bones shimmering as he collapses to the floor. Imelda rushes in to support him, but it's becoming more and more apparent that his time is nearly up. "Leave the boy alone!"

For his part, de la Cruz has Miguel cornered near the ledge of the stage platform, a deep, unknown drop awaiting just on the other side of the edge. An edge that the musician is in the midst of threatening to throw the boy off of entirely. "I've worked too hard, Héctor!" de la Cruz snaps manically. "Too hard to let him destroy everything!"

"He's a living child, Ernesto!" Héctor pleads, his voice weak and desperate.

"He is a threat!" de la Cruz yells viciously. "You think I'd let him go back to the Land of the Living with your photo? To keep your memory alive?! No."

"You're a coward!" Miguel accuses even despite the precarious position he's currently in.

"I am Ernesto de la Cruz!" the musician shoots back fiercely. "The greatest musician of all time!"

"Héctor's the real musician! You're just the guy who murdered him and stole his songs!"

Upon hearing such a claim, a ripple of alarm falls over the audience, just about every member of it completely shocked by what they're hearing. And yet, with de la Cruz not having the slightest idea that anyone else is listening in, he continues just as boldly and maliciously as before. "I am the one who is willing to do what it takes to seize my moment!" he grabs Miguel by the front of his shirt. "Whatever it takes…"

In a moment that happens far too fast for anyone to try to stop it, de la Cruz throws the boy over the edge into the vast chasm below, Héctor's photo slipping out of his grip as he falls. The Riveras rush forward with a mutual cry of horror and the audience erupts into a round of terrified shrieks and gasps, which the trio high above the stage mutually echo after what they just witnessed.

"W-we can finish talking about this later," Sora says urgently, turning to his companions. "Right now, we need to go help Miguel!"

"Right!" Donald and Goofy readily agree, following his lead as they all rush to make it down to the stage's main level in time.

Meanwhile, de la Cruz begins his return to the stage, slicking back his hair and adjusting his suit jacket with a satisfied smirk on his face, his legacy, for however false and tainted it might be, secured. "Apologies, old friend," he says to Héctor, who is still lying on the floor, distraught, as he looks to where Miguel had been dropped from. "But the show must go on."

The musician steps back into the limelight with a broad, easy smile, completely removed from the horrendous act he's just committed. The audience, however, is having none of his fake charm as they meet his arrival with boos and angry accusations of his misdeeds. His attempts at quelling their fury are only met with increased outrage, especially in light of the second supposed murder, of a child no less, that he's seemingly just committed. In fact, the crowd only shifts into cheers of relief upon seeing what's still playing out live on the screens from backstage.

Pepita flew in to Miguel's rescue just in time, safely retrieving the boy and flying him back up to his family. By now, the trio has arrived on the scene, all three of them just as relieved as the Riveras are to see that the boy is safe and sound. De la Cruz however, isn't about to be as fortunate. As soon as Pepita finishes dropping Miguel off, she begins to creep forward toward the stage, letting out a low, vicious growl as she approaches him. The crowd goes wild as the alebrije knocks the musician off the stage before flying forward to catch him in her back claws, soaring high above the stadium. She roughly tosses him about for good measure before ultimately booting him out of the stadium, a flight that only comes to a grinding halt as he crashes into a monumental bell just outside the venue. A fitting defeat for the now-disgraced musician, especially given how he'd died in much of the same sort of way.

Despite the audience's celebration at this defeat, however, not all is well. The relief among the collective group backstage is short-lived as Héctor struggles to so much as get to his feet, his bones flickering with dull light almost constantly now as his already short time only continues to grow shorter. "Héctor!" Miguel cries as he runs over to him. "T-the photo… I lost it…"

"I-it's ok, mijo," Héctor assures the boy gently. His bones rattle violently, sending him collapsing completely to the ground as he lets out a soft, pained cry.

"Héctor!" Miguel drops to his knees at his great-great grandfather's side.

"C-Coco…" Héctor mutters weakly, sadly as he realizes the last fleeting memories of him are surely fading from his beloved daughter's mind.

"N-no! We can still find the photo!" Miguel protests, desperate to keep his newfound family member from fading away like this.

"Y-yeah! We can all look for it!" Sora pipes up. Donald and Goofy nod their agreement as the Riveras also murmur their support for the cause.

"There's no time," Imelda counters, rushing over to Héctor's other side. "It's almost sunrise."

Sure enough, the first hints of orange sunlight are just starting to peek over the far horizon of the Land of the Dead. And as they do, the skeletal transformation begins to creep in on the edges of Miguel's face, his skull starting to become visible through his skin as it approaches completion. He's running out of time every bit as much as Héctor is, yet still, he doesn't care, he can't care, not at a moment like this.

"No, I can't leave you!" the boy persists, on the verge of tears as Héctor places a trembling hand against his face. "I-I promised I'd put your photo up! I promised you'd see Coco!"

"W-we're both out of time, mijo…" Héctor whispers, his voice barely audible now.

Miguel finally chokes out a sob as he watches Héctor's bones fill in with that horrible glow once more, one that foretells that he only has mere moments now before he's forgotten forever. The group standing on the sidelines does so in solemn silence, even the trio realizing that there's little they can do to help Héctor now, as much as they desperately wish they could.

"B-but… she can't forget you…" Miguel whimpers miserably, knowing that if there's anyone worth remembering, it's Héctor.

"I just wanted her to know that I loved her…" Héctor sighs. He slowly pulls a marigold petal out, holding it up with his last ounce of strength.

"Héctor-"

"H-have our blessing, Miguel…" he says as the petal begins to softly glow.

"No conditions," Imelda adds quietly, grabbing Héctor's hand to support his efforts.

Yet even so, Miguel isn't quite ready to go just yet, even when he has essentially no time to spare whatsoever. "No!" he protests, grief-stricken as he watches Héctor grow weaker and weaker, his very existence starting to fade away. Even though he's already dead and has been for quite some time, it's as though he was dying all over again; and this time, it will be much more permanent. "Papá Héctor, please!"

"G-go home…" Héctor offers him one final, sad smile as his bones spark brightly, Imelda helping him move the petal in closer to Miguel all the while.

"I-I promise I won't let Coco forget you!" Miguel vows as quickly as he can. "I-!" He doesn't get a chance to finish whatever it was he was going to say as the petal finally skims his chest. He lets out a startled cry as his entire body is overtaken in a blinding flash of light and, once it dims, Miguel is gone. Back in the Land of the Living where he belongs.

An unsteady sort of silence falls over the entire group remaining, everyone's sights focusing on Héctor and Imelda now that Miguel has been sent back. Héctor continues to lay completely still on the ground, his wife by his side as she looks over him anxiously, already mourning what is bound to come next. And yet… it never does.

The Riveras and the trio alike all watch wordlessly, wondering when it will happen, fearing the moment that Héctor will pass through the dreaded Final Death. But from the very moment Miguel disappeared, his bones have stopped shuddering, the glow fading from his body completely. And, after what seems like ages, he slowly starts to open his eyes to look up at his wife with the first fledgling hints of a smile. "I-Imelda?" he says gently, lovingly as he meets her awestruck gaze.

"Oh, Héctor!" she laughs. All of her former bitterness toward him is completely forgotten as she throws herself on him in an affectionate, joyful embrace.

The Riveras share a collective sigh of relief as the couple help each other to their feet. Even so, there are three still standing on the sidelines who are completely confused amidst the newfound elation going around. "Wait, what just happened?" Sora asks, looking to Héctor incredulously. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm really glad you're ok, but… how?"

"Miguel is how," Héctor chuckles as Imelda helps him to his feet. "Now that he's back home, that means there's someone in the Land of the Living who remembers me."

"And just in time too," Imelda says, sending her husband a warm smile as she lingers close by his side. "Neither of you had much time left to spare."

"But what about Coco?" Goofy asks with a fretful frown. "Did you want her to remember you too?"

"Well… you heard what Miguel said before he left," Héctor notes with a small, bittersweet smile. "I have a feeling that's a promise he's going to keep."

"So do I," Imelda warmly agrees.

"Still, I can't thank the three of you enough for all your help," Héctor says to the trio, his tone and smile alike deeply grateful. "To go out of your way to save a stranger, and on your very first night here in the Land of the Dead no less? Sora, Donald, Goofy, you three are true amigos for life! Well… death. Afterlife? Ah, you know what I mean!" At this, he gladly pulls the trio into a wide, friendly embrace, one that they're more than happy to return.

"So what are you going to do now, Héctor?" Donald asks curiously.

"Well, I can't speak for everyone, but I'd like to try my hand at picking up where I left off in life," he says, his eyes wandering over to Imelda with a soft, pennantant smile. "I-If you'd have me, that is."

"Hm…" Imelda muses with something of a flirtatious smirk. "Well, since you did actually try to come home… I might be willing to give you another chance. Maybe."

Héctor wavers at this, his affection for his wife every bit as strong in death as it had been in life. "Te quiero…" he sighs, opening his arms wide to her, though she ultimately turns him down.

"Too soon for that," she crosses her arms and turns her nose up at him before flashing him a playful grin. "But if you're lucky, you'll work your way there eventually."

The collective group lets out a shared, amused laugh at this, the levity of which doesn't fade away easily once it's over. "So what's next for the three of you?" Héctor asks the trio. "Did you finally manage to shake your creepy pal with the eyepatch?"

"Yeah, he's gone," Sora nods, trying not to think about the perplexing note Xigbar had left on. "And since we got this Key," he summons said Key so everyone could see it. "We should get back to looking for the rest of them."

"The rest of them? Here?" Héctor asks incredulously. "Dios mio, you three sure are committed to your jobs even past the very end, eh?"

"Oh, the other Keys won't be here-"

"I-in the city," Donald interjects quickly before Sora can say something to unintentionally break the world order. "We'll have to go somewhere else here, in the Land of the Dead, to find them."

"Yep, that's right," Goofy agrees, cutting Sora off before he can express his confusion over such a statement. At least until he finally remembers the ruse they're supposed to be keeping up.

"Oh, right, yeah!" he nods with a bit of a forced smile. "We're definitely gonna find more Keys right here, in the Land of the Dead, b-because that's where you go when you're dead, a-and that's what we are! Completely, without a doubt, 100% dead, so-"

"Sora, how many times am I going to have to tell you to stop?" Donald asks flatly upon noticing the bewildered glances the Riveras are sending his way.

Sora pauses for a moment before ultimately sighing in faux exasperated defeat. "Probably too many times…"


By the time the trio finishes wishing Héctor, Imelda, and the rest of the Rivera family a fond farewell, the sun has fully risen over the Land of the Dead. They walk through the now slightly less busy streets as skeletons work to clean up from the previous night's festivities to return to business as usual, at least until next years' Dia de Muertos. Yet even with another Key in hand, things still feel somewhat uncertain between the trio as they begin to make their way out of town. And that uncertainty only stands to grow as they finally start to speak to it.

"So…" Sora is surprisingly the one to begin the conversation for a change as he glances back at his companions. "Since we didn't actually lose the Key to Xigbar after all, could we maybe… still not tell Riku about everything? Please?"

"I think we should after you decided you weren't going to listen to us in the slightest!" Donald snaps angrily. "What happened with Marluxia capturing you was an accident, but if you'd lost and Xigbar had gone ahead and dragged you back to Xehanort, then that would have been entirely on you this time!"

"I know that…" Sora says with a guilty sigh. "And I know we got lucky with the Key too, but… I just… really wanted to help them…"

"But we keep telling you, Sora, we'll figure out a way to help all three of the hearts inside yours sooner or later," Goofy reminds patiently.

"Sooner or later isn't good enough…" Sora mutters so quietly that neither of his companions really hear him.

"Besides, we have bigger problems to worry about right now," Donald adds. "Like those new powers of yours! For all we know, they could have shown up because of what Xehanort's been doing to your heart!"

"That's just it, we don't know," Sora counters firmly, yet honestly. "I have no idea where they came from or how I got them out of the blue like this, but what I do know is they're really useful and they're nowhere near as dangerous as you guys seem to think they are!"

"Magic that we know next to nothing about is dangerous," Donald counters sternly. "And until we get some answers about it, then… then maybe you shouldn't use them anymore."

"What do you mean I shouldn't?" Sora asks with an appalled scoff. "This is something that could really help us out when it comes to dealing with the Organization, and you're telling me we shouldn't take advantage of it? Are you crazy?"

"We're just trying to be careful, Sora," Goofy says, obviously taking Donald's side in the matter. "If you really do have these powers because of what's going on with your heart, then what if you using them is only making things worse?"

Sora falters at this, unsure of how to answer. He'd suspected this possibility before, but hasn't really seen any concrete proof of it thus far. Still, that doesn't mean that it isn't a possibility, that his new powers really are somehow contributing to Xehanort's sadistic plans for his heart in the long run after all. Still, he's not about to lose access to the coveted strength those powers fuel him with when he needs it most; at least, not without finding a way to keep something else in exchange. "W-well… if I can't use my powers, then you can't tell Riku, o-or anyone else, about what's been going on," he ventures nervously, hoping this ploy will somehow work. "That's fair, right?"

"No, it's not-" Donald stops short only as Goofy places a hand on his shoulder to settle him down.

"It's fair… just as long as you start listening to us on the really important stuff for a change," the captain insists evenly. "I know I've said this a bunch of times by now, but we really do just wanna help you, Sora, now more than ever. And when we tell you not to do something, well, it's usually for your own good."

Sora dully nods at this, deciding to agree to these conditions, at least for now. Yet even still, something still bothers him, something so significant that he can't keep quiet about it for very long. "D-do you guys actually mean it?" he asks, his tone softening a bit into slight sadness. "Will you really help me find a way to help Roxas, Ventus, and Xion?"

"Of course we will," Goofy assures earnestly.

"But like we keep telling you, we need to find a way to help you first!" Donald insists adamantly, though he does cool off a bit as he lets out a tired sigh. "Look, we know it must be hard for you to feel like you're keeping them waiting for help, but… if they knew what was happening to you, then I'm sure they'd understand."

They do know and they do understand… Sora thinks fretfully, absently moving his hand near his heart. And that's the whole problem.

Because really, if anyone understands what's happening inside his heart, it's the three hearts contained within it, the three hearts that are doing everything within their limited range of power to keep the unthinkable from happening. Roxas had promised that much to him before, and now he knows that Ventus and Xion had too. And while they're dutifully, selflessly keeping the promise they'd made to him, Sora finds himself constantly, completely failing to keep the one he'd made to them.

That troubling thought continues to flow through his mind as the conversation between him and his companions slowly starts to die out. He wonders what it must be like for the three of them, stuck inside of a heart that has somehow turned into a deadly battleground through no fault of their own. Each and every second they stay within his heart, he knows he's putting each of them at risk of being contaminated by the very same darkness that's already well on its way to corrupting him. But for as much as Sora wants to help them, to save them, to protect them just as they're protecting him, he still finds himself coming up short when it comes to doing so all the same. He has no plans, no information, no clues, nothing.

Nothing… but names. He knows of Roxas, his Nobody, who had lived a life so short and filled with strife, but it was still a life he'd had all his own, a life with friends and feelings and thoughts that Sora knows he has no right to claim. He knows of Ventus, the lost Keyblade wielder, who had faced such hardship years ago, who had been torn away from his closest, dearest friends, who now remains in a state of silent slumber Sora is ultimately powerless to wake him up from. And now, he finally knows of Xion, the Organization's fourteenth member, who had been created for a treacherous cause only to turn to one far more noble in the end, a cause that had resulted in her own demise, her own "Final Death", her own sacrifice that had solely been made… for Sora.

Three hearts that had been through so much distinct and separate anguish, the kind of pain he can't even compare his own to, however unbearable it might be. Three hearts that have been lost to the world for far too long now, that would continue to remain lost, all because he isn't strong enough to bring them back, to mend their suffering, to give them the blissful, peaceful lives he knows they all deserved.

Three hearts, that are giving their all each and every day to save him. Which was why Sora knows that if he ever gets the chance to give his all to save them, then he'll be more than happy to return the favor.


So yeah there was a good bit of foreshadowy stuff in here that I hope you paid attention too because I'm planting the seeds for... stuff. ;) Either way, I am excited that this chapter is done because next time around, we'll be... changing the status quo up a bit. And that starts with a much-awaited reunion between our current set of Lights and maybe a peek at what the Organization is up to on the side? ;) It'll be a lot of fun so I can't wait to get to it... next time, but until then, don't forget to REVIEW PLEASE! Until next time! :)