Note from forevermagik13: And! The second-half of the long-awaited Joseph's Adventures in Twilight Town! Yes, there is more! We last left our heroes rather confuddled at the thought of Namiku. Now, well, now we just get some more specialness.

Note from rarmaster: really? that was amusing, but still... anywhoo, Joseph's rants were SO much fun to write! And there might be a slight continuity error, but the rant makes more sense this way, and COME ONE Joseph's 11. his memory isn't THAT great.

"So why is it that you see mostly replicas?" Kairi asked.

"That's just who's mostly at Castle Oblivion," Joseph replied with a shrug. "I mean, the Organization had loads of replicas made."

"Replicas of who?" Sora asked.

"Vexen, Marluxia, Larxene, Lexaeus, Zexion, Xigbar…" Joseph named them off.

"Xemnas?" Sora asked.

Joseph shook his head.

"Consider yourself lucky," Sora muttered.

"That bad, huh?" Joseph asked.

Sora's nostrils twitched. "Yeah, we've got Xehanort replicas."

Joseph winced. Vexen had said how awful the Xehanort replicas from the universe he had come from were. Joseph sincerely doubted Xehanort replicas would be good in any universe."

"Did Saix make any replicas of himself?" Axel asked.

Joseph snorted so hard he almost fell off the Clocktower. Riku and Sora had to catch him.

"Ha!" he exclaimed. "Saix make a replica of himself? You're kidding right? He'd never do that. Saix hates the replicas, why would he want to make one of himself?"

"How so like Saix," Axel said. "So completely like him. He hated Xion…"

"Saix hated Xion in my universe too!" Joseph exclaimed. "Though, that might have been because she was slightly defective. But if she had let someone Repair her… but no, she was too stubborn. Saix destroyed her. And Roxas."

"That seems out of character," Axel said. "Doesn't Xemnas need Roxas for heart collection?"

"Yup," Joseph said. "And that's why Saix keeps raiding Castle Oblivion, so he can get the Program to make another replica of Sora."

"Wait, who was a Replica of Sora?" Sora asked. "Wow that's weird using my own name in a sentence…"

"Both Roxas and Xion were Sora replicas," Joseph said. "I told you, practically everyone I meet is a replica."

"Some things across universes are really different then," Riku said. "If Roxas was a replica and not a Nobody, then that would mean that Sora would have never lost his heart."

"Huh?" Joseph asked.

"Don't worry about it," Riku said. "It's just interesting, that's all."

"Some things are different?" Sora asked, looking at Riku with a lopsided grin. "What were you implying was the same?"

"What?" Riku asked. "Oh, don't worry about it…" He frowned.

"Uh-huh," Sora teased. "Sure."

Riku pointedly refused to look at Sora. Axel snorted. Joseph was confused.

"So, Joseph," Kairi began, leaning over. "What does that make you, are you a replica?"

"Well, sort of…" Joseph muttered. "Well, yes. I'm just not a Replica of anybody. I'm an experiment that Master Vexen made in his spare time. Which… kind of makes it sound like a bad thing… which it's not! Master Vexen just wanted to see what would happen if he combined the data of more than one person. And he got me!"

"I bet he was so thrilled…" Axel muttered. Sora laughed at this, but did his best to hide it.

Joseph frowned. "I heard that!"

"Were you the only 'experiment'?" Kairi asked.

Joseph frowned. "Well, I used to have others like me. And then…"

He was quiet.

"Then Saix happened."

"Saix didn't like the experiments, huh?" Axel asked. "Figures."

"Does Saix like anybody?" Sora asked.

"That is a good question," Axel muttered.

"Well, he certainly doesn't like me," Joseph said. "I get death threats from him all the time."

"That can't be healthy," Kairi muttered.

"You get used to it," Joseph shrugged. "Besides, I get them from more than just him. And while Saix probably means it, I don't think anyone else does. Well… except that one time. I'm pretty sure Riku actually meant it then."

Kairi laughed. "What did you do to make him so angry?" she asked.

"What do you think I-" Joseph began, and then paused, quite the confused expression forming on his face. "Sorry," he muttered. "Really sorry… To me it honestly sounded like Namine said it, and I was replying like I would- sorry."

"Don't apologize," Kairi told him. "You actually probably did hear her."

"Hmm?"

Kairi shrugged. "Well, she is the one that said it."

Joseph frowned. "What?" he asked slowly.

"Ah, well, Namine's inside my head, basically," Kairi explained.

Joseph blinked a few times, processing that. "Huh," he muttered. "And I thought my universe was confusing sometimes… But… isn't it weird?"

"Yeah," Kairi replied, just as Sora replied: "Yes."

Joseph raised his eyebrows in Sora's direction, confused. Sora laughed.

"Roxas is inside my head," he said.

Joseph turned away, still thinking about this. When he turned back, he was surprised to see not Sora and Kairi grinning at him, but Roxas and Namine.

"Weird…" he muttered. He closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, Sora and Kairi were back.

"Try being around them all the time when Namine or Roxas decides to talk," Axel snorted.

"It's not so bad," Riku said with a shrug. "I can usually tell the difference."

Axel rolled his eyes. "I can tell the difference! And Sora makes it really easy sometimes by saying that Roxas is saying it. Besides, I know what Roxas and Namine sound like. It's still just weird!"

"Question..." Joseph said.

"Hmm?" Kairi asked.

"Can you guys see... uh... well... for example, can you see both Namine and Kairi at the same time? Or one and then the other?"

"Yup," Axel said, almost immediately.

Riku had to think about this. He hardly ever saw Roxas, he heard him though. But, when he thought about Kairi and Namine, he realized that he saw Namine a lot...

"Yeah, actually..."

"I see both Roxas and Sora at the same time sometimes," Kairi blurted out.

Sora spit out the bite of ice cream he had just taken. "What?"

"Sorry," Kairi apologized. "That was Namine."

"Namine would," Axel muttered.

"Wow," Joseph said.

"So..." Kairi continued. "What did you do to make Riku so angry?"

"It's a funny story, actually," Joseph laughed. "Riku and Vexen were talking, and Riku just… doesn't like Vexen for some reason, and would prefer that Vexen just stayed the heck out of his life. I don't know much more than that, I'll have to ask Riku about that sometime… though… I doubt he'll tell me…" his voice slowly dwindled down to a mutter. "I suppose I could wait till he explains this to Namine. He's got to eventually, she's asked like a million times... and I'll just eavesdrop on them and-" he paused. "Sorry! I'm rambling!"

"Yeah, you were," Axel said simply.

"Continue," Kairi said.

"Where was I…" Joseph muttered. "Oh yeah! So, Riku and Vexen were talking, and I was just standing there, because I hadn't been told to leave or anything. And I told Vexen flat out that Riku loved Namine, which was slightly off-subject, but I did save Riku's butt in doing that, because otherwise he would have to explain something else to Vexen and… well… anyways, Riku just flipped, because apparently he didn't want Vexen to know that. I still don't understand why he freaks out when Vexen hears about these things. Though… maybe it's just how Vexen treats him… it's weird. But still, Riku freaked out and threatened to kill me. And I think he might have, if he hadn't been distracted. Though, I have to say, it's really funny to watch him when this subject comes up. He like… can't admit to that sort of thing for some reason. I think at the time it was just because Vexen was there, but the rest of the time I think it's because he doesn't actually realize it. He's really slow for some reason… but it's funny, because he can't deny it, either. So, all he can manage to do is tell whoever brought the subject up in the first place to shut up, and-"

"Joseph!" Sora interrupted. "You're rambling again."

"Sorry!" Joseph gasped. "I really am! I wasn't trying to or anything…"

"Wait," Kairi said. "So Riku loves Namine and he doesn't even know it?"

"He's a replica," Joseph said with a shrug. "I doubt he was programmed to understand such things. Sora and I have had this conversation actually... Riku may not really understand what his feelings toward Namine are because he's just not programmed that way."

That makes sense... Namine mused.

"Does Namine return those feelings?" Riku found himself asking.

Joseph nodded, giving them the face that any eleven-year-old would give on the subject of love-completely grossed out.

"I never get awkward," Joseph said. "Except occasionally when I'm around them and they're just... blech!"

Axel snorted.

Joseph opened his mouth almost as if to argue, but Kairi interrupted him.

"There's a Kairi in your universe, right?" she asked.

Joseph nodded, mind quickly and gladly swapping subjects. "I haven't actually met her, but Sora's mentioned her a lot. And Riku… might have mentioned her. Namine's mentioned her once or twice. She sounds like a nice person!" He scratched his head nervously. "Sorry I can't give you a nearly ask exciting explanation as I could give for everyone else."

"That's alright," Kairi laughed.

Joseph grinned. "I should probably get going," he said after a moment. "29 might confiscate my skateboard if I'm gone too long." He rose to his feet and opened up a dark corridor. He was about to step through when something occurred to him, causing him to pause.

"Hang on…" he said, voice much quieter than before. "Can I ask you something first?"

There was a general nod among the group.

"Actually, this question is mainly for Kairi," Joseph continued, still quiet. "And I'm only asking because I know my Sora needs to know. Hopefully this is relatively the same in this universe as it would be in mine… but…" Joseph swallowed. "Say Sora… did something… something that might have hurt you, Kairi-"

"Hold up!" Sora said, interrupting. "What did I- he do?"

Joseph shook his head. "He wouldn't say. All I know is that he feels terrible about doing it, and wishes more than anything that he could take it back." His gaze returned to Kairi. "You'd forgive him, right?"

Kairi was shocked, as probably everyone else was, due to the seriousness of this question. But after a moment, she nodded.

"Of course I would," she said. "Especially if he felt that bad about doing… whatever it was."

The grin slowly returned to Joseph's face. "I thought so!" he exclaimed. "Sora's got it stuck in his head for some reason that Kairi hates him. I don't get it… but I'll be sure to tell him what you said."

"Alright," Kairi laughed, a tad nervous.

"I gotta go," Joseph said, now grinning again. "I'll see you guys later! Hopefully!" He laughed and started through the dark corridor. About halfway through he paused and fished another WINNER stick out of his pocket. He tossed it to Axel, who caught it.

"Don't tell me you don't want it," Joseph taunted.

Sora started laughing, and soon they were all laughing too.

About two minutes, plenty of goodbyes, and Joseph starting to leave before thinking against it to say something, Joseph finally left. Before long, everyone else figured it was time they should be going, too.

xx

29 was waiting impatiently on the other side of the dark corridor.

"And just where have you been?" he asked.

"Twilight Town," Joseph replied with a shrug. It wasn't like he was lying or anything.

"You asked permission?"

"Yeah," Joseph said, rolling his eyes. "I asked Riku."

29 frowned. "If I find out differently-"

"I know, I know," Joseph laughed. "I'm in big trouble."

And with that, he ran off.