As they're walking through the next white room, Sora pauses and wonders who that could have been before in his vision and remarks that it wasn't Kairi. He says that she's another girl but can't remember her name.

"Why would I think I would know her name?" Sora murmured, before remembering the earlier conversation with Naminé. "Oh, is this because you're adding memories of you into my mind?" He asked, turning to the girl, and Naminé nodded once, biting her lip. Good, Sora thought. Hopefully that'll motivate me into finding her quicker. She shouldn't suffer here anymore than she has to.

Donald calls back to Sora, saying that Sora wants to find Riku and the King, doesn't he, and Sora says yes. Sora murmurs to himself that it was just on the tip of his tongue, and Goofy remarks that it seems like Sora's in another world.

Because of me, Naminé thought, looking down at the drawing in her hands. Because I'm messing with his True Memory. It wasn't done yet, but I was… starting to get there.

Donald tells him to snap out of it and that they've got to find the King and Riku. In another room, Naminé is drawing a picture of four children together.

"Is that…" Kairi murmured, trying to get a better look at the drawing. "Is that us?" Riku bit his lip, looking down and off to the side. He knew how much Naminé just wanted friends, wanted connections. But it still hurt him to see the evidence of Naminé's tampering with Sora's memory. Don't get him wrong, he knew it wasn't her fault and she never would have done it if she had the choice. But this had still led to a year without Sora, with barely any memories of him.

And it also hurt to see Naminé loneliness and fear shown on the screen. He probably could have been a better friend to her during that year, especially with the fact that he left her with DiZ for portions of a time when he knew how he felt about Nobodies but…

Everything had just hurt that year.

"Naminé?" Sora prompted after a second and Naminé nodded once to Kairi's question.

"Yeah," she answered, voice quiet. "I was… inserting myself into your memories. While it didn't really help per say, I liked drawing some of those fake memories. It helped them… almost feel real." Something she had desperately needed.

And then she had instead shifted to drawing pictures of other people's memories and that had just made the goodbye with Xion and Roxas all the worse.

"Well, when we get out of here, we can make some real memories," Sora told her with a smile. "And then you can draw those." She couldn't help the small smile that crossed her face at that.

While Donald and Goofy move to go towards the next door, Sora says that he remembers and that there was another girl. Donald is confused, looking around, and Sora says that he means back on the Islands where he used to live.

Sora couldn't help the way he recoiled slightly from the screen when he saw himself saying that. He knew it wasn't in bad faith, he knew that Naminé wasn't doing it for her own gain, but seeing himself with fake memories, so certain they were real was… scary.

How far did this go? He thought, hand unconsciously reaching out for Riku's and grasping it tightly. How many memories of Naminé did I have in my head by the time they started to get fixed? He paused, rolling the thought over in his head. I can see now why I needed my memories fixed. He bit his lip and looked over to the couch where Naminé was sitting. But… why couldn't I just keep the memories? Had I just kept my memories, with a childhood of me and Riku and Kairi and Naminé, wouldn't it have been better for Naminé? She could have had a friend? And even if the memory wasn't real, the feelings associated with it would have been. She could have come home with me, she had knowledge of what Destiny Islands were like, and then she could have been safe. Why did I need to forget?

Goofy tries to remember the name of his home but can't and Sora corrects him. He says that there was another girl who played with him, Kairi, and Riku when they were younger and that the four of them were friends.

Kairi looked over at her Nobody, who was carefully not making eye contact with anyone. She thought it was kind of sad that the first memory that Naminé ever gave to Sora was of them playing together, all happy. That showed what Naminé really wanted.

Naminé listened to Sora describe them as a group of four. So, this is before I really started to replace Kairi's spot and Sora's feelings of Riku, she thought. Could I have kept that? If I hadn't gone farther, would he had still tried to rescue me?

Aqua carefully looked between the two couches, holding her hands tightly in her lap. She couldn't help the worried feeling that was building in her chest. This wasn't going to end well, she could already tell. She just couldn't figure out which person was going to break first.

Jiminy hops up onto Sora's shoulder and tells Sora that this is the first time Sora's ever spoken about her. Sora says that he apparently forgot all about her and thinks that she went away when he was really little.

"Why that story?" Roxas asked, looking over at Naminé. As much as he didn't want to hurt her, they had been there for each other when they were both fading away, he did want to know about this. He hadn't been there for this and everything he learned about that happened while he was trapped in the Organization was new and exciting. The worlds were so much bigger than he had ever dreamed.

"It was… easier," Naminé replied, running her fingers over her drawing. "Sora already had memories of a 'great change' that happened when he was young." She looked up to gaze at Kairi, who blinked in surprise when she realized that Naminé was talking about her or more specifically, her arrival. "And memories are often forgotten as people get older. It would make sense why Sora wouldn't 'remember' me."

Donald asks Sora why he thinks he remembers now, and Sora says he's not sure, saying that it's been coming back in pieces as they go through the castle. Goofy asks if he remembers her name and Sora admits that he doesn't.

"I wonder why…" Terra murmured to himself, looking over to Naminé for the quickest second. Why isn't she just adding all the memories at once? If Sora suddenly remembered everything and remembered how much he cared about her, wouldn't he have moved through the castle quicker? Why wait so long and only give so little?

Sora says he feels kind of dumb and that they said they weren't going to forget their friends but now he can't remember her name.

"Sora, take it from someone who has forgotten someone," Axel said drily, looking over at the younger boy. "If Naminé had been real, you can't blame yourself for not remembering her. Had the story been true, you would have lost her when you have been… four or five, I guess? It makes sense for you not to remember her."

"I know," Sora replied, rubbing the back of his head. But if she was a friend of mine, I had to remember her. My friends are my power and all that. The fact that I could forget a friend of mine…

"Who'd you forget Axel?" Xion asked quietly, having been listening, and Axel jumped slightly. As he turned to look at her, he could see the blurriest form of his little sister in his mind's eye, all he could remember of her. 'Ri… He knew that wasn't her name, but he couldn't remember anything more.

"Just… someone I knew once," he replied, giving Xion an easy smile that only felt a little fake. "From before I was a Nobody."

Goody says he shouldn't be worrying and that if it's been coming back to him in bits and pieces, Sora's likely to remember her name just like he's been remembering everything else.

After I replace more memories, Naminé thought, getting the urge to crinkle the paper beneath her hands. How dare she draw this image, when it was the most important memory she had twisted to her own uses? After I take more from you.

Sora nods and Goofy reassures him that something is bound to make him remember her. Donald wonders why Sora never mentioned her before while the three of them walk up to the next door, Sora pulling out a card and pressing it to the door.

Riku's eyes widened when he saw the card that Sora had been holding. Monstro… when everything started to truly go wrong. He looked down at Sora, not being able to stop the smile when he saw Sora tracing the lines of Riku's palm again. If the floors have been making recreations of everyone who appeared in the different worlds, will Sora have to face another version of me? Someone who's still lost in the darkness? He didn't know how he would handle watching that.

Sora and the others look around, with Sora saying that it's such a weird place and that everything's springy and soft.

The rest of the watchers, who hadn't managed to catch a glimpse of the card before it activated the door, all either sucked in breaths or looked over at the Destiny Islands couch. Kairi gazed over at her friends, worried about their reactions, while Sora paused, biting his cheek. Monstro, he thought. I remember this place. He looked at his past self. Maybe it's better that I don't remember what happened here.

"Um, Axel," Ven started, having come to a similar conclusion to Riku. "When people appear in the floors, they're people from Sora's memories of when he interacted with the world, right?" Axel nodded once and Aqua tried not to flinch when Ven turned to someone else for knowledge about their world. Stupid, you should know these answers, she thought.

"Why do you ask?" Mickey asked and Ven shot another glance at Sora and Riku.

"I'm just wondering if… a version of Riku is going to show up." Sora's eyes widened, the thought not even having passed through his mind, and Riku winced.

"I hope not," he muttered, looking down at his hands. The interactions with a version of his past self those couple of times had been enough. He hoped Sora hadn't had to face someone like that while he was already struggling with so much.

Goofy asks if Sora remembers coming here before and Sora admits not very well. Goofy says it's nice and warm and he's starting to feel like taking a nap, but a voice interrupts them, telling them that they should be more worried.

Riku looked off to the side as Pinocchio came onscreen, the memories of the last time that he saw the boy flashing through his head. He still needed to apologize to him and his father. Honestly, he needed to apologize to everyone he had hurt when he was under Maleficent's influence, but he just… couldn't manage to make himself. It was… too hard. Perhaps, now that Sora was back, he just might be able to.

Pinocchio tells them they're in the belly of Monstro the Whale and Jiminy hops down from Sora's shoulder, saying that he recognizes the voice. He calls for Pinocchio and tells him to come out, which Pinocchio listens to.

Naminé looked down at the paper one more time before flipping past it, moving onto the next blank sheet. If she didn't have to… reveal everything yet, she certainly wasn't going to continue to look at what she had done.

Pinocchio recognizes Jiminy and says that he thought he'd never see him again. Jiminy tells Pinocchio that he'd always find him because he's his conscience and that he'd always be there as a guide.

"A guide," Aqua murmured to herself, mind leaning back towards her memories of the past. If there had been someone for her and her friends, someone to help them figure out what was right and wrong, would everything had happened as it had? You could argue that they were the people supposed to figure out what was right and wrong, but they had been, or Ven had been, children. She and Terra were adults, barely, and she was a Master. They should have known better; they should have been better. She should have been better.

Pinocchio tells Jiminy that he's been a good boy while Jiminy has been gone, saying that he didn't tell a single lie, only for his nose to prove otherwise.

"I forgot about that," Axel muttered, rubbing the space between his eyes slightly, mostly so he could school his face back from where it had twisted again as thoughts of 'Ri continued to hammer him, and shaking his head slightly. "Still weird."

Jiminy is disappointed but Pinocchio asks them how they ended up inside Monstro anyway. Sora says they used a special way and Goofy says that it was so special they don't know how they did it.

"Hmm?" Vanitas was the one, surprisingly, to voice his confusion, tipping his head to the side slightly. "Don't you all know what's going on?"

"I mean, we should," Sora replied, biting down on his lip. Are we forgetting more things? His breath quickened the slightest bit. Have we already forgotten Castle Oblivion?

"I don't think so," Naminé said softly, looking up from the blank page she had yet to start drawing on. "You shouldn't be forgetting this much so soon. You should only be forgetting what you did before the castle."

"Maybe it's just Goofy being Goofy?" Ven offered, but Sora only relaxed fractionally.

"It might be referring to how you still don't really know how Castle Oblivion works," Kairi told Sora, trying to cheer him up. She reached over and placed a hand on his shoulder, unable to grasp his hands as they were holding Riku's. "That could be what Goofy is talking about."

"Maybe," Sora murmured.

Pinocchio says that's too bad as he was hoping they could help him and his father escape. Jiminy is surprised that Geppetto is here, and Pinocchio says to follow him.

As they watched the past Sora move through Monstro following Pinocchio, Riku took a deep breath. If Sora were come across a dark version of himself, if he had to face that memory… He would be here, with this Sora, who was watching. He would make sure that Sora didn't believe anything that the old version of him said.

The five of them enter a different part of Monstro, where a ship was sitting, and Geppetto was pacing, wondering where Pinocchio went. Jiminy calls out to him and Geppetto is surprised, asking how in the world Jiminy got there.

"How did Jiminy get separated from them when their world first fell to darkness, I wonder?" Axel wondered, giving Naminé a quick look to make sure she was still okay. "It seems like Jiminy was always with them and yet, he ended up in Disney Castle when they ended up eaten by Monstro."

"Maybe they were separated," Mickey said. Jiminy hadn't ever told them what had happened to him when his world fell to darkness, but it really wasn't something talked about, so it wasn't that strange. Worlds falling like that were traumatic for all that had experienced it and it was just common courtesy to not ask why the new neighbor was there.

"I wonder why though," Axel shrugged.

"I can ask Jiminy when we're out of here," Sora piped up, looking away from the screen to look at the couch across from him. Axel nodded his head in acknowledgement.

Jiminy asks how a clockmaker winds up in a whale's belly and Geppetto says that he went out in search of Pinocchio after the boy ran away and got swallowed by the whale.

"So, Pinocchio ran away and Geppetto went after him, causing Jiminy to get separated from them," Terra muttered, trying to figure out the timeline. "And during this time was when their world started falling to darkness, ending with Jiminy in DisneyTown and the two of them in Monstro's belly. Perhaps it protected them from being lost to the darkness with their world."

"Monstro was shown to be able to survive in the Ocean Between," Aqua agreed.

Sora says that they're now trapped but Geppetto says it's not so bad now that he and Pinocchio are together. He says that there's nothing better than being reunited with someone you care about.

Sora couldn't help the way he perked up a little when he heard that. His mouth twitched into a smile. Reaching out, he grasped one of Kairi's hands, holding it tightly as he did Riku's. He's right, he thought, watching his younger self say he knows what Geppetto means. There's nothing better than being reunited with someone you lost. I'm reunited with Kairi and Riku now and all this, all that I'm watching and went through, all of it is worth it to find them. All of it will be worth it if I can help save Naminé, Ven, Roxas, any of them. We came here to see the future and everything we'll see us do will be worth it to save them.

I'll save of all them.

Geppetto says he doesn't care if he's trapped as long as he has Pinocchio and says that he's a good boy. Jiminy says that Pinocchio still tells fibs but with a little help from Jiminy and Geppetto laughs, telling Jiminy that he worries too much.

Mickey, watching this, was glad yet again that Minnie had decided to have Jiminy go along with Donald and Goofy to find Sora. Donald and Goofy were good with kids, yes, but Jiminy had been someone's conscience. And while they hadn't seen it that often, it was certain that the small cricket had helped Sora many times.

Donald notices that Pinocchio isn't there anymore and Sora calls out for him, wondering where he went this time.

"That child has no sense of self preservation," Aqua said with a shake of her head. She couldn't help the way she looked at Ven for the quickest second as she said that however. In a way, it reminded her of Ven, before everything happened.

Geppetto says he's probably off exploring and that his been poking around everywhere inside this monster. Geppetto tells them that Pinocchio won't tell him why it's so important and that he tells Pinocchio that it's dangerous, but Pinocchio doesn't listen.

Vanitas shook his head slightly. How was that child alive? The only way people who walk randomly into dark spaces survive is if they've got someone strong to protect them. "⸮ereht enoyna sI ⸮olleH" He pressed a hand to his temple against the headache.

Jiminy says that the boy certainly is a handful and asks Sora if he would. Sora says he knows and that Jiminy wants them to help find Pinocchio before telling Goofy and Donald that they should go and running off after Pinocchio.

Sora frowned ever so slightly at his past self. His tone… it wasn't big, barely a shift in the connotation but… His past self sounded annoyed, almost. Like he didn't want to look for Pinocchio and instead keep heading on. Why would I…? There wasn't any reason for him to be upset. Sure, his past self needed to find Naminé and rescue her but he didn't know she was there quite yet, besides the few memories he was starting to get, and even then, he didn't know that Naminé was there. So why would he be acting that way?

Sora, Donald, and Goofy fight against multiple Heartless as they move through Monstro before Goofy says that he thinks he saw Pinocchio over one way. They move towards it, with Sora asking Goofy if he found him, but Goofy says that he remembered that he went that way.

Xion smiled slightly as she watched them run towards where Goofy was pointing. If Goofy was remembering some things from before, then that probably meant that Sora was as well. And that was good. Memories were important, she knew that very well.

Goofy elaborates that he gets the feeling that Pinocchio went this way last time before pausing. Donald tells Goofy not to stop so suddenly but Goofy asks that wasn't there someone else with Pinocchio last time.

Riku sucked in a breath. It seemed pretty unlikely at this point that a version of himself would show up, but… He couldn't help the way that his gaze moved to the past Sora. He knew Sora forgot a lot thanks to Naminé's meddlings but… Sora wouldn't forget him, right? He knew he didn't deserve to be so worried about it but… He couldn't help the way his heart hammered in his chest.

Sora shook himself out of the thoughts he had fallen into thanks to what he heard in his tone as Goofy said that. Yeah, Riku was there, he thought. And my past self is about to tell Goofy that, right?

Sora pauses, confused.

Sora felt like a bucket of ice water had just been dumped on him.

"Riku was there," he whispered through numb lips. "Riku was there, and we argued, but Riku was there." He twisted to look up at the older boy, trying to stop his breathing from where it was starting to pick up. "You were there, I should know this. Why am I forgetting this, you're my friend, I shouldn't be forgetting this, I can't-"

"Sora, Sora, breath," Riku said in return, reaching out to grasp the hand that Sora had been using to hold his and pressed it up to Sora's chest. "Take deep breaths. It's okay."

"I'm forgetting, Riku, I can't," Sora sputtered out, swallowing heavily, and Kairi reached up behind them, placing a hand on Sora's back to try and help calm him. Terra watched carefully, ready to intervene if Sora devolved into a panic attack. Aqua looked worried, wanting to reach out and help but knowing she wouldn't be. She instead gripped her hands tightly together, not registering when her nails broke skin.

"You're not forgetting me," Riku reassured him, reaching out his other hand and rubbed it down Sora's arm in a soothing gesture, ignoring his own thoughts on the matter. "Maybe you just forgot that I was there specifically, but you couldn't have forgotten me." The words that fell from his lips were meant to reassure and support Sora and hopefully they worked. "You could never forget me. You could never forget Kairi."

Sora choked on his breath, trying to focus on Riku's grip. Happy thoughts, happy thoughts, he chanted to himself, trying to shove back the worry that was attempting to invade his mind. This ship runs on smiles. In his mind, he grasped the memory of being reunited with Riku, holding it tightly. If I forgot him, I got him back, he told himself. I got him back; I didn't lose him.

Roxas watched all this with wide eyes, holding his hands tightly in his lap and tried not to think of a plaza in Twilight Town and a girl he couldn't quite remember as she faded in his arms. Even if he had his memories of her back now, the fact that he had forgotten her… He looked over to Sora, at his ashen face and his grip on Riku's hand. I know what you feel like.

Naminé felt like she was going to throw up. You did this, you did this, you monster.

"Better now?" Riku questioned after a couple of seconds, as Sora's breath evened back out, and Sora didn't reply for another moment before nodding unsteadily. Riku nodded once back before being abruptly reminded that he was holding Sora rather close. He immediately pulled his hand off of Sora's arms, untangling his other hand from their shared embrace. He looked behind Sora to Kairi, who was watching the younger boy worriedly, and nudged Sora backwards slightly, allowing Kairi to wrap an arm around him and hold him close. Good, Kairi should be helping him. What were you thinking?

"Sora?" Aqua asked after a moment and waited until Sora's gaze landed back on her. "Can we go on?" Sora paused before nodding. He looked over to Riku, swallowing. Of course, Riku is unnerved that I forgot him, he thought, missing the way Riku had held his hand. What kind of person forgets their best friend?

Sora asks Donald if he remembers and Goofy asks Sora if he remembers why they entered the Castle. Sora says to find the King and Riku.

"See Sora?" Riku said softly and Sora turned to look at him, squirming out of Kairi's hold slightly. "You didn't forget about me."

"I forgot you were there," he insisted and Riku simply shook his head.

"I'm sure it's fine," he replied with a smile and Sora blinked slightly in shock. How was it fine?

Riku looked away after a second. I forgot you worse, he thought. I could barely remember your name, barely remember what you looked like. Couldn't even remember most of our times together except that one night.

Goofy says that he remembers, and Sora says of course he does.

Of course, I do, Sora thought. How could I ever forget you? Unbidden, his hand moved up to clutch at his necklace slightly.

Goofy says that he thinks that Riku was here before and that he thinks Riku took Pinocchio. Sora says that he can't remember, neither can Donald, and Goofy wonders if he's just making it up.

You're not, Sora thought. You're not. It's Naminé's fault. He immediately felt sick after thinking that. How could I? Naminé is just trying not to get hurt further. She's just doing what she can so she can be saved. It's fine, everything's fine. It all worked out. He couldn't help but remember his thoughts from just a few minutes prior, about keeping the slightly changed memories. It doesn't mean anything, I still remember Riku. But… If remembering Naminé means forgetting Riku… I don't think I could. But, what about Naminé?

His thoughts spun in endless circles.

Pinocchio screams off in the distance and the three of them start running towards it. They end up in a room where Donald destroys a Heartless about to attack Pinocchio.

Axel frowned at the room. Wasn't that the same room they fought the Heartless in before? He paused, before shrugging. Well, they had rehashed every other fight they'd had so, he shouldn't be that surprised that they would rehash this one as well. Even if it was without Riku.

Jiminy asks Pinocchio what he was thinking and that Geppetto worries when he wanders off. Pinocchio apologizes and Sora asks him what he's doing anyway, with Pinocchio replying that he's looking for treasure, only for his nose to rat him out.

"I wonder what he is doing," Ven wondered, thinking back. "Before he walked off because Riku lured him but Riku's not here right now so…"

None of them knew an answer.

Jiminy scolds Pinocchio, with Goofy telling Jiminy not to be so hard on Pinocchio and tells Pinocchio that they promise not to get mad at him and if that's why he's afraid to tell.

Mickey smiled. He had heard that tone of voice many times as he watched Goofy raise Max. Goofy was a born parent and no matter what child he came across, he was going to parent them in some way.

Goofy tells him that he can tell them the truth and to put his faith in them. Pinocchio admits that he's looking for a way out and that Geppetto says that he's happy but that it's Pinocchio's fault they're stuck in there because he shouldn't have run away from home.

"Oh Pinocchio," Sora murmured. "It's not your fault." Neither of them had known that Monstro would eat them. I wonder, did the real Pinocchio feel that way? He wondered, having to remind himself that he wasn't seeing the real Pinocchio. Did he blame himself?

Fascinating, Aqua thought, going over it in her head. I wonder if this is Sora's thinking. Does he subconsciously blame himself for getting him and his friends stuck in Castle Oblivion? But why? It's not his fault.

Pinocchio says that he wants to help Geppetto, but he'll worry if he tells him what he's doing and Jiminy realizes that's why he thought he had to lie. Goofy says that he just loves his dad and Donald tells him that all he needs now is courage.

"Courage for what?" Roxas wondered, but Xion only shrugged. She didn't know what Donald was talking about either.

Pinocchio is confused and Donald tells him to tell Geppetto the truth. Goofy tells Pinocchio that if Geppetto knew how Pinocchio really felt, Geppetto would help Pinocchio find a way out and Sora says that they'll give him a hand.

Sora was glad that whatever earlier hesitance there seemed to be with his past self had vanished. His onscreen self seemed very willing to help Pinocchio, which was good. I wonder what had happened that one time, he thought. I'm supposed to help everyone so why was I… unwilling to?

Pinocchio says he'll give it a try and asks Jiminy to wish him luck. Jiminy tells him no more keeping secrets and Pinocchio says that he'll be brave and tell his father how he feels. Jiminy starts to say that his nose won't grow anymore, but they're cut off when a giant Heartless falls from the ceiling and eats Pinocchio.

"And it's the same Heartless from before," Kairi muttered while shaking her head. You would think at this point, she'd be used to it.

"You sure you can handle it on your own, Sora?" Riku asked with a smile, trying to bring some levity back to the room, and Sora smirked back at him.

"Of course," he chirped back.

Donald and Goofy turn into cards.

"Of course," several people in the room muttered.

"At least it shows that this will be the last fight?" Sora tried with a slow shrug and Kairi simply shook her head.

"You're too optimistic," she told him, but she was smiling.

Pinocchio calls out for help while Sora starts attacking the Heartless. Sora tells Pinocchio not to give up, but Pinocchio says he's scared.

"No kidding he's scared," Axel said, giving the screen a look. "That kid is what, six?"

"A little older, I think," Sora replied but Axel still shook his head.

"Still allowed to be scared," he replied and no he wasn't seeing 'Ri when he looked at Pinocchio, that was just silly.

Sora tells Pinocchio to be brave and when Pinocchio asks how, Sora tells him to have courage and to try and fight his way out. Pinocchio pauses before starting to jump around in the Heartless's mouth, ending with the Heartless spitting him out.

Sora smiled when Pinocchio managed to make the Heartless spit him out, laughing slightly when Pinocchio ended up on the ground. Good job, he thought, smiling at the boy onscreen. Even if you aren't the real Pinocchio, good job.

Sora manages to take down the Heartless once Pinocchio's out of it and it vanishes. Jiminy hurries over to Pinocchio's side, asking if he's okay.

"He looks like he's okay," Kairi muttered, looking over the wooden boy. "He probably just got bumped as he was spit out."

"He's wooden," Vanitas murmured, looking at the screen. "Can he even get hurt?"

"Of course, he can get hurt," Ven told him. "He's alive, isn't he? He can get hurt then."

Vanitas rolled his eyes. "It was just an observation, geeze." Naminé looked up from the beginning of her next drawing, giving Vanitas a concerned look that he didn't see.

Pinocchio says he's okay, just a little sticky, and Sora tells him that he was great. Pinocchio thanks him before saying that he has a great idea and that the Heartless spit him out when he started fighting back.

"Oh, I get it," Terra said, able to guess where Pinocchio's mind was going, probably, and Aqua turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow. "No predator likes food that fights back," he told her, darkness wrapping around his wrists and neck, holding him down, infecting him, and gave her a grin. "I bet Monstro's the same." But he had to keep fighting because this was his body and what about Aqua and Ven and the kid he Bequeathed to and Xehanort was just terrible-

Pinocchio says that they could try the same thing with Monstro and Donald says that it's a good idea, saying that they should go deeper in to try it. Pinocchio wants to go with them but Jiminy tells him he should be with Geppetto and that there's no use escaping Monstro if they're separated again.

"What are they going to escape in?" Ven asked, tipping his head to the side. "Before, in the real world, Geppetto was building a ship. I don't think he has one now."

"Ven, this a copy of the world created of memories," Terra said after a second. "I don't think it really matters."

"Oh, right," Ven replied, ducking his head slightly as his cheeks heated up. "I forgot."

"I think we're all struggling with that," Kairi told him, and he gave her a smile.

Pinocchio agrees and the four of them leave him behind, fighting their way through several Heartless. As they pause, Goofy thinks again and wonders if maybe they didn't actually meet Riku in Monstro.

"Riku," Sora murmured, turning to look at the older boy, but he just got a small smile in return.

"It's okay," Riku told him. "It's not your fault."

That doesn't really make me feel better, Sora thought but simply smiled back at the older boy. If it wasn't bothering Riku, why should it bother him? It did though.

Sora says that Riku and the King are in Castle Oblivion though and when Donald asks why he thinks so, Sora replies that he has a feeling, and didn't they all get that feeling when they entered the Castle.

"Sorry," Naminé said, lifting her gaze to look at them.

"It's not your fault either," Riku replied, eyes knowing. "You were just doing your best to survive."

She was just doing what she had to do to survive, Sora repeated to himself. She's not to blame for me not remembering Riku. I shouldn't have forgotten him.

Goofy says they better hurry then and they stop when there's no where else for them to go. They start attacking the walls and ceiling.

"In any other situation, that would supremely unhelpful," Roxas noted and Xion reached behind Axel and Naminé to flick him in the head. "Hey!"

"Your comments are unhelpful," she responded, but her eyes were twinkling and Roxas got the urge to stick his tongue out at her. Which he promptly did.

As a mature fifteen-year-old, Xion returned the gesture in kind.

Axel smiled at their antics.

Monstro starts shaking all around them and Sora, Donald, and Goofy get blown out of the room as wind whips around them.

"Are you okay?" Kairi asked, worried when the screen when black.

"I was probably just knocked out," Sora replied and Aqua turned her head, giving him a look.

There are many things that can go wrong when you're knocked out, she thought, raising an eyebrow. I would know well. The amount of times she had been knocked out while stuck in the Realm of Darkness was innumerable, especially once she lost her Master's Keyblade. Headaches, memory loss, internal bleeding, leaving yourself vulnerable-

Her thoughts were thrown off when she was abruptly poked in the side and she blinked, turning to look at Terra. He gave her a grin.

"Thoughts getting too loud?" He asked and she sighed, nodding once. "Better now?"

"Better," she replied.

The three of them wake up in the main part of Monstro's stomach, with Sora making the comment that he knows what being shot out of cannon feels like now.

Not going to check at all for any damage? Aqua asked in her head. At least in the past couple of fights, when you all were done, you had been healing yourselves as you went. Now…

Donald looks around, wondering where Pinocchio and Geppetto are, and Jiminy says that they're not here, so they must have gotten out safely. Sora asks what about Jiminy and he thought there was no escaping your conscience.

"True, Jiminy could have gone with them the first time," Mickey noted, giving Sora a smile when he looked over at him. "But I think Jiminy wanted to continue to travel with you. He's clearly having fun."

"I'm glad," Sora replied. "I couldn't imagine not being with him. He's a part of the team as Donald and Goofy are."

Jiminy says he doesn't mind being left behind as long as Geppetto and Pinocchio are both safe. He says that maybe Pinocchio doesn't need him as much anymore and when Donald asks him what he means, he says that Pinocchio used to have a lot of trouble telling right from wrong, but he's come a long way and might not need 'Jiminy Cricket' anymore.

Axel hummed slightly. Growing up, he thought. Nothing can stop it, no matter how much some people want it to. Learning to make your own decisions, learning to stand on your own. He looked down at his hands. Isa and I had to learn that while in the Organization which probably wasn't the best place for it. He looked to Roxas, before his eyes moved to Xion. I hope I gave you a better place to learn these things, even if it ended in tragedy.

Jiminy says that he might have his own conscience now and he's got to think for himself. Sora asks him if he remembers what Geppetto said and that there's nothing better than reuniting with someone you care about.

Right, Sora thought, smiling again. He held one of Kairi's hands, leaning gently on her side from where he had been nudged by Riku, and smiled over at Riku. Reuniting is one of the best feelings ever.

Sora tells Jiminy that he bets that Pinocchio is counting the days until he can see Jiminy again and Jiminy says he might be right. Goofy thinks about what Sora said and Donald says that the person they want to reunite with is the King.

Mickey smiled at the images of his friends. He wanted to reunite with them too, truly reunite with them, not one off meetings in the middle of battles. Them and Minnie and all the others from the Disney Castle. He'll see them again, he knew it.

Goofy says there's a lot more others that they care about too but they can't remember them that well. Sora says he wants to reunite with his friends and the four of them head into the door that appeared on the wall.

Aqua blew out a slow breath as she watched Sora and the others move on from Monstro. Another floor done, she thought. Her eyes moved from the Destiny kids to Naminé settled at Axel's side. What will happen next?

There were still clearly a great many things to be talked about. She just wondered what was going to come first.