The Princess of Heart was moving through the floors faster than Axel expected. Sure she was struggling, but given that she was coming out of it alive he would consider it a win.

Perhaps letting her beat him was a good idea.

Larxene seemed to think so too as she chuckled before saying, "Just as we intended."

Looks like it was his turn to speak. Making sure to look her in the eyes he opened his mouth, saying, "We'll continue with our plan. Let's see how far they will go."

Though given that they only had one world card left they wouldn't be going very far at this point. Perhaps it was time he paid them another visit.

It was with that thought in his mind that he turned to leave, but before he even took a step Larxene's voice came from behind him.

"You had your fun on the first floor. It's my turn this time."

That wasn't what he wanted to hear, but he needed to play nice.

It didn't mean he had to be gentle though. Pulling out the next set of world cards he turned, throwing them at Larxene as he did so.

He had intended for it to fly over her shoulder, but to his disappointment she caught it. To make it even more annoying she then smirked before giving the card at the top of the stack a kiss and making her way over to him. There he found himself holding still as she ran her fingers across his chin.

"I'm not going to just give it to her," She said.

And that was the problem. When it came to fighting Larxene played with her foes like a well-fed cat plays with a mouse. Her encounter with the Princess of Heart would be more like torture for the girl.

It was because of that that he found himself saying, "Don't break her."

He expected her to laugh and move on, but that's not what Larxene did. Instead she got into his face with a grin on her own. They were close enough that he was sure that she was standing on her toes so that she could get that close. And he could feel her free hand against his chest.

"Why Axel," She practically purred, "Is that a soft spot I hear?"

The pressure on his chest increased for a brief moment as she pushed away, and began to walk off. She didn't move very far though as once she was a few steps away she stopped and looked at him over her shoulder, saying, "I'm not going to break the toy. I'm not dumb."

He had to make sure though. "Don't forget," He found himself saying, "The keyblade wielder is the key. We need her if we're going to take over the organization."

He would have said more, but before he could open his mouth again a gloved finger of hers settled itself on his lips. And she looked annoyed as she said, "I know that you're in on it too." The finger fell so that it was back by her side once again as she continued. "But keep it under your hood at least until the time is right."

With that she turned her back to him once again as she waved and disappeared into a dark corridor, leaving him alone with their guest.

Not that he cared though as a smirk came to his face and he huffed, saying to himself, "You would have been wise to have done the same Larxene."

Her and her partner's plan would fail. He would make sure of it.

Maybe it's time he left the Princess of Heart a gift.

(khkhkhkhkh)

It almost felt too soon when they reached the next floor though with the next door sitting in front of them Kairi didn't think she cared. After all it had been a long climb, and who knew how many floors they had left to climb?

Goofy also seemed to think it was the best time to continue the conversation from earlier as he then spoke up beside her. "So Kairi, did anything back there help ya remember your friends name?"

She closed her eyes for a moment, thinking. But when nothing came to mind she only shook her head, "The only thing I can't seem to remember is her name."

That didn't seem to be the answer Donald wanted as he quacked out, "You gotta try! Hurry up and remember it!"

She pouted at that, "But I am trying..."

But not hard enough it seemed. Just what was it going to take for her to remember her friends name?

It was with that thought circulating through her head that she ascended the stairs to the next door and stopped. There she pulled the final world card out of her pocket and stared at it.

Monstro

She didn't want to see what this world was like. It was a whale. How was that supposed to work as a world? Did people live on its back or something? She honestly didn't want to find out.

But at this point she had no other choice. If she wanted to keep going then she needed to go through this world.

She would just have to deal with whatever this world threw at her.

It was with that thought in mind that she held the card in the air like she had done many times before. Like every time before the door opened to reveal a doorway of light, preventing her from seeing what the world was like until she had entered it.

Well she had no choice now.

Movement from the corner of her eyes told her that Donald and Goofy were now by her side, ready to join her as she went into the world.

And it was with their hands in hers that she went through the doorway.

The first thing Kairi noticed upon arriving on the other side was the smell. The world reeked of rotten eggs to such a degree that she found herself raising her hands to cover her face to block out the smell. Around the group the walls and ground pulsed as something wet glistened on them.

Just what kind of world was this place? And why weren't the others bothered by it?

Beside her Goofy yawned, "Gawrsh this place sure is warm and soft. Makes me wanna take a nap."

From somewhere around them a voice responded to that, "I think you should be a little more worried."

That had the three of them looking around as Donald called out, "Who's there?!"

A childlike laugh echoed around the area then before the voice returned once again, "You're inside the belly of Monstro the Whale."

For her that was when a weight appeared on her shoulder, drawing her attention and causing her to look.

It was Jiminy, and he was looking around like he was in shock.

"Jiminy?" She found herself asking. Why was he acting like this?

He didn't look at her. Instead he continued to look around the area as he said, "I know that voice..." Then he began to shout, "Pinocchio? Pinoke, it's you! Come on out please!"

That was when someone new walked in front of the group, and Kairi found herself staring at them.

They didn't look human, more like a wooden doll of a boy taken life. The doll was wearing a yellow shirt with a sleeveless coat over it that had a blue bow right where the throat would be. And lower than all of that was a pair of red shorts that stopped above what would be its knees. Its feet looked like brown shoes. On its hands were also a pair of gloves, and to finish it off was a yellow hat with a red feather that rested atop its head.

Just what was this thing? Jiminy clearly knew it, but what was it?

"Is that you Jiminy?" It asked, its voice like that of a little boy, "Gosh, I thought I'd never see you again!"

Jiminy didn't stay on her shoulder after that. With a push he jumped down and ran over to the doll, stopping right in front of it before speaking. "Gee, there's no way you wouldn't find me again. I'm your conscience. And your conscience will always be your guide. Remember?"

The doll nodded, giving him a smile before saying, "Sure, Jiminy. And I've been a good boy, promise. I didn't tell a single lie."

Then the strangest thing happened. Before the groups eyes the dolls nose grew probably double its size.

Jiminy didn't seem to be surprised by it though as he put a hand on his own face and sighed, saying, "Well, for pete's sake!"

The doll only gave an embarrassed smile, "Oops!"

But then the smile disappeared as a more curious look came to its face, "But... how did you end up inside Monstro anyway?"

She grimaced behind her hands at that. How were they supposed to answer that kind of question without revealing Castle Oblivion?

Donald at least seemed to have an idea of how to answer as she heard him say, "We... had a secret way in."

"Yep," Goofy added on, a smile clear in his voice, "It's so secret in fact that we don't know how we did it."

The doll didn't seem to like that as its shoulders sagged, and a frown came to its face, "Oh. That's too bad... I was hoping you could help me and father get out of here."

That had Jiminy jumping in clear shock, "Well, I'll be! Geppetto's here too?"

The doll was quick to grin and nod at that, saying, "Sure he is. Follow me!"

And then it began to walk away, leaving them to follow if they so choose.

But before they went anywhere there was something Kairi wanted to know.

"Jiminy... Just what is that doll and how do you know it?"

"Oh that's simple," Jiminy responded as he hopped back onto her shoulder, "Like I said, I'm his conscience. It's my job to help him know what's right from wrong."

"Your job?" She found herself asking.

He nodded, "That's right. Old Geppetto was desperate to be a father, so much so that he made a doll of how he'd like his potential son to look, even giving him the name Pinocchio. And the Blue Fairy took pity on him. One night while he was asleep she showed up in his workshop and brought the doll to life. And she gave me the job of leading Pinocchio down the right path, saying that if he learns the right lessons he'll become a real boy."

That made her blink, "But you're with us. If that's true then why aren't you with him?"

"We got separated," He said, "When our world was swallowed by darkness I found myself in Donald and Goofy's world, and nobody I knew was around."

"So you're like me," She found herself muttering as they all began to walk.

She thought she'd been quiet enough that no one had heard, but evidently she was wrong as Jiminy then asked, "What do you mean? I know that you're from a world that had been consumed, but it should have been restored after we defeated Ansem."

Her hands fell to her sides. She'd grown used to the smell at this point, there was no reason to keep them up anymore.

With a sigh she said, "The Destiny Islands aren't my first home."

None of the guys said anything, and she took that as her cue to continue, "I don't remember where I'm from originally, only that I washed up onto the islands shores after a storm. There I was taken in by the mayor and met Riku and our friend." A sad smile came to her face at that only for it to be quickly replaced by a frown, "The life I lived there was great, but then the Heartless invaded and I lost everything again. Only this time I remembered the life I had before."

A chuckle came from Goofy at that, "Then we'd better hurry up so that you and Riku can go home."

Well that was an idea.

"Hey!"

Pinocchio was back, and he was standing further ahead and waving at them, "Come on and hurry up everyone! Father is waiting for us!"

(khkhkhkhkh)

It was surprising how short the walk to the mouth was. Considering they were in a whale Kairi expected the walk to be longer.

And what she saw upon arriving had her staring.

There was a fully intact boat sitting near the back of the whales mouth. And there were massive piles of destroyed wood surrounding it.

Just how many boats had this whale destroyed? And how many innocent lives had it cut short?

All she knew was that when they got close to the boat Jiminy settled himself atop her shoulder once again as he called up to it, "Geppetto!"

At first nothing happened, but after a moment an elderly looking man peered over the edge of the boat. And the man seemed to be just as shocked at seeing them, Jiminy more so though as he gasped before saying, "Bless my soul, it's Jiminy Cricket. How in the world did you get here?"

"You tell me!" Jiminy called back, "How does a clockmaker wind up in the belly of a whale?"

"Well..." The elderly man hummed, "It's a long story. Why don't you come on up here so that I can tell you."

What happened afterwards was a blur for Kairi. Once the group stepped foot upon the deck they began to talk to Geppetto, and he began to tell them the story of how he got Pinocchio and how Pinocchio went missing.

And then Donald opened his mouth with a hint of sadness in his voice, "So you sailed out to look for Pinocchio..."

"And Monstro swallowed you!" Goofy added on.

Geppetto nodded at that, his grey hair swaying atop his head. He was dressed in a way similar to Pinocchio except for differences in color. Instead of being yellow his shirt was white with black pants accompanying it instead of red shorts. And below that were a pair of long grey socks. The shoes were similar though. And he was wearing a pair of glasses that like his hair showed his age.

He seemed happy despite the situation though as he smiled at the group, and responded to what Donald and Goofy said, "Yes, but I found my son. I would do anything for my Pinocchio."

Kairi didn't share his opinion though. Frowning she asked, "But you're unable to get out of here, aren't you? Being stuck here must be awful."

To her immense surprise he shook his head, "Not if Pinocchio and I are together. That makes everything seem a little bit better for us. There's nothing better than being reunited with someone you care about."

Riku came to her mind at that, and a sad smile appeared on her face as she responded, "Yeah... I think I know what you mean."

He continued to smile, his eyes closing for a moment, "I don't care if I'm trapped here, so long as I have Pinocchio. He's such a good boy."

Jiminy only hummed at that as he crossed his arms, "Well, he still tells fibs. But with a little help from me..."

Geppetto only chuckled, "Oh, Jiminy, you worry too much."

That was when Kairi noticed that someone was missing from the group. "Speaking of which," She found herself saying as she began to look around, "Where is Pinocchio?"

Her comment had everyone looking around with Donald saying, "He was here a minute ago. Where's he gone this time?"

Geppetto only hummed before saying, "I expect he's off exploring. That boy has been poking around just about everywhere inside this monster." Then a frown came to his face, "He won't tell me why it's so important. I tell him it's dangerous, but he won't listen."

A sigh came from Jiminy at that as he turned to Kairi, Donald, and Goofy before saying, "That boy's a handful! Kairi, if you don't mind..."

She almost found herself sighing like Riku probably would, but still she gave the cricket a smile as she asked, "You'd like some help finding him right? Sure." As she then offered Jiminy a hand up she turned her head just enough to look at Donald and Goofy, saying, "Let's get going guys."

After all it was the right thing to do, and the sooner they found him the sooner they might be able to get out of here.

(khkhkhkhkh)

The search was going nowhere.

Kairi hadn't realized just how much of a maze Monstro's insides were. It shouldn't be possible for any living thing to have this many sections of its body, giant animal or not.

Just how was Pinocchio able to find his way around this place?

And then there were the Heartless. It felt like every section had a few.

Then there was the fact that Donald and Goofy had been cards since the moment they left Geppetto behind. Did this world expect her to do everything on her own? Not even the Olympus Coliseum had her be alone to this degree.

The walls and floor squelched as she made her way into another section of the whales' body, bracing herself for the battle that she knew was about to commence.

It started before she fully entered the chamber. With swirls of darkness a Big Body and several Search Ghost's appeared.

And they came at her immediately.

With no real place to go Kairi ran forward before diving to the side, avoiding the barreling Big Body as she did so. Her body crashed into some nearby barrels, but given the alternative she figured it was the better option.

At least that was her thought until she heard a popping sound right next to her, and a spidery leg entered her field of vision.

These barrels evidentially weren't normal.

She dove out of the pile, her body hitting and rolling across the slimy floor as she escaped the multilimbed mess.

The keyblade came to her hand as she got to her feet as turned to face the group of Heartless, Goofy's card in her other hand as she did so. Before her the big Body stood up and turned to face her as the Barrel Spiders began to spread out, some heading towards her as they did so. The Search Ghost's were nowhere to be seen, but she could worry about them later. Right now she just needed to deal with what was in front of her.

They drew close and she held Goofy's card high into the air, calling out to him as she did so.

It didn't take him long to appear. With a flash of light he appeared before her with his shield and began to spin around, the metal striking the Heartless as they came in contact with it.

Clouds of darkness filled her vision, and when they dissipated Goofy was gone along with the Big Body, and several of the Barrel Spiders. It wasn't much, but it was still an improvement and she intended to take advantage of that.

She charged forward, hitting a Barrel Spider once she was close enough.

The wood that made up the majority of its body splintered under the impact, opening up a hole against its top.

Well it was a start, and it gave her an opening that she could exploit.

Beneath her keyblade the Heartless shifted, forcing her to jump back so that she wouldn't be harmed by it. As her feet made contact with the ground she lifted her keyblade, aimed it at the Barrel Spider, and called up a spell.

Fire sprung forth from the tip, flying through the air where it then struck the damaged Barrel Spider. The Heartless shuddered, the gunpowder filling its body reacting to the flames before it exploded.

Its explosion caused a chain reaction. The ones that had been next to it were hit by the resulting flames, and before her eyes they shuddered and blew up. And then they set off the ones next to them as well.

It was blinding, and she had to raise one of her arms and close her eyes just to protect them from not just the lights but the dust as well.

When it stopped she lowered that arm, and found herself staring at the sight that greeted her.

It was a mess. Bits of wood littered the fleshy flooring, some of it even sticking out of the walls like large splinters. On top of that the flooring was also charred, black soot covering the spots where the Barrel Spider's had stood.

And Donald and Goofy were still nowhere to be seen.

But why?

That was when Jiminy shouted out, "Behind you Kairi!"

She turned, barely lifting her keyblade up in time to block a clawed hand. Her eyes met those of a Search Ghost, and suddenly remembered that there had been some when the fight started.

And that she had only blocked one of its clawed hands. Before her very eyes it raised its other hand, and swung it downwards.

Right into her occupied arm. Blood swelled from the deep gashes, forcing her to drop her keyblade as she jumped away and placed her remaining hand over the wound in an attempt to stop the flow.

Red trickled over fingers as the area stung. And before her two more Search Ghosts appeared, their clawed hands clean and ready to rip her apart along with the other one.

Kairi frowned at the sight, trying to figure out what to do. The arm that held the keyblade had been damaged, and as the Heartless moved closer she could see that it was out of reach.

One of the Seach Ghost's disappeared before reappearing in her face, a hand raised to strike at her face.

She jumped back once again, just barely avoiding the attack as she did so.

Just what was she supposed to do? Kairi didn't have her keyblade anymore, and she wasn't sure her spells would hit them. She just didn't know what to do.

Her feet made contact with the ground once again, and something within her pockets poked her side. Confused her free hand reached into the pocket and pulled out the object only to blink and stare at what she saw.

It was Donald's card.

Would he even be able to help in this situation? She couldn't deny that he was strong, but these Heartless can disappear. Whatever spells he sends out might miss them all.

The Search Ghosts descended on her once again and she crossed her arms over her face, hoping to block the attack. Within her hand Donald's card glowed, disappearing as he himself appeared between her and them, his wand ready to be used.

And he evidently had every intention of using it. Before her very eyes he raised it high, and bolts of lightning struck the area around her. Two of the Search Ghosts were hit while the third disappeared into thin air, leaving the two to turn into shadowy mist that soon dissipated.

Before her Donald then turned to face her and raised his wand once again. A soothing warmth enveloped her shortly after as he soon disappeared, leaving her alone once again.

Just in time for the remaining Search Ghost to return.

It began moving towards her and she ran towards her keyblade. With her arm no longer in pain it was easy to grab the weapon and pick it up.

And it was just in time too as the Heartless disappeared before reappearing right in front of her, one of its clawed hands raised.

This time she didn't panic and block its attack. Instead she swung her keyblade. Its teeth cut through the Heartless, tearing its body in two.

It didn't disappear immediately though. Instead it seemed to hover in the air for a moment before dropping to the ground, its parts landing near each other. One of its hands shakily reached out to her, but didn't make contact as it finally disappeared into shadowy mist before it could even touch her.

With that she was alone once more, and as her keyblade disappeared Kairi sighed in relief. She was just glad that it seemed to be over.

And more so than she thought it seemed as Donald and Goofy's cards flew from her pocket, and hovered before her before turning back into the two.

It was a relieving sight for her. After all if they were back to normal they must be finished with the Heartless for now.

And that meant they must be close to finding Pinocchio.

Still she found herself hugging the two, eliciting a startled shout from them both.

A laugh came from her as she let them go, saying, "Sorry. It just feels like it's been forever since I last saw you two."

Before her they both frowned and elicited a sad sound, Goofy even saying, "Gawrsh. We would be here with you if we could."

Beside him Donald nodded, and she found herself smiling.

"It's alright," She said, "I know you guys don't have a choice here."

Donald looked like he was about to say something, but before a word could come out of his mouth it closed and he walked towards the back of the room.

Confused Kairi and Goofy followed him, Goofy even asking, "What is it?"

He didn't say anything, instead making his way towards whatever had caught his attention. Once he got there he bent down and picked something up, looking at it as he got back to his feet. From there he turned around and offered her the object.

It was an envelope, and attached to it was what looked like a letter bearing her name. Upon taking it she took the letter off and opened it, pocketing the envelope as she did.

Open this after you've remembered your friend's name.

That had her staring at the letter, wondering what it meant and why it was even there.

A squawk from Donald had her looking up and pocketing the letter.

Beside her Goofy asked, "Did ya see something?"

Donald didn't even need to answer as a noise further ahead of them reached their ears. It sounded like someone walking around.

Like Pinocchio.

She took off, Donald and Goofy following shortly after. The noise led them down a long pathway that reeked of a strong and pungent smell.

And at the end of it they could see Pinocchio.

His back was to them, but that wasn't what had her worried. He was standing on top of a flashy platform in the center of a chamber, and it was surrounded by what looked like stomach acid.

Not wanting him to fall into it she led the other into the chamber, calling out as she did so, "Pinocchio!"

The wooden boy jumped, turning to look at them with surprise clear on his face. His lips moved as if he were saying something, but she couldn't hear what it was even as the group ran up to him.

Not that it mattered as once they were close enough to talk to him Jiminy jumped down, and disappointment and worry were clear in his voice as he spoke.

"Pinocchio!" His hands settled themselves on his hips as he continued, "What are you thinking!? You know Geppetto worries when you wander off by yourself."

The frown on Donald's face was obvious as he added, "Jiminy was worried too."

That shocked look turned into an apological one as Pinocchio also lowered his head, saying, "I'm sorry..."

"What are you doing here anyway?" Kairi found herself asking, "Are you looking for something?"

She could tell he was lying before he even opened his mouth. "Um yeah..." He said, his voice taking on an excited tone as he continued, "I'm looking for treasure!"

Then the strangest thing happened. Before their eyes Pinocchio's nose grew, practically doubling in size.

It was such a strange sight, but Jiminy didn't seem surprised by it. He just sighed, shaking his head as he said, "Here we go again..."

A chuckle came from Pinocchio at that as a bashful look took over his face, saying, "But Jiminy..."

Jiminy pointed his umbrella at him like he was about to say something else, but he didn't get the chance to let the words out as Goofy opened his mouth then.

"Now don't be so hard on the little fella Jiminy." The tone in his voice was passive, like he was trying to stop the potential lecture. It at least seemed to work though as Jiminy huffed, but didn't do anything beyond that. That seemed to be fine for Goofy though as he then turned his attention to Pinocchio and said, "We promise not to get mad. Is that why you're afraid to tell? No need to fret. Tell us the truth. We'll understand." One of his hands rose to rest against his own chest as he then added on, "Put yer trust in Goofy."

The boy was quiet for a moment, just staring at the ground. But eventually he lifted his head and said, "I was looking for a way out. Father says he's, but It's my fault we're stuck here." Then his voice took on a sad and quiet tone as he added, "I shouldn't have run away from home. I want to help father get home to the workshop. But he'll worry if I tell him what I'm doing."

Silence swallowed the area after that as they all took in what he'd say.

After a while it broke, and it was Jiminy who did it, "So that's why you thought you had to lie."

That seemed to break the floodgates as Goofy happily said, "You did it cuz you love your dad!"

Beside her Donald added on, "All you need now is courage!"

That last comment had Pinocchio staring at Donald as he then asked, "What?"

"Tell Geppetto the truth!" Donald said, "With a little courage you can do it! If you tell him how you really feel I bet he'll help you find a way out."

Then Donald and Goofy turned to face Kairi, an obvious request on their faces. They wanted to help, and without thinking she nodded. After all it was the right thing to do even if this world was fake.

"And well help you too," She said.

That had Pinocchio staring at them in surprise, eventually asking, "Really? You'll help us?" Then that shocked look changed to one of ecstatic excitement, "Okay, I'll give it a try!" His eyes turned down to Jiminy as he then added on, "Wish me luck Jiminy!"

Jiminy huffed at that, and while she couldn't see his face Kairi could hear the smile in his voice as he said, "No more keeping secrets then. Have we got a deal?"

The boy nodded, saying, "Sure! I'll be brave and tell father how I really feel. No lies this time."

"Great." The cricket said, "Then your nose won't-"

He didn't get the chance to finish that sentence as the belly surrounding all of them shook, almost knocking several of them off of their feet.

Beside her Donald groaned, saying, "I've got a bad feeling about this!"

Between all of them Jiminy moved, jumping onto Kairi's shoulder as he shouted, "Run for it Pinocchio!"

The boy didn't need to be told twice as he took off, running as fast as his wooden legs could carry him.

But he didn't get very far as soon his scream of terror filled the room. And when she and the others turned around to see what happened a terrible sight greeted them.

There was a large Heartless in the whale's stomach, and she could see Pinocchio inside it.

The Heartless looked like a parasitic nightmare. It looked as though it had two heads, one small one sat atop a much larger one. A long tendrillike arm extended from both sides of the smaller head, and at the end of each tendrillike appendage rested something that looked like a mix between a head and a hand.

It was horrible, and as it shifted where it stood she could see Pinocchio flail about in its larger head.

"Help!" He screamed, grabbing onto the 'teeth' of the mouth of the larger head that held him.

Kairi didn't bother waiting for Donald and Goofy to turn into cards. Instead she ran at the Heartless, swinging her keyblade at it once she was close enough.

Her attack did nothing. Less than nothing even as her keyblade bounced off of its larger head, not even leaving an indent where it had hit.

The Heartless didn't give her the chance to recover. With a surprising amount of speed it swung one of its tendrillike appendages into her, slamming into her side and sending her flying into the stomach acid.

It burned. She could feel it eating at her skin, and if it was burning her skin she could only imagine what it was doing to her clothes.

Kairi didn't stay in the acid for long. Fortunately the stomach acid wasn't deep so it wasn't hard for her to get back on her feet. And from there she jumped back onto the fleshy muscle that she and the others had been on before.

There she eyed the Heartless, trying to figure out how she was going to beat it without hurting Pinocchio. Within it she could see the boy shaking with clear fear on his wooden face.

So much for him taking Donalds advice and being brave.

That thought had her blinking as a thought suddenly occurred to her. Would it be easier to hurt the Heartless from the inside?

Well there was only one way to find out.

Taking a deep breath she shouted, "Pinocchio! Jump around inside it!"

Kairi didn't need to be close to see the fearful look he then directed at her.

She could practically hear the sob in his voice as he cried back, "I can't! I'm scared!"

"You can!" She yelled in response, "Remember what Donald told you! Just be brave! I'll even help you!"

Silence answered her that time as his head turned downwards, his hands holding onto the Heartless's 'teeth' as he stood there within it. Whether he was thinking over what she'd said or too scared to respond Kairi didn't know, or didn't have time to think about as the Heartless began to move once again.

The mouths that made up its hands opened up, slamming down into the whale's stomach acid shortly after. Before her eyes the arms attaching the hands to the boy began to gyrate as though they were a throat swallowing something.

After a minute its head leaned back as though it were preparing to spew something at her, and not knowing what was about to happen Kairi braced herself for the upcoming move. She didn't know what was about to happen, but given what it had done so far she knew she wouldn't like it.

Only no attack came.

As the Heartless threw its head forward to do something it jolted, stopping whatever it was about to do.

It jolted again once more, this time with what looked like a pained look on its face.

That had her staring at it in confusion. Just what was going on?

The Heartless moved once more and this time she noticed the cause. Something was moving around in the larger 'head'.

It had to be Pinocchio. There wasn't anything or anyone else within it after all.

And he was giving her the help that she needed.

She had no intention of wasting this chance. Tightening her grip on her keyblade she charged the Heatless once more.

Only this time she took a different strategy. Instead of aiming for the larger 'head' like before she jumped, this time going for the smaller one. And once she was close enough she swung.

The teeth of her keyblade cut deep into the Heartless's 'throat'. Inky black ichor spilled from the wound, trickling over her shoes as they settled atop the larger 'head' that made up the creatures base.

But she didn't let that bother her. Instead she braced her feet against the larger 'head', and yanked on her keyblade.

Her keyblade broke free from the Heartless, tearing open the flesh connecting the two 'heads' together with black liquid trailing after. Beneath her the Heartless writhed, a gurgled sort of scream coming from it as the liquid began spewing from the wound.

Its struggling diminished though, and shadowy mist began to spill from its body. Kairi's feet began to sink into it, and not wanting to deal with the fall she jumped back and watched it disappear.

Donald and Goofy's cards appeared by her side as her feet made contact with the ground, but that didn't matter to her at the moment. She was just glad that it was over, and Pinocchio was safe.

Though he didn't look to be in the best shape.

Jiminy didn't stay with the trio for long. The moment it was obvious that everything was safe now he jumped down and ran to where Pinocchio now sat in what looked to be a daze. And once he was close to the boy he stopped and worriedly asked, "Pinocchio, are you alright?"

The boy blinked a few times before smiling at him, saying as he did so, "Don't worry. I'm okay. Just a little sticky." He pushed himself up after that, and looked to everyone as the trio made their way over. And once they were close he excitedly said, "But I have a great idea! That thing choked when I started fighting back. Why don't we try doing the same thing with Monstro?"

It felt like a lightbulb had finally lit up inside her head, and she felt like an idiot as she smiled at him and said, "That sound like a good idea. If we cause him enough trouble he might cough all of us up."

She could see the light go on in Donald's eyes as he turned to her and exclaimed, "Great idea! Let's go deeper inside him and try it!"

To her surprise Pinocchio took off, shouting back to them as he went, "I'm going to help too!"

Kairi didn't like the thought of him doing that.

Neither did Jiminy it seemed as before she even opened her mouth he said, "No, it's too dangerous."

That had the wooden stopping in his tracks. Before their eyes he turned to face them with a pout on his face as he said, "Aww, c'mon..."

Whatever he was trying to get from Jiminy he didn't get. Instead the cricket only shook his head as he said, "You should go and be with Geppetto. There's no use escaping from Monstro if you two get separated again."

"Don't worry," Kairi found herself saying as she smiled and clasped her hands behind her back, "We'll take care of everything."

(khkhkhkhkh)

They didn't have to travel far it seemed.

Kairi wasn't sure if it was just how Monstro's body worked or if it was just how Castle Oblivion did it, but it didn't take the group long to find a place to cause havoc.

"Looks like this is as far as we go," Goofy said after giving the area a look over.

It really did seem that way. Walls surrounded the group on all sides. The only ways she could see that they could go was either the way they had come in or if they climbed the high walls to wherever they led.

The place didn't look like much, but it was better than nothing. It would have to do.

"Well," Kairi found herself saying, "Let's get started then."

Before her Donald and Goofy nodded though Donald seemed to be bothered by something.

It had her feeling concerned as she then asked, "What's wrong?"

He looked at her, a look that she couldn't recognize on his feathered face as he said, "This would just be easier if we had someone to fight."

Kairi couldn't disagree with that. After all how were the three of them supposed to get a reaction from Monstro by themselves? They'd be lucky if they got any kind of reaction at all.

That was when Heartless began to show up.

They were only Shadows, but given the situation they were better than nothing.

And there were a lot of them.

She caught Donald and Goofy's cards without thinking, pocketing them as she summoned her keyblade and ran at the closest Shadow.

It cut through the Heartless with ease, but it wasn't enough. There were still so many, and she needed to do more.

If only she had a spell that could cover the area.

More and more Shadows appeared soon after, filing the area to such a degree that Kairi could barely see flesh beneath all of their feet.

And then they struck as one.

Kairi found herself overwhelmed immediately. Despite her swing she just couldn't take them down fast enough, and soon she was laying on her stomach with them on top of her.

Their claws tore into her, leaving painful gashes in their wake. It hurt, and unable to do anything Kairi just laid there, closing her eyes as she accepted her inevitable fate.

This was it. This was the end of her journey. She was never going to make it back home to the islands, and she wasn't going to be able to keep the promise she made to Riku.

Some friend she turned out to be.

"Come on Kairi! Don't give up! I know you can do this!"

Her eyes slowly opened upon hearing that. That voice had felt so familiar, but she didn't remember who it could have belonged to.

Was it someone that she had known in the past?

Something pulsed in her chest as something that felt like the hand of a ghost encircled the one she had holding onto her keyblade. From there a power surged outward, filling her field of vision with something bright and freezing cold. Blinded she closed her eyes once more.

The attacks on her body stopped as the foreign feeling disappeared back to wherever it had come from.

That didn't make any sense. She was supposed to be dying a painful death.

Confused she opened her eyes, and sat up only to blink and stare at the sight that greeted her.

Ice had completely covered the area. It covered the 'floor' and climbed up the fleshy walls of the chamber.

But that's not what had her attention.

The Shadows were enshrouded in the ice as well. All around her large pillars of ice shot from the ground, and within them all were large clusters of the Heartless.

Did she do this?

Liquid trailed down from several of the pillars, reminding her of the situation that she was in. She was on a time constraint, and Monstro's body heat was melting the ice.

She needed to take care of this while the Heartless were still encased in the ice.

Grabbing her keyblade and getting to her feet took longer than she would have liked. Her legs were shaky, and her body ached.

But she took a step forward. Then she took another step forward and another, increasing her speed to the point that she was running. And once she was close enough she swung her keyblade at the closest batch of frozen Heartless.

The ice shattered from the impact, spilling pieces of its contents onto the frozen flesh.

That's how things went after that. Though her body continued to ache Kairi ran across the area, destroying frozen clusters of Heartless as she went. Beneath her feet the whale's organ chamber thawed, squelching under her feet as she ran.

Eventually though all of the frozen Heartless were shattered, their contents spilling into the air like a weak mist.

But was it enough?

Kairi turned to scan the area only to be greeted by the sight of the 'walls' and 'floor' pulsating and wriggling.

That was all the warning she got before she found herself being sucked into the air, and into the darkness above her head.

Unable to do anything or really breathe she lost consciousness shortly after.

(khkhkhkhkh)

It was sometime later when she found herself opening her eyes once again, and the sight that greeted her had her frowning.

What greeted her was the roof of Monstro's mouth.

That wasn't right. She and the others should be out now.

Had they failed?

That was when something Goofy said reached her ears.

"Where's Pinocchio and his dad?"

She sat up and got to her feet fast enough that it was a miracle that she didn't get whiplash. And once she was fully on her feet she turned just enough to see Donald, Goofy, and Jiminy looking out over Monstro's mouth.

They didn't seem to realize that she was awake yet as Jiminy then said, "They're gone. They must've gotten out safely."

Hearing that had her blinking as she made her way over and asked, "But without you Jiminy? I thought it was impossible for anyone to escape their conscience."

The three jumped, turning to face her. But Jiminy didn't look at her for long as he soon turned back to looking out over the mouth with a sad smile on his face as he then said, "I don't mind being left behind as long as both of them are safe." For a moment he went silent, letting his words rest in the air before sighing and adding on in a sad tone, "Maybe Pinocchio doesn't need me after all..."

That had her blinking in confusion, asking, "What do you mean?"

"That little puppet used to have trouble telling right from wrong, but he's come a long way. Maybe he doesn't need Jiminy Cricket anymore. Seems he's got a conscience of his very own now."

A frown graced her face at that, "But what about what Geppetto said? That there's nothing better than being reunited with someone you care about?" Without thinking she raised her hands so that they now rested over her chest, adding on as she did so, "I bet Pinocchio can't wait to see you again."

Before her a sound came from Jiminy as he then shook his head, turning and jumping onto her shoulder as he said, "You might be right. By the way are you alright Kairi? You got beat up pretty badly back there."

That had her looking down at herself in thought for a moment. Now that she thought about it her body didn't hurt anymore, and her clothes didn't look torn up either. Did this happen at the end of every floor and she just didn't notice until now?

"I think so."

She was about to open her mouth again and ask where they should probably look for the door when Donald turned around and squawked.

That had the rest of them turning to see what he'd spotted, and what greeted them was the door that would let them out to the rest of Castle Oblivion.

Perfect.

Kairi didn't bother waiting for Donald and Goofy as she made her way over to the door and opened it. She just wanted out of this world already.

The walls of Castle Oblivion were blindingly bright after spending so long in the giant whale's dark and damp belly.

It's a shame her eyes didn't get the chance to adjust though.

The door had barely closed behind the group when a dark corridor temporarily opened up in the middle of the room before them, leaving a young woman in its place.

Like Axel and that mysterious person she was wearing that black coat, leaving only her head visible. Unlike Axel though her hair was blonde, slicked back across her head with only two slivers appearing to defy gravity as they stuck up like alien antenna. And to finish it all off she had eyes that were turquoise blue to match.

And she was giving the Princess of Heart a smile that she didn't like.

Kairi was quick to call her keyblade to her hand as Donald and Goofy ran in front of her.

Before her Donald pointed his staff at the woman, shouting as he did so, "I bet you work with Axel!"

The womans smile didn't leave her face as she tilted her head and placed her hands on her hips in response before sarcastically saying, "Too clever. I'm Larxene. So... are you enjoying your stay at the castle? I bet it's nice to peel away all the worthless memories and awaken the true memories... that lie deep in your heart."

That last part had been said with a more pointed tone to it, but at the current moment Kairi didn't care as it brought a question to her mind.

"True memories? What do you mean?"

Her question had Larxene sighing, moving a hand to rest it against her forehead as she said, "Although it seems that you're still forgetting the most important thing here." A sad tone then enveloped her voice as her smile turned to a frown and she then said, "When that poor girl hears that you've forgotten her name, why... it'll just... break her heart."

That last sentence had Kairi taking a step forward, a new question on her lips, "That poor girl? Do you know her!?"

Larxene didn't answer her. Instead she only chuckled as she stared at the young teen.

Still it was enough of an answer for Kairi as she then asked, "Please tell me. Is she here?"

Once again the woman laughed, turning her back to her as she practically sang, "Yes, she is. You see the bad guys are holding her captive somewhere deep inside the castle." She took several steps away from the group before stopping and looking at them over her shoulder, particularly Kairi, "And you are obviously the hero, so you have to save her. Although..."

Kairi didn't get the chance to react. Before she even knew what was happening a foot made contact with her chest, sending her flying.

"I'm a bad guy, so you have to go through me!"

From somewhere off to the side Kairi could hear Goofy call out to her, but that didn't matter to her as she lifted her head where she now found herself laying on her stomach. There was a charm that she didn't recognize on the ground in front of her.

"What's that?" She asked, her voice sounding weak to her own ears. "Is that mine?"

A scoff came from Larxene at that. The sound of heels clicking against the floor soon followed after as the woman continued to speak, "What a shame. You've been holding onto it all this time and forgot? No..."

Despite her weak protests the woman picked the item up, carelessly holding it by the chain as she continued to speak, "That's just not possible. The memory has to be engraved somewhere deep inside your heart. Kairi, you think carefully now." Her tone shifted once again, taking on a teasing tone as she continued, "What oh what could it be? And who gave it to you?"

A slight jolt of pain shot through her chest then, but at the moment Kairi didn't care. She felt like she was finally on the verge of getting the answer that she was after.

"N... Na...Nami..."

Above her Larxene practically hummed, "You're getting it now. Release the memory from within your heart."

That was when the pain got worse for Kairi. From out of nowhere it grew worse, far more worse than it had been so far, bad enough that she found herself clutching at her chest as she screamed.

But yet within her mind it felt different. There it felt as though the fragmentary pieces she'd been gathering as she made her way through the building had finally begun to fall into place. The picture it seemed had finally been completed.

"Namine."

Within her the pain suddenly stopped, disappearing as quickly as it had appeared.

Above her Larxene huffed, "Well it's about time. That's right... Namine. Yes, she's the one that gave you this tacky little good luck charm. Not that you even bothered to remember. Not surprising though seeing as you also couldn't remember her name." She then shifted her stance, putting on a dramatic air as she continued, "Talk about heartless! I can't believe you!"

Her hold on the charm changed. No longer was she carelessly holding it by the chain. Now her hand was wrapped around it, like she wanted to crush it with her grip alone. But she didn't. Instead she raised her hand as she shouted, "It'd serve you right if I decided to smash this piece of junk!"

Kairi's reaction was immediate. She got to her feet and jumped for the charm, reaching out towards it as she cried out, "No!"

Her fingers never made contact with the charm. Before they could even touch it Larxene jumped backwards, taking the charm with her. But Kairi didn't care as she called out, "Namine gave it to me! It's very important!"

Larxene only scoffed, saying, "Oh? This is important to you? Ten second ago you didn't even know what it was."

Beside her Donald and Goofy disappeared, turning into cards like they had with Axel.

And like her fight with him Kairi didn't get the chance to grab their cards as a foot made contact with her once again, sending her flying once more.

This time though she wasn't kicked hard enough that her back or front made contact with the floor, instead making her feet skid across the ground. And when she stopped skidding and looked at Larxene she was greeted with a sight that she didn't like.

Donald and Goofy's cards were in the womans hands.

The woman smirked at her, saying, "We can't have them getting in the way of our fight now can we?" And then before Kairi's eyes she threw the two cards upwards, sending something up after them immediately afterwards.

Two thunking sounds followed shortly after, and when Kairi turned her head upwards she was greeted with the sight of both of their cards pinned to the ceiling by what looked like daggers.

That wasn't good. Those daggers looked like they were going right through the cards. What if Donald and Goofy were hurt?

"You don't have the time to be distracted by them."

Those words had come from behind her, and as she turned around Kairi found herself being kicked and sent flying once again.

Like before she landed on her feet, and once she stopped skidding across the floor she called her keyblade back to her hand and ran at the woman. As had happened before she failed to land a hit as Larxene jumped back, electricity enveloping her hands.

That was all the warning Kairi got before her world became nothing but pain.

She shrieked, her body going rigged as electricity shot through her. How long she was stuck like that she didn't know. All she knew was that when it stopped she just continued to lie there, gasping for air.

A sigh came from Larxene then, the woman not even hiding her disappointment as she said, "Is that really all you can do? I was hoping you'd put up more of a fight." The sound of heels clicking against the floor bounced off of the walls for a moment as the woman made her way over, only stopping once she was by the Princess of Hearts head.

There Kairi found her head being tilted by one of the womans foot, moved just enough so that she was looking up at her.

For a moment nothing happened, they just continued to look at each other. Then Larxene tsked, tossing something down onto the ground as she held the charm so that it was within Kairi's field of view.

"I'm taking this. If you want this stupid charm back then keep going through this castle and fight me again. And," Her voice took on a demanding tone, "When that happens you'd better make things interesting for me that time."

Kairi didn't get the chance to respond before the woman left, taking Namine's charm with her.