Disclaimer: A part of this chapter is lifted directly from what PotterPhantomKitten talked about as a future scene for their story. So PPK, if you want to stop me, then you better do so now, because I'm about to truly overtake you.

I'm so sorry for the delay. I had the middle section of this chapter all laid out, until I decided I needed to make it better. But that version of the draft wasn't saved to my google drive, and recreating something else I liked was…difficult.

Also, I still don't own anything.

Chapter 10: Tabula Rasa

Joy hurriedly grabbed up the soul memory next to her, and began making her way down the hill. She was moving towards where she saw the light, but reaching it was much more difficult than expected. She had to climb over logs, weave through some vines, and even avoid a few broken memory orbs to get closer. After about 25 minutes, she finally reached the beach by the "lake".

Joy squinted a bit, and there, standing by a log on a slightly elevated piece of ground, was a glowing white Riley. She was holding what looked like another memory, looking all around. Riley's energy form didn't seem to be flickering like when Headquarters started collapsing. Strangely enough, Riley was now in the outfit she wore the day she almost ran away. An all black jacket and dark pants combination. But at that moment, Joy didn't care. Riley could've been wearing a clown outfit, and it would've been the most beautiful thing ever. It was their girl. And Joy could finally save her.

Joy started sprinting as fast as she could, dropping the soul memory on the beach as she sprinted around the shore of the lake towards Riley. She actually felt herself start bounding, not slowing down until she was almost directly in Riley's face.

"RILEY! OH THANK GOODNESS, YOU'RE OKAY!"

But Riley didn't respond the way Joy hoped. Instead, she tripped over backwards, still holding what Joy now recognized as Possibility Island's Core memory. She looked up at Joy with incomprehension. And Joy also finally saw the tear streaks on her cheeks. In a small, scared voice, Riley asked, "Who..who are you?"

Joy immediately felt a chill go down her body, but it couldn't stop her exuberance at first. "It's me Riley. Joy! You know, your emotion?"

Riley just blinked owlishly and uneasily at her. "I…I don't understand. Why are you calling me Riley?"

Joy stopped for a moment, then recovered herself in a snap. "I..that's your name isn't it? Who do you think you are?"

Riley looked down. "I don't know. If I did have a name, I..I think I forgot it."

Joy crouched down to Riley's level, keeping a smile still on her face, but now much more quiet. "But…you're Riley Andersen. From Minnesota."

Riley scooted away again, now finding a seat on the log near them. "What are you talking about?"

Joy swallowed. This was really bad. Joy at least expected a little yelling from Riley. This was actually worse. How..how could Riley not remember her own life? "C-Come on, Riley," Joy whispered, holding the girl's hand. "Minnesota? Remember Minnesota?"

Riley blinked and sniffled, tugging her hand away and staring at Joy in a fearful incomprehension as she wiped tears away with her sleeve. "Wha...What's Minnesota?"

"The place where you used to live..." Joy felt her chest tighten, forcing out a smile as she pleaded with her eyes to have Riley remember anything about her life. "Do you remember the lake where you used to skate and play hockey with Mom and Dad? Or when Meg would come over?"

Riley shook her head, looking as lost as ever and clutching to the soul memory like it was her only friend. Even the words "Mom" and "Dad" seemed to hold no meaning for her.

'Please tell me I'm having a nightmare', Joy thought before desperately trying again. "San Francisco?"

"What's that?"

Joy's expression faltered. As attempting to remain perky was becoming harder. If Riley didn't remember her own family here... "Okay, come on, h-hockey! You remember hockey, right?"

Riley shook her head.

Joy searched for something more recent. "Ann? Jordan?"

Nothing.

Joy sat next to her. If a Human World memory wouldn't come to her here, maybe a Mind World memory would. Her eyes darting for a moment, her expression lit up as she pointed to the memory that Riley clutched to her chest. "Remember when you performed impressions of us? And created Possibility Island?"

Riley sighed, looking down and wrapping her coat around herself. She gazed at the orb, but it was as if she wasn't really focusing on it. Her brow then furrowed, wracking her brain to try to come up with any recollection. But no matter how much she searched her mind, it didn't seem she could recall much of anything that would help her. At least not as far as Joy could see in her eyes.

The young human was broken out of her attempts at thought by feeling a warm hand wrap around hers. She looked up, staring into Joy's eyes, the emotion's gaze worried. Despite her concern, Joy still knew they could get things back to normal. They had to. Everything might've become a mess after all they went through this week, but Joy still believed she could fix this. No matter where they'd have to go.

"We have to get you out of here."

Riley's lip quivered. "But..why should I? I don't know who you are, where we need to go. I don't even know who I am!" Riley could feel the tears still playing at the edge of her eyes.

Joy kept her steady gaze and a steady hand despite feeling on the edge of breaking down herself. "Well, if we go together, maybe we can figure everything out. We're all getting out of this."

That phrase sparked something in Riley. She tilted her head slightly. "I…I remember…something. It seems so distant but…I remember being so upset. I was mad at myself. I was mad at…you. But, I wanted so badly to prove I mattered that I couldn't forgive myself for...for…" Riley trailed off. "I don't know if I'll like who I am if I remember."

Joy really did feel her heart stop for a second. But, she still used all her willpower to bring a smile back to her face. "Maybe, but there are so many others who want the old you back." Joy gave a light squeeze to Riley's hand. "Come on. We can't stay here."

Riley briefly wiped her eyes. Then hugged the soul memory close to her again as she scooted down the log a little farther, letting go of Joy's hand. "Can we stay here a few more minutes? I'm not ready to go yet."

Joy wanted so badly to pull Riley up and start moving, but she couldn't force this. Not in Riley's current state. So, she scooted closer to Riley. "Okay. I'll be right here whenever you're ready."

Riley stared out over the lake, while occasionally glancing down at the memory in her hands. As the seconds ticked by, Riley began to smile slightly. This bright orb made things seem a little less scary in this dark forest. However, Riley also began to notice the slight glow of Joy right next to her. And feeling something else rising up from her memories, she nuzzled a bit into Joy's shoulder, trying to mentally prepare herself. Joy, seeing Riley rest her head, wrapped an arm around her. It definitely wasn't the hug she expected to give their girl, but she was here. And now, they just needed to get back to the others.

Disgust and Envy walked in silence for a while. After Disgust's outburst, neither said anything as they got further across the memory dump. Unfortunately, Envy's concerns were well founded. There was quite a bit of sag in the tarp at this distance from both sides. Still, despite needing to partially scramble towards more firm areas, the two emotions were able to keep moving forward. In fact, Envy was moving a little faster since she didn't leave as big an indent in the tarp.

Disgust glared a little at the 'kid' now ahead of herself. "Why didn't you just go across by yourself? You're small enough not to cause as much trouble."

Envy looked back, her eyes now with a lingering uncertainty. "I didn't want to. Who would I emulate if I was going by myself?"

Disgust rolled her eyes. "What makes others so important to you? You sound kinda insecure."

Envy turned away, still moving forward while talking. "Who do you think I am, Disgust? I'm not Fear or Joy."

"So?"

"So, my job is to make sure Riley knows what she should want from life or others. I want to be like the best people around."

Disgust gave a confused frown at that. "And…you wanted to work with me after I found you?"

Envy turned to look at Disgust again, nodding vigorously. "I already told you: you're the prettiest and smartest emotion I've ever wanted to meet."

Disgust gave an annoyed exhale. "Come on Envy. Sadness is much smarter than I am. She had the time and patience to actually read the mind manuals."

Envy shrugged. "Sadness took the time, but she doesn't know how to use it unless you all ask."

Disgust frowned deeper. "Well, Fear is obsessive about knowing all about everything around us, and acts on it quickly."

Envy gave a slight chuckle. "Fear's a worrywort. He acts quickly, but overreacts."

Disgust began to see where this was going, but still wasn't willing to accept it. "If you think being smart is all about knowing when and how to act, Anger and Joy are the first to go after ideas. They're much smarter and more useful compared to…" Disgust swallowed. "Compared to me."

Envy didn't let up. "Joy wants so badly for things to be good, she doesn't see problems until they hit. And do you really want to talk about Anger? It's his fault we got to this point."

Disgust now got hard eyes. "We all got into this situation, Envy. Anger might've broken the intercom, but none of us are guiltless in how we got here. I mean, if Riley didn't hear me talking about my scarf, Ann never would've asked about us and started our school troubles."

Envy then looked right at Disgust with a triumphant grin. "Well if you're all responsible for getting into this, then why don't you have an idea for when Riley wakes up?"

Disgust gave an exasperated sigh. "Really? We're going back to this again?"

Envy took a step closer to the much taller emotion. "I just don't get why you don't even want to try. I know you can be a leader, so why not lead us out of this?"

Disgust then thought of something. "Why do you even think that? How would you know what we get up to if we've never met before the evacuation?"

Envy gave a little chuckle. "We have monitors downstairs. So when Riley's ready for us, we can come upstairs. I've seen all you've done this last week." Envy then smiled with an awestruck look. "You connected with Riley instantly when you first spoke to her. You helped make her laugh when drawing. You tried to keep Riley calm during lockout day. You directed Fear on Tuesday night. You used a little bite to protect Riley on Wednesday. So what makes you think you're no good for Riley once we get everything back together?"

Disgust looked down. "It's easy for me to appear confident. To put a little bite into stupidity. But, I make mistakes too. Like deciding Anger was right about Riley being happier in Minnesota. Or not being encouraging enough when Mom and Dad went snooping into Riley's room. I tried to keep Riley sane, safe and calm. But, Riley didn't listen. And…I still don't think I deserve to say anything. I feel…disgusted with myself."

Envy sighed, seeing they were right back to Disgust's personal issues from before. Breaking off eye contact, Envy looked around the mind world, desperately trying to think of something, anything to hold onto. And then, she looked at the remaining standing Islands of Personality. Possibility, Honesty, Isolation. And the gaping hole in the middle where Family Island used to be. And that's when it hit her. The examples Disgust needed to snap out of her pity party. "Well, maybe you're right."

Disgust looked up. "What?"

Envy feigned a sad face. "If Riley truly feels alone in the world, then there's nothing you or I can do to change her. Maybe she was wrong to think of us as part of possibilities for the future."

Disgust now looked confused. "That doesn't sound like you."

Envy snorted. "Well, if you don't want to put in the effort to help Riley, why should I?" Disgust opened her mouth to reply, but Envy went on. "I mean, it's not like Riley thinks that being in the mind world is the most special thing in the world. The one thing she could see everyone else get jealous of."

Disgust blinked. "But she does! At least, it's her safe space after the dangers outside."

Envy then gave a shy smile. "So you think we're part of something really special? Something Riley would never give up?"

Disgust swallowed. "Maybe? We might not always get things right, but we're a part of her. Riley needs us to live right."

"And you DON'T want to help her save that?"

"I do! That's why I'm here."

Envy began to give a cunning smile. "But you said you thought maybe it'd be best to do what Mom and Dad want."

Disgust gave a disgruntled groan. "Well, it's not like we've been doing great outside. Mom and Dad are great! They love us, and help us so much even if we can't always show it."

Envy saw her triumph coming into view. "You're right. They are great, even if they don't share our talents. But there's one thing you could do which they already did for us last year!"

Disgust could feel her patience running out. "Oh really? And what's that?"

"You could forgive yourself!"

Disgust's eyes went wide with incomprehension. Then she blinked in surprise. "Forgive…myself?"

Envy now got all the way to Disgust's feet, her big eyes filled with worry, but also compassion looking up at her. "Emotions can't quit. Riley needs us all, so why don't you forgive yourself? Give yourself a clean slate? Mom and Dad forgave Riley for almost running away." Seeing Disgut's still conflicted face, Envy said one last thing. "And didn't you forgive yourself then too?"

Disgust looked down, crossing her arms, and thinking about that week after Joy and Sadness returned to Headquarters. And finally in defeat, she sighed. "Yeah. I guess I did. Everything happened so fast I didn't give myself time to regret once Joy and Sadness got back." She then picked up Envy. "How did we end up talking about this?"

Envy shrugged. "I followed Riley's lead with her islands. Even if Family Island isn't standing now, I think we all need some self forgiveness before we wake up."

Disgust took in a deep breath, then hugged Envy close, releasing the tension she didn't realize she was carrying. "Well, I'll…think about it." Envy patted her shoulder briefly. Then Disgust dropped Envy, giving her a hard look. "Don't tell ANY of the others about this talk."

Envy gave a starry eyed smile. "You're asking ME to keep a special secret? YES! Absolutely!"

Disgust rolled her eyes a bit, but smiled too. "Thank you Envy. Now let's get off this thing. This tarp is so icky to walk on!" She immediately picked up her pace, with Envy again scrambling to keep up.

Anger, Fear and Harry emerged from their tunnel. They had to call in for help because of a tunnel split mid journey, but thankfully nothing seemed to follow them down this far. As they came out, they looked over the space outside the tunnel. There were quite a few large rocks around the area. They were all images of various mundane things like a giant test score with an F on it, or a hockey puck flying towards a stone Riley's face. It was quite the jumble, with small paths between the formations. But out beyond all the rocks was a giant gold and silver gate with a small lock in the middle. On top was a sign that read THE UNCONSCIOUS: LOCK UP BEFORE YOU GO!

Fear gave a mild sigh of relief. "We made it." Looking at the rock sculptures, he gave a little shudder. "These are all things that could be in the subconscious and unconscious. Thank goodness they aren't alive."

Harry meanwhile looked around before declaring, "I don't like this." Anger and Fear turned to the imaginary boyfriend, as he looked back with a stressed expression. "We should see Riley's deepest fears, but I don't see anyone or anything like what we passed through to get here. No Jangles, no knives. I don't like how this gate looks unguarded."

Fear grew more and more freaked out the longer he listened. "You're right. But…I don't know what else could be this far down. Tracy I could understand being here, but she was right before the tunnels." He looked around again, but saw seemingly nothing. "Why isn't there anything here?"

Anger suddenly pointed. "Hey, who's that?"

The three looked toward the gate. And there they saw…

"Joy?"

Despite their own hesitation, all three hurried down towards the gate. Joy was on the other side, seemingly holding onto the bars. Too big to slip through the narrow gaps. Finally the three reached a slightly open clearing right in front of the gate.

"What are you doing here? How did you get here anyways?" asked Harry.

Joy gave a pleading look. "I got lost and turned around. Please, do you have the key to open up the gate?"

Anger beckoned for Fear. Fear began reaching to his pack to get the key out. But as he did, Fear suddenly paused. His eyes shook in concern. "Hold on a second. Joy, where's Bing Bong Jr?"

Joy looked distraught, but said, "We split up. We had to find Riley, and I barely made it here. The Unconscious is a weird space."

Fear now had a rising sense of panic. He again reached for his zipper, but then another thought came to mind. "Wait...how do I know you're really Joy and not just some abstract fear trying to use us to get out?"

Joy lightly shook the gate. "Come on Fear. It's me! We worked together for so long, how could you not know it's me?"

Harry spoke up, noticing how 'Joy' didn't answer the question. "What did Disgust tell me to do before I could be Riley's boyfriend?"

Joy blinked. "That…you needed a personality and a haircut? Why so defensive?"

Harry looked at both Anger and Fear. "I haven't known Joy for THAT long. Before we open the gate, ask her one more thing only one of you would know."

Anger now narrowed his own eyes, "If you really are Joy, what's something we talked about when I took you on break?"

Joy stammered for a second. "That…you regret breaking the intercom a little? Come on Anger, don't waste time, we have to go find Riley."

Seeing Anger's surprised look, Fear finally pulled out the key. He looked ready to put it in the lock, but felt Anger's hand. Looking at him, Anger moved his eyebrows, indicating he should ask a question too. Fear bit his lip in uncertainty, but then asked, "Joy, what did I say one of my secret desires was?"

Joy quickly replied with confidence. "That Riley would get a job of perfect safety when she grows up."

Fear jolted, and took a few steps backwards. The other two noticed his expression was now a glare and a frown. Fear now spoke with a stiff anger. "I told you how sometimes I wanted to be like you. Someone who can see not just the dangers but the way forward." Fear then crossed his arms, the key in his left hand. "You're not really Joy, are you?"

'Joy' stepped back. For a moment, there was a hurt look on her face. But then, that look morphed into a smile. A dark, sinister smile, and 'Joy' started to laugh. At first it was a small kind of chuckling laugh like how Anger sometimes heard her make in her sleep, but it grew deeper, and deeper. And more and more aggressive. Until 'Joy' was doubled over in laughter. "HaHaHaHaHaHa…"

And then, it changed. It grew, the dress on "Joy" tore a little, and her eyes turned red. The hair grew into a multicolored tangle, and her arms became clawed and longer so they dropped all the way to the ground. Then it spoke again, but this time, it was like her voice was running through a phonograph that distorted it into something much deeper and scary. "Well, well. And here I thought you'd fall for fearful sob stories so easily." The being smiled, and there were sharp teeth that stuck out. "No matter. I knew if I hung around here, I'd FORCE things to change."

All three mind beings on the Subconscious side took a step back. Even Anger, despite himself, felt terrified looking at this mockery of the Joy they knew. But, he stepped to the front, looking this terrifying monster in the face. "Then what's your real name?"

"I'm Paranoia. You could also call me your daughter."

That made Fear gasp. Anger though gave an annoyed scoff despite everything. "I think I'd remember if I had a kid this big."

"Don't mock me!" Paranoia rattled the gate briefly, leading the three to take several more steps back towards the tunnels. "You and Fear together made me. I got dropped down here from Abstract Thought this week, and it was all because Riley was so worried and angry at the world. She needed ME to make sense of it, but you all shoved me down here instead. Cowards."

Harry looked very confused at this. "Guys, what is she talking about?"

Fear looked at Harry. "I…."

Paranoia began rattling the gate, growing louder and louder. "Go on. Tell him how Riley began to worry about anyone knowing about talking to her emotions. Emotions of all things! Tell him how she started to think she had to take over YOUR jobs because you hurt her last year. Tell him how Riley thought she might actually have schizophrenia because everything from this last week EXACTLY matches the symptoms. How she almost swore at her best friend because she thought she wasn't actually going to help her. How she hated her parents because she believed they weren't going to care about her. HOW SHE TURNED ON YOU ALL BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T TRUST THE WORLD ANYMORE! All she'll ever need is ME, and you deny me that? Stop pretending you're good for Riley and LET ME OUT!" Paranoia then struck the gate, causing a loud clang to rock over the area.

Anger scowled in response. "Riley certainly went through a lot, but if you're going to say such awful things about her, then you definitely belong down here! Riley can get confused, but she still trusted she had friends! She had courage to tell the truth about the test! She-"

"No. Paranoia's right."

Everyone looked at Fear, who was looking down, despondent.

"I was so scared of our new reality, I didn't even think about how it might make Riley believe her own mind would be the safest place to hide. A…paranoid delusion." Fear looked up again. A hollow tone to his voice. "This is all our fault. We made this….thing in Riley and now….we're stuck. There's no way we can get past Paranoia and keep our promise to lock the gate."

Harry crossed his arms. "Nothing Paranoia said is something we didn't pick up on in Imagination Land. We knew about her plan to stay here forever before all you did." Harry then looked up at Paranoia. "And how did you get all the way to the gate?"

Paranoia gave a toothy grin. "When Riley tried to lock herself in, that's when I decided to leave my 'space'. Try to get out. But unlike Narcissism, Loneliness or Spite, I wasn't going to sneak out through the belief system or wait for Riley to bring us out all the way herself. I was going to get out as a PROPER emotion. If I come through the Subconscious, I can get all the way into Riley's conscious mind and make sure she NEVER lets her guard down to trust someone again." Then she smiled even bigger. "And speaking of Proper Emotions…" She whistled really loud, the sound echoing over the Subconscious. "I'd say you have…5 minutes before my help arrives to get that KEY."

All three of the travelers quickly slipped out of sight, regrouping behind a rock sculpture of Riley cringing at something or other.

Fear slumped down. "You know, giving up doesn't feel so bad an idea now."

Harry nodded. "We're not equipped to deal with Paranoia. We'd be fed to her like a cookie!"

Anger promptly slammed Fear's head into the rock formation, and gave Harry a dope slap. "Don't you quit on me now Cowards! We just have to think of a way to get through the gate and lock it once we get through."

Fear gave an incredulous look. "HOW? We don't even know who Paranoia is going to call in against us. And if we get caught by them, the gate will be left open, and Riley will never trust another person again! Not even us!"

Anger frowned in frustration. He looked out, seeming to spot something coming. Then he looked at Fear. "I don't suppose you have binoculars in that emergency pack of yours?"

Fear unslung the pack, and started digging through it. The rope, the ruler, a clamp, some glue, a can of mace and other assorted survival items came flying out. Until at last, Fear had Binoculars in hand. Anger grabbed them, climbing up onto Riley's stone face, looking out for Paranoia's 'help'. He grumbled to himself as he scanned the horizon, until he finally saw something. He gasped, and quietly came down.

"What did you see?" asked Harry quickly. Anger now looked shocked and didn't answer.

"Anger?" Fear nervously inquired.

Anger looked at the two of them, but now he looked like all the fight in him had ebbed away. "It's us."

"What?"

"I saw other versions of us coming here. Another you. Another me. Another Disgust. It's us. Riley…Riley's afraid of us."

Fear now realized what Anger was saying, and promptly slumped down to his feet. "Riley…" he moaned.

Harry though had a new look on his face. A contemplative look. "Okay, that's definitely something to unpack later. But, if it's other versions of you all? It actually gives me an idea."

Anger and Fear looked at Harry with indecision. "What's the point?" Fear moaned. "This is proof Riley doesn't trust us anymore. Whatever reason she has for being afraid of us, how do we ever get Riley's trust back? Look how much I….We hurt her."

Harry now got down to their level. "Don't quit on me now you two! Remember Possibility Island? As long as that's standing, Riley still cares about you all." Harry then gestured to himself. "Look at me. I've been trying to be Riley's best boyfriend, and I still feel like a fraud. But I have something in me to keep going. To show I would die for Riley. To prove how much I love her." Harry then offered two hands to the emotions. "We're so close. And I have an idea of how to get in."

Fear and Anger looked at each other. Both nervously took a hand, and stood up.

Harry then gave a slight smile. "Okay, this is going to be really risky, but it's the best way I see us reaching the Unconscious and locking the gate like Captain Jonas wanted." Anger and Fear leaned in. As they listened, Fear still had a nervous look, but Anger now gave a smile. This was the kind of plan he'd always get behind.

Fear asked one question. "What if they figure out the plan?"

Harry frowned. "Well, then we better hope Paranoia is slow. But as long as we get through and lock the door behind us, then we'll figure out a new plan once we're safe."

Fear swallowed, but nodded. "Okay. Let's do it!"

Five emotions walked up to the gate. They looked exactly like the five main emotions from upstairs. Same outfits, same colors. They were even roughly the same size. However, just looking at their eyes and posture, you could tell they were nothing like the emotions. Smug and taunting smiles sat on their faces as they came up to Paranoia. And their eyes were red and yellow rather than normal white.

"So what's the plan, Boss?" asked the 'Fear'.

Paranoia pointed out among the rocks. "The Key is somewhere out there. Fear has it, but Anger and that imaginary boyfriend are around here too. I need you to get the key by any means necessary."

'Joy' gave a little salute. "You got it. Spread out everyone. Call it out when you find them."

The five spread out among the rocks, peeking behind, inside and through the various formations. And as they began moving they began making taunting jabs.

"Come on!" 'Joy' chuckled out loud. "Just come out and play. Am I really that scary? It'll be fun. Isn't it Joyful to know the truth?" She saw something thin run in one direction, and began peeling away from the others.

"You aren't needed anymore," 'Anger' proclaimed as he checked behind a sculpture of Riley running from her friends. "You did your best to help Riley, but the truth is she needs US now instead. Once I get hold of you, Anger, I'll be there to make sure Riley takes care of ANYONE who gets in her way." He then heard a rock fall, and began drifting towards the rocks near the tunnel.

"We're-always-gonna-be-here!" said 'Fear' in a sing-songy tone. "No matter how close you all get with Riley, no matter what she might say, we will always be here. Now that she knows about you, there will ALWAYS be some part of her that believes you're controlling her." 'Fear' then noticed a ruler lying on the ground. He picked it up with confusion, then began drifting parallel to 'Anger'.

"And you two are the biggest failures of all!" This came from 'Disgust' who jumped over to look behind a giant meteor. "You Anger…who kept wanting to get her into fights. And You Fear, who always kept her running away from her problems!" She gave a disgruntled snort not seeing any of them. "Once we get out too, we'll make sure all the other emotions are taken care of. Then Paranoia and Fear will truly control Riley." She moved in another direction.

"And there's no place for boyfriends in our world," added 'Sadness'. "We'll probably toss you and your machine in the dump once we get a chance."

"It'll be great," they all said in unison. As the different fear-emotions were so spread out from each other at this point, their voices echoed throughout the stone formations. "We'll play with Riley forever and ever and ever.."

"YOU PARASITES!"

All of them turned to see Anger standing by a rock shaped like Riley screaming. His head was already flaming, and he looked like he wanted to strangle something.

"You will NEVER lay ONE grimy hand on OUR GIRL! WE LOVE her, and SHE LOVES US! AND IF YOU WANT TO TRY.." Anger then gestured with his hand towards the other 'Anger', who was closest to him. His tone became cold and menacing. "Come and get me!"

'Anger' charged at the emotion, trying to grapple him. As the Fear-Emotion tried to pin Anger down, Anger flipped him over his shoulder. Then jumped straight at him, beginning to pound him in the face. All the while, hollering, "RILEY'S! OUR! FRIEND! You don't get to hurt her!" The fight then became a more proper grappling match, as the two red beings wrestled with each other, before Anger rolled them behind a massive formation of Riley walking away from pointing figures, pretty close to the tunnel out.

'Joy' shouted, "Fear, get after him! And see if the others from upstairs are there."

'Fear' scurried towards the space 'Anger' had gone, racing out of view of the others. Only to find his counterpart and Harry waiting on the other side, holding a rope between them.

"Surprise!" Harry said quietly, as they jumped for the 'Fear'.

Some sounds of surprise followed. Some grunts, a sound of a blowtorch going off. The formation shook a couple times, and all the while, the other fear-emotions were trying to reach the sounds of the fight. Weaving through the formations, trying to get to the others.

Then, things became quiet. Reaching the rocks, the other fear-emotions almost hurried behind them, only for a Fear and an Anger to step out, holding Harry between them. The Fear also held up the key in his hand.

"Got it."

'Disgust' gave them a scrutinizing look. "And…where are the emotions from upstairs?"

The Anger pointed behind himself. "Ran back into the tunnels. We'll catch up with them after we let Paranoia out."

'Sadness' also gave the cluster a look of confusion, but shrugged. "Okay. Let's open it up."

The group walked down, with Harry struggling between them all. "You can't do this! I would die for Riley! Riley needs others!"

'Joy' scoffed. "All Riley ever needs is us. Why do you think she wanted to stay here forever?"

The Anger and the Fear flinched slightly, but both chuckled at the words. Harry though gave an angry glare. "I'm living proof that Riley wants more. I'm her imaginary boyfriend. If she wants all 'you' so much, then she could have even more."

'Anger' snickered. "Well, we give our girl what she wants. And I bet she'll throw you out once she gives up all control on her own life. Let us rule her as we ought to."

Returning to the gate, the Fear reached the key up to the lock, and with a click, opened the gate so it was just wide enough for him and the other two next to them to get through. The other emotions started to move back, as Paranoia started to move forward.

However, right at that moment, a shout went up. "Stop those 3!" Several eyes went up towards the rocks, seeing another Fear and Anger hopping towards them. They were tied together with rope, stuck together with glue, and clamped together with a clamp.

For one terrible moment, everyone looked at the three mind beings right in the middle of the gate. Then the Fear looked at the other two and nodded. He tossed Harry the key, then Fear and Anger ran to close the gate from the inside. As soon as the bars came together, Harry immediately locked the gate before anyone else could reach them.

"You DARE to trick ME!?" Paranoia shouted. She immediately reached for the three of them. However, they then scattered. Paranoia reached for them all, but could only grab Anger and Fear. But not before Fear threw his radio to Harry.

"Harry, RUN! Find Joy. Don't let them get the key!"

Harry gave a harrowing glance back at the two emotions, then took off. Shouting as he went, "I'll save you both somehow!"

Paranoia looked after the escaping Harry, then at the two emotions in her hands. "How did you get your eyes to match the others?"

Anger gave a mocking grin. "We sprayed ourselves with mace. It's too late for you now, daughter. You're staying right where you belong!"

Paranoia snarled. "I don't need to catch Harry yet. As long as I have you two, Riley can't be angry or scared without also having me. You're coming with me. I know just the place to keep you two for now."

Both emotions gulped, as Paranoia began stalking off into the Unconscious. Heading towards a green swirl, carrying an emotion in each hand.

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Next time: a joining of teams, a finding of ways, and the beginning of a prison riot.