Author's Note: This is about Naminé's journey through Sora's memories, by the way. Heh.

Also, as you can see, I've changed my username. This is a nickname given to me by a good friend (my beta, even), so I decided to let it stick. Sorry if I confused anyone. I can safely say it won't be changing again.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Square Enix or Disney characters, but I can dream.

Oubliette

Who needs false memories, right? Especially when you have real memories. Anyone would say the same.

-Naminé

Chapter Two

"Does she remind you of someone?"

"Hmm?"

"Naminé. Does she remind you of someone?"

"...Yes. But from the other life. Don't you remember?"

"Regretfully, no. You do?"

"Not completely. But she had blue eyes and was very young."

"I didn't know you were that kind of a man, Zexion."

"Amusing, Vexen. It wasn't that, at any rate."

"No?"

"No. I think she reminded me of someone, too."

--

That night, Naminé had a secret visitor from the depths of the castle. His name was Vexen and he was tall and indignant. She remembered him because he had visited Marluxia before, and Larxene liked him alot because he was terribly easy to upset. He was silent for a long time after he arrived, like he was thinking hard. Naminé took that time to shift through his chain of memories. Even though there were less than Axel's, he still had a lot of them chained together within him. Maybe it was the fact that he clung to his memories that made her feel less intimidated as he approached.

"Hello, Naminé." He greeted with a smile. It looked fake, but not scary like Marluxia's.

"Hello, Vexen." Naminé replied. It never hurt to be polite, and she had never spoken personally with Vexen before. He stood before her, looking down at her where she sat.

"Poor girl."

That had certainly been the last thing she had expected. "What do you mean?"

"They're using you, aren't they?" He crouched before her and looked up at her face. "They're using you to get the tool they need."

"I suppose so," Naminé said.

"Did Marluxia tell you his plans?" Vexen looked sympathetic.

No, Naminé thought, he didn't. But I'm not stupid. I know what he's doing. She felt like saying this to Vexen, but why spoil his fun? He was clearly enjoying talking to someone who wasn't mocking him.

"No. But I guess I do what I have to." She glanced across the room at the bird cage hanging from the ceiling. Inside sat a small doll in her likeness, forever trapped behind the bars. She had to.

"Tsk." Vexen shook his head. Why was he pretending that he could feel pity? Did he think she would fall for it? "Don't worry, we're going to fix it so that you don't have to be used."

Naminé doubted that, but she didn't tell him so. Vexen didn't seem deterred by her silence, "Just resist Marluxia for as long as you can."

"What?" The idea was foreign to the young nobody.

"Resist his plans." Vexen repeated. "Do anything you can to stall him so that you don't need to bring the boy to Marluxia."

That was something she wanted, though. Naminé immediately gave all of her attention to the older nobody. "But.. how are you going to make it so that he doesn't need Sora?"

"By aquiring someone else, of course."

Oh. Vexen looked pleased with himself, and for all his faked empathy, he couldn't tell that her stomach had just given a horrible lurch. She didn't want to manipulate anybody, though! She meant to say this to him, to tell him that she wanted no part in anything he or Marluxia was planning, but by the time she gathered the courage to say it, Vexen was stepping backwards into his dark portal.

"Don't allow yourself to become a puppet." He murmered, and then the darkness swallowed him at his command.

Naminé furiously wondered if being used was all they thought she was good for.

"You're wrong!" She yelled to the empty white room. "I'm not stupid! I know what you're doing! You're already a puppet yourself!"

But of course, no one heard her, and that was the only reason she was brave enough to yell at all.

--

Naminé didn't sleep at all the night that Vexen came to see her. If he thought he could control her, then he was wrong. It would only get her strings all tangled, because she was already under Marluxia's thumb. Obviously, from his weak attempts to gain her trust, he didn't think of Marluxia as a big threat to his own half-baked plans.

All of the sudden, Naminé felt a twinge of sympathy for Vexen and hoped that Marluxia didn't find out that he had tried to go against Marluxia's plans. As far as she knew, rank meant nothing among the nobodies of Castle Oblivion, and Marluxia had quickly exploited that. Vexen, though he was snakelike, working under and around Marluxia's ties, apparently wasn't a fast thinker, because he was still holding on to tradition. Somehow Naminé knew that there wasn't going to be much respect for geezers like Vexen under Marluxia's rule.

She had figured out yet another manipulative member of the Organization, at least. It was good to know thine enemy. Wasn't that what Larxene had said? Maybe it was good advice.

She hadn't expected two visitors that night, though.

Zexion was a slate-haired nobody from the darker parts of the castle, like Vexen. Naminé barely took the small group into consideration, but it seemed that they were considering her. As a puppet, of course. Zexion said nothing to her, unlike Vexen, something that was warily appreciated. It didn't unnerve her, and he didn't seem threatening, merely observant. Yes, even with half of his face obscured by his hair, Naminé could tell that he was staring at her.

"There is darkness in every light." He finally said. And Naminé thought it was a shame that every member of the Organization felt it necessary to regurgitate every spiel Xemnas fed to them.

But then Zexion's lips quirked upwards in a smirk. "That, however, means that the opposite is also true. Remember, if you please."

Zexion let himself be swallowed by the darkness again, leaving Naminé to ponder over his words.

It seemed very familiar, but she could not place it.

It appeared even her own chains were coming unlinked.

--

Naminé, as it was, wasn't the only one losing sleep that night. Her companion in this was the very boy that Marluxia was planning for her to destroy, and he was dwelling not on organizations, schemes, and manipulation, but on his home.

"Jiminy?" He whispered cautiously.

"What is it--" A small yawn came from the young boy's hood, where his cricket friend was, "--Sora?"

"Nothing, just... I've been worried. About Kairi. About our world." Sora admitted.

"Don't be. According to the King's research, and to Aerith, the islands should have pieced themselves together just fine. And Kairi is back where she belongs.You saw it yourself."

"Yeah... but what about Riku? And the King? How are we..." Sora trailed off. The two of them sat in silence for a long while. "I just miss them, I guess. I know that they're alright."

Jiminy had curled back up. Sora could feel him shifting in his jacket hood. "Of course they are, Sora. And we'll see both of them again. Our hearts are connected."

"It just feels like we're close sometimes, and I still can't find them. It's an awful feeling."

"You just miss your friends, Sora. That's all. But you have us."

"...Yeah."

"Listen," Jiminy told him, "You shouldn't think too hard about this. You need your rest, you know."

"Sure. I know that." The spikey-headed young man agreed. "You're right. Tomorrow's another day, and we'll find Riku and the King. And I can go back to the islands!"

He waited for an answer, but Jiminy had fallen back asleep. Sora sighed and shrugged his jacket off, being careful not to disturb the cricket, then placed it on the ground beside him. He leaned back and looked up at the stars.

"Riku, Kairi. I'll find you soon."

Sora fell asleep again with his fingers closed around the thalassa shell charm that Kairi had given him.

Soon. Maybe even tomorrow. Just, soon.

--