!'''WARNING: Per wiki policy, Administrivia/SpoilersOff applies to Heartwarming Moments pages. All spoilers will be unmarked.'''

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sea_salt.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[BigDamnReunion Guess I... shoulda brought some ice cream.]]]]

* Young Eraqus and Xehanort playing chess. It's sad and tense but they really were like brothers once.
* The lyrics to "Oath" sound like [[ShipTease a wedding song]], leading to fans wondering if this means Sora and Kairi will finally be an item. Especially since this song is probably one of the [[EarnYourHappyEnding happiest]] songs that Music/UtadaHikaru has made so far.
-->''It's a perfect day for our oath.''\\
''I don't need pretty flowers or blessings.''\\
''Let's wear rings with the same color of the morning sun.''\\
''Kiss me once, kiss me twice...''\\
''Once is just not enough.''\\
''Kiss me once, kiss me twice...''\\
''Give me all of you.''\\
''Kiss me once, kiss me twice...''\\
''Kiss me three times, please...''
** Crosses into tearjerker territory when considering what ends up happening at the end of the game...
* The fact that, though they claim they're "looking after" Sora at the end of ''2.8'', Donald and Goofy are just having fun fighting the Heartless with their best friend by their side. They've been sidelined for so long -- ''now''? Now, ''they're back'' to kick arse.
** Becomes more heartwarming when you remember that in [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsCoded coded]], Donald and Goofy admitted that it was no fun observing Data-Sora's journey while they sat on the sidelines and that they wanted to go on another adventure again like old times.
* One of the social media post-type loading screens you may get is from Sora, when all the heroes gather after rescuing Aqua and Ventus: "I wouldn't be here without your help. I'm sorry we're not all together yet, but I promise we will be soon. #roxas #terra #thanknamine"
* It's relatively minor, but considering how Nomura loves the little details, let's bring up Mickey and Riku's new matching outfits. Sora will always be his best friend, but after all he and Mickey have been through, it shows one of ''Kingdom Hearts''[='=] recurring plot points: Riku and Mickey Mouse are bros.
* Mickey saying that Riku can face the darkness now because he's found the strength to protect what matters.
** Even more heartwarming, [[https://blowingoffsteam2.tumblr.com/post/178486694419/blowingoffsteam2-a-slightly-different in Japanese]] Mickey says Riku has found the strength to protect his precious ''person.'' [[BestFriend Gee, wonder who that could be?]]
* Some might be bummed to find that Radiant Garden/Hollow Bastion is only seen in cutscenes, considering its importance in the previous numbered games. But think about it. Hollow Bastion is infamous in the first game as a DiscOneFinalDungeon, being the headquarters of the Disney villains and the ground zero of the Heartless infestation. Even when it has been restored as a habitable place in ''II'', it is on constant alert everyday, what with Maleficent still using it as her base, its own security system attacking it out of god-complex, and the existence of the 1000 Heartless. But now? The place has become peaceful enough that Sora has no business there -- because there is ''no'' threat anymore. No Heartless, no Unversed, and the only two Nobodies shown in the place (Vexen and Demyx) are on the heroes' side. It has gone back to the Radiant Garden that Ansem the Wise envisioned: an idyllic utopia. Capping it off, the castle and town are fully restored to their Birth By Sleep appearance.
* Hayner, Pence and Olette offer to help Sora bring back Roxas. From all we knew, the three of them were only [[VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2 briefly acquainted with Roxas]], so it speaks heavily about their characters that they want to help someone they barely know.
* Sora is looking to bring back Roxas so he can be his own person. Even better is when a later scene explains his reason for doing it:
-->'''Sora:''' Roxas '''does''' exist. His heart's inside my heart.
** In the same scene, he also tells off Xemnas, sounding like an older brother standing up to an abusive parent.
** Likewise, Kairi tells Lea that she wants Namine to be real and her own person.
* As a CallBack to ''358/2 Days'', Kairi and Lea watch the sunset while eating sea salt ice cream after one of their training regimes, just like how Axel used to spend his time with Roxas and Xion. Crosses into {{Tearjerker}} since Kairi briefly reminds Lea of Xion when she says "[[CallBack Don't hold back, Lea. Promise?]]".
* Rex {{squee}}ing over Sora, Donald, and Goofy because he thinks that they are action figures of characters from a video game he's been playing. To make it all the more heartwarming, he hugs Sora.
* After Andy goes missing, [[Franchise/ToyStory Buzz and Woody]] set out to go search for him.
* Woody refusing to let Sora and co. confront the bad guys alone, saying that they're gonna have to work together to put an end to these baddies and find Andy.
* Andy's love for his toys is so great that Organization XIII hypothesizes that it may have brought his toys to life.
** This makes Toy Story 3 even ''more'' Heartwarming. Andy has stopped playing with his Toys... but they're ''still alive'' - and remain so after he goes off to college - that boy adores his Toys so much that ''even being eighteen years old'' and about to enter the world of adulthood, they're ''still'' kicking.
** It's not just Andy whose toys came to life. Hannah Phillips[[note]]Sid's sister[[/note]], Emily[[note]]Jessie's original owner[[/note]], Amy[[note]]the girl Stinky Pete was given to[[/note]], Daisy[[note]]the original owner of Lotso, Chuckles, and Big Baby[[/note]], and Bonnie[[note]]who ended up getting Andy's toys when he grew up[[/note]] showed an equal love for their toys, giving them life as well.
** You could even argue that this applies with Sid as well, while he is very desturctive to his toys, they're still alive, which shows that even though he gleefully tortured his toys, he still cared about them in his own way.
** During his confrontation with young Xehanort, despite the darkness gathering in the area, Woody (literally and figuratively) puts his foot down and the darkness retreats. The foot he used is the same one that had "Andy" written on it. Andy's love is so strong it can even dispell darkness that Sora and the others can't overcome.
* Buzz saying "To Infinity and Beyond!" to Sora and co. when they have to leave, sounding less like famous words and more like the extent of their friendship.
* Woody makes the deduction that should they return to their original world, they will never see Sora, Donald and Goofy again. So they don't mind waiting just a little longer going home so they can have some adventures with their new friends!
* Rapunzel appears to be having several... moments.. after she realizes she's free. Flynn looks bored and annoyed. Sora ''just lets Rapunzel have her geek-out.'' Made more heartwarming right afterwards when Sora points out that ''he was just like her once'', never having set foot outside his home for most of his life. He tells Donald and Goofy how thankful he is that they found him and opened the way to his adventures.
* Sora, Donald and Goofy watching the floating lanterns together as Rapunzel and Flynn [[Heartwarming/{{Tangled}} have their moment on the boat.]]
* Return to the Kingdom of Corona after completing the world's story, and background chatter of the citizens in town changes to have them expressing they joy that the princess is back. Of particular note is a child saying "the princess is so fun to talk to!"
* Sora and [[WesternAnimation/MonstersInc1 Boo]] bonding upon meeting, which involves Boo happily jumping up and down.
* Sully playing with Boo. Also, Mike exasperatedly trying to get Boo to stop calling other monsters "Mike Wazowski", [[AdaptationalNiceGuy something he dismissed doing in the movie]].
** It gets better later on; near the end, before sending Boo back to her room, she seemingly mistakes Donald for "Mike Wazowski", prompting an exasperated Mike to correct her. It turns out that Boo was, in fact, referring to Mike, as she runs to him and gives him a hug.
*** Boo ''high fives Mike and Sulley after defeating Vanitas.''
* This exchange between Pooh Bear and Sora.
-->'''Pooh:''' I want us to be together forever.
-->'''Sora:''' What matters is I'll be here (points to Pooh's chest) from now on. (Pooh smiles and chuckles)
* Sora calling Elsa's ice powers amazing, even if she thinks they aren't -- it's from being an islander; he finds snow mysterious and cool and ''very'' cold, especially as he's in ''shorts''.
* Sora vowing to not let Elsa fall into darkness definitely count. Especially if one realizes how similar Elsa is to Riku.
* The second time the group encounters Marshmallow he's trying to track down Elsa after Hans has taken her. Seeing that he just wanted to protect her, they decide to team up with him to save her.
** Marshmallow acting as a barrier to protect the group from being blown away during the snowstorm and after defeating Hans' heartless.
* Sora singing "Yo-Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me)" from ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' [[note]][[Ride/PiratesOfTheCaribbean the ride]], that is[[/note]], so happy to be back as a pirate... and dressed up as a pirate (gold tooth and all).
** More awesome and heartwarming when you remember the earlier games. After defeating [[WesternAnimation/PeterPan Captain Hook]], Sora couldn't wait to tell Kairi about his adventures on a pirate ship. Then he later jokes with Donald and Goofy about stealing a pirate ship. Sora has become an AscendedFanboy, in that he's gone from being captured by pirates ''twice''[[note]]first time after [[RivalTurnedEvil Riku betrays him]], and second when [[TeamRocketWins Barbossa denies Will's demands]], forcing Peter Pan and Jack Sparrow to rescue him[[/note]], to being the Captain of the ''Leviathan'' and becoming a genuine threat against Davy Jones.
* Sora, Donald and Goofy hanging out on the raft is pretty heartwarming to see. Despite all the dark stuff in this game going on, it's nice to see that they're having fun together as friends; clearly excited to be together again, with Donald and Goofy humoring Sora, with Goofy even mentioning how much Sora liked the world. It's a nice little reminder that, at the end of the day, despite the fact that they said they were "looking after" him at the end of ''Dream Drop Distance'', what they're ''actually'' doing is going off on an adventure and having fun with their friend.
* When the trio returns to the Caribbean, they are greeted by Will and Elizabeth and are very happy to see them. They then take notice of how different Elizabeth looks and admire her heroic appearance, noting that she is "all swashbuckly" as Goofy so aptly describes. Later when they try to convince Jack that they are in fact not hallucinations, Jack begins mocking Sora and Elizabeth shuts him down by [[TeamMom stepping between them]] and making Jack realize that they have in fact come to save him. Elizabeth may not have been the one Sora bonded with the most but he still admires her and she clearly cares for him a lot.
* Jack is looking for a crew in Davy Jones Locker. ''Immediately'', he takes Sora, Donald and Goofy with him.
** Adding to the above, as they head out from the Locker, Jack lets Sora take the helm of the Black Pearl; A ship Jack is (understandably) very protective of, yet he completely trusts Sora to steer her for a bit the way an older sibling might let their younger brother drive their car for a bit.
* After Sora defeats the Raging Vulture Heartless that was attacking the Black Pearl, he ends up falling into the ocean and loses consciousness. When he wakes up, he sees that Donald and Goofy managed to fish him out to land, but now they're stranded. Jack then appears on the scene and reveals that he came after them, and a pan up to his leg shows a crab falling from his pant leg. Though this Jack is just an illusion made by Tia Dalma, she did it so that they wouldn't get hurt as part of the fight against Davy Jones and the armada.
* [[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989 Ariel]] [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/6924c2c5_5da3_40a4_afaf_c2264c694aa3.jpeg returning in this game as a summon]].
** If you recall, Ariel's desire throughout ''KHI'' was to be able to see other worlds, and she was disappointed when Sora told her he couldn't help her. 16 out-of-universe years later and he finally will, especially as summons remember their time with Sora, like Mushu and Simba did. Ariel is going to ''remember'' these other worlds.
** MythologyGag example: Ariel appears as something resembling seafoam. Now recall the fate of the mermaid in the original Hans Christian Andersen story. In a sense, Ariel's appearance has, in a way, given the original mermaid an even happier ending through her.
* Sora protesting Davy Jones' [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd line about Will and Elizabeth's love being a "dreadful bond, so easily severed"]];
-->'''Sora:''' I may have still have a lot to learn about love, but know what it means to share my heart with others. And it will take more than you to break a bond like that.
** And immediately afterward:
-->'''Jones:''' (scoffs) What does a whelp like you know about the heart?
-->'''Jack:''' The "whelp" has seen far more of the world than you know.
* The BittersweetEnding of the Caribbean has some worthwhile sweet moments. Jack and Gibbs both comfort Sora over Will and Elizabeth’s fate, assuring him they’ll pull through. And when Sora takes a look at the crew of the ''Pearl'', he includes Gibbs and Barbossa as the "mates" Jack is referring to. Sora was angry to see Barbossa again after their past encounters, but Barbossa has earned his place among Sora’s allies and now is linked to Sora’s heart just like the others. ''We'' know Barbossa spends the remainder of his home franchise as an anti-hero, but Sora didn’t, but now he’s accepted the old scallywag as one of his own.
* Lea compliments Kairi's new clothes and haircut, and the two sit down and watch the sunset together. Especially touching to fans who were afraid the two wouldn't get along after interactions between his nobody and her in ''II''. In fact, Kairi actually forgives Lea.
* Hiro saying that [[PosthumousCharacter Tadashi]] still lives on in all of the team while he, Sora, Baymax and Gogo set atop the San Fransokyo bridge eating ice cream together in a similar fashion to Roxas and his friends. Sora then starts hallucinating himself as Roxas sitting with his friends from Twilight Town after Hiro brings up his brother. Sora views Roxas as his brother.
** Also, the way that Hiro calmly explains what happened to Tadashi and how "he's still here" is both this and an [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMoments Awesome Moment]], as it highlights just how far Hiro has come emotionally since the events of [[WesternAnimation/BigHero6 Big Hero 6]].
** When Sora, Donald, and Goofy arrive in San Fransokyo, what's the first thing Sora does (after gushing over the city)? He pulls out his Gummiphone and immediately starts to text Riku about how cool it is. It's a small, but touching moment that shows just how [[BestFriend close]] the two really are. Goofy remarks afterwards that they hadn't even done anything yet.
* Sora and Riku's combined keyblade from DDD returns in the Dark World, in all of its rainbow-colored heartwarmingness- complete with paopu fruit keychain and ''Dearly Beloved'' playing in the background. Even better is the fact that apparently Sora and Riku can summon it outside of their dreams, perhaps because of how strong their bond is.
* Sora gets to have a battle with a corrupted Aqua. This may not seem heartwarming but its the fact that if anyone is going to bring someone back from the brink, it's Sora.
** Special mention is remembering that HopeSpot shot at the end of the ''0.2'' opening, the one in which Sora reaches down his hand to pull Aqua back above water? That scene gets recreated here.
** Although the lead-up to it is a bit of a TearJerker, there is also Aqua's TearsOfJoy upon realizing that she has successfully reentered the Realm of Light. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey respond by [[GroupHug hugging her]] (not exactly the hugging type, Riku settles for a comforting pat on the shoulder).
* According to the Ultimania, Saix rejoined the organization to atone for what he did, and he vowed to do good for Lea and Roxas.
* Demyx agreeing to help Vexen to smuggle Ansem the Wise and a replica body for Roxas into Radiant Garden laboratory. He even cheerfully greets Ienzo with friendly tone and bears no ill will to his former ally.
* Ienzo's reunion with Ansem the Wise is quite touching. Each apologizes to the other for their mistakes.
* Aqua restoring the Land of Departure. We saw how Xehanort ruined it with darkness, how Aqua transformed it into Castle Oblivion to prevent others from knowing Ventus' whereabouts, how Naminé was born there completely alone, how the Organization XIII used it for their horrific memory experiments, and how it was then left to rot for two years. With just a swing of her Keyblade, Aqua not only reverts the building back to its former shape, but also rejuvenates the world from the ground up, complete with the sun blaring out of the clouds to light the sky. This is not Castle Oblivion or the messy building from which it was built. This is the Land of Departure, the safe haven of Keyblade wielders and the place where Aqua and Terra grew up. Aqua has truly made it home.
* [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep Once again]], Ventus regains consciousness (in this case, total, 12-year-long coma, instead of HarmlessFreezing) when he sees Vanitas about to kill Aqua.
** Also Ventus's gratitude to Sora for letting him stay in his heart.
--> '''Ventus:''' Thank you for always keeping me safe, Sora...
** Also the first exchange between Aqua and Ventus in 12 years. The tone in their voices and their facial expressions really sells it.
--> '''Aqua:''' Good morning, Ven.
--> '''Ventus:''' Good morning, Aqua.
* Yen Sid's briefing for the Guardians of Light before the final battle has a few touching moments.
** Aqua reassures Riku that she is not mad at him for not helping her come out of the Realm of Darkness sooner. She proceeds to congratulate him and Mickey for becoming Keyblade Masters. It shows that whatever hate and resentment Aqua showed during her previous boss battle did not come from her (or if they did, they are buried deep in her mind) and she is still the kind and motherly figure she has always been.
** When Lea goes on his [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall fourth wall rant]] about the major developments in the series, Ventus interrupts him and calls him by his name. He not only remembers their meeting 12 years ago, but also the fact that they called each other friends.
** Really, the sheer fact that Aqua still remembers Sora, Kairi, and Riku after more than a decade. Ditto with Ventus remembering Lea. Each party met the other for less than an hour in ''Birth by Sleep'' and yet the memories still resonate within them years afterward.
** When Sora becomes down and laments that Terra, Roxas, and Naminé are not there to join them, not a single person in the room keeps quiet about this. Especially heartwarming because Sora had only briefly saw Terra in ''Birth by Sleep'' and doesn't seem to remember him. Riku reminds Sora that he is not the kind of person to mope about and tells him that they will save Terra from the Organization. Aqua and Ventus back him, telling Sora that they will personally take action to free Terra. Lea then tells Sora that he will bring back Roxas somehow, while Kairi reassures him that Naminé is safe with her and she will continue protecting her. Mickey joins in and says that they are in this together, followed by Donald and Goofy reminding Sora that they are part of a full pint. Finally, Yen Sid sums up to Sora that the lost guardians will come to them given time.
* Before the final battle, Sora and Kairi sit on top of a palm tree in Destiny Islands, where they exchange two paopu fruits. Even for those who can't recall the symbolism of it, Kairi outright tells Sora that [[ImpliedLoveInterest she would like to become a part of his life from now on, no matter what happens]].
* A small one that was ultimately futile, but the second before the Demon Tide attacks five of the seven Guardians (plus Donald and Goofy), Kairi ''immediately'' moves to [[GoThroughMe shield Lea from the attack]].
* When Sora emerges in the Final World its noted that most people don’t retain their bodies. The reason Sora's does? Kairi whose belief that he'll return is so strong it keeps him together. Kairi herself even admits in a later cutscene that she just believed that he wouldn't fade away.
** Also, Sora's conversation with the Nameless Star more or less confirms that while Kairi is the reason Sora retains his body, ''Riku'' is the reason his heart survived (a point that is made clearer in the [[LostinTranslation original Japanese dialogue]]).
-->'''Sora:''' I thought it was all over for me, but a friend of mine looked me in the eye and said, [[HeroicResolve "You don't believe that."]]
* Sora saying that he’ll come back to visit Chirithy because they’re friends now.
* Sora's reunion with Naminé in the Final World, even if the latter lacks a body. Especially the bit when she says that no one will miss her like Roxas, Sora shoots this down and says that ''he'' will miss her. He promises that he will thank her properly, face-to-face, with Naminé in her own body; this meeting and [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsCoded the Datascape]] don't count. Doubles as a TearJerker when you watch the ending and realize that Sora's promise might never be fulfilled.
** When Sora lists off the other people who want to see her. He names Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Roxas, and "someone else special" who won't let her down. In the Japanese version, he outright tells her "the person that wants to see you the most will come to get you". Lo and behold, the ending reveals that this person was Riku, acting on behalf of Repliku's feelings.
** Also Roxas being one of the people that Sora lists off who would miss Naminé. Even though the two haven't interacted much since VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII, it shows that Roxas still cares about her.
* When Sora returns from the Final World after restoring himself, he sets out to save his friends, while noting that he is alone now, to which Jiminy emerges, and says that he's still here, encouraging Sora to proceed. It shows that despite his relatively minor role in the series, and his inability to fight or assist beyond logging their adventures, Jiminy is still considered one of Sora's friends, and important part of the team.
* Sora looks for each of his friends hearts while fighting the Lich managing to find and save all but one; Kairi’s. As Sora is traveling back to the light however he sees Kairi and, much like in ''Kingdom Hearts I'', realises that the light that brings him home is her. Sora tells her that she makes him feel strong and she tells him that he’s safe with her. The two then return back to the light while holding hands.
* As Sora charges headlong into a massive storm of Heartless standing between the Guardians of Light and the Organization, he's suddenly enveloped by a white light and has a vision of a boy he's never seen before: [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsX It's Ephemer, the leader of the Dandelions,]] who offers to help. [[StormOfBlades Hundreds of Keyblades encircle the Heartless]], each one accompanied by a unique reaction command, specifically the names of various ''Union χ'' players, each one lending their strength to Sora in his time of need. To hammer it home, the final command is simply titled “Union χ”, and it’s all set to [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic a truly spectacular rendition of “Dearly Beloved”.]]
* The Riku Replica from the present, who was with Riku during the game, gave up his chance of gaining a body of his own, for Naminé.
** In an additional scene in Re: Mind, Riku asks Demyx to be careful with Dark Riku's former vessel when he comes to take it to Radiant Garden, not only because it will be a vessel for Naminé, but also because it holds important memories of Riku Replica. Even though Riku couldn't convince him to stay, he still cared enough to [[DueToTheDead honor Riku Replica's memory]].
* A small one, but Roxas tells Xemnas that he regards Ansem the Wise as one of the people responsible for his return, without any spite in his tone either, which shows that after all the pain that Ansem made Roxas endure inside of the Simulated Twilight Town, he's finally forgiven him.
* There’s not a dry eye both in-universe and out when the trios of Terra, Ven, and Aqua and Roxas, Xion, and Axel/Lea finally reunite. Both cases end with the respective groups huddled together, crying.
** Terra, finally freed of Xehanort's control, approaches an unconscious Ven, but Aqua's a little hesitant, outright asking if it's really him this time. Terra confirms it, telling her that she was lighting his way. And then when Ven comes to, Terra informs him that he could hear him calling for him too and that Ven found him like he said he would. Then, finally, Terra hugs them tenderly. Aqua and Ven are both exhausted from their previous fight, but we can see how they all try to [[HeadbuttOfLove get as close as possible to each other]].
*** Ventus and Vanitas seem to have developed a form of grudging respect for one another - Vanitas admits that, as a shadow, he ''is'' on the same side as the heroes, however much he may ''loathe'' that thought; he's their shadow, he's projected wherever they go. And Ventus, however much ''he'' dislikes it, accepts that Vanitas has made ''his'' choice and lets him pass on.
** When the seasalt trio is finally given a moment to themselves, Roxas smiles at Lea and then Xion burst out sobbing. It's especially heartwarming to see them happy to see each other after all the suffering they had to go through in ''Days''. Then, both Lea and Roxas get very worried, and all three of them have a difficult time keeping it in after Lea jokes about how he should have brought some ice cream. The scene ends with Lea running towards Roxas and Xion, and with all the three of them on their knees, hugging each other and [[TearsOfJoy crying.]]
*** Before this, in the [=Re:Mind=] part, if you pay attention, it shows that Saïx was really the other atoner that Vexen mentioned, since he was trying to help Xion get her memories back by saying Axel and Roxas’s names on purpose.
*** And then there's the theme that plays during the battle against Saix following the reunion (and during the Clocktower Trio's fight with Xemnas and Saix in Re:Mind). Calling "Hearts as One" a TriumphantReprise doesn't describe the sheer ''joy'' of it. It's still a very forceful theme, reminding us that the battle isn't won yet. Things aren't quite alright yet. But now that everyone's back together? Now they ''can be''.
** What makes these reunions even more heartwarming is that each trio didn’t exactly part ways in good terms. But they certainly are not going to let old grudges overcome their joy of finally seeing each other.
* Even some of the defeated Organization members get in on the action and remind us that they are, in truth, actual people under there - they’re merely being used as heart tanks at the moment:
** Saïx shares a joke with Lea as he fades, with the two promising to see each other again.
** Luxord gives Sora one last prize for winning their “game”, and the two agree that it would be nice to play again some time.
** Marluxia begins to recover his previous identity, which he credits to Sora.
** Larxene looks like she’s going out as her [[AlphaBitch usual charming self]], but then admits that this fate is better than being Xehanort’s vessel. Sora deduces that she went along with Xehanort's plan to stick close to someone, implied to Marluxia, who she has a long history with. Larxene declines to answer, but [[{{Tsundere}} can visibly be seen reconsidering]], then offers up the reply of "My secret!" in a legitimately playful (as opposed to mean-spirited) tone and [[WhenSheSmiles a genuine smile]] as she fades.
** Sora and Ventus offer Vanitas, a pure incarnation of darkness and every negative emotion under the sun, a chance to do a HeelFaceTurn. Nobody would blame them for hating him, but they see that he has room to grow and want him to turn out alright. And while Vanitas turns them down, he’s truly at peace existing as a reflection of them. Not to mention that without Xehanort around to pull his strings, he may turn out [[DarkIsNotEvil if not good, then non-malicious]].
** Lastly, Ansem, the ''original'' Seeker of Darkness. He acknowledges Riku and Sora as being stronger than the darkness, and encourages them to move on and find something new to seek after. Riku admits that he will miss him.
** Even Xemnas's end can be seen as a little touching: after spending ages denying his own feelings and thinking of the human heart as a weakness, he finally admits, in an admiring tone, that to endure all the pain having a heart entails, being human must take "incredible strength".
* In fact, every single Organization member save for Terranort, who transforms back into Terra, goes out with a smile. And nearly all of them seem to be at relatively more peace than they have ever been; the only exception is Young Xehanort, who logically has not undergone the development the other Xehanort incarnations have had. Even the old man himself manages to depart with Eraqus's spirit, a smile on his face.
* Who are your party members for the last battle? Goofy and Donald. At the darkest hour, [[TrueCompanions they're the ones standing by your side to the very end.]]
* Right before Sora heads out for the final fight with Xehanort, Xion tells Sora that she knows that Kairi is still okay in spite of her apparent death. Given that Sora might still be shaken up over what happened to her, it's nice to see a girl who was mostly born from his memories of her in the first place reassure him that she knows they will find each other again. Doubly heartwarming when you remember she’s probably speaking from experience due to her own reunion with her two dearest friends despite her all but fading from existence and memory when she died herself.
* Sora defeating Master Xehanort with Trinity. Goofy and Donald appear at Sora’s side and aid him to repeal Xehanort’s final attack, then they combine their powers to counterattack and defeat him once and for all.
-->'''Information:''' [[ThePowerOfFriendship Call upon your bonds of friendship!]]
** If your [=PS4=]’s controller speaker is on during this fight, then at each heartbeat during Sora’s [[FissionMailed supposed game over screen,]] you'll hear Donald and Goofy calling Sora's name. The two of them brought Sora back from the brink of defeat with their friendship!
* Terra, Aqua, and Ven are briefly able to reunite with Eraqus before he finally goes into the light, the three of them sharing one last [[GroupHug hug]] with their master. Eraqus apologizes to them for everything he put them through.
** Eraqus asks Terra to look after Aqua and Ventus for him.
* Eraqus convincing Xehanort to finally give up and concede defeat. Even after two betrayals and all of the things Xehanort did over the course of the series, Eraqus still forgives and accepts Xehanort, even though it's possible that no one else ever will. [[GracefulLoser And Xehanort accepts and gives Sora the X-blade and sincerely congratulates him.]] And as Xehanort is about to collapse, Eraqus is immediately there to carry him. As the two [[GoIntoTheLight pass on]], they appear as their younger selves, happy and content, finally able to put aside their differences and embrace each other as brothers again.
** Xehanort says "no... I can do this [change the worlds]." All Eraqus says in reply is: "Enough. Checkmate." Nowhere does he say that Xehanort ''can't'' change the world or that Xehanort was ''wrong.'' He may not ''agree'' with ''how'' Xehanort did it, but a true friend sees both sides of the argument and acknowledges them both. Xehanort did, indeed, change the worlds.
* Just about every scene of [[EarnYourHappyEnding the ending]]. After so many years of waiting, everyone is reunited with their friends and get the happy ending they so richly deserve, all while the orchestral version of Hikari plays on one last time.
** Ventus hugs [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Chirithy]], who is his own Chirithy from back when he was in the [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsX Dandelions]]. What makes this moment sweeter is that the Chirithy are essentially the closest thing this game has to an angel of sorts. Chirithy was going to leave Ven alone since he didn’t remember the past and was pretty happy with the friends he made in his new life and told Sora that it would see Ven again someday (read: upon Ven’s death)… but however, the Chirithy didn’t want to wait that long. It's thanks to Sora and Kairi that Chirithy was able to return to Ven.
** Hayner, Pence and Olette join Roxas, Xion, Lea, and Isa to have ice cream on the clock tower. They can finally be friends for real! And in Re:Mind we see that right above them are Sora and Kairi presumably enjoying their own ice cream.
** Naminé’s return. She wakes up in Radiant Garden just after Ansem the Wise and Ienzo placed her in her new body, thanks to Sora and Kairi's help from behind the scenes. As she’s escorted out of the castle (with Dilan giving her a polite bow) the Gummi ship touches down, and Riku takes her gently by the hand. The whole scene plays out like a princess being escorted to her chariot. A stark contrast to someone who was introduced as a "witch".
** Mickey and Minnie and co reunite at Disney Castle; Pluto momentarily knocks him down and starts happily licking his face - ''until'' Minnie gets there, then he steps aside to allow the Queen to ''finally'' reunite with Mickey as ''she'' cries in delight and Donald gets a hug from his girl.
*** This becomes a mix of HeartwarmingInHindsight and TearJerker following the passing of Russi Taylor’s (Minnie’s voice actress of 30 years) in the summer of 2019, a little more than ten years after her husband, and previous Mickey Mouse voice actor, Wayne Allwine.
** The last scene before the credits is rather bittersweet considering what happens to Kairi and Sora. But it is a nice way to end the Seekers of Darkness arc. Just about every character that’s part of a trio [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg (and Isa)]] is taken to Destiny Islands. Riku, Terra and Roxas have a race across the beach. Ventus, Lea, and Isa toss a Frisbee around. Xion and Namine collect seashells. Even Hayner, Pence, and Olette get in on the trip building a sand sculpture with Donald and Goofy.
*** Note that Lea and Isa first met Ventus in ''Birth by Sleep''. It looks like Lea keeps his promise to make Ventus his (and Isa's) friend, after all! Also, they play with the same frisbee that Lea used as "weapon" in ''Birth by Sleep''.
*** Roxas and the Twilight Town gang ''finally'' get to go to the beach together and now, finally, Roxas has ''six friends in Twilight Town with him!''
** Even though [[BittersweetEnding it's bittersweet]] with Sora suddenly and mysteriously just vanished to thin air thanks to abusing his Power of Waking, the scene of Sora and Kairi sitting together watching a warm sunset, clutching each other's hands tightly as they share a [[HeldGaze loving gaze]] is very, very sweet. Though they remain apart once again, a photo of them appears in the credits of them together, bringing hope that the two may be reunited once again.
** Thanks to Re:Mind, we see that Sora managed to hold on for long enough to spend quite a bit of time with Kairi, enjoying the fireworks at Disney Castle and watching the sunset in Twilight Town with her and helping her fulfil her promise to Naminé. He held on as long as he could so he could give Kairi just a few precious moments of finally being reunited before he faded.
*** And at least the secret ending seems to imply Riku’s [[TrueCompanions going to get Sora back]] [[HereWeGoAgain for the umpteenth time.]]
* The title screen for the main games usually depict Sora alone on the shore. The Re:Mind version of ''III'' this time has [[https://cdn3.dualshockers.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Kingdom-Hearts-3-Remind-DLC-early-buy-bonus-PS4-Theme-Sora-and-Kairi-Tetsuya-Nomura.jpg Sora and Kairi walking along the shore while eating Paopu fruit together]].
* The Re:Mind DLC allows Kairi to be fully playable and fight alongside Sora for the first time. She's desperately wanted to be able to protect Sora as he's protected her and now she's here fighting by his side.
** Even better? She's only playable during the final battle against Master Xehanort. The villain responsible for so much pain and suffering, the one who has always kept Sora and Kairi apart is bested by the two fighting side by side, their light stronger together than his darkness.
** There's a special command that triggers a unique attack where Sora and Kairi join hands, call on the power of light, and each grows a single angel wing before charging Master Xehanort. The attack ends with a single feather showing a scene of the past that focuses on the bond between them, with the scene changing each time it's used. And the name of the command? ''[[ThePowerOfLove One Heart]]''.
* Also during the DLC the Guardians (sans Sora and Kairi) face off against a mob of Replica Xehanorts. The various characters combine attacks and share bits of dialogue amongst each other that was lacking in the base game.
--> '''Ven''': Roxas was it? You're pretty good.
--> '''Roxas''': Yeah well, you're not too bad yourself.

--> '''Terra''': So you finally found the strength to protect what matters?
--> '''Riku''': All thanks to you.
* Riku having the chance to meet Terra again and chat, even for a moment, is pretty heartwarming. It's clear that Terra wanted to take Riku under his wing and train him, but instead of being upset he never got the chance to, is happy that Riku managed to come as far as he did on his own.
** At one point during the Guardians of Light group fight, Riku is lured out of the formation and attacked by two Replica Xehanorts. Cue Terra swooping in to guard Riku's back, after which you get the special command, ''Successor''.
* ''Everyone'' is looking for Sora. None of them believe he's gone for good and they're all looking for him in their own ways. Mickey, Donald and Goofy are looking through all the worlds Sora visited; Terra, Aqua and Ventus are searching the Realm of Darkness; Roxas and the Twilight Town gang are searching for answers in his and Xion's memories; the Radiant Garden crew begin immediately searching for Sora once they're filled in on the situation; and while Kairi agrees to go into a DeepSleep for Ansem to research for clues to Sora's whereabouts, she does so because she believes it'll lead her to Sora. Although the gang is all separated and haven't found anything within a year, they're still searching for Sora and refuse to give up on finding him.
** Even more Heartwarming is the fact that Yozora vows to save Sora as well. Despite having fought against him, for yet-unknown reasons, and, in the BadEnding outright defeating him to the point Sora [[TakenForGranite turns into crystal]], he says unambiguously, "I will save you." Not to mention the fact he was just told by someone to "save Sora", he will heed that request and save (no matter his definition of "saving") a complete stranger. Gives the "Verum Rex" a lot more depth, and he was already shown as RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething for his own people.
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