History Main / ConscienceMakesYouGoBack

** Unfortunately, this leads to a case of NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished, as this allows them to claim the trophy together [[spoiler: resulting in Peter Pettigrew killing Cedric.]]

* One of the staff members briefly does this in ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' when Jack and Rose come to a locked stairwell and see him on the other side trying to head to the upper deck. He nearly leaves them there, but ultimately turns back to try to unlock the door. However, he drops the keys in the quickly flooding water, gives a quick apology and leaves them, forcing the two to search for the keys and unlock the door themselves.

* In the [[Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaAkiraHimekawa manga adaptation]] of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'', Maple steals the Rod of Seasons, but her magic broom, acting on her innermost thoughts, brings her back to Link.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'': In "[[Recap/AmphibiaS3E24TheRootOfEvil The Root of Evil]]", [[Characters/AmphibiaAnneBoonchuy Anne Boonchuy]] and the others understandably want to leave the village at the first opportunity after their last encounter with [[MushroomMan Gary]], only to be convinced to help them out fighting off the robot strike team by Hop Pop's guilt over accidentally leading them to their hidden village.

* In ''Film/{{District 9}}'', protagonist Wikus van de Merwe has a small chance of escaping his [[PrivateMilitaryContractors mercenary]] pursuers. He gladly abandons his FireForgedFriend, [[spoiler:the alien Christopher,]] and runs for it... and then Wikus overhears the mercenaries' plan to execute him. [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge What]] [[LastStand follows]] [[YouShallNotPass is]] [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome awesome]].

* ''Series/TheMandalorian'': This is how the main conflict of the series is kickstarted: Mando is given a bounty for a person who turns out to be an alien infant[[note]]The same species as Yoda[[/note]]. He turns the Child over to the Client alive after having to fight off numerous other bounty hunters who had been instructed to kill the kid instead. Mando tries to bury himself in his work so he doesn't have to think about what he's just done, but seeing the metal ball from the control panel lever that the Child was playing with earlier spurs him to immediately go back and rescue him.

* ''Series/TheMandalorian'': This is how the main conflict of the series is kickstarted: Mando is given a bounty for a person who turns out to be an alien infant[[note]]The same species as Yoda[[/note]]. He turns the Child over the Client alive after having to fight off numerous other bounty hunters who had been instructed to kill the kid instead. Mando tries to bury himself in his work so he doesn't have to think about what he's just done, but seeing the metal ball from the control panel lever that the Child was playing with earlier spurs him to immediately go back and rescue him.

* The climax of ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory'' pivots on this. Charlie Bucket has just learned that he will not receive the promised lifetime supply of chocolate from Willy Wonka because Mr. Wonka knew he and Grandpa Joe stole the Fizzy Lifting Drinks (up to this point, they thought they were {{Karma Houdini}}s), and Grandpa Joe's attempt at a damning speech doesn't work. But there is another way to claim a fortune -- all they have to do is give the prototype Everlasting Gobstopper that Charlie received earlier to Mr. Wonka's candymaking rival Slugworth, who intends to copy it. As Grandpa Joe and Charlie begin to head out of the room, [[spoiler:Charlie stops and decides he cannot break the promise he made to Mr. Wonka ''not'' to give the Gobstopper away, and leaves it on his desk by way of apology for what he already did. An overjoyed Mr. Wonka reveals Mr. Slugworth was an actor in his employ carrying out a Secret Test of Character on the kids. Charlie has passed and won the jackpot, and the real grand prize is not the year supply of chocolate. But the ''entire chocolate factory''. In which Charlie is the new owner. Wonka stated that he can't run the factory forever (And does not want to try) ]].

* In ''VideoGame/ClockTower'', you can find a car and try to drive away. The game will actually ask you if you want to leave your friends and save your own life. But in any case, if you manage to drive away, you will eventually get a bad ending, so the only way to obtain the good ending is to stay in manor and try to save your friends.

* One of the staff member briefly does this in ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' when Jack and Rose come to a locked stairwell and see him on the other side trying to head to the upper deck. He nearly leaves them there, but ultimately turns back to try to unlock the door. However, he drops the keys in the quickly flooding water, gives a quick apology and leaves them, forcing the two to search for the keys and unlock the door themselves.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' storyline "ComicBook/TheThirdKryptonian", Karsta Wor-Ul runs away during Amalak's initial attack, leaving Superman and his family to their own devices. She makes it to her ship, and is on the verge of leaving the Solar System as her Kryptonian kin keep Amalak busy, when she decides to return and help them fight him off.
* Loki of all people in ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers''. He successfully tricked Wiccan into giving him his power while the team faced a cosmic horror, and [[DrivenToSuicide Wiccan took his advice on plan B]]. Loki could have very easily just run and actually considered that, but his conscience ''literally'' [[TalkingToThemself talked him out of it]], in the last second to [[InterruptedSuicide interrupt Wiccan]] and save the team.

* This is subverted in the episode "[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS3E9NowMuseumNowYouDont Now Museum -- Now You Don't!]]" of ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'' When a massive brawl breaks out at his brother's museum gala, Dr. Venture gathers his family and heads for his plane to leave. Just before takeoff he learns that apparently a bomb is about to blow the whole place up, too. Moments later, he tells the pilot Brock they have to go back and help. Brock is surprised at this, since Doc hates his brother, and he's hardly the heroic sort. After a beat, they both start laughing, and Brock admits that for a moment he actually believed it.

** In a flashback in ''Film/SawIII'', Amanda goes back to deliver a MercyKill to Adam after John seals him in the Bathroom to die at the end of the [[Film/SawI first film]], because she feels immense guilt for bringing him there in the first place. She puts him out of his misery via suffocation, saying she's going to "free him" and sobbing the whole time while he tries to fight back.

*** The first scene is of her in the lobby of Adam's apartment building, seemingly there to scope out the layout for when she comes back to abduct him. He walks down the stairs and sees her, and although he doesn't know her, he strikes up a conversation; he sweetly compliments her hair, invites her out to a Wrath of the Gods concert, and asks if he can take her picture, to which she genuinely smiles and says yes. Long story short, he went out of his way to be really friendly and kind to her, honestly hoping to "see her around," and she paid it back by abducting him for John.
*** The second is of her having a vivid nightmare of hearing something go bump in the night while she's the only one awake in the Nerve Gas House, and when she goes to investigate, she sees an apparition of Adam, who rushes her and [[SdrawkcabSpeech speaks in a garbled moan, which, when played in reverse, is him asking her, "How could you do this to me?"]] She immediately bolts awake, breathing frantic and sweating.

* Used but [[DownplayedTrope severely downplayed]] in ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1''. After Woody and Buzz escape from Sid and race for the moving van, Buzz gets stuck in the fence. Woody, already safe aboard the van, hesitates only a moment before racing back to help him. According to the directors, originally Buzz was supposed to call for Woody's help, creating a bit of tension over whether Woody would run to save him or not. But they realized that by now the characters' friendship had already been well established, and instead Woody runs to help Buzz after being told "I'll catch up".

%%* David tries desperately not to do this in ''Film/WereTheMillers'' , but he does.
* The climax of ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory'' pivots on this. Charlie Bucket has just learned that he will not receive the promised lifetime supply of chocolate from Willy Wonka because Mr. Wonka knew he and Grandpa Joe stole the Fizzy Lifting Drinks (up to this point, they thought they were {{Karma Houdini}}s), and Grandpa Joe's attempt at a WhatTheHellHero speech doesn't work. But there is another way to claim a fortune -- all they have to do is give the prototype Everlasting Gobstopper that Charlie received earlier to Mr. Wonka's candymaking rival Slugworth, who intends to copy it. As Grandpa Joe and Charlie begin to head out of the room, [[spoiler:Charlie stops and decides he cannot break the promise he made to Mr. Wonka ''not'' to give the Gobstopper away, and leaves it on his desk by way of apology for what he already did. An overjoyed Mr. Wonka reveals Mr. Slugworth was an actor in his employ carrying out a Secret Test of Character on the kids. Charlie has passed and won the jackpot, and the real grand prize is not the year supply of chocolate. But the ''entire chocolate factory''. In which Charlie is the new owner. Wonka stated that he can't run the factory forever (And does not want to try) ]].
* Max Brogan (Creator/HarrisonFord) in ''Film/CrossingOver'' does this when Mireya gives him her landlady's address and begs him to look after her son. Under the razzes of his fellow ICE enforcers for having shown compassion, he crumples the paper and drops it on the ground. At 3 a.m. the next morning, he returns to the deserted parking lot and turns over every bit of paper until he finds it.

* ''Literature/AdventuresOfHuckleberryFinn'': Huckleberry Finn is prepared to betray the escaped slave Jim, having been taught that it's the [[DeliberateValuesDissonance right thing to do]]. However, he quickly changes his mind and helps his friend, ironically believing that he's doing the ''wrong'' thing. Innocent conscience beats institutional racism!
* Literature/{{Discworld}}:

* In one of the earliest ''Franchise/SpiderMan'' comics Peter Parker's high school nemesis Flash Thompson is abducted by Doctor Doom while impersonating Spider-Man. When the real deal discovers this, he happily thinks how now he'll just wait until Doom finishes Flash off and he'll never have to worry about him again. He immediately follows this up by thinking, "Oh, who am I kidding?" and suits up, ready to save his tormentor.
* Some examples from ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' stories:
** Buzz the demon does this without realising that's what he's doing -- he thinks the agonising headaches he gets when he tries to abandon Linda are direct punishment from God, and he's not being given any choice, but it turns out that if you haven't used your conscience for two thousand years, it's a bit stiff and painful when it becomes active again.
** In ''ComicBook/{{Bizarrogirl}}'', the titular Bizarro gets scared and runs away when the group faces up to the BigBad. Afterwards she manages to take courage to return and help out.
* In ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/TheThirdKryptonian'', Karsta Wor-Ul runs away during Amalak's initial attack, leaving Superman and his family to their own devices. She makes it to her ship, and is on the verge of leaving the Solar System as her Kryptonian kin keep Amalak busy, when she decides to return and help them fight him off.

* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderverse'', where Peter B. Parker has basically decided to abandon Miles Morales, who sits down on the side of a building in despair. Peter goes back to check on him and asks what he's doing, to which Miles replies, "Making you feel guilty, is it working?" Peter talks to himself and ''demands'' that he not give in to some kid's manipulation, even screaming into his arm to try to get out of doing it, but then, ultimately tell Miles to follow him.