As we walked up to the upper level of the town, I shivered.

Dead people? Are we seriously going to see dead people?

I mean, it's kinda cool when you think about it. But it's also very creepy.

"Question! About this Farplane... when somebody dies, a summoner sends them to the Farplane, right? So their souls, or whatever they are, they go to the Farplane, right? But that's the Farplane we're going to, right? And Yuna's old man's there, too? Do dead people live there or something?"

Tidus asked the exact thing that I was thinking. If there was one thing I didn't understand about Spira, it was their connection with the dead.

I noticed Tidus shudder and I giggled slightly.

Wakka noticed it, too. "You're thinking those funny thoughts again, ya?"

Tidus didn't nod, but he giggled and scratched the back of his head. It gave away the fact that he didn't understand any of this either.

"You'll see once we get there." Wakka said.

We continued walking through the nicely lit tunnel and made it to a staircase leading to a portal.

It was so cold here, like in a morgue. The portal shone a bright blue color, as well as the stairs.

I began to climb the stairs whenever I noticed I was the only one left besides Tidus, Rikku and Auron.

I turned and looked at Auron, who was leaning against the railing.

"Aren't you coming?" I asked him.

"I do not belong there." He said quietly.

"You're scared!" Tidus declared.

Auron sighed. "Searching the past to find the future... this is all that is there. I need it not. You'd better be going."

I turned back to the portal and shivered. I really didn't want to go, but what other chance would I get?

Rikku approached me and placed her hand on my shoulder. "You're not really going to see the dead, more like your memories of them. People think of their relatives and the pyreflies react to them. They take on the form of the dead person-an illusion, nothing else."

I nodded to her and thanked her. I admit, that did make me feel a little better.

"Well, have fun!" She said.

"What, you're not going either, Rikku?" Tidus asked.

She shook her head in response, "I keep my memories inside. Memories are nice, but that's all they are."

She did have a good point. But, what if you aren't ready to give up your memories?

I shook my head and tapped on the portal. My finger went completely through it, so I concluded that my entire body could go through it as well. I gently stepped through and pushed through the force field of energy.

As soon as I crossed over into the Farplane, my mind was filled with overwhelming emotions. I felt them all. Happiness, sadness, shock, anxiety, you name it.

I walked up onto the stone platform before me. The rest of the group was here.

I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around and Tidus was there with a surprised look on his face. "What the...?"

Wakka was looking at an image of a man who looked like a mix between himself and Tidus. I was guessing it to be his brother, Chappu.

Yuna is looking at images of her parents. A man with a large robe and long hair stood beside an older version of Yuna.

I walked up to the edge of the platform and gazed at the world behind the platform. "Whoa..."

Below the stone platform, a massive formation of clouds was together in a swirling vortex, sucking them downwards. Beyond that, a field of bright green grass and different flowers was in plain view and a series of pyreflies were floating by. Rushing waterfalls were placed carefully around the fields of flowers.

It was like looking into a painting. It was a place I would only imagine in my dreams.

But I couldn't help but feel sad. I looked at Yuna's parents and smiled slightly. They seemed so happy together. Seeing them together like that, with their arms around each other, made me homesick.

I began to think about my parents more and more. I wish there was a way I could let them know I'm okay.

But most of all, it made me sad because maybe this would set Yuna's decision in stone. Seeing her parents happy like that, maybe that will make her take Seymour up on his offer.

I sighed and walked over to Wakka. I watched as he began to talk to his brother for what seemed like the first time in years.

"Yo, Chappu! Meant to come see you earlier, ya? Sorry! I know you won't hold it against me. I gave up the game. I'm a guardian from here on, you know? This guy-looks a lot like you-showed up. Travelling with him, I thought, maybe... you were still alive somewhere, ya?"

The redhead sighed. "But, then again, here you are on the Farplane. Guess your place is here. So, how you been? Oh, that guy I just told you 'bout, I gave him your sword. He likes it."

I put my finger on my chin and thought. Is the man he's talking about Tidus?

Suddenly, the blonde boy walked up beside me and crossed his arms. "Is he talking about me?" He asked.

I looked back and forth between Tidus and the ghost of Chappu. "You two do look kinda similar. And I don't know who else he would've gave the sword to."

Tidus held up his blue sword called Brotherhood. It began to glow a bright white color before it died down and lost its glow.

"Well, that was nice." I said.

Tidus shrugged before putting his sword back and giving me a smile. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

I walked over to Lulu and stood beside her. Without a word, she sighed and looked at me.

"He is dead, and I am still alive. Coming here really makes that clear. I should focus more on what I have to do now."

I nodded, "I guess you're right."

She nodded to me and began to chuckle.

"What?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I'm not even sure what I'm saying."

"Don't you mean that you should leave Chappu behind? I'm sure he was a great guy, but there'll be others."

"Hmm... That's a possibility."

Apparently Tidus was eavesdropping on our conversation, because he popped up beside us and added to our conversation. "How about... Wakka?"

Lulu blinked a few times before looking at the blonde in disbelief. "What, me? With Wakka?"

"Yeah, you two get along great!" I added before giggling.

She shook her head. "Getting along isn't enough. Not even close."

"Oh, sorry. My mistake." He said.

"You'd do well to remember that. Knowing a bit about women might come in handy some day."

I laughed and Lulu smirked at me.

"Yeah, I'll remember." He replied with a bit of apathy in his voice.

The three of us turned to Wakka and his brother to watch them converse.

"I won't be forgetting either." Lulu suddenly said.

"Goodbye, Chappu. You always said I looked grumpy. But those were the happiest days of my life."

I shivered again as I watched Wakka talk with his dead brother. I still couldn't believe it was actually happening.

I decided to go talk to Yuna and see what she has decided on. I approached the summoner and crossed my arms.

"Hey there." I said.

She looked at me and nodded slightly. "I've decided."

I let my arms hang to my sides. "Oh? Really? That's good."

She nodded again before looking back to her parents. "I remember, when I was only seven years old, in Bevelle that day. My father had defeated Sin, and the whole town was out in the streets. Everyone was laughing. They all seemed so happy. If I defeated Sin, that would make everyone happy...wouldn't it? I must do what everyone wants, not just what I want."

"Well, I'm happy you made a decision. You ready to head back?"

"Actually, give me a few more minutes. Then I'll be ready."

I nodded, "As you wish."

I left her alone after that. I figured she wanted to speak with her parents some more. Instead, I decided to go talk to Tidus.

He was standing along the edge of the platform, looking out into the distance.

"Hey. Whatcha doing?" I said, approaching him.

He turned to look at me and smiled. "Oh, nothing. Just enjoying the scenery."

I stood beside him and held my arms behind my back. I tried to hide my goosebumps, but it wasn't working very well.

"You cold?" He asked.

I shrugged, "It's not that I'm cold. It's just the thought of talking to your loved ones who have passed. It's just crazy."

He nodded as if he understood me. "I get what you mean. I don't really understand how it works."

"Well, why don't we test it?"

"Huh?"

"Call your dad. You said he disappeared when you were young, right? So, give it a try."

He shuddered at the thought of his father. "Uhh, I don't know."

"C'mon. Just do it." I urged.

"Uhh, okay." He said, finally giving in.

We waited for a few moments before seeing nothing in front of us but the vast land of the dead.

"It didn't work." He said.

"So, that must mean... he's alive."

Tidus looked at me, but then back out to the Farplane. I could tell he was in thought, but I wasn't going to question what it was about.

"I'd rather never see him again." He said gruffly.

This was something I didn't understand about him. So I just had to ask. "Why do you hate him?"

"Everything he does just makes me mad. It was his fault that me and my mother..."

But he stopped dead in his tracks. A young woman with dirty blonde hair and a gentle smile appeared in front of us.

"Mom? It's her!"

I gasped, but then smiled. "She's really pretty."

"But... wait. No one ever performed the sending for her."

I shrugged, "Maybe she accepted death while she was still alive."

"Whoa there, that's my mother you're talking about." He retorted.

"Sorry." I said.

"It's okay."

We stayed silent for a few seconds before he realized something.

"Ahh, I think I just figured something out."

"What?" I asked.

"Why I hate my old man."

I looked at him, signaling him to continue.

"Whenever my old man was around, my mother wouldn't even look at me. Maybe that's when I started to resent him, even hate him. When he left us... mom just lost her energy."

He looked at me, and I nodded.

"Go on." I said softly.

He nodded. "The old lady next door told me... when a lovebird dies, the one left behind... It just gives up living so it can join its mate. It was just like that. I hated my old man even more. But really, my old man..."

I could tell he was having flashbacks in his head, of his mother and father. I didn't ask about them, though. If he wanted to tell me, he would.

He shook his head and put his hand on the back of his neck. "Oh, man... I must sound so stupid."

"I don't think so." I said, smiling at him.

He looked back at me with the same smile that he had been giving me the past few days. His cheeks turned a bright pink color and he faced away from me. "How embarrassing!"

I giggled and slapped his arm lightly. It was cute how he was embarrassed he was.

The footsteps behind us signaled it was time to leave. I turned to see Wakka, Lulu and Yuna ready to go.

"Well? Need some more time?" Wakka asked.

"Nope, let's go." I said.

"Did I miss something?" Lulu asked.

Tidus and I laughed as we exchanged grins. We must've looked really stupid, but we didn't care. We were getting closer as the days were getting longer and more tiring.

But I was grateful to be here right now. I didn't want things to change.

We all made our way out of the portal and met back up with Auron and Rikku at the bottom of the stairs.

I wonder what those two did while we were in there...

Oh well, that wasn't as important as what happened when we tried to leave the Farplane.