Sora and Riku can't fight yet! Emma thought frantically. If it took Sora ten minutes to fight the Opposite Armor, even with Donald and Goofy's help, so there's no way he'll be able to beat Riku! She bit her lip, and squeaked a little as she saw Riku/Ansem lunge forward to attack Sora. Emma, without thinking, yelled, "RIKU CAN'T PAY ATTENTION IF HE'S POSSESSED!"
Riku/Ansem halted his advance. "What do you mean?" he demanded with a scowl.
Emma gulped at the villain's cold stare, then stuttered, "Riku can't p-p-pay attention if he's p-possessed. You need him t-t-to hate Sora, d-d-don't you? H-he's supposed to think that Sora's r-r-replaced him with Donald, Goofy, and m-me. How will he hate Sora if h-h-he can't pay attention to what's g-going on?"
"I thought that picking an obsessed girl would further hinder the Keyblade Master," Riku/Ansem grumbled. "But it seems that I have given them valuable aid. This is not over, child. Know that." The green haze reappeared, and Riku fell like a sack of potatoes. A green hand with pink fingernails reached out of the shadows to drag the boy away.
Goofy and Donald looked scared. "What's goin' on?" Goofy asked fearfully.
Emma took a deep breath. "Listen, guys. You're…we're…in a game. It's called Kingdom Hearts. I'm a big fan of the game, so I know everything that's going to happen. But I think my being here changed the plot. It may take a while, but I have to do some tests. I may be able to decide what happens in some cases." She looked at the other three. "But you guys have to back me up. You saw me. I can only destroy Shadows."
"So…" Donald was actually deep in thought for once. "…you're going to be the brains…and…we're the brawn?"
"That's the plan," Emma concluded.
"Fine. Let's hope it works."
Sora smiled. "I'm sure it will. Even if Emma's weak, she's trustworthy."
"Where to now?" Goofy asked cheerfully.
Emma pointed in the direction of the Second District. "The sewers!"
… … …
"Hey, Sora." Leon gave Sora and his allies an acknowledging nod as they hiked through the waist-deep water, towards him and Aerith. He raised an eyebrow as he noticed Emma in the lead. "Who are you?" he asked with an air of mild hostility.
Emma saluted, climbing onto the green, rocky floor. "My name's Emma Baecker. I'm helping these guys."
"Hmm. Well, my name is-"
"Squall. I mean, Leon. And you're Aeris. I mean, Aerith. Nice to meet you both!"
"Same to you. But how did you know our names?" Aerith wondered, not commenting on the fact that Emma called her Aeris.
"Sora told me," Emma lied.
Leon shrugged. "I have something for you," he told Sora. As he dug into his jeans pocket, Emma closed her eyes, concentrating. "Here…it's a summon gem. It's called the Earthshine." He tossed it into the air, and Sora caught it in his gloved hands. "Take it to the Fairy Godmother. She'll open it for you, and then you can summon it in battle."
… … …
The Fairy Godmother examined the gem. "Oh, this is a strong one…you're lucky to have found him."
Emma rocked back and forth on her heels. "No offense, but can you just free him now? I wanna get to Agrabah as soon as possible."
"What's Agrabah?" the old woman asked.
"Uh…I didn't say Agrabah!" Emma insisted, trying to cover up her slip of tongue. "I said…I wanna get to…to agriculture. Yeah, agriculture! The agriculture of, um, Traverse Town!"
"All right, dear…bibbity bobbity boo!" The Fairy Godmother tapped the Earthshine briskly with her wand. A white flash emanated from it, filled the room, then faded.
Sora looked around. "Where is it? I don't see anything."
"Me neither," Donald agreed.
"Gawrsh, are you sure it worked?"
Emma was grinning from ear to ear. "Look down," she told them. The four of them stared at the small creature on the floor.
"He's little," Sora said.
"He's ugly," Donald decided.
"He's blue," Goofy mused.
"He's Stitch!" Emma proclaimed.
… … …
On their way to Agrabah, Emma was bouncing up and down in her seat. "I did it! I did it! I changed the game again!"
Sora didn't turn around from his driving duties, but he sounded impressed. "I doubt you'll be able to change anything big, but I bet you can work out all the little knots. I'm really glad you're coming along with us!"
Emma gave him a thumbs-up. "Heh, thanks. And I know exactly what I'm going to change next…Agrabah, here we come!"
"Don't you mean 'agriculture', Emma?" Donald joked.
"Shut up before I tie your beak up with your foot."
"That's not even possible," he squelched in-between laughs.
"I'll MAKE it possible." Donald immediately became silent. "I think I could get used to being in a video game!"
