"That was awesome!" Jake squealed. "I've never had so much fun in my life!"

Emma, Dia, and Jake were sitting on the couch in Emma's basement. "I'll give you the cheat code!" Emma promised. "You can access the game from your memory card, and keep helping out!"

Dia grinned. "Cool!"

"Kids!" Taylor called. "We have to go! Come on upstairs!"

Emma got a scrap of paper and scribbled down the code. "Put it into your PS2 when you get home. Just remember to turn it off right after you finish playing, or your dad will see the save point."

"You're the best, Emmie!" Jake hugged her and ran up the stairs with his sister.

"See you later!" Emma called after them. She smiled and switched off her PS2. My first real friends.

… … …

The next day, Emma got up early again to play Kingdom Hearts. She combed her hair and got dressed, then ran to her basement. I hope Dia and Jake are there! When she appeared inside the game, she found herself standing in what looked like a small, stony inn. Hey, this is Guadosalam!

The innkeeper waved at her. "Good morning. Do you need anything?"

"Er, I'm looking for Lady Yuna and her guardians…has she come through here lately?"

A young woman with long, red hair and green-and-white clothing stood up. "Yes, she just left for Maester Seymour's mansion! Why do you ask?"

Emma hurriedly did the Spiran Prayer. "I'm one of her part-time guardians, Emma Baecker."

The young woman also did the Prayer. "Yes, she told me about you! My name is Shelinda. Good luck protecting the Lady Summoner."

"Thanks! Good luck getting the Crusaders to stop using machina," Emma replied as she ran out.

Shelinda smiled. "Thank you. You'd better hurry!"

… … …

Sora and Co. and Tidus and Co. entered a colorful, round room, with Emma running after them. A blonde girl was hovering around a table stacked with food. "Wow!" she squealed. "Drana'c cu silr vuut rana!"

"Calm down, Rikku," Sora advised. "Hey, stop stuffing your face for a second and meet Emma!"

Rikku looked up. "So you're one of Yunie's guardians? Nice to meet you!" She shook Emma's hand.

Emma nodded. "Nice to meet you, too! It must be pretty confusing around here, seeing as you pronounce Rikku and Riku the same way."

Dia put a hand on Emma's shoulder. "Emma…do you know what happened last night?"

"No, what?"

Sora nervously twiddled his thumbs. "Maleficent took Riku back, and he got in really bad trouble."

Emma bit her lip. "Oh…I had brought him something, but I guess it'll have to wait." She showed her allies a triangular bar wrapped in aluminum foil. "It's a Toblerone. Candy. Riku seemed like he really wanted to learn about other worlds, so…I thought he'd like to see real-world food." She laughed. "It seems kinda trivial now. But we'll see him again."

A set of doors opened, and Seymour swept in. "Good morning. It's nice to see you all. I had a nice presentation set up, but I don't think there's any time for that. Lady Yuna, may I speak to you alone?" Yuna walked over to the Maester, then bowed her head, and Seymour whispered something to her. Her eyes widened, and she covered her mouth. "Please notify me as soon as your mind has been made up."

Yuna nodded slowly, then walked away. "Whoa, wait up!" Tidus called. He and her other guardians followed her out the door.

… … …

"What did Seymour ask you, Yuna?" Tidus asked once they were all outside.

Yuna sighed heavily. "He…he asked me…if I would marry him."

"WHAT?" her guardians yelled.

Tidus clenched his fists. "Are you seriously considering it?"

"I…" The summoner concentrated on the mossy ground. "…I suppose so…" Tidus's jaw dropped. "I want to make the people of Spira happy. That's why. If I defeated Sin…people would be happy. If I married Maester Seymour…people would be happy. Two ways down the same road. So…I'll marry Seymour."

Everyone except Tidus and Emma hesitantly congratulated her. Tidus growled. "Does she even love him? Does she even LIKE him?"

Man…I wish I didn't know what was going to happen…Seymour's just going to use her, Emma thought.

Yuna stood up. "But before I give Seymour my answer…I want to go to the Farplane."

"The what?" Sora looked confused.

"You can see the dead there," Lulu told him. "Surely you must know that!"

"Won't that be a little…scary?"

Auron gave a dark chuckle from behind Sora. "Merely the memories of the dead."

Sora immediately jumped up in fright. "S-s-sir Auron! I didn't see you there!"

"You can't be a true warrior without noticing when someone's coming at you."

"Uh…that's nice." He nervously edged away. "Anyway, why do you need to go to the Farplane, Yuna?"

"I want to tell my mother and father the good news."

Sora put a finger on his chin. "Could I see my dad there?"

"I'm sorry, Sora, but…the Farplane is reserved for those who have been Sent by a summoner…or those who accepted death."

"My dad accepted death! He died trying to save me from a storm!"

Emma sighed. I was hoping to see my dad there…but why would he be in the game? Besides, I don't know whether or not he accepted death. I don't even know how he died. Nobody told me. She shrugged, and rubbed her eyes. "Let's go to the Farplane."

… … …

Wakka was gazing at a shimmering image of his dead brother, Chappu. Yuna was talking to the images of her parents. "I'm getting married…isn't that great?"

Sora smiled at an image of his father. "I really miss you, Dad."

Emma, Dia, and Jake sat down next to Sora. "I see where you get your looks," Dia told him. His father looked like an older, stubble-induced version of him.

"Are you okay?" Jake asked. Emma was staring into the purplish-pink clouds. "Emmie?"

"Sorry. I was just trying to see if I could get my dad to appear. I know he wouldn't be in a game, but it was worth a try."

Goofy pointed upwards. "I think we've got some trouble, fellers!"

A large Heartless fell from the clouds. It flexed its pointed fingers. "What is that?" Yuna asked nervously, backing away from it.

Sora pulled out the Fairy's Harp. "It's the Darkside Heartless!"

Yuna stepped back forward, and raised her staff. A creature that resembled a human-like dog that had been set on fire. "Ifrit, take my part-time guardians up to the monster's face!" Ifrit grunted and dropped Sora and Co. onto his back, climbing up the Darkside.

Emma leapt onto its forehead and examined her necklace. None of my stones are glowing. I guess I'll have to do this the classic way…beating the dookie out of it! She bashed the Darkside's head with her metal pole, but it didn't seem to have much of an effect.

On the ground, Rikku and Auron had entered; they hadn't wanted to enter the Farplane for their individual reasons. "Whoa! That's one big Sinspawn!" Rikku remarked.

"It's a Heartless," Dia corrected.

Rikku reached into a bag around her waist. "Whatever! Overdrive, don't fail me now!"

Sora turned to Emma. "What's an Overdrive?"

"It's a super attack, like my stones," Emma explained.

"Mix!" Rikku held out two blue gems, then made the two ends touch. "Flash Flood!" Gallons and gallows of magical water dumped theirselves onto the Darkside, causing quite a bit of damage.

A glob of darkness shone above the Darkside Heartless's hand, soaking into it and making the hand grow larger; it then crushed everyone in the party. Everyone was laying on the ground, but Emma, Dia, and Jake were the only conscious ones. They stood up shakily, staring at the bodies around them. "If they faint…" Dia murmured.

"…they die." Emma finished quietly. "We…we didn't…we couldn't…" Too grieved to speak, Emma's voice trailed off, and she wiped her eyes. Jake started bawling on the spot.

Dia put her arms around both of them. "It's…it's going to be okay. We couldn't have done anything. Maybe we should just go…"

Emma jerked free, and grabbed a hold on her necklace. "No! I'm not going! I have to do something! My stones are amplified versions of Sora's spells, and he has Cure! I have to do something!" She looked over all of the stones again, but none of them were glowing. "NO! MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD! YOU HAVE TO HELP! YOU HAVE TO!"

A dim light pulsated inside the green stone. It grew brighter, and the stone started glowing. "You did it, Emmie!" Jake cheered, half laughing, half crying. "Hurry!"

This had better work! Emma clutched the green stone, and yelled, "NAOSU!" One by one, the fallen game characters woke up, with full health. "Yes!"

Sora sat up, and looked at his hands. "I'm…alive?"

Jake hugged the Keyblade Master. "Emma saved you with the Cure Stone!"

Kimahri, who had just waken up, checked his Sensor. "A few more hits, and that Heartless will go down!" Lulu announced. "Do you want to do the honors, Emma?"

Emma shook her head. "Tidus and Sora are supposed to be the heroes. Let them do it."

Dia grinned at her. "Yeah, but you're the heroine!"

Emma grinned back. "Fine. The three of us will take it down together."

Sora, Tidus, and Emma stepped forward. "HYAH!" Sora and Tidus swiped at the Darkside Heartless, while Emma tossed her Crystal Shurikens. The Darkside wobbled violently, and disappeared. "We did it!" Tidus exclaimed.

Wakka hi-fived his allies, cheering and whooping. "Way to go! We beat him good, yah?"

Emma laughed. "Yah."