They'd been walking for a couple hours when Seifer sidled up to Squall. "So, don't I get any credit at all?"

"For what?"

"Not ghosting your new pal."

Squall suppressed a sigh. Most people would not expect accolades for not murdering an ally. But Seifer was not most people.

"Did you see what he did to me?" Seifer held out his left arm, showing a long slice in his sleeve that bisected the cross at his elbow. The cut appeared currently only to affect the jacket, the skin below presumably having been healed with magic or potion.

Squall pursed his lips to keep from snickering. "I told you he was faster than you."

"He is not faster than me. Obviously, I beat him. Chicken-wuss 2.0 might be a little taller than the original, but I think he's even stupider." Seifer walked away, laughing to himself.

Squall looked ahead to see that Tidus was walking blissfully along, apparently having not heard Seifer's insults, or not realized that they were directed at him. Squall pitied Tidus, knowing that it probably wouldn't have taken much for the situations to be shifted. For Tidus to be carrying an unconscious Rinoa while he walked along without a clue.

He pitied Tidus, but he felt even more sorry for Yuna. Poor Yuna, who would wake up to discover that the guy she'd been struggling to find had no idea who she was. At least Yuna hadn't heard Locke's story about how his first love forgot him forever.

After a few minutes, Tidus turned around and walked backwards in front of Squall, looking down at Yuna. "She's very pretty. Is she your girlfriend?"

"No, Tidus, she's not my girlfriend."

"You can't blame him for asking," Seifer quipped, "You two are looking pretty cozy."

Squall glared at Seifer. "You're sick."

"Well, if you get tired," Tidus continued, "I could carry her for a while."

Squall hoped Tidus's offer stemmed from being subconsciously drawn to Yuna, and not because Squall looked as worn down as he felt. "Okay," he replied and handed Yuna off to Tidus.

Squall stretched his arms behind his back, momentarily relieved to be able to walk unburdened. But then he noticed Angelo. The dog had been limping slightly since their encounter with Terra. He imagined her paws were burned and sore. It wouldn't do to return Rinoa's dog injured, so he knelt down to one knee and lifted the shaggy warrior. She was a bit lighter than Yuna, but much more awkward to carry, mostly because she was constantly twisting around, trying to lick Squall's face. Squall lifted his chin and looked ahead, trying to estimate how far they were from the base. Farther than he wanted to think about, so he tightened his embrace of the dog and focused on putting one foot in front of the other.

The sun was low in the sky, perched just above the distant mountains, when Tidus spoke up. "Squall, I think she's waking up."

Squall placed Angelo on the ground and helped Tidus lower Yuna onto a patch of thick grass. Angelo danced around them, making Squall wonder if he really needed to have been carrying her for the last several miles.

Once Yuna was settled, Squall looked at Tidus. "Could you give us some space?"

"…Sure." Tidus seemed reluctant, but walked off a few paces.

Yuna opened her eyes slowly and looked up at Squall.

"How are you feeling?"

"Okay," she replied, sitting up. "Where are we?"

"On the way back to base. Sorry we couldn't revive you sooner. Tidus is here and he's fine, but he doesn't remember much." Squall took a breath. "He doesn't remember you."

The disappointment in her eyes was unmistakable. Nevertheless, she smiled. "If everyone's alright, that's all that matters."

Really? It doesn't matter to you that the love of your life doesn't even know your name? Squall wasn't sure if he admired Yuna for her positive outlook, or pitied her naïveté. "He does think you're pretty," Squall offered as Yuna got to her feet.

"He said that?"

Squall nodded and her smile brightened. "I suppose that's something."

Tidus approached. "Hiya."

Yuna smiled at him. "Hello, Tidus."

"Are you idiots coming or not?" Seifer yelled from up ahead.

"We should keep moving." Squall picked up Angelo.

"I'm Locke, or so they tell me." The treasure hunter offered his hand to Yuna. "I have no idea if we've met before."

Yuna shook his proffered hand. "We have not. It's nice to meet you, Locke."

"Have we met?" Tidus asked her.

"Yes."

"Oh. Sorry I don't remember."

"No need to apologize." Yuna smiled at him and began to walk forward.

Locke ran ahead toward Seifer and Tidus walked beside Yuna. Squall brought up the rear, carrying Angelo.

It had gotten dark before they made it all the way back to the base, so they'd made camp a little bit short of the town. There was enough starlight to make out basic shapes in the dark, but the night obscured all detail. Now everyone seemed to be asleep. Everyone but Yuna.

She was so happy to see Tidus again. But she couldn't deny that it hurt a little, that he didn't recognize her. She wanted to hug him and kiss him and tell him how much she'd missed him. But if she did, it would probably just scare him, and make her feel even worse.

She knew even if he never recovered his memory, things would be okay. They'd fallen in love once, they could do it again. All that really mattered was that he was alive and well.

Still, she couldn't sleep. She could just make out his silhouette resting peacefully nearby. But a vague shape in the darkness wasn't enough to convince her he was here for good. What if he disappeared when the sun came up? What if her eyes were playing tricks, and it wasn't him at all?

Rinoa had recited every detail of her time in the Void to Yuna. Yuna remembered one detail in particular. Rinoa had said that when Squall fell asleep while communicating with Ellone, she would lie with her ear to his chest, so she could hear his heartbeat. That was what Yuna wanted right now, what she needed. To hear Tidus's heartbeat, to know he was really alive. The rest would work out in time.

She moved next to him as silently as possible. She rested against him as lightly as she could. For a moment, she could hear it.

Thump. Thump. His heart did still beat. But then his body shifted, and she knew she had awakened him.

"Rinoa," he muttered softly, "I'm not Squall."

Yuna smiled in the dark as she sat up. He was beginning to remember more. "I know you're not Squall," she replied quietly. "I'm not Rinoa."

Tidus sat up. "Yuna? Where are we?"

"Yes, yes, I'm Yuna." She couldn't stop from grinning, but she resisted the urge to throw her arms around Tidus. "We are…what's the last thing you remember?"

"Um, I remember…fighting Seymour. We beat him for good, right?"

Yuna's face fell, just a little. Seymour was definitely not their most recent battle.

"Then I was trapped. In this empty world. With Rinoa. And Squall." There was panic rising in his voice when he added, "Is that where we are? Did you end up there too?"

"No," Yuna assured him. "We're not there. We're safe. You've experienced some memory loss, but it will come back in time. Soon we'll be home."

"Home?" Tidus's voice was full of hope. "Zanarkand?"

Yuna bit her lip. She couldn't lie and say yes, but this hardly seemed the time to remind him that his beloved Zanarkand no longer existed.

"Not Zanarkand," Squall's voice, quiet but clear, carried across the camp. "You're already home—Yuna's here. Remember?"

"Yes." Yuna could just make out Tidus's head nodding in the darkness. "Yes, I remember. My home is with you, Yuna." He reached for her hand and held it tightly. "Wherever that is."