Just knock on the door! The girl's mind screamed again. The preteen bit her lip and hestiny knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Coughed the voice within

"Um, Stacie!" Stacie called.

"What are you-"

Stacie opened the door before her friend could finish.

The brown haired girl lying in bed sat up. She was still in her pjs and she looked sick. She was sick.

"How are you? I wondered where you were at school today." Her blond haired friend laughed.

"Happy Birthday, bestie!" Courtney suddenly cried. She then started coughing.

Stacie walked over to Courtney's nightstand and placed a vase of pretty flowers next to a framed selfie of the two.

"Are you okay?" Stacie whispered, sitting down in the window seat on the left of the bed.

"F-fine." Courtney said, recovering and giving a weak smile.

Stacie frowned. "Courtney… your mom said it looked like this sickness will last for weeks. I don't think that's fine."

The sick friend rolled her eyes. "You'd better go, I don't want you to get sick."

Stacie smiled and shook her head. "No way!"

"But it's your birthday," Courtney insisted. "and your sisters must want to see you."

"They do, but I told them I had to see you today. You know how yesterday I apologized about the things I said?"

Courtney gave a sigh and put her head on her hand. "Don't remind me! I'm so sorry, again. I never meant to make fun of you, or hurt you. You just caught me at the wrong time…"

"With the wrong pepole." Stacie whispered, remembering how Violet and Jenny had made fun of her, and tried to make Courtney join them.

"Anyway, the reason I bring it up is, Barbie told me a story, that helped me realize I needed to forgive you. She and her friend Teresa told me it through song, it was amazing!"

Courtney cocked her head. "What was the story about? Why were there songs? Can you play any?"

Stacie blushed. Courtney knew she was learning to play like her big sister. "I-I think so."

"Did you bring your guitar? Can you play for me?"

"It's at home!" Stacie chuckled.

"Home's only a few seconds away, we're next door neighbors, silly!"

Stacie returned a few minutes later, gutair on her back.

"Thank you!" Courtney laughed. She coughed again.

Stacie noticed a small box in her hands.

"Oh! This is for you!" Her friend cried, thrusting it forward.

"Thanks!" Stacie giggled.

She gently took the box and shifted the box lid until it came off.

"Happy Birthday!"

Stacie was mystified. "Oh, Courtney, t-this is so…"

"Magical?" Courtney asked.

"Exactly…" Stacie whispered. She thumbed over a small golden guitar pick with pink and purple gems imbedded in it.

"It almost looks like…"

"What?"

"Huh?" Stacie looked up with surprise.

"What does it look like?"

"Oh, from the story-"

"That's right! What's the story about?" Courtney asked.

"Well," Stacie started, taking out her gutair. "It's about two girls, best friends, Liana and Alexa. They have to keep their friendship alive and well, like they always do to save Melody."

"Who's Melody?"

"Oh, the muses' apprentice! She tries to escape Lydia, with the help of her friends, and save her home, The Diamond Castle."

"A… Diamond Castle?" Courtney whispered. "Cool!"

"To say the least!" Stacie laughed. They giggled together.

"So, where does the music come in?"

"They loved to sing together, kinda like us!"

Courtney started coughing rapidly.

"Courtney!" Stacie gasped, running up.

She knelt by her friend's side.

"Don't worry, it's okay!" Courtney choked out.

"No, it's not."

A few seconds later, the coughs finally ceased.

"Courtney… I have something to give you." Stacie whispered, reaching in her pocket.

"I had been waiting to give this to you on your birthday but-"

Stacie took not a second more. She took out of her pocket two pearl heart necklaces on plain thread. She wondered if Barbie thought she hadn't noticed the simple necklaces in her jewelry box.

She remembered after she had apologized and gone home for the day, and sneaked into Barbie's room. She had always noticed the golden violin, but never the necklaces, not until the story.

They can't be the same… can they? Stacie wondered. She was about to touch one, her fingers grazed the shinning stone..

"Oh, hey, Stacie!"

Stacie gasped in surprise and swung around. "B-Barbie!"

Her older sister smiled softly. "What are you doing? Do you need something?"

The younger blushed. "Um… Do you remember that story you and Teresa told me yesterday?"

"Of course."

"Well," Her sister bit her lip. "I just thought… you see, these necklaces are exactly how I pictured Liana and Alexa's guardian stones, you know, that protected them."

"How interesting! Maybe they're really magic." Barbie laughed, adjusting a picture of herself, Teresa, and their other best friend, Summer.

"D-do you think so?"

The teen turned to the girl. "Well, do you?"

"Hm… I don't know."

Barbie walked up and took out the twin hearts. "I don't know about Liana and Alexa but they certainly did belong to Theresa and I, they're simple old things now." She then looked up at Stacie, a twinkle in her bright blue eyes.
"But, perhaps you can use them."

"Really?!" Stacie gasped.

"Really." Barbie answered.

Stacie gently picked up a necklace and Courtney gasped. "Stac, it's beautiful!"

"This is for you…" Stacie said, holding it out.

Courtney raised her eyebrows. "For.. me? But it's your-"

Stacie put her hand up to stop her. "I don't care, it's for both of us anyway."

Courtney tied one around her neck.

Stacie smiled and put its twin around her own.

"Best friends today," Stacie whispered.

Courtney cocked her head. "tomorrow," She seemed to know somehow what to say.

"and always!" They laughed together.

Stacie looked down and saw a beautiful pale glow with gold music notes around it emit from her necklace.

"Wow…" Courtney gasped, looking down at her own.

The glow faded and Courtney suddenly touched her head. "Stacie… I- I think I'm healed! I-I'm not sick anymore!"

"Really?!" Stacie gasped.

Courtney sat up with a laugh. "How? How is this… real?! It all seems like-"

"The… story… it seemed, just the story…" Stacie whispered, gently touching the pearl heart around her neck.

"You mean the one about the three girls and the Diamond Castle? Oh, can you tell me it now, please?"

"Yeah, sure!" Stacie laughed, patting the seat beside her. Courtney sat and Stacie pulled out her guitar. She handed Courtney a paper with lyrics on it.

"It starts with music, so, let's sing together, like we always do."

Courtney nodded.

"It's so rare to find a friend like you," Stacie sang.

"Somehow, when you're around, the sky is always blue!" Courtney laughed.

"The way we talk, the things you say, the way you make it all okay!"

"And how you know, all of my jokes, but you laugh anyway!" Courtney sang.

"If I could wish for one thing, I'd take the smile that you bring! Wherever you go in this world, I'll come along! Together we dream the same dream, forever I'm here for you, you're here for me, oh whoa, two voices, one song!"
They sang together, and their guardian stones glowed.