Issues connecting VBA-M to Dolphin for the Double Dash Bonus Disc

[allourbase]

Hey everyone, I know there are most likely multiple posts dealing with connecting VBA-M to Dolphin, but I was unable to find anything about my specific issue. I have been trying to connect vba-m with fire emblem 7 to the double dash bonus disc to get the bonus items. I know there are saves out there with the items already transferred, but I didn't know about this before starting the game and would rather not have to start over. I saw mention of there being a way to link for the bonus items, but as of yet I haven't been able to replicate it. I've followed all the steps as I understood them, but when I start the linking process, either both emulators freeze and nothing happens, or the bonus disc says there was an issue linking. I've tried on both Dolphin 4.0.2 and 4.0-7862. Does anyone have any insight into what the issue is?