YP Operation: PRAG
(Pair Rikku and Gippal)

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Chapter 1: Plotting
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: sigh, I don’t own the characters…
A/N: I have been wanting to write something involving Rikku for quite a while now. I’ve always been a big fan of this pairing just because it’s so canon. Anyways, I’ve always thought that I’ve been better at writing serious stuff, so this is my little challenge to myself: a romantic comedy. Please R&R. CC (Constructive Criticism) is appreciated.

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It had been almost a year since the Gullwing girls had stopped Shuyin from using Bevelle’s powerful machina weapon, Vegnagun, to destroy Spira by reuniting him with his long lost love, Lenne. Since then, each had gone their own way: Yuna and Tidus moved into a hut in Besaid, Rikku had returned Home to resume her duties as the daughter of the Al Bhed leader, Cid, and Paine went to Bevelle, eventually earning the title of Commander in the newly formed forces of Spira- The New Alliance.

The girls kept in touch with each other through spheres and frequent visits to one another. Most recently, Paine had been able to get enough time off from the Alliance to drop by Besaid Island for a quick visit…

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The silver- haired warrior walked through the village entrance. She stopped to take in the peaceful scene. The people of Besaid walked back and forth, carrying on their daily chores with little noise. The loudest sound that could be heard was the laughing of children as they chased a golden retriever around the village.

Paine smiled. Having become accustomed to the hustle and bustle of Bevelle, she had forgotten just how peaceful the island of Besaid was.

To her right, the door of a hut rustled as a tan arm pulled it open. “I’ll be back in a bit, Lu.” A red-haired man emerged from the hut, stretching out his arms. Turning, he caught sight of Paine, “Hey! Paine!”

Paine shifted her weight as the man ran up to greet her, “Hello, Wakka.”

“What brings you here? Came for another visit to the newlyweds, ya?”

Paine nodded, “Are they busy?”

“No more than usual, ya? I’ll take you to them.” Wakka turned and walked to the small path on the left side of the village. Once having led to the ruins of a hut destroyed by Sin, the path now led to a large yet humble hut. Paine followed the former blitzball captain, noticing the new decorations Yuna had added outside the hut. Wakka tapped on the door, “Hey, Yuna. You’ve got someone here to see you, ya?”

A small hand pulled back the door, and a young brunette stuck her head through the opening, “Wakka, who could be…” Seeing Paine, Yuna instantly rushed from the hut and embraced her friend, “Paine! What a surprise! It’s great to see you!”

Paine was caught off guard for only a second before she returned her friend’s hug, “It’s great to see you too, Yuna. How have you been?”

Yuna pulled back and grabbed Paine hands, “It’s been great! Tidus and I have been keeping ourselves busy, even after the wedding.” She laughed happily, “Come on in!” She turned to Wakka, “You coming? Or is Lulu keeping you too busy?”

“No, you guys go ahead,” Wakka waved his hand dismissively, “I’m sure Lu will want me to get about my business so I can check back in with her and Vidina. You guys have fun.” He waved once more before turning and running back up the path into the central area of the village.

Once Wakka had left, Yuna turned back to Paine and pulled her enthusiastically into the hut, “Don’t just stand there. Come in!”

Inside, Tidus was working on the central fire pit. He looked up as the girls came in, “Oh, hi Paine.”

“Hello.” Paine replied. Even though the two had met several times before, Tidus and Paine had never really been able to connect. Her stoic nature made Tidus nervous and usually resulted in their initial greetings having a degree of awkwardness to them.

Yuna smiled warmly at Tidus, “Isn’t it great Paine came to see us?”

“Yeah.” Tidus replied, trying to sound enthusiastic, “A real surprise.” He dusted off his hands on his pants and then walked over to Yuna, giving her a loving kiss on the cheek, “I’ll give you guys some time to yourself. I’m sure you have a lot to catch up on.”

“Oh, you don’t have—“Yuna began, ever the considerate hostess.

“Nah, don’t worry about it.” Tidus walked to the door with a wave, “I have some things I have to do anyways. Just whistle if you need me, right?”

Yuna smiled, “Yeah. I will.”

Tidus returned a smile and let his gaze linger on her for a second longer before turning and leaving the hut.

“Cute.” Paine commented. It was hard not to notice how well Yuna and Tidus were getting along together.

Yuna redirected her attention to Paine, “Thanks.” She gestured towards a small couch on one side of the hut, “Now, sit! You have to tell me everything that’s happened.”

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The two girls sat chatting for quite some time, talking about everything that had happened to them in the past couple of months. Paine had been working on training new recruits and experienced few problems within the ranks of soldiers, and Yuna had been working on decorating the hut and teaching young girls in Besaid to heal and defend themselves. Yuna went on to talk about Tidus rejoining the Besaid Aurochs, taking on the position of captain, and prepping them for the next season of Blitzball. As they ran out of new happenings to talk about, the two friends began to talk about memories they had as the Gullwings, taking the opportunity to tease Rikku while she wasn’t there, all in good humor, of course. Inevitably, their reminiscing went back to their visit to Djose Temple. That had been Yuna’s first experience with the Machine Faction… and Gippal.

“You were the only one who had no idea what to expect of him.” Paine chuckled.

“That’s right.” Yuna replied, “I must admit that I was a little weirded out at first.” She laughed, “I had no idea that you and Gippal already knew each other. And then Rikku…” She took time to shake her head there, “She almost kept him from getting to the interview with all their flirting.”

“Yeah. It was not hard to see that they had a past together.”

“I wonder whatever happened between them?” Yuna wondered aloud, bringing her hand to her face.

“Dunno.”

“You know…” Yuna stood, a metaphorical light bulb switching on above her head, “We should try and get them back together!”

“You sure it’s wise to get involved in other people’s love lifes, Yuna?” Paine asked, nevertheless intrigued by the idea.

“Oh, but they would be so great together!” Yuna gestured with her hands to emphasize the point, “Don’t you agree, Paine?”

“Well, I can’t say I don’t agree.” Paine replied dryly. No matter how uninterested she was in frivolous love affairs, she knew there was no sense in arguing the point.

“Then let’s do it!” Yuna said, the excitement rising in her voice. It would be fun to travel and see Rikku, getting some time off from her usual duties in the village, “It would be like another Gullwing mission!”

“Except we’d be missing one.” Paine pointed out.

“So, instead of YRP, we’d just be YP! We could even come up with a name for it!” Yuna paused to think for a moment, “It could be YP Operation: Pair Rikku and Gippal!”

Paine shook her head at the ridiculous name, “PRAG?”

“This will be fun!” Yuna clapped her hands together as she let herself fall back on the couch next to Paine.

Suddenly, the door was pulled opened, causing the girls to look up. Tidus walked into the hut, carrying a large fruit, “What will be fun?”

Yuna clasped her hands together in her lap and tried to smiled innocently, but was barely able to suppress signs of laughter, “Oh nothing.” She turned to Paine and winked, bringing a finger to her lips, “We’ll finish this tonight.”

Tidus set down the fruit and looked to Paine with a quizzical expression on his face, but she just ran her fingers through her hair, shaking her head, “Whatever you say, Yuna.”