A/N

Hey Guys,

This is my first time writing ff, so that's just a heads up to all of you.

I'd like to thank mira ff for Beta'ing this story for me. She's a big help!

Any reviews/ criticisms or whatever you guys have would be excellent, just send a message or post!

"VINNIE! VIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNIEEEEEEEEEE!" The ninja made spot checks under the tables in the empty 7th Heaven. Cloud and Tifa had gone out to Costa del Sol for a "vacation" away from the kids, and they had left Yuffie in charge of the bar with Vincent.

Hearing his name being shouted in the bar, the tall dark haired man trudged out of the guest room, his blood red cape flowing behind. Cerberus was fastened safely in its holster by his side. Why is she so annoying? "Can I help you, Yuffie?"

She ran over to him, attempting to pull him over to the newscast being broadcast on the television. Instinctively, he pulled his hand away. "Don't touch me."

The teenager wasn't fazed, either used to his disdain for her or just not caring about it. She pushed him towards the TV. "Watch!" They sat down on the couch to watch together; Yuffie trying to inch towards Vincent, him inching away every time he noticed.

"Trouble in Mideel!" exclaimed the newscaster. "It seems that patients seeking help at the newly rebuilt clinic have been disappearing upon arrival. We are awaiting further word from authorities…" The report droned on, but Yuffie was already excited.

"Oh wow! We were there, weren't we? When we saved the world!? Vinnie, surely you remember that! We went to Nibelheim! And Corel! And Gold Saucer! That was a lot of fun! Remember? We did it together!"

"Don't call me Vinnie," the dark haired man said. The phone at the bar started ringing, and the young girl ran over to answer it.

"Hello!"

"Yes. Is Cloud there?" Rude's distinctive voice could be heard with difficulty behind roars of machinery.

"No! He and Tifa are on vacation. I'm housesitting with Vinnie. I mean…Vincent." She shot him a look when she said it, but he only looked away. "I'll let you talk to him." She handed the phone to the caped man.

"Yes?"

Laughs were heard on the other end of the line. "Ha! Does she really call you Vinnie? That's hilarious!" He continued when there was no response from Vincent. "Anyway, down to business. Surely you heard of the terrible news in Mideel. There's more to it than they let on. People have been disappearing because they have touched the Lifestream. We figured since Cloud and Tifa went in and got out all right (you could argue that Strife got out better…) that they could help out."

"I'll do it."

"…oh. By yourself?"

"Yes. I'll be there tomorrow." Click.

Vincent dialed Cid's number. "Yea, Cid? Can I ask you a favor? The Turks need our help again…"

The next morning, the Shera was idling a few feet away from the bar. Cid and Vincent were waving their goodbyes to Shera and Yuffie, the younger obviously displeased.

"Why can't we go too!?" She complained.

"Shush up, Yuffie. Just pray that they make it back all right, okay?" Shera pleaded. She was not looking forward to staying with the girl for however long they would be gone.

"Fine!" The ninja stomped off, pick pocketing material from a man walking by.

"Do you miss her?" The dark haired man asked the pilot.

"Eh. My woman? At times I do…" Cid trailed off, coughing.

Huh. I wonder if anyone ever misses me… "How long before we get to Mideel?"

"Only a few hours. You can take a nap down below if you want." More coughs.

Vincent took him up on his offer, and woke up a few hours later over Mideel. He looked out his window, and immediately recognized the green liquid below. People are lost in this? It's going to be tough to get them out…

Cid landed the ship near the clinic, and the two former members of AVALANCHE emerged together. Reno and Rude greeted them as they neared the tallest building in town. Cid started coughing again, and Rude stopped him from getting closer.

"You aren't going into there," he pointed to the Lifestream, "in the shape you're in. You're coughing up a lung. No way."

"Are you fuckin' serious? You goddam douchebags gotta let me go in…" But Reno grabbed the man and brought him into the clinic.

Rude turned towards Vincent. "Come with me." The two men walked in the direction of the Lifestream. When they arrived, the caped man bent over, inspecting the strange liquid.

"What are you looking at?" The bald man bent down as well.

"I'm trying to see how to get in and out all in one piece…"

"Let me help you with that!" Reno's voice was heard from behind. "I can get you in the Lifestream in one piece!" He slapped Vincent on the back, and the man fell headfirst into the green, disappearing from sight.

"Oops…"

Rikku's blonde hair shone in the sunshine as she waited for her cousin to catch up. The young Al-Bhed was faster than her friend, never able to walk at the same pace as her.

"Yunie! Do you want to visit Tidus or what?" she called. Rikku knew that this taunt would hurry up the brunette. "We're going to miss our boat!"

The young girl was actually right. The cruise boat S.S. Winnow was just about to depart from Kilika without the cousins on it. Yuna ran as fast as her short legs could carry her, passing her cousin and running all the way to the boat, finally collapsing on a big red folding chair on the deck.

"Look what I found here, Yunie! A blitzball! Too bad Wakka isn't here to play with me…"

Or him… thought Yuna. She could see his face now, his blue eyes sparkling behind his long blonde hair. I miss him so much. That's why I have to go to Guadosalam, to visit the Farplane. It's the only way to see his face.

While Yuna was deep in thought, Rikku ceased playing with the round blue ball and decided to play a joke on her cousin. Realizing that the former summoner was not paying attention, Rikku grabbed her by her shoulders and half carried half dragged her into the sea.

"RIKKU! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Yuna screamed.

A natural swimmer, Rikku couldn't help but laugh at her cousin struggling in the deep blue water. After a few minutes, though, Yuna's cries for help were annoying the young girl, and she brought her to shore.

"Rikku! Why did you do that?" sputtered the brunette, trying to be level headed. She always made sure she never lost her cool, especially when it came to family. But sometimes Rikku's immaturity made her so mad.

"You just need to loosen up a bit, Yunie! Ever since Tidus left, you've just been…different, ya know? I just wanted you to get your mind off him."

"That's the whole point of this trip, though! I want to see him!"

"I know, I know… just relax a bit, alright?"

Yuna sighed. She knew she could never win an argument with her cousin; Rikku would never give up. But she did follow her advice and thought about her other guardians.

Kimahri was up on Mt. Gagazet, helping the Ronso rebuild the place they called home for so many years. It turns out Seymour lied when he claimed that all of the Ronso's had threw themselves on him; some (although a sad few) actually remained.

Lulu and Wakka were engaged to be married and living in Bevelle, assisting in rebuilding the city. There were buildings that took on a lot of structural damage when Yuna's guardians attempted to take her away from Seymour, and Lulu and Wakka thought it was their duty to what was left of the temple to help the holy city.

Auron, too, was lost in the Farplane. He had been an unsent for many years, keeping watch over Yuna on her pilgrimage, but he was finally sent after the final battle with Yu Yevon. What a great man Sir Auron was…

"Yunie! We're at Luca!" Rikku's squeals of delight allowed the ex-summoner to stop her daydreaming as she saw what lay ahead: Luca, and the rest of the mainland of Spira. Rikku continued, "Isn't this great? After Luca there are just a few roads until we arrive at Guadosalam, ya know? Too bad dad couldn't fly us here, he always has something to do…"

Yuna's mind wandered as Rikku babbled on about how the Al Bhed were busy rebuilding Home. But once she thought about it, she realized that many places were in a state of despair after her Pilgrimage. Kilika. Home. Mt. Gagazet. It seemed that no one was immune to Sin's destruction.

How does Rikku do it? Always have a smile on her face? To be fair, many of the citizens of Spira were happy now that Sin was gone forever, but even during her journey, the young girl was bright and energetic. There's probably nobody like her in the world.

The cousins arrived in the Luca about an hour later, taking in the culture as they walked through the port. There was another blitzball tournament this weekend, and teams from all over Spira gathered to participate. After an extended visit with the Besaid team, Rikku and Yuna sat in the stands and watched as the Aurochs crushed the Goers in the first round.

The two heroes of Spira treated the team to a welcome round of drinks after their post game exercises, and retired to bed early. They had to wake up early the next morning to reach Guadosalam before nightfall.

­­­­­­­­As the two girls walked along the mountainous highroads to Seymour's city, not as many dangerous fiends encountered them as they did short time ago. As a result, the cousins were quite bored, and Rikku tried to make small talk.

"How'd you sleep, Yunie?"

"I slept well! But I did have quite a strange dream. There was a man in my dream who was lost. He seemed mysterious and far off, much like our friend Sir Auron once was, but it wasn't quite him. He was taller and had pointed boots… But anyway, I'm sure it was nothing."

The rest of the journey passed with no excitement, and the cousins managed to make it to the far off city of the Guado early in the evening. They booked a room with the innkeeper, and went to sleep after a long day on the road.

I hope you guys enjoyed that first chapter!

Again, reviews would be awesome, just to let me know how I'm doing.

-ajax