Disclaimer: I don't own anything that has to do with Square Enix.

Author's Note: The first part of every chapter will be in Rikku's PoV. Then I will switch to Auron's. I hope it doesn't confuse anyone.

Enjoy!

Five steps to get Auron to love you

Welcome to the master plan that will make you the happiest girl alive. It is obvious why you get that sense of security and butterflies in your belly whenever Auron enters the room. To you it's obvious. You're in love. It happened so fast, but from the moment he looked you in the eyes and asked 'are you sure?' you fell so hard you never got up again. You're so sure that this feeling in your heart is true. There's one problem. You still have to get him to notice you. Because there's nothing worse than unrequited love. So, follow these five steps and he'll recognise your love for sure. And fall head over heels himself.

Step #1

Well, for starters, get him to say more than fifteen words to you a day. When you've crossed that 15 word limit you're set.

How do you get him to talk to you?

Simple, annoy him.

Ways to do this are 1) steal his stuff (but let him catch you), and 2) start asking a lot of pointless/personal questions. Now, don't be afraid to anger him a little, he'll get over it (he's a little puppy trapped in that delicious hunk of Guardian-muscle, he won't bite).

What's important is, you made him notice you. And even though he won't admit it, he likes the attention you give him with the irritating nosiness. He's not used to it. Make sure he does.

Now, when he says something to you without any provocation, you know you're in. You can now talk to him without the annoy-part, so he will want to know what you have to say.

Be sweet and interesting, and stop asking questions about him. Instead, show him just how great you actually are.

Give it time, the fact that you are being so interested means a lot. He doesn't know it, but it does.

"Come on.", I order, swinging my katana over my shoulder and continuing trough the woods.

Yuna jumps and follows me, as do Wakka and Lulu. I resist the urge to shake my head at how fast those three just do as I tell them, without question or protest.

We just spent the entire day travelling to Guadosalam, and the last hour was spent killing fiends, and they don't even want to rest. Well, I'm sure they want to. They just don't say anything.

"Auron, wait up, man!", Tidus calls from a little distance away, "I'm way tired!"

I smile inwardly. At least there's someone who still just thinks I'm a normal man. Tidus… and her.

I stop and examine the clearing I remember from my first travels through these woods, surrounded by trees and rocks. This will do.

I sit down on a convenient rock sitting between two trees nearby.

"Fine.", I say, this time really shaking my head as the others sigh in relief, "It's late anyway. Set up camp here."

And they do.

Lulu starts a fire for preparing food with Yuna, Kimahri standing right behind her like usual. The two Blitz players set up tents as they complain about mosquitoes and other pointless things.

I raise my eyebrow.

There's someone missing.

I scan the group for Rikku, her absence somehow catching attention. The ever-present sound of her voice stands out when it's not there.

Before I can ask someone about her whereabouts I hear Tidus tell Wakka she staid back to attend to her hobby.

I sigh. Relieved.

I take out my katana and a sharpening stone. Something to pass the time until the morning comes. Since my death I haven't had that much need for sleep. Or anything else, for that matter. I suppose I'm only here for this pilgrimage.

We're only a few days away from reaching Guadosalam, where the others will no doubt want to visit the Farplane. Such a foolish way to waste our time.

While the rest of the party goes looking at dead people, I'll just search for a shop and restock on items. Something useful.

There's a sudden explosion a little distance back, followed by a familiar muffled voice yelling 'I'm okay!'.

After a brief startled moment we all turn back to what we were doing.

No one is surprised anymore about the fact that Rikku likes making things explode. I don't think she can surprise us with anything anymore.

Moments later she enters the clearing, coughing smoke and laughing as she tells Yuna and Tidus about what she blew up this time.

How she can be so excited about such a trivial thing still makes me wonder.

I let my eyes travel over our newest addition to the team. Messy bangs of blonde hair frame her face, slightly sweaty from all the unnecessary running she does. There's also the ever-present smear of black oil on her cheek and hands, like she just dismantled machina.

Her green eyes spot me and she waves cheerfully. I smile and immediately look away when I realise I'm smiling.

It's been two weeks since the Al Bhed girl joined our party.

What a eventful time it has been.

The first few days she was relatively quiet. Quieter than I expected her to be. She observed.

Me, for the most part.

Then suddenly she started bothering me with pointless questions. They were enough to drive me crazy, she just wouldn't shut up.

"What about red? Is that your favourite colour? I think so, I mean, look at you. You got red written all over you!"

"I don't have a favourite colour."

"Where did you get those shades? Do they sell those in Spira? In Bevelle maybe, I've never been there before. Did you buy them there? They're really cool. Can I try them on?"

"No, you can't. Now leave me alone. We still have a long way to go."

"Don't you ever get tired of walking all the time? Don't you? I would, if I had to carry that crazy thing around everywhere. How much does your sword weigh, like a bazillion pounds? Can I touch it?"

"Leave me alone."

She never did. I got used to her.

For some reason, during a 'conversation' like this she would count on her fingers. She wasn't even trying to be subtle about it.

I still don't understand what she could have been doing.

And apparently irritating me wasn't enough for Rikku. At some point she decided stealing my belongings was enjoyable too.

It wasn't.

I tried various times to make her see that angering me is not the best way to start a Guardian career. I was not in the least bit gentle. I used the tone that makes Tidus start snivelling.

It didn't bother her. She laughed it off, winked, and put my glasses right back on my nose.

I came to respect her, just like that.

The second week she started to feel even more at home, and to prove to me I hadn't made a mistake by letting her become a Guardian she blew up a dozen fiends with one of her grenades. I told her she did a good job.

Since then I her behaviour around me changed. Her annoying questions nearly all disappeared, and instead changed into normal questions. Questions that reflect curiosity, not the mindless need to talk.

I… enjoy talking to her. She has an interesting sort of wisdom about her, a kind of wisdom that seems to explain how she can be so happy all of the time. She sees life as the one thing in Spira that's more important than anything, for every individual. And that everyone should fight for their own life, and their loved ones', with all their power.

I hope she can hold on to that.

In a world where people think the self-sacrifice of Summoners is needed for the greater good, that the worshipping of an invisible god is more important than their own happiness, thoughts like Rikku's will only be looked down upon. That she's Al Bhed doesn't make it easier for her to make people see that she's actually on the right track.

She's a heathen, and who wants to listen to what a heathen has to say?

Even when what she has to say makes more sense than Yevon's entire book of teachings.

It's kind of ironic. Yevon is supposed to bring salvation. Yet, the people who Yevon's teachings write off as heathens are probably happier than any Yevonite will ever be.

As I watch her, Rikku, leaving the others with a quick nod, walking towards me, sitting down only a few steps away from me, I realise that I probably shouldn't be thinking about her this much. Nothing good can come of it.

But she fascinates me.

I smile inwardly.

"Rikku."

She looks up and smiles brightly.

"Yes?"

Now I wonder why I said her name. I don't really need anything. It seems like her voice made my mind go blank.

"Auron?", she asks, confused when I don't say anything, yet still with that… cute smile that somehow reaches her eyes and makes them sparkle even more.

I swallow the unfamiliar dryness in my throat and turn back to my blade.

"Nothing."

User's note on step #1: You did good! Step #1 completed! It took a little shorter than expected, so that's extra points. You noticed his fascination with your eyes, that's also a very big 'Yay!'. As said earlier, Step #1 completed with flying colours.

Hope you liked it! Step #2 coming up next.