It was a perfect sunny morning in Luca. It was also unfortunately early. People had been lined up since the day before to get a chance to shake hands and get their pictures taken with the Gullwings. Rikku held a hand up to the bright morning sun and squinted as she ducked off the Celsius behind Yuna and Paine. The sight they were met with stopped them in their tracks. The entire Luca square was packed to the brim and they were all cheering on the girls' arrival.
"Wow," Yuna spoke first.
"That's going to be a lot of autographs," Rikku winced.
"Remind me to have Buddy make me a stamp one of these days," Paine muttered.
Buddy, Brother and Tidus parted the crowds towards a raised platform with a table and chairs the girls would sit at to meet and greet their fans. It had been arranged the night before via commsphere. A lot of the women in the crowd were getting too excited about the closeness of Tidus and he had to duck into the group of girls.
"Even our security is famous," Paine chuckled. "God, I love irony."
"And I love sleeping. What time is it? It can't even be nine o'clock yet!" Rikku huffed through a fake smile as she waved to a group of teenaged boys screaming her name. Buddy waved to the crowds as the girls made their way to their seats. City officials tried to organize the crowd. off-season Goers were policing the crowds and herding them into organized lines. It was the biggest publicity event they'd ever done. It was different from the massive crowds after Sin or Vegnagun. These people were all here just to see their faces up close.
"Rikku, take your sunglasses off," Buddy said through gritted teeth. He was pretending to smile.
"What?" she glared up at him.
"These people did not stand in line all night to guess what you look like," he said through the same pretend grin. Paine and Yuna exchanged troubled glances and Rikku set her glasses down on the table, her jaw slack at Buddy's demand.
"Make way! Excuse me! Gullwing staff coming through!" Gippal was elbowing his way through the crowd. He was also carrying a tray with three coffees and three bottles of water on it. Rikku caught his eye and softened into a smile. He tried to return it but only got about halfway there.
"Thank you," She said as he set hers down.
"Eight sugars, mostly milk, hardly coffee still the way you take it?" He asked.
"Yes."
"Good," he got his smile to a full one before giving Paine hers. "Black?"
"Like my soul you always said," she gave him a sarcastic sneer.
"Thank you, Gippal. I'm really sorry Buddy's making you do this," Yuna whispered.
"He's not," Gippal shrugged. "Just thought you ladies could use it," He said before stepping back down to stand with Tidus and Brother.
"Alright," Paine said flatly. "What the hell?" She and Yuna were both staring at Rikku.
"Don't look at me?" Rikku sank into her chair.
The event was scheduled to run all day. It was hot out, and the girls had to remember to be as nice as humanly possible to all of the people that were standing in the heat all day just to speak to them. It would have been easier if they weren't in the heat themselves.
"Here you go!" Rikku smiled, handing back an autographed musicsphere case to a younger girl who was at a loss for words standing so close to them.
"Remember. Kick a lot of ass and take a lot of names!" Paine said, slightly perky as she penned her elegant signature on a young boy's sword. His mother didn't look amused at Paine's choice of words. "Sorry." she winced.
"Thanks for coming out!" Yuna was shaking hands with a man a few years older than they were.
"Lunchtime!" Gippal came scooting back in with wrapped up lunches for them he'd bought in town. Buddy had a look on his face where he couldn't decide if he wanted to be pleased or ripshit. "Lady Yuna," he said sarcastically, setting a bag down for her. "Completely straight mistress of darkness and gloom," Gippal put a bag down for Paine. She stuck her tongue out at him. "And Princess," he smirked at Rikku.
"You know I hate that!" she taunted in a sing song voice.
"I've got a whole slew of worse ones lined up," He chided. "Now," he squatted down between Rikku and Paine. "Me and Tidus have been talking to some of the Goers. There's a VIP party in town tonight. He says he can get us in. You want to go?" Gippal asked. Paine and Rikku met eyes.
Paine wrinkled her brow and nodded discretely towards Gippal.
Rikku shrugged slowly and bit her lower lip.
Paine leaned forward and opened her mouth, silently asking Rikku for her opinion.
Rikku rolled her eyes and scoffed.
Paine just raised a brow.
Rikku finally grinned.
"We're in," Paine replied in a hushed voice.
"How do you women DO that?" he looked baffled.
"Magic," Rikku smiled.
"I hate that answer," he stood up, chuckling and shaking his head.
"Gippal!" the next guy in line cried out.
"What!" Gippal almost jumped.
"Shelinda! There he is!" the man shouted. He had a sphere came hulking on his shoulder and was flagging the reporter over.
"Oh sweet Jesus," Rikku rolled her eyes.
"Incoming," Paine tapped Yuna on the shoulder and nodded in the direction of the rapidly approaching Shelinda.
"Gippal! WOW you are a tough one to track down! Mind if we have a few words with you?" Shelinda thrust her mic in his face.
"Uh, heh. Sure. I don't know why you want to talk to me when the ladies of the hour are right here!" He grinned, trying to step out of the frame. The cameraman followed him.
"So modest, you're something else! So we've heard through the rumor mill that you're working for the Gullwings now!" Shelinda said quickly putting the mic back in his face.
"Yeah, doing some favors for some old friends," Gippal put on his best fake smile, but he was wildly uncomfortable.
"How generous!" she was too bubbly for him. Considering who he was in love with, it was quite a feat.
"Yeah, well, I've got some free time and they needed the help, so here I am!" Gippal was fidgeting and wondering how long this was going to take.
"Free time? I'll say. What with your recent dealings with Cid and all," Shelinda chuckled.
"Yeah, about that, the paperwork isn't quite finished so I'm not supposed to talk-"
"That's gotta be rough, being on the bum end of an unfair buy-out, huh?" Shelinda thrust her microphone back at him.
"Wait, what?" Rikku looked up from the photograph of herself she was signing. She dotted the i in her name with a heart without even having to look.
"Nothing, Rik. Don't worry about it. Look, I've gotta get back to work, it was nice talking to you," Gippal said, then cleared his throat loudly as he ducked back into the crowd.
"Rikku! Do you have a moment?" Shelinda jumped up onto the stand beside the girls.
"I'm going to guess you're gonna make sure she does!" Paine rolled her eyes. The darkly dressed teen girl Paine was signing a photo for cracked smile.
"How does it feel knowing that you're the heiress to not only the Al Bhed race and all of New Home, but now the Machine Faction as well?" Shelinda cried in that fake voice of hers.
"WHAT?!" Rikku yelped.
"I'm sure the deal has your signature on it too? How could your own father keep you in the dark about something so-"
"LADIES LADIES LADIES!" Tidus shouted, jumping up and yanking the camera man around to look at him.
"Hey!" Shelinda cried.
"One night and one night only!" Tidus ripped his t shirt off and started swinging it around his head. "Come down to the Luca Square just after sundown for a meet and greet with me and members of the Tournament Champs, the BESAID AUROCHS!" Tidus was flexing and making goofy smiles at the camera. He was being ridiculous on purpose. "We'll be handing out free authentic jerseys, balls, autographs and partying with YOU on the town! Come down to Luca tonight!" He shouted, flexing and grinning some more, all the while making sure the camera was on him, and not his stunned friend. "Here, walk with me, camera dude! I'll show you all the spot!" Tidus yanked the man by the camera away from the stage and started making the long trek back to the Celsius through the crowd. Yuna flashed a thankful smile at him. Paine was feeling disgusted that she found it heartwarming.
"Hey!" Gippal grabbed him by the arm.
"Hang on, my adoring public," Tidus held a finger up to the camera. "Yeah?"
"Thanks, man," Gippal stuttered.
"No prob, Bro. You'd have done it for me," Tidus shrugged. "Come on!" He dragged the poor man with him towards the airship.
"You'd better be ready to talk to me when this is over, because I suspect you know something I clearly do NOT," Rikku hissed at Paine.
"Did you know he wasn't actually an idiot?" Paine asked after a few beats of silence. Gippal stood slackjawed in the crowd watching him go.
He probably would not have done the same. It almost made him feel bad.
"My father bought him out?!" Rikku cried throwing her hands in the air. Yuna and Paine were sitting in Rikku's bed, flinching at her shouting. Rikku was pacing and yelling while her two close friends sat by.
"We figured you knew about," Yuna winced.
"Why did I NOT know about it?" Rikku shouted.
"That's an interesting question," Paine pointed a finger.
"Not now, Dr. P. I don't have time or patience for your sass!" Rikku yelled, her hands on her hips.
"It was a bogus deal. Cid took him for everything he was worth. It's all going into New Home and all, but he's pretty much lost it all," Paine said quietly.
"Oooh!" Rikku fumed. "When I get home, Pop is getting SUCH a piece of my mind!" Rikku shouted, snatching her towel violently out of her trunk. She slammed the lid shut.
"It's okay," Yuna tried lamely.
"I'm taking a shower. You two get dressed. We're going out tonight and Tidus has evidently invited the female population of Spira so I wanna look hot!" Rikku yelled, the elevator door slamming shut behind her.