Desha's Reno of the Turks Fan Fiction

Interludes – Scene 32

Scene Notes: This takes place immediately prior to Chapter 1. Elena has been with the Turks long enough to start to feel like part of the team, but not long enough to be truly confident in that position.

From Chapter29: Lockdown:

“She pissed off or somethin’?” Reno asked, cocking an eyebrow. The range was one of Elena’s favorite stress relievers. He didn’t frequent it himself, but he’d heard rumors that she occasionally liked to tape photos of whomever she happened to be most upset with to the targets. He was pretty sure his had to have made it up there more than once, if it was true. Hell, if there was really any truth to the rumor, it had probably been a permanent fixture for her first few months as a Turk.

---

BANG!

Elena forced herself to keep her breathing slow and steady… and then squeezed off three more rounds in quick succession, striking her target dead center. The magazine now empty, she hit the button to her right with her fist, and recalled the target paper from the end of the range.

Eleven boxes of ammunition, and she was still angry.

Reno had humiliated her today. And in front of Tseng, no less. That arrogant, obnoxious, perverted son of a bitch… and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do about it. Like it or not, he was her superior. She had no choice but to take the abuse. She’d been absolutely seething when she’d left the training room earlier, though…

It was meant to have been hand-to-hand combat drills – which, admittedly, she did need some work on – but the redhead had taken things much too far, even if it had been meant largely as some demented joke. She didn’t appreciate being thrown and not given the opportunity to recover. She didn’t appreciate being tackled to the mat when she was eventually allowed to regain her footing. And she certainly didn’t appreciate being held down, tickled mercilessly, and forced to beg to be released in front of both her commanding officer and a senior Turk. And even then, the rotten bastard had refused to stop until she proclaimed him the victor of the match… though by that point, she’d been nearly incoherent and dangerously close to losing control of her bladder. When he finally had let her up, she’d very nearly decked him one. Had Tseng not been standing six feet away at the time, she likely would have, disciplinary action be damned.

The redhead, of course, had thought the whole thing was hilarious, which only made her want to hit him harder. Somehow, though, she’d managed to keep her temper in check, storming off the moment she was dismissed, cheeks aflame. She’d gone straight to the firing range.

The target finally reached her and the rookie Turk yanked it off the clip, glaring at the smug grin that stared back at her.

“Excellent grouping…” a voice behind her commented, and she gave a soft squeak of surprise as she turned and found herself face to face with Tseng. “Though I’m quite glad you’re content with shooting holes in photographs rather than the real thing…”

“Sir! I-I… I was… just…” she stammered, awkwardly shoving the enlarged printout of Reno’s company ID photo under a stack of regular target sheets. She could feel her face heating up again, and was certain she was turning a fairly alarming shade of red. Elena had always hated the fact that she’d never been able to hide the fact that she was embarrassed. Her brothers had teased her endlessly over it when they were little.

Tseng shook his head dismissively. “So long as you keep your target practice confined to the range, I have no issue with your preferred method of stress relief,” he said, and she could have sworn that she’d detected the faintest hint of a smile. It had vanished just as quickly as she’d noticed it. “If I might offer some advice, however… ?”

“Er… yes, sir?” she replied, uncertainly. He didn’t seem upset… but Reno was his second-in-command. And, from what she’d seen – and heard around the office – a very close friend as well. The rookie wasn’t quite sure how the Turk leader really felt knowing that she was shooting at the redhead. Or a reasonable facsimile of him, at any rate.

“The direct approach tends to work best with Reno. If you have an issue with his treatment of you, you may find it more beneficial to tell him so in person… rather than secretly using his photograph to practice killshots.”

Elena frowned slightly. “S-sir? Couldn’t… you say something to him?”

“I could,” Tseng replied, turning to go. “But this is something you need to address on your own first, Elena. Don’t let Reno’s rank… or Reno himself… intimidate you so badly.”

“Yes, sir,” she replied, resigned. She sighed inaudibly. That always seemed to be Tseng’s answer to her requests for help with his pain-in-the-ass Second, unless he did something truly out of line. The Wutaiian nodded and took his leave, leaving Elena alone on the range. She fished her target out from under the stack and glared at it.

“I really hate you…” she muttered, crumpling the sheet and tossing it into a nearby garbage can.

---

“Hey, Boss…” Tseng was greeted as he stepped into the elevator. “Gettin’ in some target practice?”

“Just seeing to a minor issue,” the Turk leader replied. The doors closed behind him. He noted that the button for the parking deck was already illuminated. “I take it you’re on your way out as well, then?”

Reno nodded and leaned back against the wall of the car. “Yeah… Had a date, but I think I’ll see if I can get her to take a raincheck and just call it a night. Maybe grab a beer or three on the way home. Don’t know what the hell I did today that’s got me so worn out, but I’m fuckin’ beat.”

Tseng cast him a stern look. “I trust I need not remind you that I won’t be especially pleased if ‘a beer or three’ turns into an evening of bar hopping. You’re working tomorrow…”

“Tch… Come on, Boss,” the redhead replied, with a grin, “You know me…”

“Yes. I do. And it has been some time since I reminded you of regulations…” Tseng said, chuckling softly, “Just remember… You’ll be handling security for Hojo, hungover or not. In fact, should you deign to arrive in the office hungover, I may be tempted to reassign you to Scarlet’s detail instead.”

Reno visibly shuddered. “Fuck, Tseng, if you’re tryin’ to scare me sober… it’s workin’,” he shot back as the elevator chimed and the doors opened on the parking deck.

~fin~