Desha's Reno of the Turks Fan Fiction

Chapter 23: Memories and Plans

“… Why the hell’d I think this was a good idea?” Reno asked, staring up at the ceiling. He’d thought he was ready. In fact, he’d all but insisted on it. To say that he was starting to have second thoughts now would be so grossly understating his reluctance to get started he might as well have been wearing a sign that said “Ask me how fucked up I really am!”.

“You never thought it was a good idea,” Rude helpfully reminded him, “You just said it was something you needed to do.”

The redhead lifted his head, glaring at his friend.

“Don’t remind me, huh?” Finally, he sighed. “Okay, fine… go ahead and ask me.”

Rude smirked slightly. “So… Tell me about your mother.”

Reno rolled his eyes. “Seriously? You gotta phrase it like one of the Company’s goddamn shrinks?”

“Sorry… Couldn’t resist.”

“Asshole…” the younger Turk scoffed, and let his head flop backwards against the back of the couch, resuming his intense study of his living room ceiling. He needed this. Cissnei’s death had brought up far too many unpleasant memories for him. The cause of death may have been different… but seeing her like that – lifeless, empty eyes staring back at him, skin taking on a sickly, grayish hue… and far worse, most of which he preferred not to think about, if he could avoid it – had sent him back to the cold, winter morning that he’d found his mother.

His dreams, lately, weren’t exactly sweet… though the funeral, at least, seemed to have given him some closure. They weren’t quite as bad, almost four weeks later, at any rate. At least when they were about Cissnei. Where she was concerned, he had other memories of her. Happier, more pleasant memories.

When his mother had started making the occasional appearance as well, though, he discovered that all that seemed to come to mind was… that morning. It had reminded him of a promise he’d made quite some time ago… mostly to himself, but to her, as well.

He’d promised not to forget her. Which, on the surface, seemed almost laughable. His last memory of her was seared into his brain with a starkness that he could never even hope to forget, even if he wanted to. And there were plenty of times he’d wanted to. But it was the other stuff… the normal stuff… that he wanted to hold on to, and it was hard when he spent the vast majority of his time trying not to think about her at all because, inevitably, it was that memory that popped into his head.

The redhead huffed in frustration, and sat up.

“Where the fuck do I even start, man?” he asked.

“… Beginning’s usually a good place,” Rude opined.

“Tch… That’s the problem. I’m don’t even think I was old enough to remember much of the beginning. She died when I was five fuckin’ years old, for Ifrit’s sake.”

“What’s the first thing you do remember, then?”

Reno closed his eyes and sighed. The first thing? The very first thing? Well… that, he supposed, was easy enough.

“Her singin’ to me,” he replied a moment later, “She liked to sing. Did it every night when she put me to bed, and when she was makin’ us breakfast… and… just whenever she felt like it. She… had a really amazing voice. I mean… I guess she did. I thought it was real pretty, anyway.”

“Says the guy who listens to nothing but death metal, now…” Rude chuckled.

“You gonna fuckin’ comment on everything I tell ya?” Reno groused, flipping him off without even bothering to shift his gaze back to the other Turk. He sighed softly and and folded his hands behind his head. “Ya know what really sucks, Rude? I can remember her voice… but I can hardly picture her face at all anymore sometimes.”

His friend was silent for a moment, in thought.

“… You ever thought about looking for her in the city records?” he finally suggested.

“Tch… I didn’t exist far as the city was concerned ’til Tseng recruited me. What makes ya think they’d know anything about her?”

The older Turk shrugged. “They might not. But it couldn’t hurt to look.”

“I s’pose not,” the redhead replied, somewhat hesitantly. “I just… kinda don’t wanna get my hopes up, ya know? I mean… what are the odds, really, that she mattered enough for anyone to keep a record of ever knowin’ her? I sure as hell didn’t matter enough for that. Tch… I don’t even have a fuckin’ birth certificate. Only evidence I even existed before I moved topside’s my file at that shitty little orphanage down in Two sayin’ I lived there for awhile.”

“You want me to check into it?”

Reno smirked slightly at the offer. He supposed that if anyone could find that sort of information, it would be Rude.

“… I mean… if ya don’t have anything better to do. Sure. Knock yourself out,” he replied. “It… would kinda be nice to have a photo again, even if ya can’t find anything else. Not gonna hold my breath, though.”

Rude nodded in understanding. “Maybe I can make it a birthday present.”

“Heh… and if not, drinks are on you all night instead,” Reno snickered, “Think I’ll finally try one of those new Ultima Ales I keep hearin’ are so great.”

“Hmph… Deal.”

His twentieth birthday was coming up in less than a week, and since Reno had been cleared for a little time off after his deep sea misadventure, he was planning on using it. For a nice, four-day weekend at Icicle Inn, and Rude was going with him.

He’d… almost canceled his plans, though. In the aftermath of Cissnei’s death, the thought of celebrating much of anything had felt… wrong. But once he’d had some time to sleep on it, he’d realized that that was the last thing she would have wanted him to do. And she would have been the first person loudly wishing him a happy birthday had she been there to do so.

But… speaking of birthdays…

“Hey… Rude? Can I ask ya for another favor?”

“Sure,” his fellow Turk replied.

“… So. Since we’re on the subject of Mom ‘n birthdays… Her birthday’s not that long after mine, ya know,” he said, somewhat guardedly, “And Tseng’s kinda on the warpath about no one goin’ into the Slums on their own for awhile after what happened to you over in Wall Market.”

“Hmph… Yeah. Believe me, I’m well aware of that.”

Reno snorted softly in laughter. He’d still been in the hospital at the time, but apparently, Rude had received a pretty thorough chewing out by the Turk lieutenant after his injuries had been seen to. Until further notice, any forays into the slums were to be made with someone else along for backup. No more solo trips down below.

“Anyway… I was kinda hopin’ you’d come with me. To… visit.”

He’d never actually taken anyone else along to his mother’s grave before. Not even Lira. It was something he’d always needed to do privately. But Tseng would not be pleased if he found out he’d disobeyed the standing order – even if it was on his own time – and… Rude understood what this meant to him a lot better than most people. He’d lost his mother suddenly and entirely unexpectedly, too. He’d just been quite a bit older than Reno had been at the time.

“No problem,” Rude said, reaching over and squeezing his shoulder. The redhead smiled slightly.

“… Okay. I’ve had more than enough therapy ‘n shit for one night. Let’s go find somethin’ eat, huh? I’m starvin’…”

“You’re always starving,” Rude chuckled. “Costan or Wutaiian? Or Mideelian?”

“Eh… I’m kind in the mood for –”

“Don’t you dare say pizza again. I’m sick of pizza,” Rude said, teasingly.

---

On Monday, Reno walked into the lounge at headquarters to find one of the rookies practically vibrating with excitement and talking rapidly with her two cohorts.

“Oh, I hope Veld picks me… Do you think he’ll pick me? I really hope it’s me!”

The redhead cocked an eyebrow in curiosity as he helped himself to coffee, and strolled over to the trio.

“What’s goin’ on?”

Sykes sighed and shook his head. “Petra’s hoping she’ll get put on Rufus’ security detail today, sir.”

“The brat’s requested an escort?” he queried, both eyebrows now rising, and he didn’t miss the indignant look that passed over Petra’s face at the comment. “News to me… where’s he goin’?”

“He got here a little while ago, sir. He’s in Veld’s office right now,” Liam explained, and then looked pointedly at the excited rookie. “We don’t really know that it’s escort duty. We don’t really know anything.”

“Tch… Guess I better check go in with Tseng, then. If the brat is here lookin’ for someone to babysit him, one of us two’s gonna get stuck with the job.” He eyed his drink, and downed what remained in his cup, before stepping back across the room to refill it. “Definitely gonna need more coffee if I’m gonna be dealin’ with Rufus first thing in the mornin’…”

“Sir? Is the vice president really… er…” Liam began, and then paused awkwardly, not sure how to continue.

“A giant pain in the ass?” the redhead finished for him, grinning, “Yeah. He is. Tch… but to be fair, I’d rather get stuck on his detail than one of the other execs. Rufus is a dick, but at least he’s not a complete –”

“Reno!” Tseng’s voice snapped from the doorway, and the younger man jumped in surprise, turning to see both his mentor and the aforementioned executive. “I believe we’ve had this conversation on numerous occasions… Do you need another reminder?”

“… No, sir,” Reno replied, chastised. One of these days he was going to learn not to run off at the mouth in the office like that… not about the Company’s higher ups, anyway. At least… not when he knew they were in the Turks’ offices.

It had been quite some time since Tseng had resorted to his tried and true method of correction of that habit… but the redhead knew perfectly well that there was still an abundant supply of soap in the men’s room, should he deem it necessary.

Though… in Rufus’ case, he suspected it was more that Tseng simply didn’t want the newbies picking up on his habit, than any real concern that the vice president may retaliate with any sort of disciplinary measures. The brat tended to give as good as he got where Reno was concerned. It was something of an unspoken agreement between them. Reno called him a dick… Rufus gladly informed him that he was a lazy slum rat. It’s just how things worked between them.

The three rookies seemed to be doing their best not to snicker in response and comport themselves with dignity in the presence of a member of the Board of Directors… and Reno made a mental note to find out just who it was that had told them about the damned soap. He knew they knew. He just wasn’t sure who was doing the gossiping.

Rufus, meanwhile, smirked in momentary triumph.

“Oh, please… ” he sneered, “As if that obnoxious little slum rat’s opinion concerns me in the least. Can we hurry this up? I had intended to leave nearly fifteen minutes ago.”

“Yes, sir,” Tseng replied. “Reno, the vice president will be traveling to Junon this morning for a meeting. You’ll be going as his escort. Petra, you’ll be joining them as well, as I don’t believe you’ve yet had an assignment in Junon.”

“Yes!” Petra celebrated, and then flushed bright pink, “Er… yes, sir…”

Tseng raised an eyebrow, but didn’t comment. Reno, meanwhile, flashed him a somewhat curious look. Sure… he’d been put in charge of the rookies more than a few times. But it was mostly here at headquarters, for training. Recent all-hands-on-deck mission in the slums aside, he hadn’t ever just been handed one of them and sent off on an actual assignment.

“I’ll be waiting in the executive helicopter,” Rufus stated, turning on his heel. “And I will be leaving in five minutes, with or without an escort.”

“Better run ‘n grab your crossbow, rookie… Sounds like we’re in a hurry,” Reno snickered as the young executive withdrew. Petra almost took the suggestion literally, nearly bowling over the other two thirds of the trio of rookies in her enthusiasm. Reno shrugged and followed at a much more sedate pace, trailing Tseng down the hall.

“Okay…” he said after a short distance, “What gives?”

Tseng chuckled softly, apparently having expected the question. “You are a senior Turk now, after all. I think it’s about time we expanded your training responsibilities a bit. Starting with teaching a rookie to handle a simple security detail… and, perhaps more importantly, to handle Rufus.”

“Oh, great…” Reno snickered, “So not only am I babysittin’ the brat, I also gotta make sure he doesn’t eat the rookie alive?”

Tseng folded his arms over his chest.

“I will go and retrieve the soap…” he replied, just as Sato rounded the corner and strolled toward them. “Senior Turk or not, I’m not above disciplining you like a rookie. Don’t forget… you’re their superior. Act like it and set a good example.” The Turk lieutenant allowed a tiny smirk to cross his lips, and added, “Or else.”

“Tch… How come Sato never gets threatened like this…” he grumbled, and the Mideelian Turk broke into a grin upon hearing his name.

“Because, laddie… Everyone already knows I’m a lost cause…” he snickered, and continued on his way, laughing to himself. Tseng rolled his eyes.

“I’m almost tempted to agree with him…” he said, just loud enough for Sato to hear. The other Turk merely turned back and grinned at them before disappearing into his office. “Reno… you are due for more responsibility. You’ve earned it. But that means putting those under your command first, and keeping them in line, not constantly joking around with them. You can’t keep someone else in line if you don’t keep yourself there as well.”

“… Yes, sir,” Reno sighed. Tseng chuckled and rested a hand on his protege’s shoulder.

“By which I simply mean that you should practice a little self-censorship when the occasion calls for professionalism… such as when you have been made explicitly aware that an executive is in the office.”

“Point taken, boss,” the redhead replied, somewhat sheepishly. By then, Petra had returned, armed and ready to go, and bounded down the hallway towards the pair.

“Ready, sir!” she proclaimed, and Reno snorted a soft laugh.

“Well… ‘least one of us is excited about this mission,” he said, shaking his head. “Come on, rookie… Let’s go before the V.P. really does decide to leave without us.”

The comment drew a quiet chuckle from his mentor.

---

Rude frowned in irritation at the empty search results on his screen. It was only the second set of department records he’d had time to check, but they’d been the two most likely to have what he was looking for. His next option was going to require a manual search, as the Mayor’s office on sixty-two, along with its city records archive, wasn’t in the main company database, for some Ifrit-forsaken reason. Hell, a lot of the older records weren’t even in their department database… and given that he was looking for information two decades or more old…

He sighed, and got up from his desk. It would have to wait. He had the morning briefing to attend, and then any number of intelligence reports to sort through, a few informants to check in with, and an appointment with a contact over in the warehouse district. Plus Tseng had asked him to supervise Syke’s final piloting lesson before his certification exam. His morning, and most of his afternoon, was booked solid. As much as he wanted to make good on his promise to Reno, the job came first.

Reno, for his part, had remained convinced that he’d come up empty handed. The redhead had even looked a little sad about it, going as far as to say that not even the best intelligence agent alive could find information that didn’t exist.

Rude really hoped to prove him wrong. One photograph. That’s all he needed. Anything else would be icing on the proverbial cake, but all Reno really wanted was a photo. There just had to be one somewhere. His friend deserved that much.

Speaking of whom…

Rude glanced at the clock on the wall of their shared office and noted that it was already ten after eight. Where the hell was Reno, anyway? He rarely showed up early, but he was generally at least on time. He shrugged and got to his feet. Maybe he was still camped out at the coffee machine.

The bald Turk chuckled softly to himself. Reno had a goddamn habit these days. He’d never been what you might call a morning person, but after three years on the job, if the man didn’t get his requisite dosage of caffeine, he was barely coherent some days… though that might just have something to do with his penchant for staying up half the night. He supposed it was just something that was ingrained in him at this point. The redhead had told him that he’d worked nights at the bar over in the Sector Three slums for years. He was just used to being up late and he enjoyed it.

Rude made his way down the hall, eventually poking his head into the lounge and finding it empty. Frowning slightly, he was just about to turn around, when an unexpected voice interrupted his search.

“Looking for someone?” Tseng asked, startling him. The younger Turk took a moment to recover, spinning to face him, and shook his head in amusement. One of these days, he was going to finally get used to Tseng doing that…

“You haven’t seen Reno yet this morning, have you, sir?”

“He’s on his way to Junon with Rufus. An early morning appointment the vice president neglected to inform us of ahead of time,” the Turk lieutenant replied, “Was there something you needed?”

“Not really… Just hadn’t seen him yet today.”

“Ah,” Tseng replied with a nod, and then smiled, “I hear tell that you’re the one who managed to talk him out of the Gold Saucer this year…”

Rude smirked. “I may have at least put the idea in his head. I’m glad he went with it, though. I’m not sure I could take another visit there so soon. It’s only been a year since his last birthday. I’m still recovering.”

“I know the feeling,” Tseng chuckled, “Though he truly does seem to enjoy it. So… Icicle Inn, is it?”

“Yes, sir.”

“It will be good for him, I think, to get away for a short while,” the senior Turk said, “It’s been a very… difficult… time lately. For both of you. I know that you were just as close to Cissnei as he was.” Tseng sighed softly, “I still haven’t thanked you for looking after him when he wouldn’t allow me to do so.”

“He’s my friend,” Rude said, simply.

“And very fortunate for it. I’ll see you shortly at the morning briefing.” Tseng turned to go only to pause a moment later, “Incidentally… what are you getting him for his birthday?”

The bald Turk snickered. “Fishing for ideas, sir?” he queried. Tseng scowled faintly.

“It would be far less difficult to choose something appropriate if he gave me even the faintest hint as to what he might like,” the Wutaiian grumbled, “And I refuse to purchase alcohol as a gift while he’s still underage. Besides which, he’ll likely get enough of that sort of thing from Sato, anyway. I heard him bragging about the latest ‘upgrades’ to his still on Friday… I’m sure it’s related.”

“Sorry, sir… I just promised to buy him alcohol if I couldn’t pull off the present I’m working on…” Rude replied, grinning.

---

Reno resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he slouched against the wall outside of the conference room. Petra, meanwhile, was standing sharply at attention, motionless as a statue. Finally, it got to the point that he couldn’t stop himself from snickering.

“Would ya relax a little, kid? We’re on a military base. We’re not in the fuckin’ military.”

Petra blushed slightly and shifted her stance a bit. “Sorry, sir. It’s just… this place has such a commanding aura to it. I can’t help myself.”

“Eh… ya get used to it after awhile,” the redhead snickered and stretched his arms over his head, yawning as he cracked his shoulder, “Hope this damn meeting doesn’t go on all fuckin’ day. I don’t mind escort duty… but guard duty’s the worst.”

Rufus had summarily banished them to the hallway once they’d arrived at the designated meeting room, and shut himself away with the base commander and several officers… and smugly ordered them to stand watch before he’d closed the door on them. Reno was pretty sure he’d done it just to irritate him. There was really no legitimate reason for two Turks to guard a conference room inside one of Shinra Company’s most secure locations… but orders were orders.

“Doesn’t that hurt?” the rookie asked, cringing slightly. Reno glanced over at her in confusion.

“Doesn’t what hurt?” he asked, genuinely baffled.

“When your shoulder does… that.”

The redhead laughed and shook his head.

“Oh… That. Nah… It’s a pretty old injury. Doesn’t hurt anymore… just sounds like I’m fallin’ apart,” he said, grinning. “Tseng keeps naggin’ me about gettin’ it fixed one of these days, but I don’t really see the point. Doesn’t bother me.”

“Um… If you don’t mind me asking, sir… How did it happen?”

“Training accident. Fell off the gauntlet’s climbing tower as a rookie…” he replied, mentally groaning at the memory, “Heh… Which, incidentally, is why the damn thing’s got a safety net, now. Tseng wouldn’t let anyone else near it ’til Kai got it installed.”

“He’s very protective of you, isn’t he, sir… Why is that?” Petra inquired, and the redhead sniggered softly. One thing he’d noticed about about Petra… if she was curious about something, she didn’t beat around the bush. She just straight up asked.

“It’s… complicated,” Reno replied, “He’s more than just my commanding officer. Hell, far as that goes, he’s more than just my mentor. Tseng… saved me from a really shitty life. Then he spent the last three years makin’ sure I learned how survive as a Turk and keepin’ me outta trouble… heh… and bailin’ me outta trouble when I got into it anyway. I was just a kid when I got recruited, ya know. I mean… a literal kid. I was only sixteen. So… yeah. He’s still kinda protective.”

Petra nodded. “It’s good to have people like that. Why don’t you like Ruf– er… Vice President Shinra?”

The redhead chuckled quietly to himself. And to think that Rude accused him of having a train of thought that was all over the place. Though… he kind of had a feeling that that was the question she’d really wanted to ask in the first place, and had simply given up on trying to segue into the subject.

The fact that Petra had a little bit of a thing for the Shinra heir was certainly no secret around headquarters. It was about as hard to notice as Cissnei’s crush on Rude had been. About the only person who hadn’t seemed to notice that one was Rude himself… which… Reno had to sadly admit, may have ended up being for the best, in the end. It would have been infinitely more painful for his friend if they’d gotten together before she’d died. He’d decided in the time since her funeral, that he wasn’t going to tell him, either. What the hell good would it do now, anyway?

“Ah, don’t take me too seriously ’bout that. Rufus is alright,” he replied, and then added with a wide grin, “… In moderation. If ya ignore all the times he’s tried to kill me.”

“Sir?” the young rookie said, questioningly, eyeing him somewhat strangely, and the redhead couldn’t help but laugh.

“Petra… lemme tell ya ’bout the first time I met Rufus Shinra…” he began, grin widening.

---

It was mid afternoon by the time Reno found himself disembarking from the executive copter onto the roof of the Shinra building. Rufus had been in an almost shockingly good mood upon exiting his meeting with Junon command. From what he’d gathered the whole thing had something to do with the reactor opening in Wutai, but the vice president hadn’t been interested in discussing it with his security escort, so the redhead was lacking on details. He’d heard the word “parade” mentioned, though, and had silently cringed.

After his last experience with a parade, the idea didn’t hold much appeal to him.

He made his way inside with Rufus and Petra, opting not to bring it up. Wasn’t his call, anyway. As they stepped aboard the elevator, the vice president turned to him.

“I require your services for one more appointment before you crawl back into to whatever little hole it is you hide in during the day,” he said, offhandedly, “Your new pet may return to your offices.”

The redhead resisted the urge to role his eyes… though it was a very near thing. It was only Tseng’s insistence that he set a good example for the rookies that stopped him.

“Yes, sir,” he replied, and turned his attention on Petra, “Report back to Tseng, will ya, rookie?”

Petra nodded… though she looked somewhat disappointed at the prospect of missing out on spending more time with the vice president. Apparently his recounting of all the times Rufus had tried to drown, freeze, shoot, and otherwise maim the redhead had done little to dissuade her infatuation.

Rufus, meanwhile, pressed the button for the sixty-eighth floor, and Reno very nearly groaned out loud. Hojo’s lab… Wonderful. He was kind of glad the son of a bitch wasn’t dragging the poor rookie along, after all. He wasn’t sure she was ready to be exposed to that level of creepiness just yet. He wasn’t sure he was ready for it again quite yet. The elevator car arrived and the pair exited, leaving the rookie to continued her journey downward.

Reno didn’t spend a lot of time in the biologics labs… and he wouldn’t have been disappointed if it remained that way. Hojo’s research facilities were… disturbing. Any number of live animal specimens watched him as he and Rufus made their way through the lab, and more than one growled or snapped at them as they went. The rest tended to run and hide themselves in the back corners of their cages, trembling.

“Professor Hojo,” the vice president suddenly called out, and Reno spotted the bespectacled scientist just through a wide door, on the far side of the lab. He looked up from a large microscope with an expression of disdain.

“Yes? What is it? I’m very busy,” he snapped, clearly not pleased at being interrupted. His eyes then fell on the Turk. “Ah… my human test subject for project 472. Good… I could use some fresh blood samples.”

Reno only just managed not to take a step back from him as he strode across the room, looking almost giddy at the prospect, and reached for his arm. Rufus smoothly cut off his advance.

“If you’re after blood, then schedule an appointment. He’s working at the moment,” the young executive said, in an unamused tone. “However… Your little ‘projects’ are precisely what I wish to discuss. It has been brought to my attention that this is at least the second time in recent months that one of your… specimens… has caused grievous physical harm to a member of staff. I will not stand for this level of irresponsibility, and neither will the Board. Do you have any idea of the liability you’ve opened us up to? We have genetically engineered predators freely roaming the mountainside south of the city and a multi-million gil underwater lab that cannot be safely entered even were it currently accessible, for Ramuh’s sake! Not to mention what you’ve cost the company in medical bills for the injured personnel! Do you have any idea how much money Shinra Company invests in training a single Turk? Your projects running amokvery nearly cost us two of them.”

Reno blinked in surprise at the angry rant. He wouldn’t have expected Rufus, of all people, to defend any of their rank, save perhaps Tseng… and much less him. Granted, he was doing so from an entirely financial standpoint, but still…

Hojo merely scoffed and waved a dismissive hand.

“We pay them to be willing to die. They’re wholly expendable… Most of them don’t live past an average age of thirty-two years anyway,” he grumbled, and Rufus’ eyes narrowed.

“Expendable, perhaps… but not disposable,” the vice president hissed, “They are an extremely valuable asset, and the executive board will not tolerate additional recklessness. The cost of the next Turk that is sickened, maimed, or outright killed due to one of your experiments will be recovered from your personal budget.”

Hojo’s jaw dropped, and as he attempted to stammer an indignant reply, Rufus merely turned on his heel and marched back to the elevator. The redhead couldn’t entirely suppress the smirk that crossed his lips as he hurried to follow, leaving the professor glaring angrily after them. The doors slid closed and Rufus huffed, irritated.

“I really cannot stand that arrogant little insect…” he muttered, jabbing at the button for the fifty-eighth floor. Reno snickered. It wasn’t as if he didn’t wholeheartedly agree, after all…

“So… I’m an extremely valuable asset, huh?” he said, teasingly.

Rufus snorted in contempt. “You specifically are a living irritation,” he responded. “The Turks as a whole are valuable. And expensive. Allowing their use as experimental fodder is wasteful to the point of being completely idiotic, and it will not stand.”

They rode in silence for several seconds before Reno cocked his head to one side.

“Just outta curiosity, sir… how much is a Turk worth?” he asked, genuinely intrigued.

“On average? Around twenty million gil over their lifetime, including salary and benefits. Considerably more than that if they manage to survive longer than ten years.”

“Oh, come on…” Reno said, dubiously after doing the math on that number, “Name me one Turk that’s pulling in a couple million a year in his paycheck…”

Rufus rolled his eyes in exasperation. “Your paycheck doesn’t include insurance, the cost of training facilities, travel, medical bills, equipment, or any of the other hundreds of minutia you benefit from courtesy of Shinra Company… such as the paid vacation I understand you’re leaving for this weekend. You might show just a little gratitude. We’ve invested a great deal of money in ensuring the Company’s security.”

The redhead raised his hands in surrender.

“Okay… okay… I get the point. And… you’re right. The Company takes good care of us.”

Maybe more than he’d ever really considered, actually. There were a lot of perks that came with working for Shinra. Shit that the Company shelled out for so he, and the rest of the team,didn’t have to. Like his recent hospital stay. And Kai’s multiple surgeries. And… Cissnei’s funeral.

The elevator deposited them in the Turks’ offices, and Rufus headed off in search of, the redhead presumed, Tseng. Reno, meanwhile, made his way back to his own office, spotting Rude the moment he walked in, thoroughly engrossed in whatever was on the screen of his computer.

“Hey, Rude!” he crowed, and the older Turk jumped violently in surprise. Reno grinned and plopped into his chair. His cohort shook his head.

“For Titan’s sake… you’re as bad as Tseng sometimes…” Rude snickered. “Have fun babysitting?”

Reno shrugged. “Eh… Wasn’t too bad. Petra’s like… fuckin’ obsessed with Rufus, though,” he replied, laughing. “Kid’s really into him for some reason. But speakin’ of Rufus…”

“What’d he do now? Try and push you off the end of the Junon cannon?” Rude joked, an eyebrow rising in curiosity.

“Heh… No. Probably only ’cause I had a witness today, though. Nah, this was after we got back,” he laughed, and prepared to regale his friend with the tale of what he’d witnessed a few minutes ago in Hojo’s lab.

---

“… As such, we will, of course require the usual security measures.”

Tseng had to forcibly stop himself from groaning. A parade. In Wutai. That was all he needed.

“Sir… is such a grandiose display really necessary? It’s only a reactor coming online, after all. I do realize it’s an important event, but –”

Rufus raised a hand, effectively silencing him.

“I know they’re not your favorite form of entertainment… but if you recall, my last opportunity was cut short before it had hardly begun. And Father does want a bit of a spectacle.”

Tseng sighed. “Yes, sir. I’ll… speak with Veld and so we can begin planning for it,” he said, shaking his head, “Though you’ll have to excuse me if I don’t share your enthusiasm. If you’ll recall, I lost three very close friends in the aftermath of the last parade we held, and learned that we had a traitor in our midst… resulting in the immediate termination of one of our younger Turks.”

Judging by the sudden awkwardness that settled over the younger man, Tseng was fairly certain that Rufus had in fact, let that detail slip his mind. He shook his head. Rufus was very dear to him, but the Shinra heir could be remarkably self-absorbed at times.

“That… was perhaps a bit insensitive of me,” Rufus said, somewhat hesitantly. “My own memory of that day is rather… jumbled. It took Father and I quite some effort to smooth things over with Lord Godo and get that damned treaty signed.”

Tseng shook his head. He couldn’t hold the lapse in memory against the younger man, too much. Rufus had been more than a little shaken after the attack during the treaty signing. He’d tried very hard not to let on… but the Turk lieutenant had seen through the facade.

“Our job has risks,” Tseng replied, “It’s as simple as that. We do, in general, try not to allow such thoughts to dominate us, but… reminders can be painful.”

Rufus cleared his throat, and sat up straighter in his chair.

“Well… on the subject of risks to the Turks, you might be interested to know that Hojo has been informed that further stupidity on his part will not be tolerated. He has been put on notice about his experimental specimens, and if he wishes to keep his budget intact, he will be far more forthcoming with information in the future.”

“Thank you, sir. I appreciate your willingness to step in on that matter.”

Tseng seldom asked the young executive for favors… but in this instance, it had seemed negligent not to ask him to intervene. Hojo had now twice put members of his team at substantial and unnecessary risk… and though he couldn’t prove it, one of those incidents felt intentional. And frankly, he wasn’t entirely convinced that the zenenes had managed to escape all on their own, either. He couldn’t simply stand by and allow it to continue.

Rufus nodded and got to his feet.

“I should get back to work. My schedule this week is virtually non-stop,” he sighed. “I’m beginning to think that I should be the one taking a vacation rather than your pet slum rat.”

“Reno has earned some time off, sir,” Tseng chuckled.

“Hmph… and I haven’t?” Rufus shot back, smirking slightly. “I’ll let you know the specific details of the parade event as soon as I have them.”

“Yes, sir,” the Turk leader replied.

~end chapter 23~