Desha's Reno of the Turks Fan Fiction

Chapter 67: Rookie Assignments

A loud, blaring screech broke the peaceful silence of his bedroom the following morning, and Reno shot upright in bed, breathing in ragged, slightly terrified gasps until he gradually realized what the noise was. He groaned loudly, scrubbing his hands over his face, before reaching over and slamming his fist down on the snooze button. The redhead flopped back in bed, closing his eyes again… but it was too late. He was awake.

Reno heaved a resigned sigh, and kicked the covers aside, dragging himself from the warmth of his bed.

Kai hadn’t left until late last night. In fact, she’d offered to stay with him, but he’d sent her home anyway. They’d talked about a lot of things before she’d left. Her dad’s accident. How she’d grown up in Lower Junon after he died, relying almost exclusively on herself and the kindness of her neighbors. Alyssa’s death in the line of duty. His mother’s suicide and his time in the orphanage down in Sector 2. But they’d also talked about happier memories… like the camping trips Kai’d taken with her father and how it had bred in her a love of the outdoors, and how Reno’s mother had sung him to sleep nearly every night of his life while she’d still been there.

When he’d finally shut the door behind her, he’d felt… raw. Like he’d just spent the last several hours being mentally flayed.

It had been… Well, actually, he wasn’t sure of the word for it, though there almost certainly had to be one. There was a certain sense of relief, after finally opening up more than he ever had… but it went deeper than that. He’d said things – felt things – that he hadn’t permitted himself to before. Things he’d always felt too ashamed or too guilty to admit. Something had changed last night, though he wasn’t sure he could put into words just what that something was.

He felt… better. Not over it, of course. Not by a long shot. But… better.

He thought back to what Kai had told him, months ago, in Wutai. That sometimes the only way to move on from pain is to just let yourself feel it all. Maybe she was right. Maybe that really was what he needed… to just let himself feel everything he’d been trying so hard to ignore for so long. If so, last night had certainly been a step in the right direction.

It did present a bit of a problem in the short term, however, he thought, as he made his way into the bathroom and stared at his reflection in the mirror. He looked like hell. Paler than usual, with dark circles under his eyes. And on top of the physical evidence of a long, emotionally trying night… his mind was still very much on his mother. It was going to be hard to put those thoughts aside and focus on work today. He felt much like he did when he woke up on the morning of his mother’s birthday every year… only amplified about twenty times over.

He was uncharacteristically dreading having to interact with other people right now. In particular, with the rookies who were looking to him for guidance and leadership. They weren’t stupid. They were going to notice something was wrong, and he really didn’t want to have to explain. He very briefly toyed with the thought of calling in sick… but that would have left Tseng to deal with the training schedule on his own, and he simply couldn’t bring himself to do that. He was just going to have to suck it up and hope that he could manage enough of a smile that no one asked any uncomfortable questions.

A quick shower helped to wake him up a bit, but he was still distracted and lost in thought as he dressed, and ate, and went about the rest of his morning routine. So much so, that he wasn’t paying any attention to the time. When he did eventually shake himself back to reality, he let out yet another groan of dismay as he realized that not only was he absolutely going to be late… he was going to be so late that he’d likely be walking into the office in the middle of the morning briefing.

Reno raced out of his apartment, forgetting to grab the PHS that was sitting on the kitchen counter in his haste, and having to double back for it. By the time he was finally in the car, the streets were unusually devoid of traffic, as he’d missed the morning rush hour.

He found himself making a mad dash into the office nearly fifteen minutes later, wincing as he glanced at his watch. Yep… the morning briefing was definitely already underway.

“Fuck…” he whispered, as he made his way to the conference room.

Reno slipped inside, hoping that he could at least find a seat without drawing too much attention to himself… and scowled when he saw that all of the remaining chairs were near the front of the room, where Veld stood, going over the day’s assignments. He shook his head and sighed. There was nothing else he could do.

The redhead silently made the dreaded walk of shame, very, very aware that all eyes were suddenly on him. As he neared his objective, Veld paused, eyeing him, clearly annoyed.

“Nice of you to finally join us this morning, Reno…”

The younger Turk cringed.

“Sorry, sir…” he replied, quickly dropping into the chair beside Tseng, who raised a curious eyebrow, but said nothing… though Reno had a feeling he’d be explaining himself to his mentor just as soon as the briefing was over.

“As I was saying…” Veld continued, “Yesterday’s incident at Rufus’ press conference has revealed a need to control the narrative a bit better on Gongaga. The President was… not happy… that his son was very nearly assaulted at what should have been a secure event. Though he did personally praise Reno for stopping it as quickly as he did.” He nodded to the tardy redhead in recognition. “The marketing and PR departments are going to be working on a campaign to hopefully better Shinra Company’s public image on that matter, but it’s not going to be easy, by any means. The town has opted not to accept any further assistance from Shinra, and is demanding that we stay out of it. The good news – what little of it there is – is that the mako contamination has largely cleared out. The reactor itself is still somewhat hazardous… but the town has been deemed safe, and residents are expected to begin returning later this month.”

“They don’t want any assistance from Shinra?” Kai asked, somewhat incredulously. Veld shook his head.

“No. Nothing. Apparently they took a vote and decided that they want to cut ties with Shinra entirely. Shinra Company will honor that request. Since, we already removed much of the classified technology during the initial investigation, the site holds no interest for us beyond the minimal scrap value of the remaining construction materials. If the town doesn’t want our help rebuilding… that’s their choice. Forcing the issue would likely just result in more negative publicity.”

Kai nodded, and leaned back in her chair.

“It does however, present us with the problem demonstrated yesterday. The public holds us responsible and expects us to make it right, regardless of what Gongaga says. Obviously pubic image is outside of the Turks’ job description… but the Board has instituted a level two security alert in response to Rufus’ encounter. Executives and all employees deemed high-value personnel will be escorted by a security detail any time they are working outside of headquarters. Which means that we’re going to be busy for awhile.”

Reno frowned slightly. That was going to be a problem. With Rude and Remy still in Wutai, Tseng on crutches (and thus medical restriction), and himself having to oversee the rookies to a large extent on his own… that left them with just two senior Turks to dedicate to covering security details. Three, if Veld decided to lend a hand as well.

The Turk lieutenant seemed to read his protege’s mind.

“Obviously, that’s going to stretch us a bit thin,” Tseng interjected, “Veld and I considered recalling Rude and Remy from Wutai… but the Zenshou situation is still extremely high priority. We need them right where they are for now. That being the case, our new rookies are going to be getting a crash course in providing security. You three will be shadowing senior Turks as they’re assigned to a detail. Victor, you’re with Kai. Zephyr, with Sykes. Ryu, you’ll be joining Reno. Petra and Liam… as you’re both experienced enough at this point to handle basic escort duty solo, you’ll take the lower level assignments and the others will join you as their supervisors deem them ready.”

“And on that note… Kai, Scarlet will be traveling to Junon in an hour. She’s all yours,” said Veld.

“Oh, joy,” Kai replied with a feigned smile.

“Professor Hojo is attending a symposium at Midgar University this afternoon. Sykes, you can handle that.” he continued, ignoring the commentary, “Reno… you’ll be with Rufus again. He has an investors meeting at the Silver Swan over lunch.”

“Yes, sir,” the redhead replied, mentally groaning at the thought of having to guard a dining room.

Veld nodded. “Dismissed,” he said, and the Turks seated at the conference table collectively got to their feet and began making their way out to their various offices. The redhead, too, turned to go, only for Veld to add, “Reno… my office.”

The younger Turk froze in his bid for the door and repressed the urge to sigh, his escape attempt thwarted. He’d seen that coming a mile away.

He followed Tseng and Veld down the hall, and moments later found himself in the Turk commander’s office, sitting in one of the chairs in front of his desk. Tseng had taken up residence beside him. Veld frowned, staring him down.

“Why were you so late this morning?” he asked, without preamble.

“I’m sorry, sir… I… had kind of a shitty night,” he replied, somewhat lamely, “I lost track of time gettin’ ready for work ‘n… just couldn’t seem to get caught back up.”

Tseng raised an eyebrow, studying his protege in concern.

“Did something happen?” he inquired. Reno shifted awkwardly in his seat.

“Not… exactly. I just kinda… took your advice and, ya know… talked to Kai. I didn’t expect it to hit me quite as hard as it did. I’da waited on that if I’d realized I was gonna end up not gettin’ more than a couple hours sleep…”

“Talked to Kai about what?” Veld demanded, and the redhead flinched slightly.

“About a personal issue,” Tseng quickly interjected, “Kai and Reno… share some similar childhood experiences. I thought Reno might benefit from speaking to her.”

Veld eyed the young Turk for a moment, and the redhead fidgeted uncomfortably under his gaze, praying he wasn’t going to have to rehash the whole thing here and now.

“Just don’t make a habit of it,” he said at last. “You may go.”

“Yes, sir,” Reno breathed softly in relief. He hurried to his feet and was out the door before the senior Turk could change his mind. Once free of the Turk leader’s office, he made his way across the hall and preemptively took a seat in front of Tseng’s desk next. The odds of his mentor not wanting to speak to him privately were so low, he wasn’t even going to bother waiting to be asked.

A few minutes later he was greeted by quiet chuckling as the senior Turk joined him.

“Well… at least I’ve got you well-trained, at this point,” he said, smiling slightly. Reno snorted softly and rolled his eyes.

“Just figured I’d save ya the trouble of hobblin’ after me…” he sighed.

“Are –”

“I’m fine,” Reno cut him off, already knowing what the question would be, “Just didn’t have a particularly restful night… ya know… after relivin’ childhood trauma ‘n all.”

Tseng frowned slightly and opened his mouth to reply, but Reno quickly interrupted again.

“And ’cause I know you’re gonna ask, yes. Talkin’ with Kai did help me out with a few things,” he stated, at last managing a faint grin.

“Hmph… and to think, I’m the one regularly accused of being psychic,” Tseng teasingly responded, “Are you fit for a security detail?”

Reno smirked slightly. “Tch… I’ve had to function on less sleep. Soon as I get some caffeine in me, I’ll be okay.”

“Then go and find some coffee,” Tseng said, with a pointed look. “I don’t want to hear that you managed, in your sleep deprived state, to misplace Ryu on his first assignment.”

“Oh, don’t worry ’bout that, Boss. I was just gonna put a leash on him, ‘n tie him to my belt so he can’t wander off…” Reno snickered.

Tseng gave a quiet laugh, and shook his head.

“Somehow I doubt that would end well. For either of you.”

---

Ryu stormed unhappily into the lounge, following the morning briefing. Of all the senior Turks he could have been paired up with… it just had to be Reno. The lazy bastard couldn’t even be bothered to show up on time.

“What now?” Victor asked, glancing up from the cup of coffee he was pouring.

Ryu narrowed his eyes at his fellow rookie. “You really have to ask?”

Victor sighed and reached for the sugar. “Seriously… why are you so pissed about getting paired up with Reno? I mean, sure… he’s a little bit of a goof, but everyone else seems to like him, and in case you somehow hadn’t noticed while you were sulking about not being the vice president’s new favorite Turk after four whole days on the job, he’s a pretty damn competent instructor.”

“Competent? He walked in halfway through the morning briefing!”

“So the guy was running late this morning,” Victor shrugged, “It happens.”

Ryu shook his head and planted himself on the couch. “I’m doomed,” he stated, “It’s as simple as that. I’m utterly doomed to be stuck with him and made to look like an idiot by association when he inevitably gets called out on his antics by the vice president.”

A dark eyebrow arched in response. “You know… regardless of what you might think of him, he’s the one assigned to the vice president’s detail. You think Veld would put someone he didn’t trust implicitly in charge of such a high level executive’s security? And for that matter, do you reallythink Rufus would be okay with it if he didn’t trust the guy with his life? He could demand any escort he wanted, up to, and including, Veld himself…”

“Joining his little fan club, Victor?” Ryu shot back. Victor rolled his eyes.

“I’m just saying… you’ve known the guy for all of a week, and you made up your mind about him after the very first day. Maybe try actually giving him a fair shake before you pass judgment. Because whether you like it or not, you’re going to be working with him from here on out in one capacity or another.” He paused a moment, looking the younger rookie dead in the eyes. “And don’t forget… Reno is Tseng’s personal protege and from what the others have told me, they’re close. You’re worried about being on Rufus’ shitlist? Something tells me you don’t want to be on Tseng’s either…”

“Who’s on Tseng’s shitlist?” a voice asked from the direction of the doorway, and Victor grinned as he spotted Liam and Petra making their way into the lounge as well. The query had come from the former.

“Ryu, if he’s not careful,” he snickered, and settled into a chair with his coffee.

“What’d Ryu do to get on Tseng’s shitlist already?” Zephyr asked, trailing the other two rookies.

“I’m not on anyone’s shitlist!” Ryu finally groaned.

“Well… not yet…” Victor teased.

“Oh, shut up, Victor,” the Wutaiian rookie muttered, annoyed. The older rookie gave an amused snort, but obligingly did as he was told.

“Anyway…” Zephyr said, eyeing her rather put out looking cohort, “Who’s this Professor Hojo guy me and Sykes are going to be guarding? I don’t remember seeing his name on the board of directors… Is he a department head or something?”

“Yeah. He’s head of biologic research. Big money-maker for the Company,” Liam replied, “His lab is upstairs on the sixty-eighth floor. Well… actually his lab basically is the sixty-eighth floor…”

“I find him extremely unsettling, myself,” Petra opined with a slight shudder, “But, like Liam said, he’s in charge of some very high-profit projects… and he directly oversaw the implementation of the SOLDIER program back in the day. The whole thing is based on his research.”

“How about Scarlet?” Victor queried, “Gotta admit… I’ve heard more than a fewrumors about her. Everyone knew her name in Junon after the war started, with all the new weapons coming in all the time.”

“I’ve never actually been put on one of her details… How about you, Petra?” Liam replied. The senior rookie shook her head.

“She doesn’t often request security, and when she does, it almost always seems to be either Remy or Tseng who handle it. I’ve run into her on other assignments, though,” she said, and then giggled softly, “She was very… demanding… from what I saw of her, so I’m kind of glad I’m not going with you and Kai today, Victor.”

“Oh, little Tuuuuurklings…” a voice called out from the hallway before Victor could respond. Ryu looked towards the source, and a moment later, Kai’s head appeared, peering around the doorframe with a wide grin firmly in place. He rolled his eyes at the name. Why in the Nine Hells the woman insisted on referring to them as “Turklings” he’d never know. They weren’t children, for Leviathan’s sake…

The senior Turk’s eyes locked onto Victor.

“Come on, newbie. Chug the rest of that coffee and get a move on. We’re leaving in less than an hour and the helicopter isn’t gonna prep itself.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Victor replied, and hurried to comply. He drained the mug and set it aside on the table, before following her out into the hallway.

“What about the vice president?” Ryu asked after he’d left.

“What about him?” Liam replied, with a slight shrug.

“What is he like? Personally, I mean…” Maybe if he could get a better understanding of the man, he could figure out a way to do a little damage control. Preferably before being forced to partner with Reno for the day tanked his career right out of the gate.

“Oh, Rufus is lovely,” Petra said, suddenly smiling. Liam snickered loudly at the proclamation.

“Petra has a little bit of a thing for the vice president…” he said, grinning.

“It’s not a thing,” Petra replied somewhat indignantly, “I just happen to think he’s very intelligent. And well-spoken. And handsome.”

“But it’s not a thing,” Liam replied, a sarcastic note in his voice that caused Zephyr to lose the tenuous hold she’d had on her laughter up until that point.

“Well, to be fair,” Zephyr said, still giggling slightly, “He is very good-looking.”

“Oh, but it’s not just his looks,” said Petra, “People seem to think he’s quite snobbish and intimidating, but he really can be quite pleasant. I adore being put on his security details…” She sighed faintly, “But I don’t get to very often. He always specifically requests either Tseng or Reno. I only ever get picked if they need backup and none of the senior Turks are available…”

Ryu stared at her blankly for a moment.

“Vice President Rufus requests Reno for his security details?” he asked, more than a little confused. That didn’t make any sense. Why request someone you openly loathed? Was it merely to toy with the slum rat?

“Well, he –” Liam began, only to be interrupted as they were joined by yet another senior Turk.

“Hey, Petra… Liam… got an assignment for you two,” Reno said, strolling into the lounge. The two rookies scurried to their feet. “Classified cargo courier job. Pickup at Reactor Number Six, delivery at Reactor Number Four.”

“We need two Turks for a courier assignment, sir?” Liam asked, cocking his head to one side. The redhead grinned back at him.

“I guess the cargo’s kinda on the heavy side. Veld said to send ya both. Use the truck on parking level three,” he said, tossing a set of keys to Petra, before adding, “And, uh… ya might wanna swing by building maintenance ‘n see if they’ll loan ya a cart or somethin’. Those reactor assholes never seem to wanna part with their transport equipment… ‘specially the reactor asshole that runs the day shift over at Six.”

“Great…” Liam groaned, and Reno snickered loudly.

“Hey, it could be worse, kiddo. Veld coulda told me to send you to lug the damn thing across town all by yourself.”

Liam groaned even louder. “I’ll… just stop complaining, now, sir. Later guys,” he said, giving the other two rookies a quick wave before hurrying after Petra. Reno watched them go for a moment, hands folded behind his head, and then turned to Zephyr and Ryu.

“Guess that means you two get me all to yourselves for the rest of the mornin’,” he said, still grinning… and Ryu had to try very hard not to roll his eyes at the proclamation.

---

Reno had paused for a brief moment outside of the lounge door, just to collect himself a little before retrieving Ryu and Zephyr for training. It was going to be a long day, but so long as he could keep his mind on the job, he’d be fine. Finally he reached out to push the door open.

“Seriously… why are you so pissed about getting paired up with Reno? I mean, sure… he’s a little bit of a goof, but everyone else seems to like him…”

The redhead froze, hand on the doorknob, at the mention of his own name. He blinked, recognizing Victor’s voice, and shook his head just in time to hear Ryu respond to whatever further comment he’d missed in his surprise.

“Competent? He walked in halfway through the morning briefing!”

“So the guy was running late this morning. It happens,” Victor replied.

“I’m doomed. It’s as simple as that. I’m utterly doomed to be stuck with him and made to look like an idiot by association when he inevitably gets called out on his antics by the vice president.”

Ouch. Though he could understand why the rookie might think that way. After all… Rufus had been doing a rather exceptional job of being a jackass this week… and if you didn’t actually know better, it almost certainly came off as the two of them being at constant odds.

But more importantly, the overheard conversation only served to fuel Reno’s earlier concerns about the young Wutaiian. He was putting a lot of emphasis on other people’s opinions of him… in particular, Rufus’ opinion, apparently. His thoughts were interrupted, however, by the sound of approaching voices. He frowned slightly and backed away from the door, slipping into a supply closet a little ways down the hall, to avoid being caught eavesdropping.

Reno sighed softly as he waited for what sounded like the rest of the team’s rookies to make their way into the lounge, and leaned back against the closet door. All he could think was… he didn’t want this kid to end up another Rodney. A Turk so consumed with appearance and pleasing someone who would never be pleased that he’d betray the to team to win their approval. And… he never wanted to be put in the position of having to hunt down a fellow Turk ever again.

For a few minutes, he just stood there, hiding. Thinking.

He couldn’t just ignore it, and that meant he needed to talk to Tseng. Preferably sooner rather than later. It would have to wait a bit, though. Tseng had just left to check in with the Doc regarding his injured ankle. During their break, then… after training, before he and Ryu left for Rufus’ lunch meeting. He’d bring it up with him then and see what his mentor thought.

---

The morning dragged on in a tedious slog. Tseng had been “otherwise engaged”, whatever that meant – Ryu wasn’t sure what he was doing, given that he was on medical restriction, but he definitely hadn’t been in the office – so Reno had been their sole supervisor. As they neared lunch time, Ryu was more or less convinced that there wasn’t a Leviathan-be-damned thing on the planet the redhead took seriously.

He’d turned their workout into a game. A game. Of course he couldn’t be content to just let them run laps like a normal person. He had to try and make it “fun”. Training wasn’t supposed to be fun. It was supposed to be hard work and dedication. But Reno didn’t seem to be of the same mindset. Nor, for that matter, did Zephyr, as she’d happily gone along with the stupid idea.

Thankfully, it was over. For now, at any rate. Of course, the fact that it was now approaching lunchtime meant that Ryu would have to put up with him on his own while they escorted the vice president to his meeting at the Silver Swan.

As they boarded the elevator to go and retrieve their charge, the redhead leaned back against the wall, looking the rookie over.

“So how’s your first week goin’?” he asked.

“Fine,” Ryu replied, in a somewhat clipped tone. The senior Turk raised an eyebrow.

“Fine, huh? That why ya always seem to be off by yourself whenever you got some free time?”

“I-I…” he stammered, not quite knowing how to respond. How the in the nine hells had he managed to notice that? He never even seemed to be around during their breaks. Regardless… it wasn’t that he didn’t like the others. He just felt… a bit out of place. Reno smirked.

“What… you think I’m not payin’ attention?” he asked. “I see ya sitting in the lounge on your breaks instead of hangin’ out in your office with Victor ‘n Zephyr… or with Liam ‘n Petra in their office.”

“I just… prefer to unwind in a quieter setting,” he replied, somewhat lamely. The redhead shrugged in response.

“… ‘kay. Just wanted to make sure you were… ya know… acclimatin’ okay. You’re kind of a loner, huh?”

“What’s wrong with that?” Ryu snapped.

“Nothin’… long as it’s what you want ‘n not just what you’re settlin’ for. We’re more than a team around here. We’re a family… if ya want it.”

The elevator chimed before Ryu could reply, depositing them on the sixty-sixth floor. The executive offices. Rufus met them with an irritated glare as the doors were opening.

“About time, you deigned to show up…” he sneered at the redhead, before stepping aboard the elevator and turning his attention on the rookie, “What’s he doing here?”

“New rookie’s gotta learn sometime, sir. Tseng thought he’d toss one of ’em onto your detail ‘n see whether or not you end up eatin’ him alive,” Reno replied, with a wide grin. Rufus scoffed and pressed the button for the parking deck. “Ya ask me, though, Ryu here lucked out. The other two got sent off with Hojo ‘n Scarlet.”

“Hmph… You may, for once in your meaningless existence be right about something,” Rufus quipped. A few seconds later, the elevator deposited them at their destination. The trio made their way across the parking deck and climbed into the waiting limousine.

“Anything specific ya need from us, sir?” Reno asked once they’d all taken a seat, and Rufus shook his head.

“The meeting will be in the restaurant’s private dining room. Guarding the doors will be sufficient.”

“Oh… so, you’re gonna torture us, then,” the redhead snickered. The vice president raise an unamused eyebrow.

“What are you babbling about now?”

“Ya think standin’ guard while you’re starvin’ ‘n everyone around you is eating gourmet food, ‘n waiters are carryin’ trays right past ya’s not torture, sir?” he asked, grinning.

Rufus pointedly rolled his eyes at the comment, and Ryu couldn’t quite cover up the faint scoff that escaped his lips.

“Don’t you think about anything other than food?” the vice president asked in an annoyed tone, and the redhead had just opened his mouth to reply when the executive held up a hand, “Nevermind… I already know the answer to that. Enjoy your suffering.”

To Ryu’s consternation, the senior Turk only laughed in response and leaned back in his seat, folding his hands behind his head. He honestly wasn’t sure what to make of the whole conversation. Vice President Rufus was making his general disdain for the slum rat quite plain… and Reno was laughing it off like it was all one big joke. Didn’t the man have any sense of self preservation? Any drive to succeed? Of course there were very few opportunities for advancement in the Turks… but Ryu certainly had high hopes for himself. If not an actual promotion, than at the very least to become a highly respected senior member of the team. Reno must not have cared about any sort of advancement, if he was so casually dismissive of criticism from an executive.

“And would it kill you to dress as though you didn’t do so in the dark once in awhile? I realize you normally tend to spend your lunch hour grazing from the dumpsters behind The Happy Moogle, but the Silver Swan does have a dress code, you know,” Rufus continued.

“What are they gonna do? Kick me out for not wearin’ a tie?” the redhead asked, and then snickered loudly, adding, “And for your information, sir, the Happy Moogle’s dumpsters got nothin’ on the ones behind Burrito Loco.”

“Ugh… Degenerate,” Rufus groaned.

All the while, Ryu was staring at his field commander with an expression of disbelief. The fact that the redhead hadn’t yet been jettisoned from the car left him reeling. How could someone who was so blatantly disrespectful of authority ever have been promoted to the Turks in the first place? Let alone lasted in them as long as Reno had.

---

Reno grinned slightly as he took in the exorbitantly elegant entryway of the Silver Swan hotel. The place never failed to impress. One of these days he was gonna book a weekend there just to see if the rest of it lived up to the promises made by the front door.

But for now… he wasn’t there to enjoy the amenities. He was there to work. And, perhaps of equal importance, to observe. Prior to leaving the building, he’d caught up with Tseng. His mentor had shared his concerns to some extent… but thought that the younger Turk might be reading into the rookie’s behavior a bit too much given his previous experience. He’d advised him to remain vigilant… but not to directly confront Ryu just yet. After all… it was difficult, if not impossible, to get a good read on a person not even a week into the job. Even Reno’d had to concede that point. But the senior Turk certainly hadn’t dismissed his worries out of hand. He’d told him to watch, and that was precisely what Reno intended to do.

Reno, along with his rookie of the day, flanked Rufus as he made his way over to the hotel restaurant’s hostess stand. His gaze wandered momentarily towards the front desk, and the Turk paused briefly as he caught sight of the man standing behind it. He looked oddly familiar.

He didn’t have time to wonder where he might know the guy from, however, as they were quickly greeted by a very voluptuous young woman with platinum blond hair and a tight black dress, and his gaze was drawn to her very shapely backside as she led them back to the dining room. Rufus was ushered inside, and the pair of Turks took up their position outside of the doors. Reno was fairly certain he saw a smirk cross the executive’s face before he walked away and the doors shut behind him.

Reno sighed and leaned back against the wall.

“Tch… Get comfortable, rookie. It’s gonna be a long couple of hours…” he sighed, trying to ignore the mouthwatering smells that were wafting in his direction from the every corner of the restaurant. In his experience, unless Rufus had a personal dislike of whichever investor he was meeting with, the Brat tended to have a nice, leisurely meal with them rather than getting right down to business. Given that he’d been eager to head out as soon as his security had arrived to pick him up, the redhead suspected that this wasn’t going to be a quick meeting.

He was glad that Tseng had insisted on conducting their little chat down in the cafeteria earlier. He knew the redhead all too well. Seeing and smelling all the tasty food coming out of the kitchen was bad enough when he knew he wouldn’t be eating any of it. Doing so on an empty stomach would have been unbearable. He glanced out at the restaurant and spotted the man from the front desk talking with the drop dead gorgeous blond that had escorted them in, and he frowned as he tried to place him. There was definitely something familiar about the guy.

Apparently, he wasn’t the only one who thought so… because a moment later, the man resolutely started making his way towards the pair of Turks. Ryu tensed noticeably, and Reno saw his hand subtly touch his forearm, checking the materia that was slotted in the wristlet concealed by his jacket.

“Easy, rookie… We’re in public,” Reno said, “Let’s see what he wants before ya start settin’ shit on fire…”

The man sauntered up to the Turks and stopped directly in front of the redhead. And grinned widely.

“Reno, man… I thought for sure you were fuckin’ dead,” he stated, keeping his voice low, but tinged with laughter. The senior Turk eyed him.

“I know ya, or somethin’?” he asked, suspiciously.

“Tch… All the smokes I sold ya over the years, ‘n that’s all the recognition I get?”

Reno blinked in surprise.

“… Kel?” he choked out, finally recognizing his old friend, and the man’s grin widened. Reno snickered softly. He had to admit… Kel cleaned up pretty nice. He’d barely recognized him. “Man, the fuck are you doin’ topside?” he asked.

“I could ask you the same thing. You just up ‘n vanished one day. No one knew where ya went. I figured you must got jumped on the way to work or somethin’ ‘n your luck finally ran out. You been up here this whole time?” Kel replied.

“Heh… it’s a long story. I went back lookin’ for ya once, but the neighbors told me you ‘n your mom moved out.”

Kel laughed quietly. “Equally long story. Well… look, I’m on the clock ‘n it’s looks like you are, too, so…” He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a business card, handing it to him, “Gimme a call when you’re off. We’ll catch up.”

“Count on it,” Reno replied, returning the grin as he pocketed the card. Kel nodded and hurried back towards the front desk.

“Who is he?” Ryu asked, and the redhead noted that he still looked a little tense.

“Old friend from back in my slum days,” Reno replied, “Used to hit him up for cigarettes on the cheap, since I couldn’t afford the prices in the shops.”

“Hmph… sounds like it was the habit that you couldn’t afford.”

Reno snorted softly. He figured the kid was trying to get a rise out of him with a comment that loaded… but truth be told, he wasn’t far off the mark.

“No shit,” he snickered. “But who the hell was gonna tell me not to take it up?”

“Your parents, perhaps?” Ryu replied, rolling his eyes. Reno sighed, and shook his head.

“Try again, kiddo,” he said, “Never knew my dad, lost my mom when I was five… and the assholes at the orphanage just didn’t give a shit ‘long as I kept outta their way. Not that I stuck around there real long…”

He paused, momentarily surprised at just how effortless it had been to say that. Though to be fair, his mother had been on his mind all day. That somehow made talking about her easier… and if he hadn’t presently been standing guard outside of a dining room, he might have taken the time to more deeply ponder the implications of that. It would have to wait, though, because it seemed he’d caught the rookie’s attention with that statement.

“What do you mean?” Ryu asked, sounding, for once, genuinely curious rather than dismissive. Reno glanced over at him and shrugged.

“I took off when I was nine. Just… finally had enough. They didn’t, ya know… abuse us, or anything. It was just general neglect. Like I said… they didn’t give a shit. They kept us alive ‘n that was about it. I was just a means to a paycheck as far as they were concerned. So I left.”

“And… no one bothered to come after you?”

Reno laughed softly. “Hell, I couldn’t even swear they ever noticed I was gone. Nah, no one came lookin’ for me. I was just another slum rat nobody wanted. Tch… and that’s pretty much what I was up to the day Tseng came knockin’.”

When he looked over at the younger Turk again, Ryu seemed… genuinely astonished. Though over what, Reno couldn’t be certain. It wasn’t like he was the only kid from the Slums with a sob story to tell. His wasn’t even that bad compared to some he’d heard. But then… Ryu’s background file said he’d grown up on the Plate, and he knew from experience that kids like that could end up with a somewhat… inaccurate… understanding of the Slums. Hell, even Shay, back in the day, had had some pretty strange ideas about what it was like down there, having grown up in one of the rich sectors topside… and he’d had been down below more than a few times as part of his training.

“So… you weren’t a gang leader down in the Slums?” Ryu finally asked, and Reno couldn’t help himself.

“Me?!” he laughed, eyeing the rookie incredulously, “I was skinny little half-starved runt as a kid… No one in their right mind woulda been threatened enough by me to take orders… Where the hell’d ya ever get an idea like that?”

The rookie went bright red and mumbled something Reno didn’t quite catch. Reno shook his head, still grinning in amusement.

“Look… I get that there’s some pretty weird stereotypes ’bout the Slums up here. But most of the people down below are just tryin’ to get by best they can with what they got. Not everyone runs with a gang. I sure as hell didn’t. Shit, most people go outta their way to avoid the gangs as much as possible. Joinin’ ’em, though? That shit’ll only end one of two ways… either it gets ya killed, or it turns ya into the planet’s biggest asshole.”

“Then why did –” Ryu began, only to be unceremoniously cut off as the door behind them flew open with a loud bang, and one of the men Rufus was meeting with angrily stormed out of the room, brushing past the two Turks with hardly a second glance. Reno turned to Rufus silently asking him they should stop him, but the executive waved him off. He shrugged and let the man continue on his way.

“Well… It would seem we’re adjourning a bit early,” Rufus calmly stated, a smugly satisfied expression on his face. The other two attendees – one of whom Reno was almost certain he recognized as Shay’s elder brother, whom he hadn’t seen since the late Turk’s funeral – stood up and said their goodbyes, warmly shaking Rufus’ hand, before departing.

“Should I have the driver bring the car around, sir?” Reno asked, but Rufus shook his head.

“Not just yet,” he replied with that same self-satisfied smirk, as he pressed a nearby button. It apparently was there to summon a waitress to the private dining room, as one appeared, seemingly, out of thin air seconds later. “I’m rather in the mood for dessert after such a pleasant meeting.”

~end chapter 67~