This is sort of a Prolouge to my final story for Wolfish Ways, telling how the Turks respond to the 1st's plan of rebellion, and their part in it. Contains Yaoi! Don't like, don't read.
Dedicated to Mikurai. I'm sorry this took so long, but here it is, and while it's not completely happy, the ending is worth it. :) I hope you like it.
Theme: I Would Die For You - Garbage
Summary: Reno doesn't come back after a mission, so Tseng sets out to find him. When he does, he finds out more then he bargained for.
October 13th
Reno was his best Turk, had been since he had recruited him from the slums. Because of that status, the red head was granted more leeway then the others, like when he called to report that the mission was a success, but then hadn't been heard from in more then four hours. No one was too worried, because they had known generally what the mission was, and how bloody, and violent it had probably turned out to be. They usually let Reno have his time alone, but four hours was long, even for Reno. That was why Tseng was down under the Plate, in the train graveyard, looking for his missing Turk. He knew he would find him. He always did.
Tseng nimbly climbed a rusted ladder, standing on the top of a train car on the farthest outskirts of the graveyard. The night was dark, moist, and cool around him, filled with the sounds of the city, the chirping of insects and night birds, and the occasional growl of a monster. The faint moonlight glinted off parts of the trains that weren't rusted, giving him enough light to see Reno close to the middle of the train cars, flat on his back and smoking a cigarette. Tseng made his way silently over to him, easily jumping over gaps until he was at the far end of the car Reno was on, approaching his head. Reno didn't even look to see who it was, he knew.
"I don't remember the mission statement saying anything about kids, yo," Reno said quietly, taking another drag and finishing it, flicking it out into the darkness. Tseng knelt down by his head, crossing his ankles as he settled himself. He was just about to put his hands in his lap, when Reno scooted backwards, his head taking the place where his hands were going to rest. It was the first time Tseng had gotten a good look at Reno. The red head was covered in blood; his usually clean white short torn in places, spatters of blood that Tseng knew came from a knife and a gun, making oddly beautiful, delicate patterns on the fabric. A thin cut ran down the left side of his jaw, starting at the end of his tattoo, down the side of his face and throat, and finally stopping at his collarbone. As if reading his mind, Reno raised a completely bloody hand, and traced the long cut.
"I don't want this one healed," he growled out softly, though it wasn't anger. Tseng sighed, and softly cupped a hand under Reno's chin, forcing him to tilt his head back so he could meet the others eyes.
"Why?" he asked simply, using his thumb to trace the jaw line he had fallen in love with so long ago. Gaia, had it really been almost ten years now? Reno just shrugged, wincing slightly as he turned his eyes away.
"The oldest daughter got to me, yo. Leave no witnesses." Reno barked laughter, cutting it short when he realized the hysterical tinge that it contained. "She watched as I killed her two younger siblings. Had to do it man. Had to complete the damn mission."
Tseng sighed at the bitter words, as they both lapsed into silence, listening to the world around them. A noise sounded to their right, and a malformed nose crept over the edge of the train, followed by two different colored eyes. The smell of blood was attracting them, and even as Tseng pulled his gun, a shot echoing through the night, the crackle of electricity sounded at the same time. The shot and electrocuted animal fell back down to the ground dead, and they both holstered their weapons without a flourish, and went back to staring into the night sky.
"We should leave," Reno said quietly, and without looking away from the calm presence of the moon, Tseng made a wordless noise of agreement. He thought Reno was talking about going back to the Tower. He should have known better.
"We should leave ShinRa," Reno said, finally looking up at his boss and lover on his own. He smiled slightly at the look of confusion on Tseng face, raising a hand to touch that handsome face, before lowering it when he caught sight of the blood encrusted appendage.
"Why would we leave ShinRa?" Tseng asked, sounding amused because he didn't believe that Reno was serious. He frowned when Reno gave him a very serious look.
"Because of shit like tonight, yo," he said, finally starting to get angry. "Bossman, when I first joined the Turks, it was awesome. I got a family, I got money, I got everything that I ever wanted. It was easy to ignore what ShinRa was doing, and just do the job. It just kept getting harder and harder, ya know? I mean, the President always says that it's for the better of everyone, but it's not!" Reno growled and stood, his movement's jerky with his anger. He started pacing back and forth, even as he shook out another cigarette, and lit it. Tseng watched calmly, though his insides were boiling. He couldn't tell if it was fear that Reno would leave, anger that he even thought about leaving, of casting aside the oath that all Turks made, or anticipation of actually leaving the Company they all hated.
Reno stuck the smoke in his mouth, keeping it there with the skill of a long time addiction, and roughly pulled the tie that held his hair out. He threw his goggles down onto the top of the train, sending a sharp sound echoing through the metal, and his jacket ripped as he tugged it fiercely from his body. He stood motionless then, smoking and staring into the night with a faint, mako luminescence shining in his eyes. With the jacket off, his double shoulder holster and guns were bare, and for once, he didn't care. His mind was whirling with possibilities, and it had been since he had talked to Zack.
-x-x-x-x-
"We're going to leave ShinRa, and we want you and Tseng to come with us, and any other Turks that want to come," Zack had said calmly, sipping his coffee as he gave Reno an unusually solemn look out of those brightly glowing, ice blue eyes. Reno stared at him, mouth hanging open, before he started to laugh. It was all a joke, right? None of them were going to leave this Company. He laughed heartily for all of a minute, before he noticed that Zack's face hadn't changed. He hadn't smiled and said, 'Sorry, just kidding'. His laughter died immediately, and he narrowed his eyes.
"Your fucking serious," he said, his voice surprised. Zack nodded, and leaned farther over the small table, in the coffee shop he had asked Reno to meet him at. Reno leaned back in his chair, idly playing with the handle on his large coffee mug.
"I am very serious, Reno," Zack said quietly, keeping his voice low so no one else in the shop would hear them. "Even now, Genesis is speaking to Godo, Sephiroth is meeting with the Councilor of Rocket Town, Cloud is running around the mountains talking with the smaller villages and towns, Angeal is at North Corel, and soon I'll be going to Gongaga and the surrounding areas to speak with them." Reno had an awesome poker face, and he used it now. Zack was actually dead serious. He smirked slightly, as he thought of something.
"If you all leave, everyone will follow you yo. Army, SOLDIER's, Executives," Turks, he thought the last to himself, a small spark of hope entering his chest at the thought of actually being free from ShinRa. Free from the blood, the death, from all of it. Zack nodded at his words, and finished his coffee.
"That's the point. We want a world where people aren't dependent on ShinRa. Where they don't have to worry about saying something out of line, for fear of being killed." His voice grew quiet as he stared into his empty cup. "A place where were not puppets."
It was too much. Reno stood, wanting to stagger because his mind was being torn in so many different directions. He felt like he should be staggering. "I need to…Tseng, I need to talk to Tseng. I'll get back to you on this, but don't worry about me telling anyone yo." He finally smirked, his trademark cockiness shining through for a moment. "Turks don't tattle, period." Without saying anything else, he walked out of the shop, waiting until he got far enough to let the smirk fall from his face. Now what the fuck was he going to do?
-x-x-x-x-
"I don't want to do this anymore Tseng," he whispered, not taking his eyes away from the dark. He flicked his finished cigarette out into the night, watching in dark amusement as a rat darted out, thinking it was food and earning itself a burnt mouth.
"Don't want to do what, Reno?" Tseng asked, rising smoothly from the train, dusting off his suit automatically. He looked at Reno when he laughed, a jaded, cynical sound.
"I don't want anymore innocent blood on my hands," he said harshly, holding his hands palm up in front of him. "The guy tonight, the one I killed. He pissed off ShinRa cause he spoke out against the use of mako for energy. We don't have to use mako. We don't have to kill the people that only speak up cause they think it's the right thing to do. We don't have to follow stupid, asinine orders from a corrupt company, a twisted President, just so ShinRa can keep their iron fist on the damn world." Not caring about the blood, he plunged his hands into his hair, tugging on the roots hard enough that sharp pain coursed over his scalp. Dried blood fell in dark flakes from his hair. "I used to not give a fuck, as long as I was getting paid. I figured, what's one more person gone, we got enough of them on the Planet. I was only doing my job."
He lowered his hands again, not resisting as Tseng walked up behind him, wrapping his long arms around Reno's waist. He placed his bloody hands over the pristine ones of Tseng, and realized something. He was going to go with Zack and the rest, even if Tseng didn't come with him. He had to try and convince his boss though. He had to.
"Swear to me that what I'm going to tell you, never leaves us," he said quietly, his voice solemn. He felt Tseng tense slightly, as his heart started beating wildly in fear. Fear that the love of his life was going to say no.
"I swear," Tseng whispered, and tension Reno didn't even know existed leaked away from his body. Taking a deep breath, he told Tseng everything that Zack had told him, and the Head Turk listened with growing astonishment. So that's why the 1st's had been traveling so much in the past three weeks. It wasn't just a few of the 1st's, either. From what Reno was saying, it would probably be all the SOLDIER's, and probably most of the Army as well that would leave. His heart almost stuttered to a halt at Reno's next, quiet words.
"I'll be going with them, whether you come or not," he said, and Tseng had a moment of utter panic, before his training kicked in, and he was deadly calm again. He forced his body to relax, and placed his cheek on Reno's shoulder, staring over the tops of the trains, to the underworld of Midgar.
"You would leave all of this, you would leave me, that willingly?" he asked, and as hard as he tried, he couldn't keep the tinge of hurt out of his voice. Reno groaned softly and turned, wrapping his arms around Tseng's body and crushing them together.
"Gaia don't ever think that yo," Reno whispered brokenly, closing his eyes and inhaling the spicy, musky scent that was uniquely Tseng. "I'd never leave you willingly, and you should know this by now. I mean damn, we've been together what, eight years?" Tseng nodded slightly, still feeling slightly like a pedophile, because Reno had only been sixteen when they got together. The fact that he had only been nineteen didn't matter.
"I just…" Reno sighed, and loosened his embrace, enough so he could pull back and look at Tseng's face. The only man he ever felt comfortable enough to lower his shields, to put away the cocky mask he always had on. "I just can't do it anymore Tseng. I can't keep going with this life anymore. I want you to come with me, so we can leave all this behind, but I will be going, with or without you. It'll break my heart to do it, but I will."
Tseng was silent, as he tried to process everything that he had been told. He was only twenty seven, Reno twenty five. Did he really want to live the rest of his life with the deception, blood, and death that was inherent with being a Turk? Did he really want to give his life for a paycheck every week? Did he want to leave the only security he had ever known? The only family that ever cared for him? No one at ShinRa cared that he was the bastard son of a Wutainian princess, just like no one cared that Reno was an ex-prostitute, or that Rude had been beaten and molested by both his parents.
"Do you think they'll succeed?" he asked in a quiet voice, as Reno stoked his hands up and down his back in those small, comforting gestures.
"Yea, I do," he replied, and that was all that was needed to be said. Reno never went blind into anything, and when he did go, he went with the knowledge that he was on the winning side. Even so, Tseng still couldn't decide.
"Let me take you home, get you cleaned up, and let me think about it. I…I can't answer right now."
Reno nodded, as though he had been expecting the answer, and he probably had. He'd been living with Tseng for ten years, and had long ago realized that his lover thought everything through before making a decision. Well, if he had the time, that is.
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Reno stood in their bathroom, watching with tired, amused eyes as Tseng gently removed his clothing, starting with his boots and working his way up. When he was finally naked, Tseng tsked softly seeing the long, shallow knife wound across his stomach. He turned away, and started the shower, making sure the water temperature was just below boiling, the way they both liked it. Almost as though he was on auto pilot, Reno waited until Tseng grabbed his hand, leading him to the large, walk in shower stall they had. It took Reno a second to realize that sometime in his zoning out, Tseng had removed his own clothing. With a small, vague smirk, he stepped under the water, shuddering at the heat as it poured over his back, beating relaxation into his tense muscles. He nearly whimpered when the wonderful heat was taken away, before sighing as it was returned, Tseng now standing in front of him.
Even as he started running a soapy washcloth gently over Reno's body, he was worried. It wasn't like Reno to be this passive, not without some serious drugs running through his system. He just stood there as Tseng washed him carefully, staring down at his own body and watching the water around his feet become stained pink. His mind was pleasantly blank, since he refused to dwell on anything right now. He was startled out of the quiet place in his mind, when Tseng sharply bit his hip bone, from his kneeling position so he could get to the red heads legs.
"Hey!" he said loudly, jerking and looking down at the now smirking man with a scowl. "What was that for yo?" Tseng's eyes went from amused, to serious in a blink, and Reno's mind and body became quiet. He so did not want to hear what Tseng was about to say. But his lover surprised him.
"What do you hope to gain from leaving?" he asked quietly, and Reno raised his head, staring at the wall as he gave the question the consideration it deserved.
"That's just it," he said softly, a smile forming on his face as he came to a realization. "I want hope. The hope that my life won't be about death, the hope that the world can live on its own, without ShinRa. Without fear. Without dependence." Tseng just stared at him, a startled look on his face. It caused Reno to chuckle softly, and reach out with a clean hand, to caress the side of the face in front of him.
"I want to be a good guy for once," he finished, his voice barely being able to be heard over the pounding of the dual showerheads. Tseng stared at him a moment longer, thoughts and emotions flowing through his head at an alarming rate. Reno was saying things that he had been thinking for years now, the wish that one day, maybe, he could be a good guy. He was proud of his lover, proud of the reasons he was going to leave the Company. He was worried for him as well, for everyone that was going to leave, because even with the best laid plans, something always went wrong. Most of all, he was terrified. He was terrified, because Reno wanted to be a good guy. The good guys were always the ones that died.
He stood, since he had finished washing Reno, and turned his attention to his ebony hair, as he thought. Trying to get hold of his emotions.
Most of all though, overriding everything else, was the insane, and utter certainty, that this plan would actually succeed.
ShinRa had gone downhill, slowly but surely. Not in the economical sense, or even the power sense, to the outside world. To everyone who worked the higher ups of the Company, the shift in power had changed dramatically over the past six years or so, since the major fighting in the Wutai War had ended. ShinRa depended on its Military to uphold it's world power. Their forces included the Turks, lead by Tseng, and the Army, technically led by a 1st Class Captain, Lexin Grim. The true leadership though, just like SOLDIER, belonged to Sephiroth.
Sephiroth, joined by Genesis and Angeal, had sacrificed mind and body, doing things to save their soldiers that would haunt their dreams. Sephiroth went beyond that though, always did. He had his first taste of friendship, respect, and caring, and he wasn't going to let them go. Then he would lie awake at night, wondering about the families of the people he had killed. Wondered with dry, emotionless eyes and a weeping heart, about the mothers they had, the children. Tseng should know. They had been on enough missions, shared enough of one bed, not to have sex, though they both admitted they were attracted to each other. No, they shared a bed simply because after what they had seen on the battlefields, they needed something alive to cling to, though they'd never admit that part.
The SOLDIER's, much like the Turks, gave back what they were given, forming tight knit groups. It didn't help that SOLDIER was a drastically smaller group then the Army, though not as small as his Turks. Reno and Rude had joined the Turks, bringing with them a sense of honor, even considering what they did for a living. If they gave their word, promised anything, they would never break it. Zack had joined the General's in strength and personality. Then Cloud joined, and he quickly became the person that everyone wanted to be. They all respected Sephiroth, and it was transferred to everyone else in the Military. Cloud, in their eyes, became the embodiment of what it meant to be a SOLDIER.
He was utterly loyal to his General, in all aspects of his life. Sephiroth in turn relaxed even farther, his true self, coming out under Cloud's love. Sephiroth had told him once, that he never felt like he had to take care of him. He just knew that Cloud was tough, dependable, and he would save himself. He would never wait for Sephiroth to save him. That was proved time and time again.
The strength of his Turks, combined with the respect they had all earned, was what made him believe that it would actually work. If they could actually gain the loyalty of Wutai and the Eastern Continent, prove that they would do what they promised, it would truly be revolution. He had no doubt that they would succeed with those, and Reeve, with his entire engineering department, would probably come with them as well.
He opened his eyes, finishing washing the shampoo out of his hair. As he slowly applied conditioner, he watched Reno as he washed his own hair. They could do this. They could actually fucking do this.
He rinsed out the conditioner, and stood under the steaming water with glittering eyes, waiting for Reno to finish his long, silky hair. As soon as he was done, Tseng stepped close to him, crushing him against the wall opposite the doors, bodies pressed together, lips fused in a demanding kiss.
Reno's eyes fluttered closed as his body reacted to the desperate, passionate kiss, and they opened again when Tseng pulled away. He panted as he leaned against the wall, the only thing that was holding him up now. He stared at the ebony haired man in front of him with drowning eyes, his muscles steadying as he saw the determination blazing in the pitch black eyes. He knew what that meant, and he hoped the decision Tseng had come to was in his favor.
"Your coming with me," he whispered, his voice nearly quivering with eagerness, though he managed to keep it steady. Somehow. His knees nearly gave as Tseng gave him a sensual, feline smile.
"We can do it Reno," he said firmly, echoing his earlier thoughts. "We can actually, fucking do it."
Reno didn't answer, he couldn't. Instead, he grabbed Tseng's face, bringing their bodies and lips together for a powerful, but strangely gentle kiss.
Tseng purred deep in his throat, running his hands over the water slicked chest of Reno, as they fed from the others mouth. The clean taste of water, with the smoky flavor of cigarettes, and a hint of cloves from the hard candy Tseng loved, mixed together to heighten their arousal. If it was possible, their bodies pressed even closer together, their tongues dancing together as Reno's hands slid down, exploring the scarred, silky expanse of Tseng's back, only lightly using his nails. Tseng groaned softly, pulling his lips away, and staring into the passion glazed eyes in front of him.
"Shower or bed?" he whispered, and Reno grinned slightly, giving him his answer when he turned off the water.
"Water is not a lubricant, yo," he said with a smirk, and made a very girly eep sound when Tseng swept him off his feet, carrying him bridal style. Even as they walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, still dripping wet, Reno was amazed once again at the strength his lover had. Reno had strength like a whip. Unassuming, but with the obvious potential to be dangerous and strong. Tseng had strength like thin, steel wires. So beautiful to look at, so fragile looking, until you realized that it would never break. He squeaked when Tseng threw him onto the bed, then blushed, glaring in amusement at his lover.
"Stop making me squeak yo," he said with a laugh. "Turks don't squeak." His vocal cords quit working as Tseng knelt on the bed at his feet, crawling up his body, kissing his stomach and chest randomly as he made his way up. He stopped, hovering his lips over Reno's, and smiled.
"Ah, but your not a Turk right now," he purred. "You're Reno, and your mine."
Reno smirked, lazily wrapping his arms around the broad shoulders above him. "Damn right." After that, as Reno drew him down for a sensual kiss, there were no more need for words. Sorta.
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"Tseng, damnit," Reno said, half groan, half laugh. "Stop teasing."
Tseng grinned slightly, looking up the long, lean body of his lover, as he nibbled on the inside of his thigh. He loved teasing Reno, the evidence of that pressed hard and ready to the damp, silk sheets under him. But it was 6 in the morning, and they had to be back to the office in two hours. They were also going to need another shower after this. So he stopped teasing himself, and Reno, and licked in one long line, from the base of Reno's erection to the tip, enveloping it in his mouth. Reno groaned loudly as he began moving his head slowly up and down, and started purring. Reno's hips bucked at the first vibration, and his ability to truly purr like a cat, was the only thing he would ever thank Hojo and his experiments for.
After a few, long minutes of making Reno hiss and moan, Tseng eased his mouth away, and gently bit the hollow of Reno's hip. He rolled his eyes upward, and Reno caught the look. The red head reached over to the nightstand beside their bed, and pulled open the drawer, throwing him a slender bottle of lube. Still purring, Tseng flipped it open, and slicked some over his fingers, capping it and throwing it to the side of the bed as he eased one finger into the tight heat of his lover. Reno groaned and his eyes closed as he threw back his head, ignoring the burning pain of being breached and concentrating on the pleasure of being filled. He writhed and moaned on the bed, as Tseng gently added a second finger, finding that spot with accuracy and rubbing it back and forth. Reno's moans escalated to almost screams, as Tseng marveled at his lover. It constantly surprised him that Reno gave himself completely to the pleasure, never holding back his sounds or what he wanted done to his body. After a few more strokes, and whimpers of ecstasy that went straight to his already weeping groin, and Tseng had enough. He removed his fingers, and used a little more lube to coat himself, situating himself between Reno's trembling legs.
Panting, Reno watched with anticipation, groaning as Tseng slid himself slowly home, wrapping his long legs around the slim hips pressed firmly to his. He opened eyes he hadn't realized he closed, when a slender had was placed on his chest.
"Alright?" Tseng asked, voice breathless. Reno nodded, arching his back slightly and using his legs to force Tseng deeper into him. They both groaned softly, and Tseng laughed breathily.
"Oh Gaia Reno, don't do that again," he whimpered, and of course, Reno did it again, causing a shudder to rack Tseng's body.
"You mean that?" Reno whispered, and Tseng opened his eyes, glaring down at the cocky ocean green that were staring up at him. With a soft growl, he drew back slowly, before snapping his hips forward, causing Reno to gasp his name, eyes rolling into the back of his head.
"Yes, that," he murmured, thrusting with a powerful, but gentle rhythm that once again had Reno writhing on the bed, his body shuddering with overwhelming pleasure as each thrust rubbed that spot inside him. He groaned, and wrapped his hands around Tseng's forearms, shivering when the mans slender fingers dug harshly into his hips. Already he felt that warm, golden pressure building within him, and even as a small part of him wanted it to last longer, the overwhelming part of him just wanted his lover to finish it.
"Tseng, I'm close," he whispered hoarsely, and watched as his lover only nodded, concentration on his face as he let go of one of Reno's hips, to wrap it around his weeping erection. He cried out when heat enclosed him, stroking him in slow, torturous movements even as Tseng sped up his thrusts, sweat coating both their bodies. Then the last drop filled the cup, and his orgasm spilled over, making his back arch almost painfully as he spilled over his own chest, body shuddering as Tseng quickly followed him with a few, sharp thrusts, each crying out the others names.
Breathing heavily, bodies shaking, they stayed where they were for a moment, before Tseng groaned, followed by Reno when he pulled out slowly, having to physically unwrap Reno's legs from around his waist. Then he collapsed onto his stomach next to his shaking lover, trying to remember how to breath. He shivered as Reno rolled over, draping an arm around his waist and idly playing with his hip. It wasn't sexual, but it did still feel good. They both raised their heads, as a phone started going off, and they knew it was Reno's when Ain't No Rest For The Wicked by Cage the Elephant started echoing off the walls of the bathroom.
Tseng smirked in amusement, watching as his lover tried to get off the bed, and fell to the floor instead when his legs still wouldn't work. His normally smooth, silky blood red hair was dried around him in a halo of snarls and knots, courtesy of Tseng. Cursing, Reno stood shakily, and staggered into the bathroom, fumbling through his pants until he found his phone. Just as it was about to go to voicemail, he flipped it open.
"Hello?" he grumbled, walking back into the bedroom on slightly steadier legs.
"So," Zack said, and Reno sat on the bed. "What have you decided?" Reno glanced behind him to Tseng, who raised an eyebrow. He knew with the mako in his lovers system, that Tseng would hear the entire conversation.
"How many Turks are you willing to have come with you guys yo?" he asked, and Tseng raised an eyebrow, even as Zack laughed.
"As many as your willing to bring along."
"Well," Reno said, drawing it out as he found his cigarettes and lit one, pulling out an ashtray from the nightstand drawer. "How about all but three of us yo?" Zack was silent, Tseng was silent, and Reno was laughing heartily on the inside.
"No shit?" Zack finally said with a laugh.
"Damn right," he responded, and he could almost see Zack shaking his head.
"Alright. Well I'm still in Gongaga right now, so I will call you, or talk to you when I get back about finalizing our plans."
"Sound good yo." They both hung up, and Reno leaned against the headboard, finishing his cigarette as Tseng scooted over and put his head on his stomach, idly running his fingers over his chest.
"So it's official," Tseng muttered, and Reno looked down, not liking the lost sound in his voice.
"Yes, it's official. Your not planning on changing your mind, are you?" he asked, forcing himself to keep the trepidation out of his voice. He sighed silently in relief as Tseng shook his head in denial.
"No. I'm not going to let you go do this alone. I believe that there's hope Reno. Hope that this will actually work. I'm not going to let that go, anymore then I would let you go." Reno's heart nearly burst with love when Tseng smiled up at him, and he bent down, gently kissing the man that had loved him, and believed in him for so long. The best part, was Tseng made him believe in himself
"Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait, and watch, and work; you don't give up." – Anne Larnott