Zara looked around the office, tired Mako eyes glowing brightly in the dimly lit room. Night shifts were a waste of time she thought, she then smirked to herself. Who would have thought that she, Zara Fair, would have become a Turk, one of the things she hated the most. Zack had always said do what you need to survive and no one will judge you, that was the way the Clan worked though. She was now away from that home environment so full of old traditions, family and even the language, Zara really missed home. Tseng of course made it perfectly clear that she couldn't go back to that though, he made sure that her parents were told that they both died at the Nibleheim incident.
That was understandable though, not make the family go asking questions, making Shinra appear bad. Zara was then pulled out of her thoughts by the door to her left bursting open and the whirlwind of hyper activity that was Reno encroach on her usually Reno free zone. She always thought that he had Highlander blood in him, maybe he was half, he just reminded her so much of her own people maybe it was the bright red hair, which was more common with her people than the slums of Midgar.
"What is it Reno?"
"Ah c'mon, stop being so uptight all the time Zara! Loosen up a little," he said as he leaned on her desk. Zara rolled her eyes at him and stood up stretching her arms above her head and yawning loudly. Zara headed out of the room walking down the bright corridor with white walls and a dark blue carpet, she headed to the kitchen area desperately needing a coffee boost, Reno bounding after her.
"Your boring when your moody, y'know that?" the redhead moaned. Zara ignored him and he shrugged his shoulders leaning on one of the worktops as the ex-SOLDIER poured herself a mug of coffee.
Suddenly Zara's PHS started to buzz violently in her trouser pocket; she flipped it open pressing it to her right ear "Yeah?"
"Is Reno with you?" Tseng asked tonelessly.
"Sadly, what do you want us to do?"
"I need you to patrol sector 4, there's apparently been some trouble, and while you're there go to sector 6 and pay Don Corneo a visit he hasn't paid for the protection this month."
"Sure thing boss" Zara said before taking a sip of her coffee then the line went dead.
"Where we goin' babe?"
"Sector 4 and then 6 for Corneo" she replied putting her coffee down reluctantly.
"Oooo dontcha just love a brothel?"
Sector Four was still crawling with night life, mainly filled with junkies, alchies, slags in super mini miniskirts, pimps and those generally looking for a good time. Some people would be tumbling out of bars and seedy clubs too inebriated to tell up from down, Zara had the slight feeling that Reno wished he was one of those people. As the two walked past, the drunks tried to keep a low profile, even in their current state they could still see that they were Turks, not something you wanted to get on the wrong side of. As they patrolled they couldn't find any signs of the trouble that Tseng was talking about, then again he never elaborated on what the "trouble" was.
"Maybe we should head to sector 6?" Zara asked Reno, the red head gave one last scan of the area "Lets go then" he said leading the way.
Reno hated Corneo with a passion, which was why he was not best pleased with being forced to let Zara go into a room with that sleaze bag alone, he knew she could kill him with one punch but he still didn't like the thought of him looking Zara up and down like she was a common whore. So Reno decided to lean on a wall by the door, looking as menacing as possible to remind the thugs in the reception area with him of who was boss, his Electric-Mag Rod crackling dangerously.
Zara was quickly losing patience with the fat balding man as he sat at the desk in front of her, it seemed he could not take what he saw as a pretty girl seriously enough to listen to the threats she brought from Shinra if he didn't cough up the money. She couldn't do anything because old man Shinra wouldn't be happy if she killed the guy, even if it was accidental, she would probably get a bullet through the head like she was some rabid dog. "Reno!" Zara shouted glaring darkly at the Don, he seemed to pale as the large wooden double door opened behind Zara.
"So ya bein' a bit awkward are ya Don?" Reno drawled with a smirk as he pointed his EMR at Don Corneo "You know we don't like bein' messed with dontcha?"
Corneo swallowed nervously "If 5'9 of angry female SOLDIER don't make you nervous I'm sure 6'2 of pissed-off-as-hell slum rat will." Reno jabbed the man with his EMR, Corneo convulsed and jumped about in his seat as the electricity surged painfully through his body, Zara knew the feeling "So? What's it gonna be?"
The fat man got another shock and Zara had the suspicion that Reno had turned up the voltage as Corneo jumped and convulsed even more violently than before.
"Ok ok…. You'll get …. The damn…money" Corneo said breathlessly.
"You could've made it so much easier and less painful, when will we get the payment?" Zara said in a bored voice.
"If you… come ba-" he started but then was cut off when Reno's EMR made contact with his body yet again.
"But we don't wanna come back tomorrow," Reno warned with a sadistic grin on his face "We want it tonight."
Corneo gave the two Turks a dark look, Reno stepping back slightly so the man could get out of the throne like chair, walked over to a painting of a rather busty looking blond woman with bright blue eyes. Corneo pulled on the right corner of the painting making it swing out; the hinges creaked loudly and revealed a large safe. He punched in a code neither of the Turks bothered to memorise, the safe door popped open slightly to reveal a large pile of money "How much is it?"
"Three thousand Gil" answered Zara as she watched him take out three wads of money, he then turned round his face still very pale and handed the money over to Zara "Aw that wasn't so hard was it?"
The two Turks then walked out of the room into the reception, Zara noticed that all the thugs were knocked out cold, she looked to her right rolling her eyes at Reno "What? They were annoyin' me!"
When Tseng walked into the lounge area of the Turks HQ a few hours later he was greeted with the sight of two of his Turks stretched out on one of the large dark blue leather couches, surprisingly fast asleep. Zara had her head resting on Reno's chest her left arm around his waist hugging him close to her, Reno had his right arm wrapped around her small waist also pulling her closer to him. Tseng decided to leave them to sleep, as it seemed they had finished the mission he set for them, he smiled softly to himself as he left the room, Cissnei was right they did look like a good couple.
Rod was tinkering around in the garage with his pride and joy, his good old motorbike. Zara was supposed to be fixing up her own bike but was a hopeless mechanic and was waiting for her partner to fix it. She was sitting on the garage floor looking at a clothes magazine, absent-mindedly plaiting her long raven hair, it was usually wavy but she decided to straighten it that morning so it went down past her hips. She then looked over at Rod "Rod when are you gonna fix my bike?" the ravenette moaned.
"When I'm finished with mine"
"But you've been at that thing for ages! Accept the fact that it's dead 'cause that is one abused bike." She said eyeing the vehicle.
"What's wrong with yours then?" the male asked wanting to take attention away from his poor bike.
"It won't start."
"Has it got any fuel in it?" Rod asked folding his arms looking at Zara.
"What kind of-oh wait maybe not!" she said springing to her feet and running over to get a large red fuel decanter, she screwed the black lid off, opened the motor's fuel 'bitty' as she put it not quite knowing what it was actually called and poured the liquid in. She emptied the decanter into the bike throwing the decanter aside closed the 'bitty', took the keys out of her pocket put it in the ignition and twisted it force fully, her face lit up as the motor bike roared into life. "Oh yeah!"
"Sometimes you are unbelievable," Rod said turning back to his own motor bike.
"Oi! Just because I sometimes forget things, it happens to everybody even you I'm sure."
"Whatever."
"Don't you whatever me!" a slightly threatening tone entering the young woman's voice. Rod decided to ignore it, glancing at the silver watch strapped to his wrist it was half past two.
"Aren't you supposed to be going to a meeting with the higher ups right about now?"
"Ugh!" Zara moaned walking towards the exit of the garage "I hate these meetings, Scarlett's such a stuck up whore!"
Zara jogged through the large showy reception and sprinted to a lift punching the second top floor into the keypad, it was only then that Zara realised who was in the lift with her. Hojo. Zara swore inwardly and thought of the ways she could kill the man, she suspected that he knew something about Zack and little Cloud's disappearance from the Nibleheim reactor.
"Ah Zara have you been feeling alright lately?" the dirt bag asked in his annoying voice.
"Yeah why?" Zara stared right ahead at the lift's silver doors.
"Interesting interesting" Hojo said as he scribbled something on his clipboard, the man was never without the thing "I never thought that you would even survive the Mako infusion to be perfectly honest, but you did turn round and surprise us all when you got promoted to First class, even Sephiroth was surprised. But Angeal kept saying that you'll prove us wrong."
"What's with all the reminiscing Hojo? Conscience finally catching up with you?" snarled Zara no longer managing to bite her tongue at the mention of Sephiroth and Angeal. And just then the lift doors opened noisily and Hojo walked out.
"I don't know why you would think I have a heavy conscience? What about you? I am sure you having to do all of the company's nasty little jobs will catch up on you one day."
Zara felt like punching the lift doors as she walked past them, that bastard! She stalked darkly to president Shinra's office trying to calm herself down she didn't bother to wait and be told by the secretary to go inside she just walked straight in.
"Ah there you are Zara we started to wonder if you had forgotten about the meeting?" greeted the President as she walked in and sat down at a seat next to Heidegger.
"It wouldn't be pity if she did though" spited Scarlett.
"Oh shut it Blondie!" Zara snarled glaring darkly across the table at the older woman. Scarlett looked like she had been slapped in the face, Zara gave a smirk but the dark look still remained in her eyes as they glowed with not just Mako but hatred as well.
"Your temper seems to be getting worse every day Zara!" laughed Heidegger trying to diffuse the tension between the two females.
"Yes yes, now let's get back to business the sooner this meeting finishes the better I think," declared President Shinra.
Zara didn't even try to concentrate just slumping back into her chair, arms folded across her chest staring darkly at the table. Quite some time passed until Zara's opinion was wanted within the discussion.
"So as an ex member of SOLDIER what would you think of a cut back in funding?" asked Shinra.
"I think it would be the most stupid suggestion you've ever come out with to be perfectly honest."
Shinra narrowed his eyes at her she had always been very truthful which was why he was interested to know what the opinion of someone who wasn't there just to please him and say how wonderful his ideas were "And whys that?"
"SOLDIER needs as much money as it can get, mainly for training, weapons, health and shrinks. So unless you want another Genesis I would suggest you don't cut back with SOLDIER, how about some other department like, oh I dunno weapons, I reckon SOLDIER has what it needs doesn't really need any new things their fine with swords I think" Scarlett fixed her with an iced stare.
"Now hold on you little br-"
"Ugh I can't be arsed with this" Zara groaned massaging her temples with the tips of her fingers.
President Shinra considered Zara's answer carefully and watched her, "It seems this may need to be discussed further before we come to a permanent conclusion. Meeting dismissed."
And with that they all left the President's office. Zara could feel Scarlett's glare on her but decided to not rise to it, deciding to go back to the Turk's office and finish the report that Reno had distracted her from.
A.N. well this is my first FFVII story so I hope that you will enjoy it and not be put off by it involving an OC. Review's would be appreciated ^_^