Author's Note: This has been sitting on my computer for months now, just waiting for me to gain the courage to post it. This is only my second (first written) Final Fantasy 7 fan fic and the first one that will be multi-chaptered. I love the Turks and wanted an outlet to explore their relationships and how they came to be, so here it is. I'd like to thank one of my best friends for reading this and encouraging me. If I could remember her username I'd add it. I'll ask her for it next time :P. So please, read, review, and enjoy. If you like it or think it has potential let me know.
Disclaimer: I don't own FF7. Really, if I did I'd be remaking the game in pretty graphics, not doing a fan fic.
Reno stood on the plate right outside ShinRa tower's main entrance, staring at the large tower, about to enter it for the first time. It's not that he couldn't enter the building before – a few floors were open to the public, you could see a display of motor vehicles whenever you wanted – it's just that he'd never wanted to. Reno, living in the slums his entire life, had never found many reasons to step onto the plate, and now he was going to live on it. Not by choice mind you, but he couldn't really complain considering all other options.
He'd been involved in stealing some ShinRa equipment from a warehouse for the Don with a bunch of other slum rats. It was all going to plan, until a couple of Turks and some military grunts turned up. The job was going so smoothly that this had to be a trap for the Don's men. A second that felt like a minute passed before all the gang bolted for the doors. It seemed that dogs and pigs were prepared for this however – not one exit was safe – not even Reno who had always been fast on his feet could get away.
Reno had been caught many times as a kid and therefore had quite the juvenile record – not so much in recent years – he'd gotten too good for that. Apparently that had been one too many offences, as at sixteen Reno found himself being threatened with jail time as an adult. A tall built Turk with dark hair and scars on his face entered the room Reno was being contained in. He did not sit down, lest to be on the same level as a common criminal, but he spoke to Reno in a kindness that could only be faked by masters of their emotions like all ShinRa dogs. He'd told Reno that he'd give him a chance to redeem himself. Reno could either go to jail for larger charges – the equipment was top of the line military stuff – or he could commit himself to ShinRa as a Turk. It was either be caged up like a dangerous dog or become one of the guard dogs and lap dogs of rich men. Were either choice a good one? Jail would be harsher – but being a Turk would be a life sentence – and either way he would be judged forever.
Reno walked up to the front desk, the single suitcase of personal belongings in his left hand. The young girl behind the counter was smiling brightly at him.
"Hi, how can I help you?" She asked cheerfully.
"Hey," He flashed her a smile. "Yeah, I'm a new Turk, Reno Sincla-"
"We don't need the last name of Turks, thanks." She said, typing information into her computer, any sign of a smile gone at the mention of Turks. So it begins Reno thought.
"Ok, Reno of the Turks," she seemed to be talking to her computer. She clicked on something then turned to her files, unlocking the draw and pulling out a brown paper package and an envelope.
"This is your uniform." She handed him the package, "There's usually two sets in there." She then passed the envelope. "That has your temporary card key that gets you to the Turk floor and lets you into your building. The Turks will give you a real one with more access when they trust you. It has keys to your apartment and the number." Reno pulled out the keys while she was talking, the keychain was a luggage tag labelled 312. "We usually have more for new employees but the Turks don't trust us." Reno raised an eyebrow… and was that half a smile? "You'll be in the Turk building of the employee housing. It's the pale blue one next to the SOLDIER building." The girl then turned back to her computer, clearly done. Reno stood there for a moment in silence, hoping she'd realise she'd forgotten something vital. Scrunching up his nose and scratching the side of it with the hand holding the envelope, Reno spoke up.
"Uh… hey," The girl looked up with a mixture of curiosity and annoyance that he hadn't moved.
"Yes?"
"Where is it?" A pause as they looked at each other.
"You've never been to Sector One before?" She asked. Reno laughed.
"Yeah I have, just the slums, not the plate." He flashed a cheeky smile. She looked him up and down, assessing him now that she knew he was a slum rat. Reno wondered where she was from originally before realising her fulfilling dream of being a receptionist for ShinRa Tower.
"Oh, just go out that exit and walk left around a bit, a couple of roads up to your right on the outskirts of the sector you'll see the military bunkers and training grounds. The Turk and SOLDIER buildings are the out of place apartment buildings right next to it." Reno frown, looking at the front doors but not really seeing them, trying his best to translate those vague directions into something he could follow. He looked back at the girl with a lopsided grin.
"Look for the military bunkers, got it. Guess I'll be seeing you around." He said, giving the girl a lazy salute. She rolled her eyes but smiled ever so slightly. And with that Reno left ShinRa tower for the first time in his life, in search of his new home away from home… or home above home?
He crossed the road and turned left, keeping an eye on to his right as he walked for a while. Reno could feel eyes on him as he walked, making him both self-conscious and defiant as he walked, holding his chin slightly higher but not making eye contact with any of these rich snobs. You'd think that that people from the slums were banned from walking around up here or something! Either that or they could tell from the suitcase and the direction he was heading – if he was heading the right way – that he'd been roped in by ShinRa. Maybe this was the walk of shame.
After walking for not too long he found himself staring at a huge ground of fake grass. At the back of the lot he could see the army barracks and to the left, bordering on the edge of sectors 1 and 8 was a rather larger black multi-storey building and a slightly smaller blue one. To the side of the buildings was a car park. Intriguingly all the cars were packed beyond a shabbily painted white line in the middle of it, some cars ever on the sidewalk, one or two blocking off other cars. There was a note on the no unauthorised entrance sigh that read. 'Turks, keep to your own side of the car park.' He looked over at the cars again and couldn't help but laugh. Clearly the Turks own retaliation was more extreme than a white line. Digging out his key card from the manila envelope, he walked over to the blue building and used it to gain entrance.
It was nice enough inside the lobby, most of it was a clinical feeling white but there was a dark blue rug in the corner with a black sofa and black coffee table. A couple of magazines lay on the table, Reno noted, as he walked over to thumb through them. Looking at them they were all quite different. There was a gossip magazine, a guns magazine, ShinRa's monthly employee magazine, some fashion issue, one about cars, and a magazine for videogame reviews. Maybe this was placed here monthly by menial employee, or more likely the Turks who got magazines dumped them here when they finished for others to read. Placing the pile back down on the table, Reno shrugged and walked over to the elevator.
He pressed the button. He pressed it again. He placed his suitcase down and tried again. Pressed it again. Again. Again. He groaned and pressed the button in rapid succession when he heard a soft feminine voice from behind him.
"The elevator broke this morning." He turned around to see a petite girl around his age with brown curly hair, big brown eyes, a mischievous smile, and her arms folded across her chest, and she was wearing the blue suit of the Turks. "If you need to get somewhere, you're going to have to take the stairs." The girl tilted her head to the side slightly. Reno smiled but rolled his eyes.
"Just my luck…" He complained. He held up his keys to the girl. "I'm trying to get to my apartment." Her mouth mimed an 'Oh' still holding a smile, as she unfolder her arms from her chest.
"You're the new one." She spoke, the same amused tone. Was this her cover up voice that all Turks seemed to have or was she genuinely amused? She walked closer, grabbing hold of the keychain to read the number. "Three-twelve…" She muttered, letting go and looking up at Reno. "That's the third floor." Again Reno groaned.
"Of course it is!" He said sarcastically, and the girl laughed softly.
"This way." She said, leading him to another white door. She held up her key card and it opened automatically, letting them both in.
"So, thanks, uh…" Reno fished for the girls name as they began their accent up the stairs.
"Cissnei." She said, a small smile still on her lips as she looked forward.
"Cissnei." Reno tried the name on his lips. He liked it. "I'm Reno."
"Reno…" The girl copied him.
"You're young to be one of them, Cissnei." Reno said, looking the suit up once or twice. Her suit was so small, she had quite the tiny frame. "How long you been one?" A look briefly flashed over the girls face as before she turned to look at Reno.
"One of us, Reno." She copied him again. She looked forward again. "A while." Cissnei spoke quietly.
As they reached the landing of the first floor of apartments and turned to continue upwards they caught a young Wutaiin man walking down, looking quite annoyed. He wore a black dress jacket and pants with a white shirt, shoulder length black hair tucked behind his ears. The business casual feeling of the outfit made Reno think that he was working here. Cissnei smile gained a warmer quality as she caught eye of him. Catching her brown eyes with his onyx ones the man nodded. Cissnei stopped walking and folded her arms across her chest.
"The elevator broke this morning." She said once again.
"I hadn't realised I'm just taking the stairs for no reason." The man said in a deadpan voice that held very little of a Wutaiin accent. Cissnei's smile grew to flash some of her teeth.
"You better get on that." She said, raising her eyebrows at him.
"Where do you think I'm going?" The young man's said in his deep voice so dryly as he kept walking. Cissnei smiled as she watched him further before continuing up the stairs.
"So is he like the building's super or something?" Reno asked, gesturing down the stairs with his thumb. Cissnei let out a laugh and shook her head ever so slightly.
"He does look after us." Her cryptic response came. Reno's going to have to learn how to speak Turk, the Wutaiin seemed to have the hang of it.
"Pretty good job for a Wute." Reno shrugged. He missed the flash of negative emotion on Cissnei's face. "How did he get a job in ShinRa?" Cissnei shrugged with her shoulders. Even her shrugs were controlled and charming.
"He's good at what he does." Reno noted the affection in her voice.
It wasn't long until they made it to the third residential floor, and Reno was glad that he was used to going everywhere on foot otherwise that would have killed him. They walked through the hallway counting upwards until they reached twelve. Cissnei leaned again the door, crossed her arms again, and smiled. Reno placed his suitcase down on the ground and looked at the girl who had helped him.
"Three-twelve." She said, looking right into Reno's blue eyes. "This is your place."
"Guess it is." Reno said, now looking at the door, imagining what his jail cell looked like. It was probably a thousand times better than his old place, but a cell is still a cell.
"So I'll see you tomorrow then." Cissnei's voice pulled him out of his imagination as he watched the girl get off the door frame and straighten her suit ever so slightly.
"Thanks for the help." He said. "I hope I didn't force you to walk too many stairs." He said with a laugh and a toothy grin. The girl shook her head, matching the smile.
"No extra effort at all." She gestured back down the hallway towards the elevator. "I'm three-oh-three."
"Guess I'll be seeing a lot of you, three-oh-three."
"Good luck tomorrow, three-twelve." Cissnei said as she began to walk back down to her apartment.
Author's Note: What do you think? Any good? Want to see what happens? Let me know!