The Fringe

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, if my bank account was compared to a sandwich, then it would be made of empty and poo. That is not a tasty sandwich.

Hey, guys. I kind of wrote this after a very short brainstorm. It's cool, though, because Rude's badassery more than makes up for the rest. Heh. Anyway, this is my first Final Fantasy fic that I've worked on, so enjoy, and please review!

Chapter 1: Another One of Those Days

The silence in the vehicle was sometimes loud, even for him. His rather expensive watch on his left hand clicked lightly in his ear. Even the watch could be heard.

How long has it been? He thought. He shouldn't have taken that long.

Rude's mind was constantly circulating and engaged, and he was rather good at hiding the fact that something was on his mind. Rarely anyone ever knew what was on his mind, and he preferred it that way. The hard stare in his face remained unchanged, almost unyielding to anything and everything.

The car was parked in an alleyway somewhere in the poorer side of Edge. A brutal cloudy sky hung above, muffling all daylight that could have touched the city today. Possibly, it might even rain. The cars zooming across the freeway bridge that hung above couldn't be heard inside the car in the narrow alleyway.

What the hell was taking him so long? Rude frequently glanced at the side mirrors to see if he had finished up. Perhaps they'd stop by Seventh Heaven later for a drink. Tifa was always there to socialize and keep company.

He nearly bit his tongue after hearing that word: socialize.

Yeah, right. Like you'd ever engage in full conversation, Rude.

As he found himself scolding his conscience, Rude also noticed that it had already been 20 minutes since he last self-quarreled. So he was taking his time, then. It was quite alien to Rude, this impatience. Rarely would he ever find himself in a state of hurry, and now he was just slightly infuriated with his discipline.

A door in the alleyway, just behind Rude's smooth black car, burst open with an enraged, wild redhead storming out.

"This is a lifetime offer, you prick!" he yelled. "A one-time deal!"

A bulky, dark-skinned bouncer in a tight muscle shirt stood at the door, trying to stare down Rude's partner. Reno stood there for a second, too, just long enough for Rude to digest the slight bit of entertainment that bequeathed him. He lowered both windows in order to hear what was happening.

"Hey, I got no beef with you, big man," Reno snapped, pointing a finger at the twice-as-large bouncer. "Why don't you get your sugar coated, tar bait ass outta my way so I can talk to your bitch of a boss?"

The large bouncer shook his head and lightly shoved Reno backwards. The light shove almost made him stumble onto the damp floor, but Reno luckily regained balance.

"The boss says no," the bouncer replied robotically. "Leave. Now."

Reno's crooked scowl withheld his boiling fury. "Okay, so you guys picked option two. I'm telling you guys you won't like this. Just watch, I'ma be back for your chunky ass."

After flipping off the bouncer, he marched straight to the vehicle and peered into one of the windows. The bouncer watched curiously, but not without pity as he looked like he felt Reno was a waste of his time.

Reno bent down to meet the man in the dark glasses. "Yeah, so…they don't wanna do it, yo."

"Perhaps you're just unreasonable," Rude kept a straight, calm face, and spoke in a very deep, casually brooding voice.

"Hey!" Reno half-yelled. "Jacobson is the one who's unreasonable here. He's got riches and he isn't even willing to donate a bit to the Child's Fund."

The bald man glanced at the side mirror, noticing that the bouncer still hung around. "Tell me why we're here again."

"To get Jacobson to donate a bit to the Child's Fund. The boss wants to restore the city—God, you know what? I don't have to explain; you already know the whole damn thing."

Rude kept a straight face. "So you were being unreasonable."

"No!" Reno yelled in absurdity, escalating his voice just a bit higher this time. "Why do you think I took so long, man? This idiot is one goddamned heartless son of a bitch."

"You're telling me this man isn't supportive of the Child's Fund?" Rude asked with less than half the absurdity of Reno's voice, though Reno could tell that his partner was rather surprised. "And that he's willing to risk more than just a donation to avoid us?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you, man!" Reno said with agreement. "Look, we gotta run in there. Jacobson practically owns this community and isn't giving it back."

Rude pulled on his gloves to make sure they felt just right. "Okay, but we're going to take more than just a donation if I'm going in."

The young man scoffed and ran a hand through his spiky red hair. "Pssh. I've had that plan going this whole time, bro."

The door opened and the former Turk stood straight with his face still unmoved. The tall, bald man shut the door and walked forward, smoothening his black suit and tie. Reno tried to make his way in front of Rude to spew a few intimidating words, but Rude kept Reno behind this time. His partner had already failed, so he would try his hand at negotiating. The much larger bouncer stood with a tough swagger on top a few steps.

"What'chu lookin' at, bald man?" he said with overbearing confidence.

"Who're you callin' bald, baldy!?" Reno exclaimed over Rude's shoulder.

Rude politely elbowed Reno in the abdomen. "Reno, shut up."

"The boss already says no," the bouncer said to him.

Behind Rude, Reno pulled out a chocolate bar and unwrapped it, munching thoughtfully on the sweet material. At least he was occupied.

"Is your boss not a humanitarian?" Rude asked in his deep, strangely commanding voice.

The bouncer's patience had apparently worn down. "Look, fool. The boss don't wanna do any business with no representatives. If it's that important to you, then your boss can come down here and talk to mine. And look at you, dressin' up like you used to be some Turk or somethin'."

"Oh, but I was."

Rude's fist shot up from his side and struck the bouncer in the throat, effectively stunning the man completely. Reno nearly choked on a chocolate piece as the Rude pushed the bouncer off to the side and into a pile of trash. He was out cold.

Reno looked down at the unconscious bouncer and kept chewing up the bar, finishing it completely. "You make it look so easy, man."

"It is easy," Rude muttered. "You just make it difficult."

"You just make it difficult, blah blah blah blah," Reno mocked with a lowered voice, watching as his partner opened the door.

The music from inside the club blared out into the alleyway, but completely halted when the door closed again.

The club was sleek, the dance floor constantly shifting colors, the lights beaming with a lively shine, the bar serving drinks to customers nearby. A drink would be nice. Rude shook his head at the thought of it, however. Only a drink at Seventh Heaven would do.

Without suspicion, they made their way up to the second floor, reaching Jacobson's room with ease, only to notice that there were two guards in front of his room. Rude looked over his shoulder. Reno was quite distracted with the dancers up on stage, which could explain why the wait was a bit long for his return. Just as Rude turned to view the upstairs bar, he noticed the femininity of the bartender, and who she reminded him of. Boy, a beer sounded absolutely great right about now. Or was it the company? Or the atmosphere in general?

"What are you waiting for?" Reno then said.

Rude snapped out of his state of thought and noticed his partner already beside him. "Nothing. Let's go."

Passing by the upstairs bar, they walked up to the two tall men guarding the door, both who seemed to have already been acquainted with Reno. They, too, were dressed in suits that contrasted quite well to their pale skin. Like Rude, they bore sunglasses.

"The boss is busy right now," one of them said.

"He will not grant an appointment," the other then spoke.

Rude looked at the both of them with some absurdity, though it could not be telegraphed because of his glasses. "He will with me."

"Please let us escort you to the exit—"

"—and please refrain from disobeying our protocol."

"It is within our best interests—"

"—that you remain unharmed during this process."

Reno rolled his eyes at their lifeless, mechanical behavior and sighed, almost annoyed that he didn't have another piece of chocolate to eat. He fidgeted about and waited for something to happen.

One of the guards came and reached out a hand towards Rude. Immediately, Rude grabbed the man's wrist and pulled him inwards. With the thrust of his torso, Rude drove his bald head forward and headbutted him, knocking him out instantly. Reno winced at the sound of the impact, and noticed the other guard already lunging in for a strike at the bent over Rude. With immediate response, he rolled over the back of his partner and kicked the guard in the chest, knocking him backwards into a stumble.

The redhead regained balance and charged forward with a dropkick, sending the guard flying into the door that led to Jacobson's room. The door exploded open and the guard continued rolling across the smooth floor until he halted in the middle of the other room. Rude stood up and straightened his jacket, following Reno into the room.

Two women were already in the room, serving as company for Jacobson, and were half naked, which immediately caught Reno's eye.

A wide grin appeared on his face as the two ladies got off the couch and began backing into the corner of the room. "Hey! Where're you goin'? I don't bite!"

Jacobson, a stocky, middle-aged man with a thick businessman moustache and slicked back hair, stood up and adjusted his tank top, knowing that he couldn't reach for his jacket and pants, for they were resting clumsily on the floor in front of the fallen guard.

"Are you Mr. Jacobson?" Rude asked in his straightforward tone.

The half-embarrassed man cleared his throat. "Uh…yes. I'm afraid you've caught me at a bad time—"

"We need a donation from you to help Mr. Shinra's endeavor in reinvigorating the suffering parts of the city," Rude explained, a bit irritated that he had to speak in such a long sentence.

Reno went by the liquor cabinet and started making himself a drink. "If you were wondering, boss man, this is option two."

Jacobson shot a glare at the redhead, but his look softened towards fear when his view came back to Rude. "Sorry, but there is no way I am going to help the community at this moment."

"Hey, Rude," Reno said. "Maybe we should just beat it out of him."

"I'm getting there," his partner mumbled to himself.

After drinking a few sips, Reno went to Jacobson's pants that rested on the cold marble floor and searched for his wallet. When he managed to obtain it, Jacobson nearly exploded.

"NO! DON'T TOUCH THAT!" he yelled.

Rude grabbed him by his tank top. "If you don't want us to see the contents of your wallet, then you shall agree to donate."

Jacobson immediately submitted with a nervous laugh. "Tell Mr. Shinra that I would happily help the community."

"Mr. Shinra thanks your benevolence," Reno then answered. He set his drink down on the table. "But he doesn't thank your taste in liquor."

The two followed as Jacobson walked over to his desk and filled out a donation check for the Child Health Renovation Fund.

Heh, hope you enjoyed the first chapter. Don't worry, the next chapter will lay the rundown on what will happen. I don't plan for this fic to be very long, too, so I'll try to make the words worth their space. Please review! It would be a great inspiration.