"Reno, get up!" Rude shook Reno's shoulder violently.
"Nooooo!" Reno moaned and pulled the blankets over his head. It was far too early in the morning for him to be awake.
Rude grabbed the blankets and yanked them off of him, "Up."
"Fivemoreminues." Reno mumbled and curled in on himself.
"No." Rude slapped Reno's leg. "Up."
"Why?" Reno rolled over and looked at his alarm clock, "It's five in the morning!"
"You should have woken me up for my watch sooner." Rude turned on the lights.
"I didn't know you'd be getting me up suicidally early." Reno groaned and buried his head in his pillow.
"Get up." Rude grabbed Reno by his ankles and started to drag him out of bed.
"No!" Reno grabbed the headboard and clung to it for dear life as Rude pulled on his legs.
"Come on Reno." Rude grunted, "Get your ass out of bed." He let go of Reno's legs.
"Why?" Reno whined and rolled over.
"We're going skiing." Rude grinned.
"You don't ski and neither do I." Reno sat up and rubbed his eyes.
"It's not our vacation. Sephiroth gets to decide what we do." Rude shrugged and started flicking the light on and off. "Up up up!"
"You just hate me." Reno pouted and swung his legs over the edge of the bed.
"If I hated you your hand would be floating in warm water." Rude chuckled and walked out of the room. "Don't go back to sleep."
"Meanie!" Reno stood up and staggered to the bathroom for a shower.
"Sounded like quite the battle for consciousness." Sephiroth scoffed as he buttoned his jacket.
"We've had bloodier battles in the morning." Reno yawned and kicked the bathroom door closed behind him.
By the time they got Reno out of the cabin it was seven o'clock and Icicle was bustling with peaceful mountain life. Reno had on most of his clothes and was still shivering as a pale dawn colored the beautiful scene. "It's fuckin cold!"
"You should have brought clothes." Rude snorted.
"Yo I brought clothes! I ain't exactly nude." Reno wrapped his arms around himself and trembled violently.
"There's a shop open over there where you can get warmer clothes." Sephiroth pointed in the direction of a quaint cottage with a small sign standing in the snow advertising its wares. "We'll go rent the ski gear while you clothe yourself."
"Can't I just rent clothes?" Reno rubbed his arms trying desperately to warm them.
"That's disgusting." Rude snorted and pushed Reno towards the shop. "Get clothes. Don't go overboard."
"Whatever." Reno pouted and trudged towards the shop.
Sephiroth waited with Rude, skis in hand, as they surveyed the small mountain town for Reno. "Did he go back to the cabin?"
"No." Rude shook his head, "He knows better."
Sephiroth humphed, "Maybe."
Rude sniggered, "Let me rephrase. He usually knows better."
"I think he went overboard." Sephiroth's lips pressed into a firm line as he looked down the mountain.
Rude stiffened. "It seems he did."
"Hey guys!" Reno's cheery grin was hidden by a bright red scarf.
"I thought I said don't go overboard." Rude tried not to laugh.
"I didn't!" Reno cried out in indignation, "I'm warm as hell now in case you were wondering."
"You look like a giant red marshmallow." Rude snorted.
Reno was wrapped from head to foot in thick red winter gear. "Am I a tasty marshmallow?" Rude thrust a pair of skis at him. "I'll take that as a yes."
"Have you ever skied before?" Sephiroth raised an eyebrow as Reno tried to put his ski on backwards.
"Nope! Not once." Reno was far perkier now that he was warm. He pulled the ski off and turned it around at Rude's direction.
"I see." Sephiroth smirked, "I think this will be an interesting day for you then."
Sephiroth waited for Reno and Rude to finish getting ready (Rude was ready in less than five minutes but Reno was having so much trouble with his skis that it took almost twenty minutes to get him outfitted) and then sat himself on the ski lift.
Reno struggled to get himself in front of the ski lift and eventually Rude just gave up on him and lifted him into it. Reno swung his legs cheerfully as they began their ascent. "Hey Rude lets make a bet."
Rude facepalmed, "I was hoping you wouldn't-"
Reno cut him off, "I bet that I beat you down the hill."
Rude snorted, "You've never skied in your life."
"And you have?" Reno's eyebrow disappeared beneath his thick red hat.
"Yes." Rude frowned as the lift stopped partway up the hill.
"Then what are you afraid of?" Reno wiggled his eyebrows but the motion was lost under his hat.
"You're supposed to be too cold to worry about bets." Rude shook his head and relented with a sigh. "What're we betting?"
Reno tapped a red gloved hand against his cheek, "If you lose you have to smooch Sephy."
"I can hear you." Sephiroth called over his shoulder.
"No you can't!" Reno stuck his tongue out at him.
Sephiroth rolled his eyes, "Whatever you say Turk."
"And if I win?" Rude's eyes glinted under dark sunglasses as the lift jerked back into motion.
"Then I have to smooch Sephy." Reno wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck.
"Rather obsessed with smooching today Reno?" Sephiroth called over his shoulder.
"You can't hear us turn around!" Reno stuck his tongue out again.
"I advise that you don't stick that at me." Sephiroth looked over his shoulder, "At these temperatures it might freeze."
Reno quickly pulled his tongue back into his mouth.
When they reached the top of the hill Reno was roasting under all his gear, "Holy Shiva this stuff gets hot quick."
"I told you not to overdo it." Rude snorted as he shuffled to the top of the hill.
"You expected me to listen?" Reno struggled to walk up the hill.
"It would be nice." Rude called over his shoulder. "Hurry it up we're behind."
"You're supposed to try and beat me down the hill not up it." Reno panted as he trudged up the hill.
"Either way put a move on it." Rude chuckled as he listened to Reno struggle.
Reno cursed and jerked his feet through the powder, "How do you WORK these things!"
"You're supposed to walk on top of the snow, not under it." Sephiroth chuckled.
"Well that makes no sense." Reno frowned and tried to place his skis on top of the snow. "Hey it works!" Reno called out gleefully as he started gliding across the snow. Sephiroth and Rude chuckled at Reno's childlike delight.
"This looks like a good spot to go down." Sephiroth stood ready at the top of the slope.
"You ready to eat my powder Rude?" Reno grinned as he stumbled to the spot where they were standing.
"If you weren't my best friend I'd call you so many names right now." Rude shook his head and sniggered.
"Why?" Reno pulled his goggles over his eyes.
"I wasn't kidding when I said you look like a red marshmallow." Rude adjusted his sunglasses on his face.
"I wasn't kidding when I said I'm a tasty marshmallow." Reno stuck his tongue out at him.
"I hope you taste like one or else Sephiroth is going to puke." Rude grinned.
"I think I want to stay up here and watch this." Sephiroth smirked.
"You just want to watch my butt on the way down." Reno teased.
"Can't see your butt under all those clothes." Sephiroth chuckled. "Do I have to push you down or are you going to go on your own?"
"Huh?" Reno's eyebrows disappeared underneath his hat.
"Rude's already halfway down." Sephiroth smirked.
"WHAT!" Reno yelled and turned towards the mountain to see Rude zooming down the slope. He cursed, "Rude you cheating bastard!" Sephiroth chuckled as Reno made his ungainly way down the slope.
Reno thought he was doing rather well at first. He wasn't going to fast but he wasn't falling down either. Rude was light-years ahead of him and he knew he wouldn't be able to catch up but he held out the stubborn hope that Rude would fall. That hope was dashed as he felt his own skis give way underneath him, "No no no no!" He shrieked as his legs began to tangle. He fell forwards and began rolling painfully down the hill, his legs crossing and tangling all the way down. He landed flat on his back, legs in a painful state of disarray and the wind knocked forcefully from his lungs. "Oww..."He moaned pitifully.
He lay there, the cold wet snow seeping through his many layers of clothing. His hat had flown off and his jacket had torn open on a rock or a branch, he didn't know which. He gingerly flexed his limbs and sighed with relief when he found no pain related to a break or sprain, only bruises. Sephiroth glided down the slope and sprayed him with snow as he came to a stop. "You okay?"
"Think so." Reno panted and pushed his goggles out of his eyes.
Sephiroth crouched down, "Anything broken?"
"No." Reno grimaced and tried to sit up.
"Good." Sephiroth bent down and boldly trapped Reno's lips in his own. He pulled away hastily as the red-head began kissing back, "You don't taste like a marshmallow." He stood up and skied away.
Reno sat up gingerly and liked his lips, "You're not puking though are you?"
Author's Note: Reno and his bets....*facepalm* can anyone ever say no to him? His bets get him in so much trouble yet they always seem to work in his favor (at least when I write them xD) R&R!
[In case anyone was wondering- I have experience with the morning routine Reno and Rude pulled at the beginning of this chapter. Dragging people out of bed is actually quite fun. Ticks them off to no end ;) ]
