Reno walked back into the office, the file Tseng had given him tightly tucked under one arm. He set the file on top of scattered stacks of papers and started to ruffle through the drawers on his desk, searching through half-emptied bottles of superglue, paperclips, rubber bands, and broken pens. Finally his deft fingers caught hold of the small bag he wanted and he quickly pulled it out, stuffing it into is pocket with a slight frown. He glanced at Rude and Elena, "I'll see you guys later alright yo? Somebody get my suit home."
Elena opened her mouth to ask a question but Rude cut her off, "Done. Don't get yourself killed."
Reno laughed and tucked the folder back under his arm, "Do I ever get myself killed?"
Rude blinked at him, "Is that a rhetorical question?"
Reno shrugged and walked out of the room, "Don't know what rhetoric is yo."
Rude sighed and turned back to his paperwork, studiously ignoring the look Elena was sending his way.
Reno fished through his pocket and after a few minutes of searching managed to find his car keys. He swung them on his finger triumphantly before he unlocked his car and climbed into the red vehicle with a smile. He threw the file carelessly into the passenger seat and slammed his door shut. He pulled the small bag he had brought from his desk out of his pocket and opened it, grimacing at the small white case that lay inside. He pulled it out and flipped down his visor, glancing in the small mirror set in its back as he unscrewed the top of the white case and pulled out a brown tinted contact. He frowned and set the small brown circle into his eye and blinked furiously as the contact made his eye water madly. He set the second contact into his other eye with a similarly teary reaction then threw the case onto the passenger side floor of his car and opened the bag again. He grabbed a small bottle of cheap, colored hairspray and set to the unhappy task of turning his vibrant red locks a dull brown. When he finished he opened the window, coughing like mad as the aerosol fumes choked him, and the empty can was thrown to the floor as well. He reached into the bag once more and pulled out a small bottle of make-up, grimacing as he smeared the creamy substance over his beloved tattoos. He then shoved the bag onto the floor and examined himself in his visor mirror with distaste, unhappy but satisfied that his disguise would meet Tseng's standards.
Reno flipped his visor back up with a sigh and pulled the mission file into his lap with a small smile. He carefully and quickly scanned its contents, absorbing the information faster than Tseng would give him credit for. He then tossed the file into his glovebox where a stack of old mission files lay yellowing pathetically and started the car, his mind already immersed in planning the task at hand.
Reno sped his car through the crowded streets of Midgar, going faster than the speed limit allowed but not so fast that he would be pulled over. Normally he would have ignored all traffic laws but Tseng had asked him to be discreet and he treated the request like an order. He parked almost three blocks away from the building in which his mission was to take place and then opened his supply bag again. He pulled out a gun and quickly made sure it was loaded before stuffing it inside his jacket and climbing out of the car, locking it behind him with a sad sigh. Contrary to popularly held beliefs Reno hated killing people, especially people with families. He knew the big-wig target Tseng had ordered him to assassinate had a young daughter who had only just turned four. Having lost his parents early on in life, Reno absolutely hated the fact that he had to force a fatherless upbringing on a small girl he had never met.
Reno used the fake ID's that Tseng had sent with him and entered the building with ease, not one person suspected that mild-mannered accountant Joshua Upton was in reality blood-seeking Turk Reno Sinclair. Reno felt a small smug smile twitch the corner of his lips as he expertly convinced his targets secretary to let him have a brief interview during the man's conveniently timed break between meetings. Reno entered the office of his target with a courteous bow and extended his hand respectfully, "Good afternoon sir."
The target huffed pompously and didn't even both to acknowledge Reno with a glance as he dutifully busied himself with the files on his desk, "You better have a good reason for barging in without an appointment boy, I'm a busy man."
Reno suddenly didn't feel so bad about killing him anymore. "Actually I have a very good reason."
"Well get on with it I don't exactly have all day." The man slammed his pen down on his desk and glared at Reno.
Reno smirked, "I agree with that, you certainly don't have all day." He hated theatrics, but the mission file had specifically instructed him on the message he was to relay. If not for the sake of the man in front of him, but for the benefit of the people who would eventually watch the security cameras to figure out why there boss was sitting in a bloody puddle on his desk.
The man blinked, "Well get on with it then!"
Reno chuckled, "I don't think you understand sir." He walked closer to the desk with a cocky grin, "I'm here on official Shinra business."
The man stiffened noticeably, "Who let you in?"
"Does it matter?" Reno snorted and continued, "I have a message for you."
"What message?" The man started to fiercely jab the security call button under his desk.
Reno laughed, "I already deactivated it yo, no ones coming until after the shot is fired. I'm here to let you know that no one takes what Shinra gives them and then uses it as a weapon against him."
The man began to crumble before his eyes, his pompous demeanor quickly shifting to a horrified and panicked stuttering, "Please, take whatever you want! I'll give you anything! Just let me go home to my family! Please!"
Reno sighed and pulled a gun out of his jacket, "You'll hafta go back in a coffin old man. If you wanted to be with your family so much ya never woulda tried to double-cross Shinra."
"I beg you!" The man stood up, the sudden motion triggering Reno's reflexes and making him snap the gun to eye-level. The man lifted his hands in fear, "Please, not in front of my daughter!"
Reno heard a small, quiet gasp behind him and resisted the powerful urge to turn around at the quietly whispered, "Daddy?"
"Please, not in front of her! Not in front of my little Irene!" The man had tears in his eyes as he watched Reno's hold on the gun tighten. He walked out from behind the desk, his hands still at eye level as he tried to shoo his daughter out of the room, "Irene just go! Go play it'll be alright!"
Reno felt a small part of him die inside as he pulled the trigger, the same small part of him that always died when he killed. He knew that one day the killing he did would destroy him completely, the little chips of his soul could only grow back so many times.
He watched the man fall to the floor in front of him, his chest spouting blood as he gave his daughter one last, bloody smile. A small pink blur ran past him with a scream and he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. He quickly recovered and ran past the wailing girl, trying not to see her as he passed. He threw open the window and stood on the ledge, trying to predict how he should fall to minimize the amount of damage he would receive. He thought it was a good thing this big-wigs office was only three floors up, probably so his daughter didn't have to climb so many stairs to visit him.
Reno's heart gave a pang at that thought and a quiet sob sounded behind him. Reno squinched his eyes closed and braced himself for the sight that was behind him. He reluctantly turned his head as he heard rushed footsteps draw near, and visibly paled as his temporarily brown eyes met blue ones that sparkled with tears. The little girls blond curls were tipped red with blood and her face was smeared with the viscous substance that flowed freely from the hole Reno had put into her father. She looked Reno right in the eye just as the security guard who belonged to the steps that had thundered down the hall entered the room. He saw her tiny lips move and his ears barely caught the sound of her tiny, tear-filled, inquisitive voice as the security guard shot him, "Why?" The little part of his soul that had died seemed to pierce through his gut as the bullet pierced his arm.
Reno staggered as the bullet bit through his right arm and he fell out the window, thoughts of a safe landing banished from his head as pain cut through his mind, but the pain didn't come from the hole in his arm. He landed in a heap and quickly pushed himself to his feet, grabbing his gun where it had landed a few feet away from him. He quickly shoved it in his pocket and squeezed his arm to try and stop the bleeding as the security guard shot out the window at him, the bullets gouging holes in the sidewalk around him. He ran quickly towards his car and rubbed the contacts out of his eyes with a bloody hand as tears started to make them burn.
Reno started his car and sped down the road, no longer heeding traffic laws as he nearly ran several other cars off the road. He pulled into an empty parking lot in the slums and shut off his car. Reno leaned his head against the steering wheel and tried to calm his panicked and sob-choked breathing. He pulled his phone out of his jacket, fingers brushing cold steel as they moved past his gun. He quickly opened the device and blindly punched in a number he had memorized years ago. He held the phone to his ear.
"Reno?" Tseng answered curtly, his voice clipped and tinny.
"Job done. Mission success." Reno growled, his voice wavering and cracking slightly as he held back the loud sobs that racked his body and threatened to break him.
"And you?" Tseng's voice was suddenly concerned.
"Just a scratch. I'll live." Reno breathed through his nose to control his emotions like Rude had taught him to years ago.
Reno could almost hear the frown on Tseng' s lips, "Come back to headquarters."
"Tseng you have a better chance of me driving this fucking car off the plate than you've got of me setting foot in that hell-hole again today." Reno snarled, the breathing exercise not working to settle him down. The pain in his arm throbbed dully in sync with the tear-induced headache that threatened to pound his head to pieces.
Tseng sighed, "You're sure it's just a scratch?"
"I've had worse." Reno gave his bleeding arm a quick look and then pulled out the tie he always kept in his pocket in case Tseng had surprise uniform inspection to spite him. He wrapped the strip of cloth around his arm and tied it in a tight knot.
"Where are you going to go?" Tseng sounded concerned and Reno knew he would probably send Rude to check up on him later.
"I'm gonna get drunk off my ass and then stagger home." Reno choked, his voice starting to waver again as the image of bright blue eyes flashed through his head.
"What happened Reno?" Tseng asked, his voice sounding cautious.
"Watch the damn security tapes, I know you can have them in your office in ten minutes." Reno clicked his phone shut and stuffed it back in his pocket angrily, unwilling to be interrogated. He restarted his car and drove numbly out of the empty lot and back into traffic, his head buzzing with regretful thoughts as the sky opened up and began to pour rain on the damaged city around him.
Reno parked his car at Seventh Heaven and got out, the rain washing the make-up and dye from his hair and face. He felt the rain wash his makeshift blood-soaked bandage clean and shook off the red-rivers that trickled down his finger-tips in tiny eddies. He stood with his face upturned to the downpour, feeling the brown and crimson swirls trickle down his body in little streams to pool around his feet. When he felt sufficiently undisguised he strode to the entrance of the bar and pushed open the door, his soaked suit dripping large, slightly brown puddles onto Tifa's well-polished floor.
Author's Note: Reno did a bad thing! Don't think too little of him for it though! He was under orders and obviously feels bad about it!
R&R!!
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