IX. Reno

"So now we have two people in the hospital, one kid assumed missing, Cloud Strife sightings in Nibelheim, Rufus having nightmares, and Lockhart - your fiancee, who you're supposed to be keeping tabs on, by the way!! - gone off with my motorcycle to do who knows where. Could it get any worse?! Don't answer that."

Rude looked up at Reno from his bed, where he was eating breakfast on a tray. "Don't rant at me like that, Reno. I'll be fine in a few days. See? I can move my arm now."

"Idiot," Reno said, pacing again, from the door to the window to the door and back. His head was throbbing. He hadn't slept all night, sitting outside the operation room with Yuffie, who had been clutching that damn Materia and not saying a word. Around dawn, as the sun came up over the Corel mountains, someone had come out of the operating room and said that Vincent was going to be fine, but that didn't make Reno feel any better. "You're goddamn stupid, that's what it is."

"You're upset about Vincent. Don't take it out on me."

"He won't talk. He won't say anything - not to me, not to Yuffie, not to Rufus. Damn, first the man races off to Nibelheim by himself, then he tells us that he's killed whatever was in that cave and doesn't tell us how, and then he gives Yuffie his Materia and won't tell us why! I'm sick and tired of being pushed aside, and if it's going to be like this from now on, I quit!"

Rude pushed himself up weakly from the bed and frowned at Reno. "Really," he said flatly.

Reno stalked to the window and banged his head against the bullet-proof windowpane. "No," he muttered. "No, not really."

"I didn't think so."

"Sometimes I wish I hadn't taken that goddamn oath."

"You swore an oath to Shinra," Rude reminded him, spearing a potato wedge. "Not to Green Earth, not to Rufus, not to me. If you want to leave, nothing's stopping you."

Reno faced him with a challenging look. "You really believe that?"

"I'd like to," Rude said. "Just the same as you'd like to."

"Yeah," Reno said. "Sometimes I wish you would stop reading my mind."

Rude gave him a shadowy smile. "I've worked with you for more than twenty years, you know. It happens." He lay down again, placing the empty breakfast tray on the nightstand. "As for Tifa, I don't know where she's gone, but I trust her. I believe that she's headed back to Midgar. You'll probably find your bike at the Costa del Sol port."

"I hate women," Reno said.

"Really?"

A pause. "No. Not really. But I will soon if Yuffie doesn't hand over that Materia and let me look at it."

"If you stopped treating her like a little kid, maybe she might."

He almost snapped that Yuffie was a little kid, but again Rude knew him too well. It had been odd seeing her again after all these years. How many had it been? Seven? Eight? He'd lost count. He'd expected the same snotty little brat with a Materia obsession that was unreal, a Wutaian kid with double the warped sense of duty and responsibility that all Wutaians seemed to have, a girl play-acting at being a lady. Instead he'd found a woman who could hold her own. She'd actually listened to what he'd had to say last night, had followed his directions without a fuss, had gamely swallowed her aversion to flying to bring Vincent Valentine back alive. She'd been honorable, and he'd been there playacting at being a leader, because he had honestly no clue what to do when confronted by Vincent's horrible, pain-twisted face there in the moonlight.

Lady Kisaragi, he'd called her, and last night her determination and courage had shone through her fear. He wondered what he'd looked like. He should have been the one getting Vincent back to his jet, or at least gone round the entrance of that cave to see what else he could find. But instead he'd run out of there after them with the fear at his heels, gunned the engine of that motorcycle all the way to Corel, not daring to look behind him because he hadn't wanted to see if something was following him.

"There was something in that cave," Reno said. "You were right."

"Glad to hear it." Rude's tone was dryly amused. "I am right on occasion, you know."

"I've never felt so..." He stopped. "Afraid. Not before I joined the Turks, not in all those years I've been with Shinra."

"It was bad," Rude acknowledged softly. "Like something tainted had been there."

The memory awoke at Rude's words, and he realized that he had been mistaken and shivered, wrapping both arms around himself. "No, wait a second. You remember? I'd just gotten out of surgery after Sector 7 collapsed, Tseng'd moved me back into the headquarters, and I woke up that night hearing all kinds of running around. I dragged myself out of bed-"

"With that wound?" Rude demanded. "No wonder you were incapacitated for the next three weeks!"

"-and went into the hallway, and...I've never seen so much blood, Rude. Blood all over the carpet, on the stairs, on the walls...it smelled like dead things."

Behind him, Rude suddenly went still. "I remember," he said.

"My vision was blurry, I couldn't hardly see. I stumbled over something, realized they were bodies. When I bent down to look at the wounds, it was obvious who did it. There wasn't anyone else in all the world, I bet, who cut like that. They'd been speared clean all the way through the heart...they were still bleeding. The blood was warm."

"Sephiroth's dead," Rude interjected harshly. "I haven't seen any bodies. Have you?"

"He damn well better be dead," Reno said, "cause with Cloud gone...I don't know if any of us are strong enough to face him now."

--

He went down to see Yuffie after that, his hands still shaking, his pulse racing from the memories of the blood on the walls of the Shinra building after Sephiroth's rampage. It wasn't the same, he told himself - it was fifteen years ago, and they were past that now. Hojo's creations were all gone, and there was no one out there to trouble them.

Except that the picture of Vincent's arm, flesh blackened with Geostigma, nagged at the corner of his mind and refused to go away.

"Reno? You okay?"

He'd stumbled into the hospital waiting area without realizing it, and Yuffie had risen from her chair with a worried look on her face, that pretty face which he still couldn't quite get used to because she didn't look like a little girl any more. Thankfully, she'd put away the Conformer. He didn't think he could deal with anyone brandishing a weapon at him at the moment. "I'm fine," he told her shortly. "What's the status?"

"Vincent's resting." She eyed him. "You wanna see him?"

He almost nodded, thought better of it, then shook his head. "I'll let him sleep."

"Speaking of sleep..." she trailed off meaningfully, and the thought flittered briefly through his mind that he'd had six hours of sleep in almost three days. But he was a Turk, and he'd functioned with less before.

"Let me see that Materia," he said.

Her face set in a stubborn frown. "Why should I?"

"Because it might be important. It's a clue, and we need clues."

"I put it in the Conformer," she said. "Which is in my room, with the door locked. And Vince didn't say anything about a clue. What makes you think that?"

"Why else would he have given it to you?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

Reno's fingers twitched. "Look here, I don't know who you think you are, but if you're content just to stand there and let Cloud's death mean nothing, then go right ahead!"

A wave of emotion swept across Yuffie's face fleetingly, but a wave so strong that at once he wished he hadn't said that. "If you were truly Cloud's friend," she told him quietly, "You wouldn't ever dare say those words."

She stalked off, leaving him standing there feeling drained and empty, facing the rows of plastic chairs that lined the walls of the room. "I think I'm losing it," he informed the wall.

"Don't say that just yet," said someone behind him, and he spun around to see Tseng standing there with his arms crossed, staring challengingly at him.

"Hey," Reno said, too tired to think of a proper greeting. Then again, Tseng was no longer his boss, so it was all right. "What's happening?"

"Rude is resting," Tseng returned. "Vincent is resting. I think it's time you should be resting too."

"Nice try, but I don't work for you anymore."

"I'm not saying this as a boss, Reno. I'm saying this as a friend. You look terrible."

"I slept almost two hours last night," he said defensively. "While Valentine was in the operation room."

Tseng smiled at that. "Come with me, Reno."

With a questioning look, he followed his former leader out of the hospital, back down to the main street of Corel and into the hot desert sun of early afternoon. Cars rumbled up and down the cobblestoned drive, and the wide sidewalks bustled with pedestrians going about their business. Those who glanced up from their conversations to look curiously at them were met with Reno's blank stare, his dirt- and sweat-encrusted clothes.

Tseng did not seem to mind, smiling politely at passersby or greeting them with a friendly wave and a few by name. They all seemed to like him. Tseng had always had that way about him, though, like a real ladies' man though Reno didn't think he'd ever known the former Turk leader to have a girlfriend. Elena'd had a brief crush on him and they'd gone out on a few dates, but ultimately they hadn't worked out. Just like Reno's relationships, all fizzling out one way or the other. He had never cared enough to wonder why. There was always work to keep him busy, and alcohol, and exercise, and a dozen other things.

Yuffie's face surfaced in his mind again and he pushed her memory away irritably as they reached the gates of the Green Earth headquarters. Fine, he'd been a lousy example of a leader last night, and Yuffie, as always, hadn't been hesitant to let him know that a moment ago. But that was one mission out of a thousand, and that in itself meant nothing. Neither did the half-baked opinion of a former ninja girl.

"Reno."

He snapped to attention automatically, then blinked and relaxed as he realized that Tseng had stopped walking and was gazing at him quizzically. They were standing at an intersection a block and a half away from the headquarters. The light was red. Cars rumbled by. He felt lightheaded.

"You're drifting," Tseng said.

He rubbed his eyes. "Sorry. I'll get some sleep in a little bit. Got a lot to think about."

They were silent up to Tseng's office, where Reno sank into the chair in front of the desk and propped his feet up on the stool next to it. Tseng switched off the humming radio and remained standing, staring down at him solemnly.

"What?" Reno demanded, twitching.

"Please tell me what happened."

He supposed there was no harm in that. Tseng was concerned about his wellbeing, as always, like a father worried about his favorite son, and Reno had for some reason always been the favorite son. It was as if Tseng didn't quite trust him to take care of himself. Sometimes it made him angry, but mostly it had been good because it made him push himself to the limit, just to prove that he could do it. So he sat there slouched in Tseng's chair in his dirty clothes and told the story in an abbreviated fashion of what he and Yuffie Kisaragi had found last night, and Tseng sat and listened without comment.

"If I hadn't sent Vincent," he said at last, "None of this would have happened."

Reno shrugged. "No. Instead, me or Rude or Highwind or somebody else here at Green Earth woulda gone out there to Niebelheim under Rufus' orders and gotten killed. You gotta admit Vincent Valentine's got things going for him that the rest of us mere humans don't have."

Tseng gave him a tight smile. "There is that. I called him for that very reason. It doesn't stop me from feeling guilty about it."

"I think," Reno said, "that both of us should stop feeling guilty for things that we can't help."

Tseng laughed. "Is that so?"

"That's so."

There was silence again, and then Tseng said, "Well if that's the case, then I'd like you to get that Materia from Yuffie Kisaragi."

"I've been trying all day," Reno growled. "She won't let me get near it. Not even for Rufus, and I know she and Rufus are in tight with each other."

His former boss began pacing abruptly, a slower, more methodical version of what Reno had been doing this morning in Rude's hospital room. "Did you see it?"

"It was red," Reno deadpanned. "It looked normal. It was dark, but from what I could see of the thing, it looked like any regular Summon Materia. I don't see why she'd want to hide it from the world. Sure, Materia these days go for sky-high prices on the black market, but I don't think even Yuffie'd stoop so low."

"Reno, your diplomatic skills are a bit lacking, you know."

"I don't need you of all people reminding me now."

Tseng turned back to him abruptly, his gaze hard. "I need you to understand this. Out of all of us, I'd expect you to be the one Yuffie would have the most confidence entrusting that Materia to. You were there with her last night. I certainly wouldn't have any luck with her, and she and Rufus are long-distance acquaintances at best. Tifa Lockhart would be useful if she was here, but she's not. She doesn't even know Elena, and I don't want to involve anyone else if I can help it."

Reno narrowed his eyes. " Why are you so bent on getting that Materia, anyway?"

"It's a clue," Tseng said. "We need everything we can get."

"Tseng-"

"You don't have to trust me," Tseng said softly. "Rufus has his own reasons, and I'm sorry I can't explain everything at the moment. But that Materia is very important."

Reno pushed himself up from the stuffed chair, feeling his tired muscles creak. "Look. I'll try. I'll be nicer to Yuffie. We're all tired. I'm gonna go take a nap and then try again. Give me some time."

"I didn't mean to sound like I'm giving you orders," Tseng said as Reno reached the door. "We're equals now."

"Yeah," Reno said sardonically. "For two people who are equals, you sure spend a lot of time telling me what to do."

He left the room at that, closing the door behind him but being careful not to slam it, because damned if he was going to show Tseng his temper again. Tseng and half of Green Earth already thought he was a sizzling rocket about to explode at all times. He supposed that had been true of late more often than not, but there was something in the air these past few months, a tingling that he could just barely make out with his dormant combat sense that reminded him of back then when they were chasing Sephiroth all over the world. It wasn't something he liked to think about, so he didn't. But the feeling was always there.

He left the main building, debated going home for a brief moment and decided against it. Home was a tiny flat on the second floor of one of Corel's newer housing units on the far side of town. In this state, he'd probably be run down by someone's car before he got there. Instead, he headed over to building 6, the inn that housed visiting employees, absentmindedly pressing the elevator button and getting in.

It took him a few seconds to realize that Yuffie was in the elevator with him.

"Earth to Reno," she teased. He had expected her to be angry with him about the Materia incident, but she was grinning instead, though the bags under her eyes belied her spry expression.

"I'm tired," he grunted, and then remembered his promise to Tseng and sighed. "Sorry. Long day."

"I hear ya," she said, and shrugged fluidly. "I know what you mean. Going to get some sleep?"

"I figure I'll crash on the couch down in the basement lounge or something. A few hours should be fine."

She seemed to be weighing something in her mind and then said, "If you want, you can crash on the bed in my guest room instead. I'm going out for a bit and won't need it."

He focused on her face for the first time since this whole ordeal began, trying to judge if she was being serious or not. It was always hard to tell with Yuffie Kisaragi; one minute she would be trying to save his life, the next minute she'd be playing a practical joke on him. But she looked serious this time, and for some reason the thought went through his mind again that she had grown up, filled out with the figure of a woman. She'd never be gracefully beautiful like Tifa Lockhart, but the former ninja was no longer all gangly awkwardness and childish glee.

"You grew your hair out," Reno said suddenly.

She frowned. "Well, yeah. I've been growing it out the past eight years or so, since-" A pause. Reno struggled to think through the fatigue, something important that had happened eight years ago, something terrible. Cloud. "Um, what does that have to do with you needing sleep?"

"Sorry," he said. "Nothing. Are you for real, or is this one of your tricks again?"

"I feel sorry for you," she told him imperiously. "You look like someone's Chocobo ran you over forwards and backwards and then some."

He winced. She still had that way with words. "I'm tired. Not dead. A nap and I'll be just fine."

Yuffie shrugged again, eyeing him with a look that said, you're crazy. "Well, suit yourself," she said. "No skin off my back either way, you know."

This was true. "Sure," he said then. "Why not? I'll take the offer."

"Fourth floor, then." She jabbed a button on the lighted panel and the elevator creaked back upward.

Reno wondered if this was a good time to bring up the fact that he needed her to give him the Materia. Then the thought struck him that if he was going to be alone in her quarters with her out doing who knows what, all he'd have to do was find the Conformer and remove the Materia from the weapon. So he said nothing as the elevator pinged and the doors slid open. Building 6's bland, carpeted hallway met his gaze, the walls neatly set with numbered doors at regular intervals.

"I only got one key," Yuffie said, motioning him to the left. "So if you leave, you can't get back in. Tough luck if that happens."

"I got the message," he grumbled, feeling testy again. "You know, if you're going to be snotty about it, I'll go sleep somewhere else."

"We're here," Yuffie said, ignoring him. She produced an electronic key, waving it in front of the sensor lock, and the door clicked and swung open silently.

Reno had never been in one of Building 6's guestrooms before, and he was surprised to find that though Yuffie's room was small, as he had thought, it was well furnished. The floors were bare hardwood, a little scuffed and scraped, but the furniture was solid with a big bed at the far end of the room and a sofa against the right wall. There was a small kitchenette area adjoining the main room, where one could make coffee or scramble eggs for breakfast.

"This is pretty nice," he said.

Yuffie jerked her head at him to come in. "It's decent. I'm leaving Corel tomorrow in any case. Gotta get back to the real world."

Her tone irritated him. "Then what is this?" he countered. "Valentine doesn't mean anything to you?"

She stiffened. "Vince can take care of himself," she said coldly. "This isn't my fight, Reno. I've seen what I want to see, and for the moment I don't want any part of it. I paid my respects to Rufus this morning after I made sure Vincent was all right, and he understands. I've got my own life."

"Yeah," Reno said sardonically, "Thanks for being so noble about it."

"You're welcome," she snapped. "Is that all? I got places to be."

"For someone who's so intent on leaving Corel, you've sure got a lot of appointments in town."

"And what's it to you?"

Reno went to the couch and made a great show of pulling off his boots, though it was a relief to be able to flex his toes again after sleeping in the damn things for three days. "Well, I just figure if you're going to wash your hands of this business, what's the harm of handing over that Materia to us so we can look at it?"

"I knew you were going to say that," she said. "The answer is no. And no. And also no."

He got to his feet, trying to stay calm, knowing it wasn't working. "Damn, woman. What good is that Materia going to be to you? You don't need it!"

"You can't have it," she said again, and he glanced around the room, saw the wrapped shape of the Conformer leaning against the wall next to the bed. It was now or never, he decided, and made a lunge for it.

As he expected, she'd seen what he was going to do and dove across the room for her weapon, banging into the wall with a loud whumph, blocking the giant shuriken as he slammed into the wall with his hands. He barely missed her head and crash-landed into the wall with both arms outspread, one on either side of her. She didn't flinch.

If he'd had more sleep, perhaps he would have been faster. But Reno had had six hours of sleep in two days, sleep filled with nightmares about Geostigma, about the invisible monster that had taken down both his best friend and the ex-Turk who he had always thought invincible. Nothing was sacred any more.

He had been Tseng's golden child. But if Rude and Vincent hadn't been able to stop it, what good could he do?

"Yuffie," he said. "Lady Kisaragi." Her eyes wavered at the formal title, and he pushed on, sounding desperate and not caring. "Please. Let me have it. Or, at least tell me why it's so important."

"I can't," she ground out. "And I changed my mind. I think you should leave now."

She sounded so infuriatingly calm, her dark eyes flashing fire at the same time. Reno clenched his hands into fists against the wall, trying to think of something, anything, that might make her listen to him, and then he did the last thing in the world that both of them expected.

He leaned down and kissed her.