"Where's Tseng?" Rufus demanded the next day.
He was standing in the middle of the shooting field, gun in hand, but instead of the tall, dark Turk waiting there, Reno stood in his place.
"Where is he?" he repeated.
"What's it to you?" the redhead challenged him. "From what I hear, you'd just as well not see him around for a while."
"What happened yesterday is none of your business," Rufus said haughtily, tossing his bangs.
"I beg to differ," Reno said smoothly, his green eyes bright. "Tseng requested that I assist him in teaching you, so here I am, gonna teach you marksmanship. And if I am going to teach you, then I need to know about anything that might affect you, or Tseng or me. And you know what? I think this particular matter fits all three of those categories." He stared at Rufus, daring they younger man to refuse him.
"Who the hell do you think you are?" Rufus demanded. "You have absolutely no right to-"
"Ah-ah," Reno said, tauntingly, waving his finger as one would to a child. "Keep your temper. I believe that's what you were lacking yesterday, wasn't it?" His lips curved up mirthlessly. "Lose your temper and your shots will always miss. Keep your cool, and I can guaranty that you'll get you opponent every time, even if the bullets are words, the target, pride."
For a moment, Reno felt something akin to real fear. Rufus' complexion had turned deathly white, anger causing the blood to drain from his face. He placed his hand reflexively on his mag-rod, trusting that he would be able to take on a half-trained boy, even if he did have the advantage of a shotgun, should the need arise.
"Remember what I just told you, boy," Reno said, his voice low. "Don't let anyone get to you. Anyone."
Slowly, much to Reno's relief, the color began to return to the young man's face, and his breathing slowed. The crimson haired Turk had no doubts that he could overtake the younger man, but he didn't want to have to deal with his father, President Shinra, afterwards.
"Are you ready to listen to something?" Reno asked, when Rufus seemed to have himself back under control. The president's son nodded slowly, keeping a wary eye on the Turk.
"Good. Now, yesterday you wanted to know exactly what your father meant by his comments regarding Tseng, didn't you?" Rufus nodded. "Heh. Well, I'm going to tell you." Studying the boy carefully, Reno prayed that he was making the right decision. He hadn't even consulted Tseng about this, trusting his instincts on this one. They had never led him wrong before, and he hoped desperately that they would not fail him now.
"Tseng-" Reno paused, searching for the right words. "Tseng is different," he finaly said. He held up a hand, stopping Rufus' coming retort. "I'm aware that you probably know that by now, but hear me out." Turning, the young Turk walked towards the gun shed.
"When it comes to sexual relations, Tseng's preferences are quite a bit different from what is considered to be normal." Seeing Rufus' puzzled look, Reno sighed in frustration and tried again. "He doesn't lie with women," he said, deciding to be blunt. "His tastes run towards- other men." Despite the gravity of the situation, Reno had to make a conscious effort not to laugh; Rufus' expression made it plain that the president's son hadn't even an inkling that such relationships existed.
"But-"
"It's more common than you think," Reno went on, ignoring the young man's protests. " 'Specially on the streets. Some rich guys pay good money for certain... services."
"But- Tseng?" Rufus blinked as the initial shock of the discovery faded and disgust set in. Some of the comments from his father and his associates began to make sense, now, and not one of them was positive. "He sleeps with men?" Contemptuously, he repeated something he had heard his father say about the Wutain Turk. Reno felt the blood rush to his face when he heard the derision in the young blonde's voice. Before he realized what he was doing, he had the young man backed up against the wall of the gun shed, his mag-rod pressed violently against his throat, forcing his head back.
"Don't you dare say something like that about Tseng," he hissed, his face no more than an inch away from the terrified Rufus'. "And never, ever let me hear you judge him on that basis again, do you understand me?"
Frantically, Rufus nodded the best he could around the cold metal digging into his throat.
"I want to get something straightened out right now," Reno continued, easing up on the pressure only slightly. "Tseng is one of the most honorable men you will ever meet. Who he sleeps with has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on the kind of man he is." Reno was dimly aware that he was repeating himself, but he was past caring. This little brat was going to get a lesson in morals like he never had in his life.
"But-"
"Shut-up," Reno growled. "You just listen to me. I don't care what your father or any of his little sycophants say about him, there is nothing wrong with him. Your father is a bigot, and I won't beg your pardon for saying so. He is one of the most close minded men I know, and I want to make sure that you know it. Tseng probably woulda left this place by now, and taken the Turks with him, but we're under contract. Thing is, when your old man dies, we don't have to stick around. Got that? So unless you start to change your mind about things, you're gonna be left on your own as President." He looked at Rufus with skewed eyes. "You're a smart kid," he admitted. "I'll give you that. Now we just gotta see how smart you are when you start thinking on your own, instead of with your daddy on your shoulder all the time."
Struggling to release himself from the hold of the mag-rod, Rufus spat out the words Reno had long prayed to hear. "I am not my father."
Green eyes burning into the boy's blue ones, Reno let up his grip on the rod. "Remember those words, Shinra," he said, his voice harsh. "And hope to heavens that you never turn your back on them."