Beginning Notes: GAH! I'm soooo late with this one! I blame it on my US buddies that came up and visited this poor Canadian hick-town girl. They stated for a week and I didn't even think about writing while they were up. Then I had to wait for my temp betareader, but he's so good to me that I am not mad at him and neither should you guys be! Even us authors have lives too! Again, sorry guys and gals!
Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or the characters, yadda, yadda, yadda… Blah, blah, blah. About all I DO own are Isrea, Sanaka and the few precious pennies that make up my life savings. So yea, don't sue me 'cause I'm broke!
Chapter Warning: Mild violence, language and adult themes.
-=Complicated Souls=- ---Written by: Isrea----=Chapter Three=-
---Meeting your Match---
"Reno…"
No answer.
"Reno!"
Again, no answer.
"RENO!!"
The red head jumped, green eyes wide as he spun around, a crumpled newspaper clutched in his fist as he came out of his daze. Seeing who it was that had disturbed his inner musings, he sighed while frowning slightly. He hadn't been paying attention again as he was off in his own little world. Apparently he had been doing that a lot lately…
"Much better." The blonde smirked at him.
Making his way across the kitchen to the coffee pot with a few long strides Reno let his face soften, his thoughts semi-returning to his inner world even as he did so. Setting down the newspaper and forgetting it instantly with an inaudible sigh, he collected a mug from the cupboard and poured himself a drink. "What already?" he asked irritated, his back turned to his friend. This habit of his was beginning to get bothersome and for a guy in his line or work, not to mention dangerous as well.
Elena huffed slightly at his tone, hefting up a box and planting it firmly on the tabletop, glad at last to get the heavy weight out of her arms. "This is yours. Rude wants you to go through it before we pack everything else up." Turning on her heel she shot a look over her shoulder at the red haired man's back, raising an eyebrow at his unseen expression. Lately he'd been a lot brighter, if not downright cheerful, since their return to town a week ago. Something had changed in that short time Rude and she had been away, though she was unsure as to what. It was almost as though some of the man's inner demons had been banished. He had been caught more then once day dreaming about something.
With a soft smile, she decided that she liked this change. Whoever it was or whatever it was that had fascinated the red head's attention, they were lucky to have it, in her opinion. "I'll see you later. Go through that box soon so we can finish loading the truck up." The red haired Turk merely waved off her statement, hearing her, but too busy in his own musings to really respond. Shaking her head and smiling, the blonde turned and left Reno to his own thoughts, exiting as quietly as she had come.
Reno did nothing for a short time, content to merely stare out of the kitchen window at the world outside. The window's ledge garden spread out before him. The lilacs were lacing the edges of their container and wafting sweet perfume in through the open screen placed perfectly above the kitchen sink, their purple-blue pedals swaying against the cool breeze. Today was going to be a good day, he declared to himself silently. He had slept better last night then he had ever slept in years. The sun was shining and the air was semi-clean, being so far from Midgar's dark smudge on the horizon. Birds fluttered in the trees, lifting their voice to glorious song. Life was good and even the glares and hateful muttered curses of the townsfolk couldn't possibly ruin his day. Not today.
Though, just why he was in such a good mood was beyond him. It's not like he had had a very good dream. He hadn't dreamed at all for the last few days -though actually that was good thing, since most of his dreams tended to be on the bloody side. He guessed that came from years of being a Turk. Reno shrugged the thought off.
'Oh well. Better get to that box already or Elena will have my head.' The Turk muttered mutely, turning to the table. The slate tiles under his bare feet were cold as he padded over to the table and took a seat. The cupboards were bare apart from the necessities and the kitchen was pretty empty about now, with only the table and chairs for furniture.
This was the day everyone in Kalm -especially Reno- had been counting down to. This was the day the three of them moved to Neo-Midgar and resumed work as Turks. This was the day they got the hell out of Kalm. Their licenses had been returned to them the day before and he carried it around in his wallet even now, ready to pull it out if anyone even thought of looking at him funny.
Licensed to kill. He loved that phrase so very, very much.
Outwardly he mumbled something unintelligible and the red head set to work on the box, pulling out an assortment of items from the heavily burdened cardboard. Shirts, photos, an old nightstick, books, odd trinkets, gun clips, an outdated magazine called "ShinRa Weapons Monthly", a bangle or two… he even thought he saw a materia glowing faintly underneath all that stuff. He huffed a sigh and set to work, sorting it into a pile of what he wanted and what he didn't. He tossed the ShinRa Monthly, as well as a few shirts with holes in them, into the garbage pile. Planet, how old was this box? Had he even unpacked it from the move into Kalm?
"Probably one of my 'in the closet' boxes Elena was always nagging me about." The red head stated aloud, content for now with the answer. It took him a full twenty minutes before he had everything out and sorted, and he had just started putting things back in when Elena appeared in the doorway, a satisfied smirk playing across her lips when she saw the state of the box.
"At least you heard me the fifth time." She teased, stepping into the bare room and taking a seat opposite of him.
"Yea, yea." Reno waved her off, the corners of his mouth twitching to smile. "How could I not, after all? Everyone in the neighbourhood heard you that time."
The blonde chose to ignore his statement and picked up a random clip of ammo, the cartridge to a USP 45 handgun. She looked at it a moment, turned it over in her hands and frowned. "Is this mine?" Of course it was. Neither Reno nor Rude used a USP. Nor did either of them mark their clips with their initials. "How the hell did it get into your box?"
Reno shrugged, his lips spreading into a wide grin as he set a perfectly folded shirt back in the box. "Ah, the miracles of moving! It's almost as mysterious as the 'socks in the drier' phenomenon. Though I'm sure humanity will figure out at least this puzzle by the end of the decade." He made a face of mock concern and continued. "I'm not quite sure about the drier though, I swore I saw an imp in there last week." His voice was practically dripping with sarcasm.
Elena shot him a shrewd glance. "Are you mocking me?"
The red head batted his eyelashes and pulled up his best 'innocent' look, though it failed miserably for Reno was everything short of innocent. "Yes, Elena. Yes I am. How very nice of you to notice."
"Asshole."
"The compliments just keep coming, don't they! You flatter me sometimes, Elena, sweetie."
"Fuck you, Reno!"
"If you insist!" and he jumped to his feet as he made a superman-like pose. "To the bedroom!!"
Elena chuckled in amusement and narrowed her eyes teasingly. "We already moved the bed, remember darling? Guess that means no nookie for you."
The red haired Turk looked stricken, then grinned foolishly. "Tables work just as good." And he reached across the table in an attempt to grab at the blonde.
"RENO!"
The red head faltered, raising one crimson eyebrow in mid reach. Well, he'd gotten a shout, but not quite from the source he had intended. Shifting his weight and pivoting he turned to face the door, cupping his hands before his mouth to shout back. "WHAT?"
The baritone voice that bellowed a return call could only be Rude's. "We've got visitors!" His bald friend's voice was as neutral as ever and he had a hard time deciphering if that was a good or bad thing.
Frowning slightly the Turk checked the holster already strapped to his jean-clad waist. Yep, nightstick was present. Reaching underneath the navy Turk jacket he found the butt of his 45 Cal with his fingers strapped securely in his shoulder holster. Gun. Check. He turned his eyes to Elena and the two shared a short gaze. She'd been checking her own weapon while he'd done his own.
Then the red head picked up his otherwise neglected cup of coffee and grinned. "Well, let's go see who our charming little visitors are. It just wouldn't be polite to keep them waiting now, would it?"
Elena shook her head and smiled sarcastically as her eyes watched the male walk to the door. "Only this time Reno, please don't hit anybody." She lectured as she joined him and the two headed down the hall.
"Aww, you take all the fun out of it!"
Sauntering out the front door, white mug in hand, the red head stopped on his front porch and raised one crimson eyebrow. Sea colored eyes scanned the assembled group slowly; his steady and unfaltering gaze caught each face. Five or six oddly assorted townsfolk had gathered outside their gate. The yard and the stone pathway leading to the step were oddly deserted of plants or yard things, thus it seemed bigger then it actually was and somewhat bare –though it was a good thing for it greatened the space between himself and the assorted group. They'd learned early on not to leave things out where the townsfolk could get to them and that had bothered Elena's sense of 'womanly touch' for a while in the beginning. Her thoughts of a garden had been firmly stamped out the first week. But the neatly cut, rich green grass was neat and always freshly cut, at least.
Solemnly Rude stood in the driveway, idly leaning against the black ShinRa issued pick-up. The boxes tapped shut were already piled high and he knew this would be the last load. Reno took all this in and then raised his gaze to meet that of the group's heated stares.
What now?
It was obvious by the stormy faces of the men clustered around the gate that they meant ill toward the small, outnumbered but certainly not outmatched, Turk group. This didn't bother Reno in the slightest, though. What bothered him was that he'd not be able to finish his lukewarm coffee.
Or maybe he would, depending on the way things went.
"Yes, ladies?" the red head asked, taking a sip of his coffee and eyeing the all male group with carefully hidden mirth.
"Ladies?!" he heard someone growl in the background, which was quickly cut short by someone else. The leader, a tall brown haired miner of around twenty or so, stepped forward.
"We don't want to see your face in this town again, Turk scum!" he spat, literally –right at Reno's feet in fact. For a moment the red head was just surprised the man could gain that much distance, against the wind, with a bit of saliva. "Get the hell out and don't come back, asshole!"
Reno raised his sea green eyes and levelled them on the man he simply acknowledged as 'Leader' and nothing more. He let a small chuckle rumble up from his throat and escape in his musical, rich voice. "I'm afraid I can't promise anything. See, President Reeve may have business in Kalm, and we may have to escort him here, after all." The red head stated, taking another sip of his coffee.
'Leader' looked disbelieving. "Like hell you will, ass! You're not no goddamn Turk anymore!" and 'Leader' promptly flipped him off rather unceremoniously.
Reno snorted in laughter and couldn't help himself from allowing a few short laughs to escape his throat, not entirely caused by the man's double negative. It took him only a moment to calm his short-lived laughing fit though. With one fluid motion he dug into his blue jeans rear pocket, pulled out the leather wallet and flicked it open. With the ease in which he completed the motion, it was easy to see he'd done it several hundred times –or he'd been practicing it in the bathroom for just such an occasion, one could never truly tell.
There, in plain view, was his license to kill. Reno's picture -which was serious for once, as he did not sport the goofy grin that adorned everything else- stared back at those whose eyes had gone wide and their faces paling quickly. 'Leader' quickly recovered and snarled something like another insult, although Reno was in no mood to hear it. His day, even with the apparent disaster coming up, was still simply superb. He was rather enjoying the sight of the squirming townsfolk under his direct, burning gaze.
"Fuck you, Turk! If you ever come back to this town we're gonna kick you back out on your ass, and you'll have more bruises then just on your ass!" 'Leader' replied, fists clenching at his sides. With an amused glance Reno seriously thought he could see a vein pulsing in the man's forehead.
This game, however, was beginning to lose his interest. "We'll do whatever we want, whenever we want, and none of you hick-town miner junkies can do or say otherwise." Reno finally stated, taking a gulp of his coffee before it totally lost its warmth. The summer air felt good on his skin and the sun shone about the yard in brilliant rays, but it was just not warm enough to keep his coffee hot. Oh well, give it a month and mid summer would roll around and then he'd be cooking eggs on his car's hood. "Now, why don't you children run along home to your mommies, I'm sure they have enough common sense not to come around ruining a Turk's good day without the balls to back it up."
'Leader' growled and few curses were heard from the assembled group. One even went so far as to pick up a rock and chuck it at Reno's window. The Turk only shrugged at the sound of shattered glass as it scattered around the lawn. That was supposed to bother him how? They were moving out, remember?
"Ah, now we throw things. Tell me, did you ever get spanked as a child for throwing tantrums? If not I'd be happy to oblige." And the red haired Turk made a spanking motion with his free hand, a wicked smirk playing across his features.
'Leader' growled and stepped forward again, passing through the open gate with menace. "Shut the hell up, you fucking faggot!"
That instantly got the red head's attention and his grin faded to that of a dangerous frown. Reno let the softest of snarls pass over his lips, sea green eyes darkening to a deep forest shade. Rude and Elena both read the signs in that instant and both shared a worried look. Reno was pissed. He practically shoved the mug of cold coffee into Elena's hands and stomped forward, fists clenching and unclenching at his sides.
Oh yea, they had hit a soft spot all right.
"What, the faggot Turk got all angry now?" 'Leader' snarled, taunting the enraged and slowly advancing enemy. "Whoop-dee-fucking-doo! I'm not scared of you, fag!" If he had noticed the murderous glint in the Turk's eyes perhaps he would have thought twice about that. Maybe he might have had the common sense to run like hell too. But he didn't and he was barely aware of the fist that swung at him until it was much too late.
The brown haired miner was launched through the air and into the gate, where he smashed the back of his head into the steel frame. Someone rushed to his aid, but Reno was already on him. One fist was pounding into the soft flesh of his almost unconscious adversary, while the other held him in place by the collar of his shirt. Reno was seeing red by now and was heedless of the screams of 'Leader's' followers, nor of the gurgling attempts at screams from his victim.
By any normal standards such a thing as insults would have never ticked him off so thoroughly. But he hadn't been called 'faggot' in a rather long time and it brought up some rather annoying memories. Most of which brought the face of the spiky haired blond to the forefront of his mind, something he did not thank the miner for doing. Not to mention Reno's sexuality had always been a touchy subject.
Then there were suddenly strong hands on his shoulders, pulling him back, up and off the man he so wanted to kill at the moment. Reno was barely aware of Rude's mumbled 'calm downs' as his companion struggled to keep the seething red head away from the miner. Elena had, in the mean time, walked up and rather savagely kicked the man in the side. She gave the others a hard glance before someone picked up 'Leader' and carted him away. The rest of the group quickly followed.
Reno seethed with red-vision rage, panting as he tried to calm himself while at the same time lashing his arms out in the direction of the fleeing townfolk. The bald Turk hadn't let go until the last of the group was out of sight and then he shrugged, stepping back enough that his friend could get some air. Reno pivoted and glared at both his friends, before yanking his cup of cold coffee from the blonde. He took a deep drink, shuddering only slightly at the cold and now bitter liquid as he tried to focus. Slowly his features schooled themselves up into a more calm expression and moments later he felt his anger receding. He sighed harshly, bowing his head and shaking it before he emptied the rest of the cup's contents down his throat.
"Thanks." Was all he said, before he brushed past them and started toward the house, intent on putting the now empty cup in the sink and packing up the rest of his stuff so that they could leave this stupid town and be on their way. He wasn't mad with them for stopping him -he was grateful actually. Sometimes his anger got the better of him and if he'd killed that miner, that might have made his life a bit more of a hassle then he would have liked…
And somehow, even now as his anger faded and common sense once again took hold, Reno was still in a good mood.
"Turks…"
Though how long that would last was an entirely different story.
Reno never made it to the kitchen; he didn't even make it to the doorstep, really. Spinning around on his heel so fast that he nearly toppled over, the red head watched the object of his attention with green eyes as wide as saucers and was very much surprised that they didn't pop out of his head. Rude had said nothing, as usual; once again the first to notice a new arrival. But Elena sucked in her breath in either hatred or startled realization.
Reno, well… the muted Turk didn't move, seemingly rooted to the spot with something that resembled both shock and anticipation. Though he did manage to hide it well with what part of his brain still functioned properly.
There, at the entrance to the gate, stood a rather familiar blond haired man by the name of Cloud Strife. An equally familiar brunette stood at his side, surveying the group with obvious dislike she didn't even try to hide. Somewhere in the back of his mind something snarled -the way she just hung off him like that, her obvious possessiveness, her flaunting- by the planet he hated that bitch! Cloud scanned the scene neutrally and took in the broken window and the loaded truck with a single sweeping glance of his calm, emotionless stare. Then he pinned his cerulean gaze back on the group of Turks before him.
"Looks like you're having a bit of trouble…"
And the mug, well…
SMASH!!Well, lets just say the mug never made it to the sink, either.
---To Be Continued---
Author's Notes:
1. Well, I'm not sure I liked the way this chapter turned out. For some reason I'm just not very happy with it. Satisfied, but not happy. It's a bit shorter then my other ones but that's okay. It started out a bit plain, and I apologize for that, but I thought it was necessary for the whole cliffhanger at the end there. *Cue Maniacal Laughter* MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! I shall torment you with the waiting for the next chapter! Fear my awesome writer's power!! ^_^;;
2. Thanks again goes out to Keeper Chronos for his betareading of this chapter! Your so awesome Chronos!! Thank you!!
3. And one again, comments/suggestions/hate mail can be sent to AdinaWolf_X@hotmail.com OR you could just push that shiny little button down there at the bottom that says "Submit Review!" I like to hear from my readers about what they think so send those emails and reviews everyone! I'm on a roll here and need everyone's help to keep my little muses locked up in their cages!
Muse 1: Let me out of here!!! LET ME OUT!!!
*Hears loud banging as suddenly one of her muses breaks out of its cage and attacks her*
Isrea: No, bad Muse! No cookie for you!! AAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
--We interrupt this Author's Note to inform you all that popular writer (or she thinks she is) Isrea Ishiida was attacked today at precisely 5:02 pm. We suspect the assassination attempt came from other jealous writers but one eyewitness has this to say...---
Terrified Eyewitness: It just came outta' nowhere man! Just like a freaken' monster! It jumped at her and started clawen' at her, and biten' her, and… and… awww man it was scary! Some aweful, fluffy creature did it! I saw! I saw!… Its gonna get me… its gonna get me… I'm the only eye witness… It's gonna get me!!!
---We are glad to receive news that Isrea Ishiida had then been rushed to the hospital and will make a full recovery by tomorrow so that she can get back to writing. On other news, a few other related attacks have happened since the creature's escape and we fear that out beloved planet may be in danger. If you come across any suspicious creatures contact your local police or SOLDIER facility immediately. Or run screaming like ascared little girl, whatever works for you. This is Scarlet of 109.2, Midgar Global, signing off...---
Terrified Eyewitness: It's the muse man, the muse!!! ITS GONNA GET US ALL!!!
4. Now I know I haven't been answering my Reviews directly, but I feel I owe you all that at least. So here is my half-assed attempt at a response to everyone!
Sparrow9: Thanks a bunch Sparrow! I hope to continue this, since I am putting all my efforts into it. Thanks for being my very firs reviewer!
PipTheAlmighty: Thanks Pip, I intend to! You're my second reviewer! Congrats and thanks!
Minako: Thanks a bunch for your review. As for Isrea, no she's not an Al-Bhead. The green is actually lifestream in her eyes. I think its okay to tell you that, anyway. As for her sounding like Aeris, she'd got the same type of temperament but she definitely isn't Aeris. Thanks for keeping up with me, and sorry about the horrendously long wait for this chapter!
Jhaylin: Thank you so much! I like to know people are enjoying my fic!
DemonButtercup: Thanks! I enjoy writing Reno related work. Maybe its just my facination with him? And its good to know that my character Isrea is liked as well.
Terra: ^_^ Thanks. Although I can't tell you who the Vassals of light and the Apostles of Darkness are. That would be giving away the story! As for Isrea, she's not Aeris but we'll wait and see, wont we?
Rogue Shadow: Awww! That's so sweet! Thank you so much! And yea, I wanted to huggle Cloud too! But then I realized that I am the one writing the fic and shouldn't be sympathising with my characters, else I might go soft-hearted and change the plot! o.o;; That would be bad! I have seen a rather good Reno x Cloud on the net but I can't remember where I found it. I'll go looking for it and get back to you on that as soon as I find it, kay? And thanks, you're the first to comment on Tifa. ^_^ I was hopping that I wrote her right, but I wasn't sure. Although, I might end up twisting around her character just a bit to suit my purposes. She always struck me as a possessive, jealous person, no?
Katie: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it! I was going for very intense and I am glad that I qualified! But I can't tell you what happened with Isrea -not just yet. You'll have to read on to find out! But I was kind of worried about the descriptions for the abyss. I went into great detail, but that can be a problem when people start to get lost in the drawn out description and don't know what the author is talking about from one part to the next. Thanks for reading so far!
Notebound Dragon: Thanks so much Notebound! I'm glad your enjoying it. I am glad that I managed to keep everyone in character, even Reeve's very short mention. ^_^ Don't worry, you'll be seeing and hearing from him a lot more in future chapters.
Amatsu: Thanks. And yea, it is hard to find Reno x Cloud fics, isn't it? I wonder why? Its probably because everyone's out there writing Sephy x Cloud or Zack x Cloud, that they forget about the REAL Cloud match up! Reno x Cloud! _ Sorry, I just have a Reno x Cloud thing…
Phew, finally done! That was a lot of typing! Well, wait for my next chapter everyone! ^_^
