I Tried- Chapter 17
Turning Turk

It was only 9 am when he left home. He hadn't bothered to wake Padre, asleep at the kitchen table. Something told him that the priest wanted to talk to him, though Reno felt they were both avoiding any confrontation on this matter. Padre knew something was very wrong, and he left it that way. There was no time to argue.

Reno was trying to keep his mind clear, but he knew he was way over his head. The Turks kept invading his thoughts. First, he thought of the leader, Reeve. That man was confusing, he seemed so warm and friendly at a glance, however there was a lot more to him. They were all that way.

Tseng seemed angry about something that couldn't be helped; he was gruff, rarely talked, a stern façade drawn tight over sharp Wutain features. He was all business, knowing his place, what to say, and when to say it. Though there was something that made Reeve and Scarlet seem fond of him, as if they wanted to draw him in but he kept the distance.

Scarlet, the last Turk. Other then her horribly annoying laugh, there was little to complain about with her. There was little to complement as well. She seemed cold, disjointed, for lack of a better word, dead. Despite her wonderful figure and beautiful face, Scarlet didn't seem to care about much in the world. Though Reno got the distinct impression that she'd have ripped his lungs out if he threatened Tseng or Reeve.

That was what struck him, he realized, halting as he walked. They weren't happy to be where they were, obviously, but they seemed to be family. If one of them could have walked away, he doubted they would have left the others.

Reno wasn't waiting even a minute before the jet black car pulled up next to him. Something told him that they had been waiting for him. The driver's side window rolled down to reveal Reeve. His usual smile was gone, in its place was a frown, Reno didn't recognize Reeve at first. "In."

"You have the most spectacular people skills. Anybody ever tell you that?" Reno said sarcastically as he got into the front passenger side of the vehicle.

Reeve only nodded, something was bothering him. "Seat belt."

"Wha?" Reno looked about and was flung violently to the side as Reeve lit up the tires peeling down the alley. "Shiva!" Reno cursed and buckled the seat belt faster then he had ever done anything in his life before.

"Do what you are told and you will be fine, kid." So today wasn't a day for conversation, apparently. Reeve's face, while not happy, wasn't showing any emotion. His hands, however, gripped the wheel as though he was having an internal battle.

Nothing pissed Reno off more then being pushed aside or not knowing what was going on. He had about three hours of sleep, he was already edgy and now Reeve was acting like, like, a Turk. Not caring about Reeve's mood, Reno snipped back at him. "I have a name ya know."

"Does that bother you? That I didn't call you buy your name?" Reeve asked. His voice actually had inflection in it.

"Whoa, dat's two whole sentences there bro'! An' you can make ya voice sound human! You not able ta talk for what? 'Bout a month now? Break the Turk word bank?" Reno tried to joke the comment away, but he didn't feel jovial. It did bother him that no one called him by his name. Hell, no one knew his real name.

"You aren't answering."

Reno sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Whaddya think? Of course it bugs me." He let out a quiet curse and looked out the window. He looked at his hand, realizing that every time he pinched his nose, Reeve noticed.

Apparently, the Turk knew that habit meant he was wearing Reno down, for Reeve didn't stop talking. "Let's try this conversation speaking as if you haven't grown up in a rat hill, okay?"

Reno snapped his head around and stared at the Turk. "Excuse me? Where did you grow up then?" Elitist asshole, he thought, not that he was starting to like Reeve or cared, he also tried to remind himself. "Yes, as a matter of fact it does bother me that people see me on the street and think I don't have the common sense to get out of the rain or to spell my own name. But I do, and I can, so I think that I will live with myself. I wish that I had half the chances that people on the plates have tossed away. I don't have them and I never will. Wishing won't keep my daughter fed; hoping won't put clothes on her back." He sighed heavily, "And feeling sorry for myself won't do a damn bit of good either."

Reeve smiled, as if he had planned this interaction. "So why not do something then?"

Silence.

Reno himself suddenly felt very small, and exceedingly annoyed. He knew exactly what was going on; he had feared it since he left the Turks the day before. Reeve was offering him a position. This, however, was better then what Reno had thought would be his forehead pressing up against a gun barrel and being told that he was now a Turk. "No. I am not an assassin, nor am I going to be a corporate whore." If he was going to be given the option then he was going to make his point perfectly clear.

"So let your daughter be a whore later then?" Reeve asked as mildly as if he was asking what dinner would be tonight.

If Reeve had wanted to make Reno hostile in one short sentence, he had succeeded in spades. The young man's blue eyes narrowed dangerously, his voice suddenly carried spirit and fight that was shocking. "Bring her up like that again and I will kill you. Turk or not."

Reeve let out another one of his short humorless laughs. "Really? You wouldn't have the gun pulled before I shot you, so don't think about it. And you are the one who leaves that option open for your child, not me. I simply wanted to see what type of conversation skills I have to work with on you. You are impressive, you know."

Though his anger had not subsided, Reno wisely decided to let Reeve's accusations slide off and simply added, "for a slum rat."

"No, for anyone. You have had little to no personal teaching, and honestly you have better speaking poise then some plate people I have encountered. You must have a high IQ to be so well self taught. That with your photographic memory makes you impressive. Not just for your social class, or your age, but for anyone. We noticed quite a bit about you, Reno. You are smart, you know that, but I don't think that you see the big picture here. Don't sell yourself short Reno."

"You make it sound so simple." Reno had no idea that one conversation could be so unnerving, he already felt drained.

"It gets to be." Was all Reeve said.

They stopped in the back of the Shinra building, Reno was astounded with the security of the place. Reeve was treated with a grudging, fearful respect from the SOLDIERS watching the multi-gated building. The place was enormous, intimidating, and for some reason, Reno was very glad that he had a Turk with him. Most of the SOLDIERS acted like beating the piss out of a skinny slum kid would be the highlight of their day.

The parking garage was totally underground. Reeve parked the car and had Reno follow him outside and past some chocobo stables. At first, Reno was shocked to see quite a few of Chocobo Bill's birds- one could tell by the brand on their right legs- in the herd, though, he supposed if anyone could afford that many of Bill's birds, it'd be a ShinRa.

There was a loud warking and a man yelled "DUCK! CHOCOBO!" Without thinking of the humor in the phrase, Reno and Reeve both hit the deck as a huge black bird raced past. Reno's hand had slid to the gun in the back of his pants, he then noticed- a bit to his disappointment- that Reeve had actually drawn and readied two guns before he himself drew one.

"Shit! Someone stop it!" the voice that had alerted them moaned.

Now Reeve looked almost as if he could kill someone and feel fine about it. "Get it Reno."

Reno tore after the chocobo the moment the order left Reeve's mouth. It wasn't until he caught the black's bridle and pulled the animal's large head down to his chest that Reno realized how quickly he had obeyed the order. Was Reeve's smooth tenor voice that compelling? Or was it more that Reeve actually seemed to harbor some respect for Reno? Did being treated as- he shook his head and locked eyes with the bird, patting it still. "I don't think I wanna be here either big guy…"

The trainer ran up and took the bird from Reno, saying a quick "thank you, Turk" before heading back to the stable. Reno was too shocked at the thank you and the word "Turk" to respond. Angrier at being labeled a Turk then the fact that he had basically asked "how high" when Reeve told him to jump, Reno pivoted to glare at Reeve, a cutting remark on his lips.

What he saw was a bit perplexing, it halted his commentary. Reeve was still in the process of getting up off the ground. His left knee- the bad one- had a dirt smudge on it; the suit looked a bit ripped. It seemed that he needed to use entirely his right leg to get to a standing position. His face didn't show much pain, though he was breathing quickly.

Reno approached slowly, he felt a bit awkward. "Ahh, you alright?" Reno asked, admitting to himself that he kind of liked Reeve, as long as the other man was in a good mood.

The glare Reeve sent him was chilling. "I'm fine."

That was a lie. Reeve's limp was suddenly pronounced, it was obvious he banged a really bad injury. Reno walked beside him, slowing his own pace a bit in the hopes that Reeve would do the same- not that Reno knew where the hell he was in the fist place.

Reno knew enough about scars and injuries to know when there was a story behind them. And even though he loathed it when people asked him the very same question, he asked it anyway. "What happened to you?"

Reeve walked on, controlling the limp better with each step. He shook his head. "That's also classified."

"Does it have to do with my father?" Reno could have slapped himself for even asking that. He was trying to be professional, but it was eating him, this man knew his parents, personally. Reeve knew things and Reno felt he had a right to know those things.

"Yes."

Reno halted, watching Reeve limp in front of him. "What happened!?" He demanded.

"I told you kid, classified."

Furious, Reno yelled down the thankfully empty hallway. "That's it, 'Sorry kid, can't tell you shit about the man who abandoned you and your mother'?"

"He'd never have done that, Reno. That's all I can tell you." Reeve stopped and looked over his shoulder. "Stop asking questions, you're just going to make things harder on yourself. Now come on, we have to fit you for a suit."

And off Reeve limped, Reno had no choice but to follow him.

Scarlet was a bit shocked to see Reeve sitting in the Turk office, minus the red head. "I thought that you were getting the kid." She peered over Reeve's shoulder. "What are you looking into Hojo's files for? You aren't going to actually tell him are you?"

"I left Reno with the tailor, and I think I've already told him too much. He hangs on my every word, demands answers."

"Can you blame Reno? He had the one thing none of us did, parents that loved him. And he couldn't keep them long enough to know that." Scarlet rubbed her shoulder and got a chilled coffee from the mini fridge before sitting at her own desk. She snarled at the pile of Weapon's Development work they were moving her to.

"No, I can't blame him, but what good will telling him do? He'll want to kill Hojo, and all we can say to that is 'get in line'." Reeve sighed. "Changed his password again… bloody psychopath."

Scarlet laughed a bit, after lighting a cigarette. "Oh, just guess it. Hojo never has his important files on anything but coded paper, his passwords are a breeze. You just gotta think like a morbid sadist with a half inch cock."

Reeve snorted. "Something you need to tell me Scarlet?"

She growled at him, tossing a paper ball from her station to bounce off his head. "I have enough trouble sleeping, thank you very much, I don't even need to consider that." She gave up on concentrating on the files. "I was there when he died and everything changed, hell, I even remember getting chipped so we-" she mimicked a droning males voice- "'wouldn't continue to have these spirited situations'. And I don't even know what all happened."

At her reminder, Reeve rubbed the tracking chip imbedded just at the stem of his spine. He could feel the little chip under his skin, removing it would be impossible without killing him. With it, ShinRa could pinpoint his location within ten feet. He motioned to his leg. "I woke up, this hurt, and we went back to doing our jobs. That's all we need to know. Questions, I'm not brave enough to ask questions anymore."

"There's a fine line between cowards and smart people I think." Scarlet muttered, watching her cigarette smoke.

Reeve shut the computer down and raked his hands through his hair. "And what are we?"

She finished the cigarette before answering him, thinking the whole time. "Alive, so to speak."

Shaking his head, Reeve turned to the door.

Before he made it, Scarlet spoke up again, "Whatever we are, at least we aren't alone right?"

Reeve smiled for the first time that day. "Right."

Reno followed Reeve again. The two were mostly silent, people passing gave them no regard. Turks were ignored, out of fear, respect, or something darker. The twisting hallways made Reno anxious. He was used to knowing an exact way out of any building. Even his memory was pressed to the max with the ShinRa corridors.

Finally, Reeve halted by a door, his smile back. Reno cocked an eyebrow, but when Reeve opened the door he saw why the Turk was smiling. Along every wall, like books in a vast library, were weapons. Reno's eyes lit up like a spoiled brat on Christmas. "Holy shit!"

"Those were my fist words exactly." Reeve said with a laugh. He motioned to Tseng, who was practicing with a rifle in the mini range to the far back of the large room. Reno ignored them both for a moment, head darting from item to item, shock guns, assault rifles, bombs, swords, things that he didn't even know of were shining in his direction. "Reno, come here."

Again, he listened, a bit slower then the first time. Reno stood beside Reeve, looking at Tseng. "Yeah?"

"Se is going to test your weapons proficiency. I'll be back in about an hour." The look he gave Reno clearly begged that he didn't blow the room up. Another friendly nod to Tseng, and Reeve left the two of them.

Half an hour and twenty holes in the wall later, Tseng needed a back massage and about three valiums. Reno knew what he was doing. That much was obvious the minute Tseng turned his back. Reno had moved the parts around inside the weapon Tseng was trying to use. Of course, just Tseng's luck, he neglected to notice this before the gun exploded in his face.

Tseng responded by chasing the red head about the large room, finally corning him near the target he had been using the rifle on. "Okay, now, move before I orphan your kid." He picked up the rifle and motioned to one of the weapon's cages.

Reno obliged, but not without a few choice words about Tseng's mother and any one else the Wutain happened to be related too. After locking the younger man in Tseng growled. "Now, I am going to change my clothes, and then I am going to come back here and kick the living shit out of you, street trash."

"I'll just wait here then," Reno said coolly. "When you do get back, you are welcome to try to kick my ass, suit. It may just be a fun time." Tseng simply grumbled and stalked away, leaving poor, innocent Reno all alone, with an active container of napalm...

Scarlet was changing into that damn dress again. It was one that she had a "Special Request" from President ShinRa to wear. Of course, that meant that if she didn't wear it, there'd be hell to pay. She clearly recalled when the president had taken notice of her, the cut of her suit started to change. Instead of having her work the door from the shadows with the other Turks, she was to accompany him to events in dresses like this blasted red thing. Weapons development, while really what she was starting to do, was usually secondary to her real new job.

One wouldn't have guessed it by looking at her, Scarlet hadn't been a whore until she became a Turk. No, she was a drug dealer, famous in the slums for the Red Bombshell, a drug that could be injected or dropped into the eyes. She was smart, cold, perfect for being a Turk, and a Turk she had become. Though now she sometimes wished that she had said no, or ran away. Then of course, she wouldn't have Reeve-

She shook her head. There was work to be done, Reno needed dancing lessons and odds were that Serena Collider would wear something just as revealing. She was just stepping into it when she noticed Tseng out of the corner of her eye. All the Turks had always shared everything, including showers and locker rooms; they made no big deal out of it. However, she noticed that Tseng seemed to be rather crisp and missing his eyebrows.

Before she opened her mouth the Wutain shook his head. "Don't even ask Scarlet, I am going to strangle that damned street tramp."

"What's wrong with being a street tramp, Se?" Scarlet almost laughed as she tied the dress behind her neck. She crossed to the sink and put a towel under the cold water. She then asked a question before offering the item to Tseng. "You didn't hurt him did you?"

"I should have." Tseng snapped. "But no, I didn't." He pressed the item against his forehead, cursing lowly in Wutain.

"Well then, where is he?" Scarlet asked. It wasn't safe to wonder around ShinRa alone if one had no business there.

Tseng opened his mouth to tell her to relax, Reno was locked away safely however, an explosion caused them both to leap around. They shared a look of dread before running to the armory.

Scarlet and Tseng were joined by Reeve, all three knew immediately what had happened. They only hoped that one of the execs wasn't currently in the building. None of them were in the mood for a lecture, particularly one from Heidegger. The three Turks ran to the armory, as they neared a red head popped out the door, noticed them and ducked back into the now smoking room. By the time they made it into the room, Reno was sitting exactly where Tseng left him, but the shelves were no longer standing. A gaping hole in the wall beyond revealed a very charred desk. "What?" Reno asked innocently as all three Turks crossed their arms over their chests.

"Isn't that Heidegger's desk?" Tseng asked.

"Yup" Reeve and Scarlet said in unison.

Reno blinked, he had expected a reprimand, however, none of the Turks seemed interested. They leaned against the wall, in an identical fashion, Scarlet in between Reeve and Tseng. They looked beyond the red head to the desk, sighing as if they were going to deal with somethingunpleasant shortly.

Reno was about to say something when a large man burst into the room. He had run to the location as well, and his beady eyes focused on the whole in the wall. A square jaw flexed as his nose flared, trying to gain his breath though he was obviously no where near the shape the Turks were in. He reminded Reno rather closely of a disgruntled pit bull, rottweiler mix he'd seen at a dog-fight before. "What-" he started, taking in a hard breath, "What the hell is going on here?!"

In response the Turks lifted their left hands and lazily pointed to Reno.

The vicious look that came from the big man was certainly akin to a fighting dog. "What?" He was furious, glaring at Reno as if he was going to throttle the red head himself. Something else came to his face, a new source of anger, and he rounded on Reeve, though the Turk wasn't fazed. "What is this kid? I was not informed of a new recruit! I thought that it had been made clear that within this company there is a chain of command and you lot are on the bottom! I knew we were stupid for even starting this program, the whole bunch of you are nothing more then worthless gutter trash and it appears that you always will be!"

Reeve only smiled, it seemed for a moment that he was going to try to smooth things over with the angry man. "Last time I checked Heidegger, only two people gave me orders, and only one of them signed my checks. As for the kid, he seemed like a good idea at the time." Scarlet and Tseng both cracked smiles.

Heidegger- rather an intellectual name for a man that acted like a junkyard dog, Reno thought- clenched and unclenched his jaw. "You're the smart one, I forgot. I want you, that slut and the fucking Wute away from my office and take that damn street rat with you!"

The last bit of that, made Reno angry. He didn't know why or what really made him feel that way, maybe it was the fact that all three of them just stood there and took the verbal abuse. Whatever it was he rose from his spot quietly, and strode over to stand behind Heidegger. He pressed the muzzle of his gun at the back of the large man's head. "I'm sorry, I don't hear so well, it sounded to me like you were being a bit of a misogynistic racist, and I know that I am mistaken." He pulled the hammer back on the weapon.

"Mis-" Heidegger's eyes moved to the side, as if he could have seen Reno. Then he looked directly at Reeve. "Do something." He hissed.

"Why not ask the slut or the Wute?" Reeve sneered from the wall. "You don't want a new recruit, looks like there's random people wandering ShinRa today."

"Why ask the worthless street trash anyway?" Tseng quipped, it was the first time that Reno had seen him almost jovial.

"Gutter, Tseng. Gutter trash." Scarlet replied playfully.

Heidegger's eyes darted from the Turks to the back of his head, the aggressive tone in his voice moved to a distinct whine. "Reeve!"

"Hmm. Will you clean up this mess if the kid doesn't kill you?" Reeve asked.

"Sure, whatever, just get him out of here." Strange how fast the junk yard dog started whimpering.

"Let's move. We have work to do still." Reeve said, and the Turks began to walk out.

"Ta ta." Reno smirked as he fell in line with the Turks.