It's been a long time since I posted here (again). But I found this little gem half done on my old computer and thought I'd finish it for the season. The Turks are still some of my favorite characters that I've ever had the pleasure to write.
Not in the Contract
Crystals clung to her eyelashes and stuck to her blazer. A small smile tugged at her lips as she gazed up at the overcast sky, slowly darkening in the fading light. Numb fingertips slid into her pockets, struggling to find a warm place to rest, as she walked further down the empty road.
She had always loved the little town of Icicle Inn—so tiny that the resident lodge was what gave the town its name. Regardless of the bitter cold or the near empty streets, the constant snow was always a comfort. It was a little bit of the Lifestream's magic unveiled outside of the signs of battle.
Missions to Icicle Inn were most often routine. They involved searching for monsters and SOLDIER prospects, mostly. Tonight was not much different. It was an extended mission to hunt down some monsters the locals had been rattled by in the previous weeks. Part of her suspected that it was meant to take her mind from the Zackary Fair situation.
The formal statement was that he had died trying to wage war on Shinra. She knew differently. The truth was he was being subject to horrid experiments by a mad man and there was nothing she—or anyone else—could do about it.
A door creaked behind her and she turned to see who it was, one hand reaching for Rekka in a well-honed reflex. The lanky man sauntered over to her, his unkempt shirt dutifully wrinkled to his upmost ability. Anything to irritate the boss.
She turned away, looking back up toward the falling snow, her hand slipping back into her pocket. The mako-enhanced streetlights flickered on above, lighting the snow beneath them an eerie shade of green.
"Ya might wanna get inside," Reno murmured, looking down at her.
She raised an eyebrow. "Why? I'm keeping a lookout." It was not entirely truthful, but it was part of their job.
"Not tonight. Tseng's orders."
She glanced up at her associate, eyes narrowing. "Since when?"
"Since he finally bothered to read his calendar, yo."
"What?" she asked in confusion. Reno never was one to make sense, but this was worse than the usual.
"Apparently you don't either, yo," he drawled, one hand motioning in a lazy arch, encompassing their surroundings. "It's Christmas Eve. All Shinra employees gotta get one day a year off. Tomorrow's it."
"But it's not tomorrow yet."
"Close enough, yo. Three hours ain't nothin' to worry about."
The hint of a smirk touched her lips. "Tell that to Tseng when we find a body tomorrow."
"We won't, yo. No work tomorrow." He grinned.
She rolled her eyes with a groan. "Reno…"
"Come on, 'Nei. Tseng'll never know."
"Until the autopsy report comes in."
"You know he won't order an autopsy for a fiend attack."
Folding her arms across her chest, she looked up at the drifting snowflakes overhead, weighing her options.
Reno reached out a languid hand, capturing her fingers in his own. "I already got the hot chocolate," he said, pulling her toward him.
With some reluctance, she gave one last defiant roll of her eyes before coming toward him. "Fine, but don't expect anything." She gave him a smug smile, years of working together allowing the playful banter to roll off her tongue with ease.
He leered as he swung his arm around her shoulders. "Wouldn't dream of it, Babe."
Hands pressed against his chest, pushing him away at the sound of the teasing nickname. She moved toward the steps without looking back.
Snow crunched beneath his boots as he leaned over, his hand scooping through the icy mound. Reno sauntered up the steps behind her, his strides carrying him two steps to every one of hers and within moments, they were side-by-side.
"Ya know, you really ought to know better than to turn your back on me, yo," he whispered in her ear, his hand sliding between the back of her neck and her shirt collar.
She shrieked as icy moisture slid down her back, already moving to hit him across the chest. Having anticipated the movement, the Turk in question was dancing away from the strike, allowing her to score only a glancing blow. His fingertips were already buried in a fresh pile of snow, as she shouted his name, irritated.
Reno glanced up, expecting to be hit square in the face with a snowball, but was met with no resistance. "Eh?" he asked, looking at his comrade. Cissnei was standing nearby, carefully removing her leather half-gloves and tucking them into an interior pocket. "Really, now?" It was impossible to keep the incredulity from his voice.
She smirked. "No use ruining them in a snowball fight. I might need them later."
Her opponent sighed, rolling his eyes. "Well, it's kinda hard to have one when the other team doesn't throw 'em back. Kinda sucks the fun out of it, yo." He turned away, expecting her not to continue with the fight.
Snow splattered against the back of his head, getting caught in his hair and melting to his scalp. "Hey!"
"I thought you knew better," she mocked, dropping over the porch railing and dashing behind a low wall. A snowball slammed into the upper portion of it, sending pieces skittering across the top and raining onto her head. It had missed her by mere centimeters. She shook the flakes from her hair with a laugh before gathering snow to return the favor.
There was a grunt accompanied by a crackling skid, like gravel on concrete. Peering over the top, she could just see Reno starting to stand, snow dusting his pants and blazer. His leap from the top of the stairs had not been quite as graceful as hers—evident by his muttered curses.
Cissnei took the opportunity to hurl a round at him, sending him diving back into the snow, searching for shelter. Using the cover of the shadows, she moved further down the road, looking for a better place to hide. A rusted old truck was parked along the wall of one building, looking as though it had not been moved in years. The tires were flat and rusted and the metal siding was peppered with dents. She ducked down behind a tire, peering around the front bumper.
Everything was silent as she sat, poised to throw at the first sign of movement.
A faint squeak like leather on metal sent her eyes dashing across the street before her, searching for the source of the noise. No other sound came.
Lights glittered on the snow, a soft breeze sending powder blowing across the ground in small clouds, like fog across a lake's surface. Stars twinkled through some wispy clouds above setting off the surreal stillness.
"Come on, Reno," she said, her voice a pale whisper in the night.
At the same moment, metal creaked, her head snapping upward to see Reno standing on the cab above, a mound of white falling on top of her. She had only a split second to glimpse the large bucket before the coldness enveloped her. With a stifled curse, she was on the run again, chucking the snowballs she had made back at him as he laughed.
It went on like that for another half hour, neither truly gaining the advantage.
The ending came with a face full of snow for the both of them.
With a last grunt of exertion, Reno lunged, his arms wrapping around her waist, pinning her arms. His feet slipped. A snowball fell from her hand as her arms struggled to flail and catch herself as they tumbled. It was futile. The pair landed in a heap, fresh snow shifting into piles around them.
Laughter echoed throughout the town, neither capable of holding it in check. Cissnei moved enough to wipe the snow from her face, before turning to look at her captor. In the green shadows she could just make out the sharp contours of his face, snow clumped on his cheeks. Realizing he was still on top of her, he shifted to the side, before looking down at her face.
Each stared at each other for a moment, both shivering in clothing nearly soaked through. Each content for just an instant to rest in the wake of the other's body heat, stomach's aching with laughter and breaths hurried as they fought to steady their breathing.
The moment passed and he became aware of his arms still wrapped around her waist and she realized her lips were just a little too close to his.
Reno pulled away, rising to his feet and dusting off his pants, before extending his hand to help her to her feet. She refused it, already getting up and brushing herself off.
He rubbed at the back of his neck, before he noticed the sharp chatter of her teeth, quickly stifled as she clamped her jaw shut. "Well, uh, that hot chocolate's still waiting, yo."
She forced a smile. "Right. Let's go."
They began walking back toward the inn in awkward silence.
Snow was still falling from the sky, but some of the magic was drained away in light of the chill that seemed to permanently saturate their skin, caused their clothing to cling to their bodies.
Reno caught her shivering. He paused, debating if he dared to breach the impenetrable line that had fixed itself between them.
Before he could think it through, his fingertips caught her blazer's sleeve, dragging her toward him. He hung an arm over her shoulders, but she pushed him away. "You're freezing, yo!"
She snorted. "As if you're any warmer."
"Just come here. It'll help."
He held out his arm, but she hesitated, amber eyes staring up at him cautiously, trying to read him. Her arms were wrapped around her, attempting to pull the warmth around her like a blanket. A sharp breeze blew their hair back and Cissnei winced before ducking under his arm.
"Fine," she muttered.
"Knew you'd see it my way," he said, moving the right side of his blazer so it covered her a bit and left her pressed against his dress shirt. They stood still for a moment, shivering. Soon they were able to feel the heat radiating from the other. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. "Better?"
Her voice dragging with a lack of enthusiasm, she replied, "A little."
"Let's get inside."
The pair walked as quickly as they could while huddled together, trying to get back to the inn. A sleepy silence fell over them, almost comfortable in wake of their frozen bodies and tired souls. Play was something they rarely got to experience in their line of work. It made their hearts brighter and their spirits lift in the dreary world they called home.
They reached the steps at the base of the inn and Cissnei shook Reno off, racing the last few steps up the stairs to the porch before sliding inside. Reno followed close behind her.
The warm air immediately hit them, a spark of shock against their numb skin. The inn was cozy inside with a warm fire and a small lounge area. There were a few couches and chairs and a table with two mugs on top of it near the fireplace.
Reno motioned Cissnei over to the lounge. He reached inside a chest at the end of the couch and pulled out a colorful blanket, tossing it over to Cissnei before grabbing one of his own. He glanced down at the two mugs and a frown creased his face. "Guess they're cold now." He picked up both mugs and headed over to the small kitchen area to reheat them.
He returned a few moments later, passing Cissnei a mug as he sat down on the couch across from her.
Cissnei eyed him suspiciously. "You never drink hot chocolate."
"It's Christmas Eve, yo. I'll make an exception," he replied, taking a sip of the drink.
Her eyes narrowed. "Don't tell me you added whiskey again."
He held up one hand in defense. Hot chocolate nearly sloshed over the edge of the mug as he raised it. "Not to yours." Reno gave her a helpless shrug.
She rolled her eyes as a warm smile tugged at her lips. "You're impossible."
"You wouldn't have it any other way, yo."
Cissnei tugged the blankets tighter around her shoulders and raised the mug to take a sip, hiding her smile. Surprise lit her eyes. "This is good, Reno."
"I know."
"So modest."
The two were quiet for a moment, each sipping their hot chocolate and enjoying the warmth of companionship. A friendship once born of necessity had slowly started to flourish over time. No one outside of their line of work truly understood how much of themselves was stolen by the paths they walked each day. The world they lived in was filled with ever-present shadows and the comrades they had that understood them were sacred.
Cissnei had never known anything outside of Shinra's walls—had never known what it was like to have a life that wasn't singularly focused on the job. Reno wasn't much better. The shreds of memory he had of his life before Shinra weren't much more pleasant than the life he walked now.
As they warmed, they talked idly of past missions, stepping carefully around those dark times. Laughter filled the lobby as they discussed pranks Reno had played over the years and counted the number of times Rude had had to replace his damn sunglasses.
The night waned and their eyes started to grow heavy. It was time to call it a night. As Cissnei folded the blankets, Reno took the mugs away and put the fire out. The inn was quiet at this hour.
Both turned to head upstairs, but Cissnei paused in the archway. "Thanks, Reno. I needed this."
He leaned against the frame. "Anytime," he replied.
She smiled up at him as his eyes drifted upward. Her eyes followed his gaze to the green plant hanging from the archway. "Mistletoe," she mumbled.
Reno glanced back up at the plant overhead. "It is tradition," he murmured, his cerulean eyes boring into hers as a smirk tugged at one corner of his lips. "You love traditions."
"You planned this," she accused, her voice hesitant as she gazed up at the disdainful plant. There was a reason Tseng had banned them from the office.
"Not a bit," Reno replied. "It's too perfect to be planned."
They stood awkwardly for a moment, her amber eyes staring up at him as pink rose on her cheeks. She looked away, uncertain. "Let's get this over with," she murmured, her voice a small squeak.
"Romantic," he said, drawing out the word languidly. His hand touched her chin, gently angling it back up at him. When her eyes finally met his again, he leaned down tenderly, softly pressing his lips to hers.
Her hands slipped inside his blazer, palms pressing into his chest as she raised up to meet him. His arms wrapped around her waist, keeping her close. Each tasted the sweetness of hot chocolate on each other's lips.
His tongue slid against her lips, and she acquiesced. A moment frozen in time, forging itself into one that would be forever remembered on a cold Christmas Eve.
Too soon the moment was broken. She pushed away from him, her eyes instantly averting. Stunned, his fingers grasping to catch her fingertips. "'Nei," he whispered.
She pulled away from him, fading into the shadows. Her voice was a low murmur as she said, "Not in the contract."
His mouth fell open. "What? 'Nei!" he called after her. He could hear her quick footsteps as she raced up the stairs. Running away from him. His hand strayed to his chest where he could still feel the ghost of her touch.
"Does it have to be?" he whispered.
Little bit of a sad ending, but I just love these characters so much! I hope everyone has wonderful holidays!
I don't usually plug my own stuff, but if you like my Turk fics: I recently reread some of my older stuff and I'm still really proud of "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Burdens They Bear" even after all these years, if you want to read more Turk stuff.