Hey guys! Sorry for the delay. I was in Canada for a week and I just came back. Couldn't really write while on the road. But I'm back!
RaspberryPolarBear - If you feel sorry for Reno in the last chapter, you'll need a box of cleenex in this one. Man, their lives just SUCK. They SUCK. Really bad. I'm evil. Muwahahahaha. But this one's a good one, I promise. And it's canon. Taken directly off from the movie. Ha. I rock.
Insanity - Cloud really reminds me of chocobos. Sorry, but that hair is just uncalled for. It defies gravity and it defies good sense. I'm amazed that nobody in the game or the movie called him a Chocobo. I would. And I think Reno would too, if he came around to it.
Echo - Here's your update. Now gimme all your money. (j/k) I dunno if they'll ever me together again. I mean, that might be hard right now. But all will be revealed soon enough. I'm bringing my pace back up to chapter a week. Their life sucks, but if the world didn't suck, we'd all fall off.
ODSTgirl 058 - I don't know why I wrote that last part. I was probably high on caffeine and thought it cool or something. Reno took thirty pills from the bottle, which was the entire bottle. Elena's checking Reno out! Haha. I have a thing for guy's collarbones and hoodies. Oh well.
cookiekitten - well, Rufus is going to fall off, Cloud is going to ride his bike like a hot-ass he is, and Reno's just going to be Reno. I am not hojo! Call me Sephiroth's Daddy instead. (Although it defies genetics that such a hottie came from that large tadpole... seriously.)
NarcissisticRiceball - thanks! Reno isn't used to rejection, I guess. He's used to women throwing themselves at him. And he can't really think of why Arien would reject him. Poor Reno. He's utterly confused and he's in for a bad day. Thankfully, Rude's around to keep him out of serious trouble.
Reaping but Never Grim - awww! Thanks! You're going to need kleenex for this chapter. (Hands everyone a box) I think this is going to be the climactic chapter of the entire story. But there's still more in the later part, don't worry. The story's not quite over yet.
The ruler doesn't work, so I'm going to improvise instead.
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Chapter 21: Bad Day
Renaldo Miller, AKA Turk Extraordinaire and a womanizer and a drunk, was definitely in for the bad day. He had just recovered from his attempted suicide, determined to forget about the woman who had turned his life inside out and upside down, snagged a drink, hauled a full grown woman up the stairs and more, nearly got lectured by that very baggage he had hauled, and crashed into a bed without even feeling any remorse. And now, there was a ruckus going on outside. He raised his head sleepily, and squinted at the alarm clock. It read 10:40 AM. Too early for anything. He deserved a fucking break.
He ambled over and pulled the curtains to the side, then wondered if he was still dreaming.
People were running, but from what or who, he had absolutely no idea. The truth was, he didn't even want to know. They were running to and fro, this way and that, here and there, like scattered grains of small spiders fleeing from water. He absently rubbed his bare neck, then realized that he was topless and that was the reason he was cold, and grabbed a shirt. Then he went to get the phone, which was ringing hysterically. The morning had turned into a hysterical panic dream.
Or not.
"'ello?" Reno murmured into the phone, pushing his red mane away from his face to no avail. The red strand of hair decided to flop back into its original position, where it sat complacently on his nose. He blew on it. It refused to budge. He gave up.
"Reno?" It was Elena. "Do you know what's going on?"
"Ya mean, the chaos outside or the banging headache? It's no to either of them."
"I see." Elena paused.
"Why, yo?"
"We can see the entire mess in the city center from Healin. Tseng wants you and Rude to investigate. Rufus has gone to the city to see one of the trio, and we need to have him safe."
"What the fuck!" He yelled. "Gimme a fucking break, yo. I need a break. I mean it."
"Hey, don't yell at me," came back Elena's injured voice. "Blame Tseng. Rude's coming over in ten minutes. He's just as bad-tempered as you are, so don't dillydally, okay?"
"Whatever."
"I mean it."
"Okay, bitch."
"What!" Reno slammed down the phone before he could hear Elena's swearing. Unlike Arien, she just couldn't get the exact rhythm right. Swearing was the art that Elena hadn't mastered; and he seriously doubted that she ever will. He blew on the hair again, then buttoned the shirt and then began his quest to find his slacks.
It took five minutes to unearth his slacks, and he found that it was hopelessly rumpled. Oh well. He pulled it on, frowned as he belted the leather, realizing that he had lost some weight. He was just pulling on his jacket when the doorbell rang.
"Okay, okay! Sheesh," he muttered as he flew down the stairs and opened the door. Rude was standing there, his shades firmly on his nose, his face expressionless. "Wait there for a sec," Reno told him. "Gotta go find my nightstick. Be back in a moment."
The EMR was propped up in the room. He touched the handle with familiarity, taking comfort in the weight. The leather wristband felt comfortable, the familiar weight in his hand a welcome. It meant security, it meant being a Turk. It meant himself, his identity.
"Okay," he called as he trotted down the stairs. "Let's go."
It was not difficult to find the hub of the chaos. It was the monument Rufus had raised in the middle of the town. The trio – minus the little kid – was pulling on the chains from the top, which absolutely puzzled Reno. Looking over to Rude, he found that Rude was wearing an identical expression, plus the shades. "Let's go ask what the hell they're doing," he said.
Rude nodded.
The two walked over – in Reno's case, sauntering was more precise – where the tall man-woman and the macho were pulling on the chains. "Watcha doin', yo?" Reno asked sarcastically.
"Mother's here, isn't she?" The man-woman answered. Before Reno could open his mouth, Rude spoke up.
"What makes you think that?"
Surprisingly, Macho answered. "This… uh, what, monument?" He sounded unsure, and Reno made a mental comment that if he was any slower, he'd have to be watered twice a week. "Shinra made it."
"Huh hum!" Reno mused. "So you guys used your brains, yo." He made it sound like he was utterly astonished.
"But… you're off." Rude's deep voice was emotionless.
"We don't know either, yo."
"Oh. Trust rate zero, huh." Man-woman replied sarcastically. This set Reno off. He looked at Rude, who looked away. He opened his mouth. Then looked back at Rude. He was still looking away. He looked back at the two.
It was time to stop thinking (not that he was in the first place) and take some action. With a yell, he swung his EMR.
It was then that he heard a terrible roar. Automatically, he looked up – hitting Rude's nose, not the silver-haired duo, in the process – and wondered for the umpteenth time if he had too much to drink the night before.
It was a Bahamut. Except that it was the biggest he had ever seen. And throughout his days as a Turk in Shinra Company, he had seen his share of it.
"This is…" he mouthed. Rude finished the sentence.
"Impossible."
He turned, nearly hitting Rude again, and started to run. He damn well knew when to run. Like, right now.
He fled, Rude hot at his heels. His first and the foremost priority was to get the hell away from the monster as fast and as soon as possible.
So he surprised himself when he saw a kid, standing comatose, and stopped to grab her. The child resisted furiously, inserting her slender fingers up his nostrils. That hurt like hell.
"Ow!" he mouthed, then carried the child anyways, and started to run. Rude was behind him, two children in his arms, running furiously, but not as fast as he would have liked.
"Is it comin'?" He yelled at his dark-skinned partner.
"I don't want to see!" Rude yelled back. Just then, Reno caught a brilliant light behind him. He dived, child in his arms. Then the world exploded around him for the second time in his life, and he knew no more.
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Arien DeVir screamed into her brand-new cell phone. "Absolutely not!" She shouted. "You're going to get yourselves killed." Her old clothes had been discarded, and she was in black now, fitted to her body like a sheath. Her right arm was bare, cut from the shoulder, making it easier for her to gain access to her weapons. Spy, gang, they were the same thing. It was just that spies were officiated and gangs were not. But the job was the same.
"I am not joking," she said crossly, leaning onto a tall pillar nearby. The underground hideout was certainly lavish. "It's an absolute mess, and I can assure you, the Turks had nothing to do with it. Besides, since when are you the peacekeeper of the town?" She listened, a small frown etched on her face. Then she barked into the phone, "Kadaj is setting you up! No, the Turks are not attacking! Besides, attacking the Turks is a suicide mission. Trust me, I used to be one of them." She rolled her eyes as she heard the response. "You want me to go take down the redhead? Are you mad?" After a few minutes, she shut the phone with such a snap that it echoed throughout the cavernous hall.
"What's wrong?" Fugo asked as he saw Arien's face livid. She whirled to face him, her hair flying.
"Your boss wants me to take down the Turks Ace. I'm probably going to end up dead." She snapped. "I don't find the prospect of an upcoming death very pleasing. It's not conducive to longevity."
Fugo laughed. "Really, DeVir. How bad can it be?"
"He can take down four of me for breakfast and not break out a sweat. It can be extremely bad."
"Ah," Fugo said pleasantly, "but that was before you discovered Pink Floyd, wasn't it?"
Arien stared. Then she turned on her heels and stormed away. "That doesn't help my mental status," she retorted loudly as she walked away from the tall blond.
"What did I say?" Fugo wondered out loud.
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Reno's eyes opened, and he hastily assured himself that he was definitely not dead. He was lying on the asphalt. The kid was gone. Oh well. He probably squashed her. He wasn't fat, but he was much bigger than the kid. He moved his hand, hearing the ringing noise of metal on the asphalt and propped himself up groggily.
Then he heard that snide voice, and the child was instantly out of his mind.
"Hey, isn't it fun?" Man-woman taunted.
"Not… at all, yo!" Reno was getting pissed off, to say the least. Without thinking, his leg launched into a kick, which Man-woman dodged. He attempted to kick again; for some reason, he wasn't running into anybody. Then a punch. Then a swing.
Unfortunately, Man-woman seemed to be more agile than he looked. He easily dodged all Reno's attacks and a foot landed on Reno's face. Ow.
But the redhead was too incensed to give up. He ran back toward the sneering Man-woman. "You guys are really stubborn, yo!" He yelled angrily. He was really getting pissed off.
Then the Man-woman made an impossible jump onto a nearly building – or something – and replied, "I told you, if you just give Mother back, it will be the end of this." His – or her – silvery hair fluttered in the breeze. Definitely Pantene, Reno decided lamely. What a pansy.
Reno ran to the building and started to climb. In his fury, the speed doubled. The last stretch was more of a jump, and he swung his EMR just as he landed… but the Man-woman dodged again. Freakish bastard.
Reno caught Rude flying through the air from the corner of the eye, and his brain registered that Rude was not supposed to fly; but the Man-woman was blocking all his attacks and he was getting preoccupied, so he did absolutely nothing about it. "This Reunion or whatever, are you guys sane!" He taunted.
"We just want to see our Mother," the Man-woman replied calmly, then kicked Reno across the street. Luckily he landed on Rude, but still it hurt like hell. He stood up and dusted himself off, stepping on Rude's spiffy shades due process, then dusted himself off a little more. Rude voiced a protest but Reno wasn't listening. The bald Turk gave up and produced another pair of shades. With Reno around, one never knew when something got destroyed. You just had to be ready.
"Ya know, you keep calling it Mommy, but it's just Jenova's head," Reno pointed out. Rude winced. Not the best thing to say to the silver-haired duo.
"Hey!" Macho called in.
"Don't call Mother like that!" the Man-woman said angrily.
"Unforgivable!" The Macho added in.
"Our bad." Rude tried to placate the two. Reno looked at Rude.
"I guess… wait, why the hell are we saying sorry?" Reno broke into a run then launched a kick midair, while Rude launched a solid heading and a punch into Macho's face. The two flew backwards. Reno grinned and gave a thumbs-up as he landed onto the ground.
Then as the redhead stood up, Macho punched Reno in the face, who landed into Rude, who staggered backward. They flew a couple of yards backward, and landed on the ground painfully.
But that wasn't the end. Reno and Rude still stood up. They went back to back as the silver-haired duo closed in.
Then the light exploded in the distance. Rude and Reno both looked toward the direction, and they both saw a big winged thing falling from the sky.
"Bahamut," Rude mouthed. Reno nodded.
"Time to go," Man-woman said. Reno sputtered.
"What?"
"This was a bit of fun," Man-woman explained with a sneer on his face. "Our little brother is doing the most important work."
Reno and Rude looked at each other again. One thing was on their mind:
Rufus.
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"The fateful encounter is near."
"Ah."
"Either way, the raven-haired one is doomed."
"Either way?"
"Either way."
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Arien could not believe this. She just couldn't. Someone was having a sick laugh at her expense. This was impossible. It just couldn't be true.
She was to kill Renaldo? What a sick joke.
First of all, she would end up being in the ditch, not him. Drunk or not, Reno was still the ace of the Turks. His combative ability added to his slyness was nearly legendary among the Shinra officers, whether anyone liked it or not. Second of all, even if she could, she could not kill him. Ever. She had sacrificed everything for him, and she just couldn't do it.
Oh god.
As she holstered her gunblades and sheathed her knives, a large tear rolled down her face. She did not even realize it until it fell onto the brown table in the weaponry room, but when she saw a large drop fall onto the table, she moaned.
"Reno, where did we go wrong? And what can I do?"
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"Boss!"
Rufus was falling, but not without a fight. He was liberally emptying his shotgun – double barrel, and he was shooting it one-hand, which defied everything Reno knew – at Kadaj. But without much success.
Kadaj's extended fingertips touched the black box. The very black box that had nearly killed Tseng and Elena. Kadaj grabbed the box. Tucked it in, rolled into a ball, then landed onto the ground.
While Tseng and Elena shot the nets. Rufus was safely caught in it. Rude and Reno breathed again.
Then the silver-haired trio fled for some reason, but that was out of Reno's concern. His current – and only – concern was the white-robed president, lying in the net in mid-air.
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"I want you two to give help to Cloud," Rufus said.
Reno stared at his boss, but did not say anything. That was an unlikely thing for Rufus to say. But then, Rufus was probably calculating the benefit of befriending the Chocobo Head, and came out in the positive range. Trust Rufus to analyze the world in simple arithmetic.
"You may use the Shinra chopper."
Healin was safe and quiet, unlike the pandemonium down below. Elena was sitting next to Tseng on the sofa behind Reno and Rude.
"I don't care what you do, but you must deter Yazoo and Loz," Rufus continued. "They're on the expressway. Find them, and stop them. That will be all."
The Turks walked out of Rufus' room in a daze. Then Reno grinned evilly, and glanced at his partner.
"So, partner, how are we gonna do it?"
Minutes later, Reno and Rude were standing on the expressway, a Shinra chopper behind them.
"Hey, mate," Reno glanced at Rude, "Is this thing powerful?"
"It's a crystal of Shinra's technology," Rude replied.
"You made it?"
"Putting aside the power, it's flashy." He flashed a grin at the redhead. "You like it, don't you, partner?"
"Uh oh." Reno faced forward. "Guess won't be working overtime, yo." He set the timer to two minutes, then backed away. Rude did the same.
The black figure was approaching, the head definitely resembling a large chocobo. Cloud. Reno ignored him. Their target was the one following the Chocobo Head.
He grinned as the tandem motorcycle approached. He grinned happily. Time for the payback, and payback was a bitch.
"Boom," Reno mouthed.
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Kadaj saw flashes of purple and blue lights and looked up. What the hell was going on?
Then Cloud rained from the sky, and the thoughts of flashy fireworks escaped his brain.
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Reno's day wasn't over by a long time yet. With Rufus' order taken care of, they had taken the chopper back to the Edge. Rude was taking the chopper back to Healin. Reno was going to walk.
Until, that is, he heard a shot whiz by his face.
He immediately stopped his gait and looked to the left. It was an empty alley, dingy and dirty just like all other alleyways, and quite empty by the looks of it. But Reno knew better. He tensed, slowed his breathing, and waited.
Then launched into a run into the alleyway.
A shot grazed past, cutting open his forearm. A thin line of crimson appeared, but Reno ignored it. Someone was trying to kill him. Goddamn it, was it "Pick on Reno Day" or something?
He saw a movement to the right. Pulling out his own pistol and readjusting the EMR in his hand, he followed it into an open parking lot, long deserted.
Then he groaned.
Nightmare.
He knew the chiseled face which was staring at him, the blue-green eyes cold and distant. He had loved the face. He had kissed the lips for many times, sucked on it, loved it. He had caressed the delicate cheekbones, seen it melt under him. He knew the raven hair that framed the pale face, the intensity of the stare. He knew every inch of the body.
But he did not know that he was going to be the receiving end of the bullet.
"Arien," he whispered. He saw the hard icy shell around her tremble and crack, but she regained her posture. She raised her arm – right arm, artfully bare, the very arm that had received him only a few months before –
And fired.
Reno dodged to the right, threw himself onto the ground. While at that, he pulled the trigger.
Arien dodged to his left. Another shot rang. Then another.
A bullet embedded itself into his left arm. Grimacing, he shot again, pretending to aim toward the left, then suddenly changing his course. Arien, thrown off, dodged to his right.
He could not expect it. No way. But the bullet had left the gun, sliced through the air, spinning, and landed onto Arien's black leather-clad breast.
And cut through it like a hot knife in butter.
Reno screamed. Although he tried not to, he screamed, as he dropped the gun. She had left him. She had abandoned him.
But he had killed her.
He could only stare as Arien's booted legs crumbled under her. Her hair swayed like a curtain over her. For him, everything moved like it was in slow-motion. Then Arien crumpled.
It was starting to rain, Reno noticed. Then realized that it was in his eyes. Hot tears ran down his face.
Arien.
Then his cell phone rang.
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Reno met up with the rest of the Turks and Rufus in the alley very close to wear Arien lay. Reno had just walked away. That was what a Turk was supposed to do. Arien he had loved had loved him partly because he was a Turk. He guessed that Arien he loved would expect him to walk away.
It was raining, a healing, soothing rain. He looked up as he walked, then turned. Elena, Tseng, Rude, Rufus were all there. Reno hoped that they wouldn't notice he was crying. It was so… un-Renoish. The rain would hide the tears. As something always hid his tears.
"Hey," Elena said gently, "You okay?"
Reno nodded, unable to speak. He took his place beside Rude, and watched as Rufus' Geostigma was gently healed by the soft rain.
