I close Tseng's doors slowly, stepping into the Turks' sector of the headquarters. Looks dead in here. Frowning, I peer around the corner. Where'd Reno go? Just as I start to head to his office, I hear him cough loudly from across the room, standing at the glass doors that lead back to the main section of the floor. I huff and hurry to catch up, shoving my hands into the pockets of my jacket.

"Ready to get some food?" he asks, cheerful. "I'm starved!"

"You're always starved," I mutter, slumping against the wall of the elevator and watching us descend from our heights through the windows. I can't forget the edge in Tseng's voice. He really must be needing the extra help if he's willing to take me back—after the President himself gave me the boot. Reno clears his throat to break the silence.

"Rude's on the ground floor. Care if the ol' partner comes along, too?"

"Nope." I step out into the busy lobby of the building. Reno waves to Rude over my head, gesturing for him to follow us. Rude nods at me in greeting, touching his sunglasses habitually. I lead the way to my rusty truck in silence, listening to Reno ramble to Rude.

"I call shotgun!" Reno shouts. I throw an arm out, my elbow hitting his chest harder than I meant for it to. Still, it felt good.

"Rude has shotgun." I shoot him a half-hearted smile. "You're the smaller one, so you're in the back."

"But you're the smallest, Kat. Or did you forget?" he teases, jamming a finger. Rolling my eyes, I push his hand away and unlock my car.

"It's my truck. Could just leave you here. Means more pizza for me 'n Rude."

"He doesn't appreciate the cuisine, yo."

"Cuisine?" I snort, shoving him into the backseat. "You've got low standards for a guy with money."

"Who says I got money?" he retorts, but he's grinning.

"Your piss-scented perfume told me all I need to know."

Rude's lips twitch. Reno kicks the back of my seat, rolling his window down. As we drive out of the parking lot, he sticks his head out the window, flashing his middle fingers to anyone we speed past.

"Reno, for fuck's sake, get your head in the car before you get yourself killed," I snap, glancing back at him before veering into the right lane. He gives a honking car one last bird before slumping back into his seat.

"Nice blinker."

"Shut up, Re. I'm driving."

"You're going five over," he mutters, digging his sharp chin into my shoulder. When I ignore him, he licks my ear.

"Ew!" I elbow his face and scrub at my ear with my shoulder. Rude sighs, turning to get some fresh air from his cracked window. "Yeah, sorry. It always smells in here."

"It's your smelly swamp ass," Reno grumbles, sticking his head between ours. "Are we almost—"

"Shit!" I slam on the breaks, laying hard on the horn as I'm cut off by an idiot in a shiny new car. Rude swings his arm out to the left, saving Reno from flying through the windshield. "What an asshole!"

"You almost killed me!" Reno cries.

"Yeah, well, seatbelts save lives." I glance up at him in the mirror. "Seriously, Reno, buckle up. People out here are crazy. I already had this happen today."

"You're not even b—"

"Quit being a backseat driver." I pull into the nearly empty lot for the pizza place. "Rude, can you hit him for me again?"

"I can try."

Laughing, I shake my head and turn the car off, making sure to lock the doors and slam them shut before Reno can get out. I head inside, watching him struggle to get into the front seat for several minutes. Finally, he joins us with a soured expression, hands buried deep in his pockets.

"Ew, you stink," I huff, crinkling my nose. Raising an eyebrow, he lifts his arm and shoves his pit stain in my face. "Dude!" One of the teenage workers at the counter laughs, but he shuts his mouth when we look at him.

"What? Smells like your car, doesn't it?"

"Reno—" I punch his ribs and manage to get Rude between us. "Gods, I hate you."

"Yeah, well, can't smell worse than the piss—"

"Reno," Rude says under his breath, effectively silencing him.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, partner."

Partner… Will I have a partner? Will I work with Tseng? I frown; we'd both hate that. It'd be harder than working alone. I wonder if a group of three—

"Ma'am?"

"Hm?" I blink out of my thoughts, my face going red.

"Are you ready to order?"

"Oh, right. Uh…" What are words?

"Two cheese," Reno calls over my shoulder. The guy nods, typing in our order. I reach into my pocket for my wallet, but Reno tosses a bill over my head with a wink and a nudge. "Cuz I got money and all."

"Sorry," I huff, running a hand through my hair to keep it out of my face. Reno laughs picking a booth for us to sit in.

"Brain fart?"

"Just lost in thought."

"Uh oh," he teases, kicking Rude's foot under the table. "Rude, I think our little kitty's growing up!"

"You didn't raise me," I scoff, picking at my chipped nail polish. I hate this color.

"But I was your buddy."

"I guess."

"Also." Reno turns in his seat, resting his elbow on the back of the booth. "You got anything to drink in your gross apartment? I was thinking of inviting myself over."

"Not much." I shoot Rude a look. "You coming, Rude?"

"I don't think so."

"Aw, come on. You can't leave me alone with this idiot!" I push Reno away from me when I get a waft of his sweaty smell. "I might kill him!" Despite the painful truth behind my words, Rude dares to crack a slight smile.

"… Only an hour."

"Yeah, man!" Reno cheers, waving the boy that took our order over as he delivers our pizzas with a forced smile.

"Let me know if you guys need anything else," he says, setting the trays down slowly. Reno begins to gobble down his meal before it's even in front of him. The boy straightens, pausing to eye my hair. "Is that your natural color?"

"Yeah?" I raise an eyebrow. He smiles apologetically.

"Sorry, I'm sure you get that a lot." He nods to the food. "Enjoy."

"Why didn't he ask me?" Reno whines around a mouthful of cheese and crust. I shrug, suppressing a smile.

"Mine's prettier."

"Seriously?" He hits his skull against mine; I wince. "Rude, isn't it basically the same color?" Rude stares at him for two long, silent seconds before taking a drink of water.

"What a nice guy," I tease, taking a slice from the pizza Reno didn't touch. "Too kind to break your heart."

"Bitch."

"Excuse me?" I raise an eyebrow. Reno swallows.

"Bitch."

"Wow. And here I was preparing to welcome you into my humble abode."

"Oh, it's humble alright."

"Screw off. Not all of us got lucky."

"Could've."

The table gets quiet and I shake my head, focusing on eating my fill. Reno engulfs almost an entire pizza on his own, muttering around his mouthfuls of food. I nod along as if I can understand him, shooting Rude a look ever now and again, but my mind is on something else entirely. When do I tell them?

We take the leftovers in a foam box that I rest on the console. Reno collapses into a food coma in the backseat and Rude cracks his window a little wider even as rain begins to drizzle from the overcast sky. The smell is refreshing in the midst of the mako-reeking city and I rest my hand outside my window to feel the water hitting my skin.

"We're here!" I announce.

Reno springs to action, a dead man risen, climbing over Rude's lap and popping the door open, refusing to get stuck again. Rude leans as far away from his partner as he can, frowning at the ripped ceiling of my truck until he's free to leave. Laughing, I shake my head and step out into the rain, reveling in the cool pitter-pattering of the water hitting the rusty roof of the apartment complex.

The guys wait for me to unlock the door and Reno mocks me when I close my door a little too hard behind us. Quickly, I kick off my socks and shoes before tossing my jacket across the back of a chair. Reno heads right for the kitchen, opening all the cabinets and leaving them open in his wake. Huffing, he slams the fridge door shut.

"You've nothing in here," he informs me, looking around the apartment he's seen at least a hundred times.

"I've got pasta," I shrug, following behind him to close all the cabinets back up. "It's cheap and tastes kind of edible." What the heck am I supposed to say? I shudder, chilled by my damp shirt. What if he's angry?

"But you get paid a pretty penny, doncha?" he asks, flopping onto the couch and kicking his feet up on the chipped coffee table.

I scoff, lifting a pair of papers off the table and dropping them on his stomach for sitting beside him and patting the last free seat, a silent invitation for Rude. Reno gives a whistle low, scanning over the pages quickly.

"Bills are worse here than nicer places across town. Why don't you move?"

"Because my boss won't let me." He leans forward, lifting the remote turning the TV on. "Says the commute's too far and he doesn't wanna pay."

"Doesn't your ex live downstairs?"

"He moved last week." I scoot over to give Rude more space, offering him a bite of popcorn from the bag on the table. He shakes his head, glancing around the room.

"To where?" Reno asks absently, flipping through the channels with deep concentration.

"His new girlfriend's house."

"Whoops." He grins when a rerun of the new story I was on earlier appears. "Do you ever watch yourself on TV?"

"If I wanna take a blow to my self-esteem, sure."

"Learn from Kelsey. Walks like her asscrack's eatin' her skirt." I choke on my laughter, smacking his knee. "What? It's true."

"Thought you said she was hot."

"She is, she just walks funny."

"But—" My phone begins to vibrate loudly in my pocket. Sighing, I pull it free only for Reno to pluck it from my fingers and pick up the call.

"Hey, welcome to the Leaf House. You gonna adopt a brat or what?"

"Reno!" I cry, reaching over him to snatch it away. Knowing full well who's on the other line, I head across the room and rest a hand on my hip, staring hard at the calendar I haven't changed in three months. "Hello?"

"Kat?"

"Yup."

"… Was that Reno?"

"Yeah, why?" I huff, ruffling my hair anxiously. I can feel Tseng shaking his head on the other line.

"Nevermind."

"Okay…?"

"I expect you in my office before eight tomorrow. Don't get lost."

"How do you expect me to get in?"

"Ask Reno."

"Is that all?"

"…" Tseng lets the air grow heavy with tension before speaking again. "Today's the anniversary, isn't it?"

His question is more of a statement. The words sting as the faintest scent of choking smoke fills my nose, a memory I can just barely grasp—one I buried long ago. Gritting my teeth, I hang up, refusing to play into his therapy. I adjust my attitude and plop back down between the men on my couch.

"So?" Reno prompts, eyes still glued to the screen. "That was Tseng's number, wasn't it? Didn't get a good look, but I've seen it enough times to know." He glances over at me with a smug expression. "Somethin' he forget to mention?"

"Yeah," I sigh, laying my head on Rude's shoulder. I frown, sitting up abruptly. "Why do you smell like peaches?"

"What?" Rude frowns.

"Your suit. It smells peachy."

"… I don't know."

"Probably the detergent his mama bought 'im," Reno yawns, stretching his arms over his head. "What did the boss man want?"

"Well…" I shake my head, picking at my nails. "Did he tell you what he needed me for before?"

"Already told ya he didn't say shit."

"Okay…" I shake off my inhibitions and force the words out. "He asked me to work with you guys."

"What?" Reno shoots out of his seat, leaning forward with his hands pressed to the table and his ass blocking the TV. "He asked you to be a Turk?!"

"Yeah…?"

"Why didn't you say something before?!" He lunges across the gap, crushing me in what was supposed to be a hug. Really, he just squishes me deeper into the couch cushions, cackling like a maniac. "We can be a trio! A thrupple!"

"Reno—" Rude starts, but he's cut off by his partner's excited rambling.

"Man, I can't believe this! After what happened, too! Thought you were never—"

"Re," I huff, shoving him off me. He falls back, sitting on the table and grinning. His eyes are dancing with a light I haven't seen in a long time.

"What?"

"Rude was trying to say something," I shrug, jerking my head toward the quiet man to my left. Rude sighs, pushing his shades up and standing.

"Come with me," he says to me. I thought you wanted Reno? His partner leaps to his feet and he shakes his head once. "Not you." Groaning, I get up and follow him deeper into the house as Reno grumbles to himself and slumps back onto the couch.

"What did you need?" I ask, closing my bedroom door behind us. He stares past my head, looming tall over me.

"Tseng spoke with me today."

"Yeah? What'd the little fucker say?" I cross my arms, picking up on his discomfort almost immediately.

"He showed me your data."

"My data…?" Today's the anniversary… I grit my teeth and shake my head. "Shit!"

"I doubt he'd show me your personal records unless—"

"Rude, please," I huff, scowling at him. "Is all this just a ploy so you can keep an eye on me for him?"

"No. You wouldn't be here." His words are less of a threat and more of an observation, but I can't help but scoff at them.

"Why are you telling me this?" I demand. I'm pissed, but not at him. Tseng needs to learn to mind his own business. "I don't—"

"A warning. He may tell Reno in the same manner." Rude touches his sunglasses and glances around the messy room.

"Fuck." I pinch the bridge of my nose and throw open my side table, fumbling for a cigarette with trembling hands. My fingers shake as I light it up, letting my lighter hit the bottom of the drawer with a loud clatter.

"… I know Reno values—"

"Doesn't matter." My words emerge with a puff of smoke. I run a hand through my hair and take another drag before looking up at him. "If he knows… it's all over."

"I know." Rude watches in silence as I sit on the edge of my bed, drinking in my toxins like a starved glutton.

"Y'know, Tseng told me to tell him years ago." I shake my head, huffing out a short, dry laugh. "Went from good advice to blackmail faster than I expected."

"He does what he has to."

"So now you're defending him?!" I snap. He doesn't answer and I shake my head. "Sorry. I know it's hard sitting pretty in the middle." I kill my smoke on the cement windowsill and smooth my shirt. "Thanks for the heads up."

I lead the way back into the living room. Reno's slouched on the couch, scrolling through his phone. When he hears us come back, he shoots to his feet, his jacket flapping open over his half-buttoned shirt.

"Have fun smoochin' up a storm without me?"

"Smoochin'?" I repeat, wrestling a smile. "No, it was awful."

"Damn, Rude. Gotta step up your game."

"… We have to leave," Rude says sternly, checking his watch.

"Super secret business to attend to?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. Reno shrugs, heading toward the door.

"Dunno. Leave the schedule to the big guy."

"How are you guys getting back?"

"Train's not far," he shrugs. Rude shakes his head.

"We have a ride."

"Okay."

I wave them off, spooked when Reno almost jams my door open, and head to my room. Lying on the bed in the dark, I stare up at the ceiling, heart pounding. Why's he suddenly taking my friendships into his own hands? I wrestle the urge, picking at my fingers, but my bouncing knee and grinding teeth are enough for me to give it, snatching the remainder of my extinguished cigarette and lighting it once more. The smoke curls upward in the light of the setting sun and I take a deep breath of stuffy air. He'd use anything to keep me under his thumb.

~6 years before~

"Kat, do you know why you're here?" Tseng asks, staring me down with sharp, cold eyes. I shrug, indifferent. He clasps his hands behind his back, and when he shakes his head, his tied hair swings behind him like a pendulum counting down the seconds to my doom. "You're not going try."

"Is it worth it?" I ask dryly. His eyebrows twitch and he takes a deep breath to calm him. I have a talent for getting under his skin without trying.

"You have great potential here. Better than anyone we've recruited in years." His eyes bore into mine. "But you're giving up already."

"…" I stare at the wall, crossing my arms tightly over my chest. "It's just… it reminds me of what happened." I force myself to look back at him, to be numb to his disappointment. "Of why they're gone." He's the one that looks away this time. "Tseng—"

"Kat, I know you've had your share of trouble," he says, speaking slowly. "But this isn't the same."

"I wish you'd left me in Sector Two."

"You have potential," he repeats as if he's reassuring himself. "Reno would help you willingly if you would let him."

"You know can't do that."

"If your past gets in the way for much longer, it will follow you for the rest of your life," he reminds me, straightening his buttoned jacket. "Everyone here has a history."

"But are they as bad as—"

"Kat." Tseng lifts his chin and raises his walls with it. "Move past it or leave."

"… I'll try." I let my arms hang back down at my sides, shoving them into my pockets. "Can I go back now?"

"Yes." He stops me when I head toward the door. "You need to tell Reno before this goes beyond us."

"No. You know what'll happen if I tell him."

"You're all he has left."

"And that's my fault," I snap, scowling back at him. "Mind your own business."

~3 months later~

"Get off me!" I kick at the man who digs his knees into my thighs and pins me to the floor of the training room. Whipping a spray of sweat off his face, he throws another blow, laughing when my blood splatters across the mat.

"That's for my sister. Your stupid friend never apologized for killing her."

"That was years ago!" I huff, squirming. "Carlos, please! We didn't know!"

"Fuckin' serious right now? You're gonna pay. Slum rats are people too, you bitch."

"Carlos, get off her," a booming voice commands over the speakers.

Through the thick glass, a bored soldier turns his microphone off and lifts his magazine once more. A woman in a gaudy bee costume is plastered across the front cover. Carlos scoffs, hitting me one more time before getting to his feet and wiping his face off with the edge of his shirt. I stand, smearing blood from my nose across the back of my arm and stumbling toward the exit.

"Whoa, where you headed?"

"Fuck off, Carlos," I grumble, heading out into the hall. He laughs, mocking me, and hurries to catch up.

"Oh no you don't." He tugs on my shoulder and I pull free, angry that I let anyone see me like this. That I let everyone see me like this. "Hey! Apologize for being rude and I'll let it be."

"No."

"Kat," he sings out, slowing down to a leisurely pace. Trainees, cadets, and full-fledged soldiers alike stream through the hallway, hardly sparing us a glance. A Turk understudy causing a ruckus is hardly anything new. "C'mon, baby, just say you're sorry."

"I'm not."

"No?"

"Nope."

"Hm. Too bad." I huff, glancing over my shoulder to see him hot on my heels. "Y'know, I snuck into Tseng's office and had a snoop?"

"That's nice."

"You'll never guess whose name popped up." My heart begins to pound as the tension in my head builds. No, no, no. Go away. I speed up, praying I get to the dorms before I explode. "Yours, honey. And boy did it have a lot to say."

"Go away." Not now.

"You're bold for a girl that killed—"

"I said fuck off!" I scream. One moment, I'm heading for my room. The next, I'm staring down the barrel of my gun with Carlos in my sight. The army recruits around us freeze, looking at each other uncertainly. My blood runs cold and my muscles lock where they are. I've lost my control.

"Whoa, hey," a soldier says, reaching out a hand. "Lower it!"

"Miss!" a young woman in a pencil skirt cries, trying to sober me up. It doesn't work; they don't know I'm beyond my point of no return. They don't know I warned them—Carlos and Tseng.

"What're you gonna do?" Carlos demands, but his voice is hoarse and his eyes are darting around in search of an escape. Behind me, a man mutters into his radio, seeking help to "cool me off." My eyes narrow, lining my shot up.

"Nothing if you shut up."

"If I shut up?"

"Dude, zip it!" a teenage boy cries.

"So, what? She can win?" Carlos spreads his arms out wide. Somewhere else, I can hear running feet. "C'mon, then, bitch. Fire." He grins, cocky. I've never hated a smile more. That's not true. "Kill me!" he shouts. "Kill me like you killed every last—"

Bang, bang, bang. Three shots. One miss. Two hits. Someone screams. Someone else barks an order and rips the gun out of my hands. That's fine. I don't need it anymore. Mostly, I hear panicked murmurs and confused conversation as a crowd gathers. Good. Let them watch the traitor drown in his own blood. A pair of men wrestle me to my knees, pressing my own gun to the back of my skull. I smile. They let go of me to talk to their radios. I wait for my moment and take off, ducking under grasping hands. Someone gets a good handle on my elbow, holding me back. I rip the dagger free from the hidden sheathe on my leg and slam their back to the wall, pressing my arm to their chest and my blade to their throat.

"Don't touch me!"

"Whoa! Chill out, yo!" he cries, staring down at me with wide eyes. Something threatens to shatter the lens of my world. I squeeze my eyes shut. No. Red hair, blue eyes, those stupid scarlet marks on his cheeks—No! I choke the air and my dagger clatters to the floor. My knees land next to them.

"Oh my—" I shudder, startled when what feels like hundreds of hands grab at me, dragging me away. I thrash like an animal, still not entirely myself.

"Hey! Let her go!" Reno demands, rushing forward to push them off me.

"Stop."

Everyone freezes. Tseng stands at the end of the hall, talk, dark, and pissed. I wrestle myself free, but I can't look at him. I can't breathe. Reno kneels beside me, his hand a reassuring weight on my shoulder. But no amount of comfort can make this right. I ruined everything. Tseng waves his hand and the soldiers clear, hesitant. With long, stiff strides, he heads toward us, his eyes glued to the dead man on the floor.

"Kat." His voice sounds distant. "Did you do this?"

"What do you think?" I try to make my words biting, but they hardly come out.

"This is enough," he snaps, bending over just enough to force me to look at him, fingers cold on my face as he stabs into my eyes. "Maybe you do belong in Sector Two, but your self-pity let this go too far."

"Sector Two?" Reno repeats, frowning. Tseng grabs my arm and forces me to my unsteady feet.

"Get your things and get out," he commands, refusing to break eye contact.

"But she—!"

"Reno, quiet. The President and Veld will decide your consequences, but I am personally removing you from our ranks." He peers over my head at the body. "I thought you could manage. I was wrong."

"But…!" Reno stammers, trying to find words.

"Go." Tseng gives me a little shove and I obey.

"Wait!" Reno cries, but Tseng's hand on his shoulder stops him from following me. I take a deep breath and force a smile onto my face. Turning to walk backward, I flick two fingers off my head in a playful salute.

"See you later, Re."

I thought that was the last time I would ever have to deal with Shinra. I was a fool.