Business As Usual:

Chapter 2

By Miyamashi

Miya's Note: Well, no requests for name change, and I've started to warm up to the current title, so it stays. (unless somebody comes up with an absolutely FABULOUS title!) I don't like this chapter as much as the last one, but that's just me. Tell me what you think!

To Gothic Yokai: About citrus…mmmn…I like citrus…(the real kind…I'm an Orange Juice Addict) I dunno if there will be any. I'm writing this fic completely randomly. I only know how it's going to end. The rest is just coming as I see fit. (That's how all of my best fics come about...) A Lime is probably the most explicit this is going to get, but I really don't know.

My thanks also to both pewp and Mashimaro-Byul-012.

"What'd you say to him this time?" asked the doctor as Rufus came to.

"None of your damn business," came the reply.

"Well, that's a good sign. Acting like your usual cranky self. You really need to stop pissing your father off like that. I think that your thick head is the only thing keeping you from getting a serious concussion."

"You are so lucky that you're the only good doctor in Midgar, or you would be dead by now with that kind of talk," Rufus grunted, obviously at least partially used to his doctor's blatant insults.

The doctor chuckled. "You need to rest. Goodnight."

"Eh," was all that Rufus said as he rolled onto his side.

"Sir?" came the voice from behind Rufus' head. He rolled over to see the new Turk standing with his head through the privacy curtain.

"Kiribani? You know that the curtain is there for a reason, don't you?"

"Sorry Sir. Just curious."

Rufus paused before propping himself up on the back of the bed. He threw his arms up in defeat.

"I didn't know it was you, Sir," Reno said almost sheepishly, an expression that didn't suit his rebellious appearance.

"So you thought you'd just pop your head in to check? What if I had been dying and had wanted some last minute peace before I joined the Lifestream? Or, what if I had been your boss, who didn't want anybody, especially not his employees, to see him in a pathetic state like this?"

"Sorry Sir…" the redhead said again, actually meaning it, and hoping that his new job wouldn't come to a sudden halt.

Rufus sighed. "Well, I guess you can see that the old rumor about me isn't all true."

"Rumor?"

"I keep this rumor out as a scare tactic. Supposedly, nobody's ever seen me bleed or cry. Now, here I am, the blood caked in my hair."

Reno was silent.

"What are you here for?" asked Rufus dryly.

"…Broke my arm in training. How about you?" Reno opened the curtain up partially, sitting down on his own bed, surprised that Rufus had suddenly taken to conversation with him, even if it wasn't all that enthusiastic.

"That's classified."

"…Oh."

"I can hear you! Go to sleep!" yelled the doctor from across the room.

"Ah, shaddup," Reno murmured.

"Broke your arm, huh? What happened?"

"Lost a sparring match against Rude."

"That had to hurt."

"Yeah," Reno stated. The man sitting in the bed next to him seemed somehow like a different person than the one he had heard about in the café and later seen in the training area, different even from the man that had just been berating him over his curiosity. That feeling only lasted for a moment, though.

"I think that I have to kill you now," Rufus said with a seriousness in his voice that sent a shiver down Reno's spine.

"Huh?"

"You've seen me in a venerable state. You're supposed to fear me. How can you fear me if you've seen me like this?"

"The threats of you killing me work well for that, especially after watching you with that shotgun…"

Rufus chuckled. "Ah, who am I kidding? You're a ballsy guy, sticking your head through my privacy curtain like that. The fear doesn't suit you. Relax, kid."

Reno didn't relax. Rufus' sudden change of demeanor had unnerved him more than anything else. "Aren't you mad at me for invading your privacy like that?"

"I was at first, but having someone to shoot the shit with is much more exciting than sleeping all day when you're stuck in this hell-hole."

Reno had to admit that it was a good point.

"You know what I could use right now?"

"What?"

"A drink. Being drunk would probably make this more interesting."

"Cheers to that."

"…You know, you're an okay guy, Kiribani."

"…Uh…Thanks."

"What are you doing?" asked the doctor angrily, storming up to the two. "Stop talking and go back to sleep! It's late, and you're disturbing the other patients."

Rufus laid down with a grunt as the doctor closed the curtain. His employee retired soon after.

The next morning, the Turk awoke to find the bed next to his empty, and, with faded memories as the only evidence left of the previous night's occupant, Reno wasn't sure if Rufus Shinra had ever been there at all.

Reno healed quickly, and he could tell that his speedy recovery had been at least partially Mako-induced. He was a bit dizzy, and when he looked in the mirror, the familiar glow in his eyes, once slightly faded from his SOLDIER days, looked back.

Still, the Turk had to admit that his arm was feeling fine, perhaps even better than it had before it was broken.

"Good. You're better. Back to training with you," stated Tseng simply from behind his desk.

"When do I get to go on an actual mission?"

"Not until I'm sure that you have some sort of chance of not getting yourself killed."

"Oh. Thanks for the confidence," Reno stated sarcastically.

"No problem," retorted Tseng with a faint smirk. "Have you found a weapon yet?"

"Nope."

"You could always just do what Rude usually does and fist-fight."

"That's all well and good, except for the fact that Rude's twice as big as me."

"I think that you should try this," came a third voice from Tseng's office doorway. The two Turks turned to see Rufus Shinra there. "You seem like the unconventional type, Kiribani, so I think you might like this." Rufus threw something in Reno's direction, and the redhead caught it, looking it over with a puzzled grimace on his face.

"It looks like half of a TV antenna," Reno said. He retracted the metal rod and was suddenly hit by a burst of electricity that made his hair stand up even more than usual. "What the crap IS that thing?" he asked, dropping it to the ground.

"It's an electro-mag rod," Rufus stated frankly. "It can shock…"

"Really?"

"…and it has slight magnetic properties."

"What good will that be? I can herd chocobos and pick up dropped change?"

"Fine, fine. It's just a suggestion." Rufus shrugged and leaned against the doorframe.

"Excuse me, Sir, but what are you doing here?" asked Tseng.

"Procrastinating on my paperwork, hoping to annoy my father."

"You?" Reno asked. "You don't seem like the type to put work off or to go against authority."

"I normally wouldn't, but, seeing as I am the authority, except when it comes to my father, I can make an exception."

"Shouldn't you get that paperwork done, though? It's important stuff, right?"

"Now, see, you don't seem like the type to worry about that kind of thing, but you're right." Rufus started to leave. "And try the mag-rod. I still think it'll work for you. Just don't touch the tip this time."

And the Vice President left, again leaving Reno unsure of what to think of him.

"Well, I'll be damned," Rude stated simply, his voice muffled from inside the electromagnetic pyramid.

"Well, I guess this blasted choco-herder is good for something after all," Reno mused. "I should leave you in there as punishment for breaking my arm. I wonder what else this piece of junk can do…"

"The best way to find out is in battle," said Tseng.

"Okay, so bring it on!"

"You know…I think that you may have found your weapon."

"Yeah, yeah. So the boss-man was right…but the guy is weird, like he's twenty-three different people rolled into one."

"What do you mean?" Tseng inquired, shifting his weight to one foot.

"Well, one minute, he's this raging psychopath. Then, the next time you talk to him, he seems like the nicest guy on the planet. I just wish he'd stop calling me Kiribani."

"Tell him that."

"Nah, I have really bad luck with that kind of thing. I'll probably catch him when he's in psycho-mode."

Rude tapped his foot impatiently from inside of his pyramid.

"Reno, let him out. That's an order."

"He broke my arm."

"Reno."

"Okay, so I don't know how. I don't even know how I put him in there."

"You have to be joking."

"Hey, I just got the antenna. Give me a break! Just started swinging it around. Poof. Pyramid."

Luckily for Rude, the magnetic field that composed his prison started to fade.

"There. I got him out," Reno said dryly.

"It let me out on its own," stated Rude, punching his comrade in the shoulder.

"So, I need to work on it…"

Miya's Note: There you have it! It's Chapter Two! Ch. #3 should be coming soon. Sorry it's so short. I'm having a bit of writer's block. I'm still not sure if I'm happy with this Chapter or not…