Summary: Reno will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. Cloud finds this out the hard way. A prequel of sorts to 'Snapshots.'

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII characters belong to SquareSoft, now known as SquareEnix… I think. Whatever the case, I don't own them.

Tactics

A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction by ntc

Mission objective: Cohabitation with Cloud

"Get on," said Cloud curtly, indicating the backseat of Fenrir with a sharp jerk of his head.

"Aren't you going to hand me the key?"

The expression on Cloud's face was of such vivid consternation and incredulity that it bordered on being insulting. "That wasn't part of our arrangement. Also, I'm not suicidal; so letting you ride this bike is out of question."

"Pfft, spoilsport." grumbled Reno as he slid onto the seat behind Cloud. "I've handled transport vehicles much more complicated than this two-wheel machine of yours. I'd have you know that not a single passenger of mine has ever once complained about my piloting skills when I fly the Shinra helicopter on errands."

"One can't complain when one has passed out from terror."

"Did you just attempt to make a funny?" Reno whistled. "I'm impressed."

Cloud ignored the jibe and inserted the key into the ignition switch. As the engine blared into life, one of Tifa's numerous warnings resurfaced in Cloud's mind. It had sounded quite silly and unnecessary when Cloud first heard it, but he decided that some precautions wouldn't hurt. "Just so we're clear on how we're going to do this, I want you to hang onto the seat to steady yourself if necessary. Do not, at any point in time, attempt to grab onto any part of me. Is that understood?"

When Reno failed to answer him, Cloud turned to glance over his shoulder at the unusually quiet Turk behind him. "Reno?"

"Paranoid little bugger, aren't you?" A scowl of displeasure had appeared on Reno's face. "You'd rather I become road kill just so you can keep your pristine body free from the taint of my touch?"

"Look, I don't mean—"

"Am I so disgusting and repugnant that you have to treat me like some kind of diseased, parasite-infested…"

"I never said—"

"Well, excuse me for breathing and polluting the air with the foul stench of my…"

"Okay, fine! Hold onto my waist if you have to!" Cloud snapped, throwing his hands up in exasperation. Why was Reno being so oversensitive all of a sudden? "But I'm warning you: if those hands of yours so much as move one centimeter below my belt, I will not hesitate to castrate you."

"I thought I told you not to carry any sharp and pointy objects." And because he couldn't resist, Reno added, "Excluding your hair, of course."

Cloud's face took on a scowl that mirrored Reno's own. "I don't need sharp tools to castrate you, Reno. Think about that very, very carefully the next time you feel tempted to do something stupid."

When Reno became quiet again, Cloud assumed that the redhead had finally gotten the message. Confident that his threat had worked, Cloud remained unaffected when Reno's arms encircled his waist. He continued to remain unaffected even when Reno's fingers curled and brushed lightly against his abdomen. As long as he chose not to let those feathery light touches affect him, they could both pretend that the physical contact was entirely platonic and inconsequential.

Unfortunately for Cloud, Reno had no intention of pretending.

Two minutes into their journey, Cloud jolted in his seat, swerved, and missed crashing into a lamppost by the skin of his teeth. He swiveled his head around so fast that he nearly pulled a muscle in his neck. "What the hell was that?!" yelled Cloud in a slightly strangled voice.

"Oops." Reno was impassive in the face of Cloud's withering glare. "My hand slipped."

"If you want that hand to stay attached to your arm, you'd better make sure it doesn't slip again!" Cloud barked.

"My hand? I thought it's another body part of mine that's under threat of detachment."

"That too!" growled Cloud angrily as he reversed his motorcycle back onto the road. "What's the matter with you? If I don't know better, I'd think that you actually want to be— Ack!"

When Reno moved his hand this time, Cloud nearly rear-ended into an elderly couple on the zebra crossing. He had to delay unleashing his fury on Reno in favour of apologizing profusely to the petrified couple and offering to pay for the damages on their mangled four-wheelie frames. Cloud looked like hell warmed over when he turned his attention back on his tormentor.

"You want me to emasculate you, Reno?" hissed Cloud icily, radiating a murderous aura that triggered the survival instincts of all living creatures within a fifty-metre radius and had them scurrying away in mindless fear. All except Reno. "Because I can't think of any other reason for what you just did."

"As you suggested, I've thought about it very, very carefully," answered Reno, completely unfazed.

"And?" Cloud ground out through clenched teeth.

Reno leered at him. "I've concluded that if this is the only way for that part of my anatomy to see some action from you, I really wouldn't mind at all."

Cloud was at a loss as to how to respond to Reno's blatant sexual proposition. Also, he couldn't quite decide whether the flutter in the pit of his stomach was the result of plain nausea or metaphorical butterflies. Was Reno serious or was this just another tasteless joke aimed at making him uncomfortable? Cloud was more inclined to believe that it was the latter. Reno's continual harassment these past few months was solid proof that the Turk must be getting his kicks from provoking him

No, wait, Reno was never one who did things without a purpose in mind. The redhead's actions may appear incomprehensible, crazy or self-defeating on the surface; but they were always deliberate and calculated. Wasn't that how Reno had gained possession of his box in the first place? So what was Reno currently trying to achieve with his overtly flirtatious behaviour? Ah, I see…

Rolling his eyes, Cloud muttered, "Fine, you win. I'll let you ride Fenrir." The look of disappointment on Reno's face puzzled Cloud. Wasn't this Reno's ulterior motive all along? "Move over. I'm sitting at the back now."

xXxXx

That dense, moronic, ignorant, naïve imbecile! How much more obvious did he have to be? He was already as subtle as a brick to the skull, and the damned blond was still acting as if he hadn't a clue as to what this whole date was about. It was hard to tell if Cloud was truly as ignorant as he looked, or if he was only pretending to be ignorant for the sole purpose of driving him nuts.

In his frustration, Reno purposely accelerated and turned around corners at breakneck speeds. He became more frustrated when his daredevil stunts utterly failed to cause Cloud to hold onto him. Maintaining his balance with the strong grip of his legs and instinctive shifts in his weight, the blond fighter had skillfully kept their bodies apart throughout the trip to the restaurant.

Cloud grimaced at each loud squeal made by the abused tyres of his motorcycle. "Do you have to speed so much? I just replaced the tyres last month."

"So?" Reno's retort was waspish. "Just replace them again."

Reno felt, more than heard, the quiet sigh behind him. "Are you angry about something, Reno? You've been acting strangely."

"You're imagining things," said Reno hoarsely, suddenly grateful for the rushing wind which muffled his voice. "I'm always like this."

They made no further conversation until they arrived at the Wutaian restaurant at Sector Three of old Midgar. In Reno's opinion, if it hadn't been for its ridiculous name— 'The Chocobo Plume' of all things! — the restaurant would have been able to attract a more respectable and rich clientele. Reno had chosen it because of its decent food, the reasonable price and, most importantly, the fact that he hadn't been banned from the premises yet.

The usher at the entrance arched an eyebrow in surprise when Reno gave his name for the reservation but wisely made no comment. They were directed towards a dimly lit booth which was located in a corner to afford more privacy. Red candles were burning on a well-polished candelabrum at the centre of the table, nestled among crystal vases overflowing with blood-red roses. A bottle of expensive champagne was chilling in a bucket of melting ice by the table. A light scent of flowers and burning wax permeated the air.

'There,' thought Reno with fierce satisfaction. 'You can't get any more bloody obvious than this.' Cloud would have to be either as blind as a bat or as thick as cement to fail to get the hint.

"Do they offer special discounts for couples in this place?" asked Cloud curiously.

Cloud's question was so unexpected that it felt like a complete non sequitur. Reno frowned. "Why do you ask that?"

"Isn't that why we're somehow allocated a table that's saturated with so much romantic ambience that it's almost embarrassing?"

As thick as cement it is then.

"No," Reno grated. "I've especially arranged this for tonight."

"Oh." Cloud gave him a perplexed look before returning his gaze to the menu in his hands. "I thought I was the only victim you managed to bully into having dinner with you. Is your date coming to join us soon?"

Reno had to savagely beat down the urge to hurl himself across the table, seize hold of those naked, enticing upper arms and do something so physical and intimate that it would leave no doubt as to the nature of his attraction to the blond. Never mind that they were in a public place; and never mind that Cloud would most likely castrate him for real this time. He had waited for Cloud long enough. He had tried to be patient and understanding all these years. He had demonstrated considerable self-restraint when, previously, such a word did not even exist in his dictionary. How long was he to be denied the only thing he ever wanted?

Before Cloud could suspect anything, Reno quickly schooled his features and slapped a vacuous smile on his face. If Cloud wanted to play dumb, he would play along with him for now. No sense in setting off Cloud's internal alarms and defenses prematurely. After all, there would be more opportunities later on for confrontations.

"She couldn't make it tonight. Said something about having to lose five pounds before she could fit into an evening gown she had just bought," lied Reno with well-practised ease. "So it's going to be just the two of us tonight, beautiful."

The muscles in Cloud's arms contracted in a sudden spasm, reducing the menu in his hands into a balled-up wad of cardboard. Pale eyebrows began twitching uncontrollably, a manifestation of their owner's highly aggravated state. "No more terms of endearment if you value your life, Reno. I mean it."

Sighing despondently, Reno slouched in his cushioned chair and waited for the waiter to come and take their orders. Why was it that his conversations with Cloud were always fraught with threats of mutilation or execution? Reno needed a proper icebreaker if they were to avoid spending the entire evening growling at each other like a couple of pit bull terriers.

And he knew just the thing that would serve that purpose.

xXxXx

Fact: The Heimlich manoeuver, and not mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, is the first aid treatment of choice for choking victims.

Reno came to realize this only too late when his pretend-choke (which included clawing at the throat and making high-pitched whistling noises) had resulted in a badly crushed ribcage instead of the hot lip-locking activity he had anticipated. The stocky blond, despite being a good few inches shorter than him, had lifted him up with embarrassing ease from behind and damned near broke all his lower ribs in an attempt to dislodge the non-existent foreign body from his windpipe. Cloud had given him three more brutal abdominal thrusts before Reno managed to wheeze out an audible and somewhat desperate 'Argh! I'm fine! I'm fine! For Ifrit's sake, stop it already!'

Well, at least Cloud cared enough about him to take action to save his life, right? However, as each breath he took accentuated the severe ache in his contused lungs, Reno began to wonder if what the blond did was attempted murder instead.

Reno groaned. "Thanks to you, Mr. I-don't-know-my-own-strength, I'll need a stiff drink after this to numb the pain."

Cloud narrowed his eyes at him. "You have a strange way of thanking someone who may have just saved your life."

Reno wanted to argue that his life wasn't even in danger until Cloud started administering his clumsy, heavy-handed first aid, but the danger of revealing that he had faked the choking kept him silent. If Cloud could accidentally kill him while trying to save his life, Reno didn't want to find out what a pissed-off Cloud intent on hurting him was capable of.

They finished the rest of their meal without further incident.

xXxXx

"Don't you think you've killed enough liver cells for one night?" commented Cloud as he watched Reno gulp down his third pint of beer followed by his fifth shot of whiskey. He had to raise his voice above the loud dance music in the background to make himself heard. "You've already drunk most of the champagne in the restaurant just now. That's already twice the daily healthy limit and four times the legal limit for driving, not counting what you've chugged down since we've arrived here."

"Am still too sober," mumbled the redhead with a lopsided grin. "Can't stop yet."

Something about Reno's determination to become completely plastered caused another one of Tifa's warnings to ring in Cloud's mind like alarm bells. "If you think you can start groping me later and blame it on the alcohol, you've got another think coming."

For a brief second, Reno had the unmistakable look of a child caught with one hand in the cookie jar, but he rallied magnificently. "Hah, give me a little credit, will ya? What makes you think I'd want to grope you at all?"

"We're in a gay bar, Reno," said Cloud in a flat monotone. "You've brought me to a gay bar."

''Ah, so you've noticed." Reno's grey eyes glittered with an unreadable emotion. "You've got that innocent prude act going so convincingly that I was sure you wouldn't know what a gay bar is even if one bit you on the ass."

"Bars are incapable of biting anyone's ass. Gay or otherwise."

"What are you? My English language teacher or something? Geez, lighten up will ya, you insufferable stiff. All I'm saying is that I'm surprised that you've noticed what kind of place this is."

"It's hard not to notice when you see two men attempting to eat each other's faces on the way in."

Reno let out a derisive snort. "You didn't think that they were really, really close friends?"

"Just because I'm not steeped in decadence and debauchery like you doesn't mean I'm deaf, dumb, blind or ignorant," grumbled Cloud, an irritated scowl marring his smooth features. The blond grabbed the shot glass on the table before him and knocked back the remaining mouthful of whiskey in it. He coughed.

"You could've fooled me," muttered Reno darkly under his breath.

"What did you say?"

Reno quickly changed the subject. "I said 'Would you like to dance?'"

''Wha...?" Cloud thought he had misheard Reno until he saw the Turk gesturing towards the gyrating mass of bodies on the dance floor. "Of course not!" Cloud near-shouted in a scandalized tone.

"Why not? Look at those people. They're having smashing fun," Reno pointed out encouragingly. "Don't tell me that you're buying that 'straight men never dance' rumour. Besides, if you're confident of your own sexuality, you wouldn't feel so threatened..."

"I have nothing against dancing in general," Cloud snapped, silently fighting to keep his cheeks free from humiliating blushes. "But whatever those couples are doing is definitely not dancing. I'm pretty sure that if one of them had been female, they would be expecting a baby nine months down the track."

Reno appeared highly amused by his awkward and flustered state. The bastard. "It's okay to say the 'S' word, Cloud. You're an adult now. Come on, say it. Say that you think they're having se—"

"That's enough!" interrupted Cloud determinedly. "I think we've reached the quota of lewd conversations that I can stomach for today."

"What do you think of two men rolling in the haystack by the way? You don't think that there's anything wrong with it, do you?" Reno watched Cloud closely. "Have you ever done it before?"

"Quota, Reno," warned Cloud, wishing that he could be anywhere but where he was, having any other conversation but the one he found himself currently stuck in the middle of.

"With a mug like yours, of course you've done it before. How many times, Cloud? How many partners?" It was the worst possible way he could think of to interrogate Cloud about his sex life, but Reno found that he couldn't stop once he started. More than morbid curiosity or the desire to unsettle the blond was driving him now. He wanted to know. He needed to know.

Cloud abruptly stood up, nearly tipping the table over in the process. His eyes were spitting blue ocular fire even as his face remained expressionless. "I'm leaving now."

Before Cloud could turn his back on him and walk away, Reno blurted, "The box is still with me, Cloud."

"Then hand it over," commanded Cloud, hating the slight quiver in his voice. "I've fulfilled my end of the bargain already."

"It's in my apartment." Rising to his feet, Reno wobbled and hurriedly grabbed onto the edge of the table to support himself. "Uh… I don't think I'm capable of walking at the moment. I'm afraid you'll have to carry me…"

"If you think I'd fall for—" Cloud began angrily.

"Look, do you want the box or not? If you want it, then you'll have to physically transport me there so that I can give it to you." Reno could no longer hold back his own anger. "The sooner you do this, the sooner you can get that damned box back!"

Although Cloud was taken aback by Reno's heated outburst, he quickly masked it by moving forward. He turned around and knelt down with his back towards the Turk. "Get on. Arms over my shoulders. I'll be holding onto the back of your knees to lift you."

Reno wordlessly did as he was told. The redhead's arms were surprisingly well behaved this time as they were draped over his shoulders and pressing lightly against the front of his chest. They were both silent as Cloud walked out of the bar and towards the parking lot where Fenrir was parked.

"This feels familiar," murmured Reno suddenly, breaking the brief, contemplative silence which had enveloped them both.

Cloud suppressed the shiver that threatened to travel down his spine at the feel of Reno's warm, moist breath on the nape of his neck. "What feels familiar?"

"Being carried like this." Reno shifted his head so that his nose was now buried in Cloud's hair. Eyes closed, he inhaled slowly and deeply; and especially quietly so that the blond was not aware of his actions.

Cloud snorted. "It's no wonder that this feels familiar to you. I bet you get shit-faced drunk so often that Rude has to carry you home every time."

"Maybe." Reno flexed his arms at the elbows so that he could grasp each of Cloud's shoulders in each hand. The fact that Cloud had stiffened briefly at his touch did not escape him. "Your shoulders… They only looked broad because you wear these collarless, sleeveless tops all the time. But they're actually quite slim. I can sling one arm across both your shoulders easily."

Cloud didn't know how to respond to Reno's strange observation, so he remained quiet. After setting Reno down on the passenger seat, he climbed onto the front seat and drew both Reno's hands together at his waist. "Hold on tight. I won't be held responsible if you lose your grip and tumble off the motorcycle." Cloud started the engine and they were soon speeding back towards Reno's apartment.

When Reno was sure that his voice would be carried away by the wind rushing past them, he whispered, "I'm sorry, Cloud."

"Did you say something?" asked Cloud.

"It's nothing," said Reno, more loudly this time.

I'm sorry for what I'm about to do.

xXxXx

Cloud stood sullenly at the doorway, apparently reluctant to take another step into his apartment. "You can just hand me the thing and I'll be off."

"What's the hurry?" Reno gestured impatiently towards the sofas in his lounge. "Why don't you take a seat?"

"I'd rather not," countered Cloud stubbornly.

"Stop arguing with me and just do what I say." At this point, Reno felt a sudden surge of shame, but he squashed down the last trace of his conscience ruthlessly. "You want that box, don't you?"

Cloud shot him a furious glare but quietly did as he was told. Reno went to the mini bar fridge in his kitchen and poured out a glass of red wine.

"Haven't you had enough alcohol for tonight?" asked Cloud incredulously.

"This isn't for me," said Reno, his expression uncharacteristically grim.

Cloud was about to protest that he wasn't in the mood to drink either, but Reno's serious look made him hold his tongue.

Reno placed the glass of wine right in front of him. "Drink this up, and I'll return the box to you."

Cloud wished that he could tell what the Turk was up to. The skin on his arms prickled with a vague sense of danger, as if he was about to step on a landmine. Strange. In all the time that he had known Reno, this was the first time he felt any sense of danger when he was with the Turk. "What's so special about this particular glass of wine?"

"I've put something in it, of course. Isn't it obvious?" answered Reno flippantly.

Whatever else could be said about Reno, he certainly wasn't one to hide things. "What did you put in it?" Cloud carefully kept his voice devoid of the nervousness he felt.

"Oh, it could be a number of things," said Reno with a decidedly evil smirk. "It could be a deadly poison that would kill you instantly. Or a sedative of some kind. Or maybe even an aphrodisiac. You might wake up and find yourself in a frilly dress, soon to become the newest addition to Don Corneo's harem. Alternatively, you might wake up stark naked and handcuffed to— What the hell are you doing?!"

Cloud had raised the rim of the glass to his lips. "What?" Cloud demanded, eyes burning feverishly. "Isn't this what you want?"

"Didn't you hear what I just said? I told you what could possibly happen if—"

"You'll give me the box only if I do this, right?" interjected Cloud softly. Before his courage could leave him, Cloud tilted the stem of the glass to pour the purple liquid into his mouth. The bitter taste of the wine had barely touched his lips before Reno struck the glass out of his hand. The glass smashed into pieces on the hard tiles, spilling red droplets of wine everywhere.

"What is wrong with you?!" Cloud cried angrily. "Make up your goddamned mind, Reno! Do you want me to drink it or…?"

Reno was breathing heavily. His body was trembling. "I burnt it."

Something about the way Reno said it filled Cloud with dread, even though he still couldn't understand what the Turk was saying. "What… do you mean?"

"That pink ribbon? I burnt it. Those photographs? Those rolls of film? I've burnt them all."

The shock was so strong that it felt akin to being stabbed in the chest. "You're lying." Cloud was surprised at how calm he sounded. "You told me that you wouldn't open that box. You promised—"

"Yes, I'm a liar! I was lying when I said I would return those things to you! Fact is, I destroyed them the moment I saw them…"

There was a cracking sound. Cloud wasn't sure whether it was sound of the world crumbling around him, or the shattering sound of a lamp that was knocked over when he threw himself at Reno in a blind fury. His mind was in such a blank haze, and his body felt so sluggish, that Cloud idly wondered if it was a sedative that Reno had put into the wine after all. He collapsed onto the floor on his back with the Turk tumbling on top of him.

"Why?" Cloud felt so drained that he could not find the strength to push Reno off him. "Damn you, Reno. Why did you do it?"

"Why?" echoed Reno, his face a mask of equal fury and anguish. Reno clutched the front of Cloud's shirt and roughly pulled their faces closer together so that they were soon drowning in the chaotic emotions in each other's eyes. "Because they're dead, Cloud! When are you going to accept that, you fool! They're dead, and I'm alive! I'm… alive…" Then, for some strange reason, Reno's eyes suddenly widened in shock. He let go and stumbled back so frantically that it seemed as if he couldn't get away fast enough.

Cloud continued to lie motionless on the floor, staring at the ceiling of Reno's apartment with unseeing eyes. He heard the door open and close, and Reno's footsteps fading gradually with distance.

What the hell just happened?

As Cloud was pondering over Reno's unexplainable behaviour, he began to notice something else. A wetness on his cheek that he wasn't aware of earlier. A wetness that he hadn't experienced for a long time. He had thought himself incapable of shedding tears ever since Zack's death, but this latest development had proven him wrong.

He let the tears flow freely, reveling in his ability to cry and feel once more. It was both a curse and a blessing to him.

And it was all Reno's fault.

(To be concluded)

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A/N: Eep. Sorry for the angsty turn this fic took at the end of the chapter. It was difficult to maintain the light-hearted humour with Reno behaving less like a harmless buffoon and more like a complete jackass. An angsty jackass, at that.

So, the contents of the box had been revealed at last. Yup, I cheated. It wasn't just one thing in particular, but a load of little things. Mementos of Cloud's loved ones, as one reviewer had put it. Before you start scratching your head and wondering 'Why photos?', let me just remind you that this fic has ties with 'Snapshots'; and for those of you familiar with 'Snapshots', you would know that photographs play an important role in the story.

Once again, thank you all for reading and reviewing this fic. I hope you'll continue to read this story to its conclusion despite its drastic drop in humour. Cheers.