FicWad

The camp proved to be just as harsh as the Slums towards the young man but he was a determined sort. With a couple of guiding hands around, that didn’t fear catching some unknown disease, it was easier to get involved and he mastered the basic of handguns within days, combat up close was easier due to the streets upbringing.

The technical side of things he struggled with but unless he could understand Mako reactors, hack in to places and steal without being noticed he wasn’t getting that helicopter and more importantly he couldn’t save the pay up for Yana to get to the surface. He slowly managed to pick up more but it wasn’t helping that the people in his room were bullying him with some new prank everyday.

Reno surfaced in to the dormitory to see Rude and Tseng stood in front of him. He walked to his bunk and grabbed a smoke and then followed them outside to the courtyard. He didn’t ask too many questions but then again he didn’t need to, they were going to tell him if he waited, he lit up and watched them as he smoked.

“How is your training going?” Tseng asked him.

“Um… well…” Reno looked around. “Yo I guess, in all honesty okay. I mean the doc’s and shit they got me off the drugs but, but this place. We don’t suit cos all these dumb shits think just cos I speak like slums I am thick.”

“Well you are showing them differently.” Tseng nodded. “Verdot has a couple of jobs for you. You’re good enough that keeping you here any longer could stagnate you. Get your things together. You have an hour.”

“Sure.” Reno headed towards the door and looked back just once before running to his dorm. He headed to grab the laptop and his few personal things. Mostly the phone he had, to ring and leave Yana a message. On the bed sat one of the guys he had never spoken too since arrival but Reno knew the look.

“If I take you out maybe they’ll see me as a better investment.”

“Don’t waste your life.” Reno sighed and looked to him. “This isn’t a competition it’s survival.”

“Yeah well survive if you can.” The guy hopped down and Reno looked at him with a sigh. He hated these stupid little fights; they were for testosterone not for need.

The first punch from the guy was a right hand swing and the left handed trainee swiftly pulled the punch in a grasp, twisted it and used his palm to upper cut under his chin and step back again. He brought his feet to a good square position and got ready. The guy was bigger but Reno was faster and he had learnt to use that over the years. He waited until the kick came close, stepping in and taking it with both hands before finally twisting with the movement from the bigger man used against him.

“I told you,” Reno said as he landed, “That I don’t waste my time.” He gathered his things and headed back out to the waiting Turks. “What is this job then?” He asked them as he stood up.

“We’ll be putting you with some troops. You’re going to have one mission, a simple one really, find Aerith and bring her to us.” Tseng explained, he put the papers in Rude’s hands. “You will work with Rude as much as possible but you will answer to me. Verdot is considering you as a long term investment. I do too.”

“Yo okay.” Reno settled in the helicopter until they came over the centre of Midgar and then looked over. He pulled out his phone and sent a text. It was pointless calling, she never answered him anyway, he told here where he was and that he wanted her to call if she would. He missed her, he still loved her…

The area was so pristine, the young man looked around the main floor they were on and kept fiddling with the pass he had just been issued. He was waiting to be given the money to get the apartment he wanted and he was being sized up for a suit. He had never liked them anyway but it was the uniform and he wasn’t going to argue since Tseng had a large sword.

He took the clothes and headed to get changed and then went to see the place he’d picked. It was freaking huge! The place was on the top side of Sector Five. He had never been to the area and the others all had apartments nearer on Sector One but he didn’t want to spend his money when he didn’t have to. It had a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and a living room. To him it was a mansion anyway.

Two months later and he was out on the field looking for some Ancient that lived in the slums, every time they went down it made him wonder more and more if he was just used to get to the slums with someone that knew it. He also refused the tie, wore the pilots goggles he’d got like a fashion statement and was slowly working his way around the man and woman of the area. Life was actually good but still without Yana it felt pretty strange.

Then Verdot died, Tseng was elevated in to his idol’s position and Reno found that he was moved up along with him. He worked hard to prove that every day of his life he owed in thanks to Shinra and he intended to pay that worth back. Come clock out time though and the redhead would be back at the bar or wherever the mood took him.

When he had located the woman, the Ancient, he had come back empty handed but Tseng had understood and the redhead suspected a long term friendship was behind it. He thought maybe just a tiny piece of Tseng was glad she got away and then came more shocking news.

“Reno.” Elena looked at him, one of the newest recruits and Reno had to say she looked pretty hot. “Tseng has a mission he’s been trying to get hold of you.”

“Sorry I was err…” He wiped some brain matter and blood from his cheek. “Busy.”

He headed in to the office. The President was there, he looked at the redhead with appreciation, when his son had asked for him as an investment the boss of Shinra wondered why but this little punk looked quite appealing. Reno took the mission papers and then the President stopped him.

“Busy tonight?” He asked him bluntly.

“Always.” He nodded. This guy just was not attractive. His son was another matter of course.

“Not tonight.” He said grabbing the young Turk. Reno didn’t cry out, it wasn’t worth it. One more to the long list of people that had been where he didn’t want them in the name of food on the table. No, his day would have to wait and he also wondered how the hell the fat bastard kept it up that long anyway.

When the day came to drop the plate on his old home, Sector 7, Reno sighed and looked in the mirror. It had come to this… he left one last message on the phone to Yana, one last attempt to get hold of her. He told her to get the hell out, find a phone or find someone to call him, please to Holy survive. He had not heard anything back and part of him wondered if she really hated him.

When the phone rang before he clocked in Reno answered it and heard a voicemail. Missy had to see him, there was a lot to talk about, would she meet him after the awful job he was about to do? She pleaded with him to think twice but said she had warned those she could to get out. They were in Sector Six; they were hiding and would wait for him.

Reno felt like he’d had the longest day of his life, which was quite a feat considering the whole mess took only an hour at most. He had shut down the reactor and leapt smiling towards the helicopter as Tseng and the others had arranged. He had taken a severe beating from Cloud and Avalanche themselves and lay on the bed in the Healing Lodge praying that if this was dying he might go out quick before he shit himself or something.

“Reno?” He heard Rude calling his name as he stepped in to see him.

“Partner.” He smiled up at him. “You gonna kiss me on my merry way to hell?”

“No.” He shook his head. “Will you stop talking to me like that? You are supposed to be my boss.”

“I’d rather be your lover.” He grinned and then sat up slowly. “Oh Holy, Jenova that hurts.”

“I’m not surprised.” Rude nodded. “I’m glad to see you in one piece.”

“I have a meeting to get to.” Reno got to his feet slowly. “Can you take me to Sector Six Slums? I’m gonna check the state of it.”

“Just take it easy and no fights… don’t go in your blue’s either.” He threw Reno a loose t-shirt and jeans.
~~~~~~~~~~~

Reno stood outside the base of the slums gate and looked around. He had no idea where he would be able to meet them. He needed to think fast and he was in no hurry to wander around in case someone realised who he was. To his knowledge there weren’t many flame redheaded Turks on the planet.

He lit up a smoke and headed off to see what he could find around the area. He wandered through the wreckage of trains and hideous looking ripped up roads that led through the sector. The entrance to the Wall Market zone had a playground and he settled on a rusty swing and kicked out a few times.

“Reno?” The woman’s voice came from behind and Reno nodded, he knew it was Missy’s voice.

“Yeah babes it’s me.” He finished his cig, flipped it out and looked at the gate with a huge sigh. His dad was under there, crushed no doubt along with his mother. A whole family gone, and all done by their son. He found a bottle of vodka, wiped the top and started to drink it.

“Reno I would probably not do that.” She said walking forwards.

Reno turned and caught sight of her, Missy was dressed for a night’s work. Their entire city had collapsed around them and she was still gonna go out for a few gil. His eyes trailed lower, a kid was hiding behind her. So Missy was a mommy too?

“I need it, I had a shit day.” He said as a master of understatement.

The kid was pushed forwards and Reno looked at him. Same blue eyes, same red hair, probably only two maybe three years old. Old enough to have been when he was split from Yana, he looked at him, looked at his hands, a bottle of Mako Blue Vodka in the sixteen year olds hands and a kid he never even knew about.

“This is Izhi.” She said quietly.

“This sucks.” Reno said flinging the bottle over and looking at him. “Did I get you knocked up is that why Yana left?”

“No Reno.” She lifted the toddler up and handed him over. “You and Yana had a baby.”

“We did?” Reno looked at the copy of himself. Was he ever that small? “Where is she? Why didn’t she wanna see me then?”

“Reno you were smacked up to the nines on drugs and she daren’t risk that with being pregnant at the time. She, she passed away not long after having him.” The child looked up at the new man and then to Missy. “He should be with you. Living from carriage to carriage in the train graveyard will get him killed.”

“And living with me will be any better?” Reno looked at him mouth ajar. “Errr what do I do with it?”

“It?” She shook her head. “He’s a child not a thing.” She kissed Izhi’s head. “He just needs a warm place to stay, food and clean clothes.” She waved him goodbye and headed off.

Reno sat in the dark children’s playground on the swing and looked in to the kids eyes. His boss would kill him if he found out about him. Reno was shaking, this was his child? Izhi looked back at him and wondered who he was but he liked him, sort of, well enough to pee on him through the trousers he had on. Reno looked down and then up.

“You did that on purpose.” He whispered his voice choking. “I dunno what to do with a, a kid.”

“Baaaaahhh…” Izhi mumbled back at him and Reno shuddered. The kid was cute but he hadn’t got anything for him. He picked him up and looked around.

“Fuck yo,” he said crying as he held the kid, “I swore fucking blind I wouldn’t turn out like my father. How is this any better?”

“Boo.” Izhi babbled in his arms and clung to the strange man. Reno opened the gates and hotwired the nearest car he could steal so he could get them home. The kid had no ID and explaining the carbon copy wasn’t going to happen.

The house had very little in it and Reno had no idea what a toddler ate and drank. It was the same as him right? Right? He found some beer and got it in a cup, some pizza, a bit soggy but okay and sat him on the sofa with it before pacing around trying to figure out how he was going to work and keep the child. The world was falling apart around his ears and…

The kid belched, Reno looked over at him. Kids belched? The kid had the beer in one hand and a stupid grin on his face. Reno chuckled and shook his head. He pulled out his laptop, could you get a course on looking after kids? He suddenly heard his phone going.

“Be shush okay.” He nodded and Izhi nodded back copying the moves but not understanding a word the guy was saying. “Tseng? Yeah I just wanted to be at home. Nah it’s cool.” Izhi listened to the man talking. The pizza wasn’t that great, he screwed up his face and then finished the cup of beer, enough to make a small toddler drunk and started to giggle inanely at the TV and the funny man walking about.

“What’s that noise?” Tseng asked the redhead.

“It’s um… the tv.” He said as the toddler dropped the glass and plate and decided to run around. Tseng’s silence spoke enough. “Tseng can you come over? I need your help.”

“Sure.” Tseng put the phone down.

“I said be shush.” He said picking the drunken brat up and putting him on the sofa. He grabbed a tin of beer and sat beside him flipping an old horror on and watching some crack blow a woman’s head off. He was starting to relax when he realised that the kid beside him was trying to bury his head in his side.

“Waah!” Izhi cried, the scary film was not to his liking at all and the nasty horrid gun thing had scared him rigid.

“Errrr Izhi?” Reno looked at him; he was out of his depth. “Um you…” Izhi bit his side. “Shit that hurt!” And the shout just made the kid yell more. The hammering on the door not long after signified Tseng's arrival. Could things get worse?