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Reno ([info]itsmydayoff) wrote in [info]chaosunraveled,
@ 2009-10-28 16:03:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:rating: pg-13, reno, rufus, setting: emptiness

Who: Reno, Rufus, Tseng
When: Tseng's arrival, and the beginning of Freudian Slip Day.
Where: Front of Niflheim to somewhere in Emptiness
Rating: PG-13?
Warnings: Language, very likely
Summary: Tseng has appeared now, and wants Rufus and Reno to meet him in front of Niflheim. If only it wasn't slip day...

So Tseng was here, too. Thinking about that, Reno recalled with a healthy dose of irony that one of his first thoughts upon arriving in this place was that it would have made more sense to drag in Rufus or Tseng.

"Sorry boys, didn't mean to drag you here, too" he muttered aloud, though in all honesty he didn't think whatever he'd thought had anything to do with anything. Besides he had to worry about the more pressing issue of what he was going to tell Tseng. I'm dating someone on the other side, Rufus found out, and I acted like a total brat about it, and then for some reason I don't get at all he kissed me. So yeah, things are just a little awkward right now. Yeah... that sounded great. He sighed and kicked a rock that happened to be near his foot, not bothering to watch its path as it crashed into a bush on the outskirts of the Niflheim property.

Looked like he was the first one to show up. How unusual.

[ooc: We're assuming Tseng will be tied up figuring out how to deal with the alligators for a few minutes, and Reno and Rufus can have a little bit of a private chat. So Tseng, we'll tell you when to jump in. ♥ ]

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[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-28 08:26 pm UTC (link)
Rufus had determined that it might take Tseng a little time to find his way around, and since he was not eager to spend time alone with Reno— their interaction had been limited to passing glimpses and stilted exchanges on the comm system, since everything had gone to hell —he waited, giving the senior Turk time to find his way before making his own way outside. With Tseng present, at least, there was a good chance Reno would hold his tongue and not bring up anything uncomfortable, though Rufus himself had been oddly free with his words while speaking with the Turk Director earlier. But then I have not spoken to him in... too long.

Tseng is here. Throwing his book on the low end table, the President jumped up and left the library. When he opened the front door, however, it was only Reno waiting for him. His hesitation was a barely perceptible catch in his step, and then he was outside and closing the portal behind him, eying Reno the way he might have eyed an armed bomb, but not saying a word.

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-28 08:40 pm UTC (link)
Reno turned his attention to the door as he heard it open, but instead of Tseng, it was Rufus who appeared. He gave the impression that he was there intentionally, so Reno decided Tseng must have gotten in contact with him after all.

"What's that look for?" he muttered instead of a greeting, noticing the expression on the other man's face and the way he almost seemed to hesitate upon seeing Reno there. I really did screw up, didn't I? With a frustrated frown, he shifted his gaze back down to the ground, deciding he'd had enough for the moment of being looked at like he might be something dangerous.

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[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-28 09:11 pm UTC (link)
Shoulders stiffening at Reno's mutter, Rufus drew to a halt away from the Turk.

"Shall I pretend nothing is wrong?" he said cooly. Then, "You're wearing your uniform." A corner of his lips drew down: that wasn't quite what he'd meant to say. Drawing a light breath, he tried again. "But I do not know which of your assertions regarding your job is most sincere." No! His flinch was repressed by the force of habit, transformed into a quick blink. What the hell was wrong with him? I do not want to get into this right now.

Deciding not to trust himself with words, Rufus shook his head, turned away from Reno, and steeled himself for the wait. Tseng would be long.

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-28 09:45 pm UTC (link)
Reno did flinch visibly for a second, before he forced his expression to something more neutral. He wasn't quite sure what he wanted to say to that; he'd already apologized, in his own way, for that argument. If Rufus would rather not believe him, then that was his own stupid decision.

"Been following you for years and you have to take me at my word when I do something stupid." He blinked, surprised. He wasn't entirely sure what he had wanted to say, but he was pretty sure that hadn't been it. He paused a moment and tried again. "I said you're still my boss, didn't I?" And then added in a mumble, "Of course I'm wearing my uniform. I wouldn't know what else to wear."

He blinked again, not entirely sure what he'd meant by that, himself. Why did nothing seem to be coming out right?

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[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-28 10:26 pm UTC (link)
"And I wear my suit. How pathetic we are." His brows snapped down and he shook his head roughly. Surely Reno's presence could not fluster him this much? Rufus was never this careless. Except when you shoved the man against a wall and kissed him. Feeling heat swarm across his shoulders and into his chest, Rufus closed his eyes, and carefully and thoroughly forced the memory away. Not until he had exorcised the memory from his thoughts completely did he speak again.

"I do take you at your word," he opened his eyes again, "but if you prefer my doubt that can be arranged." Without looking away from the front door, he smiled darkly and murmured, "Right now I do not trust myself to make any decisions regarding you, not when I constantly wonder at the specter of that—" His eyes flew wide, and one hand jerked upward, fingers dusting his lips, covering his mouth in horror.

This was more than being flustered. What the hell was going on?

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-28 10:46 pm UTC (link)
Reno's eyes snapped back up from the ground to rest on Rufus' back.

"I wish you would look at me. It's so much easier to figure out what you're thinking that way." What? Well, that had entirely not been what he was planning on saying. "Oh fuck, this is one of those weird days, isn't it?" He was silent for a second, running Rufus' words back over in his mind in the hopes that he would actually respond to them this time.

"And my word is usually pretty damn good, but if you want me to lie to you, I guess that could be arranged, too." Well, close enough, he supposed. "Wish you'd decide to trust the one I actually meant, though."

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[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-28 11:34 pm UTC (link)
"Why do you think I won't look at you, idiot? You see too much." A sharp wince, one Rufus didn't bother to hide, and he closed his eyes again. "And that would seem to be the case, wouldn't it? Of all the days...." He rounded on the Turk, eyes sharp and frozen. "I know you take great pride in making my life difficult but why the hell would I want you to lie to me?" Simply saying what he thought, was that the case? What a concept. Rufus wanted to shoot something. He couldn't simply ignore this conversation now that he had accidentally begun it, but how could he continue like this? Go slowly. Carefully. He took a deep breath, and forced his shoulders to relax.

"This is... I don't want to talk about this now. I should have shot you dead for that bluff. I could have killed you! I was going to!" That was not calm. He looked back at the door nervously, half expecting Tseng to walk out on this humiliating scene, thrilled when he did not.

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-28 11:50 pm UTC (link)
"I know you were, you think I didn't hear the click?" He chuckled darkly, his eyes temporarily shifting away from Rufus'. "Well, I'm not sure anyone's ever accused me of not being an idiot sometimes." There was a brief pause and then he turned his gaze back to Rufus.

"But you weren't listening to me, and I was too damn pissed to say whatever the hell I was trying to say, so what the fuck was I supposed to do? Walking away seemed like a pretty good option at the time. Up until the part where I thought I was going to die, but hey, you didn't shoot me." His gaze moved back to a random spot on the ground in front of him. "I appreciate that, you know. I'm not suicidal even if it might look like it sometimes."

"I don't think I'll ever figure out why the hell you ended up kissing me inste--Fuck. I didn't want to bring that up."

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[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-29 12:47 am UTC (link)
Rufus shut his mouth so quickly his teeth clicked. He'd been poking at this bomb— about time he set it off, wasn't it? Why should he be surprised? Falling back a step, he spent a moment urging himself to be calm. His thoughts were a writhing mess, and he couldn't have decided for himself what he was thinking, which was a bad enough situation when he had command over what he said. And right now I don't have command over what I say. Rufus shivered.

"I— I don't know why— didn't, couldn't kill you but you couldn't leave—" No, no, no. Stop talking! Fix it! "This isn't— I can't—" He shook his head again, as though trying to shake some crucial cog back into place. Where was the disconnect? What did he have to do to regain control? A raving lunatic. "I sound like a raving lunatic. God why today—" he looked at the door. "Where's Tseng?"

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[info]your_right_hand
2009-10-29 01:17 am UTC (link)
This place was mad, but the Turks were adaptive if nothing else. Besides, complete insanity - bafflement beyond comprehension, so to speak - took its course slowly, insidiously, on the human mind. So for now, despite having found himself in the previously-thought-to-be metaphorical afterlife, with a few hungry reptiles for company beneath a rickety tree house perch, Tseng was temporarily still fully functional.

For now and temporarily being the key words. Tseng knew all too well that the spur induced by adrenalin and shock were only transient.

After getting out of the door, the rest was easy. A corridor styled in the fashion of some old mansion (Shinra Manor - Tseng was reminded, and the similarity between here and Nibelheim was almost laugh-out-loud ironic) led its way past many similar doors to the outside world. Reno and Rufus both resided here somewhere - for how long? Did they also consider being pawns in this so-called game entirely ludicrous? He would find out soon enough. And for all the problems plaguing his mind and seeking his attention at the moment, what a relief it would be to see them both again-!

He pushed the door at the end of the hallway open-

-right on cue, it would seem.

The faces that met his were...uncharacteristic to say the least. Tseng hesitated, taking a brief moment to examine one, then the other (still alive. Good. Good.), before taking his place between the two.

"Sir." A nod, an act of subordination by sheer habit, before Tseng realised with a frown that he was no longer dressed as a Turk, but a field agent for the WRO. Ah, time has passed, but never mind. It wasn't important at the moment.

"Reno." Another nod.

And folded his hands behind his back.

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-29 01:40 am UTC (link)
"Tseng!" Reno couldn't decide whether he was happy or nervous to see the other Turk, but he closed his mouth to avoid finding out against his will. It took another second past the initial reaction for him to register that there was something wrong with the image.

"What the fuck are you wearing?" He shut his mouth again, forcing himself not to comment further as he noticed the WRO logo on Tseng's chest.

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XP
[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-10-31 07:33 pm UTC (link)
For just a moment Rufus forgot his humiliation and rage and confusion and Reno and simply absorbed the fact that he was seeing Tseng. He straightened unconsciously, chin rising and hands falling loose at his sides. A corner of his lips twitched up without his knowledge, even as he returned Tseng's business-like nod.

Then he registered the uniform, and reality crashed rudely into place again. His expression completely impassive, the President gave Tseng a quick once-over. No words needed here: only acceptance.

ShinRa was dead. Long live the WRO.

Panic threatened, a sensation like free fall, and Rufus dodged it for the moment by focussing on the present. Tseng was alive, and he looked well, but he was here, and for all that Rufus was genuinely happy to see the man something absurdly selfless in him wished Tseng hadn't been brought to this place. After Meteor, among the first things Rufus had done once he could access his funds was ensure that if anything should happen to him, the Turks would be well taken care of. The only people he ever told about the arrangement were Tseng and Reeve Tuesti (because for all that Reeve was Commissioner of the WRO and therefore a rival, he could be relied upon to be the oxymoronic intelligent bleeding heart.) If Rufus died the Turks would receive a third of his estate. If he disappeared and was not found within 90 days, they would be given partial access to their share. After a year, the full inheritance came into effect. So while he highly doubted any Turk could be content living off an inheritance, they would at least be free of ever having to worry about money. Tseng wouldn't have been happy, but he would have been free to live his life.

And Tseng might have kept ShinRa Company limping along for a while more; long enough, perhaps, for Rufus to find a way home, retake the reigns, and save his birthright.

Panic again. Silent, blank-faced panic, not helped in the least when he looked about for something else to focus on and his eyes landed on Reno. A puff of air left his lips, almost a laugh.

"And then there were none." And with that final kick from his loosened tongue forget about that? Rufus dropped his head and sighed. "Hello, Tseng of the WRO. Welcome to hell."

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>_> Why do we feel like a cheating boyfriend. Also, watch us as we slip!
[info]your_right_hand
2009-11-01 05:03 am UTC (link)
Tseng did not speak immediately; the tension between Reno and Rufus was palpable, effectively stifling conversation, not to mention the responses to his own attire were, at the moment, hard to address. A hint of guilt coloured the slight frown on Tseng's brows, in answer to Reno's question but more to Rufus's quiet disapproval - but how to begin retelling the events that had occurred in the living world since these two vanished, became ghosts and mere memories?

Reno was in his Turk uniform, and Rufus's suit was as immaculate as ever. Meanwhile on Gaia, Shinra's logo burned with the last traces of its once-majestic tower, finally completely destroyed and laid to rest after the emergence and defeat of Deepground. Reeve Tuesti had found Tseng, much later, still resolutely dressed as a Turk even after Rufus's disappearance, wandering among the ashes of what had once constituted his entire reason for being. The WRO jacket Reeve gave him fit as well as Tseng's new job description, but the feeling of dissociation never did go away.

"A lot has changed in the time you were gone, sir," he offered as a half-hearted explanation, embedding an apology within. "Reeve needed all the help he could get. We were at war - with Shinra's creations, nonetheless. The uniform of the Turks was condemned in the public eye, as were all associations with Shinra."

Then, a sudden, hard blink - I've said too much - before he continued, more carefully, "But I doubt it makes a difference now which organisation I work for."

Tseng smiled grimly then, his gaze alternating between the two men at his side. Reno's body language clearly conveyed discomfort, and Rufus's usual pallor was flushed despite his impassive face.

"There's much to tell, both on your side and mine." He took a small step backwards. "But... I feel as though I had interrupted something?"

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-11-01 10:21 am UTC (link)
"Nothing that we didn't want interrupted," he replied, then cringed ever so slightly. He had meant to simply play it off as nothing, but had temporarily forgotten that he didn't really have control over what he was saying. "But you already knew something was up, so it's okay." And he hadn't intended to say that aloud. He paused, trying to grab hold of his thoughts before he spoke again, and finally said, "I don't want to talk about it." He nodded vaguely in Rufus' direction. "And I don't think he does either." With that, he shifted his thoughts back to what Tseng had said about home and the WRO. It seemed at least a slightly safer topic, if not necessarily by much.

"Rude and Elena are WRO, too, then, I guess." He muttered, and then promptly shut up before he could say anything more.

On some level, he almost felt betrayed. Here he'd been keeping up the charade that Rufus was still his boss in some kind of official capacity, and now he was being told that the company that only existed in habit and imagination here didn't even exist for real at home anymore.

He really wasn't sure what to make of that, but "happy" was not the word.

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OMG! THE INTERNET! IT'S BACK! DON'T EVER LEAVE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN, INTERNET!
[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-11-06 11:01 am UTC (link)
He was being pulled in too many directions at once. Closing his eyes, Rufus breathed slowly as he ordered his thoughts. One word in particular had caught his attention, and he followed that first.

"War?

"With ShinRa's creations? Kadaj and his brothers were killed, and surely Sephiroth is enough trouble to constitute a thousand people, but I'm fairly certain he doesn't have any more clones lying around, so he still shouldn't merit a plural. So there are no 'creations' of ours to war with. Unless there was something else—" It was a fear Rufus had never shared, not with anyone: that there was something he'd missed, something big, during his brief stint as President before Diamond WEAPON and Meteor; before 92% of ShinRa Company's records were destroyed in not one but two massive strikes to its headquarters. The only evidence he had after that was the odd file here and there, and the memory of vague comments Scarlet made before her death. Hints. "I missed something important. Shiva I did, didn't I? But then I suppose that's nothing new, is it? You're all probably used to it by now." Something that would further inflame the public again 'all associations with ShinRa.' Something that would create this dissonant image of Tseng in that uniform that silently declared him for all to see as belonging not to Rufus but to Reeve.

"But none of it matters if ShinRa no longer exists."

It took a moment for his eyes to find the two Turks— former Turks —as he blinked away an endless swarm of incommunicable tangents. "Perceptive as always, Tseng," he murmured. The words lacked a certain sharpness. "You always see things others don't. It's no surprise Reeve would steal you the instant you were back on the market. But how could I possibly continue to question Reno's loyalty to a company that no longer exists? Or your own, for that matter."

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EDIT. D8
[info]your_right_hand
2009-11-22 10:30 am UTC (link)
Had Tseng been younger, in those first inexperienced days under Veld's instruction, he would have certainly betrayed his discomfort at this assault on severed loyalties more openly. As it were, just under a decade of being Director of the Turks ensured he did not shift his weight tellingly, did not lower the level gaze which alternated between Reno and Rufus, and most importantly did not say the first thing which came into mind - I have always been selfish.

He did, however, find himself opening his mouth, words unspoken colliding with air as he stifled the urge with a sharp intake of breath. There was little point in trying to defend his actions now, though he was acutely aware what sort of reaction his words were provoking in the other men. To Rufus Shinra, the company had been everything, and to the Turks, Rufus was the world. But the world was overturned when both Reno and Rufus disappeared, taking the last of Shinra's legacy with them. What could Tseng - who had been a Turk longer than he had been a fully-grown man - do but to fall back on first instincts, to follow the next in charge?

For, loyalty to a dead man was useless, and Tseng had never believed even in redemption, much less any other poetic sentiment.

"Rude and Elena did work for the WRO," he replied, counting breaths and taking things one step at a time. "Though we all went our separate ways after the war ended."

The common tie broken, what reason was there in remaining acquaintances? Elena had protested, but only weakly. Rude understood as well as Rude seemed to understand everything else.

"War with Shinra's creations," Tseng continued, deciding that Rufus and Reno clearly wanted some distraction from whatever had gotten them so agitated, though this remained rather jarring news to be distracted with. "The product of a secret alliance between the Weaponry, Public Safety, and Science Divisions under direction from the former president - an armed force that called itself Deepground. The full recount of the events following your disappearance is rather...complicated, and perhaps best reserved for a later date."

They were all significantly more talkative today, he noted, watching Rufus's face in particular flicker as the blond man struggled with some internal conflict. Reno appeared to flinch with every sentence that left his mouth.

"Not even Administrative Research, whose business was to know, was aware of Deepground," Tseng said, tone casual. Past experience told him Rufus Shinra did not like to be comforted, but sometimes there were things Rufus simply needed to hear.

"Our loyalty was not to the company alone, sir. You knew that. You know that." A glance in Reno's direction, inclusive, though the WRO uniform became particularly tight. Tseng sighed, then surprised himself further by adding, "I think I need a drink."

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[info]itsmydayoff
2009-11-22 10:58 am UTC (link)
Reno all but missed the explanation of whatever war had gone on. His thought had gotten stuck on one particular statement right at the beginning.

You went your separate ways. You have no idea where they are. You have no idea where Rude is. You left Rude. You just told me he was okay. Fucking liar, you don't know if he is or not. Sure as hell better be.

Turks fucking look after their own, Tseng, even if they're not really Turks anymore. Laney better be okay, too.

...not that I'll ever find out.

Thankfully, he was aware enough of the state he was in at present to keep his mouth firmly clamped shut while that initial tirade of thoughts passed. He was definitely planning on chewing Tseng out for that later, but he would do it when he had some control over what he was saying.

When Tseng concluded by saying he needed a drink, Reno gave a brief, dark chuckle.

"Works for me!" he replied, possibly a little more emphatically than he had intended to, and turned toward Emptiness waving a hand for them to follow. "Come on, I know where all the bars are around here. All the bars. Not that there's much of a point when they're all empty. But hey, at least you aren't about to be attacked by zombies while trying to figure out where the alcohol is. At least, I doubt it." That was a little ironic, when he thought about it. He and Tseng had both had the misfortune of being dragged in here right as some weird shit or another was going on. He wasn't sure which was worse; endless zombie hordes, or not having any control over what came out of your mouth.

He took a few steps and then paused to see if they were actually following.

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OOC INTERRUPTION!
[info]your_right_hand
2009-10-29 12:14 pm UTC (link)
This for reference. :3 Please ignore poor quality but will do up better version later!

HEARTS YOU BOTH.

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Re: OOC INTERRUPTION!
[info]itsmydayoff
2009-10-29 12:16 pm UTC (link)
Hee. About dead on what I was imagining, actually. ^^

Also. YOUR ICON. ♥

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Re: OOC INTERRUPTION!
[info]whosoldtheworld
2009-11-06 11:31 am UTC (link)
Ditto.

And Rufus looks like he's about to BITE Tseng in that icon XD;

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