ʀᴇɴᴏ (![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} redtail) wrote in ![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} somerealityrpg,@ 2020-09-30 16:05:00 |
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TIFA LOCKHART
RENO
WHO Tifa & Reno •
WHERE bar in Goodland •
WHEN backdated before Asgard
I got your back, and I’ll try not make you wanna punch me.
Just promise we’ll have each other’s back, alright? No matter what.WARNINGS lots of cussing
Reno was one of the last people on the planet she ever thought she’d be hanging out with at a bar. That it was on Cloud’s birthday didn’t seem to make it any better either, but for now they were all the other had in this universe. Rude and Reno had become better allies since the fall of Shinra, and she trusted the fiery redhead. So, the least she could do was be there for him in the absence of his best friend.
Getting out of the apartment for a spell couldn’t be so bad. She hadn’t even touched the cupcake procured in Cloud’s honor. Maybe that would be a way to celebrate waking up the following day without a hangover. Getting carried away with the booze certainly wasn’t on her agenda, but she wouldn’t fault Reno if he did. Not too much, anyway.
Meeting him at the watering hole, Tifa was relieved to find it wasn’t the same one in which she had secured employment recently. Had it been Seventh Heaven, she would have been offended if he went somewhere else. Her beloved little bar wasn’t here though, thus they had to take what was given.
Decked out in her favored black attire, sans apron, she hopped up on a barstool and ordered the closest thing to a Cosmo Canyon that they had. Maybe she’d have to get around to opening her own bar here if nothing changed…
Turning to face her new drinking partner, she propped her cheek up in her hand as she leaned against the countertop. “Be honest, how many times have you been here this week, Reno?”
Very little really made Reno question his choices. A lot of the time his options came down to doing the thing, or dying. So, naturally, he did the thing. There were a few times during his career with the Turks where he’d stop later and think ‘that was the wrong thing’, but ultimately, choice didn’t come into play where orders were given. He followed the order, or he was replaced. And that was as good as being dead.
Even with that being true, he regretted the plate, regretted what choices he’d made there, that failure hadn’t really been an option. Even if recovery afterwards was slow and steady and people healed, it was still another mark of Reno’s poor choices.
So he should’ve been surprised when Tifa agreed to a drink; sure, they fought the Remnants as something like allies, worked in tandem to save the planet from another run around with Sephiroth, cured geostigma -although that was mostly Cloud. But he was the only familiar person, and probably the only one she wouldn’t need to explain missing Cloud to.
“This week? Just twice.” Of course, he hadn’t left one full night, because apparently they didn’t care if he sat there and drank not only his weight in alcohol but the whole bar's weight, provided he paid for it.
No one had to know how he paid for it. “Gonna start monitorin’ my intake?” Rude usually made a point in getting Reno home at night. But Rude wasn’t there.
Giving him a suspicious look over that response, she wasn’t sure if she actually believed him. On the same token, she felt a sense of concern over such a physically detrimental habit plaguing Reno. It could easily be said that she had little reason to care about his well being, what with their rather unpleasant past, but Tifa recognized what he’d done during the geostigma scare.
More than anything else, she wanted to believe that people were inherently good even at their worst. So, Reno would be no exception.
“Do I need to?” She countered boldly, squinting at him as if to dare him to challenge her. It wouldn’t be because she had nothing better to do with her free time other than to look after a former Turk. It would be because he had been there for Cloud, in his own way, and he’d helped the children when things turned incredibly grim. Her free hand unconsciously went to press against the worst of the blows she’d received from Loz.
“I get it…” Tifa eventually offered, expression softening with understanding. “No matter how many times I wake up and find I’m still here, it doesn’t get any easier not knowing why.”
The notion or the former eco-terrorist that he was tasked with stopped dragging his ass home while he was shit-faced was honestly hilarious, Reno breaking into a sharkish grin, sharp teeth pointedly catching on his own lips, “It’d be a full time job.” There were a great many reasons for Reno’s drinking, usually Rude understood, he didn’t always approve, but if nothing else, he understood.
Taking a slightly serious turn was a bit of a stumper, although maybe it was something along the same lines.
This whole thing was hard to figure out, but the people were where Reno really struggled. Everyone seemed so fine with being here, they were just stuck, they just accepted it. And Reno wasn’t sure what that said about them, their world or this world. But he couldn’t exactly settle that feeling that he should be doing more. But what? It wasn’t like he’d understand any of the science involved in it, couldn’t offer a theory, didn’t have enough materia to power anything. “Yeah,” besides, it wasn’t like he’d be missing anything at home, right? “Probably driving you mad not being back there, huh? Away from everything.” She had two kids at home, right? And Cloud? If they knew she was missing, they’d be turning the world upside down, surely.
Reno… Well, aside from the Turks, it wasn’t like there was anyone to miss him. Sure, he was a damn good Turk, he made a point in excelling with his work, even if he was a little unconventional, no one could claim he wasn’t fucking good at his job. But it wasn’t like there was anything else.
And that was fucking depressing.
While Reno may not have been high on the list of people she wanted to be stuck in another world with, he wasn’t the worst company around either. For the stress he’d given AVALANCHE in the past, it remained etched in history rather than her heart. Tifa was a forgiving sort, after all, and recognized when someone was trying to better themselves.
Even if they were struggling to do it the right way.
“What’s it pay?” She shot back, meeting his grin with a smile. One that said she was only speaking in jest, because Tifa Lockhart would always be the caretaker in the lives of those around her.
Once her drink arrived, she turned to face the counter and cupped the tumbler between her hands. His question was fair, but difficult to answer. It was more than a simple yes or no for Tifa, she was desperate to be back in Edge. What would her absence do to Cloud who had just gotten his mind together for the first time since they were kids? Even in the days after Mideel, he’d continued to silently soldier his burdens.
“I’m…. the same as you in that regard, I’m sure,” she finally answered, nodding to herself as if confirming the veracity of the statement. “I’d fight tooth and nail to get back home to everyone… for you and for them, but how do you fight something you can’t see?”
Having a semi-usual spot meant that they didn’t really need to ask Reno what he was drinking, and the middle ground whisky was placed in front of him the same time that Tifa’s drink was. “Usually it’s shit, honestly. But Rude seems to enjoy punching people as payment.” Because obviously, Reno started fights and obviously Reno got into more trouble than he could handle. Naturally, Rude just dealt with it in stride.
The same as you. Reno wondered if she really was. Sure, Reno wanted to get back to his job, but it wasn’t like he had much else going on. Tifa had her group, those kids, that bar, Cloud. Plenty to get back to and stay focused. Reno wasn’t even sure what the job of the Turks would even be now, without Soldier and with ShinRa rebranding, would there be need for shady enforcers?
Even if people did realise they were missing, he wasn’t sure it wouldn’t just be ruled that Reno’d gotten into too much trouble without Rude to pull him out of it.
“Yeah… Feels a bit like fighting ghosts, but didn’t we do that already?” The Remnants weren’t exactly invisible though. But everything around here seemed to be at the whims of some entity that no one could name or really explain. “Maybe we cause enough trouble it’ll just send us back?”
The prospect of causing trouble caused her to grimace. Those days were far behind her, and even then Tifa hadn’t been keen on half of the damage AVALANCHE wrought against ShinRa. As much as she had wanted to fight for the Planet, and would do it the same way all over again, it had weighed heavily on her heart. So many lives had been lost because of their pursuit to overthrow the glorified electric company.
“I thought we had,” Tifa agreed, swishing the liquid around in her glass glumly. “As for the trouble…” She glanced back at him, attempting a smile. “I already took on the position of keeping you out of it, so that’s not gonna fly, Reno.”
The way people seemed to come and go here without rhyme or reason didn’t lend any credence to his suggestion, not as far as Tifa was concerned. If anything, a tiny part of her wanted to believe that some semblance of “good” behavior would work in their favor. With an uneasy sigh, she downed her drink in one gulp and thumbed off the excess at the corner of her mouth.
Then, she ordered another.
“We can get through this, Reno,” she offered with some mustered up confidence. “Just promise we’ll have each other’s back, alright? No matter what.”
Reno was just so good at trouble it was next to second nature, even when he was on the job, while some of his assignments were a little distasteful, he was good at the work because he got a thrill out of whatever fight he ended up in.
Even when he was sorely outmatched. But that was more of a him problem.
“Okay, okay.” He held his hands up though, a mock surrender really, but the point was probably coming across, “No trouble, at least not without reason.” He had to at least have the option to cause some kind of trouble when it was actually needed, right?
Watching her knock back the drink, he figured if he was stuck here with anyone from the other side, it was better that it was her. The kid would drive him mad, Cloud would ignore him, the shouty gunner would probably just yell at him a lot. So yeah, it was better that it was Tifa with him rather than anyone else.
“Yeah,” really, not even he would leave her to fend for herself among whatever this place was. “I got your back,” and he would, almost like she was a Turk. It wasn’t like he was worried she wouldn’t back him up. “And I’ll try not make you wanna punch me.” Which meant not resorting to petty crime for amusement.
Damn.
That he relented earned a genuine grin from Tifa, perhaps the first one she’d given for weeks. There definitely were worse people she could have been stuck with if she thought about it longer. Reno deserved more credit, especially after all the things he’d done recently. So, the grin eventually turned into a softer, more appreciative smile.
“I know you do,” she answered kindly, grabbing up the new drink and making a mock cheers to that sentiment.
The latter part was a little less believable, which was evident in the way she shot him a skeptical look. Him? Try to avoid getting a punch from her? She knew what that might entail. It would be hard for him to shed that behavior, but even an offer of an effort meant a lot. “That would make it a whole lot more easy on me to watch out for you if you do.”
Not that she needed it to be easier, of course. Tifa Lockhart knew how to keep people on their toes, after all. She’d kindly remind Reno of that as necessary throughout the rest of the evening, drinking their despairs away.
Getting out of the apartment for a spell couldn’t be so bad. She hadn’t even touched the cupcake procured in Cloud’s honor. Maybe that would be a way to celebrate waking up the following day without a hangover. Getting carried away with the booze certainly wasn’t on her agenda, but she wouldn’t fault Reno if he did. Not too much, anyway.
Meeting him at the watering hole, Tifa was relieved to find it wasn’t the same one in which she had secured employment recently. Had it been Seventh Heaven, she would have been offended if he went somewhere else. Her beloved little bar wasn’t here though, thus they had to take what was given.
Decked out in her favored black attire, sans apron, she hopped up on a barstool and ordered the closest thing to a Cosmo Canyon that they had. Maybe she’d have to get around to opening her own bar here if nothing changed…
Turning to face her new drinking partner, she propped her cheek up in her hand as she leaned against the countertop. “Be honest, how many times have you been here this week, Reno?”
Very little really made Reno question his choices. A lot of the time his options came down to doing the thing, or dying. So, naturally, he did the thing. There were a few times during his career with the Turks where he’d stop later and think ‘that was the wrong thing’, but ultimately, choice didn’t come into play where orders were given. He followed the order, or he was replaced. And that was as good as being dead.
Even with that being true, he regretted the plate, regretted what choices he’d made there, that failure hadn’t really been an option. Even if recovery afterwards was slow and steady and people healed, it was still another mark of Reno’s poor choices.
So he should’ve been surprised when Tifa agreed to a drink; sure, they fought the Remnants as something like allies, worked in tandem to save the planet from another run around with Sephiroth, cured geostigma -although that was mostly Cloud. But he was the only familiar person, and probably the only one she wouldn’t need to explain missing Cloud to.
“This week? Just twice.” Of course, he hadn’t left one full night, because apparently they didn’t care if he sat there and drank not only his weight in alcohol but the whole bar's weight, provided he paid for it.
No one had to know how he paid for it. “Gonna start monitorin’ my intake?” Rude usually made a point in getting Reno home at night. But Rude wasn’t there.
Giving him a suspicious look over that response, she wasn’t sure if she actually believed him. On the same token, she felt a sense of concern over such a physically detrimental habit plaguing Reno. It could easily be said that she had little reason to care about his well being, what with their rather unpleasant past, but Tifa recognized what he’d done during the geostigma scare.
More than anything else, she wanted to believe that people were inherently good even at their worst. So, Reno would be no exception.
“Do I need to?” She countered boldly, squinting at him as if to dare him to challenge her. It wouldn’t be because she had nothing better to do with her free time other than to look after a former Turk. It would be because he had been there for Cloud, in his own way, and he’d helped the children when things turned incredibly grim. Her free hand unconsciously went to press against the worst of the blows she’d received from Loz.
“I get it…” Tifa eventually offered, expression softening with understanding. “No matter how many times I wake up and find I’m still here, it doesn’t get any easier not knowing why.”
The notion or the former eco-terrorist that he was tasked with stopped dragging his ass home while he was shit-faced was honestly hilarious, Reno breaking into a sharkish grin, sharp teeth pointedly catching on his own lips, “It’d be a full time job.” There were a great many reasons for Reno’s drinking, usually Rude understood, he didn’t always approve, but if nothing else, he understood.
Taking a slightly serious turn was a bit of a stumper, although maybe it was something along the same lines.
This whole thing was hard to figure out, but the people were where Reno really struggled. Everyone seemed so fine with being here, they were just stuck, they just accepted it. And Reno wasn’t sure what that said about them, their world or this world. But he couldn’t exactly settle that feeling that he should be doing more. But what? It wasn’t like he’d understand any of the science involved in it, couldn’t offer a theory, didn’t have enough materia to power anything. “Yeah,” besides, it wasn’t like he’d be missing anything at home, right? “Probably driving you mad not being back there, huh? Away from everything.” She had two kids at home, right? And Cloud? If they knew she was missing, they’d be turning the world upside down, surely.
Reno… Well, aside from the Turks, it wasn’t like there was anyone to miss him. Sure, he was a damn good Turk, he made a point in excelling with his work, even if he was a little unconventional, no one could claim he wasn’t fucking good at his job. But it wasn’t like there was anything else.
And that was fucking depressing.
While Reno may not have been high on the list of people she wanted to be stuck in another world with, he wasn’t the worst company around either. For the stress he’d given AVALANCHE in the past, it remained etched in history rather than her heart. Tifa was a forgiving sort, after all, and recognized when someone was trying to better themselves.
Even if they were struggling to do it the right way.
“What’s it pay?” She shot back, meeting his grin with a smile. One that said she was only speaking in jest, because Tifa Lockhart would always be the caretaker in the lives of those around her.
Once her drink arrived, she turned to face the counter and cupped the tumbler between her hands. His question was fair, but difficult to answer. It was more than a simple yes or no for Tifa, she was desperate to be back in Edge. What would her absence do to Cloud who had just gotten his mind together for the first time since they were kids? Even in the days after Mideel, he’d continued to silently soldier his burdens.
“I’m…. the same as you in that regard, I’m sure,” she finally answered, nodding to herself as if confirming the veracity of the statement. “I’d fight tooth and nail to get back home to everyone… for you and for them, but how do you fight something you can’t see?”
Having a semi-usual spot meant that they didn’t really need to ask Reno what he was drinking, and the middle ground whisky was placed in front of him the same time that Tifa’s drink was. “Usually it’s shit, honestly. But Rude seems to enjoy punching people as payment.” Because obviously, Reno started fights and obviously Reno got into more trouble than he could handle. Naturally, Rude just dealt with it in stride.
The same as you. Reno wondered if she really was. Sure, Reno wanted to get back to his job, but it wasn’t like he had much else going on. Tifa had her group, those kids, that bar, Cloud. Plenty to get back to and stay focused. Reno wasn’t even sure what the job of the Turks would even be now, without Soldier and with ShinRa rebranding, would there be need for shady enforcers?
Even if people did realise they were missing, he wasn’t sure it wouldn’t just be ruled that Reno’d gotten into too much trouble without Rude to pull him out of it.
“Yeah… Feels a bit like fighting ghosts, but didn’t we do that already?” The Remnants weren’t exactly invisible though. But everything around here seemed to be at the whims of some entity that no one could name or really explain. “Maybe we cause enough trouble it’ll just send us back?”
The prospect of causing trouble caused her to grimace. Those days were far behind her, and even then Tifa hadn’t been keen on half of the damage AVALANCHE wrought against ShinRa. As much as she had wanted to fight for the Planet, and would do it the same way all over again, it had weighed heavily on her heart. So many lives had been lost because of their pursuit to overthrow the glorified electric company.
“I thought we had,” Tifa agreed, swishing the liquid around in her glass glumly. “As for the trouble…” She glanced back at him, attempting a smile. “I already took on the position of keeping you out of it, so that’s not gonna fly, Reno.”
The way people seemed to come and go here without rhyme or reason didn’t lend any credence to his suggestion, not as far as Tifa was concerned. If anything, a tiny part of her wanted to believe that some semblance of “good” behavior would work in their favor. With an uneasy sigh, she downed her drink in one gulp and thumbed off the excess at the corner of her mouth.
Then, she ordered another.
“We can get through this, Reno,” she offered with some mustered up confidence. “Just promise we’ll have each other’s back, alright? No matter what.”
Reno was just so good at trouble it was next to second nature, even when he was on the job, while some of his assignments were a little distasteful, he was good at the work because he got a thrill out of whatever fight he ended up in.
Even when he was sorely outmatched. But that was more of a him problem.
“Okay, okay.” He held his hands up though, a mock surrender really, but the point was probably coming across, “No trouble, at least not without reason.” He had to at least have the option to cause some kind of trouble when it was actually needed, right?
Watching her knock back the drink, he figured if he was stuck here with anyone from the other side, it was better that it was her. The kid would drive him mad, Cloud would ignore him, the shouty gunner would probably just yell at him a lot. So yeah, it was better that it was Tifa with him rather than anyone else.
“Yeah,” really, not even he would leave her to fend for herself among whatever this place was. “I got your back,” and he would, almost like she was a Turk. It wasn’t like he was worried she wouldn’t back him up. “And I’ll try not make you wanna punch me.” Which meant not resorting to petty crime for amusement.
Damn.
That he relented earned a genuine grin from Tifa, perhaps the first one she’d given for weeks. There definitely were worse people she could have been stuck with if she thought about it longer. Reno deserved more credit, especially after all the things he’d done recently. So, the grin eventually turned into a softer, more appreciative smile.
“I know you do,” she answered kindly, grabbing up the new drink and making a mock cheers to that sentiment.
The latter part was a little less believable, which was evident in the way she shot him a skeptical look. Him? Try to avoid getting a punch from her? She knew what that might entail. It would be hard for him to shed that behavior, but even an offer of an effort meant a lot. “That would make it a whole lot more easy on me to watch out for you if you do.”
Not that she needed it to be easier, of course. Tifa Lockhart knew how to keep people on their toes, after all. She’d kindly remind Reno of that as necessary throughout the rest of the evening, drinking their despairs away.