Man Down

He rolled his head to the left and could only see a pair of boots next to his shoulder. The owner of them long dead by the looks of things, the sounds of fighting still flooded his ears accompanied by the sounds of gracelessly spat obscenities.
The pain shot through him, and he realised once again just why he was on the cold concrete in a shifty warehouse at the back of Wall Mart. As far as bad missions can go he had to admit this was one of the top of the list. A simple collection of money and materia owed to Shinra had resulted in an ambush that the rookie had lead them straight into. The bullet that he had received as a token of their love, felt like it had torn through the majority of his organs. So after all these years he was going to die from a bullet in the gut, in Wall Mart. Not quite his death of choice by a long shot. It was lucky you couldn’t see the look of disappointment in his eyes. Hidden by sunglasses and riddled with pain, he lay there taking slow measured breaths and refused to panic.

When shit went bad he never panicked, if this was death he decided as ugly and painful this way was, there was definitely worse ways he could go. The sounds of a pistol firing rang out through the warehouse. The Rookies first shot and he’d missed it. He chuckled to himself slightly and hoped she had hit her target, at least then he knew Reno would get her drunk as hell to commemorate her first kill and to wash away the guilt of it. He heard a heavy sound of metal against metal come from above his head and he jumped slightly only causing him to curl up in agony at disturbing the heavily bleeding wound.
“For fucks sake!” He knew that voice. It could only be one person, the young lad he had been saddled with a while back because no one else would work with him.

He liked the kid, he had flare for the work, and when it came down to it he’d take it seriously. As brutal as they come and yet efficient, as much as he’d love to rip a bloke apart for information, he knew a million ways to get it from them and keep the guy alive, What sort of existence you would have after it, all depended on what you said to him. Touch his hair or mention his scars and it wouldn’t be worth living because you’d be lucky if you had your legs.
He’d been with him for almost a year, and in this line of work that was a damn good track record. Though just because they had worked together that long it didn’t mean he trusted him. That was something very few people ever got from Rude was his trust. It was his downfall in many ways. Though he remembered saying to Reno when he first came to work with him: “Don’t think I am a nice guy kid, not even deep down”
Okay it had been a lie to some extent, but it was to keep him at a distance and to stop him digging. It had been six months before Reno had found the guts to swipe Rude’s glasses off his nose, he had to credit the kid for his speed, but he got a dislocated shoulder as a reward.

He felt cold hands pulling his glasses down his nose and he didn’t fight them this time. He opened them slowly once more to see the startled yet calm eyes of Reno. Bright blue as his hands worked in a flurry to open Rude’s shirt to asses the damage.
“Yo Rude, you with me big fella?” He asked leaning over him and looking down into his eyes looking for recognition.
“Steal my wallet whilst I’m unconscious, and I’ll kill you” Rude got out with a cough, amazed to see Reno laugh, it lit his whole face up. “He’s alive ‘lena!” Reno shouted into the warehouse. Waiting for a response Rude watched him pull off his jacket, holster and shirt, slinging his holster back on over a bare chest and balling his shirt up.
“You’re gonna hate me for this… “, He said with a grin as he pressed his shirt to the fast bleeding bullet wound and pressed down hard. Rude cried out before he had a chance to measure and restrain it.
“You bastard!” He yelled at Reno surprised that the kid didn’t even flinch.
“Tell me something I don’t know” He said with a smile and Rude watched him look back in the direction of Elena.

“Elena, get the fuck off your knees! Stop fuckin’ cryin’ is the chopper coming?” a growl left the red heads throat after the comment and he turned back to Rude, adjusting the shirt wad to soak up more blood.
“Fucking woman, too emotional for this shit” He grumbled.
Rude would have laughed, but at the mere idea of it the blackness of unconsciousness crept in from the side of his eyes.
“First kill?” he asked in a stronger voice than he expected. Reno nodded smiling. “You’da been proud of her y’know. One shot square between the eyes. Boy went down like a stone. What ever you showed her on the range must have sank in” He said with a laugh and a suggestive wink that wasn’t lost on Rude.

He heard the scramble of feet and in the far reaches of his peripheral vision he saw Elena kneel by him. “Its on its way Reno, oh god is he alive?” her voice was shaking and he could tell by the tone she was crying.
“Of course he’s fuckin’ alive!” Reno spat in a tone harsher than really necessary. Realising this he softened it out with a laugh. “This is Rude we are talkin’ about it’d take more than a single bullet to kill this one” He almost sounded like he believed the words.
Elena’s cell phone went and Reno pressed down on the wound some more. That was too much. Unconsciousness clouded Rude’s vision and he blacked out again.
When he came round again he really wished he hadn’t. Reno was over him covered in blood Rude could only assume was his. He was sitting on his hips and Rude could tell they were in the air.
“Shit he’s coming around, what a bad time to wake up Rude”
His head was too foggy to really understand what was going on, though glancing around the space, all he could see were two very I’ll looking SOLDIER and a very pale Elena. The white coat that he assumed was the doctor was sitting back the look of horror on his face not making the situation any better by Rude’s standards.

It was the feeling in his stomach that made him cry out again and he didn’t need to look down to know what Reno was doing. There was an entirely unpleasant feeling in his stomach, aside from the pain of the wound. Rude strained and picked his head up a little only to see through hazy eyes the worst possible thing in the world; Reno playing doctor. Though he didn’t understand why it was Reno when there was a perfectly good doctor sat behind the red heads shoulder. Ok so he looked like he was about to pass out but he was more qualified than Reno and that was all that counted to Rude at this point.
“Well won’t you look at that little bastard” he said a somewhat amused tone to his voice as he regarded the bullet shrapnel. That was more than enough for Rude, feeling his head hit the deck once more he wondered if he’d come round again.

Rude could count on one hand the amount of people he trusted. It wasn’t until he came round in a hospital bed to the sound of Reno shouting and swearing at the doctors that he even had anyone to count.
“I think fucking not!” The higher pitched voice sounded more like a pre pubescent boy than the 20-something it actually belonged to. “Shoot him up with any more shit and I’ll be the one shooting you got it!”
Rude mentally laughed at the exasperated tone of voice, it usually took him hours to get Reno that annoyed to he started to squeak like that, though he had to admit he found it rather amusing.
“Fuck no! I said no!” there was a bang against the door and Rude didn’t even want to consider who or what had just come in contact with it.
It went on for a good five minutes longer before there was the sound of scuttling down the hall and his door opened slightly.
He opened an eye and watched Reno walk in, he looked Ill and paler than Rude had ever seen him.
He hadn’t even noticed that Rude was awake.
Dressed in standard issue Turk uniform, Reno looked like he hadn’t slept or changed since Rude had been brought in. The shirt was still bloody though he was now wearing it. The blue suit had gone a murky purple in places, dried blood for certain. That and Reno was still armed to the teeth. EMR at his hip and the occasional flash of a holster could be seen from under his jacket as he paced the room.

Pace, pause, bounce on toes, pause, pace. And repeat until insane.
“Sit” Rude croaked from the bed and smirked watching Reno jump a mile, all gangly legs and hair as he came to a standstill again.
“For Ifrit’s sake Rude! Scare the shit out of me why don’t you, god man how are you doin’?” Reno came to the bedside, sitting on the edge of the hospital locker he reached in and pulled out Rude’s glasses handing them to him.
Rude took them with an amused smile, surprised Reno was aware about just how uncomfortable he was without them.
“I feel like shit” Rude said flat voiced and honest as he did his best to drag himself up the bed. Glad that Reno didn’t even try to help him, as he would have been too proud to accept it. Pulling up the hospital issue gown he saw the patch of glean gauze on his wound and blinked.
Scowling he looked to Reno. “You’ve been out for two weeks, that and they have been sedating the hell out of you. Though you came round the once apparently and tried to get the nurse to climb in with you, I’d have liked to have been there to see that!” Reno laughed and brushed a bit of fluff off his coat not even seeming to notice the blood he was covered in.

Rude blinked trying to remember it but came up with a blank. “Last thing I remember is you playing fishing in my stomach”. He didn’t even look up at Reno; the red head laughed and pulled a load of stray hair off his face tapping an earring in the cartilage. “That’s the bugger right there, I stole your idea, one for every time I’ve been shot.” Pulling it out he handed it to Rude. “That’s if you can find anywhere to put it” He said with a smirk and a cheeky laugh. Rude accepted it with a nod and tore off the gauze that covered his stomach. It had healed well. Giving it an experimental prod he winced slightly, tender but some work and a few trips to the gym and he’d be okay. Reno hadn’t shut up talking though; he knew he didn’t have to respond to him any more to keep him going.

“’Lena’s been beating herself up big time over you y’know. She so must fancy her chances with you” Reno commented absently.
“Tseng” Rude offered, only causing Reno to laugh even more.
“Tseng, he has the emotions of a Robot. Anyway she’s been all worried about you and shit. I knew you’d be fine…” Rude looked up at him and Reno gave him a scandalised look. “I did! I got you here, stopped them from pumping you full of the weird shit Hojo wants to try on any unconscious guinea pig, let nature work her magic and hey presto” Rude had to thank him from keeping Hojo’s creepy mitts off him .
“Life will be a whole lot safer for me when ‘Lena sees you.” He gestured to himself. “Her aim’s off she keeps bursting into tears and I swear if she splatters a guy against me one more time I’m going to take my EMR to her and have it on full!”

The look of sheer annoyance on Reno’s face got a laugh from Rude. Long loud and audible, the look of shock on Reno’s face at the sound just fuelled it even more. “Holy shit you must be feeling bad if you’re laughing” Reno spoke with a surprised smile on his face as he got off the locker and wondered to the window, opening it and leaning out to light a cigarette.
“Elena’s been covering you in other people’s entrails, I can’t help if I find it amusing” Rude smiled as he lay back amongst the pillows relaxing for a moment.
“You would find it amusing you’re a sick fuck” Reno said exhaling smoke rings out of the window.

It was during the silence between them that Rude came to the conclusion that he did really trust this kid. He had helped him out and kept him alive. Street smarts and a bad attitude, He worked well with him even if no one else did.
“Thanks kid” Rude broke the silence, watching as Reno turned to him lazily flicking his cigarette end out of the window. “You’re just lucky you have someone as fantastic as me” Reno said with a grin. Rude rolled his eyes behind the shades.
“Just get me some clothes so I can get out of here” Rude grumbled and watched Reno liven up more. “Fantastic, that’s by the nurses’ station” Flashing a shit eating grin as he left the room Rude sat there thinking.

Raising the index finger of his left hand he sat and looked at it.
One person he trusts, the skirt chasing, unpredictable, disorganised, scruffy. savage, murdering bastard that was Reno.
It made sense when he worked it out. You trust people that are more like you. Opening his hand Rude felt round for an empty hole in his ear and pushed the earring through.
Reno was just Rude from the other side of the tracks, in that alternate universe, at the end of nowhere.