King of Spades

◊   ◊   ◊

Branch

Rufus is the kind of leader the Turks like---ruthless and lethal. Reno, in particular, likes leaders who are just as dangerous as he is. A handful of loosely connected stories, centering around the Turks and Rufus.

Ink Burns

This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

This is a work of fanfiction, produced according to the principles of transformative fair use as put forward in US copyright law, and abiding by the custom and practice of fan-produced work in Japan, where the source texts were created. No author is in any way affiliated with any of the creators of the source texts, nor with the companies who distribute their products, nor any other rights holder, and these stories were not authorized by either the creators or the producers. Ink Burns is a fan site and the material here is freely provided for the enjoyment of fellow fan-community members; there is no commercial infringement.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 US license at the Ink Burns fanfiction archive (http://www.branchandroot.net/archive/).

"Diamond and Cobalt" published on 2006-01-03 20:55:29.

"Seriously" published on 2006-01-04 21:16:53.

"White" published on 2006-01-07 21:25:50.

"Execute" published on 2006-02-01 21:29:49.

Attributions can be made by author's name and a link to the archive.

This ebook edition was published on September 6, 2019 by the Ink Burns fanfiction archive.

Cover illustration is "Stilleben mit Kerze" by F. Simon, public domain (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stillleben_mit_Kerze.jpg).

Cover design by Branch.

Diamond and Cobalt

Sort of missing-scenes. Three possible ways Diamond's attack on Rufus' office might have gone, two possible explanations for the look in Rufus' eyes, one possible explanation for Jenova exposure. (And a partridge in a pear tree~. Or maybe that should be a president in a penthouse...). Drama, I-3, in-game

Hail

Reno ran up yet another flight of pitch black stairs, shouldering through hysterical clerks, and interrupted his silent swearing to count off the sixty-seventh floor. He would have liked to swear out loud, but didn't quite have the breath for it. Besides, it was impolitic to swear at his employer, even in absentia.

The absentia part being rather the point at the moment.

He broke out of the yammering pack at the sixty-ninth floor and vaulted up the last two flights to haul open the door to Rufus' office. Just in time. The president of Shin-Ra was staring point blank at the approaching energy shells without moving.

Reno didn't waste time wondering what the hell Rufus thought he was doing. He tackled his employer efficiently at the knees and yanked him down under the desk as the window glass all shattered. The first shell hit the chair directly above them and the absurd thought crossed Reno's mind that maybe this was why executive chairs were so huge and heavy. He pulled his jacket loose and bundled it over both their heads, and then the world was exploding.

Reno knew it was over when he could hear his own voice again, pronouncing breathless curses on Rufus, his clothes, his cats, and the Science Division for good measure. He threw off the jacket and took a shallow sip of air, cautious of the temperature. When all seemed well he allowed himself to lean up on one elbow and finally glare at Rufus.

"Are you trying to make us look bad, or something?" he demanded in disgust. "We're supposed to keep you in one piece, remember? Play chicken with the fucking artillery on your own time!" An alarming crack of laughter answered him, and he looked more warily at Rufus, who hadn't moved. The focus still burning in Rufus' eyes put the energy shells to shame. Reno rewound that idea and replayed it again, thoughtfully. "You didn't actually think you could stop it, did you?" he asked slowly.

Rufus looked at him, and Reno almost jerked back from that searing blue. "I didn't think I could stop it. But I could have met it." Rufus' lips pulled back off his teeth.

Reno thought about this for a long moment before nodding agreeably. "You're a cold enough bastard you probably could. But I don't feel like being unemployed, so can we get out of here?"

Rufus snorted and sat up and Reno relaxed again.

Requited

Things were starting to explode before Tseng realized that his employer was not at the evacuation point where he should have been. He winced a little as he climbed the stairs to Rufus' office, thinking what Veldt would have had to say about such carelessness. Fortunately, the universe was more forgiving than his mentor had been, and the ordinance had not quite reached the windows when Tseng pushed the door open. He had just time to cross the office, duck briskly under the desk and pull Rufus down with him.

He waited patiently for the crashes of shattering construction materials and the cracking peals of explosion to end.

When they had he pushed the remains of the desk off of them and regarded Rufus evenly. "If you want to commit suicide, sir, I'm afraid we're going to need advance notification."

"It would have been fitting," Rufus answered, just as evenly, fixed stare now directed at the ceiling.

Tseng concealed a frown; so that really had been... "And let Hojo win?" he murmured.

Rufus' eyes flickered, blinked, focused.

Narrowed.

"Move," he ordered, much more sharply, making to sit up.

Tseng assisted him, silently, to his feet with a tiny, satisfied smile.

Initiation

Tseng stood from the side of Rufus' seared body and looked around, mouth tight. "Rude." He gestured and Rude nodded, pulling out the Cure that either he or Reno usually had stashed on them somewhere and taking Tseng's place.

Elena, looking pale, gulped and offered, "I'll call a team from the clinic."

"Confidentially," Tseng specified and let her retreat to a corner, out of sight of their employer and his injuries, and turned to Reno.

"You get ahold of Dr. Svalin."

Reno's jaw dropped. "Svalin? Tseng, are you crazy? As injured as his is, the conversion would kill him!"

"The clinic has enough healers to recover his condition," Tseng said, quietly. "But not totally. The conversion, if it takes, can restore him completely." He flicked a look at Rufus and away again, reassured that he was still breathing. "He does not tolerate weaknesses. You can hardly deny he has the willpower to convert successfully."

Reno's following glance was more considering. "I can't deny he's got all the marks of a top candidate," he admitted, slowly. "But would he want that?"

"He can discuss it with Svalin, himself. I just want her present and prepared." Tseng ran a hand through his hair, mind casting ahead into plans for the near future. "For all I know, there's a treatment short of the full SOLDIER conversion that will still work."

Reno gave him a long, narrow look, and a corner of his mouth curled up. "You want him to take the full course, though," he said, very softly. "You like the idea of that son of a bitch being even more dangerous."

Tseng didn't dignify that with an answer.

Reno shrugged. "All right, I'll get her. I assume you'll tell the other divisions that they can postpone the death match to see who takes over?"

"No."

Reno blinked. "Um..."

"Let them fight with each other. It will keep them busy and away from him until he's recovered." Tseng smiled a very small, very sharp smile. "And if they happen to get out of line, I'm sure Rufus-shachou can address the problem when he's recovered."

"I always knew you didn't like the section heads very much," Reno observed.

"Besides," Tseng added, "while we're in Heidegger's division on paper, we report directly to Rufus. He wrote that in when he became president."

Reno's smile matched Tseng's. "How nice."

He sauntered aside pulling out his phone, and Tseng drew Rude back as the clinic team thundered up the stairs. Reno was wrong, he thought as he watched the team get to work. Tseng couldn't really imagine Rufus getting any more dangerous than he was.

He just had a feeling that Rufus would need every advantage he could get in the world that seemed to have come upon them all.

End

Seriously

Rufus gives Reno an assignment; or tries to. Written because I don't, for an instant, believe Reno doesn't take his job seriously. Drama/Humor, I-2, post AC

Reno had been having a good day, and hoped to continue the trend. He was experienced enough to put the expectation on indefinite hold, though, when Rufus Shinra toed open the door of the lounge the Turks had taken over. Especially when their employer gained a satisfied smile as his eye lit on Reno, lounging of course, by the window.

"Good, you're here. That Sierra is making a few too many inroads on our delivery contracts. I need you to go insure a few failures, while it's in port here." Rufus tilted his head thoughtfully. "Mechanical or human, either would do."

"I could do that," Reno agreed, "if I was on duty." He added, helpfully, into the pause that followed, "Which I'm not."

Rufus looked like he wanted to run a hand through his hair, except it would mess up his styling. "Goddammit, Reno, when you think it's a bad plan, can't you just say so?"

So Rufus had caught on. Reno examined his nails. "Can't. You're the boss; I'm a Turk. We don't argue with the boss, we do what he decides. We take orders and deliver results. It's what the Turks are all about, just ask Tseng."

Rufus narrowed his eyes and let the silence hover long enough for all involved to observe that Reno was not, in fact, doing what the boss said at all. "If you weren't so good at your job," he finally said, conversationally, "I'd shoot you right here and now."

Secure in the knowledge that he was very good, indeed, at his job, Reno just raised his brows inquiringly.

"Get Tseng over here, for me, I'll talk about the job with him," Rufus ordered, and pointed a finger at Reno. "And don't say you're off duty."

Reno smirked. "Just this once, as a favor to the boss." He pulled out his phone and hit Tseng's number, and leaned back a little further as Rufus stalked out with his mouth in a slight twist.

Still a good day.

End

White

Reno talks about Rufus a little to Tifa and Cloud. Drama, I-3, post AC

Reno lounged on the edge of the roof, listening to the small sounds below as Tifa closed up the bar. He smiled a little as he heard two sets of footsteps coming up the stairs; yeah, he'd figured Cloud had spotted him.

That was, after all, the point.

"Reno, you'd better not tell me you have another delivery you want us to make," Tifa stated, emerging into the warm night air. "Not after the last one."

"Nope. Just wanted someplace to take a break and watch the city for a while. Figured this was one of the quietest places I'd find. No interruptions. Well, except you two." He squinted at them. "Oh, hey, if you want some privacy, I can go..."

Tifa glared. Cloud shifted, looking a shade uncomfortable. Score.

"Don't tell me Rufus Shinra couldn't buy all the quiet he wants." Cloud's eyes narrowed a bit. "It seems to be what Shinra's best at, buying things you shouldn't be able to."

Reno looked over at them, thoughtfully. "You really don't get Shachou, do you?"

Tifa frowned. "I think we get him just fine. Not that I'd want to," she added under her breath, and Reno smirked for a moment.

"No, you don't," he stated. "That thing with Sector Seven, for instance? He was frothing over that for weeks. He hates that kind of thing."

"And that would be why he tried to execute me and blame me for Meteor?" Tifa asked in a sardonic tone.

Reno shook his head. "I'm not saying he's nice, Tifa. But the old guy... he was a slime. Rufus-shachou is an ice cold bastard, but he's honest about it. Always." Tifa's skeptical look was edging closer to puzzlement and Reno continued, encouraged. "Look, if it had been the old guy, he would have told you that he wanted to give you a medal for trying so hard against Sephiroth, and he'd have walked along with you and chatted and smiled. Right up until he locked the gas chamber door behind you."

"Hmm." Tifa sucked on her lower lip.

Reno's eye fell on Cloud's sword and he grinned. "It's like swords. If the old boss had carried a sword, he would have kept it in a fancy walking stick and twirled it around like it was nothing but a flashy toy. He'd only have taken the blade out when he stabbed you in the back with it. Now Shachou, he'd never cover it at all. And he'd put the edge against your throat from the word go. Who'd you rather deal with, in a fight?"

Now Cloud looked startled, and a little thoughtful. Reno shrugged.

"Speaking as the sword, I prefer Rufus-shachou." He looked out over the rooftops, feeling the serious mood on him like cloth he could rub between his fingers. "He uses us well."

And then purple and blue flowered against the night sky, followed by a distant boom a moment later, and Reno bared his teeth. Rude did such fantastic explosions. "Ah, there's my cue. Later." He flipped over the edge of the roof, gripped a drainpipe with gloved hands to slow his fall down three floors and landed astride his bike.

From the roof he heard, faintly, Tifa's voice exclaim, "Wait a minute! That's over at the old warehouses; that's where our next delivery was coming in!"

Reno laughed.

End

Execute

Reno distracts a tense Rufus, as, really, only Reno can. Porn with Characterization, I-4, post AC

Reno liked danger and dangerous things; he'd long ago figured out what he stayed in the Turks for. Not only did he get just fascinating assignments, but he was surrounded by people who understood, or who were dangerous, or, best of all, both.

He loved it that Rufus Shinra was both.

And, yeah, so Rufus had almost gotten all of them killed, back when. Reno liked irony, too.

All of which went to explain why he was willing to take guard duty on the President without kicking about it, despite nearly zero prospects of anything interesting happening to liven up hours of watching someone do paperwork. Until the end, at least.

"No, you scrofulous son of a bagnadrana, you can't raid Development's budget just so Science has more beakers to play with. Try that again and I'll feed your feet to a malboro while you watch."

Besides, listening to the President cuss out his absent subordinates was always entertaining. Reno especially liked the dead level tone of Rufus' delivery. He slouched a little more comfortably into his seat on a windowsill and kept the corner of his eye on the night outside, watching for any sudden changes.

Finally, Rufus stood from his desk, gathered a selected handful of papers and took them to the far side of the room. Reno straightened up, grinning. The finale was at hand. Rufus tacked the sheaf firmly to an extremely sturdy backboard and stalked the length of the room back.

Reno put his fingers in his ears.

The President, without so much as a flicker of an eyelash, pulled out his gun and fired into the papers until all that was left was a charred scrap around the tack.

"Shachou," Reno snickered. "The man who puts the execute in executive."

"Not tonight, more's the pity," Rufus growled, striding back to his desk. Reno frowned. The President nearly vibrated with anger and tension, tonight; that wasn't usual once he'd gotten to shoot his selected paperwork. Reno suspected he envisioned the actual authors in the sights, not just the paper.

"Anything else, tonight, or are you turning in?" Reno asked, hoping to prod Rufus away from the desk and toward some rest.

"No, noth—" Rufus broke off and gave Reno a long considering look.

Reno leaned back against the glass, gauging the frustration and heat and wariness in Rufus' eyes. "Shouldn't you be looking at Tseng like that?" he asked softly. Normally it was the supernaturally loyal and collected Tseng who got Rufus when he was this wound up. Reno had never had occasion to, and wasn't sure what he thought of the idea.

Rufus stepped closer and set a palm against the window on either side of Reno's shoulders. "No."

"Ooohhhhh." Reno drew it out, and grinned. "I get it." What the hell, why not. He pushed away from the cold window and into Rufus' body heat, and said in Rufus' ear, "You need someone under you tonight. You want me to let you have me."

"You will."

Only one of them would have heard the question folded inside the command, and Reno smiled. "Yeah." He closed his hands over Rufus' shoulders. "I'm not into pain, just so we're clear on that," he noted, and tossed back his head, baring his throat, letting his eyes slit shut.

Rufus' mouth closed on the offered skin, but didn't bite down the way Reno had expected. Instead the teeth scraped lightly, followed by a slow, wet tongue. Reno gasped as Rufus sucked softly on his throat; it was far more intimate and far more controlled than a simple bite, and it sent a shot of heat straight to his groin. It hardly needed Rufus' hand on his back to bring Reno arching into his body.

"Should have expected that, from you," he husked, and made a hungry sound as Rufus nudged his head further back and nipped at the skin over his pulse. "Yes."

It was a good thing, he decided, that Rufus elected to keep his bedroom right off his new office. Delay was nothing Reno was interested in at this point. Happily Rufus seemed to agree, leaving bits of their clothing behind every few steps.

Reno was a shade surprised, though, considering the evening's agenda, when Rufus pressed him onto his back, on the cool, white sheets, and slid slick fingers between Reno's cheeks.

"Mmm," he murmured, eyes heavy as Rufus' fingers opened him. "Be easier, wouldn't it, if you'd turned me over and pulled my ass up in the air and fucked me that way?"

"Then I wouldn't be able to see your face."

Reno laughed, stretching out against the springy mattress, enjoying the thrust of fingers. "Ah, that's our Shachou. Going to fuck me with your eyes and your cock both." He grinned up into that sharp, heavy blue gaze. "Penetrate me every way you can."

"I'll settle for two," Rufus said coolly.

Reno laughed again, sliding into a moan as Rufus' cock pushed into him, stretched him wide and filled him, thick and hard. "Any way you want, tonight, Shachou," he told the burning eyes that pinned him to the bed.

Rufus' voice was just a bit husky as he leaned over Reno, sliding slickly out and back in, motion oiled as any machine. "I admit, I'm a little surprised you agreed to this, Reno."

Reno's mouth curled up. "But, Shachou, it's hot." His tone was mocking, but the hands sliding down Rufus' arms and then down Reno's own body were firm and serious. "The Turks are a weapon in your hands. I like being in your hands. You know how to use us hard." He ran his hands down his thighs, spreading his legs wider, and rocked into the next deep thrust. "And you're practically one of us," he pointed out, breathless with the heat building in his groin, spreading through his stomach and thighs. "You're so fucking dangerous, and it's so damn hot."

Rufus actually chuckled, his own voice starting to get breathless. "You and your thing for danger. Not," he added, in a husky purr that went straight down Reno's spine just as another thrust put a shiver up it, "that I disagree."

Reno's meditation on a comeback was scattered when Rufus curled his hands under Reno's hips and started fucking him properly. Deep and hard; swift and steady; and the fire-blue eyes drank in every moan and squirm and pleading yes, and that just made Reno hotter. It didn't take more than a few slick, snapping strokes of Rufus' hand on his cock to make Reno come, heat spiking through him like a sword.

He lay under Rufus, panting and limp, enjoying the rough thrusts of Rufus' cock, and thinking amused thoughts about the President's endurance. Or, maybe, just his self-control. When Rufus shuddered and stilled, expression distant and actually relaxed for a second, Reno smiled. Softly, since Rufus' eyes were closed. He slid his fingers through Rufus' hair gently, and then let his hands fall to the sheets over his head before Rufus could get antsy about the gesture. "Feel better, Shachou?" he asked, lazily.

Rufus' mouth quirked into its accustomed, sardonic line. "You're better than paperwork, anyway."

"Hey!" Reno snorted at the gleam of amusement in Rufus' eyes. Before he could protest further, though, Rufus caught his hands and pinned them in place, leaning down to kiss Reno thoroughly.

"I think I'll be paying more attention to your mouth the second time," he murmured.

Reno considered, for a second, grabbing his phone and hitting the emergency number and calling for Tseng. He grinned instead. Rufus Shinra was a wild ride, and that was, after all, the kind he liked.

"Whatever you say, Shachou."

End