raspberryturk | Room 429, Sunday Afternoon

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Room 429, Sunday Afternoon

Okay. Sunday afternoons were officially boring. The days of the week had classes and radio and reports to write for his job, and mornings and evenings meant that the ferret was awake and totally willing to be harassed, but Sunday afternoons?

Reno would like to vote that boring, lazy Sunday afternoons be stricken from the record.

He was in his room, sitting by the window and playing with his lighter. Fire go on. Fire blow out. Ooh. Exciting.

The door was open slightly in case something interesting happened to wander through the hallway, at least.

[Open, like the door~]

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"I told him because I wanted to," she replied a little more sharply than needed. "If I'm being perfectly honest, the idea of him being anywhere near SOLOMON makes me scream, and I'd rather keep him as far away as possible. I haven't exactly been honest with them, either, especially in regards to him."

Oh good, he was getting his own bottle, that meant she could clutch hers a bit harder and take another drink. "Another part of me wants him there, because I'm selfish and shallow and I can't make up my own damn mind. But that's not why I told him."

Reno opened up his rum and took a thoughtful mouthful before looking back at her.

"Ain't easy, is it? Comin' out in the open with what you are and what you gotta do?" Another mouthful, a moment to let the taste sink in, and then he swallowed. "But it's out there now. Kinda figured there was somethin' not bein' said. Wasn't gonna dig for it, though. None of my business."

He shrugged.

"You need anything, Doji? More booze? Someone to bitch at? A professional killer?"

He'd put it out there. After all, there weren't many other things that he had to offer.

"Want to come hunt a Witch with me sometime in the next few months? It'll be killer," Yurika sighed. "Pun intended."

"I'm not ashamed at what I do, or even what I did," she said quietly. "I won't be, because I think what I'm doing is right. I just wish he'd believe me."

Reno looked at her for another moment, then turned back to his dresser.

He kept everything in there.

A moment later, he surfaced with a half-used roll of duct tape, eyed it for a moment, and then tossed it to her.

"Give him time, zoto. Let him chew on it a bit. You may need this more than I do right now. If nothin' else, you got me for your hunt, alright? Come Hell or Holy."

Yurika reached out to catch the duct tape one-handed, looking blankly at it for a moment before she burst out laughing.

"Got a dictionary in there too, Red?" she gasped, trying to dash away the tears leaking out of her eyes. "Now's your chance, while my arms are full."

"Dictionary's hardcover. I ain't supposed to throw a book at you until you try to give me back the tape, anyhow. Weren't you payin' attention last time we all went through this kinda thing?"

He took a short walk to take a seat on the other bed, looking across the room at her, thoughtfully.

"At least you're doin' what you're doin' because it's somethin' that's gotta be done, right? 'You go out, and you do the job?' You knew what the hell you were talkin' about then, didn't you? Wasn't just a bunch'a words."

"Short attention span," Yurika drawled, taking another nice long sip of tequila. "Or at least, that's what you're all supposed to think. Whoops, givin' away secrets again. My bad."

"No, it wasn't just words. Sometimes, you do what needs to be done." Yurika set the bottle aside so she could play with the roll of tape. "Basically, Zaizen claims he's created something that can remove a Witch's powers, that it allows a humane Hunt, but he won't let Headquarters have any, or see his research. We don't even know if it's safe for the Hunters to use," she sighed, "and I'm the test-dummy who gets to go find out."

"Even worse, the people he captures with the Orbo vanish into his factory, and aren't seen again. There's even been reports of Seeds and Craft-users going missing, too. It stinks. Badly."

"Sounds like bad business to me," Reno agreed, inspecting the rum as though perhaps doing so would help him think. "You're figurin' out what's goin' on with this Orbo stuff, then? That's what this is about? Figure out if he's yankin' your chain and playin' dirty, puttin' a stop to it? Or are you just gonna be the one who gets to play guinea-pig with this humane Witch-retardant crap?"

Her, them, we? Reno would do it, sure. Wouldn't be the first time he'd played around with dangerous experimental substances, or anything.

"Sounds like a hell of a job."

"All of the above. As a Hunter at the STN-J, I'd be required to wear and use the Orbo on the Hunt," Yurika replied, twirling the roll of tape. "I've also got to be sneaky, and try and dig up the dirt on both Orbo and the factory."

"Heeeey. Sneaky. I'm good at sneaky," Reno mused, passing the bottle from hand to hand before taking another swig. "Turk thing. We're good with dirt. Kinda gotta be."

Once again, making certain that it was clear that she had someone willing to dive into this. Wasn't that what friends were for? Sure it was.

Tseng would pitch a fit. Tseng never had to find out.

"Reno? Thanks." Yurika gave him a tired smile and raised the bottle in a toast.

"So, any suggestions on how to grovel appropriately?"

Reno raised his own bottle, and down went another swig.

"S'what I do," he replied. And really, it was. "As for grovelling... Like I said. Give it a little time. Breathing room helps, right? Maybe when he cools down some, he'll give you another chance to at least explain. S'the best I got, I'm afraid. I ain't too good with this romantic shit either, yoto."

"I live across the hall from him, and we have Monday class together," Yurika sighed. "It's going to be hard to avoid him."

"I wasn't going to get involved with him, I really wasn't," she said, scowling at her bottle. "I tried not to. He was just so dammed persistent!"

"Rikku was like that, too. Kinda right there and you don't even know what the hell it is, except it's probably a bad idea and you can't say no anyhow?" Seemed like it, anyhow. Perfect and wrong. Bad, wrong, terrible, stupid, beautiful and irresistible. Right under the skin. "Don't avoid class or anything. I mean, givin' space don't mean you have to stop livin' your own life, zoto. Just keep to the other side of the room or whatever. If that doesn't work, put some duct-tape over his mouth and make him listen."

A pause.

"Because, you know, duct tape fixes everything."

"Keeping him from talking isn't the same as making him listen, zoto," she teased. "But yeah. Every time you turn around, there they are, and it's the eyes and grin that just gets under your skin until you forget why it was a bad idea in the first place."

"So tape him to a wall and use a megaphone or somethin'," Reno joked, and then gave a shake of his head and a shrug. "Weren't we supposed to be, like, the ones that didn't settle down or whatever? Daaaamn, they went and got the better of us. See, somethin' else that duct tape's good for. Coverin' up pretty eyes and smiles, yo."

Issues? Them? Nope!

"Mmm...kinky," Yurika mused, sticking her tongue out at him. "I blame the damn island. First with the romantic trip to Mexico, then the evil singing and the stupid angels abducting him and making me think about my feelings..." She looked up at the ceiling and shook her fist. "I blame Fandom."

"Blame Fandom," Reno practically crowed, looking at the ceiling and mirroring the motion.

It had seemed like the thing to do at the time. Knowing his luck, Fandom was going to get him back good for that by turning him into a sardine later, or something.

"You know, I think the island knows this kinda shit is gonna happen. And sets us up for it or somethin'."

Reno was not a fan of conspiracy theories, but once you've been turned into a little red bird, it's hard not to be a little suspicious.

Fandom had made him a ~~doll~~ action figure and a red chicken. It had turned her into a bunny. If they wanted to press charges, they would have been well-within their rights.

"I don't like thinking about my feelings," she whined, flopping back onto the other bed as the tequila started to work its magic. "They're all fluffy and sticky and don't stay where they're supposed to."

"I think the island is trying to make us into better people or something, and I was perfectly happy being bitter and amoral little me, thank you very much."

"I was good and content to be a cranky drunk," Reno decided. He was lying. "But I don't doubt for a moment the island's tryin' to make us into upstandin' citizens or whatever. I actually get along with my boss sometimes now. What the hell, huh?"

"I never, ever, want to get along with mine," Yurika declared, shutting her eyes tightly. "Father Juliano is just frightening."

"Tseng ain't really a pleasant guy, either," he conceded, "but for all our jobs are the same, somethin' tells me there's plenty different about 'em, too."

"I think he knows," Yurika admitted slowly. "Father Juliano, I mean. He knows I've been leaving things out, like Romeo, and he did this to call me out and see what I'd do."

"And now he knows, too." Reno had to take a long moment to think that one over. "All seems to fall out into the open at the same time, doesn't it? Like, so long as all this is comin' out, might as well throw that out there, too. Shove it all out to deal with at once."

There was a pause. And then another thoughtful mouthful of rum.

"If there's anything else you need, Doji, let me know. S'the least I can do after you hit me in the face with a book, yo."

"Get it all out now, before they find every last dark little corner and shove it in your face for not coming clean with that, too," Yurika replied, trying for flippant. It wasn't working too well. "See? I do pay attention."

"Yeah, well, that's what friends are for, right? Book throwing?"

"Still. Thanks." She sat up slowly, one hand still clutching the tequila. "Can I take this home with me? I promise to be a good girl and not get too shitfaced." Lying, but hey. Like Reno was one to talk.

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