The Apple and the Core

by CykeclopsFF7

A prequel to Crisis Core. Genesis and Angeal come to Shin-Ra to become legendary SOLDIERS only to find that their dreams and life are not quite as simple as they thought they were on the farm. Meanwhile, Tseng struggles with who his allegiances are with: The country of his birth or company he now works for. The advent of war changes everything and everyone. Very slightly AU.

26. Chapter 26: Epilogue for Part One

The Apple and the Core

Epilogue for Part 1

Several days had passed since the frightful battle for their lives as they strived to rescue Ifalna and her daughter, Aeris, from the lab. Angeal's fight had been cut tragically short by defending Ifalna's life, but he'd found ways to pass the time in the boring hospital ward.

Amongst the constantly beeping and occasional moaning of the ward's occupants, Angeal found it hard not to listen to the nurses' constant gossip about their patients and other goings on. He had tried to drown it out. After all, gossip wasn't exactly the most honorable path to take in life, but…some of it was positive and some of it not. He'd learned from the nurses that no one had managed to find Ifalna, for instance, but he'd also learned that Tseng's family had been killed by his own countrymen. However, he didn't how much of it was true, and the thought was driving him crazy.

Over the past few days, he had several visitors. Sephiroth and Genesis visited him on separate occasions, which didn't surprise him, and he had also gotten a visit from Command Lazzard. However, the Turks and Reeve had been visible absent during these few days. He wondered if they meant to keep their distance and their friendships were only a means to an end. He sighed and grabbed his sword that was leaning by the bed.

He looked at his reflection and sighed again at the mar that was left by the falling server. He was told that his sword had saved his life. He shook his head as he grabbed his cleaning rag. He would have rather died than seen such a mark on the sword. Before the battle, it was unblemished. It was untainted and perfect, much like his step-father. Now, an ugly scratch ran horizontally across the blade. He was bound and determined to get that mark out. He grabbed the polish and began to buff the sword, fully aware that he had a meeting with his conspiracy partners within the hour. It was a gathering that the Commander had promised him would be coming, and the thought made his stomach churn. He still had little idea of how much the Commander knew. The man tended to keep his cards to himself.

"Angeal?" A sweet voice rang out across the room, startling him and making him drop his cleaning rag. He reached down for it, but a feminine hand managed to get to it first.

"Hello, Nurse Jane." Angeal nodded politely. "And thanks." He smiled and watched the young nurse blush slightly. Angeal was vaguely aware that the young nurse had a crush on him, and he did his best not to overindulge her. She was a bit too bubbly and a city girl in every way. She wasn't that bad looking though, he mused.

"There has been a change of plans." She grinned cheerfully. "Your 'ride' to your meeting has arrived early!"

Huh? That didn't make any sense. He glanced at the clock. His meeting wasn't for another forty-five minutes. Well, she did say whoever it was was early. He peered around her cautiously and found the young Turk deputy leader leaning in the doorway. "Ah." Angeal nodded to Tseng's usually stoic figure. Tseng nodded back quietly as the nurse transferred Angeal to his wheelchair. The young Turk had surprised him. Rather than being in his usual blue suit and black tie, he came dressed in a dark polo shirt and a pair of nice blue jeans. He had never seen Tseng out of his uniform other than when he had approached both he and Sephiroth in the bar in the slums. It was a nice to see him more comfortable. Although the blank expression he held on his face told him more was going on than just a friendly visit.

The nurse backed away as Tseng took the handles of the wheelchair and began to wheel him into the hallway. "You're early." Angeal grinned slightly, trying to break the tension in the young man's face.

"I know…" The young man said flatly as he wheeled him out of the ward in what seemed like a hurry.

"You're going a little fast, aren't you?" Angeal grasped the handles of the chair until they reached the doors of the ward. When Tseng didn't say anything, Angeal looked up the Turk worriedly. Tseng only continued to look straight ahead as he rushed Angeal through the double doors and out into the soon as the doors closed behind them, their pace slowed significantly. "Tseng, what's going on?" Angeal glanced over his shoulder, but the young man didn't answer. He kept his jaw tightly set as they turned around a corner. "Hey, this isn't the way to the meeting, is it?"

Angeal gripped the arm rests of the wheelchair again, this time his knuckles turning white. He was the unwitting victim of a Turk kidnapping, and part of him wondered if he was being led off to be executed. His breathing became quick and shallow. "Tseng, if you don't tell me what's going on, I swear, I'm going to start screaming."

They suddenly stopped and Tseng looked down the SOLDER. "Please do not do that." He finally sighed. Angeal's eyes widened as the Turk actually let go of the wheelchair handles and slumped down on a bench next to them. His head drooped as he ran his fingers through his hair, causing some of it drop out of his usually neat ponytail.

More confused than ever, Angeal turned the wheelchair around so he could face him. When Tseng said nothing, Angeal awkwardly stretched out his arm and laid his hand on Tseng's shoulder.

"I do not like hospitals." The young man answered from beneath his hands.

"You don't like hospitals?" Angeal raised a questioning brow at Tseng. "You brought me out of the ward like a bat out of hell because you don't like hospitals? You scared the hell out of me."

"I'm…sorry." Tseng muttered. "I actually did come to get you. I just did not realize how being in a hospital would affect me after…" He trailed off. "I thought you would understand…"

Suddenly, this started making a little more sense. Angeal smiled softly. "It's okay." He said softly. "I remember, when my Step-Father died, you couldn't have paid me a million gil to be a hospital." Angeal wheeled himself a little closer to Tseng. "You shouldn't be on active duty yet…"

"I'm fine." Tseng finally bolted straight up. He looked a little offended by the fact the Angeal thought him unfit for duty. He suddenly seemed to think differently of it and began to slump against the wall. "I'm not on active duty." He smiled sadly. "I was actually going to take you to lunch."

Angeal began to laugh. "Well, the hospital ward food was horrible!" But then his voice softened. "But you were going to take me to lunch because you thought I would understand about the loss of your family." He guessed out loud.

Tseng nodded as Angeal's stomach growled LOUDLY. Tseng's eyes swung toward Angeal's stomach while Angeal placed a hand over the unruly organ. Both young men began to laugh.

"I suppose I better get you some lunch, then." Tseng's eyes beheld amusement.

"I think you're right." Angeal grinned embarrassedly. "Wutain?"

Tseng seemed taken aback at Angeal's suggestion. Angeal initially thought that he had insulted the young Turk until cocked his head at Angeal curiously. "You WANT to eat Wutain?"

"Sure, why not?" Angeal shrugged, not sure of what the problem was. There was a long pause where Tseng stared at Angeal speculatively. "You like Wutain, right?" He smiled.

Tseng snorted. "It is not like real Wutain, but it will do in an emergency."

Angeal couldn't help but notice that Tseng was still staring at him, as if he was considering what to make of his decision. Was eating Wutain really that big of a deal? "…what?" Angeal finally asked.

"I just cannot believe you want to eat Wutain. Most people from the East think it is disgusting." He muttered.

"Well, it's not my favorite, but I thought you'd like it…" Angeal shrugged. "Is it really that big of a deal? We can go somewhere else."

"No…"Tseng said softly. "I just…have not seen such kindness where someone would honor my heritage by going to a Wutain restaurant." He mumbled, clearly embarrassed. "It is…refreshing."

Angeal snorted and then laughed. "Well, that's going to change then!" He watched as Tseng got up and put his handles on the wheelchair. "Hey, speaking of Wutain, when is the funeral for your family? I'd like to go."

Angeal knew he'd said something wrong as he watched Tseng's face fall. "There will be no funeral." He said stiffly.

"Why not?" Angeal raised a brow. "Just because you're at war with someone, doesn't mean you can't have a funeral."

"Any sort of funeral or mourning will be seen as treason on my part." Tseng snorted bitterly. "I cannot even mourn in public because they are watching me so closely."

"But that's…STUPID." Angeal exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air. Tseng leaned backward at Angeal's exuberance. "You have a funeral for the living, not the dead!" Angeal bristled. "Do you want one? Honestly, do you want one?"

There was a slight pause. "…yes." He finally whispered. "I would like to lay my family rest."

"Then, you're going to have one…" Angeal huffed. "We don't have the bodies, but we can still remember them. A memorial service or something…" Angeal shook his head as he remembered how much his step-father's funeral helped him heal, despite Genesis' hijinks. Even though the pain continued on, it still brought closure to what seemed like an eternal torment. Tseng had to have one for his family. If he didn't, how would he ever move on? The regret, Angeal knew, would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Tseng nodded slowly. "You aren't going to last very long here." He snorted as he shook his head.

Angeal shook his head. "I don't care." Angeal shook his head. "I've been thinking long and hard about what I want to do with my life…"He paused as he took a moment to glance over his shoulder. He whispered quietly. "I'm not sure if I want to be with a company that kidnaps women and children and experiments on them…" He muttered. "Its not…honorable…And not letting someone mourn their family isn't honorable either." He pressed his lips together.

Tseng looked up at him, his eyes no longer sad but challenging. "And do what, then?" He scoffed. "Crawl back to the farm? Hide your talents from the world? Surely, that is not honorable either."

"Helping Shin-Ra is not…"

But Tseng cut him off. "You have the rare opportunity to challenge the status quo in ways that I wish I could dream of." Tseng stood up from the bench. "And you have people who are willing to support you in doing it." Angeal leaned backwards and thought about Genesis and Sephiroth. Would they be willing to help him do the right thing? "You will affect the life of every SOLDIER that walks through the doors of this building. Teach them honor and teach them respect for all human beings, not just for those like them." Tseng shook his head. "You may not control everything that goes on in this building, but you will have a large influence on how Shin-Ra enforces their policies."

"So will you some day." Angeal smiled slightly.

The deputy leader of the Turks looked surprised at first, and then thoughtful. "I suppose that is true."

"Promise me something?" Angeal said abruptly as he looked up at Tseng.

Tseng raised a distrustful brow at Angeal. "I do not normally like making promises." Angeal watched as his curiosity got the better of him. "What is it?" He sighed.

"Promise that we'll both do our best to turn this company around."

Tseng looked up thoughtfully for several long moments before he spoke. "That…is a very tall order." The young man shook his head. For a moment, Angeal thought he was going to decline. "But how can I not try?" He sighed. "Deal." He then looked at his wrist watch. "Damn. Now, we don't have time to eat…" The Turk, then, walked over to the wheelchair and put his hands on the grips.

Angeal smiled as he looked up at Tseng. "Afterwards, then." He shrugged. "And besides, we have a service to plan, too. It will give us more time."

"You're insane." Tseng rolled his eyes, but the young man had a smile on his face.

"Hey, I'm not the one who wheeled me out of the ward at one hundred miles per hour." He grinned at Tseng teasingly. "And hey, this time…" Angeal grinned. "Normal speed, okay?"

Tseng snorted. "Request duly noted."

~oOo~

As Tseng wheeled Angeal into the SOLDIER War Room several floors above their usual spot, Angeal found a fury of activity going on. In fact, he looked up as Tseng grunted in displeasure: They seemed to be the last ones to arrive. Reeve was bouncing around the room like a kangaroo, showing off baby pictures. He almost tripped over the foot rest on the wheelchair as he ran across the room to a totally unexcited Sephiroth. Commander Lazzard was downing yet another cup of coffee while Veld was calling him a caffeine addict to his face while sipping a cup of his own. He couldn't find Genesis, though. As his eyes scanned the room, he found the unusually withdrawn SOLDIER staring out one room's window.

"I can take it from here, thanks." Angeal nodded up to Tseng as he let go of the wheelchair handles. Angeal wheeled himself over to the end of the table near Genesis. "Hey, what's going on?" Angeal's eyebrows furrowed. When Genesis didn't say anything, he shook the young man by the arm.

"HEY! What gives?!" Genesis eyes suddenly widened in surprise and he pushed Angeal backwards in his wheelchair. Once he realized who had actually touched him, he scowled. "Leave me alone…" He muttered as he went back to leaning on his elbow and looked back toward the window.

Now even more puzzled, Angeal wheeled himself back to the table. He lowered his voice. "Come on…What's wrong, Gen? This isn't like you…."

"And what is like me?!" Genesis snapped. When Angeal continued to look at him with concerned eyes, he finally glanced over his shoulder to see if anyone else was listening. "I found a girl, okay…" He muttered lowly.

"That's great!" Angeal exclaimed as he leaned forward in his wheelchair. "Who is she? Do I know her? Does she have a siste-"

"I don't know if I'll ever see her again…" Genesis cut him off moodily as he went back to staring at the window.

Angeal slowly leaned back in his wheelchair, finally putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "Ah." Angeal cocked his head to the side. "But she has a baby and…"

"I don't want to talk it." Genesis grumbled. "Not here." Angeal followed Genesis' eyes to the two commanders who looked like they wanted to start their meeting. Angeal wrapped his hands around the ends of the armrests tightly. They would talk about this later, he was sure of it.

As Commander Lazzard stepped up to the podium, everyone seemed to sit up a little straighter with the exception of Veld, who was leaning on the wall behind him. "So, I'm guessing all of you came to this meeting to see if you were going to be given medals or executed..." The corner of his lip turned up wryly and it made Angeal shuffle uncomfortably in his wheelchair. Even Reeve seemed to look a little hot under the collar.

"That's not even remotely funny, Lazzard." Veld rolled his eyes.

"So it's not…" Lazzard glanced at Veld over his shoulder. "But I didn't say it to be funny." Angeal held his breath. "I said it to make a point." The commander's eyes fell on every person who sat around the round table. "You all risked your lives to save a woman and her daughter of whom you had never met, not because you were getting paid to do it, but because it was the right thing to do." Lazzard was quiet for a moment, leaving Angeal to wonder if the Commander thought that this was a noble quality or a stupid one. He felt like he was about to find out. His voice softened. "I am….proud of all of you." He finally smiled, causing several of the room's occupants to exhale the breath they'd been holding. "You're what Shin-Ra should be: Different branches of the organization working as one for what was right, and you've done a fine job." He took a moment, and smiled at everyone. "You handled your mission with grace and efficiency." He coughed. "And you managed to not get caught." He smirked. "But more importantly, you saved a woman and her baby daughter's life." He shuffled the speech cards he had in his hands and then placed them face down on the podium. "No human deserves to be treated like that, and it's unfortunate that the President favors such dishonorable and distasteful tactics." Angeal saw Sephiroth nodding out of the corner of his eye and smiled slightly.

The blonde commander then leaned on his elbows on top of the podium with a large grin on his face and excitement in his eyes. He looked like a little child to Angeal, and the image made him grin from ear to ear. "So anyway…Now, we've got another job to do…" And his grin grew larger. "And a war to win!"

Veld shot Lazzard a very nasty look from behind him, and Angeal noticed that everyone was now staring at Tseng, whose gaze remained hard and ice cold. He said nothing, but looked straight ahead at a pre-picked spot on the wall. The commander glanced back at Veld, his expression dark. "If he can't fight against his own people, he shouldn't be here."

"That's not fair…" Angeal couldn't believe the words coming out of his own mouth. He tried to climb to a standing position, but Genesis roughly jerked him back down into his seat by his arm.

"Be quiet!" Genesis whispered harshly. "If you stand up for him, you'll go down with him." Angeal clenched his jaw and his fists. Angeal could see that see that Reeve was also upset by this, his lips frowning severely.

"This is insane…" Veld marched up to the podium. "His family only died days ago and you're asking him if…"

But Tseng held up a hand to quiet him. The room was deathly quiet as Tseng's eyes met Command Lazzard's. "Anyone that would kill their own countrymen for such a minor offense is not worthy of a second thought or our mercy."

Angeal winced at the harshness of Tseng's words. Reeve reached up to put a hand on Tseng's shoulder, but the young Turk shrugged it off.

He then added more softly. "There is nothing left for me in Wutai."

The commander only nodded solemnly. "As you wish." Veld leaned back against the wall, clearly not happy.

The commander cleared his throat and continued in the same excited kid voice. "That being the case, we'll be counting on each of you." Angeal had to hide his smirk as Veld rolled his eyes behind Lazzard. His voice rose. "Do I have your commitment, your swords, and your hearts?"

"YES, SIR!" Genesis and Sephiroth stood and saluted as Angeal remained in his wheelchair and did the same. When neither Turk said anything, Lazzard looked at both Tseng and Veld expectantly over his glasses.

"Don't push it." Veld smirked sourly from the wall. "But I do note that I didn't hear Reeve say anything either." His smirk turned into a grin as both men turned to Reeve.

"Uh…yes sir?" Reeve smiled awkwardly.

"Good deal, men!" Lazzard saluted back, causing Veld to give him the one fingered "salute" behind his back, causing everyone to laugh. When Lazzard turned around to look at Veld, he found the leader of the Turks standing there innocently. His confusion made Angeal laugh harder. "Uh…DISMISSED!"

As Angeal watched everyone file out, he noticed that Veld followed Lazzard out of the room. When Tseng grabbed the wheelchair handles, Angeal muttered, "I'd love to be a fly on the wall during that conversation." He muttered.

"Mmhm." Tseng grunted as he pulled Angeal away from the table.

~oOo~

Several nights later, Tseng walked through the streets of one of Midgar's less enticing Wutain slums. He stuck his hands in his pockets as the rats scattered from a nearby trashcan into a dark alley. He made sure that his pistol was showing at all times as thieves and hoodlums slunk into the shadows. He snorted. Of course, Angeal would choose one of the worst slums to host his family's memorial in. He looked down at the address on the paper that he held tightly in his palm. He knew where he had gotten the suggestion, though. The owner of the Wutain restaurant on the plate was the priest of a small Wutain church here. He had proven that he could keep a secret, and the location was good enough to not attract suspicion. He could have ridden his motorcycle, but on this night, he preferred to walk, needing the silence as solace and unsure what sort of reaction the memorial service might bring.

He stopped when he reached the old wooden doors of the place of worship, and traced his hands along the carvings of the old gods etched within its frame. It was beautiful, he had to admit as his fingers finally rested upon the gods of death. He stared at their relief for a short period time, feeling somewhat guilty for his feelings of alienation towards the gods. He shook his head as his fingers started tracing the carvings again. At least, it was something his father would have appreciated.

He startled as the door slowly opened beneath his fingertips. A hooded figure stepped out and wrapped his arms around Tseng in an embrace. "I'm on door duty tonight." Angeal smiled. When Tseng looked past him, he found Sephiroth glancing at some of the old religious artifacts and books laid out on display. "Hurry up and come in!" Angeal ushered him into the dark entrance hall.

"Thank you…" Tseng offered quietly and he truly meant it. He never imagined that Angeal would go such lengths to obtain such a holy place and a priest for his family's service. He stepped inside and noticed that the entry hall and the sanctuary were lit only by light of flickering candles. It suited the mood nicely, he thought, solemnly.

Sephiroth looked up from his browsing. "I am…sorry." He offered awkwardly. The young man had always been awkward when it came to settings that evoked emotion, and Tseng couldn't fault the man for that. He was raised to be a SOLDIER, not a human being. He nodded in thanks as he walked into the sanctuary, and stopped dead in the door. His jaw dropped as his eyes widened in complete surprise: Almost every pew in the small sanctuary was filled. He noticed the reflection of the candles off Rude's bald head in the front row. He rolled his eyes as he could hear Reno loudly complaining that he couldn't read the bulletin in the dark, and in front of him, he saw Veld wheeling Cissnei to him in a wheelchair. When they stopped, Cissnei reached forward and reached her arms out to hug him around his neck. He could feel her wet tears dripping on the bare skin of his neck. He hugged her back awkwardly as then shook hands with Veld. "I did not expect…"

"You should always expect." Cissnei grabbed his hand, and he looked down to see her brushing her thumb over the top of his hand. "You think no one loves you because you are Wutain…" She grinned.

"Almost the entire Turk team is here…" Tseng looked outward in amazement.

"And a few others…" Veld nodded his head toward Genesis, whom Tseng had not seen.

Tseng snorted. "So, I see…"

But as he scanned the auditorium with his eyes, they stopped on four small statues on the altar, near the podium at the front. Each had a small tea-light candle lit in front of each one. Without saying a word, he drifted away from Veld and Cissnei and forward toward the four statues. Since burying people in Wutai was almost impossible due to the sandy and rocky soil, most people were cremated and their ashes were stored in the base of the statue. The statue would then be given to a relative to honor their family's memory. An ache crept into Tseng's heart as he reached the podium, as he realized that he would never have his family's ashes. He suddenly felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and he spun around to find the old cook now priest standing beside him in his robes. The priest looked back at the statues. "There will be many bodies like this that will be the product of the oncoming war. We may not have their ashes, but they will still be honored here tonight and forever…" He nodded as he glanced down at Tseng's chest. "And in your heart."

"What if I feel like the gods have forsaken my family?" Tseng muttered. He knew what he said was rude and heretical, but it was what was truly on his heart. When he glanced up at the priest, he neither seemed surprised nor upset by his words.

"We do not know the hearts of the gods." He answered simply. "But I choose to think of it that they were possibly spared a worse fate at the hands of the Shin-Ra." He looked at Tseng solemnly. "Some fates," he said quietly, "are worse than death." Tseng looked up at him in surprise as the priest walked away to let that sink in. He remembered Ifalna and Aeris. Would death have been better for his family than being a victim of war and possibly experimentation at the hands of his employer? He shuddered and then glanced up, finding the old man looking at him. "Are you ready to begin?"

Tseng nodded stiffly as he took one last look at the four statues and then retreated to his seat.

The priest looked over his audience for the night and smiled. "Wow…I never expected to see so many Shin-Ra in one place other than in the Shin-Ra building!" He laughed, causing Tseng to smile. "Even an Executive is here." Everyone turned around to look at look at poor Reeve and his wife, who did nothing but wave sheepishly. "But, it proves a point: We are all human under the gods' eyes. No matter what part of the world you hail from, you are still apart of one colossal race. It is important that we remember that we are each responsible for making this world a better place, and that no good will happens within a vacuum. When one man helps another, he is inspired to help others and others still. When we succeed, we all succeed. When we fail, we all fail." The priest paused. "And when we mourn…we mourn as one." Several people nodded their heads as he continued. "We are but one body, one soul. You are not alone in your loss, Tseng." He felt a strong hand reach out and place itself on his shoulder. He didn't have to turn around to know that it was Angeal's. "We will mourn with you as a congregation and as a family. The violence that was done to your family was senseless, but let us hope that one day, man will learn to use his words to fight instead of his weapons, and his soul instead of his salary. Let us all take an oath within our hearts that we will leave this world a better place than when we entered it. If we do that, this family will have not died in vain…And we will all not die in vain." He closed his notes. "We will now say the Wutain chant of passing. The meaning of this is to ease the souls passing into the afterworld. The words are in your bulletin."

Tseng was surprised when he heard not a few voices, but many enter into chorus. He was even more surprised when he found himself saying the words along with them. He thought more about what the priest had said, and found himself looking around at his former battle mates. All of them had fought for a better world, and they continued to do so even if it was merely inch by inch at times. He had no doubt that they would continue to do so in the future…Angeal had his honor. Genesis had his passion. Sephiroth had his insi intellect. Reeve would have the inspiration of new life to make the world a better place, and Veld had his family. Cissnei had heart, and he…He snorted. He supposed he had the wisdom that was bestowed upon him by his family and their experiences. He glanced back at the statues. He had his wisdom and his pain. He just hoped that their ideas of what would make a better world would not separate them someday. It was a start, he realized, a start of a brand new world.

THE END OF PART ONE!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **

So, it's finally finished, eh? Ha! Wrong again! No, this is just the first story in a series of many, so please don't lose heart! Some of them will be longer than others. Some of you may have already seen The End in Sight at s/11162752/1/The-End-in-Sight , which takes place farther into the future. But, I do hope to have some things with Zack, Cloud, and more Ifalna…and of course, our other favorites! So please stay tuned! With that in mind, I hope you enjoyed this one. At any rate, thank you so much for reading. I wouldn't have had the inspiration to finish this if it weren't for all of you readers. Thanks again! And remember: This is only Part 1! Stay tuned for more!