Genesis growled at the look Veld gave Sherry before he pulled her back behind him. He didn't take his eyes off the Turks as he spoke to her. "Love, let me tell you from experience, your ability to recognize someone without knowing them is quite unsettling."
Sherry huffed. "That wasn't my intention with you, but I don't exactly like having guns pointed at my friends. If Mr. Director is a little unsettled, then that's what he gets."
She heard Reno laughing somewhere behind the Turk director, but whatever smart remark he had was cut off when Veld finally spoke. "I have heard enough. There are many things we need to speak about and not a lot of time. Either you agree to speak with us willingly, or I give the order to start shooting. By this point, I don't really care who gets hit."
Sephiroth frowned as he stepped forward. "Director, you have always impressed me as a logical man. I would hope we could talk through this without threats. From what I have heard, we do have some common ground."
Veld tilted his head to the side and lifted a brow as he pinned Sherry with another glare where she had come back around Genesis. His eyes never left hers when he answered the General. "As long as you don't resist."
Genesis' jaw clenched, but he pulled Sherry closer to his side and nodded. "We can use the drawing-room."
By that time, his parents had come to investigate the uproar. When they all turned, Genesis sighed at the sight of them. "Mother, Father, I apologize for the trouble, but it seems as though we will not be leaving right away. I will take my guests to the drawing-room. Please do not feel the need to entertain." He knew they were smart enough to understand what he hadn't said.
His father was scowling, but he nodded. "Of course. Please let me know before you leave." His mother had already motioned for Moira to join them, and the three of them quickly left the room.
Once they were gone, Genesis eyed the large group that was still partially standing outside. He glared at Veld. "My home may be large, but not all of your men will fit in the drawing-room with us. You have my word that we will not attack."
Veld didn't answer right away. He finally turned to Reno. "Search the house and grounds. Once you are finished, take up positions outside. Don't bother anyone unless they resist."
Genesis growled again, but Sephiroth held up a hand to stop him. This was expected. By the time the Turks turned back, Genesis had himself at least under control enough not to roast Reno when he had passed them with a smirk. It helped that Sherry grabbed his arm as Rude and another Turk followed the redhead up the stairs.
The rest of the Turks besides Veld and Tseng disbursed outside. Once they were all gone, Genesis turned on his heel and led the rest of them back the way they had just come. He didn't bother making sure any of the others were comfortable before he turned to Veld with a glare. "I understand that you may be unhappy with what you have learned, and I will abide by a temporary truce, but if you threaten my wife again, I cannot say that I will not respond accordingly."
Veld's brow drew down for a moment, and he tilted his head. His eyes flicked between the two of them and down to where Sherry had a firm grip on Genesis' arm, both to reassure and to restrain him. When he looked back up, he gave the Commander an evaluating look. "She really is your wife, then?"
Genesis didn't bother hiding his rolling his eyes. "Yes. She has saved me in more ways than one. Our love is no farce." He glared over at Tseng before he looked back at Veld. "Surely, that is not why you have chased us halfway around the world."
Veld sat back with a sigh before he finally turned and pinned Sherry with his piercing gaze. "Are Vincent and Felicia alive?"
Sherry nodded with a sigh. "Yes. I wish it were under better circumstances. Honestly, you should be working with these men, not against them. You have all been screwed over by the science department and current president."
Veld ran his good hand down his face roughly before he frowned back at her. "You are asking me to choose my own personal desires over the law I have sworn to upkeep. Do you understand how that sounds?"
Sephiroth spoke up with a frown. "That is not true."
Veld looked over in confusion. "How so? Unless you heard something other than what I did, she just suggested that I join you in a revolution."
Sephiroth shook his head slowly. "We are not revolting against Shinra. Sherry and Genesis may have opened our eyes to many atrocities that have been going on for decades, but she has stated often that the company must stand. Her goal is the destruction of the entity that started the current problems, not the downfall of the corporation we work for. Once that is accomplished, I will state that we will discuss changes that need to occur, but I agree that the peoples of the world would suffer if the company were to collapse. We need to approach this with a plan, and not with thoughts of revolution."
Sherry was shocked when Veld showed open confusion. He looked to the man by his side and chuckled when he caught him frowning over at the two people in the corner. Aerith had sat next to Zack, and the young Soldier had an arm around her shoulder to comfort her. Tseng's mask was slipping, and it was apparent he did not like the sight of them being so close. Still, now was not the time for it. Veld called him back to the moment. "Tseng, what are your thoughts?"
The second-in-command's eyes snapped back to his boss, and his irritation was only evident by a slight furrow between his brows when he spoke. "I cannot say what their motivation is, but she told me the same thing you were just told."
Veld sighed again before he looked at the three Soldiers. "I have a file of some rather disturbing things, but not enough to put all the pieces together. Before I decide to take you all back and let the President try you for treason, tell me what is going on. Why did you all leave?"
Genesis cursed. The last thing they needed was to have the Turks become part of the equation. He started to stand, but he was shocked when his wife put a hand on his arm. She smiled up at him. "Tell them."
He gave her a shocked look, but it was Angeal that spoke up. "What? You heard him. We cannot afford to go back yet. There is too much at stake."
Sherry looked back with hard eyes. "Exactly. You need to remember that as much as you had stolen from you, so did they. You are not alone in being screwed over, and if this helps prove that I am not off my rocker, then at the very least, it could provide the motivation for them to at least look the other way long enough for us to accomplish our goal. Besides, we have a common destination, I think."
Veld shocked them all when he chuckled. He was shaking his head when they looked back at him. He was still smiling when he looked back at Sherry, but there was a hard edge to it. "I am not sure there is anything you can share to make me believe you aren't 'off your rocker,' but I may be able to be convinced to not kill you all."
Genesis was not impressed with his humor, but Sephiroth finally nodded. "I will agree. I doubted the things she shared with us at first as well, but I have seen too much to doubt any longer. If all she has shared of our issues were true, then I have no doubt that both your partner and daughter are both alive as well. If telling you of what was done will convince you, then so be it."
It was several hours later, and both of the Turks looked less composed and more disgusted than they had when the tale started, but to their credit, they had only interrupted to ask for clarification when needed. Once the story was finished, Sherry had to convince Genesis to sit once again. Veld turned stormy eyes to her as they settled once more.
"You knew this. You knew all of this. How."
She looked up at her husband, and he glared down at her. "No!"
He was emphatic, and she sighed as she turned back with a sigh. "No explanation I give you would be good enough. You would never believe any of it."
Veld's eyes flashed. "Try me."
Genesis was up in an instant and between them. His fists clenched as he tried to keep the flames inside. "That is one question you will have to be satisfied to never know the answer to." He tilted his head slightly and smirked. "The closest I would be willing to share is that the Goddess Minerva allowed us to meet specifically for this knowledge to be shared, so it must be goddess-given."
Veld huffed a mirthless laugh. "Commander, now is not the time for Loveless."
Aerith shocked them all when she stepped forward. "He isn't talking about Loveless. The planet has marked both Commander Rhapsodos and Sherry. They are both special. They are the only people I have ever seen that are not born Cetra that have been given a task by the planet directly. He isn't lying."
Tseng was on his feet as well. "You are saying the planet told you this?" She nodded and tried not to step back. At least she knew Zack was right behind her, and it made her feel a lot better.
The two Turks shared a long look before Veld stood with a frown. "I need time to think." He started to head out and paused at the door. "You said you were headed to Nibelheim, right?"
His jaw clenched when Sephiroth gave him a nod. "Be prepared to leave in the morning. I will send most of the team back to Midgar, but we will go to Nibelheim. We will see how true this is. If you mean what you say about the company."
Tseng paused on the way out and gave Aerith an unreadable look. For the first time, she felt more than fear when she looked at him. It passed quickly as he shut the door behind them. Genesis sighed and took Sherry's hand. It was time to tell his parents they would be there one more night.
Though the morning had been spent in a tense conversation, or perhaps to spite it, most of the group was able to take their forced leisure time that afternoon and made the most of it. Angeal told Zack and Aerith about the orchards and some of the best places to see, and it was not long before the two of them disappeared. When Reno came in asking about them, the only response he received was that they were running errands and would be back later. Reno only laughed. He knew Tseng was going to love to hear that.
Angeal went back to his family's home. He didn't get to come back to Banora often and wanted to make the most of his time there. He even asked Sephiroth if he wanted to join him for the afternoon, at least. That was an opportunity the General was willing to take if it got him out of the Rhapsodos' home. Not that they were rude, but it was uncomfortable, as the conversation had turned to family matters once again.
As for Genesis' parents, despite their initial reaction to Sherry, they were pleased to have another day to get to know her better. Genesis and his father had gone to one side of the room and were watching the two women as they went through his childhood pictures and shared stories of his younger adventures. As embarrassed as he was, Genesis didn't stop them. He was forced to reevaluate what was meaningful to him and was shocked to find fame fell far below the people currently in the room.
It was much later that night, and Sherry and Genesis had finally settled into each other's arms. Their breathing had evened, and Genesis had almost drifted into sleep when Sherry's voice broke the comfortable silence. "Gen, I know the timing sucks, but there is something I've been meaning to talk to you about."
He sighed as he shifted and turned, so he was facing her instead of her head resting on his shoulder. "Love, you do realize no man likes to hear those words."
She giggled and shook her head, but her expression quickly returned to something more somber. "It's not about us. It's about Angeal and Sephiroth."
He raised a brow at her. "That isn't any better. Hasn't anyone told you it is bad manners to mention other men when you're in your lover's arms? Especially your husband."
She pushed herself up on one arm so she could look down at him with an exasperated expression. "I'm being serious."
He laid back with another sigh before he pulled her closer. It was several seconds before he spoke again. "You think I should tell them what is coming, don't you?"
She had to swallow before she could respond. "Yes, I do. They are your best friends. They need to know. Trust me."
She felt him tense under her and felt tears prick her eyes. She knew what she did probably still hurt him, but she couldn't let her mistake be repeated. She spoke before he could. "Look, I know I didn't tell you, and it was the worst decision I ever made. I thought I would end up staying in that cave, and you would never see it happen, but I should have known things are never that easy. I did tell Kaylan, that was why she was over all the time. She at least had the opportunity to spend my last days with her making memories. You need to give them that chance. Even my brother knew. I mean, he knew as soon as he found out I was a l'cie, but you get the point."
He looked over to her with a frown, and she wanted to look away. She forced herself to face his ire. "You told her and not me?"
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she could speak. "I just told you it was a mistake. I wish there was some way I could go back and change it. If there was, I would tell you too. I was deluding myself to ever believe you would be happy to come back to Gaia and never find out the truth. I'm sorry."
He wiped a single tear away and pulled her closer. "Hush love, it can't be changed now." He paused for so long that Sherry thought the conversation was over. She almost gave in and turned over, but he finally spoke up. "I will think about it if you will tell me what happened. What did you see while you slept that has you so frightened? What can you not tell me?"
Sherry's breath locked in her lungs. That was the last thing she expected to hear. When she finally forced herself to breathe again, her heart started beating so fast she wondered why he hadn't said anything about it yet. She had to force herself to calm before she could even think straight. When she did, she realized the situation was much the same. He deserved to know what to expect.
With another sigh, she nodded against his shoulder. "It was both beautiful and terrible. At least I know what happened to Caius and Noel." He froze when she started talking, but only pulled her closer as she took her time. It was another late night for the two of them as she told him everything she saw during her three and a half months of crystal sleep.
A/N: Oh my goodness, there are just two more chapters left and it is really starting to hit me. We are almost there! GAH! Anyway, I know there is so much sappy, but I am sure you can all understand why. I hope you are all appreciating it. Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!